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Gossip: Brad Pitt ‘Shocked’ By Angelina VF Interview; Prince Charles And Queen Prepping For The ‘Handover’

Naughty Gossip
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Gossip: Brad Pitt ‘Shocked’ By Angelina VF Interview; Prince Charles And Queen Prepping For The ‘Handover’

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s family friend is speaking out about the actress’ Vanity Fair tell-all. In the cover story, released earlier this week, Jolie touched on everything from her highly publicized split from Pitt last September to her Bell’s palsy diagnosis to life as a single mom. At one point in the interview, she also talked about how her and Pitt’s six children — Maddox, 15, Pax, 13, Zahara, 12, Shiloh, 11, and 9-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox — have been coping with the divorce.

“They’ve been very brave,” the By the Sea star told the outlet. “They were very brave…In times they needed to be. We’re all just healing from the events that led to the filing. … They’re not healing from divorce. They’re healing from some … from life, from things in life.”

According to the family friend, Jolie’s candid conversation about the kids came as a shock, as Pitt’s main priority has always been to protect the privacy of their children, refusing to speak of them publicly. Because of that, it was unexpected to see the children’s lives at home exposed in the pages of Vanity Fair.

“It’s surprising that Angelina would use the children to help herself in the story, especially after years where both were dedicated to protecting their privacy,” the family friend told ET on Friday.

As for Pitt, the family friend tells ET that he continues to go to individual therapy and therapy with his children, whom he sees a few times per week.

“He’s doing great, he’s doing well,” the friend said. “The kids are his family. He’s continuing to adjust to a new normal.”

When he’s not with the children, the Allied star spends his free time hanging out with his guy friends, focusing on art and enjoying music, recently making a surprise cameo during Frank Ocean’s set at FYF Fest in Los Angeles. The family friend said he’s also getting ready to start filming Ad Astra, a futuristic sci-fi epic directed by James Gray. Pitt reportedly portrays space engineer Roy McBride and stars alongside Tommy Lee Jones.
[From AOL]

Prince Charles And Queen Are Gradually Combining Offices For The ‘Handover’

The Queen’s top aide Sir Christopher Geidt is set to stand down from his key role at her side amid a dramatic shake-up of senior Royal staff. The Mail on Sunday understands that Sir Christopher’s surprise departure is the first of a ‘slew’ of personnel changes at a senior level in the Royal Household. It comes as the Queen and her heir the Prince of Wales attempt to impose greater unity on the rival ‘firms’ or households of the younger Royals. This is a watershed moment for the monarchy, as the Queen and Prince Philip step back from official duties and hand responsibility to the younger generation.

Sir Christopher, the Queen’s Private Secretary and a shrewd former Army intelligence officer, is a key figure in this transition, or ‘operation handover’ as it is known. Sources within the Royal Household say his departure will be followed by ‘two, maybe three more’ senior figures, who are set to leave before Christmas.

‘Sir Christopher’s departure is just the beginning. Major changes are afoot. Yes, it is a shake-up,’ said a senior source. One of those who is understood to be considering his position is Prince William’s Private Secretary, Miguel Head. Another said to be weighing up his options is Prince Harry’s Private Secretary Edward Lane Fox, a former captain in the Household Cavalry. Mr Head has served the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge loyally for a decade but has privately told friends he never intended be ‘a palace lifer’.

The privately educated former Ministry of Defence press officer has confided that he ‘feels his time is up’. If he does walk away it would be a huge blow to William and Kate who have relied on his counsel for a decade, although Kensington Palace last night insisted he has not quit. It has been previously announced that Kate’s Private Secretary, newly married Rebecca Deacon, has already officially announced that she is leaving her job.

Unifying the households of the Queen, Prince Charles and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge is something Sir Christopher has long championed, albeit with varying degrees of success. He tried to bring the press office – now named Royal Communications – under one director, former Daily Mail reporter Sally Osman. This has not really worked out as planned and has been marked by squabbles, rivalry and high- level departures.

