Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Congressman scorches 'our enemy' in White House

(MARIETTA DAILY JOURNAL) U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-Grantville) addressed the Benghazi investigation and terrorist organization ISIS among other topics Saturday morning at the Cobb County GOP breakfast at its headquarters.
Westmoreland is on the House Select Committee responsible for investigating the events surrounding the 2012 terrorist attack on the American consulate in Benghazi. The attack killed four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens.
The congressman spoke for about 45 minutes to a crowd of about 75, before fielding questions.

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2014/09/congressman-denounces-our-enemy-in-white-house/#TIeT6rrpJK2sUPcb.99
Local U.S. rep addresses ISIS, Benghazi; criticizes Democrats
by Aimee Sachs
September 07, 2014 04:00 AM | 5067 views | 10 10 comments | 6 6 recommendations | email to a friend | print
Lynn Westmoreland
Lynn Westmoreland
U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-Grantville) addressed the Benghazi investigation and terrorist organization ISIS among other topics Saturday morning at the Cobb County GOP breakfast at its headquarters.

Westmoreland is on the House Select Committee responsible for investigating the events surrounding the 2012 terrorist attack on the American consulate in Benghazi. The attack killed four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens.

The congressman spoke for about 45 minutes to a crowd of about 75, before fielding questions.

“I’m not going to stand here and confirm or deny anything,” Westmoreland told the crowd. “Our job is to figure out the truth.”

Westmoreland spent much of his speech criticizing Democrats.

“I think our enemy stands on 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.,” Westmoreland said to loud applause.

Later on, he called Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid “ruthless and senile,” to which the audience erupted with laughter.

Westmoreland touched on foreign policy, saying it “will take us decades to get back to our status” in the world.

He also addressed the upcoming election in which Democratic State Sen. Jason Carter, grandson of former President Jimmy Carter, is challenging Gov. Nathan Deal for his seat. Westmoreland also mentioned the race to replace U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, who is retiring. Democrat Michelle Nunn is running against Republican David Perdue in that race.

“We cannot afford to lose this Georgia seat,” Westmoreland said, adding it would be “embarrassing” to lose.

After the speech, Westmoreland said the Benghazi investigation is not about partisan politics.

“This is not a partisan witch hunt,” he said. “This is to find out the truth and just let us take the facts and let the facts lead us to the truth. So, that’s what we’re trying to do.”

Westmoreland said despite working with Democratic co-sponsors on bills, the atmosphere in Washington is not made for bipartisanship.

“The electorate has just gotten so partisan that it’s hard for these guys to be bipartisan,” he said.

Melissa Pike, chairwoman of the Cobb Democratic Party, weighed in on Westmoreland’s comments Saturday evening, saying Georgia needs relief from what she called “the drama.”

“There are those of us who are tired of this madness,” Pike said. “The day of (Republicans) stomping their feet like little kids, it has to end. There’s too much work that needs to be done.”

On the issue of taking action against ISIS, Westmoreland said he thinks sending troops is necessary to get answers from terrorists.

“I don’t want to put boots on the ground, but if we want to do what we’re doing right now, we’ll never defeat them,” Westmoreland said. “If you have troops on the ground, you can actually capture these guys and be able to get a little more (intelligence) out of them.”

Scott Johnson of the Georgia Board of Education said he took away the importance of Republican unity from the speech and he is confident of the work Westmoreland is doing on the committee.

“They’re going to be able to get the answers, I believe, on Benghazi,” Johnson said. “Congressman Westmoreland and his colleagues will get to the bottom of the Benghazi debacle.”

The CDC acknowledges this very fact on their website. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Vliet further stated that the CDC’s own guidelines are clearly being violated with regards to the illegal immigrants currently crossing the border.

