Austin bomber identified as Mark Anthony Conditt, source says
Mark Anthony Conditt, of Pflugerville, Texas, was an unemployed 23-year-old white man. Conditt attended Austin Community College between 2010 and 2012, but did not graduate, according to the school. A spokeswoman for the school declined to answer questions about Conditt’s time there and whether he had any disciplinary issues, saying they were working with the Austin Police Department to offer “any information they need.”
Governor Greg Abbott said the Conditt is believed to have lived with two roommates who are not currently considered suspects. Conditt was not a military veteran. The motivation for the bombings is still unknown.
Conditt killed himself Wednesday with an explosion inside his car early Wednesday on the side of Interstate 35 in Round Rock, north of Austin, as SWAT team members approached him.
Conditt ended up killing 2 victims, Anthony House, 39, and Draylen Mason, 17, he also injured 5 others.
The 1st bombing occurred on March 2 at 6:55am. The package bomb was left on front porch and killed Anthony House. The 2nd bombing took place 10 days later on March 12 at 6:44am and was the same type of package bomb also left on front porch, killing Draylen Mason and injuring his 75 year old mother. The 3rd bomb occurred later in the day on March 12 around 11:50am, another package bomb left outside a home injuring 1 person. On March 18 at 8:30pm, a tripwire triggered an explosive near a sidewalk and injured 2 people. The 5th bomb exploded on March 20 at a FedEX center in Schertz, TX, outside of Austin and injured 1 person. Later, on March 20, an unexploded package bomb was found at a FedEx center in Austin. Authorities located the package bomb and intercepted it before it exploded.
Bombs 1-4 were not delivered through the Postal Service or any other delivery services. Bombs 5-6 were shipped.
Trump Furious Over Leak of Warning to Not Congratulate Putin
President Donald Trump was infuriated after it quickly leaked that he had been directly instructed by his national security advisers in briefing materials not to congratulate Russian President Vladimir Putin on his recent election victory during their call Tuesday morning, a source familiar with the President's thinking said.
On Tuesday night, Trump asked his allies and outside advisers who they thought had leaked the information, noting that only a small group of staffers have access to those materials and would have known what guidance was included for the Putin call. According to a source, the incident resurfaces his long-held belief there are individuals inside his administration, especially in the national security realm, who are actively working to undermine him.
White House chief of staff John Kelly also is furious that a confidential presidential briefing became public knowledge, a White House official said, and intends to address the matter as aides try to figure out who disclosed the warning.
The Washington Post first reported Tuesday that Trump congratulated Putin despite warnings from multiple national security advisers and briefing materials that said "DO NOT CONGRATULATE." The White House declined to officially comment to CNN on the matter, with an official adding that they "cannot comment on alleged classified deliberative documents allegedly provided to the President."
It is still unclear if Trump actually read the guidance that was given to him by his advisers. Multiple officials have noted that he often follows his own path during his calls with world leaders. The substance of the call was not seen as a major deal by national security staffers, but the leak certainly was.
Speaker Ryan: Mueller Won’t Get Fired
Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said he has received “assurances” that Robert Mueller won’t be fired, as questions swirl around whether President Trump will pull the plug on the special counsel. “I received assurances that his firing is not even under consideration,” Ryan told reporters during his weekly news conference on Tuesday. “We have a system based upon the rule of law in this country, we have a justice system, and no one is above that justice system.”
Ryan has insisted that Mueller should be able to complete his investigation and expressed confidence that he will be able to do so. “The special counsel should be free to follow through his investigation to its completion without interference, absolutely,” Ryan said. “I am confident that he will be able to do that.”
While the White House insists that Mueller won’t be ousted, Trump has made a series of moves in the past week that have stepped up concern in Washington that he may move to fire Mueller and end the special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible ties to the Trump campaign.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters at Tuesday’s briefing that President Trump is not considering firing special counsel Robert Mueller, in spite of his tweets over the weekend.
Several reporters asked about comments made by multiple congressmen over Trump’s weekend tweets about Mueller, to which Sanders repeated a line used by White House counsel Ty Cobb, “the White House yet again confirms that the president is not considering or discussing the firing of special counsel Robert Mueller.”
The Women Attacking Trump
Two adult-film actresses are continuing to be a thorn in President Donald Trump’s side, as a steady stream of news about the alleged affairs he had years ago with both Stormy Daniels and ex-Playboy model Karen McDougal continues to come out.
Stormy Daniels Took a Polygraph Test in 2011
Stephanie Clifford, aka Stormy Daniels, passed a 2011 polygraph test in which she said she had unprotected sex with Donald Trump.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the adult film actress took the test seven years ago when she was attempting to sell her story for $15,000 to Bauer Publishing, the company behind magazines like Life & Style and In Touch Weekly. Bauer Publishing did not run the story about Clifford and Trump at the time, but In Touch published the interview with her in January.
Clifford’s attorney Michael Avenetti paid $25,000 for the rights to a video of her taking the test, the Journal reports. On Monday, he tweeted a screenshot of her hooked up to the polygraph. Trump has denied the affair ever happened.
Daniels gave an interview to 60 Minutes, which is set to air Sunday.
