Salisbury News: 07/25/17

Tuesday, July 25, 2017

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Newsroom 7-25-17

Border Patrol Agents Arrest 8, Identify 1 Sex Offender

TUCSON, Ariz. – Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents arrested eight illegal aliens Monday, northeast of Douglas, Arizona, and later learned one man in the group was previously convicted in California for engaging in sex with a minor. Photo Courtesy of...

CBP Officers Seize More Than $1 Million in Narcotics at the Laredo Port of Entry

LAREDO, Texas –U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers recently seized a significant amount of alleged cocaine, crystal methamphetamine and heroin carrying an estimated street value of more than $1,000,000 in two enforcement actions over...

Nogales K9 Team, Agents Find 1,100 Lbs of Marijuana

TUCSON, Ariz. – Nogales Station Border Patrol agents found more than 1,100 pounds of abandoned marijuana Monday morning worth in excess of $550,000. Agents seized 24 bundles ofmarijuana that was hiddenbeneath brush in the areaA Border Patrol canine...

Ajo Border Patrol Agents Seize Drugs, Weapon

TUCSON, Ariz. – Border Patrol agents from Tucson Sector’s Ajo Station stopped a vehicle Monday evening, near Why, Arizona, to conduct an immigration inspection and found three adult males with more than 260 pounds of marijuana and a .40-caliber...

Sean Hannity Exposes Democratic Plan To Overthrow Trump, Army Colonel Confirms Plan, Elite Panic

American Heroes Week 2017: Honoring those who answer the call of duty

REP. ANDY HARRIS, M.D. (R-MD)This week, our nation comes together to honor America’s heroes: our military, police force, firefighters, first responders, and medical professionals. These heroes volunteer to stand on America’s front lines in times of crisis, and sacrifice their time, their energy, and sometimes their lives for the well-being of others. The men and women we honor this week did not enter their professions seeking glory or gratitude – they did so because they each answered the call of duty to serve their communities.

Our nation’s first responders and medical professionals make countless personal sacrifices for the good of the nation. They spend holidays and birthdays in ambulances, emergency rooms, and operating rooms. They miss time with their own spouses and children for the sake of keeping their fellow Americans safe and healthy. As teenagers, they accept the burden of costly student loans and spend years in graduate school on the premise that someday they’ll be prepared to save lives.

Most Americans don’t know the names of the doctors and nurses who delivered them as babies, or set their broken arms when they were in elementary school. Most car accident survivors can’t name the first responders who unclipped their seat belts and stabilized them during the ambulance rides to the hospital. But these encounters deeply impact patients, and shape the way they treat others in the future. As Americans, we embrace the care and kindness of strangers, and pay it forward wherever we can.

Too many of our heroes’ individual sacrifices go unacknowledged each day, which is why I stand with President Trump this week to thank these heroes for their unrelenting service. To the men and women sacrificing so much of themselves for the good of others: your actions matter more than you know, and we will continue to fight for you in Washington.
Source

THE REPUBLIC OF EMOTION

A compromise on illegal gun possession in Baltimore: Treat minimum sentences like an emergency public health measure

By Nate Loewentheil
For MarylandReporter.com

Last week I was at a vigil for a young man named MJ in the Cherry Hill neighborhood of Baltimore. A few days earlier, he had been shot 15 times after leaving a pool party.

His girlfriend organized the vigil. For the first hour, she was calm and collected. Then her two-year old son – MJ’s son – started crying, and her grief burst forth. Between tears and cries and shouts of anger, she blamed the streets that had taken her son’s father and begged the crowd to put the guns down.

I was asked to say a few words but was speechless; I have never lost a family member to gun violence and could do no more than offer my prayers and a long hug. At the end of the service, 150 people released balloons with MJ’s name into the darkening summer sky.

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Why Did the Democratic South Become Republican?

Dolphin-spotting: the next big Chesapeake pastime?

Dolphins might be more common and wide-ranging in the Chesapeake Bay than once thought, if recent reports from citizen spotters are any indication.

Since a Chesapeake Dolphin Watch website launched at the end of June, 1,200 people have signed up and reported more than 500 dolphin sightings, often of 10 or more of the mammals at once.

“We knew anecdotally that dolphins were seen in the Chesapeake, but I still wasn’t anticipating anything like the number of sightings we’ve seen reported,” said Helen Bailey, a research associate professor at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science’s Chesapeake Biological Laboratory who helped to launch the website. “It’s just been incredible.”

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Kreskin offers to OJ to clear the air!

It’s appropriate today that I reintroduce the offer and challenge that I made OJ Simpson in 1999, regarding the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole and Ron Goldman. In the past 24 hours, interest and reference to the most covered murder trial in US history has been re-awakened for obvious reasons.

In 1999 I sent a letter, delivered to Simpson’s attorney, Johnny Cochran. In essence my challenge to Simpson was “Walk with me, talk with me, and I’ll reveal who murdered your ex-wife, Nicole”.

This was not a frivolous scenario. It’s been forgotten that in 1995, OJ had the “generous” nerve to offer a reward for information leading to his ex-wife’s killer! Believe it or not, no one came through with any offer. As a result of this, I made a challenge to OJ to help him “prove your innocence or for that matter your guilt”.

Neither Simpson nor Cochran responded. “OJ let’s clear the air once and for all…accept my offer”.

-The Amazing Kreskin

4-year-old boy can't contain emotion during stepmom's heartfelt wedding vows

Two U.S. service members tied the knot over the weekend, but it was the groom's 4-year-old son who stole the show.

Emily Leehan, a senior airman in the Air Force, stood at the altar at Quincy Cellars in New York on Saturday to marry Marine Sgt. Joshua Newville and recited separate vows to his son Gage.

As she shared her meaningful words, her soon-to-be stepson became overwhelmed with emotion, welled up with tears and embraced her.

"When she started reciting the vows, that's when the emotion took over and he lost it," Newville told ABC News. "The whole day was pretty emotional, so I was just trying to keep myself together and keep him together."

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Alarming animated map shows how Oklahoma and its neighboring states have been hit by frequent earthquakes since fracking began in 2009

The state of Oklahoma is being pummeled by a rash of earthquakes with increasing frequency and scientists at The United States Geological Survey say that fracking techniques may be to blame.

Last year, Oklahoma tied its own record for the strongest earthquake ever recorded when a 5.6 magnitude tremor hit the northern part of the state at 7.02am on September 3, 2016, according to Forbes.

The previous 5.6 magnitude quake occurred near the town of Prague on Nov. 5 2011.

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WCSO Press Release - July 25, 2017

Incident: Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol
Date of Incident: 25 July 2017
Location: South Salisbury Boulevard, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Eric Spriggs Halton, 21, Hockessin, DE and Salisbury, MD
Narrative: On 25 July 2017 at 2:32 AM, a deputy was on patrol on South Salisbury Boulevard when the deputy’s patrol car was almost struck by a vehicle that was later found to be operated by Eric Halton. Halton entered onto South Salisbury Boulevard from Milford Street without yielding for the deputy. The deputy attempted to stop Halton who then took off while swerving on South Salisbury Boulevard before turning up Bateman Street where he jumped the curb and collided with the “Do Not Enter- One Way” sign and headed in the wrong direction attempting to elude the deputy. The pursuit culminated when Halton turned onto the property of James M. Bennett High School on College Avenue and crashed through a fence, at which point Halton then jumped out and attempted to flee the deputy on foot.
Halton was ultimately located and placed under arrest at which time the deputy detected a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage.
Halton was subsequently arrested and transported for further processing during which he provided a breath sample of .12. Halton was released upon the issuance of citations pending a future court date.
Charges: Attempt to Flee and Elude, Attempt by Driver to Flee Police by Fleeing on Foot, Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol Per Se, Driving While Impaired by Alcohol, Failure to Remain at the Scene of a Property Damage Accident, Failure to Obey a traffic Control Device, Negligent Driving, Reckless Driving, Failure to Stop for a Stop Sign, Failure to Drive Right of Center Driving Wrong Way on a One-Way Street, Unsafe lane Changing, Failure to Control Speed to Avoid a Collision, Driving Vehicle on a Sidewalk, Driver Failure to Yield the Right of Way at an Intersection Yield Sign

WCSO: FRAUD ALERT

FRAUD ALERT!
The Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office is issuing this Alert to remind our residents of some two recent scams that have been perpetrated here.

In the first incident, a county resident was contacted by someone she believed was her granddaughter who stated that she had been arrested out of state and needed bail money. The victim in this case made arrangements to send money electronically via a pre-paid gift card in the amount of $2,000.00 per the instructions she was provided. The victim later discovered that her granddaughter had not been arrested and then contacted the Sheriff’s Office to report the incident. The phone number used in this case comes back to Western Canada and attempts to reach anyone at this number have been unsuccessful.

In the second incident, a county resident was contacted after she offered an item for sale on-line. The would buyer made arrangements to purchase the item and then sent a check with an overage of almost one thousand dollars. The victim in this case was instructed to cash the entire check while keeping a little extra and sending the balance back to the buyer via an electronic wire transfer. After doing just this, the seller learned that the check was bogus and not only was she out the original item that she shipped (to what would be discovered to also be a bogus address), but is also out the additional money she sent to this scammer. During the investigation of this case, the investigating deputy attempted to contact the telephone number provided in this case and was able to reach a male subject who spoke broken English. When this subject learned he was speaking to a deputy, this subject replied “EXPLETIVE You” and hung up.

We would like to remind our residents to be cognizant of these types of activities. Please be very careful and selective when sending money because these crimes are very difficult to solve and it is believed many are originating from outside the country.

WCSO: BURGLARY INVESTIGATION IN PITTSVILLE

On 24 July 2017 at 7:30 PM, a deputy responded to a residence in the 34000 block of Railroad Avenue in Pittsville, MD for the report of a burglary. Upon arrival, the deputy learned that a red
Troy-Bilt Mower had been stolen out of a shed.

This investigation is on-going. Anyone with information pertaining to this crime is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at 410-548-4891 or Crime Solvers at 410-548-1776.

Please reference Pittsville and case number 17-2530.

SEE IT: Florida driver streams on Facebook Live, drinks whiskey as cops chase him

A Florida man led police on a high-speed chase along a stretch of beach while he swigged whiskey and broadcast the pursuit on Facebook Live.

Ryan Stiles was arrested Thursday after a nine-minute police chase that ended on an island in Clearwater, Florida.

The 27-year-old Pinellas Park resident drove along a popular beach on a thin strip of land in Clearwater, taking out several beach chairs in the process.

“We were extremely fortunate that we didn’t lose any officers, nor did we lose any civilians,” Clearwater Deputy Police Chief Donald Hall said at a news conference Thursday.

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Forbes: 73% of CBO's 'Lost Coverage' Estimate Is From Repeal of Individual Mandate

Forbes' opinion editor Avik Roy is shredding the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office's evaluation of the Republican healthcare bill.

His comments come in a column for Forbes analyzing the CBO reports on the GOP bill.

"If you've read a newspaper or watched cable news in the last month, you've probably seen someone say that the Senate GOP healthcare bill would kick 22 million Americans off of their health insurance," he said. "But it's not true.

"For years, the CBO has been convinced — despite real-world experience to the contrary— that Obamacare's individual mandate is the biggest reason why that law has increased the number of Americans with health insurance."

He added: "The idea that America should be forced by the government to buy a private product, merely for the offense of being alive, is seen by all conservatives as a constitutional injury.

"And there's a more fundamental question: if Obamacare's insurance is so wonderful, why do millions of Americans need to be forced to buy it? By definition, you haven't been 'kicked off' your insurance if the only reason you're no longer buying it, is that the government has stopped fining you."

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Kid Rock Tweets Out First Campaign Message

When Donald Trump put Michigan in the GOP column in last November’s election, Democrats sat up and took notice. It was the first time that the state had gone red since 1988, and it signaled a new capacity for the GOP to reach working class voters.

Robert James Ritchie — the Detroit musician known as Kid Rock — hopes to capture some of that magic in the race for the Michigan Senate seat held by Democrat Debbie Stabenow. On Monday, he made it official that he was running with a tweet directing supporters to his new website, kidrockforsenate.com.

“I believe if you work your butt off and pay taxes, you should be able to easily understand and navigate the laws, tax codes, health care and anything else the government puts in place that affects us all,” the message read.

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Cans of Bush's baked beans are being recalled

Bush Brothers & Company is voluntarily recalling some of its products, affiliate WSET reported.

The company said is a statement that the recall is due to some of their baked bean cans having defective side seams.

These side seam defects may affect can integrity and may cause the cans to leak or allow for harmful bacteria to grow inside the product, the company said.

The recall includes 28 ounce cans of Brown Sugar Hickory Baked Beans, Country Style Baked Beans and Original Baked Beans.

These products were distributed nationwide in retail stores.

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Federal alien-smuggling charge filed in San Antonio against driver of tractor-trailer when 10 died after smuggling trip

SAN ANTONIO — A tractor-trailer driver was charged Monday with one count of transporting illegal aliens, after 10 aliens died when they were smuggled in his truck on Sunday.

This charge was announced by U.S. Attorney Richard L. Durbin Jr., Western District of Texas, and U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Shane Folden.

A federal complaint filed July 24 alleges that James Matthew Bradley Jr., 60, unlawfully transported aliens in violation of law resulting in the death of 10 of the aliens transported. The tenth alien, an adult male, died overnight at a hospital. Upon conviction, the offense is punishable by life imprisonment or death, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.

According to the complaint affidavit filed by HSI Special Agent James Lara, San Antonio Police Department (SAPD) officers responded to a call at the Wal-Mart store located at 8538 Interstate 25 Access Road in San Antonio shortly after midnight on Sunday, July 23. An officer encountered a tractor trailer behind the store, and found a number of people standing and lying in the rear of the trailer; and the driver, Bradley, was in the cab. Bradley said he was transporting the trailer from Schaller, Iowa, to Brownsville, Texas. He denied knowing there were people in the trailer, and discovered them only when he exited the vehicle to relieve himself. He said he attempted to administer aid to them. SAPD officers reported they found eight deceased persons and 30 to 40 others, all illegal aliens. The driver, Bradley, was taken into custody.

Policing For Profit: Jeff Sessions' Thinly Veiled Plot To Rob Us Blind

“Laws are no longer made by a rational process of public discussion; they are made by a process of blackmail and intimidation, and they are executed in the same manner.” - H.L. Mencken

Let’s not mince words.

Jeff Sessions, the nation’s top law enforcement official, would not recognize the Constitution if he ran right smack into it.

Whether the head of the Trump Administration’s Justice Department enjoys being the architect of a police state or is just painfully, criminally clueless, Sessions has done a great job thus far of sidestepping the Constitution at every turn.

Most recently, under the guise of “fighting crime,” Sessions gave police the green light to rob, pilfer, steal, thieve, swipe, purloin, filch and liberate American taxpayers of even more of their hard-earned valuables (especially if it happens to be significant amounts of cash) using any means, fair or foul.

In this case, the foul method favored by Sessions & Co. is civil asset forfeiture, which allows police and prosecutors to “seize your car or other property, sell it and use the proceeds to fund agency budgets—all without so much as charging you with a crime.”

Under a federal equitable sharing program, police turn asset forfeiture cases over to federal agents who process seizures and then return 80% of the proceeds to the police. (In Michigan, police actually get to keep up to 100% of forfeited property.)

This incentive-driven excuse for stealing from the citizenry is more accurately referred to as “policing for profit” or “theft by cop.”

Despite the fact that 80 percent of these asset forfeiture cases result in no charge against the property owner, challenging these “takings” in court can cost the owner more than the value of the confiscated property itself. As a result, most property owners either give up the fight or chalk the confiscation up to government corruption, leaving the police and other government officials to reap the benefits.

And boy, do they reap the benefits.

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Breaking News: The G.O.P. health effort narrowly advanced after Vice President Mike Pence broke a Senate tie

The Senate narrowly voted on Tuesday to begin debate on a bill to repeal major provisions of the Affordable Care Act, taking a pivotal step forward after the dramatic return of Senator John McCain, who cast a crucial vote despite his diagnosis of brain cancer.

