latest news

The body of Justice Antonin Scalia is lying in repose Friday at the Supreme Court where he spent nearly three decades as one of its most conservative and influential members.

Scalia’s casket arrived at the Supreme Court at 9:29 a.m., ahead of a private ceremony in the Great Hall. Supreme Court police officers served as pallbearers.

Scalia’s former law clerks served as honorary pallbearers and will take tus standing vigil by their former boss throughout the day and night in a tradition most recently observed after the 2005 death of former Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

The casket is being placed on the Lincoln Catafalque, which was loaned to the court by Congress for the ceremony, and a 2007 portrait of Scalia by Nelson Shanks will be displayed.

A private ceremony including family, friends and justices started at the court at 9:30 a.m. Scalia's casket will be on public view from 10:30 a.m. until 8 p.m.

President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama planned to pay their respects at the court on Friday, while Vice President Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden were to attend Scalia's funeral Mass on Saturday.

The funeral Mass open to family and friends will take place Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. Burial plans have not been released.

In a departure from tradition, the court's current and former justices won't be lining the marble steps outside the court as the casket is carried through the main entrance. They will instead be waiting inside.

Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg did not explain the reason for the change.

Scalia's sudden death complicated an already tumultuous election year. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says a replacement should not be named until the next president takes office. Obama pledged to pick a replacement "in due time" and challenged Republicans to hold a vote on his nominee.

Scalia was found dead on Saturday in his room at a remote Texas hunting resort. The 79-year-old jurist was appointed to the court in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan.

He is survived by his wife, Maureen, nine children and 36 grandchildren.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

U.S. warplanes carried out airstrikes Friday that targeted an ISIS base and a senior militant believed to be behind two deadly attacks against Weste tourists in Tunisia last year. 

A senior U.S. official told Fox News that the target of the airstrike was Noureddine Chouchane, a senior ISIS figure in Libya. A defense official speaking to The Associated Press said Chouchane was "likely killed."

The airstrike on the base in Sabratha, west of Tripoli, was carried out by F-15s.

Local reports initially suggested that more than 30 people had been killed. However, it was not immediately clear how many ISIS terrorists were among the dead. 

Chouchane is thought to have directed the March 18 attack on the Bardo Museum in Tunis, in which 24 people were killed, many of them foreign tourists. He is also believed to have some connection to the June 26 attack on a resort hotel near the Tunisian city of Sousse, where an ISIS gunman killed 38 people.

President Barack Obama last week directed his national security team to bolster counterterrorism efforts in Libya while also pursuing diplomatic possibilities for solving its political crisis and forming a govement of national unity. While ISIS has emerged in other places, including Afghanistan, Libya is seen as its key focus outside of Syria and Iraq.

The U.S. military has been closely monitoring ISIS movements in Libya, and small teams of U.S. military personnel have moved in and out of the country over a period of months. British, French and Italian special forces also have been in Libya helping with aerial surveillance, mapping and intelligence gathering in several cities, including Benghazi in the east and Zintan in the west, according to two Libyan military officials who are coordinating with them. The Libyan officials spoke on condition of anonymity recently with The Associated Press on this matter because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

U.S. officials predicted early this month that it would be weeks or longer before U.S. special forces would be sent, citing the need for more consultations with European allies. Additional intelligence would help refine targets for any sort of military strikes, but surveillance drones are in high demand elsewhere, including in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Adding to the conce in Washington and Europe is evidence that the number of ISIS fighters in Libya is increasing - now believed to be up from about 2,000 to 5,000 - even as the group's numbers in Syria and Iraq are shrinking under more unrelenting U.S. and coalition airstrikes.

Fox News Channel's Jennifer Griffin and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

The body of Justice Antonin Scalia is lying in repose Friday at the Supreme Court where he spent nearly three decades as one of its most conservative and influential members.

Scalia’s casket arrived at the Supreme Court at 9:29 a.m., ahead of a private ceremony in the Great Hall. Supreme Court police officers served as pallbearers.

Scalia’s former law clerks served as honorary pallbearers and will take tus standing vigil by their former boss throughout the day and night in a tradition most recently observed after the 2005 death of former Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

The casket is being placed on the Lincoln Catafalque, which was loaned to the court by Congress for the ceremony, and a 2007 portrait of Scalia by Nelson Shanks will be displayed.

A private ceremony including family, friends and justices started at the court at 9:30 a.m. Scalia's casket will be on public view from 10:30 a.m. until 8 p.m.

President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama planned to pay their respects at the court on Friday, while Vice President Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden were to attend Scalia's funeral Mass on Saturday.

The funeral Mass open to family and friends will take place Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. Burial plans have not been released.

In a departure from tradition, the court's current and former justices won't be lining the marble steps outside the court as the casket is carried through the main entrance. They will instead be waiting inside.

Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg did not explain the reason for the change.

Scalia's sudden death complicated an already tumultuous election year. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says a replacement should not be named until the next president takes office. Obama pledged to pick a replacement "in due time" and challenged Republicans to hold a vote on his nominee.

Scalia was found dead on Saturday in his room at a remote Texas hunting resort. The 79-year-old jurist was appointed to the court in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan.

He is survived by his wife, Maureen, nine children and 36 grandchildren.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

U.S. warplanes carried out airstrikes Friday that targeted an ISIS base and a senior militant believed to be behind two deadly attacks against Weste tourists in Tunisia last year. 

A senior U.S. official told Fox News that the target of the airstrike was Noureddine Chouchane, a senior ISIS figure in Libya. A defense official speaking to The Associated Press said Chouchane was "likely killed."

The airstrike on the base in Sabratha, west of Tripoli, was carried out by F-15s.

Local reports initially suggested that more than 30 people had been killed. However, it was not immediately clear how many ISIS terrorists were among the dead. 

Chouchane is thought to have directed the March 18 attack on the Bardo Museum in Tunis, in which 24 people were killed, many of them foreign tourists. He is also believed to have some connection to the June 26 attack on a resort hotel near the Tunisian city of Sousse, where an ISIS gunman killed 38 people.

President Barack Obama last week directed his national security team to bolster counterterrorism efforts in Libya while also pursuing diplomatic possibilities for solving its political crisis and forming a govement of national unity. While ISIS has emerged in other places, including Afghanistan, Libya is seen as its key focus outside of Syria and Iraq.

The U.S. military has been closely monitoring ISIS movements in Libya, and small teams of U.S. military personnel have moved in and out of the country over a period of months. British, French and Italian special forces also have been in Libya helping with aerial surveillance, mapping and intelligence gathering in several cities, including Benghazi in the east and Zintan in the west, according to two Libyan military officials who are coordinating with them. The Libyan officials spoke on condition of anonymity recently with The Associated Press on this matter because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

U.S. officials predicted early this month that it would be weeks or longer before U.S. special forces would be sent, citing the need for more consultations with European allies. Additional intelligence would help refine targets for any sort of military strikes, but surveillance drones are in high demand elsewhere, including in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Adding to the conce in Washington and Europe is evidence that the number of ISIS fighters in Libya is increasing - now believed to be up from about 2,000 to 5,000 - even as the group's numbers in Syria and Iraq are shrinking under more unrelenting U.S. and coalition airstrikes.

Fox News Channel's Jennifer Griffin and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Donald Trump continues to dominate the race for the Republican nomination, according to a new Fox News national poll of registered voters.

Trump leads with 36 percent among self-identified GOP primary voters.  Ted Cruz captures 19 percent and Marco Rubio receives 15 percent.

CLICK TO READ THE POLL RESULTS

Jeb Bush and Ben Carson get nine percent a piece, and John Kasich gets eight percent. 

The poll, released Thursday, was conducted Monday through Wednesday evenings -- after a heated Republican debate Saturday in South Carolina (and also after Valentine’s Day Sunday).

Trump’s success is due to his ability to make in-roads with core elements of the GOP base.

For example, white evangelical Christians voting in the GOP primary favor Trump (28 percent) and Cruz (26 percent) over Rubio (15 percent) and Carson (15 percent).

Cruz has a slim one-point edge over Trump among those who identify as “very” conservative (29-28 percent).  Another 16 percent back Rubio.

Men (40 percent) are more likely than women (32 percent) to make Trump their first choice.  Still, he’s the favorite for each.

Nearly six in 10 Republicans want the next president to be someone from outside the political establishment -- and those voters go heavily for Trump (55 percent vs. 15 percent for Cruz and 11 percent Carson).

Meanwhile, Trump is the candidate Republican voters trust to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin.  Thirty-nine percent would put Trump in the room with Putin -- that’s more than double the 18 percent who say Cruz. Fourteen percent say Rubio and 10 percent Bush.

For those pundits who thought the Republican faithful would fall back in line when faced with the possibility of Trump making Supreme Court appointments, consider this: Trump ties Cruz as the candidate GOP primary voters think would do the best job handling nominations to the high court (26 percent each).

Taking into consideration that this is an election year, 62 percent of all voters say it is the responsibility of current leaders, President Obama and the Senate, to act to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice Scalia’s recent death.  Compare that to 34 percent who think the president shouldn’t get to nominate someone for a life-time appointment this late in his term.

Despite Trump’s strengths in the primary race, he’s the weakest of the GOP candidates in hypothetical matchups against Clinton.  Rubio (+4) and Kasich (+3) perform best against Clinton.  Cruz and Bush each top Clinton by just one point. 

Trump trails the Democrat by five points: Clinton 47 percent vs. Trump 42 percent. Sanders trounces Trump by 53-38 percent. 

By a slim 49-48 percent, Republicans think Trump “has the temperament” to serve effectively as president, while voters overall say he doesn’t by 67-30.

Republicans say by 62-31 percent that Rubio “has the toughness” to serve effectively.  By comparison, most voters aren’t so sure:  43 percent say he does, while 46 percent disagree.

Is Cruz likeable enough to do the job?  By two-to-one most Republicans say he has the “personality” to serve effectively as president (65-30).  Overall, voters are more likely to say no (44 percent yes vs. 49 percent no).

Who could kids look up to in the White House?  GOP primary voters think Carson (26 percent) is the best role model for children today, while nearly half say Trump is the worst (49 percent).

Pollpourri

The president is on television -- a lot.  Voters say they would “most dread” watching Trump (40 percent) and Clinton (31 percent) on television for the next four years.  Democrats are more likely to say Trump (56 percent) than Republicans are to say Clinton (50 percent). 

Independents? They would dread watching Trump the most (40 percent), followed by Clinton (27 percent). 

The Fox News poll is based on landline and cellphone interviews with 1,031 randomly chosen registered voters nationwide and was conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R) from February 15-17, 2016.  The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points for all registered voters, and 4.5 points for the Republican primary voter sample (404).

Police in Washington state are asking for the public's help in locating a Seattle man who has been missing for two weeks. 

Richard Aeson, 62, was reported missing on Feb. 5 after he failed to show up for work. A conceed neigbor went to Aeson's apartment and found the back door open. Police who were called to the scene found no sign of foul play.

KOMO reported that later that same day, the neighbor received a text from Aeson that said simply, "my luck has run out." The missing man has not been seen or heard from since. 

Authorities say Aeson has been known to frequent walking trails in West Seattle and Rainier Valley, which is located southeast of downtown.

Anyone with information about Aeson's whereabouts is asked to contact Seattle Police at (206) 684-5007.

Click for more from KOMONews.com.

U.S. warplanes carried out airstrikes Friday that targeted an ISIS base and a senior militant believed to be behind two deadly attacks against Weste tourists in Tunisia last year. 

A senior U.S. official told Fox News that the target of the airstrike was Noureddine Chouchane, a senior ISIS figure in Libya. A defense official speaking to The Associated Press said Chouchane was "likely killed."

The airstrike on the base in Sabratha, west of Tripoli, was carried out by F-15s.

Local reports initially suggested that more than 30 people had been killed. However, it was not immediately clear how many ISIS terrorists were among the dead. 

Chouchane is thought to have directed the March 18 attack on the Bardo Museum in Tunis, in which 24 people were killed, many of them foreign tourists. He is also believed to have some connection to the June 26 attack on a resort hotel near the Tunisian city of Sousse, where an ISIS gunman killed 38 people.

President Barack Obama last week directed his national security team to bolster counterterrorism efforts in Libya while also pursuing diplomatic possibilities for solving its political crisis and forming a govement of national unity. While ISIS has emerged in other places, including Afghanistan, Libya is seen as its key focus outside of Syria and Iraq.

The U.S. military has been closely monitoring ISIS movements in Libya, and small teams of U.S. military personnel have moved in and out of the country over a period of months. British, French and Italian special forces also have been in Libya helping with aerial surveillance, mapping and intelligence gathering in several cities, including Benghazi in the east and Zintan in the west, according to two Libyan military officials who are coordinating with them. The Libyan officials spoke on condition of anonymity recently with The Associated Press on this matter because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

U.S. officials predicted early this month that it would be weeks or longer before U.S. special forces would be sent, citing the need for more consultations with European allies. Additional intelligence would help refine targets for any sort of military strikes, but surveillance drones are in high demand elsewhere, including in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Adding to the conce in Washington and Europe is evidence that the number of ISIS fighters in Libya is increasing - now believed to be up from about 2,000 to 5,000 - even as the group's numbers in Syria and Iraq are shrinking under more unrelenting U.S. and coalition airstrikes.

Fox News Channel's Jennifer Griffin and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump tepidly endorsed invading Iraq in September 2002, contradicting his earlier insistence that he opposed the war before the March 2003 invasion.

Trump was asked about a possible war with Iraq during a five-minute phone interview with radio host Howard Ste on Sept. 11, 2002. In between Trump's recollections of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attack on the World Trade Center and his thoughts on rebuilding the Twin Towers, Ste asked the billionaire real estate developer, "Are you for invading Iraq?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Trump responded. "You know, I wish the first time it was done correctly," an apparent reference to the Gulf War. A month after the interview, Congress passed a joint resolution authorizing military action against Iraq.

The audio was first reported late Thursday by Buzzfeed News.

For months, Trump has cited his opposition to the Iraq War as evidence of his foreign policy judgement. When asked about the statement during a CNN town hall in South Carolina Thursday, Trump initially said he did not remember making the statement, but added, "I could have said that. Nobody asked me- I wasn't a politician. It was probably the first time anybody asked me that question.

"By the time the war started, I was against it," Trump added. "And shortly thereafter, I was really against it."

In an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity Thursday, Trump restated his opposition to the war, saying "We attacked Iraq, but Iraq didn’t knock down the World Trade Center." Trump also said that he would declassify the entire 9/11 Commission Report, telling Hannity "When that’s open, I think you’ll find out that Saudi Arabia had a lot to do with the ripping down of the World Trade Center."

 

The Iraq War issue first flared up in Saturday's Republican debate, when Trump clashed with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush over Middle East policy. 

Trump repeatedly slammed former President George W. Bush, Jeb's brother, saying his administration "lied" about Iraq having weapons of mass destruction. At Thursday's town hall, Trump refused to say whether he stood by that charge. 

 

Trump also invoked the 9/11 attacks in response to Jeb Bush's claim that his brother kept the U.S. safe, saying "The World Trade Center came down … That’s not keeping us safe."

During the town hall, Trump also eased off Idea he had made earlier in the day about Pope Francis. Retuing to Rome from a five-day trip to Mexico, Francis had said that Trump's pledge to build a wall along the entire length of the border and expel millions of illegal immigrants was "not Christian".

Trump, a Presbyterian, initially responded by saying, "For a religious leader to question a person's faith is disgraceful. I am proud to be a Christian, and as president I will not allow Christianity to be consistently attacked and weakened."

However, on Thursday night, Trump said "I don't like fighting with the Pope, actually. I don't think this is a fight. I think he said something much softer than was originally reported by the media. I think that he heard one side of the story, which is probably by the Mexican govement."

A would-be robber was left beaten and bruised by a bystander -- who happened to be a state boxing champion -- at a Florida Walgreens on Valentine's Day, police said.

Bradenton Police said Anthony Nemeth, dressed in a hoodie, covered his face when he walked into a neighborhood Walgreens and tried to rob the store, Fox13News.com reported.

“He jumped up onto the counter, demanding all of their Oxycodone 30 milligram,” police said. At first, the store clerk couldn’t believe a robbery was occurring, but Nemeth assured him it was and that he had a gun, police said.

David West, a 25-year-old who reportedly holds two state boxing titles, overheard the demands and jumped into action.

It took the boxer four punches to knock the suspect out cold, he told ABC 13.  

West, who was visting his girlfriend, said he wasn't trying to hurt anyone, but wanted to protect his significant other. He said he told the suspect to "use this as a tuing point."

Nemeth has been charged with attempted armed robbery and is currently being held in Manatee County Jail on a $15,000 bond.

“Normally, I would say don’t get involved, especially when there is a weapon they can see, but apparently the citizen didn’t see or felt he had a weapon,” Lt. James Racky told Fox13News.com.

Click for more from Fox 13.

Donald Trump continues to dominate the race for the Republican nomination, according to a new Fox News national poll of registered voters.

Trump leads with 36 percent among self-identified GOP primary voters.  Ted Cruz captures 19 percent and Marco Rubio receives 15 percent.

CLICK TO READ THE POLL RESULTS

Jeb Bush and Ben Carson get nine percent a piece, and John Kasich gets eight percent. 

The poll, released Thursday, was conducted Monday through Wednesday evenings -- after a heated Republican debate Saturday in South Carolina (and also after Valentine’s Day Sunday).

Trump’s success is due to his ability to make in-roads with core elements of the GOP base.

For example, white evangelical Christians voting in the GOP primary favor Trump (28 percent) and Cruz (26 percent) over Rubio (15 percent) and Carson (15 percent).

Cruz has a slim one-point edge over Trump among those who identify as “very” conservative (29-28 percent).  Another 16 percent back Rubio.

Men (40 percent) are more likely than women (32 percent) to make Trump their first choice.  Still, he’s the favorite for each.

Nearly six in 10 Republicans want the next president to be someone from outside the political establishment -- and those voters go heavily for Trump (55 percent vs. 15 percent for Cruz and 11 percent Carson).

Meanwhile, Trump is the candidate Republican voters trust to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin.  Thirty-nine percent would put Trump in the room with Putin -- that’s more than double the 18 percent who say Cruz. Fourteen percent say Rubio and 10 percent Bush.

For those pundits who thought the Republican faithful would fall back in line when faced with the possibility of Trump making Supreme Court appointments, consider this: Trump ties Cruz as the candidate GOP primary voters think would do the best job handling nominations to the high court (26 percent each).

Taking into consideration that this is an election year, 62 percent of all voters say it is the responsibility of current leaders, President Obama and the Senate, to act to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice Scalia’s recent death.  Compare that to 34 percent who think the president shouldn’t get to nominate someone for a life-time appointment this late in his term.

Despite Trump’s strengths in the primary race, he’s the weakest of the GOP candidates in hypothetical matchups against Clinton.  Rubio (+4) and Kasich (+3) perform best against Clinton.  Cruz and Bush each top Clinton by just one point. 

Trump trails the Democrat by five points: Clinton 47 percent vs. Trump 42 percent. Sanders trounces Trump by 53-38 percent. 

By a slim 49-48 percent, Republicans think Trump “has the temperament” to serve effectively as president, while voters overall say he doesn’t by 67-30.

Republicans say by 62-31 percent that Rubio “has the toughness” to serve effectively.  By comparison, most voters aren’t so sure:  43 percent say he does, while 46 percent disagree.

Is Cruz likeable enough to do the job?  By two-to-one most Republicans say he has the “personality” to serve effectively as president (65-30).  Overall, voters are more likely to say no (44 percent yes vs. 49 percent no).

Who could kids look up to in the White House?  GOP primary voters think Carson (26 percent) is the best role model for children today, while nearly half say Trump is the worst (49 percent).

Pollpourri

The president is on television -- a lot.  Voters say they would “most dread” watching Trump (40 percent) and Clinton (31 percent) on television for the next four years.  Democrats are more likely to say Trump (56 percent) than Republicans are to say Clinton (50 percent). 

Independents? They would dread watching Trump the most (40 percent), followed by Clinton (27 percent). 

The Fox News poll is based on landline and cellphone interviews with 1,031 randomly chosen registered voters nationwide and was conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R) from February 15-17, 2016.  The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points for all registered voters, and 4.5 points for the Republican primary voter sample (404).

A would-be robber was left beaten and bruised by a bystander -- who happened to be a state boxing champion -- at a Florida Walgreens on Valentine's Day, police said.

Bradenton Police said Anthony Nemeth, dressed in a hoodie, covered his face when he walked into a neighborhood Walgreens and tried to rob the store, Fox13News.com reported.

“He jumped up onto the counter, demanding all of their Oxycodone 30 milligram,” police said. At first, the store clerk couldn’t believe a robbery was occurring, but Nemeth assured him it was and that he had a gun, police said.

David West, a 25-year-old who reportedly holds two state boxing titles, overheard the demands and jumped into action.

It took the boxer four punches to knock the suspect out cold, he told ABC 13.  

West, who was visting his girlfriend, said he wasn't trying to hurt anyone, but wanted to protect his significant other. He said he told the suspect to "use this as a tuing point."

Nemeth has been charged with attempted armed robbery and is currently being held in Manatee County Jail on a $15,000 bond.

“Normally, I would say don’t get involved, especially when there is a weapon they can see, but apparently the citizen didn’t see or felt he had a weapon,” Lt. James Racky told Fox13News.com.

Click for more from Fox 13.

Donald Trump continues to dominate the race for the Republican nomination, according to a new Fox News national poll of registered voters.

Trump leads with 36 percent among self-identified GOP primary voters.  Ted Cruz captures 19 percent and Marco Rubio receives 15 percent.

CLICK TO READ THE POLL RESULTS

Jeb Bush and Ben Carson get nine percent a piece, and John Kasich gets eight percent. 

The poll, released Thursday, was conducted Monday through Wednesday evenings -- after a heated Republican debate Saturday in South Carolina (and also after Valentine’s Day Sunday).

Trump’s success is due to his ability to make in-roads with core elements of the GOP base.

For example, white evangelical Christians voting in the GOP primary favor Trump (28 percent) and Cruz (26 percent) over Rubio (15 percent) and Carson (15 percent).

Cruz has a slim one-point edge over Trump among those who identify as “very” conservative (29-28 percent).  Another 16 percent back Rubio.

Men (40 percent) are more likely than women (32 percent) to make Trump their first choice.  Still, he’s the favorite for each.

Nearly six in 10 Republicans want the next president to be someone from outside the political establishment -- and those voters go heavily for Trump (55 percent vs. 15 percent for Cruz and 11 percent Carson).

Meanwhile, Trump is the candidate Republican voters trust to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin.  Thirty-nine percent would put Trump in the room with Putin -- that’s more than double the 18 percent who say Cruz. Fourteen percent say Rubio and 10 percent Bush.

For those pundits who thought the Republican faithful would fall back in line when faced with the possibility of Trump making Supreme Court appointments, consider this: Trump ties Cruz as the candidate GOP primary voters think would do the best job handling nominations to the high court (26 percent each).

Taking into consideration that this is an election year, 62 percent of all voters say it is the responsibility of current leaders, President Obama and the Senate, to act to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice Scalia’s recent death.  Compare that to 34 percent who think the president shouldn’t get to nominate someone for a life-time appointment this late in his term.

Despite Trump’s strengths in the primary race, he’s the weakest of the GOP candidates in hypothetical matchups against Clinton.  Rubio (+4) and Kasich (+3) perform best against Clinton.  Cruz and Bush each top Clinton by just one point. 

Trump trails the Democrat by five points: Clinton 47 percent vs. Trump 42 percent. Sanders trounces Trump by 53-38 percent. 

By a slim 49-48 percent, Republicans think Trump “has the temperament” to serve effectively as president, while voters overall say he doesn’t by 67-30.

Republicans say by 62-31 percent that Rubio “has the toughness” to serve effectively.  By comparison, most voters aren’t so sure:  43 percent say he does, while 46 percent disagree.

Is Cruz likeable enough to do the job?  By two-to-one most Republicans say he has the “personality” to serve effectively as president (65-30).  Overall, voters are more likely to say no (44 percent yes vs. 49 percent no).

Who could kids look up to in the White House?  GOP primary voters think Carson (26 percent) is the best role model for children today, while nearly half say Trump is the worst (49 percent).

Pollpourri

The president is on television -- a lot.  Voters say they would “most dread” watching Trump (40 percent) and Clinton (31 percent) on television for the next four years.  Democrats are more likely to say Trump (56 percent) than Republicans are to say Clinton (50 percent). 

Independents? They would dread watching Trump the most (40 percent), followed by Clinton (27 percent). 

The Fox News poll is based on landline and cellphone interviews with 1,031 randomly chosen registered voters nationwide and was conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R) from February 15-17, 2016.  The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points for all registered voters, and 4.5 points for the Republican primary voter sample (404).

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump tepidly endorsed invading Iraq in September 2002, contradicting his earlier insistence that he opposed the war before the March 2003 invasion.

Trump was asked about a possible war with Iraq during a five-minute phone interview with radio host Howard Ste on Sept. 11, 2002. In between Trump's recollections of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attack on the World Trade Center and his thoughts on rebuilding the Twin Towers, Ste asked the billionaire real estate developer, "Are you for invading Iraq?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Trump responded. "You know, I wish the first time it was done correctly," an apparent reference to the Gulf War. A month after the interview, Congress passed a joint resolution authorizing military action against Iraq.

The audio was first reported late Thursday by Buzzfeed News.

For months, Trump has cited his opposition to the Iraq War as evidence of his foreign policy judgement. When asked about the statement during a CNN town hall in South Carolina Thursday, Trump initially said he did not remember making the statement, but added, "I could have said that. Nobody asked me- I wasn't a politician. It was probably the first time anybody asked me that question.

"By the time the war started, I was against it," Trump added. "And shortly thereafter, I was really against it."

In an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity Thursday, Trump restated his opposition to the war, saying "We attacked Iraq, but Iraq didn’t knock down the World Trade Center." Trump also said that he would declassify the entire 9/11 Commission Report, telling Hannity "When that’s open, I think you’ll find out that Saudi Arabia had a lot to do with the ripping down of the World Trade Center."

 

The Iraq War issue first flared up in Saturday's Republican debate, when Trump clashed with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush over Middle East policy. 

Trump repeatedly slammed former President George W. Bush, Jeb's brother, saying his administration "lied" about Iraq having weapons of mass destruction. At Thursday's town hall, Trump refused to say whether he stood by that charge. 

 

Trump also invoked the 9/11 attacks in response to Jeb Bush's claim that his brother kept the U.S. safe, saying "The World Trade Center came down … That’s not keeping us safe."

During the town hall, Trump also eased off Idea he had made earlier in the day about Pope Francis. Retuing to Rome from a five-day trip to Mexico, Francis had said that Trump's pledge to build a wall along the entire length of the border and expel millions of illegal immigrants was "not Christian".

Trump, a Presbyterian, initially responded by saying, "For a religious leader to question a person's faith is disgraceful. I am proud to be a Christian, and as president I will not allow Christianity to be consistently attacked and weakened."

However, on Thursday night, Trump said "I don't like fighting with the Pope, actually. I don't think this is a fight. I think he said something much softer than was originally reported by the media. I think that he heard one side of the story, which is probably by the Mexican govement."

Let’s be honest. Hollywood does not exactly have the best track record when it comes to producing accurate faith-based movies. Remember the giant rock creatures from “Noah”?

So when I heard that Sony Pictures was about to release a faith-based film called “Risen”, I was a bit skeptical. Typically faith-based movies are faith-bashing movies.

Click here to get Todd’s American Dispatch – a must-read for conservatives.

And when “Risen” eaed three-and-a-half stars from the left wingers at the Seattle Times, I was incredulous.

But when I saw the film’s trailer, I was astonished – Hollywood got it right.

