Via Fox News:

A Canadian man whose real last name “Assman,” was deemed “unacceptable” for a personalized license plate has taken it a step further and emblazoned the back of his truck with a giant design of the offending plate.

Dave Assman (pronounced “Oss-man), who lives in the province of Saskatchewan, said the denial upset him, but “I’m not one of those guys to take offense to it.”

Saskatchewan Government Insurance, or SGI, is the review board which manages vehicle registration and approves or denies personalized requests. Assman said he filed an appeal Tuesday but SGI rejected it the same day – a decision he anticipated, CBC reported.

Assman posted a photo Tuesday of a giant decal which bears his last name and spans the truck’s tailgate. The decal is styled after a typical Saskatchewan license plate.

“Just as Sgi anticipated me appealing my denial I also anticipated them refusing my appeal !” read his now-viral post. “I could have got a plate for the front but I really wanted a vanity plate on the back of my truck ! Thank you eternally etched.”

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Get him under oath and seize the bank records.

Via Daily Caller:

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is pressing House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff for answers about his interactions with Glenn Simpson, the founder of the opposition research firm behind the Democrat-funded Steele dossier.

In a statement released on Friday, McCarthy questioned whether Schiff, a California Democrat, should recuse himself from the Intelligence panel’s Russia investigation because of a meeting he had with Simpson at the Aspen Security Forum in July 2018.

“Given Chairman Schiff’s previous underlying rationale when calling for others to recuse themselves from Russia-related investigations, in order to avoid charges of hypocrisy or perceived bias, should Chairman Schiff recuse himself from his intended investigations after meeting with a witness of an ongoing investigation?” McCarthy asked.

The Schiff-Simpson meeting has come under scrutiny because of Simpson’s role in pushing the unverified Trump-Russia collusion conspiracy theory. Simpson has also been accused by some Republican lawmakers of lying to the House Intelligence Committee about his interactions with government officials while working on the dossier.

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She’s baaaack…

Via Daily Wire:

After nearly a two-month hiatus while recovering from lung cancer surgery, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg returned to the Supreme Court on Friday to participate in several meetings.

Fox News reports that a court spokesperson said Ginsburg was working in her chambers on Friday and “will participate in the in-person closed-door conference Friday morning.”

The 85-year-old Ginsburg missed oral arguments on the bench for the first time since being appointed by President Clinton just a little over 25 years ago. In late December of last year, Justice Ginsburg underwent surgery for lung cancer. The Supreme Court said at the time she underwent a “pulmonary lobectomy” resulting in the removal of two malignant nodules.

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pic.twitter.com/BliAo5YDqb

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2019

Everybody hurts.

Via Twitchy:

Right after President Trump’s #SOTU speech a couple of weeks back, @Carpedonktum posted the video of Trump’s #SOTU with a focus on Democrats’ faces set to music. We covered it at the time because it’s pretty damn funny.

Seems Trump agrees with us because he tweeted it out.

If you missed it the first time you really should watch it now. Honestly, even if you saw it the first time you should watch it again because the thing is hilarious. Especially Rep. Eric Swalwell’s face:

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Reports suggest in addition to being very gun-controlled state, also gun-free zone. Shooter was employee at plant.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – A gunman opened fire in an industrial building in Aurora, Illinois on Friday, city and law enforcement officials said, killing at least one person and wounding several others before he was taken into custody.

“We have an active shooter incident at 641 Archer Av. This is an active scene. Please avoid the area,” the Aurora Police Department said in a tweet shortly after 2 p.m. central time, adding that additional details would be forthcoming.

The city of Aurora, which is roughly 50 miles west of Chicago, tweeted about an hour later that a suspect had been arrested.

“EMERGENCY UPDATE | 3 p.m. THE SHOOTER HAS BEEN APPREHENDED! The area is still on lock down! More information will be provided soon,” the city said.

At least one person was killed in the attack, a spokesman for the Kane County Coroner said.

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Update:

#Aurora Police Chief says 5 people were killed in #AuroraShooting. 5 officers also were shot but survived. Shooter ID’d as 45 year-old Gary Martin. Mom told reporters he was laid off by company where shooting occurred.

— Rafer Weigel (@RaferWeigel) February 15, 2019

Update:

They’ll trying anything.

Via NY Post:

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she and a fellow Democrat will introduce a bill to block President Trump’s expected declaration of a national emergency to secure money for his long-promised border wall.

“@JoaquinCastrotx and I aren’t going to let the President declare a fake national emergency without a fight,” the Bronx/Queens Democrat tweeted Friday.

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First Robert, now her. Just making the choice clearer and clearer as they race to the left.

