Story highlights Tsarnaev has said his brother drove the attack and they had no international ties\nFederal investigators return Boylston Street to city of Boston but it remains closed\nHis brother was killed during a police chase early Friday\nBoston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has told investigators his older brother Tamerlan was the driving force behind last week 's attack and that no international terrorist groups were behind them , a U.S. government source said Monday .\nPreliminary interviews with Tsarnaev indicate the two brothers fit the classification of self-radicalized jihadists , the source said . Dzhokhar Tsarnaev , wounded and held in a Boston hospital , has said his brother -- who was killed early Friday -- wanted to defend Islam from attack , according to the source .\nThe government source cautioned that the interviews were preliminary , and that Tsarnaev 's account needs to be checked out and followed up on by investigators .\nAnd a federal law enforcement official told CNN that while investigators have seen nothing yet to indicate the suspects were working with anyone else , a lot of work remains before they can say confidently that no others were involved . That official would not comment on any motive or specifics on what Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has communicated to officials .\nThe 19-year-old has been charged with using and conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death , and one count of malicious destruction of property by means of an explosive device resulting in death . He was heavily sedated and on a ventilator at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital , but was `` alert , mentally competent and lucid '' during the brief initial court appearance at his bedside on Monday , U.S. Magistrate Judge Marianne Bowler found .\nDuring the hearing , Tsarnaev communicated mostly by nodding his head , though he once answered `` No '' when Bowler asked him if he could afford a lawyer , according to a transcript of the proceeding . A public defender was appointed to represent him .\nInvestigators have been asking Tsarnaev whether there are more bombs , explosives caches or weapons beyond those already found by police , and if anyone else was involved in the attacks , a source with first-hand knowledge of the investigation told CNN . Investigators are going into Tsarnaev 's room every few hours to ask questions in the presence of doctors , the source said .\nFederal agents at first questioned Tsarnaev without reading him his Miranda rights , under an exception to the rule invoked when authorities believe there is an imminent public safety threat , a Justice Department official said over the weekend . But by the time of the hospital room proceeding , government sources said he had been read his rights , and Bowler reviewed those with him again Monday .\nTsarnaev had been shot in the head , neck , legs and one hand , according to an FBI affidavit supporting the charges . He had lost a lot of blood and may have hearing loss from two flash-bang devices used to draw him out of the boat , the source said .\n-- armed with handguns and explosives -- apparently were planning another attack before the shootout disrupted their efforts . It was n't clear whether Tsarnaev was wounded during his capture Friday night or in an earlier shootout with police that left his 26-year-old brother dead . Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis said the brothers -- armed with handguns and explosives -- apparently were planning another attack before the shootout disrupted their efforts .\n`` I believe that the only reason that someone would have those in their possession was to further attack people and cause more death and destruction , '' Davis said on CNN 's `` Starting Point '' Monday .\nInvestigators are also trying to determine whether anyone else was involved in the bombings . But Davis , speaking Sunday to CNN 's Don Lemon , said that he was confident that the brothers were `` the two major actors in the violence that occurred . ''\n`` I told the people of Boston that they can rest easily , that the two people who were committing these vicious attacks are either dead or arrested , and I still believe that , '' he said .\nMeanwhile , after a week of combing the downtown thoroughfare where the bombs went off for evidence , federal authorities handed control of Boylston Street back to the city . But the blocks around the bomb sites remain closed to the public while Boston officials clean up the area and make sure the buildings are safe to occupy .\n`` This area will be opened up to businesses over the next few hours , and then the people will be back here in a day or so , '' Davis said . `` And they will be walking up and down this street , and the terrorists will understand that they can not keep us down . ''\nA police honor guard , accompanied by a bagpiper , lowered the flag that had flown at the finish line of last week 's marathon and presented it to Mayor Thomas Menino to mark the occasion . Shortly afterward , workers in bright yellow suits began hosing down and scrubbing the sidewalks around the second bomb site .\nAmong the pieces of evidence collected from Boylston Street during the past week was a tree that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev may have leaned against before the bombing , according to a source who receives regular intelligence briefings on the Boston bombings . The source said the tree -- located at the site of the second blast -- was removed along with the surrounding grate , where the explosive device 's circuit board was found .\nThe decision to charge Tsarnaev in civilian court put an end to speculation that he would be charged as an enemy combatant , a designation sometimes used against terrorists . White House spokesman Jay Carney said that Tsarnaev is a naturalized U.S. citizen and can not be tried by a military commission .\nTrying Tsarnaev in civilian courts -- like `` hundreds of terrorists '' to date -- is `` absolutely the right way to go and the appropriate way to go , '' Carney said . `` We have a long history of successfully prosecuting terrorists and bringing them to justice , and the president fully believes that that process will work in this case . ''\nThat disappointed Sen. Lindsey Graham , R-South Carolina , who has been calling for Tsarnaev to be handed over to U.S. intelligence as an `` enemy combatant . ''\n`` There is ample evidence here on the criminal side , '' Graham said . `` A first-year law student could prosecute this case . What I am worried about is , what does this individual know about future attacks or terrorist organizations that may be in our midst ? We have the right to gather intelligence . ''\nGraham also said there was also `` ample evidence '' that the bombings were `` inspired by radical ideology . ''\nBut while Tamerlan Tsarnaev apparently became increasingly radical in the past three or four years , according to an analysis of his social media accounts and the recollections of family members , there was no evidence Monday that he had any active association with international jihadist groups .\nTamerlan Tsarnaev , 26 , died after a shootout with police early Friday . Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was captured that night , after police found him hiding in a boat in the back yard of a house in the Boston suburb of Watertown , Massachusetts .\nWith one suspect dead and the other hindered in his ability to communicate , investigators are eager to speak to Tamerlan Tsarnaev 's wife , Katherine Russell , to see what she might know about incidents leading up to the bombings .\nOn Monday , her attorney said she learned of her husband 's alleged involvement through news accounts .\n`` She knew nothing about it at any time , '' Amato DeLuca said in response to questions about whether Russell knew of plans to attack the marathon .\nTsarnaev stayed home and cared for the couple 's 2-year-old daughter while his wife worked long hours as a home-care aide , according to DeLuca .\n`` They 're very distraught . They 're upset . Their lives have been unalterably changed . They 're upset because of what happened , the people that were injured , that were killed . It 's an awful , terrible thing , '' he said . `` And of course ( for ) Katy , it 's even worse because what she lost -- her husband and the father of her daughter . ''\nThe Tsarnaev family hails from the Russian republic of Chechnya and fled the brutal wars there in the 1990s . The two brothers were born in Kyrgyzstan ; Dzhokhar became a U.S. citizen in 2012 , while Tamerlan was a legal U.S. resident .\nAn FBI official said agents interviewed Tamerlan Tsarnaev in 2011 at the request of the Russian government . The FBI said Russia claimed that he was a follower of radical Islam and that he had changed drastically since 2010 .\nBut the Russian government 's request was vague , a U.S. official and a law enforcement source said Sunday . The lack of specifics limited how much the FBI was able to investigate Tamerlan , the law enforcement official said .\nIn August 2012 , soon after returning from a visit to Russia , the elder Tsarnaev brother created a YouTube channel with links to a number of videos . Two videos under a category labeled `` Terrorists '' were deleted . It 's not clear when or by whom .\nTamerlan Tsarnaev attended prayers periodically at the Islamic Society of Boston 's mosque in Cambridge , a board member told CNN 's Brian Todd . In a statement issued Monday , the society said he twice interrupted sermons -- once in November to express his opposition to celebrating any holiday as un-Islamic , and once in January when he tore into the preacher for citing civil rights leader Martin Luther King .\nThe second time , the congregation shouted back , `` Leave now , '' the statement said .\n`` After the sermon and the congregational prayer ended , a few volunteer leaders of the mosque sat down with the older suspect and gave him a clear choice : either he stops interrupting sermons and remains silent or he would not be welcomed , '' it said . `` While he continued to attend some of the congregational prayers after the January incident , he neither interrupted another sermon nor did he cause any other disturbances . ''\nTamerlan Tsarnaev `` began coming intermittently to our congregational prayers on Friday over a year ago and occasionally to our daily prayers , '' the statement read . `` The younger suspect was rarely seen at the center , coming only occasionally for prayer . ''\nOne of the victims , Krystle Campbell was memorialized Monday morning in a service at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Medford , Massachusetts . After the service , police officers lined the street in front of the church as other officers wearing dress uniforms saluted as the casket bearing her remains was taken from the church and loaded into a hearse .\nAnother memorial service was scheduled Monday night at Boston University for Lingzi Lu , a student from China . Lu was a graduate student in mathematics and statistics . Before coming to Boston , she won an academic scholarship to the Beijing Institute of Technology , where she received accolades for her math skills .\nOn Wednesday , Vice President Joe Biden will attend the memorial service for MIT police officer Sean Collier , who was allegedly killed by the Tsarnaev brothers .\nA week after the marathon bombings , 50 people remain hospitalized , including two in critical condition , according to a CNN tally .\nPatients at Boston Medical Center have received visits from war veterans who have also suffered amputations . The vets , Dr. Jeffrey Kalish said , told patients that their lives are n't over because they 've lost limbs .\n`` We 've seen really tremendous success and great attitudes , '' he said .\nAlso Monday , Davis -- the Boston police commissioner -- said transit system police officer Richard Donohue , wounded in the firefight with the Tsarnaev brothers , was improving .\n`` He was in grave condition when he went to the hospital , so we 're very optimistic at this point in time , and our prayers are with him and his family , '' he said .


CLOSE France launched `` massive '' air strikes on the Islamic State group 's de-facto capital in Syria on Sunday night , destroying a jihadi training camp and a munitions dump in the city of Raqqa . ( Nov. 15 ) AP\nFrance 's military launched `` massive '' retaliatory airstrikes against Islamic State sites in Syria on Sunday night , saying French aircraft struck a command center and training camp at Raqqa .\nThe French Air Force posted videos on its Facebook page of the planes embarking on the raid of the extremist group 's de facto capital . The strikes come two days after the worst attacks in Paris since World War II . The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks at six sites that killed 132 people and wounded hundreds more .\nThe French Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted a command post , a training camp and a weapons depot , dropping 20 bombs on Raqqa . It said 10 fighter jets in the operation came from the United Arab Emirates and Jordan in coordination with U.S. forces .\nSpeaking in Turkey at the G-20 summit , French Foreign Minister Lauren Fabius said , `` France has always said that because she has been threatened and attacked by ( Isis ) it would be normal that she react in the framework of self defense , '' The Financial Times reported . `` It would be normal to take action . That ’ s what we did with the strikes on Raqqa , which is their headquarter . We can not let ( Isis ) act without reacting . ”\nA U.S.-led coalition that includes France has been conducting airstrikes against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria since last year .\nA group of anti-Islamic State activists in Syria called Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently reported Sunday that at least 30 airstrikes had hit Raqqa `` so far . ''\n`` No civilians hit so far , the hospitals are reporting . Electricity and water shut down . Panic among the civilians , ” the group posted on its website . “ Areas hit : Stadium , museum , hospital , government building ( municipal ) . ”\n“ It ’ s sad how it always falls on our heads . Pray for us , ” the group said .\nThe group was created by 17 Syrian activists in April 2014 to document abuses by the Islamic State after the militant group took over and declared the northern Syrian city of Raqqa to be the caliphate ’ s capital .\nWorking anonymously for their safety , members of Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently secretly film and report from within the city and send the information to local and outside news media .


The lone surviving suspect in the bombing attack on the Boston Marathon one week ago is communicating in writing , and could be ready to be questioned by an elite FBI team\nAs Boston prepared to mark with a moment of silence the passing of a week since the terror attack that killed three and wounded at least 176 , Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was believed to be unable to speak but awake and responding to questions , possibly from medical staff . Tsarnaev is under heavy guard at Boston 's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center , and is in serious condition with several injuries , including a possible gunshot wound to the neck .\nUSA Today reported that the suspect began answering `` substantive '' questions from authorities Sunday night , but that could not be independently confirmed . If the interrogation has indeed begun , prosecutors may have just 48 hours before he must be read his Miranda rights and granted the right to remain silent and to have an attorney . White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Monday that Tsarnaev , who is a U.S. citizen , will be tried in civilian courts and not held as an enemy combatant .\nInvestigators believe the throat wound that left the 19-year-old suspect unable to speak may have been self-inflicted in a failed suicide bid that may have come as police closed in on him , as he hid inside a boat trailered in a backyard in Watertown , Mass. , late Friday .\nU.S. Senate Intelligence Committee member Dan Coats , R-Ind. , told ABC Sunday the injuries may leave the suspect permanently unable to speak .\n“ The information we have is that there was a shot to the throat , '' Coats said . `` And it ’ s questionable whether — when and whether -- he ’ ll be able to talk again . ”\nMeanwhile , Massachusetts Gov . Deval Patrick has asked residents to observe a moment of silence at 2:50 p.m. Monday , the time the first of two bombs exploded near the finish line . Bells will ring across the city and state afterward .\nThe most serious charge available to federal prosecutors would be the use of a weapon of mass destruction to kill people , which carries a possible death sentence . Massachusetts does not have the death penalty .\nDavis also said Sunday authorities believe the suspects also were likely planning other attacks based on the cache of weapons uncovered during the Thursday night shootout , calling the stockpile `` as dangerous as it gets in urban policing . ''\n`` We have reason to believe , based upon the evidence that was found at that scene -- the explosions , the explosive ordnance that was unexploded and the firepower that they had -- that they were going to attack other individuals , '' Davis said Sunday on CBS ' `` Face the Nation . '' `` That 's my belief at this point . ''\nDavis added on `` ███ Sunday '' that authorities can not be positive there are n't more explosives that have n't been found , but the people of Boston are safe .\nAlso Sunday , a lawyer for the wife of Tamerlan Tsarnaev said federal authorities have asked to speak with his client as part of their investigation .\nAuthorities went to the suburban Rhode Island home of Tsarnaev 's in-laws Sunday evening , where Katherine Russell Tsarnaev has been staying . Lawyer Amato DeLuca tells The Associated Press that she did not speak with them , and they are discussing how to proceed .\nThe twin bombings killed three people and wounded at least 176 .\nPatrick told NBC on Sunday that surveillance video clearly puts Dzhokhar Tsarnaev at the scene of the attack .\n`` It does seem to be pretty clear that this suspect took the backpack off , put it down , did not react when the first explosion went off and then moved away from the backpack in time for the second explosion , '' Patrick said . `` It 's pretty clear about his involvement and pretty chilling , frankly .\nAccording to media accounts , Tsarnaev and his brother , Tamerlan , were Muslims who recently gravitated to a radical strain of Islam , going so far as to post Anti-American , jihadist videos on social-media sites . Both are thought to have as-yet-unprobed ties to a radical Muslim cleric hellbent on the destruction of the American way of life .\nA day-long dragnet for Tsarnaev ended Friday , with police capturing the suspect covered in blood and hiding in a boat in the backyard of a man who called 911 after becoming suspicious of activity on his property .\n`` We got him , '' Boston Mayor Tom Menino tweeted moments later , as neighbors gathered to form a gauntlet of cheers while a phalanx of police cars departed the scene .\nPolice moved in on Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Friday evening after a tip led them to the home on Franklin Street .\nNeighbors said they heard more than 30 shots likened to `` a roll of firecrackers shooting off . '' Police swarmed the scene , and several explosions , possibly police concussion grenades , were heard after a robot moved in on the boat . Less than two hours later , at about 9 p.m. , the suspect , believed to have been injured in a wild shootout that spanned Thursday night to Friday morning , was being taken to Beth Israel Hospital .\nNo police were injured when shots were fired by the boat .\nSources told ███ the shed and the boat had been searched earlier , but a local man noticed a door to it had been opened , saw blood on the tarp and called police .\n`` It was a call from a resident of Watertown , '' Watertown Police Chief Edward Deveau said . `` We got that call , and we got the guy . ''\nDavis said Tsarnaev was in serious condition and was found `` covered with blood . '' He did not come out from inside the boat willingly , despite the efforts of negotiators , Davis said .\n`` We assume that those injuries came from the gunfire the night before , '' Davis said .\nHe also said Tsarnaev did not have any explosives with him when he was taken into custody .\n`` I , and I think all of the law enforcement officials , are hoping for a host of reasons the suspect survives , '' Patrick said after a ceremony at Fenway Park to honor the victims and survivors of the attack Saturday . `` We have a million questions , and those questions need to be answered . ''\nThe hiding place was found just moments after police said their hunt for Tsarnaev , one of two radical Muslim brothers suspected in Monday 's attack , had gone cold and urged people to `` go about your business . ''\nShortly after the capture was announced , Watertown residents poured out of their homes and lined the streets to cheer police vehicles as they rolled away from the scene .\nCelebratory bells rang from a church tower . Teenagers waved American flags . Drivers honked . Every time an emergency vehicle went by , people cheered loudly .\n`` Tonight , our family applauds the entire law enforcement community for a job well done , and trust that our justice system will now do its job , '' said the family of 8-year-old Martin Richard , who died in the bombing .\nEarly in the day , police told residents of several city neighborhoods , especially Watertown , to stay inside . School was canceled , bus and train service suspended and people were even told not to venture out for work . But those restrictions were lifted at the news briefing Friday night about 15 minutes before the gunshots were heard .\nThe boat Tsarnaev hid under was just outside the tight perimeter where Black Hawk helicopters patrolled the sky and police went door-to-door hunting for him , police said . Police say he and his older brother placed the deadly bombs , at least one of which was made from a pressure cooker packed with explosives and shrapnel , at the race , killing three and injuring more than 180 . The sibling suspects are from Dagestan , a province in Russia that borders Chechnya , but have been in the U.S. for as much as a decade ..\nOn Thursday night , hours after the radicalized Muslims were fingered by the FBI and their images circulated around the world , they killed a Massachusetts Institute of Technology police officer and carjacked an SUV from a man who later escaped . The brothers led police on a chase through city streets that included a wild shootout that saw some 200 shots fired and the suspects hurling pipe bombs from the SUV . Bizarrely , police discounted earlier reports that the brothers had robbed a 7/11 , saying although it had been robbed , and they had been caught on surveillance video , they were not the robbers .\nThe pursuit went into Watertown , where Tamerlan Tsarnaev , 26 , was shot several times in the gunfight . But Dzhokhar Tsarnaev somehow slipped away , running over his already wounded brother as he fled by car , according to two law enforcement officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity . Tamerlan Tsarnaev was pronounced dead at Beth Israel Hospital Deaconess Medical Center Friday morning . But at some point following the shootout and car chase , the younger brother fled by foot , according to State Police , who said Friday night they do n't believe he now has access to a car .\nDuring the pursuit , a MBTA transit police officer was seriously injured and transported to the hospital , according to a news release . He was identified as Richard H. Donahue Jr. , 33 , and was at Mount Auburn Hospital in critical but stable condition .\nThe suspects ' bloody rampage claimed the life of MIT Police Officer Sean Collier , 26 , who was found shot to death in his squad car at 10:20 p.m. Thursday in what Davis termed a `` vicious assassination . ''\nMoments after the shooting , the brothers carjacked the Mercedes SUV from Third Street in Cambridge and forced the driver to stop at several bank machines to withdraw money . The driver later told police that the brothers had bragged to him that they were the marathon bombers , law enforcement authorities said .\n“ The guy was very lucky that they let him go , ” Massachusetts State Police spokesman David Procopio said .\nIt was when police were working to activate the tracking device on the stolen SUV , that other patrol officers spotted it in nearby Watertown , touching off the dramatic chase .\nFBI Special Agent Rick Deslauriers said Friday night the FBI pored though thousands of tips , and chased down countless leads in the intense probe following the terror attack on Monday .\n`` This was a truly intense investigation , '' Deslauriers said . `` As a result of that , justice is being served for each of the victims of these crimes . ''


Story highlights A Russian lawmaker says Russia will not push Snowden out\nSnowden wants to return home , but he wants protection from prosecution\nEdward Snowden may stay in Russia longer than first thought .\nSnowden has said the time is n't right for him to return to the United States , where he could face criminal charges for leaking classified information . Russia gave him asylum for a year .\nNow Russia says it will continue to extend asylum protections to Snowden and wo n't send him back home .\nThat word came Friday from Alexy Pushkov , a legislator who is head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Duma , Russia 's lower house . He spoke about Snowden at the World Economic Forum in Davos , Switzerland .\nRussia 's position basically buys Snowden more time as he mulls his next move .\nJUST WATCHED Edward Snowden responds to CNN Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Edward Snowden responds to CNN 01:45\nJUST WATCHED A DOJ deal for Edward Snowden ? Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH A DOJ deal for Edward Snowden ? 04:56\nJUST WATCHED Atty Gen. Holder discusses Snowden case Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Atty Gen. Holder discusses Snowden case 01:36\nSnowden has said he wants to return home but also wants whistle-blower protection . The U.S. government , meanwhile , says it will not offer clemency .\nIn an online chat Thursday , Snowden said that returning to the U.S. `` is the best resolution for all parties , '' but `` it 's unfortunately not possible in the face of current whistle-blower protection laws . ''\nHe pointed out that the U.S. government 's Whistleblower Protection Act does n't cover someone like him , a former government contractor .\n`` There are so many holes in the laws , the protections they afford are so weak , and the processes for reporting they provide are so ineffective that they appear to be intended to discourage reporting of even the clearest wrongdoing , '' he wrote . `` ... My case clearly demonstrates the need for comprehensive whistle-blower protection act reform . ''\nSnowden offered his remarks from Russia , where he 's been since June , having been granted a one-year asylum . Pushkov 's remarks appear to open the door to an extension of that asylum .\nThe U.S. government has n't stayed silent on his case , either .\nOn Thursday , around the time that Snowden was answering questions online , Attorney General Eric Holder said that `` if Mr. Snowden wanted to come back to the United States and enter a plea , we would engage with his lawyers . ''\nThe government would take the same tack with anyone willing to plead guilty , Holder said at an event at the University of Virginia 's Miller Center .\nBut in Snowden 's case , the attorney general insisted , `` Clemency is n't something that we ( are ) willing to consider . ''


Sen. John McCain said Thursday he is worried about a court 's ruling Thursday against the National Security Agency 's phone records collection program , as he believes the United States needs to have the ability to monitor communications . `` It is clear that 9/11 could have been prevented if we had known about the communications , '' the Arizona Republican , who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee , told Fox News . `` We have to have that capability . `` Earlier in the day , a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S . Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled that the bulk collection of Americans ' phone records by the government exceeds what Congress has allowed.The panel permitted the National Security Agency program to continue temporarily as it exists , and urged Congress to better define where the boundaries exist.McCain said it 's important to preserve privacy and not overstep , and `` from time to time the government has done that , '' but still there should be a balance . `` We have to understand this threat , and people seem to have forgotten 9/11 , '' the senator said . `` People do n't understand there are thousands of young people all over the world who are motivated by this radical brand of Islam , which is our enemy . `` McCain pointed out that the Islamic State ( ISIS ) is recruiting people through the Internet . `` It is clear as long as ISIS continues to be perceived as proceeding , they are going to be attracting young men ... who want to go over and fight , '' said McCain . `` Throughout Europe , they have had hundreds of and thousands fighting for them . In the fighting in Iraq , the best fighters for ISIS were foreigners . So look , it is a huge challenge because of the penetration and ability of social media to bring and motivate young people to commit acts of terror and/or flock to Syria or Iraq to fight . Then they come back [ here ] . `` McCain also spoke about a government waste report he has presented with Sen. Tom Coburn , R-Oklahoma , that reveals some of the largest spending problems , including $ 15,000 for the EPA to study emissions from backyard barbecues ; $ 30,000 for Vermont puppet shows , and more.But those pale to the billions that are wasted in the Pentagon , said McCain , where overspending is `` our highest priority to eliminate . ''\nAt the Pentagon , `` we have duplicated staff , and we have staffs that are four and five times larger than they were during the Vietnam War , '' said McCain . `` We have to get rid of the duplicate ways in the Pentagon and get rid of sequestration because it is destroying our ability to fund the nation . ''


Alexander said on Capitol Hill that the two roles shouldn ’ t be divorced . | John Shinkle/███ NSA director defends surveillance\nControversial surveillance practices that spilled into public view through a series of dramatic leaks last week have helped to avert “ dozens of terrorist events ” in recent years , National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander told a Senate committee Wednesday .\nHowever , the longer the NSA director spoke before the Senate Appropriations Committee , the less clear it became just which surveillance programs he was crediting for those successes .\nHis answer came in response to a question from Sen. Patrick Leahy ( D-Vt. ) about call-tracking surveillance conducted under Patriot Act Section 215 .\nAlexander said it was difficult to segregate information obtained under that provision from another practice disclosed by leak last week : a system that gathers bulk data from internet providers , e-mail services and social media sites . That system is aimed at foreigners outside the United States , though it sometimes data from Americans or foreigners on U.S. soil is swept in as well .\n“ These authorities complement each other . The reality is , they work together , ” said Alexander .\nIt was also not clear whether Alexander was attributing the prevention of dozens of terrorist events to the phone-call tracking program or to the use of Section 215 more generally . Beyond the mass collection of phone records revealed last week , that provision can be used to acquire a variety of business records .\n“ Clearly , this authority is being used for something more than phone records , ” Sen. Dick Durbin ( D-Ill. ) said .\nHowever , Alexander made it clear there are limits to the NSA ’ s surveillance\nSen. Susan Collins ( R-Maine ) asked whether it was true that the NSA had the ability to tap into Americans ’ phone calls and electronic communications .\n“ False . I know of no way to do that , ” Alexander responded .\nThe NSA chief , who is also a four-star Army general who oversees the U.S. Cyber Command , said he is pressing to declassify information on how often the information has been useful . “ I ’ m pushing for that , ” he said . “ We do want to get this right and it has to be vetted across the community so what we give you , you know , is accurate . ”\nLeahy complained that the intelligence community has been dismissive of past congressional efforts to rein in the practices .\nThe “ intelligence community has told us we obviously don ’ t have the ability as simple senators to know things as well as you do , ” Leahy said , paraphrasing what he ’ s been told about NSA ’ s programs as : “ Congress shouldn ’ t tinker with it at all . We should simply trust you . ”\nThe Senate hearing was called to address efforts to protect Americans from cyber attacks , but it took less than an hour for senators to turn their focus to the question of government surveillance .\nAt the outset of the session , Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski ( D-Md . ) encouraged her colleagues to put off questions about the hot surveillance issues to other hearings to take place in the future . Multiple times she interrupted their questions of Alexander about domestic surveillance to plead with them to put off questions on the phone records programs .\n“ In the last several days , many intelligence issues have been in the press…I understand that these are issues that are very much on the public ’ s mind and members of the Senate , ” Mikulski said . “ That ’ s not today . That ’ s for another day . ”\nHowever , Mikulski was clearly sensitive to suggestions she was trying to steer the hearing away from the surveillance issues that have dominated the news in recent days . She publicly took exception to a BuzzFeed reporter ’ s tweet saying Mikulski was “ trying hard ” to keep other senators from delving into the data mining issue\n” There is no attempt here to muzzle — stifle any senator from asking any line of question , ” Mikulski insisted .\nWhile he wasn ’ t immediately asked about the revelations of phone-call tracking and Web surveillance aimed at foreigners , Alexander used part of his opening statement to defend his workforce as respectful of privacy .


NSA leaker Edward Snowden 's effort to evade prosecution in the U.S. took a turn toward Latin America Friday after the Presidents of Venezuela and Nicaragua announced they were prepared to grant NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden asylum .\nAlthough there were no concrete details from Presidents Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua or Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela , it is believed that they are the first offers of asylum that Snowden has received since he requested asylum in several countries , including Nicaragua and Venezuela .\n`` As head of state , the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela decided to offer humanitarian asylum to the young American Edward Snowden so that he can live ( without ) ... persecution from the empire , '' President Maduro said , referring to the United States . He made the offer during a speech marking the anniversary of Venezuela 's independence . It was not immediately clear if there were any conditions to Venezuela 's offer .\nIn Nicaragua , Ortega said he was willing to make the same offer `` if circumstances allow it . '' Ortega did n't say what the right circumstances would be when he spoke during a speech in Managua .\nHe said the Nicaraguan embassy in Moscow received Snowden 's application for asylum and that it is studying the request .\n`` We have the sovereign right to help a person who felt remorse after finding out how the United States was using technology to spy on the whole world , and especially its European allies , '' Ortega said .\nMaduro made the asylum offer during a speech marking the anniversary of Venezuela 's independence . It was not immediately clear if there were any conditions to Venezuela 's offer .\nBut his critics said Maduro 's decision is nothing but an attempt to veil the current undignified conditions of Venezuela , including one of the world 's highest inflation rates and a shortage of basic products such as toilet paper .\n`` The asylum does n't fix the economic disaster , the record inflation , an upcoming devaluation ( of the currency ) , and the rising crime rate , '' Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles said in his Twitter account . Maduro beat Capriles in April 's presidential election , but Capriles has not recognized defeat and has called it an electoral fraud .\nThe White House on Friday refused to comment on the asylum offers , referring questions on the matter to the U.S. Justice Department , according to Reuters .\nThe offers came a day after left-wing South American leaders gathered to denounce the rerouting of Bolivian President Evo Morales ' plane in Europe earlier this week amid reports that Snowden might have been aboard .\nSpain on Friday said it had been warned along with other European countries that Snowden , a former U.S. intelligence worker , was aboard the Bolivian presidential plane , an acknowledgement that the manhunt for the fugitive leaker had something to do with the plane 's unexpected diversion to Austria .\nIt is unclear whether the United States , which has told its European allies that it wants Snowden back , warned Madrid about the Bolivian president 's plane . U.S. officials will not detail their conversations with European countries , except to say that they have stated the U.S. 's general position that it wants Snowden back .\nPresident Obama has publicly displayed a relaxed attitude toward Snowden 's movements , saying last month that he would n't be `` scrambling jets to get a 29-year-old hacker . ''\nBut the drama surrounding the flight of Bolivian President Evo Morales , whose plane was abruptly rerouted to Vienna after apparently being denied permission to fly over France , suggests that pressure is being applied behind the scenes .\nSpanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo told Spanish National Television that `` they told us that the information was clear , that he was inside . ''\nHe did not identify who `` they '' were and declined to say whether he had been in contact with the U.S . But he said that European countries ' decisions were based on the tip . France has since sent a letter of apology to the Bolivian government .\nMeanwhile , secret-spilling website WikiLeaks said that Snowden , who is still believed to be stuck in a Moscow airport 's transit area , had put in asylum applications to six new countries .\nThe organization said in a message posted to Twitter on Friday that it would n't be identifying the countries involved `` due to attempted U.S . interference . '' They also called for “ all strong countries ” in the Union of South American Nations to offer Snowden asylym .\nA number of countries have already rejected asylum applications from Snowden .


Soon after he won the White House , President Obama declared to the world , “ The interests that we share as human beings are far more powerful than the forces that drive us apart. ” It was a hopeful sentiment , one aimed at reversing a conflict-based way of thinking that had long pervaded American politics and foreign policy .\nYet an us-versus-them mentality seems to have been par for the course among US spy agencies , starting long before the Obama era . Revelations by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden allege that the NSA tapped the cellphones of as many as 35 world leaders , even German Chancellor Angela Merkel , a close ally .\nThe excuses for this high-level spying do not fit the normal “ everybody does it ” rationale among nations . Electronic snooping of an ally ’ s personal phone is particularly invasive and unnecessary . It hints at paranoia and pessimism run amuck , even in a post-9/11 threat environment . It harks back to the days of Watergate and McCarthyism .\nAs Mr. Obama now tries to restore trust in the United States , he must tell his security officials to be careful in not accepting the view that all people should be pigeonholed into a class or grouping , such as friend or foe . That can easily lead to an oversimplified , black-and-white mode of operation that creates enemies more imagined than real . And it certainly does not reflect Obama ’ s view that humans share more interests than the forces that drive them apart .\nHuman beings are too complex and varied to be stuffed into a label that is then considered determinative of how they will behave . Men are not always from Mars , for example , nor women from Venus . A person ’ s identity lies in individual qualities of thought , not an assemblage of perceptions about them in a mass grouping based on past behavior .\nSifting people into categories is a way to polarize them by “ the other ” and set everyone up for conflict . While much of written history assumes that change comes out of conflicts over differences – barbarian versus civilized , Christians versus Muslim , women versus men – the fact is that progress has been achieved more through cooperation than by contention .\n“ Human relations are ... about blending , borrowing , interacting , and interconnecting , ” says British historian David Cannadine . “ A divided past is in fact only part of the human story . It may be the one that makes the headlines , but , arguably , it ’ s not the only one and it ’ s probably not the most important one either . ”\nJournalists are particularly prone to typecast people by gender , social class , religion , nationality , or even race and ethnicity , a tendency made stronger as the news business struggles to retain audiences . Such an unexamined bias , for example , has led more TV news stations to compartmentalize themselves into liberal ( MSNBC ) and conservative ( Fox News ) , even though Americans tend to mix and match their political views .\nMost people prefer to affirm their individuality while discovering and building their common humanity . They don ’ t see the world as only a “ clash of civilizations ” or a Manichaean struggle between good and evil .\nLanguage by its very nature tends toward labels . That tendency , while helpful at times , can often mislead .\nGet the Monitor Stories you care about delivered to your inbox . By signing up , you agree to our Privacy Policy\nAs Obama now seeks to change how US intelligence agencies select targets for surveillance , he must insist they resist the “ impulse ... to sunder all the peoples of the world into belligerent collectivities , ” as historian Mr. Cannadine states . A balanced view is needed by taking into account people ’ s commonalities as well as their contrasts .\n“ I note the obvious differences between each form and type , ” wrote poet Maya Angelou . “ But we are more alike , my friends , than we are unalike . ”


The National Security Agency is the U.S. government 's primary eavesdropping agency . It intercepts , decodes , and analyzes foreign communications — such as emails , telephone calls , and other `` signals intelligence . '' The Fort Meade , Md.–based agency , which has an annual budget of about $ 10 billion and employs some 40,000 people , has long carried out this mission in the shadows . But a series of leaks by former agency contractor Edward Snowden has revealed the stunning scale of its global surveillance operation . It 's now known that the NSA scoops up and stores billions of internet communications and cellphone records from the U.S. and around the world every day , which can then be studied by the agency 's legion of code breakers , data miners , and counterterrorism specialists . When President Obama receives his daily intelligence briefing , `` at least 75 percent '' comes from the NSA 's cyberspies , said Mike McConnell , director of national intelligence under President George W. Bush .\nIt was set up by President Truman in 1952 to consolidate the military 's jumble of code-breaking operations into a single , powerful agency capable of cracking the Soviet Union 's communications . The NSA , whose existence remained classified for decades , quickly became the intelligence community 's crown jewel . It ringed the USSR with 100-foot-tall , 1,000-foot-wide antennas that intercepted wireless signals as they bounced between the earth and the ionosphere . It stationed spy ships in the seas , and sent reconnaissance planes and satellites into the skies . Very quickly , the sheer volume of information harvested by the NSA dwarfed the `` human intelligence '' gathered by CIA agents in the field . `` The CIA is good at stealing a memo off a prime minister 's desk , '' said one former NSA director . `` They 're not much good at anything else . ''\nAt times , enormously so . The NSA was the first agency to spot Soviet missiles in Cuba in 1962 . It provided advance warning of China 's first nuclear bomb test in 1964 , and its monitoring of Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev 's limousine telephone gave American negotiators crucial inside information during arms limitation talks in 1972 . But NSA intercepts also led to some colossal blunders . In August 1964 , the agency reported that U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin had been attacked by North Vietnamese boats twice in three days . But the second attack , used by President Johnson to justify an escalation of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War , never occurred . The NSA had overheard North Vietnamese radio operators discussing the first battle , and misinterpreted it as a live combat report . `` It was one of the greatest intelligence mistakes in history , '' said Matthew Aid , author of the NSA history The Secret Sentry .\nYes , though these efforts are sometimes of dubious legality . From the '50s to the early '70s , the NSA operated a program called `` Shamrock '' that saw U.S. telegram companies hand over up to 150,000 messages a month — including many telegrams from ordinary Americans — which agency analysts studied for evidence of Soviet spying . Under Presidents Johnson and Nixon , the NSA worked with the FBI and CIA to monitor the communications of civil rights leaders and anti-war protesters , including Martin Luther King Jr. and Jane Fonda , as well as members of Congress . The exposure of those programs by Idaho Sen. Frank Church led Congress to enact the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in 1978 , which created a secret court to hear warrant requests from intelligence services .\nThe attacks forced the NSA to adapt to the digital age . After Sept. 11 , 2001 , embarrassed the nation 's intelligence community , NSA officials launched a massive effort to capture , store , and analyze emails , texts , and online chats and videos used by terrorist networks . `` They took on a new mission that required sifting vast amounts of data to find a few important signals , '' said Stewart Baker , a former senior Homeland Security official . The NSA ordered America 's largest telecom firms and internet service providers to hand over raw data as it transited their networks . It tapped directly into the fiber-optic cables that constitute the internet 's nervous system , and recruited scores of Silicon Valley experts — including Max Kelly , Facebook 's former chief security officer — to help it navigate the new digital landscape .\nThe agency says it `` touches '' 1.6 percent of all traffic being carried on the internet — about 29.2 petabytes of communication data a day . That 's the equivalent of collecting all the text held in the Library of Congress 2,990 times every day . Intelligence officials argue that these intercepts have provided crucial insights into Iran 's nuclear weapons program , aided the U.S. military 's operations in Iraq and Libya , and helped disrupt dozens of potential terrorist attacks around the world . But some former employees claim the NSA 's ability to collect data is now outpacing its ability to analyze it . `` Despite all this collection , the NSA missed the Boston bombing , the underwear bomber , and the Times Square bomber , '' said James Bamford , a historian of the NSA . `` The problem is the bigger you build the haystack , the harder it is to find the needle . ''\nThe NSA has mastered the art of collecting vast amounts of communications data . It now has somewhere to store it . Last year , the agency opened a $ 1.7 billion data center in the Utah desert , which houses 100,000 square feet of high-performance servers . The computers use 65 megawatts of electricity — about the same as a small city — and generate so much heat that they require 1.5 million gallons of cooling water a day . William Binney , a former NSA technical director turned whistleblower , estimates that the warehouse 's servers can handle five zettabytes of data , which would fill 1.25 trillion DVDs . That means the agency has enough storage to hold `` 100 years ' worth of worldwide communications , [ phone records ] and emails , '' said Binney , `` and then have plenty of space left over to do any kind of parallel processing to try to break codes . ''


Iran 's latest crackdown on freedom includes lashes and prison for seven young adults who posted a video of themselves dancing to the American pop hit `` Happy '' and a death sentence for a blogger accused of insulting Prophet Muhammad .\nThe seven men and women were arrested in May , but then released after self-professed `` moderate '' President Hassan Rouhani tweeted that the regime should lighten up . But the group was forced nonetheless to apologize on television and endure a trial in which they were convicted and each sentenced to 91 lashes . One was given a full year in prison while the others got six months , although their attorney told Iranwire.com the sentences were suspended .\n“ A suspended sentence becomes null and void after a certain period of time , ” attorney Farshid Rofugaran said . For the Happy Group , that period will be three years . “ When it ’ s a suspended sentence , the verdict is not carried out , but if during this period a similar offense is committed , then the accused is subject to legal punishment and the suspended sentence will then be carried out as well . ”\nThe video was part of a global campaign launched by pop star Pharrell Williams and was viewed by more than 100,000 people on YouTube . The six who appeared on the video and a man who shot the footage apologized and said they had been tricked into doing it . After the confession , they were released on bail .\n“ We can accept the verdict or appeal , ” said Rofugaran , adding that his clients are not banned from leaving the country .\nMeanwhile , the ultimate penalty was handed down to Soheil Arabi , a blogger found guilty of insulting the Prophet Muhammad in his postings on Facebook . The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reported that Arabi will be able to appeal the decision .\nRevolutionary Guard agents arrested Arabi , 30 , and his wife last November . Arabi 's wife was released a few hours later , but Arabi was kept in solitary confinement for two months inside the notorious Evin Prison before being found guilty of “ sabb al-nabi ” ( insulting the Prophet ) , on Aug. 30 .\n“ Soheil had eight Facebook pages under different names , and he was charged with insulting the Imams and the Prophet because of the contents of those pages . He has accepted his charges , but throughout the trial , he stated that he wrote the material without thinking and in poor psychological condition , ” a source told the Campaign .


Perhaps taking a page out of the president ’ s political handbook , Washington state ’ s Democratic governor has announced he is placing a moratorium on state executions . No one on death row will be executed during his tenure , he said today at a press conference ; but no one convicted of murder will be released or have their sentences commuted , either . The AP reports :\nGov . Jay Inslee said Tuesday he was suspending the use of the death penalty in Washington state , announcing a move that he hopes will enable officials to `` join a growing national conversation about capital punishment . '' The Democrat said he came to the decision after months of review , meetings with family members of victims , prosecutors and law enforcement . `` There have been too many doubts raised about capital punishment , there are too many flaws in this system today , '' Inslee said at a news conference . `` There is too much at stake to accept an imperfect system . '' Inslee said that the use of the death penalty is inconsistent and unequal . The governor 's staff briefed lawmakers about the move on Monday night and Tuesday morning . Inslee 's moratorium , which will be in place for as long as he is governor , means that if a death penalty case comes to his desk , he will issue a reprieve , which is n't a pardon and does n't commute the sentences of those condemned to death . `` During my term , we will not be executing people , '' said Inslee , who was elected in 2012 . `` Nobody is getting out of prison , period . ''\nOpposing capital punishment on principle is a perfectly legitimate position to take . But does the governor have the legal or judicial authority to unilaterally postpone a state execution ? It seems he does . In fact , one sweeping power vested in the state 's chief executive ( besides , of course , the ability to pardon an offender if he so chooses ) is issuing a “ reprieve , ” which would temporarily save a death row inmate from being executed , according to the Seattle Times :\nAccording to the state Attorney General ’ s website , “ Under RCW 10.01.120 , the Governor has the authority to commute a death sentence to life in prison at hard labor and , upon a petition from the offender , to pardon the offender . A commutation is generally defined as a lessening of the criminal penalty , whereas a pardon is often defined as the termination of the criminal penalty. ” The Attorney General ’ s Office also said that the governor “ has the power to issue a reprieve ( also called a stay of execution or a “ respite ” ) to temporarily delay the imposition of a death sentence . A reprieve is to be issued “ for good cause shown , and as the Governor thinks proper. ” “ Washington ’ s Constitution and state statutes grant the governor significant powers over the fate of individuals sentenced to death , ” Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement Tuesday morning . “ Consequently , the governor has the authority to hit the ’ pause ’ button for executions in Washington . ”\nEighteen U.S. states have abolished the death penalty . In Washington , however , nine men currently sit on death row .


This story is adapted from the False Witness newsletter . Sign up to receive it here .\nTwo months after ███ and The New York Times Magazine published a joint investigation that cast doubt on key testimony in a Florida death penalty case , the fate of James Dailey remains uncertain . Dailey was scheduled to be executed on Nov. 7 , 2019 , but he was granted a stay of execution last fall . That stay expired on Dec. 30 . Ever since , as Dailey ’ s attorneys have sought to have his claims of innocence evaluated in state and federal courts , one question has loomed over his case : What will Florida Gov . Ron DeSantis do ?\nDailey remains under an active death warrant — an order that authorizes his execution should the governor set a new date — in a cell that is just 30 feet from Florida ’ s execution chamber .\nDailey and his co-defendant , Jack Pearcy , were convicted of the 1985 murder of 14-year-old Shelly Boggio . Pearcy received a life sentence . Dailey , whose conviction rested largely on the testimony of con man-turned-jailhouse informant Paul Skalnik , was condemned to death .\nGet Email Updates Sign up to get more from Pamela Colloff about her investigation into jailhouse informants and how she reported the story .\nThe ███-Times Magazine investigation found that Skalnik was one of the most prolific , and most effective , jailhouse informants in American history . In the 1980s , he testified or supplied information in at least 37 cases in Pinellas County , Florida , alone . Florida prosecutors put Skalnik on the stand again and again , even though he was notoriously unreliable , and in exchange for his damning testimony , they granted him leniency . Just five days after Dailey was sentenced to death in 1987 , Skalnik was released from jail . Skalnik has always maintained that his testimony in Dailey ’ s trial was truthful and that he did not receive any benefits in return .\nDeSantis can set a new execution date until March 23 , when Dailey ’ s death warrant expires . After that , the governor would have to sign a new warrant before he could set an execution date .\nAcross Florida , newspaper editorial boards and columnists have cited the reporting by ███ and the Times Magazine on Skalnik in expressing their concern about Dailey ’ s possible execution . Tampa Bay Times columnist Daniel Ruth wrote that there would be “ blood on DeSantis ’ hands ” if he allowed Dailey to be put to death . The Orlando Sentinel warned : “ Gov . DeSantis Must Not Be Conned into Executing James Dailey. ” Miami Herald opinion columnist Carl Hiaasen cautioned that “ sending a man to his grave on the worthless word of Paul Skalnik wouldn ’ t be justice . It would be a shameful travesty . ”\n“ It seems clear that the state never had enough real evidence to convict Dailey , so it turned to lies — lies that have come undone , ” wrote The Daytona Beach News-Journal ’ s editorial board .\nDeSantis has indicated that he is waiting for the case to play out in the courts . But over the past several months , the courts have not looked favorably on Dailey ’ s attempts to have his case reconsidered . Dailey ’ s case highlights a strange fact of the criminal justice system : Because the standard for proving actual innocence is incredibly high , judges are often reluctant to overturn convictions even when evidence emerges that casts the original facts of the case into doubt or reveals once-incriminating testimony to be far more ambiguous .\nIn December , U.S. District Judge William F. Jung rejected a request from Dailey ’ s federal attorneys for an indefinite stay of execution so that they could pursue his innocence claims . “ A thorough review shows the state ’ s trial case against James Dailey was not strong , but it was sufficient , ” Jung wrote .\nAfter Jung ’ s decision , Dailey ’ s federal attorneys requested permission from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit to file an additional federal habeas petition in which they asked that his claims of innocence be considered . But they were rebuffed in a ruling on Jan. 30 .\nRead More He ’ s a Liar , a Con Artist and a Snitch . His Testimony Could Soon Send a Man to His Death . Paul Skalnik has a decadeslong criminal record and may be one of the most prolific jailhouse informants in U.S. history . The state of Florida is planning to execute a man based largely on his word .\nIn a remarkable footnote to the ruling , Chief Judge Ed Carnes acknowledged that Skalnik ’ s testimony at Dailey ’ s trial was likely false . “ The layout of the jail where Dailey was housed and the procedures in place for prisoners in protective custody , like Skalnik , establish that Dailey could not have confessed to Skalnik in the way Skalnik said he did , ” Carnes wrote . “ And other evidence indicates Skalnik lied about other matters during the trial . ”\nBut neither Skalnik ’ s lies , nor other evidence Dailey ’ s lawyers presented to the 11th Circuit , ultimately mattered . “ Dailey ’ s new evidence , at most , casts some degree of doubt on some of the testimony the State presented at trial , ” Carnes wrote . “ But we are not jurors deciding in the first instance whether the State has proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt . We are a court of appeals deciding more than 30 years after a murder whether the inmate who was convicted of it , and whose conviction has been upheld at every turn for three decades , has shown a reasonable likelihood of meeting the ‘ extraordinarily high ’ burden of making a ‘ truly persuasive demonstration ’ that he is actually innocent . Dailey has not done that . ”\nCarnes , a former Alabama assistant attorney general , has long been assailed as overzealous in his pursuit of the death penalty — even in cases tainted by racial discrimination that were decided by all-white juries . An Alabama legal journal dubbed him “ Mr . Death Penalty . ”\nDailey ’ s lead federal attorney , Carol Wright , condemned the ruling . “ The court today says that proof of innocence is not enough , ” she wrote in a statement to The Tampa Bay Times . “ The court today says even if the state ’ s theory of the conviction is disproved , if the court can imagine any scenario of guilt however implausible an innocent man can be executed . The system is broken . ”\nThough Dailey ’ s appeals have not made headway in the federal courts , his case is also currently before the 6th Judicial Circuit Court in Clearwater , Florida , and it is there , as the possibility of his execution looms , that his legal team is fighting to have the courts examine his claims of innocence .\nOne of the most compelling issues before the court is an extraordinary new admission from Pearcy . In December , in a meeting with one of Dailey ’ s attorneys , Pearcy signed an affidavit that stated : “ James Dailey had nothing to do with the murder of Shelly Boggio . I committed the crime alone . James Dailey was back at the house when I drove Shelly Boggio to the place where I ultimately killed her . ”\nPearcy has now repeatedly confessed to being solely responsible for the crime for which he was sentenced to life in prison and for which Dailey was sentenced to death .\nJames Dailey at Florida State Prison in November . ( Eli Durst , special to The New York Times Magazine )\nIn 2017 , he signed a sworn affidavit in which he asserted that Dailey was not present when Boggio was killed . But when he was called to the stand the following year to attest to this under oath , he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination . Over the years , Pearcy has given numerous different accounts of the crime — at times blaming Dailey and other times inculpating himself .\nOn Feb. 20 , Circuit Judge Pat Siracusa will consider whether to grant the defense ’ s request for an evidentiary hearing at which Pearcy could be called to testify . Another issue before the judge concerns what prosecutors knew about Skalnik ’ s criminal history when they called him to testify at Dailey ’ s trial .\nAs the ███-Times Magazine investigation revealed , Skalnik was arrested in 1982 and charged — but never prosecuted — with “ lewd and lascivious conduct on a child under 14 , ” after a 12-year-old girl said he assaulted her . The state attorney ’ s office ultimately dropped the charge against him and continued to use him as a jailhouse informant . Once the charge was dropped , Skalnik was able to portray himself to jurors as a far more innocuous figure than he actually was .\nThis was true at Dailey ’ s trial , as well . When Skalnik was cross-examined in that trial , one of Dailey ’ s attorneys pressed him about his criminal history , asking , “ How bad were your charges ? ”\nSkalnik was quick to reply : “ They were grand theft , counselor , not murder , not rape , no physical violence in my life. ” He never mentioned his arrest for the molestation charge .\nProsecutors did not object to this characterization . In fact , they doubled down on the idea that Skalnik was morally superior to the man who sat at the defense table . “ There is a hierarchy over in that jail , just like in life , ” prosecutor Beverly Andrews said in closing arguments , drawing a distinction between Skalnik ’ s theft charges and the murder charge that Dailey faced . “ Some crimes , ” she added , “ are worse than others . ”\nDid the prosecutors who tried Dailey — Andrews and Robert Heyman — know about Skalnik ’ s molestation charge , but not disclose it to jurors ? Both have strenuously denied any wrongdoing .\nLast month , Dailey ’ s attorneys filed a motion with the 6th Judicial Circuit Court alleging that Heyman “ was aware of the sexual assault charges previously faced by Skalnik and dismissed by his office. ” They pointed to handwritten notes the state attorney ’ s office turned over in a separate capital case in which Skalnik testified . The notes appeared to be from Dailey ’ s trial and referenced the testimony of a Pinellas County sheriff ’ s detective , John Halliday , about Skalnik . Next to Skalnik ’ s name , the words “ sex assault ” had been crossed out .\nA reproduction of notes James Dailey ’ s lawyers submitted as part of a January court filing .\nDailey ’ s attorneys had suspected that the notes belonged to Heyman , who questioned the detective during Dailey ’ s trial . According to the motion they filed , Heyman said the notes were his in a January interview with ABC News that has not yet aired .\n“ Mr . Heyman was apparently prepared to ask Halliday about Skalnik ’ s prior sexual assault charge , but , after Skalnik ’ s false testimony regarding his criminal history , Mr. Heyman did not , ” Dailey ’ s attorneys assert in the motion . “ The State permitted Skalnik ’ s false testimony about his criminal history to stand uncorrected. ” ( The state has not filed a response thus far . )\nDailey ’ s attorneys have previously argued that jurors could not fairly assess Skalnik ’ s credibility as a witness without knowing his full criminal history . Heyman ’ s admission allowed them to make a powerful new argument : that the prosecution not only knew Skalnik had misrepresented his history , but then let that mischaracterization stand and bolstered his testimony with representations that he was merely a thief . In doing so , Dailey ’ s attorneys allege , Heyman “ perpetrated a fraud on the court. ” In light of that , they argue , the 6th Judicial Circuit Court should vacate Dailey ’ s conviction and death sentence .\nIf Siracusa grants the defense ’ s request for an evidentiary hearing , Heyman could be called to testify .\nDailey ’ s attorneys have also filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court , asking its justices to review the Florida Supreme Court ’ s refusal to consider Pearcy ’ s 2017 sworn affidavit . An unlikely coalition of groups has filed amicus curiae briefs . These “ friend of the court ” filings — submitted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops , eight former and current prosecutors and Conservatives Concerned About The Death Penalty — ask the nation ’ s highest court to review Dailey ’ s case .\n“ Generally , the weaker the prosecution ’ s case , the stronger the likelihood that prosecutors will resort to using jailhouse informant testimony , ” the prosecutors wrote . “ Because informant testimony is inherently unreliable , prosecutors have an obligation to present an accurate and complete picture of the benefits received so that jurors can consider in context the credibility to which the testimony is entitled . The evidence unveiled after Mr. Dailey ’ s trial about the jailhouse informants and their motives to testify stands in stark contrast to that presented during trial , thus undermining any confidence in the jury ’ s verdict . ”\nAs the courts sort out what will happen next , Dailey remains on “ death watch , ” steps away from the execution chamber .


Several thousand prisoners in California may be eligible to apply for sentence reductions , after voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot initiative Tuesday that alters the state 's controversial three-strikes law .\nBut voters also rejected a proposition that would abolish the death penalty in the state . Proposition 34 would have replaced capital punishment with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole .\n`` I guess the next step , then , is to start executing these monsters that exist on death row , '' says Mark Klass , the father of Polly Klass , a 12-year-old girl who was brutally kidnapped , raped and murdered in 1993 .\nKlass says he 's relieved that the man convicted of the crime will remain on death row . `` They understand that for that worst 2 percent of murders — those individuals who kill little children , who kill police officers , who are serial killers , who are mass murderers , who are psychopathic and show absolutely no remorse — those are the individuals that we can do without , '' Klass says .\nMore than 700 inmates are currently on California 's death row , and 14 of them have now exhausted all of their legal appeals . It 's still unclear , however , when executions would resume in California .\nFormer Los Angeles District Attorney Gil Garcetti had joined with the ACLU and a former head warden of San Quentin prison to try to abolish the state 's death penalty . He says both sides agree that the death penalty does not serve as a crime deterrent .\nGarcetti argues that the state has spent $ 4 billion to house death row inmates and pay for their appeals . And though capital punishment still stands , Garcetti says Tuesday 's vote nevertheless shows that Californians increasingly oppose the death penalty .\n`` Look at how many voters in 1978 passed the death penalty law that 's in effect today . That 's 71 percent . Now we 're down to 53 percent in favor of the death penalty , '' Garcetti says . `` They 'll come over , so it 's a matter of time , that 's what it is . ''\nWhile Californians rejected Proposition 34 , they did vote to change the state 's three-strikes law . The revision eliminates the mandatory 25 years-to-life sentence for a third felony , if that crime is nonviolent .\nAs many as 3,000 prisoners could appeal their original sentences in the wake of the vote , which worries Mike Reynolds , the author of the original three-strikes law , adopted in 1994 .\n`` It 's going to destroy the deterrent value of the three-strikes law , '' Reynolds says . `` This is going to bring a lot more bloodshed and a lot more costs to our state in terms of crime and dealing with it . ''\nBut Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley says those fears are unfounded . `` Hordes of people are not going to be released , '' he says . `` Not under this very modest proposal . ''\nCooley says repeat offenders will still have to serve time , but their sentences now will be proportionate to the crime committed . He says that 's a practice L.A. County has already been following successfully for the past 12 years .\n`` Our crime rate 's at a 60-year low here in Los Angeles County , '' Cooley says . `` We 're not clogging our courts with trials of relatively minor , nonserious , nonviolent felonies , and we 're assuring proportionate sentencing based upon the nature of the new offense . ''\n`` Legally speaking , it 's a modest change in the three-strikes law , but politically speaking , it 's a monster change , '' says Adam Gelb , director of the Public Safety Performance Project at the Pew Center on the States .\nGelb says until now , California has had the nation 's harshest three-strikes law . He says the vote to revise it confirms that people are tired of spending money on nonviolent offenders serving long prison sentences .\n`` California helped start this three-strikes trend many years ago , '' Gelb says . `` And this vote to scale it back is going to resonate across the country for years to come . ''\nGelb says this could mean other states will begin to reform their three-strikes laws , too .


Want the best of ███ News straight to your inbox ? Sign up here .\nThe Trump administration plans to resume federal executions , reversing a 16-year de facto moratorium on the death penalty within the Department of Justice .\nAttorney General William Barr instructed the Federal Bureau of Prisons on Thursday to schedule executions of five death-row inmates , who he said were convicted of “ murdering , and in some cases torturing and raping , the most vulnerable in our society — children and the elderly . '' The federal government has carried out three executions since the death penalty was reinstated in 1988 : two in 2001 and one in 2003 .\nBut it ’ s not clear whether the federal government has successfully obtained the drugs required to perform lethal injections in the midst of a nationwide shortage .\n“ Congress has expressly authorized the death penalty through legislation adopted by the people ’ s representatives in both houses of Congress and signed by the president , ” Barr said in a statement . “ The Department of Justice has sought the death penalty against the worst criminals , including these five murderers , each of whom was convicted by a jury of his peers after a full and fair proceeding . ”\nThursday ’ s announcement bucks a national trend toward phasing out the death penalty entirely . Faced with a shortage of lethal injection drugs , states have tried to experiment with untested cocktails of chemicals — and even kept some of the details secret . But trying to circumvent the shortage has led to botched executions in some instances and lawsuits questioning the humanity of new protocols .\nREAD : The first person is about to be executed with fentanyl — and it 's not Scott Dozier\nAs a result , the number of annual executions has declined in recent years — and public opinion has increasingly swung in favor of doing away with capital punishment entirely .\nSome states have even adjusted their protocols to allow death row inmates to choose alternate methods of execution . Last December , an inmate in Tennessee died by electric chair at his request .\nSixty-two inmates currently wait on federal death row . Among them is Dylann Roof , a white supremacist who killed nine black parishioners when he opened fire on a church in Charleston , South Carolina , in 2015 .\nOnly 25 states still have the death penalty on the books , but just eight states carried out executions in 2018 . So far this year , governors in four states — California , Colorado , Oregon and Pennsylvania — have placed moratoriums on their state ’ s death penalty . New Hampshire also abolished the death penalty entirely in 2019 , just months after Washington , which scrapped capital punishment last October .\nCover image : A table with restraints is shown inside the death chamber at the new lethal injection facility at San Quentin State Prison in San Quentin , Calif. , Tuesday , Sept. 21 , 2010 . ( AP Photo/Eric Risberg )


Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin , front atop truck , participates with other local celebrities in a protest demanding the resignation of governor Ricardo Rossello in San Juan , Puerto Rico , Monday , July 22 , 2019 . Protesters are demanding Rossello step down for his involvement in a private chat in which he used profanities to describe an ex-New York City councilwoman and a federal control board overseeing the island 's finance . ( AP Photo/Carlos Giusti )\nPuerto Rican singer Ricky Martin , front atop truck , participates with other local celebrities in a protest demanding the resignation of governor Ricardo Rossello in San Juan , Puerto Rico , Monday , July 22 , 2019 . Protesters are demanding Rossello step down for his involvement in a private chat in which he used profanities to describe an ex-New York City councilwoman and a federal control board overseeing the island 's finance . ( AP Photo/Carlos Giusti )\nSAN JUAN , Puerto Rico ( AP ) — Waving flags , chanting and banging pots and pans , tens of thousands of Puerto Ricans jammed a highway Monday to demand the resignation of Gov . Ricardo Rosselló in a crisis triggered by a leak of offensive , obscenity-laden chat messages between him and his advisers .\nThe demonstration appeared to be the biggest protest on the island in nearly two decades .\n“ Finally , the government ’ s mask has fallen , ” said Jannice Rivera , a 43-year-old mechanical engineer who lives in Houston but was born and raised in Puerto Rico and flew in to join the crowds .\nThe protest came 10 days after the leak of 889 pages of online chats in which Rosselló and some of his close aides insulted women and mocked constituents , including victims of Hurricane Maria .\nThe leak has intensified long-smoldering anger in the U.S. territory over persistent corruption and mismanagement by the island ’ s two main political parties , a severe debt crisis , a sickly economy and a slow recovery from Maria , which devastated Puerto Rico in September 2017 .\n“ The people have awakened after so much outrage , ” said 69-year-old retired nurse Benedicta Villegas . “ There are still people without roofs and highways without lights . The chat was the tip of the iceberg . ”\nThe crowd surged along the Americas Expressway despite the punishing heat — toddlers , teenagers , professionals and the elderly , all dripping in sweat and smiling as they waved Puerto Rico flags large and small and hoisted signs .\n“ This is to show that the people respect themselves , ” said Ana Carrasquillo , 26 . “ We ’ ve put up with corruption for so many years . ”\nIn an interview Monday with Fox News , Rosselló said that he will not resign and that he is focused on tackling corruption and helping the island recover from Maria .\n“ I ’ m making amends , ” he said . “ I ’ ve apologized for all the comments that I made on the chat . ”\nOn Sunday evening , Rosselló , a Democrat , sought to calm the unrest by promising not to seek re-election in 2020 or continue as head of his pro-statehood New Progressive Party . That only further angered his critics , who have mounted street demonstrations for more than a week .\n“ The people are not going to go away , ” said Johanna Soto , of the city of Carolina . “ That ’ s what he ’ s hoping for , but we outnumber him . ”\nAsked who was advising Rosselló on staying in office , Rosselló ‘ s secretary of public affairs , Anthony Maceira , said the governor was speaking with his family , and “ that carries a great weight. ” Rosselló ’ s father , Pedro , was governor from 1993 to 2001 .\nThe biggest newspaper in this territory of more than 3 million American citizens , El Nuevo Dia , added to the pressure with the front-page headline : “ Governor , it ’ s time to listen to the people : You have to resign . ”\nAsked whether the governor should step down , President Donald Trump said that Rosselló is a “ terrible ” governor and that hurricane relief money sent to Puerto Rico has been “ squandered , wasted and stolen ” and the island ’ s top leadership is “ totally , grossly incompetent . ”\nThe demonstrations represent the biggest protest movement on the island since Puerto Ricans rallied to put an end to U.S. Navy training on the island of Vieques more than 15 years ago .\nMonday was the 10th consecutive day of protests , and more are being called for later in the week . The island ’ s largest mall , Plaza de las Américas , closed ahead of the protest , as did dozens of other businesses . The upheaval also prompted at least four cruise ships to cancel visits to Puerto Rico .\nThe crisis has stirred fears about the effects on the already fragile economy .\nPuerto Rico is struggling to restructure part of its $ 70 billion in debt under federal supervision and deal with a 13-year recession through school closings , cutbacks in infrastructure maintenance and other austerity measures .\nAt the same time , the island is trying to rebuild from Maria , which caused more than $ 100 billion in damage , threw Puerto Rico into a year-long blackout and left thousands dead , most of them succumbing during the sweltering aftermath .\nThe island has also seen a recent string of arrests of Puerto Rico officials on corruption charges . Those arrested included the former education secretary .


( CNN ) – The suggestion this week from a top Obama campaign official that Mitt Romney may have committed a felony by listing himself as CEO of Bain Capital after leaving the firm was picked apart Sunday , with Republicans decrying the remark as the worst type of divisive politics and Obama 's team urging its rivals to `` stop whining . ''\nStephanie Cutter , Obama 's deputy campaign manager , originally made the claim Thursday on a conference call .\n`` Either Mitt Romney , through his own words and his own signature was misrepresenting his position at Bain to the SEC , which is a felony , or he was misrepresenting his position at Bain to the American people to avoid responsibility for some of the consequences of his investments , '' Cutter said , responding to a newspaper report that Romney was listed as Bain Capital 's CEO after 1999 , when he has repeatedly said he left the private equity firm .\nThe significance of Romney 's date of departure centers on companies acquired by Bain that later shipped jobs overseas . Romney claims he left the company before those decisions were made , but Democrats point to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that indicate Romney was still listed as the firm 's CEO .\nCutter 's words drew a quick response from Obama 's opponents , who said the suggestion that the presumptive GOP nominee had committed a felony was below the office of the presidency .\nRomney himself said in an interview with CNN on Friday that the charge was `` disgusting '' and `` demeaning , '' and called on Obama and his campaign to apologize .\nEd Gillespie , a senior adviser to Romney , echoed that sentiment on Sunday , saying on CNN the charges reflected a `` say anything '' stance adopted by the president 's campaign .\n`` We now know that this president will say anything to keep this highest office in the land , even if it means demeaning the highest office in the land , '' Gillespie said .\nAnd Kevin Madden , newly appointed to a more senior role on Romney 's team , said on CBS that the felony suggestion was out of line .\n`` I think it is very troubling that the president would direct this campaign to label someone like Gov . Romney , who is a very good and honorable man , as a felon . That 's very troubling , '' Madden said .\nCutter , sitting next to Madden on the CBS set , said she was not calling Romney a felon , but merely stating the Bain documents , if misrepresentative of his role at the company , would amount to a felony . She refused to apologize for the remark .\n`` He 's not going to get an apology , '' Cutter said . `` Just a few months ago in the primary Mitt Romney said to his opponents - who were crushing him at the time – 'stop whining . ' And that 's a good message for the Romney campaign . Instead of whining about what the Obama campaign is saying , just put the facts out there and let people decide rather than trying to hide them . ''\nChicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel , who left his post as Obama 's chief of staff in 2010 to run in the mayoral election , had similar advice for the Republican candidate .\n`` Give it up about Stephanie . Do n't worry about that , '' Emanuel said on ABC . `` What are you going to do when a China president says something about you ? Stop whining . If you want to claim Bain Capital as your calling card for the White House , defend what happened to Bain Capital and what happened to those jobs that went overseas , those jobs that were actually cut and eliminated . ''


CHARLOTTE , NC - Round two of the 2012 DNC is finally complete , following an interminable stemwinder from former President Bill Clinton . A few thoughts on the evening : Prior to the 10pm ET hour , the convention lineup was wholly unremarkable . Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer both spoke for the second time this week . Why ? These speeches lasted nearly six-and-a-half hours in total . Were retreads necessary ? In any case , we heard from more abortion proponents , several union bosses , and a long list of unremarkable politicians . It was tedious in the extreme , especially the mindless Bain demagoguery . On to my `` prime '' prime-time grades :\nSandra Fluke : D. The thirtysomething recent law grad gave a surly and self-pitying speech about birth control and abortion . This is a young woman whose claim to fame is demanding that the Catholic school she chose to attend be coerced by the federal government to cast aside their beliefs and pay for her `` free '' birth control . She cast herself as a courageous victim , repeatedly knocking Mitt Romney for refusing to stand up for her after Rush Limbaugh called her a name . Absolutely pitiful . Her demagoguery about women `` dying '' under the Romney/Ryan plan was unseemly , crass , and befitting her pathetic 15 minutes of fame . Sandra Fluke may be a hero to some liberals , but I ca n't imagine she has even an ounce of appeal to most average people . Democratic commentator Kirsten Powers was decidedly unimpressed with Fluke 's whole schtick .\nJim Sinegal : N/A . The former CEO of Costco 's job was to convince people that Democrats are good for business . His speech was dull and so unmemorable that I have no meaningful analysis to offer .\nElizabeth Warren : C. The Harvard Law professor led the class warfare fight tonight , as is her wont . We do everything `` together , '' the system 's `` rigged , '' etc . She called ( surprise ! ) for much higher levels of government `` investment '' in practically all imaginable sectors . As the author of the original `` you did n't build that '' riff , her message was characteristic and reprehensible . Her delivery was slightly improved and she remembered to smile -- so marks for that , I guess . Interestingly , Warren did n't mention her `` heritage . '' Weird , right ?\nBill Clinton : B+ . It was good . It should have been shorter . If it had , it would have been significantly better . The former president spoke for 48 minutes ; he was reportedly allotted 20-25 minutes . Clinton made the best case available to Obama backers , basically : Things were really bad , he inherited an impossible problem , he 's done as well as anyone possibly could have , things are starting to get better , he 's a good guy , and he needs more time . This argument rests on the hope that voters will believe that they 're better off under Obama and that his policies have not been counter-productive . Tough sledding , but Clinton 's a word wizard . He spun a compelling yarn . He took a risk , though , by ignoring his own pollsters ' advice by crossing into Obama economy happy talk a little too often . Clinton also engaged in a lot of Republican blaming , slightly leavened by a few kind words about his Republican predecessor and successor . He repeated the `` GOP obstructionism '' trope without any acknowledgement of Democrats ' massive majorities for two full years , nor any recognition that the American people elected Republicans in a landslide in 2010 explicitly to slam the brakes on the Obama agenda . After moving through the ( effective ) heart of his remarks , Clinton decided to play fact-checker-in-chief . This is where he wandered . He addressed a litany of Republican arguments and policies , erecting and destroying straw men along the way . His `` arithmetic , '' as he called it , was tendentious and incomplete . Indeed , he repeated many of the claims FactCheck.org dealt with this morning . He talked , and talked , and talked -- on the economy , on healthcare , on Medicare , on the debt , and on welfare reform ( speaking of which , read this and this ) . His mind is still sharp and his political instincts are still keen , but Clinton strayed from the script too often and overstayed his welcome . Not in this hall , of course . The partisan crowd lapped up every last word . But at home . If his address had been shaved down to 30 or even 35 minutes , it would have been dynamite . It was still quite good . The guy loves to talk , and he 's pretty fun to listen to . In the end , Bill Clinton made the most effective sales pitch for `` four more years '' we 've heard at this convention . Did people stick it out through he whole marathon , or were they watching football ? The image of the night was Obama striding on stage to hug Clinton as the pair basked in the crowd 's adulation . Obama wants voters to almost imagine Clinton as his running mate , thus appropriating the 42nd president 's record and enduring good will . Obama 's counting on Clinton 's decade-old legacy to save him from his own .\nOdds and Ends : The media is eager to move past today 's floor debacle , so they 'll pump a `` back on track , thanks to a masterful Clinton performance ! '' narrative . Clinton salvaged a lackluster 10pm hour ( and session , really ) then dragged it well into the next . Clinton 's star power and strong endorsement certainly helped Obama ; the rest of the night , not so much .


