JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
ISRAEL SATAN COMES AGAINST
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I (GOD) will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee,(ISRAELIS) and curse (DESTROY) him that curseth thee:(DESTROY THEM) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
ISAIAH 41:11
11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee (ISRAEL) shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing;(DESTROYED) and they that strive with thee shall perish.(ISRAEL HATERS WILL BE TOTALLY DESTROYED)
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
Jerusalem hotels see sharp decline in Passover bookings-Reservations continue to drop since all-time high in 2010; many blame the turbulent Israeli-Palestinian conflict-By Ben Sales March 17, 2016, 11:34 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
TEL AVIV (JTA) — By now, Gil Azoulay would have expected his hotels would be 80 percent booked for Passover.Instead, Azoulay — who runs a chain of boutique hotels — has roughly half his rooms still available.Azoulay opened Smart Hotels — a mini-chain of three small, mid-range hotels that focus on providing personal attention to guests — in May 2014. Two months later, war broke out in Gaza, stunting Israel’s tourism industry. The months that followed saw a string of terror attacks in Jerusalem. Then, after a lull, a wave of stabbing and shooting attacks began last September and has yet to ease.The conflict has taken a toll on Azoulay’s business, driving down Passover reservations 30 percent. Within the tourism industry, he’s not alone.“The whole city is experiencing this decline,” he said of Jerusalem. “If once it was sold out for Passover and ‘chol hamoed’ [the holiday’s intermediate days], that’s happening less now.”The Passover season is a significant income source for Jerusalem hotels. Bookings in April 2014 and 2015, the months of Passover, accounted for nearly 10 percent of the total hotel income for western Jerusalem in those years, according to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.Hotels across Jerusalem have seen a fall in Passover bookings this year, according to Arieh Sommer, director of the Israel Hotel Association. While he estimated that hotels would have about 85 percent of their rooms booked ahead of Passover in a normal year, this year he says the average could be as low as 70 percent.It’s a drop that began with the July 2014 Gaza war, known in Israel as Operation Protective Edge. Prior to the conflict, in April 2014 — the month of Passover — Jerusalem hotels took in about $40 million. April 2015 saw a 10 percent decline, to approximately $36 million.“Since Protective Edge, there have been problems in incoming tourism to Israel,” Sommer said. “We saw that after Protective Edge, tourism rose again. But because of [recent] difficulties in Jerusalem, there is a slowdown in tourists coming to Israel.”Violence isn’t the only factor hurting Jerusalem’s hotels. Apartment rentals, booked through companies like Airbnb, have cut into hotels’ market share since long before the Gaza war. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, Jerusalem hotels peaked at 10 million foreign guests in 2010. Since then, there’s been a steady decline.“There was an assumption that the city was collapsing,” said Ilanit Melchior, director of tourism for the Jerusalem Development Authority. “The bottom line is that there was a decline, but it was not dramatic. During the intifada of the 2000s, the city proved it knows how to recover fast. There’s terror all over the world, not just in Jerusalem.”And not all Jerusalem hotels are suffering. The Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem, which opened in 2014, has reported a 200 percent increase in bookings over last year. General Manager Guy Kleiman attributes the rise to the hotel’s brand name and the praise in reviews.The Inbal, another five-star hotel, expects bookings to remain relatively stable this year. Alex Herman, Inbal’s vice president of sales and marketing, told JTA that many of its Passover guests are repeat visitors to Israel who remain relatively unfazed by the unrest.“This is a population that comes,” Herman said. “A lot of people have family here. Life goes on, life is OK.”None of the hotels contacted by JTA have advised guests to avoid certain areas, nor changed their security protocols in any way. Kleiman echoed Herman, saying the Passover tourists in Jerusalem are often repeat visitors, and they know to avoid more dangerous areas.“People are mature enough to know where to go, where not to go,” Kleiman said. “People who come to Jerusalem in these times know the city.”Azoulay expects his hotels to withstand the decline, though he hopes calm will return soon and tourists will again feel comfortable walking the streets.Like other hoteliers, he’s also counting on Israelis to support the Jerusalem hotels by choosing to spend Passover in the capital. While overall hotel bookings have declined in Israel in recent years, domestic Israeli tourism is on a steady upswing. Internal Israeli hotel bookings increased 9 percent between 2014 and 2015.“We want the Israeli tourist to come, to reassure him that there’s nothing to worry about,” he said. “We need them. They should come to Jerusalem.”
LUKE 21:28-29
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.
12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
Moscow wants more trade with Israel, Russian PM tells Rivlin-Both leaders express support for efforts to establish a free-trade agreement between the two countries-By Tamar Pileggi March 17, 2016, 9:08 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Wrapping up a two-day visit to Russia, President Reuven Rivlin on Thursday met with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev for talks aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and economic relations between the two countries.In light of US and EU sanctions levied on Russia over its military intervention in Ukraine last year, Medvedev said, Moscow was “open” to increasing its imports from Israel.“I see in the near future a real opportunity to increase trade. Recently, we have encountered export restrictions to Europe, Turkey has left our market and we are open to more exports from Israel,” he said at a joint press conference, according to a statement from Rivlin’s office.Both leaders came out in support of ongoing bilateral talks seeking to establish an Israel-Russia free trade agreement, the statement said.Medvedev called for increased cooperation with Israel in the fields of agriculture, hi-tech, space exploration, energy, and medical technology.In his remarks, Rivlin said Israel’s sizable Russian minority forged an “unbreakable” bond between the two countries, and praised progress made in Jerusalem-Moscow negotiations regarding the pensions of Russians who immigrated to Israel before 1992.Rivlin noted talks between the two governments were in their final stages and was optimistic a final agreement would be in place by January 2017.Earlier on Thursday, Rivlin met with leaders of local Jewish and Christian communities, and visited the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, dedicated to the history of Soviet-era Jewry.In an address to Jewish leaders, Rivlin said it was “a huge loss” that most Jews in Russia are disconnected from their Jewish identity.“Out of concern for the future of the Jewish people, we must think how to expand the circle of Jews who identify with Judaism,” he said. “I am pleased that there are Jews who immigrate to Israel and strengthened the State of Israel, and yet I respect and admire those who choose to live here, and sustain Jewish life here.”Rivlin went on to meet with the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, to whom he expressed concern for the persecution of Christians in the Middle East.“We are proud that Israel has been a safe home for the community, and Christian pilgrims,” he told Patriarch Kirill. “We understand the importance of the rights and the freedoms of the religious communities and the Christian community of the Holy Land.”“We want to see the Christian community flourish and be part of the Israeli experience,” Rivlin added.The president arrived in Moscow Tuesday evening ahead of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the implications of Russia’s sudden military disengagement from the Syrian civil war.During a Wednesday meeting with Putin, Rivlin warned of Iranian gains in Syria and the two discussed the continued coordination between Jerusalem and Moscow regarding military activities in Israel’s war-ravaged northern neighbor.
White House says ready to help ICC genocide probe in Syria, Iraq-US declared earlier the Islamic State group’s slaughter of Christians, Yazidis and Shiites amounts to genocide-By AFP March 17, 2016, 11:38 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
WASHINGTON — The White House on Thursday said it was ready to support an investigation by the International Criminal Court into alleged genocide carried out by the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq.“The United States will cooperate with independent efforts to investigate genocide,” said spokesman Josh Earnest, adding that the administration is willing to support the ICC in gathering evidence.The United States declared earlier Thursday that the Islamic State group’s slaughter of Christians, Yazidis and Shiites in Iraq and Syria amounts to a genocide and vowed to halt it.“The ICC is typically the organization that would take a look at this, and given the judgment that Secretary (of State John) Kerry has made, the United States would be supportive of that effort, both rhetorically, but also in a tangible way as well,” said Earnest.“The United States will support efforts to collect documents, preserve and analyze evidence of atrocities and the United States will do all we can to ensure perpetrators of these atrocities are held to account and brought to justice.”The United States is not party to the ICC, but President Barack Obama’s administration has introduced a policy of working with the court.
2 dead, 70 injured after 12-vehicle accident in Hiroshima tunnel-AFP-National Mar. 17, 2016 - 03:45PM JST
HIROSHIMA —A fiery pile-up inside a highway tunnel on Thursday killed at least two people and left 70 needing treatment as dozens fled toxic smoke from burning vehicles, police and media said.The accident happened around 7:30 a.m. inside the 840-meter Hachihonmatsu tunnel on the Sanyo Expressway in Higashi-hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, according to a local police spokesman.A truck crashed into several vehicles that were stopped inside the tunnel, causing it and at least one other vehicle to catch fire, he said.Local media said a dozen vehicles were involved, with at least five cars burning.Public broadcaster NHK showed dramatic images of dark, thick smoke bellowing out of the tunnel as dozens of firefighters and police officers descended on the scene.Emergency crews were seen assisting those who fled the tunnel, with a tent erected to assist those in medical need.The fire was put out a little more than two hours after the accident, the police spokesman said.Two people, including a woman, were confirmed dead, though the gender of the other fatality could not immediately be determined, the spokesman added.Local media said about 70 other people were sent to hospitals for treatment and observation.Police did not have immediate information about the severity of their injuries, the spokesman added, but media did not report any were in critical condition.Police said traffic had been moving slowly due to a two-truck collision in the same tunnel three hours earlier.
NORTH KOREA FIRED 2 MID RANGE MISSLES INTO THE JAPAN SEA NOT JUST ONE.
N. Korea fires ballistic missile into sea: Seoul-AFP-MAR 17,16-YAHOONEWS
Seoul (AFP) - North Korea fired what appeared to be a medium-range ballistic missile into the sea Friday, just days after leader Kim Jong-Un ordered further nuclear warhead and missile tests, South Korea's defence ministry said.A ministry spokesman said the missile was launched from Sukchon in the country's southwest at 5:55 am (2055 GMT Thursday) and flew 800 kilometres (500 miles) into the East Sea, also called the Sea of Japan.He did not confirm the type of missile, but South Korea's Yonhap news agency cited military sources as saying it was a Rodong missile, a scaled-up Scud variant with a maximum range of around 1,300 kilometres.Military tensions have been soaring on the divided Korean peninsula since the North carried out its fourth nuclear test on January 6, followed a month later by a long-range rocket launch that was widely seen as a disguised ballistic missile test.The UN Security Council responded earlier this month by imposing its toughest sanctions on North Korea to date.US President Barack Obama signed an order on Wednesday implementing the UN sanctions, as well as a series of unilateral US sanctions adopted by Congress.- Daily threats -Pyongyang, meanwhile, has maintained a daily barrage of nuclear strike threats against both Seoul and Washington, ostensibly over ongoing, large-scale South Korea-US military drills that the North sees as provocative rehearsals for invasion.To register its anger at the joint exercises, the North fired two short-range missiles into the East Sea on March 10.A few days later, North Korean President Kim Jong-Un announced that a nuclear warhead explosion test and firings of "several kinds" of ballistic rockets would be carried out "in a short time".Existing UN sanctions ban North Korea from the use of any ballistic missile test, although short-range launches tend to go unpunished.A Rodong test would be more provocative, given its greater range which makes it capable of hitting most of Japan.The last Rodong test was in March 2014, when two of the missiles were fired into the East Sea.While North Korea is known to have a small stockpile of nuclear weapons, its ability to deliver them accurately to a chosen target on the tip of a ballistic missile has been a subject of heated debate.There are numerous question marks over the North's weapons delivery systems, with many experts believing it is still years from developing a working inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) that could strike the continental United States.- Re-entry test -Kim's announcement of further tests on Tuesday cams as he monitored what was described as the successful simulated test of the warhead re-entry technology required for such a long-range nuclear attack.The test was a complete success, state media said, and provided a "sure guarantee" of the warhead's ability to withstand the intense heat and vibration of re-entry -- a major step in the North's push towards a genuine ICBM nuclear strike capability.South Korea said it doubted the North had mastered re-entry technology, although it was less sceptical a few days before when Kim said it had miniaturised a nuclear warhead that could fit on a missile.Earlier this week, South Korean President Park Geun-Hye said North Korea's endless threats and provocative behaviour reflected a "sense of crisis" in Pyongyang at its increasing diplomatic and economic isolation."If North Korea continues its provocations and confrontation with the international community and does not walk the path of change, it will walk the path of self-destruction," Park said.
