Class ‘Victory’ Not the End of Gun Owner’s Case

Truth be known,every one of these people has a right to keep and bear arms and if the government was doing its job it would honor and protect that. (Supreme Court website photo)

News of a gun-related Supreme Court opinion from last month is making the rounds via emails and forums with gun owners making breathless assumptions about the scope and significance of the decision. The case is Class v. United States, in which “A federal grand jury indicted petitioner, Rodney Class, for possessing firearms in his locked jeep, which was parked on the grounds of the United States Capitol in Washington, D. C.”

The way the decision is being presented can lead to the assumption that the case is won, victory is complete and gun owners can now ignore such statutes.

“Rod Class Just WON His Supreme Court Case (Federal District Court Gun Case was Richard W. Roberts who decided to ‘retire’ after his frustrating time presiding over Rod’s Gun Case),” a typical summation declares. There are some significant concerns raised in that brief assertion.

First, Justice Roberts has been on “inactive senior status” on the DC District Court since Marc h, 2016, “citing unspecified health issues.” He has since been battling sexual assault allegations.

Second, let’s look at the legal question SCOTUS actually considered:

“Does a guilty plea bar a criminal defendant from later appealing his conviction on the ground that the statute of conviction violates the Constitution?”

It concluded 6 -3 “a guilty plea by itself does not bar that appeal,” with Thomas, Kennedy and Alito dissenting. The order specifically states:

“[W]e hold that Rodney Class may pursue his constitutional claims on direct appeal. The contrary judgment of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”

That’s it.

This is not an end. This is a continuation.

Admittedly, pulling threads on Mr. Class and his legal theories can lead down many divergent paths, some with unequivocal detractors and others with supporters passionately behind him. Going down them and taking “sides” is not the purpose of this piece, which is merely to emphasize what the Supreme Court actually said.

Me, I’m on the “shall not be infringed” side, and pretty much think anyone not threatening others with a gun should have never been arrested in the first place, let alone prosecuted.

We interested gun owners can be excused in many cases for making assumptions and coming to hopeful conclusions.   Most of us aren’t lawyers.  I’m not, and don’t claim any particular legal acumen or insight aside from being able to read. So we owe it to ourselves — and especially to those we hope to inform — to do some basic fact-checking before passing information on as Gospel.

You can find out more about the case on SCOTUSblog and via a Google “News” search.

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David Codrea’s opinions are his own. See “Who speaks for Oath Keepers?”

The post Class ‘Victory’ Not the End of Gun Owner’s Case appeared first on Oath Keepers.

DC Comedian Changed Stance On Guns After Feeling ‘Level Of Helplessness’ During Armed Robbery

Washington DC comedian Tim Young has changed his stance on gun rights after he robbed at gunpoint. Young not only had his cell phone stolen, but he said several people who witnessed the armed robbery did nothing to help him.

Young now has plans to get trained and go through all the requirements necessary so he can carry a gun outside his home. “That level of fear and that level of helplessness that you feel, it doesn’t compare to anything else I’ve felt in my life.”

At the time of the robbery, Young was heading to one of D.C.’s newest hotspots—The Wharf—when his life changed. He was walking down a well-lit section of M Street at about 7:45 p.m. Wednesday when two men approached him—one of them had a gun. When asked how he felt when he saw someone point a gun at him, he replied “scared.”

“Terrified. You know, when I talk to people about this… you’re scared. There’s no man card involved. I was defenseless,” explained Young, who’s a political comedian and host of ‘No Things Considered’ at the D.C. Examiner. The men ran off with his cell phone.

Details: Last night I was robbed at gunpoint by 2 men in DC by the new @TheWharfDC on the way to get coffee at @dolcezzagelato at 7:45pm.
They got my phone and tossed me around while people watched from a half block away. Then they ran off.
Thanks to @DCPoliceDept for your help.

— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) January 18, 2018

Young soon realized that the unwillingness of the complacent population waiting for someone else to help was also a concern. Two people called 911 after the theft had already been over but the “rest of the folks walked off.” “They just stood by and watched as I was yelling for help. ‘Help, I’m being robbed!’ They stood by and watched,” recalled Young. But the attack made Young change his stance on gun ownership.

But in Washington DC, it won’t be easy to go about it in law-abiding and legal manner, in fact, criminals have a much easier time accessing weapons than the good people of the public because they simply skirt the law. The District is one of the toughest places in the country to get a permit to carry a concealed weapon. “When you’re in an instance where there’s a gun is pointed at you and your life is being threatened for your property and no one’s going to help—and now I know that no one’s going to help—I want to feel more secure. I want to feel safe, and I have something to defend myself with,” he said.

Young also said that he thinks the only ones who are against gun ownership, are those who have never been in a situation like he was put in. “I think a lot of those people who are opposed to having a conceal carry permit and being able to own a weapon have never had one pointed directly at them when they have nothing on them,” Young said.

When asked how the situation would have gone differently had he had a gun, Young told Bruce Johnson on Off Script that he probably would have pulled it out to defend himself.

The comedian now has no intention of ever being a soft target for criminals again.

Judge Bans Fmr House Speaker from Being Left Alone With Kids as He’s a ‘Serial Child Molester’

A federal judge in Chicago just banned former Speaker of the House, Dennis Hastert, from being around anyone under the age of 18.

Campus Newspaper Editorial: "Your [White] DNA Is An Abomination"

Authored by Lauren Cooley via The Washington Examiner,

A new opinion piece in a Texas State University student newspaper tells white students, “Your DNA is an Abomination.”

“When I think of all the white people I have ever encountered - whether they’ve been professors, peers, lovers, friend, police officers, et cetera - there is perhaps only a dozen I would consider ‘decent,’” student author Rudy Martinez writes in the University Star.

Without much biological explanation, Martinez informs white readers:

“You were not born white. You became white... You don’t give a damn.”

 

Later in his rant, he calls the police “fascist foot soldiers” and says a “white supremacist inhabits the White House.”

The editorial also suggests that “whiteness in the United States” is a “construct used to perpetuate a system of racist power.”

According to social media posts, Martinez was arrested in Washington, D.C., during President Trump’s inauguration and attempted to crowdfund for legal fees.

Andrew Homann, former TSU student body president, took to Facebook to express his disgust with the blatantly anti-white piece.

“Just when you think the opinion"s columns in the University Star couldn"t get any worse, they publish this masterpiece and exceed my expectations,” Homann posted.

Homann told the Washington Examiner:

“I have no doubt that racism is still alive today. Look no further than this blatantly racist, divisive article posted by the University Star. While I believe Mr. Martinez has every right to express his disparaging world-view, I am appalled that the school paper, funded by tuition and tax dollars, would give this guy a platform to do so.”

The editorial concludes:

“Whiteness will be over because we want it to be. And when it dies, there will be millions of cultural zombies aimlessly wandering across a vastly changed landscape. Ontologically speaking, white death will mean liberation for all…

 

Until then, remember this: I hate you because you shouldn’t exist. You are both the dominant apparatus on the planet and the void in which all other cultures, upon meeting you, die.”

