Podcasts about united states senate committee

After a long wait, the Coalition’s multi-billion-dollar defence policy is here. Is it too late to help them at the polls? Find out more about The Front podcast here. You can read about this story and more on The Australian's website or on The Australian’s app. This episode of The Front is presented and produced by Kristen Amiet, and edited by Tiffany Dimmack. Our regular host is Claire Harvey and our team includes Lia Tsamoglou, Joshua Burton, Stephanie Coombes and Jasper Leak, who also composed our music. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Transcript: rmad.ac/AIAe068Emmett is a disability justice practitioner and student activist passionate about creating disabled, decolonial, and anti-oppressive communities. He's a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, majoring in political science and gender and women's studies, conducting research on how definitions of political personhood intersect with electoral access for disabled voters.They have previously served as an intern for the American Association of People with Disabilities; the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; and for the Department of Health Services for the state of Wisconsin. Lockwood helped organize the Disability Cultural Center Coalition at UW-Madison, which successfully established the UW-Madison Disability Cultural Center in 2023, the 13th such center in the United States.Connect with Emmett:Emmett Lockwood (@emmettlockwood.bsky.social) — BlueskyEmail: ewlockwood@wisc.edu Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at RockyMountainADA.org or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

13:35 - Commanders: reaction to the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources passing the D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act, including what this means for the Commanders' next stadium potentially being on the RFK Stadium site and discussion of Montana Sen. Steve Daines' advocating for the Redskins logo of the proud Native American warrior 31:42 - Guest: Commanders analyst Mark Bullock of MarkBullock.Substack.com with All-22-style breakdowns of why the Commanders should keep Mike Sainristil as an outside cornerback as opposed to moving him back to being a slot cornerback even when cornerback Marshon Lattimore is healthy enough to play for the team and of the 2024 season that interior defensive lineman Daron Payne is having 52:46 - Maryland Basketball: thoughts on a 108-37 blowout of Canisius for the second-largest margin of victory in the history of Maryland men's basketball Visit PaulsonAndNace.com and tell Paulson & Nace that Al Galdi sent you Visit RonMurrayWellness.com and mention that Al Galdi sent you Download the PrizePicks app and use the promo code "Galdi" for $50 instantly after you play your first $5 lineup Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Host: Tracy ShuchartGuests: Harald MalmgrenHarald needs no introduction, and if I tried to read his entire resume, it would take the entire hour and then some…so I will do my best to summarize Harald Bernard Malmgren is a scholar, ambassador, and international negotiator who has been senior aide to US Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Gerald Ford, and to US Senators Abraham A. Ribicoff and Russell B. Long, United States Senate Committee on Finance. Following public service, he was appointed as a Fellow of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Smithsonian Institution, an adviser to the Senate Finance Committee, and Professor of Business and Public Management at George Washington University.In addition, He has acted as an advisor to many foreign leaders and CEOs of financial institutions and corporate businesses and has been a frequent author of articles and papers on global economic, political, and security affairs.Currently he provides global macro research via Malmgren Glinsman Partners among other projects.Richard Field Richard Field is the Director of the Institute for Financial Transparency, an organization focused on bringing valuation transparency to all the opaque corners of the financial system and the sponsor of the Transparency Label Initiative.Since the mid-90s, he has been a leader in defining and implementing transparency in the structured finance industry. Mr. Field designed, developed and patented a low cost information system to handle all of the complexity involved in making each structured finance security transparent.In April 2008, Mr. Field wrote a Learning Curve column for Total Securitization that described the gold standard for transparency for structured finance securities. Earlier in his career, he worked as an Assistant Vice President for First Bank System and as a Research Assistant at the Federal Reserve Board. Disclaimer: This material is presented solely for informational and entertainment purposes and is not to be construed as a recommendation, solicitation, or an offer to buy or sell / long or short any securities, commodities, or any related financial instruments. Please contact a licensed professional before making any investment or trading decisions

Host: Tracy Shuchart for MicDropMarketsGuests: Harald Malmgren and Richard FieldHarald MalmgenHarald needs no introduction, and if I tried to read his entire resume, it would take the entire hour and then some…so I will do my best to summarize Harald Bernard Malmgren is a scholar, ambassador, and international negotiator who has been senior aide to US Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Gerald Ford, and to US Senators Abraham A. Ribicoff and Russell B. Long, United States Senate Committee on Finance. Following public service, he was appointed as a Fellow of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Smithsonian Institution, an adviser to the Senate Finance Committee, and Professor of Business and Public Management at George Washington University. In addition, He has acted as an advisor to many foreign leaders and CEOs of financial institutions and corporate businesses and has been a frequent author of articles and papers on global economic, political, and security affairs.Currently he provides global macro research via Malmgren Glinsman Partners among other projects.Richard Field Richard Field is the Director of the Institute for Financial Transparency, an organization focused on bringing valuation transparency to all the opaque corners of the financial system and the sponsor of the Transparency Label Initiative.Since the mid-90s, he has been a leader in defining and implementing transparency in the structured finance industry. Mr. Field designed, developed and patented a low cost information system to handle all of the complexity involved in making each structured finance security transparent. In April 2008, Mr. Field wrote a Learning Curve column for Total Securitization that described the gold standard for transparency for structured finance securities. Subsequently, he consulted with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners on their July 2012 white paper on financing home ownership. Earlier in his career, he worked as an Assistant Vice President for First Bank System and as a Research Assistant at the Federal Reserve Board. Disclaimer: This material is presented solely for informational and entertainment purposes and is not to be construed as a recommendation, solicitation, or an offer to buy or sell / long or short any securities, commodities, or any related financial instruments. Please contact a licensed professional before making any investment or trading decisions

The Honorable Lucian Niemeyer, a leading voice in the policymaking community for advanced nuclear capabilities, discusses the work of the United Coalition for Advanced Nuclear Power (UCAN Power), a non-profit entity since 2021, in promoting advanced nuclear reactor deployment. He emphasizes the importance of nuclear power for grid reliability and carbon reduction. Niemeyer also highlights the need to develop a strong civilian nuclear workforce to support national defense and restore the nuclear industrial base. He discusses the potential of microreactors for powering military installations and the importance of accelerating the regulatory process for advanced nuclear technology. He calls for prioritizing grid reliability and restoring US global leadership in nuclear power.Lucian's national security expertise spans five decades as an Air Force and the Air National Guard Officer, Professional Staff Member on the Senate Armed Service Committee, and in the Pentagon and White House. Throughout his professional career, he has been a strong advocate for the use of clean, safe advanced nuclear power to enhance energy reliability and resiliency.Niemeyer previously was appointed by the President and served as an Assistant Secretary of Defense managing the world's largest real property portfolio valued at a trillion dollars. He was responsible for identifying and mitigating risk to national security programs, as well as improving energy and environmental resilience through alternate power generation development and investments in the protection of natural resources. During this time, he worked extensively with the Departments of Energy and Interior to balance the need for energy independence with the sustainment of national military capabilities.He also served on the professional staff of the United States Senate Committee on Armed Service from 2003 to 2014 providing expertise and counsel on policies and programs for the energy programs supporting our Nation's security.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Overview of UCAN Power04:00 The Role of Nuclear Power in the Nuclear Triad07:59 The Importance of a Strong Civilian Nuclear Workforce13:45 The Use of Microreactors for Military Installations17:45 Grid Reliability and the Need for Nuclear Power25:07 Energy Priorities for the Next Administration28:59 Bringing Advanced Nuclear Technology to the Nation33:10 Closing Remarks and Call to ActionSocials:Follow on Twitter at @NucleCastFollow on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/nuclecastpodcastSubscribe RSS Feed: https://rss.com/podcasts/nuclecast-podcast/Rate: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/nuclecast/id1644921278Email comments and topic/guest suggestions to NucleCast@anwadeter.org

Die IT-Security Pros unter euch müssen heute stark sein. Es geht nur wenig um Cyber... aber dafür um "war", also traditionellen, konventionellen Krieg. Genauer, es geht um das Konzept des hybriden Krieges und seine Auswirkungen auf die gegenwärtige geopolitische Lage, insbesondere im Kontext des Russland-Ukraine-Konflikts. Die Folge beleuchtet, wie hybride Kriegsführung - eine Kombination aus militärischen Operationen, Sabotage, Cyberangriffen, Informationskrieg, Desinformationskampagnen und wirtschaftlichem Druck - die traditionellen Grenzen zwischen Krieg und Frieden verwischt. Dabei betrachte ich das Buch "Strategy" von Liddell Hart, der sich intensiv mit der Geschichte diverser Kriege befasst hat und daraus "strategische Lehren" zieht, die auch heute noch anwendbar sind. Wir schauen uns an, wie Harts Erkenntnisse über psychologische Kriegsführung und die Bedeutung von Informationen und Propaganda im modernen Kontext relevant bleiben.Ein besonderer Fokus liegt auf der Frage, ob die aktuelle Situation eine Vorstufe zu einem konventionellen Krieg darstellt oder ob ""hybrider Krieg" als eigenständige Form des Konflikts betrachtet werden sollte. Die Podcastfolge erörtert, verschiedene Taktiken des hybriden Kriegs, die von Cyberangriffen bis hin zur Unterstützung autoritärer Bewegungen reichen, die Sicherheit Europas und der NATO beeinflussen könnten. Shownotes Lukas Milevski - The Baltic Defense Line US general says Russian army has grown by 15 percent since pre-Ukraine war NATO Must Prepare to Defend Its Weakest Point—the Suwalki Corridor Wie Russland für einen langen Krieg rekrutiert B. H. Liddell Hart, Strategy (1954) Basil H. Liddell Hart: His Applicability to Modern War A Very Special Relationship: Basil Liddell Hart, Wehrmacht Generals and the Debate on West German Rearmament, 1945–1953 Basil Liddell Hart and the Art of Peace  Hybrid warfare: The continuation of ambiguity by other means The Evolution of Russian Hybrid Warfare: Executive Summary BMVg: Hybride Bedrohungen Timecodes 00:00:20 Intro 00:03:11 Liddell Hart und sein Buch "Strategy" 00:07:15 Konzept Hybrider Krieg 00:09:40 Hart's These: Krieg ist mehr als Gewalt 00:12:00 The art of war 00:15:00 Informationskrieg 00:22:00 Dislocation 00:26:00 Kritik 00:28:00 Fazit Hinweise Blog & Podcast über die dunkle Seite der Digitalisierung: Cyber-Sicherheit, Cyber-War, Spionage, Hacker, Sabotage, Subversion und Desinformation. Kommentare und konstruktives Feedback bitte auf percepticon.de oder via Twitter. Dieser Cyber Security Podcast erscheint auf iTunes, Spotify, PocketCast, Stitcher oder via RSS Feed. Am Anfang folgt noch ein kleiner Nachtrag zur letzten Folge mit den Top 10 IT-Sicherheitstipps, nachdem mich etwas Feedback dazu erreichte. Sound & Copyright Modem Sound, Creative Commons. © Vint Cerf, "Internet shows up in December 1975", in: IEEE Computer Society, Computing Conversations: Vint Cerf on the History of Packets, December 2012. © L0pht Heavy Industries testifying before the United States Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, Live feed from CSPAN, May 19, 1998. © Barack Obama, Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection Summit Address, 13 February 2015, Stanford University, Stanford, CA. © Michael Hayden, "We kill people based on meta-data," in: The Johns Hopkins Foreign Affairs Symposium Presents: The Price of Privacy: Re-Evaluating the NSA, April 2014. © Bruce Schneier, "Complexity is the enemy of security, in IEEE Computer Society, Bruce Schneier: Building Cryptographic Systems, March 2016. Beats, Bass & Music created with Apple GarageBand © Computer History 1946, ENIAC, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGk9W65vXNA

It's time for an update! Where do states stand on the abortion issue? Which laws are being challenged and which challenges have been overturned? And have there been any other major victories since the Dobbs case? And our questions don't end there! What about medication abortion? What is the current status of this pill? What is the argument for its restriction, and will those restrictions be upheld? We have lots of questions, and our guest speaker Carol Tobias has the answers!-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Carol Tobias is the President of National Right to Life Committee (NRLC). A native of North Dakota, Carol Tobias has served on the NRLC board of directors since 1987. From 1983 to 1991, she was executive director of North Dakota Right to Life, and in 1991 was hired as National Right to Life's political director, a position she held until 2005.During her tenure as political director, pro-life majorities were elected to both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. In 2000 and 2004, she oversaw the efforts of National Right to Life's political action committee on behalf of George W. Bush.In 2014, she testified before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary in opposition to the so-called “Women's Health Protection Act.”Tobias has been seen on most major national news networks and several internationally. She is regularly quoted by various news outlets around the nation and across the world.Learn more about National Right to Life and how you can be a voice for life at nrlc.org.Learn more about using your Gospel-motivated voice 4 Life at Y4Life.org.

In Teil zwei dieser mehrteiligen Reihe über die Geschichte der IT-Sicherheit geht es heute um die 1960er Jahre. Zunächst geht es um die wichtigsten technologischen Innovationen der Zeit, namentlich die kleineren, schnelleren Mini-Computer, die in immer mehr Unternehmen und Universitäten Einzug erhalten. Die wichtigste Neuerung der Zeit ist das "time sharing", ein neuer Modus des Multitasking an Computern, welcher enorme IT-Sicherheitsimplikationen hat. Time Sharing erschafft das zentrale IT-Sicherheitsproblem überhaupt, nämlich dass sich Programme im Speicher gegenseitig manipulieren können. Mit time sharing verändert sich also der Computing Kontext, worum es im zweiten Kapitel geht. Zudem entstehen neue Bedrohungen, insbesondere die frühe Hackerkultur an den Unis. Wir beleuchten frühes Hacking wie "phone phreaking" und "dumpster diving". Das macht es erforderlich, dass neue IT-Sicherheitsmaßnahmen, wie z.B. Backup-Policies und die ersten Passwörter erfunden werden. Darum geht es in Kapitel 4. PS: Hier könnt ihr noch einmal die erste Folge nachhören und wer lieber liest, kann hier die englische Fassung der Folge über die 1960er nachlesen. Shownotes Computer History Timeline, https://www.computerhistory.org/timeline/ Meijer/Hoepman/Jacobs/Poll (2007), Computer Security Through Correctness and Transparency, in: de Leeuw/Bergstra, The History of Information Security: A Comprehensive Handbook, Elsevier.  Yost (2007), A History of Computer Security Standards, in: de Leeuw/Bergstra, The History of Information Security: A Comprehensive Handbook, Elsevier.  DeNardis (2007), A History of Internet Security, in: de Leeuw/Bergstra, The History of Information Security: A Comprehensive Handbook, Elsevier.  Brenner (2007), History of Computer Crime, in: de Leeuw/Bergstra, The History of Information Security: A Comprehensive Handbook, Elsevier.  Biene-Hershey (2007), IT Security and IT Auditing Between 1960 and 2000, in: de Leeuw/Bergstra, The History of Information Security: A Comprehensive Handbook, Elsevier.  PDP-1 - Wikipedia Apollo Guidance Computer - Wikipedia Sabre (travel reservation system) - Wikipedia The first industrial robot, https://www.automate.org/robotics/engelberger/joseph-engelberger-unimate Steven Levy, Hackers, https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/729/pg729-images.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin_(programming_game) Time Sharing, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q07PhW5sCEk Percepticon Folge zum ARPANET, https://open.spotify.com/episode/1pirIO5dgnvGfneWmeYBbj Timecodes 01:05 Kapitel 1: Erfindungen der 1960er, PDP-1 03:00 neue Computer Anwendungen, Programmiersprachen, Miniaturisierung 05:30 Digitalisierung der Wirtschaft, SABRE, Robotik, Modems 09:07 Kapitel 2: Computing in frühen Rechenzentren, Computer Priesthood‚ 13:06 Compatible Time Sharing System 17:20 Kapitel 3: Bedrohungen,  18:30 Das IT-Sicherheitsproblem schlechthin, DARWIN 22:06 Willis Ware Report 25:50 Hacker Kultur, phone phreaking, dumpster diving 31:05 Kapitel 4: IT Sicherheitskontrollen, Security Policies, Backups, Passwörter Hinweise Blog & Podcast über die dunkle Seite der Digitalisierung: Cyber-Sicherheit, Cyber-War, Spionage, Hacker, Sabotage, Subversion und Desinformation. Kommentare und konstruktives Feedback bitte auf percepticon.de oder via Twitter. Dieser Cyber Security Podcast erscheint auf iTunes, Spotify, PocketCast, Stitcher oder via RSS Feed. Am Anfang folgt noch ein kleiner Nachtrag zur letzten Folge mit den Top 10 IT-Sicherheitstipps, nachdem mich etwas Feedback dazu erreichte. Sound & Copyright Modem Sound, Creative Commons. © Vint Cerf, "Internet shows up in December 1975", in: IEEE Computer Society, Computing Conversations: Vint Cerf on the History of Packets, December 2012. © L0pht Heavy Industries testifying before the United States Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, Live feed from CSPAN, May 19, 1998.

As the world changes over the next few decades, many young people in school or just starting their careers, will be working in the major industries impacted by climate change. Here at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, the Charif Souki Global Energy Fellows are studying the current challenges of the climate crisis and how to build the future they want to live in.  This episode features two conversations with the fellows. As people raised in a time of elevated climate consciousness, they bring a fresh perspective to the energy transition.  So, what do the next generation of energy professionals think about the climate crisis? And what do they see as solutions for a sustainable, prosperous, and equitable future?  This week host Bill Loveless talks with Meha Jain and Kathryn Obisesan.  Meha is pursuing a Master in Public Administration at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs. She aspires to help protect low-income and vulnerable communities through energy and climate transitions. This summer, she worked with Warc Ghana, a social enterprise that provides agricultural services and consulting operations to Ghana and Sierra Leone. Kathryn is working on a Master of International Affairs at the School of International and Public Affairs with a focus on energy and environment. Before attending Columbia, she worked as a junior policy analyst at the OECD-Nuclear Energy Agency. This summer she worked for the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. 

Cyberkriminalität hat in den letzten Jahren stark zugenommen. Ob Datenklau, Identitätsdiebstahl, Cybermobbing oder Betrug – die Bedrohungen im digitalen Raum sind vielfältig und betreffen jeden, der online unterwegs ist. Genau darum geht es im neuen Buch von Eva Wolfangel - Ein falscher Click. Hackern auf der Spur. Warum der Cyberkrieg uns alle betrifft. Das Buch ist eine klasse Einführung in die Geschichte von Cyberkriminalität und staatlichem Hacking. Das Buch ist voller spannender Fallstudien und Fälle über Schadsoftware und Cyberkriminalität: Zeus/GameoverZeus, TrickBot, StormWorm, Conficker, Industroyer,, Stuxnet, Duqu, Flame, NotPetya, Wannacry, die Shadowbroker leaks, der Lazarus Bangladesh heist, Triton, die Causa Lilith Wittmann und die eID App und Pegasus kommen vor. Ich spreche darüber mit Eva und wir picken uns ein paar spannende Fälle heraus. Es geht u. A. um die Entstehung und Professionalisierung von Cyberkriminalität, Phishing und Social Engineering. Es geht um die cyberkriminellen Raubzüge von Nordkorea mit seiner Lazarus Gruppe, aber auch um andere staatliche Cyber-Operationen wie Stuxnet und WannaCry. Danach reden wir darüber, warum rein technische IT-Sicherheit oft scheitert, nämlich weil sie den Faktor Mensch nicht richtig versteht. Es geht um „usable security" und „user awareness" sowie Vertrauen und ethisches Hacken. Danke an Eva für das tolle Buch und die Aufnahme! Shownotes Eva Wolfangels Website: https://ewo.name/ Buch: Ein falscher Click: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.de/Paperback/Ein-falscher-Klick/Eva-Wolfangel/Penguin/e602114.rhd Eric Rosenbach, https://www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty/eric-rosenbach Lazarus Group: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazarus_Group Prof. Angela Sasse: https://informatik.rub.de/sasse/ Windows 11 Pass keys, https://www.heise.de/news/Passwortlose-Zukunft-Passkeys-ziehen-in-Windows-Vorschau-ein-9199679.html Timecodes 00:03:50 Message des Buchs + Motivation 00:06:41 Phishing & Social Engineering 00:10:27 Nordkorea, Lazarus & 2016 SWIFT Heist 00:14:00 Stuxnet 00:22:05 Ursprünge und Professionalisierung von Cybercrime  00:30:00  Gentlemen Agreements und kriminelle Energie 00:32:50 „usable security“, „user awareness“ und der Faktor Mensch 00:43:00 Praktische IT-Sicherheitstips vs. „Social engineering“ 00:48:08 Vertrauen & Zero Trust & Ethisches Hacken  Hinweise Blog & Podcast über die dunkle Seite der Digitalisierung: Cyber-Sicherheit, Cyber-War, Spionage, Hacker, Sabotage, Subversion und Desinformation. Kommentare und konstruktives Feedback bitte auf percepticon.de oder via Twitter. Dieser Cyber Security Podcast erscheint auf iTunes, Spotify, PocketCast, Stitcher oder via RSS Feed. Sound & Copyright Modem Sound, Creative Commons. © Vint Cerf, "Internet shows up in December 1975", in: IEEE Computer Society, Computing Conversations: Vint Cerf on the History of Packets, December 2012. © L0pht Heavy Industries testifying before the United States Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, Live feed from CSPAN, May 19, 1998. © Barack Obama, Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection Summit Address, 13 February 2015, Stanford University, Stanford, CA. © Michael Hayden, "We kill people based on meta-data," in: The Johns Hopkins Foreign Affairs Symposium Presents: The Price of Privacy: Re-Evaluating the NSA, April 2014. © Bruce Schneier, "Complexity is the enemy of security, in IEEE Computer Society, Bruce Schneier: Building Cryptographic Systems, March 2016. Beats, Bass & Music created with Apple GarageBand © Tagesthemen 10.6.2013 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfaFf6EvP3I © CBS 60 Minutes, Duqu, Liam O Murchu of Symantec: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpdazjRx3NM © CGTN, Huawei: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRGXPVw0LIo © Miko Hypnosen, Ted, : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CqVYUOjHLw]

Podcast: The PrOTect OT Cybersecurity Podcast (LS 28 · TOP 10% what is this?)Episode: Lucian Niemeyer: Making Cyber Safety A Part Of CulturePub date: 2023-01-26Over three decades, Lucian has served in the White House, the Pentagon, and in Congress providing budget, policy, and management leadership for U.S. national security programs. He served as an Assistant Secretary of Defense managing the world's largest real property portfolio valued at a trillion dollars. Lucian was responsible for identifying and mitigating risk to national security programs, as well as improving energy and environmental resilience, in the construction, sustainment, and modernization of facilities and related infrastructure. Lucian also served the Secretary of Defense as a strategic advisor for critical mission assurance and cybersecurity programs, as an Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and in the Office of Management and Budget at the White House overseeing national security, nuclear, and intelligence programs. From 2003 to 2014 he served on the professional staff of the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services responsible for legislative and budget oversight over a wide portfolio of national security programs.Lucian founded The Niemeyer Group, LLC in 2014, providing public and private sector clients strategic advisory services for economic and business development. He also serves as a founding Principal Director for the non-profit organization, United Coalition for Advanced Nuclear Power to promote the use of clean, safe civilian nuclear power.Lucian is an Air Force veteran with 21 years of active and Virginia Air National Guard service. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture, from the University of Notre Dame, a Master of Business Administration from The George Washington University, and a Master of National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. He was also appointed a Fellow in the Society of American Military Engineers.In this episode, Aaron and Lucian Niemeyer discuss:Bringing cybersecurity to OT systems Maintaining and improving cybersecurity Why seeing vulnerabilities is important Addressing cyber safety in societyKey Takeaways:In IT, systems are designed to be secure. A lot of OT systems have been around for 40 and 50 years, back when security wasn't even a concept much less designed into the architecture. Cybersecurity is not just a one time thing, it needs to be maintained and it needs to be upgraded and allowed to evolve. It's like a fitness routine, you don't get healthier or more fit by visiting the gym only once in your life. Pointing out vulnerabilities in a building's cybersecurity is a huge benefit to the owner. In the most dangerous scenario, somebody could get hurt and in other more probable scenarios, the news of a cyberattack on a building could significantly impact its value. We as a society need to address cyber safety the way that we look at safety in other aspects of our culture. In some areas, safety isn't an option and we should look at cyber safety the same way. "There are processes in place already in our society where we're rewarding good behavior. So the goal is how we can apply that to cyber safety within a building." — Lucian Niemeyer Connect with Lucian Niemeyer: Website: https://buildingcybersecurity.org/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucian-niemeyer-307aa65/ Connect with Aaron:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronccrowLearn more about Industrial Defender:Website: https://www.industrialdefender.com/podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/industrial-defender-inc/Twitter: https://twitter.com/iDefend_ICSYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@industrialdefender7120Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Aaron Crow, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.

Over three decades, Lucian has served in the White House, the Pentagon, and in Congress providing budget, policy, and management leadership for U.S. national security programs. He served as an Assistant Secretary of Defense managing the world's largest real property portfolio valued at a trillion dollars. Lucian was responsible for identifying and mitigating risk to national security programs, as well as improving energy and environmental resilience, in the construction, sustainment, and modernization of facilities and related infrastructure. Lucian also served the Secretary of Defense as a strategic advisor for critical mission assurance and cybersecurity programs, as an Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and in the Office of Management and Budget at the White House overseeing national security, nuclear, and intelligence programs. From 2003 to 2014 he served on the professional staff of the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services responsible for legislative and budget oversight over a wide portfolio of national security programs.Lucian founded The Niemeyer Group, LLC in 2014, providing public and private sector clients strategic advisory services for economic and business development. He also serves as a founding Principal Director for the non-profit organization, United Coalition for Advanced Nuclear Power to promote the use of clean, safe civilian nuclear power.Lucian is an Air Force veteran with 21 years of active and Virginia Air National Guard service. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture, from the University of Notre Dame, a Master of Business Administration from The George Washington University, and a Master of National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. He was also appointed a Fellow in the Society of American Military Engineers.In this episode, Aaron and Lucian Niemeyer discuss:Bringing cybersecurity to OT systems Maintaining and improving cybersecurity Why seeing vulnerabilities is important Addressing cyber safety in societyKey Takeaways:In IT, systems are designed to be secure. A lot of OT systems have been around for 40 and 50 years, back when security wasn't even a concept much less designed into the architecture. Cybersecurity is not just a one time thing, it needs to be maintained and it needs to be upgraded and allowed to evolve. It's like a fitness routine, you don't get healthier or more fit by visiting the gym only once in your life. Pointing out vulnerabilities in a building's cybersecurity is a huge benefit to the owner. In the most dangerous scenario, somebody could get hurt and in other more probable scenarios, the news of a cyberattack on a building could significantly impact its value. We as a society need to address cyber safety the way that we look at safety in other aspects of our culture. In some areas, safety isn't an option and we should look at cyber safety the same way. "There are processes in place already in our society where we're rewarding good behavior. So the goal is how we can apply that to cyber safety within a building." — Lucian Niemeyer Connect with Lucian Niemeyer: Website: https://buildingcybersecurity.org/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucian-niemeyer-307aa65/ Connect with Aaron:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronccrowLearn more about Industrial Defender:Website: https://www.industrialdefender.com/podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/industrial-defender-inc/Twitter: https://twitter.com/iDefend_ICSYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@industrialdefender7120Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.

The 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act requires the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice to "ensure that Federal policies promote equal access to robust broadband internet access service by prohibiting deployment discrimination."Listen to this discussion on the FCC's ongoing efforts to effectuate this portion of the statute and how policymakers can best achieve the goal of equitable broadband deployment. The discussion considered what discrimination means in this context, whether broadband providers engage in it, and what regulatory actions would best ensure Americans have access to the broadband they need.Featuring:- Diana Eisner, Vice President, Policy & Advocacy, USTelecom- Jenna Leventoff, Senior Policy Counsel, Public Knowledge- Crystal Tully, Deputy Staff Director, United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation- Sanford Williams, Special Advisor to Chairwoman Rosenworcel and Deputy Managing Director, The Office of the Managing Director, Federal Communications Commission- Moderator: Joe Kane, Director of Broadband and Spectrum Policy, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation

01st Sep

Dr. Peter McCullough is a cardiologist with over 30 years of medical experience. In 2020, as a witness for the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Dr. McCullough criticized the United States' response to COVID-19 while supporting social distancing & vaccination. He headed controversial studies on treating the novel coronavirus with a protocol including "the i word" and HCQ. As a leading expert on cardiovascular medicine, Dr. McCullough has spoken widely about the heart-related risks that he believes could be attributed to mRNA technology, including myocarditis and adverse reactions in high endurance athletes. Follow Dr. Peter at https://PeterMcCulloughMD.com MEDICAL NOTE: The CDC states that COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective, and reduce your risk of severe illness. Hundreds of millions of people have received a COVID-19 vaccine, and serious adverse reactions are rare. You should always consult your personal physician before making any decisions about your health.  Dr. Kelly Victory MD is a board-certified trauma and emergency specialist with over 15 years of clinical experience. She served as CMO for Whole Health Management, delivering on-site healthcare services for Fortune 500 companies. She holds a BS from Duke University and her MD from the University of North Carolina. Follow her at https://earlycovidcare.org Ask Dr. Drew is produced by Kaleb Nation (https://kalebnation.com) and Susan Pinsky (http://twitter.com/firstladyoflove). This show is for entertainment and/or informational purposes only, and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. SPONSORED BY • GENUCEL - Using a proprietary base formulated by a pharmacist, Genucel has created skincare that can dramatically improve the appearance of facial redness and under-eye puffiness. Genucel uses clinical levels of botanical extracts in their cruelty-free, natural, made-in-the-USA line of products. Get 10% off with promo code DREW at https://genucel.com/drew GEAR PROVIDED BY • BLUE MICS - After more than 30 years in broadcasting, Dr. Drew's iconic voice has reached pristine clarity through Blue Microphones. But you don't need a fancy studio to sound great with Blue's lineup: ranging from high-quality USB mics like the Yeti, to studio-grade XLR mics like Dr. Drew's Blueberry. Find your best sound at https://drdrew.com/blue • ELGATO - Every week, Dr. Drew broadcasts live shows from his home studio under soft, clean lighting from Elgato's Key Lights. From the control room, the producers manage Dr. Drew's streams with a Stream Deck XL, and ingest HD video with a Camlink 4K. Add a professional touch to your streams or Zoom calls with Elgato. See how Elgato's lights transformed Dr. Drew's set: https://drdrew.com/sponsors/elgato/

In this episode, CII General Counsel Jeff Mahoney interviews Caleb N. Griffin, Assistant Professor of Law, at the University of Arkansas School of Law. Last month Professor Griffin testified before the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs at a hearing entitled "Considering the Index Fund Voting Process."

In this episode of The CNN Podcast, Sheila and Ericka interview David Pyoas of D B Pyoas & Associates LLC. David brings more than 25 years of grant writing and business development expertise.   In addition to his writing ability, David has a wealth of experience as a successful entrepreneur, public affairs professional, and corporate consultant.   Early in his career, he served on the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation staff and as the Director of Operations for the Salvation Army, managing the daily functions of a multi-million-dollar operation. During this time, he established comprehensive departmental productivity measures resulting in documented increases in all departments ranging from 15% to 50%. In 2000, David established DB Pyoas & Associates, LLC, a nationally recognized and full-service business development and grant writing firm specializing in business and marketing plan preparation, financial search and procurement, IT consulting services, advisory board development, and human resources advising, and fund-raising and development. The grant writing team develops award-winning proposals and responses to Requests for Proposals (RFPS) and Notices of Funding Availability (NOFAs). It has successfully been awarded over $60 million in grant funding for clients. Listen to the episdoe to learn more about how D B Pyoas and Associates LLC can help your nonprofit organization or for-profit business make a greater impact in your community and in your industry. Contact information: Website: http://www.dbpyoas.com Phone: 404-858-8420 (Direct); 843-905-3558 (Office) Email: david@dbpyoas.com Would you like to be a guest on an upcoming episode? Click here to sign up!

It is no question that we need new ways and medications to manage pain outside of opiates. Could cannabis be the solution?Dr. Andrew Coop is joining us again this episode to talk about THC isomeres. Dr. Coop received his Ph.D. from the University of Bristol in the area of chemistry of drugs of abuse, followed by a Fogerty post-doctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health. He has been a faculty member in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Maryland since 1999, serving as chair of the department from 2007 to 2015.Today Dr. Coop sits down with Dr. Hal Altman MD, MS, and talks about his testimony to the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), his mentor John Lewis, and where cannabinoids could fit into pain management practices.

