Congress’s watchdog arm this week raised questions on how effectively the Pentagon and U.S. State Department are overseeing projects linked to multi-billion dollar Global Train and Equip program primarily intended to improve counterterrorism capabilities for U.S. partner nations like Jordan, Niger, and Afghanistan.
In an audit released on Wednesday, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that only eight (about 40 percent) of 21 Global Train and Equip projects undertaken in 2016 and 2017 at the cost of nearly $2 billion resulted in improved capabilities for aid recipient forces.
The GAO cited proposal design shortfalls, equipment suitability and procurement problems, partner nation failings, and staffing shortages as the reason for the project failures.
GAO reports:
DOD assessment reports for 2016 and 2017, which included baseline and post-implementation assessments of recipient units’ capabilities for 21 Global Train and Equip projects, indicated some progress in building partner capacity. For 8 of the 21 projects, the recipient units’ capability levels were assessed as having increased by at least one rating level after the project’s implementation.
Although the recipient units for the remaining 13 projects were assessed as showing no change in capability levels, the assessment reports for some of these projects described some positive project outcomes.
The 2006 bill first authorized the Global Train and Equip program. Since then, it has supplied, at the expense of the American taxpayer, training, weapons, and other supplies for local forces through hundreds of initiatives across the globe, the watchdog notes.
GAO’s recent audit covers the status of funding the Pentagon allocated for Global Train and Equip projects in fiscal years 2009 through 2017, estimated at $4.1 billion.
The watchdog determined that the Pentagon’s track record in assessing the effectiveness of Global Train and Equip is lackluster.
Of 262 Global Train and Equip projects carried out by the Pentagon between 2206 and 2015, the U.S. military only assessed a third for success, the GAO revealed, noting:
In 2012 through 2017, the Department of Defense (DOD) prepared assessment reports for 31 percent of the projects (82 of 262 projects) it had implemented in 2006 through 2015.1 These 82 projects account for 28 percent of the nearly $3 billion DOD allocated for the program in those fiscal years.
In 2017, an audit by the Pentagon’s inspector general also found problems with the Global Train and Equip program.
A gunman killed five people and wounded another at a car wash in western Pennsylvania early Sunday morning, authorities said.
Suspect Tim Smith fatally shot William Porterfield, 27, Chelsie Cline, 25, Courtney Snyder, 23, and Seth Cline, 21, at Ed’s Car Wash around 3 a.m. in Melcroft, police said.
Family members of the victims told WXPI-TV the shooting stemmed from a domestic dispute. They also said the suspect used to date one of the victims.
Smith, 28, was on life support at a hospital following the shooting, police said.
Four of the victims died at the scene, roughly 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. A fifth victim, who wasn’t identified, later died at a hospital.
A woman who hid in the back seat of a pickup truck during the shooting only suffered minor injuries, authorities said.
The suspected gunman was also shot, a state police spokesman told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Two of those slain were found inside a green pickup truck, one of three cars towed from the car wash, the Post-Gazette reported.
“There is no indication of drug activity at this point,” State Trooper Robert Broadwater told the newspaper. “But we have no motive, no reason.”
Family of the victims tell Channel 11 the shooting of their 5 loved ones at a car wash early Sunday morning in Melcroft Pa, was the result of a domestic. One person is in the hospital.
Police said Smith shot the victims with a semi-automatic rifle and handgun. The victims arrived at the scene in two separate vehicles.
William Porterfield, 27, and Chelsie Cline, 25, arrived in a silver Dodge vehicle, officials said. They were killed inside the vehicle while near the side of the car wash.
Courtney Snyder and Seth Cline were shot and killed in a green pickup truck, according to officials.
One unidentified woman, who was in the rear seat of the pickup truck, took cover and avoided the shooting. Officials said that woman suffered minor injuries from broken glass.
According to police, Smith allegedly arrived at the scene earlier in a red Toyota Tacoma and parked on the side of the car wash. Police said Smith wore a body armor carrier and had several magazines of ammo.
Officials confirmed Smith sustained a gunshot wound to the head and is not expected to survive.
