The majority of voters did not vote for Donald Trump for president; the majority of voters did not vote for Republican candidates for the Senate; and fewer than 51% of voters cast their ballots for Republican candidates for the House of Representatives. The Republican Party now controls the White House, both houses of Congress and the Supreme Court, no matter how that came to be. I believe it is worth bearing in mind that a majority of U.S. citizens did not support the Republican winners.   read more

The focus of the controversy is the Border Patrol’s Sandusky Bay Station, which has disproportionately targeted Hispanics since 2008, the plaintiffs say. Professor Kara Joyner says 85% of those arrested by Sandusky Bay agents have been Hispanic, even though the minority group makes up only 3% of the local population. Emails obtained as a result of the lawsuit show that Cory Bammer, who’s in charge of the Sandusky Bay office, has used racial slurs to refer to Latino workers.   read more

Prosecutors won their case against Jackson by relying on the testimony of then 13-year-old Edward Vernon—who recently admitted he lied under pressure from police about what he saw on May 19, 1975, the day Franks was shot and killed. “The detective said that I was too young to go to jail, but he would arrest my parents for perjury because I was backing out,” Vernon said. “My mom was sick at that time, and that really scared me. I didn’t want my parents to get in trouble over this.”   read more

While some would argue the salaries of the chief executives were too high, the point of the Institute’s report is the many tax credits, loopholes and deductions that allow businesses to reduce their tax bill and in some cases, get money back from the federal government. Boeing had the highest CEO salary of the seven, with $23.3 million going to top man James McNerney Jr. Meanwhile, the aircraft manufacturer and major government contractor enjoyed an $82 million refund from the IRS.   read more

A document from 1961 by then-Defense Secretary McNamara regarding development of strategic nuclear missiles was fully released for public viewing in 1996. But the version of the document at the National Archives has been “heavily excised” of key information … that, again, was made public 18 years ago. Similarly, another 1961 memo, this one from the Joint Chiefs chairman to McNamara was mostly declassified long ago. But the National Archives and Pentagon censored large portions of it.   read more

In the period from 2011 to 2013, employment among veterans of both genders of the wars was 79%, compared to 70% of nonveterans. Employment among male Gulf War veterans was 84%. Men who served in Iraq and Afghanistan last decade had a lower, though still impressive rate of 78%. Both groups of veterans were better off than nonveteran men, whose employment rate was 75%. Similarly, women who served in both wars have struggled less with unemployment.   read more

Police were suspected by a defense attorney of using the StingRay system, which can capture information about cell phone calls and users, to collect data about their client. So the lawyer pressed Detective Haley in court about how the department obtained certain evidence against the accused. The judge told the officer to answer the question, but the prosecution instead withdrew evidence, including a handgun and cellphone, from the case so they wouldn’t get in trouble with the FBI.   read more

Government installations covered by overflight restrictions include the Kennedy Space Center, the sky over presidential retreat Camp David, and the Bush family compound in Maine. But then there’s restricted airspace over Disneyland and Disney World, brought about by a provision slipped into a 2003 spending bill. Aircraft are also barred, of course, from flying over the conspiratorially-rich secret government complex in Nevada, Area 51.   read more

"Potential modern slavery cases were reported in fifty states” in 2013. Most of those in the U.S. reside in slave-like conditions because of prostitution or financial debts, and they can be found in many areas of society. “The report explains that slaves are forced to perform domestic work and home healthcare, they work in the food industry, as well as in construction, agriculture, nursing, factories and garment-manufacturing, among other sectors.”   read more

Two of al Qaeda’s top financiers are reportedly living with impunity in Qatar, according to U.S. treasury official David Cohen. Both men are on an international terrorism blacklist. They also have close ties to the country’s ruling elite. Meanwhile, the Qatari government insists it does not support terrorism, and it refuses to disclose any information about al-Subai and al-Nuaymi. Qatar is scheduled to host the 2022 World Cup.   read more

The IG’s 2013 audit report revealed that the agency’s IT operations had 6,000 cybersecurity vulnerabilities that needed fixing and it listed 35 corrective actions to be taken. Stephen Warren, VA’s IT executive, said that the 6,000 vulnerabilities isn’t really that large of a number if viewed in the proper context: “When you talk about 6,000 vulnerabilities, we treat them all as important, but when you look at it on the scale you've got to put some balance in it.”   read more

The employees who died had responded to a faulty valve that was releasing deadly gas throughout the plant. Inspectors from OSHA hadn’t checked the plant in seven years. At that time two violations for management of hazardous chemicals were issued. DuPont had been hit with tougher penalties by the EPA after the agency found violations of hazardous waste management and air emissions standards. The plant had also has been cited by Texas regulators for repeatedly breaking state laws.   read more

“The 113 plant illustrations...seem to depict no flora found on Earth," wrote Allison Meier. There are also "visuals of the cosmos, a small army of naked women cavorting through pools of water, and the arcane alphabet that has so frustrated linguists and cryptographers." One theory is that the manuscript was created to serve as a medieval guide to creating medicinal drugs. A linguist in the UK devised sounds to match the book’s unusual symbols and claimed that he decoded 14 of them.   read more

“It is unconstitutional," said Republican Rep. Steve King, speaking of Obama's plan to grant amnesty to millions of immigrants. But that uproar in Congress stands in contrast to how lawmakers reacted 30 years ago when two Republican presidents took similar actions. In the 1980s Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush each granted amnesty to illegal immigrants without the help of Congress. “There was no political explosion then comparable to the one Republicans are threatening now,” wrote the AP.   read more

The emails that could be put at risk are those relevant to the agency's “rendition, detention and torture programs,” stated the groups' letter to the NARA. “[The policy's] implications are potentially vast," said Steve Aftergood. "[The] CIA has an unfortunate history of destroying valuable records, and NARA has had a hard time imposing discipline on the agency.” As an example, Professor Cox cited the CIA’s “infamous destruction” of the Guantanamo interrogation videotapes.   read more

Data compiled by the NRC revealed aggravated assault increased about 8% because of right-to-carry laws. Researchers say that estimate may be low, pointing out that different models show a 33% increase in firearm-related assaults following passage of those laws. Further, “the totality of the evidence...suggests that right-to-carry laws are associated with substantially higher rates” of aggravated assault, rape, robbery and murder.   read more

In very little time, Senator Cory Booker (D-New Jersey) has proven himself a prodigious fundraiser with a knack for drawing large contributions from industries not known to bank heavily on Democrats. The freshman lawmaker during the 2013-2014 election cycle raised from Wall Street the most money of any member of Congress: $1.87 million. Booker also proved to be the top draw from real estate groups, Hollywood, tech industries, accountants, and pro-Israel organizations.   read more