Via Daily Caller:

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand signaled her support Friday for tearing down the already standing border wall when asked if she would support demolition efforts.

Gillibrand, a 2020 hopeful, not only criticized President Donald Trump’s border wall, she said during a campaign stop in New Hampshire she does not know if the current fencing is “helpful or unhelpful.” The New York Democrat said she would look into tearing down any existing border walls or barriers.

She also said Trump is trying to build the wall “to create a picture of division and hate and derision.”

“Well, I’d have to ask folks in that part of the of the country to see whether the fencing that exists today is helpful or unhelpful. But, you know, Democrats are not afraid of national security or border security,” Gillibrand said. “Democrats have funded border security for decades and so it’s not a question of not wanting to keep the country safe, but what President Trump wants to do is build a medieval-style wall out of concrete and one that will destroy not just the community but the environment.”

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Sure look like MAGA guys, right?

Via Daily Mail:

The two Nigerian brothers being questioned over the Jussie Smollett attack are actors Abimbola ‘Abel’ and Olabinjo ‘Ola’ Osundairo, DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal.

The pair were picked up by police at Chicago O’Hare Airport on Wednesday as they arrived back in America after visiting family in Nigeria to be questioned over the January 29 attack involving the star.

On Friday afternoon, they were arrested on suspicion of battery but they have not been charged.

Police can now hold them for an additional 24 hours without charge if the prosecutor’s office agrees, or must file charges by 5.45pm on Friday.

Family say they went to Africa on January 29, hours after the Smollett attack. Ola appeared on Empire in 2015 and both brothers have had minor roles on Chicago PD.

Smollett follows their joint Instagram account and, according to their lawyer, sometimes goes to the gym with them.

DailyMail.com has identified photographs of one of the brothers inside the gym in Smollett’s apartment building in June. The gym is private to residents of the luxury condominium building.

On Thursday night, the star was accused by anonymous police sources cited by local networks of staging the attack.

The sources accused Smollett of orchestrating the hoax because he was being written out of the show and wanted to drum up publicity to save his role – a claim that has been strenuously denied by the show and uncorroborated by the police department.

In his reports to police, Smollett says he was attacked by two assailants whose facial features he could not make out but that it was a racist, homophobic ambush during which they called him ‘Empire f****t n****r’ and shouted: ‘This is MAGA country!’

The brothers’ names are also included on a list of evidence that was left at their home after Chicago PD officers ransacked it on Thursday and the pair are listed in public records as the tenants of that house.

Their lawyer insists they are not the people who attacked Jussie, revealing that the three are friends who sometimes work out together.

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Looks like the NFL is paying him off.

Via NY Post:

It looks like the NFL blinked.

An agreement was made in the Colin Kaepernick collusion case, his attorney, Mark Geragos, announced on Twitter. Geragos didn’t include any details of the settlement, but did say there had been active dialogue between the two parties, leading to an agreement. The NFL released a similar statement, citing a confidentiality agreement as to why no details would be given.

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Don’t like the treatment, go home.

Via Washington Times:

Police briefly scuffled with some of the 1,600 Central American migrants who have been confined at an improvised shelter in the Mexican border town of Piedras Negras, across from Eagle Pass, Texas.

Video of Wednesday’s incident shows some migrants tearing down a temporary awning and trying to wrestle metal barricades away from police.

The government of the border state of Coahuila said the situation was brought under control and talks were held with the migrants, who have been confined for at least 10 days in a vacant factory building that is ringed by police and soldiers.

Authorities said some of the migrants were angry about not being allowed out to go to a local store. They said about 30 were later permitted to go to the store, where migrants buy supplies to supplement the food they are given at the shelter.

Coahuila’s government said it would not hesitate to turn over migrants to Mexican immigration authorities for deportation if there were any more disturbances.

“We have put a lot of effort into maintaining order and we will not allow disrespect for the law,” state security secretary Jose Luis Pliego said. “We will act rigorously, if needed.”

Officials said some migrants have asked to be taken to other cities in northern Mexico, presumably thinking they would have more freedom of movement.

The migrants want to present asylum claims in Eagle Pass, but only about a dozen per day are being allowed to do so.

Joe Rivano Barros, a field officer with the Texas-based refugee advocacy group Raices, said the migrants are frustrated because of a lack of information and lack of free movement.

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The men are two brothers of Nigerian descent with very Nigerian last names but who went to high school in Chicago.

At least one of them worked on Empire and they worked out at the gym with Jussie Smollett.

These were the men in the photo the police released of “persons of interest.”

And one problem among the many that Smollett now has it that he claimed those were the people who attacked him when he appeared on Good Morning America yet didn’t note that he knew them or had a relationship with them.

