truesee's Blog

Two mainstream news organizations are receiving hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars from Obamacare’s Early Retiree Reinsurance Program (ERRP) — a $5 billion grant program that’s doling out cash to companies, states and labor unions in what the Obama administration considers an effort to pay for health insurance for early retirees. The Washington Post Company raked in $573,217 in taxpayer subsidies and CBS Corporation secured $722,388 worth of Americans’ money.

“It is fine with me if they continue covering the ObamaCare debate,” said Rep. Marsha Blackburn, Republican of Tennessee, in an e-mail to The Daily Caller. “When NBC used to cover energy issues, they identified themselves as a subsidiary of General Electric. CBS and Washington Post just have to disclose that they are subsidiaries of the Obama Administration.”

The ERRP, which Republicans call a slush fund, provides taxpayer money to Obama administration-selected states, companies and labor unions with already-in-place early retiree health insurance programs, and aims to make certain that their employees who retire early still have health insurance coverage before they reach Medicare eligibility age. Almost $2 billion of the $5 billion fund, which was supposed to last until 2014, has already been distributed to corporations. New projections expect the funding to run out before the end of 2012, if not sooner.

At a Friday morning hearing, the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, chaired by Rep. Cliff Stearns, Florida Republican, asked Center for Consumer Information & Insurance Oversight (CCIO) official Steven Larsen for how the administration decides who gets a slice of the $5 billion pie – and how the application process works. In his response, Stearns referred to the fact that corporations like General Electric, Verizon and AT&T in addition to several labor unions were getting taxpayer funding.

Stearns was not impressed. “This program is providing ‘free’ money to corporations, states, unions, and pension plans,” the Congressman said in an e-mail to TheDC. “In addition, the Washington Post and CBS received funding under this program. How can the Washington Post and CBS be impartial on the issue of health care when they received funding under the health care law?”

CBS Corporation spokesman Gil Schwartz told TheDC that newsroom employees, like any other CBS employees, are indeed allowed to take the taxpayer subsidies.

“Yes they are,” Schwartz said. “Why wouldn’t newsroom employees be allowed access to that money like all other CBS employees?”

CBS gets the money from the government, then provides early retirees with health insurance.

Though no current newsroom employees can benefit from the ERRP funds, they could retire early and still benefit from the money – or any newsroom employee who has retired since Obamacare became law could benefit from it too.

The Washington Post declined to comment. “We have no additional information to provide you other than what you have,” Post spokeswoman Rima Calderon told TheDC.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) told TheDC she couldn’t disclose information about applications or disbursements for specific companies.

In addition to CBS Corporation and the Washington Post Company, recipients of ERRP funding include the United Auto Workers union, which secured $206,798,086 in taxpayer money, AT&T, which took in $140,022,949, and General Electric (GE), which raked in $36,607,818. GE has made headlines recently for not paying any U.S. taxes last year. IBM got $12,989,690 in taxpayer money.

Verizon pulled $91,702,538 in taxpayer cash, too, and General Motors received $19,002,669. More than $6 million went to different Teamsters groups nationwide, and millions more went to the United Mine Workers, United Food and Commercial Workers, the AFL-CIO and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).

Gadhafi, in letter, asks Obama to end air strikes

MATTHEW LEE

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi has appealed directly to President Barack Obama to halt what the Libyan leader called "an unjust war," and wished Obama good luck in his bid for re-election next year.

 

Libyan rebel fighters prepare rockets for use at a position west of Ajdabiya, Libya, Wednesday, April 6, 2011. NATO rejected criticism from Libyan rebels over the pace of its military campaign in Libya, saying Wednesday that its airstrikes against Moammar Gadhafi's forces are increasing every day. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

 

In a rambling, three-page letter to Obama obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, Gadhafi implored Obama to stop the NATO-led air campaign, which the Libyan called an "unjust war against a small people of a developing country."

"You are a man who has enough courage to annul a wrong and mistaken action," Gadhafi wrote in the letter that was sent to the State Department and forwarded immediately to the White House, according to a U.S. official who has seen the letter. "I am sure that you are able to shoulder the responsibility for that."

"To serving world peace ... Friendship between our peoples ... and for the sake of economic, and security cooperation against terror, you are in a position to keep Nato (NATO) off the Libyan affair for good," Gadhafi wrote.

White House press secretary Jay Carney confirmed that the White House received a letter from Gadhafi.

As for Gadhafi's call for a ceasefire, Carney appeared to dismiss it for now.

"The conditions the president laid out are clear," Carney told reporters traveling with Obama to New York Wednesday afternoon.

