Skelton Gets Detainee Measure Through Committee

The House Armed Services Committee has passed an amendment to restrict President Obama's jurisdiction over the transfer of detainees.

The amendment, offered by Rep. Ike Skelton, states that no detainee can be transferred without the president presenting a plan dealing with possible dangers the detainees pose and requires the president to consult with governors or the chief executives of territories on proposed transfers.

The overall House bill puts restrictions and reporting requirements on the transfer of Guantanamo detainees to the United States and elsewhere.

The AP reports: "The vote kicked off an ambitious effort by House Democrats to pass all 12 spending bills before Congress leaves for its August recess and avoid the budgetary standoffs that have become common in recent years."

ClaireTube

KY3 News played 3 questions with Sen. Claire McCaskill Thursday ---

*Watch her answers ABOVE*

Q1: On "Pay as you Go", why should the Obama administration be taken seriously when it has already spent $787 billion dollars on a stimulus package? Hasn't the debt already been racked up?

McCaskill: "If people don't think the President is serious, they ought to vote for the law and watch him sign it into law . . . It can't be a p.r. stunt if we're saying, 'let's pass the law, and I'll sign it.'"

Q2: Democratic Budget Chair Kent Conrad has said he doesn't think it's realistic for Obama to cut the debt in half, do you think that's realistic?

McCaskill: "Whether we will be able to cut the debt in half in 4 years will depend a lot on how successful we've been at motivating the economy with the stimulus . . ."

Q3: On GITMO -- Do you believe it would be safe to house some of the prisoners in Missouri? Is that something you would support?

McCaskill: "Truth be known, terrorist prisoners have been in Springfield, Mo. at the hospital on a number of occasions . . . Question is, do we have to bring them here? I hope not."

***

Later in the day, the Missouri GOP issued a release criticizing McCaskill for "scolding Missourians for their continued opposition" to President Obama's GITMO plan.

"Claire McCaskill scolded Missourians for opposing the closure of the Guantanamo Bay terrorist detention facility, but less than a month ago, she was one of 90 Senators who voted to prohibit funding to bring terrorists to the United States. McCaskill can’t seem to make up her mind,” said Lloyd Smith, Executive Director of the Missouri Republican Party.

Gov. Nixon: Don't Judge MIAC on A Few Lines

Gov. Jay Nixon said he hoped that a special committee looking into the Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC) would not base its evaluation of the intelligence program on a "few sentences" in a single report.
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Nixon made the comments during a economic development bill signing at the Chamber of Commerce in Springfield Wednesday, in response to a question from KY3 Photojournalist "Country" Tom Schultheis.

"I only hope that the legislators that are looking into it, look at it from the beginning of the process to the end of the process and not focus on just a couple of statements that are in there," Nixon said, referring to the "Modern Militia" report that leaked to the public in February. "I'm hopeful that the legislature, in their review . . . will be thoughtful, calm and apolitical," he added.

Called the "sharing of intelligence," a vital part of law enforcement.

"It's my hope that another branch of government doesn't attempt to baffle or lessen the clear safety that can come from legitimate intelligence analysis," the Governor concluded.

A Case For & Against MIAC Reports

AGAINST

Speaking at the special committee hearing Wednesday, political activist Catherine Bleish called MIAC's centralization of intelligence "a very dangerous" threat to democracy.

"It seems to me from listening to testimony today that the MIAC center was created by a government that is fearful of its people in some way," said Bleish.

"This is a very big red flag. What business do we have walking that fine line of identifying people as potential terrorists?," she asked.

*WATCH HER MAKE HER CASE ABOVE*
ALSO: VID CHECK: About :59 seconds in, notice the MIAC director's reaction (while he's packing up), when Bleish mentions concern about coordination between law enforcement agencies.

FOR

Cole County Sheriff Greg White urged lawmakers to continue to allow MIAC to issue strategic reports because he said they help reduce potential acts of violence and keep Missourians safe.

"Being the poster child for Right to Life, I would tell you, I wasn't the least bit offended by the document published," Sheriff White testified, referring to the "Militia Movement" report.

"We need the strategic arm of MIAC restored . . . To think that we would not do strategic work within the fusion center is to say that it's ok to commit certain acts of violence," he added.

*WATCH HIM MAKE HIS CASE ABOVE*

VIDEO: The MIAC Hearing

"A FINE LINE"

The head of the Missouri's Highway Patrol said the state is no longer producing strategic security reports, like the one on the militia movement that sparked controversy earlier this year.