Here’s one of them walking on his hands on a treadmill at the gym in Smollett’s apartment building.

Prime real estate for condos.

Via SF Gate:

Two state lawmakers are taking another run at banning gun shows at the Cow Palace, hoping that a new governor who backed the idea earlier in his career will be more receptive than predecessors who have vetoed it three times.

The bill that Sen. Scott Wiener and Assemblyman Phil Ting, both San Francisco Democrats, introduced Wednesday could also lead eventually to the end of all events at the Daly City arena and to the building’s demolition, to make way for housing.

Their measure, SB281, would ban gun and ammunition sales at the Cow Palace and transfer control of the 68-acre property from a state-appointed board to a joint powers authority consisting of San Francisco, Daly City and San Mateo County. The agency would be charged with finding developers to build housing and stores on the Cow Palace’s land.

“We’re to the point where something has to change at the Cow Palace,” Wiener said. “It’s a huge amount of land that is severely underutilized.”

Supporters, including San Francisco Mayor London Breed and Supervisors Ahsha Safai and Shamann Walton, are optimistic that Gov. Gavin Newsom will back the proposal.

As San Francisco mayor in 2007, Newsom endorsed a ban on firearm sales at the Cow Palace. He has not weighed in on previous efforts to redevelop the property.

“The governor firmly believes that permitting the sale of firearms and ammunition on state-owned property sends the wrong message and only serves to perpetuate America’s gun culture,” Newsom spokesman Brian Ferguson said in a statement. “While the governor has supported similar legislation in the past, the details and bill language matter and bills change at every stage of the legislative process. Should this bill make it to his desk, it would be given careful consideration.”

Built in 1941 to provide a pavilion for livestock exhibitions, the Cow Palace has hosted everything from two Beatles concerts and two Republican National Conventions to an annual Christmas Dickens fair. It is a state agency under the Department of Food and Agriculture, meaning that any attempt to limit its use must be done through legislation.

Former Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, tried unsuccessfully in 2008 to compel the state to sell the property to Daly City for development. Three years later, another Yee measure to give several appointments on the state board overseeing the Cow Palace to the mayors of San Francisco and Daly City also failed.

Wiener’s bill opens the door once again to doing away with the Cow Palace, although he said it would be up to the new governing body to decide whether to raze the building.

“The Cow Palace obviously has a storied history and there are benefits to having this large structure,” Wiener said. But it hosts fewer events than it once did, he added, and the Bay Area badly needs housing.

Bulldozing the Cow Palace could “create a new neighborhood that will benefit Daly City and San Francisco,” Wiener said.

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Afternoon bump.

Purchase of the license plate is voluntary.

Via AZ Central:

When Arizonans buy a license plate displaying the words “In God We Trust,” they are told the money promotes the motto, First Amendment rights, “and the heritage of this state and nation.”

What they may not know is the money supports Alliance Defending Freedom, a controversial group based in Scottsdale whose mission statement is “to keep the doors open for the Gospel by advocating for religious liberty, the sanctity of life, and marriage and family.”

Because of that affiliation, one Democratic lawmaker now is proposing to get rid of the “In God We Trust” specialty license plates.

ADF is designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center because of its anti-LGBT views and claims that a “homosexual agenda” will destroy society.

ADF defended its mission and responded to the call to get rid of the Arizona license plate in a written statement.[…]

The specialty “In God We Trust” license plates are among many in Arizona offered to drivers through the Department of Transportation. Like the others, the plates offer $17 of the $25 purchase price to particular causes.

Secular Coalition for Arizona, a group that opposes religion in government, requested state Sen. Juan Mendez, D-Tempe, obtain data regarding exactly where the money from the “In God We Trust” plates has been directed. ADOT only says on its website that money from the specialty plate promotes the national motto “In God We Trust,” First Amendment rights, “and the heritage of this state and nation.”

A few other plates, among dozens offered by the state through ADOT, don’t include explicit statements about what organization gets the money, though the recipient is noted in statute.

ADOT records that Alliance Defending Freedom has received more than $900,000 from the specialty plates since 2014.

“We were appalled by it,” said Tory Roberg, the director of government affairs for the Secular Coalition for Arizona. “People really need to know where their money is going.”

She said she did not know anyone who has the plate on their vehicle.

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Representation in DC for citizens only.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court said Friday that it will take up the battle over a citizenship question for the coming census, agreeing to hear and decide the case before the court’s term ends in late June.

Eighteen states, several of the nation’s largest cities, and immigrant rights groups sued the government over its decision to ask about citizenship on the 2020 census form that goes to every U.S. household. They said the question would make immigrants reluctant to respond to census takers, resulting in an undercount of the population.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments in the case in April.

