The Daily Brief: Wednesday, July 19, 2017

The Daily Brief: Wednesday, July 19, 2017

1. Obama official Samantha Power agrees to testify before House intel panel - Fox News

Former Obama official Samantha Power, who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has agreed to testify before the House intelligence committee as part of its Russia probe, Fox News has learned. Power will join the roster of former Obama administration officials in testifying before the congressional panel as part of their probe into Russian meddling and potential collusion with Trump campaign officials in the 2016 presidential election.

Some lawmakers also want to hear from Obama administration officials over their potential role in "unmasking" the identities of Trump associates from intelligence reports last year. Power and former national security adviser Susan Rice are among the former officials who could face such questions. Rice initially had been expected to testify at a closed-door session Tuesday before the same House panel, but is instead expected to speak to lawmakers on the Senate Intelligence Committee later this week.

Power, though, has agreed to engage with the House committee, a spokesman for the former ambassador told Fox News. (Read more)
- Lord God, we do thank You that Samantha Power has agreed to testify before this House panel, and we ask that Susan Rice would also do so. Let the facts come forth in truth, and let justice be served, in Your name, amen.

- "For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth." (2 Cor. 13:8)

2. House Rejects Ban on Transgender Surgery for Troops - Christian Post

Leading conservative Christian activists are voicing their disapproval with the Republican-led House of Representatives after 24 GOP lawmakers voted against and helped sink an effort to bar federal tax dollars from being used to fund gender reassignment procedures for military service members.

Last Thursday, the House rejected an amendment proposed by by Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Mo., to the $696 billion 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, the annual bill that lays out military budgets and expenditures. Hartzler's amendment would have nixed the military's authority to fund hormone therapy, sex change surgeries and other treatment related to gender transition for transgender members of the military and their families. The amendment would have continued to fund mental health services related to gender dysphoria. In total, the House voted 214-209 against Hartzler's amendment, with two dozen GOP representatives and 190 Democratic lawmakers voting against the measure. Additionally, six Republicans did not vote on the amendment . . .

On the House floor Thursday, Hartzler argued that "It makes no sense to create soldiers who are unable to fight and win our nation's wars and unfair to non transitioning individuals who must leave their families and deploy in their place." Hartzler stated that service members who undergo surgical transition would be non deployable for up to 267 days and "regular hormone treatments renders individuals nondeployable into the future." (Read more)

> > > Please see also this article on this topic, written by Tony Perkins, President, Family Research Council.
- Father, we are so grieved by this decision, as it flies in the face of Scripture and also wastes our precious tax dollars on experiments in social engineering which, in the end, will weaken our military. Lord God, please restore us to sanity, and to the knowledge of Your Word, in Your name, amen.

- "Haven't you read the Scriptures?" Jesus replied. "They record that from the beginning 'God made them male and female.' (Matthew 19:4)

3. House GOP unveils budget plan that attaches major spending cuts to coming tax overhaul bill - Washington Post

House Republicans unveiled a 2018 budget plan Tuesday that would pave the way for ambitious tax reform legislation - but only alongside a package of politically sensitive spending cuts that threaten to derail the tax rewrite before it begins. GOP infighting over spending, health care and other matters continues to cast doubt on whether the budget blueprint can survive a House vote. Failing to pass a budget could complicate leaders' plans to move on to their next governing priority as hopes of a health-care overhaul appeared to collapse late Monday in the Senate.

The House Budget Committee blueprint, which is set for a Wednesday committee vote, sets out special procedures that could ultimately allow Republicans to pass legislation over the objections of Senate Democrats who can normally block bills they oppose. GOP leaders in the House, as well as top Trump administration officials, hope to use those procedures - known as reconciliation - to pass a tax overhaul later this year.

The instructions in the draft budget, however, go well beyond tax policy and set the stage for a potential $203 billion rollback of financial industry regulations, federal employee benefits, welfare spending and more. Those are policy areas where Republicans have, in many cases, already passed legislation in the House but have seen Democrats block action in the Senate. (Read more)
- Father, we pray for a workable budget plan. We pray the GOP will be united and work together successfully in drafting legislation to support President Trump's initiatives.