How The Deep State Squeezed America"s Wealth

Authored by Bill Bonner via InternationalMan.com,

Salvator Mundi, said to be by Leonardo da Vinci, is the world’s most expensive painting.

Last Wednesday, at auction, each square inch was valued at nearly $1 million – including the bummed-up, restored, and damaged parts.

The painting may not be da Vinci’s work. Or perhaps, since it has been so heavily doctored up, little remains of his work. And whoever’s work it was must have been having a bad day.

And yet, it sold for over $450 million (including auction-house charges) – a lot of money for such a depressing work of art.

Donald Trump as da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi

The question on the table: Why?

But since we don’t know the answer to that question, we’ll answer another one: How come so many people have so much money?

Made in the Middle

The latest GOP “tax reform” proposals raise questions, too.

Though billed as a “middle-class tax cut,” the middle class gets almost nothing from the proposed plan.

Instead, almost all the benefits go to: (1) business owners, and (2) the rich.

And since the feds are unwilling to cut spending, the middle class ends up with about $2.2 trillion of extra debt, which it will have to reckon with eventually.

We bring up the tax cut because we think it helps explain the painting. Not for nothing are Republicans and the modern Salvator Himself, Donald J. Trump, setting up the middle class for a huge bamboozle.

A train ride we took on Monday – the Acela Express from Baltimore to New York – was subsidized by taxpayers from all over the country.

The train runs from one end of today’s modern economy to the other. It goes from Washington, D.C. – the center of politics – to New York – the center of money.

In between is nothing but poverty and dereliction. There are factories that last made a product in the ’50s. There are workers’ houses almost unchanged in half a century. There are abandoned warehouses… wrecked cars… junk steel… and burly men in orange vests working with machines.

The middle is where real work was done and real things were made, shipped, and distributed; it shows few signs of growth or prosperity.

It is as though a sausage had been squeezed in the middle, driving the rich meat to the ends. In between is lean… and greasy.

How come?

Deep State’s Fingerprints

Every crime scene has many fingerprints on it.

Most are of the innocent.

An aging population, for example, is not exactly something you can do anything about. Technological innovations, too, are largely beyond public policy control.

But there’s one set of fingerprints on the tax cut flimflam… the relative poverty along the Northeast Corridor… and the $450 million painting: the Deep State’s.

The insiders use fake money – the post-1971 dollar – to transfer wealth and power from the people who earn it to themselves.

It is as though they loaded up the train in Newark and Trenton… and shipped everything to Washington.

You earn real money by making real things and providing real services. But fake money is different. You don’t earn it by adding to the world’s wealth.

You get it by subtracting from it… that is, by borrowing from future output.

Real money is not controlled by anyone.

It is earned – freely – in win-win exchanges. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, it ended up in places like East Baltimore and Trenton because they used to make things people wanted.

But fake money takes a different route. It is created by the insiders… and controlled by them. It goes where they want it to go.

No Stimulus

Money always bows to politics; often, it is completely beholden to it.

In Russia, the oligarchs took government-owned property and used it to build their fortunes. In China, state-owned enterprises and favored entrepreneurs get government-backed credit to build their apartments, factories, and shopping malls.

And in America, the fake money is directed to favored sectors by 73,000 pages of the Internal Revenue Code… and 81,000 pages of the Federal Register.

So, it is hardly a surprise that the latest tax proposals favor the Deep State at the expense of the middle class.

Readers may argue that the money “stimulates” the economy… and that it “trickles down” to the common people. If so, there is little evidence of it.

As a percentage of the working-age population, fewer people have jobs today than at any time since the 1970s. Back then, the typical man had to work 900 hours to earn enough to buy a new pickup truck. Today, he has to work 1,500 hours.

Central banks have increased the world’s monetary base (and their own balance sheets) by $20 trillion so far this century.

This money didn’t go to the fellow in the orange vest. Instead, it went to Russian tycoons… Chinese billionaires… art collectors… hedge fund managers… and rich people on both ends of the track.

*  *  *

The Trump team reached out to Bill’s network for advice on the economy. Recently, Bill’s team sent them a field memo on a coming crisis… They’re now releasing it to the general public… (It’s not what you expect.) Click here to read more.

NY Times Reporter Calls for Censorship of Creepy Videos of Joe Biden Inappropriately Touching Kids

A New York Times reporter is claiming that the myriad of images and videos of Joe Biden inappropriately touching kids is "fake news" and should be censored.

"$100,000 Bought Me The Mayor": Shocking Testimony Of De Blasio Donor Revealed

You don"t have to look around too hard to realize that the "political swamp" in America stretches from sea to shining sea and from the highest offices in Washington D.C. to the lowliest of city halls on Main Streets all across the country. 

The latest evidence of such comes to us from New York City where a Mayor Bill de Blasio donor-turned-felon testified in extraordinary detail yesterday that he and his businessman pals wrote the book on city corruption — buying off the Mayor’s Office and the Police Department using brazen pay-to-play tactics.  As the New York Post details today, 34-year-old Jona Rechnitz went into staggering detail in his testimony about political favors he received from City Hall for a small $100,000 donation.

“We’re going to become significant contributors, but we want access,” Jona Rechnitz, 34, testified telling de Blasio fundraiser Ross Offinger after Hizzoner clinched the Democratic nod for mayor in 2013.

 

De Blasio soon paid Rechnitz a visit in his office, the disgraced businessman told jurors in Manhattan federal court.

 

De Blasio — who last year called his relationship with Rechnitz “not a particularly close’’ one — handed the wheeler-dealer his private cellphone number and email address, the witness said.

 

The pair then began chatting “at least” once a week about “different issues in the city” — as Rechnitz funneled about $160,000 to de Blasio’s campaign and pet political projects, said the government witness.

Rechnitz appeared as the star witness in the bribery trial of former city corrections union chief Norman Seabrook. He is accused of bribing Seabrook to get him to invest $20 million in union pension money in a pal’s ailing hedge fund.  But testimony quickly veered toward de Blasio, as Rechnitz was questioned about his ties to the ­administration.

Rechnitz said he had high hopes for the kinds of favors he could potentially receive.

“My mind was limitless,” he said.

 

Business pal “Jeremy [Reichberg] had told me in the days of Giuliani, people made a fortune.

 

“I was focused on making money, getting my name out there, becoming a big player in town. So I figured maybe I’ll buy an office building, and I’ll get the city as a tenant. Maybe I’ll need to get special permits to make residential developments.”

 

Rechnitz and Borough Park businessman Reichberg initially targeted the NYPD in their pay-to-play scheme, doling out gifts and cash to cops in return for favors. Then they set their sights on City Hall, Rechnitz said. “We had the police going for us — and now it was time to get into politics,’’ he testified.

 

Rechnitz started calling Offinger every time he needed a favor — including one involving a friend’s massive water bill and violations Rechnitz faced for a tenant subletting a residence on Airbnb.

Rechnitz even admitted to using "straw donors" to circumvent caps on individual political contributions, a scam which he says De Blasio"s fundraisers were privy to.

In 2014, Rechnitz donated another $102,300 toward a failed effort led by de Blasio to help Democrats wrest control of the state Senate.

 

Rechnitz said some of the dough was from straw donors, which is illegal.

