Why would the text of President Trump’s Executive Order suspending travel visas be readily available on CNN (HERE), New York Times (HERE), Wall Street Journal (HERE),  but not on White House page (HERE)?
I don’t think it’s accidental.  The limiting Visa program was President Obama’s action, not President Trump.

If you review the actual text of the executive order (copied below in full) what you will immediately notice is the order doesn’t specify ANY countries to be included in the Visa suspension (Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen).
President Trump is not suspending visas from countries his team selected, they are simply suspending visa approval from countries President Obama selected.  Additionally, Trump is suspending ALL visa applications from those countries – nothing to do with Muslim applications.
• In 2013 President Obama suspended refugees from Iraq for six months.  • In 2015 Congress passed, and Obama signed, a law restricting visas from states of concern; • and in 2016 Obama’s DHS, Jeh Johnson, expanded those restrictions.  …. all President Trump is doing is taking the same action as Obama 2013, and applying Visa restrictions to the nation states Obama selected in 2015 and 2016.
From the Executive order:
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President Donald Trump initiates three more campaign promises today via executive action:

♦  A five year ban on lobbying for all White House officials. An order banning administration officials from ever lobbying the U.S. on behalf of a foreign government and imposing a separate five-year ban on other lobbying.

♦  An order to begin restructuring the White House National Security Council. Aides said the changes would help the council better adapt to cyber, digital, terrorist and other modern-day threats.

♦  A request for the Department of Defense, via the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to deliver a preliminary strategy to defeat ISIS within 30 days to the President.

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In yesterday’s executive action (full script not yet released) President Trump suspended the visa travel program with Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for 90 days in order to assess the screening process for immigrants, and visitors.
Additionally, as reported by Reuters, President Trump put a four-month hold on the State Department refugee program, while the vetting process is reviewed and security practices put into place to enhance the screening process.


The reaction from the left-wing open-border globalists was entirely predictable.  However, even though their response was predictable, it is still incredible to see the complete lack of cogent understanding within their arguments.   This quote from CAIR is a case study in abject moonbattery:

(Reuters) […]  The order seeks to prioritize refugees fleeing religious persecution, a move Trump separately said was aimed at helping Christians in Syria. That led some legal experts to question whether the order was constitutional.
One group said it would announce a court challenge on Monday. The Council on American-Islamic Relations [CAIR] said the order targets Muslims because of their faith, contravening the U.S. Constitutional right to freedom of religion.

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Kevin Appleby is a well known pro-refugee advocate from The Center for Migration Studies; essentially an advocate and lobbying group for the business end of refugee resettlement.
Most CTH readers are familiar with Baptist Child and Family Services (BCFS) and/or Catholic Charities, both groups gain hundreds of millions of taxpayer funds for their various refugee programs. “Hundreds of millions”. This is big business.
Tucker challenges Appleby on his expressed narrative, and by doing the well designed questioning approach – well, Appleby’s argument just collapsed. Watch:

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This (also see below for data), is one of those areas where Rex Tillerson can have a massive common sense impact as *Secretary of State.

*NOTE* CTH is prudently deferring any additional research and discussion threads on the U.S. Department of State until after the Tillerson confirmation vote.

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A juxtaposition:

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This is beyond epic.  Representative Tulsi Gabbard visited Syria and delivers big and bold truth to CNN upon her return interview.
Gabbard deconstructs the false narrative sold by the Muslim Brotherhood, Obama administration, John McCain, Adam Kinzinger and Evan McMullin -all of whom supported the various terrorist factions within Syria- and sets the record straight:

The “Rebels” in Syria are extremist terrorists.

CNN host Jake Tapper just didn’t know what to do with himself as Gabbard deconstructed his ideological, and brutally wrong, talking points.  Tapper left staring at the camera with that doofy expression, puzzled and wrinkled brow: “huh”?  Watch:

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Begin, with the end in mind…

President Trump and Vice-President Pence met with Senate Leader Mitch McConnell (R), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D), and Chairs of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Chuck Grassley (R) and Dianne Feinstein (D) today.  These are key members of the Senate who will be at the forefront of any Supreme Court nomination.

(Clockwise from bottom left: Chuck Schumer, Dianne Feinstein, Mike Pence, President Trump, Mitch McConnell and Chuck Grassley)

The small group meeting appears to be reconnaissance and temperature gauging for the upcoming Trump Supreme Court nomination which will be challenging.
In addition to the myriad of long-term impacts, Trump’s SCOTUS nominee will be a key element to the broader immigration issue.  Referencing back to the DACA topic, it is predictable the removal of DACA will eventually end up with immigration advocates selecting a deportee for use in their deportation court challenge.
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There are multiple voices raising concern about President Trump not taking immediate Executive Action to reverse former President Obama’s DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program.  To those voices this message is intended.

Now is not the time to address DACA.  The UniParty and the UniParty friendly media are trying to bait President Trump into jumping into a politically charged issue they will use to slow, if not destroy, the larger agenda.
There are two Obama executive action constructs, DACA and DAPA.

♦ Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), also known as “The Dreamers” executive order which has been implemented and carried out deferring immigration enforcement for the children of illegal aliens.

♦ Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA), was the executive action found unconstitutional by Judge Hanen (Texas), blocked by injunction, and subsequently the injunction was argued through the appellate court all the way to SCOTUS – and upheld.

The Department of Homeland Security reluctantly halted DAPA implementation after they were defeated in the court system.   However, DACA, the deferred action for “dreamers” has been ongoing.  It is the DACA program that contains the largest political issue.
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The Senate has just voted to confirm Representative Mike Pompeo as CIA Director.  This represents the third intelligence and security nomination confirmed –  General Kelly (DHS) and General Mattis (DoD) receiving earlier confirmations.

WASHINGTON – The Senate has confirmed Rep. Mike Pompeo, a Kansas Republican, to be President Donald Trump’s CIA director.  The vote tally is 66-32, with a significant number of Democrats voting no. Two senators are delayed by weather. (link)

Two republican senators Tom Cotton (Yes) and Rand Paul (No) outline the dynamic within the overall DC intelligence outlook from the GOP.  Neither are 100% correct; each distinct outlook has both merit and concern.
In the space between the two Senators, we can identify the fundamental position of President Trump toward this nomination.  The “deep state” is dangerous, even when it is necessary; however, liberty must not be sacrificed upon the alter of security.
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This afternoon President Trump and Vice-President Pence participated in swearing in the White House Senior Staff.  These are officials who represent the office of the President.  For the first time in modern political history, these are mostly ordinary citizen staff members from outside public office….

…A representative staff of outsiders, reflecting a representative government for outsiders… Forgotten no more.

President Donald Trump has only selected a group of 30 people for commission to act as officers of the President and representatives of the White House.  Together with their families, the official ceremony to pledge an oath to their office took place this afternoon.
Prior to remarks about the designated commissioned representatives, President Trump mentioned his earlier discussion with Georgia’s governor and condolences for the victims of the ongoing Tornado crisis throughout the southern states (begin video 17:45):

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This is a historic moment.  I hope all of us fully take the time to absorb what we are witnessing here.  This is citizen government folks; and that’s why it looks a lot less scripted, rehearsed and atypical.  This is structural civics 101, the foundational principles of representative government “of people, by people and for people”, within our constitutional republic.
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