Mr. Sousa said the group had compiled a fund-raising list of more than a million potential donors ’ email addresses , which it is renting to the Carson campaign . That follows the example set by Ready PAC , formerly known as Ready for Hillary , which spent close to a year building support for Hillary Clinton before she announced her candidacy . It never ran a television ad . ( Nor has Correct the Record , a super PAC founded by David Brock that is focusing exclusively on opposition research and rapid response in Mrs. Clinton ’ s defense . )\nMany super PACs will turn to television soon enough , but even those that have done so already have recognized the need for more than just TV ads .\nNew Day for America , the super PAC supporting Mr. Kasich , is pursuing a highly advanced ground game in partnership with a data-analytics firm , Applecart : The firm says it mines data sources like yearbooks and local news reports to decipher which people have personally influential relationships with sought-after voters . Rather than giving phone-bank callers or canvassers lists of random people to contact , for example , the organizers are assigning each of those volunteers to reach 10 to 20 New Hampshire voters they know personally and convert them into Kasich supporters .\nRight to Rise , the super PAC supporting Mr. Bush , is also starting to pour more money into online messaging , where — unlike on television — its dollars go just as far as the candidate ’ s . All advertisers — campaigns , super PACs , even Frito-Lay — pay the same rates for digital ads .\n“ With TV getting a bit more crowded , we ’ re looking at frequency , ” said Sheena Arora , a digital strategist at Revolution Agency who works with Right to Rise — meaning “ how many times we ’ re hitting individuals across devices. ” The group has been creating a wide range of ads aimed at smartphones , tablets and even Xbox gaming systems .\nNot everyone buys into the changing tactics . Rick Shaftan , who leads the pro-Cruz Courageous Conservatives group , suggested that spending money on field efforts made little sense for his operation . “ This is what I did as field guy : hung out with the volunteers , brought people signs and brought people literature , ” he said . “ That was 1984 . Now we ’ re in a world where it ’ s all different . People can get their own signs . ”


Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus on Sunday threatened Ohio Gov . John Kasich and other Republicans who refuse to support presidential nominee Donald Trump , saying the party may take steps to ensure it ’ s not “ that easy for them ” to seek the White House again .\nSpeaking on CBS ’ “ Face the Nation , ” Mr. Priebus said every Republican who ran in 2016 needs to get behind Mr. Trump .\nThose who haven ’ t — including Mr. Kasich , former Florida Gov . Jeb Bush , and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz — could see diminished support from the party moving forward .\n“ People who agreed to support the nominee , that took part in our process , they used tools from the RNC . They agreed to support the nominee . They took part in our process . We ’ re a private party , we ’ re not a public entity . Those people need to get on board , ” Mr. Priebus said .\n“ And if they ’ re thinking they ’ re going to run again someday , I think we ’ re going to evaluate our process , the nomination process , and I don ’ t think it ’ s going to be that easy for them , ” he said .\nMr. Kasich said it ’ s “ very unlikely ” he ’ ll vote for Mr. Trump … “ too much water under the bridge , ” the Ohio governor said in an interview with CNN that aired Friday .\nSEE ALSO : 48 % of Democratic voters say Bernie Sanders should replace Hillary if she drops out of race\nMr. Bush has expressed similar sentiments , and Mr. Cruz famously withheld an endorsement of Mr. Trump during the Republican National Convention and instead told Republicans to “ vote their conscience ” in November .\nMr. Priebus denied that he was threatening Mr. Kasich , Mr. Cruz or anyone else , yet he clearly suggested the party would put roadblocks in front of the electoral hopes of anyone who hasn ’ t offered a full-throated endorsement of Mr. Trump .\n“ People in our party are talking about what we ’ re going to do about this … It ’ s not a threat . It ’ s just a question , ” the RNC chairman said . “ What should a private party do about that if those same people come around in four or eight years ? ”\nMr. Kasich , a former 2016 GOP presidential candidate himself , said it ’ s still important to get out the vote for Republicans like Sen . Rob Portman , who is running for re-election in Ohio .\n“ We want to get people out to vote . We want to re-elect Senator Portman , and we want to re-elect people down ticket , ” Mr. Kasich said . “ I ’ m not voting for Hillary [ Clinton ] . ”\n“ I ’ ll let everybody know … but I think my actions have spoken very loudly . Louder than even my words , ” he said .\nMr. Kasich was in Cleveland during the Republican National Convention in July , but he did not attend the convention itself .\nAsked about Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson , Mr. Kasich said : “ I haven ’ t even gone there yet . It ’ s a long way [ until ] Election Day . ”


This may be the most entertaining road show yet . Round and round the presidential campaign goes , and where it stops nobody knows . Even Mitt Romney is said to be thinking about jumping in again , no doubt figuring that some of Jeb ’ s “ investors , ” who are familiar indeed , may be looking for another place to place their bets .\nHillary Clinton ’ s campaign still gets respectful attention , but nobody ’ s any longer practicing what to call her if , as in a prospect ever more unlikely , she ’ s actually elected . Madame President ? That sounds like something from a bordello , or worse , from France . Mrs. President ? The feminists wouldn ’ t like that , because it pays homage to a husband . “ Miss President ” sounds like everybody ’ s seventh-period Latin teacher , perhaps fetching in her own way , but not much fun .\nJoe Biden , everybody ’ s good old , slightly daffy uncle , lovable but prone to gaffes , boners and extravagant slips not only of the tongue but sometimes of the brain , like his suggestion , meant to warm the hearts of gun owners , that if you hear a varmint or a prowler in the middle of the night , the thing to do is to take your shotgun to the front porch and blast away at the night . ( Hoping nobody is still up across the street is optional . )\nThe Republican establishment has the opposite problem . They ’ re having to quit laughing at Donald Trump and start taking him seriously . He keeps increasing his polling lead over the field , and where that stops nobody knows , either . He ’ s an “ outlier , ” the currently fashionable $ 2 word for “ outsider , ” but he ’ s not as outsiderly as he used to be .\nThe liberal media , the Greek chorus assigned to enlightening the halt , the unhip and the dumb , spent the weekend chortling over the fact that the Donald attracted “ only ” 20,000 fans to a football stadium that seats 30,000 in Mobile . The cops wisely declined to offer an estimate of the size of the crowd , but it was bigger than anyone else has drawn so far . Who but the Donald , who compared it to a crowd at a Billy Graham revival meeting , would risk holding a political rally in a football stadium in Alabama , exposing empty seats and inviting unwanted comparisons .\nPresident Obama himself threw a big flat rock in the Democratic pond on Monday with a resounding splash . He sent his press agent out to suggest to reporters that he might endorse someone in the Democratic primaries , and it didn ’ t sound like he was talking about Hillary . The president , said press secretary Josh Earnest , thinks taking Joe Biden on his ticket seven years ago was the smartest political decision he ever made . He reminded everyone that he had spoken “ warmly ” about Hillary , too . Then it was back to praising good old Joe .\n“ I ’ ll just say that the vice president is somebody who has already run for president twice . He ’ s been on a national ticket through two election cycles … So I think you could make the case that there is no one who has a better understanding of exactly what is required to mount a successful national presidential campaign … I wouldn ’ t rule out the possibility of an endorsement in the Democratic primary . ”\nA press agent always speaks for the man who pays him , so we can safely assume that Mr . Earnest didn ’ t make a semi-endorsement , sort of , on his own .\nMr. Obama ’ s endorsement would be valuable in a Democratic primary , a signal that he has found someone who will protect his “ legacy , ” such as it will be . In the general election , his endorsement might be a sloppy kiss of death , where voters of all kinds could rush to make the judgment that is likely to be the verdict of history — Mr. Obama was a freak of history , elected by a well-meaning but naive electorate eager to show good faith and hope for the best .\nTaking a flier is rarely a substitute for making a sound judgment . Nominating a candidate with little political experience can be tempting . The Republicans tried it in 1940 , nominating Wendell Willkie , a Wall Street lawyer who had never been elected to anything , thinking everyone shared their contempt for Franklin D. Roosevelt .\nThat ’ s what terrifies the Republican establishment about Donald Trump . If the establishment understood politics a little better than it does , establishment Republicans would recognize how they brought the Donald to political prominence themselves . The establishment doesn ’ t understand how cable-TV , the Internet and a succession of mushmouth candidates have changed everything .\nThe Republican grass roots hankers for rough justice , applied without mercy . These are the grass roots that are a minority of a minority , but they ’ re loud , they ’ re angry , and they ’ re out for blood .\n• Wesley Pruden is editor emeritus of The Washington Times .