HARRY REID WAS ON TV YESTERDAY MORNING ABOUT THE REPUBLICANS NOT LETTING GARLAND GET A VOTE. HE THEN SAID TO THE MEDIA-I WILL FEED USE AND YOU THE MEDIA CAN DO YOUR STUFF.USE HAVE BEEN DOING A GREAT JOB SO FAR. SO HARRY REID FEEDS THE PROPAGANDA FOR THE MEDIA TO SPEW ABOUT TRUMP AND THE REPUBLICANS NOT LETTING GARLAND GET A VOTE. NOW WE KNOW WHO CONTROLS THE MEDIA AY PUPPETEER HARRY REID.
US democracy at stake amid campaign violence, major Jewish group warns-American Jewish Committee appears to take on Trump a day after the Republican front-runner warned of riots if GOP blocks him-By Rebecca Shimoni Stoil March 17, 2016, 8:53 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
WASHINGTON — Threats of political violence endanger the viability of American democracy, the American Jewish Committee warned Thursday, a day after Republican frontrunner Donald Trump predicted that there would be “riots” if his party tried to edge him out through a brokered convention.“I think you’d have riots. I think you’d have riots,” Trump said Wednesday in an interview with CNN. “I’m representing a tremendous many, many millions of people.”Although the AJC’s statement did not mention any candidates by name, its dire warnings seemed to reflect directly on Trump’s comments.“Violence and threats of violence have no place in American politics. There should be no threats to disrupt political rallies and no threats to disrupt a convention if a candidate is denied the nomination by his party’s convention,” the organization admonished. “Too many democracies have failed, to be replaced by autocratic governments, when violence became a sanctioned political tool, especially by those who feel disenfranchised and choose not to await ordinary change at the ballot box.”Warning that “nothing less than the survival of American democracy is at stake,” the AJC emphasized that “we hope that the violence seen so far is an aberration which stops now,” and called on “those who have resorted to, or sanctioned, violence” to “repudiate it now.”Trump’s comments regarding a scenario in which the Republican establishment would seek to nominate someone else as the GOP candidate for president were far from the first time on the campaign trail that the brash businessman was seen as giving a nod to violence.During a Fayetteville, NC rally, a non-violent protester was sucker-punched by a Trump supporter. As protesters were removed from the event, Trump himself told backers that “in the good old days this didn’t use to happen, because they used to treat them very rough. We’ve become very weak.”Last week, a major campaign event in Chicago teetered on the brink of becoming an all-out melee when fistfights erupted between protesters and supporters.Journalists and protesters alike have complained on a number of occasions that they have been victims of physical violence from Trump’s supporters and even senior staff members.On multiple occasions, Trump suggested that the violence was due to agents provocateur in the crowds.The AJC warned that such incidents could be a slippery slope.“We do not draw analogies to the rise of communism and fascism lightly, but both of those tyrannical movements rose to power replacing democratically elected governments, by virtue of threats of, or actual, violence against their opponents,” the organization said.The statement emphasized that the AJC is “strictly non-partisan” and “abstains from taking stands on candidates and is content to let the electoral processes play out. “But when the process is infected with threats of violence and disruption, it is not a candidate at issue; it is the viability of democracy itself.”As a non-partisan advocacy organization with a 501c3 tax status, the AJC does not – and in fact cannot – endorse or oppose candidates for elected office.“Would AJC meet with Donald Trump? Yes, we would,” the group’s head, David Harris, answered in response to a Times of Israel query. “He is a leading candidate for the highest office in the land and, as an agency deeply involved in public policy issues, we would be absolutely remiss if we didn’t avail ourselves of such an opportunity to meet.”Still, Harris continued, “while we are strictly non-partisan, it doesn’t render us mute in an election.“We speak out on policies, not parties, and on issues, not individuals. For example, we stand for a healthy, respectful American pluralism, a robust US-Israel relationship, and strong American global leadership,” he added. “If those core principles are challenged by any of the candidates, then we won’t hesitate to reaffirm our views in favor of these principles, as we have in the past.”The AJC’s statement came amid an impassioned debate in the American Jewish community around Trump’s plans to address an audience of over 18,000 next Monday at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s annual policy conference.
SUNNI ARAB-MUSLIM OBAMA HAS JUST AS MUCH SAID HE BACKS HIS PUPPET HITLER 2ND CLINTON TO CONTINUE ON HIS LEFT-WING CHRISTIAN HATING CHRISTIANPHOBE.TO DESTROY AMERICA.LETS JUST SAY HITLARY ROTTEN WILL LIVE UP TO HER MIDDLE NAME AND DESTROY AMERICA LIKE OBAMA IS. AND ALSO OBAMA THE LOVER OF THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL-WILL LOVE SUCK HOLING UP TO CLINTON.AND NOW WE KNOW WHY YESTERDAY OBAMA NOMINATED GARLAND FOR THE SUPREME COURT. HE CAN UPLIFT HITLARY AGAINST TRUMP. AND SAY THE REPUBLICANS SHOULD BE DOING A VOTE ON GARLAND FOR THE SUPREME COURT.
HOW TO BEAT TRUMP
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/03/09/us/politics/how-trump-could-be-blocked-at-a-contested-republican-convention.html?_r=0
Two Americans just begged Canada’s Trudeau to run for U.S. president-By Ishaan Tharoor March 17 at 5:23 PM Follow @ishaantharoor-washington post
During a visit to New York on Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was approached in a restaurant by two Americans, who got on their knees and begged him to run for the office of U.S. president.Suite: "Please please run for president" #JustinTrudeau #NYC pic.twitter.com/EJPjMFvfHG — Marie-Joëlle Parent (@mariejoelle) March 17, 2016-Footage of the encounter, which took place in the East Village's Mile End Deli, a Montreal-style delicatessen, was captured by Canadian journalist Marie-Joëlle Parent.Justin Trudeau dans un resto de Manhattan. Ces 2 Américains le supplient de se lancer dans la course présidentielle! pic.twitter.com/QgrrEdVaIj— Marie-Joëlle Parent (@mariejoelle) March 17, 2016-Buzzfeed Canada's Ishmael Daro has a rundown of the brief, hilarious moment:“Could you run for president here?” they asked Trudeau.The Canadian prime minister tried to explain that even if he wanted to, he couldn't run for president because he wasn’t born in the United States. But the two men wouldn’t take no for an answer.“All our guys are so bad,” they said.“They’re either boring, weird, you have to settle for them — please!”Trudeau tried to explain that he already had a pretty important job. But his fans wouldn’t relent, as this video by journalist Marie-Joelle Parent shows.Eventually Trudeau just had to walk away, leaving them still kneeling on the floor.Since coming to power late last year, Trudeau has emerged as something of a darling of North American liberals, who admire his outspoken stand on issues such as the settlement of refugees, climate change and multiculturalism. WorldViews noted earlier this month how Trudeau stood in conspicuous contrast to the Republican 2016 field, particularly front-runner Donald Trump.
For Trump, the White House is a long-held ambition-Real estate mogul has been flirting with the presidency since 1988, when he joked that Oprah Winfrey could be his running mate-By Ivan Couronne March 17, 2016, 11:30 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
WASHINGTON (AFP) — Donald Trump’s meteoric political rise may have come as a surprise to many — but for the real estate mogul, the White House is a prize he’s had his eye on for nearly 30 years.Here’s a look at the billionaire’s journey as he barrels towards seizing the Republican nomination for president in July.October 7, 1999: Bill Clinton is in the White House and Trump pursues a presidential nomination for the small Reform Party. The developer, a tabloid favorite thanks to his flamboyant personal life, had briefly flirted with candidacy in 1988, joking that TV talk show host Oprah Winfrey could be his running mate.As he launches his bid, Trump ditches the Republican Party and on his way out bashes presidential hopeful Pat Buchanan, saying the conservative ideologue has a “love affair with Adolf Hitler.”He stakes out a left-leaning position on health care, and is already employing a populist message of making America “great.”“I’m conservative, and even very conservative,” he says. “But I’m quite liberal and getting much more liberal on health care and other things.”“I believe in universal health care. I believe in whatever it takes to make people well and better. It’s an entitlement to this country if we’re going to have a great country.”Trump’s candidacy fizzles after four months and he blames others for the fiasco, including the Reform Party, which he describes as “a total mess.”April 27, 2011: US President Barack Obama calls a press conference to publish his birth certificate in an attempt to end conspiracy theories, fueled by Trump, that he was born outside the country and therefore ineligible to be president.“We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We’ve got better stuff to do. I’ve got better stuff to do,” Obama says as television networks break into regular programming to cover the statement live.Forcing Obama’s hand in the matter is a victory of sorts for Trump.The president exacts revenge a few days later at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, roasting the businessman who is a guest at the event.Trump, Obama jokes, can now “get back to focusing on the issues that matter like, ‘Did we fake the moon landing?’ ‘What really happened at Roswell?” and ‘Where are Biggie and Tupac?'”But Trump’s political influence is growing, and Republican 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney travels to Las Vegas to receive the businessman’s coveted endorsement in front of TV cameras.March 14, 2014: After carefully preparing a run for governor of New York, Trump backs out.But he writes on Twitter: “I have much bigger plans in mind — stay tuned, will happen!”June 15, 2015: Jeb Bush announces he will seek the Republican nomination to run for president.“Do we really need another Bush in the White House — we have had enough of them,” Trump declares on Twitter.Bush, the son and brother of presidents, is leading polls and probably has no idea what is coming.The next day, Trump descends the escalator of Trump Tower in New York and announces that he too is running for president.His slogan is “Make America Great Again!” and one of his first campaign promises is to build a “great, great wall” on the border with Mexico.The political establishment doesn’t take Trump’s candidacy seriously.“He adds some much-needed seriousness that has previously been lacking from the GOP field, and we look forward to hearing more about his ideas for the nation,” DNC spokeswoman Holly Shulman quips.The first poll showing Trump ahead of a large pack of Republican candidates appears in USA Today on July 14.The conventional wisdom is that it’s a fluke. Trump will not win the nomination, Karlyn Bowman, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute think tank, tells AFP.“He just has too many weaknesses,” she says at the time.By the first debate on August 6, Trump has stirred up a string of controversies that include accusing Mexico of sending rapists and criminals to the United States, and saying that Senator John McCain, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam, isn’t a war hero.Trump goes on to insinuate that a Fox News journalist was tough on him in the debate because she was having her period. And in a Rolling Stone magazine interview he mocks his Republican rival Carly Fiorina: “Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?!”Meanwhile, support for The Donald among Republican voters rises from 25 to 30 to 35 percent.On December 7, Trump stuns the political establishment by calling for the nation’s borders to be closed to Muslims.Trump provokes, contradicts himself, retweets hoaxes and never apologizes — earning him nonstop coverage on news channels, and saving him tens of millions of dollars in political advertising.February 1, 2016: Republican leaders briefly hope that Trump’s candidacy will collapse after his second-place finish in Iowa. But in the weeks to come, he wins a majority of contests and his opponents drop out one by one, including his most vocal critic, Jeb Bush.Trump’s fans appear to support their man no matter what he says.“Someday they’re going to understand,” he tells supporters Tuesday in Florida, where he missed out on a sweep of the state by just one county. “Someday when we take it all, they’ll understand.”