Wicomico County Road Paving Set to Begin

Wicomico County has budgeted $4.5 Million for repaving County roads in fiscal year 2018 (July 1 - June 30), a $500,000 increase over last year's budget. This year's repaving includes 54 miles of tar & chip surface treatment, 41 miles of slurry seal surface treatment, and 24 miles of hot mix asphalt pavement for a total of 119 miles. The list of roads in this year's schedule, as well as a description of the various surface treatments, can be found on the Wicomico County Public Works website at http://www.wicomicocounty.org/631/Road-Repair. As a rule of thumb, the type of surface treatment a road receives is based on the volume of traffic on the road. The majority of the work will begin in the fall. Roads Division crews will be out between now and then stabilizing shoulders, rehabilitating ditches, and replacing cross road pipes in preparation for the repaving activities.

Please contact the Public Works Roads Division at 410-548-4872 with any questions.

Report: Obama Holdovers Slow-Roll Release of Clinton Emails

Officials from the State and Justice Departments argue a hiring freeze and lack of public interest are responsible for its inability to process and release the 100,000 Hillary Clinton emails as ordered under a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, according to a report.

A U.S. official familiar with the case told Circa “there are still holdovers” within the State and Justice Departments who don’t want to see the emails released, and are slow-rolling the process. But the report also said the president’s own Justice Department attorneys are citing “diminished public interest” in the emails, and that the president should demand the agencies abide.

According to Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton, the FBI turned over to the State Department a new disk of emails belonging to Clinton aide Huma Abedin that were discovered on a laptop owned by her husband, Anthony Weiner.

State and Justice Department lawyers say they can’t release them until they judge whether they are personal or government, and can be shared publicly. Fitton said there are apparently 7,000 emails on the laptop.

“President Trump needs to direct his agencies to follow the the law but right now they are making a mockery of it by saying they won’t finish releasing it until 2020,” he said.

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Dead Shark Washes Up On Ocean City Beach

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — A surprise for some beach goers in Ocean City on Monday when a large shark washes up on the shore.

Our media partner The Baltimore Sun obtained video showing lifeguards pulling the dead six-foot-long shark from the water near 120th street.

The Sun reports the shark was already dead when it wash up on the beach, according to town officials.

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Trump’s voter commission to proceed

A federal judge on Monday rejected complaints that President Trump’s voter integrity commission was breaking the law by requesting and storing states’ voter data, saying that as long as the panel is just advisory it doesn’t need to meet strict standards that would apply to government agencies.

The ruling was highly technical, but it clears the way for the commission to once again begin collecting data from willing states.

Commission Vice Chairman Kris W. Kobach welcomed the ruling and told The Washington Times that they’ll soon reach out to states to renew their request for information, which he had put on hold while the judge was deciding.

“Several states have already said they’re standing by, ready to send in the publicly available voter rolls,” Mr. Kobach said.

Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said that if the commission had continued to use an Army website to collect the information, as it originally envisioned, it might have run afoul of privacy laws. But because the commission switched gears and now plans to use a White House server, it escapes scrutiny, the judge said.

Established by Mr. Trump to investigate voter fraud and barriers to voting that may have affected last year’s election, the commission has been controversial. Democrats have said there is no widespread evidence of fraud, and say an investigation is a waste of time and likely to be tainted by Mr. Trump.

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Kudlow: Democrat Plan for Government-Run Healthcare a 'Disaster'

Larry Kudlow, the economist and former adviser to President Ronald Reagan, said the economic agenda spearheaded by Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., will be a "disaster," if Medicaid is any guide.

“A government plan is not going to work. Medicaid, which is a disaster and has spiraled out of control and has expanded and expanded and expanded with no eligibility requirements anymore – that’s the perfect example,” Kudlow said on CNBC. “If you want a Democratic program that is going to be government-run, single payer – take a look at Medicaid, which has been a disaster.”

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Trump: Why isn’t AG Jeff Sessions investigating Hillary’s Russia ties?

President Trump’s questioned why “beleaguered” Attorney General Jeff Sessions isn’t investigating ties between Russia and the campaign of his former opponent, Hillary Clinton - continuing attacks on the head of the Justice Department.

“So why aren’t the Committees and investigators, and of course our beleaguered A.G., looking into Crooked Hillarys crimes & Russia relations?” Mr. Trump tweeted Monday morning.

The comment comes after Mr. Trump criticized Mr. Sessions in an interview last week with The New York Times for his decision to recuse himself from the DOJ’s probe of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

“So many people are asking why isn’t the A.G. or Special Council looking at the many Hillary Clinton or Comey crimes. 33,000 e-mails deleted?” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

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Fox Host Pokes Fun at Democrat for ‘Better Deal’ Slogan Sounding Like Papa John’s

Fox News host Steve Doocy poked fun on Monday at Democrats' new slogan, "better jobs, better wages, better future," which some have been comparing to the slogan of Papa John's pizza restaurants.

Rep. David Cicilline (D., R.I.) spoke with Doocy about the new slogan to promote congressional Democrats' economic agenda that has been the subject of mockery on the Internet.

"Before you go, though, I know you were in on the new slogan, ‘better jobs, better wages, better future.' You realize online people are saying, ‘You know that sounds an awful lot like the Papa John's commercial..'

"You know that, right?" Doocy asked.

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OC: Five Held After Gunpoint Robbery

OCEAN CITY — Five Washington, D.C. area residents were arrested on first-degree assault and other serious charges early Monday morning after a verbal altercation downtown turned physical and resulted in at least one victim being “pistol whipped” and robbed at gunpoint.

Around 2:40 a.m. on Monday, Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officers were dispatched to the area of 2nd Street and St. Louis Avenue for a reported assault. The investigation revealed two groups of people had been involved in a verbal altercation that escalated into a physical altercation. Members of one group assaulted a victim and stole their cell phone, while another victim was struck in the head with a handgun.

The assaulting group then left the area in a vehicle. Through the investigation, OCPD officers were able to locate the vehicle and it was stopped on Route 50 near the Wal-Mart shopping complex. During a search of the vehicle, officers located the stolen cell phone and a 9mm handgun.

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MN test results show school-issued computers, iPads not improving student learning

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Despite millions spent on computers for students in Minnesota schools, the technology isn’t improving student test scores and some are questioning whether they’re more trouble than they’re worth.

The Pioneer Press analyzed test results from numerous Twin Cities school districts that have issued laptops or tablets to students and found there’s little in the way of academic improvement to show for it.

According to the news site:

Last school year, east metro districts spent more than $17 million on student technology.

The biggest bills were in the largest districts. St. Paul spent $9 million, and Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan spent about $2.7 million. Smaller districts where students share devices had significantly lower bills, such as the $250,000 student technology budget in the North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale district.

Meanwhile, student scores on the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments, or MCAs, which are given each year in English, mathematics and science, have largely remained stagnant.

The test results also showed that the school issued computers have made little to no impact on closing the achievement gap between white and minority students. In many school districts, officials justify the purchase of computers for all students as a civil rights issue – a way to balance the alleged advantages of more affluent students with their low income peers who do not have devices at home.

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U.S. Agency Promoting Trade With Iran Despite Trump Opposition

Trump agencies continue to pursue policies created by Obama administration

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is promoting increased trade with Iran, despite clear opposition to this policy by the Trump White House, according to multiple sources who described the agency's behavior as rogue and part of a lingering effort by the former Obama administration to promote international trade with the Islamic Republic.

A July report released by USDA praises the Obama administration's efforts to open trade with Iran following the landmark nuclear agreement that dropped major sanctions on the Islamic Republic. The report contradicts White House policy on Iran, which has taken an increasingly hardline against increased relations with Iran under President Donald Trump.

The report is being viewed by administration insiders and regional experts as the product of efforts by the former Obama administration to promote positive propaganda about Iran in a bid to boost support for the Iran deal.

These sources viewed the report as a sign that Trump administration agencies, including USDA and even the State Department, are taking increasingly rogue action contradicting official White House policy on a range of key issues.

"White House National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster should call his office," according to Michael Rubin, a former Pentagon adviser and expert on rogue regimes. "A key component of his job—and one that his predecessors let slide—is to coordinate policy across departments. Alas, it seems that the USDA wants to pursue an independent foreign policy, one that is detrimental to broader U.S. national interests."

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Study: Concealed Permit Holders Among the Most Law-Abiding of Law-Abiding Citizens

A Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) study shows that concealed carry permit holders are among the most law-abiding of law-abiding citizens in the country.

For example, for 2016 the study shows that just .0092% of Louisiana permit holders were charged with a felony in 2016. And in 2015 there “were 25,208 violent crimes in Louisiana, with 19 felony charges or convictions against permit holders.” Assuming the felonies were violent and the charges against permit holders stand, this still means permit holders only represent .08% of those who committed violent crimes.

Moreover, “the vast majority of … [cases involving concealed permit holders] are unlikely to involve firearms.”

According to CPRC, the percentage of Michigan concealed permit holders convicted of aggravated assault in 2015-2016 was .003%. The percentage of Michigan permit holders convicted of aggravated assaults in 2014-2015 was .002%

Shifting to Minnesota, the percentage of concealed permit holders convicted of assault in 2016 was .000%, the percentage convicted in 2015 was .000%, and the percentage in 2014 was .000%.

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House Minority Leader Nic Kipke gets stitches after dog attack in Pasadena

House Minority Leader Nic Kipke is at home recovering after a dog attack that sent him to the hospital for stitches.

In a Facebook post Saturday, Kipke, R-Pasadena, said he was attacked by an unleashed pit bull Friday night while out on a walk with his wife, Susannah Kipke, 2-year-old son James and the family's miniature poodle, Tucker.

"Tucker and I got some really nasty wounds but we are both stitched up and resting — right now I'm watching cartoons with James who is offering me sips of his water," he wrote. "The rest of the family were really traumatized but not injured — thank God!"

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40 Things You Shouldn't Do When You're Broke

No one wants to be broke. It’s stressful, uncomfortable, and counterproductive to achieving your financial goals. While there may be some things outside of your control, like whether your boss is willing to give you a raise, there are some things you can control.

You can unknowingly prolong your financial lull by continuing to make bad financial decisions, i.e. spending money when you should instead be cutting back your spending.

You may try to justify certain purchases, rationalizing that you “need” it or that life will be too uncomfortable without it. But, more often than not, you’ll be just fine without those extra purchases. Check out a list of things you shouldn’t do when you’re broke.

Take out a loan for a new car, or for any other reason. If you’re broke, you can’t afford another monthly payment and that’s exactly what you’re adding to your plate when you take out a loan.

Go on an expensive vacation. You’re broke, you can’t afford a vacation. If you have money saved up for a vacation, there’s probably something more pressing you could spend that money on—like past due bills or car repairs, for example.

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Virginia fairground becomes a makeshift hospital

President Trump has been urged to visit a country fairground in Virginia which has become a makeshift hospital to deal with the US health care crisis.

As Republican officials continue to grumble over Obamacare, the reality on the ground is stark - people camping overnight to be first in line for free treatment at a pop-up outdoor medical center.

Hundreds of desperate patients, some in their 90s, traveled miles to be seen to by doctors who used animal stalls, articulated lorries and barns to carry out examinations and treatment.

Pictures show rows of people lying in beds being treated by doctors walking on dirty tarmac and it was described by one charity worker as a scene that might be expected in countries such as Sudan.

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Trump Criticizes Senate GOP For Not Doing 'Their Job' In Health Care Fight

(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump was critical of Senate Republicans for their work -- or lack thereof -- on health care reform during remarks at the White House on Monday.

"So far Senate Republicans have not done their job in ending the Obamacare nightmare. They now have a chance, however, to hopefully, hopefully fix what has been so badly broken for such a long time. And that is through replacement of a horrible disaster known as Obamacare," Trump said Monday.

"Any senator who votes against starting debate is telling America that you are fine with the Obamacare nightmare, which is what it is," he said while standing in front of a group of Americans the White House referred to as "victims of Obamacare."

"For Senate Republicans, this is their chance to keep their promise," he added

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FBI Seized Crushed Hard Drives From Home Of Wasserman-Schultz' IT Aide

Over the past few months, the story of the Awan brothers has been largely ignored by mainstream media. However, the Pakistani-born brothers Abid, Imran, and Jamal Awan are at the center of a criminal investigation by U.S. Capital Hill Police and the FBI. While official charges have not yet been filed, allegations of wrong doing vary from simply overcharging taxpayers for congressional IT equipment to blackmailing members of Congress with secrets captured from emails.

The Awan brothers were Pakistani IT specialists, whom worked for more than 30 house and senate democrats, as well as Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. The substantial scandal has raised questions about who may have been passed data which the Awans had access to, given Pakistan's history of collaborating with a number of foreign countries who have demonstrated past willingness to influence U.S. politics.

Now, per an exclusive report from the Daily Caller, we learn that the twisted plot surrounding the Awan brothers has grown even more interesting as FBI agents have reportedly seized a number of "smashed hard drives" and other computer equipment from their former residence in Virginia.

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DOBBS: Time to Fire Mueller, Purge DOJ, Investigate DC Swamp as Promised

Massive conflicts of interest infesting runaway Russia investigation

Lou Dobbs and guest Gregg Jarrett urged President Trump to take aggressive counter-measures in the midst of a witch hunt that seems to be spiraling out of control with rogue investigators unrestrained by a flailing DOJ under Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

“I personally believe it’s time for President Trump to get rid of [Deputy AG Rod] Rosenstein, and get rid of [special investigator Robert] Mueller, clear out the Obama leftovers in the Department of Justice, and appoint officials to investigate the real corruption and toxic collusion in the D.C. swamp,” declared Dobbs during his monologue. “As Deputy AG Rosenstein said, ‘It’s time to do the right thing’ – it’s past time.”

Dobbs, who has been a staunch supporter of the president throughout his candidacy and first six months in office, denounced the blatant conflicts of interest infesting the ‘Trump-Russia election collusion’ conspiracy theory being investigated by Mueller and his team of Democrat operatives, noting, “Nearly half of them gave money to Hillary Clinton or to President Obama.”

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BLM leader quits post as ‘chief human capital officer’ for Baltimore schools

BALTIMORE – Black Lives Matter activist DeRay Mckesson is quitting his day job as a Baltimore city schools administrator to focus full-time on agitating.

“For the past year, I’ve been the Chief Human Capital Officer for @BaltCitySchools,” Mckesson posted to Twitter last week. “I’m leaving this month. It’s been an incredible year.”

Baltimore city schools CEO Sonja Santelises hired Mckesson as an interim chief human capital officer last year, prompting criticism from some and praise from others. Mckesson previously worked as a school administrator in Minneapolis schools before leaving the profession to protest against alleged police brutality against blacks in Ferguson, Missouri and Baltimore, according to the Baltimore Sun.

Throughout his time in Baltimore schools, Santelises continuously defended Mckesson, whom she tasked with overseeing a $4 million budget and 56 employees.

She continued to heap praise on the social justice warrior when she announced that Mckesson will be leaving the district by the month’s end.

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Visualizing America's Wealth Inequality (From The Sky Above Baltimore)

Earlier this year, JPM’s Racial Wealth Divide Initiative desk released an interesting report titled “The Racial Wealth Divide in Baltimore”. The report highlights the ever so growing wealth inequality that is spreading throughout America’s inner cities, and takes a dive into Baltimore City, Maryland.

If you’ve ever been to Baltimore City, Maryland, there are benches across the entire town that read ‘the greatest city in America’. This is a half truth, because at one point this was true, but not so much today with population hitting a 100-year low according to latest data from the U.S. Census.

Decades of deindustrialization and 50-years of democrat controlled leadership has certainly contributed to Baltimore’s demise.Think of Baltimore as a Hunger Game Society with the ‘Capital’ being the water front and the ‘Districts’ the so called ghettos. The ‘Capital’ is ever-so expanding, but the ‘Districts’ or the ghettos are shrinking. There are nearly 46,800 vacant row homes in the ghettos, where the homicide rate is 2x of Chicago’s…

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Microchip implants: ‘The next evolution in payment systems’

Roughly 50 employees at Wisconsin-based Three Square Market (32M) will soon have microchips embedded between their thumb and forefinger.

Opening doors, logging in to computers, and paying for food in the 32M break room will now be handled by encrypted technology the size of a grain of rice. CEO Todd Westby says all of his River Falls staff will have the opportunity to have devices implanted under their skin starting Aug. 1.

“It’s the next thing that’s inevitably going to happen, and we want to be a part of it,” Mr. Westby told a local ABC affiliate on Monday.

The company claims that it is the first in the nation to offer its staff such a deal, which is valued at $300.

“Eventually, this technology will become standardized allowing you to use this as your passport, public transit, all purchasing opportunities, etc.,” the company said in a press release, Fox News reported. “We see chip technology as the next evolution in payment systems, much like micro markets have steadily replaced vending machines.”

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Assateague Horse’s Death Linked To Dog Food Ingestion

ASSATEAGUE — Assateague Island officials are again reminding visitors not to feed the barrier island’s famed horses and to carefully cover up all food after a mare died last week from ingesting a large amount of dog food.

Last Thursday, the seven-year-old mare Chama Wingapo was found dead in the campground at the Assateague Island National Seashore (AINS). There was no sign of visible external injuries, but further investigation revealed Chama Wingapo had ingested a large amount of dog food as early as last Wednesday. Incidentally, Chama Wingapo was one of five mares to birth a foal during the island’s baby boom last summer.

It was determined the large amount of dog food caused an impaction, or blockage, resulting in a rupture of the intestine. Chama Wingapo’s tragic passing resulted in AINS officials this week to reiterate the importance of carefully storing human and pet food from the island’s wild horses and other wildlife. The horses are familiar sites around the populated areas of the barrier island and interact with humans, often raiding picnic baskets and coolers sometimes with deadly results as evidenced by the mare sudden death last week.

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40,000 Boy Scouts Chant "WE LOVE TRUMP!" After Trump Rips OBAMA

Rand Paul Grateful for Trump: "Everyday I wake up and say, 'It could have been Hillary'"

‘We could be at war in the Middle East because Hillary Clinton wanted to go to war everywhere’

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul may have some issues with President Donald Trump, but at least it’s not President Hillary.

The former Republican presidential candidate said he’s grateful every morning we’re not under Hillary’s rule, which would likely have resulted in “war everywhere,” including against American businesses.

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Washington D.C. Is Essentially Just A Gigantic Money Machine

If you have ever wondered why our leaders in Washington D.C. seem to act so strangely, the truth is that it almost always comes down to just one thing. It has been said that “money makes the world go round”, and that is definitely true in Washington. This year the federal government will spend more than 4 trillion dollars, and that represents well over one-fifth of our national GDP. With so much money coming in and so much money going out, the stakes are incredibly high, and that is why so much money is poured into political campaigns on the national level.

And it shouldn’t surprise anyone that those that live the closest to this gigantic money machine have benefited greatly. Forbes just released their brand new rankings for 2017, and they found that five out of the top 10 wealthiest counties in the entire country are suburbs of Washington D.C.…

Virginia’s Loudoun County holds the title of the nation’s richest county with a median household income of $125,900. While nearly 10,000 residents commute to the District, according to Forbes, about 11,700 businesses employ 161,000 county residents, with Dulles International Airport, Loudoun County Public Schools and the Department of Homeland Security leading that charge.

The nearby city of Falls Church, Fairfax and Arlington counties in Virginia and Howard County in Maryland also lead the nation based on wealth.

In general, salaries for federal workers are significantly higher than in the private sector, and benefit packages are usually much better.

But in addition to having a very high concentration of federal workers, the D.C. area is also home to hordes of lawyers, lobbyists, defense contractors and other government vendors. Big government means big business for those guys, and business has been very good in recent years…

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USSSA Eastern World Series Week 3 Schedule Released

The schedule has been released for the third leg of the USSSA Eastern World Series. The schedule, bracket and results can be found online athttp://bit.ly/2v0LyQ9.

Week 3 of the series brings more than 150 teams to Delmarva, and the competition will run from July 24-29.

The opening ceremony for Week 3 of the series will be held at the Caroline Street Stage in Ocean City this afternoon at 4 p.m. Media is welcome to attend. Tournament play begins on Tuesday.

Postnatal depression patients may have difficult children

Mothers with postnatal depression are more likely to have difficult children, new research reveals.

Sufferers of the mental health condition who are insensitive towards their children are more likely to have youngsters with difficult temperaments, a study found.

Researchers believe mothers who respond to their children's needs, even if they are battling depression, teach their youngsters how to regulate negative emotions.

Families with effective communication where everyone is involved in raising the children may also aid infant's self-regulation, they found.

Lead author Dr Stephanie Parade from Brown University, said: 'Maternal postpartum depression was only associated with persistently difficult infant temperament. This work underscores the importance of supporting families in the postpartum period.'

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PASTOR: SENIOR REPUBLICAN TOLD ME OF PLAN TO ‘TAKE OUT’ TRUMP

"You can read between the lines"

An evangelical pastor claims he met with a senior Republican Congressman who told him of a plot to “remove Trump suddenly from office”.

During an appearance on Revival Ministries International, Rodney Howard-Browne said he spent three hours “from 9:30 in the evening until 12:30am with one of the senior ranking members of Congress”.

The pastor said he related the same story on the CBN network but “they cut it out” and that he had decided “to go public with this because we have to.”

“He said there is a plot on Capitol Hill to take the president out, I said you mean by impeachment or by indictment – he said no, to take him out, he will be removed suddenly from office,” said Howard-Browne, before adding, “you can read between the lines”.

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DOJ Fails to Respond to Criminal Referrals of Planned Parenthood

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has yet to respond to letters from the chairs of congressional committees that made criminal referrals regarding allegations that Planned Parenthood and its partners in the biomedical procurement industry profited from the sale of the body parts of aborted babies.

In a stunning contrast, however, the DOJ has indicted 15 individuals for illegally trafficking the body parts of eagles and other migratory birds.

