Digital Alaska News

Ian Becomes A Major Hurricane As It Hits Cuba, With Florida https://digitalalaskanews.com/ian-becomes-a-major-hurricane-as-it-hits-cuba-with-florida/ Hurricane Ian’s outer bands start to lash South Florida Hurricane Ian’s outer bands start to lash South Florida 03:29 Ian intensified into a major hurricane packing sustained winds of around 115 mph early Tuesday morning just before hitting western Cuba. The powerful Category 3 storm was expected to continue strengthening as it passed over the island on a track for the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, with Florida’s west coast in its path later this week.  Mandatory evacuations were ordered Monday in low-lying areas surrounding Tampa Bay, and officials asked others in the area to voluntarily evacuate, knowing it could take some time to move hundreds of thousands of people out of Ian’s path. Cuba’s national Institute of Meteorology said the storm had made landfall early Tuesday morning. “Ian is already over Cuban territory,” a meteorologist from the institute told the nation in a special broadcast on Cuban state television. “The outer wall of the storm is on the coast of the province of Pinar del Rio.” NEXT Weather forecast for Monday 9/26/22 11PM 04:20 Ian was forecast to become an even stronger Category 4 storm, with top winds of 140 mph, before striking Florida as early as Wednesday. Tampa and St. Petersburg appeared to be among the most likely targets for their first direct hit by a major hurricane in a century. Even if Ian doesn’t hit the area directly, it could still feel the effects of the storm, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned. “You’re still looking at really significant amount of rain, you’re looking at a lot of wind, you’re looking at a lot of storm surge, and so, yes, follow that track, but don’t think because that eye may or may not be in your area that you’re not going to see impacts,” DeSantis said during a Monday afternoon press conference. “You’re going to see significant impacts.” The governor said the state had suspended tolls around the Tampa Bay area and mobilized 5,000 National Guard troops, with another 2,000 on standby in neighboring states. More than 27,000 power restoration personnel were put on standby to help after the storm, DeSantis said. Men board windows as they prepare for the arrival of Hurricane Ian in Indian Shores, 25 miles West of Tampa, Florida on September 26, 2022. RICARDO ARDUENGO/AFP/Getty “Please treat this storm seriously. It’s the real deal. This is not a drill,” Hillsborough County Emergency Management Director Timothy Dudley said at a Monday news conference on storm preparations in Tampa, where some mandatory evacuations were ordered. As many as 300,000 people may be evacuated from low-lying areas in Hillsborough County alone, Administrator Bonnie Wise said at a news conference. Schools and other locations were opened as shelters. In Pinellas County, which includes St. Petersburg, officials issued evacuation orders that start taking effect Monday evening. Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said no one would be forced to leave, but they would remain at their risk. “What it means is, we’re not going to come help you. If you don’t do it, you’re on your own,” Gualtieri said. “For all practical purposes, get out. Right now. Everybody needs to go.”   The evacuation zone is all along Tampa Bay and the rivers that feed it, encompassing MacDill Air Force Base and well-known neighborhoods such as parts of Hyde Park, Davis Islands and Ybor City. The eye of Hurricane Ian is seen churning toward western Cuba in a satellite image provided by the National Hurricane Center, taken at 2:26 a.m. Eastern, September 27, 2022. NOAA/National Weather Service As of 2:30 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday morning, Ian was moving north-northwest at 13 mph and was located only about 35 miles south of Cuba’s southwestern shores, according to the National Hurricane Center. Its maximum sustained winds had increased to 115 mph.  Authorities in Cuba were evacuating 50,000 people in Pinar del Rio province, sent in medical and emergency personnel, and took steps to protect food and other crops in warehouses, according to state media. “Cuba is expecting extreme hurricane-force winds, also life-threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall,” U.S. National Hurricane Center senior specialist Daniel Brown told The Associated Press. The hurricane center predicted areas of Cuba’s western coast could see as much as 14 feet of storm surge Monday night or early Tuesday. A mna helps pull small boats out of Havana Bay in Havana, Cuba, September 26, 2022, as western Cuba was expected to bear the brunt of Hurricane Ian. YAMIL LAGE/AFP/Getty In Havana, fishermen were taking their boats out of the water along the famous Malecon, the seaside boardwalk, and city workers were unclogging storm drains ahead of the expected rain. In Havana’s El Fanguito, a poor neighborhood near the Almendares River, residents were packing up what they could to leave their homes, many of which show damage from previous storms. “I hope we escape this one because it would be the end of us. We already have so little,” health worker Abel Rodrigues, 54, said. In the Tampa Bay area, a storm surge of up to 10 feet of ocean water and 10 inches of rain, with as much as 15 inches in isolated areas. That’s enough water to inundate low-lying coastal communities. Florida residents were getting ready, lining up for hours in Tampa to collect sandbags and clearing store shelves of bottled water. This graphic depicts the forecast storm surge inundation values, as of 11 p.m. Eastern, Sept. 26, 2022, representing the peak height the water could reach above normally dry ground somewhere within the specified areas when Hurricane Ian hits Florida. NOAA/National Weather Service Nervous anticipation led to long lines for gas, packed grocery stores and empty shelves, CBS News correspondent Omar Villafranca reports from Clearwater, Florida.   “We are going to get these sandbags in front of the garage, the garage door, the front door… and pray we’re good,” Gabriel Alley, who moved to Clearwater from California, told CBS News. Ian’s impending arrival also prompted NASA to haul its Artemis 1 rocket off its launch pad and back to the protection of the agency’s Vehicle Assembly Building, likely ending any chance of launching the unpiloted moonshot before November. Hurricane Ian strengthens as Florida begins evacuations 03:16 “A lot of people on the Florida Peninsula and into the Florida Panhandle are at risk and need to be ready to take action quickly,” said Rick Knabb, a hurricane specialist with The Weather Channel, “and the slow motion that we expect from Ian means we could have wind, storm surge and rain-induced flooding.” DeSantis has declared a state of emergency throughout Florida and urged residents to prepare for the storm to lash large swaths of the state with heavy rains, high winds and rising seas. “We’re going to keep monitoring the track of this storm. But it really is important to stress the degree of uncertainty that still exists,” DeSantis said at a news conference Sunday, cautioning that “even if you’re not necessarily right in the eye of the path of the storm, there’s going to be pretty broad impacts throughout the state.” Hurricane Ian is seen in a satellite image at 3 p.m. ET on Sept. 26, 2022. NOAA Flash and urban flooding is possible in the Florida Keys and Florida Peninsula through midweek, and then heavy rainfall was possible for north Florida, the Florida Panhandle and the southeast United States later this week. The hurricane center has advised Floridians to have hurricane plans in place and monitor updates of the storm’s evolving path. President Biden also declared an emergency, authorizing the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, to coordinate disaster relief and provide assistance to protect lives and property. The president postponed a scheduled Tuesday trip to Florida because of the storm. In: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Atlantic Hurricane Season National Weather Service Hurricane Ian Severe Weather Florida Hurricane Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue Read More Here

Renee Lynn Ketchum Obituary (2022) https://digitalalaskanews.com/renee-lynn-ketchum-obituary-2022/ Renee L. Ketchum, age 66, of Hayward, WI passed away on Friday, September 23, 2022, at the University of Minnesota Hospital in Minneapolis, MN. Renee Lynn Ketchum was born April 19, 1956, in Belmond, IA, the daughter of A.K. and Sylvia (Frohling) Ketchum. She was raised in Belmond, IA and then moved with her family to Waverly, IA. While in high school Renee participated in softball, basketball and track. She graduated from Waverly Shell Rock Senior High School in 1974. She worked for Team Electronics in Minneapolis for a few years and then went to college at the University of Minnesota where she studied criminal law, criminal justice, sociology and psychology. Renee graduated with a Bachelor’s degree and then attended Dunwoody College of Technology to study computer programming. She then began work with Japs-Olson Company, an advertising printing company in Minneapolis. While working there, Renee met Karen Jacobson. Renee worked for Japs-Olson Company for over 15 years and then decided to start a business of her own called Scan Master. Renee would create specific computer programs for businesses across the county. In 1998, Renee and Karen built a home in Hayward, WI which would become their primary home in 2003. On December 6, 2014, Renee and Karen were married. Renee continued her business in Hayward and operated it until her retirement in 2021. Throughout Renee’s life she enjoyed snowmobiling, four wheeling, boating, fishing, having a glass of wine and going to a casino. She and Karen were avid Minnesota Twins and Vikings fans. They visited many baseball stadiums across the country and were at the game the Twins won the World Series. Renee is survived by her three siblings, Robin Ketchum of Hayward, WI, Dan Ketchum of Des Moines, IA, Mick (Beth Snow-Ketchum) Ketchum of Wallingford, IA; one niece, Jody Waggoner; five nephews, Adam Reece, Caleb Waggoner, Christopher Waggoner, John Waggoner and Nicholas Ketchum. She was preceded in death by her parents and spouse, Karen. A memorial service celebrating Renee’s life will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, October 7, 2022, at Hayward Funeral Home. A time of gathering with family and friends will be held from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. on Friday at the funeral home. Honorary bearers will be Caleb Waggoner, Christopher Waggoner and Nicholas Ketchum. Memorials may be directed to the Hayward Community Food Shelf, PO Box 779, Hayward, WI 54843. To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Renee Lynn Ketchum, please visit our floral store. Published by Hayward Funeral Home on Sep. 27, 2022. Read More Here

Gauging Student Gov. Leaders' Views On Free Speech (Opinion) | Inside Higher Ed https://digitalalaskanews.com/gauging-student-gov-leaders-views-on-free-speech-opinion-inside-higher-ed/ Student governments are no strangers to controversies around campus free expression. For example, earlier this year, the University of North Texas Student Government Association passed a resolution calling for “any UNT Student Organization that engages in harassment, discrimination, hate crimes, and/or violation of UNT policy through transphobic posts, statements, and actions” to “be immediately suspended to protect the mental, emotional, and physical health of transgender students at UNT.” In 2020, the Associated Students of Loyola Marymount University, in California, impeached their senator for diversity and inclusion, a Latina woman, because of past tweets supporting former president Donald Trump’s immigration policies. In 2017, the Associated Student Government at Northwestern University put forward a resolution endorsing free speech and viewpoint diversity, calling on the university to “allow speakers of all viewpoints … allow and protect peaceful protests … [and] oppose the censorship or attempted censorship of faculty and students.” It is no wonder why, as one article from the Bipartisan Policy Center suggests, student governments are “fast becoming a focal point in the campus free expression crisis.” Despite the countless examples of student governments engaging with expression—both positively and negatively—we lack a proper understanding of how student government leaders themselves perceive and experience campus free expression. Considering the multitude of responsibilities student governments have at U.S. colleges and universities (e.g., recognizing student organizations, distributing funding, advocating for certain policies and initiatives, etc.), it is critical to understand how these organizations and, more specifically, their leaders view and engage with free expression. Playing such an integral role on campus, student governments can strongly impact the culture, climate and conditions of their respective schools, for better or for worse. In an attempt to kick-start a discussion around the topic of student governments and campus free expression, I connected with six current and former student body presidents from various colleges and universities across the country: one from a large public university in California, one from a flagship in the South, one from a small public university in Oregon, one from a land-grant on the East Coast and two from medium-size private institutions in California. Through open-ended surveys and semistructured interviews, I was able to better understand the ways in which these leaders perceive and experience campus free expression. Here are some of my findings. Student government leaders have different definitions of what campus free expression means to them. Just as the larger higher education community does not have a standard definition of campus free expression, student government leaders conceptualize the concept in numerous ways. A majority of respondents described it as an ability to express beliefs, with one writing, “Campus free expression is the ability to express your thoughts and views openly around campus.” Others, however, took it a step further, with one leader describing campus free expression as a “cultural value of being able to express different opinions without fear of public backlash or other forms of punishment for speech.” Further, a respondent who served in a state that banned certain topics in the classroom emphasized the importance of free expression as it pertains to the academic mission of the university, arguing “that students have the right to be who they are and who they feel on campus” and also should be “guaranteed those same rights in the classroom.” Student government leaders have engaged with a wide range of issues related to campus free expression. Free expression manifests itself in many ways, and student government leaders experience this firsthand. From speakers perceived to be offensive and posters hung by white supremacy groups to anti–critical race theory legislation and efforts to adopt the Chicago principles for free expression, every respondent provided a unique example of a time they have dealt with campus free expression. Student government leaders support the idea of campus free expression but disagree on the practicalities. All respondents seemed to view the concept of campus free expression in a positive light. For example, one called it “a good thing that can generate intellectual exchanges,” and another explained that “students who pursue higher education deserve the right to be exposed to multiple worldviews in order to make determinations about the culture and society around them.” But, when it came down to the nitty-gritty, each leader expressed their own philosophy. For instance, while some favored free expression “generally without limits,” most believed in restrictions, especially in cases where expression harms certain students or populations. The general sentiment can be summarized through the following quote: “I believe that free expression is critical on campus but must not be at another person or community’s physical or emotional expense. I think it is difficult to navigate, but a lot of time someone’s identity may be threatened due to ensuring free expression of political views. However, political views are a choice and your identity is not.” Such a view aligns with existing data that show college students regard free speech rights as important but favor policies that restrict racist speech. Sixty-six percent of college students say free speech is either occasionally or frequently in direct conflict with diversity and inclusion. Student government leaders view free expression as both compatible and in contention with diversity, equity and inclusion. While there was acknowledgment that expression has been “weaponized in ways that have affected the ability of all students to feel safe on campus,” a majority of respondents agreed with the point of view, expressed by one student government leader, that “one can’t really exist without the other. In order to have equity and inclusion, there has to be space on campus for people to share their different beliefs and ideas and worldviews.” Moreover, some respondents even alluded to the importance of free expression in advocating for more diverse, equitable and inclusive campuses, with one former president saying that “free expression is a tool to advance the goals of DEI” and another that “without free expression, marginalized students have a much harder time voicing their issues on campus.” Student government leaders understand they have a responsibility as elected officers to represent all students. Multiple respondents acknowledged that, although at times it can be challenging, their job is to represent and support their entire student body, not just one particular point of view. One said, “As an elected representative, you represent all students, even those with different viewpoints, so it’s important to be open-minded.” Another conveyed, “That’s why I was elected, not just a representative of my own views but of those who are in my constituency. It was a little difficult at first, but I just had to reflect on why I was there and how I am not in the organization to share my own views and press those on every single person.” Practical Recommendations for Student Governments For student government leaders, it is clear that, as one of my respondents put it, “campus free expression is complicated and messy.” These findings do not and cannot represent the feelings and beliefs of all student government officers; however, they do provide a useful foundation for understanding the ways in which these leaders perceive and experience campus free expression. Although dealing with campus free expression matters can be challenging and confusing, I argue that student governments have immense potential to productively engage with these topics and issues. Here are some practical recommendations to help student governments reach their fullest potential. Student governments should be educated and trained, and in turn educate and train their future officers, on the complexities of campus free expression. From the history of free speech in American higher education and the principles behind the First Amendment to legal requirements and campus-specific policies, educating and training officers on matters related to free expression should be a top priority for student government leaders as well as student government advisers and other student affairs professionals. Student governments should develop a framework and collective understanding for expression on campus. Clearly, there is no one way of defining or conceptualizing campus free expression, as can be inferred by the diverse array of responses above. Nevertheless, student governments have the power to set the expectation when it comes to speech and expression. Using the knowledge gained by trainings and educational opportunities, student governments should engage the entire campus community to develop guidelines for expression and discourse on campus (e.g., treating all people and voices with respect, listening to learn, considering the impact of words, etc.). Tangibly, this could result in a community compact where students are exposed to these guidelines (not policies) when they enter campus for the first time and sign on (in a non-legally-binding manner) to pledge their commitment to these shared values. This must be done carefully, thoughtfully and in conjunction with a variety of stakeholders. Student governments should publicly commit themselves to the values of free expression and diversity, equity and inclusion. As evident in the examples, responses and data mentioned above, there are concerns about the relationship ...

Title IX Mandatory Reporting Expansion Criticized https://digitalalaskanews.com/title-ix-mandatory-reporting-expansion-criticized/ Professors, researchers and sexual assault prevention advocates want the U.S. Department of Education to rethink plans to expand mandatory reporting requirements to more college employees as part of its overhaul of the Title IX law.  The department proposed requiring most campus employees to report cases of potential sex discrimination to Title IX in the regulations released earlier this summer. The public comment period for the new rules closed Sept. 12. The department received more than 240,000 comments, which it is reviewing before publishing a final set of regulations on Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the law that prohibits sex discrimination in any education program or activity that receives federal funding. Dozens of the published comments mentioned the mandatory reporting change, with faculty members, advocacy groups, students and others weighing in. Nearly all of the comments were opposed, criticizing the proposed provisions as ill-advised, complicated and not beneficial for survivors of sexual assault. Many critics said the department’s proposal would result in nearly all faculty members becoming mandatory reporters. “Mandatory reporting systems where all but a few faculty and staff are required to report anything they hear, whether or not they have talked to or gotten consent from the student, effectively ruins opportunities for survivors to have a safe avenue for getting help,” wrote Pardes Lyons-Warren, chair of the Student Title IX Assistant Resource Team at Colorado College. “Maintaining control over survivors remains mandatory reporting’s key purpose, regardless of the violations of free speech, privacy and academic freedom that come with that.” An Education Department spokesperson said in a statement that the Office for Civil Rights is reviewing the comments received during the comment period. “We will take into consideration those comments and respond to them as part of our publication of the final rule,” the statement said. What’s in the Regulations Who on college campuses should have to report an instance of sex discrimination has been a sticking point for faculty members, students, advocates, policy makers and administrators since the 2011 Dear Colleague letter that detailed colleges’ and universities’ responsibilities under Title IX related to sexual violence. That letter said that if “a school knows or reasonably should know about student-on-student harassment that creates a hostile environment, Title IX requires the school to take immediate action to eliminate the harassment, prevent its recurrence, and address its effects.” Current Title IX rules, issued in 2020, dictate that “a recipient with actual knowledge of sexual harassment in its education program or activity against a person in the United States must respond promptly in a manner that is not deliberately indifferent.” Within several years after the Dear Colleague letter, many universities adopted policies requiring all faculty members and other professional employees to report sexual misconduct or harassment to the Title IX coordinator—much to the consternation of some faculty members. The Education Department is looking to essentially codify that approach as part of the latest revision to Title IX regulations, but employees will only have to notify the Title IX coordinator if they hear about an issue involving a student, as opposed to one involving only employees. The proposal also would create a new role—confidential employee—that’s exempt from the reporting requirements. Confidential employees could include individuals whose communications are privileged under federal and state law, who are in a position to provide services in connection with sex discrimination, or who conduct research studies designed to gather information about sex discrimination, according to the proposed regulations. But under the new regulations, all employees who aren’t confidential employees and who have authority to institute corrective measures on behalf of the recipient or a responsibility for administrative leadership, teaching or advising are required to notify the Title IX coordinator when the employee has information about conduct that may constitute sex discrimination. Determining which employees fall into those categories is up to the individual institution. The department said in the proposed regulations that it heard from stakeholders that the current “actual knowledge” standard is too narrow and insufficient for colleges and universities to meet their obligations under Title IX. The proposal is the “most effective way to ensure that a recipient’s program or activity is free from sex discrimination,” according to the department. “These requirements directly contradict research on such policies and trauma-informed responses and will be more harmful for victims/survivors than the Trump administration regulations they are replacing,” the Academic Alliance for Survivor Choice in Reporting Policies wrote in its comment, which was also signed by dozens of researchers. Jennifer Freyd, a professor emerit of psychology at the University of Oregon and founder of the Center for Institutional Courage, has studied how institutions’ responses to sexual misconduct reports affect survivors of sexual assault. She and other researchers have found that broad reporting policies can cause further harm to survivors and discourage disclosures. “I’m baffled,” she said. “I don’t know why the Department of [Education] is thinking this is a good idea … I do think people have good intentions who are working on this in the Department of Education. All I could think is they just fundamentally don’t understand the psychological reality of a trauma survivor.” Tracey Vitchers, executive director of It’s On Us, said she’s particularly concerned about the provision giving colleges and universities discretion to designate some staff members as confidential employees. She wants the role required and for institutions to have to notify students about whom those employees are. Vitchers added that confidential employees shouldn’t just be clergy or medical professionals but also those who have the background and skills to support a student in crisis. “We feel very strongly about this because we know mandatory referral or reporting can create a chilling effect on survivors seeking support services, seeking information on what their rights are for folks who might need it,” Vitchers said. “Ultimately, we want survivors to be able to pursue whatever justice or healing looks like for them.” Vitchers added that the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade, which has led to more state laws prohibiting abortions, complicates the reporting requirements, because the proposed Title IX regulations prohibit discrimination related to a person’s pregnancy status. “In a post-Roe world, if a student were to be in a state where they have zero right or access to an abortion, they disclose to somebody that they experienced some form of discrimination under Title IX. Then that student is no longer pregnant at some point, because of miscarriage or because they’ve traveled out of state to obtain abortion care, that could actually result in additional harm to that individual because they have exercised their right to choose or have had a miscarriage,” Vitchers said. Changes Sought The American Council on Education recommended in its formal comment on the proposed regulations that the department simplify its proposal and give colleges and universities flexibility in determining who should be mandatory reporters. “While some institutions have extended mandatory reporting requirements to all of their employees, other institutions have chosen not to do so, based on extensive consultation with their community members,” the ACE letter says. “Providing additional flexibility to allow individual institutions to define which employees are required to report would help campuses respond in a way that makes sense for their communities and is sensitive to the needs of survivors.” The American Association of University Professors said in its formal comment that the proposed change is “an ill-advised over-correction.” The organization wants the department instead to prohibit colleges and universities from designating all employees as mandatory reporters and recommended the University of Oregon’s reporting system as a model. In the Oregon model, some employees are considered “designated reporters” who are obligated to report to the Title IX coordinator when they hear about a possible instance of prohibited discrimination. Other employees are considered “assisting employees”; they don’t have to share information unless an individual requests that they do, but they are required to provide support resources. AAUP said that most faculty are considered assisting employees. The Oregon model also includes confidential employees. “The problems that exist with regard to mandatory reporting currently are serious problems, but they would be worse if the proposed new regulations go through because the proposed new regulations provide requirements for making basically all faculty mandatory reporters with regards to students,” AAUP general counsel Risa Lieberwitz said in an interview. Lieberwitz said faculty members are worried students would not feel comfortable talking with them about a problem—concerns the AAUP has raised for several years. “We’d like to be in a position where we can be helpful as opposed to being in a position where we’re forced to report even if the person who comes to us doesn’t want it,” Lieberwitz said. The Association of Title IX Administrators generally supports broad mandatory reporting requirements, but association president Brett Sokolow said the current proposal is overly complex and doomed to fail. ATIXA’s letter requests clarity ...

Jury To Be Picked For Oath Keeper Boss' Jan. 6 Sedition Case – KESQ https://digitalalaskanews.com/jury-to-be-picked-for-oath-keeper-boss-jan-6-sedition-case-kesq/ By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press Jury selection is expected to get underway Tuesday in the trial of the founder of the far-right Oath Keepers extremist group and four associates charged with seditious conspiracy, one of the most serious cases to emerge from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Stewart Rhodes and the others are the first Jan. 6 defendants charged with the the rare Civil War-era offense to stand trial for what authorities allege was a serious, weekslong plot to violently stop the transfer of presidential power from election-denier Donald Trump to Joe Biden. The case against Rhodes and his Oath Keeper associates is the biggest test yet for the Justice Department in its massive Jan. 6 prosecution and is being heard in federal court in Washington. Seditious conspiracy can be difficult to prove and the last such guilty verdict was nearly 30 years ago. Hundreds of people have already been convicted of joining the mob that overran police barriers, brutally beat officers and smashed windows, sending lawmakers fleeing and halting the certification of Biden’s electoral victory. But prosecutors in the case against the Oath Keepers will try to show that the Oath Keepers’ plot to stop Biden from becoming president started before all the votes in the 2020 race had even been counted. Authorities say Rhodes, a former U.S. Army paratrooper and a Yale Law School graduate, spent weeks mobilizing his followers to prepare to take up arms to defend Trump. The Oath Keepers repeatedly wrote in chats about the prospect of violence, stockpiled guns and put “quick reaction force” teams on standby outside Washington to get weapons into the city quickly if they were needed, authorities say. The day before the riot, authorities say, Rhodes met with the leader of another far-right extremist group, then-Proud Boys Chairman Enrique Tarrio, in an underground parking garage in Washington, though little is known publicly about what they discussed. Tarrio is charged separately with seditious conspiracy alongside other Proud Boys and is scheduled to stand trial in December. On Jan. 6, Oath Keepers wearing communication devices, helmets and other battle gear were captured on camera storming the Capitol in military-style “stack” formation. Rhodes isn’t accused of going inside the Capitol, but phone records show he was communicating with Oath Keepers who did enter around the time of the riot and he was seen gathered with members outside afterward. On trial with Rhodes, of Granbury Texas, are Thomas Caldwell, of Berryville, Virginia; Kenneth Harrelson, of Titusville, Florida; Jessica Watkins of Woodstock, Ohio; and Kelly Meggs of Dunnellon, Florida. Attorneys for the Oath Keepers have pushed unsuccessfully to get the trial moved, arguing they can’t possibly get a fair jury in Washington. The court has already dismissed several potential jurors based on their answers to a questionnaire, which asked them about their feelings about Jan. 6 and other matters. Jurors already dismissed include a journalist who has covered the events of Jan. 6. and someone else who described that day “one of the single most treasonous acts in the history of this country.” Conviction for seditious conspiracy calls for up to 20 years behind bars. The last time prosecutors secured a seditious conspiracy at trial was in 1995 in the case against Islamic militants who plotted to bomb New York City landmarks. Three of Rhodes’ Oath Keepers followers have pleaded guilty to the charge and are likely to testify against him at trial. Rhodes’ lawyers have claimed those Oath Keepers were pressured into pleading guilty and are lying to get a good deal from the government. Rhodes’ attorneys have suggested that his defense will focus on Rhodes’ belief that Trump would invoke the Insurrection Act and call up a militia to support his bid to stay in power. Defense attorneys say Rhodes’ actions in the weeks leading up to Jan. 6 were in preparation for what he believed would have been lawful orders from Trump under the Insurrection Act, but never came. The defense has said that Oath Keepers were dressed in battle gear to protect themselves from possible attacks from left-wing antifa activists and that the “quick reaction force” outside Washington was meant for defensive purposes if Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. Nearly 900 people have been charged so far in the Jan. 6 riot and more than 400 have pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial. Sentences for the rioters so far have ranged from probation for low-level misdemeanor offenses to 10 years in prison for a retired New York City police officer who used a metal flagpole to assault an officer at the Capitol. ___ Follow the AP’s coverage of the Capitol riot at https://apnews.com/hub/capitol-siege. Read More Here

Teen Interest In Long-Lasting Birth Control Soars After Roe https://digitalalaskanews.com/teen-interest-in-long-lasting-birth-control-soars-after-roe/ Adismarys Abreu, 16, poses for a photo at her home, Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022, in Miami. Abreu had been discussing a long-lasting birth control implant with her mother for about a year as a potential solution to increasing menstrual pain. Then Roe v. Wade was overturned, and Abreu joined the throng of teens rushing to their doctors as states began to ban or severely limit abortion. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee) Sixteen-year-old Adismarys Abreu had been discussing a long-lasting birth control implant with her mother for about a year as a potential solution to increasing menstrual pain. Then Roe v. Wade was overturned, and Abreu joined the throng of teens rushing to their doctors as states began to ban or severely limit abortion. “I’m definitely not ready to be pregnant,” said Abreu, who had Nexplanon — a reversible, matchstick-sized contraceptive — implanted in her arm in August. Her home state of Florida bans most abortions after 15 weeks, and not having that option is “such a scary thought,” she said. Experts say the U.S. Supreme Court’s June ruling appears to be accelerating a trend of increased birth control use among teens, including long-acting reversible forms like intrauterine devices and implants. Appointments have surged and Planned Parenthood has been flooded with questions as doctors report demand even among teens who aren’t sexually active. Some patients are especially fearful because the new abortion laws in several states don’t include exceptions for sexual assault. “Please, I need some birth control in case I get raped,” patients tell Dr. Judith Simms-Cendan, a pediatric-adolescent gynecologist in Miami, where state law does not provide exceptions for rape or incest after 15 weeks. Simms-Cendan, the president-elect of the North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, said parents who might have been hesitant in the past now want to discuss birth control. “It’s a sea change of, ‘I don’t have room to play. We have got to get my child on something,’” she said. Teens already were shifting to more effective long-acting forms of birth control, which have similar or even lower failure rates than sterilization, said Laura Lindberg, a professor at Rutgers University’s School of Public Health in New Jersey. Her research found the number of 15- to 19-year-olds using those methods rose to 15% during the period 2015 to 2019, up from 3% during the 2006 to 2010 period. No national data is available for the months since Roe was overturned, said Lindberg, who previously worked for nearly two decades at the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights. But she said “major ripple effects” have to be expected from the loss of abortion access and noted that it wouldn’t be the first time politics have led to a shift in birth control usage. In the weeks after former President Donald Trump’s election, as women raised concerns online that the Affordable Care Act would be repealed, demand for long-acting birth control rose by nearly 22% across all age groups, according to a 2019 research letter published in JAMA Internal Medicine. In Ohio, where a judge this month blocked a ban on virtually all abortions, patients — both male and female — now listen with rapt attention to the contraception talk that Dr. Peggy Stager has long made a part of routine appointments at her pediatric practice in Cleveland. Stager said her practice’s dedicated spots for insertion of the Nexplanon implant are consistently filled, and requests for contraceptive refills have increased 30% to 40% since Roe was overturned. Recently, she talked to a college-bound student who wasn’t sexually active but decided to get an IUD anyway. “She was real clear: ‘I want to have a great four years without any worry,’” recalled Stager, who is the chair of the section on adolescent health at the American Academy of Pediatrics. “And that’s a change.” In Missouri, among the first states in the country with a trigger law in effect to ban abortions at any point in pregnancy, Dr. David Eisenberg also has seen a similar sense of urgency from college-bound teens to choose the most effective option. “Fear is an amazing motivator,” said Eisenberg, an associate professor at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, who performs abortions in neighboring Illinois. “They understand the consequence of a contraceptive failure might mean they become a parent because they might not be able to access an abortion.” Interest is also high at the contraception clinic that Dr. Elise Berlan oversees in Columbus, Ohio. Before the Supreme Court’s decision, the clinic booked appointments for new patients within a week or two. Now, they are booking several months out for first appointments, said Berlan, an adolescent medicine specialist who sees mothers and daughters in tears in her exam room. She said the demand is so high they are adding a provider. On the day the Supreme Court ruled against Roe, twice as many birth control questions as normal poured into Roo, Planned Parenthood’s online chatbot aimed at teens. Online birth control appointments also skyrocketed that day — up 150% from a typical day, with an even-larger 375% surge for IUD-seekers, said Julia Bennett, director of digital education and learning strategy for Planned Parenthood Federation of America. By mid-July, several weeks after the ruling, birth control appointments remained up about 20%, although the data isn’t broken down by age group. The growing interest exists even in states like North Carolina, where abortion remains legal but the Legislature is conservative. Dr. Kavita Arora, an obstetrician-gynecologist in Chapel Hill, said she saw maybe one teen a month before the ruling. Now, she said, she sees them at each clinic session. “They’re aware that this is an incredibly fluid situation, and what is allowed at one moment may not be allowed a week or a month later,” said Arora, the chair of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ Committee on Ethics. That uncertain future is part of what motivated Abreu, the Florida teen, whose implant will prevent pregnancy for up to five years. “I don’t know what’s going to happen with the laws in that time period,” said Abreu, who was using a short-acting form of birth control before switching. “Having this already in my arm, it makes me feel so much safer.” Her mother, Maribys Lorenzo, said in Spanish that she, too, is a little more at peace knowing her daughter cannot get pregnant and said she would recommend the implant because it does not require her daughter to remember to take a contraceptive pill. She said she is not worried, any more or less, that her daughter will become sexually active because of the implant. But if it happens, she will be protected, Lorenzo said. “I don’t think that’s fair to me or my family to not have abortion as an option,” said her daughter, Abreu. ___ Roxana Hegeman in Wichita contributed to this report. Rodgers 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 her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/arleighrodgers Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Read More Here

Jury To Be Picked For Oath Keeper Boss' Jan. 6 Sedition Case https://digitalalaskanews.com/jury-to-be-picked-for-oath-keeper-boss-jan-6-sedition-case/ Jury selection is expected to get underway Tuesday in the trial of the founder of the far-right Oath Keepers extremist group and four associates charged with seditious conspiracy, one of the most serious cases to emerge from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Stewart Rhodes and the others are the first Jan. 6 defendants charged with the the rare Civil War-era offense to stand trial for what authorities allege was a serious, weekslong plot to violently stop the transfer of presidential power from election-denier Donald Trump to Joe Biden. The case against Rhodes and his Oath Keeper associates is the biggest test yet for the Justice Department in its massive Jan. 6 prosecution and is being heard in federal court in Washington. Seditious conspiracy can be difficult to prove and the last such guilty verdict was nearly 30 years ago. Hundreds of people have already been convicted of joining the mob that overran police barriers, brutally beat officers and smashed windows, sending lawmakers fleeing and halting the certification of Biden’s electoral victory. But prosecutors in the case against the Oath Keepers will try to show that the Oath Keepers’ plot to stop Biden from becoming president started before all the votes in the 2020 race had even been counted. Authorities say Rhodes, a former U.S. Army paratrooper and a Yale Law School graduate, spent weeks mobilizing his followers to prepare to take up arms to defend Trump. The Oath Keepers repeatedly wrote in chats about the prospect of violence, stockpiled guns and put “quick reaction force” teams on standby outside Washington to get weapons into the city quickly if they were needed, authorities say. The day before the riot, authorities say, Rhodes met with the leader of another far-right extremist group, then-Proud Boys Chairman Enrique Tarrio, in an underground parking garage in Washington, though little is known publicly about what they discussed. Tarrio is charged separately with seditious conspiracy alongside other Proud Boys and is scheduled to stand trial in December. On Jan. 6, Oath Keepers wearing communication devices, helmets and other battle gear were captured on camera storming the Capitol in military-style “stack” formation. Rhodes isn’t accused of going inside the Capitol, but phone records show he was communicating with Oath Keepers who did enter around the time of the riot and he was seen gathered with members outside afterward. On trial with Rhodes, of Granbury Texas, are Thomas Caldwell, of Berryville, Virginia; Kenneth Harrelson, of Titusville, Florida; Jessica Watkins of Woodstock, Ohio; and Kelly Meggs of Dunnellon, Florida. Attorneys for the Oath Keepers have pushed unsuccessfully to get the trial moved, arguing they can’t possibly get a fair jury in Washington. The court has already dismissed several potential jurors based on their answers to a questionnaire, which asked them about their feelings about Jan. 6 and other matters. Jurors already dismissed include a journalist who has covered the events of Jan. 6. and someone else who described that day “one of the single most treasonous acts in the history of this country.” Conviction for seditious conspiracy calls for up to 20 years behind bars. The last time prosecutors secured a seditious conspiracy at trial was in 1995 in the case against Islamic militants who plotted to bomb New York City landmarks. Three of Rhodes’ Oath Keepers followers have pleaded guilty to the charge and are likely to testify against him at trial. Rhodes’ lawyers have claimed those Oath Keepers were pressured into pleading guilty and are lying to get a good deal from the government. Rhodes’ attorneys have suggested that his defense will focus on Rhodes’ belief that Trump would invoke the Insurrection Act and call up a militia to support his bid to stay in power. Defense attorneys say Rhodes’ actions in the weeks leading up to Jan. 6 were in preparation for what he believed would have been lawful orders from Trump under the Insurrection Act, but never came. The defense has said that Oath Keepers were dressed in battle gear to protect themselves from possible attacks from left-wing antifa activists and that the “quick reaction force” outside Washington was meant for defensive purposes if Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. Nearly 900 people have been charged so far in the Jan. 6 riot and more than 400 have pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial. Sentences for the rioters so far have ranged from probation for low-level misdemeanor offenses to 10 years in prison for a retired New York City police officer who used a metal flagpole to assault an officer at the Capitol. ___ Follow the AP’s coverage of the Capitol riot at https://apnews.com/hub/capitol-siege. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Read More Here

White House, 10 Downing Street Also Victims Of Decades-Old RebellionSEXI News https://digitalalaskanews.com/white-house-10-downing-street-also-victims-of-decades-old-rebellionsexi-news/ A general view of the White House in Washington, US, October 2, 2021. — Reuters/ File Recent alleged leak secret audio Recording of top government officials is not new or something that happens only in Pakistan. A research has shown that even the White House, 10-Downing Street in London and the official residences and workplaces of the US President and UK Prime Minister have been spied on for decades. While some of these powerful individuals were victims of bugging, there are instances when they themselves were involved in carefully recording certain conversations. A reputed British newspaper, Guardianpublished the claims of a Cambridge University historian on April 18, 2010, revealing that 10-Downing Street was hidden by the country’s own spy agency, MI5. The newspaper writes: “MI5 secretly planted bugs at 10 Downing Street despite repeated official denials, and they persisted for more than 10 years during the tenures of the five prime ministers. This revelation is documented in the official history of MI5 by the Cambridge historian, Christopher Andrew, published last year to mark the agency’s 100th anniversary. It is believed to have been suppressed by senior Whitehall officials to protect the ‘public interest’. Bugs was placed in the Cabinet Room, Waiting Room and Prime Minister’s Study at the request of Harold Macmillan in July 1963. He remained there until his removal by James Callaghan in 1977. The newspaper said: “The bugs were set a month after Secretary of State for War John Profumo resigned in the case of Christine Keeler. It is possible that Macmillan wanted to ensure that no other ministers or officials were involved. MI5 was in close contact with Macmillan during the scandal. The bug is believed to have been removed after Macmillan left office, but was reinstated by his successor, Sir Alec Douglas-Home, who was concerned about Soviet spies. He remained on during the term of office of his successors, Harold Wilson and Edward Heath. It is unclear whether they knew about the bug. Callaghan ordered his removal in 1977, the year he entered Wilson’s Labor MI5 was approved of a conspiracy against the government. As far as disturbances in the White House are concerned, secret recordings have haunted some US presidents since 1939. In 2017, the Washington DC-based National Public Radio (NPR) reported that some senators held talks with US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1939. Groove to his utter despair. Roosevelt used recording equipment for only 11 weeks from August 1940 through his re-election. He intended to use it to record his press conferences as a backup for his stenographer. He stopped recording 14 press conferences and also recorded several Oval Office conversations. American radio claimed: “Franklin Delano Roosevelt appeared to have pledged privately – not to allow Germany to move too far beyond its borders, making it likely that it would commit America to war. One Running in a poor campaign for an unprecedented third term, he didn’t want to take any risks, and thus began secretly taping a three-and-a-half-decade series of US presidents in the White House. Nixon FDR’s Desk at the White House But efforts became more sophisticated, from a large recorder with a microphone hidden in the lamp to a voice-activated mobile transponder. Nixon’s recording, of course, eventually led to his resignation, as he recounted his role in Watergate Break In. disclosed. This media outlet maintained: “Following the Watergate scandal, which led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon, it was believed that secret recordings of the White House had ceased. Finally another president was using tapes against him. Why would one want to subject themselves to the possibility of? But in 2017, after President Trump fired James Comey as FBI director, the issue was thrown into the limelight again, claiming that Comey had called him twice, on three separate occasions. But once told over dinner that he was not the subject of the FBI. Investigation into interference in the alleged collusion with Russia in the 2016 presidential election. In its report under review, the radio observed: “Come’s aides, however, told various news outlets that Trump asked Comey to pledge loyalty at that dinner, and he refused. Trump then took to Twitter. and indirectly threatened Comey, saying that he might have ‘tapes’ of their conversation. Presidential recordings are all subject to final release and collection under the Presidential Records Act, meaning that if Comey’s Trump There are recordings, so eventually Americans will listen to them. In addition, books such as William Doyle’s “Inside the Oval Office: The White House Tapes from FDR to Clinton” and Cormac O’Brien’s “Secret Life of American Presidents” also shed a lot of light on how secret conversations can be recorded in high places. technology was used to , apart from tackling all the tough questions that other history books are afraid to ask. The radio report reported: “Kennedy kept his recording a secret, seemingly unnoticed even by the adviser or those on the phone. Once out of office he wanted to keep the tapes to help with his memoirs. . maintained this—particularly Reagan, who was presented with the option of whether or not to continue phone tapping in the Oval Office for national security purposes. Ford, Carter, and George H.W. Bush reportedly had no- Recordings were the rules, and there is no evidence that Bill Clinton secretly taped anything in the White House. Read More Here

EAG Vs ROY Dream11 Team Prediction: All You Need To Know https://digitalalaskanews.com/eag-vs-roy-dream11-team-prediction-all-you-need-to-know/ EAG vs ROY Dream11 Team Prediction, Dream11 KCA President Cup T20 2022 Fantasy Hints EAG vs ROY Dream11 Team Prediction, Dream11 KCA President Cup T20 2022 Fantasy Hints: Captain, Vice-Captain – KCA Eagles vs KCA Royals, Playing 11s For Today’s Match Sanatana Dharma, Alappuzha 1.30 PM IST September 27, Tuesday. Here is the Dream11 KCA President Cup T20 2022 Series Dream11 Team Prediction – Dream11 Guru Tips Prediction and EAG vs ROY Dream11 Team Prediction, EAG vs ROY Fantasy Cricket Prediction, EAG vs ROY Playing 11s Dream11 KCA President Cup T20 2022 Series, Fantasy Cricket Prediction KCA Eagles vs KCA Royals, Fantasy Playing Tips – Dream11 KCA President Cup T20 2022 Series.Also Read – EAG vs ROY Dream11 Team Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips Kodak Kerala T20 Final: KCA Eagles vs KCA Royals – Captain, Vice-captain, Probable XIs For Today’s T20 at Sanathana Dharma College Ground at 10 AM IST March 23 Tuesday TOSS – The KCA President Cup T20 2022 match toss between EAG and ROY will take place at 1 PM IST Also Read – EAG vs ROY Dream11 Team Predictions And Tips Kodak President’s Cup 2021: Check Captain, Vice-Captain And Fantasy XI For KCA Eagles vs KCA Royals Match 27 at Sanatana Dharma College Ground, Alappuzha March 20 Saturday 10:00 AM IST Time – September 27, 1.30 PM IST Venue: Sanatana Dharma College Ground, Alappuzha EAG vs ROY Dream11 Team Wicketkeeper: Rahul P(VC) Batters: Sachin Baby, Abhiram CH, Sanjay Raj All-rounders: Ameersha SN(C), Akhil MS, Mohit Shibu, Athul Raveendran Bowlers: Unnikrishnan Manukrishnan, Vaishak Chandran, Gokul Gopinath. EAG vs ROY Probable Playing XI KCA Eagles: Athul Raveendran, Fazil Fanoos, Krishna Prasad, Mhd Kaif (wk), Sachin Baby (c), Vaishak Chandran, Rahul P, Arjun AK, Abhiram CH, Adithya Vinod, Akhil KG, KM Asif, Aswanth S Sanker, Rohan Nair, Nipun Babu. KCA Royals: Akhil MS, Albin Alias, Amal Ramesh, Sachin Suresh (wk), Salman Nizar (c), Sanjay Raj, Ameersha SN, Pallam Anfal, Mohit Shibu, Gokul Gopinath, Aditya Mohan, Ibnul Afthab, Anuraj J S, Vignesh Puthur, Unnikrishnan Manukrishnan. Disclaimer: India.com does not promote any kind of gambling or betting. Follow it at your own risk. Read More Here

Stock Futures Rise After S&P 500, Dow Close At Lowest Levels Since 2020 https://digitalalaskanews.com/stock-futures-rise-after-sp-500-dow-close-at-lowest-levels-since-2020/ Stock futures were higher on Tuesday morning after the market started the week by continuing its dramatic September decline. S&P 500 futures gained 0.68% and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.74%. Those tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 182 points, or about 0.62%. The move in futures comes after five straight days of losses for stocks, with the S&P 500 Monday closing at its lowest level of 2022. The Dow dropped more than 300 points on Monday, putting it in a bear market after falling more than 20% below its record high. Technical indicators show that the selling has been historic. According to Bespoke Investment Group, the 10-day advance decline line for the S&P 500 has hit a record low, meaning market breadth is at its worst level in at least 32 years. The latest round of selling appears to have several catalysts, including an aggressive Federal Reserve and surging interest rates, which in turn have roiled currency markets. On Monday, the British pound slid to a record low against the dollar, unnerving investors on both sides of the Atlantic. “Typically, US investors wouldn’t care too much about something like this, and especially more recently. And so this to me says that now there is this fear that is gripping investors a lot more than it did before. That in turn will lead to a capitulation moment where we really are at a bottom,” said Max Gokhman, CIO at AlphaTrAI. On Tuesday, investors will get several new pieces of economic data, including September consumer confidence, August durable goods orders and July home prices. Wall Street has grown increasingly concerned that the Fed’s six-month-long inflation fight will push the economy into a recession. Fed’s Mester says it is better to act ‘aggressively’ against high inflation U.S. inflation is “unacceptably high” and uncertainties make monetary policy decisions “not trivial,” said Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester in prepared remarks at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “When there is uncertainty, it can be better for policymakers to act more aggressively,” she said. “Aggressive and pre-emptive action can prevent the worst-case outcomes from actually coming about.” She said she will be “very cautious” when assessing inflation data. “I will need to see several months of declines in the month-over-month readings,” she said. “Wishful thinking cannot be a substitute for compelling evidence.” –Jihye Lee CNBC Pro: Analysts like Nvidia once again, with Citi giving it almost 100% upside Analysts are once again starting to get bullish on Nvidia, after the semiconductor giant lost favor amid geopolitical tensions and a slowdown in the chip sector. Citi and JPMorgan both said last week that solid demand in PC gaming, as well as cloud adoption in data centers, were set to be tailwinds for Nvidia. So how much upside did they each give Nvidia shares? CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here. — Weizhen Tan Oil, U.S. dollar diverge For the first half of 2022, the price of oil and the U.S. dollar both rose sharply. However, that has changed in recent weeks, with notable moves for both on Monday. The Dollar Index rose as high as 114.527 on Monday, hitting its highest level since 2002. Meanwhile, futures for West Texas Intermediate crude fell 2.58% to $76.08 per barrel. That is the U.S. benchmark’s lowest settle since Jan. 3, meaning nearly all of oil’s year to day gains have been erased. — Jesse Pound, Christopher Hayes Futures open flat Stock futures opened flat at 6 p.m. in New York, with futures for the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 changed by less than 0.1%. — Jesse Pound S&P 500 hits new low for the year The S&P 500 close at 3,655.04 on Monday, its worst mark since Dec. 14, 2020. The broad market average did avoid breaking its intraday low for the year, but could test that level again on Tuesday. Here are some other key stats about Monday’s session: The S&P 500 fell 1.03% and notched its first five-day losing streak since July. Ten of 11 Sectors were negative in today’s session, led to the downside by Real Estate, down -2.63%.  Consumer Staples finished marginally higher. The Dow fell -1.11% for its worst close since Nov. 12, 2020. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.60% and is more than 33% below its record high. SPDR S&P 500 (SPY) traded 91.9M shares, above its 30-day average volume of 77.8M shares. — Jesse Pound, Christopher Hayes Read More Here

A Weekend To Remember For UAA Hockey https://digitalalaskanews.com/a-weekend-to-remember-for-uaa-hockey/ ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – For the first time in over 900 days the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves hockey program hit the ice in an exhibition game against Simon Fraser University, and then in the green and gold inter-squad scrimmage. It was like a scene from a movie. after years of rebuilding the program, head coach Matt Shasby and the new edition of the Seawolves hockey team took the ice on Friday night to play an exhibition game against Simon Fraser. “It was a moment that you kind of dreamt about and you had a vision for for seven, eight months,” Shasby said. “When it finally came true it exceeded my expectations. Definitely had tears in the eyes when you see that the crowd had turned out and then just watching our guys get out and compete.” The Seawolves started playing in the Seawolf sports complex during the 2019-2020 season before their program was cut by the University of Alaska Board of Regents in the fall of 2020. Since then they have made some major upgrades. A video board has been installed on the wall opposite the stands, and a new sound system has been put in for better game presentation. They have also opened up the area around the rink for standing, bringing fans and students closer to the game. “It was all I could do to not tear up at that point in time,” said Kathie Bethard of Save Seawolf Hockey. “I was so happy to have that team back on the ice.” While the community coming out and seeing the Seawolves for the first time was the main goal of the exhibition and scrimmage, it also served a very important purpose to the UAA Hockey coaching staff, they now have game tape to break down. Up until that point they had yet to see their 26 new players actually play in a competitive game, so even though they would fall to SFU 1-0, it was a win overall. “We learned a lot about our team. We are able to make lineup adjustments going into the weekend,” Shasby continued. “We’re able to make adjustments on the identity of our hockey team and what we need to clean up to be ready for Western Michigan” The exhibition on Friday night was followed by a green and gold inter-squad scrimmage on Saturday where a stick sale was also held before the game. The support was noticeable from the fans, and the UAA Hockey program hopes that it continues as their long journey of saving the program has now ended and the first steps of a new journey have begun. ”It’s our university it’s Anchorage, it’s the Anchorage university,” Bethard said. “It’s the University of Alaska Anchorage, we want to see this university thrive. We want our kids to want to come here and so the way you make that happen is by making it an exciting environment and the only way to do that is by everyone in the community supporting the athletic events that we have on campus. That’s not just hockey, that’s volleyball, that’s basketball that’s women’s gymnastics, skiing, whatever. We should support the student-athletes at this university” UAA Hockey will get back on the ice for their first regular season game of the season against Western Michigan on Saturday, Oct. 1 with the puck dropping at 6:07pm at the Seawolf Sports Complex. Copyright 2022 KTUU. All rights reserved. Read More Here

Hurricane Ian's Latest Path: Hurricane Warning Issued For Tampa Bay Area https://digitalalaskanews.com/hurricane-ians-latest-path-hurricane-warning-issued-for-tampa-bay-area/ LIVE UPDATES Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a “state of emergency.” Last Updated: September 26, 2022, 11:35 PM ET Hurricane Ian strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane on Monday as it took aim at Cuba and Florida. Ian is currently forecast to make landfall on the west coast of Florida or the Florida Panhandle by midday Thursday, though there is uncertainty about the hurricane’s track and intensity. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a “state of emergency” for the entire state, with storm conditions “projected to constitute a major disaster.” The National Hurricane Center has advised residents of Cuba, the Florida Keys and the Florida Peninsula to have a hurricane plan in place and to closely follow forecast updates. Hurricane Ian continued to intensify Monday night, with maximum sustained winds now at 105 mph. The hurricane is about 105 miles east-southeast of the western tip of Cuba, which is expected to see significant wind and storm surge impacts soon. The storm is expected to become a major hurricane overnight or Tuesday morning. -ABC News’ Melissa Griffin Tampa International Airport will stop all operations starting 5 p.m. Tuesday to secure its airfield and terminals ahead of Hurricane Ian’s expected landfall later this week. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has declared a public health emergency for the state of Florida. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra made the declaration Monday to address the possible health impacts for Florida residents once Hurricane Ian nears the state. “We will do all we can to assist Florida officials with responding to the health impacts of Hurricane Ian,” Becerra said in a statement. “We are working closely with state, local, and tribal health authorities, as well as our federal partners, and stand ready to provide additional public health and medical support.” HHS has pre-positioned two 15-person health and medical task force teams from its National Disaster Medical System, as well as a 13-person incident management team and two pharmacists to assist with the response in Florida. “These teams are highly trained and ready to respond if, when, and where they may be needed following the storm,” HHS Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Dawn O’Connell said. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency on Saturday. That declaration was approved by President Joe Biden on Sunday. The National Hurricane Center has issued a hurricane warning for the Tampa Bay area just after its 5 p.m. advisory for Hurricane Ian. The hurricane, currently a Category 2, is forecast to strengthen before it slows down as it approaches land. It is then expected to hover off the coast of Tampa from Wednesday into Thursday before making landfall. A hurricane watch has also been issued for Big Bend, Florida, near the panhandle, and tropical storm warnings are in effect for much of southwest Florida. Tropical storm watches are in effect for Orlando toward the northeast portion of the state, from Fort Pierce to Jacksonville. -ABC News’ Melissa Griffin Read More Here

Bills Would Curtail Objections At Future Jan. 6 Vote Counts https://digitalalaskanews.com/bills-would-curtail-objections-at-future-jan-6-vote-counts-3/ Tuesday, September 27, 2022 By MARY CLARE JALONICK ~ Associated Press WASHINGTON — Members of Congress have officially objected to the results in four of the last six presidential elections, a partisan practice that has been legal for over a century but became much more fraught after a violent mob of then-President Donald Trump’s supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol last year. Subscribe below or log in with your password here. For more than 115 years, the Southeast Missourian has written the first draft of local history. We have aspired to enrich, entertain, educate and inform. Our core values have remained firm: truth, service, quality, integrity and community. Support our mission. Join today Note: Special discounts available to new subscribers only. Print subscriptions may include up to 13 Premium Issues per year, which include special magazines. For each Premium Issue, your account balance will be charged an additional fee in the billing period when the section publishes. This will result in shortening the length of your billing period. Read More Here

