CHPP The Daily Brief: Tuesday, Aug. 8th, 2017

The Daily Brief: Tuesday, Aug. 8th, 2017 (short form)

1. North Korea now making missile-ready nuclear weapons, U.S. analysts say - Chicago Tribune

North Korea has successfully produced a miniaturized nuclear warhead that can fit inside its missiles, crossing a key threshold on the path to becoming a full-fledged nuclear power, U.S. intelligence officials have concluded in a confidential assessment.

The new analysis completed last month by the Defense Intelligence Agency comes on the heels of another intelligence assessment that sharply raises the official estimate for the total number of bombs in the communist country's atomic arsenal. The U.S. calculated last month that up to 60 nuclear weapons are now controlled by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Some independent experts believe the number of bombs is much smaller. (Read more)
- Father, we pray You would give President Trump and our military leaders great wisdom as they deal with the realities of a possible nuclear strike on the United States.

- "Rebuke our enemies, O Lord. Bring them-submissive, tax in hand. Scatter all who delight in war." (Psalm 68:30 TLB)

2. Trump: North Korea 'will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen' if more threats emerge - Fox News

President Donald Trump responded to reports of North Korea's nuclear threats on Tuesday, saying the regime "will be met with fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which the world has never seen before."

Speaking from New Jersey, Trump also said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un "has been very threatening beyond a normal state," adding that the regime "best not make any more threats to the United States."

The president's comments follow a report that North Korea has produced a compact nuclear warhead that can be placed inside one of its advanced missiles - which are already believed to be capable of reaching half of the United States. Fox News has confirmed the report, which first appeared in The Washington Post. (Read more)
- Father, this statement from President Trump sounds like a "red line". We pray the North Korean regime will back down and end their threats against the United States and her allies.

- "The godly will see these things and be glad, while the wicked are struck silent." (Psalm 107:42)

3. Jason Chaffetz: 'Deep State' Trying To Undermine Trump - Daily Caller

The Department of Justice isn't going far enough to crack down on the illegal leaks flowing out of the executive branch, former Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz said on "Fox & Friends" Tuesday morning, adding that the "deep state" is trying to keep President Trump from restructuring the federal government.

"They need to start putting people in handcuffs," Chaffetz said. "The deputy attorney general has no credibility on this, he is doing a press conference, most people don't understand there are 72 inspectors general that have 13,000 employees. There are 500 inspectors general in just the Department of Justice. Report after report after report, when I was chairing [the House Oversight Committee], we read reports making criminal referrals to the Department of Justice and they don't prosecute these people."

"We could sit here all day long, look at people in the past, federal employees, violated the law documented by the inspector general, go put them in handcuffs we'll get some credibility." (Read more)
- Father, we pray federal employees who have broken the law will be indicted, tried and imprisoned. Help us cleanse our bureaucracy of traitors, liars and thieves.

- 'So the Lord God All-Powerful, the Mighty One of Israel, says: "You, my enemies, will not cause me any more trouble. I will pay you back for what you did."' (Isaiah 1:24)

4. Federal court strikes down EPA rule key to Obama's climate agenda - Washington Examiner

A federal court struck down a key piece of the Obama administration's climate agenda on Tuesday by saying the Environmental Protection Agency does not have the authority to ban the use of certain chemicals used in air conditioners blamed for exacerbating global warming. The EPA enacted the rule in question in 2015, responding to research showing hydroflourocarbons, or HFCs, contribute to climate change.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals' 2-1 decision said EPA does not have the authority to enact a 2015 rule-making ending the use of hydrofluorocarbons commonly found in spray cans, automobile air conditioners and refrigerators. The three-judge panel said that because HFCs are not ozone-depleting substances, the EPA could not use a section of the Clean Air Act targeting those chemicals to ban HFCs. (Read more)
- Father, we pray this ruling will provide relief to companies that use HFCs in their products and lower the costs to consumers who use them.

- "The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles." (Psalm 34:17)

5. Sessions: Sanctuary city Chicago's hostility to law-enforcement protection 'astounding' - Fox News

Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired back Monday at the lawsuit filed by the city of Chicago over the Justice Department's threat to withhold federal money from so-called sanctuary cities, saying "no amount" of money will help a city that won't help its own residents.

"This administration is committed to the rule of law and to enforcing the laws established by Congress. To a degree perhaps unsurpassed by any other jurisdiction, the political leadership of Chicago has chosen deliberately and intentionally to adopt a policy that obstructs this country's lawful immigration system," Sessions said in a statement. (Read more)
- Father, we pray the people of Chicago will demand a return to the rule of law and we pray these lawsuits will be dismissed.

- "The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness." (Matthew 13:41)

6. Pope Francis attacks conservative Catholics -- and Trump? - Fox News

Under Pope Francis, the church has abandoned many of its bedrock positions on issues like divorce and homosexuality in favor of a "why not?" attitude. Francis has scolded people for being rich, sided with illegal immigrants, and suggested the church should be a refuge for the poor.

He has sidelined conservative cardinals, installed like-minded allies in key jobs, taken personal control of the Knights of Malta for defying him, and generally sent the signal that behind his amiable smile and humble talk lurks a radically liberal agenda.

The latest example of the pope's blueprint for the future is contained in an article penned by two of his closest confidantes. They believe that conservative Catholics in the United States have formed a coalition with Evangelical Protestants to push Donald Trump's agenda, which the authors call a "Manichean vision." The article, in the Jesuit publication La Civiltà Cattolica, could not have been printed without Francis's knowledge and approval.

In addition to rejecting Trump's worldview, the article's authors single out White House strategist Stephen Bannon as a "supporter of apocalyptic geopolitics." "The pope is expressing his displeasure at the election of Donald Trump as president and with the Catholics who voted for him," says Deal Hudson, former Catholic Outreach director for the Republican National Committee. "It came as a huge surprise to the establishment of the church, who were pulling for Hillary Clinton."

Now, says Hudson, the pope is wielding his power as CEO of the Church to tell American Catholics "we are bad Christians. This was his way of calling us a basket of deplorables without using that phrase."

"This pope does not like the culture war," says Robert Royal, president of the Faith and Reason Institute and a commentator on the Catholic network EWTN. "The real tragedy is they're trying to discredit some types of religious action in the public square, while they are very active in advocating for the environment, immigrants and stopping human trafficking."(Read more)
- Father, we pray for revival in the Catholic Church and for Your Spirit to touch believers, especially in the United States. We pray Pope Francis will come to understand and appreciate conservative viewpoints and support those who are advocating Godly values.

- "Anyone who is not against us is for us." (Mark 9:40)

7. Breakthrough device heals organs with a single touch - ScienceDaily

Researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and Ohio State's College of Engineering have developed a new technology, Tissue Nanotransfection (TNT), that can generate any cell type of interest for treatment within the patient's own body. This technology may be used to repair injured tissue or restore function of aging tissue, including organs, blood vessels and nerve cells.

Results of the regenerative medicine study published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

"By using our novel nanochip technology, injured or compromised organs can be replaced. We have shown that skin is a fertile land where we can grow the elements of any organ that is declining," said Dr. Chandan Sen, director of Ohio State's Center for Regenerative Medicine & Cell Based Therapies, who co-led the study with L. James Lee, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering with Ohio State's College of Engineering in collaboration with Ohio State's Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center. (Read more)
- Father, we are grateful to be able to end this Daily Brief with this good news. May these scientists be blessed for their achievement, and may all research remain within the boundaries of the honoring of life, in Your Name, amen.

- "I, Wisdom, live together with good judgment. I know where to discover knowledge and discernment." (Proverbs 8:12 NLT)