JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER. 1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
Pope Francis to visit Lesbos island-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 18:25-Officials from the Greek Orthodox church have said Pope Francis is to visit the Greek island of Lesbos for a “symbolic and humanitarian visit" that is to last just a few hours. The date has not been confirmed. More than 88,000 migrants arrived in Lesbos this year.
Fighting ends in mini-war on Europe’s fringe By Andrew Rettman-APR 5,16-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, Today, 18:38-Azerbaijan and Armenia on Tuesday (5 April) agreed to stop firing at each other after a four-day war that highlighted the fragility of Europe’s Caucasus region.Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said: “On 5 April at 12:00 [9AM CET], on the basis of a mutual agreement, military actions on the contact line between the armed forces of Armenia and Azerbaijan are halted."The Armenian defence ministry made a similar statement to Russia’s state-owned Tass news agency.Artak Beglaryan, a spokesman for the Armenian-backed government in Nagorno-Karabakh, told the Reuters news agency in Stepanakert, its main town, that: “There is zero fire from both sides.” But he added that “at this moment, there is no written agreement.”Nagorno-Karabakh is a mountainous region that broke away from Azerbaijan in an ugly ethnic conflict in the early 1990s.The latest flare-up in fighting began on Friday but there are different accounts of who started it.Azerbaijan said Armenian forces began firing heavy-calibre weapons across the contact line. But Armenia said Azerbaijan tried to capture territory in a tank assault with air support.The reported death toll also varied from over 100 on each side to between 15 and 30 on each side.The facts are hard to verify because there are few international staff on the ground.The OSCE, a Vienna-based intergovernmental body, is in charge of mediation via its so called Minsk Group - a club of French, Russian and US diplomats. But the group has just six unarmed monitors in the region, who tend to arrive on the scene a few days after each round of fighting ends.France, Germany, Russia, the US and the EU external action service had all appealed for calm ahead of Tuesday’s truce.EU foreign relations chief Federica Mogherini spoke by phone with Armenia and Azerbaijan's foreign ministers, urging "immediate de-escalation of violence."The OSCE also held a snap meeting in Vienna shortly after the ceasefire accord.Russia is the leading power in the region. It has a military base in Armenia and a treaty obligation to defend its internationally recognised borders. But it also sells weapons to Azerbaijan, an oil and gas-rich dictatorship.The recent fighting was the worst since full-scale hostilities ended in 1994.If the conflict reignites it could also draw in Turkey, which is Azerbaijan’s strategic ally and which hails from the same ethnic and linguistic group.Amid EU appeals to Baku and Yerevan for restraint, Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday: “We pray our Azerbaijani brothers will prevail in these clashes.”David K. Babayan, another Nagorno-Karabakh spokesman, told press at the time that Baku would not have launched its raid without Ankara’s say-so. “Azerbaijan could not have taken this decision on its own,” he said.The South Caucasus region is a gateway for oil and gas pipelines to the EU bypassing Russia.It is also host to a frozen conflict between Russia and Georgia over Georgia’s breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions.
France to put Panama on tax-havens blacklist-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 15:53-France will put Panama on its blacklist of tax havens, finance minister Michel Sapin told MPs, after the revelation of tax avoidance practices in the country. France removed Panama in 2012. It is listed by eight EU countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal and Slovenia.
Panama lawyers should testify at EU Parliament, says EPP-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 12:34-Centre-right MEPs have called for the law firm Mossack Fonseca and the Panama government to testify in parliament's special committee on tax rulings over leaked documents showing widespread use of offshore firms. The Panama Papers revealed "organised, large-scale parasitism", said Burkhard Balz of the European People's Party (EPP) group.
Iceland PM steps down in offshore affair-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 18:08-Iceland's prime minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson has resigned following the Panama Papers revelation that he had an offshore company. His Progressive Party has proposed minister of agriculture and fisheries, Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson, to become new PM. Gunnlaugsson remains the leader of the party.
