GOVERNMENT AGENCIES EXPANDING WATERWAY REVITALIZATION IN WESTERN LAKE ERIE BASIN

FROM: U.S. EVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Federal Agencies Expand Urban Waterway Revitalization Efforts in Western Lake Erie Basin

CHICAGO (May 14, 2013) – Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, announced that the Western Lake Erie Basin is one of 11 new locations selected for revitalization efforts by the Urban Waters Federal Partnership. First launched in 2011, the Urban Waters Federal Partnership works to reconnect urban residents with their waterways and open spaces.

EPA Region 5 Administrator/Great Lakes National Program Manager Susan Hedman was joined by Rich Sims, the Northeast Regional Conservationist for the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Lt. Col. Owen J. Beaudoin, Commander of the Buffalo District for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, at a kick-off event today at Middlegrounds Metropark in Toledo, Ohio. U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, Toledo Mayor Michael P. Bell and Tim Schetter, Director of Natural Resources for Toledo-area Metroparks joined them for the announcement.

"Restoring waterways in the Toledo area will improve public health, provide recreational opportunities and boost the local economy," said Hedman. "EPA, NRCS and the Corps will work with local partners to transform degraded waterways into assets for Toledo residents and to improve water quality in the Western Lake Erie basin."

"Including Toledo in the Urban Waters Federal Partnership program is a big step forward for us," said Congresswoman Kaptur. "We worked hard to get our region included in this initiative because a healthy Lake Erie is vitally important to a healthy local economy."

With the addition of 11 new locations across the country, the work of the partnership is now in 18 communities. A progress report released last week details the successes and plans for future actions as well as actions taken by each of the 13 federal partners. Through the partnership, agencies are working to revitalize urban waterways and communities that surround them, transforming overlooked assets and driving urban revival. Projects will further the goals of the partnership and address a wide range of issues such as improving water quality, restoring ecosystems and enhancing public access to urban waters.

"The Natural Resources Conservation Service has a long history of working through partnerships to create sustainable environmental benefits, like improved water quality," said Sims. "In 2006, NRCS and many of the partners here today established the Western Lake Erie Basin Watershed Partnership. Projects like the Toledo Rain Garden Initiative began with support from NRCS and the WLEB Partnership. Over 50 rain gardens planted around Toledo retained 200,000 gallons of untreated rainwater to date. The Urban Waters Partnership allows us to expand our efforts in the Western Lake Erie Basin."

"The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Buffalo District looks forward to collaborating with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service on the Urban Waters Partnership," said Lt. Col. Beaudoin. "The partnership will allow USACE to identify synergies between Federal, state and local agencies through our existing authorities, and engage communities on the importance of urban water resources management."
Americans use urban waterways as sources of drinking water and for a variety of activities including boating, fishing and swimming. Revitalizing these urban waterways will reconnect citizens to open spaces and have a positive economic impact on local businesses, tourism and property values, as well as spur private investment and job creation in communities.

Launched in 2011, the Urban Waters Federal Partnership closely aligns with and advances the work of other White House efforts such as the Partnership for Sustainable Communities by revitalizing communities, creating jobs and improving the quality of life in cities and towns. The partnership also supports President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors Initiative aimed at making the federal government a better partner with communities that are working to provide safe, healthy and accessible outdoor places.

The participating agencies are:

- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- U.S. Department of Energy
- U.S. Department of Education
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- U.S. Economic Development Administration
- U.S. Forest Service
- U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
- U.S. Department of Interior
- U.S. Department of Transportation
- Corporation for National and Community Service
- National Center for Environmental Health/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

CDC REPORTS MOST ADULTS SAY THEY HAVE SMOKE-FREE RULES IN HOME

FROM: CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Large majority of adults have smoke-free rules in homes, vehicles

Millions of non-smokers still exposed to secondhand smoke

Four out of five U.S. adults report having voluntary smoke-free rules in their homes and three out of four report having voluntary smoke-free rules in their vehicles, according to a study published in the journal Preventing Chronic Disease, a publication of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The National Adult Tobacco Survey respondents were classified as having smoke-free rules if they never allow smoking inside their homes or vehicles. The study is the first to present estimates of smoke-free rules and secondhand smoke exposure in vehicles among U.S. adults.

Despite the high prevalence of voluntary smoke-free rules in homes and vehicles, the study found that almost 11 million non-smoking adults continue to be exposed to secondhand smoke in their home, and almost 17 million non-smoking adults continue to be exposed to secondhand smoke in a vehicle. The study also contains state-by-state data showing that the highest prevalence of smoke-free rules in homes and vehicles occurred in many states with comprehensive smoke-free laws and longstanding tobacco control programs.

"We have made tremendous progress in the last 15 years protecting people in public spaces from secondhand smoke," said Tim McAfee, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Office on Smoking and Health at CDC. "The good news is that people are applying the same protection in their homes and vehicles. However, millions of non-smokers, many of whom are children, remain exposed to secondhand smoke in these environments."

Additional study findings include:
Eighty-one percent of U.S. adults report having smoke-free rules in their homes and 74 percent have smoke-free rules in their vehicles
Eighty-nine percent of non-smokers report having smoke-free home rules, while only 48 percent of smokers have them.
Eighty-five percent of non-smokers report having smoke-free vehicle rules, while only 27 percent of smokers have them.
Secondhand smoke exposure among nonsmokers in homes and vehicles was greatest among men, younger adults, non-Hispanic blacks, and those with a lower level of education.
Many of the states with the lowest prevalence of smoke-free rules in homes and vehicles are states with a high prevalence of adult smoking.
"While almost half of all U.S. residents are protected by 100 percent smoke-free policies in worksites, restaurants and bars, overall there are still an estimated 88 million non-smoking Americans over the age of three who are exposed to secondhand smoke," said Brian King, Ph.D., an epidemiologist in the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health and lead author of this study. "It’s important to educate people on the dangers of secondhand smoke exposure and how smoke-free homes and vehicles can reduce that exposure."

Exposure to secondhand smoke causes heart disease and lung cancer in adult non-smokers. In children, secondhand smoke exposure causes more severe and frequent asthma attacks, acute respiratory infections, ear infections and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Secondhand smoke exposure is responsible for an estimated 50,000 deaths each year in the United States. The Surgeon General has concluded there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke, and that only 100 percent smoke-free policies can protect non-smokers from the dangers of secondhand smoke. Opening a window does not work, nor does any other ventilation system.

TITAN AND MULTINATIONAL MISSILE DEFENSE

 

Nimble Titan, a series of two-year experimentation campaigns, promotes multinational cooperation and interoperability in missile defense activities and, when required, responses. Here, U.S. soldiers deployed with a Patriot missile battery to help defend Turkey's border with Syria are part of a coordinated NATO response that includes missile defenders from Germany and the Netherlands, Feb. 4, 2013. DOD photo by Glenn Fawcett

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Nimble Titan Increases Multinational Missile Defense Cooperation

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 16, 2013 - When the United States, Germany and the Netherlands deployed missile defenses to Turkey to augment the Turkish military's capabilities near the Syrian border, it wasn't happenstance that they were able to quickly coordinate their efforts and go operational.

U.S. Strategic Command has led an international effort for the past eight years to promote cooperation and interoperability in missile defense, not just among NATO allies, but also around the globe.

Known as Nimble Titan, it's a series of two-year experimentation campaigns that bring together 22 nations to address missile defense challenges in the coming decade, said Army Col. Michael Derrick, director of allied integration for Stratcom's Joint Functional Component Command for Integrated Missile Defense.

Nimble Titan is now in its fourth two-year iteration, with a mix of seminars, tabletop exercises, war games and instrumented experiments, Derrick explained during a telephone interview from his office at Schriever Air Force Base, Colo.

All are aimed at promoting partnership Derrick called essential to standing up to ballistic missile threats.

Each participating nation realizes that none can go it alone in missile defense, he said. That includes nations such as the United States, Japan and the Netherlands, among others that have their own missile defense systems, he added. The U.S. system, for example, depends in part on basing sensors and interceptors in other countries and using their airspace and ground facilities to operate.

"As the United States developed its own ballistic missile defense system, we realized that the system is inextricably engaged with our allies around the world," Derrick said. "Integration with our allies around the world in the field of missile defense is absolutely necessary. We simply cannot do this without them."

But international cooperation brings more to the effort, he said, increasing transparency about missile defense and setting the conditions for nations to share information and leverage one another's assets. This may save money at a time when many militaries are experiencing severe budget cutbacks, while providing more comprehensive missile defenses, he noted.

Collaboration is particularly vital at a time when several nations as well as non-state actors are ratcheting up the threat. "We have those nations that consistently threaten us, either with real capability or with rhetoric," Derrick said.

"Nimble Titan creates an environment where these likeminded nations can discuss and try to solve the challenges that we have now or anticipate that we will have in the next 10 years," he said. "Instead of doing things independently against a common foe, we are able to work together."

Through Nimble Titan events, participants explore ways to improve information-sharing and distribution and develop plans, including command-and-control procedures, to provide coordinated, synchronized missile defenses.

"We discuss concepts of operation such as how to put the capabilities from different nations together to build a coherent and effective unit," Derrick said. "The goal is to put mechanisms in place to optimize those international efforts."

Nimble Titan 14, latest in the series of campaigns, kicked off in February with an orientation seminar for new participants at the NATO headquarters in Brussels. In March, Japan hosted a planning exercise among Asia-Pacific countries focused on the Northeast Asia threat.

Participants from the Tokyo event will converge on the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., in June for a tabletop exercise based on groundwork laid at the planning exercise, Derrick said.

Another tabletop exercise, focused on the Southwest Asia threat, is slated for December at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

The most significant takeaways from these individual events will be incorporated into the Nimble Titan 14 capstone event planned for next spring in Suffolk, Va. "This will be a program that allows nations from around the world to see the global implications of what is going on in each region," Derrick said.

Although Nimble Titan isn't designed to address any particular threat, and activities all involve notional perpetrators, sometimes the events correspond with those in the real world.

Last year, for example, the capstone event for the Nimble Titan 12 series kicked off just four days after North Korea's failed three-stage missile launch. Over the course of four days, participants and observers planned military, as well as political and civil defense responses, to mock launches a decade into the future from the fictitious countries of Seac and Rubicon.

But Derrick said the cooperation developed during Nimble Titan has a huge payoff when real-world challenges develop.

"You can't work with a nation until you have some basis upon which to build that cooperation. And through Nimble Titan, we have a group of people, now in 22 nations, who know the topic, who know one another, and who know the challenges we all face," he said. "We have been very successful in building a cadre of people around the world who can work together."

This assures U.S. allies of the United States' commitment to standing with them in missile defense. "We want them to know that we are not only willing, but able to work with them," Derrick said.

But even more importantly, he said, is its deterrent effect -- one Derrick said every participating nation can agree to.

"Missile defense is an important deterrent because it doesn't threaten and can't hurt anyone," he said. "If someone launches a missile at you, being able to destroy that missile in space and cause no damage or harm whatsoever gives you the moral high ground. You have defended yourself, but you haven't caused your attacker any harm."

This makes missile defense an important complement to U.S. Strategic Command's other assets, most of which have offensive capabilities, he said.

One of its greatest advantages, Derrick said, is that it provides the opportunity for informed, coordinated responses.

"It gives our leadership at the national level a whole lot of options that otherwise would not be available: to pursue diplomatic outcomes, to arrange responses with other nations, or to go to the United Nations if they need to," he said. "That's one of the real advantages of missile defense. It provides options and time for the leadership that otherwise would not be available."

NEW WEBSITE LAUNCHED FOR AMERICAN PEOPLE TO SUGGEST TAX REFORM IDEAS

FROM: CONGRESSMAN DAVE CAMP'S OFFICIAL WEBSITE
Camp and Baucus Team Up to Launch TaxReform.gov

Chairmen Launch Web Site to Provide American People Opportunity to Weigh In On Tax Reform

Thursday, May 09, 2013

Washington, DC – House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) today teamed up to launch TaxReform.gov, a new website dedicated to obtaining input from the American public on tax reform.

"The tax code is littered with special interest provisions that Washington has put in over the last 27 years. It is time to go line-by-line through the tax code and clean it up. There is no reason Americans should have to spend over 6 billion hours and over $160 billion every year just trying to comply with the tax code. Chairman Baucus and I believe in a tax code that is more effective and efficient. A simpler, fairer tax code will help families and it will help strengthen our economy. But Washington doesn’t have all the answers. That is why we are joining together in a non-partisan way to invite you to weigh in on this debate. We want you, the American people, to share your story and your ideas about how our tax code should work," Chairman Camp said.

"America’s tax code today is complex, inefficient and acting as a brake on our economy. Chairman Camp and I believe it is in need of a serious overhaul. Over the past two years we’ve held more than 50 hearings and heard from hundreds of experts on how to fix the tax code, to make it simpler and fairer for families and spark a more prosperous economy. Now it’s time to hear from the most important stakeholders — the American people," Chairman Baucus said. "Through the web site TaxReform.gov and Twitter all Americans will be able to weigh in and participate directly in the debate. We want to know what people think the nation’s tax system should look like and how we can make families lives easier."

Developed in partnership with the Joint Committee on Taxation, TaxReform.gov will serve as a platform for the American public to weigh in on tax reform. Input from visitors to the web site will be valuable to the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee as they craft legislation. The site also incorporates many Twitter tools that allow the public to weigh in by following @simplertaxes.

The idea is based on efforts of former Ways and Means Chairman Dan Rostenkowski to engage the American public in the last successful overhaul of the U.S. tax code in 1985. He encouraged the American public to send letters in support of tax reform in what became known as the "Write Rosty Campaign." As a result, Rostenkowski received more than 75,000 letters and post cards from the American public in support of tax reform, helping lead to the Tax Reform Act of 1986.

Chairmen Baucus and Camp have recreated the outreach effort with a 21st century twist. Visitors to the website can learn about tax reform and submit ideas on how to improve the tax code. The site has been built around three sections: Why reform the Tax Code? What’s already underway? Share your story and ideas.

The site also provides a library of material detailing the efforts by Baucus and Camp over the past two years as they have developed comprehensive tax reform proposals.

Background on the "Write Rosty Campaign"

In early 1985, at the start of the last successful overhaul of the nation’s tax code, a little-known House committee chairman named Dan Rostenkowski delivered the Democratic response to President Reagan’s national address on tax reform. Rostenkowski used his speech, which drew immediate praise, as an opportunity to launch his "Write Rosty" campaign, calling on Americans to send his Capitol Hill office letters of support for a tax reform plan that would make the system simpler and fairer.

Within days, Rostenkowski had received more than 75,000 letters, as well as several more eclectic items, including a tax reform t-shirt and a two-by-four to "beat back lobbyists." Rostenkowski noted at the time how important it was for him and the Democratic Party to engage a naturally-skeptical public on tax reform to demonstrate what it was about – simplicity and fairness. He said average Americans felt like "suckers and chumps" when they paid their taxes because the system was rigged to give special privileges to the lucky few who could hide money in tax shelters and dodge paying their fair share.

"Write Rosty" with a 21st Century Twist

There is a compelling story to be told about how Chairmen Camp and Baucus are working together to revive public engagement on tax reform. They are developing bills to make the tax code simpler and fairer, and they want everyday Americans to be active participants in the reform process.

The public, just like in 1985, is naturally skeptical of tax reform. That’s partly because the issues are so complex, but it’s also because Democrats and Republicans in Congress have struggled to find common ground on much of anything lately. But tax reform has backers in both parties, and Chairmen Camp and Baucus have one of the most productive bipartisan relationships in Congress. They see this as an opportunity to legislate in the light of day and keep partisan politics from derailing the process. And the kind of engagement the "Write Rosty" campaign sparked nearly 30 years ago is even easier today thanks to the Internet and social media. That’s why the chairmen are launching TaxReform.gov and @simplertaxes to get the public involved and active in the process.

ISAF NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR MAY 16, 2013

 

An RQ-7B Shadow, an unmanned aerial vehicle is catapulted into flight at Forward Operating Base Fenty, Afghanistan, May 2, 2013. UAVs collect intelligence and provide security for troops on the ground. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Margaret Taylor

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Combined Force Kills Insurgent in Paktia Province
From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Release

KABUL, Afghanistan, May 16, 2013 - A combined Afghan and coalition security force in the Zurmat district of Afghanistan's Paktiya province today killed an insurgent and arrested four others during a search for a Haqqani network leader who participates in kidnappings throughout the province, military officials reported.

The Haqqani leader also engages in weapons trafficking investigates insurgent activity for senior insurgent leadership.

During the operation, a group of insurgents opened fire on the security force. The security force returned fire, killing one insurgent. The security force also seized two assault rifles, three fragmentation grenades, eight magazines and ammunition.

