Sneak peek at Sean Hannity's exclusive interview with WikiLeaks founder (Fox News)
Some Republican critics have questioned what evidence the administration has to back up its Russia allegations, while others have applauded President Obama for moving to penalize Russia – albeit months after the initial hacks.
Asked if he thought Obama was lying to the American people about Russia’s actions, Assange said the president is “acting like a lawyer” with his allegations.
“If you look at most of his statements, he doesn’t say that. He doesn’t say that WikiLeaks obtained its information from Russia, worked with Russia,” Assange said.
But he said he believes the administration is “trying to delegitimize the Trump administration as it goes into the White House. They are trying to say that President-elect Trump is not a legitimate president.”
Since Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton in November, Clinton’s allies have stepped up claims that the WikiLeaks email releases significantly damaged her candidacy – particularly the leak of thousands of emails from Campaign Chairman John Podesta’s account. An earlier release of DNC emails over the summer led to the resignation of Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Asked if the emails changed the outcome of the election, Assange said:
“Who knows, it’s impossible to tell. But if it did, the accusation is that the true statements of Hillary Clinton and her campaign manager, John Podesta, and the DNC head Debbie Wasserman Schultz, their true statements is what changed the election.”
↣ Donald Trump sat down for an interview with Fox News Sunday.
Donald Trump sat down for an interview with Fox News Sunday, discussing everything from his reaction to reports of Russian interference with the 2016 election to the conflicts of interest between his presidency and his company.
The President-elect called the report from the CIA saying Russia interfered with the election to help Trump win “ridiculous.”
“I think it’s just another excuse. I don’t believe it,” he said. “I don’t know why, and I think it’s just — you know, they talked about all sorts of things. Every week, it’s another excuse.”
Trump also spoke about climate change, military discipline, the White House and more. Read More...
Eyeing that corner office or looking for a promotion at work?
E News sat down to talk with Megyn Kelly about her new memoir, Settle for More, in New York this week, and the Fox News journalist shared some advice for women who are just starting out about succeeding in the workplace.
Kelly was also asked by the host if she ever doubted herself or at any time wanted to quit during the course of her enviable career. Her response?
"Heck yes, all the time!" More On Books
She explained, "I have many self doubts and insecurities...I used to watch these people on TV or in magazines and feel envy not for how they looked, but for how together their lives seemed or how happy they seemed in comparison to me."
Wait, that happened to Megyn Kelly, too?!
"In that moment I resolved that I would settle for more, and that's become my life philosophy," she recalled.
The cable news veteran also provided us with her personal workplace rules.
Rule No. 1: "Coffee!"
Kelly talked about everything from the importance of developing a thick skin and mastering how to carry one's self in the office to how to best deal with criticism and whether it's OK to cry at work—and it's all in the video right here below.
Meanwhile, Settle for More, is on shelves and available for download now on Itunes and many other outlet.
US President Barack Obama has said failing to prepare for the aftermath of the ousting of Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi was the worst mistake of his presidency.
Mr Obama was answering a series of questions on the highs and lows of his time in office on Fox News.
He said, however, that intervening in Libya had been "the right thing to do".
The US and other countries carried out strikes designed to protect civilians during the 2011 uprising.
But after the former Libyan leader was killed, Libya plunged into chaos with militias taking over and two rival parliaments and governments forming.
Rival militias have been fighting for control in Libya
So-called Islamic State (IS) gained a foothold, and Libya became a major departure point for migrants trying to reach Europe.
A UN-backed national unity government arrived in the capital Tripoli earlier this month but is waiting to take charge.
The leader of the faction ruling western Libya has threatened to prosecute any of his ministers who co-operate with the UN-backed administration, contradicting an earlier announcement the ministers would stand down.
President Obama gave the brief but revealing answer speaking to Chris Wallace:
CW: Worst mistake?
Obama: Probably failing to plan for the day after, what I think was the right thing to do, in intervening in Libya.
It is not the first time President Obama has expressed regret over Libya. He told the Atlantic magazine last month the operation went as well as he had hoped, but Libya was now "a mess".
In that interview, he also criticised France and the UK, in particular saying British Prime Minister David Cameron became "distracted" after the intervention.
