The Daily Brief: Short Version - Wednesday, May 10, 2017

The Daily Brief: Wednesday, May 10, 2017

1. Trump to FBI Director: You're Fired - CNS News

The White House announced Tuesday that President Donald Trump has fired FBI Director James Comey, saying that the president "acted based on the clear recommendations of both Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions."

"The FBI is one of our Nation's most cherished and respected institutions and today will mark a new beginning for our crown jewel of law enforcement," White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said in a statement. (Read more)
- Father, we pray the new Director of the FBI will be a man or woman of integrity, who loves You and respects the law.

- For the Lord will give justice to his people and have compassion on his servants. (Psalm 135:14)

2. Trump's first slate of lower-court judges is big league - Washington Examiner

Adam Liptak reports that President Trump is announcing 10 lower-court judicial nominees (so far only District Judge Amul Thapar's elevation to the Sixth Circuit was the only nomination besides that of Justice Neil Gorsuch).

Jonathan Adler, who appeared with me Saturday on a panel at the Cato Institute's 40th anniversary celebration, is quoted as saying that they're "'incredibly strong nominees' who were within the judicial mainstream and should 'have an intellectual influence on their courts.'" As they say in Congress, I wish to associate myself with that analysis.

With this excellent slate, Trump continues fulfilling his campaign promise - perhaps his most important one, in terms of securing the Republican coalition - regarding judicial nominations. For example, the two state justices who were on the potential Supreme Court list, Joan Larsen and David Stras, are engaged jurists who will make terrific circuit judges. Kevin Newsom is a serious lawyer and public servant who will serve the nation well. Pacific Legal Foundation's Damien Schiff, with whom I've worked on many cases, is an inspired pick for the Court of Federal Claims. (Read more)
- Father, we ask for Your blessing upon the confirmation process for these men and women of integrity. We also pray they will serve our nation well in these new positions.

- Fear the Lord and judge with integrity, for the Lord our God does not tolerate perverted justice, partiality, or the taking of bribes. (2 Chronicles 19:7)

3. Pro-Life Advocates Optimistic as One of Their Own Gets Key HHS Job - The Daily Signal

President Donald Trump's appointment of a national pro-life leader to serve as the top communicator at the Department of Health and Human Services is great news for the pro-life cause, leaders at associated organizations say.

Charmaine Yoest, longtime head of the group Americans United for Life, will assume the responsibilities of assistant secretary for public affairs at the sprawling federal agency.

Yoest, 52, will be the principal public affairs adviser to HHS Secretary Tom Price, which puts her in charge of speechwriting, strategic planning, and broadcast and digital communications.

"We are going to see a radical transformation occur within HHS," Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, told The Daily Signal in an interview. (Read more)
- Father, thank You for this fantastic appointment. We pray for Charmaine Yoest, that she will be effective in this new role, bringing a much-needed new perspective to the conversation about women's health.

- For you have rescued me from death; you have kept my feet from slipping. So now I can walk in your presence, O God, in your life-giving light. (Psalm 56:13)

4. Texas Takes Aim at Sanctuary Policies, Implements Much Needed Bill to Protect Citizens - CNS News

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott acted to protect the citizens of Texas on Sunday when he signed into law SB 4, a bill to punish (and deter) local cities and counties like Austin from implementing sanctuary policies.

Abbott and the legislators who sponsored this bill are trying to stop the Lone Star State from being a sanctuary for criminal aliens. They want to make sure that criminals are removed from the state and deported from the country, rather than remaining in Texas so they can victimize even more citizens of the state. (Read more)
- Father, thank You for the bold repudiation of lawlessness by the state of Texas. We pray other states will use this legislation as a model to end lawlessness within our national borders.

- Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14)

5. Immigrant who 'killed Boston doctors' has bank-robbing rapsheet - WND

A West African immigrant who is accused of slashing the throats of two well-respected doctors in South Boston on Friday has a history of bank robberies and was just released from prison in April.

Police found Bampumim Teixeira, who is a legal permanent resident, inside a $1.9 million condo belonging to anesthesiologists Lina Bolanos, 38, and Richard Field, 49. Bolanos and Field, who were engaged to be married, were dead inside the 11th-floor luxury penthouse. Their hands were bound, their throats slashed and the walls smeared with blood and a "message of retribution."

On Monday, Jeffrey Kuhner, host of "The Kuhner Report" on WRKO AM 680, blasted the judge who allowed Teixeira to escape deportation.

"According to what law-enforcement sources are telling me, he is apparently a green-card holder," Kuhner said. "The one thing they stress to you when you have a green card is, you're a 'permanent resident,' but it's not permanent if you're not law-abiding. In other words, if you break the law, if you commit a crime, your green card should be revoked. Then obviously if your green card is revoked, then ipso facto, you should be deported. Why wasn't this guy deported?

"He committed the crime. He was convicted of it. He was sentenced to prison. He, in fact, even had probation on top of prison. So why was the green card not rescinded? Now the question may lie with the judge." (Read more)
- Father, we lift up this heartbreaking story to You. We pray You would comfort the families of Lina Bolanos and Richard Field and we pray for justice on their behalf.

- Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me. (Psalm 86:17)

6. Ex-Obama adviser roots for more ISIS slaughtering of Christians - WND

In its latest magazine, ISIS threatened more attacks on Egypt's Christians. So what was the reaction from Elibiary? He says Egypt's Copts have it coming. Elibiary was appointed by Obama to the Homeland Security Advisory Council in 2010 but has also been an official in the Texas Republican Party, having served as a delegate for Republican Sen. John McCain during his 2008 presidential race.