But at a special State House hearing in the State Capitol Wednesday, Colonel James Keathley also said he couldn't entirely rule them out in the future, especially in the light of recent violent events around the country.

WATCH THE KY3 NEWS @ 10 REPORT HERE

***

*WATCH EDITED CLIPS OF THE HEARING ABOVE*

Some Highlights:

Col. Keathley: "I'm not going to sit here and say that there will never be another strategic report."

Rep. Shane Schoeller: "Let's be frank, most people, they get emotional, they may get excited, but they're not going to do any harm."

Rep. Jim Viebrock: on the suspect in the abortion doctor killing: "The person committing that crime is not a terrorist, that is a murderer."

At the Heart of It: Lawmakers want to know how law enforcement decipher between a passionate political protester and a deranged dangerous person?

Keathley's response: Some indication of criminal activity.

Wednesday's hearing lasted more than two and a half hours, and that did not include the tour of the MIAC facility located on Militia Drive in Jefferson City. Other special hearings are scheduled for his summer in Springfield, St. Louis and Kansas City.

MIAC Returneth

GET LIVE TWITTER UPDATES FROM THE MIAC HEARING

*HERE*

A trio of local conservatives sound off on what they hope Wednesday's MIAC hearings at the State Capitol will achieve and if the recent killing of a Kansas abortion doctor will alter the debate about who law enforcement needs to track.

*WATCH CLIPS ABOVE*

Nixa State Rep. Ray Weter said the goal of the Missouri Information Analysis Center hearings should be to differentiate between what's a legitimate approach to targeting and what's an overreaction. He said the report didn't offend him personally, but that his constituents reacted intensely to certain labels used. Rep. Weter called the suspect who is charged with the killing of a Kansas abortion doctor "an outlier," and not a problem Missourians had to worry about.

Right to Life's Dave Plemmons said the goal of the hearings should be to determine "who knew what, when they knew it and why they thought it was ok to issue this on a state level." He called the actions of the Kansas suspect "anti-abortionist," but not "pro-life." Plemmons believes law enforcement has the right to track those with a previous criminal history, but not people who are just associated with a particular group or belief.

2010 State House candidate Kevin Elmer said he wanted these questions answered: "How are they applying it? Where did it come from? What's the reasoning behind it?" He found the MIAC report so general that it could target "anybody who shows up for an abortion debate."

Hearings on the function and procedures of MIAC begin Wednesday afternoon in Jefferson City at 2 p.m. They will be chaired by Springfield Rep. Bob Dixon.

The hearings come after this controversial security document targeted some conservative groups and ignited a political firestorm in Jefferson City that lead to elimination of the report and the replacement of the MIAC director.

Dixon has said the hearings would help ensure that future reports produced by MIAC are "properly and adequately supervised."

To read a timeline of The Notebook's coverage of MIAC for the past few months, click HERE.

MIAC Hearings Begin Wednesday

A special House committee will begin holding hearings on the "function and procedures" of the Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC) this Wednesday.

The first hearing will be held in the Capitol's House Hearing Room 3 at 2 p.m.

It's expected to focus on "an informational overview" of MIAC.

"This interim committee and the public hearings reflect our responsibility as legislators to examine how state agencies are operating within the parameters set for them," said Committee Chairman Bob Dixon. "Law enforcement needs the proper tools and information to prevent unlawful activity, but it's our duty to safeguard civil liberties and privacy and make sure sufficient public accountability exists."

The committee was created by Speaker Ron Richard in response to the controversial MIAC report that labeled some right wing groups as potential terrorists. Additional hearings are expected in St. Louis, Kansas City and Springfield.

For more of KY3's coverage of the MIAC controversy, click HERE and HERE.

June 1st Bullets

A sleepy day in Missouri politics, a slow enough start to possibly take some vaca later this week?

Hmmm . . . Here's our bullets to catch-up:

• MIAC COMMITTEE -- Rep. Bob Dixon announces he'll chair an Interim Committee on "State Intelligence Analysis Oversight" to review the origins of the controversial Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC) report that outraged conservatives earlier this year. Dixon, who is running for the 30th District State Senate seat in 2010, released a statement of high praise from Speaker Ron Richard. "Representative Dixon has been vocal in expressing his concerns about the report issued by MIAC and he is one of the driving forces behind the creation of this committee. I believe he is the ideal choice," Richard said. No timetable was mentioned for hearings.
  
• GM GOES BANKRUPT -- And Sen. Claire McCaskill released this statement: "I’m looking forward to GM coming out of bankruptcy a stronger, better company. Ultimately, I’m pleased that we’ve managed so far to save important middle class jobs like those at the Wentzville plant and just across the border at the Fairfax plant in Kansas. I’m also anxious for the U.S. automakers to no longer rely on the federal government and, in the end, for the taxpayers to get their money back."
• REAL HOUSEWIVES -- This is a bit preposterous, but Abigail Blunt has been mentioned as a potential candidate for BRAVO's Real Housewives of D.C. The wife of Congressman Roy Blunt is afterall, one of the "Top 50 Corporate Lobbyists in D.C., and known for her fashionable wardrobe," according to Politics Daily. I don't know what Team Blunt would like less, reading more about Abigail's lobbyist credentials or watching her on reality TV. Although I will say Real Housewives of New Jersey is worthwhile late-night wind down tube.
• REPORT: BLACKS STOPPED MORE -- Black motorists are significantly more likely than other drivers to be stopped by Missouri law enforcement officers - a disparity that has grown greater during the past decade, according to a study from the Attorney General's office. An annual demographic report on Missouri traffic stops released Monday shows black drivers were 67 percent more likely than white or Hispanic drivers to be stopped in 2008. Not shocking. Same report was released last year. Question is: Do policy makers or law enforcement think they need to do anything to address/fix this?
• WHAT'S CID STAND FOR? -- Community Improvement District. Springfield currently has seven of them. Click here to find out why critics are raising some red flags before Council approves two more.
  

McCaskill: Obama Underestimated GITMO Challenge

Sen. Claire McCaskill says it's better to be right than quick in dealing with the detainees housed at GITMO.

In an interview, McCaskill wouldn't second-guess the President's decision to announce the closing of GITMO in January without an accompanying plan. But she did add: "He probably underestimated how difficult it was going to be."

*WATCH IT ABOVE*

"This isn't a President that's afraid to say, I need to back up and take another look. There's no shame in that . . . I think it's fine that we're going to wait another few months," McCaskill said.

Get Sen. Bond's quite different take on it all HERE.

Bond Led Charge on Defeating Obama's Gitmo Plan

The Senate's overwhelming rejection of bringing Gitmo detainees to U.S. soil was an unequivocal victory for Sen. Kit Bond, who was one of the earliest and most vocal critics to President Obama's plan.

Obama has said he wants to close the facility by early next year -- but has not yet offered a plan detailing where the detainees should go.

Sen. Bond also stressed that a Pentagon report saying that Guantanamo Bay detainees will return to terrorism should encourage the President to reconsider his plan.

"Sending these terrorists back to the battlefield isn’t an option – because we know Guantanamo graduates go back to the fight," said Bond. "This latest evidence should be another nail in the coffin of the White House's premature closing of our detention facility with no plan to deal with the dangerous terrorists housed there."

ANOTHER BLOW TO OBAMA: The FBI Director warned that bringing detainees to the U.S. would pose a number of possible security risks -- including providing financing, radicalizing others and undertaking attacks.

Lawmakers OK Gitmo Resolution

State lawmakers have given final approval to a resolution that urges the federal government not to use Missouri for the transportation of terror suspects from Guantanamo Bay.

***

The resolution is symbolic and nonbinding and will be sent to President Obama and Congressional leaders.

Specifically it asks the federal government not to use Missouri’s airports, highways, railways and waterways for the transportation of terror suspects from Guantanamo Bay. Rep. Clint Tracy, a Naval Reserve, sponsored the resolution after President Obama ordered the prison closed within the year.

"Exposing Missouri's citizens to any potential hostile threat is unwarranted and it is a shame that the current administration does not hold this same judgment," said Rep. Tracy. "With still no plan from our federal government on how to properly manage the President's ill-conceived executive order, we have taken it upon ourselves to echo what Missourians are saying across the state, 'Don't bring them in our backyard,'" Tracy added.

Skelton: Obama May Need To Use Veto Threat

Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton suggested Monday that President Obama may have to use a veto threat to preserve his plan to use one Air Force tanker supplier -- as opposed to multiple, which some House Democrats support.

"That is probably where we'll start and end," Rep. Ike Skelton, a Missouri Democrat, said in reply to a question about moves in Congress that would guarantee Air Force purchases from both rival tanker suppliers -- Boeing Co and a team of Northrop Grumman Corp and Europe's EADS, reports REUTERS.

