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Amanda Head: Debunking Leftists’ Lies About Thanksgiving

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Every year as families and friends gather to give Thanks a coalition of left-wing woke harpies descend on the holiday to remind you to make sure to politicize every aspect of your life. In recent years liberals have targeted the controversial story of Thanksgiving as a way to attack White colonizers and sing a song of sympathy for Native Americans.

Watch Amanda de-dunk the biggest lies peddled by the left about Thanksgiving.

Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

Amanda Head: Bar Association Goes Idiodically Woke

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Law schools across the country are abandoning their decades-long principles going woke and the move could prove disastrous for attorneys, current law students, and prospective law students across the nation.

Let Amanda break down the situation in the video below.

Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

Florida Lawmakers Want to Clear Path for 2024 DeSantis White House Bid

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Top Florida Republicans are prepared to clear a path for Governor Ron DeSantis to make a run for the White House.

Currently, Florida law would require DeSantis to resign in order to run for president but legislators have signaled a serious interest in amending the law in the near future.

“Any officer who qualifies for federal public office must resign from the office he or she presently holds if the terms, or any part thereof, run concurrently with each other,” the states the law.

DeSantis was re-elected as governor on November 8 with a victory margin of nearly 20 percentage points.

Incoming Florida House Speaker Paul Renner (R) called the suggestion of changing the “resign to run” law a “good idea” on Tuesday after being elected to lead the state’s lower chamber.

New Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R) also told reporters she supported the update.

“If Speaker Renner thinks it’s a good idea, I think it’s a good idea,” she told reporters.

Passidomo addressed reporters and said she does not feel a Florida governor with presidential aspirations should be forced to resign.

“If an individual who is Florida governor is running for president, I think he should be allowed to do it,” she said in regard to amending state law to allow DeSantis to keep his office in Tallahassee while running for president – should he choose to do so. “I really do. That’s a big honor and a privilege, so it is a good idea.”

So far DeSantis has remained committed to winning his gubernatorial re-election and has sought to tamp down 2024 White House speculation. However, the Florida Governor has been widely regarded among Republicans as the most formidable contender to take on Donald Trump who recently announced his own bid for the presidency.

According to The Daily Wire, some legal experts have questioned how the law could apply to DeSantis. Jon Mills, a constitutional law professor at the University of Florida, said in October it could depend on how far DeSantis got in a White House bid.

“The statute in text does say federal,’’ he said. “The question is when? What does ‘qualification’ mean, in terms of running for president? Does it mean you are the final nominee or is it when you qualify for the first primary state?”

But Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Julie Marcus wrote on her website that the law would not apply to a DeSantis effort to trade Tallahassee for Washington.

“The “resign-to-run” law prohibits an officer from qualifying as a candidate for another state, district, county or municipal public office if the terms or any part overlap with each other unless the officer submits a resignation from the office the person presently holds,” she wrote. “Therefore, the “resign-to-run” law would not preclude a sitting state, district, county, or municipal officer from qualifying as a candidate for federal office without resigning from the office the person presently holds as long as the officer is not also seeking to qualify for re-election to his or her present office.”

False AP Report About Russian Missiles Hitting Poland Could’ve Triggered WWIII

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Main Directorate of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Kyiv, CC BY 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

ANALYSIS – Last week the world was hit by the purported news of a Russian missile strike into NATO member country, Poland. 

And now the award-winning AP reporter who wrote it has been fired.

Based only on a single, unnamed ‘senior U.S. intelligence official,’ the initial Associated Press (AP) story by James LaPorta, a former U.S. Marine who served in Afghanistan, was widely disseminated and quickly caused a barrage of other reporting.

Most of it was alarmist and panic-causing, with many in the news media and blogosphere quickly demanding harsh action against Russia.

As the Blaze reports:

Fox News and the Daily Mail similarly carried the AP reporter’s suggestion, the former running a piece entitled, “Russian missiles cross into NATO member Poland, kill 2: senior US intelligence official,” and the latter stating, “‘Russian bombs’ kill two in POLAND.”