40 rabbis said to plan boycott of Trump’s AIPAC address-Group of religious leaders to skip Republican’s address in protest of his anti-immigrant rhetoric-By Times of Israel staff March 17, 2016, 8:50 pm
Some 40 rabbis are reportedly planning to boycott Republican front-runner Donald Trump’s speech at the pro-Israel AIPAC conference next week.The group of mainly Reform and Conservative leaders opted to skip the speech in protest of Trump’s policies and hateful rhetoric, The Washington Post reported on Thursday.Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin, who according to the report is among one of the organizers of the boycott, wrote in a blog post: “We have been urging rabbis to simply not attend the Trump speech — to let our absence be felt and noted.”“Yes, AIPAC must be hospitable to Trump, but that does not mean that AIPAC participants are hospitable to the candidate’s ideas and candidacy,” he said.At the same time, Salkin discouraged jeering, walkouts, or any other “more aggressive” forms of protest.“I hope that there will be no aggressive responses to Trump’s appearance. Such actions would violate AIPAC’s hospitality; guarantee that the protesters will be forcibly ejected from the hall, and would give Donald Trump extra ammunition. This is someone who has no qualms speaking crudely about women, Mexicans, Muslims, the handicapped, and immigrants; does anyone really want to add ‘rabbis’ to his verbal hit list?’ he wrote.The Washington Post report did not name the 40 rabbis planning to boycott the speech.The Reform Movement earlier this week blasted Trump’s for his “hate speech,” but backed AIPAC’s invitation of the Republican front-runner to speak at its annual conference.Along with Trump, Republican candidates Ted Cruz and John Kasich and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton will address the three-day event. Vice President Joe Biden is also scheduled to speak. Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders, the race’s only Jewish candidate, remains the sole contender gunning for the White House who has not confirmed a speech at the event.Earlier this week, an AIPAC staffer sent out an email missive to student activists warning them that any disruption could result in the rescinding of their conference credentials and blacklisting from all future AIPAC events. The organization later distanced itself from complaints that it was unfairly targeting students, and said that the email was sent in error and without authorization.In the email, received by a number of college students on Monday and seen by The Times of Israel, the AIPAC staffer wrote: “I am acutely aware that there may be speakers at this year’s Policy Conference whose views you do not agree with.” The email did not specify which speakers might be objectionable to attendees, but it was understood to be referring to Trump.
Republican candidate Kasich confirms AIPAC appearance-Trump, Cruz, Clinton also scheduled to speak at three-day pro-Israel conference-By JTA March 17, 2016, 10:50 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Fresh off his first victory in a primary, Republican presidential candidate John Kasich will speak at the upcoming AIPAC policy conference.The American Israel Public Affairs Committee announced Thursday that Kasich, the governor of Ohio, had confirmed his appearance at the conference, which is being held Sunday-Tuesday in Washington, DC. Kasich won his state’s primary last week.Another Republican candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, confirmed his appearance a day earlier.Other presidential candidates scheduled to speak at the conference include Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the Republican and Democratic front-runners, respectively.AIPAC invited all the presidential candidates to speak.Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders, who is Jewish, has not said he will address the conference.Other politicians scheduled to speak are Vice President Joe Biden; the speaker of the US House of Representatives, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis.; the majority leader, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and the minority whip, Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md.A Fox News debate scheduled for Sunday night was canceled after Trump announced he would skip it due to his AIPAC address, leading Kasich to back out. It would have been the 13th GOP debate of the election cycle.
Ted Cruz’s biggest challenge yet is making nice with his Senate colleagues-Dan Friedman for Yahoo News-March 17, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Republican senators’ least favorite Washington politician is not Hillary Clinton. It’s not Chuck Schumer or President Obama. It is Sen. Ted Cruz.Senate Republicans revile Cruz with special fervor because of their sense that he has used his short time in the Senate primarily to engage in political stunts and mock them as corrupt imbeciles in order to promote himself.The insults sting all the more because they have worked. With Florida Sen. Marco Rubio now out of the presidential race and Ohio Gov. John Kasich unable to capture the GOP nomination outright, Senate Republicans face what South Carolina’s Lindsey Graham has described as a choice between being shot or poisoned in a two-way fight between Cruz and Donald Trump.Eager to consolidate support, Cruz is offering his version of an olive branch, asking select Senate colleagues to unite behind him through the rest of the GOP primary fight.At the same time, Senate Republicans’ dislike of Cruz runs so deep that many plan to sit on their hands in the coming months and await a nominee. In more than 20 interviews and conversations over the past week, Republican senators and staffers described deep antipathy toward Cruz.“Now is the time for Republicans to unite for all of us who want a brighter future for our nation to come together and stand as one,” Cruz said Tuesday night, urging Rubio supporters and others to join him against Trump.Cruz recently began calling Senate Republican colleagues “with a pitch for party unity against Donald Trump,” said Josh Holmes, a former top aide to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.McConnell is not among those Cruz has called, said Holmes, who is president and a founder of Cavalry LLC, which provides political consulting to Senate campaigns and others.Graham did receive a call from Cruz after musing publicly about backing him over Trump. The Texas senator emphasized areas of agreement, according to Graham, including the suggestion that “he will be a more reliable supporter of Israel than Donald will.”Cruz’s fellow Texan, Sen. John Cornyn, the second-ranking Senate Republican, said last week that his suggestion that Cruz “engage with members of the Republican conference” drew interest from Cruz.“The relationship could use some improvement,” Cornyn added.Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe, who endorsed Rubio, said that he doubts Cruz can convince senators who haven’t backed him yet to change course before the convention.“I’m not sure what he could do that he couldn’t have been doing all along,” Inhofe said. “There are a lot of negative feelings.”In a possible signal to establishment Republicans that he wants their help, Cruz said on Monday that he “could absolutely see a place for” Rubio and Kasich in his Cabinet if elected to the White House.Cruz’s campaign is currently working to line up support from pledged delegates in anticipation of a potential convention fight in which many delegates could switch to support him after the first ballot. The odds of pulling off such an upset are already low, and Cruz could surely use help from Republican senators who might influence delegates from their states.But Cruz’s outreach has so far borne little fruit. A Cruz endorsement last Thursday by Utah Republican Mike Lee, probably the Texan’s staunchest Senate ally, was notable primarily for how late it came.“He’s a uniquely flawed messenger for a unity pitch given his proclivity to throw Republicans under the bus every time he’s had an opportunity to improve his own standing,” Holmes said. “Almost any other candidate in the field would be able to bring the party together behind their candidacy at this point. But everyone else might need to be eliminated before that happens [for Cruz].”Cruz’s role in forcing the 2013 government shutdown is only the most prominent on a long list of grievances Senate Republicans have compiled against the Texas senator since his 2012 election. His support for the Senate Conservatives Fund, a political action committee that often endorses conservative challengers bidding to oust Senate Republican incumbents, has left lasting anger.And so the idea that Cruz would be a preferable nominee to Trump is not a given for many Republicans. Alabama’s Jeff Sessions, the only senator to have endorsed Trump, is hardly the only GOP senator unsold on Cruz.“It’s a real open question whether people ultimately conclude Ted Cruz is any more palatable than Donald Trump,” said Holmes. “Conservatives certainly think Ted Cruz is ideologically more predictable than Donald Trump. But he has less experience than anyone in the field and is more personally disliked than any candidate in modern history.”Senators say Cruz should get to work if he hopes to improve his Senate relations.“Show some interest,” said Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, the longest serving Senate Republican, when asked how Cruz could win colleagues’ support. “Quit running down the Congress as though we’re a bunch of imbeciles.”Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts cited Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” as instructive. “How’s it go?” Roberts said. “Hands, touching hands. Reaching out…”“I am sure there will be people who will start moving in his direction,” said South Dakota’s John Thune, who heads the Senate Republican Conference. “But in terms of the relationship up here, he certainly can improve his outreach.”But while Cruz can try to reduce animosity among colleagues, he is unlikely to seek or receive many endorsements as he takes on Trump, senators and aides said.Cruz, who has worked in federal and state politics for most of the past 16 years, still hopes to cast himself as a more legitimate Washington outsider than Trump, who has never held any office. “Donald Trump is the system,” Cruz said Sunday. “He is Washington.”Cruz often cites his lack of support from GOP senators as evidence of his refusal to trade conservative values for Beltway popularity, and he has suggested that lawmakers who dislike him are part of the “Washington cartel” he is fighting.That rhetoric gives Cruz a pitch he can hardly swap now for the blessing of the alleged “cartel” bosses.“I am not sure that so-called establishment help is what he wants,” Thune said.That view was borne out Wednesday when Cruz seemed to reject a suggestion, first reported by CNN, that he apologize to McConnell for calling the senior Republican a liar in remarks on the Senate floor last year.Cruz told Fox News he will not “come on bended knee, with my hat in hand and suddenly say, ‘Oh, all the Washington politicians were right.’“I’m gonna continue standing up to Washington, to the bipartisan corruption that got us in this mess,” Cruz said.Ultimately, lawmakers planning to help or simply not oppose Cruz suggested their approach results mostly from a dispassionate decision to try to stop Trump and the electoral catastrophe they fear will result from his nomination. Cruz, rarely seen in the Senate these days as he campaigns, just needs to stay out of the way.Even so, Republican lawmakers and aides believe Cruz will experience no big wave of support from fellow senators unless he first captures the Republican nomination.North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr, who in January denied an Associated Press report that he told campaign donors he would vote for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders before Cruz, said there is only one way for Cruz to win Senate GOP support.“Win the nomination,” Burr said. “At the end of the day, we’re going to be supportive of our nominee.”Many GOP senators said they welcome Cruz’s seeking their support. But the likely result may be subtle.“It affects the enthusiasm with which you’ll back him, certainly, or statements you’ll make,” said Arizona Republican Jeff Flake. “It never hurts.”Hatch said he hopes to hear from Cruz soon.“We all make mistakes. We all have to change some things, You’ve got to allow room for the younger people who are new to the process to make mistakes,” Hatch said. “Ted’s learning a lot from this. It’s been good for him.”