In the letter, received earlier Wednesday, Gadhafi says his country had been hurt more morally than physically by the NATO campaign and that a democratic society could not be built through missiles and aircraft. He also repeated his claim that his foes are members of the al-Qaida terrorist network.

Addressing Obama as "our son" and "excellency," Gadhafi said that his country had been hurt more "morally" than "physically" by the NATO campaign. He

The letter, composed in formal but stilted English, includes numerous spelling and grammatical errors.

"Our dear son, Excellency, Baraka Hussein Abu oumama, your intervention is the name of the U.S.A. is a must, so that Nato (NATO) would withdraw finally from the Libyan affair," Gadhafi wrote. "Libya should be left to Libyans within the African union frame."

Gadhafi said his country had already been unfairly subjected to "a direct military armed aggression" ordered by then-President Ronald Reagan, who famously called the leader the "Mad Dog of the Middle East," in 1986, as well as earlier rounds of U.S. and international sanctions.

Although he listed a litany of complaints, Gadhafi said he bears no ill will toward Obama.

"We have been hurt more morally (than) physically because of what had happened against us in both deeds and words by you," he wrote. "Despite all this you will always remain our son whatever happened. We still pray that you continue to be president of the U.S.A. We Endeavour and hope that you will gain victory in the new election campaigne."

The letter, dated April 5, 2011 in Tripoli is signed by "Mu'aumer Qaddaffi, Leader of the Revolution."

___

April 06, 2011 01:47 PM EDT

Maryanne Godboldo, right, is embraced during a rally Saturday at Hartford Memorial Baptist Church in Detroit. Godboldo is facing charges including three counts each of assault with a dangerous weapon and resisting and obstructing a police officer. / ROB WIDDIS/Special to the Free Press

GINA DAMRON
DETROIT FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

Her situation has sparked debate on hot-button issues: traditional medicine versus holistic treatments and state involvement in medical care of children.

Supporters said Maryanne Godboldo was a mother fighting for the right to control her daughter's medical treatment. Some even said the Detroit woman was defending her home from a perceived unlawful entry when police tried to break down doors to get her daughter.

Authorities, however, have accused Godboldo, 56, of firing a gun at police officers while they tried to carry out a court order to take her daughter. She is charged with several crimes as a result of the hours-long standoff last month, in which she barricaded herself and the 13-year-old in their home.

Her case has sparked an outpouring of community support, with hundreds rallying and raising money for her legal fees at a fund-raiser last weekend.

Godboldo will be back in Wayne County's juvenile court today. And on Friday, Godboldo is to appear in 36th District Court in Detroit in the criminal case.

A court order obtained by the Free Press shows Child Protective Services workers were authorized to take the girl into custody. The order, dated March 24, said Godboldo refused to give her daughter medicine for psychosis and was medically neglecting her.

"Mother is in denial about her daughter's mental health issue," the order said. Godboldo said her interactions with CPS date back about a year. She said she believes her daughter's problems began after a series of immunizations in 2009. She said she was weaning her daughter off a drug for psychosis in favor of holistic treatments.

Wayne County Circuit Judge Deborah Thomas -- who arrived on scene during the standoff and spoke to Godboldo by phone, helping to encourage her to come out of the home -- said Godboldo's daughter is a member of the disabilities community.

"She has rights attached to laws to protect people with disabilities," Thomas said. "We must protect children. We must protect their rights, also."

Michael Patterson, district manager with the Department of Human Services children's services administration in Wayne County, would not comment on Godboldo's case, but said failure to provide adequate medical care is considered child neglect.

During an investigation, he said, protective service investigators take many steps. Those include consulting with medical professionals serving the child and interviewing parents, other adults involved with the child's care and the child.

Removal is the last option, Patterson said.

"Our primary responsibility, or mission in child protection, is to identify children and families who are in need of services that will assist families with ensuring the care and well-being of their children," he said.

Don Duquette, a clinical professor of law who directs the child advocacy clinic at the University of Michigan, said parents have the right to determine what kind of medical treatment a child receives, unless the treatment is failing. Then, he said, it is up to the court.

"Parents are in the driver's seat unless a court, after proper process, suspends parental rights," Duquette said. "CPS just facilitates that."

The girl is being held in a treatment facility in Northville.

"I'm very anxious to get my daughter back," Godboldo said after a court hearing last week. "She's been away from me too long."

Special Response Team officers with the Detroit Police Department get in position near a home March 24. Godboldo is charged as a result of an hours-long

Judge gives 'Juror No. 799' indefinite jury duty after she makes racist remarks on questionnaire

John Marzulli
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, April 6th 2011, 4:00 AM

Bristol Palin earns $262K for teen pregnancy work

Rachel D'oro, Associated Press

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Tax documents show unwed mother Bristol Palin earned more than $262,000 for her role in helping raise awareness for teen pregnancy prevention in 2009.

The most recent data for The Candie's Foundation that's posted online by research firm GuideStar shows compensation at $262,500 for the now-20-year-old daughter of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee.

 

Al Grillo, Associated Press

 

In this July 25, 2009, photo, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol Palin holds her and Levi Johnston's son Tripp Johnston at the governor's picnic in Anchorage, Alaska. Tax documents show unwed mother Bristol Palin earned more than $262,000 for her role helping raise awareness for teen pregnancy prevention in 2009. The most recent data for The Candie Foundation that posted online by research firm GuideStar shows compensation at $262,500 for the now-20-year-old daughter of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee.

Bristol Palin was 18 when she was appointed as a teen ambassador for the New York-based foundation in 2009, months after giving birth to son, Tripp. She and the 2-year-old boy's father, Levi Johnston, are no longer together.

Palin family attorney John Tiemessen and foundation officials did not immediately return calls for comment Tuesday.

Palin, who still works for the foundation, told The Associated Press last year that girls would think twice about having sex if they knew how tough it is to be a mother. She said she "wasn't prepared at all" for the dramatic changes in her life since becoming a mom.

"I don't think anyone realizes how difficult it really is until you actually have a screaming baby in your arms and you're up all night," Palin said.

When she was first named to the ambassador role, Palin said in a statement she felt she could be a living example of the consequences of teen pregnancy.

"If I can prevent even one girl from getting pregnant, I will feel a sense of accomplishment," she said at the time.

Days after Sen. John McCain picked Sarah Palin to be his running mate in 2008, Bristol Palin's pregnancy was announced. Sarah Palin has not ruled out a run from president in 2012.

The Candie's Foundation is a division of the apparel brand Candie's. It has been raising awareness about teen pregnancy since 2001.

The blog Palingates first reported the compensation figure

In Leesburg, the stripper, the guns and the podiatrist

So things got a little wacky early Sunday morning in the Lansdowne neighborhood of Leesburg. And when it was all over, an apparently drunk podiatrist was in jail, a stripper and her bodyguard were unharmed, and a neighbor with a gun was the hero.

The Loudoun County sheriff’s office said the episode began in the townhouse of Mehul J. Shah, who lives in the 43700 block of Lees Mill Square. Shah, 39, is a podiatrist who practices in Ashburn at the Dulles Foot and Ankle Institute. But no feet were harmed in the making of this mess.

Instead, Shah reportedly enlisted the services of a Fairfax-based agency called Elite Angels [no web link available], and an Angel, with security guard, was dispatched to Lansdowne. But, apparently “highly intoxicated” according to the sheriff’s office, Shah demanded more than just dancing from the Angel, who demurred. Shah allegedly responded by pulling out his shotgun.

The Angel, a 29-year-old Fairfax woman, fled, followed by Shah, who allegedly fired off one round in the direction of her and her bodyguard. The ruckus, at 12:40 a.m., roused the neighbors, and, this being Virginia, one neighbor promptly appeared with his own weapon. Rather than a duel in the parking lot, the neighbor was able to convince Shah to put his gun down, Investigator Vince Dibenedetto said, and deputies arrived to take him to jail.

And there Shah remains, without bond, on a felony charge of abduction by force and the misdemeanors of reckless handling of a firearm, brandishing a firearm, firing a weapon within a public right of way and firing within 100 yards of a building.

“Sounds like a mixture of alcohol and bad judgment,” Dibenedetto observed.

LINK TO PHOTO:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/in-leesburg-the-stripper-the-guns-and-the-podiatrist/2011/04/05/AFB1jjjC_blog.html

Credit: Surprise Police Department

Sylvia Aranda

Jennifer Thomas

April 5, 2011 at 10:56 AM

Updated today at 1:55 PM

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Surprise police officers arrested a Glendale mother after she allegedly hit her 17-year-old daughter with her car.

According to Sgt. Mark Ortega with the Surprise Police Department, Sylvia Aranda, 37, and her daughter were in a heated argument Friday when Aranda pulled over near Greenway and El Mirage roads to let the girl out of the car.

Witnesses said Aranda then drove her 2006 Chrysler onto the sidewalk, hit the teen with the front passenger tire and drove away.

Ortega said Aranda returned to the scene while police and fire personnel were treating the victim for minor injuries. The teen was released to a family member.

Aranda was interviewed and placed under arrest. She was then transported and booked into Fourth Avenue Jail on one count of aggravated assault-domestic violence.

She has since been released due to a lack of probable cause. No charges have been filed at this time.