Federal Government Cut 1,000 Jobs in September; -16,000 Under Trump By Terence P. Jeffrey | October 5, 2018 | 9:30 AM EDT (CNSNews.com) - The number of people employed by the federal government declined by 1,000 in September, according to data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since President Donald Trump took office, federal employment has declined by 16,000. In December 2016, the month before Trump’s inauguration, there were 2,810,000 people employed by the federal government, according to the BLS data. By August 2018, that had declined by 15,000 to 2,795,000. In September, it declined another 1,000 to 2,794,000. At the same time, overall government employment (including those employed by state and local governments) increased 13,000 in September and has climbed by 100,000 since December 2016. In December, 2016, there were 22,306,000 people employed in state, local and federal government combined. By August 2018, that had climbed to 22,393,000. In September, it jumped again to 22,406,000. In September, the increase in government employment was driven by state governments, which increased their workforces by 22,000 during the month—going from 5,142,000 in August to 5,164,000 in September. At the same time, local government were decreasing employment by 8,000 during the month—going from 14,456,000 employed in August to 14,448,000 in September.
"Not a Geologist? John Oliver is a typical British cuck who just doesn't get it. In America, you can be anything you want to be.
Our awesome FLOTUS is stepping up, kicking ass and draining the swamp! Melania Trump's office calls for firing of top Bolton deputy By Samuel Chamberlain | Fox News First lady Melania Trump reportedly wants Deputy National Security Adviser Mira Ricardel fired. The two allegedly clashed during Trump’s trip to Africa. The office of first lady Melania Trump said Tuesday deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel should be dismissed from her post, an extraordinary call that came as President Trump considers further shakeups to his Cabinet after the departure of Jeff Sessions as attorney general. "It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that [Ricardel] no longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House,” Stephanie Grisham, Melania Trump's communications director, said in a statement. The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Ricardel had clashed with Melania Trump's staff over seating arrangements on a plane during the first lady's trip to Africa last month. The paper added that the first lady's office suspects Ricardel of leaking negative stories about the first lady and her staff. The Journal also reported that Ricardel has sparred with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis over policy differences and staffing decisions. The Washington Post, citing three current and two former White House officials, reported that Ricardel had berated people in meetings and spread rumors about Mattis. The paper also reported that White House Chief of Staff John Kelly has sought Ricardel's ouster for months. Ricardel, 58, assumed the post of deputy national security adviser in May, one month after Trump appointed John Bolton as national security adviser to replace Henry McMaster. She attended a White House ceremony Tuesday with Trump celebrating Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. Melania Trump traveled to Ghana, Mali, Kenya and Egypt last month. During the trip, she told ABC News that there are people in the White House whom she and the president cannot trust. She declined to name anyone but said she had let the president know who they are. "Well," she said, "some people, they don't work there anymore." Asked if some untrustworthy people still worked in the White House, she replied, "Yes." The furor over Ricardel comes as Trump is considering changes to his Cabinet that could include the departures of Kelly, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, among others. The Journal reported Tuesday that Trump is "resigned" to the possibility of Kelly leaving the White House if Nielsen is asked to resign. A leading candidate to replace Kelly if he goes is Nick Ayers, the chief of staff for Vice President Mike Pence. Fox News' Kristin Brown and John Roberts and the Associated Press contributed to this report. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/first-ladys-office-calls-for-firing-of-top-bolton-deputy
House Ethics Committee: Dem Rep. Kihuen sexually harassed women, violated House rules By Chad Pergram | Fox News Rep. Ruben Kihuen has been accused of sexual harassment by a former aide. (The Associated Press) The House Ethics Committee has found that retiring Rep. Ruben Kihuen sexually harassed multiple women, both during his campaign for Congress and while a lawmaker. Last year, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said that Kihuen should step down. He did not. But Kihuen did not seek re-election to a second term. In its report on Kihuen, the Ethics Committee says that Congressman “generally denied the allegations of unwanted advances. Despite Representative Kihuen’s denials, each of the complainant’s allegations were supported by documentary evidence and some of the alleged incidents were corroborated