New York, U.S.A. — Donald Trump’s Miss Universe Organization secured a decisive victory in its defamation suit against the former Miss Pennsylvania USA contestant who publicly accused the Organization of rigging the results of the Miss USA pageant.  Earlier this year, after failing to secure a spot in the semi-finals of the nationally televised Miss USA pageant, Sheena Monnin, the contestant from Pennsylvania, began a slanderous campaign alleging that the results of the pageant were pre-determined. These allegations have now been legally discredited.

In the days after the pageant Monnin made several damaging public comments asserting she had irrefutable proof the pageant was rigged, and that she would not be deterred in her “quest for the truth.” Despite this claim, Monnin refused offers by the Miss Universe Organization to demonstrate the integrity of the voting process, instead choosing to seek publicity through national media outlets.  In response, the Miss Universe Organization filed an arbitration action in New York.

Pageant owner, Donald Trump, called Monnin’s actions “disgraceful” and added “we cannot allow a disgruntled contestant to make false and reckless statements which are damaging to the many people who have devoted their hearts and souls to the “Miss Universe,” Miss USA” and “Miss Teen USA” pageant systems.”

After considering all of the testimony and other evidence presented, former United States District Court Magistrate Judge, The Honorable Theodore H. Katz issued an opinion concluding that Monnin defamed the Miss Universe Organization and awarding $5 million in damages.

The opinion finds that “the method in which the Miss USA Pageant is judged . . . precludes any reasonable possibility that the judging was rigged.” Judge Katz stated that Monnin’s “defamatory statements” about the Organization “were false,” “showed a reckless disregard” for the facts, and were “harmful to [the Organization's] business reputation.”  As a result of this clear showing of defamation, the Arbitrator concluded that the Organization was entitled to $5 million in damages.

“We are pleased that the integrity of the Miss USA pageant remains intact,” says Paula Shugart, President of the Miss Universe Organization. “We were always confident in what the outcome would be as the truth was on our side. Ms. Monnin could have avoided all of this had she chosen to act responsibly rather than seeking her 15 minutes of fame. Her reckless actions affected many people, including our state directors, the young women who participate in our system and Miss USA Olivia Culpo, who was the rightful winner of the pageant. We simply could not sit idly by and not take action while she pursued her personal agenda to the detriment of everyone affiliated with our company.”

Culpo will compete as Miss USA during the worldwide telecast of the 2012 “Miss Universe” pageant airing live from the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, this Wednesday, December 19 at 8PM ET on NBC.

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Singer-songwriter Debbie Gibson will appear on season five of ‘Celebrity Apprentice,’ and has announced she will play for the charity Children International.

Celebrity Apprentice is a reality television show where celebrities compete in weekly challenges and donate any winnings to their personal charities. Every week, the celebrity contestants will work in two teams, each under the guidance of a designated project manager, to compete in business-driven tasks around New York City, using their fame, along with their proven business acumen, to win challenges.

Contestants are subjected to long hours, grueling deadlines, intellectual challenges, personality clashes, and intense scrutiny under the careful watch of Donald Trump and his advisors. The last person standing will be chosen as the Celebrity Apprentice and have the honor of delivering a $250,000 bonus check to their designated charity.

Gibson will compete to help provide 5,000 poor children in India with medical and dental care and educational support. Children International president and CEO Jim Cook said, “Children International is fortunate to have such a dedicated supporter as Debbie Gibson. She has proven she is an ardent advocate for children living in the most extreme poverty.”

Gibson, who is the youngest performer ever to write and record a number one song, has been a supporter of the U.S.-based humanitarian organization since 1991. Currently, she helps support 7-year-old Helen, her mother and five siblings living in a cemetery in Manila, Philippines. Helen and her family guard a cemetery crypt, and live on less than $11 a month. With Gibson’s help, Helen and her siblings now receive medical and dental care and attend school.

Children International’s programs provide poor children like Helen with medical and dental care, educational support and health education to children and youth, some whose families live on less than $1.25 a day.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.flickr.com/photos/wilsonh/

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As the Republican primaries near, Zoosk, a romantic social network, recently surveyed more than 4,000 U.S. singles to gather their thoughts on the presidential candidates.  Questions ranged from which candidate has the best hairdo, to which contending couple would make for the best double date, and to who has the best sense of humor.  The survey findings resulted in the following:

Singles say the Obamas would be their first choice couple for a double date.

