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Sam Sacks - page 38

Sam Sacks has 859 articles published.

Oregon Standoff A Result of “Federal Inaction,” Watchdog Group Claims

An environmental whistleblower advocacy group said the ongoing armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon “stems from the lack of a coherent response to earlier confrontations with anti-government extremists.” Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility said that federal officials’ refusal to punish rancher Cliven Bundy for his April 2014 standoff in Nevada set a precedent that encouraged his son, Ammon, to lead the seizure of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. By Wednesday, the occupation entered its fifth day. “Rather than abating conflict, the federal hands-off… Keep Reading

Pentagon Spox: “Too Soon” To Assess Impact Of ISIL Oil Strikes, Compares Effort To Boxing Match

After intensifying its bombing of Islamic State (ISIL) oil infrastructure, a Pentagon official talked up the strategy on Thursday, despite conceding that it’s too early to tell if the targeting is having a desired effect. Operation Inherent Resolve Spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said that the strikes against ISIL’s petrol assets in Syria likely won’t yield an immediate impact, but used a boxing metaphor to claim they will eventually. “I look at it as in boxing as body shots, right?” Col. Warren said via satellite from Iraq. “You… Keep Reading

Pentagon Proposes Expanding Global U.S. Footprint in ISIL Fight

Defense Department officials are lobbying the White House to build or expand a series of military bases in the Middle East, Africa, and Southwest Asia in order to create an “enduring” counter-Islamic State (ISIL) presence. The proposal is aimed at specifically boosting intelligence and attack capabilities against ISIL, according to a report by the New York Times. Although the White House refused to comment on the scheme, Pentagon officials described it to The Times as including central “hubs,” housing each between 500 and 5,000 US… Keep Reading

Comey Urges a Business Model Change to Defeat Encryption

The head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation found himself in an awkward position on Wednesday when he urged American tech companies to reject their consumers’ demands. Testifying before a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing, James Comey claimed that secure online communications have become “part of terrorist tradecraft now,” and that companies providing those services must consequently leave law-abiding customers exposed. “It’s a business model question. Good people have made a decision to design products and sell products where court orders are ineffective,” Comey told lawmakers, implicitly… Keep Reading

Grassley: Blame Obama, Not Trump for Islamophobia In U.S.

According to Senate Judiciary Committee chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa.), it’s not Republicans’ anti-Muslim rhetoric and over a decade of ongoing, endless war in the Middle East that has bred a backlash against Islam in the United States: it’s President Obama’s apparent refusal to publicly use a term. The senator made the comment on Wednesday, as GOP party leaders and rank-and-file alike scrambled to distance themselves from a bigoted proposal by Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump. The heir businessman turned politician called on federal officials to stop all Muslims from… Keep Reading

Paul Ryan Scrambles To Keep Members In Line After Trump Turns Fascist

After the leading GOP presidential candidate proposed a temporary ban on all Muslims entering the United States, the Speaker of the House urged Republican members to not follow “The Donald” down the road of extremism. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) briefed reporters Tuesday, minutes after he appealed to his fellow Republicans’ better angels amid the uproar caused by Donald Trump’s discriminatory proposal. “I told our members this morning to always strive to live up to our highest ideals to uphold those principles in the constitution on which we swear every two years that we… Keep Reading

Clinton Defends No-Fly-List, Dismisses Concerns Over its Reliability

Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton on Sunday morning spoke approvingly of a government program that stops some American citizens never accused of any wrongdoing from traveling freely within the country. “I’m a lot happier having a list that keeps people off planes that there’s any question about their intent or their potential behavior,” Clinton said on ABC News, referring to the so-called no-fly list. The database includes tens of thousands of people, including roughly 800 Americans. In the wake of the Dec. 2 San Bernardino attack, Clinton… Keep Reading

Senator Markey Launches Inquiry Into Airliners’ Hacking Countermeasures

More than a dozen domestic air carriers and airplane manufactures are being asked to account for their cybersecurity defenses following warnings from a government watchdog that new on-flight technology could be exploited by hackers. In letters sent to aviation companies Wednesday, Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) sought information on: in-flight Wi-Fi services; the vetting of tech vendors; safeguards for critical flight systems, and general protection of customers’ data. “As technology rapidly continues to advance, we must all work to ensure that the airline industry remains vigilant… Keep Reading

Attorney General Laments “Criminalization of Poverty” and a Modern “Debtors’ Prison” System

During remarks on criminal justice reform delivered Thursday, the nation’s chief prosecutor Loretta Lynch spoke out against law enforcement’s dogged pursuit of enforcing fines, saying such strategies have resulted in a system of punishment previously declared illegal by the Supreme Court–most recently in 1983. Lynch criticized the fines, court fees, and administrative costs that have been increasingly levied by local officials on defendants accused of minor infractions like traffic violations–penalties brought to the nation’s attention last year by the Black Lives Matter movement and demonstrations against systemic police abuses… Keep Reading

Wyden Promises Senate Fight Over Intel Policy Bill Rider

A routine intelligence authorization bill passed by the House Tuesday could get jammed up in the Senate if it retains provisions that hamper the oversight of US spies. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said he would oppose any unanimous consent request to pass the 2016 Intelligence Authorization Act if it includes language restricting the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) from investigating covert activity. In a statement first posted by investigative reporter Marcy Wheeler Tuesday, Sen. Wyden (D-Ore.) said that Section 305 of the House-passed bill would… Keep Reading

Attorney General Called On To Investigate Chicago Police Killing Cover-up

The Attorney General of Illinois asked the Department of Justice to launch an investigation into the Chicago Police Department, stating that public trust has been broken following the killing of teenager Laquan McDonald by a CPD officer. In a letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch Tuesday, Illinois AG Lisa Madigan asked the DOJ Civil Rights Division to probe Chicago law enforcement for systemic legal and Constitutional violations. She wanted the inquiry focused on the police department’s use of deadly force guidelines, the reliability of its internal investigations, and… Keep Reading

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