Friday, October 3, 2014

EBOLA THIS: Investigator Claims Ebola Was Engineered, Govt and Bill Gates Own Patents and Vaccines

EBOLA THIS: Investigator Claims Ebola Was Engineered, Govt and Bill Gates Own Patents and Vaccines

Could this be true? If so, we know Obama could be pretty successful at fundamentally transforming America…
Africa has long been the West’s “proving ground” for experimental medicine since the continent in so poor.  Now, investigator and talk show host Dave Hodges is claiming that Ebola was invented, a vaccine for Ebola has existed for 8-10 years, some government sponsored institutions as well as some of the global elite have positioned themselves to profit enormously from the spread of the virus and the development of and dissemination of mandatory Ebola vaccines, allegedly including billionaire population-control maven and globalist Bill Gates.
New World Order conspiracy theory, or truth? You be the judge. We already know the parties Dave discusses here are diabolical enough…
I have previously reported that Monsanto, or Monsatan as many call them, has partnered with the Department of Defense to use a proxy third party company to develop a vaccine against Ebola. The seed money began at $1.5 million. The value of the deal could grow to an estimated $86 million dollars. The company’s name is Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation (TKMR) (TKM.TO), a leading developer of RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics. “TKM-Ebola, an anti-Ebola virus RNAi therapeutic, is being developed under a $140 million contract with the U.S. Department of Defense’s Medical Countermeasure Systems BioDefense Therapeutics (MCS-BDTX) Joint Product Management Office”.  As breaking and shocking of a news story as this has the potential to be, the real story is that this is not the most important part of the Ebola threat which has invaded the United States. The truth of the matter is that these unholy and untrustworthy associations, when it comes to “fighting” the Ebola virus, represent the mere tip of the iceberg.

NBC News Cameraman From Providence Diagnosed With Ebola

NBC News Cameraman From Providence Diagnosed With Ebola

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BOSTON (CBS) – A NBC News cameraman in Liberia, originally from Providence, Rhode Island, has been diagnosed with Ebola.
Ashoka Mukpo, 33, was on a freelance assignment for the network in Monrovia, reporting on the Ebola outbreak.
His father, Dr. Mitchell Levy, said Mukpo will be transported to the isolation unit at the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha Sunday, the same facility where Holden Dr. Rick Sacra was treated for Ebola last month.
According to NBC, Mukpo started showing symptoms on Wednesday, when he ran a fever and began feeling tired and achy. He was tested for the virus Thursday and it came back positive just under 12 hours later, the network reported on its website Friday.
The other four members of the NBC News team are feeling well and not showing symptoms of the Ebola virus, according to the network.
Mukpo is the fifth American infected with Ebola.  He is currently being treated at the Doctors Without Borders Clinic in Monrovia.
His mother, Diana Mukpo, told WBZ-TV Chris McKinnon Friday her son is “very, very frightened, But his spirits are relatively good.”
“We intend to go wherever he ends up,” she said.
Diana Mukpo (WBZ-TV)
Diana Mukpo (WBZ-TV)
Mukpo said her son’s virus is in the “early stages” and she is optimistic he will be cured.
Ashoka told his mother he has an idea of how he may have contracted Ebola.
“At one point he was trying to help decontaminate a car. He had most of the protective gear on, but he thinks something might have splashed on his body at that point. That’s one possibility, but really, one doesn’t know fully,” Diana said.
Ashoka has been working in Liberia for the past three years, NBC said, adding that the freelancer had just been hired by the network on Tuesday.
He came home to Providence during the summer, but his mother said he went back to Liberia because of the “incredible impact of the Ebola situation.”
“He felt it was very important to go back and document the impact that this is having, socially and health-wise and financially,” Diana told WBZ.
“He called me the night before he was leaving,” she said.  “I was really distraught.”
“Ashoka is very smart, he’s very passionate and he’s very committed and there was no way to change his mind.”
Ashoka Mukpo. (Facebook Photo)
Ashoka Mukpo. (Facebook Photo)
On his Facebook page, Mukpo wrote this about his experiences from Monrovia on September 18:
man oh man i have seen some bad things in the last two weeks of my life. how unpredictable and fraught with danger life can be. how in some parts of the world, basic levels of help and assistance that we take for granted completely don’t exist for many people. the raw coldness of deprivation and the potential for true darkness that exists in the human experience. i hope that humanity can figure out how we can take care of each other and our world. simple, soft aspiration for all my brothers and sisters on this earth who suffer the elements and the cold. may we all be free, loved, and tended to…
NBC will fly its team back on a private charter flight and they will be placed under quarantine in the United States for 21 days.
Diana Mukpo said the U.S. State Department has been very helpful, compassionate and accessible in helping them get her son back to the U.S. for treatment.
“Sunday feels like an awfully long way away,” she said.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030’s Mark Katic reports
MORE LOCAL NEWS FROM CBS BOSTON

NBC Cameraman Thinks He Got Ebola by 'Decontaminating Car', NOT Contact!...

