The Indian Panorama

Tag: United States Politics

 

  POLITICS & POLICY  

  • RHC Presents Trump as Lord Vishnu

    RHC Presents Trump as Lord Vishnu

    At the RHC event, Trump on Lotus as he is the incarnation of Lord Vishnu, Hillary and Sonia Gandhi attacking Adani’s $32,000 crore marketing product PM Narendra Modi, were put up by Vincent Bruno of “Hindus For Trump”, an unregistered fringe group with practically no membership!

    Vincent is an American Christian converted to Hinduism, initially I thought he is the face of LGTB Hindu community but now it looks like he is trying to replace aging Francois Gautier, a Frenchman living in India who is earning his bread & butter since 1971 by instigating Hindus how they have been brutally killed by Muslim rulers for centuries.

    Basically he is selling hate against Muslims to ignorant Hindus in the name of singing glory of Hinduism. It is very surprising that Hindus could not find an able Hindu among almost 1 Billion Hindus to guide them about their own religion or who can correctly interpret the famous Holy Hindu Texts that has everything in them to understand Hinduism. It is very surprising why no Hindu organization in USA or India has raised objections to Trump on Lotus.

    pic-2-hillary-sonia-attacking-modiThe RHC event aka Music Masti & Dance aka Trump event on Saturday Oct. 15, 2016 at Raritan Center, Edison, NJ was a garbage event. The organizers aka Shalabh “Shalli” Kumar since mid-September has been changing the event concept by the hour and their current flier has no picture of Trump as well as no mention of charity event for Kashmiri Hindus & Bangladeshi Hindus. Initially it was all day family affair from 12 noon to 11 PM at PNC center on Sep 24, 2016 and then moved to Oct. 15, 2016 at the same venue and finally took place at a scaled down version at Raritan Center, Edison, NJ.

    Right from day one they had no clarity what they intended to do. They had Sri Ravishankar as main attraction in the name of Hinduism. Main attraction for entertainment section was Shahid Kapoor from Bollywood & Ram Charan from South and exhibition on Kashmiri Pundits as well as history of Hinduism. Hinduism attraction Sri Ravishankar and Hollywood attraction Shahid Kapoor and Ram Charan were missing at Raritan. It looks like the organizers brought in C grade dancers from India that is the reason they added Ras Garba! These kinds of dancers are very much available in tri-state area and one does not have to import them from India.

    Shalabh “Shalli” Kumar, a self-centered, self-proclaimed savior of Hinduism has been bragging to save Kashmiri & Bangladeshi Hindus and all the time praising his own achievements and declaring he will donate $1 million to them. When approached for help for a NJ Hindu boy, victim of prosecutorial misconduct, racial bias and fabricated charges this man ran away.

    NJ govt. under pressure from Jewish leaders had put at that time 19-year old Hindu boy since April 2012 in solitary confinement for being a “mastermind in Swastika drawn outside 4 Synagogues”& an amateurish act of arson at 1 by his Spanish Friend Anthony Graziano in Dec 2011-Jan 2012.The Hindu boy was not even present in New Jersey when these incidents took place. He was hundreds of miles away in New Hampshire campaigning for Republican Presidential Candidate Ron Paul. If Shalli Kumar cannot help 1 Hindu how he can be expected to protect millions of Hindus! In every Press Conference he says RHC (Republican Hindu Coalition) is on the patterns of RJC (Republican Jewish Coalition) and RHC is staffed by practically their advisors and he is paying $100,000.00 every month to the staff just to make sure all the compliance and legal guide lines for RHC are strictly followed! He knows all the top Jewish leaders and more than 2 dozen top Republican leaders!

    As far as I am concerned it was another crap event that our photo opportunist PHD (Photo Hungry Desi’s) self -declared community leaders have been doing for decades for self-promotion in the tri-state area in the name of India, Hindus, Hinduism and culture. There are more than a dozen India Day parades every year that are nothing but Mini Pushkar Melas to entertain locals.

    None of our so called community leaders can spell or define culture, religion, politics and help the less fortunate or victims of injustice from the Indian community. None of them has ever taken any stand for victims of racial discrimination, injustice & police brutality. The Jewish leaders can punish & send for counseling an 8-year-old for drawing Swastika, can allow Jewish Police officers to pull a gun on 5 & 9-year-old Hindu children, can call the entire Indian community cockroaches, animals, illiterate & illegal, go home. They can allow their media & reporters to write almost a dozen articles to terrorize and humiliate an 11-year-old Hindu boy for demanding equal rights with Jews & Christians of his town from State Governor in public. They can let the community be humiliated and terrorized. These are our community leaders.

    (The author is a New Jersey based community activist)

  • Putin’s man? Donald Trump denies Hillary Clinton’s charge that he’s the one

    Putin’s man? Donald Trump denies Hillary Clinton’s charge that he’s the one

    Hillary Clinton forcefully accused Donald Trump of favoring Russia’s leader over American military and intelligence experts Oct 19 night, as the Republican nominee pointedly refused to accept the U.S. government’s assertion that Moscow has sought to meddle in the presidential election.

    In a combative exchange in the final presidential debate, Clinton charged that Russian President Vladimir Putin was backing Trump because “he’d rather have a puppet as president of the United States.”

    Trump denied any relationship with Putin and said he would condemn any foreign interference in the election. But he notably refused to accept the intelligence community’s assessment that Russia was involved in the hacking of Democratic organizations. The Clinton campaign has also said the FBI is investigating Russia’s involvement in the hacking of a top adviser’s emails.

    The third presidential debate opened with a measured, policy-focused discussion — a stark contrast to the heated and highly personal clashes that defined the earlier contests. However, Trump quickly reverted to his previous style of repeatedly bursting in to interrupt Clinton as well as moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News. (AP)

  • Donald Trump says he ‘didn’t even apologize’ to his wife, she says he did

    Donald Trump says he ‘didn’t even apologize’ to his wife, she says he did

    WASHINGTON (TIP): Did US Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump apologize to his wife after revelations he was involved in sexual assault ? His wife Melania said he did+ . Today, at the third and final US Presidential debate, Trump said he didn’t.

    “I would say the only way — because those stories are all totally false, I have to say that. And I didn’t even apologize to my wife, who’s sitting right here, because I didn’t do anything. I didn’t know any of these — I didn’t see these women,” Trump averred.

    Here’s what his wife said on Tuesday to TV show “Fox & Friends” host Ainsley Earhardt – “Those words, they were offensive to me and they were inappropriate… And he apologized to me. And I expect — I accept his apology. And we are moving on.”

    Today’s debate host, Fox News’s Chris Wallace, said that since the release of an 11-year-old tape, in which the Republican candidate boasted about groping women+ , nine women have come forward and have said that he “either groped them or kissed them without their consent.”

    Trump denied their charges.

    ” These women — the woman on the plane, the — I think they want either fame or her campaign did it. And I think it’s her campaign. Because what I saw what they did, which is a criminal act, by the way, where they’re telling people to go out and start fist-fights and start violence,” he said referring to opponent Hillary Clinton.

    Trump’s denial didn’t help him, because Clinton used the opportunity to talk about other nasty comments he has made.

    “At the last debate, we heard Donald talking about what he did to women.

    And after that, a number of women have come forward saying that’s exactly what he did to them. Now, what was his response? Well, he held a number of big rallies where he said that he could not possibly have done those things to those women because they were not attractive enough for them to be assaulted,” Clinton said. (PTI)

  • Trump drops a bombshell: Says won’t accept poll results in case of his defeat

    Trump drops a bombshell: Says won’t accept poll results in case of his defeat

    LAS VEGAS (TIP): Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump threw hints, October 19 that he may not accept defeat in the presidential polls which he has been saying is “rigged”, stunning the political scene and threatening to overturn US’ democratic convention of a smooth transfer of power. His stance drew a sharp attack from Hillary Clinton as the two faced off in the feisty final presidential debate in which she was declared the winner.

    The controversial 70-year-old Republican candidate maintained that he would keep the suspense about accepting the election result till November 8. “I will look at it at the time. I’m not looking at anything now,” he said in response to a question whether he would accept the poll results, during the third presidential debate at the University of Nevada here. “I will tell you at that time. I will keep you in suspense,” he said in the primetime debate that lasted for over 90 minutes, reiterating that the current elections are rigged.

    “The media is so dishonest and so corrupt and the pile on is so amazing, The New York Times wrote an article about it. They don’t even care, it’s so dishonest, they’ve poisoned the minds of the voters, but unfortunately for them, I think the voters are seeing through it,” he said. Trump’s comments at the Las Vegas showdown marked a stunning moment that has never been seen in the weeks before a modern US presidential election, CNN said.

    “The stance threatens to cast doubt on one of the fundamental principles of American politics – the peaceful, undisputed transfer of power from one president to a successor who is recognized as legitimate after winning an election,” it said. Trump’s remarks came after moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News said the peaceful transfer of power, a hallmark of American democracy, depends on the losing candidate accepting the validity of the electoral results.

    Democratic nominee, Clinton, described her rival’s refusal to accept the outcome of the election as “horrifying”, and even went so far as to paint him as a “puppet” of Russian president Vladimir Putin. “He is denigrating and he is talking down our democracy,” said the 68-year-old former secretary of state. “And I, for one, am appalled that someone who is the nominee of one of two major parties would take that position.” “Every time Donald thinks things are not going in his direction, he claims whatever, it is rigged against him,” said Clinton, adding that he has, at various times, accused the FBI, Republican primary process and judicial system of being corrupt.

    Mainstream Republicans were quick to denounce Trump’s comment. Senator Lindsey Graham, a former presidential candidate, said: “If he loses, it will not be because the system is ‘rigged’ but because he failed as a candidate” Republican strategist Ryan Williams found Trump’s statement “deeply concerning”.

    “You have to accept the results unless there are grounds for a recount and at this point it does not appear that we’re heading for a close election.”

    Donald Trump’s son thinks that running for President is a “step down” for his father who is very new to politics. “He (Trump) hasn’t spent his whole life to be up on the debate stage like a career politician. He spent his life creating jobs, building things, doing things that would benefit American workers,” Donald Trump Junior said.

     

  • Vote to See IMPACT -|- Hillary Clinton Vs. Donald Trump

    Vote to See IMPACT -|- Hillary Clinton Vs. Donald Trump

    vote

    Hillary Clinton

    Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton could become the first ever woman President of the United States in January next year. Unlike her Republican rival Donald Trump, Clinton is a veteran politician who has served both as a US Senator and as US President Barack Obama’s Secretary of State. She knows how things work at the White House, having been First Lady during her husband Bill’s two terms as US President.

    Will Hillary Clinton be a good or bad President for India? Here’s a five-point overview of the different ways in which her Presidency could impact India, based on comments she’s made during her campaign, or on promises she’s made in the manifesto on campaign’s website.

    FASTER FAMILY VISA PROCESSING

    In January, Clinton promised to take steps to reduce the family visa backlog, saying that two-fifths of all applicants were from the Asia-Pacific region (which includes India), PTI reported.Many families have had to endure years of separation as a consequence of this backlog, and Clinton said that she would “expand fee waivers” and “increase access to language programmes” in order to help prospective US citizens.

    GREEN CARDS ‘STAPLED’ TO HIGHER STEM DEGREES

    Hillary Clinton says in her manifesto that she’ll “staple” green cards to graduate and doctorate degrees earned by international students in four academic categories – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). If she keeps her promise, Indian students in US colleges who earn Master’s degrees and PhDs in academic disciplines such as aerospace engineering or applied mathematics will automatically obtain permanent resident status. This can, of course, be viewed in two ways – as giving Indian scholars better opportunities to contribute to their fields, or as catalyzing ‘brain drain.’

    ‘START-UP VISAS’

    Under a Clinton Administration, foreign entrepreneurs may be able to apply for ‘start-up visas’ and launch companies in “technology-oriented globally traded sectors” in the US, her manifesto says. The entrepreneurs would need their US investors to pledge their financial support to get the visa, and meet employment and performance targets to be eligible for permanent residency. Clinton’s focus, of course, is on creating more jobs for Americans, but that doesn’t change the fact that this a tantalizing prospect for Indian entrepreneurs.

    According to research by the National Foundation for American Policy, immigrants have founded more than half (44 of 87) of America’s startup companies valued at $1 billion or more.

    MAKE IN AMERICA, NOT INDIA

    Like Donald Trump, Clinton has also made the US manufacturing sector one of the focal issues of her campaign. She says in her manifesto that she’ll discourage companies from outsourcing jobs and capital, and reward them for returning jobs to the US. Two of the policy changes she proposes are removing tax breaks for US companies that send jobs abroad, and imposing “an ‘exit tax’ on companies that leave America to lower their tax burden.” So Clinton, like her Republican rival, could make it more difficult for American companies to accept Prime Minister Modi’s invitation to ‘Make In India.’

    DOES CLINTON SUPPORT H1B?

    Clinton’s priority is Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) – an overhaul of the entire US Immigration system, one of whose goals is to provide undocumented immigrants to the US a path to legal status and citizenship. In an interview with Vox.com in July, Clinton said she didn’t want to “mix” CIR with “with other kinds of changes in visas and other concerns that particularly high-value technical companies have.” She added that “keeping pressure on them helps us resolve the bigger problem,” and other options could be explored later.

    Donald Trump

     

    While these comments must have sounded like bad news for US companies using H1B visas to bring in highly-skilled workers, Clinton said later in the month that what she wanted was a “truly comprehensive” system for all kinds of immigrants, including highly-skilled workers.

    Writing for the Economic Times, immigration lawyer and Brooklyn Law School professor Cyrus D Mehta says Clinton “will probably support the H1B programme.” He says she will accept compromises on H1B – such as “increasing the H-1B cap in exchange for imposing certain restrictions on IT companies” – if it will help her make CIR a reality.

    It seemed highly unlikely a year ago, but Republican nominee Donald Trump could very well become the 45th President of the United States in January next year. From an Indian perspective, what exactly would that entail? Here’s a five-point overview of the impact a Trump Presidency could have on India.

    H1B VISAS

    Trump has said he’s in favour of retaining highly talented people in the US, as long as they are in the country legally, according to a PTI report.

    But Trump’s official manifesto proposes that the “prevailing wage” paid to H1B workers be increased to put pressure on US firms to look within the US for talent. “This will improve the number of black, Hispanic and female workers in Silicon Valley who have been passed over in favor of the H-1B program,” it says. It also notes that the H1B doesn’t require American companies to first hire US workers before bringing in overseas talent. “Petitions for workers should be mailed to the unemployment office, not USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services),” it says.

    Trump has also said the “H-1B program is neither high-skilled nor immigration”, and that he’s “totally committed to eliminating rampant, widespread H-1B abuse.”

    PAKISTAN AND KASHMIR

    Trump has called Pakistan “probably the most dangerous” nation in the world, and has suggested that the US can work with India to keep Pakistan in check. “You have to get India involved … They have their own nukes and have a very powerful army. They seem to be the real check … I think we have to deal very closely with India to deal with it (Pakistan),” Trump said last September. So a Trump-led US government could be open to a rapprochement with India on issues such as Pakistan-sponsored terror in Jammu and Kashmir.

    CHINA’S TRADE LOSS INDIA’S GAIN?

    In his manifesto, Trump vows to work to rebalance the US-China trade deficit, and bring back millions of manufacturing jobs to the US. Writing for the Economic Times, former US diplomat William H Avery says Trump’s best strategy would be to “offset Asia’s (especially China’s) labour cost advantage in manufacturing with a combination of tariff and non-tariff barriers.” Doing so would affect India less than China, as it would be harder to place tariffs on IT services – India’s strength – than on China’s manufactured goods, Avery suggests. “China’s loss is India’s gain,” he concludes.

    MAKE IN INDIA

    On the flip side, Trump’s determination to revitalize the US manufacturing sector may not be good news for American businesses interested in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make In India initiative.

    A WINDFALL FOR INDIAN INVESTORS?

    In his manifesto, Trump pledges to “unleash American ingenuity” and make the US “the most attractive place to invest in the world” by lowering corporate tax rate to 15% (from almost 39% as of September 2016). Indian companies exploring the possibility of tapping into the US market may find this proposition enticing.

  • Trump is toast at polls after more women come forward to report “Groper-in-chief”

    Trump is toast at polls after more women come forward to report “Groper-in-chief”

    WASHINGTON (TIP): Several women have come forward over the past 24 hours to accuse Donald Trump of pawing or groping them over the years, even as new polls show Hillary Clinton surging to a 15-point lead among women — enough to sink him at the polls.

    The Trump campaign and its conservative support base, including the right wing media, has trashed the charges, dismissing them as “fabrications” by the liberal media, but coming on the heels of Trump’s own bragging on a hot mic of assaulting women, the allegations are widely seen as credible. “He was like an octopus, his hands were everywhere,” Jessica Leeds, one of he women who claimed to be at the wrong end of Trump’s attention told the New York Times. Now 74, Leeds said Trump began pawing her on a flight in 1980 and described how she bolted from the first class cabin to the back of the plane to escape him. Leeds, and Rachel Crooks, another woman who related a similar experience to NYT when she was a 22-year old receptionist in a realty firm, said they did not make a hue and cry about it because such behavior considered normal in that era, but they told family and friends about it immediately, something the paper confirmed.

    Even as the NYT story was splashing through social media, more women — including a journalist — came forward with similar charges, shaking the Trump campaign to its foundation. Meanwhile, another videotape surfaced of a Trump interview in 1992 in which he is heard boasting that he is going to be dating a girl who was only about ten then in another ten years. At the time Trump was in his mid-40s and had been divorced from his first wife, Ivanka, and was dating Marla Maples, who was to become his second wife. The footage shows Trump asking a young girl: “Are you going up the escalator?” while both are out of view.

  • New York Times dares Donald Trump to sue over sexual assault claims

    New York Times dares Donald Trump to sue over sexual assault claims

    NEW YORK (TIP): The New York Times has refused to retract an article in which two women accused Donald Trump of sexual assault, after the Republican presidential nominee threatened to sue the newspaper. In a letter made public yesterday, a lawyer for theTimes all but dared the property developer to make good on his threat.

    “We published newsworthy information about a subject of deep public concern,” wrote David McCraw, the paper’s assistant general counsel. “If Mr Trump disagrees, if he believes that American citizens had no right to hear what these women had to say and that the law of this country forces us and those who would criticise him to stand silent or be punished, we welcome the opportunity to have a court set him straight.”

    The article, published late on Wednesday, featured interviews with 74-year-old Jessica Leeds, who said Mr Trump had groped her on a flight more than 30 years ago, and with Rachel Crooks, whom Mr Trump allegedly kissed “on the mouth” against her will as she introduced herself to him in 2005, when she was 22.

  • Trump has no plan B if he loses election

    Trump has no plan B if he loses election

    Donald Trump is musing on the possibility of losing the US election in November, an outcome that would render his campaign the biggest waste of time and money in his life. But if the Republican nominee is candidly admitting losing on November 8 is not out of the question, he apparently has not made plans for it. “If we don’t win this election, I don’t know what I’m going to do,” Trump told supporters at a rally in Ocala, in central Florida recently.

    He meanwhile called the decision by the US Justice Department not to press criminal charges against Hillary Clinton for her use of a private email server while Secretary of State “one of the great miscarriages of justice” in United States history and suggested that the Justice Department had colluded with Clinton to spare her any formal legal fall-out. He meanwhile added that politicians in Washington from both parties knew about it. Trump’s comments about Ms Clinton’s email travails further highlighted the angry mood that has taken hold of him since the leaking last weekend of a video of him speaking in offensive terms about sexual advances on women in 2005 and a rush among many Republican leaders to disown him.

    Did they make a deal where everybody protects each other in Washington?” Trump asked the crowd in Ocala. “Do they make deals like this? This is the most heinous thing I have ever seen involving justice in the history of the United States.” There has been speculation that were he to lose the presidency, Trump would leverage the support he has won from a significant swathe of Americans angry at the establishment and disenchanted with their own situations to launch a new conservative media empire, possibly with Stephen Bannon, his campaign CEO who has taken leave from running the rightwing website Breitbart.

    In Florida, Trump again intensified his attacks on Ms Clinton, suggesting for instance that Isis fighters in the Middle East hope she will win because then “they’ll not only take over that part of the world, they’ll take over this country, they’ll take over this part of the world”.

    At last Sunday’s debate, Trump suggested that as president he would appoint a special prosecutor to look into Ms Clinton private server use and have her imprisoned. He again hammered the issue home and made the same promise in Ocala. “This is crime at the highest level,” he told the packed shed of supporters. “She shouldn’t be allowed to run for president.” At her own campaign appearances later on Wednesday, Clinton was expected to challenge Republican politicians to say clearly whether or not they will vote for their own nominee on election day. The strategy was disclosed by John Podesta, her campaign chairman. “Are they with him or are they against him?” Mr. Podesta asked.

  • Indian-American Hindus invite Trump to address their rally on October 15 in New Jersey

    Indian-American Hindus invite Trump to address their rally on October 15 in New Jersey

    NEW JERSEY (TIP): US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump will address a rally of Hindu-Americans in New Jersey on October 15 and half of the proceedings from the event will be used for the benefit of Kashmiri Pandits.

    The founder of Republican Hindu Coalition (RHC) Shalabh Kumar claimed that this is the first of its kind event where Trump is scheduled to address only one specific ethnic community.

    “…This is a charity concert organized for the benefit of terror victims in various countries…The 50 per cent of the proceeds from this concert will go for the benefit of Kashmiri Pandits in India,” Kumar said.

    Kumar is also Chairman of Indian American Advisory Council to the Republican Party.

  • Indian-Americans Split Support For Donald Trump And Hillary Clinton

    Indian-Americans Split Support For Donald Trump And Hillary Clinton

    Donald Trump failed to save his campaign in the crucial second presidential debate.
    St Louis: Indian-Americans appeared split in their support for the two presidential candidates, with some favouring Republican nominee Donald Trump by calling him “aggresive” in his attack while others saying that the former secretary of state is more “experienced in governance”.

    “Today’s Presidential debate was one of the spirited one,” said Mississippi-based Sampat Shivangi. “Trump was aggressive in attacking Clinton and she appeared subdued. The debate gave a new lease of life to Trump campaign, said Sampat Shivangi, the national president of Indian- American Forum for Political Education and a Republican delegate.

    “But she did well on foreign policy discussions and came across as knowledgeable and command over the issues. Trump faltered on the policy matters. Next two days will decide the fate of Trump’s campaign as to how many more Republican Party leaders well abandon him. But today’s debate seems has given lease to his life,” Sampat Shivangi said.

    “But one thing is certain come what may he will never quit the race as he has nothing to loose,” he added. “After tonight’s debate, I hope the Republican Hindu Coalition follows the lead of Senator John McCain and other Republican leaders and withdraws its support for Donald Trump,” Rajdeep Singh Jolly, a community leader who is campaigning against Mr Trump disagreed.

    “Mr Trump is basically an entertainer, and I don’t believe we should give an entertainer access to nuclear weapons,” he said.

    “Trump sidestepped his boorish videotaped comments by asserting: his was only “locker room” talk, while Bill Clinton actually did the bad deeds. Hillary, who clearly is well experienced in governance held sway, even as Wikileaks’ disclosed “public position” and “private position” petered out without being used to much consequence,” Indian-American attorney Ravi Batra said.

    “But, ultimately this election will come down to: if voters want more of the last few years, you have to vote for Hillary; but, as Trump said, if the voters want a fresh start they have to vote for him.

    “Perhaps, most curious was that terror got treated as shopkeepers deal with shoplifting: better security, but essentially cost of doing business,” Mr Batra said.

    Indian American, Shalabh Kumar of the Republican Hindu Coalition said Trump won the debate.

    “Sixer in Cricket. Touch down in American Football. Home Run in Baseball. Phenomenal incredible WOW, what a night,” Mr Kumar said in a brief statement.

    Meanwhile, a Pakistani-American has said that the second presidential debate has turned to be a “defining moment” for Mr Trump whose election campaign seemed to be over after surfacing of his lewd comments against women.

    “Today’s speech was a defining moment for Donald Trump’s campaign,” said Pakistani-American Sajid Tarar, founder and head of the Muslim Americans for Mr Trump in a statement.

  • Pence wins the Vice Presidential debate 48% to 42% of Kaine; Does Trump win?

    Pence wins the Vice Presidential debate 48% to 42% of Kaine; Does Trump win?

    NEW YORK (TIP): The Trump-Pence ticket is still losing the war, however, and October 4 night’s debate likely only succeeded in keeping hope alive that Donald Trump can mount a comeback, says a BBC news report.

    For the last week, it’s felt a bit like Donald Trump was routed. His woeful first presidential debate performance was compounded by a series of unforced errors, capped by an early morning Twitter tirade and a damaging New York Times story about his near billion-dollar business losses in 1995. His poll numbers headed south.

    The Republican vice-presidential nominee’s primary job – really his only job – was to stop the bleeding and give the campaign an opportunity to regroup. Kaine’s goal was to keep him from doing that. Pence honestly didn’t land too many blows on the Democrat. But first things first. He had to put out the raging dumpster fire that was his team’s campaign over the past week.

    Having said that, sometimes it seemed like Pence was operating in a parallel universe than the one that Trump has inhabited over the past year.

    Time and again, when Kaine pressed him on Trump’s past controversial statements and positions, Pence defended Trump the way he wanted him to be, not the way he really is.

    Take, for example, the exchange on Russia. Pence warned of the threat the nation posed to world order and tried to lay its growing assertiveness at Mrs Clinton’s feet. He called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “small and bullying leader” who wasn’t confronted by the Obama administration.

    As Kaine was quick to point out, however, Trump has showered the Russian president with praise, calling him a “strong leader”. A hard line against Russia is certainly a traditional Republican position – Mitt Romney embraced it in 2012 – but it’s hardly where Trump stands.

    It almost seemed like Pence was more interested in making the case for conservatism the way Americans have known it over the last 30 years than mounting a spirited defense of Trump’s actual positions and statements.

    That may help some wayward Republicans return to the fold in the short term. They need to be back in Trump’s column if he wants to make this presidential race competitive.

    It also may not be a bad move for Pence if he wants to position himself as a possible candidate for the 2020 Republican nomination.

    If there was one exchange that illustrated the challenges Pence faced in defending Trump – and how he, for the most part, survived them – it’s the issue of Trump’s tax returns.

    It’s obviously an area Democrats want to exploit. Hillary Clinton hit the Republican on it multiple times in recent days, and her press aide Jennifer Palmieri told reporters at the debate site that Trump’s possible failure to pay income taxes gives Democrats an opening among white working-class voters.