It was a rare rebuke for a close ally and one which BBC correspondents at the time said angered Downing Street.
President Obama told Fox that his biggest accomplishment in office was "saving the economy from the great depression".
He said the best day of his presidency was when he passed the healthcare reforms. The worst, he said, was responding to the mass shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school.
Mr Obama discussed his legacy in a BBC interview last year, saying his failure to pass tighter gun control laws was the biggest frustration of his presidency.
Stephen Curry finally explained the reason he left NIKE’s shoe offer on the table in favor of Under Armour in his own words. Many of the rumors circled around NIKE being against Curry’s Christianity, and that simply was not true.
During an interview, Curry was outright asked about the “creative freedom to put scriptures on the shoes.”
“Nah, that was strictly an agreement from Under Armour about who I am as a person,” he said. “When I was designing my signature shoe…how much my faith drives me and what I do on the court.”
He continued, “I didn’t ask NIKE.”
The conversation of even designing a shoe never happened with NIKE because Curry was not featured as one of their signature shoes. With Under Armour he was thrust to the forefront of their sneaker line with the Curry One’s, which is why he had a say in creating it.
Christian rapper Derek Minor spoke to the Bad Christian Podcast where he spoke about fighting with people on Twitter, cursing in music, and systematic racism.
The interview show opened up with Minor talking about getting into arguments on social media. He said fighting with people on Twitter about theology and politics is pointless, but for whatever reason, people hold him accountable for controversial topics.
“There’s no grace…that doesn’t work over Twitter,” Minor said on BCP.
In the beginning, the emcee said he used to debate everyone and then realized there was no real discussion going on.
“It winds up being both of us yelling at each other,” he admitted.
Minor said the two most popular things people “beef about” with him is topics of race and talking about Reach records. “Racial reconciliation gets me in so much trouble,” he said with a laugh before adding, “For some reason anytime someone at Reach Records does something wrong, they get at me.”
“‘Hey, get your boy Lecrae’ and I’m like, ‘Lecrae is a grown man. There’s nothing I can do even if I wanted to check him. He’s 6’7 and in the best shape of his life,” the rapper said about people who hound him about Lecrae.
He gave another example, “’Oh, Andy Mineo said about this cursing Derek. What do you think about that?’ and I’m like, ‘I don’t know, you have to ask him. I’m just over here writing raps’.”
It is important to note that Minor use to be on Reach Records, so perhaps people assume he left because he doesn’t agree with them. That is not the case at all. Minor left to form his own label.
“I guess I’m the Reach Records police, or I’m the militant black panther guy,” said Minor.
The topic of cussing came up with Minor. On the BCP, the hosts openly cuss on the show but maintain their standing as Christians. They asked Minor how he felt about that and why he doesn’t do it in his music.
The Empire rapper has never used profanity in his music so it wouldn’t make sense to do so now, he said. When asked if he cusses outside of music, he said:
“Oh yeah, I have before. You stub your toe…to me, a word is a word and it’s the context of how you use it. I don’t have a beef with that at all, but I know there are people who listen to my music that do.”
Minor said he likes to honor people who are offended by it, which in turn makes his music relatable to everyone. “I’m not solely just talking to the guys from the streets…but I’m also talking to the 32-year-old soccer mom who’s raising the next generation.”
“It depends on what lane you want to be in,” he said. “If you want to have an impact in the Christian world as it is today, it doesn’t make any sense.”
The 32-year-old said he picks and chooses the “hill I’m willing to die on” and cursing is not one of them.
The rest of the interview switched to a powerful conversation about Minor’s experiences with racism growing up. He also spoke about why he believes people are afraid to tackle the issue in the way it needs to be spoken about.
For the full conversation listen below. Interview starts at 34 minutes.
WWE superstar AJ Styles is a star in the squared circle who has been entertaining crowds by sacrificing his body for over 15 years. In part one of our interview, we introduced the wrestler as a man of faith and someone who is obsessed with Christian rap music. In this installment, we’ll dive into the ring with the “Phenomenal One” to discuss his career in sports entertainment.
