Welcome to Lost in the Sauce, keeping you caught up on political and legal news that often gets buried in distractions and theater… or a global health crisis.
I am doing a separate post for the insurrection and related events. I think it is important to make sure the news in this post doesn't get overlooked.
Housekeeping:

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Russia

A new report by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) found that Trump political appointees politicized intelligence around foreign election interference in 2020, resulting in significant errors. ODNI analytic ombudsman Barry Zulauf delivered the report to Congress on Thursday: “Analysis on foreign election interference was delayed, distorted or obstructed out of concern over policymaker reactions or for political reasons.” The biggest misrepresentation of intel involved diminishing the threat posed by Russia and overstating the risk of interference from China.

“Russia analysts assessed that there was clear and credible evidence of Russian election influence activities. They said IC management slowing down or not wanting to take their analysis to customers, claiming that it was not well received, frustrated them. Analysts saw this as suppression of intelligence, bordering on politicization of intelligence from above.”

• WaPo: Zulauf, a career official, also found an “egregious” example of attempted politicization of the Russian interference issue in March talking points on foreign election threats, prepared “presumably by ODNI staff” and “shaped by” then-Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell.

The Justice Department and the federal judiciary revealed that the Russian Solar Winds hack also compromised their computer systems. 3% of the DOJ’s Microsoft Office 365 were potentially affected; it does not appear that classified material was accessed. The impact on the judiciary seems much more significant, jeopardizing “highly sensitive confidential documents filed with the courts.”

The sealed court files, if indeed breached, could hold information about national security, trade secrets and wiretap transcripts, along with financial data from bankruptcy cases and the names of confidential informants in criminal cases...

Appointees

D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine has accused U.S. Agency for Global Media Director Michael Pack of funneling $4 million in nonprofit funds to his own for-profit company. In a civil lawsuit filed last week, Racine states that for over 12 years, Pack used a nonprofit company he owned to direct money to his private documentary company, enabling “Pack to line his company’s coffers with a stream of tax-exempt dollars without...a competitive bidding process, public scrutiny, or accounting requirements regarding its spending.”
Employees at Voice of America have filed a whistleblower complaint accusing Pack of using the agency “to disseminate political propaganda in the waning days of the Trump administration. The staffers take issue with a planned speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to be broadcast from VOA headquarters. The event, to be attended by a live audience, “is a specific danger to public health and safety” in the middle of a pandemic. Finally, the whistleblowers say the event is “ a gross misuse of government resources,” costing at least $4,000 in taxpayer funds to date and using 18 employees who would otherwise be producing VOA content.
Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller has announced his appointees to the panel set to rename confederate military bases and plan the removal of confederate symbols/monuments. Most controversially, Miller named White House liaison Joshua Whitehouse, who oversaw the purge of the Defense Policy Board and the Defense Business Board last month. The other three Miller-appointees are former acting Army general counsel Earl Matthews, acting assistant secretary of Defense Ann Johnston, and White House official Sean McLean. The remaining four members will be appointed by the Senate and House Armed Services Committees.

• The 10 Army posts named in honor of Confederate generals are Camp Beauregard and Fort Polk in Louisiana, Fort Benning and Fort Gordon in Georgia, Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Fort A.P. Hill, Fort Lee and Fort Pickett in Virginia, Fort Rucker in Alabama, and Fort Hood in Texas.

Trump

The Trump Inaugural Committee, a nonprofit, improperly paid a $49,000 hotel bill that should have been picked up by Trump’s for-profit business. D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine revealed the allegation in an existing lawsuit against the committee, which already accuses Trump’s hotel of illegally pocketing about $1 million of donors’ money. “The Trump Organization was liable for the invoiced charges...The [Committee’s] payment of the invoice was unfair, unreasonable and unjustified and ultimately conferred improper private benefit to the Trump Organization.”
The Professional Golfer’s Association voted last night to move the 2022 PGA Championship from Trump’s Bedminster course. Jim Richerson, PGA of America president, said in a statement that “it has become clear that conducting” the championship at Trump’s property would “be detrimental to the PGA of America brand” and put the organization's ability to function "at risk."
Amid speculation that Trump may spend inauguration day at his Scottish golf course, Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon warned him that even presidents can’t break the country’s pandemic restrictions. “We are not allowing people to come into Scotland now without an essential purpose, which would apply to him, just as it applies to everybody else. Coming to play golf is not what I would consider an essential purpose,” she said.
Trump is on a Presidential Medal of Freedom spree, giving out the award to sports figures and Republican allies. Last Monday, Trump awarded the medal to Rep. Devin Nunes for his work undermining the FBI’s investigation of Russia’s election interference. “Devin Nunes’ courageous actions helped thwart a plot to take down a sitting United States president,” the White House press release states. Likewise, Trump gave the medal to Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) for his “effort to confront the impeachment witch hunt” and “exposing the fraudulent origins of the Russia collusion lie.”

• The day after Trump supporters rampaged through the Capitol, Trump awarded the medal to retired professional golfers Annika Sorenstam and Gary Player. The president planned on giving New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick the medal on Thursday, but he declined the offer, saying that “the tragic events of last week occurred and the decision has been made not to move forward with the award.”

Courts

Dominion Voting Systems filed suit against pro-Trump lawyer Sidney Powell for defamation. Powell falsely claimed that Dominion had rigged the election, that Dominion was created in Venezuela to rig elections for Hugo Chávez, and that Dominion bribed Georgia officials for a no-bid contract,” the lawsuit states. Citing millions spent on security for employees, damage control to its reputation, and future losses, Dominion requests damages of more than $1.3 billion.

• Dominion's lawyer told reporters last week the lawsuit against Powell “is just the first in a series of legal steps.” Ari Cohn, a free speech and defamation lawyer, told WaPo: “If I had to guess I would say that [Poulos] wants a very public vindication with a ruling establishing that Sidney Powell defamed them and that her statements were baseless...That's not something you generally get in a settlement agreement.”
  
• Just last week, Trump again said at a rally that Dominion machines allowed “fraudulent ballots” to be counted during the 2020 election (clip).
  

The Supreme Court declined to fast track eight Trump-related cases related to the 2020 election, ensuring they won’t be taken up before Biden’s inauguration. The cases include one brought by attorney Lin Wood against Georgia’s Secretary of State, the so-called “Kraken” cases, and three brought by Trump’s campaign. It is possible the lawsuits will be declared moot after Biden is sworn in.
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases alleging that the Treasury Dept. incorrectly distributed Coronavirus aid meant for tribal governments. The Lower 48 Tribes argue that Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) are not eligible for CARES Act funding, while the Trump administration wants to divvy up the money between tribes and ANCs.

Immigration

A federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s final attempt to restrict U.S. asylum laws. District Judge James Donato (Obama appointee) ruled in favor of advocacy groups who argued that acting Homeland Security secretary Chad Wolf lacked authority to impose the new rules, which would have resulted in the denial of most asylum applications.

“The government has recycled exactly the same legal and factual claims made in the prior cases, as if they had not been soundly rejected in well-reasoned opinions by several courts,” Donato wrote. “This is a troubling litigation strategy. In effect, the government keeps crashing the same car into a gate, hoping that someday it might break through.”

On Monday, acting Homeland Security secretary Chad Wolf submitted his resignation, citing the recent court ruling that he is not a valid appointee to the position. His resignation letter does not cite the Capitol riots or Trump’s language inciting the insurrection. FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor will be the new acting secretary.

"Unfortunately, this action is warranted by recent events, including the ongoing and meritless court rulings regarding the validity of my authority as Acting Secretary. These events and concerns increasingly serve to divert attention and resources away from the important work of the Department in this critical time of a transition of power," Wolf added.

A new Immigration and Customs Enforcement policy will make it harder for immigrant minors to obtain asylum in the U.S. The change was made at the end of last month by then-acting agency leader Tony Pham, who served in the position for less than five months.

Beginning Dec. 29, ICE officers were told that they must review whether an immigrant child is still “unaccompanied” each time they encounter the minor… The memo indicates that the evaluation by ICE officers can come at any time, including when an officer is reviewing immigration court records of a child, and if it’s determined that an immigrant is no longer unaccompanied, they will move to change their status.
Such a change could lead to making some children ineligible to have their asylum claims initially heard and processed… “If implemented aggressively, this policy could significantly decrease the number of children who ultimately receive asylum in the United States,” said Sarah Pierce, an analyst at the Migration Policy Institute. “They are really putting the onus on ICE officers to do everything they can as frequently as they can to remove these designations.”

The Trump administration is still awarding border wall contracts, even in areas where private land has not yet been acquired. The move will make it more difficult for Biden to stop construction of the border wall.

Attempts to halt construction completely, as Biden promised, will prove difficult, particularly if contracts continue to be struck -- a challenge [acting Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Mark] Morgan acknowledged Tuesday. "They could terminate those contracts if they want to, but that's going to be a very lengthy, messy process," Morgan said.
"We're going to have to go into settlement agreements with each individual contractor," Morgan added, noting, that payments will have to be made for what they've already done, as well as for materials produced. He estimated the process could cost billions.

Trump is set to visit Alamo, Texas, today to celebrate the completion of more than 400 miles of the border wall. You can watch the event on YouTube at 3:00 pm eastern.

Miscellaneous

Stories that didn’t fit in the above categories...
The Trump administration auctioned off leases to drill oil in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge last week. Only two private companies bid, each winning large tracts of land. Knik Arm Services, from Alaska, paid $1.6 million for a 50,000-acre tract along the Arctic Ocean. A subsidiary of Australian company 88 Energy paid $800,000 to win the smallest tract.
One of the Health and Human Services Department’s final acts under Trump was finalizing the removal of Obama-era regulations barring discrimination among HHS grantees. The change will allow recipients of federal grant money - like adoption and foster agencies - to discriminate against LGBTQ people and those of a different religion.

Human Rights Campaign: “Statistics suggest that an estimated two million LGBTQ adults in the U.S. are interested in adoption… Further, research consistently shows that LGBTQ youth are overrepresented in the foster care system, as many have been rejected by their families of origin because of their LGBTQ status, and are especially vulnerable to discrimination and mistreatment while in foster care. This regulation would only exacerbate these challenges faced by LGBTQ young people.

First, no matter how much I apologize, it can and never will be enough. I have so many wonderful people to Thank... this has been a horrific year for us all, and the connectivity brought by a card, a postcard, a note has been vital to my sanity. I finally came home on Friday, with my 4 legged fur baby after a long spring, and summer. In March, my state was in the grips of the pandemic, at a time when we barely understood everything about this novel virus. I don’t consider myself an essential worker, but a higher being decided I was essential to the essential workers, those incredible people on the front lines of caring for those who had the virus. No amount of Thank You would ever be enough to the people who directly cares for patients with COVID-19, who holds their hands as they say goodbye to loved ones over a video call. I love my work, I really, really do, and many of you may find it incredibly odd when I say, my job isn’t a job, it’s a privilege, and everyday is like inhaling happy gas, but for the first time ever, it wasn’t happy gas... not in the least. I had been asked to come to a couple of cities to provide “relief”, and that’s not unusual in what I do, but it was just longer this time, and it was lonelier because there’s really nowhere to go. I desperately missed home, in the worst possible way, and combined with erratic work hours, I was on the verge of insanity. I finally came home on Friday, and will be in self isolation for 14 days... my furry friend couldn’t be happier, because there were many days he hated me for dragging him along, but I came home to so much happy mail !!!! It literally moved me to tears !! My mom had organized it all by date, so I have been opening one after another, and I can’t even begin to express the amount of gratitude I have for each and every one of you... beautiful cards, with beautiful messages...I hope I haven’t forgotten anyone.
I have a list of wonderful people to send happy mail back, and will be doing that during this time. I got 2 pieces of mail sent out back, so I’m going to be reaching out to them to confirm the address I have is correct. They came back in a ziplock bag with half the card missing, and it never ceases to amaze me that the USPS with all it has to do right now, somehow managed to get it back to the sender. I hope the cards I send, will be enjoyed. I have tried to make them as special as I possibly can. Some of them will reflect what can only be described as a unique sense of humor.
I humbly ask all of you to please, please forgive the late Thank You, but please know every card, every message has been healing for my soul. The kindness of strangers is amazing, and it is through that kindness strangers become friends.
I love adding pictures for you all to see, and I will do that ASAP... I love you all ❤️
u/suzette393 : Thank You !! I LOVED your card !! Who doesn’t know “Sweet Caroline” ? I didn’t know he has Parkinson’s Disease... very sad to hear. But thank you for taking me back !!
u/loko_lo : Thank you so much for the beautiful card !! I loved reading about your hobbies... I feel like this summer has somehow slipped away too fast, and definitely not a normal summer. You seem to very outdoorsy, but I’m the total opposite !!
u/postcardsfromjenna : Thank you for the beautiful Vancouver artwork card !! I love Vancouver !! I always have a wonderful time when I’m there...
u/kecr101 : Thank You for the Disney Pinocchio postcard !! The running joke in our house, is my mom refuses to acknowledge that our fur baby is not a real boy, so we tease her that’s she’s waiting for him to turn into a real boy. This summer has been a crazy summer... I have done some cooking, not as much art as I would have loved to do, but most of all I miss our family getting together for our family holiday.
u/travellincat : Thank you so much for the World Postcard Day postcard !! I didn’t even know it was a thing, but I’m happy to celebrate the day ! Your wish that my card brings joy to my mailbox is exactly what it did, and I can’t thank you enough !!
u/lavender_icedtea : Thank you for the Mae Jemison card !! I really love these women in science card !! I have made your Chocolate Chip cookies, and they didn’t even make it off the baking sheet !! I added a ridiculous amount of chocolate chips and chocolate chunks... but thank you so much !!
u/KingnBanter : Thank you so much for the Horse card drawn from a child’s perspective !! It’s adorable and I love that the horse has only 3 legs and highlights in its mane !! Thank you for the Michigan sticker !! I love the message of things to be happy about, but here are my top favorites 1. Platters of good things to eat- no way will I ever turn down a good food platter... a charcuterie for one. 2. Reading outside on a blanket wearing a big sweater... Indian summers are my favorite 3. Traveling by bicycle... you didn’t mean long distance right ? Cause that’s never gonna happen, but I do enjoy riding my bike a lot. 4. Dozing... I’m a Gold Medalist at dozing u/shepanda : Thank you so much for the cutest amount Rainier card !! I love that it’s vintage !! Chemistry was my favorite class too... I took General Chemistry and Organic Chemistry but for some reason I loved General Chem (it might have to do with the fact I nearly blew up the organic chem lab, almost burnt my lab partner (who happened to be my sister)
u/msmomona : Thank you for the awesome Pantone card... I go through phases of favorite colors and this months favorite happens to be Teal... I know the card said Bottle Green but I really looks more real to me. Thank you for the happy mail.
u/Mareepharos : OMG so cute !! Thank you for the Wine Dogs postcard !! I loved reading about Boe !! Naughtiest Deed : Eating the contents of a burst piñata... Epic ❤️
u/ganzhimaself : Thank you for the Wisconsin Card !! I’m a huge cheese fan !! I love cheese !! I’ve been to the Wisconsin Dells and it was beautiful !! I think after reading your facts about Wisconsin being biggest cheese producer and having over 40 Breweries... it might be time to visit again ☺️
u/mf1ish : Thank you so much for the postcard from the Louvre !! I loved visiting the Louvre as well, but you really do need more than one day to appreciate all the art. True Story : when we visited the Louvre someone stole a painting, so huge barriers came down and we all had to go into the center of the museum and they were checking everyone as they let them out... so, yours truly here decides that would be the best time to pass out... yep. I don’t remember if they ever found the painting.
u/HufflepuffPuff_ Pass : Thank you for the card with the yummy tarts... I love it !! I have accepted and now take pride in being a Hufflepuff !! What you say is true... loyal and hardworking with the added perk of being next to the kitchen.
u/ImOkReally : Thank you for the kitten card !! It’s so adorable !! I also love yarn !! Thank you for the stickers and lovely note... I hope it’s cooled down for you and Knuckles ☺️
u/aneemo : Thank you for the adorable card and stickers !! Sourdough sounds like a cute book... my sister was obsessed with making sourdough and after a million tries has finally done it !!
u/Qknowsbest : ok I have never seen such incredible handwriting !! Thank you so much for the Never Stop Looking Up... it’s been tough but we are all trying to figure out how to navigate this new normal. I love the quote “Difficult roads often lead to Beautiful Destinations”... nothing could be more true
u/lovescraftswidow : OMG I loved your card so so much !! It was so unique and fun !! I adored it !! Thank you for the book recommendation... I will have to look up The amulets of Samarkand... fantasy is normally not my genre, but you know what ? I’ve read and loved books I never would have read if it weren’t for recommendations ☺️
u/indleaf : How do I begin to say Thank You for the gorgeous photographs ? I loved them all !! I loved seeing things through your lens and I truly appreciate the extra monkey card !! I love to take photographs, but am not nearly as talented as you... I love taking pictures of people, especially children... they’re fascinating subjects and are always full of emotions... I realized I sound like a weirdo. I will definitely be looking forward to seeing more of your work on Instagram, and thank you for answering all my prompts...☺️
u/xlez : Thank you so much for the astronaut postcard !! I absolutely loved the quote !! You have been so kind, with the 2 cards you have sent... I can’t thank you enough for brightening my day !!
u/msmomona : Thank you so much for my very first Lou Paper postcard !! I love it !! I love Las Vegas, not for the gambling but I just love staying on the strip and looking at all the lights and people watch, and to catch a show or two.
u/twerpto : Thank you so much for the handmade card, it really is so special. I lost my uncle a month ago to Covid-19, and never got a chance to say goodbye as he lives in another country, and his passing was so sudden, but I kid you not... I was just thinking about him like literally 15 minutes before your card arrived, and then there was this gorgeous cardinal inside. They always say a Cardinal represents a loved one.
u/earthfireairwater : Thank you for the Georgia O’Keefe card !! It is one of my favorites !! I loved the red wine sticker !! This quarantine has reduced my life to coffee time and wine time !! I just finished the book “Ask again Yes” by Mary Beth Keane... and wow !! I have a book hangover.
u/komalya13 : Thank you for the Elizabeth Blackwell card !! I love it !! It’s funny because another awesome Redditor sent me a Marjorie Stone Douglas card !! It’s nice to meet a fellow Desi... I’m from Idli-Vada-Sambar Land, Andhra ☺️
u/Alfie-Solomon : Thank you for the awesome card and stickers !! I have always wanted to study law, and I can see how Torts would be your favorite... we definitely do need more Federal Judges, and we need more people to understand Constitutional Law... it seems the Constitution has been chucked out the window.
u/StephenfromReno88 : Thank you so much for Mt. Whitney card !! It really did make my day much better !!
u/wyrmfang : Thank You so much for the beautiful Emma Golden Retriever card !! Emma is my favorite Jane Austen book and I adore dogs !! I think we have the same wish list of travel destinations !! I loved Italy... my favorite city being Venice !! I hope we will all be able to travel again soon, I think we all just have to find a new normal .
I’m sorry I don’t have the username but I received a card with a beautiful wax seal on the back... I just want to Thank you for the wonderful note !! I love the wax stamp on the back... it made me feel fancy ! I loved your fun facts, I never would think Dolphins gave names for each other. The vintage ticket stickers are so cute !! I saved all my tickets from when I was younger, but now I forgot where they are !!
I have another lovely person whose username I don’t have... Thank you so much for the recipe cards !! I loved them so much... thank you for sending 3 !! I can’t wait to try them...I’m going to start with the cobbler, cause who doesn’t love cobbler !! You were so kind to share these recipes, and I’m so happy to have met someone who shares my passion for baking !! I’m trying to teach myself to embroider and I got a sewing machine which I’m hoping to get the hang of soon... I used to sew so much many moons ago !! The machines are awesome now, with so many stitch options... they have machines for embroidery but I’m nowhere ready for that yet 😜

Hello, everyone. I have reached the point in my life where I have now been estranged from my mother for a longer period of time than when I had a relationship with her. I cut her off shortly before I turned 17 so many years ago, and now 17 years later I am 34, married, and with two children.
First, I'd like to share my story, which starts in the city of Dallas one July morning when I was born. My mother and father had married when they found out they were having me, but that marriage only lasted until my first birthday. Following the divorce, my father joined the US Navy and fought in Desert Storm, while my mother spirited me away first to Arizona for a year, and finally to Las Vegas, NV to attend college at UNLV. Shortly thereafter, I was three years old with a step-father and a new baby half-sister, and two more half-brothers would come in the coming years.
My earliest memory living in Las Vegas also happens to be the only happy memory I had of living there. When I was five, my dad took leave and visited me, and we spent the whole week together including a trip to Circus Circus. It was a theme that would be constant for the rest of my child -- the only times I ever felt happy was when I was not in Las Vegas with my mother and the new family that she started.
Even from early on, I never felt like I belonged with the family that I was living in. I had a different father who lived on the opposite coast, and I was treated far differently as if I was an inconvenient child that nobody knew what to do with. I was not my step-father's son, and unlike my sibling my interactions with him usually ended up explosive in temperament, including having objects thrown at me, with my mother doing little to stop it. In fact, my mother often reinforced the behavior which only led to fights and arguments with her as well, fights which would only subside when my dad calmed me down over the phone.
While my half-siblings did like me and looked up to me, I also never felt as strong a bond with them as they did with each other, or with their parents. I had my own room, and my own stuff, while they had to share among themselves. They received care and affection from both of their parents, while I had a tumultuous relationship with the one we shared and a long distance relationship with the one we did not. When my step-father's family came over, it was my half-siblings who were showered with attention while I was just the other child from their in-law's failed marriage. From very early on in my childhood it was clear to me that I did not belong with this family.
Then there was the effect that Las Vegas has on many adults living there. I remember being nine years old witnessing screaming arguments between my mother and step-father. You see, my step-father had a gambling addiction where he would receive his paycheck and swiftly deposit it into the slot machines at the grocery store hoping for a payout that would never come. There was also the work schedules. Since Las Vegas is a 24/7 town, it is not unusual for people to work odd shifts including evenings and into the wee hours of the night. I was often left to entertain myself while my mother was asleep all day with the blackout curtains drawn.
As a means of coping, I applied myself academically at school because it was something that I actually felt that I could do well. Unfortunately, my July birthday meant that I was always the youngest kid in all of my classes and that, coupled with my small frame, meant that I was often picked on and bullied with nobody at home that I thought would really support me.
The only times that I ever felt happy were when I flew to Dallas for the summer to visit my grandparents and the rest of my dad's side of the family, and my dad would always organize his leave to meet me there too. I have several cousins who are close to my age living there, and I have many fond memories of summer pool parties every Sunday afternoon at my grandparent's house. I looked forward to flying out every summer because I felt like it was where I belonged.
At nine years old, shortly after finishing the fourth grade, was when I hit my first breaking point with my mother. I don't remember at all what we were fighting about, but it became so intense that it ended with my mother packing away all of my things and sending me to live with my dad within the week. I was that child that she didn't know what to do with and she just sent me away, and I was thrilled. My dad had just been stationed in Oklahoma City for shore duty, a mere three hour drive from Dallas, and I would live with him for the next three years through fifth, sixth, and seventh grades.
The change was great for me, and I think that those three years were the golden years of my early childhood. While my dad does not speak much, and he occasionally had to leave me with a babysitter when he was on duty, with him I felt like I was listened to and that I belonged. We often took weekend trips to Dallas and I developed a strong bond with my grandparents and all of my cousins. I remember him taking me camping and fishing, teaching me how to shoot a gun, letting my twelve year old self drive the car on some old country roads, building a go-kart for me to drive around the neighborhood, and all kinds of experiences that I never had in Las Vegas. My school life was much better, too, and I had a good group of friends at the time.
My relationship with my mother was limited to phone calls from time to time and brief summer trips to Las Vegas. Ironically, fate made the phone calls very rare when our WebTV internet service ended up charging up an $1800 phone bill leading our phone to be disconnected for over a year. Since it was a bit of a hike to walk to the convenience store to call my mother from the pay phone, it happened less frequently and that is probably a good thing as she was also going through her second divorce while I was living in Oklahoma.
Unfortunately, my time with my dad came to an end when his shore duty tour ended and he was assigned to an aircraft carrier that was about to deploy. In the eighth grade, I moved back to Las Vegas to live with my mother. At the time, she was dating another guy who had two kids of his own, and they had moved in. My half-siblings were living with their father as he had the family support network in Las Vegas whereas my mother did not. All of the same problems that we had in early childhood existed now, except with a new guy in the house and a new set of kids that I had no bond with whatsoever. I was going to a new school, too, but it was not a very good school and I was always isolated and bullied there.
I didn't even make it through the school year before I hit my second breaking point. Our constant fighting probably led to her boyfriend from breaking things off with her, and I always felt like she was blaming me for it. One day, we got into an argument so intense that she drove me in the middle of the night to admit me into a mental hospital where I would spend two weeks being told how much of a terrible child that I was until I would admit that to the doctor and my mother in a consultation. It was easily the most humiliating experience I had ever gone through in my life. A month after I had been discharged I was given the option to move in with my dad in Virginia Beach, VA, and I took the opportunity without hesitation.
During that year, my dad married the woman who he had been dating. She already had a toddler child out of wedlock and was expecting a child by the time that I moved in. It was a little weird, because here I was a 14 year old entering high school with a step-mother who was 23 years old, but I was just so happy to move away from Las Vegas and the toxic relationship that I had with my birth mother.
My poor relationship with my step-father before, however, certainly affected me in my relationship with my step-mom. She was young and unfamiliar with what to do with a teenager step-son who is not that much younger than her, and I was conditioned by previous experiences to be distrusting of her. We had some growing pains during my teenage years for sure, but nothing ever got as bad as what I experienced in Las Vegas. I also formed more of a bond with my toddler step-sister and the two half-brothers that would be born because I was trusted with the responsibility of helping to care for them as infants given our large age gap, and I do believe that made a difference. While there may have been times that I felt that maybe I didn't belong in this new family, I think that was remedied by my dad and step-mom keeping me involved and trusting me.
I also felt like I had direction in my high school years. I had joined the school's NJROTC unit, made some close friends that I still talk to today, and really enjoyed those years. I spent my freshman and sophomore years in Virginia Beach, and I felt like I had a clear path forward into adulthood all laid out for me.
Unfortunately, that all came to an end when my dad was deployed again during my junior year. With my dad being out to sea for nine months, my step-mom wanted to move back to Georgia where her family could help to take care of my step-sister and my first infant half-brother, a decision which I fully understand. My mother decided that it would be best for me to move to Las Vegas to live with her, however, and I didn't have a say in the matter. During this move, she couldn't even be bothered to fly me like during past moves, and I embarked on a three day Greyhound bus adventure across the country where I feared I was going to be kidnapped or raped at any moment. to live with my mother in Las Vegas.
This time I was not only living with my mother, I was also living with her mother and drunkard brother because she could not afford to live on her own. I wanted to just emancipate myself right then and there, and I would have tried to do so if I would have qualified to do so. The only difference was that we did not fight as often, it was more of a silent treatment. She often worked all night, or went out to party and go to concerts, and slept all day with the blackout curtains drawn anyways. I have memories of her being dumped by some guy and then closing herself in her room to eat bowls of straight powdered sugar, and I felt nothing but shame that she was my mother. As before, I had no friends in Las Vegas although my junior year at school wasn't as bad as previous experiences in earlier childhood. I felt isolated and alone, and was just biding my time to move back with my dad for my senior year. When I finally moved back, taking another greyhound bus across the country, my last works to her were, "I don't ever want to see or speak to you again." and for 17 years I had followed through on that.
She certainly tried to contact me at first. All through my senior year she tried calling the house frequently, but I never accepted the phone call. When I was 19 I had moved out on my own and also moved back to Dallas, so she would try to reach me through my grandparents with no success. For the first four years I was also inundated with unwanted letters from her trying to justify herself through emotional sob stories, never once acknowledging what she had done to push me away. She even tried to show up at my work one day, an event that ended with me denying knowing her and having security escort her off premises. Eventually the attempts to recontact stopped until about five years in it was as if she did not exist to me.
In the time that I was estranged from my mother, I had graduated high school, obtained my drivers license, joined the US Navy and served for six years, obtained a college degree all while serving, met my beautiful spouse, and had two children (4 years old and 4 months old), and got my dream job as an engineer living and working in Japan. I do not regret walking out on her at all because she was not a positive influence in my life at all and I just feel like she would have kept me held back.
My only regret in cutting off contact was actually cutting off my half-siblings as well. While I never felt like I belonged with them, they did look up to me dearly and I do feel like I have betrayed them in a cruel way. I just could not allow myself to have any ties to my mother or to the city of Las Vegas, because my time there was too much to bear, so my relationship with them ended up being a casualty of my fallout with my mother. I stalk them online from time to time, though, and I am happy that they are doing well. My half-sister followed her dream and became an event photographer for a local radio station in Las Vegas, my older half-brother just finished his Associates in accounting and got picked up for a pretty good job also in Las Vegas, and my younger half-brother is just figuring out his early 20s. I'm sincerely happy that they are all doing well and I am sorry for any pain that I caused them from severing ties with our mother.
That brings me to the present day, where I have just turned 34 years old meaning that I have been apart from my mother for longer than I have had any association with her, and I am considering restoring limited contact with her for a few reasons.
First, and this is the main reason, I had checked in on her FaceBook page and it seems like she has become a different person than I remembered before. Her posts are generally positive and she is often spending time with her other three adult children. I looked through her entire Facebook feed to 2008 and I did not find a single post where she laid out the self-victimization sob stories that were in the letters she sent when we first broke contact. When she did mention me, it was her posting a message wishing me a happy birthday every year where she apologizes for hurting me and is praying that I would recontact her one day, or an old photograph with her commentary on what was a happy time to her, or posts where she is expressing happiness for what I have achieved in my life when she hears about them. It actually makes me cry because I believe she is actually sincere since these kinds of posts go back for the last nine years and I never had any idea.
Second, while I resent what she has done to me in my childhood, now that I am a parent myself I can appreciate the impossible situation she was in given that appeasing me may very well have been alienating to her other three children. There were times when I treated her unfairly, and I am willing to take responsibility and apologize for those times if she is also willing to take responsibility and apologize for how her actions hurt me.
Finally, I do not want to deny my children the right to get to know their grandmother, especially since she seems to have changed over the past 17 years. I am considering extending an olive branch and allowing her to visit her grandchildren here in Japan as soon as all of the travel restrictions are lifted.
If she has changed for the better, and is willing to take responsibility for her actions, and is willing to come to us to meet, then I can see our relationship being reconciled. To be honest, though, I am scared to reach out. I got her cell phone number and put it in my phone, but I have not yet found the courage to hit dial. I also fear what my half-siblings must think of me, but I do think it is finally the time to make the move and try to reconcile.
Thank you if you took the time to read my story. Mostly it helps me to just get it all written down, but I hope it is a change since there are so few stories on this subreddit of estranged adult children actually talking about reaching the point where reconciliation may be an option.

Alabama

• Some DMV hours limited to open one day per month. Some, the only DMVs in the county, also close as early as 2:30pm. https://web.archive.org/web/20181102034221/http://dps.alabama.gov/Home/DriverLicensePages/wfDLOffices.aspx https://www.safemotorist.com/Alabama/DMV_Locations.aspx https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-transportation-investigate-possible-discrimination-through-alabama
  
• Judge states two witnesses in 2011 showed “a deep-seated racial animus” seeking to suppress black turnout. Judge argues that they kept pro-gambling referendum off the ballot as it would bring out more black voters https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/news/20111021/judge-bingo-witnesses-aimed-to-suppress-black--voter-turnout
  
• 2016 USDOT investigation concluded that disproportionate closing of Alabama DMVs in the Black Belt caused a "disparate and adverse impact on the basis of race." https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdal/pus-department-transportation-takes-action-ensure-equitable-driver-license-office-access
  
• Online SoS website provides no mobile ID locations the day before 2017 election https://twitter.com/srl/status/940252427302985728 https://web.archive.org/web/20171212092531/https://sos.alabama.gov/alabama-votes/photo-voter-id/mobile-id-locations
  
• In 2017 election inactive voters could not cast a regular ballot, were either given provisional ballot or were illegally misinformed about voting procedures http://www.naacpldf.org/files/about-us/2017%2012%2014%20LDF%20Letter%20re%20Issues%20Concerning%20the%20Special%20Election.pdf http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/alison/codeofalabama/1975/17-4-9.htm
  
• Despite 2017 "Moral Turpitude" change to which felonies disqualify you from voting, officials will not educate or inform voters who are no longer disqualified. According to Secretary of State John H. Merrill, “I don’t see any reason to contact them directly if we’re already reaching the entire population.” https://www.thedailybeast.com/more-ex-prisoners-can-vote-in-alabamathey-just-dont-know-it http://ballot-access.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/gov.uscourts.almd_.61662.72.0-1.pdf As a result, even official registrars said they were uninformed how to manage the reinstated rights. https://www.al.com/news/2017/10/alabama_election_officials_rem.html
  

Arizona

• SC allows ban of collected ballots for early voting. Ruling is without explanation but the suspicion is because Appeals Court ruled a week before 2016 election https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/11/05/us-supreme-court-oks-arizona-ballot-collection-ban/93344652/
  
• GOP reached agreement after suit calling for deadline for signature verification, which would eliminate all votes where the signature couldn't be confirmed on election day. Even though it was legal for voters to verify their signature up to 5 days later (treated as a provisional ballot), the GOP solution to different deadlines in different counties was to end the service altogether. https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2018-11-08/arizona-gop-sues-to-change-how-mail-in-ballots-are-counted-in-sinema-mcsally-race
  

Arkansas

• ~4000 ex-felons and others never charged flagged for removal from voter rolls in 2016 despite being eligible to vote https://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2016/07/25/data-mix-up-from-ark-secretary-of-state-purges-unknown-number-of-eligible-voters

Florida

• DoJ orders Florida Secretary of State to cease voter purge within 90 days of an election https://thinkprogress.org/breaking-justice-department-demands-florida-stop-voter-purge-a38bf978a103/
  
• Trump calls for state to end absentee ballot count 4 days before deadline, which would negate about 20,000 ballots mostly by overseas military members in a race the Republican leads by less than 13,000 https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/as-nation-observes-veterans-day-trump-calls-for-blocking-military-votes/
  
• Although in November 2018 the voters backed a state amendment restoring voting rights to over one million felons who completed their sentence, State Governor Ron DeSantis and State Secretary Ken Detzner said it would not be active in time for the February elections. This contradicts the directive from the Florida Department of State. https://theintercept.com/2019/01/08/florida-felon-voting-rights-amendment-4-2/
  
• Despite successful Amendment 4 in 2018 to reinstate voting rights to former felons (estimated 1.5 million), GOP advanced a bill requiring court fees be paid in order to register https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/florida-republicans-move-limit-felon-voting-rights-despite-constitutional-amendment-n985156
  
• Florida Governor DeSantis signs poll tax in 2019, requiring felons who completed their sentence to pay fines in order to reclaim right to vote. Affecting approximately 1.4 million voters, it is also an amendment of the referendum backed by voters in 2018. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/florida-felon-voting-rights-ron-desantis_n_5d03c20de4b0985c419ce5af
  

Georgia

• Between 2012 and 2016, Georgia purged 1.5 Million voters from the voter rolls. 735,000 were purged from 2016 to 2018, with a whole 500,000 removed in one day. A federal court found that the 83% increase (12,000 to 22,000) in provisional ballots from 2014 to 2018 was likely due to administration errors. https://www.ajc.com/news/local-govt--politics/georgia-cancels-fewer-voter-registrations-after-surge-last-yeafqT1bcSzGu33UEpTMDzMVK/ https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/11/brian-kemps-win-in-georgia-tainted-by-voter-suppression-stacey-abrams/
  
• Despite a 6% increase in Georgia population from 2012 to 2018, county election officials closed 214 precincts across the state during that time https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/voting-precincts-closed-across-georgia-since-election-oversight-lifted/bBkHxptlim0Gp9pKu7dfrN/
  
• Elections director Linda Ford resigned after “a technical error” resulted in nearly 8,000 voters being transferred from “inactive” to “canceled” status six days after registration deadline https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/georgia-elections-official-resigns-over-misidentified-voters/XPpF1fvSyHJnmmD9VYQJSI/
  
• State settled on "Exact Match" rules dispute in 2017 and restored over 42,000 voters (64% purged were African-American) as Secretary of State promised to prevent future conflict https://lawyerscommittee.org/press-release/voting-advocates-announce-settlement-exact-match-lawsuit-georgia/
  
• Despite promise, "Exact Match" returned in 2018 as state purged voters for data errors like misplaced hyphens, typos, etc. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/states-push-new-voter-requirements-fueled-trump-n780611 https://thinkprogress.org/georgia-registration-lawsuit-b789d24105ed/ https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/10/11/17964104/georgia-voter-registration-suppression-purges-stacey-abrams-brian-kemp
  
• 107,000 registered voters purged in 2017 through "use it or lose it" policy after not voting for 3 years or responding to notice https://www.apmreports.org/story/2018/10/19/georgia-voter-purge
  
• After Kemp settled case in 2017 by removing 40-day deadline to correct "exact match" information, Georgia passed a new law reinstating a deadline. It also blocked tribal identification cards as ID when registering https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/10/11/17964104/georgia-voter-registration-suppression-purges-stacey-abrams-brian-kemp https://politics.myajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/georgia-elections-bill-passes-senate-after-debate/irbaMooFPhQPfuR1AvDTKP/
  
• In 2010, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Kemp’s office proceeded to question hundreds of voters and arrested a dozen activists, over a surge in minority registrations. There were no guilty verdicts. https://talkingpointsmemo.com/feature/abrams-kemp-bring-long-running-war-over-voting-rights-to-georgia-governors-race
  
• In 2012, Kemp blocked registrations from and investigated minority registration groups. Two and a half years later, the investigation closed without charges. https://newrepublic.com/article/121715/georgia-secretary-state-hammers-minority-voter-registration-efforts
  
• In 2018, Kemp arrested Black Get-out-the-vote activists accusing them of fraud, although the cases ended without conviction https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/10/11/17964104/georgia-voter-registration-suppression-purges-stacey-abrams-brian-kemp https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/av4nzb/the-quitman-10-2-and-voter-suppression-in-modern-georgia-715
  
• In 2018, county officials block bus delivering senior citizens to vote https://www.vox.com/identities/2018/10/17/17990110/georgia-senior-citizens-bus-removal-black-voters-matter-suppression
  
• Ahead of 2018 election, election board seeks to close 7 of 9 polling locations because they are not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, rather than improve disabled access https://thinkprogress.org/ada-voter-suppression-cd7031080bfd/
  
