News of the World

[kyonides]

US NEWS

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Federal Judge Rejects Lawsuit to Remove Trump From Ballot in Another State

A federal judge in West Virginia rejected a bid Thursday to remove former President Donald Trump from the state's ballot, rebuffing a bid from a little-known presidential candidate to remove the former president.

District Judge Irene Berger ruled that John Anthony Castro, the candidate who filed a lawsuit against President Trump, lacked the standing to sue. She sided with attorneys for President Trump, Secretary of State Mac Warner, and the West Virginia GOP to dismiss Mr. Castro's suit.

U.S. District Judge Irene Berger wrote that the evidence that Mr. Castro had submitted removes “any doubt that Mr. Castro’s purported ‘campaign’ exists as a vehicle for pursuing litigation, not votes," adding that he could not prove any political activity in the state aside from the lawsuit that he filed.

Mr. Castro, who is based in Texas, has filed at least two dozen lawsuits against the former president to remove him from respective states' ballots in recent weeks. Earlier this month, a judge in Arizona dismissed a similar lawsuit.

His lawsuit had argued that President Trump should be disbarred from appearing on the state's ballot because Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution stipulates that anyone who engaged in an insurrection against the United States cannot be a presidential candidate. The U.S. Supreme Court declined in October to hear the appeal of a similar case that Mr. Castro brought in Florida.
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But as Mr. Castro had "alleged that he is a candidate for the Republican nomination for President and anticipates being on the ballot in West Virginia," his lawsuit "contains few specific factual allegations related to his candidacy,” Judge Berger wrote.

The judge added that "Mr. Castro’s complaint relies on supposition and speculation that if Mr. Trump were removed from the ballot, that his voters and contributors would default to other candidates including Mr. Castro," adding that "he supplies no specifics to support the conclusion that Trump voters would become Castro voters if his suit was successful.”

US in Crisis

California Population Drops Again; Below 39 Million

California’s population dipped by about 75,000 from 2022 to 2023, estimates released Tuesday by the Census Bureau shows, with about 38,965,000 million people in the state this year. The state’s population has fallen since its 2019 peak of 39.5 million, though the annual loss has also slowed each year.
Between 2021 and 2022, California lost a net of about 104,000 people, or 0.3%, higher than the dip of 0.2% between 2022 and 2023.
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California’s Department of Finance, whose estimates use different data sources than the Census, suggested the state’s population [drop] could be … less severe. By its measure, the state’s 2023 population is about 39.1 million, falling by just 37,000 people from the year prior. The department, which also said San Francisco’s population has grown slightly in the past two years, told the Chronicle they believe their data tracked in-migration slightly better than the Census Bureau.

California’s population losses through domestic migration were partially offset by international immigration and in-state births.

Prior to the fiscal year from July 1, 2020, to July 1, 2021, California had never seen even one year of population decline since 1900, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

The numbers suggest California’s latest exodus is slowing as the pandemic eases, but it still remains a concern.

Only New York, Louisiana, Hawaii, Illinois and West Virginia lost a larger share of their population over the year.

The result could be that California could continue to lose seats in the House of Representatives; it lost one in the 2020 Census.

Secret Service Probing John Schneider After ‘Dukes of Hazzard’ Star Said Bidens Should Be ’Publicly Hung’

The Dukes of Hazzard star John Schneider is under investigation from the Secret Service after statements he made online Thursday against President Joe Biden and his son Hunter.

The federal agency charged with protecting POTUS, the Vice President and their immediate families, as well as major political candidates and high level government officials, have opened the probe, according to Deadline.

As Breitbart News reported, Schneider called for the public execution of Biden, saying the commander in chief should to be “publicly hung” for treason. The actor also called for Hunter Biden to be executed.

John Schneider posted the X message in reply to Biden’s recent post in which he called former President Donald Trump a “threat” to democracy.

“Mr. President, I believe you are guilty of treason and should be publicly hung. Your son too.  Your response is…?” the actor wrote.

