NYPD Spying on Liberal Groups

Undercover NYPD police officers attended meetings of liberal political organizations and kept intelligence files on activists who planned protests around the country, according to interviews and documents.

It turns out that law enforcement has been using counterterrorism tactics to monitor even lawful activities.

The tactics used by the NYPD are similar to ones used ahead of New York’s 2004 Republican National Convention, when police monitored anti-war organizations, environmental advocates and even church groups nationwide.

Police claimed the spying was necessary to prepare for the huge crowds that were headed to the city, but documents obtained by The Associated Press revealed that the police intelligence unit continued to track political groups in 2008, after the convention ended.

In April 2008, an undercover NYPD officer attended the People’s Summit in New Orleans, a gathering of liberal groups opposed to U.S. economic policy and trade agreements between the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Two activists, Jordan Flaherty, a journalist, and Marisa Franco, a labor organizer for housekeepers and nannies were mentioned by name in one of the police intelligence reports obtained by the AP.

“One workshop was led by Jordan Flaherty, former member of the International Solidarity Movement Chapter in New York City,” officers wrote in an April 25, 2008, memo to David Cohen, the NYPD’s top intelligence officer. “Mr. Flaherty is an editor and journalist of the Left Turn Magazine and was one of the main organizers of the conference. Mr. Flaherty held a discussion calling for the increase of the divestment campaign of Israel and mentioned two events related to Palestine.”

The document reveals the latest example of how, in the name of fighting terrorism, law enforcement agencies around the country target groups that legally oppose government policies. The FBI, for instance, has collected information on anti-war demonstrators. The Maryland state police infiltrated meetings of anti-death penalty groups. Texas officials urged authorities to monitor lobbying efforts by pro Muslim-groups. Missouri counterterrorism analysts suggested that support for republican presidential candidate Ron Paul might indicate support for violent militias. State officials later apologized for those assertions.

By contrast, at the height of the Occupy Wall Street protests and in related protests in other cities, officials at the U.S. Homeland Security Department repeatedly urged authorities not to produce intelligence reports based simply on protest activities.

“Occupy Wall Street-type protesters mostly are engaged in constitutionally protected activity,” department officials wrote in documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the website Gawker. “We maintain our longstanding position that DHS should not report on activities when the basis for reporting is political speech.”

At the NYPD, the monitoring was carried out by the Intelligence Division, a squad that operates with nearly no outside oversight. The division has been the subject of a series of Associated Press articles that illustrated how the NYPD monitored Muslim neighborhoods, catalogued people who prayed at mosques and eavesdropped on sermons.

The NYPD has defended its practices, saying the threat of terrorism means officers cannot wait to open an investigation until a crime is committed. Under rules governing NYPD investigations, officers are allowed to go anywhere the public can go and can prepare reports for “operational planning.”

Though the NYPD’s infiltration of political groups before the 2004 convention generated some controversy and has become an element in a lawsuit over the arrest, fingerprinting and detention of protesters, the surveillance itself has not been challenged in court.

Flaherty, who also writes for The Huffington Post, said he was not an organizer of the summit, as police wrote in the NYPD report. He said the event described by police actually was a film festival in New Orleans that same week, suggesting that the undercover officer’s duties were more widespread than described in the report.

Flaherty said he recalls introducing a film about Palestinians but spoke only briefly and does not understand why that landed him a reference in police files.

“The only threat was the threat of ideas,” he said. “I think this idea of secret police following you around is terrifying. It really has an effect of spreading fear and squashing dissent.”

Eugene Puryear, 26, an activist who attended the New Orleans summit, said he was not surprised to learn that police were monitoring it. He said it was entirely peaceful, a way to connect community organizers around the issues of racism and the rights of the poor. But he described it as a challenge to corporate power and said the NYPD probably felt threatened by it.

“From their perspective, they need to spy on peaceful groups so they’re not effective at putting out their peaceful message,” he said. “They are threatened by anything challenging the status quo.”

Seven Black Teens Arrested, Face Possible Hate Crime Charges

Seven black teens have been arrested for assaulting a 15-year-old Hispanic boy while he was walking home from school in Southern California, they face possible hate crime charges.

The March 14 attack took place in Palmdale, was captured on video and subsequently posted on YouTube. The video has since been removed from the video sharing site. The seven boys, ages 13 to 16, were arrested Wednesday for assault and committing a hate crime, Lt. Don Ford said.

The attack occurred near Cactus Middle School, but it is not known if any of the teens involved were students there.

The video shows up to as many as 10 boys surrounding the victim and challenging him to a fight. The suspects then began hitting the teen while others watched.

The teens yelled racially derogatory statements at the victim during the beating that were captured on the video, Ford said.

The victim was kicked multiple times in the head after falling to the ground. Several of his teeth were knocked out and shoe impressions were left on his skin, Ford said.

The teen was able to get to his feet and escape the attack.

He will need to undergo dental surgery.

The teens who were arrested were identified from the video, which has been retained for evidence. Authorities are not releasing the video.

Police are seeking three more suspects.

Ron Paul: ‘Secret Service is a form of welfare’

Ron Paul is the only Republican presidential candidate who doesn’t find it necessary to spend tax payers’ money on Secret Service protection.

In an interview with Jay Leno, Paul said that employing Secret Service is a “form of welfare.”

“You know, you’re having the taxpayers pay to take care of somebody,” Paul said.

“I’m an ordinary citizen and I would think I should pay for my own protection, and it costs, I think, more than $50,000 a day to protect those individuals,” Paul told Leno during an appearance on The Tonight Show.

The twelve-term Congressman received a standing ovation when walked on to discuss where he stands on the issues and how the other candidates change their stance on matters as long as it appeases their crowd.

Doctor Paul labeled Romney a “flip-flopper” and Santorum a “fake conservative,” but to Secret Service they are known as “Javelin” and “Petrus” respectively.

Ron Paul did play around the idea of having Secret Service track his every move and came up with the codename “Bulldog,” his reasoning behind it?

“I’d go after the Fed and all that big spending,” Paul chuckled.

Speaking about his rivals he didn’t shy away from using harsh words, with Rick Santorum arguably getting the biggest portion of criticism.

“I think he’s a fake because conservatives are supposed to be for less government, but his voting record is a disaster for that,” said Paul.

 

Obama Admin. Hires Army Of Private Debt Collectors to Go After Student Loan Debt

When students default on their federal loans, debt collectors are hired to track them down and collect payments.

But according to a new report by Bloomberg’s John Hechinger, debt collectors are demanding larger payments than they should under federal law:

“With $67 billion of student loans in default, the Education Department is turning to an army of private debt-collection companies to put the squeeze on borrowers. Working on commissions that totaled about $1 billion last year, these government contractors face growing complaints that they are violating federal laws by insisting on stiff payments, even when borrowers’ incomes make them eligible for leniency.”

The fact that so many students are letting their loans fall into collection could be yet another symptom of a weak economy.

Collectors will do whatever it takes to get a payment, and their commission, out of students but those in debt do have options.

“Only borrowers who are already in default will be contacted by a collection agency,” FinAid.org’s Mark Kantrowitz told Your Money. “(Students) should ask about the process for rehabilitating their loans. Once the loans are rehabilitated, they should be able to obtain income-based repayment (IBR).”

Ten percent of borrowers are eligible for IBR but a fraction of that actually take advantage of it. IBR caps monthly loan payments at 15% of  income and forgives any remaining balance after 25 years in repayment.

Debt collectors are the subject of more complaints to the Federal Trade Commission than any other industry, almost 181,000 last year.

 

Dems Seek to Ease Penalties for Federal Workers That Engage in Partisan Politics

The Hatch Act of 1939 places restrictions on federal workers engaging in political activities. The law came about after complaints that federal workers were helping collect votes for the Democratic Party.

If Democrats have their way, federal workers will have much more leeway to engage in partisan political action.

Democrats in the House and Senate proposed legislation that would ease some penalties that federal workers face for engaging in partisan political activities such as campaigns or other overt actions.

Under current law, employees who violate the Hatch Act are required to either be removed or suspended for at least 30 days without pay. Suspensions can only take place on a unanimous vote from the Merit Systems Protection Board.

Under legislation introduced by Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) in the Senate and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) in the House, the Board would have flexibility to choose from a longer list of penalties, some of which are not as harsh as removal or suspension. These include “reduction in grade, debarment from federal employment for a period not to exceed five years, suspension, reprimand or an assessment of a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000.”

Akaka argues that this change is needed to address what he said were “minor violations” of the law.

“Under the law, it is possible that a federal employee could lose his or her job for inadvertently sending an email at work containing improper political content or hanging a picture on his or her wall during a campaign season,” Akaka said. “My bill would amend these provisions of the Hatch Act to allow the Merit Systems Protection Board, which adjudicates Hatch Act complaints in the federal government, to impose a range of penalties, from termination to a reprimand, depending on the nature of the offense involved.”

Cummings agreed that there should be “punishments less severe than firing for minor violations.”

