Fox News Guest Breaks Down Discussing Trump’s ‘Sexual Assault’ Language: ‘It’s Just Not OK’
After 48 hours of sheer media h**l, Donald Trump lived to fight another day.
And all of the pundits and news organizations that filled the airwaves and websites with speculative chatter about whether he might drop out are looking a little silly today. That was never going to happen.
Nor, as it turned out, was Mike Pence leaving the ticket or Kellyanne Conway quitting the campaign.
Conway, in fact, tweeted this in response to CNN reported that Pence never considered bowing out: So, this actually ISN"T #BreakingNews unless you"d convinced yourself rumor, innuendo, conspiracy & the telephone game are news.
Sitting there in St. Louis about 20 minutes into the ugly opening of the debate, I didnt think things looked good for Trump. Having endured virtually nonstop covering of the decade-old Access Hollywood tape in which he boasted of being a celebrity who could grope womens genitals at will, the Republican nominee staged a bizarre, dimly lit news conference with Paula Jones, Kathleen Willey and Juanita Broaddrick, and then brought Broaddrick to the debate. The message to Hillary Clintonyour husbands sexual misconduct is worse than my sexual embarrassmentsseemed to accomplish little more than dragging the evening into the gutter.
Sure, Trumps supporters must have cheered at seeing him try to pivot from apologizing for what he called locker room talk to an attack on the Clintons characterbut its not clear how that approach would attract new voters to Trumps cause.
Still, he battled his way to a strong performance in the rest of the debate, and Clinton spent much time on the defensive as the focus shifted to her record. Plus, she had used most of her ammunition in the first debate, so her attacks sounded a bit more rehearsed.
Even an over-the-top verbal assaultTrump not only vowing to name a special prosecutor to pursue Clinton but snapping that if he won she would be in jaildid little to derail him, except among critics in the media.
But Trumps off-the-mat performance failed to stem the tide of criticism from big-name Republicans who had been abandoning him in droves over the weekend. Word quickly leaked when Paul Ryan held a GOP conference call that he would no longer defend Trump but would concentrate on saving the partys House majority. The P-word tape had finally pushed the speaker, with his tepid backing of Trump, to cancel a weekend appearance and bail on the standard-bearer.
Trump fired back on Twitter: Paul Ryan should spend more time on balancing the budget, jobs and illegal immigration and not waste his time on fighting Republican nominee.
Such intramural sniping took the gloss off what should have been a good morning-after for Trump. Some Republicans are furious at Ryan for making the story about him and undercutting the only nominee the party has. Others say the party is smart to try to contain the down-ballot damage and wonder how many lawmakers will follow Ryan. A Wall Street Journal/NBC poll taken after the Access Hollywood flapbut before Sundays debategives Clinton a 46-35 lead over Trump.
Trump, of course, is here because he ran against the entire Republican establishment and beat 16 contenders. Now he may finish the race the way he started it, on his own.
Howard Kurtz is a Fox News analyst and the host of "MediaBuzz" (Sundays 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET). He is the author of five books and is based in Washington. Follow him at @HowardKurtz. Click here for more information on Howard Kurtz.
The case of a 22-year-old man rescued at sea after clinging to a raft for a week took a dark turn Wednesday as it was revealed he was a suspect in his grandfather"s unsolved murder.
Nathan Carman, the young man rescued in the Atlantic after floating on a life raft for a week, had been a suspect in the 2013 killing of his grandfather, deepening the mystery surrounding his ordeal and the apparent death of his mother at sea, theHartford Courant reported Wednesday.
According to a search warrant for Carman"s apartment obtained by the newspaper, Carman was the last person known to see his maternal grandfather, John Chakalos, alive on Dec. 20, 2013, when he had dinner with him at his home in Windsor. The 87-year-old Chakalos, a real estate developer, was found dead the next morning. He had been shot three times.
The Courant reported Tuesday that Windsor police submitted an arrest warrant for Carman to a prosecutor, but it was returned unsigned with a request for more information. Carman was not charged.
A will shows John Chakalos left an estate worth more than $42 million to his four adult daughters.
Carman and his mother, Linda Carman, 54, of Middletown, Conn., left Rhode Island on a fishing trip on Sept. 17. Nathan Carman was rescued in a life raft off the Massachusetts coast on Sunday. His mother remains missing and is presumed dead.