“Risen” is a powerful telling of the aftermath of the resurrection of Jesus told from the perspective of a non-believer – a Roman military officer.

Joseph Fiennes plays Clavius, assigned to investigate the disappearance of Jesus’ body. It’s like an old school detective noir story – think C.S.I. Jerusalem.

PODCAST: Listen to Todd’s interview with “Risen” star Joseph Fiennes.

“It’s a movie that sees the resurrection through the eyes of a non-believer," Fiennes told me. “It’s a wonderful, fresh way in seeing the story of Christ unfold through the eyes of a skeptic.”

Fiennes is well aware of Hollywood’s past attempts to bring Bible stories to the big screen. Anybody choke on their popco during “Noah” and “Exodus: God and Kings”?

The ever-diplomatic Fiennes did not name names, but he did refer to “revisionist films” that “polarized a lot of people.” On the other hand there are the cinephiles who took issue with “preachy and conservative and low production value Christian films” that did not speak to them.

That’s why Affirm Films and Sony Pictures went the extra mile to make sure they got “Risen” right.

“We strived very hard in getting the balance between cinema and Scripture,” Fiennes said. “Working with the church communities in the process of making the film has allowed us to stay as true as possible to Scripture.”

At the same time, they were also tasked with producing a solid work of art.

“It’s a film and we want people to have a great cinematic experience,” Fiennes told me.

In other words – it’s a night at the movies – not a Sunday moing church service.

“We are not selling religion or pushing religion,” he said. “We are pushing for great cinema and great story telling and I believe we got the balance right.”

And so do many evangelical Christian leaders – most notably revered media critic Ted Baehr, chairman of the Christian Film and Television Commission.

“It is a very powerful dramatic movie,” Baehr said in a video posted on his website. “It’s a powerful heart-rending story. I recommend it for every Christian to take their friends to see Risen.”

The film was also endorsed by a group of prominent Christian leaders and ministers.

“It’s a movie that makes you think,” said Chris Williamson, pastor of Strong Tower Bible Church. “It’s not your typical Christian-themed movie – even though it’s dominated with Christian themes. If you are an atheist, a new believer, an unbeliever – I think you can find yourself in this film.”

Renowned Christian leader Rick White attended a screening of the film in Tennessee. He said the film demonstrates that “it’s okay to ask the hard questions” on your spiritual jouey.

Mr. Fiennes and Affirm Films and Sony Pictures have demonstrated a deep respect for the Christian faith. And in doing, so they have produced a film that will encourage and challenge and entertain a very diverse audience.

So as a fellow believer, I’d like to share these words with Sony Pictures --- thank you.

He is Risen. He is Risen Indeed!

Todd Staes is host of Fox News & Commentary, heard on hundreds of radio stations. His latest book is "God Less America: Real Stories From the Front Lines of the Attack on Traditional Values." Follow Todd on Twitter@ToddStaes and find him on Facebook.

Cracks are starting to appear in the Republican wall of opposition to President Obama nominating the next Supreme Court justice, as several prominent senators signal that a hearing -- at least -- could be allowed. 

Those lawmakers include Sen. John Coyn, R-Texas, who would not rule out a Judiciary Committee hearing on the president’s forthcoming nomination to replace Justice Antonin Scalia, who died suddenly during a retreat at a Texas resort on Saturday.

He was joined by Nevada Sen. Dean Heller, who appeared to welcome the debate in Idea Wednesday, but nonetheless encouraged Obama to “put the will of the people ahead of advancing a liberal agenda” with his pick.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, who as chairman of the Judiciary Committee would be the one to put a confirmation hearing on the schedule, has said he would wait to see who is the pick before ruling it out completely, as suggested by his colleague, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. 

Further, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, also on the committee, said he would not support a filibuster to prevent a vote, as other Republicans have suggested.

The hard line in the sand drawn by McConnell came shortly after Scalia’s death. As majority leader, McConnell has discretion over whether to schedule a full senate vote. “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice,” he said in a statement Saturday. “Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.”

This was followed by equally strong assertions during that night's GOP debate in South Carolina. Several candidates said they wanted the nomination to be delayed until the next president takes office, as others suggested that in the event of a nomination, Obama's nominee be thwarted in the Senate.

Obama declared that as sitting president, it’s his right to nominate Scalia’s replacement, despite the fact that it is his last year in office and Capitol Hill is in the throes of a politically charged election cycle. “There’s no unwritten law that says that it can only be done in off years,” Obama said on Tuesday. “That’s not in the constitutional text.”

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid bolstered the president’s argument Wednesday and predicted Republicans would eventually “cave in.”

Obama has also faced accusations of hypocrisy, since he tried to filibuster Justice Samuel Alito's nomination in 2006. The White House says he now regrets that decision. 

Vice President Biden said Obama should be able to nominate, but acknowledged it is up to the Senate to confirm it. Because of that, the former Delaware senator told Minnesota Public Radio on Thursday, “the president is not going to be able to go out -- nor would it be his instinct, anyway -- to pick the most liberal jurist in the nation and put them on the court. “

“There are plenty of judges (who) are on high courts already who have had unanimous support of the Republicans.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Donald Trump continues to dominate the race for the Republican nomination, according to a new Fox News national poll of registered voters.

Trump leads with 36 percent among self-identified GOP primary voters.  Ted Cruz captures 19 percent and Marco Rubio receives 15 percent.

CLICK TO READ THE POLL RESULTS

Jeb Bush and Ben Carson get nine percent a piece, and John Kasich gets eight percent. 

The poll, released Thursday, was conducted Monday through Wednesday evenings -- after a heated Republican debate Saturday in South Carolina (and also after Valentine’s Day Sunday).

Trump’s success is due to his ability to make in-roads with core elements of the GOP base.