Iceland president rejects PM's call for snap election-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 17:22-Iceland's president Olafur Ragnar Grimsson refused to dissolve parliament and called for an election because prime minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson "could not confirm" his coalition supported the move, Grimsson said Tuesday. Gunnlaugsson is facing street demonstrations and calls to resign after the Panama Papers revealed he had a offshore company.
Europol: Europeans spend €24bn on illicit drugs each year-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 15:49-Europeans spend €24 billion on illicit drugs each year, mainly cannabis and heroin, Europol said in a report. Drug trafficking, which has links with other forms of crime and terrorism, is "a key threat to the internal security of the EU", said EU police agency chief Rob Wainwright.
Sanders has edge over Clinton in fast-moving race in Wisconsin-Hunter Walker and Liz Goodwin-April 5, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Wisconsin has been a fast and furious fight for the Democratic presidential candidates. Both Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., set up operations in the crucial state, which votes Tuesday, only in the last few weeks.Most polls show Sanders with a single-digit lead in the race for Wisconsin’s 86 delegates. The Midwestern state, could now serve as a springboard for Sanders, building on a three-week hot streak since March 15, during which he has won five states and lost only one.But the Badger State might not be the answer to the senator’s prayers. Clinton’s current delegate lead means Sanders would need a huge win in the state — and in several more going forward — to threaten the frontrunner. But the favorable poll numbers have Sanders’ campaign aides hoping to build on the recent momentum as they seek to keep Clinton from clinching the nomination.Clinton’s campaign is keeping expectations low for the state. On Monday, her team sent a fundraising email with the subject line “We could lose Wisconsin.” Clinton’s presidential campaign manager Robby Mook sent out a memo outlining her “path forward.” The memo cited Clinton’s current delegate lead and noted Sanders cannot defeat her without winning “roughly 60 percent of the vote” in “the four remaining delegate-rich primaries — New York, Pennsylvania, California, and New Jersey.” Mook didn’t mention Wisconsin.Sanders has performed well in the Midwest, but so far those victories have not been enough for him to catch up to the lead Clinton built in the South and with minority voters. And Tuesday’s contest doesn’t look to be a blowout win for the Vermont senator.Wisconsin’s progressives have been drawn to Sanders, particularly in liberal Madison, the second largest city in the state.“He does well in Madison, he obviously does really well,” Jessie Opoien, a reporter who covers state government and politics for the Madison-based Cap Times, said. “He also does really well in the western part of the state, which is sort of that more traditional, progressive grassroots, kind of populist sensibility.”While Wisconsin’s electorate may favor Sanders, local leaders are largely backing Clinton.“I think people expect Bernie to pull it out … but there’s also a sense that, either one, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise,” Opoien said. “She’s got the establishment support. There’s no question of that.”Sanders’ recent wins made Wisconsin an unexpectedly important race, leading both campaigns to set up shop in a state they had largely overlooked. Joe Zepecki, a Democratic operative who is a veteran of many campaigns in the state, including President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election bid, said the fight for Wisconsin was “certainly not a months-long campaign.” Zepecki, who is not working for either of the current Democratic campaigns, said Clinton’s team set up shop “a couple of days” after Sanders’ did.Sanders’ Wisconsin director Robert Dempsey, who ran the show for the campaign in Minnesota as well, said the staff campaign effort in the state started about a month ago, and has focused on "very aggressive direct voter contact” through door-to-door canvassing and phone calls.