Medical Examination: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

General Information

Medical Examinations

What is CDC’s role in medical examinations?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is responsible for providing the technical instructions to Civil Surgeons and Panel Physicians who conduct medical examinations for immigration. These instructions are developed in order to implement the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) regulations regarding the health-related grounds for inadmissibility of persons applying for admission into the United States.
What is the purpose of the medical examination?
The purpose of the medical examination is to identify applicants with inadmissible health-related conditions for the Department of State (DOS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The health-related grounds for inadmissibility include persons who have a communicable disease of public health significance, who fail to present documentation of having received vaccination against vaccine-preventable diseases, who have or have had a physical or mental disorder with associated harmful behavior, or who are a drug abuser or an addict.
Who is required to have a medical examination for migration to the United States?
Category
Medical Examination
Examination Site
Examination Location
Immigrants
Yes
Panel Physicians
Overseas
Refugees
Yes
Panel Physicians
Overseas
Status adjusters
Yes
Civil Surgeons
U.S.
Non-immigrants
No
--
--
Short-term Transit
No
--
--
Others*
No
--
--
Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security
* Others include migrants who entered the United States without inspection, including those who entered with and without proper documentation
All immigrants, refugees and certain nonimmigrants, including fiancés, coming to the United States must have a physical and mental examination abroad by a Panel Physician. Persons in the United States applying for adjustment of status to a permanent resident of the United States must have a physical and mental examination in the United States by a Civil Surgeon.
What does a medical examination entail?
The medical examination procedure consists of a physical examination, an evaluation (skin test/chest x-ray examination) for tuberculosis, and blood test for syphilis. The vaccination requirements include vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP).
The technical instructions indicating the required testing, the diseases currently listed as being communicable diseases of public health significance, and the vaccination requirements are available on the CDC website.
Additional immigration information and regulations are available on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscisExternal Web Site Icon
What are the communicable diseases of public health significance that would cause an applicant to fail a medical examination or be inadmissible?
Communicable diseases of public health significance include—
  • Tuberculosis
  • Syphilis
  • Chancroid
  • Gonorrhea
  • Granuloma Inguinale
  • Lymphogranuloma Venereum
  • Hansen's Disease (Leprosy)
And the following two disease categories--
  • Quarantinable diseases designated by any Presidential Executive Order. Current diseases include: cholera, diphtheria, infectious tuberculosis, plague, smallpox, yellow fever, viral hemorrhagic fevers, severe acute respiratory syndromes, and influenza caused by novel or re-emergent influenza (pandemic flu).
  • Events that are reportable as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) to the World Health Organization (WHO) under the International Health Regulations (IHR) of 2005 (currently polio, smallpox, SARS, influenza, and other public health emergencies of international concern.)
Some health-related waivers may be available for these diseases. For general information concerning the role that the CDC plays in the waiver process, you may visit our website. Additional information concerning Form I-601, the waiver application, and the requirements is located on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) websiteExternal Web Site Icon.
What vaccines/boosters are required for immigrants and those applying for adjustment of status in the United States?
As part of the medical examination for immigration, all immigrants are required to have an assessment for the following vaccine-preventable diseases: mumps, measles, rubella, polio, tetanus and diphtheria toxoids, pertussis, Haemophilus influenzae type B, rotavirus, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, meningococcal disease, varicella, influenza, and pneumococcal pneumonia. Persons already in the United States applying for adjustment of status for permanent residency, including refugees, are also required to be assessed for these vaccine-preventable diseases.
Each set of Technical Instructions for medical examination of aliens has an addendum regarding the vaccination requirements for immigrants.
Do all vaccine series have to be completed before vaccination requirements are fulfilled?
For vaccines requiring a series, only a single dose is required for immigration purposes. However, the Civil Surgeon should check the “insufficient time interval” box on the I-693 Form, and also advise the applicant to complete the series in the future.
Could a person request and be granted a personal-belief waiver from the vaccine requirements?
The applicant needs to check with USCIS to obtain the application for a waiver based on religious or moral conviction. It is a separate application process to obtain an individual waiver based on religious or moral conviction.

Forms

Where does one find a list of Civil Surgeons who do the medical examination for adjustment of status?
A list of Civil Surgeons (doctors in the U.S. who perform medical examinations for persons adjusting their status to permanent residency) is available on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscisExternal Web Site Icon
How does one request the I-693 Medical Examination Form?
The I-693 form is available on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscisExternal Web Site Icon
How does one request the Department of State (DOS) medical examination forms and associated worksheets for immigrant visa applications?
The Department of State (DOS) forms for medical examination of immigrant visa applicants (DS-2053, DS-2054, DS-3024, DS-3030, DS-3025, and DS-3026) are not available on the CDC website.
Since the forms are DOS forms, information about obtaining these forms may be requested on DOS website: http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/visa_1750.htmlExternal Web Site Icon

For Civil Surgeons

How does one request the Technical Instructions for Civil Surgeons?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is responsible for providing the technical instructions to Civil Surgeons conducting medical examinations for immigration.
The instructions, along with important updates, are available on our website.
General information concerning Civil Surgeons and the medical examination required for immigration purposes is also available on the USCIS websiteExternal Web Site Icon.
What does the blanket designation of health departments as Civil Surgeons mean?
The blanket designation of health departments as Civil Surgeons applies only to the vaccination assessment and only to refugees. Also, only health departments that have a physician or physicians meeting the legal definition of Civil Surgeon can participate in this designation, and accepting the designation is entirely voluntary on the part of health departments. A Civil Surgeon is legally defined as a licensed physician with no less than 4 years of professional experience.
The completed I-693 medical examination form must contain the official stamp or seal of office and be given to the refugee in a sealed envelope for presentation to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The form must also be signed by a health department physician who has at least 4 years of professional experience.
The technical instructions for civil surgeons, in their entirety, are available on CDC’s website.
The vaccination section of the technical instructions includes information on the blanket designation of health departments as Civil Surgeons for the vaccination assessment of refugees, as well as the instructions for completing the vaccination assessment for refugees.
I need to make changes to our Civil Surgeon listing. How do I do that?
You must contact the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) concerning request for changes to the civil surgeon listing including address, phone number, and addition of physicians in your office. To locate the nearest USCIS office for your area, visit the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscisExternal Web Site Icon
How does one become a Civil Surgeon? What are the requirements for a Civil Surgeon?
Civil Surgeons are designated by the District Director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Immigration regulations state that each civil surgeon selected shall be a licensed physician with no less than 4 years of professional experience. A written request for Civil Surgeon designation along with evidence of the requirements should be directed to the appropriate USCIS office.
CDC is responsible for providing the technical instructions to Civil Surgeons conducting medical examinations for immigration. The instructions, along with important updates, are available on our website.
Contact information for the USCIS office located in your area is available on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscisExternal Web Site Icon
Our site would like to be registered to do immigration physicals. Where can we apply?
Physicians (i.e., civil surgeons) who perform the examination for immigrants or nonimmigrants applying for adjustment of status for permanent residency in the United States need to contact the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Civil Surgeons are designated by the District Director of USCIS. Information concerning USCIS district offices, as well as contact information for those offices, is available on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscisExternal Web Site Icon

For Panel Physicians

How does one request the Technical Instructions for Panel Physicians?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is responsible for providing the technical instructions to Panel Physicians conducting medical examinations for immigration.
The instructions, along with important updates, are available on our website.
Where does one find detailed instructions for completing the Department of State medical examination forms and associated worksheets for immigrant visa applicants?
The Department of State (DOS) forms for medical examination of immigrant visa applicants, (DS-2053, DS-2054, DS-3024, DS-3030, DS-3025, and DS-3026) are not available on the CDC website.
Since DS-2053, DS-2054, DS-3024, DS-3030, DS-3025, and DS-3026 are DOS forms, information about obtaining these forms should be requested on the DOS website: http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/visa_1750.htmlExternal Web Site Icon
How long is the overseas medical examination of aliens valid?
For applicants examined in countries using the 1991 TB Technical Instructions, the medical exam is valid for:
  • 1 year if the applicant does not have a Class A condition or a Class B tuberculosis (TB) condition;
  • or 6 months if any of these conditions exist.
For applicants examined in countries using the 2007 TB Technical Instructions (now referred to as the Culture and Directly Observed Therapy [DOT] Technical Instructions), the medical exam is valid for:
  • 6 months if the applicant does not have a Class A TB, Class B1 TB, or HIV condition;
  • or 3 months if any of these conditions exist.
How does one become a Panel Physician?
Panel Physicians are selected by U.S. Department of State (DOS) embassies and consulates. Therefore, you should contact the appropriate American Embassy or Consulate for information on how to become a Panel Physician. Contact information for those offices is available at http://usembassy.state.gov/External Web Site Icon
CDC is responsible for providing the technical instructions to Panel Physicians conducting medical examinations for immigration. Those instructions, in their entirety, are available on our website.
Contact Us:
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
    1600 Clifton Rd
    Atlanta, GA 30333
  • 800-CDC-INFO
    (800-232-4636)
    TTY: (888) 232-6348
  • Contact CDC–INFO

ok people every one whos kids is sick get up and sue obama sue obama for 200 000 000 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT RELATED PANDEMIC DISEASES ARE APPEARING IN THE US

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT RELATED PANDEMIC DISEASES ARE APPEARING IN THE US

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT RELATED PANDEMIC DISEASES ARE APPEARING IN THE US
Job applicants or terrorists?
Job applicants or terrorists?
Three months ago, people like Dr. Jane Orient, myself and anonymous Border Patrol agents began to call for quarantine, for the purpose of health screening all immigrants. Many people laughed and said there was no real threat. The invasion of our country, the very invasion that people said was not real, has just endangered the entire country. We are sitting on the beginning of a series of pandemic outbreaks.

Prominent Health Officials Have Called for Quarantining All Illegal Immigrants for Health Reasons

In June, one of Arizona’s most prominent physicians, Dr. Jane Orient, called for proper health screening as she thought the unbridled and unconditioned entry of illegal immigrants into the country was problematic.

Dr. Austin King
Dr. Austin King
Dr. Austin King, head of the Texas Medical Association, is now calling out Texas Governor Rick Perry and President Barrack Obama to allow doctors to screen all of the unaccompanied children who have been coming across the border from Honduras and El Salvador. The President has remained silent with regard to the request.

Dr. King expressed the view that in order for more doctors to go down to the border, emergency funding would likely need to be approved, and ICE would have to change some policies in order to allow everyone coming across to be screened.

Dr. Elizabeth Lee Vliet
, a prominent preventive medicine physician, who previously served as the former Director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, stated that “Legal immigrants are required to pay for medical exams and screening tests conducted by approved physicians before they arrive here. They’re not arriving in the U.S. carrying diseases, and then being dispersed into cities across the nation.” The CDC acknowledges this very fact on their website. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Vliet further stated that the CDC’s own guidelines are clearly being violated with regards to the illegal immigrants currently crossing the border.
Back in July of 2014, I was told by two confidential Border Patrol informants that some of their agents were coming down with immigrant-related diseases such as drug resistant TB and scabies and that they had resorted to laundering their clothes at their worksite so they did not carry home the illnesses to their families. Now we have official confirmation as it has been announced that Border Patrol agents and other Department of Homeland Security (DHS) staff have contracted diseases from infected migrants, some of whom are unaccompanied children (UAC).
The government, through a DHS report, finally admitted that, “Many UAC and family units require treatment for communicable diseases, including respiratory illnesses, tuberculosis, chicken pox, and scabies. DHS employees reported exposure to communicable diseases and becoming sick on duty. … Two CBP Officers reported that their children were diagnosed with chicken pox within days of the CBP Officers’ contact with a UAC who had chicken pox.”

Our Children Are At Risk

In one of the articles that I wrote at the height of the illegal immigration crisis, I stated that within a few months, these illegal immigrant children would be sitting in classrooms next to American children and could possibly expose our children to illnesses for which Americans have no immunity. Well, that day has arrived.
new and unidentified respiratory illness has come to Missouri and it is sickening hundreds of kids, and it’s causing trouble throughout the entire state.
At St. Louis Children’s Mercy Hospital has seen more than 300 cases of enterovirus 68 since mid-August. A doctor there says it is. The children have difficulty breathing. Ten to 15 percent of the children are needing intensive care.
St. Louis Children’s Hospital reports that it has seen more than a 100 children with similar symptoms in the past week. St. Louis Children’s hospital, just like Children’s Mercy, is full and is not able to admit anymore patients.
Despite the emerging pandemic, Dr. Mary Anne Jackson, an infectious disease specialist at Children’s Mercy, said samples it sent to the CDC were almost all enterovirus 68, but the CDC refuses implicate the virus as a cause for this latest outbreak. Of course, we would not want to implicate the CDC for turning a blind eye to this emerging crisis. Despite the fact that all of the samples sent to the CDC tested positive for enterovirus 68, the CDC says there is insufficient statistical data to draw any conclusion.
Dr. Jackson says good hand washing, covering your cough and not sending your child to school if he or she appears sick can help control the spread. In other words, there’s no anti-viral medicine for enterovirus 68 and no vaccine. Subsequently, washing their hands is your children’s only defense.

Mysterious Illness Sweeping Through Border Towns

Officials from the CDC have confirmed that they are investigating a mystery illness that has been rapidly emerging in towns and military bases housing these undocumented immigrants. The CDC has outbreak specialists in place who are currently attempting to identify whether the causative agent is bacterial or viral. These illnesses are appearing in communities near where the government housed scores of illegal immigrants in detention centers.
As I predicted late last spring, these outbreaks are among the first of a long line outbreaks we were going to see as a result of unscreened illegal aliens.

Conclusion

cloward and pivenIn a 1966 article in Nation, Richard Andrew Cloward and Frances Fox Piven, sociology professors at Columbia University, wrote that capitalism should be collapsed by overloading the government with financial demands that could not be met. Clearly, Obama is working off of the playbook of Cloward and Piven.
The strategy is to collapse the financial system. The tactic is chaos. If a crisis does not exist, create one. The more chaos the better. The solution is always couched in empathetic words like “fair,” “equal,” “humane,” and “just.”
We know that the government refused admittance to Ft. Sill in Oklahoma to Oklahoma congressman, Jim Bridenstine so he could see for himself what was going in these facilities housing illegal immigrants. What are they hiding?
In light of these revelation, members of the media may lament that we’d be far better off if the government worked as hard to stop the spread of disease as it does to stop the spread of information.

About the Author

Dave Hodges is the host of the popular radio talk show, which airs from 9 PM to Midnight (Central). The show can be heard by clicking the following icon in the upper right hand corner of The Common Sense Show.
© 2014. The Common Sense Show.  The Logo and Articles are protected by U.S. Copyright Laws, and are not to be downloaded or reproduced in any way without the written permission of Dave Hodges. Copyright 2014. Dave Hodges. All Rights Reserved.

 

 

 

 

Homeland Security Report Confirms Diseases Spreading at Border Facilities


The Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General released a memo on Thursday confirming the problem of communicable diseases that are being spread throughout detention centers. 

The OIG outlined a two-week report from the beginning of the month on the detention of Unaccompanied Alien Children. According to DHS IG John Roth’s memo to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, the IG office continues to make unannounced site visits to numerous detention centers along the southern border where Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are temporarily sheltering UACs.
The IG says they did not observe any misconduct or inappropriate conduct of DHS employees during their unannounced visits and did not receive any new complaints during their random interviews of UACs. However, the IG office stressed the problem of communicable diseases that are being spread at the detention centers.
“Many UAC and family units require treatment for communicable diseases, including respiratory illnesses, tuberculosis, chicken pox, and scabies,” the IG report said. “UAC and family unit illnesses and unfamiliarity with bathroom facilities resulted in unsanitary conditions and exposure to human waste in some holding facilities.” The report continued:
Contract cleaners and OHS employees are working to maintain sanitary conditions. DHS employees reported exposure to communicable diseases and becoming sick on duty. For example, during a recent site visit to the Del Rio USBP Station and Del Rio Port of Entry, CBP personnel reported contracting scabies, lice, and chicken pox. Two CBP Officers reported that their children were diagnosed with chicken pox within days of the CBP Officers’ contact with a UAC who had chicken pox. In addition, USBP personnel at the Clint Station and Santa Teresa Station reported that they were potentially exposed to tuberculosis.
A senior spokesman for the CDC told Marc Siegel at Slate.com that HHS is spearheading medical services for facilities in southwest Texas and Arizona. According to Slate, it takes two to three weeks “for a vaccine to confer protection, [so] more cases of flu are likely within the centers. It is also possible that the disease will spread to the local community and beyond.”
Additionally, the IG report says that DHS employees are “donating clothing, toys, and games to UAC and family units,” as well as buying food “with their own money, to supplement contract food supplies.”

Remarks by President Obama at NATO Summit Press Conference

Remarks by President Obama at NATO Summit Press Conference

Celtic Manor Resort
Newport, Wales
4:50 P.M. BST
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good afternoon.  Let me begin by thanking my great friend, Prime Minister Cameron -- and his entire team -- for hosting this NATO Summit and making it such a success.  And I want to thank the people of Newport and Cardiff and the people of Wales for welcoming me and my delegation so warmly.  It’s a great honor to be the first sitting U.S. President to visit Wales.
We’ve met at a time of transition and a time of testing.  After more than a decade, NATO’s combat mission in Afghanistan is coming to an end.  Russia’s aggression against Ukraine threatens our vision of a Europe that is whole, free and at peace.  In the Middle East, the terrorist threat from ISIL poses a growing danger.  Here at this summit, our Alliance has summoned the will, the resources and the capabilities to meet all of these challenges.
First and foremost, we have reaffirmed the central mission of the Alliance.  Article 5 enshrines our solemn duty to each other -- “an armed attack against one…shall be considered an attack against them all.”  This is a binding, treaty obligation.  It is non-negotiable.  And here in Wales, we’ve left absolutely no doubt -- we will defend every Ally.
Second, we agreed to be resolute in reassuring our Allies in Eastern Europe.  Increased NATO air patrols over the Baltics will continue.  Rotations of additional forces throughout Eastern Europe for training and exercises will continue.  Naval patrols in the Black Sea will continue.  And all 28 NATO nations agreed to contribute to all of these measures -- for as long as necessary.
Third, to ensure that NATO remains prepared for any contingency, we agreed to a new Readiness Action Plan.  The Alliance will update its defense planning.  We will create a new highly ready Rapid Response Force that can be deployed on very short notice.  We’ll increase NATO’s presence in Central and Eastern Europe with additional equipment, training, exercises and troop rotations.  And the $1 billion initiative that I announced in Warsaw will be a strong and ongoing U.S. contribution to this plan.
Fourth, all 28 NATO nations have pledged to increase their investments in defense and to move toward investing 2 percent of their GDP in our collective security.  These resources will help NATO invest in critical capabilities, including intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and missile defense.  And this commitment makes clear that NATO will not be complacent.  Our Alliance will reverse the decline in defense spending and rise to meet the challenges that we face in the 21st century.
Fifth, our Alliance is fully united in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and its right to defend itself.  To back up this commitment, all 28 NATO Allies will now provide security assistance to Ukraine.  This includes non-lethal support to the Ukrainian military -- like body armor, fuel and medical care for wounded Ukrainian troops -- as well as assistance to help modernize Ukrainian forces, including logistics and command and control.
Here in Wales, we also sent a strong message to Russia that actions have consequences.  Today, the United States and Europe are finalizing measures to deepen and broaden our sanctions across Russia’s financial, energy and defense sectors.  At the same time, we strongly support President Poroshenko’s efforts to pursue a peaceful resolution to the conflict in his country.  The cease-fire announced today can advance that goal, but only if there is follow-through on the ground.  Pro-Russian separatists must keep their commitments and Russia must stop its violations of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Beyond Europe, we pay tribute to all those from our ISAF mission, including more than 2,200 Americans, who have given their lives for our security in Afghanistan.  NATO’s combat mission ends in three months, and we are prepared to transition to a new mission focused on training, advising and assisting Afghan security forces.  Both presidential candidates have pledged to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement that would be the foundation of our continued cooperation.  But, as we all know, the outcome of the recent election must be resolved.  And so we continue to urge the two presidential candidates to make the compromises that are necessary so Afghans can move forward together and form a sovereign, united and democratic nation.
Finally, we reaffirmed that the door to NATO membership remains open to nations that can meet our high standards.  We agreed to expand the partnership that makes NATO the hub of global security.  We’re launching a new effort with our closest partners -- including many that have served with us in Afghanistan -- to make sure our forces continue to operate together.  And we’ll create a new initiative to help countries build their defense capabilities -- starting with Georgia, Moldova, Jordan and Libya.
I also leave here confident that NATO Allies and partners are prepared to join in a broad, international effort to combat the threat posed by ISIL.  Already, Allies have joined us in Iraq, where we have stopped ISIL’s advances; we’ve equipped our Iraqi partners, and helped them go on offense.  NATO has agreed to play a role in providing security and humanitarian assistance to those who are on the front lines.  Key NATO Allies stand ready to confront this terrorist threat through military, intelligence and law enforcement, as well as diplomatic efforts.  And Secretary Kerry will now travel to the region to continue building the broad-based coalition that will enable us to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL.
So, taken together, I think the progress we’ve achieved in Wales makes it clear that our Alliance will continue to do whatever is necessary to ensure our collective defense and to protect our citizens.
So with that, let me take a few questions.  I’ll start with Julie Pace of the Associated Press.
Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  I wanted to go back to the situation in Ukraine.  If this cease-fire does take effect and appears to be holding, would you and your European counterparts back away from these sanctions that you say you’ve prepared?  Or do you feel that it’s important to levy these sanctions regardless of this cease-fire agreement?  And if I could go back to the Rapid Response Force, can you say specifically what U.S. contributions will be in terms of troop numbers and equipment?  Is it beyond the agreement that you announced -- or the proposal you announced in Warsaw?
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  With respect to the cease-fire agreement, obviously we are hopeful, but based on past experience also skeptical that, in fact, the separatists will follow through and the Russians will stop violating Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.  So it has to be tested.
And I know that the Europeans are discussing at this point the final shape of their sanctions measures.  It’s my view that if you look at President Poroshenko’s plan, it is going to take some time to implement.  And as a consequence, for us to move forward based on what is currently happening on the ground with sanctions -- while acknowledging that if, in fact, the elements of the plan that has been signed are implemented -- then those sanctions could be lifted is a more likely way for us to ensure that there’s follow-through. But that's something that obviously we’ll consult closely with our European partners to determine.
I do want to point out, though, that the only reason that we’re seeing this cease-fire at this moment is because of both the sanctions that have already been applied and the threat of further sanctions, which are having a real impact on the Russian economy and have isolated Russia in a way that we have not seen in a very long time.
The path for Russia to rejoin the community of nations that respects international law is still there, and we encourage President Putin to take it.  But the unity and the firmness that we’ve seen in the Transatlantic Alliance in supporting Ukraine and applying sanctions has been I think a testimony to how seriously people take the basic principle that big countries can just stomp on little countries, or force them to change their policies and give up their sovereignty.
So I’m very pleased with the kind of work that's been done throughout this crisis in Ukraine, and I think U.S. leadership has been critical throughout that process.
With respect to the Rapid Response Force and the Readiness Action Plan that we’ve put forward, in Warsaw I announced $1 billion in our initiative.  A sizeable portion of that will be devoted to implementing various aspects of this Readiness Action Plan.
We’ve already increased obviously rotations of personnel in the Baltic states, for example.  We have the air policing.  We have the activities that are taking place in the Baltic and the Black Sea.  But this allows us to supplement it.  It allows us to coordinate it and integrate it further with additional contributions from other partners.  And what it signifies is NATO’s recognition that, in light of recent Russian actions as well as rhetoric, we want to make it crystal clear:  We mean what we say when we’re talking about our Article 5 commitments.  And an increased presence serves as the most effective deterrent to any additional Russian aggression that we might see.
Angela Keane, Bloomberg.
Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  What are your specific expectations for what regional actors like Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Jordan can legitimately provide to a coalition against Islamic State?  Is there a role there for Iran, as well?  As you know, Secretary Kerry today said that he expects the Allied countries to coalesce around a specific plan by the end of September.  Do you agree with the timeline that he set out?  And what concrete commitments, if any, are you leaving this summit with from the other nations that were here?
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Let me start with a general point.  There was unanimity over the last two days that ISIL poses a significant threat to NATO members.  And there was a recognition that we have to take action.  I did not get any resistance or pushback to the basic notion that we have a critical role to play in rolling back this savage organization that is causing so much chaos in the region and is harming so many people, and poses a long-term threat to the safety and security of NATO members.  So there’s great conviction that we have to act as part of the international community to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL.  And that was extremely encouraging.
Beyond that, what we have already seen is significant support from a variety of member states for specific actions that we’ve been taking in Iraq.  Keep in mind, we’ve taken already 100 strikes in Iraq that have had a significant impact on degrading their capabilities, and making sure that we’re protecting U.S. citizens, critical infrastructure, providing the space for the Iraqi government to form.  Our hope is that the Iraqi government is actually formed and finalized next week.  That, then, allows us to work with them on a broader strategy.
And some of the assistance has been in the form of airlift or humanitarian assistance.  Much of it has been providing additional arms to the Peshmerga and the Iraqi Security Forces.  There’s been logistical support, intelligence and surveillance and reconnaissance support.  And so a variety of folks with different capabilities have already made a contribution.  I’m confident that we’re going to be able to build on that strong foundation and the clear commitment, and have the kind of coalition that will be required for the sustained effort we need to push ISIL back.
Now, John Kerry is going to be traveling to the region to have further consultations with the regional actors and the regional players.  And I think it is absolutely critical that we have Arab states, and specifically Sunni majority states, that are rejecting the kind of extremist nihilism that we’re seeing out of ISIL that say that is not what Islam is about, and are prepared to join us actively in the fight.  And my expectation is, is that we will see friends and allies and partners of ours in the region prepared to take action, as well, as part of a coalition.
One of our tasks, though, is also going to be to build capability.  What we’ve learned in Iraq is, yes, ISIL has significant capabilities, and they combine terrorist tactics with traditional military tactics to significant effect, but part of the problem also is, is that we haven’t seen as effective a fighting force on the part of the Iraqi Security Forces as we need.  And we’re going to have to focus on the capable units that are already there, bolster them, bolster the work that the Peshmerga has done.  We can support them from the air, but ultimately we’re going to need a strong ground game, and we’re also going to need the Sunni tribes in many of these areas to recognize that their future is not with the kind of fanaticism that ISIL represents so that they start taking the fight to ISIL, as well.  And that's going to require the sort of regional partnerships that we’re talking about.
In terms of timetable, we are working deliberately.  If you look at what we’ve done over the last several months, we’ve taken this in stages.  The first stage is to make sure that we were encouraging Iraqi government formation.  Second stage was making sure that, building on the intelligence assessments that we have done, that we were in a position to conduct limited airstrikes to protect our personnel, critical infrastructure and engage in humanitarian activities.
The third phase will allow us to take the fight to ISIL, broaden the effort.  And our goal is to act with urgency, but also to make sure that we’re doing it right -- that we have the right targets; that there’s support on the ground if we take an airstrike; that we have a strong political coalition, diplomatic effort that is matching it; a strong strategic communications effort so that we are discouraging people from thinking somehow that ISIL represents a state, much less a caliphate.  So all those things are going to have to be combined.
And as I said, it’s not going to happen overnight, but we are steadily moving in the right direction.  And we are going to achieve our goal.  We are going to degrade and ultimately defeat ISIL, the same way that we have gone after al Qaeda, and the same way that we have gone after the al Qaeda affiliate in Somalia where we released today the fact that we had killed the leader of al-Shabaab in Somalia, and have consistently worked to degrade their operations.
We have been very systematic and methodical in going after these kinds of organizations that may threaten U.S. personnel and the homeland.  And that deliberation allows us to do it right.  But have no doubt, we will continue and I will continue to do what is necessary to protect the American people.  And ISIL poses a real threat, and I’m encouraged by the fact that our friends and allies recognize that same threat.
Julie Davis.
Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  I want to follow up on what you were saying about ISIL and ask, if you think that the objective here is to destroy and degrade them, are those the same thing in your mind?  Is the goal to ultimately -- Secretary Kerry said that there’s no containing them, so is the goal to ultimately annihilate them?  And also, you talked about the importance of expertise on the ground and building up capacity on the ground.  Do you think since airstrikes are not going to do it here, if ultimately action is needed in Syria, can you realistically expect the Free Syrian Army to do what’s needed on the ground to really destroy, not just push back, ISIL?
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  You can’t contain an organization that is running roughshod through that much territory, causing that much havoc, displacing that many people, killing that many innocents, enslaving that many women.  The goal has to be to dismantle them.
And if you look at what happened with al Qaeda in the FATA, where their primary base was, you initially push them back.  You systematically degrade their capabilities.  You narrow their scope of action.  You slowly shrink the space, the territory that they may control.  You take out their leadership.  And over time, they are not able to conduct the same kinds of terrorist attacks as they once could.
As I said I think in my last press conference, given the nature of these organizations, are there potentially remnants of an organization that are still running around and hiding and still potentially plotting?  Absolutely.  And we will continue to hunt them down the same way we’re doing with remnants of al Qaeda in the FATA or elements of al-Shabaab in Somalia, or terrorists who operate anywhere around the world.
But what we can accomplish is to dismantle this network, this force that has claimed to control this much territory, so that they can’t do us harm.  And that’s going to be our objective.  And as I said before, I’m pleased to see that there’s unanimity among our friends and allies that that is a worthy goal and they are prepared to work with us in accomplishing that goal.
With respect to the situation on the ground in Syria, we will not be placing U.S. ground troops to try to control the areas that are part of the conflict inside of Syria.  I don’t think that’s necessary for us to accomplish our goal.  We are going to have to find effective partners on the ground to push back against ISIL.  And the moderate coalition there is one that we can work with.  We have experience working with many of them.  They have been, to some degree, outgunned and outmanned, and that’s why it’s important for us to work with our friends and allies to support them more effectively.
But keep in mind that when you have U.S. forces, other advanced nations going after ISIL and putting them on the defensive and putting them on the run, it’s pretty remarkable what then ground forces can do, even if initially they were on the defensive against ISIL.
So that is a developing strategy that we are going to be consulting with our friends, our allies, our regional partners.  But the bottom line is, we will do what is necessary in order to make sure that ISIL does not threaten the United States or our friends and partners.
One last question.  Colleen Nelson, Wall Street Journal.
Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  Some say that Democrats who are facing tough races in November have asked you to delay action on immigration.  How have the concerns of other Democrats influenced your thinking?  And do you see any downside at this point to delaying until after the election?
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I have to tell you that this week I’ve been pretty busy, focused on Ukraine and focused on ISIL and focused on making sure that NATO is boosting its commitments, and following through on what’s necessary to meet 21st century challenges.
Jeh Johnson and Eric Holder have begun to provide me some of their proposals and recommendations.  I’ll be reviewing them.  And my expectation is that fairly soon I’ll be considering what the next steps are.
What I’m unequivocal about is that we need immigration reform; that my overriding preference is to see Congress act.  We had bipartisan action in the Senate.  The House Republicans have sat on it for over a year.  That has damaged the economy, it has held America back.  It is a mistake.  And in the absence of congressional action, I intend to take action to make sure that we’re putting more resources on the border, that we’re upgrading how we process these cases, and that we find a way to encourage legal immigration and give people some path so that they can start paying taxes and pay a fine and learn English and be able to not look over their shoulder but be legal, since they’ve been living here for quite some time.
So I suspect that on my flight back this will be part of my reading, taking a look at some of the specifics that we’ve looked at.  And I’ll be making an announcement soon.
But I want to be very clear:  My intention is, in the absence of action by Congress, I’m going to do what I can do within the legal constraints of my office -- because it’s the right thing to do for the country.
Thank you very much, people of Wales.  I had a wonderful time.
  
