Polybius
Polybius's JournalKey hearing nears in NYPD officer's suit against Staten Island superior, NYC over 'courtesy cards'
Officer Mathew Bianchi, formerly assigned to the traffic unit on the boroughs South Shore, filed the complaint in May, alleging he was unfairly punished by his commanding officer, and the city, for refusing to acknowledge every courtesy card flashed by motorists during car stops.
The citys police unions issue the cards to members who then circulate them among family and friends. Theyre purportedly used as a way to avoid tickets for traffic infractions like speeding, not wearing a seatbelt or in some cases even blowing a stop light. Not officially recognized by the NYPD, the cards have long been viewed as a perk of the job.
The complaint, which names the City of New York and former 123rd Precinct Commanding Officer Andrey Smirnov as defendants alleges Bianchis superiors retaliated against him for his stance against the corrupt practice. Smirnov currently is deputy inspector, and commanding officer of the 60th Precinct in Coney Island, Brooklyn.
In the 123rd Precinct, home to a disproportionately high number of cops and other city workers, the officer said drivers he pulled over for traffic infractions frequently displayed a card. I see card after card. Youre not allowed to write any of them [up], he previously told the AP. Were not supposed to be showing favoritism when we do car stops, and we shouldnt be giving them out because the guy mows my lawn.
Read more...
Interesting local case. To sum it up, an NYPD officer is tired of having to let people go when they pull out their PBA card. He got tired of repeat offenders, and ticketed them anyway. The final straw was when he pulled over the Chief's friend, was shown a PBA card, and ticketed him anyway. They retaliated, and he sued.
If Trump loses in 2024 and manages to stay out of jail and stick around...
Do you think he runs again in 2028? I'm half-joking but there's a part of me that thinks he would.
Map Shows 25 States Now Backing Greg Abbott in Border Feud
Source: Newsweek
Amap of U.S. states shows that nearly all of the Republican governors are now backing Texas Governor Greg Abbott in his ongoing dispute with the Biden administration over his attempts to stop illegal migrant crossings into the state from Mexico.
In a 5-4 vote on Monday, the Supreme Court surprised many by siding with the president, ruling that federal agents couldfor nowresume cutting razor wire that Texas has been installing along a stretch of the southern border.
The installation of concertina wire along the Rio Grande was among several physical measures Abbott has taken at the border in his efforts to stem the number of migrants entering Texas. In the year to September 2023, nearly 1.4 million migrants entered the state illegally, according to figures compiled by the Customs and Border Protection (CPB) agency, marginally lower than in the previous year.
In the days since the ruling, Abbott has said the fight is "not over" and praised the Texas National Guard for continuing to "hold the line."
Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/map-american-states-backing-texas-governor-greg-abbott-border-feud-1864363
Texas governor ignores Supreme Court ruling, adds more razor wire to border
Source: CBS
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is doubling down on his border initiatives after being dealt a blow from the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this week.
Texas and Abbott are making it no secret theyre putting in more razor wire at the southern border just days after the high court gave the go-ahead to the federal government to remove the wire.
In a lengthy statement, Abbott is reiterating arguments hes cited before, asserting that the federal government has fallen short of its constitutional duties to protect the southern border.
Hes specifically citing the U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 10, Clause 3, which says, in part, no state shall, without the consent of Congress, keep troops in time of peace unless actually invaded.
Read more: https://www.cbs7.com/2024/01/26/texas-governor-ignores-supreme-court-ruling-adds-more-razor-wire-border/
NY Siena poll: Biden still up big in NY
Biden 46, Trump 37Biden 41, Trump 32, Kennedy 13, West 3
Virtually unchanged from a November poll where Biden was up by 10. When adding in 3rd Party candidates, the poll spread stayed the same.
https://www.realclearpolling.com/polls/president/general/2024/new-york/trump-vs-biden
Biden says the airstrikes in Yemen will continue (short Twitter clip with him and a reporter's question)
https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1748050740030144909Andrew Yang Backs Biden Primary Rival, Says President Can't 'Reinvent Grandpa'
Source: The Messenger
Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang has pledged his support to Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., in the 2024 presidential campaign.
"If you want to run for president, your time is right now. In this time of need, only one person decided to place his country above his professional aspirations," Yang said during an event with Phillips at Dartmouth in Hanover, New Hampshire on Thursday afternoon. "That is the man I am proud to endorse tonight as the next President of the United States ... Dean Phillips."
Phillips is considered a long-shot candidate for the White House as he is facing-off against an incumbent president. He appeared in New Hampshire ahead of the Jan. 23 primary to campaign.
Yang previously campaigned for President Joe Biden after dropping his own White House bid in the 2020 election, he told the crowd, however, he said the last four years haven't been what he'd hoped.
Read more: https://themessenger.com/politics/andrew-yang-backs-biden-primary-rival-says-president-cant-reinvent-grandpa
And to think, I once respected this man.
Joyce Randolph, Last of the 'Honeymooners,' Is Dead at 99
Source: NY Times
Joyce Randolph, who played Trixie Norton, the wife of a guffawing, rubber-limbed sewer worker forever mired in a blowhard neighbors get-rich-quick schemes and other hazards of life on the classic 1950s sitcom The Honeymooners, died on Saturday at her home in Manhattan. She was 99.
Her son, Randy Charles, confirmed her death.
Ms. Randolph was the last survivor of a cast of four that dominated the Saturday night viewing habits of millions in the golden age of live television, and for decades afterward on rerun broadcasts and home video. Jackie Gleason (Ralph Kramden) died in 1987; Audrey Meadows (Ralphs wife, Alice) in 1996; and Art Carney (Trixies husband, Ed Norton) in 2003.
In an age when status symbols in a gritty Brooklyn tenement were telephones, television sets and refrigerators, the Kramdens had none on a bus drivers $62 a week. Reflecting Americas working-class experience, they struggled for a better life, shared disappointments and had fun, even if there was no uranium mine in Asbury Park and no market for glow-in-the-dark wallpaper, no-cal pizza or KramMars Delicious Mystery Appetizer, which turned out to be dog food.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/14/obituaries/joyce-randolph-dead.html
Very sad, RIP Trixie.
Trump wins Iowa caucus, second place up for grabs
Source: Reuters
DES MOINES, Iowa, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Donald Trump muscled past his rivals to capture the first 2024 Republican presidential contest in Iowa on Monday, according to Edison Research projections, once more asserting his dominance over the party as he seeks a third consecutive nomination.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley were in a battle for second place, Edison projected.
With Trump's victory all but a foregone conclusion given his lead in public polls, the runner-up competition was expected to produce most of the evening's intrigue, as DeSantis and Haley seek to emerge as the chief alternative to the former president.
Iowans braved life-threatening temperatures to gather at more than 1,600 schools, community centers and other sites for the state's first-in-the-nation caucus, as the 2024 presidential campaign officially got under way after months of debates, rallies and advertisements.
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-seeks-knockout-punch-iowa-delivers-first-verdict-republican-race-2024-01-15/
Billionaire Bill Ackman Backs Dean Phillips to Challenge Biden
Source: Bloomberg News
Billionaire investor Bill Ackman said hes contributing $1 million to support Minnesota Representative Dean Phillips to become the Democratic nominee in the 2024 presidential election.
Phillips is a long-shot challenger to President Joe Biden in his reelection bid. But with polls showing sagging support for the president against leading Republican rival Donald Trump, some are seeking alternative candidates.
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-14/billionaire-ackman-backs-democrat-phillips-to-challenge-biden?embedded-checkout=true
So instead of getting 3%, he might get 3.5% now.
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