Texas National Guard Securing the Border – They Just had a MAJOR VICTORY!

Texas National Guard Securing the Border – They Just had a MAJOR VICTORY!

1drugstexas
By now, we know that President Barack Obama doesn’t care about enforcing America’s laws and securing the border. In fact, it is clear that the immigration crisis was CREATED by Obama for political purposes. Legal immigration is great, but America’s laws must be respected. We should always know who is crossing the border and why.
Texas Governor Rick Perry has responded to the Federal government’s unwillingness to secure the Texas border by ordering the state national guard to do that job. Liberals and pro-amnesty activists were furious, but it looks like they just had a major victory!
Recently, those Texas National Guardsmen, supporting Operation Strong Safety along the Texas-Mexico border, stopped a group of drug smugglers walking out of a ridge complex in the Rio Grande Valley. WHOA!
According to the Guardsmen working, they spotted four people traveling down a known drug trail carrying four packages. Two of the people were carrying rifles and the other two were wearing tactical gear.
The Guardsmen reached out to both the McAllen U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Station and Texas Department of Public Safety partners for support. Drug smugglers had more than 285 pounds of illegal narcotics with them, which were seized by CBP.
The Guardsmen use an array of advanced equipment in conducting interdiction operations in the Rio Grande Valley. The advanced optical equipment allows the operator to view over 10km to identify potential threats and illegal activity along the southern border. This type of equipment was used in the interdiction of the four people and the subsequent drug discovery.
The Guardsmen on duty that night credit their civilian experience with helping them to spot criminal activity along the border. One is a prison guard and says his work in a prison has helped him to notice the way people act. Another said he works as a security guard in Austin.
When asked why they volunteered for Operation Strong Safety, one of the guardsmen said, “A lot of my family is from here. I am tired of seeing the trucks cross over, and people getting drugs through the trucks. I want to be able to come down and see my family and not have to worry about people following me.”
In one effort, millions of dollars worth of illegal drugs were intercepted before they reach the streets. This is a major victory for our communities who don’t want illegal immigrants smuggling and distributing life-destroying drugs on the streets.
Please share this story if you stand proudly with Rick Perry and the Texas National Guardsmen. It is time to secure the border.

Despite US Airstrikes, ISIS Captures Anbar City!

Uranus comes into opposition - when it is nearest the Earth - on the 7th of October,

Uranus comes into opposition - when it is nearest the Earth - on the 7th of October,

Trey Gowdy Just Got the White House’s Full Attention After Saying THIS on Live TV [WATCH]

Trey Gowdy Just Got the White House’s Full Attention After Saying THIS on Live TV [WATCH]


Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) has been an essential piece of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee’s numerous investigations of Obama administration scandals.
Frequently, his top sparring partner has been Ranking Member Elijah Cummings (D-MD), who has been a constant apologist for the Administration and its incessant criminality. Cummings is also a member of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, led by Gowdy.
Evidence shows that Cummings himself may have been an active participant in one of Obama’s massive scandals.
Needless to say, Gowdy and Cummings have found themselves at odds over Benghazi, the IRS scandal, and numerous other issues in which the former prosecutor from South Carolina has challenged the current administration.
The House Oversight panel recently had hearings on security breaches at the White House involving the Secret Service. The director of the president’s security team was one of the witnesses, and she was raked over the coals by the panel in a bipartisan manner.
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Cummings said the next day that he was “not impressed” by Pierson’s testimony, and he “no longer felt comfortable” with her in the position of Secret Service director. Trey Gowdy agreed.
When these two adversaries agree on anything, it would be wise for the White House to listen.
Gowdy made note of this fact on Fox News in a recent appearance with Martha MacCallum.
He said, “When Elijah Cummings says that he has lost confidence in someone, the White House better pay attention. He’s hardly a tea party Republican. He does not criticize the administration unless it is warranted. And, he has lost confidence in Director Pierson’s leadership.”
The bipartisan outrage did its work, as Julia Pierson resigned later Wednesday, after Gowdy’s and Cummings’s comments.
Gowdy is completely right. When he and Cummings are on the same page, despite their sharp ideological and partisan differences, there is something wrong that must be remedied.
Please share this article on Facebook and Twitter if you’re glad to see Trey Gowdy holding our government accountable.

