President Trump’s nominee for Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, has been confirmed by the full Senate Vote.  Democrats Mark Warner (VA), Heidi Heitkamp (ND) and Joe Manchin (WVA) joined with all senate republicans for the 56-43 vote.

WASHINGTON — Rex W. Tillerson, the former chairman and chief executive of Exxon Mobil, was confirmed by the Senate on Wednesday in a 56 to 43 vote to become the nation’s 69th secretary of state. (read more – NYT)

Suffice to say, anyone who has followed DC politics for any substantive amount of time is aware of the inherent ideological issues within The U.S. State Department.  Filled with bureaucrats whose career has been at the epicenter of left-wing globalist advocacy.
If you go back to rethinking the larger State Dept. challenge, Rex Tillerson will essentially be in charge of a U.S. Department that is comprised almost exclusively of Kerry/Clinton/Obama/Bush/UniParty/GOPe big “G” Globalists.
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President Donald Trump has announced Dr. Neil Gorsuch as nominee for the Supreme Court.  Here is the video of the announcement and Judge Gorsuch acceptance remarks.

DHS Secretary James Kelly explains that DHS is still researching alternatives to enhance the background screening processes for “extreme vetting”, which will likely include research into foreign national applicant activity with websites, social media and phone records.
WASHINGTON DC – “We have to be convinced that people who come here, there is a reasonable expectation that we know who they are, and what they’re coming here for, and what their backgrounds are,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly told reporters Tuesday. [video of press conference below]

Was the vast Russian conspiracy really only a week ago?  In between the current refugee crisis du-jour and the notification of the next supreme court nominee, President Trump met with a group of small business leaders to hear their concerns and outline some new policy initiatives.

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday morning that he said will “dramatically reduce federal regulations” on businesses.
“We’ll be reducing [regulations] big league and their damaging effects on our small businesses, our economy and our entrepreneurial spirit,” Trump said during a meeting with small business leaders. “The American dream is back, and we’re going to create an environment for small business like we haven’t had in many, many decades.”
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Following the defeat of Hillary Clinton democrat operative David Axelrod was the first to say the democrat party needed to create an opposition group as effective as the Tea Party. Within days Paul Begala, David Brock and Bernie Sanders were drum-beating a similar talking point.
Within the various regional meetings to select a DNC Chairperson an identical discussion has been repeated.
The larger progressive movement is trying to create a 2017 political oppositional force similar in scope and effectiveness as the 2009/2010 Tea Party movement.
That political goal has driven the constructed caterwauling and protestations for the past week.  However, there is one key difference which dooms any such effort: (more…)

…”There are trillions of dollars at stake”…

In addition to the content, pay close attention to the timing of policy delivery and the sequencing within the policy delivery.   With the outline of the visa suspension as lead-in toward a security policy, President Trump is also now entering economic policy phase 2.
It is all connected.
Within the larger economic construct of “America First”, the underlying supportive policy is easily seen as “Buy American, and Hire American”.  For the Phase One  “Buy American”, President Trump rolled out an aggressive push to leverage corporations and manufacturers to reinvest in U.S. manufacturing and U.S. production facilities.
While President Trump continues to push the economic benefits of domestic production, distribution and manufacturing. Phase Two is directed at the “Hire American” half of this equation. However, President Trump’s expressed security policy on immigration and refugee status suspensions overlaps on the employment aspect within “Hire American”.
Now President Trump fights the “BIG CLUB”:

Watch closely and you’ll note how many significant corporations come out in opposition to the Visa restrictions.  Their opposition is not about security; their opposition is, in no small part, because their strategic business models necessarily include the import of foreign workers.
The corporations who will be most vocal against the security visa executive action, will be those business interests who rely upon non-U.S. workers.  The America electorate is about to discover just how many foreign workers are inside the U.S. economic system. (more…)

Despite the false information being reported in the MSM, there is widespread support for both the halt on refugee influx and the suspension of visa travel approvals.   In addition FBI released data now shows 40 refugees have been convicted or implicated in terrorism.
(Via Rasmussen) Most voters approve of President Trump’s temporary halt to refugees and visitors from several Middle Eastern and African countries until the government can do a better job of keeping out individuals who are terrorist threats.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 57% of Likely U.S. Voters favor a temporary ban on refugees from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen until the federal government approves its ability to screen out potential terrorists form coming here. Thirty-three percent (33%) are opposed, while 10% are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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Well, it would appear Don McGahn and Don Trump have indeed played the media, left-wing moonbats and the unintelligent GOPe like a Stradivarius.  With bait firmly taken, the trap snaps shut.
Here’s the statement from the White House.

(link)

There are two aspects to the Trump executive order.  ♦ One aspect pertains to a 120-day pause on Syrian refugees. ♦ The second aspect pertains to a 90-day pause on visas for seven countries outlined as “nations of concern” by prior law and Obama’s DHS policy.
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President Trump Chief of Staff Reince Preibus engages discussions with guards at the entrance to the DC swamp.
Important yet subtle note:  Further evidence of this entire controversy being a trap by Trump is brutally evident within much of the one-on-one discussions.  Notice how the media are not as aggressive on the XO details… in this rare instance they are beginning to lean back from their skis.  It’s subtle, but it’s there.
NBC Chuck Todd is the first jibber weasel: