TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalNew Hampshire school bus drivers threaten strike amid contract dispute
New Hampshire school bus drivers and other workers employed by First Student are threatening to strike over a contract dispute, prompting some school districts to warn parents of the potential for a disruption in student transportation.
Officials from several school districts are notifying their school communities that a strike is possible within the next few weeks after a strike notice was issued two weeks ago by Teamsters Union Local 633, the union representing First Student's 850 workers in New Hampshire.
The union and First Student have been at odds over retirement funding issues during contract negotiations.
First Student, which is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, has transportation contracts with dozens of school districts in New Hampshire.
Read more: http://www.unionleader.com/education/New-Hampshire-school-bus-drivers-threaten-strike-amid-contract-dispute-11022016
Cross-posted in Omaha Steve's Labor Group.
Ayotte, Hassan once again trade barbs, accusations in final debate
GOFFSTOWN — Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte and Democrat Gov. Maggie Hassan clashed in the final U.S. Senate debate Wednesday over the character and honesty of their party’s presidential nominees and their records of standing up to them.
Hassan criticized Ayotte for her past support of Donald Trump. Ayotte countered that Hassan has yet to call out Hillary Clinton for her exclusive use of a private email server as Secretary of State.
"It is concerning to me that the Republican nominee in the presidential race has showered praise on Vladimir Putin, has praised him, in some ways invited him, to make an attack of some sort on our electoral system and that’s one of the reasons I’m so concerned that Senator Ayotte spent so much time supporting the nominee," Hassan said.
Ayotte, who withdrew her support for Trump early last month, said Hassan failed to understand that Clinton put national security at risk with her email server.
Read more: http://www.unionleader.com/voters-first/Ayotte-Hassan-once-again-trade-barbs-accusations-11022016
GOP legislative candidate denies revenge porn charges
The Vermont Republican Party is disavowing a state House candidate after the Colchester man was charged with disclosure of sexually explicit images without consent, commonly known as revenge porn.
Pat Liebrecht, who is running to represent the Chittenden 9-1 district in Colchester, acknowledged he has been charged in connection with posting revealing photos on social media of an ex-girlfriend. He said he pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor in court last month.
"I will be proven innocent," he told the Burlington Free Press.
Jeff Bartley, executive director of the Vermont Republican Party, sent a statement Wednesday afternoon calling the accusations against Liebrecht "deeply disturbing and disgusting."
Read more: http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/2016/11/02/legislature-candidate-revenge-porn-charges/93205018/
Former Winooski attorney to admit defrauding clients of up to $550K
A former attorney whose law license was suspended earlier this year plans to admit to a federal judge that he took money from several trusts he oversaw, according to paperwork filed in U.S. District Court in Burlington.
William M. O'Brien of Winooski struck an agreement in October with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to one count of mail fraud. He is scheduled to appear Nov. 10 in U.S. District Court in Burlington to formally answer the charge.
A federal judge will determine O'Brien's sentence. He faces up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000, according to a plea agreement filed in late October. No sentence has been specified in the plea agreement, but parties can file documents outlining proposed sentences later in the process.
Court papers state that O'Brien took $250,000 to $550,000. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples said Tuesday the charges relate to two of O'Brien's clients, but there were about a half dozen total clients who were affected by the attorney's actions.
Read more: http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/local/2016/11/01/former-winooski-attorney-charged-fraud/93115984/
New York lobbying firm fined $180,000 for violating state rules
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A New York state lobbying firm has been fined $180,000 after a state ethics panel determined it repeatedly failed to file required disclosure forms with the state.
The New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics announced Wednesday that Long Island-based State Advisers LLC either failed to file or was late in submitting 148 bimonthly lobbying reports and also failed to pay lobbyist registration fees.
The firm had agreed to pay the state $62,000 in April to resolve the case but the commission says the penalty was never paid.
State law requires lobbyists to file periodic reports about their activity and their agreements with clients.
Read more: http://www.wcax.com/story/33618713/ny-lobbying-firm-fined-180000-for-violating-state-rules
Former legislator now faces drunken driving charge
ROCHESTER, N.H. (AP) - A former New Hampshire state lawmaker charged with trying to lure a 14-year-old girl into a sexual encounter has been accused of drunken driving following a three-car accident.
Former state Rep. Kyle Tasker, a 31-year-old Republican, resigned in March after his arrest on drug charges and a charge of trying to lure a minor for sex. He and his lawyer haven't commented.
