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World
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U.S. Agencies Said to Swap Data With Thousands of Firms
Thousands of technology, finance and manufacturing companies are working
closely with U.S. national security agencies, providing sensitive
information and in return receiving benefits that include access to
classified intelligence, four people familiar with the process said.
Enlarge image U.S. Agencies Said to Swap Intelligence With Thousands of Firms
These programs, whose participants are known as trusted partners, extend
far beyond what was revealed by Edward Snowden, a computer technician
who did work for the National Security Agency. The role of private
companies has come under intense scrutiny since his disclosure this
month that the NSA is collecting millions of U.S. residents’ telephone
records and the computer communications of foreigners from Google Inc
(GOOG). and other Internet companies under court order.
57% Fear Government Will Use NSA Data to Harass Political Opponents
There is little public support for the sweeping and unaccountable nature
of the National Security Agency surveillance program along with
concerns about how the data will be used.
Fifty-seven percent (57%) of voters nationwide believe it is likely the
NSA data will be used by other government agencies to harass political
opponents. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that
just 30% consider it unlikely and 14% are not sure. (To see survey
question wording, click here.)
Russia Hits Back at U.S. Over Syria
The Kremlin criticized the U.S. decision to arm Syrian opposition
fighters and said Washington's evidence that the Syrian regime is using
chemical weapons was unconvincing, but said Friday that Moscow is "not
yet" discussing its plans to deliver of air-defense missiles to the
regime.
President Barack Obama on Thursday authorized the U.S. to arm fighters
against the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime, reversing a
policy of giving only nonlethal support to the country's opposition in
the two-year-old civil war. The White House cited confirmation that Mr.
Assad's regime had killed up to 150 people with chemical weapons as the
reason for its about-face.
Obama Campaign Reignites Gun Fight
With an email today from the daughter of Sandy Hook Elementary School in
Newtown, Connecticut, the group formerly known as the Obama reelection
campaign, Organizing for Action, is reigniting the fight over guns in
America.
"My mom, Dawn Hochsprung, was the principal at Sandy Hook Elementary
School in Newtown, Connecticut," the email from Erica Lafferty begins.
"Six months ago today, she was shot and killed in her school, along with five of her coworkers and 20 of her students."
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer pushes through Obama's Medicaid expansion
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer won a battle with state lawmakers this week,
defying most other conservatives in her party to get a key component of
President Obama’s Medicaid expansion through the Legislature.
The Arizona Senate voted Thursday to approve the measure 18 to 11. That
followed approval earlier this week by the state House of
Representatives.
The issue had inflamed passions and divided the Legislature for weeks.
Things came to a head Tuesday when Brewer called lawmakers into the
Capitol in Phoenix for a surprise special session.
Iranians vote in presidential poll
Millions of Iranians voted to choose a new president on Friday, urged by
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to turn out in force to discredit
suggestions by arch foe the United States that the election would be a
sham.
The 50 million eligible voters had a choice between six candidates to
replace incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, but none is seen as challenging
the Islamic Republic's 34-year-old system of clerical rule.
U.S.: Syria used chemical weapons, crossing 'red line'
The Obama administration has concluded that Syrian President Bashar
Assad's government used chemical weapons against the rebels seeking to
overthrow him and, in a major policy shift, President Obama has decided
to supply military support to the rebels, the White House announced
Thursday.
"The president has made a decision about providing more support to the
opposition that will involve providing direct support to the [Supreme
Military Council]. That includes military support," Deputy National
Security Adviser for Strategic Communication Ben Rhodes told reporters.
Smith & Wesson booked record sales as gun debate raged
The past 12 months have been bad for gun violence, but good for Smith & Wesson.
The gun maker reported preliminary results Thursday showing that sales
for the fiscal year ended April 30 hit a record $588 million, a 43%
increase versus the year prior. Earnings were a record $1.22 a share, up
from 40 cents a share in the prior fiscal year.
Both figures came in slightly ahead of analyst expectations. Smith & Wesson (SWHC)shares rose 5.3% in after-hours trading.
Obama Tells Keystone Foes He Will Unveil Climate Measure
With his administration under pressure from environmentalists to reject
the Keystone XL pipeline project, President Barack Obama plans to unveil
a package of separate actions next month focused on curbing U.S.
greenhouse gas emissions.
At closed-door fundraisers held over the past few weeks, the president
has been telling Democratic party donors that he will unveil new climate
proposals in July, according to people who have attended the events or
been briefed.
Obama acts to free up spectrum to ease crunch
US President Barack Obama moved Friday to free up more broadcast
spectrum used by federal agencies to help meet the surging demand from
smartphones and other mobile devices.
A White House order calls for a federal team to evaluate ways for
agencies to give up or share spectrum for mobile broadband operators.
Jed Bush: 'Fertile' immigrants boost economy
Former Florida governor Jeb Bush has long been a proponent of
overhauling the nation's immigration laws, often touting the impact of
immigrants on the nation's economy.
His comment Friday, however, that immigrants are more "fertile" caused a stir on Twitter.
"Immigrants create far more businesses than native-born Americans," Bush
said at the Faith & Freedom Coalition conference in Washington.
