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Biden is creating a new White House office focused on gun violence prevention
Updated September 21, 2023 6:38 PM ET
By Asma Khalid, Elena Moore
Vice President Harris speaks about the victims of the mass shooting in Monterey Park, Calif. in front of a makeshift memorial at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio on Jan. 25, 2022.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
President Biden is creating a new office for gun violence prevention to coordinate his administration's efforts to reduce gun violence and elevate an issue that — while stalled in Congress — remains important to Democratic activists and young voters.
Biden will formally make the announcement at the White House on Friday. Vice President Harris will oversee the office, and White House staff secretary Stefanie Feldman will direct its work.
"This office will dig deep to find additional life-saving actions that this administration can take," Feldman told reporters, explaining that it will aim to coordinate support for communities hurt by gun violence.
Gun-control activists have been privately advocating for such an office for years and it comes as hopes of additional gun reform legislation seem unlikely. Two activists are joining the new White House office: Greg Jackson, a survivor of gun violence who has led the Community Justice Action Fund, and Rob Wilcox, who has worked at the groups Everytown for Gun Safety and Brady.
People protest against gun violence on May 7, 2023 in Allen, Texas, after a mass shooting at an outlet mall in the community.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Activists hope the office will enable Biden to make more use of his presidential bully pulpit to push for more gun safety measures.
"We need a White House team to focus on this issue on a daily basis," said Po Murray, chair of the Newtown Action Alliance, a grassroots organization started after a 2012 mass shooting at an elementary school killed 20 children and six adults.
"It is a national crisis," Murray said.
Murray argued that public opinion is on Biden's side. In a recent NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, a majority of Americans said it's more important to curb gun violence than protect gun rights.
'Poll: Most Americans say curbing gun violence is more important than gun rights'
https://www.npr.org/2023/05/24/1177779153/poll-most-americans-say-curbing-gun-violence-is-more-important-than-gun-rights#:~:text=More%20than%206%20in%2010,from%2025%25%20to%2035%25.
"I do believe that the president is aware that this is a winning issue for him, and it is the high political ground. And obviously it's a high moral ground," she said.
Family members speak about the victims of the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, during a March For Our Lives rally on Aug. 27, 2022 in Austin.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Gun violence is a top-of-mind issue for Gen Z voters
The president has called for "common sense" regulations and a ban on assault-style weapons. Republicans and a small number of Democrats oppose the measures.
Advocates say Biden's new announcement helps show he is willing to act unilaterally on an issue important to young voters — at a time when he needs to energize this crucial voting bloc ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
During the 2018 midterm elections, addressing gun violence became a major part of the national Democratic campaign playbook. That was the first time gun control groups spent more money than gun rights groups like the National Rifle Association.
"There's been a paradigm shift, I think, in American politics around guns," said David Hogg, who co-founded March For Our Lives after a mass shooting at his high school in Parkland, Fla., five years ago.
"[Democrats are] no longer running from this issue. They're running on it and proudly," he added.
Hogg said Biden needs young voters to win reelection. "That's not even my opinion. That's just objectively true. He needs young voters to win again, he especially needs younger voters of color that were critical to his election in 2020," he told NPR.
https://www.npr.org/2023/09/20/1200712487/biden-is-creating-a-new-white-house-office-focused-on-gun-violence-prevention
Only the strongest and most dedicated will most likely survive those 18 days.
And I think more Beer tents, products, etc. have been added over the years - - drawing in more people.
Munich Oktoberfest 2023! Day 1/18! LIVE IRL Walking in München Germany! (Octoberfest)
01:27:04
How climate change is impacting sports around the world
Your favorite golf tournament or that long-awaited soccer match may look a bit different in the future
Devika Rao
By Devika Rao
published 14 hours ago
“From the greenhouse gases emitted from transporting equipment, athletes and fans all over the world," Euronews reported, "to the harm done to ecosystems by venue construction, high-density events and poor waste management,” it's clear that the athletic sector has played a role in the worsening climate crisis. .. https://theweek.com/climate-change/1018375/what-happens-if-we-dont-meet-our-climate-goals
In turn, however, climate change is making it more difficult for athletes worldwide to partake in their favorite sports, as rising temperatures complicate the games they know and love.
Skiing and snowboarding
Winter sports in particular, like skiing and snowboarding, are feeling the climate change-induced heat. One French ski resort had to close permanently due to a lack of snow, CNN reported, and more will likely follow suit.
Many resorts already rely on artificial snow to keep things running. However, “the whole idea that ski resorts could continue to operate as they currently do, plugging any gaps with artificial snow, is fundamentally flawed,” Luca Albrisi, the lead author of the Clean Outdoor Manifesto, told Wired. To help financially, some resorts have repurposed portions of their land to make it more conducive to non-snow-related activities, like mountain biking. “I would say the next years will be a boom for mountain bike parks, especially for all the ski areas under 1,500 meters,” industry insider Felix Saller told the outlet.
Track and field
Outdoor summer sports are also in for a rude awakening. A number of track and field events take place outside, which could pose a health risk for athletes in the event of extreme heat. “We have a challenge everywhere we look. The welfare of the athletes for me always needs to be primary," Sebastian Coe, president of the governing body World Athletics, told Reuters. "It's not beyond the wisdom of all of us to figure this out. But this is a challenge that isn't going to go away.”
During the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, “marathon and race-walking events were moved 800 kilometers north” due to high temperatures, Reuters wrote. To prepare for the heat, athletes turned to ice vests and acclimated themselves in saunas. “Constituent groups like sport are going to have to figure this out for themselves, because I don't think we can rely on governments to remotely get to grips with what is going to be a massive shift in reality in the next few years,” Coe remarked.
Soccer
The 2022 FIFA World Cup faced backlash over its environmental impact as well as human rights concerns in host country Qatar. That year's was also the first World Cup to be held at the end of fall, rather than during the summer, because of intense heat. “Rising sea levels, intensified heat waves, increased risk of megafires, floods and deteriorating air quality all pose major threats to both amateur and professional soccer,” Thomas Deshayes and Paquito Bernard wrote for The Conversation last year.
The biggest concerns for the sport are low air quality and heat; however, infrastructure destruction due to drought and wildfires is also cause for concern. “Since it is estimated that these conditions will become more frequent in the near future … it is possible to estimate a greater number of postponements and cancellations of practices and games,” the pair wrote.
Golf
Golf courses, which notably require a controversial amount of water for maintenance, are also falling victim to the global environmental crisis: A climate change-induced rise in sea levels is eroding the coastlines where many iconic courses are located. “Some of our most historic, famous and revered golf courses are at risk, and it is something every coastal course needs to think hard about,” Tim Lobb, the president of the European Institute of Golf Course Architects, told The New York Times.
“We are feeling it now with increases in unplayable holes, winter course closures and disruption to professional tournaments,” Steve Isaac, then with golf governing body R&A, told Phys. org in 2018. One of Scotland’s oldest courses — St. Andrews — is actively at risk. “We will help to protect golf courses if we do the right things to protect the environment and mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change,” Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, told the Times.
https://theweek.com/environment/climate-change-impacting-sports
How climate change is impacting sports around the world
Your favorite golf tournament or that long-awaited soccer match may look a bit different in the future
Devika Rao
By Devika Rao
published 14 hours ago
“From the greenhouse gases emitted from transporting equipment, athletes and fans all over the world," Euronews reported, "to the harm done to ecosystems by venue construction, high-density events and poor waste management,” it's clear that the athletic sector has played a role in the worsening climate crisis. .. https://theweek.com/climate-change/1018375/what-happens-if-we-dont-meet-our-climate-goals
In turn, however, climate change is making it more difficult for athletes worldwide to partake in their favorite sports, as rising temperatures complicate the games they know and love.
]
Skiing and snowboarding
Winter sports in particular, like skiing and snowboarding, are feeling the climate change-induced heat. One French ski resort had to close permanently due to a lack of snow, CNN reported, and more will likely follow suit.
Many resorts already rely on artificial snow to keep things running. However, “the whole idea that ski resorts could continue to operate as they currently do, plugging any gaps with artificial snow, is fundamentally flawed,” Luca Albrisi, the lead author of the Clean Outdoor Manifesto, told Wired. To help financially, some resorts have repurposed portions of their land to make it more conducive to non-snow-related activities, like mountain biking. “I would say the next years will be a boom for mountain bike parks, especially for all the ski areas under 1,500 meters,” industry insider Felix Saller told the outlet.
Track and field
Outdoor summer sports are also in for a rude awakening. A number of track and field events take place outside, which could pose a health risk for athletes in the event of extreme heat. “We have a challenge everywhere we look. The welfare of the athletes for me always needs to be primary," Sebastian Coe, president of the governing body World Athletics, told Reuters. "It's not beyond the wisdom of all of us to figure this out. But this is a challenge that isn't going to go away.”
During the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, “marathon and race-walking events were moved 800 kilometers north” due to high temperatures, Reuters wrote. To prepare for the heat, athletes turned to ice vests and acclimated themselves in saunas. “Constituent groups like sport are going to have to figure this out for themselves, because I don't think we can rely on governments to remotely get to grips with what is going to be a massive shift in reality in the next few years,” Coe remarked.
Soccer
The 2022 FIFA World Cup faced backlash over its environmental impact as well as human rights concerns in host country Qatar. That year's was also the first World Cup to be held at the end of fall, rather than during the summer, because of intense heat. “Rising sea levels, intensified heat waves, increased risk of megafires, floods and deteriorating air quality all pose major threats to both amateur and professional soccer,” Thomas Deshayes and Paquito Bernard wrote for The Conversation last year.
The biggest concerns for the sport are low air quality and heat; however, infrastructure destruction due to drought and wildfires is also cause for concern. “Since it is estimated that these conditions will become more frequent in the near future … it is possible to estimate a greater number of postponements and cancellations of practices and games,” the pair wrote.
Golf
Golf courses, which notably require a controversial amount of water for maintenance, are also falling victim to the global environmental crisis: A climate change-induced rise in sea levels is eroding the coastlines where many iconic courses are located. “Some of our most historic, famous and revered golf courses are at risk, and it is something every coastal course needs to think hard about,” Tim Lobb, the president of the European Institute of Golf Course Architects, told The New York Times.
“We are feeling it now with increases in unplayable holes, winter course closures and disruption to professional tournaments,” Steve Isaac, then with golf governing body R&A, told Phys. org in 2018. One of Scotland’s oldest courses — St. Andrews — is actively at risk. “We will help to protect golf courses if we do the right things to protect the environment and mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change,” Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, told the Times.
https://theweek.com/environment/climate-change-impacting-sports
I never attended the Oktoberfest in Munich either.
And now I wouldn't want to. Too many people -- and too much confusion.
But I was in the Army Infantry stationed at Schweinfurt Germany in 1959-1960 There was a large Beer Tent and misc. items there celebrating Oktoberfest. And of course there was that great German beer.
Jawohl. Great German beer
And some waitresses are strong enough to carry 10 full beer mugs
https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2023/09/oktoberfest-2023-scenes-opening-weekend/675361/
OKTOBERFEST misc.
Oktoberfest 2023 opening ceremony in Munich Germany
Mitt Romney gets out of Dodge
Sep. 18, 2023 at 3:40 pm
By David Horsey
Seattle Times cartoonist
Utah Sen. Mitt Romney is the quintessential exemplar of what it used to mean to be a Republican.[t][/t]
The son of George Romney, a Republican businessman who became Michigan governor and ran for president, Mitt Romney is a businessman who became governor of Massachusetts and was the GOP’s nominee for president in 2012. His political beliefs have always aligned well with his party’s long-standing policy goals — a balanced federal budget, lower taxes, support for capitalist enterprises, a strong military and a robust foreign policy in the service of democratic ideals.
But, four years after Romney’s unsuccessful presidential run, someone came along and changed the definition of Republican. Former President Donald Trump mesmerized the GOP base with a nasty, nihilistic populism built on seething social resentments, suspicion of governmental institutions, and an “America First” foreign policy that disparaged democratic allies while coddling autocrats abroad and encouraging right-wing autocracy at home.
https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/mitt-romney-gets-out-of-dodge/
Oktoberfest 2023: Scenes From the Opening Weekend
Alan Taylor 12:49 PM ET 21 Photos In Focus
On Saturday, the 188th Oktoberfest beer festival opened in Munich, Germany. Organizers say they expect millions of visitors over the 18-day festival at Munich’s Theresienwiese—the last keg will be tapped on October 3. The Associated Press reports that the cost for a one-liter mug this year is between 12.60 euros and 14.90 euros ($13.45 to $15.90). Gathered here are images from the opening weekend of Oktoberfest 2023.
Hints: View this page full screen. Skip to the next and previous photo by typing j/k
A waitress reacts as she carries beer mugs in a festival tent during the opening of
Oktoberfest, Munich's annual beer festival, on September 16, 2023, in Munich, Germany.
People run to enter the Oktoberfest beer festival in Munich on September 16, 2023
Members of a traditionally dressed group participate in the riflemen's parade on the second day of Oktoberfest 2023, on September 17, 2023
People celebrate in a festival tent during the opening of Oktoberfest 2023.
A view of the festival grounds in Munich on September 16, 2023
Revelers enjoy a carnival ride on the second day of 2023's Oktoberfest, in Munich
Oktoberfest participants, photographed on September 17, 2023
Oktoberfest revelers rest on a patch of grass on opening day, September 16, 2023
A waitress brings mugs of beer to festivalgoers in a beer hall on September 16, 2023
[...]
https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2023/09/oktoberfest-2023-scenes-opening-weekend/675361/
The official site for the 188th Oktoberfest from September 16 to October 3, 2023
The 188th Oktoberfest will be held at Munich's Theresienwiese from September 16 to October 3, 2023.
All information about the largest folk festival in the world
https://www.oktoberfest.de/en
---------------------------------------------
Experience Oktoberfest
Munich, Germany . Sep. 16 - Oct. 3, 2023
Everything you ever wanted to know about Oktoberfest in Munich
https://www.mybucketlistevents.com/event-detail/about-oktoberfest-faqs/#oktoberfest-today
I'm back in Classic View.
But there's still all the info regarding the markets. Possibly make it is an option... select or not select.
Man who threw flagpole at police during Jan. 6 riot gets more than 6 years in prison
This image from police-worn body cam video contained in the statement of facts to support the arrest of Joseph Padilla, shows Padilla on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Padilla, who wrote on social media about wanting to “take over the Capitol building” before the Jan. 6, 2021 riot, where he threw a flagpole at a police officer’s head, has been sentenced to more than six years in prison on Sept. 13, 2023. (Department of Justice via AP)
BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Updated 6:43 PM CDT, September 13, 2023
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Tennessee man who wrote on social media about wanting to “take over the Capitol building” before the Jan. 6, 2021, riot, where he threw a flagpole at a police officer’s head, was sentenced on Wednesday to more than six years in prison.
Joseph Padilla, of Cleveland, Tennessee, was convicted in May of assault with a dangerous weapon, obstruction of Congress and other charges after a bench trial in Washington’s federal court.
Padilla has been behind bars since his February 2021 arrest. U.S. District Judge John D. Bates, who found him guilty after the bench trial, ordered him this week to serve 6 1/2 years in prison.
Prosecutors say Padilla, a former prison corrections officer, spent hours the day of the riot verbally and physically attacking police, who were trying to beat back the angry mob of Donald Trump supporters as lawmakers met in the Capitol to certify then-President-elect Joe Biden ‘s electoral victory.
After other rioters attacked police with objects such as crutches and a hockey stick, Padilla launched a flagpole toward officers, hitting one of them in the head, prosecutors said in court records. Prosecutors say he then lied under oath on the witness stand about it, claiming he was trying to hit another rioter.
A day after the riot, Padilla wrote on social media that he was “proud” of his actions, adding: “It’s guns next, that’s the only way,” prosecutors said. Prosecutors also pointed to several of Padilla’s social media comments calling for a revolution ahead of Jan. 6.
“We’ve gotta do it on the 6th or never at all. We have to take over the Capitol Building, immediately pass acts dissolving the current Legislative body, and fill the places with uncompromising Patriots from among those of us there,” Padilla wrote in one post in late December 2020.
Padilla’s lawyer told the judge that his client, a U.S. Army veteran, “regrets ever having gone to the Capitol on January 6th, 2021.” Padilla’s lawyer said the man has lived an “exemplary life” despite a “troubled upbringing,” which included a stint of homelessness, and that his actions on Jan. 6 were “not typical of his life pattern.”
Padilla “states that every day is torture having to live with the fact that his actions are the direct reason for his family’s separation and hardship. He understands that his actions on January 6th caused himself and his family the pain and suffering they now deal with daily,” defense attorney Michael Cronkright wrote in court papers.
An email seeking comment was sent to Conkright after Wednesday’s hearing.
More than 1,100 people have been charged with federal crimes stemming from the riot, .. (graphics) . https://interactives.ap.org/jan-6-prosecutions/ .. which left dozens of police officers injured and halted Congress’ certification of Biden’s victory.
Over 650 defendants have pleaded guilty. More than 600 have been sentenced, with over half receiving terms of imprisonment ranging from three days to 22 years.
https://apnews.com/article/capitol-riot-assault-tennessee-flagpole-police-sentencing-378d427e81bf5691b403579eac3bc0e0
Putin denounces ‘persecution’ of Trump and calls Musk ‘outstanding’
Sep. 12, 2023 at 3:12 pm Updated Sep. 12, 2023 at 4:01 pm
By PAUL SONNE and Michael C. Bender
The New York Times
The setting was an economic conference in far eastern Russia, with discussion of the ruble and domestic investment, but that didn’t stop President Vladimir Putin from wading into American politics Tuesday, branding the criminal cases against Donald Trump political persecution and praising billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk.
For years, the Russian leader has demonstrated an ability to exploit political divisions within Western nations, often by signaling to conservatives abroad that he is aligned with them in a global fight against liberal values.
Putin’s remarks Tuesday, made at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, appeared aimed at lending firepower to the Republican outcry over the prosecutions of Trump, who has long expressed public admiration for the Russian leader and has helped encourage a sizable Moscow-friendly contingent within his party.
The cases against Trump — who faces 91 felony counts in four jurisdictions — represent the “persecution of one’s political rival for political motives,” Putin said. He predicted that the entire affair would help Russia by exposing U.S. domestic problems for the world to see and revealing the hypocrisy of American democracy.
“Given today’s conditions, what is happening is good for us, in my opinion, because it shows the rottenness of the American political system, which cannot pretend to teach democracy to others,” Putin said, prompting the hall to erupt in applause.
Putin, whose political adversaries have a way of ending up in prison or worse, said the criminal cases against Trump also demonstrated who Russia is really fighting against as it prosecutes its invasion of Ukraine. “As they said back in Soviet times, ‘the bestial visage of American imperialism, the bestial grin’ ” he said.
Trump offered no public response to Putin’s remarks, and his aides did not respond to requests for comment.
Unlike in the past, Putin expressed a measure of resignation about the American posture toward Russia, saying the United States would likely remain anti-Russian, even if Trump were to return to the White House.
“Though they accused him of special ties to Russia, it was complete nonsense, total bullshit, and he more than anything imposed sanctions on Russia,” Putin said. “So what to expect in the future, regardless of who is president, is difficult to say. But it’s unlikely anything will change definitively, because the current government has configured American society in such an anti-Russian manner and spirit.”
In the United States, where Republicans are competing for their party’s presidential nomination — with Trump considered to be far ahead — several leading GOP figures rejected Putin’s criticism.
“America’s founding principles will always stand the test of time, and Vladimir Putin’s opinion of our constitutional republic holds no value in the United States,” former Vice President Mike Pence said in a statement. “Putin should be more concerned about how quickly his military went from being the second most powerful in the world to the second most powerful in Ukraine.”
“America’s founding principles will always stand the test of time, and Vladimir Putin’s opinion of our constitutional republic holds no value in the United States,” former Vice President Mike Pence said in a statement. “Putin should be more concerned about how quickly his military went from being the second most powerful in the world to the second most powerful in Ukraine.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who is a strong supporter of both Trump and of American aid to Ukraine, said in an interview that the prosecutions taking place against Trump were “part of democracy.” He said that some parts of the American system were being “run off the rails,” but that the people in charge would have to answer to voters.
“No one in Russia is able to speak against Putin,’’ Graham said, “because he’ll kill them.”
Former Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, who is running against Trump for the nomination, said Putin’s comments were in effect a vote of support for his opponent. “It’s good to see Vladimir Putin has made his endorsement official — and no surprise, he’s endorsed another autocrat,” Christie said.
Putin’s comments amounted to the latest chapter in a political drama that began when Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, spreading disinformation online and hacking and releasing emails from the Democratic National Committee and the campaign manager of Trump’s Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.
The controversy over Trump’s seeming sympathies for the Kremlin continued well after he took office in early 2017.
Throughout his term, Trump heaped praise on Putin, and at one point, during a 2018 summit in Helsinki, professed to trust the Russian leader more than his own intelligence services.
Even after he was defeated for reelection, Trump clung to that stance. In January, in a post on his Truth Social website, he again suggested that he had been right to trust the Russian president more than U.S. intelligence and FBI “lowlifes.”
Trump’s assertions at the Helsinki meeting — where, in an unusual breach of protocol, he met with Putin without any aides present — were roundly criticized by his opponents as unseemly pandering to the Russian leader.
Still, even as Trump expressed sympathy with Moscow from the White House, he packed his administration with officials who were hawkish on Russia and, in tandem with lawmakers in Congress, continued to promote a foreign policy that punished Moscow for the 2016 interference, pushed through sanctions, and labeled Russia a “great power” competitor.
At his economic forum Tuesday, Putin also offered praise for Musk, calling him a “talented businessman,” when asked about the possibility of private space companies similar to Musk’s SpaceX arising in Russia.
“When it comes to private business, Elon Musk, he is, without a doubt, an outstanding person, one has to admit,” Putin said. “But I think everyone would admit that all around the world. He is an active, talented businessman. A lot works out for him, including with the support of the American government.”
https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/putin-denounces-persecution-of-trump-and-calls-musk-outstanding/
Yes. 9-11-2001 is a day we'll never forget.
It’s been 20 years since 9/11. (Currently 22 years since 9/11)
Here’s how lives were forever changed in their own words.
https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2021/09/us/life-after-9-11-attacks-anniversary/#
Bells toll as the US marks 22 years since 9/11
MilitaryTimes
By Jennifer Peltz and Karen Matthews, The Associated Press
Sep 11, 10:50 AM
Sam Pulia places flags before the commemoration ceremony of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in New York. (Yuki Iwamura/AP)
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 6:00 p.m. EST with additional information.
NEW YORK — Americans looked back Monday on 9/11 with moments of silence, tearful words and appeals to teach younger generations about the terror attacks 22 years ago.
“For those of us who lost people on that day, that day is still happening. Everybody else moves on. And you find a way to go forward, but that day is always happening for you,” Edward Edelman said as he arrived at New York’s World Trade Center to honor his slain brother-in-law, Daniel McGinley.
President Joe Biden, speaking at a military base in Anchorage, Alaska, urged Americans to rally around protecting democracy. His visit, en route to Washington from a trip to India and Vietnam, is a reminder that the impact of 9/11 was felt in every corner of the nation, however remote.
“We know that on this day, every American’s heart was wounded,” Biden said. “Yet every big city, small town, suburb, rural town, tribal community — American hands went up, ready to help where they could.”
Nearly 3,000 people were killed when hijacked planes crashed into the trade center, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field, in an attack that reshaped American foreign policy and domestic fears.
On that day, “we were one country, one nation, one people, just like it should be,” Eddie Ferguson, the fire-rescue chief in Virginia’s Goochland County, said by phone before the anniversary.
The predominantly rural county of 25,000 people has a Sept. 11 memorial and holds two anniversary commemorations, one focused on first responders and another honoring all the victims.
At ground zero, Vice President Kamala Harris joined other dignitaries at the ceremony on the National Sept. 11 Memorial plaza. Instead of remarks from political figures, the event features victims reading the names of the dead and delivering brief personal messages.
Some included patriotic declarations about American values and thanked first responders and the military. One lauded the Navy SEALs who killed al-Qaida leader and 9/11 plotter Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011. Another appealed for peace and justice. One acknowledged the many lives lost in the post-9/11 “War on Terror.” And many shared reflections on missing loved ones.
“Though we never met, I am honored to carry your name and legacy with me,” said Manuel João DaMota Jr., who was born after his father and namesake died.
To Gabrielle Gabrielli, reading names “is the biggest honor of my life.” She lost her uncle and godfather, Richard Gabrielle.
“We have to keep the memory of everybody who died alive. This is their legacy,” Gabrielli said, heading into the ceremony.
Biden, a Democrat, became the first president to commemorate Sept. 11 in the western U.S. He and his predecessors have gone to one or another of the attack sites in most years, though Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama each marked the anniversary on the White House lawn at times, and Obama also visited Fort Meade in Maryland.
Warning of a rise in extremism and political violence, Biden told service members and their families that that “every generation has to fight” to preserve U.S. democracy.
“That’s why the terrorists targeted us in the first place – our freedom, our openness, our institutions. They failed. But we must remain vigilant,” he said.
First lady Jill Biden laid a wreath at the 9/11 memorial at the Pentagon, where a giant American flag hung over the side of the building. Earlier, bells tolled, and musicians played taps at 9:37 a.m., the time when one of the hijacked jets hit the military headquarters.
“As the years go by, it may feel that the world is moving on or even forgetting what happened here on Sept. 11, 2001,” but the Defense Department will always remember, Secretary Lloyd Austin said. He deployed to Iraq in the war that followed the attack.
Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff, laid a wreath at the Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where another plane crashed after passengers tried to storm the cockpit. Earlier Monday at the memorial, a rabbi from Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue, where a gunman killed 11 worshippers in 2018, called for ensuring that younger people know about 9/11.
“With memory comes responsibility, the determination to share our stories with this next generation, so that through them, our loved ones continue to live,” Rabbi Jeffrey Myers said. The memorial is offering a new educational video, virtual tour and other materials for classroom use.
Many Americans did volunteer work on what Congress has designated both Patriot Day and a National Day of Service and Remembrance. Others gathered for anniversary events at memorials, firehouses, city halls, campuses and elsewhere.
In Iowa, a march set off at 9:11 a.m. Monday from suburban Waukee to the state Capitol in Des Moines. In Columbus, Indiana, observances include a remembrance message sent to police, fire and EMS radios. New Jersey’s Monmouth County, which was home to some 9/11 victims, this year made Sept. 11 a holiday for county employees so they could attend commemorations.
Pepperdine University’s campus in Malibu, California, displayed one American flag for each victim, plus the flags of every other country that lost a citizen on 9/11. Reflecting the tragedy’s scope, U.N. General Assembly President Dennis Francis exhorted world nations Monday to counter extremism, build tolerance, “join hands and say never again.”
Fenton, Missouri, is more than 650 miles (1,050 kilometers) from the attack sites. But the St. Louis suburb, population 4,000, holds an anniversary ceremony at a memorial that includes steel from the World Trade Center’s fallen twin towers and a plaque honoring Jessica Leigh Sachs, a 9/11 victim with relatives in town.
“We’re just a little bitty community,” Mayor Joe Maurath said ahead of the anniversary, but “it’s important for us to continue to remember these events. Not just 9/11, but all of the events that make us free.”
Associated Press journalists Julie Walker and Deepti Hajela in New York; Seung Min Kim in Anchorage, Alaska; Tara Copp in Washington and Michael Rubinkam in northeastern Pennsylvania contributed to this report.
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2023/09/11/bells-toll-as-the-us-marks-22-years-since-911/?utm_source=sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=army-dnr
Bells toll as the US marks 22 years since 9/11
By Jennifer Peltz and Karen Matthews, The Associated Press
Sep 11, 10:50 AM
Sam Pulia places flags before the commemoration ceremony of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in New York. (Yuki Iwamura/AP)
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 6:00 p.m. EST with additional information.
NEW YORK — Americans looked back Monday on 9/11 with moments of silence, tearful words and appeals to teach younger generations about the terror attacks 22 years ago.
“For those of us who lost people on that day, that day is still happening. Everybody else moves on. And you find a way to go forward, but that day is always happening for you,” Edward Edelman said as he arrived at New York’s World Trade Center to honor his slain brother-in-law, Daniel McGinley.
President Joe Biden, speaking at a military base in Anchorage, Alaska, urged Americans to rally around protecting democracy. His visit, en route to Washington from a trip to India and Vietnam, is a reminder that the impact of 9/11 was felt in every corner of the nation, however remote.
“We know that on this day, every American’s heart was wounded,” Biden said. “Yet every big city, small town, suburb, rural town, tribal community — American hands went up, ready to help where they could.”
Nearly 3,000 people were killed when hijacked planes crashed into the trade center, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field, in an attack that reshaped American foreign policy and domestic fears.
On that day, “we were one country, one nation, one people, just like it should be,” Eddie Ferguson, the fire-rescue chief in Virginia’s Goochland County, said by phone before the anniversary.
The predominantly rural county of 25,000 people has a Sept. 11 memorial and holds two anniversary commemorations, one focused on first responders and another honoring all the victims.
At ground zero, Vice President Kamala Harris joined other dignitaries at the ceremony on the National Sept. 11 Memorial plaza. Instead of remarks from political figures, the event features victims reading the names of the dead and delivering brief personal messages.
Some included patriotic declarations about American values and thanked first responders and the military. One lauded the Navy SEALs who killed al-Qaida leader and 9/11 plotter Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011. Another appealed for peace and justice. One acknowledged the many lives lost in the post-9/11 “War on Terror.” And many shared reflections on missing loved ones.
“Though we never met, I am honored to carry your name and legacy with me,” said Manuel João DaMota Jr., who was born after his father and namesake died.
To Gabrielle Gabrielli, reading names “is the biggest honor of my life.” She lost her uncle and godfather, Richard Gabrielle.
“We have to keep the memory of everybody who died alive. This is their legacy,” Gabrielli said, heading into the ceremony.
Biden, a Democrat, became the first president to commemorate Sept. 11 in the western U.S. He and his predecessors have gone to one or another of the attack sites in most years, though Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama each marked the anniversary on the White House lawn at times, and Obama also visited Fort Meade in Maryland.
Warning of a rise in extremism and political violence, Biden told service members and their families that that “every generation has to fight” to preserve U.S. democracy.
“That’s why the terrorists targeted us in the first place – our freedom, our openness, our institutions. They failed. But we must remain vigilant,” he said.
First lady Jill Biden laid a wreath at the 9/11 memorial at the Pentagon, where a giant American flag hung over the side of the building. Earlier, bells tolled, and musicians played taps at 9:37 a.m., the time when one of the hijacked jets hit the military headquarters.
“As the years go by, it may feel that the world is moving on or even forgetting what happened here on Sept. 11, 2001,” but the Defense Department will always remember, Secretary Lloyd Austin said. He deployed to Iraq in the war that followed the attack.
Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff, laid a wreath at the Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where another plane crashed after passengers tried to storm the cockpit. Earlier Monday at the memorial, a rabbi from Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue, where a gunman killed 11 worshippers in 2018, called for ensuring that younger people know about 9/11.
“With memory comes responsibility, the determination to share our stories with this next generation, so that through them, our loved ones continue to live,” Rabbi Jeffrey Myers said. The memorial is offering a new educational video, virtual tour and other materials for classroom use.
Many Americans did volunteer work on what Congress has designated both Patriot Day and a National Day of Service and Remembrance. Others gathered for anniversary events at memorials, firehouses, city halls, campuses and elsewhere.
In Iowa, a march set off at 9:11 a.m. Monday from suburban Waukee to the state Capitol in Des Moines. In Columbus, Indiana, observances include a remembrance message sent to police, fire and EMS radios. New Jersey’s Monmouth County, which was home to some 9/11 victims, this year made Sept. 11 a holiday for county employees so they could attend commemorations.
Pepperdine University’s campus in Malibu, California, displayed one American flag for each victim, plus the flags of every other country that lost a citizen on 9/11. Reflecting the tragedy’s scope, U.N. General Assembly President Dennis Francis exhorted world nations Monday to counter extremism, build tolerance, “join hands and say never again.”
Fenton, Missouri, is more than 650 miles (1,050 kilometers) from the attack sites. But the St. Louis suburb, population 4,000, holds an anniversary ceremony at a memorial that includes steel from the World Trade Center’s fallen twin towers and a plaque honoring Jessica Leigh Sachs, a 9/11 victim with relatives in town.
“We’re just a little bitty community,” Mayor Joe Maurath said ahead of the anniversary, but “it’s important for us to continue to remember these events. Not just 9/11, but all of the events that make us free.”
Associated Press journalists Julie Walker and Deepti Hajela in New York; Seung Min Kim in Anchorage, Alaska; Tara Copp in Washington and Michael Rubinkam in northeastern Pennsylvania contributed to this report.
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2023/09/11/bells-toll-as-the-us-marks-22-years-since-911/?utm_source=sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=army-dnr
AP PHOTOS: 20 images that documented the enormity of 9/11
Pedestrians in lower Manhattan watch smoke billow from New York’s World Trade Center on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
BY JENNIFER PELTZ
Published 7:30 AM CDT, September 8, 2021
EDITORS: This story first ran in 2021 for the 20th anniversary of 9/11.
It is being republished for the 22nd anniversary.
It was a day of indelible images — apocalyptic, surreal, violent, ghostly, both monumental and profoundly personal. Wrenching to remember. Impossible to forget.
The terrorist attacks of 9/11 were captured in countless pictures by news photographers, bystanders, first responders, security cameras, FBI agents and others. Even an astronaut on the International Space Station took some.
Twenty years later, The Associated Press has curated 20 of its photographers’ frames from Sept. 11, 2001, when hijackers used commercial planes as missiles and crashed into New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field.
The attacks killed nearly 3,000 people and toppled the trade center’s 110-story twin towers.
Thick smoke billows into the sky from the area behind the Statue of Liberty, lower left, where the World Trade Center was, on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Daniel Hulshizer)
A person falls from the north tower of New York’s World Trade Center as another clings to the outside, left, while smoke and fire billow from the building, Tuesday Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Richard Drew
Fire and smoke billows from the north tower of New York’s World Trade Center on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/David Karp)
Some show more intimate views of pain, but also humanity — an injured firefighter’s screaming face; a woman walking through the eerie blizzard of trade center debris with her arm around someone else’s shoulder; the then-deputy chief of the Army Reserve, Col. Malcolm Bruce Westcott, holding a comforting hand to Pentagon employee Racquel Kelley’s brow while assessing her for shock. There are images of determination, including firefighters working amid the smoky rubble and a shopkeeper sweeping up the dust of catastrophe.
Finally, as night falls, people gaze across New York Harbor at the smoke, trying to make sense of what happened in front of their eyes. As we still are today
People flee the falling South Tower of the World Trade Center on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
Smoke billows from one of the towers of the World Trade Center as flames and debris explode from the second tower, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Chao Soi Cheong)
A firefighter moves through piles of debris at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Graham Morrison)
Firefighters work beneath the destroyed mullions, the vertical struts, of the World Trade Center in New York on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
https://apnews.com/article/september-11-photos-80f1c7348e93ea7532a23e1afc23eacf
AP PHOTOS: 20 images that documented the enormity of 9/11
Pedestrians in lower Manhattan watch smoke billow from New York’s World Trade Center on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
BY JENNIFER PELTZ
Published 7:30 AM CDT, September 8, 2021
EDITORS: This story first ran in 2021 for the 20th anniversary of 9/11.
It is being republished for the 22nd anniversary.
It was a day of indelible images — apocalyptic, surreal, violent, ghostly, both monumental and profoundly personal. Wrenching to remember. Impossible to forget.
The terrorist attacks of 9/11 were captured in countless pictures by news photographers, bystanders, first responders, security cameras, FBI agents and others. Even an astronaut on the International Space Station took some.
Twenty years later, The Associated Press has curated 20 of its photographers’ frames from Sept. 11, 2001, when hijackers used commercial planes as missiles and crashed into New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field.
The attacks killed nearly 3,000 people and toppled the trade center’s 110-story twin towers.
Thick smoke billows into the sky from the area behind the Statue of Liberty, lower left, where the World Trade Center was, on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Daniel Hulshizer)
A person falls from the north tower of New York’s World Trade Center as another clings to the outside, left, while smoke and fire billow from the building, Tuesday Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Richard Drew
Fire and smoke billows from the north tower of New York’s World Trade Center on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/David Karp)
Some show more intimate views of pain, but also humanity — an injured firefighter’s screaming face; a woman walking through the eerie blizzard of trade center debris with her arm around someone else’s shoulder; the then-deputy chief of the Army Reserve, Col. Malcolm Bruce Westcott, holding a comforting hand to Pentagon employee Racquel Kelley’s brow while assessing her for shock. There are images of determination, including firefighters working amid the smoky rubble and a shopkeeper sweeping up the dust of catastrophe.
Finally, as night falls, people gaze across New York Harbor at the smoke, trying to make sense of what happened in front of their eyes. As we still are today
People flee the falling South Tower of the World Trade Center on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
Smoke billows from one of the towers of the World Trade Center as flames and debris explode from the second tower, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Chao Soi Cheong)
A firefighter moves through piles of debris at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Graham Morrison)
Firefighters work beneath the destroyed mullions, the vertical struts, of the World Trade Center in New York on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
https://apnews.com/article/september-11-photos-80f1c7348e93ea7532a23e1afc23eacf
THE WHITEHOUSE - A Proclamation on Patriot Day and National Day of Service and Remembrance, 2023
September 08, 2023
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2023/09/08/a-proclamation-on-patriot-day-and-national-day-of-service-and-remembrance-2023/
This seems to be a little late to post this, but the 911 broadcasts have been daily news the last 2-3 days.
St. Thomas professor: U.S. Constitution bars Trump from 2024 ballot
U.S. Supreme Court could be asked soon to decide issues raised by two conservative constitutional law professors.
By Rochelle Olson Star Tribune SEPTEMBER 7, 2023 — 5:15AM
University of St. Thomas School of Law professor Michael Stokes Paulsen co-authored the article.
A constitutional law professor at the University of St. Thomas has co-authored an article igniting a national debate about whether the U.S. Constitution bars President Donald Trump from being on the ballot next year.
Michael Stokes Paulsen, along with William Baude of the University of Chicago, wrote a 126-page draft article .. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4532751 .. that has gone gangbusters online even though it won't be printed in the University of Pennsylvania Law Review until next year.
Baude and Paulsen say the Constitution's Section Three, Article 14, ...https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/amendment-14/section-3/ .. a Civil War-era provision, forbids former office holders who participate in insurrection or rebellion from holding office again.
Biden awards Army pilot Medal of Honor for Vietnam War rescue
By Darlene Superville, The Associated Press
Sep 5, 04:01 PM
President Joe Biden awards the Medal of Honor to Capt. Larry Taylor, an Army pilot from the Vietnam War who risked his life to rescue a reconnaissance team that was about to be overrun by the enemy, during a ceremony Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)
President Joe Biden awarded the Medal of Honor to Capt. Larry Taylor on Tuesday, honoring the Army pilot who risked his life during the Vietnam War by flying into heavy enemy fire to save four members of a reconnaissance team from almost certain death as they were about to be overrun.
On the night of June 18, 1968, then-1st Lt. Taylor flew his Cobra attack helicopter to rescue the men after they had become surrounded by the enemy.
“It was pitch black. No moon. No stars. No light beyond the glow of Lieutenant Taylor’s cockpit control, when he heard a whisper coming through his radio, ‘We’re surrounded,’” Biden said, adding, “Lieutenant Taylor knew the risks, but he was ready.”
Taylor, a Tennessean who is now 81, recalled in an interview last week that he had to figure out how to get the men out, otherwise “they wouldn’t make it.”
David Hill, one of the four Taylor saved that night, said his actions were what “we now call thinking outside the box.”
Hill and the others were on a night mission to track the movement of enemy troops in a village near the Saigon River when they were discovered by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops. An intense firefight ensued and soon they were running out of ammunition. They radioed for help.
Taylor arrived in minutes at the site northeast of what is now Ho Chi Minh City. He asked the team to send up flares to mark their location in the dark. Taylor and a pilot in an accompanying helicopter started firing their ships’ Miniguns and rockets at the enemy, making low-level attack runs and braving intense ground fire for about a half-hour.
But with both helicopters nearly out of ammunition and the enemy continuing to advance, Taylor surveyed the team’s intended escape route to a point near the river and concluded that the men would never make it.
He had to think of something else.
Now running low on fuel and almost out of ammunition himself, Taylor directed his wingman to fire the rounds left in his Minigun along the team’s eastern flank and return to base camp, while Taylor fired his remaining rounds on the western flank. He used the landing lights to distract the enemy, buying time for the patrol team to head south and east toward a new extraction point he had identified.
After they arrived, Taylor landed under heavy enemy fire and at great personal risk. The four team members rushed toward the helicopter and clung to the exterior — it only had two seats — and Taylor whisked them away to safety. He was on the ground for about 10 seconds.
“I finally just flew up behind them and sat down on the ground,” Taylor said by telephone. “They turned around and jumped on the aircraft. A couple were sitting on the skids. One was sitting on the rocket pods, and I don’t know where the other one was, but they beat on the side of the ship twice, which meant haul a--. And we did!”
During the medal ceremony, Biden said that Taylor’s aircraft was “hit multiple times” and that, according to “Army standards, he could have left the fight.” At one point, the president said, Taylor was directed to withdraw but “he refused to put his own life above the lives of those in need.”
“That’s valor,” Biden said. “That’s our nation at its very best.”
The army says that what Taylor did that night had never been attempted.
The president, whose wife, first lady Jill Biden, tested positive on Monday for COVID, and Taylor wore facemasks to start the ceremony. But both later removed them and later stood together maskless as Biden placed the medal on Taylor, shook his hand and saluted him.
In the interview before the ceremony, Taylor said he flew hundreds of combat missions in UH-1 and Cobra helicopters during a year’s deployment in Vietnam and, “We never lost a man.”
“You just do whatever is expedient and do whatever to save the lives of the people you’re trying to rescue,” he said.
Taylor left Vietnam in August 1968. He was released from Army active duty in August 1970, having attained the rank of captain, and was discharged from the Army Reserve in October 1973.
He later ran a roofing and sheet metal company in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He and his wife, Toni, live in Signal Mountain, Tennessee.
Taylor received scores of combat decorations, including the Silver Star, a Bronze Star and two Distinguished Flying Crosses.
The president noted that, all told, Taylor flew more than 2,000 combat missions — earning 43 air medals.
“Thank God he’s not wearing all of them on his chest. He’d have trouble standing,” Biden joked.
Still, Hill said in an interview that he and Taylor’s other supporters were shocked to learn over the years that Taylor had not been awarded a Medal of Honor.
Hill said they believed Taylor deserved the medal, the military’s highest decoration for service members who go above and beyond the call of duty, often risking their lives through selfless acts of valor.
Their campaign lasted more than six years. Biden called Taylor in July with the news.
Biden said Tuesday that Taylor didn’t see some of the men he rescued that night in 1968 until decades later, at Army reunions.
“But the greatest honor of all, the family showed up at these reunions too,” Biden said.
“They’d look for Larry. They’d hug him. They’d say ‘You don’t know me, but you saved my Daddy’s life.’”
----------------------
RELATED
This daring Vietnam rescue finally results in Medal of Honor award
https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2023/09/01/this-daring-vietnam-rescue-finally-results-in-medal-of-honor-award/
https://www.armytimes.com/veterans/2023/09/05/biden-awards-army-pilot-medal-of-honor-for-vietnam-war-rescue/
Trump’s drumbeat of lies about the 2020 election keeps getting louder. Here are the facts
'Bunch of Doubt about that 2020 election -- and just 7.5 years to go to 100 -- so I get to watch the Trump landslide for 2024.........' LOLOL
BY ROBERT YOON
Updated 8:43 AM CDT, August 27, 2023
https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=172695867
Former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio gets 22 years, longest Jan. 6 sentence yet
The former Proud Boys chairman wasn't present at the Capitol attack, but prosecutors said he acted as "a general rather than a soldier."
Sept. 5, 2023, 7:00 AM CDT / Updated Sept. 5, 2023, 4:53 PM CDT
By Daniel Barnes and Ryan J. Reilly
All Links:
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/enrique-tarrio-proud-boys-sentenced-jan-6-sedition-case-rcna103280
'WASHINGTON — Enrique Tarrio, the former chairman of the far-right Proud Boys, was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison Tuesday afternoon following his conviction on a seditious conspiracy charge in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
His sentence is the longest in a Jan. 6 case so far, surpassing the 18 years for Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who was also convicted of seditious conspiracy.
Tarrio was one of four Proud Boys found guilty of seditious conspiracy in May. Federal prosecutors sought a sentence of 33 years in federal prison; U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly sentenced Tarrio's co-defendants to much lower terms than those sought by prosecutors.
Last week, Joe Biggs was sentenced to 17 years, Zachary Rehl to 15 years and Ethan Nordean to 18 years. Proud Boy Dominic Pezzola, the fifth defendant, was found not guilty of the top charge of seditious conspiracy but guilty of other charges; he was sentenced to 10 years.
Federal prosecutors called Tarrio a "naturally charismatic leader, a savvy propagandist, and the celebrity Chairman of the national Proud Boys organization."
.. https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.228300/gov.uscourts.dcd.228300.855.1.pdf .. Tarrio, they said, had "influence over countless subordinate members," which he used "to organize and execute the conspiracy to forcibly stop the peaceful democratic transfer of power."
Tarrio was not at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021; he was arrested about 48 hours before the attack because of his actions at a previous pro-Trump event in Washington. Tarrio knew a warrant was out for his arrest thanks to a Washington police lieutenant who has since been charged and pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors said the evidence suggests Tarrio "strategically calculated his arrest as a means to inspire a reaction by his followers."
That Tarrio spent most of Jan. 6 at a hotel in Baltimore, prosecutors said, "does nothing to detract from the severity of his conduct," because he "was a general rather than a soldier."
Tarrio, prosecutors said, is "intelligent, charming, creative, and articulate — a gifted communicator who excels at attracting followers" who "used those talents to inflame and radicalize untold numbers of followers, promoting political violence in general and orchestrating the charged conspiracies in particular."
“To Tarrio, January 6 was an act of revolution,” prosecutors wrote.
They argued for a terrorism sentencing enhancement, saying his actions were clearly intended to influence the government. The judge agreed, applying the terrorism enhancement in Tarrio's case, as he did for Tarrio's four co-defendants.
“My client is no terrorist. My client is a misguided patriot,” Tarrio’s lawyer Sabino Jauregui said, arguing that his client went to Washington to "protest."
“My client comes from a country where there are no rights, there’s nothing,” he said, referring to Tarrio’s Cuban heritage. “He was trying to protect this country, as misguided as he was.”
Tarrio's defense team argued for a downward departure from the sentencing guidelines, seeking an unspecified lower sentence, and they submitted letters of support to the court, including one from a cousin of Tarrio’s who has worked for Miami police for 16 years.
The defense had asked Kelly to see “another side” of Tarrio that is “benevolent, cooperative with law enforcement, useful in the community, hardworking and with a tight-knight family unit and community support.”
Enrique Tarrio outside the Capitol on Sept. 6, 2021.U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Assistant U.S. Attorney Conor Mulroe, arguing for the prosecution, called Tarrio’s behavior a “calculated act of terrorism,” saying the consequences need to be abundantly clear to anyone who might be unhappy with the results of the 2024 election and any elections in the future.
“There was a very real possibility that we were going to wake up on January 7 in a full-blown constitutional crisis with the federal government in complete chaos,” Mulroe said. “That is what revolution means and that is what he openly perused and that is what he very nearly achieved. And it didn’t take rifles and explosives.”
Mulroe also pushed back against Tarrio’s lawyers' attributing his actions to “misguided patriotism,” saying Tarrio's plan was for street violence on a national scale to be brought to bear against the seat of government.
The Proud Boys' actions "were absolutely pivotal to what happened on January 6," he said. “They were a tidal wave of force that had such a dramatic effect on the day’s events.”
Before his sentencing, Tarrio delivered a contrite statement, apologizing to members of law enforcement, the citizens of Washington, lawmakers and his family. “To the men and women of law enforcement who answered the call that day, I’m sorry,” Tarrio said.
“I have always tried to hold myself to a higher standard, and I failed,” he said. “I failed miserably. I thought of myself morally above others, and this trial has humbled me.”
Tarrio also walked back statements he had made comparing Pezzola to George Washington, a statement that appeared to irk Kelly when it came up earlier in the proceeding.
Tarrio also sought to downplay his political involvement, saying he did not intend to change the results of the election on Jan. 6 but only planned to go to speak at an event to support Donald Trump and to support his friends.
“I am not a political zealot,” he said. “When I get back home, I want nothing to do with politics, groups, activism or rallies.”
Tarrio added that he would not say anything different after Kelly left the room, an apparent reference to his co-defendant Pezzola, who shouted “Trump won” after he was sentenced to 10 years last week.
About 1,100 people have been charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, and more than 300 have been sentenced to periods of incarceration.
There are new arrests every week, including the recent arrests of the first person who is seen on video breaching the lower west tunnel .. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/fbi-arrests-first-capitol-rioter-breach-tunnel-melee-broke-jan-6-rcna101324 .. at the Capitol and of another defendant who the FBI said stormed the Capitol and recorded a TikTok video in which he bragged that rioters "took the White House" https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/capitol-rioter-bragged-took-white-house-charged-lying-fbi-rcna102607
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/enrique-tarrio-proud-boys-sentenced-jan-6-sedition-case-rcna103280
British Writer Pens The Best Description Of Trump I’ve Read
London Daily
Nate White
Monday, Sep 04, 2023
“Why do some British people not like Donald Trump?”
Nate White, an articulate and witty writer from England wrote the following response:
A few things spring to mind.
Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem.
For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour and no grace – all qualities, funnily enough, with which his predecessor Mr. Obama was generously blessed.
So for us, the stark contrast does rather throw Trump’s limitations into embarrassingly sharp relief.
Plus, we like a laugh. And while Trump may be laughable, he has never once said anything wry, witty or even faintly amusing – not once, ever.
I don’t say that rhetorically, I mean it quite literally: not once, not ever. And that fact is particularly disturbing to the British sensibility – for us, to lack humour is almost inhuman. But with Trump, it’s a fact. He doesn’t even seem to understand what a joke is – his idea of a joke is a crass comment, an illiterate insult, a casual act of cruelty.
Trump is a troll. And like all trolls, he is never funny and he never laughs; he only crows or jeers.
And scarily, he doesn’t just talk in crude, witless insults – he actually thinks in them. His mind is a simple bot-like algorithm of petty prejudices and knee-jerk nastiness.
There is never any under-layer of irony, complexity, nuance or depth. It’s all surface. Some Americans might see this as refreshingly upfront. Well, we don’t. We see it as having no inner world, no soul. And in Britain we traditionally side with David, not Goliath. All our heroes are plucky underdogs: Robin Hood, Dick Whittington, Oliver Twist. Trump is neither plucky, nor an underdog. He is the exact opposite of that. He’s not even a spoiled rich-boy, or a greedy fat-cat. He’s more a fat white slug. A Jabba the Hutt of privilege.
And worse, he is that most unforgivable of all things to the British: a bully. That is, except when he is among bullies; then he suddenly transforms into a snivelling sidekick instead. There are unspoken rules to this stuff – the Queensberry rules of basic decency – and he breaks them all. He punches downwards – which a gentleman should, would, could never do – and every blow he aims is below the belt. He particularly likes to kick the vulnerable or voiceless – and he kicks them when they are down.
So the fact that a significant minority – perhaps a third – of Americans look at what he does, listen to what he says, and then think ‘Yeah, he seems like my kind of guy’ is a matter of some confusion and no little distress to British people, given that:
• Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.
• You don’t need a particularly keen eye for detail to spot a few flaws in the man.
This last point is what especially confuses and dismays British people, and many other people too; his faults seem pretty bloody hard to miss. After all, it’s impossible to read a single tweet, or hear him speak a sentence or two, without staring deep into the abyss. He turns being artless into an art form; he is a Picasso of pettiness; a Shakespeare of shit. His faults are fractal: even his flaws have flaws, and so on ad infinitum. God knows there have always been stupid people in the world, and plenty of nasty people too. But rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid. He makes Nixon look trustworthy and George W look smart. In fact, if Frankenstein decided to make a monster assembled entirely from human flaws – he would make a Trump.
And a remorseful Doctor Frankenstein would clutch out big clumpfuls of hair and scream in anguish: ‘My God… what… have… I… created?' If being a twat was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set.
https://londondaily.com/british-writer-pens-the-best-description-of-trump-i-ve-read
https://www.democraticunderground.com/1016362448
In this case I wasn't that concerned about the source.
I just enjoyed reading about the possibility of: "Trump will be assassinated...'
'Tucker Carlson is as cheap and dangerous as the far right-wing gets in America. His attempt to incite terrorism by suggesting Trump will be assassinated is as recklessly dangerous as incendiary headline grabbing rhetoric could be'
Tucker Makes Bone-Chilling Prediction
Opinion by David Rufful
1h
Tucker Carlson, who is the highest-rated cable news host in U.S. history, says he believes that the country is speeding toward the potential assassination of Donald Trump.
Trump currently faces four criminal indictments as overly emotional and crazed leftists have weaponized the U.S. justice system.
“We’re speeding toward assassination, obviously,” Carlson said. (Poll: Do You Stand With Donald Trump? VOTE)
Podcast host and comedian Adam Carolla asked, “Are they going to let Trump be president?”
“So if you begin with criticism, then you go to protest, then you go to impeachment, now you go to indictment, and none of them work, what’s next?” Carlson asked.
“I mean, graph it out, man,” Carlson said.
“They have decided — permanent Washington, both parties — have decided that there’s something about Trump that’s so threatening to them that they just can’t have him,” Carlson said.
“If this were happening in Moldova, the State Department would issue an all-hands-on-deck order to let the world know this is not a legitimate government, and yet our government is doing it,” Carlson said.
“It’s really hard to overstate how bad this is, and I don’t know where it’s going, but there’s a collision that’s clearly imminent,” Carlson predicted.
“I’ve never been this worried about anything as I am about where this is going,” Carlson concluded.
[...]
The post Tucker Makes Bone-Chilling Prediction appeared first on https://www.americainsider.org/
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/tucker-makes-bone-chilling-prediction/ar-AA1g3SsV?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=5860a0fc12464bfcb744186af6377572&ei=26
Two ex-Proud Boys leaders get some of longest sentences in Jan. 6 Capitol attack
By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and LINDSAY WHITEHURST
Updated 4:52 PM CDT, August 31, 2023
Proud Boys members including, Zachary Rehl, left , Ethan Nordean, center, and Joseph Biggs walk toward the U.S. Capitol in Washington
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two former leaders of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group were sentenced to more than a decade each in prison Thursday for spearheading an attack on the U.S. Capitol to try to prevent the peaceful transfer of power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden after the 2020 presidential election.
The 17-year prison term for organizer Joseph Biggs and 15-year sentence for leader Zachary Rehl were the second and third longest sentences handed down yet in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack.
They were the first Proud Boys to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, who will separately preside over similar hearings of three others who were convicted by a jury in May after a four-month trial in Washington that laid bare far-right extremists’ embrace of lies by Trump, a Republican, that the 2020 election was stolen from him.
Enrique Tarrio, a Miami resident who was the Proud Boys’ national chairman and top leader, is scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday. His sentencing was moved from Wednesday to next week because U.S. District Kelly was sick.
Tarrio wasn’t in Washington on Jan. 6. He had been arrested two days before the Capitol riot on charges that he defaced a Black Lives Matter banner during an earlier rally in the nation’s capital, and he complied with a judge’s order to leave the city after his arrest. He picked Biggs and Proud Boys chapter president Ethan Nordean to be the group’s leaders on the ground in his absence, prosecutors said.
Rehl, Biggs, Tarrio and Nordean were convicted of charges including seditious conspiracy, a rarely brought Civil War-era offense. A fifth Proud Boys member, Dominic Pezzola, was acquitted of seditious conspiracy but convicted of other serious charges.
Federal prosecutors had recommended a 33-year prison sentence for Biggs, who helped lead dozens of Proud Boys members and associates in marching to the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Biggs and other Proud Boys joined the mob that broke through police lines and forced lawmakers to flee, disrupting the joint session of Congress for certifying the electoral victory by Biden, a Democrat.
[...]
https://apnews.com/article/capitol-riot-proud-boys-sentencing-seditious-conspiracy-5c8bf8a8e5dc6381e7387e31e554cee6
From Europe to Canada to Hawaii, photos capture destructive power of wildfires
BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Updated 8:12 PM CDT, August 23, 2023
The destructive power of wildfire has been a defining feature of a summer of climate extremes.
Dozens of people on multiple continents have died. Blazes have reduced homes and businesses to rubble. Thick smoke has darkened skies and carried fine-particle pollution thousands of miles from its source.
It’s a ghastly pattern that climate scientists around the world say has been worsened and fueled by human-caused global warming. Greenhouse gas emissions have greatly increased the chances of hot, dry weather that makes severe fires more likely. And while proper management can help — for instance, controlled burns and clearing out overgrown forests — it’s not always enough to beat the odds as climate change drives fire seasons to start earlier and last longer.
Local residents watch the wildfire in Avantas village, near Alexandroupolis town, in the northeastern Evros region, Greece, Aug. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Achilleas Chiras)
Smoke from a wildfire on the outskirts of the Greek capital covers the sun as it sets over the Parthenon temple atop of the ancient Acropolis in Athens, Aug. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden take an aerial tour on Marine One over areas devastated by the Maui wildfires, Aug. 21, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Crosses honoring victims killed in a recent wildfire are posted along the Lahaina Bypass in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Residents try to clean the forest to prevent it from flames as fire advances in La Orotava in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain on Saturday, Aug. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Arturo Rodriguez)
Residents try to reach their houses in Benijos village as a wildfire advances in La Orotava in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, Aug. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Arturo Rodriguez)
Residents try to reach their houses in Benijos village as police block the area as a wildfire advances in La Orotava in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain on Aug. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Arturo Rodriguez)
[...]
https://apnews.com/article/photography-wildfires-climate-fire-greece-hawaii-spain-canada-22266a7cc68dd98c8753a8fe8b72c109
From Europe to Canada to Hawaii, photos capture destructive power of wildfires
BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Updated 8:12 PM CDT, August 23, 2023
The destructive power of wildfire has been a defining feature of a summer of climate extremes.
Dozens of people on multiple continents have died. Blazes have reduced homes and businesses to rubble. Thick smoke has darkened skies and carried fine-particle pollution thousands of miles from its source.
It’s a ghastly pattern that climate scientists around the world say has been worsened and fueled by human-caused global warming. Greenhouse gas emissions have greatly increased the chances of hot, dry weather that makes severe fires more likely. And while proper management can help — for instance, controlled burns and clearing out overgrown forests — it’s not always enough to beat the odds as climate change drives fire seasons to start earlier and last longer.
Local residents watch the wildfire in Avantas village, near Alexandroupolis town, in the northeastern Evros region, Greece, Aug. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Achilleas Chiras)
Smoke from a wildfire on the outskirts of the Greek capital covers the sun as it sets over the Parthenon temple atop of the ancient Acropolis in Athens, Aug. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden take an aerial tour on Marine One over areas devastated by the Maui wildfires, Aug. 21, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Crosses honoring victims killed in a recent wildfire are posted along the Lahaina Bypass in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Residents try to clean the forest to prevent it from flames as fire advances in La Orotava in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain on Saturday, Aug. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Arturo Rodriguez)
Residents try to reach their houses in Benijos village as a wildfire advances in La Orotava in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, Aug. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Arturo Rodriguez)
Residents try to reach their houses in Benijos village as police block the area as a wildfire advances in La Orotava in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain on Aug. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Arturo Rodriguez)
[...]
https://apnews.com/article/photography-wildfires-climate-fire-greece-hawaii-spain-canada-22266a7cc68dd98c8753a8fe8b72c109
One week after sullying the Women’s World Cup, Luis Rubiales... is now a Spanish soccer outcast
By JOSEPH WILSON
Updated 6:25 PM CDT, August 27, 2023
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — One week after the president of the Spanish soccer federation kissed a player during the Women’s World Cup awards ceremony, his reputation is in tatters and he’s out of his job.
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-spain-rubiales-cb3ca505685f4230fdd03102b8b3601c
Luis Rubiales, whose leadership of Spanish soccer had already been marked by successes tinged with scandal, wrecked his career by offending millions worldwide with his conduct at the final in Sydney, Australia, when he also grabbed his crotch in a victory gesture.
“Rubiales cannot run Spanish soccer again,” Spanish minister María Jesús Montero said Sunday, a day after he was provisionally suspended by FIFA for 90 days.
“We had enough of him when he marred the great triumph of women’s soccer with his intolerable attitude.”
Rubiales was replaced by his vice president Pedro Rocha, who will act as interim chief in his absence. Rocha is considered to be a confidant of Rubiales. Rocha has called an emergency meeting of the soccer federation’s regional heads to discuss the crisis on Monday, when women’s groups will rally in downtown Madrid in support of forward Jenni Hermoso, who was kissed on the lips by Rubiales after Spain’s 1-0 win over England in the final.
FIFA moved against Rubiales after he refused to step down and defiantly told an emergency assembly of his federation on Friday that he was the victim of a “witch hunt” by “false feminists.”
On a day that will go down as one of the ugliest in Spanish soccer, Rubiales said that Hermoso had consented to the “mutual” kiss. Hermoso replied in two statements to say that was false and that she considered herself the victim of an abuse of power. She also accused the federation of trying to pressure her into supporting Rubiales. The federation hit back by saying she was lying and that it would take legal action against her.
As part of his suspension of Rubiales, FIFA disciplinary judge Jorge Palacio ordered Rubiales and the federation not to contact Hermoso.
Spain’s government is also pursuing his permanent removal in Spain’s Administrative Court for Sports. The court will meet in the coming week to consider the government’s lawsuit for an alleged abuse of power and for allegedly committing acts that tarnished the dignity and decorum of a sporting event. If found guilty, Rubiales could be ruled unfit to hold office.
Spain great Andrés Iniesta, a 2010 World Cup winner, said “after what has happened this week I would like to express my sadness, as a person, as a father of three girls, as a husband and as a soccer player.
“We have had to bear this president who clung to power, didn’t admit that his behavior had been unacceptable and was damaging the image of our country and our soccer before the world,” Iniesta said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Rubiales’ behavior has tarnished not only the greatest feat of Spanish women’s soccer, it has also torn apart his federation.
The only public support Rubiales has received came during Friday’s general assembly when he was applauded several times by parts of the mostly male crowd, which was made up of regional federation officials, coaches, referees and players from lower divisions.
[...]
https://apnews.com/article/spain-rubiales-womens-world-cup-hermoso-903f414821882c82bb8de64b2b65cdaa