Tag Archives: White House

U.S. House Approves Syrian Refugee Screening Bill Despite Veto Threat by Obama

Reuters reports that the U.S. House of Representatives voted on a new bill on Thursday that would suspend President Obama’s plan to admit 10,000 Syrian refugees into the United States within the next year and intensify the screening process.

The bill was quickly drafted this week after the terrible attacks in Paris by the Islamic State that led to the deaths of 129 people. The vote was approved 289 to 137 with 47 Democrats voting for the bill, according to Fox News.

As previously reported on our website, the issue of allowing Syrian refugees into our country has become a deeply controversial issue. While several government officials want to welcome refugees into our country to help them escape the evils of ISIS and civil war, other officials believe that ISIS could infiltrate the United States within the refugees. Their theory comes from the fact that one of the Paris attackers may have entered Europe with Syrian refugees.

Supporters for Obama’s plan to admit the 10,000 refugees also state that there is a “very, very small” chance of any of the refugees being a “terrorist.” Haaretz reports that the White House also believe the bill would place “unnecessary and impractical requirements” that would keep the U.S. from being able to help the refugees.

In a response, President Obama did tell Voice of America News that he would veto the bill if it passed the Senate.

“My expectation is, after the initial spasm of rhetoric, that people will settle down, take a look at the facts, and we’ll be able to proceed,” Obama said while attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Manila.

White House Prepares for Solar Flares and Other Space Weather Events

The U.S. Government has released its National Space Weather Strategy showing a multiagency plan that details how the U.S. will prepare for and deal with a massive EMP from Space Weather.  

An EMP or geomagnetic solar storm event has long been talked about in the media but steps are being taken now to show how serious this is to the government.

The six-step plan requires government agencies, schools, the media, the insurance industry, nonprofits, and more to work together.

“This is a real and present danger,” the White House’s assistant director for space weather told the Houston Post.   Back in 1859, a huge solar storm did impact Earth and caused some sparking telegraph lines. If a geomagnetic storm as strong as that one were to strike today it would likely cause $600 billion to $2.6 trillion worth of damage in the United States alone, according to a recent study.

NASA says that we had a scary near miss when we were nearly hit by two plasma clouds in 2012.  “If it had been hit, we would still be picking up the pieces,” one physicist says.

According to news reports, the White House’s new plan calls for the U.S. to get better at predicting space weather, shore up our infrastructure against EMPs and more. These plans, may truly be needed: The Post quotes NASA as stating there’s a 12% chance of a giant solar flare in the next 10 years.

In a  report released by the United Kingdom’s Department of Business Innovation and Skills said that the Earth can indeed experience a massive solar storm, with mankind having only 12 hours to prepare for such a potentially disastrous event.

To read the full plan you can go to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/final_nationalspaceweatherstrategy_20151028.pdf

Chinese President Arrives in U.S. Denies Hacking

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Seattle on Tuesday. He is in the U.S. on a week-long visit that will include meetings with U.S. business leaders, a black-tie state dinner at the White House and an address at the United Nations.

His arrival was met by questions on subjects such as economic reform to cyber attacks, human rights and commercial theft.

Xi, delivered a keynote address to some 650 business executives and other guests in Seattle and touched on a many of the issues that have caused friction to U.S.-China ties.

“China will not manipulate its currency to boost exports and will never engage in commercial theft,” he said, adding his country will not discriminate against foreign businesses, will speed its market opening and make efforts to improve human rights.

“If China and the U.S. cooperate well, they can become a bedrock of global stability…,” Xi said. “Should they enter into conflict or confrontation, it would lead to disaster for both countries and the world at large.”

In an attempt to reassure high tech businesses Xi offered, “The Chinese government will not in whatever form engage in commercial theft, and hacking against government networks. These are crimes that must be punished in accordance with the law and relevant international treaties.”

