CLG: Judge blocks US fracking rules on public lands after petroleum groups and states object, List of Sixty Traitors in U.S. Senate Who Voted to Advance Obama's Secret TPP, Pentagon chief planning for longer-term rift with Russia

News Updates from CLG
25 June 2015

http://www.legitgov.org/
All links are here:http://www.legitgov.org/#breaking_news

 

Previous edition: WikiLeaks publishes the Saudi Cables

List of Sixty Traitors in U.S. Senate Who Voted to Advance Obama's Secret TPP | 23 June 2015 | U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 114th Congress - 1st Session as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate
Question: On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 2146 ) 
YEAs ---60 Alexander (R-TN) Ayotte (R-NH) Barrasso (R-WY) Bennet (D-CO) Blunt (R-MO) Boozman (R-AR) Burr (R-NC) Cantwell (D-WA) Capito (R-WV) Carper (D-DE) Cassidy (R-LA) Coats (R-IN) Cochran (R-MS) Coons (D-DE) Cornyn (R-TX) Cotton (R-AR) Crapo (R-ID) Daines (R-MT) Enzi (R-WY) Ernst (R-IA) Feinstein (D-CA) Fischer (R-NE) Flake (R-AZ) Gardner (R-CO) Graham (R-SC) Grassley (R-IA) Hatch (R-UT) Heitkamp (D-ND) Heller (R-NV) Hoeven (R-ND) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Johnson (R-WI) Kaine (D-VA) Kirk (R-IL) Lankford (R-OK) McCain (R-AZ) McCaskill (D-MO) McConnell (R-KY) Moran (R-KS) Murkowski (R-AK) Murray (D-WA) Nelson (D-FL) Perdue (R-GA) Portman (R-OH) Risch (R-ID) Roberts (R-KS) Rounds (R-SD) Rubio (R-FL) Sasse (R-NE) Scott (R-SC) Shaheen (D-NH) Sullivan (R-AK) Thune (R-SD) Tillis (R-NC) Toomey (R-PA) Vitter (R-LA) Warner (D-VA) Wicker (R-MS) Wyden (D-OR).

Barack Obama given fast-track authority over 'trade' deal negotiations | 24 June 2015 | Barack Obama was given the authority he has long sought to expedite negotiations for a massive trade corporate takeover deal with countries on the Pacific rim, propelling the US toward a landmark agreement that, both proponents and critics agree, will reshape the global economy. The Republican-controlled Senate finally passed legislation on Wednesday that gives the president the power to "fast-track" negotiations with the 11 other countries party to the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The vote, which passed 60-38, was a significant victory for multinational corporations which have been lobbying hard for a trade agreement expected to lower tariffs and create new [de]regulations for sectors as diverse as agriculture, banking and the pharmaceutical industry.

DHS 'Charleston Active Shooter Threat Training Drill' 15 - 19 June 2015 | 22 June 2015 | The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) conducted an 'active shooter' training drill (an exercise on how to handle a situation with an 'active shooter' on scene) on the *same day* (17 June 2015) and *same city* (Charleston, South Carolina) that an active shooter opened fire at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, killing nine people. Below is a screen shot from the fletc.gov's website, depicting FLETC's 'Advanced Training Schedule By Site. Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers -- FY 2015 (Jan 1st - Sept 30th 2015) Advanced Training Schedule By Site Updated 02-26-2015. This calendar is intended for federal law enforcement.' Charleston ASTITP - Active Shooter Threat Instructor Training Program C_ASTITP-501 Class Start: 06/15/2015 - Class End: 06/19/2015.  [See image here.]

US deploying 250 military vehicles 'including Abrams tanks' near Russian border | 23 June 2015 | Washington plans to station hardware, including tanks and armored vehicles, in a number of European countries, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced on Tuesday. Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Romania will be hosting the new hardware, and it will be possible to move it around for exercises [!], Carter said as he stood with his Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian counterparts on a visit to Tallinn. The hardware will include Abrams battle tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles and self-propelled howitzers.

Trolling for WWIII: U.S. to pre-position tanks, artillery in Baltics, eastern Europe | 23 June 2015 | The United States will pre-position tanks, artillery and other military equipment in eastern and central Europe, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Tuesday...Carter made the announcement a little over 200 km (125 miles) from the Russian border, in the Estonian capital Tallinn, where he met Baltic defense chiefs and spoke to troops aboard a U.S. warship that had just completed drills in the Baltic Sea. Carter said the Baltic states - Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia -- as well as Bulgaria, Romania and Poland -- had agreed to host the arms and heavy equipment. Some of the weaponry would also be located in Germany.

Pentagon chief planning for longer-term rift with Russia | 21 June 2015 | The United States and its NATO allies are preparing militarily for the prospect that their rift with Russia could outlast President Vladimir Putin, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Sunday. Russia's U.S. intervention in Ukraine has put NATO allies in eastern Europe on edge and triggered a series of military moves by the alliance, including an acceleration of exercises and the creation of a NATO rapid response force.

'Huge' explosions and gunfire outside Afghan parliament | 22 June 2015 | A Taliban suicide bomber and gunmen attacked the Afghan parliament on Monday, shattering windows, wounding at least 19 people and sending a plume of black smoke across Kabul, as a second district in two days fell to the Islamist group in the north. A series of Taliban gains, and Monday's attack on the symbolic centre of power, have raised questions about the Nato-trained [trained to protect and nurture the CIA's opi-m routes] Afghan security forces' ability to cope. "A suicide bomber blew himself up just outside the parliament building and several fighters took positions in a building close to parliament," said Ebadullah Karimi, spokesman for Kabul police.

Afghanistan explosion: Taliban suicide bomber, gunmen attack parliament building in Kabul, police say | 22 June 2015 | A Taliban suicide bomber and several gunmen have attacked the Afghan parliament, shattering windows and forcing lawmakers to flee, police say. Afghan police spokesman Ebadullah Karimi said a suicide bomber blew himself up just outside the parliament and several fighters took positions in a nearby building. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility. "We have launched an attack on parliament as there was an important gathering to introduce the country's defence minister," he said by phone.

NSA spied on French presidents: WikiLeaks | 23 June 2015 | The United States National Security Agency spied on French presidents Jacques Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande, WikiLeaks said in a press statement published on Tuesday, citing top secret intelligence reports and technical documents. The revelations were first reported in French daily Liberation...which said the NSA spied on the presidents during a period of at least 2006 until May 2012, the month Hollande took over from Sarkozy. WikiLeaks said the documents derived from directly targeted NSA surveillance of the communications of Hollande (2012–present), Sarkozy (2007–2012) and Chirac (1995–2007), as well as French cabinet ministers and the French ambassador to the U.S.

Boston bomber apologizes, admits guilt for deadly 2013 attack [even though the FBI's picture of the 'bomb backpack' matched that of Craft International, not Dzhokhar Tsarnaev] | 24 June 2015 | Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on Wednesday apologized for the deadly 2013 attack at a hearing before a U.S. judge formally sentenced him to death for killing four people and injuring 264 in the bombing and its aftermath. The 21-year-old ethnic Chechen, who had not testified during his trial, referred to Allah and admitted that he and his now-dead older brother carried out one of the highest-profile attacks on U.S. soil, in a courtroom packed with survivors of the April 15, 2013, bombing.

Worse than days of Henry VIII and Tower of London: Barrett Brown in solitary confinement, denied a pencil[Even Sir Thomas More was allowed to write, imprisoned in the Tower of London. Whistleblowers in the Obama era don't have that lux-ry.] An update on Barrett Brown in solitary confinement | 21 June 2015 | We now have an update on the reason why BB [Barrett Brown] is in the SHU, also known as the hole, solitary confinement or special/security housing unit...Someone made hooch (alcohol) and a bunch of inmates had been drinking it. Officials came and gave them all breathalyzers, and they all passed. Then they searched Barrett's locker (his only) and found a glass he had hidden in there. So that's his infraction...* He was taken from his cell Wednesday (6/17) evening and not allowed to bring belongings, including his file of legal papers and his prescription...He asked for a pencil but they said they are out of pencils. [See also: Barrett Brown suddenly stripped of prison e-mail after talking to press 06 April 2015.]

2 dead, 2 badly injured in shooting at Vaughan, Ont., cafe | 24 June 2015 | Two people are dead, and two have been seriously injured in a shooting at a cafe in Vaughan [north of Toronto]. York Regional Police were called to the scene of the Moka espresso bar, on Islington Ave near Highway 7, just after 8:15 a.m. Two victims were found without vital signs, according to York EMS. They were pronounced dead at the scene.

Braidwood nuclear plant nearly hit by tornado | 23 June 2015 | (Braidwood, IL) The ABC7 I-Team looked at a close call for a nuclear plant when one of Monday night's twisters brushed by the Braidwood generating station. Braidwood was [*allegedly*] built to take a direct hit from a tornado. The tornado took down signs, bent utility poles, snapped power lines and cracked trees in half, all within the Braidwood nuclear plant perimeter. "This has been a freak two years," said Braidwood Mayor James Vehrs. Freaky and lucky, Vehrs said, because it is the second time in two tornado seasons that the nuclear plant has been in the path of a twister.

Reid seeks expanded gun background checks | 23 June 2015 | Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called Tuesday for Congress to expand background checks for gun purchases in the wake of a shooting in Charleston, S.C., last week that left nine dead. The Senate previously failed to expand background checks in 2013 in the wake of a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. Reid is the latest Democrat to push to add new limits on guns in the wake of a shooting at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston.

White supremacist cash went to more than 40 GOP candidates | 23 June 2015 | White supremacist leader Earl Holt III gave more than 80,000 in campaign money in recent years to more than 40 members of Congress and candidates for federal office – all Republicans - ironically including the party's first black congresswoman. Holt heads the Council for Conservative Citizens, the group whose internet postings may have inspired Dylann Roof, the 21-year-old accused of killing nine African-Americans in a Charleston, S.C., church. The politicians, including GOP presidential candidates Ted Cruz of Texas, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, as well as 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, sought quickly to put distance between themselves and the avowed racist.

Leader of group cited in 'Dylann Roof manifesto' donated to top Republicans --Ted Cruz campaign tells Guardian it will 'be making a full refund' [LOL!] | 21 June 2015 |The leader of a rightwing group that Dylann Roof allegedly credits with helping to radicalise him against black people before the Charleston church massacre has donated tens of thousands of dollars to Republicans such as presidential candidates Ted Cruz, Rand Paul and Rick Santorum. Earl Holt has given 65,000 to Republican campaign funds in recent years while inflammatory remarks -- including that black people were "the laziest, stupidest and most criminally-inclined race in the history of the world" -- were posted online in his name. Holt, 62, is the president of the Council of Conservative Citizens (CofCC), a Missouri-based activist organisation praised as enlightening by the author of a manifesto-style text that was posted on a website registered in Roof's name along with photographs of the gunman. The FBI said on Saturday it was investigating the website.

Battle over Confederate flag unfurls in South Carolina and beyond | 24 June 2015 | An initiative to remove the Confederate flag from the South Carolina State House grounds picked up steam on Tuesday, a week after the massacre of nine black church members, and criticism over the emblem long associated with slavery spread to other U.S. southern states. U.S. retailers joined lawmakers in distancing themselves from the banner, with industry leaders...pulling the images of the rebel flag from their stores and websites.. The Civil War-era flag of the South's pro-slavery Confederacy has become a lightning rod for outrage over the shootings in Charleston, South Carolina, which authorities say was motivated by racial hatred.

South Carolina governor [finally] calls for Confederate flag's removal | 22 June 2015 | South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley (R) on Monday called on lawmakers to take down the Confederate battle flag at the state capitol grounds, a week after a white gunman allegedly shot dead nine black worshipers at a historic church. The flag that has flown at the State House grounds in Columbia for a half century became a fresh focus of criticism after the Charleston church massacre. Federal authorities are investigating the attack as a hate crime and an act of terrorism by accused gunman Dylann Roof, 21, who posed with the flag in photos posted online.

Beyond the Spectacle | 22 June 2015 | ...In retrospect, we believe that RT [Race Traitor] provided a coherent framework for examining and discussing race. As we acknowledged in an essay published in our next-to-last issue, we could have and should have approached some things differently--perhaps especially about the relationship we saw between the abolition of whiteness and the possibility of an anti-capitalist revolution. But we believe that much of what we wrote remains valuable today.

How the Trans-Pacific Partnership 'Trade' Pact Gives Corporations Special Legal Rights | 22 June 2015 |  Critics argue that within the hundreds of pages of esoteric provisions, the The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal -- like similar ones before it -- includes a glaring double standard: It provides legal rights to corporations and investors that it does not extend to unions, public interest groups and individuals. Recently leaked drafts of the agreement show the pact includes the kind of "investor-state dispute settlement" (ISDS) provisions written into most major trade deals passed since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Those provisions allow companies to use secretive international tribunals to sue sovereign governments for damages when those governments pass public-interest policies that threaten to cut into a corporation’s profits or seize a company's property...Meanwhile, Congress has refused to act on legislation that would empower citizens to bring their own cases.

Judge blocks US fracking rules on public lands after petroleum groups and states object | 24 June 2015 | A US district judge [sic] in Wyoming has granted a request by four states and several energy industry groups to temporarily block new federal rules governing fracking on public lands. The interior department rules due to come into force on Wednesday would require companies to provide data on chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, and to take steps to prevent leakage from oil and gas wells on federally owned land. But on Tuesday Judge Scott Skavdahl granted a stay to the new rules until 22 July, according to the Independent Petroleum Association of America, which said the judge's decision on a preliminary injunction sought by IPAA and other opponents of the rules was now expected in mid-August. IPAA and the Western Energy Alliance were joined by Colorado, Wyoming, North Dakota and Utah in seeking to stop the new rules from taking effect.

Fracking Industry's Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal: I'm Running for President | 24 June 2015 | Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is officially running for president. The Republican governor [completely owned by the oil and fracking industries] tweeted on Wednesday that he's jumping in to the GOP nomination race, also sending out a link to a new campaign website. He is slated to hold an official announcement event Wednesday afternoon in New Orleans.

Sarah Palin, highest-paid cable news contributor, is dumped by Fox News --It's thought she isn't considered as relevant as she once [? never] was | 24 June 2015 | Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has lost her reported 1million-a-year deal as a Fox News contributor. The network decided not to renew the contract of the former Republican vice presidential candidate, who was believed to be the highest-paid commentator at the cable news channel. The two parted ways 'amicably' on June 1, a Fox spokesperson confirmed Wednesday.

Death toll from Pakistan heat wave soars past 600 | 23 June 2015 | A senior Pakistani health official says the death toll in the country's southern Sindh province, which has been struck by a heat wave, has reached 622. Senior provincial health official Saeed Mangnejo said on Tuesday that he expects the number of fatalities to climb further. Mangnejo says the death toll is for the past three days, though most of the deaths were reported in the province's largest city, Karachi.

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