The Washington Post exposes Marco Rubio’s faulty family story: Marco Rubio’s compelling family story embellishes facts, documents show During his rise to political prominence, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) frequently repeated a compelling version of his family’s history that had special resonance in South Florida. He was the son of exiles, he told audiences, Cuban Americans forced off their beloved island after “a thug,” Fidel Castro, took power. But a review of documents — including naturalization papers and other official records — reveals that Rubio’s dramatic account of his family saga embellishes the facts. The documents show that Rubio’s parents came to the United States and were admitted for permanent residence more than 21 / 2 years before Castro’s forces overthrew the Cuban government and took power on New Year’s Day 1959. It looks like Rubio embellished his family’s plight for political gain. In 2006, on the eve of his ascendancy to speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, Rubio told an audience that “in January of 1959 a thug named Fidel Castro took power in Cuba and countless Cubans were forced to flee and come here, many – most – here to America. When they arrived they were welcomed by the most compassionate people on all the Earth.” Wearing a red flower in his lapel, his voice sometimes emotional, he praised those who fled, calling them “a great generation.” But he also assured them: “Today your children and grandchildren are the secretary of commerce of the United States and multiple members of Congress, they are the CEO of Fortune 500 companies and successful entrepreneurs, they are Grammy winning artists and they are renowned journalists, they are a United States senator and soon, even speaker of the Florida House.” The speech drew heavy coverage in Florida, for it was a momentous event. Rubio was the first Cuban American to become speaker of the House in the Florida Legislature… read on And now it looks like Orly Taitz’ group of fanatics are doing us some good for a change. Miami Herald: Unable to prevent Barack Obama from becoming president, rigid followers of the Constitution have turned their attention to another young, charismatic politician many think could one day occupy the White House. The birthers are focusing on U.S. Sen Marco Rubio, the budding Republican star from Florida. “It’s nothing to do with him personally. But you can’t change the rules because you like a certain person. Then you have no rules,” said New Jersey lawyer Mario Apuzzo. Forget about the alleged Photoshopped birth certificates; the activists are not challenging whether Rubio was born in Miami. Rather, they say Rubio is ineligible under Article 2 of the Constitution which says “no person except a natural born citizen … shall be eligible to the Office of President.” The rub is that “natural born citizen” was never defined. The birthers rely on writings at the time of the formation of the republic and references in court cases since then to contend that “natural born” means a person born to U.S. citizens. Rubio was born in 1971 at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital, his office said, but his parents did not become citizens until 1975. “Marco Rubio was born a Cuban citizen via his parents,” screams a headline on a blog by birther Charles Kerchner, who obtained copies of the naturalization petitions by Rubio’s parents in May, igniting talk that is spreading across the Web. I can’t lie and say that I’m not enjoying this, but isn’t he covered under the 14th amendment? At least these people are staying consistent with their weirdness. Rubio, who said that Social Security/Medicare Make Us Lazy has been a tea party hero. Rush Limbaugh anointed Rubio as the next big deal in the GOP so I wonder if he’ll step in and target one of his big constituencies, the Birthers. Who knew that WND would serve a useful purpose after all. But there is sufficient muddiness to fuel the birthers, many of whom are still angry with the Republican establishment for not taking their case against Obama more seriously. Rubio was among them, saying he did not think it was an issue. “The other shoe has dropped,” conservative figure Alan Keyes said on a radio program last month. “Now you’ve got Republicans talking about Marco Rubio for president when it’s obviously clear that he does not qualify. Regardless of party label, they don’t care about Constitution. It’s all just empty, lying lip service.” Kerchner said he decided to check out Rubio after hearing so much buzz about him as a vice presidential candidate. He said he contacted Rubio’s office to inquiry about his citizenship status at birth and was given the brush off. So Kerchner got in touch with the National Archives in Atlanta, which had the naturalization petitions for Rubio’s father Mario and mother Oriales. The documents, independently obtained by the St. Petersburg Times on Wednesday, show they sought and were given citizenship in 1975. “Senator Rubio should stand up for the Constitution and speak out about this and say that as much as he’d like to run someday for those offices, he is not constitutionally eligible to run for president or VP,” Kerchner wrote on his blog. A piece followed in World Net Daily, a repository of right-wing thought. Kerchner said the records revealed another truth: Rubio’s parents came to the U.S. in 1956 — three years before Fidel Castro took over. He accuses Rubio of embellishing his narrative as the son of Cuban exiles, a powerful tale he has used in his rapid climb in politics. And they’re also calling him a liar about his family’s history.
Continue reading …The Washington Post exposes Marco Rubio’s faulty family story: Marco Rubio’s compelling family story embellishes facts, documents show During his rise to political prominence, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) frequently repeated a compelling version of his family’s history that had special resonance in South Florida. He was the son of exiles, he told audiences, Cuban Americans forced off their beloved island after “a thug,” Fidel Castro, took power. But a review of documents — including naturalization papers and other official records — reveals that Rubio’s dramatic account of his family saga embellishes the facts. The documents show that Rubio’s parents came to the United States and were admitted for permanent residence more than 21 / 2 years before Castro’s forces overthrew the Cuban government and took power on New Year’s Day 1959. It looks like Rubio embellished his family’s plight for political gain. In 2006, on the eve of his ascendancy to speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, Rubio told an audience that “in January of 1959 a thug named Fidel Castro took power in Cuba and countless Cubans were forced to flee and come here, many – most – here to America. When they arrived they were welcomed by the most compassionate people on all the Earth.” Wearing a red flower in his lapel, his voice sometimes emotional, he praised those who fled, calling them “a great generation.” But he also assured them: “Today your children and grandchildren are the secretary of commerce of the United States and multiple members of Congress, they are the CEO of Fortune 500 companies and successful entrepreneurs, they are Grammy winning artists and they are renowned journalists, they are a United States senator and soon, even speaker of the Florida House.” The speech drew heavy coverage in Florida, for it was a momentous event. Rubio was the first Cuban American to become speaker of the House in the Florida Legislature… read on And now it looks like Orly Taitz’ group of fanatics are doing us some good for a change. Miami Herald: Unable to prevent Barack Obama from becoming president, rigid followers of the Constitution have turned their attention to another young, charismatic politician many think could one day occupy the White House. The birthers are focusing on U.S. Sen Marco Rubio, the budding Republican star from Florida. “It’s nothing to do with him personally. But you can’t change the rules because you like a certain person. Then you have no rules,” said New Jersey lawyer Mario Apuzzo. Forget about the alleged Photoshopped birth certificates; the activists are not challenging whether Rubio was born in Miami. Rather, they say Rubio is ineligible under Article 2 of the Constitution which says “no person except a natural born citizen … shall be eligible to the Office of President.” The rub is that “natural born citizen” was never defined. The birthers rely on writings at the time of the formation of the republic and references in court cases since then to contend that “natural born” means a person born to U.S. citizens. Rubio was born in 1971 at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital, his office said, but his parents did not become citizens until 1975. “Marco Rubio was born a Cuban citizen via his parents,” screams a headline on a blog by birther Charles Kerchner, who obtained copies of the naturalization petitions by Rubio’s parents in May, igniting talk that is spreading across the Web. I can’t lie and say that I’m not enjoying this, but isn’t he covered under the 14th amendment? At least these people are staying consistent with their weirdness. Rubio, who said that Social Security/Medicare Make Us Lazy has been a tea party hero. Rush Limbaugh anointed Rubio as the next big deal in the GOP so I wonder if he’ll step in and target one of his big constituencies, the Birthers. Who knew that WND would serve a useful purpose after all. But there is sufficient muddiness to fuel the birthers, many of whom are still angry with the Republican establishment for not taking their case against Obama more seriously. Rubio was among them, saying he did not think it was an issue. “The other shoe has dropped,” conservative figure Alan Keyes said on a radio program last month. “Now you’ve got Republicans talking about Marco Rubio for president when it’s obviously clear that he does not qualify. Regardless of party label, they don’t care about Constitution. It’s all just empty, lying lip service.” Kerchner said he decided to check out Rubio after hearing so much