Digital Alaska News

Putin Calls Kerch Bridge Attack “a Terrorist Act” By Kyiv https://digitalalaskanews.com/putin-calls-kerch-bridge-attack-a-terrorist-act-by-kyiv/ ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Russian news reports say President Vladimir Putin is calling the attack on the Kerch Bridge to Crimea a terrorist act carried out by Ukrainian special services. “There’s no doubt it was a terrorist act directed at the destruction of critically important civilian infrastructure,” Putin said in a video of a meeting Sunday with the chairman of Russia’s Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin. Bastrykin said he had opened a criminal case into an act of terrorism. Bastrykin said Ukrainian special services and citizens of Russia and other countries took part in the act. “We have already established the route of the truck” that Russian authorities have said set off a bomb and explosion on the bridge, he said. Bastrykin said the truck had been to Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia, North Ossetia, Krasnodar (a region in southern Russia) and other places. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below. ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — The couple cowered under a blanket before dawn Sunday when they heard missiles headed again for their city, which has suffered repeated barrages as Russian and Ukrainian forces battle for control of territory that Moscow has illegally annexed. “There was one explosion, then another one,” Mucola Markovich said. Then, in a flash, the fourth-floor apartment he shared with his wife was gone, the 76-year-old said, holding back tears. The overnight Russian missile strikes on the city of Zaporizhzhia brought down part of a large apartment building, leaving at least a dozen people dead. “When it will be rebuilt, I don’t know,” Markovich said. “I am left without an apartment at the end of my life.” The strikes come as Russia has suffered a series of setbacks nearly eight months after invading Ukraine in a campaign many thought would be short-lived. In recent weeks, Ukrainian forces have staged a counteroffensive, retaking areas in the south and east, while Moscow’s decision to call up more troops has led to protests and an exodus of tens of thousands of Russians. The latest setback for Moscow was an explosion Saturday that hit a huge bridge linking Russia with the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow annexed eight years ago. The attack on the Kerch Bridge damaged an important supply route for the Kremlin’s forces, and was a blow to Russian prestige. Recent fighting has focused on the regions just north of Crimea, including Zaporizhzhia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy lamented the latest attack in a Telegram post. “Again, Zaporizhzhia. Again, merciless attacks on civilians, targeting residential buildings, in the middle of the night,” he wrote. At least 19 people died in Russian missile strikes on apartment buildings in the city on Thursday. “From the one who gave this order, to everyone who carried out this order: They will answer,” he added. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called the attacks on civilians a war crime and urged an international investigation. The six missiles used in Sunday’s overnight attack were launched from Russian-occupied areas of the Zaporizhzhia region, the Ukrainian air force said. The region is one of four Russia claimed as its own this month, though its capital of the same name remains under Ukrainian control. Stunned residents watched from behind police tape as emergency crews tried to reach the upper floors of a building that took a direct hit. A chasm at least 12 meters (40-feet) wide smoldered where apartments had once stood. In an adjacent apartment building, the missile barrage blew windows and doors out of their frames in a radius of hundreds of feet. At least 20 private homes and 50 apartment buildings were damaged, city council Secretary Anatoliy Kurtev said. In the immediate aftermath, the city council said 17 people were killed, but later revised that down to 12. Regional police reported on Sunday afternoon that 13 had been killed and more than 60 wounded, at least 10 of them children. Tetyana Lazunko, 73, and her husband, Oleksii, took shelter in the hallway of their top-floor apartment after hearing air raid sirens. The explosion shook the building and sent their possessions flying. Lazunko wept as the couple surveyed the damage to their home of nearly five decades. “Why are they bombing us? Why?” she said. About 3 kilometers (2 miles) away in another neighborhood ravaged by a missile, three volunteers dug a shallow grave for a German shepherd dog killed in the strike, its leg blown away by the blast. Russian officials did not immediately comment on the strikes. Defense officials have similarly avoided direct mention of the blast that damaged the Kremlin’s prized Crimea bridge. Some nationalist bloggers have begun to levy rare criticism at Russian Vladimir Putin for failing to address the bridge attack, the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War noted. Abbas Gallyamov, an independent Russian political analyst and a former speechwriter for Putin, said the Russian president, who formed a committee Saturday to investigate the bridge explosion, had not responded forcefully enough to satisfy angry war hawks. The attack and response, he said, has “inspired the opposition, while the loyalists are demoralized.” “Because once again, they see that when the authorities say that everything is going according to plan and we’re winning, that they’re lying, and it demoralizes them,” he said. Putin personally opened the Kerch Bridge in May 2018 by driving a truck across it as a symbol of Moscow’s claims on Crimea. The bridge, the longest in Europe, is vital to sustaining Russia’s military operations in southern Ukraine. No one has claimed responsibility for damaging it. Traffic over the bridge was temporarily suspended after the blast, but both automobiles and trains were crossing again on Sunday. Russia also restarted car ferries service. Crimea is a popular vacation resort for Russians. People trying to drive to the bridge and onto the Russian mainland on Sunday encountered hours-long traffic jams. “We were a bit unprepared for such a turn,” said one driver, Kirill Suslov, sitting in traffic. “That’s why the mood is a bit gloomy.” The Institute for the Study of War said videos of the bridge indicated the damage from the explosion “is likely to increase friction in Russian logistics for some time” but not cripple Russia’s ability to equip its troops in Ukraine. Hours after the explosion, Russia’s Defense Ministry announced that the air force chief, Gen. Sergei Surovikin, would now command all Russian troops in Ukraine. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military said Sunday that fierce clashes were taking place around the cities of Bakhmut and Avdiivka in the eastern Donetsk region, where Russian forces have claimed some recent territorial gains. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine did not acknowledge any loss of territory but said “the most tense situation” had been observed around those two cities. And in the devastated Ukrainian city of Lyman, which was recently recaptured after a months-long Russian occupation, authorities were searching for the bodies of more civilians. Mark Tkachenko of the Kramatorsk district police said Lyman has become a “humanitarian crisis” that could still hold further grim discoveries like mass graves. ___ Schreck reported from Kyiv. ___ Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine Read More Here

El-Erian: “We Are In This Incredible Situation Where Good News For The Economy Is Bad News For Th… https://digitalalaskanews.com/el-erian-we-are-in-this-incredible-situation-where-good-news-for-the-economy-is-bad-news-for-th/ El-Erian: “We are in this incredible situation where good news for the economy is bad news for th…  Face the Nation El-Erian Blames Fed for ‘Very High’ Risk of a Damaging Recession  Bloomberg Economist Mohamed El-Erian says US economy ‘on bumpy journey to better destination’  Fox Business Transcript: Mohamed El-Erian on “Face the Nation, Oct. 9, 2022  CBS News Read More Here

Pompeo: Biden's Armageddon Remarks Are “terrible Risk” To American People https://digitalalaskanews.com/pompeo-bidens-armageddon-remarks-are-terrible-risk-to-american-people/ Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday criticized President Biden’s remarks last week warning about the possibility of nuclear usage from Russian President Vladimir Putin as “reckless.” Driving the news: Pompeo said on Fox News Sunday that Biden’s comments are “a terrible risk to the American people.” Pompeo, who served under former President Trump, added that the Biden administration would be more effective “executing quiet diplomacy.” “We ought to be doing that, I hope that they’re doing this quietly,” he said. The big picture: Biden last week warned that the U.S. faces the highest chance of “Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban missile crisis.” Putin is “not joking when he talks about potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons because his military is, you might say, significantly underperforming,” Biden said at a fundraiser. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby on Sunday also reacted to Biden’s remarks on ABC’s “This Week”: “What the president was reflecting was that the stakes are high right now,” he said. What he’s saying: Pompeo also said Sunday that the explosion on a Russian bridge on Saturday that links the Crimean Peninsula and the Russian mainland was a sign that Russian forces were struggling. “The Russian military is failing desperately,” he said. Go deeper… White House: Biden’s “Armageddon” warning not based on any new intel Read More Here

Alaska Campaign Roundup: Pierce Resurfaces, Al Gross Returns To The Political Scene, And Outside Group Holds Rally For Palin And Tshibaka https://digitalalaskanews.com/alaska-campaign-roundup-pierce-resurfaces-al-gross-returns-to-the-political-scene-and-outside-group-holds-rally-for-palin-and-tshibaka/ Candidates in Alaska are campaigning in full swing for the November election. Some highlights: The reappearance of Charlie Pierce After all but disappearing from the campaign trail, Republican candidate for governor and former Kenai Mayor Charlie Pierce surprised event organizers by participating in the Homer Chamber of Commerce debate Thursday with independent former Gov. Bill Walker and former Democratic state legislator Les Gara. During Thursday’s debate, Pierce voiced support for holding a constitutional convention and cutting the state budget. He said he opposes taxation, calling it “regressive,” but said he wants to look at Alaska’s oil tax credit structure. Gara repeated his previously stated intention to collect $1.2 billion more per year from major oil companies, similar to the Fair Share Act ballot measure rejected by voters in 2020, and to invest more in state services in an effort to reverse out-migration. Walker has emphasized trying to capture as much as possible for Alaska from the trillion-dollar federal infrastructure bill and spoke about a fiscal plan he championed when he was governor. In August, Pierce announced he was resigning as mayor to focus on his gubernatorial campaign, but a “credible” harassment claim from a borough employee was later brought to light. His campaign has been all but silent since then. Conservative radio host Michael Dukes, who has voiced support for Pierce, lamented the former mayor’s disappearance from the campaign trail on his Tuesday radio show. Dukes said at least Pierce had helped block the “stalking horse” of far-right Republican Rep. Chris Kurka, who finished fifth in August’s primary election. Kurka fruitlessly demanded Pierce drop out before the state’s withdrawal deadline. The top four-finishers advanced to the Nov. 8 general election. Pierce’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment Friday about his campaign’s plans for the future. He garnered 6.6% of votes in the August primary election and was in fourth place behind Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy, Gara and Walker. All four candidates for governor are scheduled to meet in Anchorage on Tuesday for a forum hosted by the Resource Development Council. For Dunleavy, it will be only his second candidate forum since the launch of his re-election campaign. He previously appeared in a debate hosted by the Alaska Oil and Gas Association and canceled a planned appearance at the Alaska Chamber debate in Fairbanks to respond to fallout from a major storm in western Alaska. Dunleavy announced earlier this summer he would appear in only five forums, drawing repeated attacks from Gara and Walker. The Bill and Les show heads to Juneau With Pierce absent from events, and Dunleavy set to attend four debates this year, Gara and Walker have spent much of the 2022 campaign season just debating each other.From Kodiak on Monday for the fisheries debate, Gara and Walker traveled to Juneau Wednesday for a forum in a Douglas bar hosted by the state’s hospitality trade organization. Gara joked that the gubernatorial campaign had become the “Bill and Les Show.” Both candidates voiced opposition to raising taxes on the alcohol industry and touted their hospitality cred: Walker was a bar and hotel owner as a young man in Valdez and Gara owns a small percentage of Snow City Cafe, a popular breakfast and lunch spot in downtown Anchorage. Under the state’s ranked-choice voting system, both Gara and Walker have said they would rank the other as their second-choice in an effort to topple Dunleavy, with recent polling showing the incumbent is in the lead. Constitutional convention opponents get big windfall Defend Our Constitution, the leading group against a constitutional convention, posted new financial disclosure documents earlier in the week, showing it had recently brought in more than $1.4 million. That represented a big jump from a month ago when the campaign had raised just over $800,000. The bulk of that new funding came from Outside groups like the Sixteen Thirty Fund, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit described by the New York Times as a left-wing dark money group, which has donated $1.4 million to the campaign in total. Another big new donor is the National Education Association, which donated $500,000. Bruce Botelho, the campaign chair for Defend Our Constitution, has said he makes no apologies for seeking money from the Lower 48 because the campaign needs enough funding to tell all Alaskans why a convention would be a mistake. Convention YES, the leading campaign backed by conservatives for a convention, had said it had raised less $10,000 a month ago. The group is required to file its disclosure documents by Oct. 10. Al Gross joins new fundraising effort Former Alaska congressional candidate Al Gross, who dropped out of the race for U.S. House earlier this year without providing a full explanation after coming in third in the June special primary election, announced last week that he was involved in launching a new organization that will raise and spend funds in support of the re-election of Republican U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. According to emails signed by Gross, the fund is intended to promote the benefits of infrastructure money coming to Alaska. The new group is working with an existing non-profit, Build Alaska’s Future, “founded to advance the national Biden-Harris Administration agenda.” Veronica Slajer, a founding director of the organization, said it was originally set up to be “the nonprofit local partner to the administration” of Democratic President Joe Biden. She said the organization intends to continue to work after the November election. The federal infrastructure bill, which could deliver billions to Alaska for projects including broadband infrastructure, ferries, and road repairs, was signed into law last year and supported by both of Alaska’s U.S. senators and the late Rep. Don Young, all Republicans. Murkowski was a member of a bipartisan group of lawmakers that worked on crafting the bill. Murkowski’s Trump-backed opponent in the U.S. Senate race, Kelly Tshibaka, has said she would have opposed the bill. In the U.S. House race, both Republican candidates — former Gov. Sarah Palin and businessman Nick Begich III — have said they would have opposed the bill. According to emails signed by Gross, the goal of the new organization is to raise $500,000 to launch a statewide digital media campaign highlighting the benefits of the infrastructure funding. Gross, an orthopedic surgeon who ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 2020 against Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, ran this year as an independent in the special U.S. House race to replace Young before abruptly dropping out. “While I stepped aside from the congressional race, I will continue to stay involved with initiatives making a positive impact in Alaska because I want to do what’s best for our state,” Gross wrote in the email. Gross did not respond to a phone call seeking comment and has avoided the press since stepping away from the special U.S. House race in June. In a text message on Saturday he said he’s “excited to help with this new organization.” “We’re happy to have him do that,” Slajer said. “I can’t imagine how hard it is to step out of something that he truly thought he could have won.” PAC campaigns for Trump-endorsed Palin and Tshibaka A group called Patriot Freedom PAC is campaigning for Palin and Tshibaka — both of whom endorsed by former President Donald Trump. According to a news release from the group, they expect to spend nearly $400,000 in Alaska campaigning for the two candidates, including by flying 20 paid canvassers who have been knocking on doors in Anchorage for the two candidates, and hosting an event in Anchorage Sunday featuring an appearance by Palin and a controversial former sheriff from Wisconsin. According to Federal Election Commission filings, the PAC was formed this year. It lists only the Anchorage event on its website. The sole contributor listed so far is California-based Caryn Borland, who gave the group $190,000 in June and appears to be a Christian musician. FEC filings show she is a regular contributor to Trump-backed candidates. The PAC said it planned to deliver “20,000 light saber swords branded with Kelly Tshibaka’s name” in a play on her last name, which is pronounced similar to “Chewbacca,” the “Star Wars” character. But Tshibaka will not be at the event. Her campaign adviser Mary Ann Pruitt said she had preexisting campaign commitments on the Kenai Peninsula and in Fairbanks but declined to provide details. Palin is expected to speak at the rally planned in Anchorage, complete with a mechanical bull and bouncy house. Also speaking will be David Clarke, a former sheriff of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, and prominent Trump surrogate who has made controversial statements, including supporting an unfounded conspiracy theory about a school shooting. While Tshibaka will miss the mechanical bull, she is scheduled to appear at an Anchorage candidate forum on Monday along with other Senate candidates Murkowski and Democrat Pat Chesbro. All three will share the stage at a forum hosted by the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce, after Tshibaka missed a forum in Kodiak this week to fundraise in Texas with fellow Trump endorsed candidate Blake Masters, who is running for the U.S. Senate seat in Arizona. All four U.S. House candidates were also invited to the Anchorage Chamber forum, but only two — Republican Nick Begich and Libertarian Chris Bye — have confirmed they will attend. • • • Read More Here

Republican Tuberville Accused Of “open Appeal To Racism” At Trump Rally https://digitalalaskanews.com/republican-tuberville-accused-of-open-appeal-to-racism-at-trump-rally/ Senator Tommy Tuberville faced accusations of making an “open appeal to racism” while speaking at former President Donald Trump‘s Nevada rally on Saturday night. Tuberville, an Alabama Republican who was previously Auburn University’s head football coach, gave a speech at the rally in support of Trump-backed candidates Adam Laxalt and Joe Lombardo, who are running in the state’s highly competitive Senate and gubernatorial races. During his speech, he attacked Democrats as being weak on crime. Crime remains a major issue for millions of voters ahead of the November midterm elections. Democrats have pushed for criminal justice reform policies to fix what they view as a system that perpetuates racial inequality. Republicans, however, say these reforms actually lead to an increase in crime. “They want crime because they want to take over what you’ve got. They want to control what you have,” he said to the cheering crowd. “They want reparations because they think that the people who do the crime are owed that.” Above, Senator Tommy Tuberville, an Alabama Republican, walks onto the stage during former President Donald Trump’s rally in Minden, Nevada on Saturday. Tuberville faced accusations of racism for saying during the rally Democrats want reparations “because they think that the people who do the crime are owed that.” Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Reparations advocates say that descendants of slaves should be paid financial compensation for their uncompensated work and the historic racism they say has led to financial disparity between races. The NAACP defines reparations as “a financial recompense for African-Americans whose ancestors were slaves and lived through the Jim Crow era.” The senator’s remarks were met with an onslaught of criticism on social media and on cable news on Sunday, with many accusing Tuberville of promoting racist stereotypes. “A reminder that Tommy Tuberville was a collegiate coach for nearly 30 years, during which he coached scores of Black players. He made millions off their abilities, but here’s what he really thinks about Black folks,” tweeted political commentator Jemele Hill. A reminder that Tommy Tuberville was a collegiate coach for nearly 30 years, during which he coached scores of Black players. He made millions off their abilities, but here’s what he really thinks about Black folks. https://t.co/aFjqocLTNH — Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) October 9, 2022 “This open appeal to racism by a Republican senator would make George Wallace and Lester Maddox proud. You don’t have to be a Southerner like me to understand that “they” is Tuberville’s substitute for a racial slur he can’t say behind a microphone in 2022,” tweeted MSNBC host Joe Scarborough. This open appeal to racism by a Republican senator would make George Wallace and Lester Maddox proud. You don’t have to be a Southerner like me to understand that “they” is Tuberville’s substitute for a racial slur he can’t say behind a microphone in 2022. https://t.co/0LFS3s4fw8 — Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) October 9, 2022 During a CNN panel Sunday morning, political analyst Bakari Sellers said: “He made tens of millions of dollars off unpaid Black men, as a football coach. He literally has the stature he has because people went out there and assumed the risk and incurred the risk of concussions, playing hard and everything. And for him to give these racist tropes? I mean, that infuriates me.” Nina Turner, a progressive political commentator who ran for Congress in Ohio in 2021 and 2022, added: “The ‘they,’ just flat out. He’s talking about Black people. He should man up and say it. American descendants of slaves do deserve reparations in this country. But for him to equate a whole group of people as being criminal. You know what’s criminal? Allowing people to languish in poverty.” Meanwhile, Congressman Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, offered a modest defense against Tuberville’s accusations of racism, though he still urged him to “be more polite,” during an appearance on NBC News’ Meet the Press. “I’m not going to say he’s being racist. I wouldn’t use that language. Be more polite. But we can’t ignore—we have a 40 to 50 percent violent crime increase,” he said. Newsweek reached out to Tuberville’s office for comment. Read More Here

Michigan GOP Statewide Candidates Stick To Far-Right Message https://digitalalaskanews.com/michigan-gop-statewide-candidates-stick-to-far-right-message/ WARREN, Mich. (AP) — With voting underway in Michigan’s general election, the Republican nominee for secretary of state stepped on stage as a warm-up act for former President Donald Trump and hit hard on the main theme of her campaign. Kristina Karamo repeated unfounded assertions about the 2020 presidential election that have been repeatedly debunked. She told the crowd at the recent rally at Macomb Community College that “authoritarians” are giving millions to her Democratic opponent — Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson — in an attempt to “corrupt battleground state election systems so they can control America.” “If you look at history, it shows you what tyrants do,” said Karamo, a former community college professor. “History is telling us, history is screaming to us, that if we don’t step up and fight now, we will lose the greatest country in human history.” It was an address designed to rev up the crowd of devoted Trump followers, some of whom have latched onto the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory. While Karamo’s speech drew cheers, relying on a general election strategy that appeals to the most far-right voters is a gamble for Michigan Republicans. Former President Donald Trump, left, listens to Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon, during a rally at the Macomb Community College Sports & Expo Center in Warren, Mich., Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022. (Todd McInturf/Detroit News via AP) Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Todd McInturf Supporters wait for former President Donald Trump to take the stage at his rally in Warren, Mich., Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022. MyPillow chief executive Mike Lindell and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., also spoke at the event. (AP Photo/Joey Cappelletti) Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Joey Cappelletti Kristina Karamo, the Republican nominee for Michigan’s secretary of state, high fives prominent election denier and former state Sen. Patrick Colbeck outside a rally for President Donald Trump in Warren, Mich., Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022. (AP Photo/Joey Cappelletti) Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Joey Cappelletti PreviousNext Candidates who have to play to their party’s base during primaries or nominating conventions often shift toward the center, aiming to attract more voters for the general election. But that hasn’t happened this year for the Republicans seeking Michigan’s top three statewide offices — governor, attorney general and secretary of state. The Nov. 8 election will test whether campaigns designed to resonate with the far-right and highlight strong ties to Trump will be enough to win in a traditional swing state, where the Republican incumbent lost the White House race to Democrat challenger Joe Biden by more than 154,000 votes in 2020. All three GOP candidates stood behind Trump during the Oct. 1 rally at the college about 20 miles north of Detroit, joined by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, who has amplified Trump’s election falsehoods to audiences across the country. Trump falsely claimed the 2020 election was “rigged and stolen” in Michigan, citing “evidence” he said first originated with Karamo and Matthew DePerno, a tax lawyer who is the nominee for state attorney general. In his own address to the crowd, DePerno called Democrats “radical, cultural Marxists” who want to “silence you.” “If that doesn’t work, they want to put you in jail,” DePerno told the crowd, which fell into chants of “Lock her up.” All three Democratic incumbents are women. DePerno’s campaign also is clouded by an investigation into whether he should be criminally charged for attempting to gain access to voting machines after the 2020 election. John DeBlaay, a Grand Rapids real estate agent and precinct delegate who attended the rally, said he was thrilled with the candidates. “We’ve got the best America First ticket all the way from top to bottom that we’ve had in a long time now,” he said. Some moderate Republicans are skeptical that campaigns appealing mostly to base elements of the party will be enough to beat Democratic incumbents with wide name recognition and sizable fundraising advantages. The Democrats also are expected to benefit from having an amendment on the ballot that seeks to enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution. These Republicans say inflation, gas prices and economic anxiety should be the GOP’s main talking points, not a continued alignment with Trump and his false claims about widespread fraud costing him reelection. They point to the unusual way Michigan selects its attorney general and secretary of state candidates, a process done through a party nominating convention rather than through a primary election in which voters make the choice. The most conservative Republicans who are loyal to Trump dominated that convention in April. The party’s co-chair, Meshawn Maddock, was one of 16 Republicans who submitted false certificates stating they were the state’s presidential electors despite Biden’s certified victory in the state. Three weeks before the convention, during another Trump rally, DePerno encouraged attendees — many of them precinct delegates — to “storm” the party gathering and said it was “time for the grassroots to unite.” Delegates overwhelmingly voted to nominate Karamo. DePerno won a runoff over former legislative leader Tom Leonard, who lost in the 2018 attorney general’s race by 3 percentage points to Democrat Dana Nessel. “Karamo and DePerno are among the most loyal to Donald Trump that you will find anywhere in the country,” said Jason Roe, a longtime Republican strategist. “That loyalty has been unshakable in this election process, regardless of how it might affect general election prospects.” Roe, whose father served as the Michigan GOP’s executive director for 10 years, became executive director of the state party in spring 2021. Six months later, he stepped down due to a “difference in opinion on how many conspiracy theories we should tolerate.” Soon after Roe left, Trump began calling party leaders to “force the party to embrace things formally that weren’t going to be helpful to the upcoming election,” Roe said. The party’s candidate for governor, Tudor Dixon, won the nomination during the primary in August after receiving Trump’s endorsement. Dixon, a conservative news show host who once acted in low-budget horror films, also benefited from support of the wealthy DeVos family. While seen as less extreme than Karamo and DePerno, Dixon indicated during debates that she thought the 2020 presidential election was stolen and she recently made light of a plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat. Dixon has since tried to pivot away from denying the results of the last election by focusing on topics such as inflation and education, but she also is repeating hard-right rhetoric on cultural issues. She has called for banning “pornographic” books in schools and has pitched an education agenda modeled after the Florida policy that critics have labeled “Don’t Say Gay.” While Democrats have attacked DePerno and Karamo for their continued denial of Biden’s victory in 2020, they have focused on what they describe as Dixon’s “extreme” abortion stance. Lackluster fundraising has made it difficult for her to push back. As of Aug. 22, Dixon had $524,000 in the bank compared with Whitmer’s $14 million, according to the latest available campaign finance reports. Some of that gap has been closed by the super PAC Michigan Families United, which has received $2.5 million in donations, including from the DeVos family. “I just don’t like that there’s no commercials on TV about Dixon. Everything you see is about the other people, and it’s all negative,” said Laura Bunting, an Ionia County resident who attended the Trump rally. Karamo and DePerno had a combined $422,554 cash on hand as of Sept. 16 compared with the $5.7 million combined for their Democratic opponents, according to campaign finance reports. Michigan-based pollster Bernie Porn said the Republican candidates have been defined by their extreme stances but that none has attracted enough money to get on TV and introduce themselves to a broader swath of voters. That, he said, “makes it difficult for folks to form a favorable opinion of you.” ___ Joey Cappelletti is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. ___ Follow AP for full coverage of the midterms at https://apnews.com/hub/2022-midterm-elections Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Read More Here

Russian Analyst Set To Face Trial For Charges Of Lying To FBI https://digitalalaskanews.com/russian-analyst-set-to-face-trial-for-charges-of-lying-to-fbi/ Russian analyst set to face trial for charges of lying to FBI  WSET Read More Here

Premier League: Gianluca Scamacca Helps West Ham Beat Fulham; Crystal Palace Trump Leeds https://digitalalaskanews.com/premier-league-gianluca-scamacca-helps-west-ham-beat-fulham-crystal-palace-trump-leeds/ Last Updated: October 09, 2022, 21:46 IST London West Ham’s Gianluca Scamacca (AP) West Ham defeated Fulham 3-1 as Crystal Palace beat Leeds United 2-1 in the Premier League Gianluca Scamacca’s delightful chip helped West Ham strike back from a goal down to beat Fulham 3-1 while Crystal Palace were 2-1 victors over Leeds on Sunday. Scamacca has scored six times in his last 10 games for the Hammers since a £30 million move from Sassuolo, but David Moyes’ men were forced to come from behind at the London Stadium. Fulham were without talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic through injury but went in front after just five minutes when Andreas Pereira smashed in from a narrow angle. Jarrod Bowen levelled from the penalty spot before half-time after Pereira brought down Craig Dawson in the box. Scamacca then produced a moment of magic as he lofted Lucas Paqueta’s pass over the helpless Bernd Leno. The Italian international has displaced Michail Antonio as Moyes’ first-choice striker, but the Jamaican came off the bench to secure the three points in stoppage time. After winning just one of their first seven league games, back-to-back victories have lifted West Ham to within four points of the top six. Palace also came from behind after falling behind to Pascal Struijk’s early goal for Leeds at Selhurst Park. Odsonne Edouard headed in Eberechi Eze’s free-kick to quickly level and Eze won the game 14 minutes from time with a fine low strike from Wilfried Zaha’s backheel. Arsenal are aiming to move back to the top of the table when they host Liverpool later at the Emirates. The Gunners fell two points behind Manchester City on Saturday after the champions thrashed Southampton 4-0. Liverpool are also in desperate need of a win as they trail City by 13 points after winning just two of their opening seven Premier League games of the campaign. Manchester United are also in action later on Sunday when the Red Devils travel to Everton. Read all the Latest Sports News and Breaking News here Read More Here

Ron Johnson And Mandela Barnes In Tight Senate Race In Wisconsin — CBS News Battleground Tracker Poll https://digitalalaskanews.com/ron-johnson-and-mandela-barnes-in-tight-senate-race-in-wisconsin-cbs-news-battleground-tracker-poll/ It seems like Wisconsin elections are always pretty close these days, and here are two more following that trend. The Senate race has incumbent Republican Sen. Ron Johnson running just one point ahead of Democrat Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes in a toss-up contest, and the governor’s race is currently even between incumbent Democrat Gov. Tony Evers and Republican Tim Michels. Johnson gets enthusiastic support from the GOP base and is boosted by Wisconsin voters’ concerns about crime and economic issues, though his views on the 2020 election may be alienating some independents.  Meanwhile, Barnes has consolidated the Democratic base and is getting robust support from those who place great importance on the issue of abortion, the top factor his voters give for backing him. On balance, voters also like Barnes personally more than Johnson. Republicans appear to have a turnout advantage. They are four points more likely than Democrats to say they’re definitely voting this year, and Johnson supporters are ten points more likely than Barnes backers to say they’re very enthusiastic about voting. In some ways, these midterms are a referendum on President Joe Biden. On that note, more are casting their Senate votes to oppose him than support him, and Johnson is easily winning those voters in Wisconsin.  The power of incumbency may also be helping Johnson. Most of his backers call his Senate record a major factor in their vote, plus, Republicans like him personally. That’s different than the dynamic in other battleground states where Republicans are not incumbents. In Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Arizona, Republicans are voting more out of opposition to Democrats than affinity for their own nominee. But as much as the Republican base likes Johnson, he faces an equal measure of dislike from the other side. Most of those backing Barnes say the main reason is to oppose Johnson, not because they like Barnes. This is particularly true for independents currently backing Barnes. The impact of Johnson’s stances What role do Ron Johnson’s views on 2020 play? For Republicans, not a major one. But they may be alienating to some independents. Republicans overwhelmingly support Johnson, whether they believe he accepted or wanted to overturn the 2020 election results — and many say they’re not sure which it was. That said, there’s a bit more crossover to Barnes among the third of Republicans who believe Johnson wanted the election overturned. But Johnson’s views on 2020 may be hurting him with voters outside his own party.  Among independents who say he wanted the election overturned, eight in 10 support Barnes. Other independents — who say Johnson accepted the results or aren’t sure of his stance — overwhelmingly back Johnson. Importantly, there may be a limit to the power of this — because many voters do not know what Johnson’s stance was, either way. Those paying less attention to the midterms are less likely to know. And that, in turn, it may be because voters rank the 2020 election relatively low in importance compared to issues like the economy or abortion. And Johnson gets nine in 10 votes from voters who thought COVID policies in Wisconsin were too strict. That’s true whether or not they think Johnson has made mostly critical statements about vaccines. What do Ron Johnson’s supporters like about him?  Johnson may have garnered a lot of attention for remarks he has made about the 2020 election and the coronavirus and vaccines, but those are not major reasons most of his voters give for backing him, nor is his support for Donald Trump. These factors matter some, but they trail far behind the weight his supporters place on Johnson’s economic policies and his Senate record.  Who backs Barnes? Barnes has a likability advantage over Johnson among the broader electorate. But it’s a smaller gap than Democratic candidates enjoy in other Senate battlegrounds. In Arizona, for example, Democrat Mark Kelly has a 20-point advantage over Republican Blake Masters on the way they handle themselves, and Kelly leads that race by three points. Barnes voters cite his stance on abortion as the top factor for supporting him — it’s far ahead of any other issue tested. He leads substantially among voters who say abortion is very important to their vote. That tracks with Democratic support in other crucial Senate battlegrounds. The abortion issue is helping keep the race close, but Johnson is boosted by a wide lead with voters who prioritize the economy, inflation, and crime, which are all issues that voters rank higher in importance than abortion. Among all issues measured, Johnson’s widest margins come from voters who say immigration and crime are very important — even more so than those prioritizing economic issues. Half of Wisconsin voters believe Barnes supports defunding the police — and few want elected officials to support less funding for police. These voters are especially likely to say Barnes would support policies that would make them less safe from crime, and by four to one, they prefer Johnson to Barnes. When asked directly which candidate would back policies that would keep them and their family safe from crime, more voters select Johnson than Barnes. Barnes leads Johnson with women and younger voters. He trails narrowly among White voters, getting a similar share of them that Biden got in 2020. Johnson leads with men and older voters. More older voters cite crime as a very important issue, and most think Johnson’s policies will keep them safe. Wisconsin voters see different groups benefiting depending on who wins this Senate race. If Barnes is elected, a majority think he would support policies that would help Black people — the only group he elicits a majority for — and more voters think women will be helped than hurt If Johnson wins, majorities think the wealthy, men, White people, and people of faith will benefit. Neither candidate is seen by a majority as supporting policies that would help the middle class, but more say so of Barnes’ policies than Johnson’s. The race for governor The governor’s race is tied between Democrat Evers and Republican Michels. Democrat Gov. Tony Evers garners mixed and highly partisan ratings for his job as governor. Most voters overall approve of his handling of the coronavirus, but just one in five voters see this as a very important issue in their midterm vote. Instead, the economy and inflation top the list, followed by crime, and here, we again see the Republican candidate leading among voters who say these issues are very important to their vote. On balance, voters are more likely to say Evers will make them less safe rather than more safe from crime; they say the opposite of Republican challenger Michels. Of all four candidates running for statewide office that the poll tested, Evers is the most liked — the only one for whom a majority of voters say they like how he handles himself personally. He has a 10-point advantage over Michels on this measure, but that doesn’t translate into much of an advantage in the race. He’s running about even with Barnes, who has a narrower likability advantage against Johnson. Most voters want abortion to be legal in Wisconsin, and most see Evers as a candidate who will protect abortion access. But while it’s the top issue to both Democrats and Evers supporters, just half of voters overall say it’s very important in their vote, and fewer than a third of Michels’ supporters do (and most of them don’t want it to be legal). Michigan: Whitmer leads Dixon for governor Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer leads Republican challenger Tudor Dixon by six points in her reelection bid. Most voters view the incumbent governor as competent and mainstream, while less than half see her opponent that way. Unlike Whitmer, Dixon is seen as extreme by most voters, a label that’s hurting her with those outside her own party. Most voters who view her as extreme are backing Whitmer.  But voters’ concerns about the state’s economy and a pessimistic economic outlook could provide an opening for Dixon. Whitmer has a positive job approval rating, and one that’s significantly higher than Biden’s is in the state. For Whitmer’s backers, Biden appears to have little to do with her standing: nearly two-thirds say Biden’s support for Whitmer makes them no more or less likely to vote for her. Moreover, roughly a quarter of voters who disapprove of Biden’s job are still backing Whitmer. Many of these voters are independents who approve of the job Whitmer is doing as governor. Whitmer also gets positive ratings overall on her handling the coronavirus outbreak. But those who feel the policies put in place in Michigan were too strict — a largely Republican group — overwhelmingly disapprove of her handling of the coronavirus, and most aren’t voting for her. But it’s the economy that’s more on the minds of Michigan voters than the coronavirus, and most of them rate the state’s economy negatively (although better than the nation’s). Half of voters are expecting the U.S. to be in recession next year, perhaps leaving some room for Dixon to gain ground. As in Wisconsin, voters who place a lot of importance on the economy and inflation are mostly voting Republican, especially those who expect a recession. And by two to one, more voters think Biden’s policies have hurt, rather than helped Michigan’s economy. This suggests that further nationalization of this race, and making it a referendum on Democrats nationally, could help Dixon. Abortion has been a central issue in Whitmer’s campaign, and it’s giving her a boost. She leads big among those who say it’s very important in their vote. Abortion is the top issue for women under age 45 in the state. (For w...

Individual Characteristics Of Adolescent Psychiatric Patients Accessing Psychotherapy In China – Scientific Reports https://digitalalaskanews.com/individual-characteristics-of-adolescent-psychiatric-patients-accessing-psychotherapy-in-china-scientific-reports/ Abstract Most mental health problems develop during childhood and adolescence, so identifying the mental health needs and care pathways of adolescents is crucial to improving prevention. This study aimed to understand the characteristics of adolescent patients with mental disorders receiving psychotherapy in China. Data were collected retrospectively from the psychotherapy records of 116 patients at the Weifang Mental Health Centre. Information collected included demographics, stressors, duration of psychotherapy, and clinical diagnosis. Chi-square tests and negative binomial regression models were used to explore the relationship between demographic and clinical variables. The results showed that depression was the most common diagnosis, followed by anxiety and stress-related disorders and bipolar and related disorders. Rural patients were more likely to report family stress, while urban patients were more likely to report school stress. Female patients were more likely to report family stress and to be diagnosed with depression. Family stress, social stress, school stress, patient origin and economic conditions were all significant predictors of the duration of psychological treatment. This study helps to understand the characteristics and psychotherapeutic needs of adolescents with mental disorders who receive psychotherapy in China so that the positive role of psychotherapy in the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of mental disorders can be better utilised. Introduction The issue of youth mental health in China has attracted a great deal of attention and focus. As far as the issue of youth mental health itself is concerned, it is also a significant problem commonly faced by countries worldwide. According to a new study by the American Psychological Association, reported by Xinhua on 18 March 2019, young people’s mental health in the US has deteriorated (2019).”1. In the twenty-first century, due to the rapid development and changes in society, more and more adolescents are experiencing severe psychological stress and distress. They are even experiencing severe mental depression or suicide attempts. The China Mental Health Development Report (2019–2020) shows that the mental health index of adolescents aged 12–18 is decreasing with age, and the detection rate of depression among adolescents is 24.6%, with severe depression reaching 7.4%2. There is a growing consensus that early detection, prevention and intervention in adolescence can help reduce the burden of mental illness3,4. For this reason, understanding the characteristics of adolescent mental illness, perceived stressors and pathways of care is essential for early detection and treatment. Psychotherapy has proven to be an effective theoretical technique and is widely used in mental health and mental health promotion practice5. With the growing understanding of the biopsychosocial model of medicine, the causes of the disease have been elevated from a single consideration of biological factors to a holistic view, highlighting the impact of psychological, socio-environmental and natural environmental factors on human health. Studies at home and abroad have pointed out that the combination of pharmacological treatment and systematic psychological treatment can help patients with mental disorders improve their compliance with treatment6,7, which is of great importance in strengthening the assistance for patients with mental disorders, effectively reducing mental disability, promoting their rehabilitation and return to society, and maintaining social harmony and stability7. However, little research has been conducted in China on the population of adolescents seeking psychotherapy services. A small number of studies on adolescents have highlighted the high prevalence of psychiatric disorders8,9, including depression10 and anxiety disorders11. Reluctance to seek psychological help has also been reported due to stigma and skepticism about the efficacy of psychotherapy12. Although there is a paucity of literature examining the psychological treatment of adolescents in China, this literature highlights the high prevalence of mental health problems. It confirms the need for more excellent prevention and early intervention in the region. To this end, a better understanding of the role that factors play in developing symptoms and the choice to seek help is crucial. Against this background, this study intends to quantitatively analyse the psychotherapy records of 116 patients to understand the characteristics and psychotherapy needs of young people with mental disorders receiving psychotherapy in China, and on this basis, propose a mental health service model that better meets the needs of patients, to better exploit the positive role of psychotherapy in the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of mental disorders. The first goal of this study was to describe our sample by looking at demographic factors (gender and residential status), stressor types, frequency of self-harm and suicidality, and clinical diagnoses. The study’s second goal was to look at the relationship between residential status, stressor frequency, and clinical diagnoses and the relationship between gender, stressor frequency, and clinical diagnoses. The third objective of this study was to find potential predictors of the duration of psychotherapy. Our study is the first attempt to describe the situation of adolescents with mental disorders receiving psychological treatment in China. Methods Study population and sample This study was conducted in the psychotherapy outpatient clinic of a tertiary-level psychiatric hospital in Weifang. Retrospective data collection and variable extraction were conducted on psychotherapy records of adolescent patients in psychotherapy clinics between June 2019 and June 2021. The main techniques used in psychotherapy include cognitive therapy, supportive psychotherapy, and family therapy. Psychotherapy records include information collected from adolescent patients and their families at treatment. Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders, bipolar disorder and related disorders, depression, anxiety disorders, obsessive–compulsive disorder or trauma and stress-related disorders according to ICD-10 diagnostic criteria and aged between 12 and 18 years were included in the study. Patients were excluded if they also had a neurological disorder or if another severe disorder could explain their symptoms. Data extracted from psychotherapy records included demographics (age, gender, residence, grade), presence of intentional self-harm and suicidal thoughts, primary diagnosis, and presence of psychotic features in the patient’s symptoms. As described in the case list, perceived life stressors that may trigger symptoms were divided into five categories: Family stress (e. g., conflict with a family member), Social stress (e. g. no friends), School stress (e. g. declining academic performance), Physiological stress (e. g. lack of sleep) and Spiritual stress (e. g. fear of death; see Table 1 for more details). Each category was treated as a dichotomous variable (yes = 1; no = 0). The duration of psychotherapy includes the duration of treatment in terms of the number of sessions (i.e. the time from the first psychotherapy session to the end of treatment). Data analysis Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 26. Frequency analysis was used to describe our sample’s demographic and clinical characteristics and the frequency of stressors experienced. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare the psychotherapy duration of different genders. Chi-square tests were performed to investigate the impact of demographic differences on the stressors faced by adolescent patients and clinical diagnoses. Regression models using count data were used to identify predictors of psychotherapy duration (i.e. number of sessions). Violations of the equidiscrete assumption were assessed following Payne et al.13; the Chi-square/df ratio indicated overdispersion. Therefore, a negative binomial regression model was chosen based on Poisson13. The model’s potential predictors of psychotherapy duration included family stress, social stress, school stress, depressive disorders, anxiety and stress-related disorders, bipolar disorder, patient origin, economic conditions, self-harm, and suicidality. Ethics approval and consent to participate Weifang Medical University Ethics Committee has granted ethics approval (project ID: 2022YX043). Participants and their legal guardians gave verbal and electronic informed consent to participate in this study. This study adheres to the ethical principles set out by the World Medical Association WMA through the Declaration of Helsinki (1996 edition, revised 2013), the International Ethical Guidelines for Biomedical Research Involving Human Beings (2002) in collaboration with the International Council for Medical Sciences (CIOMS) of the World Health Organization (WHO). All methods were performed following relevant guidelines and regulations. Results The initial sample consisted of 146 patients. Thirty of these were later excluded, either because they did not meet the inclusion criteria or because the psychotherapy record form contained insufficient information. The final sample consisted of 116 patients, and the demographic characteristics of the sample are shown in Table 2. In terms of the categories of stressors in the overall sample, family stress was the most frequently reported (62.9%), followed by social stress (37.1%), school stress (38.8%), and physiological stress (10.3%) and spiritual stress (6.9%). Table 3 presents the frequency ...

Russian Draft Dodgers Pour Into Kazakhstan To Escape Putin's War | CNN https://digitalalaskanews.com/russian-draft-dodgers-pour-into-kazakhstan-to-escape-putins-war-cnn/ Almaty, Kazakhstan CNN  —  Vadim says he plunged into depression last month after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military draft to send hundreds of thousands of conscripts to fight in Ukraine. “I was silent,” the 28-year-old engineer says, explaining that he simply stopped talking while at work. “I was angry and afraid.” When Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began in February, Vadim says he took to the streets of Moscow to protest – but Putin’s September 21 order to draft at least 300,000 men to fight felt like a point of no return. “We don’t want this war,” Vadim says. “We can’t change something in our country, though we have tried.” He decided he had only one option left. Several days after Putin’s draft order, he bid his grandmother a tearful farewell and left his home in Moscow – potentially forever. Vadim and his friend Alexei traveled as fast as they could to Russia’s border with the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan, where they waited in line for three days to cross. “We ran away from Russia because we want to live,” Alexei says. “We are afraid that we can be sent to Ukraine.” Both men asked not to be identified, to protect loved ones left behind in Russia. Last week, in Kazakhstan’s commercial capital Almaty, they stood in line with more than 150 other recently-arrived Russians outside a government registration center – part of an exodus of draft dodgers. More than 200,000 Russians have streamed into Kazakhstan following Putin’s conscription announcement, according to the Kazakh government. And it isn’t hard to spot the new Russian arrivals at the main railway station in Almaty. Every hour, it seems, young Slavic men emerge from the train wearing backpacks, looking slightly dazed while consulting their phones for directions. They arrive from cities across Russia: Yaroslavl, Togliati, St. Petersburg, Kazan. When asked why they have left they all say the same thing: mobilization. “It’s not something I want to participate in,” says a 30-year old computer programmer named Sergei. He sat on a bench outside the train station with his wife, Irina. The couple, clutching backpacks and rolled up sleeping pads, said they hoped to travel on to Turkey and hopefully apply for Schengen visas to Europe. Most of the new Russian exiles spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity. Giorgi, a writer in his late 30s from Ekaterinburg, says he fled to Kazakhstan last week after suffering panic attacks at the thought he could be dragged into the military. “How can I take part in a war without a wish to win this war?” he asks. He is now trying to find an apartment in Almaty and hopes that his wife and young son can visit him in the winter. Faced with the challenge of trying to make a living in a foreign city, Giorgi recognizes that his hardships pale in comparison to Ukrainians, who were forced to flee by the millions after Russia attacked their cities and towns. Unlike Ukrainians, who fight bravely for their homeland, Giorgi says Russian draft dodgers like himself can be viewed as both “a refugee and an aggressor” by virtue of their citizenship. “I did not support his war, I never did,” Giorgi says. “But somehow I’m still connected with the state because of my passport.” The new Russian exiles are not technically refugees, in part because the Russian government still isn’t officially at war with Ukraine. According to the Kremlin, Russia is conducting a “special military operation” against its Ukrainian neighbor. Russian citizens are currently able to enter Kazakhstan for short periods with their national ID cards – and the Central Asian country’s President has urged his compatriots to welcome the new arrivals. “Most of them are forced to leave because of the hopeless situation. We must take care of them and ensure their safety,” said President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in late September. An informal grassroots effort has sprung up across Kazakhstan to help temporarily feed and house the Russians. “They are running, they are afraid,” says Ekaterina Korotkaya, an Almaty-based journalist who helped coordinate assistance to newly-arrived Russians. Almira Orlova, a nutritionist based in Almaty, says she has helped find housing for at least 26 Russians. “They would arrive to my apartment, stay for a while, then stay in the apartments of my friends,” she says. But she points out that she did not receive the same hospitality when she moved with her Russian husband to Moscow several years ago. Then, Russian landlords repeatedly refused to rent her apartments because she was “Asian,” she said. “When I told them that I’m Kazakh, they said ‘I’m sorry I really cannot.’ And we weren’t able to find an apartment for two months,” Orlova says. “Citizens of Central Asia who went to Russia for labor migration purposes face some serious discrimination in Russia,” says Kadyr Toktogulov, former ambassador of Kyrgyzstan to the United States and Canada. The former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan has also seen a large “reverse migration” of Russians fleeing the draft. “I don’t think that Russians coming to Central Asia that are fleeing the draft will be having the same kind of problems or facing the kind of discrimination that citizens of Central Asian republics have been facing for years in Russia,” says Toktogulov. Toktogulov says his own family recently rented out an apartment in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek to a newly-arrived Russian man. Real estate experts say the flood of Russian exiles have already sent rents skyrocketing in Almaty, the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek and other cities in the region. The impact is also being felt in commercial real estate, as many Russians seek to work remotely. “It’s not only individuals coming, the big [Russian] companies and corporate business, they are moving their companies to Kazakhstan,” says Madina Abilpanova, a managing partner at DM Associates, a real estate firm based in Almaty. She says Russian companies have approached her, looking to relocate hundreds of their employees in an effort to protect them from military conscription. “They are ready to move immediately, to pay whatever we want, but we don’t have spaces,” Abilpanova says. She speaks to CNN at City Hub, a co-working space in central Almaty, where the desks are filled with young Russians laboring silently on their laptops. Abilpanova says all of these clients had arrived in Kazakhstan within the past two weeks. As she spoke, another young Russian man carrying a giant backpack walked in the door. The business owners had to turn him away because there was no room. “It’s something like a tsunami for us,” Abilpanova says. “Every day they come in like this.” Vadim, the engineer from Moscow who recently arrived in Kazakhstan, says his company is sponsoring him and 15 other employees to transfer to the firm’s Almaty office. “My boss is against the [Russian] government,” Vadim says. Unlike many other Russians who suddenly fled into exile, Vadim can count on earning a salary for the time being. But he does not know when – or if – he will ever see his grandmother in Moscow. “I very much hope to see her again,” Vadim says, his eyes welling up with tears. “But I don’t know how much time she has left. I hope that I can return one day at least to bury her.” Read More Here

Trump Airs Video Of Biden Slip-Ups At Nevada Rally – MsnNOW https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-airs-video-of-biden-slip-ups-at-nevada-rally-msnnow/ Trump airs video of Biden slip-ups at Nevada rally  msnNOW Read More Here

Russian Analyst Igor Danchenko To Face Trial On Charges Of Lying To FBI – National | Globalnews.ca https://digitalalaskanews.com/russian-analyst-igor-danchenko-to-face-trial-on-charges-of-lying-to-fbi-national-globalnews-ca/ Five years after the term “Steele dossier” entered the political lexicon, a think tank analyst who contributed to research about Donald Trump and Russia goes on trial Tuesday for lying to the FBI about his sources of information. Igor Danchenko is the third person to be prosecuted by Special Counsel John Durham, who was appointed to investigate the origins of “Crossfire Hurricane” _ the designation given to the FBI’s 2016 probe into former president Trump’s Russia connections. It is also the first of Durham’s cases that delves deeply into the origins of the dossier that Trump derided as fake news and a political witch hunt. Here’s some background on what the case is about. Who is Danchenko and what is he accused of? Danchenko, a Russian analyst, was a source of information for Christopher Steele, a former British spy who was paid by Democrats to research ties between Russia and presidential candidate Donald Trump. Story continues below advertisement The compilation of research files, which included salacious rumors and unproven assertions, came to be familiarly known as the “Steele dossier.” Though the dossier did not help launch the FBI’s investigation into potential coordination between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, the Justice Department did rely on it when it applied for and received warrants to monitor the communications of a former Trump campaign adviser. As part of its efforts to verify information in the dossier, the FBI interviewed Danchenko in 2017. He is charged with lying to agents about his information sources, with prosecutors accusing Danchenko of misleading the FBI in an effort to make his own contributions seem more credible. What do the prosecutors say? Prosecutors say Danchenko lied when the FBI asked him about how he obtained the information he gave to Steele. Specifically, they say he denied that he relied on a Democratic operative, Charles Dolan, a public relations executive who volunteered for Hillary Clinton’s presidential 2016 campaign. Story continues below advertisement Prosecutors also say Danchenko lied when he said he received information from an anonymous phone call that he believed was placed by a man named named Sergei Millian, a former president of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce. They argue Danchenko knew that Millian wasn’t a source of any anonymous phone call. Trending Stories The indictment says the FBI could have better judged the veracity of the Steele dossier had it known that a Democratic operative was the source of much of its information. What does the defense say? Danchenko’s lawyers say the prosecution “is a case of extraordinary government overreach.” They note that Danchenko agreed to multiple voluntary FBI interviews throughout 2017. They say his answers to the FBI were all technically true. For instance, an FBI agent asked Danchenko whether he ever “talked” with Dolan about the information that showed up in the dossier. While prosecutors have produced evidence that the two had email exchanges about topics in the dossier, there’s no evidence that they talked orally about those topics. Story continues below advertisement 0:28 Trump calls dossier of allegations about ties to Russia ‘fake’ Trump calls dossier of allegations about ties to Russia ‘fake’ – Oct 25, 2017 “It was a bad question,” said Danchenko’s lawyer, Stuart Sears, at a pretrial hearing last month. “That’s the special counsel’s problem. Not Mr. Danchenko’s.” And while Danchenko said he believed Millian was the voice on the anonymous phone call, he never told the FBI with any certainty that it was Millian. Sears argued that ambiguous statements like that fall short of what’s necessary to convict on a false statements charge. What other cases has Durham brought? Durham was the U.S. Attorney in Connecticut in 2019 when he was tapped by then-Attorney General William Barr to hunt for potential misconduct by government officials who conducted the original Russia investigation. Story continues below advertisement But after more than three years, Durham’s work has failed to meet the expectations of Trump supporters who hoped he would uncover sweeping FBI conspiracies to derail the Republican’s candidacy. The probe has produced only three criminal cases. 0:58 White House defends Trump tweets attacking McCain, says people should focus on dossier White House defends Trump tweets attacking McCain, says people should focus on dossier – Mar 18, 2019 The first case was against an FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith, who was accused of altering an email related to the surveillance of former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. It ended in a guilty plea and a sentence of probation _ and involved FBI misconduct already uncovered by the Justice Department’s inspector general. Last year, Durham’s team charged a Democratic lawyer with making a false statement to the FBI’s top lawyer during a 2016 meeting in which he presented information about a purported _ and ultimately debunked _ backchannel between a Russia bank and the Trump organization. The case against the lawyer, Michael Sussmann, ended in a swift acquittal in May. Story continues below advertisement Durham’s work has continued deep into the Biden administration Justice Department, but the Danchenko trial seems likely to be the last criminal case his team will bring. It is not clear when Durham might produce a report summarizing his findings. ____ Tucker reported from Washington. © 2022 The Canadian Press Read More Here

Trump Warns Ukraine War Could Escalate Into WWIII, Calls For Negotiations https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-warns-ukraine-war-could-escalate-into-wwiii-calls-for-negotiations/ Former US President Donald Trump has called for an immediate “peaceful end” to the seven-month war in Ukraine, warning that the conflict could escalate into another world war. “We must demand the immediate negotiation of a peaceful end to the war in Ukraine, or we will end up in World War III and there will be nothing left of our planet,” Trump said, speaking at a “Save America” rally in Nevada on Saturday.  He made the remarks days after Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky ruled out negotiating with Russia. The former president, who sent signals that he plans to run again for president in 2024, also criticized the “stupid people” in the administration of his Democratic successor, Joe Biden. He had claimed on several occasions that the Ukraine war would not have happened had he been re-elected in 2020. In a recent interview on Real America’s Voice, Trump criticized the Biden administration for the dangerous “rhetoric” in the months leading up to the Ukraine conflict. Russian President Vladimir Putting launched a military operation in Ukraine on Feb. 24, following Kiev’s failure to implement the terms of the 2014 Minsk agreements and Moscow’s recognition of the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. Trump said Washington “actually taunted him [Putin] if you really look at it.” “Our country, and our so-called leadership, taunted Putin. I said, you know, they’re almost forcing him to go in with what they’re saying. The rhetoric was so dumb,” he added. Trump had once said Putin took advantage of Biden’s being “weak” to attack Ukraine. Trump also accused Ukraine’s allies of “nuclear blackmail” by making statements about “the possibility and admissibility” of using weapons of mass destruction against Russia. Biden on Friday accused Russia of planning to use nukes against Ukraine, saying the US has “not faced the prospect of Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis.” Biden said that Putin “is not joking when he talks about the potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons, because his military is, you might say, significantly under-performing.” CIA chief William Burns, however, said on Sunday that there is “no practical evidence” that Russia is planning to conduct nuclear strikes. Putin said earlier that he will “protect our land using all our forces and means at our disposal, and will do everything to ensure people’s security. Read More Here

Russian Analyst Set To Face Trial On Charges Of Lying To FBI https://digitalalaskanews.com/russian-analyst-set-to-face-trial-on-charges-of-lying-to-fbi/ ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Five years after the term “Steele dossier” entered the political lexicon, a think tank analyst who contributed to research about Donald Trump and Russia goes on trial Tuesday for lying to the FBI about his sources of information. Igor Danchenko is the third person to be prosecuted by Special Counsel John Durham, who was appointed to investigate the origins of “Crossfire Hurricane” — the designation given to the FBI’s 2016 probe into former president Trump’s Russia connections. It is also the first of Durham’s cases that delves deeply into the origins of the dossier that Trump derided as fake news and a political witch hunt. Here’s some background on what the case is about. WHO IS DANCHENKO AND WHAT IS HE ACCUSED OF? Danchenko, a Russian analyst, was a source of information for Christopher Steele, a former British spy who was paid by Democrats to research ties between Russia and presidential candidate Donald Trump. The compilation of research files, which included salacious rumors and unproven assertions, came to be familiarly known as the “Steele dossier.” Though the dossier did not help launch the FBI’s investigation into potential coordination between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, the Justice Department did rely on it when it applied for and received warrants to monitor the communications of a former Trump campaign adviser. As part of its efforts to verify information in the dossier, the FBI interviewed Danchenko in 2017. He is charged with lying to agents about his information sources, with prosecutors accusing Danchenko of misleading the FBI in an effort to make his own contributions seem more credible. WHAT DO THE PROSECUTORS SAY? Prosecutors say Danchenko lied when the FBI asked him about how he obtained the information he gave to Steele. Specifically, they say he denied that he relied on a Democratic operative, Charles Dolan, a public relations executive who volunteered for Hillary Clinton’s presidential 2016 campaign. Prosecutors also say Danchenko lied when he said he received information from an anonymous phone call that he believed was placed by a man named named Sergei Millian, a former president of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce. They argue Danchenko knew that Millian wasn’t a source of any anonymous phone call. The indictment says the FBI could have better judged the veracity of the Steele dossier had it known that a Democratic operative was the source of much of its information. WHAT DOES THE DEFENSE SAY? Danchenko’s lawyers say the prosecution “is a case of extraordinary government overreach.” They note that Danchenko agreed to multiple voluntary FBI interviews throughout 2017. They say his answers to the FBI were all technically true. For instance, an FBI agent asked Danchenko whether he ever “talked” with Dolan about the information that showed up in the dossier. While prosecutors have produced evidence that the two had email exchanges about topics in the dossier, there’s no evidence that they talked orally about those topics. “It was a bad question,” said Danchenko’s lawyer, Stuart Sears, at a pretrial hearing last month. “That’s the special counsel’s problem. Not Mr. Danchenko’s.” And while Danchenko said he believed Millian was the voice on the anonymous phone call, he never told the FBI with any certainty that it was Millian. Sears argued that ambiguous statements like that fall short of what’s necessary to convict on a false statements charge. WHAT OTHER CASES HAS DURHAM BROUGHT? Durham was the U.S. Attorney in Connecticut in 2019 when he was tapped by then-Attorney General William Barr to hunt for potential misconduct by government officials who conducted the original Russia investigation. But after more than three years, Durham’s work has failed to meet the expectations of Trump supporters who hoped he would uncover sweeping FBI conspiracies to derail the Republican’s candidacy. The probe has produced only three criminal cases. The first case was against an FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith, who was accused of altering an email related to the surveillance of former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. It ended in a guilty plea and a sentence of probation – and involved FBI misconduct already uncovered by the Justice Department’s inspector general. Last year, Durham’s team charged a Democratic lawyer with making a false statement to the FBI’s top lawyer during a 2016 meeting in which he presented information about a purported — and ultimately debunked — backchannel between a Russia bank and the Trump organization. The case against the lawyer, Michael Sussmann, ended in a swift acquittal in May. Durham’s work has continued deep into the Biden administration Justice Department, but the Danchenko trial seems likely to be the last criminal case his team will bring. It is not clear when Durham might produce a report summarizing his findings. ____ Tucker reported from Washington. Read More Here

