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“In the mid-1970s, California Congresswoman Karen Bass, who is now under consideration to be Joe Biden’s running mate, was an organizer for the Venceremos Brigade… An event blurb in an October 1975 issue of the communist Daily World newspaper describes Bass, then 22, as “leader of the Venceremos Brigade in southern California….As a ‘brigadista’ and then organizer for the Venceremos Brigades, Karen visited Cuba every 6 months.” (Tablet magazine, 7/28.) In that heady Age of Aquarius hundreds of starry-eyed college kids were volunteering to “help build Cuban Socialism” and “fight U.S. Imperialism,” mostly by joyfully cutting Cuban sugar cane and...

Donald Trump's presidential victory means some U.S. allies may have to reckon with prior scathing remarks as their countries prepare to build diplomatic ties with a president-elect whose return they may not have anticipated. “The most destructive president in history,” Australian Ambassador to the U.S. Kevin Rudd said of Trump in 2020, who “drags America and democracy through the mud.” “A woman-hating, neo-Nazi-sympathizing sociopath” and a “profound threat to the international order,” David Lammy, the U.K.'s current foreign secretary, said in 2018. “A political pyromaniac who must be put before a criminal court,” Jean Asselborn, then-foreign minister for Luxembourg, said...

Australia’s ambassador to the US has deleted comments he had previously made online about Donald Trump, criticising him as “destructive” and a “traitor to the West”. Kevin Rudd, a former prime minister, said his remarks did not reflect the view of the government and he was “looking forward” to working with the president-elect. Dr Rudd, who scrubbed his social media days before Mr Trump’s election victory, wanted to “eliminate the possibility of such comments being misconstrued,” his office said. The ambassador became the latest in a list of high-profile figures to distance themselves from disparaging remarks made about Mr Trump...

The Jin Jiyan Azadi movement ticks lots of boxes for me. They are female lead and non violent. They do not want military intervention despite the theocratic tyranny in their country. They love freedom and they live by it. They are standing up for human rights which the West is allowing to disappear in the West. We can learn from them. Even Tulsi Gabbard. God Bless Mogud for being such a beautiful spokesperson for freedom.

ALBANY — Gov. Andrew Cuomo explained Tuesday how he called actor Paul Rudd in a desperate attempt to help him wrangle a new video urging millennials to comply with New York’s coronavirus mask mandate. “My frustration is younger people. College kids coming back from college, they all want to have a party, they all want to drink, younger people at protests are not wearing a mask, they think they’re invincible,” the third-term Democrat explained on Long Island News Radio. “For months, the great challenge is how to get the young people.” Then he got an idea.

The private-equity tycoon Stephen A. Schwarzman, backed by an array of mostly western blue-chip companies with interests in China, is creating a $300 million scholarship for study in China that he hopes will rival the Rhodes scholarship in prestige and influence. The programme, whose endowment represents one of the largest single gifts to education in the world and one of the largest philanthropic gifts ever in China, was announced by Mr. Schwarzman in Beijing on Sunday. The Schwarzman Scholars programme will pay all expenses for 200 students each year from around the world for a one-year master’s programme at Tsinghua...

Phil Rudd, the drummer for legendary Australian rock band AC/DC, has been charged in New Zealand with attempting to arrange the murders of two people. The New Zealand Herald reported that the 60-year-old appeared in court Thursday morning in Tauranga, on the country's North Island. The paper reported that he was also charged with possession of methamphetamine, possession of cannabis, and making threats to kill. Rudd entered no plea in connection with the charges and was released on bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 27. Rudd was arrested Thursday morning after police raided his waterfront home. Tauranga...

Today is a great day not only in Australian history, but also in world history. It marks the day when people of character and sensibility pushed back against an overwrought and pointless green agenda, and pushed back in a big way. They’ve had enough, and they’ve scraped the Krudd off their shoes and are moving forward. Tony Abbot has won the Australian election in a landslide, and vows to abolish the carbon tax as a first order of business. Abbott has declared Australia is “once more open for business” in claiming victory in Saturday’s election. It is a huge blow...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsoYPGRNxoo

We have had Live Threads here at Freerepublic for the count for the last three Australian Federal elections - in 2004 which ended in conservative victory, then again in 2007 which ended in defeat for the conservatives and a Labor government, and then again in 2010 which gave us a hung Parliament, where Labor continued governing with the support of the Greens and independents. This is the live thread for 2013 - polls close and the count begins in about 10 minutes. Polls and exit polls indicate a victory for the conservative coalition under Tony Abbott is highly likely. A...

Australia's conservatives led by Tony Abbott are maintaining an election-winning lead over Labor Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, a poll showed Monday, after a first leaders' debate was widely called a draw. As the race to September 7 elections entered its second week, a Newspoll published in The Australian had Abbott's coalition leading Labor 52 percent to 48 percent on a two-party basis, the same as a week ago.

THE second week of the federal campaign is under way, with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd facing accusations that he cheated in last night's debate by referring to notes. Opposition Leader Tony Abbott goes into the second week of the campaign in a promising position, with most commentators declaring him the stronger performer in the debate and the latest Newspoll, published in The Australian today, showing he has narrowed Mr Rudd's lead as preferred Prime Minister from 14 points to nine points.

KEVIN Rudd has been sworn in as the nation's 28th Prime Minister, alongside Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and new Treasurer Chris Bowen. Governor-General Quentin Bryce confirmed the Labor caucus' decision last night to reinstall Mr Rudd in the post it removed him from just over three years ago. Mr Rudd’s wife Therese Rein, daughter Jessica and granddaughter Josephine were at Government House for the ceremony. Mr Albanese’s wife, former NSW deputy premier Carmel Tebutt, accompanied her husband. Mr Rudd will make a statement to parliament at noon, asserting his authority as Prime Minister and challenging Tony Abbott to bring...

Kevin Rudd has been elected unopposed, according to reports.

JULIA Gillard has called for a Labor leadership ballot to be held at 7pm tonight. ''Anyone who believes they should be Labor leader should put themselves forward for this ballot,'' the Prime Minister said. She said anyone who entered the ballot should commit, in the interests of the party, to resigning from parliament if they lost. The move forces the Rudd camp to bring forward their preferred timetable for a challenge. They had hoped to engineer a special caucus meeting tomorrow and a challenge on Friday. “I am asking my political party to endorse me as a leader and Prime...

KEVIN Rudd will challenge Julia Gillard for the Labor leadership tomorrow morning. A petition for a ballot circulated among Labor MPs is believed to now have the required numbers for a spill of the PM.

KEVIN Rudd has resigned as foreign minister. Mr Rudd called an extraordinary media conference in Washington DC just after 1am local time, just hours after Cabinet minister Greg Combet declared "enough is enough" today as he and other top supporters of Julia Gillard called for an end to the ongoing leadership speculation. The frustration within the ministry has made it more likely the Prime Minister will act when Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd, who is currently in Washington, returns to Australia on Sunday morning.

An ex-Weather Underground radical on the Tucson shootings and political violenceBy Mark Rudd Sunday, January 16, 2011 In 1970, when I was 22 years old - the same age as Jared Loughner - I was a founder of the Weather Underground, an offshoot of the antiwar group Students for a Democratic Society. That spring, a small contingent of the Weathermen, as we were known, planned to plant three pipe bombs at a noncommissioned officers' dance at Fort Dix, N.J. Our intention was to remind our fellow Americans that our country was dropping napalm and other explosives on Vietnam, killing hundreds...

Kevin Rudd has decided not to stand in this morning's ALP leadership ballot, relinquishing the Prime Ministership and handing power to his deputy Julia Gillard in a bloodless Parliament House coup. Mr Rudd had called for a leadership ballot to be held at 9:00am AEST today but has decided not to contest the ballot after it became clear he would be soundly defeated. Ms Gillard now has the task of leading a party traumatised and divided by the recent dramatic events to the federal election which could be held in a matter of weeks. Treasurer Wayne Swan now steps up...

KEVIN Rudd has called a leadership showdown with Julia Gillard tomorrow morning after conceding he had lost the support of key Labor figures. After a night of talks with the Deputy Prime Minister, a defiant Prime Minister fronted a press conference at Parliament House about 10.30pm. He said he was “quite capable of winning this ballot tomorrow” at 9am. The leadership ballot comes after a series of Newspolls showing Mr Rudd in trouble in key marginals and opposition leader Tony Abbott narrowing the gap as preferred prime minister. Mr Rudd conceded that a number of factional leaders no longer supported...