The Morning Briefing: PA-18 Undecided, New Boss Lady at CIA and Much, Much More

Good Wednesday morning and Happy PI Day

I don’t have the president’s schedule for today yet.

PA-18 status

A pro-life, pro-2A, anti-Nancy Pelosi, former military Democrat is leading the GOP candidate by a razor-thin margin in the Pennsylvania special election. Absentee ballots have not been completely counted yet. As of 11:30 p.m. ET last night, AP said the race is too close to call. The Democrats are declaring victory.

For the GOP, lots of freakouts or suggested freakouts by the smart set, but the Democrats aren’t running candidates like Conor Lamb in their races around America, they are running Chelsea Mannings, so we will see how that plays out in November. It’s too early to predict the outcomes in midterms, but each race takes place in a different climate and if the underfunded Democrat party is at odds with the cash money rich p*ssy hat-wearing #resistance, it’s not clear there will be a blue wave. I’m not saying there’s nothing to be concerned about, because in off years, the party in power gets hit on their congressional majorities, but keep a sober head as you evaluate the 2018 races and don’t buy into the media’s desperation to hype a GOP demise.

If Lamb does win, I hope the Trump-friendly PA-18 voters keep an eye on him to see if he will vote for the president’s agenda or join with the obstructionist Democrats.

RNC spokeswoman: Dem ‘has essentially run as a Republican’ in Pa. House race

Tillerson out, Pompeo in, torture lady to head CIA

Yesterday, President Trump tweeted that Tillerson was out at State, that CIA’s Pompeo was in at State, and that a career spook who tortured terrorists (is that a feature or a bug?) was his pick for CIA head. Feminists should be overjoyed!

Haspel reportedly headed the agency’s “black site” in Thailand that, according to the Senate Intelligence Committee’s report on the CIA’s rendition program, held senior al Qaeda operatives Abu Zubaydah and Abd al-Raham al-Nashiri.

The report determined that Zubaydah was subjected to the controversial practice of waterboarding 83 times to gather intelligence about al Qaeda’s operations. Waterboarding was among the “enhanced interrogation techniques” the CIA used on top al Qaeda detainees that human rights groups said amounted to torture.

According to the report, Zubaydah was also subjected to other “stress” techniques such as being slammed against walls, sleep deprivation and being placed in a coffin-sized box for up to 226 hours.

Senator John McCain isn’t pleased. “The torture of detainees in U.S. custody during the last decade was one of the darkest chapters in American history,” McCain said. “Ms. Haspel needs to explain the nature and extent of her involvement in the CIA’s interrogation program during the confirmation process.”

Tillerson aide fired after suggesting his boss was blindsided

RUSSIA update

Now that the House Intelligence Committee has finished its investigation into “RUSSIAN collusion” and publicly stated such, Rep. Adam Schiff, leaker and drama queen, is melting down. What will he leak and spin now? Yesterday, Schiff spoke with the WaPo’s political hack Greg Sargent promising all kinds of incriminating RUSSIA riches in the House Intel Democrats’ minority report to counter the report the Republicans will release.

Schiff told me the minority report would set forth new facts not yet made public that will contradict the House GOP conclusions on both those fronts. He said he expected the GOP’s report to be “a far longer version of the Nunes memorandum that will omit key material facts and misrepresent others in order to tell the president’s political narrative.”

“We will be presenting evidence of collusion, some of which is in the public domain and apparent to everyone willing to see it, and other facts that have not yet come to public light,” Schiff told me. “I fully expect that the majority will omit many of these facts in its report and mischaracterize others.”

It would appear the Senate Intel Democrats have been holding out on us. I look forward to finally getting some of that “collusion evidence” after being teased for so long. Bring it on.

Related:

James Comey to appear on ‘The View’

“Russian Roulette” authors on how Moscow got its “hooks” into the Trump campaign

Students will walk out of class today for the anti-gun industry’s march

Today’s the day—the day where the students walk out of class to march in opposition to “guns” or something.

The students will walk out of classrooms at 10 a.m. across time zones for 17 minutes to show solidarity for the 17 killed in the Valentine’s Day attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and to make a nationwide appeal for changes in gun legislation.

Students at more than 2,800 schools and colleges have signed up to participate, according to Women’s March Youth EMPOWER, which is helping students coordinate the events.

Organizers are urging students at all schools, from elementary schools to universities, to take part. Even parents, teachers and others are encouraged to walk out of their jobs at 10 a.m.

At 10:00 a.m. in my time zone, I am going to order some ammo. I’ve got some charity shoots coming up.

Expect to see a lot more stories like this, as the media ramps up its campaign against arming teachers and school employees.

Teacher accidentally fires gun at school

Your daily WTF:

Painful new engagement ring piercing trend growing in popularity

Historical picture of the day: