NRA announces six-figure ad buy supporting Jeff Sessions AG confirmation
Jeff Sessions will be the beneficiary of a six-figure boost from the National Rifle Association, which announced a new ad blitz running in the last week of the Alabama Senator’s confirmation hearing for attorney general. The Fairfax, Virginia-based National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) announced Wednesday a new ad buy supporting Sessions’s confirmation as Donald Trump‘s top cop. The 30-second spot, titled “Respect,” is scheduled to run on cable and across digital platforms. “Jeff Sessions strongly supports our Second Amendment rights and will work tirelessly to defend them,” said NRA-ILA executive director Chris W. Cox. “He knows the difference between violent criminals and law-abiding citizens, and will support law enforcement’s efforts to get lawbreakers off the streets.” “Respect,” focuses on Sessions record as a staunch supporter of police and law enforcement. “After eight years of political elites abandoning police,” the ad’s narrator says, “we need an attorney general who supports police. That’s Jeff Sessions.” The spot continues by saying Sessions, a former Alabama Attorney General and U.S. Attorney for Alabama’s Southern District, will “get criminals off our streets and protect the Second Amendment.” The NRA has stirred firmly behind Sessions throughout the confirmation process, and made more than 100,000 voter contacts to key Senate offices on his behalf, with “more to come,” says a news release announcing the campaign. In addition, NRA vows to “score” votes on Sessions’s confirmation, to be used in future candidate grades and endorsements. On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee agreed to delay a vote on Sessions, after a procedural request from Democrats seeking more time to review paperwork and records on his nomination. A new vote is scheduled Jan. 31, and the nomination will go to the Senate floor soon after that. “Respect,” now available on YouTube, will run through Feb. 1.
Sean Spicer says 20 percent tax on Mexican imports just an option
The Latest on President Donald Trump (all times EST): 4:50 p.m. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer now says slapping a 20 percent tax on imports from Mexico is just one of several options on the table for paying for a wall along the southern border. Spicer says President Donald Trump has yet to make a final decision about how the U.S. will recoup the costs of his proposed border wall. Spicer had said earlier Thursday that Trump wanted to slap a 20 percent tax on all imports from Mexico and predicted the tax would generate $10 billion a year. He had told reporters on Air Force One that Trump has discussed the idea with congressional leaders and wanted to include the measure in a comprehensive tax reform package. But Trump’s chief of staff Reince Priebus said later that the administration has “a buffet of options” to pay for the wall. ___ 4:45 p.m. President Donald Trump still knows how to win a television time slot. ABC reached 7.5 million viewers for its Wednesday night interview special of the president speaking to anchor David Muir. It was billed as Trump’s first network television interview since his inauguration last week. The special beat every other program competing at 10 p.m., according to the Nielsen company. CBS’ “Code Black” drama came in second with 5.6 million viewers. ___ 4:45 p.m. A Democratic congressman says he got a call from President Donald Trump, who wants to meet with him to discuss the price of prescription drugs. Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings said Thursday he received the short but cordial call a day earlier “to my surprise.” Cummings says Trump told him they would not agree on everything, but they could find some common ground on trying to address the rising costs of prescription drugs. Cummings says he’s looking forward to the meeting, which hasn’t been scheduled yet. Cummings also says Trump asked about the congressman’s special assistant, Katie Malone, who was injured in a fire at her home this month that killed six of her nine children. Cummings says the president said he wanted to make a contribution to help the family and expressed sincere sympathy. ___ 4:40 p.m. President Donald Trump has signed his first presidential proclamation, declaring this week “National School Choice Week.” The proclamation states that because education is important, parents should have the right to a “meaningful choice” about where their children goes to school. Charter schools and school choice are expected to be major elements of federal education policy in Trump’s administration. Betsy DeVos, Trump’s nominee for education secretary, has spent more than two decades advocating for school choice programs. Such programs provide students and parents with an alternative to a traditional public school education. DeVos is awaiting a Senate vote on her nomination. The proclamation adds that a renewed commitment to expanding school choice can make a great education possible for every child in America. ___ 3:35 p.m. President Donald Trump wants to pay for his proposed southern border wall by slapping a 20 percent tax on imports from Mexico. White House spokesman Sean Spicer says Trump has discussed the idea with congressional leaders and wants to include the measure in a comprehensive tax reform