"Immigrants are more fertile, and they love families, and they have more
intact families and they bring a younger population. Immigrants create
an engine of economic prosperity."
Obama's Africa Trip Could Cost $100 Million
President Barack Obama's trip to Africa later this month could be one of
the most expensive of his tenure, costing the government as much as
$100 million.
According to a confidential internal planning document obtained by The
Washington Post, hundreds of Secret Service agents will be dispatched to
secure facilities in Senegal, South Africa, and Tanzania, which the
first family will visit from June 26 to July 3.
Gen. Vallely: Arming Syrian Rebels Reflects Obama's 'Ineptness' on International Affairs
Retired U.S. Army Gen. Paul Vallely tells Newsmax that President Barack
Obama's previous reluctance to provide military support to the Syrian
rebels is an example of the administration's "ineptness" in
international affairs.
The expert on Syria also says he agrees with Sen. John McCain that imposing a no-fly zone in Syria would be a "positive step."
Vallely retired from the Army in 1993 as Deputy Commanding General,
Pacific. He is the co-author of the book "Endgame: The Blueprint for
Victory in the War on Terror," and the founder of the Syrian Opposition
Liaison Group, which was created in conjunction with the Free Syrian
Army and Stand-up America.
Surveillance and Its Discontents
The false 'tradeoff' between liberty and security in the terror war.
In 1998, after Osama bin Laden orchestrated the bombings of U.S.
embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, FBI agents were deployed to collect
evidence so they could issue a warrant for his arrest. Twelve years
later, Seal Team Six raided his Abbottabad compound, shot and killed him
and his guards and then dumped his corpse into the sea.
The difference is that the U.S. is now waging a war on terror, and not a
metaphorical war like LBJ's on poverty. This is a crucial distinction
that has been lost amid the growing ruction over the National Security
Agency surveillance programs. Another point lost amid the uproar is that
the safety of citizens is the first—and in our view, the
principal—obligation of government.
Privacy Isn't All We're Losing
The surveillance state threatens Americans' love of country.
The U.S. surveillance state as outlined and explained by Edward Snowden
is not worth the price. Its size, scope and intrusiveness, its ability
to target and monitor American citizens, its essential
unaccountability—all these things are extreme.
The purpose of the surveillance is enhanced security, a necessary goal
to say the least. The price is a now formal and agreed-upon acceptance
of the end of the last vestiges of Americans' sense of individual
distance and privacy from the government. The price too is a knowledge,
based on human experience and held by all but fools and children, that
the gleanings of the surveillance state will eventually be used by the
mischievous, the malicious and the ignorant in ways the creators of the
system did not intend. For all we know that's already happened. But of
course we don't know: It's secret. Only the intelligence officials know,
and they say everything's A-OK.
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- Medal of
Honor
- The
Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor in action against an
enemy force which can be bestowed upon an individual serving in the
Armed Services of the United States.
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GeneTrerally presented to its recipient by the President of the
United States of America in the name of Congress.
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- The
first award of the Medal of Honor was made March 25, 1863 to Private
JACOB PARROTT.
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The last award of the Medal of Honor was made September 15, 2011
to Sergeant DAKOTA MEYER.
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- Since
then there have been:
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• 3458 recipients of the Medal of Honor.
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• Today there are 85 Living Recipients of the
Medal of Honor.
CAPTAIN HUMBERT R ('Rocky'). VERSACE
UNITED STATES ARMY
for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty:
Captain Humbert R. Versace distinguished himself by extraordinary
heroism during the period of 29 October 1963 to 26 September 1965,
while serving as S-2 Advisor, Military Assistance Advisory Group,
Detachment 52, Ca Mau, Republic of Vietnam. While accompanying a
Civilian Irregular Defense Group patrol engaged in combat operations in
Thoi Binh District, An Xuyen Province, Captain Versace and the patrol
came under sudden and intense mortar, automatic weapons, and small arms
fire from elements of a heavily armed enemy battalion. As the battle
raged, Captain Versace, although severely wounded in the knee and back
by hostile fire, fought valiantly and continued to engage enemy
targets. Weakened by his wounds and fatigued by the fierce firefight,
Captain Versace stubbornly resisted capture by the over-powering Viet
Cong force with the last full measure of his strength and ammunition.
Taken prisoner by the Viet Cong, he exemplified the tenets of the Code
of Conduct from the time he entered into Prisoner of War status.
Captain Versace assumed command of his fellow American soldiers,
scorned the enemy's exhaustive interrogation and indoctrination
efforts, and made three unsuccessful attempts to escape, despite his
weakened condition which was brought about by his wounds and the
extreme privation and hardships he was forced to endure. During his
captivity, Captain Versace was segregated in an isolated prisoner of
war cage, manacled in irons for prolonged periods of time, and placed
on extremely reduced ration. The enemy was unable to break his
indomitable will, his faith in God, and his trust in the United States
of America. Captain Versace, an American fighting man who epitomized
the principles of his country and the Code of Conduct, was executed by
the Viet Cong on 26 September 1965. Captain Versace's gallant actions
in close contact with an enemy force and unyielding courage and bravery
while a prisoner of war are in the highest traditions of the military
service and reflect the utmost credit upon himself and the United
States Army.
