Revealed: Chaotic U.S. military sex-abuse justice record in Japan
An AP investigation of U.S. military sex-crime cases in Japan shows commanders' chaotic justice record as Congress prepares to vote on military legal reforms. (Feb. 10)
Politics
GOP candidate for governor doubles down after calling south Texas 'third-world country'
When Texas Attorney General and Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott compared the Rio Grande Valley to a "third-world country" earlier this week, progressives and the Latino community in south Texas hit the roof.
Democratic opponent State Sen. Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth) called on Abbott "to apologize for his offensive and erroneous comment that problems facing South Texas resemble 'third-world country practices that erode the social fabric of our communities and destroys Texans' trust in government'" in a letter published in the south Texas publication The Monitor.
"While I agree we should ensure that law enforcement has the necessary resources throughout our state, it's unfortunate that oftentimes the conversation around our border communities focuses solely on enforcement," she wrote, taking issue with Abbott's "divisive rhetoric" and calling for "leadership that is grounded in facts and is ready to open up new opportunities with trade and commerce which currently support hundreds of thousands of jobs in Texas."
Abbott's comments about corruption in south Texas elicited demands from lawmakers for him to walk back his comments, such as this response from State Rep. Terry Canales (D-Edinburg).
Post by Terry Canales.
However, Abbott instead plans a reply of his own in The Monitor to Davis' letter, to be published Monday. And Abbott called Davis "clueless" about the area when describing his response.
@byjayroot wait till you see my response to her Monitor piece. It will show how clueless she is about the RGV
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) February 9, 2014Watch the Q-and-A that launched the exchange between Davis and Abbott below.
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GOP senator to Fox News: Providing access to health care just makes people lazy
Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) on Sunday suggested that President Barack Obama's health care law would make some people so lazy that they didn't want to work at all.
Last week, Republicans used a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report that said 2.3 million less hours would be worked after the Affordable Care Act was implemented to claim that the law was destroying jobs.
A Washington Post fact check, however, pointed out that access to health care meant that people would no longer be forced to work if their only reason for working was to receive insurance benefits.
But on Sunday, Blunt stuck to the Republican talking point, saying that providing health care "can't be a good idea" if it allowed people who were only working for health insurance benefits to leave the workforce.
"I think any law you pass that discourages people from working can't be a good idea," the Missouri Republican asserted. "Why would we wanna do that? Why would we think that's a good thing? How does that allow people to prepare for the time when they don't work?"
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), who also appeared on Fox News Sunday, was ready with an answer.
"They're in employment solely because they get health benefits," Cardin explained. "This is a voluntary choice."
"In some cases, these people might have two jobs because of these health benefits," he added. "Now, they don't need to work two full-time jobs to get their health benefits."
Blunt refused to accept Cardin's argument.
"The best face you can probably put on that is that people who don't wanna work don't have to work," Blunt insisted. "Surely that's not what we wanna encourage."
Watch the video below from Fox News Sunday, broadcast Feb. 9, 2014.
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Laura Ingraham loses it during immigration debate: 'Why have a border at all!'
Conservative radio host Laura Ingraham on Sunday used the slippery slope argument to warn Republicans to back off immigration reform or there would be no purpose to "have a border at all."
Last week, the reliably conservative Wall Street Journal editorial page pointed out that House Speaker John Boehner's (R-OH) decision not to go forward with immigration reform meant that Republicans were accepting a "de facto 'amnesty' in which 11 million illegal immigrants will continue to work using fake documents."
"Mr. Obama will look for ways to grant more of them legal status using executive power, and the GOP will look even more unwelcoming to minorities," the Journal noted.
Ingraham accused the paper of attacking talk show hosts like herself and siding with liberals like House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), President Barack Obama, and The National Council of La Raza (NCLR).
But she said that talk radio was backing "the lion's share of the American people."
"Right now, we're not really enforcing our laws uniformly," Ingraham explained. "The president, as John Boehner just realized apparently, is not trustworthy. He has a deferred action for a million and a half [young] people who are here illegally, just basically changing law with the stroke of a pen."
Conservative columnist George Will reminded Ingraham that there were many reasons that Republicans should back immigration reform: the so-called "welfare state" needed immigrant workers as baby boomers retired, other countries were winning the global competition for "human capital," and the act of immigration was entrepreneurial in the conservative tradition.
"But why have borders?" Ingraham shot back. "So, the argument leads to, why have borders at all? Why have a border? If it's just about people as widgets, who come in and are workers without really a concern about assimilation, without concern about how it affects people in middle America."
"I would submit that there are people who are watching this show right now who are screaming at the top of their lungs, saying, 'Who in Washington is representing my interests?'" she added.
Will tried to tried to explain that Ingraham's argument about the border was not valid because 40 percent of the people who were in the country illegally had overstayed their visas -- but she cut him off.
"We don't want to crack down on that!" she exclaimed. "There's no will to enforce the border! There is no faith in this administration to do it. And the Republican elites and the Democrat elites agree and the people are revolting across this country."
At that point, Fox News contributor Juan Williams told Ingraham that Obama had deported undocumented immigrants at a higher rate than President George W. Bush.
"The reaction of the Hispanic community is, you know, you're deporting grandmothers and kids," Williams said. "This is terrible."
"The emotional argument!" Ingraham complained, throwing up her hands. "Facts don't matter. Constitution, rule of law. Let's just do legislation by emotion."
"I would rather have George argue with her," Williams quipped.
Watch this video from Fox News' Fox News Sunday, broadcast Feb. 9, 2014.
(h/t: Media Matters)
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Chuck Schumer's compromise: Enact immigration reform now, implement after Obama's gone
U.S. immigration reforms could be passed now but enacted after President Barack Obama leaves office if Republicans fear he will not enforce the new rules, a key Democratic senator said Sunday, offering a way to achieve one of Obama's main policy objectives.
Last week, Republican House Speaker John Boehner expressed doubts Obama's long-sought overhaul of immigration laws would be passed this year and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said there was little interest in the issue with congressional elections looming in November.
Boehner said one of the biggest obstacles to immigration reform in the House was a concern that Obama would not fully enforce any laws that might be approved. As evidence of that, he accused him of changing "the healthcare law on a whim, whenever he likes".
On NBC's "Meet the Press" program, Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat and one of chief architects of the Senate's bipartisan immigration plan, offered what he said was a simple solution.
"Let's enact the law this year but simply not let it actually start until 2017 after President Obama's term is over," he said.
"Now, I think the rap against him that he won't enforce the law is false. He's deported more people than any president but you could actually have the law start in 2017 without doing much violence to it."
Schumer said it would be difficult to pass immigration reform in 2015 or 2016 when the next presidential election season opens because Republican candidates would be staking out conservative positions on immigration in order to differentiate themselves from Democrats.
Representative Rob Portman, a Republican from Ohio who has been active on immigration in the House, said "some Republicans would be interested" in Schumer's idea about delayed enactment, especially if there were measures to increase border security and prevent employers from hiring undocumented workers.
In June, the Senate passed a comprehensive bill that would provide a path to citizenship for those in the country illegally and tighten border security.
The bill stalled in the House, where many lawmakers oppose offering legal status for some 11 million people who live in the United States unlawfully.
(Writing by Bill Trott; Editing by Jim Loney and Sophie Hares)
Watch video of Sen. Charles Schumer on "Meet the Press" below:
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CNN contributor: Homophobic Russians put on 'the gayest opening ceremonies ever!'
CNN contributor Sally Kohn on Sunday blasted NBC for editing out an anti-discrimination statement made by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) president, but she noted that the network could not hide that the games had the "gayest opening ceremonies ever."
On Friday, Deadspin observed NBC awkwardly edited out a statement IOC president Thomas Bach made a against "any form of discrimination" during the opening ceremony. Some speculated that NBC may have conveniently left out the statement to avoid discussion of Russia's controversial anti-LGBT laws.
The Blaze's Will Cain told CNN host Brian Setzer that he did not believe that NBC had intentionally left out the anti-discrimination remarks.
"I think you are looking at one of the most boring aspects of the Olympics, not only the opening ceremonies, but a speech by the IOC president, you cut four minutes out," Cain said. "A paragraph after that he did talk about tolerance, he did go on to talk about diversity. They did cut out the most pointed aspect, but I don't think they meant to."
"First of all, this is the gayest opening ceremonies in the history of an Olympics ever," Kohn declared. "That has to be said."
"You have this subtext of NBC taking heat, as they should be, of broadcasting these Olympics in a country that has these incredibly vicious, atrocious anti-gay laws," she continued. "And a lot of people, including myself, don't think we should be having the Olympics there at all."
"It's certainly a convenient way to avoid talking about that," Kohn pointed out. "Why cut that part out?"
Many people have mocked the Sochi Opening Ceremonies for having overt LGBT overtones in a country where so-called homosexual "propaganda" is illegal.
The German Olympic team wore rainbow uniforms and insisted that it was not a sign of support for the LGBT community. The Russian Police Choir entertained the crowd with an animated performance of Daft Punk's "Get Lucky," which is a favorite at gay bars around the world. And the controversial fake lesbian Russian pop duo t.A.T.u. performed a song about women kissing each other.
Watch this video from CNN's Reliable Source, broadcast Feb. 9, 2014.
Watch this video of the Russian Police Choir.
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New Jersey Star-Ledger regrets Chris Christie endorsement: 'We blew this one'
During the fall campaign, the liberal TV hero Rachel Maddow ran a stinging segment ridiculing The Star-Ledger’s endorsement of Gov. Chris Christie. How could we endorse him, she asked, when we criticized him so harshly in the same piece? Had we lost…
Watch Rachel Maddow's original coverage of the Star-Ledger's endorsement below:
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CNN guest: Blaming Hillary for Bill's affair gives Republicans on Wall Street confidence
CNN host Candy Crowley and The Hill Associate Editor A. B. Stoddard on Sunday agreed that Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) was playing "smart politics" by blaming former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the affair her husband had while he was president.
Looking toward the 2016 presidential race, Paul began hammering the Clintons several weeks ago, saying that Hillary Clinton was unqualified to defend women's rights because her husband, former President Bill Clinton, had cheated on her with an intern in the White House.
In one interview, Paul went as far as to accuse the former president of "" against women. And more recently, the Republican presidential hopeful declared that Bill Clinton should "return any contributions that Bill Clinton's either raising for people or giving to people."
"This is smart politics it seems to me," Crowley told Stoddard on Sunday. "Here's Rand Paul kind of expanding what his dad had, he's got the libertarian side of him: He'll take on drones, he'll take on privacy, he'll do that. Then, he's got the social conservative side of him. I think that's where this comes in."
"He's actually more in tune with the needs and the demographic liabilities Republican Party than most wannabe 2016 contenders," Stoddard asserted. "He's actually speaking right now to the Wall Street managerial wing of the party. It's very worried that Chris Christie collapsed."
"And what it's saying is, 'I have the guts to take on the Clintons, I think we need to, I know we don't have a candidate right now,'" she continued. "So in the middle of this panic, he's saying, 'I can do this. And that actually is going to bring him more ears."
Watch this video from CNN's State of the Union, broadcast Feb. 9, 2013.
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Surveillance video shows retired Florida cop shooting man for throwing popcorn
Friday marked the continuation of the bond hearing for gunman Curtis Reeves, who claims he shot down father of two Chad Oulson in a Florida movie theater on Jan. 13 in self-defense.
According to Tampa's Fox 13 News, videotapes of police interviews and surveillance footage of the shooting itself were shown in court Friday as the retired Tampa police captain's attorneys attempted to paint their client as a man who was so in fear for his life that he was justified in gunning down the unarmed man.
Reeves told detectives in the interview videos that he believes Oulson threw two objects at him, a bag of popcorn and a cell phone. Reeves had angrily approached Oulson and his family asking the other man to stop texting during the previews for the film "Lone Survivor."
Oulson -- who was reportedly texting his toddler daughter's preschool to tell them he was turning off his phone -- supposedly threatened Reeves, who said told police that he thought Oulson was going "kick his a**."
Reeves' wife, however, told police that she never heard Oulson say anything threatening to her husband. According to witnesses, all Oulson told Reeves was, "If it was any of your f***ing business, I was texting my daughter. Stay the hell out of my face."
Reeves returned to his seat for his gun, shot Oulson, then reportedly just sat in his seat as people scrambled to try and save the younger man's life.
Reeves "just sat in his chair, he just kind of leaned back and just sat there, didn't try to help," said Oulson's widow, Nicole Oulson in an interview recorded at the hospital on the night of the shooting. "As all the chaos was going on, he was just sitting there."
The judge is expected to make a decision on bond for Reeves by the end of the day Friday. Wednesday's bond hearing lasted nine hours, however, without ever arriving at a decision.
Watch video about this story, embedded below:
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Rob Ford attempts ban of rainbow flag at Toronto City Hall: LGBT people 'irrelevant' at Olympics
[Updated]
According to CBCnews, the rainbow flag flying at Toronto City Hall was not removed at Mayor Rob Ford's request.
Toronto City Manager Joe Pennachetti sent a letter to the mayor and councillors Friday afternoon pointing out that the city's protocol officer is the only person who decides what flags fly from the city hall`s "courtesy" pole, which is host to many flags during the year — from autism week to honouring the national days of dozens of countries.
The Canadian flag is always flying on several other poles around city hall.
Pennachetti noted the rainbow flag will remain flying for the duration of the Olympics at the request of the 519 Church Street Community Centre, the heart of Toronto's LGBT community.
~~~~
Toronto Mayor Rob Ford on Friday ordered the rainbow flag flying at City Hall to be removed, saying that that the Sochi Olympics were "not about someone's sexual preference."
According to CBC, the rainbow flag had been raised outside City Hall to show solidarity with the LGBT community because of Russia's laws outlawing homosexual "propaganda."
When reporters asked Ford to confirm reports that he had banned the rainbow flag on Friday, he quipped that he had put a Canadian flag in his office window.
"I'm going to go look at it now," he said. "This is about Olympics, this is about being patriotic to your country, this is not about someone's sexual preference."
"No, I do not agree with putting the rainbow flag up."
"They put up the flag in opposition to what's been happening in Russia," one reporter pointed out.
"Let Russia do what they want, we're Canadians here," Ford replied while walking to get a salad for lunch. "I support the Canadian Olympics."
"And so you don't think it's appropriate to support LGBT athletes?" the reporter wondered.
"Not at all," Ford said.
"Do you support LGBT people?" the reporter pressed.
"That's irrelevant to the point," the mayor remarked.
"No, it's not," the reporter explained. "That's why the flag is up."
"Well, it may be relevant to you, I support the Canadians and I'm a patriotic person toward our country," Ford insisted.
"Mayor Ford, are you homophobic?" the reporter shouted as Ford disappeared into his office.
Watch the video below from CTV News, broadcast Feb. 7, 2014.
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GOP rep. pushes bill to name Nevada peak for Reagan instead of first woman lt. governor
A bill introduced by Tea Party-supported Rep. Joe Heck (R-NV) on Thursday would name a 4,000-foot Nevada mountain after former President Ronald Reagan and block attempts currently underway to name the same peak after the state's first woman lieutenant governor.
The Hill reported on Friday that Heck's efforts coincided with Reagan's birthday and supported a similar proposal from the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project (RRLP), which is sponsored by Grover Norquists' Americans for Tax Reform.
"He left America stronger, freer, and safer than the day he became President," Norquist insisted last year. "Adding his name to the short list of great American presidents who have mountains named after them is an honor richly deserved."
However, legislation introduced in October by Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV) sought to name the same peak after former Nevada Lt. Gov. Maude Frazier, the first woman elected to the office.
But Heck's bill includes a provision that would block Titus' plan and, instead, name a smaller 3,952-foot peak for Frazier.
"I'm extremely happy we were able to find a compromise," Mount Reagan Project President Chuck Muth said. "Congresswoman Titus can have her mountain, and we can have ours. I can't thank Rep. Heck enough for helping our effort to make this honor for President Reagan a reality in Nevada."
In recent years, Heck's opponents have repeatedly criticized him for what they call an "anti-woman" record, including blocking the Paycheck Fairness Act, voting to defund Planned Parenthood, opposing legislation to force insurance companies to cover HPV vaccines, voting against domestic violence prevention, and backing a bill that would have banned abortions in Washington, D.C even in the case of rape and incest.
“Try as he might, the one thing Joe Heck will never be able to do is change the exceptionally anti-women record he’s compiled in just a few short years in office,” House Majority PAC Communications Director Andy Stone observed late last year.
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Charlie Crist blames Florida Gov. Rick Scott's Medicaid policy for 'six deaths a day'
Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (D) said in an interview on Friday that the state's current Tea Party Gov. Rick Scott (R) is to blame for the deaths of six Floridians every day due to his refusal to expand Medicaid.
Talking Points Memo reported that Crist, a former Republican, was talking to MSNBC's Chuck Todd when he made the allegation.
A key component of President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act (ACA) -- also known as Obamacare -- and the effort to provide health coverage to the country's uninsured citizens is the expansion of state Medicaid programs. When the Supreme Court took up the question in 2013 as to the constitutionality of the ACA, Chief Justice John Roberts inserted a provision that would allow some states to opt out of the federal Medicaid funds available for states.
Some 23 Republican-led states have chosen not to accept the funds, including Florida. A joint study between researchers at Harvard University and and the City University of New York estimated that some 17,000 low-income adults will die as a direct result of the Republicans' decision to not expand the health care program.
Crist said that six of those people die in Florida every day.
Todd was skeptical, asking Crist if that was what he really meant to say.
"Wait a minute. So that's a tough allegation," he said. "You are connecting -- you're saying people are dying, and it's the fault of not expanding Medicaid?"
"It's not hard to figure that out. It's common sense," the Democratic gubernatorial candidate said. "Look at it. If people are sick, and they aren't getting health care, what happens? They usually get sicker. Or they die. I mean, those are just the facts, Chuck. That's what happens. In addition to it, it's economically stupid. As a result, we're not getting $51 billion over the next 10 years for the health care institutions in Florida. So the people get better health care, so that kids don't get sick, that we take care of people. That's what public servants are supposed to do. That's why I'm running against Rick Scott, because he's not a good servant."
Crist hopes to defeat Scott in the general election this fall. He is currently polling slightly ahead of Scott in pre-election surveys.
Watch video about this story, embedded below:
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NC parenting columnist's 3-year-old son shoots 17-month-old sister with dad's gun
The 17-month-old daughter of a North Carolina parenting columnist is expected to recover after her 3-year-old brother shot her with his father's gun.
Cleveland County Sheriff’s Capt. Joel Shores said that 911 dispatchers received reports that a child had suffered a gunshot wound at around 11:30 a.m. on Thursday morning, according to the Gaston Gazette.
Justin Carper, who is a youth church leader and writes an unpaid parenting column for the Shelby Star, said that he never imagined that his son could have climbed on a stool and and then taken the gun from a "secret compartment" on top of his dresser.
The mother drove the baby girl to Cleveland Regional Medical Center after calling 911. She was then flown to Levine Children’s Hospital.
“When I got the phone call, like any parent would, your heart sinks,” Carper said Thursday night. “We drove straight to the hospital.”
Carper called it a "miracle" when the girl was able to use the injured arm to feed herself in the hospital later that night.
“It went through the top of her shoulder,” he explained to the Gaston Gazette. “She was feeding herself using that shoulder, using that arm. The bullet went straight through. You wouldn’t even know. Doctor after doctor have told us that there’s nowhere else the bullet could have gone that would have ended up with this story.”
“My mind is pretty much blown," Carper added.
As of Friday, no charges had been filed against the father.
“We’re compiling the case and will present the case to the D.A. to determine if any charges will be filed for failure to secure a firearm,” Sheriff’s Capt. Shores noted.
“Regardless of the outcome, the parents have been punished more than any criminal justice system can do to them by this happening."
Watch this video from WSOC, broadcast Feb. 6, 2014.
(h/t: Freak Out Nation)
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