package. Spicer spoke to reporters on Air Force One as Trump flew back from a Republican retreat in Philadelphia. He says that taxing imports from Mexico would generate $10 billion a year and “easily pay for the wall.” Spicer says discussions are continuing with lawmakers to make sure the plan is “done right.” But he says it “clearly provides funding” for the wall. ___ 3:30 p.m. President Donald Trump’s chief White House strategist says that the media should “keep its mouth shut.” In an interview with The New York Times, published Thursday, Bannon said that the media is the “opposition party” of the new administration and “should be embarrassed and humiliated” by the unanticipated election result. The article cites Bannon as referring to himself at one point as “Darth Vader.” Asked if he was concerned that press secretary Sean Spicer lost credibility after a forceful opening press conference peppered with false information, Bannon replied, “we think that’s a badge of honor.” He adds, “The media has zero integrity, zero intelligence and no hard work.” ___ 3:15 p.m. Vice President Mike Pence is offering Republican lawmakers a preview of the upcoming Supreme Court pick. He says President Donald Trump will nominate a “strict constructionist” to the high court. Pence is speaking to House and Senate Republicans at a retreat in Philadelphia. He notes Trump plans to announce the Supreme Court pick next week and says he can “already tip you off.” Pence says the choice will be a “strict constructionist,” or a jurist who supports a narrow reading of the U.S. Constitution. The vice president says the choice will have a “top-notch legal mind” and a “commitment to the Constitution.” ___ 2:45 p.m. The United Nations hopes that any measures President Donald Trump takes on refugees are temporary, citing U.S. leadership in resettling people forced to flee their homes. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters Thursday that taking in refugees is especially important when the world has seen the largest movement of migrants since World War II. He said it’s a basic principle of the United Nations that “refugees need solidarity and need help,” and at this time there’s never been a greater need for their protection. A draft executive order obtained by The Associated Press shows Trump intends to stop accepting Syrian refugees and to suspend the United States’ broader refugee program for 120 days. According to the U.N., refugees total nearly 21.3 million, half of them under age 18. ___ 1:45 p.m. President Donald Trump is claiming that he and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto agreed jointly to cancel their planned meeting over disagreements about who will pay for Trump’s promised southern border wall. Trump says during a Republican House and Senate retreat in Philadelphia that, “The president of Mexico and
Condoleezza Rice: 10 things you need to know about the Birmingham-native
Twelve years ago Thursday, Birmingham-native Condoleezza Rice became one of the most influential women in the world of global politics, making history as the first African American woman to serve as Secretary of State. Nominated by former President George W. Bush, Rice first served as his national security advisor beginning in 2000. Her role became extremely important after the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York City and the Pentagon. She went on to become Secretary of State in 2005 for Bush’s second term. Throughout her tenure in the position, she played a crucial part in shaping the most aggressive U.S. foreign policy in modern history, with wars launched against both Afghanistan and Iraq. Here are ten things you may not have known about Rice: Rice was born on Nov. 14, 1954, in then-segregated Birmingham, Ala. as the only child of Angelena and John Wesley Rice, Jr. Her mother was a high school teacher while her father was a high school guidance counselor and Presbyterian minister. Her name is derived from the Italian con dolcezza, a musical term meaning to play “with sweetness.” As a child she wanted to be a concert pianist and thus, was the first black student to attend classes at the Birmingham Southern Conservatory of Music. A child prodigy, Rice skipped the first and seventh grades, graduating from high school at age 15. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in political science at only 19 years old from the University of Denver, where she studied international relations with Josef Korbel, father of the first woman to become Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright. Rice received seven honorary doctorates between 1991 and 2004 from Morehouse College, the University of Alabama, and the University of Notre Dame to name a few, in addition to the Ph.D. she earned from the Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver. She’s currently the Denning Professor in Global Business and the Economy at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Her dream job is to be commissioner of the National Football League. She’s currently the lone woman on the 12 member College Football Playoff selection committee. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, an honorary society that recognizes achievement in the natural sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities. Rice she helped Bush craft race-based preferences in university admission policies.
Donald Trump to address GOP House, Senate members at retreat
President Donald Trump is making his first appearance before Republican House and Senate members since taking office to coordinate on a shared agenda during the lawmakers’ annual policy retreat. Trump’s midday remarks Thursday in Philadelphia come a day after he began overhauling the nation’s immigration system. Trump moved to jumpstart construction of his promised U.S.-Mexico border wall. He also ordered cuts Wednesday in federal grants for “sanctuary cities” that shield some immigrants from law enforcement, along with increases in the number of border patrol agents and immigration officers. After returning to the White House, Trump planned to sign an executive action commissioning a probe into allegations of widespread voter fraud, said White House press secretary Sean Spicer. Trump planned additional actions on Friday, but Spicer said Thursday that decisions were still to be made on what Trump will sign. The president is also expected to take steps, possibly as soon as this week, to restrict the flow of refugees into the United States. He is also considering plans to negotiate individual trade deals with the countries that have signed onto the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact. Trump took steps earlier in the week to withdraw the U.S. from TPP, which he said puts American workers at a disadvantage. The White House had said Trump would also meet Thursday afternoon with Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas. But Hatch’s office said no meeting was scheduled and that the senator, who is chairman of the finance committee, and Trump met at the White House on Wednesday. “On Wednesday evening, Chairman Hatch had a productive meeting with President Trump in the Oval Office to discuss issues of the day, including those that impact the Senate Finance Committee,” Hatch’s office said. “During the hour-long meeting, the chairman outlined his ideas on how best to advance an aggressive pro-growth agenda that will grow the economy and provide fertile ground for new businesses and better jobs in America.” Getting to Philadelphia meant that Trump took his first flight aboard Air Force One. Trump flew to Washington for the inauguration on one of the U.S. government’s familiar blue and white planes. But the aircraft only uses the call sign “Air Force One” when the president is on board. He also flew in the presidential helicopter, Marine One, to Joint Base Andrews, where the airplane is parked. Trump saluted as he walked off the helicopter and chatted with an Air Force officer who walked him to the steps of Air Force One. He walked up the steps slowly but did not turn around and wave as presidents typically do. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Donald Trump signals changes to US interrogation, detention policy
President Donald Trump‘s renewed embrace of torture in the fight against Islamic extremism sets up a heated dispute with a long line of opponents both at home and abroad of Bush-era interrogation policies and CIA-run “black site” prisons. “We have to fight fire with fire,” Trump told ABC in an interview aired Wednesday after The Associated Press and other news organizations obtained a copy of a draft executive order that signals sweeping changes to U.S. interrogation and detention policy. The draft order would reverse President Barack Obama’s order to close the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba — a place Trump has said he wants to fill up “with bad dudes.” It orders up recommendations on whether the U.S. should reopen CIA detention facilities outside the United States. Critics said the clandestine sites marred America’s image on the world stage. The draft directive also orders a review of interrogation methods used on terror suspects and calls for suggested modifications that would not violate the U.S. legal ban on torture. Trump, who has pushed for tougher interrogation techniques, said he would consult with new Defense Secretary James Mattis and CIA Director Mike Pompeo before authorizing any new policy. But he said he had asked top intelligence officials: “Does torture work? And the answer was ‘Yes, absolutely.’” Mattis and Pompeo did not know about the draft executive order, according to a congressional aide who was not allowed to publicly discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity. When asked specifically about waterboarding, an interrogation method that simulates drowning, Trump cited the extremist group’s atrocities against Christians and others and said he wanted to do “everything within the bounds of what you’re allowed to do legally.” Provisions of the draft order are not surprising based on Trump’s remarks on the campaign trail. Trump spoke emphatically about toughening the U.S. approach to fighting Islamic State militants, saying he would re-authorize waterboarding and a “hell of a lot worse.” However, many intelligence and military officials, human rights groups and both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have widely disputed Trump’s claim that harsh interrogation methods are effective in getting critical intelligence from detainees. The AP obtained the draft order from a U.S. official, who said it had been distributed by the White House for consultations before Trump signs it. The official wasn’t authorized to speak publicly on the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity. Trump spokesman Sean Spicer said the draft order was “not a White House document.” House Speaker Paul Ryan said it was his understanding that the draft order was written by someone who had earlier worked on the Trump transition team. “This is not something the Trump administration is planning on, working on,” Ryan said. Whatever changes to U.S. interrogation and detention policy that Trump eventually proposes will face political, practical and statutory hurdles. Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, who was beaten as a prisoner during the Vietnam War, will be Trump’s most formidable foe on Capitol Hill. “The president can sign whatever executive orders he likes. But the law is the law. We are not bringing back torture in the United States of America,” said McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, President George W. Bush authorized a covert program that led to dozens of detainees being held in secret locations overseas and to interrogation tactics that included sleep deprivation, slapping and slamming against walls, confinement in small boxes, prolonged isolation and even death threats. Three detainees faced waterboarding. Many developed psychological problems. Elisa Massimino, president of Human Rights First, said: “America paid a high price for its trip to the dark side. Our allies grew reluctant to cooperate with us and our enemies gained a potent recruitment tool that drew foreign fighters to the battlefield who killed American soldiers.” While some former government officials insist the program was effective, many others say the abuses weakened America’s moral standing in the world and hurt morale among intelligence officers before Obama shut it down. They say harsh interrogation techniques break down trust with a suspect and often prompt them to say anything to stop the harsh treatment. Retired General Charles C. Krulak, former commandant of the Marine Corps, said reviving torture is illegal, harms U.S. national security and betrays American ideals. Krulak was one of 176 retired high-ranking officers, including 33 four-star generals and admirals, who sent a letter to Trump in October urging him to denounce torture. Besides scrapping Obama’s order to close Guantanamo, the draft order would revoke other Obama directives that closed the CIA detention facilities, gave the International Red Cross timely access to all detainees and prohibited the U.S. from using any interrogation technique not listed in the Army Field Manual. Among the interrogation techniques banned by the manual were forced nakedness, hooding, beatings, sexual humiliation, threatening with dogs, mock executions, electric shocks, burning and waterboarding. Wanting to ensure that no future president could simply tear up that order, McCain teamed up with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., to turn it into law. Their anti-torture amendment, which was adopted in a 78-21 bipartisan vote and became law late last year, requires the Army to conduct a review of the field manual every three years in consultation with the attorney general, the FBI director and the director of national intelligence. The first review deadline is Dec. 19. Trump could rewrite the field manual to include harsher interrogation techniques, but whatever is added cannot “involve the use or threat of force,” according to the current law. That could bring the argument down to the definition of whether waterboarding or extreme stress positions, for example, constitute a “use or threat of force,” said Robert Chesney, professor at the University of Texas School of Law. Pompeo, Trump’s CIA director, said in his confirmation hearing that he would abide by all laws. But he also said he’d consult with CIA and other government experts on whether current restrictions on interrogation were an “impediment to
Government bites back: Civil servants troll Donald Trump, leak info
Across the government, an unprecedented digital insurrection is taking shape. President Donald Trump spent much of his campaign bashing the federal government, a system he described as awash in “waste fraud and abuse.” Now, the bureaucracy is biting back. In response to Trump’s hiring freeze for federal agencies and a communications blackout, some official social media accounts have tweeted out messages decidedly at odds with his agenda and leaks are flowing into newsrooms from across the federal government. Some agencies have been notably subversive in their messages, posting quotes and commentary that could be seen as trying to bait their new boss into a confrontation. The Defense Department used Twitter on Wednesday to publicize an article about an Iraqi refugee who became a U.S. Marine. “From refugee to #Marine. @USMC Cpl Ali J. Mohammed takes the fight to the doorstep of those who cast his family out,” the department wrote of his fight in Iraq. Perhaps not coincidentally, Trump’s aides said a few hours earlier that the president is working out the details of plans to restrict refugees coming into the country. Former Cabinet officials say the president would be wise not to underestimate the power of the civil service, which not only has the ability to slow the progress of new regulations but also the inside knowledge to sound alarms when needed. Roughly 4,000 of more than 2 million federal government jobs can be filled by presidential appointment, meaning that career employees far outnumber the high-profile advisers, agency directors, special assistants, ambassadors and Cabinet officials selected by Trump and his team. “Trump’s statements have poisoned the well to a degree,” said Christine Todd Whitman, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency under President George W. Bush. “If the career staff doesn’t believe you, if they don’t trust you, then things can get very cumbersome.” White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Wednesday that certain government agencies are taking action to address an “inappropriate” use of social media. But despite broad orders not to engage with the public or media without permission, it’s going to be tricky for the White House to plug all the possible leaks or to stop public outbursts from angry or concerned government workers. Even before he took office, employees at the Energy Department shared information about a Trump transition team request for the names of department staffers who’d worked on President Barack Obama‘s climate-change initiatives. The ensuing backlash prompted transition officials to disavow the questionnaire as a mistake. On Wednesday, The Associated Press obtained a draft of an executive order showing that Trump is considering a major review of America’s methods for interrogating terror suspects and the possible reopening of CIA-run “black site” prisons outside the United States. The same order would reverse the planned closure of the U.S. detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Trump, who has no government experience and led a family-owned company, may not fully understand what, exactly, he’s facing. His Cabinet, stocked largely with former business executives and members of Congress, has a more limited knowledge of the intricacies of the federal government, said Kathleen Sebelius, a secretary of Health and Human Services in the Obama administration. “A CEO of a private company doesn’t answer to shareholders or a board,” said Sebelius. “If you say jump, somebody jumps. That, thank God, is not the way government operates.” Further limiting Trump’s control of the federal bureaucracy has been the slow pace at which his own people are taking over. Trump has filled just 31 of the 690 key political positions requiring Senate confirmation, according to the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, which is tracking executive branch nominations. Only four of his appointees have been confirmed by Congress. “Right now, I’d say it’s advantage government because you’re up against people who don’t know how the game is played,” said Paul Light, a public service professor at New York University. One of the first bureaucracies to enter a standoff with Trump was the usually straight-laced Office of Government Ethics, which helps executive branch employees resolve conflicts of interest before taking their posts. Director Walter Shaub channeled Trump’s online persona in a series of nine bravado-inflected tweets calling for Trump to sell off his financial holdings, which the president has said he will not do. This week, Shaub was admonished by Democratic and Republican members Congress for his actions. Most of the resistance is coming from agencies with a focus on environmental protection and scientific research. Several federal Twitter accounts have begun posting social media messages, some of them simply facts about climate change. Trump has notably expressed skepticism about climate science. Tuesday tweets by South Dakota’s Badlands National Park – one read, “Today, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is higher than at any time in the last 650,000 years” – were deleted soon after they were posted; the National Park Service said the Badlands account had been compromised by a former employee. The rebellion of the nation’s parks went viral on Inauguration Day, when the official Twitter account of the National Park Service reposted side-by-side photographs of the massive crowd assembled for Obama’s swearing-in ceremony and the less dense one for Trump’s. The account later deleted the tweet and apologized. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Restaurants: The next front for the immigration debate?
The national debate over immigration policy could be coming to a diner near you. From down-home delis to upscale bistros, dozens of restaurants nationwide are seeking “sanctuary” status, a designation owners hope will help protect employees in an immigrant-heavy industry and tone down fiery rhetoric sparked by the presidential campaign. First inspired by churches, the label is something cities and other public entities have sought to offer local protections to immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, whether it’s barring police from asking citizens about immigration status or refusing to cooperate with federal agents. Roughly 80 restaurants are participating, in locations including New York, Minneapolis, Detroit, Boston, Oakland, California, and Ann Arbor, Michigan. The restaurants agree to anti-discrimination policies, put up signs on windows that pronounce their sanctuary status and receive know-your-rights training, such as webinars on how to ask federal immigration agents for proper paperwork if there’s an attempted raid. Some will also offer a text line for customers or employees to report any incidents of harassment. At Detroit’s Russell Street Deli, customers walking in the front door of the racially diverse restaurant see a sign that reads: “SANCTUARY RESTAURANT, a place at the table for everyone.” “I have this one little place where I get to decide how people treat each other,” said owner Ben Hall, who is biracial and was moved to sign up after a few customers’ racially tinged comments. “If someone has the need to insult someone … then they don’t get to participate. I’ve told them, ‘There’s another diner next door.’” The movement is loosely defined and largely symbolic. Restaurants are private businesses subject to workplace law and regulations, and a sanctuary designation will do nothing to prevent federal agents from arresting any workers in the country illegally. But organizers of the sanctuary restaurants movement say it’s a response to the uncertainty surrounding how President Donald Trump will carry out campaign pledges to step up deportations and a build a wall along the Mexican border, among other things. Trump signed executive orders Wednesday aimed at jumpstarting construction of the wall and punishing cities that declare themselves sanctuaries for immigrants. Organizers of the movement say the restaurant industry is more vulnerable than others, given its heavy reliance on immigrant labor. Not all restaurant industry groups agree with the tactic. The National Restaurant Association, which represents roughly 500,000 businesses, is instead pushing for an immigration overhaul, including an updated verification system that confirms employees’ eligibility to work in the country legally. Association Senior Vice President Steve Danon said the organization “is looking forward to working with the Trump administration” on ways to make verification “easier and more cost-efficient.” Roughly 12 million workers are in the restaurant industry and immigrants make up the majority, including up to 70 percent in big cities such as New York and Chicago. An estimated 1.3 million in the industry are immigrants living in the country without legal permission, according to Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, which launched the campaign and works to improve industry conditions. They pitched the program with an economic argument, saying restaurants need a “robust pool of workers.” In a recent letter, they appealed to Trump as a businessman and urged him to “speak out to alleviate the fear of deportation and other harassment.” “This is not about a restaurant harboring people in a closet. This is about creating a safe space,” said Saru Jayaraman, a co-founder of ROC United. “Employers have a responsibility to protect their workers.” In Chicago, the general manager at the rustic French restaurant Bistro Campagne said he applied to become a sanctuary restaurant because he wanted his employees to feel supported. Half the employees at his neighborhood bistro are immigrants, including from Romania, Ecuador and Mexico. “Restaurants are part of embracing other cultures,” said Todd Feinberg. “We are all an immigrant culture. The idea that we might not accept that disturbs me a bit.” At Brightwok Kitchen, an Asian inspired build-a-bowl restaurant in downtown Chicago, owner Jeremy Klaben said he sought sanctuary status because he wants employees and customers to feel included. The restaurant draws a busy lunchtime crowd of college students, corporate employees and tourists. Employee Iris Quijano, 22, said it’s an extension of how she and colleagues feel. The Chicago native who has family in Mexico was drawn to the restaurant after she graduated from college. “In terms of all the negativity and the hatred we have in social media and in general … it’ll be good to be known as a sanctuary restaurant,” she said. “All our co-workers stand for the same things. It’s really important for others to feel the same vibes in the restaurant and have a good meal without having to worry about anything negative.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
House Science chairman: Get news from Donald Trump, not media
The Republican chairman of the House Science panel is encouraging Americans to get their news from President Donald Trump and not the news media. Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas said if Trump were a Democrat, the media would be saying he has tremendous energy, how he “is courageous, even fearless,” and how he is a great father, among many other positive attributes. But Smith said the “national, liberal media” won’t print or air such attributes. The congressman said Monday night during a speech on the House floor: “Better to get your news directly from the president. In fact, it might be the only way to get the unvarnished truth.” Trump has repeatedly made false claims about fraudulent balloting costing him the popular vote and has disputed the turnout for his inauguration. Kellyanne Conway, an aide to Trump, said this weekend that the White House was offering “alternative facts” to the ones reported by the media. The House Science panel that Smith chairs has jurisdiction over agencies that have a major focus on research and development, such as NASA and the Department of Energy. In his role as chairman, he has voiced skepticism about the extent of climate change and the role of human behavior, saying that the Obama administration engaged in alarmism and exaggeration to promote an extreme climate agenda. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
