Why did no one object to the “Pentagon mosque”?
[Salon.com]
Muslims have been praying inside the Pentagon since Sept. 11 but right-wingers have been strangely silent
[Separation of Church and State in a Military Complex like the Pentagon? What's wrong with this picture?]
Navy imam Chaplain Abuhena M. Saifulislam lifted his voice to God as he called to prayer more than 100 Department of Defense employees Monday at a celebration of Ramadan at the Pentagon.
God is most great, sang the lieutenant commander and Islamic leader, in Arabic, as iftar — the end of the daily fast began.
Uniformed military personnel, civilians and family members faced Mecca and knelt on adorned prayer rugs chanting their prayers in quiet invocation to Allah.
The “ground zero mosque” story seems to be dying down, but nothing lays bare the absurdity of what we’ve just lived through quite so much as this Washington Times story, quoted above, from 2007.
Yes, Muslims have infiltrated the Pentagon for their nefarious, prayerful purposes — daring to practice their religion inside the building where 184 people died on Sept. 11, 2001. They haven’t even had the sensitivity to move two blocks, let alone a mile, away from that sacred site.
The “desecration” began shockingly soon after the attacks. Cox reported in October 2001:
Justin Elliott is a reporter for ProPublica. You can follow him on Twitter @ElliottJustin More Justin Elliott.
Fisker issues big layoff, employees hire firm that sued Solyndra
[FoxNews.com]
Published April 06, 2013
FILE: Nov. 18, 2010: In this file photo, Fisker Automotive’s Fisker Karma, a sports luxury plug-in hybrid car, sits on display at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show in Los Angeles. (AP)
Fisker Automotive — the electric-car maker that was granted a half-billion-dollar federal loan and on Friday dismissed about 75 percent of its remaining workforce — is purportedly facing a lawsuit from the same firm that sued the government-funded Solyndra company.
Fisker laid off 160 of its roughly 210 employees Friday morning from its Anaheim, Calif., location, according to Automotive News.
Michigan Dem on right-to-work law: There will be blood
[HumanEvents.com]
By: John Hayward
12/11/2012 12:34 PM
As protests against Michigan’s right-to-work laws swelled, pro-union Democrat legislator Douglas Geiss took to the state House floor – and Twitter – to promise violence. “We are going to undo 100 years of labor relations,” said Geiss. “And there will be blood. We will relive the Battle of the Overpass.”
The Battle of the Overpass was a 1937 clash between the United Auto Workers and security troops for the Ford Motor Company, in which dozens of union activists were beaten up. It has long been considered one of the worst examples of corporate-stooge union busting. Geiss is pulling the neat trick of threatening violence while casting his side as the victims. Or, if you prefer another interpretation, he’s casting the right-to-work law as an act of “violence” against unions, which justifies whatever they choose to do when they “fight back.”
Union forces have already gotten frisky, storming the tent erected by right-to-work supporters Americans for Prosperity of Michigan and tearing it down. Fortunately, no injuries from the attack were reported.
Report: ATF review board recommends firings over Fast and Furious
[INFOWARS.com]
Wall Street Journal
December 5, 2012
Four senior managers who oversaw the ill-fated federal gun-tracking probe called “Fast and Furious” will be fired if recommendations from a disciplinary panel are accepted.
People familiar with the matter said the Professional Review Board of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives sent notices of its decision in recent days to bureau managers, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
In addition, two lower-level employees face disciplinary actions, short of firing. The move from the ATF’s review board is the first step in what could be a months-long process, including appeals.
GOP Infighting, Tea Party ‘Purges’ Break Out over Fiscal Cliff
[Newsmax.com]
Tuesday, 04 Dec 2012 12:10 PM
- Sen. Jim DeMint, a South Carolinian with a following among small-government conservatives, lashed out at House Speaker John Boehner, saying his $2.2 trillion deficit plan would cost jobs and mushroom the debt.
- Two first-term Republican Tea Party stalwarts – Tim Huelskamp of Kansas and Justin Amash of Michigan – were removed by party leadership from the powerful budget committee in what Huelskamp called “a vindictive move.”
- A top House conservative, Jim Jordan of Ohio, was scheduled to unveil his own fiscal cliff plan on Tuesday but has backed off in the wake of Boehner’s offer to President Obama.
Egypt’s president sets date for constitution vote
[FoxNews.com]
Associated Press
Published December 01, 2012
Dec. 1, 2012: Supporters of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi rally in front of Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt. (AP)
CAIRO – Egypt’s President Mohammed Morsi called Saturday for a referendum in two weeks on a contentious draft constitution, setting a date for another milestone in the country’s transition to democracy. Widespread disputes over the charter and Morsi’s recent seizure of near absolute power have marred the process and thrown the country into turmoil.
As has been the case in nearly two years since Hosni Mubarak was ousted, what should have been a cause for national celebration turned into dueling protest between opponents and supporters of how the transition has been managed– largely divided along Islamist and secular lines.
More than 100,000 Morsi supporters organized by the Muslim Brotherhood and ultraconservative Salafi groups took to the streets of Cairo and other cities a day after a massive opposition demonstration against his recent decrees giving him immunity from judicial oversight and the charter that was rushed through an assembly packed with allies.
The presidency has been locked in a tug of war with the powerful judiciary and secular and Christian activists since Morsi granted himself far-reaching powers on Nov. 22 in a bid to pre-empt an expected decision by the Supreme Constitutional Court on Sunday to dissolve the constitutional panel, as it had done the Islamist-led parliament earlier this year.
Could Obamacare Go the Way of McCain-Feingold?
[American Spectator]
By David Catron on 11.30.12 @ 6:10AM
The “Affordable Care Act” might die a death of a thousand legal cuts.
Last June, upon learning that the Supreme Court had ruled Obamacare’s individual mandate constitutional, many observers were forced to concur with the Dickens character who opined, “If the law supposes that… the law is an ass.” Yet, the increasing number of anti-PPACA lawsuits that have been receiving serious attention from the courts suggests that the legal system may not be as irrational as it seemed when Chief Justice John Roberts began braying from the bench on June 28. If this seems Pollyannaish, consider the fate of McCain-Feingold.
FBI asked to probe Obama ‘vote-changing’ machines
[WND.com] EXCLUSIVE
State lawmaker says she has concerns over election tampering
Posted: November 28, 2012
by 
Subscribe to author feedA state lawmaker in Maryland has asked the FBI to impound two voting machines used in the 2012 election to determine whether there was a malfunction or something nefarious going on.
“I just feel it is my duty to try to get to the bottom of this,” state Delegate Kathryn Afzali told WND today. “We’re not making any accusations. The Board of Elections are good people. They have checks and balances … but we want to make sure everything is fair.”
She said a number of people contacted her after the Nov. 6 election to report that they pressed a touch-screen button for GOP candidate Mitt Romney, but the vote registered for Barack Obama.
Only the deceit is transparent
[FloppingAces.net | Reader Post]
November 19, 2012
Barack Obama promised his administration set a new standard in transparency:
I will also hold myself as president to a new standard of openness …. Let me say it as simply as I can: Transparency and the rule of law will be the touchstones of this presidency.
Obama even issued a memo
My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government. We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government.
Rep. Gohmert Nominated Newt Gingrich to Replace John Boehner as Speaker
[CNSNews.com]
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas).(CNSNews.com) – Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) nominated former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) to replace current Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) in a closed-door meeting of House Republicans on Wednesday.
Gohmert reportedly felt it was time to halt “business as usual” in Congress. His nomination of Gingrich did not receive a second and House Republicans voted to retain Boehner as speaker.
Final NPR Poll: Romney Leads By One, Up Big With Independents
[Townhall.com]
Political Editor, Townhall.com
October 30, 2012 01:07 PM EST
__________________________________
National polling is going to be tough to come by over the next few days, as pollsters will struggle to get remotely accurate samples from much of the Eastern seaboard. Indeed, Gallup and a few other firms are suspending their tracking polls until the mess is cleared up. For what it’s worth, Rasmussen’s tracker still has Obama locked in at 47 percent, with Romney ahead by two. The Republican maintains a six-point advantage on the economy, and for the first time, fewer than 50 percent of voters think Obama will win re-election. Meanwhile, NPR has released its final national poll of the cycle, taken before the megastorm swamped the Northeast. Its topline result is Romney 48, Obama 47 — but all other signs point to a more sizable Romney lead. Let’s examine a few of the telling data points:
(1) Sample - The poll surveys 370 Democrats, 306 Republicans and 309 Independents, for a D/R/I of 37/31/31 (D+6). After weighting, the sample is D+4. Obama has a statistically insignificant lead in the “swing states” sub-section, which has a much larger margin of error, and clocks in at D+9. For reasons explained here and here, both partisan splits seem unlikely to reflect this year’s electorate — to say nothing of this.
