Judge Rules Federal Agents Don’t Have To Identify Themselves While Making Arrests In Portland

Police typically have to identify themselves before serving warrants or making arrests in America, but a federal judge in Portland recently ruled federal agents in Portland, Oregon do not have to identify themselves when arresting suspects.

U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman ruled Friday that Oregon state Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum lacked standing to sue the federal government. Rosenblum had sued the Trump administration alleging the federal agents deployed in Portland violated protester’s and rioter’s constitutional rights. Mosman ruled Rosenblum hadn’t articulated a state interest beyond those constitutional rights, PJ Media reported.

Buzzfeed reported that Mosman “denied a request by the Oregon attorney general’s office for an order that would require federal law enforcement officers in Portland to identify themselves when making arrests and place limits on the detention and arrests of protesters.”

More from Buzzfeed:

In his order on Friday, the judge repeatedly described the case as “unusual,” writing that typically in cases involving allegations of constitutional violations during protests, the people affected would be the ones to file a lawsuit, not a state. Rosenblum’s office was also seeking a future-looking injunction, which set an “unusually high bar” for the attorney general’s office to clear, he wrote.

To sue on behalf of citizens — a legal doctrine known as “parens patriae” — Oregon had to show that it had an interest that was separate from private individuals, and that a “quasi-sovereign interest” had been violated. Mosman wrote that the state offered mostly “purely hypothetical” arguments about the risks facing Oregonians by federal officers failing to identify themselves during arrests, such as the possibility of counterprotesters pretending to be federal officers to kidnap protesters.

Rosenblum’s lawsuit was just one of several that have been brought against the Trump administration by liberal states who have let violent protesters and rioters have free rein over their cities to destroy businesses, buildings, and monuments with little consequence.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Michael Simon ruled in favor of restricting what federal officers can and can’t do to journalists and legal observers in Portland. The ruling banned federal officers from arresting journalists and observers unless they had probable cause of a crime. The judge also ruled these same groups didn’t have to follow dispersal orders.

“Without journalists and legal observers, there is only the government’s side of the story to explain why a ‘riot’ was declared and the public streets were ‘closed’ and whether law enforcement acted properly in effectuating that order,” Simon wrote, according to Buzzfeed.

Violence continues in liberal cities across the city following the police-involved death of Minneapolis resident George Floyd. Floyd died on May 25 after officer Derek Chauvin held his knee to Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes as Floyd said he couldn’t breathe. Two months later, and major cities including Portland, Seattle, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, and Minneapolis are still facing violent crimes. Chicago and New York City especially have seen violent crime in the city surge, all while city officials promise to reduce police presence.

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President Signs Executive Orders Reducing Drug Prices on Insulin, EpiPens and More

There was much-anticipated drug pricing news from the White House yesterday, as President Trump announced he was signing a series of Executive Orders as they relate to medication pricing. These Executive Orders help Medicare recipients and others manage the rising costs of life-saving medication for example insulin and epinephrine pens. The President said, “I’m signing four sweeping executive orders that will lead to a massive reduction in drug costs,” [This] will completely restore the prescription drug market in terms of prices”.

Here is the breakdown according to the White House release of the Executive Orders:

Executive Order on Increasing Drug Importation to Lower Prices for American Patients. “One way to minimize international disparities in price is to increase the trade of prescription drugs between nations with lower prices and those with persistently higher ones. Over time, reducing trade barriers and increasing the exchange of drugs will likely result in lower prices for the country that is paying more for drugs. For example, in the European Union, a market characterized by price controls and significant barriers to entry, the parallel trade of drugs has existed for decades and has been estimated to reduce the price of certain drugs by up to 20 percent. Accordingly, my Administration supports the goal of safe importation of prescription drugs. The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, take action to expand safe access to lower-cost imported prescription drugs”.

Executive Order on Lowering Prices for Patients by Eliminating Kickbacks to Middlemen: This EO eliminates the middleman who would normally get a kickback from the drug manufacturers to health plan sponsors, pharmacies, or pharmacy benefit managers (PBM’) and thus passing the savings onto patients. “It is the policy of the United States that discounts offered on prescription drugs should be passed on to patients“.

Executive Order on Access to Affordable Life-saving Medications: More Affordable Insulin and EpiPens: “Insulin is a critical and life-saving medication that approximately 8 million Americans rely on to manage diabetes. Likewise, injectable epinephrine is a life‑saving medication used to stop severe allergic reactions. The price of insulin in the United States has risen dramatically over the past decade. The list price for a single vial of insulin today is often more than $250 and most patients use at least two vials per month. As for injectable epinephrine, recent increased competition is helping to drive prices down. Nevertheless, the price for some types of injectable epinephrine remains more than $600 per kit. While Americans with diabetes and severe allergic reactions may have access to affordable insulin and injectable epinephrine through commercial insurance or Federal programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, many Americans still struggle to purchase these products”.

It is the policy of the United States to enable Americans without access to affordable insulin and injectable epinephrine through commercial insurance or Federal programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, to purchase these pharmaceuticals from an FQHC at a price that aligns with the cost at which the FQHC acquired the medication“.

There is a fourth Executive Order that will go into effect on August 25, 2020, that will require Medicare to purchase medication at the same prices that are paid by foreign countries which can be significantly less. This prevents the U.S. from continuing to pay for the cost of research and development for other countries. Medicare will be able to negotiate pricing which will help patients to pay less for the same prescription medication. The delay in signing this Executive Order is to give companies time to find alternative solutions for funding their cost for research and development.

Paul Madden

During the press conference, The President, asked Paul Madden, an insulin-dependent diabetic senior citizen from Boston who has lived with diabetes for 59 years, to speak. Madden spoke about how the lowering of insulin pricing will positively impact him and the 34 million other people who live with diabetes. “Last year I realized quickly my ability to afford prescribed insulins that worked best for my health was no longer possible because of their excessive high price. Soaring costs have impacted the quality of my life“. He continued, “It has impacted me so much that I even started to use a 30-year-old insulin to survive which does not do quite the same job of balancing my diabetes. To ensure that insulin is affordable under Medicare will help guarantee that I and millions of seniors who take insulin realize more healthier and more productive and independent, happier lives“.

The President full remarks and signing can be seen here.

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LIMBAUGH: Trump Must Directly Appeal To African Americans

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump directly appealed to African American voters for their vote, asking them, “What do you have to lose?”

Trump should have received more credit for this, as Republicans have often been criticized for not wooing African Americans from Democrats, who crucially depend on their overwhelming support yet take their votes for granted.

Trump’s message was that blacks had entrusted their improvement exclusively to the Democratic Party, but it had failed to produce. He highlighted two critical areas in which Democrats had let them down: education and poverty.

He said that blacks “are living in poverty” and their “schools are no good,” and he pledged to do better by them, unlike Democrats, who offered nothing but empty promises.

The Democrats have never bothered to show how their policies are superior to the Republicans’ because they can’t. Instead, they’ve cynically cast Republicans as uncompassionate and, in many cases, racist. I’ve always assumed their scheme worked, because I can find no other explanation for the Democrats’ electoral vice grip on African Americans than the latter’s distrust of Republicans. Nothing else makes sense.

It’s no coincidence that Democrats have played the race card with even greater intensity in response to President Trump’s undeniable policy successes for African Americans and other minorities. Under Trump, African American unemployment was at a record low, and their wages were greatly improving prior to the virus-induced downturn.

Democrats always cite the same phony examples to make their case, such as that Trump is an immigration hawk because he doesn’t like Mexicans and other non-Americans. It’s all bogus, but it works, and it sure beats having to explain away their own policy failures and Trump’s policy successes. It is despicable and destructive.

Falsely accusing people of racism is a particularly egregious sin, not just because there are few smears more harmful to one’s reputation but also because it damages race relations, especially when the slander, like the sin of racism itself, is applied with a broad brush to an entire group of people — in this case, the Republican Party.

But why fool ourselves? The Democratic Party isn’t going to change anytime soon on this score, as evidenced by Joe Biden’s ghastly remark that African Americans not supporting him aren’t black. As such, a good friend of mine suggested to me that President Trump must follow up on his 2016 challenge to African American voters.

