Jeb promotes "liberty diplomacy" . . . The newest member of the Bush political dynasty to consider running for president outlined his foreign policy vision Wednesday, treading a careful line between embracing the policies of his familial predecessors while still claiming to be his “own man.” Politico

Bush his own man, except when it comes to advisors . . . James Baker, Paul wolfowitz, Michael Chertoff  . . sound familiar? Washington Examiner

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Marie Harf's nuanced approach . . . Are we, really, too intellectually challenged to catch Ms. Harf’s nuance and recognize “the smart way?” Or is it she who is missing the nuance here? Harf may have ample brain power, but it is cluttered up to the point of dysfunction with ideology and hubris. White House Dossier

Link between terror and poverty not so strong . . . “Terrorists are not particularly impoverished, uneducated, or afflicted by mental disease,” a RAND Corporation report commissioned by Secretary of Defense stated in 2009. “Terrorist leaders actually tend to come from relatively privileged backgrounds.” CNS News

Obama says some seeds of radicalism exist in Muslim world . . . Amidst criticism of his refusal to use a term like “Islamist extremism” to describe the terrorist threat, Obama today made an important step in that direction as he described an attitude within Muslim communities that is abetting the radicalism that breeds terrorists. Obama suggested that a failure by some Muslim leaders to clearly reject the terrorists’ ideology and a “sometimes widespread” outlook among Muslims in some areas that perceives problems they face as flowing from the West are helping lay the groundwork for terror. White House Dossier

Networks in Obama's pocket on immigration . . . Next time someone criticizes Fox News to you, show them this. It’s why Fox News exists. White House Dossier

Kerry forced to endure Iranian bullying . . . Iran’s foreign minister and lead negotiator in nuclear talks with the United States has been ordered by the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader to stop shouting and yelling at Secretary of State John Kerry during negotiating sessions. Washington Free Beacon

Obama taps his former Secret Service agent to run agency . . . President Obama chose an insider known to him personally to head the Secret Service, elevating the former head of his security detail and the current acting director, Joseph Clancy, to assume stewardship over the troubled agency. White House Dossier

Biden making up stories about Somali cab drivers . . . Vice President Biden claims to get on famously with Somali cabbies. But some Delaware cab company owners disputed the idea there were Somali drivers in the city; rather, they said they were from other African nations. In the last 15 years, Delaware only accepted a total of 269 refugees—and most were from West Africa, not East Africa. Washington Post 

Video || Joe Biden, Creepy Uncle

Misplaced modifier alert . . . "A South Side neighborhood in Chicago is getting long-sought federal protection from President Barack Obama, whose visit on Thursday could also provide a political lift to the city's mayor." - Associated Press

Really? What was Obama planning to do to this poor neighborhood? Anyway, you can read the rest of this story about Obama's visit to Chicago and his effort to help imperiled mayor Rahm Emanuel here.

Obama Schedule || Thursday, February 19, 2015

ISIS butcher appears to be American . . . U.S. intelligence officials are analyzing facial features and speech patterns of the masked man who spoke in a recent ISIS video to determine who he is, and if he could be one of ISIS’s American recruits, according to a senior U.S. official. The masked man speaks briefly in the video, which purports to show the gruesome execution of 21 Coptic Christians in Libya. ABC News

GOP donors seeking hawks . . . Free agent Republican bundlers are prioritizing foreign policy and national security as they ponder where to park their money and lucrative Rolodexes in 2016. In hindsight, Republican rainmakers have concluded that Mitt Romney’s near-singular focus on domestic issues squandered an opportunity to expose President Obama three years ago. Washington Examiner

Guiliani: Obama doesn't love America . . . Rudy Giuliani went straight for the jugular Wednesday night during a private group dinner here featuring Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker by openly questioning whether President Barack Obama “loves America.” Politico

Rubio: Pass the Homeland Security bill . . . During a visit to Las Vegas, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio suggested Wednesday that Congress should pass a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security without conditions, essentially stepping back from a battle with President Barack Obama over his executive actions on immigration. Las Vegas Review-Journal

Cruz: Obama an apologist for Islamist terrorists . . . Sen. Ted Cruz says President Barack Obama is “an apologist for radical Islamic terrorists,” blasting the administration’s rhetoric and approach to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Politico​

Gun groups battle for concealed carry legislation . . . The National Rifle Association (NRA) and other Second Amendment advocates are throwing their weight behind the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, a bill introduced in both chambers of Congress that would allow gun owners to carry concealed weapons across state lines. The Hill

Fournier blasts Clintons' "sleazy" obsession with money . . . After the Wall Street Journal reported that the Clinton Foundation had resumed accepting donations from foreign countries, the National Journal’s Ron Fournier called move “sleazy.” Washington Free Beacon

Were we wrong to depose Qaddafi? . . . Four years ago, former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, who was ousted and executed, predicted ominously that the Mediterranean would become a “sea of chaos." The Blaze

We don't really understand other cultures. Unless our national security is at stake, we should stay out of their affairs.

Solar power costs $39B, yields almost nothing . . . Despite receiving an estimated $39 billion in annual government subsidies over the past five years, the solar energy industry accounted for just one half of one percent (0.5%) of all the electricity generated in the U.S. during the first 10 months of 2014. CNS News

Grandma must arrange flowers for gay weddings . . . A Washington grandmother and florist of 40 years who refused to service gay weddings because of her faith will now be forced to arrange flowers for gay ceremonies, a judge ruled Wednesday. On top of that, the woman, Barronelle Stutzman, will have to pay the legal penalties imposed by the judge as well as attorney’s fees. Daily Caller

Suit says Atlanta fire chief fired for religious beliefs . . . The city of Atlanta fired its fire chief solely because of his religious beliefs about same-sex marriage and homosexual conduct, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court. Fox News

UMass backs down, will admit Iranians to science program . . . The University of Massachusetts at Amherst has reversed its decision to ban Iranian nationals from admission to certain graduate programs in engineering and science. Fox News

Backed down to pressure from the politically correct, just as I said - in yesterday's REDLINE - that they would.​

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Keith Koffler
Editor
White House Dossier