The landmark Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), regulating the international trade in conventional arms – from small arms to battle tanks, combat aircraft and warships – entered into force on 24 December 2014.
This is all hot air. The signed executive order only means he won't sign any ratification of the treaty. Trump always does the next flamboyant thing in anticipation of making his base happy. He is powerless if the USA decides to ratify the treaty. This is politics.
It is a very important treaty. The USA is a signatory of the treaty and it should be proud in that leadership. The treaty is in full force because 50 other countries have already ratified it.
The UN Arms Trade Treaty keeps weapons out of the hands of al Qaeda. Trump's decision only insults the people in the audience. The UN Arms Trade Treaty has nothing to do with USA sovereignty. The USA is still able to arm itself to protect sovereignty. He is fooling the audience.
One of the greatest problems in the world, especially the Third World, is the ability of rebels to arm themselves. That is particularly true in Africa and has kept the countries on that continent in turmoil for centuries. On this blog there is a weekend discussion about the difficulty that has faced the countries of Africa due to the differences of language, culture and leadership in that order.
Exploiting natural resources provides an income to purchase weapons from illegal dealers. We saw that clearly with Boko Haram (click here). The reality of Africa is changing and that is partly due to the success of the UN Arms Trade Treaty.
Oddly enough, Trump hates Iran. This same treaty can be invoked when Iran sends arms to known rebel groups, including the Houthis in Yemen. If the arms continue to flow into that region to arm rebels the war in Yemen will never end. This treaty is to prevent such fuel to the fire that is hate between religions.
Donald Trump uses hate and the power of the presidency to make really inflammatory remarks to those that support him.
The USA legislature has power and the president simply can't write an executive order to end the law of the land. The power of the legislature is what makes the USA a world class economy and a world class power. That executive order is meaningless and it may as well have been a pledge on a flyer.
Saturday, April 27, 2019
Friday, April 26, 2019
Lead in any water is not okay. The human body thinks lead is the same molecule as iron.
People need iron, not lead. The blood uses iron to be healthy and keep the body healthy.
Lead in any water is not okay.
Michigan 2018 Lead and Copper Rule (click here)
April 25, 2019
By Emma Winowiecki
...At this point, (click here) Flint's lead levels are better than some other Michigan cities. Over the last two years, Benton Harbor, Romulus, Hamtramck, Parchment, Houghton and the villages of Lawrence and Beverly Hills each exceeded the EPA action level for lead in drinking water, according to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
That doesn’t mean there still aren’t problems in Flint.
The city switched back to the Detroit water system in 2015. But the damage had already been done, and the city’s lead service lines continued to leach lead into residents’ drinking water.
Since 2016, crews have inspected more than 20,000 service lines, replacing roughly 8,000 lead and galvanized pipes. By the time the work is done, nearly every line in the city will have been inspected or replaced.
Until the replacement work is finished, people have been advised to continue using water filters provided by the government. However, that recommendation is not unique to Flint. The EPA recommends that water filters be used in homes that could have lead lines, which applies to many U.S. cities. Learn how to find out if your home has lead lines here....
Lead in any water is not okay.
Michigan 2018 Lead and Copper Rule (click here)
April 25, 2019By Emma Winowiecki
...At this point, (click here) Flint's lead levels are better than some other Michigan cities. Over the last two years, Benton Harbor, Romulus, Hamtramck, Parchment, Houghton and the villages of Lawrence and Beverly Hills each exceeded the EPA action level for lead in drinking water, according to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
That doesn’t mean there still aren’t problems in Flint.
The city switched back to the Detroit water system in 2015. But the damage had already been done, and the city’s lead service lines continued to leach lead into residents’ drinking water.
Since 2016, crews have inspected more than 20,000 service lines, replacing roughly 8,000 lead and galvanized pipes. By the time the work is done, nearly every line in the city will have been inspected or replaced.
Until the replacement work is finished, people have been advised to continue using water filters provided by the government. However, that recommendation is not unique to Flint. The EPA recommends that water filters be used in homes that could have lead lines, which applies to many U.S. cities. Learn how to find out if your home has lead lines here....
I found this article from "Mother Jones" very helpful.