    When Pence was first asked about Trump’s break with 40 years of tradition by not making them public, he changed the subject. When Quijado pressed him, he said the leaked 1995 tax returns highlighted by the Times showed Trump went through some tough times and “brilliantly” used the tax code “just the way it’s supposed to be used”.

    Kaine pressed him on why Trump has broken his pledge to release his full tax returns, and Pence retreated to Trump’s debunked line that he could only do so after he’s done being audited (a process that Trump himself has said has been going on for 15 years).

    With results like that, it was no wonder Pence would rather not talk about Trump’s record. He put the exchange behind him, however, and moved on to more favorable terrain. Pence’s political jujitsu throughout the debate was quite a remarkable feat, really.

    When Kaine confronted him on Trump’s past controversies, he responded by asserting that the Clinton team was the one waging an “insult-driven campaign”.

    When Kaine attacked Trump’s proposed ban on Muslims entering the US, Pence said “we’re going to put the safety and security of the American people first”.

    When Kaine noted that Trump had suggested women who have abortions should be subject to criminal penalties (a position he later recanted), Pence said they “would never support” such legislation – and then, when pressed, said Trump wasn’t a polished politician and “things don’t always come out exactly the way he means them”.

    “Six times tonight, I have said to Governor Pence I can’t imagine how you can defend your running mate’s position on one issue after the next,” an exasperated Kaine said at one point. “And in all six cases, he’s refused to defend his running mate.”

    “I’m very, very happy to defend Donald Trump,” Pence said – but then opted to change the subject. It clearly frustrated Kaine, it probably will give fact-checkers fits, and Democrats will be in up arms. But it allowed Pence to move on – and, if the Republicans are lucky, turn the page in the coming days.

    That is exactly what Trump needs.

    This debate likely will have little effect on the overall poll numbers – they historically never do. What happens next is up to Trump. Pence did his part, now his running mate has two debates left to take advantage.

  • What Were Hillary Clinton’s Emails About? The Emailgate Scandal Explained

    What Were Hillary Clinton’s Emails About? The Emailgate Scandal Explained

    “Emailgate” has plagued Hillary Clinton’s campaign since the push for her nomination began nearly a year and a half ago, painting her as a corrupt politician, or in some cases, an inept one.

    In March 2015, it became publicly known that Hillary Clinton, during her tenure as United States Secretary of State, had exclusively used her family’s private email server for official communications, rather than official State Department email accounts maintained on federal servers. Those official communications included thousands of emails that would later be marked classified by the State Department retroactively.

    The controversy unfolded against the backdrop of Clinton’s 2016 presidential election campaign and hearings held by the United States House Select Committee on Benghazi. Some experts, officials, and members of Congress have contended that her use of private messaging systemsoftware and a private server violated State Department protocols and procedures, as well as federal laws and regulations governing recordkeeping.

    In response, Clinton has said that her use of personal email was in compliance with federal laws and State Department regulations, and that former secretaries of state had also maintained personal email accounts though not their own private email servers.

    In May 2016, the State Department’s Office of the Inspector General released an 83-page report about the State Department’s email practices, including Clinton’s.

    On July 5, 2016 upon concluding its investigation, the FBI stated that Clinton was “extremely careless” in handling her email system but recommended that no charges be filed against Clinton.

    On July 6, 2016, Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced that no charges would be filed.

    On July 7, the State Department reopened its probe into the email controversy.

    On September 2, 2016, the FBI published a report on the investigation into her server which was 58 pages.

    How did the scandal start? 

    For Clinton, the saga began at the start of her tenure as secretary of state. Rather than locking up her personal BlackBerry before heading into her secure office space and using an authorized State Department email address, Clinton fought concerned officials for the ability to exclusively use her personal phone for professional, family and friendly correspondence. After a meeting with Clinton’s chief of staff, specialists from the State Department and National Security Agency expressed concern that hackers could turn the phone into a listening device. Yet Clinton insisted on toting around her beloved BlackBerry.

    What many of those involved—though it’s not clear how many—didn’t know was the more dangerous aspect of the problem: the fact that Clinton’s BlackBerry emails used “clintonemail.com,” the unsecure private server at her home, making her phone not only a potential listening device, but a source for reading sensitive discussions, as well.

    Interest in Clinton’s use of a private email server spiked just after she left office in early 2013, when the New York Times published an exclusive report that cited lawyers and officials who said she may have broken federal law by keeping her emails private rather than submitting them to government recordkeeping.

    The congressional committee investigating Clinton’s response to the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi demanded that Clinton, her lawyers and the tech companies associated with the accounts turn over all emails relevant to the inquiry. The State Department provided the Benghazi committee with about 15,000 pages of relevant emails from her private server in August 2014. Between May 2015 and February 2016, the State Department continued to make public what would sum up to 30,000 emails. It has yet to release 14,900.

    Why do they matter? 

    Though Clinton and her aides insist her use of the private phone and “clintonemails.com” was a matter of convenience, officials worried about the server’s vulnerability to hacks. To make matters worse, eight email chains contained “top secret” information, 36 held information described simply as “secret,” another eight included “confidential,” information, and about 2,000 have been retroactively classified as “confidential,” the lowest level of classification, according to the Times.

    Aside from making sensitive diplomatic information easy prey for hackers, the scandal also augmented voters’ suspicions that she is far from trustworthy and coincided with a dive in her favorability ratings, according to Gallup. Despite the sheer volume of her opponent Donald Trump’s widely-criticized remarks and reports of his own scandalous behavior, what might’ve been an easier race has become nearly a tie. In a recent McClatchy-Marist poll, for example, while 40 percent of likely voters held favorable views of Clinton, only 36 percent thought she was “honest and trustworthy.”

    Exacerbating the image of dishonesty, Bill Clinton spontaneously met with Attorney General Loretta Lynch on the tarmac of the Phoenix airport on June 27 just as the Justice Department was wrapping up its examination of his wife. And while the Federal Bureau of Investigation director James Comey announced on July 5 the bureau’s decision not to indict Clinton for her actions, he called her use of the private server “extremely careless”—not exactly an ideal quality for a commander in chief.

    But didn’t Colin Powell do it, too? 

    When pressed about her use of the private server at the March 9 democratic primary debate, Clinton claimed that her predecessors “did the same thing.” But former Secretaries of State Madeleine Albright and Condoleezza Rice, the first State Department leaders for which email was available, said they generally did not use the mode of correspondence while in office, as PolitiFact pointed out. Colin Powell, however, did use a personal email address, but not via a private server in his home.

    Clinton might’ve had better luck in her attempt to divert attention from her private server had she pointed to the George W. Bush administration’s 22 million “lost” emails, as reported by Newsweek.

    What’s in the emails, anyway? If you want, you can read them yourself on the FBI’s “Vault” records. Some of them provide humorous insight into the day-to-day workings of the State Department, but others are more serious. Most alarmingly, Clinton used the server to communicate State Department deliberations surrounding a covert drone strike operation, along with many other messages containing classified information. When questioned by the FBI about whether she understood the “C,” meaning “classified,” in the emails sent and received on the clintonemails.com account, Clinton said she thought the letter was used for alphabetical ordering.

    Why are we still talking about this? Nearly a year after Clinton’s former democratic primary opponent Bernie Sanders told her that “the American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails,” the scandal continues to dominate headlines. That’s in part because Republicans in Congress, such as House Speaker Paul Ryan and members of the House Oversight Committee, continued to bring up the issue long after the FBI ended its investigation. Trump has also repeatedly used the scandal as ammo to attack his opponent, giving her the moniker “Crooked Hillary,” which quickly became a hashtag. In his first debate with Clinton on Monday night, he pledged to release his tax returns if she released 30,000 emails—apparently unaware of the fact that 30,000 had already been made public.

    The issue has sparked debates of the media’s creating a false equivalence between Trump and Clinton, with the former candidate said to be held to a lower standard than the latter.

    As the release of Clinton’s remaining emails and the next Clinton-Trump debate approach, don’t expect the issue to go away anytime soon.

  • America ‘needs an adult’ in White House: Michelle Obama

    America ‘needs an adult’ in White House: Michelle Obama

    PHILADELPHIA: Michelle Obama told a diverse and enthusiastic crowd in Philadelphia today that candidates don’t change once they become president and that America “needs an adult in the White House.”

    The first lady never mentioned Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump during the rally at LaSalle University.

    But there was no question that she was warning voters that candidate Trump would be the same as President Trump.

    “The presidency doesn’t change who you are, it reveals who you are,” she told the cheering crowd. She referred to several comments Trump made during and after Monday’s debate, including his apparent acknowledgment that he’s paid no taxes some years. Trump said that makes him “smart.”

    “If a candidate is erratic and threatening, if a candidate traffics in prejudice, fear and lies on the campaign trail, if a candidate thinks not paying taxes makes you smart, or that it’s good business when people lose their homes; if a candidate regularly and flippantly makes cruel and insulting comments about women, about how we look, how we act well, sadly, that’s who that candidate really is,” she said. “That is the kind of president they will be.”

    She said the country needs a leader who is steady and measured because when making war-or-peace decisions, “the president can’t just pop off or lash out irrationally. No, we need an adult in the White House, I guarantee you.”

    She cast Clinton as a tough, compassionate fighter who doesn’t back down and who loves her country. “Experience matters, preparation matters, temperament matters,” she said. “Hillary Clinton has it all. She’s the real deal.”

    The first lady was heading to Pittsburgh for another rally for the Democratic presidential nominee later today. Trump’s campaign reacted to Obama’s speech with a statement saying Clinton is in “panic mode” in Pennsylvania because polls show the Republican presidential nominee surging in the battleground state.

  • Congressional candidate to headlight IAPC’s presidential debate at media meet

    Congressional candidate to headlight IAPC’s presidential debate at media meet

    NEW YORK (TIP): The Indo American Press Club (IAPC) is showing the Indian community a path to mainstream by holding a debate on October 9 in Connecticut on the upcoming presidential election.

    political-faceoffAt its 3rd International Media Conference (Oct 8-10, 2016) in Stamford, CT, IAPC is hosting the discussion between a prominent supporter of Hillary Clinton, Peter Jacob, and a prominent supporter of Donald Trump, Prof AD Amar. They will argue for who of the two presidential nominees will be good for America and for Indo-US relations.

    the-debaters-peter-jacob
    Peter Jacob

    Peter Jacob is an Indian American community organizer with a master’s degree in social work who is running as Democratic candidate for US House from New Jersey’s GOP leaning District 7. He has been endorsed by Democratic leader Bernie Sanders, whose site praised the 30-year-old’s commitment to the community with these words: “Raised in Union, New Jersey, Peter Jacob understands how important a safe and caring community is to success. Through various community organizations, Peter has helped fight the ongoing scourges of child abuse, human trafficking, and disastrous Iraq War.” His campaign for healthcare reform, environmental sustainability, and immigrant integration also comes in for praise.

    prof-ad-amar-founder-of-indian-americans-for-trump-2016
    Prof Amar Dev Amar

    Prof Amar Dev Amar is founder and President of Indian Americans for Trump 2016 who is actively involved in promoting the Republican nominee’s candidacy among the Indian community in the tristate area. He teaches and researches in managing organizations as Professor of Management at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ.

    moderator-prof-indrajit-s-saluja-chief-editor-of-the-indian-panorama
    Prof. Indrajit S. Saluja

    The moderator of the IAPC presidential debate will be Prof. Indrajit S. Saluja, Chief Editor & Publisher of The Indian Panorama, a prominent English language newspaper with editions in New York and Dallas. A professor of English in India, he first delved into media by publishing a news magazine from Punjab.

    IAPC had also hosted a discussion on the presidential election in Houston in which representatives from both the Trump and Hillary campaigns took part on Sept 11. It was attended by a large number of Indian Americans, political personalities and community leaders.

    IAPC’s Media Conference at Hilton Stamford Hotel and Executive Meeting Center, CT is bringing together an array of prominent journalists and media professionals from the US, Canada and India to deliberate at seminars and workshops. Many dignitaries will be in attendance and prominent people from India and North America will be honored for their service to society.

    IAPC President, Parveen Chopra, and Chairman, Ginsmon Zacharia, invite media professionals to attend the conference and presidential debate.

    IAPC was formed in 2013 with the lofty ideals of providing a common platform to media professionals of Indian origin living in North America, fostering closerbonds and cooperation with IAPC’s counterparts in India and to strive for betterment of society at large. It has 8 chapters in US and Canada.

    For more information: IndoAmericanPressClub.com

  • Hillary Clinton Wins the First Presidential Debate

    Hillary Clinton Wins the First Presidential Debate

    NEW YORK (TIP): Democrat Hillary Clinton on September 26, defeated Republican Donald Trump in the first presidential debate, 62% to 27%.

    Clinton and Trump took to the stage at Hofstra University on Long Island, Monday, September 26 to begin their first presidential debate and sparred over jobs, taxes, the Islamic State, guns and the former secretary of state’s undisclosed emails, media reports said.

    Moderator Leslie Holt of NBC News opened the 90-minute debate at Hofstra University, Long Island, New York, with the first topic, “Achieving Prosperity” where the first question about putting money back into Americans’ pockets and creating jobs was directed to Clinton, CNN reported.

    Clinton, the first woman to represent a major US party in the presidential race, mentioned her granddaughter’s birthday, and talked about everything from gender pay gaps to paid family leave, to presidential temperament.

    Trump gave a classic answer about China and Mexico stealing American business and jobs.

    “We have to stop our jobs from being stolen from us, we have to stop companies from leaving the United States,” he added.

    Clinton also called on Trump to apologies to people who have worked on the real estate mogul’s properties and have not been paid in full, Politico reported.

    Do “the thousands of people that you have stiffed over the course of your business not deserve some kind of apology from someone who has taken their labor, taken the goods that they’ve produced and then refused to pay them?” Clinton questioned her rival.

    “I can only say that I’m certainly relieved that my late father never did business with you.”

    Following Trump’s opening remarks about reducing taxes, Holt asked Clinton to defend her plan to increase taxes.

    Regarding tax returns, Trump said “I will release my tax returns – against my lawyer’s wishes – when she releases her 33,000 emails that have been deleted.”

    Clinton responded by saying that there was something “really important, maybe even terrible that he’s trying to hide,” Politico reported.

    “Maybe he doesn’t want the American public, all of you watching tonight, to know that he’s paid no federal taxes,” Clinton said.

    Clinton also admitted that she “made a mistake” about her use of a private email server while at the State Department.

    Trump went on to blame Clinton for the rise of the ISIS by noting the Democrat had laid out some of her plans on her website.

    “You’re telling the enemy everything you want to do,” Trump said as Clinton shook her head in amusement. “No wonder you’ve been fighting ISIS your entire adult life.”

    Moderator Holt brought up the recent fatal police shootings of African-American men and asked about healing along lines of race and racism.

    “Unfortunately, race often determines too much,” Hillary said, adding “We have to restore trust between communities and the police… everyone should be respected by the law and everyone should respect the law.”

    Trump said the country needed law and order. “African Americans and Hispanics are living in hell because it’s so dangerous. You walk down the street you get shot,” he added.

    Clinton called for gun control in the US, saying “We’ve got too many military-style weapons on the streets. In a lot of places, our police are outgunned… we need to keep guns out of the hands of those who could do harm.”

    The debate was divided into 6 segments with 15 minutes given to each nominee. Two minutes were allotted to answer a question asked by the moderator, two minutes to reply and the remaining time for the nominees to debate.

    The polls clearly found Hillary Clinton a winner in the debate. Two reputable polls released Wednesday showed that respondents thought Hillary Clinton won Monday night’s debate by a wide margin.

    An NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll found that 52 percent of respondents thought Clinton won, to 21 percent who thought that Trump came out ahead.

    Another from Reuters/Ipsos found that 56 percent of respondents thought Clinton won, to 26 percent who declared victory for Trump.

    Meanwhile, Donald Trump complained about every part of the first presidential debate, from his opponent to the moderator to the subsequent poll results, during a Thursday campaign appearance.

    “I had to put up with the anchor and fight the anchor all the time on everything I said,” Trump said of the debate’s moderator, Lester Holt, at a rally in Bedford, New Hampshire. “What a rigged deal.”This was the 20th US presidential debate and wasorganized by the Commission on Presidential Debates.

  • Hillary Clinton Wins First Presidential Debate, 62% to 27%

    Hillary Clinton Wins First Presidential Debate, 62% to 27%

    Democrat Hillary Clinton on Tuesday defeated Republican Donald Trump in the first presidential debate by 62% to 27%.

    Earlier, Clinton and Trump took to the stage on Monday to begin their first-ever presidential debate and have immediately sparred over jobs, taxes, the Islamic State, guns and the former secretary of state’s undisclosed emails, media reports said.

    Moderator Leslie Holt of NBC News opened the 90-minute debate at Hofstra University, Long Island, New York, with the first topic, “Achieving Prosperity” where the first question about putting money back into Americans’ pockets and creating jobs was directed to Clinton, CNN reported.

    Clinton, the first woman to represent a major US party in the presidential race, mentioned her granddaughter’s birthday, and talked about everything from gender pay gaps, to paid family leave, to presidential temperament.

    Trump gave a classic answer about China and Mexico stealing American business and jobs.

    “We have to stop our jobs from being stolen from us, we have to stop companies from leaving the United States,” he added.

    Clinton also called on Trump to apologise to people who have worked on the real estate mogul’s properties who have not been paid in full, Politico reported.

    Do “the thousands of people that you have stiffed over the course of your business not deserve some kind of apology from someone who has taken their labour, taken the goods that they’ve produced and then refused to pay them?” Clinton questioned her rival.

    “I can only say that I’m certainly relieved that my late father never did business with you.”

