Rep Scott Garrett Speaks at the Sussex County Lincoln Day Brunch
March 21,2015
Garrett Attends Events in DistrictCongressman Garrett is a strong advocate for Republican leadership at all levels of government, local, county, and state included. In February, the Congressman attended Lincoln Day events in Bergen, Sussex, and Warren counties, where he spoke about the importance of strong Republican leadership in New Jersey and listened to concerns voiced by constituents.Garrett Stands Up for Constituent Views
Supporting the Constitution and the rights that it stands for continues to be an issue of great responsibility for Congressman Garrett. He is the founder and chair of the Constitution Caucus, and on March 3rd, was the only New Jersey representative to vote against a bill that would support the Dept. of Homeland Security without addressing President Obama’s two immigration orders. “I cannot ignore the will of my constituents by supporting a bill that allows President Obama’s executive amnesty plan to continue unchecked,” he said. “I stand with the people of New Jersey’s Fifth District, law-abiding immigrants, and the constitution of the United States.”
Garrett for Congress Annual Golf Outing and Luncheon
Join Congressman Garrett on Thursday, May 28, 2015. The event will take place at the Farmstead Golf and Country Club in Lafayette, NJ. This is a fantastic opportunity to support the Congressman’s campaign while having an enjoyable afternoon on the golf course. Come with a group, or as an individual; we look forward to seeing you there! For more information, contact Anna Matthews at [email protected].
Volunteer for Garrett for Congress!
Donors and volunteers are a vital part of the campaign and the team always appreciates your help. To support the Congressman, you can contact the campaign at (973) 300-0470 to join our diverse, dynamic, and enthusiastic team of volunteers and donors. If you don’t feel able to volunteer your time, follow the Congressman on Facebook and show your support by sharing updates with your friends.
Ridgewood Schools Continues Curriculum Series on March 26 with Program on Exercise and the Brain
New Date: Curriculum Series Continues on March 26 with Program on Exercise and the Brain
Parents and guardians are invited to join district Physical Education teachers Susan Kameno and Craig Mahler, along with Hawes School Principal Dr. Paul Semendinger for an informative session on the impact of exercise on the development of the brain. The program will take place on Thursday, March 26, at the Education Center, 49 Cottage Place, floor 3, from 7-9 p.m.
Click here to read the press release for more information.
Click here for the flyer.
NEW: The district has added a program, “All About Google Apps for Education,” a series of three stand-alone workshops designed to introduce parents and guardians to the world of technology in the classroom. These workshops will be offered on April 15 (elementary school level); April 20 (middle school level): and April 22 (high school level). Each workshop is limited to 25 participants and pre-registration is required.
“You want to rumble Rove?” Glenn pens open letter to Karl Rove
by Glenn Saturday, Mar 21, 2015 at 10:06 AM EDT
An open letter to Karl Rove: You want to rumble Rove? Come on to my show and let’s have it out. Bring it on. I would love to take you on WITH YOUR RECORD AND THE RECORD OF THE GOP. I could do it with my eyes closed and in a coma. You hung yourself on O’Reilly. By using my words to mock me, the audience heard my words. I would bet a good portion agreed with me. I was right at CPAC in 2011 and never invited back. What a shock!!! If you don’t think that the Republicans are progressive light then you don’t know the history of the movement started by Teddy Roosevelt and the GOP. There are good men and women in the party that believe in the constitution. Are you one of them? Do you seriously believe that Jeb Bush is not progressive light? Help me out with Common Core and Jeb Bush! How about Orrin Hatch’s role in targeting Mike Lee? Can you name a better, more honorable man than Mike? How about Mitch McConnell and his targeting of Ted Cruz and Mike Lee? How are things working out for all of the campaign promises? How about the deficit? The war? Defunding ObamaCare? Oh, didn’t the GOP vote to confirm Cass Sunstein? How is illegal immigration working out for you? (Actually, I know the answer: really well as your big corporate buddies love it. Especially down in the colonias). It is modern day slavery. Has Grover started any new Muslim Brotherhood front groups you and the Bushes can pass off as the good guys? How about some more FCC regulation on the Internet? Can you tell me one thing you have done? I mean beside the PATRIOT Act, the NSA and not stopping the IRS from massive abuse of power. Oh, I forgot! You did get to the bottom of Benghazi. Oops. Nope. It must be because you are swamped in actually fixing the VA system for all the men YOU put in harms way. Gosh, sorry. No, you aren’t even doing that. Wow. How do you find your way out of bed in the morning? Well maybe you don’t go to bed, because I know I couldn’t sleep if I were you or any of your cronies. So let me rephrase. You guys couldn’t find your way outside standing in an open door frame. How is the health of the three equal branches of government? I will say this; you are better than the president. You are only half as bad. You are only doing the fundraising dinners, while he is doing that AND playing golf. It is almost like you are progressive light. I know, you understand ‘strategy’ and I don’t. I know, you can’t push for these things right now! You will lose the presidency in 2016. No, now you have to compromise on things like immigration etc. so you can win the White House. THEN you will have the White House, the Senate and the House. That is when you really go for it … Right? Next time. Not now. That when things really change! Just like they did when you had both branches under Bush!! Crap. Another bad example. You guys have the spine of a worm, the ethics of whores, and the integrity of pirates. (My apologies to worms, whores and pirates) You are right about one thing, I have said this before. You are also right that you don’t need to worry about me. You need to worry about the American public. Because they have had it up to their teeth with you, the GOP and the DNC lies. You need to worry about yourself. After blowing almost a billion dollars on ‘I love government healthcare Romney,’ I would guess you don’t have too. Many more chances to save what is left of your career. It is sad that you can no longer hear the American People because they could save you. Instead you listen to your political consultants and the amazing thing is you still believe all of it. Can you not smell what you are shoveling anymore? The world has changed. The whole world is being redesigned. Not by government but by dreamers and doers. You are the taxi medallions in an Uber world. You don’t have to be young to see that. You just have to be open and honest. Instead, you just continue to shine up the progressive agenda of people like Jeb, pressure, corrupt or threaten freshmen and smear the good people of this country who believe in the actual principles enshrined in the Constitution. It is sad what the GOP has become. You would campaign against Reagan. (Cruz has the principles of Reagan- but all you see of Reagan was HOW Ronald Reagan won, not WHY he won). JFK would be too small government for the GOP as you see it. “Government isn’t the solution, Government is the problem”. You believe only government run by the Democrats is a problem. By the way: clever whiteboard trick. Only problem, the quote was right. Ted Cruz knew what you guys were doing and called you on it. He won’t play your game. Which is why millions of Americans support him and you and your progressive corporate fat cats will try to destroy him and anyone else that tries to tell the truth. Good luck with that. The future belongs to free people. The genie is out of the bottle. You will not be able to corral the spirit of America. Because it isn’t a person or a place. It is an idea. Do you know why America is failing? Because we don’t even know who we are anymore. Why? Because people like you only care about ‘interests’ instead of ‘principles’. Your interests, the party’s interests or national interests. Those all change depending on the day and situation. Principles never change. When you and the GOP find your unchanging and eternal principles – other than keeping your power and controlling people’s lives – let me know. The people don’t trust Washington anymore. You haven’t given us a reason to, we are not as dumb as you thought and we will never sit down and shut up again. #defundtheGOP. Find the person you believe in, not the party. George Washington was right. You have gone from being a man I thought was a good guy to a sad and quickly forgotten figure of the past. It is never to late to change. You just have to be willing to admit your mistakes and live by principles. I have done so. When will you?
Two artists share exhibit at Stable Gallery in Ridgewood
March 20, 2015 Last updated: Friday, March 20, 2015, 12:31 AM
By Eileen La Forgia
STAFF WRITER |
The Ridgewood News
Artists Lou Spina and Joyce Levine both live in Washington Township and are members of the Pascack Art Association. This month they are displaying their talents together in an “Art X’s Two” exhibit at the Stable Art Gallery in Ridgewood.
“Marc and Richie” by Joyce Levine”Frustration” by Lou Spina”Deep in the Wood” by Lou Spina”Playing on the Beach” by Joyce Levine”Contemplating Van Gogh” by Lou Spina
Levine says that even though she has been painting for many years, she is still compelled and motivated to create new and different pieces of art.
“I am very inquisitive by nature and my interests allow me to paint in many mediums – in oil, watercolor, pastel, and with collage as well.” She keeps her eyes fresh to explore new ideas and concepts.
“Art transports me, and every day problems seem to fade away when I am painting,” she said. “I am very lucky to be able to create paintings that nourish me and bring joy to others.”
Elizabeth Slattery / @EHSlattery / Hans von Spakovsky / @HvonSpakovsky / March 20, 2015
The IRS, however, extended the tax credits to the federal exchange by interpreting “State” to mean “federal government,” a reading that defies common sense and the normal rules of statutory interpretation.
Putting an imaginative spin on an unfavorable outcome for the administration, Professor Baude claims that the Constitution would allow the administration to apply the judgment only to the four plaintiffs and otherwise ignore the ruling for the rest of the nation. His rationale: “The King litigation is different, because almost everybody who is eligible for the tax credits is more than happy to get them.” Yet whether or not folks are “happy” about a particular regulation has no bearing on whether that rule is authorized by law.
Baude claims that the administration is “free to follow its own honest judgment about what the law requires.” But if the Supreme Court holds that the IRS rule violates federal law, it wipes out the IRS rule in its entirety. Baude raises the fact that President Lincoln ignored the Supreme Court’s ruling in the infamous decision Dred Scott v. Sandford. Yet this is a red herring. The King case is not about the separation of powers or the relationship between co-equal branches of government—it is simply a matter of statutory interpretation.
Such action by the administration would also potentially violate the equal protection principles embodied in the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause—recognized by the Supreme Court in Bolling v. Sharpe—because the administration would not be equally applying the rule of law to everyone in the nation.
Baude also makes the odd claim that such behavior by the administration “would not defy a Supreme Court order, since the court has the formal power to order a remedy only for the four people actually before it.” Again, that is simply not the case. If the Supreme Court holds that a particular statute is unconstitutional on its face or that a particular regulation was improperly issued by a federal agency, that ruling applies in all circumstances in which that statute or regulation was or could be applied—not just to the particular plaintiff in front of the Court unless the Court specifically limits its ruling to the plaintiffs before the Court.
In fact, the Court rejected Baude’s legal theory in Cooper v. Aaron, when it determined that officials in Arkansas were bound by the holding of Brown v. Board of Education even though only Delaware, Kansas, South Carolina and Virginia were the named parties in Brown. Obviously many students and school administrators were, at the time, unfortunately “happy” with segregation; that doesn’t mean the states that weren’t parties to the case could ignore the Court’s ruling in Brown.
This issue already came up in another Obamacare subsidies case, Halbig v. Burwell, before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. As the Halbig plaintiffs pointed out, “[T]his Court has made clear that when it invalidates a regulation under the [Administrative Procedures Act], such a ruling has ‘nationwide’ effect, for ‘plaintiffs and non-parties alike.’”
Baude’s legal theory also ignores the Anti-Deficiency Act, which makes it a crime for a federal employee to spend funds without congressional authorization. Thus, if the Supreme Court rules that Congress did not authorize subsidies for the federal exchanges, and if the Obama administration continues to pay out these subsidies, every federal official involved in making such payments could be fined or even imprisoned.
Baude seems to be urging Obama to copy President Andrew Jackson’s shameful response to Worcester v. Georgia, in which the Supreme Court ruled that Georgia violated a federal treaty when it sought to regulate the Cherokees. Jackson allegedly responded, “[Chief Justice] John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it,” leading to the infamous Trail of Tears when the Cherokees were forced out of their ancestral homelands.
Let’s hope Obama doesn’t take this legal advice to channel Old Hickory and taunt Chief Justice John Roberts in such a way. Though the administration has shown contempt for the rule of law, it has not yet stooped to the level of ignoring a decision by the Supreme Court.
David Mamet: Why I Am No Longer a ‘Brain-Dead Liberal’
An election-season essay
By David Mamet Tuesday, Mar 11 2008
See also that most magnificent of schools, the jury system, where, again, each brings nothing into the room save his or her own prejudices, and, through the course of deliberation, comes not to a perfect solution, but a solution acceptable to the community—a solution the community can live with.
Prior to the midterm elections, my rabbi was taking a lot of flack. The congregation is exclusively liberal, he is a self-described independent (read “conservative”), and he was driving the flock wild. Why? Because a) he never discussed politics; and b) he taught that the quality of political discourse must be addressed first—that Jewish law teaches that it is incumbent upon each person to hear the other fellow out.
And so I, like many of the liberal congregation, began, teeth grinding, to attempt to do so. And in doing so, I recognized that I held those two views of America (politics, government, corporations, the military). One was of a state where everything was magically wrong and must be immediately corrected at any cost; and the other—the world in which I actually functioned day to day—was made up of people, most of whom were reasonably trying to maximize their comfort by getting along with each other (in the workplace, the marketplace, the jury room, on the freeway, even at the school-board meeting).
And I realized that the time had come for me to avow my participation in that America in which I chose to live, and that that country was not a schoolroom teaching values, but a marketplace.
To say that Los Angeles merely failed would be putting it mildly.
Earlier this week, the nonpartisan RAND Corporation released a study that helps demolish the argument that governments (cities, in this case) can socially engineer away residents’ obesity by restricting food freedom.
The study, funded by the National Cancer Institute, focuses on a ridiculous, controversial, seven-year-old zoning ban on new fast food restaurants in South Los Angeles. To say that the measure merely failed would be putting it mildly.
“Since the fast-food restrictions were passed in 2008, overweight and obesity rates in South Los Angeles and other neighborhoods targeted by the law have increased faster than in other parts of the city or other parts of the county,” reads a RAND press release on the study.
Well then.
“The South Los Angeles fast food ban may have symbolic value, but it has had no measurable impact in improving diets or reducing obesity,” said lead author Roland Sturm of RAND.
The RAND study results represent some of the best evidence to date that policies that restrict food freedom do no make people healthier. The failure and repeal of Denmark’s so-called “fat tax” and damning research on mandatory menu labeling are two other convincing examples.
March 19, 2015 Last updated: Thursday, March 19, 2015, 12:31 AM
By Lianna Albrizio
STAFF WRITER |
Pascack Valley Community Life
A shuttle bus that offered a free reverse commute to passengers to and from the Ridgewood Train Station to their jobs at corporate buildings in Woodcliff Lake, Park Ridge and Montvale will cease operation.
Montvale Councilwoman Leah LaMonica, who was instrumental in finding funding for the three-year-running bus, said at the meeting that the county was “unwilling” to get another grant to keep the wheels on the service in motion. Alicia D’Alessandro, director of communications to the office of Bergen County Executive James J. Tedesco III, confirmed the shuttle’s eventual discontinuation.
“While a final decision hasn’t been made, it is likely that the operation of the shuttle will cease later this spring,” she said in a phone interview after the meeting.
The handicapped-accessible, 16-seat shuttle was funded via a $150,000 three-year environmental grant from NJ Transit in March 2012. The bus provided a reverse commute for passengers to and from the Ridgewood Train Station in Garber Square as early as 7:15 a.m. to as late as 6:30 p.m. LaMonica had worked with former state Assemblywoman Charlotte Vandervalk to provide transportation for commuters to the tri-boro area, which the councilwoman previously said had been underserviced for years.
Rachel Brathen
Tuesday, March 24th@ 7:00pm
Inspirational Yoga Instructor on Instagram, Rachel Brathen
will sign her new book:
Yoga Girl
Each Person attending must have a book purchased at Bookends
We are taking RSVP’s for this event. Call us at 201-445-0726 to reserve your book NOW.
Book available March 24th
Bernard Kerik
Wednesday, April 1st @ 7:30pm
Former Police Commissioner of New York City, Bernard Kerik, will sign his new book: From Jailer to Jailed
Books available March 31st
Mariel Hemingway
Tuesday, April 7th @ 7:00pm
Actress from the Woody Allen Film, Manhattan, Mariel Hemingway, will sign her new books:
Out Came the Sun and Invisible Girls
Books available April 7th
Lorraine Bracco
Wednesday, April 8th @7:00pm
Actress from The Sopranos Lorraine Bracco, will sign her new book:
To the Fullest
Books available April 7th
Dan Gutman
Friday, April 10th @ 4:30pm
New York Times Bestselling Author, Dan Gutman, will be giving a talk and sign his new children’s books: The Genius Files and Willie & ME
Rick Bandazian
Sunday, April 12th @ 1:00pm
Former Owner of The Circus Rock Club, Rick Bandazian, will sign his new book:
Rock & Roll Meltdown
Appearing authors will only autograph books purchased at Bookends and must have valid Bookends Receipt.
Availability & pricing for all autographed books subject to change.
First In Line Certificate use is the the discretion of Bookends. Blackout dates may apply.
Bookends cannot guarantee that the books that are Autographed will always be First Printings.
Autographed books purchased at Bookends are non-returnable.
While we try to ensure that all customers coming to Bookends’ signings will meet authors and get their books signed, we cannot guarantee that all attendees will meet the author or that all books will be signed. We cannot control inclement weather, author travel schedules or authors who leave prematurely.
Bookends, 211 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450 201-445-0726
Ridgewood Planning Board members weigh in on housing proposals
MARCH 19, 2015 LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2015, 3:13 PM
BY BY MARK KRULISH
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
With the completion of public comment and attorney summations, members of the Ridgewood Planning Board were given the chance to weigh in on the proposed master plan amendment at a deliberation meeting on Tuesday night.
Many of the board members stated their belief that some form of multifamily housing downtown would benefit the village, while opinions diverged on subtopics such as density, building height, traffic and impact on the school system.
Planning Board Chairman Charles Nalbantian began with his observation that higher-density, multifamily housing in and around the Central Business District (CBD) would be good for Ridgewood and that an amendment of some kind to the housing element of the master plan is timely due to the under-utilization of the chosen sites.
However, he noted that “the devil is always in the details,” and while he believes the amendment reflects appropriate use, there are reasonable questions regarding many of the smaller issues – height, affordable housing and density chief among them – that form the larger picture.
Tweets, FaceBook, Instagram and other social media being tracked! Not only by the NSA, but by Pearson Education and the NJ Department of Education!!
MicheleNJTPC
CRITICAL UPDATE – COMMON CORE
We recently wrote about this story that appeared last week concerning the PARCC tests. This is a follow up with more troubling news.
Bob Braun, former Star Ledger education reporter, reported about the surveillance of students’ social media following their taking of the PARCC test at Watchung Regional HS, and the superintendent’s reaction. Pearson asked, through the NJ Department of Education, that the students be disciplined, on account of their tweets concerning the test. The NJDOE contacted the school district and forwarded Pearson’s request to the district. One student was suspended as a result, but the superintendent’s e-mail to her colleagues has also been posted, expressing concern about the compromise of student privacy.
This story has now exploded across NJ and the nation, as other reports of Pearson snooping into student social media accounts have surfaced. Now, in addition to the Watchung Regional School District. Two high schools in the HANOVER PARK REGIONAL HS District (three blocks from my house), and COLUMBIA HIGH SCHOOL in Maplewood HAVE REPORTED SIMILAR CASES OF PEARSON’S SNOOPING.
Worse – Pearson has confirmed their interests in maintaining test security through monitoring of student social media, and a call this morning to the NJ Department of Education defended the practice as not violating student privacy, because it was obtained not through the school district, but through information posted “publicly” on social media, by the students themselves. PLEASE, PLEASE – read Bob Braun’s entire blog, for which the link appears above. He indicates that his story has NOT been covered by the Star Ledger, for which he used to work!!!
As a result of this news, NJ Commissioner of Education, David Hespe, and Pearson have been called before the NJ Assembly Education Committeethis Thursday at 10:00 a.m. in Trenton to answer questions.
PLEASE CONTACT ME IMMEDIATELY IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN ATTENDING. UNLESS PARENTS AND THE PUBLIC ACT DECISIVELY, THERE IS NO DOUBT THIS UNIMAGINABLE AND OUTRAGEOUS BEHAVIOR, MONITORING OF STUDENT DATA AND ABRIDGEMENT OF EVERYONE’S FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS TO FREE SPEECH WILL CONTINUE!!!.
