Arkansas judge threatens to drop state AG’s lawsuit against Corrections Board
An Arkansas judge on Tuesday threatened to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the state’s attorney general against the Corrections Board that he would normally represent, the latest in a widening legal fight between the panel and Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders over prisons. Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox on Tuesday criticized Attorney General Tim Griffin for filing a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Board of Corrections without arranging for a special counsel to represent the panel in the case. The judge said he’ll dismiss the lawsuit in 30 days if Griffin doesn’t reach an agreement with the board on a special counsel. Griffin has accused the panel of violating the law when it hired an outside attorney in its dispute with Sanders over who runs the state prison system. ARKANSAS SHERIFF ORDERED TO GIVE UP LAW ENFORCEMENT DUTIES AMID OBSTRUCTION, CONCEALMENT CHARGES “The case, at this juncture, from a procedural standpoint, is that the attorney general has sued his own clients, in violation of his duties and responsibilities mandated to him by the Arkansas General Assembly,” Fox wrote. Griffin said he was certain he and his office complied with all ethical obligations and planned to appeal to the state Supreme Court. “The court’s order states that the Board of Corrections is clearly ‘entitled to legal counsel,’” Griffin said in a statement. “There is no dispute about that here. The dispute is whether the board has followed the legal requirements to obtain outside counsel.” Abtin Mehdizadegan, the board’s attorney, said the panel believed Fox’s ruling “recognizes the extreme conflicts of interest presented by the attorney general’s retaliatory lawsuit against the board.” “I expect that the issue of the attorney general’s ethics will continue to be the subject of close scrutiny,” he said in a statement. The board last week suspended state Corrections Secretary Joe Profiri and sued the state over a new law that took away the panel’s authority over Profiri and two other top officials. A judge on Friday issued a temporary order blocking the law and set a hearing for next week in the case. Griffin has asked the court to reconsider its order. The dispute stems from the Sanders administration moving forward with opening temporary prison beds that the board has not approved. Members of the board have said opening the temporary beds would jeopardize the safety of inmates and staff. The board said the blocked law, which would have taken its hiring and firing power over the corrections secretary and given it to the governor, violates Arkansas’ constitution. The blocked law also would have given the corrections secretary, not the board, hiring and firing authority over the correction and community correction division directors.
Why the war on Gaza is not making Israel safer
Political scientist Ian Bremmer says the human carnage of Israel’s war on Gaza is strengthening Hamas. Contrary to what Israeli leaders say, the war on Gaza is not making Israel safer, according to political scientist Ian Bremmer, founder of Eurasia Group, which studies geopolitical risk. Bremmer argues that the human carnage created by Israel in Gaza over the past few weeks is strengthening Hamas and isolating Israel. Meanwhile, United States support for Israel’s actions has made Washington “more isolated … than the Russians were when they invaded Ukraine”. Join host Steve Clemons as he asks Bremmer about the war on Gaza and its global ramifications, including the roles played by Iran, Saudi Arabia and some European countries. Adblock test (Why?)
Iraq’s governing Shia alliance strengthened in provincial elections
The Iran-aligned coalition wins 101 out of 285 seats, and is boosted in advance of parliamentary elections in 2025. Iraq’s governing Shia alliance has reportedly emerged as the biggest winner in the country’s provincial elections. The loose coalition of Shia groups, called the Shia Coalition Framework (CF), took 101 of 285 council seats in the December 18 vote, Iraqi state media reports. The election result is seen as a boon to the Iran-aligned groups, which have been steadily gaining influence, in advance of a parliamentary election scheduled for 2025. CF already forms the biggest bloc in Iraq’s parliament. The grouping ran three lists in the provincial election, but said they would govern together after the vote, the first such agreement in a decade. The victory will strengthen the CF’s influence over Iraq’s powerful provincial councils, which are responsible for appointing regional governors and allocating health, transport and education budgets. Who is part of the alliance? The Shia alliance’s top list, which won 43 seats, brings together several of Iraq’s most influential Iran-allied military-political groups, including the Badr Organisation and Asaib Ahl al-Haq. The second list, which took 35 seats, is headed by former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The third, winning 23 seats, includes moderate Shia leader Ammar al-Hakim and former Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi. Together, the allied lists will control 101 seats in the provincial assemblies, more than any other bloc. The CF’s electoral success was aided in part by a boycott from one of its main rivals, the populist Shia leader Moqtada al-Sadr. Al-Sadr, whose party resigned from parliament in 2022 after failing to form a governing coalition, called on his supporters to stay away from the polls so as not to grant legitimacy to a “corrupt” ruling class. Other contenders in Monday’s vote included Sunni business mogul Khamees Khanjar, whose list won 14 seats, and deposed Sunni Parliament Speaker Mohammed Halbousi, who took 22 seats, including winning the most votes in Baghdad and Anbar province. A host of local lists and smaller groups won the remaining seats. Despite fears of violence, the voting process unfolded largely peacefully, barring a few scattered incidents. In the al-Sadr bastion of Najaf, a stun grenade was hurled at a polling station, although it caused no injuries. Iraq’s election commission said six million people voted in the polls, with a turnout rate of 41 percent. A woman dips her finger in ink after voting in Iraqi provincial council elections, in eastern Baghdad, December 18 [Ahmad al-Rubaye/AFP] From ‘trust’ to ‘service’ The results of the provincial polls, Iraq’s first in a decade, reflected the balance of power in a country where groups close to neighbouring Iran have steadily gained influence. They are a positive sign for Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, who counts on the winning CF alliance as his government’s main backer. Following the vote count, al-Sudani urged quick action to address the country’s development challenges. “I congratulate the political forces and successful candidates in the Provincial Council Elections,” said al-Sudani on the social media platform X. “I hope this trust quickly transforms into tangible public service, contributing to the implementation of government plans for development, reconstruction, and service provision,” he said. Adblock test (Why?)
Poland’s new pro-EU government dismisses state media chiefs
Culture ministry announces sackings citing need to restore impartiality of state news outlets. The management of Polish public television, radio and state news agency PAP have been dismissed and one public news channel that critics say was politicised under the previous government has gone off air. The culture ministry under Poland’s new pro-European Union government announced the dismissals of the chairmen and boards in a statement on Wednesday, citing the need to restore the outlets’ impartiality. Critics say that state-run media, in particular 24-hour news channel TVP Info, became an outlet for propaganda during Law and Justice’s (PiS) eight years in office. On Wednesday TVP Info’s signal disappeared, and so did its website. “The end of TVPiS. TVP Info was turned off,” Civic Platform – the biggest party in the new government – posted on X. Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s coalition, which took power last week, has vowed to create news outlets that take a more balanced approach. On Tuesday, Poland’s new parliament adopted a resolution calling on “all state authorities to immediately take action aimed at restoring constitutional order in terms of citizens’ access to reliable information and the functioning of public media”. The vote prompted PiS lawmakers to stage a sit-in in the state television buildings, with the party officials posing for pictures with the television employees. “This is clearly an attack on the free media, it is a violation of the law,” Piotr Glinski, a former culture minister in the PiS government, told the AFP news agency about the reshuffle. On Wednesday, Maciej Swirski, the head of the National Broadcasting Council, said: “Disabling the television signal and the TVP Info websites is an act of lawlessness and recalls the worst times of martial law,” referring to events during the communist era in Poland. Swirski was appointed to the broadcasting council by the last parliament after he was recommended by PiS. “The illegal actions of the Minister of Culture in relation to TVP, Polish Radio and PAP show how the authorities that supposedly care about the rule of law violate it at every step” former PiS Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki wrote on X. “We will not give up. We will not allow for a dictatorship to be built in Poland,” he added. The PiS government was frequently criticised by the opposition and non-profits for trying to stifle independent media and limit freedom of expression. Global media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in 2020 said “partisan discourse and hate speech are still the rule within [Poland’s] state-owned media, which have been transformed into government propaganda mouthpieces.” When Tusk’s government took office, it began reversing policies of the previous administration that many in Poland found divisive. Parties that make up the new government collectively won the majority of votes in the October 15 election. They have vowed to govern jointly under the leadership of Tusk, who served as prime minister from 2007 to 2014 and was head of the European Council from 2014 to 2019. [embedded content] Adblock test (Why?)
Texas flies over 120 immigrants to Chicago in expansion of Gov. Greg Abbott’s busing plan
The flight comes after Chicago officials reportedly cracked down on buses coming from Texas with immigrant passengers. Since last year, Texas has bused over 80,000 immigrants to Democratic-led cities across the U.S.
Ken Paxton and aides ordered to answer questions under oath in whistleblower case
The four whistleblowers asked the court last month to force the attorney general and his aides to sit for deposition, which would require them to answer questions under oath related to the allegations of bribery and corruption.
New York City bans solitary confinement in jails: ‘historic strides’
New York City on Wednesday voted to ban solitary confinement in city jails on the grounds that the practice has caused psychological harm and led to increased death and violence in these institutions. “The [City] Council has taken historic strides to advance justice and safety by banning solitary confinement and improving police transparency,” Speaker Adrienne Adams said in a statement. “The physical and psychological harm caused by solitary confinement leads to increased death and violence in jails, endangering those incarcerated, as well as correction officers and staff.” Under current rules, jail officials can punish violent inmates by isolating them in a cell for up to 23 hours a day for up to 60 days straight for the most serious infractions. The new rules will allow a detainee to be placed into “de-escalation confinement” for up to four hours after an episode of violence, with wellness checks by jail staff every 15 minutes. NEW YORK CITY MIGRANT FAMILIES URGE MAYOR TO REVOKE 60-DAY SHELTER LIMIT The bill also allows any detainee found to have committed a serious infraction to be transferred from a jail’s general population to restrictive housing for up to 60 days in a single year. But the detainee cannot be isolated in a cell away from shared areas for more than 10 hours a day. The bill has seen wide support from public defender groups, prison reform advocates and families of people who have died in custody on Rikers Island. Jumaane Williams, the city’s public advocate and the bill’s prime sponsor, likened isolation to “torture.” He noted that many Rikers Island inmates suffer from mental health issues that are exacerbated by prolonged isolation. The legislation has been opposed by Democratic Mayor Eric Adams, the New York City Police Department, and the Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association. Mayor Adams, a former police captain, has been trying to avoid a federal takeover of the violence-plagued jail complex on Rikers Island. The labor union representing the city’s jail guards has opposed the legislation, saying it will make it more difficult to protect jail workers from violence by detainees. The Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association has said that, even with the current punitive segregation rules in place, there were more than 6,000 episodes of detainees assaulting jail guards in the last three years, including 50 cases of sexual assault. Mayor Adams has already vowed to veto the bill. The council has promised to overrule any veto, which requires the vote of at least two-thirds of its members. Thirty-nine lawmakers voted to pass the bill, and seven opposed. Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
Congress expands scope of Harvard investigation to include allegations of president’s plagiarism
A House of Representatives committee has expanded its inquiry against Harvard University’s handling of antisemitism on campus to include its embattled President Claudine Gay, who is facing a myriad of plagiarism allegations. The chair of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-VA, sent a four-page letter Wednesday to Penny Pritzker, the head of the school’s governing board, alleging that Harvard University applies a different standard of academic integrity to faculty members than to students. The committee cited the university’s Honor Code as justification for the probe. “The Harvard College Honor Code, which is ‘in effect for the academic community of Harvard College beginning in Fall 2015,’ provides: Members of the Harvard College community commit themselves to producing academic work of integrity,” Rep. Foxx wrote. “Does Harvard hold its faculty and academic leadership to the same standards?” EMBATTLED HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT CLAUDINE GAY HIT WITH MORE PLAGIARISM CHARGES The Republican representative highlighted the Ivy League university’s use of federal funding, saying that the funds are contingent on Harvard maintaining compliance with its accreditor, the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE). NECHE requires that accredited universities “works to prevent cheating and plagiarism as well as to deal forthrightly with any instances in which they occur,” the letter said. HARVARD STUDENT SAYS THE DECISION TO KEEP THE PRESIDENT IS ‘PART OF A REALLY LARGE TOXIC CULTURE’ ON CAMPUS Rep. Foxx said that Harvard holds its students to the NECHE standards of plagiarism. “Harvard does hold its students to these high academic and ethical standards: in the 2021-22 school year, the Harvard College Honor Council investigated 42 incidents of plagiarism, 35 allegations of exam cheating, and 19 other Honor Code violations.12 70 of these 100 cases resulted in a finding of responsibility, and 46 resulted in academic probation or mandatory withdrawal,” the letter said. “Again, does Harvard hold its faculty – and its own president – to the same standards?” The letter said that the committee’s “concern” is that if plagiarism standards are not “applied consistently,” then it “cheapens” the university’s academic credibility. “Our concern is that standards are not being applied consistently, resulting in different rules for different members of the academic community,” the letter said. “If a university is willing to look the other way and not hold faculty accountable for