EGYPT – Egypt will hold a presidential vote before parliamentary polls, President Adly Mansour said on Sunday, in a change to a political roadmap that could pave the way for the swift election of army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Parliamentary elections were supposed to be held first under the timetable drawn up after the army overthrew President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood in July following mass protests against his rule.

The decision to revise the order of elections is likely to deepen tensions in Egypt, which is struggling to cope with waves of political violence. Forty-nine people were killed in anti-government marches on Saturday, the third anniversary of the popular uprising that toppled autocrat Hosni Mubarak. (more…)

 WASHINGTON — An Oklahoma congressman said Monday that he will host Charles Woods, father of former Navy SEAL and Benghazi terrorist attack victim Ty Woods, at Tuesday’s State of the Union.

“As a combat veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, I understand the importance of knowing that America leaves no one behind. I am honored to host the father of a true hero,” Rep. Jim Bridenstine, Oklahoma Republican, said in a statement.

His office characterized the invite as a way to make sure the September 2012 attack in Libya “will not be forgotten” in the House chamber, where President Obama will deliver his speech.

Woods was one of four Americans killed that day, in what authorities have concluded was a terrorist assault on the U.S. diplomatic outpost and a CIA annex in Benghazi, Libya. (read more)

RUSSIA – A Chechen warlord who had urged his followers to attack the Olympic Games has been killed, it has been reported.

Doku Umarov, who threatened to attack the Games in Sochi, Russia, is dead according to Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov who wrote the unverified claims on his Instagram account.

Kadyrov has made the claims a number of times in the past and no proof has been submitted to verify his death.  News of Umarov’s death came from intercepted communications between rebel leaders who were discussing his replacement, according to Kadyrov. (more…)

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †

COLUMBIA, Md. (AP) — The gunman who killed two people at a Maryland mall was a teenage skateboarding enthusiast who had no criminal record before he showed up at the shopping center armed with a shotgun, plenty of ammunition and a backpack filled with crude homemade explosives, authorities said Sunday.  (link)

Huh?   “a teenage skateboarding enthusiast who had no criminal record“… boy, the media sure seems to be softening this…. gee, I wonder why?…. Hmmm, lemme think…

I wonder if now that he’s been identified you’ll see another story dropped like a hot potato?

Remember the Pennsylvania College shooting from 5 days ago?…  that story vaporized too once the shooter was ID’d.   I’m still trying to figure out what is it specifically about these shootings the media seems to downplay.   Maybe it’s just the media beginning to like guns; or NOT.

Following dramatic failures of the last two singles, “Share The Wealth” and “Income Inequality”, President Lip-Sync announces the catchy new single which has been typed into the teleprompter:

“Ladders of Opportunity”

Whether anyone buys it is yet to be determined – however, the media critics who have heard early snippets say: ‘it’s general sound is a remix heavy on the drum-beat’.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Income inequality is out, “ladders of opportunity” is in.

Eager to dispel claims that President Barack Obama is engaging in “class warfare” as he heads into his State of the Union address next week, the White House is de-emphasizing phrases focusing on economic disparity and turning instead to messages about creating paths of opportunity for the poor and middle class. (more…)

President Obama has been in office since January of 2009.  It’s now January of 2014 and Dear Leader’s cohorts are still blaming George Bush….  

Honest question:   In the immediate months after 9/11/2001 the U.S. economy contracted and tanked steeper and faster than any single 3-6 month period in the history of economic measures.   George Bush responded IMEDIATELY and forcefully with tax credits, tax refunds (checks mailed within 30 days) and a nationally delivered speech, the infamous “buy stuff” speech.    It worked.    If the same thing happened during this administration do you think they would be able to handle ?  

I strongly doubt it….. they don’t have solutions – their expertise is limited to talking about problems, they have ZERO solutions. 

(Via WFB) – White House adviser Dan Pfeiffer returned to a familiar Democratic talking point on Fox News Sunday, blaming the financial crisis “this president inherited” for the laundry list of Obama economic woes pointed out by host Chris Wallace.

After showing a graphic revealing median household income had decreased, poverty rate was up and the labor force participation rate was at a 36-year low during the Obama presidency, Pfeiffer implicitly blamed the Bush administration. (more…)

Birds of pray: Doves released in the Vatican as a gesture of peace are immediately ATTACKED by vicious seagull and crow.

• Tens of thousands of people were watching in St Peter’s Square
• Seagull and a large black crow swept down on the doves today
  
• They had been set free from open window of the Apostolic Palace

Read more HERE.

(Video at link)

And then …….

(more…)

WASHINGTON DC – Charlene Lamb, cited for failures in leadership from the Department of State’s own Accountability Review Board report, has been promoted to Regional Security Officer. We’ve heard rumor that she’s slated for international duty in Canada. She started the security officer training last week, much to the dismay of many within the State Department.

For those not keeping track, Charlene Lamb was in charge of the office that denied extra security personnel to the U.S. Ambassador in Libya before the Sept. 11, 2011 attacks.

The problem, as SOFREP has pointed out before, is not that we have four dead American heroes killed in the line of duty. The world is a dangerous place, and bad stuff happens, we get it. The issue is that nothing was done afterwards to hold people accountable or learn from our mistakes in order to reduce risk to other Americans serving in dangerous places. (read more)