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HavenWorks.com/maryland Maryland News |
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Maryland State News, Maryland capital: Annapolis, MD News |
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 US
States
Maryland capital: Annapolis US
Capitals
MD: Maryland State
Abbr.
Maryland state is bordered by the states of Delaware (east), Virginia and West Virginia (south, west), and Pennsylvania (north). Maryland is also bordered by the District of Columbia (south). 
Maryland state also borders the Atlantic Ocean (east). MD News |
MARYLAND News:
 Michael
Steele -  Political
-  Money
-  Federal
-  Law
-  Maryland
- 2006
Election
"RNC [Republican] chief Michael Steele says he'll cooperate with FBI: enying allegations of impropriety in his 2006 campaign spending, Steele says he will voluntarily hand over papers to the FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation], which had contacted his sister over payments her company received." ... "Reporting from Washington -- Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele said Sunday that he would provide records from his 2006 [election, Maryland, United States] U.S. Senate campaign to the FBI in an effort to speed an apparent investigation into allegations of improper campaign spending." ... "Steele confirmed that his sister was recently contacted by FBI agents looking into allegations that his campaign paid a company she owned more than $37,000 in 2007 for campaign work that was never performed. The allegations were made by Steele's former campaign finance chairman in an attempt to gain a more lenient prison sentence after he was convicted of fraud in an unrelated case." ... "Alan B. Fabian, who had been finance chairman of Steele's Senate campaign in Maryland, made the allegations in March in an effort to get a reduced sentence for his part in a $40-million fraud scheme." -By Paul West -LAtimes 
 Pete
Sessions - Michael
Steele -  Terrorism
-  Radio
- Government
- Economic
- Legislation
-  Job
-  Tex
-  Ga
- Maryland
- 2006
Election
 "Republicans
See Long-Term Victory in Defeat on Stimulus Plan."
... "GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] Sees Positives In Negative Stand:
Leaders Seize On Spending Issue." ... "After giving the package zero [Republican]
votes in the House, and 0 with their [Republican] counterparts in the Senate
likely to provide in a crucial procedural vote today only the handful of
votes needed to avoid a filibuster, Republicans are relishing the opportunity
to make a big statement. [Texas Republican Representative] Rep. Pete Sessions
(R-Tex. [Representative-Texas]) suggested last week that the party is learning
from the disruptive tactics of the Taliban, and the GOP these days does
have the bravado of an insurgent band that has pulled together after a
big defeat to carry off a quick, if not particularly damaging, raid on
the powers that be." ... "And it means rallying to Rush Limbaugh, who has
put himself forward as a de facto party leader, penning an op-ed article
in the Wall Street Journal and accepting the on-air apologies of [Georgia
Republican Representative] Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga. [Republican-Georgia]),
who criticized the radio host and paid for it in a deluge of angry calls."
... "[Republican National Committee chairman Michael S. Steele congratulated
congressional Republicans in some of his first remarks as Republican chairman,]
"The goose egg that you laid on the president's desk was just beautiful,"
he told them. "You and I know that in the history of mankind and womankind,
government -- federal, state or local -- has never created one job. It's
destroyed a lot of them."" ... "Steele is also facing a distraction --
a federal inquiry into allegations that his 2006 [election Maryland] Senate
campaign paid a defunct company run by his sister for services that were
never performed. The campaign's finance chairman made the allegations to
federal prosecutors last year as he sought leniency during plea negotiations
on unrelated fraud charges." -By Alec MacGillis and
Perry Bacon Jr. -WashingtonPost
Michael
Steele - Money
- Politics
- Federal
-  Investigation
- 2006
Election - Maryland
"Steele's Campaign Spending Questioned: Agents Contact Sister After Ex-Aide's Claims." ... "Michael S. Steele, the newly elected chairman of the Republican National Committee, arranged for his 2006 Senate campaign to pay a defunct company run by his sister for services that were never performed, his finance chairman from that campaign has told federal prosecutors." ... "Federal agents in recent days contacted Steele's sister, a spokesman for Steele said yesterday." ... "The claim about the payment, one of several allegations by Alan B. Fabian, is outlined in a confidential court document. Fabian offered the information last March as he was seeking leniency for himself during plea negotiations on unrelated fraud charges." ... "Fabian's claims emerge as Steele begins his new role at the RNC [Republican National Committee], where he oversees the raising and spending of hundreds of millions of dollars in party money. The former Maryland lieutenant governor has faced questions about his handling of campaign money in prior elections and was twice fined for missing filing deadlines." ... "The recent allegations outlined four specific transactions. In addition to the payment to Steele's sister, Fabian said that the candidate used money from his state campaign improperly; that Steele paid $75,000 from the state campaign to a law firm for work that was never performed; and that he or an aide transferred more than $500,000 in campaign cash from one bank to another without authorization." ... "In one of his allegations, Fabian points to a February 2007 payment by Steele's Senate campaign of more than $37,000 to Brown Sugar Unlimited, the company run by Steele's sister, Monica Turner. Campaign finance records list the expense as having been for "catering/web services." Turner filed papers to dissolve the company 11 months before the payment was received." (1, 2, 3) -By Henri E. Cauvin with contributions by Aaron C. Davis, Matthew Mosk, Katherine Shaver, John Wagner and Meg Smith -WashingtonPost 
Working
-  People
- Economics
-  Education
-  Safety
- Enforcement
- Politics
- Maryland