Some courtiers see his departure as a ‘line being drawn’ – the beginning of a new era that might yet see the Queen accept Prince Charles as regent. Sources say she would seriously consider this once she reaches 95. It is widely acknowledged Her Majesty will never abdicate and the succession is rarely, if ever, talked about in official terms. It is perhaps no coincidence that despite the upheaval at Buckingham Palace, there are no sudden changes at Clarence House, the Prince of Wales’s household.
[From The Daily Mail]

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Mom Bakes “1” Cookies For Son, Horrifies Entire Party

Maria Loreto
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Mom Bakes “1” Cookies For Son, Horrifies Entire Party

Jen from New Jersey wanted to pass down a family tradition on her son’s first birthday. Her mother used to bake cookies in the shape of her age on her birthday, with the help of a cookie cutter and some batter. Sounds simple enough, but baking can sometimes sneak up on you and catch you off guard.

Jen baked a ton of “1” cookies for her son’s birthday party. She added some blue coloring and put them in the fridge to cool down. When they were finally ready, she set the out on the table, when her husband stumbled upon them and uploaded a picture that went viral. 

The internet had strong opinions on the cookies, because there’s no such thing as being chill online.

No, they’re not Ryan. They’re blue!

Obviously, Game Of Thrones had to be dragged in.

According to Jen’s husband, he’s always believed the cookies looked a little off, even when she baked them for their other kids. 

“When my wife made the same cookies for my daughter a few years ago, I noticed it”

You should’ve said something before she cooked millions of them. Jen’s husband claims that she’s still in denial and won’t admit that she’s been feeding penis cookies to their kids for a long time. 

Cory Booker’s Bill Would End Federal Prohibition Of Marijuana

Al Olson
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Cory Booker’s Bill Would End Federal Prohibition Of Marijuana

Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) on Tuesday introduced legislation that ends federal marijuana prohibition of marijuana and centers communities most devastated by the war on drugs.

“The question is no longer ‘should we legalize marijuana?’; it is ‘how do we legalize marijuana?’ We must do so in a way that recognizes that the people who suffered most under prohibition are the same people who should benefit most under legalization,” said Queen Adesuyi, policy associate at the Drug Policy Alliance. “From disparate marijuana-related arrests and incarceration rates to deportations and justifications for police brutality – the war on drugs has had disparate harm on low-income communities and communities of color. It’s time to rectify that.”

The Marijuana Justice Act would do the following:

  • Remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, ending federal prohibition of marijuana
  • Cut federal funding for state law enforcement and prison construction if a state disproportionately arrests and/or incarcerates low-income individuals and/or people of color for marijuana offenses
  • Allow entities to sue states that disproportionately arrest and/or incarcerate low-income individuals and/or people of color for marijuana offenses
  • Prevent deportations of individuals for marijuana offenses
  • Provide for a process of expungement for marijuana offenses at the federal level
  • Provide for a process of resentencing for marijuana offenses at the federal level
  • Create a “Community Reinvestment Fund” of $500 million to invest in communities most impacted by the war on drugs, for programs such as job training, reentry, community centers, and more. Part of the funding will come from the aforementioned cuts to state law enforcement and prison construction.

“In New Jersey, marijuana prohibition has disproportionately harmed communities of color,” said Roseanne Scotti, New Jersey State Director for the Drug Policy Alliance. “In our state, African Americans are three times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites even though both use marijuana at similar rates. Anecdotal evidence suggests similar disparities for Latinos. Marijuana legalization on the federal and state level must be fair and equitable and must repair past harms to communities of color. It is time to right the wrongs of prohibition.”

Marijuana is legal in eight states, and medical marijuana is legal in twenty-nine states. Nevertheless, it has been estimated that only one percent of dispensary owners are people of color. A landmark 2013 ACLU report showed that despite similar rates of use and sale with white counterparts, African Americans and Latinos comprised nearly 80 percent of the country’s annual marijuana possession arrests.

More recently, racial disparities in marijuana arrests have continued in states like New York, Virginia, and Massachusetts. Racial disparities have even continued in places that legalized marijuana, like Colorado (although overall arrests are down) and Washington, D.C. (mostly because Congress has blocked legal sales). This bill will tackle these issues.

“Ending federal marijuana prohibition would bring the law in line with the opinion of the growing majority of Americans who want states to be able to enact their own marijuana laws without harassment by the DEA. By divesting in prisons and reinvesting in job training and re-entry programs, this bill would move our country forward and prioritize building up our communities,” said attorney Shaleen Title, a founding board member of the Minority Cannabis Business Association and founder of THC Staffing Group.

What Are Marijuana Mannequins And Oregon Hates Them

Will Patterson
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What Are Marijuana Mannequins And Oregon Hates Them

Filing this in the odd news section: The Portland Tribune has reported that an Oregon dispensary owner has been fined $3,000 by Wood Village, Oregon for the mannequins he sets up on the sidewalk to advertise his cannabis. These blonde mannequins (cannequins?) are animated and brandish “Got Chronic” signs at potential clients.

The town recently revised its sign code to prohibit Portable Signs, defined as “signs not permanently affixed to a building structure or the ground and designed to move from place to place except garage sale signs, special event signs, political signs, real estate signs or as otherwise provided in this Code . . .”

The owner sees the long list of exceptions as a clear sign that this ban is specifically targeted at his mannequins. After all, his dispensary is the only cannabusiness in town. He has also been fined under the new code for having a sign on the roof of his neighboring cupcake business.

Even if the ordinance isn’t specifically targeted at the mannequins, the ordinance is likely unconstitutional. Under first amendment jurisprudence, content-based regulation of speech is subject to “strict scrutiny,” that is, to survive, content-based regulations must 1) be passed to further a compelling government interest, and 2) be narrowly tailored to achieve that interest. In practice, strict scrutiny is a difficult hurdle to overcome.

In a recent case, the US Supreme Court struck down a similar city code governing outdoor signs. The offending ordinance identified various categories of signs “based on the type of information they convey, then subjects each category to different restrictions.” Sound familiar? The Supreme Court continues: “[A] municipal government vested with state authority, ‘has no power to restrict expression because of its message, its ideas, its subject matter, or its content . . . Content-based laws–those that target speech based on its communicative content–are presumptively unconstitutional and may be justified only if the government proves that they are narrowly tailored to serve compelling state interests.”

In one passage, the Supreme Court states “The restrictions in the Sign Code that apply to any given sign thus depend entirely on the communicative content of the sign. If a sign informs its reader of the time and place a book club will discuss John Locke’s Two Treatises of Government, that sign will be treated differently from a sign expressing the view that one should vote for one of Locke’s followers in an upcoming election . . . On its face, the Sign Code is a content-based regulation of speech.”

Let’s rewrite that passage with the facts at issue here: “The restrictions in the [Wood Village sign code] that apply to any given sign thus depend entirely on the communicative content of the sign. If a [portable] sign informs its reader [that a mannequin has “got chronic”], that sign will be treated differently from a sign [advertising a nearby garage sale] . . . On its face, the [Wood Village sign code] is a content-based regulation of speech.”

In this light, it is easy to see that the Wood Village ordinance will likely be struck down if the owner decides to take it up with the courts. We will have to see if the owner decides it is worth it.

Setting aside the specter of unconstitutionality, it is worth looking at whether state law prohibits the mannequins. The state is subject to the same restrictions on content-based regulations, so the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (“OLCC”) has issued loose cannabis advertising restrictions that seem designed to survive strict scrutiny. The OLCC’s stated goal is to prevent cannabis advertising that is attractive to minors, promotes excessive use, promotes illegal activity, or presents a significant risk to public health and safety.

More specifically, cannabusinesses cannot advertise cannabis in any way. But  there’s more:

  • That contains deceptive, false, or misleading statements;
  • That contains any content that targets minors, such as images of minors, cartoons, toys, etc.;
  • That encourages the transportation of cannabis across state lines;
  • That asserts that cannabis items are safe because they are regulated by the OLCC and have been tested by a lab;
  • That claims recreational cannabis has curative or therapeutic effects;
  • That displays the consumption of marijuana items;
  • That contains material that encourages excessive or rapid consumption; or
  • That contains material that encourages the use of marijuana because of its intoxicating effect.

These blonde got-chronic-bots don’t seem to fit neatly into any of these categories, so the mannequins are likely legal under state law. Accordingly, the owner may very well decide it is worth taking this dispute to the courtroom.

Will Patterson is an attorney at Harris Bricken, a law firm with lawyers in Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Barcelona, and Beijing. This story was originally published on the Canna Law Blog. 

4 Serious Things To Consider When Buying Canned Wine

Zach Geballe
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4 Serious Things To Consider When Buying Canned Wine

This year shaping up to be the summer of canned wine, and not a moment too soon. With both winemakers and wine drinkers looking for ways to make drinking wine easier and less intimidating, canned wines are booming, in part because unlike boxed wine they don’t require any glassware to drink. While you might expect a sommelier like me to turn my nose up at the very idea, I’m all about finding new and inventive ways to enjoy my favorite beverage wherever the summer sun takes me. That said, not every canned wine is good, and not every wine is good for canning, so here are a few tips.

Fizz Is Fun

No, you won’t get a fully-sparkling wine to stay that way in a can, but a bit of bubbles can really liven up the whole thing. Take Fricco Frizzante from Scarpetta; it’s definitely fizzy but won’t explode if you leave it in the cooler too long.

There’s bright notes of fresh lemon and green apple, and at 10% ABV it’ll get things going without leaving you passed out in a hammock.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWy03w6BDZB

Cold And Bold

One of the important things to remember with canned wine is that it’ll likely be cold, and the colder a wine is, the less expressive it will be. This is actually great when you’re using grapes that can be a bit intense, like Sauvignon Blanc, Gamay Noir, and others. Instead of just a mouthful of ripe fruit, you’ll get a more balanced wine.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXEhVG5DXEW

Drink It Now

You’d think it would go without saying, but: canned wine is not designed to be aged! It’s probably at its best the moment it goes into the can, and the longer it stays there the more it will decline.

Fortunately can technology has come a long way, so you’re not necessarily going to get metallic wine (just say that’s the minerality if so), but if you leave it for next summer your wine will probably taste dull and uninteresting.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BVLSAKSldjz

Explore, Prudently

The canned market is burgeoning right now, and I’d have to believe we’ll only see more examples soon. That’s great, because canned wine is fun, but I’d encourage you to avoid the most aggressively marketed wines out there, as there seems to be an inverse correlation between the amount of marketing and the quality of the wine. The relatively humble Underwood wines from Union Wine Co. remain among the best canned wines out there, and that’s not a coincidence.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BW0xvV-Hmsc

So fill your coolers and ice buckets with more than just beer this year; canned wine is here for all your barbecue and block party needs!

Is India Seriously About To Legalize Medical Marijuana?

Brendan Bures
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Is India Seriously About To Legalize Medical Marijuana?

India’s Union Minister of Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi has voiced her support of medical marijuana in her country. Gandhi put forth legalization suggestions at a group of ministers meeting, where they were analyzing the draft cabinet note National Drug Demand Reduction Policy.

Gandhi’s marijuana support comes as inspiration from the West, seeing the effects legalization has made in countries around the world including the United States. Gandhi cited how legalization cuts down drug abuse in legalized countries and that it could help medical patients.

According to notes from the Press Trust of India, Gandhi informed the meeting that “some of the developed countries like the US, marijuana has been legalised which ultimately results in less drug abuse.” She also added, “the possibility of the same maybe explored in India.”

When asked by the PTI to elaborate on such comments, Gandhi said, “marijuana should be legalised for medical purposes, especially as it serves a purpose in cancer.”

Currently Indians receive harsh punishments as it relates to cannabis, thanks to the 1985 Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. The law stipulates that cannabis consumption could lead to six months of jail or a fine of Rs10,000. Illegal production and cultivation of cannabis can result in up to 10 years in prison.

This isn’t the first time a politician from India has vocalized support for cannabis. Back in November, Parliament member Dharamvir Gandhi sought to introduce a private bill that would “permit authorised and monitored sale of soft drugs and seeks to legitimise cultivation, production, possession, manufacture, sale, transport, and inter-state export, import, use and consumption of such soft drugs.”

Even before that senior parliamentarian Tathagata Satpathy tried to change the country’s cannabis laws in 2015, criticizing their current structure as “elitist.”

Not all are in favor, however. In the same meeting Maneka Gandhi put forth cannabis legalization, Social Justice and Empowerment Secretary G Latha Krishna Rao tried to shoot down such efforts. According to the PTI, she said, “ ‘it may not be appropriate to legalise’ such drugs” in view of the large population and low level of literacy in the country and added that the possibility could be explored in future.”

NFL And Players’ Union Looking At Marijuana For Pain

Mary Schumacher
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NFL And Players’ Union Looking At Marijuana For Pain

According to multiple sources, the NFL has approached the NFL Players Association to work together on studying marijuana’s efficacy against player’s aches, pains and stress. This is a major step, as marijuana is met with punitive measures in the NFL at this point.

The Players Association has put together its own study and is still in deliberation as to the NFL’s willingness to go along with cannabis research. The outlook, however, is high.

According to an anonymous source via the Washington Post, the NFL had written a letter to the union to weigh the level of interest in working together on this particular research. The letter pointed to potential areas of study, such as chronic and acute pain management. The union’s pain management committee is actually a subcommittee of the Players Association’s Mackey-White traumatic brain injury committee.

Equally encouraging, the union has expressed interest in revisiting recreational marijuana use as well for a pain management tool. The union considers these separate issues, but is willing to address them both with a seemingly open minded point of view. At the very least, the league is looking to lessen punitive measures for those who test positive for the plant.

Quandaries being considered are how to address addiction issues, how to approach those using pot purely for pleasure and those using the herb for medical purposes, including mental stress. The board hopes to present new conclusions “soon.”

In the meantime, the union has not yet let up on the punitive measures. Part of the reason is because the league hopes to bundle these issues into a collective bargaining agreement, which currently runs through 2020.

Medical cannabis has been shown time and again to relieve pain, tension, stress, mental fatigue and stiff muscles. Players and fans alike can only root for the study to come up with the same results and grant players the freedom to medicate and feel better.

This Gin Is Flavored With Classic Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Parts

Jillian Peterson
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This Gin Is Flavored With Classic Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Parts

Gearheads rejoice. There’s a new gin in town, and it’s taken gimmicky marketing to the next level. Uwe Ehinger is famous in Germany. He’s owns a customer motorcycle shop in Hamburg, Germany called Ehinger Kraftrad and has been nicknamed “The Archaeologist” because he scouts the globe for used motorcycle relics to help build new bikes. “I like to build reduced motorcycles,” Ehinger says in the below video. “Everything I do is a tribute to the past.”

And that includes his new gin. It’s flavored with Harley-Davidson motorcycle parts.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BVCz9bHgtYo/

Ehinger has taken his gin project to heart, inserting into the bottles rare original engine parts of three Harley Davidson models: Flathead, Panhead and Knucklehead. The 1939 Harley-Davidson Flathead includes actual camshafts discovered in the Mexican desert; 1947 screw-nuts from Chile are used in the Knucklehead, and 1962 Panhead rocker arms from South Korea have been added to the…Panhead.

As the video explains, the (not cheap) bottles of gin are filled with just as much craftsmanship as Ehinger’s bikes. The bottles are custom-made and are labeled using riveted hand tags with unique serial numbers. They’re wrapped, using wax paper, in the stories of how the parts were found. The entire packaging process recreates the handmade packaging of motorcycle parts in the 30s, including a Heidelberg printing press.

