TRNS News Notes is brought to you by Victoria Jones. Victoria Jones is the Chief White House correspondent and global analyst of the Washington DC based Talk Radio News Service, where her insight and analysis are made available to over 400 news talk radio stations around the country and internationally.

 

In the News

  • On edge, Ferguson waits
  • Immigration: Obama defends his action
  • Immigration: Republicans lash out
  • Iran nuke talks: Deadline day today
  • House Intel Committee Benghazi report: All clear
  • Israel set to define itself as Jewish state: Storm
  • Cosby lawyers cajoled Enquirer to drop rape story
  • PETA begs Sasha, Malia: Don’t eat turkeys!

 

On Edge, Ferguson Waits

• Protests continued in Ferguson throughout the weekend as residents, police and demonstrators brace for a decision from a grand jury set to reconvene today in the case of the fatal shooting by officer Darren Wilson of unarmed black teen Michael Brown that brought weeks of unrest over the summer (AP, me)

• On Sunday, protesters renewed complaints about the secretive grand jury process when a St Louis County administrator released an open letter that said documents related to the case wouldn’t necessarily be released to the public (huge mistake)

• Saturday night, protests in front of the Ferguson PD led to two more arrests including of a reporter who was standing on the sidewalk (really?), even as St Louis Police leaders tried a less-confrontational approach that cooled tempers but didn’t eliminate conflict

• During past nights, police had been wearing riot gear and forming into skirmish lines with shotguns with nonlethal rounds. But beginning Friday, police eschewed shotguns. Many officers on Saturday wore standard patrol uniforms, rather than crowd-control gear

• Lt Jerry Lohr, in charge of crowd control Saturday, talked with protesters and answered questions. Justin Giuliano, 21, asked if events might have been different if the officer hadn’t been white and Brown had not been African-American. “It may be. I don’t know,” said Lohr. “Those are tough questions.”

• Washington DC’s “mayor for life” died over the weekend aged 78. I interviewed him several times. A consummate politician. Brilliant, charismatic, flawed, sharp, troubled, mercurial, fun, analytical, always late. He was a scientist, with a master’s in chemistry. Vid: Original evidence video from the Marion Barry trial – caught smoking crack

 

Immigration: Obama Defends His Action

• President Obama said in an interview on ABC’s “This Week” broadcast Sunday that Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) “still has several weeks to call that
[Senate immigration] bill in the House or he can work with me and Democrats to craft a new bill.” The executive branch can’t “solve the entire problem,” Obama said (WSJ, WaPo, Politico, Hill, me)

• On executive actions, “If you ask historians, take a look at the track records of the modern presidency, I’ve actually been very restrained. And I’ve been very restrained with respect to immigration. I bent over backwards and will continue to do everything I can to get Congress to work.”

• On Sen Ted Cruz’s (R-TX) idea of blocking presidential nominees, “It doesn’t match up to what I think the American people expect. What the American people expect is that if we disagree on one thing, then we disagree on that thing. And then we work on everything else.”

• “Why would we prefer a system in which they’re [undocumented immigrants] living in the shadows, potentially taking advantage of living here but not contributing?” Obama said. He also said, “Everybody knows, including Republicans, that we’re not going to deport 11 million people.” (couldn’t evacuate New Orleans)

Immigration: Republicans Lash Out

• Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX) rejected Obama’s claim of prosecutorial discretion. “Essentially he’s gotten in the job of counterfeiting immigration papers, because there’s no legal authority to do what he’s doing,” Cruz said on “Fox News Sunday.” (WSJ, Hill, Fox, CNN, Politico, WaPo, me)

• “Shame on us as Republicans for having a body that cannot generate a solution to an issue that is national security, it’s cultural and it’s economic,” said Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “The Senate has done this three times.”

• “We are going to pass legislation, but it is not going to be the legislation the president is asking for,” said Sen Raul Labrador (R-ID) on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” We as Republicans don’t believe you should give amnesty first and talk about security later, which is what the Senate bill did.”