Also today, a combined force in Helmand province's Nahr-e Saraj district arrested a senior Taliban leader who plans, coordinates and executes attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also facilitates the movement of weapons and relays operational information to insurgent leadership.

In Afghanistan operations yesterday:

-- A combined force in Balkh province's Chimtal district killed senior Taliban leader Shah Gul, who had controlled a group responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He was involved in kidnappings, weapons procurement and distribution, and collecting illegal taxes to fund insurgent activities.

-- In Nuristan province's Waygal district, a combined force wounded an insurgent during a search for the district's top Taliban military official. He is responsible for facilitating the movement of al-Qaida terrorists, erecting and enforcing illegal checkpoints, kidnapping Afghan officials and leading attacks against Afghan and coalition forces.

-- Afghan and coalition special operations forces in Ghazni province's Deh Yak district killed a Taliban leader who was responsible for 20 insurgents and had been facilitating attacks. Six insurgents were detained.

President Obama Holds a Press Conference with Prime Minister Erdogan | The White House

President Obama Holds a Press Conference with Prime Minister Erdogan | The White House

SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY MAKES REMARKS WITH INDONESIAN FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA

FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT

Remarks With Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa Before Their Meeting
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Treaty Room
Washington, DC
May 16, 2013

SECRETARY KERRY: Good afternoon, everybody. I am delighted to be here with Foreign Minister Natalegawa from Indonesia. And there are a number of reasons why my opportunity to meet with the Foreign Minister is important.

First of all, we are representing the second and third largest democracies in the world. And that is an important reason for us to work on a number of different things, but to be committed as partners. We also do a great deal with respect to counter-narcotics, protection of the environment, trade issues, disaster relief, and maritime security. And all of these things are extremely important to our relationship.

In addition to that, Indonesia will be chairing the APEC conference this year, and I’m particularly looking forward to being part of that conference, going out there. We will have, I think, a very exciting agenda that the Foreign Minister and Indonesia have settled on regarding connectivity, increasing connectivity, globalization of trade, working on a number of the environment and other challenges in law enforcement and maritime security. So we have a big agenda.

And in the end, we are particularly interested in furthering this relationship as much as we can because Indonesia plays such a critical role in the balance of interests in that region, and because we’ve been rebalancing ourselves towards Asia. And so this relationship becomes even more important. So I’m very grateful that the Minister is here to spend some time talking through our issues. Welcome.

FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA: Thank you very much, Secretary. Likewise, I am delighted to be back in Washington. And thank you for making it possible for the two of us to meet. I echo the points that you have said. Our relations – our two countries’ relations are strong; they’re solid. We enjoy what we call comprehensive partnership; it’s a broad subject matter on which we cooperate, and this truly is in a sense a partnership among friends, mutually beneficial, and of a mutual – a great deal of mutual interest. I wish through our discussion this afternoon not only to strengthen that bilateral relations, but to further project closer cooperation on many regional and global issues as well.

SECRETARY KERRY: Look forward to it.

FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA: Thank you very much.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you. Welcome.

U.S. State Department Daily Press Briefing - May 16, 2013

Daily Press Briefing - May 16, 2013

SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL SPECIAL OPERATIONS NETWORK

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

New Authority Supports Global Special Operations Network
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

TAMPA, Fla., May 15, 2013 - A new arrangement that gives U.S. Special Operations Command responsibility for manning, training and equipping special operators assigned to regional combatant commands is beginning to pay off in strengthening the global special operations force network, the Socom commander reported here yesterday.

Navy Adm. William H. McRaven told attendees at the 2013 Special Operations Forces Industry Conference that the new command structure amends a shortcoming that had left Socom with "no institutional relationship" with regional special operations commanders.

Then-Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta approved the change in February. "In essence, now U.S. Special Operations Command has authority over all special operations [forces]," McRaven said, including those assigned to U.S. European Command, U.S. Pacific Command, U.S. Central Command, U.S. Southern Command and U.S. Africa Command.

This authority also will extend to U.S. Northern Command, which is standing up its own special operations element.

A key part of the arrangement, McRaven said, is that these special operators and their regional special operations commanders will remain under the operational control of their respective geographic combatant commander.

"That is very important," he said, emphasizing that geographic commanders will determine what missions special operators conduct within their areas of responsibility.

"We will not do anything," McRaven said, repeating it for emphasis, "without the approval -- underline that -- of a geographic commander and the chief of mission [or] ambassador."

The admiral elaborated on the arrangement during his testimony before the House and Senate armed services committees in March.

"As the Socom commander, with some unique exceptions, I do not command and control any forces in combat or crisis," he said. "I am a 'supporting commander' to geographic combatant commanders and the chiefs of mission.

"It is my job to provide them the best special operations force in the world," he continued. "It is their job to employ those forces in support of U.S. policy."

Yesterday, McRaven told the forum of special operators and defense contractors he advocated the change of authority to better support theater special operations commanders and their assigned forces.

"I want to be held responsible for the manning, training, equipping and resourcing of the theater special operations commanders," McRaven said. That way, he said, if a theater special operations commander doesn't have the best talent or isn't well resourced, there's no question about who should be held accountable.

"The answer ought to be, 'You come here to Socom because we are now responsible for it,'" he said. "It really is about, 'How do we better support those theater special operations commanders?'"

Special Operations Command already is making good on its new responsibility.

Army Brig. Gen. Sean P. Mulholland, commander of Special Operations Command South, reported that his command, long stretched for manpower and resources, is slated to triple in size over the next few years. Meanwhile, the funding lines will start to shift based on McRaven's emphasis on bolstering the theater special operations commanders, he said.

Navy Rear Adm. Brian L. Losey, commander of Special Operations Command Africa, reported that his command has received additional funding for technical requirements, as well as temporary augmentees from the Socom staff. The new command arrangement "is absolutely empowering" the theater special operations commanders, he said.

But there's an additional benefit in the communication links the new command relationship allows. McRaven now conducts weekly videoconferences with all of his theater special operations commanders, encouraging them to share information about their activities and challenges.

"Before long, we begin to knit together the global problems that we are seeing," he said. "And we are passing information [among the theater special operations commanders] that is the beginning of enhancing this global [special operations force] network."

ATTORNEY GENERAL HOLDER TESTIFIES BEFORE HOUSE COMMITTEE

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Attorney General Eric Holder Testifies Before the House Committee on the Judiciary

~ Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Good afternoon, Chairman Goodlatte; Ranking Member Conyers. I appreciate this opportunity to appear before you today to discuss the Justice Department’s recent achievements and to provide an overview of our top priorities.

Particularly in recent years, the Department has taken critical steps to prevent and combat violent crime, to confront national security threats, to ensure the civil rights of everyone in this country, and to safeguard the most vulnerable members of our society. Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of my colleagues – the nearly 116,000 dedicated men and women who serve in Justice Department offices around the world – I’m pleased to report that we’ve established a remarkable record of progress in expanding our nation’s founding promise of equal justice under law, and ensuring the safety and security of our citizens.

The need to continue these efforts – and to remain vigilant against a range of evolving threats – was brought into sharp focus last month, in the most shocking of ways, when a horrific terrorist attack in Boston left three innocent people dead and hundreds injured. In the days that followed– thanks to the valor of state and local police, the dedication of federal law enforcement and intelligence officials, and the cooperation of members of the public – those suspected of carrying out this terrorist act were identified. One suspect died following a shootout with police and the other has been brought into custody and charged in federal court with using a weapon of mass destruction. Three others have been charged in connection with the investigation of this case, which is active and ongoing.

As we continue working to achieve justice on behalf of our fellow citizens and brave law enforcement officers who were injured or killed in connection with these tragic events – and to hold accountable, to the fullest extent of the law, all who were responsible for this heinous attack – I want to assure you that my colleagues and I are also committed to strengthening our broader national security efforts. Over the past four years, we’ve identified, investigated, and disrupted multiple potential plots involving foreign terrorist organizations as well as homegrown extremists. We’ve secured convictions – and tough sentences – against numerous individuals for terrorism-related offenses. We’ve utilized essential intelligence-gathering and surveillance capabilities in a manner that’s consistent with the rule of law, and with our most treasured values.

Beyond this work, my colleagues and I are enhancing our focus on a variety of emerging threats and persistent challenges – from drug trafficking and transnational organized crime, to cyber-threats and human trafficking. We’re moving to ensure robust enforcement of antitrust laws, to combat tax fraud schemes, and to safeguard the environment. We’re building on the significant progress that’s been made in identifying and thwarting financial and health care-related fraud crimes. For example, in FY 2012, our fraud detection and enforcement efforts resulted in the record-breaking recovery and return of roughly $4.2 billion.