END
5:15 P.M. BST

Here’s How The House Just Condemned Obama

Bill Text Versions
113th Congress (2013-2014)
H.RES.644


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There are 2 versions of Bill Number H.RES.644 for the 113th Congress. Usually, the last item is the most recent.
1 . Condemning and disapproving of the Obama administration's failure to comply with the lawful statutory requirement to notify Congress before releasing individuals detained at United... (Introduced in House - IH)[H.RES.644.IH][PDF]
2 . Condemning and disapproving of the Obama administration's failure to comply with the lawful statutory requirement to notify Congress before releasing individuals detained at United... (Reported in House - RH)[H.RES.644.RH][PDF]

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Cesium, iodine and tritium in NW Pacific waters – a comparison of the Fukushima impact with global fallout

Cesium, iodine and tritium in NW Pacific waters – a comparison of the Fukushima impact with global fallout
P. P. Povinec1, M. Aoyama2, D. Biddulph3, R. Breier1, K. Buesseler4, C. C. Chang3,5, R. Golser6, X. L. Hou7, M. Ješkovský1, A. J. T. Jull3,5,8, J. Kaizer1, M. Nakano9, H. Nies10, L. Palcsu8, L. Papp8, M. K. Pham10, P. Steier6, and L. Y. Zhang7
1Centre for Nuclear and Accelerator Technologies (CENTA), Department of Nuclear Physics and Biophysics, Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics, Comenius University, 84248 Bratislava, Slovakia
2Department of Geochemistry, Meteorological Research Institute, Tsukuba, Japan
3NSF Arizona AMS Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA
4Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA
5Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA
6VERA Laboratory, Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
7Center for Nuclear Technology, Technical University of Denmark, Risø, Roskilde, Denmark
8Institute for Nuclear Research (ATOMKI), 4026 Debrecen, Hungary
9Japan Atomic Energy Agency, 4-33 Muramatsu, Tokai-mura, Naka-gun, Ibaraki 319-1194, Japan
10Environment Laboratories, International Atomic Energy Agency, Monte Carlo 9800, Monaco

Abstract. Radionuclide impact of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant accident on the distribution of radionuclides in seawater of the NW Pacific Ocean is compared with global fallout from atmospheric tests of nuclear weapons. Surface and water column samples collected during the Ka'imikai-o-Kanaloa (KOK) international expedition carried out in June 2011 were analyzed for 134Cs, 137Cs, 129I and 3H. The 137Cs, 129I and 3H levels in surface seawater offshore Fukushima varied between 0.002–3.5 Bq L−1, 0.01–0.8 μBq L−1, and 0.05–0.15 Bq L−1, respectively. At the sampling site about 40 km from the coast, where all three radionuclides were analyzed, the Fukushima impact on the levels of these three radionuclides represents an increase above the global fallout background by factors of about 1000, 50 and 3, respectively. The water column data indicate that the transport of Fukushima-derived radionuclides downward to the depth of 300 m has already occurred. The observed 137Cs levels in surface waters and in the water column are compared with predictions obtained from the ocean general circulation model, which indicates that the Kuroshio Current acts as a southern boundary for the transport of the radionuclides, which have been transported from the Fukushima coast eastward in the NW Pacific Ocean. The 137Cs inventory in the water column is estimated to be about 2.2 PBq, what can be regarded as a lower limit of the direct liquid discharges into the sea as the seawater sampling was carried out only in the area from 34 to 37° N, and from 142 to 147° E. About 4.6 GBq of 129I was deposited in the NW Pacific Ocean, and 2.4–7 GBq of 129I was directly discharged as liquid wastes into the sea offshore Fukushima. The total amount of 3H released and deposited over the NW Pacific Ocean was estimated to be 0.1–0.5 PBq. These estimations depend, however, on the evaluation of the total 137Cs activities released as liquid wastes directly into the sea, which should improve when more data are available. Due to a suitable residence time in the ocean, Fukushima-derived radionuclides will provide useful tracers for isotope oceanography studies on the transport of water masses during the next decades in the NW Pacific Ocean.