Sanders concedes Missouri Democratic primary; Clinton wins-Associated Press By KEN THOMAS-MAR 17,16-YAHOONEWS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Bernie Sanders said Thursday he will not seek a recount of results in Missouri's Democratic presidential primary, conceding defeat to Hillary Clinton."I think it's unlikely the results will impact at all the number of delegates the candidate gets and I would prefer to save the taxpayers of Missouri some money," Sanders said in an interview with The Associated Press."Whether we win by 200 votes or lose by 500, it's not going to impact the delegate selection," the Vermont senator added. "It's going to be evenly divided."Clinton ended Tuesday night with a narrow lead of 1,531 votes, but under state law, Sanders could have sought a recount because the margin was less than one-half of one percent.Clinton will get an extra two delegates from Missouri for winning the statewide vote.The win in Missouri means Clinton won all five of Tuesday's Democratic primary contests. She also beat Sanders in Florida, Ohio, Illinois and North Carolina.The Republican race in Missouri remains too close to call between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.Even though winning Missouri gives Clinton two additional delegates, she remains tied with Sanders at 34, with three delegates remaining to be allocated in the state. Democrats award delegates based on the share of the vote, both statewide and in congressional districts. Clinton was on track to come out ahead with one additional delegate, pending final vote data in two congressional districts.Clinton now leads Sanders in pledged delegates from primaries and caucuses, 1,147 to 830.When including superdelegates, or party officials who can back any candidate, Clinton has a much bigger lead — 1,614 to 856.___Associated Press writer Hope Yen contributed to this report.___Follow Ken Thomas on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/kthomasdc
Ukraine moves a step closer to EU visa-free travel By Andrew Rettman-MAR 17,16-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, Today, 17:35-Forty five million Ukrainian nationals could, if things go well, be able to enter most EU states without a visa by the end of the year.The prospect comes after European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said in Brussels on Thursday (17 March) that the latest reforms in Ukraine “allow the commission to make proposals for visa liberalisation in April”.“We have shared interests in making it easier for our citizens to travel to each other’s countries,” he said.The commission had linked the step to new anti-corruption measures in Kiev.Ukraine president Petro Poroshenko, speaking alongside Juncker, said the visa-free news was an “important event” for his country.He said Ukraine had just passed a law forcing officials to declare their financial interests on the internet, and had also appointed members of a new anti-corruption agency.EU nationals can already travel to Ukraine without a visa after it unilaterally lifted requirements in 2010.The commission recommendation in April must be approved by EU states via a qualified majority vote in the Council. It must also win the backing of the European Parliament.The EU would then sign a bilateral treaty with Ukraine, which would also oblige Ukraine to take back people who enter the EU from its territory through irregular means.The first visa-free trips could start the day after they sign.-Turkey-The visa-free perks would extend to most EU countries, but not Ireland or the UK, which are not members of the EU’s Schengen travel area.Ukraine would also have to negotiate separate arrangements with non-EU Schengen states Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.EU sources declined to say how long the whole process might take.When the commission on 9 March proposed to lift visa requirements for Georgia it said it hoped the measure would enter into force during the summer.The EU is also preparing to fast-track Turkey’s visa-free application as part of a deal on stopping irregular migrants.But Turkish officials fear that France could create obstacles in order to appease anti-immigration feeling at home. Cyprus, for its part, insists that Turkey, which doesn't recognise it, has to first accept readmissions of migrants from Cypriot terrritory.Some countries, such as Hungary and Lithuania, have also said that Ukraine should get a visa-free regime before Turkey."Ukraine has become the 73th benchmark" of Turkey visa talks, a top EU official said on Thursday, referring to the 72 criteria that Turkey has to meet for the EU to drop visa restrictions.Crimea anniversary-Poroshenko said he gave Juncker and EU Council chief Donald Tusk a list of Russian officials who should be denied EU entry.The list of some 30 names covers people deemed guilty of abducting and jailing Ukrainian fighter pilot Nadiya Savchenko.Tusk, who shared the podium with Poroshenko and Juncker, reiterated previous EU calls on Russia to free her. But neither he nor Juncker mentioned the list.The EU has a separate blacklist of 146 Russians and Ukrainians deemed guilty of violating Ukraine’s “territorial integrity” and has also imposed economic sanctions on Russia.Tusk said these would stay in force until Russia implemented the so-called Minsk ceasefire pact in Ukraine. “Unfortunately we don’t see anything like that from the Russian side,” he said.He noted that Friday would mark the two-year anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula, adding that the EU's policy of not recognising the annexation would remain in place.Russia, prior to the Ukraine conflict, was also in talks with the EU over visa-free travel, but the talks were suspended after the conflict broke out.
EU-financed migration projects ignore human rights By Nikolaj Nielsen-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, 17. Mar, 11:48-EU-funded migration projects in North Africa and Eastern Europe have not achieved their goals and have broadly ignored human rights, the EU's financial watchdog says.In a 70-page report out on Thursday (17 March), the European Court of Auditors found that respect for human rights "remains theoretical and is only rarely translated into practice".“EU spending on migration in the neighbourhood countries will only be effective if clear objectives are set," said the report's author Daniele Lamarque in a statement.The broad criticism comes in the run-up to an EU summit with Turkey that seeks to rapidly return rejected migrants from Greek islands to Turkey.The auditors looked into 23 EU-funded projects on migration between 2007 and 2013 in Algeria, Georgia, Libya, Moldova, Morocco and Ukraine.The projects, with a total contract value of €89 million, were intended to feed into the priorities outlined in the EU's Global Approach to Migration and Mobility (GAMM).Those priorities included setting up close partnerships and "further regional integration".But the lack of clear objectives, overly complex governance, and bad coordination by EU institutions and others involved in the projects undermined the goals.The auditors noted that EU delegations heading the projects had no migration experts, and specialists hired by the European Commission did not show up to work."None were in post in any of the neighbourhood countries or in any mobility partnership partner country at the time of the audit," says the report.It says the EU commission headquarters in Brussels, at times, had also neglected to follow up on recommendations on how to best implement local projects.Few of the audited projects had any result indicators to measure achievements.Returns and readmission projects broadly failed to deliver because they were regarded by the receiving countries as part of the EU's security policy.The security aspect made it "hard for them to accept" while EU states neglected to prepare migrants for their return home, the report states.Lack of oversight and accountability also means the auditors have no idea how much of the total €1.4 billion over the period was actually spent.The auditors were only able to account for €304 million, owing in part "to weaknesses in the commission's information systems".The EU's diplomatic branch, the EEAS, along with other department heads in the commission, are responsible for finances.The EU commission, for its part, says the report pre-dates projects under the Jean-Claude Juncker mandate."Things have changed, the report is outdated and does not seem to be in synch with seeking the solutions we need in the current crisis. At the time of the report we did not face the issues we face now," it said in a statement.
Opinion-Has the EU stopped lying to itself on refugees? By Ondrej Houska-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, 17. Mar, 18:53-"Americans can always be counted on to do the right thing … after they have exhausted all other possibilities" is a famous quote, versions of which have been attributed to Winston Churchill.It might now be the turn of European Union member countries to do the right thing in the refugee and migrant crisis. Finally. Myriad mistakes from the past might, however, still lead to a sad outcome, where those who genuinely need help will not get it: real refugees.The first thing that EU countries must do is to stop lying to each other over refugees. The declared closure of the so-called Balkan route for migrants heading to northern Europe is a long overdue step. It is the sign of a profound change in consensus.The bottom line is that the whole EU now seems to be adopting an approach that the Central European countries have been pushing for since the beginning of this crisis.Those countries are still vilified in Western European media. However, many Western diplomats and policymakers now acknowledge tacitly, that they were right after all. The EU as a whole seems to be realising the need to follow some basic rules.Firstly, to say that the Balkan route should not be closed, as Germany’s Angela Merkel is advocating, means to deliberately ignore those rules.Without the closure, this crisis cannot be managed. It is symptomatic that everyone professes his or her outrage about the fate of migrants stranded at the Greek-Macedonian border, but no one seems to be dismayed by the fact that Greece still does not have enough facilities for those people.-Fooled by Greece-Last October, the Greeks promised to build 50,000 places by the end of 2015 to house migrants and refugees. Where are those places? The plight of people stranded in Greece is tragic, no doubt about it, but without the closure of the border, the Greeks will never cease their illegal practice of waving refugees through to other countries.If this continues, Schengen is dead. And we should not be fooled by Greece’s claims that it cannot handle this crisis on its own. Until now, the Greeks have, compared to the Germans, the Austrians or the Swedes, paid little for this crisis since they have simply sent all the refugees and migrants north.Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras says that his country should not become “a warehouse of souls” and he is right. To achieve this, the EU needs an agreement with Turkey at almost any cost.Turkey, of course, knows this and uses this advantageous position to the maximum. But does anyone have a better idea how to stop thousands of people, less than half of whom are Syrians, coming to Europe by boat and paying a fortune to smugglers than by doing a deal with Turkey? Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has taken a dangerous turn towards authoritarianism, no doubt about it. But if anyone wants to, while sorting out this mess, deal only with genuine democrats, good luck finding them.-Central Europe has won-To sum up, what is the new approach of EU member states? To limit, preferably to zero, the number of people who arrive from Turkey to Greece. To return almost all those who make the journey to Turkey, even in case of Syrians. To preclude any secondary movement from frontline countries further into Europe.Is all this closer to the position of Germany and the European Commission from last summer or to what the Czechs, the Hungarians or the Slovaks were saying at that time? In this respect, Central Europe has won.There is a danger, however, that one crucial aspect of the deal with Turkey might become impossible to implement (apart from visa free travel for Turks), namely a plan to resettle refugees directly from Turkey to Europe, thus destroying the business of smugglers.Central European countries, and not only them, might refuse to take part, although the Czech Republic, for example, was one of those member states that preferred resettlement from Turkey to relocation from Greece and Italy.There is no doubt that there is a lot of xenophobia in Central Europe and that politicians like Hungarian leader Viktor Orban, while being right in many aspects, are dangerous populists playing on fear.But one can hardly deny the fact that the original foolish approach to the crisis, pushed for by Germany and the European Commission, has set EU countries against one another and has contributed to the breakdown in mutual trust.Genuine refugees might be the victims of avoidable mistakes that the EU committed at the beginning of the crisis.Ondrej Houska ( @OndrejHouska on Twitter) is Brussels correspondent for Czech public radio.