• Federal judge blocks Georgia from rejecting absentee ballots and applications for ballots with signature problems without first giving voters notice and a chance to fix the problem. Close to 600 absentee ballots were thrown out in 2018. https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/5018933/10-24-18-TRO-Martin-v-Kemp.pdf https://www.aclu.org/blog/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression/court-blocks-georgia-rejecting-ballots-over
  
• DeKalb County board claims 50 absentee applications have been received and processed, despite 4,700 applications sent with USPS scans verifying https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/dekalb-county/state-investigating-claims-local-elections-office-lost-1-000s-of-absentee-ballot-applications/859826997
  
• Two days before 2018 election, Kemp accuses Democrats of attempting to hack the election but won't give evidence. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/kemp-charges-georgia-democrats-attempted-voter-hack-abrams-fires-back-n931011?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma In 2016, Kemp accused the same thing, which was debunked by the DHS Inspector General. https://www.wabe.org/federal-review-debunks-georgia-election-hack-accusation-2/
  
• Still without evidence of a hack by Democrats, Kemp has repeatedly published the accusation on the front of http://sos.ga.gov/ which voters use to get voting information https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/11/georgia-governor-candidate-brian-kemp-attempts-last-minute-banana-republic-style-voter-manipulation.html
  
• Voting machines reported switching votes from Democrat to Republican but NOT switching from Republican to Democrat https://www.theroot.com/black-voters-in-georgia-say-something-funny-is-going-on-1829979736
  
• Federal judge blocks Gwinnett County from rejecting absentee ballots solely on the basis of an omitted or incorrect birth year and certifying election before ballots were counted https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/416427-federal-judge-finds-georgia-county-violated-civil-rights-act-by-rejecting
  
• Georgia held the third-longest wait times in the US in 2016, which repeated in 2018 with a Gwinnett County precinct outside Atlanta showing 4.5-hour lines. This lag did not exist in Republican districts. https://elections.mit.edu/#state-GA https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/11/equipment-malfunctions-and-voting-machine-shortages-bring-long-lines-in-georgia/ https://twitter.com/_2lite/status/1059802363995807750 https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/11/brian-kemps-win-in-georgia-tainted-by-voter-suppression-stacey-abrams/
  
• 127,000 votes in black neighborhoods did not have a recorded vote for lieutenant governor in 2018, also known as a “drop-off,” despite continuing voting down the ballot. This loss is inconsistent with historical and national trends, and inconsistent between in-person and absentee votes. https://www.theroot.com/exclusive-thousands-of-black-votes-in-georgia-disappea-1832472558 https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bjgh8qu5ymagc1ekkuor.png
  
• Federal Judge orders Georgia to switch to paper ballots for 2020 elections. Georgia has to replace its Diebold Accuvote TSX touchscreen machines, which were banned in other states after vulnerabilities were discovered as early as 2006. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/08/judge-bans-insecure-touchscreen-voting-machines-from-georgia-after-2019/
  

Illinois

• GOP vetoes to end same-day voter registration https://thinkprogress.org/illinois-reg-lawsuit-673f3867612b/#.e61j0wjld

Indiana

• Voters removed due to recommendation by Crosscheck database not informed of removal https://www.thedailybeast.com/indiana-kicks-voters-off-the-rolls-and-isnt-telling-them
  
• 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2019 upholds Federal ruling blocking Indiana law to purge voter registrations without verification or notice, solely based on Crosscheck https://apnews.com/48214553535a404aac3376451387190a
  

Kansas

• Only polling site in Dodge City moved outside of town in 2018, county's polling locations halved https://fox4kc.com/2018/11/02/kansas-towns-only-polling-place-was-moved-outside-the-city-a-lawsuit-opposed-the-change-but-a-judge-says-its-too-late/ https://www.apnews.com/78f02d14245043aab005046ef4063c10
  
• Photo ID state closes DMVs on one of last weekends to get ID https://twitter.com/davis_hammet/status/1053328872303984642?s=21
  
• DMVs give false information up until two days after registration deadline, telling citizens that they can only vote for federal offices, not state. Kobach had declared voters cannot vote for state offices back in June 2018, despite two court orders to register thousands of suspended voters https://www.kcur.org/post/kansans-got-wrong-information-dmv-until-voter-registration-deadline
  
• Self-branded investigator of Voter Fraud and Kansas Secretary of State and Chief Elections Officer Kris Kobach driven to recuse himself in 2018 after the Secretary of State's office reported multiple election discrepancies from county tallies, where he claimed victories that county clerks claimed he lost. He stated however he would not recuse himself should there be a recount. https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/09/politics/kris-kobach-kansas-republican-governor-primary/index.html
  

Maryland

• 2010 Governor Campaign Manager Paul E. Schurick convicted for fraudulent robocalls to 112,000 voters pretending to be Democrats telling them they don't need to vote https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/ex-ehrlich-campaign-manager-schurick-convicted-in-robocall-case/2011/12/06/gIQA6rNsaO_story.html?noredirect=on
  
• GOP proposes closing early-voting sites http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-montgomery-voting-20151001-story.html
  

Michigan

• Lame-duck Senate alters voter-approved referendum by increasing ID requirements to register as a voter and protecting partisanship of the commissioner of the redistricting commission https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/12/04/michigan-legislature-bills-lame-duck-session/2162560002/
  
• 3 Federal Judges in 2019 rule Michigan map is unconstitutional for gerrymandering, following email leaks of GOP staffers admitting to intentional gerrymandering, describing a finger-shaped district as "giving the finger to Sandy Levin... I love it," and strategist Robert LaBrant being concerned a 10-4 seat advantage would be too "blatant." On May 26, 2011, LaBrant wrote “We needed for legal and PR purposes a good looking map that did not look like an obvious gerrymander.” Each year the GOP took 9 of 14 House seats despite getting only 46% (2012), 47% (2014), and 48% (2016) of the votes. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/25/us/michigan-gerrymandering.html https://www.bridgemi.com/public-sectoemails-suggest-republicans-gerrymandered-michigan-weaken-dem-garbage
  

Mississippi

• In 2019, video and state election officials confirm that electronic machines repeatedly changed ballot, do not provide paper backup https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/politics/2019/08/27/voting-machine-problems-video-changing-vote-bill-waller-tate-reeves-ms-election-governor-runoff/2129515001/ https://www.newsweek.com/touch-screen-voting-devices-are-automatically-changing-votes-mississippi-1456445

Nevada

• At least 90,000 purged due to notices being returned "non-deliverable" https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/at-least-90000-voters-purged-from-nevada-voter-rolls-voting-rights-group-claims/

New Hampshire

• Gov. Chris Sununu signed House Bill 1264 requiring part-time residents (students and military personnel) to become permanent residents, buy an in-state license in order to vote https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/n-h-makes-it-tougher-students-vote-democrats-call-it-n892906

New York

• NYC Board admits wrongdoing after over 220,000 voters purged, including over 126,000 Democrats in Brooklyn http://gothamist.com/2017/10/25/city_board_of_elections_admits_wron.php

North Carolina

• Appeals Court strikes down Voter ID law in 2016 for “target[ting] African Americans with almost surgical precision” and "retained only the kinds of IDs that white North Carolinians were more likely to possess” http://electionlawblog.org/wp-content/uploads/nc-4th.pdf https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/07/29/the-smoking-gun-proving-north-carolina-republicans-tried-to-disenfranchise-black-voters/?utm_term=.c0961256a9c0
  
• Court strikes down Voter ID law in 2016 for creating undue burden on black and latino voters https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/court-north-carolina-voter-id-law-targeted-black-voters/
  
• State admitted in 2016 its reason for cut early voting was “[c]ounties with Sunday voting in 2014 were disproportionately black” and “disproportionately Democratic.” J.A. 22348-49. https://twitter.com/haroldpollack/status/1051657219899617280 http://pdfserver.amlaw.com/nlj/7-29-16%204th%20Circuit%20NAACP%20v%20NC.pdf
  
• In 2016, 7,000 voters removed for not showing up to hearing challenging their registration http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article112015652.html https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/3/13511264/north-carolina-voter-purge
  
• In 2016, judge ruled counties must restore thousands of voters removed due to mass-mailed notices being returned as "undeliverable" https://www.cnn.com/2016/11/04/politics/north-carolina-naacp-voter-registration/index.html
  
• In 2016, suits challenged Voter ID laws and state gerrymandering. On the floor, House Rep David R. Lewis, chairman of the redistricting committee, said “I think electing Republicans is better than electing Democrats ... so I drew this map in a way to help foster what I think is better for the country.” https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/11/us/north-carolina-voting-rights-redistictricting-battles.html
  
• Supreme Court rejects district map for gerrymandering in 2017 due to racial motivation https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/5/22/15676250/supreme-court-racial-gerrymandering-north-carolina
  
• Elections committee chair files 2017 bill that makes it so that the majority party (Democrats) can NEVER control an election board during an election year. Majority party would control chair in odd years, minority (GOP) would control chair in even years https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/north-carolina-republicans-election-boards_us_5c070ebfe4b0a6e4ebd96ee4 https://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2017/Bills/House/PDF/H1117v0.pdf
  
• GOP officials call election boards to keep early-voting sites open for shorter hours on weekends and in evenings. Counties that opened only one polling site during the first week of early voting had turnout decrease of 20% https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-northcarolina-insight-idUSKBN12Y0ZY
  
• Party Executive Director Dallas Woodhouse asks election boards to “make party line changes to early voting” to limit hours and keep polls closed on Sundays. Multiple counties vote to end Sunday voting http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article96179857.html https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article100284162.html
  
• GOP bill in 2018 to eliminate requirement for early voting the Saturday before election day, when 192k voted that day in 2016 (6.5% of early votes) https://www.wral.com/gop-proposal-would-drop-final-saturday-from-early-voting/17627479/
  
• State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement collects sworn statements that Leslie McCrae Dowless Jr. and other staffers on behalf of Harris campaign paid people to collect absentee ballots in 2018, coordinated alteration of Democrat and minority absentee ballots. The Harris campaign is also under suspicion for the abnormally high absentee ballots that he won (96%) in primary https://wapo.st/2rgE7Ap?tid=ss https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/419561-woman-admits-to-picking-up-absentee-ballots-in-north-carolina https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/419693-second-woman-says-she-was-paid-to-collect-absentee-ballots-in-north https://www.apnews.com/ab20c7bd12464a4383abfdc2bd88ca92 Dowless campaign worker gives testimony at evidentiary hearing that she and others collected and opened unsealed absentee ballots they collected to fill in the Republican candidate, in addition to fabricating absentee forms, using false names as witness, and storing copies of all ballots to be sent to a Bladen County PAC https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/gop-campaign-worker-admits-to-filling-in-republican-votes-on-absentee-ballots-says-she-was-later-told-to-lie/ Leslie McCrae Dowless Jr. and 7 others indicted https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/30/us/mccrae-dowless-indictment.html?emc=rss&partner=rss
  
• NC Board of Elections investigated campaign operative Leslie McCrae Dowless Jr. earlier in 2010 over allegations that he paid voters to fill out ballots. No criminal charges were made, as witnesses were unwilling to testify https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/424441-man-at-center-of-nc-election-fraud-allegations-was-previously-probed-for
  
• Elections board ordered new election for House seat due to 2018 absentee ballot fraud https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-north-carolina/north-carolina-orders-new-u-s-house-election-after-tainted-vote-idUSKCN1QA1QG
  
• Democratic governor accuses GOP of blocking both 2018 investigation and interim Board of Elections after the North Carolina Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement declined to validate the election results. The investigation was forced to dissolve and the Republican chair is declining to nominate for the interim board, resulting in no investigation hearings https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/north-carolina-gop-accused-of-derailing-investigation-into-election-fraud/
  
• DA says over 1,000 ballots may have been destroyed in 9th district 2018 race https://www.foxnews.com/politics/over-1000-ballots-may-have-been-destroyed-in-tighty-contested-north-carolina-congressional-race
  
• In 2019 Federal judge shuts down GOP attempt to preserve gerrymander, where state Republicans claimed legislators and the justices are too racist to be trusted to redraw the maps in a way that wouldn’t violate the Constitution https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/01/north-carolina-republicans-gerrymander-anita-earls.html https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/12/north-carolina-republican-gerrymandering-plan-insanity.html
  
• NC judges strike down map for 'extreme partisan gerrymandering', requiring the new map be drawn in full public view at public hearings with all computer screens visible to legislatures and observers https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/09/03/north-carolina-judges-toss-maps-partisan-gerrymandering/2204294001/
  
• Hofeller emails released in 2019 show that Voter ID models and research discriminated based mostly on race rather than partisanship as claimed. For example, one document included a district dividing HBCU A&T State University with the city map color-coded by race and age. Emails also include Hofeller pushing Republicans to campaign protecting the use of inmates in gerrymandering, as prisons cannot vote but would inflate population. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-secret-files-of-the-master-of-modern-republican-gerrymandering https://media.newyorker.com/photos/5d7291409cecbb00083874cf/mastew_774,c_limit/Daley--Gerrymandering02.jpg
  