 

“A couple of people in my office, I had them write checks, because I wasn’t allowed to give more than $4,950. And I reimbursed them for those donations,’’ Rechnitz said.

 

Rechnitz said he promised Offinger to hit target donations — and the fundraiser would stop by his office to check on the fundraising.
“I had a lot of pressure from him to bring that amount in,” Rechnitz said of the pledged amount.

But it wasn"t just De Blasio"s office where Rechnitz attempted to buy political favors as he admitted that his pay-to-play scams stretched north to the affluent suburbs of Westchester County and involved County Executive Rob Astorino. 

During his hourlong testimony, Rechnitz said the corruption even extended beyond the Big Apple.

 

Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino gave him and Reich­berg positions as police chaplains in exchange for their ­financial contributions — even though neither of them is a rabbi or a priest, Rechnitz said.

 

“It meant that I got my parking placard,” said Rechnitz, whose firm JSR Capital donated $15,000 to ­Astorino’s campaign in June 2013.

 

He said Astorino once approached him with a picture of a Rolex watch and asked for help in procuring it.

 

“I told him I’m happy to give it to him; he doesn’t have to buy it,” Rechnitz testified.

 

“He told me that he couldn’t take it as a gift. He had to pay something because that wouldn’t be allowed. It was a $7,000 to $10,000 watch, if I remember correctly.”

 

In the end, Astorino agreed to pay $1,000 to $2,000 — and Rechnitz covered the rest, he said.

Not surprisingly, De Blasio"s office dismissed Rechnitz" testimony saying "the administration has never and will never make government decisions based on campaign contributions"...clearly just more attempts to "criminalize behavior that is normal."

24,000 Homicides: Mexico On Pace For Most Violent Year In History As Drug Wars Spiral Out Of Control

As our elected officials in Washington D.C. continue to debate whether or not Trump"s proposed border wall would be an effective deterrent to those looking to come to the U.S. illegally, the one thing that is becoming increasingly clear is that Mexico"s drug wars are spiraling out of control...a fact that the Trump administration will almost certainly leverage as it seeks additional funding for border security.  As PanAmPost notes, Mexico has recorded a staggering 24,000 homicides in 2017 through September with 73% of those murders being tied to organized crime.

2017 might be the most violent year in Mexican history, one NGO claims. Semáforo Delictivo said that, due to the 24,000 homicides between January and September, the year is proving even worse than 2011, when President Felipe Calderón’s war on drugs led to 22,000 homicides.

 

President of the organization, Santiago Roel, said that 73 percent of murders committed in the first eight months of the year were related to organized crime. He said that in 2007, there were 2,828 executions. Now, a decade later, 18,017 have been reported.

 

All high-impact crimes have increased during the current year, including abductions, homicides and grand theft auto at gunpoint. According to Roel, the main cause of violence and corruption is the “Mérida Plan,” which focuses on eradicating drug cartels.

Califica Semáforo Delictivo al 2017 como el peor año en inseguridad en el país pic.twitter.com/64AsbqNKZt

— Marco A.Tlatelpa (@LicMarcoATR) October 24, 2017

Moreover, some 85,000 insured vehicles have been stolen over the past 12 months, with 60% being considered "violent".

According to the Mexican Association of Insurance Institutions, violent car robberies are at their highest point in the country’s history. Between October 2016 and September 2017, 85,943 insured cars have been stolen. Sixty percent of the robberies were violent.

 

Recaredo Arias, the association’s Director General, said that elements of organized crime have been identified in these cases, and that more urgent measures are needed to combat the problem.

 

The states of Guerrero, Sinaloa, Mexico City, Tlaxcala, Puebla, Michoacán, Zacatecas, Morelos, Tabasco and Tamaulipas, have the highest numbers of violent car thefts, he said.

Meanwhile, as Fox News pointed out earlier this week, the drug wars south of the border are seemingly on the precipice of becoming way more sophisticated after 4 men were arrested by federal police carrying a drone equipped with an improvised explosive device wired for remote detonation.

The recent arrest in Mexico of four men carrying a drone equipped with an improvised explosive device "ready to be detonated" has stoked fears drug cartels could soon target the U.S. with bombs from above.

 

Mexican Federal Police arrested four men Oct. 20 in Guanajuanto who were driving a stolen vehicle equipped with a 3DR Solo Quadcopter drone attached to an IED, Small Wars Journal reported. The drone had a range of about half a mile, but modifications would have allowed it to fly farther.

 

State Attorney General Carlos Zamarripa Aguirre confirmed the arrests and the IED attached to the drone.

 

Aguirre said authorities investigated the drone, which contained a “significant amount of explosive and was ready to be detonated from a distance,” AM reported.

 

"It is a drone," he said. "I have just confirmed that it is an explosive device, with a remote detonator and a large explosive charge."

En #Salamanca #Guanajuato la policía asegura a4 sujetos con arma larga, cargadores y un drone con explosivos adheridos. @Eloy_Arellano pic.twitter.com/QR9GUnhbY2

— TalaJalisco Noticias (@TalaNoticias) October 20, 2017

But, it"s probably nothing...certainly nothing that would rise to the level of requiring increased border security measures...

Democrat AGs From 18 States Sue To Keep Obamacare Subsidies, But Who Really Benefits?

It did not take long for democrats to respond to Trump"s executive order halting key subsidies known as Cost-Sharing Reductions or CSRs to insurers.

On Friday, just hours after the executive order was signed, Democratic attorneys general from eighteen states as well as Washington D.C., sued President Trump’s administration to stop him from scrapping a critical component of Obamacare - insurer subsidies that allow millions of low-income people pay medical expenses, even as Trump invited Democratic leaders to negotiate a deal. The states include: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington state.

Trump smiles after signing an Executive Order to make it easier for Americans
to buy bare-bone health insurance plans and circumvent Obamacare rules

The suit follows the administration"s announced plans to end the payments next week; Trump said he would dismantle Obamacare “step by step.” His latest action raised concerns about chaos in insurance markets.  Frustrated by the failure of Republicans who control both houses of Congress to repeal and replace Obamacare, Trump’s action took aim at a critical element of Obama"s signature 2010 law. “As far as the subsidies are concerned, I don’t want to make the insurance companies rich,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “They’re making a fortune by getting that kind of money.”

On Saturday morning, Trump doubled down, tweeting that "Health Insurance stocks, which have gone through the roof during the ObamaCare years, plunged yesterday after I ended their Dems windfall!"

Health Insurance stocks, which have gone through the roof during the ObamaCare years, plunged yesterday after I ended their Dems windfall!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 14, 2017

According to congressional analysts, the subsidies cost $7 billion this year and would rise to $10 billion for 2018.

As a reminder, under Obamacare, marketplace insurance companies are required to lower deductibles and prices for doctor’s visits and other services for many enrollees. Until now, the federal government has picked up the tab, reimbursing insurers about $7 billion this year alone.

As reported previously, Democrats immediately accused Trump of sabotaging the law. The suing AGs will ask the court to force Trump to make the next payment, although legal experts quoted by Reuters said the states were likely to face an uphill battle in court. “[Trump"s] effort to gut these subsidies with no warning or even a plan to contain the fallout is breathtakingly reckless,” New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said. “This is an effort simply to blow up the system.”