"Squeezed on All Sides, Parents Forgo Day Care: Education, Safety Sacrificed in Fiscal Crunch." ... "In the [Maryland's] Prince George's County community of Riverdale Park, town officials have noted a distressing sign of the national economic downturn: more children left home alone to fend for themselves by working parents too strapped to afford child care." ... "The problem was discovered by code enforcement officers who inspect apartments in the town of 7,000. They used to come across such cases once every couple of years. Then, six months ago, they found one child left alone, followed by another and another." ... "In one instance, a kindergarten-age girl was found hiding in a closet, apparently because she was scared, code enforcement officers said. In another, children aged 10 or 12 were missing school to watch their younger siblings." ... "Riverdale's experience comes amid an increasing economic strain in child care across the Washington [Washington DC, United States capital] region. In an area known for day-care waiting lists, many operators report a rise in vacancies as parents withdraw their children or cut back on hours because they can no longer afford the cost." ... "The phenomenon is not universal, but it has struck in many middle- and working-class areas as lost jobs, reduced work schedules and foreclosed homes affect families with few reserves." (1, 2, 3) -By Donna St. George -WashingtonPost 
AIG
- Employees
- Politics
- Federal
- Lawmakers
- Maryland
-  New
York
"AIG Says More Managers Get Retention Payouts Topping $4 Million." ... "American International Group Inc. [Incorporated], the insurer whose bonuses and perks are under fire from U.S. [United States] lawmakers, offered cash awards to another 38 executives in a retention program with payments of as much as $4 million." ... "The incentives range from $92,500 to $4 million for employees earning salaries between $160,000 and $1 million, Chief Executive Officer Edward Liddy said in a letter dated [2008 December] Dec. 5 to [Maryland Democratic] Representative Elijah Cummings. The New York-based insurer had previously disclosed that 130 managers would get the awards and that one executive would get $3 million." ... "“I remain concerned, as do many American taxpayers, that these retention payments are simply bonuses by another name,” Cummings said in letter responding to Liddy." ... "AIG [American International Group], which received a U.S. rescue package of more than $152 billion, has been criticized for saying it will eliminate bonuses for senior executives while still planning to hand out “cash awards” that double or triple the salaries of some managers." ... "AIG’s managers have overseen a record $37.6 billion in net losses so far this year." -By Hugh Son -Bloomberg 
 Gordon
Smith - Illegal
- Immigration
- Business
-  Food
- Workers
- Politics
-  Agriculture
-  Property
-  History
-  Oregon
- Md
-  Hawaii
-  Utah
-  Wash
"Señor Smith: Low-wage Latino workers keep [Oregon Republican Senator] Sen. Gordon Smith’s family business humming. Not all of them are legal." ... "Up on a hill overlooking this Eastern Oregon town of 701 people, Smith Frozen Foods turns raw produce from the surrounding fields into ready-to-eat products." ... "Smith’s goods appear in grocery stores under other brand names. But in tiny Weston [Oregon], a water tank emblazoned with the capital letters S-M-I-T-H sits like a sentry greeting travelers on nearby Highway 11." ... "Gordon Smith, a United States senator from Oregon and the only Republican senator representing a West Coast state, has owned the plant his grandfather founded in 1919 for nearly 30 years." ... "“Son,” father Milan Smith once said, according to Gordon Smith’s 2006 memoir, “you can sell ice to Eskimos and coals to Newcastle.”" ... "Today, Smith Frozen Foods generates millions in income for the senator, according to Smith’s 2007 financial disclosure report." ... "And in this town, Smith’s wealth looms large, even though the 56-year-old lawmaker seldom visits and calls nearby Pendleton [Oregon] his home. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Smith is the 12th-richest member of the U.S. [United States] Senate, with an estimated net worth between $8 million and $39 million—wealth that’s allowed him to buy a $3.5 million mansion in Bethesda, Md. [Maryland], property on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, a Park City, Utah, condominium and—more famously—four antique golf clubs worth $1.25 million." ... "The workers at Smith Frozen Foods, who clean the machinery, monitor production and pack upward of 50 million pounds of produce each year, earn about $80 a day, four or five days a week, 10 months a year—if they’re lucky." ... "One other thing—some of them appear to be illegal immigrants." ... "WW recently spent several days in Weston, and the nearby cities of Milton-Freewater [Oregon] and Walla Walla, Wash. [Washington], where most of Smith’s employees live. WW spoke to dozens of current and former Smith workers, Latino advocates, court personnel, public defenders, educators, police administrators, church officials, social service agents and business owners and determined that some portion of Smith’s workforce comprises undocumented immigrants." ... "It’s a revelation that may not be newsworthy around Weston, where most people this reporter interviewed knew, or assumed, that the agricultural processing plant hired illegal immigrants." ... "Additional interviews and review of public records reveal that Smith’s company appears to have employed illegal immigrants for decades, stretching back as far as the 1980s." -By Beth Slovic -WWeek.com 
 Kevin
Jeffrey Martin - Corporate
- Government
- Politics
-  Satellite
- Spectrum
- History
-  Communications
-  Media
- Minorities
-  Women
- Lawmakers
- Md
"Radio Merger Under Fire From Black Lawmakers: Caucus, FCC [Federal Communications Commission] Chair Differ On Setting Aside XM, Sirius Channels for Minorities." ... "Senior members of the Congressional Black Caucus yesterday criticized a compromise plan for the proposed merger of the XM and Sirius satellite radio companies, saying the deal does not provide enough opportunities for minority-owned programming." ... "[Republican President Bush's] Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin said over the weekend that he would support the merger after XM Satellite Radio Holdings and Sirius Satellite Radio voluntarily agreed, among a series of other concessions, to lease 4 percent of their radio spectrums, or 12 channels, for programming run by minorities and women." ... "Members of the black caucus on Capitol Hill have been arguing for the merged company to lease five times that amount of spectrum to companies owned by racial minorities." ... "[Maryland Democratic Representative Elijah E. Cummings:] "It's shocking to the conscience in this day and age, where the minority populations comprise a significant part of the satellite radio audience, that Mr. Martin would settle for what I deem to be crumbs that have fallen off the table," Cummings said." ... "If the merger is approved, it would be a major reversal of FCC rules. The agency distributed licenses to XM and Sirius in 1997 on the condition the two companies never combine." -By Jeffrey H. Birnbaum -WashingtonPost
Money
-  Accounting
- Politics
- Investigation
- Maryland
- Home
-  Construction
"Former NRCC [Republican] Treasurer Embezzled $500,000, Court Papers Say." ... "The former treasurer of a key Republican campaign committee embezzled more than $500,000 over a five-year period, using it to fund mortgage payments and a six-figure remodeling of his Bethesda [Maryland] home, according to court documents filed yesterday." ... "The papers were filed by federal prosecutors in an attempt to force the former treasurer, Christopher J. Ward, to forfeit his home to the government." ... "The government alleges that Ward, who had worked for National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) since the 1990s, made numerous unauthorized diversions of funds from its accounts and joint accounts set up with Senate Republicans. He often shifted money into his personal account just as payments for his mortgage or home remodeling were due, according to the court filing." ... "Ward, who was fired earlier this year, has not been charged with a crime, but the civil action filed yesterday seeks to seize his home in the 6300 block of Massachusetts Avenue. Such efforts prevent subjects of investigations from selling properties that were allegedly part of their crimes and hiding the proceeds." -By Paul Kane and Del Quentin Wilber -WashingtonPost
|
|
Maryland News Sources: (NOT necessarily recommended) Baltimore, MD Cumberland, MD Dundalk, MD Easton, MD Elkton, MD Emmitsburg, MD Frederick, MD Gaithersburg, MD Hagerstown, MD Marlboro, MD Oakland, MD Ocean City, MD Ocean Pines, MD Seabrook, MD Westminster, MD Inclusion is NOT necessarily a recommendation. MD News |
News Search <Maryland> in: <Maryland News> in: <Maryland State News> in: <Maryland State> in: <MD News> in:  /
Maryland TV Stations: Baltimore Frederick Hagerstown Oakland Owings Mills Salisbury Maryland Television Channels
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Nuclear
- 
Energy
- Construction
- Industry
- Government
- 
Environmental
- Law
- Language
- Politics
- History
- 
Land
- Maryland
- 
New
Jersey - "Nuclear
Utilities Redefine One Word to Bulldoze for New Plants."
... "On tree-lined bluffs overlooking the Chesapeake Bay, where anti-nuclear
activists won a landmark environmental victory 36 years ago, Constellation
Energy Group Inc. is engineering atomic power's comeback." ... "This time,
even if there are protests, bulldozers will roll." ... "That's because
the [Maryland] Baltimore-based utility and its allies have found a way
around a longstanding regulatory policy they say added a year or more to
construction times for nuclear plants." ... "In April, the U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission [NRC] agreed to industry demands that it reduce its
oversight of initial work at reactor sites. By narrowing its definition
of the word ``construction'' in agency rules, the NRC put off the required
public hearings and permits that have waylaid past projects." ... "The
untold story of how the energy lobby and the federal government worked
to clear a path for new reactors -- backed by an NRC commissioner [Republican
Jeffrey Merrifield] seeking a job in the [nuclear] industry -- reveals
one way pro-nuclear forces have stolen a march on environmentalists." ...
"Utilities and the administration of [Republican] President George W. Bush
say they want new reactors on line by 2015. Power companies are rushing
to take advantage of federal tax credits and loan guarantees in the Energy
Policy Act of 2005, some of which begin to expire next year. The NRC says
it expects to receive as many as 21 applications to build 32 new reactors,
the first of which will be filed today by NRG Energy Inc. of Princeton,
New Jersey." ... "The new construction rule is only the latest such initiative.
In 2004, the NRC limited the public's ability to gather evidence and question
witnesses during hearings." ... "By redefining ``construction'' to exclude
excavation, road building and the erection of some cooling towers, the
NRC could reduce its oversight without violating the 1971 court order."
... "Andrew Kugler, senior environmental project manager in the NRC's New
Reactor Office, protested to the general counsel's office. Kugler said
in an e-mail that the proposed rule would exclude from NRC regulation ``probably
90 percent of the true environmental impacts of construction.''" -By
Elliot Blair Smith -Bloomberg
Government
- Terrorism
- 
Surveillance
- Cameras
- 
Tech
- Money
- Freedom
- Politics
- Police
- Peoples
- Behavior
- New
York
- Maryland
- 
Illinois
- "US
doles out millions for street cameras: Local efforts
raise privacy alarms." ... "The [Republican President Bush led] Department
of Homeland Security is funneling millions of dollars to local governments
nationwide for purchasing high-tech video camera networks, accelerating
the rise of a "surveillance society" in which the sense of freedom that
stems from being anonymous in public will be lost, privacy rights advocates
warn." ... "Since 2003, the department has handed out some $23 billion
in federal grants to local governments for equipment and training to help
combat terrorism. Most of the money paid for emergency drills and upgrades
to basic items, from radios to fences. But the department also has doled
out millions on surveillance cameras, transforming city streets and parks
into places under constant observation." ... "The department will not say
how much of its taxpayer-funded grants have gone to cameras. But a Globe
search of local newspapers and congressional press releases shows that
a large number of new surveillance systems, costing at least tens and probably
hundreds of millions of dollars, are being simultaneously installed around
the country as part of homeland security grants." ... "Federal money is
helping New York, Baltimore [Maryland], and Chicago [Illinois] build massive
surveillance systems that may also link thousands of privately owned security
cameras." ... "But privacy rights advocates say that the technology is
putting at risk something that is hard to define but is core to personal
autonomy. The proliferation of cameras could mean that Americans will feel
less free because legal public behavior -- attending a political rally,
entering a doctor's office, or even joking with friends in a park -- will
leave a permanent record, retrievable by authorities at any time." ...
"As this technological capacity evolves, it will be far easier for individuals
to attract police suspicion simply for acting differently and far easier
for police to track that person's movement closely, including retracing
their steps backwards in time. It will also create a greater risk that
the officials who control the cameras could use them for personal or political
gain, specialists said." -By Charlie Savage
-Boston/Globe
Stem
Cell - Science
- Money
- Alzheimer's
- 
Health
- Politics
- 2008
Election - MD
- "House
OKs stem cell research bill." ... "Making good on
a key campaign promise and reigniting a longstanding ethical controversy,
the House approved legislation Thursday to expand federal funding of embryonic
stem cell research in the search for cures to diseases such as Parkinson's,
Alzheimer's and juvenile diabetes." ... "The bill now goes to the White
House, and President Bush promised to veto it when he returns from Europe
next week. He said Thursday that the House "chose to discard existing protections
on human life."" ... "The Senate also has passed the stem cell measure,
but supporters in both chambers have fallen short of the two-thirds majority
necessary to override a veto." ... "Still, the Democratic Congress' passage
of the bill which is also supported by a number of high-profile Republicans,
including Nancy Reagan forces Bush into the position of rejecting a popular
bill and reinforces a political confrontation that will doubtless reach
into the 2008 presidential contest." ... ""This legislation does not seek
to destroy life, it seeks to preserve life," said House Majority Leader
[Democratic Representative] Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), noting that the embryos
would be discarded by fertility clinics in any case. "We have a moral obligation
to provide our scientific community with the tools it needs to save lives,
and this legislation accomplishes exactly that."" -By
Jill Zuckman -ChicagoTribune
Law
- Enforcement
- Maryland
- Money
- "Former
Prosecutor Says Departure Was Pressured." ... "The
former federal prosecutor in Maryland said Monday that he was forced out
in early 2005 because of political pressure stemming from public corruption
investigations involving associates of the state’s governor, a Republican."
... "“There was direct pressure not to pursue these investigations,” said
the former prosecutor, Thomas M. DiBiagio. “The practical impact was to
intimidate my office and shut down the investigations.”" ... "His office
had been looking into whether associates of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
had improperly funneled money from gambling interests to promote legalized
slot machines in Maryland. Mr. DiBiagio said that several prominent Maryland
Republicans had pressed him to back away from the inquiries and that one
conversation had so troubled him that he reported it to an F.B.I. official
as a threat." ... "But he said that the Justice Department had offered
little support and that that made it “impossible for me to stay.”" ...
"Several current and former officials in the Baltimore office said Mr.
DiBiagio voiced concerns in 2004 that the corruption inquiries were jeopardizing
his career, a view that they shared." (1, 2)
-By Eric Lichtblau -NYTimes
Secret
- 
Electronic
- Voting
Machines - Company
- Hackers
- Technology
- Election
2006 - Politics
- Maryland
- "Electronic
Voting Machines Could Skew Elections: Researchers,
Candidates Have Little Confidence in Machines Designed to Make Elections
Easier to Call." ... "Cheryl Kagan, a former Maryland Democratic legislator,
was shocked when she opened her mail Wednesday morning." ... "Inside, she
discovered three computer discs. With them was an anonymous letter saying
the discs contained the secret source code for vote-counting that could
be used to alter the votes cast through Maryland's new electronic voting
machines." ... ""My understanding is that with these disks a malicious
person could skew the outcome of an election," Kagan said." ... "Diebold,
the company that makes the voting machines, told ABC News, "These discs
do not alter the security of the Diebold touch-screen system in any way,"
because election workers can set their own passwords." ... "But ABC News
has obtained an independent report commissioned by the state of Maryland
and conducted by Science Applications International Corporation revealing
that the original Diebold factory passwords are still being used on many
voting machines." ... "The SAIC study also shows myriad other security
flaws, including administrative over-ride passwords that cannot be changed
by local officials but can be used by hackers or those who have seen the
discs." (1, 2)
-By Jake Tapper, Rebecca Abrahams, and Eduardo Sunol
-ABCNEWS.com
Hacking
- Electronic
- Voting
Machine - Technology
- Business
- 2006
Election - Maryland
- "Worse
to Come in Fall Elections, Officials Fear." ... "As
officials investigated the human errors that disrupted Maryland's primary
election, there were renewed fears yesterday that electronic malfunctions
could cause even greater problems in November." ... "Computer scientists
at Princeton University released a study, including a video, that demonstrated
how they were able to hack into the type of electronic voting machines
used in Maryland and install malicious software that could sway an election.
The machines' manufacturer swiftly denounced the study as "unrealistic
and inaccurate."" ... "Meanwhile, frustrated election judges and voters
continued to report widespread trouble with voting apparatuses during Tuesday's
primary -- machines that froze, access cards that stopped working and computerized
voter lists that crashed. The glitches led to long lines at many polling
places and caused some voters to worry that their ballots had not been
recorded properly, if at all." ... "Edward W. Felten, a professor of computer
science and public affairs, said that he and two of his graduate students
spent several months studying a Diebold AccuVote-TS voting machine. They
were easily able to break into the machine and insert malicious software,
he said." ... ""The malicious code can steal votes in a manner that's undetectable
or nearly undetectable," Felten said. "And the code can spread like a virus
from one machine to another."" (1, 2)
-By Christian Davenport, Miranda S. Spivack and Cameron
W. Barr -WashingtonPost
Washington
- Maryland
- Police
- "McGavick
gave misleading DUI account." ... "A 1993 Maryland
police report, obtained Friday, shows that [Washington state] Republican
U.S. Senate candidate Mike McGavick was less candid than he seemed last
week when he disclosed a previously unknown arrest for drunk driving."
... "For example, in a sketchy, four-sentence description of the incident
on his campaign Web site Aug. 24, McGavick wrote that he was stopped when
he "cut a yellow light too close in 1993" while driving home with Gaelynn,
now his wife." ... "The Montgomery County, Md., police officer who arrested
him Nov. 21, 1993, said in his report that he saw McGavick "drive through
a steady red light."" ... "The candidate, who is running against Democratic
Sen. Maria Cantwell, said in an interview last week that he was issued
a citation but wasn't arrested." ... "But the police report and a police
spokesman Friday said McGavick was placed under arrest, handcuffed, driven
to a district police station and handcuffed to a desk while he was questioned
and signed various forms." -By Neil Modie
-SeattlePI.NWsource
US
- 
Iraq
- 
Military
- Religious
- Election
2006 - 2004
Election - Free
Speech - Law
- 
Colorado
- Maryland
- 
Montana
- 
Tennessee
- 
Michigan
- 
Ohio
- 
Pennsylvania
- New
Jersey - 
Minnesota
- 
California
- "Conservatives
Put Faith in Church Voter Drives: Evangelicals seek
to sign up a new flock of GOP supporters in states with crucial November
races." ... "As discontent with the Republican Party threatens to dampen
the turnout of conservative voters in November, evangelical leaders are
launching a massive registration drive that could help counter the malaise
and mobilize new religious voters in battleground states." ... "The program,
coordinated by the Colorado-based group Focus on the Family and its influential
founder, James C. Dobson, would use a variety of methods — including information
inserted in church publications and booths placed outside worship services
— to recruit millions of new voters in 2006 and beyond." ... "The effort
builds on the aggressive courtship of evangelical voters in 2004 by President
Bush's reelection campaign, even as the Internal Revenue Service has announced
renewed scrutiny of nonprofit organizations, including churches, that engage
in political activities." ... "The program, announced in an e-mail to activists
last week, is seeking county and church coordinators in the targeted states
of Maryland, Montana, Tennessee, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey
and Minnesota." ... "Registering voters in churches is not a new tactic
for either party, but Republicans have proved far more effective in recent
years at combining religion and politics for electoral gain." ... "Critics
say the practice is potentially illegal, citing tax laws that prohibit
churches from engaging in partisan activities." ... "The IRS has launched
a program to crack down on violators, with investigations pending against
dozens of churches." ... "The IRS probe with the highest profile is that
of All Saints Church in Pasadena, one of Southern California's largest
and most liberal congregations." ... "After a priest delivered a sermon
critical of the Iraq war two days before the 2004 presidential election,
the IRS began reviewing the Episcopal church's tax-exempt status. No decision
has been announced." -By Peter Wallsten
-LAtimes
Noteworthy
- Government
- Military
- 
Intelligence
- Computer
- Database
- Identity
Theft - Law
Enforcement - Maryland
- "Data
Theft Affected Most in Military: National Security
Concerns Raised." ... "Social Security numbers and other personal information
for as many as 2.2 million U.S. military personnel -- including nearly
80 percent of the active-duty force -- were among the data stolen from
the home of a Department of Veterans Affairs analyst last month, federal
officials said yesterday, raising concerns about national security as well
as identity theft." ... "The department announced that personal data for
as many as 1.1 million active-duty military personnel, 430,000 National
Guard members and 645,000 reserve members may have been included on an
electronic file stolen May 3 from a department employee's house in Aspen
Hill [Maryland]. The data include names, birth dates and Social Security
numbers, VA spokesman Matt Burns said." ... "Defense officials said the
loss is unprecedented and raises concerns about the safety of U.S. military
forces. But they cautioned that law enforcement agencies investigating
the incident have not found evidence that the stolen information has been
used to commit identity theft." ... "Army spokesman Paul Boyce said: "Obviously
there are issues associated with identity theft and force protection.""
... "For example, security experts said, the information could be used
to find out where military personnel live. "This essentially can create
a Zip code for where each of the service members and [their] families live,
and if it fell into the wrong hands could potentially put them at jeopardy
of being targeted," said David Heyman, director of the homeland security
program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)."
... "Another worry is that the information could reach foreign governments
and their intelligence services or other hostile forces, allowing them
to target service members and their families, the experts said." (1, 2)
-By Ann Scott Tyson and Christopher Lee with contributions
by Ernesto Londoño -WashingtonPost
Politics
- Law
- Health
- Maryland
- "Former
Top Bush Aide Accused of Md. Thefts: Refund Scam
Netted $5,000, Police Say." ... "[Republican] Claude A. Allen, who resigned
last month as President Bush's top domestic policy adviser, was arrested
this week in Montgomery County [Maryland] for allegedly swindling Target
and Hecht's stores out of more than $5,000 in a refund scheme, police said."
... "Allen, a former deputy secretary in the Department of Health and Human
Services, was nominated in 2003 to a federal appeals court seat. He was
appointed the president's top domestic policy adviser last year at the
start of Bush's second term." ... "Working out of a small office on the
second floor of the West Wing, Allen shaped administration policy on such
issues as health care, space exploration, housing and education." (1, 2)
-By Ernesto Londoño and Michael A. Fletcher
with contributions by Martin Weil -WashingtonPost
US
- 
United
Arab Emirates - Government
- Transportation
- Company
- New
York
- New
Orleans - 
Louisiana
- Maryland
- Terrorism-
"Bush
Threatens Veto Against Bid To Stop Port Deal: State-Run
Arab Firm Poses No Threat, President Says Amid Bipartisan Criticism." ...
"Facing a sharp bipartisan backlash, Bush took the unusual step of summoning
reporters to the front of Air Force One to condemn efforts to block a firm
[Dubai Ports World] from the United Arab Emirates from purchasing the rights
to manage ports that include those in New York and New Orleans [Louisiana]."
... "The Bush administration recently approved the sale of a London-based
company that currently manages the ports to state-run Dubai Ports World.
The deal has raised alarms on Capitol Hill and with the Republican governors
of Maryland and New York. Critics note that the United Arab Emirates has
been a home base for terrorists." ... "The federal government has approval
rights over business transactions with national security implications.
In this case, Dubai Ports World would handle shipping arrivals, departures,
unloading at the docks and many security-related functions. The federal
government would oversee those security operations." -By
Jim VandeHei and Jonathan Weisman with contributions by Matthew Mosk
-WashingtonPost
US
- United
Arab Emirates - 
Water
- Transportation
- Terrorism
- New
York - New-Jersey
- Maryland
- Louisiana
- 
Florida
- Pennsylvania
- "United
Arab Emirates Firm May Oversee 6 U.S. Ports." ...
"A company in the United Arab Emirates is poised to take over significant
operations at six American ports as part of a corporate sale, leaving a
country with ties to the Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers with influence over
a maritime industry considered vulnerable to terrorism." ... "The $6.8
billion sale could be approved Monday and would affect commercial port
operations in New York, New Jersey, Baltimore [Maryland], New Orleans [Louisiana],
Miami [Florida] and Philadelphia [Pennsylvania]." -By
Ted Bridis -AP
via -WashingtonPost
Secret
- Government
- Wireless
- Telecommunications
- Technology
- Law
Enforcement - Law
- New
York
- Texas
- Maryland
- Noteworthy
- "Live
Tracking of Mobile Phones Prompts Court Fights on Privacy."
... "Most Americans carry cellphones, but many may not know that government
agencies can track their movements through the signals emanating from the
handset." ... "In recent years, law enforcement officials have turned to
cellular technology as a tool for easily and secretly monitoring the movements
of suspects as they occur. But this kind of surveillance - which investigators
have been able to conduct with easily obtained court orders - has now come
under tougher legal scrutiny." ... "In the last four months, three federal
judges have denied prosecutors the right to get cellphone tracking information
from wireless companies without first showing "probable cause" to believe
that a crime has been or is being committed. That is the same standard
applied to requests for search warrants." ... "The rulings, issued by magistrate
judges in New York, Texas and Maryland, underscore the growing debate over
privacy rights and government surveillance in the digital age." (1, 2)
-By Matt Richtel -NYTimes
California
- Maryland
- Business
- "Largest
Knight Ridder shareholder wants sale of newspaper publisher:
Private Capital Management contends San Jose company is underperforming."
... "The biggest shareholder of Knight Ridder, the nation's second-largest
newspaper publisher and owner of the Mercury News, urged the San Jose-based
company to put itself up for sale Tuesday." ... "PCM is a subsidiary of
Legg Mason, a large [Maryland] Baltimore-based investment firm. PCM has
added substantially to its newspaper holdings since 2000. It holds large
stakes in companies like the New York Times and Gannett, the nation's largest
newspaper publisher by circulation." ... "Knight Ridder publishes 32 daily
newspapers in 29 U.S. markets, with 8.5 million readers daily and 11.0
million on Sunday." -By Matt Marshall
-MercuryNews
- Drugs
- "Tackling
crime, Baltimore [Maryland] style." ... "Such is
the self-confidence of the drug-dealing fraternity, that last year they
made a DVD called "Stop Snitching"." ... "After a few months of careful
production, they've [the police] released a video of their own, complete
with hip hop soundtrack." ... "Videos are not the only potent hip hop medium
that the police are dealing with." ... "A few months ago, several manufacturers
began making Stop Snitching T-shirts, and one local chain began selling
them in its stores." ... "The police have now printed their own T-shirts
too." -By Matthew Wells-BBC
/News
- 
- 
-
- "Pentagon
recommends closing 33 major bases, cutting 29,000 jobs."
... "The Pentagon on Friday announced 33 major military bases throughout
the United States should be closed and hundreds of other smaller institutions
either shut down or their staffs and missions substantially trimmed, part
of an overall plan to save nearly $49 billion in the next 20 years." ...
"The proposed reductions throughout the country - and at U.S. bases in
Germany, South Korea, Guam and Puerto Rico - will now be reviewed by an
independent commission and must be approved by President Bush by October.
They include moving the existing Walter Reed Army Medical Center from Washington
[DC] to Maryland." ... "Pentagon officials said the savings would accrue
through reduction of some activities and the combination of others at the
nation's 318 major military bases and hundreds of smaller ones. But the
plan also calls for substantially expanding the size of some of the nation's
largest military installations." -By Stephen J. Hedges
and Aamer Madhani
-ChicagoTribune
via -KansasCity.com
- 
-
-
- "Laura
Bush Meets Afghan Women." ... "Laura Bush says she
has been waiting a long time to tell the women of Afghanistan that American
women stand with them." ... "Mrs. Bush's plane landed on a pockmarked airstrip
at Bagram and she immediately took a helicopter to visit a teacher training
institute where Afghan women are learning basic literacy skills." ... "Million
of women and girls have returned to work and school since late 2001 with
the fall of the hardline Taliban, which banned girls from getting an education[.]"
... ""I have been so looking forward to going to Afghanistan," she told
reporters on the tarmac of the military base in suburban Maryland. "When
I really realized the plight of the women under the Taliban, I also found
that American women really stand in solidarity with the women in Afghanistan.""
-By By Deb Riechmann -AP
via -CBSNews
-
-
-
- "Md.
Woman Accused of Acting as Iraqi Agent." ... "Federal
agents today arrested a Maryland woman at her home on charges of acting
as an agent for the Iraqi government of former president Saddam Hussein
and plotting to aid resistance groups in Iraq after Hussein was ousted
by U.S. forces." ... "Susan Lindauer, 40, a former journalist and congressional
aide in Washington, was taken into custody by the FBI at her home in Takoma
Park after federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment against her and two
Iraqis, the sons of a former diplomat, who were charged with similar offenses."
-By William Branigin -WashingtonPost
- Water-
"High
Court Rules For Va. Over Md. In Water Dispute: Potomac
Battle Dates Back Centuries." ... "The Supreme Court yesterday settled
a centuries-old dispute over control of the Potomac River in favor of Virginia,
ruling that Maryland has no right to regulate the commonwealth's withdrawals
of drinking water from the river." ... "By a vote of 7 to 2, the justices
essentially affirmed what a court-appointed special master had already
decided: that although an 1877 arbitration decision affirmed Maryland's
sovereignty over the entire riverbed, it also preserved Virginia's rights
to extend water-intake pipes into the middle of the stream -- and Virginia
had not forfeited those rights by submitting to some Maryland regulation
in recent years." (1, 2)
-By Charles Lane and Maria Glod with contributions
by Craig Whitlock -WashingtonPost
-
-
-
-
- 
- 
-
- "U.S.
identifies four Marines killed in helicopter crash:
Maj. Jay Thomas Aubin [36, Waterville, Maine], Capt. Ryan Anthony Beaupre
[30, was from Bloomington, Illinois], Cpl. Brian Matthew Kennedy [25, Houston,
Texas] and Staff Sgt. Kendall Damon Watersbey [29, Baltimore, Maryland]
were the four Marine crew members killed aboard the U.S. CH-46 Sea Knight
helicopter that crashed early Friday in Kuwait, according to a statement
from the Department of Defense." ... "The eight British military personnel
aboard also were killed in the crash, which occurred as the helicopter
was flying through heavy wind and a sandstorm" ... "Watersbey's father
angrily blamed President Bush for his son's death." ... ""George Bush,
take a good look at this man, cause you took my only son away from me,"
Michael Watersbey said, holding up a picture of his son."
-CNN
- "Troops
Across U.S. Head to Persian Gulf: From Coast
to Coast, Thousands of Troops Ship Out for Persian Gulf Region." ... "Thousands
of Marines, sailors and soldiers headed for the Persian Gulf region Monday,
shipping out from California, Georgia and Maryland as the buildup for a
possible war with Iraq accelerated sharply." ... "More than 10,000 Army
soldiers in Georgia were expected to leave Fort Benning and Fort Stewart
over the next week. The troops are from the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized),
which specializes in desert warfare and is expected to have all 17,000
soldiers and support staff in the region eventually."-AP
via -ABCNEWS.com
Sniper
- "In
the Sights of the Sniper: 23 Fearful Days in October."
... "With a loud crack and a blinding light of the SWAT team's disorienting
but harmless "flash bang," the agents rushed the blue Chevrolet Caprice
parked in a highway rest stop in rural Maryland. They smashed out several
windows and unlocked the doors. Within seconds, the agents pulled the two
dazed occupants from the car at gunpoint and placed them under arrest."
(1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6)
-By David Johnston and Don Van Natta Jr. -NYTimes
via -AltaVista-News
Sniper
- "Ex-Army
Marksman, Teen-Ager Arrested in Sniper Case." ...
"A Gulf War veteran who was an expert Army marksman was arrested along
with a teen-ager on Thursday in the Washington area sniper case, fueling
hopes a three-week murder spree that left 10 dead was over." ... "The two
were arrested while they slept in a car at a highway rest stop in rural
Maryland, and authorities found a Bushmaster .223 caliber rifle inside.
The sniper's victims were all felled with .223 caliber ammunition." ...
"Government sources identified the two as former U.S. Army combat engineer
John Allen Muhammad, 41, and John Lee Malvo, 17." - By
Mark Wilkinson -Reuters
via -ABCNEWS.com
Sniper
- "Police
hold man who may have sniper info: Former soldier
named in federal firearms warrant." ... "State Police in Maryland early
Thursday picked up a man who sniper-case investigators say may have information
about the shootings that have left 10 people dead over the last three weeks."
... "John Allen Muhammad, 42, was named in a federal arrest warrant late
Wednesday. The warrant lists federal firearms charges." ... "Muhammad and
his stepson, 17-year-old John Lee Malvo, were taken into custody in the
pre-dawn hours as they slept in a Chevrolet Caprice at a rest area on Interstate
70 near Myersville, Maryland, authorities said."
-CNN
Sniper
- "Bus
shooting raises sniper fears." ... "The new shooting
followed a day of dashed hopes that investigators had cracked the case
with the detention of two men near Richmond, Virginia, on suspicion of
ties to the sniper attacks." ... "But authorities later announced that
two taken into custody were illegal aliens with no connection to the case.
They were being held by immigration officials, pending deportation."
-Reuters via -FT.com
Sniper
- "Man
is shot at Maryland bus stop." ... "The shooting
happened about 6 a.m. near an apartment building and wooded area along
Connecticut Avenue. The location is near the sites of the first six sniper
attacks, all on Oct. 2 and 3. In all, 12 people have been shot in Maryland,
Virginia and Washington, D.C.; three of them were critically wounded."
-By Stephen Manning -AP
via -Salon
Sniper-
"Police
Want to Talk More to Sniper-Case Caller." ... ""The
person you called could not hear everything that you said; the audio was
unclear and we want to get it right," Montgomery County Police Chief Charles
Moose said at a televised news briefing, making clear he was sending a
message." ... ""Call us back so that we can clearly understand," Moose
said, speaking in Rockville, Maryland, where a task force investigating
the case is based." ... "He gave no details on who the caller might be
-- a tipster or even possibly the sniper -- or when the call was received."
-By Mark Wilkinson -Reuters
via -ABCNEWS.com
Sniper
- "As
sniper hunt grows, role of media blurs." ... "Police
scold reporters for 'interference,' but thank them for publicizing citizen
hot line." ... "In the D.C. case, the local CBS affiliate, WUSA, Channel
9, uncovered the fact that police had found a note – scrawled on a tarot
card – near the scene of Monday's shooting. It read, "Dear Policeman, I
am God."" ... "That set off [Montgomery County Police Chief Charles] Moose,
who said at yesterday's press conference, "I ask my community, do you want
the police department to work the case or do you want Channel 9 to work
the case? Let me know because there is no room, in my mind, for both of
us."" -By Kim Campbell
-CSMonitor/buy
Sniper
- "Profiler:
Sniper case publicity a balancing act." ... "One
of the lead investigators in the Washington, D.C.-area sniper shootings
lashed out at the media Wednesday." ... "Montgomery County, Maryland, Police
Chief Charles Moose was upset that information about a tarot card left
near the scene of the most recent shooting -- and inscribed with the message,
"Dear Policeman: I am God" -- had been leaked to the media."
-CNN
Sniper
- "'Death'
Card Found at Sniper Scene." ... "Investigators searching
for a sniper terrorizing the Washington suburbs found a tarot card with
the words, "Dear policeman, I am God," near a bullet casing outside the
school where a 13-year-old boy was critically wounded, a source familiar
with the investigation confirmed Wednesday." -By David
Dishneau -AP
via -Seattle-PI.com.NWsource
Sniper
- "Security
tight at D.C.-area schools: Shooting of 13-year-old linked to sniper
killings." ... "Students were escorted into classrooms
Tuesday under heavy guard at schools in metro Washington as police hunted
for the sniper who shot a 13-year-old boy in front of a suburban middle
school in Maryland -- the eighth random hit since last week."
-CNN
Sniper
- "Pair
Sought in Md. Sniper Slays: Maryland Police
Seek Sniper and Driver After 5 Killed in D.C. Suburbs; Sixth Death Under
Investigation." ... "Maryland police said Friday they were looking for
two men a driver and a sniper in the fatal shootings of at least five people
in the suburbs north of Washington, D.C."
-AP via
-ABCNEWS.com
Sniper
- "Experts
Look to Rifle in Gun Spree: Experts Say Gun
Used in Suburban Washington Shootings Likely a High-Powered Rifle." ...
"Montgomery County police said it was likely that the shots, described
as .223-caliber bullets, were fired from a rifle such as a Colt AR-15 the
semiautomatic, civilian version of the military M-16 assault rifle."
-AP via
-ABCNEWS.com
Sniper
- "Five
killed in Montgomery County, Md., suburbs; victims gunned down one by one."
... "Five people were fatally shot one by one in public places within 16
hours of each other in Washington's [D.C.] suburbs, and authorities said
Thursday there was a ''strong possibility'' the killings were related."
-By Stephen Manning -AP
via -Boston/Globe
AmericasLibrary.GOV - via America's Library GOV: Maryland Day March 25, 1634
Do you know how Maryland and the city of Baltimore got their names? On March 25, Marylanders celebrate Maryland Day to honor the arrival of the first colonists to the land King Charles I of England chartered to Lord Baltimore in 1634. He named the land after the King's wife, Henrietta Maria, or Mary. Lord Baltimore had almost complete control over the colony as long as he paid the King a share of all the gold or silver discovered on the land. Who came to this new colony?
Catholics escaping religious persecution in England saw Maryland as a safe haven. The colony even passed an act ensuring religious liberty and justice to those who believed in Jesus Christ in 1649. Besides the busy port of Baltimore, another important city in Maryland is Annapolis, established as the capital in 1694 and home to the U.S. Naval Academy, founded in 1845. You can see the grounds and surrounding city in this photo. When do you think Maryland became a state, and what famous song was written here?
In 1788, Maryland entered the Union as the seventh state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. During the War of 1812, the British bombarded Baltimore's Fort McHenry "with bombs bursting in air." Watching this was a young lawyer named Francis Scott Key, who wrote the lyrics to "The Star-Spangled Banner" based on his eyewitness account. Maryland has an even more fascinating history. Ask your family what they know about the state, and while you're at it, try humming a few bars of our national anthem, written by a Marylander.
>"... Pictures .. [of some of the] assault and hunting rifles that are of the caliber used in the shootings in Montgomery County."
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