#WakawakaBuhari Now Trending As Buhari Departs For Egypt

Nigeria’s supreme leader, Muhammadu Buhari departs Abuja on Friday, February 19, for Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt to participate in the Business for Africa, Egypt and the World Forum. The Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, Femi Adesina, in a statement, said the forum, which opens in the Egyptian resort town on Saturday, is organized by the Egyptian government under the auspices of the African Union Commission.

The statement reads: “The forum’s objective is to accelerate private sector engagement and investment within Africa and promote the development of African ties and partnerships.

“President Buhari, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt and the Presidents of Togo, Sudan, Kenya, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and the Prime Minister of Ethiopia are among confirmed speakers at the forum.

“Other confirmed speakers include the President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina and the President/CEO of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote.

“The president will be accompanied on the trip by the minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama and the minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okechukwu Enelama.

“He will return to Abuja at the conclusion of the forum.”

Meanwhile, Nigerians have taken to social media to express their chagrin with the president over his frequent junkets abroad. With the chorus ‘ Naira is falling, Baba is travelling’ and the hashtag: #WakawakaBuhari which is now trending, Nigerians are also reacting to the drastic fall in the exchange rate at the parallel market.

See tweets below:

 

#WakawakaBuhari Now Trending: NigerianBulletin

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‘It’s Disgraceful To Question My Faith’ -Trump Reacts To Pope Francis’s Criticism

Controversial GOP front-runner Donald Trump may have met his political match in Pope Francis as the U.S presidential candidate has softened his tone after getting into a fierce ‘war of words’ with the Pope.

 

Pope Francis had on Thursday, February 18, hinted that the Republican front-runner “is not Christian” if he calls for the deportation of undocumented immigrants and pledges to build a wall between the United States and Mexico, NY Times reports.

The Pope, who was traveling back to Rome from Mexico, told pressmen who sought for his opinion on Trump’s proposals to halt illegal immigration.

He said: “A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian. This is not the gospel,”

Speaking on the “humanitarian crisis” on its southern border, the Pope did not tell American Catholics not to vote for Trump, however, he left little doubt where he stood on the polarizing issue of immigration reform.

In a swift reaction, Trump fired back, calling Francis’ comments “disgraceful,” CNN reports

“The pope said something to the effect that maybe Donald Trump isn’t Christian, okay? And he’s questioning my faith, I was very surprised to see it.”

“For a religious leader to question a person’s faith is disgraceful,” Trump said.

“If and when the Vatican is attacked by ISIS, which as everyone knows is ISIS’s ultimate trophy, I can promise you that the Pope would have only wished and prayed that Donald Trump would have been president,” Trump added.

The GOP candidate on Thursday evening, however softened his tone.

“I don’t like fighting with the pope actually — I don’t think it’s a fight, I think he said something much softer than originally reported by the media. I think that he heard one side of the story, which is probably by the Mexican government,” Trump told CNN.
“I like his personality; I like what he represents.”

He added that he thinks Francis’ remarks were “much nicer” than the media reported and that the Pope had been misled by Mexican officials. Trump also said that the Pope has an “awfully big wall” around himself at the Vatican.

That wasn’t the only controversy Trump has faced in recent times as he had on Tuesday, February 14, said Barack Obama has done a “lousy job,” as the president of the United States.

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Money Laundering: EFCC Interrogates Diezani’s Husband, Alison Madueke

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have on Wednesday, February 17, apprehended Alison Amaechina Madueke, husband of the embattled former minister of petroleum resources.

 

Mr Madueke, a retired rear admiral and former chief of naval staff, was reportedly picked by the anti-graft agency in Abuja over alleged money laundering to the tune of $600,000 through his personal accounts.

An impeccable source of the EFCC confirmed that Madueke was questioned for several hours in connection with some funds, which were traced from some suspicious transactions into his account.

It was gathered that Madueke was released on administrative bail, but would return on Thursday for more questioning.

“They think he has some clarifications to do. The invitation by the EFCC certainly had nothing to do with the wife. He reported there, cleared the air and he was asked to go back home,” the source said.

The source did not also say whether the transactions had anything to do with his wife, Diezani, who many believe authorized the controversial oil deals now rocking the industry.

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Arms Deal: Olisa Metuh Pleads Not Guilty To 7-Count Charge

The embattled National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh on Thursday, February 18, pleaded not guilty to an amended seven-count charge preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), at the Federal High Court, Abuja, Daily Post reports.

 

The Federal government through the anti-graft agency had filed a seven count charge of criminal breach of trust, corruption and money laundering against him. The lawyer of the EFCC, Silvanus Tahir, during the trial, told the court that the prosecution has filed amended charges.

The prosecution then prayed the court to accept the amended charges saying “The charges are harmless and have in no way altered the original charges.

“We only crossed the ‘T’s and doted the ‘I’s.”

Mr Tahir also prayed the court to order the accused to take a fresh plea. The trial judge, Justice Okon Abang, therefore ordered Metuh to take the fresh plea to the amended charges, to which he pleaded not guilty.

Mr. Metuh, who is facing trial for alleged money laundering, was arrested by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, from his Abuja home on January 5, 2016.

He is being accused of collecting N400 million from a former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki – the money was part of about $2.1 billion voted for arms purchase, but allegedly diverted by Mr. Dasuki.

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N45.9bn Fraud: We Are Still In Search Of Tompolo – IGP

The Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase has on Wednesday, February 17, declared that his men now have the warrant to arrest ex-Niger Delta militant Government Ekpemupolo (aka Tompolo), who was declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with respect to a N45.9b fraud in the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

 

Speaking to pressmen in Abuja, Arase said the Police commissioners in Delta, Rivers, Edo and others have been issued the warrant for his arrest

Arase said: “We are still looking for Tompolo. The commissioners of police in Delta, Rivers and all those areas have been given the warrant for the arrest so that they could carry out the arrest.

“The EFCC has declared him wanted and you know the court has issued a warrant of arrest. So, it is the duty of the EFCC to publish him as a wanted person and it is our duty to ensure the arrest.

Tompolo and a former Director-General of NIMASA, Patrick Akpobolokemi, alongside eight others were charged to Court by the EFCC. The suspects were accused of diverting and converting to their personal use a sum of N34bn and N11.9bn belonging to NIMASA.

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos issued an arrest warrant to the nation’s security agencies to produce Tompolo before February 19 to appear and answer 40 counts on an alleged N45.9bn fraud.

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PDP, Ali Modu Sheriff And The Long Road To Recovery – Chinyere Akataobi

The 2015 elections have come and gone and the fallout and aftershocks of the last elections is still reverberating across our nation’s political landscape. While the APC are still grappling with the right method to fairly share the spoils of the war which they won, the PDP is still staggering under the intense blows that the last elections gave them.

It is understandable if the party is still licking the wounds that the last elections inflicted on it but there is really no time for the party to wallow continuously in misery.

If the PDP is to have a future and position itself has a viable alternative to the ruling APC in subsequent elections, the party will have to embrace reconciliation of the warring factions who are yet to leave the party, redesigning of its internal architecture and total rebranding of the party’s image.

If you want to understand how bad the party’s image is, observe little children engage themselves in a game of the famous “monkey post” any unfair act that takes place is followed by the shouts and choruses of PDP!!!! PDP!!! PDP!!!

The position of the national chairman of the party which has been vacant for too long has made the party look like a bus without a driver, a family without parents and more so a ship without a captain.

The lack of synergy and direction in the party over the course of the last eight months has seen the party fail to really take on the obvious faults of the ruling party and the continuous internal wrangling gives you a sense of a party which is divided against itself.

Selecting Alhaji Ali Modu Sheriff as its national chairman is simply another nail in the coffin of a party which once boasted that it will rule for 50 straight years. In today’s world where public perception is vital, branding is key. Alhaji Modu Sherrif adds no value to the brand of the PDP.

It was under his watch that Boko Haram grew from a small group of fanatics to the prominence which they now have in the northeast. Alhaji Modu sherrif cannot be tied to one positive event during his time as governor.

For those that scream about his clout in the grassroot in the north, the 2015 election numbers from Borno is a clear evidence of how great an asset he is (numbers don’t lie).

What PDP needs is a father figure who the governors would respect, who would play a positive role in selecting the next chairman. The PDP needs a leader who the internal factions will listen to and who has a clear vision of how the party can return to power within the next 16 years.

Some may excuse the current situation as that of a boxer who has been pummeled severely and who is still staggering in a daze of the aftermath of the punches which his opponent laid into him.

I refuse to make excuses for the party, PDP has scored an own-goal.

This article was written by Chinyere Akataobi. She tweets @prolific_jackk

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Photo Of The Woman Who Rejected An Appointment From Buhari

An activist in Northeast Nigeria and also ardent supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari, has rejected her appointment as chairperson of the Governing Council of the Federal University, Dutse, Jigawa State.