For example, white evangelical Christians voting in the GOP primary favor Trump (28 percent) and Cruz (26 percent) over Rubio (15 percent) and Carson (15 percent).

Cruz has a slim one-point edge over Trump among those who identify as “very” conservative (29-28 percent).  Another 16 percent back Rubio.

Men (40 percent) are more likely than women (32 percent) to make Trump their first choice.  Still, he’s the favorite for each.

Nearly six in 10 Republicans want the next president to be someone from outside the political establishment -- and those voters go heavily for Trump (55 percent vs. 15 percent for Cruz and 11 percent Carson).

Meanwhile, Trump is the candidate Republican voters trust to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin.  Thirty-nine percent would put Trump in the room with Putin -- that’s more than double the 18 percent who say Cruz. Fourteen percent say Rubio and 10 percent Bush.

For those pundits who thought the Republican faithful would fall back in line when faced with the possibility of Trump making Supreme Court appointments, consider this: Trump ties Cruz as the candidate GOP primary voters think would do the best job handling nominations to the high court (26 percent each).

Taking into consideration that this is an election year, 62 percent of all voters say it is the responsibility of current leaders, President Obama and the Senate, to act to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice Scalia’s recent death.  Compare that to 34 percent who think the president shouldn’t get to nominate someone for a life-time appointment this late in his term.

Despite Trump’s strengths in the primary race, he’s the weakest of the GOP candidates in hypothetical matchups against Clinton.  Rubio (+4) and Kasich (+3) perform best against Clinton.  Cruz and Bush each top Clinton by just one point. 

Trump trails the Democrat by five points: Clinton 47 percent vs. Trump 42 percent. Sanders trounces Trump by 53-38 percent. 

By a slim 49-48 percent, Republicans think Trump “has the temperament” to serve effectively as president, while voters overall say he doesn’t by 67-30.

Republicans say by 62-31 percent that Rubio “has the toughness” to serve effectively.  By comparison, most voters aren’t so sure:  43 percent say he does, while 46 percent disagree.

Is Cruz likeable enough to do the job?  By two-to-one most Republicans say he has the “personality” to serve effectively as president (65-30).  Overall, voters are more likely to say no (44 percent yes vs. 49 percent no).

Who could kids look up to in the White House?  GOP primary voters think Carson (26 percent) is the best role model for children today, while nearly half say Trump is the worst (49 percent).

Pollpourri

The president is on television -- a lot.  Voters say they would “most dread” watching Trump (40 percent) and Clinton (31 percent) on television for the next four years.  Democrats are more likely to say Trump (56 percent) than Republicans are to say Clinton (50 percent). 

Independents? They would dread watching Trump the most (40 percent), followed by Clinton (27 percent). 

The Fox News poll is based on landline and cellphone interviews with 1,031 randomly chosen registered voters nationwide and was conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R) from February 15-17, 2016.  The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points for all registered voters, and 4.5 points for the Republican primary voter sample (404).

Donald Trump continues to dominate the race for the Republican nomination, according to a new Fox News national poll of registered voters.

Trump leads with 36 percent among self-identified GOP primary voters.  Ted Cruz captures 19 percent and Marco Rubio receives 15 percent.

CLICK TO READ THE POLL RESULTS

Jeb Bush and Ben Carson get nine percent a piece, and John Kasich gets eight percent. 

The poll, released Thursday, was conducted Monday through Wednesday evenings -- after a heated Republican debate Saturday in South Carolina (and also after Valentine’s Day Sunday).

Trump’s success is due to his ability to make in-roads with core elements of the GOP base.

For example, white evangelical Christians voting in the GOP primary favor Trump (28 percent) and Cruz (26 percent) over Rubio (15 percent) and Carson (15 percent).

Cruz has a slim one-point edge over Trump among those who identify as “very” conservative (29-28 percent).  Another 16 percent back Rubio.

Men (40 percent) are more likely than women (32 percent) to make Trump their first choice.  Still, he’s the favorite for each.

Nearly six in 10 Republicans want the next president to be someone from outside the political establishment -- and those voters go heavily for Trump (55 percent vs. 15 percent for Cruz and 11 percent Carson).

Meanwhile, Trump is the candidate Republican voters trust to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin.  Thirty-nine percent would put Trump in the room with Putin -- that’s more than double the 18 percent who say Cruz. Fourteen percent say Rubio and 10 percent Bush.

For those pundits who thought the Republican faithful would fall back in line when faced with the possibility of Trump making Supreme Court appointments, consider this: Trump ties Cruz as the candidate GOP primary voters think would do the best job handling nominations to the high court (26 percent each).

Taking into consideration that this is an election year, 62 percent of all voters say it is the responsibility of current leaders, President Obama and the Senate, to act to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice Scalia’s recent death.  Compare that to 34 percent who think the president shouldn’t get to nominate someone for a life-time appointment this late in his term.

Despite Trump’s strengths in the primary race, he’s the weakest of the GOP candidates in hypothetical matchups against Clinton.  Rubio (+4) and Kasich (+3) perform best against Clinton.  Cruz and Bush each top Clinton by just one point. 

Trump trails the Democrat by five points: Clinton 47 percent vs. Trump 42 percent. Sanders trounces Trump by 53-38 percent. 

By a slim 49-48 percent, Republicans think Trump “has the temperament” to serve effectively as president, while voters overall say he doesn’t by 67-30.

Republicans say by 62-31 percent that Rubio “has the toughness” to serve effectively.  By comparison, most voters aren’t so sure:  43 percent say he does, while 46 percent disagree.

Is Cruz likeable enough to do the job?  By two-to-one most Republicans say he has the “personality” to serve effectively as president (65-30).  Overall, voters are more likely to say no (44 percent yes vs. 49 percent no).

