Al Jazeera Cartoon

State Department discovers 'thousands' of previously undisclosed Clinton documents

The Department of State recently discovered “thousands” of previously unreviewed documents that relate to Hillary Clinton and the Benghazi attack, according to a watchdog group that has been suing the department to release public records from Clinton’s tenure.
The State Department disclosed the existence of the additional records in a court filing on Friday and asked the judge for further time to search and review the documents.
The watchdog group Judicial Watch has been suing the State Department for years to turn over public records related to Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state, the Clinton Foundation, the employment arrangements of Clinton’s top aides, and her response to the Benghazi attack.
According to the State Department, the newly found records are likely to include information relevant to Judicial Watch’s requests. Officials said they would need until at least Feb. 1 to review the documents.
“After State filed its motion for summary judgment in this case [on November 11, 2015], State located additional sources of documents that originated within the Office of the Secretary that are reasonably likely to contain records responsive to Plaintiff’s request,” said the State Department’s attorneys in a court filing.
A judge ordered the State Department to turn over public records after Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit against the department in September 2013. The case was reopened last year after it was reported that Clinton’s emails, which were sent over a personal email server, had not been searched.

Al Jazeera America to shut down in April

Al Jazeera English bans terms 'terrorist,' 'Islamist'

Al Jazeera America, which went on the air in 2013 -- and is partly funded by the ruling family of Qatar -- announced Wednesday it is shutting down at the end of April, citing the "economic landscape of the media environment."
The network said in a statement that "Al Jazeera America will cease operation by April 30, 2016," explaining that "while Al Jazeera America built a loyal audience across the U.S. and increasingly was recognized as an important new voice in television news, the economic landscape of the media environment has driven its strategic decision to wind down its operations and conclude its service."
Ray Suarez, a Washington, D.C.-based host at the channel, said in an email to Fox News Latino: “We put a good product on the air, with strong content from around the world that you can't see anywhere else. But ... being good isn't enough on its own in 2016.”
Al Anstey, Al Jazeera America’s chief executive, reportedly wrote in a memo to staffers. “I know the closure of AJAM will be a massive disappointment for everyone here who has worked tirelessly for our long-term future. The decision that has been made is in no way because AJAM has done anything but a great job.”
Al Jazeera's prime-time ratings recently ranged from 20,000 to 30,000 viewers, according to Nielsen data. Upon taking over the network in May 2015, Anstey downplayed the network's ratings woes, saying it would “take time to build viewership.”

More on this...

• Pan-Arab news channel Al-Jazeera buys Al Gore's Current TV

• Kurtz: Inside the chaos at Al Jazeera America

The network also said it will be ramping up its digital offerings in the U.S. as it shuts down its news channel.

Maine lawmakers to debate impeaching governor

Maine lawmakers are expected to debate an impeachment order against Gov. Paul LePage Thursday over allegations of abuse of power.
The proposal, submitted by Democratic Rep. Ben Chipman, hopes to punish the Republican governor for allegedly using his influence to pressure a school operator into rescinding a job offer from Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves. Eves responded to the action by filing a civil lawsuit in federal court.
"It's a matter of principle," said Chipman, of Portland. "It's about holding the governor accountable and standing up to his behavior."
LePage critics are also seeking to look into allegations that he forced out the president of the Maine Community College System, refused to allow administration officials to testify in front of committees and involved himself in the internal workings of the unemployment compensation board.
LePage was initially elected as Maine’s governor in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014. The 67-year-old governor has defended his actions, saying he has done nothing wrong and claiming the attacks against him are political and a tantamount to a “witch hunt.”
A majority vote in the Democratic-controlled Maine House would be all LePage’s critics need to kick off an investigation. However, some Democrats fear the decision to go ahead with a vote on the proposed order will prove futile and could embolden the already outspoken governor.
The state attorney general, Democrat Janet Mills, has already declined to investigate LePage's conduct. She said there was no evidence he committed a crime when he pressured Good Will-Hinckley, an organization that serves at-risk young people, to rescind the job offer to Eves.
LePage is known for a blunt style and off-the-cuff remarks that get him into trouble.
He was criticized last week after saying out-of-state drug dealers with names like "D-Money, Smoothie and Shifty" sell heroin in Maine and "half the time they impregnate a young white girl before they leave." He later apologized for the comment, calling it a slip of the tongue.
Rep. Jeffrey Evangelos, an impeachment supporter and political independent, said the governor's white-girl comment was just the latest in a long line of abuses.
"The governor's remarks unmask what many of us already knew about his racist and xenophobic tendencies, his class war against poor people of all colors and his vindictiveness toward immigrants based on color and religion," Evangelos said.
LePage has also said President Barack Obama could “go to hell” and likened the IRS to the Gestapo. LePage also once told the Portland NAACP to "kiss my butt." He said a political opponent gives it to the people "without providing Vaseline."
Republican Rep. Kenneth Fredette, of Newport, defended LePage’s comments, telling The Boston Globe the governor may have mistakenly chosen his words because his first language is French.
An impeachment order would be unprecedented. It also wouldn't likely survive long as it would eventually go to the Republican-controlled Senate.
The Boston Globe reported that an investigative panel would have until April 1 to report any findings and recommend an impeachment. The trial would move to the Senate where a two-thirds majority vote is required to remove LePage from office.