Carman said outside his Vernon, Vt., home Tuesday that he"s been through "a huge amount" emotionally, and he thanked the public for its concern and prayers.
Coast Guard officials interviewed Carman when he arrived in Boston on Tuesday. In an audio exchange with the Coast Guard from the Chinese freighter that rescued him 100 miles offshore in the Atlantic, Carman described hearing a "funny noise" in his boat"s engine compartment, seeing water pouring in, then losing sight of his mother before he boarded the raft.
"I was bringing one of the safety bags forward. The boat just dropped out from under my feet," Carman says on the recording. "When I saw the life raft, I did not see my mom. Have you found her?"
After the officer tells Carman they have not found his mother, he describes getting to the life raft.
"I was whistling and calling and looking around, and I didn"t see her," he said.
Carman told the Coast Guard his 31-foot aluminum fishing boat sank and he spent seven days in a four-person inflatable life raft. Many questions remain about how the boat sank and what happened to his mother.
Defense attorney Hubert Santos said he"s representing Carman. He said Carman "fully cooperated" with the Coast Guard after he was transported to Boston by the freighter that rescued him.
Santos wouldn"t reveal what Carman told Coast Guard officials when he was questioned at the base.
"It was a tragic accident," Santos said.
The mother and son had left for their fishing trip from Point Judith, Rhode Island. Vermont authorities said police from South Kingstown, R.I., searched Carman"s home in Vernon on Monday. South Kingstown police did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Carman grew up in Middletown, Conn., but bought a home in Vermont two years ago.
Santos declined to comment on that investigation.
Family members have said Carman has Asperger"s syndrome, a form of autism.
Sharon Hartstein, a close friend of Linda Carman"s, said the mother and son regularly went on fishing trips together.
"That was one of their bonding things," Hartstein said. "When he was available, she tried to make time so she could spend time with him."
Windsor Police Capt. Thomas LePore said Tuesday that the investigation into Chakalos" killing remains open and active. He said police interviewed Chakalos" relatives, including Nathan and Linda Carman, as part of their investigation.
Linda Carman"s mother, Rita Chakalos, died of cancer just weeks before her husband was killed. John and Rita Chakalos were philanthropists who split their time between Connecticut and Chesterfield, N.H., where they had an estate known for its massive holiday lights display.
Finally Fox News exposes real evidences about MARTIAL LAW and FEMA! (2016) pls share
In the wake of Gretchen Carlsons sexual harassment suit against boss Roger Ailes, several women who once worked at Fox News tell The Daily Beast that Ailes also harassed them.
For Fox News Chairman Roger Aileswho was slapped with a sexual harassment lawsuit Wednesday by fired Fox anchor Gretchen Carlsona very bad day seems likely to metamorphose into a much worse year.
While Fox Newss parent company, 21stCentury Fox, promptly announced an internal review of Carlsons sensational allegationswhich include her claim that Ailes suggested last September that having s*x with him would help her careerAiles vehemently denied them in a lengthy Fox News statement.
This defamatory lawsuit is not only offensive, it is wholly without merit and will be defended vigorously, Ailes was quoted as saying, adding the claim that Carlson is retaliating against him because her contract wasnt renewed due to disappointingly low ratings [that] were dragging down the afternoon lineup.
Fox News officially declined to comment to The Daily Beast beyond the statement.
A source close to the situation, however, insisted that many of the allegations in Carlsons complaint dont square with reality, while her vindictive effort to viciously harm Ailes after her contract was not renewed, as this person put it, is suspiciously at odds with Carlsons previous effusive praise of Ailes in various public statements and her June 2015 memoir, Getting Real, in which she called the Fox News chairman the most accessible boss Ive ever worked for, brilliant, and razor sharp, adding, we seemed to have a real connection.
But the bombshell litigation from the 50-year-old former Miss Americawhose 11 years at the network abruptly ended on June 23, when she was terminated moments after finishing her regular afternoon broadcast of The Real Story With Gretchen Carlson, according to the lawsuitcould turn the 76-year-old Ailes, a legendary television executive both admired and criticized, into this years answer to Bill Cosby.