- "I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought." (1 Corinthians 1:10)

4. VP Mike Pence Promises That President Trump Will Move the Capital of Israel to Jerusalem - CBN News

"I Support Israel Because I am a Christian"

(Washington, DC)-[CBN News] Thousands of Christians descended on the nation's capital Monday for Christians United for Israel's 12th annual summit.

Mike Pence addressed the crowd, assuring that not only he, but President Donald Trump are proud supporters of the Jewish state. "And under President Donald Trump, if the world knows nothing else, the world will know this: America stands with Israel. Now and always," he said.

Pence also made sure to address one issue that so many Christians supported when president Trump ran his campaign-the move of the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

"I promise you that the day will come when President Donald Trump moves the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. It is not a question of if, it is only when," he said to a standing ovation. (Read more)
- Father God, we thank You that You have given us a president -- and a vice-president -- who both stand shoulder to shoulder with our ally and our friend, the nation of Israel. As Christians, we join them in praying daily for its peace. In Your name, amen.

- "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee." (Psalm 122:6)

5. Christian Grandma Florist Fined for Not Working Gay Wedding Takes 'Last Stand' at Supreme Court - Christian Post

Barronelle Stutzman, also known as the "Christian grandma florist," is now asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear her appeal to reverse a Washington court's decision earlier this year that found her guilty of discrimination for refusing to provide flowers for a gay wedding. The Associated Press reported on Sunday that lawyers for Stutzman are claiming that Washington's high court violated her First Amendment protection for artistic expression in its ruling in February.

Alliance Defending Freedom positioned in a post on Friday that Stutzman is taking her "last stand" at the Supreme Court. "For more than four years, Barronelle has endured the litigation in this case with unwavering grace, humility, and faith - even as she faces losing everything she owns," ADF wrote. "Now she will take her last stand before the U.S. Supreme Court, asking it to preserve her religious freedom and her right not to be forced to speak a message about marriage that violates her beliefs." (Read more)
- Father, we pray favor upon Barronelle Stutzman as she takes her stand before the Supreme Court. Thank You, that You go before her to prepare her way and bring answers to her prayers that are above and beyond what she can ask or think.

- "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations [n]forever and ever. Amen." (Ephesians 3: 20,21)

6. Charlie Gard's parents 'optimistic' after new brain scan - WND

The parents of 11-month-old Charlie Gard are optimistic following Charlie's first brain scan since April. LifeNews.com reported Dr. Michio Hirano and an unknown colleague from the Bambino Gesu hospital in Rome conducted a brain scan on the child Monday. The results of the scan have not been made public, but LifeNews.com reported a source close to the family said that they "remain optimistic."

Hirano and his colleague spent six hours with Charlie on Monday, familiarizing themselves with the details of his case and examining the child personally. The Daily Mail reports Hirano, a second generation neurosurgeon, is a specialist in treating Charlie's rare mutation of mitochondrial depletion syndrome. Hirano has given Charlie up to a 56 percent chance of "meaningful improvement" following his experimental therapy.

Although he does consider Charlie's condition very severe, the Daily Mail reports Hirano said he would support giving Charlie the experimental treatment, because "the alternative is that he will pass away." (Read more)
- Father, thank You that Charlie Gard received the brain scan and examination from Dr. Hirano and his colleague. Lord, You have all knowledge and wisdom. Give wisdom on how to treat this rare condition, in Jesus Name.

- "The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD." (Isaiah 11:2)

7. Cop named Mohamed shoots, kills unarmed woman who called 9-1-1 - WND

The Minneapolis cop who shot and killed a 40-year-old woman after she called 9-1-1 to report a possible crime near her home was identified Monday as the precinct's first Somali-American officer. The deceased woman, Justine Damond, is from Sydney, Australia, and was a yoga instructor. She and her fiancé lived in the 5000 block of Washburn.

The city confirmed the identity Monday of the officer who fired multiple shots at the woman through his police-car door. His name is Mohamed Noor, who joined the force in 2015 as the first Somali refugee in the 5th precinct.

KSTP, citing a source with direct knowledge of the shooting, reported that Noor was sitting in the passenger seat of the squad car at the time of the shooting and "shot across his partner" at Damond, who approached the officers' car in her pajamas and began talking to the officer in the driver's seat.

One of Damond's friends, who identified herself only by her first name, Hannah, told the Star-Tribune that there was "no way" Damond would have been armed. "She often talked about how much better it was in Australia, where people aren't allowed to have guns," Hannah told the local newspaper.

"This is a very bizarre story," Debra Anderson, chair of ACT For America's Minnesota chapter and a resident of Minneapolis. "How could a women in pajamas possibly be perceived as a threat, on the opposite side of the car, no less?" (Read more)
- Father, we pray for the family of this Australian woman and ask that they be able to forgive in spite of these circumstances. We ask that Your Spirit work in the lives of this Muslim Somali family as well. Let all truth be revealed in this case.

- "So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom."
(Psalm 90:12)

8. Canada pays ex-Gitmo detainee who killed US soldier millions, but soldier's widow may never see a dime - Fox News

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave Omar Khadr a big payout, but the terrorist's real victims may never see any of that money. Canada agreed to pay the former Guantanamo prisoner a reported $8 million in a lawsuit alleging civil rights violations. The settlement included an apology. The Canadian-born Khadr was 15 in 2002 when he tossed a grenade in a firefight that killed U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Speer, a special forces medic.

Tabitha Speer, the soldier's widow, and Layne Morris, who was blinded in the firefight, won a $134 million wrongful-death default judgment against Khadr two years ago in Utah. (Read more)
- Father this situation is horrifying. We pray that You will bring justice for Mrs. Speer and the soldier who was blinded. We also ask that You bring heart change to the PM of Canada and all who are responsible for this act.

- "The fool will be servant to the wise of heart." (Proverbs 11:29b)

9. Princeton Student Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison in Iran - The Atlantic

An Iranian court has sentenced an American graduate student to 10 years in prison for spying, the latest case of a U.S. citizen accused of espionage by the Islamic republic.

Xiyue Wang, a Chinese-born U.S. citizen, was arrested last summer while conducting research in Iran for his doctoral dissertation, Princeton University, where he was a graduate student in history, said. Fars, a semiofficial Iranian news agency, quoted Mizan Online, a news agency affiliated with Iran's judiciary, as saying Wang pursued espionage "through the cover of being a researcher." Mizan, Fars said, reported that Wang was "gathering secret and top secret [intelligence]" for the U.S. State Department, Harvard Kennedy School, and the British Institute of Persian Studies. He was accused, the Fars report said, of "infiltrating Iran's national archive and building a 4,500-page digital archive" for "the world's biggest anti-Iran spying organization." It did not elaborate. (Read more)
- Lord, we pray for this graduate student, that You would grant him the ability to feel Your Presence in the Iranian prison. We pray that our government would work hard to bring all Americans held in foreign prisons home to their families.

- "Remember the prisoners as if chained with them." (Hebrews 13:3a)

10. Mexican folk religion involving human sacrifice gaining status among criminals - Fox News

A Mexican folk religion involving human sacrifice and devoted to "Holy Death" is growing in popularity among drug traffickers and violent criminals, prompting Texas officials and the Catholic Church to warn about honoring the so-called "Saint Death." Authorities are speaking out about the religion devoted to La Santa Muerte, which translates to "Holy Death" and "Saint Death," that has gained popularity steadily since the late 1980s among Mexican-American Catholics.

"She's not a saint. There is nothing good that can come out of praying to her," Sante Fe Archbiship John Wester said in February. "We have a lot of saints who represent the teaching of Jesus Christ. This is an aberration."

Clad in a black nun's robe and holding a scythe in one hand, Santa Muerte appeals to people seeking all manner of otherworldly help, from fending off wrongdoing and carrying out vengeance to people seeking protection for their drug shipments against law enforcement. Devotees often use Catholic prayers and set up shrines in "her" honor.

The Catholic Church in Mexico and the U.S. denounces the skeleton "saint," and warns that her worship is spiritually dangerous. In February, Wester, El Paso Bishop Mark Seitz and San Angelo Bishop Michael Sis in Texas joined their counterparts in Mexico in urging Catholics to avoid honoring the folk saint and called her "antithetical" to the teachings of Jesus Christ. (Read more)

- Lord we take authority over this situation and bind up all lying spirits who counterfeit the truth of our Lord Jesus Christ. We ask that Your Holy Spirit reveal truth to these people, and show them the error of their ways in all parts of their lives. We ask that they heed the warnings of those in authority in the Catholic church, and shun this dangerous practice, in Your name, amen.

- "But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk." (Revelation 9:20a)