Trump, conservative pundits hit back at Haley for State of the Union response

While Gov. Nikki Haley, R-S.C., was praised in many quarters for her response to President Obama’s State of the Union address Tuesday, she also received strong criticism from some conservatives for her pointed remarks aimed at Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.
In her response, while criticizing President Obama on a number of issues, Haley also made a series of apparent references to Trump, including calling on Americans to ignore “the angriest voices” on the subject of immigration.
"During anxious times, it can be tempting to follow the siren call of the angriest voices. We must resist that temptation," Haley said
“Some people think that you have to be the loudest voice in the room to make a difference. That is just not true. Often, the best thing we can do is turn down the volume. When the sound is quieter, you can actually hear what someone else is saying. And that can make a world of difference,” she said.
On NBC’s Today Show Wednesday, Haley acknowledged that she was in fact referring to Trump among others.
"Yes, Mr. Trump has definitely contributed to what I think is just irresponsible talk," she said.
Haley later appeared on Fox News’ “On The Record” with Greta Van Susteren and said while she considers Trump “a friend,” she does disagree with him.
“I disagree with the fact that he wants to start using religion as a way to divide people,” she said, referring to Trump calling for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the U.S.
“I just want him to understand that this country is made up of immigrants, we want to make sure they’re properly vetted and they come here legally,” Haley said.
Trump earlier had fired back on Fox & Friends Wednesday, calling Haley “very weak on illegal immigration.”
"She's very weak on illegal immigration…and she certainly has no trouble asking me for campaign contributions because over the years she’s asked me for a hell of a lot of money in campaign contributions," he said.
When asked if he would pick her as a running mate, Trump said, “I wouldn’t say she is off to a good start.”
While many pundits in the media and lawmakers in Washington D.C. praised Haley's speech, with some saying it has marked her as a potential candidate for vice president, other conservative voices weren’t so happy with Haley taking aim at a Republican presidential candidate.
Talk radio host and Fox News contributor Laura Ingraham tweeted that Haley missed a golden opportunity to stand with working Americans on the subject of immigration.
She also blasted her for being the voice of the Republican establishment.
Talk radio host Rush Limbaugh was also not impressed. While he said he was an admirer of Haley, he hailed the speech as proof that the Republican establishment is trying to drive conservatives out of the party and define who is qualified to be a Republican.
“For one thing, it's almost absolute proof of what I have been saying for last couple years now, that the Republican Party's trying to drive conservatives out of the party," Limbaugh said on his show Wednesday.
"But I think it's more than that.  It's certainly that, but her speech last night sort of expanded the theme of who is and who isn't qualified to be a Republican, and the Republican Party is still anti-conservative,” Limbaugh said.
Conservative author and columnist Ann Coulter criticized Haley using a similar tone, accusing her of wanting to shut up voters.
Coulter even went so far as to tweet "Trump should deport Nikki Haley."