Over the last three fiscal years alone – thanks to the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force and its federal, state, and local partners – we have filed nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 14,500 defendants, including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. As these actions prove, our resolve to protect consumers and seek justice against any who would take advantage of their fellow citizens has never been stronger.

The same can be said of the Department’s vigorous commitment to the enforcement of key civil rights protections. Since 2009, this commitment has led our Civil Rights Division to file more criminal civil rights cases than ever before – including record numbers of human trafficking cases. Using new tools and authorities, including the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, we’ve improved our ability to safeguard our civil rights and pursue justice for those who are victimized because of their gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability. We will continue working to guarantee that – in our workplaces and military bases; in our housing and lending markets; in our schools and places of worship; in our immigrant communities and our voting booths – the rights of all Americans are protected.

But all of this is only the beginning. As we look toward the future, my colleagues and I are also determined to work closely with Members of Congress to secure essential legislative changes – including commonsense steps to prevent and reduce gun violence, and comprehensive legislation to fix our nation’s broken immigration system.

It’s long past time to allow the estimated 11 million individuals who are here in an undocumented status to step out of the shadows, to guarantee that all are playing by the same rules, and to require responsibility from everyone – both undocumented workers and those who hire them. Like many of you, I am encouraged to see that these basic principles are reflected in the bipartisan reform proposal that is currently being considered by the Senate. The Department will do all it can to help strengthen that proposal, and to advance a constructive, responsible dialogue on this issue. I understand that this Committee and other Members are working on immigration reform proposals as well, and I look forward to working with you as those efforts move forward to enact comprehensive reforms.

However, I must note that our capacity to continue building upon the Department’s recent progress is threatened by the long-term consequences of budget sequestration and Joint Committee reductions, which will worsen in Fiscal Year 2014, unless Congress adopts a balanced deficit reduction plan. Should Congress fail to do so, I fear that these reductions will undermine our ability to deliver justice for millions of Americans, and to keep essential public safety professionals on the job.

We cannot allow this to happen. This afternoon, I ask for your support in preventing these cuts and ensuring that the Department has the resources it needs to fulfill its critical missions. I thank you, once again, for the chance to discuss our current efforts with you today. And I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

LANL ANNOUNCES U.S. PRODUCTION OF MEDICAL ISOTOPE IS A STEP CLOSER

A view of the Buchi Multivapor P-12 Evaporator, apparatus that can be used in the preparation of the uranium sulfate fuel. LANL PHOTO.

FROM: LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABORATORY

Domestic Production of Medical Isotope Mo-99 Moves a Step Closer at Los Alamos

Researchers produce molybdenum-99 from irradiation of low-enriched uranium solution

LOS ALAMOS, N.M., May 13, 2013—Today, Los Alamos National Laboratory announced that for the first time, irradiated uranium fuel has been recycled and reused for molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) production, with virtually no losses in Mo-99 yields or uranium recovery. This demonstrates the viability of the separation process, as well as the potential for environmentally- and cost-friendly fuel recycling. Medical isotope production technology has advanced significantly now that scientists have made key advances in separating Mo-99 from an irradiated, low-enriched uranium (LEU) solution.

Low-Enriched Uranium as a Source of Mo-99

Technetium-99m (Tc-99m) is the most commonly used medical isotope today, accounting for about 50,000 medical imaging procedures daily in the United States. Tc-99m is derived from the parent isotope Mo-99, predominantly produced from the fission of uranium-235 in highly enriched uranium targets (HEU) in aging foreign reactors. The North American supply of Tc-99m was severely disrupted when the Chalk River nuclear reactor in Canada experienced an outage several years ago.

The National Nuclear Security Administration’s Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) implements the long-standing U.S. policy to minimize and eliminate the use of HEU in civilian applications. In support of this objective, GTRI is working with U.S. commercial entities and the U.S. national laboratories to develop a diverse set of non-HEU-based technologies to produce Mo-99 in the United States.

The U.S. national laboratories aid GTRI’s programmatic mission by conducting research and development, engineering and design support, and proof of concept demonstrations. Toward this goal, GTRI has been working with Los Alamos to ensure its technical expertise is available to support GTRI’s commercial partners, including Morgridge Institute for Research-SHINE Medical Technologies (MIR-SHINE), which proposes to use a particle accelerator to produce Mo-99 from a mildly acidic LEU solution.

The Technical Demonstration

In support of MIR-SHINE’s Mo-99 production efforts, researchers at Los Alamos have successfully proven the technical viability of the initial stage of Mo-99 recovery from LEU solution through a direct scaled-down demonstration of the proposed industrial process.

To undertake the necessary experimental validation, Los Alamos researchers developed methodologies for preparing and analyzing uranium sulfate fuel, safely containing the fuel during irradiation at a Los Alamos Neutron Accelerator Science (LANSCE) facility and performing chemical flow-sheet testing using a separation apparatus applicable to both low and high levels of radiation.

With a short half-life of 2.7 days, Mo-99 is a high specific-radioactivity isotope. At production scale, the post-fission solution will contain only a very small concentration of Mo-99. Unlike traditional HEU-based processes, the challenge is to recover this material from a vast excess of LEU and leave the uranium in the same chemical form to allow for recycling.

The team found that nearly all of the uranium could be recovered after Mo-99 separations were performed. The LEU fuel that passed through the column separation process was irradiated again, and then once more the fission-generated Mo-99 was separated in high yield. When the same fuel was irradiated a third time, there was still no observable loss in the subsequent Mo-99 recovery. The results confirm the viability of both the Mo-99 separation process and uranium fuel recycling, which can lower operating costs and minimize waste generation.

What help from soy supplements

What help from soy supplements

CHAIRMAN JOINT CHIEFS DISCUSSES AFGHANISTAN TRANSITION

 

Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, commander of U.S. European Command and Supreme Allied Commander for Europe, talk before a NATO conference in Brussels, May 14, 2013. DOD photo by D. Myles Cullen

  FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Dempsey Discusses Transition to Post-ISAF Afghanistan
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT, May 15, 2013 - The NATO chiefs of defense discussed what the post-2014 alliance presence in Afghanistan will look like and how it could work, Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters after he'd attended two days of meetings that concluded today in Brussels.

Dempsey said the discussion about the post-2014 NATO presence in Afghanistan was lively and constructive.

There are a number of ways to structure the NATO presence that will remain in Afghanistan after the International Security Assistance Force mandate expires at the end of 2014. The NATO chiefs of defense looked at whether the alliance should take a regional approach to the train, advise and assist mission or should it be done at the institutional level, Dempsey said. At what level -- kandak, brigade, corps -- does it make sense to instruct? The need, he said, is different in different parts of the nation.

Each scenario has a different requirement for troops, equipment, bases and money. There are pros and cons for each and the chiefs will use these discussions to make recommendations to their civilian leaders. NATO defense ministers will gather in Brussels next month for their ministerial.

The defense chiefs heard from Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the commander of NATO ISAF and U.S. Forces Afghanistan, and the new Supreme Allied Commander – Operations, Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, who also leads U.S. European Command.

Dunford discussed the progress Afghan forces are making. Very shortly, Afghan forces will be in the lead and ISAF will be in support.

"That doesn't mean we won't get into a fight alongside them, but it does mean they will have the principal responsibility for security," Dempsey said. "Sometime this summer, [Afghan] President [Hamid] Karzai will announce tranche 5 of the transition and that will be the one that takes the alliance through the end of 2014."

The Military Committee did receive a briefing on where the Afghan Army and police are doing well and where they need work. How good do the Afghan forces need to be is a question the chiefs must ask. The Afghan security forces don't need to be as good as the American military, they just have to possess the necessary skills to protect their people, the chairman said.

"In many places in Afghanistan they are 'good enough' today," Dempsey said. "There are gaps, but we have 18 months to close those gaps."

Earlier this year, the Taliban announced a great summer offensive -- something the Taliban say every year, he said.

"It is still harvest season in Afghanistan and I suspect we've not seen the height of this year's offensive," Dempsey said. "But this year, unlike years past, the offensive will be aimed at the ANSF not us, because, again, the Afghans will be in the lead."

This fact changes and undermines the Taliban's narrative, the general said.

"Their narrative has been they are fighting the western invader," he said. "This year, they will be fighting their own people."

The NATO chiefs were supposed to hear from Pakistani Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. He did not attend because of the elections in his country. Dempsey complimented Pakistan on the elections, which returned Nawaz Sharif as prime minister.

"I give a lot of credit to General Kayani and the Pakistan military for their behavior during the election, Dempsey said.

The chiefs also discussed ways to ensure NATO has the capabilities needed for the future.

"Just as our military is trying to think through how do we rekindle its capabilities across a broad spectrum of activities beyond COIN [counterinsurgency], the alliance is doing the same thing," he said.

Dempsey also attended the May 13 Allied Command – Operations change of command where Breedlove took command from Navy Adm. James G. Stavridis, who is to retire..

Dempsey praised Stavridis for making the alliance more cohesive while still directing operations in Afghanistan, Libya and Kosovo.

The chairman welcomed Breedlove, noting that the Air Force pilot has had a number of tours in Europe and had many, many NATO wingmen.

"That is part of the benefit of our system where we immerse people in this important alliance," Dempsey said.

DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY CARTER MEETS WITH KARZAI

Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter meets with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Kabul, Afghanistan, May 13, 2013. DOD by Glenn Fawcett
 

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Carter Meets With Karzai, Military Leaders
By Claudette Roulo
American Forces Press Service

KABUL, Afghanistan, May 13, 2013 - Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter met today with Afghan President Hamid Karzai at Afghanistan's presidential palace here.

In a statement summarizing the meeting, Defense Department officials said Carter congratulated Karzai on the progress of the Afghan national security forces and expressed his admiration for their performance and professionalism. The progress they've made, he noted, is enabling them to take the lead in security in more 90 percent of the country.

The deputy secretary also reiterated the strong U.S. partnership with Afghanistan and emphasized the continued U.S. commitment to support the Afghan forces into the future.

Carter also continued his assessment of Afghanistan's progress toward nationwide Afghan-led security as he met with senior U.S. officials and visited locations in the International Security Assistance Force's Regional Command East.

Carter met in the morning with State Department, NATO and U.S. military officials, including Army Lt. Gen. Mark A. Milley, commander of the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command and Army Maj. Gen. Tony Thomas, commander of Special Operations Joint Task Force Afghanistan.

Milley joined the deputy secretary as he traveled east of Kabul to Jalalabad Airfield in Nangarhar province and to Forward Operating Base Gamberi in Laghman province. Army Brig. Gen. Ronald F. Lewis, Regional Command East deputy commanding general for support, and other senior leaders from the 101st Airborne Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team provided on-the-ground operational and strategic-level reviews of the security transition and retrograde.

Carter thanked service members at both outposts for their efforts, saying that he believes that the transition thus far has been "incredibly successful." He noted that although al-Qaida is not the sole remaining challenge in Afghanistan, in some circles there is a "great desire to narrow our focus, as if by narrowing our focus, we narrow the problem."

While at Gamberi, Carter also received an update on the progress of the Afghan National Army from Maj. Gen. Mohammad Zaman Waziri, commander of the ANA's 201st Corps. The 201st is responsible for the eastern portion of the country, including Kabul.

The deputy secretary is on the third and final leg of a weeklong overseas trip, and his meetings in Afghanistan are intended to underline U.S. support for the ongoing development of the

U.S. Department of Defense Armed with Science Update

U.S. Department of Defense Armed with Science Update

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE WEEKLY CLAIMS REPORT FOR WEEK ENDING MAY 4, 2013

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA



In the week ending May 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 323,000, a decrease of 4,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 327,000. The 4-week moving average was 336,750, a decrease of 6,250 from the previous week's revised average of 343,000.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.3 percent for the week ending April 27, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending April 27 was 3,005,000, a decrease of 27,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 3,032,000. The 4-week moving average was 3,034,250, a decrease of 24,500 from the preceding week's revised average of 3,058,750.
UNADJUSTED DATA
The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 298,497 in the week ending May 4, a decrease of 2,638 from the previous week. There were 341,080 initial claims in the comparable week in 2012.

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.3 percent during the week ending April 27, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 2,962,467, a decrease of 66,039 from the preceding week's revised level of 3,028,506. A year earlier, the rate was 2.5 percent and the volume was 3,210,670.

The total number of people claiming benefits in all programs for the week ending April 20 was 4,874,526, a decrease of 89,292 from the previous week. There were 6,423,153 persons claiming benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2012.

Extended Benefits were available only in Alaska during the week ending April 20.

Initial claims for UI benefits filed by former Federal civilian employees totaled 1,364 in the week ending April 27, a decrease of 83 from the prior week. There were 2,159 initial claims filed by newly discharged veterans, an increase of 126 from the preceding week.

There were 18,726 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending April 20, an increase of 531 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 36,718, a decrease of 435 from the prior week.

States reported 1,763,177 persons claiming EUC (Emergency Unemployment Compensation) benefits for the week ending April 20, a decrease of 14,560 from the prior week. There were 2,688,157 persons claiming EUC in the comparable week in 2012. EUC weekly claims include first, second, third, and fourth tier activity.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending April 20 were in Alaska (5.2), Puerto Rico (4.4), Connecticut (3.5), New Jersey (3.4), New Mexico (3.3), Rhode Island (3.3), Wisconsin (3.3), California (3.2), Pennsylvania (3.2), and Illinois (3.1)

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending April 27 were in Illinois (+1,744), Oregon (+1,244), New Hampshire (+765), Arkansas (+455), and Maine (+379), while the largest decreases were in California (-3,721), Michigan (-2,993), Wisconsin (-2,623), Massachusetts (-2,487), and Florida (-2,062).

ISAF NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR MAY 15, 2013

 

U.S. Marines unload weapons and gear after returning from a mounted patrol on Forward Operating Base Shir Ghazay, Helmand province, Afghanistan, May 7, 2013. U.S Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Alejandro Pena

 FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Afghan, Coalition Forces Wound Taliban Leader, Kill Insurgents
From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Release

KABUL, Afghanistan, May 15, 2013 - A combined Afghan and coalition security force wounded a Taliban leader and killed two other insurgents in the Qush Tepah district of Afghanistan's Jowzjan province yesterday, military officials reported.

The leader has operational control over a group responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also engages in illegal taxation against Afghan civilians, provides training on improvised explosive device operations to his subordinates, and facilitates the movement of money, weapons and insurgent fighters in the area.

In other Afghanistan operations yesterday:

-- Afghan special forces soldiers, advised by coalition forces, detained eight insurgents and seized and destroyed 200 gallons of homemade explosives and other bomb components in Kandahar province's Panjwai district.

-- In Ghazni province's Andar district, an Afghan local police quick-reaction force responding to attacks on two checkpoints killed an insurgent and wounded another.

-- An Afghan quick-reaction force killed two insurgents while responding to an attack on a local police checkpoint in Ghazni's Gelan district. After the engagement, the security force recovered two asault rifles.

Press Briefing | The White House

Press Briefing | The White House

Department of Defense Press Briefing with Maj. Gen. Thomas from the Pentagon

Department of Defense Press Briefing with Maj. Gen. Thomas from the Pentagon

THE ARCTIC COUNCIL MINISTERIAL SESSION

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Remarks at the Arctic Council Ministerial Session
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
Kiruna City Hall
Kiruna, Sweden
May 15, 2013
(Kiruna Declaration Signing takes place)

　

FOREIGN MINISTER BILDT: And could I then – I think they are ready for the readout, for two or three questions, anyone here on Arctic Council issues. Then I think there is – that’s a microphone over there – and then I think there is a national leader opportunities of these four.

So please, if there is questions.

QUESTION: If I could ask Secretary Kerry and Minister Lavrov, you’ve spent a lot of time in the last few weeks and months working together on a variety of issues from Syria to the Arctic issues that you’ve discussed in the last two days. And yesterday, you had an American official from the Embassy in Moscow who was detained by the Russians and accused of espionage. Is that constructive to the kind of work, collaborative work, that you’re trying to do now? Thank you.

SECRETARY KERRY: (Off mike.) Testing – one, two, three, four, five. So for all of you who didn’t hear that answer, I have nothing to add with respect to the situation regarding an Embassy official in Moscow.

And I’m grateful to my friend Sergey Lavrov, the Minister of Russia, for a very productive meeting yesterday in which we did the large business of our countries, which was facing first of all the challenge of Syria. We met at length. We both agreed that there is much work to be done. We understand what each of us has to do in the next days. We’re very optimistic that we can get that work done. We’ve both been in touch with the United Nations, with Ban Ki-moon, with other participants. Each of us has agreed to work very hard with respect to the flow of people that we are in touch with, the foreign ministers, the opposition, the Assad regime, others, in order to bring the parties to the table. And I think it’s fair to say that both of us are confident about the direction that we’re moving in and very, very hopeful that within in a short period of time the pieces will have come together fully so that the world, hopefully, will have an opportunity to be given an alternative to the violence and destruction that is taking place in Syria at this moment.