Family told Channel 11 the shooting was a result of a domestic dispute. They said a man who used to date one of the victims opened fire on the group. We are still waiting on an official motive from police.
Family members also said two of the victims were brother and sister.
The shooting happened on Indian Creek Valley Road in Melcroft in Saltlick Township just before 3 a.m., police said.
Officials said all the victims were in their 20s to early 30s.
Indian Creek Valley Road is currently closed while police investigate.
Police have said there is no threat to the community.
Beat a damn confession out of these lying bastards.
A federal judge Thursday denied a request by Fusion GPS to void a House Intelligence Committee subpoena to provide bank records as part of the committee’s investigation into Russian activities during the 2016 election campaign.
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon found Fusion’s objections to the subpoena to be “unavailing” and denied the research firm’s request for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that would have prevented it from handing over the documents.
Fusion GPS attorney Theodore Boutrous Jr. said the firm would appeal Leon’s ruling.
“Instead of focusing its efforts on Russian meddling in the presidential election, the Committee continues to misuse its investigatory power to punish and smear Fusion GPS for its role in uncovering troubling ties between #Russia and the Trump campaign,” Boutrous said in a statement.
The committee, chaired by Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., had subpoenaed the records in an effort to determine who paid for a now-infamous “dossier” outlining various claims about President Donald Trump’s connections with various Russian officials. The dossier, commissioned by Fusion GPS and compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele, was published in full by BuzzFeed in January of last year.
Among a number of unconfirmed allegations about Trump and his associates, the dossier included sordid claims about the president’s sexual proclivities.
“Although the records sought by the Subpoena are sensitive in nature,” Leon wrote in a 26-page ruling, “the nature of the records themselves, and the Committee’s procedures designed to ensure their confidentiality, more than adequately protect the sensitivity of that information.”
Leon also rejected Fusion’s claim that the subpoena would have a chilling effect on its work for political clients and violate the firm’s First Amendment rights.
“While the opposition research Fusion conducted on behalf of its clients may have been political in nature,” Leon wrote, “Fusion’s commercial relationship with those clients was not, and thus that relationship does not provide Fusion with some special First Amendment protection from subpoenas … the First Amendment is not a secrecy pact!”
In October, Fox News confirmed that Fusion GPS was retained by Marc Elias, an attorney representing the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. The DNC and the Clinton campaign paid Fusion to produce the dossier.
Earlier this week, Fusion GPS founders Glenn Simpson and Peter Fritsch wrote a New York Times opinion piece accusing congressional Republicans of being “in the thrall of the president” and waging a campaign to portray Fusion GPS “as the unwitting victims of Kremlin disinformation.”
In response, a spokesman for Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, noted that Simpson “has refused to answer dozens of questions voluntarily, and has failed to provide the Committee with documents and responses to follow-up questions …”
One Douglas County deputy died and four more were wounded along with two civilians Sunday morning at a Highlands Ranch apartment complex. The shooter was also shot and is believed dead, the Sheriff’s Office said in a tweet at 9:32 a.m.
The Sheriff’s Office announced at 10:02 a.m. that the slain officer would soon be moved from Littleton Adventist Hospital in a procession. “Expect heavy law enforcement presence and traffic congestion on Broadway, C470 and SB I-25,” the Sheriffs Office tweeted.
Deputies were responding to a domestic disturbance call when shots were fired from the home in the 3400 block of County Line Road near Colorado Boulevard before 6 a.m., Lauren Lekander, DCSO spokeswoman said.
Denver 7 reported hearing shots fired as a reporter later arrived at the scene.
“We have SWAT out there setting up and preparing to go in right now,” Lekander said at about 7:15 a.m.
Early during the incident, the Sheriff’s Office said only that a number of officers were shot. “We have multiple officers down,” said Deputy Jason Blanchard of the incident at Copper Canyon Apartments in Highlands Ranch.
“We are not giving numbers or status at this point, we are still working on getting the suspect in custody.”
Residents were told to stay inside and avoid windows and exterior walls.
Steven Silknitter lives in the complex.
He was working elsewhere when he heard about the shooting. He called home waking up his fiance.
She woke to hear “a barrage” of gunfire in the dark, said Silknitter.
“She was pretty scared. She kept saying how loud it was.”
Silknitter lived in Aurora during the 2014 Aurora Theater shooting. “Where do you move to? It’s everywhere.”
Three of the injured were taken to Skyridge Medical Center in Lone Tree with non-critical injuries, said Linda Watson, a hospital spokeswoman. She couldn’t say if the injured were officers. Another four have been taken to Littleton Adventist Hospital, said Alyssa Parker, a hospital spokeswoman.
Parker couldn’t say how serious their injuries are.
Due to the size of the investigation an emergency shelter was set up at East Ridge Recreation Center, located at 9568 University Blvd. in Highlands Ranch. Anyone who has been displaced can go there, the Sheriff’s Department said.
Multiple law enforcement vehicles, Douglas County Sheriff, South Metro and Littleton fire rescue vehicles came and went from the scene.
“There is still a lot of activity out here,” Larry Ryckman, Denver Post editor at the scene, said at 9:30 a.m.
Video broadcast by Denver 7 showed an Arapahoe County Sheriff Bomb Squad truck at the scene.
In a Code Red the Sheriff’s office told residents to shelter in place, avoid windows and stay away from exterior walls.
An investigation is in progress and most of County Line Road is closed down from Colorado Boulevard to University Boulevard. C-470 is closed from Quebec Street to University Boulevard.
Parker Police Department, Lone Tree Police, Castle Rock Police and Colorado State Patrol are involved in the incident.
Procession for the deceased officer will take place soon from @LittletonHosp. Expect heavy law enforcement presence and traffic congestion on Broadway, C470 and SB I-25 #CopperCanyonOIS
**Copper Canyon OIS Update**- Deputies responded to a domestic disturbance resulting in shots fired. 5 deputies shot by suspect. 1 deputy confirmed deceased. 2 civilians also shot by suspect. Suspect shot & believed to be dead & no longer a threat. #CopperCanyonOIS
Due to the size and cope of this investigation an emergency shelter has been set up @ East Ridge Rec Center, located at 9568 University Blvd. in Highlands Ranch. If anyone has been displaced from their homes due to this event please feel free to head there.
UPDATE 0513 this morning deputies responded to he Copper Canyon Apartments for a Domestic Disturbance. During the Investigation, shots were fired and multiple deputies were injured. No status on the deputies and no status on civilian injuries. Please avoid this area.
Due to this incident, the following agencies are on accident alert. Douglas County, Parker Police Department, Lone Tree Police Department, Castle Rock Police Department and Colorado State Patrol.
A Code Red was sent out regarding this incident. Any citizens in the affected area are instructed to shelter in place, avoid windows and stay away from exterior walls.
DCSO is working an officer down call in the area of County Line Rd between Colorado Blvd and University Blvd. This is an active event, please avoid the area.
WISE gave John Skipper and Award and now we get the damn truth right?
Nearly two weeks ago, ESPN President John Skipper shocked the media world by suddenly resigning from his position at the “Worldwide Leader.”
At the time, Skipper said he needed to resign to deal with substance abuse issues.
In a statement, Skipper said:
I have struggled for many years with a substance addiction. I have decided that the most important thing I can do right now is to take care of my problem.
I have disclosed that decision to the company, and we mutually agreed that it was appropriate that I resign. I will always appreciate the human understanding and warmth that Bob (Iger) displayed here and always.
I come to this public disclosure with embarrassment, trepidation and a feeling of having let others I care about down.
As I deal with this issue and what it means to me and my family, I ask for appropriate privacy and a little understanding.
To my colleagues at ESPN, it has been a privilege. I take great pride in your accomplishments and have complete confidence in your collective ability to continue ESPN’s success.
This explanation seemed rather suspicious. Since Skipper had just signed a major contract extension the month before his resignation.
At the time, Breitbart Sports noted:
The timing of Skipper’s resignation seems a bit of a mystery. Skipper had just signed a multi-year contract extension in November. How does one develop a long-term substance problem in a month? Perhaps ESPN just became aware of Skipper’s issue in the last month, though, that too would seem unlikely. Moreover, it’s likely that ESPN would at least attempt to offer some kind of counseling as opposed to compelling Skipper to resign, if they just found out about Skipper’s issue after signing him to a brand new deal.
Could there be something another, bigger story behind this announcement?
Well, Clay Travis of Fox Sports Radio and Outkick the Coverage reports that there is something bigger indeed, behind Skipper’s resignation. Travis reports that in the days following Skipper’s announcement, several reports came to him offering a much different explanation for Skipper’s immediate departure.
“In the next couple of days I was told by multiple sources I trust inside ESPN that the reason for Skipper’s “resignation” was because of sexual harassment issues inside the company. In the wake of the Boston Globe story about sexual harassment I was told Skipper’s own issues suddenly emerged and that was why the resignation happened so abruptly.
And ESPN decided to blame substance abuse issues instead.”
Travis also poked a hole in Skipper/ESPN’s “substance abuse” claim by tweeting photos from a tipster, which appear to show Skipper and ESPN radio host Dan LeBatard at a bar in North Carolina:
A trip out to have a couple of drinks with your friend would all be perfectly normal and a total non-story except for the fact that Skipper just resigned from ESPN 11 days ago citing his struggles with substance addiction and his desire to get help for that addiction.
Now maybe Skipper wasn’t addicted to alcohol — and it was some other drug instead — but if you have such an issue with substance addiction that you need to immediately resign from ESPN should you really be out drinking 11 days later with one of the most prominent employees at your former company? And if you’re Skipper’s good friend, Dan LeBatard, would you let your friend go out drinking with you if you knew he had a true issue with substance abuse and you were crying about it on your radio show 11 days ago?
That seems highly unlikely.
That does indeed seem unlikely. ESPN wouldn’t be unique among major media and entertainment organizations, for forcing out high-profile executives or performers over sexual harassment charges. After all, the last few months have seen dozens of actors, journalists, comedians, politicians, and others, face removal for some form of sexual misconduct.
So why lie about it? If in fact, ESPN is lying about the reasons for Skipper’s resignation?
The answer may be found higher up the food chain. Disney CEO Bob Iger is a rumored2020 Democrat presidential candidate. Considering how crucial the female vote is, especially in a Democratic primary, one would think that Iger would move aggressively to quash any potentially damaging sexual harassment scandal at one of his larger networks.
Would Iger engage in that type of politically-calculated micromanagement?
Well, he’s done it before.
In the weeks after Jemele Hill called President Trump a “white supremacist” on Twitter, Iger personally intervened to prevent Hill’s suspension. Now, why would Iger do that?
Could it be because of Iger’s concern that the optics of suspending Hill, who is black, for criticizing President Trump; could be interpreted as Iger siding with Trump against a black female employee? Which would leave his Democrat primary opponents with a strong and heavy argument that he’s not the right candidate to protect black people from the “cruel and racist” Republicans?
That seems like an extremely plausible theory.
And if that seems like a plausible theory, is it so far-fetched that Iger would concoct a story about substance abuse to conceal a high-profile sexual harassment scandal, which may or may not extend far beyond John Skipper?
Doesn’t seem like that big of a stretch at all, does it?
Trump secures major victory as Senate Republicans pass $1.5 trillion tax cut bill despite Democrats warning they’ll ‘rue this day’ and protesters screaming ‘don’t kill us’ – paving the way for a final House vote today after earlier hiccup
The Senate passed a $1.5 trillion tax cut early in the early hours of Wednesday
Vote was along strict party lines. Only GOP Sen. John McCain was absent
The House earlier passed the tax cut by a vote of 227-203 but two provisions fell foul of parliamentary test meaning they have to vote again on Wednesday
President Donald Trump fired off a pair of tweets in the morning
Mike Pence described it as a ‘historic win for the American people’
The Senate passed the GOP’s $1.5 trillion tax cut early Wednesday morning, leaving just one technical hurdle and President Trump’s signature as the final steps before the president’s top legislative priority becomes reality.
There was little last-minute drama in the Senate where the final tally was 51-48 – hardly different from the original version that cleared the Senate earlier this month.
Not a single Democrat voted for it, just as none in the House voted for a similar bill earlier on Tuesday.
Moments after the measure passed, Trump was quick to voice his approval and said if the House succeeds in a final re-vote Wednesday morning, there will be a White House news conference at 1:00 p.m.
‘The United States Senate just passed the biggest in history Tax Cut and Reform Bill,’ he tweeted just after 1:00 in the morning. ‘Terrible Individual Mandate (ObamaCare)Repealed. Goes to the House tomorrow morning for final vote.’
House Speaker Paul Ryan tweeted: ‘Great news. The Senate just passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. After years of work, we are going to enact the most sweeping, pro-growth overhaul of our tax code in a generation.’
A wave of protesters provided one of the biggest bursts of emotion. One small group yelled out ‘Kill the bill, don’t kill us!’ as the final vote was being taken.
‘The Sergeant at Arms will restore order in the gallery,’ said Vice President Mike Pence, who was presiding over the chamber.
Pence’s appearance was a flourish that put him in the spotlight – though party leaders knew in advance his potential tie-breaking vote was not needed.
One protester yelled at GOP Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, ‘Have you no shame?’
Flake voted for the bill, weeks after warning colleagues against complicity with Trump.
If we can’t sell this to the American people I think we ought to go into another line of work
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
Moments after the decision, far-left Democratic Sen. Bernie Sanders tweeted: ‘Senate Republicans just passed their tax reform bill. What an utter disgrace.’
Before the vote, as the debate stretched toward midnight, Pence tweeted out a photo of himself huddling with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Trump economic advisor Gary Cohn.
The House still had to sort through one legislative hiccup – after Democrats raised a procedural objection to minor provisions in the bill that the Senate parliamentarian ruled were not allowable.
The parliamentary ruling, which was sustained after Republicans failed to strike it down, requires the House to re-vote Wednesday morning so that the House and Senate versions are identical and President Trump can sign it.
‘After eight straight years of slow growth and under-performance, America is ready to take off,’ said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky at a press conference after passage.
Asked about a need to ‘sell’ the bill, McConnell said: ‘If we can’t sell this to the American people I think we ought to go into another line of work.’
Ryan made the rounds on Wednesday morning’s TV shows, saying on CBS that Democratic detractors predicting tax increases for the middle class are dead wrong.
‘When people see their paychecks getting bigger in February because withholding tables have adjusted to reflect their tax cuts, when businesses are keeping more of what they earn, when they can write off their expensing and investment in their businesses, and hire more people, that’s going to change its popularity. I am convinced,’ he said.
‘So I think there’s just tons of confusion out there as to what this does or doesn’t do. A lot of people think it’s going to raise their taxes, when every income tax group on average gets a tax cut. So the proof is in the pudding, and I think the results will speak for themselves.’
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, the top Democrat in the upper chamber of Congress, ripped the measure as as ‘sloppy’ and ‘as partisan as the process used to draft it.’
He warned his colleagues: ‘Vote no. Otherwise, I believe the entire Republican Party, and each of you, will come to rue this day.’
Schumer called for order during his floor speech and barked at colleagues who were talking rather than listening.
‘This is serious stuff. We believe you’re messing up America. You could pay attention for a couple of minutes,’ the New York Democrat grumbled.
Another Democrat, Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio, said Wednesday morning on CNN that while ‘a few people are going to get some crumbs’ in the form of tax relief, ‘the wealthiest people in the country are going to get all of the benefits here.’
‘It is going to be a great Christmas for the big corporations who are sitting on more cash than they’ve ever had in their lives,’ he groused.
Wavering senators removed most of the drama Tuesday night by announcing their support in advance. Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, who Trump mocked as ‘little Bob’ during an earlier feud, flipped from opposing the earlier version to supporting the final conference report that cleared the Senate Tuesday night.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine also tipped her hand hours before the vote, saying she would back the bill.
Sen. John McCain, who provided a dramatic thumbs-down to the GOP’s Obamacare repeal bill months ago, is recovering at home from his treatment for brain cancer and didn’t vote Tuesday night.
He had announced his backing for an earlier version of the tax cut.
