Portland Fire: Feds 'were not and will not ever' use stations for tactical operations

KPTV  . . . "To further clarify their role, Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, who is also the city of Portland Fire Commissioner has “directed that no PF&R station will be used by law enforcement of any kind, to include Portland Police, for any tactical operations until further notice.”
"Previously, the Portland Police Rapid Response Team officers have used the fire stations for staging and deployment, according to the statement. This is no longer allowed.
"In response to PF&R new direction, Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell issued the following statement:" . . .

Portland Fire Commissioner Bans Police From Staging At Fire Stations  "Portland, OR – Portland Fire and Rescue has banned all law enforcement agencies from using any of its 31 stations to prepare for tactical operations.
"The directive was given by Portland Fire Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, who demanded on July 18 that Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler hand command of the city’s police force over to her if he wasn’t going to force officers to scale back their responses to the nightly riots that have been plaguing the city for nearly two months, Willamette Week reported.

“ 'Mayor Wheeler, if you can’t control the police, give me the Portland Police Bureau,” Hardesty declared in her letter to the mayor, according to Willamette Week.

“ 'You are putting our community in danger. You are putting my staff in danger. We need you to be better,” she wrote.

"Wheeler reject her request and opted to retain oversight of the Portland Police Bureau (PPB).

“ 'I will continue to serve as police commissioner through this time of transformation,” Wheeler said in a statement on Monday, according to Willamette Week. “And I will continue to work with elected leaders from the county and the state to ensure that we are examining the criminal justice system as a whole.' ” . . .

Portland Police Association President Daryl Turner lashed out at City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty after she said she believes PPB officers started fires during protests in order to justify attacking.

. . . "Turner said he has invited elected officials to stand at the front during the protests and no one, including Hardesty, has accepted the invite." . . .

Here Ms. Hardesty shows the class that one does not expect from Democrats:

Portland commissioner apologizes after claiming police 'saboteurs' were starting fires, infiltrating crowds  "Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty on Wednesday alleged that police “saboteurs” and “provocateurs” are the ones starting fires after infiltrating crowds of demonstrators who’ve dominated the streets for more than 50 consecutive nights.

"But Hardesty later apologized after the unsubstantiated claim was quickly shot down by the city's police union.

" 'I want people to know that I do not believe there’s any protesters in Portland that are setting fires, that are creating crisis. I absolutely believe it’s police action, and they’re sending saboteurs and provocateurs into peaceful crowds so they justify their inhumane treatment of people who are standing up for their rights,” Hardesty said in an online briefing hosted by the Portland-based Western States Center.

"Portland Police Association President Daryl Turner slammed Hardesty’s “outlandish accusation,” demanding that she “immediately produce evidence.” He also said the city commissioner was guilty of hijacking the protests about racial justice in the wake of the death of George Floyd only to seize power." . . .

One Cheer for John Kasich; If Kasich can pull potential Republican defectors to Biden, why not ask for his help?

The Nation  "Some Democrats and progressives, including Nation columnist Elie Mystal, are upset that former representative and Ohio governor John Kasich, a Republican, will be speaking at the Democratic convention in August. For most of his political career, Kasich was anathema to Democrats and liberals. It isn’t clear if he’ll officially endorse Joe Biden, but his presence at the convention is a very public repudiation of Trump.
"Democrats should embrace Kasich’s support for Biden, in whatever form it takes. Despite polls showing Biden widening his lead against Trump in most swing states, his victory is hardly assured, especially with Trump and the GOP doubling down on voter suppression. If Kasich can help persuade some Republicans in swing states, including Ohio, to vote for Biden, that could help defeat Trump." . . .

Ben Shapiro rips Kasich over reports he will speak at DNC: 'Did he ever stop running for president?'

The AP reported that, according to a person with direct knowledge of the plans, the former 2016 Republican presidential candidate is among a handful of high-profile GOP members likely to become more active in supporting Biden in the fall.

What Kasich Gives Biden  . . . "The last time a partisan defector at a political convention significantly boosted a nominee was in 2004, when Democratic Senator Zell Miller gave the keynote address on behalf of George W. Bush." . . .

John Kasich's ego-driven grift marches on   . . . "Kasich spent his waning days as Ohio’s governor vetoing pro-life and pro-gun bills before turning his anti-conservatism into a CNN gig. All along the way, he teased himself as a potential 2020 primary opponent for Trump. He would have been a threat to nothing but the turning of conservatives' stomachs when they'd have to watch him hit the campaign trail again." . . .

Pelosi endorses Omar

Ziva Dahl "As if we needed any more evidence of the Democratic Party’s capitulation to the anti-Israel Left, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has endorsed for re-election the notorious anti-Semite and Israel hater Rep. Ilhan Omar, rejecting Omar’s four challengers, including Antone Melton-Meaux, a popular black pro-Israel progressive.

"Minnesota’s 5th district, one of the safest Democratic seats in the country, is holding its primary on August 11.  “Ilhan is a valued and important member of our Caucus,” said Pelosi in her endorsement statement. “In her first term, Ilhan has already established herself as a leader on a host of issues – from child nutrition to housing to U.S.-Africa relations.”

"This is the Ilhan Omar whose slurs about Jewish dual loyalty and money buying influence (“It’s all about the Benjamins, baby.”) were ranked among the top ten anti-Semitic incidents of 2019 by the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

"In March 2019, in response to the uproar, even in her own party, about Omar’s hateful comments, Pelosi passed a watered-down, non-binding House resolution condemning anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, but failing to call out Omar by name.  And she kept Omar on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, attributing the congresswoman’s Jew-hatred to a “language problem.” . . .

"Ilhan Omar has a problem with American Jews, whom she libels with well-recognized anti-Semitic tropes.  She also has a problem with Israel -- the only country in its region that embraces the values the Democratic Party claims to champion.  She accuses the Jewish state of  “hypnotizing the world” and supports the campaign to eliminate it.

"But Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi doesn’t have a problem with Ilhan Omar.  She had the power to get rid of Omar in the same way the Republicans got rid of Steve King (R-IA) for his racist and sexist remarks. Instead, she did the opposite.  Why?  This shrewd politician raised a finger to see which way the wind is blowing in her party… and it’s not with Israel."

Jews Need to Jexit from Democrat-Left Racist Poison  . . . "All Americans, particularly Jews, the people who introduced liberal enlightened values to the world, should be ashamed of embracing any of the values of this Democrat-left party — especially its racism.  It has been a poison on the American soul since its inception.  Now, 170 years later, its poison is as noxious and deep in all areas of American life.  Its new variation of raw, crude, virulent segregation/separatist racism is one of its most evil brews infecting our beautiful country."

Arutz Sheva: House Speaker backs controversial Minnesota representative, while pro-Israel donors back rival Democrat.  
. . . "Antone Melton-Meaux, one of four challengers to Omar in the Aug. 11 primary, has fundraised nationally in part by rebuking Omar for her Israel policies. Omar is one of two Democrats in the House who back the boycott Israel movement." . . .

Antone Melton-Meaux seeks to unseat Ilhan Omar in CD5
“I'm the proud son of two parents that understood the power of hard work, perseverance and community. My father actually integrated his high school in Mercer County, Kentucky in the 1950s, went on and served our country in the military, receiving a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star,” he said, explaining that his father used GI Bill money to attend the University of Kentucky. “He was the first African American electrical engineer in the history of that school. Then, he went on to have a very long distinguished career designing aircraft engines for General Electric.
. . . In 2018, I started to pay more attention to Congresswoman Omar after she made some really hurtful comments towards the Jewish community and towards Israel, a community that's important just as any other in our neighborhoods here."