“We are reaching out to Wisconsinites across the spectrum,” Dempsey said, including members of the state’s Native American population, who are “very important for our overall strategy.”He adds that although the campaign has only been in Wisconsin for a month, there was “a pretty aggressive volunteer base operation” in place for months before his arrival.Opoien agrees, noting that grassroots Sanders supporters have been mobilizing in Wisconsin for months now. She recalled seeing groups of Sanders supporters last September at “Fighting Bob Fest,” an annual progressive activist gathering in the state.“There were three or four different Bernie Sanders groups with tables there,” Opoien said of the festival.Clinton’s campaign would not comment directly on its strategy, but Clinton’s Wisconsin spokesman, Yianni Varonis, said her team has offices in seven cities across the state. Varonis said in a statement that Clinton has “a nearly insurmountable lead in pledged delegates” in the race overall but remains “committed” to Wisconsin.Clinton’s team includes operatives with deep experience in the state.The Clinton campaign in Wisconsin is run by Jake Hajdu, who was the executive director of the state’s Democratic party until last year and has extensive experience getting out the vote for Democrats in Wisconsin. Hajdu returned to Wisconsin after working for Clinton in Iowa and Maine.“Having him come back here made sense for them obviously to get stuff rolling quickly,” Opoien said, adding, “She’s got a couple of other folks working for her that have been involved in party politics here.”One possible wild-card factor is Wisconsin’s open-primary rules, which allow people from outside the party to vote in the race.“We’re an open state,” Zepecki says. “There’s no registration by party. You don’t even pick a different ballot up. Both races are listed on the same ballot.”But voters have to choose which primary they will vote in. In states that have voted so far, Sanders has done well with independents and in open primaries. Zepecki said Wisconsin may be decided by how many independents choose to vote on the Democratic side of the ballot. It could spell trouble for Sanders if the chance to vote for — or against — Donald Trump lures independents to vote in the Republican primary instead.“The only way I could envision a surprise, and that’s how I would characterize Clinton winning here, is if the independents go over to the Republican side,” Zepecki said.Another Wisconsin law that could impact the Democratic primary is a voter ID law that passed in the state in 2011 and has not yet been in place during a presidential race. Zepecki said the law could affect a key Sanders’ base — college kids.“If there is confusion and people … are disenfranchised I think it’s likely to be on college campuses,” Zepecki said. But “I think the order of magnitude is likely to be pretty small,” he added. “I think the universities have done all they can to educate folks and help them get what they need, but it has been a little confusing.”Sanders’ campaign has also tried to educate Wisconsinites on the new voter ID law, explaining to them that they must show up with a photo ID with their current address on it or some other proof of their residency. Sanders has called the law “voter suppression,” and Clinton has also denounced it.Dane County and its major city, the college town of Madison, is the main base of support for Sanders, but Dempsey said they have worked to drum up support across the state to win as many delegates as possible. Delegates will be awarded in each of Wisconsin’s eight congressional tickets rather than simply based on the total number of votes.“If we were running a governor’s race we’d look to jack up turnout in Madison and then we go home. That’s not how this works,” Dempsey said.But the delegate math could prove problematic for Sanders unless he performs far better than his promising poll numbers. Zepecki pointed to 2008 where President Barack Obama won just ten more delegates than Clinton in the state, despite beating her by a statewide margin of 18 percent. So, while Zepecki said a “five or six point victory” for Sanders is “expected,” he doubted it would change the daunting delegate math for him.“A horse-race win has always been nice in terms of momentum, but I’m not sure that the way the state sets up he’s going to be able to get a big delegate haul,” Zepecki said.