engaging in academically dishonest behavior, it cheapens its mission and the value of its education. Students must be evaluated fairly, under known standards – and have a right to see that faculty are, too.” HARVARD BOARD STANDS BY EMBATTLED PRESIDENT CLAUDINE GAY, ADMITS ‘INADEQUATE CITATION’ IN SOME WRITINGS The House Committee on Education and the Workforce demanded Pritzker produce internal documents on allegations of Gay’s plagiarism, disciplinary actions taken against students at the school accused of plagiarism and communications with the NECHE. Foxx asked Pritzker to provide a written response by Dec. 29, 2023. On Dec. 12, scholars alleged that Gay “definitely” plagiarized almost 20 authors in four of her 11 peer-reviewed academic papers, including her doctoral dissertation. The Manhattan Institute’s Christopher Rufo and Karlstack’s Chris Brunet published the initial report alleging plagiarism by Gay. NAACP LEADER DEFENDS HARVARD PRESIDENT CLAUDINE GAY, SAYS CRITICS ARE ‘ADVANCING A WHITE SUPREMACIST AGENDA’ Rufo and Brunet lay out several instances of alleged plagiarism by Gay, including taking a full paragraph from Franklin Gilliam’s and Lawrence Bobo’s paper “Race, Sociopolitical Participation, and Black Empowerment,” which Gay used nearly verbatim in her 1997 Harvard political science doctoral dissertation, “Taking Charge: Black Electoral Success and the Redefinition of American Policies.” The pair noted that while Gay referenced both Bobo and Gilliam in the paper, she did not use quotation marks for the language she pulled and only changed a few words. The Washington Free Beacon analyzed 29 potential instances of plagiarism in Gay’s work that appeared to be lifted from almost a dozen scholars. In at least 10 instances, Gay used complete sentences and paragraphs from sources with minor changes to only a few words, the report states. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The majority of the scholars told the Free Beacon that Gay not only went against her university’s policy on plagiarism but also a basic principle of academic integrity. Harvard did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. Fox News’ Houston Keene and Joe Schoffstall contributed to this report.
Republicans introduce resolution condemning UN agreement to shut down fossil fuels
FIRST ON FOX: House Republicans introduced a resolution Wednesday condemning the United Nations’ recent agreement to accelerate the phase down of global fossil fuel reliance. The lawmakers – Reps. Mary Miller of Illinois and August Pfluger of Texas – introduced the resolution less than a week after the U.N.’s COP28 climate summit in Dubai concluded. The summit saw various new climate initiatives, but delegates were forced into an “overtime” period as they negotiated the final global stocktake agreement which, for the first time ever, incorporated language calling for nations to transition “away from fossil fuels.” “Climate conference participants flew in [to the conference] on fossil fuels, were kept comfortable by fossil fuels, and went home to a privileged lifestyle thanks to fossil fuels,” Miller said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “A net zero carbon world means the world that we know would cease to exist. These climate elitists are forcing governments to starve and freeze their own people to death as part of their sick Climate Cult.” “The shale revolution is responsible for lifting one billion people out of poverty around the world,” added Pfluger. “The green energy cult followers are either oblivious to this fact or indifferent to the horrible consequences their anti-fossil fuels stance will have on humanity. America must separate itself from the U.N. globalists who signed our energy freedom away at COP28. We deserve the most affordable, reliable energy possible – which comes from fossil fuels.” GOP REP INTRODUCES RESOLUTION CONDEMNING UN FOR CALLING ON AMERICANS TO STOP EATING MEAT The Republicans’ resolution states that the U.S. should not promote policies discouraging fossil fuel use. It further states that Congress both condemns the COP28 final agreement and calls on the Biden administration to reject the policies listed. In addition, the resolution notes the importance of fossil fuel production and energy exports for the U.S. economy. High domestic energy production, according to the lawmakers, has led to significant declines in consumer prices. EXPERTS RAISE ALARM AFTER BIDEN STRIKES AGREEMENT WITH CHINA TO SHUT DOWN FOSSIL FUELS Overall, the top-line goal of the U.N. agreement, which COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber characterized as an “historic achievement,” is to ensure future carbon emissions reductions and limit global warming to just 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The world has already warmed about one degree above pre-industrial levels, according to the U.N. In addition to the pledge to phase out fossil fuels, it calls for a tripling of renewable energy capacity by 2030, includes a firm commitment to shutter coal-fired power generation, calls for greater proliferation of electric vehicles, endorses carbon capture technology and disavows fossil fuel subsidies. “The United States supported this call for clearer language about the need to largely phase out fossil fuels, but we know this was a compromise between many parties. And that does not detract from its significance,” Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, who led the U.S. delegation at the summit, told reporters last week. “This text also aligns with the decisions the marketplace has already made,” he said. “The message coming out of this COP is that we are moving away from fossil fuels and we are not turning back.”