The antique bike parts are cleaned and sealed with a tin alloy to make them food safe. All of the bottles are currently out of stock, but there’s word Ehinger is taking orders for the next batch.

7 Crazy Dunkin’ Donuts Secrets You Had No Idea About

Amy Hansen
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7 Crazy Dunkin’ Donuts Secrets You Had No Idea About

Dunkin’ Donuts doesn’t have to do much to attract new fans. Even with the advent of chic doughnut shops, they still draw lines out the door.

And according to Nigel Travis, the CEO of Dunkin’ Brands (which also includes Baskin Robbins), the company is expanding delivery. According to The Street:

We now have it in about 750 Dunkin’ stores. I believe that the food delivery trend is just starting, I think. I’ve talked to people overseas, and delivery is bigger than it is in the U.S. One thing we talked about in the call is integrating catering. Down the road, we’ve got plans I’m not going to reveal today to make delivery more integrated.

Pop Sugar caught up with a fairly new franchisee to get some insider info on the company that has been cranking out doughnuts and coffee since it was founded in 1950.

According to the anonymous insider they spoke to, here are 7 fun facts:

The First Restaurant Is Still Open And Serving

It’s located in Quincy, MA.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWxkzDkH-pp

All Unsold Food Is Donated

“At the end of the day, everything is donated to a local, nonprofit food bank. It is left to the discretion of the individual franchisees of each restaurant to select their local donation partner.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/2bLc0Ajyj2

You Can Customize Essentially Everything On The Menu

“For instance, guests can customize their breakfast sandwich order with any type of bread, including English muffins, croissants, bagels, and flatbreads, and then choose what they’d like inside, including egg, cheeses, and a variety of meat options.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/6xbSuKDyp3

BILLIONS Of Cups Of Coffee And Doughnuts Are Sold Each Year

“Dunkin’ Donuts serves more than 1.9 billion cups of brewed hot and iced coffee every year globally and more than 2.8 billion doughnut and Munchkins doughnut hole treats. On an average day, Dunkin’ Donuts sells about 60 cups of freshly brewed coffee each second.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/7P7Bwfjyj-

There’s A Way To Get Free Doughnuts And Beverage

Without sounding too much like a salesman, this insider suggests singing up for the Dunkin’ Donuts Perks Rewards Program, where customers earn five points for every dollar they spend at DD.

“Once a member earns 200 points, they receive a coupon for a free any-size beverage of their choice. DD Perks members also receive a coupon for a free, any-size beverage when they enroll in the program and on their birthday.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BU1qbtHg6ZS

Dunkin’ Donuts Has Its Own School

“Dunkin’ Brands University, located in Braintree, MA, is the training center where the brand’s franchisees and managers train to run Dunkin’ Donuts and/or Baskin-Robbins restaurants.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/x6r1dGsv_V

Employees Get Free Food And Coffee

At least at this specific location, “but it’s up to each franchisee.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BUzOF-cA2PO

Did Paul McCartney Just Write A Donald Trump Song?

Brendan Bures
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Did Paul McCartney Just Write A Donald Trump Song?

Good, bad, or somewhere in between, everyone has something to say about Donald Trump. The President of the United States is an extremely divisive character and has caused many to speak out for or against him. These people vary from fellow politicians to media pundits to artists, and soon might include one other type of person—a Beatle. News broke recently via the Liverpool Echo that Sir Paul McCartney will have a song about Trump on his upcoming untitled album. McCartney was visiting the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts when he revealed that Trump was on his mind.

“Sometimes the situation in the world is so crazy that you’ve got to address it,” McCartney told the LIPA students.

McCartney has a tremendous international platform and in the later stages of his life has used that platform to support liberal-minded causes and groups across the world. Though he remains an artistic force, McCartney is as much an activist nowadays.

If McCartney’s recent comments regarding Trump are any indication, Macca won’t be voicing his endorsement. “I’m not a fan at all. He’s unleashed a kind of violent prejudice that is sometimes latent among people,” he told the Daily Telegraph. He also added, “He’s unleashed the ugly side of America.”

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