Coin Operated Black Republican Rep Under Fire not holding town halls in Utah

Sltrib

A Democratic group is targeting GOP Rep. Mia Love for not hosting any town halls, launching a digital advertising campaign and a website that points out that the last time she took questions from a large in-person audience was in 2015.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee unveiled LoveTownHallWatch.com and is running online ads this week as part of an effort to point out many Republicans are refusing to address their constituents in large groups. Love is one of 25 Republicans the DCCC is going after, including House Speaker Paul Ryan, of Wisconsin.

“If Washington Republicans like Mia Love are heartless enough to rip away health care from their constituents but too scared to face them at public town halls, they don’t deserve to be in Congress,” DCCC Spokesman Drew Godinich said in a statement. “This campaign highlights the work of grassroots volunteers in Utah to hold their congresswoman accountable for her votes and lack of transparency.”

The Utah Republican Party warned its elected leaders against holding town halls, noting the heightened political environment and the anger-fueled events other members of Congress have faced this year.

Then-Rep. Jason Chaffetz held a town hall earlier this year and was met with constituents upset that, among other issues, he wasn’t pursuing investigations into President Donald Trump. Rep. Chris Stewart also held town halls — one in the rural part of his district where he was well received and one in Salt Lake City where he was met by a largely hostile crowd.

Other members of the Utah delegation — Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee and Rep. Rob Bishop — have, like Love, skipped town halls except the online or telephonic kind that gives the politician the ability to screen and select the questioners.

Love’s office declined comment on the DCCC website or ads. Love sponsored a recent amendment that allows Congress members to use public money to beef up their home security systems following the shooting of a member earlier this year and threats Love says she has received.

The Utah Republican did hold open office hours earlier this month at her congressional district office, inviting groups of no more than 10 people to converse with her about their concerns or suggestions. Two West Jordan police officers were stationed at the office door. [MORE]

Ethics committee continues investigation of U.S. Rep. John Conyers

MLlive

The House Ethics Committee is continuing its investigation of U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, it announced Wednesday. 

In a statement released Wednesday afternoon, the committee said it needed additional time to review information following a recommendation from the independent Office of Congressional Ethics to investigate Conyers, who is serving his 27th term in Congress and is the top Democrat in the House Judiciary Committee.

Documents released with the statement show the ethics board found "substantial reason to believe" Conyers paid former Chief of Staff Cynthia Martin for work she didn't perform. 

"If Representative Conyers provided a member of his congressional staff with compensation that was not commensurate with the work she performed, then he may have violated House rules and standards of conduct," the report read.

In a response to the Office of Congressional Ethics report submitted to the House Ethics Committee, Conyers' counsel wrote the Congressman is committed to cooperating with the investigation, but asked it be dismissed on grounds that the settlement and release agreement for Martin's dismissal was conducted in an appropriate manner. 

Conyers' counsel said Martin was suspended and placed on unpaid leave after she pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property, a misdemeanor, and was eventually placed on two months of severance pay and given a payment for accrued annual leave. She then reportedly was on the payroll for two months of unpaid leave before she was fired in October 2016. [MORE]

US Army refuses Black Congress Reps' Request to rename streets honoring Confederate leaders

WGNO

Confederate generals’ names will continue to adorn the street signs of military base Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, New York.

The US Army has declined a request to remove the names of Robert E. Lee and Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson from its streets, saying they were honored at Fort Hamilton “as individuals, not as any particular cause or ideology,” according to a letter from the office of the assistant secretary of Manpower and Reserve Affairs.

The letter was sent to US Rep. Yvette Clarke of Brooklyn, who in June wrote a letter with three other members of Congress asking the Army to rename General Lee Avenue and Stonewall Jackson Drive.

“To honor these men who believed in the ideology of white supremacy and fought to maintain the institution of slavery constitutes a grievous insult to the many thousands of people in Brooklyn who are descendants of the slaves held in bondage,” the representatives wrote.

Senior official Diane Randon replied that the Army recognizes “the significance and sensitivity of the issue,” but said renaming efforts would be “controversial and divisive … contrary to the nation’s original intent in naming these streets, which was the spirit of reconciliation.”

Clarke expressed her disappointment with the decision, calling its reasoning “nonsense.” Patrick Rheaume, a spokesman for Clarke, said they will continue to explore legislative options.

The Army did not return requests for comment.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center and its Intelligence Project, which tracks hate groups and extremism across the country, there are 1,503 Confederate place names and other symbols in public spaces. Among them are 109 public schools, 80 counties and cities and 10 US military bases bearing the names of Confederate leaders.