(2) Enthusiasm - Republicans are more likely than Democrats to rate this election as a “9″ or “10″ in terms of importance, suggesting an intensity gap. Republicans outpace Democrats on the “10″ scale by ten points (76/66). Eighty percent of GOP voters responded with either a 9 or 10, while 72 percent of Democrats did the same.
(3) Independents - Right track/wrong track: 30/64. Obama job approval/disapproval: 42/54, and 39/60 on the economy. On the head-to-head among indies, it’s Romney 51, Obama 39 — a twelve point lead for the GOP ticket.
Texas AG Tells International Election Monitors to Butt Out
[CNSNews.com]
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has warned the OSCE that its observers risk criminal prosecution if they approach polling stations in the state. (AP Photo/File)
(CNSNews.com) – The head of an international body that will monitor the U.S. elections next month protested to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Wednesday after Texas’ attorney-general warned that any international observer who approaches a polling station in the state risks criminal prosecution.
“The threat of criminal sanctions … is unacceptable,” said Janez Lenarcic, the Slovenian diplomat who heads the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), a part of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
“The United States, like all countries in the OSCE, has an obligation to invite ODIHR observers to observe its elections,” he said in a statement. It added that he “shared his concerns in a letter” to Clinton.
Lenarcic was responding to a letter sent by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott to the ODIHR Tuesday informing it that “groups and individuals from outside the United States are not allowed to influence or interfere with the election process in Texas.”
La Boca Grande [The Big Mouth]
American [Spectator.org]
Political Hay
By George Neumayr on 10.23.12 @ 6:10AM
Obama talks big [boca/mouth] in the final debate in Florida.
Barack Obama came to the last presidential debate ready for a fight. But he didn’t get one. Romney seemed more interested in talking to moderator Bob Schieffer than engaging Obama in a scuffle.
That relaxed strategy didn’t hurt Romney very much. At worst, the debate was a draw, which will only serve to seal the tightness of the race.
Though Romney kept stepping back from his punches, Obama didn’t tire of throwing them. Apparently Romney not only kills his sacked employees’ wives he also takes glee in outsourcing jobs to China and (in a new line of attack from Obama) invests in an Iranian company. Obama was unloading all the opposition research that he couldn’t cram into the previous debates.
Priebus asks for FBI investigation of Obama’s online donations
[DailyCaller.com]
The Republican National Committee is spotlighting campaign-season worries that Team Obama is in covertly violating campaign laws by accepting online donations from foreigners.
Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, announced today he’s asking Attorney General Eric Holder to investigate the president’s fund-raising system.
“The President’s campaign committee does not use the industry standard practices to guard against receiving fraudulent or excessive contributions via the internet… I therefore call on the Department of Justice to investigate this troubling pattern of behavior by the President’s campaign,’ said Priebus in a Oct. 11 letter to Holder.
The request follows an investigation by the Government Accountability Institute, which highlighted the campaign’s low-grade anti-fraud measures, the large amount of online traffic between the campaign’s fundraising pages and overseas Internet users, plus foreigners’ claims they had donated to the campaign.
Border Patrol Agent Shot Dead, Another Wounded in Arizona
[Newsmax.com]
Tuesday, 02 Oct 2012 09:28 AM, Associated Press
A U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed and another wounded in a shooting early Tuesday in Arizona near the U.S.-Mexico line, according to the Border Patrol. The agents were shot while patrolling on horseback in Naco, Ariz., at about 1:50 a.m. MST Tuesday, the Border Patrol said in a statement. The agents who were shot were on patrol with a third agent, who was not harmed, according to George McCubbin, president of the National Border Patrol Council, a union representing about 17,000 border patrol agents. “It’s a tragic reminder of the dangers the brave men and women who guard our borders face every day,” said House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, who has been investigating gun-running connected to a failed Justice Department operation called Fast and Furious.
“Just last month, I attended a ceremony with agents based at the Bisbee station naming it in honor of their fallen colleague, Brian Terry,” Issa said in a statement. “My prayers are with the family of the agent who lost his life today and his wounded colleague.“Authorities must investigate the full circumstances of this shooting. I urge everyone to think of the families of these agents and avoid drawing conclusions before relevant facts are known.”The shooting occurred after an alarm was triggered on one of the many sensors along the border and the three agents went to investigate, said Cochise County Sheriff’s spokeswoman Carol Capas.Authorities have not identified any suspects, Capas said. It is not known whether the agents returned fire, she said.The wounded agent was airlifted to a hospital after being shot in the ankle and buttocks, the Border Patrol said. He is in surgery and expected to recover, McCubbin said.
Authorities have not identified the agents who were assigned to the Naco station, about 100 miles southeast of Tucson.
The last U.S. Border Patrol agent fatally shot on duty was Brian Terry, who was killed in a shootout with Mexican bandits near the border in December 2010. The shooting was later linked to the Fast and Furious gun smuggling operation.
The border patrol station in Naco was recently named after Terry.
The FBI, which also is investigating the shooting, did not immediately return calls Tuesday.
Arizona straddles a major route for Mexican smuggling networks hauling drugs and illegal immigrants north to the United States, and running guns and cash profits back south to Mexico.
The area near where the agents were shot made headlines in February when border agents broke up a drug trafficking network which led to a bust of 15 tons of cocaine and marijuana. In that raid, 12 suspects were arrested.
At the time, police had seized more than 30,000 pounds of marijuana and cocaine linked to the trafficking organization, which had been active for more than 15 years, the Daily Mail reported Tuesday.
The organization used backpackers and vehicles to run the drugs across the rugged, high-desert borderlands around Naco, in smuggling forays several times a week.
Once in the United States, the drugs were stored at various stash houses in Naco, nearby Bisbee and Tucson, around 100 miles to the northwest.
A report by Univision on Monday uncovered that firearms from the “Fast and Furious” operation were linked to at least two massacres in Mexico and the 57 previously unidentified firearms linked to the botched operation were recovered in sites associated with murders and kidnappings.
In one of the massacres in 2010, a commando of “at least 20 hit men,” according to Univision, opened fire on a party of 60 teenagers in Ciudad Juarez, killing 14 and wounding 12. The assailants were hired by a Mexican cartel. Three of the high caliber weapons fired that night were linked to the Fast and Furious operation, Univision reported.
Univision obtained a list of Fast and Furious weapons and a list containing almost 60,000 recovered firearms compiled by Mexico’s defense secretary and then cross-referenced the data, and got 96 full matches. The 96 firearms linked to Fast and Furious all turned up at crime scenes in Mexico from 2009 to 2010, Univision reported.
Approximately 300 Mexicans have been killed or wounded by Fast and Furious guns, estimates former Mexican attorney general Victor Humberto Benitez Trevino.
Between November 2009 and January 2011, the Obama administration arranged for licensed firearms dealers in Phoenix, Arizona to sell guns to straw buyers, who transferred them to known violent criminals in Mexico. These arms were supposed to lead federal agents in Phoenix to the Mexican criminals who acquired them. Instead, agents lost track of the guns, and in 2010, two were found near the body of slain border patrol agent Brian Terry.
Congressional Republicans have pressed for investigations and a report by Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz skewered the Fast and Furious operation as “seriously flawed” and said agents for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ignored consider public safety as they let about 2,000 firearms fall into the hands of Mexican drug cartels as part of the operation.
The House voted to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt earlier this year after he refused to turn over certain documents, citing executive privilege.
© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Read more on Newsmax.com: Border Patrol Agent Shot Dead, Another Wounded in Arizona
Important: Do You Support Pres. Obama’s Re-Election? Vote Here Now!
Every Governor a Walker
American [Spectator.org]
By GROVER G. NORQUIST from the SEPTEMBER 2012 issue
Posted: October 2, 2012
THE TAX AND SPEND SPECTATOR
Republicans control 24 states. Where are the rest of our Scott Walkers and Bobby Jindals?
IN LESS THAN TWO YEARS, the governor of Wisconsin has reformed public sector unions so that they can no longer withhold union dues from every worker’s paycheck; ended teacher tenure; required government employee unions to be re-certified each year; signed legislation that made Wisconsin the 41st state with “shall issue” concealed carry; cut over $800 million from the state budget; and expanded parental choice in education by removing the 22,500-student cap on the Milwaukee Parental Choice program and extending the program to include the city of Racine. The governor of Louisiana, elected in 2007 and re-elected last year, has helped usher Republican majorities into the state house and senate; signed legislation that gives more than half of the state’s students (380,000 out of 700,000 total) a voucher for the amount the state government spends per pupil; signed a strict ethics law; and moved government worker pensions to a blend of defined contribution and defined benefit.