CBS Evening News tweeted “RUSSIAN MISSILE STRIKE: Two Russian missiles crossed over the Ukrainian border into Poland, a NATO country, killing two civilians.”

A Russian attack on Poland could have triggered articles 4 and 5 of the NATO charter, potentially putting the U.S. into direct conflict with nuclear power.

Article 4 requires full consultation at the North Atlantic Council, the alliance’s political decision-making body, while Article 5 requires joint NATO action to repel an attack.

As MSN explains: “Article 5 states that the parties to the NATO treaty ‘agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all.’”

Article 5 also states that each NATO member must take “such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the North Atlantic area.”

This of course would make the U.S. a direct combatant in this war and could escalate to a nuclear exchange.

As such, I wrote about the ‘errant’ strike the same day, albeit in more careful ways.

My headline was more matter-of-fact and far less alarming, and it didn’t mention a direct Russian missile strike: “Escalation in Russia-Ukraine War Leads to Emergency Crisis Meeting.”

In the piece I did note the ramifications of any foreign missiles crashing into Poland, writing: “In what might be the greatest (albeit perhaps accidental) escalation since Russia invaded Ukraine, the war just crossed the border into a NATO country.”

And, yes, I like to say ‘albeit.’

added:

According to a senior U.S. intelligence official, as Russia pounded Ukraine’s energy facilities Tuesday with the largest barrage of missile strikes to date, some reportedly ‘stray’ Russian missiles crossed into NATO member Poland and struck a site in Poland about 15 miles from the Ukrainian border.

The allegedly errant strike killed two persons in the Polish village of Przewodów and provoked an emergency crisis meeting of Poland’s national security team, which will be held Tuesday evening.

While I did refer to a Ukrainian Air Force spokesman who said Russia used X-101 and X-555 cruise missiles in the latest attacks against Ukraine, and reports that expressed the belief that “one or more of these cruise missiles were the ones that struck Poland,” I was very careful in how I reported all this.

Note the extensive use of the words “accidental,” “allegedly,” “reportedly,” “errant,” and “stray” missiles in my report. I also explained that the incident had provoked an “emergency crisis meeting” in Poland.

The rest of my piece focused on the confirmed, massive Russian barrage of missile strikes against Ukrainian energy and infrastructure targets throughout the country.

In the end it appears that the missile that struck Poland was a Russian-made Ukrainian air defense missile that missed its mark and fell back to earth rather than self-destructs.

And even after its country of manufacture was known, outlets like CNN kept calling it a ‘Russian-made missile’ without adding that Ukraine uses lots of Russian-made missiles.

Of course, in my view, Russia is still to blame for this, albeit indirectly, since no one would be firing armed missiles near a NATO country if it weren’t for the unprovoked Russian invasion, and its reckless and dangerous strikes near NATO’s borders.

The Blaze added that:

After having updated the initial report several times, the AP indicated [November 16] that a new assessment from three U.S. officials “contradicts information” in the original article. Shortly thereafter, the article was reportedly taken offline.

The AP issued a retraction later that day…

On Nov. 21, LaPorta was fired.

But let’s use this incident as a teachable moment. 

Lesson one – as sophisticated news consumers, be circumspect with the news you read until it is fully verified.

Lesson two – be wary of reports using only one or two anonymous sources.

And lesson three – journalists, and social media posters, should use words like ‘reportedly’ a lot more, and make it clear that there is room for doubt or questions when the reports are still fresh and early.

The most important rule I’ve learned in journalism, and in intelligence, and also during my stint on Wall Street, is that – it’s never as good (or as bad) as first reported. 

Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

Amanda Head: Nailbiter – GA Senate Race Is Neck and Neck!

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The Georgia Senate runoff election is going to be a heated battle and neither candidate is giving up ground. Trump-endorsed candidate and former University of Georgia football legend Herschel Walker (R) is nearly tied against incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock as they continue campaigning for the Dec. 6th election.