It is no question that we need new ways and medications to manage pain outside of opiates. Could cannabis be the solution?Dr. Andrew Coop is joining us again this episode to talk about THC isomeres. Dr. Coop received his Ph.D. from the University of Bristol in the area of chemistry of drugs of abuse, followed by a Fogerty post-doctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health. He has been a faculty member in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Maryland since 1999, serving as chair of the department from 2007 to 2015.Today Dr. Coop sits down with Dr. Hal Altman MD, MS, and talks about his testimony to the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), his mentor John Lewis, and where cannabinoids could fit into pain management practices.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association. During this episode, Dr Arun Seraphin discusses his 20+ years as a Professional Staff Member on the staff of the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services. He describes differences between the US Senate and the House of Representatives, as well as the way Congress thinks about and evaluates national security emerging tech. Arun shares he communicates as a “connector” between emerging technology thought leaders in industry and academia and Congressional leaders. Finally, he describes NDIA's Emerging Technologies Institute and how he continues connecting people and technology. Resources: NDIA Emerging Technologies Institute  Link to full show notes and resources https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-98 Guest Bio:  Dr. Arun Seraphin is the Deputy Director of Emerging Technologies Institute (ETI) at National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA). Before joining the ETI team, a Professional Staff Member on the staff of the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services. His areas of responsibility include acquisition policy, Pentagon management issues, Department of Defense's science and technology programs, information technology systems, technology transition issues, defense laboratories, Small Business Innovation Research program, manufacturing programs, and test and evaluation programs. As such he assists Senators in their oversight of DOD policies and programs, including in the authorization of budgets, civilian nominations, legislative initiatives, and hearings. He rejoined the committee staff in 2014, after previously serving there between 2001 and 2010. In 2009, he was named one of ten Defense “Staffers to Know” by Roll Call, a Capitol Hill newspaper. From 2010 to 2014, Dr. Seraphin served as the Principal Assistant Director for National Security and International Affairs at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). During this time, he both led (in an Acting capacity) and served as the deputy director of the OSTP National Security and International Affairs division. His areas of responsibility included developing and implementing White House initiatives and policies in areas including defense research and engineering; weapons of mass destruction; defense manufacturing and industrial base; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education; cybersecurity; and promoting innovation in government research and engineering organizations. He also led interagency groups on small business programs and on improving the quality of the Federal STEM workforce. He was on detail to OSTP from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) where he was the Special Assistant for Policy Initiatives to the Director of DARPA. Dr. Seraphin has also worked on the United States House of Representatives Committee on Science's Subcommittee on Research as a professional staff member. He began his work in Congress in the Office of Senator Joseph Lieberman as the 1999-2000 Materials Research Society – Optical Society of America Congressional Science and Engineering Fellow. In these positions, he covered both civilian and defense research and development programs. Between 1996 and 2000, Dr. Seraphin worked in the Science and Technology Division of the Institute for Defense Analyses, where his research included work on defense technology transition, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), export controls, technology forecasting, and international research cooperation. His work included detailed technical analyses supporting the DARPA MEMS program, the Army Science and Technology Master Plan, and the Military Critical Technologies Program. In 1996, Dr. Seraphin earned a Ph.D. in Electronic Materials from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he performed research on silicon nanotechnology. His research focused on the development of novel silicon nanostructures and tailoring their optical properties. He also holds bachelor's degrees in Political Science with a concentration in American Government and Engineering Science with a concentration in Materials Science from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain. For more information, please contact us at communications@information-professionals.org. Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn. Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

Folge 14: Supreme Court, US-Haushalt 2022, Joe Bidens Besuch in Europa und das Engagement der USA (aufgenommen am 1. April 2022) Housekeeping Online Talk & Discussion: The U.S. Military and Us Online-Lesung: Paradise Blues – Reisen in die Natur und die Geschichte der USA Online-Veranstaltung: TV Thursday – Reboots & Revivals Supreme Court Nominierung von Ketanji Brown Jackson Foto: "Ketanji Brown Jackson" (Public Domain) by bswise Biden made a campaign pledge to put a Black woman on the Supreme Court. (The New York Times) Nuclear option: Why Trump's Supreme Court pick needs only 51 votes (CBS News) The Confirmation Hearing of Ketanji Brown Jackson (The New York Times, The Daily Podcast) Absurde Fragen an die Kandidatin (TAZ) Supreme Court approval rating tanks as Biden weighs Breyer replacement (Axios) Half of Trump's supporters think top Democrats are involved in child sex-trafficking (YouGov) Collins to Back Jackson for Supreme Court, Giving Her a G.O.P. Vote (The New York Times) Haushalt 2022 verabschiedet Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 (Congress) The Odd Story of the Law That Dictates How Government Shutdowns Work (The Atlantic) Q&A: Everything You Should Know About Government Shutdowns (Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, CRFB) What is a continuing resolution? (Peter G. Peterson Foundation) Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Practices (CRS R42647) How Congress's dependence on short-term funding keeps us stuck in the past (Vox) Roll Call 65 | Bill Number: H. R. 2471 (HoR) Progressives grit their teeth as defense wins big in spending bill (Politico) Roll Call 66 | Bill Number: H. R. 2471 (HoR) Visualizing the $13.6 Billion in U.S. Spending on Ukraine (The New York Times) Five things to know about the $1.5T spending bill Congress just passed (The Hill) Lawmakers release fiscal 2022 spending deal (E&E News) House Dems clear $1.5T spending deal after stripping Covid aid (Politico) House passes overdue $1.5 trillion omnibus appropriations bill (Roll Call) House Passes $1.5 Trillion Spending Bill as Democrats Drop Covid Aid (The New York Times) Once again, Congress comes together on the main thing it can agree on — sticking it to future generations (The Washington Post) Democrats Pass $1.5 Trillion Omnibus Spending Bill After Democrat Disarray (Breitbart) The clock is ticking: Ukraine needs more support now (The Hill) The Violence Against Women Act is finally making a comeback (MSNBC) Senate passes biggest-ever US military budget with unanimous Democratic support (World Socialist Web Site) Biden und die USA in Europa Biden's Europe trip has achieved one key goal (CNN) The President Should Avoid Public Speaking (Wall Street Journal) Remarks by President Biden on the United Efforts of the Free World to Support the People of Ukraine (The White House) Kampfjets zur Radarabwehr in Spangdahlem stationiert (SR) Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby Holds a Press Briefing, March 30, 2022 (Department of Defense) Gen. Tod Wolters testifies at United States Senate Committee on Armed Services (EUCOM) More US troops likely to deploy to Europe amid Russia-Ukraine war, general tells senators (Stars and Stripes) Biden and Western leaders plan new ways to punish Russia for its war in Ukraine at emergency summits (CNN) Ginni Thomas und der Supreme Court Foto: "Ginni Thomas" (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Gage Skidmore The political leanings of the Supreme Court justices (Axios) Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States (The White House) Trump Meets With Hard-Right Group Led by Ginni Thomas (The New York Times) Exclusive: Trump's "Deep State" hit list (Axios) Is Ginni Thomas a Threat to the Supreme Court? (The New Yorker) Virginia Thomas urged White House chief to pursue unrelenting efforts to overturn the 2020 election, texts show (The Washington Post) What do Ginni Thomas' texts mean for Justice Thomas? At the Supreme Court, it's up to him. (CNN) The Supreme Court's Clarence and Ginni Thomas Scandal Is Unprecedented (Rolling Stone) Calls for Recusals, Resignations, and Even Impeachment: Democrats Escalate Ethics Campaign Around Clarence Thomas (Vanity Fair) Letter by Elizabeth Warren et al. (Congress) Ocasio-Cortez to Clarence Thomas: Resign or face impeachment (The Hill) Transatlantic Treat Bruce Willis Foto: "Bruce Willis" (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Gage Skidmore Instagram-Post von Rumer Willis Concerns about Bruce Willis' declining cognitive state swirled around sets in recent years (LA Times) Bruce Willis beendet wegen Krankheit Schauspielkarriere

Wednesday Daily News Brief: 07/28/2021 Friends of the show. Before I get started, I want to bring you backstage behind the CrossPolitic scenes on some things. We started CrossPolitic in 2016, and never could have imagined the world we are living in now. Men can magically become penguins...I mean women...I mean uh democrats are going insane, abortion is infrastructure, and conservatives are racist because we think voter ID is a good thing. The left/right divide use to be cordial, but now it has entered into Cold War era. You see this in cancel culture, the sexualization of politics (thinking of required cake baking scenarios), and partisan voting fraud investigations. And now that cancel culture has leaped from the government/university setting into the business world, the cold war is shifting into gorilla games. I am grateful for the voice God has given CrossPolitic, and I hope God continues to bless the road we are on. Our goal for CrossPolitic and the network is really two fold: First is to speak with courage the truth in such away that it creates space for you to do the same. Courage begets courage, and when we push back effectively that creates room for thriving Christian communities to grow. This is what shepherds do, they create room for the sheep to run, to eat, and to sleep, so we hope we are doing this at a national level. Our second goal is to create a thriving Chrisitan economy. We have mentioned before, that the Babylon Bee was canceled from Mailchimp's services, Trump was kicked of Stripe, our friends over at Gab have been kicked off 5 banks. As our platform grows, we hope to bring more and more businesses together that are like minded in our walk with God and the mission of Fight Laugh Feast. The next 20 years, I believe, are going to be quite the fight, and this is why I think building our own platform is so important. Antifragil/Cancel free. The world has their platforms, think of ABC/FOX, etc…, we need to build ours. Why doesn't FOX host their own conferences/events? We are the only network, that I know of, that host our own events. We have to build, we have to be in community, we have to map out a game plan that hits back at a political culture that is hostile to Christ and His Church. So here are some ways you can help us build: Share the show. Send a text. Email a friend. Get the word out. Join the clubCome to our events.If you own a business or are just wealthy, support our efforts, either behind the scenes or as a sponsor. If you have talents that could help our efforts and want to volunteer, email me at Waterboy@CrossPolitic.com. We are in the process of beginning to build out our club platform that will create a social media like experience for our club members. Our club members are invaluable, and we want to build a community platform for our club members to network with. We want our businesses to have access to our club platform, so we can all network together, hire each other, consult with each other, and become the dark web of resistance against our godless culture. Jesus is King, and of course we labor in vain if God does not build our house, and so as we make plans for an antifragile family network, club portal, business network, events, more shows on the network, etc… We lift them all up to God, and trust in Him to bless what directions, what plans He wants to bless. So, please consider reaching out to me, and we can't thank you enough for you tuning in. Lord bless  The White House tells staff to start wearing masks again, as coronavirus cases rise in Washington, D.C. CDC wants vaccinated Americans to wear masks indoors in Covid hot spots https://www.politico.com/news/2021/07/27/cdc-vaccinated-masks-indoors-500838 According to Politico: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended Tuesday that Americans wear masks indoors again, particularly in crowded indoor settings. The new indoor mask recommendations apply to vaccinated and unvaccinated people who live in areas where the CDC has classified Covid-19 transmission as “high” or “substantial,” a health official said — a category that includes much of the South as well as western states like Arizona and Wyoming. The announcement marks a sharp change in policy for the nation's leading health agency. In May, the CDC said vaccinated Americans no longer needed to wear masks outdoors or indoors in most circumstances. Internal deliberations about encouraging Americans to yet again wear masks indoors came to a head Sunday when senior officials from the White House and the CDC met to discuss new data that supported changing those guidelines, a person with knowledge of that meeting said. "This weighs heavily on me," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky told reporters Tuesday. "Not only are people tired, they are frustrated. We have mental health challenges in this country. We have a lot of sickness and death. Our health systems are being overrun. In the context of all that this, I know this is not welcome news. I just want to convey that this was not a decision that was taken lightly." Fauci Video on Masks:  Roll Gov. Cuomo creepy pick you up in a car video: Steelers unvaccinated players will wear yellow wristbands According to NBC Sports: “The Pittsburgh Steelers have a high vaccination rate among players. Those who have yet to get the shot will stick out like a proverbial sore thumb. Per the team, Steelers players who haven't been vaccinated will be wearing yellow wristbands at practice. The Steelers have been among the most successful at getting players to choose to take the vaccine. That's a testament to the persuasive powers of coach Mike Tomlin, who realizes the competitive advantage of getting it — and disadvantage of not getting it. It won't be a surprise if, come September, every player remaining on the roster has gotten it.” Plug: "In the beautiful town of Moscow, ID, Erber Automotive is looking for Christians to join forces and wage war together on broken cars. Since Adam's fall, cars have been suffering at the hand of the second law of thermodynamics, starting with that very first Eden Model 1 that Adam puttered out of the garden. Paul said that all creation groans, and he'd never even heard a poor car owner on the side of the road with a steaming engine! At Erber Auto, you'll work to make auto repair fun for customers with bouncy castles, motorcycle cruises, and honest service. Most importantly, you'll work alongside Christians to show entropy the Uno reverse card! Erber Auto is looking for service advisors, shop managers, and repair technicians, who are ready to do battle with the forces of evil, or at least metal fatigue. They have 4 positions to fill at competitive salaries. Please send your resume to business@erberauto.com." Morning Joe Military Vaccine video: Role clip Biden plans to require federal workers to be vaccinated or undergo repeated tests https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/07/27/biden-vaccine-mandate-federal-employees According to The Washington Post: President Biden will announce Thursday that all federal employees will be required to be vaccinated against covid-19 or face repeated testing mandates, a White House official said, a dramatic escalation of the administration's effort to combat the spread of the delta variant. The new rules will closely align with policies recently put in place for government officials in California and New York City, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to disclose the plan. The White House is not planning on firing government employees who aren't vaccinated but will impose a number of restrictions on them as a way to encourage them to receive one of the government-approved vaccines. The plan is is part of a change in tack by the White House in recent days as the delta variant has spread markedly through parts of the United States, particularly among unvaccinated Americans. Public health experts have long said that getting at least 70 percent of the public vaccinated is the single most important tool in controlling the pandemic, but some parts of the United States have fallen far short of that target. And some authorities are urging an even higher rate of vaccinations now, given the increased virulence of the variant. On Monday, California and New York City said they would require government employees to either be vaccinated or face repeated testing requirements, and Biden was asked on Tuesday whether the federal government would impose similar requirements. "That's under consideration right now,” Biden said in response to a reporter's question after an appearance at a government intelligence facility. "If you're not vaccinated, you're not nearly as smart as I thought you were.” Rand Paul sends official criminal referral on Anthony Fauci to DOJ https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/prevention-cures/564803-rand-paul-sends-official-criminal-referral-on Fauci said he would not retract the statement and was adamant that he has never lied before Congress.  Well last week, and sorry I did not get this to you sooner, but last week we covered Rand Paul's and Fauci's interaction. Sen. Paul challenged Fauc's statement that the National Institue of Allergy and Infectious Diseases did not fund “gain of function research”, and Sen. Paul is claiming that Fauci lied. Fauci of course balked at that, so last Wednesday  The Washington Examiner reported that “Kentucky senator officially sent a request to Attorney General Merrick Garland to open a criminal investigation of Fauci's statement. "I write to urge the United States Department of Justice to open an investigation into testimony made to the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions by Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, on May 11, 2021," Paul wrote in the referral obtained byThe Examiner. According to The Examiner, Paul also informed Garland of comments made by molecular biologist Richard Ebright, who said in May that research conducted by the Wuhan lab "matches, indeed, epitomizes the definition of 'gain-of-function research of concern' for which federal funding was 'paused' in 2014-2017." "He's lying about whether or not he funded gain-of-function research, and yes, he should be punished," Paul told Fox News on Saturday. Garland can approve or deny the referral, which only requests the investigation.” ‘My Last Term': Tim Scott Won't Run For Senate After 2022, Stays Mum On 2024 Presidential Race https://dailycaller.com/2021/07/25/tim-scott-wont-run-after-2022-2024-presidential-race/ Senator Tim Scott, you know the Senator of South Carolina, well he gave an ambiguous answer that peaked my interest: Roll clip.  Closing This is Gabriel Rench with Crosspolitic News. Support Rowdy Christian media by joining our club at fightlaughfeast.com, downloading our App, and head to our annual Fight Laugh Feast Conference next fall. With your partnership, together we will fight outdated and compromised media, engage news and politics with the gospel, and replace lies and darkness with truth and light. Go to fightlaughfeast.com to take all these actions. Have a great day. Lord bless  

The Infrastructure Law that was signed in late 2021 funds the first phase of a huge infrastructure project called the Appalachian Storage Hub, which would consist of large gas processing plants, underground chemical storage facilities, and pipeline networks to connect them all together. In this episode, get the details - as many as are known - about the plans for this possible project. Is this a good idea for our country? Please Support Congressional Dish Contribute monthly or a lump sum via PayPal Support Congressional Dish via Patreon (donations per episode) Send Zelle payments to: Donation@congressionaldish.com Send Venmo payments to: @Jennifer-Briney Send Cash App payments to: $CongressionalDish or Donation@congressionaldish.com Use your bank's online bill pay function to mail contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North, Number 4576, Crestview, FL 32536. Please make checks payable to Congressional Dish Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Background Sources Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes CD240: BIF The Infrastructure BILL CD231: Lights Out: What Happened in Texas? CD134: The EpiPen Hearing Negative Impacts of Natural Gas Susan Phillips. Dec 27, 2021. “Mariner East pipeline is set to be completed in 2022, after years of environmental damage and delays.” WHYY. CBS Philly. Oct 5, 2021. “Attorney General Charges Pennsylvania Pipeline Developer In Mariner East 2 Pipeline Spill.” Forty-Fifth Statewide Investigating Grand Jury. Oct 5, 2021. “Mariner East Presentment.” attorneygeneral.gov Gunnar W. Schade. Aug 3, 2020. “The Problem With Natural Gas Flaring.” Texas A&M Today. Emily Henderson. Jul 15 2020. “Exposure to flaring at oil and gas production sites linked to higher odds of preterm birth.” James Bruggers. Apr 21, 2020. “For the Ohio River Valley, an Ethane Storage Facility in Texas Is Either a Model or a Cautionary Tale.” Leo Weekly. Environmental Integrity Project. Jan 21, 2020. “Warnings for Appalachia in Texas Ethane Storage Hub.” Britain Eakin and David Lee. Oct 31, 2017. “Emissions Settlement to Cost ExxonMobil $300M in Plant Upgrades.” Courthouse News Service. Josh Fox. 2010. Gasland. “Trinity River among most polluted waters in Texas.” Jan 13, 2010. Dallas Morning News. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. “Houston Ship Channel and Galveston Bay: PCBs TMDL Assessment.” Lettice Stuart. July 15, 1990. “NATIONAL NOTEBOOK: Mont Belvieu, Tex.; A Gas Leak Prods Exodus.” The New York Times. Peter Applebome. Nov 28, 1988. “Chemicals in Salt Caverns Hold Pain for Texas Town.” The New York Times. Appalachian Hub Kathy Hipple and Anne Keller. November 2021. “Poor Economics for Virgin Plastics: Petrochemicals Will Not Provide Sustainable Business Opportunities in Appalachia.” Ohio River Valley Institute. Kathy Hipple and Anne Keller. November 2021. “Poor Economics for Virgin Plastics: Petrochemicals Will Not Provide Sustainable Business Opportunities.” Ohio River Valley Institute. Kentucky Beyond Fossil Fuels. Last updated August 2021. “Appalachian Storage Hub: Latest News.” Reuters Staff. Oct 9, 2020. “Shell says Pennsylvania ethane cracker about 70% complete.” Reuters. Keith Schneider. Jul 31, 2019. “West Virginia Bets Big on Plastics, and on Backing of Trump Administration.” ProPublica. U.S. Department of Energy. Dec 4, 2018. “Secretary Perry Announces Appalachian Ethane Storage Hub Report.” U.S. Department of Energy. Nov 2018. “Ethane Storage and Distribution Hub in the United States: Report to Congress.” Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition. “Who Really Stands to Profit from the Appalachian Storage Hub/Petrochemical Complex?” Steve Horn. Feb 6, 2018. “China Is Financing a Petrochemical Hub in Appalachia. Meet its Powerful Backers.” DeSmog. Open Secrets. “Clients Lobbying on S.1075: Appalachian Ethane Storage Hub Study Act.” Appalachian Regional Commission Baltimore Sun Editorial Board. Jan 07, 2019. “Larry Hogan, reluctant environmentalist.” Appalachian Regional Commission. “Federal Co-Chair Gayle Conelly Manchin.” The Manchins Alex Kotch. Jul 20, 2021. “The Democrat blocking progressive change is beholden to big oil. Surprised?” The Guardian. Liza Featherstone. 2021. “Meet Joe Manchin's Appalling Daughter.” Jacobin. Open Secrets. “Sen. Joe Manchin - West Virginia: Top Industries 2017-2022.” Images U.S. Department of Energy. “Figure 9. NGL Pipelines, Existing and Announced, in and around the Appalachian Basin.” Ethane Storage and Distribution Hub in the United States: Report to Congress. U.S. Department of Energy. “Table 3: Stages of Development of Market Hubs.” Ethane Storage and Distribution Hub in the United States: Report to Congress. U.S. Department of Energy. “Figure 28. Projected Total Capacity, Total Production, and Real Consumption in the U.S. for Ethylene Products.” Ethane Storage and Distribution Hub in the United States: Report to Congress. U.S. Department of Energy. “Figure 30. Historical and Projected Ethylene Production Capacity by Global Area.” Ethane Storage and Distribution Hub in the United States: Report to Congress. The Law H.R.3684 - Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Sponsor: Rep. Peter DeFazio Bills H.R. 4152: Appalachian Regional Energy Hub Initiative Act S. 1064: Appalachian Energy for National Security Act S. 1340: Appalachian Energy and Manufacturing Infrastructure Revitalization Act H.R. 2568: Appalachian Ethane Storage Hub Study Act S. 1075: Appalachian Ethane Storage Hub Study Act S. 1337: Capitalizing on American Storage Potential Act. Hearings Field hearing to examine the economic importance of modern, reliable energy infrastructure to West Virginia and the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources August 29, 2016 Witnesses: Dr. Brian J. Anderson Director, West Virginia University Energy Institute Dr. John Deskins Director, Bureau for Business and Economic Research, West Virginia University Mr. Chad Earl Director of Marketing and Business Development, Orders Construction Company, Inc. Mr. Steven Hedrick President and Chief Executive Officer, Mid-Atlantic Technology, Research and Innovation Center Mr. Jeffery Keffer President and Chief Executive Officer, Longview Power, LLC Mr. Dan Poling Business Manager/Secretary Treasurer, District Council 53, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades Sound Clip Transcripts: 6:32 - 6:59 Sen. Shelley Moore Capito: So using ethane from Natural Gas as a feedstock means that chemical companies can choose to operate in West Virginia due to the enormous benefits of being right on top of the resource. That's why, again, I included language in the energy bill that will require the Department of Energy and Commerce to conduct a study to look at the feasibility of an ethane storage and distribution hub here in Appalachia, in West Virginia or in the region. 11:34 - 12:00 Sen. Joe Manchin: In 2016 Annual Energy Outlook, the EIA projected that even in a clean power plan scenario, coal and natural gas will make up approximately half of our electric generation mix in 2040. We talk about deniers you know, there's those who deny that there's climate change going on. And there's those who deny that we're going to be needing fossil for the next two, three or four decades. 12:50 - 13:33 Sen. Joe Manchin: Infrastructure, we must put the necessary infrastructure in place to take advantage of the robust opportunities that come from our abundant natural resources, while ensuring the reliability of our electric grid. And I will mention one thing. I've spoken to a lot of our state legislators. And I said, we've got to start thinking in terms of regional energy have Mid-Atlantic energy, regions such as the southwest, we should be looking at Pennsylvania and Ohio as part of this region, not the borders that separate us but basically the ability that we have to work together, build these pipelines that basically keep some of this product in this market area. To attract it, they say, build it and they will come. I truly believe if you have it, they will come but you have to have access to it. 18:42 - 19:00 Brian Anderson: Over the last 10 years production of ethane and propane at the Marcellus and Utica Shales have driven the cost of these very valuable raw materials to a price point well below global and national prices. Connecting this valuable resource to the national and global markets will take modern, robust infrastructure, the topic of this hearing. 19:01 - 19:13 Brian Anderson: I contend that the types of infrastructure necessary to benefit both the region and the nation is not only a reliable modern network of pipelines but also a robust regional system with natural gas liquid storage and distribution 20:12 - 20:28 Brian Anderson: With current production rates in the in the basin, around 500,000 barrels per day, the resource is certainly sufficient to support a renewed and robust chemical industry. That is, as long as there is modern and robust energy transportation infrastructure to support that. 21:42 - 22:32 Brian Anderson: The goal of this project is to provide essential data to support the development of the chemical manufacturing industry, promoting economic development. As evidenced by the industry's commitment to our project, developing storage and transportation infrastructure is a critical pathway to developing the industry in the region. Subsurface storage and distribution and a network of pipelines will benefit both the raw material producers -- the upstream oil and gas industry -- as well as the chemical industry by fostering a readily available and reliable network and research and source of natural gas liquids, developing a predictable price point of the commodity in the region. Currently, there is only one spot pricing for natural gas liquids in the United States and Gulf Coast. And thirdly, promoting regional investment in a more robust ecosystem for the industry. 38:55 - 39:50 Steven Hedrick: Rather than exporting additional ethane available via pipelines in the United States Gulf Coast to Europe, Asia or even Canada, it could be utilized here in the Appalachian Basin, here in America, to maximize the value potential of our raw materials. According to the publication the Natural Gas Intelligence, ethane accounts for more than 50% of the typical barrel in the Appalachian region, with exports now leading market spoke near Philadelphia. I think production has been increasing in the region. In fact, administering company MPLX's CEO Gary Heminger recently said with incremental ethane takeaway projects and the projected completion of a regional cracker facility, we anticipate reaching full utilization of our existing facilities. In other words, we need more infrastructure and companies like Shell need more elasticity in the supply chain in order to maximize the benefit of ethane. 39:48 - 40:41 Steven Hedrick: We would propose that the corridors naturally created by the Ohio and Kunal rivers be utilized as a platform for a substantial pipe system that will support the distribution of key raw material and intermediate constituents, including but not limited to, methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, and chlorine all of which are significant building blocks to the petrochemical industry and hence our society. We therefore must add substantial underground storage to the highest value of broadly used raw materials, specifically ethane, ethylene and propane and butane if we're able to create a built for purpose Appalachian storage hub. This can be safely and efficiently done and naturally occurring underground caverns in depleted natural gas extraction points, or even in depleted salt domes. In fact, the brightest minds in geological formations are currently studying the best locations for the hub. 1:34:03 - 1:35:40 Sen Joe Manchin: So I've come to the conclusion of this, the only way that we're ever going to is follow the dollars, the tax credits, extenders. They've been pouring more and more tax credits and extenders into renewables. And the only thing I'm going to say if that's the policy direction, and we can't collectively stop some of this other thing, when you have an administration desire to do something as they've done, we could at least say this, it makes all the sense in the world, if you're going to use these tax extenders, they call them tax extenders, they're credits, they give them credits if they do certain things in certain fields. So for moving to solar, or hydro, or wind and all this, those credits should only be used in a germane energy, that's where the losses were. So if the losses came from areas such as West Virginia and such as southwest Virginia, and such as Kentucky, those credits have to be used there. It makes all the sense in the world. We're gonna do every -- I'm gonna do everything I can just to shut the system down the next time, because trust me, they love tax credits. The wind people ain't letting tax credits go, solar'snot letting tax credits go. So I'm saying how do you argue against at least using the credits if you're going to get them? We'll build the best windmills, Danny. Our guys can build windmills. We can build solar, we can build anything you want. Just give us a chance. And that's what I am most upset about is no plan. There was no plan for a major policy shift in energy. And that's what we've got to correct I think, as quickly as possible to give us all a chance to survive in this tough area. Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations Music Presented in This Episode Intro & Exit: Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito (found on Music Alley by mevio)

Chris, Melanie, and Zack debate Madeleine Albright's recent article on “The Coming Democratic Revival” in Foreign Affairs. They discuss whether the United States is in a position to promote democracy and push back against autocracy abroad, or whether it needs to focus primarily on its own democratic institutions and processes. Melanie commends Nancy Mace for holding Steve Bannon to account. Chris calls out President Joe Biden for his recent confusing statement on Taiwan. And Zack remembers Colin Powell for a life well lived. Links: Madeleine K. Albright, “The Coming Democratic Revival,” Foreign Affairs, November/December 2021, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/world/2021-10-19/madeleine-albright-coming-democratic-revival. “As Sudan's Government Wobbles, Coups are Making a Comeback,” The Economist, Oct. 25, 2021, https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/10/25/as-sudans-government-wobbles-coups-are-making-a-comeback.  Caitlyn Byrd, “SC's Nancy Mace Joins Democrats in Vote to Hold Steven Bannon in Contempt of Congress,” Oct. 21, 2021, https://www.thestate.com/news/politics-government/article255184472.html.  Jack Norton, Twitter, Oct. 25, 2021, https://twitter.com/JackNorton8064/status/1452525971442044930.  Jane Street, Twitter, Oct. 19, 2021, https://twitter.com/janestreet/status/1450608726352740355. Joseph R. Biden Jr., “Not So Deft On Taiwan,” Washington Post, May 2, 2001, https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/2001/05/02/not-so-deft-on-taiwan/2adf3075-ee98-4e70-9be0-5459ce1edd5d/. Josh Rudolph, “Regulating the Enablers,” Alliance for Securing Democracy, Sept. 2021, https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/regulating-the-enablers/. Michael Cohen, “The Foreign Policy ‘Credibility' Argument Is, Well, Not Credible,” The New Republic, Oct. 18, 2021, https://newrepublic.com/article/164039/foreign-policy-credibility-argument-afghanistan-withdrawal. NAEI Annual Student Competition, Atlantic Council, https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/programs/scowcroft-center-for-strategy-and-security/new-american-engagement-initiative/naei-annual-student-competition/. Pew Research Center, “Citizens in Advanced Economies Want Significant Changes to Their Political Systems,” October 2021, https://www.pewresearch.org/global/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/10/PG_2021.10.21_Democracy_FINAL.pdf. “SFRC Approves 33 Critical Foreign Policy Nominations,” United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Oct. 19, 2021, https://www.foreign.senate.gov/press/chair/release/sfrc-approves-33-critical-foreign-policy-nominations-. Steven F. Knott, American Foreign Policy to 1899: Core Documents (Ashland, OH: Ashbrook Center, 2021), https://teachingamericanhistory.org/product/american-foreign-policy-to-1899/.  Ted Galen Carpenter, “Biden and His Foreign Policy Team At Least Need to Get on the Same Page Regarding Taiwan,” Cato at Liberty Blog, Oct. 25, 2021, https://www.cato.org/blog/biden-foreign-policy-team-least-need-get-same-page-regarding-taiwan.

15th Sep Bitcoin Core 22.0 has been released, the first software with Taproot support. Taproot is going to be activated in November! Bitcoin Core 22.0 is the latest major release of the Bitcoin Core software client. The release would support hardware wallets, i2p support, taproot support, testmempoolaccept logic, which paves the way to a bigger package relay upgrade. Check out the video by Bitcoin Magazine via YouTube where Aaron van Wirdum & Sjors Provoost discuss the latest major release bit.ly/394per7 Senator Elizabeth Warren in a Tuesday hearing of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission chair Gary Gensler said some harsh but true things about crypto, particularly about Ethereum “The fee to swap between two crypto tokens on the Ethereum network was more than $500,” #fact. Gary Gensler has encouraged crypto projects to meet with SEC officials. The full video can be found here bit.ly/3k9KZMg Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia) tells banks to block cards, wallets used to transact crypto. They have advised banks on how to identify and block cards and wallet accounts used by shady businesses. The official release can be found here bit.ly/2XfG7fG & here bit.ly/3nzyQ5G . A compiled synopsis can be found bit.ly/3tFbFrB . A few months ago, the Central Bank of Iran had issued a similar notice to Banks in Iran, however, it only blocked Bitcoin transactions that were mined outside of Iran. Also from the 22nd of this month, mining operations gets restarted in Iran. Since NFT took over the news in the last few months Defi has been steadily growing. The total value locked in Defi is s around $185.32 billion. You can check detailed info here bit.ly/3Cg6pxo Aave has the highest dominance level in terms of Total value locked at $14.2B. NEWSBTC has published a detailed report that can be found here bit.ly/394razT In August Nasdaq has reported that Fox Entertainment led the investment in Blockchain Tech Firm Eluvio. Eluvio will provide the underlying technology platform for Blockchain Creative Labs, FOX Entertainment's $ Bento Box Entertainment LLC Entertainment's recently launched NFT business and creative unit. CoinDesk reported earlier today the deal values the Berkeley, Calif-based start-up at $100 million UAE news: News1 Coinsfera: A place to buy #bitcoin, #Ethereum, #Cardano ( Check the slides for more info). We would recommend Coinsfera to have an exhibition stand at Future Innovation Summit dfisx.com/. This summit will provide a platform to showcase the business & meet with key decision-makers, prominent & important people in the cryptocurrency space. News 2 UAE's anti-money laundering body endorses framework for virtual assets News published by Reuters reut.rs/3kc8moB (Check slides for more info) . You can also find more information lnkd.in/e2Vz6RaF For slides click here www.linkedin.com/posts/r-a-george…02768855040-suZF Our website: www.blockchaindxb.com email: info@blockchaindxb.com

Wednesday Daily News Brief: 07/28/2021 Friends of the show. Before I get started, I want to bring you backstage behind the CrossPolitic scenes on some things. We started CrossPolitic in 2016, and never could have imagined the world we are living in now. Men can magically become penguins...I mean women...I mean uh democrats are going insane, abortion is infrastructure, and conservatives are racist because we think voter ID is a good thing. The left/right divide use to be cordial, but now it has entered into Cold War era. You see this in cancel culture, the sexualization of politics (thinking of required cake baking scenarios), and partisan voting fraud investigations. And now that cancel culture has leaped from the government/university setting into the business world, the cold war is shifting into gorilla games. I am grateful for the voice God has given CrossPolitic, and I hope God continues to bless the road we are on. Our goal for CrossPolitic and the network is really two fold: First is to speak with courage the truth in such away that it creates space for you to do the same. Courage begets courage, and when we push back effectively that creates room for thriving Christian communities to grow. This is what shepherds do, they create room for the sheep to run, to eat, and to sleep, so we hope we are doing this at a national level. Our second goal is to create a thriving Chrisitan economy. We have mentioned before, that the Babylon Bee was canceled from Mailchimp's services, Trump was kicked of Stripe, our friends over at Gab have been kicked off 5 banks. As our platform grows, we hope to bring more and more businesses together that are like minded in our walk with God and the mission of Fight Laugh Feast. The next 20 years, I believe, are going to be quite the fight, and this is why I think building our own platform is so important. Antifragil/Cancel free. The world has their platforms, think of ABC/FOX, etc…, we need to build ours. Why doesn't FOX host their own conferences/events? We are the only network, that I know of, that host our own events. We have to build, we have to be in community, we have to map out a game plan that hits back at a political culture that is hostile to Christ and His Church. So here are some ways you can help us build: Share the show. Send a text. Email a friend. Get the word out. Join the clubCome to our events.If you own a business or are just wealthy, support our efforts, either behind the scenes or as a sponsor. If you have talents that could help our efforts and want to volunteer, email me at Waterboy@CrossPolitic.com. We are in the process of beginning to build out our club platform that will create a social media like experience for our club members. Our club members are invaluable, and we want to build a community platform for our club members to network with. We want our businesses to have access to our club platform, so we can all network together, hire each other, consult with each other, and become the dark web of resistance against our godless culture. Jesus is King, and of course we labor in vain if God does not build our house, and so as we make plans for an antifragile family network, club portal, business network, events, more shows on the network, etc… We lift them all up to God, and trust in Him to bless what directions, what plans He wants to bless. So, please consider reaching out to me, and we can't thank you enough for you tuning in. Lord bless The White House tells staff to start wearing masks again, as coronavirus cases rise in Washington, D.C. CDC wants vaccinated Americans to wear masks indoors in Covid hot spots https://www.politico.com/news/2021/07/27/cdc-vaccinated-masks-indoors-500838 According to Politico: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended Tuesday that Americans wear masks indoors again, particularly in crowded indoor settings. The new indoor mask recommendations apply to vaccinated and unvaccinated people who live in areas where the CDC has classified Covid-19 transmission as “high” or “substantial,” a health official said — a category that includes much of the South as well as western states like Arizona and Wyoming. The announcement marks a sharp change in policy for the nation's leading health agency. In May, the CDC said vaccinated Americans no longer needed to wear masks outdoors or indoors in most circumstances. Internal deliberations about encouraging Americans to yet again wear masks indoors came to a head Sunday when senior officials from the White House and the CDC met to discuss new data that supported changing those guidelines, a person with knowledge of that meeting said. "This weighs heavily on me," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky told reporters Tuesday. "Not only are people tired, they are frustrated. We have mental health challenges in this country. We have a lot of sickness and death. Our health systems are being overrun. In the context of all that this, I know this is not welcome news. I just want to convey that this was not a decision that was taken lightly." Fauci Video on Masks: Roll Gov. Cuomo creepy pick you up in a car video: Steelers unvaccinated players will wear yellow wristbands According to NBC Sports: “The Pittsburgh Steelers have a high vaccination rate among players. Those who have yet to get the shot will stick out like a proverbial sore thumb. Per the team, Steelers players who haven't been vaccinated will be wearing yellow wristbands at practice. The Steelers have been among the most successful at getting players to choose to take the vaccine. That's a testament to the persuasive powers of coach Mike Tomlin, who realizes the competitive advantage of getting it — and disadvantage of not getting it. It won't be a surprise if, come September, every player remaining on the roster has gotten it.” Plug: "In the beautiful town of Moscow, ID, Erber Automotive is looking for Christians to join forces and wage war together on broken cars. Since Adam's fall, cars have been suffering at the hand of the second law of thermodynamics, starting with that very first Eden Model 1 that Adam puttered out of the garden. Paul said that all creation groans, and he'd never even heard a poor car owner on the side of the road with a steaming engine! At Erber Auto, you'll work to make auto repair fun for customers with bouncy castles, motorcycle cruises, and honest service. Most importantly, you'll work alongside Christians to show entropy the Uno reverse card! Erber Auto is looking for service advisors, shop managers, and repair technicians, who are ready to do battle with the forces of evil, or at least metal fatigue. They have 4 positions to fill at competitive salaries. Please send your resume to business@erberauto.com." Morning Joe Military Vaccine video: Role clip Biden plans to require federal workers to be vaccinated or undergo repeated tests https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/07/27/biden-vaccine-mandate-federal-employees According to The Washington Post: President Biden will announce Thursday that all federal employees will be required to be vaccinated against covid-19 or face repeated testing mandates, a White House official said, a dramatic escalation of the administration's effort to combat the spread of the delta variant. The new rules will closely align with policies recently put in place for government officials in California and New York City, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to disclose the plan. The White House is not planning on firing government employees who aren't vaccinated but will impose a number of restrictions on them as a way to encourage them to receive one of the government-approved vaccines. The plan is is part of a change in tack by the White House in recent days as the delta variant has spread markedly through parts of the United States, particularly among unvaccinated Americans. Public health experts have long said that getting at least 70 percent of the public vaccinated is the single most important tool in controlling the pandemic, but some parts of the United States have fallen far short of that target. And some authorities are urging an even higher rate of vaccinations now, given the increased virulence of the variant. On Monday, California and New York City said they would require government employees to either be vaccinated or face repeated testing requirements, and Biden was asked on Tuesday whether the federal government would impose similar requirements. "That's under consideration right now,” Biden said in response to a reporter's question after an appearance at a government intelligence facility. "If you're not vaccinated, you're not nearly as smart as I thought you were.” Rand Paul sends official criminal referral on Anthony Fauci to DOJ https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/prevention-cures/564803-rand-paul-sends-official-criminal-referral-on Fauci said he would not retract the statement and was adamant that he has never lied before Congress. Well last week, and sorry I did not get this to you sooner, but last week we covered Rand Paul's and Fauci's interaction. Sen. Paul challenged Fauc's statement that the National Institue of Allergy and Infectious Diseases did not fund “gain of function research”, and Sen. Paul is claiming that Fauci lied. Fauci of course balked at that, so last Wednesday The Washington Examiner reported that “Kentucky senator officially sent a request to Attorney General Merrick Garland to open a criminal investigation of Fauci's statement. "I write to urge the United States Department of Justice to open an investigation into testimony made to the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions by Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, on May 11, 2021," Paul wrote in the referral obtained byThe Examiner. According to The Examiner, Paul also informed Garland of comments made by molecular biologist Richard Ebright, who said in May that research conducted by the Wuhan lab "matches, indeed, epitomizes the definition of 'gain-of-function research of concern' for which federal funding was 'paused' in 2014-2017." "He's lying about whether or not he funded gain-of-function research, and yes, he should be punished," Paul told Fox News on Saturday. Garland can approve or deny the referral, which only requests the investigation.” ‘My Last Term': Tim Scott Won't Run For Senate After 2022, Stays Mum On 2024 Presidential Race https://dailycaller.com/2021/07/25/tim-scott-wont-run-after-2022-2024-presidential-race/ Senator Tim Scott, you know the Senator of South Carolina, well he gave an ambiguous answer that peaked my interest: Roll clip. Closing This is Gabriel Rench with Crosspolitic News. Support Rowdy Christian media by joining our club at fightlaughfeast.com, downloading our App, and head to our annual Fight Laugh Feast Conference next fall. With your partnership, together we will fight outdated and compromised media, engage news and politics with the gospel, and replace lies and darkness with truth and light. Go to fightlaughfeast.com to take all these actions. Have a great day. Lord bless

State Climatologist Laura Edwards is with us today for an update on drought conditions in South Dakota. We look at suicide prevention in South Dakota with Bridget Swier. Swier is the communications and outreach director at the Front Porch Coalition in Rapid City. Governor Noem says she will deploy as many as 50 members of South Dakota's National Guard to Texas to help secure the border with Mexico. We convene a roundtable from the University of South Dakota to discuss the nature of private funding for military action. Our guests are Shane Nordyke, Ph.D., Kurt Hackemer, Ph.D., and Timothy Schorn, Ph.D. Nordyke teaches National Security Policy. Hackemer will provide historical context, and Schorn will speak as a political scientist and retired Guard member. Justin Tupper, vice president of the United States Cattlemen's Association, testified before the United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry. Tupper is from St. Onge, South Dakota. Senator John Thune asked

Mike Davis joins Tim to talk about the current debate over whether or not to expand the size of the U.S. Supreme Court, otherwise known as “court packing.” Mike is president of the Article 3 Project. That's an organization that focuses on the U.S. Constitution and the judicial branch of government. Mike explains how important it is to preserve the apolitical nature of the judicial branch of government, and the U.S. Supreme Court, in particular. https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/shapingopinion/SCOTUS_9_auphonic.mp3 The U.S. Supreme Court is as old as the country itself. The Court was established by the United States Constitution with the passage of the Judiciary Act of 1789. It first assembled in 1790. The U.S. Supreme Court is the highest court in the court system, representing the judiciary branch of the nation. The judiciary is one of three branches of government. The other two are the executive branch, headed by the president, and the legislative branch, which represents both the House of Representatives and the Senate. When the Supreme Court was established back in 1789, it had six Justices. Since then, the number of justices on the court has changed a few times.  John Adams, when he was president, passed the Judiciary Act of 1801, which reduced the Court to five justices. This was an attempt to limit how many appointments the next president – Thomas Jefferson – could appoint to the bench. Once Jefferson got into office, he and his party repealed the act and went back to having six justices on the high court. Then, in 1807, Jefferson and Congress decided to add a seventh justice when it added a seventh federal circuit. Andrew Jackson was the next president to change the number of justices on the Supreme Court. In 1837, he added two more justices to the high court after Congress expanded the number of federal circuit court districts. The next time there was a change to that number was for a short time during the Civil War. In 1863, Congress created a 10th federal circuit, and so the country had a 10th Supreme Court Justice. Once the war was over, Congress passed legislation in 1866 to reduce the Court to seven justices. That lasted for two years. In 1869, a new Judiciary Act established the number of nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court. That was the last time there was a change to the number of justices on the Supreme Court. 1869. The last time there was any serious consideration to changing the number was a failed attempt by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1937. His motives were political. He wanted a majority of Democrat-leaning justices to help advance his agenda. So, his idea was to add as many as six new members to the Supreme Court. The effort failed when two respected members of the Court at that time, decided to oppose the effort – Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes and Justice Louis Brandeis. Mike Davis has spent much of his career focused on the justice system, and the U.S. Constitution. He's had a special focus on the judiciary and the Supreme Court. Links The Article 3 Project, website Internet Accountability Project, website Court-packing Isn't Just a Bad Idea, It's Downright Unconstitutional, New York Post Mike Davis: Packing the Court is a Radical Assault on Judicial Independence, The Epoch Times Democrats Introducing Legislation to Pack Supreme Court with 4 New Justices, Report Says, DailyWire About this Episode's Guest Mike Davis Mike Davis leads the Article III Project (A3P), established to fight for and defend judicial nominees, appointed judges, the process, and judicial independence. He is also the founder and president of the Internet Accountability Project, a new advocacy organization that opposes Big Tech and seeks to hold them accountable for their bad acts. Davis previously served as Chief Counsel for Nominations to Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary during the 115...

Mike Davis joins Tim to talk about the current debate over whether or not to expand the size of the U.S. Supreme Court, otherwise known as “court packing.” Mike is president of the Article 3 Project. That’s an organization that focuses on the U.S. Constitution and the judicial branch of government. Mike explains how important it is to preserve the apolitical nature of the judicial branch of government, and the U.S. Supreme Court, in particular. https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/shapingopinion/SCOTUS_9_auphonic.mp3 The U.S. Supreme Court is as old as the country itself. The Court was established by the United States Constitution with the passage of the Judiciary Act of 1789. It first assembled in 1790. The U.S. Supreme Court is the highest court in the court system, representing the judiciary branch of the nation. The judiciary is one of three branches of government. The other two are the executive branch, headed by the president, and the legislative branch, which represents both the House of Representatives and the Senate. When the Supreme Court was established back in 1789, it had six Justices. Since then, the number of justices on the court has changed a few times.  John Adams, when he was president, passed the Judiciary Act of 1801, which reduced the Court to five justices. This was an attempt to limit how many appointments the next president – Thomas Jefferson – could appoint to the bench. Once Jefferson got into office, he and his party repealed the act and went back to having six justices on the high court. Then, in 1807, Jefferson and Congress decided to add a seventh justice when it added a seventh federal circuit. Andrew Jackson was the next president to change the number of justices on the Supreme Court. In 1837, he added two more justices to the high court after Congress expanded the number of federal circuit court districts. The next time there was a change to that number was for a short time during the Civil War. In 1863, Congress created a 10th federal circuit, and so the country had a 10th Supreme Court Justice. Once the war was over, Congress passed legislation in 1866 to reduce the Court to seven justices. That lasted for two years. In 1869, a new Judiciary Act established the number of nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court. That was the last time there was a change to the number of justices on the Supreme Court. 1869. The last time there was any serious consideration to changing the number was a failed attempt by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1937. His motives were political. He wanted a majority of Democrat-leaning justices to help advance his agenda. So, his idea was to add as many as six new members to the Supreme Court. The effort failed when two respected members of the Court at that time, decided to oppose the effort – Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes and Justice Louis Brandeis. Mike Davis has spent much of his career focused on the justice system, and the U.S. Constitution. He’s had a special focus on the judiciary and the Supreme Court. Links The Article 3 Project, website Internet Accountability Project, website Court-packing Isn't Just a Bad Idea, It's Downright Unconstitutional, New York Post Mike Davis: Packing the Court is a Radical Assault on Judicial Independence, The Epoch Times Democrats Introducing Legislation to Pack Supreme Court with 4 New Justices, Report Says, DailyWire About this Episode’s Guest Mike Davis Mike Davis leads the Article III Project (A3P), established to fight for and defend judicial nominees, appointed judges, the process, and judicial independence. He is also the founder and president of the Internet Accountability Project, a new advocacy organization that opposes Big Tech and seeks to hold them accountable for their bad acts. Davis previously served as Chief Counsel for Nominations to Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary during the 115...

Allegations of gang stalking and attacks on civilians using strange microwave weapons are being made.  Is this a thing?  Well, it is being reported by people all over the world.  A pretty astounding amount of people, by our standards. Psychology Today.  What More Could Myron May Have Done?  Rachel Pruchno Ph.D..  All in the Family.  December 3, 2014.  https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/all-in-the-family/201412/what-more-could-myron-may-have-done Myron May:  Descent into Delusions.  Peter Langman, Ph.D.  March 14, 2016.  https://schoolshooters.info/sites/default/files/may_descent_into_delusions_1.1_0.pdf Wired.  Mind Games:  The Tortured Lives of ‘Targeted Individuals’.  Laura Yan.  March 04, 2018.  https://www.wired.com/story/mind-games-the-tortured-lives-of-targeted-individuals/ Targeted Justice.  What is a Targeted Individual?  https://www.targetedjustice.com/what-is-a-targeted-individual.html The New York Times.  United States of Paranoia:  They See Gangs of Stalkers.  Mike McPhate.  June 10, 2016.  https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/11/health/gang-stalking-targeted-individuals.html Liebert Publishers.  Mass Murder, Targeted Individuals, and Gang-Stalking:  Exploring the Connection.  Christine M.  Sarteschi.  March 1, 2018.  https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/vio.2017.0022?journalCode=vio Taylor and Francis Online.  Critical Studies in Media Communication.  Volume 37, 2020 – Issue 5.  https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15295036.2020.1800060?journalCode=rcsm20 Pacts International.  Letter to Mr. Melzer from the Executive Director of the People Against Covert Torture and Surveillance, International.  https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Torture/Call/NGOs/PCTS.pdf Freedom for Targeted Individuals.  https://www.freedomfortargetedindividuals.org/ MIT Technology Review.  Humans and Technology.  “Am I Crazy or am I being Stalked?”  Inside the Disturbing Online World of Gangstalking.  Amelia Tait.  August 7, 2020.  https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/08/07/1006109/inside-gangstalking-disturbing-online-world/ US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health.  The Phenomenology of Group Stalking:  A Content Analysis of Subjective Experiences.  Lorraine Sheridan.  David V. James.  Jayden Roth.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7178134/ Targeted Individuals Europe.  TI “Symptoms”.  https://targetedindividualseurope.wordpress.com/ti-symptoms/ ResearchGate.  Mass Murder, Targeted Individuals, and Gang-Stalking:  Exploring the Connection.  Violence and Gender.  2017.  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321450744_Mass_Murder_Targeted_Individuals_and_Gang-Stalking_Exploring_the_Connection Oxford Academic.  Schizophrenia bulletin.  The Journal of Psychoses and Related Disorders.  University of Maryland School of Medicine.  T120.  Examining Psychosis in Social Media:  The Targeted Individuals Movement and the Potential of Pathological Echo-Chambers. April 9, 2019.  Lei Xuan, Angus MacDonald III.  https://academic.oup.com/schizophreniabulletin/article/45/Supplement_2/S250/5434704 The List of Clinton Associates Who Allegedly Died Mysteriously.  Check it Out.  August 10, 2016.  https://lasvegas.cbslocal.com/2016/08/10/the-list-of-clinton-associates-whove-died-mysteriously-check-it-out/ Max Spiers:  Could the Last Interview Help Explain his Death?  Part 1. BBC Stories.   Max Spiers:  Could the Last Interview Help Explain his Death?  Part 2. BBC Stories.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vY2LmfDyt-o&list=LLmNMPGot6CXOwyTkjMXs-AQ&index=245 The Guardian.  Conspiracy Theorist Max Spiers ‘Died after Taking Anxiety Drug’.  Briton, Who Had Pneumonia Died in Poland after taking Turkish equivalent of Xanax, inquest Hears.  Press Association.  January 7, 2019.  https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/jan/07/conspiracy-theorist-max-spiers-died-taking-anxiety-drug-poland BBC News.  Maxwell Bates-Spiers Inquest:  Journalist ‘feared he might be killed’.  January 8, 2019.  https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-kent-46797029 The Voice.  The Newspaper of Farmington High School.  The Strange and Abnormal:  The Baffling Death of Max Spiers.  Ava Ferrigno, Features Editor.  February 2, 2019.  https://fhsvoice.org/4923/columns/the-strange-and-abnormal-the-baffling-death-of-max-spiers/ What we all have been waiting for…*The Clinton’s Blood Trail*.  https://static1.squarespace.com/static/57bb10eb197aeaff4950c1d7/t/57deef873e00be77caa70a4c/1474228103733/blood+trail.pdf Different Brain.  Schizophrenia.  2020.  Dr3am Systems.  https://www.differentbrains.org/resources/schizophrenia/ YouTube.  Organized Gang Stalking and Electonic Harassment.  Thomas Marshall.  FansFiltration.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8l2y1eJD4A&feature=emb_logo The Third Committee, Virtual Informal (15, October, morning) – General Assembly, 75th session.  Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee.  http://webtv.un.org/search/third-committee-virtual-informal-15-october-morning-general-assembly-75th-session/6201330936001/?term=&lan=english&page=1 Jama Network.  Neurological Manifestations Among US Government Personnel Reporting Directional Audible and Sensory Phenomena in Havana Cuba.  Randel L. Swanson II, DO, PhD.  Stephen Hampton, MD, Judith Green-McKenzie, MD, MPH.  March 20, 2018.  https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2673168 United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.  Subcommittee Hearing.  Attacks on US Diplomats in Cuba: Response and Oversight.  Tuesday, January 9, 2018.  10:00 AM.  Presiding:  Senator Rubio.  https://www.foreign.senate.gov/hearings/attacks-on-us-diplomats-in-cuba-response-and-oversight-010918 Tedx Talks.  Why Are We Stalking You?  To Keep You Out of Jail.  Molly Baldwin.  March 24, 2017.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulLFP8axZVQ Microwave Auditory Effect or Microwave Hearing Effect:  The Most Generally Accepted Non-Thermal Effect of Electromagnetic Radiation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wpfOSGm0wc&feature=emb_logo Video Transcript.  https://www.information-book.com/electromagnetic-harassment-health-attacks/microwave-auditory-effect/ United States Patent.  Patent No. US 6,470,214 B1.  October 22, 2002.  O’Loughlin et al.  https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/00/24/7c/4cf02f4210343e/US6470214.pdf NBC.  U.S. News.  FSU Shooter Myron May Left Message: ‘I Do Not Want to Die in Vain’.  November 22nd, 2014.  FSU Shooter Myron May Left Message: 'I Do Not Want to Die in Vain' (nbcnews.com) FBI Investigates Presidio Child Molest Case Kathleed MacClay.  August 10, 1987.  FBI Investigates Presidio Child Molest Case (apnews.com) San Jose Mercury News.  Child Abuse at the Presidio.  Linda Goldston.  July 24th, 1988.  Aquino - San Jose Mercury, July 1988 (outpost-of-freedom.com) Independent.  Max Spiers:  UK refuses to investigate ‘suspicious death of British conspiracy theorist’.  Charlotte England.  October 17th, 2016.  Max Spiers: UK refuses to investigate 'suspicious' death of British conspiracy theorist | The Independent | The Independent 25 Years of Nightmares.  David Remnick.  July 28, 1985.  The Washington Post.  25 Years of Nightmares - The Washington Post CIA.  Psychic Warfare:  Exploring the Mind Frontier.  Dolan M. McKelvy.  Lieutenant Colonel.  USAF.  PSYCHIC WARFARE: EXPLORING THE MIND FRONTIER (cia.gov) US Electromagnetic Weapons and Human Rights.  Peter Phillips, Lew Brown, Bridget Thornton.  December 2006.  Sonoma State University Project Censored.  Media Freedom Foundation.  Microsoft Word - Electromegnatic Weapons Final_word.rtf (projectcensored.org) Scandal.  Scientology Stalkers Ruined my Life!  Wife of Ex-Scientologist Tells Court Church Harassed her for Years.  September 13, 2013.  Scientology Stalkers Ruined My Life! Wife Of Ex-Scientologist Tells Court Church Harassed Her For Years | Radar Online Fair Game (Scientology).  Wikipedia.  Fair Game (Scientology) - Wikipedia CBS This Morning.  Police:  Florida State Gunman Thought Authorities Were After Him.  November 21, 2014.  (45) Police: Florida State gunman thought authorities were after him - YouTube ABC Action News.  Friends:  Myron May Struggled with Mental Health.  November 21st, 2014. (45) Friends: Myron May struggled with mental health - YouTube KROE News 13.  Video:  FSU Shooter Describes Time in NM.  Feb 9, 2015.  (45) Video: FSU shooter describes time in NM - YouTube Fans Filtration.  June 10, 2012.  Organized Gang Stalking and Electronic Harassment.  Thomas Marshall.  (45) Organized Gang Stalking and Electronic Harassment - Thomas Marshall - YouTube

This week, my guest is Scott Ritter, former United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq from 1991 to 1998. Prior to the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, Ritter stated that Iraq possessed no significant weapons of mass destruction (WMD) capabilities. Scott and I discuss the foreign policy philosophy of Joe Biden. Scott is quite familiar with Joe Biden, and in 1998, he had a back-and-forth with him at the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services and the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. We discuss the lies that lead the US to war in Iraq in 2003 from Scott's first-hand account. We discuss Joe Biden's role in those lies as well as his interventionist posturing throughout the decades. Watch Scott's encounters with Joe Biden here: Sponsors: Zippix Toothpicks ( ): Enter code DTTP at checkout for 10% off your order! Lorenzotti Coffee ( ): Enter code DTTP at checkout for 10% off your order! Visit my website: Donate to the show here: Audio Production by Podsworth Media: Leave us a review and rating on iTunes! Thanks!

Securities & Exchange Commissioner Hester Peirce joins Jonathan and Michael to discuss a variety of topics pertaining to the evolution of securities regulation in the United States. Topics include the most recent vote to amend the rules around capital formation and crowdfunding projects to facilitate better outcomes for U.S.-based businesses trying to raise funding and grow. Also discussed were topics such as the recent ATS no-action letter and secondary market considerations for digitized assets, regulatory enforcement, and cross-agency cooperation for crypto and tech regulation. ABOUT COMMISSIONER HESTER PEIRCE Having earned her nickname "Crypto Mom" for her interest in cryptocurrency and blockchain, Hester Peirce is an American attorney specializing in financial market regulation. Peirce currently serves as a Commissioner on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). She previously served as the director of the Financial Markets Working Group at George Mason University's Mercatus Center. Peirce is a former staff member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and of the SEC. On August 6, 2020, the Senate confirmed Peirce by voice vote for another five-year term expiring on June 5, 2025. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Commissioner Peirce earned her B.A. in economics from Case Western Reserve University in 1993 and her J.D. from Yale Law School in 1997. Follow Commissioner Peirce on Twitter: @HesterPeirce ABOUT DIGITAL DOLLAR SUBSCRIBE TO THE EMAIL INBOX UPDATES! https://digitaldollar.substack.com For more information about our sponsor, visit https://10xts.com Follow us on Twitter --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/digitaldollar/message

A Canadian has been charged with terrorism hoax for lying about being part of ISIS. What should happen to him? Borealis talks to Mubin Shaikh, a Canadian who worked with Abu Huzayfah to see what he knew and when about this case.More:►Quick Hits Abu Huzayfah, the man who cried ISIS►Episode 31 - Interview with Mubin Shaikh, former security intelligence and counter terrorism operativeAbout my guest Mubin Shaikh:Mubin Shaikh is a former security intelligence and counter terrorism operative. He has testified as an expert for the United Nations Security Council, the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs with NATO, the National Counterterrorism Center, and Special Operations Command Central and he is an external expert with the Joint Staff SMA for CENTCOM Command Staff.About the host Phil Gurski:Phil is the President and CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting Ltd. and Programme Director for the Security, Economics and Technology (SET) hub at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute (PDI). He worked as a senior strategic analyst at CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) from 2001-2015, specializing in violent Islamist-inspired homegrown terrorism and radicalisation.►Website - https://borealisthreatandrisk.com/►Twitter - https://twitter.com/borealissaves►LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-gurski-8942468/►Email - borealisrisk@gmail.com►Check Phil Gurski's latest books - https://amzn.to/2ALdpoG

