We have finished posting the pictures of the winner’s trees. Click here to see them!
Tuesday, March 27th, 2007
Snow’s Colon Cancer Spreads to Liver
WASHINGTON Mar 27, 2007 (AP)— Presidential spokesman Tony Snow’s cancer has returned and spread to his liver and elsewhere in his body, shaken White House colleagues announced Tuesday. They said he told them he planned to fight the disease and return to work.
“He is not going to let this whip him, and he’s upbeat,” President Bush said of his press secretary. “And so my message to Tony is, ‘Stay strong; a lot of people love you and care for you and will pray for you.’”
Snow, 51, had his colon removed in 2005 and underwent six months of chemotherapy after being diagnosed with colon cancer. He underwent surgery on Monday to remove a growth in his abdominal area, near the site of the original cancer. . .
Dr. Dean Edell will be on the show to discuss the dangers of colon cancer at 5:00, and be sure to check out Chris Little’s colon here!
Washington, DC) Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it has filed a new open records lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of State (Judicial Watch, Inc. v. Department of Homeland Security, et al., #1:07-cv-00506(RJL). The lawsuit, filed on March 16, 2007 in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, asks the court to compel the government agencies to comply with Judicial Watch’s January 24, 2007 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking records regarding the immunity and medical treatment given to Mexican drug smuggler Osbaldo Aldrete-Davila, who was shot and wounded by U.S. Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean in a 2005 drug-related incident. . .
Assemblymember Spitzer Launches “Countdown to Community Chaos”
(Sacramento)- Assemblymember Todd Spitzer (R-Orange) today announced on the Assembly Floor the “Countdown to Community Chaos.” This countdown signifies the impending deadline looming over the Legislature’s head to pass significant prison reforms.
“Today we are 52 days until the next federal court hearing regarding the abysmal state of our prisons. If the Legislature continues to ignore the situation, the courts have threatened to release 50,000 felons early. If that happens, these violent offenders will be back on our streets, terrorizing our neighborhoods,” stated Assemblymember Spitzer, who chairs the Assembly Select Committee on Prison Construction and Operations.
“The federal courts gave the Legislature six months to begin working on effective solutions to our state’s prison crisis. The Legislature has done nothing since being given this directive. Instead, some liberals have introduced bills to weaken sentencing laws and release dangerous felons early. Now, we’re facing 52 days to act, and there stills seems to be no urgency, no acknowledgement that if we fail to act, we stand to significantly endanger our communities,” commented Spitzer. . .
Assemblyman Todd Spitzer will be on the show at 4:00
Monday, March 26th, 2007
Anna Nicole Smith’s Death Due to Accidental Overdose
DANIA BEACH, Fla. — Anna Nicole Smith’s death was due to an accidental overdose of a sleeping medication and at least eight other prescription drugs, authorities said Monday.
“We are convinced this was an accidental overdose,” Florida’s Seminole Police Chief Charlie Tiger said.
Tiger added that there was no evidence that illegal drugs were involved in the former Playboy Playmate’s death, and there was nothing found on the computer of Smith’s companion, Howard K. Stern, or anywhere else to suggest a crime was committed. . .
Turnout is low at immigration rallies
Immigrant rights rallies staged Sunday to commemorate the anniversary of last year’s massive Los Angeles march and to call for reform legislation were marked by low turnout and a rowdy counterdemonstration denouncing illegal immigration.
Nearly 5,000 immigrants and their supporters gathered at the Los Angeles Sports Arena for an event dubbed Justice for Our Families, featuring mariachi music and speeches by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and other politicians.
Carrying American flags and waving banners that read, “We are America,” the participants signed pre-written letters to Congress calling for legalization of the nation’s estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants and an end to deportations and raids. Organizers said they received about 6,000 signed letters. . .
Ted Hayes will be on the show at 3:30
Help Me Put Cleaner Cars on the Road in California
I recently introduced “The Clean Car Discount Act of 2007” (AB 493) to reduce harmful global warming and smog-forming pollution from passenger vehicles by establishing an innovative program to make cleaner cars and light duty trucks more affordable. This is a market-based program that will provide one-time rebates on purchases of new vehicles that are cleaner. The rebates are funded by one-time surcharges on new vehicles with very high emissions of global warming pollution. AB 493 is sponsored by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and strongly supported by major environmental and consumer groups.
Last year the Legislature and the Governor joined together and passed AB 32, The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. The Governor, the Legislature, and the people of California have said that global warming is a top priority. . .
LAS VEGAS —It’s dead inside Favorites bar this afternoon, where the propped-open door spills a bit of light onto the ancient Elvis pinball machine and the grumpy man puffing on a cigarette in front of the video poker machine.
There’s no food here, unless you count the vending machine against the green wall. Owner Ray Medrano had to make a choice: Close the kitchen or ban smoking in the joint altogether. His customers love their smokes more than their food, so the kitchen lost.
For Medrano, there’s only one despicable group of people to blame for Nevada passing a smoking ban that eliminates smoking in restaurants and bars that also serve food: Californians . . .
Friday, March 23rd, 2007
Investigators Confirm Deadly Pet Food Contaminated With Rat Poison
March 23, 2007 — New York State veterinary health investigators announced at a press conference Friday that the deadly pet food responsible for pet deaths around the country was contaminated with the rodent poison aminopterin.
Investigators are looking into whether the rat poison came into the United States on an ingredient used in the recalled food. ABC News has learned that Menu Foods bought wheat gluten, the only ingredient changed in its plants, from China. That possibility raises questions about the safety of pet and other food products in the United States.
The chemical can cause kidney failure in dogs and cats, said Donald Smith, dean of Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, during the conference. . .
City Council president sides with union, urges visitors: Boycott LAX-area hotel
Escalating the city’s battle for a living-wage ordinance for hotels near Los Angeles International Airport, City Council President Eric Garcetti has urged potential visitors to boycott the LAX Hilton because of ongoing labor problems.
In a seven-paragraph letter addressed to “hotel patrons” and obtained Thursday by the Daily News, Garcetti details workers’ calls for a boycott amid labor disputes and urges visitors to book at locations in the city away from the LAX area.
Garcetti also notes worker unrest at other Century Boulevard hotels and says: “The hotels have taken a strong stance against paying their workers a living wage. . .
AUTO ENTHUSIAST GROUP OPPOSES NEW STATE VEHICLE TAX SCHEME
Did you know that you already pay about $1,500 dollars of taxes when you buy a new vehicle?
Well, for some government regulators, that’s just not enough. Now, they want to more than DOUBLE taxes on some vehicles. Right now, Assembly Bill 493 in the California legislature would do just that.
Some Government officials in Sacramento have come up with a scheme to force families who choose new minivans or SUVs to pay a $2,500 penalty to the state. The government would then take the $2,500 and “rebate” YOUR money to someone else buying a car that the bureaucrats favor. . .
Give State Assembly Committee on Transportation Chair Pedro Nava a taste of the KFI audience!
(916) 319-2035
Assemblymember.nava@assembly.ca.gov
House passes spending bill with Iraq deadline
WASHINGTON (CNN)—The House of Representatives on Friday voted 218-212 to approve an emergency $124 billion supplemental war spending bill that includes a firm deadline—August 31, 2008—for combat troops to leave Iraq.
More than an hour after the vote, President Bush said that “a narrow majority in the House” had abdicated its responsibility to protect the troops, denouncing the vote as “political theater.”
Bush said the vote had only one outcome: “It delays the delivery of vital resources for our troops. . .
Mayor’s roadshow a cast of thousands
When Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa travels to Washington on Monday to lobby for federal money, he won’t be in any danger of feeling lonely: He’s packing a gaggle of aides.
Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom and Councilwoman Pam O’Connor will make the trip, too — but with just one city staff member between them. Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle is traveling solo.
As nearly 200 leaders around Southern California gear up for next week’s Access Washington trip, some government watchers are shaking their heads at the sheer number of people traveling with Villaraigosa — seven members of his staff, plus a police security detail. . .
REIGN OVER ME
Another week, another long movie. Sorry – this one clocked in at two hours, and if you add in over twenty minutes of commercials and movie previews that went on forever, it was two and half hours in the theatre. So, can I be fair to this movie? I’ll try. If you think this is an Adam Sandler movie, well you’re right, but it may not look that way for the first hour or so. Don Cheadle is a guy named Alan Johnson, a New York dentist, and he dominates things in the early going. This is a guy that could sure use a change, and it comes to him in the person of Charlie Fineman, an old college roommate he runs into by chance. Yes, Charlie is the guy played by Adam Sandler. (more…)
Thursday, March 22nd, 2007
254 Pound Boy May Get Removed From His Home
Justin Painter is a lot bigger than most boys his age. At just seven years old, Justin weighs more than many adults—254 pounds.
“I just noticed he was putting on weight,” says his mom, Joyce.
Joyce says she first realized Justin’s weight problem when he was three, and for the past four years has visited doctor after doctor, looking for a cause and solution. But most every time, she was told to watch his diet. . .
House immigration bill offers citizenship
WASHINGTON — Two lawmakers will fire the opening salvo in this year’s immigration debate Thursday when they introduce the first House bill in many years to call for citizenship for illegal immigrants.
Reps. Luis V. Gutierrez (D-Ill.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) will unveil broad legislation that would also create a new worker program, stiffen worker verification procedures and overhaul the visa system to reduce waiting times for legal immigrants.
In recognition of the tensions that surround the controversial issue, the bill also contains provisions designed to appeal to conservatives who want stronger border enforcement and oppose citizenship provisions that grant amnesty to people in the country illegally. . .
Rosemary Jenks from Numbers USA will be on the show at 3:00 and Congressman Brian Bilbray will be on at 5:00
And click here to read Rosemary’s talking points for calling weasel politicians and their weasel aides!
Kennedy-McCain partnership falters
WASHINGTON—Senators Edward M. Kennedy and John McCain have all but abandoned plans to cosponsor a comprehensive immigration reform bill this year, as McCain faces tough questions from conservatives on the presidential campaign trail about his support for immigrants’ rights.
Kennedy, frustrated by the slow progress of his negotiations with McCain, is instead considering filing a bill on his own, modeled largely on the measure endorsed by the Senate Judiciary Committee last year. McCain is continuing to talk to Kennedy about immigration proposals, but the Arizona Republican has not committed to supporting Kennedy’s approach.
The erosion of the unlikely political partnership that brought the liberal Kennedy and the conservative McCain together on immigration suggests a tough road ahead for passing a sweeping immigration measure this year. Further complicating efforts to find consensus, a group of Republicans is working with the White House to draft an alternative bill. . .
Mayors plan to boost middle class
A task force of the nation’s mayors is calling for the federal government to create a lifetime learning savings account for every child born in the country – beginning with a $500 deposit – as part of an overall strategy to ease poverty.
The task force, chaired by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, said the proposal calls for the government to match up to $500 a year in the accounts for 18 years to help pay for higher education or job training.
The program could cost $23 billion a year, according to the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ panel, which also called for increased federal investment in preschool and education to boost the middle class and reduce the number of working poor. . .
NORTH COUNTY —Documents released this week show that Carol Lam’s tenure as U.S. attorney in San Diego began crumbling last spring with a Justice Department memo saying that she should be put on a “very short leash” and fired if that didn’t work.
However, the first signs of trouble appeared in 2004, when U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa began complaining about a lack of prosecutions for human trafficking.
Issa, R-Vista, spearheaded a group of Congress members who kept up the pressure, sending more letters to the Justice Department and one to President George W. Bush. Then, in May 2006, Issa released an internal U.S. Border Patrol report to The Associated Press, and the resulting story drew national attention and stirred concerns inside the Justice Department. Within seven months, Lam was asked to resign. . .
Congressman Issa will be on the show at 6:00
Wednesday, March 21st, 2007
Mahony accounts of abuse case tape differ
At least six months after Cardinal Roger M. Mahony told his superiors at the Vatican that a videotape provided proof of a priest’s criminal misconduct with high school boys, the head of the Los Angeles Archdiocese told the public that the tape showed no sexual activity between Father Lynn Caffoe and the boys, according to court records.
Documents newly filed in the Caffoe civil case provide the first glimpse into confidential priest files that Mahony sought for four years to keep sealed in the midst of a sexual abuse scandal that engulfed the archdiocese. He eventually took the secrecy fight to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In a letter to then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before Ratzinger became pope in April 2005, Mahony said Caffoe had videotaped “partially naked” boys in a state of sexual arousal. The tape was “objective verification that criminal behavior did occur,” Mahony wrote, according to papers filed last week in Los Angeles County Superior Court in a lawsuit by four plaintiffs who allege that Caffoe abused them. . .
Hear an interview with D.A. Steve Cooley at 3:00
Al Gore Brings Global Warming Crusade Back to Congress
March 21, 2007 — Former Vice President Al Gore — a politician turned crusader against global warming — returned to Capitol Hill today, asking lawmakers to consider their place in history when rising to the challenge of fighting what he calls a “climate crisis.”
“I promise you a day will come when our children and grandchildren will look back and they will ask one of two questions. Either they will ask, ‘What in God’s name were they doing? Didn’t they see the evidence?’” Or, he said, “They may look back and say ‘How did they find the uncommon moral courage to rise above politics and redeem the promise of American democracy?’”
Gore suggested several proposals, including a 90 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 — an aggressive reduction that critics argue would cripple the U.S. economy. . .
Emotions Boil Over At Hit-And-Run Killer’s Sentencing
SAN DIEGO —After numerous postponements, a family who lost a loved one to a drunken driver who fled the scene got justice on Wednesday.
Amy Kortlang, 22, was killed in October in a head-on collision with a vehicle driven by Rafael Perez on state Route 67. Perez’s vehicle hit three other cars before the vehicle with Amy in it, then he fled the scene.
The judge sentenced Perez to the maximum term of 21 years to life in prison.
The incident involving Amy Kortlang was not Perez’s first brush with the law. Court records obtained by NBC 7/39 show four previous convictions, including one in 2005 for which he served a year in jail. He was deported in March 2006, just months before the fatal hit-and-run. . .
Melanie Kortlang will be coming with us to D.C. Read her story and join her by contacting Sandy Carter Travel at 619-523-0090