    Trump went on to suggest that he had only taken that route four times, and that he was within his legal rights to do so.

    Following Trump’s opening remarks about reducing taxes, Holt asked Clinton to defend her plan to increase taxes.

    Clinton quipped she has a feeling she will be blamed for everything by the end of the night.

    Regarding taxes, Trump said “I will release my tax returns – against my lawyer’s wishes – when she releases her 33,000 emails that have been deleted.”

    Clinton responded by saying that there was something “really important, maybe even terrible that he’s trying to hide,” Politico reported.

    “Maybe he doesn’t want the American public, all of you watching tonight, to know that he’s paid no federal taxes,” Clinton said.

    Clinton also admitted that she “made a mistake” about her use of a private email server while at the State Department.

    Trump went on to blame Clinton for the the rise of the IS by noting the Democrat had laid out some of her plans on her website.

    “You’re telling the enemy everything you want to do,” Trump said as Clinton shook her head in amusement. “No wonder you’ve been fighting IS your entire adult life.”

    Moderator Holt brought up the recent fatal police shootings of African-American men and asked about healing along lines of race and racism.

    “Unfortunately, race often determines too much,” she said, adding “We have to restore trust between communities and the police… everyone should be respected by the law and everyone should respect the law.”

    Trump said the country needed law and order. “African Americans and Hispanics are living in hell because it’s so dangerous. You walk down the street you get shot,” he added.

    Clinton has called for restricted gun control in the US, saying “We’ve got too many military-style weapons on the streets. In a lot of places, our police are outgunned Â… we need to keep guns out of the hands of those who’d do harm.”

    The debate is divided into 6 segments with 15 minutes given to each nominee. Two minutes will be allotted to answer a question asked by the moderator, two minutes to reply and the remaining time for the nominees to debate.

    This is the 20th US presidential debate and is being organised by the Commission on Presidential Debates.

  • Indian American Jennifer Rajkumar fails to make it to the general elections

    Indian American Jennifer Rajkumar fails to make it to the general elections

    NEW YORK (TIP): Jenifer Rajkumar, a Democrat running in the state’s 65th Assembly District, candidate for the New York State Assembly, has lost the race in the Democratic primaries held on September 13.

    She was against an array of strong candidates to fill the seat vacated by the powerful NY State Assembly Speaker, Sheldon Silver. Rajkumar, a longtime resident of the area and a Democratic District Leader for three terms, managed to split some of the voting blocks, to garner a second place finish.

    “I am enormously proud of the campaign we ran, and very grateful for the outpouring of support I received from our Desi community everywhere,” Rajkumar told the media. “This was a tough race in a tough district.”

    The winner, Yuh-Line Niou won 2,742 votes, 31.55 percent, and Rajkumar came in 2nd with 1,612 or 18.55 percent of the vote. Ranged behind her were Paul Newell with 1,381 (15.89 percent); Alive Cancel, 1,069 (12.30 percent; Don Lee, 984 votes (11.32 percent); and Gigi Li, 827 votes, 9.51 percent.

    This heavily Democratic downtown Manhattan district made up of diverse ethnic communities and a mix of upper and lower income populations, assures a winner of the primary a seat in the state Assembly almost automatically. But just 8,692 Democrats cast votes in a district where registered Democrats number 43,094.

    “With all of New York’s powerbrokers supporting other candidates, I still came in a very respectable second place in a six candidate field thanks to votes from throughout Lower Manhattan’s diverse neighborhoods,” Rajkumar said.

  • ‘Maybe you don’t believe Donald Trump is a bigot. Or a racist. Or a xenophobe.

    ‘Maybe you don’t believe Donald Trump is a bigot. Or a racist. Or a xenophobe.

    NEW YORK (TIP): Jmmy Fallon ruffles Donald Trump’s hair and everyone giggles while he thanks himself for putting an end to the “birther movement” and lying about who started it and making yet another veiled threat at Hillary Clinton.

    Are you serious? Why does no one hold any of them accountable for the vile things they say? We just roll our eyes and let them get away with it.

    Yes, we all are sick of Washington too.

    I’m tired of them all squabbling like children and making sweet deals for themselves, but Donald Trump is not the solution. I don’t care about his policy ideas or his tax plan. I don’t care that he isn’t a politician. I don’t care about his businesses. I don’t care about his health. I care about the way he treats people who are already marginalized in our society.

    All Trump does is breed hatred and divisiveness and his children are just as awful as him.

    Forget for a moment Hillary Clinton’s remark the other day that “half” of Trump’s supporters belong to a “basket of deplorables.” The Democrat later expressed regret for the broad generalization but stuck to her assertion that Trump offers a safe haven for the hateful.

    There is no perfect way to quantify how many Trump fans fit the description.

    Trump has taken a hard line against immigrants who come to the U.S. illegally from Mexico. When he launched his campaign last year, he characterized most as violent criminals, allowing only that “some” might be “good people.”

    Trump also has promised to make Mexico pay for completion of a border wall separating the two countries.

    The New York businessman cited that proposal a few months ago when he asserted that a federal judge hearing a civil suit involving the now-defunct Trump University was biased because of his Mexican heritage.

    It strikes me, though, that Trump, whether he means to or not, has fostered a hostile moment in our politics when his supporters feel entitled to racially denigrate others.

    There are not two sides to racism.

    (Source: From The Social Media – Facebook)

  • Jimmy Carter: US politics causing division, must improve

    Jimmy Carter: US politics causing division, must improve

    ATLANTA (TIP) – Jimmy Carter says American politics is at an “all-time low” but “is bound to get better” following the November elections.

    The former U.S. president spoke Wednesday night at Emory University in Atlanta during the 35th annual town hall he’s held with freshmen students. Carter is a distinguished professor at the university, and the nonprofit he founded is an affiliate of the school.

    Carter, who is 91, fielded questions on immigrants’ role in America, the presidential election and how much he slept while president.

    Asked what advice he’d give first-time voters, Carter jokingly said he considered responding “abstain.” But ultimately, he advised those who “want to be like me” to vote for Democrats.

    He expressed concern about deep divisions in the country but said history shows those can be healed.

  • Trump a ‘National Disgrace’

    Trump a ‘National Disgrace’

    Colin Powell called Donald Trump a “national disgrace” who is “in the process of destroying himself” in an email to a former aide that has been hacked and leaked online.

    The former Secretary of State, who led the State Department under Republican President George W. Bush, confirmed the emails were authentic to NBC News, adding that “the hackers have a lot more.”

    Much of the content of these emails was first reported by the website BuzzFeed which quotes Powell in one email from June 17, 2016, to Emily Miller, a journalist and former aide of Powell’s. He wrote that Trump “is in the process of destroying himself, no need for Dems to attack him.”

    In another email Powell describes Trump’s birther crusade as a “racist” movement that incorrectly suggests Obama was born in a foreign country.

    “Yup, the whole birther movement was racist,” Powell wrote. He also said Trump wanted to know whether Obama is a Muslim. “As I have said before, ‘What if he was?’ Muslims are born as Americans everyday.”

    In a separate email, with the subject line “racism,” Powell wrote, “There is a level of intolerance in parts of the Republican Party.”

    BuzzFeed reports that it obtained the emails from the website DCLeaks.com, which is suspected of having ties to Russian cyberspies. The private cybersecurity firm ThreatConnect has reported its suspicion that DCLeaks is a Russian-backed operation, linked to the notorious hacker Guccifer 2.0, who on Tuesday released more data stolen from the Democratic National Committee.

    The conservative news outlet Daily Caller also reported tonight that two years of Powell emails have been stolen, from June 2014 to August 2016.

  • Media outraged after Trump tricks them into covering his event

    Media outraged after Trump tricks them into covering his event

    Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has outraged the media after he duped them into broadcasting an infomercial for his new hotel on the pretext of a “major announcement” to get more than 20 minutes of free air-time yesterday Sep 16.

    Not only CNN but also all the major networks showed Trumps event at his newly inaugurated Trump International Hotel in Washington DC as pro-Trump military members started speaking.

    Ahead of the event, Trump had hyped over Fox News that he would be making a major announcement about the birther controversy of the US President, Barack Obama.

    All the news networks – CNN, MSNBC, and Fox – started carrying the event live.

    They kept on waiting for 20 minutes waiting for Trump to speak on the birther controversy.

    It was not before 20 minutes that the news networks apparently realised that they have been taken for a ride once again.

    “We got played, again, by the Trump campaign, which is what they do,” CNN’s chief national correspondent John King said after the news channel showed live the GOP nominee for nearly 20 minutes waiting for the major announcement coming from Trump.

    “He got a live event broadcast for some 20 minutes,” King said.

    Trump is known for spending less money on television advertisements, while his opponents Hillary Clinton is spending a huge sum of money.

    About five minutes after that Trump took the podium to speak four short statements.

    “Hillary Clinton in her campaign of 2008 started the birther controversy. I finished it. President Barack Obama was born in the United States, period. Now we all want to get back to making America strong and great again,” he said.

    “We all got rickrolled and played,” rued Jake Tapper of the CNN.