FOREIGN MINISTER LAVROV: Thank you. I can confirm that we had a very productive meeting yesterday. We did not discuss the incident to which you refer. Everything we should have to say – we, the Russian side – on that particular incident was stated yesterday by the spokesman of the Russian Foreign Ministry. I have nothing to add.

As to the substance of our cooperative meeting yesterday, I would share the assessments just presented by John. We have a very clear initiative on the table. The Russian-American proposal to convene a conference to start implementing the Geneva communique of June last year – it’s self explanatory and what we need now is to mobilize support for this initiative on the basis of what was, I believe, in Geneva and what was proposed by Washington and Moscow – to mobilize support first of all by all the Syrian groups, the regime and all opposition groups; and second by those outside actors who have influence on either one or the other Syrian group.

That’s what we discussed. That’s what we will be doing in our conference with all outside players and with the Syrian, but especially in the expectation of the two events, which the opposition is holding one, a meeting by National Coalition in Istanbul. And about the same time there is – there will be a meeting in (inaudible) convened by the internal opposition, in particular by the National Coordinating Committee. It is very important that the participants of both meetings express their clear support for the Russian-American initiative to start implementing the Geneva communique. Thank you.

SECRETARY KERRY: If I could just add, I want to emphasize the degree to which we both believe Russia and the United States share a belief that is extremely constructive and positive that we are working together cooperatively in an effort to try to implement a peaceful resolution based on Geneva I, which recognizes the need for a transition government with full executive authority by mutual consent. That’s what we’re working towards, and I don't think it’s insignificant that at this moment in time we are finding this common ground and working closer together.

FOREIGN MINISTER BILDT: Next question over there.

QUESTION: Hello. Yelena Chernenko, Kommerserant Daily Newspaper. As far as I understand, your ministers, all of the requests from the countries to become observer members have been accepted today. The question is, does such a high number of observers not make the Arctic Council less effective and is there a limit of how many observers in the future there might be in the Council, or it can it grow forever, the number of observers? Thank you.

FOREIGN MINISTER BILDT: That’s why we have also adopted (inaudible) the about the recent procedure earlier with some procedures, so there’s a very clear what observers are and what observers aren’t. That’s been the very purpose of that work that’s been done.

As to your question, I would say it demonstrates the broad international acceptance of the role of the Arctic Council, because by being observer, these organizations and states, they accept the principles and the sovereignty of the Arctic Council on Arctic issues. So I think it – as a matter of fact, it strengthens the position of the Arctic Council on the global scene. That is why this is, that we hope that the remaining issues that are indicated concerning (inaudible) is that that will be sorted out fairly quickly, and I trust that will be the case.

One there before we --

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, what will be your priority when it comes to Arctic issues in the future?

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, I think it’s premature for me, prior to assuming the chairmanship, with my Canadian friend standing to the left of me, to start laying out the agenda. But as I said in my statement, the Arctic is a precious treasure for all of the world. And the United States recognizes that we are one of the two major contributors to global emissions. More than 50 percent of the world’s emissions come from two countries, China and the United States. And then there are 17 to 20 major emitters, as we know, some of whom are standing here and others are not, who are responsible for well over 90 percent. So you have small nations who are hugely impacted by the long-time development practices of other nations.

President Obama has twice now this year at significant events embraced the importance of dealing with climate change, once in his Inaugural Address, and second time in his State of the Union message. And we are looking at every single option available to us to act responsibly. But no one nation can solve this. The United States of America today is below Kyoto levels in emissions. People don’t know that. The United States today is actually below the Waxman-Markey legislation mandates that didn’t pass. So we’re doing things – automobile efficiency, standards, efficiencies, building codes, fleet purchase, all kinds of things, but not enough. No one is doing enough.

The problem is that everything that we do or everything one other nation does is going to be wiped out by China or another nation if they continue with coal firepower at the rate that we are proceeding. So the warning signals are all there, and I can assure that when our chairmanship time comes around we will pick up on Leona’s appropriate concern for indigenous populations and we will build on that with respect to the needs for all of us to do things that recognize the global impact on the ecosystem of what is happening in the Arctic.

FOREIGN MINISTER BILDT: Thanks and just two final remarks from my side. First that I do wish, on the issue that was mentioned earlier, that spirit of cooperation, of true Arctic cooperation of these few days, will continue to inspire U.S. to leading members of the UN Security Council when you proceed on your – on the enormously important issue of Syria.

Secondly, let me just on behalf of all us thank the city of Kiruna for having the your neighbors occupy this beautiful city hall and thank also the people of Kiruna and for your understanding that we might have messed up your town for a couple of days, but I hope that you accept that we’ve come here for not only one but for a couple of valuable purposes. Thanks very much. (Applause.)

DVIDS - Video - Press Briefing

DVIDS - Video - Press Briefing

U.S. State Department Daily Press Briefing - May 15, 2013

Daily Press Briefing - May 15, 2013

STATE DEPARTMENT ASSISTANT SECRETARY BLAKE'S REMARKS AT YALE-TERI ENERGY SUMMIT

FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks at Fourth Yale-TERI Energy Summit
Remarks
Robert O. Blake, Jr.
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
Washington, DC
May 13, 2013

Thanks so much for the opportunity to speak to this distinguished audience. Yale and TERI’s partnership – and leadership – to advance clean and innovative energy solutions has made this a vital forum for sharing new ideas and casting an ambitious vision for the future. TERI’s focus on clean energy solutions dates back to the mid-1970s, which turned out to be very prescient. Today, clean energy is at the center of our thinking on powering the economies of the future.

I’d like to extend special thanks to all of the CEOs and other business leaders here today. Your passion and ingenuity are central to the United States’ and India’s quest to help grow mutually beneficial clean energy ecosystems.

Ladies and gentleman, it’s a remarkable time to be engaged in a discussion about clean energy. We’ve recently seen enormous changes in the global energy landscape. And the nexus between energy and the environment is more relevant than ever.

The United States has four key priorities related to the future of energy use. Not coincidentally, each dovetail with our clean energy goals.
First, we will maintain our commitment to renewable energy – wind, solar, geothermal, and hydro – and put a premium on new innovation and technological advances;
Second, we will harness the "natural gas revolution" in the United States to meet our own energy needs as an intermediate or "bridge fuel" opportunity;
Third, we will continue to pursue the highest environmental standards, in the spirit of the Clean Air Act and other efforts to limit harmful emissions; and
Fourth, we will use existing energy more efficiently – in essence, to get more bang for our buck. That isn’t just good public policy, it makes good business sense.
There’s no doubt that our private sectors have a critical role to play in achieving these ambitious goals. But our governments have a responsibility to help foster the right environment for innovation; we must ensure that nothing stands in the way of quickly taking the best ideas conceived from Hyderabad to Houston, from Madhya Pradesh to Massachusetts, to the broadest possible market.

Simply put, governments must create policies that allow our companies to work together seamlessly. That means avoiding policies that hinder innovation, such as subsidies to local producers, measures that favor indigenous over foreign companies, or technology transfer requirements as a pre-condition for market access. We’re discussing these issues with our Indian friends through bilateral engagements like these like the Clean Energy Ministerial and the U.S.-India Energy Dialogue.

We are also expanding our bilateral cooperation on clean energy through the U.S.-India Partnership to Advance Clean Energy, or PACE, which has mobilized over $1.7 billion dollars to finance clean energy initiatives. In addition, a $125 million public-private joint research center is being created that will be led by 95 government, research, and private organizations.

President Obama is taking a leadership role in these efforts. He recently called on Congress to establish an "Energy Security Trust," which would fund groundbreaking research focused on cost-effective technologies – like electric vehicles, homegrown biofuels, fuel cells, and domestically-produced natural gas.

We are also talking to the Government of India at all levels about energy issues – from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to the Ministry of External Affairs and the Prime Minister’s Office. When we hold the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue this summer, clean energy cooperation will be a key part of the agenda.

We have much to be optimistic about. Clean energy technology is cheaper than it has ever been – according to one report photo-voltaic module prices are down 80% percent since 2008, and 20% just in the last year. In 2012 alone, a whopping 88 gigawatts of new clean energy capacity became available around the world, more than half of that from the wind sector.