Meadows Was Central To Hundreds Of Texts About Overturning 2020 Election, Book Says https://digitalalaskanews.com/meadows-was-central-to-hundreds-of-texts-about-overturning-2020-election-book-says/ Mark Meadows, Donald Trump’s former White House chief of staff, was at the center of hundreds of incoming messages about ways to aid Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, according to texts he turned over to the House January 6 select committee that have been published in a new book. The texts included previously unreported messages, including a group chat with Trump administration cabinet officials and plans to object to Joe Biden’s election certification on January 6 by Republican members of Congress and one former US attorney, as well as other Trump allies. The book, The Breach, was obtained by the Guardian in advance of its scheduled publication on Tuesday. Written by the former Republican congressman and senior adviser to the investigation Denver Riggleman, the work has already become controversial after being condemned by the panel as “unauthorized”. Though most of the texts sent to and from Meadows that Riggleman includes have been public for months, the book offers new insight and fills some gaps about how all three branches of government were seemingly involved in strategizing ways to obstruct the congressional certification on January 6. Less than an hour after the election was called for Biden, for instance, Rick Perry, Trump’s former energy secretary, texted a group chat that included Meadows; the housing secretary, Ben Carson; and the agriculture secretary, Sonny Perdue, that Trump should dispute the call. “POTUS line should be: Biden says hes [sic] president. America will see what big data says,” Perry wrote. “This sets the stage for what we’re about to prove.” While Carson was more cautious, Perdue appeared unconcerned about seeing concrete proof of election fraud. “No quit!” he wrote. The former president’s final White House chief of staff also fielded a text from the Republican senator Kevin Cramer, who forwarded a note from North Dakota’s then US attorney, Drew Wrigley, who offered his own advice for overturning the results because “Trump’s legal team has made a joke of this whole thing”. “Demand state wide recount of absentee/mail-in ballots in line with pre-existing state law with regard to signature comparisons,” Wrigley wrote. “If state officials refuse that recount, the legislature would then act under the constitution, selecting the slate of electors.” The suggestion from Wrigley echoed what the Trump legal team would ultimately pursue in having fake electors sent to Congress on January 6 to have the then vice-president, Mike Pence, refuse to certify Biden’s win – a scheme now part of a criminal investigation by the US attorney in Washington DC. The text from Wrigley is significant since the justice department is supposed to remain above the political fray. Wrigley’s note appears to mark an instance of a federal prosecutor endorsing a legally dubious scheme when there was no fraud sufficient to alter the outcome of the 2020 election. A justice department spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment. Wrigley, now the North Dakota state attorney general, also could not be immediately reached for comment. Texts to Meadows also show Republican lawmakers started to finalize objections to the certification of the 2020 election only hours after Trump sent a tweet about a “big protest” that the House January 6 committee has said mobilized far-right groups to make preparations to storm the Capitol. The electoral college vote certification for President-elect Joe Biden on 6 January 2021. Photograph: Reuters The former president sent the pivotal tweet in the early hours of 19 December 2020. The panel previously described it as the catalyst that triggered the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers groups, as well as “Stop the Steal” activists, to target obstructing the certification. But the tweet also coincided with efforts by Republican lawmakers to finalize objections to the congressional certification of Joe Biden’s election win, new texts from some of Trump’s most ardent supporters on Capitol Hill sent to Meadows show. Hours after Trump sent his tweet, according to texts published in the book, the Republican congressman Jody Hice messaged Meadows to say he would be “leading” his state’s “electoral college objection on Jan 6” – days before Trump is known to have met with Republicans at the White House to discuss it. The congressman also told Meadows that Trump “spoke” with Marjorie Taylor Greene, a far-right Republican who had been elected to a House seat in Georgia but had yet to be sworn in, and was interested in meeting with the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus. Hice’s messages to Meadows came at a critical juncture: it was the Saturday after a contentious Friday meeting at the White House, where Trump entertained seizing voting machines and installing a conspiracy theorist lawyer, Sidney Powell, as special counsel to investigate election fraud. The meeting to discuss objecting to Biden’s win on January 6 was originally scheduled for the next Monday, 21 December 2020, but it was rescheduled to take place on the next Tuesday, according to the book, citing additional messages sent by the Republican congressman Brian Babin. Nine days after the meeting with Trump, the Republican members of Congress seemed to finish their objection plans, and Babin texted Meadows to say the “objectors” would be having an additional strategy session at the Conservative Partnership Institute, which played host to other January 6 efforts. The timing of the new texts to Meadows raised the prospect that Trump’s tweet moved ahead several plans that worked in concert, with the Republican objections about supposed fraud giving Pence a pretext to throw out Biden votes as rioters obstructed proceedings. Read More Here

What The Last Debates Between Jared Golden and Bruce Poliquin Tell Us About 2022 https://digitalalaskanews.com/what-the-last-debates-between-jared-golden-and-bruce-poliquin-tell-us-about-2022/ It was 2018: President Donald Trump and Gov. Paul LePage were in office, most Americans had never worn a face mask and abortion rights were settled law. The election was historic. It was the first federal one in U.S. history decided by ranked-choice voting, resulting in Democrat Jared Golden unseating incumbent Rep. Bruce Poliquin. As we prepare for what is expected to be the first and only debate between Golden, Poliquin and independent Tiffany Bond at 7 p.m. Tuesday on News Center Maine, we took a look at some of the key debate themes from 2018 and how some will carry through to this election. Economy While inflation has been one of the main themes of 2022, it was not a problem in 2018, and it feels dated to watch the candidates talk about the economy of that era. “The economy is doing great,” Poliquin said in the first debate. “We have the lowest unemployment rate in Maine since, I think, the 1950s.” Golden was a little less optimistic, saying that Maine’s economy was not doing very well. Unemployment was low, but so were wages, he said. It is clear to see why Poliquin, a Republican, would want to praise an economy under Trump and united Republican control of Congress, or how Golden may be more critical with both Trump and LePage in office. Running as much against President Joe Biden as Golden while trying to tie the two together, Poliquin has built a larger part of his campaign around costs and inflation, campaigning with LePage in May at a Bangor gas station. Golden has been no full-throated defender of Biden’s economic record, placing the American Rescue Plan, which he opposed last year, as one the factors behind record-high inflation. But he recently voted for his party’s Inflation Reduction Act, something now showing up in his TV ads and those against him. Abortion Abortion is mentioned in neither debate, hardly surprising given that it came out during a time when Roe v. Wade was considered settled law. The Supreme Court ended federal abortion rights in June. Golden is pro-abortion rights, while Poliquin is anti-abortion and voted for a ban on most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy in 2015. But the Republican has softened his stance since the June decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to end federal abortion rights, answering an anti-abortion group’s survey by saying Congress should allow states to decide their own abortion laws. Guns There was a lot for the candidates to argue about on guns. Both the National Rifle Association and the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine endorsed Poliquin, due in large part to his staunch support for their issues and Golden’s mixed record in the Maine Legislature. At that time, Poliquin noted Golden’s then-D grade from the NRA. Golden said that he wanted to prevent “a limited number of bad actors” from owning firearms. In Congress, Golden has voted against his party’s signature background check expansions and a ban on semi-automatic firearms, but recently voted for a bipartisan gun, mental health and school safety bill opposed by Poliquin and the NRA but backed by the Maine alliance. This year, the NRA refused to endorse in the race, giving Poliquin an A grade and Golden a B. The sportsman’s alliance ranked Golden slightly higher than Poliquin on its issues. Immigration Concerns over illegal immigration continue. Poliquin went to the southern border early this year and emphasizes fentanyl coming across the southern border and eventually Maine. It has been more pronounced than Poliquin was in 2018, but it was a theme then. “I’ve been very strong on border security to make sure we stop the flow of the deadly poisonous heroin that’s coming into our country,” Poliquin said then. Golden’s concerns were more economy-based, emphasizing how cheap immigrant labor can depress the wages of citizens. “Too often, we have a system that drives down those wages by using visa programs,” Golden said. Expect Poliquin to hit this subject more, although Golden is among the more conservative Democrats on immigration, introducing a bill this year to prevent Biden from lifting immigration restrictions without a plan to address predicted increases in border crossings. Medicare and Social Security While in office, Poliquin said he would support no changes to the Social Security or Medicare for current enrollees or people soon to be in the system while being open to hikes in the eligibility age. He backed a 2015 Republican plan targeting billions in Social Security savings that would have turned Medicare into a voucher system for new enrollees years down the line. Preserving the programs was one of Golden’s major campaign themes. For emphasis, and perhaps aware that an attack might be coming, Poliquin held up his mother’s Medicare card in a debate. Democrats are putting money behind a similar line of attack this time as well. Poliquin may take a similar line in the graying 2nd District. Trump As part of a theme during his 2018 campaign, Poliquin changed the subject in debates when asked about Trump, declining to say who he voted for in 2016 by saying it was “my business.” The former president won the 2nd District two years earlier and he won it again in 2020. Poliquin has drifted closer to Trump since then, refusing to say in March whether Biden legitimately won the election. After he issued a statement condemning last month’s raid on Trump’s Florida home, he backed off a call for an investigation of the FBI. He has also condemned Golden’s 2019 vote to impeach Trump, though the congressman was the only member of Congress to split his votes on two of his party’s articles that year. In 2018, Golden wished he had “other options” but voted for Democratic Hillary Clinton over Trump. He also backed Biden in 2020. While he has not openly antagonized Trump like most Democrats, he voted to impeach him over his role in the Capitol riots of Jan. 6, 2021, and said Trump “clearly” should not have had classified documents in Florida. Recent events could bring Trump back into debates. Attacks Poliquin’s main attack in 2018 was almost identical to what he says today: that Golden paints himself a moderate but is generally in line with fellow Democrats. “Jared is a young radical with a socialist agenda,” Poliquin said multiple times in the first debate. That clearly got under the skin of Golden, a Marine veteran who accused Poliquin of lying and calling him anti-American. “Folks back home, I hope that you’re tired of hearing your congressman issue nothing but attack after attack,” Golden said in the second debate. Back in 2018, when Poliquin went to shake Golden’s hand after the debate ended, the future congressman refused. While the race so far has remained relatively tame, it could grow more critical in the coming weeks, especially given that the two already have a history of being opponents. Read More Here

Iowa Dems Lost Incentive To Prioritize Iowa, ISU Professor Says https://digitalalaskanews.com/iowa-dems-lost-incentive-to-prioritize-iowa-isu-professor-says/ Biong Biong, Politics Editor|September 26, 2022 Iowa Democrat’s first in the nation caucus status is up for grabs and Mack Shelley, university professor in political science, said the national party has lost incentive to keep the state as a front runner. In April, the Democratic National Committee [DNC] voted to open the nominating calendar for the presidential election, which put Iowa’s traditional first in the nation status in jeopardy. Shelley said the DNC does not favor caucasus, adding that since Iowa is not very competitive for Democrats, the DNC does not have any incentive to keep the first primary in Iowa. “If something bordering on a miracle happens and Democrats win major offices in the Nov. 8 elections this year, the attitude might change a little bit,” Shelley said. Shelley said Iowa’s relative size in conjunction to how polarized the state has become could potentially play a key role in the DNC’s decision. “One way to summarize this is that Iowa’s got about 3.2 million people, which is about 0.95 or so percent of the entire country’s population– that’s less than 1 percent,” Shelley said. “So why should a state that small, especially one in which the Democrats don’t do real well, lead the pack at least on the Democratic side?” According to Politico, Donald Trump won Iowa against President Joe Biden by a difference of 138,611 votes in 2020, with Trump getting 53.2% of the votes cast. Biden had received 45% of the vote. In 2020, Donald Trump got 53.2 percent of the votes from Iowa, leaving Joe Biden with 45 percent. (Courtesy of Politico) “[Iowa’s polarization is] not purely because of Trump’s effect, but Trump certainly compounded the Democrats’ problems in the state,” Shelley said. Ross Wilburn, chair of the Iowa Democratic party, said in a statement to the Iowa State Daily that the party is taking a pragmatic approach to the situation. “Small rural states like Iowa must have a voice in our Democratic Presidential nominating process,” Wilburn stated in the email. “We cannot let corporate media and special interest groups replace our strong Democratic grassroots organizations which have been the bedrock of our national general election victories.” Wilburn added that one of his priorities currently is to recruit college aged voters. “Right now, my main focus is on the upcoming midterm elections and encouraging younger Iowans to get involved,” Wilburn said. “From reproductive rights to student debt, it’s critical that college students show up to the polls and make their voices heard this November.” Shelley said when he first came to Iowa in 1979, the state was fairly politically competitive. He said Iowa’s seats in Congress were regularly split between Democrats and Republicans. “The Democrats in Iowa were able to win elections for important races,” Shelley said. “Not so much anymore.” Aside from serving as a hotspot for candidates to campaign in, Shelley said having the first primary in the nation comes with prestige. “There’s a reason why New Hampshire fights to have the first primary, and Iowa fights to have the first caucus,” Shelley said. “You know, it says that you’re more than just a flyover state.” Daniel Sunne, a graduate student majoring in history who holds an undergraduate degree in political science, said he has caucused before. He said his overall experience with Iowa’s caucus has been fun and that the caucus is important to Iowa. “I think that the Democratic Party has lost a lot of ground in Iowa,” Sunne said, “I come from Northeast Iowa, from some of those river towns, and my relatives are some of the blue-collar union Democrats who are voting Trump and Republican. The Democratic Party would be doing itself a disservice to ignore some of those voices.” Your donation will support the student journalists of the Iowa State Daily. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment, send our student journalists to conferences and off-set their cost of living so they can continue to do best-in-the-nation work at the Iowa State Daily. Read More Here

Bills Would Curtail Objections At Future Jan. 6 Vote Counts https://digitalalaskanews.com/bills-would-curtail-objections-at-future-jan-6-vote-counts-2/ The certification of Electoral College votes for the state of Arizona is unsealed during a joint session of the House and Senate convenes to confirm the electoral votes cast in November’s election on Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. Members of Congress have officially objected to the results in four of the last six presidential elections, a partisan practice that has been legal for over a century but became much more fraught after a violent mob of former President Donald Trump’s supporters attacked the Capitol last year. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) WASHINGTON — Members of Congress have officially objected to the results in four of the last six presidential elections, a partisan practice that has been legal for over a century but became much more fraught after a violent mob of then-President Donald Trump’s supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol last year. In an effort to prevent another Jan. 6, 2021, bills moving through the House and the Senate would make it harder to lodge those objections when Congress counts the electoral votes in a joint session after every presidential election. The move to curtail the objections is part of a larger effort to overhaul the 1800s-era Electoral Count Act and safeguard the integrity of the vote after Trump tried to persuade his Republican allies in Congress to vote against Democrat Joe Biden’s victory and overturn his 2020 defeat. Under current law, only one member of the House and one member of the Senate has to challenge a state’s results to trigger votes on that state’s electors in each chamber. If a simple majority in each chamber votes to sustain the objection, that state’s votes can be thrown out. The House and Senate bills would each raise that threshold substantially, with the House bill requiring a third of each chamber to object and the Senate bill requiring a fifth of each chamber to object. The House legislation, passed last week, would also lay out new requirements for the grounds for an objection. “It is just too easy to trigger an objection when it only requires one person in each chamber,” says Maine Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican co-sponsor of the Senate version. Eleven GOP senators have signed on to the legislation, which is up for a vote in a Senate committee on Tuesday. If the bills are consolidated into one measure that becomes law, it will do away with a tradition that has become increasingly popular as Congress has become more polarized. Democrats have objected the last three times that Republicans were elected — twice against George W. Bush and once against Trump — but in each of those cases the Democratic candidate had already conceded the election. The stakes were raised considerably in 2021, when Trump and his allies were actively trying to thwart Biden’s win, with a strategy to throw out Biden electors in Congress and the support of a violent mob that broke into the Capitol, interrupted the joint session and threatened the lives of lawmakers and Vice President Mike Pence. House Administration Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren of California, the Democratic sponsor of the House bill with Republican Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, said the bill would protect the voters’ will from “frivolous” objections and more sinister efforts. “If you want to object to the vote, you better have your colleagues and the Constitution on your side,” Lofgren said just before the bill passed. “Don’t try to overturn our democracy.” At the 2021 joint session, two GOP senators — Ted Cruz of Texas and Josh Hawley of Missouri — joined a larger group of House Republicans in objecting to Biden’s electoral votes in Arizona and Pennsylvania, two swing states that Trump had won in the 2016 election but lost in 2020. Both the House and the Senate voted to certify Biden’s win in those states in the hours after the rioters had injured police officers, rampaged through the Capitol and sent lawmakers running for their lives. But eight senators and almost 140 members of the House voted to sustain the objections. Congress had only held such votes twice since the enactment of the Electoral Count Act 135 years ago. In 1969, two Democratic senators joined a member of the House to object to the vote of one elector in North Carolina during the certification of Republican Richard Nixon’s victory. In 2004, Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer of California and Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Ohio, objected to President George W. Bush’s electors in Ohio over what they said were voting irregularities. In both cases, the House and the Senate rejected the objections. In several other instances, members of the House have lodged objections without the support of a senator. In 2000, several members of the Congressional Black Caucus objected to Bush’s electors in Florida after the Supreme Court had forced a halt to vote-counting in that state and decided the election. Vice President Al Gore, whom Bush had defeated, gaveled the objections down as he presided over the session. In 2016, several Democrats stood and objected to Trump’s win over Democrat Hillary Clinton but no senator joined, and Vice President Joe Biden dismissed them. Like Gore, Clinton had already conceded defeat. Members on both sides of the Capitol have been working on the revisions to the Electoral Count Act since the 2021 insurrection, saying the law’s vague language was not robust enough protection against Trump’s overt attempts to subvert the will of the people. The bills would also clarify that the vice president’s role is solely ceremonial and try to prevent states from creating slates of illegitimate electors, as Trump’s allies tried to do. The House bill is more expansive than the Senate bill, and the two sides will eventually have to resolve their differences into a single measure. That includes the House language with new grounds for any objection, which would restrict the process even further. Under the House legislation, no member could make an objection unless it fell under a strict set of parameters that relate to the Constitution — that the state is not validly a state, if the state submits too many electoral votes or if a candidate is not eligible, for example. House Republicans argued against the legislation by saying it was a political attack on Trump, noting the frequent Democratic objections over the years. It only received nine Republican votes, all from members who are not returning to the House next year. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., responded that if lawmakers believed there had been too many objections in the past, “you should absolutely be supporting this legislation.” Hawley, who was photographed raising a fist to pro-Trump protesters outside the Capitol ahead of last year’s joint session, said in an interview that he is “skeptical” of the effort to change a law that has been in place for so many years. “My concern is that it’s going to look like to Republican voters that Democrats can object as much as often as they want,” the Missouri Republican said, noting the objections in 2000, 2004 and 2016. “As soon as Republicans do, they change the law,” Hawley said. “I can promise you, that will be the perception.” Still, 11 Republican senators have signed on to the Senate bill, enough to break a filibuster and pass the bill in the 50-50 Senate. Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey, who is retiring, was the latest GOP senator to sign on to the legislation last week. “The poor drafting of the 1887 Electoral Count Act endangered the transition of power from one Administration to the next,” Toomey said when he announced his support. “Unfortunately, in the over 100 intervening years, individual Democratic and Republican members of Congress have occasionally attempted to exploit the ambiguities in this law to cast doubt on the validity of our elections, culminating in the debacle of January 6, 2021,” he said. “It is past time Congress act.” Print Headline: Bills would curtail objections at future Jan. 6 vote counts Read More Here

Russia Detains Japanese Consul On Spying Charge; Tokyo Hints At Retaliation https://digitalalaskanews.com/russia-detains-japanese-consul-on-spying-charge-tokyo-hints-at-retaliation/ Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com MOSCOW/TOKYO, Sept 27 (Reuters) – Russia’s FSB security agency said on Monday it had detained a Japanese consul in Russia’s Pacific port city of Vladivostok for suspected espionage and ordered him to leave the country. The consul was released after a few hours of detention by the Russian agency. Tokyo has lodged a “strong protest” about the detention and signalled it may retaliate, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a media briefing on Tuesday. The FSB said the consul, Motoki Tatsunori, was declared persona non grata after he was caught “red-handed” receiving secret information on the effects of Western sanctions on the economic situation in Russia’s far east. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com It said the classified information, which also concerned Russia’s cooperation with an unnamed Asia-Pacific country, had been obtained in return for a “monetary reward”. Moscow has protested to Tokyo over the consul’s actions through diplomatic channels, it said. Japan’s top government spokesperson Matsuno said Moscow took the consul into custody in an “intimidating manner” blindfolding and restraining him, which was “a clear violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations”. “The detained consul was not engaging in any illegal activity,” Matsuno said, adding the Japanese deputy foreign minister told the Russian ambassador to Japan that Tokyo “needs to take equivalent steps” and demanded a formal apology from Moscow. The released consul has had no problem with health conditions and will depart Russia by Wednesday, Matsuno said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Reporting by Reuters, Kantaro Komiya in Tokyo; Editing by Nick Macfie, Gerry Doyle and Muralikumar Anantharaman Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Read More Here

GOP Planning Impeachment Move Against Biden https://digitalalaskanews.com/gop-planning-impeachment-move-against-biden/ By Ashe O Washington, Sep 27 (IANS): A section of the Republicans are “seriously” planning bringing an impeachment motion in the House of Representatives should they retake the house in the upcoming November 8 midterm elections, even as poll pundits predict that the odds are divided, albeit democrats could have swing votes with abortion rights, stricter gun laws and threats to democracy campaigns. Rep. Nancy Mace said on Sunday that some Republicans are thinking about impeaching President Joe Biden if they take over the House chamber following the midterm elections. “I believe there’s a lot of pressure on Republicans to have that vote and put that legislation forward,” Mace, R-S.C., told host Chuck Todd on NBC’s “Meet the Press”. Mace said that if the impeachment vote happened, it would be “divisive”, and that the House needs to work together. She also said she would back whomever the GOP nominates, including former President Donald Trump.Some Republicans, including Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, also speculated about a Biden impeachment. “Yeah, I do think there’s a chance of that, whether it’s justified or not,” Cruz said on an episode of his podcast “Verdict with Ted Cruz”, as early as January itself. He said he thought Democrats used impeachment “for partisan purposes to go after Trump because they disagreed with him.” It may be recalled that Nancy Mace won the republican primaries recently though she had at first slammed: Trump for January 6, then backtracked during her S.C. primary. Did that help her win? But the effort to impeach Trump was bipartisan and included 10 House Republicans who broke from their party ranks and joined House Democrats. Eight of them are retiring. Two of them were in the race. One of them, Liz Cheney, lost her seat in Wyoming to a Trump backed candidate. She has vowed to launch a movement to prevent Trump from entering White House again. Her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney under former President George W. Bush has supported her. Mace, who defeated Trump-backed challenger Katie Arrington in the GOP primary in June, has supported the results of the 2020 presidential election. Mace worked on Trump’s presidential campaign, but criticised him following the January 6 attack. The race for the mid-terms has gained much momentum reaching a very crucial phase and Gallup polls are predicting a 42 per cent to 46 per cent chance for both Trump and Biden in the close race between Republicans and Democrats. Speculation about a hung house is rife as voting is expected to be very partisan along party lines. But swing voters as among independents on either side could hold the trump card to give a wafer thin majority to either side – the Republicans and the Democrats. Pundits call the midterm elections as the most decisive in American politics in recent times and a definite move ahead of the 2024 presidential elections. They also said when any incumbent president got a 42 per cent approval ratings at the hustings , the party lost 17 seats, and if the rating was 50 per cent the party lost 37 seats and this has been the tradition in all elections in the midterms of an incumbent presidency. Read More Here

Trump Nominee Is Voted Out As Head Of Inter-American Development Bank https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-nominee-is-voted-out-as-head-of-inter-american-development-bank-2/ The Inter-American Development Bank, the hemisphere’s premier international lending institution, voted Monday to fire its president. Mauricio Claver-Carone was terminated following a unanimous recommendation by the 14-member executive board, the organization said. The termination was first reported by Reuters. In a statement, the IDB said Claver-Carone, whose term was set to expire in 2025, “will cease to hold the office of President of the Bank” effective Monday. The statement did not refer to a well–publicized investigation into him. Two people familiar with the probe said it was the results of that investigation that led to the vote. The individuals spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the inner workings of IDB or the results of the investigator’s report, which has not been made public. One of the individuals said investigators found evidence to conclude Claver-Carone had a relationship with a staff member who reported directly to him, and to whom he gave raises totaling more than 45 percent of base pay in less than one year. Claver-Carone’s leadership of the organization also resulted in employees fearing retaliation from him, the person said. Vice President Reina Irene Mejía Chacón will lead the organization until a new president is elected, the statement said. The Biden administration appeared to welcome Claver-Carone’s ouster. A spokesperson for the Treasury Department said the United States “supports the dismissal of the IDB President.” The department said Claver-Carone’s “refusal to fully cooperate with the investigation, and his creation of a climate of fear of retaliation among staff and borrowing countries, has forfeited the confidence of the Bank’s staff and shareholders and necessitates a change in leadership.” Claver-Carone had previously criticized the nature of investigation, saying in a statement to the Associated Press that the probe “failed to meet international standards of integrity that both the IDB and the region strive to exemplify.” He had added: “In clear and direct contravention of IDB ethics rules, neither I nor any other IDB staff member has been given an opportunity to review the final investigative report, respond to its conclusions, or correct inaccuracies.” In a statement after the vote, Claver-Carone also claimed without evidence that ousting him from his position would embolden China, the AP reported. In June 2020, President Donald Trump announced the nomination of Claver-Carone, then a senior figure at the National Security Council whom the Trump administration credited with boosting private-sector investment in Latin America and the Caribbean. His election that September marked the first time the United States — by far the bank’s biggest donor — held the top position at the six-decade-old organization. Claver-Carone’s defenders described him as a reformer leading a long-beleaguered organization rife with corruption. According to his biography on the IDB’s website, he had led “a comprehensive reform of the Bank’s business model” and was “overseeing a broad effort to improve operational efficiency, productivity and transparency to facilitate better results, impact and monitoring effectiveness.” Critics describe him differently. Investigators said there was evidence he conducted an affair with a staffer at the National Security Council, which prompted one official to warn that it posed a counterintelligence security risk, the AP reported. The Biden administration — which has sought to reaffirm America’s relationship with multinational organizations — had indicated it was taking the allegations against Claver-Carone seriously. Michael Shifter, former president of the Inter-American Dialogue think tank and an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, said Claver-Carone’s lack of high-level diplomatic expertise made him an unusual choice for the IDB role. “There was a basic question of how qualified was he, given his background,” Shifter said in an interview. “There was always a cloud, or at least a big question.” Read More Here

Scientists Engineer Mosquitoes That Can https://digitalalaskanews.com/scientists-engineer-mosquitoes-that-can/ Encouraging new data on a malaria vaccine from Oxford University bodes well for global effort to combat the mosquito-borne disease that kills a child every minute, its makers said on September 7. Sam Bradpiece reports. Scientists engineer mosquitoes that can’t transmit malaria The fight against malaria could hinge on genetically engineered mosquitoes that have something called “gene drive.” Researchers from the Transmission: Zero team at Imperial College London report that they have engineered mosquitoes that slow the growth in their gut of the parasites that cause malaria. This delay would mean the mosquito would reach its natural life span before the parasite would reach the mosquitoes’ salivary glands. So a bite wouldn’t spread the disease. In the lab, this dramatically reduced the spread of malaria. Last year, malaria infected 241 million people, killing 627,000 of them, mostly children younger than age 5 in sub-Saharan Africa. Read more here: Losing weight may help slow arthritis Losing excess weight may not only help prevent knee arthritis, but also slow its progression in people who already have the condition, a recent study suggests. Researchers found that among over 9,000 middle-aged and older adults, those who managed to shed some extra weight benefited their knees in two ways: They were less likely to develop knee arthritis over the next several years; and if they already had knee arthritis, the joint damage progressed more slowly. It has long been known that excess pounds are a risk factor for developing knee arthritis. And when people with the condition are overweight or obese, they are encouraged to lose weight to help ease their pain. Read more here: Reusing contact lenses raises odds for rare eye infection Although wearing reusable contact lenses is generally safe, it can be associated with a greater risk of a rare eye infection, new British research shows. In the study, people who wore reusable contact lenses were nearly four times more likely to develop the infection called Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) than those who wore daily disposable lenses. Risks increased for those wearing them overnight or leaving them in while in the shower. “In recent years, we have seen an increase of Acanthamoeba keratitis in the [United Kingdom] and Europe, and while the infection is still rare, it is preventable and warrants a public health response,” said lead author Dr. John Dart, of University College London’s (UCL) Institute of Ophthalmology and Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Read more here: Traffic-related air pollution may impact women more The impact of breathing diesel exhaust fumes may be more severe among women than men, according to a study presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress 2022, held from Sept. 4 to 6 in Barcelona, Spain. Hemshekhar Mahadevappa, Ph.D., from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, and colleagues examined sex-related differences in plasma profile in response to low, real-world concentrations of diesel exhaust. Analysis included data from five male and five female healthy, never-smokers who were exposed to either filtered air or diesel exhaust (20, 50, 150 μg PM₂.₅/m³) for four hours, with a four-week washout period between each exposure. The researchers found that the abundance of 52 proteins in men and 153 proteins in women were significantly altered in plasma following exhaust exposure versus filtered air. Read more here: Late bedtimes could raise your odds for diabetes, heart trouble If you’re constantly burning the midnight oil, you may be setting yourself up for type 2 diabetes and heart disease. When compared with folks who go to bed early and wake with the sun, night owls are more likely to be insulin-resistant, a new study finds. When the body doesn’t respond well to the hormone insulin, blood sugar can build up in your bloodstream, eventually leading to type 2 diabetes. What’s more, “night owls” get less exercise and burn less fat than “early birds,” allowing fat to build up in the bloodstream, which can set the stage for heart disease. The study demonstrates the importance of the timing of sleep in addition to duration and quality of sleep, said Dr. Seema Khosla. Read more here: New drug eases severe eczema in young kids Sonia Dhaliwal knows exactly how bad childhood eczema can get. That’s because her young daughter, Ariah Nihal Khan, has struggled with a severe case of the skin condition ever since she was a baby. Ariah’s symptoms were relentless and debilitating until the age of 3. They included rashes, skin discolorations all across her face, eyelids, hands and knees, and itching so bad that “she would literally wake up screaming and crying with blood spots from scratching,” Dhaliwal said. Finally, Ariah found relief in a monoclonal antibody medication that a new study has found both effective and safe for children as young as 6 months. Read more here: What draws mosquitoes to people’s skin? Just as a person might be drawn to a particular scent, so, too, are mosquitoes. The pesky insects may be attracted to a chemical cocktail of odors emanating from the skin, according to a new study. The draw is a combination of carbon dioxide plus two chemicals, 2-ketoglutaric and lactic acid, researchers said. The chemical cocktail not only causes a mosquito to locate and land on its victim, but it encourages probing to find blood. The mixture appears to specifically attract female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which can be vectors of Zika, chikungunya, dengue and yellow fever viruses. Read more here: *** Read more recent news from HealthDay here: The vast majority of people have experienced gut health problems, ranging from feeling bloated, to suffering heartburn and constipation. Self-advocacy is not selfish. How to help you, help yourself. Buzz60’s Chloe Hurst has the story! You more than likely know how warm or cold you like your home to be during the winter months. But do you know what the ideal humidity level fo… The U.K. government guidelines all adults should follow in regard to what they eat and how much they move. We’ve set out to find out whether it’s safe to eat food that was in close proximity to something rotten. Yair Ben-Dor has more. When COVID shots first came out, the CDC recommended waiting two weeks before or after getting another vaccine. Now, however, that guidance ha… Veuer’s Elizabeth Keatinge has more tells us how, and how not to save for college. Have you been struggling with a sore back lately? The way you are sleeping might be the cause. Do not fear, tips are here! To help you move on from your heartbreak! Buzz60’s Chloe Hurst has the story! For some people, falling asleep or coming down from anxiety feels impossible. But some experts believe simply counting 4-7-8 might just do the trick. Kids need a minimum of 60 minutes of physical exercise every day. Here’s how to do your part as a parent to achieve it! Buzz60’s Chloe Hurst h… Build your health & fitness knowledge Sign up here to get the latest health & fitness updates in your inbox every week! Read More Here

S https://digitalalaskanews.com/s-4/ Choose your subscription Trial Try full digital access and see why over 1 million readers subscribe to the FT For 4 weeks receive unlimited Premium digital access to the FT’s trusted, award-winning business news Digital Be informed with the essential news and opinion MyFT – track the topics most important to you FT Weekend – full access to the weekend content Mobile & Tablet Apps – download to read on the go Gift Article – share up to 10 articles a month with family, friends and colleagues Print FT print edition delivered Monday – Saturday along with ePaper access Delivery to your home or office Monday to Saturday FT Weekend paper – a stimulating blend of news and lifestyle features ePaper access – the digital replica of the printed newspaper Team or Enterprise Premium FT.com access for multiple users, with integrations & admin tools Group Subscription Premium Digital access, plus: Convenient access for groups of users Integration with third party platforms and CRM systems Usage based pricing and volume discounts for multiple users Subscription management tools and usage reporting SAML-based single sign-on (SSO) Dedicated account and customer success teams Or, if you are already a subscriber Sign in Are you a student or a professor? Check if your university has an FT membership to read for free. Check my access Read More Here

Patrol Spots Chinese, Russian Naval Ships Off Alaska Island – WWAYTV3 https://digitalalaskanews.com/patrol-spots-chinese-russian-naval-ships-off-alaska-island-wwaytv3/ Patrol spots Chinese, Russian naval ships off Alaska island (Photo: U.S. Navy / Christopher J Krucke) ANCHORAGE, AK (AP) — A U.S. Coast Guard ship on routine patrol in the Bering Sea came across a guided missile cruiser from China, officials said Monday. But it turned out the cruiser wasn’t alone as it sailed about 86 miles north of Alaska’s Kiska Island, on September 19th. The patrol boat, known as a cutter called Kimball, later discovered there were two other Chinese naval ships and four Russian naval vessels, including a destroyer, all in single formation. The Honolulu-based Kimball, a 418-foot (127-meter) vessel, observed as the ships broke formation and dispersed. A C-130 Hercules provided air support for the Kimball from the Coast Guard station in Kodiak. “While the formation has operated in accordance with international rules and norms, we will meet presence with presence to ensure there are no disruptions to U.S. interests in the maritime environment around Alaska,” Rear Adm. Nathan Moore, Seventeenth Coast Guard District commander said. The Coast Guard said Operation Frontier Sentinel guidelines call for meeting “presence with presence” when strategic competitors operate in and around U.S. waters. The Kimball will continue to monitor the area. The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to questions about the incident from The Associated Press. The Chinese and Russian formation came a month after NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned about China’s interest in the Arctic and Russia’s military buildup there. Stoltenberg said Russia has set up a new Arctic Command and has opened hundreds of new and former Soviet-era Arctic military sites, including deep-water ports and airfields. China has declared itself a “near Arctic” state and plans to build the world’s largest icebreaker, he said. “Beijing and Moscow have also pledged to intensify practical cooperation in the Arctic. This forms part of a deepening strategic partnership that challenges our values and interests,” Stoltenberg said in a visit to Canada’s north. This wasn’t the first time Chinese naval ships have sailed near Alaska waters. In September 2021, Coast Guard cutters in the Bering Sea and North Pacific Ocean encountered Chinese ships, some about 50 miles (80 kilometers) off the Aleutian Islands. Read More Here

Rioter Allegedly Called By White House On Jan. 6 Identified As New York Man https://digitalalaskanews.com/rioter-allegedly-called-by-white-house-on-jan-6-identified-as-new-york-man/ Watch Video: Rioter allegedly called by White House on Jan. 6 identified as New York man The rioter who Denver Riggleman, former senior technical adviser for the Jan. 6 Committee, said was called by the White House on Jan. 6, 2021, is 26-year-old Anton Lunyk, CBS News has learned. Lunyk is from Brooklyn, New York, and traveled to Washington, D.C., the night before the Capitol attack with two friends, according to Justice Department court filings.  The call to Lunyk’s phone at about 4:30 p.m. allegedly lasted just nine seconds. It’s not known whether there was an exchange or if the call went to voicemail.  A CBS News review of Lunyk’s court case found he left the Capitol more than an hour earlier at 3:18 p.m., after about 10 minutes inside the building.  Lunyk’s attorney did not immediately respond to requests for comment. CBS News has reached out to former President Donald Trump’s spokesperson for comment.  Riggleman, who is also a former congressman, said in a “60 Minutes” interview last week that the White House switchboard had connected a call to a rioter’s phone the day of the attack on the Capitol.  “You get a real ‘A-ha’ moment when you see that the White House switchboard had connected to a rioter’s phone while it’s happening. That’s a big, pretty big ‘A-ha’ moment,” Riggleman told “60 Minutes” correspondent Bill Whitaker.  “I only know one end of that call,” Riggleman said. “I don’t know the White House end, which I believe is more important.”  The news comes ahead of the House Select Committee’s next public hearing on Wednesday. The committee has not yet said if any witnesses will appear or what the hearing will focus on.  In a series of blockbuster hearings over the summer, the committee released never-before-seen footage from the attack and video testimony from those in former President Donald Trump’s inner circle. Witnesses also testified in person about what they saw or experienced around the time of the attack.  “I think that it’s fair to say we all knew that the White House was somehow involved with Jan. 6 on the very day that the insurrection was happening,” Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat, told CBS News. “So any information about this particular phone call would help to develop that narrative further.”  Read More Here

WATCH: Michael Cohen Does Yoda-Inspired Impression Of Trump 'declassifying' Documents https://digitalalaskanews.com/watch-michael-cohen-does-yoda-inspired-impression-of-trump-declassifying-documents/ On Monday, former Donald Trump attorney and fixer Michael Cohen performed a peculiar impression of his onetime boss declassifying top secret documents that were stashed at his Mar-a-Lago country club in Palm Beach, Florida. “He turns around and he wants to use the Jedi mind trick,” said Cohen, putting on an impression of Master Yoda from Star Wars. “Declassify, we do, hrmm?” u201cOh my god you have to watch @MichaelCohen212’s impression of Trump declassifying documents with his mindu201d — MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) 1664240600 The former president is under investigation by the Justice Department over the documents, which were removed as he left office, and which the National Archives repeatedly demanded be returned. The investigation escalated as it became clear Trump was in possession of documents classified at the highest level, including documents that contained information about clandestine human intelligence and the nuclear technology of a foreign power. Trump has tried to claim that he has the power to declassify documents just by thinking about doing it — a claim that doesn’t have any basis in law. DOJ officials were temporarily blocked from a counterintelligence review of the recovered information when Aileen Cannon, a Trump-appointed district judge in Florida, demanded a special master first review all the documents for privilege. That order was partially stayed earlier this month when a three-judge panel on the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, including two other Trump-appointed judges, allowed the DOJ access to the classified information. The special master, Senior Judge Raymond Dearie, will continue to review non-classified documents seized at Mar-a-Lago. Read More Here

Maggie Hassan, Closet Democrat? – NH Journal https://digitalalaskanews.com/maggie-hassan-closet-democrat-nh-journal/ Sen. Maggie Hassan wants voters to know she’s a “fighter.” Hassan wants them to know she “delivers for New Hampshire.” But the is one thing she apparently doesn’t want them to know. She’s a Democrat. An NHJournal review of Hassan’s TV ads over the past three months found no reference to “Democrat Maggie Hassan” even a single time, either in the text or graphics. And while President Joe Biden is warning  about “MAGA Republicans” posing a threat to democracy, Hassan has been running campaign ads bragging about “working with Republicans” while “taking on” Democrats and even “pushing Joe Biden.” In fact, while she has brought up Republicans in both positive and negative contexts, Hassan’s only references to her own party and president are how she has worked against them. It’s a telling strategy, political pros say, running contrary to the narrative that Democrats are on the rise and the GOP’s brand is fading under the impacts of former President Donald Trump and the abortion issue. If Democrats are doing so well, they ask, why isn’t Maggie Hassan running as one? Instead, she is bombarding airwaves with the message that she’s “independent” and “bipartisan” — words that appear far more in her messaging than “Democrat” or Biden. In fact, in a single ad, the Hassan campaign calls her “independent” or “bipartisan” six times in 30 seconds. Republicans are mentioned five times in three different Hassan ads. One released in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade makes three references to “anti-choice Republicans.” However, the rest of her ads claim she has worked with GOP lawmakers on issues like the budget and prescription drug benefits. At the same time, she disses Democrats. In one ad, she brags about “taking on members of my own party” without naming that party. In another, she notes that she was one of just two Democrats to oppose earmarks — a clear slight to the other members of her party. The name “Joe Biden” is only mentioned once, as Hassan says she was “pushing” the president to open the strategic petroleum reserves. “This is a classic move for most Senate candidates in a midterm to run away from the president of their party,” Andy Smith, a political science professor and director of the Survey Center at the University of New Hampshire, said. “It’s usually done with a nod, nod, wink, wink back to their party. Her hope is this diminishes the damage that Biden could do with his unpopularity in the state.” Biden has a 41 percent approval rating in New Hampshire according to the UNH Survey Center’s Granite State Poll released last week. Hassan’s job approval has hovered around the same level, another sign her party affiliation may be a problem in November. And in the new Washington Post poll, Biden’s approval has fallen once again to 39 percent. Based on her campaign messaging, Hassan appears to know it. Asked if she would campaign with Biden in New Hampshire, Hassan has been careful to say the president is “welcome” in the state without making a commitment. And when Biden visited Portsmouth in April Hassan was notably absent from the platform, never appearing on stage with the president. Polls show Hassan with a solid lead over Republican Don Bolduc, and she has millions more cash on hand than her underfunded opponent. Still, Smith said, Bolduc could be a tougher opponent than expected, particularly since neither Biden’s approval nor the economy are likely to improve between now and Election Day. “This will be a competitive Senate race. It’s a good year for Republicans and the economy is not going to get much better,” Smith said. “Bolduc has been caricatured a certain way in the national press. He’s not really a Trump guy. He ran and lost in a 2020 primary, and his opponent got the Trump endorsement,” Smith continued. “He’s good on the stump and, much like other Republicans, he’s walking that thin line not to antagonize Trump but not be too close to him for the general election, either.” Bolduc’s other strength? He’s not a Democrat. A new ABC News poll of voters in competitive congressional districts — like the two in New Hampshire — found registered voters favor Republican candidates by 55 to 34 percent. Read More Here