    “It is insulting what he just did,” Congressman Gregory Meeks told the CNN.

    “And he has done it time and time and time again, which tries to divide us as a nation. Its like he thinks that its a game, youre playing a TV show,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Trump campaign prevented editorial access to his tour of the hotel. In protest television reporters erased the video of his hotel tour.

    The Washington Post slammed news channels for showing this event live.

    “While they waited, and waited, Trump provided what amounted to a campaign infomercial and shamelessly promoted his new Trump International Hotel in downtown Washington,” the daily said.

    “This is a campaign and a candidate that completely understands how the press works or doesnt work and exploits the blatant weaknesses of political journalism,” said Dan Gillmor, a media scholar at Arizona State University.

    On Twitter he called this episode “universal sewer dwelling” for cable news.

     

     

  • Obama to address UNGA on Tuesday

    Obama to address UNGA on Tuesday

    US President Barack Obama will address the UN General Assembly for the eighth and last time on Tuesday during which he will review some of the trends that have been shaping the international order for many years, his close aide has said.

    Obama leaves Washington DC for New York on Sunday morning for his last time attending the annual General Assembly Session as the US President.

    “I think with respect to the speech, what he will want to do is step back and review some of the progress thats been made over the last eight years, but also review some of the trends that have been shaping our international order for many years and that have led up to a really critical moment as the international community responds to a range of different crises,” Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes told reporters during a conference call.

    Giving a preview of his speech, Rhodes said Obama would likely offer his thoughts in this final forum to address the entire world about the types of approaches that they need to take as a national community to deal with a myriad of challenges.

    Obama will also talk about “how we can ensure that were continuing to promote sustainable and inclusive economic growth; how we are promoting the type of inclusive governance that both respects the rights of individuals around the world, but also facilitate to the many challenges that we face — governance obviously being a critical component of what is needed to deal with issues in the Middle East and North Africa — and then discuss the type of international cooperation were seeking to build,” Rhodes said.

    “I think Paris is a good model for that in that it involves nearly every country in the world stepping forward and making commitments to work together to deal with the global challenge. I think the President will discuss how we can apply international cooperation to deal with the many issues that are shaping this period in time,” Rhodes said.

  • Trump owes Obama an apology: Clinton

    Trump owes Obama an apology: Clinton

    Washington, Sep 16 (TIP): Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, owes an apology to the US President Barack Obama for lying about the latters place of birth, his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton demanded today ramping up the attack on the real estate mogul.

    “Barack Obama was born in America, plain and simple, and Donald Trump owes him and the American people an apology,” Clinton said.

    Moments later Trump said that Obama was born in the US, but did not say anything about the apology.

    The White House said the US President does not care about the apology.

    The Democratic Party also demanded an apology from Trump on this issue.

    At a morning event, Clinton alleged that for five years Trump had led the birther movement to delegitimise the first black president.

    “His campaign was founded on this outrageous lie. There is no erasing it in history. Just yesterday, Trump again refused to say with his own words that the president was born in the United States,” she said.

    Trump, she alleged, “is feeding into the worst impulses, the bigotry and bias that lurks” in the country.

    “There is no new Donald Trump. There never will be. Trump looks at President Obama after eight years as our president, he still doesnt see him as an American,” she said.

    “Think of how dangerous that is. Imagine a person in the Oval Office who traffics in conspiracy theories and refuses to let them go, no matter what the facts are. Imagine a President who sees someone who doesnt look like him and doesnt agree with him and thinks that person must not be a real American. Trump is unfit to be president of the US,” Clinton said amidst applause from the audience.

    “We cannot become insensitive to what he says and what he stirs up. We cant just accept this. Weve got to stand up to it. If we dont, it wont stop. In addition to the President, Trump looks at a distinguished federal judge born in Indiana and he sees a Mexican, not an American,” she alleged.

    “He looks at a Gold Star family and sees them as Muslims, not patriotic Americans. He looks at women and decides how our looks rate on a scale of one to ten. I look at America, I see everyone. I see our great diversity which is one of our core strengths, not our burden. We know who Donald Trump is. Now its time for our country to show who we are and reject his divisive vision,” Clinton said.

  • Consumer Frauds by Health Insurance & Service Providers under Christie Watch

    Consumer Frauds by Health Insurance & Service Providers under Christie Watch

    After battling with my Insurer Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield (Horizon) and service provider Newark Beth Israel Medical Center (Barnabas Health) for 8 months; on 08-02-16 I filed a complaint against both of them with New Jersey Department of Banking & Insurance (NJDOBI).

    In my complaint I accused Barnabas & Horizon of fraudulently fixing and approving exorbitantly very high prices for the services as compared to the market rates. I also accused Horizon that according to their own representative John, 08-02-16, the services availed by my son come under “Preventive Care Services”. So, there cannot be any deductible or coinsurance; it is 100% covered by Horizon. I mentioned that since 2003 I have been using Associates in Cardiovascular Diseases in Springfield, NJ 973 467 0005 and according to their billing department for a non-insured/self cash pay for  Echo Study that includes Doppler, color flow and congenital they charge $305.00 and for EKG$21.32.

    I also mentioned that for 8 months against my numerous verbal and written requests, Barnabas has refused to provide me the detailed bill with CPT codes for the test done for my son. He had an open heart surgery in 2004 at Beth Israel and is required to go for routine checkup every 5 years as an outpatient at Beth Israel aka Barnabas Heath. For the last visit in 2009 we were not billed anything. For the 12-14-15 visit Barnabas billed me for $2,556.88 as my share after receiving $853.27 from Horizon for the Test and NBIMC billed $60.20 as my share for the physician office visit and test interpretations after receiving $316.42 from Horizon. The original billing by Horizon was $4,122.00 and by NBIMC was $702.00. After discount / adjustment of $711.85 Horizon’s final bill was $3410.15 and NBIMC was $414.66 after discount of $287.34.

    On 09-01-16 NJDOBI’s investigator Ms. Eileen Cashman-Jermak wrote to me that “All the information submitted by you (me) and the company has been thoroughly reviewed and it appears that the company’s actions are in accordance with the provisions of the policy contract, applicable statues and regulations. As a result, no further actions are required at this time.” In her letter she provided me the details for the test done along with CPT codes on behalf of Barnabas that they have refused to provide me for the last over 8 months.

    The response of Ms. Eileen clearly indicates that she is not working for the consumers of the New Jersey; rather she is working for the Insurance company and the service provider. This I can safely say on the basis of the further investigations I did on my own:

    I called Horizon Member Services on 09-08-16 and spoke to Ms. Lori Call ref # 1-5384124822U according to her All these testsunder CPT code 93303, 93320, 93325, 93005 & 94760 come under “Preventive Care Services” no deductible, no co-pay & 100%covered by Horizon.

    Newark Beth Israel Medical Center aka Barnabas Health: (non-Invasive Cardiac Care)

    09-08-16 I asked Ms. Giselle 973 926 7475 for a price quote for self-paying patient with no insurance for same diagnostic test as an outpatient. She told me that “we do not do CPT 93303 we have 93306 that covers 93303, 9320 & 9325 cost is $752.00 including physician charges for interpreting the results.For CPT 93005 & 94760 you have to call the other department. I asked them to put it in writing and fax/e-mail me the price quote. She told me her supervisor will send it to me. When I never received any fax/e-mail, next day on 09-09-16 I called Ms. Giselle again and she told me to talk to Ms. Arlene McGaugh 973 926 8294.

    On 09-09-16 I spoke to Ms. Arlene McGaugh and she asked me to fax to 973 282 2432 the CPT codes for the test I want as self paying patient with no insurance. I received an e-mail at 12:08 PM from Jamie Ortiz that all the test CPT code 93303, 93320, 93325, 93005 & 94760 will cost $910.27 as cash/self pay out patient inclusive of physician charges.

    All the above indicate that NJDOBI investigation and conclusions are totally flawed and are in favor of Horizon & Barnabas. May be Ms. Eileen never did any investigations!

    1. Why NJDOBI has not questioned Barnabas Health for not providing me the detailed bill along with the CPT codes despite my numerous requests? I did file documentary proof for the same on 08-02-16 to NJDOBI on this matter also. After 9 months NJDOBI provided me the CPT codes for the services providedto my son on behalf of Barnabas.
    2. Did NJDOBI raise any question to why Beth Israel never disclosed upfront what test they will be doing and what will be the tentative cost especially when the cost was$4,122.00 for the Test and $702.00 for the physician?
    3. NJDOBI could have called Beth Israel or any other facility to enquire about the charges for all the test and physician charges to verify my allegations made on 08-02-16 that Horizon & Barnabas are colluding with each other to inflate the prices of the services rendered on 12-14-15 to do consumer frauds in this case me.
    1. NJDOBI failed to question Horizon why they paid NBIMC $244.06 for “New Patient Office Exam” when my son is not a new patient.
    2. NJDOBI failed to verify my claim that services rendered on 12-14-15 comes under “Preventive Care Services” that attracts no deductible, no co-pay &Horizon must pay 100% for these services.
    3. Even if the Horizon disputes after disowning the 09-08-16 statement of their representative Ms. Lori that services under CPT code 93303, 93320, 93325, 93005 & 94760 comes under “Preventive Care Services”; why I will pay $2,556.88 to Barnabas on top of $853.27 already paid by Horizon and$60.20 as my share for the physician after $316.42 paid by Horizon when for the same services as Self Pay with no insurance Barnabas is asking$910.27 including physician interpretation charges for the test?