It might be, Carlsons attorney, Nancy Erika Smith, saidconcerning the Cosby comparison, which was suggested to The Daily Beast by a former Fox News employee and alleged sexual harassment victim who asked that her name not be used.
Smith, for her part, said Carlsons lawsuit has opened the floodgates of female ex-Fox News employees who say that Ailes harassed them as well.
Since about 11 a.m., we have been contacted by many women who say they were harassed by Roger Ailes and theyve reached out to us, Smith said, adding that she hadnt had an opportunity to talk to them yet. There are maybe around 10 women whove said, Ive been a victim, too.
Smith said she spent the weekend reading Gabriel Shermans critical Ailes biography The Loudest Voice in the Room, which included an anecdote from Ailess days in the early 1980s as executive producer of NBCs Tomorrow late-night show. According to Sherman, Ailes hired a twentysomething female segment producer named Randi Harrison who told Ailes that his $400-a-week salary offer was too low. If you agree to have s*x with me whenever I want I will add an extra hundred dollars a week, Ailes allegedly responded. I was in tears by the time I hit the street, she later recalled. At the time, a Fox News spokesperson called Harrisons allegation false.
Smith said that under the law of New Jersey, where Carlsons suit was filed in Superior Court and the married Ailes owns a home in the suburb of Creskill, a sexual harassment plaintiff is permitted to call other alleged victims as trial witnesses to buttress the case and attempt to demonstrate a pattern of behavior.
Ailes has 35 days to respond to Carlsons lawsuit, and the pre-trial discovery process can begin after that, Smith said, though it could take as long as two years for a trial to commence, when Ailes, who sometimes walks with a cane and is struggling with the symptoms of hemophilia, would be 78 years old.
While the lawsuit claims that Carlson was sent packing in retaliation for complaining about her allegedly sexist treatment by Fox News management, an alternate version of events has it that anemic ratingsshe barely beat CNN in the 2 p.m. time period in the second quarter and occasionally lost to the second-place network, including in Juneshould have alerted her that her days at Fox were numbered.
Carlsons contract permitted her to look for a new job at another outlet starting mid-May, and Fox News would have wished her godspeed, according to the source, but apparently that didnt happen. As CNN media reporter Brian Stelter wrote in his nightly newsletter, under the headline What Ailes and his allies are saying/thinking: The key data point: Carlsons 2 p.m. hour had been falling behind CNN in the 25-54 demo. You think Ailes was OK with that?
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Carlson was handed a severance agreement on June 23 and, saying shed get back to management after looking it over, left on a planned vacation, according to the source. But instead Ailes received a nasty surprise Wednesday morning when Carlson filed her scandalous lawsuit.
Speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation by Ailes and Fox News, several women who formerly worked at the network told The Daily Beast of similar encounters with the defendant.
One time he asked me if I was wearing underwear, and was he going to see anything good, said a former Fox News employee, who said she has spoken with other women at the network who said they were targets of Ailess sexually charged remarks. Its happened to me and lots of other women Hes a disgusting pig whos been getting away with this s**t for 20 years.
A second ex-employee, who also said Ailes verbally harassed her with inappropriate comments during one-on-one meetings, said the powerful and famously combative executive has so far escaped the consequences of his alleged behavior, because when it comes to this issue, theres already a conspiracy of silence. The problem is you dont want to come forward because you dont want to be personally and professionally destroyed. You dont want to bring down Roger Ailess wrath on your head.
She added that Ailes is hardly unique in an industry dominated by male executives who sometimes take sexual advantage of their power and position. Television is really a difficult, arbitrary, and competitive business, and you dont want to give TV executives a reason to say no, she said.
A third former Fox News employee told The Daily Beast: When I met Ailes he wouldnt stop staring at my legs, and at one point he asked if I was single. I was taken aback and said yes. And he was like, Oh, OK, so youre not gonna get pregnant any time soon. And then he asked my age.
And I think he could tell I was offended by the questions. And he said, I know Im not supposed to ask thisHR keeps telling me I cant ask that because you can sue me because its illegal, but I dont care. Im [over 70] years old, if you wanna sue me, sue me.
