2017-01-31

Emmett Till's Accuser Admits She Lied


Roland Martin & Tom Joyner speak with the family of Emmett Till. (NewsOneNow/TV1)

The woman who accused Emmett Till of physically and verbally abusing her, which led to his murder, now says she lied about the entire attack.

Carolyn Byant Donham accused Till, who was only 14 years at the time of physically and verbally assaulting her in 1955 in Mississippi.

Donham's then-husband, Roy Bryant, and his half-brother, J.W. Milam, tortured and murdered Till, but an all-white jury acquitted them of all charges.

The Associated Press reports Donham told Historian Timothy B. Tyson she lied about the attack in an interview with him in 2007.
His book, "The Blood of Emmett Till" comes out next week.

Link to Emmett Till's story: http://kirktanter.blogspot.com/2010/10/emmitt-till-remembered.html

Oversight Democrats Demand Administration Comply Fully With Court Orders



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Jennifer Werner
January 31, 2017
(202) 226-5181

Oversight Dems Demand Administration
Comply Fully With Court Orders

Members and Attorneys Denied Access to
Individuals Detained at Airports

Washington, D.C. (Jan. 31, 2017) – Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Rep. Gerald E. Connolly, Vice Ranking Member of the Committee, and Oversight Committee Member Jamie Raskin sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly expressing grave concerns and requesting documents about widespread reports that U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents are failing to comply with federal court orders staying actions relating to the President’s Executive Order banning refugees overall and travelers from seven specific Muslim-majority nations.

“We demand that you immediately cease and desist any actions that violate the judicial orders, direct all employees to do the same, and take all steps necessary to ensure full compliance across the country,” the Members wrote.

The Members requested by February 10, 2017, all communications regarding the Executive Order and court order compliance, as well as information about the individuals who were detained, including how long they were detained and whether they were provided access to counsel.

See below to read today’s letter.

January 31, 2017

The Honorable John F. Kelly
Secretary
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Washington, D.C. 20528

Dear Mr. Secretary:

We are writing to express grave concerns about widespread reports that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents are failing to comply with federal court orders staying actions relating to the President’s Executive Order banning refugees broadly and travelers from seven specific Muslim-majority nations.

The U.S. district court in Brooklyn issued an emergency temporary restraining order blocking the government from “in any manner, or by any means, removing individuals” who were legally authorized to enter the U.S., including refugees and holders of valid immigrant and non-immigrant visas.

A second ruling from a federal district court in Virginia ordered the government to “permit lawyers access to all legal permanent residents being detained at Dulles International Airport” and forbid their removal for a seven-day period.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a response to the federal rulings, stating DHS would both “comply with judicial orders” and “implement the president’s Executive Orders to ensure that those entering the United States do not pose a threat to our country or the American people.” DHS also stated: “We are and will remain in compliance with judicial orders.”

However, those statements run contrary to the experiences of a number of Members of Congress, including on our Committee.

On Sunday afternoon, four Members of Congress, including Rep. Gerald E. Connolly, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Rep. Donald Beyer, and Rep. John Delaney, went to Washington Dulles International Airport to demand that detainees be permitted access to counsel, as ordered by federal District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema. While at the airport, Mr. Connolly spoke by phone with CBP Congressional Affairs requesting to meet in person with a CBP representative at the airport. CBP leadership at the airport refused to meet with those Members of Congress. They also refused to permit those Members of Congress or any attorneys to have access to any individuals targeted by the Executive Order who were being detained or subjected to secondary inspection, or to verify that no individuals were being detained. On the evening before, Senator Cory Booker went to Dulles airport and warned that the Administration had “violated” Judge Brinkema’s order by denying individuals access to counsel.

According to press reports, DHS officials initially interpreted the Executive Order as not applying to lawful permanent residents, or “green card holders,” but White House senior staff, including Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller, overruled that interpretation, prompting DHS to detain numerous lawful permanent residents at airports across the country on Saturday night. Two of Mr. Connolly’s own constituents from Virginia’s 11th district, legal permanent residents living in Fairfax, were detained on Saturday. One was a 71-year-old Iranian with a heart condition. While we are thankful that those detainees have now been released, we remain concerned about others who have been or will be detained and denied access to legal counsel.

Appearing on national television on Sunday morning, White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus appeared to deny these reports, stating: “We didn’t overrule the Department of Homeland Security, as far as green card holders moving forward, it doesn’t affect them.”

The Executive Order appears to have been written and issued publicly by the White House before it was vetted through the normal interagency process. According to press reports, when the Executive Order was issued, DHS officials did not know which countries it would apply to, had not vetted its legality or how it would be applied, and had not obtained an opinion on its legality from the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel. According to court filings, one CBP agent referred attorneys asking for guidance on the Executive Order to the President.

On Sunday, you apparently tried to clarify the situation and ameliorate the impact on lawful permanent residents by declaring that you “hereby deem the entry of lawful permanent residents to be in the national interest.”

Yesterday, Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham issued the following statement:

Such a hasty process risks harmful results. We should not stop green-card holders from returning to the country they call home. We should not stop those who have served as interpreters for our military and diplomats from seeking refuge in the country they risked their lives to help. And we should not turn our backs on those refugees who have been shown through extensive vetting to pose no demonstrable threat to our nation, and who have suffered unspeakable horrors, most of them women and children.

We agree. We demand that you immediately cease and desist any actions that violate the judicial orders, direct all employees to do the same, and take all steps necessary to ensure full compliance across the country.

We also request that you provide the following documents and information as soon as possible, but no later than February 10, 2017:

1. All communications, internal and external, regarding the Executive Order;

2. All communications, internal and external, about court orders regarding the Executive Order, including all emails regarding complying with the court orders and any written guidance provided to immigration officials regarding complying with the court orders addressing the Executive Order;

3. The number of individuals detained, subjected to secondary inspection, or removed from flights since the Executive Order was issued;

4. The length of time these individuals were detained or subjected to secondary inspection;

5. The nationalities of the individuals who were detained, subjected to secondary inspection, or removed from flights;

6. The locations at which the individuals were detained, subjected to secondary inspection, or removed from flights;

7. The immigration status of the individuals who were detained, subjected to secondary inspection, or removed from flights;

8. Whether the individuals who were detained or subjected to secondary inspection then boarded flights to leave the United States, were then released into the United States, or remain detained;

9. Whether the individuals who were detained or subjected to secondary inspection were ever relocated to offsite detention facilities;

10. Whether the individuals who were detained or subjected to secondary inspection had access to legal counsel and if so, when they were provided that access; and

11. Whether individuals subject to the Executive Order will have access to legal counsel while detained or subject to secondary inspection in the future.


Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.


Sincerely,


Elijah E. Cummings Gerald E. Connolly
Ranking Member Vice Ranking Member
Committee on Oversight and Committee on Oversight and Reform
Government Reform



Jamie Raskin
Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform

FCC Lifts paper Copy Rule on Radio.

In the first action by the new Republican majority, the Federal Communications Commission today unanimously voted to eliminate the 43-year-old requirement mandating broadcasters to keep hard copies of emails and letters sent to the station in their public inspection file.

Ukraine conflict: Evacuation planned in frontline town of Avdiivka

Story by BBC

Ukrainian officials are preparing for a possible evacuation of the eastern frontline town of Avdiivka amid renewed fighting with pro-Russian rebels.

If evacuation takes place, officials say up to 8,000 people could be removed each day from the government-held town, which has no water or electricity.

The Kiev government said seven of its soldiers died in clashes on Sunday and Monday, and fighting is continuing.

Each side blames the other for the upsurge in violence.

It erupted despite an attempt to renew a ceasefire last month

Ukrainian forces say the outbreak began when rebels launched an attack on Avdiivka, which borders land controlled by the separatists.

Bread queues

A local power plant has been knocked out by the recent fighting

"Everything is going bad," a resident who identified herself as Nadiya told the BBC. "People are scared and try to go out. It's very cold. There are bread queues. Only a few shops are open."

On Tuesday, the head of the Kiev-appointed administration, Pavlo Zhebrivsky, said plans were being made for an evacuation of Avdiivka residents.

"As of now, we can evacuate up to 8,000 people in the course of the day. The region's towns are ready to receive up to 9,000 people," he was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency.

The population of the town is uncertain but is believed to range between 16,000 and 22,000.

Officials say the evacuation will go ahead if the fighting escalates further. About 10 tonnes of food will soon arrive in the city, they add

Meanwhile, Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Ukrainian government troops had launched the attack on pro-Russian rebels across the Avdiivka front line.

