President Donald Trump gleefully announced that, under his direction, U.S. military troops had swooped down on the Governor’s Mansion in Sacramento and kidnapped California Governor Gavin Newsom. “We’re charging Newscum with fraud.” When a reporter asked for specifics about the fraud charges, Trump pointed to Attorney General Pam Bondi. Bondi, clearly taken by surprise, said, “We’re looking into it and will let you know the details as soon as we’ve created them.”   read more

Even before the shooting rampage at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla., lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people were already the most likely targets of hate crimes in America, reports the FBI. LGBT people are twice as likely to be targeted as African-Americans, and the rate of hate crimes against them has surpassed that of crimes against Jews. There is a long history of not being treated with respect by law enforcement, social service agencies and the legal system, said Roger Coggan.   read more

Afghans feel less secure than at any recent time as Afghan battlefield deaths continue to escalate and civilian casualties hit a record high. Afghan civilian casualties in 2015 hit the highest level since the U.N. group began systematic documentation in 2009. "As fighting and suicide attacks have increased in more populated areas, the number of women and children included among the civilian casualties has also increased," the report said.   read more

The justices sided with Kingdomware Technologies Inc., a veteran-owned contractor based in Maryland that said it should have been considered to provide services for a VA medical center. The case is important to veterans groups that claimed the VA was wrongly interpreting bidding requirements in a way that deprived thousands of small companies owned by veterans. Those companies want a slice of the billions of dollars in contracts the VA awards every year.   read more

The hackers were turned loose on five public Pentagon internet pages and were offered various bounties if they could find unique vulnerabilities. The Pentagon says 1,410 hackers participated in the challenge and the first gap was identified just 13 minutes after the hunt began. One of the hackers was David Dworken, who just graduated from high school. He said he worked on the program during his free time, logging in between homework assignments.   read more

Since New York attorney general Schneiderman announced the first investigation of Exxon Mobil over its past research statements about climate change, nearly 20 other state attorneys general have voiced their support. But Exxon has been pushing back, fighting subpoenas and winning the support of lawmakers and friendly state attorneys. Schneiderman called the pushback from the company and its supporters “First Amendment opportunism.”   read more

In a dissenting opinion, Alcala challenged the court's rejection that "evolving standards of decency" show the death penalty to be deemed unconstitutional. "In my view, the Texas scheme has some serious deficiencies that have, in the past, caused me great concern about this form of punishment as it exists in Texas today," she wrote. "Given...the history of racial discrimination in this country, I have no doubt that race has been an improper consideration in particular death-penalty cases..."   read more

Congress adopted the law amid frustration by lawmakers of both parties, who said the VA was too slow to fire employees for wrongdoing. Lawmakers were incensed that veterans on secret waiting lists faced scheduling delays of up to a year. As many as 40 veterans died while awaiting care at the Phoenix VA hospital. "Everyone knows VA isn't very good at disciplining employees, but this decision calls into question whether department leaders are even interested in doing so," said Rep. Jeff Miller.   read more

All seniors would get better protection from extremely high costs, but some may have to spend more. It would raise costs by about $1,000 for some beneficiaries who land in the widely loathed coverage gap known as the "doughnut hole." And MedPAC also proposed restructuring modest copayments that low-income beneficiaries may face, in order to encourage greater use of generic and preferred brand name drugs. Insurance companies aren't likely to be pleased.   read more

Mayor Kenney took a different tack from that of politicians who have tried and failed to pass sugary-drink taxes. He didn’t talk about the tax as a measure designed to discourage sugar-saturated soft drinks. And he didn’t promise to earmark the proceeds for health programs. Instead, he cast the soft drink industry as a revenue source that could be tapped to fund popular city programs. “This is the beginning of a process of changing the narrative of poverty in our city,” he said.   read more

Balumuene served in 2000 as diplomatic and administrative assistant to the deputy commissioner general of the Government for MONUC Affairs, in charge of finance, logistics and foreign policy for the UN peacekeeping effort in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Later that year, he was made chargé d’affaires at the embassy to South Africa in Pretoria. In 2003, Balumuene was sent to India as his country’s ambassador. He then became dean of New Delhi’s diplomatic corps.   read more

The Orlando shooting happened just blocks from a major trauma care hospital, an accident of geography that saved lives. But swaths of the country don't have fast access to top care, and it urges establishing a national system that puts the military's battlefield expertise to work at home. Military findings suggest about 20% of deaths could be prevented with optimal care. That translates into "81 patients a day dying in the U.S. — every day — that are potentially preventable."   read more

"As bad as people think the problem of opioid use is, it's probably worse," said Wayne Ray, the report's lead author. "They should be a last resort and particular care should be exercised for patients who are at cardiovascular risk." The drugs can slow breathing and can worsen disrupted breathing that occurs with sleep apnea, potentially leading to irregular heartbeats, heart attacks or sudden death. In 2014, there were more than 14,000 fatal overdoses linked with the painkillers in the U.S.   read more

"I have read these pages and can say that while their release will not harm national security, the contents are critical to our foreign policy moving forward," said Rep. Walter Jones. "That is why I have introduced a resolution that would enable the House Committee on Intelligence to declassify the 28 pages. ... It is more critical than ever for the American people to know what led to the tragic attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, and I urge my colleagues...to release the pages."   read more

The judge said "it is highly improbable that Congress absentmindedly forgot to mention an intended private action" when it created a statutory scheme with express provisions for private enforcement in certain circumstances. Godbey had rejected Texas' motion to block more Syrian refugees. He concluded then the dispute is a political issue that is not up to the states or federal courts. Federal officials argued in January that Texas had failed to prove the refugees are a threat to the public.   read more

The first assignment was as deputy permanent representative to the EU, then in 2007 he was made director of the private office of the secretary general of NATO. He returned to The Hague briefly in 2009 for a stint as director of the ministry’s North Africa and Middle East department, but was back in Brussels the following year, this time as ambassador to Belgium, where he served until being sent to Washington.   read more

The fear is an oil spill, like BP's Deepwater Horizon accident, would kill off the marine and bird life upon which the village depends for its survival. But while native-owned corporations press for development, other native leaders say the risk of a spill is too great. "We have our food source out there in the ocean, and if there's an oil spill...there's no scientific proof they clean it up," Tracey said. "It would take days, if not weeks, for the Coast Guard to get up here."   read more