Carlsons lawsuit alleges that Ailes ogl[ed] her in his office and ask[ed] her to turn around so he could view her posterior; comment[ed] repeatedly about Carlsons legs; stat[ed] Im sure you can do sweet nothings when you want to, among other off-color remarks. The lawsuit also quotes Ailes as telling her, during a Sept. 16, 2015, meeting requested by Carlson to resolve what she viewed as discriminatory and retaliatory treatment, that: I think you and I should have had a sexual relationship a long time ago and then youd be good and better and Id be good and better.
Ailes added, according to the lawsuit, sometimes problems are easier to resolve that way.
Carlson rebuffed Ailes sexual demands at that meeting, the lawsuit alleges, and nine months later, Ailes ended her career at Fox News.
The lawsuit also claims that during the seven years that Carlson co-hosted Fox & Friends, the top-rated cable morning show, fellow anchor Steve Doocy had created a hostile work environment by regularly treating her in a sexist and condescending way, including by putting his hand on her and pulling down her arm to shush her during a live telecast mocking her during commercial breaks, shunning her off air, refusing to engage with her on air, belittling her contributions to the show, and other uncollegial behavior.
Doocy, who is not named as a defendant in Carlsons complaint, is a close friend of Ailes who has worked for Fox News since its launch; in 2009, Doocys son Peter was hired as a fulltime Fox News reporter at age 22. In the fall of 2002, when former Fox News anchor Paula Zahn got into a nasty public dispute with Ailes and left for CNN, and Ailes insulted Zahn to The New York Times by saying, I could have put a dead raccoon on the air this year and got a better rating, it was Doocy who happily ambushed Zahn at CNN, Fox News cameras in tow, and presented her with a stuffed raccoon toy.
21stCentury Fox, the cable channels parent company, issued this statement on Wednesday in response to Carlsons lawsuit: The Company has seen the allegations against Mr. Ailes and Mr. Doocy. We take these matters seriously. While we have full confidence in Mr. Ailes and Mr. Doocy, who have served the company brilliantly for over two decades, we have commenced an internal review of the matter.
Smith, Carlsons New Jersey-based attorney, who has spent 36 years specializing in workplace harassment litigation, said the fired anchors lawsuit is aimed at Ailes personally, and not Fox News or 21stCentury Fox, because we have no evidence, as of today, that Fox News authorized his behavior or condoned his behavior. They have policies against this kind of behavior As of today, our beef and Gretchens beef is with Roger Ailes.
Still, interviews on Wednesday with former Fox News employees suggested that Ailes has presided over a corporate culture that values and even demands female pulchritudeor at least Ailess blonde ideal of sameover other professional qualities. According to a former staffer, executive assistant-turned-Fox News vice president of programming Suzanne Scott enforces with the wardrobe and makeup departments an aesthetic that features skimpy dresses, high-heeled open-toed shoes, and big hair for the channels on-air women.
Showing skin is practically written into the company charter, a former staffer told The Daily Beast.
A lot of the stuff in her [Carlsons] suit rings very true to me, said this person, who worked for almost a decade at the network and, like other Fox insiders quoted in this story, spoke on the condition of anonymity. The stuff about showing of the legsthat was not even a secretthat was open company policy.
Meanwhile, a fifth former Fox News employee told The Daily Beast that Carlsons allegations seem credible because Ailes runs Fox News like his personal fiefdom and has fostered a culture that is not only sexist but menacing, something akin to a sexual North Korea.
Its a malicious and sort of terrorized environment run by pitting people against each other to send information up the chain of command, she said. Its almost like a fascist state where everybody is terrorized and nobody trusts each other. People are friendly in the hallways, but youre always looking over your shoulder to see who might stab you in the back. You have to be skinny. All the hair and makeup people get strict guidance. You have to wear these kinds of clothes, this kind of makeup, this kind of hair, know how to behave, what to say, how to interact, and if you want to do well and move up, you have to toe the company line.
This person said of Carlson, I have a sense Gretchen was aggrieved for a very long time and probably kept very good notes. Nobody sues Roger Ailes without having their eyes wide open, unless theyre just idiotsand Gretchen is not an idiot.
Former female employees of Fox News described Carlsons lawsuit as potentially career-ending but also courageous.
As soon as I heard about it, I immediately emailed her saying, Youre my hero, said the fourth ex-Fox Newser who befriended the fired anchor.
