(CNN) – A “conservative Republican” manager of Cincinnati-based IRS screeners told congressional investigators there was no evidence the White House was involved in...
Rasan Portlock, 29, brought his 10-year-old son, Ryheim to tears during an emotional ‘Today’ interview talking about his academic success and “big dreams,” reports theGrio.com.[1] Speaking with NBC’s chief education correspondent Rehema Ellis, Portlock said that he’s seen huge strides in the quality of education at Devonshire Elementary School in Charlotte, N.C. and he believes that the school was previously apathetic about its student: “I didn’t know if they really cared about what they were teaching him or not,” he said. “Now you can tell that there’s more concern about the children’s growth. It’s more about learning, it’s an experience, it’s better. It’s about success.” The proud father talked about Ryheim’s thirst for knowledge, that has been present since birth, and his refusal to back down from a challenge. “He’s always had big dreams, from a child he always wanted to be something,” Portlock said. At his father’s urging, Ryheim said that he used to want to be a doctor, but now he w ...
Ciara was giving an electrifying performance at an LA Pride event in West Hollywood when she was served with a lawsuit from gay club, “The Factory,” for failure to appear at the venue the night before her performance, reports TMZ.com.[1] According to the lawsuit filed by the popular gay bar, Ci-Ci informed them that she couldn’t perform, but that she would make an appearance. But, on June 3, she allegedly backed out completely. The club is suing for breach-of-contract, but Ciara’s rep claims that she cancelled the appearance before a contract was ever finalized: “Ciara’s commitment to perform at L.A. Gay Pride on Saturday night prevented her from making such a Friday night appearance. Despite being notified early last week that Ciara could not appear, the Factory continued to market and promote Ciara’s appearance. “The reason for the continued marketing/promotion is unclear, as it is not known why the Factory would intend to continue to mislead the public, to cause damage to the L.A. G ...
Newark, New Jersey Cory Booker (Photo Credit: AP)TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Newark Mayor Cory Booker[1]on Saturday formally announced he’s in the race to finish the U.S. Senate term of the late Frank Lautenberg.RELATED:Super Mayor Cory Booker Rescues Dog Left Outside In Freezing Weather [VIDEO][2]Newark Mayor Cory Booker To Hurricane Sandy Victims: “Come Over To My House”[3]The 44-year-old Democrat made his candidacy official at a news conference Saturday in Newark, New Jersey’s largest city. He was joined by former U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley, a former pro basketball player who for 18 years held the seat Booker is seeking.Bradley, who endorsed Booker, called him “the right person for the right office at the right time.”Booker began raising money for a Senate run even before Lautenberg, who died Monday, announced retirement plans in February. He had raised $1.9 million by the end of the last reporting period in March.Reps. Frank Pallone and Rush Holt are also planning to enter the Democratic...
PHOTO CREDIT: CNN Shannon Richardson, 35, also known as Shannon Rogers and Shannon Guess, was arrested and charged Friday with sending ricin-laced letters to President Barack Obama and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, reports CNN[1]. The Texas actress, who has appeared in “The Walking Dead” and “Vampire Diaries,” tried to place the blame on her estranged husband, Nathaniel Richardson, who has denied all involvement. Letters threatening Obama were found on Shannon Richardson’s computer, and FBI determined that Nathaniel was not involved because he was not at home at the time that they were printed out. [Richardson] is accused of mailing a threatening communication to the president and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney John M. Bales’ office in Texas. Also on Thursday, Nathaniel Richardson filed for divorce. His wife is pregnant, and the anticipated birth date and sex of the fetus is not known, the divorce lawsuit ...
Brittney Griner, 22, the #1 Draft Pick for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, will be modeling men’s clothing for Nike, reports ESPN’s Kate Fagan.[1]Nike is hoping Griner’s marketing clout will transcend the court. The company takes a cookie-cutter approach to signing female ballers, combining a set amount of free gear with a small payment. Sponsorship deals start at $5,000 a year, and only a handful of WNBA players earn more, with $15,000 considered big money. Griner’s deal is within this range; what makes it groundbreaking is the freedom. She will wear apparel branded as menswear, including the skateboarding line Nike SB, and she is allowed to pursue nontraditional marketing deals with outside companies.“It clicked for me,” Griner says. “I used to do the whole baggy, hard-core, I’m-a-boy look. Then I went through a preppy phase. Now I have the athletic, bow-tie look. I found my style.”The 6’8 Griner, who wears a size 17 shoe, shares with Fagan the pain that she had to go through hiding her...
WASHINGTON (AP) — A leaked document has laid bare the monumental scope of the government’s surveillance of Americans’ phone records – hundreds of millions of calls – in the first hard evidence of a massive data collection program aimed at combating terrorism under powers granted by Congress after the 9/11 attacks.At issue is a court order, first disclosed Wednesday by The Guardian newspaper in Britain, that requires the communications company Verizon to turn over on an “ongoing, daily basis” the records of all landline and mobile telephone calls of its customers, both within the U.S. and between the U.S. and other countries. Intelligence experts said the government, though not listening in on calls, would be looking for patterns that could lead to terrorists – and that there was every reason to believe similar orders were in place for other phone companies.Some critics in Congress, as well as civil liberties advocates, declared that the sweeping nature of the National Security Agency...
Get up, a-get-get down, Dallas, Texas, because 911 is definitely a joke in your town. And you have racist — now terminated — operator, April Sims, to thank for it.Sims took to her Facebook page to post bigoted, stereotypical insults about Black people, particularly those who call 911. Though her page is private, a friend sent screen caps to a local news station.One reads: ‘Black people are outrageous! They are more like animals, they never know how to act, just loud [expletive] Always causing problems.’‘I can count on one hand the black people I know who don’t have [expletive] for brains.I can count on one hand the black people I know who aren’t selfish.’Another reads: ‘You want to call 911 cause your boyfriend put his hands on you and you want to press charges when you don’t even know his real name?!‘Sure let’s make a police report for Dino, that is his street name.’Dallas Police Department fired her for violating their social media policy, which “prohibits employees from posting i...