Ex-Playboy Model, Karen McDougal Sues to Speak on Alleged Trump Affair
Former Playboy model, Karen McDougal, who allegedly had a 10-month affair from 2006-2007 with President Donald Trump, is suing American Media Inc., the parent company of the National Enquirer, which she says kept her original account from publication.
McDougal is seeking to void a non-disclosure agreement she says she signed shortly before the 2016 election that bars her from discussing the alleged affair. McDougal was allegedly paid $150,000 for her silence by American Media Inc.
In her lawsuit, McDougal alleges that she was misled about the deal by the publishing company when she signed it. The company, McDougal said in a statement, "lied to me, made empty promises, and repeatedly intimidated and manipulated me."
McDougal’s lawyer, Peter Stris, said, “This lawyer [Michael Cohen] brought her to American Media and together they convinced her that she was signing a publish — a modeling and publishing deal," he said.
CNN announced that McDougal would sit for an interview with Anderson Cooper on Thursday.
March for Our Lives
Organizers of a rally against mass shootings planned for March 24th in Washington are expecting up to 500,000 attendees, according to an event permit application. On Saturday, in conjunction with the Florida students’ #NeverAgain march in D.C., teen organizers will hold 700 other marches across the country, covering 387 congressional districts in all 50 states. According to the latest count, marches will be held in 819 towns and cities. 725 are in the U.S., and 94 abroad.
The solidarity marches are being organized partly by students, with speaking roles largely going to teens and survivors of gun violence. The events will include a big voter-registration push.
The press will get an enormous amount of coverage from the press. The Washington Free Beacon has done a little bit of digging and this is what they found out, “While the organization said on its website it is "for kids and by kids" and the "March For Our Lives organizers are the kids themselves," it also said the kids "have brought in support to help ensure it is a success." A coalition of liberal advocacy groups are currently involved in organizing and planning the march. In addition to support from leading gun-control groups like Everytown for Gun Safety, the Brady Campaign, and Giffords, organizers from the Women's March, Planned Parenthood, and Move On are involved with the permitting for the event as well as promoting it.”
The report went on to say, “the March for Our Lives Action Fund, as a 501(c)(4) organization, will not be required to disclose its donors, and individuals who send cash to the group can remain anonymous.”
Celebrities like Clooney, Winfrey, Spielberg said that they will be donating big money to this march, but it’s all being coordinated by MoveOn, The women’s march movement, and planned parenthood.
The reason you should care is because these organizations, now have their tentacles in almost everything that happens in this country. They have even given talking points to the kids who will be leading Saturday’s march! One of the use the phrases they urge the kids to use is “Yet another mass shooting.”
Illegal immigrants, who dodged California ICE raid after Dem mayor's tip-off, re-arrested for new crimes
Three illegal immigrants, who avoided capture after Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf gave warning to residents about ICE raid last month, have since been re-arrested for new crimes including robbery and spousal abuse, ICE officials said.
Last month ICE officials caught 232 illegal immigrants, many of them criminals, in the four-day sweep but said that hundreds more escaped because of Mayor Schaaf’s warning.
On Tuesday, officials said that at least three of those who were targeted in the raid, but were not apprehended, had since been arrested for additional crimes.
The illegal immigrants that were re-arrested:
- One was a Mexican national arrested for robbery and gun crimes, who was released back into the community for a prior offense despite an ICE detainer request in November.
- Another Mexican national was arrested for a DUI, despite having been deported three times and prior convictions for false imprisonment, DUI and battery of a spouse.
- The third was a Mexican national who was arrested for corporal injury of a spouse, despite being deported twice and criminal convictions including drug possession, hit-and-run, DUIs, possessions of narcotics equipment and a parole violation.
Californians fed up with housing costs and taxes are fleeing state in big numbers
Many Californians are leaving the state due to being fed up with the high housing costs and high taxes. Residents are fleeing to lower cost, nearby states such as Nevada, Arizona and Texas. The latest Census Bureau data, from July 2016 to July 2017, show "more people moved out of California to other states than moved in from other states. In other words, California lost people due to domestic migration."
The trend of out-migration was also noted in a separate report released earlier this year by Beacon Economics. Beacon noted that 625,000 more U.S. residents left California between 2007 and 2014 than moved into the state. From 2016-2017, California saw a net loss of just over 138,000 people, while Texas had a net increase of more than 79,000 people. Arizona gained more than 63,000 residents, and Nevada gained more than 38,000.
The search for more affordable housing is sending low and middle-income workers out of the state, while higher-wage workers continue to move in, which argues against the theory that high taxes are driving people away.
Mail Time!
I think the President should fire Mueller. Enough is enough. The real shock would be that the majority of Americans would rally around him for doing it. When the press, commentators and RINOs say "don't do it" ... my instinct is "do it". It's not like the President is making any money being a "politician".
What, again, is incorrect about the death penalty for "heavy" drug dealers? Did I miss something on my last visit to Singapore?
My wife and I went to New Orleans last week and took your advice and went to the National WW II museum and the Honey Island Swamp Tour. Both excellent and a must see.
My question: Last night you said that a nutty college professor somewhere, said that math and science as taught is biased and racist! How can that be? Both are pure subjects. Math is math and science is the search for truth and understanding. What has become of this country and when will it end? Archimedes must be spinning pun intended in his grave.
Word of the Day: Craven |
