Federal judge in Hawaii extends court order blocking Trump travel ban

Federal judge in Hawaii extends court order blocking Trump travel ban

Reuters 55 minutes ago

ONOLULU (Reuters) - A federal judge in Hawaii indefinitely extended on Wednesday an order blocking enforcement of President Donald Trump's revised ban on travel to the United States from six predominantly Muslim countries.

U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson turned an earlier temporary restraining order into a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit brought by the state of Hawaii challenging Trump's travel directive as unconstitutional religious discrimination.

Trump signed the new ban on March 6 in a bid to overcome legal problems with a January executive order that caused chaos at airports and sparked mass protests before a Washington judge stopped its enforcement in February. Trump has said the travel ban is needed for national security.

Hawaii and other opponents of the ban claim that the motivation behind it is based on religion and Trump's election campaign promise of "a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States."

(Reporting by Hunter Haskins in Honolulu; Additional reporting and writing by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Paul Tait)

Above is from:  https://www.yahoo.com/news/federal-judge-hawaii-extends-court-order-blocking-trump-030812911.html

Ken McBee’s views on the Belvidere Township Highway Department

 

It’s more than snowplowing and filling potholes…

By Ken McBee

As I campaign, one of the remarks that I often get is “can you plow snow and fill potholes?”    This is a benchmark question of most residents. The answer is Yes.  I want to point out how this job is much more than plowing snow, mowing grass or filling potholes. Though these are very important aspects of the department, the Township Highway department has a very qualified staff of employees that I will work with and beside to get the job done.  It is very important to lead by example.   I will foster an atmosphere of pride and productivity among the employees in the work we do for our township. I will bring needed skills to this office and be ready to serve you on day one. I also will have the benefit of a well-trained and able road crew.

My first employment was operating heavy earth moving equipment in Byron.  I have learned how to properly supervise employees with respect, contract for services from vendors, and prepare and manage large budgets. I have successfully managed my own company for 27 years and will bring this experience and drive to the Belvidere Township Highway Department as well.  I do want to point out that the current office holder did not enter this office with “Commissioner experience” on day one. He learned it and made it work. While I disagree on several things he has done, he gets my respect for holding the office so long and leaving on his terms.

I look forward to an open communication of the township’s business with its residents to an extent that exceeds what has not been seen in the past. The Fix My Road App , email, an interactive website and text message alerts are some of the technological tools I will use to bring the department into the 21st century in its service to you.  I will be available to you, in person, by phone, email or text.  I will include extended office hours and be more visible in the community. 

I will not need to rely on other elected officials to do what this office requires of me.  The township highway commissioner must be mentally and physically involved in all aspects of the department.  This includes an accurate budget assembled by the road commissioner. History indicates you the taxpayer have been overtaxed for the services needed. Reserves and fund balances exceed those required and recommended by accounting professionals. To have adequate fund balances is good planning. To have substantially large fund balances is not explainable. A popular statement by a candidate is to say "I will reduce taxes". Never has such an opportunity existed to deliver on such a promise.

I will eagerly approach each day to improve your impression of the highway department, its employees and the value you receive for the taxes you pay.   

Your consideration of me for your vote on April 4^th, is the first step in moving our highway department forward.

Wisconsin Shows Us What A Future With A Hobbled EPA Could Look Like

This State Shows Us What A Future With A Hobbled EPA Could Look Like

Hint: Our water is almost certainly not going to get cleaner.

By Joseph Erbentraut

 

In rural Kewaunee County, Wisconsin, there are about five cows for every human resident. About half of those people rely on private wells for their drinking water.

Now it looks like the cows are polluting the water.

A 2015 analysis funded by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources found that more than one-third of the private drinking wells tested had levels of nitrates and coliform that exceeded health standards. Both of those contaminants are found in cow manure.

Environmentalists argue that the county’s wealth of dairy farms are largely to blame for its water woes. The state’s powerful dairy lobby has rejected that claim, pointing to septic tanks leaking human waste as another factor.

 

Regardless, Kewaunee County residents are eager for a solution to a problem that has been many years in the making. The fact that they’re still waiting may serve as a warning about what’s to come if an already underfunded Environmental Protection Agency gets hit with budget cuts from a hostile president.

In 2011, farmer Lynn Utesch launched an advocacy group called Kewaunee CARES aimed at addressing water pollution. When its efforts failed to garner much of a response from local or state officials, the group partnered with a coalition of state and national environmental groups in 2014 to petition the EPA to intervene. 

In the two-and-a-half years since, Utesch said little has changed. While the EPA helped form a Groundwater Collaboration Workgroup and pledged further monitoring, the local water remains undrinkable, according to Utesch. He ran for the state assembly last fall in an attempt to elevate the county’s water concerns, but lost to the incumbent. 

“The citizens of Kewaunee County have not seen any real action,” Utesch said. “The EPA has not actually come into our county to help out. No state agency has provided clean drinking water. Our government is not looking out for our people here.”

The EPA participates in a Department of Natural Resources committee considering changes to Wisconsin’s manure spreading requirements and continues to review the situation, the agency told HuffPost. It is also coordinating with the state Department of Natural Resources to implement the working group’s recommendations, which include revamped enforcement procedures for non-compliant dairy farms.