Energy and climate change issues are important not just for our partnership with India, but for our broader strategy for the region. We believe that collaboration in this area can drive broader cooperation and economic connectivity, to help make the region more secure and prosperous. That’s why we’ve been such a strong supporter of regional energy and economic integration efforts to significantly increase economic connectivity across Asia.

USAID’s South Asia Regional Initiative for Energy Integration program, for example, facilitates cross-border energy trade, expand access to clean energy, and build power-sector capacity to integrate energy supplies across the entire region.

And we’ve been strong advocates for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline, or TAPI, which stands to bring enormous energy relief to a region still saddled with aging coal generation facilities and inefficient power generation methods. Today, more than half of India’s power comes from coal. TAPI would help shift the region away from carbon-based energy sources and could allow for unprecedented cooperation and commercial synergy.

These efforts are creating new opportunities to expand clean energy generation, which many never thought possible. The key to their success, of course, is you – the entrepreneurs and innovators. I can’t wait to see what you will come up with next, and we stand ready to work together toward a cleaner and more prosperous future. Thank you.

Holding your liquor holds you at risk

Holding your liquor holds you at risk

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE HAGEL'S REMARKS AT TOWN HALL MEETING

Presenter: Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Director of Administration and Management Mike Rhodes
May 14, 2013
 
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFESE
Remarks by Secretary Hagel at the Town Hall Meeting with Department of Defense Personnel, Alexandria, Virginia

MIKE RHODES: Good afternoon. My name is Mike Rhodes, and I have the honor of serving as the director of administration and management for the Department of Defense. Welcome. Welcome to all of you here from so many organizations across the department housed here at the Mark Center, and also welcome to the many across the globe who are observing today's event online or on television through the Pentagon Channel. Thank you for your service to the nation, and thank you for your attendance today.

I've spent my entire career -- nearly 30 years -- with the Department of Defense. And I join each of you in having the greatest pride in our collective mission of national security and national defense. The past seven -- little over seven years, I've had the honor of serving at the Office of the Secretary of Defense. As a civil service career member of the secretary's staff, I feel that I've had a unique opportunity to observe our recent secretaries.

During that time, I've observed Secretary Hagel. I've observed him as he's focused on critical issues of the department, and I note that he has always done so with a keen interest in the impact on our people, our military and civilian personnel.

While I'm personally not surprised by it, I greatly respect his desire to come down here today to meet with us in person to discuss the difficult decisions regarding furloughs. It speaks volumes of who he is. I know that we all understand that the secretary can't explain the individual impacts and implications associated with these decisions, and in the days ahead, we're going to have to meet with our respective supervisors and talk with the human resources professionals to figure out some of those details. However, the secretary is here today to share his macro views and considerations.

He's going to take a few minutes after his remarks to answer some questions, and those will be fielded from the -- by the microphones that are set up in the aisle. So now it's my privilege to introduce our secretary.

Now, having served as a noncommissioned officer in the Army myself, I have to -- have to make sure and recognize the fact -- of the significant fact that Secretary Hagel is the first enlisted combat veteran to lead this department. In addition, he brings experience both from the private and the public sectors. He served in the Veterans Administration. He served in Congress. And he served with the United Services Organization, just to name a few.

Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming our 24th secretary of defense, the Honorable Chuck Hagel. (Applause.)

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CHUCK HAGEL: Mike, thank you. Thank you very much. Good afternoon. Hi. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much.

Mike, I'm grateful for the introduction, and I'm grateful for what you do, and I'm grateful to all of you for what you each do individually and what you do together as a team to enhance this department, but more to the point, assure the security of this country. That's why I suspect you do this. You all have a lot of options in your lives. You will continue to have many options. But yet you -- you prefer to do this job.

There comes with this job, as you all note -- and I have always admired long before I had the privilege of serving with you as part of your team -- the purposefulness of your job. You're leading purposeful lives. We all, I think, strive to do that with our lives, in whatever abilities God has given each of us and how we develop those.

But to make a difference in the world is about as good as it can get. And in the end, when we inventory what we did with our lives, that's a -- that's a pretty significant question to ask yourself, because you ask yourselves and I ask myself every day, does it matter what we do? Does it matter what I'm doing, what each of us is doing? And it does.

I say that in the way of, first, thanking you and also recognizing that I know as secretary of defense what you do. I don't know every detail of everything you do every day. I don't need to. I know enough. And you don't often get recognized for that. So, thank you.

We're living at a difficult time. I was saying last night at a dinner off-the-record with a number of journalists, I don't know of a time in our history, especially in our lifetimes, when it has been more difficult to govern. I don't know when it has been more difficult to lead.

For all the reasons you know, the pressures that we have in our society, in the world, the threats, the complications, technology, it has really had an impact on everything. And in many ways, we are seeing institutions and, consequently, individuals come loose of their moorings. We're a transient society. When I was growing up in a little town -- little towns in Nebraska, I mean, you stayed in one place. I mean, your parents worked in the same state or maybe you moved to some different towns, but you were anchored to something. You didn't have technology in how you communicate. You communicated with each other. You talked to each other. You socialized with each other. You didn't have Facebook, and you didn't have Internet, and you didn't have the clippie little one-sentence deals that -- well, I'll e-mail you, which is, we're not going to go backward and I'm not -- my children may disagree -- I'm not a dinosaur.

It's all impacting on all of us in every way. And so we are living at a very difficult time. But yet it's a defining time. It's a time when we are truly building a new world order. And that's pretty significant. Not many generations, not many people ever have an opportunity in their -- in their careers, in their lifetimes to say they lived at such a time. We are living at such a time.

What comes out, I don't know. But I do know this: It will -- it will come out based on what we do. We have control of our own destiny. We can define our future. Yes, there are more uncontrollables today than ever before. Yes, there are more complications. Yes, there are more sophisticated threats.

But still, there isn't a country in the world like America. There is not a country in the world that's in our universe. It doesn't mean we're right. It doesn't mean we're better. It doesn't mean we're perfect. Not at all. But we have an amazing system for many reasons. If for no other, it is a system that allows us to self-correct. Just like each of us as individuals, we all know when we're maybe veering a little bit too far in different directions. And you self-correct. We have a system that allows us to self-correct.

Now, with all that said, I wanted to -- before I get into some of the comments I want to make and address specifically here, I wanted to make the overall point that what you're doing is important, it will continue to be important. Many, many people in the country recognize that, not just me. I'm just a passing steward on the stage. But as long as I'm here, I've got a responsibility, and that is not to let our country down, not to let you down. And you have the same responsibility to the country, not to me, not to me, but to the country, to that purposeful life that you have.

So I want to talk about something that I wish I didn't have to talk about today, and that is a decision I've made, which I suspect everybody's heard about it already and it's been coming, and that is the decision on furloughs.

Let me, before I get into specifics of that, make a couple of frame-up points. You know what the budget is about. You're all dealing with it every day. March 1st, we went into what as you all know as sequestration. That has produced a situation for us, Department of Defense, our budget, where we have found ourselves through sequestration about $30 billion short in our operations and maintenance account, the overall accounts. And there's another probably $7 billion to $8 billion in additional deficits in some of our other accounts. We're going to have to deal with that. We don't have any choice.

Over the last two-and-a-half months -- and that's how long I've been in this job -- I have worked every day with our comptroller, who's here today -- and he and his people deserve a tremendous amount of credit for working on this, because this has been a very difficult process. How do we minimize the pain for our people? That's the first -- the first priority, as well as why we're all here, and that is our core missions, readiness and protect this country. And I don't think anybody argues with that.

Now, how do we balance that and assure the security of this country and protecting our core missions and doing what's right, doing what's fair for our people? Because it doesn't make any difference how good equipment you have or how sophisticated or what the process is. Without people, it doesn't work. People are the most important asset any institution has.

So when we started this process when I got here two-and-a-half months ago, there was a very real -- more than possibility, but probability we were going to most likely have to look at a 22-day furlough decision. Through a lot of hard work by our leaders at every level in every service, both uniformed and civilian, and through a reprogramming effort that we got through, so -- that Bob Hale and his people could move money around in different accounts, we got that down to where we thought -- we were at 14. Then, we kept going back, and, finally, we got to a point where I could not responsibly go any deeper into -- into cutting or jeopardizing our core missions on readiness and training, and I just couldn't do any more.

That means that I've made a decision that we'll go forward with furloughs starting July 8th of 11 days. If we can -- if we can do better, as we get through the front end of this over the next few months, then -- then we might be in a position to be able to -- to knock that back. I can't promise that; I won't promise that. You deserve fair, honest, direct conversation about this. And I'm not going to be cute with you at all. This is -- this is where we are.

We'll continue to look at it. We're going to continue to do everything we can. We have cut maintenance. We have cut training. You probably know, because you're all involved in some capacity of this, of our Army training is done for the fiscal year. We've had to bring wings down. We've had to idle ships. There will be exceptions to this. The exceptions will be based on law, will be based on readiness and essential components to the civilian workforce, and we've gone through all of that. We've gone through all that many times over. We'll follow OPM guidelines.

I said when I first got here on this issue, I knew we would be faced with this. Everybody knew it. But -- and I instructed all of our leaders that we've done it this way, we have to be fair. And I have had various options to look at. I've looked at all of them. I had different recommendations from all the services, all the civilian leaders. But what guided me on this, after the realization that we had to make some tough choices, we've got to be fair. And everybody has to be treated the same here, except for those exceptions where there -- there is an essential role that they play.

We've evaluated that on law. We've evaluated that on readiness. We've evaluated that on core missions. As I said, if we can do better -- and we'll continue to search for ways to do better -- but right now, I can't -- I can't run this institution into the ditch. This will go until the end of the fiscal year.

We've taken it as close to the line as we can. And still capable of protecting this country and this country's interests around the world. We still have a war going on. Unfortunately, we still have casualties. We've got a lot of very dangerous, unpredictable places in the world, and I can't put this country in jeopardy by not factoring that in, in the end, as the overall most significant responsibility, as well as treating our people right, is treating our people fair.

Difficult choice, but we had to make it. And we -- I tried everything. We did everything we could not to get to this -- this day, this way. But that's it. That's where we are. And I think, at this point, let me -- let me end and, again, thank you for everything you do and recognize, as I go to questions next, I know, the leaders of this institution know the hardship this decision puts on everybody and your families. We're not unmindful of that. And that's the most distressing part of this decision. We recognize that. And I'm sorry about that.

But I've got to be honest and deal with the facts. You deserve honesty. You deserve the facts. And I appreciate what you're doing. And I know this is going to be difficult, but we'll get through this. And I said everyone going in, we're going in together, we're coming out together. No one service, no one's going to be protected more than anybody else. Budgets are different, and everybody's budget's a little different, but we're all in this together. And I can't allow this great institution that does so much for our country, with such great tradition and history, with such great people, to get picked apart inside by each other, and I won't -- I won't allow that to happen.

So with that, thank you for giving me an opportunity to come by this afternoon and giving me the opportunity to thank you. I would take questions now. I sure as hell would like some advice. (Laughter.)'

Yes, ma'am? Yes.

Q: (OFF-MIC)

SEC. HAGEL: I'm sorry. What is what?

Q: (OFF-MIC)

SEC. HAGEL: What's the status of raises? Is...

Q: (OFF-MIC)

SEC. HAGEL: Oh.

Q: (OFF-MIC)

SEC. HAGEL: Well, I'm going to give you an honest answer. I don't know about any raises going forward. I think we've got to get through this. We've got to get through what we've got right now. And I know that the civilian employees have not had raises in three years, and I know that. That's why it's even more difficult to have to come out here today, and all the people in the Pentagon Channel, around the world, and have to make this announcement.

Recognize you've had three years of sacrifice. I get that. I get that. All I can tell you is, I will do everything I can to try to get us in a position, working with the Congress, trying to help as much as I can to promote, which I do, which our people do, some kind of an agreement between the Congress and the president, so -- so that we can find a new budget center of gravity here that we can eliminate where we are.

That's not my -- that's not my decision. This is a big decision by a lot of people in order to get there. So I'm sorry I can't give you a better answer, but I'm not going to tell you something that's just not true.

Bob Hale, our comptroller, may help me out here. (Laughter.)

UNDERSECRETARY OF DEFENSE ROBERT F. HALE: (OFF-MIC)

SEC. HAGEL: I'll repeat what he said. And I should have said this, but I just assumed you knew this. You know, in the budget proposal, what the president's budget for F.Y. 2014 proposed, what I testified about, and all of our people, we have asked for a 1 percent raise. Now, it's up to the Congress whether that happens or not, but -- thank you, Bob. I should have said that, but I just assumed you knew -- maybe you didn't know that.

But the president has asked for a 1 percent raise in his budget request, and we, of course, supported that, and I testified to that, as well as all of our leadership. That's why he -- that why he's the comptroller. (Laughter.)

Yes?

Q: Good afternoon. My name is Jennifer Hayes, and I work for WHS HRD. And I know that we have to deal with the situation at hand, like you've said, but going forward, is there any protection for us as federal workers that we won't have to endure something like this again? Or will we have to deal with this again next year? As a federal employee, we have took a great deal of hits in the -- in these past couple of years. So it's a great interest to a lot of us.

SEC. HAGEL: Well, your question's an important question. And I would give you this answer, because it's the best answer I can give you. I can't guarantee you that we're not going to be in some kind of a similar situation next year. I'm not predicting it. I'm not saying that that's going to happen. But what we're doing here is we're just trying to survive and get through this fiscal year.

I would hope -- but you can't run an operation, you can't lead an operation, you can't have so many people dependent and the country dependent on leadership based on hope. I hope that we will be in a better situation all the way around. I've got some confidence that that will occur. But I'm not going to stand here and promise you that it won't.

So we're dealing with what we've got to deal with in front of us right now. We're all trying to get to some high ground for FY 2014, which, as you know, begins October 1st, and then we'll see.

But I know that's not a good answer. No one likes uncertainty. It's a dark cloud that hangs over everybody's lives. I know for your families, I know for every part of your lives, it's not a good answer, but it's an honest answer. We will do everything possible not to -- not to have to be in this situation again, but a good amount of this is out of our control, too. Thank you.

Yes?

Q: Mr. Secretary, thank you for being here. I'm John Bell with OIG. I know some other large agencies have managed to make cuts without resorting to furloughs by cutting their contracting. For example, the Department of State, I know, has done that, isn't going to be furloughing any employees. Is there any possibility that DOD could use those strategies going forward to reduce the number of days or eliminate them altogether? Thank you.

SEC. HAGEL: Thank you. And it's a question that we -- we went into great detail, great depth, great width on. In fact, there are a number of adjustments on this in that general area of contracts and acquisitions and procurement and other accounts. But we did explore it at every, every level. I asked -- that was one of the first questions I asked, was your question.

So we looked at this in every way we could possibly look at it. Bob Hale and people in all the different agencies in the leadership have spent many weekends -- and still do -- going through this. They would come back to me on a Monday or Tuesday and I'd send them back. I'd say, "Go back. Find it somewhere else."

But I think we are -- not I think -- I have confidence that we are running now right to the edge where I just can't hold back any more. I had to make a decision for the good of the security of this country and for everybody. But believe me, we looked at everything, including your question.

All right. Well, again, I wish I could end on a -- oh, we got -- no. We do have somebody back there. Okay.

Q: Hello.

SEC. HAGEL: Hi.

Q: Now that we know that we'll have 11 furlough days, will it be two furloughs per pay period? Or will it be one furlough per pay period?

SEC. HAGEL: We're looking at -- and I don't want to get too deep into how we're going to administer it, because all your supervisors should have by now -- or will this afternoon, I think -- get directions and instructions on all these specific questions, yours being one of them.

But I think what they're thinking about -- and, Bob, just -- it's two per pay period, right? So that'd be, what, one per week? Yeah. But I think that's the general guideline, is that right?

But your supervisors, all the leaders of your institutions will have the specific guidelines on this. And I know there's -- there will be questions. I know that. We've tried to think through every possible question, and we've got a lot of pieces to this. We've got unions and we've got different authorities. We're dealing with all of them. We've been today talking with all these different authorities, Capitol Hill, think-tanks, the White House, so that what I'm saying to you today is being rolled out with all these different authorities, all day today.

But to your specific question, I think it's two days per pay period, so that -- one day a week. But -- but you will be able to work those things out with your -- with your supervisors.

All right. Well, again, I'm sorry I have to come to you today on this. But thank you. I'm grateful. Our president's grateful. Our country's grateful. And we'll get in, we'll do what we got to do, we'll get out, we'll get on the other side of this, and we'll get it turned around.

And my -- my thoughts and prayers are with your families. And thank your families for -- for what they do. I've always thought families always take the brunt of everything. And I'm not unaware of that, nor is the president or the leadership of our institution. So God bless your families. Thank you very much. (Applause.)