All the bases are in former Confederate states, including Fort Gordon in Georgia, Fort Hood in Texas and Forts Lee, A.P Hill and Pickett in Virginia.

After a 2015 national debate on the Confederate flag, which emerged after a white supremacist who posed with the flag shot and killed nine African-Americans in a Charleston, South Carolina, church, the Pentagon announced those military bases named after Confederate officers are not expected to be rebranded.

Meanwhile, communities across the South have taken an active part in the heated debate. While some opt to take down monuments, such as the recently removed Confederate Memorial in Forest Park in St. Louis, states like Alabama have signed into law protection of the landmarks.

“There shouldn’t be anything honoring the Confederate on public land,” Heidi Beirich, director of the Intelligence Project, told CNN. “The government who represents all Americans should not have this offensive symbology on public property.”

Beirich also mentioned the Confederate Memorial erected at Arlington National Cemetery, which she said depicts and perpetuates the image of the black slave. “The South spent decades reversing the result of the Civil War by honoring the Confederacy infused with this symbology,” Beirich said. She added that those names and symbols belong in museums, not on street signs where they “don’t give context but honor these people.”

Sessions rips 'culture of lawlessness' in Chicago

From [HERE] Attorney General Jeff Sessions blasted back Monday against a lawsuit from Chicago, warning the Justice Department will withdraw criminal justice funding unless the city ends its "culture of lawlessness" and complies with federal immigration mandates.

“This administration will not simply give away grant dollars to city governments that proudly violate the rule of law and protect criminal aliens at the expense of public safety. So it’s this simple: Comply with the law or forego taxpayer dollars," Sessions said.

Behind Democratic Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Chicago on Monday filed a lawsuit against the federal government challenging the Justice Department's attempt to hold back money from local law enforcement under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program.

The Justice Department says it will not give the grant money to so-called sanctuary cities like Chicago that refuse full compliance with federal immigration policies.  

“No amount of federal taxpayer dollars will help a city that refuses to help its own residents," Sessions said in a statement. 

“To a degree perhaps unsurpassed by any other jurisdiction, the political leadership of Chicago has chosen deliberately and intentionally to adopt a policy that obstructs this country’s lawful immigration system," he added.

The city of Chicago argues the funding threat from the Justice Department is unconstitutional and is asking a federal judge to intervene.

"These new conditions — which would give federal officials the power to enter city facilities and interrogate arrestees at will and would force the city to detain individuals longer than justified by probable cause, solely to permit federal officials to investigate their immigration status — are unauthorized and unconstitutional," the lawsuit states, according to the Chicago Tribune.

President Trump has often portrayed Chicago as a poster child for out-of-control crime. Last month, he tweeted that killings in the city had reached "epidemic proportions."

Sessions, who has established a "Chicago Gun Strike Force" to address violence in the city, on Monday said Chicago has "adopted an official policy of protecting criminal aliens who prey on their own residents."

“The Mayor complains that the federal government’s focus on enforcing the law would require a ‘reordering of law enforcement practice in Chicago.’ But that’s just what Chicago needs: a recommitment to the rule of law and to policies that rollback the culture of lawlessness that has beset the city," he said.

Black plaintiffs in Alabama appeal decision to allow white city to secede from its school district

WashPost

Lawyers for black Alabama schoolchildren are appealing a federal judge’s decision to allow a predominantly white city near Birmingham to secede from its predominantly black school district, arguing that to allow such a separation would run counter to long-standing case law and undermine black students’ civil rights.

Gardendale — a mostly white municipality north of Birmingham — has sought for years to form its own school district independent from surrounding Jefferson County, arguing that their students would benefit from a smaller school system and a greater degree of local control. In April, U.S. District Court Judge Madeline Haikala found that the separation arose out of intentional racial discrimination, sent messages of racial inferiority to black students and would likely hamper court-ordered desegregation efforts countywide — but she said the effort could move forward anyway.

In their appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, lawyers from the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund argued this week that Haikala erred. Given her findings of a racial motivation, they argued, and given the likely impact on Jefferson County’s ability to finally integrate its schools, binding legal precedents gave her no choice but to block Gardendale’s separation. [MORE]

Al Jazeera Vows To Take Legal Action After [Nazi-Like] Israel Bans Network & Its Journalists

From [HERE] Al Jazeera says it will take legal action against Israel after Tel Aviv announced it will close the pan-Arab news network’s offices in the country.

The Qatar-based broadcaster issued a statement on Sunday evening deploring an announcement by Israeli Communications Minister Ayoub Kara that there would be a ban on the broadcaster in Israel and the occupied territories.

“Al Jazeera stresses that it will watch closely the developments that may result from the Israeli decision, and will take the necessary legal measures towards it,” the network said in a statement.