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I (GOD) will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee,(ISRAELIS) and curse (DESTROY) him that curseth thee:(DESTROY THEM) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
ISAIAH 41:11
11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee (ISRAEL) shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing;(DESTROYED) and they that strive with thee shall perish.(ISRAEL HATERS WILL BE TOTALLY DESTROYED)
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
Jerusalem hotels see sharp decline in Passover bookings-Reservations continue to drop since all-time high in 2010; many blame the turbulent Israeli-Palestinian conflict-By Ben Sales March 17, 2016, 11:34 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
TEL AVIV (JTA) — By now, Gil Azoulay would have expected his hotels would be 80 percent booked for Passover.Instead, Azoulay — who runs a chain of boutique hotels — has roughly half his rooms still available.Azoulay opened Smart Hotels — a mini-chain of three small, mid-range hotels that focus on providing personal attention to guests — in May 2014. Two months later, war broke out in Gaza, stunting Israel’s tourism industry. The months that followed saw a string of terror attacks in Jerusalem. Then, after a lull, a wave of stabbing and shooting attacks began last September and has yet to ease.The conflict has taken a toll on Azoulay’s business, driving down Passover reservations 30 percent. Within the tourism industry, he’s not alone.“The whole city is experiencing this decline,” he said of Jerusalem. “If once it was sold out for Passover and ‘chol hamoed’ [the holiday’s intermediate days], that’s happening less now.”The Passover season is a significant income source for Jerusalem hotels. Bookings in April 2014 and 2015, the months of Passover, accounted for nearly 10 percent of the total hotel income for western Jerusalem in those years, according to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.Hotels across Jerusalem have seen a fall in Passover bookings this year, according to Arieh Sommer, director of the Israel Hotel Association. While he estimated that hotels would have about 85 percent of their rooms booked ahead of Passover in a normal year, this year he says the average could be as low as 70 percent.It’s a drop that began with the July 2014 Gaza war, known in Israel as Operation Protective Edge. Prior to the conflict, in April 2014 — the month of Passover — Jerusalem hotels took in about $40 million. April 2015 saw a 10 percent decline, to approximately $36 million.“Since Protective Edge, there have been problems in incoming tourism to Israel,” Sommer said. “We saw that after Protective Edge, tourism rose again. But because of [recent] difficulties in Jerusalem, there is a slowdown in tourists coming to Israel.”Violence isn’t the only factor hurting Jerusalem’s hotels. Apartment rentals, booked through companies like Airbnb, have cut into hotels’ market share since long before the Gaza war. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, Jerusalem hotels peaked at 10 million foreign guests in 2010. Since then, there’s been a steady decline.“There was an assumption that the city was collapsing,” said Ilanit Melchior, director of tourism for the Jerusalem Development Authority. “The bottom line is that there was a decline, but it was not dramatic. During the intifada of the 2000s, the city proved it knows how to recover fast. There’s terror all over the world, not just in Jerusalem.”And not all Jerusalem hotels are suffering. The Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem, which opened in 2014, has reported a 200 percent increase in bookings over last year. General Manager Guy Kleiman attributes the rise to the hotel’s brand name and the praise in reviews.The Inbal, another five-star hotel, expects bookings to remain relatively stable this year. Alex Herman, Inbal’s vice president of sales and marketing, told JTA that many of its Passover guests are repeat visitors to Israel who remain relatively unfazed by the unrest.“This is a population that comes,” Herman said. “A lot of people have family here. Life goes on, life is OK.”None of the hotels contacted by JTA have advised guests to avoid certain areas, nor changed their security protocols in any way. Kleiman echoed Herman, saying the Passover tourists in Jerusalem are often repeat visitors, and they know to avoid more dangerous areas.“People are mature enough to know where to go, where not to go,” Kleiman said. “People who come to Jerusalem in these times know the city.”Azoulay expects his hotels to withstand the decline, though he hopes calm will return soon and tourists will again feel comfortable walking the streets.Like other hoteliers, he’s also counting on Israelis to support the Jerusalem hotels by choosing to spend Passover in the capital. While overall hotel bookings have declined in Israel in recent years, domestic Israeli tourism is on a steady upswing. Internal Israeli hotel bookings increased 9 percent between 2014 and 2015.“We want the Israeli tourist to come, to reassure him that there’s nothing to worry about,” he said. “We need them. They should come to Jerusalem.”
LUKE 21:28-29
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.
12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
Moscow wants more trade with Israel, Russian PM tells Rivlin-Both leaders express support for efforts to establish a free-trade agreement between the two countries-By Tamar Pileggi March 17, 2016, 9:08 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Wrapping up a two-day visit to Russia, President Reuven Rivlin on Thursday met with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev for talks aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and economic relations between the two countries.In light of US and EU sanctions levied on Russia over its military intervention in Ukraine last year, Medvedev said, Moscow was “open” to increasing its imports from Israel.“I see in the near future a real opportunity to increase trade. Recently, we have encountered export restrictions to Europe, Turkey has left our market and we are open to more exports from Israel,” he said at a joint press conference, according to a statement from Rivlin’s office.Both leaders came out in support of ongoing bilateral talks seeking to establish an Israel-Russia free trade agreement, the statement said.Medvedev called for increased cooperation with Israel in the fields of agriculture, hi-tech, space exploration, energy, and medical technology.In his remarks, Rivlin said Israel’s sizable Russian minority forged an “unbreakable” bond between the two countries, and praised progress made in Jerusalem-Moscow negotiations regarding the pensions of Russians who immigrated to Israel before 1992.Rivlin noted talks between the two governments were in their final stages and was optimistic a final agreement would be in place by January 2017.Earlier on Thursday, Rivlin met with leaders of local Jewish and Christian communities, and visited the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, dedicated to the history of Soviet-era Jewry.In an address to Jewish leaders, Rivlin said it was “a huge loss” that most Jews in Russia are disconnected from their Jewish identity.“Out of concern for the future of the Jewish people, we must think how to expand the circle of Jews who identify with Judaism,” he said. “I am pleased that there are Jews who immigrate to Israel and strengthened the State of Israel, and yet I respect and admire those who choose to live here, and sustain Jewish life here.”Rivlin went on to meet with the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, to whom he expressed concern for the persecution of Christians in the Middle East.“We are proud that Israel has been a safe home for the community, and Christian pilgrims,” he told Patriarch Kirill. “We understand the importance of the rights and the freedoms of the religious communities and the Christian community of the Holy Land.”“We want to see the Christian community flourish and be part of the Israeli experience,” Rivlin added.The president arrived in Moscow Tuesday evening ahead of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the implications of Russia’s sudden military disengagement from the Syrian civil war.During a Wednesday meeting with Putin, Rivlin warned of Iranian gains in Syria and the two discussed the continued coordination between Jerusalem and Moscow regarding military activities in Israel’s war-ravaged northern neighbor.
White House says ready to help ICC genocide probe in Syria, Iraq-US declared earlier the Islamic State group’s slaughter of Christians, Yazidis and Shiites amounts to genocide-By AFP March 17, 2016, 11:38 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
WASHINGTON — The White House on Thursday said it was ready to support an investigation by the International Criminal Court into alleged genocide carried out by the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq.“The United States will cooperate with independent efforts to investigate genocide,” said spokesman Josh Earnest, adding that the administration is willing to support the ICC in gathering evidence.The United States declared earlier Thursday that the Islamic State group’s slaughter of Christians, Yazidis and Shiites in Iraq and Syria amounts to a genocide and vowed to halt it.“The ICC is typically the organization that would take a look at this, and given the judgment that Secretary (of State John) Kerry has made, the United States would be supportive of that effort, both rhetorically, but also in a tangible way as well,” said Earnest.“The United States will support efforts to collect documents, preserve and analyze evidence of atrocities and the United States will do all we can to ensure perpetrators of these atrocities are held to account and brought to justice.”The United States is not party to the ICC, but President Barack Obama’s administration has introduced a policy of working with the court.
2 dead, 70 injured after 12-vehicle accident in Hiroshima tunnel-AFP-National Mar. 17, 2016 - 03:45PM JST
HIROSHIMA —A fiery pile-up inside a highway tunnel on Thursday killed at least two people and left 70 needing treatment as dozens fled toxic smoke from burning vehicles, police and media said.The accident happened around 7:30 a.m. inside the 840-meter Hachihonmatsu tunnel on the Sanyo Expressway in Higashi-hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, according to a local police spokesman.A truck crashed into several vehicles that were stopped inside the tunnel, causing it and at least one other vehicle to catch fire, he said.Local media said a dozen vehicles were involved, with at least five cars burning.Public broadcaster NHK showed dramatic images of dark, thick smoke bellowing out of the tunnel as dozens of firefighters and police officers descended on the scene.Emergency crews were seen assisting those who fled the tunnel, with a tent erected to assist those in medical need.The fire was put out a little more than two hours after the accident, the police spokesman said.Two people, including a woman, were confirmed dead, though the gender of the other fatality could not immediately be determined, the spokesman added.Local media said about 70 other people were sent to hospitals for treatment and observation.Police did not have immediate information about the severity of their injuries, the spokesman added, but media did not report any were in critical condition.Police said traffic had been moving slowly due to a two-truck collision in the same tunnel three hours earlier.
NORTH KOREA FIRED 2 MID RANGE MISSLES INTO THE JAPAN SEA NOT JUST ONE.
N. Korea fires ballistic missile into sea: Seoul-AFP-MAR 17,16-YAHOONEWS
Seoul (AFP) - North Korea fired what appeared to be a medium-range ballistic missile into the sea Friday, just days after leader Kim Jong-Un ordered further nuclear warhead and missile tests, South Korea's defence ministry said.A ministry spokesman said the missile was launched from Sukchon in the country's southwest at 5:55 am (2055 GMT Thursday) and flew 800 kilometres (500 miles) into the East Sea, also called the Sea of Japan.He did not confirm the type of missile, but South Korea's Yonhap news agency cited military sources as saying it was a Rodong missile, a scaled-up Scud variant with a maximum range of around 1,300 kilometres.Military tensions have been soaring on the divided Korean peninsula since the North carried out its fourth nuclear test on January 6, followed a month later by a long-range rocket launch that was widely seen as a disguised ballistic missile test.The UN Security Council responded earlier this month by imposing its toughest sanctions on North Korea to date.US President Barack Obama signed an order on Wednesday implementing the UN sanctions, as well as a series of unilateral US sanctions adopted by Congress.- Daily threats -Pyongyang, meanwhile, has maintained a daily barrage of nuclear strike threats against both Seoul and Washington, ostensibly over ongoing, large-scale South Korea-US military drills that the North sees as provocative rehearsals for invasion.To register its anger at the joint exercises, the North fired two short-range missiles into the East Sea on March 10.A few days later, North Korean President Kim Jong-Un announced that a nuclear warhead explosion test and firings of "several kinds" of ballistic rockets would be carried out "in a short time".Existing UN sanctions ban North Korea from the use of any ballistic missile test, although short-range launches tend to go unpunished.A Rodong test would be more provocative, given its greater range which makes it capable of hitting most of Japan.The last Rodong test was in March 2014, when two of the missiles were fired into the East Sea.While North Korea is known to have a small stockpile of nuclear weapons, its ability to deliver them accurately to a chosen target on the tip of a ballistic missile has been a subject of heated debate.There are numerous question marks over the North's weapons delivery systems, with many experts believing it is still years from developing a working inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) that could strike the continental United States.- Re-entry test -Kim's announcement of further tests on Tuesday cams as he monitored what was described as the successful simulated test of the warhead re-entry technology required for such a long-range nuclear attack.The test was a complete success, state media said, and provided a "sure guarantee" of the warhead's ability to withstand the intense heat and vibration of re-entry -- a major step in the North's push towards a genuine ICBM nuclear strike capability.South Korea said it doubted the North had mastered re-entry technology, although it was less sceptical a few days before when Kim said it had miniaturised a nuclear warhead that could fit on a missile.Earlier this week, South Korean President Park Geun-Hye said North Korea's endless threats and provocative behaviour reflected a "sense of crisis" in Pyongyang at its increasing diplomatic and economic isolation."If North Korea continues its provocations and confrontation with the international community and does not walk the path of change, it will walk the path of self-destruction," Park said.
HARRY REID WAS ON TV YESTERDAY MORNING ABOUT THE REPUBLICANS NOT LETTING GARLAND GET A VOTE. HE THEN SAID TO THE MEDIA-I WILL FEED USE AND YOU THE MEDIA CAN DO YOUR STUFF.USE HAVE BEEN DOING A GREAT JOB SO FAR. SO HARRY REID FEEDS THE PROPAGANDA FOR THE MEDIA TO SPEW ABOUT TRUMP AND THE REPUBLICANS NOT LETTING GARLAND GET A VOTE. NOW WE KNOW WHO CONTROLS THE MEDIA AY PUPPETEER HARRY REID.
US democracy at stake amid campaign violence, major Jewish group warns-American Jewish Committee appears to take on Trump a day after the Republican front-runner warned of riots if GOP blocks him-By Rebecca Shimoni Stoil March 17, 2016, 8:53 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
WASHINGTON — Threats of political violence endanger the viability of American democracy, the American Jewish Committee warned Thursday, a day after Republican frontrunner Donald Trump predicted that there would be “riots” if his party tried to edge him out through a brokered convention.“I think you’d have riots. I think you’d have riots,” Trump said Wednesday in an interview with CNN. “I’m representing a tremendous many, many millions of people.”Although the AJC’s statement did not mention any candidates by name, its dire warnings seemed to reflect directly on Trump’s comments.“Violence and threats of violence have no place in American politics. There should be no threats to disrupt political rallies and no threats to disrupt a convention if a candidate is denied the nomination by his party’s convention,” the organization admonished. “Too many democracies have failed, to be replaced by autocratic governments, when violence became a sanctioned political tool, especially by those who feel disenfranchised and choose not to await ordinary change at the ballot box.”Warning that “nothing less than the survival of American democracy is at stake,” the AJC emphasized that “we hope that the violence seen so far is an aberration which stops now,” and called on “those who have resorted to, or sanctioned, violence” to “repudiate it now.”Trump’s comments regarding a scenario in which the Republican establishment would seek to nominate someone else as the GOP candidate for president were far from the first time on the campaign trail that the brash businessman was seen as giving a nod to violence.During a Fayetteville, NC rally, a non-violent protester was sucker-punched by a Trump supporter. As protesters were removed from the event, Trump himself told backers that “in the good old days this didn’t use to happen, because they used to treat them very rough. We’ve become very weak.”Last week, a major campaign event in Chicago teetered on the brink of becoming an all-out melee when fistfights erupted between protesters and supporters.Journalists and protesters alike have complained on a number of occasions that they have been victims of physical violence from Trump’s supporters and even senior staff members.On multiple occasions, Trump suggested that the violence was due to agents provocateur in the crowds.The AJC warned that such incidents could be a slippery slope.“We do not draw analogies to the rise of communism and fascism lightly, but both of those tyrannical movements rose to power replacing democratically elected governments, by virtue of threats of, or actual, violence against their opponents,” the organization said.The statement emphasized that the AJC is “strictly non-partisan” and “abstains from taking stands on candidates and is content to let the electoral processes play out. “But when the process is infected with threats of violence and disruption, it is not a candidate at issue; it is the viability of democracy itself.”As a non-partisan advocacy organization with a 501c3 tax status, the AJC does not – and in fact cannot – endorse or oppose candidates for elected office.“Would AJC meet with Donald Trump? Yes, we would,” the group’s head, David Harris, answered in response to a Times of Israel query. “He is a leading candidate for the highest office in the land and, as an agency deeply involved in public policy issues, we would be absolutely remiss if we didn’t avail ourselves of such an opportunity to meet.”Still, Harris continued, “while we are strictly non-partisan, it doesn’t render us mute in an election.“We speak out on policies, not parties, and on issues, not individuals. For example, we stand for a healthy, respectful American pluralism, a robust US-Israel relationship, and strong American global leadership,” he added. “If those core principles are challenged by any of the candidates, then we won’t hesitate to reaffirm our views in favor of these principles, as we have in the past.”The AJC’s statement came amid an impassioned debate in the American Jewish community around Trump’s plans to address an audience of over 18,000 next Monday at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s annual policy conference.
SUNNI ARAB-MUSLIM OBAMA HAS JUST AS MUCH SAID HE BACKS HIS PUPPET HITLER 2ND CLINTON TO CONTINUE ON HIS LEFT-WING CHRISTIAN HATING CHRISTIANPHOBE.TO DESTROY AMERICA.LETS JUST SAY HITLARY ROTTEN WILL LIVE UP TO HER MIDDLE NAME AND DESTROY AMERICA LIKE OBAMA IS. AND ALSO OBAMA THE LOVER OF THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL-WILL LOVE SUCK HOLING UP TO CLINTON.AND NOW WE KNOW WHY YESTERDAY OBAMA NOMINATED GARLAND FOR THE SUPREME COURT. HE CAN UPLIFT HITLARY AGAINST TRUMP. AND SAY THE REPUBLICANS SHOULD BE DOING A VOTE ON GARLAND FOR THE SUPREME COURT.
HOW TO BEAT TRUMP
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/03/09/us/politics/how-trump-could-be-blocked-at-a-contested-republican-convention.html?_r=0
Two Americans just begged Canada’s Trudeau to run for U.S. president-By Ishaan Tharoor March 17 at 5:23 PM Follow @ishaantharoor-washington post
During a visit to New York on Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was approached in a restaurant by two Americans, who got on their knees and begged him to run for the office of U.S. president.Suite: "Please please run for president" #JustinTrudeau #NYC pic.twitter.com/EJPjMFvfHG — Marie-Joëlle Parent (@mariejoelle) March 17, 2016-Footage of the encounter, which took place in the East Village's Mile End Deli, a Montreal-style delicatessen, was captured by Canadian journalist Marie-Joëlle Parent.Justin Trudeau dans un resto de Manhattan. Ces 2 Américains le supplient de se lancer dans la course présidentielle! pic.twitter.com/QgrrEdVaIj— Marie-Joëlle Parent (@mariejoelle) March 17, 2016-Buzzfeed Canada's Ishmael Daro has a rundown of the brief, hilarious moment:“Could you run for president here?” they asked Trudeau.The Canadian prime minister tried to explain that even if he wanted to, he couldn't run for president because he wasn’t born in the United States. But the two men wouldn’t take no for an answer.“All our guys are so bad,” they said.“They’re either boring, weird, you have to settle for them — please!”Trudeau tried to explain that he already had a pretty important job. But his fans wouldn’t relent, as this video by journalist Marie-Joelle Parent shows.Eventually Trudeau just had to walk away, leaving them still kneeling on the floor.Since coming to power late last year, Trudeau has emerged as something of a darling of North American liberals, who admire his outspoken stand on issues such as the settlement of refugees, climate change and multiculturalism. WorldViews noted earlier this month how Trudeau stood in conspicuous contrast to the Republican 2016 field, particularly front-runner Donald Trump.
For Trump, the White House is a long-held ambition-Real estate mogul has been flirting with the presidency since 1988, when he joked that Oprah Winfrey could be his running mate-By Ivan Couronne March 17, 2016, 11:30 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
WASHINGTON (AFP) — Donald Trump’s meteoric political rise may have come as a surprise to many — but for the real estate mogul, the White House is a prize he’s had his eye on for nearly 30 years.Here’s a look at the billionaire’s journey as he barrels towards seizing the Republican nomination for president in July.October 7, 1999: Bill Clinton is in the White House and Trump pursues a presidential nomination for the small Reform Party. The developer, a tabloid favorite thanks to his flamboyant personal life, had briefly flirted with candidacy in 1988, joking that TV talk show host Oprah Winfrey could be his running mate.As he launches his bid, Trump ditches the Republican Party and on his way out bashes presidential hopeful Pat Buchanan, saying the conservative ideologue has a “love affair with Adolf Hitler.”He stakes out a left-leaning position on health care, and is already employing a populist message of making America “great.”“I’m conservative, and even very conservative,” he says. “But I’m quite liberal and getting much more liberal on health care and other things.”“I believe in universal health care. I believe in whatever it takes to make people well and better. It’s an entitlement to this country if we’re going to have a great country.”Trump’s candidacy fizzles after four months and he blames others for the fiasco, including the Reform Party, which he describes as “a total mess.”April 27, 2011: US President Barack Obama calls a press conference to publish his birth certificate in an attempt to end conspiracy theories, fueled by Trump, that he was born outside the country and therefore ineligible to be president.“We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We’ve got better stuff to do. I’ve got better stuff to do,” Obama says as television networks break into regular programming to cover the statement live.Forcing Obama’s hand in the matter is a victory of sorts for Trump.The president exacts revenge a few days later at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, roasting the businessman who is a guest at the event.Trump, Obama jokes, can now “get back to focusing on the issues that matter like, ‘Did we fake the moon landing?’ ‘What really happened at Roswell?” and ‘Where are Biggie and Tupac?'”But Trump’s political influence is growing, and Republican 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney travels to Las Vegas to receive the businessman’s coveted endorsement in front of TV cameras.March 14, 2014: After carefully preparing a run for governor of New York, Trump backs out.But he writes on Twitter: “I have much bigger plans in mind — stay tuned, will happen!”June 15, 2015: Jeb Bush announces he will seek the Republican nomination to run for president.“Do we really need another Bush in the White House — we have had enough of them,” Trump declares on Twitter.Bush, the son and brother of presidents, is leading polls and probably has no idea what is coming.The next day, Trump descends the escalator of Trump Tower in New York and announces that he too is running for president.His slogan is “Make America Great Again!” and one of his first campaign promises is to build a “great, great wall” on the border with Mexico.The political establishment doesn’t take Trump’s candidacy seriously.“He adds some much-needed seriousness that has previously been lacking from the GOP field, and we look forward to hearing more about his ideas for the nation,” DNC spokeswoman Holly Shulman quips.The first poll showing Trump ahead of a large pack of Republican candidates appears in USA Today on July 14.The conventional wisdom is that it’s a fluke. Trump will not win the nomination, Karlyn Bowman, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute think tank, tells AFP.“He just has too many weaknesses,” she says at the time.By the first debate on August 6, Trump has stirred up a string of controversies that include accusing Mexico of sending rapists and criminals to the United States, and saying that Senator John McCain, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam, isn’t a war hero.Trump goes on to insinuate that a Fox News journalist was tough on him in the debate because she was having her period. And in a Rolling Stone magazine interview he mocks his Republican rival Carly Fiorina: “Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?!”Meanwhile, support for The Donald among Republican voters rises from 25 to 30 to 35 percent.On December 7, Trump stuns the political establishment by calling for the nation’s borders to be closed to Muslims.Trump provokes, contradicts himself, retweets hoaxes and never apologizes — earning him nonstop coverage on news channels, and saving him tens of millions of dollars in political advertising.February 1, 2016: Republican leaders briefly hope that Trump’s candidacy will collapse after his second-place finish in Iowa. But in the weeks to come, he wins a majority of contests and his opponents drop out one by one, including his most vocal critic, Jeb Bush.Trump’s fans appear to support their man no matter what he says.“Someday they’re going to understand,” he tells supporters Tuesday in Florida, where he missed out on a sweep of the state by just one county. “Someday when we take it all, they’ll understand.”