• North Carolina Republicans recommend Art Pope, who funded REDMAP which was behind multiple court-declared gerrymandered districts, to come back as special master to "referee" the new NC map replacing the invalidated map he helped make https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6386074-LD-S-Suggested-Referees.html https://www.npr.org/2011/10/06/141078608/the-multimillionaire-helping-republicans-win-n-c
  

North Dakota

• State required residential street address (rather than mailing address) to register, which can prevent registration of those in rural areas or reservations. 70,000 state residents lack a qualifying residential address ID, and thus the 2017 law will prevent more voters than the 3,000-vote lead Heitkamp (D) held in 2012. https://inforum.com/news/government-and-politics/4514040-nd-tribal-leaders-hope-overcome-voter-id-barriers-after-supreme https://www.aclu.org/blog/voting-rights/supreme-court-enables-mass-disenfranchisement-north-dakotas-native-americans

Ohio

• Documents reveal Boehner encouraged precision gerrymandering in Ohio districts in 2011 https://thinkprogress.org/documents-show-boehner-helped-gerrymander-ohio-map-giving-gop-12-of-16-congressional-seats-b1e1199ac4e3/
  
• State cuts "Golden Week" early voting in 2016, cuts early in-person voting from 35 days to 29 days https://www.cnn.com/2016/08/23/politics/ohio-golden-week-early-voting/
  
• Voters assigned as inactive not included in absentee application mailings in 2016, reducing options for them becoming active again https://thinkprogress.org/ohio-is-making-it-harder-for-inactive-voters-to-become-active-again-94bc31dc5f4f/#.3qf08ru6y
  
• Removed registration of voters who didn't vote in 3 elections and failed to reply to notice. Given the fact that nobody reported any of this back when notices were claimed to be sent, did they even send notice? Upheld by Supreme Court 5-4 in 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/11/us/politics/supreme-court-upholds-ohios-purge-of-voting-rolls.html
  
• Federal judges ordered Ohio to allow voters to vote in 2018 who had been purged for not voting over a six-year period https://www.10tv.com/article/federal-judges-order-ohio-allow-purged-voters-back
  
• In 2019, Sixth District Court for Ohio ruled district map unconstitutional. Leaked emails revealed that the map (made in secret) was intentionally designed to increase partisanship. As a result of the gerrymandering, the GOP consistently claimed 75% of House seats despite a 51%-47% vote lead in 2012, a 58%-42% lead in 2016 and a 52%-47% lead in 2018. https://www.cleveland.com/open/2019/05/federal-judges-toss-out-ohios-congressional-map-as-illegal-gerrymander.html https://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/2017/11/emails_documents_disclose_ohio.html https://www.scribd.com/document/408565244/Sixth-District-Court-Ohio-Redistricting-Decision
  
• Ohio set to remove 235,000 people from voter rolls in 2019 for being inactive, although thousands were found as incorrectly listed in the month since and 11,872 voters demonstrated legitimacy by updating registration https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ohio-voter-purge_n_5d713ebce4b0a606aa4f3df2
  

Pennsylvania

• Poll-watchers blocked voter check-ins, demanding affidavits signed by friends or other arbitrary proof of identity in 2004. Trump encouraged more people to be poll-watchers in 2016 https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/09/2016-election-pennsylvania-polls-voters-trump-clinton-214297
  
• 2012 data shows ID law state has as many as 758,000 registered voters in without photo ID http://www.slate.com/blogs/weigel/2012/07/05/_9_2_percent_of_pennsylvania_voters_lack_valid_id.html
  
• Map struck down in 2018 for gerrymandering https://www.vox.com/2018/1/22/16920636/pennsylvania-gerrymander-ruling-house https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/02/19/pennsylvania-supreme-court-draws-a-much-more-competitive-district-map-to-overturn-republican-gerrymande?noredirect=on
  

Texas

• Judge rules in 2017 that Texas Voter ID law discriminates https://www.cnn.com/2017/08/23/politics/texas-voter-id-ruling/index.html
  
• Texas election officials confirmed that voting machines used in 30% of its counties are switching people’s votes https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/1055912575093792768?s=19 https://apnews.com/a8825810d10441f2ad828e95d6851d55
  
• Secretary of State David Whitley apologizes for 2019 claim of 58,000 illegal votes that was shared by the AG, Governor, and President as at least 20,000 votes have already been identified as legitimate. Whitley blames it on bad wording and will still forward the names for investigation and possible prosecution, a claim which was itself denied by the AG. https://thinkprogress.org/texas-secretary-of-state-illegal-voters-david-whitley-donald-trump-d3c6d9c3b29f/ https://www.texastribune.org/2019/02/11/texas-ags-office-said-it-was-investigating-voters-citizenship-review-l/
  
• Judge halts effort to purge 100,000 voters in 2019, which so far only found 80 ineligible out of 100,000 accused registered voters. Even the Secretary of State David Whitley, who has since resigned, admitted to accidental additions. Gov. Greg Abbott, who pushed the voter purge before Whitley, gets to pick his replacement ahead of 2020. https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2019/ma02/federal-judge-halts-texas-voter-roll-pu/ https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a27750601/texas-governor-greg-abbott-voter-roll-purge/
  
• Texas responding to signature discrepancies by throwing out mail-in ballots, rather than allowing provisional ballot verification as other state laws allow https://www.huffpost.com/entry/texas-signature-mismatch-absentee-ballot_n_5d4b414ae4b01e44e4749888?3cl
  

Virginia

• Kobach-backed "Crosscheck" database leads to 39,000 voters removed from rolls in 2013 for similar information https://www.richmond.com/news/local/chesterfield/chesterfield-registrar-delays-purge-of-voter-rolls/article_162e36b5-0be7-5dc8-af9f-48876a167b43.html http://projects.aljazeera.com/2014/double-voters/ https://www.theroot.com/the-gop-keeps-quietly-purging-black-voters-and-democrat-1795474628 https://www.brennancenter.org/sites/default/files/publications/Purges_Growing_Threat_2018.pdf
  
• Officials were aware of voters being assigned to wrong district for at least two years before 2017 election, did not investigate or fix. In that year, Republican Bob Thomas defeated Democrat Joshua Cole in the 28th District race by 73 votes, less than half the number of wrongly-cast ballots https://wtop.com/virginia/2018/01/exclusive-va-knew-voting-wrong-house-districts-issues-2017-election/
  

Wisconsin

• Voter ID law deterred a potential 16,800 to 23,250 voters in 2016 https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2017/09/26/wisconsin-voter-id-law-deterred-nearly-17-000-voting-uw-study-says/702026001/
  
• Court orders state to investigate DMV failing to provide IDs within required time in 2016 https://www.thenation.com/article/a-federal-court-orders-wisconsin-to-stop-suppressing-the-vote/
  
• Merged DMVs in 2018 in areas with limited transit https://madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/madison-leaders-criticize-state-s-dmv-consolidation-over-potential-voting/article_c6bc7568-f494-560e-9cbf-ba8cc9d5a578.html
  
• Lame-duck bills made to move 2020 presidential primary from April to March to separate appointees from a risk of presidential "blue wave," leading to 3 elections in 3 months. They would also restrict in-person voting ahead of an election, despite a previous attempt being ruled unconstitutional https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/wisconsin/articles/2018-11-30/legislative-leaders-to-vote-on-extraordinary-session Outgoing governor Scott Walker signs the bills into law https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/wisconsin-gov-scott-walker-signs-bills-weakening-democratic-successor-n948096
  
• Judge blocks lame-duck 2018 laws by outgoing GOP leadership to, among other changes, restrict in-person voting to the two weeks before an election http://www.startribune.com/judge-blocks-wisconsin-lame-duck-laws/507466732/
  

National

• In the 2008 and 2012 elections, there was an anomalous vote gain relative to precinct size that increased Romney's count and McCain's when Romney quit, but did not affect Democrats or other elections https://web.archive.org/web/20130126180125/http://www.themoneyparty.org/main/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/2008_2012_ElectionsResultsAnomaliesAndAnalysis_V1.51.pdf
  
• Supreme Court 2013 ruling freed nine states, mostly in the South, to change their election laws without advance federal approval https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/26/us/supreme-court-ruling.html
  
• In 2016, at least 868 polling places closed in southern states, increasing lines https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/4/13501120/vote-polling-places-election-2016
  
• In 2018 Supreme Court ruled 5-4 ok'ing an already proven gerrymandered map. Argument was that if a judge reactivates interim map without intent to gerrymander, it isn't a gerrymandered map https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/06/the-abbott-v-perez-case-echoes-shelby-county-v-holder-as-a-further-death-blow-for-the-voting-rights-act.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-upholds-texas-redistricting-that-a-lower-court-said-discriminated-against-black-and-hispanic-voters/2018/06/25/bd09592a-7885-11e8-93cc-6d3beccdd7a3_story.html?noredirect=on
  
• GOP strategist Thomas Hofeller, who ghostwrote the Neuman DoJ letter to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census, cited his own unpublished study showing that the question would be "advantageous to Republicans and Non-Hispanic Whites" and had been talking to Census Bureau since 2010. The DoJ claims Hofeller's study "played no role" but they copied from his study verbatim. https://www.npr.org/2019/05/30/728232221/gop-redistricting-strategist-played-role-in-push-for-census-citizenship-question https://www.npr.org/2019/06/15/732669380/emails-connect-census-official-with-gop-strategist-on-citizenship-question https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6077735-May-30-2019-Exhibit.html#document/p120/a504025 https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6077715-May-30-2019-Letter-to-Judge-Jesse-Furman.html
  
• In 2019, 3 Federal judges - New York, California, and Maryland districts - find Trump's citizenship census question unlawful. They claim it violated the Administrative Procedure Act, that Wilbur Ross concealed his basis for the question, that there's no genuine need for the question, and it prevents the US gov from carrying out its mandate. https://www.npr.org/2019/04/05/700982993/trump-administrations-census-citizenship-question-plans-halted-by-third-judge Supreme Court agrees, saying the Trump explanation for it is inadequate but allowing for a citizenship question in the future. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/citizenship-question-supreme-court-2020-census-trump-today-latest-scotus-news-a8977936.html
  
• In 2019, Supreme Court temporarily blocks lower rulings requiring new voting maps for Ohio and Michigan, despite leaked emails in both states showing intentional gerrymandering. In Ohio the GOP consistently claimed 75% of seats despite a 51%-47% vote lead in 2012, a 58%-42% lead in 2016 and a 52%-47% lead in 2018. In Michigan the GOP consistently claimed 64% of seats despite a 46%-51% loss in 2012, a 47%-49% loss in 2014, and a 48%-47% lead in 2016. https://www-nbcnews-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1010146 https://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/2017/11/emails_documents_disclose_ohio.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/25/us/michigan-gerrymandering.html?module=inline
  
• In 2019, Supreme Court rules 5-4 that vetting gerrymandering is beyond its constitutional reach, moving districting out of federal control and overturning lower rulings in Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, and Wisconsin. https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/06/27/fiasco-democracy-right-wing-supreme-court-gives-green-light-partisan-gerrymandering https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/27/18761166/supreme-court-gerrymandering-republicans-democracy
  
• In 2019, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked an election security bill to authorize hundreds of millions of dollars to update voting equipment. McConnell himself has put no bills on the floor for machine improvement. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mcconnell-defends-blocking-election-security-bill-rejects-criticism-he-is-aiding-russia/2019/07/29/08dca6d4-b239-11e9-951e-de024209545d_story.html
  
• South Carolina, Nevada, Arizona and Kansas GOP officials seeking to cancel 2020 primaries and caucuses, skipping over challengers to Trump to require Trump as 2020 candidate https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/06/republicans-cancel-primaries-trump-challengers-1483126?cid=apn
  
• Other general reports - https://www.brennancenter.org/sites/default/files/publications/Purges_Growing_Threat_2018.pdf, https://www.usccr.gov/pubs/2018/Minority_Voting_Access_2018.pdf, https://www.wired.com/story/voter-id-law-algorithm/, https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2016/11/22/gop-seats-bonus-in-congress/, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/07/20/this-anti-voter-fraud-program-gets-it-wrong-over-99-of-the-time-the-gop-wants-to-take-it-nationwide/?noredirect=on, http://bl.ocks.org/cingraham/7551527
  

"I don't want everybody to vote... As a matter of fact our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down."
-Paul Weyrich, co-founder of Heritage Foundation and ALEC, 1980
“Look, if African Americans voted overwhelmingly Republican, they would have kept early voting right where it was,” Wrenn said. “It wasn’t about discriminating against African Americans. They just ended up in the middle of it because they vote Democrat.”
-Carter Wrenn, Republican consultant in North Carolina
“There's a lot of liberal folks in those other schools who that maybe we don't want to vote. Maybe we want to make it just a little more difficult. And I think that's a great idea.”
-Cindy Hyde-Smith, Republican Senator of Mississippi, 2003
Seeking more examples, if you have them.
Get out and vote. https://www.vote.org/

