Wednesday, June 10, 2015

US Embassy in Jakarta moves Fourth of July celebration to June to accommodate Muslims


The United States Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia celebrated Independence Day a month early -- to accommodate the country's Muslim population.
It seems the Fourth of July is right smack in the middle of Ramadan this year so the embassy decided to move America’s birthday to the Fourth of June.
“We are celebrating a month early to respect the holy month of Ramadan,” Ambassador Robert Blake told a gathering at the embassy.  
It sounds like every day is April Fool's Day at the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta. I wouldn’t be surprised if they observe Good Friday on a Tuesday.I suppose that Muslims would be too busy with their fasting and prayers to enjoy an all-beef frank and fireworks.  
And as the Obama administration constantly reminds us -- we simply cannot offend Islamic sensibilities.
The State Department downplayed the change during a June 9 press briefing by pointing out that official Fourth of June celebrations are not meant for the average American living in Jakarta.
“These are not events for the American citizen population that’s resident there,” spokesman Jeff Rathke told a reporter. “It’s not like a picnic you have with your family and friends when you’re back here in the U.S. These are official events that are – the purpose of which is to represent the United States to the host nation and to the host government.”
That explanation did not set well with Jim Hanson, the executive director for the Center for Security Policy on June 10.
“I think the problem is we have become overly sensitive to Islamic sensibilities,” he told Fox & Friends. “Ramadan is a time when most Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. Well, if we wanted to be courteous, we could've just held the celebration at night. You know what else is great after sunset, fireworks?”
Mr. Hanson has a point. Sparklers aren’t nearly as fun during daylight hours.
Ambassador Blake told the Fourth of June gathering that their event was all the more meaningful because the “rights we celebrate are not America’s alone.”
You know what else is all the more meaningful? Celebrating America’s birthday on the right day – instead of getting into a dither over offending Muslims.
It’s really hard to mess up an Independence Day celebration – but the embassy staff even managed to get the theme wrong.
Instead of celebrating freedom, they celebrated green energy – complete with biodegradable balloons and something called “low-carbon sustainable food.” I think that’s government code for inedible food.
“The last time I checked July Fourth wasn't about green energy, it was about self-evident truths, that all men are created equal,” Hanson told Fox & Friends.
There you have it, America. Nothing says freedom quite like promoting green energy development. Because as we all know – our forefathers fought the British so that we might be able to compost and drive a Chevy Volt.

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Ex-House Speaker Dennis Hastert pleads not guilty in hush money case


Dennis Hastert appeared in court Tuesday for the first time since he was indicted, pleading not guilty to charges that he violated banking rules and lied to the FBI in a scheme to pay $3.5 million in hush money to conceal misconduct from his days as a high school teacher.
Defense attorney Thomas C. Green entered the pleas on Hastert's behalf.
The 73-year-old Republican has not spoken publicly about the accusations that emerged two weeks ago and raised questions about possible sexual abuse by a man who was once second in the line of succession to the presidency.
The politician-turned-lobbyist stepped before Judge Thomas M. Durkin on charges that he broke federal banking laws by withdrawing hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and lying about the money when questioned.
A crush of reporters, photographers and TV cameras began gathering at dawn to ensure they did not miss Hastert if he arrived early for his arraignment. A long line also formed early outside the 14th-floor courtroom, and an overflow room was set aside for those unable to get in.
Green, who is based in Washington, has represented clients in the Watergate, Iran-Contra and Whitewater cases. Chicago attorney John Gallo is also on Hastert's defense team. Steven Block is the lead U.S. prosecutor.
It was unclear whether prosecutors might shed more light on the secret Hastert allegedly sought to conceal by paying the person the indictment refers to as "Individual A." Prosecutors typically provide an overview of charges at arraignments and sometimes disclose new details.
A person familiar with the allegations told The Associated Press the payments were intended to conceal claims Hastert sexually molested someone decades ago. The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.
Defendants in most cases enter not guilty pleas at arraignments, though their lawyers will sometimes tell judges they are holding plea talks with the U.S. attorney's office. Authorities never arrested Hastert, but the judge is expected to set a bail amount.
Prosecutors have not said if they will ask Durkin to recuse himself after election records showed he donated $500 to the "Hastert for Congress" campaign in 2002, and $1,000 in 2004. The arraignment would give them the chance to make that request.
If convicted, Hastert faces a maximum five-year prison term on each of the two counts.
The indictment says Hastert agreed in 2010 to pay Individual A $3.5 million to "compensate for and conceal (Hastert's) prior misconduct" against that person. It says he paid $1.7 million before federal agents began scrutinizing the transactions.
He allegedly started by withdrawing $50,000 at a time and changed course when automatic bank transaction reports flagged those withdrawals. The indictment says Hastert then began taking cash out in increments of less than $10,000 to skirt reporting rules, which are primarily meant to thwart money laundering by underworld figures.
It's not illegal to withdraw large amounts in cash. But it's against the law to stagger withdraws with the intent of dodging reporting requirements.
Hastert follows a well-trodden path of other Illinois politicians who have walked through the revolving doors at Chicago's federal courthouse. Several recent Illinois governors, Chicago aldermen and other public figures have entered pleas in the same building. Among the most recent was former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, a Democrat, and former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, a Republican. Both men were eventually convicted on corruption charges.

Court upholds key parts of Texas' strict anti-abortion law



A federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld Texas' strict abortion restrictions that could soon leave only seven abortion clinics open in a state of 27 million people.
The decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals allows Texas to enforce Republican-backed restrictions that require abortion clinics to meet hospital-level operating standards, a checklist that includes rules on minimum room sizes, staffing levels and air ventilation systems. The restrictions, approved in 2013, are among the toughest in the nation.
Owners of traditional abortion clinics, which resemble doctor's offices more than hospitals, say they would be forced to close because the new rules demand millions of dollars in upgrades they can't afford. That would mark the second large wave of closures in as many years in Texas, which had 41 abortion clinics in 2012, before other new restrictions took effect that require doctor admitting privileges.
"Not since before Roe v. Wade has a law or court decision had the potential to devastate access to reproductive health care on such a sweeping scale," said Nancy Northrop, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights. "We now look to the Justices to stop the sham laws that are shutting clinics down and placing countless women at risk of serious harm."
Texas will be able to start enforcing the restrictions in about three weeks unless the U.S. Supreme Court agrees to halt the decision, said Stephanie Toti, an attorney for the center. Only seven abortion facilities in Texas, including four operated by Planned Parenthood, meet the more robust requirements.
Abortion-rights groups said they will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which temporarily sidelined the law last year.
If the law takes effect, some women in the state would live hundreds of miles away from a Texas abortion provider. But that argument didn't sway the three-judge panel making the decision for the New Orleans-based appeals court, which is considered one of the most conservative in the nation. The judges noted that a New Mexico abortion clinic was just across the Texas border, and said clinic owners in Texas failed to prove that a "large fraction" of women would be burdened.
Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, whose office argued before the appeals court in January, praised Tuesday's ruling.
"Abortion practitioners should have no right to operate their businesses from sub-standard facilities and with doctors who lack admitting privileges at a hospital," Paxton said.
Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and other conservatives say the standards protect women's health. But abortion-rights supports say the law is a thinly veiled attempt to block access to abortions in Texas, which has been the site of one of the nation's largest abortion fights for two years. Toti said roughly a half-dozen other states require similar standards for abortion clinics, but unlike in those states, the Texas law doesn't allow clinics to be grandfathered or seek waivers.
About 18 abortion clinics are currently open in Texas, though the number fluctuates depending on whether a facility has a doctor with hospital admitting privileges.
Under the new restrictions, the only remaining abortion facilities in Texas would be in major cities. One exception would be a Whole Woman's Health clinic in McAllen, near the Texas-Mexico border, which the 5th Circuit exempted from some restrictions — but Toti said even those exemptions are so limited that it may not be practical to keep that clinic open.
For women in El Paso, the closest abortion provider in Texas would require a 1,200-mile round trip to San Antonio, or they would have to cross state lines. The appeals court found that option suitable, noting that a clinic was just across the border in Santa Teresa, New Mexico.
"Although the nearest abortion facility in Texas is 550 miles away from El Paso, there is evidence that women in El Paso can travel the short distance to Santa Teresa to obtain an abortion and, indeed, the evidence is that many did just that," the court wrote.
Attorneys for the state also dismissed opponents' arguments about women being burdened by fewer abortion facilities, saying that nearly 9 in 10 women in Texas would still live within 150 miles of a provider.
The restrictions are the same ones that Democrat Wendy Davis temporarily blocked with a 13-hour filibuster in the Texas Legislature in 2013, which attracted national attention and propelled her to an unsuccessful run for governor.

