I WILL VOTE TO CONFIRM JUDGE KAVANAUGH - SUSAN COLLINS

"Mr. President, the five previous times that I have come to the floor to explain my vote on the nomination of a justice to the United States Supreme Court, I have begun my floor remarks explaining my decision with a recognition of the solemn nature and the importance of the occasion.

But today we have come to the conclusion of a confirmation process that has become so dysfunctional it looks more like a caricature of a gutter-level political campaign than a solemn occasion.

The President nominated Brett Kavanaugh on July 9th. Within moments of that announcement, special interest groups raced to be the first to oppose him, including one organization that didn’t even bother to fill in the Judge’s name on its pre-written press release – they simply wrote that they opposed “Donald Trump’s nomination of XX to the Supreme Court of the United States.” A number of Senators joined the race to announce their opposition, but they were beaten to the punch by one of our colleagues who actually announced opposition before the nominee’s identity was even known.

Since that time, we have seen special interest groups whip their followers into a frenzy by spreading misrepresentations and outright falsehoods about Judge Kavanaugh’s judicial record. Over-the-top rhetoric and distortions of his record and testimony at his first hearing produced short-lived headlines which, although debunked hours later, continue to live on and be spread through social media. Interest groups have also spent an unprecedented amount of dark money opposing this nomination.

Our Supreme Court confirmation process has been in steady decline for more than thirty years. One can only hope that the Kavanaugh nomination is where the process has finally hit rock bottom.

Against this backdrop, it is up to each individual Senator to decide what the Constitution’s “advice and consent” duty means. Informed by Alexander Hamilton’s Federalist 76, I have interpreted this to mean that the President has broad discretion to consider a nominee’s philosophy, whereas my duty as a Senator is to focus on the nominee’s qualifications as long as that nominee’s philosophy is within the mainstream of judicial thought.

I have always opposed litmus tests for judicial nominees with respect to their personal views or politics, but I fully expect them to be able to put aside any and all personal preferences in deciding the cases that come before them. I have never considered the President’s identity or party when evaluating Supreme Court nominations. As a result, I voted in favor of Justices Roberts and Alito, who were nominated by President Bush, Justices Sotomayor and Kagan, who were nominated by President Obama, and Justice Gorsuch, who was nominated by President Trump.

So I began my evaluation of Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination by reviewing his 12-year record on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, including his more than 300 opinions and his many speeches and law review articles. Nineteen attorneys, including lawyers from the non-partisan Congressional Research Service, briefed me many times each week and assisted me in evaluating the judge’s extensive record. I met with Judge Kavanaugh for more than two hours in my office. I listened carefully to the testimony at the Committee hearings. I spoke with people who knew him personally, such as Condoleezza Rice and many others. And, I talked with Judge Kavanaugh a second time by phone for another hour to ask him very specific additional questions.

I have also met with thousands of my constituents, both advocates and many opponents, regarding Judge Kavanaugh. One concern that I frequently heard was that Judge Kavanaugh would be likely to eliminate the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) vital protections for people with preexisting conditions. I disagree with this contention. In a dissent in Seven-Sky v. Holder, Judge Kavanaugh rejected a challenge to the ACA on narrow procedural grounds, preserving the law in full. Many experts have said his dissent informed Justice Roberts’ opinion upholding the ACA at the Supreme Court.

Furthermore, Judge Kavanaugh’s approach toward the doctrine of severability is narrow. When a part of a statute is challenged on constitutional grounds, he has argued for severing the invalid clause as surgically as possible while allowing the overall law to remain intact.

This was his approach in his dissent in a case that involved a challenge to the structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (PPH v. CFPB). In his dissent, Judge Kavanaugh argued for “severing any problematic portions while leaving the remainder intact.” Given the current challenges to the ACA, proponents, including myself, of protections for people with pre-existing conditions should want a Justice who would take just this kind of approach.

Another assertion I have heard often is that Judge Kavanaugh cannot be trusted if a case involving alleged wrongdoing by the President were to come before the Court. The basis for this argument seems to be two-fold. First, Judge Kavanaugh has written that he believes that Congress should enact legislation to protect presidents from criminal prosecution or civil liability while in office. Mr. President, I believe opponents miss the mark on this issue. The fact that Judge Kavanaugh offered this legislative proposal suggests that he believes that the President does not have such protection currently.

Second, there are some who argue that given the current Special Counsel investigation, President Trump should not even be allowed to nominate a justice. That argument ignores our recent history. President Clinton, in 1993, nominated Justice Ginsburg after the Whitewater investigation was already underway. And she was confirmed 96-3. The next year, just three months after Independent Counsel Robert Fiske was named to lead the Whitewater investigation, President Clinton nominated Justice Breyer. He was confirmed 87-9.

Supreme Court Justices have not hesitated to rule against the presidents who have nominated them. Perhaps most notably in United States v. Nixon, three Nixon appointees who heard the case joined the unanimous opinion against him.

Judge Kavanaugh has been unequivocal in his belief that no president is above the law. He has stated that Marbury v. Madison, Youngstown Steel v. Sawyer and United States v. Nixon are three of the four greatest Supreme Court cases in history. What do they have in common? Each of them is a case where the Court served as a check on presidential power. And I would note that the fourth case that Judge Kavanaugh has pointed to as the greatest in history was Brown v Board of Education.

One Kavanaugh decision illustrates the point about the check on presidential power directly. He wrote the opinion in Hamdan v. United States, a case that challenged the Bush Administration’s military commission prosecution of an associate of Osama Bin Laden. This conviction was very important to the Bush Administration, but Judge Kavanaugh, who had been appointed to the DC Circuit by President Bush and had worked in President Bush’s White House, ruled that the conviction was unlawful. As he explained during the hearing, “We don’t make decisions based on who people are, or their policy preferences, or the moment. We base decisions on the law….”

Others I met with have expressed concerns that Justice Kennedy’s retirement threatens the right of same sex couples to marry. Yet, Judge Kavanaugh described the Obergefell decision, which legalized same gender marriages, as an important landmark precedent. He also cited Justice Kennedy’s recent Masterpiece Cakeshop opinion for the Court’s majority stating that: “The days of treating gay and lesbian Americans or gay and lesbian couples as second-class citizens who are inferior in dignity and worth are over in the Supreme Court.”

Others have suggested that the judge holds extreme views on birth control. In one case, Judge Kavanaugh incurred the disfavor of both sides of the political spectrum for seeking to ensure the availability of contraceptive services for women while minimizing the involvement of employers with religious objections. Although his critics frequently overlook this point, Judge Kavanaugh’s dissent rejected arguments that the government did not have a compelling interest in facilitating access to contraception. In fact, he wrote that the Supreme Court precedent “strongly suggested” that there was a “compelling interest” in facilitating access to birth control.

There has also been considerable focus on the future of abortion rights based on the concern that Judge Kavanaugh would seek to overturn Roe v. Wade. Protecting this right is important to me.

To my knowledge, Judge Kavanaugh is the first Supreme Court nominee to express the view that precedent is not merely a practice and tradition, but rooted in Article III of our Constitution itself. He believes that precedent “is not just a judicial policy … it is constitutionally dictated to pay attention and pay heed to rules of precedent.” In other words, precedent isn’t a goal or an aspiration; it is a constitutional tenet that has to be followed except in the most extraordinary circumstances.

The judge further explained that precedent provides stability, predictability, reliance, and fairness. There are, of course, rare and extraordinary times where the Supreme Court would rightly overturn a precedent. The most famous example was when the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education overruled Plessy v. Ferguson, correcting a “grievously wrong” decision--to use the judge’s term--allowing racial inequality. But, someone who believes that the importance of precedent has been rooted in the Constitution would follow long-established precedent except in those rare circumstances where a decision is “grievously wrong” or “deeply inconsistent with the law.” Those are Judge Kavanaugh’s phrases.