• 38% of singles say they would choose a double date with the Obamas over any of the other presidential candidate couples.
• 16% of singles would choose to enjoy an evening out with the Bachmanns for a double date.
• 9% of singles would pick the Pauls.  The Gingrichs, Perrys, and Romneys each received 8% of singles’ vote for double date companions.

Michele Bachmann and Mitt Romney have the “best hairdos” among the Republican candidates.

• 35% of singles give Michele Bachmann their vote for best hairstyle. She is followed by Mitt Romney (21%) and Rick Perry (15%).
• Rick Santorum received the fewest votes for his “do,” nabbing just 4% of the vote.

Republican men prefer Newt Gingrich, while Republican women prefer Mitt Romney for the GOP nominee. When asked, “If you were to vote today, who would receive your vote?”…

• Republican men gravitated towards Newt Gingrich with 33% of men saying the former Speaker of the House is their top choice compared to 18% of men who would choose Romney.
• Republican women have a slight preference for Mitt Romney with the former Governor of Massachusetts gathering 25% of the Republican female votes compared to 24% of women who would chose Gingrich.

Who is the “sexiest” candidate?

• Clearly, Michele Bachmann gets the sexiest female candidate vote, but 41% of single women say President Obama is the sexiest candidate among the 2012 contenders.

Singles vote President Barack Obama as having the “best sense of humor” among the candidates.

• 30% of singles say President Obama has the best sense of humor among all the presidential candidates.
• 15% of singles prefer Newt Gingrich’s humor.
• Tied for third place with 12% each of the “best sense of humor” vote are Rick Perry and Ron Paul.

Singles wish Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were on the ballot.

• When asked who they wish were on the ballot in 2012, 57% of singles who identify themselves as Democrats and 30% of singles who identify themselves as Independents say Hillary Clinton.
• 30% of single Republicans say they wish Donald Trump were running for president in 2012.

More singles than ever plan to vote in the 2012 presidential election.

• Compared to 64% of Americans who voted in the 2008 presidential election, singles are a politically active group. An equal percentage of single men and women (87%) say they plan to vote next year.

The data for this report was conducted online in December 2011 and fielded 4,218 responses from singles in the U.S. who use Zoosk.  Respondents were equally divided among political parties with 30% being Democrat, 34% being Republican, and 36% being Independent.

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Tower Heist, starring Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy and Tea Leoni, lifts the curtain on the inner workings of a luxury high-rise and what it takes to keep hundreds of New York City’s wealthiest denizens satisfied. The residence managers for several high-profile hotels provided the filmmakers and the writers with insider tips about their experiences in overseeing top-drawer residences.

Screenwriter Jeff Nathanson recalls: “It was informative, to say the least, to speak with the people who work in these buildings. I interviewed everyone from doormen to housekeepers to building managers.  There’s a whole underworld to the New York building scene that exists in the basements that most people are unaware of. They make it all possible, and you just never see it. It’s fascinating.”

Almost every aspect of establishing Manhattan as the backdrop for Tower Heist’s action hinged on the filmmakers’ ability to execute some of the bigger set pieces conceived in the script. From the über-exclusive wealthy enclaves of Park Avenue to the working class neighborhoods in Queens, the crew needed to evoke the distinctive personalities of the city in a creative way.

Production designer Kristi Zea, who previously collaborated with the movie’s director Brett Ratner on The Family Man and Red Dragon — and most recently designed the luxuriously singular look for Oliver Stone’s Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps — was the hands-on choice to visualize the diverse and complex production design.

Her extensive experience, particularly when it came to creating something as opulent as the character of Shaw’s penthouse apartment, was helpful in satisfying a multitude of requirements of Mark Russell’s visual effects department and Steve Kirshoff’s special effects team.

A tour of some of Manhattan’s most upscale hotels and high-rise residences helped to determine the scope of the fictitious building where the majority of the film was set. For the grand interior set of The Tower lobby, Zea ended up using an amalgam of what she observed on the tour, elevating the look and scale to create a sumptuously sophisticated design.

Ultimately, a sprawling top-floor apartment in the Trump International Hotel & Tower — located at Central Park West in bustling Columbus Circle — served as the model for the set of Shaw’s opulent penthouse. Zea recalls: “The inspiration was an empty apartment that was half a floor and had a staggering 180-degree view of Manhattan.