But Utesch has little faith in future EPA action in Kewaunee, particularly given the drastic cuts the Trump administration has proposed for the agency.

“The way it looks right now, we might be waiting indefinitely for something to take place,” he said. “We may never see a response and that’s very disheartening to our population here. How long do we have to wait until we can have clean water for all our citizens?” 

Joshua Roberts/Reuters

Under Gov. Scott Walker’s leadership, Wisconsin’s water is dirtier than it has been in years.

Utesch appears to have even less confidence in the state Department of Natural Resources, which did not respond to a request for comment. 

“I have no faith in the state of Wisconsin to do what’s right, unfortunately,” he said. “It will take someone with the courage to stand up and say we need to fix this. I don’t see anyone at the state or federal level who can do that.”

There’s good reason for that lack of faith, environmental groups say. “Fast and furious” changes to the way Wisconsin approaches environmental issues began shortly after Republican Gov. Scott Walker took office in January 2011, according to Kerry Schumann, executive director at the state League of Conservation Voters. Almost immediately, Walker and the Republican-dominated state legislature pushed to roll back protections, including a rule aimed at limiting phosphorous runoff in state waterways, which Republicans called too costly for businesses. 

Under Walker’s leadership, Wisconsin has slashed Department of Natural Resources funding, eliminating scientist and environmental educator positions. There has also been a push to silence discussions of climate change at the agency, and all climate change language was quietly scrubbed from its website late last year. 

“At the DNR, there is a culture shift in how the work is done,” Schumann told HuffPost. “There’s been a huge exodus of experts and a change in the enforcement of laws. Even if we had the best laws in the world, it wouldn’t matter because they’re not being enforced.”

Raymond Boyd/Getty Images

Office buildings line the Milwaukee River. Environmentalists fear that cuts at the EPA could further threaten the state’s water.

Schumann’s last comment refers to a state audit released last year that found the Department of Natural Resources was mostly ignoring its water pollution rules, issuing notices against polluters in only 33 of 558 cases reported over the last decade. The state Department of Justice has also drastically shrunk its environmental protection unit at a time when fines against polluters were already at a nearly unprecedented low. 

Meanwhile, the number of Wisconsin waterways that made the EPA’s “impaired” list doubled between 2004 and 2016. 

It’s no wonder that environmentalists in Wisconsin are anxious about what might happen if their federal backstop loses funding.

“Water issues are near a crisis level in Wisconsin,” said Amber Meyer Smith, director of programs and government relations at Clean Wisconsin. “It’s been a tough few years for the environment in Wisconsin, that’s for sure.” 

Looking at the federal picture, Meyer Smith described the proposal to zero out funding for the EPA’s Great Lakes restoration initiative — a cut that Walker has said he opposes and will fight — as “stunning.” 

But groups like hers will keep fighting for the environment, regardless of what comes from the Wisconsin capitol or the White House. And she is ready to take that battle to the courts, if need be.

“At the end of the day, we still have the Clean Water Act to be upheld and the Clean Air Act to be upheld,” Meyer Smith said. “Either that happens at the EPA or there’s going to be a lot of lawsuits.”

Above is from:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/wisconsin-environmental-protections-epa_us_58d989b9e4b00f68a5c9e773

Where do you stand on the Public Safety Sales Tax Referendum?

 

22 hrs ·

Please Vote NO! April 4th on the 100% increase of the current Public Safety Sales Tax. In 1999-2000 we were sold a bill of goods if we ( the tax payers would agree to a .5% sales increase) we were told we would have a much needed state of the art public safety building. Is it fully staffed like we were promised? Is it in the black housing other prisoners from outside Boone County like we were promised?
Where did the $22 million of the levy go? Well $11,790.041 was been used so for principle and interest. Where is the other $11 million? Through a loophole, they (county board) have extended the first levy permanently. So in 2018 after the bonds are finally paid off, the county will still have us on the hook for between $1.1 million to $1.4 million a year. Now they want to increase that to $2.2 to 2.8 million every year, forever. In my opinion, without a doubt, the police, fire and the first responders should be the best staffed, the best trained and compensated. I think that should be very workable with $1.2 to $1.4 million a year. If not, then come back to the taxpayer.
I am tired of the county board trying to balance their budget on the taxpayers.
What the board really needs to focus on, in my opinion, is a truly balanced budget.
Yes, some of their buddies and pals may lose their jobs, but this is life in the real world outside of government.

Above is from:  https://www.facebook.com/greg.kelm.7/posts/1462822097093482

Trump tweets Russia probe 'hoax,' rails against Clintons

 

ADAM KELSEY,Good Morning America 1 hour 35 minutes ago

Amid ongoing questions about the involvement of his associates with Russian officials during the campaign and about the impartiality of the Republican congressman leading one of the probes into the matter, Donald Trump went on a twitter rant Monday night, calling out an old foe -- the Clintons -- and blaming conservative Republicans for his health care defeat.

In a series of tweets, Trump questioned the actions of the House Intelligence Committee, asking why it isn't conducting a probe into the former Democratic presidential nominee and her husband, former President Bill Clinton.

"Why isn't the House Intelligence Committee looking into the Bill & Hillary deal that allowed big Uranium to go to Russia, Russian speech money to Bill, the Hillary Russian "reset," praise of Russia by Hillary, or Podesta Russian Company. Trump Russia story is a hoax. #MAGA!" wrote Trump in two consecutive posts.

The tweets were not the first instance in which Trump sought to blame Hillary Clinton for a deal between Russia's nuclear power agency and a Canadian company. The non-partisan fact-checking organization Politifact has rated the claim "Mostly False," citing Hillary Clinton's "lack of power to approve or reject the deal."

Investigations into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election are being conducted in both the House and Senate Intelligence Committees. The FBI is also investigating any potential ties between Russian officials and Trump associates, a story line Trump has called "fake news."

House Intelligence Committee Chair Devin Nunes, R-Calif., who worked on Trump's transition team, is under fire for briefing the president on findings that left Trump feeling "somewhat" vindicated before mentioning that information to the committee. There were also calls for Nunes to step aside from the Russia investigation after it emerged that he met a source on the White House grounds a day before briefing Trump.

In a later tweet, Trump criticized the conservative House Freedom Caucus for its efforts preventing the passage of the American Health Care Act last week, his first major legislative test.

"The Republican House Freedom Caucus was able to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. After so many bad years they were ready for a win!" wrote Trump, running counter to his declaration Friday that he would not "speak badly about anybody within the party" and his claim that he preferred for the Affordable Care Act to remain law so that it could "implode" and "explode."

He referred to that position again Monday in an additional tweet, saying, "The Democrats will make a deal with me on healthcare as soon as ObamaCare folds - not long. Do not worry, we are in very good shape!"

Above is from:  https://www.yahoo.com/gma/trump-tweets-russia-probe-hoax-rails-against-clintons-025217819--abc-news-topstories.html

 

1. Donald J. Trump‏Verified account @realDonaldTrump 3h3 hours ago

   The Republican House Freedom Caucus was able to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. After so many bad years they were ready for a win!

    

2. Donald J. Trump‏Verified account @realDonaldTrump 3h3 hours ago

   ...money to Bill, the Hillary Russian "reset," praise of Russia by Hillary, or Podesta Russian Company. Trump Russia story is a hoax.

3. Donald J. Trump‏Verified account @realDonaldTrump 3h3 hours ago

   Why isn't the House Intelligence Committee looking into the Bill & Hillary deal that allowed big Uranium to go to Russia, Russian speech....

4. Donald J. Trump‏Verified account @realDonaldTrump Mar 26

   General Kelly is doing a great job at the border. Numbers are way down. Many are not even trying to come in anymore.

5. Donald J. Trump‏Verified account @realDonaldTrump Mar 26

   Democrats are smiling in D.C. that the Freedom Caucus, with the help of Club For Growth and Heritage, have saved Planned Parenthood & Ocare!

Republican County Party Chairman wants no elections?

 

This recent “Letter to the Editor” seems to say that unless you get the nod from Republican party powers you must be a Democrat.

 

The Boone County Journal also gave its opinion concerning the matter.

Above is from:  http://www.boonecountyjournal.com/news/2017/Boone-County-News-03-24-17.pdf

 

Independent Candidates

Republicans

Toronto schools will no longer allow student trips to US

Toronto schools will no longer allow student trips to US

By Madison Park, CNN

(CNN)Canada's largest school system announced it will no longer allow student or staff trips to the US, citing uncertainty over the travel ban.

Toronto District School Board expressed concern over how the US immigration policy could affect students on school trips.

"We strongly believe that our students should not be placed into these situations of potentially being turned away at the border," the board's director of education, John Malloy, said in a statement.

Under the travel ban, citizens from six different Muslim-majority countries may not be allowed in the US under certain circumstances. The ban affects people outside of those six countries as well, since citizens from those countries could be living elsewhere, like Canada.

Trump's new travel ban: One thing to know 01:25

The US travel ban has not taken effect after rulings by two federal judges that temporarily blocked President Donald Trump's executive order. White House press secretary Sean Spicer has said the Trump administration plans to appeal.

The ongoing predicament left the Toronto District School Board with what it called a "difficult choice."

The board decided that the 24 pre-approved trips to the US would continue, but it will not permit new ones.

"We feel it strikes a balance between our equity and inclusion commitments as a school board, while not canceling already approved trips for which a financial loss would be incurred," Malloy's statement said.

The board serves 246,000 students in 584 schools throughout Toronto.

Its decision is similar to one made earlier this month by the Girl Guides of Canada, which is a Canadian version of the Girl Scouts.

The Girl Guides had announced it would no longer authorize trips to the United States and that it would avoid connecting flights through the country.

The group had called it a "very difficult decision to make," in a notice that didn't specifically mention Trump's travel ban, but the message directly referred to the current immigration situation.

"While the United States is a frequent destination for Guiding trips, the ability of all our members to equally enter this country is currently uncertain," its statement read.

CNN's AJ Willingham contributed to this report.

Above is from:  http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/24/politics/toronto-school-us-travel-ban/index.html