IF I WAS A FAMILY MEMBER OF THESE PEOPLE WHO ARE GETTING BEHREADED I WOULD SUE OBAMA FOR EVERY PENNY HE HAD HE ARMED AND TRAINED THEM I WOULD SUE OBAMA

BREAKING NEWS: British aid worker Alan Henning beheaded by ISIS brute 'Jihadi John'... who threatens to kill US war veteran next

  • Video claiming to show beheading of aid worker Alan Henning posted online
  • Militant appears to be Jihadi John, and has the same thick London accent
  • David Cameron brands group 'repulsive' saying killers will be hunted down
  • American war veteran Peter Kassig is threatened with execution next 
British aid worker Alan Henning has been beheaded by ISIS fighter Jihadi John in a video online video posted by the terror group.
Before he is killed, a gaunt and tired looking Mr Henning gives a short forced speech in which he blames his execution on Parliament's decision to launch strikes against Islamic State in Iraq.
The clip, which is in English with Arabic subtitles, then shows Jihadi John stepping forward to cut Mr Henning's throat before it cuts to black, then shows his body lying on the desert floor. 
British aid worker Alan Henning has been beheaded by Jihadi John in an ISIS video posted online 
British aid worker Alan Henning has been beheaded by Jihadi John in an ISIS video posted online 
At the end of the footage American war veteran Peter Kassig is shown and threatened with the same fate
At the end of the footage American war veteran Peter Kassig is shown and threatened with the same fate
He says: 'I am Alan Henning. Because of our parliament’s decision to attack the Islamic state I as a member of the British public will now pay the price for that decision.'
In a thick London accent, the fighter adds: 'The blood of David Haines was on your hands Cameron, Alan Henning will also be slaughtered but his blood is on the hands of the British parliament.'
In the footage, Mr Henning appears visibly thinner than in previous pictures, and has large dark rims underneath his eyes. 
Jihadi John then moves to cut Henning's throat and the footage cuts to black, before his body is shown lying on the desert floor.

TRANSCRIPT OF ISIS VIDEO 

Alan Henning: 'I am Alan Henning. Because of our parliament’s decision to attack the Islamic state I as a member of the British public will now pay the price for that decision.'
Jihadi John: 'The blood of David Haines was on your hands Cameron, Alan Henning will also be slaughtered but his blood is on the hands of the British parliament.'
Jihadi John then steps forward to cut Mr Henning's throat and his body is shown lying on the floor.
Peter Kassig is then shown kneeling next to Jihadi John. 
Jihadi John: 'Obama you have started your aerial bombardment in Sham (Syria) which keeps on striking our people, so it’s only right we continue to strike the necks of your people.'
The black-clad militant then reappears with Peter Kassig, who is shown kneeling in the same position as Mr Henning with a caption showing his name. 
He then adds: 'Obama you have started your aerial bombardment in Sham (Syria) which keeps on striking our people, so it’s only right we continue to strike the necks of your people.'
There were hopes that Mr Henning could be freed after a sharia court set up by Islamic State to investigate claims he was a spy found him innocent.
The footage begins with an English-language news report broadcast on the night Parliament voted to approve airstrikes against Islamic State.
It then cuts to static and fades to black, before the note 'Another message to America and its allies' appears on the screen in English and Arabic. 
The beheading, which has not yet been confirmed by the Foreign Office, comes just three days after Mr Henning's wife Barbara issued a tearful plea to the group.
She said: 'I ask Islamic State please release him, we need him back home.
‘Muslims across the globe continue to question Islamic State over Alan’s fate.
'Their position regarding his situation is unequivocal. He is innocent ... We are at a loss why those leading Islamic State cannot open their hearts and minds to the truth about Alan’s humanitarian motives for going to Syria and why they continue to ignore the verdict of their own justice system [not guilty of spying].
Killing comes days after Mr Henning's wife, Barbara, made an impassioned plea for him to be returned home
Killing comes days after Mr Henning's wife, Barbara, made an impassioned plea for him to be returned home
Mr Henning was captured by the group on Boxing Day last year as he delivered aid to Syrian refugees
Mr Henning was captured by the group on Boxing Day last year as he delivered aid to Syrian refugees
‘Surely those who wish to be seen as a state will act in a statesmanlike way by showing mercy and providing clemency.’
Mr Henning, from Salford, was seized on Boxing Day last year as he delivered aid to Syrian refugees.
The Foreign Office last night said they were looking into reports that Mr Henning had been killed. 
David Cameron said: ‘The brutal murder of Alan Henning by ISIL shows just how barbaric and repulsive these terrorists are.
‘My thoughts and prayers tonight are with Alan’s wife Barbara, their children and all those who loved him.
‘Alan had gone to Syria to help get aid to people of all faiths in their hour of need. The fact that he was taken hostage when trying to help others and now murdered demonstrates that there are no limits to the depravity of these ISIL terrorists.
‘We will do all we can to hunt down these murderers and bring them to justice.’
The White House said it is aware of the video and is evaluating it, a U.S. official said. If proved real, it is 'another demonstration of the brutality' of Islamic State militants, a spokesman said.
The Islamist terror organisation also published a video message from an injured British fighter, challenging David Cameron to send ground troops to Iraq.
In a rant directed at ‘that despicable swine David Cameron’, the unmasked jihadi - former Morrissons worker Omar Hussain - said: ‘Send them all, send your reserves and your backup and we’ll send them back one by one in coffins.’
Although the RAF has started bombing targets in Iraq, the Prime Minister has ruled out sending ground troops.
Dubbed the ‘supermarket jihadi’, the Huaainn, 27, from High Wycombe previously worked for the chain as a security guard. He lived with his mother and brothers before travelling to Syria in January 2014.
Muslim leaders had appealed to ISIS over the threat to kill Mr Henning, who was working for an Islamic aid organisation, saying it went against the religion
Muslim leaders had appealed to ISIS over the threat to kill Mr Henning, who was working for an Islamic aid organisation, saying it went against the religion
It was reported that the chilling message also calls on all British Muslims to ‘rise up’ in their own country if they cannot join the fight in Iraq and Syria.
The British fighter asked: ‘What does the West have to offer you? What does that filthy despicable country have to offer you?’
The video mirrors other beheading videos shot by the Islamic State group, which now holds territory along the border of Syria and Iraq. 
The Associated Press could not immediately verify the video's authenticity, though it was released in the same manner as other Islamic State group videos. 

U.S. VETERAN AND AID WORKER WHO COULD BE JIHADI JOHN'S NEXT VICTIM

Peter Edward Kassig, a 26-year-old from Indiana, started a non-profit organisation called Special Emergency Response and Assistance (SERA). 
The Iraq war veteran, who was living in Beirut to provide relief for refugees of the Syrian crisis, is believed to be the latest American to be taken hostage by ISIS.
Writing on his profile page on fundraising website FundRazr, Mr Kassig said he had previously worked as a medic in a hospital in Tripoli, Lebanon.
He said: ‘When I first started this cause to help those in need, I was on my own but I saw first-hand the shortages in available resources and supplies for people who were suffering in Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey as a result of the violence. 
‘The amount of feedback and support from people all around the world motivated me to get organised and develop a platform through which people could send donations to support the continuation of my work.’
Kassig joined the U.S. Army Rangers in 2006 and was deployed to Iraq in 2007.
He was honourably discharged for medical reasons after a brief tour and returned to the United States to study political science.
However, in 2010, he decided to take time off from his studies and began his certification as an emergency medical technician.
He then decided to travel to Beirut to try and help those in need as a result of the Syria crisis.
It was after a short time in the country that he started up his own aid group, SERA.
Few details are publicly known about how Kassig was taken captive and the US State Department had not commented last night. 

when you believe jesus christ died for your sibs and is the son of god and repent from your sins then open your heart to jesus them your name is writhen in the book of life

Jews around the world commemorate Yom Kippur tonight, the day where we believe that all of humanity will be judged for the year to come for good and for bad. Some will be written in the Book of Life. Others will not. Jews pray to God to forgive them for their transgressions and yearn to have their names written in the Book of Life.

The Significance of Yom Kippur

The Significance of Yom Kippur

Jews around the world commemorate Yom Kippur tonight, the day where we believe that all of humanity will be judged for the year to come for good and for bad. Some will be written in the Book of Life. Others will not. Jews pray to God to forgive them for their transgressions and yearn to have their names written in the Book of Life.

Oct 03, 2014, 06:19PM | Rachel Avraham
Painting by Gottlieb of Jews Praying in a Synagogue on Yom Kippur
Painting by Gottlieb of Jews Praying in a Synagogue on Yom Kippur Photo Credit: Wikipedia Commons
Tonight, Jews around the world will be commemorating Yom Kippur, the day where we believe that all of humanity will be judged for the year to come for good and for bad. Some will be written in the Book of Life. Others will not. For this reason, Jews will be praying in synagogue, asking God to forgive their transgressions, both committed intentionally and unintentionally, and yearning to have their names written in the Book of Life for the year to come.
Jews are supposed to abstain from all physical pleasures on this day, because the Torah instructs Jews to afflict themselves because on this day, the Jewish people are compared to angels and therefore have no physical needs. Additionally, Jews afflict themselves because they are supposed to show regret for their mistakes over the past year. Couples refrain from sexual relations and showing any kind of intimacy with one another. Jews don’t wear leather shoes on this day. They don’t take bathes or apply ointments, creams, lotions or perfume. Jews don’t wear gold on this day, believing that it symbolizes the sin of the Golden Calf.
Additionally, Jews fast from sunset tonight to sunset the following day, abstaining from eating food and drinking liquids, including water. Only pregnant women, women nursing babies, children, and people who have a medical necessity to eat are religiously permitted to eat and drink. However, even children are traditionally educated to fast for a short period of time starting at age 9. These children should eat after sundown on Yom Kippur and their breakfast should be delayed. Yet, only after their Bar or Bat Mitzvah do Jews start to fast on Yom Kippur in its entirety.
Chabad stresses that people who have a medical necessity to eat are religiously permitted to do so because just as God commanded healthy people to fast on Yom Kippur, he also ruled that the preservation of life and health is more important than fasting. However, Chabad recommends that Jews who suffer from a specific illness that bars them from fasting recite the following prayer: “Behold I am prepared to fulfill the mitzvah of eating and drinking on Yom Kippur, as You have written in Your Torah: ‘You shall observe My statutes and My ordinances, which a man shall do and live with them. I am God.’ In the merit of fulfilling this mitzvah, seal [my fate], and [that of] all the ill of your nation Israel, for a complete recovery. May I merit next Yom Kippur to once again fulfill [the mitzvah of] ‘you shall afflict yourselves [on Yom Kippur].’ May this be your will! Amen.”
In Tel Aviv, Israel, the fast begins tonight at 6:02pm. In London, Great Britain, Yom Kippur will start at 6:16pm. In New York City, USA, Yom Kippur begins at 6:17pm. In San Francisco, USA, Yom Kippur commences at 6:32pm. In Chicago, USA, Yom Kippur will start at 6:09pm. In Quebec City, Canada, Yom Kippur will begin at 6:03pm. In Toronto, Canada, Yom Kippur will commence at 6:37pm. And in Melbourne, Australia, Yom Kippur will start at 6:08pm tonight.

NBC Crew to Be 'Quarantined for 21 Days' Because of Ebola!

Turkey Will Attack ISIS

Turkey Will Attack ISIS

The Turkish government approved taking military action against ISIS, both in Syria and Iraq. In addition, the coalition will be able to train and operate within Turkish military bases.

Oct 03, 2014, 10:10AM | Rachel Avraham
US attacks Syria
US attacks Syria Photo Credit: Reuters/Channel 2
The international coalition against ISIS has been strengthened.  The Turkish parliament approved last night a proposal that will permit the Turkish government to carry out military operations beyond its borders in Syria and Iraq, in order to fight against ISIS terrorists that threaten to expand the area of struggle.
In addition, the Turkish Parliament approved the entry of foreign soldiers into their territory. The soldiers of western armies will be able to use military facilities in Turkey for training purposes, preparation and the deployment of military activity.
The Turkish authorities were placed under heavy international pressure to join the campaign led by the United States against ISIS. Before the Turkish Parliament voiced their approval for joining the campaign, US President Barack Obama stated that he would send a representative to a number of countries, including Turkey, Egypt and Jordan, to join the coalition.
The representative John Allen was appointed by the US State Department “to consolidate support for the international coalition’s efforts to weaken and defeat ISIS.” Allen arrived in Iraq in order to meet with the senior level leadership of the country.

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Explainer: How Do You Get Asylum In Russia?

Explainer: How Do You Get Asylum In Russia?

Former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden has applied for a type of asylum that is most commonly issued in Russia.
Former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden has applied for a type of asylum that is most commonly issued in Russia.
By Tom Balmforth
Fugitive U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden has applied for temporary asylum in Russia and is expected to soon be given a document that would allow him to leave the transit zone of Sheremetyevo Airport -- where he has spent the past month. RFE/RL takes a look at the procedure for getting asylum in Russia.

What kinds of asylum are there?

There are three types of asylum in Russia: political asylum, refugee status, and temporary asylum.

How does political asylum work?

Political asylum, which is very rare, is issued via a presidential decree that takes into account multiple factors including whether it is in Russia's political interest to grant it. The process is regulated by a separate government resolution rather than Russia's Law on Refugees. It is issued to those seeking "asylum or protection from persecution or a real threat of becoming a victim of persecution" in their home country for "social-political activities or convictions that do not contradict the democratic principles recognized by the international community and norms of international law."

Only 14 people applied for political asylum in Russia in the last five years and the Federal Migration Service (FMS) does not report any successful applications on its website.

Political asylum is granted so rarely it is not even clear what rights one gets with it.

What about refugee status?

Refugee status is issued more often, but is still fairly rare. The decision to grant this status is made by the Federal Migration Service in accordance with Russia's Law on Refugees. Russian law defines a refugee as a non-Russian citizen living outside their country of nationality or normal residence who fears becoming a "victim of persecution due to their race, religion, citizenship, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political belief." In practice, the process is slow and often unsuccessful with only a small portion of applicants being granted refugee status in the last five years.

The status is conferred for a period of up to three years, but it is reviewed every year. Refugees have the right to urgent medical assistance, the right to be housed in temporary accommodation, the right to work without a permit and the right for their children to be educated. They receive almost all the rights of a normal Russian citizen -- except for voting rights. They carry a book which looks like this.

So what did Snowden apply for? And how does it work?

Snowden applied for temporary asylum. This kind of asylum is equivalent to Europe's "humanitarian status" and is given out on compassionate grounds. That is to say, if an asylum seeker does not meet the criteria for full refugee status, but cannot be extradited back to his country of origin for "humanitarian" reasons, then he is eligible for temporary asylum status. There are many "humanitarian" grounds such as the risk of a person experiencing inhumane treatment in their country. There were 8,952 applications for temporary asylum in Russian between 2008 and March 1, 2013. Temporary asylum was granted to 5,728 people between 2007 and 2012.

This status allows the bearer to move around Russia without impediment, although there are slight restrictions as to where one can live. A person who has been granted temporary asylum is registered to live in the place where he filed his application. In the case of Snowden -- who applied to the Moscow Federal Migration Service -- he would have to live in Moscow (unless he applied to change the location). Temporary status allows the bearer to work in Russia, which could be good news for Snowden if -- and that sometimes seems a big if -- his lawyer is to be believed. Lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said on July 24 that Snowden is hoping to learn Russian with a view to working. Snowden would also get the right to basic state medical insurance.

Temporary asylum is valid for one year after it is issued. Provided conditions of asylum have not been violated, seekers can reapply for it one month before it expires.

Who are the usual asylum seekers? What are their rates of success in appealing for asylum?

Asylum seekers from Afghanistan, Syria, Central Asia, and Georgia currently make up the lion's share of applicants. Between 1997 and July 2007, 8,683 out of 25,931 (33 percent) applicants received refugee status. Between 2001 and July 2007, 2,446 out of 5,637 (43 percent) applicants got temporary asylum. Political asylum does not figure in the FMS statistics. http://www.fms.gov.ru/documents/asylum/

But the process to get refugee status appears to be getting harder if FMS statistics are correct: From 2007 to April 2012, only 961 people received refugee status in Russia out of over 12,500 who applied. That equates to a meager 7 percent application success rate.

So Snowden has applied for the most commonly issued type of asylum. What comes next?