We were able to match up the walls of the building, but then what we did on the inside was all up to us. We had a blast with it.” With the cooperation of Donald Trump, who allowed the production access to several of his high-end properties, the filmmakers were able to incorporate true luxury locales in the film.

The Trump International Hotel & Tower in New York City was used to film exteriors, including portions of the re-creation of Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and a sprawling foot and car chase sequence that had the main- and second-unit teams winding along Central Park West and Columbus Avenue.

Ratner explains about lensing here: “That’s what’s so great about shooting in New York City. Every direction you put the camera, you have something special, whether it is an interesting face or a building or a landscape. When you point the camera in any direction, you have amazing visuals.”

Tea Leoni sums the cast’s thoughts on the scale of the production: “I can’t believe the city of New York gave us Columbus Circle for this scene. We had cars speeding and crashing through the streets. It’s a crazy scene with so much going on.”

Trump even offered up the rare opportunity to lens in the spacious underground parking garage and service center of the lavish Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue. The real-estate mogul made a point of visiting the set during a break from taping his television series, The Celebrity Apprentice, several floors up to see how Ratner and the cast were faring.

A key element to envisioning the sophisticated penthouse apartment was assembling a status-affirming art collection. Ratner, himself an avowed art lover, had specific artists and pieces in mind for the film. Zea knew of Ratner’s dabbling in this world, so she elevated the design aesthetic to reflect his passion for it.

Occasionally, Ratner would place a call or send an e-mail to cut through mountains of red tape required to include reproductions of pedigreed world-class artwork. To evoke the tastes of a savvy art collector, Zea went with a modern-classic design approach, punctuated with important multimedia art.

She explains: “These days, it seems wealthy people want to have wall power. They want to have art on their walls that means something and shows people, just like a car, that ‘I’m rich, I’m smart and I know what I’m doing.’” Reproduction works from masters, including Pablo Picasso, Francesco Clemente, Richard Prince, Francis Bacon, Ed Ruscha, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Cy Twombly, Roy Lichtenstein, Alberto Giacometti and Andy Warhol, fill Shaw’s penthouse set.

Says Grazer of the final art choices they amassed for filming: “It’s a shame that someone as dishonorable as Arthur Shaw is allowed to be surrounded by this much beauty.”

Image Courtesy of   http://www.facebook.com/towerheist

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If there is any doubt that Republicans are choosing politics over country, erase it with the words of Donald Trump. Monday, Trump urged Republican lawmakers to reject any debt ceiling deal in an effort to ensure that President Obama is a one-term president. Despite economists and administration officials warnings that defaulting on our nation’s debt could mean dire consequences for the country, Trump still believes that the risk is worth it. Politics over country.

“Frankly the Republicans would be crazy unless they get 100 percent of the deal that they want right now to make any deal,” Trump said on “Fox and Friends” Monday. “If this happens, for instance if this stuff is going on prior to an election, he can’t get reelected. He possibly can’t get elected anyway. …

The fact is, unless the Republicans get 100% of what they want, and that may include getting rid of Obamacare, which is a total disaster, then they should not make a deal other than a minor extension which would take you before the election which would ensure Obama doesn’t get elected, which would be a great thing.”

Host Brian Kilmead pointed out that Americans currently blame Republicans more than Obama for the debt ceiling crisis, but Trump responded that, in the long run, the blame will fall on Obama, not Republicans. “I don’t care about polls,” Trump said. “When it comes time to default, they’re not going to remember any of the Republicans’ names. They are going to remember in history books one name, and that’s Obama.”

According to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, Americans disapprove of Republicans’ and Obama’s economic policies in roughly equal measure, but 65 percent disapprove of the GOP’s handling of jobs, compared to 52 percent for Obama.

In an interview with Newsmax, Trump stated that Obama is trying to create a crisis. “Monday of this week, everything was supposed to crash in Asia and it didn’t,” said the Trump, who earlier this year mulled running for the Republican nomination for president.
“It was supposed to crash throughout the world but it didn’t.

“That threat is highly overblown, and August 2 is no longer the date. There’s plenty of funds to keep it going quite a bit longer. That’s just a date that Geithner came up with mysteriously, so August 2 is not a real threat at all.”

Rena Schild / Shutterstock.com

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The New York State Attorney General’s office is investigating Donald Trump’s “Trump University.”   Trump’s online business school charges up to $35,000 for “students” to “learn from the master.”  I guess the attorney general doesn’t buy the hype.

