Crosstalk: January 13, 2020

Here’s your sample of stories that ‘made the cut’ for this edition of the ‘News Round-Up’: 

–President Trump said that Iranian General Qasem Soleimani was looking to blow up our embassy in Iraq before he ordered the U.S. military to take the terrorist out.  He also declared that as president he does not need congressional approval to make split-second decisions to protect Americans.

–The House of Representatives voted in favor of a war powers resolution meant to limit President Trump’s military action toward Iran.

–The Ukrainian passenger plane that crashed shortly after taking off from Tehran’s International Airport was shot down by mistake by an Iranian anti-aircraft missile.

–Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said that ballistic missile attacks targeting U.S. military and coalition forces in Iraq was a slap in the face to the United States.

–A former NFL all-pro defensive lineman, Albert Haynesworth, issued a post on Instagram in which he showed an aerial view of the White House captioned with instructions for Iran to target it.

–Amid tensions with Iran, fraudulent text messages are circulating informing individuals that they have been drafted by the U.S. Army.

–House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced that she will take steps next week to send articles of impeachment to the Senate after delaying the process since last month in a bid to extract favorable terms for a trial.

–Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri joined with a host of fellow Republicans to introduce a resolution allowing the chamber to dismiss articles of impeachment against President Trump for lack of prosecution.

–The intelligence community’s Inspector General, who already had been rebuked for his handling of the whistle-blower complaint that triggered the impeachment of President Trump, is under investigation according to Congressman Devin Nunes.

–A Muslim teen who was accused along with his brother of starting a fire in Australia was seen laughing as he left court in Sydney on Tuesday.

–The Senate Finance Committee approved sending the U.S./Mexico/Canada Agreement (USMCA) to the full Senate.  

–The Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel released an opinion that definitively invalidates the movement to revive the 40 year expired Equal Rights Amendment.

–CNN has settled with a Kentucky teenager who sued the network for defamation over its coverage of his encounter with a native American at the Washington Memorial a year ago.

–South Dakota Secretary of State Steve Barnett announced a petition submitted for an amendment to the state constitution.  This ballot measure would legalize, regulate and tax marijuana and require the legislature to pass laws regarding hemp, including laws to ensure access to marijuana for medical use.

–Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy says in a new letter that the company ‘inadvertently discredited’ what he calls ‘outstanding organizations’ when it changed its giving strategy and pulled funding last year from the Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

–Virginia Democrat Governor Ralph Northam is asking for a 4.8 million dollar, 18 officer team to enforce his proposed plan to confiscate commonly owned firearms   categorized by lawmakers as assault weapons.

–Democrat presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren was asked during a recent campaign event if she could see the value in allowing U.S. citizens, who are licensed and have gone through a government sanctioned background check, to carry concealed weapons. She responded with an unflinching ‘No.’ 

–The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention affirmed in a 2013 report almost all major studies on defensive gun issues have concluded that Americans used firearms in self-defense between 500,000 and 3 million times every year.

–Republican legislators in at least 5 states drafted measures aimed at preventing athletes from competing in categories different than their biological sex.

–Planned Parenthood’s latest annual report reveals that it aborted 345,672 babies and received just over 616 million dollars from taxpayers during its 2018-2019 fiscal year.