When Congress (finally) returned from their COVIDcation, experts in medicine, vaccine development, law, and business testified under oath. In this episode, hear the highlights from 17 hours of that expert testimony during which you'll learn about a concerning new vaccine development policy, Mitch McConnell's dangerous demands for the next COVID-19 response law, and how Republicans and Democrats failed for the last two decades to secure the nation's medical mask supply.  Thank you to all Congressional Dish producers who make the independence of this podcast possible. Enjoy your show!  Please Support Congressional Dish – Quick Links Click here to contribute monthly or a lump sum via PayPal Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Send Zelle payments to: Donation@congressionaldish.com Send Venmo payments to: @Jennifer-Briney Send Cash App payments to: $CongressionalDish or Donation@congressionaldish.com Use your bank’s online bill pay function to mail contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North, Number 4576, Crestview, FL 32536 Please make checks payable to Congressional Dish Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Articles/Documents Article: Scientists Worldwide Are Questioning A Massive Study That Raised Concerns About The Malaria Drug Hyped As A COVID-19 Treatment By Stephanie M. Lee, Buzz Feed News, May 30, 2020 Article: CORPORATE IMMUNITY, MITCH MCCONNELL’S PRIORITY FOR CORONAVIRUS RELIEF, IS A LONGTIME FOCUS OF THE CONSERVATIVE RIGHT By Akela Lacy, The Intercept, May 26, 2020 Press Release: Trump Administration’s Operation Warp Speed Accelerates AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine to be Available Beginning in October, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, May 21, 2020 Article: Social Distancing Is Not Enough By Derek Thompson, The Atlantic, May 22, 2020 Article: Federal agency finds 'reasonable grounds to believe' Rick Bright's whistleblower claims: NYT By Eric Sagonowsky, Fierce Pharma, May 8, 2020 Article: McConnell’s coronavirus business liability pledge sparks lobbying frenzy By Jennifer Haberkorn, Los Angeles Times, May 6, 2020 Article: FDA cautions against use of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine for COVID-19 outside of the hospital setting or a clinical trial due to risk of heart rhythm problems, U.S. Food & Drug Administration, April 24, 2020 Article: As workers face virus risks, employers seek liability limits By Emily Kopp, Roll Call, April 17, 2020 Article: Hydroxychloroquine: how an unproven drug became Trump’s coronavirus 'miracle cure' By Julia Carrie Wong, The Guardian, April 17, 2020 Article: Sunlight exposure increased Covid-19 recovery rates: A study in the central pandemic area of Indonesia By Al Asyary and Merita Veruswati, ScienceDirect, Elsevier, 10 April 2020 Resources Tweet @JenBriney, Jennifer Briney, Twitter, May 27, 2020 Sound Clip Sources News Alert: Trump says he's taking hydroxychloroquine despite FDA warnings, Axios, Fox News, May 18, 2020 Interview: McConnell says next stimulus must have coronavirus liability protections, By Noah Manskar, The New York Post, Fox News, May 15, 2020 Hearing: Protecting Scientific Integrity in the COVID-19 Response, United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, May 14, 2020 Watch on Youtube Watch on CSPAN Witnesses: Dr. Richard Bright - Former Director of BARDA, current Senior Advisor at the National Institutes of Health Mike Bowen - Executive Vice President of Prestige Ameritech Transcript: 51:40 Rep. Ana Eshoo (CA): Was there a failure to respond with the needed urgency when you correctly pushed to ramp up production of masks, respirators, syringes, swabs. Dr. Rick Bright: Congresswoman, we've known for quite some time that our stockpile is insufficient and having those critical personal protective equipment. So once this virus began spreading and became known to be a threat, I did feel quite concerned that we didn't have those supplies. I began pushing urgently in January along with some industry colleagues as well. And those urges, those alarms were not responded to with action. 52:15 Rep. Ana Eshoo (CA): Was there a failure to take immediate action when you correctly push to acquire additional doses of the drug Remdesivir, which is the only drug so far that has appeared to be at least mildly effective, thank God, for treating people with COVID-19? Dr. Rick Bright: There was no action taken on the urgency to come up with a plan per acquisition of limited doses that Remdesivir nor to distribute those limited doses of Remdesivir once we had the scientific data to support their use for people infected with this virus. 1:04:00 Rep. Frank Pallone (NJ): My concern is, I'm very critical administration in terms of their I call it incompetence, with the supply chain, with lack of testing. I'm afraid the same thing is going to happen with vaccines and once it's in the distribution. I mean, should I be concerned based on your experience? Dr. Rick Bright: Absolutely, sir. We're already seeing those challenges with limited doses of Remdesivir with data that we're getting that Remdesivir has some benefit in people. And we have limited doses and we haven't scaled up production and we don't have a plan and how to fairly and equitably distribute that drug. If you can imagine this scenario, this fall or winter, maybe even early next spring, when vaccine becomes available. There's no one company that can produce enough for our country or for the world. It's gonna be limited supplies. We need to have a strategy and plan in place now to make sure that we can not only feel that vaccine, make it, distribute it, but administer it in a fair and equitable plan. And that's not the case at all. We don't have that yet and it is a significant concern. 1:11:50 Dr. Rick Bright: Normally it takes up to 10 years to make a vaccine. We've done it faster in emergency situations. But from when we had starting material in the freezer for Ebola, but for a novel virus is actually haven't been done yet that quickly. So a lot of optimism is swirling around a 12 to 18 month timeframe. If everything goes perfectly - we've never seen everything go perfectly. My concern is if we rush too quickly and considered cutting out critical steps, we may not have a full assessment of the safety of that vaccine. So it's still going to take some time. I still think 12 to 18 months is an aggressive schedule. And I think it's going to take longer than that to do so. Rep. Eliott Engel (NY): 12 to 18 months from now, or 12 to 18 months from when this all started at the beginning of the year? Dr. Rick Bright: It will be 12 to 18 months from when the particular manufacturers has first received the material or information that they need to start developing that vaccine. It's critical to note when we say 12 to 18 months. That doesn't mean for an FDA approved vaccine. That means to have sufficient data and information on the safety and immunogenicity if not efficacy, to be able to use on an emergency basis. And that is a consideration that we have in mind when we talk about an accelerated timeline. 1:14:20 Dr. Rick Bright: Congressmen our concern's centered around the potential use of chloriquine in people who are infected with this Coronavirus. There are data, the effective use and safe use of chloriquine in malaria patients and other patients and other indications. We also knew that there are potential safety risks with chloriquine they cause irregular heart rhythms, and even in some cases death. So our concern was with limited information and knowledge, especially of its use in COVID-19 infected patients and the potential for those risks, then we should make sure that any studies with that drug are done in a carefully controlled clinical study and a close watchful eye of a physician so they could respond to a patient if they did experience one of those adverse events. There wasn't sufficient data at that time to support use of this drug in patients with COVID-19 without close physician supervision. Rep. Eliott Engel (NY): And when you raised that issue of chloriquine use in Coronavirus patients with HHS leadership. What happened to you you removed as a director of BARDA. Is that not true? Dr. Rick Bright: I believe part of that removal process for me was initiated because of a push back that I forgave when they asked me to put in place an expanded access protocol that would make chloriquine more freely available to Americans that were not under the close supervision of a physician and may not even be confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus. The sciences, FDA, BARDA, NIH and CDC worked hard to switch that to a emergency use authorization with strict guardrails that the patients would be in a hospital confirmed to be infected with this virus under close supervision of a doctor and who could not otherwise participate in a randomized controlled study. My concerns were alleviated somewhat by being able to lock that in the stockpile with those conditions. However, my concerns were escalated when I learned that leadership in the department health and human services were pushing to make that drug available outside of this emergency use authorization to flood New York, New Jersey with this drug, regardless of the EUA and when I spoke outside of our government and shared my concerns for the American public, that I believe was the straw that broke the camel's back and escalated my removal. 1:47:15 Rep. Kathy Castor (FL): Dr. Bright you understood that America would face a shortage of respirators in January? Is that right? Dr. Rick Bright: We understood America would face a shortage of N95 respirators for a pandemic response in 2007. And we have exercise and known and evaluated that number almost every year since 2007. It was exercised even as late as early as 2019, August in Crimson contagion, that we would need 3.5 billion in 95 respirators in our stockpile to protect our healthcare workers from a pandemic response. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL): And you sounded the alarm repeatedly. But were ignored by the senior leadership at the Department of Health and Human Services. Please explain what steps you took and the responsibilities you received. Dr. Rick Bright: We knew going into this pandemic that critical medical equipment would be in short supply. I began getting alerts from industry colleagues in mid and late January, telling me that from an outside view, from the industry view that the supply chain was diminishing rapidly telling me that other countries that we relied on to supply many of these masks were blocking export and stopping transfer of those masks to the United States. I learned that China was trying to buy the equipment from the United States producers to have it shipped to China so they could make more. In each of these alerts, and there were dozens of these alerts, I pushed those forward to our leadership and asked for Dr. Cadillac and his senior leadership team. I pushed those warnings to our critical infrastructure protection team. I pushed those warnings to our Strategic National Stockpile team who has the responsibility of procuring those medical supplies for our stockpile. In each of those. I was met with indifference, saying they were either too busy they didn't have a plan. They didn't know who was responsible for procuring those. In some cases they had a sick child and we'll get back to it later in the week. A number of excuses, but never any action. It was weeks after my pushing that finally a survey was sent out to manufacturers or producers of those masks. A five page survey asking producers or companies if they actually made those masks. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL): In your whistleblower filing you discuss a February 7th meeting of the department leadership group, but which you urge the department to focus on securing and 95 masks. Can you describe what happened at that meeting? Dr. Rick Bright: They informed me that they did not say believe there was a critical urgency to procure mass. They conducted some surveys, talked to a few hospitals and some companies and they didn't yet see a critical shortage. And I indicated that we know there will be a critical shortage of these supplies. We need to do something to ramp up production. They indicated if we notice there is a shortage that we will simply change the CDC guidelines to better inform people who should not be wearing those masks. So that would save those masks for healthcare workers. My response was, I cannot believe you can sit and say that with a straight face. That was an absurd. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL): In fact, it took three months from your initial warnings - until mid April for the federal government to invoke its authority under the Defense Production Act, to require the production of millions of more N-95 masks. And even then, the administration required the production of only 39 million masks which is far fewer than you and other experts said that we would need. What was the consequence of this three month delay and inadequate response. Were lives in danger? Dr. Rick Bright: Lives were in danger and I believe lives were lost. And not only that, we were forced to procure the supplies from other countries without the right quality standards. So even our doctors and nurses in the hospitals today are wearing N-95 Mark masks from other countries that are not providing the sufficient protection that a US standard N-95 mask would provide them. Some of those masks are only 30% effective. Therefore, nurses are rushing in the hospitals thinking they're protected and they're not. 2:15:50 Dr. Rick Bright: I believe there's a lot of work that we still need to do. And I think we need still, I don't think I know, we need still a comprehensive plan and everyone across the government and everyone in America needs to know what that plan is and what role they play. There are critical steps that we need to do to prepare for that fall, for that winter coming. We do not still have enough personal protective equipment to manage our healthcare workers and protect them from influenza and COVID-19. We still do not have the supply chains ramped up for the drugs and vaccines and we still don't have plans in place on how we distribute those drugs and vaccines. And we still do not have a comprehensive testing strategy. So Americans know which tests do what, what to do with that information. And we know how to find this virus and trap it and kill it. There's a lot of work we still have to do. 3:40:15 Dr. Rick Bright: I think what's really interesting about the testing story that gets lost in the narrative sometimes is the confusion about the different types of tests. There's an antigen test that tells you if you have the virus in you, there's a PCR test, it says it may the fragments of the virus and there's antibody tests, it looks at your antibody titer to try to tell you you've been exposed already maybe immune to that the virus. There's a lot of confusion, I think the first thing HHS needs to do is determine which of those tests is most important to achieve which objective. If the antigen test is was needed, because it's faster and lower cost, and more readily available, in some cases, what does it tell Americans? What does it tell employers? What does it tell schools about the potential for an individual who has a positive or negative on that test and their potential to have different results the next day or later that day? There's a lot of confusion about these tests. So I think the first thing that HHS should do is determine the type of test and how that test would be used effectively. And then make sure that we have enough of those types of tests and they're in the right place and the people using them know what the data tells them and how to use it effectively. I think there's a lot of confusion there and they need leadership in HHS to distinguish those challenges and clarify that for the American public. 3:41:30 Rep. Blunt Rochester (DE): Why do you think that our nation has struggled with ramping up the testing capacity, unlike other countries, and were there contingencies in place or a backup, in light of this situation we're in now. Dr. Rick Bright: I think part of the struggle is waiting too late to think about it and to get it started. When we've had conversations with some manufacturers, they've been very creative and how they can ramp up. Another part of the challenge is, we have allowed many of these capabilities to be offshore. And so we have much more capability of expanding domestic capacity when it's in our country, and we can ramp up and bring innovation to those companies in the US. But if the supply chain is offshore, and there's a global need and competition for that supply chain, that also significantly impairs our ability to ramp up. 3:47:30 Dr. Rick Bright: We need to have a strategy that everyone follows, the same strategy, to test for the word the viruses who's infected with this virus. And then we have to appropriately isolate that person in quarantine so they don't infect others. And we rapidly need to trace their contacts to understand who they may have been exposed to, and be able to test to those individuals. And if they've been infected as well, we need to be able to isolate those. Through a concerted coordinated effort across the country, we can be able to identify where that virus is who's been exposed, give those people proper treatment and isolation and can slow the spread of this virus significantly. But that has to be in a coordinated way. We have to have the right tests and enough of those tests. It's not something we do once and we're done. It's something we have to continually do in the community. So it's not just that we need one test for every person in America. We need multiple tests and the right types of tests. We need the right types of individuals and professionals who know how to use those tests to trace the individual contacts and to isolate that virus and stop it from spreading. 4:11:00 Mike Bowen: Until 2004, 90% of all surgical masks worn and I'm including surgical respirators, were domestically made. That year, or about around that year. All of the major domestic mask sellers switched from selling domestically made masks to selling imported masks. Prestige Ameritech was founded in 2005 recognized this as a security issue in 2006. We thought that once America's hospitals learned that their mask supplies were subject to diversion by foreign governments, during pandemics, they would switch back to U.S. made masks. We were wrong. In November of 2007, we received a phone call from BARDA asking for a tour of our mask factory. BARDA was acting on George W. Bush's Presidental Directive 21, the purpose of which was to review America's disaster plans. Brenda Hayden with BARDA gave a presentation which showed that BARDA was concerned about the foreign controlled mask supply. We were thrilled that BARDA had discovered the issue until Brenda said that BARDA was only charged with studying the problem. We were disappointed but we took consolation in the fact that finally, a federal agency knew that the mask supply was in danger. We were very happy to have an ally. Two years later, I received a call from Brenda Hayden. She started the conversation by saying, we have a situation. Her serious tone caused me to ask her if she was talking about a pandemic. And she said, Yes. She asked if we could ramp up production, and I said yes. We built more machines bought an abandoned Kimberly Clark mask factory and tripled and tripled our workforce. America's hospitals needed us and we rose to the occasion. We told them about the high cost of ramping up. And they said they would stay with us. Unfortunately most returned to buying cheaper foreign made masks when they became available. The company survived by laying off 150 people who helped save the US mask supply by taking pay cuts. And by taking on more investors. The H1N1 pandemic, this is 2009 2010, wasn't severe enough to cause the foreign health officials to cut off mask shipments to America. So our predictions didn't come true...yet. In a weakened state, but undaunted, Prestige Ameritech continued saying that the US mask supply was headed for failure. We just didn't know when. In 2004 to give my security story more issue, I formed the Secure Mask Supply Association. You can find it at securemasksupply.org. Paraphrasing Ben Franklin, I told three competing domestic mask makers that if we didn't hang together, we would hang separately, as China was poised to put all of us out of business and put the country at even greater risk, Crosstex, Gerson, and Medecom all with domestic mask making factories agreed and joined the SMSA. Unfortunately, the Secure Mask Supply Associations warnings were also unheeded. During my quest to secure the US mask supply, I had the privilege of working with three BARDA directors, Dr. Robin Robinson, Dr. Richard Hatchet, and Dr. Rick Bright. They were helpful and they encouraged me to go continue warning people about the mask supply. I'll say a little bit more about that. After years of doing this, I quit many times. And the only reason I kept doing it is because of the directors of BARDA. They would encourage me and asked me not to not to quit. They said that they would express their concerns about the masks supply to anyone that I could get to call them. Anyone except reporters. They weren't allowed to talk to reporters, which was very frustrating to me. They also weren't allowed to endorse the Secure Mask Supply Association. Dr. Robinson was going to do so until HHS attorneys told him that it could cost him his job. He called me personally on vacation to tell me that I can confirm that the emails and Dr. Bright's complaint are mine. They are merely the latest of 13 years of emails I sent to BARDA in an effort to get HHS to understand that the US mask supply was destined for failure, Robinson, Hatchet and Bright all wanted to remedy the problem. In my opinion, they didn't have enough authority. Their hearts were in the right places. America was told after 911 that governmental silos had been torn down so that different federal federal agencies could work together for national securities. But I didn't see any of that. The DOD, the VA, the CDC and HHS could have worked together to secure America's mask supply. I suggested this to BARDA and to the CDC on several occasions. 4:23:00 Rep. Greg Walden (OR): This is your email to Dr. Bright and to Laura wolf. It says and I quote, "my government strategy is to help the US government if and only if the VA and DOD become my customers after this thing is over. Mike Bowen: Yes, sir. Rep. Greg Walden (OR): So Madam Chair, I'd like to submit the mail for the record. We'll send you an electronic copy as per our agreements here. Now, Mr. Cohen, I'm sorry. You said you want to help the U.S. government, you want to help Americans get the masks. Yet it appears that there seems to be a condition here. I assume that's because in the past, you ramped up, things went away, people bought from other manufacturers. And so here you're saying, and I have it here in the email, 'My strategy is to help my existing customers and bring on new customers who are willing to sign a long term contract. My government strategy is to help the US government if and only if the VA and DOD become my customers after this thing is over.' And here we were in a crisis is masks are going overseas now. The US government's not your only purchaser, right? Mike Bowen: The U.S. government has never bought from me except during a pandemic, sir. Rep. Greg Walden (OR): Okay. And so... Mike Bowen: In that email, and that statement, was basically saying that I don't want the government to only call me in a pandemic. Give me business during peacetime so that I can survive to help you during a pandemic. Rep. Greg Walden (OR): Did you ever ask for a sole source contract? Mike Bowen: I have. I have been on the DOD and the VA business. And I continually lose to masks that are made in Mexico, because the DOD does not obey the Berry Amendment. They buy foreign masks made in Mexico, because Mexico is a friend of ours and is called a TAA compliant country. Made the decision based on price... Rep. Greg Walden (OR): How long...Sir, if I may, can I reclaim my time? How long, you said you couldn't turn on these lines of manufacturing very quickly. How long? If you got a big order from the government today, would it take you to produce masks? Mike Bowen: Three or four months and the government wants to do that right now. HHS is asking me to do that. Rep. Greg Walden (OR): And it will take three to four months? Mike Bowen: Yes, I'm told. I told him it's going to take three or four months. They only want masks to the end of the year. So I would have to hire 100 people to train 100 people and then fire them at the end of the program. I'm not going to do that. Again. I don't want the government to only deal with me when... Rep. Greg Walden (OR): My time is expired. Madam Chair, I yield back. 4:29:45: *Mike Bowen:** Let me say this: China sells a box of masks for $1. I don't think anybody's making any profit doing that, because I sell them for about $5. So if their prices are so cheap that they've captured most of the world's mass market. Rep. Elliot Engel (NY): Does the government subsidize the Chinese government, the Beijing government? Mike Bowen: I don't know that. I don't know. All I know is their masks cost less than than materials. If I take my labor costs totally out, I'm still nowhere near the cost of their products. 4:30:30 Rep. Elliot Engel (NY): What steps can the federal government take to incentivize more medical manufacturing of critical equipment like surgical face masks in the United States? Mike Bowen: Well as in a letter that I sent to President Obama, I don't think it requires money. I think it requires the government saying and it's a national security problem. It requires the CDC telling America's hospitals, they are too dependent on foreign aid masks, and put them in legal liability. They have to protect their patients and staff. If in a public forum like this, you say, this is a national security issue, then those hospitals' attorneys are probably going to get on the ball and tell their hospitals to buy American made products. And they don't cost that much. The whole market is only a couple of hundred million dollars. This whole problem, this is a $30 million problem, folks, just for people trying to save pennies across the whole United States. It's not some multibillion dollar problem. 4:36:20 Rep. Brett Guthrie (KY): Mike Bowen: You thought it was necessary to go through Dr. Bright. You couldn't get anybody else to listen to them and Dr. Bright under No, no, no, you got it all wrong. First of all I wasn't looking for I'm just trying to find the information. Oh yeah. I wasn't looking for business. I opened my email. I don't need your business. My phones are ringing off the wall. I'm just I thought of BARDA - Dr. Robinson, Dr. hatchet and Dr. Bright. I thought of them as brothers in arms, and who they couldn't buy my products. I knew that. But they were the only people who believed it. I would like everybody to go to YouTube, put in Michael Burgess and Prestige Ameritech you'll see Mr. Burgess talking at our factory 10 years ago. You'll see him say that only 10% of the mask supplies are made in the United States. I talked to Michael Burgess. Ron Wright. Joe Barton. Patrick Leahy. My associate Matt Conlin talked to Chuck Schumer. I wrote Barack Obama letters, wrote President Trump and everybody in his early administration, Defense Secretary Mattis, General Jeffrey Clark, Nicole Lurie and Anita Patel with CDC, National Academies of Science. Greg Burrell, hundreds of hospitals, hospital purchasing groups, the hospital risk Managers Association. The hospital risk managers Association. Told them the mask supply is going to collapse, this is a risk. Nobody listened. Association of Operating Nurses, the Defense Department, the Veterans Department, Texas Governor Rick Perry. State Texas Rep. Bill Zedler, by the way, Bill Zedler got in dozens of reporters. I've been in every news show. I've done this for 13 years. Nobody listened. And my conscience is clean, Mr. Guthrie. I've been working on this damn issue for 13 years trying to save lives. Nobody listened. And now, I'm not going to take any of this. 4:46:20 Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA): We can't guarantee you a contract. I think everybody agrees we've got to have more made in America. Why not ramp up with the understanding that the policy is likely to change? I think it will change because I think we don't, whether it be masks or other PPE or drug supply, we're going to have to have a significant portion of these items made in the United States going forward. Knowing that, and your phone's ringing off the hook, why not ramp up those four lines? Mike Bowen: Because one day, the pandemics gonna end and the the usage will go down to the basement again, where it was there'll be 10 times less usage. And I'll have all these machines and people and these materials and have nothing to do with them. That's what happened to us before. It was a very difficult thing to ramp up. And let me say this again, let me remind you that we have ramped up. We've gone from making 75,000 respirators I'm going to about four... In 40 days, we'll be ramped up to making 4 million respirator per month. So don't concentrate on these four Chinese machines that we really don't know much about and would be a total pain to get going on top of... I'm trying not to kill my business partner who is in charge of getting all this stuff done. He's working 20 hours a day now with all the projects we've already got now, to dump this on top for some business that may or may not come? Absolutely not. 4:48:40 Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA): Okay, after H1N1 did you continue to produce masks for purposes of restocking the Strategic National Stockpile? Mike Bowen: I can't do that without the Strategic National Stockpile wanting to buy them. Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA):Did you have conversations with BARDA, SNS and HHS at that time about supplying the masks for the National Stockpile? Mike Bowen: I have talked to Greg Burrell on many occasions, sir. I've also offered those machines to him. And I've offered those machines to the Department of Defense. Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA): You're just gonna give the machines or you're gonna give them the production? Mike Bowen: No, listen to this. Here's what I wanted to do. I wanted CDC and VA and DOD to get together I had four machines, that very little money and that could make a whole bunch of masks and for years, and I got 13 years worth of emails, I can document all this stuff. I said to the CDC Hey, we can fix, we can make sure that the Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration always has masks. I got these four machines sitting here doing nothing. Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA): You were willing to give them the production, but not the machines. Mike Bowen: Let me finish. Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA): I'm just trying to sort it out. Mike Bowen: Well here's what I was gonna say. We must use one machine, you'll make your whole annual usage for one machine, and we'll let three of them sit there in our factory just ready to go. When you need them, we can turn those things on and I couldn't get anybody interested in Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA): Were you going to give them to them or lease them? Mike Bowen: Didn't matter. I didn't have any money in them. I said give me your peacetime military hospital business and we'll give you these machines. I'll just sit there. Now we would have if we would have had had some kind of a plan, you know, to get materials and things like that. But I was basically saying we've got a warm base operation is not going to cost you guys anything. I made that offer to several agencies. Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA): I see my time is up. I yield back, Madam Chair. Mike Bowen: And by the way, let me Forgive me for being angry. I'm angry because I've done this for so, so long. And I've been ignored for so long. And I apologize. Rep. Ana Eshoo (CA): Well, Mr. Bowen, I don't think you need to apologize. At least that's my view. I think shame on us. I think shame on all of us that we've allowed this to happen. 4:58:30 Mike Bowen: America has a weakness for low prices. And I think Chinese prices are so low. A few years ago, I decided to go buy a 12 things from Lowe's Lowe's Home Improvement center, and I decided I was going to pay whatever it took to buy American. I couldn't make that decision. That decision was taken away from me. I bought one item, it was a plunger. A toilet plunger was the only thing I could find it was made in America. And it is what it is. It's the people like the Lowe's and Home Depot and the Walmarts and the medical companies that the way they want to make money is to lower their costs to where they lower their cost to go to China. The line is long and wide for people going to China, and that's why we're dependent on them for everything. I mean, go out and look in your closet. Look at your tools, look at everything. It's all from China. And the stuff that's in Mexico... When I say this, half of the US mask supply's in Mexico, it's got reservations to go to China. Mexico is not cheap enough. And hospitals are cash strapped and they're they're bidding out things. If this hadn't happened, Mexico would have lost their business and everything... China would have been five years China would have made all masks and respirators like they do the gowns. 5:35:40 Mike Bowen: I've dealt with this thing for so long and it's been so illogical. And I've tried to figure it out and who's at fault who's at fault. And so people ask me that, who's to blame? And I got to the point where it's human nature. It's all of us. I couldn't convince doctors. I couldn't. Listen to this. I had three directors of BARDA said that, Mike, if you get somebody to call me, I will verify that what you're saying is true. I'll tell them it was true. Mr. Schrader, I couldn't get him to call. I couldn't get hospitals to make that call. I don't think they wanted to hear it. They're programmed to save money. They're not programmed to say, I want to make sure my masks are gonna be here. It didn't compute. I was speaking Greek everyone. So to look at this story, and look back and blame everybody, I'm not even going to do that. I'm looking at this pandemic. There's a silver lining, the silver lining is - told everybody there's a big problem. And we can fix this problem and never go through this again. 5:50:00 Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): I'm still confused about your current capabilities. You said you've got four lines that are just sitting dormant sitting in the right now, is that correct? Mike Bowen: We have four idle respirator manufacturing lines. Yes, sir. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): And they're just, I mean, they're not being used right now. Mike Bowen: Yes. But...go ahead, finish your question. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): Yes, they are not being used, right. Correct? So you said you've already gotten machines for those lines. You don't have to procure them. The only thing you're going to have to do is to get staff in order to use those lines. Mike Bowen: No, now there's three things we need to hire 100 people, we need to train 100 people. We need to get all the materials for that and we need to get NIOSH approval. We bought those systems from a defunct Vermont mask company seven years ago, we really don't even know how to use those machines. They're kind of a last resort. And if you'll go back and look at my email to Dr. Bright, I said this would be a basically a pain to do but they're here. And if we need this for infrastructure, let's talk about it. But what we've done in the meantime, is we've gone from making 75,000 respirators a month. Think of that number 75,000 to 2 million, and then in another 40 days, we'll be at 4 million from 75,000. So that's thousands and thousands of percent. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): You said you bought those you bought them for a purpose. You bought them to use them, right? Mike Bowen: No. Thank you for asking that question. No, they came as part of an acquisition we bought. We bought a defunct a medical company and those machines came as part of the acquisition. And made in China. But go ahead. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): Did you say earlier that you phones ringing off the hook you got orders coming out of the yazoo? Mike Bowen: Yeah, okay, but I can't go on a suicide mission. I can't ramp up, hire all these people for something that I don't know how it's going to end or how long it's going to last. And we did this. You gotta remember, we almost went out of business doing this before. We ramped up and we spent money and got a bigger factory, hired 150 people, built more machines. And then one day, the business not only went away, it went smaller than it was. And we had to raise a million dollars. We had to take pay cuts, and we had to fire 150 people. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): So what you're saying, and I'm not trying to put words in your mouth, but I'm saying I'm not gonna use them, you're not gonna fire them up unless you get a long term contract from the government. Mike Bowen: I'm not going on a suicide mission. Absolutely. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): So that's yes, you're not going to use them unless you get a long term contract... Mike Bowen: Unless I get a customer who is going to commit to use those machines so I don't have to fire 100 people. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): So that means that you'd have to have a long term contract from the government in order to do it. Mike Bowen: Yeah. Listen, we've gone from one shift to 3. 80 people to 200. We're making four times the products we made. We're making over a million masks a day, don't you look at me, and act like I'm sitting on my ass and not firing up four machines. It's not like just turning on a switch. It's putting people's lives... It's gonna, I'm not sure...Listen...let me tell you this. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): I understand. I'm a businessman. And I understand what it takes Mike Bowen: I watched my business partner cry when he had to lay those people off. We're not doing that again. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): So in order so it's gonna have to be a long term contract from the government, though, that that's my point. Mike Bowen: From somebody. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): And I get it from somebody Mike Bowen: I can't hire 100 people based on a maybe based on a when's it gonna end who knows? Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): None of us can whether we're in the private sector or the public sector, we can't do that. We all understand that. Mike Bowen: You don't. You're not risking your livelihood and your... Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): I risked my livelihood for 30 years. As an independent retail pharmacist, I never had long... Mike Bowen: You want to buy machines or hire 100 people, I'll tell you what, I'll give you my machines if you want to hire 100 people, Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): But but the point is, is that you're here saying that I'm not gonna do it unless I get a long term contract from the government. Mike Bowen: I'm just gonna wait, no, no, no, go back to the context. The context of that was in those emails in hey, here's four machines. Let's... they're here, but I can't turn them on unless it's a long term deal. I'm not just going to flip them on and have you flip them off and leave me hanging like everybody did last time. And let me tell you what happened last time, the government sits around doesn't buy American made products, comes to me in a pandemic buys millions of masks. In 2010, you know what they do for those masks, they stored them for 10 years, then they auction them to some knucklehead who put them on eBay and sold them for 10 times what they were worth. So not only did I... have I not seen the government in 10 years, I got to compete with my own masks. And I gotta have thousands of phone calls to me from people who bought that 10 year old masks of mine on eBay for 10 times the price yelling at me, and I had nothing to do with it because the government waited and sold this stuff. I've been hit from every side on this thing. We have bled for this country. We have created jobs, we put our factory in Texas when everybody else had already left the country. So don't don't sit here and judge me for four machines that aren't running that I'd have to hire and fire 100 people for. I'm not going to do it. Rep. Buddy Carter (GA): Not unless you have a long term government contract. Rep. Anna Eshoo, Chairwoman: The gentleman's time has expired. Hearing: Corporate Liability During the Coronavirus Pandemic, United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, May 12, 2020 Watch on CSPAN Witnesses Kevin Smartt - CEO of Kwik Chek Convenience Stores Anthony “Marc” Perrone - International President of United Food and Commercial Workers International Rebecca Dixon - Executive Director of the National Employment Law Project Leroy Tyner - General Counsel for Texas Christian University Professor David Vladeck - A.B. Chettle Chair in Civil Prodecure at * Georgetown University Law Center Helen Hill - CEO of Explore Charleston Transcript: 13:15 Professor David Vladeck: My name is David Vladek. I teach at Georgetown Law School mostly litigation related courses. And I spent more than 40 years as a litigator, mostly in state and federal court. Like all Americans, I am anxious to get the nation back on its feet. I applaud the committee for exploring ways to facilitate that process. And I can only imagine the heavy burden that weighs on your shoulders. As my testimony makes clear, businesses like Mr. Smarts that act reasonably to safeguard employees, and the public are already protected from liability. But as all of the panelists have said, We urgently need science-based COVID-19 enforceable guidelines from our public health agencies. Those guidelines not only safeguard the public, but at the same time, they provide the standards of liability that Mr. Tyner was just talking about compliance with those guidelines will eliminate any liability risk. On the other hand, it would be counterproductive for Congress to take the unprecedented act of bestowing immunity on companies that act irresponsibly. Workers and consumers are going to open this economy, not government sponsored immunity. We all know that large segments of the public are still justifiably fearful about reopening. Granting immunity would only feed those fears. Immunity sends the message that precautions to control the spread of virus is not a priority. Even worse, immunity signals to workers and consumers that they go back to work or they go to the grocery store at their peril. Why? Because the Congress has given employers and businesses a free pass the short change safety. 16:30 Professor David Vladeck: The line between unreasonable or negligent misconduct, and gross misconduct is murky, context based, and fact dependent. Any tort claim can constitute gross negligence, depending on the wrongdoer state of mind. Second, differentiating between the two tiers of liability turn on intent, questions of intent, questions of intent are factual questions for a jury, not a judge to resolve and conduct is labeled negligent or grossly negligent only at the end of a case, not at the outset. In other words, we don't know for sure whether conduct is grossly negligent until the jury says so. And third, and most importantly, the difference is utterly meaningless if we care about containing the spread of the virus. Irresponsible acts spread the virus just as easily, just as effectively as reckless acts. 17:45 Professor David Vladeck: Legislation that simply displaces state liability laws is not only unprecedented, it is likely unconstitutional. 30:40 Sen. Diane Feinstein (CA): ...how the corona virus spreads? How could a customer of... Well, given how it spreads, nobody really knows how, could a customer of a particular business prove they were infected at a particular business? If professor Vladeck could respond, I believe he's our legal counsel here. Professor David Vladeck: Yes. So the answer is they can't. See are the viruses so transmissible, that it's very difficult unless you have a situation like you've had in the meatpacking plant to know where the virus comes from. In New York, one of the findings was that even people who had been housebound for a long time contracted the virus, even though they hadn't gone out. And so part of the reason why there have been almost no tort cases, about COVID-19 people have bandied about figures, but the truth is, they're been almost none of these cases and they're likely to be very few, because in order to plead a case in court, you have to be able to establish causation. And if someone who's been out and about walking on the streets, visiting the grocery store, visiting another shop, contracts virus, there's no way in the world they're going to be able to say, it's Mr. Smith's fault. 43:45 Sen. Patrick Leahy (VT): Some people are talking about this wave of COVID-19 litigation as the justification for corporate immunity. Actually about 6% of the COVID-19 related lawsuits are tort related, constantly seeking immunity for 6%. And moreover, the corporation's claiming they need this immunity are often the ones that subjected the employees to mandatory arbitration clause, we know those almost always favor the employer. So, can you tell us how the prevalence of mandatory arbitration clauses actually within or across key industries impacts the likelihood of a so called wave litigation? Rebecca Dixon: Yes, Senator, I would say that the wave of litigation is actually mostly businesses suing other businesses and businesses trying to enforce insurance contracts related to the pandemic. So that's one important thing to put out there. And when you have forced arbitration, you must go through a secret process with an arbitrator. So you are barred from going to court. And we know that employees are being coerced into signing these if they don't sign those, they don't get the job. Sen. Patrick Leahy (VT): So the additional shield against losses would pretty much be done with, is that correct? Rebecca Dixon: Correct. Sen. Patrick Leahy (VT): Thank you. 1:25:15 Rebecca Dixon: For workers in particular, right now, they don't really have any enforceable recourse if their employer is not following the guidelines because they're not enforceable. And if they are injured because of it, they have the workers compensation system or they can file an OSHA complaint, but they're pretty much locked out other than that, so that's going to make it really risky for workers to when they're making a choice between wages and their health to choose to come back to the workplace. 1:36:00 Sen. Chris Coons (DE): Let's just clear the deck on this one. Mr. Smart, Professor, excuse me, President if I could Perrone, do you believe the federal government has set clear, consistent science based enforceable standards for what's expected of employers to protect the safety of their workers during a pandemic? Kevin Smartt: I do not believe so. No. Sen. Chris Coons (DE): Mr. President? Anthony “Marc” Perrone: Senator, I don't think that they've done that for the employees or the customers. 2:08:04 Sen. Kamala Harris (CA): In 49 states employers are required to carry workers compensation insurance. Is that correct? Rebecca Dixon: Yes, that's correct. Sen. Kamala Harris (CA): And is it correct that by and large businesses that carry workers compensation cannot be sued by their workers for negligence? Rebecca Dixon: That's also correct. Sen. Kamala Harris (CA): And is it also correct that forced arbitration agreements also prohibit workers from seeking justice in courtrooms? Rebecca Dixon: That's also correct. Hearing: COVID-19: Safely Getting Back to Work and Back to School, United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, May 12, 2020 Watch on CSPAN Witnesses Anthony Fauci - Director National of the Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health Robert Redfield - Director of the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Admiral Brett Giroir - Assistant Secretary For Health at the United States Department of Health and Human Services Stephen Hahn - Commissioner of Food and Drugs at the United States Food and Drug Administration Transcript: 46:45 Sen. Lamar Alexander (TN): Let's look down the road three months, there'll be about 5,000 campuses across the country trying to welcome 20 million college students. 100,000 Public Schools welcoming 50 million students. What would you say to the Chancellor of the University of Tennessee Knoxville, or the principal of a public school about how to persuade parents and students to return to school in August? Let's start with treatments and vaccines first, Dr. Fauci, and if you can save about half of my five minutes for Admiral Giroir's testing I would appreciate it. Anthony Fauci: Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Well, I would be very realistic with the chancellor and tell him that when we're thinking in terms. Sen. Lamar Alexander (TN): It's a her in this case. Anthony Fauci: I would tell her, I'm sorry, sir, that in this case, that the idea of having treatments available or a vaccine to facilitate the re-entry of students into the fall term would be something that would be a bit of a bridge too far. 48:30 Anthony Fauci: But we're really not talking about necessarily treating a student who gets ill, but how the student will feel safe in going back to school. If this were a situation where we had a vaccine, that would really be the end of that issue in a positive way, but as I mentioned in my opening remarks, even at the top speed we're going, we don't see a vaccine playing in the ability of individuals to get back to school this term. 52:50 Anthony Fauci: What we have worked out is a guideline framework of how to safely open America again. And there are several checkpoints in that with a gateway first of showing, depending on the dynamics of an outbreak in a particular region, state, city or area that would really determine the speed and the pace with which one does re enter or reopen. So my word has been, and I've been very consistent in this, that I get concerned, if you have a situation with a dynamics of an outbreak in an area such that you are not seeing that gradual over 14 days decrease that would allow you to go to phase one. And then if you pass the checkpoints of phase one, go to phase two and phase three. What I've expressed then and again, is my concern that if some areas city states or what have you jump over those various checkpoints and prematurely opened up without having the capability of being able to respond effectively and efficiently. My concern is that we will start to see little spikes that might turn into outbreaks. 54:30 Anthony Fauci: But this is something that I think we also should pay attention to, that states, even if they're doing it at an appropriate pace, which many of them are and will, namely a pace that's commensurate with the dynamics of the outbreak, that they have in place already The capability that when there will be cases, there is no doubt, even under the best of circumstances. When you pull back on mitigation, you will see some cases appear. It's the ability and the capability of responding to those cases, with good identification, isolation and contact tracing will determine whether you can continue to go forward as you try to reopen America. 1:05:40 Sen. Bernie Sanders (VT): The official statistic, Dr. Fauci is that 80,000 Americans have died from the pandemic. There are some epidemiologists who suggests the number may be 50% higher than that. What do you think? Anthony Fauci: I'm not sure, Senator Sanders if it's gonna be 50% higher, but most of us feel that the number of deaths are likely higher than that number, because given the situation, particularly in New York City, when they were really strapped with a very serious challenge to their healthcare system, that there may have been people who died at home, who did have COVID, who are not counted as COVID because they never really got to the hospital. So the direct answer to your question, I think you are correct, that the number is likely higher. I don't know exactly what percent higher, but almost certainly, it's higher. 1:26:30 Sen. Rand Paul (KY): You've stated publicly that you'd bet at all that survivors of Coronavirus have some form of immunity. Can you help set the record straight that the scientific record as is as being accumulated is supportive? That infection with Coronavirus likely leads to some form of immunity. Dr. Fauci? Anthony Fauci: Yeah, thank you for the question, Senator Paul. Yes, you're correct. That I have said that, given what we know about the recovery from viruses, such as Corona viruses in general, or even any infectious disease, with very few exceptions, that when you have antibody present is very likely indicates a degree of protection. I think it's in the semantics of how this is expressed. When you say has it been formally proven by long term Natural History studies, which is the only way that you can prove one is it protective, which I said and would repeat is likely that it is, but also what is the degree or titer of antibody that gives you that critical level of protection. And what is the durability, as I've often said, and again, repeat, you can make a reasonable assumption that it would be protective. But Natural History studies over a period of months to years will then tell you definitively if that's the case. 1:31:30 Anthony Fauci: You don't know everything about this virus. And we really better be very careful, particularly when it comes to children. Because the more and more we learn, we're seeing things about what this virus can do that we didn't see from the studies in China or in Europe. For example, right now, children presenting with COVID-19, who actually have a very strange inflammatory syndrome, very similar to Kawasaki syndrome. I think we've got to be careful if we are not cavalier in thinking that children are completely immune to the deleterious effects. So again, you're right in the numbers that children in general do much, much better than adults and the elderly, and particularly those with underlying conditions. But I am very careful, and hopefully humble in knowing that I don't know everything about this disease, and that's why I'm very reserved in making broad predictions. 2:30:15 Anthony Fauci: We do the testing on these vaccines, we are going to make production risk, which means we will start putting hundreds of millions of dollars of federal government money into the development and production of vaccine doses before we even know it works. So that when we do and I hope we will and have cautious optimism that we will ultimately get an effective and safe vaccine that we will have doses available to everyone who needs it in the United States, and even contribute to the needs globally because we are partnering with a number of other countries. 2:49:00 Sen. Mitt Romney (UT): Given our history with vaccine creation for other coronaviruses, how likely is it? I mean, is it extremely likely we're going to get a vaccine within a year or two? Is it just more likely than not? Or is it kind of a long shot? Anthony Fauci: It's definitely not a long shot, Senator Romney, the I would think that it is more likely than not that we will, because this is a virus that induces an immune response and people recover. The overwhelming majority of people recover from this virus, although there is good morbidity and mortality at a level in certain populations. The very fact that the body is capable of spontaneously clearing the virus tells me that at least from a conceptual standpoint, we can stimulate the body with a vaccine that would induce a similar response. So although there's no guarantee, I think it's clearly much more likely than not that somewhere within that timeframe, we will get a vaccine for this virus. 3:06:50 Sen. Jacky Rosen (NV): Can you talk about PPE for the general public? Anthony Fauci: Well, you know, the best PPE for the general public, if possible right now is to maintain the physical and social distancing. But as we've said, and I think all of us would agree, there are certain circumstances in which it is beyond your control, when you need to do necessary things. Like go to the drugstore and get the occasion, go to the grocery store and get your food that in fact, you need some supplementation to just physical distancing. That's the reason why some time ago, recommendation was made, I believe it was Dr. Redfield at the CDC, who first said that about getting some sort of a covering we don't want to call it a mask because back then we were concerned, we would be taking masks away from the health care providers with some sort of mask like facial covering, I think for the time being, should be a very regular part of how we prevent the spread of infection. And in fact, the more as you go outside right here and where I'm sitting in Washington DC, you can see many people out there with masks on, which gives me some degree of comfort that people are taking this very seriously. 3:20:00 Sen. Lamar Alexander (TN): You didn't say you shouldn't go back to school because we won't have a vaccine? Anthony Fauci: No, absolutely not. Mr. Chairman, what I was referring to, is that going back to school would be more in the realm of knowing the landscape of infection with regard to testing. And as Admiral Giroir said, it would depend on the dynamics of the outbreak in the region where the school is, but I did not mean to imply at all any relationship between the availability of a vaccine and treatment and our ability to go back to school. Addressing the Senate: McConnell: Americans on the Front Lines Need Action, Mitch McConnell, Senate Majority Leader, May 12, 2020 Hearing: Shark Tank: New Tests for COVID-19, United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, May 7, 2020 Watch on Youtube Watch on CSPAN Witnesses: Francis Collins, MD, PhD - Director of the National Institutes of Health Gary Disbrow, PhD.- Acting Director, Biomedical Advanced Research And Development Authority, Office Of The Assistant Secretary For Preparedness And Response at the Department of Health and Human Services Transcript: 1:36:20 Gary Disbrow: We do know that Coronavirus, the COVID-19, is one the immune system recognizes and eradicate the virus, we do know that people recover from it. And after a while you can't recover the virus anymore. That's good. That tells you the immune system knows what to do with this. It's not like HIV. At the same time, we do know that this virus can mutate. We've already been able to observe that it's an RNA virus. Fortunately, it doesn't mutate the way influenza does. So we don't think it will have this sort of very rapid seasonal change that we have to deal with with influenza, which means last year's vaccine is maybe not the one you want this year. We really don't know the answer, though to a lot of your questions, and they're fundamentally important. Can you get reinfected with this? There have been a few cases of that they're not incredibly convincing. If you do develop immunity, how long does it last? We do not have a good reason... Sen. Bill Cassidy (LA): Can I ask you though there is evidence both from rhesus monkeys that this antibody is protective it and there's also from SARS1 if you will, somebody writes about immunity being for 18 years. So it does seem If the scientific evidence is pointing in that direction, Gary Disbrow: It's pointing in that direction. You're absolutely right. And we're counting on that to be the answer here. But until we know, we will need to know. Sen. Bill Cassidy (LA): Now, let me ask you though what is defined as knowing because knowing may not be for one or two years, and yet we have to make policy decisions, hopefully before then, Gary Disbrow: Indeed, and I think at the present time to be able to evaluate the meaning of a positive antibody test, one should be quite cautious, I think it's going to help a lot to see if there anybody who has such an antibody test, it turns out to get infected again, in the next six months or so because a virus is going to be around, we'll start to get an early warning sign there. But we won't know whether it's three years or five years or 10 years. Sen. Bill Cassidy (LA): So you suggested to me that not only should we test but we should be tracking who is positive so that we can follow them longitudinally to see whether or not they develop once more. Gary Disbrow: With their appropriate consent of course, and this is where the All of Us program that you and I have talked about which is enrolled now 300,000 Americans who are pre consented for exactly this kind of follow up is going to be very useful to track and see what happens. 2:16:00 Sen. Mitt Romney (UT): I was in a hearing yesterday with the Homeland Security Committee. And the suggestion was between 50 and 90% of the people that get COVID-19 have no symptoms. If that's the case, should we let this run its course to the population and not try and test every person. I'm saying that a bit as a straw man, but I'm interested in your perspective. Gary Disbrow: I appreciate you're putting it forward as a straw man, because while it is true, that lots of people seem to get this virus without any symptoms at all. And the estimates are that maybe 60% of new cases are transmitted by such people. It's still the case that 74,000 people have died from this disease. And so the people who are out there infected who may not themselves be suffering or passing this on becoming a vector to others who are vulnerable with chronic illnesses or in the older age group. And sometimes young people too. Let's not say that they're immune. There are certainly plenty of sad circumstances of young people who really you would not have thought would be hard hit by this, who have gotten very little or even died. So I think it is extremely unusual to have a virus like this that is so capable of infecting people without symptoms, but having them then spread it on, we just haven't encountered something like that before. But it doesn't mean that it's not a terribly dangerous virus for those people who aren't so lucky and who get very sick and end up in the ICU and perhaps lose their lives. The only way we're really going to put a stop to that is to know who the people are who are infected, even if they have no symptoms, get them quarantine, follow their contacts. It's just good solid shoe leather public health, and we've learned it over the decades and it applies here too. 2:31:45 Gary Disbrow: In terms of the need to track people to see what happens, and particularly as was brought up earlier, is the presence of antibody actually something you can say makes you immune. I think maybe our best chance at this is this program that Congress has funded, and it's part of 21st Century Cures Act. So I'll have to specifically give a shout out to this committee about that to the chairman. And that is this program called All of Us, which is tracking when we get there a million people over time, we're already up to over 300,000 that have signed up. And those individuals answer lots of questions. Their electronic health records are available for researchers to look at after they've been anonymized. They get blood samples over the course of time, so you can track and see, oh, it didn't have the antibody, then oh, now it does have the antibody, what happened there? We should be able to utilize that for this and many other purposes to try to get some of those answers. And I totally agree. We need those. Hearing: COVID-19 Response, United States House Committee on Appropriations, May 6, 2020 Watch on Youtube Watch on CSPAN Witnesses: Dr. Tom Frieden - President and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, and former Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Dr. Caitlin Rivers - Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Health and Engineering at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Transcript: 47:00 Dr. Caitlin Rivers: You heard from Dr. Frieden that contact tracing is really a key component, a key approach that will allow us to reopen safely. One thing that I don't hear a lot about about contact tracing, though that I want to bring to your attention is that it's also a key source of data that we badly need. We currently have very little understanding about where people are getting infected, our most new cases in long term care facilities or correctional facilities, which we know are high risk settings. But we don't have a good sense of whether 99% of our cases originate in those special settings or whether it's a small fraction. We don't know whether people who are essential workers still performing duties in the community are getting infected, or we don't know whether most infections are happening at home. Getting a better understanding of what that looks like will help us to guide better interventions. If it is special settings.

In 2006 Canadians woke up to hear that 17 Muslim Canadians had been arrested in a terrorism plot. Much of the success in foiling their plans was due to a human source/agent named Mubin Shaikh. He joins me to talk about his role and related matters on this podcast.Mubin Shaikh is a former security intelligence and counter terrorism operative. He has testified as an expert for the United Nations Security Council, the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs with NATO, the National Counterterrorism Center, and Special Operations Command Central and he is an external expert with the Joint Staff SMA for CENTCOM Command Staff.> Visit Mubin's website Parents for Peace > borealisthreatandrisk.com> Like this podcast? Check out Phil Gurski's latest books!> Read Phil's daily blog Today in TerrorismIn this podcast, retired Canadian intelligence analyst Phil Gurski discusses the subject of terrorism: what it is (and isn’t), trends, developments and more. Phil Gurski, author of five books on terrorism, is not shy to wade into controversial matters and provide his perspective honed from more than three decades in intelligence. From Canada to the greater West to the world, subscribe to listen to the thoughts of a person who 'worked at the coalface' for many years.

In December 2019, the Department of Justice, the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, and the National Institute of Standards issued a joint policy statement on the legal remedies that should be available for infringement of a valid patent on standardized technologies, known in patent law as standard-essential patents (SEP). The 2019 DOJ-USPTO-NIST policy statement replaces a 2013 policy statement on SEP remedies by the DOJ and USPTO that had been construed by some government officials and courts as asserting that a patent owner seeking or receiving an injunction for infringement of its SEP could violate the antitrust laws. The 2019 policy statement reaffirms that there are no special rules for owners of SEPs in receiving injunctions for ongoing infringement of their valid patents, and that when licensing negotiations fail, the full range of legal remedies for all patent owners should be available for owners of SEPs.The 2019 policy statement is a significant development in the ongoing policy and legal disputes over the scope of patent rights on standardized technologies used throughout the world in smartphones, computers, and even coffee machines and automobiles. This teleforum will discuss what the 2019 policy statement means for innovators of groundbreaking, foundational technologies, for implementers of these technologies in products, and for consumers.Featuring:- David Jones, Executive Director, High Tech Inventors Alliance- Kristen Osenga, Professor of Law, University of Richmond School of Law- Brad Watts, Majority Chief Counsel and Staff Director, United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Intellectual Property- [Moderator] Adam Mossoff, Professor of Law, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason UniversityVisit our website – RegProject.org – to learn more, view all of our content, and connect with us on social media.

In December 2019, the Department of Justice, the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, and the National Institute of Standards issued a joint policy statement on the legal remedies that should be available for infringement of a valid patent on standardized technologies, known in patent law as standard-essential patents (SEP). The 2019 DOJ-USPTO-NIST policy statement replaces a 2013 policy statement on SEP remedies by the DOJ and USPTO that had been construed by some government officials and courts as asserting that a patent owner seeking or receiving an injunction for infringement of its SEP could violate the antitrust laws. The 2019 policy statement reaffirms that there are no special rules for owners of SEPs in receiving injunctions for ongoing infringement of their valid patents, and that when licensing negotiations fail, the full range of legal remedies for all patent owners should be available for owners of SEPs.The 2019 policy statement is a significant development in the ongoing policy and legal disputes over the scope of patent rights on standardized technologies used throughout the world in smartphones, computers, and even coffee machines and automobiles. This teleforum will discuss what the 2019 policy statement means for innovators of groundbreaking, foundational technologies, for implementers of these technologies in products, and for consumers.Featuring:- David Jones, Executive Director, High Tech Inventors Alliance- Kristen Osenga, Professor of Law, University of Richmond School of Law- Brad Watts, Majority Chief Counsel and Staff Director, United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Intellectual Property- [Moderator] Adam Mossoff, Professor of Law, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University Visit our website – www.RegProject.org – to learn more, view all of our content, and connect with us on social media.