Najatu Muhammed, conveyed her decision to reject the appointment in a letter to the Office of the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu. President Buhari recently approved the sack of 13 Vice Chancellors including 12 of them from 12 Universities that were established by former president Goodluck Jonathan.

This led to the appointment of Mrs Najatu Mohammed; an appointment she has vehemently rejected.

She went as far as posting a newspaper advert to that effect. In the letter entitled, “Reconstitution of the Governing Councils of 12 Federal Universities”, Mrs. Muhammed, who is also a politician from Kano State, said she was not consulted before the announcement was made in the media.

 

Above is Ms. Muhammed’s letter:

“I, Najatu Muhammad, wish to thank you so much for considering me worthy of being appointed the chairperson of Dutse Federal University.

It’s however, unfortunate that I was not consulted before the announcement in the media.
“I also regret that I have to use the same medium to announce that I can’t accept the appointment for some personal reasons.

“I will however remain an ardent supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari in his effort in charting a new course for this country. A course that we pray will put this country back on the path of progress.

“I will also continue to support the presidents fight against corruption and other ills of this country. My unflinching support for the President will remain for Allah’s sake and country.
“I pray that Allah will continue to guide and protect our President.

“Long Live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

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President Buhari Fires DGs Of NTA, VON, NAN, NBC, VOA, FRCN

The President Muhammadu Buhari-led government has wielded the big stick at the Directors General of Nigeria Television Authority, Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Voice of Nigeria, News Agency of Nigeria, Nigerian Broadcasting Commission and the National Orientation Agency.

Their dismissal was announced in a statement by Segun Adeyemi, the Special Adviser to the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed on Monday, February 15, 2016.

The statement read: “The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, announced the disengagement during a meeting he held with the Chief Executives of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Voice of Nigeria (VON), News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and the National Orientation Agency (NOA) on Monday.”

“The Minister directed the disengaged Chief Executives to hand over to the most senior officials in their various establishments.”
Their replacements are yet to be announced by the federal government.

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Why We Overturned Wike’s Sack – Supreme Court

The Supreme Court in Abuja on Friday, February 12, gave reasons for nullifying the simultaneous verdicts of both the Court of Appeal and the Rivers State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, which invalidated the election of Governor Nyesom Wike.

 

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers state

The Apex court had delivered the judgement on January 27, however, it promised to explain the reasons for it on February 12, 2016.

In the lead judgement delivered by Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, the apex court insisted that Wike who contested the April 11, 2015 Rivers State governorship election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, was denied fair hearing by the lower courts.

According to her, the action of the tribunal was a good ground to set aside the entire proceedings before it, but that since it was an election matter which was time-bound, according to section 289 (6) and (7) of the constitution, it was necessary to consider the appeal according to its merit, Premium Times reports.

Speaking on the alleged violation of documents tendered at the tribunal and the appeal court, she said the function of the card reader, though quite commendable in the conduct of the 2015 elections, is solely to authenticate the owner of the voter’s card and prevent multiple voting by a single voter.

Justice Kekere-Ekun said the card reader cannot replace the voters register, recognised by the constitution.

The Supreme Court said it was not enough for anyone that is challenging the outcome of an election on the premise that there was over-voting, to merely tender and rely on card reader reports, without linking same with the actual voters’ register.

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Arms Deal: EFCC Apprehends Amosu’s Wife, Recovers $1M In Soakaway Pit

Mrs. Lara Amosu, wife of the former Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Adesola Amosu (rtd), has been apprehended by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with respect to the ongoing investigation into the $2.1 billion arms procurement fund.

 

Lara’s arrest came fortnight after her husband was whisked away by the anti-graft agency over his involvement in the diversion of funds meant for the purchase of arms. It was believed that she was arrested after the sum of N3 billion was traced to her bank accounts – money believed to be part of the sum her husband is being probed for.

It was learnt that her lawyer has been battling without success to get her released. New Telegraph reports that other properties traced to the former CAS were also being held by his wife and children.

A reliable source reported that the EFCC discovered N17.5 billion in the accounts of wives of three airforce chiefs. The monies were scattered in various banks accounts.

“Shortly after Amosu was picked up in Abuja, his wife, Lara, was subsequently arrested. Investigations conducted showed that some of the monies the former Chief of Air Staff made through some contracts and procurements in NAF were traced to his wife’s accounts.