Obama trashes Trump plan to force Mexico to pay for wall-[AFP]-Jérôme Cartillier-April 5, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Washington (AFP) - President Barack Obama on Tuesday dismissed as "half-baked" a reported plan by Donald Trump to force Mexico to pay for a giant wall along the southern US border.The Republican frontrunner's promise to build the wall, in an effort to stop illegal immigration, and force Mexico to foot the estimated $8 billion bill is a cornerstone of his under-fire campaign to win the US presidency.In a memo that The Washington Post said the flamboyant New York tycoon handed over, the candidate said he would force Mexico's hand by threatening to cut off billions of dollars sent home by Mexican immigrants."This is another example of something that's not thought through and put forward for political consumption," Obama told a news conference in response."The notion that we're going to track every Western Union bit of money that's been sent to Mexico: good luck with that," he said.Remittances are one of the most important sources of income for Mexico along with oil and tourism.In 2014, more than $24 billion was wired into Mexico from overseas, including payments from immigrants not just in the United States but in other countries such as Britain and Canada, according to the World Bank.The outgoing Democrat president said ending remittances, many of which come from legal immigrants sending money to their families, would be "impractical."The policy was ill conceived, he said, warning that if the Mexican economy collapsed as a result, more immigrants would flock to the United States to look for work.People expect the US president and other elected officials to address serious problems with "policies that have been examined, analyzed, that are effective," he said. "They don't expect half-baked notions coming out of the White House."- Intimidation tactics -In the memo, Trump threatened to change a rule under the anti-terrorism Patriot Act that would cut off a portion of the funds sent to Mexico through money transfers, the Post reported.The paper said the feasibility of Trump's plan was unclear both legally and politically, and that the idea could decimate the Mexican economy and set up an unprecedented showdown between the United States and a key diplomatic ally.Trump's memo said the threat would be withdrawn if Mexico made "a one-time payment of $5-10 billion" to pay for the wall, the newspaper added."It's an easy decision for Mexico," it quoted Trump as saying in the memo, which the Post said was written on campaign stationery.Called "Compelling Mexico to Pay for the Wall," the document included other potential intimidation tactics such as increased trade tariffs, cancelling visas, and higher fees for border-crossing cards, the Post said.The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request to comment.Obama said Tuesday that foreign leaders were expressing concern about "some of the wackier suggestions" being made both by Trump and his closest Republican rival, evangelical conservative Ted Cruz."In some ways they are just as draconian when it comes to immigration," he said.The Texas senator is leading Trump in the Republican contest for Tuesday's Wisconsin primary where a win for Cruz could bolster his chances of snatching the Republican nomination from the real estate mogul.Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has made clear "there is no scenario" in which his country would pay for a wall. He has compared Trump's rhetoric to the rise of European dictators Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
Today, 18:25-Officials from the Greek Orthodox church have said Pope Francis is to visit the Greek island of Lesbos for a “symbolic and humanitarian visit" that is to last just a few hours. The date has not been confirmed. More than 88,000 migrants arrived in Lesbos this year.
Fighting ends in mini-war on Europe’s fringe By Andrew Rettman-APR 5,16-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, Today, 18:38-Azerbaijan and Armenia on Tuesday (5 April) agreed to stop firing at each other after a four-day war that highlighted the fragility of Europe’s Caucasus region.Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said: “On 5 April at 12:00 [9AM CET], on the basis of a mutual agreement, military actions on the contact line between the armed forces of Armenia and Azerbaijan are halted."The Armenian defence ministry made a similar statement to Russia’s state-owned Tass news agency.Artak Beglaryan, a spokesman for the Armenian-backed government in Nagorno-Karabakh, told the Reuters news agency in Stepanakert, its main town, that: “There is zero fire from both sides.” But he added that “at this moment, there is no written agreement.”Nagorno-Karabakh is a mountainous region that broke away from Azerbaijan in an ugly ethnic conflict in the early 1990s.The latest flare-up in fighting began on Friday but there are different accounts of who started it.Azerbaijan said Armenian forces began firing heavy-calibre weapons across the contact line. But Armenia said Azerbaijan tried to capture territory in a tank assault with air support.The reported death toll also varied from over 100 on each side to between 15 and 30 on each side.The facts are hard to verify because there are few international staff on the ground.The OSCE, a Vienna-based intergovernmental body, is in charge of mediation via its so called Minsk Group - a club of French, Russian and US diplomats. But the group has just six unarmed monitors in the region, who tend to arrive on the scene a few days after each round of fighting ends.France, Germany, Russia, the US and the EU external action service had all appealed for calm ahead of Tuesday’s truce.EU foreign relations chief Federica Mogherini spoke by phone with Armenia and Azerbaijan's foreign ministers, urging "immediate de-escalation of violence."The OSCE also held a snap meeting in Vienna shortly after the ceasefire accord.Russia is the leading power in the region. It has a military base in Armenia and a treaty obligation to defend its internationally recognised borders. But it also sells weapons to Azerbaijan, an oil and gas-rich dictatorship.The recent fighting was the worst since full-scale hostilities ended in 1994.If the conflict reignites it could also draw in Turkey, which is Azerbaijan’s strategic ally and which hails from the same ethnic and linguistic group.Amid EU appeals to Baku and Yerevan for restraint, Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday: “We pray our Azerbaijani brothers will prevail in these clashes.”David K. Babayan, another Nagorno-Karabakh spokesman, told press at the time that Baku would not have launched its raid without Ankara’s say-so. “Azerbaijan could not have taken this decision on its own,” he said.The South Caucasus region is a gateway for oil and gas pipelines to the EU bypassing Russia.It is also host to a frozen conflict between Russia and Georgia over Georgia’s breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions.
