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Segami
Segami's Journal
Segami's Journal
December 8, 2014
To the surprise of no one, new campaign finance disclosures reveal that a top Democratic PAC gave money in support of independent candidate Greg Orman in this year's Kansas Senate race. The Kansas City Star reported Sunday that Senate Majority PAC, one of the biggest backers of Democratic Senate candidates in the midterms, funneled at least $1.5 million to two other groups that were supporting Orman. The PAC is run by former advisers to outgoing Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Senate Majority PAC gave $1.3 million to the Committee to Elect an Independent Senate and $151,000 to Kansans Support Problem Solvers, both of which boosted Orman in his losing campaign against Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), according to the Star.
The transactions occurred on or after Oct. 16, which meant they were not disclosed under federal campaign finance rules until more than a month after Election Day. National Democrats had been publicly coy during the campaign when describing their intentions for the race, and Orman never publicly pledged to caucus with Democrats if he won. But GOP operatives seized the revelation as a sign of Democratic duplicity. "The fact that Greg Orman is a liberal Democrat isn’t shocking, anyone who heard him over the last month of the race reached the same conclusion," Brad Dayspring, a National Republican Senatorial Committee official, told TPM in an email. "It is noteworthy that Majority PAC and other Democrats in Washington tied to Harry Reid repeatedly lied to reporters about their involvement in this race."
Orman's ascendance as the de facto Democratic candidate followed the actual Democratic nominee Chad Taylor dropping out of the race in early September. Taylor's withdrawal came after a conversation with Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), and it is widely assumed that the national party wanted to boost Orman's chances because he was polling better against Roberts than Taylor was. Orman lost to Roberts, 42 percent to 53 percent, last month.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kansas-senate-race-national-democrats-greg-orman
.
Confirmed! National Dems BACKED INDY CANDIDATE In Kansas Senate Race
To the surprise of no one, new campaign finance disclosures reveal that a top Democratic PAC gave money in support of independent candidate Greg Orman in this year's Kansas Senate race. The Kansas City Star reported Sunday that Senate Majority PAC, one of the biggest backers of Democratic Senate candidates in the midterms, funneled at least $1.5 million to two other groups that were supporting Orman. The PAC is run by former advisers to outgoing Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Senate Majority PAC gave $1.3 million to the Committee to Elect an Independent Senate and $151,000 to Kansans Support Problem Solvers, both of which boosted Orman in his losing campaign against Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), according to the Star.
"...The money exchange was secret until last week’s reports because they were made on or after Oct. 16, meaning they didn’t have to be disclosed until last week. Political interests often exploit that loophole to keep some transactions secret until after the election.
In this case, Reid’s advisers wanted to keep the donations from public view because they didn’t want to fuel the idea that Democrats were backing Orman. That was one of incumbent Republican Sen. Pat Roberts’ chief arguments against Orman in bright-red Kansas, which was that ideologically the independent was more closely aligned to the Democrats than to Republicans.
Orman had refused to say which party he would caucus with had he won...."
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/government-politics/article4332030.html#storylink=cpy
In this case, Reid’s advisers wanted to keep the donations from public view because they didn’t want to fuel the idea that Democrats were backing Orman. That was one of incumbent Republican Sen. Pat Roberts’ chief arguments against Orman in bright-red Kansas, which was that ideologically the independent was more closely aligned to the Democrats than to Republicans.
Orman had refused to say which party he would caucus with had he won...."
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/government-politics/article4332030.html#storylink=cpy
The transactions occurred on or after Oct. 16, which meant they were not disclosed under federal campaign finance rules until more than a month after Election Day. National Democrats had been publicly coy during the campaign when describing their intentions for the race, and Orman never publicly pledged to caucus with Democrats if he won. But GOP operatives seized the revelation as a sign of Democratic duplicity. "The fact that Greg Orman is a liberal Democrat isn’t shocking, anyone who heard him over the last month of the race reached the same conclusion," Brad Dayspring, a National Republican Senatorial Committee official, told TPM in an email. "It is noteworthy that Majority PAC and other Democrats in Washington tied to Harry Reid repeatedly lied to reporters about their involvement in this race."
Orman's ascendance as the de facto Democratic candidate followed the actual Democratic nominee Chad Taylor dropping out of the race in early September. Taylor's withdrawal came after a conversation with Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), and it is widely assumed that the national party wanted to boost Orman's chances because he was polling better against Roberts than Taylor was. Orman lost to Roberts, 42 percent to 53 percent, last month.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kansas-senate-race-national-democrats-greg-orman
.
December 6, 2014
Hillary Clinton`s Medical Issue
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on her health after Republican Karl Rove suggested she may have traumatic brain damage.
December 6, 2014
Scott Raab: Your loss is seen as symbolic of the midterm sea change. How does it feel?
Mark Udall: It stings and I feel liberated.?.?.?.?I don’t like losing. I don’t like being turned back from the summit of a mountain—I’m a mountain climber—but I have always found that the mountains I didn’t climb are the ones that taught me the most. So I’m taking that attitude towards this election loss.?.?.?.?But it’s been hard to be here for the last couple of weeks. When you get fired, usually it’s “Clean your desk out and go,” and I’ve got two months of work left to do. We do have some things I’m working hard to get accomplished. I want to get the CIA Torture Report declassified.
SR: I’ve been puzzling through this. You’ve talked about how Edward Snowden should come back.
MU: Yep.
SR: But he’s gonna be charged with crimes that could put him behind bars forever. And you’re in a position to read this into the public record.
MU: Sure. Yeah.
SR: Is there any reason not to do that? Not do what Mike Gravel did with the Pentagon Papers? What is the tightrope there? You got a $40 million 6,300-page report, right?
MU: Yes.
SR: And all the pressure’s on you right now to—
MU: I have made it clear over the last couple of weeks—if the report is not declassified in a way that’s transparent and shines a bright light on what we did, then I will consider using all and any options.
SR: I’ve heard this before.
MU: And right now, we are at the point where I’m still optimistic that the White House, working with a committee, is going to do the right thing, which is to declassify the report in a way that’s understandable and transparent. And so I’m working through what we call regular order here in Washington. But if, in my opinion, the report is either—obviously, if it’s not released, then I’m gonna use every power I have, because it’s too important. It’s too historic. And we can’t afford to repeat the mistakes to let this slide.
.?.?.?.
SR: So you don’t just have the report, you have an agency that hacked the committee’s computers.
MU: Right. Four times. Four times.
SR: You called for CIA director John Brennan’s resignation.
MU: There are some that would like this report never to see the light of day. There are some that are running out the clock. There are some that are raising the specter that the CIA employees involved would somehow be subject to not only threats but potential action that would affect their personal safety. Those personnel, if they have that worry, can be given some legitimate security.?.?.?.
The people who conducted these activities in the name of the CIA, in the name of the American people, have a right to be processed. They don’t have a right to [pause] push under the rug what happened.
SR: Right.
MU: What happened broke faith in the Constitution. It’s made our challenge much greater when it comes to facing the threat of Islamic fundamentalism. And it is morally repugnant. When this report is declassified, people will abhor what they read. They’re gonna be disgusted. They’re gonna be appalled. They’re gonna be shocked at what we did. But it will lay a foundation whereby we don’t do this in the future. That’s been my goal. That’s been my mission.
cont'
http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/mark-udall-0115
Senator Udall: IF TORTURE REPORT IS KILLED, I'll 'Use Every Power I Have' TO REVEAL IT
MARK UDALL PROMISES AMERICA WILL "BE DISGUSTED" AT CIA TORTURE REPORT And that he'll use every power he still has to declassify it.
The Senate Intelligence Committee, led by Dianne Feinstein of California, is soon expected to release its summary of the so-called CIA Torture Report, the committee’s four-year-long investigation into the CIA’s Bush-era torture practices. Release of the summary is the result of months of wrangling and negotiating with the White House on what would be released to the public and when—and it will likely be heavily redacted. During an interview conducted on Friday, November 21, by Esquire writer at large Scott Raab, outgoing senator Mark Udall of Colorado, who lost his reelection race on November 4, once again said that if the report is not released in a way he deems transparent, he would consider all options to make it public. In this excerpt from the interview, Raab asks Udall if he will read the document into the record on the floor of the Senate before he leaves in January, an act for which he cannot be prosecuted.
The full interview will be published in the January 2015 issue of Esquire.
The full interview will be published in the January 2015 issue of Esquire.
Scott Raab: Your loss is seen as symbolic of the midterm sea change. How does it feel?
Mark Udall: It stings and I feel liberated.?.?.?.?I don’t like losing. I don’t like being turned back from the summit of a mountain—I’m a mountain climber—but I have always found that the mountains I didn’t climb are the ones that taught me the most. So I’m taking that attitude towards this election loss.?.?.?.?But it’s been hard to be here for the last couple of weeks. When you get fired, usually it’s “Clean your desk out and go,” and I’ve got two months of work left to do. We do have some things I’m working hard to get accomplished. I want to get the CIA Torture Report declassified.
SR: I’ve been puzzling through this. You’ve talked about how Edward Snowden should come back.
MU: Yep.
SR: But he’s gonna be charged with crimes that could put him behind bars forever. And you’re in a position to read this into the public record.
MU: Sure. Yeah.
SR: Is there any reason not to do that? Not do what Mike Gravel did with the Pentagon Papers? What is the tightrope there? You got a $40 million 6,300-page report, right?
MU: Yes.
SR: And all the pressure’s on you right now to—
MU: I have made it clear over the last couple of weeks—if the report is not declassified in a way that’s transparent and shines a bright light on what we did, then I will consider using all and any options.
SR: I’ve heard this before.
MU: And right now, we are at the point where I’m still optimistic that the White House, working with a committee, is going to do the right thing, which is to declassify the report in a way that’s understandable and transparent. And so I’m working through what we call regular order here in Washington. But if, in my opinion, the report is either—obviously, if it’s not released, then I’m gonna use every power I have, because it’s too important. It’s too historic. And we can’t afford to repeat the mistakes to let this slide.
.?.?.?.
SR: So you don’t just have the report, you have an agency that hacked the committee’s computers.
MU: Right. Four times. Four times.
SR: You called for CIA director John Brennan’s resignation.
MU: There are some that would like this report never to see the light of day. There are some that are running out the clock. There are some that are raising the specter that the CIA employees involved would somehow be subject to not only threats but potential action that would affect their personal safety. Those personnel, if they have that worry, can be given some legitimate security.?.?.?.