buzz about him as a vice presidential candidate. He said he contacted Rubio’s office to inquiry about his citizenship status at birth and was given the brush off. So Kerchner got in touch with the National Archives in Atlanta, which had the naturalization petitions for Rubio’s father Mario and mother Oriales. The documents, independently obtained by the St. Petersburg Times on Wednesday, show they sought and were given citizenship in 1975. “Senator Rubio should stand up for the Constitution and speak out about this and say that as much as he’d like to run someday for those offices, he is not constitutionally eligible to run for president or VP,” Kerchner wrote on his blog. A piece followed in World Net Daily, a repository of right-wing thought. Kerchner said the records revealed another truth: Rubio’s parents came to the U.S. in 1956 — three years before Fidel Castro took over. He accuses Rubio of embellishing his narrative as the son of Cuban exiles, a powerful tale he has used in his rapid climb in politics. And they’re also calling him a liar about his family’s history.
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Article by WN.com Correspondent Dallas Darling. Just months before hundreds of thousands of Iranians toppled the U.S.-backed Shah of Iran, President Jimmy Carter was in Iran toasting and praising him. According to Carter, the Shah was a great leader and had established “an island of stability” in a “troubled” region of the world. “To you, Your Majesty,” proclaimed Carter, “the cause of human rights is one that also shared deeply by our people and by the leaders of our two nations…There is no leader with whom I have a deeper sense of personal friendship and gratitude.” While Carter continued to dine with the Shah of Iran, enjoying the most exquisite foods that were washed down with 25,000…
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International negotiators have called on ETA, the armed Basque separatist group, to renounce violence and for the Spanish and French governments to engage in talks with the group if it does so. The request, made after a conference on the conflict in the Spanish city of San Sebastien on Monday, falls short of the Spanish government’s demand that ETA be dissolved entirely. “The government reiterates that what the terrorist group ETA should do is definitively abandon violence, that is it,” said Jose Blanco, a spokesman for the government. ETA has been listed as a terrorist organisation by the European Union and the United States, and is blamed for the deaths of at least 829 people in its…
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Robert Nisbet, Europe correspondent Greece is braced for one of the biggest strikes by workers in years as demonstrators protest against austerity measures. Greek journalists protesting in Athens ahead of the two-day strike Unions representing around half of the country’s four million-strong…
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BILBAO, Spain (AP) — Spain is claiming an end to four decades of violent bombings and shootings after the Basque separatist group ETA announced it would lay down its arms and try to negotiate its demand for a separate nation. ETA has killed more 800 people in its drive for an independent state and stopped short of declaring it was defeated, but issued an historic announcement Thursday ending its armed struggle with an appearance via video of three ETA members wearing trademark Basque berets and masks with slits for their eyes. At the end of the clip, they defiantly raised their fists in the air demanding a separate Basque nation. Spain has repeatedly refused any negotiations, but Prime…
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Restaurants have plenty of highly debated policies — telling customers how they can order, who they’re allowed to bring, how they can pay and even how long they’re allowed to hang out. You can’t even loiter in a Starbucks anymore (unless you want the po-po involved). We decided to take a look at both sides of some of the most controversial restaurant policies out there — let us know where you stand on each one!
Continue reading …Restaurants have plenty of highly debated policies — telling customers how they can order, who they’re allowed to bring, how they can pay and even how long they’re allowed to hang out. You can’t even loiter in a Starbucks anymore (unless you want the po-po involved). We decided to take a look at both sides of some of the most controversial restaurant policies out there — let us know where you stand on each one!