Watch Amanda break it down below.

Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

Supreme Court Clears Path for Congress to Obtain Trump Tax Records

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Duncan Lock, Dflock, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

On Tuesday the Supreme Court rejected an emergency appeal from former President Donald Trump that sought to shield his tax records from Congress.

The order, which had no noted dissents, concludes a multi-year legal battle by Democrats to obtain the records.

Last month, the former President filed the emergency appeal after a lower court declined to reverse its ruling mandating that he turn over the records to the House Ways and Means Committee. The Committee has argued the records are critical to its probe of how the IRS conducts its presidential audits but Trump and his attorneys have asserted the effort is merely a political stunt meant to jeopardize Trump and his businesses.

Chief Justice John Roberts had temporarily blocked their release in a Nov. 1 order while the court considered the matter, according to The Hill.

“The Committee’s purpose in requesting President Trump’s tax returns has nothing to do with funding or staffing issues at the IRS and everything to do with releasing the President’s tax information to the public,” Trump’s attorneys wrote to the court in October.

Federal law mandates that tax returns are generally confidential unless an exception applies, one of which includes a written request by the House Ways and Means Committee. The issue in Trump’s litigation in large part turns on whether this exception is constitutional.

“Why would anybody be surprised that the Supreme Court has ruled against me, they always do!” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “It is unprecedented to be handing over Tax Returns, & it creates terrible precedent for future Presidents. Has Joe Biden paid taxes on all of the money he made illegally from Hunter & beyond.”

“The Supreme Court has lost its honor, prestige, and standing, & has become nothing more than a political body, with our Country paying the price,” Trump wrote on Wednesday. “They refused to even look at the Election Hoax of 2020. Shame on them!”

This story is developing. Stay with Great America News Desk for updates.

Top CNN Executive Gets the Axe Amid Network Reorganization

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CNN Headquarters via Wikimedia Commons

A top executive is set to leave CNN by the end of the year as the network continues to re-organize under CEO Chris Licht’s new regime.

CNN’s executive vice president of programming, Michael Bass is departing his role after more than a decade.

“I’m writing to let you know that Michael Bass has made the decision to leave CNN at the end of this year,” the memo said. “As head of domestic programming, Michael helped create a number of new shows and overhaul legacy programs. His full list of accomplishments is too great to acknowledge in a single memo. But on the heels of the midterms, it’s worth noting that he oversaw coverage of elections, town halls and debates.”

Bass, whose resume includes previous stints at CBS and NBC, is likely not the last high-profile employee to leave the network in the coming weeks. Last week, Licht revealed more layoffs are expected to come in early December.

Those who will be laid off will receive anywhere from a 60- to 90-day notice.

CNN’s new CEO has sent shockwaves through the network as he seeks to implement major changes from the top down. Numerous hosts, including Reliable Sources host Brian Stelter, have left the network while others like Don Lemon have seen their role within the company shift.

Many have speculated Licht plans to take CNN in a more moderate direction after years of hyper-partisan reporting, however, Licht says that is simply speculation.

“One of the biggest misconceptions about my vision is that I want to be vanilla, that I want to be centrist. That is bullshit,” Licht told the Financial Times this week. “You have to be compelling. You have to have edge. In many cases you take a side. Sometimes you just point out uncomfortable questions. But either way you don’t see it through a lens of left or right.”

“We are truth-tellers, focused on informing, not alarming our viewers,” Licht wrote in one of his earliest memos to CNN staffers this summer. “You’ve already seen far less of the “Breaking News” banner across our programming. The tenor of our voice holistically has to reflect that.”  

Who do you think is next to leave? Tell us in the comments below!

Investigate the ‘Other Insurrection’ – BLM’s 2020 ‘Battle for Lafayette Park’ and White House

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A protester holds up a Black Lives Matter sign outside the Hennepin County Government Center.