PEOPLE GET THE GOVERNMENT THEY DESERVE!!! FAILURE TO ACT WILL ASSURE THAT THIS MONITORING WILL CONTINUE !!!
Here is an excerpt from Braun’s FaceBook blog:
Bob Braun’s Ledger
March 15, 2015
The Brave New World of testing expands
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BLOG: HANOVER – Two other New Jersey school districts-Hanover Park Regional in East Hanover and South Orange-Maplewood-were notified by state officials that “monitoring”-spying?- Twitter traffic revealed students had used social media accounts to post a forbidden messages regarding the PARCC tests. No surprise, really-it’s happening everywhere, including Maryland where a state official said he gets daily reports from Pearson, the publisher of the standardized tests. on what students are saying about testing on their internet accounts.
“PARCC has a very sophisticated system that closely monitors social media for pretty much everything (comments like the one you shared, test item questions that students use cell phones cameras and take),” said Henry Johnson, the state assistant education commissioner in Maryland. The state, like New Jersey, has a contract with Pearson.
“We get those reports daily.”
Let’s run that one by you again:
“PARCC has a very sophisticated system that closely monitors social media for pretty much everything….”
The phrase “pretty much everything” aptly describes the broad reach of how this brave new world of testing and cooperation with government works. Pearson will say-as it told the Washington Post-that it is doing it for “security” reasons.
But security is itself a broad term. Here is what the State of New Jersey and Pearson agreed encompassed the idea of security and its possible breach-it’s codified in the testing manual developed by the state and sent out to all the districts:
“Revealing or discussing passages or test items with anyone, including students and school staff, through verbal exchange, email, social media, or any other form of communication.”
Another opportunity for repetition for emphasis here-discussing? Any other form of communication?
So, if children come home from school and their parents ask-“How was your day, sweetheart?” and the children talk about a really dumb question on the PARCC, they will be violating the rules and be subject to whatever punishment is meted out for cheating-as a blogger did who learned from a child who hadn’t taken the test that there was a passage on it about The Wizard of Oz.
In addition, research into Pearson has shown that by students logging on to take the test, their district-held “personal” information is forwarded on to Pearson, then to Amazon Cloud servers – where the only remaining protection is a “promise” that whatever companies it is then shared with will have and honor a privacy policy. Pretty risky, given the hundreds of millions of dollars being spent to promote Common Core.
Here’s what you can do:
1. Read the entire Braun blog, and FORWARD THIS ON TO EVERYONE ON YOUR LIST!!!! To do this, please use the “forward” buttons at the top and bottom of this e-mail, rather than using your own server to forward, as you may unwittingly “unsubscribe” yourself from our e-mails if someone you sent it to “unsubscribes”.
2. Let’s show up in Trenton on Thursday. Three other bills are on the agenda, in addition to Hespe and Pearson being called to testify. I am told that testimony must be on the bills, not on the privacy issue alone. Therefore, I would suggest that you address your remarks to A4268, that establishes a PARCC task force (deja vu all over again!). Click here for a link to the text of the bill. You will see it looks a whole lot like the bill proposed last spring and ultimately voted on and passed, almost unanimously by the Assembly. This is like tying your child to the train track as the train approaches, but telling him to relax, you’re going to study how fast it is coming, how far it will go, how many people are on board, whether you CAN stop it, etc.!!!
3. Call and/or e-mail all of the contacts for Senate and Assembly Ed committees, and the Governor’s office.
4. Call and/or e-mail your own 2 assembly representatives and your state senator.
Ridgewood planners start debating new housing rules
MARCH 19, 2015 LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
RIDGEWOOD — A majority of the village’s Planning Board voiced support Tuesday night for a proposed master plan amendment that, if approved, would clear the way for high-density multifamily housing complexes downtown.
Public deliberations on the long-sought change to Ridgewood’s master plan began during the Planning Board’s meeting on Tuesday, with most members agreeing such developments would enhance the village while filling various housing needs.
However, those same Planning Board members said the amendment needed some minor tweaking before it could be considered for a final board vote.