Normally, I’m reluctant for Republicans to target African Americans or other specific voter groups because it smacks of race consciousness and identity politics, and could be seen as patronizing and pandering, none of which has ever stopped Democrats. But as sensitive as the race issue has become, and as much as Democrats have painted Trump and Republicans as racist, it’s time this is addressed head-on.

Now he has a concrete record to tout, but he needs to sharpen his message to demonstrate how his policies were actually lifting African Americans out of poverty, and how the Democrats’ active neglect of black children in inferior inner-city schools has doomed many of them to lives of poverty, violence and crime.

Trump is particularly suited to this task because he has fulfilled his campaign promises to African Americans and he speaks from the heart, avoiding the double speak used by many politicians.

President Trump must accentuate the economic and education issues on which he campaigned, but he should also point to the civil unrest, crime, lawlessness and anarchy that dominates our cities today, and tailor his law and order agenda to black families who crave domestic tranquility as much as anyone else does.

Cities are imploding throughout the nation under mostly Democratic leadership, and they are inflamed with violence. Trump should turn the tables on Democratic politicians and make them answer for their abject policy failures and explain why they turn a blind eye to black lives lost to inner-city violence. Black families living in these troubled neighborhoods surely want law and order and peace and liberty as much as anyone else, despite the activists’ exclusive focus on instances of police misconduct. As for these rogue cops, which are a very small minority, it’s time that Democrats explain their unwavering support for the police unions that protect them. African Americans understand that defunding the cops would be disastrous, yet the Democrats’ answer is less law enforcement rather than more, which guarantees more arson, looting and death.

Trump should demand that Democrats answer why they aggressively oppose charter schools, school choice and other initiatives aimed at improving the quality of education for all people. Here again, are the Democrats working for African Americans or teachers unions?

My friend is right. President Trump, please take your case directly to African Americans and contrast your record with the Democrats’ incendiary and opportunistic rhetoric, and failed policies. Point out that, in fact, African Americans have very much to lose by supporting a party that has no answers for them, and that would enable more lawlessness and ensure greater inequality of outcomes.

David Limbaugh is a writer, author and attorney. His latest book is “Guilty by Reason of Insanity: Why the Democrats Must Not Win.” Follow him on Twitter @davidlimbaugh and his website at www.davidlimbaugh.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.

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60-Year-Old Man Died from a Gunshot Wound to the Head, Government Reportedly Listed It as COVID Death

Do you want to delegitimize COVID-19 death tallies? Because this is how you delegitimize COVID-19 death tallies. Palm Beach County, Florida, is home to 1.49 million residents. It’s one of the current hot spots in America’s fight against the novel coronavirus. According to The Palm Beach Post, the county saw 761 new diagnosed cases reported…

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Steve Baldwin: The Real Agenda of Black Lives Matter

The death of George Floyd has unleashed a culture war that reveals just how successful the left has been in propagandizing Americans about our supposedly racist country. With the complicity of the media, the socialist left is feeding disinformation to Americans that has little resemblance to reality. When one tries to counter this propaganda barrage,…

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National Retailers: NYC Worst Place To Do Business After COVID-19

The Big Apple is a rotten place to do business, according to retailers who say New York City is not bouncing back the way experts hoped. Shake Shack reported just how bad the New York City retail climate is, and how much it can drag down a nationwide corporation. In a news release, the company,…

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Seattle Police Chief Issues Scorching Letter After City Council Tried To Strip Riot Cops of Everything but Shields and Batons

Seattle Police Department Chief Carmen Best slammed the city council on Thursday for creating a “dangerous” situation for officers by attempting to ban the use of pepper spray and other items often used to control crowds. Earlier this month, Seattle police cleared out a downtown occupied zone that had been set up by protesters in…

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Supreme Court Gives Nevada Casinos More Rights than Churches; Roberts Sides with Liberals Again

Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the four liberal justices on the Supreme Court in a rule 5-4 against a Nevada church, Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley, released Friday night. Calvary Chapel sought to have the same standards of occupancy that casinos have under Nevada pandemic rules mandated by Governor Steve Sisolak that limit houses of worship to 50 people regardless of size, compared to casinos and restaurants that have higher limits set at fifty percent of capacity.

No supporting opinion was released by the Court, just the decision: “The application for injunctive relief presented to JUSTICE KAGAN and by her referred to the Court is denied.”

Three of the four dissenting justices wrote opinions, with the one by Justice Neil Gorsuch being short and sharp:

JUSTICE GORSUCH, dissenting from denial of application for injunctive relief.

This is a simple case. Under the Governor’s edict, a 10-screen “multiplex” may host 500 moviegoers at any time. A casino, too, may cater to hundreds at once, with perhaps six people huddled at each craps table here and a similar number gathered around every roulette wheel there. Large numbers and close quarters are fine in such places. But churches, synagogues, and mosques are banned from admitting more than 50 worshippers—no matter how large the building, how distant the individuals, how many wear face masks, no matter the precautions at all. In Nevada, it seems, it is better to be in entertainment than religion. Maybe that is nothing new. But the First Amendment prohibits such obvious discrimination against the exercise of religion. The world we inhabit today, with a pandemic upon us, poses unusual challenges. But there is no world in which the Constitution permits Nevada to favor Caesars Palace over Calvary Chapel.

All three dissents, by Justices Alito, Gorsuch and Kavanaugh, can be read at the Supreme Court website.

Conservative Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Tom Cotton (R-AR) blasted Roberts:

“John Roberts has abandoned his oath. But, on the upside, maybe Nevada churches should set up craps tables? Then they could open?”

“Freedom of religion is our first freedom. Yet SCOTUS has ruled that casinos can host hundreds of gamblers, while churches cannot welcome their full congregations. Justice Roberts once again got it wrong, shamefully closing church doors to their flocks.”

The Hill reported Roberts voted with the Court’s liberal bloc in May in a similar case in California that limited churches to 25% occupancy. Roberts then said the rules were being applied equally.

“Although California’s guidelines place restrictions on places of worship, those restrictions appear consistent with the free exercise clause of the First Amendment,” Roberts wrote.

“Similar or more severe restrictions apply to comparable secular gatherings, including lectures, concerts, movie showings, spectator sports, and theatrical performances, where large groups of people gather in close proximity for extended periods of time,” he wrote.

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Larry Elder’s New ‘Uncle Tom’ Documentary Soars in Popularity at IMDB

Larry Elder is the latest radio show host to go Hollywood.
The syndicated talker serves as a producer and co-writer on the new documentary “Uncle Tom.” The film lets black conservatives tell their stories, from the reasons they crave smaller government to how liberals treat them for thinking independently.
The film’s title speaks for itself.
Elder follows in the footsteps of fellow talkers Dennis Prager (“No Safe Spaces“), Adam Carolla (“Road Hard,” “Uppity“) and Sean Hannity (“Let There Be Light”).
And, according to IMDB.com, Elder has hit the bullseye with the public.
“Uncle Tom” is currently ranked first in popularity on the site’s documentary sub-category. The film comes in a hearty no. 6 in a similar category, one blending feature and TV-based documentaries. It’s an impressive showing for a film with microscopic media fanfare and virtually no coverage outside of conservative channels.
The film isn’t available on any streaming service, either, nor VOD outlets. The only way to access it is via UncleTom.com.
The film got a much different reception over at RottenTomatoes.com. The review aggregator site currently features just one critique of the film — a positive review from FilmThreat.com.
That’s it.
The folks at RottenTomatoes.com aren’t to blame. The site lets registered film critics share their reviews as often, or as infrequently, as they wish. This journalist, for example, is part of the site’s critics roster.
“Uncle Tom” generated nearly $400,000 in downloads during its first weekend of release, according to Malone Pictures, the studio behind the project. The movie features extensive conversations with Herman Cain, Brandon Tatum, Elder, Lt. Col. Allen West, Candace Owens and Dr. Carol Swain.
Elder addressed the film’s importance during a conversation on “The Chicago Way” podcast hosted by John Kass and Jeff Carlin.
“The ‘Uncle Tom’ movie simply asks a very simple question: Why can’t we have an intelligent, healthy discussion within the black community without a whole cadre of well-educated, bright, thoughtful black people being maligned and discarded as sellouts?” said Elder. “What’s prompting this?”

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