After many years wrestling in TNA, Ring of Honor, and even Japan, AJ Styles finally made it to the top wrestling promotion, WWE, or so people thought. What many people don’t know, is that Styles began his career in WCW and WWE’s development territories. Styles even had a televised WWE match, but they wanted to send him down, he opted to go elsewhere.
After many successful years traveling the world as a well-known wrestler, he has finally returned, but this time as a superstar.
“I think the jump was due to timing,” Styles said. “Being in Japan, being away from home, was pretty scary because if something happened, I would have to jump on a plane and go home, and that scared me.”
He continued, “It literally came down to timing. There were a lot of offers out on the table and I thought I’d contact WWE, and there was no money left on the table there.”
AJ made his triumphant return in style, coming back as the third entrant in the Royal Rumble. When his music hit, no one was quite sure of who was coming out. Once the name flashed on the screen the crowd went nuts as the rumors leading up to the event were put to rest.
“My concern was, ‘Would anybody know who I was?’,” he said oddly enough. “The WWE universe is so large, it worried me a little that maybe only a couple of people know who I am. I took my time walking to the ring, I wanted to just soak all of that in. It was an unbelievable experience.”
He said that while the rumors got out, they were never really confirmed.
“They didn’t really know which I think was a really good thing because the anticipation that something crazy could happen in the Royal Rumble, that AJ Styles could come out…” he said. “Coming out third was a big surprise because no one was expecting it.”
AJ was in the match for 28 minutes, almost lasting until the end. He said he wasn’t necessarily exhausted after the match but more relieved it was over. All the stress and the secrecy was now done.
“Yes, now I am with WWE, I belong here. It felt good to get that out.”
There has been the talk by fans that the WWE wasted an opportunity with AJ because he is with the company so late in his career. However, Styles doesn’t see the end in sight and believes he has a lot left in the tank.
“I’d say I’m in my prime now. You don’t really get there until you’re in your thirties. Unless you have been wrestling the top guys for a long time you really don’t get that experience,” he said confidently.
“I feel like I really got that now. I’m able to capitalize on the things I normally wouldn’t. Now is a good time as any,” he said. “Experience is everything…it’s just like life. We learn from everything we’ve faced in our lives and we know what not to do. Everything that’s happened to me no matter where I’ve been has worked to this point now. I get it, this is where I need to be. I belong in the WWE.”
Not only did Styles return in the Royal Rumble, but he was immediately thrown into matches with another wrestling legend, Chris Jericho.
He said that a lot of people have forgotten Jericho went the same road he did. Jericho wrestled in WCW, then went to Japan, and finally the WWE. “Our careers are quite similar, and to have a good match first time we get in the ring together, you know something special is gonna happen.”
Fans are also a bit upset about not being able to see Styles face off against crowd favorite Daniel Bryan. He recently announced his retirement due to injuries and complications brought upon by numerous concussions.
Styles said he has wrestled Bryan several times at other promotions. “We had unbelievable matches and selfishly I was hoping I’d have the chance to wrestle Daniel Bryan and have one of those classic matches that we had years ago. I know we could definitely do that.”
He continued, “It’s unfortunate what had happened and he handled it better than I handled it. That was very emotional for him and he seemed pretty strong and confident that everything is going to be ok. A class act. I can’t say enough great things about him.”
Styles said that taking these huge bumps day after day and year after year will sooner or later take it’s toll on you. He admitted that one day it may come to him, and he’ll have to hang it up.
“Until something unexpected happens, I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing. You have to keep listening to your body, protect it and also take care it. Don’t wait until the last second. Injuries are going to happen and being in pain is part of the lifestyle we live.”
With that being said, he revealed that sometimes it’s hard to sleep on the road because of the level of intensity they have to be in or the pain they are in. Styles said you have to find time to do something that winds you down. AJ plays video games and it becomes his release.
“These things aren’t easy for us.”
In closing Styles said that he is nothing without the fans and without them he’d have no idea where he’d be. “I just appreciate having fans and being able to entertain them and I will always do it to the best of my abilities,” he said.
Fast Facts with AJ Styles:
TOP 3 WRESTLERS:
The Road Warriors/The Legion of Doom – big strong, wore face paint.
Sting – I like him more as the Crow Sting. Plus I love that movie.