As Judge Kavanaugh asserted to me, a long-established precedent is not something to be trimmed, narrowed, discarded, or overlooked. Its roots in the Constitution give the concept of stare decisis greater weight such that precedent can’t be trimmed or narrowed simply because a judge might want to on a whim. In short, his views on honoring precedent would preclude attempts to do by stealth that which one has committed not to do overtly.

Noting that Roe v. Wade was decided 45 years ago, and reaffirmed 19 years later in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, I asked Judge Kavanaugh whether the passage of time is relevant to following precedent. He said decisions become part of our legal framework with the passage of time and that honoring precedent is essential to maintaining public confidence.

Our discussion then turned to the right of privacy, on which the Supreme Court relied in Griswold v. Connecticut, a case that struck down a law banning the use and sale of contraceptives. Griswold established the legal foundation that led to Roe eight years later. In describing Griswold as “settled law,” Judge Kavanaugh observed that it was the correct application of two famous cases from the 1920s, Meyer and Pierce, that are not seriously challenged by anyone today. Finally, in his testimony, he noted repeatedly that Roe had been upheld by Planned Parenthood v. Casey, describing it as “precedent on precedent.” When I asked him would it be sufficient to overturn a long-established precedent if five current justices believed it was wrongly decided, he emphatically said “no.”

Opponents frequently cite then-candidate Donald Trump’s campaign pledge to nominate only judges who would overturn Roe. The Republican platform for all presidential campaigns has included this pledge since at least 1980. During this time, Republican presidents have appointed Justices O’Connor, Souter, and Kennedy to the Supreme Court. These are the very three justices—Republican president appointed justices—who authored the Casey decision, which reaffirmed Roe. Furthermore, pro-choice groups vigorously opposed each of these justices’ nominations. Incredibly, they even circulated buttons with the slogan “Stop Souter Or Women Will Die!” Just two years later, Justice Souter coauthored the Casey opinion, reaffirming a woman’s right to choose. Suffice it to say, prominent advocacy organizations have been wrong.

These same interest groups have speculated that Judge Kavanaugh was selected to do the bidding of conservative ideologues, despite his record of judicial independence. I asked the judge point blank whether he had made any commitments or pledges to anyone at the White House, to the Federalist Society, or to any outside group on how he would decide cases. He unequivocally assured me he had not.

Judge Kavanaugh has received rave reviews for his 12-year track record as a judge, including for his judicial temperament. The American Bar Association (ABA) gave him its highest possible rating. Its Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary conducted an extraordinarily thorough assessment, soliciting input from almost 500 people, including his judicial colleagues. The ABA concluded that “his integrity, judicial temperament, and professional competence met the highest standard.”

Lisa Blatt, who has argued more cases before the Supreme Court than any other woman in history, testified: “By any objective measure, Judge Kavanaugh is clearly qualified to serve on the Supreme Court.” “His opinions are invariably thoughtful and fair….” Ms. Blatt, who clerked for and is an ardent admirer of Justice Ginsburg, and who is, in her own words, “an unapologetic defender of a woman’s right to choose,” said that Judge Kavanaugh “fit[s] in the mainstream of legal thought.” She also observed that “Judge Kavanaugh is remarkably committed to promoting women in the legal profession.”

That Judge Kavanaugh is more of a centrist than some of his critics maintain is reflected in the fact that he and Chief Judge Merrick Garland voted the same way in 93 percent of the cases that they heard together. Indeed, Chief Judge Garland joined in more than 96 percent of the majority opinions authored by Judge Kavanaugh, dissenting only once.

Despite all this, after weeks of reviewing Judge Kavanaugh’s record and listening to 32 hours of his testimony, the Senate’s advice and consent role was thrown into a tailspin following the allegations of sexual assault by Professor Christine Blasey Ford. The confirmation process now involves evaluating whether or not Judge Kavanaugh committed sexual assault, and lied about it to the Judiciary Committee.

Some argue that because this is a lifetime appointment to our highest court, the public interest requires that doubts be resolved against the nominee. Others see the public interest as embodied in our long-established tradition of affording to those accused of misconduct a presumption of innocence. In cases in which the facts are unclear, they would argue that the question should be resolved in favor of the nominee.

Mr. President, I understand both viewpoints. This debate is complicated further by the fact that the Senate confirmation process is not a trial. But certain fundamental legal principles—about due process, the presumption of innocence, and fairness—do bear on my thinking, and I cannot abandon them.

In evaluating any given claim of misconduct, we will be ill served in the long run if we abandon the presumption of innocence and fairness, tempting though it may be. We must always remember that it is when passions are most inflamed that fairness is most in jeopardy.

The presumption of innocence is relevant to the advice and consent function when an accusation departs from a nominee’s otherwise exemplary record. I worry that departing from this presumption could lead to a lack of public faith in the judiciary and would be hugely damaging to the confirmation process moving forward.

Some of the allegations levied against Judge Kavanaugh illustrate why the presumption of innocence is so important. I am thinking in particular not of the allegations raised by Professor Ford, but of the allegation that, when he was a teenager, Judge Kavanaugh drugged multiple girls and used their weakened state to facilitate gang rape. This outlandish allegation was put forth without any credible supporting evidence and simply parroted public statements of others. That such an allegation can find its way into the Supreme Court confirmation process is a stark reminder about why the presumption of innocence is so ingrained in our American consciousness.

Mr. President, I listened carefully to Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony before the Judiciary Committee. I found her testimony to be sincere, painful, and compelling. I believe that she is a survivor of a sexual assault and that this trauma has upended her life. Nevertheless, the four witnesses she named could not corroborate any of the events of that evening gathering where she says the assault occurred; none of the individuals Professor Ford says were at the party has any recollection at all of that night.

Judge Kavanaugh forcefully denied the allegations under penalty of perjury. Mark Judge denied under penalty of felony that he had witnessed an assault. PJ Smyth, another person allegedly at the party, denied that he was there under penalty of felony. Professor Ford’s life-long friend Leland Keyser indicated that, under penalty of felony, she does not remember that party. And Ms. Keyser went further. She indicated that not only does she not remember a night like that, but also that she does not even know Brett Kavanaugh.

In addition to the lack of corroborating evidence, we also learned some facts that raised more questions. For instance, since these allegations have become public, Professor Ford testified that not a single person has contacted her to say, “I was at the party that night.”

Furthermore, the professor testified that although she does not remember how she got home that evening, she knew that, because of the distance, she would have needed a ride – yet not a single person has come forward to say that they were the one that drove her home or were in the car with her that night. And Professor Ford also indicated that even though she left that small gathering of six or so people abruptly and without saying goodbye and distraught, none of them called her the next day – or ever – to ask why she left – is she okay – not even her closest friend, Ms. Keyser.

Mr. President, the Constitution does not provide guidance as to how we are supposed to evaluate these competing claims. It leaves that decision up to each Senator. This is not a criminal trial, and I do not believe that claims such as these need to be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. Nevertheless, fairness would dictate that the claims at least should meet a threshold of “more likely than not” as our standard.

The facts presented do not mean that Professor Ford was not sexually assaulted that night – or at some other time – but they do lead me to conclude that the allegations fail to meet the “more likely than not” standard. Therefore, I do not believe that these charges can fairly prevent Judge Kavanaugh from serving on the Court.

Let me emphasize that my approach to this question should not be misconstrued as suggesting that unwanted sexual contact of any nature is not a serious problem in this country. To the contrary, if any good at all has come from this ugly confirmation process, it has been to create an awareness that we have underestimated the pervasiveness of this terrible problem.

I have been alarmed and disturbed, however, by some who have suggested that unless Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination is rejected, the Senate is somehow condoning sexual assault. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Every person—man or woman--who makes a charge of sexual assault deserves to be heard and treated with respect. The #MeToo movement is real. It matters. It is needed. And it is long overdue. We know that rape and sexual assault are less likely to be reported to the police than other forms of assault. On average, an estimated 211,000 rapes and sexual assaults go unreported every year. We must listen to survivors, and every day we must seek to stop the criminal behavior that has hurt so many. We owe this to ourselves, our children, and generations to come.

Since the hearing, I have listened to many survivors of sexual assault. Many were total strangers who told me their heart-wrenching stories for the first time in their lives. Some were friends I have known for decades, yet with the exception of one woman who had confided in me years ago, I had no idea that they had been the victims of sexual attacks. I am grateful for their courage and their willingness to come forward, and I hope that in heightening public awareness, they have also lightened the burden that they have been quietly bearing for so many years. To them, I pledge to do all that I can to ensure that their daughters and granddaughters never share their experiences.

Over the past few weeks, I have been emphatic that the Senate has an obligation to investigate and evaluate the serious allegations of sexual assault. I called for and supported the additional hearing to hear from both Professor Ford and Judge Kavanaugh. I also pushed for and supported the FBI supplemental background investigation. This was the right thing to do.

Christine Ford never sought the spotlight. She indicated that she was terrified to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee, and she has shunned attention since then. She seemed completely unaware of Chairman Grassley’s offer to allow her to testify confidentially in California. Watching her, Mr. President, I could not help but feel that some people who wanted to engineer the defeat of this nomination cared little, if at all, for her well-being.

Professor Ford testified that a very limited number of people had access to her letter. Yet that letter found its way into the public domain. She testified that she never gave permission for that very private letter to be released. And yet, here we are. We are in the middle of a fight that she never sought, arguing about claims that she wanted to raise confidentially.

One theory I have heard espoused repeatedly is that our colleague, Senator Feinstein, leaked Professor Ford’s letter at the eleventh hour to derail this process. I want to state this very clearly: I know Senator Diane Feinstein extremely well, and I believe that she would never do that. I knew that to be the case before she even stated it at the hearing. She is a person of integrity, and I stand by her.

I have also heard some argue that the Chairman of the Committee somehow treated Professor Ford unfairly. Nothing could be further from the truth. Chairman Grassley, along with his excellent staff, treated Professor Ford with compassion and respect throughout the entire process. And that is the way the Senator from Iowa has conducted himself throughout a lifetime dedicated to public service.

But the fact remains, Mr. President, that someone leaked this letter against Professor Ford’s express wishes. I suspect, regrettably, that we will never know for certain who did it. To that leaker, who I hope is listening now, let me say that what you did was unconscionable. You have taken a survivor who was not only entitled to your respect, but who also trusted you to protect her – and you have sacrificed her well-being in a misguided attempt to win whatever political crusade you think you are fighting. My only hope is that your callous act has turned this process into such a dysfunctional circus that it will cause the Senate – and indeed all Americans – to reconsider how we evaluate Supreme Court nominees. If that happens, then the appalling lack of compassion you afforded Professor Ford will at least have some unintended positive consequences.

Mr. President, the politically charged atmosphere surrounding this nomination had reached a fever pitch even before these allegations were known, and it has been challenging even then to separate fact from fiction.

We live in a time of such great disunity, as the bitter fight over this nomination both in the Senate and among the public clearly demonstrates. It is not merely a case of different groups having different opinions. It is a case of people bearing extreme ill will toward those who disagree with them. In our intense focus on our differences, we have forgotten the common values that bind us together as Americans. When some of our best minds are seeking to develop ever more sophisticated algorithms designed to link us to websites that only reinforce and cater to our views, we can only expect our differences to intensify.

This would have alarmed the drafters of our Constitution, who were acutely aware that different values and interests could prevent Americans from becoming and remaining a single people. Indeed, of the six objectives they invoked in the preamble to the Constitution, the one that they put first was the formation of “a more perfect Union.”

Their vision of “a more perfect Union” does not exist today, and if anything, we appear to be moving farther away from it. It is particularly worrisome that the Supreme Court, the institution that most Americans see as the principal guardian of our shared constitutional heritage, is viewed as part of the problem through a political lens.

Mr. President, we’ve heard a lot of charges and counter charges about Judge Kavanaugh. But as those who have known him best have attested, he has been an exemplary public servant, judge, teacher, coach, husband, and father. Despite the turbulent, bitter fight surrounding his nomination, my fervent hope is that Brett Kavanaugh will work to lessen the divisions in the Supreme Court so that we have far fewer 5-4 decisions and so that public confidence in our Judiciary and our highest court is restored. Mr. President, I will vote to confirm Judge Kavanaugh."

WHAT STANDARD IS IT ANYWAY?

ICHEOKU says a man was accused of one of the most heinous crimes anyone can commit - sexual molestation of a woman. He wanted to defend himself, but was told that it is not a court case but public opinion; and that he should just lay back and take it. Also, that the criminal standard of "proof beyond reasonable doubt" does not apply in his case. 

ICHEOKU asks, is it that the accusation did not or will not damage the accused or that the alleged act is not a crime. Which of them made the criminal standard inapplicable? Put in another words, if not the reasonable doubt standard of proof, which other standard of proof is commensurate here. ICHEOKU says it is definitely a case of beating someone and asking him not to defend himself or protect himself and also, not to cry either. What a layered travesty of justice. If this is not lynching, what else qualifies; admitted Justice Thomas once faced a hi-tek lynching and survived it. ICHEOKU says hopefully too, Judge Brett Kavanaugh will also survive the bearing of false witness lynching. Confirm Kav NOW!

DANKWAMBO/WIKE 2019: THE ONLY PDP ASSURED ROUTE TO ASO ROCK.

ICHEOKU says an opportunity beckons for Nigerians, especially the youth of the country, to take back their country. It is so within grasp, that ICHEOKU can feel and taste it; but will "lazy" Nigerian youths take the bull by its horn and mission accomplish the objective. 

Unfortunately, they are busily occupied chasing shadows, with distracting lamentations about their plight under the Dracula of Daura, but without any concert on stopping the bleeding. They are wailing and pointing accusatory fingers at Aso Rock, but they have no working strategy to effectively go about sending the Dracula of Daura back to sender, to the people of the arid Daura, by supporting a duo who will indeed spell a revolutionary move. 

Nigeria's comatose state is real; a situation brought about by feckless lunacy of ineptitude, caused by some stone-age munchkins, who parade themselves as leaders, but who has no clue about what leadership really is all about. This band of humanoids who have successfully hijacked and bastardized Nigerians' common destiny must be stopped and now is the time to stop them. 

ICHEOKU is emphatic that short of drastically making a 180 degree turn, breaking the shackles of oppression, repression and corruption cannot be achieved and a people tired of living in bondage must rise up and take their country back. Luckily enough, two youthful, full of life, well educated personalities, with a can-do attitude are available, willing and able; and they are saying to Nigerians, please send us to go work for you. They are both governors and they have both managed Human Resources as well as economic resources of their various States and they can bring this experience to bear on the national stage. ICHEOKU therefore, heretofore, presents to the youths of Nigeria, Governors Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo and Nyesome Wike, of Gombe and Rivers States, as PDP presidential and vice presidential candidates for the Election 2019.

ICHEOKU says enough of the impetuosity of these old brigades and lack of counter offense by the youth of Nigeria. The old Methuselahs have had their fair shot at leadership and now headed to their respective graves, bus yield the center stage for the younger generation. They have no more incentive to make things better or in anyway improve the lot of Nigerians. Therefore, it is about time for the youth, whose future is still very much at stake, to, with their PVCs, says enough is enough and put an end to their misery. 

ICHEOKU knows such a takeover is possible, as it has happened in so many other countries of the world before, and can also flag mount itself in Nigeria. The only thing standing on the way is the indolence and thoughtless willful indifference of Nigerian youths, who lack focus and who allow themselves to be used by these band of old brigands, who does not know jack, but who has refused to yield the floor for those with superior knowledge and motive to improve the lot of Nigerians, to do what they can do best, take Nigeria to the next level. Governor Dankwambo and Governor Wike will do a fantastic job piloting the affairs of Nigeria and they can, working together, help realize the languishing dreams of millions of Nigerian youths, because they are part of them.

The time to end this lingering malaise in the hands of centurions who were born before Nigeria's independence has come and the time to hand over the reins of authority to able and competent hands, who were actually born Nigerians, post independence Nigeria, is NOW! The golden opportunity presented by the forthcoming Election 2019, with all the stars properly lined up in the constellation for Nigerians to make a real C-change, must not be missed. It must be  grabbed with both hands, with gratitude to the Almighty who made it possible and help put the rudders of the State in the hands of both Dankwambo and Wine and watch Nigeria sizzle. In this race for Aso Rock 2019, there is no other pair that truly represents the collective dream, desire and aspiration of the post independence generation of Nigerians, than the duo of Dankwambo and Wike.  In them, has most right thinking Nigerians found something which has been missing in all the past leaders and in them, have they decided to pitch their tent and have sworn to help push them across the finish line into Aso Rock in 2019. 

An opportunity has never lined up so well as this pair:- they are both youthful, well educated, with great poise, a can-do attitude, fighters of no mean repute, level headed, magisterial demeanor, the ability to mix well and mingle well, they can remain calm under oven pressure and they are not too afraid to fight the good fight, when needed. In them has some thoughtful Nigerians found the answer to the Buhari question and also the solution to the myriad of problems facing a Nigeria that is adrift and dangerously tethering at the edge of a precipitous cliff. Nigeria is not yet beyond salvage or too late to reel back and only this two persons, among the motley of scavengers waiting to devour Nigeria, led by the Crooked and Corrupt polygamist Abubakar Atiku, can it be get done. Governor Dankwambo and Governor Wike are the knights in shinning amour now charged in to help rescue Nigeria and give back the country to the youths, who owns it; and help breath back life giving oxygen to a Nigeria in coma.

A study has it that most abused people throughout the world are often somewhat complicit in their abuse. That somehow, by covert or overt conduct, especially through their docility, implicitly acquiesce in their abuse, wittingly or unwittingly. These abused people usually have some form of participation in their abuse in the hands of their abusers, and most times, they are oblivious of their enablement. Continuing, the study said that nobody would otherwise be abused if they are honed in, with their eyes clearly wide open and with the courage to say STOP. The late Dee Onunaka Samuel Mbakwe of the blessed memory, succinctly captured Nigerians death-inducing indifference, when he said that "oke adighi era ihe onye mu anya" (the rat does not eat a thing which belongs to someone who is wide awake.) But in Nigeria, it would appear that everyone is in an Adam-styled Eve making induced sleep and their sleep is now death or nearing the threshold of death; otherwise, why would they stay so hypnotized as the brazen rape of their country continues unabated. 

Such an affront to the general well being of the country, by these deviants, would not happen and if, not as repeatedly, if only Nigerian youths have a sense of self and conscious of the fact that their future is what these brigands are destroying with reckless abandon. Nigerian youths have been at the butt of the gun in Nigeria and for so long now, that they have somewhat lost their common destiny while staring vacantly and blankly and in stupor, as their future is fretted away. So, one would expect them to rise up now that another opportunity has presented itself to say enough, not any more; but will they? 2019 is definitely an opportunity to free themselves from the yokes of repeat abuse and take their country and their common destiny back and with their both hands. But instead, they are shouting themselves hoax with their lamentations of Sodom, concerning their abuse, but are not doing the needed needful, to free themselves from their yoked burden. 

Further, they are all agreed that the Dracula of Daura is a bad news and must be dispatched back to Daura, but are greatly disjointed on the best vehicle to achieve the objective. That some of them are even willing tools in the hands of these discredited leaders, including Abubakar Atiku, who regularly use them as thugs and political muscles to perpetually retain their stranglehold on them, only to later dump them by the wayside, is actually the biggest scandal here. When will Nigerians, especially the youths, who are the majority of the population, by concert and strategy, take their country back? But rather than cease such opportunity as 2019 presents, Nigerian youths are mortgaging their future by accepting misery sums as allowances from these fellas, for providing them with political muscles with which to rig themselves back into office and you wonder what is wrong with Nigerians. 

As the 2019 presidential election comes into focus, Nigerians are faced with choices as to who their next president will be and concomitantly, their vice president. Would the youths of Nigeria flock to two of their own fellow youths and empower them to lead them and their country out of their malaise and state of abandoned stupor. Can they seize on this opportunity to elect two youths, men born after independence, and who are highly qualified, literate and well prepared to lead from day one. Can Nigerian youths ever realize the urgency of the now which demands that Nigeria change course immediately and in order to survive and thrive. Can Nigerian youths realize that Nigeria has since been left behind in a world that has progressively moved into Artificial Intelligence era, while their grandpa President Muhammadu Buhari and his also grandpa Minister of Industries are busily manufacturing pencils, which are hardly used in this age of electronic pencils. Can Nigerian youths look hard to see that these old people leading them, who belong to old peoples homes, are simply analog and do not even know that a mouse is not the same thing as a rat. 

So how would Nigerian youths allow this pervasion to persist and continue to snatch their common fortune and destiny, when two people as supremely qualified and enlightened as Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo of Gombe State and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State are present, as the real alternative solution to the Nigerian problem and the answer to the Buhari question. ICHEOKU says Dankwambo and Wike are exactly the ones we have been waiting for, looking for, and longing for; all these years, and both Dankwambo and Wike should be empowered to do what they will do best for a Nigeria in trouble and tethering on the edge. 

The question then remains are Nigerians bewitched so much not to see what many analytical and discerning minds are seeing in this two partners for progress of Nigeria. ICHEOKU says except Nigerians are simply too stupefied, unfocused, distracted and not mission driven to know any better, Dankwambo and Wike should be the next president and vice president of Nigeria, respectively, come 2019. Nigerians must do right for and by themselves; and not allow the usual suspects to once again derail their common destiny; and because of hunger, fall victims to the little money thrown their way to induce them and otherwise purchase their votes, until the next election. Opportunity calls to correct the drift and Dankwambo and Wake are the tools which God wants to use to fix Nigeria. 

Whatever you do Nigerians, please do not allow Abubakar Atiku to purchase your votes. You are not prostitutes who have a price. Please learn to say no to these temporary misery inducements and look at the long term goal and remain focused on it. Doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different result, is insanity defined. Nigerians cannot continuously allow their votes to be purchased and expect that those purchasers, who have already paid them upfront, would worry about them once elected. In the alternative, please do not complain tomorrow when the same cycle of abuse continues as is expected under the same old men in power. Nobody treats a paid whore with respect and so do not make yourselves rats, to avoid the wrath of cats. Now is the time to correct the anomaly of these many decades, Dr Dankwambo and Barrister Wike are the it; so lets send them to Aso Rock and watch them do great things for Nigeria. They will make Nigeria work again and they will make Nigerians hopeful again, so lets send them to Aso Rock. Vote Dankwambo/Wike2019. #DANKWAMBO4PRESIDENT2019.

The PDP must therefore not destroy the current zeal of Nigerians to effect a change in Aso Rock and/or frustrate the determination of its patriotic members who had remained loyal to the party and dedicated their lives towards its ideals. Party patriots who ensured that the party survived the turmoils of the mass defections of 2014/15, led hugely in part by Abubakar Atiku and Bukola Saraki, must be rewarded for their courage under pressure. The right and proper thing for the PDP to do is to reward those faithfuls and assure them that loyalty still matters, and that candor and character are still the hallmarks of manhood. The party must not pawn up the PDP's presidential ticket to any of those political grasshoppers, who are always hovering around and hopping about, looking for where the heavy lifting have been completed for them to swoop down and reap what they did not sow. Many of them have defected back to the PDP, including Abubakar Atiku, just to snatch the presidential ticket. ICHEOKU says but not so fast and not so soon following their grass-hopping adventure back in the party. To allow them to reap where they did not labor will amount to encouraging stupid idiocy and discouraging fidelity; and that is exactly what armed robbers do. 

Such thoughtless act will amount to lack of morals, philosophy and ideology by the party.. Therefore the PDP's presidential ticket, let Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo have and together with Team Wike, Make Nigeria Hopeful Again. They will be the best thing to ever happen to Nigeria since the 1973 Udoji Award. Such a generational golden opportunity must not be fretted away, no matter the circumstance or subterfuge or deception by Abubakar Atiku and cohorts. Both men have a can-do spirit, they have a clear eyed vision and they are eagle's eye focused, on how to turn Nigeria around and headed it to the right direction. 

There is something special about the Team DanWike2019; and hopefully Nigerians will come around to share this observation, accept them and help make them the next occupants of Aso Rock. They are both healthy and there will not be absentee president or indecisive Vice President who feels like he is a son of the other; or in any other way, be spending untoward amounts of time in a London hospital and/or convalescing home. Nigerians will be glad indeed if they objectively assess this guys and entrust them with their leadership come 2019. President Dankwambo and Vice President Wike are loading, are you on board? Please help elect Dr Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo and Barrister Ezenwo Nyesome Wike, president and Vice President of Nigeria in 2019. #ElectDankwambo/Wike2019.

DR FORD: WHAT MOST LIKELY HAPPENED?

ICHEOKU says it is humanly impossible for two adverse parties to a case to be both telling the truth and therefore both credible as to the subject incident under contention. For one party to be right, the other party must, as is necessarily practicable, be wrong. This is the reason the parties assumed their adversarial positions and went to a third party to resolve it. But this time tested expectation, seems to have been defeated by the testimonies of Dr Christie Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Kavanaugh at their last Friday's testimonies before the Senate Judicial Committee in Washington DC. 

But for their testimonies to pass muster, it is either one of them is lying or telling half truth as a faded memory could afford them; or both of them are telling the truth, their versions of truth, albeit relatively and as their respective experiences provided them.

So, could it be a case of a mistaken identity by Dr. Ford or a case of no intent to molest by Judge Kavanaugh. Is it possible that it was just a case of two young teenage boys who were horse playing with an equally young teenage girl, but who later changed her mind to allege a molestation. If indeed the two boys wanted to actually molest or even rape the girl, they could have easily overpowered her, by physically restraining her, while they had their turns with her, but such a thing never happened. If one of the boys wanted to actually molest or rape the girl, why did he not lock the door, but left it open for the other guy to join them and continued to leave it open for the girl to later walk or "run" away into the bathroom where she allegedly hid from them. When she was "running" away from the room, why did the boys who wanted to "rape" her, not yank her back or blocked her passage, but they let her go, laughingly. Which shows that they were, if indeed anything like what she narrated took place, merely fooling around, devoid of any malicious intention. Even the fact that the three of them were all jumping into the bed at the same time, further evidences the play nature of the encounter and that it was nothing sexual.

But all these bases now been considered covered and for the sake of this discussion, assuming that an incident actually took place, is it possible that it was not as Dr Ford allegedly said it happened. Is it possible that her experience was not with Judge Kavanaugh, but with some other guy, who she cannot readily remember now and that she was cajoled into roping in the Judge, just to help the Democrats stop his confirmation. 

In America, stories abound of instances when a crime is committed and there is political pressure for the police to solve it. The police then goes out of its way to randomly arrest a black man, sometimes one with a criminal past, and then frame him up for the crime just to get the crime solved. So many of these guys were unfortunately executed and so many others are still languishing in various prisons for crimes which they did not commit; with many others since released following the activities of groups like the Innocence Project, etc based on the false testimony of an arranged or compromised witness. 

So, does such possibility exists in the matter of the current accusation of Judge Kavanaugh, no matter how remote or otherwise unattainable, it might seem. Is there a scintilla of possibility that it could have been the case; otherwise which rape or attempted rape victim would go so blank as to forget everything about the incident, except the identity of the accused person. She did not know the house or its address, the City, the year or month or day the alleged incident took place; and neither was she able to recollect how she got there or how she got home from there and she lived a fairly long distance from the place. It is fantastically strange that such a selective amnesia could be pulled off by someone, a psychologist with a PhD. Was she stage acting her ordeal, using her psychology training to confuse and deceive; and milk people's sympathy to her own advantage? 

ICHEOKU says there are simply a lot of things that either did not come out or are not known and hopefully, the FBI can abstract these things in order to exculpate the innocent and nab the lying party here. Something is not right and something is definitely smelling fishy, especially with Dr. Ford wiping off all her Social Media accounts and years long postings shortly before going public with the improbable story of her encounter in the hands of Judge Brett Kavanaugh. It is more likely than not that Dr. Ford did not tell the truth as to either what allegedly happened to her, the molestation, or the identity of the guilty party, Brett Kavanaugh. In the alternative, she could have experienced the incident, but in the hands of another fellow, who is not Bret Kavanaugh; but decided to become a willingly tool in the the hands of the Resistance Wing of the Democratic Party in their maddening attempt to frustrate his nomination. 

ICHEOKU does not wish to be in any of the tow parties' shoes, neither Dr Ford nor Judge Kavanaugh, because the both parties are not finding the current ruckus funny, not anymore.  But it is not right and it is condemnable, what the farthest to the far left wing nut jobs of the Democratic Party is forcing down the throats of real Americans; the silent majority, who are still waiting and watching these anarchists run amok. Hopefully they will recover their senses before they force the issue, resulting into a confrontation which they will never and can never win or recover from. However, ICHEOKU prays that the day never comes when the silent majority are forced to vent their pent up anger at these little fellows running around everywhere, confronting people who are having their dinner or simply going about their business. Enough of these nuisances and enough of invading peoples spaces. It is about time for these crazed out nut jobs to pull back and allow peace to once again reign in America. 

LINDSEY GRAHAM STEALS THE THUNDER: REINVENTED AND FULLY MAGA-NIZED.

ICHEOKU says it was a delight and indeed delightful to watch, as Senator Lindsey Graham finally shakes off whatever cobwebs that were holding him down and fully adorned his Republicanism conservatism and he shone like a Northern Star, of whose preeminence fix there is no one like him in the Senate Judicial Committee. He was alive, he was feisty and he was real and impassioned; and the country appreciates him and took notice. 

ICHEOKU says well done Senator Lindsey Graham, millions of the entire membership of Team MAGA appreciates and welcome you to the MAGA world integrated. Thank you for saving the day and helping Judge Kavanaugh get confirmed. Now, read excerpts of his fiery remarks.

"What you want to do is destroy this guy’s life, hold this seat open and hope you win in 2020. I would never do to them what you’ve done to this guy. This is the most unethical, sham since I’ve been in politics. If this becomes the new standard, where you have an accusation for weeks, you drop it right before the hearing, you withhold from the committee a chance to do this in a professional, timely fashion when they publicly say that their goal is to delay the vote … I don’t want to reward that kind of behavior. If that’s enough for you, God help us. This happens to us, it never happens to them. But let me talk to my Democratic friends: If this is the new norm, you better watch out for your nominees.

And if you really wanted to know the truth, you sure as hell wouldn’t have done what you’ve done to this guy. Boy, y’all want power. God, I hope you never get it. I hope the American people can see through this sham - — that you knew about it and you held it. You had no intention of protecting Dr. Ford. None. She’s as much of a victim as you are. God, I hate to say it because these have been my friends, but let me tell you when it comes to this. You’re looking for a fair process, you came to the wrong town at the wrong time my friend. 

To my Republican colleagues. If you vote no, you are legitimizing the most despicable thing I’ve ever seen in my time in politics. 

You want this seat, I hope you get it. I hope you are up at the Supreme Court that's exactly where you should be. I hope American people will see through this charade; and I wish you well and I intend to vote for you and I hope everybody who is fair minded, will." - Judge Brett Kavanaugh

AMERICA IS GOVERNED BY AMERICANS.

"In America, we believe in the majesty of freedom and the dignity of the individual. We believe in self-government and the rule of law. And we prize the culture that sustains our liberty -- a culture built on strong families, deep faith, and fierce independence. We celebrate our heroes, we treasure our traditions, and above all, we love our country." - PDJT

TRUMP AT THE UN: SAYS AMERICA IS GOVERNED BY AMERICANS.

"Madam President, Mr. Secretary-General, world leaders, ambassadors, and distinguished delegates:One year ago, I stood before you for the first time in this grand hall. I addressed the threats facing our world, and I presented a vision to achieve a brighter future for all of humanity. Today, I stand before the United Nations General Assembly to share the extraordinary progress we've made. In less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country. America's -- so true. Didn't expect that reaction, but that's okay. 

America's economy is booming like never before. Since my election, we've added $10 trillion in wealth. The stock market is at an all-time high in history, and jobless claims are at a 50-year low. African-American, Hispanic-American and Asian-American unemployment have all achieved their lowest levels ever recorded. We've added more than 4 million new jobs, including half a million manufacturing jobs. We have passed the biggest tax cuts and reforms in American history. We've started the construction of a major border wall, and we have greatly strengthened border security. We have secured record funding for our military -- $700 billion this year, and $716 billion next year. Our military will soon be more powerful than it has ever been before. In other words, the United States is stronger, safer, and a richer country than it was when I assumed office less than two years ago.

We are standing up for America and for the American people. And we are also standing up for the world. This is great news for our citizens and for peace-loving people everywhere. We believe that when nations respect the rights of their neighbors, and defend the interests of their people, they can better work together to secure the blessings of safety, prosperity, and peace. Each of us here today is the emissary of a distinct culture, a rich history, and a people bound together by ties of memory, tradition, and the values that make our homelands like nowhere else on Earth.

That is why America will always choose independence and cooperation over global governance, control, and domination. I honor the right of every nation in this room to pursue its own customs, beliefs, and traditions. The United States will not tell you how to live or work or worship. We only ask that you honor our sovereignty in return. From Warsaw to Brussels, to Tokyo to Singapore, it has been my highest honor to represent the United States abroad. I have forged close relationships and friendships and strong partnerships with the leaders of many nations in this room, and our approach has already yielded incredible change. 

With support from many countries here today, we have engaged with North Korea to replace the specter of conflict with a bold and new push for peace. In June, I traveled to Singapore to meet face to face with North Korea's leader, Chairman Kim Jong Un. We had highly productive conversations and meetings, and we agreed that it was in both countries' interest to pursue the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Since that meeting, we have already seen a number of encouraging measures that few could have imagined only a short time ago. The missiles and rockets are no longer flying in every direction. Nuclear testing has stopped. Some military facilities are already being dismantled. Our hostages have been released. And as promised, the remains of our fallen heroes are being returned home to lay at rest in American soil.

I would like to thank Chairman Kim for his courage and for the steps he has taken, though much work remains to be done. The sanctions will stay in place until denuclearization occurs. I also want to thank the many member states who helped us reach this moment -- a moment that is actually far greater than people would understand; far greater -- but for also their support and the critical support that we will all need going forward. A special thanks to President Moon of South Korea, Prime Minister Abe of Japan, and President Xi of China.

In the Middle East, our new approach is also yielding great strides and very historic change. Following my trip to Saudi Arabia last year, the Gulf countries opened a new center to target terrorist financing. They are enforcing new sanctions, working with us to identify and track terrorist networks, and taking more responsibility for fighting terrorism and extremism in their own region. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar have pledged billions of dollars to aid the people of Syria and Yemen. And they are pursuing multiple avenues to ending Yemen's horrible, horrific civil war. Ultimately, it is up to the nations of the region to decide what kind of future they want for themselves and their children. For that reason, the United States is working with the Gulf Cooperation Council, Jordan, and Egypt to establish a regional strategic alliance so that Middle Eastern nations can advance prosperity, stability, and security across their home region. 

Thanks to the United States military and our partnership with many of your nations, I am pleased to report that the bloodthirsty killers known as ISIS have been driven out from the territory they once held in Iraq and Syria. We will continue to work with friends and allies to deny radical Islamic terrorists any funding, territory or support, or any means of infiltrating our borders. 

The ongoing tragedy in Syria is heartbreaking. Our shared goals must be the de-escalation of military conflict, along with a political solution that honors the will of the Syrian people. In this vein, we urge the United Nations-led peace process be reinvigorated. But, rest assured, the United States will respond if chemical weapons are deployed by the Assad regime. I commend the people of Jordan and other neighboring countries for hosting refugees from this very brutal civil war. As we see in Jordan, the most compassionate policy is to place refugees as close to their homes as possible to ease their eventual return to be part of the rebuilding process. This approach also stretches finite resources to help far more people, increasing the impact of every dollar spent. 

Every solution to the humanitarian crisis in Syria must also include a strategy to address the brutal regime that has fueled and financed it: the corrupt dictatorship in Iran. Iran's leaders sow chaos, death, and destruction. They do not respect their neighbors or borders, or the sovereign rights of nations. Instead, Iran's leaders plunder the nation's resources to enrich themselves and to spread mayhem across the Middle East and far beyond. The Iranian people are rightly outraged that their leaders have embezzled billions of dollars from Iran's treasury, seized valuable portions of the economy, and looted the people's religious endowments, all to line their own pockets and send their proxies to wage war. Not good. Iran's neighbors have paid a heavy toll for the regime's agenda of aggression and expansion. That is why so many countries in the Middle East strongly supported my decision to withdraw the United States from the horrible 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal and reimpose nuclear sanctions. 

The Iran deal was a windfall for Iran's leaders. In the years since the deal was reached, Iran's military budget grew nearly 40 percent. The dictatorship used the funds to build nuclear-capable missiles, increase internal repression, finance terrorism, and fund havoc and slaughter in Syria and Yemen. The United States has launched a campaign of economic pressure to deny the regime the funds it needs to advance its bloody agenda. 

Last month, we began reimposing hard-hitting nuclear sanctions that had been lifted under the Iran deal. Additional sanctions will resume November 5, and more will follow. And we're working with countries that import Iranian crude oil to cut their purchases substantially. We cannot allow the world's leading sponsor of terrorism to possess the planet's most dangerous weapons. We cannot allow a regime that chants "death to America," and that threatens Israel with annihilation, to possess the means to deliver a nuclear warhead to any city on Earth. Just can't do it. We ask all nations to isolate Iran's regime as long as its aggression continues. And we ask all nations to support Iran's people as they struggle to reclaim their religious and righteous destiny. 

This year, we also took another significant step forward in the Middle East. In recognition of every sovereign state to determine its own capital, I moved the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. The United States is committed to a future of peace and stability in the region, including peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. That aim is advanced, not harmed, by acknowledging the obvious facts. America's policy of principled realism means we will not be held hostage to old dogmas, discredited ideologies, and so-called experts who have been proven wrong over the years, time and time again. This is true not only in matters of peace, but in matters of prosperity. We believe that trade must be fair and reciprocal. 

The United States will not be taken advantage of any longer. For decades, the United States opened its economy -- the largest, by far, on Earth -- with few conditions. We allowed foreign goods from all over the world to flow freely across our borders. Yet, other countries did not grant us fair and reciprocal access to their markets in return. Even worse, some countries abused their openness to dump their products, subsidize their goods, target our industries, and manipulate their currencies to gain unfair advantage over our country. As a result, our trade deficit ballooned to nearly $800 billion a year. For this reason, we are systematically renegotiating broken and bad trade deals. Last month, we announced a groundbreaking U.S.-Mexico trade agreement. And just yesterday, I stood with President Moon to announce the successful completion of the brand new U.S.- Korea trade deal. And this is just the beginning. 

Many nations in this hall will agree that the world trading system is in dire need of change. For example, countries were admitted to the World Trade Organization that violate every single principle on which the organization is based. While the United States and many other nations play by the rules, these countries use government-run industrial planning and state-owned enterprises to rig the system in their favor. They engage in relentless product dumping, forced technology transfer, and the theft of intellectual property. The United States lost over 3 million manufacturing jobs, nearly a quarter of all steel jobs, and 60,000 factories after China joined the WTO. And we have racked up $13 trillion in trade deficits over the last two decades. But those days are over. 

We will no longer tolerate such abuse. We will not allow our workers to be victimized, our companies to be cheated, and our wealth to be plundered and transferred. America will never apologize for protecting its citizens. The United States has just announced tariffs on another $200 billion in Chinese-made goods for a total, so far, of $250 billion. I have great respect and affection for my friend, President Xi, but I have made clear our trade imbalance is just not acceptable. China's market distortions and the way they deal cannot be tolerated. As my administration has demonstrated, America will always act in our national interest. 

I spoke before this body last year and warned that the U.N. Human Rights Council had become a grave embarrassment to this institution, shielding egregious human rights abusers while bashing America and its many friends. Our ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, laid out a clear agenda for reform, but despite reported and repeated warnings, no action at all was taken. So the United States took the only responsible course: We withdrew from the Human Rights Council, and we will not return until real reform is enacted. For similar reasons, the United States will provide no support in recognition to the International Criminal Court. As far as America is concerned, the ICC has no jurisdiction, no legitimacy, and no authority. The ICC claims near-universal jurisdiction over the citizens of every country, violating all principles of justice, fairness, and due process. We will never surrender America's sovereignty to an unelected, unaccountable, global bureaucracy. America is governed by Americans. 

We reject the ideology of globalism, and we embrace the doctrine of patriotism. Around the world, responsible nations must defend against threats to sovereignty not just from global governance, but also from other, new forms of coercion and domination. 

In America, we believe strongly in energy security for ourselves and for our allies. We have become the largest energy producer anywhere on the face of the Earth. The United States stands ready to export our abundant, affordable supply of oil, clean coal, and natural gas. OPEC and OPEC nations, are, as usual, ripping off the rest of the world, and I don't like it. Nobody should like it. We defend many of these nations for nothing, and then they take advantage of us by giving us high oil prices. Not good. We want them to stop raising prices, we want them to start lowering prices, and they must contribute substantially to military protection from now on. We are not going to put up with it -- these horrible prices -- much longer. Reliance on a single foreign supplier can leave a nation vulnerable to extortion and intimidation. That is why we congratulate European states, such as Poland, for leading the construction of a Baltic pipeline so that nations are not dependent on Russia to meet their energy needs. Germany will become totally dependent on Russian energy if it does not immediately change course. 

Here in the Western Hemisphere, we are committed to maintaining our independence from the encroachment of expansionist foreign powers. It has been the formal policy of our country since President Monroe that we reject the interference of foreign nations in this hemisphere and in our own affairs. The United States has recently strengthened our laws to better screen foreign investments in our country for national security threats, and we welcome cooperation with countries in this region and around the world that wish to do the same. You need to do it for your own protection. The United States is also working with partners in Latin America to confront threats to sovereignty from uncontrolled migration. Tolerance for human struggling and human smuggling and trafficking is not humane. It's a horrible thing that's going on, at levels that nobody has ever seen before. It's very, very cruel.

Illegal immigration funds criminal networks, ruthless gangs, and the flow of deadly drugs. Illegal immigration exploits vulnerable populations, hurts hardworking citizens, and has produced a vicious cycle of crime, violence, and poverty. Only by upholding national borders, destroying criminal gangs, can we break this cycle and establish a real foundation for prosperity. We recognize the right of every nation in this room to set its own immigration policy in accordance with its national interests, just as we ask other countries to respect our own right to do the same -- which we are doing. That is one reason the United States will not participate in the new Global Compact on Migration. Migration should not be governed by an international body unaccountable to our own citizens. Ultimately, the only long-term solution to the migration crisis is to help people build more hopeful futures in their home countries. Make their countries great again.

Currently, we are witnessing a human tragedy, as an example, in Venezuela. More than 2 million people have fled the anguish inflicted by the socialist Maduro regime and its Cuban sponsors. Not long ago, Venezuela was one of the richest countries on Earth. Today, socialism has bankrupted the oil-rich nation and driven its people into abject poverty. Virtually everywhere socialism or communism has been tried, it has produced suffering, corruption, and decay. Socialism's thirst for power leads to expansion, incursion, and oppression. All nations of the world should resist socialism and the misery that it brings to everyone. In that spirit, we ask the nations gathered here to join us in calling for the restoration of democracy in Venezuela. Today, we are announcing additional sanctions against the repressive regime, targeting Maduro's inner circle and close advisers. 

We are grateful for all the work the United Nations does around the world to help people build better lives for themselves and their families. The United States is the world's largest giver in the world, by far, of foreign aid. But few give anything to us. That is why we are taking a hard look at U.S. foreign assistance. That will be headed up by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. We will examine what is working, what is not working, and whether the countries who receive our dollars and our protection also have our interests at heart. Moving forward, we are only going to give foreign aid to those who respect us and, frankly, are our friends. And we expect other countries to pay their fair share for the cost of their defense.

The United States is committed to making the United Nations more effective and accountable. I have said many times that the United Nations has unlimited potential. As part of our reform effort, I have told our negotiators that the United States will not pay more than 25 percent of the U.N. peacekeeping budget. This will encourage other countries to step up, get involved, and also share in this very large burden. And we are working to shift more of our funding from assessed contributions to voluntary so that we can target American resources to the programs with the best record of success. Only when each of us does our part and contributes our share can we realize the U.N.'s highest aspirations. 

We must pursue peace without fear, hope without despair, and security without apology. Looking around this hall where so much history has transpired, we think of the many before us who have come here to address the challenges of their nations and of their times. And our thoughts turn to the same question that ran through all their speeches and resolutions, through every word and every hope. It is the question of what kind of world will we leave for our children and what kind of nations they will inherit. The dreams that fill this hall today are as diverse as the people who have stood at this podium, and as varied as the countries represented right here in this body are. It really is something. It really is great, great history. There is India, a free society of over a billion people, successfully lifting countless millions out of poverty and into the middle class. There is Saudi Arabia, where King Salman and the crown prince are pursuing bold new reforms. There is Israel, proudly celebrating its 70th anniversary as a thriving democracy in the Holy Land. In Poland, a great people are standing up for their independence, their security, and their sovereignty.

Many countries are pursuing their own unique visions, building their own hopeful futures, and chasing their own wonderful dreams of destiny, of legacy, and of a home. The whole world is richer, humanity is better, because of this beautiful constellation of nations, each very special, each very unique, and each shining brightly in its part of the world. In each one, we see awesome promise of a people bound together by a shared past and working toward a common future. As for Americans, we know what kind of future we want for ourselves. We know what kind of a nation America must always be. In America, we believe in the majesty of freedom and the dignity of the individual. We believe in self-government and the rule of law. And we prize the culture that sustains our liberty -- a culture built on strong families, deep faith, and fierce independence. We celebrate our heroes, we treasure our traditions, and above all, we love our country.

Inside everyone in this great chamber today, and everyone listening all around the globe, there is the heart of a patriot that feels the same powerful love for your nation, the same intense loyalty to your homeland. The passion that burns in the hearts of patriots and the souls of nations has inspired reform and revolution, sacrifice and selflessness, scientific breakthroughs, and magnificent works of art. Our task is not to erase it, but to embrace it. To build with it. To draw on its ancient wisdom. And to find within it the will to make our nations greater, our regions safer, and the world better. To unleash this incredible potential in our people, we must defend the foundations that make it all possible. Sovereign and independent nations are the only vehicle where freedom has ever survived, democracy has ever endured, or peace has ever prospered. And so we must protect our sovereignty and our cherished independence above all. 

When we do, we will find new avenues for cooperation unfolding before us. We will find new passion for peacemaking rising within us. We will find new purpose, new resolve, and new spirit flourishing all around us, and making this a more beautiful world in which to live. So together, let us choose a future of patriotism, prosperity, and pride. Let us choose peace and freedom over domination and defeat. And let us come here to this place to stand for our people and their nations, forever strong, forever sovereign, forever just, and forever thankful for the grace and the goodness and the glory of God. Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the nations of the world. Thank you very much. Thank you." 

BILL COSBY: NOT TOO OLD TO JAIL.

ICHEOKU says what he did is completely abhorable and inexcusable to say the least. Drugging women just to enable him have his way with them is the worst form of violation any kind one can imagine. Therefore, ICHEOKU supports wholeheartedly the conviction of 81-year-old Bill Cosby for his crimes of drugging and sexually assaulting a woman, According to the sentencing judge Steve O'Neil, "It is time for justice. Mr. Cosby, this has all circled back to you. The time has come." 

ICHEOKU agrees that justice sometimes catches up with one when least expected, after  thinking that one has beat the crime. Bill Cosby was sentenced to 3 to 10 years in prison; ordered to pay a $25,000 fine and is now designated a sexually violent predator. His lawyer asked for him to remain free on bail pending appeal, but the judge rejected the plea, insisting that despite Bill Cosby's advanced old age and blindness, "he could quite possibly be a danger to the community."

ICHEOKU queries were Bill Cosby a white person, with his fame and fortune; as well as his very advanced old age and blindness handicap, would the sentence have been the same? Would the judge have denied his plea to be left on bail pending appeal? Would the judge have considered house arrest for him, instead of sending such a fragile blind old man straight from court to prison. These questions will soon, possibly be answered as the world excitedly awaits the Harvey Weinstein's trial outcome. 

ICHEOKU says the beauty of the American society is that no one is above the law or is too big to jail, regardless. But will Cosby die in prison? ICHEOKU does not think so because he might be released within one year for good behavior and age and handicap. What a sad way to end a storied career that spanned several decades and suddenly this thunderous fall from grace to grass. SAD.

AMERICA MUST NOT BE HELD HOSTAGE TO BLACKMAIL: CONFIRM KAVANAUGH NOW.

ICHEOKU says the then presidential candidate Donald John Trump was pummeled by a barrage of crazed out, wild eyed, feminists nut jobs, who shamelessly alleged all manners of sexual molestations against the candidate, some of which dates nearly forty years ago. But Trump stood solid straight spine and squared shoulders, and weathered the storm to become the 45th President of the United States of America. Judge Brett Kavanaugh must therefore take a page from the Trump's book of defiance against all odds and similarly stand confident as he barrels right through his confirmation process to be sworn in as a Judge associate of the Supreme Court of the United States of America. 

Everybody can see through the charade, a last ditch desperate attempt to derail Judge Kavanaugh's confirmation and anybody who watched the Judiciary Committee hearing understands fully well what the game here is. The far left liberal abortionists nut jobs, who have hijacked the Democratic Party, and who likes to have sex without protection and who hates responsibilities, and would like abortion to be available on demand, are scared-mad as hell that Judge Kavanaugh might be amenable to overturning Roe v. Wades and are pulling all stops to make sure that he is not confirmed. That is the truth of the matter and nothing more. Therefore, the Republican Party must tell these lunatics to take a hike to hell and remain there until it freezes over and go ahead and confirm Kavanaugh. The heavens will not fall and it is the right thing to do. CONFIRM KAV NOW.

TRUMP'S BEAST: DEFINITELY FUTURISTIC.

ICHEOKU says finally a presidential limousine that is befitting President Donald John Trump; ladies and gentlemen, welcome the Monster-Beast on its debut, today September 24th, 2018. Quite edifying for the occupier of the White House. Nice.

CHRISTIE BLASEY FORD: HOW MANY MORE EXCUSES AND TALES?

ICHEOKU says every American as well as the wider world watching knows where the truth lies and it is definitely not on her side; admitted the Republicans are trying, albeit onerously, to accommodate her and prove that they are not the mean spirited heartless oddities, the far left often times make them out to be. 

A woman allegedly said that she was molested over 36 years ago and she remembers none of the vital issues necessary to establish her story, except the identity of her attacker, which conveniently happens to be someone the far left did not want to be sworn in as associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States of America. They threw all they had during the Judiciary Committee hearing and nothing stuck and with just few days to his being given the assent to be admitted to the Supreme Court, here came the grand old October surprise come in September and people are giving any credibility to this woman and her tales by the moonlight. 

Her story doesn't add up, beginning from the very act of being groped and you wonder if whoever it was that ruffed her up indeed wanted to rape her, why would he leave the door open and not shut it. A fact made known because according to her story, while whoever it was, was trying to have his way with her, another guy walked in and jumped on the same bed they were both on, making them three, which led to them falling on the floor. Possibly, they were high schoolers play fighting and fooling around? Also who jumps on the bed with her swimsuit on or was it not wet from their being in the swimming pool earlier? 

Further, the guy that supposedly witnessed the incident has since denied ever being aware of such incident nor recollected the alleged party ever took place. The fact of the matter that the information was withheld from the initial Committee hearing, when such matters involving the past history of the Judge nominee, supposed to be brought out also speaks volume about the intent and purpose of the allegation. Then followed the long running "I will testify, no, I changed my mind, I will no longer testify", from day to day to now Thursday, this week. Needless to add the absurdity of demanding that the Judge nominee testify first and you wonder what is it that he is going to testify first about, not knowing what the gist of the allegation is? That she also lied about her fear of flying, when evidence shows that she was once in Hawaii and that she did not get to the Aloha country by surfing or swimming nor a speed boat, and will require few days to travel from California to Washington DC. 

ICHEOKU says this Thursday September 27th, 2018 should be a firm, irrevocable date for her to give her testimony. Any attempt to further shift, delay or defer it, should be seen for what it is - her continuing intention to merely delay the confirmation and that she has nothing of substance to testify about. Under such circumstance, the Judiciary Committee should proceed with the confirmation process and go on to confirm Judge Kavanaugh. Enough of the shenanigans and enough of the straight in your face arrant nonsense, which everybody knows did not happen, except that in this Me-Too nonsensical era, everybody is trying to be politically correct and somewhat measured in responding to such trashy allegations. Enough of the delay to confirm Judge Bret Kavanaugh. This Thursday date is inviolable and this Thursday is it. The Republican led Senate must damn whatever the consequences and confirm Judge Bret Kavanaugh and let the heavens fall.