January 1, DEMS SLAM BIDEN FOR CALLING VP PENCE ‘DECENT’

Joe Biden clarified his comments about Vice President Mike Pence being a “decent guy” following criticism on Twitter because of Pence’s position on LGBTQ rights.

“I was making a point in a foreign policy context, that under normal circumstances a Vice President wouldn’t be given a silent reaction on the world stage,” he tweeted Thursday. “But there is nothing decent about being anti-LGBTQ rights, and that includes the Vice President.”

Biden, the former Vice President who is considering a presidential run in 2020, made his initial comments about Pence during a speech in Omaha. He was discussing foreign policy and reaction to Pence’s speech at the Munich Security Conference earlier this month.

Report: Army Soldiers Tried to Sell Arms to Drug Cartel

(AP) – Two U.S. Army soldiers tried to sell stolen weapons and explosives to members of a Mexican drug cartel, and more service members are involved in the conspiracy, Newsweek reports.

Former U.S. Army explosive ordnance disposal specialist Tyler J. Sumlin and Sergeant First Class Jason W. Jarvis were charged with eight felony counts in December, including transferring firearms to an out-of-state resident, conspiracy to smuggle goods from the US and transporting explosive materials without a license.

The pair started planning the sale on or before June 2018, according to the indictment.

NYPD Warns of MS-13 ‘Hits’ On Off-Duty Cops Living on Long Island

The New York Police Department is reportedly warning officers that murderous MS-13 gangbangers are “looking to ‘hit’” off-duty police living in certain Long Island communities.

According to the New York Post, the hits are meant to enhance a wannabe gangbanger’s “credibility.”

“Whenever a law enforcement officer is being threatened, especially by an organization like MS-13 which we already know is uber violent and has killed numerous people throughout the country if not throughout the world, this has to be taken serious,” former FBI agent Manny Gomez told a New York CBS affiliate.

NYT: Trump Ordered Kelly to Grant Kushner Top-Secret Clearance

President Donald Trump last May ordered John Kelly to grant son-in-law and White House senior adviser Jared Kushner a top security clearance despite concerns from senior administration officials, The New York Times reports.

Kushner’s clearance was rejected twice by White House security analysts due to concerns about potential foreign influence. Trump has publicly denied intervening in the process, but Kelly, at the time his chief of staff, in an internal memo wrote how he had been “ordered” to do so by the president.

$330 Million: Bryce Harper Signs Largest MLB Contract Ever

The Phillies and Harper, according to a source, agreed to a 13-year contract worth $330 million. The contract has a no-trade clause, but it does not have an opt-out clause. Harper, his agent told reporters, wanted to stay in one city for the rest of his career. That city will be Philadelphia.

“The sky’s the limit for him,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “There’s really no ceiling.”