• “This is a major assault on the constitutional authority of the Congress,” said Rep Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), who leads the House Judiciary Committee. The committee will hold a hearing on 2 December to examine the constitutionality of Obama’s action

• Vid: How a bill *really* becomes a law, courtesy of Saturday Night Live (WaPo, NBC)

Iran Nuke Talks: Deadline Day

• Iran and six world powers look set to miss today’s deadline for resolving a 12-year stand-off over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and are already looking at a possible extension of the negotiations. President Obama has called the gaps remaining “significant.” (Reuters, me)

• Iran’s regional foes Israel and Saudi Arabia are watching the Vienna talks nervously. Both fear a weak deal that fails to curtail Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, while a collapse of the negotiations would encourage Iran to become a threshold nuclear weapons state, something Israel has said it would never allow

• Some Western officials describe two possible options for a likely rollover. Under one scenario, described as the “stop the clock option,” the talks could simply break off and experts from the parties would reconvene in a few weeks for another attempt

• A lengthier option would be a formal extension into next year, adding new elements to an interim accord from last year. International Crisis Group’s senior Iran analyst Ali Vaez said there could be a “no-cost extension in which the parties would continue negotiating without discussing the terms of a new interim agreement or firm deadline” – hope to be done by year’s end

Some in West Question More Nuke Talks

• Several Western officials have questioned the value of repeatedly extending the talks, saying there’s little reason to expect the Iranians will show the flexibility needed to end the impasse in the weeks and months ahead. Tehran blames the West for the deadlock (they won’t just stop talks)

• They’ve also warned that the upcoming change in the U.S. Congress, where hardline Republicans will soon dominate both houses, means U.S. lawmakers may push for new sanctions in Iran (Senate legislation already written) which the Obama admin has said could torpedo the talks

• The negotiations aim to end Western suspicions that Iran is seeking a nuclear bomb capability, while allowing Iran to have the civilian nuclear program it says is its right under international rules. Tehran denies seeking nuclear weapons

• The main sticking points in the talks are the scope of Iran’s enrichment program, the pace of lifting sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy and the duration of any deal

• Vid: Former Transportation Sec Ray LaHood said on Sunday’s “60 Minutes” that “our infrastructure’s on life support right now. That’s what we’re on.”  “It’s falling apart because we haven’t made the investments.” The show segment was huge on Twitter Sunday night (Hill, CBS, me)

House Intel Committee Benghazi Report: No Wrongdoing

• The CIA and the military acted properly in responding to the 2012 attack on a U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, a Republican-controlled House Intelligence Committee has found. Its report asserted no wrongdoing by Obama admin officials. The report was document dumped quietly late on the Friday before Thanksgiving (AP, me)

• Debunking a series of persistent allegations hinting at dark conspiracies, the two-year investigation of the politically charged incident determined that there was no intelligence failure, no delay in sending a CIA rescue team, no missed opportunity for a military rescue and no evidence the CIA was covertly shipping arms from Libya to Syria (gasps)

• In the immediate aftermath of the attack, intelligence about who carried it out and why was contradictory, the report found. That led Susan Rice, then U.S. ambassador to the UN, to inaccurately assert that the attack had evolved from a protest, when in fact there had been no protest

• But it was intelligence analysts, not political appointees, who made the wrong call, the committee found. The report didn’t conclude that Rice or any other govt official acted in bad faith or intentionally misled the American people

• “Fox News Sunday” didn’t inform viewers of the report’s findings. (hmmm) In the 20 months since the attacks, Fox ran over 1,100 segments on Benghazi and hosted Republicans at a rate of over 30:1 over Democrats on the issue. Fox provided brief coverage the night of the report’s release and no coverage the following day… (Media Matters, me)

• The report did find that the State Dept facility where Stevens and Smith were killed wasn’t well-protected, and that State Dept security agents knew they couldn’t defend it from a well-armed attack. Previous reports have found that requests for security improvements weren’t acted upon in Washington

• Many of the report’s findings echo those of six previous investigations by various congressional committees and a State Dept panel. The eighth Benghazi investigation is being carried out (at taxpayers’ unnecessary expense at this rate) by a House Select Committee appointed in May

• The attacks in Benghazi killed U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, foreign service officer Sean Smith, and two CIA contractors, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty. A Libyan extremist, Ahmed Abu Khatalla, is facing trial on murder charges after he was captured in Libya and taken to the U.S.

• In the aftermath of the attacks, Republicans slammed the Obama admin and its then-SecState Hillary Clinton, a likely 2016er. People in and out of govt have alleged, among other things, that a CIA response team was ordered to “stand down” after the compound came under attack. That wasn’t true, according to the report

• In the years since, some participants in the attack have said they were motivated by the anti-Muhammad video. The attackers were a mix of extremists and hangers on, the investigation found. “To this day,” the report said, “significant intelligence gaps regarding the identities, affiliations and motivations of the attackers remain.”

• Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said on CNN Sunday, “I think the report is full of crap.” (Fox News)

Israel Set to Define Itself as Jewish State

• In a move likely to further inflame tensions with Israel’s Arab citizens, the Israeli Cabinet on Sunday approved a bill to legally define the country as the nation-state of the Jewish people. It now heads toward a full parliamentary vote on Wednesday (AP, NYT, Haaretz, me)

• The decision, which set off a stormy debate that could bring down PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s brittle coalition govt, followed weeks of deadly Arab-Jewish violence and was denounced by critics as damaging to the country’s democratic character and poorly timed at such a combustible moment

• Israel has always defined itself as the “Jewish state” – a term that was contained in the country’s declaration of independence in 1948. The new law seeks to codify that status as a “Basic Law,” Israel’s de facto constitution

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• While many critics derided the measure as unnecessary, Netanyahu told his Cabinet the bill is a response to Israel’s Arab critics both inside and outside Israel who question the country’s right to exist. Jewish nationalists in Netanyahu’s coalition had pushed hard for the bill

• The bill calls not only for recognizing Israel’s Jewish character but for institutionalizing Jewish law as an inspiration for legislation and dropping Arabic as an official language. Netanyahu insisted that Israel would be both Jewish and democratic. Centrist parties provided the opposition in the Cabinet vote, which was 14-6

• In a statement, Israel’s attorney general, Yehuda Weinstein, said he had serious doubts about the legality of the bill’s language because it impinges on Israel’s democratic character. The measure could still be watered down or altered before it’s put to a vote in parliament

• President Obama said Americans are ready for a fresh presidential candidate in 2016: “I think the American people, you know, they’re gonna want – you know, that new car smell. they wanna drive somethin’ off the lot that – that doesn’t have as – as much mileage as me.” (or as Hillary?) (TPM, me)

Cosby Lawyers Cajoled “Enquirer” to Drop Rape Story

• Lawyers acting for Bill Cosby cajoled the National Enquirer into ditching a groundbreaking investigation it had conducted into his alleged sexual misconduct and replaced it with a celebrity interview in which the comic dismissed the claims as money-motivated “misinterpretations” (Guardian, Daily Beast, me)

• The Enquirer’s investigation was carried out by senior reporter Robin Mizrahi in 2005, just weeks after it first emerged that Cosby had been accused of drugging and molesting a female friend, Andrea Constand. Mizrahi made contact with a second woman, Beth Ferrier, who had a similar story

• The Enquirer arranged a polygraph test for Ferrier. “She passed with flying colors,” said Mizrahi. “She had a very, very detailed description of what allegedly happened which I still remember because it was so haunting. She said Cosby stood over her and then she fell asleep because there was something in her coffee.”

• Mizrahi was informed by her editors that they decided to kill the story after they came under pressure from Cosby’s lawyers, who threatened to sue. After negotiations, they agreed that Cosby would provide an exclusive interview with the Enquirer and the Enquirer would refrain from publishing the Ferrier story.

• In the ensuing front-page “exclusive,” Cosby argued that “words and actions can be misconstrued by another person.” He cast aspersions on the motives of the women. “I am not going to give in to people who try to exploit me because of my celebrity status.”

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• Meanwhile, Bill Cosby told the newspaper Florida Today on Friday he doesn’t have to “answer to innuendos.” He spoke before performing his comedy routine at a theater in Melbourne FL. He’s refused to address questions about allegations made by a number of women who said he forced himself on them sexually, with some accusing him of drugging them first (Reuters, me)

• “I know people are tired of me not saying anything, but a guy doesn’t have to answer to innuendos,” Cosby said in the interview. “People should fact-check. People shouldn’t have to go through that and shouldn’t answer to innuendos.” (sounds more like direct accusations than innuendos to me)

• Cosby received a standing ovation at the start of his 90-minute show in Melbourne, which concluded without incident and without the comedian discussing the allegations

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• Meanwhile, 90-year-old Frank Scotti, an ex-NBC employee who worked as a facilities manager for the Brooklyn NBC Studio where “Cosby Show” was filed, told NYDN that he arranged for monthly payments and more for eight women during the show’s run from 84-92. He said some women would receive as much as $2,000 at a time (NYDN, Gawker, Deadspin, me)

• “He had everybody fooled,” Scotti said to NYDN. “Nobody suspected.” Scotti provided copies of money orders to four women to the NYDN and said Cosby asked him to put his own name on them. “It was a coverup. I realized it later.”

• One woman, Shawn Thompson, reportedly received more than $100,000 after their alleged affair started in 1974. Thompson’s daughter, Autumn Jackson, has claimed Cosby is her father, which Cosby has denied. Cosby’s attorney, Martin Singer, called the whole story “pure speculation.”

• Cleveland police over the weekend shot dead a 12-year-old boy, Tamir Rice, who was carrying what turned out to be a replica gun, in a playground. An officer fired two shots at the boy after he failed to obey an order to raise his hands. A lawyer for the boy’s family said they will conduct a parallel investigation with the police (BBC, me)

PETA Begs Sasha, Malia: Don’t Eat Turkeys!

• Rachelle Owen of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has written to Sasha and Malia Obama, citing the struggle for civil rights while calling on their father to end the “offensive turkey pardon” ceremony. The animal rights group wants the girls to go vegan for the holiday (Hill, me)

• “You come from a family whose members don’t hesitate to fight for those who have been oppressed for standing up for civil rights, women’s rights. and LGBT rights,” the letter said

• “Obviously, you’re familiar with the horrible ways that people often treat others who are viewed as “different” simply because of superficial physical differences or cruel traditions. This year, we would like to ask you to lend your powerful and influential voices to another group whose voices often go unheard: animals.”

• Obama this week will pardon one of two turkeys (and the backup) from a farm in House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-OH) district. The tradition dates back to President Lincoln, and brings yearly protests from PETA

• The group suggested the first family ditch the bird for “delicious, healthy alternative foods” such as “tofurky,” a vegetarian tofu-based turkey replacement. “That’s the most compassionate decision that you can make – and it also fights climate change and world hunger.”

• Vid: One Direction won three honors at the American Music Awards, including artist of the year, over powerhouse acts like Beyonce and Luke Bryan. Katy Perry matched One Direction with three wins. Here’s One Direction’s hit “Night Changes” which they performed at the event (not this performance) (AP, me)

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____________

Victoria Jones

 

The Talk Radio News Service is the only information, news booking and host service dedicated to serving the talk radio community. TRNS maintains a Washington office that includes White House, Capitol Hill and Pentagon staffed bureaus, and a New York office with a United Nations staffed bureau. Talk Radio News Service has permanent access to every breaking newsevent in the Washington, D.C. area and beyond.