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Category: Politics
March 11, 2024
Jack Montgomery
Politics
World

Populist Surge in Snap Election!

Portugal’s governing Socialist Party appears set to lose power following a snap election that saw the populist Chega party surge into third place.

While some votes from Portuguese overseas remain to be counted, the Socialists and the establishment right Democratic Alliance (DA) are both at around 29 percent, with the DA appearing to have just eked out the incumbents and party leader Luis Montenegro declaring victory.

Chega, an anti-mass migration party whose name means ‘Enough’ in Portuguese, may prove to be the kingmakers when it comes to forming a new government, with their 18 percent set to earn them around 48 seats in the legislature. Its rise has been meteoric, with the party earning only 7.2 percent of the vote and 12 seats in 2022 and just 1.3 percent as recently as 2019.

Montenegro has signaled he is reluctant to work with the populist party to form a coalition government, however, branding its leader André Ventura “often xenophobic, racist, populist, and excessively demagogic,” so piecing together a right-wing government of any description could prove difficult.

Many “center-right” parties in Europe, such as the Conservatives in Great Britain or the Christian Democratic Union, formerly led by Angela Merkel in Germany, have more in common with the Democrats than the Republicans in the U.S. and are hostile to populist parties like Chega.

This attitude has seen the Netherlands unable to form a government for months, with center-right parties unwilling to agree on a coalition deal with populist leader Geert Wilders despite his party placing first in national elections.

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Portugal’s governing Socialist Party appears set to lose power following a snap election that saw the populist Chega party surge into third place. show more
March 9, 2024
News
Politics

Kochs, Outside Groups Blew $85 MILLION Backing Nikki Haley.

Outside political advocacy groups spent $85.2 million supporting Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign, leading to the former South Carolina governor securing merely 89 of the 2,429 available Republican primary delegates before her withdrawal on Wednesday — a total cost of over $957,300 per delegate.

Among Haley’s largest benefactors were Yes for America Action and Americans for Prosperity Action, who — along with Haley’s campaign committee — collectively spent around $120 million during this election cycle. The former South Carolina governor spent approximately $1.3 million for each delegate secured — three times greater than the median US home price.

Spending by these groups in the Republican presidential primary overwhelmingly went to Haley compared to Trump and DeSantis, with a bulk of the money being dropped in early primary states. Pro-Haley groups spent $40 million in Iowa — the inaugural state to hold a primary election — where Haley only managed a distant third place.

These groups spent a further $31 million and $8 million backing Haley’s campaign in New Hampshire and South Carolina, respectively. However, she failed to secure victory in either state. By the time Super Tuesday arrived — the Republican primary’s most significant day — outside financial backing for Haley had dwindled, with third-party groups spending less than a million dollars backing Haley across the 15 states holding primaries.

FEC records show that SFA Fund, Haley’s primary Super PAC, disbursed over $51.5 million on efforts to gain traction in the primary. Meanwhile, Americans For Prosperity Action spent more than $31.2 million supporting Haley. The Charles Koch-backed group discontinued its financial backing after Haley’s loss in the February 24 South Carolina primary.

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Outside political advocacy groups spent $85.2 million supporting Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign, leading to the former South Carolina governor securing merely 89 of the 2,429 available Republican primary delegates before her withdrawal on Wednesday — a total cost of over $957,300 per delegate. show more
March 8, 2024
Jack Montgomery
News
Politics

WATCH: Joe Scarborough Says Today’s Biden Is ‘Best Biden Ever’ Intellectually.

MSNBC host Joe Scarborough has attracted ridicule by extolling the cognitive capabilities of President Joe Biden. Scarborough praised Biden, claiming: “This version of Biden, intellectually, analytically, is the best Biden ever.”

“I’ve said it for years now, [Biden] is cogent — but I undersold it when I said he was cogent. He’s far beyond cogent. In fact, I think he’s better than he’s ever been, intellectually, analytically,” Scarborough said.

“Start your tape right now, because I’m about to tell you the truth, and f you if you can’t handle the truth: this version of Biden, intellectually, analytically, is the best Biden ever, not a close second, and I’ve known him for years,” he claimed.

Scarborough, who has previously warned Donald Trump would exile, imprison, or execute his opponents if he is reelected, was accused of peddling “propaganda” rather than news after his glowing assessment of Biden’s mental acuity.