by third party witnesses.” According to the report, a staffer on Kihuen’s 2016 campaign “testified that she was subjected to unwanted physical and verbal advances” by Kihuen. He touched “her thigh on two occasions,” commented on her looks, suggested they “should get a hotel room together” and asked if “she would ever cheat on your boyfriend,” it said. A “Nevada lobbyist” also said Kihuen made improper advances toward her including “sliding his hand under her dress and onto her thigh, grabbing her buttocks” and “asking her what color her panties were.” He also “though the use of emojis” suggested “that they make a sex tape together,” the report said. The Ethics Committee said “similarities in the allegations bolster the credibility of the complaints.” The panel determined that “as a Member of Congress, Representative Kihuen engaged in unwanted physical contact by repeatedly kissing DC Firm Employee’s cheek and touching her shoulders and lower back, and engaged in unwanted verbal advances by commenting on DC Firm Employee’s physique.” The Ethics Committee said it determined that Kihuen violated House Rule XXIII, which states that lawmakers “shall behave at all times in a manner that shall reflect creditably on the House.” The panel added that Kihuen “downplayed his actions” while speaking to investigators but says he “apologized to the complainants and acknowledged that his actions may have been perceived in ways other than what he intended.” The Committee said “Kihuen now appears to better understand the effects that a power imbalance can have. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ho...-sexually-harassed-women-violated-house-rules
Ooh, that's so much worse than conspiracy with the Russians to interfere in our Presidential election.
Ex-Pennsylvania AG loses appeal of perjury conviction, faces jail time Associated Press Former Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane was sentenced to 10 to 23 months in jail for illegally disclosing details from a grand jury investigation to embarrass a rival and lying about it under oath. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) (The Associated Press) HARRISBURG, Pa. – The former top prosecutor for the state of Pennsylvania is likely to soon be behind bars, more than two years after she was convicted and sentenced for leaking grand jury information and lying about it. The state Supreme Court on Monday announced it will not review former state Attorney General Kathleen Kane’s conviction, and the Montgomery County district attorney’s office said it plans to ask a judge Tuesday morning to revoke her bail. The justices won’t consider whether Kane was properly convicted of two counts of felony perjury and seven misdemeanor charges, including obstruction and conspiracy. She’s been out on $75,000 bail since her October 2016 sentencing to 10 to 23 months in jail. A three-judge Superior Court panel previously upheld her conviction. Her defense lawyer didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ex...-appeal-of-perjury-conviction-faces-jail-time
Steve Hilton: Trump is fighting the elitist enemy within his own White House By Steve Hilton | Fox News Steve Hilton: Trump vs. the elites The president is fighting the elitist enemy within his own White House. Over the Thanksgiving break, I read Bob Woodward’s “Fear: Trump in the White House.” When it came out in September the snooty elitists on the East Coast salivated over its juicy gossip: “Trump watches TV a lot!" and the story it told of a president they see as an ignorant, dangerous barbarian. Here are a few of the condescending highlights… From Judy Woodruff, PBS: “It is a stunning look inside the Trump presidency, exposing a chaotic White House led by a man who has said he believes the key to power is fear.” From Jamie Gangel, CNN: “I think what Woodward has presented here is a devastating portrait, Brooke. We’ve heard about chaos, we've heard about dysfunction, but the details of this book are like nothing we've heard before...’ From Mika Brzezinski, co-host, MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,”: “All the anecdotes certainly ring true to the man we know and the man who never evolved or stepped up when he won the presidency”… The East Coast elite held up this book as evidence of why Donald Trump is not fit to be president. Well, either they haven't read the book, or they're deliberately distorting what's in it. What Bob Woodward has actually done is write a book in praise of President Trump. The Woodward account, in fact, tells the story of a president who’s totally focused on his agenda, clear about his priorities, and obsessed with delivering the promises he was elected on -- but blocked at every turn by almost everyone around him. What Bob Woodward has actually done is write a book in praise of President Trump. The Woodward account, in fact, tells the story of a president who is totally focused on his agenda, clear about his priorities, and obsessed with delivering the promises he was elected on -- but blocked at every turn by almost everyone around him. Former Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, former economic chief Gary Cohn, former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, current Defense Secretary General Mattis -- and especially Rob Porter, the White House staff secretary who resigned in disgrace over wife-beating allegations -- these men were in President Trump's inner circle and they literally plotted and schemed with each other to overturn the result of the 2016 election. Donald Trump's signature issue for decades has been trade. He was elected to get out of TPP, NAFTA and other trade deals that hurt American workers. He couldn't have been clearer about it. Here’s what he said on August 24, 2016 “We are going to stop the TPP, totally re-negotiate NAFTA, one of the worst trade deals ever made by mankind, and protect every last American job.” From day one the president wanted to deliver on that by introducing tariffs and renegotiating trade deals. But globalists including Gary Cohn and General Mattis did everything in their power to stop him. Another central theme of Donald Trump's campaign was his promise to stop America's involvement in endless foreign wars. This is how he said it in 2016 : "I will never send our finest into battle unless necessary, and I mean absolutely necessary, and will only do so if we have a plan for victory with a capital V." And yet the globalists in his team tried every trick in the book to get the president to break his promises and carry on with the failed policies of the past. It's the same on immigration. One of the most distinctive elements of the Trump 2016 agenda was its promise to end the elitist consensus for uncontrolled immigration that for decades delivered cheap labor to big business Republicans and easy votes to establishment Democrats. Could anyone have misunderstood what Donald Trump was saying? Here’s what he said in a presidential debate in 2015: “As far as the wall is concerned, we're going to build a wall. We're going to create a border. We're going to let people in, but they're going to come in legally. They're going to come in legally. And it's something that can be done.” But on this issue too, we learn from Bob Woodward's reporting, that far from undermining democracy, as the East Coast elites scream every day, President Trump has been battling to uphold democracy by delivering the policy changes that people voted for. Far from describing an unfit and clueless idiot in the Oval Office, the Woodward book portrays a clear-eyed and resolute president fighting exactly the elitist enemy he was elected to fight. The only problem is: the enemy is within. Not just within his own administration -- but within his own White House. Now, some of those people have gone. Rex Tillerson. Gary Cohn. Rob Porter...they're out. But far too many are still there. Next week, we'll be in Washington, D.C., right in the swamp and we will bring you a special edition of “SwampWatch: The Swamp in the White House.” Yes, we will name names. You do not want to miss it: “The Swamp in the White House,” next Sunday from D.C. Tell me what you think of that @stevehiltonx and @nextrevfnc
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Columbia FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, November 26, 2018 Former D.C. Schools Employee and Business Owner Plead Guilty to Federal Charge in Bid-Rigging Scheme Schools Employee Helped Steer Nearly $300,000 Contract to Her Friend WASHINGTON – A former employee of the District of Columbia Public Schools and a business owner, her longtime friend, pled guilty today to a federal mail fraud charge stemming from a bid-rigging scheme involving a government contract valued at nearly $300,000. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and District of Columbia Inspector General Daniel W. Lucas. Amber R. Crowder, 39, of Washington, D.C., also known as Amber Hines, and Shauna Marie Brumfield, 40, of Sacramento, Calif., also known as Shauna Snell, each pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The charge carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and potential financial penalties. The Honorable Senior Judge John D. Bates scheduled Brumfield’s sentencing for Feb. 5, 2019, and Crowder’s sentencing for Feb. 11, 2019. According to a Statement of Facts agreed to by both defendants as part of their plea, Crowder worked as a program manager in the Office of Special Education (OSE) of the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS). In the summer of 2012, Crowder was tasked with identifying and recommending a company to aid in the scheduling of meetings related to individual education plans for special education students. Brumfield and Crowder agreed to work together to obtain the contract. On Aug. 7, 2012, Brumfield created a company called A Simple Solution to bid on the contract. Brumfield and Crowder were partners in A Simple Solution. Crowder was not identified in any company filings or listed on any communications to DCPS in order to conceal her ownership interest in A Simple Solution. At the time, Brumfield and Crowder were also partners in another company called Education Connection, which provided tutoring services to special education students. Crowder was not identified in any Education Connection company filings or listed on any Education Connection communications to DCPS. OSE chose A Simple Solution for the administrative assistant contract over several local qualified companies based on written documentation prepared by Crowder and her personal recommendation. In that documentation, Crowder falsely stated that A Simple Solution was an experienced company. Crowder falsely claimed that her contact person for A Simple Solution was “Marie Matthews,” which was an alias used by Brumfield. Crowder did not disclose that she was on the payroll of Education Connection. A Simple Solution bid $298,800 for the contract because Crowder disclosed to Brumfield that the expected budget for the contract was $300,000. Two separate contracts were signed to cover the entire school year. Crowder’s boyfriend signed the first contract as the purported A Simple Solution Chief Financial Officer, while Brumfield’s boyfriend signed the second contract as the purported A Simple Solution branch manager in order to make it appear that A Simple Solution was an established company with multiple employees. As a result of the fraud, from October 2012 through March 2014, the District of Columbia Public Schools paid approximately $222,000 to A Simple Solution. Brumfield transferred approximately $19,164 of those funds from A Simple Solution’s bank account to Crowder’s personal bank account. In announcing the pleas, U.S. Attorney Liu, Assistant Director in Charge McNamara, and Inspector General Lucas commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the District of Columbia Office of the Inspector General. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas, Paralegal Specialists Joshua Fein and Aisha Keys, and former Paralegal Specialists Jessica Mundi and Kristy Penny. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Saler and Kondi Kleinman, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Columbia FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, November 21, 2018 Justice Department Obtains $11.3 Million Settlement of Disability-Based Housing Discrimination Lawsuit in District of Columbia WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today announced that it has settled a Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuit against Defendants Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. and Mid-America Apartments, L.P. for $11.3 million to resolve allegations that these property owners failed to build 50 apartment complexes in six states and the District of Columbia with accessible features for persons with disabilities. Under the agreement, the defendants must spend $8.7 million to retrofit 36 properties that they currently own. This amount is in addition to $2.4 million in retrofits that had been made to many of the properties after the United States brought suit. The defendants must also pay $175,000 to compensate victims and up to $25,000 for accessibility retrofits at 14 properties they no longer own. The defendants also agreed to undergo training, to construct any new multifamily housing in accordance with the Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act, and to provide periodic reports to the Justice Department. “The Justice Department is committed to ensuring that new multifamily housing is built with the accessible features that are required by law,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Civil Rights Division. “This comprehensive settlement will ensure that equal housing opportunities are afforded to persons with disabilities.” “The Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act ensure that persons with disabilities have access to housing, leasing offices, and related amenities,” said U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu for the District of Columbia. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to vigorously pursuing enforcement of the rights guaranteed by these laws. This settlement is an example of that commitment in the District of Columbia and elsewhere and serves to promote equal access to multi-family housing for persons with disabilities.” The Fair Housing Act requires that multifamily housing constructed for first occupancy after Mar. 13, 1991, have basic accessible features; the Americans with Disabilities Act requires that places of public accommodations, such as rental offices, at multifamily housing built for first occupancy after Jan. 26, 1993, have accessible features. As alleged in the government’s complaint, the defendants built the properties at issue with significant barriers that inhibited access to the units and the associated public and common-use areas. These barriers include routes to building entrances with steps and excessive slopes, units with electrical outlets and thermostats that are beyond the reach of persons who use wheelchairs, and kitchens and bathrooms with insufficient space for persons who use wheelchairs to maneuver. The government filed the lawsuit in 2010 against Post Properties, Inc., Post Apartment Homes, L.P., and Post GP Holdings, Inc., which merged with the defendants in 2016. The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and familial status. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of housing discrimination may call the Justice Department’s Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, e-mail the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov, or contact the Department of Housing and Urban Development at 1-800-669-9777.