The Pentagon said on Tuesday that a Chinese aircraft performed an unsafe maneuver during an air intercept of a U.S. spy plane off China’s northeast coast last week as a reminder of the potential hot points between the two countries.
Among the few agreements expected to result from the Obama-Xi summit has been a military-to-military confidence building step aimed at reducing the risk of aerial collisions between warplanes in areas including the South China Sea through agreeing on common rules of behavior.

President Obama Wants 10,000 Syrian Refugees in U.S.

The White House has announced that President Obama is instructing his administration to clear the way for 10,000 Syrian refugees to enter the U.S. during the next fiscal year.

The plan was met with immediate criticism from both sides of the political spectrum over security concerns.  The 10,000 would mark a significant increase over the nearly 1,300 that will enter the country this fiscal year.  Less than 1,500 Syrian refugees have entered the U.S. since the start of the Syrian Civil War in 2011.

“Our enemy now is Islamic terrorism, and these people are coming from a country filled with Islamic terrorists,” said Representative Peter T. King, Republican of New York. “We don’t want another Boston Marathon bombing situation.”

State Department spokesman John Kirby admitted there was a “significant national security concern” related to the President’s demand.

“I’m not arguing that we’re going to cut corners here,” Kirby said. “But the president has laid out his decision and the target he wants to achieve for the next fiscal year with respect to Syrian refugees, and we’re going to work very hard to do that.”

White House spokesman Josh Earnest tried to lay out the case that no corners would be cut.

“Refugees go through the most robust security process of anybody who’s contemplating travel to the United States,” Earnest said. “Refugees have to be screened by the National Counter Terrorism Center, by the F.B.I. Terrorist Screening Center. They go through databases that are maintained by D.H.S., the Department of Defense and the intelligence community. There is biographical and biometric information that is collected about these individuals.”

More than 4 million Syrians have fled that nation since the beginning of their civil war.

President Obama Brings Attention To National Day of Prayer

President Obama spoke about Thursday’s National Day of Prayer, saying that when “women and men of all backgrounds and beliefs” can “practice their faiths without fear or coercion, it bolsters our religious communities and helps to lift up diverse and vibrant societies throughout our world.”

The President’s proclamation notes that when “we celebrate the religious liberty we cherish here at home, and we recommit to standing up for religious freedom around the world.”

“Millions of individuals worldwide are subjected to discrimination, abuse, and sanctioned violence simply for exercising their religion or choosing not to claim a faith. Communities are threatened with genocide and driven from their homelands because of who they are or how they pray,” continued the Obama in the emailed proclamation that was emailed to The Christian Post by the White House Press Office.

“The United States will continue to stand against these reprehensible attacks, work to end them, and protect religious freedom throughout the world. And we remember those who are prisoners of conscience — who are held unjustly because of their faiths or beliefs — and we will take every action within our power to secure their release.”

Organizers of the National Day of Prayer say there were an estimated 43,000 gatherings to mark the day and cry out for the future of the nation.

White House Will Not Support Newly Proposed Iran Amendment

The White House has stated that they may veto a proposed amendment that would require Pastor Saeed Abedini and three other Americans held captive in Iran be released as part of any Iranian nuclear deal.

“That is simply unbelievable. Refusing to discuss the Americans being held hostage by Iran at the bargaining table and rejecting any congressional attempt to make any deal with Iran contingent on the release of the Americans is unacceptable. It’s quite frankly appalling,” the American Center for Law and Justice wrote in an update on Thursday.”

Naghmeh Abedini, Saeed’s wife, continues  to advocate for her husband’s release said,

“Our government must not forget that Saeed is not being held by the reformists with whom they negotiate, but by radical hardliners who oppose what he represents – a Christian convert and a U.S. citizen,” she said.  “We cannot leave my husband’s fate in the hands of these radicals. I implore our government to remember the urgency of bringing Saeed home to our family.”

The release was a response to a statement by White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest.

“Our first priority is to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. “

“The President would certainly veto any amendment or any bill with an amendment that undermined the unanimous compromise that was reached in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee or that interfered with the ongoing negotiations,” Earnest said.

“Certainly a provision, an amendment, that made this nuclear deal contingent on Iran’s release of those three American citizens would fall, I think frankly, into both categories.”