The Washington Post slanders a sheriff who opposes Black Lives Matter

Andrea Widburg  "One of the most heartening things in the past week was to learn that the Washington Post had given up the fight and settled with Nick Sandmann, the 16-year-old boy it slandered as a racist because, while wearing a MAGA hat, he smiled when a creepy-looking Native American man got into his face and started drumming. Although the dollar amount is unknown, people instinctively feel that the WaPo had to dig deep. With an article it published on Wednesday, the Washington Post may have just set itself up for another lawsuit and (God willing) another expensive settlement.

"The offending article is entitled “A Nevada library wanted to back Black Lives Matter. The sheriff said he wouldn’t respond to 911 calls there.” Under that big, black-letter heading is a picture of a smiling white sheriff, in his uniform. Immediately under is this text:

Douglas County, Nev., Sheriff Daniel Coverley threatened to stop responding to 911 calls at a local library after its leaders drafted a statement in support of Black Lives Matter. (Douglas County Sheriff's Office)  . . .

The Washington Post
@washingtonpost
A Nevada library wanted to back Black Lives Matter. The sheriff said he wouldn’t respond to 911 calls there.

. . .
"This sheriff is obviously a low-life and needs to be ruined. There’s just one problem: What the WaPo said is a lie. The sheriff never said that neither he nor his deputies would respond to calls from the library. Instead, he sent them a letter suggesting that, if they were going to support Black Lives Matter, consistency demanded that they cease calling the sheriff for help. He never said that the sheriff’s office would not respond to such calls.

"Coverly’s letter was detailed and fact-filled. He talked about data showing police are not racist and that they regularly risk their own lives to protect people. He pointed out that the Black Lives Matter movement calls police corrupt and racist and is determined to destroy them. Moreover, its hate-filled rhetoric puts the police at risk. It was in this context that he suggested that the library might want to put its money where its virtue-signaling was:

Due to your support of Black Lives Matter and the obvious lack of support or trust with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, please do not feel the need to call 911 for help. I wish you good luck with disturbances and lewd behavior, since those are just some of the recent calls my office has assisted you with in the past. (Emphasis mine.)

Full article. Perhaps the WaPo can fact check this claim:

Trader Joe's wises up, reverses course, tells the leftist political-correctness mob 'no'

Have we reached Peak Corporate Cave-In? What did kneeling do for the Jews in Fascist Europe? The video at the bottom should show us how political correctness sucks the very joy out of our society. TD

Monica Showalter "It kind of looks like it - Trader Joe's has decided to reverse course and not change all the brand labels of its products to satisfy the wokeness demands of a tiny, largely white, racism-parsing left-wing mob. Here's their statement:. . . 
. . . 

Trader Joe's must have taken a look at who was behind the petition and decided it was total bee ess. Who's behind it? A rich little wokester white high school teenager no doubt eager to please her teachers and college admissions committees named Briones Bedell. Rest assured she knows nothing about racism, she's just another Karen looking to 'atone.'

Second, she drew very few signatures to her petition, a miserable 4,900 at last count, falling short of her 5,000 goal. This, despite fawning media profiles linked on her Twitter feed and copious glowing press. Seriously, she got less than 5,000 signatures and a lot of people trolling her. That doesn't sound like the person who's earned a right to push around big corporations, except that she knows they'll let her. Maybe not now." . . .

. . . "What this sniveling ignorant little white teenager doesn't get is there's a difference between appropriation and appreciation, as a far smarter and more brilliant black teenager has explained exquisitely here:. . . 

How's this for "cultural appropriation"? I love it!

Don't Be a Karen. Be a Becky!

Politically Incorrect Daily

Ann Coulter  “ 'Karen” and “Becky” are two neologisms with opposite meanings for the enjoyable life. Here’s your field guide."" . . .
. . . 
Karen is:

. . .  the Harvard Asian who made a TikTok video lecturing white people on their racism and threatening, “Ima stab you!”
"The public has been crying out for a word like “Karen” ever since “bossy” was cruelly taken away from us.
"I’m more interested in the Becky.
"As a huge fan of Me Not Being Killed, I can’t help but notice that the Becky concept runs counter to all received wisdom on how to avoid becoming a crime statistic. The central lesson, for example, of Gavin De Becker’s smash, featured-on-“Oprah” bestselling book, The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence is: Trust your gut." . . .