The for-profit school is under investigation for possible deceptive business practices, according to Associated Press.  The New York Daily News revealed growing problems with Trump University last year when more than 150 students in 22 states reported that they had been cheated out of tens of thousands of dollars for useless courses.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman subpoenaed the school as part of a far-reaching investigation into the for-profit college industry in New York.  A spokesman for the attorney general has not commented on the investigation.

A Trump executive, however, has confirmed the probe.  “We look forward to cooperating with the inquiry and providing the information requested,” the Trump spokesperson stated.

Trump University is a non-accredited college.  Trump University claims that 95 percent of its students evaluated the Trump courses as “excellent.”   However, the Better Business Bureau reports that Trump University has a number of complaints and has a D minus rating.  There has been criticism documented about the university from retirees, veterans, seniors, and laid-off workers, all who shelled out an exorbitant amount of money to enroll.  Students claim that they were pressured by university officials to max out credit cards or take money out of retirement funds in order to enroll in courses they found “useless.”  These students were then denied any refunds.

As part of the New York State probe, state investigators are examining Career Education Corp, Lincoln Educational Services, Corinthian Colleges, and Bridgepoint Education to see if they engaged in fraud, misrepresentation and deceptive business practices.

Trump announced last Monday he would not pursue a presidential bid. He also said that he would be canceling his appearance at the Iowa GOP’s annual Lincoln Dinner on June 10, which is considered one of the party’s biggest annual fundraisers.

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As of now, no major candidate has publicly decided to challenge Barack Obama to be the next president of the United States.  However, there is buzz surrounding numerous GOP hard hitters, suggesting that they may try to capture the GOP nomination in 2012.  There are so many possibilities, that this has turned into a series of articles.  In part one, we discussed Palin, Bachmann, Huckabee, and Gingrich.  In the second part, we focused on Gov. Haley Barbour, Gov. Mitch Daniels, and Jon Huntsman.  In part three, there are even more possibilities.

Would it be a real list without mentioning Mitt Romney?  The former Governor of Massachusetts may be the front runner in the list of potential candidates.  He is part of the establishment, sure, but many Republican voters are still fans.  He has a better track record, keeps his mouth shut and doesn’t embarrass himself the way most of the other likely GOP contenders do.  But, Romney has one large problem.  The Commonwealth Care reform that gave the state of Massachusetts health care for practically all is very similar to the Affordable Care Act that Republicans hate.   That will pose the biggest hurdle for Romney.  Other problems could be that he is too “elite,” he is from New England, and he is Mormon—all things that the Republican base doesn’t really like.

Also, the list must include Donald Trump.  That is right, The Donald is pretending he might run.  Trump recently spoke at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference suggesting that if he ran and won, “America would be respected again.”  Trump, like so many others in this wide open field, says he will make his decision in June. In a March WSJ/NBC poll, Trump had “an approval rating higher than better-known political quantities Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty.”  That makes two reality stars possible GOP contenders.

Speaking of Tim Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota is also on the long list of possible presidential GOP nominations.  Pawlenty, like the others, has given no indication either way whether he will run or not, but he may be closer than most.  Just this week, he announced his intention to form an exploratory committee.  His website also has Pawlenty for 2012 all over it. He did not seek a third term for governor of Minnesota, leading many to speculate that he will mount a presidential bid.  In January 2011, Pawlenty told the College Republicans group at The George Washington University “If I decide to run it would be for president, not vice president.”  Pawlenty has been making some trips to Iowa, also leading more to believe he will likely run for president.  Pawlenty, like Romney, is good at not making headlines.  The biggest problem with Pawlenty is that he is boring.  No one is excited about him.  The party may settle for him, but no one is enthusiastic about his candidacy.  That doesn’t count him out though.  No one was very excited about McCain either.

There are still even more possible candidates.  Check out part four in this series for other primary potentials.

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Donald Trump is quickly becoming even more irrelevant.  He has launched his pretend political campaign and is becoming birther #1.  In every interview, he has questioned Obama’s citizenship using arguments that Snopes has proven inaccurate years ago.  The truth doesn’t stop The Donald though.

Last week, Trump appeared on The View and, as is becoming typical, began to spout some birther nonsense.  Whoopi Goldberg called him out though.  She called Trump’s accusations “the biggest pile of dog mess I’ve heard in ages” and asked, “it’s not ’cause he’s black, is it? …Because I’ve never heard any white President asked to be shown the birth certificate.”