"Such aggressive actions, supported by the armed forces of Ukraine, undermine the aims and the task of realising the Minsk accords," he said on Tuesday.

A ceasefire was agreed in Minsk in February 2015 but there have been frequent violations. The latest truce began on 23 December.

More than 9,700 people have died since the conflict erupted in 2014, as Russia annexed Ukraine's southern Crimea peninsula, and pro-Russian rebels later launched an insurgency in the east.

The US and EU imposed sanctions on Russia in response to its actions in eastern Ukraine. Russia has denied backing the rebels.

The renewed violence coincided with President Donald Trump's first phone-call with Russian President Vladimir Putin since he took office.

According to the Kremlin, the two presidents agreed to a "partner-like co-operation" on issues including Ukraine, which has caused concern in Kiev

Trump replaces Acting Director of Immigration

Story by NBC News/AP
Written by Alex Johnson

President Donald Trump replaced the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Monday night, shortly after he fired the acting attorney general, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed.

Unlike the firing of Acting Attorney General Sally Yates, the replacement of Acting ICE Director Daniel Ragsdale came with no explanation. Ragsdale was replaced by Thomas Homan, ICE's executive associate director of enforcement and removal operations since 2013.

"I am confident that he will continue to serve as a strong, effective leader for the men and women of ICE," John Kelly, the secretary of Homeland Security,said in a briefstatement.

ICE said late Monday that Ragsdale remains in his previous, full-time position as Deputy Director.

Homan, a former New York police officer, is a 30-year veteran of immigration enforcement, having served as a U.S. Border Patrol agent and deputy assistant director of ICE for investigations before becoming deputy director, according to DHS.

The announcement came as turmoil swirled around Washington over Trump's firing of Yates, an Obama administration holdover, as acting attorney general.

In a blistering statement announcing Yates' replacement, the White House cited her memo earlier in the day ordering Justice Department lawyers not to go to court to defend sharp restrictions Trump ordered last week on immigration from seven majority Muslim countries.

No such language was used in the announcement of Ragsdale's replacement, and there was no indication that he was being removed from the agency. Like Yates, Ragsdale was promoted to acting director after having served as deputy director of his agency during the Obama administration.

2017-01-30

Radio One's Donnie Simpson celebrates birthday today

Bio by Wikipedia

Donnie Simpson (born January 30, 1954) is a longtime American radio DJ as well as a television and movie personality. He hosted The Donnie Simpson Morning Show on Washington, D.C. radio station WPGC-FM from March 1993 to January 29, 2010. Currently, he hosts The Donnie Simpson Show on D.C.-based radio station WMMJ-FM (Majic 102.3 FM), which began airing on August 17, 2015. Simpson is the first urban-format radio personality to have an annual salary over $1 million without being syndicated.[1] In 2003, Simpson, through his agent and longtime friend, George Parker, inked a 6-year, 8-figure deal with WPGC-FM making Simpson the highest paid African-American radio personality ever without syndication. He was Billboard's Radio Personality of the Year and Program Director of the Year. He has also been known by the nicknames, "Love Bug", "The Green-eyed Bandit" and "Dr. Green Eyes" for his luminous, light green eyes.

Career

Donnie Simpson is the ruling Washington, D.C. radio icon, as well as a television and movie personality. He hosted The Donnie Simpson Morning Show in Morning Drive for over 30 years. In 1988, Donnie was recognized as both the best (Top) radio personality and Top program director in the nation by Billboard Magazine, the world's most influential music industry publication. He received both Billboard's prestigious Radio Personality of the Year and Program Director of the Year awards. These two distinguished awards placed Donnie in an elite group of nationally popular and highly respected Radio Personalities and Radio Station Program Directors that very few in the industry have been able to achieve.

Donnie Simpson, known for his sultry voice, warm smile and piercing green eyes, is the son of a record shop owner. Having been exposed to multiple genres of music, Simpson began his radio career at age 15 with WJLB in Detroit, MI where he remained for eight years. He relocated to Washington D.C. in 1977 where he began working at WRC-FM, now WKYS, as a DJ and program director. He remained with WKYS for 15 years through its format migration from Disco-based Rhythmic Contemporary Hits to Urban Contemporary in the 1980s. In 1981, Simpson landed his first television job on WRC-TV, hired as back-up anchor for the George Michael Sports Machine show on NBC's Washington outlet. Soon after he hosted Video Soul, a music video show on BET and many other network specials. Simpson eventually hosted The Donnie Simpson Morning Show on WPGC-FM where he continued to captivate listeners for 17 years. He left radio in 2010.

In 1983, Simpson was recruited by Robert L. Johnson (Bob Johnson), founder of Black Entertainment Television BET, to host the network's primetime music video show, Video Soul. Simpson remained with the show until its cancellation in 1997. Over several decades, Donnie has hosted many network specials and tributes. He has interviewed the biggest stars in the world, including Stevie Wonder, Prince (musician), Elton John, Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, Janet Jackson, James Brown, Usher (singer), Jay-Z, Notorious BIG, Whitney Houston, Tupac, Madonna (entertainer), Smokey Robinson, and many others. In 2004, Donnie was inducted into the BET Walk of Fame. And, in 2015, he was inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, the only non-musician so honored at that point.

His fans and friends who go back with him to his early beginnings in Detroit, call him "Love Bug." His on-air moniker then was Donnie "The Love Bug” Simpson. Now, people often call him "The Green-eyed Bandit" or, "Dr. Green Eyes" because of his appearance on The Jamie Foxx Show.

He retired in 2010, but returned to radio and TV in 2015. This time, as the afternoon drive host on WMMJ, or Majic 102.3 in Washington, D.C., and nationally on TV One (U.S. TV network) with Donnie After Dark. Donnie says the greatest compliment people give him is when they say “I feel like I know you.” He says, “They do know me. I’m the same dude all the time. 24/7, I’m Donnie.”

On August 17, 2015, Donnie Simpson came out of retirement and returned to the radio airwaves, this time on WMMJ (a Radio One station based in D.C.) to host The Donnie Simpson Show. The show airs Monday through Friday from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM (EST) on Majic 102.3 FM. On February 5, 2016, Donnie After Dark (hosted by Donnie Simpson) began airing on TV One.

Congressman Elijah Cummings (Md.) Issues Statement on President’s Executive Order Targeting Muslims



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Fabion Seaton
202.226.5181

January 28, 2017
Cummings Issues Statement on President’s
Executive Order Targeting Muslims

Washington, D.C. (Jan. 28, 2017)—Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, issued the following statement on President Donald Trump’s executive order targeting Muslims:

“I can think of few things more un-American than discriminating against people seeking refuge on our shores because of their religion. This action betrays who we are as a country and makes us less safe.

“America has always been at its best when we understand that diversity is our promise—not our problem. Americans of all faiths—Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Mormon—oppose this blatant religious discrimination, and I urge President Trump to rescind his order immediately.”

Remembering Coretta Scott King Among Those Who Moved Us Forward

Story by Trice Edney Wire
Commentary Dr. Barbara Reynolds

Coretta Scott King died on January 30, 2006. Yet her legacy is very much alive as a coalition builder, a strategist and a moral voice that confronted detractors but insisted upon non-violent approaches, such as dialogue, protests and economic boycotts with the end goal of peaceful reconciliation.

In their own analysis 60-era civil rights leaders used to refer to a Zeitgeist, the spirit of the times, which divine dimension that summons leaders exactly when needed most. That certainly describes the timing of human rights activist Coretta Scott King who is experiencing a resurgence as people take a fresh look at those who successfully moved themselves and others forward through the heavy thicket of discrimination such as the leading ladies in the wonderful new film, Hidden Figures.

A second look at King's legacy should focus on but go beyond her well known decades ordeal of successfully lobbying to make King's birthday a national holiday and building the Dr. Martin Luther King Center for Social Change in Atlanta. Tourists from around the role visit this site, where her crypt and that of Dr. King are located near Ebenezer Baptist church where Dr. King preached and was funeralized.

Coretta King certainly should come to mind as millions gathered in Washington and in sister cities around the world last week to mount an overwhelming rebuke to President Donald Trump's anti-human rights campaign and his denigration of women, minorities, immigrants and the physically challenged. Her name was scrawled on home-made signs scattered throughout.

It is appropriate that we remember her appeal to women and her global human rights efforts. That was the capstone of King's 38 year mission as she shifted from civil rights to a more global inclusive human rights agenda after the assassination of her husband, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr in 1968. A favorite slogan was: "Women, if the soul of the nation is to be saved, I believe that you must become its soul."