Sen. Mike Lee (Utah), the only Republican on either the House or Senate bill, said that the bill is needed to better protect federal employees.

“If we can update the Hatch Act to provide for greater flexibility for public workers while still ensuring the legitimacy of our politics, there should be no reason for anyone to oppose such a change,” Lee said.

The Hatch Modernization Act, S. 2170 and H.R. 4152, would give state and local employees the freedom to run for partisan elective office, something they are currently not entitled to do. It would also treat District of Columbia employees the same way that state and local workers are treated for purposes of enforcement; today, D.C. employees are treated as federal workers.

Sponsors of the Senate bill are Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Carl Levin (D-Mich.), while the House bill is sponsored by Reps. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Jim Moran (D-Va.) and Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.).

Chief Suspect of ‘Fast and Furious’ Probe Released Not Once But Twice

Manuel Celis-Acosta, the chief suspect in the ATF’s “Fast and Furious” investigation was not only caught and released at the U.S.-Mexico border in May 2010, but also two months earlier while in possession of a Colt .38-caliber pistol purchased illegally via the gun-tracking operation.

Officials could have brought about a swift end to the “Fast and Furious” operation. Twice they declined to take action on opportunities to charge Celis-Acosta with felony offenses, instead the investigation dragged on for months, with the loss of about 1,700 U.S. firearms on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.

In a letter to Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr., two top congressional investigators demanded answers as to why Celis-Acosta was twice permitted to dodge arrest. It was sent by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista), chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Fast and Furious was launched Oct. 31, 2009, and ran up until a month after a U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed in December 2010. Two assault weapons linked to the “Fast and Furious” op were recovered after his slaying near the border.

The congressional leaders said they learned of the gun arrest from a list of “Overt Acts” of gun-smuggling suspects that was compiled by an ATF official during Fast and Furious.

“On April 2, 2010,” states one notation on the list, “a firearm purchased by Patino on March 26, 2010, was recovered by law enforcement officials and was possessed by Celis-Acosta.” The item gave no further information about the incident.

By March 26, 2010, Patino had allegedly illegally purchased at least 434 weapons under Fast and Furious from cooperating gun dealers in the Phoenix area. The ATF says he eventually purchased a total of 720 weapons, more than any other person who illegally purchased weapons in the program.

Two months later, on May 29, 2010, Celis-Acosta was again stopped and questioned in Lukeville, Ariz., by the top ATF agent working the Fast and Furious investigation. He was driving a BMW with 74 live rounds of ammunition and nine cellphones allegedly hidden inside. ATF Special Agent Hope MacAllister released him after he promised to cooperate in her investigation.

Patino and Celis-Acosta are among 19 people indicted in January 2010 in Fast and Furious. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Militia Members Accused of Plotting War Against Government, Cleared of Charges

A federal judge dismissed the most serious charges in the U.S. government’s case against seven members of a Michigan militia who were being accused of plotting to wage war against the government.

U.S. District Judge Victoria Roberts said the members’ expressed hatred of law enforcement didn’t amount to a conspiracy to rebel against the federal government. The FBI had an informant and an FBI agent planted inside the Hutaree militia going back to 2008. They collected hours of anti-government audio and video that became the cornerstone of the case.

“The court is aware that protected speech and mere words can be sufficient to show a conspiracy. In this case, however, they do not rise to that level,” the judge said.

Roberts granted requests for acquittal on the most serious charges: conspiring to commit sedition, or rebellion, against the U.S. and conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction. Other weapons crimes tied to the alleged conspiracies also were dismissed.

“The judge had a lot of guts,” said defense attorney William Swor. “It would have been very easy to say, ‘The heck with it,’ and hand it off to the jury. But the fact is she looked at the evidence, and she looked at it very carefully.”

The trial, which began Feb. 13, will  resume with only a few gun charges remaining against militia leader David Stone and son Joshua Stone, both from Lenawee County, Mich.

Prosecutors said Hutaree members were anti-government rebels who combined training and strategy sessions to prepare for a violent strike against federal law enforcement. The strike was to be set off by the slaying of a local police officer.

Defense lawyers said highly offensive remarks about police and the government were wrongly turned into a high-profile criminal case.

Attorney General Eric Holder called Hutaree a “dangerous organization.”

David Stone’s “statements and exercises do not evince a concrete agreement to forcibly resist the authority of the United States government,” Roberts said. “His diatribes evince nothing more than his own hatred for, perhaps even desire to fight or kill law enforcement; this is not the same as seditious conspiracy.”

U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade declined to comment. Two years ago, when militia members were arrested, she said it was time to “take them down.”