Joining the anti-Qatar bloc

It comes after a press conference headed by Ayoub – which Al Jazeera journalists were barred from – was held on Sunday, in which the communications minister announced his intention to censor the pan-Arab news network in Israel.

Ayoub said Al Jazeera’s bureau in Jerusalem would be closed, its transmissions barred, and the credentials of journalists revoked. No date was given for when the ban would be implemented.

The Israeli minister said his decision was due to Al Jazeera “inciting violence” through its reports during recent unrest in occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

More bizarrely, Ayoub also used the testimony of anti-Qatar Arab states – such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Jordan, Bahrain and Egypt – who have barred the broadcaster, accusing it of “supporting extremism”.

“Al Jazeera denounces this decision made by a state that claims to be ‘the only democratic state in the Middle East,'” the broadcaster said.

“It also finds the justifications made by the minister of communications as odd and biased as they are in unison with the actions carried out by a number of Arab countries that have closed the network’s bureaus, shut down its cable and satellite transmissions, and blocked its websites and applications.”

Click to read more ...

Jesse Jackson Pushing voter participation in Virginia Governor's Race

From [HERE] The Rev. Jesse Jackson is encouraging Virginians to vote in the state's closely watched race for governor.

The Richmond-Times Dispatch reports that the civil rights activist visited Trinity Baptist Church in Richmond Sunday to encourage voter participation.

Jackson said his Rainbow PUSH Coalition will be active in voter registration and turnout in Virginia. He was joined Sunday by church leaders and state lawmakers from the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus.

The Old Dominion is one of only two states electing new governors this year and the contest is viewed as a potential early referendum on President Donald Trump. Democrat Ralph Northam is facing Republican Ed Gillespie in the gubernatorial contest.

Democrat Ralph Northam has an early eight-point lead over Republican Ed Gillespie in the Virginia governor’s race, according to a new survey released last month.

The poll by Quinnipiac University found 47 percent of Virginia voters backed Northam, the state’s sitting lieutenant governor, while 39 percent backed Gillespie, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee. [MORE]

Northam (born September 13, 1959) is an American doctor, U.S. Army veteran, former Virginia state senator, and current Lieutenant Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Northam has pledged to "stand up against" Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Northam has remained neutral on the building of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. He has also avoided taking a firm stance on other pipelines such as the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

Northam voted against a constitutional amendment to make Virginia a right to work state.

Laziest President in History Starts 17-Day Golf Vacation

Trump's 16-day golf vacation aircraft-ban security zone [MORE]

MJQ: Pyramid (Blues for Junior) (European Concert Version)

19th-Century Diary Suggests Slaves Are Buried in Brooklyn Lot

NY Times

From 1828 to 1830, a Gowanus landowner, Adriance Van Brunt, paused several times a week to record in a diary the events of that day he deemed worthy of mention. The diary, in neatly inked handwriting stretching from edge to edge, offers a detailed portrait of farm life near what was then the Village of Brooklyn.

There is a summary of a preacher’s Sunday sermon — “ye are my witness” — and the dutiful accountings of purchases and sales. “Little Albert took some potatoes and pears to market,” Van Brunt wrote one day in 1828. On another: “Rained first time since the 4th August.”

But other entries in the diary disturb the quaint veneer of a bygone era and remind the modern reader of how tangible and ingrained the legacy of slavery was in New York in the early 19th century.

More urgently, the diary may complicate the city’s intent to build a new school on part of what was the Van Brunt farm, with its hint at the possibility that slaves are buried in unmarked graves on the lot.

“Buried old Mr. Bennet Aged 80,” Van Brunt wrote in September 1828. “Also a Black woman.” The following month, he wrote: “Buried Oct. 1 Nancy (Black girl) aged about 12 years.” [MORE]

Accountability for Public Servants Unnecessary: Portland Cops Now Get 48 Hours to make a Statement after Shooting Civilians

Katu

The Portland City Council met Thursday night to discuss proposed changes to officer accountability agreements with the community and police.

That included debating the so-called "48-hour rule," which refers to how soon after a shooting that officers should give a public statement.

Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill said every use of deadly force case against an officer goes to a grand jury. But he's concerned about what could happen if an officer was indicted for murder.

"The indictment is at substantial risk of being challenged and quite possibly dismissed if involved officers are compelled to give statements on the administrative side hearing matter," Underhill said.

"I can tell you what you're being asked to support is a smack in the face to community members who want accountability, who want justice," said Jo Ann Hardesty, president of Portland NAACP.

"The politically brave thing to do would be to require compelling testimony right away, and let a legal challenge play out -- not write a draft policy and let the court weigh in," said Dan Handelman, director of Portland Copwatch.