ANALYSIS – The incessant drumbeat of the left’s campaign to keep the Capitol Riot in the news every day for nearly two years had some of its intended effects. 

It probably helped persuade some voters not to pull the lever for those ‘dangerous’ MAGA Republicans during the midterm elections.

It also may dissuade others not to vote for Trump or the GOP in 2024.

And some of that concern may be justified.

But the GOP and the right also failed miserably by not forcefully pushing the truth about the ‘other insurrection’ – the one against Trump and the White House by violent leftists under the BLM flag in May/June 2020.

I was a risk advisor to foreign TV news crews during both violent riots. 

I also strongly condemned both, writing of the Capitol rioters at the time: “…many were goons and criminals, and yes, ‘terrorists.’ No better than Antifa or BLM, or the #NotMyPresident rioters who disrupted Trump’s Inaugural four years ago.”

I added of the violent Capitol rioters: “Whoever they were, they should be seen and treated as criminals. Arrested and prosecuted.”

This sentiment didn’t apply to the hundreds who simply entered the Capitol non-violently, but that’s another issue altogether.

Unfortunately, the left, colluding with the establishment media and Democrats in Congress and the White House, only ‘remembers’ one riot and erased that other one from history.

If they mention the violent BLM riot at the White House at all, they focus on Trump’s Bible photo op the next morning at St John’s Episcopal Church, the site across from the White House of an attempted arson the night before.

They also forget how they aggressively attacked any attempt by Trump, and federal and local authorities, to bring order to the violence.

I even had a Canadian TV news reporter claim to me months after the protests at the White House that they were totally peaceful. 

She said this nonsense despite the fact that the violence was reported, albeit briefly.

And I had to forcibly intervene to protect one of her colleagues, a cameraman who was savagely beaten by two ‘BLM’ assailants without justification, while the crew was simply changing batteries and reorganizing away from the main battle lines.

The cameraman fortunately was wearing a helmet at my suggestion, and ‘only’ suffered a mild concussion.

I personally witnessed hundreds of rioters almost break through the thin improvised line of U.S. Park Police and Uniformed Secret Service in the park, while DC Metropolitan Police, for political reasons, assembled on the sidelines.

As a security expert, I was concerned that there weren’t enough police to stop the large violent mob from crashing the fence at the White House; a concern apparently shared by the Secret Service who at one point that night rushed Trump to the protected underground bunker.

A claim Trump sadly denied.

I also witnessed everything described by CNN below, and more.

 As CNN reported at the time on May 31, 2020:

More than 60 US Secret Service Uniformed Division officers and special agents were injured starting Friday night through Sunday morning near the White House as protests rocked Washington, DC, following the death of George Floyd last week, according to a statement from the Secret Service.

The officers and agents were injured when protesters threw “projectiles such as bricks, rocks, bottles, fireworks and other items,” according to the statement. “Personnel were also directly physically assaulted as they were kicked, punched and exposed to bodily fluids.”

CNN teams were on hand for much of the protests and witnessed protesters throwing objects at officers and pulling temporary fencing away from them. 

Eleven Secret Service employees were transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. A secret service officer suffered a head injury after being assaulted by BLM & far-left rioters trying to storm the White House. Dozens of other Secret Service agents were injured as well.

This was also a violent riot, or call it an insurrection, but in this case against President Trump, the Executive Branch, and the politically sacred space of the ‘People’s House.’ 

Perhaps with GOP control of the House, we can see a real congressional investigation of this ‘other insurrection.’

Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

FBI Continues Armed Raids Against Peaceful Americans

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FBI Headquarters Washington DC [Photo Credit: I, Aude, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons]

ANALYSIS – Following Joe Biden’s new rule restricting feds from investigating or arresting journalists and the ongoing outcry against FBI agents using ‘storm-trooper’ SWAT-style raids against peaceful American pro-life activists, the Bureau goes and does it again.