A Justice Department report by special counsel Robert Hur recently cited Biden’s “poor memory” as one of the reasons he should not be charged for mishandling classified documents. The report noted the 81-year-old Democrat could not remember what years he was Vice President or when his son Beau died “even within several years.”

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MSNBC host Joe Scarborough has attracted ridicule by extolling the cognitive capabilities of President Joe Biden. Scarborough praised Biden, claiming: “This version of Biden, intellectually, analytically, is the best Biden ever.” show more
March 8, 2024
William Upton
Election 2024
Politics

EXPLAINED: The ‘Tall Tales’ Told By Biden During His State of the Union Speech.

Joe Biden peddled several false claims during Thursday’s State of the Union Address. The 81-year-old Democrat — known to tell tall tales — delivered a speech before Congress that was more akin to a campaign kick-off than the typically more staid affair expected for the State of the Union.

In relation to American involvement with Ukraine, Biden suggested that Republicans opposing the allocation of additional U.S. taxpayer dollars to the country are in favor of America abandoning its global leadership status. However, those opposed have consistently highlighted the need for American interests to take precedence over those of other nations.

Biden also made a misleading claim regarding former President Donald Trump’s interactions with Russia’s Vladimir Putin” , implying Trump gave Putin free rein in Eastern Europe. Yet, context reveals that Trump’s statement — made during a rally — was part of a story recounting interactions with a NATO member not paying their defense obligations. Biden additionally claimed the West would be further endangered without renewed American aid to Ukraine – which is not backed up by currently available evidence.

Biden stated that the riots at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 — and subsequent concerns regarding the integrity of the 2020 presidential election — represented the “gravest threat” to American democracy since the Civil War. This claim ignores historic moments of danger like World War I, World War II, the Cold War, and the 9-11 Terrorist Attacks.

Contrary to President Biden’s statement that his administration has created 15 million new jobs, economic data shows that this number conflates jobs recovered post-Covid lockdowns with newly created positions. The National Pulse has previously reported that legal and illegal immigrant labor has fueled most of the job recovery under President Biden.

Regarding inflation, despite Biden’s statement that the U.S. has the world’s lowest rate, several countries currently have a demonstrably lower inflation rate, including Canada, Japan, and Switzerland. Additionally, Biden’s remarks about an increase in consumer confidence contradict several standard measures that show confidence on the decline.

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Joe Biden peddled several false claims during Thursday’s State of the Union Address. The 81-year-old Democrat — known to tell tall tales — delivered a speech before Congress that was more akin to a campaign kick-off than the typically more staid affair expected for the State of the Union. show more
brian jack
March 8, 2024
Politics

Top Trump Aide Brian Jack Will Run for Georgia Congressional Seat.

President Donald Trump’s close aide, Brian Jack, 36, of Fayette County, has filed to run for the House of Representatives in Georgia’s 3rd Congressional District. The move comes on the heels of current GOP Rep. Drew Ferguson’s decision to retire, which was announced last December.

Trump endorsed this high-profile shift, as he demonstrated through his support for Jack in a post on Truth Social. Trump lauded Jack’s diligent work during his 2016 campaign and subsequent service as White House Political Director, praising his “distinction in helping enact our American First agenda.”

Trump’s statement continued with a full-throated endorsement: “Should he decide to run, Brian Jack has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”

Jack is a seasoned political operator, having played a central role as national delegate director during Trump’s 2016 campaign and as political director in the White House. After the 2020 election, Jack worked with former House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, keeping close ties with Trump and assisting on the successful slate of 2022 midterm endorsements. He is widely trusted in MAGA world and has been one of the tight group of steady hands that have helped guide Trump through the 2024 primaries.

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President Donald Trump’s close aide, Brian Jack, 36, of Fayette County, has filed to run for the House of Representatives in Georgia’s 3rd Congressional District. The move comes on the heels of current GOP Rep. Drew Ferguson’s decision to retire, which was announced last December. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
Brian is a steady hand and a good friend
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Brian is a steady hand and a good friend show more
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March 8, 2024
News
Politics

CPAC Tax Docs Reveal Massive Revenue Drop, Lowest Since 2018.