CANADIAN NEWS

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Trudeau's Weird Policies

Trudeau’s Canada Opens up to Refugees Fleeing ‘Unlivable’ Gaza

Canada is throwing open the migration door to all extended families of Canadians in war-torn Gaza Strip for up to three years, Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced Thursday.

The move is due to take effect on January 9. It will expand a broad range of categories with which to bring Gazans into the country to claim sanctuary as temporary residents as well as offers of financial support.

These include options to reunite with spouses or common-law partners, children and grandchildren regardless of age, siblings and their immediate families, as well as parents and grandparents, the government confirmed in a statement addressing the changes.

Ottawa’s generosity to the Palestinian arrivals comes as none of the Arab countries that claim to love them as brothers are willing to accept them as refugees, as Breitbart News reported.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Marc Miller said more people will now be able to escape Gaza for the three-year respite.

Canadian Media Decries Lax Treatment of Pro-Hamas Rioters Compared to Freedom Convoy Crackdown

Writing at Canada’s National Post on Tuesday, columnist Rex Murphy noted that disruptive and violent pro-Hamas, anti-Israel protesters are treated with far more indulgence by Canadian officials than the Freedom Convoy protesters who peacefully stood against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s pandemic policies in 2022.

The Freedom Convoy was cracked down upon with such force that a First Nations elder went down under the hooves of a police horse, which is far more aggressive policing than the ugly pro-Hamas demonstrations have been given so far.

Murphy zeroed in on Tamara Lich, the Freedom Convoy organizer who was arrested, slapped with heavy charges, and denied bail in October 2022. Lich was accused of offenses such as “counseling to commit mischief” for organizing truckers to blockade roads.

Lich wound up spending 18 days in jail in Ottawa before bail was finally granted, on conditions such as refraining from social media, expressing public support for the Freedom Convoy protests, or communicating with other protesters. She was arrested again for violating one of her bail conditions by appearing at an awards dinner with another Freedom Convoy organizer, but those charges were dropped.
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Murphy contrasted the rough treatment given to Lich, and the utter contempt displayed for the Freedom Convoy protesters by Trudeau and his officials, with the kid gloves worn for pro-terrorist demonstrators who threaten violence and commit vandalism while expressing their support for rape, murder, and genocide.
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Murphy was referring to a pro-Palestinian rally outside a Zara clothing store at Eaton Center on Sunday, during which a masked terrorism supporter did indeed offer to plant a police officer on the wrong side of the grass.

“If you’re a man, come touch me,” the demonstrator yelled at the Toronto cop. Hamas supporters also threatened to kill shoppers outside the store.

EUROPEAN NEWS

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Military Spending More Money than Ever Before?

Netherlands Prepares to Hand Over F-16 Fighter Jets to Ukraine

The Dutch government announced Friday it is preparing to give 18 F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, in a boost for the embattled nation that is growing increasingly anxious about aid from its Western allies.

The Dutch defense minister, Kajsa Ollongren, sent a letter to parliament outlining the plan to donate the sophisticated jets that was first unveiled in the summer.

Friday´s decision is a significant step toward sending the planes into the skies over Ukraine, but did not say when they will be delivered.

The government said the move “allows personnel and budget to be allocated to prepare the devices” to be sent to Ukraine.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited a military airbase in the southern Dutch city of Eindhoven in August to inspect two of the jets on the day that the Netherland and Denmark said they would donate planes to boost the Ukrainian war effort.

Last month, Romania inaugurated an international training hub for F-16 jet pilots from allied countries and other partners, including Ukraine. The training facility at an air base in southeast Romania will aim to increase interoperability between NATO allies, and better position the military alliance “to face the complex challenges” in Eastern Europe and the Black Sea region, Romania´s defense ministry said.