Over 300 fake social media accounts have begun a character-assassination campaign against the Minister of Healthcare Arsen Torosyan, after the latter audited the St. Gregory Illuminator hospital and discovered that Serj Sargsyan's relative (director) allegedly abused his powers to steal massive amounts of funds from the state. The fake accounts use pictures from people living in other countries to spread misinformation about Torosyan, and are believed to be tied to the director's son, according to FIP.
...other, more popular media outlets that spread misinformation about him, were the Armenia TV, Iravunk paper and politik.am website. The latter earlier accused another Pashinyan cabinet member of smoking marijuana and breaking the law in his office. The cabinet member agreed to take the case to court (and subsequently give a blood sample for analysis). NEWS.am has also spread misinformation about Health Minister's father, then purchased ads to promote the inaccurate article on the social media. https://fip.am/4726?fbclid=IwAR2kZVYcodotU-qdYGNWdYTCltR0ISHT8A1h6WWAUi8vqAhlR2X71cTtLPU
... analitik.am was caught spreading misinformation about March 1st events, by deliberately presenting events partially, to defend the HHK and Kocharyan regimes. They also incorrectly claimed that Levon Ter-Petrosyan was calling for the military to join them on 2008, while in reality he said (recorded on video) that he called the military to make sure they don't take actions against the protesters. https://fip.am/4857
... aysor.am, slaq.am and iravunk.am have spread misinformation by twisting Informed Citizens Daniel Ionessyan's words to make it appear as if he believes the old administration were more transparent than QP. This was regarding the Hrazdan pre-elections story in which IC employee (most likely by breaking the law) set up a bait to wiretap a conversation with a school director to see if the latter would abuse his powers https://fip.am/4879
Robert Kocharyan’s close ally has bought Ararat TV and half of the shares of Panorama.am and Aysor.am news sites http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/148265
(Note: FIP.am is managed by Informed Citizens organizations run by Daniel Ionessyan.)
Government-funded Lori Pambak museum director is charged with embezzlement of AMD 7mln, after NSS sends information to the local police. She is accused of registering 8 non-existent people as employees to steal their salaries, as well as taking a bribe from several employees to falsify their work experience records http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/148273
Serj Sargsyan and his right-hand man Karen Karapetyan won't participate in the upcoming Parliamentary elections. The HHK list will be headed by the former Defense Minister Vigen Sargsyan, who has just been elected as the vice-president of HHK (Serj is the president, Karapetyan was the former vice-president). https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954107.html
The Pashinyan administration has reduced the country's debt by $143.2mln since taking the office https://factor.am/98072.html
PM Pashinyan says the politicians at the top of their party lists should hold live public debates during the election cycles. Doesn't rule out that this could become part of the Constitution in future. https://factor.am/98087.html
Yerevan municipality demolishes a 1100m2 building in Nor Norq district that was being built illegally https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sdxe4RvwTPc ---- http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/148226 —— http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/148281
The Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Mane Tandilyan will participate in the upcoming elections as part of Bright Armenia party, which is run by QP ally Edmon Marukyan https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954187.html
The Parliamentary Economic Committee is discussing the formation of a bill which could further limit certain types of gambling. The author of the bill, QP Alen Simonyan, wants a clause that will allow the wife to prevent the husband from wasting the family funds on gambling by taking the case to court and prohibiting him from using the family funds in gambling institutions. There are 62k regular gamblers in Armenia, out of whom 2k are highly addicted. A HHK member is concerned that any drastic measures to limit this type of gambling could harm jobs. Simonyan says they plan to limit the foreign online gambling websites to limit money leaving the country, and to require that these websites check that the person is above 21.
... another clause of the bill will outlaw gambling (bookmaker) centers in Yerevan or any other similar city where casinos are already banned. The players would need to go to the outer suburbs, like they do today, to play in casinos.
... gas stations will be prohibited from having gambling machines.
... another HHK member is in favor of completely banning bookmaker gambling centers across Armenia.
... the Economic Committee has given a negative opinion to this amendment to the law. It will be discussed further in the Parliament.
http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/148250 ---- https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954177.html
Turkish Justice Ministry asks the Armenian colleagues to deport the American-Turkish Azeri lobbyist to Turkey instead of United States, so he can be tried for allegedly aiding Erdogan's arch-nemesis Fatullah Gulen https://factor.am/98353.html
Press F to temporarily establish diplomatic ties with Armenia...
Artsakh war hero Jirayr Sefilian receives an Armenian citizenship. He can vote, but cannot he elected in a high ranking position yet https://www.hraparak.am/posts/5be6f73ccdd1fe19e00f65ee/ժիրայր-սեֆիլյանը-ստացավ-հհ-քաղաքացիություն
Azeri media has misrepresented a Bellingcat article about Azeri soldiers moving forward on their part of the land in Nakhijevan, and presented it as if they captured hills belonging to Armenians, says the author of the Bellingcat article https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954044.html
Defense Minister confirms that Azerbaijan is building trenches on their own part of the land https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954199.html
... says the attack drones designed and made in Artsakh Republic are already part of the Armenian army. They have entered the production phase. https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954235.html
... from now on, the clothing for soldiers will be of a significantly better quality. (Earlier, several companies tasked with providing items to the military were caught defrauding the state of billions of Drams by accepting the funds but issuing lower quality product in violation of the contracts.) https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954231.html
...The second military deal with Russia in recent times, the $100mln one, has been finalized and signed. The arms are in the production phase. The Ministry is preparing for the possibility of signing the third deal. https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954230.html
... Ministry will issue 1,400 apartments to low income soldiers after they finish their service https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954222.html
... Ministry will raise the salaries for soldiers by using its reserves. The military budget will increase by 27% on 2019 https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954218.html
... Armenia plans to purchase twelve 4th generation fighter jets. There are talks with Sweden, Russia and possibly other countries. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJmEsesIbvY
For the first time ever, Artsakh Republic budget will have a surplus. Health care expenditure will increase by 15%. Defense expenditure to increase by AMD 480mln for 2019. https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954182.html
Armenia and Georgia will build a new 4-lane bridge at the border to improve the trade and tourism traffic http://www.panarmenian.net/arm/news/262220/
Football Federation (HFF) director Arthur Vanetsyan (NSS chief) says he has made an agreement with FIFA chief to build a new stadium in Yerevan. The 33,000-seat stadium will be used for international as well as local games. As for Hrazdan Stadium, it is still under HSBC Bank possession after defaulting on its debt long ago, needs $100mln for renovation to bring it to standards, and its location doesn't make it suitable for a serious utilization https://sport.news.am/arm/news/94523/artur-vanecyan-hff-n-ditarkum-e-azgayin-stadion-karucelu-nakhagits.html
Simon Martirosyan wins gold and Gor Minasyan wins silver in weightlifting world championship http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/148194
... their welcoming ceremony https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954147.html
Arsen Ghazaryan defeats the Azeri opponent, then wins a bronze medal in Sambo World Championship. Tigran Kirakosyan and Grigor Mkitaryan win silver https://armenpress.am/arm/news/954205.html
ayy https://youtu.be/Pn7mEgt1LP4?t=46
All the accused are innocent until proven guilty in the court of law.

Disclaimer: All the accused are innocent until proven guilty by the court of law. Currency in Armenian Drams unless specified otherwise.
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Special Investigation Service (SIS) has re-opened the corruption investigation against Mihran Poghosyan, a former HHK MP and justice official.
His offshore firm activities were leaked by Panama Papers. At the time, the HHK administration closed the investigation concluding nothing illegal was found.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961923.html
........
His aide Andranik Isoyan was detained last year, after attacking protesters' cars during the revolution on April 21st. Since then, he has fully paid for the damages, and the victims agreed to apply the 2018 amnesty on him. The criminal charges were dropped.
http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/153141
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The government continues to cut its expenditure on staff transportation, as promised last year. PM's cabinet members will have 7 cars with chauffeurs, instead of 50.
The following workers will lose their padavat: Chief of staff of PM, with his secretaries; heads of various departments, with their secretaries; PM's advisers; some of PM's aides.
Deputy PM Tigran Avinyan's office was given 4 cars. They made a decision to keep only 1.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961874.html
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961927.html
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Ministry of Justice and its offices finished the 2018 with 256mln in savings. The sum has been returned to budget.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961827.html
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Micro-businesses will not pay revenue taxes if they earn less than 24mln a year. This proposal is still being refined. The government has clarified the exceptions. The following types of businesses will continue to pay taxes:
Loan businesses, insurance companies, stock market securities companies, companies that buy and sell money, gambling, lawyers offices, ad companies, translators, businesses that have been caught not printing sales receipts (to hide income) for more than twice, workers such as goods traders whose job nature doesn't give a way for IRS to verify the real income. Full list below...
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961847.html
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About the massive 550mln social security theft by officials and HayPost staff:
107mln has been recovered so far. Assets belonging to the perpetrators are frozen to recover the rest.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961934.html
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Manvel Grigoryan is suing MaxInfo media outlet for an alleged defamation and false reporting.
The website wrote that on 1991, Azeris broke into an Armenian village and stole cattle from a resident. To recover the damage, a local official and the victim's husband launched a surveillance from the nearby hill, and ended up taking 1,500 sheep from the Azeri side. The village official then allegedly informed military chief Vazgen Sargsyan about it, who then apparently ordered the sheep to be handed to Manvel Grigoryan. A while later, the residents discovered that the 1,500 sheep were sold to Azeris.
https://hetq.am/hy/article/100301
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The family of victims of March 1st, 2008 murders are willing to sue the recent pro-Kocharyan propaganda documentary makers for "deception and lying", say the family members.
They weren't told that the film was going to be used to defend the man whom the family members believe to be responsible for the murder of their sons. They also claim some facts and they overall opinion was distorted.
One relative says he gave a 30 minute interview to the producers, who then used only a small part to bolster their narrative.
Other relatives have come forward with intention to sue the channel.
https://factor.am/118073.html
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1 in 20 residents of Alaverdi - a major mining city - has a malignant cancer. The number has increased 1.3 times between 2011-2017. About 16% of all cancers is breast cancer, 15% is lung/bronchus. 53% of patients are women.
The city's hospital is now equipped with better diagnostics devices, but the residents still don't care about their health, complains the chief doctor about poor early detection.
He wishes the government can allocate more funds for screening and treatment so all patients can receive care. Unfortunately, the breast cancer drugs cost $50,000 per patient and the state can't afford it so they have to opt for less effective ones, says doctor Harutyun Mikaelyan.
https://hetq.am/hy/article/100291
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Armenia has ranked 45th in the Good Country Index, which takes into account various metrics from international organizations, such as UNESCO.
14th in equality and prosperity, 31st in international peace and security, 51st in health and well-being, 52nd in science an technology, 62nd in planet and environment, 90th in culture, 97th in world order.
Georgia is 39th. Azerbaijan is 108th.
https://www.goodcountryindex.org/results#ARM ------ https://factor.am/118250.html
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Parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan has been invited to Iran to discuss further economic cooperation, after meeting with the Iranian ambassador in Armenia.
http://www.panarmenian.net/arm/news/264702/
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PM's cabinet is holding a session.
Citizens of Hong Kong have been given the right to visit Armenia for 6 months without a visa approval. "This could help tourism and investments".
In return, Hong Kong has given a 1-month visa free stay for Armenians.
.......
Government waves VAT taxes from R. Zaqaryan Inc. for 3 years to encourage them with jeans clothing factory in Gyumri. It'll invest 1.42bln on products. 58 factory workers with avg. 105k salaries.
.......
Balabekyan Argo company receives a tax waiver to form a 8 hectares high-tech agricultural gardens in Arzakan, Kotayk. 120mln will be invested.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961877.html
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Davos meetings continue.
Pashinyan met with Polish colleague. The latter expressed willingness to improve economic cooperation through the new EU-Armenia cooperation agreement.
Similar talks were held with Swiss, Latvia, Slovakia and Rwandan colleagues. The latter was interested with TUMO tech center. Slovak politician will visit Armenia. He says Slovakia will soon finish the ratification of EU-Armenia agreement.
Singapore rep. has invited Pashinyan to visit Singapore and discuss business. They spoke about exporting alcohol and food from Armenia. Aviation and nature protection projects were also discussed.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961943.html
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961897.html
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961865.html
........
Popular Russian TV anchor and journalist Tina Kandelaki gave a shout out to Pashinyan in Armenian. She asked Pashinyan if he was aware that she is half Armenian. Pashinyan responded saying "everyone in Armenia knows that".
Video: https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961925.html
.......
Pashinyan is asked about press-government relations in Armenia. He says there are often public disagreements between the two, and that's normal in any country. "As a former political prisoner and a journalist myself, I can say that the press is more free than ever in Armenia", says Pashinyan.
http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/153064
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Armenia will become the first country to purchase 50 brand new Russian AK-12 Kalashnikov rifles. They will be tested, then a decision will be made if more is needed. The Russian army was supplied on 2018.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961825.html
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Russian military base in Armenia begins a large scale training operation. Over 500 machines, 2500 soldiers, helicopters, BUK and S-300 ballistic missiles SAM are used. Hundreds of soldiers and units participate in mountainous operations.
http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/153153
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Yerevan chief architect Arthur Meschyan:
170 new construction and 20 destruction permits were given in the past 100 days. 4,200 projects reviewed, 300 projects approved. He says the residents should expect to see a more active construction of residential projects.
Opera building's exterior will have new lighting system. Surrounding areas will have more trees.
New rope-way (chopanughi) will be built, connecting Center with Nor Nork. Italian and Swiss companies are exploring the options. The rope-way's primary purpose will be transportation, and it will carry more passengers that small cabins designed for tourists. He says metro is impossible for Nor Nork.
New metro station will be built in Ajapnyak, connecting it to Center. The second or even the third one may be built later, after they figure out the budget.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnLnq3RUP0s ----- http://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/153101 ---- https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961892.html ---- https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961891.html ---- https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961871.html ---- https://armenpress.am/arm/news/961867.html ----
//////////////////////////
Between June 4-15th, Artsakh Republic will host the European soccer championship of Unrecognized Republics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqKkyQzhT9I