Eddie Guerrero – I just really loved how that guy flowed through the ring.
TOP 3 MATCHES YOU EVER WATCHED:
Ladder Match between Edge and Christian.
Rob Van Damn vs Jerry Lynn ECW.
Undertaker vs Mankind cage match.
ATTITUDE ERA MATCHUP:
Shawn Michaels because we have a very similar style. Some of the stuff I do is conscious of Michaels.
CM PUNK:
I wrestled CM Punk a lot of times. There was a group of us that came through the rankings of WWE and we all wrestled each other, including Daniel Bryan.
On Friday, Thi'sl dropped the first of a four-part video series called "Road to Redemption" which will lead up to the March 22 release of his album and book titled Against All Odds.
"One of the most unique things about my life that most people wouldn't know about me that I didn't even trip off of growing up," he said, "was the fact that I was born on a plantation."
Thi'sl explained that much of his family still lived on a plantation in Minter City, Mississippi until the mid-to-late 1980s, so he visited his great grandmother there yearly as a child.
In episode No. 1 of "Road to Redemption," he told a story about how he — at around seven or eight years old — saw his cousin making about $10 an hour picking cotton and wanted to make money, too. When Thi'sl asked if he could do the same, his grandmother yelled at him.
"Let somebody tell me you put your hands on some cotton," Thi'sl said, quoting her. "She said, 'I picked cotton, my momma picked cotton, my kids picked cotton, my grandson is not gonna touch no cotton. That's why I moved you off of that plantation.' She was just like, 'If you want money, you call me.'"
Watch episode No. 1 of "Road to Redemption" below.
WWE superstar AJ Styles has been in the wrestling business a long time, but did you know that even before stepping into the ring he’s been obsessed with Christian hip-hop?
Styles took some time on an off day to chat with Rapzilla about wrestling, his faith, and, of course, his affinity for God inspired rhymes.
AJ has been a Christian since he was a Sophomore in High School, and he recalls the exact night it happened.
He and some friends had gone to see a play called a Judgment House. In the play, you follow two characters, a boy, and a girl. They get into a car wreck and one goes to Heaven and one goes to Hell.
“I knew I didn’t want to go to Hell,” Styles said but revealed it didn’t scare him to Christianity because he always sort of knew about God.
Growing up, his babysitter was the preacher’s wife, and his parents took him to church. However, that night, when it came down to make a decision about the afterlife – “I was ready.”
“I remember them saying if anybody wants to give their lives to Jesus please raise your hands,” the wrestler shared. “We all had our eyes closed and I was amongst friends. And I thought everybody would raise their hands, and they didn’t. I was the only one. That night I accepted Jesus, and my life started changing.”
AJ revealed that the breakup with his girlfriend went terrible, and other things started getting weird for him too. He wound up asking another girl out and she told him to come to church with her. There, he met the youth pastor and was taught to be a “Christian man” and the rest is history.
Now as a WWE superstar with a platform and celebrity status, he tries his best to outwardly live his faith. Styles said being in wrestling is no different than living your life as a Christian among other people at a normal job. There will always be things around you to distract you from your focus but you have to remain steadfast.
“There are some things that are maybe a little bit harder because there are attractive women around but you can’t forget who you are and what you have,” he said. “I love my wife, I love my kids and at the end of the day is it really worth it to live with that guilt?”
The wrestling business seems to have been good to his beliefs as well because he does not recall ever being put into a storyline that compromised his Christianity or made him feel uncomfortable. He said they know who he is and they are respectful of that.
As a Christian, Styles loves listening to Hip-Hop artists who are believers. He boasts that he can “school almost any rapper on the history of Christian hip-hop” (Will anyone take the challenge?)
His love affair with the music began in the mid-90s when his wife, then girlfriend, bought him a DJ Dove tape in 1997. He went to a Christian bookstore called Celebration and bought the whole rap section of artists on the Grapetree record label. Some of his favorites were Lil’ Raskull, FTF, and L.G. Wise.
However, the West Coast-based K2S turned out to be one of his favorite rap groups. He would buy CD’s even if he didn’t like it that much because “Where else was I going to get Christian rap music?” His wife would be upset because he would keep buying the records even when money was tight.