Ukraine Wants to Build One Million ‘Suicide Drones’ Next Year, Claims to Have Made 50,000 This Month Alone

Ukraine has been producing increasing numbers of drones since the start of Russia’s renewed invasion in 2022, and also imports considerable numbers from around the world. Following Zelensky’s remarks Ukraine’s Minister of Strategic Industries Oleksandr Kamyshin — widely feted in Western media as the head of Ukraine’s railways in the early days of the war — boasted the nation would produce “more than 50,000 FPV drones” in December of this year alone. If true, the claim suggests Ukraine is indeed well on its way to producing a million of the ‘kamikaze’ type drones in 2024.

Kamyshin said in addition to the large numbers of these small, single-use killers, Ukraine would also produce over the course of 2024: “more than 10,000 medium-range (hundreds of kilometres) attack drones and 1,000+ drones with a range of over 1,000 kilometres”.

The First Person View (FPV) drones of which Zelensky and Kamyshin speak have become an integral, conflict-defining weapon, with social media flooded with hundreds of videos of successful attacks by the agile flying bombs deployed by both sides.
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Ukrainian statements about the drones frequently emphasise how cheap the drones are — a few thousand dollars each — versus the cost of the weapon systems and armoured vehicles they take out, in the many millions of dollars, underlining the asymmetric nature of the development.

Europe Defence Spending Soars with Tanks, Missiles, Fighter Jets, Attack Helicopters, All on Order

Europe must race to ensure it can better defend itself as new military threats could emerge by the end of the decade even as the focus of security ally the U.S. shifts towards the Indo-Pacific, Germany’s defense minister has already warned.

Russia was hiking its weapons production considerably to sustain its invasion of Ukraine, while also threatening the Baltic states, Georgia and Moldova, Boris Pistorius was quoted as saying in an interview with Welt am Sonntag last week.
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Since then Czech Defence Minister Jana Černochová confirmed the course and speed which Europe is moving when she announced Thursday her country is advancing negotiations with Germany to carry out a joint acquisition of up to 77 new Leopard 2A8 main battlefield tanks.

The NATO member is also nearing the completion of talks to buy C-390 Millennium transport aircraft and F-35 Lightning II fighter jets.
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Meanwhile, Defense News reports Spain has ordered 16 Airbus C295 aircraft in maritime patrol and surveillance configurations for €1.7 billion (U.S. $1.9 billion), Airbus announced Wednesday.

Six maritime patrol variants will come equipped for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare missions, replacing the Spanish P-3 Orion fleet that retired at the end of 2022, Airbus said.
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The German Defence Ministry has also signed a contract with Airbus for 62 H145M light attack helicopters, with a portion of the fleet equipped to fight tanks from afar — a direct lesson from the fighting in Ukraine.

Under the order, 57 of the aircraft will go to the Army and five to Air Force special operations forces.

Twenty more are envisioned under a future option, Airbus Helicopters said in a Dec. 14 statement. Deliveries will begin in 2024, according to the vendor.
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There was a 13 percent rise in Europe, the steepest in at least 30 years, coming on the back of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and broader insecurity around the world.

MIDDLE EASTERN CRISIS

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Hamas Murdered Gad Haggai, 73: American Hostage Abducted During October 7 Attack

Hamas murdered U.S. citizen Gad Haggai, who was abducted during the October 7 terror attack, according to a press statement by Kibbutz Nir Oz, the community where he lived with his wife, Judy Weinstein, an American who remains a hostage in Gaza.

Haggai held dual citizenship in Israel and the U.S., as does Weinstein. He was thought to be a hostage, but was confirmed as having died after being wounded and abducted.
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The kibbutz later clarified that Haggai had been murdered during the attack, but that Hamas had taken his body away.
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Hamas was still thought to be holding eight American hostages; that number is now seven.

On Friday, the Israeli military reported progress on a variety of fronts — eliminating terrorists, seizing weapons, and even discovering a report that documented Hamas spending one million dollars on producing doors for underground tunnels in 2022 in the area of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip.

Troops from the Nahal Brigade battled Hamas terrorists dressed in civilian clothing who took up a position in a civilian apartment building; after the battle, they found bodycam footage of the terrorists setting up an improvised explosive device (IED) as part of an effort to lay booby traps for advancing Israeli troops.