In 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed her a nonvoting delegate to the 32nd General Assembly of the United Nations, where she advocated for more international focus on the human rights of women. That same year in Houston, she served as Commissioner on the International Women's Year Conference where she created quite a stir over her support for gay rights, an unpopular issue at the time.

In her memoir she tells how she opposed the various women's groups at the Conference who were advocating a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. "I feel that gay and lesbian people have families and their families should have legal protection, whether by marriage or civil union. I believe unequivocally that discrimination because of sexual orientation is wrong and unacceptable in a democracy that protects the human rights of all its citizens."

In the historic 1963 March on Washington-which catapulted Dr. King to fame--women, however, were not allowed to march with the leaders or give a major address. But without a doubt King, would have played a supportive role in the Women's march as did her daughter, Bernice King.

King was a spokeswoman for social justice causes, both large and small, writing a syndicated news column on issues from gun violence, to environmental racism, to apartheid in South Africa. She was rarely missing in action. "Sometimes you win, just by showing up," she said, often referring to her role as a ministry of presence.

King believed that it is citizen action that is crucial to the making of a president. She often said that Ronald Reagan did not warm to the idea of a Dr. King holiday until the movement created a groundswell for it with three million signatures, marches and years of lobbying Congress. He signed it on November 20, 1983.

In recent weeks several black leaders have been publicly scourged for meeting with President Trump through his transition stage. King, however, would have been knocking on his door, as she did with all the other presidents in her heyday. And she would not have been there for photo-ops or "selfies." As a seasoned coalition building she would have prepared a well- crafted agenda, which called upon Trump to govern as president of all Americans.
In past years, King's influence was mammoth in the shaping of the political landscape. She successfully campaigned to elect scores of liberals to political office, worked with Carter in the selection of federal judges and threw her weight against those who stood in the way of voting rights.

Typical of her role is how she confronted and helped block Alabama U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions who in 1985 was vying for a federal judgeship. Sessions, who was called "brilliant," by Trump is his choice for U.S. Attorney General. In a recently surfaced 10-page letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee, King had called him "lacking in judgement and temperament who would irreparably harm the work the movement had done to seize a slice of democracy for disenfranchised blacks."

King opposed Sessions for his 1985 attempt to prosecute three civil rights activists from Marion, Alabama for voter fraud - accusations that were later proved unmerited. Her opposition to Sessions ran deep because she grew up right outside of Marion which before the movement launched its successful voter rights drive were unable to counter terrorizing attacks om their lives and property. Civil rights activists fear that Sessions will not hold law enforcement officials accountable for the episodic incidents of unarmed black men being murdered, as was done under the Obama administration.

In the battle to stop Sessions and others who seemed primed to push back advances in human rights, Coretta would not have panicked. In her memoir, she said, "Struggle is a never-ending process and freedom is never really won. You earn it and win it in every generation."

And so it goes.

Rev. Dr. Barbara A. Reynolds is the author of seven books. Her latest is the Life, the Love and the Legacy of Coretta Scott King. Dr. Reynolds can be reached at Reynew@aol.com

Megan Kelly To Replace Al Roker And Tamron Hall On The "Today" Show


Al Roker, Tamron Hall, and Megan Kelly

"Hall and Roker, two black staffers, will unfortunately lose their slot to make room for Kelly — a move that Essence.com writes, 'sure seems like a nod to Trump’s America'.” Link: http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/01/30/megyn-kellys-move-to-nbc-bad-news-for-some-network-regulars/

Story by Madamenoire
Written by Veronica Wells

Melissa Harris Perry tried to tell us that NBC was on some shady stuff when they canceled her show last year http://madamenoire.com/619764/melissa-harris-perry-likens-relationship-with-msnbc/. And while there were those who felt she took things too far or was risking her career by speaking out in such a way, recent actions from the network have shown that if anything, she wasn’t lying.

Recently the network told ET that a few more anchors of color are being bumped, this time for the White lady from Fox. Megan Kelly’s new daytime show will replace the “Today” show’s 9 or 10 a.m. hour. And the network is also getting rid of Al Roker and Tamron Hall’s “Today’s Take” which begins at 9 a.m.

If Kelly’s show were to replace the 10 a.m. hour, Tamron and Al would be able to stay. But sources said that if Megyn’s new show will air at 10, they would move Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda up to 9. So, either way Tamron and Al are out.

Despite rumors, the source said Hall “is expected to stay at the network and with the “Today” show family.” The same was said of Roker, who has been with NBC since 1978 and the “Today” show since 1990. The source said that Tamron will fill in on the “Today” show when Savannah Guthrie is off and will continue to host her daily show on MSNBC.

Kelly’s new role at NBC, after 12 years at Fox is multi-layered. Her new show will not be “Today” branded but Kelly-branded. Her multi-year agreement will include Kelly hosting her own daytime news program, anchoring a Sunday evening new show and taking part in special political programming and breaking new coverage.

The move to replace Hall and Roker with Kelly are pretty consistent with MSNBC’s admitted strategy of becoming more conservative.

We’ll see how this all plays out.

Trump Signs Executive Order to Curtail Regulations

Story by NBC News
Written by Andrew Rafferty

President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order aimed at slashing federal regulations to help businesses, the latest in a string of presidential directives he has unveiled in his first ten days in office.

The "one in, two out" plan requires federal agencies requesting new regulations to cut two existing regulations. Trump said the order will reduce the regulatory burdens on the private sector, particularly small businesses.

"If you have a regulation you want, number one, we're not going to approve it because it's already been approved probably in 17 different forms," Trump said while signing the order surrounded by small business leaders. "But if we do, the only way you have a chance is we have to knock out two regulations for every new regulation. So if there's a new regulation, they have to knock out two."

Government agencies must self-identify the regulations to cut, though the White House will ultimately decide what to nix. There is currently a temporary regulatory freeze that was issued by White House chief of staff Reince Priebus. But Monday's directive sets a budget for new regulations, though the order does not apply to military or national security. There is also an exception to allow flexibility during emergencies.

Before signing the order, Trump held a listening session with the business leaders at the White House where he pledged to create a climate that will allow businesses to thrive.

"We're going to create an environment for small business like we haven't had in many, many decades," Trump said. "This isn't a knock on President Obama, this is a knock on many presidents preceding me. It's a knock on everybody."

The businessman turned politician campaigned heavily against overbearing government rules that he said stifle entrepreneurship. Trump has pledged to repeal the Dodd-Frank Act aimed at regulating Wall Street, which he claims made the big banks bigger, and replace it with "new policies to encourage economic growth and job creation."

Wall Street has embraced Trump's presidency so far, with the Dow hitting 20,000 points for the first time ever last week. Stocks dipped, however, on Monday as uncertainty swirled around Trump's order to close the U.S. to people from certain predominantly Muslim countries.

Trump has relied heavily on executive orders since his Jan. 20 inauguration to begin addressing his biggest campaign promises. He has declared the U.S. will build a wall on the southern border with Mexico, advanced the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, and weakened the Affordable Care Act.

2017-01-28

Federal Court grants STAY in challenge to Trump Immigration Ban

Story by ACLU
January 28, 2017

The STAY order is at: https://www.aclu.org/legal-document/darweesh-v-trump-order

NEW YORK — A federal judge tonight granted the American Civil Liberties Union’s request for a nationwide temporary injunction that will block the deportation of all people stranded in U.S. airports under President Trump’s new Muslim ban. The ACLU and other legal organizations filed a lawsuit on behalf of individuals who were subject to the ban.  The lead plaintiffs have been detained by the U.S. government and threatened with deportation even though they have valid visas to enter the United States. 

Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project who argued the case, said: 

“This ruling preserves the status quo and ensures that people who have been granted permission to be in this country are not illegally removed off U.S. soil.”

ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero, had this reaction to the ruling:

“Clearly the judge understood the possibility for irreparable harm to hundreds of immigrants and lawful visitors to this country. Our courts today worked as they should as bulwarks against government abuse or unconstitutional policies and orders. On week one, Donald Trump suffered his first loss in court.”

The stay order is at: https://www.aclu.org/legal-document/darweesh-v-trump-order

CONTACT INFORMATION

media@aclu.org
125 Broad Street
18th Floor
New York, NY 10004

United States
(212) 549-2666

Trump Travel Restrictions Leave Refugees Stranded

Story by NBC News
Written by Erik Ortiz and Eoghan MacGuire

Less than 24 hours after President Donald Trump signed an executive order clamping down on refugee admissions and temporarily restricting travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries - Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, and Libya - the impact appears to already be resonating at airports around the world.

There was confusion Saturday at New York City's Kennedy International Airport where 12 people were detained, according to lawmakers and attorneys who are trying to get them freed.

Two of the dozen are Iraqi refugees, and one of them — identified as Hameed Khalid Darweesh — was freed Saturday after he was first detained 6 p.m. Friday, said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.

"I am very, very thankful to all the people who can support," Darweesh told reporters as he was surrounded by supporters carrying signs that read "Refugees welcome." "America is the greatest nation. America is the greatest people in the world."

Nadler said it was unclear why Darweesh was released while the other 11 remained detained at the airport Saturday afternoon. They would be transferred to an immigration detention center in New Jersey where they could meet with immigration lawyers, Nadler added.

Human rights attorneys could not immediately say which additional affected countries — Syria, Iran, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen or Libya — the other detained refugees come from.

"This should not be happening in America," Nadler told reporters. "The executive order is a gross violation of our standards, our norms and the spirit of our Constitution."

Darweesh, an interpreter working on behalf of the U.S. government in Iraq from 2003 to 2013, received a special Iraqi immigrant visa to relocate to the United States last week with his family, attorneys said.

Although Darweesh was detained upon arrival into the United States, his family was not, showing how "arbitrary" the executive order can be, they added.

The International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) earlier told NBC News that it was part of a group attempting to secure the release of the two Iraqi refugees.

They were identified in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union as Darweesh and Haider Sameer Abdulkhaleq Alshawi, whose wife and child are lawful permanent residents of Houston.

Alshawi is on a "follow to join" visa, according to the ACLU.

The New York Times first reported early Saturday that the two men, who arrived on different flights, were held after the executive orders came into effect at midnight.

The American-Arab Anti Discrimination Committee (ADC) also said it was receiving reports that "green card holders and other visa holders have been denied boarding and admission into the United States" at airports. NBC News was unable to immediately verify the ADC's claims, and calls requesting further information went unanswered.

Mohammed Al Rawi, a Los Angeles County employee, said on Facebook that his 69-year-old Iraqi father was turned away from his connecting flight in Qatar before he could leave for Los Angeles. His passport was taken and he was sent back to Baghdad, Al Rawi wrote.

"He's a senior. Why would anyone feel threatened by someone like him?" Al Rawi asked. "This actually makes us as a country look bad. ... I am generally concerned about all US citizens in the Middle East. Targeting Muslims this way puts people in horrible situations."

In Cairo, Egypt, two sources close to airport security told NBC News that an Iraqi family of five from the city of Erbil had been prevented from boarding a flight to New York.

NBC News was unable to immediately confirm whether this was related to the travel restrictions. A United Nations refugee agency spokesperson referred questions on the Iraqi family to U.S. authorities.

'Harmful and hasty'

Trump's executive order suspended admission of all refugees to the U.S. for 120 days. It also indefinitely bans refugees from Syria and restricts entry to the country for people from six other predominantly-Muslim nations for 90 days.

In signing the order, Trump pledged to "keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States of America."

The International Rescue Committee called the decision to halt the U.S. refugee resettlement program a "harmful and hasty" decision.

Meanwhile, the United Nations refugee agency and International Organization for Migration called on the Trump administration to continue offering asylum to people fleeing war and persecution, saying its resettlement program was vital.

In Paris Saturday, French foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said Trump's orders "can only worry us."

"Welcoming refugees who flee war and oppression is part of our duty," Ayrault added in comments carried by Reuters.

Qatar Airways issued a statement on its website that said nationals from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen and Libya may only travel to the U.S. if they are in possession of a resident green card or specific visas usually granted to government employees, individuals traveling to the United Nations or employees of international organizations.

It said the information was "per an Immigration Advisory Notice from U.S Customs and Border Protection with regards to new U.S immigration entry requirements."

Tech giant Google also issued a statement Saturday revealing its worries about the executive actions.

"We're concerned about the impact of this order and any proposals that could impose restrictions on Googlers and their families, or that could create barriers to bringing great talent to the US," the statement read. "We'll continue to make our views on these issues known to leaders in Washington and elsewhere

Carl Reiner Recalls His Final Words to Mary Tyler Moore

Story by People Magazine
Written by Brittany King

Though The Dick Van Dyke Show creator Carl Reiner was unable to be by her side at the time of her death, he did get the chance to tell Mary Tyler Moore some loving final words.

“I spoke to her husband the day or so before she passed away,” Reiner told Entertainment Tonight. “I remember telling him, ‘She may not hear you, but whisper in her ear that it’s okay to go. You can go.’ ”

The iconic actress, who played Laura Petrie onThe Dick Van Dyke Show from 1961–66, died on Wednesday at age 80. A source told PEOPLE she had been on a ventilator and had beenhospitalized with pneumonia due to complications from her diabetes, and according to her longtime rep, she passed away in the company of friends and her husband of more than 33 years.

“She had this childhood diabetes and had lost her sight — practically all of it,” Reiner recalled of seeing Moore for the last time at an event. “I came up to her, and she was looking at me, and she wasn’t recognizing me until I spoke, and then she lit up. I realized she couldn’t see me, and that was very sad.”

Speaking about her final months, Reiner said that they all knew the actress’ time was winding down, but her death still came as a shock.

“She spent her last months at home with hospice people around, not communicative,” said Reiner. “We had known about it for a while, but you’re never not shocked. When I turned on the television and learned Mary had gone, it was a shock. At 80. I’m 94 now, and I hope to go a few more years. I’ve got work to do.”

“Mary, you were the greatest,” Reiner expressed to the outlet. “You and Dick defined my life at one period, and I’ll never forget you for what you did for me by being Laura Petrie.”

2017-01-26

Triumph reports from the 2017 Inauguration 01-20-2017

Top Judiciary Democrat Rep. John Conyers(Mi) and Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Cedric Richmond(La.)call for Trump's Voter Fraud Investigation to be completed by Non Partisan Independent Panel; Request Investigation include Voter Suppression

For Immediate Release:
January 26, 2017
Contact: Shadawn Reddick-Smith (Conyers) 202.225.6906
Brandon Gassaway (Richmond) 202.225.6636

TOP JUDICIARY DEMOCRAT & CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS CHAIR CALL FOR TRUMP’S VOTER FRAUD INVESTIGATION TO BE COMPLETED BY NONPARTISAN INDEPENDENT PANEL; REQUEST INVESTIGATION INCLUDE VOTER SUPPRESSION

Washington, DC – House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) and Congressional Black Caucus Chair Congressman Cedric Richmond (D-LA) wrote to President Donald Trump to urge that if an investigation must be completed in regards to Trump’s voter fraud allegations, that it be completed by a non-partisan independent body and that the investigation also focus on voter suppression in the wake of the 2013 Supreme Court Shelby v. Holder decision.

In their letter, the Members wrote, “If you insist on conducting an investigation of these issues, we would request that it be performed by an independent and non-partisan body, and that it be fully transparent. We would also request that the investigation not only consider your claims of voter fraud, but review the ongoing problem of voter suppression and examine the impact of the weakening of the Voting Rights Act following the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013.”

“As the only Member in the Congress who was present when the Voting Rights Act was first enacted in 1965, and as a Member who has devoted his entire career to the cause of protecting voting rights, I was shocked to learn that even after taking the oath of office as President, Mr. Trump would choose to spread untruths and misinformation concerning allegations of voter fraud,” said Ranking Member Conyers. “Repeated investigations have failed to uncover material issues in federal elections. There is, however, evidence of extensive voter suppression practices aimed at minority voters, which is backed up by active litigation.”

“Blood, sweat, and tears have been shed to ensure every voice would be heard in the democratic process,” said Chair Richmond. “Yet, the right to vote has been continually trampled on for the most vulnerable citizens throughout our history. Any investigation into the validity of the voting process should have preventing voter suppression at its core.”

Full text of the letter is available here and below.

January 25, 2017

Donald J. Trump
President of the United States
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C.

Dear Mr. President:
We are writing to express our deep concerns with regards to your unsubstantiated claims that widespread voter fraud cost you the popular vote in the recent election. On Monday, at your first meeting with Congressional leaders you stated “3-5 million” unauthorized immigrants had robbed you of a popular vote majority. Further, you tweeted today that,

“I will be asking for a major investigation into VOTER FRAUD, including those registered to vote in two states, those who are illegal and even, those registered to vote who are dead (and many for a long time). Depending on results, we will strengthen up voting procedures!”

These statements come on top of unsubstantiated claims that you made both as a candidate that the election was “rigged” and after the election that you

“…won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.”