April 10, 2019
By Ali Breland
Last month, (click here) Andrew Yang’s presidential bid emerged from out of nearly nowhere onto the 2020 Democratic debate stage in a matter of days.
Until March 4, the hashtag #YangGang had been quietly floating around Twitter, only occasionally garnering a peak of just hundreds of daily mentions. But on that day it spiked into the thousands, according to metrics shared with Mother Jones and compiled by Zach Verdin, a partner at the pro-democracy independent research collective Guardians.ai.
Verdin hypothesized that 4chan’s /pol/, a discussion board notorious for being a watering hole of racist and sexist trolls, was responsible for the so-called Yang Gang’s Twitter explosion. Immediately before the hashtag went viral, people boosting Yang flooded the board with absurdist, neon pink vaporwave memes backing his campaign and its centerpiece proposal to provide every American a monthly $1,000 universal basic income....
The men involved with these extremist groups are primarily known to be underachievers, especially when it comes to earning. No different than with the Affordable Care Act, these so called "socialist" agendas and programs are actually most valuable to those involved in the periphery of the USA. The poor.
When one realizes where the social programs of the USA actually are in highest demand, it is with the poor and working middle class. Basically, Red States.
So, I don't want to hear it. When Democrats bring their agenda to the national level and present it to the country as there is absolutely no doubt that when it comes to social programs, it is the Red States that benefit the most.
Democrats don't discriminate, they care about every American no matter the state they live in or the belief systems they hold as important. When generosity is in place and the American people are all on the same platform of care and opportunity, the guns really don't have use because the hate should melt away. If the hate doesn't melt away, it is because stoking it serves someone's political agenda. There is no reason for the level of hate and gun violence in this country that currently exists. No reason. It is called equality.
One of the scare tactics used by those that hate is that by 2045 the minority will be the majority of Americans. That may be true, however, that minority-majority is diverse and all Americans will then have an equal population of their race in the USA. I suggest the Caucasian folks that feel threatened simply need to make friends and enjoy the ride.
By Ali Breland
Last month, (click here) Andrew Yang’s presidential bid emerged from out of nearly nowhere onto the 2020 Democratic debate stage in a matter of days.
Until March 4, the hashtag #YangGang had been quietly floating around Twitter, only occasionally garnering a peak of just hundreds of daily mentions. But on that day it spiked into the thousands, according to metrics shared with Mother Jones and compiled by Zach Verdin, a partner at the pro-democracy independent research collective Guardians.ai.
Verdin hypothesized that 4chan’s /pol/, a discussion board notorious for being a watering hole of racist and sexist trolls, was responsible for the so-called Yang Gang’s Twitter explosion. Immediately before the hashtag went viral, people boosting Yang flooded the board with absurdist, neon pink vaporwave memes backing his campaign and its centerpiece proposal to provide every American a monthly $1,000 universal basic income....
The men involved with these extremist groups are primarily known to be underachievers, especially when it comes to earning. No different than with the Affordable Care Act, these so called "socialist" agendas and programs are actually most valuable to those involved in the periphery of the USA. The poor.
When one realizes where the social programs of the USA actually are in highest demand, it is with the poor and working middle class. Basically, Red States.
So, I don't want to hear it. When Democrats bring their agenda to the national level and present it to the country as there is absolutely no doubt that when it comes to social programs, it is the Red States that benefit the most.
Democrats don't discriminate, they care about every American no matter the state they live in or the belief systems they hold as important. When generosity is in place and the American people are all on the same platform of care and opportunity, the guns really don't have use because the hate should melt away. If the hate doesn't melt away, it is because stoking it serves someone's political agenda. There is no reason for the level of hate and gun violence in this country that currently exists. No reason. It is called equality.
One of the scare tactics used by those that hate is that by 2045 the minority will be the majority of Americans. That may be true, however, that minority-majority is diverse and all Americans will then have an equal population of their race in the USA. I suggest the Caucasian folks that feel threatened simply need to make friends and enjoy the ride.
The Great Lakes can serve as a port of entry for illegal drugs, but, synthetic drugs don't need a port of entry.
Ohio has drug problems. The heroine is a big problem. It is safe to say the Great Lakes are ports of entry, not just the coasts.
April 26, 2019
By Ian Cross
Elyria, Ohio — A program targeting synthetic opioids (click here) in Elyria that started in July of 2018 has resulted in 26 arrests, according to a news release from police.
Last year, Elyria police entered into a partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice for a pilot program, Operation Synthetic Opiod Surge (S.O.S.), the release states. The purpose of the program was to reduce the supply of deadly synthetic opioids in high-impact areas and to identify wholesale distribution networks.
Authorities did not disclose whether their efforts have led to a significant reduction in supply....
April 26, 2019
By Ian Cross
Elyria, Ohio — A program targeting synthetic opioids (click here) in Elyria that started in July of 2018 has resulted in 26 arrests, according to a news release from police.
Last year, Elyria police entered into a partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice for a pilot program, Operation Synthetic Opiod Surge (S.O.S.), the release states. The purpose of the program was to reduce the supply of deadly synthetic opioids in high-impact areas and to identify wholesale distribution networks.
Authorities did not disclose whether their efforts have led to a significant reduction in supply....
More perspective regarding the Special Council.
April 26, 2019
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein shared some of his thoughts about his approach to and origins of the special counsel's investigation. At a speech at an Armenian Bar Association dinner Thursday, Rosenstein recalled that two years ago, at his confirmation hearing, a GOP senator told him he'd be charged with the Russia probe and demanded that Rosenstein promise to "do it right."
"'You're going to be in charge of this [Russia] investigation. I want you to look me in the eye and tell me that you'll do it right, that you'll take it to its conclusion and you'll report [your results] to the American people,'" he said the senator told him.
Rosenstein agreed to the first two things the senator asked, but then explained, "I did not promise to report all results to the public, because grand jury investigations are ex parte proceedings. It is not our job to render conclusive factual findings. We just decide whether it is appropriate to file criminal charges."
He said that there were "some critical decisions" about the investigation that had been made before he was on the job as deputy attorney general. The Obama administration, he said, "chose not to publicize the full story about Russian computer hackers and social media trolls, and how they relate to a broader strategy to undermine America."...
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein shared some of his thoughts about his approach to and origins of the special counsel's investigation. At a speech at an Armenian Bar Association dinner Thursday, Rosenstein recalled that two years ago, at his confirmation hearing, a GOP senator told him he'd be charged with the Russia probe and demanded that Rosenstein promise to "do it right."
"'You're going to be in charge of this [Russia] investigation. I want you to look me in the eye and tell me that you'll do it right, that you'll take it to its conclusion and you'll report [your results] to the American people,'" he said the senator told him.
Rosenstein agreed to the first two things the senator asked, but then explained, "I did not promise to report all results to the public, because grand jury investigations are ex parte proceedings. It is not our job to render conclusive factual findings. We just decide whether it is appropriate to file criminal charges."
He said that there were "some critical decisions" about the investigation that had been made before he was on the job as deputy attorney general. The Obama administration, he said, "chose not to publicize the full story about Russian computer hackers and social media trolls, and how they relate to a broader strategy to undermine America."...
White Supremacists/Nationalist and Civil War
Obviously, Trump has emboldened the far right to violence. There is no doubt about that. What gets interesting is the assessment of what will occur when a civil war breaks out in the USA with Trump controlling the National Guard and recently USA military troops within the USA borders.
But, for the sake of a Trump administration sitting out civil war, the right wing militias will lose. The Veterans within the USA that have defended the country abroad far outnumber the militias of right wing wackos.
There would be deaths on both sides, but, the extremists would lose and the USA may very well be rid of them forever.
If the Trump wackos value their lives, the won't go down that path.
But, for the sake of a Trump administration sitting out civil war, the right wing militias will lose. The Veterans within the USA that have defended the country abroad far outnumber the militias of right wing wackos.
There would be deaths on both sides, but, the extremists would lose and the USA may very well be rid of them forever.
If the Trump wackos value their lives, the won't go down that path.
Marvel Studios' Avengers: Endgame - Official Trailer (click here for website - thank you)
Can't wait. I tend to be a spoiler, so, I reserve my opinion. It is so hard not to say a word.
Sri Lanka's victims that cannot be identified can have genetic fingerprints recorded. Family that comes forward stating they are missing family members can provide genetic samples to find any matches. It can be a valid way with family testimony regarding missing family members to issue a death certificate.
Like I said, the US Attorney General is sitting on the necks of the US Attorneys.
The Attorney General is committing WILLFUL legal malpractice as well as negligence of the American people.
My opinion. By not charging this idiot with domestic terrorist Barr is authorizing a civil war.
It is time to require US Attorneys to report to Congress the crimes of the US Attorney and his complete lack of ethics. Congress needs to issue a letter to the US Attorneys to insure confidentiality and further protect whistleblowers.
Despite pressure on law enforcement and Silicon Valley(click here) to seriously counter the rise in violent extremism perpetrated by white nationalists, the far right shows no signs of letting up. White nationalist leaders will continue to explain away the violence in their movement as a regrettable but understandable reaction to demographic change.
My opinion. By not charging this idiot with domestic terrorist Barr is authorizing a civil war.
It is time to require US Attorneys to report to Congress the crimes of the US Attorney and his complete lack of ethics. Congress needs to issue a letter to the US Attorneys to insure confidentiality and further protect whistleblowers.
Despite pressure on law enforcement and Silicon Valley(click here) to seriously counter the rise in violent extremism perpetrated by white nationalists, the far right shows no signs of letting up. White nationalist leaders will continue to explain away the violence in their movement as a regrettable but understandable reaction to demographic change.
Thursday, April 25, 2019
Why wasn't Hasson charged with domestic terrorism?
He was released on bail. Evidently, even though all the allegations of domestic terrorism was listed by the prosecutor in the proceedings, the actual charges were not filed. The Judge could not deny him bail because the actual charges of domestic terrorism were not filed.
WHY?
April 26, 2019
Greenbelt - The Coast Guard lieutenant (click here) accused of stockpiling weapons and illegal drugs will be released on bail, a federal judge ruled Thursday afternoon.
Christopher Hasson is facing weapons and drug charges. Prosecutors said he was planning a domestic terror attack targeting Democratic politicians and journalists....
WHY?
April 26, 2019
Greenbelt - The Coast Guard lieutenant (click here) accused of stockpiling weapons and illegal drugs will be released on bail, a federal judge ruled Thursday afternoon.
Christopher Hasson is facing weapons and drug charges. Prosecutors said he was planning a domestic terror attack targeting Democratic politicians and journalists....
There are nearly 32 million Americans that are illiterate. That is approximately 10 percent of the country.
I am going to continue to look for articles about illiteracy in the USA. If people can't read or read well how can they be an informed voter?
And, this is no joke. Republicans are the majority that can't read. The South is in third world status with a 10 percent or more illiteracy rate. This is all Republican territory.
If Republicans can't read, they can be mislead, demand no real proof for statements by their leadership NOR investigate on their own what reality actually reflects in the year 2019 or 2020. It is astounding to me that Mitch McConnell never seeks to end this victimization and chronically lies about the state of the coal industry.
There are NO MORE NEW JOBS in the coal industry. (click here) The industry USED TO BE a great employer of Americans, today they employ less than 50,000 people across the spectrum of coal jobs. This is ridiculous and the USA needs to leave the old behind and move forward with clean, alternative energy.
COAL MINING IS A DEAD INDUSTRY FOR JOBS!
The Republicans that cannot read are victims of the cronies that give enormous amounts of money for their re-election. The Kochs. The Petroleum Industry. The Coal industry is not only proud of it's victimization, but, is not a viable industry anymore. END the fossil fuel industry subsidies. Enough of the victimization of America and the people that actually believe they know the truth about those they hate due to propaganda.
To truly understand the state of literacy in today’s United States, (click here) we need to go back to the beginning. Literacy has long been used as a method of social control and oppression. Throughout much of history, the ability to read was something only privileged, upper-class white men were allowed to learn. School wasn’t free like it is today. Education was provided to only a select few, and this preserved a class system that kept the poor powerless and the rich powerful—a practice, we’ll see later in this piece, that continues today....
...Alabama Slave Code of 1833 included this following law: “Any person who shall attempt to teach any free person of color, or slave, to spell, read or write, shall upon conviction thereof by indictment, be fined in a sum of not less than two hundred fifty dollars, nor more than five hundred dollars.”...'
...Frederick Douglass who learned the alphabet secretly as a child from his slave master’s wife, Sophia Auld. As a young adult, Douglass pursued learning on his own, secretly reading books and newspapers. He famously said that “once you learn to read, you will be forever free.”...
...Women, too, were largely left out of education. Educating women simply was not a priority until the early 1900s and even then, women attending college was rare up until the 1960s. Early Americans often believed it was a waste to educate women past the basics since they would need to run a home and raise a family. Bard College’s Joel Perlmann and Boston College’s Dennis Shirley say that “half the women born around 1730 were illiterate.” Women might have been taught to read at home or in an early girls’ school, but they largely weren’t taught to write, and often didn’t have access to secondary school in the early American colonies and states....
...While today’s American public schools are compulsory and free to attend, and we now have things like television and the internet, reading still remains a critical pathway to freedom....
One measure of a country's ability to build a middle class and consumerism that supports jobs is its literacy rate. If the country is illiterate, why make the investment unless it is simply dirt cheap labor one is looking for.
...On the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress 12th Grade Reading Level Assessment (2015), 46 percent of white students scored at or above proficient. Just 17 percent of black students and 25 percent of Latino students scored proficient. Females scored higher than males. In McKinsey & Company’s The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America’s Schools, “Black and Latino students are roughly two to three years of learning behind White students of the same age.” McKinsey’s research showed that that the achievement gap can lead to “heavy and often tragic consequences, via lower earnings, poorer health and higher rates of incarceration.” This achievement gap becomes an opportunity gap, an economic gap, and a racial gap, which gets passed on generation to generation unless it’s disrupted....
And, this is no joke. Republicans are the majority that can't read. The South is in third world status with a 10 percent or more illiteracy rate. This is all Republican territory.
If Republicans can't read, they can be mislead, demand no real proof for statements by their leadership NOR investigate on their own what reality actually reflects in the year 2019 or 2020. It is astounding to me that Mitch McConnell never seeks to end this victimization and chronically lies about the state of the coal industry.
Coal mining productivity in the United States increased 26% over the past five years, (click here) reaching 6.8 tons per miner hour in 2017, up from 5.4 tons per miner hour in 2012, according to EIA’s Annual Coal Report and data from the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Coal productivity ranges significantly across production regions, with productivity in the Powder River Basin far exceeding productivity in the Interior and Appalachian regions....
The increase is PER MINER. The miners have not gotten more work done, they always work hard. The mining process is automated more and more giving stockholders more money in their pocket. All that money glut at the beginning of 2017 made it easier to automate and close out jobs.
The average coal miner is 45 years old with a high school degree. About 75 percent have a high school diploma. They can make up to $80K per year. They have great unions. There are about 3 percent of American coal miners with a bachelor degree and absolutely none with advanced degrees. There are marginal numbers of women in coal jobs and there are no clear statistics about concern for their health being exposed to coal dust and methane leaks.
Without better education and/or job training outside of this industry, the coal miners will never see that kind of annual income, HOWEVER, their health will be remarkably better. Is there a price tag on health for these folks? And the Republicans would like to shut down Black Lung funds.
The average coal miner is 45 years old with a high school degree. About 75 percent have a high school diploma. They can make up to $80K per year. They have great unions. There are about 3 percent of American coal miners with a bachelor degree and absolutely none with advanced degrees. There are marginal numbers of women in coal jobs and there are no clear statistics about concern for their health being exposed to coal dust and methane leaks.
Without better education and/or job training outside of this industry, the coal miners will never see that kind of annual income, HOWEVER, their health will be remarkably better. Is there a price tag on health for these folks? And the Republicans would like to shut down Black Lung funds.
U.S. coal mining productivity has increased despite mine closings and decreasing employment and production. Technology and process improvements have contributed to the increase in productivity, but a larger factor is the distribution of productivity across mines. The mines that are first to close during market downturns are often the ones with higher production costs and lower productivity, while more productive mines remain operating, increasing overall productivity....
There are NO MORE NEW JOBS in the coal industry. (click here) The industry USED TO BE a great employer of Americans, today they employ less than 50,000 people across the spectrum of coal jobs. This is ridiculous and the USA needs to leave the old behind and move forward with clean, alternative energy.
COAL MINING IS A DEAD INDUSTRY FOR JOBS!
The Republicans that cannot read are victims of the cronies that give enormous amounts of money for their re-election. The Kochs. The Petroleum Industry. The Coal industry is not only proud of it's victimization, but, is not a viable industry anymore. END the fossil fuel industry subsidies. Enough of the victimization of America and the people that actually believe they know the truth about those they hate due to propaganda.
To truly understand the state of literacy in today’s United States, (click here) we need to go back to the beginning. Literacy has long been used as a method of social control and oppression. Throughout much of history, the ability to read was something only privileged, upper-class white men were allowed to learn. School wasn’t free like it is today. Education was provided to only a select few, and this preserved a class system that kept the poor powerless and the rich powerful—a practice, we’ll see later in this piece, that continues today....
...Alabama Slave Code of 1833 included this following law: “Any person who shall attempt to teach any free person of color, or slave, to spell, read or write, shall upon conviction thereof by indictment, be fined in a sum of not less than two hundred fifty dollars, nor more than five hundred dollars.”...'
...Frederick Douglass who learned the alphabet secretly as a child from his slave master’s wife, Sophia Auld. As a young adult, Douglass pursued learning on his own, secretly reading books and newspapers. He famously said that “once you learn to read, you will be forever free.”...
...Women, too, were largely left out of education. Educating women simply was not a priority until the early 1900s and even then, women attending college was rare up until the 1960s. Early Americans often believed it was a waste to educate women past the basics since they would need to run a home and raise a family. Bard College’s Joel Perlmann and Boston College’s Dennis Shirley say that “half the women born around 1730 were illiterate.” Women might have been taught to read at home or in an early girls’ school, but they largely weren’t taught to write, and often didn’t have access to secondary school in the early American colonies and states....
...While today’s American public schools are compulsory and free to attend, and we now have things like television and the internet, reading still remains a critical pathway to freedom....
One measure of a country's ability to build a middle class and consumerism that supports jobs is its literacy rate. If the country is illiterate, why make the investment unless it is simply dirt cheap labor one is looking for.
...On the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress 12th Grade Reading Level Assessment (2015), 46 percent of white students scored at or above proficient. Just 17 percent of black students and 25 percent of Latino students scored proficient. Females scored higher than males. In McKinsey & Company’s The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America’s Schools, “Black and Latino students are roughly two to three years of learning behind White students of the same age.” McKinsey’s research showed that that the achievement gap can lead to “heavy and often tragic consequences, via lower earnings, poorer health and higher rates of incarceration.” This achievement gap becomes an opportunity gap, an economic gap, and a racial gap, which gets passed on generation to generation unless it’s disrupted....
There is not one candidate running for the Democratic nomination that is not worthy of consideration.
There is just one thing no one seems to recognize in their campaign and that is; while it is easy to run against Trump, he is being primaried. I believe the Democratic nominee will be facing someone other than Trump in 2020.
There is just one thing no one seems to recognize in their campaign and that is; while it is easy to run against Trump, he is being primaried. I believe the Democratic nominee will be facing someone other than Trump in 2020.
Former VP Joe Biden launches 2020 presidential bid (click here for official website - thank you)
This is Joe Biden. This has always been Joe Biden. If the American people are looking for the strongest anchor they can find to secure this country back from the brink, they have a candidate that can do exactly that.
If Joe Biden is elected, those that elect him will have confidence he won't do a 180-degree turn to benefit the wealthy and sink the USA further into insoluble debt.
I have no doubt there are going to be a lot of questions regarding Joe and votes and policy positions. That's right Biden has a track record. On balance, his negatives don't show up for all his positives.
I wish him the best, look forward to his insight and long for the return of the Middle Class and the one true American institution that secures them, Unions.
If Joe Biden is elected, those that elect him will have confidence he won't do a 180-degree turn to benefit the wealthy and sink the USA further into insoluble debt.
I have no doubt there are going to be a lot of questions regarding Joe and votes and policy positions. That's right Biden has a track record. On balance, his negatives don't show up for all his positives.
I wish him the best, look forward to his insight and long for the return of the Middle Class and the one true American institution that secures them, Unions.
Wednesday, April 24, 2019
While on the topic of corruption and quid pro quo. So many tenticles it is called the Koctopus.
By David Safier
Did I mention (click here) that ASU’s Center for the Study of Economic Liberty was created in November, with a little help – OK, $3.5 million worth of help – from the Charles Koch Foundation?
Did I mention (click here) that ASU’s Center for the Study of Economic Liberty was created in November, with a little help – OK, $3.5 million worth of help – from the Charles Koch Foundation?
And did I mention that Ducey is basically a Koch creation?
Ducey gets a few millions in contributions. The many-tentacled Koch network, often referred to as the Kochtapus, gets $7.5 million a year from the state to extend its influence. Small investment, big return. That's how the rich and powerful like to do things.
In 2014, 2015 and 2016, UA's Freedom Center received half a million dollars each year from the state. In 2017, the amount increased to three-quarters of a million. In 2018 and 2019 it leapt to $3.5 million. It's on track to get the same amount in this year's budget.
ASU's School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership began getting state funding in 2016, with half a million. In 2017 it went up to three-quarters of a million. In 2018, 2019 and most likely in this year's budget, its allocation is $4 million.
Over the last few years, the two programs have pulled in a total of $7.5 million per year....
Yep. All the Russian money the NRA could shovel into circulation for candidates.
By Bob Brigham
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) (click here) was sued in federal court on Tuesday for allegedly failing to enforce campaign finance laws against the National Rifle Association (NRA).
Giffords, the nonprofit organization founded by former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) after she survived an assassination attempt, sued the FEC for allegedly allowing the NRA to violate campaign finance law — including to help Donald Trump.
The new lawsuit, reported by BuzzFeed court and justice reporter Zoe Tillman, mentions the word “Trump” thirty-five times.
“Plaintiff’s complaints demonstrate that the National Rifle Association (“NRA”) violated the Federal Election Campaign Act by using a complex network of shell corporations to unlawfully coordinate expenditures with the campaigns of at least seven candidates for federal office, thereby making millions of dollars of illegal, unreported, and excessive in-kind contributions, including up to $25 million in illegal contributions to now President Donald J. Trump,” the lawsuit charged.
The lawsuit attempted to explain the scale of the alleged campaign finance violation....
There was a statement I thought I heard. I wasn't listening very intently for such statements, so much as content, but, I thought I heard someone say, "Donald Trump stated, Congress is nothing more than palls."
If that is the statement, my assessment is this:
l. That is not Trump talk. Donald Trump doesn't speak like that. Insulting, yes, but, using the image of Congress as a pall to the country is not in Trump vocabulary normally.
2. When I heard that my first impression was that was Vladimir Putin talking. See, the Russian Duma is very different than the US Congress. The leadership of Communist Russia would say that of the Congress because it doesn't understand the dynamic that exists with the country and the Congress.
So, Trump may have said something like that about Congress as an insult to raise his own spectrum of authority, but, those are not original words and they are grossly out of context it is obvious to me he learned that from a far different source.
My estimation is that Trump is still talking to Putin and garnering all sorts of ideas of grandeur inappropriate in every way for a president of the USA to think about himself.
If that is the statement, my assessment is this:
l. That is not Trump talk. Donald Trump doesn't speak like that. Insulting, yes, but, using the image of Congress as a pall to the country is not in Trump vocabulary normally.
2. When I heard that my first impression was that was Vladimir Putin talking. See, the Russian Duma is very different than the US Congress. The leadership of Communist Russia would say that of the Congress because it doesn't understand the dynamic that exists with the country and the Congress.
So, Trump may have said something like that about Congress as an insult to raise his own spectrum of authority, but, those are not original words and they are grossly out of context it is obvious to me he learned that from a far different source.
My estimation is that Trump is still talking to Putin and garnering all sorts of ideas of grandeur inappropriate in every way for a president of the USA to think about himself.
The Special Council's foot note stands.
By Stephanie Baker and Helena Bedwell
A Georgian-American businessman (click here) is accusing Special Counsel Robert Mueller of “glaring inaccuracies” and sensationalizing texts about alleged salacious tapes involving Donald Trump’s 2013 trip to Moscow.
In a letter to U.S. Attorney General William Barr on Tuesday, lawyers for Giorgi Rtskhiladze demanded a retraction to a footnote in Mueller’s 448-page report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election....
The paragraph below is a lie.
...Rtskhiladze said the full exchange of his texts with Cohen shows he was only communicating a rumor a friend had overheard at a Moscow party. He said his friend, whom he declined to identify, called to alert him about the rumor because of Rtskhiladze’s business dealings with Trump. Rtskhiladze said he passed along the identity of his friend to Mueller....
Oh, dear. In typing the word "some" was left out and it completely changes the entire meaning of the conservation. That is a man that does not understand the English language. SOME? SOME?
...In his texts, Rtskhiladze tells Cohen: “Stopped flow of some tapes from Russia.” But in the footnote, Mueller dropped “some” from the text, which is a “crucial” word because “it establishes the fact that Mr. Rtskhiladze had no knowledge of the tapes’ content,” according to the letter to Barr. Mueller didn’t disclose the rest of the text exchange, which shows Rtskhiladze didn’t have direct knowledge of the rumor involving the tapes, the letter says....
“Stopped flow of some tapes from Russia.”
The only person that would be interested in the word SOME would be Donald Trump. Some is meaningless to the Special Council. It doesn't matter if there are some stopped coming from Russia or one stopped coming from Russia or a million; there is at least ONE tape that Rtskhiladze was interested in talking to Michael Cohen about.
Donald Trump would definitely be interested in the word some, because that would indicate there are others that were not stopped coming from Russia. But, for the Special Council, if there is just one tape stopped coming from Russia, the question is, "Why would a Russian call Michael Cohen to pass on a message that there was at least one tape that was stopped coming from Russia?" My guess is the word some was allowed to be absent from the footnote because it is completely irrelevant to the fact there was at least one tape stopped coming from Russia.
I don't care if a Russian by the name of Rtskhiladze has his pants in a wad because his text message was included in a footnote of the Special Council. WHAT IN THE HELL IS BILL BARR ENTERTAINING RUSSIANS FOR?
How did a personal friend of Trump get to write an introduction to an official government document?
July 7, 2018By Ryan W. Miller
Harvard law (click here) professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz said backing President Donald Trump in certain cases has been harder than defending O.J. Simpson and other celebrity clients, according to an interview with.
The New York Times.
When asked, "Is this actually worse than when you defended O.J. Simpson?" of his defense of the president, Dershowitz replied:
"Of course. Or Claus von Bulow or Leona Helmsley or Michael Milken or Mike Tyson. This is much worse than all that."
Dershowitz continued, "In those cases people were critical of me, but they were prepared to discuss it. They were prepared to have a dialogue. Here, the people that I’m objecting to want to stop the dialogue. They don’t want to have the conversation."
Dershowitz was an appellate adviser to O.J. Simpson during his murder trial and also defended Claus von Bulow....
I want to know how much Dershowitz was paid for his introduction and is he receiving royalties from document sales. Why are the words "Authorized Edition" missing from the cover of the Special Council Report? This is not the Mueller Report, that is a populist rendition of the fact the Special Council compiled this report.
Harvard needs to carry out an ethics review of Dershowitz.
I won't buy this book. It's cover alone is corrupted by Trump's administration.
Jupiter, Fla. detectives say they found $43,000 in unreported cash in Shen Mingbi's bank safe deposit box.
By Chloe Teboe
West Palm Beach — A second massage therapist (click here) has been arrested and faces several prostitution charges after detectives in Florida say she performed a sex act on New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
A hearing was held for Shen Mingbi in Palm Beach County on Tuesday, a day after she was arrested. Through a Mandarin interpreter, Mingbi was ordered to surrender her passport and stay away from massage parlors.
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