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"I wasn't for him initially," Flock says. "I'm a middle-of-the-road Republican." |
Flock's high-rise office on the perimeter of Atlanta is lined with portraits of Thomas Jefferson, Winston Churchill and Teddy Roosevelt, a Republican reformer. That's how Flock sees President Trump. |
"I think he's a radical reformer," he says. "I think we need major change. And I think it takes somebody outside the government to do that." |
Flock says Trump has potential "if he can stay focused." He worries Trump's apparent vanity and penchant for tweeting could prove to be unnecessary distractions. |
It's already a distraction for one young entrepreneur. |
"I'm pretty much just embarrassed to have him as my president," says Latasha Kinnard, CEO of Start Young Financial Group. "I don't reject him but having him has me be embarrassed." |
Kinnard says she used to work in finance for a large corporation, but now has her own business that encourages young black professionals to build wealth. |
"I grew up on the south side of Chicago," she says. "Seeing people struggle with money was something that was just built into my life, and I wanted to tackle that." |
Kinnard says she often votes Democratic, but she doesn't think either political party serves her interests. Her expectations for the Trump administration are pretty low. |
"There is a lot of fear," Kinnard says. "Not just nervousness or anxiety, but just flat out fear that Donald Trump isn't fit to run the country simply because of a lack of empathy for the people who make up this country." |
She checks off a litany of worries — health care, immigration, the idea that alternative facts have a place in political discourse. |
But Kinnard says she believes Trump's presidency can serve as a wake-up call for people to take their civic duties seriously when they see just what's at stake. |
The next launch in SpaceX’s busy manifest this year is scheduled for March 21, when a Falcon 9 rocket will take off from Cape Canaveral and deliver Turkmenistan’s first satellite into orbit. |
The liftoff from SpaceX’s Complex 40 launch pad on Florida’s Space Coast will mark the Falcon 9 rocket’s fourth flight of more than a dozen missions on the docket for 2015. |
The satellite arrived at Cape Canaveral on Feb. 26 aboard a cargo plane after a trans-Atlantic journey from its factory at Thales Alenia Space in Cannes, France. |
Since touching down in Florida, the spacecraft was supposed to undergo final testing and technicians planned to fill it with liquid propellant for in-space maneuvers. Then the two clamshell-like halves of the Falcon 9 rocket’s 17-foot-diameter payload shroud will enclose the satellite before rollout and attachment to t... |
Components for the Falcon 9 rocket are also at Cape Canaveral, and work inside SpaceX’s hangar at the Complex 40 launch pad shifted focus to the upcoming flight after the last launch March 1 with a pair of Boeing-built communications platforms for Eutelsat and Asia Broadcast Satellite. |
Thales Alenia Space is the customer for the March 21 launch, but the spacecraft manufacturer will hand over control of the satellite to the government of Turkmenistan once it is safely in orbit. |
The spacecraft’s official name is TurkmenAlem52E/MonacoSat, in homage to the satellite’s end user and its operating post in space in geostationary orbit at 52 degrees east longitude. |
Monaco has rights to the 52 degrees east slot to be occupied by the Turkmen satellite. In exchange for permitting the spacecraft to reside there, Monaco’s government secured the use of 12 Ku-band transponders on the satellite. |
Luxembourg-based satellite operator SES signed an agreement with Space Systems International Monaco, an entity licensed by Monaco’s government, to commercialize the 12 Ku-band transponders. |
Liftoff of the TurkmenAlem52E/MonacoSat satellite is planned for March 21, less than three weeks since SpaceX’s last launch. If the mission blasts off on time, it will mark SpaceX’s fourth space launch in 10 weeks. |
A Thales spokesperson said the launch window for March 21 is still being finalized. |
The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket will deploy the spacecraft into an arcing transfer orbit with a high point thousands of miles above Earth. The distant orbit, coupled with the satellite’s heavy weight, will keep the launcher from performing an experimental flyback maneuver to test out a concept SpaceX hopes will eventuall... |
The next chance to try that sporty experiment will come with the launch of SpaceX’s commercial Dragon supply ship to the International Space Station, a flight currently set to take off around April 10. |
With a launch weight of about 4,500 kilograms — 9,920 pounds — the satellite is based on the Spacebus 4000 C2 spacecraft bus built by Thales Alenia Space. It is designed for a 15-year service life. |
“Once operational in orbit, TurkmenAlem52E/MonacoSat will allow Turkmenistan to operate its first national satellite telecommunications system, ensuring enhanced, secure telecommunications for the country,” Thales wrote in a mission summary posted on the company’s website. |
The satellite will reach users across Central Asia, Europe and Africa. |
Thales said it built the satellite and had it ready for shipment in 27 months. The launch was set for November 2014, but delays in SpaceX’s manifest kept the satellite from launching until this month, according to Thales. |
As part of its contract with the Turkmenistan Ministry of Communications, Thales manufactured the spacecraft, provided ground support equipment for two satellite control stations, selected SpaceX as the launch services provider and procured insurance coverage. |
Thales also trained Turkmen engineers to operate the satellite once it is in orbit. |
SpaceX and Thales announced the satellite and launch deals in June 2013. |
BUCHEON (The Korea Herald/ ANN) - South Korean actress and rising director Ku Hye-sun over the weekend dismissed recent rumours that she was either pregnant or had undergone plastic surgery. |
She laughed off the speculation while speaking on Saturday (July 14) at the 22nd Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival. She had been invited to talk about her new 10-minute short film Mystery Pink. |
Since the festival opening last Thursday, online forums have been abuzz over Ku's supposedly swollen face, with some suggesting she is either pregnant or recovering from aesthetic surgery. |
Ku said afterwards on her social media accounts that she had simply gained weight from eating too much. |
During Saturday's interview, she mentioned the rumours again, saying she found it amusing how the matter had garnered attention. |
She also talked about accepting changes in her body. |
"At times I do feel sad that time passes by, but I think that I am myself now and will also be myself in the future," she said. |
The 33-year-old rose to fame for her role in the 2009 K-drama Boys Over Flowers. She made her directorial debut with the 2011 film The Peach Tree, produced under her own brand. |
She has been married since 2016 to 31-year-old actor Ahn Jae-hyun, her co-star in the 2015 TV show Blood. At the film festival on Saturday, she said she might ask him to appear in future films, according to online news portal Soompi. |
Of five area coaches, three are picking the Patriots while two are rolling with the Rams. |
The Super Bowl is just a day away. |
The Los Angeles Rams and New England Patriots are set for, what I believe, should be a National Holiday, as well as the Monday after the Super Bowl because I ingested way too much spicy food to function. |
But before the festivities kick off and you travel to your annual Super Bowl party with your platter full of your best chicken wings buckled into the passenger seat, let's check in with the football geniuses of Richland County — high school football coaches —to see who they are picking as the 2019 Super Bowl Champions. |
First, we begin with a fella who knows championships pretty well, Clear Fork coach Dave Carroll. |
"I am picking the Patriots 31-14," Carroll said. "They have the system, the coaching, the players and the dynasty on their side." |
You sure you are talking about the Pats, coach? Because you perfectly described your Clear Fork Colts the last two years. The Colts are on a 20-game regular season winning streak with back-to-back Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference titles. Talk about the system, the coaching, the players and the dynasty. |
Speaking of dynasty, Lucas coach Scott Spitler agrees with Carroll that the Pats are going to run away with the Super Bowl much like his Cubs run away with the football all the way to the end zone. |
"I will go with the Patriots," Spitler said. "For no other reason than I think Tom Brady and that experience." |
Again, sounds like Spitler is also talking about his Cubs and Jeb Grover with all that experience and a key player leading a team to victory. |
Rounding out the Patriots pickers is new Lexington head coach Tim Schied. The new coach in town knows defense and believes the Pats' experience on that side of the ball will lead them to victory. Unfortunately, he said the worst words anyone can say to a Browns fan like me, "Die-hard Steelers fan." Ugh. |
"I will take the Patriots 24-17," Schied said. "These are two of the best NFL offenses, but it is the Super Bowl so the defenses will step up. As a die-hard Steelers fan, it pains me to pick the Patriots. However, you cannot bet against the G.O.A.T in Tom Brady. If I am wrong, I will be happy too. Win-win." |
Coach, I am glad your taste in high schools is a lot better than your taste in NFL teams. Go Lex! |