“About N3 billion was traced to the wife’s accounts while some assets acquired by the former service chief was in her name and some others in her company’s name.
“So, Lara is an accessory to a crime. The proceeds with her are from the arms funds. As we prosecute her husband, she must also be held accountable,” the source said.

It was gathered that the EFCC retrieved $1 million cash from Amosu’s residence in Badagary, Lagos. The money, in foreign currency, was retrieved when EFCC operatives carried out a search on Amosu’s residence in Badagry.

The source said: “In continuation of the investigation into the arms probe, the EFCC operatives took Amosu to his residence in Badagry. After a thorough search of the residence, a fresh small ‘soakaway’ pit was discovered in the compound. The operatives suspected foul play, which informed the breaking of the ‘soakaway’. Surprisingly, $1 million was found in it. The money was subsequently confiscated.”

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Hillary's Corruptibility Was on Display This Week in New Hampshire

Hillary Clinton has many liabilities as a presidential candidate, her strident liberalism and thin record of accomplishment among them. But her greatest liability is her venality. And it may be what ultimately dooms her campaign.Hillary's corruptibility was on display at a town hall event in Nashua, N.H., on Wednesday. When asked by CNN's Anderson Cooper why she had accepted $675,000 in speaking fees from Goldman Sachs, Clinton replied, "I don't know. That's what they offered."

Clinton said she accepted the money in part because she wasn't really thinking about running for president at the time. Then she insisted that the money wouldn't influence her policies if she becomes president. When asked if she regretted taking the money, she said that she did not. First of all, it is untrue that Goldman Sachs offered Clinton $675,000 to speak. As the Washington Examiner's Paul Bedard reported, Hillary's speech fee was set by her agent, not the bank.

Clinton challenged Cooper to "just name one thing" on which those who have paid her for speeches have influenced her. There are numerous examples of the Clintons or their charities receiving money at times when one or both of them exerted influence on behalf of the sources of that money. In fact, a best-selling book was written on the subject last May. Clinton also told Cooper about Goldman Sachs, "I mean, they're not giving me very much money now, I can tell you that much." 

But again, that's not quite true, at least according to most people's definition of "very much." As The Examiner's Timothy P. Carney notes, Goldman Sachs employees have donated more than $90,000 to Hillary's presidential campaign, nearly twice as much as Ted Cruz has raised from the Wall Street giant, even though his wife works there.

The Clintons' extreme wealth and close ties to Wall Street are likely to be a liability for Hillary as she continues trying to fend off a primary challenge from Bernie Sanders. The socialist senator from Vermont has become a plausible threat to her by railing against the 1 percent and assailing Clinton for her close ties to Wall Street.

And it will also hurt her in a general election contest. How can she inveigh against the cost of college when she charges public universities $300,000 to deliver speeches to students who are walking away from school with $100,000 in loan debt?

How can she complain about the insidious role of money in politics when she and her husband have made an estimated $139 million from paid speeches, routing them through a complex system of charities and private companies seemingly in an effort to elude detection?

And how can Clinton claim to "feel the pain" of America's hollowed-out middle class when between 2013-15 she earned roughly $2.9 million from Wall Street banks and other financial companies for just a dozen speeches? After all, according to one estimate, that's more than the average worker with a bachelor's degree can expect to earn in a lifetime.

The answer is she can't.

In 2012, exit polls revealed that most voters preferred Mitt Romney's values and policies over those of Barack Obama. But Obama bested Romney on empathy-related questions, including by 10 points on the question, "Who is more in touch with people like you?" With Clinton as their nominee, Democrats would cede the empathy vote to Republicans — and with it, perhaps, the election.

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Donald Trump rolls out the expletives at Portsmouth rally

 

 

PORTSMOUTH, New Hampshire "And you can tell them to go f**k themselves," Donald Trump told a crowd at a Portsmouth Rally on Thursday night, uttering the expletive at the climax of the riff on his tax proposal. He was referring to companies that have relocated overseas for more favorable tax rates.

Trump often relies on expletives and crude language to spice up his stump speech, though Thursday evening's event was a little more profane than usual. While he refrained from using the vulgar Yiddish word that he directed at Secretary Clinton in December, Trump ran through more than his usual share of profanity at the Portsmouth rally.

"They're ripping the sh*t out of the sea," Trump said when explaining China's island building in the South China Sea, eliciting a gasp of approval and laughter from the rapt audience.

And he capped off a stream-of-consciousness rant on foreign policy this way. "These guys in Washington - they can't beat ISIS they can't beat anyone, Afghanistan is going to hell," he told the crowd.

Trump also sprinkled an obscenity into one of his current favorite one liners, criticizing what he called the hypocrisy of Obama's trips to Hawaii on an old Boeing 747 (a.k.a. Air Force One) while also advocating for a lighter carbon footprint. Trump said of Obama's golfing excursions, "I'd want to stay in the White House and work my ass off."

At the end of his event, Trump told the audience that he had done five campaign events in a single day for the voters of New Hampshire because, "you like that right?" This was a departure from his campaign schedule on most days, which consists of a single 7 p.m. rally.

Another less literal screw-you of sorts: Trump took the stage to strains of Adele's," Rolling in the Deep." Earlier this week, the award-winning British pop star banned Trump from playing her music at his campaign events.

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Can Chelsea Clinton Handle the Heat?

Now a 35-year-old multi-millionaire, the political press is still grappling with how to cover the former First Kid.

As Chelsea Clinton crosses the country stumping for her mother, toting an adorable child and incubating another one, it is occasionally hard to remember that she is no longer the frizzy-haired, braces-clad teenager that we recall from Bill Clinton’s ascendance to the White House—that vulnerable young woman who had to grin and bear it as her parents’ marital troubles played out in the most public forum imaginable. But for all intents and purposes, she and her family still present her as an avatar of her younger self—even if the 35-year-old now sits on the boards of numerous nonprofits and corporations and lives in a $10 million apartment.

By and large, the media has allowed the Clintons to maintain this posturing, perhaps out of some reflexive guilt, or maybe because Clinton handled the humiliation with extraordinary sangfroid. Either way, the moratorium appears to be over. This morning Politico published an article titled “Time for Chelsea Clinton’s Easy Ride to End,” in which veteran media critic Jack Shafer chronicles the growing frustration of the political press over the former First Daughter, a grown-up public figure who, he argues, still expects to enjoy the “cone of deference” afforded to White House children. “The time for treating her as a fragile kid has long passed,” Shafer wrote, arguing that she was not a “goodwill ambassador” with solely a ceremonial function. “She’s an educated (Stanford, Columbia, Oxford), mature, wealthy, campaign surrogate and a well-connected ex-journalist who knows the score.”

In some respects, Shafer has a point. While the Clinton campaign has hesitated to make her a full-fledged proxy, Chelsea has been deployed as an unofficial surrogate—and an important one at that. Chelsea, who was born in 1980, can help deliver her fellow millennials to Hillary, who is struggling to attract young voters, especially young women, who overwhelmingly favor Bernie Sanders.

In this role, however, occasional moments of her past shyness emerge. Absent the preternatural political talents of her parents, Chelsea doesn’t always seem to connect. She also present some relatability issues. The ex-McKinsey consultant is married to a hedge-fund manager, sits on the board of media conglomerate I.A.C., serves as the vice chair of the Clinton Foundation, owns a very expensive apartment in Manhattan, and has an estimated net worth in the millions. It's a life that cash-strapped, indebted young women might not be able to identify with. The Clinton campaign has had better luck with fellow Hillary surrogate and Girls actress Lena Dunham, 29, who has not shied away from scrutiny. But it is highly unlikely that the Clintons would, for instance, intervene with a major news network and declare Dunham off-limits, as they did for Chelsea when she was 27.

But as Hillary shifts into attack mode ahead of the New Hampshire primary, making her opening moves during Thursday night’s fiery debate, Chelsea’s honeymoon may be coming to an end. With the presidential field rapidly narrowing, Republican opponents may soon focus their fire on the fundraising practices of the Clinton Foundation, where Chelsea holds a prominent role. Amid a flurry of controversy over Hillary’s ties to Wall Street, Chelsea’s marriage to hedge fund co-founder and former Goldman Sachs banker Marc Mezvinsky could also prove troublesome. Chelsea, who may one day harbor her own political aspirations, will have to come up with answers for these inquiries. If she hopes to embrace her role in public life, she had best prepare for the same scrutiny her mother has famously survived.

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Bernie and Hillary end first solo debate with love fest

Democratic presidential rivals Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton knocked each other around Thursday in their first one-on-one debate of the 2016 season, but ultimately closed ranks behind the notion of keeping the White House in their party’s hands.

Sanders spent much of the evening arguing that he was the true standard-bearer for the Democratic Party, hammering the former secretary of state over her ties to Wall Street and vote in favor of the war in Iraq. Clinton focused her energies largely on defending her progressive bona fides, while arguing that the Vermont independent was putting ideological purity on a pedestal above pragmatic proposals that could actually become reality. 

But by the end of their MSNBC encounter, the two candidates closed ranks. 

It started when moderator Chuck Todd asserted that Clinton did not think Sanders could be president. She looked genuinely surprised, and said, “I never said that,” then brushed aside his follow-up about whether she might pick Sanders as a running mate if she wins the party’s nomination. 

“ Well, I’m certainly going to unite the party, but I’m not getting ahead of myself. I think that would be a little bit presumptuous,” Clinton said. “If I’m so fortunate as to be the nominee, the first person I will call to talk to about where we go and how we get it done will be Sen. Sanders.” 

Todd tried the question on Sanders.

“I agree with what the secretary said. We shouldn’t be getting ahead of ourselves,” the Vermont senator replied. ”And as I have said many times, you know, sometimes in these campaigns, things get a little bit out of hand. I happen to respect the secretary very much, I hope it’s mutual. And on our worst days, I think it is fair to say we are 100 times better than any Republican candidate.”

Clinton agreed, declaring “That’s true, that’s true.”

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Watch How Hillary Clinton Fell Apart When Asked About Taking Wall Street Money

During the Democratic town hall that aired on CNN Wednesday night, Hillary Clinton completely fell apart onstage when Anderson Cooper asked her about $675,000 she received for delivering three speeches at Goldman Sachs.

Throughout the campaign, her opponent Bernie Sanders has criticized Clinton’s ability to deliver on her promises to crack down on Wall Street after taking more than $600,000 in speaking fees from Goldman Sachs in a year.

“Was that a mistake? Was that a bad error in judgement?” Anderson asked.

“Well, I dunno,” Clinton said. “That’s what they offered. Every secretary of State that I know has done that.”

Clinton’s remarks during the televised town hall may have given off the impression that she wasn’t very involved when negotiating speaking deals, but the truth is, she is actually a heavy-handed negotiator.

The Washington Post reported that when Clinton agreed to deliver a speech at the University of California Los Angeles in 2014, she charged the publicly-funded school $300,000. When school administrators asked for a discounted rate, Clinton’s handlers informed UCLA that $300,000 was the special, discounted rate for public universities.

They also fussed over what kinds of chairs she would sit in during an interview, and insisted that the school keep at least two pillows backstage in case she needed additional support. During a walkthrough five days before she was scheduled to give her speech, Clinton’s handlers demanded that the university get a new podium.

If her past behavior towards UCLA was any indication, it’s likely that Clinton was very involved in negotiating the $675,000 she received from the Wall Street investment bank.

Clinton will be in three more debates in the days leading up to the New Hampshire primary, which is a 180-degree pivot from her previous reluctance to participate in them. Some speculate that her sudden eagerness is an indication that she is trying to regain ground in early voting states after slipping in the polls, and that by debating Bernie Sanders she can boost her profile in New Hampshire, where she trails him. 

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Hillary Clinton, blind to her own greed, makes another blunder

It is the nature of our political environment that the best performance of one’s career can be ignored — and ruined — because of a single remark. Hillary Clinton was sailing along in the Democratic town hall hosted by CNN Wednesday night, sounding thoughtful and at ease when — bam! — the viral disaster ensued:

ANDERSON COOPER: One of the things that Sen. [Bernie] Sanders points to and a lot of your critics point to is you made three speeches for Goldman Sachs. You were paid $675,000 for three speeches. Was that a mistake? I mean was that a bad error in judgment?
CLINTON: Look. I made speeches to lots of groups. I told them what I thought. I answered questions.
COOPER: But did you have to be paid $675,000?
CLINTON: Well, I don’t know. That’s what they offered.

And if her feigned obliviousness to the access-buying game were not infuriating enough, she let out yet another whopper:

CLINTON : You know every secretary of State that I know has done [paid speeches].
COOPER: But (inaudible) for office they’re not running for an office…
CLINTON: Well, I didn’t know…
COOPER: … have known.
CLINTON: To be honest I wasn’t — I wasn’t committed to running. I didn’t know whether I would or not.
COOPER: You didn’t think you were going to run for president again?
CLINTON: I didn’t. You know when I was secretary of State several times I said you know I think I’m done. And you know, so many people came to me, started talking to me.

Really? Even while secretary of state, as we know from her emails, her political antennae were on high alert. And certainly those who paid her exorbitant sums and donated to her foundation believed that she would run for president. That is what drove up her price.

 

The good Hillary Clinton — knowledgeable, occasionally thoughtful (as when expounding on the centrality of gratitude in her life) — is inseparable from the bad Hillary Clinton — often dull and entirely incapable of hiding her greed. When she is hitting her stride, one can imagine how impressive she might be in a general election, but then fairly or not, she can be so unforgettably awful that her strengths are ignored.

It is not surprising that Republicans pounced as soon as the words “That’s what they offered” escaped her lips. “With her incredibly tone deaf answer on her exorbitant speaking fees, Hillary ‘Dead Broke’ Clinton gave New Hampshire voters a good reason not to support her next Tuesday,” Jeff Bechdel of America Rising said in a prepared statement. “The Clintons have lived at the nexus of money and politics for the last quarter century, and it’s one of the main reasons she is struggling so mightily in the areas of trust, ethics, and honesty.”

Clinton likes to fancy herself as an innocent (Oh, gosh, they just wanted to pay me a lot because what I say is so interesting) or a victim. She insisted that the vast right-wing conspiracy is still going strong: “Yes. It has gotten even better funded. You know, they brought in some new multi-billionaires to pump the money in. And, look, these guys play for keeps. They want to control our country. . . . They salve their consciences by giving big money to philanthropy, and, you know, getting great pictures of them standing in front of whatever charity they donated to.” Well, that’s an apt description of her Wall Street backers as well.

Clinton sees herself as the put-upon do-gooder. She is entitled to bend or disregard the rules because her motives are so pure, you see. We cannot question her motives or her shortcuts since she is, in her own mind, above reproach. Those motives always entail her acquisition of great power and wealth. Coincidence? Hardly.

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Scandal's Taking on the 2016 Election Because Shonda Rhimes Can't Ignore That "Supreme Entertainment"

When Scandal finally returns next week, we might see a little bit of art imitating life. Picking up six months after the momentous events of November's midseason finale, Mellie Grant will be gearing up for her presidential run and, as star Bellamy Young tells it, it's no mere happenstance that creator Shonda Rhimes is taking the show on the campaign trail during such a newsworthy election year. 

"I think there is no way not to be inspired by life as it is right now in the race because it's such supreme entertainment in its own right. Also Shonda's never shied away from giving her perspective on current events, and this is a very current event," Young exclusively told E! News' Kristin Dos Santos during a visit to the Scandal set. "This election is incredibly important. It's no coincidence that she's set up a platform to respond."

In other words: Brace yourself for the Shondaland Donald Trump.

"It's going to be such an interesting—I can't wait for you to see the candidates., the presidential field," Young added. If her miming afterwards is any indication, it'll be nothing short of mind-blowing.

Young admitted that the road ahead for Mellie ahead won't be an easy one, especially when it comes to finding the best person to manage her bid for presidency. "She's a smart woman, and she knows the best person to run her campaign is Olivia," she said. "So she has a bit of a mountain to climb there to convince Olivia because they have so much water under the bridge." We can hardly wait to see how that conversation goes.

While Mellie will be busy trying to win over Olivia (Kerry Washington)—and Scandal's version of America—there's no doubt that she's won over fans in the real world who hope to see the beleaguered former First Lady rise to power. But has she won over the woman who plays her? "Mellie will be a great president. She wouldn't run my agenda," Young revealed. "I might not be in her party, but Mellie will be a boss president. Really, she'd be completely capable. She'd be incredible if she got that job."

Are you looking forward to Mellie's presidential campaign? Sound off in the comments below!

Scandal returns Thursday, Feb. 11 at 9 p.m. on ABC.

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Find Out Which Presidential Candidates Celebs Are Voting for Ahead of Tonight's Iowa Caucus

Let's get political, shall we?

Whether you're a fan of the topic or not, there's no running away from the fact that we're about to elect a new president soon, especially since a number of stars have gotten political themselves and, therefore, blurred the line between pop culture and politics.

After a number of debates, Twitter endorsements, fundraisers and hoopla, we prepare for the official start of the 2016 presidential primary season with tonight's Iowa caucus. If you're unsure about what that means and just find yourself giggling at the way that word sounds (no judgment), we'll explain.

Basically, Republican and Democratic voters come out to select candidates for their respective party, ultimately resulting in the first state to decide who it selects for the two parties' nominations. Only a few states hold a caucus instead of an actual primary, and we could get more into that, but it's Monday and that alone is hard enough to tackle.

In anticipation of seeing who the Hawkeye State deems as its two presidential hopefuls, let's see which celebs have come out and endorsed Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump and other hopefuls.

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California governor rejects parole of Manson follower, 73

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown rejected parole for a third time Friday for a follower of cult leader Charles Manson 46 years after a series of bloody murders rocked Southern California. Bruce Davis was convicted of the 1969 slayings of musician Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald "Shorty" Shea. He was not involved in the more notorious killings of actress Sharon Tate and six others.

Brown said that the 73-year-old Davis remains a danger to public safety, saying in his decision that the "horror of the murders committed by the Manson Family in 1969 and the fear they instilled in the public will never be forgotten."

The governor said Davis spent years downplaying his role in the family.

"As I've discussed twice before, Davis's own actions demonstrate that he had fully bought into the depraved Manson Family beliefs," Brown wrote in his decision. "He not only watched as Manson cut Mr. Hinman's face open with a sword, but held him at gunpoint while Manson was doing so."

Tate's sister Debra Tate, who spoke against Davis's parole at his hearing to represent Manson's victims, had not yet heard about the governor's rejection when reached by phone by The Associated Press.

 

"Oh God, I am so glad he did that," Tate said. "I have been sweating bullets, as you can imagine."

Tate said the consistent rejection of parole for Manson followers from governors through the years has not given her any comfort, and California's recent moves to release older prisoners have left her especially worried.

"I see it as a very viable possibility that all of them could be let out," Tate said. "None of them are secure."

Brown blocked Davis' parole twice before, most recently in 2014, and former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger also previously opted to keep Davis imprisoned at California Men's Colony in San Luis Obispo.

Davis is serving a life sentence after he was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder and robbery. He became a born-again Christian behind bars, earned a doctoral degree in philosophy of religion and ministers to other inmates.

A message left with Davis' attorney, Michael Beckman, was not immediately returned on Friday. Beckman said previously that the Board of Parole Hearings was simply following the law when it recommended the release of a man who is no longer dangerous.

Los Angeles County prosecutors argued against his release, citing the gruesome nature of the crimes that kept Southern Californians fearful for months. They also noted that Manson's intent was to spark a race war, based on his interpretation of the Beatles song "Helter Skelter." He thought the slayings would spark an Armageddon-like war between whites and blacks that would benefit his "family" of disciples.

The governor wrote Friday that Davis has still "not explained what, other than a desire for acceptance, allowed him to suspend reality to accept that Helter Skelter was real and that he needed to contribute — in a violent way — to the beginning of the apocalypse."

Debra Tate said that she has seen many Manson family members at hearings through the years. She said that while they have sometimes led exemplary lives in the controlled environment of prison, "these are sociopaths."

She fears what would happen to them in the real world, where "the challenges of everyday life could turn them back into the same monsters they were in 1969."

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Shocking Details: Minister of Health Blames Goodluck Jonathan for Lassa Fever Outbreak

Isaac Adewole has blamed the current outbreak of the dreaded Lassa fever on the previous administration due to its neglect of a medical roadmap designed to ameliorate the situation.

 

                                                Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole

 

Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole on Thursday, said the current outbreak of Lassa fever in the country is because the administration of former president, Goodluck Jonathan’s failure to implement a roadmap drawn in 2012. 

 

The minister also disclosed that the ministry was going to begin testing on a potential vaccine that would be used to prevent the virus. He disclosed this while briefing the Senate Committee on Health headed by Sen. Lanre Tejuosho (APC, Lagos) on the outbreak of the lassa virus in Nigeria.

Prof. Adewole put the number of cases as of today was 129 adding that the hospital which treated the deceased victim of the disease before referral to the national hospital was being investigated. The minister said that the virus would have been defeated by now if there was the Jonathan administration had the political will to implement a roadmap designed in 2012 to forestall future occurrence.

He said: “In 2012 we recorded 1723 cases, after that, because of the severity, the post lassa fever outbreak workshop took place and an action plan to ensure this will never happen again was put in place.

“But this action plan was never implemented because it was never funded. We will dust the old plan, modernize it and look at if from the political perspective: what can we do to provide leadership, to provide support.”

On the vaccine being developed to tackle the disease, the minister said government has been “notified of a candidate vaccine which we will put through chemical trial to find out if it would work.

“We call it a candidate vaccine and we would want to run it through trials and that takes some time. Hopefully we will do that this year, once we consider it to be effective and safe then we put it to use.

“If it works then that means that we would be able to immunize people in the affected areas but for now we will continue with our surveillance,” he said.

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