Grandchildren of John Tyler, America’s 10th president, are still alive
While most U.S. presidents become associated with important legislation or significant policies, what stands out for former President John Tyler, America’s 10th commander in chief, is his impressive lineage.
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Grandchildren of John Tyler, America’s 10th president, are still alive
A Utah mayor who wrote news stories under a false identify was sued for defamation on the same day he announced he will seek the Republican nomination to run for Salt Lake County mayor.
All-night eateries are good for a great many things — soaking up spirits, breaking up road trips — but they are not, generally speaking, good Read more…
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The diner, refined
Not a great week for the Debate Champion. Applause was included last night, but Gingrich’s debate performance was pretty close to Monday night; he Read more…
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The debate winner(s) and loser …
Military censorship only goes so far. Now we know, contrary to official reports, at least two US Marines were hit by the bomb driven into the Kajaki Sofla bazaar by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle on January 18, 2012. Corporal Phillip McGeath, 25, was killed; Corporal Christopher Bordoni, 21, was critically wounded. Why the official silence? And why the frustration, almost palpable in the public affairs office emails last week , over reports that break the silence? Maybe it’s because Kajaki is supposed to be, has been reported as a shining COIN success story. On January 12, 2012, for example, six days before the suicide bomb in the bazaar, the US government spelled it all out in a story headlined: ”Soccer field, symbol of hope to Kajaki Sofla children”: Operation Eastern Storm began in October, when the men of 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment conducted a large-scale, helicopter-borne insertion aimed at routing insurgents from the valley. The Marine casualties in the bazaar attack were from the 1st Battalion, 6th Regiment. The happy talk continues: Now, 3 months after the outset of the operation, the children of this small oasis, tucked between the mountains, can be seen playing soccer on a sparse patch of dirt, within Patrol Base Pennsylvania, the headquarters, for Company B., 1/6. … Marines and members of the Afghan National Civil Order Police stand by to coach and referee, while village elders rest on the rocks or piles of sand constituting sidelines COIN heaven, in other words. Never mind an Afghan National Army member shot and killed a US Army private playing volleyball elsewhere in Afghanistan on January 8. Kajaki Sofla was the real COIN deal. The story continues: Felber Field, where the daily soccer games are held, was named after Lance Cpl. Brian Felber, who was critically wounded in an IED strike shortly after the company arrived in Kajaki , explained Capt. Paul Tremblay, company commander, Company B. The piece goes on to detail the COIN thinking that went into what the Marines saw as an effort “to build rapport and keep the positive momentum they had gained” — setting up “Felber Field.” “We sat down and thought about what we did as kids. What were some of the most memorable things we did as children that we can do to continue the momentum for the children and hopefully, inspire the parents, said Tremblay. Hmm. Let’s see. Did you memorize the Koran? Become a child bride of an old married man? “ What’s most important to the average [person here] is perception. The kids, they’ve seen soccer on the TV in Pakistan; it’s a national past time. So for them to get excited about coming to play soccer, by default it makes their fathers and elders in the villages take ownership of their own security.” It makes them take ownership? Captain, you can’t make someone “take ownership of their own security,” whatever that means, and particularly not through what sounds like the syrupy plot of a feel-good summer movie. They either want “their own security,” or they don’t. As the influence of the insurgency steadily waned; soccer balls, books, coloring pencils and a host of other recreational items began to appear in the bazaar. Every afternoon, children could be seen in their family’s fields playing catch, while Marines patrolled past Kajaki Sofla became COIN Nirvana — or Mecca, as the case may be. “It’s a very regimented life for the kids,” explained 1st Lt. Dennis Graziosi, 2nd Platoon commander from Altoona, Pa. “When the Taliban came in here, they stopped the school, sports activities, all of that. It’s just amazing to go from Taliban kicking all that out, regimenting their life, to seeing it crop back up. Their patrolling effort has allowed the kids future to get a lot better, to establish a brighter future for the children here.” Beyond generating goodwill among the local citizenry, the ability to host an event like this within their company position, with approximately 50 children in attendance serves as a marker for how security has increased in the unit’s area of operations. … It’s pure COIN, by the book. Then, disaster struck — a suicide bomber attacks a crowd including Marines. Now what does Felber Field, named for a Marine who died in an IED blast way back when things were bad, signify if Marines are still dying in the bazaar of “hearts and minds”? To me, of course, it signifies the COIN strategy to win (buy) hearts and minds is still fundamentally flawed. The bazaar, the soccer field, even after successful combat operations, remains a dangerous battleground. So don’t mention American casualties in the bazaar. Maybe no one will notice the cracks in COIN: Is that the military’s thinking? Meanwhile, The Tompkins County Trust Company has set up a fund to collect donations to support Christopher Bordoni and his wife Jessica. Donations can be mailed to: Tompkins Trust Company c/o USMC CPL. Christopher D. Bordoni Fund Attention: Scott Albanese P.O. Box 460 Ithaca, NY 14851
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COIN Claims Another Two American Casualties in Afghanistan
Newt Gingrich’s openly lesbian half-sister, Candace Gingrich-Jones, says that though she has “no personal knowledge to be able to confirm or deny” her brother’s ex-wife’s accusations that he asked for an “open marriage,” she understands from her own personal experience why Marianne Gingrich would come forward. Gingrich-Jones has publicly taken on her brother’s political positions for years — even as they remain cordial and respectful at family gatherings — and she endorsed President Obama’s re-election several months ago. “I read [a story where] she said she knew it would come out sooner or later and she wanted to be in control of it,” Gingrich-Jones said in an interview on my radio program on SiriusXM OutQ, discussing Marianne Gingrich, whom Newt left for his current wife Callista. “People who are adjacent to those people in the spotlight have decisions to make every single day about coming forward, speaking up, not speaking up.” “I’m sure there are folks who have said or will say things that are not dissimilar to what I heard people say about myself,” Gingrich-Jones explained, thinking back to her own decision to go public about her brother, after an AP reporter called her in 1994 when Newt became Speaker of the House, and asked her if she is gay. “[People are saying] that sheâs doing it to get the spotlight, somehow benefit from it — I’m sure people are wondering if she’s writing a book. You know, I can only speak to my personal decision. There is that decision to speak up or not. I don’t think I I would able to live with myself if I wasnât very publicly pointing out the flaws in my brother’s campaign, particularly when it comes to LGBT issues.” Back in early December Gingrich-Jones described how her brother treats her wife just as he treats her sisterâs husband at holiday gatherings, and even bought the couple a shower gift and wedding gift, leading her to question whether he really believes his antigay rhetoric. This past Christmas, however, the holiday gathering was postponed. “We typically would have a [holiday] family gathering of the Gingrich side of my family, our sisters and their families and Newt and Callista,” she said, adding with a chuckle, “but because of um, all of this presidential campaigning thing, his schedule’s been a little bit too busy.” “So we keep kind of talking about it,” she continued. “Maybe in February, not quite sure when that will take place. But we have our Secret Santa gifts to give each other.” Listen to the full Candace Gingrich-Jones interview here:
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LISTEN: Newt Gingrich’s Lesbian Half-Sister Sounds Off On ‘Open Marriage,’ Politics
WASHINGTON — On a single day this past fall, the United States government held 13,185 people in immigration detention who had not been convicted of a crime, with no plans to charge them with one, according to information The Huffington Post obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. Instead, at a cost of roughly 2 million taxpayer dollars per day, the innocent men and women were detained while immigration authorities sorted out their fates. This case stands in stark contrast to the stated goal of immigration policy under the administration of President Barack Obama: to detain and deport unauthorized immigrants who’ve been convicted of crimes. “ICE is focused on smart, effective immigration enforcement that prioritizes the removal of convicted criminal aliens, fugitives, recent illegal border crossers and egregious immigration law violators, such as those who have been previously removed from the United States,” Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Nicole Navas said in a statement. “ICE’s enforcement approach is enhancing public safety in communities around the country.” As the GOP presidential contest moves to Florida — a key primary state and home to 1.5 million Latino voters — the issue of immigration policy will move to center stage. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has positioned himself to appear as the candidate who is toughest on immigration, arguing that any of the roughly 11 million undocumented immigrants here without documentation should be removed regardless of circumstances — a policy that would jam already overcrowded detention centers. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, meanwhile, has argued that law-abiding people with deep ties to their community and a long tenure in the United States should be given the opportunity to stay. The FOIA request for information on all immigrants in detention on Oct. 3, 2011, turned up a list of nearly 32,300. Forty percent of those held by ICE had not been convicted of a crime, nor were they awaiting criminal trial. Despite what the term “illegal immigration” implies, simply being in the country without status is a civil, not a criminal, offense. Rapists and murderers, frequently cited as the main unauthorized immigrants ICE is trying to remove, made up a far smaller percentage of those held that day than the innocent, traffic violators or low-level drug offenders, according to ICE’s crime breakdown. “The fact is, we’re not deporting huge numbers of rapists and murderers,” said Emily Tucker, director of policy and advocacy for the Detention Watch Network, which pushes for limiting detention and deportation. “They would like us to think that, but that isn’t what is going on.” Locking people up is big business. The Corrections Corporation of America, which gives heavily to both parties, is explicit about the connection between immigrant detention policy and the private prison company’s bottom line. “[T]he demand for our correctional and detention facilities and services … could be adversely affected by changes in existing criminal or immigration laws, crime rates in jurisdictions in which we operate, the relaxation of criminal or immigration enforcement efforts, leniency in conviction, sentencing or deportation practices, and the decriminalization of certain activities that are currently proscribed by criminal laws or the loosening of immigration laws,” the company wrote in an analysis for investors filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. “Immigration reform laws which are currently a focus for legislators and politicians at the federal, state and local level also could materially adversely impact us.” ICE has been publicly attempting to shift away from detaining innocent immigrants, and has implemented new policies to increase prosecutorial discretion. Separate data provided by ICE indicates progress in that direction. The percentage of non-criminals in detention decreased significantly between the 2008 and 2011 fiscal years, from 71 percent to 54 percent, according to that data, and deportation of criminal immigrants has increased from previous years. ICE officials never claimed they would stop detaining and deporting low-level offenders and non-criminals entirely, despite policy changes intended to increase the proportion of dangerous criminals in the system. In a June 2011 memo from ICE Director John Morton, he emphasized that “nothing in this memorandum should be construed to prohibit or discourage the apprehension, detention or removal of other aliens unlawfully in the United States.” Still, the administration has taken pains to neutralize its record-breaking deportation rates , which have earned them ire from immigration advocates. The continuing detention of tens of thousands of noncriminal and low-level offenders works against that effort, threatening to undermine political support for the administration among the immigrant community. On Oct. 3, detainees considered the most dangerous, referred to as Level 1, made up 31 percent of those kept in detention facilities. Level 1, according to the memo, is composed of the highest-priority detainees “who pose a danger to national security or a risk to public safety,” including for suspected terrorism, violent crimes and gang activities. Authorities held 9,867 people classified as Level 1 in detention facilities Oct. 3. Of those, a fifth were held for violent crimes, including sexual assault. But more than a third were locked up for drug crimes, largely marijuana- or cocaine-related, or driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Level 3 is made up of fugitives from immigration law with non-violent criminal convictions and illegal reentrants to the country. Half the people in this group were being held for a DUI or a lower-level drug violation. Another sixth were held for non-booze related traffic offenses. The detention numbers can be loosely compared to data obtained by the Associated Press in 2009 as part of a Freedom of Information Act request, also based on a single day of data. On Jan. 25, 2009, there were exactly 32,000 people detained in the U.S. immigration system, according to a March 2009 article . The number for that day, shortly after Obama was sworn into office, is roughly the same today. The comparison shows progress toward the goal of detaining fewer innocent people: A significantly larger proportion of detainees, about 58 percent, had no criminal conviction, the AP reported of the 2009 sample. Some of those listed as non-criminals may have violated civil immigration law or may have been charged with other crimes, including the federal crime of reentry, but not convicted. It’s one thing to deport immigrants who are in the United States without authorization. Anyone who enters a country outside of the legal immigration channels, or overstays a visa, knows that such a possibility exists. But it’s quite another to separate that person from his or her family and lock him or her away for an indefinite period, while ICE works through its paperwork. International human rights law requires governments to protect detainees from violent crime while in custody. Yet incidents of rape and violent assaults in immigration detention centers are not uncommon . There are alternatives to locking up people who would not otherwise be imprisoned if not for their immigration status, ones that would leave the person with his or her family, and cost taxpayers far less than the estimated $95 to $141 per day spent to detain them. “We’re talking about a significant expense to U.S. taxpayers,” said Michael Tan, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union, which advocates for alternatives to detention. “It makes a lot of sense, and it’s long overdue for the government to take a hard look at how it’s spending its detention dollars.” Instead of detention for low-level or non-criminal offenders, advocates say the government should increase its use of ankle bracelets and other monitoring for undocumented immigrants not considered to be a flight-risk. Although some crimes require detention based on a 1996 federal law, the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act , immigration lawyer David Leopold said the definition of detention could include other steps that limit the freedom and movement of people who would otherwise be kept in detention facilities. Leopold said the government does not yet seem to be considering that option on a large scale. “Detention means that a person is not free,” Leopold, past president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said. “Anybody who is wearing an ankle bracelet and is subject to monitoring on a 24-7 basis, is not free. So if they give me an ankle bracelet and tell me, ‘you can’t leave your house unless you have permission from immigration and you can’t go here and you can’t go there,’ I’m detained.”