Finally, we get to the two who are willing to go out on a limb, or walk the plank, and pick against Tom Brady and the Patriots. |
No surprise here, but Madison coach Dave Stupka picked the Rams — uh, the Los Angeles Rams. He wasn't about to commit the cardinal sin and bet against any team that shares its nickname with his on-the-rise squad. |
"I have the Rams winning 34-23," Stupka said. "Wade Phillips will have that Rams D ready to play." |
Coach, if the Rams defense is as prepared as Tim Niswander's defense, I have faith in your pick. |
Rounding out the Rams pickers is Plymouth coach Mark Genders. He believes the game is going to come down to a field goal and has faith in Greg Zuerlein, hurt foot and all, over Stephen Gostkowski. |
"I like the Rams with Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh," Genders said. "They will be able to attack Tom Brady with just four. Rams win it 31-28." |
Coach, I would like your pick if your boy Austin Roblin was the one doing the kicking for the Rams. |
So there you have it. Straight from the experts' mouths. By a 3-2 margin, the Patriots will win the Super Bowl. |
I am going with the Rams. I just think Sean McVay is going to coach with total disregard for human life. What does he have to lose? He is four years older than me. He is going to be a regular in the Super Bowl for years to come. I think that mentality will lead him to make the unconventional play calls and lead the Ram... |
My dad thinks I'm nuts. |
Below are the snaps counts from the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday night loss to the Chicago Bears. |
As far as surprises go, rookie wide receiver Markus Wheaton only played eight snaps in the game after head coach Mike Tomlin hinted last week he would see more playing time moving forward. |
Tight end Heath Miller played 39 snaps in his season debut and that was nearly 60% of all offensive snaps. Miller, according to Tomlin, was on a snap count. |
Kelvin Beachum played 16 snaps Sunday night and three of those came at left tackle in place of Mike Adams. The other 13 coming snaps were at right tackle in place of Marcus Gilbert. |
Defensively, rookie linebacker Vince Williams once again saw the lion’s share of the work at the buck linebacker position. He played 32 snaps while Kion Wilson played just 11 snaps on defense. |
Safety Robert Golden played 19 snaps against the Bears as that’s how many plays the Steelers defense used their quarters’ package on. |
Dix was an 18-year veteran of the Legislature and is married with three children. |
Sen. Bill Dix, the leader of the Iowa Senate's Republican majority, resigned Monday, just hours after video was posted online showing him apparently kissing a lobbyist at a Des Moines tavern earlier this month. |
Dix met briefly with his Republican colleagues behind closed doors at 1 p.m. Minutes later, a Senate aide provided reporters with a copy of a letter Dix had written to Iowa Senate President Jack Whitver and House Speaker Linda Upmeyer. |
The letter read, "I resign my position as Iowa State Senator and Majority Leader effective at 2 p.m. today, March 12, 2018." |
The Senate leader's stunning resignation came only a few hours after the Iowa Starting Line political website posted a 52-second video in which Dix and a female lobbyist are shown sitting next to each other on barstools, reportedly at the Waveland Tap at 4704 University Ave. in Des Moines. In the final seconds of the v... |
Whitver issued a statement Monday afternoon regarding Dix's departure. "I believe he made the right decision for himself and for his district, but most importantly, I believe he made the decision in the best interest of his family," the Senate president said. Earlier in the day, Whitver said he was "absolutely” unaware... |
Whitver said Senate Republicans will continue to move the policies Iowans elected them to pursue. He said a new Senate majority leader will be elected on Wednesday. |
Upmeyer said legislators need to be aware that they are in positions of power and should know to avoid romantic relationships with people who could be seeking to influence their decision-making. |
However, Secretary of the Senate Charles Smithson said there had been no complaints of misconduct filed against Dix prior to his resignation. Smithson said he will consult with the Legislature’s new human resources director to determine if there is still any need to investigate any matters involving the Legislature’s p... |
As a lobbyist, the woman’s professional responsibilities would include attempting to influence Dix on matters of public policy. As the leader of the Republican majority in the Senate, Dix controls what legislation comes up for debate. He is an 18-year veteran of the Legislature and is married with three children, accor... |
Several lawmakers and other elected officials had said earlier Monday that the behavior depicted in the video was inappropriate. |