Specifically, several of the board’s members said the amendment’s height and density limitations are an issue.
The master plan amendment would increase the amount of units allowed per acre to between 40 and 50 from 12, and raise restrictions on building heights to 55 feet from 50.
Mayor Paul Aronsohn, who sits on Ridgewood’s Planning Board, endorsed the housing complexes that have been pitched by the three developers that first applied for the master plan change little more than five years ago.
Lew employs the “Sargent Schultz” defense “I know nothing”
Garrett Grills Treasury Secretary Lew on Clinton Emails
Treasury Secretary Lew: No Recollection of Clinton Email System
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew was pulled into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s email controversy Tuesday as House Republicans grilled him on what he knew as her top operations officer .
Mr. Lew, who was Mrs. Clinton’s deputy secretary of state for management and resources between 2009-2010, said he had no recollection of conversations about Mrs. Clinton’s private email system.
“While you were at state, were you also responsible for enforcing the department policy regarding the use of personal email accounts and record retention?” Rep. Scott Garrett(R., N.J.) asked at a House Financial Services hearing on U.S. international financial policy.
Mr. Lew said he was “responsible for a vast array of responsibilities.”
When Mr. Garrett asked if he was responsible for the State Department’s policy regarding emails, Mr. Lew said: “I don’t recall having a lot of conversations, any conversations that I remember, on that.”
Fixing school funding ‘single most frustrating arc’ of tenure, Christie says
FREEHOLD — At his 131st town hall here today, Gov. Chris Christie said his administration’s repeated failures to overturn the state’s school funding formula has been the “single most frustrating arc during my time as governor.” (Brush/PolitickerNJ)
Climate-Change Deniers’ and ‘Put a Price on Carbon’ , but have you seen “big foot”?
Cole Mellino | March 16, 2015 10:37 am
The South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival is happening now in Austin, Texas. Running from March 9 to 22, it’s a massive film, interactive and music festival that is nearly 20 years old. The festival brings together designers, developers, investors, entrepreneurs and politicians for panels and discussions about technology and innovation.
For the third time in the last few years, Al Gore, founder and chairman of the Climate Reality Project, spoke at the festival on Friday. Naturally, his interactive discussion focused on addressing the climate crisis. The former vice president focused on the need to “punish climate-change deniers, saying politicians should pay a price for rejecting ‘accepted science,’” said the Chicago Tribune.
Gore said forward-thinking investors are moving away from companies that invest in fossil fuels and towards companies investing in renewable energy. “We need to put a price on carbon to accelerate these market trends,” Gore told the Chicago Tribune, referring to a proposed federal cap-and-trade system that would penalize companies that exceeded their carbon-emission limits. “And in order to do that, we need to put a price on denial in politics.”
He called on the tech-minded SXSW crowd, which is dominated by Millenials, to harness technology to launch a grassroots movement to tackle climate change and call out climate deniers. “We have this denial industry cranked up constantly,” Gore said. “In addition to 99 percent of the scientists and all the professional scientific organizations, now Mother Nature is weighing in.”
Years from now, Gore said the next generation will look back at us and ask: “How did you change?,” according to Macworld. “Part of the answer may well be that a group of people came to South by Southwest in Austin, Texas in 2015 and helped to make a revolution,” Gore said.
Gore wanted these young, tech-savvy attendees to start a grassroots movement using social media like they did when “net neutrality was threatened or when the Stop Online Piracy Act threatened to blacklist websites that offered so-called illegal content,” said Macworld. That means signing petitions to fight climate change, utilizing social media to call out climate deniers in Congress and streaming the Live Earth Road to Paris concert on June 18, an event designed to draw attention to the climate talks in Paris this December.
The former Veep even gave a nod to Pope Francis during his talk, showing a slide of the pontiff and saying “How about this Pope?” Pope Francis celebrated his two-year anniversary as Pope on Friday, riding a wave of popularity “that has reinvigorated the Catholic Church in ways not seen since the days of St. John Paul II,” said the Chicago Tribune. Gore said he was looking forward to the Pope’s highly anticipated encyclical on the environment which is due to be released in June or July. “I’m not a Catholic,” Gore said, “but I could be persuaded to become one.”