CBO: Student Debt Plan Could Cost $400B https://digitalalaskanews.com/cbo-student-debt-plan-could-cost-400b/ By Collin Binkley | Associated Press President Joe Biden’s plan for student debt cancellation will cost the federal government about $400 billion over the next 30 years, according to new estimates from the Congressional Budget Office. The figures were released Monday in response to a request from Republican lawmakers who oppose Biden’s plan in large part because of its costs. They were quick to cite the estimates as evidence that the plan will “bury” taxpayers, passing along the costs to huge numbers of Americans who never went to college. The Biden administration previously estimated the plan would cost about $24 billion a year over the next 10 years — about $240 billion for the decade — while other estimates put the total cost at $500 billion or more over the decade. On Monday, the White House noted that the CBO’s estimated cost in the first year — $21 billion — is actually lower than the administration’s early estimate of $24 billion. To reach the CBO’s $400 billion figure, officials looked at the immediate cost of cancellation along with the longer-term impact, including lower monthly repayments that would have been higher if not for the cancellation. The office separately estimated that Biden’s latest extension of a student loan pause will cost an additional $20 billion. Monthly payments on federal student loans have been frozen since the first weeks of the pandemic. Biden in August continued the pause through the end of the year, calling that the final extension. Biden has played down the cost of the cancellation plan, saying it would be offset by other measures to reduce the federal deficit, including his landmark Inflation Reduction Act. On Monday, the White House defended the plan, saying it will provide relief to struggling borrowers, allowing them to start businesses, buy homes or just pay their bills. “It’s a stark contrast to the Trump tax bill, which ballooned the deficit by nearly $2 trillion and provided the vast majority of benefits to big corporations and the wealthiest individuals,” White House spokesman Abdullah Hasan said. The administration is expected to release its own detailed cost estimates in coming weeks. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who supported debt cancellation, said they don’t agree with some of the assumptions underpinning the CBO estimates. But a joint statement from the senators said the estimates show that “millions of middle class Americans have more breathing room” thanks to Biden’s plan. Republicans didn’t see it that way. “Rather than working with Congress to bring down college costs, President Biden has opted to bury the American people under our unsustainable debt,” said Rep. Virginia Foxx, the top Republican on the House education committee. Biden’s plan promises to cancel $10,000 in federal student debt for borrowers with incomes of less than $125,000 per year or households making less than $250,000. Those who received federal Pell Grants to attend college would get an additional $10,000 erased. An application to receive the benefit is expected by early October. The fate of the plan largely depends on whether it can survive legal challenges that conservatives have promised to bring. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that, out of 37 million Americans who have federal student loans, about 95% meet the income limit for $10,000 in relief. About 65% also received a Pell Grant, making them eligible for a $20,000 cancellation. The office warned that its estimates are “highly uncertain” because it’s hard to know exactly how much borrowers would have paid in the future without Biden’s action. Some borrowers probably would have gotten their debt canceled anyway using payment plans that promise to cancel remaining debt after 10 or 20 years. The estimates are based on everything that’s known about Biden’s plan now, but some details have yet to be hashed out. The office said it may revise its estimates as details emerge. The $400 billion total notably does not include a separate loan payment plan that Biden proposed to help lower-income borrowers in the future. The new plan would be similar to existing plans that limit monthly bills based on a borrower’s income, but with more generous terms. It would limit borrowers’ payments to 5% of their discretionary income, down from 10% now, and it would forgive any remaining balance after 10 years, down from 20 years now. Read More Here

Biden Faces Pressure To Waive Restriction As Ship Idles Off Puerto Rico Coast https://digitalalaskanews.com/biden-faces-pressure-to-waive-restriction-as-ship-idles-off-puerto-rico-coast/ President Biden faced growing pressure Monday to grant a federal waiver and allow a British Petroleum ship loaded with diesel fuel to access a port in Puerto Rico, where hundreds of thousands of hurricane-ravaged Americans remain without power. Because the ship is not U.S.-owned, it has been idling off the island’s coast, awaiting a decision by the Biden administration on waiving the Jones Act, a century-old law backed by labor unions and key to the president’s “Made in America” agenda. Despite mounting calls from the governor of Puerto Rico, local activists and members of Congress, the Biden administration did not grant the waiver required for the ship to dock Monday, raising concerns that the ship could soon leave the power-starved island behind. White House officials said the Biden administration did not have the authority to simply suspend the Jones Act in Puerto Rico, citing a law passed by Congress in 2020 to crack down on broad waivers. Local officials said Biden had the power to issue one-time waivers that could still provide much-needed, temporary relief, but an administration official said that any exception would require careful consideration to ensure it is legal. The debate highlights the challenge the president faces as he simultaneously tries to make good on two pledges: to be the most pro-labor president in history and to provide Puerto Rico with whatever it needs to recover from a devastating hurricane that has left much of the island in the dark. As the labor movement defends the federal shipping restrictions and denounces calls to give foreign shippers special access to Puerto Rico, local officials and activists have long decried regulations that increase costs and make it more difficult to deliver essential goods to the island. The Jones Act, part of a World War I-era shipping law, requires that goods shipped between points in the U.S. be carried on U.S.-flagged ships built and mostly owned by Americans. Under the act, which was intended to support a U.S. shipping industry for national defense purposes, territories such as Puerto Rico and far-flung states such as Hawaii can face fewer options for shipping goods. As Puerto Rico continued to suffer from power outages and food shortages in the aftermath of Hurricane Fiona, a wide range of officials began to call on the federal government to intervene by waiving the Jones Act. The push came to a head Monday when Gov. Pedro Pierluisi announced that he had asked for federal relief in order for the offshore vessel to dock. “I have requested the personal intervention of the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security so that a ship contracted by a private supplier, loaded with diesel and located near Puerto Rico, can unload the fuel for the benefit of our people,” Pierluisi said Monday in a tweet. Carmen M. Feliciano, executive director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration, said that Pierluisi favored a temporary Jones Act exemption to facilitate the shipment of fuel to the island. Officials also pressed their case at the White House, where four Puerto Rican lawmakers met on Monday with the administration’s liaison for Puerto Rican affairs, as well as other administration officials. The Puerto Rican officials — three from the state’s House, one from its state Senate — asked for the administration to grant the Jones Act waiver and to bypass immigration restrictions to the island to allow high-skilled workers, said Tatito Hernández, the speaker of the island’s House. Eight members of Congress, including New York Democrats Nydia M. Velázquez and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, wrote an open letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas last week requesting the waiver. After news of the idling ship — first reported by television station Las Noticias T11 — began to circulate online Monday, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) added his voice to the chorus of officials calling for the federal government to grant the reprieve. “@WhiteHouse must immediately grant this Jones Act waiver and provide much-needed relief to the people of Puerto Rico,” Lee wrote on Twitter. A Biden administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said that any waivers of the act would have to go through a deliberative interagency process to determine legality. The kinds of broad waivers requested by some members of Congress would not be legally viable, the official said. For one-off requests like the one sought for the BP ship, the Department of Homeland Security aims to complete the review process and provide a response within two days, the official said. Waiver requests must show that the items being shipped are necessary for the national defense and cannot be otherwise obtained by U.S.-flagged vessels, officials said. Labor unions, which have been among Biden’s strongest supporters, have opposed efforts to weaken or waive the Jones Act, including after natural disasters. The American Maritime Partnership — a coalition that represents operators of U.S.-flagged vessels and unions covered by the Jones Act — wrote a letter to Mayorkas on Friday explaining why the Jones Act should not be waived in the aftermath of Hurricane Fiona. The group said that domestic vessels were ready and available to support the recovery effort in Puerto Rico, with more than 2,000 containers positioned in the port of San Juan to provide supplies before the storm. The group’s president, Ku’uhaku Park, said that U.S.-flagged ships are providing Puerto Rico with essential goods for its recovery, adding that waiving the Jones Act would benefit foreign shippers rather than Puerto Ricans. “There is no indication that American shipping capacity is insufficient to meet demand, and, therefore, no justification for a waiver of the Jones Act,” he said. For his part, Biden has repeatedly voiced his support for the act, often winning the praise of unions for speaking out in favor of a law that some Democrats and Republicans have called antiquated. Five days after his inauguration, Biden signed an executive order to promote “Made in America” policies, citing the Jones Act as one such law. Under Biden’s executive order, waivers of the Jones Act must be reviewed by the White House’s “Made in America” office. In a “National Maritime Day” proclamation earlier this year, Biden cited his “unwavering support” for the Jones Act and praised the law for supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs. Earlier this year, he won praise from unions for rejecting calls to suspend the act in response to rising gas prices and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Still, Biden has previously suspended the Jones Act as president, including after a cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline that led to gas shortages last year. The White House pointed to other actions it has taken to support recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, where Fiona, which came ashore as a Category 1 hurricane and strengthened later, has devastated communities still struggling to rebuild after Hurricane Maria in 2017. Biden approved a major disaster declaration for much of the island last week, and later directed his government to cover 100 percent of the costs for debris removal, search and rescue, power and water restoration, and shelter and food for one month. There are more than 1,000 federal officials on the island helping to restore power and providing other support, a White House official said. Biden has repeatedly said he would bring the full force of the federal government to help Puerto Rico rebound. His actions are being closely watched by Puerto Ricans, particularly after former president Donald Trump received poor marks from locals for his handling of Hurricane Maria. Trump angered residents by feuding publicly with local politicians, denigrating the island as corrupt and tossing paper towels at storm-ravaged Puerto Ricans during a visit in 2017. Trump, however, did provide a temporary waiver of the Jones Act for Puerto Rico in 2017, after facing increasing pressure and criticism of his stewardship of the storm. By contrast, Biden has sought to showcase a more serious and collaborative approach, saying that he would provide the island with whatever it needed to recover. “I promise you, it is a high priority,” he told supporters last week, according to a video captured by “The View” co-host Ana Navarro and posted on social media. “And from day one I was on the phone with the governor … Whatever he wants, we’re giving him everything he’s asked for and more.” But more than a week after Hurricane Fiona touched down, roughly 80 percent of the island’s water and sewer plants are without electricity, meaning they have to rely on their diesel-powered backup generators. That creates the immediate need for the fuel. Hernández, the House speaker, stressed that power outages on the island were responsible for more deaths following Hurricane Maria in 2017 than the storm itself. “We have a ship full of diesel in the south waiting to enter the island. It’s right there, waiting for us — if they give us the waiver we’ll import it right away,” Hernández said. “A lot of people need oxygen, a lot of people need water, a lot of people need help … It’s really scary.” As of Sunday, blackouts were still affecting key parts of the island — 95 percent of residents in Ponce; 88 percent of those in Mayaguez; and 84 percent of those in Arecibo, were suffering from power outages, according to information provided by the speaker’s office. Against that backdrop, local officials called on the Biden administration to take additional action to provide relief. The storm has exposed long-standing concerns about the way the U.S. territory is treated under federal law. Ramón Luis Nieves, who served in Puerto Rico’s state Senate and f...

Trump Nominee Is Voted Out As Head Of Inter-American Development Bank https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-nominee-is-voted-out-as-head-of-inter-american-development-bank/ The Inter-American Development Bank, the hemisphere’s premier international lending institution, voted Monday to fire its president. Mauricio Claver-Carone was terminated following a unanimous recommendation by the 14-member executive board, the organization said. The termination was first reported by Reuters. In a statement, the IDB said Claver-Carone, whose term was set to expire in 2025, “will cease to hold the office of President of the Bank” effective Monday. The statement did not refer to a well–publicized investigation into him. Two sources familiar with the probe said it was the results of that investigation that led to the vote. The sources were not authorized to speak about the inner workings of IDB nor the results of the investigator’s report, which has not been made public. One source said investigators found evidence to conclude Claver-Carone had a relationship with a staff member who reported directly to him, and to whom he gave raises totaling more than 45 percent of base pay in less than one year. Claver-Carone’s leadership of the organization also resulted in employees fearing retaliation from him, the source said. Vice President Reina Irene Mejía Chacón will lead the organization until a new president is elected, the statement said. The Biden administration appeared to welcome Claver-Carone’s ouster. A spokesperson for the Treasury Department said the United States “supports the dismissal of the IDB President.” The department said Claver-Carone’s “refusal to fully cooperate with the investigation, and his creation of a climate of fear of retaliation among staff and borrowing countries, has forfeited the confidence of the Bank’s staff and shareholders and necessitates a change in leadership.” Claver-Carone had previously criticized the nature of investigation, saying in a statement to the Associated Press that the probe “failed to meet international standards of integrity that both the IDB and the region strive to exemplify.” He had added: “In clear and direct contravention of IDB ethics rules, neither I nor any other IDB staff member has been given an opportunity to review the final investigative report, respond to its conclusions, or correct inaccuracies.” In a statement after the vote, Claver-Carone also claimed without evidence that ousting him from his position would embolden China, the AP reported. In June 2020 President Donald Trump announced the nomination of Claver-Carone, then a senior figure at the National Security Council whom the Trump administration credited with boosting private sector investment in Latin America and the Caribbean. His election that September marked the first time the United States — by far the bank’s biggest donor — held the top position at the six-decade-old organization. Claver-Carone’s defenders described him as a reformer leading a long-beleaguered organization rife with corruption. According to his biography on the IDB’s website, he had led “a comprehensive reform of the Bank’s business model,” and was “overseeing a broad effort to improve operational efficiency, productivity and transparency to facilitate better results, impact and monitoring effectiveness.” Critics describe him differently. Investigators said there was evidence he conducted an affair with a staffer at the National Security Council, which prompted one official to warn that it posed a counterintelligence security risk, the AP reported. The Biden administration — which has sought to reaffirm America’s relationship with multinational organizations — had indicated it was taking the allegations against Claver-Carone seriously. Michael Shifter, former president of the Inter-American Dialogue think tank and an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, said Claver-Carone’s lack of high-level diplomatic expertise made him an unusual choice for the IDB role. “There was a basic question of how qualified was he, given his background,” Shifter said in an interview. “There was always a cloud, or at least a big question.” Read More Here

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