Saturday, July 30, 2016
Briefing on the State of U.S.-Turkey Relations
Defense Department Spokesman Peter Cook fields questions from reporters at the Pentagon on
the state of U.S.-Turkey relations in the wake of the recent failed coup
attempt and the subsequent jailing of military officials by the
Erodogan government.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
Analyzing the Necessity of the Glass-Steagall Act
Bloomberg View Columnist Megan McArdle talked about planks in both the Democratic and Republican
Party platforms calling for the restoration of the 1933 Glass-Steagall
Act, which bars commercial banks from participating in high-risk
investments.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
Harlem Book Fair Panel Discussion on Zora Neale Hurston
Rutgers University’s Cheryl Wall, Rich Blint, with The James Baldwin Review,
Columbia University’s Farah Jasmine Griffin, and Barnard College’s
Yvette Christianse speak at the Harlem Book Fair about author Zora Neale
Hurston.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
Friday, July 29, 2016
The Power of the Pen: New Bills Signed into Law
On Friday, July 29, 2016, the President signed into law:
H.R.
2607, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 7802 37th Avenue in Jackson Heights, New York, as the Jeanne
and Jules Manford
Post Office Building;
H.R.
3700, the “Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016,”
which modifies the administration and delivery of a number of Federal
housing programs;
H.R.
3931, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 620 Central Avenue Suite 1A in Hot Springs National Park,
Arkansas, as the
Chief Petty Officer Adam Brown United States Post Office;
H.R.
3953, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 4122 Madison Street, Elfers, Florida, as the Private First
Class Felton
Roger Fussell Memorial Post Office;
H.R.
4010, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 522 North Central Avenue in Phoenix, Arizona, as the Ed
Pastor Post Office;
H.R.
4425, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 110 East Powerhouse Road in Collegeville, Minnesota, as the
Eugene J. McCarthy
Post Office;
H.R.
4747, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 6691 Church Street in Riverdale, Georgia, as the Major
Gregory E. Barney
Post Office Building;
H.R.
4761, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 61 South Baldwin Avenue in Sierra Madre, California, as the
Louis Van Iersel
Post Office;
H.R.
4777, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 1301 Alabama Avenue in Selma, Alabama, as the Amelia Boynton
Robinson Post
Office Building;
H.R.
4877, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 3130 Grants Lake Boulevard in Sugar Land, Texas, as the LCpl
Garrett W.
Gamble, USMC Post Office Building;
H.R.
4904, the “Making Electronic Government Accountable By Yielding
Tangible Efficiencies Act of 2016” or the “MEGABYTE Act of 2016,” which
requires Federal agencies,
through an Office of Management and Budget directive, to track software
licenses, and to make public reports on cost savings through efficient
software license management;
H.R.
4925, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 229 West Main Cross Street, in Findlay, Ohio, as the Michael
Garver Oxley
Memorial Post Office Building;
H.R.
4975, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 5720 South 142nd Street in Omaha, Nebraska, as the Petty
Officer 1st Class
Caleb A. Nelson Post Office Building;
H.R.
4987, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 3957 2nd Avenue in Laurel Hill, Florida, as the Sergeant
First Class William
"Kelly" Lacey Post Office;
H.R.
5028, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 10721 E Jefferson Ave in Detroit, Michigan, as the Mary E.
McCoy Post Office
Building;
H.R.
5722, the “John F. Kennedy Centennial Commission Act,” which
establishes the John F. Kennedy Centennial Commission to plan, develop,
and carry out activities
to honor John F. Kennedy on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of
his birth;
S. 764, which directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a national mandatory bioengineered food disclosure standard;
S.
2893, the “Library of Congress Sound Recording and Film Preservation
Programs Reauthorization Act of 2016,” which extends authorizations of
the sound recording
and film preservation programs of the Library of Congress through FY
2026;
S. 3055, the “Department of Veterans Affairs Dental Insurance
Reauthorization Act of 2016,” which extends, to December 31, 2021, VA's authority to provide a dental insurance plan to veterans and their dependents and survivors; and
S.
3207, which authorizes the National Library Service for the Blind and
Physically Handicapped within the Library of Congress to provide
playback equipment in
all formats.
Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary
Rev. Sharpton's Statement on North Carolina Court Decision on Voter ID
(New York, NY) – National civil rights
leader Rev. Al Sharpton applauded the federal appeals court in North
Carolina today that struck down the state’s requirement for voters to
show identification before casting ballots, while also
reinstating early voting, a measure that has been a part of National
Action Network’s mission around the country.
“We at National Action Network have long said that
the Voter ID laws adopted by many states are an insidious effort to roll
back hard-won voting rights and today’s decision is a step in the right direction towards
allowing a more just election process,” Rev. Sharpton said.
NAN has led a voter
protection tour and rallied against the unfairness of voter ID efforts
that require voters to show photo IDs at polling sites and laws that
restrict early voting. States have recently reversed
restrictive laws and NAN is continuing a national effort leading into
the November election to expose voter disenfranchisement. Countless
potential voters have been shut out of the election process due to
restrictive laws and NAN will work tirelessly to expose
the injustice around the country in the months to come.
Source: Mercury
Court Strikes Down North Carolina Voter ID Law
A federal appeals court has struck down North Carolina’s voter
identification law, holding that it was “passed with racially
discriminatory intent.”
The ruling also invalidated changes the state made in 2013 to early
voting, same-day registration, out-of-precinct voting, and
preregistration.
The three judges assigned to the case — all Democratic appointees —
were unanimous that the North Carolina legislature violated the U.S.
Constitution and the Voting Rights Act three years ago by passing the
law requiring voters to show certain types of photo ID at the polls.
Click here for the full article.
Source: Politico
Zika Virus Response in the U.S. and Abroad
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases, discusses the threat posed by the Zika virus,
including the risk of local transmission in the U.S. and concerns about
the upcoming Olympic Games.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
U.S. Military Response to ISIS
National Review Staff Writer David French discusses the rise of
the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) and the U.S. military response to the
militant group.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
Trailblazers in Black History: Chocolat
Chocolat was the stage name of Rafael Padilla, a clown who performed in a Paris circus around the turn of the 20th-century. Rafael was of Afro-Cuban descent and was one of the earliest successful black entertainers in modern France. He was the first black clown to play a lead role in a circus pantomime act, and with his longtime partner George Foottit they revolutionized the art of clowning by pairing the sophisticated white clown with the foolish auguste clown.
Click here for more information.
Source: Wikipedia
Florida's 4 Zika Cases Likely Came From Local Mosquitoes: Gov. Scott
Florida's governor says the state has concluded that four mysterious
Zika infections likely came from mosquitoes in the Miami area.
Gov. Rick Scott said Friday that no mosquitoes
in the state have tested positive for Zika. But he says one woman and
three men in Miami-Dade and Broward counties likely contracted the virus
through mosquito bites.
Click here for the full article.
Source: NBC News
San Diego Police Shooting: One Officer Killed, One Rushed to Surgery
A police officer was fatally shot and another seriously injured
during a traffic stop in San Diego late Thursday, officials said.
Authorities said early Friday that one person
was in custody, but told residents to stay indoors while they searched
the area for other potential suspects.
SWAT vehicles, helicopters and patrol cars were involved in the extensive operation.
The shooting happened at around 11 p.m. local time (2 a.m. ET Friday) in
the Southcrest neighborhood, San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman
told reporters early Friday outside Scripps Mercy Hospital.
Trump Campaign Struggles to Pull Off Minority Outreach Events
As his approval ratings with minority voters continue to plummet,
Donald Trump's campaign rescheduled yet another minority outreach event
this week.
The Republican nominee was set to attend a
Hispanic roundtable in Miami on Tuesday, but two days after scheduling
it, the campaign said the intended attendees weren't in town after all
and that the roundtable would be delayed again.
The event, first delayed after the police shootings in Dallas on July
7, had been initially scheduled for July 9. A new date has yet to be
announced.
It's the latest in a growing list of derailed
efforts to appeal to the communities that most strongly disapprove of
the Republican nominee.
Click here for the full article.
Source: NBC News
First Read: An OK Speech, But a Powerful Convention
First Read is a morning briefing from Meet
the Press and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important
political stories and why they matter.
An OK speech, but a powerful convention
PHILADELPHIA -- Hillary Clinton's speech
Thursday accepting her party's presidential nomination was OK; she is
never going to rhetorically outshine President Obama or her husband Bill
Clinton. But what she and Democrats did achieve was produce a powerful
convention that contrasted with Donald Trump's last week in Cleveland.
While the GOP convention had high-profile no-shows (the Bushes, Mitt
Romney, John Kasich) and a speech by a candidate who didn't endorse
Trump (Ted Cruz), the Democrats trotted out Obama, Bill Clinton, Vice
President Joe Biden, First Lady Michelle Obama, and yes Bernie Sanders,
who all testified on Hillary Clinton's behalf. While the GOP convention
focused on police, the Democrats featured both police and the mothers of
Trayvon Martin and Sandra Bland. And while the GOP convention
highlighted the violence that immigrants had committed and Benghazi, the
Democrats introduced Khizr Khan, the father of a Muslim-American Army
captain, who delivered arguably the week's most stinging critique
against Trump. "Donald Trump consistently smears the character of
Muslims. He disrespects other minorities, women, judges, even his own
party leadership. He vows to build walls and ban us from this country.
Donald Trump, you are asking Americans to trust you with our future. Let
me ask you: Have you even read the U.S. Constitution? I will gladly
lend you my copy" -- as he took out a pocket U.S. Constitution.
Click here for the full article.
The DNC Was Having a Moment of Silence for Fallen Police Officers. Then There Was a Scream…
In a largely apolitical speech that was seemingly the strongest defense
of police to this point at the Democratic National Convention, Dallas
County Sheriff Lupe Valdez was speaking to the DNC crowd about the
resilience of police in the face of adversity, and how she’s been trying
to make sense of it, before offering a solution:
Violence is not the answer. Yelling and calling each
other names is not going to do it. Talking within our own group in a
language only our group understands leads nowhere. We have to start
listening to each other.
Then, she asked the crowd to help her honor “all of America’s fallen
officers with a moment of silence.”
Click here to listen to what happened next.
Source: Independent Journal Review and Conservative Daily
Nancy Pelosi Enlightens Us on Why White Guys Overwhelmingly Back The Donald
By Mike Miller
To conservatives, Nancy Pelosi has always been the proverbial
gift that keeps on giving. Such was the case at the Democratic
convention on Wednesday when she explained why white guys support Donald
Trump.
In the mind of Nancy, it comes down to “the three Gs“:
“I think that, so many times, white — non-college-educated white males
have voted Republican. They voted against their own economic interests
because of guns, because of gays, and because of God, the three Gs, God
being the woman’s right to choose.”
Both Pelosi and PBS’s Judy Woodruff chose to focus on
non-college-educated white males, not-so-subtly suggesting that
college-educated white males are way too smart to support The Donald
over Hillary.
At least one recent poll suggests otherwise.
Click here for the full article.
Source: Independent Journal Review and Conservative Daily
Restaurant Employees All Over America Are Refusing to Serve Cops
Two employees at a Noodles & Company restaurant in Virginia were fired after refusing to serve a uniformed police officer on Monday.
According to the Alexandria Police Department, one of the cooks came
from the back and said ‘You better pull me off the line, because I’m not
serving that,’ pointing at the uniformed officer. When both the cashier and the cook started laughing, the officer left the restaurant.
The restaurant terminated both employees on Thursday.
Click here for the full article.
Source: Your Black World News
NYPD Detective Posts Racist Rants Slamming Chirlane McCray & Bill Bratton
By Graham Rayman, Ryan Sit and Stephen Rex Brown
Courtesy, professionalism, respect — and racist Facebook rants?
A decorated NYPD detective has a rabid right-wing social media presence
that includes prejudiced takes on news events, insults at Mayor de
Blasio’s wife Chirlane McCray, and die-hard support of Donald Trump.
Detective Gregory Gordon, 33, who works in the 121st Precinct in Staten
Island, made the inflammatory posts on his Facebook page, which was set
to private.
“Explain to me a time when a mayor’s wife has ever been able to weigh
in on police related topics ever before? Who cares what this former
crack addict says!” Gordon wrote on Facebook on Nov. 3, 2014, around the
time a report claimed McCray didn’t trust Police Commissioner Bill
Bratton.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The New York Daily News and the Empire Report
New York Hospitals Rated Lowest in U.S.
by Bill Hammond
New York’s hospitals collectively rank dead last among the 50 states in a new report card from the federal government, an Empire Center analysis shows.
On Wednesday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
released its first-ever star ratings for hospitals across the country,
based on 64 measures of quality.
Just one New York institution, the Hospital for Special Surgery,
received the top rating of five stars, and only 12 received four stars.
Forty-nine of the state’s hospitals were rated average with three stars,
58 got two stars and 35 got one star.
That translates to an average score of 2.26, which was the lowest of
any state, the analysis found. Just above New York were the hospitals of
Nevada (2.29), New Jersey (2.47), Florida (2.62), and Connecticut
(2.64).
The states with the best averages were South Dakota (4.12), Idaho
(3.65), Wisconsin (3.65), Minnesota (3.53), and Delaware (3.50).
Click here for the full article.
Source: NY Torch and the Empire Report
Statement on the First Estimate of GDP for the Second Quarter of 2016
WASHINGTON,
DC – Jason Furman, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, issued
the following statement today on the first estimate of GDP for the
second quarter of 2016.
Summary: Real
GDP grew 1.2 percent at an annual rate in the second quarter, with
strong consumer spending growth offset in part by a decrease in
inventory investment.
The
economy grew 1.2 percent at an annual rate in the second quarter of
2016, due in part to a large decline in inventory investment (one of the
most volatile components of GDP), along with declines in business
investment, residential investment, and government spending. However,
consumer spending grew strongly at 4.2 percent, and, in contrast to the
pattern in recent years, net exports also added to GDP. Overall,
the most stable and persistent components of output—consumption and
fixed investment—rose a solid 2.7 percent in the second quarter. Today’s
report underscores that there is more work to do, and the President
will continue to take steps to strengthen economic growth and boost
living standards, including promoting greater competition across the
economy; supporting innovation; and calling on Congress to increase
investments in infrastructure and to pass the high-standards
Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Click here to read the complete statement.
Source: The White House, the Office of the Press Secretary
Youth Detention Center Scandal Prompts Questions
The scandal of abuse at an Australian youth detention center has
prompted the Prime Minister to order an official inquiry. CNN's Kristie
Lu Stout speaks with two people involved with the case.
Source: CNN
Refugees Around the World Prepare to Compete in Rio
Refugee
athletes are preparing to compete at the Olympic Games in Rio in an
effort to highlight the struggle of refugees worldwide. CNN's Lynda
Kinkade reports.
Source: CNN
India Re-Imposes Curfew in Kashmir City, but Clashes Persist
By Aijaz Hussain, Associated Press
Authorities re-imposed a curfew to prevent a protest march to the main
mosque in Indian-controlled Kashmir's main city Friday, but fresh street
demonstrations and clashes still occurred at more than two dozen places
amid outrage over the killing of a top rebel leader earlier this month.
Army soldiers fired at protesters in a village in northern Kupwara
district, injuring at least three teenage boys who attacked their camp
with stones and tried to barge into it, police said.
At a nearby village, at least two youths were injured with pellets fired
by government forces, a police officer said on condition of anonymity
as he was not authorized to talk to reporters.
Residents said government forces visited homes in Srinagar before dawn
Friday and asked them to stay indoors. One resident, Bashir Ahmed, said
police didn't allow bakers and milkmen to deliver supplies in the area.
Click here for the full article.
Source: ABC News
Thursday, July 28, 2016
City Investigating 2 Legionnaires' Cases in Harlem: Health Officials
City health officials are
investigating two cases of Legionnaires' disease that emerged late last
year and earlier this year at an apartment complex in Harlem.
The two cases appeared 10 months apart at Savoy Park Apartments, health officials said.
Both individuals have recovered, they said.
Investigators haven't determined the source of the bacteria that caused their illness.
Click here for the full article.
Source: NBC News
President Obama Meets with Security Teams to Get Latest Threat Assessment
The President
today met with his counterterrorism and homeland security teams as part
of the Administration's regular review of threats posed by
ISIL, al-Qa’ida, and other terrorist groups to the United States, U.S.
persons overseas, and to our allies and partners. Noting the recent
spate of heinous attacks in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South
Asia, the President directed his team to ensure
we remain vigilant and best postured to defend against such attacks in
the Homeland. He stressed the imperative of continuing to increase
battlefield pressure on ISIL and other terrorist groups as well as
making further progress against terrorist efforts to
recruit, radicalize and mobilize individuals to violence. Additionally,
the President’s team updated him on security preparations and U.S.
support to the Government of Brazil as athletes and spectators from
around the world travel to Rio de Janeiro for the
upcoming Olympic Games. In this context, the President also was briefed
on our efforts to protect against the spread of Zika.
Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary
Donald Trump’s Restrictions On The Press Reach Chilling New Low
A Washington Post reporter was detained and patted down while trying to cover a public event.
By Michael Calderone
Even as Donald Trump’s
presidential campaign has denied press credentials to news
organizations throughout the 2016 election season, journalists generally
have had another option: Get a ticket, like anyone else, and walk in.
But in a disturbing interaction Wednesday night,
private security, in tandem with local Milwaukee law enforcement,
detained and patted down Washington Post reporter Jose DelReal while
searching for his cellphone at a public event featuring GOP vice
presidential candidate Mike Pence. DelReal, who had already been denied
entry with the press, was then also prohibited from attending as a
member of the public.
Trump placed the Post on his campaign’s media blacklist last month in response to the paper running
a headline he considered unfair. The refusal to grant press credentials
to nearly a dozen news outlets, including Politico, BuzzFeed, The Daily
Beast, Univision and The Huffington Post, is unprecedented in American
presidential politics. The Trump campaign has also placed harsh restrictions on journalists’ movements at events, which have at times been enforced by the Secret Service.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Huffington Post
Zika Probe in Florida Prompts FDA to Shut Down Blood Collection in 2 Counties
The Food and Drug Administration has ordered all
blood collection centers in Florida's Miami-Dade and Broward counties
to stop taking in blood as state health department officials continue to
investigate four possible cases of local transmission of the Zika
virus.
In a statement posted on its website
on Wednesday, the FDA said blood centers should stop collecting blood
in the two counties until they can implement testing for the Zika virus
in each unit of blood collected, or until they can put in place
technology that can kill pathogens in collected blood.
Click here for the full article.
Source: NBC News
Officers in Freddie Gray Case Suing Marilyn Mosby
Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby may have dropped criminal
charges against the remaining officers in the Freddie Gray trial, but
she remains entrenched in a legal battle in civil court.
Five of the six officers charged for the death
of Gray are suing Mosby, as well as Maj. Samuel Cogen of the Baltimore
Sheriff's Office, in civil court for a gamut of causes.
In several lawsuits filed earlier this year,
Officers William Porter, Edward Nero, Garrett Miller, Lt. Brian Rice,
and Sgt. Alicia White alleged defamation, false arrest, false
imprisonment, and violation of constitutional rights, among others.
Click here for the full article.
Hillary Clinton’s Big, Completely Underappreciated Moment Is Here
by Eleanor Clift
PHILADELPHIA — All the pieces are in place for Hillary Clinton
to capture the magic of her historic nomination, or at least that’s the
script being written here in Philadelphia. The Democrats have staged a
masterful convention as a preamble for when Clinton steps to the podium
to deliver her acceptance speech Thursday night.
Yet even those who have long anticipated this moment wonder whether the true weight of its significance will be felt, or whether Clinton is a bit late to the party. Those who benefit the most from the battles she waged don’t credit her, or care for her. They won’t be cheering; they’ll be sulking.
The truly transformative nature of the change that’s occurring may not be fully apparent until Inauguration Day. At that point, it will have sunk in. There will be no Bernie, no Donald Trump. Bill Clinton will be in a supporting role, and Barack and Michelle Obama will be headed into the sunset, writing their memoirs.
She will stand alone, her hand on the Bible, taking the oath of office as the first woman after a long line of men to be entrusted with the job of president, leader of the Western world. This is how we transfer power in a democracy, in a peaceful way, when differences are bridged and history has the last word.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Daily Beast
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