The people who conducted these activities in the name of the CIA, in the name of the American people, have a right to be processed. They don’t have a right to [pause] push under the rug what happened.
SR: Right.
MU: What happened broke faith in the Constitution. It’s made our challenge much greater when it comes to facing the threat of Islamic fundamentalism. And it is morally repugnant. When this report is declassified, people will abhor what they read. They’re gonna be disgusted. They’re gonna be appalled. They’re gonna be shocked at what we did. But it will lay a foundation whereby we don’t do this in the future. That’s been my goal. That’s been my mission.
cont'
http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/mark-udall-0115
December 6, 2014
Olan Harrington, a student at University College Cork, wrote about his experience of being a gay man in a homophobic world. The powerful essay, The Day I Held My Boyfriend’s Hand, was originally posted on his own blog, under the hashtag #HumansofHomophobia. It’s since been shared on sites like the UK’s Pink News and read by thousands of people around the world, and with good reason. Unlike so many others, Harrington’s story is not a story about being beaten, brutalized or physically assaulted. Instead it’s a story about being trapped in a world where simple things, like holding someone’s hand, become symbols of fear and sorrow and pain.
I held my boyfriends hand yesterday. I caught it, as I usually do on University College Cork campus and held it until we reached the main gates, only this time I didn’t let go. We moved along the Western Road, towards Washington Street, and as we reached the innards of Cork City something strange lingered over me.
I had become anxious, and soon I wasn’t speaking, I was afraid.
I shot glances around in my silence, searching for anyone who might do us harm, I felt an unease as cars slowed down next to us…I wondered whether they would shout “faggot,” or “queer,” at us, as they had done before in previous relationships of mine and other eras of times when I felt like showing my love and affection in the act of simple hand holding. I wanted to keep holding because it was cold, and it felt so comforting. But I did not want to put my boyfriend through the hurt and pain that words can cause, it was then that having consulted my conscience I almost let go.
Harrington explains how the gesture of hand holding, something so many of us take for granted, became, for him, a symbol of what it feels like to be gay in a homophobic world.
But something very different happened, I felt a torrent of anger at the world. I felt angry at the world for making me feel this way, I felt angry at myself, that I would even entertain that this was not something that I should be doing. I felt angry at the world because society told me that I couldn’t hold my boyfriends hand without feeling fear, without feeling trepidation, without feeling a niggling sense of shame. Suddenly I felt proud and yet although it’s not like every passer had stalled to shout obscene words like “queer,” or “faggot,” at us,– but I still felt it, I felt it like it could happen any minute.
Harrington explains how:
Homophobia is the secret that we share, and a secret of a “civilised,” society.
For those who deny that homophobia exists, Harrington says:
so long as I feel that tremor of fear, as I take my boyfriends hand in public, then homophobia exists. Yesterday I felt that fear, I felt that fear because I stepped outside of that little box that I was put in by society, to be “normal,” to do what “others,” do, to not show the smallest dram of affection in public.
The Humans of Homophobia campaign was designed by University College Cork LGBT students and their allies, to highlight the physical and psychological effects of homophobia.
https://olanharrington.wordpress.com/2014/11/26/the-day-i-held-my-boyfriends-hand-humansofhomophobia-campaign-by-ucclgbt/
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/12/05/olan-harrington-humans-of-homophobia-campaign/
Everyone Needs To READ This Story About The PAIN CAUSED By Homophobia
This photo of Coleman Moloney and Olan Harrington was published with the essay.
“Yesterday, I felt so scared that I became angry, and I felt so angry at the homophobia that I had ignored since my teens that yesterday I couldn’t let go…”
Olan Harrington, a student at University College Cork, wrote about his experience of being a gay man in a homophobic world. The powerful essay, The Day I Held My Boyfriend’s Hand, was originally posted on his own blog, under the hashtag #HumansofHomophobia. It’s since been shared on sites like the UK’s Pink News and read by thousands of people around the world, and with good reason. Unlike so many others, Harrington’s story is not a story about being beaten, brutalized or physically assaulted. Instead it’s a story about being trapped in a world where simple things, like holding someone’s hand, become symbols of fear and sorrow and pain.
I held my boyfriends hand yesterday. I caught it, as I usually do on University College Cork campus and held it until we reached the main gates, only this time I didn’t let go. We moved along the Western Road, towards Washington Street, and as we reached the innards of Cork City something strange lingered over me.
I had become anxious, and soon I wasn’t speaking, I was afraid.
I shot glances around in my silence, searching for anyone who might do us harm, I felt an unease as cars slowed down next to us…I wondered whether they would shout “faggot,” or “queer,” at us, as they had done before in previous relationships of mine and other eras of times when I felt like showing my love and affection in the act of simple hand holding. I wanted to keep holding because it was cold, and it felt so comforting. But I did not want to put my boyfriend through the hurt and pain that words can cause, it was then that having consulted my conscience I almost let go.
Harrington explains how the gesture of hand holding, something so many of us take for granted, became, for him, a symbol of what it feels like to be gay in a homophobic world.
But something very different happened, I felt a torrent of anger at the world. I felt angry at the world for making me feel this way, I felt angry at myself, that I would even entertain that this was not something that I should be doing. I felt angry at the world because society told me that I couldn’t hold my boyfriends hand without feeling fear, without feeling trepidation, without feeling a niggling sense of shame. Suddenly I felt proud and yet although it’s not like every passer had stalled to shout obscene words like “queer,” or “faggot,” at us,– but I still felt it, I felt it like it could happen any minute.