The powerful Pennsylvania Rep. Jack Murtha has already signaled he favors a dual-source strategy in dealing with the purchase of new tankers. But Defense Secretary Robert Gates favors a winner-take-all competition to award the contract.

Skelton declined to discuss his personal stance on dividing the tanker buy.

But the veteran mid-Missouri Congressman dispensed this advice: "Very seldom is a veto overridden," he said, referring to whether the dual-source idea gains further traction in Congress. "I think that's what you should look for."

"You Can't Have Everything That You Want"

House Armed Services Committee Chair Ike Skelton defended the Obama administration's proposed weapons cuts, saying "every weapons system needs to be scrutinized."

Skelton made the comments in an interview with the Capitol Hill publication Roll Call.

"Every weapons system needs to be scrutinized," said Skelton. "As time goes on, some things get outdated. And it’s a constant research and development on one hand, and constant procurement on the other. And it’s all guided on the budget process. You can’t have everything that you want. That’s why you have to pick and choose," he added.

Some Republicans have argued that cutting the F-22 and the Army's Future Combat systems would hurt national security.

"We are putting $13 billion to increase the personnel system. That $13 billion has to come from somewhere. We need to take care of the troops and the Members have to know that," Skelton replied.

ALSO: Ike doesn't like the phrase "global war on terror."

"I’m not sure what it means. We are engaged in a conflict with Islamic extremists. And we should handle it as such, and we are. The genesis of those who attacked us was in Afghanistan," Skelton said.

McCaskill: Justice Lawyers Shouldn't Get A Pass

Senator Claire McCaskill said lawyers at the Justice Department involved in approving harsh interrogation practices may be guilty of "malpractice" and should not get a pass in the current controversy over torture techniques.

"I think giving lawyers a pass is a big problem because when you're a lawyer, your job is to show what the law is, not to give somebody the political answer they want," McCaskill said on MSNBC's Morning Joe.

Responded Scarborough: "You can't just blame the lawyers . . . The buck doesn't stop with lawyers, it stops with our elected leaders."

*WATCH FULL EXCHANGE ABOVE*

"I'm sure they'll be some form of investigation in Congress"

In a response to a question from NBC White House correspondent Chuck Todd, McCaskill said she believed Congress would conduct some sort of investigation about the interrogation techniques used under the Bush administration.

Then . . . Pleads to come back on the show to talk about waste in government contracting.

Scarborough yelps: "We love you Senator McCaskill!"

Producer promises she's "booked" for next week to talk gov't waste --- unless --- "something comes up."

McCaskill on Fox News Sunday

Sen. Claire McCaskill is a guest on Fox News Sunday this week to talk about President Obama's national security policy and his decision to release top secret memos that outlined CIA interrogation techniques that were used during the Bush administration.

McCaskill will appear opposite South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham. The two Senators are also expected to be asked about how to fight piracy on the seas and violence on the border.

Bond Unhappy About Obama's Release of Terror Memos

Sen. Kit Bond criticized President Obama for releasing censored versions of legal memos detail how the CIA questioned terrorism suspects during the Bush administration.

Bloomberg reports: The four memos show that Justice Department lawyers authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to use such techniques as sleep deprivation, slapping, nudity and waterboarding that simulates drowning.

"It doesn’t take an intelligence analyst to figure out that broadcasting to al-Qaeda exactly what techniques may be used in an interrogation is a really bad idea," Bond said in a statement.

Bond also said he believes this release will "make us less safe and "heighten anger" in parts of the world "where we're trying to make friends."

***

Bond will appear at a ribbon-cutting event in Marshfield Friday at 4 p.m. for the opening of a new health clinic.

Blunt Calls Homeland Security Report "Politically Motivated"

SPRINGFIELD'S TAX DAY TEA PARTY

LIVE COVERAGE on KY3 NEWS @ 5 & 6

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Though he isn't personally speaking to any Tea Party rallies, Congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Roy Blunt is issuing his support for the movement and criticizing a Homeland Security report that warns about a rise in "rightwing extremist activity."

