Tuesday, 13 August 2013
Senator Ron Johnson Press Release:
Oshkosh, Wisconsin – In an effort to be responsive to numerous press inquiries, Senator Johnson issued the following statement regarding the press announcement by the Washington D.C. based League of Conservation Voters:
“I believe in a clean environment, and try to practice conservation and good stewardship in everything I do. The League of Conservation Voters' approach to environmentalism lacks balance and any reasonable sense of proportion. Theirs is an ideological and radical agenda. They don’t care if their policies kill Wisconsin jobs and slow creation of badly needed new jobs. They don’t care that their policies increase the cost of electricity, gasoline, or home heating and air conditioning in Wisconsin. They don’t care that their policies make it harder for Wisconsin families to make ends meet in very difficult economic times. I do care about how families struggle with higher costs and unemployment and I’m not afraid to fight against radical Washington policies that harm Wisconsin.”
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Senator John Cornyn Press Release:
Aug 13 2013
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) issued the following statement today regarding the delay of the Obamacare provision placing a cap on out-of-pocket insurance costs for consumers until 2015.
“Yet another delay in the implementation of Obamacare has come to light, confirming what Texans already know – this law does not work.
“It is time for a permanent delay of Obamacare. Rather than waste any more time propping up a costly and unworkable system, we should focus on health reform that brings down costs, increases the quality, and preserves the patient-doctor relationship.”
Senator Jeff Sessions Press Release:
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
In Testimony, Sessions Urges International Trade Commission To Defend Domestic Shrimp Industry And Alabama Workers
WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) submitted testimony for the record this afternoon to the International Trade Commission (ITC) in support of efforts by the U.S. and Alabama shrimp industries to end subsidized shrimp imports that are undermining U.S. workers and local industry. An excerpt from the testimony reads as follows:
To view Sessions’ testimony as a PDF, please click here.
“First and foremost for me is the economic impact of this industry on the state of Alabama. According to Alabama Seafood, the Alabama seafood industry directly employs more than 8,000 people and has an economic impact of $336 million annually, including over $135 million in generated income. More broadly, 1.23 billion pounds of seafood is harvested each year from the Gulf of Mexico, 30 percent of the nation’s seafood overall. And, more than 70 percent of U.S. shrimp come from the Gulf of Mexico, underlining the economic and cultural importance to our region.
I believe in free and fair trade. When foreign distortions of trade are not checked and corrected by legal processes such as this one, vital American middle class jobs are lost and our competitiveness is eroded. Many, including me, have documented the loss of millions of manufacturing job across the country in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, but manufacturing is not the only industry that suffers from unfair foreign competition. Our agricultural and fishery producers are also at risk. I am here to tell you today that all sectors matter in job creation. Efforts to promote fair trade in one sector inevitably benefits others.
In my state, shrimp is a way of life—from the fisherman to the docks, from the processor to the grocery store, restaurant, and family table; we all have a stake in this industry. This vital part of our local culture has been passed down for generations, and will continue to survive and ultimately thrive if you make an affirmative determination of injury at your final vote on this case on September 19, 2013.”
BACKGROUND:
The case, filed in 2012 by the Coalition of Gulf Shrimp Industries (COGSI), seeks relief from the ITC in the form of countervailing duties on frozen warm-water shrimp imported from China, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. The Coalition of Gulf Shrimp Industries (COGSI) represents many shrimpers in Alabama.
Sessions testimony urged the ITC to consider the imposition of duties against foreign imports of warm water shrimp to level the playing field and protect the Alabama shrimp industry from harm. According to documents filed in the case, these seven countries exported over 984 million pounds of shrimp to the U.S. in 2012, worth over $3 billion. In its petition, COGSI identified numerous export subsidies in the seven countries. The subsidies include direct government grants, cheap loans, debt forgiveness, and tax breaks. One egregious example of foreign subsidies is the financing of what will likely be the world’s largest shrimp processing and export platform by the Chinese government. If the ITC finds that the domestic industry is being injured, final countervailing duties will be imposed this fall.
A final ruling from the ITC is expected on September 19, 2013.
USDA Blog Post:
This post is part of the Science Tuesday feature series on the USDA blog. Check back each week as we showcase stories and news from USDA’s rich science and research portfolio.
One of the most exciting aspects of my job as the head of USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) and an advocate for statistical literacy is to see students coming into the profession of statistics. We are fortunate, according to Bob Rodriguez, past-president of the American Statistical Association (ASA) in a column published in ASA’s AMSTATNEWS, “that the number of students majoring or minoring in statistics is soaring because of positive experiences in AP Statistics courses. The word is out that statistics is a ‘must’.”
Engaging students even earlier than high school is important not only for developing future statisticians but also so that they understand the importance of responding to surveys. Both private and government statistics, including those about agriculture from my agency, are dependent on voluntary survey response.