“Christian rap is huge now. I remember listening to GRITS and then I met them at Universal Studios and they were able to do my music,” said the performer. “I became good friends with these guys, we still keep in touch this very day.”
In fact, Styles heard their recently released new track, “Skin Deep.” He said it was “so different” and speaks to why he enjoys them so much.
He also cites T-Bone as another guy he makes people listen to because “he just tears it up.”
“The 116 crew, holy cow, all of those guys. Trip Lee, Lecrae, Tedashii…those guys are tearing it up, It’s amazing to hear those guys,” Styles said excitedly. “Those guys remind me of Grapetree which was 15 to 20 years ago.”
Unfortunately, AJ can’t have a song made by this generation of Christian rappers because it isn’t about him saying yes anymore since signing to the WWE. “I would love it, but when you have an entrance song that is in the top 200 on iTunes, you can’t really say too much about that.”
He continued, “I love those guys and would love for them to do something for me. I can’t tell you how much I enjoy this music. I make the kids listen to it whether they like it or not.”
Now, of course, the most important of questions was asked, “If you had a chance to train one of your favorite Christian rappers in the ring, who would you pick?”
“I would have K2S as my tag team partners…Tedashii is Samoan, right? He’s gotta be an athlete? Lecrae is tall, so you never know…”
Canon, an Atlanta-based rapper signed to Reflection Music Group, wants to use his latest single, "Take It All Away", to address an issue that he feels isn't talked about enough — depression.
He is joined in this Rapzilla-hosted discussion by counselor Jon Parker, Build a Better Us founder BJ Thompson, war veteran Brandon Mason and good friend Caresse Spencer, who is the founder of Enjoy God merchandise and the Eat Drink & Buy Sneakers line.
NF wasn’t speaking hypothetically when he said, “I got some people that write me like, ‘I wish you'd die like your momma did,’” on Marty of Social Club’s song “The One with My Friends.”
“I wouldn’t say it if it didn’t happen,” NF told Rapzilla. “I go into more detail on my [new album]. Obviously on a feature, I only got a few lines. But yeah, that’s not even close to the worst thing that I’ve been written.”
NF is the fastest-growing artist affiliated with Christian hip hop. He just released his Capitol CMG Label Group debut album Mansion last March, and it finished 2015 the 25th highest-selling Christian project of the year — and the second highest-selling Christian rap project of the year.
A growing fan base comes with a growing troll pool, which NF has discovered as he’s risen. Understandably, he admits the trolls can get under his skin. But until he learns not to read the comments, NF said he’s been able to channel his frustration in to music.
“When I first see things like that, it makes me really angry because everybody’s 20-feet tall on Facebook,” he said. “It helps me as an artist, though, because that gave me a lot of energy for this next record because I am growing as a person. I still have a lot of issues I’m dealing with. On Mansion, I mention a lot of problems. I feel like this next record, I go in to detail about some things I’ve been mentioning along the way — a lot more detail.
“When I write a song called ‘Face It,’ that could mean anything; I don’t know how to face anything. I think on this next record, there are some songs that really give you what’s going on with me. And people writing me stuff like that, there are a lot of parts in songs that have been influenced from statements like that.”
NF said his sophomore album on Capitol CMG Label Group will release this year, although new music could come sooner rather than later.
NEW ALBUM COVER IS FINISHED!!! SO MUCH COMING!!!— NF (@nfrealmusic) January 28, 2016
Below is an excerpt of Rapzilla’s interview with NF about his upcoming album and his song “I’ll Keep On” featuring Jeremiah Carlson — the only Christian hip-hop to land on Billboard’s year-end Hot Christian Songs chart based on radio airplay.
Rapzilla: What is the story behind “I’ll Keep On”?
NF: That song is basically me talking about how I think a lot of times Christians for some reason find it weird to talk about the struggle of reading your Bible. That kind of stuff I really struggle with personally because I’m a go-go-go person and I hate reading, but really that’s no excuse for not doing stuff like that.
But I struggle with it, so “I’ll Keep On” was more of like, trying to do something different, have a little break in the album, but also a song that came out because that’s how I really feel. I do have a Bible that sits next to my bed, and I feel like I don’t really do much with it.
