President Trump Meets with Congressman Elijah Cummings

On March 8, President Trump met with Congressman Elijah Cummings (D-MD) in the Oval Office to discuss rising prescription drug prices. This meeting was a result of a January telephone conversation, during which Congressman Cummings said that he and the President, “had more in common than differences.” President Trump expressed his desire to work with Congressman Cummings in a bipartisan fashion to ensure prescription drug prices are more affordable for all Americans, especially those who need lifesaving prescription medications. Reforming the Food and Drug Administration and reducing the regulatory burdens on drug manufacturers so as to enhance competition will help accomplish those goals. President Trump also offered his condolences to Congressman Cummings and his longtime staffer, Katie Malone, who lost six of her children in January in a tragic house fire. 

Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary

White House on Levinson Disappearance: 'We Will Not Rest Until This Case is Resolved'

  Sean Spicer

Statement from the Press Secretary on the Ten-Year
Anniversary of the Disappearance of Robert Levinson

Today, we mark the ten-year anniversary of the disappearance of United States citizen Robert “Bob” Levinson from Kish Island, Iran.  The Trump Administration remains unwavering in our commitment to locate Mr. Levinson and bring him home.  We want him back, and we will spare no effort to achieve that goal. 

The Levinson family has suffered far too much during the last decade due to the absence of Mr. Levinson, a loving father, brother, husband, grandfather, and friend to many.  Each and every day, but especially today, our hearts are with the Levinson family.  We will not rest until this case is resolved.

We encourage anyone with information about this case to contact the FBI at http://tips.fbi.gov  or email the FBI at levinsonfbireward@ic.fbi.gov.  A $5 million reward is available for information that leads to Mr. Levinson’s location and safe return.  All information provided will be kept confidential, and information can be provided anonymously. 

Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary

Is Conspiracy Queen Louise Mensch Right About Donald Trump?

Louise Mensch, former Tory MP and relentless controversialist, is thrilled at being at the center of Donald Trump’s Russian-related meltdown.

By Lloyd Grove

An unlikely protagonist—or, depending on one’s perspective, anti-hero—has emerged from the delirious drama surrounding the charges of Russia’s collusion with Donald Trump’s campaign in its hacking of last year’s presidential election and Trump’s unsubstantiated claim that he was illegally wiretapped on orders of Barack Obama.

It’s British-born controversialist Louise Mensch, founder of the Rupert Murdoch-backed website Heat Street as well as a former Tory member of Parliament, who last November, the night before the balloting, authored a barely noticed story that has suddenly engulfed the political universe.

The 45-year-old Mensch, a resident of Manhattan’s Upper West Side with her three children and rock band-manager husband, is a former record-company publicist and chick-lit novelist who is better known for spinning outlandish conspiracy theories than for her investigative-reporting chops.

But it was her Nov. 7 piece on Heat Street—which claimed the FBI obtained a secret warrant last October to monitor communications between Trump Tower and two Russian-connected banks—that provoked the president into a Twitter meltdown that continues to reverberate, with White House demands for a congressional investigation and a report that Obama is “livid” with anger at Trump’s accusation.

“I was really thrilled,” Mensch told The Daily Beast on Wednesday about the president’s reaction, “because I thought he was simply admitting that my story was true.” 

Click here for the full article.

Source: The Daily Beast

Lessons to Be Learned: The Rise of the Nazis

Source: HISTORY

Saving Our Youth: The Anti-Violence Project (AVP)

AVP empowers lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and HIV-affected communities and allies to end all forms of violence through organizing and education, and supports survivors through counseling and advocacy.

AVP excels in providing unique and critical services at the intersection of violence prevention and equality for LGBTQ and HIV-affected people. AVP's strengths include supporting survivors of violence and organizing communities around violence prevention, leadership and access at the local and national levels, credibility with community and funder circles, and robust finances and human resources. One cornerstone of the Goals and Strategies of this strategic plan is retaining this excellence and strength and maintaining the programs that form the core of the organization.

