Turner sworn into Congress

Meeks and King to block VA development

From the Queens Chronicle:

Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-Jamaica) and Rep. Peter King (R-Nassau) have introduced a bill that would prohibit the planned private development of the St. Albans Veteran’s Administration site.

The St. Albans project has been a source of controversy for years, with the VA believing that replacing the existing facilities with a new nursing home, rehabilitation domiciliary and expanded outpatient facilities is the way to go, despite consistent opposition from many veterans. A private developer would build the facilities in exchange for a long-term lease on part of the site where it would put up housing and stores open to the general public.

Many vets, however, are against any lease to a private entity and instead want a full-service hospital there, so servicemen and women in Queens and Nassau counties don’t have to travel to Brooklyn and Manhattan for care.

Meeks said if the bill passes, the government will not be able to override it and it will effectively kill the project. When asked where the money would come from to repair the VA site and for the full service hospital, Meeks noted that the facility was about 15th in line to receive federal funding for repairs. The enhanced use lease process just bumped it up in line.

King has tougher stance on illegal aliens

From the NY Post:

Rep. Peter King, who next week becomes chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, says he will push legislation to tighten border security and arrest more illegal aliens -- challenging what he considers to be President Obama's lax immigration policies.

"The Obama administration continues to display an obvious lack of urgency when it comes to gaining operational control of the border, which is absolutely critical," King (R-LI) said.

He said Obama has "done little" in the past two years to keep out illegal immigrants and the country needs a new strategy "that incorporates the necessary staffing, fencing and technology to do the job."

King's immigration proposals will include an aggressive crackdown on private companies that hire illegal aliens and increased federal support for local police to help arrest illegal immigrants.

These measures are near the top of a packed Homeland Security agenda that includes efforts to better combat domestic radicalization, stopping Obama's plans to transfer Guantanamo Bay detainees to the US for civilian trials and bolstering national cybersecurity.

The border security initiatives would be a sharp departure from the current Obama administration policy that is focused on deporting illegal aliens who commit serious crimes.

Too bad Paterson decided to go the other way.

Weiner and Ackerman vs. King...oh my!

White House reconsidering venue for terror trials

From Eyewitness News:

The White House appears to be changing course on two major decisions regarding September 11th.

First, sources say the Obama administration has asked the Justice Department to consider other places to try the 9/11 terror suspects after a wave of opposition to holding the trial in lower Manhattan.

The Daily News reported that the action came hours after Mayor Bloomberg called Attorney General Eric Holder to say he would "prefer that they did it elsewhere."

Officials have told Eyewitness News and ABC News that the White House has asked the Justice Department to make contingency plans for criminal trial venues for the accused 9/11 terrorist defendants in case Congress and/or New York prevent the trials from taking place in Manhattan.

Officials said the apparent action by the White House does not mean the trials will be moved from federal court in Lower Manhattan, but they're now at least looking at other venues.

The Mayor of Newburgh, NY has offered to take the burden off the City. And Rep. Pete King of Long Island has introduced a bill to stop the terror trials from happening here.