Anti-Slavery Party started!

News Maven  

'I used to be a Democrat until I did my history and found the misery that party brought to my race ... Let's pay restitution. How about the Democratic Party pay for all the misery brought to my race?'"

"Calls to ban statues, flags and images of groups that were involved in slavery would have to include the Democrat Party's Donkey and Islam's Crescent, as both of these institutions were involved in the enslavement of Africans.
"Beginning in colonial times, approximately 350,000 African slaves were brought to America.
"This number grew to nearly 4 million slaves prior to the Civil War.
"Slaves were purchased at sharia Muslim slave markets. 
"Sharia Islam defended the right to own slaves, as its founder, Mohammed, owned slaves.
"Beginning in 622 AD, the next 1,400 years saw an estimated 180 million Africans enslaved in sharia Islamic countries.
"Only by international pressure did Yemen and Saudi Arabia nominally end slavery in 1962, and as recently as 1980 for Mauritania.
"Fundamentalist sharia groups, such as ISIS, have continued unreported slavery.
"Ironically, those in Western nations who claim to care about Black lives and want reparations for slavery in the past turn a deaf ear to present-day Black lives being killed and enslaved by sharia groups like Boko Haram in Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger, Chad, and Mali.
"Prior to the Civil War, the United States had two major political parties: Democrats and Whigs.
"The Democrat Party was pro-choice, wanting to protect a slave owner's choice to own slaves.
"The Whigs were attempting to be a big tent party in order to keep members from joining other parties such as the Free Soil Party and the Know-Nothing Party.
"Whigs were originally the party in Britain who opposed the absolute power of the king.
"Quakers and Second Great Awakening Revival preachers, such as Charles Finney, were urgent abolitionist voices calling for the end slavery."... Full article.

Updated: Do Burning Cities Mark Start Of Democrats’ ‘Civil War 2.0’?

The SA was from the first a violent force that was the offensive weapon by which the Nazi implemented their strategy that “those who ‘ruled the street’ would sooner or later also come to political power.” Mitchell Abidor

Update: Image by Ghenghis Gary

Issues & Insights  "The upsurge in rioting, looting, destruction and violence in cities across the country won’t just peter out, as many hope. Sadly, mainstream media outlets refuse to cover the actual news, while Democratic politicians actually express solidarity with those who are burning down our cities. It’s become obvious to one and all: The left media and so-called progressive Democrats would rather see urban bonfires than lose to Donald Trump in November.

"Asked recently about 59 straight days of protests and violence in Portland, New York Rep. Jerry Nadler called reports of Antifa rioting there a “myth.” Not to be outdone, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi likened the federal police sent to quell the disturbances to “Nazis.”
"This is today what passes for leadership in the Democratic Party, which since losing in 2016, has undergone an extreme makeover to become the most radical “mainstream” party in the U.S. in modern times. To find its equivalent, you’d have to go back to … let’s see, 1860 and 1861, when the very same Democratic Party convinced 11 states to secede from the union, thus setting off the Civil War.
"Plus ça change, as the French would say.
"Egged on in 2020 by that same radical party, Antifa, Black Lives Matter and other extremist groups have gone on an unchecked spree. Vandalism, looting, murders and politically motivated beatings have metastasized across the nation, making city after city into unlivable hellholes." . . .

"Antifa" implies these street bullies are against Naziism, yet we have seen for weeks how they use the very same approach to their innocent victims as Hitler's bully boys used. 

Filed under "Irony": Brownshirt Violence and the Nazi Machine   . . . "OUR DOMINANT image of the German streets, both during the rise to power of the Nazi Party and while it ruled, is of jack-booted men in brown uniforms beating opponents, threatening Jews, burning books, and dissuading people from doing business in Jewish stores. These brown-shirted Stormtroopers (Stormabteilung, aka the SA) served as the mass fighting arm of the Nazi Party and ensured its presentation as a group not to be trifled with.
. . . "The SA was from the first a violent force that was the offensive weapon by which the Nazi implemented their strategy that “those who ‘ruled the street’ would sooner or later also come to political power.”  . . .   Much more at the Tunnel Wall

What happened to an America where you could freely speak your mind?

