U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson Commander Ron LaBrec describes the events of Friday’s Potomac River training drill that had many in Washington, D.C. fearful of an attack on the anniversary of September 11th. (0:20)
By Julianne LaJeunesse, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service
Reports of fired shots on the Potomac River were enough to scare civilians and news agencies in Washington, D.C. on the eighth anniversary of September 11, 2009.
Reports of the shots came just before 10 am Friday morning, and by noon, the U.S. Coast Guard released a statement explaining that the incident was actually a training exercise that did not consist of fired shots.
In the statement, U.S. Coast Guard Vice Admiral John Currier said that while the agency was sensitive to the anniversary of September 11, 2001, an apology for planned training exercises was unnecessary.
“I am not issuing an apology because, althought it is unfortunate that it escalated to this level, what you’re seeing here is the result of a normal training exercise,” Currier said.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said today that when it comes to keeping the nation safe, he tends not to question law enforcement- even on September 11th.
By Jonathan Bronstein, Talk Radio News Service
Shortly after the September 11 terrorist attacks, the U.S. government allowed law enforcement officials to arrest people of “high interest” according to race, religion, or national origin, according to Javaid Iqbal, a Pakistani citizen who was placed in a maximum-security prison in early 2002.
Iqbal claimed that the government’s decision violated his civil rights and he sued former U.S. Attorney General John Aschcroft and Robert Mueller, then-Director of the FBI.
Today, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision written by Justice Kennedy, ruled against Iqbal.
Kennedy wrote that Iqbal’s initial filings did not provide enough information to automatically find Ashcroft and Mueller responsible for the abuses he suffered while being held.
The case will now return to the lower courts, where Iqbal may have a chance to substantiate his claim that he was subjected to harsh conditions on account of his religion and nationality, and that Ashcroft and Mueller were the “principle architects” of this plan.
Four Justices dissented, and in an opinion written by Justice Souter agreed with the lower courts’ findings that Ashcroft and Mueller did violate his civil rights and could therefore be held responsible.
Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio.) believes that America is at a high national security risk. Voinovich cited that due to high energy costs and relationships with foreign governments America is reliant on countries that wish the Unted States harm. In addition, Voinovich commented that according to the Stanford University Modeling Forum the odds of a foreign oil disruption happening over the next ten years are slightly higher than 80 percent. If global production were reduced by more than 2.1 percent that would have a serious effect on oil prices and our economy. This would be more so than Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. (0:49)
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice talks about the fight against terrorism. She claims that “it is an unfair fight,” and that though Americans may feel safer since the September 11 attacks, they are not yet safe and need to work to stay safer. (1:28)
During a press conference with the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Ike Skelton (D-MO) Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, says that the military priorities of the United States need to be reversed. (0:54)