Asked about the situation at her regular weekly news conference, Gov. Kim Reynolds had said she expected to meet with Dix later on Monday to hear the facts directly from him. Until then, she said, she would not comment. |
"Iowans hold their elected officials to a high standard. They expect us to lead, and I expect to lead," Reynolds said. "But I want to know the facts. I’m extremely disappointed with what I’m hearing, but until I have an opportunity to hear his story I’m not going to comment." |
Sexual harassment has been a major issue in the Legislature and particularly in the Iowa Senate as a result of a $1.75 million settlement reached last year in a case involving former Senate Republican Caucus Communications Director Kirsten Anderson. |
Dix faced calls for his resignation over the Senate's handling of that case, which resulted in the hiring last year of the human resources manager for the Iowa Legislature who could investigate allegations of sexual harassment and provide training to prevent it. |
Dix, 55, a farmer, represented Senate District 25, which covers Butler, Grundy, Hardin, and Story counties. He served 10 years in the Iowa House before leaving for an unsuccessful run for Congress in 2006. He was elected to the Iowa Senate in 2010. |
Dix had been the Senate Republican Caucus leader since the 2013 session. At the time he was elected to the post, he was the Senate GOP’s sixth caucus leader in seven years and he led a minority of Republicans. But he said he hoped to stay a while and he wanted to see Republicans win a majority in the Senate. |
His goal was achieved in the 2016 elections when Republicans gained control with 29 of 50 Senate seats. He helped to lead a tidal wave of conservative legislation in the 2017 session that included dramatically limiting the state’s collective bargaining laws for public employees, restricting abortions, expanding the rig... |
Dix returned in the 2018 session with a promise to write “Chapter 2” of the Republican agenda. That agenda has included passage of a Senate bill that would require steep cuts in state taxes that would total $1.2 billion annually when fully enacted. The bill has been sent to the Republican-led Iowa House, which is writi... |
Dix grew up in northeast Iowa, graduating from Janesville High School in 1981. He received a bachelor's degree in agribusiness at Iowa State University four years later. He then sold feed in central Iowa and was a regional sales manager for Cargill, Inc. in southern Minnesota and northeast Iowa before coming home in 19... |
He and his wife, Gerri, farm about 500 acres in Bremer County, and they earn most of their annual net profit from raising melons, squash and pumpkins. They market the produce to retailers in Iowa and Minnesota. |
Dix recalled in 2012 interview being raised in a family where it was impressed on him that it was important to support good people for public office, and his dad was a township trustee for years. So when he returned home, he agreed to become Butler County Republican chairman, and four years later, he was elected to the... |
Just as former Gov. Terry Branstad has said he felt compelled to return to office in 2010, Dix said he also felt an obligation to come back and help fix the state's financial troubles, which had suffered as the nation faced the worst recession since the 1930s. |
"No question about it. I had been appropriations chairman in the Iowa House, and I couldn't believe the degree to which we had made a mess of our state finances. I knew it didn't have to be that way. That was my primary interest in running — to fix that mess," Dix said in a 2012 interview. |
Boulevard have been relegated to the First Division after failing to beat Southampton Rangers in a do-or-die match for both teams at Southampton Oval. |
Rangers began yesterday level on points with Blazers but above them in the table courtesy of their superior goal difference, and required only point to preserve their top-flight status. |
However, Blazers hopes of pulling off a Great Escape had been boosted following their recent wins against Robin Hood and St Davids, and they came agonisingly close to fulfilling their mission. |
In the final few seconds substitute striker Temeiko Wilson struck a powerful header but watched in despair as a Rangers defender flung his body across the goal-line to deny Blazers what would have surely been the match winner. |
Mel Gibbons, the Blazers midfielder, set the tone for the frantic affair, drawing first blood with a venomous strike from distance that cannoned off the Rangers crossbar before bouncing to safety. |
Rangers were also showing plenty of attacking intent and went close to scoring the games opener when Adrian Burrows flashed a header wide from a dangerous Michael Williams cross. |
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