Agree with me or not — and isn’t that the point of a newspaper column? — I owe readers a clear statement of what I will do and not do:I will not apologize for writing about Soros.I will not bow to those who’ve wrongly defamed me.I will continue writing my column.The left doesn’t like my politics. I get that. I don’t like theirs much, either. 

John Kass, Chicago Tribune  "The angry left-handed broom of America’s cultural revolution uses fear to sweep through the our civic, corporate and personal life.
"It brings with it attempted intimidation, shame and the usual demands for ceremonies of public groveling.
"It is happening in newsrooms in New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles. And now it’s coming for me, in an attempt to shame me into silence.
"Here’s what happened:
"Last week, with violence spiking around the country, I wrote a column on the growing sense of lawlessness in America’s urban areas.
"In response, the Tribune newspaper union, the Chicago Tribune Guild, which I have repeatedly and politely declined to join, wrote an open letter to management defaming me, by falsely accusing me of religious bigotry and fomenting conspiracy theories.
"Newspaper management has decided not to engage publicly with the union. So I will.
"For right now, let’s deal with facts. My July 22 column was titled “Something grows in the big cities run by Democrats: An overwhelming sense of lawlessness.”
"It explored the connections between soft-on-crime prosecutors and increases in violence along with the political donations of left-wing billionaire George Soros, who in several states has funded liberal candidates for prosecutor, including Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. 

"Soros’ influence on these races is undeniable and has been widely reported. But in that column, I did not mention Soros’ ethnicity or religion.
"You’d think that before wildly accusing someone of fomenting bigoted conspiracy theories, journalists on the union’s executive board would at least take the time to Google the words “Soros,” “funding” and “local prosecutors.”
"As recently as February, the Sun Times pointed out roughly $2 million in Soros money flowing to Foxx in her primary election effort against more law-and-order candidates.
"In August 2016, Politico outlined Soros’ money supporting local DA races and included the view from opponents and skeptics that if successful, these candidates would make communities “less safe.' ” . . .

Democrat Sanctioned Terrorism: Antifa-BLM Protesters are Packing Their Fireworks Bombs with Nails

The Gateway Pundit
Antifa-Black Lives Matter protesters attacked the Atlanta Field Office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with nails embedded in fireworks bombs.

Breitbart.com reported:

A federal law enforcement document reviewed by Breitbart Texas reports that “protesters” who attacked the Atlanta Field Office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) embedded nails into commercial-grade fireworks. The devices were reportedly discovered after the protest ended Sunday morning.

Breitbart Texas reviewed an FBI “activity alert” regarding the use of modified fireworks during the demonstrations in Atlanta, which began on July 25. The alert states that approximately 100 to 200 people dressed in dark clothing, backpacks, goggles, and helmets approached the ICE office in Atlanta. The subjects reportedly carried shields, bats, and large sticks.  . . .

Democrats Make Mockery of Barr ‘Hearing’

"Barr brings out the worst in them, which is saying something."