    Horizon has a fiduciary duty to protect its policy holders/consumers but it has failed them miserably. Its CEO makes over $5 million and other executive close to or more than a million dollars and they still do not know how to negotiate prices for the services rendered by hospitals or doctors especially when they are providing them regular supply of patients. I don’t think they are brain dead or retarded otherwise they should not be occupying such top positions in Horizon with millions in compensation every year. It looks like Horizon executives are running scams for direct or indirect material benefits that’s why they approved $3,410.15 after so called negations from $4,122.00 for the test and $ 376.62 from $702.00 (office visit $473.00 & $229.00 for test interpretation) for the physician billed by NBIMC. Surprisingly the same Beth Israel aka Barnabas Health is selling these services for $910.27 to an individual with no insurance including physician’s interpretation charges. The scammers posing as Executives making millions of dollars at Horizon in their fiduciary duties are trying to prove to their policy holders that they negotiated the best prices for them! It is defying the centuries old business logic that when you buy in bulk the goods or services; the prices are much lower as buying 1 piece or buying a service one time only.

    Since becoming the Chairman of Republican Governors Association in Nov 2013 Governor Christie first wasted his time on his non existent chance of US Presidential Candidate and then on VP of Republican front runner Donald Trump and currently he is dreaming of a Cabinet position in Trump government. That is the reason under the absentee Gov. Christie’s leadership NJDOBI has failed to regulate Horizon and Barnabas Healthcare. NJDOBI have no objections if Horizon& Barnabas can penalize me/consumer for having a self-paying individual Health Insurance Policy from the market place! Christie administration also has no objection if these companies are doing consumer frauds under the supervision of their own supervisory staff that has no desire to properly investigate complaints against them.

    All of the above is happening because there is no government in New Jersey to protect the interest of its citizens. Rather New Jersey has been let down by its politicians across the aisle whether it was Bias intimidation law, HIB law, Domestic Terrorism law, consumer or child or women or senior citizens’ welfare. The NJ lawmakers pass laws without reading them and when you request them to make changes because it is hurting people even with well documented pitfalls; they write to you that we have to receive more complaints rather more victims of vaguely  written laws before we make any changes! If you complain

    Christie government and Christie himself if informed that the local government of your town is doing massive frauds; the concerned department and Christie will rarely acknowledge your complaint. They will toss it up to another department and they will toss up to some other department, this process of tossing up will continue till you give up your hopes for any justice. If you report consumer frauds by big companies, they tell you that the company is doing everything in accordance with the provisions under the applicable laws!

    Mind it practically all the lawmakers of New Jersey are attorneys and running their own practices also. For all the anti-people policies created by dishonest politicians of both the parties, New Jersey is called a “Mafia State,” a state for 8.5 million residents with over 10,000 elected political scoundrels representing 587 local and 1 state government with over 630,000 employees! Under Christie’s mismanagement supported by the lawmakers of both parties, New Jersey’s credit rating has been downgraded nine times (across Standard & Poor, Fitch Ratings, and Moody’s Investors Service), leaving only Illinois with a lower rating among US states. Because of their collective hard work New Jersey rank 3rd with $35 billion debt for 8.5 mil residents after New York with 2nd place with $63 billion for 19.75 mil residents and California with 1ST place with $94 billion for 38.8 mil residents. In fact New Jersey rank number 1 in USA with per capita debt of $4,117.65 followed by New York with $3,189.87 at 2nd place and California with $2,422.68 at 3rd place.

  • ART OF THE LIE: Politicians have always lied. Does it matter if they leave the truth behind entirely?

    ART OF THE LIE: Politicians have always lied. Does it matter if they leave the truth behind entirely?

    CONSIDER how far Donald Trump is estranged from fact. He inhabits a fantastical realm where Barack Obama’s birth certificate was faked, the president founded Islamic State (IS), the Clintons are killers and the father of a rival was with Lee Harvey Oswald before he shot John F. Kennedy.

    Mr. Trump is the leading exponent of “post-truth” politics-a reliance on assertions that “feel true” but have no basis in fact. His brazenness is not punished, but taken as evidence of his willingness to stand up to elite power. And he is not alone. Members of Poland’s government assert that a previous president, who died in a plane crash, was assassinated by Russia. Turkish politicians claim the perpetrators of the recent bungled coup were acting on orders issued by the CIA. The successful campaign for Britain to leave the European Union warned of the hordes of immigrants that would result from Turkey’s imminent accession to the union.

    If, like this newspaper, you believe that politics should be based on evidence, this is worrying. Strong democracies can draw on inbuilt defenses against post-truth. Authoritarian countries are more vulnerable.

    Lord of the lies

    That politicians sometimes peddle lies is not news: think of Ronald Reagan’s fib that his administration had not traded weapons with Iran in order to secure the release of hostages and to fund the efforts of rebels in Nicaragua. Dictators and democrats seeking to deflect blame for their own incompetence have always manipulated the truth; sore losers have always accused the other lot of lying.

    But post-truth politics is more than just an invention of whingeing elites who have been outflanked. The term picks out the heart of what is new: that truth is not falsified, or contested, but of secondary importance. Once, the purpose of political lying was to create a false view of the world. The lies of men like Mr. Trump do not work like that. They are not intended to convince the elites, whom their target voters neither trust nor like, but to reinforce prejudices.

    Feelings, not facts, are what matter in this sort of campaigning. Their opponents’ disbelief validates the us-versus-them mindset that outsider candidates thrive on. And if your opponents focus on trying to show your facts are wrong, they have to fight on the ground you have chosen. The more Remain campaigners attacked the Leave campaign’s exaggerated claim that EU membership cost Britain £350m ($468m) a week, the longer they kept the magnitude of those costs in the spotlight.

    Post-truth politics has many parents. Some are noble. The questioning of institutions and received wisdom is a democratic virtue. A skeptical lack of deference towards leaders is the first step to reform. The collapse of communism was hastened because brave people were prepared to challenge the official propaganda.

    But corrosive forces are also at play. One is anger. Many voters feel let down and left behind, while the elites who are in charge have thrived. They are scornful of the self-serving technocrats who said that the euro would improve their lives and that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. Popular trust in expert opinion and established institutions has tumbled across Western democracies.

    Post-truth has also been abetted by the evolution of the media (see Briefing). The fragmentation of news sources has created an atomized world in which lies, rumor and gossip spread with alarming speed. Lies that are widely shared online within a network, whose members trust each other more than they trust any mainstream-media source, can quickly take on the appearance of truth. Presented with evidence that contradicts a belief that is dearly held, people have a tendency to ditch the facts first. Well-intentioned journalistic practices bear blame too. The pursuit of “fairness” in reporting often creates phoney balance at the expense of truth. NASA scientist says Mars is probably uninhabited; Professor Snooks says it is teeming with aliens. It’s really a matter of opinion.

    When politics is like pro-wrestling, society pays the cost. Mr. Trump’s insistence that Mr. Obama founded IS precludes a serious debate over how to deal with violent extremists. Policy is complicated, yet post-truth politics damns complexity as the sleight of hand experts use to bamboozle everyone else. Hence Hillary Clinton’s proposals on paid parental leave go unexamined (see article) and the case for trade liberalization is drowned out by “common sense” demands for protection.

    It is tempting to think that, when policies sold on dodgy prospectuses start to fail, lied-to supporters might see the error of their ways. The worst part of post-truth politics, though, is that this self-correction cannot be relied on. When lies make the political system dysfunctional, its poor results can feed the alienation and lack of trust in institutions that make the post-truth play possible in the first place.

    Pro-truthers stand and be counted

    To counter this, mainstream politicians need to find a language of rebuttal (being called “pro-truth” might be a start). Humility and the acknowledgment of past hubris would help. The truth has powerful forces on its side. Any politician who makes contradictory promises to different audiences will soon be exposed on Facebook or YouTube. If an official lies about attending a particular meeting or seeking a campaign donation, a trail of e-mails may catch him out.

    Democracies have institutions to help, too. Independent legal systems have mechanisms to establish truth (indeed, Melania Trump has turned to the law to seek redress for lies about her past). So, in their way, do the independent bodies created to inform policy-especially those that draw on science.

    If Mr. Trump loses in November, post-truth will seem less menacing, though he has been too successful for it to go away. The deeper worry is for countries like Russia and Turkey, where autocrats use the techniques of post-truth to silence opponents. Cast adrift on an ocean of lies, the people there will have nothing to cling to. For them the novelty of post-truth may lead back to old-fashioned oppression.