Police took a report of a car swerving all over Route 125 in Rochester at about 5:40 p.m. Tuesday, then came upon the accident farther south.
Police say the driver, identified as Tasker, struck a car stopped at a traffic signal that was pushed into the rear of another stopped car. All three drivers refused medical treatment.
Read more: http://www.wcax.com/story/33601386/former-legislator-now-faces-drunken-driving-charge
[font color=330099]It's time to lock him up--if not for his only safety, then for the safety of everyone else.[/font]
No quick ruling on claim about GOP watchers at Nevada polls
Source: AP
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Democrats in Nevada are citing memories of post-Civil War voter intimidation by the Ku Klux Klan in a bid to get a federal judge to order people supporting Donald Trump not to harass voters at polls next Tuesday.
But U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware in Las Vegas focused during a lengthy hearing Wednesday on a much more narrow question: Whether Trump campaign officials fully notified volunteer poll-watchers about state laws they have to follow, and whether the campaign shared strategy with the Nevada Republican Party.
The judge scheduled testimony Thursday from a former state GOP official-turned-Trump campaign official, Jesse Law, about whether training for poll-watchers was "confusing or misleading" about rules they need to follow if they challenge a voter at the polls.
Boulware told attorneys for the Democratic and Republican parties that he wasn't convinced there was a firm link between the Trump and a named defendant, party official Roger Stone Jr., or between the campaign and the state party.
Read more: http://hosted2-1.ap.org/MAPIT/78d418a4b043432fbe8d1fc9554cbd4d/Article_2016-11-03-US--Voter%20Intimidation%20Lawsuits-Nevada/id-60608f6e60ed4cfc80ed3d9b29e14e9c
Videos: Protesters pepper-sprayed, David Duke in shouting match with moderator at U.S. Senate debate
David Duke's inclusion in the final U.S. Senate debate stirred many to protest at Dillard University, leading to at least one arrest and pepper spray to be used.
Photos and video show the tense scene, as protesters attempted to enter Georges Auditorium.
Meanwhile, a heated debate raged inside between the six U.S. Senate candidates who qualified for the forum: U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany, Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, former KKK grand wizard David Duke, New Orleans-area attorney Caroline Fayard, U.S. Rep John Fleming and Louisiana Treasurer Neely Kennedy.
At one-point during the hour-long debate, Duke was attempting to answer a question about tax reform and job creation, when moderator and WVUE anchor John Snell attempted to make a clarifying point. The two quickly became embroiled in an argument that stretched on for over a minute.
Read more: http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/elections/article_14102948-a168-11e6-8b10-570e114419d8.html
Raucous protest against David Duke at Dillard University leads to pepper-spraying
A raucous group of Dillard University students and supporters Wednesday night stormed the outside of a Dillard auditorium where ex-Ku Klux Klan grand wizard David Duke and other contenders for Louisiana’s U.S. Senate seat were holding a televised debate.
Tensions were high as critics decried the fact that a white nationalist was using a historically black university as a platform for his views.
A smaller group of students pleaded with their classmates to ignore Duke, a figure they said was undeserving of any sort of spotlight.
At least four people were detained by campus police but later released. Other students and alumni were pepper-sprayed as they tried to forcibly enter the building where Duke would take the stage.
Read more: http://www.theadvocate.com/new_orleans/news/education/article_19e666ec-a15a-11e6-889c-97f8ea4db8f7.html
Parties trade blows over abortion as gubernatorial issue
The Vermont Democratic Party is calling on Republican gubernatorial candidate Phil Scott to take down a television spot defending his record on reproductive rights amid an ad blitz by national Democrats and Planned Parenthood portraying him as an opponent of abortion rights.
At a Monday news conference in the Statehouse, Vermont Democratic Party spokeswoman Christina Amestoy accused Scott of referring to abortion as a “wedge issue.”
“It is not OK to attack Planned Parenthood as they try to bring up questions about his record,” she said.
“This type of attacks feeds into the nationwide rhetoric we’ve heard from national Republicans, one that paints Planned Parenthood as distrustful and evil, rather than recognizing it for the valuable work it does,” Amestoy added.
Read more: http://vtdigger.org/2016/10/31/parties-trade-blows-over-abortion-as-gubernatorial-issue/
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Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
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Current location: Bryan, Texas
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