France to put Panama on tax-havens blacklist-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 15:53-France will put Panama on its blacklist of tax havens, finance minister Michel Sapin told MPs, after the revelation of tax avoidance practices in the country. France removed Panama in 2012. It is listed by eight EU countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal and Slovenia.
Panama lawyers should testify at EU Parliament, says EPP-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 12:34-Centre-right MEPs have called for the law firm Mossack Fonseca and the Panama government to testify in parliament's special committee on tax rulings over leaked documents showing widespread use of offshore firms. The Panama Papers revealed "organised, large-scale parasitism", said Burkhard Balz of the European People's Party (EPP) group.
Iceland PM steps down in offshore affair-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 18:08-Iceland's prime minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson has resigned following the Panama Papers revelation that he had an offshore company. His Progressive Party has proposed minister of agriculture and fisheries, Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson, to become new PM. Gunnlaugsson remains the leader of the party.
Iceland president rejects PM's call for snap election-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 17:22-Iceland's president Olafur Ragnar Grimsson refused to dissolve parliament and called for an election because prime minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson "could not confirm" his coalition supported the move, Grimsson said Tuesday. Gunnlaugsson is facing street demonstrations and calls to resign after the Panama Papers revealed he had a offshore company.
Europol: Europeans spend €24bn on illicit drugs each year-By EUOBSERVER-APR 5,16
Today, 15:49-Europeans spend €24 billion on illicit drugs each year, mainly cannabis and heroin, Europol said in a report. Drug trafficking, which has links with other forms of crime and terrorism, is "a key threat to the internal security of the EU", said EU police agency chief Rob Wainwright.
Sanders has edge over Clinton in fast-moving race in Wisconsin-Hunter Walker and Liz Goodwin-April 5, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Wisconsin has been a fast and furious fight for the Democratic presidential candidates. Both Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., set up operations in the crucial state, which votes Tuesday, only in the last few weeks.Most polls show Sanders with a single-digit lead in the race for Wisconsin’s 86 delegates. The Midwestern state, could now serve as a springboard for Sanders, building on a three-week hot streak since March 15, during which he has won five states and lost only one.But the Badger State might not be the answer to the senator’s prayers. Clinton’s current delegate lead means Sanders would need a huge win in the state — and in several more going forward — to threaten the frontrunner. But the favorable poll numbers have Sanders’ campaign aides hoping to build on the recent momentum as they seek to keep Clinton from clinching the nomination.Clinton’s campaign is keeping expectations low for the state. On Monday, her team sent a fundraising email with the subject line “We could lose Wisconsin.” Clinton’s presidential campaign manager Robby Mook sent out a memo outlining her “path forward.” The memo cited Clinton’s current delegate lead and noted Sanders cannot defeat her without winning “roughly 60 percent of the vote” in “the four remaining delegate-rich primaries — New York, Pennsylvania, California, and New Jersey.” Mook didn’t mention Wisconsin.Sanders has performed well in the Midwest, but so far those victories have not been enough for him to catch up to the lead Clinton built in the South and with minority voters. And Tuesday’s contest doesn’t look to be a blowout win for the Vermont senator.Wisconsin’s progressives have been drawn to Sanders, particularly in liberal Madison, the second largest city in the state.“He does well in Madison, he obviously does really well,” Jessie Opoien, a reporter who covers state government and politics for the Madison-based Cap Times, said. “He also does really well in the western part of the state, which is sort of that more traditional, progressive grassroots, kind of populist sensibility.”While Wisconsin’s electorate may favor Sanders, local leaders are largely backing Clinton.