The hours-long debate Tuesday was mostly kabuki theater.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch bemoaned the lack of Democratic support – although leaders decided to move the bill through procedures that allowed them to circumvent Democrats and pass it by a simple majority vote.
‘Where is this bipartisanship that this country desperately needs?’ asked Hatch. ‘Our tax policy is for the birds,’ he added.
Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon called the final bill an ‘abomination’ as well as ‘the biggest bank heist – not just in American history but in the history of the world.’
As the hours drew on, senators continued to inveigh one way or the other to a mostly empty chamber but with an eye toward C-Span and cable audiences.
‘Not a single Democrat would break from party discipline,’ complained Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. ‘Why? Because they are so united in their rage at President Trump,’ the president’s former primary rival said.
He said families would see benefits in their pay stubs within weeks.
Democrats saw their hopes dashed of scoring another dramatic defeat of a GOP initiative, after seeing the Obamacare repeal tank earlier this year.
With passage all but assured, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the leading Democrat on the Finance Committee, turned his focus to future battles, warning Americans that Republicans would be ‘coming for your Social Security and Medicare before you take you Christmas tree down.’
Now, all that is left for the House to do is vote again following an earlier technical parliamentary error.
Speaker Ryan, who earlier said ‘this is a day I’ve been looking forward to for a long time’, will get to relive his dream Wednesday, because a few minor provisions in the House bill were out of order.
That would require another procedural motion to ensure both chambers are passing identical measures.
In that case, the House would meet at 9am Wednesday and then vote.
The rule prevents certain types of legislating in what is nominally a revenue bill – crammed into a special procedure that only requires a simple majority to pass to avoid having to negotiate with Democrats.
There are a ‘couple little glitches,’ Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told Fox News Tuesday night, but they are only ‘minor adjustments.’
One of the out-of-order provisions lets people save in tax-deferred 529 plans to home school their kids, Politico reported. Another may deal with a college’s exemption from an endowment tax.
It is up to Democrats or any senator to raise an objection to force a ruling.
A Senate leadership aide downplayed the hiccup in the final stretch.
‘No one’s fault. They’re tiny provisions that don’t affect the overall bill. These small provisions were all that Dems could find. The House will pass again,’ the aide said.
An amendment by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz made it into the final conference report, allowing parents to withdraw up to $10,000 from tax-deferred 529 college savings plans for home schooling their kids at a younger age.
The plans could now be used for K-12 elementary and secondary tuition, including for home-schooling.
Aides were still scrambling to figure out how the technical ruling would affect the legislation.
Cruz touted the amendment on his Senate and campaign web site.
‘By expanding choice for parents and opportunities for children, we have prioritized the education of the next generation of Americans,’ Cruz said on the Senate floor when the amendment passed on a tie vote with an assist from Vice President Mike Pence.
A Senate GOP aide told DailyMail.com the only portion likely to be knocked out involved home schooling – not the bulk of the amendment for the first time making 529s eligible for K-12 schools including private or parochial schools.
In states that define home-schooling as a type of private school, it is possible that funding could still be eligible.
In another blow, of the PR variety, Senate Democrats objected to the pleasing name Republicans attached to the bill, the so-called short title, the ‘The Tax Cuts And Jobs Act.’
WHAT’S IN THE FINAL TAX BILL?
Top income tax bracket has dropped to 37 per cent from 39.6 per cent
Other brackets are zero, 12, 22, 24, 32 and 35 per cent
‘Standard’ deduction for non-itemizers nearly doubles
Interest is deductible only on the first $750,000 of new home mortgages
Only individuals making more than $500,000 and couples earning $600,000 are in the top bracket
Corporate tax rates drop from 35 per cent to 21 per cent
Deduction for medical expenses and student loan interest and an exemption for graduate school tuition waivers
Ends Obamacare tax penalty for failing to buy health insurance
Doubles child tax credit to $2,000 for families earning up to $400,000
$1,400 of child credit is refundable even for families that don’t pay any income tax
Doubles estate tax exemption to the first $11.2 million of inheritances
Opens a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling
‘Pass-through’ corporations can deduct 20 per cent of income
Elimination of corporate Alternative Minimum Tax
No repeal of Johnson Amendment barring churches and religious organizations from election activity