Father used 11 y/o as drug mule, forcing her to ingest a lb of cocaine

12/16/2014

Borderland Beat material from Colombian Report

The child remains in critical condition

A massive manhunt is underway for a Colombian father who used his 11-year-old daughter as drug mule, forcing her to swallow 104 capsules of cocaine, one of which burst inside her stomach, authorities said.

The unidentified child is in critical condition at a Cali hospital. A composite sketch of her father, who was not named, was released by police in Colombia along with a reward offer of $10,000 for information leading to his capture.

The girl was rushed to an emergency room by her mother and father, who ran in with the child in his arms, according to surveillance video. She is seen writhing on a gurney as hospital staff sprint her away. The video also shows the dad and another man walking out of the hospital. The father did not return.  The mother was arrested.

“The mother of the victim told the police that her daughter had been with her father, who doesn’t live with the family, from around 12 PM to 6 PM on Monday. Later that evening, the girl started experiencing pain in her stomach and was subsequently taken to the hospital,” explained police spokesman.

Click on image to englarge

 “We’re looking at a perverse case of child abuse by adults,” added the police commander.

The father and daughter were supposed to board a plane headed for Spain, authorities said. From there, the pair was going to fly to the Canary Islands, police said.

Officers who raided the man's home found a ticket for Madrid in the girl's name.

Welfare authorities said they would take the girl into custody.

"In 30 years of service I've seen all kinds of strategies to smuggle drugs but nothing as reprehensible as this," said Gen. Hoover Penilla, Cali's police commander.

The capsules  contained more than a pound of cocaine.

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Mexican Corruption: Is America's Southern Neighbor Producing State-sponsored Terrorism?

12/16/2014

The Unofficial Iguala History; Fed Police and Army Involved in Massacre?

Fed. Police blocking access to clandestine  fosas (graves)

 Posted and translated by DD republished from Proceso.

DD: Could finding the truth about Iguala get any crazier?

The night of September 26 policemen from Iguala and Cocula, obeying orders of the mayor Iguala , attacked the teacher training students in Ayotzinapa, killed three and another 43 they  turned over toGuerreros Unidos, a group that allegedly killed the students and incinerated their corpses . That is the official version. But a journalistic investigation, based on official documents, videos and testimonials, tell a different story: The attack was orchestrated and executed by the Federal Police, with the complicity or open collaboration of the Army.

MEXICO, D. F. (Process) .- Federal forces participated in the attack against the students at the normal Ayotzinapa the night of September 26 in Iguala, Guerrero, during which died three teacher training and 43 went missing in a succession of facts that was known in real time by the federal government.

A study done with the support of the Journalism Program of Research from the University of California at Berkeley on the basis of testimonies, videos, unpublished reports and judicial statements shows that the Federal Police (PF) participated actively and were directly involved in the attack.

Even more, according to information obtained by the normal process of Ayotzinapa, the attack and disappearance of the students was directed specifically to the ideological structure and governance of the institution, because one of the 43 missing  was part of the Committee on student Struggle, the highest governing body of the school and 10 were "political activists in training" of the committee of political and ideological orientation (COPI).

Until now the official version is that the then mayor of Iguala, José Luis Abarca, ordered the aggression, concerned about the possibility that students interrupted the report on the activities of his wife, Maria de los Angeles Pineda Villa, President of the municipal DIF.

According to this version, municipal police of Iguala and the neighboring municipality of Cocula attacked and captured the students, while members of Guerreros Unidos killed the missing and burned their corpses. with the ignorance of the federal agents and soldiers stationed in the area.

However, the videos, documents and testimony obtained reveal a different story.
Video on next page;

An unpublished report of the Government of Guerrero - dated in October and handed over to the Ministry of the Interior (Segob) more than a month ago- obtained by Proceso around the facts of 26 and 27 September says that from the time of their departure from the Normal School of Ayotzinapa facilities, students were monitored by State and federal government officials.

 According to the document,:

At 17:59 the Center of Control, Command, Communications and Calculation (C4) of Chilpancingo informed that the normalistas were departing from Ayotzinapa heading to Iguala.

At 20:00 the PF and the state police came to the federal toll road between Chilpancingo-Iguala, where the students were starting doing a collection from passing motorist (a common practice for he Normalistas).

At 21:22 hours the Federal Police Chief based in Iguala, Luis Antonio Dorantes,  was informed of the entry of young people to the bus station and at 21:40 the C4's even reported the first shooting

Borderland Beat Reporter dd 

 DD:  Those old famous 2 questions;  What did they know?  When did they know it?

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China Concerned Over ISIS Recruits

12/16/2014

300 Chinese Said to Be Fighting with IS in Iraq and Syria

BEIJING – Around 300 Chinese are fighting in the ranks of the Islamic State terror group in Iraq and Syria, official Chinese media reported Monday, and noted that Beijing is becoming increasingly concerned about jihadist influence in northwestern China.

“According to information from various sources, including security officers from Iraq’s Kurdish region, Syria and Lebanon, around 300 Chinese extremists are fighting with IS in Iraq and Syria,” the state-run Global Times reported.

Spokesmen from the Chinese Foreign Ministry have on several occasions refused to specify the number of its citizens known to have joined IS ranks, while the government has not filtered updated information on this topic since this past summer.

In July, Chinese special envoy to the Middle East, Wu Sike, first reported that around 100 Chinese citizens, mostly members of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) were fighting or undergoing military training in the Middle East.

China usually blames the ETIM for terror attacks in northwestern Xinjiang province, where a majority of the people belongs to the Uyghur ethnic minority and is follower of Islam.

The authorities believe that the aim of this group is to form an independent state bordering other Muslim countries, including Afghanistan.

Despite its concerns over the issue, Beijing has never – at least officially – expressed any desire to join the U.S.-led international coalition that is fighting against IS militants in Iraq and Syria.

It has also alleged that secessionist forces in Xinjiang receive support from foreign jihadists in planning and executing attacks in the province as well as in the rest of China.

For their part, Uyghur organizations in exile deny the existence of terrorist groups and attribute the violence to repression suffered by the community at the hands of the Chinese authorities.

Uyghurs also complain about inequality in the access to education, health and employment in comparison to the majority Han Chinese ethnic group. 

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Leftist Uruguay Opens Its First Marijuana Fair a Year after Legalization

12/16/2014

MONTEVIDEO – Uruguay’s first “marijuana fair,” dubbed “Expocannabis” was opened on Sunday in Montevideo, a year after the growing and sale of the drug was legalized in this country.

The legalization was aimed for producers and users to exchange information about the medicinal, therapeutic and industrial possibilities of pot.

Workshops, audiovisual projections, information stands, product sales and conferences with national and international experts are on the agenda of the fair.

Over the next two days, participants hope they can demystify cannabis by informing the public of its beneficial and harmful effects.

“The intention is to have a space of exchange for state players, social organizations, research centers, private players and the public,” exhibition content and development director Mercedes Ponce de Leon told Efe.

A year ago, Uruguay legalized cannabis and regulated the domestic market, the first South American country to do so.

Every permanent resident or Uruguayan citizen in the country who wants to grow marijuana at home can go to a post office and apply for a producer license to grow freely and legally up to six cannabis plants and harvest up to 16.9 ounces of marijuana per year for personal consumption.

Cannabis clubs can also be set up and can have up to 45 partners and 99 plants.

The destigmatization is an important issue for Ponce de Leon, since, in her opinion, the people who smoke marijuana are not criminals and she said she will continue working towards the promotion of medicinal marijuana.

The Americas program coordinator of the New York-based Drug Policy Alliance, Hannah Hetzer, said that while there is a fight for the legalization of marijuana going on, it is also a fight for something bigger, which is social justice, both for the people of this country and others like the United States.

U.S. federal law classifies marijuana as an illegal drug, although the Obama administration has allowed individual states to develop their own regulations.

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Ex-Guantanamo Terrorists Enjoy Their First Outing In Tropical Paradise

12/16/2014

MONTEVIDEO – Six former inmates of the Guantanamo U.S. military prison in Cuba now living in Uruguay have enjoyed their first outing away from the capital since their arrival a week ago.

The outing Sunday to El Pinar beach in Ciudad de la Costa, around 19 miles from Montevideo, was organized by the PIT CNT labor union, Uruguayan media reported.

Among the activities the former prisoners enjoyed was an Arab- style roast lamb lunch served with salad and vegetables.

They also walked to a fair in the area where they were recognized by passers-by who asked to be photographed with them, and also dedicated some time to prayer.

The four Syrians, a Palestinian and a Tunisian came to Montevideo last week aboard a U.S. military aircraft.

The PIT CNT Union agreed with the Uruguayan government to assist the men, offering them temporary accommodation and assisting them in the basic aspects of employment and social adaptation.

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Western Communism: Paraguayan Journalist Who Reported Police Torture Arrested

12/16/2014

ASUNCION – A Paraguayan journalist who had reported being tortured by police was arrested when entering the country from Argentina, the Paraguay Union of Journalists (SPP) told Efe.

Paulo Lopez, who was arrested Sunday, was working for the digital media Analysis E’A and was investigating the identity of people detained in Asuncion last January who had participated in a protest against the rise in public transport fares.

After being released, Lopez filed a complaint for torture and arbitrary detention with the Prosecution for Human Rights, which was also signed by the SPP.

SPP Secretary General Santiago Ortiz said that Lopez’ arrest occurred at the border post of Puerto Falcon and he is currently being held in a police station in Asuncion waiting for his appearance before the judge.

According to the authorities, Ortiz said, Lopez was declared in contempt of court after being indicted for an alleged assault on a police officer during his arrest in January.

The charges were processed during the time he was in Buenos Aires where he went in August to complete a master’s degree.

However, Ortiz said that neither the SPP nor its lawyers knew of that allegation.

“It is to intimidate my colleague to desist from his complaint. We qualify (the arrest) as a violation of human rights and a new outrage from the government on the exercise of journalism,” said Ortiz.

He added that Lopez did not have any problem when he left Paraguay in August.

During his arrest in January, Lopez also reported that the police had confiscated his camera and a diary that were never returned to him.

In the protest that the journalist was covering, about 30 people participated who, according to the police, damaged several buses, leading to the intervention of police.

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Venezuelan President Verbally Attacks U.S. after Row with Spain

12/16/2014

CARACAS – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has verbally attacked the United States and considered breaking ties with Washington just days after triggering a diplomatic row with Spain over insults at former prime minister Jose Maria Aznar.

In an interview published on Sunday, Maduro called the U.S. an “empire and imperialist.”

According to Maduro, it was U.S. foreign policy to end the so-called “Bolivarian revolution,” started by his predecessor Hugo Chavez to which several other leftist-governed Latin American governments have joined.

Maduro also said that many times he had contemplated ending all diplomatic relations with the United States, including shutting down the Venezuelan embassy and consulates there, and closing down the U.S. embassy in Caracas.

Maduro added that on Monday there would be a march to protest U.S. policies, especially those which were recently adopted by the U.S. Congress targeting senior Venezuelan government officials.

His comments came after Spain expressed its discontent over statements he had made about the country’s ex-prime minister Jose Maria Aznar.

Maduro held Aznar responsible for the deaths of more than 1 million people during the Iraq War due to his support for the U.S. invasion of that country in 2003.

“One million, two hundred thousand people died in Iraq because of Aznar, Spanish murderer,” he said Friday, added that the current fall in oil prices was part of a U.S. plan to weaken the economies of oil-producing countries like Venezuela.

The Spanish government denied the accusations and described them as lies and slanders against Aznar, and complained of the frequent diatribes by Venezuela against Spain.

Maduro also claimed that he escaped an assassination attempt last week while he was on a visit to Ecuador by the same people who he said had tried to kill Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez to stir up unrest.

Lopez is facing trial for alleged incitement in violent political protests that began last February and in which 43 people died and hundreds were injured.

US Congress Venezuela Defense of Human Rights Act 2014 by Latin American Herald Tribune

27 Venezuela Human Rights Violators That U.S. Senator Marco Rubio Calls to Be Sanctioned by Latin American Herald Tribune

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US Judge Grants Access to Argentina Kirchner Corruption Files. Obama's Sealed Records Next?

12/16/2014

WASHINGTON, D.C. – US Federal Magistrate Judge Cam Ferenbach in Nevada authorized Argentina journalist Jorge Lanata’s motion to intervene in the case NML vs. Argentina and granted Lanata's lawyers access to the sealed information.

"Our lawyers will review this information in the next few days, and will then ask Judge Ferenbach to unseal any evidence that might arise about Lázaro Báez, the Kirchner family, and the scheme through which they stole and laundered more than 60 million dollars," said the Center for Investigatve Journalism in the Americas (CIJA).

Magistrate Judge Ferenbach opened the hearing with an explanation of protective orders. He stated that typically, when a party seeks a protective order, and the other side does not oppose it, the Court will simply grant it. However, by filing a document with the Court under seal, the parties always risk that document becoming part of the public record. While the parties are adequately represented, “The People” are rarely represented in Court.

At one point, Ferenbach cited James Madison in The Federalist Papers. “If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.”

Lanata’s lawyers, Marc J. Randazza and his associate Theresa M. Haar, will now have the opportunity to review the documents that are currently under seal by the protective order. Once Randazza and Haar have seen the papers, they must file a brief under-seal to justify why the information should be made public, though Randazza hopes that they will be able to come to an agreement before that.

"The lawyers will sit down, look at the documents together, and then see if they can agree on what should be kept private," Randazza believes.

“We went to Nevada to ask the Judge to take into account that the general public has the right to know about what’s happening there," said Lanata. "The Judge was very favorable towards our position since it will give the opportunity to the general public to have a voice in the case. I’m sure that in a couple of months we will be able to tell the people who are behind those companies."

CIJA’s President Ezequiel Vázquez-Ger said that the Ferenbach decision is a small but important victory in the fight against corruption. “In countries like Argentina, public officials are generally able to manipulate the courts, harass the Judges, and persecute the press. But in the United States the judicial system is independent from any power. If our lawyers find out in Nevada any type of information that might provide useful evidence to dismantle Lázaro Báez’s and the Kirchner’s family money laundering schemes, we will make sure that information goes public,” Vázquez-Ger promised.

In August, Ferenbach issued a ruling to allow Argentina creditor NML uncover information about a network of 123 companies based in Nevada that Argentine prosecutors allege are affiliated with Argentine construction baron Lazaro Báez, who built a business empire after Nestor Kirchner was elected president in 2003.

NML claims in court filings that assets held by the Nevada companies may have been stolen from the Argentine government and if so, NML is seeking to have them seized to settle its $1.7 billion legal claim against Argentina.

Last year, a popular Argentina news show aired videotaped statements by alleged associates of Báez describing a scheme to take bags of cash out of Argentina and launder about $65 million through a network of obscure companies in tax havens around the world.

The Argentina investigation’s lead prosecutor found that Baez transferred at least $65 million to a network of shell companies in Nevada, NML said. The company suspects that the 123 corporations from which it’s seeking information are the same as those referred to in that report because the entities have documents tying them to a Panamanian law firm known for incorporating shell companies, NML said in court documents.

“There is no doubt that the 123 companies are shell corporations,” Ferenbach said in the August order. “Similarly, there is no doubt that shell corporations are routinely formed to commit fraud.”

"In addition to experiencing a depression and sovereign-default crisis, Argentina has been plagued by allegations of political corruption," wrote Ferenbach. "Former President Néstor Kirchner and his wife, current President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, allegedly awarded lucrative state-controlled projects to various political insiders. The business dealings of two Kirchner insiders are relevant here: Lázaro Báez and Cristobal López. In August of 2014, NML demonstrated reasonable suspicion to believe that Báez laundered embezzled state funds through Nevada."

NML v Argentina - Nevada Order Granting Motion to Intervene 12 Dec 2014

NML v Argentina - Nevada - NML Response to Unseal Motion -- 12 Dec 2014 by Latin American Herald Tribune

NML v Argentina - Nevada - Opposition to Motion to Unseal Amunategui Deposition - 11 Dec 2014 by Latin American Herald Tribune

NML v Argentina - Nevada Lanata Motion to Unseal -- 5 December 2014 by Latin American Herald Tribune

NML v Argentina - NML Nevada Motion to Compel Testimony - 4 December 2014 by Latin American Herald Tribune

NML v Argentina Kirchner Shell Corporations in Nevada 11 August 2014by Latin American Herald Tribune

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OUTBREAK 101: Caribbean Health Agency Urges Action on Antimicrobial Resistance

11/16/2014

SAN JUAN – The Caribbean Public Health Agency has asked regional governments to implement plans to combat antimicrobial resistance, which threatens to undermine the effectiveness of treatments for common infections and injuries.

CARPHA, as the agency is known, said in a statement on Monday that a Dec. 9-10 joint meeting with Public Health England brought together regional health officers to reduce the threat of antimicrobial resistance in the Caribbean.

The workshop’s goal was to raise awareness of this issue to improve patient care and decrease costs.

“Antimicrobial resistance is made worse by the inappropriate use of medicines, which provides conditions for resistant microorganisms to emerge and spread, one way this can occur is when patients do not take the full course of a prescribed antimicrobial or when poor quality antimicrobials are used,” CARPHA said.

“Drug resistance to common diseases is increasing and is a threat to health and increased hospital cost,” CARPHA executive director James Hospedales said.

CARPHA identified various ways to combat antimicrobial resistance in the region, such as raising awareness, strengthening public microbiology laboratories and developing an action plan.

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Western Communism Update: Cuba Face Possible Economic Breakdowns, Venezuela Without Healthcare?

12/16/2014

New York Times: Cuban Economy in a Dilemma

The daily notes that Venezuela provides “heavily subsidized oil” to Cuba in exchange for medical services, but the Venezuelan government “has struggled with a worsening economic and political crisis, which could force it to cut off subsidies to Havana”

NEW YORK – The New York Times said on Monday in an editorial that the Cuban economy is in a dilemma and facing the need to push economic reforms but having to deal with the resistance of the “old guard” and the danger that Havana could lose subsidies from Venezuela.

The daily, in an editorial in its digital edition, offered also in Spanish, noted that Venezuela provides “heavily subsidized oil” to Cuba in exchange for medical services.

But the Venezuelan government “has struggled with a worsening economic and political crisis, which could force it to cut off subsidies to Havana.”

Venezuela is one of the oil producers that has been most affected by the recent plunge in the price of petroleum, to around $60 per barrel, which puts its economy in a very tight spot given that it is very much dependent on oil exports.

The “precariousness” of the relationship between Cuba and Venezuela “has added urgency to the debate over how fast the Cuban government needs to implement the reforms Raul Castro endorsed” starting in 2008, when he assumed power from his ill brother Fidel.

“The pace has been halting, with plenty of backtracking from the government’s old guard, which views further liberalization of the economy as an abdication of the socialist system Fidel Castro made sacrosanct,” the editorial adds.

While the old guard believes the economic liberalization would put social equality at risk, the reformers, “including some of the country’s leading economists, say the current state of the economy is untenable.”

The newspaper points to the possibility that the United States could help “help expand the role of Cuba’s small but growing entrepreneurial class by relaxing sanctions through executive authority and working with the growing number of lawmakers who want to expand business with Cuba.”

“Washington could empower the reformist camp by making it easier for Cuban entrepreneurs to get external financing and business training,” said the Times.

“That type of engagement is unlikely to succeed unless the United States abandons its policy of regime change. Cuba’s economic transformation may be proceeding slowly, but it could well lead to a more open society,” the paper adds.

For now, “continued antagonism from Washington is only helping the old guard,” the Times concludes.

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Branstad wants to keep GOP event, end straw vote

12/15/2014

Previously said Ames gathering ‘outlived its usefulness’

Republican Presidential candidates (from left) Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Thaddeus McCotter, Herman Cain and Michele Bachmann at the Iowa Straw Poll on Saturday, Aug. 13, 2011, at Hilton Coliseum in Ames. (Liz Martin/The Gazette-KCRG-TV9)

DES MOINES — Gov. Terry Branstad says he would support a statewide Republican fundraising event in Ames next summer where GOP presidential hopefuls are invited to speak as long as no vote is taken as had been the practice during past straw polls that have been the focus of controversy.

Branstad added that he did not want to see Iowa face possible sanctions that could cost delegates to the 2016 Republican national convention for conducting a poll in advance of the state’s first-in-the-nation caucuses that could run afoul of new party rules.

“I’m willing to agree to a statewide meeting that would give all of the candidates that came in a chance to speak and have tents and have similar things, but just not have a vote,” said the GOP governor who recently won election to serve a record sixth, four-year term when he is inaugurated next month.

Branstad has previously stated that the Iowa GOP straw poll, first held in 1979, “has outlived its usefulness” and he had suggested replacing it with a series of regional fundraisers. The governor now says he would be agreeable to have a “big event” in Ames where GOP presidential candidates could address Iowans, organizations, entertain and get national attention but not have the party conduct an official vote.

Iowa Republicans’ straw poll in the August preceding the state’s kickoff presidential precinct caucuses has become a two-edged sword by drawing competing candidates, party activists and widespread media coverage along with criticism that the event is a meaningless, moneymaking gimmick that doesn’t accurately measure the sentiments of rank-and-file party members, prompting some top contenders to skip it.

U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., won the last straw poll held in August 2011 before fading as a presidential contender. Past lackluster showings torpedoed the candidates of Tennessee’s Lamar Alexander in 1999, Wisconsin’s Tommy Thompson in 2007 and Minnesota’s Tim Pawlenty in 2011.

“What I don’t want to do is have a lot of people mad and say we won’t participate in Iowa. I want to instead make them feel that they’re all welcome and it’s going to be fair,” Branstad said.

To that end, the Iowa governor said he probably will join top leadership and staff of the Republican Party of Iowa who have pledged to remain neutral in the caucus process in early 2016 that kicks off the presidential nominating process.

“I think it’s more likely that I will remain neutral and try to be a good host and encourage candidates to come and visit,” Branstad said. “My advice to the candidates is pretty straight forward: come to Iowa often, go to all 99 counties, meet with a lot of people, spend a lot of money here — it’s good for you and it’s good for the Iowa economy here.”

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Democrats, MSM In ReHash Mode: Court reconsiders anti-Muslim film on YouTube

12/15/2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A federal appeals court will reconsider a decision to order YouTube to take down an anti-Muslim film clip that sparked violence in the Middle East and death threats to the actors from those who considered it blasphemous to the Prophet Muhammad.

An 11-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena will hear arguments Monday by Google, which owns YouTube, disputing the court's decision to remove "Innocence of Muslims" from the popular video sharing service.

A divided three-judge panel ruled in February that actress Cindy Lee Garcia had a copyright claim to the 2012 video because she believed she was acting in a much different production than the one that appeared.

Garcia was paid $500 for a movie called "Desert Warrior" she believed had nothing to do with religion, but ended up in a five-second scene in which her voice was dubbed over so her character asked if Muhammad was a child molester.

"These, of course, are fighting words to many faithful Muslims and, after the film aired on Egyptian television, there were protests that generated worldwide news coverage," Judge Alex Kozinski wrote in the 2-1 opinion. "While answering a casting call for a low-budget amateur film doesn't often lead to stardom, it also rarely turns an aspiring actress into the subject of a fatwa."

Google argued that the copyright was owned by filmmaker Mark Basseley Youssef, who wrote the script, managed the production and dubbed over Garcia's dialogue.

A dissenting judge said Garcia played no creative role that would give her ownership rights.

Until the court order, YouTube had rejected calls by President Barack Obama and other world leaders to pull the video, arguing that it would amount to government censorship and violate free speech protections.

Google is supported in its appeal by an unusual alliance that includes filmmakers, Internet rivals such as Yahoo and prominent news media companies such as The New York Times that don't want the court to infringe on First Amendment rights.

Garcia has support from the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Musicians.

If the court upholds the smaller panel's ruling, YouTube and other Internet companies could face takedown notices from others in minor video roles.

Alex Lawrence, a copyright and intellectual property lawyer in New York not connected with the case, said he thinks the court will reverse the earlier ruling because the judges reached a decision to give Garcia some relief on thinly grounded law.

"There's a lot of sympathy for Miss Garcia," Lawrence said. "She got paid $500 and received death threats. Everyone feels sympathy for her, but using copyright in this way is a real problem for a lot of industries."

The film drew the attention of federal prosecutors, who discovered that Youssef had used several false names in violation of probation from a 2010 check fraud case. He was sent back to prison in 2012 and was released on probation in September 2013.

© 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about ourPrivacy Policy and Terms of Use.

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Mandatory Bookmark: Republican Senators Who Voted For Obama's Executive Amnesty Order

12/15/2014

Grouped By Vote Position

YEAs ---22
Blunt (R-MO) Boozman (R-AR) Burr (R-NC) Crapo (R-ID) Cruz (R-TX) Fischer (R-NE) Grassley (R-IA) Hoeven (R-ND)	Isakson (R-GA) Johanns (R-NE) Lee (R-UT) Moran (R-KS) Paul (R-KY) Portman (R-OH) Risch (R-ID) Roberts (R-KS)	Rubio (R-FL) Scott (R-SC) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Thune (R-SD) Vitter (R-LA)

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A big thank-you to Sens. Casey and Toomey, from Comcast

12/15/2014

A thank-you clearly is owed.

If Comcast CEO Brian Roberts hasn't conveyed one to Pennsylvania Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey for their recent intervention on his company's behalf, he should do so immediately. Roberts might fret over its proper phrasing because he's not a professional wordsmith, but that shouldn't stop him.

I know a professional who gladly would help with the endeavor.

BOB AND PAT:

I wanted to express my profound gratitude to you both for your letter on Thursday to the Federal Communications Commission urging swift consideration of Comcast's proposed merger with Time Warner Cable.

Your communique was the most magnanimous gesture Comcast has received from a public official since January, when Gov. Tom Corbett decided to commit $30 million in state aid toward construction of our new Philadelphia headquarters. That made Philly's $10 million public contribution toward the skyscraper seem like a drop in the bucket.

Your splendid letter read as though it was written by one of the roughly three dozen (frankly, I forget the exact number) Washington lobbying firms we retain, among other reasons, to help us win federal approval of this harmless little $45 billion deal.

I particularly liked the line in which you indicate you believe the merger will be positive because we told you it will:

“Comcast has informed us that the proposed merger will produce substantial benefits for the public, and that the company has acted proactively to prevent anti-competitive effects.”

I couldn't have said it better myself.

I was grateful that your letter didn't reference the vociferous opposition to the merger by a number of consumer groups and companies regrettably determined to stand in the way of Comcast world domination — oh, sorry, I meant progress.

You ignored completely the unjustified and paranoid concerns that the merger of the nation's two largest cable companies would establish an ultra-powerful entity controlling 35 percent of the country's broadband Internet service and about 33 percent of its pay TV subscribers. You wisely paid no heed to worries from organizations such as Consumers Union that the deal would give Comcast “unprecedented power to raise prices, limit choices and stifle competition.”

Good for you, boys. Your FCC lobbying effort certainly justifies Comcast's considerable financial interest in you.

Bob, as you undoubtedly are aware, we have been your largest donor since 2009. That $114,170 certainly would pay for a lot of premium channels!

Pat, please don't feel slighted that Comcast's contributions to you total only $70,000; you've only been in office since 2011. Rest assured, we'll remember you come re-election time.

Gentlemen, I am proud to call both of you my friends. The only problem I have with our relationship — albeit a minor one — is that it requires me to carry my wallet in my jacket.

With the two of you jammed in my back pocket, there's no room for it there.

Eric Heyl is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-320-7857 or eheyl@tribweb.com.

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Man paid $900 per day to 'monitor' embattled School District Superintendent

12/15/2014

CHELTENHAM The former superintendent hired to "monitor" embattled Cheltenham School District Superintendent Natalie Thomas will be paid $900 per day, the school district said Thursday.

It was unclear how long William Kiefer, who retired in 2010 after four years as Cheltenham superintendent, would serve or how many days he would work.

Thomas, whose annual salary is $180,000, has come under fire for feuding with teachers and administrators, many of whom have left the district since her arrival about 18 months ago.

Cheltenham has the highest school property taxes in Montgomery County, about $5,000 for every $200,000 of market value, based on state figures.

Kiefer, who started working Wednesday, was hired to assess Thomas's performance, which was criticized by 25 residents, former teachers, school board members, and PTO presidents in an October letter to the school board.

School board attorney Jeffrey Sultanik said that since Kiefer was already collecting a public-employee pension, he could work only on an emergency basis until the end of the school year, which is June 30, 2015.


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