Quarterbacks

Pos	Player	Team	Opponent	Last Week	Projection	Comments....................................................
QB	Amy Bostwick	Vikings	@ Patriots	21	50	We're doing it. Arguably the most dangerous rusher in the league against arguably the worst run defense in the league…it's going to be a sensation of domination. This is the first ever prediction of a 50-point game!
QB	Ben None	Colts	vs. Wombats	49	36	The Colts' game plan is clear: run, run, run! He should change his name to Ben Run. If he's gonna run for 300+ yards all the time like he did last week, then there is no stopping this team.
QB	Debby Nagasawa	Cowboys	@ Falcons	31	30	After all the huge games from Amy Bostwick and Ben None and Lulu Legosi, it's Debby Nagasawa who sits atop the leaderboard for fantasy points with 120. She is on her A-game so far and needs to remain in your lineup no matter what.
QB	Chuck Downfield	Texans	vs. Browns	27	28	Last year's game against the Browns was a barnburner. The teams went back and forth the whole game. For Chuck and the Texans, that means a lot of passing yards to be had. Chuck could have a pretty good game against an equally-matched opponent.
QB	Brett Favre	49ers	vs. Hornets	26	26	Brett Favre has been heating up, and the Hornets defense has been susceptible to all kinds of offenses. The Mississippi Marvel could excel this week.
QB	Betty Houstan	Monsters	vs. Giants	22	26	We've seen several opponents put up a lot of offense against the Giants, and this week is Betty's turn. She has the potential for a huge game.
QB	Matt Monday	Wombats	@ Colts	5	25	I know Matt just had a poor game, but the Colts have one of the lousiest pass defenses in the league. In consecutive games, Dan Doorknob and Sharon Crowe combined for 528 yards and 9 TDs against these Colts. Matt Monday could go off as well.
QB	Pablo Sanchez	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	33	24	This is the matchup we've all been waiting for: the top two teams in the Backyard Conference duking it out. Could be a high scoring slugfest.
QB	Judy Abwunza	Eagles	@ Rams	19	23	Judy had a below average game, by her standards, but still had 19 points. The Rams defense probably won't pose too much of a challenge for her, either.
QB	Lulu Legosi	Jets	vs. Packers	66	22	Lulu just put up an incredible 66 points! She got anything she wanted against the Patriots. The Packers will be a little more stingy, but Lulu is one of the most exciting quarterbacks in the league.
QB	Sally Dobbs	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	30	21	Sally has been consistent and impressive thus far this season. These two powerhouses are going to duke it out and whoever scores more, wins. Sally could have a big game.
QB	Sharon Crowe	Ponies	vs. Bears	32	20	Sharon had an outstanding day airing it out last week. This week, she's facing another so-so defense and could give us an encore. I like her upside in this one.
QB	Steve McNair	Raiders	vs. Steelers	33	20	The Steelers just lost in an embarrassing fashion and will look to redeem themselves by taking it out on Steve McNair. I think we won't see one of Steve's best games, but this is still Air McNair. He'll be fine.
QB	Debra Hannigan	Steelers	@ Raiders	7	19	Debra absolutely laid an egg last week when she should have been the top scorer of the week. She needs to return to form if the Steelers want to win.
QB	Drew Bledsoe	Chargers	vs. Titans	6	18	Drew has been downright pitiful this season; the second worst QB in the league has twice as many fantasy points. However, he just escaped the murderer's row that is the Backyard West division. The Titans are a much nicer matchup than anything the Chargers have faced. Drew should have a nice bounce back game, finally.
QB	Holly Franklin	Giants	@ Monsters	24	18	Holly finally broke out for 24 fantasy points. Perhaps she's turned over a new leaf. I think she's got potential in this game but she could be anywhere from boom to bust.
QB	Dan Doorknob	Patriots	vs. Vikings	14	16	Dan is an interesting case here. The Vikings just completely stopped the Packers in their tracks. But Dan randomly put up 31 points when we expected a dud. I'm not sure what will happen here. Let's just put Dan in the middle and roll the dice.
QB	Thor Thwackhammer	Rams	vs. Eagles	19	16	Thor is exactly in the middle of the pack when it comes to QBs this year. I would also expect a pretty average game here.
QB	Rich Gannon	Packers	@ Jets	2	15	Rich struggled mightily last week against the Vikings, and the Jets have a similarly strong defense. Let's see if Rich can make an adjustment.
QB	Bert Nicholson	Browns	@ Texans	8	14	Last season against the Texans, the Browns came back and forced overtime, and then played about 5 more possessions before winning the sudden death. What I'm saying is, there could be a lot of back and forth but maybe not too many scores. Bert has a chance to go off but I wouldn't guarantee it.
QB	David Wilco	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	22	13	The Cowboys just limited Judy Abwunza to her worst game yet, perhaps they could inflict the same woes onto David Wilco.
QB	Andy Gibbons	Titans	@ Chargers	15	11	Everybody is raving about the Titans' upset of the Steelers, but it was mostly the defense and not the offense. Andy is still in the middle of the road when it comes to fantasy QBs.
QB	Zena Fromme	Bears	@ Ponies	16	8	I think this will be a tough day for Zena. The Ponies have only allowed 92 passing yards through 3 games! It could get ugly.
QB	Stuart Sullivan	Hornets	@ 49ers	17	7	Stuart has a tough matchup ahead of him, and I don't know if he can respond well to the adversity.