Citation: Povinec, P. P., Aoyama, M., Biddulph, D., Breier, R., Buesseler, K., Chang, C. C., Golser, R., Hou, X. L., Ješkovský, M., Jull, A. J. T., Kaizer, J., Nakano, M., Nies, H., Palcsu, L., Papp, L., Pham, M. K., Steier, P., and Zhang, L. Y.: Cesium, iodine and tritium in NW Pacific waters – a comparison of the Fukushima impact with global fallout, Biogeosciences, 10, 5481-5496, doi:10.5194/bg-10-5481-2013, 2013.

 

Breaking: CDC Confirms Possible Ebola Case At Miami Hospital; PLUS West African Patient Being Brought to Atlanta Now...

Breaking: CDC Confirms Possible Ebola Case At Miami Hospital; PLUS West African Patient Being Brought to Atlanta Now...




Details of case and patient not immediately known.

O’KEEFE STRIKES AGAIN! New Video Shows ISIS Terrorist Crossing Into US in Motorboat

O’KEEFE STRIKES AGAIN! New Video Shows ISIS Terrorist Crossing Into US in Motorboat

Posted by Jim Hoft on Monday, September 8, 2014, 9:07 AM

 
 
Once again, investigative journalist James O’Keefe demonstrates how easy it is for foreign terrorists to slip into the United States.
In August, James O’Keefe crossed back and forth across the Rio Grande in Hudspeth County, Texas, in an Osama Bin Laden costume.
This time, O’Keefe, dressed as an ISIS terrorist, crossed into the US in broad daylight in a motorboat from Canada.
okeefe boat 2
No problem.
okeefe isis
Here’s the video, via Project Veritas:

Do you feel safe now?
Project Veritas reported:
Last month I crossed the border dressed as Osama bin Laden. Today we released a follow-up investigation.
It was so easy to cross into the United States from Mexico, we began asking questions about the Northern border. After all, British intelligence believes more than 500 British citizens have joined ISIS, and British citizens can enter Canada without a visa.
Frankly, we were disheartened by what we found. Watch for yourself.

A Fighter’s Best Friend: the IDF’s Dogs in Gaza

A Fighter’s Best Friend: the IDF’s Dogs in Gaza

Oketz (banner)
During Operation Protective Edge, the dogs of the IDF’s Oketz unit battled terrorists in Gaza. Many of them were wounded in combat, but that didn’t stop them from continuing the fight.  
Only ten days after suffering a severe injury in Gaza, Whiskey – a dog in the IDF’s Oketz unit – eagerly returned to the battlefield. He wasn’t alone. During Operation Protective Edge, several of the IDF’s canines were wounded in clashes with Hamas terrorists. Like Whiskey, many of them continued fighting despite their wounds.
A fighter's best friend
Oketz (Hebrew: ‘Sting’) is the IDF’s elite canine unit and the best of its kind in the world. The unit’s soldiers undergo intense training to lead infantry forces and special units into battle. They prepare year round to join IDF troops in all sorts of situations, from basic missions to the most complex operations.
“Our dogs are filled with motivation, and they rarely reveal that something is wrong with them,” explained Major A, one of the unit’s senior veterinarians. On the first day of the operation’s ground phase, a bullet entered Whiskey’s leg near a major artery. Despite his injury, he continued to carry out his mission alongside IDF soldiers.
A soldier and his dog
More than two hours after Whiskey’s injury, his handler noticed that he was limping and needed urgent medical attention. IDF soldiers immediately evacuated him to a hospital in Israel, where veterinarians performed surgery and saved his life. Only ten days later, Whiskey returned to the battlefield. “He was determined to keep going,” Major A explained. “His wound was very dangerous, and he survived it almost by a miracle.”
A bond between warriors
Kimba, another of the unit’s canines, and her handler were wounded after terrorists fired a mortar in their direction. After suffering shrapnel wounds to the head and chest, Kimba underwent surgery in an Israeli veterinary hospital. Throughout her period of recovery, she received regular visits from her IDF handler, who insisted on coming to see her despite his own wounds.
Oketz dog next to an airplane engine during a search and rescue exercise
Oketz dog next to an airplane engine during a search and rescue exercise
The IDF honors its canines much like its soldiers. When four dogs were killed in Gaza, Oketz held a moving ceremony in their memory. Dozens of handlers came to pay their respects to the fallen canines – a sign of the strong bonds between the unit’s handlers and their dogs.
Oketz fighters do everything possible to save the lives of wounded dogs. “They’re like fighters on four legs, and we take the evacuation of an injured dog very seriously,” Maj. A said. “We decide how to evacuate each dog according to the severity and urgency of each injury, whether by car or helicopter. In Gaza, there were always veterinarians in the field who treated dogs when they were injured.”
An IDF handler trains his dog
“All of our wounded dogs suffered trauma,” explained Major Y, another senior veterinarian in the unit. “They were hit by shrapnel in places that would disable a human being, but all of them kept going. Many of them continued fighting because they insisted on hiding their wounds.”