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No Conviction, No Freedom: Immigration Authorities Locked 13,000 In Limbo
Naked PETA Protestors Disguised As Corpses ‘Wouldn’t be Caught Dead Wearing Animal Skins’
Naked corpses on the streets of Montgomery, Ala., might mean the long-feared zombie uprising has begun and we poor humans might as well just prepare for our brains to ripped from our skulls and eaten. For better or worse, however, these corpses were actually members of the animals rights group PETA dramatizing their animal rights agenda. “We had two people painted to look like corpses, wearing underwear [and] holding signs that read, ‘We Wouldn’t Be Caught Dead in Animal Skins,’” PETA campaigner Katie Arth told The Huffington Post. “They were in stand-up coffins [that] we set up to draw attention to the suffering of animals used for fur, leather wool and exotic skins.” Other activists held signs that read, “Wear Your Own Skin — Let Animals Keep Theirs” and “Fur Is Dead.” Arth said the goal was to get people’s attention and give them the opportunity to question what goes on behind closed doors at fur factory farms. “Most people love animals — [they] grew up with dogs and cats, and are just less familiar with animals like foxes and cows,” she said. “The things done to them to turn them into a pair of shoes or a coat would be felonies if done to dogs and cats.” The protest took place in front of Henig Furs, Leathers & Outerwear in Montgomery. In addition to holding signs, the activists handed out leaflets to curious onlookers. “Most people don’t want animals to suffer for their clothes but they do,” Arth continued. “Animals are often skinned alive. On fur farms a common manner of slaughter is anal and vaginal electrocution. So we were out there to encourage people to make compassionate choices by choosing synthetic options instead of real animal skin.” Tascha Jones, one of the corpse protesters at the event, said she is happy to bare her skin whenever it helps save animals’ skins. “With all the luxurious alternatives available, there’s absolutely no excuse to wear animal skins,” Jones said. Visit PETA.org for more information on People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. PHOTOS: MORE NAKED PROTESTS
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Naked PETA Protestors Disguised As Corpses ‘Wouldn’t be Caught Dead Wearing Animal Skins’
To the relief of practically everyone except those who think Newt Gingrich is an honourable man, the rash of debates is mostly over among Republican contenders for the presidential nomination. After Florida’s primary on Saturday, there’s only one debate scheduled for February and three for March. By then — if Saturday’s Florida primary goes the way it should – the GOP race may be in its wrap-up stages with Mitt Romney the party’s choice. As has been pointed out, Florida is twice as big as the three states combined who’ve already chosen the candidate they like — three different winners in three states: Rick Santorum in Iowa (sort of — despite the disappearance of eight precinct returns); Romney a romp in New Hampshire; Gingrich a startling tsunami in South Carolina. But Florida is for real — involving two time zones and strong pockets of national security conservatives, social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, evangelicals and Cuban-American conservatives. Perhaps the biggest change in the race since South Carolina is the sudden fear — and “fear” is not too strong a word — among Republicans that Gingrich might seal the nomination. Ex-Florida governor Jeb Bush is reportedly apoplectic at Gingrich’s surge. While Republican enthusiasm for Romney has always been lukewarm, there’s no doubting his fiscal conservatism, nor his essential moral decency. He is a good person with nothing salacious or reprehensible in his background that’s shameful. The same cannot be said of Gingrich. Without going into particulars (which the Democrats will do if he wins the GOP nomination), there are very real concerns about whether Gingrich has the moral rectitude to warrant him being president. Santorum, and especially Ron Paul, are increasingly unlikely to win the nomination. But both are honourable people. There’s a sanctimonious quality to Santorum, favoured by the evangelicals, but he seems a highly moral man, if not presidential timbre — at least this time around. Although I think he’d be a disaster as president, Ron Paul is by far the most interesting, entertaining and candid of all the contenders. If it weren’t for his blaming the U.S. for the 9/11 attack , and his nutty obsession with returning America to an isolationist, narrow, to-hell-with-international-responsibilities attitude, he’d be even more attractive than he is. If he decides to run as a third-party candidate (and he repeatedly doesn’t deny this possibility), he’ll almost certainly get Barack Obama re-elected president. One feels the Democrats want Gingrich to win the GOP nomination almost as much as the Republican establishment and moderate conservatives don’t want it. For all his alleged blandness and composure, Romney’s tax returns are ho-hum — proving he’s very rich (which we already knew) and that he annually gives over $2 million (a tenth of his annual earnings) to his church. Obama’s desperation about the November election is seen in his State of the Union address where he wants the very rich to pay more taxes and he showcased Warren Buffett’s secretary, of whom it’s said Romney pays lower taxes than she does. Wrong. He may pay at a lower rate , but he pays a hell of a lot more. Romney’s income from investments and capital gains, taxed at under 15 per cent, are available to anyone with investment and capital gains income. And he’d already paid taxes on income that he’d then invested — the returns on which he paid more taxes. Obama (and Gingrich) ignore that the poor don’t create jobs — rich people hoping to get richer do. Romney’s business acumen has not only created jobs, but has saved jobs on companies that were headed for bankruptcy. Anyway, we’ll know by tonight if Gingrich succeeds scuttling Romney in Florida.
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Peter Worthington: Whoever Wins Florida, at Least Fewer GOP Debates
Federal and state law enforcement officials have launched a fraud-fighting initiative to root out wrongdoing in the market for residential mortgage-backed securities.