Army refuses to provide Honor Guard for church's July 4th celebration


For nearly two decades, the U.S. Army has provided an honor guard for an Independence Day celebration at a Baptist church that predates the founding of the nation. But this year – that tradition has come to an end.
Officials at Fort Gordon say they will not be able to send an honor guard to a July 5th service at Abilene Baptist Church because it violates a military policy banning any involvement in a religious service.
“While there are conditions under which the Army can participate in events conducted at a house of worship, we cannot participate in the context of a religious service,” Public Affairs Officer J.C. Mathews told me.
He said officials at Fort Gordon as well as the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate reviewed the church’s request and determined they were in fact holding a “religious service.”
So it’s OK to invite the troops so long as you don’t pray, talk about Jesus or read the Bible?
“As a result, the Army is not permitted to take part,” Mathews said.
That policy would be an offense to most churches in America – but it is especially offensive when you consider the Army just refused to provide an honor guard for a church whose first pastor was a chaplain in the Revolutionary Army.
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Abilene Baptist Church was founded in 1774 – one of Georgia’s most historic churches and the second oldest in the state. The founding pastor was arrested by a colonial magistrate for “preaching in Georgia” and the first pastor, Reverend Loveless Savage, was a chaplain in the Revolutionary Army.
“It was an absolute shock,” said Brad Whitt, the current pastor of Abilene Baptist Church. “What a sad commentary on the state of affairs in America – when we cannot even allow the flags to fly if they are in a church building.”
“We’ve had a tremendous working relationship with the fort,” he told me. “We’ve hosted all sorts of events for military families. We really try to show our love and respect and we try to honor our military folks.”
The July 5th church service is scheduled to be a “God and Country”-themed celebration with patriotic music and lots of red, white and blue. Afterwards, the church is hosting a Sunday picnic – complete with hot dogs and hamburgers. And for the sake of full disclosure, I’ve been invited to speak at the church service – as well as eat a hamburger afterwards.
Pastor Whitt said they were genuinely confused by the Army’s slight – seeing how Fort Gordon has been providing an honor guard for the past 20 years.
“They have participated for the past two decades and now they are saying – no,” he said. “This is just another example of the secularization of America.”
The church sent me photographs of the honor guard on the main platform of the church in 2007 and 2010. Last year, the church held their service in a local park – and once again – the military sent an honor guard.
So what changed?
Fort Gordon’s Public Affairs Office pointed me to Army Regulation 360-1 – dated May 2011.
The lengthy regulation states Army participation must not selectively benefit (or appear to benefit) any religious group. It also mandates that Army Public Affairs not support any event involving the promotion, endorsement or sponsorship of a religious movement.
According to public affairs, the 2007 church service was designated by the military as a “non-sectarian musical and patriotic program.”
According to the military’s calculations, 80 percent of the program was musical and the other 20 percent included narration and other patriotic elements.
“Because this was not a religious service, our participation was permitted,” he said.
He said the key is not whether the event is sponsored by a religious organization or held in a house of worship.
“Instead, the key factor is, whether or not the event is an actual religious service,” Mathews said.
So it’s okay to invite the troops so long as you don’t pray, talk about Jesus or read the Bible?
LISTEN: Todd’s interview with American Family Radio
“That’s what makes this so sad,” Pastor Whitt told me. “This is what we’ve come to in our nation – where even just representing the colors is some sort of political thing.”
While the Pentagon won’t allow an honor guard to set foot in a church, they have no problem allowing them to march in a gay pride parade.
Last year the Department of Defense gave permission for an honor guard to participate in Washington, D.C.’s gay pride parade – a historic first. An honor guard is also expected to march in the 2015 Capital Pride parade.
So if a military honor guard can celebrate gay pride in a public parade, why can’t they celebrate American pride inside a Baptist church?

Pentagon recommends sending 400 additional US troops to Iraq


The Pentagon has recommended sending 400 more U.S. troops to Iraq to aid in the fight against ISIS, a senior U.S. military official told Fox News late Tuesday.
The official said that the White House had not made a final decision on the recommendation, which would bring the total number of American troops in Iraq to approximately 3,400. That number includes trainers, advisers, security and other logistical personnel.
 The Pentagon also plans to open a sixth training base in Iraq's Anbar province, a vital battleground against the terror group.
The Pentagon says that the additional forces are aimed at bolstering the participation of Sunni tribes in the fight, but the plan is not likely to include the deployment of U.S. forces closer to the front lines to either call in airstrikes or advise smaller Iraqi units in battle. Currently, there are 2,598 Iraqi forces being trained by U.S. forces. Of that number, about 800 are Kurds and the rest are Shiite Muslims.
Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters traveling with him in Israel that it's not clear yet whether opening new training sites would require additional American forces.
"To be determined," Dempsey said. He added that Gen. Lloyd Austin, the U.S. Central Command chief who is responsible for U.S. military operations across the Middle East, had not yet given Dempsey his assessment of whether more resources would be required to implement the proposed changes.
"And that's appropriate, because I want to first understand that we have a concept that could actually improve (Iraqi military) capability," he said.
Dempsey said he has recommended changes to President Barack Obama but he offered no assessment of when decisions would be made. He suggested the president was considering a number of questions, including what adjustments to U.S. military activities in Afghanistan and elsewhere in the world might be needed if the U.S. does more in Iraq.
Dempsey said the Pentagon also is reviewing ways to improve its air power in Iraq, which is a central pillar of Obama's strategy for enabling Iraqi ground forces to recapture territory held by ISIS.
Obama said Monday that the United States still lacks a "complete strategy" for training Iraqi forces. Obama also urged Iraq's Shiite-dominated government to allow more of the nation's Sunnis to join the campaign against the violent militant group.
Dempsey said Obama recently asked his national security team to examine the train-and-equip program and determine ways to make it more effective. Critics have questioned the U.S. approach, and even Defense Secretary Ash Carter has raised doubts by saying the collapse of Iraqi forces in Ramadi last month suggested the Iraqis lack a "will to fight."
Carter, during a recent trip to Asia, also said it's crucial to better involve Sunnis in the fight, and that will mean training and equipping them.
The viability of the U.S. strategy is hotly debated in Washington, with some calling for U.S. ground combat troops or at least the embedding of U.S. air controllers with Iraqi ground forces to improve the accuracy and effectiveness of U.S. and coalition airstrikes. Dempsey was not specifically asked about that but gave no indication that Obama has dropped his resistance to putting U.S. troops into combat in Iraq.
"What he's asked us to do is to take a look back at what we've learned over the last eight months of the train-and-equip program, and make recommendations to him on whether there are capabilities that we may want to provide to the Iraqis to actually make them more capable, ... whether there are other locations where we might establish training sites," and look for ways to develop Iraqi military leaders, he said.
Dempsey said there will be no radical change to the U.S. approach in Iraq, he said. Rather, it is a recognition that the effort has either been too slow or has allowed setbacks where "certain units have not stood and fought." He did not mention the Ramadi rout specifically, but Dempsey previously has said the Iraqis drove out of the city on their own.
"Are there ways to give them more confidence?" This, he said, is among the questions Obama wanted Dempsey and others to answer.
Dempsey said recommendations on how to improve and accelerate the Iraq training efforts were discussed at a White House meeting last week and said follow-up questions were asked about how the proposed changes would be implemented and what risks they would pose to U.S. troops and to U.S. commitments elsewhere in the world.
He stressed that the U.S. military is deeply involved across the globe, even as its budget is shrinking.
"You know our capabilities are in high demand to reassure European allies," he said. "We've got additional issues in the Gulf related to reassuring allies against Iranian threats."
Dempsey added that the U.S. is "still hard at it in Afghanistan," doing more in South Korea and accounting for the fact that some U.S. allies in Asia are "unsettled" by China's building of artificial islands in the South China Sea.

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