Erick Erickson's Red State Posts Sexist Photoshop of Sarah Palin

It's not that big of a deal to me.

Photoshopping people for a dig is old hat, even for people on your own side. It's a little surprising, however, for such a big conservative brand as Red State to sink to petty locker room Photoshop humor as this. And the post has been up for two days. Worse is that Erick Erickson defended the image as not Photoshopped when called out on Twitter, and then some.

Folks contacted me privately after I tweeted earlier.

Again, not that big a deal. That said, here's Jen Kuznicki, "RedState misstates Palin and misses the point":

Anger erupted on twitter after RedState’s Peter List posted a photoshopped cleavage picture of Sarah Palin on his Diary, but the content of his post misstated her position, and shows how little he knows about the current fight going on in the GOP.

For all its buzz, RedState is a fairly static presence on the web. For instance, you can miss reading it for about 2 years, and then jump back in, and they are saying the same thing, with the same people, pointing out the same circumstance, and frankly, being really nasty and angry in the comment section.

List says that Palin’s third party solution is part of the problem. He knows she didn’t come up with a third party plan, and if he knows anything about boots-on-the-ground grassroots work, he would know that the third party idea is prevalent in the GOP rank and file. In his misleading post, List points to another RedState writer and how he has laid out the way to take over the GOP.

Is List ‘taking over’ the GOP? It seems to me that if you are going to preach it, you ought to do it. If he is in the fight, good, but I do not see the insight in his post that would prove such. For him, and his clique at RedState, I’ll lend a hand to show what has happened to warrant what many see as a possible alternative. And I’d like to stress the fact that Palin didn’t say she’s going third, she said, ‘if’ the current GOP establishment keeps on doing what they are doing, it certainly is a factor.

RTWT.

Jen's got a handle on the grumbles at the grassroots. Mostly, I just like how Erick Erickson gets a pass.

More on Twitter:

@Josh_Painter I have no idea nor do I care if it's a Photoshop. She your Mohammed or something? @EWErickson @arias_harley
— Ben Howe (@BenHowe) July 2, 2013

At what point do you blame the famous person for their absolutely insane cultist followers?
— Ben Howe (@BenHowe) July 2, 2013

I second this. RT @Pqlyur1: Just fix this and come clean @EWErickson and @BenHowe...Jeeze... http://t.co/i4gu90WuFQ”
— Pam Swan (@pjswan) July 2, 2013

ADDED: This post has a lot of the details that I was unable to locate as I was writing this essay: "RedState Posts Demeaning Photoshop of Governor Palin, Denies When Confronted — Updated."

Also, from Dan Riehl, "Erickson and His Redstate Boys Never Learn, Titter at Faux Palin Ta-Ta’s." (Original photo there, compared to the Photoshop.)

Here's still more at C4P, "RedState Boys Act Like Leftists When Confronted On Smears Against Governor Palin," and "Redstate Posts Demeaning Photoshop of Governor Palin, Denies When Confronted — Updated."

Elle MacPherson Recreates 1984 Playboy Cover for Australian Harper's Bazaar Magazine

She's 49 and in amazing physical condition.

As lithe was she was 19 years ago.

At London's Daily Mail, "Rolling back the (naked) years! Elle MacPherson, 49, poses in just a pair of stockings to recreate iconic 1994 Playboy cover."

RELATED: At the Other McCain, "Rick-Rolled by HuffPost."

Defiant Morsi Rejects Calls to Step Down

At the Wall Street Journal, "Egypt's Leader Vows to Stay: Defiant Morsi Rejects Military Pressure, Calls to Step Down; 'I Have No Choice'":

CAIRO—Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi rejected protesters' calls for him to step down, telling Egyptians in a late-night address that he is willing to give his life "to protect the legitimacy" of the country's ballot box and Islamist-drafted constitution.

Without elaborating, he mentioned the possibility of parliamentary elections in six months, part of a list of proposals he said he would consider during talks with the opposition.

Moments later, antigovernment protesters in four provinces across Egypt chanted against the president, calling for him and his Muslim Brotherhood-backed party to leave, according to live footage. Antigovernment protests again swelled on Egypt's streets, reaching millions, according to local media estimates, just hours ahead of the military's Wednesday deadline for Mr. Morsi to patch relations with the country's opposition.