Click here for additional information. 

Source: http://www.avp.org/

Trailblazers in Black History: Faith Ringgold

Faith Ringgold is an African-American artist, best known for her narrative quilts. 

Faith Ringgold was born the youngest of three children on October 8, 1930 in Harlem Hospital, New York City. Her parents, Andrew Louis Jones and Willie Posey Jones, descended from working-class families displaced by the Great Migration. Because her mother was a fashion designer and father an avid storyteller, Ringgold was exposed to creativity from an early age. 

After the Harlem Renaissance, Ringgold’s childhood home in Harlem was left with a vibrant and thriving arts scene. Figures like Duke Ellington and Langston Hughes lived just around the corner from her home.Her childhood friend, Sonny Rollins, who would later become a prominent jazz musician, often visited her family and practiced his saxophone at their parties. Because of her chronic asthma, Ringold explored visual art as a major pastime through the support of her mother, often experimenting with crayons as a young girl.

Additional information is available here. 

Source: Wikipedia

FCC Investigating Coast-to-Coast 911 Outage for AT&T Wireless Users

by Alex Johnson and Christoper Essner

The Federal Communications Commission is investigating a brief but an apparently nationwide outage of 911 service for customers of AT&T, its chairman said Wednesday night.

A spokesperson for AT&T confirmed to NBC News late Wednesday that the company encountered a "service issue" that affected "some calls to 911 for wireless customers." A few minutes later, the company tweeted that service had been restored for all customers. 

The company didn't say how widespread the outage was, but as reports poured in from across the country, Karima Holmes, director of unified communications for the Washington, D.C., government, said her office had been "advised there is a nationwide outage for AT&T."  

Click here for the full article. 

Source: NBC News

What EPA‘s Scott Pruitt Means for Environmental Policy and Regulation

This video was published on YouTube on February 17, 2017. 

The Senate confirmed Scott Pruitt as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, despite Democratic attempts to delay voting to review his emails with energy executives. As Oklahoma attorney general, Pruitt repeatedly sued the EPA. Hari Sreenivasan talks to Myron Ebell of Competitive Enterprise Institute and Jeremy Symons from the Environmental Defense Fund about what to expect.

Source: PBS NewsHour

U.S. Marines Enter Syria to Aid Fight for ISIS’ Capital Raqqa

by Courtney Kube and Alastair Jamieson

U.S. Marines have arrived in Syria to support local forces in the battle for Raqqa — the effective capital of ISIS — several U.S. defense officials told NBC News late Wednesday.

A group from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived deployed with M777 Howitzers, capable of firing 155mm shells, to assist the coalition of militias collectively known as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). 

Click here for the full article. 

Source: NBC News 

Bitcoin Explained: Why Should We Care About an SEC Decision?

What is a bitcoin? 

It is a digital currency or cryptocurrency. This means you cannot find it in physical notes or coins. Many companies have tried to create physical bitcoins, without success.

Bitcoins exist in the digital world of thousands of computers, organised in “blocks,” that process the transactions. The database technology underlying bitcoin is called blockchain – a type of software that works as an account ledger on computers all over the world.

An increasing number of entrepreneurs believe blockchain, which can circumvent the need for big financial intermediaries, will challenge traditional payment systems. Various banks are investing large sums to explore how blockchain could revolutionise payment systems and cut costs.

The currency also exists in the electronic wallets of people that possess bitcoins.

Payments are sent directly, securely and potentially anonymously between two people’s digital wallets, whereas all mainstream transactions, including those using intermediaries like Paypal and credit card lenders, run through banks and usually require named accounts and verification. 

Click here for the full article.

Source: euronews.

Wikileaks to Give Details of CIA Hacking Tools to Tech Companies

Wikileaks’ disclosure of documents appearing to outline secret CIA phone- and gadget-hacking tools has caused concern both in the US and at tech companies worldwide.

Now, the anti-secrecy group’s founder, Julian Assange, has said details of the CIA’s hacking mechanisms will be handed over to tech companies.

He has accused the CIA of “devastating incompetence” regarding the affair.

American authorities say the security breach was likely carried out by contractors and the intelligence community had been aware of it since the end of last year.

Experts, such as the University of Southern California’s Professor Clifford Neuman, have urged caution. 

Click here for summary/video.

Source: euronews.

Self-Harm, Drugs, Suicide: The Future of Syria's Children?

 

By Catherine Hardy

“There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.”

Nelson Mandela‘s famous quote offers a sobering reflection on the effect the long-running conflict in Syria is having on its children.

Youngsters living in the war-torn country are self-harming, taking drugs and attempting suicide to escape the horrors they have endured after six years of conflict, according to a new report by Save the Children.

The charity says one in four, or around 2.5 million, are on the brink of developing a mental health disorder. 

Click here for the full article. 

Source: euronews.

Trump and Russia – What Foreign Policy Experts Want Him to Do

By Dr. Stefan Grobe

In Donald Trump’s Washington these days, how to deal with Russia is not a diplomatic topic, but boils down to one question: who in the Trump camp spoke to which Russian at which time and then denied it happened?

It’s a constantly changing story that already produced some collateral damage.

Trump’s first National Security Advisor Michael Flynn was forced to resign after just weeks in office and Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from any investigation related to Russia’s covert activity to undermine the 2016 US presidential election.

But there is another, less publicized story and that is the shock and horror within Washington’s foreign policy establishment that Trump is shattering the longtime consensus for treating Russia as a bitter enemy.

Trump repeatedly praised Vladimir Putin and even mocked the US intelligence community’s assessment that Russia hacked into the computer system of his opponents at the Democratic Party. 

Click here for the full article.

Source: euronews.

Turkish - German Relations Remain Tense

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Chancellor Angela Merkel

Relations between Germany and Turkey are still far from friendly despite attempts in Berlin to lessen tensions.

In Ankara President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged Turkish voters living abroad not to be put off casting their ballots in the country’s upcoming referendum despite so-called “obstacles“being put in place in countries like Germany .

“Those votes you cast will be the best response, not just to all the countries in the West, but to all the countries in the world. God willing April 16 will be the day that my citizens who have been hindered in the West and around the world will also celebrate.”

Turkey is targeting millions of its expatriate voters eligible to cast a ballot in the referendum – including 1.4million in Germany.

Click here for summary/video.

Source: euronews. 

Welfare for Politicians

By TU Editorial Board

Are state taxpayers footing the bill for lawmakers’ campaign staffs? Sure looks like it.

For years, many New York lawmakers have rejected idea of public financing of political campaigns, even though it could reduce the corrupting influence of campaign donations. Taxpayers, they argue, should not have to foot the bill for politicians to run for office.

And yet, that’s exactly what taxpayers are doing — thanks to some of those very same lawmakers.

For a hint of how this political welfare works, consider this statistic: One out of four staffers in the state Senate is a notary public.

There may be some innocent reasons for this, but there is one noteworthy political benefit: By law, notary publics can gather signatures for nominating petitions without having to belong to a particular political party. That’s a big deal in New York, where even a small third party ballot line can help in a close race.

The challenge for politicians is getting those signatures. Small parties usually have few field workers. So all those notaries public in the Legislature — at least 360 — come in handy. 

Click here for the full article. 

Source: timesunion.com (via The Empire Report)

Chuck Schumer, 2 GOP Presidential Hopefuls Top List of Wall Street Political Donations

 

By Andrew Joyce

The 2016 election was full of hotly contested debates about which candidates where beholden to lobbyists and big financial special interests, but without much clarity. A new report takes square aim at answering those questions by finding out which candidates received the most financial support from Wall Street.

The report is by Americans for Financial Reform, a nonpartisan coalition of advocacy groups that advocates for a safe and stable financial system, and found that the top recipient of money from the financial sector was Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), with $8,687,969 raised between his campaign and PACs supporting him. The politicians with the second- and third-most contributions were Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) with $5,482,011, and now-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) with $5,345,563.

Schumer's position at the top of the list is notable for several reasons. Unlike Rubio and Cruz, Schumer was not running a presidential campaign. As national races with higher profiles, presidential campaigns tend to garner significantly higher levels of contributions. What's more, Schumer's Senate race was one of the least competitive in the country. 

Click here for the full article.

Source: Policy.Mic (via The Empire Report)

GOP Health Care Plan Would Put City Hospitals in 'Tremendous Danger,'

By Erin Durkin, Cameron Joseph, Glenn Blain and Kenneth Lovett

The House GOP plan to repeal and replace Obamacare could cost already cash-strapped city hospitals hundreds of millions of dollars and potentially blow a multi-billion dollar hole in future state budgets, officials said Wednesday.

The state would have time to prepare since the House plan wouldn’t go into effect until the end of 2019.

Even so, Mayor de Blasio warned it would have a "devastating" impact on 1.6 million city residents and pose a "tremendous danger" to the city's hospital system.

"The discussions in Washington seem to leave out how devastating the impact would be on 1.6 million New Yorkers, and tens of millions of Americans," the mayor said.

Click here for the full article.

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

White House Press Briefing

Spokesman Sean Spicer briefs reporters and responds to their questions on a variety of topics, including Affordable Care Act replacement legislation, reports that Wikileaks has revealed CIA hacking methods, and women’s strikes around the country.

Click here for video.

Source: C-SPAN

Civil Rights Groups Meet With Jeff Sessions, Voice Concerns Over DOJ Actions, Civil Rights Issues

Source: Roland Martin

State Department Briefing

Acting Spokesman Mark Toner briefs reporters and responds to their questions on a variety of international topics, including the conflict in Syria and North Korean ballistic missile launches.

Click here for video.

Source: C-SPAN

Nancy Pelosi Calls for CBO Cost Estimate for ACA Replacement Bill

 

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) says committees should not move forward on Affordable Care Act replacement legislation until the CBO provides a cost estimate for the bill. This comes as two House committees hold markups.

Click here for video. 

Source: C-SPAN

Honoring Lynne Stewart

Stewart at Humanist Hall in Berkeley, California, for Mumia
Abu Jamal's book release of Jailhouse Lawyers on April 24, 2009

By Noelle Hanrahan

"This struggle may be a moral one, or it may be a physical one, and it may be both moral and physical, but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will."   - Frederick Douglas

On Match 7, at 7:00 p.m. in New York, Lynne Stewart passed away. Today, sitting with Ralph, Ginny, and Don, Lynne - barely able to talk - said to me, “Don’t cry”. 

Our memories of Lynne include her blue ribbon apple, blueberry, and rhubarb pie- just ask me and her grandkids.   

Way back before she went to prison in 2002, we sat recording a piece at Prison Radio. I had her read a William O Douglas quote. She looked at me, winked and smiled. She said, “You know Noelle, he is not Irish”. I turned bright red and just about bust a gut laughing. Being 100% Irish, I assumed William O. Douglas was Irish. Listen here.

 Stewart with her husband, Ralph Poynter, after stepping off the plane at
LaGuardia Airport. She returned home from prison on December 31, 2013.

One night, we were having dinner at my house in San Francisco, and I said I would bring strawberries and whipped cream to the table. Some time later, Lynne yells upstairs, “Tell Noelle she isn’t going to be able to whip the cream, the person she sent out to get it brought back half and half.” 

Lynne Stewart had a number of amazing qualities- she was a compass for the truth with a bitter wit that could cut to the quick. She, like Judi Bari, was a woman unwilling to suffer fools.

She put a a bright white hot spotlight on justice.

Under indictment, she spoke out for political prisoners. While appealing her sentence, she spoke out for Mumia. 
 

Her example is courageous. She followed in the tradition of John Brown and Marilyn Buck. She believed in the humanity and the promise of freedom for all, and she fought every single day to make sure that our political prisoners were represented. 

For those who would like to make a donation to help Lynne's family or the "Lynne Stewart Organization", click here. 

You may also send contributions to the following address: 

Lynne Stewart Organization
1070 Dean Street
Brooklyn, NY 11216

‘Worst Drought for Nearly Two Centuries’ Threatens Somaliland’s Children

Rageh Omaar, of NBC News’ partner ITN, has travelled to Somaliland to witness the devastating effects of three consecutive years of failed rains.

Uproar After Gay Veterans Group Denied Spot in Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade

Source: CBS News

President Trump Leads a Meeting with the U.S. House Deputy Whip Team

Date of event: March 7, 2017

Roland Martin Blasts HUD Secretary Dr. Ben Carson For Saying Slaves Were Immigrants

Source: Roland Martin

The 'I Am Woman' Series: Sweet Honey in The Rock

In Honor of International Women's Day

Sweet Honey In The Rock® is a performance ensemble rooted in African American history and culture. The ensemble educates, entertains and empowers its audience and community through the dynamic vehicles of a cappella singing and American Sign Language interpretation for the Deaf and hearing impaired. 

Sweet Honey’s audience and community comes from diverse backgrounds and cultures throughout the United States and around the world, and includes people of all ages, economic/education/social backgrounds, political persuasions, religious affiliations, sexual preferences and differing abilities. 

Click here for additional information. 

Source: http://sweethoneyintherock.org/ 

Trailblazers in Black History: John D. Robinson

John D. Robinson is a retired psychologist and Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry and Surgery at Howard University College of Medicine. 

In 1973, Robinson became the first African-American psychologist in the U.S. Air Force, and, in 1975, the first African-American psychologist in the U.S. Navy. 

He also served as the first African-American administrator at the University of Texas at Austin. 

Additional information is available here. 

Source: Wikipedia

Chance the Rapper Joins Long List of Celebrities Who Give Big to Education

With his $1 million pledge to Chicago public schools, Chance the Rapper joins the likes of Mark Zuckerberg, LeBron James, Taylor Swift and many more who have promised to support education.

Some Conservative Groups Pan GOP's Obamacare Repeal and Replacement Plan

Sen. Franken: AG Sessions 'Perjured Himself'

Senator Franken says that Attorney General Jeff Sessions 'perjured himself' during his Senate confirmation hearing when he stated that he did not have communications with the Russians.

Former CIA Director: Wikileaks Dump Could Be 'Very Damaging'

Wikileaks claims their latest document release revealse important CIA hacking secrets. Former CIA Director Gen. Michael Hayden joins to discuss.

Comey: FBI Couldn’t Access Hundreds of Devices Because of Encryption

 

by Tom Winter and Tracy Connor

FBI Director James Comey said Wednesday the bureau is renewing its focus on the challenges posed by the growing use of encryption.

At Boston College's cybersecurity conference Wednesday, Comey said that he a fan of "strong encryption" but noted that "it is making more and more of the room of what the FBI investigates dark."

Between September and November, the FBI received 2,800 devices it had lawful authority to open but could not open 1,200 of them "with any technique," he said. 

Click here for the full article. 

Source: NBC News 

Gunmen Disguised as Doctors Attack Military Hospital

China Approves 38 New Trump Trademarks for His Businesses

 

by The Associated Press

SHANGHAI — China has granted preliminary approval for 38 new Trump trademarks, paving the way for President Donald Trump and his family to develop a host of branded businesses from hotels to insurance to bodyguard and escort services, public documents show.

Trump's lawyers in China applied for the marks in April 2016, as Trump railed against China at campaign rallies, accusing it of currency manipulation and stealing U.S. jobs. Critics maintain that Trump's swelling portfolio of China trademarks raises serious conflict of interest questions.