ROY BLUNT'S STATEMENT:

"I support the Tea Party movement and share its concerns for America and bad policies that endanger the present and the future. Missourians have a right to be angry. They are tired of being treated like an open ATM by President Obama, Speaker Pelosi and Senator Harry Reid. Like the Missourians participating in these Tea Parties, I strongly opposed the so-called ‘stimulus.’ The liberal Democrats rammed through nearly $1 trillion in new spending in a bill that nobody even read. My opponent, Robin Carnahan, told The Associated Press she supports the Obama spending spree. The massive spending plan Robin Carnahan supported will slow recovery, slow the creation of jobs and saddle our children and grandchildren with a mountain of debt," said Congressman Roy Blunt.

BLUNT CALLS REPORT "POLITICALLY MOTIVATED"

"This report by President Obama's Department of Homeland Security is absolutely outrageous. It is wrong for the Department of Homeland Security to be playing politics, much less monitoring Americans who are exercising their First Amendment rights at tea parties across the nation. The Obama Administration should have learned a lesson from Missouri when Jay Nixon’s Administration was criticized for issuing a similar report targeting conservative candidates and conservative causes," said Congressman Roy Blunt in a statement.

The Homeland Security Secretary is standing by the report today, according to The Washington Times.

Reports: Big crowds lined up for Midday Branson Tea Party

Dixon Calls For Hearings on MIAC

Springfield State Rep. Bob Dixon is calling on the House to hold hearings on how the Missouri Information Analysis Center forms its security reports.

The call comes after a controversial security document targeting some conservative groups ignited a political firestorm in Jefferson City that lead to elimination of the report and the replacement of the MIAC director.

Dixon said the hearings, the majority which could occur this summer, would help ensure that future reports produced by MIAC are "properly and adequately supervised."

"I think we can all agree safeguards need to be in place so that no one fears or suspects profiling by political affiliation or protected speech," Dixon said in a media availability at Missouri State University Tuesday. "Frankly, what better way to clear the air and combat misinformation than public hearings."

***

DIXON SAID HE WANTS HEARINGS TO ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

• How did the process work?
• What are the sources that were used?
• How did they arrive at the "perceived threats?"
• What level of threat did this report merit?

*WATCH A CLIP OF DIXON ABOVE*

Due to time constraints in the legislature, Dixon said the ongoing committee could use the summer to study the issue and then make recommendations. "It might be a longer term study . . . because we've got a lot going on right now," Dixon said.

***

Asked to comment on the House's move to permit college students to carry concealed weapons on campus, Dixon told a KY3 photographer he "didn't have time" to answer the question.

Dixon is a 2010 candidate for Springfield's State Senate seat.

MIAC Director Demoted

The Missouri State Highway Patrol has named a new director of the Missouri Information Analysis Center, twelve days after the it scrapped a controversial report which inflamed conservatives.

***

Lt. David Hall will replace Van Godsey as the center's new director, the Patrol announced Monday. Van Godsey was reassigned to another division.

The report outraged conservatives for its references to anti-abortionists, anti-immigration advocates and supporters of third party candidates as potential terrorist threats.

"I am confident Lt. Hall has the experience and expertise necessary to oversee the functions of the Missouri Information Analysis Center," said Colonel James Keathley in a statement.

McCaskill: World Must Present United Front Against North Korea

Sen. Claire McCaskill said the world community must show a united front against North Korea's launch of a long-range rocket Sunday.

"I think it's important that we ramp up the pressure, all of the diplomatic tools we can use, all of the sticks and carrots we can use," McCaskill said, meeting with Springfield reporters on Saturday.

*WATCH HER FULL ANSWER ABOVE*

North Korea claims that the missile is a vehicle to launch satellites, but the U.S. and its allies regard satellite and missile technologies as interchangeable.

"I am convinced, after briefings this week, that we are prepared to look and see exactly what it is," McCaskill said.

The Notebook posed the question to the Senator before the missile launch as part of a round of questions that viewers and readers submitted via Twitter & Facebook.

Loyal reader @mattlyons wrote presciently: "Ask McCaskill if we should shoot down the N. Korean missile test slated tomorrow. If not, whats the right course to pursue?"
***

OTHER REACTION:

• President Obama said the "provocation underscores the need for action - not just this afternoon at the UN Security Council, but in our determination to prevent the spread of these weapons."
• Speaking on ABC's This Week, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice said she would push for tougher sanctions against the North Koreans.
• Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said he would have attempted to knock down the missile.
  
• DRUDGE banner: "NO THEY DIDN'T!!"
• AP: "North Korea's defiant launch of a long-range rocket has confronted President Barack Obama with his first global security crisis and a difficult diplomatic challenge for his young administration."