The new lawsuit would be separate from a case pending before an appeals court in the District of Columbia in which 16 Democratic state attorneys general are defending the legality of the payments.

If the subsidies vanish, low-income Americans who obtain insurance through Obamacare online marketplaces where insurers can sell policies would face higher insurance premiums and out-of-pocket medical costs. It would particularly impact lower-middle-class families whose incomes are still too high to qualify for certain government assistance.

Trump"s order impacts 10 million people who are enrolled in Obamacare through its online marketplaces, and most receive subsidies. Trump’s action came just weeks before the period starting on Nov. 1 when individuals have to begin enrolling for 2018 insurance coverage through the law’s marketplaces.

* * *

What is perhaps most notable is that according to CMMS data, is who benefits the most: as the map below shows, the share of marketplace enrollees receiving CSRs is the highest in southern - traditionally republican - states.

According to Bloomberg, in 2017, 58% of all marketplace enrollees received cost-sharing reductions (CSRs)—in some areas, almost all enrollees did. Insurers are still required to reduce costs for these roughly seven million enrollees. Without the reimbursement, insurers will have little choice but to hike rates or decide to not offer plans at all.

That said, Trump"s phasing out of CSRs isn"t a surprise to insurers, which had already assumed that CSR payments would end, and raised prices accordingly to cover predicted losses in states that allowed it. Some state insurance departments requested two sets of rates depending on the fate of the subsidies, while others required insurers to assume that CSRs would continue to be paid. Medica Health Plans recently exited North Dakota after state insurance officials there would not accept Medica’s high-rate, no-CSR request.

Furthermore, though insurers have already signed contracts with the federal government for 2018, the end of CSR payments gives them a potential exit clause. With less than three weeks until open enrollment, we’ll be watching closely to see if other companies choose to leave.

There is still a chance for a last minute deal: according to Reuters, Chuck Schumer expressed optimism about chances for a deal with Republicans to continue the subsidy payments. “We’re going to have a very good opportunity to get this done in a bipartisan way” during negotiations in December on broad federal spending legislation, “if we can’t get it done sooner,” Schumer told reporters.

Trump offered an invitation for Democratic leaders to come to the White House, while also lashing out at them. “We’ll negotiate some deal that’s good for everybody. But they’re always a bloc vote against everything. They’re like obstructionists,” Trump told reporters.

Trump, who as a candidate promised to roll back the law formally called the Affordable Care Act, received applause for his latest action during an appearance on Friday before a group of conservative voters. “It’s step by step by step, and that was a very big step yesterday,” Trump said. “And one by one, it’s going to come down, and we’re going to have great healthcare in our country.”

Previously, on Twitter he called Obamacare “a broken mess” that is “imploding,” and referred to the “pet insurance companies” of Democrats.

On Satuday morning, Trump tweeted that he is "very proud of my Executive Order which will allow greatly expanded access and far lower costs for HealthCare. Millions of people benefit!"

Very proud of my Executive Order which will allow greatly expanded access and far lower costs for HealthCare. Millions of people benefit!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 14, 2017

How Puerto Rico Can Rebuild And Become The Hong Kong Of The West

Authored by Benjamin Dierker via The Foundation for Economic Education,

The establishment of an Economic Freedom Zone, would set off an explosion of growth.

After a particularly devastating hurricane season, Puerto Rico has an uncertain future. Already mismanaged and saddled with debt, the island territory now faces the virtually insurmountable task of rebuilding its infrastructure and economy. But amidst the rubble and heartache lies one of the greatest opportunities in the modern era not just to rebuild, but to reimagine the possibilities for economic and political freedom.

Two simple but powerful steps taken by Congress could hasten recovery and redefine the trajectory of the island’s future.

First, the United States should assume all of Puerto Rico’s outstanding bond debt.

Second, in exchange for debt assumption, the federal government should establish the island as an Economic Freedom Zone.

Within a year, these reforms would help rebuild Puerto Rico; within a decade, they could rebuild our conception of the free market in the Western Hemisphere.

It is important to note that hurricane destruction has not created economic gain by boosting demand for construction. This broken-window view fundamentally misunderstands the nature of this potential. Nor should this plan come at the expense of traditional disaster relief. Before infrastructure can be rebuilt, urgent human needs must be met with outside aid.

But rather than pursue traditional recovery with an eye toward returning to business as usual, this proposal seeks to fundamentally remake Puerto Rico into a modern and dynamic economy built to match and surpass any on earth.

Puerto Rico"s Debt

The first step would wipe the slate clean to rebuild from a neutral position. The assumption of Puerto Rico’s debt would be both a relief effort aimed at freeing the local government’s limited resources and a signal to the world of our intentions to further the cause of freedom. Partly borne of mismanagement and partly of miscalculated federal policies, the territory’s debt can at least partially be attributed to the ambiguity of its relationship to the United States. Despite the political challenge of assuming the debt with a $20 trillion debt already on our books, absorbing the $74 billion debt would pay immediate dividends. Puerto Ricans, our fellow American citizens, would have immediate relief, and the freed cash flow would allow them to focus solely on rebuilding the island"s infrastructure.

The federal government’s assumption of a constituent government"s debt would follow historical precedent. As part of his First Report on the Public Credit, and later codified by the Funding Act of 1790, Alexander Hamilton proposed the assumption of state debts in order to both strengthen the financial position of the union and that of the individual states – allowing them each to lower their taxes and establish themselves on equal footing at the outset of our nationhood.

Our fledgling nation took on debt equal to 10 percent of our entire domestic product – a massive undertaking brought forth by visionary leaders. This set up the new federal government to be an instantly credible player on the world stage and made the phrase “backed by the full faith and credit of the United States” the closest thing to a guarantee as can be found in global finance more that 200 years later.

By comparison, assumption of Puerto Rico’s debt by the U.S. in 2017 would be a mere 0.4 percent of our more than $19 trillion economy, a greater political consideration than fiscal. As with the states in 18th century America, 21st century Puerto Rico would be in position to lower its taxes and the U.S. would strengthen its ability to back the reborn Puerto Rico.

Economic Freedom

The second step of the proposal is the establishment of an Economic Freedom Zone, which would set off an explosion of growth. The zone would flatten or suspend numerous taxes and regulations, prompting an immediate increase in productivity. The less restricted environment with more available resources would open the doors to investment and real estate development. Velocity of money would increase at the same time as new money is infused and invested into the economy, as relatively wealthier locals combining with aide workers, construction crews, and business investors spend on the island economy.

Suspending or streamlining environmental regulations would allow expedited construction on essential infrastructure projects, and needless economic hindrances like the Jones Act would finally be dissolved. Serving as a case study on microeconomics, the federal minimum wage would be suspended to allow private actors to negotiate their wages during the rebuilding effort. The government would no longer rob the worker of his bargaining power by mandating a price floor on labor.

Taking inspiration from Hong Kong and Singapore, governance from a lean, honest, and efficient local government, combined with openness to international investment and trade, will allow Puerto Rico to capture business that would be regulated away in the States – if they were allowed to get off the ground at all.

Proximity to the mainland provides access to wealth and high skill, while the separation and economic autonomy make it a distinctly productive business zone. The island is situated in the Caribbean Sea with access to multiple markets including developed and emerging economies and established trade routes. Starting from scratch, it could build a high tech integrated electrical grid and modernized ports, and with low taxes and regulations, attract highly skilled technical workers. At every level, innovation would dominate as free enterprise sets the agenda. Puerto Rico would essentially be liberated from the U.S. tax and regulatory burdens but protected by its legal system to secure property rights and thwart corruption, fraud, and cronyism.

With government taking a backseat, free markets would liberate the people of Puerto Rico, restoring dignity alongside material wealth. Allowing local government to make local decisions rather than being subject rules from Washington, D.C. would give control to those who know the island best. Favoring economic freedom to government regulation, resources would go to their highest valued use.

Political Support

This proposal would gather support from both sides of the aisle in Congress. To begin, there is a bipartisan desire to help our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico after the destruction of their economy and infrastructure. Democrats in Congress would rally around debt assumption as relief, while Republicans would be eager to tap the potential of free market reforms. Wrapped up as a hurricane recovery package, the timing is right.

On the mainland, we value the freedom of federalism, which allows different states to have wildly different policies and experiences. Just as states are the laboratories of democracy, Puerto Rico is poised to be a laboratory of both democracy and economic vitality. As the federal government has increasingly encroached on areas that were once the province of the states, much of the policy in America has become homogenized. Reestablishing the primacy of federalism to allow Puerto Rico to pursue low-regulation, fast-growth policies would provide a small-scale proving ground for the county to relearn what made America so successful.

In foreign policy terms, this would extend American exceptionalism and economics toward the Latin American world. With so much misguided focus on socialism and government control, the time has never been more critical to demonstrate the power of the free market and the value of freedom.

Rather than focusing on statehood or representation, this proposal frames Puerto Rico as an economic arena with the only priority being the prosperity of its people. In time, the politics that govern classification can be settled. The autonomy gained from the Economic Freedom Zone would simultaneously allow Puerto Ricans to forge a political identity and remain protected as U.S. citizens. The reforms will lift the citizens out of poverty, help reconcile pension obligations, provide a path for sustainable growth, and encourage local government stewardship that will render many of the statehood challenges moot.

Puerto Rico Could Be the Hong Kong of the West

Puerto Rico would become a magnet for investment with money pouring in from around the globe. As an Economic Freedom Zone, the local workforce would see a drastic rise in standard of living, while highly skilled and competitive human capital would expand economic potential. The unrestrained economic power of these reforms would bolster the political freedom of the island. Not only would Puerto Ricans be free from their current destitution, but they would get a taste of genuine political and economic freedom to truly engage with the world.

Having an economic power center so close to our shores would be a boon to our economy and would make theirs the envy of the world. Tourism, technology, luxury, and more would redefine Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico is needlessly impoverished, and we have a unique opportunity to reverse course, improving the lives of its residents while also broadcasting the appeal of economic liberty to the world.

By restoring power to its people and unleashing the unbridled force of free market entrepreneurial capitalism, Puerto Rico will become a beacon of freedom and prosperity unparalleled in the Western Hemisphere. The invisible hand is knocking at the door. All it will take is for the federal government to open the door and get out of the way.

Real Estate Company Is Replacing Agents With Robots

With robots slowly but surely taking over every semi-skilled occupation including in a bizarre development, the production of cocaine which may well unleash the era of cocaine deflation upon Wall Street (a welcome development in light of ever-shrinking bonuses), a new - and familiar - industry has emerged as the robots" next target. According to Newsday, a California real estate technology company that aims to lower the cost of home-selling by using robots and “big data” instead of commission-based real estate agents has recently opened a Long Island office.

The latest potential source of tech-inspired deflation, REX Real Estate Exchange, which charges a selling commission of only 2% instead of the usual 5 to 6%, launched its Long Island operation this summer. The Los Angeles-based company expects to start listing New York-area homes on its website, rexchange.com in the near-term.

Traditional real estate fees “are just crazy high compared with every other industry in the United States,” said Jack Ryan, Rex’s CEO and a former partner at Goldman Sachs. Decades ago, investment brokerages charged 12 cents a share for stock trades, but now they charge less than a penny, he said. By lowering real estate fees, he said, his company is “doing the same thing with residential real estate.” In the process - if successful - it will also put countless people out of work.

According to Newsday, REX, which has raised $16 million from investors, is not the only company seeking to upend the residential real estate sales model. Another new entrant to the housing market is EasyKnock, a Sag Harbor startup that is rolling out a website designed to match sellers with buyers without the intervention of brokers. The company, which has raised $1.2 million in venture capital and plans to go live at any moment, has lowered commissions even more, to just 1.5% and does not list homes on the Multiple Listing Service of Long Island, said co-founder and chief executive Jarred Kessler. The MLS is a way for brokers to share information about homes for sale.

“We’re a broker-free ecosystem,” Kessler said.

Among national brokerages, Seattle-based Redfin charges sellers a 1.5 percent listing fee — or 1 percent in a few communities, including Washington, D.C. — though unlike REX and EasyKnock, it also pays a commission to the buyer’s agent.

In a typical home sale, the commission gets split between the seller’s and buyer’s brokerages. If a home sells for $300,000 and the seller pays a 6 percent commission divided equally, each brokerage receives $9,000 and pays out a portion of that to the agents.

Like any threatened ecosystem, long Island real estate brokers expressed skepticism about the tech-focused companies’ prospects for success. “Discount brokers have attempted to be around for many, many years, and they just fall away because it is important to provide good personal services to the seller and to the buyer,” said Joe Moshé, owner of Plainview-based Charles Rutenberg Realty.

To be sure, few home sellers choose to bypass agents. Last year and in 2015, 89 percent of home sellers used a real estate agent, the highest share since at least 1981, said Adam DeSanctis, a spokesman for the National Association of Realtors.

Buyers typically start their search online, he said, “but at the end of the day, most people are still relying on the value a real estate agent provides.”

That could change, however,  once sellers and buyers discover how much they could save, REX’s Ryan said. For instance, he said, if the seller or buyer of a $500,000 home saves 3 percent on real estate brokerage fees, that adds up to $15,000.

Despite the discount fees, REX will provide full service, he said. The company expects to employ 10 licensed, salaried real estate agents here by the end of the year, and 50 by next year, Ryan said. The agents will guide buyers and sellers through listing and marketing a home and negotiating a sale, but the most sophisticated work will be done by computers, he said.

REX finds likely buyers by doing rigorous analysis of consumers’ income, location, spending habits and other data, and it reaches them through targeted ads on social media and other sites, Ryan said. The company even tracks potential buyers’ browsing on its website, so if a buyer spends time checking out one home’s pool and its zoned schools, that buyer will get more ads for homes with pools and information about schools, he said.

“It’s working brilliantly in southern California,” where the company closed 30 home sales in June, he said.

The company does not list homes on services such as the MLS. Instead, Ryan said, it uses ads and listings on websites such as Zillow.

But rather than relying on commission-based agents to provide information about homes, it is testing a tabletlike “robot” named REX that will be stationed in listed homes, programmed to answer some 75 typical questions. The Alexa-like tabletop box can answer nearly any question a prospective buyer lobs in its direction — from when the roof was last repaired to where the nearest Starbucks is.  Since in its current generation, Rex can’t do it all, a human rep is also on site, greeting potential buyers. Rex also employs licensed brokers and salespersons but is paying them salaries rather than commissions.

The AI robot may very well appeal to millennials as they grow to house-buying age. Roughly 8% of sales in 2016 were from For Sale By Owner sites, a National Association of Realtors study found, while 89 percent of the sellers used a broker. Rex is trying to increase that 8 percent number by being super smart. Its research has found that the average buyer for a $500,000 home lives within 12 miles and for a $1 million home lives within 18 miles. But for a $50 million home, the buyer is global and already owns a home worth at least $10 million.

One California home seller said REX provided better service than the traditional agents he had used before in a dozen or so transactions.

Bob Simpson, 62, of Ventura, agreed to be interviewed by Newsday at the request of REX.

Simpson said he liked that his for-sale sign listed a webpage dedicated to his own home, instead of to a brokerage’s website, and that he always got quick responses to his questions.

Moreover, he said, when his home sold for $518,000, “we saved $21,000 by using REX. That’s indelibly inscribed in my head.”

One of REX’s Long Island-based agents, Bryan Starck, 22, who moved from California to Great Neck two months ago, said he has met with 10 to 15 buyers so far. The lower fee “makes a ton of sense” to sellers, and so does the use of technology to identify buyers, Starck said.

“You used to really need a traditional agent to buy a home or sell a home,” Starck said. But now, he said, “there’s an unprecedented amount of information available . . . I really do think this is going to be the company to change the industry.”

If he is right, then your next real estate agent may look like this.

Kass: "Investors Seemingly Learned Nothing From History"

Authored by Doug Kass via RealInvestmentAdvice.com,

“‘A bull market is like sex. It feels best just before it ends."” – Warren Buffett

Excuse me for being redundant, but the following Jim Rogers quote that I posted yesterday underscores Mark Twain’s famous quote that “history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes”:

“When things are going right, we all need a 26-year-old. There’s nothing better than a 26-year-old in a great bull market especially in a bubble. They’re fearless. They don’t know. It will never end. They will tell you why it will never end. They know that it cannot end and will never end. So in the bull market, you’ve got to have a 26-year-old. But when they end you don’t want the 26-year-old around… they make a lot of money. They don’t know why they made money. So they don’t know why they lose money. They don’t know what happened.“ -Jim Rogers on Realvision

Back in 1997 I wrote this editorial in the Other Voices section of Barron’s that echoed Rogers’ recent quote.

In the difficult business of piling up a fortune everyone has an infallible strategy and a set of assumptions, technical and./or fundamental, that leads them to investment nirvana.

But it is never easy. The rules change and so do the players.

From my perch I steadily have listened to the irrational being rationalized as the bulls declare, with straight-faced confidence, that valuations in the 95% decile should be ignored because a synchronized global expansion will “earn out” from these extended metrics.

This confidence is expressed despite a plethora of possible adverse outcomes, particularly in the interconnected world in which we live.

The positive outcome of steadily expanding global growth coupled with low inflation and equally low interest rates may yet prove to become reality. Geopolitical friction may subside. Political partisanship in Washington, D.C, may succumb to cooperation, leading to the initiation of tax and regulatory reform and the repatriation of overseas corporate cash. The Orange Swan may wake up and reject the extreme influences of the Republican right. Trump may stop threatening a war with North Korea in a ping-pong of outrageous and provocative tweets. The rate of growth in real GDP may expand to 3% and we may be in another new paradigm of uninterrupted growth. S&P profits will grow at a rate of 8% annually, ad infinitum. Natural disasters will be a thing of the past and global warming concerns are nonsensical. The North Korean Rocket Man may be all hat and no cattle. The proliferation of ETFs, which in number now exceed the number of listed equity securities, and the ever-present quant strategies that are ignorant of fundamentals may not yield a “flash crash,” easily accommodating any selling waves. Every dip will continue to be bought. And interest rates and inflation may be in a permanent stage of adolescence.

But, I am blinded by a sense of history, and the belief that few of the conditions in the last paragraph are likely to be met.

In our flat, interconnected and network world, the odds favor less stability over more stability.

To this observer the markets’ dominos are exhibiting signs of falling around all over — in consumer packaged goods, in (T)FANG, in retail and elsewhere. Yet the selective memory of the talking heads in the business media emphasize the narrowing field of outperforming stocks (e.g., Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) and Deere & Co. (DE) ) that have been working, failing to see those falling dominoes around them.

Fear and Doubt Have Left Wall Street

The ever-present risk to the contrarian is that, over the short term, the past literally is repetitive and the crowd typically outsmarts the remnant. Tuesdays always follow Mondays and Wednesdays follow Tuesdays. But as we extend time cycles, history seems to move from repeating itself to rhyming with the past.

History undoubtedly teaches lessons about investment, but it does not say which lesson to apply when. “Find value, always” is as good a precept as any, but value is subjective and its definition is liable to change. In highly speculative markets, value means, to most, “it is going up.”

Stay abreast because in bull markets there is rarely a clear demarcation between progress and fantasy. I remain of the strong belief that we are in a Bull Market in Complacency that likely ends poorly and that has reduced the upside and has expanded the potential market downside.

To the bullish cabal the market “feels” great now (for, as Warren Buffett says, it is because, like sex, if feels best at or near the end), but after an eight-year bull market it may be time to consider the investment contrary. As James Surowiecki wrote in “The Wisdom of Crowds”:

“Diversity and independence are important because the best collective decisions are the product of disagreement and contest, not consensus or compromise.”

Investment returns likely have been pulled forward by central bank liquidity, low interest rates and passive investing. However, over the next five years returns may be substandard at best, but more likely, negative. At worse, we face an incipient bear market.

As expressed in yesterday’s opener, the nature of and players in the investment business have changed. This helps to explain the Teflon nature of the S&P 500 Index.

But as Grandma Koufax used to say, “my matzah brei doesn’t grow to the sky,” and every day we move closer to a Minsky Moment.

The salutary environment perceived by many today may be transitory and weak in foundation.

The potential political, geopolitical, economic and market outcomes are many, and a clear and market-friendly path is not certain.

Bottom Line

The name of the game is money. It was Lord Keynes who first saw that the handling of it is a game. Most discussions of money and investing speak only of economics and statistics, but that’s only a part of the game. The other part is people, individually and together, the emotional investor and the irrational crowd.

And it again might be the market scene that is often (as it was in 2000 and 2007) seen only in kids’ eyes or in the eyes of older investors who behave like 26-year-olds at or near the end of every significant bull market cycle:

“‘See, see,’ said the Great Winfield. ‘The flow of the seasons ! Life begins again! It’s marvelous! It’s like having a son! My boys! My kids!"” -Adam Smith, “The Money Game”

Do some reading over the weekend as it appears that the only thing many investors have learned from history is that they haven’t learned from history.

Is It Racist? Maryland Officials Dare To Dis-Allow Non-Citizens From Voting

In the land of the free, shouldn"t any and every person capable of fogging a mirror (or not in some cases) and arriving at a polling station be able to vote for their favorite benefits-provider-in-chief? It appears officials in College Park, Maryland believe not as the city"s town council voted "outrageously" to not allow non-citizens to vote in local elections.

As The Hill reports, the charter amendment - allowing undocumented immigrants, green-card holders, and immigrants with student visas to vote in municipal elections - was thought to have passed on Tuesday.

However, while the council voted in favor of the proposal by a 4-3 margin, a change to the city"s charter in June requires changes receive at least six affirmative votes, the city explained in a press release Friday night.

College Park Mayor Patrick Wojahn shared the update Friday night on Facebook, saying

"It is with a considerable degree of embarrassment and regret that I share this announcement from the city regarding the proposed charter resolution to allow voting by non-citizens in College Park.

I accept my fair share of responsibility for not realizing the impact of recent charter amendments on this issue."

City officials are now notifying College Park residents about the failure of the measure, following a heated exchange between council members and citizens at City Hall on Tuesday night.

Several other cities in Maryland allow for non-citizens to vote in local elections, including the nearby Takoma Park and Hyattsville, outside of Washington, D.C.

The reactions by residents of the city to the mayor"s apology for not passing this legislation to allow any Tom, Dick, or Harriet to vote perfectly summarizes the gaping divide in America today...

Brigitte Schmidt - We still are proud of you Patrick Wojahn. We know you care deeply about all of your residents.

Sarah Shellman - That stinks. It"s a great, progressive idea, and I hope this seed you"ve planted bears fruit in the future.

Lisa Lindsley - It"s an idea whose time is coming, and you are showing great leadership!

Or...

Gabriel Winebrenner - You will now get voted out this November. Along with the district council members that aligned themselves with that orchestrated attempt to pass this insanity against the voters of College Park. You stood in the way of the voters being able to decide this November w/ a simple referendum to do so this November only because it would most likely not pass. This charter amendment should have never been proposed in the first place.

Christopher Todd - Just curious as to how allowing illegal citizens to vote is a good idea at any level? It"s a law that"s been around for quite some time and you are opening doors you may not want open in the long term. Very slippery slope. I don"t see Mexico setting up sanctuary cities or allowing illegals to vote there. No, they go to jail. But good luck with all that.

Jaime Vazquez - Our Lawless City Council: Foisted by their own Idealogue Petard.

What next? Mandatory drug tests for jobless claim beneficiaries? Demands that food stamp recipients make attempts to find gainful employment?

The Real Estate Market, Explained In One Graph

The U.S. housing market has now surpassed its pre-recession peak by 4.3%. This is great news for the economy, although there’s still an ongoing debate about the possibility of another housing crash.

Whatever you believe about real estate, there’s no doubt that prices depend on where you live. HowMuch.net created a new visualization to demonstrate what this looks like...

According to Zillow,  the median price for a house is $200,400, up 7.4% over last year.

So, naturally, how big of a house can you afford with a mortgage of $200,400? Our visualization answers this question on a sliding color-coded scale. We broke each state into a grid with 25 boxes, representing 2,500 square feet—that’s a large home with at least 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. Green boxes indicate affordability and orange and red boxes mean it’s expensive. We then graphed how much house you can purchase with exactly $200,400.

The results highlight the enormous differences between housing values in the U.S. It is all about location, location, location.

In the Hoosier State, your $200k mortgage can purchase 2,330-sq. ft., but in Washington D.C. only 497 sq. ft. That’s the difference between a large home and a cramped studio apartment.

The fact that Washington D.C. boasts the most expensive housing market in the coutry should come as no surprise to observers of the economy in the aftermath of the recession. While real estate market crashed in other metro areas, it kept rising in Washington D.C. The nation’s capital has actually started to come back down to Earth, but the area is still an outlier. If you can get a high-paying job in the government, chances are that you’ll need to find a roommate to make ends meet.

Except for Ohio, rural states without large cities dominate the list of affordability. The five most affordable states to purchase a home for a mortgage of $200,400:

1. Indiana - 2,330 sq. ft.

2. Arkansas - 2,227 sq. ft.

3. Mississippi  - 2,277 sq. ft.

4. West Virginia - 2,252 sq. ft.

5. Ohio - 2,252 sq. ft. 

The five most unaffordable states highlight pockets of high economic growth in the U.S. (like Colorado) or a restriction in housing availability (like Hawaii, which is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean!).

1. Washington D.C. - 403 sq. ft.

2. Hawaii - 418 sq. ft.

3. California - 713 sq. ft.

4. Massachusetts - 887 sq. ft.

5. Colorado - 982 sq. ft.

Think about the inequality here: The fourth most unaffordable state in the country (Massachusetts) is still more than twice as affordable as Washington D.C. and Hawaii.

Whether you are buying a home or just renting, chances are you know that the price you pay can vary from neighborhood to neighborhood. If you ever think you are paying too much, just know that someone else in Washington D.C. is paying a heck of lot more for a smaller home.

Data: Table 1.1 

Trump Ends DACA: Students, Immigration Supporters, Illegals Take To The Streets

By Stock Board Asset

High school students, illegals, and immigration supporters poured into streets today, after the Trump administration ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Over the past 5-years, the program has protected nearly 800,000 young undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children. The Department of Homeland Security will stop processing new application as soon as today.

Per Attorney General Jeff Sessions,

“I am here today to announce that the program known as DACA that was effectuated under the Obama administration is being rescinded,”

Trump is continuing his promise of ‘America First’ agenda. This is what he had to say,

“As I’ve said before, we will resolve the DACA issue with heart and compassion — but through the lawful Democratic process — while at the same time ensuring that any immigration reform we adopt provides enduring benefits for the American citizens we were elected to serve.We must also have heart and compassion for unemployed, struggling and forgotten Americans.”

To start the chaos, high school students in Denver walked out of class this afternoon in protest of Trump’s decision to end Obama"s executive action.

This fight is not over.

Students in Denver, CO, staged a walkout to protest the Trump administration’s decision to rescind #DACA: pic.twitter.com/h6efrhXrKx

— Splinter (@splinter_news) September 5, 2017

More unsupervised high school students walking out of class in Phoenix, Arizona.

Students in Phoenix stage a walkout to #DefendDACA and demand police be removed from campus. Stay in school kids! #EndDACA pic.twitter.com/D59EyRyv5E

— Dissident Patriot ? (@disspat) September 5, 2017

Students from Rio Grande High School participating in the ‘Statewide student Walkout’ in New Mexico.

over 100 students from Rio Grande HS participated in "Statewide Student Walkout" for #DACA in #NM #HERETOSTAY #nmpol #DefendDACA pic.twitter.com/18R51HCHvk

— Isaac J De Luna (@IsaacJDeLuna1) September 5, 2017

HS students in Tucson, Arizona walking out of class this afternoon.