Initially, there was a bit of confusion. Early reports seemed to suggest that the FMS had issued Snowden a document on July 24 certifying that the agency is officially considering his application for temporary asylum. However, it turned out later that this was not the case. After speaking to Snowden on July 24, lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said: "The Federal Migration Service confirmed to me today that [Snowden’s] papers are being examined. Because there is a specific procedure, there are a series of questions that the migration services must deal with correspondingly. Edward is understanding about this, and he hasn’t been refused [asylum], the process is simply being drawn out somewhat."

Strictly speaking, the document should have been issued immediately when Snowden applied for temporary asylum. In practice, however, there is a lot of variance on how long this initial process takes. On average, the Moscow Federal Migration Service takes about two weeks to issue such certificates, according to Yelena Ryabinina, the Central Asia political refugee program director for the Moscow-based Civic Assistance Committee.

Will Snowden be able to leave the airport if he gets this document?

Yes. This document allows the bearer to legally reside on the territory of the Russian Federation -- even though the United States revoked his passport earlier this month. The document officially acts in place of identity documents since asylum seekers' identity documents are transferred to the Federal Migration Service during application. He will not have to live in a particular refugee center; asylum seekers in Russia are not typically given somewhere to live. According to Ryabinina, there are centers for temporary asylum seekers but they are too few in number.

What happens if Snowden gets that document?

The Moscow Federal Migration Service -- where Snowden has applied -- would then have up to three months to consider whether or not to grant Snowden temporary asylum. Ryabinina says that if the response is positive, then he will know within the next three months. But she is unsure how the situation could evolve.

"I won’t even try to guess how the events are going to develop regarding how he will receive temporary asylum," she says. "A positive response could be extremely quick because the three-month deadline doesn't mean that the three months have to be used.”

If Snowden is denied asylum, he will technically be able to appeal the decision -- either in a court or directly with the FMS and then subsequently in a court. This appeal process -- should the migration authorities repeatedly decide against issuing asylum -- lasts roughly one year.

Is it common to apply for asylum from an airport transit zone on Russian territory?

Absolutely not. This was one of the irregular things about Snowden's case. The majority of asylum seekers apply from within Russian territory. This is because the majority of them are able to enter Russian territory with their travel documents -- or have entered illegally.

As a rule, Ryabinina says, people who apply from transit zones tend to be unsuccessful. Their applications are either ignored or rejected. Ryabinina has cited the case of an Uzbek man who arrived at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport one month ago. He was not allowed into Russia but applied for refugee status. His documents were not even received by migration authorities -- a blatant violation of the law, she said.

So what does all this mean for Snowden?

It's hard to say. Although applying for temporary asylum is nominally apolitical and technical, politics are crucial here, according to Ryabinina.

"The situation will develop in a completely usual way because this is a resonant case," she says. "The Russian authorities have a clear interest [in this case], although I won't speculate on how it will impact on Snowden. I may be mistaken, but in my opinion Snowden, whether knowingly or not, has ended up a pawn in a big geopolitical game."

Obama’s Éminence Grise

Obama’s Éminence Grise
As the Obama administration crashes and burns, insiders begin to blame Valerie Jarrett.


Valerie Jarrett with President Obama, December 2013. (White House via Flickr)

