Belvidere approves levy in emergency session on Friday

• This a Work in Progress

Belvidere aldermen to revote on rejected $5.9 million tax levy

By Brittany Karlin |

Posted: Tue 5:25 PM, Dec 18, 2018  |

Updated: Tue 5:56 PM, Dec 18, 2018

BELVIDERE, Ill. (WIFR) - The aldermen and the Belvidere city mayor prepare for a showdown Friday to reevaluate the property tax levy vote.

"Basically a third or more of our annual budget going bye-bye creates a huge issue and a huge hole," said Belvidere Mayor Mike Chamberlain.

Belvidere aldermen said no to a proposed $5.9 million property tax levy. Mayor Chamberlain says it’s a major chunk and a key to balancing the city's $17 million budget.

"We will not be able to fund fire, police and public works at the normal levels. It would have created havoc in the city and the end of it would have been we have to eat up our reserve fund which would put us in a very uncomfortable position," said Mayor Chamberlain.

The proposal needed a majority yes vote to pass and four aldermen voted no, including Aldermen Clayton Stevens. He says taxpayers are already getting hit hard.

"Well, we already increased the gas tax by two cents a gallon. We have increased the sales tax by half a cent and those two rights there are going to bring in an extra $2 million projected next year,” said Stevens.

"It was alarming that the council members present last night were unaware of what they were doing and voting down $5.9 million that is desperately needed to balance our book," said Mayor Chamberlain
Stevens says he voted against the increase because he thought the other aldermen would vote yes. He also didn't discuss other possibilities with the mayor.

"I am going to vote against the 3.5 percent. I didn't discuss it with anybody. I was the first one to vote on it and I was quite surprised it went four and four,” said Stevens.

The special meeting to reconsider the levy is scheduled for 8:30 Friday morning. Mayor Chamberlain says aldermen can submit any changes they want and re-vote.

Busy Boone County Intersection Could See Changes to Roads

By:

• Jerrica Valtierra

Posted: Dec 19, 2018 10:44 PM CST

Updated: Dec 19, 2018 10:44 PM CST

BOONE COUNTY - Boone County leaders are looking at ways to make a busy intersection safer.  This comes about a month after a woman was killed there.  The 55-year-old didn't stop at the intersection of  Poplar Grove and Squaw Prairie Roads.  The woman was then hit by another vehicle.  The county is now considering changes to the two-way stop.

"I would like to publicly address the Boone County Board about my concerns with the intersections of Poplar Grove Road and Squaw Prarire Road," said Boone County Resident Pamela Gustafson.  Boone County residents, like Pamela Gustafson want something done about the intersection. Wednesday night, Boone County Board members discussed approving an agreement with an engineer about possible changes to the roads.

"We want to make sure that we take a look at it and makes sure we find ways to improve the safety for all our citizens," said Boone County Board Chairman Karl Johnson.  The county would apply for a $14-thousand Federal Grant to conduct studies on what would be the best safety measures to take.  Boone County Sheriff Dave Ernest says this year there have been nine accidents, including one fatality, last month.   "The accidents have increased at that intersection over the years," said Sheriff Ernest.  "That's based off of increase of traffic in those areas as some of our northern communities have been growing, Poplar Grove, Candlewick."

"People do not drive 55 miles per hour, they pass the intersection, which is against the law, they're just in too big of a hurry and they're driving too fast," said Gustafson.  "I have to sit in my driveway and watch traffic from the north and from the south. I can never just pull out."

"I am scared in the summertime when I'm mowing." said Boone County Resident Marilyn Hunt,  "I mow part way up the road on the terrace. I'm always afraid, because they just come flying down Poplar Grove Road."

Currently, there are signs in place that reduce the speed limit to 45 miles per hour, lights have been added to signage, and white lines mark where to stop on the East and West bound lanes.

"It's not the case that people are blowing the stop sign," said Sheriff Ernest.  "95-percent of those accidents stop and they pull out.  It really is the congestion during those key, high-traffic times."

"If eventually, it comes down that it needs to be a four-way stop, then that's what will happen, but there's so many other things that we need to investigate," said Chairman Johnson.

The board has approved the measure to move forward on the grant application.  If the award is granted, the board could begin to take action as early as Spring season

Above is from:  https://www.mystateline.com/news/busy-boone-county-intersection-could-see-changes-to-roads/1667684306

Christopher Steele Gave Copies of Trump Dossier to a McCain Pal, a Paul Ryan Aide, and a GOP Rep. in Late 2016

The GOP Rep was our Adam Kinzinger.

By Debra Heine December 20, 2018

chat 182 comments

Speaker of the House Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., greets President Donald Trump at the National Republican Congressional Committee March Dinner on Tuesday, March 20, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Christopher Steele gave copies of his discredited dirty dossier on then-candidate Donald Trump to a Republican congressman, the chief of staff to House Speaker Paul Ryan, and a longtime associate of John McCain in December 2016, well before BuzzFeed published the infamous report, according to court documents released Wednesday.

David Kramer, a former State Department official who was an executive at the McCain Institute, is the person who provided a copy of the dossier to BuzzFeed News. He met with BuzzFeed reporter Ken Bensinger on December 29, 2016, according to the court filing submitted by U.S. District Court Judge Ursula Ungaro in the BuzzFeed dossier-related defamation lawsuit.

BuzzFeed and Kramer disagree about how Bensinger obtained a copy of the dossier, according to a footnote in Ungaro's court filing.

“The parties dispute whether Kramer gave Bensinger a copy or whether Bensinger took photos of the Dossier when Kramer was not looking,” the judge wrote.

“Kramer testified that Bensinger took photos of the Dossier when Kramer was out of the room, even though he asked Bensinger not to,” Ungaro continued, adding that “in a later declaration, Kramer stated that he had no objection to Bensinger taking a hard copy and had provided hard copies to other journalists.”

The other journalists Kramer provided copies of the dossier to were not identified.

Ungaro also stated that Christopher Steele provided at least one memo from the dossier to Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and longtime Paul Ryan aide Jonathan Burks.

“Steele gave Report 166 to Kramer, an unnamed senior British security official, Ms. Wallender [sic] at the NSC, Representative Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), and House Speaker Paul Ryan’s Chief of Staff, John Burks,” Ungaro wrote.

Ungaro also stated that Christopher Steele provided at least one memo from the dossier to Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and longtime Paul Ryan aide Jonathan Burks.

“Steele gave Report 166 to Kramer, an unnamed senior British security official, Ms. Wallender [sic] at the NSC, Representative Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), and House Speaker Paul Ryan’s Chief of Staff, John Burks,” Ungaro wrote.

That report, which is one of 17 written by Steele, accused Russian businessman Aleksej Gubarev of using his companies to hack Democrats’ computer systems during the 2016 campaign. Gubarev vehemently denied the allegations and sued BuzzFeed for defamation, claiming that the website failed to investigate Steele’s claims.

Ungaro noted in her filing Wednesday that BuzzFeed did not reach out to Gubarev prior to its publication of the dossier on Jan. 10, 2017. The website apologized to Gubarev and redacted his name from its report after the Russian sued.

Ungaro ultimately ruled in favor of BuzzFeed on the grounds that its decision to publish the dossier was protected by the fair report privilege.

Sponsored

Steele also apparently supplied copies of his dossier to Celeste Wallander, the Obama National Security Council’s top official on Russia-related matters.

Though Ungaro wrote that Steele provided Burks and the others with parts of the dossier, a spokeswoman for Ryan’s office said that Burks never met Steele and did not receive information directly from the former British spy.

“Burks has never met Christopher Steele nor received any document directly from him. However, he was aware of and had read the dossier prior to its publication,” AshLee Strong told The Daily Caller News Foundation.

She did not respond to follow-up questions about how Burks obtained the report, whether he disseminated it, and whether Ryan knew he had received the document.

Inquiring minds would like to know exactly when Burks got the Steele dossier and what he did with it. And did he tell Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee or any other committees about it?

Kinzinger’s office did not respond to the Daily Caller's request for comment.

Above is from:  https://pjmedia.com/trending/christopher-steele-gave-copies-of-trump-dossier-to-a-mccain-pal-a-paul-ryan-aide-and-a-gop-rep-in-late-2016/

Above is from: 

Gen Mattis resignation letter

Dear Mr. President:

I have been privileged to serve as our country’s 26th Secretary of Defense which has allowed me to serve alongside our men and women of the Department in defense of our citizens and our ideals.

I am proud of the progress that has been made over the past two years on some of the key goals articulated in our National Defense Strategy: putting the Department on a more sound budgetary footing, improving readiness and lethality in our forces, and reforming the Department’s business practices for greater performance. Our troops continue to provide the capabilities needed to prevail in conflict and sustain strong US global influence.

One core belief I have always held is that our strength as a nation is inextricably linked to the strength of our unique and comprehensive system of alliances and partnerships. While the US remains the indispensable nation in the free world, we cannot protect our interests or serve that role effectively without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies. Like you, I have said from the beginning that the armed forces of the United States should not be the policeman of the world. Instead, we must use all tools of American power to provide for the common defense, including providing effective leadership to our alliances. NATO’s 29 democracies demonstrated that strength in their commitment to fighting alongside us following the 9-11 attack on America. The Defeat-ISIS coalition of 74 nations is further proof.

• 
• 

Similarly, I believe we must be resolute and unambiguous in our approach to those countries whose strategic interests are increasingly in tension with ours. It is clear that China and Russia, for example, want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model—gaining veto authority over other nations’ economic, diplomatic, and security decisions—to promote their own interests at the expense of their neighbors, America and our allies. That is why we must use all the tools of American power to provide for the common defense.

My views on treating allies with respect and also being clear-eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in these issues. We must do everything possible to advance an international order that is most conducive to our security, prosperity and values, and we are strengthened in this effort by the solidarity of our alliances.

Because you have the right to a Secretary of Defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, I believe it is right for me to step down from my position. The end date for my tenure is February 28, 2019, a date that should allow sufficient time for a successor to be nominated and confirmed as well as to make sure the Department’s interests are properly articulated and protected at upcoming events to include Congressional posture hearings and the NATO Defense Ministerial meeting in February. Further, that a full transition to a new Secretary of Defense occurs well in advance of the transition of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in September in order to ensure stability within the Department.

I pledge my full effort to a smooth transition that ensures the needs and interests of the 2.15 million Service Members and 732,079 DoD civilians receive undistracted attention of the Department at all times so that they can fulfill their critical, round-the-clock mission to protect the American people.

I very much appreciate this opportunity to serve the nation and our men and women in uniform.

James N. Mattis