The News & Topicality Thread

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: Newsweek
Link: newsweek DOT com/tpusa-dumps-ambassador-called-jews-pedophiles-morgan-ariel-charlie-kirk-1858130

Charlie Kirk's TPUSA Dumps Ambassador Who Called Jews Pedophiles

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Jan 5, 2024 — A Christian activist has been let go by Turning Point USA (TPUSA) for equating Jews with pedophiles in a series of online posts.

Morgan Ariel, a self-described "truth seeker" and "lioness for Jesus Christ," posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday that she was removed as a volunteer ambassador by the conservative organization founded by Charlie Kirk "for exercising my 1st amendment right and upholding biblical principals [sic]."

"We try to give our 200-plus volunteer social media ambassadors a wide berth, and we recognize that many are going to say things from time to time that we don't agree with," TPUSA spokesperson Andrew Kolvet told Newsweek via email. "That being said, we also have the freedom to associate with people we deem fit our values.

"Free speech cuts both ways. When an ambassador ceases to represent our values, especially when that pattern holds over time, we have the right and responsibility to make a change."

Ariel was removed on Wednesday, according to a text she screenshot and posted online. The message says that the organization attempted to reach out to her regarding some of her "recent commentary."

"We 100% believe you have the right to express yourself as you see fit, but what you're expressing is further and further out of sync with the values of the organization," the text read. "Please consider this notice that you have been removed from TPUSA's volunteer ambassador program and as such, we respectfully ask that you remove TPUSA from your bio. We wish you the best."

[…]

"The Zionist Jews controlling our planet are all pedophiles who have no regard for the sanctity of human life and purity," Ariel posted earlier this week. "Read the Talmud and it will all make more sense."

President Joe Biden, who is not Jewish, has described himself as a Zionist.

Another post from Ariel reads: "The United States existed long before the modern Rothschild's nation of Israel. We should kick Israel to the curb and put America first while returning to Christian values."

"I would love to hear what values @TPUSA holds," said Ariel, who has about 38,000 followers on X. "I'm sure my following would love to know as well."

Her feed includes other mentions of Zionism, as well as calling deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein "an Israeli spy." Ariel also claimed without evidence that attorney Alan Dershowitz, who was named in newly released documents related to Epstein, "is guilty of sexually abusing underage girls."

Other views she holds include making both homosexuality and gay adoption illegal. She has also stated, "Every time I leave the house these days I think to myself, 'Where have all the white people gone?' "

Ariel claimed that the person who texted her provided less than an hour and a half to respond while she was at work. She said she replied to the text and called but received no response.

Her post about Zionism was rebuked by StopAntisemitism, an American nonprofit watchdog organization focused on combating antisemitism. The group made mention of Ariel's posts relating Zionism to pedophilia.

"We trust you'll be breaking your relationship with this vile antisemite @TPUSA," the organization posted on X.

StopAntisemitism later celebrated her departure and TPUSA's decision in relation to her "ongoing antisemitic tirades."

Ariel cited their post, reacting, "Stop Zionism and free America. Somebody got the call."

[Del]

+JMJ+

Source: Newsweek
Link: newsweek DOT com/tpusa-dumps-ambassador-called-jews-pedophiles-morgan-ariel-charlie-kirk-1858130

Charlie Kirk's TPUSA Dumps Ambassador Who Called Jews Pedophiles

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Jan 5, 2024 — A Christian activist has been let go by Turning Point USA (TPUSA) for equating Jews with pedophiles in a series of online posts.

.....

"We try to give our 200-plus volunteer social media ambassadors a wide berth, and we recognize that many are going to say things from time to time that we don't agree with," TPUSA spokesperson Andrew Kolvet told Newsweek via email. "That being said, we also have the freedom to associate with people we deem fit our values.

Oh, how I loathe such lying headlines.

Headline sounds like Charlie Kirk hires and promotes bigots and racist anti-Semites to high levels in his organization.