Undercover FBI agent Steve Haug, known as “Jersey Steve,” posed as a trucker spending months recording talks with Stone, even serving as Stone’s best man at his wedding.

Haug repeatedly talked to Stone about building pipe bombs and getting other sophisticated explosives. The FBI rented a warehouse in Ann Arbor where the agent would invite him and others to store and discuss weapons.

Haug told jurors he was “shocked” by Stone’s knowledge of explosives, noting it matched some of his own instruction as a federal agent.

Stone was recorded saying he was willing to kill police and even their families. He considered them part of a “brotherhood”, a sinister global authority that included federal law enforcers and United Nations troops.

Stone believed that Germany and Singapore had aircraft stationed in Texas, and thousands of Canadian troops were going to take over Michigan. He also said the government put computer chips in a flu vaccine.

He had a speech prepared for a regional militia gathering in Kentucky in 2010, but bad weather forced him and others to return to Michigan. Instead, he read it in the van while a secret camera installed by the FBI captured the remarks.

“It is time to strike and take our nation back so that we may be free again from tyranny,” Stone said. “Time is up, God bless all of you and welcome to the new revolution.”

Swor said Stone is a Christian who was bracing for war against the Antichrist.

“This is not the United States government. This is Satan’s army,” Swor told the judge Monday, referring to the enemy.

Militia members cleared of all charges were Stone’s wife, Tina Stone, and his son, David Stone Jr.; Thomas Piatek of Whiting, Ind.; Michael Meeks of Manchester, Mich.; and Kris Sickles of Sandusky, Ohio.

“It’s hard to believe it’s over,” said Tina Stone, crying as she spoke by phone. “Thank God we live in a country where we do have freedom of speech.”

Ironically.

Bernanke: “U.S. Unemployment Could Remain High for Years”

In an interview with ABC News, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke says that it could take “a few more years” for U.S. unemployment to decline without a faster rate of growth than the U.S. economy is currently experiencing.

The chairman said he is sleeping better these days because the U.S. financial system looks stronger, and threats from Europe’s debt crisis look less worrisome.

Something millions of Americans can not say.

He also said the jump in gas prices will only be a moderate drag on growth.

Something else millions of Amercains can not say.

Despite his sleep filled nights, Bernanke said the economy isn’t strong enough to continue to reduce unemployment quickly. Unemployment has fallen from 9 percent in September to the current 8.3 percent. A healthy level is roughly between 5 percent and 6 percent, Bernanke noted.

“The recent news has been good, but I think we need to be cautious and make sure this is sustainable,” Bernanke said in the interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer. “We haven’t quite yet got to the point where we can be completely confident that we’re on a track to full recovery.”

He said stronger growth would “guarantee that we keep making progress in the labor market.”

The Fed will likely stick to its plan to hold short-term interest rates at record lows through 2014.

Police Video Shows No Visible Injuries on Zimmerman After Trayvon Martin Shooting

Surveillance video footage of George Zimmerman being led from a police car shortly after he fatally shot unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin does not appear to show any injuries or bloodstains, but his attorney says the video is too grainy to be revealing.

The footage, obtained by ABC News on Wednesday, shows a handcuffed Zimmerman getting out of the police car unaided and walking into the police station where he was taken after the shooting in Sanford, Fla.

It was taken about four hours after the deadly incident.

There are no visible signs of injuries to Zimmerman’s head or blood on his clothes. However, he is wearing a red jacket, which could obscure blood stains. Zimmerman claims Martin broke his nose and slammed his head several times into the ground. He was treated by EMS at the scene but did not go to the hospital.

 

Medvedev to Romney “We are in 2012, not the mid-1970s”

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev took a shot at republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Tuesday, telling the GOP frontrunner to “look at his watch” in regards to Romney’s comments that Russia was an enemy of the United States.

“We are in 2012 and not the mid-1970s,” Medvedev said, on the last day of a nuclear security summit in Asia.

Romney called Russia the United States’ “No. 1 geopolitical foe.”

Medvedev said Romney’s comments were full of Hollywood machismo.

“Regarding ideological cliches, every time this or that side uses phrases like ‘enemy No. 1,’ this always alarms me, this smells of Hollywood and certain times [in the past],” he said. “I would recommend all U.S. presidential candidates … to do two things. First, when phrasing their position one needs to use one’s head, one’s good reason, which would not do harm to a presidential candidate.”

Romney made the comments after a hot mic picked up a private conversation between Medvedev and President Obama. During the conversation, Obama asked his Russian counterpart for “space” and “flexibility” on the missile defense issue until after November’s election.