This is why we are working with other organizations to bring science and statistics to the classroom. Some time ago, I worked with colleagues in other countries to develop a Census at School classroom activity. It brings statistics to students in an interesting and fun way. Students complete a brief online survey, analyze their class’s census results, and compare their class with random samples from students in the United States and other countries.
NASS recently partnered with ASA and the National Agriculture in the Classroom organization to create a food preference lesson plan that uses the Census at School questions about students’ favorite foods, making an agricultural connection. The lesson introduces real-life ways to use statistics and addresses numerous common core standards for grades 5-8.
Early exposure to statistics was not something available to me when I was a student. I found statistics quite by accident as a graduate student in mathematics. I was looking for a field in which I could use my math background and found the Statistics Department at Iowa State University.
Making statistics interesting to students is critical and should not be hard. A quick scan of recent titles in Significance, a joint magazine of ASA and the British Royal Statistical Society, shows statistics-based articles on whether slams in tennis matches convert to wins; the cost of preserving biodiversity on Earth; precision agriculture; using statistics for disaster relief in Haiti; renewable energy and climate change; breast implants; Hitchcock, statistics and film; and combinations of policies that would win votes, to name just a few.
Of particular interest to students (and their parents) should be the projected demand for good jobs for statisticians. Analysts from the research firm PayScale used its compensation database along with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ job growth projections through 2020 to determine the most valuable college majors according to a 2012 Forbes magazine article. The story stated that statistics was among the top 15 majors for its value in terms of salary and career prospects.
We know we will continue to need statisticians in government to provide accurate, useful and timely public data for policy, personal and business decisions of all kinds. We are working hard to see that educational opportunities at all levels encourage students to enter scientific fields, including statistics.
Next generation of farmers learned all about the Census of Agriculture and agricultural statistics at last year’s Future Farmers of America convention in Indianapolis.
FBI Boston Division Press Release:
Chief Executive Officer Sentenced to 30 Months in Securities Fraud Scheme
| U.S. Attorney’s Office August 13, 2013 |
BOSTON—The chief executive of Vida Life International Ltd., a public company that traded on the over-the-counter securities market, was sentenced yesterday to 30 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and mail fraud.
John C. Jordan, 62, of Cameron Park, California, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton after being convicted in May by a jury. Jordan was also ordered to pay a fine and to forfeit his illegal earnings.
Jordan was sentenced for his role in a scheme to pay secret kickbacks to an investment fund representative who had agreed to steer the investment fund to buy stock in Vida Life. The kickbacks were concealed through the use of a sham consulting agreement and other fraudulent documents. Jordan did not know that the purported investment fund representative was actually an undercover agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The conviction and sentence followed a year-long investigation focusing on preventing fraud in the micro-cap stock markets. Microcap companies are small, publicly traded companies whose stock often trades at pennies a share. Fraud in the microcap markets is of increasing concern to regulators as such markets have proven to be fertile grounds for fraud and abuse. This is, in part, because accurate information about microcap stocks may be difficult for the average investor to find, since many microcap companies do not file financial reports with the Securities Exchange Commission.
Two additional defendants who were charged as part of the undercover operation were sentenced last month. Steven Berman, 50, of Ohio, the former chief executive Officer of China Wi-Max Communications Inc., and Richard Kranitz, 69, a Wisconsin securities attorney who served as an adviser and a member of the board of directors of China Wi-Max, were each sentenced to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud.
Two other defendants are scheduled to be sentenced over the next several weeks. Karen Person, 62, of Las Vegas, chief executive officer of the Small Business Company Inc., is scheduled to be sentenced on August 16. Person also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud. James Prange, 62, of Greenbush, Wisconsin, a self-described financing consultant to small and emerging companies, who, like Jordan, was convicted after trial on multiple counts of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, is scheduled to be sentenced on September 25, 2013.
The Securities and Exchange Commission, which conducted a parallel civil investigation alongside the FBI undercover operation, cooperated with criminal authorities in bringing these and other charges against 10 other defendants who participated in the kickback scheme. Six of the defendants have already pled guilty to charges arising out of their involvement in the scheme.
U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Walters, Stephen E. Frank, and Vassili Thomadakis of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch and, with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes. For more information about the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
John C. Jordan, 62, of Cameron Park, California, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton after being convicted in May by a jury. Jordan was also ordered to pay a fine and to forfeit his illegal earnings.
Jordan was sentenced for his role in a scheme to pay secret kickbacks to an investment fund representative who had agreed to steer the investment fund to buy stock in Vida Life. The kickbacks were concealed through the use of a sham consulting agreement and other fraudulent documents. Jordan did not know that the purported investment fund representative was actually an undercover agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The conviction and sentence followed a year-long investigation focusing on preventing fraud in the micro-cap stock markets. Microcap companies are small, publicly traded companies whose stock often trades at pennies a share. Fraud in the microcap markets is of increasing concern to regulators as such markets have proven to be fertile grounds for fraud and abuse. This is, in part, because accurate information about microcap stocks may be difficult for the average investor to find, since many microcap companies do not file financial reports with the Securities Exchange Commission.