China's Trademark Office published the provisional approvals on Feb. 27 and Monday.

If no one objects, they will be formally registered after 90 days. All but three are in the president's own name. China already registered one trademark to the president, for Trump-branded construction services, on Feb. 14. 

Click here for the full article.

Source: NBC News  

China Proposes Deal to Ease Tensions Over North Korean Missiles

 

by Alex Johnson

China warned of a "head-on collision" Wednesday unless North Korea stops launching banned missiles and the United States and South Korea halt their joint military exercises.

"The two sides are like two accelerating trains coming toward each other, with neither side willing to give way," Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in Beijing at his annual news conference for the opening of the National People's Congress, China's parliament.

"The question is: Are the two sides really ready for a head-on collision?" Wang said. "Our priority now is to flash the red light and apply brakes on both trains." 

Click here for the full article. 

Source: NBC News  

N. Korean Leader's Nephew Speaks Out on Airport Murder

Some People Suspected Lady Liberty Went Dark for #InternationalWomensDay

Source: Business Insider

Cuomo Remarks on 'International Women’s Day'

 

“International Women’s Day celebrates women and their contributions around the world. In New York, our legacy of advancing equal rights dates back to the birth of the women's rights movement in Seneca Falls in 1848 and continues to this day. This year we commemorate the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in New York state—passed in 1917, three years before the 19th amendment made women’s suffrage the law of the land nationwide.

“Today, we honor women by working to ensure New York remains a leader of equality, setting a standard for the rest of the nation and world to follow. In New York, we believe that women deserve all the rights given to men. They deserve to work and learn in environments free of harassment and the right to control their own health and reproductive decisions. 

“In the past year alone, we passed the most comprehensive paid family leave program, strengthened protections to ensure equal pay for equal work and took decisive action to guarantee access to reproductive health care. We will continue to work to safeguard and advance equal rights.

“On International Women’s Day, we recognize our past and celebrate the future by honoring female leadership and teaching future generations of women that they can do anything. While much has been accomplished, we still have a long way to go in ensuring full gender equality. Rest assured, New York will not waiver in our commitment to women’s rights, and we will stand tall with all women to move our progress forward.” 

Source: Press Office, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

SPLC Announces Pro Bono Project to Protect Rights of Detained Immigrants

The following statement was submitted by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) . 

We've just launched an important new project to protect the rights of immigrants who are being caught up in the Trump dragnet.

They're people like Daniela Vargas, a young woman who has lived in Mississippi most of her life after being brought here from Argentina when she was just 7.

Daniela was previously protected under the DACA program that began under President Obama. But her permission expired in November, and she couldn't pay the $495 fee to renew it until last month.

Last week, she spoke at a press conference about her hopes of being able to stay and contribute to the only country she knows.

Minutes later – in a transparent attempt to chill free speech and intimidate immigrants who speak up – ICE agents grabbed her and locked her away in a remote facility in Louisiana.

The government claims Daniela's not even entitled to a hearing before she is sent back to Argentina.

We've just filed papers in court to seek her release and to protect her free speech and due process rights.

But there are many more people – mothers, fathers, neighbors, employees, classmates, church members – being taken from their families and thrown into prison-like detention facilities. The vast majority aren't "criminals" or "rapists," as President Trump has called them.

And most of them don't have lawyers. That means their constitutional rights are often trampled in immigration courts that are part of the deportation machine.

That's why we've started the Southeast Immigrant Freedom Initiative (SIFI).

We’re planning to enlist and train hundreds of pro bono lawyers to provide free representation to every immigrant in a Southeastern detention facility.

Immigrants deserve fair and humane treatment. At the same time, we have to protect our nation's most fundamental values.

If you are an attorney interested in volunteering your services to this project, please sign up here.

But if you're not an attorney, please do what you can to speak up for justice. And thank you for supporting this vital work.