China's Reliance on Coal: Pivot to Green Energy Difficult

Yemen Government and Houthis Remain Deadlocked Over Hodeidah

World's Indifference to Sexual Violence Must End: Nobel Laureates

Brexit: EU Says Current Divorce Deal with UK 'Only Deal Possible'

Global News: The European Union is willing to give Britain further clarifications on its Brexit deal but will not renegotiate the treaty or its protocol on the Irish border, EU chief executive Jean-Claude Juncker said on December 11.

Google GEO Testifies to Congress on User Data Privacy

Global News: Google CEO Sundar Pichai testifies before the U.S. House of Representatives' Judiciary Committee on data collection and privacy policies, the controversial China search engine plans, and alleged political bias.

Gov. Cuomo to U.S. State Department: Maintain Buffalo Refugee Resettlement Sites

Governor Andrew Cuomo today issued a letter to Secretary of State Michael Pompeo calling on the U.S. State Department to maintain Buffalo refugee resettlement sites amid concerns that the Administration will close sites after it reduced the cap on refugees to record lows.

Click here to review the letter.

Source: The Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

Community Advisory Committee to Guide Amazon Headquarters Project

 

Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced the formation of a Community Advisory Committee (CAC) to share information and solicit ongoing community input about Amazon's planned headquarters project in Long Island City, Queens. Members of the CAC will work through three subcommittees to develop plans for the headquarters and onsite public amenities, investments in neighborhood infrastructure to benefit the surrounding communities, and training and hiring programs to ensure that homegrown talent fills the 25,000 to 40,000 new jobs at the headquarters.

The CAC is comprised of community and citywide stakeholders recommended by local elected officials. Past CACs have significantly shaped development projects led by Empire State Development (ESD) helping ensure that community priorities and needs are considered throughout the process.

"Amazon's new headquarters in Long Island City is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our economy and community input will be a critical part of the development process," Governor Cuomo said. "We look forward to working with local elected officials, community organizations and residents to ensure their voices are heard as we work to create tens of thousands of well-paying jobs, generate billions in revenue that will be reinvested in the region, strengthen our infrastructure, and expand opportunity for New Yorkers."

Mayor de Blasio said, "Amazon's new headquarters will bring more than 25,000 jobs benefitting all New Yorkers from NYCHA residents to CUNY students. The Community Advisory Committee will bring together stakeholders of all backgrounds to help shape this important plan. Robust community engagement is critical to ensuring that the investments and resources generated from this project serve the needs of everyone in Long Island City and beyond."

Click here for the full announcement.

Source: The Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

Dozens of Vets Seek Employment at Queens Job & Resource Fair

Many veterans in attendance took time to explore the job opportunities and resources offered by the vendors at the fair. (Click on the photos to increase their size.)

New York State Senator James Sanders Jr. (D-Rochdale Village, Far Rockaway) held a Veterans Job & Resource Fair at the Daniel M. O'Connell American Legion Post 272 in Rockaway Beach.  The December 7 event coincided with Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, and provided an opportunity to both assist veterans and celebrate their service to our country.

"I’m always amazed at how everyone says they love the troops until you come home, then suddenly you are forgotten," Sanders said. “We need to turn this around. Yes, absolutely we support the troops, but we also have an obligation to look out for our veterans”

Dozens of veterans, representing nearly every branch of the military, packed the legion, which is housed inside the Knights of Columbus seeking jobs and other assistance. There were over 40 different organizations on hand to help with their needs.

Representatives from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs were available to provide support with healthcare and other VA benefits. The NYS Comptroller’s Office of Unclaimed Funds helped vets search for cash on the spot. Animal Care Centers of New York spoke to attendees about their free Pets for Vets Program, and there was much more.

A wide array of job opportunities were also available in fields ranging from healthcare and construction to transportation and retail. Vets Inc., a veteran-owned and operated company, catered the complimentary lunch for the event, which was sponsored by RMD Holdings LLC.

“We at RMD Holdings LLC are honored to do our small part in support of our United States military veterans, and we appreciate Senator Sanders’ leadership in organizing this job fair for local veterans,” Charles Hopkins, President and CEO of RMD Holdings LLC. said.  “We greatly admire these men and women veterans who have made the deepest of sacrifices to this country and are humbled by their courage, conviction and patriotism.”

In commemoration of Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, Senator Sanders called for a moment of silence for those who lost their lives in that surprise attack on the American military, while Jim Trainor, Adjutant of American Legion Post 272, spoke briefly about the history of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Source: The Office of State Senator James Sanders Jr.

Maria Butina Agrees to Cooperate With U.S.

Butina has inked an agreement with prosecutors and becomes the first Russian since the 2016 election to confess to a crime connected to efforts to influence American politics.

By Betsy Woodruff

Maria Butina, a Russian national who cultivated relationships with powerful American conservative activists, agreed Monday to plead guilty to conspiring to violate laws prohibiting covert foreign agents. As part of her agreement, which was reviewed by The Daily Beast, she has promised to cooperate with American law enforcement.

As a result of the deal, Butina will become the first Russian national since the 2016 election to plead guilty to a crime connected to efforts to influence American politics. After running a gun rights organization in Russia, she moved to the United States, where she spent years building relationships with conservatives in hopes of influencing a future Republican presidential administration. During the campaign season, she questioned then-candidate Donald Trump about sanctions; built relationships in the upper echelons of the American gun rights community; arranged for NRA leaders to travel to Moscow; and bragged that she was a channel between Team Trump and the Kremlin, as The Daily Beast first revealed.

She also struck up a romance with Paul Erickson, a longtime Republican gadfly close to NRA leaders. He sang Disney songs with her on camera, called her his “Siberian princess” in emails reviewed by The Daily Beast, and—since her July arrest—has visited her regularly in jail.

Click here for the full article. 

Source: The Daily Beast 

NY Blogger Unmasked and Sued for Libel Wants Court Case Public

An I-Team Report

A Rockland County blogger seeking to uncover crimes in the Jewish community has revealed herself. 

This report was originally broadcast on December 4. 

By Sarah Wallace

Julie Globus is now owning the name: LostMessiah.

For two and a half years, the Rockland County resident -- a wife, mother and attorney -- wrote an anonymous blog under that name. The blog’s stated purpose: "To uncover crimes, misdeeds and abuses within segments of the Jewish community in the hopes of effectuating change."

In an exclusive interview, Globus told the I-Team she had two separate focuses: "One was on the ultra-Orthodox community, and the money -- where it was coming and going? And I was focusing on sexual abuse. I think there is a need to hold myself and others within that religious community accountable."

Globus said she wanted to remain anonymous to protect her family."The subject matter that I was touching on was really dangerous stuff, like police corruption. Russian diamond smuggling."

Click here for the full article and video report. 

Source: NBC News 4 New York

Click here for additional information on Julie Globus and to find out how you can help.

McNamee Win a Pyrrhic Victory for the Fossil Fuelers?

'Future Hope' Column

By Ted Glick

In the end, the fossil fuel extremist Bernard McNamee squeaked through by the narrowest of margins—50 to 49 on a totally party-line vote, on both sides. 49 Democrats voted against him; 50 Republicans voted for him.

Susan Collins, supposedly someone who is concerned about the “serious consequences” of the climate crisis, could have prevented McNamee’s confirmation by the Senate to be a commissioner of the gas-industry-rubber-stamping agency, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC. But she didn’t. Very shameful. Just for this and the Kavanaugh votes, Collins really should be shown the Senate exit door come 2020.

McNamee has to be pretty bad, a beyond-the-pale fossil fueler, for even coal-loving Joe Manchin to change his committee vote of a week before and join his 48 fellow Democrats to do the right thing. Manchin said that the reason he did so was because he hadn’t seen the infamous McNamee video before the committee vote. Some people think it was because he’s very interested in being named Democratic leader of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee. Conspiracy theorists wonder if he coordinated with Susan Collins in advance to be sure she wasn’t going to vote her beliefs and cause his “change of heart” to be responsible for McNamee’s defeat.

So how significant is the ascension of McNamee to FERC leadership?

It could become very significant if Trump names him the new FERC chair. Mafioso Don can do that legally, without triggering a Mueller investigation or any other legal action. But given the 49 Senate votes, it sure seems unlikely that even Trump would be stupid enough to do this. Talk about revolting!

Click here for the full article. 

Source: tedglick.com 

Legislation Signed to Protect NY Non-Profits from Federal Tax Hike

 

Governor Andrew Cuomo today signed legislation (S.08831/A.11051) to protect non-profits from a tax hike resulting from the federal tax bill. This legislation decouples the New York State tax code from a change made to the federal Unrelated Business Income Tax by the Federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which considered the amount paid or incurred by any non-profit employer for commuter benefits, such as transit or parking, as taxable income.

"The federal tax bill egregiously raises costs on non-profits operating in New York State," Governor Cuomo said. "By decoupling from this area of the federal tax code, we are taking action to protect these critical organizations from the federal assault and sending a strong message that New York stands with the non-profit community."

Without legislation, New York would automatically follow the new federal statute, which would impose an additional 9% tax on not-for-profits and divert millions of dollars from the nonprofit sector each year. Today's legislation will ensure that non-profit employers can continue to subtract expenses for commuter benefits when calculating the state Unrelated Business Income Tax.

Senator Michael H. Ranzenhofer said, "The change made to the federal unrelated business income tax seriously hurts non-profits in New York and put many of them at risk. By signing this legislation, Governor Cuomo is standing up for these groups. I commend the Governor for taking this important action."

Source: The Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

Judge Calls for Examination of Quality Controls in New York Supported Housing System

 

The day ProPublica and Frontline reported how people with mental illness are slipping through the cracks, federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis questioned state officials, suggested more help and requested a report on oversight. 

by Joaquin Sapien

This story was co-published with Frontline.

At a court hearing Thursday, U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis questioned New York state officials and disability advocates about people with mental illness dying or coming to harm after moving from adult group homes into “supported housing” apartments, problems raised in a ProPublica and Frontline investigation published that day with The New York Times.

He ordered an independent report to assess the effectiveness of the state’s incident reporting system, got the state to commit to examining its service-coordination program and suggested the state develop a program to help residents learn and practice basic life skills in supported housing.

Four years ago, in a landmark settlement secured by advocates, Garaufis issued a court order offering more than 4,000 adult home residents in New York City a chance to move. The idea was that many did not need to live in such facilities — which can house hundreds of residents and have a history of abuse and neglect — and could instead thrive in their own apartments with the right support. The order instructed evaluators to presume that all residents would be fit to do so.

But ProPublica and Frontline found that clinicians evaluating adult home residents for the transition felt censored when they raised concerns about a person’s ability to live alone, and that workers felt pressured to “sell the move,” even to people who they thought were ill-equipped.

Click here for the full article.

Source: ProPublica

Yanis Varoufakis and Bernie Sanders Launch New Global Movement Against Far Right

The report was published on YouTube on December 7.

The Remarkable Tale of the Corporate Lobbyist Sworn in as a Temporary U.S. Senator

By David Dayen

Late last month, two former policymakers and lobbyists teamed up for an op-ed in the Washington Post. It was, as the genre goes, fairly mundane: a description of a problem or a threat, and a prescription that just happens to benefit a particular corporate sector that the lobbyists just might have an interest in benefiting.

In a piece titled “Why America needs low-yield nuclear warheads now,” Michael Morell and Jon Kyl argued that Russian and Chinese nuclear modernization programs demanded a response. “Russia is intent on exploiting what it perceives as a U.S. nuclear capability gap,” they write. “We must change that calculation” by adding submarine and sea-launched missiles with nuclear warheads. This would increase deterrence and prevent nuclear war, they claim; otherwise Russia will strike first.

The only difference here is that while Morell is a lobbyist — technically speaking a “senior counsel” at advisory firm Beacon Global Strategies — Kyl no longer is. As of this writing, Jon Kyl is a sitting U.S. senator.

Kyl, who served in the House and the Senate for decades but retired in 2012, was chosen to replace the late John McCain on an interim basis, as a placeholder before a special election for the seat in 2020. But Kyl, who was sworn in September 5, never committed to filling out the vacancy for the next two years; from the beginning, he only committed to serve through the lame-duck session, and he is widely expected to leave after that. That means that the final senator for the next Congress has yet to be determined.

Few have paid much attention to Kyl, who is wrapping up one of the strangest and — to his critics — one of the most corrupt tenures in the modern history of the Senate. Kyl was a registered lobbyist at a powerhouse D.C. law firm, who lived and worked in Washington for five and a half years before taking a four-month gig as a senator. His only floor speeches have involved matters at least glancingly tied to his lobbying. His entire term of office seems like a calculated attempt to refresh his contacts and gain clout from the inside, only to spin back out to influence the institution. He’s supposed to represent Arizona, but increasingly it appears that he only represents K Street.

Click here for the full article. 

Source: The Intercept_ 

Top House Dems Raise Prospect of Impeachment, Jail for Trump

 
Click here for details.

Source: Associated Press

U.S. Job Openings Data Points to Growing Worker Shortage

 
Click here for details. 

Source: Reuters

Senator Cory Booker Remarks to New Hampshire Democrats

 

Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) addressed New Hampshire Democrats at the party’s 2018 post-election celebration at the New Hampshire Institute of Art. Before his address, the state’s top Democrats - including all four members of its Capitol Hill delegation - spoke about the party’s victories in the midterm election. Senator Booker talked about how he initially became involved with politics in his home state of New Jersey and told stories about his first community organizing efforts. Following his remarks, he greeted attendees at the event and took pictures with many of them. 