Harrington explains how:
Homophobia is the secret that we share, and a secret of a “civilised,” society.
For those who deny that homophobia exists, Harrington says:
so long as I feel that tremor of fear, as I take my boyfriends hand in public, then homophobia exists. Yesterday I felt that fear, I felt that fear because I stepped outside of that little box that I was put in by society, to be “normal,” to do what “others,” do, to not show the smallest dram of affection in public.
The Humans of Homophobia campaign was designed by University College Cork LGBT students and their allies, to highlight the physical and psychological effects of homophobia.
https://olanharrington.wordpress.com/2014/11/26/the-day-i-held-my-boyfriends-hand-humansofhomophobia-campaign-by-ucclgbt/
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/12/05/olan-harrington-humans-of-homophobia-campaign/
December 6, 2014
Viewers’ dreams of Rachel Maddow someday hosting Meet The Press took another step forward as new MSNBC advertising refers to as a news anchor.
According to TVNewser,
You won’t likely see MSNBC host Rachel Maddow filling in for Brian Williams on “NBC Nightly News.” While Maddow is usually described as the “host” of a cable news show, she is rarely called a “news anchor.” Her own NBC bio describes her as a “host”-and never even uses the word “journalist.”
So it’s worth noting that a new MSNBC promo flips the script, describing Maddow as a “news anchor with a big personality. She’s smart, funny and passionate.”
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/msnbc-promo-describes-rachel-maddow-as-a-news-anchor_b248067
It is an interesting change, and one that reaffirms MSNBC’s commitment to Maddow being the center of the network. Maddow has been anchoring the network’s election night and other big event coverage, so it isn’t inaccurate to refer to her as MSNBC’s news anchor. The problem is that Rachel Maddow continues to lose viewers because she is surrounded by a lot of shows that people aren’t watching on MSNBC. The network managed to lose 6% of its total viewers and 8% of its younger viewers during the midterm election last month.
Chris Hayes’ 8 PM show has been sinking the entire primetime lineup and pushing cable news viewers towards CNN by the thousands. It is a good idea to make Rachel Maddow the center of the network. It was a bad idea to remake the network in her image by hiring a group of low rated Maddow clones who have caused the ratings to plunge. Instead of highlighting and emphasizing Maddow’s uniqueness, the network has watered down her impact by trying to recreate her success with several other hosts.
NBC News has held the position that Rachel Maddow can’t host Meet The Press because she is too partisan, but the elevation to news anchor is another step into journalistic territory. The MSNBC ship continues to sink, but Rachel Maddow’s star is still shining bright.
http://www.politicususa.com/2014/12/05/msnbc-elevates-rachel-maddow-news-anchor.html
MSNBC ELEVATES Rachel Maddow To NEWS ANCHOR
Viewers’ dreams of Rachel Maddow someday hosting Meet The Press took another step forward as new MSNBC advertising refers to as a news anchor.
According to TVNewser,
You won’t likely see MSNBC host Rachel Maddow filling in for Brian Williams on “NBC Nightly News.” While Maddow is usually described as the “host” of a cable news show, she is rarely called a “news anchor.” Her own NBC bio describes her as a “host”-and never even uses the word “journalist.”
So it’s worth noting that a new MSNBC promo flips the script, describing Maddow as a “news anchor with a big personality. She’s smart, funny and passionate.”
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/msnbc-promo-describes-rachel-maddow-as-a-news-anchor_b248067
It is an interesting change, and one that reaffirms MSNBC’s commitment to Maddow being the center of the network. Maddow has been anchoring the network’s election night and other big event coverage, so it isn’t inaccurate to refer to her as MSNBC’s news anchor. The problem is that Rachel Maddow continues to lose viewers because she is surrounded by a lot of shows that people aren’t watching on MSNBC. The network managed to lose 6% of its total viewers and 8% of its younger viewers during the midterm election last month.
Chris Hayes’ 8 PM show has been sinking the entire primetime lineup and pushing cable news viewers towards CNN by the thousands. It is a good idea to make Rachel Maddow the center of the network. It was a bad idea to remake the network in her image by hiring a group of low rated Maddow clones who have caused the ratings to plunge. Instead of highlighting and emphasizing Maddow’s uniqueness, the network has watered down her impact by trying to recreate her success with several other hosts.
NBC News has held the position that Rachel Maddow can’t host Meet The Press because she is too partisan, but the elevation to news anchor is another step into journalistic territory. The MSNBC ship continues to sink, but Rachel Maddow’s star is still shining bright.
http://www.politicususa.com/2014/12/05/msnbc-elevates-rachel-maddow-news-anchor.html
December 5, 2014
Secretary of State John Kerry personally phoned Dianne Feinstein, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Friday morning to ask her to delay the imminent release of her committee’s report on CIA torture and rendition during the George W. Bush administration, according to administration and Congressional officials. Kerry was not going rogue -- his call came after an interagency process that decided the release of the report early next week, as Feinstein had been planning, could complicate relationships with foreign countries at a sensitive time and posed an unacceptable risk to U.S. personnel and facilities abroad. Kerry told Feinstein he still supports releasing the report, just not right now.
But those concerns are not new, and Kerry’s 11th-hour effort to secure a delay in the report’s release places Feinstein in a difficult position: She must decide whether to set aside the administration’s concerns and accept the risk, or scuttle the roll-out of the investigation she fought for years to preserve. Hill staffers and human rights advocates saw the Kerry call as a stunning reversal by an administration that has publicly supported the report’s release for months. For Senate Republicans, who have warned about the potential fallout for more than a year, the administration is belatedly coming around to agree with their position. “There’s always a lot going on in the world and the timing of the release of a report like this never convenient,” one senior GOP senate staffer said. "They should have thought about that a long time ago and advocated against the release." For the large community of nongovernmental organizations and human rights groups that have been fighting for the release, the administration’s action is a betrayal, and also a sign that the whole issue has been poorly managed.
Any delay would be a huge problem for Feinstein for several reasons. First of all, her staff just completed a grueling months-long negotiation with the CIA over what details would make it into the final release. Those negotiations were personally mediated by President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Denis McDonough, who flew to San Francisco several times to negotiate directly with Feinstein. Second, if the release is pushed off past next week, Feinstein will no longer head the committee, and the incoming chairman, Republican Richard Burr, could very well prevent the report from being released at all. That could negate years of work by Feinstein’s investigators and prevent the report’s conclusions, many of which will be disputed vigorously by the CIA, from ever coming to light. Last, Feinstein is set to deliver a major speech about the report at a Dec. 10 gala event hosted by Human Rights First, which is awarding her and Sen. John McCain the “Beacon Prize” for “their leadership to end the use of torture and other cruel treatment of prisoners by the United States.” As Feinstein wrestles with Kerry’s request, her staff must be furiously rewriting that speech.
cont'
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-12-05/kerry-puts-brakes-on-cia-torture-report
Kerry Puts BRAKES On CIA TORTURE REPORT
Secretary of State John Kerry personally phoned Dianne Feinstein, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Friday morning to ask her to delay the imminent release of her committee’s report on CIA torture and rendition during the George W. Bush administration, according to administration and Congressional officials. Kerry was not going rogue -- his call came after an interagency process that decided the release of the report early next week, as Feinstein had been planning, could complicate relationships with foreign countries at a sensitive time and posed an unacceptable risk to U.S. personnel and facilities abroad. Kerry told Feinstein he still supports releasing the report, just not right now.
“What he raised was timing of report release, because a lot is going on in the world -- including parts of the world particularly implicated -- and wanting to make sure foreign policy implications were being appropriately factored into timing,” an administration official told me. "He had a responsibility to do so because this isn’t just an intel issue -- it’s a foreign policy issue."
But those concerns are not new, and Kerry’s 11th-hour effort to secure a delay in the report’s release places Feinstein in a difficult position: She must decide whether to set aside the administration’s concerns and accept the risk, or scuttle the roll-out of the investigation she fought for years to preserve. Hill staffers and human rights advocates saw the Kerry call as a stunning reversal by an administration that has publicly supported the report’s release for months. For Senate Republicans, who have warned about the potential fallout for more than a year, the administration is belatedly coming around to agree with their position. “There’s always a lot going on in the world and the timing of the release of a report like this never convenient,” one senior GOP senate staffer said. "They should have thought about that a long time ago and advocated against the release." For the large community of nongovernmental organizations and human rights groups that have been fighting for the release, the administration’s action is a betrayal, and also a sign that the whole issue has been poorly managed.
“The administration’s reactions to Senator Feinstein have been surprising and suggest that there are competing forces inside the executive branch with no strategic direction,” said Mieke Eoyang, a former intelligence committee staffer who now serves as the Director of the National Security Program at Third Way, a center-left think tank. “In life, if you waited for a good time to come clean, you might never come clean.”
Any delay would be a huge problem for Feinstein for several reasons. First of all, her staff just completed a grueling months-long negotiation with the CIA over what details would make it into the final release. Those negotiations were personally mediated by President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Denis McDonough, who flew to San Francisco several times to negotiate directly with Feinstein. Second, if the release is pushed off past next week, Feinstein will no longer head the committee, and the incoming chairman, Republican Richard Burr, could very well prevent the report from being released at all. That could negate years of work by Feinstein’s investigators and prevent the report’s conclusions, many of which will be disputed vigorously by the CIA, from ever coming to light. Last, Feinstein is set to deliver a major speech about the report at a Dec. 10 gala event hosted by Human Rights First, which is awarding her and Sen. John McCain the “Beacon Prize” for “their leadership to end the use of torture and other cruel treatment of prisoners by the United States.” As Feinstein wrestles with Kerry’s request, her staff must be furiously rewriting that speech.
cont'
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-12-05/kerry-puts-brakes-on-cia-torture-report
December 5, 2014
An orange jump suit and Bubba is awaiting you...............
On Wednesday, December 3, 2014, more than three years after a white police chief in the small South Carolina town of Eutawville shot and killed an unarmed black man, Prosecutor David Pascoe brought murder charges against the former police officer. While claiming that it was always his intent to charge Richard Combs with murder in connection with the fatal shooting of Bernard Bailey, Pascoe failed to file murder charges until the very day that a New York grand jury failed to indict a white officer for the homicide of another African-American male, and a mere week after the Ferguson grand jury failed to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown. After Bailey, a 54 year old retired corrections officer, had argued with the then-Chief Combs about a ticket that Combs had recently issued to Bailey’s daughter, Combs had an obstruction of justice warrant brought against Bailey.
On May 2, 2011, several days after their initial confrontation, Bailey returned to city hall to complain about his daughter’s ticket. When Combs attempted to arrest Bailey, Bailey left and got into his nearby truck. Undeterred, Combs followed him to his truck, reached inside for the keys and tried to turn off the ignition. During the ensuing struggle, Combs shot Bailey twice in the chest, killing him. Bailey was unarmed. Bailey’s death was initially investigated by the F.B.I. and the Department of Justice as a possible civil rights violation. However, in March 2013 the Justice Department declined to bring charges against Combs. Five months later, in August 2013, South Carolina prosecutors obtained an indictment against Combs for “misconduct in office” relating to the fatal shooting. According to court records, the grand jury found that Combs was not justified in using deadly force when he shot and killed Mr. Bailey. Following the indictment, Combs was terminated by the 300 person town of Eutawville as the police chief of this one-man department. Combs’ trial on the “official misconduct” charges had been set for mid-December 2014. However, in November of this year Combs sought to have the charges dismissed under a “stand your ground” defense, claiming that he was in fear of his life during his encounter with the 6’6” Bailey.
South Carolina Judge Ed Dickson denied Combs claim, stating:
“Mr. Combs has failed to establish that he is entitled to claim self-defense as he did not show that he was without fault in bringing about the difficulty.”
Judge Dickson further found that:
“There was no need for Mr. Combs to act as he did on May 2, 2011, when Mr. Bailey refused service, as Mr. Combs expected would happen. … Mr. Combs should have allowed Mr. Bailey to leave and enlisted the assistance of other officers or serve the warrant at court as originally planned.”
http://thetandd.com/news/judge-no-stand-your-ground-defense-in-shooting-ex-eutawville/article_8e06fc66-7b60-11e4-b9a8-1ba299f9a3f8.html
- No one knows what the jury will decide on the charge of murder against Combs for the death of Bernard Bailey, but it is apparent that the word is spreading: it is not okay to shoot down unarmed black men just because you have a gun and a badge.
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/12/05/sc-white-police-chief-charged-with-2011-murder-of-unarmed-black-man-in-wake-of-ferguson-and-nyc/
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SC White Police Chief CHARGED WITH 2011 MURDER Of Unarmed Black Man In Wake Of Ferguson And NYC
An orange jump suit and Bubba is awaiting you...............
On Wednesday, December 3, 2014, more than three years after a white police chief in the small South Carolina town of Eutawville shot and killed an unarmed black man, Prosecutor David Pascoe brought murder charges against the former police officer. While claiming that it was always his intent to charge Richard Combs with murder in connection with the fatal shooting of Bernard Bailey, Pascoe failed to file murder charges until the very day that a New York grand jury failed to indict a white officer for the homicide of another African-American male, and a mere week after the Ferguson grand jury failed to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown. After Bailey, a 54 year old retired corrections officer, had argued with the then-Chief Combs about a ticket that Combs had recently issued to Bailey’s daughter, Combs had an obstruction of justice warrant brought against Bailey.
On May 2, 2011, several days after their initial confrontation, Bailey returned to city hall to complain about his daughter’s ticket. When Combs attempted to arrest Bailey, Bailey left and got into his nearby truck. Undeterred, Combs followed him to his truck, reached inside for the keys and tried to turn off the ignition. During the ensuing struggle, Combs shot Bailey twice in the chest, killing him. Bailey was unarmed. Bailey’s death was initially investigated by the F.B.I. and the Department of Justice as a possible civil rights violation. However, in March 2013 the Justice Department declined to bring charges against Combs. Five months later, in August 2013, South Carolina prosecutors obtained an indictment against Combs for “misconduct in office” relating to the fatal shooting. According to court records, the grand jury found that Combs was not justified in using deadly force when he shot and killed Mr. Bailey. Following the indictment, Combs was terminated by the 300 person town of Eutawville as the police chief of this one-man department. Combs’ trial on the “official misconduct” charges had been set for mid-December 2014. However, in November of this year Combs sought to have the charges dismissed under a “stand your ground” defense, claiming that he was in fear of his life during his encounter with the 6’6” Bailey.
South Carolina Judge Ed Dickson denied Combs claim, stating:
“Mr. Combs has failed to establish that he is entitled to claim self-defense as he did not show that he was without fault in bringing about the difficulty.”
Judge Dickson further found that:
“There was no need for Mr. Combs to act as he did on May 2, 2011, when Mr. Bailey refused service, as Mr. Combs expected would happen. … Mr. Combs should have allowed Mr. Bailey to leave and enlisted the assistance of other officers or serve the warrant at court as originally planned.”
http://thetandd.com/news/judge-no-stand-your-ground-defense-in-shooting-ex-eutawville/article_8e06fc66-7b60-11e4-b9a8-1ba299f9a3f8.html
- No one knows what the jury will decide on the charge of murder against Combs for the death of Bernard Bailey, but it is apparent that the word is spreading: it is not okay to shoot down unarmed black men just because you have a gun and a badge.
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/12/05/sc-white-police-chief-charged-with-2011-murder-of-unarmed-black-man-in-wake-of-ferguson-and-nyc/
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December 5, 2014
On November 22, 2014, within seconds of his patrol car being stopped, rookie Cleveland police officer Tim Loehmann pulled his gun and killed Tamir Rice, a black twelve-year-old boy. This is the very same officer who had been found to be mentally unfit to serve in law enforcement by a nearby Ohio police department less than two years earlier. According to internal records recently released by the City of Independence Police Department, Loehmann was recommended to be dismissed from the force due in large part to his emotional instability.
In a November 2012 internal police memo, training officer Sergeant Tinnirello described Loehmann as being “weepy and distracted,” with his emotional state causing him to be incapable of following “simple instructions,” “unable to communicate clear thoughts” and not “prepared to be doing firearm training.” The memo states that at one point Loehmann’s gun had to be taken away from him and that he had lost his composure to such an extent that Loehmann was unable to even get out of his police car during a routine stop.
Loehamnn told his training officer that:
In referencing Loehmann’s leaving his gun unlocked, lying to his supervisors and failing to follow orders, the most damming assessment of Leohmann’s capability to serve as police officer was made by Sergeant Tinnirello:
In recommending his separation from the Independence Police Department, a deputy chief of police stressed Loehmann’s lack of maturity due to his
Within a week of this memorandum being placed in his personnel file, Loehmann resigned from the Independence Police Department. However by March 2014, Loehmann was hired by the Cleveland Police Department without the department obtaining Loehmann’s prior personnel file. Apparently during his interview with the Cleveland Division of Police Loehmann merely indicated that he had resigned from the Independence Police Department for “personal reasons.”
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/12/04/rookie-cop-found-to-be-mentally-unfit-before-he-gunned-down-12-year-old-tamir-rice-video/
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ROOKIE COP Found To Be MENTALLY UNFIT Before He Gunned Down 12-Year-Old Tamir Rice
On November 22, 2014, within seconds of his patrol car being stopped, rookie Cleveland police officer Tim Loehmann pulled his gun and killed Tamir Rice, a black twelve-year-old boy. This is the very same officer who had been found to be mentally unfit to serve in law enforcement by a nearby Ohio police department less than two years earlier. According to internal records recently released by the City of Independence Police Department, Loehmann was recommended to be dismissed from the force due in large part to his emotional instability.
In a November 2012 internal police memo, training officer Sergeant Tinnirello described Loehmann as being “weepy and distracted,” with his emotional state causing him to be incapable of following “simple instructions,” “unable to communicate clear thoughts” and not “prepared to be doing firearm training.” The memo states that at one point Loehmann’s gun had to be taken away from him and that he had lost his composure to such an extent that Loehmann was unable to even get out of his police car during a routine stop.
Loehamnn told his training officer that:
“I should have gone to NY.” Maybe I should quit.” “I have no friends.” “I only hang out with 73 yr old priests.” And “I have cried every day for 4 months.”
In referencing Loehmann’s leaving his gun unlocked, lying to his supervisors and failing to follow orders, the most damming assessment of Leohmann’s capability to serve as police officer was made by Sergeant Tinnirello:
“I do not believe that time, nor training, will be able to change or correct these deficiencies.”
In recommending his separation from the Independence Police Department, a deputy chief of police stressed Loehmann’s lack of maturity due to his
“dangerous loss of composure during live range training and his inability to manage personal stress.”
Within a week of this memorandum being placed in his personnel file, Loehmann resigned from the Independence Police Department. However by March 2014, Loehmann was hired by the Cleveland Police Department without the department obtaining Loehmann’s prior personnel file. Apparently during his interview with the Cleveland Division of Police Loehmann merely indicated that he had resigned from the Independence Police Department for “personal reasons.”
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/12/04/rookie-cop-found-to-be-mentally-unfit-before-he-gunned-down-12-year-old-tamir-rice-video/
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December 5, 2014
If Huckabee is going to make another run for the Republican nomination, there's no better place for him to start than Newsmax TV, where the hard-core wingers go for their news. And who better to serve as interviewer than our old pal JD Hayworth, the Arizona bigot radio host who is now a Newsmax TV host? And if Huckabee is going to appear on Newsmax, you can bet it's to slam the black guy in the White House for actually giving a damn about other black people.
Here's a picture of some of the thugs, rioters and mobsters the President hosted on Monday.
It seems to me that if real change is ever to come, the victims of the current system should be heard. But that's just me. Huckajesus is different. Huckabee insisted it was all about law and order. Evidently law and order means that white cops get away with murder while black people are fodder for their open carry fetishes. If he wants law and order, he might start with some reasonable consequences for the murderers of black children and young men.
Here's more:
Then what's their excuse for Tamir Rice, hmmm? Ohio is an open carry state. If they thought he was an adult, he was entitled to carry a weapon. But he wasn't an adult; he was a child and he had a toy. And now he's dead. So this next pronouncement from Huckabee is particularly odious:
Huckabee, you ignorant slut. Anarchy is when those who are there to protect the community murder them instead.
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/12/huckabee-says-obama-invited-thugs-and
HUCKABEE: Obama Invited 'Thugs And Rioters And Mob Members' To White House
Huckabee played every race card in the deck for Newsmax viewers.
If Huckabee is going to make another run for the Republican nomination, there's no better place for him to start than Newsmax TV, where the hard-core wingers go for their news. And who better to serve as interviewer than our old pal JD Hayworth, the Arizona bigot radio host who is now a Newsmax TV host? And if Huckabee is going to appear on Newsmax, you can bet it's to slam the black guy in the White House for actually giving a damn about other black people.
Here's a picture of some of the thugs, rioters and mobsters the President hosted on Monday.
It seems to me that if real change is ever to come, the victims of the current system should be heard. But that's just me. Huckajesus is different. Huckabee insisted it was all about law and order. Evidently law and order means that white cops get away with murder while black people are fodder for their open carry fetishes. If he wants law and order, he might start with some reasonable consequences for the murderers of black children and young men.
Here's more:
Civil rights activists, including Al Sharpton, members of the Congressional Black Caucus, and others, have derided the decision.
In a show of support, four members of the Congressional Black Caucus appeared on the House floor Monday night doing the "Hands Up, Don’t Shoot" gesture, a move Huckabee characterized as "foolish and dangerous" as well as dishonest since it flies in the face of the sworn testimony in the case.
"It's just incredibly dangerous that you have members of Congress on the floor of Congress holding up their hands in the 'hands up, don't shoot' position as if to say that somehow that is going to get you shot," Huckabee said.
"I'm going to tell you something: What gets you shot is when you grab a police officer's gun and you lunge at him and you try to hit him in the face."
http://www.newsmax.com/newswidget/ferguson-jay-nixon-michael-brown-riots/2014/12/03/id/610807/?Dkt_nbr=1645F-1&nmx_source=Crooks_and_Liars&nmx_medium=widget&nmx_content=527&nmx_campaign=widgetphase2
In a show of support, four members of the Congressional Black Caucus appeared on the House floor Monday night doing the "Hands Up, Don’t Shoot" gesture, a move Huckabee characterized as "foolish and dangerous" as well as dishonest since it flies in the face of the sworn testimony in the case.
"It's just incredibly dangerous that you have members of Congress on the floor of Congress holding up their hands in the 'hands up, don't shoot' position as if to say that somehow that is going to get you shot," Huckabee said.
"I'm going to tell you something: What gets you shot is when you grab a police officer's gun and you lunge at him and you try to hit him in the face."
http://www.newsmax.com/newswidget/ferguson-jay-nixon-michael-brown-riots/2014/12/03/id/610807/?Dkt_nbr=1645F-1&nmx_source=Crooks_and_Liars&nmx_medium=widget&nmx_content=527&nmx_campaign=widgetphase2
Then what's their excuse for Tamir Rice, hmmm? Ohio is an open carry state. If they thought he was an adult, he was entitled to carry a weapon. But he wasn't an adult; he was a child and he had a toy. And now he's dead. So this next pronouncement from Huckabee is particularly odious:
"This nonsense that telling young people don't hold up your hands because that's going to get you in trouble, and instead I guess what they're teaching them is go loot a store, beat up a cop, reach for his gun, hope you get it before he does — this is not only foolish and dangerous but it's really on the verge of anarchy," Huckabee said.
Huckabee, you ignorant slut. Anarchy is when those who are there to protect the community murder them instead.
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/12/huckabee-says-obama-invited-thugs-and
December 4, 2014
On Thursday’s episode of The View, the gals all reacted with sorrow about the Staten Island grand jury decision not to indict NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo for the infamous chokehold death of Eric Garner. Perhaps the strongest reaction of all came from Whoopi Goldberg, who tore into Rep. Peter King (R-NY) for his repeated insistence that the NYPD’s use of force was appropriate, and that Garner died because he was “obese.” For more on that, see here and here.
But back to Whoopi:
Rosie O’Donnell added that as a native Long Islander, she is “embarrassed” to say Rep. King comes from the beloved island. (Welcome to the club!)
http://www.mediaite.com/uncategorized/whoopi-and-rosie-unload-on-peter-king-for-if-you-cant-breathe-you-cant-talk-comment/
Whoopi and Rosie UNLOAD ON PETER KING For ‘If You Can’t Breathe, You Can’t Talk’ Comment
On Thursday’s episode of The View, the gals all reacted with sorrow about the Staten Island grand jury decision not to indict NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo for the infamous chokehold death of Eric Garner. Perhaps the strongest reaction of all came from Whoopi Goldberg, who tore into Rep. Peter King (R-NY) for his repeated insistence that the NYPD’s use of force was appropriate, and that Garner died because he was “obese.” For more on that, see here and here.
But back to Whoopi:
Yes, he was overweight, Mr. King. He could’ve lived if he was just standing there, Peter King. You see, the coroner said he died because he couldn’t breathe. Which he said 11 times. And also, you know, he died from the fact that he was asphyxiated. I get maybe you weren’t sure, all of you saying, “Oh, he was overweight.” That’s not why he died. He’d been overweight a long time and walking around. So if you hadn’t stepped on him…
Rosie O’Donnell added that as a native Long Islander, she is “embarrassed” to say Rep. King comes from the beloved island. (Welcome to the club!)
http://www.mediaite.com/uncategorized/whoopi-and-rosie-unload-on-peter-king-for-if-you-cant-breathe-you-cant-talk-comment/
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