Are the allegations against Cruz defamatory?

The story in the National Enquirer that Ted Cruz had affairs with five women has had at least one beneficial outcome and that is it sheds some light on how the political gossip machine operates. Michael Calderone decribes it as a massive game of telephone and takes us through the timeline of how the rumors went from person to person and quickly became a complicated web where it has become impossible to figure out who originated the story. It seems like the story has been circulating for months, and was at one time being pushed by the Marco Rubio camp at a time when he and Cruz were vying for the second place slot behind Trump.
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The difference between Clinton and Sanders on Israel and AIPAC

AIPAC (American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee) is one of the key components of the Israel lobby in the US and plays a powerful force in elections, similar to the role that the NRA plays. It advocates for very hardline Israeli policies against the Palestinians and also against any nation that it or the Israeli government deems to be opposed to Israel. Needless to say, it vigorously opposed the nuclear deal between the P5+1 nations and Iran.
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A test of the power of boycotts

Some states, including Ohio, like to give tax breaks and other forms of subsidies to film companies to make their films there. The case that is made is that making the film in the state brings jobs and revenue that more than compensates for the giveaways, and in addition the state gets lots of free publicity and visibility. At one time, states seemed to be in a bidding war for film companies, much to the latter’s delight.
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