Controversies
Air Force Sends Radioactive Material Too Hot for California Landfills to Idaho
The Air Force had lobbied for months to have the material labeled as naturally-occurring waste in order to qualify for disposal at Clean Harbors’ Buttonwillow landfill in the Bakersfield-area. The residue is believed to be from cleanup efforts related to radioactive paint used more than 50 years ago on glow-in-the-dark dials and gauges. read more
Translator Charged under Espionage Act…but not with Espionage
James F. Hitselberger, a civilian linguist working for the U.S. Navy in Bahrain, was caught possessing classified documents. The government admits, however, that Hitselberger did not pass on the information to any foreign power. It accuses him of stealing additional classified materials dealing with Iran and Iraq and donating at least three of them, along with other papers, to the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, which established a collection in his name. read more
Michigan Voters Overturn Law Allowing State Takeover of Local Governments
The managers enjoyed broad powers allowing them to dictate labor contracts for city employees, dissolve local agencies and authorize academic changes in school districts, among other things. Michigan has seven local governments currently operating under emergency managers, including Ecorse, Benton Harbor, Flint and Pontiac, as well as school districts in Highland Park, Muskegon Heights and Detroit. read more
Colorado Closes Empty $208 Million Solitary Confinement Prison
Republicans wanted the prison, claiming the corrections system would need more bed space. Critics objected to an all-solitary confinement facility, citing a lack of need, as well as Colorado’s unnaturally high rate of isolating its prisoners.
Democratic lawmakers didn’t want the prison, but they did want a new medical campus for the University of Colorado. So they brokered a deal with Republicans to support each other’s projects, and the prison got the green light.
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St. Louis Regains Control of its Police Department from State after 151 Years
St. Louis has not controlled its police force because of an 1861 law that created a state board to oversee the city’s law enforcement, even though the police department is funded primarily by city taxes.
But this arrangement will end at the conclusion of the current fiscal year after voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition A on Tuesday. The measure will turn police authority over to city’s Department of Public Safety.
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Ohio Secretary of State Fought to the End to Exclude Provisional Ballots
On Wednesday morning, Husted’s office announced that 199,403 provisional ballots and up to 116,678 absentee ballots won't be counted for another 10 days and that Lorain County had not yet reported its number. In 2008, 80% of provisional ballots were ultimately approved for inclusion in official vote totals. read more
Republican-Led House Committee Used Tax Money to Create Anti-Obama Video
Last Friday, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform released via YouTube a one-minute video slamming the Obama administration for overspending federal dollars on state dinners. Committee spokesman Seamus Kraft said the video was “fully consistent with House rules and did not incur any additional taxpayer expenditures for its production.” He did not explain why he chose to use the word “additional.” read more
Security Contractor at Nuclear Complex Accused of Cheating on Guard Tests
The IG reported that company supervisors had distributed copies of test questions and answers to guards before the exam. WSI-OR’s actions were described as “inexplicable and inexcusable” in the IG’s report.
This is not the first time the contractor was caught cheating. Eight years ago it was revealed that Y-12 guards knew when mock assaults were going to take place to test their readiness and response. As a result, the guards responded in impressive fashion to the fake attacks.
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Obama’s Clemency Rate Lowest in Recent Presidential History
Out of 1,041 requests since 2008, the president has pardoned only 22 people, for a rate of 1 in 50.
In comparison, Ronald Reagan pardoned 1 of every 3 applicants, George H.W. Bush 1 in 16, Bill Clinton 1 in 8 and George W. Bush 1 in 33.
The chance of having a sentence commuted by Obama is 1 in 5,000. Under George W. Bush, it was about 1 in 1,000. Under Reagan and Clinton, it was 1 in 100.
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Pennsylvania Caught Cheating on Water Test that Showed Fracking Poisons
The revelation came about as a result of a lawsuit claiming that fracking and the storage of resulting wastewater in southwestern Pennsylvania had contaminated water supplies near the Range Resources drilling site and sickened seven people. Those being sued are 17 companies, including Range Resources, which is a leading developer of natural gas in Pennsylvania. read more
Oh, Shucks! PUC Forced to Cancel Long-Delayed Federal-Ordered Audit of Its Own Oversight Shortcomings
After a gas pipeline in San Bruno, California, exploded in flames, killing eight people and leveling a neighborhood, a federal investigation laid the blame at the feet of pipeline owner Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) but included lax state oversight as a contributing factor. read more
Soda Tax Health Benefits Would Help Minorities the Most
On the eve of votes in Richmond and El Monte, California, on taxation of sugar-sweetened sodas, a new study says if the tax were applied statewide, the danger of diabetes and heart disease would plummet and be most acutely felt among the ethnic groups at highest risk. read more
Hyundai, Kia Blame Car Mileage Exaggeration on “Procedural Errors”
The Hyundai Motor Group, the world’s fourth-largest automaker, admitted last week that it overstated the fuel efficiency of about 900,000 vehicles across 13 different models over the past three years, a problem that will cost it millions of dollars in reimbursements to consumers and inestimable damage to its reputation. read more
The Kremlin Activates Russian Internet Censorship
Russia’s new Internet censorship law is officially about blocking access to websites containing child pornography and information about drugs and suicide. But free-speech advocates warn that anyone deemed an enemy of the state could have their site taken down under the law.
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Israel Admits to 1988 Assassination of Top Arafat Aide
Israel has finally admitted to what long has been suspected: That its secret spy agency was responsible for the assassination of a top lieutenant of Yasser Arafat nearly three decades ago.
Khalil Ibrahim Wazir (aka Abu Jihad), a founder of the Fatah Party, was living in Tunisia in April 1988 when a group of attackers stormed his home and killed him.
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Chesapeake Energy Gains Permission to Frack One Mile from Nuclear Power Station
Fracking so close to a nuclear power plant seems like a bad idea, especially in light of a report released in March by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources concluding that a rash of 12 earthquakes in the Youngstown, Ohio, area between March and December 2011 was likely due to nearby fracking operations. Shippingport is less than 45 miles away from Youngstown, with similar geology. read more