Most recently, Joerg Arnu, owner of www.Dreamlandresort.com, a popular Area 51 website issued a statement after heavily armed federal agents reportedly raided his homes at gunpoint several weeks ago.

Dreamlandresort.com was founded in 1999 and has long hosted information about the restricted military base widely known as Area 51, but also called Homey Airport or Groom Lake.

The extremely well-guarded Area 51 is classified as a ‘Military Operating Area’ by the Pentagon, but for most in the military, it’s simply known as the Nevada Test and Training Range, part of Edwards Air Force Base.

“The base itself is fairly small, but the restricted area around it is over 90,000 acres —  partly to prevent prying eyes and partly because they need to test classified aircraft,” Benjamin Radford, a writer on the subject, told Space.com earlier.

The raid of Arnu’s Nevada home, conducted jointly between the FBI and U.S. Air Force, was first reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

In his statement on Nov. 3, Arnu said that an FBI search warrant was executed and his “laptops, phones, backup drives, camera gear and my drone were seized.”

Arnu told Business Insider (BI) that he had “not been charged with a crime,” adding that since the Nov. 3 search, he has “not heard from the FBI agent in charge at all, despite numerous attempts to reach him to discuss the damages and return of my items.”

In response to an inquiry from BI, Lt. Col. Bryon McGarry, with the U.S. Air Force stated minimally that: “Nellis Air Force Base is aware of the joint-AFOSI (Department of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations), FBI investigation involving Mr. Arnu.”

However, as non-informative as the Air Force was, the FBI declined to comment at all.

The Epoch Times reported further on the seemingly outrageous incident:

Elaborating to news outlets, Arnu said that some 15 to 20 federal agents arrived at his home in “full riot gear.” He said the search pertained to photos that were posted on his website.

“The doors were broken open and I in [sic] Rachel and my girlfriend in our Las Vegas home were detained and treated in the most disrespectful way,” he told Insider. “My girlfriend was led out into the street barefoot and only in her underwear in full view of our neighbors; I was led outside, handcuffed and only in t-shirt and sweats in sub-freezing temperatures.”

Arnu added: “I am not sharing anything on my web site that cannot be found on dozens of other web sites and news outlet publications. Considering how this went down I have no intention of removing any more material unless ordered to do so by a federal judge.”

In his interview with Insider and Fox News, Arnu said he will now pursue legal action against the federal government.

“The federal government has the right to harass and traumatize random citizens that are not accused of any crime,” Arnu told Fox on Saturday. “Kick in their doors, manhandle them and take whatever they want from them. Said citizens have no rights whatsoever to reimbursement of their damages, return of their property or compensation for the trauma they were subjected to.”

Arnu added to Fox that “this is America … land of the free.” But now, it’s “not so much from where I am standing right now. Everyone should know about this injustice. It could be your door that is kicked in next!”

The seizure of Arnu’s aerial video drone may hint at a potential motive for the raid, as there are signs all around the military installation warning that photography in the area is prohibited and that drones cannot be flown in its vicinity.

However, if that is the case, then the FBI and AF-OSI should tell Mr. Arnu this and make a public statement to that effect.

Either way, the storm-trooper-type armed raid used against a well-known, elderly amateur journalist is outrageous and just the latest example of the FBI’s increasingly heavy-handed tactics being employed against peaceful American citizens.

Add this to the long list of FBI abuses the new, GOP-led Congress must investigate in 2023. 

Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

Veterans are Facing a Grim Thanksgiving Reality but One Organization is Making a Huge Impact

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    Daniel Ramirez from Honolulu, USA, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

    With Thanksgiving less than one week away, some of America’s greatest patriots are still questioning whether they’ll be able to put food on the table for their families.

    While President Joe Biden seems content ignoring America’s heroes the Coalition to Support America’s Heroes is stepping in to pick up the slack.

