PBC News & Comment: ObamaCo Appears to Accept Assad Remaining in Power in Syria

Obama’s stubborn insistence that Assad and Islamic State must both be ousted yields to reality, according to new leaked document….--the twin objectives were unachievable and irrational
--new layer of conflict between Saudis and Iran intensifies, as Saudi fighters target Iranian embassy in Yemen
--in response to Saudi executions, IS threatens to attack 2 Saudi prisons where jihadis are held
--in Libya, truck bomb kills 65 as struggle for control of oil facilities continues, no more info on report of US troop deployment
--BTW, the year-end budget bill included compensation for hostages who were held at US embassy in Tehran in 1979
--disgraced Gen. David Petraeus testifies behind closed doors in Benghazi inquest
--in an insightful column, NY Times op-ed writer Charles Blow recaps the history of gun control, largely aimed at keeping blacks from having guns
--in setback for free speech, Florida professor who challenged Sandy Hook narrative is fired from his tenured position teaching about “conspiracy theories”
--first 2 of 17 expected releases from Guantanamo yesterday, Yemenis who will be sent to Ghana
--Mr. Ten Commandments, Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore tries to continue blocking same sex marriages
--new report shows that access to contraception, abortion and other women’s health services is declining due to state level rollbacks
--Texas trooper who arrested Sandra Bland is fired, charged with perjury
--Michigan Gov. Snyder finally declares state of emergency in Flint over lead in water
--California Gov. Brown finally declares state of emergency at Porter Ranch gas leak site