BREAKING: High school students in #Tucson stage walkout over #DACA decision >> https://t.co/Qnbwdhcs4U pic.twitter.com/6ZSEO98XRb

— TucsonNewsNow (@TucsonNewsNow) September 5, 2017

Separate from the high school students. Hundreds of protestors from across the tri-state were demonstrating at Trump Tower and Washington, D.C., after the Trump administration announced the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program will be rescinded. Protestors were arrested in front of Trump Tower in two different rounds of sit-ins.

Video. DACA recipients and allies arrested. Trump Tower. @NBCNewYork pic.twitter.com/UooL6K4V6Z

— Erica Byfield (@EricaByfield4NY) September 5, 2017

Here is the scene from Trump’s hotel in Washington, D.C….

DACA protestors screaming in Spanish at Trump hotel DC pic.twitter.com/UfvaumKKeX

— Jack Posobiec ???????? (@JackPosobiec) September 5, 2017

Demonstrators seen at the White House protesting Trump’s decision to rescind DACA.

#BREAKING @FOX5DC: Demonstrators now marching at the White House denouncing #Trump administration"s ending of #DACA pic.twitter.com/VKnkxjtPh2

— Tom Fitzgerald (@FitzFox5DC) September 5, 2017

Dreamers chant “YesWeCan” outside D.C. ICE Government building.

Dreamers chant #YesWeCan outside @ICEgov building during #DACA protest in DC pic.twitter.com/DpXUapP3rI

— Ethan Williams (@ethan_tedw) September 5, 2017

Finally, for all the outpouring of anger at Trump for ending a Trump-era executive order, here is Senate Democrat Dianne Feinstein who on Tuesday told MSNBC’s “MTP Daily"  that DACA is on shaky legal ground and that is why Congress needs to pass a law.

After Chuck Todd asked, “Do you think — is DACA — was DACA legal?” Feinstein answered, “DACA was executive order. Legal is the law of passage of something. I — you know, there are ten attorneys general that are prepared to sue. I don’t want to get into that. The point is, DACA is here. And we’ve got 800,000 young people –.”

Todd then cut in: "Your answer indicates, though, that it’s on shaky legal ground."

Feinstein confirmed, "It is. That’s why we need to pass a law, and we should do it."

Trump Admin Orders Russia To Shutter Consulate, Annexes In The U.S.

Update: Russia"s response was quick:

• LAVROV TELLS TILLERSON HE REGRETS ESCALATION OF TENSIONS


• LAVROV: RUSSIA TO STUDY U.S. MEASURES AGAINST CONSULATES: RIA

* * *

Tit for tat.

Exactly one month after Vladimir Putin ordered the expulsion of 755 US diplomats from Russia, as well as the seizure of two diplomatic compounds used by the US in Russia on July 31, moments ago the US State Department announced that "in the spirit of parity invoked by the Russians", the US has ordered the Russian government to close its San Francisco consulate, a chancery annex in Washington and a consular annex in New York City.

Russian consul general in SF

Russia was given two days, or until September 2, to complete the closures.

The State Department explains that "with this action both countries will remain with three consulates each."

And, in the spirit of "generosity", the US added that "while there will continue to be a disparity in the number of diplomatic and consular annexes, we have chosen to allow the Russian Government to maintain some of its annexes in an effort to arrest the downward spiral in our relationship."

Full statement below:

Achieving Parity in Diplomatic Missions

The United States has fully implemented the decision by the Government of the Russian Federation to reduce the size of our mission in Russia. We believe this action was unwarranted and detrimental to the overall relationship between our countries.

In the spirit of parity invoked by the Russians, we are requiring the Russian Government to close its Consul. General in San Francisco, a chancery annex in Washington, D.C., and a consular annex in New York City. These closures will need to be accomplished by September 2.

With this action both countries will remain with three consulates each. While there will continue to be a disparity in the number of diplomatic and consular annexes, we have chosen to allow the Russian Government to maintain some of its annexes in an effort to arrest the downward spiral in our relationship.

The United States hopes that, having moved toward the Russian Federation"s desire for parity, we can avoid further retaliatory actions by both sides and move forward to achieve the stated goal of both of our presidents: improved relations between our two countries and increased cooperation on areas of mutual concern. The United States is prepared to take further action as necessary and as warranted.

Whether in the "full spirit of parity" Russia will next dump a few thousand soliders in nations neighboring the US, we don"t know, but we are confident that an escalating Russian response to this latest US move is inevitable and imminent.

‘He’s Probably Gay!’ – DC Cops Mock Burglary Victim as They Dance Around on Video

Washington DC — When a house alarm went off in Southeast Washington, signaling that it had been burglarized for the second time in three weeks, police officers arrived at the scene, but failed to investigate. They returned again later after a concerned neighbor requested their service, and the security footage is making the homeowner wish that they had never stepped foot in his house.

“I was appalled. I was frantic because I was out of the country,” Clarence Williams said, describing his reaction when his alarm company contacted him about the second break-in at his house in less than a month. “[It was] the same scenario as last time, broke the glass and then once he shattered the glass he just pulled the glass out and was able to walk right in.”

Williams was hoping he could trust the police officers responding to the burglary call to take care of things while he was away, but he told Fox 5 DC that he was shocked to find that the officers did not even check the back door where the burglar broke the glass to enter the home.

“They came, knocked on the door, talked to a few people who were outside and left. My house sat open for eight hours,” he said.

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Williams also told NBC Washington that when the officers spoke to his neighbors about the burglary, they made comments such as, “Well, what do you expect? You live in Southeast.”

After a concerned neighbor called police later that day to report the broken glass on the backdoor that the original officers failed to investigate, the department sent out officers once again.

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When Williams reviewed the footage from his security camera, he was shocked to find two police officers standing in his living room, laughing as they read off a list of his belongings that were reported, and joking about his sexuality.

“Armani, Dolce and Gabbana—he’s probably gay,” a male officer says, laughing.

A few minutes later, a female officer can be seen dancing in the same crime scene she is supposed to be investigating.

“It’s very troubling and disgusting and I think it’s a testament to the lack of training the police are receiving,” Williams said. “I believe if they were receiving the proper training things like this wouldn’t happen and they wouldn’t just do things like this in the midst of a crime scene.”

In response to the incident, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said, “I don’t approve of the language that was used or the conduct of our officers.”

In a statement to NBC Washington, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police Department said the two officers featured in the security footage “have been placed on non-contact status for misconduct,” and an internal investigation is ongoing.

“Their behavior is not representative of the ‘we are here to help’ environment we work tirelessly to uphold on a daily basis for residents and visitors of D.C.,” the spokesperson said. “We remain committed to providing positive interactions with all and hold the trust of the community in high regards.”

While Williams said that the female officer later visited his home and personally apologized, he noted that he wanted to release the video of the officers’ actions in hopes that others would learn from their mistakes.

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“We’ve got police out here, dancing in my home and acting as if this is a joke and this is serious. This is my life,” Williams said.

Unfortunately, cases such as this one are not isolated incidents. From officers blaming the neighborhood for the break-in, to failing to investigate, to making fun of a victim at a crime scene, it remains to be seen whether the presence of clear video footage will ensure that the offending officers are held accountable for their actions.