Monthly Archives: June 2017

As the Trump administration returns to business as usual following the presidents first overseas travel, we are left to review the outcomes and mitigate the fallout of his venture. Some foreign policy experts will focus on new possibilities in the Middle East, while others wonder of the impact that President Trump may have on future relations with Europe and NATO. One thing is very clear: despite the growing rift between the U.S. administration and our Western European allies, we need to meet the challenge of a resurgent Russia by re-energizing and expanding critical partnerships along the "front lines of freedom" countries.

These "front lines," comprised of the former Eastern bloc countries and Soviet satellite states such as Latvia, Estonia, Bulgaria and Ukraine, have played an essential role in promoting American interests since the early 1990s. A major influence on these countries' democratization is a program that receives little beltway fanfare: the National Guards State Partnership Program.

The partnerships bring allies to the U.S. for exercises and training and, perhaps most importantly in this day of Russian aggression, place our National Guard side-by-side with our democratic allies on the front lines. In this role, we make it clear that these small democracies - some only the size of Maryland - are not alone as they face the enormity of growing Russian aggression in the region.

It's no surprise, given the president's penchant for Russian favor, that the countries directly facing Moscow and its military head-on might wonder about their future and our commitment to these front lines of freedom. That is why I believe it is critical that the people of the United States reaffirm our commitment to this vital program. We must recommit ourselves to continued U.S. partnership and presence in the region through joint exercises and showing the U.S. flag. We must make the call to ensure that the military equipment of our National Guard and these partner nations is interoperable and compatible. All the commitment in the world would be rendered meaningless if we can't coordinate and maneuver effectively with our allies on the front lines.

What realistic steps can each of us take to help secure our allies and this important front line of freedom? Each of us can thank our National Guard for the important work that they do in this program. You also can support the program by speaking to your governor and congressional representatives and expressing the value that you place in facing Russian aggression. Be sure to tell them that more frequent National Guard exercises in those countries and up-to-date equipment for our National Guard and partner nations is critical.

President Trump is correct in pointing out to our NATO allies that freedom is not free, but we all should remember that it is more than a percentage of GDP for our allies in Europe it is truly the security of their backdoor as they sit on the frontline of freedom.

Todd A.Weileris a former assistant secretary of Defense under the Obama administration and deputy assistant secretary under President Clinton. He is a decorated combat veteran, currently consults on military and civilian personnel issues.

The views expressed by contributors are their own and are not the views of The Hill.

View original post here:

For America's European allies, NATO is the frontline of freedom - The Hill (blog)

Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), the chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, on Monday said the "hysteria" surrounding the ongoing Russia investigation is paralyzing Congress and hindering lawmakers from executing their agendas.

"The hysterics surrounding Russia merely serve to distract from accomplishing the priorities of the American people and for what, partisan gain?" Meadows wrote in a CNN op-ed.

While Meadows said he supports bipartisan efforts to "get to the bottom" of the Russia probe, he also warned against "fueling exaggeration" when it comes to the investigation.

"America must not tolerate Russian intervention in our elections, but we must also not perpetuate a narrative that suggests a far bigger role than any evidence has proven. Fueling exaggeration and constant hysteria is something that could unravel a democracy like ours."

The Freedom Caucus leader said many Americans are tired of the "cable news drama" and "constant media frenzy" surrounding the Trump administration, and care more about policies that will impact their lives like healthcare.

Meadows said the Russia probe should now be left in the hands of Robert Mueller, who was appointed by the Department of Justice as special counsel to independently investigate Kremlin's election involvement.

"It's time we let the special counsel do his job and allow Congress to focus on actually on doing ours."

Investigations into Russian election interference and possible links between President Trump's campaign and the Kremlin are ongoing in the Justice Department, FBI and Senate and House Intelligence committees.

Meadows said in February that the attention on Trump and the White House benefitted the Republican-majority House as they voted on measures that received "little attention" as a result.

There is some merit to the argument that would suggest that much of the focus is on what President Trump is doing and not as much on what Congress is doing, Meadows toldThe Huffington Post. So it allows for votes to be taken in the House that receive little attention while everybodys focused on the bigger agenda items.

See more here:

Freedom Caucus leader: Russia 'hysteria' paralyzing Congress ... - The Hill

FREEDOM -- Anyone driving on Route 65 this weekend should be prepared for significant delays.

PennDOT announced Monday that northbound Route 65 in Freedom will be closed from Friday night to Monday morning, while southbound Route 65 will be reduced to a single lane for the entire weekend.

The road will be severely restricted to allow for crews to conduct painting on the bridge that carries traffic from Third Avenue to southbound Route 65. In addition, PennDOT announced five similar closures will be necessary throughout the summer in an effort to complete the bridge painting.

Anyone traveling on northbound Route 65 will be detoured to Third Avenue and back onto the northbound Route 65 ramp. The closure will be in place in from 6 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Monday.

The bridge painting is part of an overall $20 million project on Route 65 that will conclude in October.

See the rest here:

Major restrictions coming to Route 65 near Freedom this weekend - Timesonline.com

The first of two public hearings on the accepted Freedom Plan will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, June 8, at Liberty High School. The hearing will provide people with a chance to voice concerns or comments for the record.

The second public hearing will be held the 8:30 to 9 a.m. Tuesday, June 20, at the Carroll County Office Building.

The Freedom Plan is a guide for potential future development of South Carroll, which is a designated growth area for the county. It was last updated in 2001, which means the update is more than half a decade late since state guidelines require the plan be updated every 10 years.

The Carroll County Planning Commission accepted the current draft of the plan, which it had worked on for a year, in April and after public comment may vote to approve it. After approval, the plan is sent to the Board of County Commissioners. The commissioners could then reject it, make changes to it or adopt it, which would begin the process of implementing the plan.

The accepted draft of the Freedom Plan and associated future land use maps can be found online at http://www.freedomareaplan.org.

The plan has had its local and vocal critics, some of whom came to an open house meeting about the plan on May 25.

Ellen Dix lives in Eldersburg and said that she is concerned about future land use designations that could lead to undeveloped land that is zoned low density residential being rezoned to medium or high density residential. It's not just the density of the developments that concern her but the effect on traffic patterns.

"Route 26 has congestion that is just bumper to bumper in the morning and afternoon," she said. "I live on a street that doesn't have a traffic light, and you almost have to make a right hand turn, go down to Walmart, and turn around and come back."

If Eldersburg were an incorporated area, Dix said, imagining what could be done if she had a magic wand to make any kind of change, she would argue for a moratorium on building.

"Because Eldersburg is not incorporated, we don't have a say," Dix said. "We never did have a say; we never will have a say."

Ross Dangel, who recently ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the Sykesville Town Council, also felt that the Freedom Area did not have ample voice in the process.

"There's nobody saying, 'Stop.' There is nobody saying: 'Is this right? Is there a right away to do this that might be less harmful to the community and make more sense?'" Dangel said. "Nobody is an anti-growth person. We understand the need for growth."

John and Jean Hruch, who live within 2 miles of the South Carroll Senior and Community Center where the open house meeting was held, said they have been concerned for the past year about medium density future land use designations on the Wolf, Beatty and Gibson parcels, and that their concerns are not being listened to.

"I just want it to be what Eldersburg is, a community that kind of makes sense. Yes, develop it, but just do it right," Jean Hruch said. "We just want an open, honest discussion. We want our voices to be heard."

At the same time, John Hruch did acknowledge that changes had been made to the plan based on input from the community.

"The Beatty property was a very good compromise: They wanted that all commercial, and they have decided to go one-third commercial and two-thirds residential. They kept traffic access off of Bennett Road," he said. "Those were the two big concerns. They fixed that."

County Commissioner Doug Howard, R-District 5, who represents the Freedom Area, said that planning is hard and that criticisms are to be expected.

"The people that find the positives in it don't react to it. People who find something they don't like it in, it's pretty easy to tell; 'That's going to be congestion in my neighborhood,'" he said. "I am not criticizing that. That is what the discussion should be."

Moreover, Howard said, he is not weighing in to say, "Stop," on any point in the plan because it hasn't yet come before the Board of Commissioners, which is when he believes it will be appropriate to make comments, voicing his opinion, during what he anticipates will be a series of meetings over the summer.

"There will probably be a meeting where we sit down with the planning commission to ask about how things were done. We will probably have a public meeting, I don't know if we are required to, but a public meeting to get more feedback from people," he said. "There does come a finite point where a decision has to be made."

Commissioner Richard Weaver, R-District 2, said he felt the plan as accepted by the planning commission, and put out to public comment, was just the beginning of a process during which people can voice opinions that will further shape the contours of the Freedom Plan prior to its eventual adoption by the board.

"You have to have a starting point to do anything, and that's what this is," Weaver said. "That's why we put it out there, to get public comments and to see what the average person says."

jon.kelvey@carrollcountytimes.com

410-857-3317

twitter.com/CCT_Health

6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, June 8: Public hearing at the Liberty High School auditorium, 5855 Bartholow Road, Eldersburg.

8:30 to 9 a.m. Tuesday, June 20: Oral comments in last public hearing in the Reagan Room of the Carroll County Office Building, 225 N. Center St., Westminster. Last call for written comment is 9 a.m.

See the original post:

First public hearing on Freedom Plan Thursday at Liberty High School - Carroll County Times

BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza Strip Grim records mark the 10th anniversary of Hamas rule in Gaza the longest-ever daily electricity and water cuts, 60 percent youth unemployment, and a rising backlog of thousands waiting for a rare chance to exit the blockaded territory.

Unable to offer a remedy, the Islamic militant group has been doubling down on oppression. It has jailed the few who dare complain publicly, including the young organizers of a street protest against power cuts and an author who wrote on Facebook that "life is only pleasant for Hamas leaders."

Polls show almost half the people would leave altogether if they could, but that support for the group, despite three short, devastating wars with Israel, is steady at around a third. With potential opponents crushed, there is no obvious path to regime change.

Meanwhile, for most of Gaza's 2 million people, life is bound to get worse.

The international isolation of Hamas, which refuses to recognize Israel, will likely continue and with it the border blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt after the group seized Gaza in June 2007.

A new political program that Hamas hoped would mollify the West and Arab nations instead underscored its ideological rigidity; while softer in tone, the manifesto reaffirms a call to armed struggle and the creation of an Islamic state in historic Palestine, including what is now Israel.

There are also signs that one of Hamas' remaining foreign backers, Qatar, is in trouble. On Monday, four Arab countries cut ties with the Gulf nation, in part over its support of Islamist groups, such as Hamas. Qatar reportedly asked several Hamas leaders-in-exile to leave.

Hamas also faces financial pressure by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose forces it drove from Gaza a decade ago. Fed up with failed reconciliation efforts, the West Bank-based Abbas has warned he would cut more Gaza subsidies, such as electricity payments.

Hamas spokesman Salah Bardaweel dismissed suggestions Hamas should step aside, but acknowledged a deal to improve Gaza's lot is unlikely as long as the 82-year-old Abbas, who runs autonomous enclaves in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, remains in power.

He said Hamas was never given a chance to govern. "How do you hold someone accountable for a failure he did not create?" he said, referring to the blockade.

Bardaweel was recently skewered on social media after asserting Gaza will remain "steadfast."

Local writer Abdullah Abu Sharekh landed in jail after writing on Facebook that "people are not steadfast."

"They cannot do anything because you (Hamas) rule Gaza with iron and fire ... you brought Gaza back to the Middle Ages," he wrote.

After his release Saturday, he wrote that he was deprived of sleep for five days and forced to stand for long periods or sit on small chairs.

Stirrings of unrest are quashed.

A trio of unemployed friends in their 20s from the town of Beit Lahiya said Hamas has harassed them since they mobilized thousands in a rare street protest against chronic power cuts in January. They said they've been detained, beaten and repeatedly summoned to security compounds.

Activist Mohammed al-Taluli, 25, said pressure built again several weeks ago as daily rolling power cuts worsened, with four hours of electricity followed by outages of 14 to 18 hours. Al-Taluli said he and his friends received death threats to deter them from protesting, and that it was effective because no one can protect them from Hamas.

"People are asking us every day if we are planning a new demonstration," al-Taluli said, speaking in a room decorated with photos of revolutionary idols like Che Guevara. "But ... we are afraid."

Palestinian rights groups say Hamas practices mirror those of its West Bank rivals. Both governments have carried out arbitrary arrests and mistreated detainees, and both monitor social media and civil society to silence dissent.

Hamas leaders often tolerate criticism by well-known figures, but strike back when they detect a threat to their rule, said Samir Zakout of the Gaza rights group al-Mezan.

Over the past decade, Hamas has also executed 28 people, most of them alleged informers, after trials widely condemned as a sham. This includes three men executed last month, after a field tribunal tried them in less than a week.

The three had been accused of involvement in killing a Hamas leader, Mazen Faqha, near his apartment building in March. Hamas violently interrogated dozens of people and claimed this netted dozens of informers.

Relatives of one of the three who were killed, 38-year-old Abdullah al-Nashar, said they believe he had indeed collaborated with Israel, lured by an Israeli exit permit from Gaza. But Al-Nashar's father, Ahmed, said his son had nothing to do with the Faqha killing and didn't deserve to die.

Hamas' rise to power was fueled by frustration with corruption during the rule of Abbas' Fatah movement. Hamas also rejected Fatah's attempt to negotiate Palestinian statehood on lands Israel captured in 1967, including Gaza.

In 2006, months after Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, Hamas defeated Fatah in parliamentary elections. Subsequent failed attempts to negotiate a power-sharing deal and Hamas-Fatah street fighting culminated in the June 2007 Hamas takeover of Gaza.

Ahmed al-Nashar, 63, said he had voted for Hamas hoping "they would do something good in the name of religion," but has concluded "there is no future here with these people."

Hamas said it was sabotaged from the start.

Israel and Egypt, citing security concerns, enforced a crushing border blockade, banning most movement and exports. Three Israel-Hamas wars, in part triggered by a Hamas arms buildup, further devastated the territory and its economy.

Meanwhile, the international community stuck to its initial conditions for dealing with Hamas, including renouncing violence, even as it called for lifting the blockade.

This leaves Gazans in a miserable limbo.

"Our life is just a long series of waiting," said Abed Meqdad, a teacher. "You wait for electricity to come, for the crossing to reopen, for the situation to improve, and nothing gets done."

See the original post:

After Hamas decade, Gaza short on freedom, jobs, electricity - Fox News

WOODBRIDGE, Va. - A northern Virginia school district is doing damage control after their own administrators targeted two Muslim students for wearing their hijabs at school.

The controversy boiled over last week at Freedom High school in Woodbridge, when two students were called into their principals office for wearing their hijabs. The schools administrators were apparently unaware that students are allowed to wear the head coverings at school for religious reasons, without the need for a note.

Prince William County Public Schools posted an apology online, saying they regret the circumstances that led an administrator to question students about wearing a hijab, or ask for proof of their religious reasons.

She said, You guys need to carry around a note at all times because some of the students at the school wear hijabs or headscarves because they didn't lay down their edges, or take out their tracks. That's what she told me, said Haja Bah, one of two Muslim students who say they have been harassed by administrators for wearing their hijabs.

I would wear the hijab to school and administrators would stop me in the hallway, and they would say, Ok you need to take off your hijab. Do you have a note? And I would say no, and they were like, You have to get a note, or else theyre going to send you home, said Fatmata Mansaray, the other student. Both girls are seniors at Freedom High School.

Mansaray says even having a note on file didnt stop the questions from administrators. Instead, they told her she had to have the note with herand not just on fileto wear her hijab.

Bah says the tipping point was Thursday, during Ramadan, when she says the schools assistant principal approached her as she was sitting outside with friends.

She was like, You in the purple hijab, you need to take it off. If you dont take it off, youre going to get sent home, Bah said. She refused, telling the administrator she was fasting and it was her religion.

The next day after school, people started protesting with me. People who are not even Muslim were wearing hijabs as well to protest with us, Bah said. That's when I felt like they apologized because it was getting a lot of attention.

The attention was fueled by this Mansaray's Twitter post that caught the eye of the district's associate superintendent, who immediately scolded Freedom's administration reminding them their actions were inconsistent with the Prince William County Public Schools' commitment to diversity and religious freedom.

The district has since apologized to anyone it may have offended.

In a statement posted online, Prince William County Schools said the following:

We regret the circumstances that led a Freedom High School administrator to question students about wearing a hijab or ask for proof of their religious reasons. The request was inconsistent with the PWCS commitment to diversity and religious freedom, and we apologize to anyone it may have offended.

Prince William County Public Schools believe diversity and self-expression are fundamental to the strength of our community. The individual and a Division administrator are already reaching out to apologize to the students and families involved.

This situation spotlights a regrettable inconsistency between our official policies and beliefs, and the reality of how things are sometimes done. That inconsistency will end. We are committed to using this incident as an opportunity to ensure that respect for diversity, religious freedom and self-expression are practiced and evident every day and at every school.

FOX 5 asked for a response to these specific incidences, but a spokesperson refused to respond, saying, They will not respond, point by point, on the situation.

FOX 5 has learned that both girls families are considering legal action.

Read more:

Freedom High students targeted for wearing hijabs, school district apologizes - FOX 5 DC

Bill Cosby went on trial Monday on charges he drugged and sexually assaulted a woman more than a decade ago, with prosecutors immediately introducing evidence the 79-year-old TV star once known as Americas Dad had done it before to someone else.

The prosecutions opening witness was not the person Cosby is charged with abusing, but another woman, who broke down in tears as she testified that the comedian violated her in the mid-1990s at a hotel bungalow in Los Angeles.

Cosby is on trial on charges he assaulted Andrea Constand, a former employee of Temple Universitys basketball program, at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004. His good-guy reputation already in ruins, he could get 10 years in prison if convicted.

In her opening statement, prosecutor Kristen Feden noted that the Cosby Show star previously admitted under oath that he gave Constand pills and touched her genitals as she lay on his couch.

She couldnt say no, Feden said. She cant move, she cant talk. Completely paralyzed. Frozen. Lifeless.

Cosby attorney Brian McMonagle countered by attacking what he said were inconsistencies in Constands story, disputed that Constand was incapacitated and made the case that she and Cosby had a romantic relationship.

He said Constand initially told police that she and Cosby did not speak after their 2004 encounter, when, in fact, phone records show the two talked 72 times, with 53 of those calls initiated by Constand.

Constand, 44, of the Toronto area, is expected to take the stand this week and tell her story in public for the first time.

The trials first witness was Kelly Johnson of Atlanta, who worked for one of Cosbys agents at the William Morris Agency. She described an encounter she said took place in 1996 at the Hotel Bel-Air when she was in her mid-30s.

Prosecutors are trying to show Cosbys treatment of Constand fit a pattern of predatory behavior.

They had wanted to call as many as 13 women who say Cosby sexually assaulted them, out of more than 60 accusers in all. But Judge Steven ONeill, in a victory for Cosby, said the jury could hear only from Constand and Johnson.

Johnson testified that Cosby pressured her to take a large white pill that knocked her out, and when she woke up he put lotion on her hand and forced her to touch his genitals.

My dress was pulled up from the bottom, and it was pulled down from the top, and my breasts were out, she said, crying. And I felt naked.

Cosbys lawyer argued that Johnson was seeking a payout from the TV star.

McMonagle said Johnson mixed up the years and other details of her encounters with Cosby, and he grilled her about why she never said anything when she left William Morris. She came forward in 2015 at a news conference with celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred.

I felt embarrassed because I had a secret about the biggest celebrity in the world at the time and it was just me, just my word against his, and I was very afraid, Johnson said.

Cosby grinned and tapped his wooden cane as his lawyer questioned Johnson.

The comedian arrived at the courthouse in the morning holding his spokesmans arm for support as he walked past dozens of cameras.

Cosbys wife, Camille, was not in court. But actress Keshia Knight Pulliam, who played his daughter Rudy on The Cosby Show in the 1980s and 90s, was at his side as he made his way into the building. She told reporters she was there to support her TV dad.

I want to be the person that I would like to have if the tables were turned, she said. Right now its the jurys job and the jurys decision to determine guilt or innocence. Its not mine or anyone elses.

Cosby built a wholesome reputation as a father and family man, on screen and off, during his extraordinary 50-year career in entertainment. He created TV characters, most notably Dr. Cliff Huxtable, with crossover appeal among blacks and whites alike. His TV shows, movies and comedy tours earned him an estimated $400 million.

Then a deposition unsealed in 2015 in a lawsuit brought by Constand revealed that Cosby had a long history of extramarital liaisons with young women and that he obtained quaaludes in the 1970s to give to women before sex. Dozens of women soon came forward to say he had drugged and assaulted them.

Those developments led prosecutors in Pennsylvania to bring charges against Cosby a decade after the district attorney at the time concluded the case was too weak.

The statute of limitations for prosecuting Cosby had run out in nearly every case. This is the only one to result in criminal charges against the comic.

Feden, the prosecutor, warned the jury not to fall into the trap of confusing celebrities with the characters they play.

We think we really know them, she said. In reality, we only have a glimpse of who they really are.

Cosbys lawyers tried repeatedly to get the case thrown out, arguing that a previous district attorney promised him he would never be charged, and that witnesses have died, memories have faded and the comedian is all but blind.

The AP does not typically identify people who say they are sexual assault victims unless they grant permission, which Constand and Johnson have done.

See original here:

Bill Cosby goes on trial, his legacy and freedom at stake - Concord Monitor