Andrew C. McCarthy   "If it’s a “hearing,” Bill Barr asked with an irked tongue in cheek, “aren’t I the one who’s supposed to be heard?”
"His frustration was more than justified. Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler (D., N.Y.) and the other Democrats who control the House demanded for months that Barr come to a “hearing” and “testify.” But of course, it wasn’t anything like an actual hearing, and they didn’t want him to testify — as in actually answer questions. The session was a coveted election-year opportunity for Democrats to berate the attorney general of the United States in five-minute installments, accusing Barr of corruption, perjury, violating his oath, betraying the Constitution — at one point, even of killing thousands of COVID-19 victims (apparently, by being attorney general during a pandemic).
"Especially at the beginning of the hearing, Barr easily parried the hostile questions — soliloquies with question-marks at the end. He picked apart their misstatements and disingenuous premises, and answered with aplomb. Democrats thus dropped the threadbare pretense that this was a hearing. In the main, the rest of the afternoon was devoted to raging, mock-anguished perorations about how Trump is a dictator and how Barr is helping him destroy our democracy.
"These were punctuated by the occasional petulant demand that Barr answer “yes or no” a question that was either loaded or incoherent. When Barr would begin to answer, there would be foot-stomping, indignant, “I’m reclaiming my time” interruptions, claims that there was no question pending (usually after a question had just been posed), and then more Democrat filibustering about how the American people could clearly see that Barr was afraid to answer their questions . . . that they wouldn’t let him answer.
"It was an embarrassing spectacle." . . .

The cringeworthy, appalling behavior of the Judiciary Committee Democrats  "The Democrats certainly took to heart their orders from headquarters, decreed from on high, probably by Pelosi or perhaps AOC, the leader of the dominant far left faction, on how to conduct themselves at the judiciary hearing held Tuesday.  Once  Barr had delivered his opening statement, the Democrats began their calculated offensive, verbally assaulting, accusing and trying to shame the AG.  Clearly, they were instructed to attack and not let Barr answer a single question. Their incivility was on display. " . . . 

AG Barr destroys Jerry Nadler in another House Democrat testimony disaster: Goodwin

Another congressional hearing, another Dem disaster. They planned a public hanging of the attorney general and spent weeks constructing their scaffold. He is corrupt, a liar, a toady, they and their media handmaidens assured us, and the House Judiciary Committee will reveal all.Two obstacles quickly became apparent. The first is that the Dems were led by Rep. Jerry Nadler, whose rabidness is exceeded only by his haplessness.

Cops pull out: Democrats in need of convention protection can now call a hippie

It seems the Democrats have lost the previously friendly law enforcement community vote. In favor of … what – the craziest fringe extremists in America? This doesn’t sound like it will end well for them. Got trouble, Dems? Call a hippie.

Monica Showalter  "One hundred police agencies delivered a vote of ‘no confidence’ in the Democrats’ fitness to govern, pulling out from contracts to protect the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee, just three weeks before kickoff.

"According to Fox News:

More than 100 police agencies are pulling out of security agreements to send personnel to next month's Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee over orders that would prevent officers from using certain crowd control measures during protests, Fox News has learned.

The police departments were part of a collective of outside agencies poised to send officers to secure the event, which will run from Aug. 17-20 and where Joe Biden is expected to be named the party's presidential nominee. The action comes after the Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission directed Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales to change department policy to restrict the use of tear gas and pepper spray.

. . .
"Because the police pullout is an entirely reasonable and rational. On a broad level, Democrats have refused to condemn the far-left mob violence directed against police and property in every blue city from New York to Minneapolis, to Portland, to Seattle.

"They’ve also demonized police, blaming them for every act of violence that occurs as leftist mobs run wild, tearing down statues and destroying property. President Trump’s recent effort to send in federal officers to protect courthouses in some cities has been met with blue city mayors claims that police make matters worse,

"Democratic leaders such as Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti have demonized police as “killers” while Marxist Democrats such as New York’s Mayor Bill de Blasio gave ‘the talk’ to his black son about the wickedness of the police. For Democrats, the cops are always ‘pigs.’

"No Democrat has condemned the widespread violence of blue cities, nor stood up for the police officers who are being sent into harm’s way to stop it." . . .

Tie police hands and you will see lots of citizens with AR-15s  "We learned some people in Minneapolis have begun to protect their streets, as we see in this report:   

Minneapolis residents have begun patrolling their own neighborhoods after violent crime across the city surged in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death in late May.

The patrols, some armed, are part of a largely grassroots efforts to protect neighborhoods, businesses, and residents from rioters and criminals. Some groups have constructed barriers at the entrance to their neighborhoods and control who can enter, according to the Wall Street Journal. . .