In April, following a two-year undercover operation known as Project Dakota Flyer, the U.S. Attorney’s office in South Dakota announced the indictments of 15 individuals for illegally trafficking eagle body parts.

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Nearing 400, homicides in Chicago continue to outpace last year

At least six people were killed and 35 others were wounded in weekend violence in Chicago as the number of homicides continues to outpace last year.

There have been at least 391 homicides this year, four more than last year when violence reached levels not seen in two decades, according to data kept by the Tribune.

The number of people shot, however, is down from last year: 2,112 compared to 2,337.

The first homicide of the weekend occurred Friday night when 23-year-old Brendon Frazier was killed in the 8800 block of South Eggleston Avenue, the South Side block where he lived.

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Cop who shot dead Justine Damond offers condolences

The partner of a Minneapolis cop who shot dead bride-to-be Justine Damond was 'stunned' when the officer opened fire through a squad car door, sources say.

Officer Matthew Harrity, who was in the driving seat, was speaking to Damond after she called 911 to report a sexual assault occurring near her home, when his partner reached across him and fatally shot her in the abdomen.

A police source told KARE11 that Harrity was 'left stunned' by officer Mohamed Noor's actions.

The revelation makes the motive for shooting all the more mysterious as it appears that Harrity did not view Damond as posing a threat.

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Arizona Senate Candidate: McCain Should 'Step Away as Quickly as Possible'

The last Republican to run against Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.) called on him to step down "as quickly as possible" following his Wednesday cancer diagnosis.

Dr. Kelli Ward is running against Sen. Jeff Flake (R., Ariz.) in the 2018 Republican primary and made her comments about McCain on an Indiana talk radio show Thursday, CNN reports. A surgeon and former state senator, Ward argued that advancing the federal government's business and President Donald Trump's agenda gave McCain reason to step aside.

"I hope that Senator McCain is going to look long and hard at this, that his family and his advisers are going to look at this, and they're going to advise him to step away as quickly as possible, so that the business of the country and the business of Arizona being represented at the federal level can move forward," she said.

"Because you probably realize that with John McCain out of commission we don't have 51 votes on the Republican side," she said, despite the fact that Republicans do, in fact, have 51 votes without McCain. "That can't stand."

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US Urges All Nationals In North Korea To "Depart Immediately", Bans Tourists From Visiting

Dennis Rodman will be disappointed to learn that the US is set to ban all citizens from traveling to North Korea, according to two agencies that operate tours there. Koryo Tours and Young Pioneer Tours said the ban would be announced on 27 July to come into effect 30 days later, the BBC reported. "After the 30-day grace period any US national that travels to North Korea will have their passport invalidated by their government." The ban comes one month after US student Otto Warmbier died following his imprisonment by the Kim regime.

China-based Young Pioneer Tours, which had taken Warmbier to North Korea, and Koryo Tours said the ban will come into force on July 27 - the anniversary of the end of the Korean War - with a 30-day grace period. Koryo Tours added that the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang, which handles consular affairs for the United States in the North, informed it of the ban, but did not say how long it would last. The U.S. embassy in the South Korean capital, Seoul, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rowan Beard said that the 30-day grace period would "give leeway for any [Americans] currently in the country as tourists or on humanitarian work". Simon Cockerill, of Koryo Tours, said: "It remains to be seen what the exact text is, but the indication is it's just a straight up ban on Americans going." Mr Cockerill told the BBC the agency would still conduct tours and take Americans until the ban came into effect.

Additionally, Rowan Beard of Young Pioneer Tours, told the BBC the embassy was urging all US nationals to depart immediately. He said the embassy was trying to check on the number of US tourists left in the country.

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David Stockman Warns The Market's "Chuck Prince Moment" Has Arrived... "Only More Dangerous"

On July 10, 2007 former Citigroup CEO Chuck Prince famously said what might be termed the “speculator’s creed” for the current era of Bubble Finance. Prince was then canned within four months but as of that day his minions were still slamming the”buy” key good and hard:

“When the music stops, in terms of liquidity, things will be complicated. But as long as the music is playing, you’ve got to get up and dance. We’re still dancing,” he said in an interview with the FT in Japan.

We are at that moment again. Only this time the danger of a thundering crash is far greater. That’s because the current blow-off top comes after nine years of even more central bank policy than Greenspan’s credit and housing bubble.

The Fed and its crew of traveling central banks around the world have gutted honest price discovery entirely. They have turned global financial markets into outright gambling dens of unchecked speculation.

Central bank policies of massive quantitative easing (QE) and zero interest rates (ZIRP) have been sugar-coated in rhetoric about “stimulus”, “accommodation” and guiding economies toward optimal levels of inflation and full-employment.

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Hungary's Orban: EU And "Soros Mafia Network" Are Seeking To "Muslimize Europe"

The war of words between Hungary's outspoken prime minister Viktor Orban and liberal billionaire George Soros escalated to previously unseen levels on Saturday, when the Hungarian PM said that European Union leaders and Soros are seeking a "new, mixed, Muslimized Europe," however during a visit to Romania, Orban said that Hungary's border fences, supported by other Central European countries,will block the EU-Soros effort to increase Muslim migration into Europe.

Slamming the Hungarian-born billionaire who has been accused by the Hungarian government of using his vast wealth to fund pro-mass migration organizations to create a “new, mixed, Muslimized Europe”, Orban said Brussels was in an “alliance against the people’s will” with the financier.

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Crazy Fed Cartoons From 1912 Versus Today

Inquiring minds may be wondering what economic cartoons from 1912 looked like. I can help.

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Tuesday, July 25, 2017