On Monday’s “Fox and Friends,” Trump used his time to strike back. Asked if his comments had anything to do with race, he said, “absolutely not. I like Whoopi. I’ve always had a good relationship with Whoopi…but frankly, I mean, I think that’s insulting that she brings up–what does that have to do with race?”  He then continues his birther drumbeat, questioning whether President Barack Obama was born in the United States during his phone interview.  “He could have been born outside of this country,” he said before asking, “Why can’t he produce a birth certificate?”

Apparently, to prove his point, Trump released his birth certificate later on Monday exclusively to Newsmax. An image of the document featured on the website indicates that Trump was born at the Jamaica Hospital in New York on June 14, 1946. He told Newsmax it took him only an hour to get his birth certificate. “It’s inconceivable that after four years of questioning, the president still hasn’t produced his birth certificate,” he said. “I’m just asking President Obama to show the public his birth certificate. Why’s he making an issue out of this?”

Uh, Mr. Trump.  An official copy of Obama’s birth certificate has been available and online for more than three years. The only one making an issue appears to be you and your birther cronies.  Furthermore, you didn’t even release an official birth certificate.  Officials told Politico’s Maggie Haberman that if Trump’s birth certificate were official, it’d be marked with the seal of the Department of Health, as well as the signature of the city registrar, which do not appear on the image of the document posted on the Newsmax website.

A day later, Trump released the official copy to ABC News.  He had previously released a “certificate of live birth, not a birth certificate.  His staffers point out that the distinction between the two is important.  “A ‘birth certificate’ and a ‘certificate of live birth’ are in no way the same thing, even though in some cases they use some of the same words,” wrote Trump staffer Thuy Colayco in a message to ABC News. “One officially confirms and records a newborn child’s identity and details of his or her birth, while the other only confirms that someone reported the birth of a child. Also, a ‘certificate of live birth’ is very easy to get because the standards are much lower, while a ‘birth certificate’ is only gotten through a long and detailed process wherein identity must be proved beyond any doubt. If you had only a certificate of live birth, you would not be able to get a proper passport from the Post Office or a driver’s license from the Department of Motor Vehicles. Therefore, there is very significant difference between a ‘certificate of live birth’ and a ‘birth certificate’ and one should never be confused with the other.”

Uh, yeah.  It should be noted that Trump’s mother was born in Scotland.  That is eerily similar to Obama’s father being born in another country.  Is Trump even eligible to serve as president?  This does not prove to me that Trump is American.  I have my serious doubts.

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Billionaire real estate mogul, reality television star, and now pretend presidential candidate, Donald Trump claimed last week that he once took part in a devious plan to undermine Muammar Gadhafi’s power by taking his money.

“I think I probably have more experience of anybody — whether I sell them real estate for tremendous amounts of money. I mean, I’ve dealt with everybody,” the billionaire real-estate mogul told Fox News Monday morning, touting his supposed foreign policy credentials. “And by the way, I can tell you something else. I dealt with Gadhafi. I rented him a piece of land. He paid me more for one night than the land was worth for two years, and then I didn’t let him use the land.”

“That’s what we should be doing. I don’t want to use the word ‘screwed’, but I screwed him,” Trump continued. “That’s what we should be doing.”

That sounds sort of impressive, but it is not true.  In 2009, Trump came under inspection when he rented property to Gadhafi.  After a rambling, conspiracy-theory-filled speech delivered at the U.N., Gadhafi planned to spend the night in Bedford, N.Y., where his agents pitched a giant Bedouin tent on a property owned by Trump.  Local officials were unhappy at the news that their small town would be hosting an accused sponsor of terror and they ordered the tent be dismantled, claiming it violated building codes. Trump, at the time, claimed ignorance.  He said he did not know he was renting his land to a dictator.

After a day of controversy, Trump then asked Gaddafi to go elsewhere.  “We have requested that the tenant occupying the property in Bedford, N.Y. remove the tent that was erected. They have complied with this request. Additionally, Mr. Gadhafi will not be going to the property,” said Trump Organization spokeswoman Rhona Graff.

So is that how you screw a dictator, Mr. Trump?  Your version of events sounds far more impressive than what actually happened.  I guarantee Gadhafi got his money back.

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