Im proud of her, said another.
Carlson, in a statement, said she filed the suit because I have strived to empower women and girls throughout my entire career. She added: Although this was a difficult step to take, I had to stand up for myself and speak out for all women and the next generation of women in the workplace. I am extremely proud of my accomplishments at Fox News and for keeping our loyal viewers engaged and informed on events and news topics of the day.
with additional reporting by Daily Beast staffers M.L. Nestel, Kate Briquelet, and Asawin Suebsaeng.
Here is Ailess complete statement supplied by Fox News:
Gretchen Carlsons allegations are false. This is a retaliatory suit for the networks decision not to renew her contract, which was due to the fact that her disappointingly low ratings were dragging down the afternoon lineup. When Fox News did not commence any negotiations to renew her contract, Ms. Carlson became aware that her career with the network was likely over and conveniently began to pursue a lawsuit. Ironically, Fox News provided her with more on-air opportunities over her 11 year tenure than any other employer in the industry, for which she thanked me in her recent book. This defamatory lawsuit is not only offensive, it is wholly without merit and will be defended vigorously.
Updated 10:00am, July 7, 2016 with statement from Nancy Erika Smith and Martin Hyman, attorneys for Ms. Carlson in response to Mr. Ailes statement:
Ailes claim that Gretchen Carlson was terminated because of bad ratings is demonstrably false. The publicly available ratings confirm the allegation in the Complaint that at the time of her termination Gretchens total viewership was up 33% year to date and up 23% in the key demographic. After her firing from Fox and Friends for complaining about discrimination, Gretchen was moved to a challenging time slot and denied support and promotion. Despite this, she succeeded and was the number one cable news show in her time slot in total viewers.
Regarding Ailes claims that Gretchens allegations are false, we challenge him to deny, under oath, that he made the statements attributed to him in the Complaint.
Finally, Ailes does not allow his employees to speak to the press or publish anything without prior approval. Gretchen was chastised for answering a question from a hometown newspaper about her favorite Minnesota State Fair food. In her book Gretchen told her story while trying to keep her job knowing that Ailes had to approve what she said.
Orlando Shooting Witness | Christopher Hansen | Contradictions | CNN - Fox News
The Muslim terrorist who killed at least 49 people in an Orlando nightclub early Sunday was an angry loner who beat his ex-wife, alienated co-workers and made at least two mysterious trips to Saudi Arabia, according to people who knew him and law enforcement authorities who are now piecing together his descent into radical Islam.
FBI Director James Comey on Monday said that three phone calls between Omar Mateen and a 911 operator while Mateen was holed up in a club bathroom with hostages may provide insight into his radicalization.During those calls, Comey said, Mateen "made clear his support for" ISIS and pledged loyalty to the terror group"s leader.
However, Mateen also "claimed solidarity" with the Boston Marathon bombers -- who learned how to make their pressure cooker bomb from an Al Qaeda-affiliated magazine -- and a man who blew himself up in Syria during an operation for Al-Nusra Front, leading Comey to say it was "unclear which terror group he aspired to support."
Another potential avenue of investigation is a pair of trips Mateen, 29, took to Saudi Arabia in March 2011 and March 2012 for umrah, a non-mandatory visit to Mecca for Muslims. Saudi Arabia"s Interior Ministry spokesman confirmed the trips to The Associated Press in a text message Monday. Umrah can be performed at any time of the year.
Law enforcement officials could not confirm to Fox News what Mateens exact itinerary was, including cities he may have visited or individuals he may have met with; however, Mateen is known to have stayed in the Kingdom for 10 days during the first trip and eight days during the second trip.
After checking with Saudi officials, Comey said the FBI found nothing incriminating about the trips.
We obviously don"t know the details yet, but it"s worth recalling how the San Bernardino shooters met in Saudi Arabia and were engaged there, Ryan Mauro, a national security analyst for the Clarion Project, told FoxNews.com, referencing the ISIS-inspired December terror attack that killed 14 people in California. These trips to Saudi Arabia also make it less likely that Mateen is a so-called lone wolf who acted mostly independently.
The Middle East jaunts came before Mateen was caught up in two FBI terror investigations. He was interviewed by the bureau twice in relation to a 2013 incident and once in 2014, but, officials said Sunday, Mateen was not assessed to be a threat. At the time of the shooting, Mateen was not under surveillance or the subject of an investigation, authorities said.
Mateen first appeared on the FBI"s radar in May 2013 after co-workers at a courthouse where he served as a contract security guard reported that Mateen made claims he had family in Al Qaeda, a Sunni terror group, and was himself a member of Hezbollah, a Shia terror group. Mateen said he hoped law enforcement officials would raid his apartment and "assault his wife and child so he could martyr himself," Comey said. He"s also alleged to have claimed a connection to the Boston Marathon bombers, The Washington Post reported.
The 2013 probe was closed after a 10-month investigation, during which agents introduced confidential sources to Mateen, recorded conversations with him, searched government archives and twice interviewed Mateen in person. He was on a watch list during the investigation, and if he had tried to purchase a firearm during this period, he would have been flagged to the FBI, Comey said.
Mateen told agents he had made the terror statements in anger "because co-workers were discriminating against him and teasing him because he was Muslim."Investigators came to believe the statements were mere boasts and Mateen was not legitimately tied to any terror groups.
He seems to be looking for any opportunity to associate with the terrorist group du jour, a senior U.S. official told The Washington Post.
FBI agents were back at Mateens door just a few months later in July 2014, this time because of possible ties to American-born suicide bomber Moner Abu-Salha, who blew himself up in Syria in 2014 on behalf of Al-Nusra Front. During its investigation, the FBI learned that Mateen, who attended the same Fort Pierce mosque as Salha, had watched online videos of an Islamist terror leader. However, FBI agents determined Mateen"s contact with Salha was minimal." Mateen was not the subject of the investigation and agents did not have further contact with him.
"We"re also going to look at our work to see if there was something we should have done differently," Comey said. "So far the honest answer is, "I don"t think so.""
President Obama said Monday the FBI followed proper procedure when they interviewed Mateen.
Comey said the FBI was "highly confident" Mateen was radicalized at least in some part through the Internet.
Aside from the terror claims reported by co-workers, some who worked with Mateen were also disturbed by his language when talking about minorities, other religions and gay people.
He talked about killing people all the time, Daniel Gilroy told The New York Times.
Mateen was even less stable at home.
His first wife, who was born in Uzbekistan and met Mateen on the Internet, told The Washington Post that he frequently beat her after their 2009 marriage. They reportedly divorced in 2011.
He would just come home and start beating me up because the laundry wasnt finished or something like that, Sitora Yusifiy said.
Mateen was remarried at least once, to Noor Zahi Salman,after his divorce from Yusifiy. He had a 3-year-old son.
Salman told authorities the couple had recently been to Downtown Disney as well as Pulse, a federal law enforcement source told People. The trip to Downtown Disney came in April, the source said.
His father, Saddique Mateen, recalled a recent episode in which Omar Mateen became upset when he saw two men kissing in public while he was with his young child. But Saddique may have also contributed to Omars worldview. Born in Afghanistan, Saddique is an eccentric pro-Taliban activist who produced an online video critical of homosexuality just hours after Mateens attack.
It is likely, much like the San Bernardino event, that Mateen became radicalized over a period of time as he dove further into the world of ISIS social media and preaching, former CIA agent Mike Baker said. It"s very likely his Afghan family saw signs of increasing radicalism, but, as is typical, family rarely approaches law enforcement with these warnings.
FoxNews.coms Diana Falzone and Fox News Lucas Tomlinson contributed to this report.
FULL Jeff Sessions interview On FOX "Fox News Sunday" (6/12/2016)
MASON, Ohio A man accused of shooting his father and an Ohio sheriff"s deputy is scheduled to be arraigned on preliminary charges that include attempted murder.
Nineteen-year-old Mohammed Abdou Laghaoui"s hearing is scheduled for Monday.
Authorities say Deputy Katie Barnes was shot in the abdomen Thursday while responding to a domestic situation at an apartment complex. She"s expected to recover. The suspect"s father was shot in the hand.
Authorities believe an AK-47 assault rifle was used in the shooting. The sheriff"s office says it might have been discarded afterward.
The office is expected to release 911 tapes on Monday. Cruiser cam video and audio of radio traffic also are being reviewed for release.