The American Conservative Union (ACU), the parent organization of the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) led by chairman Matt Schlapp, faced significant revenue losses last year, according to a recent tax filing. The loss in revenue follows revelations that Schlapp was the subject of a lawsuit alleging the sexual battery of a young man, Republican strategist Carlton Huffman. The tax document revealed the ACU’s conference revenue dropped by over half, from $11.7 million to $5.4 million, marking the nonprofit’s lowest income since 2018.

The sexual assault allegations against Schlapp became public less than two months before CPAC 2023. As a result, attendance and sponsorships took a significant hit. The tax filing revealed that ACU’s overall revenue dropped substantially. The hefty salaries, including Schlapp’s personal income — at least $350,000 per year — contributed to ACU’s fiscal challenges. The wages rose by nearly $600,000 from the previous year, while the revenue generated barely covered the $2.2 million paid out to the organization’s top 13 earners.

During the same period, the organization’s treasurer, Bob Beauprez, resigned, explaining: “Over three years ago, I had become quite concerned about the obvious unease, frustration, palpable tension and anxiety among staff, and high rate of turnover. Even from the outside, it was clear that things were not going well.”

He added: “I cannot deliver a financial report at the upcoming board meeting with any confidence in the accuracy of the numbers.”

Last year, it was revealed that Schlapp offered his alleged victim a six-figure payoff to drop the lawsuit. In February, Fox News host Sean Hannity and several former CPAC staffers were subpoenaed as part of the ongoing investigations into the allegations against Schlapp.

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The American Conservative Union (ACU), the parent organization of the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) led by chairman Matt Schlapp, faced significant revenue losses last year, according to a recent tax filing. The loss in revenue follows revelations that Schlapp was the subject of a lawsuit alleging the sexual battery of a young man, Republican strategist Carlton Huffman. The tax document revealed the ACU’s conference revenue dropped by over half, from $11.7 million to $5.4 million, marking the nonprofit’s lowest income since 2018.

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March 8, 2024
Crime
Immigration
Politics

Laken Riley’s Mom Just Issued This Scathing Statement About Joe Biden.

The mother of slain Georgia student Laken Riley issued a blistering statement concerning Joe Biden and his failure to correctly speak Riley’s name during the State of the Union on Thursday.

“Biden does not even KNOW my child’s name – it’s pathetic! If you are going to say her name (even when forced to do so) at least say the right name!” Laken’s mother, Allyson Phillips, wrote on Facebook on Friday.

“Lincoln, Lincoln Riley,” Biden said Thursday night, holding up a pin badge with her name on it.

Republicans in the House passed the Laken Riley Act on Thursday despite the opposition of 170 Democrats who presumably want the violent deaths of American girls to continue unabated.

Phillips took to Facebook in response, stating: “Praise God! #SayHerName LAKEN HOPE RILEY BILL – PASSED.”

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The mother of slain Georgia student Laken Riley issued a blistering statement concerning Joe Biden and his failure to correctly speak Riley’s name during the State of the Union on Thursday. show more
March 8, 2024
News
Politics

Rand Paul Introduces Bill to Force Fauci, NIH Scientists to Disclose Big Pharma Royalties.

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has proposed a bill obliging federal employees to declare royalty profits from new technological advancements. The bill, the Royalty Transparency Act of 2024, passed unanimously in the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday. “During COVID, we had vaccines that were developed by Pfizer and Moderna. And then these vaccines were mandated on people throughout government, throughout the military, by different governors around the country, and yet, we don’t know whether the people that were approving either the vaccines or the mandates were receiving money from big Pharma,” Paul said during an interview on Thursday.

If enacted, the legislation would require federal employees’ royalty earnings to be disclosed in an online database available for public viewing. Paul suggested that this measure would allow the public to identify any officials who approved drug treatments while receiving financial compensation from the drug manufacturers. Historically, federal agencies like the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have come under fire for refusing to disclose royalty payments to their researchers.

The bill follows a report from government watchdog group OpenTheBooks that found over 1,800 government scientists had collected over 27,000 royalty payments from 2009 to 2016, equating to hundreds of millions of dollars.

“So, it’s not a small amount of money,” Paul said. “It’s a significant amount of money … to scientists, and so some of them are getting million-dollar paydays from big pharmacy companies, and it’s not being disclosed to the public.”

