According to The Hill the Baltimore and Maryland politicians had a meeting today at the White House; described thusly:

Maryland officials meet at the White House to discuss Baltimore unrest: http://t.co/TB1jxWkB2w pic.twitter.com/ANjNsZa31y

— The Hill (@thehill) May 20, 2015

[…] Sens. Barbara Mikulski (D), Ben Cardin (D) and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D), who represents Baltimore, huddled with White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett and other top ranking officials to “discuss ways in which the administration can continue to serve as an active partner in supporting local priorities following the recent unrest in Baltimore,” the White House said in a statement. (more…)

IRAQ – The Iraqi city of Ramadi has fallen to Islamic State (IS) after government forces abandoned their positions, officials say.

The police and military made a chaotic retreat after days of intense fighting.  Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi had ordered troops to stand their ground, saying he was deploying Shia militia to the city.
Ramadi is the capital of Iraq’s largest province, Anbar, and is just 70 miles (112km) west of Baghdad.
A statement purportedly from IS said its fighters had “purged the entire city”. It said IS had taken the 8th Brigade army base, along with tanks and missile launchers left behind by troops. (more…)

Today Fox News is reporting confirmation that weapons from Benghazi were shipped to Syria. This affirms one of the essential elements outlined in our Benghazi Brief.

Documents Reveal Obama Admin Knew Terrorists Had Planned #Benghazi Attack 10 Days in Advance: http://t.co/nPGPakVBKH via @JudicialWatch

— Judicial Watch ⚖️ (@JudicialWatch) May 18, 2015

The “Benghazi Brief” remains the most controversial research report we have ever produced. The brief contains over two years of research and hundreds of very specific citations supporting it.
The Brief has also been challenged and with extensive vetting factually withstood all scrutiny. The report, while exhaustive in detail, remains the strongest summary of events surrounding the two years leading up to the Benghazi Libya attack on 9/11/12.
We have repeatedly stated The Benghazi Brief, and ALL of the cited information contained therein, is available for use by anyone who has a goal of communicating the truth surrounding the controversial events. (more…)

More of that fundamental change we were told to expect….

(Via New York Post) Saudi Arabia will join the nuclear club by buying “off the shelf” atomic weapons from Pakistan, US officials told a London newspaper.
The Saudis — who financed much of Pakistan’s nuke program — are fearful of international efforts to keep its enemy Iran from acquiring a bomb, the Sunday Times of London reports. The Saudis think the deal, backed by President Obama, will actually accelerate Iran’s nuke push.
Saudi Arabia has talked for years about acquiring a bomb from the Pakistanis. “The House of Saud has now made the strategic decision to move forward,” a former US defense official said. (more)

First, a review of the “Apology”:

It goes much deeper than just “donations to the Clinton Foundation”.  Clinton Cash author Peter Schweizer writes in a USA Today Op-Ed:

[…]  I agreed to be interviewed, expecting a robust examination of my new book, Clinton Cash, and my reporting on the Clintons’ accumulation of massive personal wealth, cronyism and the lack of transparency surrounding the Clintons’ foundation.
I expected probing questions, similar to the ones I’ve received from Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC, Chris Wallace on Fox News and Frank Sesno on CNN.
What I did not expect — what no one expected — was the sort of “hidden hand journalism” that has contributed to America’s news media’s crisis of credibility in particular, and Americans’ distrust of the news media more broadly. (more…)

South Carolina officer was standing at a gas station in Moncks Corner (just north of Charleston) talking to customer when he was ambushed by shooter and shot multiple times. 

South Carolina – Berkeley County Sheriff Lt. Will Rogers is out of surgery and in stable condition at MUSC after suffering from multiple gunshot wounds in Moncks Corner at 10:30 p.m. Thursday night.

The incident happened at the Exxon at Highway 52 and Cypress Gardens in Moncks Corner. The shooting happened in the Moncks Corner Police Department jurisdiction.
Officials say Lt. Rogers was talking to a customer at the gas station when the suspect came up and shot him several times.
Lt. Rogers was a candidate for Berkeley County Sheriff in the GOP Primary.
The suspect was driving a Black Santa Fe SUV with tag number 542-85W. The vehicle was found shortly after a BOLO on the vehicle was released. (more…)

This is too painful to watch…. and people wonder why the leaders of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Oman chose not to attend.
(Via Washington Examiner) Yesterday, two Saudi crown princes arrived to meet with President Obama at the Oval Office, after King Salman refused to meet Obama at the Gulf summit or at the White House.

White House officials should have been careful to make sure everything with the two top Saudi officials went smoothly — but instead, Obama flubbed on the deputy crown prince’s name and the name of the king who forged America’s relationship with Saudi Arabia, King Abdul Aziz ibn Saud. (more…)

Democrats, led by Senator Elizabeth Warren, handed Obama a stinging defeat Tuesday afternoon when a procedural motion to proceed with the President’s trade bill, “Fast Track”, failed to get the 60 votes necessary to pass.  Only one Democrat, Sen. Tom Carper (Del.), voted for it.

WASHINGTON DC – […]  Fast-track is a top legislative priority for the White House, but it has run into significant Senate opposition that has been led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
It faces even more opposition from Democrats in the House, and the surprise Senate failure will raise doubts about whether the legislation will make its way through Congress.
Labor unions and other left-leaning groups have declared war on the fast-track bill, which they argue would ship jobs overseas. The Senate is generally a more pro-trade body than the House, and it has been easier to move trade agreements through the upper chamber.
(more…)

….and the bartender says “Hello, Mr. President”.

President Obama makes a straw man argument, rips Fox News and jokes about how cool he is in one breath:

(more…)

Four of the six Gulf Cooperation Council leaders refuse to attend the Obama “Arab Summit”.  Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Oman know full well the summit is a propaganda event meant to deflect attention away from President Obama’s failed mid-East policies. 
Only GCC members Qatar and Kuwait will attend.  Kuwait, because there is still generational loyalty for President Bush’s success in rescuing them from the Iraqi invasion – and Qatar because they carry conflicted loyalties to both the Muslim Brotherhood and their moderate Arab neighbors. 
(Via New York Post) Ever since he decided to chase the mirage of a “Grand Bargain” with Iran, President Obama has pretended that the only opposition comes from Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu and “hardline” Republicans in the Congress.
He was to highlight that claim by hosting a summit for “key Arab allies” at Camp David this week.
Yet the exercise has instead shown the failure of Obama to sell his narrative to “key Arab allies” even before the first round of orange juice is served at Camp David.
Of the six heads of the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, only two, the emirs of Kuwait and Qatar, will attend. (more…)