“I think people expect Bernie to pull it out … but there’s also a sense that, either one, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise,” Opoien said. “She’s got the establishment support. There’s no question of that.”Sanders’ recent wins made Wisconsin an unexpectedly important race, leading both campaigns to set up shop in a state they had largely overlooked. Joe Zepecki, a Democratic operative who is a veteran of many campaigns in the state, including President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election bid, said the fight for Wisconsin was “certainly not a months-long campaign.” Zepecki, who is not working for either of the current Democratic campaigns, said Clinton’s team set up shop “a couple of days” after Sanders’ did.Sanders’ Wisconsin director Robert Dempsey, who ran the show for the campaign in Minnesota as well, said the staff campaign effort in the state started about a month ago, and has focused on "very aggressive direct voter contact” through door-to-door canvassing and phone calls.“We are reaching out to Wisconsinites across the spectrum,” Dempsey said, including members of the state’s Native American population, who are “very important for our overall strategy.”He adds that although the campaign has only been in Wisconsin for a month, there was “a pretty aggressive volunteer base operation” in place for months before his arrival.Opoien agrees, noting that grassroots Sanders supporters have been mobilizing in Wisconsin for months now. She recalled seeing groups of Sanders supporters last September at “Fighting Bob Fest,” an annual progressive activist gathering in the state.“There were three or four different Bernie Sanders groups with tables there,” Opoien said of the festival.Clinton’s campaign would not comment directly on its strategy, but Clinton’s Wisconsin spokesman, Yianni Varonis, said her team has offices in seven cities across the state. Varonis said in a statement that Clinton has “a nearly insurmountable lead in pledged delegates” in the race overall but remains “committed” to Wisconsin.Clinton’s team includes operatives with deep experience in the state.The Clinton campaign in Wisconsin is run by Jake Hajdu, who was the executive director of the state’s Democratic party until last year and has extensive experience getting out the vote for Democrats in Wisconsin. Hajdu returned to Wisconsin after working for Clinton in Iowa and Maine.“Having him come back here made sense for them obviously to get stuff rolling quickly,” Opoien said, adding, “She’s got a couple of other folks working for her that have been involved in party politics here.”One possible wild-card factor is Wisconsin’s open-primary rules, which allow people from outside the party to vote in the race.“We’re an open state,” Zepecki says. “There’s no registration by party. You don’t even pick a different ballot up. Both races are listed on the same ballot.”But voters have to choose which primary they will vote in. In states that have voted so far, Sanders has done well with independents and in open primaries. Zepecki said Wisconsin may be decided by how many independents choose to vote on the Democratic side of the ballot. It could spell trouble for Sanders if the chance to vote for — or against — Donald Trump lures independents to vote in the Republican primary instead.“The only way I could envision a surprise, and that’s how I would characterize Clinton winning here, is if the independents go over to the Republican side,” Zepecki said.Another Wisconsin law that could impact the Democratic primary is a voter ID law that passed in the state in 2011 and has not yet been in place during a presidential race. Zepecki said the law could affect a key Sanders’ base — college kids.“If there is confusion and people … are disenfranchised I think it’s likely to be on college campuses,” Zepecki said. But “I think the order of magnitude is likely to be pretty small,” he added. “I think the universities have done all they can to educate folks and help them get what they need, but it has been a little confusing.”Sanders’ campaign has also tried to educate Wisconsinites on the new voter ID law, explaining to them that they must show up with a photo ID with their current address on it or some other proof of their residency. Sanders has called the law “voter suppression,” and Clinton has also denounced it.Dane County and its major city, the college town of Madison, is the main base of support for Sanders, but Dempsey said they have worked to drum up support across the state to win as many delegates as possible. Delegates will be awarded in each of Wisconsin’s eight congressional tickets rather than simply based on the total number of votes.“If we were running a governor’s race we’d look to jack up turnout in Madison and then we go home. That’s not how this works,” Dempsey said.But the delegate math could prove problematic for Sanders unless he performs far better than his promising poll numbers. Zepecki pointed to 2008 where President Barack Obama won just ten more delegates than Clinton in the state, despite beating her by a statewide margin of 18 percent. So, while Zepecki said a “five or six point victory” for Sanders is “expected,” he doubted it would change the daunting delegate math for him.“A horse-race win has always been nice in terms of momentum, but I’m not sure that the way the state sets up he’s going to be able to get a big delegate haul,” Zepecki said.
Obama trashes Trump plan to force Mexico to pay for wall-[AFP]-Jérôme Cartillier-April 5, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Washington (AFP) - President Barack Obama on Tuesday dismissed as "half-baked" a reported plan by Donald Trump to force Mexico to pay for a giant wall along the southern US border.The Republican frontrunner's promise to build the wall, in an effort to stop illegal immigration, and force Mexico to foot the estimated $8 billion bill is a cornerstone of his under-fire campaign to win the US presidency.In a memo that The Washington Post said the flamboyant New York tycoon handed over, the candidate said he would force Mexico's hand by threatening to cut off billions of dollars sent home by Mexican immigrants."This is another example of something that's not thought through and put forward for political consumption," Obama told a news conference in response."The notion that we're going to track every Western Union bit of money that's been sent to Mexico: good luck with that," he said.Remittances are one of the most important sources of income for Mexico along with oil and tourism.In 2014, more than $24 billion was wired into Mexico from overseas, including payments from immigrants not just in the United States but in other countries such as Britain and Canada, according to the World Bank.The outgoing Democrat president said ending remittances, many of which come from legal immigrants sending money to their families, would be "impractical."The policy was ill conceived, he said, warning that if the Mexican economy collapsed as a result, more immigrants would flock to the United States to look for work.People expect the US president and other elected officials to address serious problems with "policies that have been examined, analyzed, that are effective," he said. "They don't expect half-baked notions coming out of the White House."- Intimidation tactics -In the memo, Trump threatened to change a rule under the anti-terrorism Patriot Act that would cut off a portion of the funds sent to Mexico through money transfers, the Post reported.The paper said the feasibility of Trump's plan was unclear both legally and politically, and that the idea could decimate the Mexican economy and set up an unprecedented showdown between the United States and a key diplomatic ally.Trump's memo said the threat would be withdrawn if Mexico made "a one-time payment of $5-10 billion" to pay for the wall, the newspaper added."It's an easy decision for Mexico," it quoted Trump as saying in the memo, which the Post said was written on campaign stationery.Called "Compelling Mexico to Pay for the Wall," the document included other potential intimidation tactics such as increased trade tariffs, cancelling visas, and higher fees for border-crossing cards, the Post said.The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request to comment.Obama said Tuesday that foreign leaders were expressing concern about "some of the wackier suggestions" being made both by Trump and his closest Republican rival, evangelical conservative Ted Cruz."In some ways they are just as draconian when it comes to immigration," he said.The Texas senator is leading Trump in the Republican contest for Tuesday's Wisconsin primary where a win for Cruz could bolster his chances of snatching the Republican nomination from the real estate mogul.Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has made clear "there is no scenario" in which his country would pay for a wall. He has compared Trump's rhetoric to the rise of European dictators Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
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