“Let us be clear: An attack on the Capitol Building is an attack on every American. We plan to conduct oversight and hold bipartisan hearings on these horrific events, and work together to make the necessary reforms to ensure this never happens again," leaders of the two committees said in a joint statement. … [Read more...] about Agency IGs to probe breakdown in response to Capitol riots
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Bill Burns knows Russia inside out — and that will be critical to Biden
But it is Burns’s sophisticated understanding of Russia that should be of particular value to the Biden administration — especially in light of Russia’s recent SolarWinds cyber attack, its interference in the U.S. 2016 presidential election, its annexation of Crimea and intervention in eastern Ukraine, its attempted murder of Sergey Skripal, and its alliance with Syria’s brutal dictator, Bashar al-Assad, as well as Iran. … [Read more...] about Bill Burns knows Russia inside out — and that will be critical to Biden
Biden taps Janet McCabe to serve as deputy at EPA
If confirmed, McCabe would be the deputy to Michael ReganMichael ReganEPA preps for transition of power with unusual change to succession orders Biden needs to make good on environmental justice promises Biden builds team to get aggressive on regs MORE, another EPA employee who served under the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. … [Read more...] about Biden taps Janet McCabe to serve as deputy at EPA
ADRIAN THRILLS: A jazzy gem from Elvis, king of the globetrotters
The Cambridgeshire singer, 28, came out last year as non-binary; and a capella opening track Young makes broader points about the importance of making your own choices: 'If you want to judge me, then go and load the gun. I've done nothing wrong, I'm young' … [Read more...] about ADRIAN THRILLS: A jazzy gem from Elvis, king of the globetrotters
Security experts weigh in on how to prevent more right-wing violence on Inauguration Day
Security officials are likely still working to ensure the safety of digital technology around the inauguration, says Theresa Payton, CEO of cybersecurity company Fortalice Solutions, in the wake of both the Capitol attack and the recent widespread cybersecurity breach using SolarWinds systems. That not only includes communications technology but also systems involved in the transition between the Trump and Biden administrations. Transitions are a hectic time for tech workers in the best of circumstances, and officials will likely need to hurry data and physical equipment to the National Archives for permanent storage and set up workstations for new arrivals, says Payton, who served as White House CIO under President George W. Bush. … [Read more...] about Security experts weigh in on how to prevent more right-wing violence on Inauguration Day
Biden needs to fill the leadership gaps on Day One
The easiest would be recess appointments, naming Cabinet and sub-Cabinet people to key positions, which they could hold for at least a year. Congress doesn’t like that approach — so much so that both parties have conspired since 2007 to avoid being out of session for more than three days in order to prevent Presidents Bush, Obama and Trump from making recess appointments. A Supreme Court decision in 2014 held that the recess had to be at least 10 days. … [Read more...] about Biden needs to fill the leadership gaps on Day One
The Capitol riot is spurring new interest in gun-detection AI
“Unfortunately our business does well when bad things happen,” says ZeroEyes CEO Mike Lahiff. Lahiff, an ex-Navy SEAL, says he started the business after the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas School in Parkland, Florida on February 14, 2018. “I went into my kids’ school and I saw all these cameras around and asked what they were doing with them,” he says. A school official told him there were used mainly to identify students who’d stole something from a locker or been in a fight. “I thought, why not use those cameras to detect guns?” Lahiff explains. … [Read more...] about The Capitol riot is spurring new interest in gun-detection AI
The damning ‘MLK/FBI’ doc shows how poorly Martin Luther King Jr. was treated in his time
It’s difficult to watch the film without thinking of how we currently take in news about the civil rights uprisings of today. Imagine how much more successful Hoover would have been at getting out his message if Fox News and Twitter had existed at the time! Throughout the Black Lives Matter protests of last summer, in the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing at the hands of police, the president and his allies worked hard to associate BLM with “anarchists” and “thugs,” even as Vice President Mike Pence held up Martin Luther King Jr. as a counter-example of the proper way to protest. … [Read more...] about The damning ‘MLK/FBI’ doc shows how poorly Martin Luther King Jr. was treated in his time
IRS stimulus checks: Painfully slow mailed-out payments frustrate many Americans
According to FAQ page on the IRS website, recipients may have to wait three to four weeks to receive their payments in the mail, but it’s unclear why payments that are already in circulation would take that long. First-class mail via the United States Postal Service—which is how these payments are being sent—typically only takes a few days, although the post office makes no guarantees about delivery timelines and bottlenecks in the distribution process often cause delays. … [Read more...] about IRS stimulus checks: Painfully slow mailed-out payments frustrate many Americans
China unveils ‘super bullet maglev train’ that can travel at 385mph (the equivalent of London to Paris in 47 minutes)
At present, the country's high-speed passenger trains operate at a maximum speed of 350 kilometres (217 miles) per hour. Residents can travel between Beijing and Shanghai, the nation's political and financial centres, in 4.5 hours. … [Read more...] about China unveils ‘super bullet maglev train’ that can travel at 385mph (the equivalent of London to Paris in 47 minutes)
