Latinos want bias probe of Fox, talk radio

September 12, 2012 | 3:19 pm 
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Paul Bedard

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401597 09: DJ George Lopez (L) poses with NHMCs Alex Nogales during National Hispanic Media Coalitions Fifth Annual Impact Awards Gala at The Millenium Biltmore Hotel February 22, 2002 in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Getty Images)

Latino groups Wednesday blamed a surge in hate crimes against Hispanics on harmful stereotypes portrayed on TV and in conservative media and are asking the administration to probe Fox News and talk radio, two media cited by the groups as the worst perpetrators.

"We want the government to investigate this," said Alex Nogales, president of the National Hispanic Media Coalition. "Unless we start this dialogue, these assaults will go on," he said, citing a surge in hate crimes against Hispanics.

Also charging Fox News and talk radio with portraying Hispanics poorly, Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said the administration should provide "protection from the stimuli that is being promoted out there that is causing the correlation between violence, stereotyping and the increasing racism in this country against Latinos."

News industry insiders, however, noted that Fox has a sister division,Fox Latino, which was recently lauded by NPR. Fox also has several Hispanic hosts. Fox had no comment.

Nogales said his group has been measuring media bias against Latinos since 2008 and now he feels it's time for the government to step in. To back up his claim and provide the Federal Communications Commission with ammo to use against news outlets, Nogales commissioned polling from Latino Decisions to test American views of Hispanics.

In one survey of stereotypes held by 900 non-Latinos, 88 percent said that Hispanics take jobs from Americans, 92 percent said they refuse to learn English and 80 percent believe Hispanics are on welfare. When asked how Latinos are portrayed in TV and film roles, 71 percent said as a criminal and 64 percent as a gardener.

Another survey asked Fox, NPR, MSNBC CNN and talk radio fans about Hispanics. Fox viewers accepted the most stereotypes of Hispanics, MSNBC the least. They also compared Fox's Bill O'Reilly and MSNBC's Rachel Maddow's viewers and found that half of O'Reilly's watchers "think Latinos are on welfare and refuse to learn English."

The 80-page poll and analysis concluded that "conservative talk radio and Fox News audiences hold significantly more anti-immigrant and anti-Latino opinions."

Matt Barreto, of Latino Decisions, said that the FCC should chart Hispanic stereotypes in the news. "There is a role for more monitoring," he said.

http://washingtonexaminer.com/latinos-want-bias-probe-of-fox-talk-radio/article/2507774#.UFEP9I1lQ4J

John Boehner - Weeper of the House

Tea Party Knuckle Draggers

August 16, 2012 by Bob Livingston 

UPI

John Boehner said if you oppose government bailouts, you’re a knuckle dragger.

The Republican Party has a death wish.

Weeper of the House John Boehner found it necessary to use Fox News Tuesday to take another gratuitous ad hominem swipe at Tea Party members who deigned to oppose using their money to bail out banks engaged in criminal behavior simply because those banks happened to have board members sitting at the seats of power. He said if you oppose government bailouts, you’re a knuckle dragger.

So just when the GOP is beginning to enjoy a rise in enthusiasm for its ticket after Congressman Paul Ryan’s selection as Mitt Romney’s running mate — though why Tea Partiers like Ryan (who voted for TARP, the Medicare Prescription Drug plan and Alaska’s “Bridge to Nowhere”) is beyond me — Boehner reminds Tea Partiers why they despise the party’s elites.

If you think the Tea Party is irrelevant, look back to November 2010. If you think the Tea Party is irrelevant, ask Senatorial candidate David Dewhurst (R-Texas), Representative Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) and those in Georgia who were advocating for a 1-cent sales tax increase.

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http://personalliberty.com/2012/08/16/tea-party-knuckle-draggers/?eiid=

ICE Girls will be girls or whatever janet napolitano is

ICE chief of staff on leave after new allegations of lewd conduct surface

By Judson Berger

Published August 14, 2012

FoxNews.com

• 
  Shown here are Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and ICE Chief of Staff Suzanne Barr, inset. (Reuters/ICE)

The top Homeland Security official accused of cultivating a "frat-house"-style work environment has "voluntarily placed herself on leave" amid an internal review, the department told FoxNews.com late Tuesday evening -- just hours after FoxNews.com contacted the agency about new allegations against her. 

Two more Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees came forward this week to complain about "lewd" conduct inside the agency, submitting sworn affidavits that depict graphic comments made by two top officials working under DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano. 

The affidavits were given as part of a discrimination and retaliation suit filed earlier this year by James T. Hayes Jr., the head of the New York office for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

The two new affidavits described separate incidents in 2009. Both accounts described the actions of ICE chief of staff Suzanne Barr, who was also mentioned in Hayes' lawsuit. 