Turns out he simply cut ties with an unpaid volunteer who, although an Evangelical Christian, talks like Ilhan Ohmar or some typical activist atheist Democrat.

[Hovannes]

Salami is the leader of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps


I kid you not
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hossein_Salami

[Del]

Salami is the leader of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps


I kid you not
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hossein_Salami

I bet the other kids made fun of him when he was a kid. That's why he's so mean.

[Hovannes]

Salami is the leader of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps


I kid you not
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hossein_Salami

I bet the other kids made fun of him when he was a kid. That's why he's so mean.

It obviously wouldn't be pork salami.
Maybe chicken? LOL.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: National Catholic Reporter / OSV News
Link: ncronline DOT org/news/church-must-remain-steadfast-its-advocacy-migrants-el-paso-bishop-says

Church must remain steadfast in its advocacy for migrants, El Paso bishop says

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Washington — As immigration shapes up to become a key election issue in 2024, the church must remain steadfast in its advocacy for migrants, Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas, told OSV News.

Dozens of House Republicans, led by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., recently kicked off the New Year with a visit to the U.S.–Mexico border as negotiations over immigration policy remain ongoing between senators and the White House. The lawmakers called for hardline immigration policies, including constructing more border walls and adding new restrictions on asylum claims by migrants.

[…]

Meanwhile, lawmakers in Congress have so far failed to reach a deal on an emergency spending bill to provide billions of dollars in wartime aid to Ukraine and Israel, as Republicans demand strict new policies at the U.S.–Mexico border in exchange for those funds. Catholic bishops and migrant advocates have expressed concern about that measure as the White House and the Senate seek a deal in 2024.

Seitz, who chairs the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Migration, told OSV News that he is "certainly concerned right now about the negotiations that are going on and what is likely to result from them." He said one of his concerns is that no legislators from the border region appear to be directly involved in the negotiations.

"The church's concern is always with the human person," he said. "It's always with the person who is vulnerable and in need."

The work of the church, Seitz said, "is really to make sure that when the politicians do their thing, when they carry on what is their responsibility in the public sector, that they have a voice speaking in their ear, as it were, a voice of conscience which we hope is guided by the Holy Spirit, helping them not to lose sight of the real human beings that are being impacted by the policies and laws that they agreed to."

"You know, you can't really love a number, but you can and must love a human being," he added. "And that call doesn't have limitations that say, 'Well, only if they're on your side of the border.' "

[…]

Asked if he has concerns about the public perception of immigration as the country begins an election year, Seitz said that some people have "a very inaccurate understanding of what is really happening in regard to immigration."

As Catholics form their consciences to vote, he suggested they should not limit themselves to "just listening to one news outlet" and should consider the lived experiences of immigrants in their communities.

"Just sit down and talk, share a cup of coffee, you know, get with somebody who can, if they don't speak English, with somebody who can translate for you, and you'll be amazed at the common humanity and the goodness of the people you will meet," he said. "And I think that would be a bit of an antidote to that fear that keeps us from really dealing with these issues in a fundamentally Christian way."

[Del]

+JMJ+

Source: National Catholic Reporter / OSV News
Link: ncronline DOT org/news/church-must-remain-steadfast-its-advocacy-migrants-el-paso-bishop-says

As Catholics form their consciences to vote, he suggested they should not limit themselves to "just listening to one news outlet" and should consider the lived experiences of immigrants in their communities.

Be especially careful if your only news source is National Catholic Reporter or a bunch of dissident Jesuits.

Yes, Biden's policies and neglect of our border have created a terrible humanitarian crisis. This will probably cost Democrats the election.
Yes, we need border enforcement and probably some walls will help. It won't solve all of humanity's suffering, but it will relieve some of the drug and trafficking problems inflicted by the cartels. We need a robust policy of vetting and allowing legal immigrants to go along border enforcement.... we will likely not get this from either political party.

Clearly, it is better to allow folks to apply for asylum at the US Embassy and swiftly allow them to enter America legally. A plane ticket is much cheaper and much safer for migrants than cartel trafficking.

