Trump administration to end protected status for Haiti - CNN Politics

Trump administration to end protected status for Haiti

Sophie Tatum

By Sophie Tatum

November 21, 2017

(CNN)The Trump administration has announced it will end the Temporary Protected Status designation for Haiti by July 2019, potentially forcing tens of thousands of Haitian immigrants to either leave the US or live in the shadows.

TPS is an immigration status allowed by law for certain countries experiencing dire conditions, such as a natural disaster, epidemic or war. It protects individuals from deportation and authorizes them to work in the US.

In May, former Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, who now serves as White House chief of staff, extended the protection from deportation for Haitians for an additional six months. When Kelly temporarily extended the status for Haiti, which had received the designation after an earthquake devastated the island in 2010, he warned the nearly 58,700 recipients living in America to prepare their affairs for going back to Haiti or to find another way to apply to stay in the United States.

"Based on all available information, including recommendations received as part of an inter-agency consultation process, Acting Secretary Duke determined that those extraordinary but temporary conditions caused by the 2010 earthquake no longer exist," a statement from the Department of Homeland Security said. "Thus, under the applicable statute, the current TPS designation must be terminated."

According to DHS, the department can designate a country for Temporary Protected Status when it has been affected by "conditions in the country that temporarily prevent the country's nationals from returning safely, or in certain circumstances, where the country is unable to handle the return of its nationals adequately."

This can include situations like civil wars or natural disasters. Individuals who are already in the United States from the designated countries are eligible and are then protected from deportation.

When their protected status expires, individuals living in the US under those protections will revert to the status they would have had otherwise or the status they applied for in the interim, meaning thousands could become undocumented overnight if they do not leave or qualify for residency another way.

According to Monday's announcement by DHS, "the termination of TPS for Haiti will be delayed 18 months," in order to ensure a smooth transition.

Earlier this month, DHS announced that acting Secretary Elaine Duke had decided to end the Temporary Protected Status for Nicaragua but was unable to come to a decision on Honduras.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez blasted the Haiti move on Twitter, saying that "Donald Trump's cruelty knows no bounds."

"As the proud son of two immigrants who fled an oppressive regime, I'm disgusted at the President's heartlessness," Perez said in a statement shared by the DNC. "With this decision, Trump is tearing families apart and turning his back on the values that have made our country great."

CNN's Tal Kopan contributed to this report.

Trump declares North Korea 'sponsor of terror' - BBC News

Trump declares North Korea 'sponsor of terror'

21/11/2017

Trump: "N Korea supported acts of international terrorism"

President Trump has announced that the US is re-designating North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism, nine years after it was removed from the list.

In a cabinet meeting, he said the move would trigger "very large" additional sanctions to be announced on Tuesday.

But Secretary of State Rex Tillerson later admitted that "the practical effects may be limited".

Mr Trump blamed the country's nuclear programme, and support for what he called international acts of terrorism.

While announcing the decision at the White House, the US president said it "should have happened a long time ago".

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In September, the US proposed a range of United Nations sanctions against North Korea, including an oil ban and a freeze on leader Kim Jong-un's assets.

It followed the North's sixth nuclear test and repeated missile launches.

North Korea joins Iran, Sudan and Syria on a list of countries that are deemed to have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.

The country has been on the list before but was removed in 2008 by the administration of George W Bush as part of negotiations on the North's nuclear programme.

The campaign to reinstate it intensified after the American college student Otto Warmbier died shortly after he was released from North Korean custody.

Move makes talks even less likely

By Barbara Plett Usher, State Department correspondent, BBC News

Secretary Tillerson hasn't given up on a negotiated solution to the stand-off with North Korea.

He told journalists he still hoped for diplomacy. But the decision to put Pyongyang back on the list of state sponsors of terrorism will almost certainly set back the possibility of any opening for talks, at least in the short term.

The chances of that happening were slim anyway. And it might prompt a backlash from North Korea, perhaps by way of another missile test.

The Americans have had some success in getting other countries to tighten the noose on Pyongyang, including from China.

Mr Tillerson's goal remains to eventually force the regime to back down and agree to negotiations aimed at giving up its nuclear weapons programme, something Pyongyang has refused to do.

China on the other hand, is pushing for talks now, alongside the pressure. It won't be happy about anything that makes that less likely

Speaking to reporters at a White House press briefing, Mr Tillerson, the top US diplomat, said the designation was meant to hold North Korea accountable for recent actions it has taken "including assassinations outside of their country" and "using banned chemical weapons".

He admitted that given existing sanctions it was "very symbolic" but also said new measures could "disrupt and dissuade some third parties from undertaking certain activities with North Korea".

"The practical effects may be limited but hopefully we're closing off a few loopholes with this," he said.

Will we ever know what happened to Otto Warmbier?

Warmbier coroner queries torture claim

Mr Kim continues to pursue nuclear weapons and missile programmes in defiance of UN Security Council sanctions.

Media captionNuclear North Korea: What do we know?

He has made no secret of Pyongyang's plans to develop a missile capable of reaching the US mainland and has claimed to have developed a hydrogen bomb.

Last month, US Defence Secretary James Mattis said that the threat of nuclear attack from North Korea was increasing.

Monday's announcement comes after the president returned from an extensive tour of Asia last week.

Trump's Oklahoma campaign chair to plead guilt to child sex trafficking - NBC News

Trump's Oklahoma campaign chair to plead guilt to child sex trafficking by John Paul Brammer / Nov.21.2017

Ralph Shortey, a former Oklahoma state senator who last year served as Donald Trump's campaign chair in the state, was meticulous about keeping up his reputation as a pious man, according to several fellow Oklahomans. That reputation, however, has all but disappeared. According to Shortey's attorney, the former Republican lawmaker will plead guilty to one count of child sex trafficking on Nov. 30.

Ralph Shortey is facing felony child prostitution charges after police say he solicited sex from a 17-year-old boy. Cleveland County Sheriff's Office Via AP

Shortey, a 35-year-old married father of three, resigned from the state Legislature in March after being charged with several felonies, including engaging in child prostitution, after police found him in a hotel room with a 17-year-old male. Shortey's attorney, Ed Blau, confirmed that his client will plead guilty to a charge of child sex trafficking in exchange for U.S. prosecutors' dropping three child pornography charges against him.

"Mr. Shortey feels this is a necessary step in putting this painful and humiliating ordeal behind him, for both himself, his family and for the state of Oklahoma," Blau told local news site NewsOK on Friday.

Blau did not respond to NBC News' requests for comment.

While the age of consent in Oklahoma is 16, child prostitution statutes apply to anyone under 18. Shortey faces a minimum of 10 years in prison on the child sex trafficking charge.

According to court documents, Shortey and the unnamed teen, referred to as John Doe, connected on Craigslist in or around February 2016. From then until March, the documents state, Shortey "obtained at least one image of John Doe's penis." Then, on or around March 8, the teen messaged Shortey saying, I need money for spring break." The then-lawmaker asked if the teen would be interested in "sexual stuff."

Following a tip from John Doe's father, police went looking for the teen at a Super 8 Motel in Moore, Oklahoma, on March 9, at a room rented with Shortey's driver's license and credit card. When officers knocked, Shortey told them he and the teen were getting dressed.

"When Shortey opened the door, Doe left the room with his backpack, which contained a bottle of lotion," the police report stated. "Inside the room, Moore Police offers found Shortey's backpack. Shortey's backpack contained an open box of condoms and a laptop computer."

The report also stated Shortey was in possession of child pornography that "depicts a man engaging in sexually explicit conduct with a prepubescent girl."

For LGBTQ advocates in the heartland, Shortey's fall from grace exposed the "family values" politician as a hypocrite. Troy Stevenson, executive director of the LGBTQ organization Freedom Oklahoma, said he knew Shortey as a person who cared a great deal about maintaining his image as a good Christian lawmaker.

Stevenson described one encounter with Shortey ahead of a vote on an anti-transgender "bathroom bill" in which the lawmaker allegedly told Stevenson that while he couldn't vote against the measure because it would inflame his Christian base, he would abstain.

"Then, not 12 hours later, he sits in the committee and voted in the bill," Stevenson lamented.

This was not the first time Shortey voted against the state's LGBTQ community because of his Christian beliefs. He routinely voted with his Republican colleagues on bills targeting gay and transgender people, including a measure passed earlier this year that would allow business owners to discriminate against gay people.

Shortey is not the only social conservative who has taken a recent fall from grace either. Wesley Goodman, a Republican and first-term state representative in Ohio, resigned on Nov. 14 because of "inappropriate behavior." Several local news outlets, including The Cleveland Plain Dealer and The Columbus Dispatch, reported Goodman — a vocal proponent of "natural marriage" — was caught engaging in sexual activity with a male visitor in his legislative office. The New York Times and The Washington Post also reported on Goodman's alleged inappropriate behavior with young men.

"I've seen it in both parties, but there are these ultra right-wing politicians trying to prove their piety and running on issues of moral superiority while having behind-the-scenes lives," Stevenson said. "They don't think anyone is going to catch them."

Stevenson said he does not believe Shortey's sexual orientation is worth delving into.

"We've made it very clear that this isn’t about him being gay. It’s about him being a child predator and a sex trafficker and a hypocrite," Stevenson said. "He was also caught with child pornography of both males and females of a much younger age. He's an equal opportunity predator."

What is the extent of China's influence in Zimbabwe? - BBC News

What is the extent of China's influence in Zimbabwe?

By Dr Alex Vines

Chatham House

20 November 2017

General Chiwenga was welcomed to China by military leaders

A trip to Beijing by Zimbabwe's military chief was a "normal military exchange", China's foreign ministry said after the army seized power in Harare. How deep are relations between China and Zimbabwe really?

The news that General Constantino Chiwenga had visited China only a few days before the military takeover in Zimbabwe was a coincidence that did not go unnoticed.

There was also speculation after China said it was closely watching developments, but stopped short of condemning President Mugabe's apparent removal from power.

China is Zimbabwe's fourth largest trading partner and its largest source of investment - with stakes worth many billions of pounds in everything from agriculture to construction.

Zimbabwe is the dependent partner - with China providing the largest market for its exports and much needed support to its fragile economy.

China's relations with Zimbabwe are deep, starting during the Rhodesian Bush War.

Robert Mugabe failed in 1979 to get Soviet backing, so turned to China, which provided his guerrilla fighters with weapons and training.

Both countries formally established diplomatic relations at Zimbabwean independence in 1980 and Robert Mugabe visited Beijing as prime minister the following year.

He has been a regular visitor since.

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and Chinese President Xi JinpingImage copyrightGETTY IMAGES

Image caption

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has met Chinese leaders a number of times

For years, Zimbabwe's officials have tried to play off China against the West, advocating the country's "Look East" strategy, particularly following the introduction of EU sanctions in 2002.

Indeed, a decade ago, Mr Mugabe told a packed rally at the Chinese-built national sports stadium in Harare: 'We have turned east, where the sun rises, and given our back to the west, where the sun sets."

China's military engagement also deepened during Zimbabwe's "Look East" era.

Significant purchases were made, including Hongdu JL-8 jet aircraft, JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft, vehicles, radar and weapons.

However, following a controversy about a shipment of arms in 2008, Beijing decided to list Zimbabwe for "limited level" military trading.

Despite Zimbabwe's efforts, the "Look East" strategy did not bring the investment flood hoped for and a decade later, in August 2015, Mr Mugabe openly asked for Western re-engagement in his "state of the nation" address.

Five things you should know about Zimbabwe

Robert Mugabe - hero or villain?

How can you tell a coup is happening?

Now, the reality is that increasingly Chinese and Western interests - particularly those of the UK - have become aligned.

Not far from each other in the outer suburbs of Harare, two of the biggest embassies in Zimbabwe are the British and the Chinese.

As other embassies scaled down or closed, Beijing's expanded.

Whereas British diplomats were well connected with business, civil society and opposition figures, the Chinese invested in "technical support" of the party of government Zanu-PF, including state security and the presidency.

When it came to Zanu-PF politics and factionalism, Chinese diplomats were well connected and insightful and, like their Western colleagues, concerned about stability, a better investment climate and adherence to the rule of law.

President Xi Jinping visited Zimbabwe in 2015 and President Mugabe visited Beijing in January 2017.

In public, the Chinese leader said his country is willing to encourage capable companies to invest in Zimbabwe.

But in private, the message was that there would be no more loans until Zimbabwe stabilised its economy.

Military spokesman speaking on ZBC, 15 November 2017

Image caption

Maj Gen Sibusiso Moyo said the military was not staging a coup

In 2016 trade between the two countries amounted to $1.1bn (£0.8bn), with China the biggest buyer of Zimbabwean tobacco and also importing cotton and various minerals.

In return Zimbabwe imported electronics, clothing and other finished products.

Chinese state construction firms have also been active, building infrastructure including Zimbabwe's $100m (£75m) National Defence College.

And last year China agreed to finance a new 650-seat parliament in Harare.

But Chinese diplomats and many businesses are waiting for better days in Zimbabwe.

Some companies have found the investment climate challenging - being burned on diamonds, for example - and have looked for alternative markets.

A couple of weeks ago I was in China, attending a meeting on China-Africa relations and Zimbabwe was not mentioned once.

Unlike Ethiopia, Sudan, or Angola that are strategic partners, or big markets like Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa, Zimbabwe is far from being Beijing's new priority.

So, Beijing's interest is in a better investment climate in Zimbabwe.

A clear transitional arrangement resulting in elections for a legitimate government in Harare is as much in Beijing's interest as London's.

The "Look East" and the "Re-engagement with the West" strategies have not brought about the confidence and investment that Zimbabwe needs.

What Zimbabwe requires is stable and accountable government - then investors from Asia, America and Europe will seriously consider that Zimbabwe has an investment future.

This was the message that Mr Mugabe received in Beijing in January.

And the one which Zimbabwe's military chief also was given last week.

About this piece

This analysis piece was commissioned by the BBC from an expert working for an outside organisation.

Dr Alex Vines OBE is Head of Africa Programme, Chatham House, and a Senior Lecturer at Coventry University.

Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, describes itself as an independent policy institute helping to build a sustainably secure, prosperous and just world.

Edited by Duncan Walker

Representative John Conyers Settled Sexual Harassment Complaint, Using Taxpayer Money - Intelligencer ( New York Magazine )

Representative John Conyers Settled Sexual Harassment Complaint, Using Taxpayer Money: Report

By

Margaret Hartmann

Many people have been speaking out about sexual harassment in D.C. politics in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal. The Senate is contending with misconduct allegations against Al Franken, and report that Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore assaulted girls as young as 14. In recent weeks eight women have accused former President George H.W. Bush of groping them, and many are reconsidering the sexual misconduct allegations against President Donald Trump and former President Bill Clinton.

While we’ve heard new tales of rampant sexual misconduct in the House, most of those claims were anonymous, and it seemed the lower chamber might be spared from a high-profile harassment scandal. That changed on Monday night, when BuzzFeed reported that Democratic Representative John Conyers, the longest-serving member of Congress, settled a 2015 complaint from a former staffer who said she was fired after refusing his sexual advances. To make matters worse, the payout was the result of a secretive bureaucratic process Congress uses to handle harassment claims, and the money came out of Conyers’ taxpayer-funded office budget.

In 2014, the woman filed a complaint with Congress’s Office of Compliance. the legislature does not have a human resources department, and instead the Office of Compliance uses a lengthy procedure to address alleged violations of various employment rules. The Washington Post reports that the office has paid more than $17 million for 264 settlements and awards to federal employees since 1997.

In her complaint, the former Conyers staffer accused him of repeatedly asking her for sexual favors, and ultimately firing her because she would not “succumb to [his] sexual advances.” Per BuzzFeed:

On one occasion, she alleges that Conyers asked her to work out of his room for the evening, but when she arrived the congressman started talking about his sexual desires. She alleged he then told her she needed to “touch it,” in reference to his penis, or find him a woman who would meet his sexual demands.

She alleged Conyers made her work nights, evenings, and holidays to keep him company.

In another incident, the former employee alleged the congressman insisted she stay in his room while they traveled together for a fundraising event. When she told him that she would not stay with him, she alleged he told her to “just cuddle up with me and caress me before you go.”

“Rep. Conyers strongly postulated that the performing of personal service or favors would be looked upon favorably and lead to salary increases or promotions,” the former employee said in the documents.

The complaint includes four signed affidavits from other former Conyers staff members who said this was a no isolated incident. One former staffer reported witnessing a “variety of inappropriate sexual advances” from Conyers, directed toward herself and other female staff members. Another former staffer said, “I was asked on multiple occasions to pick up women and bring them to Mr. Conyers apartments, hotel rooms, etc.”

A male employee said he saw Conyers rubbing the complainant’s legs and other body parts “in what appeared to be a sexual manner,” and saw him doing the same with other women. The employee said he warned Conyers to be “more careful” and he said he would “work on” his behavior. Then the employee set up a December 2011 to discuss “mistreatment of staff and his misuse of federal resources.” The affidavit says Conyers agreed to make improvements, “as long as I worked directly with him and stopped writing memos and emails about concerns.”

The documents were given to BuzzFeed by the alt-right’s Mike Cernovich, who’s known to peddle conspiracy theories like Pizzagate. He said if he did the reporting himself, Democrats and congressional leaders would “try to discredit the story by attacking the messenger.” While this raises questions about why someone opted to leak the documents to Cernovich, BuzzFeed said it confirmed the authenticity of the documents with four people involved in the case, including the woman who filed the complaint.

The accuser, who wants to remain anonymous because she fears retribution, told BuzzFeed that the Office of Compliance’s process left her feeling like she had no option but to take the settlement and remain silent. “I was basically blackballed. There was nowhere I could go,” she said.

The office gives employees 180 days to report sexual harassment. Early on in the process – which involves mandatory mediation and the option to take the claim to federal district court – those involved are forced to sign a confidentiality agreement.

In this case the complainant was offered a $27,111.75 settlement – in which Conyers did not admit guilt – in exchange for remaining silent. While such payments usually come out of a special U.S. Treasury fund, this settlement involved Conyers’ office rehiring the woman as a “temporary employee,” though she would not come into the office or do any work. After three months, once the woman had received $27,111.15 in payments from the congressman’s office budget, she was removed from the payroll.

Representative Jackie Speier, a California Democrat, has been pushing to reform the process for reporting sexual harassment in Congress for years. She and Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand recently introduced bipartisan legislation that would add more transparency and resources for victims. It would require the naming of lawmakers who enter into a settlement, and set up a victims counsel to guide accusers through the process (currently the office of the accused can use the House’s counsel for free, but accusers have to pay for their own legal representation).

Conyers’ office has yet to respond to requests for comment, nor have other lawmakers have weighed in on the report, which broke late on Monday night. The one exception was House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, who told BuzzFeed she wasn’t aware of the settlement.

“The current process includes the signing of non-disclosure agreements by the parties involved. Congresswoman Jackie Speier has introduced legislation that will provide much-needed transparency on these agreements and make other critical reforms,” Pelosi said. “I strongly support her efforts.”

News of the Conyers settlement raises more uncomfortable questions for Democrats. Franken’s political future seemed even more in doubt on Monday after a second woman accused him of groping her. Conyers has been the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee for a decade, he’s one of the founding members of the Congressional Black Caucus, and he introduced the bill to create a federal holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. One former Conyers staffer told BuzzFeed that people were afraid to speak up due to his reputation in Congress. “Your story won’t do shit to him,” they said. “He’s untouchable.”

In this #MeToo moment, with alleged abusers from various professions facing investigations and losing positions of power, it feels like things might be different. But whether the politicians recently accused of sexual misconduct – from Trump to Moore to Franken – actually face serious consequences remains to be seen. As FiveThirtyEight’s Nate Silver notes, “Politics is a male-dominated institution, and a conservative institution, and conservative, male-dominated institutions have pretty much no interest in flipping over the sexual harassment rock and seeing what comes crawling out from underneath it.”

The claims against Conyers may be appalling to outsiders, but it appears he followed the procedures Congress established for addressing such matters. Why would fellow lawmakers call him out, particularly when many of them benefitted from the same process?