    In 2004, the Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes was established to ensure that in return for the sacrifices they made for us during the war on terror, wounded veterans and their families would receive all the support needed to restore their hope and rebuild their lives. Now, the Coalition is working to make sure every veteran has a Thanksgiving feast of their own. However, as one of the sole nonprofits providing direct emergency relief funds for veterans, they work overtime with limited resources as the organization experiences a downturn in charitable giving.

    Out of more than 40,000 veteran service organizations (VSO) the Coalition to Support Americas Heroes is the only nonprofit organization that provides direct emergency relief funds, veterans are often directed to the Coalition by VSOs, Veterans Affairs, or other non-profits like the Wounded Warrior Project.

    This Thanksgiving is already facing roadblocks due to sky-high inflation but coupled with a record amount of requests for help from veterans means the Coalition is struggling to keep up with demand. Each year, the Coalition gives hundreds, or even thousands of veterans funds to help alleviate the financial pressure that inevitably comes around the holidays.

    However, according to the American Farm Bureau Association, the costs for holiday staples such as turkey, sweet potatoes, and stuffing have surged since the same time last year.

    The price of a 16-pound turkey has risen from $23.99 last year to $28.96, marking a 21% increase as an outbreak of the avian flu impacts poultry flocks across the country. The costs for cubed stuffing mix, one dozen dinner rolls, and a 30-ounce can of pumpkin pie mix have surged 69%, 22%, and 18%, respectively.

    Coalition president and CEO David Walker says that the organization is now seeing an unprecedented need from struggling veterans as the country rebounds from a years-long COVID-19 pandemic which also exacerbated mental health issues and suicidal urges in veterans. With Thanksgiving around the corner, more than 240 calls have come into the Coalition in the past week, which is three times the number of calls from the first two weeks in October.

    “The need that the Coalition provides is as essential now, if not more so than when we started because the battlefront has moved into the home,” Walker said. “Veterans call in using words like ‘evict’ or ‘repossess’ and the Coalition steps in to prevent them from using words like homelessness, divorce, or suicide.”

    A Marine, identified as C.T. for privacy purposes, served in Iraq where he suffered a serious spinal injury during his tour. After C.T. returned home from his tour he found that Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) hindered his ability to find a reliable job and he found himself in debt and facing eviction. The Coalition to Support America’s Heroes immediately intervened and paid C.T.’s debt and is currently working to place him in a job where he feels at ease and where his PTSD won’t be a problem.

    “This was one of the most amazing surprises, the dollar amount is awesome my kids and I would like to Thank you!! But the thought of you guys not leaving me and my dependents BEHIND means more than anything,” another veteran wrote to the Coalition.

    “Every year is hard being away from my children, this act of kindness from your organization is more than thoughtful it’s priceless. Not just saying you care but showing it. My Goal is to help Veterans once I address some Mental and physical issues.
    This has relieved some pressure financially and giving some motivation. I SALUTE you guys!” J.D. continued.

    A.K, another Coalition recipient, was awarded a purple heart after being struck by a mortar while serving in the Army in Iraq while her husband and child waited for her to return home. A.K. sustained severe injuries, a traumatic brain injury, and suffers from PTSD due to her brave service in Iraq. However, sky-high inflation coupled with unexpected home repairs caused A.K. to fall behind on mortgage payments, putting her family at risk of eviction. Thanks to the Coalition’s tremendous work A.K. and her family managed to catch up on their bills and will get to spend the holiday together giving thanks.

    One veteran living in southern California expressed gratitude to the organization, “I just want you to know how happy
    this organization has made me; you have given me a sense of relief and joy during a very difficult year. I am so thankful for everything this organization has done for me and for all me fellow brothers and sisters in and out of uniform.  Thank you for thinking of me when I didn’t think anyone was.”

    With only days until Thanksgiving and Christmas on the horizon, America’s heroes deserve support and comfort, and now is the time to say “thank you” to those to have sacrificed so much.

    Follow the link HERE to contribute and give a veteran a Thanksgiving meal!