ICE Public Affairs Director Brian Hale said in a written statement that the department would respond "directly and strongly" to the lawsuit in court, but noted internal measures were being taken over the claims against Barr. 

"ICE has referred these allegations to the DHS Office of Inspector General and the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility for review. Ms. Barr has voluntarily placed herself on leave pending the outcome of this review," ICE Public Affairs Director Brian Hale said in a written statement. 

In the newly emerging affidavits, one of the employees claimed that in October 2009, while in a discussion about Halloween plans, the individual witnessed Barr turn to a senior ICE employee and say: "You a sexy" (expletive deleted). 

"She then looked at his crotch and asked, 'How long is it anyway?'" according to the affidavit. 

"Several employees laughed nervously," the affidavit said. The names of the workers making the claims have been redacted. 

The other account recalled a trip to Colombia in late 2009, attended by ICE Director John Morton, Barr and Ray Parmer, who is ICE special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations in New Orleans. 

The account said Parmer and Barr were "drinking heavily" at the house of the deputy chief of mission for the U.S. Embassy there. It said Parmer took the BlackBerry of another employee, Peter Vincent, and sent "lewd messages" to Barr. 

The affidavit went on to say: "During this party, Suzanne Barr approached me and offered to" perform oral sex. 

The two accounts were submitted this week to the defense attorney in the case Hayes filed against Napolitano. 

A DHS spokesman had previously described the allegations in the Hayes suit as "unfounded." 

Attorney Morris Fischer, who represents Hayes, told FoxNews.com his team is in the process of gathering more evidence. 

"People are coming out of the woodwork on this because this is such a serious matter and people want to see this agency's mess cleaned up," he said. 

While Napolitano is named as the sole defendant, Hayes' suit focuses on Barr and Dora Schriro, who joined DHS in February 2009, five months after Hayes was promoted to director of ICE Detention and Removal Operations. 

Hayes claims Schriro, who was brought on as a special adviser to Napolitano, was not qualified for the job because she lacked law enforcement experience. Hayes maintained Schriro enjoyed a "long-standing relationship" with Napolitano, and soon pushed him aside "because of this relationship (with Napolitano) and because he was not female," the suit says. 

Schriro previously led the Arizona and Missouri corrections departments. She has since left DHS and now serves as commissioner for the New York City Department of Correction.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/08/14/more-dhs-employees-come-forward-with-accounts-lewd-conduct-in-wake-suit/

El Presidente wants government to feed everyone

Taxpayer-backed free lunch program feeds controversy in California

By Claudia Cowan

Published August 07, 2012

FoxNews.com

• 

Every summer across the U.S., more than 3 million children eat for free at more than 30,000 sites, from schools to recreation centers to migrant worker camps. It's a valuable resource for families who are struggling, and, critics say, a nice freebie for those who aren't.

The "Summer Fun Cafe" in Northern California and others like it are funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in areas where at least half the children qualify for free lunches during the regular school year.

But come summer, anyone 18 and under can pull up a chair to Uncle Sam's table.

"There's no income requirement, no enrollment, no paperwork," says Monique Stovall, nutrition director for the San Juan Unified School District outside Sacramento, Calif. "All children in the community in that age range can come eat with us for free." Signs around the district headquarters advertise there is no eligibility requirement, and all kids are encouraged to take advantage.

That's why, along with a choice of sandwich, fresh fruit and milk, these free summer lunches come with a side of controversy.

For many low-income families, a free lunch means more money can go toward other meals or necessities. For others who can afford to feed their children, it's an easy way to get fed and go.

"Normally we wouldn't qualify for a free lunch, but we're close and it's convenient, and my kids like it -- that's important," says mom Julie Marks, who brings her two young sons a few times a week.   

Taxpayer watchdog groups say most Americans are fine helping children truly in need. But Jon Coupal, with the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, asks, "if someone is coming from a family that makes a quarter of a million dollars a year, and they're not checking eligibility when they're coming in the door, I think most people would wonder, 'Am I paying for this?'"

In many cases, sponsors and non-profit groups help arrange and promote the free meal sites in their community. According to program supporters, the summer lunch program is easier to administer when the location qualifies, as opposed to the individual user.

"We don't have to ask your income, because the overall purpose of the program is to provide a healthy meal to children," says Stovall.

Organizers contend after a summer of nourishing meals, these kids will do better when school resumes in the fall. Monitors are on hand to make sure the lunch is eaten on site, and that the adults don't mooch off the kids.

But those rules don't go far enough for critics who wonder if the "come one, come all" invitation won't have taxpayers feeding every child, whether they're needy or not.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/08/07/taxpayer-backed-free-lunch-program-feeds-controversy-in-california/