Two additional defendants who were charged as part of the undercover operation were sentenced last month. Steven Berman, 50, of Ohio, the former chief executive Officer of China Wi-Max Communications Inc., and Richard Kranitz, 69, a Wisconsin securities attorney who served as an adviser and a member of the board of directors of China Wi-Max, were each sentenced to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud.
Two other defendants are scheduled to be sentenced over the next several weeks. Karen Person, 62, of Las Vegas, chief executive officer of the Small Business Company Inc., is scheduled to be sentenced on August 16. Person also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud. James Prange, 62, of Greenbush, Wisconsin, a self-described financing consultant to small and emerging companies, who, like Jordan, was convicted after trial on multiple counts of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, is scheduled to be sentenced on September 25, 2013.
The Securities and Exchange Commission, which conducted a parallel civil investigation alongside the FBI undercover operation, cooperated with criminal authorities in bringing these and other charges against 10 other defendants who participated in the kickback scheme. Six of the defendants have already pled guilty to charges arising out of their involvement in the scheme.
U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Walters, Stephen E. Frank, and Vassili Thomadakis of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch and, with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes. For more information about the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
FBI Boston Division Press Release:
Federal Jury Convicts James ‘Whitey’ Bulger
| U.S. Attorney’s Office August 12, 2013 |
BOSTON—Following a two-month long trial in U.S. District Court, a federal jury today convicted James J. Bulger, holding him responsible for the murder of 11 people, as well as numerous counts of extortion, money laundering, drug dealing, and firearms possession.
After deliberating for over 32 hours, over five days, the jury found the former fugitive guilty of racketeering conspiracy and numerous racketeering acts of murder, extortion, narcotics distribution, money laundering, and possession of firearms, including machine guns. With this verdict, the jury has found that Bulger played a role in the murders of Deborah Hussey, Paul McGonagle, Edward Connors, Thomas King, Richard Castucci, Roger Wheeler, Brian Halloran, Michael Donahue, John Callahan, Arthur Barrett, and John McIntyre.
Bulger, the former leader of the Winter Hill Gang, ran a vast criminal network that emanated from South Boston and controlled much of the city and the surrounding areas during the 1970s and 1980s. In order to generate money and maintain dominance among other criminal enterprises, Bulger and his associates engaged in numerous illegal activities such as loansharking, extortion of local business owners and bookmakers, trafficking of narcotics and firearms, and murder. Bulger, and associates under his direction, used violence, threats, and intimidation to carry out these illegal activities.
In late 1994, upon learning of his impending indictment, Bulger fled Massachusetts. On June 22, 2011, Bulger and his companion, Catherine Greig, were arrested in Santa Monica, California, after 16 years on the run. Greig was later convicted of conspiracy to harbor a fugitive and is currently serving eight years in federal prison.
U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for November 13. He faces a maximum of up to life, plus 30 years in prison.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Colonel Timothy P. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; John J. Arvanitis, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Boston Field Division; William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; Michael E. Horowitz, Inspector General for the Department of Justice; Vincent Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Field Division; and U.S. Marshal John Gibbons made the announcement today.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fred M. Wyshak, Jr., Brian T. Kelly, and Zachary Hafer of Ortiz’s Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit.
After deliberating for over 32 hours, over five days, the jury found the former fugitive guilty of racketeering conspiracy and numerous racketeering acts of murder, extortion, narcotics distribution, money laundering, and possession of firearms, including machine guns. With this verdict, the jury has found that Bulger played a role in the murders of Deborah Hussey, Paul McGonagle, Edward Connors, Thomas King, Richard Castucci, Roger Wheeler, Brian Halloran, Michael Donahue, John Callahan, Arthur Barrett, and John McIntyre.
Bulger, the former leader of the Winter Hill Gang, ran a vast criminal network that emanated from South Boston and controlled much of the city and the surrounding areas during the 1970s and 1980s. In order to generate money and maintain dominance among other criminal enterprises, Bulger and his associates engaged in numerous illegal activities such as loansharking, extortion of local business owners and bookmakers, trafficking of narcotics and firearms, and murder. Bulger, and associates under his direction, used violence, threats, and intimidation to carry out these illegal activities.
In late 1994, upon learning of his impending indictment, Bulger fled Massachusetts. On June 22, 2011, Bulger and his companion, Catherine Greig, were arrested in Santa Monica, California, after 16 years on the run. Greig was later convicted of conspiracy to harbor a fugitive and is currently serving eight years in federal prison.
U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for November 13. He faces a maximum of up to life, plus 30 years in prison.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Colonel Timothy P. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; John J. Arvanitis, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Boston Field Division; William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; Michael E. Horowitz, Inspector General for the Department of Justice; Vincent Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Field Division; and U.S. Marshal John Gibbons made the announcement today.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fred M. Wyshak, Jr., Brian T. Kelly, and Zachary Hafer of Ortiz’s Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit.
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