Video courtesy of NorfolkSheriffVideo.
Friday, May 6, 2016
'Flashback Friday': Chaos at the 1968 Democratic Convention
Will history repeat itself during the 2016 GOP convention in Cleveland, Ohio?
The Young Turks: Bushes Won’t Back Trump
Published on YouTube on May 5, 2016.
Donald Trump’s nomination is upsetting the Republican establishment.
Both Presidents Bush won’t say they if they will endorse Trump. John
Iadarola, Ben Mankiewicz, hosts of The Young Turks, break it down.
Video courtesy of TYT.
Why the Media Got it Wrong About Trump and Sanders Phenomena
Fed up? Yes, the American people are fed up. You know that. Many of
you are fed up or know someone who is. For the last 10 months or so,
the media missed that and are just now coming around to see it. Yes, da!
The media didn’t “get” the Donald Trump or Senator Bernie Sanders phenomena because so many in the media are way out of touch with the American people. They look at politics through their own eyes, and the eyes of their media colleagues and not the eyes of the American people. If you don’t see (really see) the simmering discontent, if you don’t see (really see) the fear, you are going to call it wrong. It is like a vision impaired person watching a tennis match without his glasses.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Huffington Post
First Read: Battleground Map Shows Disadvantages for Trump
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.
NBC battleground map: Trump, GOP begin with disadvantage:
In our first general-election battleground map of
the 2016 race, Hillary Clinton and Democrats start with the advantage,
while Donald Trump and Republicans are playing catch up.
Click here for the full article.
Priebus: Ryan 'Wants to Get There' on Trump Endorsement
Republican National Committee Chair Reince
Priebus said Friday that House Speaker Paul Ryan is still prepared to
"work through" his reservations about supporting Donald Trump, leaving
the door open to an eventual endorsement by the former vice presidential
pick.
"He wants to get there," Priebus said at a breakfast sponsored by POLITICO Playbook in Washington D.C.
Priebus said he spoke with Ryan "multiple times"
on Thursday after Ryan announced that he was "not ready" to publicly
back Trump.
"Paul's just being honest with how he feels," Priebus said, adding that Ryan "just wants some time to just work through it."
Click here for the full article.
Source: NBC News
University Expels 2, Suspends 1 Accused of Lying About 'Racial Attack'
Two New York college students were expelled and a third was
suspended for two years after they allegedly lied about a supposed
racially motivated incident aboard an Albany bus, the university's
president said Thursday.
The expulsions and suspension comes one day
after State University of New York at Albany students Ariel Agudio, Asha
Burwell and Alexis Briggs, all 20 years old, pleaded not guilty to
misdemeanor charges of assault and falsely reporting an incident.
Agudio and Burwell were dismissed from the
university, and Briggs was suspended for two years for violating the
student code of conduct, University President Robert J. Jones said in a
message to the campus community Thursday.
Click here for the full article.
North Korea Opens Biggest Political Gathering in Nearly 4 Decades
For the first time in nearly 40 years, North Korea is holding a congress
of its ruling Workers’ Party. It’s a rare look inside the country as
leader Kim Jong Un meets with top officials amid speculation that a new
generation of leaders could soon be put into place. NBC chief global
correspondent Bill Neely reports from Pyongyang.
Click here for video.
Source: NBC News
Turkish Editor Says Journalism on Trial as Court Set to Rule
Reuters, 06/05 16:23 CET
By Ayla Jean Yackley
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – A
prominent Turkish newspaper editor said on Friday journalism was on
trial as he gave his final defense against charges of revealing state
secrets in a case that has drawn international criticism of the EU
candidate’s press freedom record.
A verdict was expected later in the day in the closed-door trial.
Can Dundar, editor-in-chief of Cumhuriyet newspaper, and
Erdem Gul, its Ankara bureau chief, could face life in jail on espionage
charges and attempting to topple the government for publishing footage
that purported to show Turkey’s state intelligence agency ferrying
weapons into Syria in 2014.
Their lawyers said the prosecutor did not seek the
espionage charge in his closing statement, but nonetheless called for
Dundar to be jailed for 25 years for procuring and revealing state
secrets and Gul for to be jailed for 10 years for publishing them.
“We are now on trial for our story: for acquiring and
publishing state secrets,” Dundar told Reuters during a court recess.
“This confirms journalism is on trial, making our defense easier and a
conviction harder.”
Click here for the full article.
Source: Euronews
Netanyahu to Host Seminar on Jewish History for U.N. Diplomats
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Reuters, 06/05 15:56 CET
By Luke Baker
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel’s
prime minister has invited all United Nations staff in Israel to attend a
seminar on Jewish history, after a decision by a U.N. cultural body
that failed to acknowledge Jewish ties to Jerusalem’s holiest site.
In the decision last month, UNESCO
condemned Israel for security restrictions and other measures at the
site, known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif or the al-Aqsa compound and to
Jews as Temple Mount. UNESCO referred to it only by its Arabic name.
“I was shocked to hear that UNESCO
adopted a decision denying any Jewish connection to the Temple Mount,
our holiest site,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a
statement.
“It is hard to believe that anyone, let alone an organization tasked with preserving history, could deny this link, which
spans thousands of years.”
Click here for the full article.
Source: Euronews
Security Forces Shut Down Baghdad to Prevent Green Zone Protests
Reuters, 06/05 14:51 CET
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi security forces
ramped up their presence across Baghdad on Friday, blocking most major
roads and bridges to keep followers of Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada
al-Sadr from reaching the government district they stormed a week
earlier.
A Sadr representative meanwhile called on supporters to
rally outside local mosques following afternoon prayers, rather than
gathering near the heavily fortified Green Zone, a move which could
reduce the risk of clashes.
The demonstrations are aimed at pressuring Prime Minister
Haider al-Abadi to follow through on months-old promises to replace
party-affiliated ministers with independent technocrats as part of an
anti-corruption drive.
Click here for the full article.
Source: Euronews
Helicopters, Trucks Set to Remove Thousands North of Canadian Wildfire
Reuters, 06/05 14:34 CET
By Rod Nickel and Liz Hampton
CONKLIN/LAC LA BICHE
(Reuters) – Canada’s government sent trucks and helicopters on Friday
to safely remove thousands of evacuees stranded north of a wildfire that
ravaged nearly a quarter million acres around the Canadian oil town of
Fort McMurray, Alberta.
The out-of-control wildfire has consumed entire
neighborhoods in Fort McMurray, forcing 88,000 to evacuate, and
threatened two oil sands sites south of the city. While the main fire
have turned southeast, away from town, parts of Fort McMurray were still
burning.
“Things have calmed down in the city a little bit, but
guys are out as we speak, fighting fires, trying to protect your
property,” said local fire chief Darby Allen in a video message to
residents posted late in the evening.
“The beast is still up, it’s surrounding the city, and we’re here doing our very best for you.”
Click here for the full article.
Source: Euronews
‘I Dream of a Europe Where Being a Migrant is Not a Crime’ – Pope Receives Charlemagne Prize
Pope Francis
has called for Europe to remember its founding values, as he received
the Charlemagne Prize for his contribution to European unity.
In a speech heavily referencing Europe’s past, the Pope asked ‘What
has happened to you, Europe?’ He said remembering the past would ‘free
us from today’s temptation to build hastily on the shifting sands of
immediate results, which may produce “quick and easy short-term
political gains, but do not enhance human fulfillment”.
Click here for summary.
Source: Euronews
Wednesday, May 4, 2016
President Obama Addresses Residents in Flint, Michigan
President Obama spoke at Northwestern High School in Flint, Michigan, following a discussion with the city’s residents.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
Statement by President Obama on Holocaust Remembrance Day
Today,
on Yom HaShoah, we solemnly remember the six million Jews and the
millions of others murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust.
On
this day, we honor the memory of the millions of individuals – the
mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, friends and neighbors – who
lost their lives during a time
of unparalleled depravity and inhumanity. We reaffirm our ongoing
responsibility as citizens and as a nation to live out the admonition,
“Never forget. Never again.” And we commit ourselves to preserving the
memories of those who lived through the horrors
of the Shoah, so that their experiences are not forgotten by our
generation or by our children or grandchildren.
We
also honor those who survived the Holocaust, many of them spared from
death because of the righteous individuals who risked their lives to
save Jews and other victims
from Nazi persecution. The stories of these survivors and their
protectors remind us to confront persecution wherever it arises, and
that silence can be an accomplice to evil. They remind us of our duty
to counter the rising tide of anti-Semitism, bigotry
and hatred that threaten the values we hold dear—pluralism, diversity,
and the freedoms of religion and expression.
Today,
and every day, we stand in solidarity with the Jewish community both at
home and abroad. We stand with those who are leaving the European
cities where they have
lived for generations because they no longer feel safe, with the
members of institutions that have been attacked because of their Jewish
affiliations, and with the college students forced to confront swastikas
appearing on their campuses. And we call upon
all people of good will to be vigilant and vocal against every form of
bigotry.
When
we recognize our interconnectedness and the fundamental dignity and
equality of every human being, we help to build a world that is more
accepting, secure and free.
This is the best way to honor the legacy we recognize on Yom HaShoah
and to fulfill our responsibilities to repair our world from generation
to generation.
Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary
FTG Spotlight Feature: Preserving the History of the Holocaust: Rabbi Marvin Hier Discuss Treblinka's Legacy
U.S. Service Members Killed in Iraq: An Analysis of the Fight Against the Islamic State
The Heritage Foundation’s James Jay Carafano discusses news that a Navy
SEAL was killed in Iraq Tuesday, the third U.S. service member to die in
the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) since 2014.
Click here for video.
C-SPAN
Note: From The G-Man proudly salutes the four service members that were killed with the following video tribute. May they forever rest in peace.
State Department Briefing
Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner briefs reporters and responds to their
questions on a variety of international topics, including calls by
Secretary Kerry for a reaffirming the cessation of hostilities in the
war in Syria.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
Ralph Nader on Campaign 2016
Former Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader discusses his upcoming book, Breaking Through Power: It’s Easier Than We Think, as well as the latest developments in the 2016 presidential election.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
Discussion on Government Surveillance and Privacy Concerns
New York Law School professor Nadine Strossen and David Rivkin, with the
Foundation for Defense of Democracies, discuss Internet privacy and
government surveillance, as well as surveillance carried out by
businesses.
Click here for video.
Source: C-SPAN
GOP, Welcome Your New Trump Overlord
Photo illustration by Emil Lendof/The Daily Beast
By Olivia Nuzzi
No more Lyin’ Ted—with
the path to the nomination clear, both Trump and the GOP know the fun
and games are over. So what do they do now?
On the night he got everything he said he wanted, Donald Trump looked miserable.
He entered the lobby of Trump Tower through the hallway, wearing a blue suit and royal blue tie. His wife, Melania, and his three older children, Ivanka, Eric, and Don Jr., and their respective spouses were by his side. He had just won Indiana and with that, effectively, the Republican presidential nomination itself, but he was acting like a loser.
He spoke quietly and slowly. His eyes squinted more than usual. It seemed as though the gravity of the position he now finds himself in—leader of the Republican Party, rival to Hillary Clinton, possible president of the United States—was weighing directly on his face, which was, in the patriotic red, white, and blue light, a pale shade of orange.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Daily Beast
Man with a Mission: The Tireless Nazi Hunter Efraim Zuroff
By Paul Alster
Halfway through my interview with Efraim
Zuroff, famed Nazi hunter and head of the Jerusalem office of the Simon
Wiesenthal Center (SWC), we took a 10-minute break. He left to participate in
afternoon prayers at a synagogue across the road. When he returned, we resumed
our conversation and I asked what he plans to do when he retires.
“Oh, I’m going to move to Tahiti, sit under a coconut tree, and drink Piña Coladas,” he smiled, easing back in his chair.
“But you wouldn’t find a minyan there for prayers, would you?” I ventured to suggest.
“OK,” he says with a hearty laugh. “Now that’s a problem. Listen, I’m 67, and I consider myself very lucky as I’m one of those people who enjoy what they are doing and feel they are doing something important.”
He has no intention of being sent out to pasture just yet.
Few would argue with the statement that the task of attempting to bring Nazis to justice has been tremendously important, but enjoyable? Is it a vocation one can enjoy? Surely, you have to be somewhat obsessive to dig and dig, ferreting out mass murderers.
“I may be a lot of things,” he tells The Jerusalem Report, “but obsessive is not one of them. I realized from the get-go that this is the kind of subject that can destroy a person. If you let this subject take over your life, you are in big trouble. I’ve managed to avoid that ‒ until last summer.”
In summer 2015, Zuroff co-authored a groundbreaking book “Our Own,” together with popular Lithuanian writer Rūta Vanagaitė. The book, dealing with Lithuanian complicity in the mass murder of Jews during the Holocaust, was published on January 26. It caused a sensation in Lithuania and the original 2,500 copies sold out within 48 hours of its release. A much bigger reprint has been ordered and the signs are it could prove an unexpected best seller in a country that at last may be ready to look at itself in the mirror.
Zuroff has worn his heart on his sleeve for almost 40 years, ruffling feathers
in the highest places, determinedly taking on governments and figures of
authority, many of whom wanted nothing more than to sweep the crimes of their
society under the carpet and get on with creating a new order.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Jerusalem Post
Cuomo Takes Action to Improve Child Care Program Safety
Governor Andrew Cuomo today announced
that he is advancing legislation to bring more aggressive enforcement tools,
tougher penalties and greater transparency to the oversight of child care
programs throughout the state. The bill will also create more consistent legal
enforcement standards for state- and New York City-regulated programs and
improve parents' access to child care centers' compliance and violation
histories.
"Parents deserve to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that their child care providers are responsible and that their children are in good hands," said Governor Cuomo. "These reforms will help ensure that every child care program in this state is held accountable to the highest standards of safety, and with tougher laws we will be better able to crack down on bad actors. These are common sense measures that will make a difference across the state, and I urge the legislature to pass them this session."
Under the Governor's proposed legislation, penalties for state-regulated child care providers cited for serious violations and for providers operating illegally would be increased. The maximum fine for serious violations would increase from $500 to $5,000 a day. Enforcement standards for state- and New York City-regulated child care programs will also be better aligned, enabling the state to take more immediate enforcement action. New York City-regulated child care programs will be required to prominently post inspection reports and violation histories, as state-regulated programs already do.
Additionally, the state would be able to suspend or revoke a center’s license for a wider range of violations, including inadequate supervision, failure to maintain proper staff-to-child ratios and failure to cooperate with an inspection, as well as the injury or death of a child, or the use of corporal punishment against a child. The suspension or revocation of an operator's license at one location will trigger an immediate examination of all the operator’s other state-regulated programs and an evaluation of potential enforcement action against them. The moratorium on child care providers applying for a new license after revocation will be extended from two years to five years.
The legislation will also provide parents with the data they need to make informed choices about their child's care by improving access to compliance and violation histories through the launch of a statewide registry. Access to information is a key element in transforming the child care system and sending a strong warning to providers who would jeopardize the safety of New York's children.
New York State Office of Children and Family Services Acting Commissioner Sheila J. Poole said, "Passage of this legislation will serve to strengthen NYS's position as having one of the most stringent and comprehensive oversight systems of inspection and enforcement in the country."
There are 11,000 child care programs in New York City, including approximately 9,000 Family Day Care, Group Family Day Care and School-Age Child Care programs that the Office of Children and Family Services oversees, and some 2,000 Child Care Centers that are regulated by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Source: Press Office, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
Partnership to Provide Health Insurance to New York's Boxing Community
The NY State of Health, the State's
official health plan Marketplace, and the New York State Athletic Commission
are working together to enroll uninsured members of the State's boxing
community in affordable health plans. Health insurance enrollment events will
be held throughout New York concurrent with scheduled boxer weigh in dates this
spring.
"Boxing is a sport with a rich
history in New York, but also one that carries clear risks for men and women who
step into the ring," Governor Cuomo said. "This effort will help
ensure competitors across this state have access to the health coverage and the
proper medical treatment they need."