This report was broadcast on December 8. 

Click here for video.

George Papadopoulos Interview at the American Priority Conference

 

Former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos was interviewed at the American Priority Conference, one day after serving a brief prison term connected to the special counsel investigation of Russian interference in 2016 presidential election. 

This report was broadcast on December 8.

Click here for video. 

Source: C-SPAN 

Aaron Jones Discusses Potential Government Shutdown

Jones, Director of Congressional Relations for the Wilson Center, discusses the pending government funding deadline and how to fix Congress’s broken budget process.

Click here for video. 

Source: C-SPAN 

The Week Ahead in Washington

 
Bloomberg Senate reporter Steven Dennis provides an overview. 

Click here for video.

Source: C-SPAN

James Comey Calls on Voters to Oust Trump in 2020

Virginia Teacher Fired for Refusing to Call Transgender Student Male Pronouns

El Chapo Trial: First Month of Testimony on Drugs, Death, and Money

The Debrief: Mueller Memos, NC Snow Problems, Volatile Stock Market

Yemen's Saudi-Backed Government Rejects UN Troops in Hodeida

What to Make of Angela Merkel's Successor as CDU Leader?

The Six Words That Got Marc Lamont Hill Fired from CNN

Tanzania President Magufuli Comes Under Attack Over Censorship

Ukrainian Navy Commander Dismisses Russia's Provocation Charge

This report was published on YouTube on December 9.

GCC Summit Opens in Riyadh Amid Gulf Crisis

This report was published on YouTube on December 9.

Migrant Caravan Causing Mexico Businesses to Suffer

This report was published on YouTube on December 9.

Black People More Likely to Be Targets of Force by Toronto Police: Ontario Human Rights Commission

Rohingya Human Rights Network Says Canada and International Community 'Failed the Rohingya'

Global News: Fareed Khan of the Rohingya Human Rights Network said on Monday that Canada has taken commendable action towards the Rohingya crisis recently. However, But Khan also criticized Canada and the international community for not acting sooner even though data was available last year. He said that they "failed the Rohingya" when they “watched from the sidelines as the Myanmar government unleashed genocidal horrors.”

Theresa May to Address Parliament Amid Reports Brexit Vote Postponed

Canada-China Free Trade Deal Unlikely After Huawei CFO Arrest

This report was published on December 9.

In Memoriam: Faizal Coto, FDNY

Residents Suffer as Only 8% of N.Y. Nursing Homes Comply with Proposed Staffing Law

 

By Lou Michel 

Understaffing is a common problem in many of the worst-rated nursing homes in Western New York.

Residents in these facilities often must wait long periods to be taken to the bathroom, have their diapers changed or receive assistance in being fed, according to their relatives.

A proposed state bill would require nursing homes and hospitals to maintain specific minimum staffing ratios for nurses and certified nursing assistants. At present, these facilities are required only to have “sufficient" staffing levels.

The bill, which passed in the Assembly in 2016 but was not voted on by the Senate, is expected to gain more support when Democrats take control of both chambers next year, according to two legislators representing Buffalo.

Under the bill, each nursing home's registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants would have to spend a total of 291 minutes a day with each resident, on average.

Only 49 of the 619 nursing homes in New York State — or 8 percent — now meet the proposed law's ratio, according to data from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Click here for the full article. 

Source: The Buffalo News (via Empire Report New York)

Charter Spectrum CEO Says Company Using Tax Breaks to Buy Back Its Own Stock

 Thomas Rutledge

This report was originally published on December 5. 

By Phillip Dampier

Charter Communications is using the benefits of the Republican-promoted tax cut to buy back its own stock, because the only other option under consideration was using the money to buy up other cable operators.

“From a [mergers and acquisitions] perspective, I think cable is a great business. If there were assets for sale that we could do more of, we would do that,” said Charter Communications CEO Thomas Rutledge at this week’s UBS Global Media & Communications Conference. “We’ve been buying a lot of our own stock back. Why? Because we think the cable business is a great business and we haven’t been able to buy other cable assets.”

Charter is not using the company’s lower tax rate to benefit Spectrum customers with lower bills or more extravagant upgrades. Instead, it is accelerating efforts to please shareholders and executives with efforts to boost its share price — something key to top executives’ performance bonuses.

Click here for the full article. 

Source: Stop the Cap

In Memoriam: Wilfred DeFour, Tuskegee Airman

Beloved Harlem Resident Was 100

Click here for details. 

Source: The New York Daily News