WASHINGTON–(ENEWSPF)–November 29, 2012. A coalition of human rights, religious, civil liberties and immigration rights groups voiced their opposition to Amendment 3018 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in a letter sent today to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-California). The Feinstein amendment fails to address a central concern raised in the[Read More…]

Commentary By John A. Ostenburg Unless one resides in some truly remote region, where the nearest other human is hundreds of miles away, we all must depend on others in order to fulfill our daily needs. I became acutely aware of this reality a few years ago when I went[Read More…]

Search Warrant Needed For Police to Access Electronic Communications WASHINGTON – The Senate Judiciary Committee today passed the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA). The bill (H.R.2471 substitute), introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), will require law enforcement agencies to obtain search warrants to access private electronic communications and other content,[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–November 29, 2012. Today, U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Chair Barbara Boxer will convene a hearing on the local impacts of Superstorm Sandy. Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune released the following statement in response: “For the millions of Americans-  like my mother and father – left without[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–November 28, 2012. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it had temporarily suspended BP from new federal contracts due to the company’s criminal role in the 2010 Gulf Coast oil disaster. Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune release the following statement in response: “Whether it’s in the form of[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–November 27, 2012. Today President Obama meets with President-Elect Enrique Peña Nieto of Mexico, who will take office on December 1. Both leaders have expressed interest in strengthening the partnership between the two countries by, among other things, increasing economic competitiveness, promoting regional development, advancing bilateral efforts to develop[Read More…]

House GOP Immigration Bill Undermines Talk of Fixing Immigration System WASHINGTON–(ENEWSPF)–November 27 – Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) prepares to step down as House Judiciary Committee Chairman with a parting shot at immigrant communities by resurrecting a partisan special interest bill, the “STEM Jobs Act,” that was defeated by the House[Read More…]

Human Rights, Religious, and Civil Liberties Groups Ask Obama to Keep His Promise to Close Guantánamo Prison WASHINGTON–(ENEWSPF)–November 27, 2012.  A broad coalition of human rights, religious, and civil liberties groups wrote to President Obama today to urge him to veto the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) if it impedes[Read More…]

Commentary By John A. Ostenburg The pre-Thanksgiving Day resignation of Congressman Jesse L. Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) was painful for me and lots of other folks who have worked with him over the past 17 years, and – despite how he may be portrayed in the press these days – many[Read More…]

This soccer game was contested on grass free of pesticides. Across the United States, however, many fields are coated with toxic pesticides. MAINE–(ENEWSPF)–November 26, 2012.  In a stirring report linking pesticide exposure to children’s illnesses, a major American agency issued a call today to limit exposures during the most susceptible[Read More…]