Elibiary was later appointed to Obama's Countering Violent Extremism Working Group. The CVE program, with initial test pilots in Minneapolis, Boston and Los Angeles, was designed as a "new approach" to fighting terrorism, focusing not on Islam as the major catalyst but rather broadening the parameters to "extremism in all its forms." It turned the focus of law enforcement away from the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Islamic groups and onto "right wing" extremists. (Read more)

> > > Please do take the time to read all of this article. Very valuable insights here!
- Father, we thank You for clarity regarding the enemies within. In Your mercy, Lord, we pray You would expose every person who is undermining our nation and remove them from places of influence and power.

- " . . . and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God. This is because they have never known the Father or me."
(John 16:2b-3)

7. FBI Study Is Telling About Policing In a Post-Ferguson America - CNS News

A frightening new FBI study offers a chilling view of police in retreat in a post-Ferguson world where politicians and media are seen as driving a destructive anti-cop narrative.

The FBI "Assailant Study" examined the forces behind the violent killings of more than 60 law enforcement officers in 2016, killings that reflected a 56 percent spike over police murders in 2015.

Some of the results were predictable: 86 percent of the 50 studied assailants had criminal histories, 18 percent had diagnosed mental health issues, 60 percent had histories of drug use, all of the killers were male, and a substantial portion of the offenders felt they were going to lose their freedom by going back to prison. Then came the real news.

More than a quarter of assailants, twenty-eight percent or (14/50), expressed a desire to kill law officers prior to carrying out their deadly attacks. Their main reason: attacking police officers was their way to "get justice" for those who they believed were unjustly killed by law enforcement. Some tipped off friends or family about their intent to kill police. And, unsurprisingly, some of the assailants said they were influenced by the poisonous Black Lives Matter movement. (Read more)
- Father, we pray for our law enforcement, that You would keep them safe and help them do their jobs effectively. We pray for a renewed respect for them as they uphold the law.

- He rules by His might forever; His eyes keep watch on the nations; Let not the rebellious exalt themselves. (Psalm 66:7)

8. Israeli Researchers Disprove Transgender Propaganda - Liberty Counsel

A recent study released from Israel's Weizmann Institute of Science refutes propaganda from LGBT activists who detach gender completely from sex and promote that men can become so-called "women" by merely "identifying" as female, and vice-versa.

Professor Shmuel Pietrokovski and Dr. Moran Gershoni, both researchers from the Weizmann Institute's Molecular Genetics Department, "looked closely at around 20,000 protein-coding genes, sorting them by sex and searching for differences in expression in each tissue. They eventually identified around 6,500 genes with activity that was biased toward one sex or the other in at least one tissue, adding to the already major biological differences between men and women." (Read more)
- Father, in the Name of Jesus, we pray You would deliver these people who are deceived by the enemy about their gender. We also pray they get the help they truly need to embrace the identity You have given them, male or female.

- In Your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; Incline Your ear to me and save me. (Psalm 71:2)

9. Iran to Launch Two New Satellites, Likely Cover for Illicit ICBM Program - Washington Free Beacon

Iran is preparing to launch two new domestic satellites into space, according to a new announcement by Iranian military leaders that is stirring discussion among U.S. national security insiders who say the move is likely cover for the test firing of advanced intercontinental ballistic missile technology that could be used as part of Iran's nuclear program.

The latest test comes as the Trump administration continues to engage in a comprehensive review of the Iran nuclear agreement that U.S. officials tell the Washington Free Beacon will result in a full-scale plan to "meet the challenges Iran poses with clarity and conviction."

Iran continues to boost its military might and move forward with the testing of controversial ballistic missile technology. The expertise needed to launch satellites into space is similar to that needed to properly launch intercontinental ballistic missiles, which could potentially reach U.S. soil. (Read more)
- Father, we pray You would end the alliance between Iran and North Korea. Send them into confusion and disarray. We also pray for the people in these nations, Lord that they would be free to know and love You.

- May God arise, may his enemies be scattered; may his foes flee before him.
(Psalm 68:1)

10. South Korea Elects Moon Jae-in, Who Backs Talks With North, as President - New York Times

In a nationally televised speech before cheering supporters, Mr. Moon declared that he would "be a president for all the people." He said he would work with political rivals to create a country where "justice rules and common sense prevails."

With 92 percent of the ballots counted early Wednesday, Mr. Moon was in first place with 40 percent of the vote, according to the National Election Commission. He was followed by Hong Joon-pyo, a conservative who had pledged a tough stance against North Korea, with 25 percent, and Ahn Cheol-soo, a centrist, with 21 percent.

Mr. Moon had a larger vote lead over Mr. Hong than the number of votes that remained uncounted, the Yonhap News Agency reported. Official results were expected later on Wednesday.

Mr. Moon's position on North Korea is a sharp departure from that of his two immediate predecessors, conservatives who tended to view anything less than strict enforcement of sanctions against the North as ideologically suspect. (Read more)
- Lord God, we have learned from inside sources that the winner of this election endorses ideas that are very close to communism. What a dangerous development for the Korean Peninsula! For those of us who have been crying out that a "One Korea" be formed, Lord God, this is not what we prayed for.

We ask that You keep Your hand of protection upon the people of South Korea, and that You prevent the two Koreas from becoming allies. May Your will be done for the people of Korea, in Your name, amen.

- "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10)