Several community leaders spoke in support of the 48-hour rule. Some even suggested it be shortened to 24 hours.

Commissioners are still accepting community input via email on the police accountability ordinances.

Retired Police Detective: Trump's Comments Endorsing Police Brutality are "Treasonous"

New civil rights chief at Justice Department has spent his career undermining civil rights

ThinkProgress

Thomas Wheeler, the Assistant Acting Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) division that handles policing, discrimination, and voting rights cases, announced he would be leaving his position after just 6 months.

John Gore, a Republican lawyer in Washington, will serve in the interim until Trump’s nominee for the position, Eric Dreiband, secures a hearing. Gore most notably represented the University of North Carolina system after it was sued by the Obama administration over the state’s HB2 bathroom bill. Gore is a former partner at Jones Day—the law firm from which the Trump administration has pulled at least 14 attorneys from to join the president’s team, including the White House Counsel Don McGahn. According to Election Law Blog, Gore’s now-deleted bio on the Jones Day website stated Gore had been “actively involved in redistricting litigation” in private practice and listed six cases in which he defended state governments accused of violating the Voting Rights Act through gerrymandering.

Gore represented Florida Governor Rick Scott in a case over his administration's attempt to purge the state’s voter rolls of potential noncitizens before the 2012 election. The move disproportionately affected Florida’s Hispanic community, which made up only 13% of the 11.3 million active registered voters in Florida at the time, yet were 58% of those identified as potential noncitizens. A federal appeals court ruled in 2014 the purge was found to have violated the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), which prevents purging of voter rolls 90 days before an election.

Many believe the Trump administration, with its recent creation of a Voter Election Commission urging states to turn over large amounts of voter data, will gut the NVRA. In a June photo with Trump, chair of the Voter Election Commission and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach was photographed holding a memo of desired policy goals, including a bullet point to amend the NVRA.

Gore will not permanently maintain the job: Trump nominated Washington labor lawyer Eric Dreiband to serve as assistant attorney general in the civil rights division, but hasn’t yet been confirmed. Dreiband, however, also has a poor record on civil rights, and many activists have already voiced their opposition to Dreiband’s nomination.

“Whoever leads the ‘crown jewel’ of the Justice Department must have deep relationships with stakeholders and marginalized communities, and have a deep, abiding faith in our nation’s civil rights laws,” said Vanita Gupta, head of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and a former leader of the civil rights division under President Obama. “They must respect the laws that touch everyone, rights that people have literally died for. They must respect the role of what has been called the conscience of the federal government. In all those regards, Eric Dreiband is woefully unqualified to lead the Civil Rights Division.”

Dreiband, also a former Jones Day attorney, has represented a tobacco company in an age discrimination case and Bloomberg in a pregnancy discrimination case. In his most high-profile case, Dreiband defended Abercrombie & Fitch in a Supreme Court case when the clothing retailer was sued for refusing to hire a 17-year-old Muslim woman because her headscarf was in violation of the company’s dress code, a case which Dreiband lost.

Racist Election Criminal Kobach Appears In Federal Court For Deposition

HPPR

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who is also vice chairing a presidential commission on elections, was due in federal court Thursday morning to give a deposition in an ongoing voter registration case.

Kobach tried to avoid the deposition, but his last-minute appeal for a stay was denied Wednesday.

The ACLU sued Kobach on behalf of voters who registered at the DMV. The “Motor Voter” provision of the National Voter Registration Act makes that easy – voters just have to attest to their citizenship. Kobach is defending a state law that requires documentary proof of citizenship.

A judge ordered the secretary to hand over documents he shared with President Trump during the transition that suggest changes to the National Voter Registration Act. Those documents remain sealed.

Outside the federal courthouse in Kansas City Kansas, an aide said Kobach would not comment on the case.

Nearly 50 Senators Want to Make It a Felony to Boycott Israel

The Nation

In 1966, the NAACP of Claiborne County, Mississippi, launched a boycott of several white-owned local businesses on the basis of racial discrimination.

It was so impactful that the local hardware store filed a lawsuit against the individuals and organizations who coordinated the boycott. After 10 long years of litigation, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled in favor of the white businesses and ordered the NAACP to pay for all their lost earnings.

Years later, in 1982, the US Supreme Court ruled 8-0 to overturn the lower court’s decision, on the basis that nonviolent boycotts are a form of free speech protected by the First Amendment. In announcing the unanimous decision, Justice John Paul Stevens said, “One of the foundations of our society is the right of individuals to combine with other persons in pursuit of a common goal by lawful means.” [MORE]