40 rabbis said to plan boycott of Trump’s AIPAC address-Group of religious leaders to skip Republican’s address in protest of his anti-immigrant rhetoric-By Times of Israel staff March 17, 2016, 8:50 pm
Some 40 rabbis are reportedly planning to boycott Republican front-runner Donald Trump’s speech at the pro-Israel AIPAC conference next week.The group of mainly Reform and Conservative leaders opted to skip the speech in protest of Trump’s policies and hateful rhetoric, The Washington Post reported on Thursday.Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin, who according to the report is among one of the organizers of the boycott, wrote in a blog post: “We have been urging rabbis to simply not attend the Trump speech — to let our absence be felt and noted.”“Yes, AIPAC must be hospitable to Trump, but that does not mean that AIPAC participants are hospitable to the candidate’s ideas and candidacy,” he said.At the same time, Salkin discouraged jeering, walkouts, or any other “more aggressive” forms of protest.“I hope that there will be no aggressive responses to Trump’s appearance. Such actions would violate AIPAC’s hospitality; guarantee that the protesters will be forcibly ejected from the hall, and would give Donald Trump extra ammunition. This is someone who has no qualms speaking crudely about women, Mexicans, Muslims, the handicapped, and immigrants; does anyone really want to add ‘rabbis’ to his verbal hit list?’ he wrote.The Washington Post report did not name the 40 rabbis planning to boycott the speech.The Reform Movement earlier this week blasted Trump’s for his “hate speech,” but backed AIPAC’s invitation of the Republican front-runner to speak at its annual conference.Along with Trump, Republican candidates Ted Cruz and John Kasich and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton will address the three-day event. Vice President Joe Biden is also scheduled to speak. Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders, the race’s only Jewish candidate, remains the sole contender gunning for the White House who has not confirmed a speech at the event.Earlier this week, an AIPAC staffer sent out an email missive to student activists warning them that any disruption could result in the rescinding of their conference credentials and blacklisting from all future AIPAC events. The organization later distanced itself from complaints that it was unfairly targeting students, and said that the email was sent in error and without authorization.In the email, received by a number of college students on Monday and seen by The Times of Israel, the AIPAC staffer wrote: “I am acutely aware that there may be speakers at this year’s Policy Conference whose views you do not agree with.” The email did not specify which speakers might be objectionable to attendees, but it was understood to be referring to Trump.
Republican candidate Kasich confirms AIPAC appearance-Trump, Cruz, Clinton also scheduled to speak at three-day pro-Israel conference-By JTA March 17, 2016, 10:50 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Fresh off his first victory in a primary, Republican presidential candidate John Kasich will speak at the upcoming AIPAC policy conference.The American Israel Public Affairs Committee announced Thursday that Kasich, the governor of Ohio, had confirmed his appearance at the conference, which is being held Sunday-Tuesday in Washington, DC. Kasich won his state’s primary last week.Another Republican candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, confirmed his appearance a day earlier.Other presidential candidates scheduled to speak at the conference include Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the Republican and Democratic front-runners, respectively.AIPAC invited all the presidential candidates to speak.Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders, who is Jewish, has not said he will address the conference.Other politicians scheduled to speak are Vice President Joe Biden; the speaker of the US House of Representatives, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis.; the majority leader, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and the minority whip, Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md.A Fox News debate scheduled for Sunday night was canceled after Trump announced he would skip it due to his AIPAC address, leading Kasich to back out. It would have been the 13th GOP debate of the election cycle.
Ted Cruz’s biggest challenge yet is making nice with his Senate colleagues-Dan Friedman for Yahoo News-March 17, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Republican senators’ least favorite Washington politician is not Hillary Clinton. It’s not Chuck Schumer or President Obama. It is Sen. Ted Cruz.Senate Republicans revile Cruz with special fervor because of their sense that he has used his short time in the Senate primarily to engage in political stunts and mock them as corrupt imbeciles in order to promote himself.The insults sting all the more because they have worked. With Florida Sen. Marco Rubio now out of the presidential race and Ohio Gov. John Kasich unable to capture the GOP nomination outright, Senate Republicans face what South Carolina’s Lindsey Graham has described as a choice between being shot or poisoned in a two-way fight between Cruz and Donald Trump.Eager to consolidate support, Cruz is offering his version of an olive branch, asking select Senate colleagues to unite behind him through the rest of the GOP primary fight.At the same time, Senate Republicans’ dislike of Cruz runs so deep that many plan to sit on their hands in the coming months and await a nominee. In more than 20 interviews and conversations over the past week, Republican senators and staffers described deep antipathy toward Cruz.“Now is the time for Republicans to unite for all of us who want a brighter future for our nation to come together and stand as one,” Cruz said Tuesday night, urging Rubio supporters and others to join him against Trump.Cruz recently began calling Senate Republican colleagues “with a pitch for party unity against Donald Trump,” said Josh Holmes, a former top aide to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.McConnell is not among those Cruz has called, said Holmes, who is president and a founder of Cavalry LLC, which provides political consulting to Senate campaigns and others.Graham did receive a call from Cruz after musing publicly about backing him over Trump. The Texas senator emphasized areas of agreement, according to Graham, including the suggestion that “he will be a more reliable supporter of Israel than Donald will.”Cruz’s fellow Texan, Sen. John Cornyn, the second-ranking Senate Republican, said last week that his suggestion that Cruz “engage with members of the Republican conference” drew interest from Cruz.“The relationship could use some improvement,” Cornyn added.Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe, who endorsed Rubio, said that he doubts Cruz can convince senators who haven’t backed him yet to change course before the convention.“I’m not sure what he could do that he couldn’t have been doing all along,” Inhofe said. “There are a lot of negative feelings.”In a possible signal to establishment Republicans that he wants their help, Cruz said on Monday that he “could absolutely see a place for” Rubio and Kasich in his Cabinet if elected to the White House.Cruz’s campaign is currently working to line up support from pledged delegates in anticipation of a potential convention fight in which many delegates could switch to support him after the first ballot. The odds of pulling off such an upset are already low, and Cruz could surely use help from Republican senators who might influence delegates from their states.But Cruz’s outreach has so far borne little fruit. A Cruz endorsement last Thursday by Utah Republican Mike Lee, probably the Texan’s staunchest Senate ally, was notable primarily for how late it came.“He’s a uniquely flawed messenger for a unity pitch given his proclivity to throw Republicans under the bus every time he’s had an opportunity to improve his own standing,” Holmes said. “Almost any other candidate in the field would be able to bring the party together behind their candidacy at this point. But everyone else might need to be eliminated before that happens [for Cruz].”Cruz’s role in forcing the 2013 government shutdown is only the most prominent on a long list of grievances Senate Republicans have compiled against the Texas senator since his 2012 election. His support for the Senate Conservatives Fund, a political action committee that often endorses conservative challengers bidding to oust Senate Republican incumbents, has left lasting anger.And so the idea that Cruz would be a preferable nominee to Trump is not a given for many Republicans. Alabama’s Jeff Sessions, the only senator to have endorsed Trump, is hardly the only GOP senator unsold on Cruz.“It’s a real open question whether people ultimately conclude Ted Cruz is any more palatable than Donald Trump,” said Holmes. “Conservatives certainly think Ted Cruz is ideologically more predictable than Donald Trump. But he has less experience than anyone in the field and is more personally disliked than any candidate in modern history.”Senators say Cruz should get to work if he hopes to improve his Senate relations.“Show some interest,” said Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, the longest serving Senate Republican, when asked how Cruz could win colleagues’ support. “Quit running down the Congress as though we’re a bunch of imbeciles.”Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts cited Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” as instructive. “How’s it go?” Roberts said. “Hands, touching hands. Reaching out…”“I am sure there will be people who will start moving in his direction,” said South Dakota’s John Thune, who heads the Senate Republican Conference. “But in terms of the relationship up here, he certainly can improve his outreach.”But while Cruz can try to reduce animosity among colleagues, he is unlikely to seek or receive many endorsements as he takes on Trump, senators and aides said.Cruz, who has worked in federal and state politics for most of the past 16 years, still hopes to cast himself as a more legitimate Washington outsider than Trump, who has never held any office. “Donald Trump is the system,” Cruz said Sunday. “He is Washington.”Cruz often cites his lack of support from GOP senators as evidence of his refusal to trade conservative values for Beltway popularity, and he has suggested that lawmakers who dislike him are part of the “Washington cartel” he is fighting.That rhetoric gives Cruz a pitch he can hardly swap now for the blessing of the alleged “cartel” bosses.“I am not sure that so-called establishment help is what he wants,” Thune said.That view was borne out Wednesday when Cruz seemed to reject a suggestion, first reported by CNN, that he apologize to McConnell for calling the senior Republican a liar in remarks on the Senate floor last year.Cruz told Fox News he will not “come on bended knee, with my hat in hand and suddenly say, ‘Oh, all the Washington politicians were right.’“I’m gonna continue standing up to Washington, to the bipartisan corruption that got us in this mess,” Cruz said.Ultimately, lawmakers planning to help or simply not oppose Cruz suggested their approach results mostly from a dispassionate decision to try to stop Trump and the electoral catastrophe they fear will result from his nomination. Cruz, rarely seen in the Senate these days as he campaigns, just needs to stay out of the way.Even so, Republican lawmakers and aides believe Cruz will experience no big wave of support from fellow senators unless he first captures the Republican nomination.North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr, who in January denied an Associated Press report that he told campaign donors he would vote for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders before Cruz, said there is only one way for Cruz to win Senate GOP support.“Win the nomination,” Burr said. “At the end of the day, we’re going to be supportive of our nominee.”Many GOP senators said they welcome Cruz’s seeking their support. But the likely result may be subtle.“It affects the enthusiasm with which you’ll back him, certainly, or statements you’ll make,” said Arizona Republican Jeff Flake. “It never hurts.”Hatch said he hopes to hear from Cruz soon.“We all make mistakes. We all have to change some things, You’ve got to allow room for the younger people who are new to the process to make mistakes,” Hatch said. “Ted’s learning a lot from this. It’s been good for him.”