As Christians, we have duty to help the suffering as much as we can, wherever we find them.

We can cry out for border protection and help the migrants at the same time. And observe in passing that NCR is doing neither.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: Border Report
Link: borderreport DOT com/immigration/faith-groups-oppose-raising-credible-fear-standard-for-asylum-seekers/

Faith groups oppose raising ‘credible fear’ standard for asylum-seekers

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

EL PASO, Texas — Fifty faith-based organizations are warning the Biden administration and the Senate of a humanitarian debacle should they make it more difficult for asylum-seekers to come into the United States.

The fears stem from ongoing budget negotiations in Washington, D.C., where Republican lawmakers are demanding a crackdown at a southern border, where a reported 806,000 migrants have come in between ports of entry since Oct. 1.

“We believe the proposal to raise the legal standards for accessing the U.S. asylum system, known as the credible fear test […] would send a significant number of bona fide asylum seekers back to harm,” the groups including Catholic Charities of Southern New Mexico and El Paso’s Hope Border Institute wrote in the letter dated Tuesday.

[…]

“We must make policy changes to reduce the flow of immigration. […] President Biden’s border policies are not working and it’s time to change course,” U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, was quoted in The Hill as saying.

One such change is putting more of the burden of proof on asylum seekers claiming they fear for their lives if returned to their countries — that’s the so-called credible fear standard. Last year, border agents and officers came across 2.47 million migrants on the southern border, of whom more than 85% were eventually released into the U.S., according to Border Patrol officials who met in Eagle Pass, Texas, this week with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

But the groups say it’s not fair or lawful to put an additional burden on families already stressed by personal ordeals. They say the right to seek asylum is guaranteed by U.S. laws.

“Asylum seekers who reach our southern border are often in severe distress, not only because of persecution in their home countries, but also from trauma experienced on their journeys,” the faith-based organizations wrote. “They often are unable to articulate fear, especially to law enforcement officials in a detention setting. Raising the threshold only would increase the pressure and distress they may feel, leading to a failure to credibly articulate fear and risk having their claim denied.”

Republicans also are floating mandatory detention for those whose asylum claims are pending, and fast-track removal for those immediately determined not to have a valid reason to remain in the country.

“The proposal to mandatorily detain asylum seekers is inhumane. Numerous studies have shown detention has a detrimental physical and mental impact on individuals, families and children,” the groups said. “We would propose an investment in alternatives to detention programs, which have proven to ensure the human dignity of migrants and reduce government costs.”

Others signing the letter include the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), the Center for Migration Studies and Estrella del Paso, formerly Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: Crux
Link: cruxnow DOT com/church-in-the-usa/2024/01/catholic-groups-push-back-against-biden-immigration-plans

Catholic groups push back against Biden immigration plans

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

NEW YORK — As Congress negotiates the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, dozens of Catholic organizations have signed joint letters to the Senate and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas opposing immigration proposals in the Biden administration’s supplemental budget request, and questioning the efficacy the measures would have.

“It is questionable whether these proposals would in fact reduce the number of asylum seekers reaching the US–Mexico border in the years ahead,” states the letters, which were sent Jan. 9.

“From our experience, the forces pushing people to flee their homeland, and our domestic labor market’s thirst for workers, are stronger over the long term than any deterrence policies,” the letters said.

The letters are each signed by about 50 Catholic organizations.

[…]

The letter takes issue with proposals to raise the asylum standard, to make it mandatory to detain asylum seekers while they await their hearings, to expand expedited removal throughout the country, and to give the president “unbridled authority to close the border.”

Donald Kerwin, a senior research associate at the University of Notre Dame Keough School of Global Affairs, told Crux raising the asylum standard would be a bad faith effort to reform the asylum system.

“It’s an effort to set a standard that’s more difficult to meet than the asylum standard itself, so that people aren’t able to seek asylum,” said Kerwin, who previously held prominent positions with the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Migration Policy Institute, and Center for Migration Studies of New York.

“It really would eviscerate the asylum system as we know it, which isn’t an ideal system, but it’s certainly better than what’s being proposed,” Kerwin explained.

The problem, however, is the backlog of cases that exists. The government touts on its website a wait period of 180 days or less for a decision on an asylum claim, when in reality there’s an immigration court backlog of more than three million cases with each immigration judge averaging 4,500 pending cases, according to a tracker kept by Syracuse University.

The letters, Kerwin, and others Crux spoke to about the Biden administration’s supplemental budget request all highlighted the need for funding to bring in additional immigration judges and asylum officers to adjudicate claims and address the backlog is most important. The request addresses the need to a degree with the proposed addition of 1,600 asylum officers and support staff.

“That’s kind of the top line of the requests,” Kathleen Busch-Joseph, Policy Analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, told Crux, noting that’s why MPI supports the administration’s request.

“Additional judges and asylum officers to adjudicate those cases would speed up the grants of asylum for people who are found in need of protection, and also final decisions so the government could remove people,” she said.

Kerwin said addressing the need for judges and ultimately the backlog is a key.

“Do I think the numbers [at the border] are extremely high and do I think the status quo is acceptable? I actually don’t think it’s acceptable,” Kerwin said. “But the other point is, if you were really focused on asylum reform the first thing that you would focus on is the capacity of the court system to be able to entertain cases in a humane and efficient but somewhat expeditious way.”

“The number of judges and the capacity to consider asylum cases and other removal cases hasn’t been adequate and it’s gotten even worse over the years, so why wouldn’t you look at the legal immigration system and have a more holistic reform of the legal immigration system if you were really worried about all the people at the border who are presenting themselves,” he continued.

The nation’s now years-long immigration crisis at the southern border reached new heights. In FY 2023 border patrol encountered more migrants at the southern border — about 2.5 million — than any fiscal year prior. The numbers so far haven’t let up in the early months of FY 2024. An encounter doesn’t equal someone entering the country — those numbers are less clear. However, the State of Texas, and cities around the country have called on the federal government to do more.

Kevin Appleby, a senior fellow for the Policy Center for Migration Studies of New York, which signed the letter, pushed back on the narrative that people are “pouring” into the country. He said that’s inaccurate. He also noted that the government has the tools to send people back who don’t have legitimate asylum claims, and that federal policy needs to strike a balance.

“You have to balance the human rights of people to escape persecution with the rights of the sovereign to control its borders,” Appleby said. “I think what we’re saying is there are ways to control the border that don’t require undermining these rights or giving people a chance to seek protection from persecution.”

Appleby added that there are limits to the number of people a country can safely, but whether the U.S. has reached that breaking point is up for debate. He doesn’t think the country is at that point.

“The big question is what’s in the best interest of the people, and what’s in the international common good, which is what [Pope John XXIII] talked about, and under Catholic teaching there are limits,” Appleby said. “As the letter demonstrates, many of us don’t think we’ve reached that limit yet.”

“You have to balance the human rights of people to escape persecution with the rights of the sovereign to control its borders,” Appleby said. “I think what we’re saying is there are ways to control the border that don’t require undermining these rights or giving people a chance to seek protection from persecution.”

Beyond the FY 2024 budget measures, the letter renews the call many of the organizations and the U.S. bishops have made for bipartisan comprehensive immigration policy reform.

“We renew our call, and that of the US Catholic bishops, for a bipartisan process to comprehensively reform the US immigration system, including the legal immigration system,” the letter states. “With political will and statesmanship, we believe that Congress and the Biden administration can work together to modernize our system while humanely managing our borders and upholding the rule of law.”

[Hovannes]

Iran---not a proxy, but Iran---attacks US Base in Iraq.
https://en.trend.az/iran/3849132.html
Will Biden go full blown Corn Pop on the Ayatollah?
I'm uncertain how trustworthy the source is on this story, but something nasty must be going on.