A census is required every 10 years by the Constitution. The results determine the size of each state’s delegation in the House of Representatives. And census data is used to calculate a local government’s share of funds under many federal programs.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has said the question was added at his direction, after he received a letter from the Justice Department which said the data was needed to properly enforce civil rights laws. But Federal District Court Judge Jesse Furman of New York said the evidence at a trial on the issue revealed that Ross’s claim was a pretext.

Furman concluded that Ross asked the Justice Department to send the letter, which showed that he “made the decision to add a citizenship question well before he received DOJ’s request.” The judge also found that including the question would violate a federal law requiring the government to get as accurate a count as possible, because it would “materially reduce response rates among immigrant and Hispanic households.”

The Trump administration argued at the trial that questions about citizenship or country of birth have been asked of during all but one census from 1820 to 2000. The form includes many demographic questions, the government said, about race, sex, Hispanic origin and relationship status.

While the challengers and the government differed about whether the judge got it right, they agreed that the Supreme Court should take the case now, bypassing the normal process of letting a federal appeals court rule first. The Justice Department said the deadline for preparing the census form is this June, so the justices should take the case “in light of the immense nationwide importance of the decennial census.”

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Robert is running in 2020.

(CNN)Beto O’Rourke said Thursday that if he could, he’d tear down the border wall that separates El Paso, Texas, from Mexico.

“Yes, absolutely. I’d take the wall down,” he told MSNBC’s Chris Hayes in an interview from a spot overlooking the border and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.

Hailing that bollard fence during a campaign rally Monday night in El Paso, President Donald Trump called it proof that “walls work.” But O’Rourke, pointing to violent crime rates, said the fence’s construction in 2008 “didn’t make us any safer.”

The former congressman from Texas, who is weighing a bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, criticized Trump’s anticipated decision to declare a national emergency in order to fund his border wall.

“It’s hard to make a rational case for an emergency declaration or troops on the border or any amount of additional border walls or border fencing or steel slats,” O’Rourke said.

He also called actions to beef up border security since 9/11 — including construction of the border fence — “perverse.”

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She cost NY $25,000, but looks like she may have gotten her boyfriend one?

Via Twitchy:

So, in case you hadn’t already heard, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is once again the center of attention, and it’s once again for something that doesn’t make her look good.

See, National Review contributor and podcast cohost Luke Thompson has done a little digging, and he’s learned that AOC’s boyfriend Riley Roberts has a House.gov email address. How do you like that?

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Moms blast Acosta.

Via Daily Caller:

After CNN reporter Jim Acosta asked President Donald Trump if he was manufacturing a crisis at the border Friday, the president fired back, telling him to ask the family members of those killed by illegal immigrants whether or not the crisis at the border is real.

Sitting a few rows in front of the podium in the Rose Garden were a group of “angel moms,” mothers of those who lost their lives to illegal immigrant violence. Acosta had asked Trump if he was “creating a national emergency” in order to get his border wall, which Trump quickly responded to by pointing to the grieving mothers.

“Ask the angel moms,” Trump said. “What do you think? Do you think I’m creating something?”

“This is real!” one of the angel moms said to Acosta.

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The two men are allegedly brothers of Nigerian descent with very Nigerian names (and yes, black). We’re just not running with the names yet because the police haven’t confirmed the names.

Police raided their house and seized ski masks, bleach and a red hat, among other items.

And at least one of the men was an extra on Smollett’s show “Empire.”

They are continuing to question the men today. They have until 5:45 EST either to charge them or let them go.

HAPPENING NOW: Angel moms exit West Wing, holding pictures of their lost loved ones. Sitting front row for @POTUS press Conference in Rose Garden. @OANN pic.twitter.com/oo3UK8KnNI

— Emerald Robinson (@EmeraldRobinson) February 15, 2019

Other presents have declared multiple “national emergencies.” The only question as to the constitution is whether it’s used within the proper allocation, i.e. defense can be used for defense. He already has the legal authority based on 2006 and 2013.

Via Fox News:

President Trump said Friday he is declaring a national emergency on the southern border, tapping into executive powers in a bid to divert billions toward construction of a wall even as he plans to sign a funding package that includes just $1.4 billion for border security.

“We’re going to confront the national security crisis on our southern border … one way or the other, we have to do it,” Trump said in the Rose Garden.

The move is expected to face a swift and forceful legal challenge that could stall the attempt in the courts for the near future. But the declaration and other money-moving plans allow Trump to continue to fight for border wall construction while also averting another partial government shutdown — which would have been triggered at midnight absent the new funding package.

Trump, in the Rose Garden, declared once again that “walls work” as he confirmed he’ll sign the emergency declaration.

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