Contractors Begin Building Prototypes For Trump’s Border Wall
September 27, 2017 by admin
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A Border Patrol vehicle rides beside an already existing portion of the wall along the U.S.-Mexico border south of San Diego.
Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images
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Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images
A Border Patrol vehicle rides beside an already existing portion of the wall along the U.S.-Mexico border south of San Diego.
Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images
After months of competition and preparation, contractors broke ground Tuesday on eight prototypes for President Trump’s long-promised border wall. U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced that the companies would have about 30 days to complete construction on their prototypes in San Diego.
“We are committed to securing our border and that includes constructing border walls,” CBP’s acting deputy commissioner, Ronald Vitiello, said in a statement Tuesday.
“Our multi-pronged strategy to ensure the safety and security of the American people includes barriers, infrastructure, technology and people. Moving forward with the prototype enables us to continue to incorporate all the tools necessary to secure our border.”
Six contractors from across the country have been selected to build the eight prototypes, half of which will be constructed of concrete and the other half of “other materials.” The walls are to range between 18 and 30 feet high and succeed in one prevailing goal: “deter illegal crossings in the area in which they are constructed.”
Once built, they will undergo testing by the Department of Homeland Security.
And all the while, officials are preparing for a fair share of protests against the controversial project. The Los Angeles Times reports that miles of fencing have been put up in San Diego’s Otay Mesa region — a “checkerboard of public and private land ownership” where the prototypes are to be built — and no-parking zones will be in effect through Nov. 10.
The free speech area designated for potential protesters is a “dusty, unshaded, weed-choked lot overlooking Otay Mesa and more than 1.5 miles away from construction,” according to The San Diego Union-Tribune.
That said, the paper reports there appeared to be no protesters around as construction kicked off Tuesday, and at least one local activist expressed skepticism the project was even worth protesting at the moment.
“It’s just political theater,” Hiram Soto, spokesman for Alliance San Diego, told the Times. “There is no funding for it in Congress.”
Trump relented earlier this month on a threat to shut down the federal government if lawmakers failed to approve funds for the wall, striking a deal with Democrats to delay multiple fiscal deadlines with no strings attached. He has also appeared to acknowledge he won’t require border wall funding to be part of a possible deal to save the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.
On the campaign trail and early in his administration, Trump had said repeatedly that Mexico would pay for the wall’s construction — a proposition that has also been repeatedly rejected by Mexican leaders.
Estimates for the cost of the border wall have ranged up to $38 billion. The Department of Homeland Security plans to pay for the construction of the prototypes, which cost up to $500,000 each, with funds reallocated internally from other programs.
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Rick Pitino’s reputation — and future — are again in question
September 27, 2017 by admin
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During his time with Louisville, the Cardinals basketball coach Rick Pitino has survived multiple scandals.
In 2010, he testified in a federal extortion trial involving Karen Sypher, who went to prison after trying to get money and gifts from Pitino in exchange for silence.
NCAA coaches among 10 facing federal charges
Federal prosecutors have announced charges of fraud and corruption in college basketball. Among those arrested and charged are four assistant coaches at Auburn, Arizona, Oklahoma State and USC.
What you need to know about the FBI’s NCAA basketball investigation
Federal prosecutors stunned college basketball by announcing charges for four Division I coaches. Although the charges stem from a three-year investigation, much is still to be determined. Here’s what you need to know.
In 2015, the NCAA launched an investigation into a sex-for-pay scandal organized by former Louisville assistant coach Andre McGee that could force the Cardinals to vacate their 2013 national title and dozens of victories. For that, Pitino will serve a seven-game suspension this season. This all came after the school, hoping to soothe the NCAA and temper the sanctions, self-imposed a 2016 NCAA tournament ban.
Despite all this, Pitino kept his job.
But what was revealed Tuesday, if true, seems insurmountable.
The FBI arrested four prominent college basketball assistants from Oklahoma State, Auburn, Arizona and USC following an investigation surrounding a corruption scandal. Documents from the investigation cite an arrangement between an unnamed Louisville staffer, high-ranking Adidas official James Gatto and others to funnel $100,000 to the family of a recruit who committed to the university over the summer.
“Shortly after the agreement with the family of Player-10 was reached in late May and early June, Player-10 publicly committed to University-6,” the documents from the FBI’s investigation stated. Louisville revealed Tuesday afternoon that it is the unnamed “University-6″ named by the FBI.
“[Louisville] is committed to ethical behavior and adherence to NCAA rules,” interim president Gregory Postel said in a statement addressing the FBI’s investigation. “Any violations will not be tolerated.” Pitino is not named in the federal documents. But he’s the sullied leader of a program in the FBI’s crosshairs.
If the FBI’s allegations are validated, Louisville has only one option: Remove Pitino and athletic director Tom Jurich.
Pitino is facing a federal organization that puts people in prison. That’s why his latest problem trumps the previous incidents tenfold.
“These allegations come as a complete shock to me,” Pitino said in a statement Tuesday night. “If true, I agree with the U.S. Attorneys Office that these third-party schemes, initiated by a few bad actors, operated to commit a fraud on the impacted universities and their basketball programs, including the University of Louisville. Our fans and supporters deserve better and I am committed to taking whatever steps are needed to ensure those responsible are held accountable. But the FBI and the United States Department of Justice have come to clean up the sport and the mess made by Louisville and other programs.”
Joon H. Kim, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, made it clear in his news conference that his office is coming for anyone attached to the pay-for-play scandal and will continue to pursue additional indictments.
“It’s better for you to call us than for us to be calling you when we’re ready to charge you,” Kim warned.
FBI assistant director Bill Sweeney doubled down.
“We have your playbook,” he said. “Our investigation is ongoing. We are conducting additional interviews as we speak.”
Years from now, this day may go down as the most crippling moment in the sport’s history.
What happened Tuesday, and what is likely to follow in the days ahead, could flatten college basketball. Every team in America, including Louisville, is asking the same question: How do we distance ourselves from this? Louisville’s sex-for-pay scandal led to a fine, the loss of scholarships, a suspension for Pitino, a 10-year show-cause penalty for McGee, vacated wins and a self-imposed postseason ban. Imagine what the FBI — and the NCAA investigation that will follow — will do to the program. The result could change Louisville forever.
In the Sypher case, Pitino reacted as the victim of an extortion scheme. Sypher ended up with a seven-year prison sentence.
In the pay-for-sex scandal, Pitino repeatedly told anyone who would listen he never knew McGee had arranged parties with strippers and escorts for Louisville’s top recruits and players.
After each of those incidents, Louisville stuck with Pitino despite the damage to the school’s reputation and the NCAA penalties — and the possibility of more NCAA penalties.
His resume and stature in the sport helped him keep his job, too. Pitino has won two national championships, reached seven Final Fours and won 770 games. He’s in the Hall of Fame.
If you just judge Pitino on his college accomplishments, only Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has a more stellar resume among active coaches.
His history, and his personality, have convinced those in power and the fan base to stick with him.
This is about more than Louisville now. This is potential prison time for those involved. This is cash bribes, wiretaps and federal investigators, which were all used to uncover the major corruption. This is a six-figure bribe allegedly arranged by multiple people to lure an elite prospect to Louisville.
The teams listed today might not recover for decades, if not longer. The sport may never recover.
They don’t care about Pitino’s Final Fours and national titles.
And that might make this Pitino’s last scandal.