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Longtime dictator of Libya, Muammar Gaddafi, has been killed following the capture of his hometown of Sirte. [CLICK HERE FOR LIVE UPDATES] There were confusing reports of Gaddafi’s capture and death, and questions remained over exactly how he was killed. Arab broadcasters showed graphic images of the balding, goateed Gaddafi – wounded, with a bloodied face and shirt – but alive. Later video showed fighters rolling Gaddafi’s lifeless body over on the pavement, stripped to the waist and a pool of blood under his head. While he was still alive, the fighters drove him around lying on the hood of a truck, perhaps to parade him in public. One fighter held him down, pressing on his thigh with a pair of shoes in a show of contempt. Standing upright, he is shoved along a Sirte road by fighters who chanted “God is great.” Gaddafi appears to struggle against them, stumbling and shouting as the fighters push him onto the hood of a pickup truck. “We want him alive. We want him alive,” one man shouted before Gaddafi is dragged away, some fighters pulling his hair, toward an ambulance. Most accounts agreed Gaddafi had been holed up with heavily armed supporters in the last few buildings held by regime loyalists in the Mediterranean coastal town, furiously battling revolutionary fighters. The battle for Sirte has been raging for more than a month. At one point, a convoy tried to flee and was hit by NATO airstrikes, carried out by French warplanes. France’s Defense Minister Gerard Longuet said the 80-vehicle convoy was carrying Gaddafi and was trying to escape the city. The strikes stopped the convoy but did not destroy it, and then revolutionary fighters moved in on the vehicle carrying Gaddafi. One fighter who said he was at the battle told AP Television News that the final fight took place at an opulent compound. Adel Busamir said the convoy tried to break out but after being hit, it turned back and re-entered the compound. Several hundred fighters attacked. “We found him there,” Busamir said of Gaddafi. “We saw them beating him (Gaddafi) and someone shot him with a 9mm pistol … then they took him away.” Military spokesman Col. Ahmed Bani in Tripoli told Al-Jazeera TV that a wounded Gaddafi “tried to resist (revolutionary forces) so they took him down.” Fathi Bashaga, spokesman for the Misrata military council, whose forces were involved in the battle, said fighters encircled the convoy and exchanged fire. In one vehicle, they found Gaddafi, wounded in the neck, and took him to an ambulance. “What do you want?” Gaddafi asked the approaching revolutionaries, Bashaga said, citing witnesses. Gaddafi bled to death from his wounds a half-hour later, he said. Fighters said he died in the ambulance en route to Misrata, 120 miles from Sirte. Abdel-Jalil Abdel-Aziz, a doctor who accompanied the body in the ambulance and examined it, said Gaddafi died from two bullet wounds – to the head and chest. “You can’t imagine my happiness today. I can’t describe my happiness,” he told The Associated Press. “The tyranny is gone. Now the Libyan people can rest.” In the United States, President Obama addressed the death of Gaddafi in a press conference. “The Transitional National Council informed the United States of Gaddafi’s death shortly before Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril’s announcement to his nation that the moment so many had waited for had come, a U.S. official said. The White House and State Department were expected to release official responses later Thursday,” Obama said, according to the Associated Press. “You have won your revolution,” he continued, “One of the world’s longest-serving dictators is no more.” In Tripoli, celebrations are already underway with gunfire and honking. “We’ve heard quite a lot of celebratory gunfire,” Caroline Hawley reports for the BBC. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited Libya on Tuesday to offer a new aid package. She told students during a gathering in Tripoli, “We hope [Gaddafi] can be captured or killed soon so that you don’t have to fear him any longer.” Gaddafi was ousted from power in August, and his whereabouts have been unknown for months. The Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, accused Libya’s former ruler of crimes against humanity. Reuters is also reporting that an official from the National Transitional Council, Libya’s interim government, has confirmed the death of Abu Bakr Yunis Jabr, Gaddafi’s Minister of Defense. This is a breaking news update, further information will be added as it becomes available. Below, follow live updates:
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Longtime dictator of Libya, Muammar Gaddafi, has been killed following the capture of his hometown of Sirte. [CLICK HERE FOR LIVE UPDATES] There were confusing reports of Gaddafi’s capture and death, and questions remained over exactly how he was killed. Arab broadcasters showed graphic images of the balding, goateed Gaddafi – wounded, with a bloodied face and shirt – but alive. Later video showed fighters rolling Gaddafi’s lifeless body over on the pavement, stripped to the waist and a pool of blood under his head. While he was still alive, the fighters drove him around lying on the hood of a truck, perhaps to parade him in public. One fighter held him down, pressing on his thigh with a pair of shoes in a show of contempt. Standing upright, he is shoved along a Sirte road by fighters who chanted “God is great.” Gaddafi appears to struggle against them, stumbling and shouting as the fighters push him onto the hood of a pickup truck. “We want him alive. We want him alive,” one man shouted before Gaddafi is dragged away, some fighters pulling his hair, toward an ambulance. Most accounts agreed Gaddafi had been holed up with heavily armed supporters in the last few buildings held by regime loyalists in the Mediterranean coastal town, furiously battling revolutionary fighters. The battle for Sirte has been raging for more than a month. At one point, a convoy tried to flee and was hit by NATO airstrikes, carried out by French warplanes. France’s Defense Minister Gerard Longuet said the 80-vehicle convoy was carrying Gaddafi and was trying to escape the city. The strikes stopped the convoy but did not destroy it, and then revolutionary fighters moved in on the vehicle carrying Gaddafi. One fighter who said he was at the battle told AP Television News that the final fight took place at an opulent compound. Adel Busamir said the convoy tried to break out but after being hit, it turned back and re-entered the compound. Several hundred fighters attacked. “We found him there,” Busamir said of Gaddafi. “We saw them beating him (Gaddafi) and someone shot him with a 9mm pistol … then they took him away.” Military spokesman Col. Ahmed Bani in Tripoli told Al-Jazeera TV that a wounded Gaddafi “tried to resist (revolutionary forces) so they took him down.” Fathi Bashaga, spokesman for the Misrata military council, whose forces were involved in the battle, said fighters encircled the convoy and exchanged fire. In one vehicle, they found Gaddafi, wounded in the neck, and took him to an ambulance. “What do you want?” Gaddafi asked the approaching revolutionaries, Bashaga said, citing witnesses. Gaddafi bled to death from his wounds a half-hour later, he said. Fighters said he died in the ambulance en route to Misrata, 120 miles from Sirte. Abdel-Jalil Abdel-Aziz, a doctor who accompanied the body in the ambulance and examined it, said Gaddafi died from two bullet wounds – to the head and chest. “You can’t imagine my happiness today. I can’t describe my happiness,” he told The Associated Press. “The tyranny is gone. Now the Libyan people can rest.” In the United States, President Obama addressed the death of Gaddafi in a press conference. “The Transitional National Council informed the United States of Gaddafi’s death shortly before Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril’s announcement to his nation that the moment so many had waited for had come, a U.S. official said. The White House and State Department were expected to release official responses later Thursday,” Obama said, according to the Associated Press. “You have won your revolution,” he continued, “One of the world’s longest-serving dictators is no more.” In Tripoli, celebrations are already underway with gunfire and honking. “We’ve heard quite a lot of celebratory gunfire,” Caroline Hawley reports for the BBC. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited Libya on Tuesday to offer a new aid package. She told students during a gathering in Tripoli, “We hope [Gaddafi] can be captured or killed soon so that you don’t have to fear him any longer.” Gaddafi was ousted from power in August, and his whereabouts have been unknown for months. The Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, accused Libya’s former ruler of crimes against humanity. Reuters is also reporting that an official from the National Transitional Council, Libya’s interim government, has confirmed the death of Abu Bakr Yunis Jabr, Gaddafi’s Minister of Defense. This is a breaking news update, further information will be added as it becomes available. Below, follow live updates:
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