President Donald Trump has been impeached. In this episode, hear the key evidence against him presented by the witnesses called to testify in over 40 hours of hearings that took place in the "inquiry" phase of the impeachment. Using this episode, you will be able to judge for yourself how strong the case against President Trump really is as the country prepares for his Senate trial.  Please Support Congressional Dish – Quick Links Click here to contribute monthly or a lump sum via PayPal Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Send Zelle payments to: Donation@congressionaldish.com Send Venmo payments to: @Jennifer-Briney Send Cash App payments to: $CongressionalDish or Donation@congressionaldish.com Use your bank's online bill pay function to mail contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North, Number 4576, Crestview, FL 32536 Please make checks payable to Congressional Dish Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes CD067: What Do We Want In Ukraine? CD068: Ukraine Aid Bill CD136: Building WWIII CD156: Sanctions – Russia, North Korea & Iran CD167: Combating Russia (NDAA 2018) LIVE CD202: Impeachment? Articles/Documents Article: Pelosi Says She Plans To Send Articles Of Impeachment To Senate By Claudio Grisales and Dirdre Walsh, npr, December 18, 2019 Article: Impeachment Timeline: From Early Calls To A Full House Vote by Brian Naylor, npr, December 17, 2019 Article: Ukraine and Russia agree to implement ceasefire BBC News, December 10, 2019 Article: How America’s System Of Legalized Corruption Brought Us To The Brink Of Impeachment By Brendan Fischer, Talking Points Memo, December 5, 2019 Article: Who Is Michael J. Gerhardt? Professor Made Impeachment His Specialty by Emily Cochrane, The New York Times, December 4, 2019 Article: The Betrayal of Volodymyr Zelensky by Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, December 3, 2019 Article: Eric Ciaramella: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know By Tom Cleary, heavy November 24, 2019 Article: Why Did ASAP Rocky Keep Coming Up at the Impeachment Hearing? By Aaron Mak, Slate, November 20, 2019 Article: Impeaching Trump And Demonizing Russia: Birds Of A Feather By Robert W. Merry, The American Conservative, November 19, 2019 Article: Gordon Sondland Was A Low-Profile Hotel Owner. Until He Went To Work For Trump By Jim Zarroli, npr, November 19, 2019 Article: Yovanovitch's Moment: Will Her Testimony Help Dems or the GOP? By Susan Crabtree, RealClear Politics, November 14, 2019 Article: Who Is Bill Taylor? Key Witness in the Impeachment Inquiry By Lara Jakes, The New York Times, November 13, 2019 Article: Mulvaney will not pursue court fight over subpoena By Katelyn Polantz, CNN, November 12, 2019 Article: After boost from Perry, backers got huge gas deal in Ukraine By Desmond Butler, Michael Biesecker, Stephen Braun, and Richard Lardner, AP News, November 11, 2019 Article: CNN host was set to interview Ukrainian President until scandal took shape By Caroline Kelly, CNN, November 7, 2019 Article: Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, defies subpoena in impeachment inquiry By Bart Jansen, USA Today, October 15, 2019 Article: 'Disruptive Diplomat' Gordon Sondland, a key figure in Trump impeachment furor long coveted ambassadorship By Aaron C. Davis, Josh Dawsey, Michelle Ye Hee Lee, and Michael Birnbaum, The Washington Post, October 14, 201 Article: The Sleazy Career of Kurt Volker By Robert Kuttner, The American Prospect, October 8, 2019 Article: Here’s what you need to know about the US aid package to Ukraine that Trump delayed by Joe Gould and Howard Altman, Defense News, September 25, 2019 Article: After Years Of Stalling, Can Ukraine Finally Become Energy Self-Sufficient? By Todd Prince, RadioFreeEurope RadioLiberty, September 15, 2019 Transcript: Nancy Pelosi Impeachment Statement Transcript: House of Representatives Launching Impeachment Inquiry of Trump Rev, September 24, 2019 Article: Trump holds up Ukraine military aid meant to confront Russia By Caitlin Emma and Connor O'Brien, Politico, August 28, 2019 Article: Trump kills plan to cut billions in foreign aid by John Bresnahan, Jennifer Scholtes and Marianne Levine, Politico, August 22, 2019 Article: The Complete Timeline of A$AP Rocky’s Arrest in Sweden By Isabelle Hore-Thorburn, High Snobiety, August 14, 2019 Document: Letter to Richard Burr & Adam Schiff August 12, 2019 Article: NATO is the obstacle to improving Russian-Western relations By Ruslan Pukhov, Defense News, March 28, 2019 Article: In Ukraine, A Make Believe Politician Prepares For the Presidency By Kenneth Rapoza, Forbes, March 26, 2019 Article: US staged a coup in Ukraine – here’s why and how by Chris Kanthan, Nation of Change, August 15, 2018 Article: How and Why the US Government Perpetrated the 2014 Coup in Ukraine by Eric Zuesse, Strategic Culture Foundation, June 3, 2018 Article: What Did Ex-Trump Aide Paul Manafort Really Do in Ukraine? by Kenzi Abou-Sabe, Tom Winter and Max Tucker, NBC News, June 27, 2017 Article: What Exactly Did Paul Manafort Do Wrong? by Julia Ioffe, The Atlantic, March 24, 2017 Article: How William Hague Deceived the House of Commons on Ukraine By David Morrison, Huffington Post, October 3, 2014 Article: That time Ukraine tried to join NATO — and NATO said no By Adam Taylor, The Washington Post, September 14, 2014 Article: It's not Russia that's pushed Ukraine to the brink of war By Seumas Milne, Guardian, April 30, 2014 Article: Facing Russian Threat, Ukraine Halts Plans for Deals with E.U. By David M. Herszenhorn, The New York Times, November 21, 2013 Article: Former Soviet States Stand Up to Russia. Will the U.S.? By Carl Gershman, The Washington Post, September 26, 2013 Article: Ukraine Says ’No’ to NATO By Kathleen Holzwart Sprehe, Pew Research Center, March 29, 2010 Article: Ukraine Faces Battle of NATO, Pro and Con By Mara D. Bellaby, The Associated Press, Washington Post Archive, June 6, 2006 Article: 'Meddling' In Ukraine By Michael McFaul, The Washington Post, December 21, 2004 Article: AFTEREFFECTS: THE LAW; American Will Advise Iraqis On Writing New Constitution By Jennifer 8. Lee, The Washington Post, May 11, 2003 Additional Resources Bill Summary: H.Res.755 — 116th Congress (2019-2020) Biography.com, Updated December 16, 2019 Biography: Rudolph Giuliani Biography.com, Updated December 16, 2019 Biography: David Hale, U.S. Department of State Biography: George P. Kent, U.S. Department of State Biographies: Speakers’ Bios: US-Ukraine Working Group Yearly Summit IV, Center For US Ukrainian Relations Explanatory Statement: DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2020 Explanatory Statement: DEPARTMENT OF STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2020 State Department Explanatory Statement: DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 2019, CONFERENCE REPORT TO ACCOMPANY H.R. 6157 Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN, SEPTEMBER 13, 2018 Explanatory Statement: Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 State Department Hearing: The Impeachment Inquiry into President Donald J. Trump: Constitutional Grounds for Presidential Impeachment U.S. House Committee on The Judiciary Profile: Gordon Sondland LinkedIn Profile: Kurt Volker LinkedIn Profile: Timothy Morrison LinkedIn Public Library of US Diplomacy: UKRAINE: PM YANUKOVYCH TELLS A/S FRIED: UKRAINE'S EUROPEAN CHOICE HAS BEEN DECIDED Wikileaks, November 17, 2006 USIP: About United States Institute of Peace USIP: Stephen J. Hadley United States Institute of Peace The Origins of USIP: Institute’s Founders Were Visionaries, Grass-Roots Americans, World War II Veterans United States Institute of Peace Video: Ukraine Crisis - What You're Not Being Told, YouTube, March 12, 2014 Sound Clip Sources Hearing: Emerging U.S. Defense Challenges and Worldwide Threats, United States Senate Committee on Armed Services, December 6, 2019 Witnesses General John M. Keane Mr. Shawn Brimley Dr. Robert Kagan Transcript: 55:55 Robert Kagan: But as we look across the whole panoply of threats that we face in the world, I worry that it’s too easy to lose sight of what, to my mind, represent the greatest threats that we face over the medium- and long term and possibly even sooner than we may think, and that is the threat posed by the two great powers in the international system, the two great revisionist powers international system—Russia and China, because what they threaten is something that is in a way more profound, which is this world order that the United States created after the end of World War II—a global security order, a global economic order, and a global political order. This is not something the United States did as a favor to the rest of the world. It’s not something we did out of an act of generosity, although on historical terms it was a rather remarkable act of generosity. It was done based on what Americans learned in the first half of the twentieth century, which was that if there was not a power—whether it was Britain or, as it turned out, it had to be the United States—willing and able to maintain this kind of decent world order, you did not have some smooth ride into something else. What you had was catastrophe. What you had was the rise of aggressive powers, the rise of hostile powers that were hostile to liberal values. We saw it. We all know what happened with two world wars in the first half of the twentieth century and what those who were present at the creation, so to speak, after World War II wanted to create was an international system that would not permit those kinds of horrors to be repeated. CNN Town Hall: Pelosi says Bill Clinton impeached for "being stupid", CNN, December 5, 2019 Speakers: Nancy Pelosi Transcript: Questioner: So, Ms, Pelosi. You resisted calls for the impeachment of president Bush in 2006 and president Trump following the Muller report earlier this year, this time is different. Why did you oppose it? Why did you oppose impeachment in the past? And what is your obligation to protect our democracy from the actions of our president now? Pelosi: Thank you. I thank you for bringing up the question about, because when I became speaker the first time, there was overwhelming call for me to impeach president Bush on the strength of the war in Iraq, which I vehemently opposed. And I say it again, I said it other places. That was my wheelhouse. I was intelligence. I was a ranking member on the intelligence committee, even before I became part of the leadership of gang of four. So I knew there were no nuclear weapons in Iraq. It just wasn't there. They had to show us, they had to show the gang of four. All the intelligence they had, the intelligence did not show that that was the case. So I knew it was a misrepresentation to the public. But having said that, it was in my view, not a ground for impeachment. They won the election. They made a representation. And to this day, people think, people think that it was the right thing to do. People think Iraq had something to do with the 9/11. I mean, it's appalling what they did. But I did and I said, if somebody wants to make a case, you bring it forward. They had impeached bill Clinton for personal indiscretion and misrepresenting about it and some of these same people are saying, Oh, this doesn't rise to impeachment or that right there. And impeaching Bill Clinton for being stupid in terms of something like that. I mean, I love him. I think it was a great president, but being stupid in terms of that and what would somebody do not to embarrass their family, but in any event, they did Bill Clinton. Now they want me to do George this. I just didn't want it to be a way of life in our country. As far as the Muller report or there was a good deal of the academic setting and a thousand legal experts wrote a statement that said, the Muller Report impeach...is what's in there as an impeachable offense? So much of what's in the Muller report will be more clear once some of the court cases are resolved, but it wasn't so clear to the public. The Ukraine, this removed all doubt. It was self evident that the president undermined our national security, jeopardize the integrity of our elections as he violated his oath of office. There's just... That's something that cannot be ignored. Hearing: Hearing on Constitutional Framework for Impeachment, House Judiciary Committee, C-SPAN Coverage, December 4, 2019 Watch on Youtube: The Impeachment Inquiry into President Donald J. Trump Witnesses Professor Noah Feldman Professor Pamela Karlan Professor Michael Gerhardt Professor Jonathan Turley Transcript: 1:41:00 Michael Gerhardt: The gravity of the president's misconduct is apparent when we compare it to the misconduct of the one president resigned from office to avoid impeachment conviction and removal. The House Judiciary Committee in 1974 approved three articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon who resigned a few days later. The first article charged him with obstruction of justice. If you read the Muller report, it identifies a number of facts. I won't lay them out here right now that suggest the president himself has obstructed justice. If you look at the second article of impeachment approved against Richard Nixon, it charged him with abuse of power for ordering the heads of the FBI, IRS, and CIA to harass his political enemies. In the present circumstance, the president is engaged in a pattern of abusing the trust, placing him by the American people, by soliciting foreign countries, including China, Russia, and Ukraine, to investigate his political opponents and interfere on his behalf and elections in which he is a candidate. The third article approved against president Nixon charged that he had failed to comply with four legislative subpoenas. In the present circumstance, the president has refused to comply with and directed at least 10 others in his administration not to comply with lawful congressional subpoenas, including Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, Energy Secretary Rick Perry, and acting chief of staff and head of the Office of Management and Budget, Mick Mulvaney. As Senator Lindsey Graham now chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee said when he was a member of the house on the verge of impeaching president Clinton, the day Richard Nixon failed to answer that subpoena is the day he was subject to impeachment because he took the power from Congress over the impeachment process away from Congress, and he became the judge and jury. That is a perfectly good articulation of why obstruction of Congress is impeachable. 2:02:30 Norm Eisen: Professor Feldman, what is abuse of power? Noah Feldman: Abuse of power is when the president uses his office, takes an action that is part of the presidency, not to serve the public interest, but to serve his private benefit. And in particular, it's an abuse of power if he does it to facilitate his reelection or to gain an advantage that is not available to anyone who is not the president. Noah Feldman: Sir, why is that impeachable conduct? Noah Feldman: If the president uses his office for personal gain, the only recourse available under the constitution is for him to be impeached because the president cannot be as a practical matter charged criminally while he is in office because the department of justice works for the president. So the only mechanism available for a president who tries to distort the electoral process for personal gain is to impeach him. That is why we have impeachment. 2:09:15 Norm Eisen: Professor Gerhardt, does a high crime and misdemeanor require an actual statutory crime? Michael Gerhardt: No, it plainly does not. Everything we know about the history of impeachment reinforces the conclusion that impeachable offenses do not have to be crimes. And again, not all crimes are impeachable offenses. We look at, again, at the context and gravity of the misconduct. 2:35:15 Michael Gerhardt: The obstruction of Congress is a problem because it undermines the basic principle of the constitution. If you're going to have three branches of government, each of the branches has to be able to do its job. The job of the house is to investigate impeachment and to impeach. A president who says, as this president did say, I will not cooperate in any way, shape, or form with your process robs a coordinate branch of government. He robs the House of Representatives of its basic constitutional power of impeachment. When you add to that the fact that the same president says, my Department of Justice cannot charge me with a crime. The president puts himself above the law when he says he will not cooperate in an impeachment inquiry. I don't think it's possible to emphasize this strongly enough. A president who will not cooperate in an impeachment inquiry is putting himself above the law. Now, putting yourself above the law as president is the core of an impeachable offense because if the president could not be impeached for that, he would in fact not be responsible to anybody. 3:15:30 Jonathan Turley: I'd also caution you about obstruction. Obstruction is a crime also with meaning. It has elements. It has controlling case authority. The record does not establish obstruction. In this case, that is what my steam colleagues said was certainly true. If you accept all of their presumptions, it would be obstruction, but impeachments have to be based on proof, not presumptions. That's the problem. When you move towards impeachment on this abbreviated schedule that has not been explained to me - why you want to set the record for the fastest impeachment. Fast is not good for impeachment. Narrow, fast, impeachments have failed. Just ask Johnson. So the obstruction issue is an example of this problem. And here's my concern. The theory being put forward is that President Trump obstructed Congress by not turning over material requested by the committee and citations have been made to the third article of the Nixon impeachment. Now, first of all, I want to confess, I've been a critic of the third article, the Nixon impeachment my whole life. My hair catches on fire every time someone mentions the third article. Why? Because you would be replicating one of the worst articles written on impeachment. Here's the reason why - Peter Radino's position as Chairman of Judiciary was that Congress alone decides what information may be given to it - alone. His position was that the courts have no role in this. And so by that theory, any refusal by a president based on executive privilege or immunities would be the basis of impeachment. That is essentially the theory that's being replicated today. President Trump has gone to the courts. He's allowed to do that. We have three branches, not two. You're saying article one gives us complete authority that when we demand information from another branch, it must be turned over or we'll impeach you in record time. Now making that worse is that you have such a short investigation. It's a perfect storm. You set an incredibly short period, demand a huge amount of information and when the president goes to court, you then impeach him. In Nixon, it did go to the courts and Nixon lost, and that was the reason Nixon resigned. He resigned a few days after the Supreme Court ruled against him in that critical case. But in that case, the court recognized there are executive privilege arguments that can be made. It didn't say, "You had no right coming to us, don't darken our doorstep again." It said, "We've heard your arguments. We've heard Congress's arguments and you know what? You lose. Turn over the material to Congress." Do you know what that did for the Judiciary is it gave this body legitimacy. Now recently there's some rulings against president Trump including a ruling involving Don McGahn. Mr. Chairman, I testified in front of you a few months ago and if you recall, we had an exchange and I encouraged you to bring those actions and I said I thought you would win and you did. And I think it's an important win for this committee because I don't agree with President Trump's argument in that case. But that's an example of what can happen if you actually subpoena witnesses and go to court. Then you have an obstruction case because a court issues in order and unless they stay that order by a higher court, you have obstruction. But I can't emphasize this enough. And I'll say just one more time. If you impeach a president, if you make a high crime and misdemeanor out of going to the courts, it is an abuse of power. It's your abuse of power. 3:26:40 Jonathan Turley: There's a reason why every past impeachment has established crimes, and it's obvious it's not that you can't impeach on a non-crime. You can, in fact. Non-crimes had been part of past impeachments. It's just that they've never gone up alone or primarily as the basis of impeachment. That's the problem here. If you prove a quid pro quo that you might have an impeachable offense, but to go up only on a noncriminal case would be the first time in history. So why is that the case? The reason is that crimes have an established definition and case law. So there's a concrete, independent body of law that assures the public that this is not just political, that this is a president who did something they could not do. You can't say the president is above the law. If you then say the crimes you accuse him of really don't have to be established. 3:39:35 Jonathan Turley: This is one of the thinnest records ever to go forward on impeachment. I mean the Johnson record one can can debate because this was the fourth attempt at an impeachment, but this is certainly the thinnest of a modern record. If you take a look at the size of the record of Clinton and Nixon, they were massive in comparison to this, which was is almost wafer thin in comparison, and it has left doubts - not just in the minds of people supporting president Trump - now it's in the minds of people like myself about what actually occurred. There's a difference between requesting investigations and a quid pro quo. You need to stick the landing on the quid pro quo. You need to get the evidence to support it. It might be out there, I don't know, but it's not in this record. I agree with my colleagues. We've all read the record and I just come to a different conclusion. I don't see proof of a quid pro quo no matter what my presumptions, assumptions or bias might be. Hearing: Impeachment Hearing with Fiona Hill and David Holmes, House Select Intelligence Committee, C-SPAN Coverage, November 21, 2019 Watch on Youtube: Open Hearing with Dr. Fiona Hill and David Holmes Witnesses Dr. Fiona Hill David Holmes Transcript: 44:45 David Holmes: Our work in Ukraine focused on three policy priorities: peace and security, economic growth and reform and anti-corruption and rule of law. These policies match the three consistent priorities of the Ukrainian people since 2014 as measured in public opinion polling, namely an end to the conflict with Russia that restores national unity and territorial integrity, responsible economic policies that deliver European standards of growth and opportunity and effective and impartial rule of law, institutions that deliver justice in cases of high level official corruption. Our efforts on this third policy priority merit special mention because it was during Ambassador Yovanovitch's tenure that we achieved the hard-fought passage of a law establishing an independent court to try corruption cases. 51:00 David Holmes: It quickly became clear that the White House was not prepared to show the level of support for the Zelensky administration that we had originally anticipated. In early May, Mr Giuliani publicly alleged that Mr. Zelensky was "surrounded by enemies of the U S president" and canceled a visit to Ukraine. Shortly thereafter we learned that Vice President Pence no longer plan to lead the presidential delegation to the inauguration. The White House then whittled down an initial proposed list for the official presidential delegation to the inauguration from over a dozen individuals to just five. Secretary Perry as its head, Special Representative for Ukraine and negotiations Kurt Volker representing the State Department, National Security Council director Alex Vindman representing the White House, temporary acting Charge D'affairs Joseph Pennington representing the Embassy, and Ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland. While Ambassador Sondland's mandate as ambassador as the accredited ambassador to the European Union did not cover individual member states, let alone non-member countries like Ukraine, he made clear that he had direct and frequent access to President Trump and Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and portrayed himself as the conduit to the President and Mr. Mulvaney for this group. Secretary Perry, Ambassador Sondland, and Ambassador Volker later styled themselves "the three Amigos" and made clear they would take the lead on coordinating our policy and engagement with the Zelensky administration. 53:30 David Holmes: The inauguration took place on May 20th and I took notes in the delegations meeting with President Zelensky. During the meeting, Secretary Perry passed President Zelensky a list that Perry described as "people he trusts." Secretary Perry told President Zelensky that he could seek advice from the people on this list on issues of energy sector reform, which was the topic of subsequent meetings between Secretary Perry and key Ukrainian energy sector contacts. Embassy personnel were excluded from some of these later meetings by Secretary Perry's staff. 56:50 David Holmes: Within a week or two, it became apparent that the energy sector reforms, the commercial deals, and the anti-corruption efforts on which we were making progress were not making a dent in terms of persuading the White House to schedule a meeting between the presidents. 58:10 David Holmes: We became concerned that even if a meeting between Presidents Trump and Zelensky could occur, it would not go well. And I discussed with embassy colleagues whether we should stop seeking a meeting all together. While the White House visit was critical to the Zelensky administration, a visit that failed to send a clear and strong signal of support likely would be worse for President Zelensky than no visit at all. 58:30 David Holmes: Congress has appropriated $1.5 billion in security assistance for Ukraine since 2014. This assistance has provided crucial material and moral support to Ukraine and its defensive war with Russia and has helped Ukraine build its armed forces virtually from scratch into arguably the most capable and battle-hardened land force in Europe. I've had the honor of visiting the main training facility in Western Ukraine with members of Congress and members of this very committee, Ms. Stefanik, where we witnessed firsthand us national guard troops along with allies conducting training for Ukrainian soldiers. Since 2014 national guard units from California, Oklahoma, New York, Tennessee, and Wisconsin have trained shoulder to shoulder with Ukrainian counterparts. 59:30 David Holmes: Given the history of U.S. security assistance to Ukraine and the bipartisan recognition of its importance, I was shocked when on July 18th and office of management and budget staff members surprisingly announced the hold on Ukraine security assistance. The announcement came toward the end of a nearly two hour national security council secure video conference call, which I participated in from the embassy conference room. The official said that the order had come from the president and had been conveyed to OMB by Mr. Mulvaney with no further explanation. 1:03:30 David Holmes: The four of us went to a nearby restaurant and sat on an outdoor terrace. I sat directly across from Ambassador Sondland and the two staffers sat off to our sides. At first, the lunch was largely social. Ambassador Sondland selected a bottle of wine that he shared among the four of us and we discuss topics such as marketing strategies for his hotel business. During the lunch, Ambassador Sondland said that he was going to call President Trump to give him an update. Ambassador Sondland placed a call on his mobile phone and I heard him announce himself several times along the lines of Gordon Sondland holding for the president. It appeared to be he was being transferred through several layers of switchboards and assistance. And I then noticed Ambassador Sondland's demeanor changed and understood that he had been connected to President Trump. While Ambassador Sondland's phone was not on speaker phone, I could hear the president's voice through the ear piece of the phone. The president's voice was loud and recognizable and Ambassador Sondland held the phone away from his ear for a period of time, presumably because of the loud volume. I heard Ambassador Sondland greet the president and explained he was calling from Kiev. I heard president Trump then clarify that Ambassador Sondland was in Ukraine. Ambassador Sondland replied, yes, he was in Ukraine and went on to state President Zelensky "loves your ass." I then heard President Trump ask, "So he's going to do the investigation?" and Sondland replied that "He's going to do it" adding that President Zelensky will do anything you ask him to do. Even though I did not take notes of these statements, I have a clear recollection that these statements were made. I believe that my colleagues who were sitting at the table also knew that Ambassador Sondland was speaking with the president. The conversation then shifted to Ambassador Sondland's efforts on behalf of the president to assist a rapper who was jailed in Sweden. I can only hear Ambassador Sondland's side of the conversation. Ambassador Sondland told the president that the rapper was "kind of effed there and should have pled guilty." He recommended that the president "Wait until after the sentencing or we'll only make it worse", and he added that the president should let him get sentenced, play the racism card, give him a ticker tape when he comes home. Ambassador Sondland further told the president that Sweden quote "should have released him on your word, but that you can tell the Kardashians you tried." 1:15:00 David Holmes: Today, this very day, marks exactly six years since throngs pro-Western Ukrainians spontaneously gathered on Kiev's independence square, to launch what became known as the Revolution of Dignity. While the protest began in opposition to a turn towards Russia and away from the West, they expanded over three months to reject the entire corrupt, repressive system that had been sustained by Russian influence in the country. Those events were followed by Russia's occupation of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula and invasion of Ukraine's Eastern Donbass region, and an ensuing war that to date has cost almost 14,000 lives. 1:17:00 David Holmes: Now is not the time to retreat from our relationship with Ukraine, but rather to double down on it. 2:00:15 David Holmes: In the meeting with the president, Secretary Perry as head of the delegation opened the meeting with the American side, and had a number of points he made. And, and during that period, he handed over a piece of paper. I did not see what was on the paper, but Secretary Perry described what was on the paper as a list of trusted individuals and recommended that President Zelensky could draw from that list for advice on energy sector reform issues. Daniel Goldman: Do you know who was on that list? Holmes: I didn't see the list. I don't know other colleagues. There are other people who've been in the mix for a while on that set of issues. Other people, Secretary Perry has mentioned as being people to consult on reform. Goldman: And are they Americans? Holmes: Yes. 4:18:15 Fiona Hill: As I understood there'd been a directive for a whole scale review of our foreign policy assistance and the ties between our foreign policy objectives and the assistance. This has been going on actually for many months. And in the period when I was wrapping up my time there, there had been more scrutiny than specific assistance to specific sets of countries as a result of that overall review. 4:21:10 Fiona Hill: I asked him quite bluntly in a meeting that we had in June of 2019. So this is after the presidential inauguration when I'd seen that he had started to step up in much more of a proactive role on a Ukraine. What was his role here? And he said that he was in charge of Ukraine. And I said, "Well, who put you in charge Ambassador Sondland?" And he said, "The president." Stephen Castor: Did surprise you when he told you that. Fiona Hill:It did surprise me. We'd had no directive. We hadn't been told this. Ambassador Bolton had never indicated in any way that he thought that Ambassador Sondland was playing a leading role in Ukraine. 4:36:30 Fiona Hill: And one of Ukraine's Achilles heel, in addition to, it's military disadvantage with Russia, is in fact, energy. Ukraine remains for now the main transit point for a Russian oil and gas and pipelines to Europe. And this has been manipulated repeatedly, especially since 2006, by the Russian government. And in fact, I mean many of you here will remember, in the Reagan era, there was a huge dispute between the United States and Europe about about whether it made sense for Europe to build pipelines from the then Soviet union to bring gas to European markets. 4:55:30 David Holmes: United States has provided combined civilian and military assistance to Ukraine since 2014 of about $3 billion plus to $1 billion - three $1 billion loan guarantees that's not...those get paid back largely. So just over $3 billion, the Europeans at the level of the European Union and plus the member States combined since 2014. My understanding and have provided a combined $12 billion to Ukraine. 5:02:05 Fiona Hill: And so when I came in Gordon Sondland was basically saying, "Well, look, we have a deal here that there will be a meeting. I have a deal here with the Chief of Staff, Mulvaney there will be a meeting if the Ukrainians open up or announce these investigations into 2016 and Burisma" and I cut it off immediately there because by this point, having heard Mr. Giuliani over and over again on the television and all of the issues, that he was asserting. By this point, it was clear that Burisma was code for the Bidens because Giuliani was laying it out there. I could see why Colonel Vindman was alarmed and he said this is inappropriate with the National Security Council. We can't be involved in this. 5:03:45 Fiona Hill: And that's when I pushed back on Ambassador Sondland and said, "Look, I know there's differences about whether one, we should have this meeting. We're trying to figure out whether we should have it after the Ukrainian, democratic, sorry, parliamentary elections, the Rada elections", which by that point I think had been set for July 21st. It must have been, cause this is July 10th at this point. And Ambassador Bolton would like to wait until after that to basically see whether President Zelensky gets the majority in the parliament, which would enable him to form a cabinet. And then we can move forward. 6:05:50 Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY): Dr. Hill, turning back to you, there's been discussion about the process of scheduling the meeting between President Zelensky and President Trump, and you testified that there was hesitancy to schedule this meeting until after the Ukrainian parliamentary elections. Is that correct? Fiona Hill: That is correct, yes. Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY): And that's because there was speculation in all analytical circles, both in Ukraine and outside the Ukraine, that Zelensky might not be able to get the majority that he needed to form a cabinet, correct? Fiona Hill: That is correct. Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY): And you also testified that another aspect of the NSC hesitancy to schedule this meeting was based on broader concerns related to Zelensky's ability to implement anti-corruption reforms. And this was in specific relation to Ukrainian oligarchs who basically were the owner of the TV company that Mr. Zelensky his program had been a part of. Is that correct? Fiona Hill: That is correct. 6:21:40 Rep. Joaquin Castro (TX): One of them is headlined "After boost from Perry, backers got huge gas deal in Ukraine." The other one is titled "Wall Street Journal, federal prosecutors probe Giuliani's links to Ukrainian energy projects." Mr. Holmes. Thank you, chairman. You indicated that Secretary Perry, when he was in the Ukraine, had private meetings with Ukrainians. Before he had those private meetings, in a meeting with others, including yourself, I believe, he had presented a list of American advisers for the Ukraine energy sector. Do you know who was on that list? David Holmes: Sir, I didn't see the names on the list myself. Rep. Joaquin Castro (TX): Do you know if Alex Cranberg and Michael Blazer were on that list? David Holmes: I have since heard that Michael Blazer is on the list. Hearing: Impeachment Inquiry Hearing with Laura Cooper and David Hale, House Select Intelligence Committee, C-SPAN Coverage, November 20, 2019 Watch on Youtube: Open Hearing with Laura Cooper and David Hale Witnesses Laura Cooper David Hale Transcript: 45:30 Laura Cooper: I have also supported a robust Ukrainian Ministry of Defense program of defense reform to ensure the longterm sustainability of US investments and the transformation of the Ukrainian military from a Soviet model to a NATO inter-operable force. 45:50 Laura Cooper: The National Defense Authorization Act requires the Department of Defense to certify defense reform progress to release half of the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative or USAI funds, a provision we find very helpful. Based on recommendations from me and other key DOD advisers, the Department of Defense in coordination with the Department of State certified in May, 2019 that Ukraine had "taken substantial actions to make defense institutional reforms for the purposes of decreasing corruption, increasing accountability and sustaining improvements of combat capability."  47:15 Laura Cooper: Let me say at the outset that I have never discussed this or any other matter with the president and never heard directly from him about this matter. 48:05 Laura Cooper: I and others at the interagency meetings felt that the matter was particularly urgent, because it takes time to obligate that amount of money. And my understanding was that the money was legally required to be obligated by September 30th to the end of the fiscal year. 49:15 Laura Cooper: I received a series of updates and in a September 5th update, I and other senior defense department leaders were informed that over a $100,000,000 could not be obligated by September 30th. 49:45 Laura Cooper: After the decision to release the funds on September 11th of this year, my colleagues across the DOD security assistance enterprise worked tirelessly to be able to ultimately obligate about 86% of the funding by the end of the fiscal year, more than they had originally estimated they would be able to. Due to a provision in September's continuing resolution, appropriating an amount equal to the unobligated funds from fiscal year 2019, we ultimately will be able to obligate all of the USAI funds. 51:04 Laura Cooper: Since my deposition, I have again reviewed my calendar, and the only meeting where I recall a Ukrainian official raising the issue with me is on September 5th at the Ukrainian independence day celebration. 51:45 Laura Cooper: Specifically, on the issue of Ukraine's knowledge of the hold or of Ukraine, asking questions about possible issues with the flow of assistance. My staff showed me two unclassified emails that they received from the state department. One was received on July 25th at 2:31 PM. That email said that the Ukrainian Embassy and House Foreign Affairs Committee are asking about security assistance. The second email was received on July 25th at 4:25 PM that email said that the Hill knows about the FMF situation to an extent, and so does the Ukrainian embassy. I did not receive either of these emails. My staff does not recall informing me about them and I do not recall being made aware of their content at the time. 53:04 Laura Cooper: On July 3rd at 4:23 PM they received an email from the State Department stating that they had heard that the CN is currently being blocked by OMB. This apparently refers to the congressional notification State would send for Ukraine FMF. I have no further information on this. 53:20 Laura Cooper: On July 25th a member of my staff got a question from a Ukraine embassy contact asking what was going on with Ukraine security assistance. Because at that time, we did not know what the guidance was on USAI. The OMB notice of apportionment arrived that day, but the staff member did not find out about it until later. I was informed that the staff member told the Ukrainian official that we were moving forward on USAI, but recommended that the Ukraine embassy check in with State regarding the FMF. 1:02:40 David Hale: We've often heard at the state department that the President of the United States wants to make sure that a foreign assistance is reviewed scrupulously to make sure that it's truly in US national interests, and that we evaluated continuously to meet certain criteria that the president's established. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): And since his election, is it fair to say that the president Trump has looked to overhaul how foreign aid is distributed? David Hale: Yes. The NSC launched a foreign assistance review process, sometime, I think it was late August, early September, 2018. 1:04:30 Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): In the past year, Ukraine was not the only country to have aid withheld from it, is that correct? David Hale: Correct. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): In the past year, was aid held withheld from Pakistan? David Hale:Yes sir. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): Why was aid withheld from Pakistan? David Hale: Because of unhappiness over the policies and behavior of the Pakistani government towards certain proxy groups that were involved in conflicts with United States. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): And in the past year was aid also withheld from Honduras. David Hale: Aid was withheld from three States in central Northern central America, yes. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): The past year was aide withheld from Lebanon? David Hale: Yes sir. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): And when aid was first held withheld from Lebanon, were you given a reason why it was withheld? David Hale: No. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): So having no explanation for why aid is being withheld is not uncommon. I would say it is not the normal way that we function... Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): But it does happen. David Hale: It does happen. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): And is it true that when aid was being withheld from Lebanon that was at the same time aid was being withheld from Ukraine? David Hale: Correct, sir. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX):And, you've testified that the aid to Lebanon still hasn't been released, is that right? David Hale: That is correct. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): Alright. 1:26:05 Laura Cooper: Russia violated the sovereignty of Ukraine's territory. Russia illegally annexed territory that belonged to Ukraine. They also denied Ukraine access to its Naval fleet at the time. And to this day, Russia is building a capability on Crimea designed to expand Russian military power projection far beyond the immediate region. 1:59:40 Laura Cooper: There are three separate pieces to our overall ability to provide equipment to the Ukrainian armed forces. The first is the foreign military finance system, which is a State Department authority and countries around the world have this authority. That authority is used for some of the training and equipment. There's also the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. That's a DOD authority. Unlike the State authority, the DOD authority is only a one year authority. And then third, there's an opportunity for defense sales. And that is something that we're working with Ukrainians on now so that they can actually purchase U.S. equipment. But the javelin specifically was provided under FMF initially and now the Ukrainians are interested in the purchase of javelin. 2:00:35 Rep. Will Hurd (TX): And there wasn't a hold put on purchasing of equipment, is that correct? Laura Cooper: Not to my understanding, no. 2:04:15 Laura Cooper: There were two ways that we would be able to implement presidential guidance to stop obligating the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. And the first option would be for the president to do a rescission. The second is a reprogramming action that the Department of Defense would do... Rep. Joaquin Castro (TX): In both of those would require congressional notice. There would be an extra step that the president would have to take to notify Congress. As far as, you know, was there ever any notice that was sent out to Congress? Laura Cooper: Sir, I did express that, that I believed it would require a notice to Congress and that then there was no such notice to my knowledge or preparation of such a notice to my knowledge. 2:07:41 Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX): But you can't say one way or another whether the inquiries in these emails were about the whole, is that fair? Laura Cooper: I cannot say for certain. Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX):Right, and you can't say one way or another, whether the Ukrainians knew about the whole before August 28th, 2019 when it was reported in Politico, correct? Laura Cooper: Sir, I can just tell you that it's the recollection of my staff that they likely knew, but no, I do not have a certain data point to offer you. Hearing: Impeachment Inquiry Hearing with E.U. Ambassador Gordon Sondland, House Select Intelligence Committee, C-SPAN Coverage, November 20, 2019 Watch on Youtube: Open Hearing with Ambassador Gordon Sondland Witness Gordon Sondland Transcript: 54:00 Gordon Sondland: As I testified previously, Mr. Giuliani's requests were a quid pro quo for arranging a white house visit for President Zelensky. Mr. Giuliani demanded that Ukraine make a public statement announcing the investigations of the 2016 Election DNC server, and Burisma. 54:30 Gordon Sondland: Mr. Giuliani was expressing the desires of the President of the United States, and we knew these investigations were important to the president. 55:00 Gordon Sondland: I was adamantly opposed to any suspension of aid, as the Ukrainians needed those funds to fight against Russian aggression. 55:10 Gordon Sondland: I tried diligently to ask why the aid was suspended, but I never received a clear answer. Still haven't to this day. In the absence of any credible explanation for the suspension of aid, I later came to believe that the resumption of security aid would not occur until there was a public statement from Ukraine committing to the investigations of the 2016 elections and Burisma as Mr. Giuliani had demanded. 59:40 Gordon Sondland: During the Zelensky inauguration, on May 20th the US delegation developed a very positive view of the Ukraine government. We were impressed by President Zelensky's desire to promote a stronger relationship with the United States. We admired his commitment to reform, and we were excited about the possibility of Ukraine making the changes necessary to support a greater Western economic investment. And we were excited that Ukraine might, after years and years of lip service, finally get serious about addressing its own well known corruption problems. 1:01:15 Gordon Sondland: Unfortunately, President Trump was skeptical. He expressed concerns that the Ukrainian government was not serious about reform, and he even mentioned that Ukraine tried to take him down in the last election. In response to our persistent efforts in that meeting to change his views, President Trump directed us to quote, "talk with Rudy." We understood that talk with Rudy meant talk with Mr. Rudy Giuliani, the president's personal lawyer. Let me say again, we weren't happy with the President's directive to talk with Rudy. We did not want to involve Mr. Giuliani. I believe then as I do now, that the men and women of the state department, not the president's personal lawyer, should take responsibility for Ukraine matters. Nonetheless, based on the president's direction we were faced with a choice, we could abandon the efforts to schedule the white house phone call and a white house visit between Presidents Trump and Zelensky, which was unquestionably in our foreign policy interest, or we could do as president Trump had directed and talk with Rudy. We chose the latter course, not because we liked it, but because it was the only constructive path open to us. 1:12:05 Gordon Sondland: After the Zelensky meeting, I also met with Zelensky's senior aide, Andre Yermak. I don't recall the specifics of our conversation, but I believe the issue of investigations was probably a part of that agenda or meeting. 1:12:15 Gordon Sondland: Also, on July 26 shortly after our Kiev meetings, I spoke by phone with President Trump. The White House, which has finally, finally shared certain call dates and times with my attorneys confirms this. The call lasted five minutes. I remember I was at a restaurant in Kiev, and I have no reason to doubt that this conversation included the subject of investigations. Again, given Mr. Giuliani's demand that President Zelensky make a public statement about investigations. I knew that investigations were important to President Trump. We did not discuss any classified information. Other witnesses have recently shared their recollection of overhearing this call. For the most part, I have no reason to doubt their accounts. It's true that the president speaks loudly at times and it's also true, I think, we primarily discussed ASAP Rocky. It's true that the president likes to use colorful language. Anyone who has met with him at any reasonable amount of time knows this well. I cannot remember the precise details. Again, the White House has not allowed me to see any readouts of that call and the July 26 call did not strike me as significant. At the time, actually, actually, I would have been more surprised if President Trump had not mentioned investigations, particularly given what we were hearing from Mr. Giuliani about the president's concerns. However, I have no recollection of discussing Vice President Biden or his son on that call or after the call ended. 1:14:10 Gordon Sondland: I know that members of this committee frequently frame these complicated issues in the form of a simple question. Was there a quid pro quo? As I testified previously with regard to the requested White House call and the White House meeting, the answer is yes. Mr. Giuliani conveyed to Secretary Perry, Ambassador Volker and others that President Trump wanted a public statement from President Zelensky committing to investigations of Burisma and the 2016 election. Mr Giuliani expressed those requests directly to the Ukrainians and Mr. Giuliani also expressed those requests directly to us. We all understood that these prerequisites for the White House call and the White House meeting reflected President Trump's desires and requirements. 1:23:10 Gordon Sondland: There was a September 1st meeting with President Zelensky in Warsaw. Unfortunately, President Trump's attendance at the Warsaw meeting was canceled due to Hurricane Dorian. Vice President Pence attended instead. I mentioned Vice President Pence before the meetings with the Ukrainians that I had concerns that the delay in aid had become tied to the issue of investigations. I recall mentioning that before the Zelensky meeting. During the actual meeting, President Zelensky raised the issue of security assistance directly with Vice President Pence and the vice president said that he would speak to President Trump about it. Based on my previous communication with Secretary Pompeo, I felt comfortable sharing my concerns with Mr. Yermak. It was a very, very brief pull aside conversation that happened. Within a few seconds, I told Mr. Yermak that I believe that the resumption of US aid would likely not occur until Ukraine took some kind of action on the public statement that we had been discussing for many weeks. 1:38:30 Gordon Sondland: I finally called the president, I believe it was on the 9th of September. I can't find the records and they won't provide them to me, but I believe I just asked him an open ended question, Mr. Chairman. "What do you want from Ukraine? I keep hearing all these different ideas and theories and this and that. What do you want?" And it was a very short, abrupt conversation. He was not in a good mood and he just said, I want nothing. I want nothing. I want no quid pro quo. Tell them Zelensky to do the right thing. Something to that effect. 1:43:00 Gordon Sondland: Again, through Mr. Giuliani, we were led to believe that that's what he wanted. 2:06:25 Gordon Sondland: President Trump never told me directly that the aid was conditioned on the meetings. The only thing we got directly from Giuliani was that the Burisma and 2016 elections were conditioned on the White House meeting. The aide was my own personal guess based again, on your analogy, two plus two equals four. 2:10:30 Gordon Sondland: Again, I don't recall President Trump ever talking to me about any security assistance ever. 2:44:00 Stephen Castor: Did the president ever tell you personally about any preconditions for anything? Gordon Sondland: No. Okay. Stephen Castor: So the president never told you about any preconditions for the aid to be released? Gordon Sondland: No. Stephen Castor: The president never told you about any preconditions for a White House meeting? Gordon Sondland: Personally, no. 3:01:10 Stephen Castor: And are you aware that he was also interested in better understanding the contributions of our European allies? Gordon Sondland: That I'm definitely aware of. Stephen Castor: And there was some back and forth between the state department officials trying to better understand that information for the president. Gordon Sondland: Yes, that's correct. Stephen Castor: And how do you know that wasn't the reason for the hold? Gordon Sondland: I don't... Stephen Castor: But yet you speculate that there was a link to the this announcement. Gordon Sondland: I presumed it, yes. Stephen Castor: Okay. 3:07:05 Stephen Castor: And when you first started discussing the concerns the president had with corruption, Burisma wasn't the only company that was mentioned, right. Gordon Sondland: It was generic, as I think I testified to Chairman Schiff, it was generic corruption, oligarchs, just bad stuff going on in Ukraine. Stephen Castor: But other companies came up, didn't they? Gordon Sondland: I don't know if they were mentioned specifically. It might've been Naftagas because we were working on another issue with Naftagas. So that might've been one of them. Stephen Castor: At one point in your deposition, I believe you, you said, "Yeah, Naftagas comes up at every conversation." Is that fair? Gordon Sondland: Probably. 3:14:55 Gordon Sondland: I think once that Politico article broke, it started making the rounds that, if you can't get a White House meeting without the statement, what makes you think you're going to get a $400 million check? Again, that was my presumption. Stephen Castor: Okay, but you had no evidence to prove that, correct? Gordon Sondland: That's correct. 3:44:10 Daniel Goldman: It wasn't really a presumption, you heard from Mr. Giuliani? Gordon Sondland: Well, I didn't hear from Mr. Giuliani about the aid. I heard about the Burisma and 2016. Daniel Goldman: And you understood at that point, as we discussed, two plus two equals four, that the aid was there as well. Gordon Sondland: That was the problem, Mr. Goldman. No one told me directly that the aid was tied to anything. I was presuming it was. 5:02:10 Rep. Jim Himes (CT): What did Mr. Giuliani say to you that caused you to say that he is expressing the desires of the President of the United States? Gordon Sondland: Mr. Himes, when that was originally communicated, that was before I was in touch with Mr. Giuliani directly. So this all came through Mr. Volcker and others. Rep. Jim Himes (CT): So Mr. Volcker told you that he was expressing the desires of the President of the United States. Gordon Sondland: Correct. 5:20:40 Rep. Michael Turner (OH): Well, you know, after you testified, Chairman Schiff ran out and gave a press conference and said he gets to impeach the president and said it's because of your testimony and if you pull up CNN today, right now, their banner says "Sondland ties Trump to withholding aid." Is that your testimony today, Mr. Ambassador Sondland, that you have evidence that Donald Trump tied the investigations the aid? Cause I don't think you're saying that. Gordon Sondland: I've said repeatedly, Congressman, I was presuming. I also said that President Trump... Rep. Michael Turner (OH): So no one told you, not just the president...Giuliani didn't tell you, Mulvaney didn't tell you. Nobody - Pompeo didn't tell you. Nobody else on this planet told you that Donald Trump was tying aid to these investigations. Is that correct? Gordon Sondland: I think I already testified. Rep. Michael Turner (OH): No, answer the question. Is it correct? No one on this planet told you that Donald Trump was tying this aid to the investigations. Cause if your answer is yes, then the chairman's wrong. And the headline on CNN is wrong. No one on this planet told you that president Trump was tying aid to investigations. Yes or no? Gordon Sondland: Yes. Hearing: Impeachment Hearing with Ambassador Kurt Volker and National Security Aide Tim Morrison, House Select Intelligence Committee, C-SPAN Coverage, November 19, 2019 Watch on Youtube: Open Hearing with Ambassador Kurt Volker and Timothy Morrison Witnesses Kurt Volker Timothy Morrison Transcript: 43:20 Timothy Morrison: I continue to believe Ukraine is on the front lines of a strategic competition between the West and Vladimir Putin's revanchist Russia. Russia is a failing power, but it is still a dangerous one. United States aids Ukraine and her people, so they can fight Russia over there and we don't have to fight Russia here. Support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty has been a bipartisan objective since Russia's military invasion in 2014. It must continue to be. 48:00 Kurt Volker: At no time was I aware of or knowingly took part in an effort to urge Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Biden. As you know, from the extensive realtime documentation I have provided, Vice President Biden was not a topic of our discussions. 50:20 Kurt Volker: At the time I took the position in the summer of 2017 there were major complicated questions swirling in public debate about the direction of US policy towards Ukraine. Would the administration lifts sanctions against Russia? Would it make some kind of grand bargain with Russia in which it would trade recognition of Russia seizure of Ukrainian territory for some other deal in Syria or elsewhere? Would the administration recognize Russia's claimed annexation of Crimea? Will this just become another frozen conflict? There are also a vast number of vacancies in key diplomatic positions. So no one was really representing the United States in the negotiating process about ending the war in Eastern Ukraine. 51:20 Kurt Volker: We changed the language commonly used to describe Russia's aggression. I was the administration's most outspoken public figure highlighting Russia's invasion and occupation of parts of Ukraine, calling out Russia's responsibility to end the war. 54:45 Kurt Volker: The problem was that despite the unanimous positive assessment and recommendations of those of us who were part of the US presidential delegation that attended the inauguration of President Zelensky, President Trump was receiving a different negative narrative about Ukraine and President Zelensky. That narrative was fueled by accusations from Ukraine's then prosecutor general and conveyed to the president by former mayor Rudy Giuliani. As I previously told this committee, I became aware of the negative impact this was having on our policy efforts when four of us, who were a part of the presidential delegation to the inauguration, met as a group with President Trump on May 23rd. We stressed our finding that President Zelensky represented the best chance for getting Ukraine out of the mire of corruption and had been in for over 20 years. We urged him to invite President Zelensky to the White House. The president was very skeptical. Given Ukraine's history of corruption. That's understandable. He said that Ukraine was a corrupt country full of terrible people. He said they tried to take me down. In the course of that conversation, he referenced conversations with Mayor Giuliani. It was clear to me that despite the positive news and recommendations being conveyed by this official delegation about the new president, President Trump had a deeply rooted negative view on Ukraine rooted in the past. He was receiving other information from other sources, including Mayor Giuliani, that was more negative, causing him to retain this negative view. Within a few days, on May 29th, President Trump indeed signed the congratulatory letter to President Zelensky, which included an invitation to the president to visit him at the White House. However, more than four weeks passed and we could not nail down a date for the meeting. I came to believe that the president's long-held negative view towards Ukraine was causing hesitation in actually scheduling the meeting, much as we had seen in our oval office discussion. 57:35 Kurt Volker: President Zelensky's senior aide, Andriy Yermak approached me several days later to ask to be connected to Mayor Giuliani. I agreed to make that connection. I did so because I understood that the new Ukrainian leadership wanted to convince those like Mayor Giuliani, who believes such a negative narrative about Ukraine, that times have changed and that under President Zelensky, Ukraine is worthy of us support. Ukrainians believed that if they could get their own narrative across in a way that convinced Mayor Giuliani that they were serious about fighting corruption and advancing reform, Mayor Giuliani would convey that assessment to President Trump, thus correcting the previous negative narrative. That made sense to me and I tried to be helpful. I made clear to the Ukrainians that Mayor Giuliani was a private citizen, the president's personal lawyer, and not representing the US government. Likewise, in my conversations with Mayor Giuliani, I never considered him to be speaking on the president's behalf or giving instructions, rather, the information flow was the other way. From Ukraine to Mayor Giuliani in the hopes that this would clear up the information reaching President Trump. 1:00:15 Kurt Volker: I connected Mayor Giuliani and Andriy Yermak by text and later by phone they met in person on August 2nd, 2019. In conversations with me following that meeting, which I did not attend, Mr. Giuliani said that he had stressed the importance of Ukraine conducting investigations into what happened in the past, and Mr. Yermak stressed that he told Mr. Giuliani it is the government's program to root out corruption and implement reforms, and they would be conducting investigations as part of this process anyway. 1:00:45 Kurt Volker: Mr. Giuliani said he believed that the Ukrainian president needed to make a statement about fighting corruption and that he had discussed this with Mr. Yermak. I said, I did not think that this would be a problem since that is the government's position. Anyway, I followed up with Mr. Yermak and he said that they would indeed be prepared to make a statement. 1:02:10 Kurt Volker: On August 16th, Mr. Yermak shared a draft with me, which I thought looked perfectly reasonable. It did not mention Burisma or 2016 elections, but was generic. Ambassador Sondland I had a further conversation with Mr. Giuliani who said that in his view, in order to be convincing that this government represented real change in Ukraine, the statement should include specific reference to Burisma and 2016 and again, there was no mention of Vice President Biden in these conversations. 1:02:40 Kurt Volker: Ambassador Sondland and I discussed these points and I edited the statement drafted by Mr. Yermak to include these points to see how it looked. I then discussed it further with Mr. Yermak. He said that for a number of reasons, including the fact that since Mr. Lutsenko was still officially the prosecutor general, they did not want to mention Burisma or 2016 and I agreed. And the idea of putting out a statement was shelved. These were the last conversations I had about this statement, which were on or about August 17 to 18. 1:04:00 Kurt Volker: At the time I was connecting Mr. Yermak and Mr. Giuliani and discussing with Mr. Yermak and Ambassador Sondland a possible statement that could be made by the Ukrainian president, I did not know of any linkage between the hold on security assistance and Ukraine pursuing investigatio

In the spirit of Memorial Day and remembrance, Evan and Brad decided to do something a bit different for episode 29. The guys share audio of L0pht Heavy Industries testifying before the United States Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs (live feed from CSPAN) on May 19, 1998. You'll notice that a lot of the issues discussed in the trial still translate today, despite it being over 20 years ago. Give it a listen, and let us know what you think at unsecurity@protonmail.com

Watch the video version of this conversation (for patrons): https://www.patreon.com/posts/2Fgoing-undercover-26273116  He went undercover with jihadists to foil a potentially devastating Toronto terrorism plot. He counsels returning ISIS fighters. He fights Islamic terrorism. And as a Sufi Sunni Muslim, he has no regrets. Mubin Shaikh is a former security intelligence and counterterrorism operative who is a widely sought expert on radicalization, deradicalization, and national security. He advised the United Nations Security Council, the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the National Counterterrorism Center, and Special Operations Command Central. He is an external expert with the Joint Staff SMA for CENTCOM Command Staff. And he joined us for a riveting conversation. Check it out.