RZ: As a Christian artist, were you hesitant to say that in a song? What kind of reactions did you expect from that?
NF: Honestly, I think it’s ridiculous what the Christian market is so sensitive about. If you’re too good or too scared to say that you struggle with reading your Bible, then you got other problems to worry about I feel like. That doesn’t bother me at all. This second album I said a lot more stuff. If that bothers you, I wouldn’t buy my second album.
RZ: I think that was one of the more moving songs on Mansion, so I’m sure you got many reactions to it, but was there one that stood out to you the most?
NF: Actually, most of my personal stuff that gets written to me is not about that song. I get tons from that song, but most of my stuff is “Mansion,” more of the harder stuff. That’s more of what I do. The really deep messages I get written are from songs like “Mansion” or, it’d surprise some people, but even songs like “Face It.”
“I’ll Keep On” is a little more out of the box. I think it’s easier for some people to listen to. It definitely has helped me a lot, and a lot of people relate to it and love it. That’s why the song I feel does so well, and I feel like sometimes we don’t talk about relatable things.
I don’t do it so it’s relatable. I do it because it’s real life. It’s what I’m dealing with, but it is relatable. When I started music when I was a kid. I didn’t write it for thousands of people to listen to. I didn’t even know what I was doing. I was just writing my life. And so it’s cool to see music impact people like that.
RZ: What can you say about your next album?
NF: I’m excited about it. If you’re an NF fan and you like the first record, I think you’re going to love this record. You might like it more. I don’t know. It’s really grimy. It’s really in your face, kind of like the first record. But it’s also very diverse. I like different styles of music. I’ll listen to Ed Sheeran, and then I’ll listen to Drake. I just want to make an album that represents me, but also is different from what people are doing, and I think that’s what I’m doing. I’m pumped about the record.
Rapzilla recently asked legendary gospel artist Kirk Franklin how he thinks Christian hip hop can improve.
"More production, less safety," he said.
Franklin expounded on both, touching on the latter first.
"There's a real conversation after church that happens that I think Christian hip hop needs to be inclusive of," he said. "Does that makes sense? There's a church parking lot conversation, but Christian hip hop still at times sounds like the 11 o'clock service conversation ...
"And I think that the production just still needs to be more fearless. Because that's what hip hop is, you know. The heartbeat of hip hop is being fearless and being a rebel, but still staying true to the authenticity of scripture, and the inerrancy of scripture, and I believe that they both can coexist."
Rapzilla interviewed God Over Money artist and A&R Datin about two GOM projects recently, Bizzle's new album Surrender and Selah The Corner's upcoming, unannounced album.
Datin raved about both projects, but admitted that he initially wanted Bizzle's lead single, "Believers," cut from Surrender.
"I ain't afraid to say this on camera," Datin said. "The 'Believers' joint, it seems like it's being well-received. People love it. And that's my least favorite song on the album. I was telling him that gotta go. That can't be on the album.
"And he's like, 'Nah, I'm telling you. It's a single.' And I was like, 'I don't like it.' I like every other song but that one. And he put it out, and I ain't too proud to admit, I was wrong. And now I like it. It grew on me."
The legendary gospel singer shares his apology In an interview with TheGrio.com
Kirk Franklin apologized for the way the church, specifically the black church, has responded to the gay community in an interview with TheGrio.com this week.
In the interview, Franklin said "I want to apologize for all of the hurtful and painful things that have been said about people in the church that have been talented and gifted and musical, that we've used and we've embarrassed... and all this other horrible crap that we've done. We have not treated them like people. We're talking about human beings, men and women that God has created."
His words quickly reached viral status, becoming a trending headline on facebook. The statements follow the release of Kirk Franklin's latest album, Losing My Religion, which focuses on the theme of looking beyond legalism in faith. When talking about the Bible, Franklin said "It is horrible that we have made it where the Bible is a homophobic manual. That's not what the Bible is. I mean you want to talk about things that God gets at... pride and jealousy and envy and arrogance. But what we also see is God sending his son to save us all, because we were all... straight, gay or whatever, lost and in need of a savior, and there's room at the cross for all of us."
