Deadspin has published a clip of racist remarks reportedly made by Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling. In the clip, Sterling allegedly tells his then-girlfriend V. Stiviano “Don't come to my games. Don't bring black people, and don't come.” In light of TMZ's leaked audio recording of a man the site claims is Sterling telling his girlfriend to stop “associating with black people,” including basketball legend Magic Johnson, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People announced it has rescinded his lifetime award. The National Basketball Association, however, is not moving so fast. Commissioner Adam Silver said he would not impose any sanctions on Sterling until an investigation into his alleged racist remarks is completed.
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Yesterday, Republican Governor Nathan Deal of Georgia signed into law a potentially historic piece of legislation. Dubbed by critics as the “guns everywhere” bill, it will now allow Georgians to carry firearms in schools, bars, churches, and government buildings. The NRA has called it “the most comprehensive pro-gun reform bill in state history,” and even achieved bipartisan support. Deal did argue that the bill was not as expansive as it originally was, emphasizing the change for religious leaders to opt-in to allowing guns, whereas the original bill required them to permit firearms. “There are always opportunities for people to use any piece of legislation as a political tool if they don’t like it. But there was bipartisan support for the bill."
Many of the 40 U.S. veterans who have died while waiting for appointments from the Phoenix Veterans Affairs Health Care System were reportedly on a secret waiting list. According to CNN, the secret list compiled by VA Affairs managers in Phoenix had 1,400 to 1,600 veterans who were forced to go months without seeing a doctor. Apparently, the VA in Phoenix had the list to hide the number of veterans waiting for care, as the VA requires hospitals to provide care within 14 to 30 days. Instead, the Phoenix VA was able to hide when a veteran first came in seeking an appointment, and even compiled a “sham list” for officials in Washington that showed timely appointments.
The Department of Justice announced earlier this week that it will expand the criteria it uses to decide which drug offenders will be recommended to the president for clemency. Exact details will be released later this week, but Attorney General Eric Holder said in a video address that thousands of prisoners may be eligible for reduced sentences. "There are still too many people in federal prison who were sentenced under the old regime—and who, as a result, will have to spend far more time in prison than they would if sentenced today for exactly the same crime," he said.
The Obama administration announced late last week that it will delay a decision on the Keystone XL pipeline, a controversial project that would link Canada's oil sands to the Gulf of Mexico, and has produced sharp conflicts between environmental groups and labor activists who want the construction jobs. The move drew sharp criticism from supporters, including Mary Landrieu, a Louisiana Democrat and the chairman of the Senate energy committee, who called it "irresponsible" and "nothing short of an indefinite delay." A spokesman for Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper complained the "politics" were getting in the way of the project. Opponents, including some major Democratic financiers, emphasize that the pipeline will be terrible for the environment.
At least seven are dead and 287 are still missing after a South Korea ferry sank on Wednesday morning. An announcement to stay put was broadcast over the speakers, telling passengers, including 300 high-school students, that "If you move, it's dangerous." Survivors say they put on life jackets and jumped into the water to escape the capsizing vessel. A massive rescue operation has been searching the cold water for missing passengers, but conditions are making the search difficult. Reports indicate that 476 people were aboard the ferry.
The New York Police Department has stopped its secret program that sent undercover cops to spy on Muslim communities. The squad, known as the Demographics Unit, tracked people wearing traditional Islamic clothing in neighborhoods in and around the city. The move, by new Commissioner William Bratton, is a sign the department is abandoning some controversial post-9/11 tactics.
Three people are dead following shootings at the Jewish Community Center and a Jewish assisted-living home in Overland Park, Kansas earlier today, the eve of Passover. Police said they arrested Frazier Glenn Miller, 73, a former Ku Klux Klan “grand dragon,” neo-Nazi, and Green Beret. Miller allegedly fired at five people, but missed two of his targets. William Lewis Corporon, a local doctor, and his 14-year-old grandson, Reat Griffin Underwood, were killed at the community center. The third victim was killed at the Village Shalom senior living facility, but has not been publicly identified yet. Miller yelled “Heil Hitler!” from the back of the police car as he was taken away.
Kathleen Sebelius is resigning after five years of serving as the Health and Human Services secretary and overseeing the Affordable Care Act rollout. President Obama accepted her resignation this week, and said he will nominate Sylvia Mathews Burwell, director of the Office of Management and Budget, to succeed her. While officials say Sebelius, 65, chose to resign and was not forced out, it was clear that the Obama administration was displeased with her handling of the health-care overhaul. When Obama announced the successful enrollment of 7 million Americans in health-insurance exchanges last week, Sebelius was notably absent from his side.
Freshman Republican Congressman Vance McAllister of Louisiana, who won his special election last November running as a conservative Christian with the endorsement of the Duck Dynasty family, has been caught on video kissing one of his staffers a few days before Christmas. The Ouachita Citizen of West Monroe, Louisiana, posted a surveillance video of McAllister kissing a woman who, according to federal payroll records, has been employed as a part-time aide since the day after his election. McAllister said in a statement "There's no doubt I've fallen short and I'm asking for forgiveness. I'm asking for forgiveness from God, my wife, my kids, my staff, and my constituents who elected me to serve.”
According to her family, 80-year-old grandmother Maria de Jesus Arroyo was still alive when the White Memorial Medical Center in Los Angeles put her in a body bag and then into a freezer, where she froze to death trying to escape. The case, which was previously thrown out on statute-of-limitations grounds, was revived by a California appeals court on Wednesday. Arroyo was declared dead in 2010 after a cardiac arrest and was placed in a body bag face-up in the hospital's freezer. But when she got to the mortuary days later, the bag was face-down, half-way unzipped, and her face had a broken nose, bumps, and bruises. At first the family thought it was because the body was mishandled, but according to their pathologist, “I do not believe these wounds could occur post-mortem. There is only one apparent explanation: Mrs. Arroyo was alive when she was placed into a refrigerated unit."
In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court struck down another campaign-finance rule, this time one limiting how much one person can give to multiple candidates, party organizations, or political action committees. The law previously set an aggregate limit on contributions at $123,200 for 2013 and 2014, and a separate cap of $48,600 on contributions specifically for candidates. Yet the McCutcehon v. FEC decision has now changed that. The court did leave in place a cap on individual donations to an individual candidate, which is now $2,600 per election. The decision predictably split the court’s conservative and liberal justices. Concerns regarding the impact have immediately begun surfacing.
General Motors CEO Mary Barra testified in front of Congress earlier today to address faulty ignition switches that has been linked to 13 deaths and dozens of crashes in recent years. Barra revealed GM had hired lawyer Kenneth Feinberg, who handled the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund and BP oil spill to devise compensation plan for the crash victims. Barra has been CEO since only January 15, and by GM’s own chronology, the problem with the cars in question began as early as 2001. "It came to light on my watch, so I am responsible for it," she said. “Today’s GM will do the right thing.” Barra admitted it was “very disturbing” to hear reports that previous GM officials did not fix the ignition problems because of the "lead time required, cost and effectiveness."