Morsi supporters and antigovernment protesters clashed near Cairo University in the suburb of Giza late Tuesday, leaving at least four people dead, according to the Ministry of Health. The groups traded fire of rubber bullets and pellets in Cairo's Kit Kat district, according to residents and local media.

The Obama administration has used U.S. diplomatic and military channels to deliver quiet messages and warnings to Mr. Morsi and Egyptian commanders to try to head off the crisis and avert any military coup, according to current and former officials.

Continue reading.

And from Mandy Nagy, at Legal Insurrection, "Morsi rejects military ultimatum (Update: “I am prepared to sacrifice my blood”)(Update No. 2: Egypt army says ready to die in “final hours”)."

So Feminists Hate Makeup?

I had no idea.

Here's my tweet from last night after seeing Jessica Valenti retweeted in my timeline:

.@JessicaValenti's avi is all glamour and lipstick. Too bad millions of baby girls won't be born to enjoy the same feminine milestones.
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) July 3, 2013

Valenti got a kick out of it.

Well this a new one: make abortion illegal because every girl should experience lipstick https://t.co/uw1y8k3s5U

— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) July 3, 2013

Depending on your browser, you might be able to see all the responses in the Twitter timeline. Here's a few choice attacks from all the feminist psycho-vituperation:

@AmPowerBlog Because all women can aspire to is wearing make-up and making babies. Congratulations, you've reached maximum sexist claptrap.

— Megan Taros (@journotics) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog @JessicaValenti Ah, feminine milestones! Like the first time a man told me "good women" submit to a man's authority? Yeah...

— Ellen Fulton (@drbfg) July 3, 2013

@JessicaValenti @AmPowerBlog too bad millions of idiot men still think they can dictate what women should do in the year 2013

— ＡＵＴＯＥＸＥＣ．ＫＡＴ (@papierhache) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog @JessicaValenti no, saying that women should be forced to give birth to daughters and enforce patriarchal gender roles for them

— ＡＵＴＯＥＸＥＣ．ＫＡＴ (@papierhache) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog @JessicaValenti but keep on "praying little girls live" while abortion restrictions would make sure mothers die, you ass

— ＡＵＴＯＥＸＥＣ．ＫＡＴ (@papierhache) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog @JessicaValenti no, i am angry because you're an idiot man who feels entitlement to deny women agency over their own bodies

— ＡＵＴＯＥＸＥＣ．ＫＡＴ (@papierhache) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog too bad millions of millions of people die in murders and accidents and you aren't one of them

— Count Fistula (@0157) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog You do not care about life. Don't pretend u do. U are obsessed with controlling women. Shut it

— MarieMackinnon (@MarieMackinnon) July 3, 2013

And a little backup from the guys:

@AmPowerBlog @journotics say 'wearing a flower in your hair' maybe she'll get it then. Or maybe not.

— barackcastro (@obamaislazy2) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog hard to believe they don't see themselves as waging the war on women. I'm embarrassed for them

— barackcastro (@obamaislazy2) July 3, 2013

@AmPowerBlog Of course not.Today's feminist is about inserting a urinary catheter & blabbering for 13 hours about chopping babies into bits.

— Vern Demerest (@TxAv8r) July 3, 2013

@MarieMackinnon @AmPowerBlog Same BS rhetoric from a science denying low information Feminut who thinks women are just about vaginas

— Doug Hagin (@DaleyGator) July 3, 2013

The inspiration for my feminist trolls, or Ms. Valenti at least:

"Set the foundation with the powdered ashes of Susan B. Anthony" Feminist Makeup Tutorial http://t.co/V42jMjIFtR

— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) June 20, 2013

#ObamaCare Delayed Until 2015

Technically, it's the mandate requiring that employers provide their workers with health insurance that's taking a hit, but since that's really the heart of ObamaCare --- and the Supreme Court ruled as well that individuals who don't buy insurance on their own must pay a tax --- we're really seeing the entire 2009 healthcare cluster-k being repudiated by the Obama White House. This gives Democrats a lifeline to save their sinking asses in the 2014 election, but since the Democrats are in effect admitting their own incompetence (and deception) the Republicans will have an even more powerful hammer to crush the idiot Democrat-Socialists a year from November.

At Twitchy, "Report: WH will delay Obamacare employer mandate until 2015."

And at the New York Times, "Obama Administration to Delay Health Law Requirement Until 2015":

Never. Be. Implemented. RT @whitehouse It's. The. Law. #ObamaCareInThreeWords, pic.twitter.com/TnzsUWyIYq

— Em (@lamblock) July 2, 2013

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration announced on Tuesday that it would delay for a year, until 2015, the Affordable Care Act mandate that employers provide coverage for their workers or pay penalties, responding to business complaints and postponing the effective date beyond next year’s midterm elections.

“We have heard concerns about the complexity of the requirements and the need for more time to implement them effectively,” Mark J. Mazur, an assistant Treasury secretary, wrote on the department’s Web site in disclosing the delay. “We recognize that the vast majority of businesses that will need to do this reporting already provide health insurance to their workers, and we want to make sure it is easy for others to do so.”

Under the 2010 law, employers of more than 50 full-time employees were required to provide them with health insurance starting next year or face fines. Numerous reports had suggested that some companies with payrolls at or just over that size were complaining that they would have to cut some jobs or switch some full-time workers to part-time employment.

The change does not affect other central provisions of the law, in particular those establishing health care marketplaces in the states — known as exchanges — where individual Americans without health insurance can shop from a menu of insurance policies. Under those provisions, subsidies are available for lower-income individuals who qualify.

However, it will be difficult for officials running the exchanges to know who is entitled to subsidies if they are not able to confirm whether employers are offering insurance to their employees. Enrollment in the exchanges is to begin on Oct. 1, and they are to take effect on Jan. 1.

Much of the administration’s public effort, especially at the Department of Health and Human Services, has been directed toward spreading the word to uninsured Americans, especially younger and healthier individuals whose participation is needed to help keep down the price of premiums for everyone else. About 15 percent of Americans are uninsured, so most individuals are unaffected, at least initially.

Behind the scenes, however, the administration has been fielding questions and criticism from businesses about the mandated reporting requirements — especially the Treasury Department, which has responsibility, given its oversight of the nation’s tax reporting system.

Mr. Mazur wrote that the one-year delay “will allow us to consider ways to simplify the new reporting requirements consistent with the law." He added, “Second, it will provide time to adapt health coverage and reporting systems while employers are moving toward making health coverage affordable and accessible for their employees.”

Within the next week, he added, the Treasury will issue official guidance to insurers, self-insuring employers and other parties that provide health coverage. Formal rules will be proposed later this summer, he added.

Don't #StandWithWendy Davis

It turns out Kirsten Powers ain't standing with the idiot Wendy Davis.

Weird that a lot of the same women who cheer Wendy cry at the death of a cat: I Don’t Stand With Wendy Davis http://t.co/DMjZKfOxPn

— David Kahane (@dkahanerules) July 2, 2013

Also at Memeorandum.

FRC Launches 'Voice of the Voiceless'

According to the group's information page:

The mission of Voice of the Voiceless is to defend the rights of former homosexuals, individuals with unwanted same-sex attraction, and their families. We also support the faith-based community and work actively in the United States to defend the constitutional rights of all Americans to share their views of homosexuality in the public forum. We support similar international efforts and provide assistance, whenever possible, to individuals and organizations abroad who align with our mission and goals.

And there's a related Facebook page as well, "Ex-Gays Protecting Traditional Marriage."

Via Memeorandum, where the regressive homosexuals are working overtime on demonizing FRC.

Stay classy, progs. Because we know you people are the model for happy families.

Two Homosexual Men Convicted for Making Hardcore Child Pornography With Adopted Son From Russia

Hey, another day, another news item from the left's program of unicorns and rainbows on the homosexual equality frontier.

Yay progs!

At the Other McCain, "Two Gay Men Used Russian Surrogate Mother to Create Boy for Sex Abuse Ring."

As I've been reporting, it's a daily barrage of progressive contempt and abuse for decency, values and the law. But seriously. Two Los Angeles homosexuals use a Russian surrogate mom to create a baby boy rape toy. That is Democrat values there for you, perfectly.

And come to think of it, LGM's Scotty Lame-ieux needs to update his essay on "the liberal agenda."

Dude, no worries.

There's so much more ahead for the progressive left. Unicorns, rainbows, and homosexual baby boy bondage! Proletarian child pornographers unite!

Hawthorne Police Gun Down Rottweiler After Owner Films SWAT Operation

I like this headline at RT, "Cops arrest California man for filming them and then kill his dog (VIDEO)."

London Daily Mail, "Heartbreaking moment cops shot and killed dog who leapt at officers when owner was being arrested for FILMING them."

The video's all over YouTube, but I think this comment pretty much sums things up:

Several issues here. The very first thing is the guy that has involved himself into a situation that he should have avoided. He should have stayed quiet and watched, not commented while videotaping. He was looking for an issue and found it from a more than willing police force. The dog was an unfortunate victim of stupid actions on the owners part and the police force. STFU and let the officers do their job (which seldom happens) and this crap wouldn't happen. I feel sorry for the dog.

Added: At the Los Angeles Times, "Police fatally shoot Rottweiler; dog's owner alleges retaliation."

UnitedHealth, Nation's Largest Health Insurer, Will Leave California's Individual Insurance Market

You know, because ObamaCare was supposed to increase competition and drive down rates, or something.

Ezra Klein hardest hit, after Obama that is.

At the Los Angeles Times, "UnitedHealth to exit individual insurance market in California":

The nation's largest health insurer, UnitedHealth Group Inc., is leaving California's individual health insurance market, the second major company to exit in advance of major changes under the Affordable Care Act.

UnitedHealth said it had notified state regulators that it would leave the state's individual market at year-end and force about 8,000 customers to find new coverage. Last month, Aetna Inc., the nation's third-largest health insurer, made a similar move affecting about 50,000 existing policyholders.

Both companies will keep a major presence in California, focusing instead on large and small employers.

The moves illustrate how different companies are responding to a major overhaul of the health insurance market for millions of consumers. Starting Jan. 1, the federal healthcare law forces insurers to accept all individual applicants regardless of their medical history and provide a comprehensive set of benefits with limits on patients' out-of-pocket spending.

Healthcare experts said some national insurers aren't interested in playing by those new rules in states where their presence in the individual market is relatively small and more profits can be made by tending to the employer market.

"The business model of health insurance is fundamentally changing and some companies are willing and able to adapt," said Sabrina Corlette, a research professor at Georgetown University's Center on Health Insurance Reforms. "Given the limited market share those carriers had, UnitedHealth and Aetna have made the calculation that it required too much of an investment to change their strategy in California."

A spokeswoman for UnitedHealth said "our individual business in California has always been relatively small … [and] over the years, it has become more difficult to administer these plans in a cost-effective way for our members."

The departure of another big-name insurer raised concerns about the effect of reduced competition on California consumers.

"I don't think this is a good result for consumers," said California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. "It means less choice, less competition and even more consolidation of the individual market with three big carriers."

The whole point to ObamaCare was to make insurance affordable precisely to those individuals not covered by the employers' market. It's failing.

Added: From Foxmuldar's Blog, "Obamacare Impact: Another Insurer Leaves California Market."

Germany's Sabine Lisicki Ends Serena Williams' 34-Match Winning Streak

From Helene Elliott, at the Los Angeles Times, "Serena Williams' Wimbledon loss is latest, biggest tennis shocker":

WIMBLEDON, England — Serena Williams insisted her round-of-16 loss to Germany's Sabine Lisicki wasn't a shock, because Lisicki is a good grass-court player with a "massive, massive serve" and was vastly underrated as the 23rd seed. In many ways, that made sense.

What triggered gasps throughout a sport thrown off-kilter by a flood of upsets last week was how unaggressive Williams often was. Overwhelmingly favored to win her sixth Wimbledon and 17th Grand Slam title, she was so ineffective at crucial moments, and so tentative, that "shocking" is the only fitting description for her performance, if not the result itself.

Lisicki's big serve and even bigger store of feistiness were her key weapons Monday in a 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 triumph at Center Court. Although Lisicki lost 14 straight points and nine straight games at one stage — she dropped the final six games of the second set and the first three games of the third — she bounced back decisively to end Williams' 34-match winning streak.

"I went into this match feeling that I could win," said Lisicki, who lives in Bradenton, Fla. "I just was fighting for every single point no matter what was happening out there."

Williams, the defending champion, didn't play like the woman who owns 16 Grand Slam titles and had lost only twice this year. She had a chance to seize control when she led 3-0 and 15-0 in the third set but hit a couple of forehands long and gave Lisicki an opening. Lisicki broke her twice and held serve in a 10-point game to pull even at 4-4 before breaking a rattled Williams again for a 5-4 lead.

"I think that I didn't play the big points good enough," Williams said with admirable honesty. "I didn't do what I do best. I think I had a little hesitation, and that explains it.

"I definitely had my opportunities and I didn't take them. Maybe I backed off a little bit at some points. If I'm going to be successful, I'm never going to do it backing off."

She got whooped by a cracka!

More at that top link.

'I was offended because I believe as a Christian woman it is my prerogative to display my faith any way I like so long as it is not harming anyone else...'

Because outwardly expressing your faith in Christ is hateful. Hateful!

At Campus reform, "Public university allegedly orders student to remove cross necklace because ‘it might offend others’":

A student at a public university in California is alleging school officials ordered her to remove a cross necklace while she was working at an orientation fair because they feared others find the religious symbol offensive.

Nineteen year-old Audrey Jarvis, an employee of Sonoma State University’s (SSU) Associated Students Productions (ASP), told FOX News her supervisor initially ordered her to remove the necklace because “it might offend others, it might make incoming students feel unwelcome, or it might cause incoming students to feel that ASP was not an organization they should join.”

In a second encounter, her supervisor reportedly told her to hide the cross under her shirt or remove it.

Jarvis, identifies as devout Catholic, said she was in “complete shock” and “thrown for a loop” by her supervisor’s instructions.

“I was offended because I believe as a Christian woman it is my prerogative to display my faith any way I like so long as it is not harming anyone else,” Jarvis told FOX News. “I was very hurt and felt as if the university’s mission statement – which includes tolerance and inclusivity to all – was violated.”

More at that top link.

Don't Say the N-Word!

Unless you're a black mofo!

Or, well, unless you're a cracka like racist T-Bogg at Firedoglake!

More here, at Twitchy, "Replete with delete: Sarah Silverman deletes tweets explaining why she deleted N-word tweets."

Immigration Reform Won't Make Social Security Solvent

From Byron York, at the Washington Examiner:

On May 8, the chief actuary of Social Security, Stephen Goss, sent a letter to Republican Gang of Eight leader Marco Rubio saying reform would have a positive effect on Social Security's finances in the next ten years. But that was easy. Most immigrants are well below retirement age; they won't collect Social Security benefits for many years. All they'll do for a long time is pay into the system.

But what about the long term? Goss promised to develop a 75-year analysis of the legislation "as quickly as possible." As it turned out, Goss delivered that long-term estimate on June 28, which just happened to be the day after the Senate passed the bill. It was never part of the debate.

According to Goss, the bill's long-term benefits are also positive -- but just barely, and not in a way that will strengthen the Social Security system as Graham and others claim.

The Social Security Administration's most recent estimate says the system will become insolvent in 2033. Under the Gang bill, according to Goss' estimate, even with all those new immigrants paying taxes, the system will become insolvent in 2035. Not much difference there. And after that, when the immigrants hit retirement age and begin collecting benefits, they will increase Social Security's deficit.

Of course, the immigrants will have children, who will also pay into the system. Put it all together, according to Goss, and immigration reform will add about $2 trillion in tax revenues in the next 75 years, while costing about $1.5 trillion in benefits. That's a net plus, but not much of a boon, since it is stretched out over more than seven decades -- and certainly not when one considers the tendency of federal programs to grow in cost.

So even with reform, the nation's entitlement programs are on as shaky ground as before.

Well, it helps a little. Why be niggardly about it? (Via Instapundit.)

Pamela Geller Smacks Down Michael Ghouse on Hannity's

At Atlas Shrugs, "HANNITY VIDEO: PAMELA GELLER V. MICHAEL GHOUSE SMACK DOWN DEBATE ON EGYPT / MORSI SITUATION."

Ecuador's Second Thoughts on #Snowden

That idiot Snowden's getting hung out to dry.

At the Guardian UK, "Rafael Correa not considering Snowden asylum: helping him was a 'mistake'."

And two videos, "Snowden asylum "economic suicide" for Ecuador," and "US warns Ecuador over Snowden case."

