James48
James48's Journal$43 Million spent. Just 15 people hired.
The Administration Signed a Contract to Bring on 7,500 Border Personnel. It's Hired Just 15.
ERIC KATZ | NOVEMBER 26, 2018 4:49 PM ET
A consultant hired by the Trump administration to boost the number of border agents and customs officers has brought on just 15 of the 7,500 called for in its $300 million contract, according to figures provided by the agency.
Customs and Border Protection has so far obligated $43 million on the contract with Accenture, which is worth up to $297 million over five years. The agency invested $23.5 million in Accenture hires and an additional $19.1 million for start-up costs. The company has so far produced just 15 employees who have actually started working for CBP. Another 33 have accepted job offers.
CBP issued the contract to help fulfill President Trump’s mandate that the agency hire 5,000 new Border Patrol agents, which he issued through executive order shortly after taking office. Accenture was tasked with onboarding those 5,000, plus an additional 2,000 customs officers and 500 air and marine officers. Accenture gets paid on a per-hire basis, most of which comes when CBP sends an offer letter to a candidate and the remaining amount when the employee actually starts working.
The $43 million already obligated was slated for Accenture to help CBP bring on 600 employees. CBP is still confident the spending will bear fruit, with a spokesperson saying Accenture has 3,700 additional candidates in the hiring process. The contractor expects a “gradual increase of candidates to successfully exit the process in the coming months,” the spokesperson said.
More:
https://m.govexec.com/management/2018/11/administration-signed-contract-bring-7500-border-personnel-its-hired-just-15/153036/
Melania Trump Racked Up $174,000 In Hotel Bills For a Day Trip To Toronto
First Lady Melania Trump ran up a six-figure hotel bill for a one-day trip to Toronto last year, according to federal spending records.
Government spending data show at least six separate Toronto hotel charges ranging from just under $12,000 to nearly $49,000 for a total of roughly $174,000. She did not spend the night.
The total was roughly eight times what it cost to house the first lady’s advance team, whose $18,000 in hotel expenses were broken out separately; in addition to the hotel charges, the first lady’s trip involved $21,000 in transportation costs.
Reports from the press pool that accompanied Trump on her September 23, 2017, Canadian excursion showed that her schedule involved multiple hotel stops. Based on those reports, this was her itinerary for the day:
Source: GovExec.com
More:
https://www.govexec.com/oversight/2018/11/melania-trump-racked-174000-hotel-bills-day-trip-toronto/152884/
Democratic District Attorney was just ambushed and shot in the face
Source: Washington Press
A former Alabama state trooper has shot the district attorney for Alabama’s 17th Judicial Circuit, Greg Griggers, directly in the face today in an ambush attack, according to AL.com.
The local news site reports that the former trooper, Steven Smith, Jr., was killed by law enforcement responding to the crime scene after he shot the DA.
District Attorney Michael Jackson said that the dead assailant, Smith, has been investigated in the past in conjunction with a 1996 shotgun attack on the home of Sumter County Circuit Judge Eddie Hardaway, the first black judge to preside over Sumter, Marengo, and Greene counties in the state. Greg Griggers, the victim of today’s shooting, was the district attorney for those same counties and a registered Democrat in deep red Alabama.
Read more: https://washingtonpress.com/2018/11/15/a-democratic-attorney-general-was-just-ambushed-and-shot-in-the-face_2/
No idea on the motive. Reports say the attack occurred as the D.A. Was sitting in his car.
More also at:
https://www.al.com/news/2018/11/former-state-trooper-killed-after-shooting-alabama-da-in-face.html
GOLDEN WINS
Source: LIVE feed
GOLDEN WINS THE INSTANT RUNOFF IN MAINE 2
DEMOCRAT JARED GOLDEN DECLARED VICTOR IN FINAL "INSTANT RUNOFF" MAINE # 2 Congressional District Election.
(LIVE FEED)
Democrat Jared Golden win Maine's 2nd District race
The final vote retabulation in the 2nd District race gave Jared Golden just over 50 percent of the vote.
AUGUSTA - State election officials declared Democrat Jared Golden the winner of Maine's 2nd Congressional District race against incumbent Republican Rep. Bruce Poliquin.
A federal judge rejected U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin's request to force the Maine Secretary of State to stop the ranked-choice run-off on Thursday morning.
Sources: Associated Press/Secretary of State
Ranked-choice race for Congress:
Maine's 2nd District
STATUS: 100%
Jared Golden (D) 51% 139,231
Bruce Poliquin (R) 49% 136,326
A candidate must exceed 50 percent of the vote to be declared the winner. Because no one received a majority vote in the first round, last-place finishers are eliminated and their votes get redistributed based on their voters' second or third choices. Learn more here.
POLITICS
Democrat Jared Golden win Maine's 2nd District race
The final vote retabulation in the 2nd District race gave Jared Golden just over 50 percent of the vote.
Read more: https://www.pressherald.com/2018/11/15/final-ranked-choice-vote-count-slated-for-noon/
Source:
https://www.pressherald.com/?relrelated
Congrats to the winner. You can bet that the republican is going to go to court to overturn, but voters in Maine twice approved ballot proposals to adopt rank choice voting.
Detroit- Precinct #129 NO WORKING MACHINES
Detroit Martin Luther King High School-
As of 08:30, STILL not open (should have opened at 7am). Precinct #129.
No working machines. They are telling people to come back later.
Machines were locked in a room and nobody can find key
Can we get a new category under Government?
I would like to suggest a new category-
Government Ethics-
To post about various government ethical violations, or breaking or upholding ethics rules.
Here is today’s contribution for such a category-
“For a second consecutive week, we are filing a complaint against a Trump administration official for illegally using an official position for partisan politics,” CREW executive director, Noah Bookbinder said. “Administrator Verma, who oversees benefits to millions of Americans, should be particularly sensitive about not abusing her position for politics, and she certainly should know better by now after the administration’s many previous violations. We are now left to assume that Trump administration officials are well aware of their obligations under the Hatch Act and simply have no intention of following the law.”
https://www.citizensforethics.org/press-release/crew-files-hatch-act-complaint-against-cms-administrator-seema-verma
Should a new category be created?
Vote:
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