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Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has proposed a bill obliging federal employees to declare royalty profits from new technological advancements. The bill, the Royalty Transparency Act of 2024, passed unanimously in the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday. “During COVID, we had vaccines that were developed by Pfizer and Moderna. And then these vaccines were mandated on people throughout government, throughout the military, by different governors around the country, and yet, we don’t know whether the people that were approving either the vaccines or the mandates were receiving money from big Pharma," Paul said during an interview on Thursday. show more
March 8, 2024
William Upton
Politics

REVEALED: Govt-Corporate Database Tracks Americans With ‘Wrong’ Political Beliefs.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) is drawing attention to a little-known government data portal that tracks American citizens’ purchases and business activities. The portal — operated by a US government private-public partnership organization called Domestic Security Alliance Council (DSAC) — is only accessible by partnership members and designated government officials, according to Jordan.

“The federal government is building profiles on the American people, and the profile isn’t based on criminal conduct, it’s based on political beliefs,” said Jordan at the start of a hearing by the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government — which the Ohio Republican chairs. He added: “And if you got the wrong political beliefs, well, you’re potentially a domestic violent extremist.”

According to Jordan, an FBI whistleblower revealed to the committee that the federal law enforcement bureau used the portal to obtain information about purchases made by individuals in the Washington, DC area in the days before and after the January 6 riot at the US Capitol. The Ohio Congressman told the committee DSAC uses keywords such as “MAGA” and “TRUMP” to spy on American citizens through the portal. Jordan also alleged DSAC was tracking the sale of certain books and religious texts — as well as purchases made at Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shop, and Dick’s Sporting Goods.

DSAC is led by three co-chairs representing the FBI, DHS, and private sector companies. The current co-chairs are Gretchen Burrier, who serves as Section Chief and the current Acting Assistant Director of the Office of Private Sector (OPS) within the FBI Intelligence Branch; Tammy Hutchinson, who is the  Director of Private Sector Engagement at the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A); and Deirdre Fike, Vice President of Investigations and Intelligence in Corporate Security at MGM Resorts International. Other members of the DSAC include executives from Beacon Capital Partners, the Walt Disney Company, Greenbrier, Accenture, and Dominion Energy.

“All this being done with no process, no warrant, no notification to the customer that the banks are actually supposed to serve… Big government shouldn’t be working with big banks to target Americans for behavior that is legal and constitutional,” warned Jordan.

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Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) is drawing attention to a little-known government data portal that tracks American citizens’ purchases and business activities. The portal — operated by a US government private-public partnership organization called Domestic Security Alliance Council (DSAC) — is only accessible by partnership members and designated government officials, according to Jordan. show more
March 8, 2024
Jack Montgomery
Fact Check
Politics

FACT-CHECK: Biden ❌ Lied ❌ About Trump Reaction to Mass Shooting.

Joe Biden lied about Donald Trump’s comments on a mass shooting in Perry, Iowa, during his State of the Union address, misquoting the America First leader as having said people should “just get over it.”

“My predecessor told the NRA he’s proud he did nothing on guns when he was President — oof!” Biden told Congress.

“After another shooting in Iowa recently, he said when asked what to do about it, ‘Just get over it.’ There’s his quote, ‘just get over it.’ I say, stop it! Stop it, stop it, stop it!” he ranted.

In fact, “just get over it” was not Trump’s quote. The former President actually said:

“I want to send our support and our deepest sympathies to the victims and families touched by the terrible school shooting yesterday in Perry, Iowa. To the entire community: We love you, we pray for you and we ask God to heal and comfort really the whole state and the pain that you have. This is something that’s very unique to your state. We’re really with you, as much as anybody can be. It’s a very terrible thing that happened. And it’s just terrible to see that happening. It’s just terrible. So surprising to see it here. But, we have to get over it, we have to move forward. We have to move forward. But, to the relatives and to all of the people that are so devastated right now, to a point they can’t breathe, they can’t live, we are with you all the way. We’re with you and we love you and cherish you.”

Biden’s team at the White House appeared to realize he misrepresented Trump, substantially altering the President’s actual words in their official transcript of the address.

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Joe Biden lied about Donald Trump’s comments on a mass shooting in Perry, Iowa, during his State of the Union address, misquoting the America First leader as having said people should “just get over it.” show more