But Scott Walker and Bobby Jindal are only two of 29 Republican governors. They are only two of 24 Republican governors who enjoy the company of Republican-controlled state legislatures. In theory, in two dozen states for 2011 and most of 2012, if the Republican governor, house speaker, and senate leader could agree on any particular reform, it would be the law of the land now. Why are we not reading about the groundbreaking Reaganite agendas passing in 24 states? Why are we not hearing the howls of the labor union bosses and trial lawyers in two dozen states?
US officials knew Libya attack was terrorism within 24 hours, sources confirm
[FoxNews.com]
Published September 27, 2012
U.S. intelligence officials knew within 24 hours of the assault on the U.S. Consulate in Libya that it was a terrorist attack and suspected Al Qaeda-tied elements were involved, sources told Fox News — though it took the administration a week to acknowledge it.
The account sharply conflicts with claims on the Sunday after the attack by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice that the administration believed the strike was a “spontaneous” event triggered by protests in Egypt over an anti-Islam film.
Two senior U.S. officials said that the Obama administration internally labeled the attack terrorism from the first day in order to unlock and mobilize certain resources to respond, and that officials were looking for one specific suspect. The officials said the intelligence community knew by Sept. 12 that the militant Ansar al-Shariah and Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb were likely behind the strike.
Further, an official said, “No one … believed that the mortars, indirect and direct fire, and the RPGs were just the work of a mob — no one.”
Yet a congressional source told Fox News that CIA Director David Petraeus, during a briefing with members of the House Intelligence Committee three days after the attack, espoused the view that Benghazi was an out-of-control demonstration prompted by the YouTube video. According to the source, this was “shocking” to some members who were present and saw the same intelligence pointing toward a terrorist attack.
Fraud concerns swirl around Florida’s unregulated absentee ballot brokers ahead of election
[FoxNews.com]
Published September 26, 2012
AP
Recent allegations of absentee ballot fraud in Florida have shined a light on the shadowy work of so-called “boleteros” – absentee ballot brokers who, in some cases, have been accused of cajoling, bribing and even forging the names of unsuspecting voters.
The most recent claim involves Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who hired an alleged “boletero” for his 2010 campaign. In Scott’s case, the campaign claims it did nothing wrong and indeed nobody has been charged. But the claim follows the arrest of a boletero in a separate case, and coincides with a wave of coverage and attention in the Miami-Dade, Fla., area surrounding what for authorities is an illicit practice.
Boleteros — translated roughly to mean ticket-person — assist in collecting absentee ballots and helping primarily elderly and disabled voters in filling them out. This can be entirely lawful, but sometimes these workers walk a fine legal line.
For many boleteros, it can be a profitable enterprise – with some guaranteeing votes in exchange for money, authorities say. They are particularly prominent in heavily Republican Spanish-speaking communities, like Hialeah.
Under Florida law, it is legal to assist voters in ensuring their absentee ballots are properly mailed. But it’s illegal to influence voters, request ballots on behalf of someone else and forge signatures. The state no longer requires witness signatures on absentee ballots, officials note, and many of the boleteros will illegally “follow the ballots all through the process.”
“This is a dirty business and unfortunately it’s become pretty common.”
- Joe Centerino, director of Miami-Dade’s Ethics Commission
Police Consolidation: The End of Local Law Enforcement?
[TheNewAmerican.com]
Tuesday, 25 September 2012 00:00
Written by Joe Wolverton, II, J.D.
From Bergen, New Jersey, to St. Louis, Missouri, to Salt Lake City, Utah, the merging of law enforcement moves along, applauded by a coterie of city leaders and well-meaning citizens.
Nationwide, towns and cities are jumping on the consolidation bandwagon. According to the latest data, there are about 18,000 state and local law-enforcement agencies in the United States. Of those, more than 150 have undergone some level of consolidation.
Those pushing for the consolidation of police forces into regional or metropolitan agencies typically cite budget shortfalls as the best reason for closing down local forces and combining resources to form a consolidated force.
Networks That Hyped Romney’s ‘Bombshell’ Tax Tape Now Skip ObamaCare ‘Penalties’
[MRC.org]
Subscribe to Scott Whitlock
The same networks that have been hyping secret video of Mitt Romney talking about who pays taxes, hyperventilating about the Republican’s “seismic” bombshell,” have, thus far, completely ignored the revelation from the Congressional Budget Office that “significantly” more Americans will have to pay a “tax penalty” for being uninsured, many in the middle class.
All three evening newscasts on Wednesday and the morning shows on Thursday totally skipped this report. The Associated Press explained, “The new estimate amounts to an inconvenient fact for the administration, a reminder of what critics see as broken promises.” Writer Ricardo Alonzo-Zaldivar added, “Nonetheless, in his first campaign for the White House, Obama pledged not to raise taxes on individuals making less than $200,000 a year and couples making less than $250,000.”
Yet, World News, the NBC Nightly News, the CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning and Today all avoided the topic.
GMA opted for more important topics, such as an amusement park mishap that caused several people to be stranded on a roller coaster for hours.
This Is a Recap of Mass Islamist Protests Against the U.S. Over Anti-Islam Film
[TheBlaze.com]
- Posted on September 14, 2012 at 11:34am by
Billy Hallowell
Protests in Tunisia (Photo Credit: AP)
Monitoring the massive protests that continue to spread to various cities and localities in the Middle East is a tough task, as the response continues to grow exponentially. Islamists and others who find themselves immensely offended over a now-infamous anti-Muslim film have taken to the streets to target U.S. interests and defend their faith, sometimes using violent means to do so.
TUNISIA
On Friday, protests in the Middle East hit Tunis, Tunisia, where a large cloud of black smoke has risen around the U.S. embassy there. Outside the building, protesters are throwing stones, as police attempt to stop the activity unfolding.
Thousands of demonstrators massed outside the embassy and several were seen climbing the outer wall of the embassy grounds and raising a flag on which was written the Muslim profession of faith, an Associated Press reporter on the scene says. ”There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet,” the flag purportedly read.
U.S. Department of Education: 79% of Chicago 8th Graders Not Proficient in Reading
[CNSNews.com]
By Terence P. Jeffrey
September 10, 2012
Chicago Public Schools – [Editor: Here's a statistic I just heard from Rush. The average salary for a teacher in Chicago is $76, 000 Per Year excluding bennies. The average citizen in Chicago makes $48,000 Per Year. AND THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT SATISFIED WITH A WHOPPING 16% RAISE! Also, 71 cents out of every new dollar taxes goes towards Public Union Pensions. Is that fair? Is it "social justice" when all this money produces results indicated in this story?]
(AP Photo)
(CNSNews.com) – Seventy-nine percent of the 8th graders in the Chicago Public Schools are not grade-level proficient in reading, according to the U.S. Department of Education, and 80 percent are not grade-level proficient in math.
Chicago public school teachers went on strike on Monday and one of the major issues behind the strike is a new system Chicago plans to use for evaluating public school teachers in which student improvement on standardized tests will count for 40 percent of a teacher’s evaluation. Until now, the evaluations of Chicago public school teachers have been based on what a Chicago Sun Times editorial called a “meaningless checklist.”
In 2011, the U.S. Department of Education administered National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) tests in reading and math to students around the country, including in the Chicago Public Schools. The tests were scored on a scale of 0 to 500, with 500 being the best possible score. Based on their scores, the U.S. Department of Education rated students’ skills in reading and math as either “below basic,” “basic,” “proficient” or “advanced.”
Official Accounting: $10T Withdrawn From U.S. Treasury This Fiscal Year Alone
[CNSNews.com]
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)(CNSNews.com) – Although the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the federal government will spend $3.563 trillion in fiscal year 2012 and the White House Office of Management estimates it will be $3.795 trillion, actual withdrawals from the U.S. Treasury have already exceeded $10 trillion.
In fact, as of the close of business Wednesday, withdrawals from the Treasury equaled $10,201,615,000,000 for fiscal 2012, which began on Oct. 1, 2011 and will end on Sept. 30.
According to the Daily Treasury Statement–the official daily accounting sheet for the federal government—withdrawals from the Treasury exceeded $10 trillion this year on Aug. 30, when they rose from $9.903 trillion to $10.035 trillion.
How can this be?
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