Many professional boxers and other
members of the boxing community living in the State are currently uninsured and
unprotected in case of injury or illness. NY State of Health certified
in-person assistors will be on hand at weigh-ns to enroll boxers and trainers
in health plans on the spot.
NY State of Health Executive Director
Donna Frescatore said, "This partnership means boxers, coaches and
trainers can easily get information about health insurance options and enroll
in a health plan immediately if eligible. We thank the New York State Athletic
Commission for their efforts, and for their commitment to making information
about affordable health insurance readily available to those in New York’s
boxing community."
New York State Athletic Commission
Executive Director David Berlin said, "We believe it is vital for boxers
to have the ability to see a doctor and maintain good health with a yearly
physical. This partnership gives boxers and others in the boxing community the
opportunity to enroll in health insurance plans through the NY State of Health
Marketplace. This is a simple, common sense effort to promote good health and
well-being."
NY State of Health in-person assistors
will hold enrollment sessions at the following events:
Weigh-Ins
May
18 – 5 P.M. – Rochester – Diplomat Party House and Diplomat Banquet Center,
1956 Lyell Avenue, Rochester, NY 14606
June
3 – 5 P.M. – Whitehall – Whitehall Athletic Club, 62 Poultney St, Whitehall, NY
12887
June
24 – 5 P.M. – Syracuse/Liverpool - Holiday Inn, Exit 37, 441 Electronics Pkwy,
Liverpool, NY 13088
Open Houses
May
13 - 3-7 P.M., Mendez Boxing, 23 E. 26 Street, New York, NY 10010
May
17 - 3-7 P.M., John's Boxing Gym, 1703 Jerome Ave, Bronx, NY 10453
May
24 - 3-7 P.M., Morris Park Boxing Club, 644 Morris Park Ave, Bronx, NY 10460
May
27 - 3-7 P.M., Gleason's Gym, 77 Front St, Brooklyn, NY 11201
Source: Press Office, Governor
Andrew M. Cuomo
Bernie Sanders and the Black Vote
The panelists at the event were Senator James Sanders Jr., a Bernie
Sanders delegate; Joel James, a college student; and Donnie Whitehead, a
community activist and Bernie Sanders supporter. (Click on the images to increase their size.)
Senator James Sanders, Jr. (D-Rochdale Village) hosted a “Bernie & the Blacks” post-primary discussion on Saturday, April 30, at the Black Spectrum Theatre in Jamaica, to discuss why Senator Bernie Sanders under performed among black voters in New York. Panelists included the senator, who is a Bernie Sanders delegate; Donnie Whitehead, a community activist and Bernie Sanders supporter; and Joel James, a college student.
Moderator A.U. Hogan, associate director of StudentsFirstNY and
president of the Baisley Houses, asked a series of thought provoking
questions seeking to determine why black voters did not "Feel the Bern."
For example, although Bernie Sanders’ economic message was inherently
related to civil rights, should he have made a more direct appeal to
black voters?
Senator James Sanders Jr. thought so. “Bernie is from the school that
believes classism created racism, and therefore classism is the real
problem to solve,” the senator explained. “While there may be truth to
that idea, racism is a beast in itself, and Bernie should have done more
to address it.”
Other suggested reasons why Bernie Sanders fell short included black
voters having a longstanding loyalty to the Clintons. Also, if elected,
former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton could be viewed as continuing
President Obama’s legacy and would be another historic step for our
country by following the election of the first black president with the
election of the first female president.
When asked if Obama should have done more to appear neutral, Whitehead
responded, “The president was not neutral,” adding that Obama strongly
implied Hillary Clinton was his preferred candidate.
Members of the audience chimed in, adding their own theories and asking
what could be done to achieve desirable outcomes in the future.
Hillary Clinton defeated Bernie Sanders by a margin of 58% to 42% in the
April 19 New York Democratic presidential primary. Among black voters,
it was around 75% to 25% in favor of Clinton.
Source: The Office of State Senator James Sanders, Jr.
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