Dee Carroll, PhD, is a speaker, coach, and consultant dedicated to helping people liberate themselves from their past and reinvent their lives. After a devastating setback in her own life, Dr. Dee beat the odds to recreate a beautiful life for herself, and is determined to help others do the same. As the Emotional Emancipation Doctor, she aims to lead you to success, empower you to achieve your goals, and guide you to where you want to be. As a seasoned life coach, Dr. Dee is passionate about working with individuals, corporations, and small businesses to achieve their goals. Through her unique tools, you or your audience will learn to unlock their full potential. Dr. Dee encourages her clients to set attainable life goals, while shifting their perspective to implement them. Her book is “Emotional Emancipation: Step into Your Freedom, Reinvent Your Challenges and Move Beyond” Dr. Dee is a sought-after speaker, empowering audiences in both professional and personal settings to take control of their lives and reinvent themselves. She has appeared before the United States Senate Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs Her website is drdeecarroll.com.

MP3, Poll, Links, and More: http://ymb.tc/e263This is episode 263 of You, Me, and BTC – your liberty and Bitcoin podcast.If you’re paying attention, you may notice some missing YMB episodes. We skipped straight from E260 to E263 because Dan’s been out of town for a few weeks. Tim ran things solo for awhile, so the last few shows only exist on YouTube for now. Eventually we’ll add them to our website and our podcast feeds and everywhere else…But hey, did you catch that? Dan’s back! That means we can finally talk about real legit crypto stuff again.Today’s first topic is this morning’s Bitcoin hearing for the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Community Affairs. Zack actually attended the debate between Dr. Nouriel Roubini (a huge Bitcoin hater) and Peter Van Valkenburgh (a Bitcoin advocate).Then later in the show, we’ll dive into an interesting stat from the Bitcoin charts. Apparently, the volatility index recently hit a record low for 2018. Is this a good sign? Should it make Bitcoin easier to use? Or does it mean we’ve petered out to nothingness?Tune in for all the fun tonight at 9PM Eastern and check the list below for some of the specific stuff we’ll cover!- Bitcoin is the ‘mother of all scams’ and blockchain is most hyped tech ever, Roubini tells Congress- Dr. Nouriel Roubini vs. Bitcoin: Senate Hearing Breaks Down His Arguments- Bitcoin Price Volatility Falls To Lowest Of 2018Your hosts this week are Daniel Brown, Tim Baker, and Zack Voell. Don’t forget to visit http://ymb.tc/e263 so you can share your thoughts in the comments!Every click helps. If this Bitcoin podcast was interesting, entertaining, obnoxious, or anything else, use the share buttons to let others know that it exists.Tips appreciated: 1Kiy8x4pwMS7RQuH7xDeVcfqeup7gUTqA

MP3, Poll, Links, and More: http://ymb.tc/e263This is episode 263 of You, Me, and BTC – your liberty and Bitcoin podcast.If you're paying attention, you may notice some missing YMB episodes. We skipped straight from E260 to E263 because Dan's been out of town for a few weeks. Tim ran things solo for awhile, so the last few shows only exist on YouTube for now. Eventually we'll add them to our website and our podcast feeds and everywhere else…But hey, did you catch that? Dan's back! That means we can finally talk about real legit crypto stuff again.Today's first topic is this morning's Bitcoin hearing for the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Community Affairs. Zack actually attended the debate between Dr. Nouriel Roubini (a huge Bitcoin hater) and Peter Van Valkenburgh (a Bitcoin advocate).Then later in the show, we'll dive into an interesting stat from the Bitcoin charts. Apparently, the volatility index recently hit a record low for 2018. Is this a good sign? Should it make Bitcoin easier to use? Or does it mean we've petered out to nothingness?Tune in for all the fun tonight at 9PM Eastern and check the list below for some of the specific stuff we'll cover!- Bitcoin is the ‘mother of all scams' and blockchain is most hyped tech ever, Roubini tells Congress- Dr. Nouriel Roubini vs. Bitcoin: Senate Hearing Breaks Down His Arguments- Bitcoin Price Volatility Falls To Lowest Of 2018Your hosts this week are Daniel Brown, Tim Baker, and Zack Voell. Don't forget to visit http://ymb.tc/e263 so you can share your thoughts in the comments!Every click helps. If this Bitcoin podcast was interesting, entertaining, obnoxious, or anything else, use the share buttons to let others know that it exists.Tips appreciated: 1Kiy8x4pwMS7RQuH7xDeVcfqeup7gUTqA

MP3, Poll, Links, and More: http://ymb.tc/e263This is episode 263 of You, Me, and BTC – your liberty and Bitcoin podcast.If you’re paying attention, you may notice some missing YMB episodes. We skipped straight from E260 to E263 because Dan’s been out of town for a few weeks. Tim ran things solo for awhile, so the last few shows only exist on YouTube for now. Eventually we’ll add them to our website and our podcast feeds and everywhere else…But hey, did you catch that? Dan’s back! That means we can finally talk about real legit crypto stuff again.Today’s first topic is this morning’s Bitcoin hearing for the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Community Affairs. Zack actually attended the debate between Dr. Nouriel Roubini (a huge Bitcoin hater) and Peter Van Valkenburgh (a Bitcoin advocate).Then later in the show, we’ll dive into an interesting stat from the Bitcoin charts. Apparently, the volatility index recently hit a record low for 2018. Is this a good sign? Should it make Bitcoin easier to use? Or does it mean we’ve petered out to nothingness?Tune in for all the fun tonight at 9PM Eastern and check the list below for some of the specific stuff we’ll cover!- Bitcoin is the ‘mother of all scams’ and blockchain is most hyped tech ever, Roubini tells Congress- Dr. Nouriel Roubini vs. Bitcoin: Senate Hearing Breaks Down His Arguments- Bitcoin Price Volatility Falls To Lowest Of 2018Your hosts this week are Daniel Brown, Tim Baker, and Zack Voell. Don’t forget to visit http://ymb.tc/e263 so you can share your thoughts in the comments!Every click helps. If this Bitcoin podcast was interesting, entertaining, obnoxious, or anything else, use the share buttons to let others know that it exists.Tips appreciated: 1Kiy8x4pwMS7RQuH7xDeVcfqeup7gUTqA

In this talk, Professor John Paris asks "What is the historical meaning of "ordinary means" to sustain human life? And what has been the understanding for over 500 years of Catholic moral analysis of the obligation to sustain life?" Is it, as Pope John Paul II insisted in an allocution to a meeting of the Vatican's Pontifical Academy for Life in March, 2000 that food and water must always be provided for patients in a persistent vegetative condition (PVS). Artificial nutrition and fluids, he writes, are not medical measure, but "natural" and therefor are "ordinary means" that are always morally required." PVS is a state of permanent unconsciousness. The record for maintaining a patient in that condition is 37 years, 111 days. JOHN J. PARIS, S.J., PhD is the Michael P. Walsh Professor of Bioethics at Boston College. He has also been Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA (1970-1990), Adjunct Professor of Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA (1982-1994) and Clinical Professor of Family and Community Health, Tufts University, Boston, MA 1985-1998) and has been a visiting scholar at Yale Law School, The Kennedy Institute of Ethics, The University of Chicago Medical School, Georgetown University School of Medicine, The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and a visiting professor at the Center for Biomedical Ethics at Stanford University's School of Medicine. Fr. Paris served as consultant to the President's Commission for the Study of Ethics in Medicine, the United States Senate Committee on Aging, and the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment. He has published over 190 articles on the area of law, medicine and ethics in publications as The New England Journal of Medicine, The Journal of the American Medical Association, The Journal of Intensive Care Medicine, Pediatrics, Archives of Diseases of Childhood, The American Journal of Bioethics (AJOB), The Cambridge Quarterly of Health Care Ethics (CQ) and The Wall Street Journal. He is the Ethics Section Editor of The Journal of Perinatology. Fr. Paris served as a consultant and expert witness in many of the landmark biomedical cases including Quinlan, Baby L, Brophy, Jobes, Baby K and Gilgunn.

In this talk, Professor John Paris asks "What is the historical meaning of "ordinary means" to sustain human life? And what has been the understanding for over 500 years of Catholic moral analysis of the obligation to sustain life?" Is it, as Pope John Paul II insisted in an allocution to a meeting of the Vatican's Pontifical Academy for Life in March, 2000 that food and water must always be provided for patients in a persistent vegetative condition (PVS). Artificial nutrition and fluids, he writes, are not medical measure, but "natural" and therefor are "ordinary means" that are always morally required." PVS is a state of permanent unconsciousness. The record for maintaining a patient in that condition is 37 years, 111 days. JOHN J. PARIS, S.J., PhD is the Michael P. Walsh Professor of Bioethics at Boston College. He has also been Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA (1970-1990), Adjunct Professor of Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA (1982-1994) and Clinical Professor of Family and Community Health, Tufts University, Boston, MA 1985-1998) and has been a visiting scholar at Yale Law School, The Kennedy Institute of Ethics, The University of Chicago Medical School, Georgetown University School of Medicine, The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and a visiting professor at the Center for Biomedical Ethics at Stanford University's School of Medicine. Fr. Paris served as consultant to the President's Commission for the Study of Ethics in Medicine, the United States Senate Committee on Aging, and the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment. He has published over 190 articles on the area of law, medicine and ethics in publications as The New England Journal of Medicine, The Journal of the American Medical Association, The Journal of Intensive Care Medicine, Pediatrics, Archives of Diseases of Childhood, The American Journal of Bioethics (AJOB), The Cambridge Quarterly of Health Care Ethics (CQ) and The Wall Street Journal. He is the Ethics Section Editor of The Journal of Perinatology. Fr. Paris served as a consultant and expert witness in many of the landmark biomedical cases including Quinlan, Baby L, Brophy, Jobes, Baby K and Gilgunn.

Congress is back from vacation and instead of focusing their investigative power on Syria in the wake of President Trump’s first bombing of the Syrian government, Congress focused on North Korea. In this episode, get the background information you will need to understand the daily developments related to North Korea and hear highlights from two Senate Armed Services Committee hearings and a U.N. Security Council meeting during which our plans for North Korea were laid on the table. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute using credit card, debit card, PayPal, or Bitcoin Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Mail Contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North #4576 Crestview, FL 32536 Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes CD136: Building WWIII Additional Reading Article: Here's what's driving North Korea's nuclear program - and it might be more than self-defense by Jonathan Kaiman, The Los Angeles Times, May 1, 2017. Article: As Economy Grows, North Korea's Grip on Society Is Tested by Choe Sang-Hun, The New York Times, April 30, 2017. Article: McCain plans gains momentum amid North Korea threats by Rebecca Kheel, The Hill, April 30, 2017. Article: N. Korean missile test fails hours after UN meeting on nukes by Foster Klug and Kim Tong-Hyung, San Francisco Chronicle, April 28, 2017. Article: China Calls for Restraint on North Korea as USS Carl Vinson Arrives by Petra Cahill, NBC News, April 24, 2017. Article: Lawmakers' Letters Endorse McCain Plan To Reinforce Pacific, Assist Asian Allies by Sydney J. Freedberg Jr, Breaking Defense, March 2, 2017. Report: U.S.-South Korea Relations by Congressional Research Service, October 20, 2016. Article: Rare earth mineral reserves were discovered in North Korea - and it could be a game-changer by Sam Doo, Business Insider, April 20, 2015. Article: Understanding Kim John Un, The World's Most Enigmatic and Unpredictable Dictator by Mark Bowden, Vanity Fair, March 2015. Article: All the Previous Declarations of War by Garance Franke-Ruta, The Atlantic, August 31, 2013. Article: The Case for Countering China's Rise by Martin Jacques, The New York Times, September 23, 2011. Videos YouTube: Why Korea Split Into North and South Korea Vice: Inside North Korea Part 1 Vice: Inside North Korea Part 2 Vice: Inside North Korea Part 3 YouTube:VICE on HBO Season One: The Hermit Kingdom YouTube: Channel West Coast - I Love Money YouTube: Donald Trump Says "China" Remix Song YouTube: Donald Trump Says China Remix References Document: Security Council Resolution 83 GovTrack: H.R. 1644: Korean Interdiction and Modernization of Sanctions Act Lockheed Martin: Terminal High Altitude Area Defense Missile Defense Agency: THAAD Fact Sheet OpenSecrets: Lockheed Martin Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: 2015 Contributors and Funders Sound Clip Sources Hearing: Policy and Strategy in the Asia-Pacific, United States Senate Committee on Armed Services, April 25, 2017. Watch on CSPAN Witnesses Dr. Victor D. Cha: Senior Advisor and Korea Chair, Center For Strategic and International Studies CSIS Bio Georgetown University Profile White House Website Bio Dr. Aaron L. Friedberg: Professor of Politics and International Affairs, Princeton University Princeton University Profile Princeton News - Deputy National Security Advisor to VP Dick Cheney Ms. Kelly E. Magsamen: Former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs, Office of the Secretary of Defense LinkedIn Profile Twitter Account Dr. Ashley J. Tellis: Senior Fellow, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Profile Timestamps & Transcripts 18:52 Senator John McCain: America’s interests in the Asia-Pacific region are deep and enduring. That’s why, for the past 70 years, we’ve worked with our allies and partners to uphold a rules-based order based on principles of free peoples and free markets, open seas, and open skies, the rule of law, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. These ideas have produced unprecedented peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific. But now challenges to this rules-based order are mounting as a threat, not just the nations of the Asia-Pacific region but the United States as well. The most immediate challenge is the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Kim Jong-un’s regime has thrown its full weight behind its quest for nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them, and, unfortunately, the regime is making real progress. A North Korean missile with a nuclear payload capable of striking an American city is no longer a distant hypothetical but an imminent danger, one that poses a real and rising risk of conflict. 31:20 Dr. Aaron Friedberg: The goal of Beijing’s strategy has become increasingly clear in the last few years is to create a regional Eurasian order that’s very different from the one we’d been trying to build since the end of the Cold War. 32:03 Dr. Aaron Friedberg: When the Cold War ended, the United States set out to expand the geographic scope of the Western liberal economic and institutional order by integrating the pieces of the former Soviet Union and the former Soviet empire and by accelerating the integration of China—the process that had begun a few years before. As regards China, the United States pursued a two-prong strategy: on one hand, seeking to engage China across all domains, economic in particular but diplomatic in others; and at the same time, working with our allies and partners and maintaining our own forces in the region to preserve a balance of power that was favorable to our interests and the security of our allies. And the goals of that policy were to preserve stability, to deter the possibility of aggression, while waiting for engagement to work its magic. The U.S. hoped, in effect, to tame and ultimately to transform China, to encourage its leaders to see their interests as lying in preservation of that order, and to set in motion processes that would lead, eventually, to the economic and political liberalization of that country. 37:53 Dr. Aaron Friedberg: Economically, they’ve been using the growing gravitational pull of their economy to draw others towards them and also to become increasingly open in using economic threats and punishments to try to shape the behavior of others in the region, including U.S. allies; as Dr. Cha mentioned, Korea; and also the Philippines. 42:27 Dr. Aaron Friedberg: And while there’s obviously a limit to what we can and should say in public, we are at a point, I think, where we need to be able to explain to our allies, our possible adversaries, and ourselves how we would fight and win a war in Asia, should that ever become necessary. 45:50 Kelly Magsamen: First, we need to increase the pressure on North Korea as a necessary predicate to any other option. China is central to that, but we can’t rely only on Chinese pressure. We also need to be realistic. Kim Jong-un is not going to unilaterally disarm because of international pressure. Pressure alone is not going to solve the problem. Second, military options should remain on the table, but they are extremely high risk and should be a last resort. We should not kid ourselves here: a conflict on the peninsula would be unlike anything we have seen in decades. North Korea is not a Syria, it’s not an Iraq; the consequences could be extremely high. 55:51 Dr. Ashley J. Tellis: I think it would be very helpful for the administration to support your initiative, Senator McCain, with respect to the Asia-Pacific Stability Initiative. In fact, urgent funding at levels that approximate those are for the European Reassurance Initiative. 56:32 Dr. Ashley J. Tellis: In the near term, this will require shifting additional combat power to the theater, remedying shortfalls in critical munitions, expanding logistics’ capabilities, increasing joint exercises and training, and improving force resiliency by enabling a more dispersed deployment posture. But the longer term is just as crucial, and the demands of the longer term cannot be avoided indefinitely. Here, I believe, bipartisan support will be necessary for developing and rapidly integrating various revolutionary technologies into the joint force—technologies that will emphasize stealth, long-range, and unmanned capabilities as well as doubling down on our advantages in undersea warfare. 1:05:47 Dr. Aaron Friedberg: China’s been playing a game with us, for at least 15 years, on this issue. When we get especially concerned about what the North Koreans are doing, and we go to the Chinese and ask them for their help, what they’ve done in the past is to apply limited increments of pressure—they did it in 2003 to get the North Koreans to agree to sit down, what became six-party talks—but at the same time, almost simultaneously, as Victor suggests, they’re enabling the North Korean regime to continue by allowing continued economic exchange across their border. The Chinese have also allowed, or the Chinese authorities have at least looked aside as Chinese-based companies have exported to North Korea components that were essential to the development of their ballistic missiles, and probably other parts of their special-weapons programs. I’m not at all optimistic that the Chinese are going to play a different game with us now than they did in the past. One thing I would add, though: aside from military pressure, which for reasons that you suggest, Senator McCain, is I think of questionable plausibility, there are ways in which we could increase economic pressure on the North Korean regime, particularly by imposing further economic sanctions and especially financial sanctions. We did that in the Bush administration. I think it was actually something that caused a good deal of pain. We backed away from it for various reasons. I think it was a mistake to have done that. One of the reasons, my understanding, that we haven’t been willing to push on this harder is that it probably would involve sanctioning entities that are based in China, and I think we’ve been reluctant to do that because of our concerns about upsetting the relationship with China. I think if we’re going to be serious about this, we probably are going to have to go down that road. 1:08:37 Kelly Magsamen: Now is the time to try to make China understand that the status quo is worse for them than all other scenarios, and to do that, I think we need to hold their interests at risk, and what I mean by that is somewhat of what Dr. Friedberg said, which is we need to really think hard about secondary sanctions on Chinese banks. I actually think we should go out and do it now. I don’t think we should actually wait. I don’t think that holding it in advance is actually going to induce Chinese cooperation. So now is the time to demonstrate to China that we’re serious in that regard. 1:15:45 Dr. Aaron Friedberg: There is in the long run—I hesitate to use this term because it’s fallen into disfavor for good and bad reasons—but the ultimate solution to this problem is regime change unless and until there’s a change in the character of the North Korean regime and certainly the identity of the current leadership. There’s absolutely no prospect that I can see that this problem will get better. 1:26:05 Dr. Ashley J. Tellis: We cannot do anything else without exhausting the alternatives offered by diplomacy because dealing with North Korea, at the end of the day, will require a coalition effort, and we have to satisfy the expectations of our coalition partners that we’ve made every effort in the interim to deal with the challenge. And so we have to think of it in terms of a multi-step game. As Dr. Cha highlighted, the immediate objective should be to get the North Korean regime back to the negotiating table. The ultimate objective must be to hope that there will be evolutionary change in the regime. 2:07:45 Dr. Aaron Friedberg: If you ask what would be the sort of outer limit of what China could do— Unknown Speaker: Mm-hmm. Friedberg: —assuming that it was willing to do almost anything, it could bring North Korean economy to its knees, which it’s pretty close to that already; it could cut off the flows of funds that go across the border into North Korea, partly from the so-called illicit activities that the North Koreans engage in; it could interdict components that flow into North Korea through China that support the special-weapons programs; it could do a lot. Hearing: United States Pacific Command and United States Forces Korea, United States Senate Committee on Armed Services, April 27, 2017. Witness Admiral Harry B. Harris, Jr., USN: Commander, United States Pacific Command Timestamps & Transcripts 16:44 John McCain: America’s interests in the Asia-Pacific region are deep and enduring. That’s why, for the past 70 years, we’ve worked with our allies and partners to uphold a rules-based order based on the principles of free peoples and free markets, open seas, and open skies, and the rule of law, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. These ideas have produced unprecedented peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific. But now challenges to this rules-based order are mounting, and they threaten not just the nations of the Asia-Pacific region but the United States as well. The most immediate threat is the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Kim Jong-un’s regime has thrown its full weight behind its quest for nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them, and, unfortunately, the regime is making real progress. A North Korean missile with a nuclear payload capable of striking an American city is no longer a distant hypothetical but an imminent danger, one that poses a real and rising risk of conflict. 19:47 John McCain: As its behavior toward South Korea indicates over the last several years, China has acted less and less like a responsible stakeholder of the rules-based order in the region and more like a bully. It has economically coerced its neighbors, increased its provocations in the East China Sea, and militarized the South China Sea. Meanwhile, with a rebalance policy too heavy on rhetoric and too light on action, years of senseless defense cuts and now the disastrous decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, U.S. policy has failed to adapt to the scale and velocity of China’s challenge to the rules-based order. 21:44 John McCain: At our hearing earlier this week, our panel of expert witnesses agreed there was a strong merit for an “Asia-Pacific Stability Initiative.” This Initiative could enhance U.S. military power through targeted funding to realign our force posture in a region, improve operationally relevant infrastructure, fund additional exercises, pre-position equipment, and build capacity with our allies and partners. Admiral Harris, I’m eager to hear your thoughts on this kind of an initiative. 24:26 Senator Jack Reed: While North Korea poses an immediate national security threat, we must not lose sight of the potential long-term threat that China poses to the rules-based order in the Asia-Pacific region. Whether it be economic coercion of its small and more vulnerable neighbors or undermining the freedom of navigation that we all depend upon, China has not demonstrated a willingness to rise as a responsible global leader. Therefore, I believe it is critical that we empower and engage countries in Southeast Asia and South Asia to protect their own waterways and provide them with economical alternatives to maintain regional stability, preserve U.S. standing in Asia, and allow the economic growth and stability that has characterized the region for the last 50 years to continue. 35:41 John McCain: What does THAAD do for us? Admiral Harris: THAAD enables us and our South Korean allies to defend South Korea, or a big portion of South Korea, against the threat from North Korea. It is aimed at North Korea, the systems, and it poses no threat to China. McCain: But isn’t it incredibly difficult to counter the 4,000 artillery pieces that the North Koreans have on the DMZ, which could attack a city of 26 million people? Harris: It is, sir, and THAAD is not designed to counter those kinds of basic weapons. McCain: And what is designed to do that? Anything? Harris: We do not have those kinds of weapons that can counter those rockets once they’re launched. McCain: And they can launch—they have the capability of a launch of those rockets. Harris: At this very moment, they have that capability, Senator. 1:02:00 Senator Roger Wicker: There are these 4,000 short-range missiles, and your testimony is that there is essentially no defense from the south for those— Admiral Harris: Right. Wicker: —short-range missiles. Is that correct? Harris: And those aren’t missiles. Those are mostly artillery. Wicker: Artillery. Okay. Artillery. Harris: And so— Wicker: And there's no defense? Harris: Right. I mean, you’re trying to shoot down an artillery round, right. Wicker: Okay. And then, the chairman asked you, and I don’t think I understood the answer, what does THAAD get us? Harris: THAAD allows us an intercept capability to shoot down, at the high-altitude level, ballistic missiles that go from North Korea to South Korea. 1:57:37 Admiral Harris: What we said was, the Carl Vinson was leaving Singpore, truncating its exercise, cancelling is port visit, and heading to Northeast Asia. Unknown Speaker: But— Harris: And that’s where it is today. It’s within striking power, striking range of North Korea if the president were to call on it. 2:16:17 Senator Lindsay Graham: It should be the policy of the United States to never allow North Korea to develop an ICBM with a warhead that could hit America. Admiral Harris: I believe that’s correct. Graham: Okay. Do you believe that the only way they’ll change that policy, their desire, is if they believe that the regime could be taken down by us if they continue to develop an ICBM? Without credible military threat in the mind of the North Koreans they’re going to plow ahead? Harris: I believe that generally, but I believe that China might be able to exert its influence. Graham: Do you believe China could change North Korea’s behavior, absent a belief by North Korea, that we would use military force to stop their ICBM program? Harris: I do not. Graham: Okay. Do you believe that China would act stronger and more bold if they believe credible military force was on the table to stop North Korea? Harris: I do. Graham: So, it seems to me that the policy of the United States, given the admiral’s advice and you are really good at what you do, that we should all agree that it’s not good for America for North Korea to have an ICBM with a warhead attached, and it’s really not good for China, is it? Harris: I believe it is not good for China. Graham: Well, why don’t they believe that? Harris: Because they have their own calculus, their own decision process. Graham: Do you think they’re beginning to reshape their calculus in light of our reaction to North Korea? Harris: I hope so, but it’s early days. Graham: Okay. In terms of China’s leverage on North Korea, you said it was substantial. Harris: Their leverage is potentially substantial. Graham: Substantial. The best way to avoid a military conflict with North Korea over their missile program is for China to wake up North Korea to the reality of what threat that presents to North Korea and China. Is that fair to say? Harris: That is fair to say. Graham: Is it also fair to say that we do not have any intentions of invading North Korea at all? I mean, that’s not on our—nobody’s told you, “Get ready to invade North Korea.” Harris: That is not fair to say, sir. I believe the president has said that all options are on the table. Graham: Yeah, but, I mean, we’re not going to just go in and take North Korea down for the heck of it. Harris: Sir, I don’t want to get into what we could or could not do. Graham: Okay. Well, North Korea thinks we’re going to invade in any moment. Do you think that’s part of our national security strategy is, without provocation to attack North Korea? Harris: I think North Korea has provided provocation already in terms of— Graham: But without provocation, it’s not our policy to attack North Korea. Harris: They have provoked us already, sir. Graham: Yeah, I said but if they stopped it, they don’t have anything to worry about. Harris: Then we will have to look at it. You know, that’s a decision— Graham: That's all I'm saying. Harris: That’s a decision that the president would make. UN Security Council Meeting: Secretary Tillerson Chairs UN Security Council Meeting on Denuclearization of North Korea, April 28, 2017. Timestamps & Transcripts 2:00 Antonio Guterres (UN Secretary General): The Security Council first adopted the resolution on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, DPRK, nuclear issue in 1993 when it urged the DPRK not to withdraw from the Treaty of Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Twenty-four years later and despite extensive efforts, the challenge has defied resolution. In response to the DPRK’s accelerated nuclear and ballistic missile activities, the Security Council has adopted two sanctions resolutions and met 11 times in emergency consultations since January 2016. During this period, the DPRK conducted two nuclear tests, more than 30 launches using ballistic missile technology, and various other activities relating to the nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Its launches using ballistic-missile technology, have included tests of short, medium, intermediate range and submarine-launched ballistic missiles as well as the placement of a satellite in orbit. These tests and launches are clear violations of Security Council resolutions, and the absence of coordination and notifications in advance of these launches, other than the space launch of 7 February 2016, are also contrary to internationally accepted regulations and standards adopted by the International Maritime Organization and International Civil Aviation Organization. 11:30 Secretary Rex Tillerson: We have said this before, and it bears repeating: the policy of strategic patience is over. Additional patience will only mean acceptance of a nuclear North Korea. The more we bide our time, the sooner we will run out of it. 12:27 Secretary Rex Tillerson: Our goal is not regime change nor do we desire to threaten the North Korean people or destabilize the Asia-Pacific region. Over the years we have withdrawn our own nuclear weapons from South Korea and offered aid to North Korea as proof of our intent to de-escalate the situation and normalize relations. Since 1995 the United States has provided over $1.3 billion in aid to North Korea, and we look forward to resuming our contributions once the DPRK begins to dismantle its nuclear weapons and missile technology programs. 13:35 Secretary Rex Tillerson: I propose all nations take these three actions, beginning today: first, we call on UN member states to fully implement the commitments they have made regarding North Korea. This includes all measures required in resolutions 2321 and 2270. Those nations which have not fully enforced these resolutions fully discredit this body. Second, we call on countries to suspend or downgrade diplomatic relations with North Korea. North Korea exploits its diplomatic privileges to fund its illicit nuclear and missile technology programs, and constraining its diplomatic activity will cut off a flow of needed resources. In light of North Korea’s recent actions, normal relations with the DPRK are simply not acceptable. Third, we must increase North Korea’s financial isolation. We must levy new sanctions on DPRK entities and individuals supporting its weapons and missile programs, and tighten those that are already in place. The United States, also, would much prefer countries and people in question to own up to their lapses and correct their behavior themselves, but we will not hesitate to sanction third-country entities and individuals supporting the DPRK’s illegal activities. We must bring maximum economic pressure by severing trade relationships that directly fund the DPRK’s nuclear missile program. I call on the international community to suspend the flow of North Korean guest workers and to impose bans on North Korean imports, especially coal. We must all do our share, but China, accounting for 90 percent of North Korean trade, China alone has economic leverage over Pyongyang that is unique, and its role is, therefore, particularly important. The U.S. and China have held very productive exchanges on this issue, and we look forward to further actions that build on what China has already done. Lastly, as we have said before, all options for responding to future provocation must remain on the table. Diplomatic and financial levers of power will be backed up by a willingness to counteract North Korean aggression, with military action if necessary. 36:02 Wang Yi (China's Minister of Foreign Affairs): Mr. President, China is not the focal point of the problem on the peninsula. I think the key to solving the nuclear issue on the peninsula does not lie in the hands of the Chinese. 37:05 Wang Yi: The dual-track approach aims to promote parallel progress in the denuclearization of the peninsula and the establishment of a peace mechanism on the peninsula in a synchronized and reciprocal manner, ultimately achieving both goals together. The suspension-for-suspension proposal, which calls for the suspension of nuclear and missile activities by the DPRK and the suspension of large-scale military exercises by the U.S. and the ROK, seeks to bring the two sides back to the negotiating table, thus initiating the first step of the dual-track approach. 40:25 Wang Yi: Given the grave situation on the peninsula, China strongly urges all parties to remain calm and exercise restraint and avoid provocative rhetoric or actions that will lead to miscalculation. What I want to stress is that there is and should be no double standard on this issue. While we demand the DPRK to observe the Council’s resolutions and stop advancing its nuclear and missile development, we also demand the U.S., the ROK, and other parties to refrain from conducting or even expanding military exercises and deployment against the DPRK. 41:06 Wang Yi: All parties should comprehensively appreciate and fully implement DPRK related Security Council’s resolutions, in addition to introducing sanctions on the DPRK, the resolutions adopted do date also ask for resumption of the six-party talks, avoidance of acceleration of tensions, not to mention [unclear], in other words, imposing sanctions [unclear] talks about the [unclear] Council resolutions. We may not choose one over the other. We’ll only implement what we see fit. 42:30 Wang Yi: Before I conclude, I want to reiterate China’s firm opposition against a U.S. deployment of THAAD anti-missile system in the ROK. It’s a move that seriously undermines the strategic security of China and other countries in the region and damages the trust and the cooperation amongst the parties on the peninsula issue. It is detrimental to achieving denuclearization and maintaining long-term stability on the peninsula. China was again urges [unclear] parties to immediately stop the deployment process. 2:03:05 Secretary Rex Tillerson: We will not negotiate our way back to the negotiating table with North Korea. We will not reward their violations of past resolutions. We will not reward their bad behavior with talks. We will only engage in talks with North Korea when they exhibit a good-faith commitment to abiding by the Security Council resolutions and their past promises to end their nuclear programs. Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations

Impeachment: A serious punishment for serious corruption. In this episode, learn why Congress has begun the process of impeaching IRS Commissioner John Koskinen and how his impeachment would prevent light from being shined upon dark money in politics. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Mail Contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North #4576 Crestview, FL 32536 Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Bill Outlines H.R. 5253: Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting Free Speech Act Prohibits tax exempt organizations from being required to disclose any information about their contributors, including the person's name, address, or the amount of their contribution or gift on their annual tax returns. Passed the House of Representatives 240-182 Author: Peter Roskam (IL-6) Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 5053 – Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting Free Speech Act By Representative Peter Roskam and 25 cosponsors, Executive Office of the President, June 13, 2016. H.Res. 737: Condemning and censuring John A. Koskinen, the Commissioner of Internal Revenue Suggests that John Koskinen should resign or be fired by the President Suggests that John Koskinen be denied his all of his retirement payments from the Federal government S. 1728: Access to Court Challenges for Exempt Status Seekers (ACCESS) Act of 2015 Allows the United States Tax Court, the United States Court of Federal Claims, or the district court of the United States for the District of Columbia to determine qualifications for 501(c)4 status if the IRS hasn't made the determination after 270 days. S. 1578: Taxpayer Bill of Rights Enhancement Act of 2015 Congress must be notified why the IRS Commissioner decides NOT to fire an employee Requires IRS employee emails to be stored for 15 years and then be stored in the National Archives Quadruples criminal penalties for unauthorized disclosures and inspections. Prohibits IRS employees from using personal email accounts for official business Gives organizations the ability to challenge their denials of tax exempt status in court S.942: Fair Treatment for All Gifts Act Expands the tax deduction for charitable giving to include gifts to 501(c)4 organizations S. 949: Small Business Taxpayer Bill of Rights Defines a "small business" as one that makes less than $50 million a year Increases fines for unauthorized inspection or disclosure of tax returns by 10 times the current penalties Institutes mandatory unpaid leave for at least 30 days for any IRS employee that reviews an application for tax exempt status "using any methodology that applies disproportionate scrutiny to any applicant based on the ideology expressed in the name or purpose of the organization". Allows the United States Tax Court, the United States Court of Federal Claims, or the district court of the United States for the District of Columbia to determine qualifications for 501(c)4 status if the IRS hasn't made the determination after 270 days. Orders the Treasury Inspector General to Investigate criteria used to evaluate applications for tax exempt status to determine whether the criteria discriminates against taxpayers on the basis of race, religion, or political ideology. S. 283: Stop Targeting of Political Beliefs by the IRS Act of 2015 The standard used to determine whether an organization is a 501(c)4 social welfare organization that was used on January 1, 2010 will be the standard used, and it cannot be changed before February 28, 2017. Speaker Paul Ryan's version of this bill prohibits the standard from changing before December 31, 2017. Sound Clip Sources Hearing: Examining the Allegations of Misconduct Against IRS Commissioner John Koskinen, Part II, House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, June 22, 2016. Hearing: Conduct of IRS Commissioner John Koskinen, House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, May 24, 2016. Hearing: Internal Revenue Service Targeting Investigation, Senate Finance Committee, October 27, 2015. Additional Reading Article: Freedom Caucus Ups Pressure to Impeach IRS Commissioner By Daniel Newhauser, Government Executive, June 30, 2016. Article: IRS Targeting Scandal: Citizens United, Lois Lerner And The $20M Tax Saga That Won't Go Away By Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, June 24, 2016. Article: The Show Trial of IRS Commissioner John Koskinen By Norm Ornstein, The Atlantic, June 22, 2016. Article: IRS Chief Koskinen Fights First Appointee Impeachment Since 1876 By Lynnley Browning, Chicago Tribune, June 21, 2016. Article: House Approves Koch-backed Bill to Shield Donors’ Names By Fredreka Schouten, USA Today, June 14, 2016. Article: Appropriations Bill ‘Handcuffs'IRS on Political Group Activities By Colleen Murphy, Bloomberg Bureau of National Affairs, June 13, 2016. Article: How Crossroads GPS Beat the IRS and Became a Social Welfare Group By Robert Maguire, Open Secrets, February 12, 2016. Article: Inside the Billion-Dollar Battle for Puerto Rico’s Future By Jonathan Mahler and Nicholas Confessore, The New York Times, December 19, 2015. Article: Exelon Amends Reports Concerning Contributions To Trade Groups By Michael Beckel, The Center for Public Integrity, January 29, 2014. Article: Follow the Corporate Cash Flow to Nonprofits By Chris Zubak-Skees, The Center for Public Integrity, January 16, 2014. Article: At Least 1 in 4 Dark Money Dollars in 2012 Had Koch Links By Robert Maguire, OpenSecrets, December 3, 2013. Article: The IRS Tea Party Scandal, Explained By Andy Kroll, Mother Jones, November 21, 2013. Additional Information SourceWatch: 60 Plus Association OpenSecrets: Political Nonprofits (Dark Money) Reports IRS Return Selection: Wage and Investment Division Should Define Audit Objectives and Refine Other Internal Controls, United States Government Accountability Office, December 2015. Finance Committee Releases Bipartisan IRS Report By Aaron Forbes and Julia Lawless, United States Senate Committee on Finance, August 5, 2015. Inappropriate Criteria Were Used to Identify Tax-Exempt Applications for Review By Treasury Inspector General For Tax Administration, May 14, 2013. The Internal Revenue Service's Processing Of 501(c)(3) And 501(c)(4) Applications For Tax-Exempt Status Submitted By ‘‘Political Advocacy’’ By The United States Senate Committee on Finance, August 5, 2015. Organizations From 2010–2013 Part 1 The Report Part 2 Letters Part 3 Emails Part 4 Documents Music Presented in This Episode Intro & Exit: Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito (found on Music Alley by mevio) Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations

Puerto Rico is in trouble and only the U.S. Congress can help the island of U.S. citizens. Does the bill quickly moving through Congress actually help Puerto Rico? Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Mail Contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North #4576 Crestview, FL 32536 Thank you for supporting truly independent media! H.R. 5278: "Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act" (PROMESA) Bill Highlights Definitions "Territorial instrumentality": "Any political subdivision, public agency, instrumentality - including any instrumentality that is also a bank - or public corporation of a territory, and this term should be broadly construed to effectuate the purposes of this Act." Title 1: Establishment and Organization of Oversight Board Purpose: "To provide a method for a covered territory to achieve fiscal responsibility and access tot he capital markets." Constitutional Justification for the Board Article IV, section 3 of the Constitution "Provides Congress the power to dispose of and make all needful rules and regulations for territories." Records Access The Oversight Board will have the power to demand budgets from any public agency. The Oversight Board has the power to exclude any public agency from the requirements of this law. Oversight Board Membership Seven unpaid members appointed by the President. Six of the selections will be from lists created by Congress. Two people must be selected from two different lists submitted by the Speaker of the House of Representatives Two people must be picked from a list created by the Majority Leader of the Senate One person must be selected from a list created by the House Minority Leader One person must be selected from a list created by the Senate Minority Leader One person will be picked by the President Only one person on the board has to be a territory resident or "have a primary place of business in the territory" The appointments must be done by September 15, 2016 The Governor, or his designee, will be an "ex officio member" with no voting rights. Term of service: 3 years Removal: Can be done by the President "only for cause" Expired terms: The member can serve until someone else is appointed. Consecutive terms are allowed Member Qualifications Must have "knowledge and expertise in finance, municipal bond markets, management, law, or the organization or operation of business or government" No one who has worked for the territory's government is allowed on the Oversight Board Rules for the Oversight Board The Oversight Board will write the laws governing it's own activities The work of the Oversight Board can be privatized Majority Rule Needed To: Approve of fiscal plans Approve a budget To waive a law To approve or disapprove an infrastructure project Territorial Laws The Oversight Board can change the territory's laws "with the greatest degree of independence practicable" The Oversight Board may conduct their business behind closed doors. Paid Staff Executive Director The Board will determine his/her salary The Executive Director can hire as many staff members as he wants and decide how much they get paid, as long as none of them get more than he does. Gifts Are allowed but need to be publicly disclosed Exemption from Laws "The Executive Director and staff of the Oversight Board may be appointed and paid without regard to any provision of the laws of the covered territory or the Federal Government governing appointments and salaries. Any provision of the laws of the covered territory governing procurement shall not apply to the Oversight Board." Powers of the Oversight Board Data Collection The Oversight Board "shall have the right to secure copies, whether written or electronic, of such records, documents, information, data, or metadata from the territorial government" The banks can voluntarily submit information about how much money they think they're owed Subpeona Power Failure to obey an Oversight Board will be punished in court according to territorial laws. Strikes Prohibited The Oversight Board must "ensure prompt enforcement" of any territorial laws "prohibiting public sector employees from participating in a strike or lockout Lawsuits Against the Board Any legal action against the Oversight Board must be filed in a United States district court for the territory, or in the US District Court for Hawaii if that territory doesn't have one. The courts are not allowed to consider challenges to the Oversight Board's certification determinations Oversight Board Funding The Oversight Board will be funded by the permanent budget of the territory in an amount chosen by the Oversight Board. Until the territory creates the law providing permanent funding, the territory must transfer whatever the Oversight Board requests in its budget - at least 2 million dollars per month - to a fund controlled by the Oversight Board. The Oversight Board will have the ability to give some money back Oversight of the Oversight Board The territory is prohibited from exercising any oversight of the Oversight Board activities or from enacting any law related to the Oversight Board that "defeat the purposes of this Act" Title II: Responsibilities of the Oversight Board Approval of Fiscal Plans Fiscal plans submitted by the Governor will have to get certification from the Oversight Board. A fiscal plan developed by the Oversight Board will be deemed approved by the Governor Approval of Budgets If the Governor and Legislature don't have a budget certified by the first day of the fiscal year, the Oversight Board's budget will be deemed approved. Contract Reviews The Oversight Board can require review of government to government contracts that compete with the private sector "to ensure such proposed contracts promote market competition" Sense of Congress: Territorial government should be a "facilitator and not a competitor to private enterprise' If a "contract, rule, regulation, or executive order" fails to comply with Oversight Board policies, the Oversight Board can prevent "execution and enforcement of the contract, rule, executive order, or regulation." The Oversight Board will be able to rescind any law enacted between May 4, 2016 and the day all members and the Chair of the Oversight Board are appointed. They can't rescind laws that comply with a court order, implement a Federal Government program, implement laws that match Oversight Board policies, or maintain Federally funded mass transportation assets. The Oversight Board is allowed to make recommendations to change how pensions are paid to government employees and to transfer government services and entities to the private sector The Board will have the authority to cut budgets for services, institute hiring freezes, and cut off agencies from making financial transactions. Approval of debt restructuring plans Will need the approval of 5/7 Oversight Board members As long as the Oversight Board is in operation, the territorial government can't make any transactions related to it's debt. Termination of Oversight Board The territory needs to balance its budget for 4 consecutive years and the Oversight Board must certify that the banks are willing to lend to the territorial government No Full Faith & Credit of the United States The territories' debt is not backed by and will not be paid by the United States. Title III: Adjustments of Debts Allows Puerto Rico to have some ability under Chapter 11 (the bankruptcy chapter) to restructure it's debt. Banks ("creditors") that don't consent to a payment moritorium will not be bound by it. Title IV: Miscellaneous Minimum Wage Allows the Governor of Puerto Rico to [lower the minimum wage to $4.25/hr for new employees under age 25 until the Oversight Board is terminated, not more than four years. Lawsuit Freeze Lawsuits against Puerto Rico for repayment are prohibited from the day of enactment of this law until February 15, 2017 or six months after the Oversight Board is created. Title V: Puerto Rico Infrastructure Revitalization Revitalization Coordinator There will be a Revitalization Coordinator under the command of the Oversight Board, who will be appointed by the Governor from a list of three names selected by the Oversight Board. The Revitalization Coordinator must have experience in the planning, predevelopment, financing, development, operations, engineering, or market participation of infrastructure projects who isn't currently contracting with the government of Puerto Rico and was not a former government employee after 2012. The Revitalization Coordinator will be paid no more than the Executive Director. Project Assessments Will include how the project contributes "to transitioning to privatize generation capacities in Puerto Rico" Expedited Permits Relevant agencies of Puerto Rico's government need to create an expedited permitting process for the infrastructure projects declared "critical" by the Revitalization Coordinator. The expedited permitting processes will be operated as if the Governor had declared an emergency under Puerto Rican law. "Any transactions, processes, projects, works, or programs essential to the completion of a Critical Project shall continue to be processed and completed under such Expedited Permitting Process regardless of the termination of the Oversight Board" If a project is determined by "the Planning Board" to likely affect the implementation of existing Puerto Rican land use plans or an approved Integrated Resource Plan, the project will be "deemed ineligible" for Critical Project designation. The Oversight Board can waive any law that would "adversely impact the Expedited Permitting Process Limited Access to Courts Lawsuits against a "critical project" must be brought within 30 days of the decision the lawsuit would challenge. Vote June 9, 2016: Passed the House of Representatives 297-127 Sound Clip Sources TV Episode: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Puerto Rico (HBO), April 17 2016. TV Episode: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: U.S. Territories (HBO), March 8, 2015. Hearing: H.R. 5278 Full Committee Markup, House Committee on Natural Resources, May 25, 2016. Hearing: H.R. 5278 Full Committee Markup, House Committee on Natural Resources, May 24, 2016. Hearing: Puerto Rico’s Debt Crisis and Its Impact on the Bond Markets, House Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, February 25, 2016. Hearing: Puerto Rico’s Fiscal Problems: Examining the Source and Exploring the Solution, United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, December 1, 2015. Hearing: The Broken State of Puerto Rico, Senate Judiciary Committee, December 1, 2015. Additional Reading Article: Democrats Could Slow Passage of Puerto Rico Rescue Bill By Mary Clare Jalonick, Associated Press, ABC News, June 21, 2016. Article: Hedge Funds Sue Puerto Rico in N.Y. Over Fiscal Crisis Law By Erik Larson, Bloomberg, June 21, 2016. Article: Supreme Court Says No to Puerto Rico’s Bankruptcy Law By Rachel Greszler, The Daily Signal, June 13, 2016. Article: Supreme Court rules Puerto Rico can't restructure debt By Lydia Wheeler, The Hill, June 13, 2016. Article: Congress’ Proposal to Restrict Legal Proceedings in Puerto Rico Debt Crisis Could Trigger Chaos By Rachel Greszler and Salim Furth, The Daily Signal, June 8, 2016. Article: Bernie Sanders leads liberals’ fight against Puerto Rico rescue bill By Mike DeBonis, The Washington Post, May 23, 2016. Articles: News about Tea Party Movement, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times, The New York Times, Last Updated May 23, 2016. Article: The Vultures’ Vultures: How A New Hedge-Fund Strategy Is Corrupting Washington By Ryan Grim and Paul Blumenthal, The Huffington Post, May 13, 2016. Articles: News about Mutual Funds and E.T.F.'s, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times, The New York Times, Last Updated May 7, 2016. Article: Mystery: Strom Thurmond, Puerto Rico and bankruptcy protection By Jon Greenberg, Politifact, April 27, 2016. Article: Puerto Rico woos US investors with huge tax breaks as locals fund debt crisis By Rupert Neate, The Guardian, February 14, 2016. Article: The Price Of Inequality For Puerto Rico By Maria Levis, Health Affairs Blog, December 29, 2015. Article: Inside the Billion-Dollar Battle for Puerto Rico’s Future By Jonathan Mahler and Nicholas Confessore, The New York Times, December 19, 2015. Article: Is this 1917 law suffocating Puerto Rico’s economy? By Chris Bury, PBS, August 13, 2015. Article: For Puerto Rico, There is a Better Way A Second Look at the Commonwealth’s Finances and Options Going Forward, By Jose Fajgenbaum, Jorge Guzman, and Claudio Loser, Centennial Group International, July 2015. Article: Here Are the Winners and Losers of Puerto Rico's Debt Crisis By Michelle Kaske, Bloomberg, May 19, 2015. Article: Puerto Rico Fighting to Keep Its Tax Breaks for Businesses By Larry Rohter, The New York Times, May 10, 1993. Additional Information Documentary: THE LAST COLONY: A Close Look At Puerto Rico's Unique Relationship With The United States Website: House Natural Resources Committee Puerto Rico Legislation, May 25, 2016. OpenSecrets: Career Profile for Rep. Mick Mulvaney of South Carolina's 5th disctrict Website: Summary of Puerto Rico Tax Incentives OpenSecrets: Career Profile for Rep. Sean P Duffy of Wisconsin's 7th District OpenSecrets: Lobbyists lobbying on H.R.4900: PROMESA House Natural Resources Section by Section Summary of H.R. 5278 Foraker Act, April 12, 1900, Establishing the initial government structure of Puerto Rico. Jones Act of 1917, provided Puerto Ricans with American citizenship and established maritime laws that Puerto Rico would be ruled by, among other things. Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, February 6, 1952. Reports Puerto Rico’s Political Status and the 2012 Plebiscite: Background and Key Questions By R. Sam Garrett, June 25, 2013. Music Presented in This Episode Intro & Exit: Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito (found on Music Alley by mevio) Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations

Transportation: We all need it, and Congress funded it. In this episode, we take a detailed look into the FAST Act, which funds our national transportation network for the next five years. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Mail Contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North #4576 Crestview, FL 32536 Thank you for supporting truly independent media! H.R. 22: FAST Act ("Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act) Bill Highlights Division A - Surface Transportation Title I - Federal-Aid Highways Funding level Highways will get an average of 41 billion per year. Private Freight Grants: $500 million can go to private rail freight companies to upgrade rail infrastructure; the Federal share of these projects is capped at 60%. Acceleration of Projects Creates a pilot program that will allow States to conduct environmental reviews, using their own State laws, instead of using the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Capped at 5 States The State can only be approved if the Secretary of Transportation determines the laws of the State are at least as stringent as the Federal requirements. No lawsuits will be allowed, challenging the permit approval, after 2 years. The program will sunset in 12 years Miscellaneous The Department of Transportation will identify national corridors for installation of electric car charging stations and hydrogen, propane, and natural gas refueling stations by the end of 2016. The goal is to have the charging and refueling stations deployed by September 30, 2020. Allows the Department of Transportation to move swallows from under bridges that need fixing until the Interior Department issues final rules. The Secretary of the Interior can suspend the authorization to move the swallows. Title III - Public Transportation Funding level The Mass Transit Account will provide and caps expenditures at an average of $9.7 billion per year. $199 million for positive train control installation, which can be used to pay for up to 80% of the cost. Buy American Requires American steel, iron, or manufactured goods to be purchased, when possible. Title IV - Highway Traffic Safety Provides grants to States in return for their establishment of laws that prohibit texting and driving. Prohibits Federal grant money from funding for State & local programs for checking for motorcycle helmet usage or checkpoints for motorcycle monitoring. Impaired Driving Provides grants to States for implementation of drunk driving laws. Orders a study and report to Congress on marijuana-impaired driving by the end of 2016. Title V - Motor Carrier Safety Drug Test Expansion Allows companies to conduct preemployment and random tests of commercial drivers for alcohol and controlled substances using hair testing as an alternative to urine testing. Allows for religious exemptions Title VI - Innovation Highway User Fees Grants will be provided to States that create user-fee programs for funding the Highway Trust Fund. The goal is to test the design and public acceptance of two or more user fee systems. Private vendors can be used to operate the fee collection systems. The fees collected will not be considered "tolls" Public Access to Research A database of all Department of Transportation research projects will be available on a public website and updated once per year. Title VII - Hazardous Materials Transportation Special permits Speeds up the decision time for special permits for transporting hazardous material by 60 days The decisions will be available to the public "Wetlines" Requires the Secretary of Transportation to kill a proposed rule that would have prohibited the transportation of flammable liquids in the pipes underneath tankers Transportation of flammable liquids by rail Within a year, the Secretary of Transportation has to create regulations to require railroads to report accurate, real-time information about hazardous liquids being transported to the local fusion centers, who will share the information with State and local first responders. Tank cars that do not meet Federal standards can still be used to transport oil and ethanol until 2018 or May 2025, depending on the type of tank car. The Secretary of Transportation can extend the deadlines for up to 2 years The Secretary of Transportation will have 180 days to create regulations to make sure that tank cars modified to meet Federal standards be equipped with insulating blankets that have been approved by the Secretary. Title XI - Rail Funding Levels Amtrak, which owns the tracks and passenger cars operating in the Northeast, will get an average of $519 million per year. For Amtrak operations in the rest of the country, where private freight companies own our tracks, Amtrak will receive an average of $1 billion per year. Food and Beverage Reform Amtrak will have 90 days to develop a plan to eliminate the operating loss associated with offering food and beverages on Amtrak trains in a way that doesn't eliminate any Amtrak employee positions Amtrak will be cut off from Federal funds to cover food and beverage related operating losses in December 2021. Pets on Trains Amtrak will have one year to launch a pilot program allowing dogs and cats on trains Gulf Coast Rail A working group will be created and have nine months to develop a recommendation for the best option for restoring intercity rail passenger transportation between New Orleans, LA and Orlando, FL. Privatizing long distance routes The Secretary of Transportation will have to create a pilot program by mid-2017 that will allow non-Amtrak companies to operate up to 3 long distance passenger rail routes. The non-Amtrak operator will have control of the route for four years and it can be renewed once for an additional four year period. The operator will be given an operating subsidy for up to 90% of what the government is giving Amtrak. The non-Amtrak operator can be the private company that owns the tracks, another private company that has an agreement with the track owners or the States. The non-Amtrak operator will be given access to Amtrak's reservation system, stations, and operations facilities and will be required to give hiring preferences to the Amtrak employees laid off because of the transfer. Cameras on Trains By the end of 2017, the Secretary of Transportation must create regulations requiring inward and outward facing cameras in the control cabs on all passenger trains Liability Cap Amtrak can not be held liable for more than $295 million for the fatal accident that occurred on May 12, 2015. Title XXIV - Motor Vehicle Safety Recall Information The Secretary of Transportation will have until the end of 2017 to create a public website for easily accessible information on vehicle safety recalls. Information about recalls will have to be sent to consumers electronically in addition to first class mail. There will be a two year pilot program testing the idea of States informing customers of recalls when they register their vehicles. Doubles the amount of time consumers get to have their recalled tires replaced from 60 days to 180 days. Rental Car Safety Rental car companies with more than 35 cars can sell, lease, or rent out cars only after they have fixed whatever was recalled. They can continue to rent out the cars until the solution is available, if it is not immediately available at the time they are notified. Motor Safety Violation Penalties Increases the penalties from $5,000 per violation to $21,000 per violation, capped at $105 million. Driver Privacy Information from a car's event data recorder can only be accessed by someone other than the owner or lessee if it's authorized by a court, is provided willingly by the owner/lessee, is needed for emergency response purposes, or is for traffic safety research and the personally identifiable information is hidden. Tires The Secretary of Transportation will create regulations for tire fuel efficiency minimum performance standards, taking steps to ensure that wet traction functionality is not effected. Creates a publicly searchable electronic database for tire recall information Whistleblowers If a whistleblower gives credible and unique information about a safety problem to the Secretary of Transportation that results in sanctions, the whistleblower can get between 10 and 30 percent of the award. Title XXXII - Offsets Passport Denials for Tax Delinquencies If a person has a seriously delinquent tax debt over $50,000, the Secretary of State must deny new passports and can revoke, or limit existing passports. Privatize Tax Collection Forces the Treasury Secretary to issue at least one contract for tax collection services by April 2016. Customs Fees Increases a list of customs fees every year with inflation. Federal Reserve Funds Limits the amount of money that can be held by the Federal Reserve banks to $10 billion and transfers the remainder to the general fund of the Treasury. Adjusts dividends for Federal Reserve stockholders to the lower of the rate of the 10 year Treasury notes or 6 percent Strategic Petroleum Reserve Requires the Secretary of Energy to sell at least 66 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and deposit the money into the general fund of the Treasury. The amount sold may be increased at the discretion of the Energy Secretary until the revenue totals $6.2 billion. Crop Insurance Profits Repeals a part of the Bipartisan Budget Act that caps the returns for crop insurance providers at 8.9% Oil & Gas Royalties Eliminates interest payments that oil and gas companies could accrue on overpayments. PAYGO Scorecard The effects of this law on the budget will not be counted Title LI - Taxpayer protection provisions and increased accountability Export-Import Bank Reauthorizes the Export-Import bank until September 30, 2019 and reduces the amount of loans, guarantees, and insurance the Export-Import bank can have outstanding to $135 billion (from $140 billion). Requires the Export-Import bank to hold 5% of it's funds in reserve to protect against losses. Requires independent audits of the Export-Import bank's portfolio Creates a pilot program that allows the Export-Import Bank to enter into contracts to "share risks". The amount of liability allowed to be transferred is capped at a total of $10 billion. Title LV - Other Matters Environmental Law Waivers In an emergency during which there is a sudden increase in energy demand - which includes during a war that the United States is involved in - "any party" that follows an order to generate electricity can not be sued for violating "any Federal, State, or local environmental law or regulation". The order that allows immunity for breaking environmental laws will expire in 90 days, but the order can be renewed as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission "determines necessary to meet the emergency and serve the public interest." If the emergency order is set aside by a court, the immunity remains. Strategic Transformer Reserve The Secretary of Energy will have one year to create a plan to store spare large power transformers and substations that are critical infrastructure or support military installations. Title LXXI - Improving Access to Capital for Emerging Growth Companies Makes it easier and faster for a company that makes under $1 billion per year to offer stock to the public. Title LXXII - Disclosure Modernization and Simplification Reduces paperwork for companies that make under $1 billion per year and want to offer stock to the public. Title LXXIII - Bullion and Collectible Coin Production Efficiency and Cost Savings Removes the requirement that collectable coins be 10% copper Title LXXIV - SBIC Advisors Relief Investment advisors who solely advise small business investment companies will be able to be excluded from registration requirements even if they are managing assets over $150 million (current limit for exemption from registration requirements). Title LXXV - Eliminate Privacy Notice Confusion Banks will not have to mail privacy notices to their customers if they haven't changed their policies since the last disclosure was sent. Title LXXVI - Reforming Access for Investments in Startup Enterprises Allows privately held shares to be sold to "accredited investors" without registering the securities with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Title LXXXII - Capital Access for Small Community Financial Institutions Allows privately insured credit unions to become members of Federal Home Loan Banks if they are FDIC eligible or are certified by the State If the State doesn't get to it in under 6 months, the application is deemed approved. Title LXXXIII - Small Bank Exam Cycle Reform Doubles the size of a bank that counts as a "small bank" from banks that have less than $500 million to banks that have less than $1 billion for the purpose of allowing those banks to have on-site examinations by regulators every 18 months instead of every year. Sound Clip Sources Hearing: House Rules Committee Meeting on Highway Bill Amendments-Part 1, November 3, 2015. Hearing: House Rules Committee Meeting on Highway Bill Amendments, Part 2, November 3, 2015. Hearing: Federal Railroad Administration Confirmation Hearing, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, September 17, 2015 Hearing: Positive Train Control, House Transportation Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, June 24, 2015. Hearing: Amtrak Derailment, House Transportation and Infrastructer Committee, June 2, 2015. Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes Congressional Dish Episode 99: April Takes a Turn By Jennifer Briney, June 27, 2015 Congressional Dish Episode 73: Amtrak, By Jennifer Briney, June 24, 2014 Congressional Dish Episode 62: The Farm Bill By Jennifer Briney, February 8, 2014. Reports Federal Public Transportation Program: In Brief By William J. Mallett, December 28, 2015. Congressional Budget Office: H.R. 22, the FAST Act, December 2, 2015. Additional Reading Article: Rental companies now have to repair recalled cars By Chris Isidore, CNN Money, June 1, 2016. Article: NTSB: Philly Amtrak crash engineer’s fault By Bill Cummings, CtPost, May 17, 2016. Article: With RAISE Act, Congress Paves Way For Private Secondary Markets By Shriram Bhashyam, TechCrunch, December 20, 2015. Article: Highway Bill Restores Crop Insurance Funding Cut in Budget Deal, Insurance Journal, December 4, 2015. Article: Fewer Taxpayer Giveaways Would Cut The Fat, Not ‘Cripple’ Crop Insurance By Shannon Van Hoesen, Environmental Working Group, December 3, 2015. Article: FAST Act (H.R. 22): Surface Transportation Conference Report Released By Robert S. Kirk, December 2, 2015. Article: $305B highway bill taps Fed, oil reserves By Keith Lang, The Hill, December 1, 2015. Article: Congress votes to delay rail safety mandate by 3 to 5 years, fund transportation programs By Joan Lowy, U.S. News and World Report, October 28, 2015. Article: Ag Committee Leaders Stand United Against Reopening Farm Bill to New Crop Insurance Cuts By Meghan Cline, United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, October 27, 2015. Article: 'Devastating' crop insurance cut sends lawmakers scrambling By Philip Brasher, Agri-Pulse, October 27, 2015. Article: Rail-safety deadline extension hitched to must-pass bill on transit funding By Ashley Halsey III and Michael Laris, The Washington Post, October 27, 2015. Article: Deadline for train safety technology undercut by industry lobbying By Ashley Halsey III and Michael Laris, The Washington Post, October 25, 2015. Article: Stop pretending you know what the Export-Import Bank is By Simone Pathe, PBS, September 15, 2014. Article: REUTERS SUMMIT-U.S. Ex-Im bank would back Airbus sales -Hochberg By Alwyn Scott and Tim Hepher, Reuters, September 10, 2014. Article: CARGO TANK TRUCKS: Improved Incident Data and Regulatory Analysis Would Better Inform Decisions about Safety Risks By Susan A. Fleming, U.S. Government Accountability Office, September 11, 2013. Article: How the cult of shareholder value wrecked American business By Steven Pearlstein, The Washington Post, September 9, 2013. Article: NTTC Asks LaHood to Halt Rulemaking On Wetlines Procedures, Tanker Design By Timothy Cama, Transport Topics, October 10, 2011. Article: Hazardous Materials: Safety Requirements for External Product Piping on Cargo Tanks Transporting Flammable Liquids By Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, January 27, 2011. Additional Information U.S. Department of Homeland Security Budget-in-Brief Fiscal Year 2016 U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration Budget Estimates, Fiscal Year 2016 Metra Website: Positive Train Control Joint Explanatory Statement explaining the FAST Act OpenSecrets: Profile of National Tank Truck Carriers Inc OpenSecrets: Top Contributors to Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, Bill Shuster OpenSecrets: Top Contributing Industries for Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, Bill Shuster OpenSecrets: Career Profile for Rep. Steve Stivers of Ohio's 15th district Website: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Website: Export-Import Bank of the United States Website: Risk Management Agency/U.S. Department of Agriculture: Crop Insurance Providers List for 2016 Website: Department of Transportation Fact Sheet Website: United States Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics: Transportation Fatalities by Mode YouTube: 9/11 hijackers at Dulles Airport, October 3, 2008. Music Presented in This Episode Intro & Exit: Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito (found on Music Alley by mevio) Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations