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WATCH: Hero Reporter, Crewman Facilitate Saving of Man’s Life in Houston

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Journalists Aren’t Enemies of the American People

Donald Trump has frequently attacked the media, from the campaign trail on, labeling news he finds unfavorable as “fake” and going so far as to insist that the free press was the “enemy of the American People.”

But while the President of the United States may believe that, one reporter has proven it untrue. As fallout from Hurricane Harvey continues in Houston, with rainfall that could reach the highest levels ever recorded in Texas, KHOU 11 reporter Brandi Smith and photographer Mario Sandoval have used their roles in the media to facilitate the saving of one man’s life.

According to the KHOU, Smith and Sandoval were covering the catastrophe on the local Beltway 8, near a toll road, when they saw a flooded truck with a man inside. The reporter urged the man, which the station identified as Robert, not to try and swim to safety.

When a Harris County Sheriff truck towing a boat drove by, Smith flagged the truck down and alerted the authorities that the truck driver needed assistance. Some of the exchange can be seen below:

That astounding moment was captured on the air, seen below:

As The Daily Beast reported:

“There is water filling his cab and I’m trying not to break your eardrums as I scream,” Smith told viewers as she beckoned down to the driver. “Sir, there is a boat here!”

As the sheriff’s officials prepared to put their boat in the water, one of them told Smith that a truck driver in the same location last year died when he was stranded in flood waters.

“We had to dive for him because he passed away and went underwater,” he said.

“Sir, they’re putting the boat in just now! They are on their way!” Smith yelled.

She turned back to viewers, her voice cracking. “I cannot imagine how terrifying it would be to be in that place right now. Put yourself in that place: your car is filling with water. Help is on the way, he is incredibly lucky.”

“I just thank God that you guys were right here to get me and put me back on land safely,” Robert told Smith and the deputies, KHOU reported. “I appreciate you.”

Information about helping those in Houston—or getting help if you’re in Houston—can be found here.

To comment on this article and other NCRM content, visit our Facebook page.

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Republican Says Trump on Immigration Could Be Like Lincoln Was for Slavery

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U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) is calling on President Donald Trump to support her bipartisan bill that would grant temporary legal status to undocumented immigrants, allowing them to remain in the United States. On immigration, Congresswoman Salazar says Trump could be just like Reagan was for communism or Lincoln was for slavery.

“There’s no way we can grow as a country and continue being the number one economy in the world if we don’t have hands,” Salazar said, referring to immigrant workers. “So let’s be intelligent. Let’s just bring them out of the shadows, make them pay—something that they’re not paying right now. Make them pay a fine, no federal programs, and they can go home for business, and they can buy a home.”

Her plan, the Dignity Act, would not provide amnesty or a path to citizenship. But, she says, it “offers a strong, commonsense approach and focused on putting American interests first.”

READ MORE: ‘Go Home’: Noem Tells Farmers to Help Their Undocumented Workers ‘Self Deport’

Salazar praised President Trump, saying with his so-called One Big beautiful Bill, “the economy is going to gonna burst, just like it happened in 2019.”

“I go back to the president. The president is the guy who can make this happen. There is no other president like Trump. Look what he did with Iran. Look what he did Venezuela, with China.”

“So I have no doubt, I have faith that he could be for immigration, what Lincoln was for slavery, and Reagan was for communism.”

Critics blasted Salazar’s comparisons.

“Rep. Salazar has used this line a few times and while I understand what she *means* to say I respectfully submit that she has not thought through the implications of what she *actually* said,” remarked attorney Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council. He added: “hint: Reagan was not good for Communism and Lincoln was not good for slavery.”

“Maria Salazar comparing Trump to Lincoln on slavery and Reagan on communism is beyond absurd,” wrote investment banker Evaristus Odinikaeze. “Lincoln fought to end human bondage. Reagan opposed totalitarian regimes. Trump put kids in cages, demonized immigrants, and ran on fear, not freedom. History will remember the difference. Seems like she meant to compare Trump to Nixon, not Lincoln.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: Trump Appears to Forget He Appointed Fed Chair — Denies Rumors He May Fire Him

 

 

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‘Go Home’: Noem Tells Farmers to Help Their Undocumented Workers ‘Self Deport’

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U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem has a blunt message for undocumented farmworkers: “Go home.” She’s urging farmers to assist in the process—by helping those workers “self-deport.”

“I would encourage everybody,” Secretary Noem said on Wednesday, “if people are here in this country illegally, go home.”

“I mean, the law is the law, and we are upholding the law, and, the President is very clear that he doesn’t believe that the law should apply to some people and not to others—that there should be consequences for some people and not for others,” she said.

President Donald Trump has said that he and his administration are working on a plan to help farmers keep their undocumented workers, many of whom, he said, are “almost impossible to replace.” Trump suggested some form of sponsorship might be possible in the future, where farmers would be responsible for their workers who are undocumented.

READ MORE: Trump Appears to Forget He Appointed Fed Chair — Denies Rumors He May Fire Him

Noem said that every undocumented person, including the undocumented farm workers—has “the opportunity right now to self deport.”

“We will buy their plane ticket and when they land, they will be able to get $1,000 in their hand to care for their families, and they get the chance to come back, she claimed. Federal law places bans on some of those trying to return, in some cases for up to ten years.

“And so, that’s what I think is so remarkable, is that we will let them come back the right way, and we’re facilitating that today,” she insisted.  “So every individual that’s here in this country that’s concerned, or every farmer out there that has somebody that’s working for them, that’s concerned, you know, you know, work with getting them home, so they can come back and get in the right way.”

READ MORE: ‘Divine Providence’: Johnson Paints Trump as ‘Miraculously’ Spared by God

Jeremy Konyndyk is the president of Refugees International.

He says, “Farmers face financial ruin over deportations.”

Noem’s “claim that people can ‘come back’ after self-deporting is ludicrous on its face,” Konyndyk adds. “Why then deport in the first place? And in any case, that does nothing for farmers who need crops picked NOW.”

President Donald Trump’s favorability on immigration continues to drop. What was once among his most positive categories now has him underwater.

“About half (52%) of Americans think that Trump’s approach to immigration policy is too harsh; 36% think it is about right and 7% think it is too soft,” according to a YouGov poll report published Tuesday. “At the start of Trump’s term, significantly fewer — 40% — thought his approach to immigration was too harsh; 43% thought it was about right and 4% said it was too soft. The largest shift has been among Independents: 57% currently think Trump’s approach is too harsh, up from 36% in January.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘Popping Champagne’: Russia Scoffs, Snubs Trump’s 100% Tariff Ultimatum

 

Image via Reuters

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Trump Appears to Forget He Appointed Fed Chair — Denies Rumors He May Fire Him

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President Donald Trump is denying multiple reports that he intends to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, even as he continues to criticize him and express frustration over the Fed’s refusal to cut interest rates to the levels he has demanded. The Federal Reserve is an independent central bank, and the President has no legal authority to dictate its actions. On Wednesday, Trump criticized Powell, appeared to forget that he appointed him, and blamed President Joe Biden for his nomination.

Should Trump attempt to fire Powell, it would be an unprecedented move. The U.S. Supreme Court has indicated there are limits to the President’s authority to remove Fed officials.

On Tuesday evening, in a meeting with Republican lawmakers, Trump asked their opinion of firing Powell, whom he nominated in late 2017. Powell was renominated by President Joe Biden in 2021. The chairman of the Federal Reserve serves four-year terms, and Powell’s expires next year.

READ MORE: ‘Loathsome’: Fox Host’s ‘What Up, My Nazi?’ Rant Slammed by Civil Rights Icon

“The President asked lawmakers how they felt about firing the Fed Chair. They expressed approval for firing him. The President indicated he likely will soon,” a senior White House official told CNBC, NBC News reported.

“A recent Supreme Court decision indicated that the president does not have the authority to remove Fed officials at will,” NBC also reported.

But CNBC later reported that Trump denies he plans to fire Powell.

“We’re not planning on doing it,” he said. “It’s highly unlikely.”

Minutes ago, in the Oval Office, Trump appeared to forget he had been the first to nominate Powell as Fed chair. He told reporters that Powell is a “terrible Fed chair,” and he was surprised he had even been appointed. Trump added, “I was surprised, frankly, that Biden put him in and extended him.”

Responding to the video (below) the House Ways and Means Democrats asked, “Did he forget?”

U.S. Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH) wrote: “Legit question, does he have memory issues? Or does he remember but doesn’t want people to know that this is his fed chair? I just want a normal leader in this job….”

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘Divine Providence’: Johnson Paints Trump as ‘Miraculously’ Spared by God

Image via Reuters

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