As President, you bear a responsibility to uphold the principles of our democracy. The recklessness with which you’ve chosen to spread this misinformation will erode faith in our elections and needlessly destabilize the most important democracy in the world.

The only documented sources you have cited in these repeated misstatements are a 2014 Old Dominion study concerning registration by non-citizens and a 2012 Pew Research study concerning out of date and inaccurate voter registrations. However, neither of these studies have been shown in any way to support your conclusions. The 2014 study has been thoroughly debunked due to concerns about small sample size, confusing questions, and errors in self-reporting. The 2012 Pew Study did not even concern voter fraud and the primary author confirmed that the report found no evidence that voter fraud resulted.”

Numerous members of your own party have disagreed with your statements, including Speaker Ryan who said that that “I have no knowledge of such things [widespread voter fraud],”and just yesterday stated, “I’ve seen no evidence to that effect. I’ve made that very, very clear.” And in a legal filing in Michigan on your behalf stated that “All available evidence suggests that the 2016 general election was not tainted by fraud or mistake.”

The watch-dog group ProPublica, with more than 1,000 individuals watching on Election Day found no evidence of widespread vote fraud in the 2016 election. “We have data that show that [Trump’s assertions about voter fraud is] simply not true. If anything happened on the scale he’s implying, we would’ve seen it.” A recent Washington Post review of allegations found there have been just four documented cases of voter fraud in the 2016 election. It is also important to note that a five year investigation the Department of Justice under President George W. Bush found there was no evidence of organized voter fraud in U.S. elections.

At the same time, there is real and tangible evidence that efforts to combat mythical and unproven voter fraud have actually had the result of targeting and suppressing minority voting rights. For example, in NAACP v. McCrory, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals found there is almost no evidence of voter fraud in recent elections, but that the North Carolina voter ID bill represented “one of the largest restrictions on the [voter] franchise in modern North Carolina History.” A recent academic study by professors at University of California San Diego and Bucknell also found that strict voter ID laws “have a differentially negative impact on the turnout of Hispanics, Blacks, Asian Americans and multi-racial Americans.”

If you insist on conducting an investigation of these issues, we would request that it be performed by an independent and non-partisan body, and that it be fully transparent. We would also request that the investigation not only consider your claims of voter fraud, but review the ongoing problem of voter suppression and examine the impact of the weakening of the Voting Rights Act following the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013.

Given that your allegations strike at the heart of the legitimacy of your administration, we would expect that you would agree to follow the independent investigation where it may lead, including vigorously enforcing existing voter protections and working with us to enact laws necessary to protect our citizens’ right to vote.

We look forward to your consideration of these matters.

Sincerely,


John Conyers, Jr.
Ranking Member
House Committee on the Judiciary

Cedric Richmond
Chairman
Congressional Black Caucus

Shark Photobombs 10-Year-Old Aussie Surfer


Eden Hasson, 10, surfs near what is believed to be a great white shark at Samurai Beach, Port Stephens, Australia on Jan. 24, 2017. James Cook University shark researcher Andrew Chin says the photographed shark is possibly a small great white. (Photo: Chris Hasson via AP below. Video: NBC News)

Trump Administration Gag Orders Appear to Violate Multiple Federal Laws

For Immediate Release
January 26, 2017

Contact:
* Jennifer Werner (Oversight): 202-226-5181
* CJ Young (Energy & Commerce): 202-225-5735

_______________________________________
Trump Administration Gag Order Appear to Violate Multiple Federal Laws

Ranking Democrats Call on White House to Rescind Directives and Issue Statement Protecting Whistleblower Rights

Washington, D.C. (Jan. 26, 2017)—Today, Reps. Elijah E. Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and Frank Pallone, Jr., Ranking Member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, sent a letter to White House Counsel Donald McGahn II requesting that the White House take immediate action to remedy gag orders on federal employees that appear to violate multiple federal laws, including the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, which Congress passed unanimously in 2012 to protect federal employees who report waste, fraud, and abuse.

“For more than a century, Congress has protected the rights of federal employees to communicate with Congress about waste, fraud, and abuse in the Executive Branch,” the Ranking Members wrote. “We urge you to immediately rescind all policies on employee communications that do not comply with the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act and other federal statutes.”

“In addition,” the Ranking members wrote, “because of the magnitude of these problematic directives, we request that the President issue an official statement making clear to all federal employees that they have the right to communicate with Congress and that he and his Administration will not silence or retaliate against whistleblowers.”

In today’s letter, the Ranking Members referenced multiple reports that the Trump Administration issued restrictions at multiple agencies on employee communications including, in some instances, communications with Congress. For example, a memo issued at the Department of Health and Human Services on President Trump’s first day in office prohibits employees from communicating with Congress.

The Ranking Members explained that these directives appear to violate the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012, sections 744 and 713 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016, and 5 U.S.C. § 7211, which was enacted in 1912 to protect the rights of federal employees to communicate with Congress.

The Office of Special Counsel, which is charged with protecting whistleblower rights for federal employees, issued information yesterday on its enforcement of the anti-gag order provision in the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, under which agencies are prohibited from imposing “nondisclosure agreements and policies that fail to include required language that informs employees that their statutory right to blow the whistle supersedes the terms and conditions of the nondisclosure agreement or policy.”
________________________
Today’s letter below:

January 26, 2017

Donald F.McGahn, II
White House Counsel
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. McGahn:

We are writing to request that you take immediate action to remedy the Trump Administration’s apparent violations of multiple federal laws by imposing gag orders on federal employees that prevent them from communicating with Congress.

It has been widely reported that the Trump Administration has issued restrictions at multiple agencies on employee communications including, in some instances, communications with Congress. These directives appear to violate a host of federal laws.

First, these gag orders appear to violate the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act because they do not include a mandatory statement that employee communications with Congress and Inspectors General are protected. Congress passed the Act unanimously in 2012 to prohibit agencies from implementing or enforcing “any nondisclosure policy, form, or agreement” that does not include the following statement:

These provisions are consistent with and do not supersede, conflict with, or otherwise alter the employee obligations, rights, or liabilities created by existing statute or Executive order relating to (1) classified information, (2) communications to Congress, (3) the reporting to an Inspector General of a violation of any law, rule, or regulation, or mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety, or (4) any other whistleblower protection. The definitions, requirements, obligations, rights, sanctions, and liabilities created by controlling Executive orders and statutory provisions are incorporated into this agreement and are controlling.

The Office of Special Counsel, which is charged with protecting the rights of federal whistleblowers, has made clear that “this statement should be incorporated into every non-disclosure policy, form, or agreement used by an agency.”

Second, the implementation or enforcement of any nondisclosure policy that does not include the required whistleblower protection statement also violates section 744 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016.

Third, these gag orders also apparently violate Section 713 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016, which provides:
No part of any appropriation contained in this or any other Act shall be available for the payment of the salary of any officer or employee of the Federal Government, who—

(1) prohibits or prevents, or attempts or threatens to prohibit or prevent, any other officer or employee of the Federal Government from having any direct oral or written communication or contact with any Member, committee, or subcommittee of the Congress in connection with any matter pertaining to the employment of such other officer or employee or pertaining to the department or agency of such other officer or employee in any way, irrespective of whether such communication or contact is at the initiative of such other officer or employee or in response to the request or inquiry of such Member, committee, or subcommittee.

Fourth, these gag orders also may violate 5 U.S.C. § 7211, which was enacted in 1912 to protect the rights of federal employees to communicate with Congress. This law states:

The rights of employees, individually or collectively, to petition Congress or a Member of Congress, or to furnish information to either House of Congress, or to a committee or Member thereof, may not be interfered with or denied.

One example of the restrictions the Trump Administration has placed on employee communications is a memo issued by the Acting Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on President Trump’s first day in office. That memo states:

No correspondence to public officials (e.g. Members of Congress, Governors) or containing interpretations or statements of Department regulations or policy, unless specifically authorized by me or my designee, shall be sent between now and February 3, during which time you will have the opportunity to brief President Trump’s appointees and designees on any such correspondence which might be issued.

The memo also provides: “If you identify any actions taken inconsistent with these requests, please know they shall not be considered impliedly ratified and please immediately withdraw or rescind them as void and without effect.”

This memo appears to violate all of these laws, and it creates the impression that the Trump Administration intends to muzzle whistleblowers. Other agencies have reportedly issued similar restrictions, including the Departments of Interior, Transportation, and Agriculture, among others.

For more than a century, Congress has protected the rights of federal employees to communicate with Congress about waste, fraud, and abuse in the Executive Branch.

For the reasons set forth above, we urge you to immediately rescind all policies on employee communications that do not comply with the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act and other federal statutes.

In addition, because of the magnitude of these problematic directives, we request that the President issue an official statement making clear to all federal employees that they have the right to communicate with Congress and that he and his Administration will not silence or retaliate against whistleblowers.


Thank you for your consideration of this request.


Sincerely,




Elijah E. Cummings Frank Pallone, Jr.

Ranking Member Ranking Member

House Committee on Oversight and House Committee on Government Reform

Energy and Commerce

cc. The Honorable Jason Chaffetz, Chairman

House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform


The Honorable Greg Walden, Chairman

House Committee on Energy and Commerce

2017-01-25

Mary Tyler Moore, beloved TV actress, dies at 80

Story by CNN
Written by Lisa France

Actress Mary Tyler Moore, whose eponymous 1970s series helped usher in a new era for women on television, died Wednesday at the age of 80, her longtime representative Mara Buxbaum said.

"Today beloved icon Mary Tyler Moore passed away at the age of 80 in the company of friends and her loving husband of over 33 years, Dr. S. Robert Levine," she said. "A groundbreaking actress, producer, and passionate advocate for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Mary will be remembered as a fearless visionary who turned the world on with her smile."

"The Mary Tyler Moore Show" debuted in 1970 and starred the actress as Mary Richards, a single 30-something career woman at a Minneapolis TV station. The series was hailed by feminists and fans alike as the first modern woman's sitcom.

But that wasn't the role which catapulted her into stardom.

Moore first found fame playing Laura Petrie, the wife on the "The Dick Van Dyke Show," which ran for five seasons beginning in 1961.

In an interview with Conan O'Brien, show creator Carl Reiner said he auditioned more than two dozen actresses before Moore's reading marked her as the only one who could play Laura.

"I grabbed the top of her head and I said 'Come with me,'" Reiner told O'Brien. "I walked her down the hall to [Show producer Sheldon Leonard] and said 'I found her!'"

Moore was born in Brooklyn, New York, to clerk George Tyler Moore and his wife, Marjorie.

When she was still a young girl the family, which included her two younger siblings, moved to Los Angeles. Moore would later reveal that her mother was an alcoholic which caused the household to be chaotic.

Moore began her career as a dancer and in the 1950s landed a gig as dancing elf Happy Hotpoint, on a series of Hotpoint appliances TV commercials which ran during "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" television show.
Her dancer legs led to her being cast as Sam, the sexy answering service girl, on the TV show "Richard Diamond, Private Detective "in 1957. In the role, Moore's legs were shown, but never her face.

Fans would come to love that face on "The Dick Van Dyke Show," and Moore quickly was dubbed America's sweetheart.
The role earned her two Emmys.

After that show ended in 1966 Moore looked to working more on the big screen, including opposite Elvis in the 1969 film "Change of Habit."

The next year "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" premiered. The opening sequence, featuring Moore twirling and tossing her cap, became iconic. The show ended in 1977, but spurred several spin offs including "Rhoda," and "The Lou Grant Show."
In a 2002 interview with CNN's Larry King, Moore explained why she believed the series became so popular.

"I think I can take responsibility for that in that I was the audience," she said. "I was the voice of sanity around whom all these crazies did their dance. And I reacted in the same way that a member of the audience would have reacted."

In real life Moore was not a single woman. In 1955 she married Richard Carleton Meeker and the following year gave birth to their son, Richard Jr.

The couple divorced in 1961 and the following year she married CBS executive, Grant Tinker. While their union didn't produce any children, it did give birth to television production company MTM Enterprises, which produced "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" as well as such acclaimed series as "The Bob Newhart Show," "Hill Street Blues" and "St. Elsewhere."
Moore and Tinker divorced in 1981, a year after her son was died after accidentally shooting himself while handling a shotgun.

She said problems with alcohol helped to contribute to the demise of her marriage to Tinker.

"We would have inane arguments over dinner about things I couldn't remember the next day," Moore told the National Ledger. "Alcoholism brings to the fore hostilities and resentment -- you can't have a marriage like that."

In 1983 she married Dr. Robert Levine.

While she was beloved as a comedic actress, she also found success in dramas. Critics praised her against-type performance as a chilly mother whose family grapples with the accidental death of a son in Robert Redford's 1980 film "Ordinary People," for which Moore was nominated for an Oscar.

She also worked in theater and periodically appeared on TV shows in recent years.

EPA Freezes Grants, Tells Employees Not To Talk About It, Sources Say

Story by Huffington Post
Written by Kate Sheppard

WASHINGTON ― The Environmental Protection Agency has frozen its grant programs, according to sources there.

EPA staff has been instructed to freeze all its grants ― an extensive program that includes funding for research, redevelopment of former industrial sites, air quality monitoring and education, among other things ― and told not to discuss this order with anyone outside the agency, according to a Hill source with knowledge of the situation.

An EPA staffer provided the information to the congressional office anonymously, fearing retaliation.

It’s unclear whether the freeze is indefinite or temporary as the agency transitions fully to the Trump administration; the Senate has not yet confirmed Trump’s pick for EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt. It’s also not clear the immediate impact the grant freeze would have on programs across the country, since EPA grants are distributed at varying intervals and frequency.

“I will say it’s pretty unusual for us to get these kinds of anonymous contacts from people at the agency, which makes me think it’s unusual,” said the Hill source.

A source who works closely with states and territories on EPA grants said they heard from the agency on Tuesday evening that a review of grants would be done by Friday.

Neither the Trump transition office nor the central press office at the EPA responded to a request for comment Monday.

The Huffington Post received a message that was reportedly sent to staff Monday that seems to cover the current agency guidance on talking to the press in general, not just about the directive on grants. The memo states that the agency is imposing tight controls on external communication, including press releases, blog posts, social media and content on the agency website.

I just returned from a briefing for Communication Directors where the following information was provided. These restrictions are effective immediately and will remain in place until further direction is received from the new Administration’s Beach Team. Please review this material and share with all appropriate individuals in your organization. If anyone on your staff receives a press inquiry of any kind, it must be referred to me so I can coordinate with the appropriate individuals in OPA.

* No press releases will be going out to external audiences.
* No social media will be going out. A Digital Strategist will be coming on board to oversee social media. Existing, individually controlled, social media accounts may become more centrally controlled.
* No blog messages.
* The Beach Team will review the list of upcoming webinars and decide which ones will go forward.
* Please send me a list of any external speaking engagements that are currently scheduled among any of your staff from today through February.
* Incoming media requests will be carefully screened.
* No new content can be placed on any website. Only do clean up where essential.
* List servers will be reviewed. Only send out critical messages, as messages can be shared broadly and end up in the press.

I will provide updates to this information as soon as I receive it.
(”Beach team” refers to staffers for the new administration working at the various agencies while new leadership is put in place; “OPA” most likely refers to the “Office of Public Affairs.”)

There are clearly major changes underway at the EPA as the Trump team takes the helm. Trump appointed Myron Ebell, the director of the Center for Energy and Environment at the libertarian think tank Competitive Enterprise Institute and a fierce EPA critic, to oversee the transition work at the agency. Axios reported Monday that the Trump team plans to cut $815 million from the agency’s budget, for programs like states and tribal assistance grants, climate programs and other “environment programs and management.”

Pruitt has a long history of battling the agency over environmental regulations as the attorney general of Oklahoma, describing himself as “a leading advocate against the EPA’s activist agenda.”

In a report later Monday night, ProPublica confirmed the freeze in an interview and reported it also includes EPA contracts. Ebell told ProPublica the freeze is to “make sure nothing happens they don’t want to have happen.”

“This may be a little wider than some previous administrations, but it’s very similar to what others have done,” he said.

But a former Obama administration EPA official tells HuffPost that while “it is completely normal for incoming administrations to come in and take stock of what’s happening across an agency,” the Trump administration’s moves so far are “extreme, and very troubling, especially when it comes to both the grant freeze and the public communications.”

“When it comes to the grants freeze, this could be especially problematic at the state level. EPA sends a huge amount of its budget to the states, where it is ultimately spent,” said the official. “That’s where you could ultimately see the most negative impacts, especially at times when states are already suffering budget challenges. Time will tell, but this is not a great start when it comes to supporting states or transparency and a commitment to sharing important information with the public.”

HuffPost also reported Tuesday that staffers at several other federal agencies, including the Department of Agriculture and Health and Human Services, have also been told to shut down external communication for the time being.

Do you work in a federal agency? Email us at scoops@huffingtonpost.com and let us know what you’re seeing and hearing.

This story has been updated with news of the ProPublica report and with a quote from an EPA official. It has also been updated with a response that grant reviews would be done by Friday.

Information lockdown hits Trump’s federal agencies

‘It’s a dark time right now,’ a former Obama administration spokeswoman says as multiple agencies tell employees to restrict news releases and social media.

Story by Politico
Written by Andrew Restuccia, Alex Guillen, and Nancy Cook

Federal agencies are clamping down on public information and social media in the early days of Donald Trump's presidency, limiting employees’ ability to issue news releases, tweet, make policy pronouncements or otherwise communicate with the outside world, according to memos and sources from multiple agencies.

The steps to mute federal employees — seen to varying degrees in the Environmental Protection Agency and the departments of the Interior, Transportation, Agriculture and Health and Human Services — are sparking early fears of a broader crackdown across the government, as Trump vows to pursue an agenda sharply at odds with his predecessor.

Amid a public outcry, several agencies began distancing themselves late Tuesday and Wednesday from their earlier efforts to limit communication.

New administrations have long sought to control the message coming out of federal agencies. But watchdog groups worry about what restrictions the Trump administration may yet impose on federal workers, who are already reeling from the president’s decision Monday to freeze most hiring, as well as a move in Congress to allow lawmakers to impose draconian salary cuts for individual employees.

“From what we can tell, the cloud of Mordor is descending across the federal service,” said Jeff Ruch, executive director of the watchdog group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.

“It’s a dark time right now,” said Liz Purchia, who headed EPA’s public affairs office during the Obama administration. “People are nervous and they are scared about what they can and can’t do. They don’t want to get in trouble and they want to do the right thing.

“It’s ironic that Trump based his entire campaign on Twitter and social media and now he’s preventing the staff that work from him from communicating with the public,” Purchia added.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment on this story. But Trump aides have rejected criticism that they’re planning to embark on a “witch hunt” targeting federal employees.

During a briefing with reporters on Tuesday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said he was still looking into the agency restrictions, but added, "I don’t think there’s any surprise that when there’s an administration turnover, we’re going to review the policies.”

On Wednesday, Spicer insisted that the White House is not directing agencies to rein in their communications. "There’s nothing that has come from the White House," he said. "Absolutely not."

Still, a wholesale clampdown on public information would pose risks, said Steve Lenkart, the executive director of the National Federation of Federal Employees.

"I would advise this new administration to tread lightly when ordering any increase of secrecy of government operations or policies," he said. "The American people expect an open, transparent and honest government."

The directives to federal employees — at least some apparently self-imposed by career staff — come amid a lingering fear among Trump loyalists that the president’s critics in the federal bureaucracy will seek to undermine his agenda. That’s especially the case where Trump’s priorities clash with those of previous administrations, such as former President Barack Obama’s use of EPA regulations on power plants, automobiles and the oil and gas industry as bulwarks of his approach to climate change.

Those concerns were compounded on Inauguration Day, when the Interior Department ordered a shutdown of all its Twitter accounts after the National Park Service retweeted photos showing a substantially smaller crowd at Trump’s swearing-in than had greeted Obama in 2009. Interior’s Twitter service was restored the next day, but only after the park service deleted the offending tweets and apologized.

Asked about that matter Tuesday, Spicer said: “My understanding is that because they had inappropriately violated their own social media policies, there was guidance that was put out to the department to act in compliance with the rules that were set forth.”

Other agencies have since followed suit to restrain their employees' external communications.

On Monday, the Transportation Department advised its employees not to publish news releases or engage on DOT’s social media accounts until they get more guidance from the new administration. The move was not a “ban,” a department spokesperson told POLITICO, and DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration continued to tweet about distracted driving and vehicle recalls.

At EPA, the lockdown extends well beyond formal coordinated messaging. Aside from a block on news releases and social media posts, a Monday memo, circulated internally and obtained by POLITICO, warned that EPA employees scheduled to speak at public events like conferences in the next month must alert Trump’s team of temporary political appointees.

Trump’s team will also review EPA's previously planned public webinars "and decide which ones will go forward." And EPA employees were cautioned to send only “essential” messages to email lists, since those messages "can be shared broadly and end up in the press."

EPA's main Twitter account has been silent since Thursday, the day before Trump's inauguration.

Separately, employees of the USDA’s Agriculture Research Service received a memo Monday from branch chief of staff Sharon Drumm telling them that the release of documents, including “but not limited to, news releases, photos, fact sheets, news feeds and social media content,” would be held until further notice. The move was unusual for USDA’s research arm, which looks at the broad scope of food and agriculture issues including nutrition, crop yields and even detecting fire ants.

In a call with reporters hastily thrown together late Tuesday, acting Deputy Secretary Michael Young — director of the Office of Budget and Program Analysis and currently the highest ranking official at USDA — disavowed the memo. ARS later formally rescinded it.

Young instead pointed to broader guidance issued by his office instructing all staff that any news releases, policy-related social media content, legislative assistance requests and other notifications must be cleared by the secretary’s office.

Meanwhile, employees at HHS and the NIH received emails telling them to halt external correspondence — a move that one official later said was meant only to implement a White House-ordered temporary halt to regulatory activity.

"For your additional awareness, please note that we have been directed not to send any correspondence to public officials (to include Members of Congress and state and local officials) between now and February 3, unless specifically authorized by the Department,” said one section of the emails, which was obtained by POLITICO.

But an HHS official disputed the idea that the agency had been muzzled, and said people were misinterpreting a memo from acting Secretary Norris Cochran that "pertains only to proposed or pending regulations." Trump had ordered a "regulatory freeze" Friday night, telling agencies to hold off on all pending rules until his administration can review them.

"Contrary to erroneous media reports, HHS and its agencies continue to communicate fully about its work through all of its regular communication channels with the public, the media and other relevant audiences," the official said. "There is no directive to do otherwise.”

NIH spokeswoman Renate Myles said her agency was told “to hold on publishing new rules or guidance in the Federal Register or other public forums and discussing them with public officials until the administration has had an opportunity to review them.”

The worries about freedom of information in the government involve more than tweets and press releases. On Monday, two of Trump’s political aides visited Voice of America, where a little-noticed move by Congress will give the president unprecedented control over a broadcasting agency that has been governed by a bipartisan board of directors. And the CDC gave no explanation as it canceled a conference planned for next month on climate change — a move that one of the event's scheduled speakers described to The Washington Post as a "strategic retreat."

Some agencies appeared undeterred — at first.

The Twitter account of Badlands National Park in South Dakota, for example, posted a series of messages Tuesday seemingly at odds with the new president's skepticism on climate change science, including: "Today, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is higher than at any time in the last 650,000 years. #climate" But by Tuesday night, those tweets had vanished.

The park service later blamed the tweets on "a former employee who was not currently authorized to use the park's account." It added that its social media managers "are encouraged to continue the use of Twitter to post information relating to public safety and park information, with the exception of content related to national policy issues."

Federal workers have been on alert since Trump’s transition, when a series of leaks from the new president’s team raised the possibility that the new administration could target specific employees seen as contradicting its agenda. One memo to the Energy Department asked for the names of any employees who worked on Obama’s climate initiatives — a request then-Secretary Ernest Moniz refused. Another memo to the State Department asked for details of existing programs aimed at promoting gender equality.

Not all employees appear all that worried about the latest moves, which come as most of Trump’s Cabinet nominees are waiting for Senate confirmation. One current EPA official said the early moves, which include halting work on the agency’s grants, raised eyebrows. But the official added, “If this freeze on hiring and on contracts, grants and interagency agreement continues for several months, then I will be concerned.”

Still, the restrictions on public communications could be just the first volley against career employees. The Trump administration’s budget is expected to advocate for deep cuts targeting disfavored domestic agencies in which Trump has little interest, compared with national security. A past budget blueprint from the Heritage Foundation, which has played a leading role in developing policy for Trump, calls for slashing programs inside the EPA, the Energy Department, the State Department and the National Endowment for the Arts.

“The hiring freeze is kind of like an opening jab, and then the right cross will be a budget that in some of the target agencies like EPA we assume are going to see deep, double-digit budget cuts,” said Ruch, from PEER. “So we’re dusting off legal research about reduction in force, return rights, things like that.”

Ruch also warned that his group is fielding concerns that the hiring freeze could prevent even seasonal government hires, including firefighters at the Forest Service or national parks rangers during the busy summer season. “Those agencies run on seasonals,” he said.

Within the first few days of the Trump administration, the hand-off of power varied from agency to agency.

Places with a confirmed Cabinet secretary, such as DHS and the Department of Defense, hummed along, according to agency sources, while employees at the other places, like USDA or the Department of Education, felt directionless and rudderless.

One senior official at the FDA said people there felt “mass confusion” and that “no one knows who is on first.” The FDA’s acting commissioner was set to have his first meeting with Trump’s "beachhead" team Tuesday, the official added. For comparison, eight years ago, the Obama-Biden transition team showed up a week after the election.

Similarly, the White House OMB’s website has been down since shortly after Trump was sworn in Friday afternoon. OMB is a key agency that helps manage the sprawling federal government and will be central to carrying out Trump’s goal of shrinking the size of the federal government through potential budget cuts.

Over at the State Department, employees also waited. “Not much has happened. I’ve not personally met with anybody [from the Trump team,]” said a department spokesperson. “Most assistant secretaries have had one or two meetings, but it’s far less developed than it was from Bush to Obama or Clinton to Bush. All transitions are different, but this one seems less developed.”

Sources familiar with the issue said Trump’s team did little to coordinate with State ahead of the president’s move on Tuesday to advance the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada. The State Department is the lead agency in charge of reviewing the project.

Joanne Kenen, Sarah Karlin-Smith, Ben Weyl, Jeremy Herb, Ted Hesson, Arthur Allen, Michael Stratford, Caitlin Emma, Helena Bottemiller Evich, Jenny Hopkinson and Nahal Toosi contributed to this report.

2017-01-24

Large study supports ‘Weekend Warrior’ approach to lifetime fitness


A weekend pickup game has more benefits than once thought, according to a new study in JAMA Internal Medicine. (Photo credit: iStockphoto)

Story by Washington Post
Written by Amby Burfoot

Health and fitness experts have long described “weekend warriors” in a mildly negative way. They used the term for individuals who exercised irregularly, perhaps in weekend pickup games. They warned of muscle strains, or much worse — something akin to the heart attacks suffered by those who occasionally shovel snow. Weekend warrior meant, more or less, “knucklehead.”

But no more. A large new study in JAMA Internal Medicine has revealed large mortality benefits for all manner of weekend warriors.

Those who worked out once or twice a week had a 30 percent lower mortality rate (during the study period, from 1994 to 2012) than those who didn’t exercise at all. Despite their infrequent workouts, these individuals exceeded the 150 minutes a week of moderate to vigorous exercise advocated by U.S. and world health organizations. In that regard, their good results might have been expected.

The study was based on more than 63,000 British and Scottish adults with an average age of 58. A research team from the United Kingdom, Australia and Harvard University collaborated on the analysis.

“We were surprised to find that cardiovascular and cancer mortality were also lower among the weekend warriors,” says lead author Gary O’Donovan, from Loughborough University in England. “Interestingly, we also found the benefits are much the same in men and women.”

Another subgroup of the 63,000, termed the “insufficient exercisers,” fared just as well as the weekend warriors. The insufficients accumulated only 60 minutes of exercise per week, less than half of the recommended amount. Yet they reaped a 31 percent lower mortality rate vs. the non-exercisers.

The greatest rewards came to those who exercised three or more times a week. These individuals tended to go longer and slower than less-frequent exercisers but logged impressive weekly totals of about 450 minutes. They had a 35 percent lower all-cause mortality rate.

“This study is important because it tells us that the total amount of exercise, rather than how often it is done, is the relevant factor,” co-author and Harvard epidemiologist I-Min Lee says. “It gives permission, if you will, to be a weekend warrior. However, we would prefer regular activity over the week to decrease the risk of injuries.”

The JAMA article did not track the incidence of injury. But injuries couldn’t have been too great of an obstacle, or the weekend warriors wouldn’t have been able to continue their routine and reap the gains.

A large majority of the subjects, 63 percent, reported no exercise, while 22 percent were labeled insufficient exercisers. The weekend warriors amounted to just 3.7 percent of the total subject population, but that equated to 2,341 people, thanks to the study’s large size. Eleven percent of subjects were regular exercisers, getting in three or more workouts per week.

In the United States, the latest report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that 51 percent of adults don’t meet the guidelines for aerobic activity and that 79 percent don’t meet the guidelines for aerobics plus strength work.

Many midlife people with active family lives and burgeoning careers find it difficult to make time for regular workouts. As a result, fitness advocates often encourage a small-steps approach to exercise.

Don’t be discouraged if you don’t have the time to train for a half-marathon, they advise. Focus on what you can do, not what you can’t. Anything is better than nothing. The new research seems to confirm this.

Before 2008, U.S. activity guidelines urged three to five workouts a week — three if they were vigorous, five if more moderate. This changed in 2008 with a new set of guidelines that dropped the frequency recommendation. Instead, the new guidelines emphasize total minutes per week — 75 if you do vigorous exercise, such as running, or 150 for more moderate exercise, such as walking.

This has led to a variety of popular new approaches such as HIT (high-intensity training) workouts, CrossFit and seven-minute apps. They have not been around long enough for anyone to track injury rates or lifetime payoffs. Still, the new programs are aimed at helping people get fitter with a more modest time investment.

“Our results show that weekend warrior and other activity patterns may provide health benefits even when they fall short of physical activity guidelines,” says study co-author Emmanuel Stamatakis, from the University of Sydney. “This can include programs with just one or two sessions per week.”

Good Idea More Valuable than Profit, Sprint Buys 33% of TIDAL

Story by Radio Facts
Written by Kevin Ross

They say you should always start your business based on passion first, this is inevitable if you want to succeed. Nobody knows what you do LIKE you do nor will they have the motivation, drive and skill set to make it happen.

Jay Z was brilliant when he did the press conference for TIDAL, reassembling a company that did something no other streaming service did, it made the artists part owners of their own music and returned a greater profit to them than other streaming services. Amidst many reports that Tidal was not making money, creating artist exclusives was a brilliant idea and obviously one that paid off today. Wireless carrier Sprint stated today that they are buying a 33% of Tidal. This move has to be largely related to the artist exclusives that no other streaming services have. They paid 200 million to Jay-Z and each of the company’s other artist owners who remain and just made a nice profit.

Sprint shares rose 3.4% after the announcement. Exclusive content from Tidal will now be available to Sprint’s 45 million retail customers, in addition, Sprint chief executive Marcello Claur we’ll joint Tidal’s board. Apple was in talks to buy Tidal but was slow to move. This new deal, however, makes the company more appealing. Jay-Z paid 56 million for Tidal in 2015.

2017-01-23

Former President Obama and President Trump on chivalry


Video, produced by Left over Rights, show that chivalry could be a thing of the past too.

Trump Signs 3 Executive Orders including Federal Workers "Hiring Freeze"


Trump signs 3 executive orders, includes "Freeze" on Federal Hiring. From afar, Putin looks on.

Story by NPR
Written by Brian Naylor

President Trump acted on Monday to keep a signature campaign promise: withdraw the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Trump's action, an executive order, is mostly symbolic.

As he signed the order in the Oval Office, Trump said, "We've been talking about this for a long time," adding it's "a great thing for the American worker."

Trump also signed two other executive orders, though NPR has not seen the official language on the orders yet. One is expected to impose a hiring freeze on federal workers, except for defense-related positions; the other may be a reinstatement of the so-called Mexico City policy, a rule that began in 1984, when Ronald Reagan was president. As NPR has reported, the policy "blocked federal funding for international family planning charities unless they agreed not to 'promote' abortion by, among other actions, providing patients with information about the procedure or referrals to providers who perform it."

The TPP, as it's known, is a trade agreement with 12 Pacific Rim nations. It was never ratified by the U.S. because of congressional opposition, but was strongly backed by the Obama administration. It would create a free trade area stretching from Japan to Chile, and it was seen as an effort to create a counterweight to China, which is not a party to the agreement.


President Trump signs the executive orders in the Oval Office on Monday, including a withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal.

During the campaign, Trump called the TPP "a horrible deal" and a "potential disaster" that would hurt U.S. workers and companies.

His action on TPP is Trump's first effort to address the concerns over trade that helped propel him to the Oval Office, and there are many more expected. He is expected to begin talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico.

In a meeting with business leaders Monday morning, Trump said, "We want to make our products here."

He also vowed to retaliate against businesses that close U.S. factories in favor of foreign plants. "If you go to another country," Trump said, "we are going to be imposing a very major border tax."

Trump said that right now, "we don't have free trade because we're the only one that makes it easy to come into the country."