And at WikiLeaks, "Statement from Edward Snowden in Moscow." (Via Memeorandum.)

Obama Urges Morsi to Be 'Responsive' to Protesters

At Fox News:

President Obama has urged Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi to respond to issues raised by hundreds of thousands of protesters who have called for the Islamist leader to be removed from office.

The White House released a statement Tuesday saying that Obama told Morsi in a telephone conversation Monday that "the United States is committed to the democratic process in Egypt and does not support any single party or group." The statement went on to say that Obama "encouraged [Morsi] to take steps to show that he is responsive to [protesters'] concerns, and underscored that the current crisis can only be resolved through a political process."

The call from Obama came on the same day that Egypt's powerful military warned it will intervene if Morsi doesn't "meet the people's demands," giving him and his opponents two days to reach an agreement in what it called a last chance. Hundreds of thousands of protesters massed for a second consecutive day Monday calling on Morsi to step down.

Continue reading.

Is America Ready to End Prohibition?

Kennedy explains how beer sales remain so highly regulated in the U.S.

Arizona Firefighters Lacked Proper Escape Route

At LAT:

The 19 wildland firefighters killed in Arizona appeared not to have established an escape route to a safe site large enough for the entire group, a forestry official said Monday.

Safety protocols require crews to have a place to go in case fire overtakes them. That did not happen in the Yarnell Hill fire Sunday. The bodies of 19 members of the Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshot Crew were found in or near their emergency fire shelters, leading officials to believe they were overrun by the wind-driven flames.

"Obviously it wasn't a big enough open field … if they had to deploy their shelters," said Art Morrison, a spokesman with the Arizona State Forestry Division.

"They were too close to heavy fuels, so they got overrun," he said.

Being overtaken by a fire you are striving to extinguish is a firefighter's worst nightmare, but it is not uncommon: Of the more than 1,000 fatalities among wildland firefighters since 1910, about 63% occurred during "burnover," when a fire front engulfed crews.

On Sunday, the grass fire had run through half of the Arizona town of Yarnell when the unpredictable winds shifted. About 4:30 p.m., fire managers lost radio contact with the crew.

The firefighters had been cutting lines at the front of the fire, the most perilous place to be, officials said. Placing a crew at the head of a fire is a rare tactic.

Continue reading.

More at the Arizona Republic, "Yarnell Hill Fire: Seeking answers in wake of tragedy."

Also, "Yarnell Hill Fire: In small town, 'it affects every single person'," and "Yarnell Hill Fire: Fallen firefighters were in prime of their lives."

VIDEO ABOVE: "2008: Firefighters trapped in 'burnover' find safety in their emergency shelters."

Added: At WSJ, "Sudden Turn in Flames Doomed Firefighters: Officials Say 19 'Granite Mountain Hotshots' Were Killed in Burn Over; Arizona Blaze Still Raging."

Obama Looks to Limit Damage Over EU Bugging

At Guardian UK, "Barack Obama seeks to limit EU fallout over US spying claims."

President says NSA will assess espionage allegations as France and Germany demand answers and warn of delay to trade talks.

Barack Obama has sought to limit the damage from the growing transatlantic espionage row after Germany and France denounced the major snooping activities of US agencies and warned of a possible delay in the launch next week of ambitious free-trade talks between Europe and the US.

The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, and French president, François Hollande, demanded quick explanations from Washington about disclosures by the Guardian and Der Spiegel that US agencies bugged European embassies and offices. Berlin stressed there had to be mutual trust if trade talks were to go ahead in Washington on Monday.

Hollande went further, indicating the talks could be called off unless the alleged spying was stopped immediately and US guarantees were provided.

The diplomatic row came as Edward Snowden – the fugitive National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower, who faces espionage charges in the US and is holed up in Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport – applied for asylum in Russia. Snowdenhe used his first public statement to attack the US for revoking his passport and accused it of bullying countries that might grant him asylum.

Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, said on Monday: "If he wants to go somewhere and someone will take him, go ahead. If he wants to stay here, there is one condition – he must stop his work aimed at bringing harm to our American partners, as strange as that sounds coming from my mouth. "Russia never gives anyone up and doesn't plan to give anyone up. And no one has ever given us anyone."

Continue reading.