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John Fund
Are significant chunks of the mainstream media in despair over Barack Obama? This past week, Obama used 60 Minutes to attempt to shift blame for the failure to anticipate the rise of ISIS, endured a cover-up of White House security disasters by the Secret Service, and saw a government-agency report that he had skipped nearly 60 percent of his intelligence briefings. 
The reaction from some longtime Obama defenders was swift and harsh. “President Obama this week committed professional suicide,” wrote former CNN host Piers Morgan, now an editor-at-large for Britain’s Daily Mail.
He called Obama’s throwing of the intelligence community under the bus a “shameless, reprehensible display of buck-passing” that will result in some analysts’ exacting “cold-blooded revenge on Obama by drip-feeding negative stories about him until he’s gone.” As for the Secret Service fiasco, Morgan said it was “no wonder the Secret Service gets complacent when The Boss exudes complacency from every pore.”
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Chris Matthews of MSNBC, the former White House speechwriter who once rapturously recounted that he “felt this thrill going up my leg” as Obama spoke, didn’t hold back on Wednesday’s Hardball. “Let’s get tough here,” Matthews began, as he lambasted Obama for being “intellectually lazy” and “listening to the same voices all the time.” He even named names, saying that Obama had become “atrophied into that little world of people like Valerie Jarrett and Mrs. Obama.”Jonathan Alter, a columnist for Bloomberg News and the author of a sympathetic book on Obama’s first term, reported that Jarrett is an unusual presence in the White House: “Staffers feared her, but didn’t like or trust her. At meetings she said little or nothing, instead lingering afterwards to express her views directly to the President, creating anxiety for her underlings and insulting them by saying, ‘I don’t talk just to hear myself talking.’”
Everyone expects a presidential spouse to weigh in on issues, but the reference to Valerie Jarrett, the White House senior adviser who mentored both the president and the first lady at the start of their careers in Chicago, is telling. Her outsize role in many presidential decisions is known to insiders, but she remains resolutely behind the scenes. So when Jarrett does enter the news, it’s significant, because it may provide a window into how the Obama White House really works.
This week, Greg Hinz of Crain’s Chicago Business noted that President Obama was back visiting Chicago but “having to share headlines with Valerie Jarrett.” She began the week with a cameo appearance on CBS’s highly rated show The Good Wife. Then a column by Michael Sneed in the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Jarrett “may be the worst abuser” of any executive-branch official with a Secret Service detail, using guards “round the clock” even while she was shopping, at the gym, or visiting friends in Chicago.
At a time when a government report shows the Secret Service is more than 550 agents below its optimal strength, Sneed bluntly asked, “Is this expense justifiable or is it an abuse of power?” Sneed quoted a source close to the White House: “Jarrett is treated as a member of the Obama family, but she’s had no real death threats requiring the constant use of the Secret Service that I know of.”
When Mark Leibovich of the New York Times tried to trace how Jarrett obtained Secret Service protection, he was told by someone close to her that she found such questions “ridiculous and offensive.”


Hinz of Chicago Business has covered Jarrett for years and has decided to offer her some quick advice: “Do whatever it takes to get your name out of the papers. And just watch TV for a while. OK?” He then joked that if Jarrett really wanted “to have some fun, try to figure out who dropped the dime on you.”
I wouldn’t bet against Jarrett finding out. As I wrote last year, White House aides “went to extraordinary lengths to uncover the identity of a senior official who was using Twitter to make snarky comments about Jarrett and other White House staffers. . . . The official had gone so far as to tweet ‘I’m a fan of Obama, but his continuing reliance and dependence upon a vacuous cipher like Valerie Jarrett concerns me.’”
When the bloodhounds uncovered Jofi Joseph, the point man on nuclear nonproliferation at the National Security Council, as the offending official, he was fired — not for revealing any secrets but for making disparaging comments about thin-skinned administration players such as Jarrett.
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On Capitol Hill, members of both parties are more and more mystified at Obama’s apparent disengagement from parts of his job. Months before he dropped the ball on ISIS, he failed to keep himself properly apprised of the problems with Obamacare’s website. Jarrett appears to exercise such extraordinary influence that in some quarters on Capitol Hill she is known as “Rasputin,” a reference to the mystical monk who held sway over Russia’s Czar Nicholas as he increasingly lost touch with reality during World War I.No one suggests that Jarrett is solely responsible for the administration’s slow response to the crises, contradictory communication, and labored political calculation that have become its hallmarks. But many do think that she has failed to encourage the president to bring in new people with fresh ideas.
So how has she survived? Not only has she been close to the first couple for nearly a quarter-century, but she clearly makes the president feel even better about himself than he would anyway. Consider this quote from her interview with New Yorker editor David Remnick for his book The Bridge (2010):
I think Barack knew that he had God-given talents that were extraordinary. He knows exactly how smart he is. . . . He knows how perceptive he is. He knows what a good reader of people he is. And he knows that he has the ability — the extraordinary, uncanny ability — to take a thousand different perspectives, digest them and make sense out of them, and I think that he has never really been challenged intellectually. . . . So what I sensed in him was not just a restless spirit but somebody with such extraordinary talents that had to be really taxed in order for him to be happy. . . . He’s been bored to death his whole life. He’s just too talented to do what ordinary people do.
Journalists who contacted the White House this week and asked to speak with Jarrett didn’t get very far. Maybe she’s decided to follow the advice of Greg Hinz and lie low for a while. But if journalists really want a fuller explanation for how the Obama administration has reached its current low ebb, perhaps they should continue to follow the threads of the Jarrett string that were revealed this week and see where those lead.
— John Fund is national-affairs correspondent for NRO.