Life Among Beavers Is A Balance Of Ire And Respect https://digitalalaskanews.com/life-among-beavers-is-a-balance-of-ire-and-respect/ 1 of 5 Beavers get more than their share of blame for spreading Giardia. Photo by Frank Zmuda, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Photo by Frank Zmuda, Alaska Department of Fish and Game A Goldstream Valley beaver gets an icy start to spring on May 12. Paul Greci, Fairbanks Featherstone Creek used to be a tiny stream with little water. Because of the beaver dams, it is now 100 feet wide and 20 feet deep in places. Photo courtesy Scott Thompson Eric Engman A beaver takes a dive as a pair of ducks swim by in a private pond along the Parks Highway in Ester Tuesday morning, September 18, 2018. A beaver drags a freshly cut branch down to the water’s edge near it’s lodge in the Chena River. Eric Engman Julie Collins Oct 9, 2022 12 min ago 1 of 5 Beavers get more than their share of blame for spreading Giardia. Photo by Frank Zmuda, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Photo by Frank Zmuda, Alaska Department of Fish and Game A Goldstream Valley beaver gets an icy start to spring on May 12. Paul Greci, Fairbanks Featherstone Creek used to be a tiny stream with little water. Because of the beaver dams, it is now 100 feet wide and 20 feet deep in places. Photo courtesy Scott Thompson Eric Engman A beaver takes a dive as a pair of ducks swim by in a private pond along the Parks Highway in Ester Tuesday morning, September 18, 2018. A beaver drags a freshly cut branch down to the water’s edge near it’s lodge in the Chena River. Eric Engman We’re always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what’s going on! Read More Here

Trump Speaks Via Video At Rally Of Global Far-Right In Spain | Federal News Network https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-speaks-via-video-at-rally-of-global-far-right-in-spain-federal-news-network/ BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Former U.S. President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind Spain’s far-right in a video shown at a rally in Madrid that also featured messages by the leading stars of Europe’s populist right like Italy’s Giorgia Meloni and Hungary’s Viktor Orban. In a recording that lasted under 40 seconds made while Trump was on an airplane, Trump thanked Spain’s far-right Vox party and its leader Santiago Abascal for what he… READ MORE BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Former U.S. President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind Spain’s far-right in a video shown at a rally in Madrid that also featured messages by the leading stars of Europe’s populist right like Italy’s Giorgia Meloni and Hungary’s Viktor Orban. In a recording that lasted under 40 seconds made while Trump was on an airplane, Trump thanked Spain’s far-right Vox party and its leader Santiago Abascal for what he called the “great job” they do. “We have to make sure that we protect our borders and do lots of very good conservative things,” Trump said. “Spain is a great country and we want to keep it a great country. So congratulations to Vox for so many great messages you get out to the people of Spain and the people of the world.” Vox captured national attention on Spain’s political landscape in 2019 when it became after an election that led to a national left-wing coalition that still holds power. Vox’s messages include zero tolerance for Catalan separatism, disdain for gender equality, diatribes against unauthorized immigration from Africa and embracing both the “Reconquista” of medieval Spain from Islam as well as the legacy of Gen. Francisco Franco’s 20th-century dictatorship. Abascal returned the flattery when he took to the stage at the outdoor venue after more video messages by European and South American right-wing politicians and an in-person speech by Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. “My thanks for President Donald Trump, a visionary in the fight for sovereign nations, a visionary in the fight for secure borders, who has had to suffer (attacks) from the most powerful establishment in the world and the largest media attack that any world leader has had to face in recent memory,” Abascal told the crowd of several thousand, many waving red-and-yellow Spanish flags. Despite its spectacular rise, the party led by Abascal failed to meet the expectations it set for itself in regional contests this year and had suffered its first serious bout of in-fighting among its leaders. Vox is now eyeing regional and municipal elections next year as it battles to surpass Spain’s traditional conservatives. The annual rally comes just weeks after Abascal and the rest of Europe’s far-right celebrated Meloni’s recorded message lasted several minutes and was focused on her r: pushing for a price cap on energy in the European Union and recovering economic self-reliance. The that Italy, the bloc’s third-largest economy, could put national interests first, Poland are doing. “We are not monsters, the people understand that. Long live Vox, long live Spain, long live Italy, long live Europe patriots,″ Meloni said. “Only by winning in our countries can Europe become a political giant that we want, and not a bureaucratic giant.” The Vox rally also featured video appearances by former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, Chilean right-wing politician , the daughter of former Bolivian interim President , and U.S. Republican Senator . “On the one side, there is the global elites and the global left, that is growing evermore thuggish and violent, on the other side are conservative populist, who share the values of God, and country and family and freedom,” Cruz said. “Sometimes the left scores dangerous victories, as we saw . Sometimes the good guys win, like we saw in Italy.” Cruz said he hoped the gains of the global right will include a landslide Republican win at the U.S. congressional midterm election next month. Trump has been campaigning for right-wing candidates in that Nov. 8 election and is pondering another presidential run. ___ AP writer Colleen Barry contributed to this report from Milan, Italy. Copyright © 2022 . All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area. Read More Here

Trump Brags About His Crowd Size On January 6: ‘The Biggest Crowd I’ve Ever Seen’ https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-brags-about-his-crowd-size-on-january-6-the-biggest-crowd-ive-ever-seen/ Donald Trump boasted about the size of the crowd that gathered to hear him speak on January 6 during a campaign rally on Saturday night. “You know the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen? January 6. And you never hear that,” the former president told the rally in Minden, Nevada. “They were there largely to protest a corrupt and rigged and stolen election.” Mr Trump blamed the “corrupt” media for downplaying the size of his crowds, after just 27 people showed up to a pro-Trump rally in Washington DC earlier this week. “These corrupt people will never take a camera and turn it around and show them how many people are here,” he said. “They never do it. They’re corrupt.” The former president riled up thousands of angry supporters at a “Save America” rally at the Ellipse in Washington DC on January 6, urging them to “fight like hell” and “walk down to the Capitol” to dispute the 2020 presidential election. The mob then laid siege to the Capitol building where the election results were being certified, assaulting police officers and forcing their way into the Senate chamber. Mr Trump was impeached for inciting the mob, and is the subject of several criminal investigations for his efforts to overturn his defeat to Joe Biden. A House select committee investigating the January 6 riots has focused on Mr Trump’s attempts to have the election results thrown out. The committee is due to hold its next hearing on Thursday. Read More Here

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Five Takeaways From Budd And Beasley’s Senate Debate In NC https://digitalalaskanews.com/five-takeaways-from-budd-and-beasleys-senate-debate-in-nc/ U.S. Senate candidates Ted Budd and Cheri Beasley met on the debate stage for the first time Friday and discussed the former and current presidents, where they stand on policy issues and who was actually elected to the White House in 2020. Budd, the Republican nominee and a current member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and Beasley, the Democratic nominee and the state’s former Supreme Court chief justice, had avoided all debates in 2022 until now. The candidates agreed to meet for one debate, on Spectrum News 1, a subscription cable network that made the debate public on its website and app. The debate was moderated by political reporter Tim Boyum. North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race hasn’t garnered as much attention as others despite the candidates polling closer than in most states. Friday’s debate showed the most spunk seen thus far from its two participants, but not the typical spark one would expect from candidates competing for the unaffiliated voters who make up the state’s largest group. At stake is Democrats’ hold on their majority in the Senate. North Carolina has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 2008, and if Beasley wins to replace retiring Republican Sen. Richard Burr, she would become the first Black senator from North Carolina. Here are five top takeaways from the night: Beasley keeps her distance from Biden When members of the Biden administration visited North Carolina during the current campaign season, Beasley’s absence didn’t go unnoticed. Despite that, her opponent repeatedly called her a rubber stamp for President Joe Biden. In Budd’s closing statement Friday night he said, “Joe Biden is on the ballot on Nov. 8, and he goes by the name this year of Cheri Beasley, because she will be a rubber stamp.” Boyum asked Beasley if she was avoiding appearing alongside Biden officials, if she wanted Biden to campaign for her in North Carolina and whether she would be his rubber stamp in Washington. Beasley said Biden and Congress “could work a whole lot harder” to lower inflation, laying a share of that blame on Budd. She said she’s glad when Biden comes to North Carolina to hear the state’s challenges and its successes and to meet residents. “It’s wrong to align me with anybody unless I specifically say what my positions are, and I’m glad to talk about my positions, because my positions really do support people here in North Carolina…” Beasley said. Boyum didn’t let up from his question and asked Beasley to answer whether she would stand on stage with Biden if he called and said he would campaign with her next week. “You know, if it’s an official visit, we’ll just have to see if that’s something that’s available,” Beasley said. Beasley was asked if Biden should run for reelection. “I don’t think he’s going to ask me, and so we’ll see what happens,” Beasley said. U.S. Senate Democrat candidate Cheri Beasley answers a question during an hour-long debate with Republican Ted Budd at Spectrum News 1 studio in Raleigh, NC Friday, Oct. 7, 2022. Travis Long tlong@newsobserver.com Budd says Biden is president On Jan. 6, 2021, Budd was one of many members of Congress who voted against certifying Biden’s election. On Friday night, Budd acknowledged that Biden is the president of the United States. “I don’t like what Joe Biden is doing at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. …but he is the president and unfortunately, he’s destroying our country,” Budd said. “He’s got 70% of the people saying we’re on the wrong track. I don’t like what he’s doing, but he is the president.” He was asked if he stood by his vote against certifying Biden’s election. “The core of that vote, Tim, was to inspire more debate, because I think debate is healthy for democracy, so that’s what it led to,” Budd said. “We didn’t have the votes to overturn it, but of course, having the debate was a healthy thing, and I do stand by it.” Rioters hoping to force Congress out of certifying Biden’s election stormed the U.S. Capitol before Budd cast his vote in the middle of the night. A Senate report blames the riot for the deaths of at least seven people. U.S. Senate Republican candidate Ted Budd answers a question during an hour-long debate with Democrat Cheri Beasley at Spectrum News 1 studio in Raleigh, NC Friday, Oct. 7, 2022. Travis Long tlong@newsobserver.com Budd aligns with Trump Budd did not shy away from his connection to former President Donald Trump and reminded viewers that Trump won North Carolina in 2016 and 2020. Budd went on to tout a better economy, lower inflation, record unemployment and growing wages under Trump’s administration. “President Trump endorsed me before, and I don’t run away from that like my opponent may be running away from Joe Biden, even though she’s a rubber stamp for his policies,” Budd said. “She would be a rubber stamp for him. He endorsed me because I’m an America First candidate and I believe in the things that led to that 1.4% inflation, that led to record low unemployment for women, for people of color, for Hispanics, so again, he had a lot of wins here in the state, including for our economy, including for those at the bottom of the economic pyramid.” Beasley, on the other hand, said Trump represents the most extremist policies and ideologies and pointed out that when he recently visited Wilmington, the former president called her a “Marxist liberal.” “The reality is that Congressman Budd has aligned himself with somebody who was truly an extremist, in this race, and that’s a reflection on him, so folks need to be reminded of that as they’re thinking about the clear choice that can be made here in this race,” Beasley said. Differences on legalizing marijuana Both Budd and Beasley were asked where they stood on legalizing marijuana. On Thursday, Biden announced he would pardon federal convictions for simple possession of marijuana and encouraged state officials to follow suit. Budd said he believes the president overstepped his authority. He said he does not support legalizing marijuana and thinks doing so sends a bad message to children. “If someone can prove to me that there is a medical case for marijuana, we can certainly have that discussion,” Budd said, after saying he is absolutely opposed to recreational use. Beasley said she would legalize both recreational and medical use. Two more candidates Beasley and Budd are not the only candidates in the U.S. Senate race. Shannon Bray, a Libertarian, and Green Party candidate Matthew Hoh will also appear on the ballot on Nov. 8, but weren’t invited to debate. Instead, Spectrum interviewed the two men in a preshow that aired an hour earlier. Hoh told Spectrum his focus is on housing issues like rent control and banning banks and corporations from buying single-family homes. He supports a single-payer health care system. Both he and Bray want to end the war on drugs. Bray added that he wants to fight inflation through tax reduction and increasing transparency in the government. For more North Carolina government and politics news, subscribe to the Under the Dome politics newsletter from The News & Observer and the NC Insider and follow our weekly Under the Dome podcast at campsite.bio/underthedome or wherever you get your podcasts. This story was originally published October 7, 2022 10:55 PM. Read More Here

Markets Need To Abandon Hope Of The 'Fed Put' After The September Jobs Report – And Another Jumbo Rate Hike Is All But Certain In November https://digitalalaskanews.com/markets-need-to-abandon-hope-of-the-fed-put-after-the-september-jobs-report-and-another-jumbo-rate-hike-is-all-but-certain-in-november/ Stocks will likely fall further in anticipation of the Fed delivering another jumbo rate hike, analysts say.  Investors priced in a more hawkish outlook for rate hikes after the strong September jobs report.  The stock market “is simply going to be collateral damage” in the inflation fight, one analyst said.  Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you’re on the go. Another hefty rate increase by the inflation-fighting Federal Reserve appears on the way and stocks will likely take further hits in anticipation of the move – but investors should set aside the notion the Fed is looking to steer equities away from sharp declines.  Investors after the September payrolls report were pricing in a more hawkish outlook for the Fed’s likely rate hike in November. The CME FedWatch tool showed an 82.3% probability of a 75-basis-point increase, up from 75.2% a day earlier and higher than 56.5% a week earlier.  “I think the Fed feels like they have the license to push ahead aggressively to combat inflation,” Jan Szilagyi, CEO and co-founder Toggle AI, an investment research firm, told Insider after Labor Department released its payrolls report on Friday. The US created 263,000 new jobs in September, beating the 250,000 average estimate. The unemployment rate fell to 3.5% from 3.7%.  US stocks tumbled after the jobs report. The Nasdaq Composite lost nearly 4% and the S&P 500 gave up nearly 3%.  “Today’s jobs report likely does not change the Fed’s calculus in its fight against inflation, which is still on track for another 75 bp rate hike in early November,” Jason Pride, chief investment officer of private wealth at Glenmede, wrote in a note. The report could lead to new 2022 lows for stocks this month, Bank of America said Friday.  The US stock market is already submerged in a bear market, with the Nasdaq Composite off by roughly 32% this year and the S&P 500 down more than 20%. The Fed has been aggressive in raising interest rates to pull down inflation that’s sitting around a four-decade high and in turn that’s left equities in the red.  “On a variety of metrics, I think there’s definitely still downside particularly because I don’t think there’s any sense the Fed is trying to help the market. The Fed is focused on inflation, which is different from some other situations where you have an economic crisis or a financial crisis,” Szilagyi said in swatting away the idea of a so-called “Fed Put”.  A Fed Put refers to the belief among investors that policymakers at the US central bank will enact policies aimed at aiding stocks if they drop sharply and quickly to worrying levels. The market saw Fed Puts in 1987, 2010, 2016, and 2018, according to the Corporate Finance Institute.  Szilagyi said “garden variety” bear markets running back to the 1929 crash on Wall Street have lasted between 10-12 months and have taken stocks down about 33%. The S&P 500 in the current downturn is off by about 24% year to date.  “I don’t think [Fed policy makers] are thinking that the market has come down so dramatically that they now suddenly need to pivot,” he said. “Back in 2018, when the market reacted very poorly to the prospect of potentially tightening, they did actually take the market into account. But that was when inflation was not a problem. I think now you’re in exactly in the reverse situation where inflation is suddenly a problem and the market is simply going to be collateral damage.”  Szilagyi also said stocks appeared to have dropped Friday as investors erased the notion that signs of potential stress in financial systems would lead the Fed to dial back on rate moves, including concerns about the health of Swiss lender Credit Suisse and the Bank of England’s emergency £65 billion bond-market intervention. “That glimmer of hope there might be a little bit of a pivot – not anything near resembling an actual easing of monetary policy – is being priced out. We’re retesting the June lows, which, ultimately, is something that we probably need to do anyway if there’s ever hope of reaching a major low in the market.”  The September inflation report is due on Thursday to update the August headline reading that came in at 8.3%. The Fed is expected to raise rates for the sixth time at its November 1-2 meeting to push the fed funds rate from the current range of 3% to 3.25%. The Fed has kicked up the benchmark rate by 75 basis points at its past three meetings. Read More Here

US Domestic News Roundup: Uvalde School District Suspends Entire Police Force After May Shooting; Sandy Hook Jurors End First Day Of Deliberations In Alex Jones Damages Case And More | Law-Order https://digitalalaskanews.com/us-domestic-news-roundup-uvalde-school-district-suspends-entire-police-force-after-may-shooting-sandy-hook-jurors-end-first-day-of-deliberations-in-alex-jones-damages-case-and-more-law-order/ Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. Uvalde school district suspends entire police force after May shooting The school district in Uvalde, Texas, suspended its entire police force on Friday, pending the outcome of a probe following the mass shooting in May that killed 19 students and two teachers, the district said in a statement. The district said it suspended all activities of the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District Police Department “for a period of time.” The police force consisted of five officers and one security guard, according to its website. Sandy Hook jurors end first day of deliberations in Alex Jones damages case A Connecticut jury on Friday ended its first full day of deliberations without a decision on how much conspiracy theorist Alex Jones must pay families of victims for falsely claiming the Sandy Hook mass shooting in 2012 was a hoax. Deliberations will resume on Tuesday in Waterbury, Connecticut state court, not far from where a gunman killed 20 children and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December 2012. Jones claimed for years that the massacre was staged with actors by the government as part of a plot to seize Americans’ guns. U.S. Treasury sets new tax credit rule to expand affordable housing The U.S. Treasury moved to preserve and expand the supply of affordable housing on Friday by finalizing a new tax credit income rule that may qualify more housing projects and extending deadlines for when they must be placed in service. The finalized income-averaging rule for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit now allows a broader mix of income levels among residents of qualifying projects, by using average, rather than fixed limits for all units. Explainer-U.S. marijuana pardons help thousands, leave others in prison U.S. President Joe Biden’s pardon for thousands of Americans convicted of simple marijuana possession under federal law has a profound impact, experts and individuals say, even if it affects fewer people than similar state and local initiatives. Biden has called on governors to issue similar pardons regarding state marijuana offenses. WHO IS AFFECTED? Factbox-Voters in five U.S. states to decide on legalizing marijuana in November midterms Voters in five states will decide whether to legalize adult-use marijuana in November’s midterm elections, as 19 other states and the District of Columbia have done. Public support for legalizing the drug has risen in recent years, and President Joe Biden on Thursday announced he was pardoning thousands of people who had been convicted of federal marijuana possession charges. ‘Big shrimping family’ in Florida left homeless by Hurricane Ian Ricky Moran, a shrimper who worked and slept on the boat he captained out of Fort Myers Beach, lost both a secure livelihood and a safe place to live when Hurricane Ian roared into southwest Florida and smashed the trawler he calls home. The Category 4 storm lifted the craft from its moorings like it was a toy and left it in a twisted heap on shore along with a half dozen other battered boats, most flipped on their sides or with the hulls facing the sky. Moran now finds himself without a safe place to live or a means to make a living. Appeals court temporarily blocks Arizona’s abortion ban An appeals court on Friday temporarily blocked Arizona from enforcing a 1901 ban on nearly all abortions in the state, overruling a trial court’s decision last month to let the ban proceed. The Arizona Court of Appeals granted Planned Parenthood’s request for an emergency stay of Pima County Superior Court’s ruling on Sept. 23 that lifted an injunction on the ban. The appeals court said the abortion-rights advocacy group “demonstrated a substantial likelihood of success” in its challenge of that decision. Bullet-proof glass, guards: U.S. election offices tighten security for Nov. 8 midterms When voters in Jefferson County, Colorado, cast their ballots in the Nov. 8 midterm election, they will see security guards stationed outside the busiest polling centers. At an election office in Flagstaff, Arizona, voters will encounter bulletproof glass and need to press a buzzer to enter. In Tallahassee, Florida, election workers will count ballots in a building that has been newly toughened with walls made of the super-strong fiber Kevlar. NYC mayor declares state of emergency amid migrant busing crisis New York City Mayor Eric Adams declared a state of emergency on Friday in response to thousands of migrants bused to the city in recent months from the U.S. southern border in a political dispute over border security. The city expects to spend $1 billion to manage the influx of the migrants, Adams said in a speech at City Hall. More than 17,000 have arrived in New York since April; an average of five or six buses each day since early September, with nine buses pulling into the city on Thursday, said Adams, a Democrat, straining the city’s homeless shelter system. Oath Keepers founder spoke of ‘bloody’ war ahead of the U.S. Capitol attack Prosecutors in the trial of five Oath Keepers members on Friday showed a jury fresh evidence that the right-wing militia group’s founder Stewart Rhodes told his followers ahead of last year’s U.S. Capitol attack there would be a “bloody” war if then-President Donald Trump failed to reverse his 2020 election loss. In numerous text messages, online postings, and speeches shown as evidence, Rhodes promoted the use of force and implored Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act, a 19th-century U.S. law that empowers presidents to deploy troops to quell civil unrest. (With inputs from agencies.) Read More Here

T https://digitalalaskanews.com/t-14/ This content is only available to subscribers. Get unlimited digital access. $1 for 6 months. Your subscription supports: Award-winning investigations and consumer reporting that helps Arizonans recover hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. In-depth coverage of the Valley’s real estate market and what’s being built and redeveloped in your city. Voices, experts and personalities on the right and the left. Exclusive sports coverage of Arizona high schools, Sun Devils, Suns, Cardinals and Diamondbacks plus access to USA TODAY Sports+ at no additional cost. The best guide in Arizona to getaways, concerts and the dining scene. Daily newsletter with top news to know. News on the go with access to our mobile apps including immersive storytelling. Read More Here

Letter: Reject ‘Big Lie,’ Vote For Rule Of Law https://digitalalaskanews.com/letter-reject-big-lie-vote-for-rule-of-law/ By Ken Simpson, Vancouver Published: October 9, 2022, 6:00am Our Founding Fathers envisioned a judicial system separate from the political branches and designed to provide a government based on the rule of law. The Judiciary Act of 1789 established our federal court system. It was one of the first acts of Congress and President George Washington signed it into law. This independent system of courts is vital to American liberty. Donald Trump is a fighter and quick to distance himself from any failure. During the past four decades, he has been involved in at least 3,500 legal actions. Therefore, with Donald’s path to reelection narrowing, he turned to the courts. About half of Trump’s 61 lawsuits were dismissed at the procedural stage because no credible evidence of voter fraud had been produced by Donald’s campaign or his supporters. In the cases that weren’t immediately dismissed, the courts ruled that the charges of fraud were not real. The Supreme Court rejected a handful of cases related to the 2020 election. And Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s lawyer, had his law license suspended due to false and misleading statements about voter fraud. This November, America can reject those supporting Trump’s “Big Lie” and vote for our Founding Fathers and their rule of law. Read More Here

Professor John Banzhaf Answers: 'Can Former President Trump Be Allowed To Run For President Again?' | EURweb https://digitalalaskanews.com/professor-john-banzhaf-answers-can-former-president-trump-be-allowed-to-run-for-president-again-eurweb/ Professor John F. Banzhaf III – GettyImages *Over the years I have had the privilege of reprinting for publication many informative and insightful articles written by our distinguished interviewee today, John F. Banzhaf III, B.S.E.E., J.D., Sc.D. John Banzhaf is a professor of public interest law emeritus at the George Washington University Law School.  Although best known for founding a renowned anti-smoking advocacy group, his public interest successes in the field of government include helping to obtain special prosecutors for former president Richard Nixon and suing former vice president Spiro Agnew to get back the money he took in bribes. He also helped reform laws related to voting and copyrights; and filed ethical complaints against former congressman Barney Frank and vice-presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro. Most recently, he filed a formal complaint accusing former president Donald Trump of violating at least three laws.  This triggered the current criminal investigation of Trump in Georgia. Today’s Q & A topic is a question many voters have been asking: “Can former president Donald Trump be allowed to run for president again?” Amid all the blaring personal and political allegations he is facing, it would seem no way he could, but read on for Professor Banzhaf’s take on it. MORE NEWS ON EURWEB: Kanye West Sits with Tucker Carlson on Fox News to Defend ‘White Lives Matter’ T-shirts | WATCH Donald Trump – Getty Q. How can a former president who (allegedly knowingly) made election fraud accusations, refused to publicly concede defeat of the 2020 election, and refused a peaceful transfer of power, even be qualified to run for office again? A. The U.S. Constitution sets forth the very minimal standards or requirements for someone to be president – at least 35 years old, and a natural-born citizen who has lived in the U.S. for at least 14 years – and therefore to be qualified for the office. It’s clear that not even Congress, through legislation, can add to those requirements. Thus, even assuming that Trump was found guilty of various criminal charges, he could still run for and serve as president. The argument would be that the voters get to choose the president (albeit through the clumsy Electoral College), and they can consider the extent to which even the most reprehensible acts should disqualify someone.  This is true in general, which is why people have run for office even while sitting in a jail cell after having been convicted of a crime. However, the Constitution – Section 3 of the 14th Amendment – provides: “No person…shall hold any [state or federal] office, who, having previously taken an oath, as [a state or federal officer] to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.” If someone has taken the oath of office – whether or not that person is currently in office – and later “engage[s] in insurrection or rebellion,” that person is constitutionally prohibited from holding any state or federal office in the present or future. While the law regarding that section is far from clear, it has been held, in at least one case, that an office seeker was disqualified for engaging in insurrection or rebellion.   If Trump is convicted on such a charge, it would be up to the authorities to decide whether he would be disqualified from holding any federal office in the future. Donald Trump Q. Given Trump’s financial crisis alone, could that prevent or disqualify him from obtaining a Top Secret clearance from the DOJ for being “at risk” for compromise? And what about illegally removing classified documents from the White House and storing them improperly in his private home? How can he be trusted to run for the Office of the President again? A. The law seems clear that a president may declassify even the most secret of documents (although probably not just by thinking about it). It also appears that he can award himself whatever security clearance he wishes, despite any prior misdeeds, either directly or by ordering subordinates to award him the clearance. As president, he probably has the right to see any document, regardless of its classification, and/or his lack of security clearance. Q. Why is the former president, under multiple investigations, being allowed to mislead his followers and create chaos in the election process? A. The First Amendment, history, and well-established custom say that no one can NOT allow (i.e., disallow) a president, or a candidate for other public office, to mislead people and create confusion, except if he is under oath and subject to penalties for perjury. Otherwise, we would have a judge or other government official deciding whether a political statement is misleading. In short, a president is not like a pitchman for soap. The latter’s claims are subject to review, and to requirements of verifiable truth, by the FTC or others.  But no agency, even including the Federal Election Commission, can review and censor the statements of a candidate for public office. We thank you Professor Banzhaf for your law-based and constitutional-informed responses. People, democracy is the ship that holds America together. We see the signs that we’re on course for a shipwreck, and unless we use the power of our vote to change course, we are doomed for a catastrophe of titanic proportions. Professor John Banzhaf III JOHN F. BANZHAF III, B.S.E.E., J.D., Sc.D. Professor of Public Interest Law Emeritus George Washington University Law School “The Man Behind the Ban on Cigarette Commercials” FAMRI Dr. William Cahan Distinguished Professor Fellow, World Technology Network Founder, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Inventor of the “Banzhaf Index” (202) 994-7229 // (703) 527-8418 http://banzhaf.net – @profbanzhaf Larry S. Buford Larry Buford is a Los Angeles-based contributing writer. Author of “Things Are Gettin’ Outta Hand” and “Book To The Future” (Amazon). Email: LBuford8101@hotmail.com Read More Here

How Social Media ‘censorship’ Became A Front Line In The Culture War https://digitalalaskanews.com/how-social-media-censorship-became-a-front-line-in-the-culture-war/ Online content moderation wasn’t always a partisan issue. That began to change in 2016. October 9, 2022 at 7:00 a.m. EDT How social media ‘censorship’ became a front line in the culture war (Lucy Naland/The Washington Post) Early last year, amid mounting criticism that social media was spreading disinformation about covid-19, Facebook expanded an unprecedented campaign to police falsehoods by banning what it called “debunked claims” about the virus. Among them: The claim that covid was “man-made” and had leaked from a lab in Wuhan, China. To the Biden administration and the scientific establishment, Facebook’s efforts to rein in misinformation were too little, too late, given how its network had helped false and damaging claims to go viral in the first place. But others complained that the crackdowns squelched legitimate debate about the frustrating performance of public health authorities — a view that was partly vindicated when China’s lack of transparency prompted prominent scientists to declare the lab-leak theory “viable” and demand further investigation. In May 2021, barely three months after it imposed the ban, Facebook backtracked: “In light of ongoing investigations into the origin of Covid-19 and in consultation with public health experts,” the company said, “we will no longer remove the claim that Covid-19 is man-made from our apps.” What people can and can’t say online — and the role of Big Tech in making those calls — has emerged as a critical fault line in American politics. The left cries for content moderation to tamp down disinformation, racism and misogyny. The right decries that as censorship and demands the right to free speech. In recent months, several flash points have brought this battle to the fore. Last week, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case that accuses YouTube of abetting terrorism by recommending content from the Islamic State. Last month, a federal court upheld a Texas law that would prevent social media platforms from removing or limiting posts on the basis of political viewpoint. Meanwhile, the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, is pushing to close a deal that would give him sole control of Twitter, whose decision to ban President Donald Trump after the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, has reverberated as perhaps the single most divisive act of content moderation in internet history. Musk has said he would reinstate Trump. “We’re approaching a pivotal moment for online speech,” said Daphne Keller, who directs the Program on Platform Regulation at Stanford University’s Cyber Policy Center. “The political pressures on content moderation have increased tremendously.” How online forums set and enforce rules for what users can post wasn’t always so divisive. When the consumer internet was born in the mid-1990s, lawmakers in both parties shared a desire to see American tech firms thrive. That consensus survived early battles over pornography, copyright infringement, breastfeeding photos and terrorist propaganda. But as in so many realms of American society, the 2016 election marked the beginning of the end of that bipartisan comity. Christopher Cox, a former Republican congressman from California, now serves on the board of Netchoice, a tech industry lobbying group that is fighting the Texas law. Cox said he can understand conservatives’ frustration with some of the platforms’ decisions, which he called an “abuse of power.” But the remedy is not to give more power over speech to the state, he argued, “Politicians exercising control over the political speech of others is a very dangerous recipe.” Protecting ‘the little guy’ In 1995, Cox helped craft the provision that paved the legal path for today’s internet giants to moderate online speech. At the time, the political stakes seemed so low that the national media barely noticed. The consumer internet was just blossoming, with millions of Americans beginning to log on to services such as CompuServe, Prodigy, and AOL. To the extent most lawmakers considered online speech at all, their chief concern was limiting the availability of pornography to minors. Cox and Rep. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) had a different concern. Earlier that year, a libel judgment against Prodigy held that its attempt to police its forums made it responsible for users’ content. Cox and Wyden worried the judgment would stifle the fledgling internet. So they hashed out a statute that gave online service providers broad latitude to host, distribute and moderate content posted by users without being held liable when they posted something illegal. Part of a broader bill called the Communications Decency Act, it came to be known simply by its location: Section 230. In a recent interview with The Washington Post, Wyden, now a senator, recalled that he saw the internet companies as “the little guy,” and wanted to give them leeway to develop their innovative technologies without being squashed by heavy-handed regulations. He thought empowering them to moderate their own sites would lead to a cleaner, safer internet without the need for government censorship of online speech. Cox, in a separate interview, added: “The question is who’s in charge. There are going to be decisions made about what content is on these websites. Should the government be in charge of it? There are all sorts of reasons that would be a bad idea. It’s subject to all sorts of abuse.” Early court decisions went on to interpret Section 230 even more broadly than Cox and Wyden had anticipated, establishing sweeping immunity for user-posted content. That set the stage for the rise of sites like Yahoo, Google, MSN. Later came YouTube, which is owned by Google, and Facebook. They could host, aggregate, and organize vast pools of user content without having to worry too much, from a legal standpoint, about whether it might be false, hurtful, or even dangerous. The result was a potent business model that, compared with traditional media, dispensed with paid content creators in favor of unpaid ordinary users, and replaced paid editors with software algorithms designed to surface the most relevant, engaging or tantalizing content. Yet the consumer internet was never an unfettered free-speech zone. The most successful online platforms discovered early that they had to make and enforce basic rules or they’d be overrun by pornography, spam, scams, harassment and hate speech — and that would be bad for business. Even when an internet forum starts with a goal of allowing freewheeling discourse, “they quickly run into the inevitable fact that you have to moderate in order to have a commercially viable and user-friendly product,” said Evelyn Douek, a Stanford law professor who researches online speech regulations. The need to screen and review millions of posts per day on sites like YouTube and Facebook gave rise to a shadow industry of commercial content moderation involving huge teams of workers spending their days making rapid-fire calls about whether to take down posts that users have flagged as offensive or obscene. To preserve the illusion of a “free-speech zone,” tech companies tend to distance themselves from that work, often outsourcing it to poorly compensated contractors in far-flung locales, said Sarah T. Roberts, author of “Behind the Screen: Content Moderation in the Shadows of Social Media.” Even so, some decisions proved too thorny or consequential for tech companies to sweep under the rug. In 2006, a shocking video appeared on the then-new YouTube: Grainy and shaky, the amateur footage showed deposed Iraqi president Saddam Hussein being hanged by members of the new Iraqi government, some of whom shouted insults in his final moments. The hanging had been closed to the media; the video exposed a vengeful and undignified execution at odds with official reports. The decision of whether to leave the video up or take it down fell to Google’s deputy general counsel, a young lawyer named Nicole Wong. “What we ended up deciding was that the video of the execution was actually a historic moment, and it was actually important that it be shared and seen,” Wong said in a 2018 conference. Two years later, an angry group of moms protested outside the Palo Alto offices of the three-year-old social media site Facebook, which had been taking down breastfeeding photos for violating its rule against nudity. The furor spurred Facebook to develop its first internal rule book for what users could and couldn’t post, drawing fine-grained, if somewhat arbitrary, distinctions to delineate between wholesome and prurient images, among other things. Previous content policies had amounted to, “If it makes you feel bad, take it down,” former safety lead Charlotte Willner said. She recalled that one of the guiding motivations amid the lack of regulation of online content was executives’ desire not to run afoul of powerful people, especially public officials who might try to sue or regulate them. Despite the occasional flare-ups, the big platforms cultivated an image as guardians of free speech abroad — one Twitter official boasted in 2012 that his firm was “the free-speech wing of the free-speech party” — while maintaining a studied political neutrality at home. But as social media’s influence on politics and social mores has grown, it has become clearer that free speech for some users could mean real harm for others. In 2014, large subcultures of angry, mostly male, gamers targeted a handful of women in the video-game industry and media with vicious, coordinated online threats, which at times spilled into real-world attacks. That movement, known as GamerGate, challenged tech companies’ claims to neutrality, because it pitted the free-speech claims of one group of users against the privacy and safety of others, said Tarleton Gil...

The Kari Lake Effect https://digitalalaskanews.com/the-kari-lake-effect/ As election returns rolled in on the evening of November 3, 2020, a local news host in Phoenix was starring in an intensely awkward broadcast. The Fox 10 anchor Kari Lake was refusing to call Arizona for Joe Biden—even though her network had already done so. “If [voters] wake up tomorrow or two days later and it flips,” she insisted, her pendant earrings swinging, “there’s distrust in the system.” Lake’s co-anchor, John Hook, lost patience. “Well, we’re taking our cues from Fox, the mothership,” he interrupted. “That’s kind of what we do.” A few weeks after the election, Lake went on leave. In March 2021, the 51-year-old announced that she was quitting TV altogether. What happened next was a political rise that not even Lake herself could have anticipated. That June, she declared a bid for governor of Arizona. Unlike other Republicans, Lake said, she would kowtow to nobody and nothing—not the would-be election fraudsters of the Democratic Party, not the federal government’s mandates, and certainly not the radical left. She quickly earned Donald Trump’s endorsement, began paying visits to Mar-a-Lago, and started speaking alongside the former president at rallies—he’s joining her on the stump in Mesa today. By August of this year, Lake had defeated all of her GOP primary opponents. Now Lake is one election away from the governor’s office. I’ve been following Lake’s campaign since January, when I went to cover a Trump rally in Florence, about an hour’s drive southeast of Phoenix. Because I was there for his 2024 “soft launch,” as I called it then, I hadn’t paid much attention when Lake walked up to the podium, wrapped in a gray poncho. The crowd started screaming for her, chanting her name. Lake vowed to lock up “that liar” Anthony Fauci, as well as anyone involved with the “corrupt, shady, shoddy election of 2020.” The applause was deafening. Read: The radical fringe that just went mainstream in Arizona The way Lake has imitated Trump’s rhetoric is obvious, but as I’ve followed her in the months since, something else has become clear: She is much better at this than Trump’s other emulators. That makes sense, given her first career in front of the camera, cultivating trust among thousands of Maricopa County viewers. But this is more than imitation: Lake has made MAGA her own. She’s agile as a politician in a way that other high-profile Trump-endorsed candidates, like scandal-plagued Herschel Walker and crudités-eating Mehmet Oz, are not. Lake is more likable than Senate hopefuls like Blake Masters or J. D. Vance. And she bats at the press with a vivacity unmatched by anyone but the big man himself. Lake is in a neck-and-neck race in Arizona, but she arguably has a better chance than any other famous Trump endorsee this cycle. Her Democratic opponent, the current Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, is a remarkably dull candidate who has refused to debate Lake, calling her a “conspiracy theorist.” That refusal might be a gift: This week, Lake will get a 30-minute solo interview on the local PBS affiliate. If Lake wins in November, the stakes are clear: Her administration will oversee elections in a swing state that will help decide the next president of the United States. All “Stop the Steal” candidates pose a threat to American democracy, but Lake’s race “is a category on its own,” Tim Miller, a Republican strategist and Trump critic, told me. “On a scale of one to 10, this is a 13-level threat.” Win or lose, Lake’s political trajectory seems set to stretch well beyond the November election. Her success so far has unlocked glittering possibilities, including book deals and prime-time pro-Trump TV slots. She may even be rewarded with a spot alongside Trump on the 2024 presidential ticket. Whatever happens, Kari Lake is here to stay. “I would really love to talk to you,” I told Lake. By this point, on a stiflingly hot September evening in Tempe, I’d been asking Lake’s campaign team for an interview with her for weeks. I’d sent repeated emails, lobbied, and cajoled, but to no effect other than an appointment that fell through. When that didn’t pan out, I introduced myself to Lake amid a small crowd outside the Sun Devil Stadium ahead of an Arizona State football game. Members of her team formed a tight circle around us, and her husband, Jeff Halperin, filmed the interaction. (He gathers footage for campaign ads and social-media mockery purposes.) Lake stood so close that I could see the different shades of brown in her irises. Sweat dripped down my back. “I’ve read your work,” she said. There’s a seductive power to Lake’s voice: deep but still feminine; firm, even severe, but smooth. Like black tea with a little honey. This is what I was thinking as she noted that I had used phrases like election denier and conspiracy theorist to describe her in past articles. “That,” she told me, not breaking eye contact, “is judgment, not journalism.” All the same, Lake told me that she’d think about an interview. Two days later, at an “Ask Me Anything” public event, her campaign skirted my requests. An aide suggested that we make it a Zoom interview, but this never happened. Lake and I never met again. Read: How do you actually stop the steal? This was too bad, because Lake is adept at telling her story. She grew up in rural Iowa, near the Quad Cities, as the youngest of nine children—eight girls and one boy. “My family was very poor,” she says in a campaign ad. “I lived off of a gravel road. We didn’t even have a house number!” (Route numbers were standard at the time, regardless of income; I know this because I too grew up in rural Iowa.) Lake studied journalism at the University of Iowa and worked at news stations in Iowa and New York State before moving to Arizona. She was an anchor at Fox 10 for 22 years, mostly covering the evening news. I talked with half a dozen of Lake’s former Fox 10 co-workers for this story, and all but one requested anonymity—partly because current employees are not authorized to talk to reporters about Lake, and partly because they fear retaliation from the candidate and her supporters. She was demanding, they told me, and always wanted her lighting just so. She would sometimes belittle the production staff. But she was good at her job, fluent and warm on camera. Viewers liked her. Back then, most of her friends at work assumed that she was politically liberal. She was a casual Buddhist, they said, and she’d donated to John Kerry and Barack Obama. She’d once called for amnesty for the roughly 11 million immigrants living in America illegally. (Lake was reportedly a Republican before she registered as an independent in 2006, and as a Democrat in 2008. She reregistered as a Republican in 2012.) Plus, Lake was fun. She liked to host dinner parties, and entertained guests with her bawdy sense of humor. She was good friends with some of the gay men in the newsroom—she’d vacationed with a few on occasion. And she sometimes attended drag shows at a local bar with other newsroom staff, former colleagues and friends told me. She even became friends with the well-known Phoenix drag queen, Barbra Seville. Lake “was the queen of the gays!” a former colleague told me. Nowadays, Lake wears a small gold cross on a chain around her neck. She prays before rallies and has warned of the dangers of “drag-queen story hour.” “They kicked God out of schools and welcomed the Drag Queens,” she tweeted in June. “They took down our Flag and replaced it with a rainbow.” This is puzzling and hurtful to Lake’s former friends. Lake did not used to be the “anti-choice, anti-science, election-denying caricature that she’s become,” Richard Stevens, who performs as Seville, told me. A former colleague sighed when I asked him about Lake’s evolution, “It’s like the death of a friend.” (Lake’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment for this story. Previously, her campaign has acknowledged that Stevens was “once a friend” and that she attended an event with a “Marilyn Monroe impersonator,” but has accused Stevens of spreading “defamatory lies.”) Before her campaign, Lake had praise for the late Senator John McCain, and she was friends with his son Jimmy for years. But during her bid, Lake has repeatedly attacked the late Arizona politician. “It’s extremely upsetting on a personal level,” Meghan McCain, the senator’s daughter, told me. “I don’t know if it’s authentic,” she added, referring to Lake’s campaign persona, but “she is a savant at imitating Trump.” Read: She defended democracy. Do voters care? Two of Lake’s former co-workers pointed to Trump’s political rise as the start of her evolution. She liked that he was an outsider, not a politician, they said. She would even score an interview with him, a major get for a local news anchor. Lake was a skilled—and frequent—poster on social media. Starting in 2018, a wide-screen monitor sat above the assignment desk at the Fox 10 newsroom, showing which of the on-air talent had the most retweets, likes, and replies—and who was trailing. “We called it the Hunger Games,” another former colleague told me. Lake’s name nearly always appeared at the top of the rankings. Soon, her posts took on a right-wing tinge. On Facebook, she’d sometimes share a defense of Trump with a just-asking-questions line at the end: “The cry-baby establishment Republicans are now saying they ‘can’t support’ Donald Trump,” she wrote in 2016. “Your thoughts??” In 2018, she said on Twitter that the “Red for Ed” movement in Arizona was secretly an effort to legalize marijuana. (She later apologized.) She retweeted an unverified claim of election fraud. Then the pandemic hit. Lake shared misinformation about the virus, including a debunked video that YouTube had previously removed. (She went on to host anti-mask rallies and question the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines.) But the part of Lake’s TV career that got Ar...

Strikes Kill At Least 17 In Key Southern City, As Russian Hawks Demand Revenge For Bridge Attack https://digitalalaskanews.com/strikes-kill-at-least-17-in-key-southern-city-as-russian-hawks-demand-revenge-for-bridge-attack/ Image A residential building heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, on Sunday.Credit…Reuters KYIV, Ukraine — Less than a day after a major attack damaged Russia’s bridge to Crimea and delivered a blow to Moscow’s war effort, a barrage of missiles slammed into civilian areas of the city of Zaporizhzhia overnight and killed at least 17 people, local officials said on Sunday, as Russian forces continued the relentless targeting of residential areas there. Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of carrying out revenge attacks on civilian targets as Ukrainian forces have gained ground on the battlefield in recent weeks. Many were bracing for a severe Russian response to the bridge attack, which analysts described as a significant setback for Moscow both symbolically and practically, damaging a span that holds personal importance for President Vladimir V. Putin and that has played a key role in supplying his forces occupying southern Ukraine. Zaporizhzhia, in the southeast of Ukraine, was battered overnight by several missiles that hit homes and destroyed part of an apartment building, Anatolii Kurtiev, the acting mayor, wrote on Telegram. He said that five residences were destroyed and another 40 were damaged. Photos in Ukrainian news outlets showed piles of rubble and a partially collapsed building illuminated by fires burning around it. Video taken at the scene of the strike after daybreak on Sunday showed dozens of emergency workers and volunteers digging through the rubble of the building looking for survivors.” Oleksandr Starukh, the governor of the Zaporizhzhia region, said in a Telegram post on Sunday morning that there may still be people trapped in the rubble in the city, which Russian forces have targeted relentlessly in recent days. “The enemy continues to terrorize the city of Zaporizhzhia,” he wrote in another post, warning civilians of the risk of continued attacks. The strikes were just the latest in weeks of assaults on civilians that have shaken Zaporizhzhia and other Ukrainian cities, and it was not immediately clear if they were linked to the explosion on the Kerch Strait Bridge on Saturday, which sent part of the 12-mile span tumbling into the sea. While Ukraine’s government did not officially claim responsibility, a senior Ukrainian official told The New York Times that Ukraine’s intelligence services had orchestrated the explosion, using a bomb loaded onto a truck being driven across the bridge. On Thursday in Zaporizhzhia, a Russian missile attack killed at least 14 people, with some bodies pulled from the rubble more than a day later. The city, a large regional center on the Dnipro River, has also been a major humanitarian hub for residents of smaller towns and cities who had fled intense fighting closer to home. The Zaporizhzhia region is one of four Ukrainian regions that Mr. Putin illegally annexed last week, a move that Ukraine and its allies have ignored. In Thursday’s attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said the Russian military had also targeted rescuers by launching a second missile strike on an area that had been hit earlier in the day. “Absolute meanness. Absolute evil,” Mr. Zelensky said in a recorded address. “There have already been thousands of manifestations of such evil. Unfortunately, there may be thousands more.” Iranian-made “kamikaze” drones, which slam directly into their targets, have also hit the city, Ukraine’s military said on Friday. Humanitarian convoys out of the city have been suspended during the recent attacks. Late last month a Russian missile strike hit a convoy of vehicles filled with people fleeing the fighting in the Zaporizhzhia region, killing at least 30 people and wounding 88 others. Russia has previously denied attacking civilians, saying without evidence that such assaults are the work of Ukrainian forces trying to rally support to their cause. Image Smoke above the collapsed part of the Kerch Strait Bridge in Crimea on Saturday.Credit…Maxar Technologies Within hours of a blast that damaged the sole bridge linking Crimea with Russia early Saturday, hard-line military bloggers and Russian officials were calling for a swift and strong response from Moscow. One high-level politician said that anything less than an “extremely harsh” response would show weakness from the Kremlin, which is facing continued losses on the battlefield and mounting criticism at home. For President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, who presided over the bridge’s opening in 2018, the explosion seemed to be a highly personal affront, underscoring his failure to get a handle on a relentless series of Ukrainian attacks. Some news media commentators demanded that Russia destroy Ukraine’s electricity infrastructure and the transportation systems used to import Western armaments. Evgeny Poddubny, a war correspondent for the state RT outlet, said that nobody in the Ukrainian leadership seemed to fear Russia anymore. “The enemy has stopped being afraid, and this circumstance needs to be corrected promptly,” he wrote in RT’s Telegram channel. “Commanders of formations, heads of intelligence agencies, politicians of the Kyiv criminal regime sleep peacefully, wake up without a headache and in a good mood, without a sense of inevitability of punishment for crimes committed.” UKRAINE 3,000 ft CRIMEA RUSSIA Sevastapol Crimea Crimea Krasnodar, Russia Outer two lanes collapsed here. Several tanker cars of a train could be seeing burning here. 100 ft UKRAINE Kherson CRIMEA RUSSIA Sevastapol 3,000 ft Crimea Krasnodar, Russia Outer two lanes collapsed here. Several tanker cars of a train could be seeing burning here. 100 ft Aleksandr Kots, a war correspondent for the Russian tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda, wrote on Telegram that disabling the bridge bodes ill for Moscow’s already troubled efforts to hold onto territory in the Kherson region of southern Ukraine — and most likely foreshadowed a future attack on Crimea itself. He described the “consistency” that Ukraine was showing in the war as “enviable” and called for Russia to “hammer Ukraine into the 18th century, without meaningless reflection on how this will affect the civilian population.” While there were no official claims of responsibility, Ukrainian officials, who in the past have said the bridge would be a legitimate target for a strike, indicated that the explosion was no accident and made no secret of their satisfaction. “Crimea, the bridge, the beginning,” Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukraine’s president, wrote in a Twitter post on Saturday. “Everything illegal, must be destroyed. Everything stolen returned to Ukraine. All Russian occupiers expelled.” The explosion is emblematic of a Russian military in disarray. Russian forces were unable to protect the road and rail crossing despite its centrality to the war effort, its personal importance to Mr. Putin and its potent symbolism as the literal connection between Russia and Crimea. For Russia, the rail crossing “has played a key role in moving heavy military vehicles to the southern front during the invasion,” the British defense intelligence agency wrote in its daily assessment on Sunday. It added that although the extent of the damage to the rail line was uncertain, “any serious disruption to its capacity will highly likely have a significant impact on Russia’s already strained ability to sustain its forces in southern Ukraine.” Two of the four lanes of roadway “have collapsed in several places” over an approximately 250-meter stretch, the report said. Hours after the explosion, the Kremlin appointed Gen. Sergei Surovikin, yet another new commander, to oversee its forces in Ukraine. Previous leadership shake-ups have done little to right the military’s floundering performance. General Surovikin, 55, has long had a reputation for corruption and brutality, military analysts said. “He is known as a pretty ruthless commander who is short with subordinates and is known for his temper,” said Michael Kofman, the director of Russia studies at C.N.A., a defense research institute based in Virginia. His appointment was quickly praised by some of the biggest supporters of the war, including Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner mercenary group that was deployed heavily in Syria. He made a rare public endorsement of the general, calling him “legendary.” Image Workers cleaned up debris after a piece of a shot-down missile fell into a park opposite its primary target, in central Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Saturday.Credit…Ivor Prickett for The New York Times KHARKIV, Ukraine — Four Russian missiles struck the city center of Kharkiv just after midnight on Saturday morning in one of the most intense attacks in weeks, targeting two building complexes used by the Ukrainian military. One 45-year-old man was hospitalized with shrapnel wounds, the head of the Kharkiv regional military administration, Oleh Syniehubov, said on Telegram. Three of the missiles landed in building courtyards, and a fourth landed in a park across the street. One missile landed on the grounds of the city library, an elegant pale yellow stucco building also used by the Institute of Agriculture, where Ukrainian soldiers had been using an annex in recent months. On Saturday, uniformed soldiers examined a crater beside a mangled green bus. Two of the missiles had struck another building complex adjacent to the library, severely damaging part of a three-story building and nearby shops. Soldiers in civilian clothes barred entrance to the courtyard of the complex as police officials arrived to inspect the damage. The building seems to have been an ammunition depot, according to residents who posted vi...

My Weekly Musings: The Moments For Which Sports Truly Prepare Us https://digitalalaskanews.com/my-weekly-musings-the-moments-for-which-sports-truly-prepare-us/ 42° Fairbanks, AK (99707) Today Rain and snow in the morning, becoming all snow in the afternoon. High 43F. Winds WSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Snow accumulations less than one inch.. Tonight Cloudy skies. Low 27F. Winds WSW at 10 to 20 mph. Updated: October 9, 2022 @ 3:09 am Full Forecast Daily News-Miner sport correspondent and new bride Olivia Olsen. The Monroe Catholic Lady Rams basketball team went defeated and took first place in the regional tournament in Valdez, propelling them to the state competition in Anchorage. The All Tournament team was Shannel Kovalsky, Sophia Stepovich and Miranda Wilkerson, with All Conference MVP awarded … Articles Images Videos Images Sorry, there are no recent results for popular images. Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. Let us know what you’re seeing and hearing around the community. Read More Here

Podcasts For Ex-Prisoners: ‘It’s Not Super-Common That You’ve Been To Prison. Who Can Relate To You?’ https://digitalalaskanews.com/podcasts-for-ex-prisoners-its-not-super-common-that-youve-been-to-prison-who-can-relate-to-you/ In a basement studio suffused with shocking pink light, around a chic coffee table draped with plants, a podcast is about to be recorded. Being an of-the-moment show, it is also being filmed for YouTube. So sofas are angled for the best shots, microphones are set in particular places, a neon sign is switched on, and Zak Addae-Kodua, on the right-hand sofa, is checking his face for shine. Does he need powder? “What do you think?” he asks Jules Rowan, sitting next to him. She examines him carefully. “You’re good,” she says. “I got you.” Zak, 31, and Jules, 26, are the brand new presenters of a brand new weekly podcast, The Sit Down. Yes, it’s a chatshow – in each episode, they’ll talk to one or two guests in depth about their lives – but it’s almost certainly unlike any you’ve heard before. As Zak and Jules explain in their introduction, The Sit Down is a show where people with “some interaction with the justice system” – ex-prisoners or their families, essentially – will talk honestly about what they’ve been through. This is their first episode and on the sofa opposite them sit their first two guests. One, Tracy, friendly, chatty, has twin sons who have spent most of their adult lives inside: they are 14 years into a 28-year sentence. “I serve the sentence with them,” she says. “I think everyone does, we serve it too.” The other woman, Hilda, warm but quieter, also has two boys who were sent to prison. One is still there. The other is out, and sitting opposite her: Zak. “What was it like when Zak first went to prison?” asks Jules. “It hit me like a bomb,” says Hilda. “My heart was destroyed.” Zak was 17 when he was first sent to youth custody. “He was a clever boy, the family hope,” recalls Hilda. “Didn’t a teacher from college call you?” Zak asks. “Yes,” she says. “A teacher from your sixth form college called me to ask why you haven’t been to class. I said, ‘He has been sent to prison.’ And the teacher just cut the phone.” The Sit Down is one of two new shows being made by National Prison Radio (NPR) under the title of Life After Prison. The other is Getting Out, also presented by Zak and Jules, a short-form podcast with specific, practical advice for people who are just leaving prison. The Sit Down is designed to be more discursive and emotionally honest, to get into what prison does to people, and what leaving prison might do too. National Prison Radio, run by the Prison Radio Association (PRA), is a well-established broadcasting company that has been making audio programmes since 2009. Though some programmes, such as Radio 4’s Outside In, are made for other stations, many are made for prisoners, by prisoners. Those shows you can only hear if you’re inside (or judging them for an award – they’ve won several). NPR has two studios, one in HMP Brixton, in London, the other in HMP Styal, in Cheshire, and employs producers to work with prisoners to make a request show, a breakfast show (called Porridge, of course), various specialist music shows, a keep-fit programme, a sound clash slot and many more. As a radio station, NPR is amazingly successful; about 99% of prisoners know about it, and more than 75% listen in. To which you might think, well, of course, wouldn’t you, if you were in your cell for 23 hours a day? But if the content wasn’t good, prisoners wouldn’t listen. The shows help those inside not only with their mood, but also with information and support as to how they can use their time in prison productively, the fine details of how the prison system works, and the best way to navigate it. National Prison Radio is an amazing support for prisoners, then. But what happens to all that support when prisoners become ex-prisoners? Many of those who’ve been in prison say that leaving can be the hardest time. Getting Out and The Sit Down are NPR’s attempt to help them steer through the tough times outside. An extensive audition process resulted not only in Zak and Jules being recruited as presenters, but also the creation of a seven-person advisory panel – which includes Tracy – with direct experience of the criminal justice system, who will help plan shows and sometimes appear as guests. Zak and Jules have both spent time in prison – Zak was inside three times over a nine-year period – and they know from experience that when someone is serving a sentence, it’s not just a contained, solo thing. An offence can shatter lives, and not only those of a victim and their family. Family and friends of the prisoner are also affected; and then, when the prisoner leaves, the sentence continues in a different form. In another, less pink recording room, Jules tries to explain. “When I came out,” she says, “I couldn’t relate to people, because I didn’t believe that anyone understood. And I didn’t know how to express what I was feeling anyway, or who to talk to about it. I felt like I was living in a world that I didn’t understand and which didn’t understand me.” Jules served two-and-a-half years for GBH. She worked hard in prison, using the time to get fit, marching up and down the wing whenever she was allowed out of her cell, doing hundreds of squats and press-ups when she was locked up. She achieved NVQs in personal training while she was in there, to help her find work when she left. But, once out, she struggled. Her family (she’s the youngest of four sisters) were supportive, but Jules felt she’d missed out on living; the birthdays that she’d spent inside played on her mind. She couldn’t cope with having too many people around her, or with getting too much input from others. And she didn’t feel she could be honest with people. Her clients would say to her, “Oh you’re so passionate about fitness, why is that?” or “Where did you learn?” and she felt she had to lie. Zak with his mother, Hilda, whom he interviews for the new podcast The Sit Down. Photograph: Antonio Olmos/The Observer Worst of all, she didn’t know how to talk about any of this, not even to explain that she just wanted to be alone sometimes, let alone express her deeper, more difficult emotions. Even now, a few years on, she’s still learning to open up. While filming the podcast, something makes Jules cry a little. She says: “I only started crying a few months ago, I couldn’t do it for ages.” Zak, who was given three different sentences for robbery and drug offences, decided he wanted to change his life after he came out of prison for the second time. “My mind flipped,” he says. “I changed my circle of friends, I changed the area I was living, I was legitimately working and starting my life again. A complete mindset overhaul.” But his previous life caught up with him when police investigated an old offence and he was sent to prison once more. A difficult time. Still, he tried to “change the conversation”, he says, to talk to the guys inside about different things, about what they might do when they got out, how they could use their talents instead of going back to the same way of life. He points to the lack of realism in the celebratory “fresh home” videos on Instagram and TikTok, where people make films of themselves getting out of prison, being picked up by friends in a car. “It’s like, ‘Wooh, he’s back home, everything’s all nice.’ But that skips out the whole prison thing and how that’s affected him, his family, his relationships.” Zak knows that once you leave prison, you have to be realistic. Money might not come quickly, or easily, in regular life. His first job was stacking shelves (“the pay was quite decent, you can’t expect to be making £30k straight off”); later, he worked for Sainsbury’s, but when some money went missing, he was immediately suspected. “That made me feel like, What am I doing, changing my life, and I’m still getting that? That can affect you.” Now working supporting social enterprises in Newham, east London, Zak is convinced that many of the skills he learned as a so-called roadman are transferable. “It’s about understanding the construct of it,” he says. “You were managing cashflow – all you got to do now is put it in a spreadsheet! Understand that this is what the government’s gonna take off you, put it aside, no problem. You’d put rainy-day money aside before, it’s the same. You just need to know it’s within these bounds.” Prison podcasts are a successful audio niche (US show Ear Hustle is huge; The Secret Life of Prisons from UK charity the Prison Reform Trust is also very popular), but for Zak and Jules, the new show is about building a community of understanding. A community of people who understand what it’s like to serve time and then to start again: whether through their own experience, or that of their family, or just because they’re interested in knowing what prison does to people, both inside and out. “Talking to people with stories and information, it’s a blessing,” says Jules. “Everyone is doing it for the same reasons, bridging the alone feeling, slowly starting to feel you’re not the only one with these feelings.” “It’s not super-common that you’ve been to prison,” says Zak. “Who can relate to you? You can’t speak to your old friends about it. I do speak to them, but it’s not the same, once you’re not a part of that world any more, it’s like you’ve left the army and now you’re a civilian. Who can relate to that, understand that experience? You need a strong mindset, and you need a reality check as well.” For Hilda and Tracy, and other people who are serving time outside as their family members serve time inside, The Sit Down is a place where they can hear what it’s like for people like them, too. “It was the saddest day of my life when Zak was sentenced,” says Hilda. “I had no hope at all.” “You can’t turn round to someone in Asda and say, ‘My kids are in pr...