Ron Paul - Supporter Forced To Remove Campaign Sign

YouTubeTuesday Aug 28, 2007

A supporter of Ron Paul in the Orlando Florida area was forced by his local city to remove the sign

New Haven Connectict Police Charge Joggers For Dropping Flour, City Wastes Taxpayer Dollars “Decontaminating” Store Parking Lot Of Dropped Flour…

NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT — New Haven police have charged two people they believe are responsible for spreading a white powder around the parking lot of the IKEA store and Bank of America in the city’s Long Wharf area.

The suspects, 35-year-old Daniel Salchow of New Haven and his sister, 31-year-old Dorothee Salchow of Hamburg, Germany, were arrested and charged with breach of peace in the first degree, a class D felony.

Earlier Thursday, the New Haven Fire Department, New Haven Police Department, State Police, FBI, New Haven Health Department and others responded to a call about a white powder in the parking lot of IKEA. The substance turned out to be flour.

The Salchows said they are part of a running club that participates in a strategic sport called “Hash House Harriers.”

The group said was tradition for members to drop the flour to mark their route. The group also said it stopped dropping the flour post the incidents of Sept. 11, 2001.

The IKEA store is expected to re-open once the fire department completes decontamination of the affected areas, which is precautionary, according to Jessica A. Mayorga, director of communications for the city of New Haven.

Homeland Security Responds to Helicopter Harassment at Brown's Private Picnic

David Deschesne Fort Fairfield Journal

Friday Aug 24, 2007

On Saturday, July 14, a Department of Homeland Security Helicopter hovered over the home of Ed and Elaine Brown for over four hours, skimming the tree tops and beeping its on-board siren at a crowd of over 200 people who had assembled there to enjoy a barbecue picnic and concert with the Browns.

The Fort Fairfield Journal has received a copy of a letter from the Department of Homeland Security to Senator Collins regarding the incident.

The letter states the helicopter was a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) aircraft, whose agents were operating in support of U.S. Marshall Service and Internal Revenue Service agents in an ongoing investigation of Ed and Elaine Brown.

“Ed and Elaine Brown are convicted felons under federal tax statutes,” wrote Luke P. Bellocchi, Assistant Commissioner, Office of Congressional Affairs with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “Since their conviction, the Browns have resisted federal arrest warrants by securing themselves in a compound and refusing to surrender themselves to federal law enforcement officials.”

There is currently no law in the United States requiring the filing of an income tax form, or payment of the taxes. Since there is no law, the Browns are guilty of nothing and the Federal Court ruling and arrest warrant are therefore bogus. Tax researcher, Tommy Cryer recently won a court case against the I.R.S. where I.R.S. agents and attorneys for the United States were unable to prove to a jury there is any law requiring the filing or payment of income tax in the United States.

Contrary to Bellocchi’s opinion that the Browns are secured in a “compound,” this writer has visited their home and found it to be a well-kept home in a secluded, upper class part of town. The use of the word “compound” to describe what is otherwise a couple’s home is likely a psychological warfare term designed to portray a negative image on otherwise peaceful, God-fearing Americans who simply want their government to be held accountable when enforcing laws that simply don’t exist.

While the Browns and their guests were enjoying each other’s company in the midst of a picnic and concert, the helicopter continuously skimmed the crowd and hovered over the treetops in an apparent harassment and intimidation exercise. Bellocchi defends those actions by writing, “The operation involving the aircraft was necessary to further apprehension of the Browns and to secure officer safety in that effort. No violations of agency policy or regulations occurred during the mission.”

Due to operational security and officer safety, Bellocchi was unable to release the names of the pilots or agents involved in that ongoing operation.

Bellocchi admits that intelligence data reveals that "the Brown compound contains significant passive and active traps and devices designed to thwart apprehension. Surveillance and video footage provided by the CBP aircraft was necessary to the law enforcement efforts of both the I.R.S. and U.S. Marshals in the performance of their duties."

The Browns continue to resist the illegal arrest warrant on the fraudulent Failure to File court ruling, issued in the Spring of this year. A third “Live Free or Die” concert is scheduled at their home on September 15. Go to www.makethestand.com or www.thepowerhour.com for more information.

DNI McConnell: ‘Americans Are Going To Die’ If We Keep Talking About Wiretapping

Think Progress Thursday Aug 23, 2007

Earlier this month, Congress caved to President Bush and passed legislation updating the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, vastly expanding Bush’s powers to wiretap American citizens without court oversight. In an extensive interview with the El Paso Times, National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell decried continued public discussion of the wiretapping program, claiming Americans, particularly in Iraq, would “die” because of the debate.

Q: So you’re saying that the reporting and the debate in Congress means that some Americans are going to die?

McCONNELL: That’s what I mean. Because we have made it so public. We used to do these things very differently

Despite forewarning of the death of Americans, McConnell freely “pulled the curtain back” on previously declassified information about surveillance in the interview. Explaining details ranging from secret court rulings to information on obtaining wiretapping warrants, McConnell “raised eyebrows” for his “frank discussion of previously classified eavesdropping work” conducted under FISA.

Some highlights of McConnell’s revelations:

Court ruling declared Bush’s program illegal on May 31: “After the 31st of May we were in extremis because now we have significantly less capability” when a federal court ruled part of the wiretapping program illegal, McConnell said.

Private sector actively involved in wiretapping program: “Under the president’s program, the terrorist surveillance program, the private sector had assisted us,” said McConnell. “Now if you play out the suits at the value they’re claimed, it would bankrupt these companies,” McConnell said, arguing for legal immunity for the companies when Congress returns from recess.

McConnell denies White House involvement: “The president’s guidance to me early in the process, was, ‘You’ve got the experience. I trust your judgement. You make the right call. There’s no pressure from anybody here,” McConnell claimed.

Thousands overseas are being monitored via warrants. “Offering never-disclosed figures, McConnell also revealed that fewer than 100 people inside the United States are monitored under FISA warrants. However, he said, thousands of people overseas are monitored,” states the AP.

Takes 200 hours to assemble a wiretapping warrant: McConnell alleged that “the issue is volume and time” as to why he was so adamant about pursuing warrantless wiretapping. “My argument was that the intelligence community should not be restricted. … It takes about 200 man hours to do one telephone number.”

Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-MI) said he believes McConnell declassified the information in this interview because he “wanted to push back on accusations that the legislation gave the attorney general unprecedented new powers.” “I think they felt they had to become more public,” said Hoekstra.

The Bush administration seems to believe it is permissible to talk about illegal wiretapping to save face, but not okay for Americans to question them about it.

Father Of Slain Youth Can Stay In Court

By TINA A. BROWN | Courant Staff Writer August 22, 2007 Hartford Officer Had Charged Harassment

A Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday against a bid to bar the father of slain teenager Jashon Bryant from the Hartford courthouse.

With tensions around the case running high, city and state law enforcement officers allege that Keith Thomas of Windsor has repeatedly harassed Robert Lawlor, the Hartford police officer accused of killing Thomas' son.

Lawlor had asked the court to prohibit Thomas from coming within 1,000 feet of the Hartford courthouse when Lawlor is there on a manslaughter charge in Bryant's killing.

Lawlor's attorney, Michael Georgetti, said that since October 2006 Thomas has presented an "imminent danger" to Lawlor, his wife and his lawyer. Thomas has engaged in "stare-downs" with the defendant and has placed Lawlor's safety in jeopardy, Georgetti said.

Thomas was charged with breach of peace and intimidation based on bigotry after he approached Lawlor during a court appearance in October 2006 and allegedly used a racial slur. Prosecutors decided not to pursue the case.

On Tuesday, Judge Thomas Miano found no probable cause to charge Thomas with contempt of court, or to place him under a restraining order.

"There is no need for a protective order," Miano said, later adding that neither Hartford police officers nor court officials had found probable cause to charge Thomas with harassment or stalking after the October 2006 incident.

"We have a great system where the courtrooms are open. That sets our court apart," Miano said. He said those who appear in court "have a right not to be threatened or harassed."

However, he said, "My heart goes out to Mr. Keith Thomas. ... No one can appreciate someone who has experienced his loss. He has a right to be in this courtroom."

The judge said Thomas did not have an absolute right to be there if it were found that he had harassed Lawlor, his lawyer or his family. "I'm not saying you did anything wrong but you have to respect this court," he said.

Lawlor did not attend the proceedings. Thomas was joined by his family, community activist Carmen Rodriguez and members of the Nation of Islam.

Joseph Moniz, a defense attorney representing Thomas, said Lawlor was trying to slow down the judicial process.

"For a father whose son is shot in the head twice, it makes no sense for Mr. Lawlor to be treated like a victim," Moniz said, adding that "this is simply a way of distracting the fact that Mr. Lawlor is on trial here."

Lawlor was charged by a grand jury in the fatal shooting of Bryant, 18, in May 2005. Bryant was a passenger in a car parked on North Main Street in Hartford when Lawlor and Dan Prather, an agent from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, approached them. Lawlor and Prather were trying to remove illegal guns from the streets, Lawlor has said.

Lawlor said he believed that Bryant and another man in the car, Brandon Henry, had a gun when he ordered them out of the vehicle. Instead of getting out, Henry drove away and Lawlor opened fire. Bryant was killed instantly. Henry was wounded in the chest and crashed into a parked car several blocks away.

Police did not find any weapons in the car after the shooting.

Prather told the grand jury that he never felt that his life was in danger as he stood beside the car, according to documents.

The friction between Thomas and Lawlor is probably the result of the length of time the case has dragged on, New Haven prosecutor Michael Dearington, who is handling the case, said Tuesday.

"I want to ask that the trial date be set," he said.

Georgetti said that it was premature to set a date, as Lawlor is trying to raise money to hire an expert, and he may even need to exhume Bryant's body to confirm his injuries.

Miano scheduled the trial for Feb. 14, 2008.

Contact Tina A. Brown at tabrown@courant.com.

State Faults Perez's Friend

By DAVE ALTIMARI | Courant Staff Writer August 22, 2007 Contractor Was Not Properly Registered

The contractor who supervised about $20,000 worth of renovations at the home of Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez isn't properly registered with the state and could face criminal charges over the installation of a new bathroom and kitchen countertop at Perez's house.

"If you are doing home improvements, then you have to have a registration with our department. It is illegal for someone to do work on a home without one," state Department of Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell Jr. said Tuesday.

Farrell confirmed that the department has opened an investigation into Carlos Costa and his company, USA Contractors Inc.

State prosecutors are looking into the work that Costa - a city contractor - did for Perez, but Farrell said that a search of the department's records indicates that neither Costa himself nor any of his companies, including USA Contractors Inc., has ever been registered with the state as a home contractor.

Perez, in a televised appearance on "Face the State" this weekend, said that he was initially intending to do some home renovation work himself. He asked Costa - a friend - for advice, and Costa suggested that he could do the work for Perez, the mayor said.

Doing contracting work without a proper registration is a Class C misdemeanor. Farrell said that it was too early in the investigation to say whether the state would refer the case for criminal charges. Calls to Costa and his attorney were not returned.

Farrell said that one of the issues is whether there was a signed contract between Perez and Costa to do the work. The mayor released a stack of documents last week with bills and work orders for the renovation, but there was no contract among those papers.

Perez's attorney, Hubert Santos, declined to comment Tuesday when asked whether the mayor ever had a valid contract with Costa.

"Normally, if there's no outstanding complaints against a contractor, we just try to get them registered. We go after those who have defrauded customers," Farrell said, adding that the department has never received any complaints about Costa.

There is an annual $200 fee to register as a home contractor with the Department of Consumer Protection. The money goes into the Home Improvement Guarantee Fund to assist homeowners who file complaints against contractors with the state.

Although Farrell said that the state's issues are with Costa - not the mayor - he did say that it's not smart business to hire unregistered contractors to do work on your home because your recourse is limited if something goes wrong.

"Anyone who has a complaint against a registered contractor can get up to $15,000 from the state fund. If you use an unregistered contractor, your only recourse is to go to civil court," Farrell said.

The relationship between Perez and Costa came under scrutiny last week as investigators from the chief state's attorney's office searched Perez's Bloomfield Avenue home and Costa's Airport Road office.

The investigators are looking into roughly $20,000 in kitchen and bathroom work that Costa's company began for the mayor in 2005 and mostly completed in 2006. Perez said that he received a final bill in late February and paid for the work last month.

No building, plumbing or electrical permits were taken out for the work on Perez's house.

Perez has admitted that it was a mistake to hire Costa - a family friend he knew was a city contractor - for his house work. The mayor also acknowledged that it was his mistake not to get building permits for the work.

While Costa was doing the work on the mayor's home, USA Contractors was fighting with the city about a $5.3 million contract to beautify Park Street by installing new sidewalks, lights and signs.

The streetscape project, which was awarded to Costa in 2003, was rife with delays, claims for extra money by Costa and counteraccusations from city officials that he wasn't getting the job done on time.

Frustrated department of public works officials went as far as to notify Costa's bond company that they were considering pulling his performance bond. Records show that an irate Costa went over the heads of public works officials to Charles Crocini - a mayoral aide in charge of capital projects.

Two days after Costa contacted him, Crocini wrote a letter to the bonding company informing it that the city was not considering pulling the performance bond. Crocini has said that he did that on his own and did not consult with the mayor.

Contact Dave Altimari at daltimari@courant.com.

Courant Staff Writer Jeffrey B. Cohen contributed to this story.

OTHER PEREZ NEWS

Bad Cop News

Hartford Connecticut Police Officer, Charged With Beating Mayor’s Nephew, Receives A Slap On The Wrist

HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT - The city police officer accused of beating Mayor Eddie A. Perez’s nephew has been granted a special form of probation that could result in the criminal charge being erased.

Officer Matthew Secore, 36, was granted entry into the accelerated rehabilitation program in Superior Court on Friday.

Under the terms of the agreement, Secore’s misdemeanor third-degree assault charge will be dismissed in one year if the officer isn’t charged with any new crimes.

A two-year veteran of the force, Secore has been on desk duty since he turned himself in on a warrant on May 8, police spokeswoman Nancy Mulroy said.

Defense lawyer Michael Georgetti said Secore is embarrassed and apologetic about the beating he gave Perez’s nephew, Ruben Perez, 21, of East Hartford, on May 5.

“He realized he lost his temper and, understanding that, immediately apologized to everybody: Mr. Perez, the Police Department, and the community,” Georgetti said.

Georgetti said the beating came right after Secore saw his brother Slade Secore in a local hospital after Slade had been badly beaten by at least six people - including, police say, Ruben Perez.

Police called Whitey’s Towing to remove Reuben Perez’s car from private property. Slade Secore was the tow-truck operator and told police he was removing the car when a group set him upon in a “brutal” attack in which he was stomped and kicked in the head.

Rueben Perez was arrested after the beating and was awaiting processing in the Police Department’s booking area when Matthew Secore - who was off-duty - assaulted him, police say.

Reuben Perez said he had a bruise on his face, a cut lip, and red marks on his neck, police say. He is also charged with third-degree assault and breach of peace for beating Slade Secore. He next appears in Superior Court on Aug. 27.

Matthew Secore’s plea deal brings mostly to an end his criminal case, but he now faces a disciplinary hearing at the department, Mulroy said.

Georgetti said his client is “ready and willing to take whatever reasonable discipline the department is prepared to hand down.”

Prior to the assault on Reuben Perez, Georgetti said Matthew Secore had never had any disciplinary problems or incidents:

“He has been regarded as something of a gentle giant,” Georgetti said, “and this was completely out of character. He just lost his temper after seeing his brother.”

Days after the dual assaults, Police Chief Darryl K. Roberts ordered an investigation into Matthew Secore’s actions and other officers on duty that night.

Mulroy said Friday that a police officer and a sergeant who was a supervisor in the department’s lock-up “were disciplined accordingly” after an internal affairs investigation.

However, she said, the investigation remains open pending Matthew Secore’s disciplinary hearing and the findings aren’t yet public. Mulroy declined to release the names of the sergeant and officer.

Harper Dismisses SPP Protests As "Sad"

DEB RIECHMANN AP Tuesday Aug 21, 2007

President Bush and the leaders of Mexico and Canada worked Monday to craft a plan to secure their borders in the event of a terrorist strike or other emergency without creating traffic tie-ups that slowed commerce at crossings after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Bush, Mexican President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper want their homeland security experts to figure out the best way to protect citizens in an emergency, perhaps an outbreak of avian flu, without snarling business among the trading partners.

More broadly, the goal of the North American summit was to seek middle ground on shared concerns about the border and a host of other issues ranging from energy to trade, food safety to immigration. The three-way meeting at a highly secured red cedar chateau along the banks of the Ottawa River focused on administrative and regulatory issues, not sweeping legislative proposals for North America.

Few, if any, formal announcements were expected. The meeting served to address thorny problems between the U.S. and its neighbors to the North and South and bolster a compact - dubbed the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America - that serves as a way for the nations to team up on health, security and commerce.

Several hundred demonstrators protested on issues such as the war in Iraq, human rights and integration of North America. One carried a banner that said: ``Say No To Americanada.''

Calderon and Harper both want tight relations with Bush, yet don't want to be seen as proteges of the unpopular president or leave the impression that the U.S. is encroaching on their sovereignty.

To that end, Harper is asserting his nation's claim to the Northwest Passage through the Arctic.

The race to secure subsurface rights to the Arctic seabed heated up when Russia sent two small submarines to plant a tiny national flag under the North Pole. The United States and Norway also have competing claims in the vast Arctic region, where a U.S. study suggests as much as 25 percent of the world's undiscovered oil and gas could be hidden.

Canada believes much of the North American side of the Arctic is Canada's, but the United States says that the thawing Northwest Passage is part of international waters.

``We look at the Northwest Passage as an international waterway, and want the international transit rights to be respected there,'' White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. ``But certainly President Bush will listen to what Prime Minister Harper has to say.''

Harper also plans to raise concerns about new passport requirements for travelers, longtime U.S. restrictions on Canadian softwood lumber exports and the war in Afghanistan.

Harper has said Canada's military mission in Afghanistan will not be extended beyond 2009 without a consensus in the country and the Parliament. Canada has 2,500 troops in Afghanistan, fighting against the Taliban in the violet southern parts of the nation. Other countries, such as Germany ad Italy, restrict the use of their forces to more peaceful areas in the north.

With Hurricane Dean bearing down on Mexico, Calderon might have to cut his meetings short with Bush and Calderon. This is his first meeting with Bush since the U.S. immigration legislation died in the Senate. Calderon has called that a ``grave error'' and also is rankled by the Bush administration's newly announced crackdown on employers who use illegal immigrants.

It's unclear whether the United States will use the summit to announce a major new aid plan to help Mexico fight violent drug trafficking. U.S. anti-drug officials have been impressed with Caldron's crackdown on drug traffickers since he took office.

But Calderon has repeatedly pushed the U.S. to take more responsibility in fighting the two countries' common drug problem, including doing more to stop the flow of illegal U.S. arms into Mexico and trying to combat the demand for drugs north of the border. The issue of U.S. aid is a sensitive subject among Mexicans wary that U.S. help could lead to interventions that violate Mexican sovereignty.

Bush stepped off Air Force One and onto a red carpet at an airport in Ottawa where he was greeted by a bagpiper and a ceremonial honor guard dressed in red jackets and tall, black fur hats. Bush flew to the resort on the Marine One presidential helicopter, which landed in a grassy clearing along the water.

A few hundred protesters amassed at the gate of the resort. Police in riot gear used tear gas to hold back about 50 of them, who responded by flinging rocks, branches and plastic bottles. A line of police in riot gear jostled with about 50 demonstrators. A few hundred marched on the front gate of the summit compound shouting taunts.

``I've heard it's nothing,'' Harper said, dismissing the protests as Bush arrived at the Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello. ``A couple hundred? It's sad.''