Who could kids look up to in the White House?  GOP primary voters think Carson (26 percent) is the best role model for children today, while nearly half say Trump is the worst (49 percent).

Pollpourri

The president is on television -- a lot.  Voters say they would “most dread” watching Trump (40 percent) and Clinton (31 percent) on television for the next four years.  Democrats are more likely to say Trump (56 percent) than Republicans are to say Clinton (50 percent). 

Independents? They would dread watching Trump the most (40 percent), followed by Clinton (27 percent). 

The Fox News poll is based on landline and cellphone interviews with 1,031 randomly chosen registered voters nationwide and was conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R) from February 15-17, 2016.  The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points for all registered voters, and 4.5 points for the Republican primary voter sample (404).

Police in Washington, D.C., Thursday released surveillance video of the alleged weekend robbery and beating of a decorated former Marine outside a city McDonald's.

The video was released Thursday afteoon.

Christopher Marquez, 30, an Iraq War vet, told the Washington Post he was eating in a back coer of the restaurant when a group of teens and young men approached his table.

"I'm telling this to everybody because it's been happening a lot around here and across our country," Marquez told "Fox & Friends." "It was a hate crime. They targeted me because of my skin color. So, we're seeing a lot of these events of people being attacked because they're white. And I'm thinking we have to speak up more about this because it's just going to continue to happen."

Marquez said he left the McDonald's, but was knocked unconscious by a blow to his head. When he came to, his pants were ripped and his wallet, which contained $400 in cash, three credit cards and VA medical card among other items, was missing.

 

According to the Daily Caller, which first reported the incident, Marquez was able to take a cab back to his apartment, where building employees called police. He was treated at George Washington University Hospital for head trauma.

Marquez served in the Marine Corps from 2003 to 2011. He was awarded the Bronze Star with combat distinguishing device for valor during the battle for Fallujah, Iraq, in November 2004. Marquez is one of two Marines depicted carrying then-1st Sgt. Bradley Kasal out of the so-called "Hell House" in a famous photograph.

He made an unsuccessful 2014 run for Congress as a Democrat in Califoia. He currently studies at American University in Washington, D.C.

 

Cracks are starting to appear in the Republican wall of opposition to President Obama nominating the next Supreme Court justice, as several prominent senators signal that a hearing -- at least -- could be allowed. 

Those lawmakers include Sen. John Coyn, R-Texas, who would not rule out a Judiciary Committee hearing on the president’s forthcoming nomination to replace Justice Antonin Scalia, who died suddenly during a retreat at a Texas resort on Saturday.

He was joined by Nevada Sen. Dean Heller, who appeared to welcome the debate in Idea Wednesday, but nonetheless encouraged Obama to “put the will of the people ahead of advancing a liberal agenda” with his pick.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, who as chairman of the Judiciary Committee would be the one to put a confirmation hearing on the schedule, has said he would wait to see who is the pick before ruling it out completely, as suggested by his colleague, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. 

Further, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, also on the committee, said he would not support a filibuster to prevent a vote, as other Republicans have suggested.

The hard line in the sand drawn by McConnell came shortly after Scalia’s death. As majority leader, McConnell has discretion over whether to schedule a full senate vote. “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice,” he said in a statement Saturday. “Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.”

This was followed by equally strong assertions during that night's GOP debate in South Carolina. Several candidates said they wanted the nomination to be delayed until the next president takes office, as others suggested that in the event of a nomination, Obama's nominee be thwarted in the Senate.

Obama declared that as sitting president, it’s his right to nominate Scalia’s replacement, despite the fact that it is his last year in office and Capitol Hill is in the throes of a politically charged election cycle. “There’s no unwritten law that says that it can only be done in off years,” Obama said on Tuesday. “That’s not in the constitutional text.”

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid bolstered the president’s argument Wednesday and predicted Republicans would eventually “cave in.”

Obama has also faced accusations of hypocrisy, since he tried to filibuster Justice Samuel Alito's nomination in 2006. The White House says he now regrets that decision. 

Vice President Biden said Obama should be able to nominate, but acknowledged it is up to the Senate to confirm it. Because of that, the former Delaware senator told Minnesota Public Radio on Thursday, “the president is not going to be able to go out -- nor would it be his instinct, anyway -- to pick the most liberal jurist in the nation and put them on the court. “

“There are plenty of judges (who) are on high courts already who have had unanimous support of the Republicans.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

A Delaware school district is sorry if it hurt anyone’s feelings by mistakenly sending an email home to parents that ridiculed “whiners” and “wimps.”

The “Hurt Feelings Report,” an Inteet meme that sarcastically solicits complaints from aggrieved parties, was attached by mistake to an email the Brandywine School District sent home to parents as part of a promotion for an “Exercise Your Brain” event, according to The News Joual.

“How long did you whine?”and “Which feelings were hurt?” asks the form, which includes boxes for the “whiner’s name” and the “date feelings were hurt.” One portion provides check boxes for reasons like “I am a wimp,” “I want my mommy” and “Two beers is not enough.” Another provides space to “Tell us in your own sissy words how your feelings were hurt, as if anyone cared.”

Variations of the form have circulated on the Inteet for years. A district spokeswoman told the newspaper that an unnamed employee had screwed up.

"This was an embarrassing mistake, but it was just that – a mistake," Alexis said. "It should not have happened, and we apologize for the error."

A parent who alerted The News Joual to the memo called it "completely offensive and mocks children who are bullied in schools."

But other parents took the email attachment in stride.

"If the children didn't see it, what is the problem?" one father told the paper. "It was a dumb prank, but I don't think it was malicious."

Anna Mendez, of the San Clemente, Calif.,-based National Association of People Against Bullying, said the Brandywine School District should consider additional anti-bullying education and counseling in light of the document being sent out.