President Discusses “Less Than Loving” Christians At Easter Prayer Breakfast

President Obama diverted from his script at the White House Easter Prayer Breakfast Tuesday morning to discuss Christians he feels are “less than loving.”

The President was encouraging Americans to love our neighbors as ourselves.

“On Easter, I do reflect on the fact that as a Christian, I am supposed to love,” the President continued. “And I have to say that sometimes when I listen to less-than-loving expressions by Christians, I get concerned. But that’s a topic for another day.”

He then laughed as he noted, “I was about to veer off, I’m pulling it back.”

The President then went on to talk about how he sees Easter.

“For me, the celebration of Easter puts our earthly concerns into perspective,” the President said. “With humility and with awe, we give thanks to the extraordinary sacrifice of Jesus Christ, our savior. We reflect on the brutal pain that He suffered, the scorn that He absorbed, the sins that He bore, this extraordinary gift of salvation that He gave us. And we try, as best we can, to comprehend the darkness that He endured so that we might receive God’s light.”

The event at the White House included guests like Rev. Al Sharpton, singer Amy Grant and Russell Moore of the Southern Baptist Convention.

Vice President Biden attended the event, quoting Pope Francis.

“As a people and as individuals, we are defined by our ability to enter into the mystery,” the Vice President said. “To live Easter is to live with the constant notion we can always do better.”

Netanyahu Turns Down Private Meeting With Senate Democrats

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu turned down an invitation to meet privately with Senate Democrats during his visit next week to Washington. 

Netanyahu said that holding the meeting would “compound the misperception of partisanship” regarding his trip.  The White House has accused Republican leaders in Congress with inviting Netanyahu in an attempt to undermine their negotiations with Iran.

Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., on Monday invited Netanyahu to meet in a closed-door session with Democrats during his visit.

“I regret that the invitation to address the special joint session of Congress has been perceived by some to be political or partisan,” Netanyahu wrote. “I can assure you that my sole intention in accepting it was to voice Israel’s grave concerns about a potential nuclear agreement with Iran that could threaten the survival of my country.”

More than a half dozen House and Senate Democrats said they will skip the joint session of Congress out of loyalty to President Obama.  Vice President Biden has also said he will not attend the joint session of Congress.

Administration Criticized For Refusing To Acknowledge Christian Martyrs

The Obama administration is coming under fire from Christian leaders after President Obama refused to acknowledge that ISIS killed 21 Coptic Christians because of their faith in Christ.

President Obama called the men “Egyptian citizens.”

“ISIS made very clear in this video that this was an execution of ‘people of the cross.’ ISIS apparently has no difficulty saying ‘Christian,’ while the White House has a very difficult time,” Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council said.

“Why not say to these Christians who are being killed for their faith that they’re welcome to come here and have refugee status here in the United States or safe haven here in the United States?” he asked.

Retired General Jack Keane agreed with Perkins and said that Americans and the world need to realize the truth of the video.

“Clearly, this is a global jihad right before our eyes,” Gen. Keane said.

The White House is hosting a summit on how to “counter violent extremism.”

Yemen’s Fall Took U.S. Intelligence By Surprise

The top counterterrorism official for the White House admitted Thursday that the overthrow of the Yemeni government by Islamic extremists had taken U.S. intelligence services by surprise.

National Counterterrorism Center Director Nick Rasmussen told the Senate Intelligence Committee the Yemeni army’s response to the advancing rebels was similar to Iraqi forces who simply laid down arms before ISIS last summer.

“As the Houthi advances toward Sanaa [Yemen’s capital] took place,” Rasmussen said, “they weren’t opposed in many places. … The situation deteriorated far more rapidly than we expected.”

The terrorists overran the government last September, deposing the U.S. backed President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

The terrorists are providing a safe haven in Yemen for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, who carried out the terrorist attacks in Paris on magazine Charlie Hebdo and a Kosher market.

The U.S., Britain and France have closed their embassies in the country and Britain & France have told their citizens to immediately leave Yemen.