Trump keeps massive lead, Haley ties DeSantis for second in new 2024 GOP presidential primary poll
With less than four weeks to go until the first votes in the 2024 White House race, a new national poll indicates former President Donald Trump remains the commanding frontrunner for the Republican nomination. And a Quinnipiac University public opinion survey released Wednesday is also the latest to spotlight that Nikki Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina governor, is tied with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for a distant second place behind Trump. Trump holds the support of two-thirds (67%) of Republican and GOP-leaning voters questioned in the poll, with Haley and DeSantis each drawing 11% support. Multimillionaire entrepreneur and first-time candidate Vivek Ramaswamy grabs the backing of 4%, with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who’s making his second presidential bid, at 3%. RAISING THE STAKES: ARE TRUMP’S EXPECTATIONS IN IOWA TOO HIGH? Trump’s support is the highest in Quinnipiac polling this cycle, as is Haley’s, with DeSantis reaching a new low. “DeSantis continues his yearlong slide. Haley gains momentum. The battle for second place heats up, but it’s unlikely it will send a holiday chill through MAGA world,” Quinnipiac University polling analyst Tim Malloy emphasized. WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLLING IN THE PRESIDENTIAL RACE SHOWS The Quinnipiac poll, conducted Dec. 14-18, is in line with other national polls in the Republican nomination race also released in recent days. Among those surveys is a Fox News poll conducted Dec. 10-13 that indicated Trump at 62% support, DeSantis at 12%, and Haley at 9%. A New York Times/Siena College survey in the field Dec. 10-14 put Trump at 64%, Haley at 11% and DeSantis at 9%. Trump made history earlier this year as the first former or current president to be indicted for a crime, but his four indictments, including charges he tried to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss, have only fueled his support among Republican voters. DeSantis for months was solidly in second place in the GOP nomination race, but his numbers have slipped in recent months. TRUMP CAMPAIGN LAUNCHES ‘EXTREMELY AGGRESSIVE OPERATION’ IN IOWA Haley has enjoyed plenty of momentum in the polls this autumn, thanks in part to well-received performances in the first three Republican presidential primary debates. She leapfrogged DeSantis for second place in New Hampshire, which holds the first primary and votes second after Iowa. And she’s in second place in her home state, another crucial early voting state that holds the first southern contest. Haley’s also working to make a fight of it in Iowa, whose Jan. 15 caucuses lead off the GOP nominating calendar, as she pulled closer to DeSantis. The new Quinnipiac national poll is the latest to indicate that Trump voters are much more firmly set on their choice for the nomination, compared to those backing other Republican contenders. Only 37% of Trump supporters said they may change their mind. That percentage soars to 82% for those supporting Trump’s rivals. AS FRONTRUNNER TRUMP RETURNS TO IOWA, RIVALS HALEY AND DESANTIS TURN UP THE VOLUME — ON EACH OTHER In the 2024 Democratic primary, President Biden stands at 75% support, with author Marianne Williamson, who’s making her second straight White House run, at 13% and Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota at 5%. In a likely general election matchup next November, the poll puts Biden at 47% and Trump at 46%, a virtual tie. But when the November 2024 field expands to include third-party and independent candidates, Trump gains a slight edge over the president. The poll indicates Trump at 38% and Biden at 36% with environmental activist and high-profile vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a scion of arguably the nation’s most famous family political dynasty, at 16%. Progressive university scholar Cornell West stands at 3%, along with Green Party candidate Jill Stein. Kennedy and West face uphill climbs to obtain ballot access in states across the country. The Quinnipiac poll is the latest to find Biden’s approval rating below 40%. He stands at 38% approval and 58% disapproval, basically unchanged from a month ago. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.