Sanders concedes Missouri Democratic primary; Clinton wins-Associated Press By KEN THOMAS-MAR 17,16-YAHOONEWS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Bernie Sanders said Thursday he will not seek a recount of results in Missouri's Democratic presidential primary, conceding defeat to Hillary Clinton."I think it's unlikely the results will impact at all the number of delegates the candidate gets and I would prefer to save the taxpayers of Missouri some money," Sanders said in an interview with The Associated Press."Whether we win by 200 votes or lose by 500, it's not going to impact the delegate selection," the Vermont senator added. "It's going to be evenly divided."Clinton ended Tuesday night with a narrow lead of 1,531 votes, but under state law, Sanders could have sought a recount because the margin was less than one-half of one percent.Clinton will get an extra two delegates from Missouri for winning the statewide vote.The win in Missouri means Clinton won all five of Tuesday's Democratic primary contests. She also beat Sanders in Florida, Ohio, Illinois and North Carolina.The Republican race in Missouri remains too close to call between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.Even though winning Missouri gives Clinton two additional delegates, she remains tied with Sanders at 34, with three delegates remaining to be allocated in the state. Democrats award delegates based on the share of the vote, both statewide and in congressional districts. Clinton was on track to come out ahead with one additional delegate, pending final vote data in two congressional districts.Clinton now leads Sanders in pledged delegates from primaries and caucuses, 1,147 to 830.When including superdelegates, or party officials who can back any candidate, Clinton has a much bigger lead — 1,614 to 856.___Associated Press writer Hope Yen contributed to this report.___Follow Ken Thomas on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/kthomasdc
Ukraine moves a step closer to EU visa-free travel By Andrew Rettman-MAR 17,16-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, Today, 17:35-Forty five million Ukrainian nationals could, if things go well, be able to enter most EU states without a visa by the end of the year.The prospect comes after European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said in Brussels on Thursday (17 March) that the latest reforms in Ukraine “allow the commission to make proposals for visa liberalisation in April”.“We have shared interests in making it easier for our citizens to travel to each other’s countries,” he said.The commission had linked the step to new anti-corruption measures in Kiev.Ukraine president Petro Poroshenko, speaking alongside Juncker, said the visa-free news was an “important event” for his country.He said Ukraine had just passed a law forcing officials to declare their financial interests on the internet, and had also appointed members of a new anti-corruption agency.EU nationals can already travel to Ukraine without a visa after it unilaterally lifted requirements in 2010.The commission recommendation in April must be approved by EU states via a qualified majority vote in the Council. It must also win the backing of the European Parliament.The EU would then sign a bilateral treaty with Ukraine, which would also oblige Ukraine to take back people who enter the EU from its territory through irregular means.The first visa-free trips could start the day after they sign.-Turkey-The visa-free perks would extend to most EU countries, but not Ireland or the UK, which are not members of the EU’s Schengen travel area.Ukraine would also have to negotiate separate arrangements with non-EU Schengen states Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.EU sources declined to say how long the whole process might take.When the commission on 9 March proposed to lift visa requirements for Georgia it said it hoped the measure would enter into force during the summer.The EU is also preparing to fast-track Turkey’s visa-free application as part of a deal on stopping irregular migrants.But Turkish officials fear that France could create obstacles in order to appease anti-immigration feeling at home. Cyprus, for its part, insists that Turkey, which doesn't recognise it, has to first accept readmissions of migrants from Cypriot terrritory.Some countries, such as Hungary and Lithuania, have also said that Ukraine should get a visa-free regime before Turkey."Ukraine has become the 73th benchmark" of Turkey visa talks, a top EU official said on Thursday, referring to the 72 criteria that Turkey has to meet for the EU to drop visa restrictions.Crimea anniversary-Poroshenko said he gave Juncker and EU Council chief Donald Tusk a list of Russian officials who should be denied EU entry.The list of some 30 names covers people deemed guilty of abducting and jailing Ukrainian fighter pilot Nadiya Savchenko.Tusk, who shared the podium with Poroshenko and Juncker, reiterated previous EU calls on Russia to free her. But neither he nor Juncker mentioned the list.The EU has a separate blacklist of 146 Russians and Ukrainians deemed guilty of violating Ukraine’s “territorial integrity” and has also imposed economic sanctions on Russia.Tusk said these would stay in force until Russia implemented the so-called Minsk ceasefire pact in Ukraine. “Unfortunately we don’t see anything like that from the Russian side,” he said.He noted that Friday would mark the two-year anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula, adding that the EU's policy of not recognising the annexation would remain in place.Russia, prior to the Ukraine conflict, was also in talks with the EU over visa-free travel, but the talks were suspended after the conflict broke out.
EU-financed migration projects ignore human rights By Nikolaj Nielsen-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, 17. Mar, 11:48-EU-funded migration projects in North Africa and Eastern Europe have not achieved their goals and have broadly ignored human rights, the EU's financial watchdog says.In a 70-page report out on Thursday (17 March), the European Court of Auditors found that respect for human rights "remains theoretical and is only rarely translated into practice".“EU spending on migration in the neighbourhood countries will only be effective if clear objectives are set," said the report's author Daniele Lamarque in a statement.The broad criticism comes in the run-up to an EU summit with Turkey that seeks to rapidly return rejected migrants from Greek islands to Turkey.The auditors looked into 23 EU-funded projects on migration between 2007 and 2013 in Algeria, Georgia, Libya, Moldova, Morocco and Ukraine.The projects, with a total contract value of €89 million, were intended to feed into the priorities outlined in the EU's Global Approach to Migration and Mobility (GAMM).Those priorities included setting up close partnerships and "further regional integration".But the lack of clear objectives, overly complex governance, and bad coordination by EU institutions and others involved in the projects undermined the goals.The auditors noted that EU delegations heading the projects had no migration experts, and specialists hired by the European Commission did not show up to work."None were in post in any of the neighbourhood countries or in any mobility partnership partner country at the time of the audit," says the report.It says the EU commission headquarters in Brussels, at times, had also neglected to follow up on recommendations on how to best implement local projects.Few of the audited projects had any result indicators to measure achievements.Returns and readmission projects broadly failed to deliver because they were regarded by the receiving countries as part of the EU's security policy.The security aspect made it "hard for them to accept" while EU states neglected to prepare migrants for their return home, the report states.Lack of oversight and accountability also means the auditors have no idea how much of the total €1.4 billion over the period was actually spent.The auditors were only able to account for €304 million, owing in part "to weaknesses in the commission's information systems".The EU's diplomatic branch, the EEAS, along with other department heads in the commission, are responsible for finances.The EU commission, for its part, says the report pre-dates projects under the Jean-Claude Juncker mandate."Things have changed, the report is outdated and does not seem to be in synch with seeking the solutions we need in the current crisis. At the time of the report we did not face the issues we face now," it said in a statement.
Opinion-Has the EU stopped lying to itself on refugees? By Ondrej Houska-EUOBSERVER
BRUSSELS, 17. Mar, 18:53-"Americans can always be counted on to do the right thing … after they have exhausted all other possibilities" is a famous quote, versions of which have been attributed to Winston Churchill.It might now be the turn of European Union member countries to do the right thing in the refugee and migrant crisis. Finally. Myriad mistakes from the past might, however, still lead to a sad outcome, where those who genuinely need help will not get it: real refugees.The first thing that EU countries must do is to stop lying to each other over refugees. The declared closure of the so-called Balkan route for migrants heading to northern Europe is a long overdue step. It is the sign of a profound change in consensus.The bottom line is that the whole EU now seems to be adopting an approach that the Central European countries have been pushing for since the beginning of this crisis.Those countries are still vilified in Western European media. However, many Western diplomats and policymakers now acknowledge tacitly, that they were right after all. The EU as a whole seems to be realising the need to follow some basic rules.Firstly, to say that the Balkan route should not be closed, as Germany’s Angela Merkel is advocating, means to deliberately ignore those rules.Without the closure, this crisis cannot be managed. It is symptomatic that everyone professes his or her outrage about the fate of migrants stranded at the Greek-Macedonian border, but no one seems to be dismayed by the fact that Greece still does not have enough facilities for those people.-Fooled by Greece-Last October, the Greeks promised to build 50,000 places by the end of 2015 to house migrants and refugees. Where are those places? The plight of people stranded in Greece is tragic, no doubt about it, but without the closure of the border, the Greeks will never cease their illegal practice of waving refugees through to other countries.If this continues, Schengen is dead. And we should not be fooled by Greece’s claims that it cannot handle this crisis on its own. Until now, the Greeks have, compared to the Germans, the Austrians or the Swedes, paid little for this crisis since they have simply sent all the refugees and migrants north.Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras says that his country should not become “a warehouse of souls” and he is right. To achieve this, the EU needs an agreement with Turkey at almost any cost.Turkey, of course, knows this and uses this advantageous position to the maximum. But does anyone have a better idea how to stop thousands of people, less than half of whom are Syrians, coming to Europe by boat and paying a fortune to smugglers than by doing a deal with Turkey? Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has taken a dangerous turn towards authoritarianism, no doubt about it. But if anyone wants to, while sorting out this mess, deal only with genuine democrats, good luck finding them.-Central Europe has won-To sum up, what is the new approach of EU member states? To limit, preferably to zero, the number of people who arrive from Turkey to Greece. To return almost all those who make the journey to Turkey, even in case of Syrians. To preclude any secondary movement from frontline countries further into Europe.Is all this closer to the position of Germany and the European Commission from last summer or to what the Czechs, the Hungarians or the Slovaks were saying at that time? In this respect, Central Europe has won.There is a danger, however, that one crucial aspect of the deal with Turkey might become impossible to implement (apart from visa free travel for Turks), namely a plan to resettle refugees directly from Turkey to Europe, thus destroying the business of smugglers.Central European countries, and not only them, might refuse to take part, although the Czech Republic, for example, was one of those member states that preferred resettlement from Turkey to relocation from Greece and Italy.There is no doubt that there is a lot of xenophobia in Central Europe and that politicians like Hungarian leader Viktor Orban, while being right in many aspects, are dangerous populists playing on fear.But one can hardly deny the fact that the original foolish approach to the crisis, pushed for by Germany and the European Commission, has set EU countries against one another and has contributed to the breakdown in mutual trust.Genuine refugees might be the victims of avoidable mistakes that the EU committed at the beginning of the crisis.Ondrej Houska ( @OndrejHouska on Twitter) is Brussels correspondent for Czech public radio.