Running Backs, Wide Receivers, and Tight Ends

Pos	Player	Team	Opponent	Last Week	Projection	Comments..................................
WR	Reese Worthington	Eagles	@ Rams	44	29	Reese put the whoopin' on the Cowboys for 44 fantasy points. That excellent performance has put him as the highest scoring non-QB so far! Reese is a stud and should stay in your lineup.
WR	Evan Lindstrom	Monsters	vs. Giants	0	28	Evan had an incredibly surprising zero last week, so by the laws of BFFL, he'll probably have his best game ever. Seriously though, the Giants are a juicy matchup.
WR	Vicki Kawaguchi	Chargers	vs. Titans	16	27	Vicki is the top dog of the Chargers, and she's put up great games despite the incompetence of her team. This week, the Chargers actually have a favorable matchup. Vicki is bound to go off.
RB/WR	Florence Jackson	Giants	@ Monsters	34	25	The Giants finally figured out that if they let Florence have the ball, good things happen. I think they'll give it to her even more this game.
RB/WR	Frankie McDoogle	Jets	vs. Packers	24	25	Frankie had the potential to do a lot more damage last week, but 24 points is nothing to scoff at. He has high usage every week and remains a fantasy stud.
RB/WR	Victor Jones	49ers	vs. Hornets	26	24	Victor has completely put his Week 1 gaffe behind him and is looking like the top receiver in the league. Start him with confidence.
WR	Georgette Washington	Wombats	@ Colts	7	23	If the Colts are going to give up a lot of yards through the air, Georgette is going to get a ton of them. She will have a great game.
WR	Ernie Steele	Titans	@ Chargers	20	22	Ernie, like always, carries the Titans' offense through thick and thin. Keep him in your lineup, no questions asked.
RB/WR	Knuckles McGhee	Cowboys	@ Falcons	20	20	Knuckles hasn't had one of his huge games yet, but he's been playing consistently and should stay in the RB position in your lineup.
WR	Maria Luna	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	21	20	Maria is one of the most dependable WRs in the league. No reason to think twice about her in this matchup.
WR	Kim Esposito	Patriots	vs. Vikings	17	20	After a Week 1 dud, Kim has been a solid source of fantasy points. I think the Patriots will get behind early and throw the ball a lot. Kim could get a lot of garbage time yardage, which still counts the same!
WR	Lance Lundergaard	Ponies	vs. Bears	12	20	Lance had a down game, but the Ponies have another advantageous matchup coming up. Lance could do big things.
RB/WR	Stephanie Morgan	Raiders	vs. Steelers	24	19	Stephanie is the heart and soul of the Raiders offense. If they want to win this important matchup, they'll get her involved.
WR	Rainbow Callahan	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	23	19	Rainbow is a key contributor on the Melonheads and will play a big role in this momentous game.
RB/WR	Armon Hammerstein	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	32	18	Armon had quite the game last week, and is showing us why he's a lock at fantasy RB. This game could feature big scores, so Armon will be in the middle of it.
WR	Susie Townshend	Wombats	@ Colts	10	18	Susie could benefit from facing the Colts' ugly pass defense. She's worth a look this week.
RB/WR	Yasmin Kristov	Steelers	@ Raiders	10	16	Yasmin may have asserted herself as the better option in the Steelers' receiving corps. Either way, it was all bad last week and they will hopefully rebound.
RB	George Anderson	Browns	@ Texans	9	15	George is our running back of the week, facing the Texans! Last season, George put up 40 points against them! While I wouldn't expect another 40-point outburst, George could be a good running back for this week if you need somebody to fill in.
RB/WR	Jimmy Rockfish	Packers	@ Jets	4	15	Jimmy, along with the rest of the Packers, had an awful game last week. He may not put up a huge game, but the Packers know they need to get him the ball more.
WR	Nickie Noodleson	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	25	15	It might be time to buy on Nickie. He had a great game last week with 25 fantasy points, and the Melonheads turn a lot of games into high scoring affairs. I might take a chance on Nickie this week.
WR	Nate Kowalski	Browns	@ Texans	5	15	Nate is the main Browns receiver and could score once or twice against a shoddy Texans' secondary. He's worth a look.
WR	Omar Stephano	Hornets	@ 49ers	12	15	Omar is still the man for the Hornets, but they have a touch matchup ahead of them here. We'll see if Omar can stand up to the test.
WR	Patsy Clinehurst	Ponies	vs. Bears	40	15	Patsy came out of nowhere to drop 40 points! If she and Sharon have found a connection, then maybe Patsy is worth consideration for a fantasy start.
RB/WR	Mikey Thomas	Texans	vs. Browns	8	14	Mikey has struggled against fast defenses. The Browns defense may be one of the slowest in the league. This could be Mikey's week to show up big time.
WR	George Coleman	Browns	@ Texans	0	14	The Texans are susceptible to the pass. George hasn't scored anything since his Week 1 score of 28, but he could return in a big way this week.
WR	Neal Smith	Colts	vs. Wombats	15	14	Neal Smith is the leading receiver on a good team, so why is his fantasy play so finicky? Well when Ben None rushes on every play, it's hard to catch the ball. Neal has a low ceiling for this reason.
WR	Tiffany Bosworth	Eagles	@ Rams	13	14	Tiffany may be behind Reese in terms of receiving but she's holding her own. The Eagles will likely have a good day throwing the ball and Tiffany could get a share of that.
WR	Amir Khan	Raiders	vs. Steelers	18	14	Amir is a touch below Stephanie in terms of offensive usage, but he's still a difference maker.
WR	Jorge Garcia	Texans	vs. Browns	30	14	Jorge had a huge game as the Texans kept throwing to him late in the game when behind. This week, they may not be behind as often as his services may not be as necessary.
TE	Marky Dubois	Texans	vs. Browns	13	13	Marky and his good hands bail the Texans out on 3rd and 4th down on many occasions. He's possibly their most targeted receiver.
WR	Dwight Frye	Cowboys	@ Falcons	19	13	Dwight had a pretty nice game last week, just shy of 20 points. The Falcons have allowed 58 points over the last two games which means Dwight could be another opponent to reach the end zone.
RB	Greg Bonnell	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	0	12	My sources are telling me that Greg Bonnell is getting the start at running back for the Falcons. He was completely off the fantasy radar, but perhaps this announcement makes him appealing, at least for this week. If you're a risk taker, might wanna take a chance here.
RB/WR	Belinda Winters	Vikings	@ Patriots	15	12	My only concern here is that Amy might literally run the ball on every single play. Hard to say whether she'll evenly spread out the offense or just run the same play that works.
TE	Jevon Kearse	Chargers	vs. Titans	5	12	Jevon has been mostly underwhelming, but I think it was because of the matchups. In this game, the Bolts could double their offensive output for the whole season. Jevon is a good TE play.
WR	Cade McNown	Giants	@ Monsters	14	12	Cade has been decent but not spectacular. He can almost guarantee you 10 points, but more than 20 would be hard to expect.
WR	Liz Levin	Monsters	vs. Giants	19	12	While Evan was double covered for most of the game, Liz was open and cashed in. This week against the Giants, there could be some more opportunities for her.
WR	Nellie O'Neal	Patriots	vs. Vikings	11	12	Nellie has been alright so far, but nothing super. The Patriots will have to pass a lot if they get down early, so there may be some opportunities for Nellie there.
WR	Nutzy Nussbaum	Rams	vs. Eagles	11	12	I still can't tell who's the best WR for the Rams. They're a coin flip at this point.
WR	Terrell Davis	Rams	vs. Eagles	14	12	I still can't tell who's the best WR for the Rams. They're a coin flip at this point.
WR	Mindy Weaver	Steelers	@ Raiders	4	12	Mindy was terrible last week and will need to step it up if the Steelers want to keep winning games.
WR	Kenny Kawaguchi	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	15	11	The Armadillos are a tough matchup and if anyone is going to struggle, it's Kenny, who put up a zero in Week 2. However, the Melonheads can explode at any given time.
WR	Ronny Dobbs	Texans	vs. Browns	10	11	Ronny had a decent game, putting up double digits. Ronny is kind of the Texans' dark horse, who's open when the defense covers the big names like Jorge and Marky.
RB/TE	Mohammed Springsteen	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	0	10	Mo is back in the conversation for rushing and receiving and could also return to your fantasy lineup.
WR	Baloney Maloney	Bears	@ Ponies	15	10	If Zena is getting sacked or pressured all day, she's been known to put up some duds. Facing a stout pass defense sounds like a death sentence for the Bears receivers this week.
WR	Annie Frazier	Jets	vs. Packers	32	10	Annie has rebounded from her woes of last year to become a useful, albeit inconsistent, fantasy wide receiver. The Packers pose a bit of a challenge here, so let's see how Annie responds to the challenge.
WR	Austin Carpenter	Packers	@ Jets	0	10	Austin hasn't lived up to his potential so far, and if the Packers offense stays stuck in this rut, nobody will live up to their potential.
RB	Winky Wojohowitz	Rams	vs. Eagles	0	9	Sources for the Rams say that Winky is going to get some more looks this week. Not sure what that will entail, but take that as you will.
RB/TE	Travis Diamond	Monsters	vs. Giants	22	9	Travis had a nice game last week and picked up the slack in a victory. He's a pretty intriguing TE option.
TE	Jocinda Smith	Rams	vs. Eagles	19	9	Jocinda is the top-scoring tight end so far, even more than the great Marky Dubois. Jocinda is killin' it and should keep it up.
TE	Kimmy Eckman	Texans	vs. Browns	9	9	Continuing to see red zone targets is good news for Kimmy, and for you if she's in your lineup.
WR	Pinky Purton	Bears	@ Ponies	15	9	It might be a long day for the Bears receiving corps against a solid Ponies defense. I might stay away from this one.
RB/TE	Tony Delvecchio	Cowboys	@ Falcons	17	8	Tony showed up big time last Monday night for a 17 point game. That might be the most he can get in one game, but results like last week's are promising.
WR	Hank Wilson	Hornets	@ 49ers	30	8	Hank had a huge game, scoring 30 fantasy points. While that was nice to know he's a part of the offense, the 49ers defense might stop all receivers.
WR	Pickles Peterson	Titans	@ Chargers	13	8	Pickles had his best game of the season after getting into the end zone. A matchup against the Chargers could lead to a high scoring game.
TE	Junior Seau	Ponies	vs. Bears	18	7	Junior and all the Ponies had a great game last week. This week, there might be a little regression.
WR	Lola Linkletter	Vikings	@ Patriots	14	7	Lola has been climbing up the ranks of WR's thanks to her last two games. However, as I said earlier with Belinda, this may be one of those games where Amy runs the ball on nearly every play.
RB/TE	Brace-Face Brixton	Wombats	@ Colts	0	6	Brace-Face might find a red zone touchdown against the Colts' suspect secondary.
WR	Stinky Steiner	Chargers	vs. Titans	3	6	The Chargers have a nice matchup in front of them, but I still haven't seen much evidence of Stinky's involvement in the offense. Tread with caution.
RB/TE	Dmitri Petrovich	Eagles	@ Rams	1	5	Dmitri is useful in the red zone, but in other parts of the field he's mainly used for blocking.
TE	Needle Haystack	Bears	@ Ponies	15	5	Needle had his first good game of the year with a 15-point performance. This week will be a little harder against a solid pass defense.
TE	Craig David	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	20	5	Craig burst onto the scene last week with a 20-pointer. The receiving yards might not be as fruitful this week, but it looks like Craig is an important piece of the offense.
TE	Leah Wayne	Packers	@ Jets	7	5	Leah was actually the high scorer on the Packers last week, which doesn't bode well for the rest of the team.
WR	Petunia Young	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	4	5	Petunia is still a pretty bad fantasy option, she's just not getting many looks from Wilco.
RB/TE	Ricky Williams	Jets	vs. Packers	8	4	Ricky hasn't been himself so far this year. It seems as if his role as second receiver last season has been taken over by Annie.
RB/TE	Carlos Ocampo	Titans	@ Chargers	3	4	Carlos is always getting a little action but nothing noteworthy.
TE	Lisa Crocket	Colts	vs. Wombats	0	4	Lisa is a decent tight end but her upside is limited when the Colts run the ball more than they pass.
WR	Angela Delvecchio	Texans	vs. Browns	1	4	Angela seems to be at the bottom of the Texans' depth chart, but that could always change in an instant.
RB	Kiesha Phillips	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	2	3
RB	Horace Young	Colts	vs. Wombats	3	3
RB	Andres Isben	Eagles	@ Rams	0	3
RB	Karen Donato	Patriots	vs. Vikings	7	3	Karen has had a steady source of rushing yards but the Patriots might have to pass their way out of this one.
RB/TE	Rose Watson	Steelers	@ Raiders	4	3	Every Rose has its thorns. Hers is the inability to catch.
TE	Oliver Ramierez	49ers	vs. Hornets	0	3	Still waiting for Oliver to be utilized. The Hornets give up a lot of offense, but taking a shot on Oliver would be a big gamble.
TE	Tom Getz	Hornets	@ 49ers	4	3	Tom's 22 point explosion in Week 1 is fading faster and faster each week.
TE	Karla Karloff	Raiders	vs. Steelers	15	3	Karla came out of nowhere and caught a touchdown last week. That might be the best we ever see from her.
TE	J.J. Shetland	Vikings	@ Patriots	0	3	J.J. has been a big disappointment at tight end and doesn't look like he'll turn it around any time soon.
WR	Cullen Sullivan	49ers	vs. Hornets	0	3	Cullen Sullivan continues to take a back seat to Victor Jones, I'm not certain he'll ever get the ball again.
WR	Amanda Craven	Colts	vs. Wombats	0	3	Amanda doesn't get very many opportunities when Ben runs the ball all the time.
RB	Tina Herrara	49ers	vs. Hornets	1	2
RB	James Zorn	Bears	@ Ponies	0	2
RB	Marcus Weiss	Giants	@ Monsters	0	2
RB	PJ Shareef	Packers	@ Jets	0	2
RB	Hans R. Dirtywashum	Titans	@ Chargers	0	2
TE	Olive Hussein	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	0	2	I find it funny that Olive and Oliver are the two least used tight ends this season.
TE	Judy Place	Patriots	vs. Vikings	0	2	Judy hasn't found her Place in the Patriots offense. (Can't believe it took me 4 weeks to come up with that one)
WR	Cisco Kidd	Bears	@ Ponies	2	2
WR	Spanky Simpson	Giants	@ Monsters	3	2
WR	Renee Matthews	Jets	vs. Packers	0	2
WR	Daisy Dewchester	Monsters	vs. Giants	0	2
WR	Cory Barker	Wombats	@ Colts	2	2
RB	Jay Green	49ers	vs. Hornets	0	1
RB/TE	June O'Shea	Giants	@ Monsters	2	1	Maybe if June's name was September she'd be more likely to show up this month.
WR	Jane Davis	Chargers	vs. Titans	2	1
RB	Bridget Oofar	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	0	0
RB	Chucky Flinder	Bears	@ Ponies	0	0
RB	Mark Epstein	Browns	@ Texans	0	0
RB	Jenny Strauss	Chargers	vs. Titans	0	0
RB	Star Moonbeam	Chargers	vs. Titans	0	0
RB	Mikey Tice	Colts	vs. Wombats	0	0
RB	Cynthia Miller	Cowboys	@ Falcons	0	0
RB	Wing Kwan	Cowboys	@ Falcons	0	0
RB	Luanne Lui	Eagles	@ Rams	0	0
RB	Whitney Singh	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	0	0
RB	Daphne Farrington	Giants	@ Monsters	7	0
RB	Ben Olds	Hornets	@ 49ers	0	0
RB	Nestor Carpenter	Hornets	@ 49ers	0	0
RB	Bill Larsen	Jets	vs. Packers	0	0
RB	Esther French	Jets	vs. Packers	0	0
RB	Chico Pappas	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	0	0
RB	Eric Lebeaux	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	27	0	Unfortunately Eric only likes to play against the Texans for some reason.
RB	Cathy Benitez	Monsters	vs. Giants	0	0
RB	Olivia Harris	Monsters	vs. Giants	0	0
RB	Clarice Reid	Packers	@ Jets	0	0
RB	Wanda Hudson	Patriots	vs. Vikings	0	0
RB	Georgia Doyle	Ponies	vs. Bears	0	0
RB	Kate Schwartz	Ponies	vs. Bears	0	0
RB	Dolores Lucio	Raiders	vs. Steelers	0	0
RB	Fred Benson	Raiders	vs. Steelers	0	0
RB	Jay Canasta	Rams	vs. Eagles	0	0
RB	Ray Tran	Steelers	@ Raiders	0	0
RB	Wendy Harmon	Steelers	@ Raiders	0	0
RB	Stan Olafson	Titans	@ Chargers	0	0
RB	Dante Robinson	Vikings	@ Patriots	0	0
RB	Pete Montoya	Vikings	@ Patriots	0	0
RB	Marcie Mallow	Wombats	@ Colts	0	0
RB	Shermie Shannon	Wombats	@ Colts	0	0
TE	Fred Sanders	Browns	@ Texans	0	0	"Fred is the ""tight end"" against the Texans this week, which will relegate him to blocking duties."
WR	Sugar Stone	49ers	vs. Hornets	0	0
WR	Ricky Johnson	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	0	0
WR	Julio Henderson	Browns	@ Texans	2	0
WR	Joshua Marriott	Colts	vs. Wombats	1	0
WR	Mickey O'Connor	Cowboys	@ Falcons	0	0
WR	Gretchen Hasselhoff	Eagles	@ Rams	0	0
WR	Mike Schwartz	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	1	0
WR	Crazy-Legs Calonzo	Hornets	@ 49ers	0	0
WR	Ashley Webber	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	0	0
WR	Isaac Drummond	Packers	@ Jets	0	0
WR	Nancy Martin	Patriots	vs. Vikings	0	0
WR	Pete Wheeler	Ponies	vs. Bears	0	0
WR	King Kirby	Raiders	vs. Steelers	0	0
WR	Charlotte Allen	Rams	vs. Eagles	0	0
WR	Paul Applebaum	Steelers	@ Raiders	0	0
WR	Johnny Omar	Titans	@ Chargers	0	0
WR	Lorrie Peters	Vikings	@ Patriots	0	0

Defense

Pos	Player	Team	Opponent	Last Week	Projection	Comments.............................................
DEF	Vikings Defense	Vikings	@ Patriots	19	20	As we've noticed so far, facing the Patriots is usually a good thing. Defenses and offenses alike usually succeed against this sorry excuse for a squad.
DEF	Jets Defense	Jets	vs. Packers	19	18	The Packers were just shut out by the Vikings, and now they have to face the equally intimidating Jets defense. Could be another long day for the Pack.
DEF	Colts Defense	Colts	vs. Wombats	10	17	Defenses love to circle games against the Wombats on the schedule because then they get to sack Matt Monday a bunch of times. The Colts defense is a good option this week.
DEF	Texans Defense	Texans	vs. Browns	14	16	The Texans are among the top defenses yet again, as they force turnovers like no other. The Browns could cough it up a few times.
DEF	Raiders Defense	Raiders	vs. Steelers	9	15	The Steelers offense was just stuffed by the Titans, who aren't very imposing. The Raiders could stuff them even more.
DEF	Steelers Defense	Steelers	@ Raiders	9	15	The Steelers were dismal against a Titans team they should have beaten. They could come back this week with a venegeance.
DEF	49ers Defense	49ers	vs. Hornets	19	14	The 49ers defense has been pretty solid so far. This week they get to face the slow-footed Stuart Sullivan, so they have lots of sack potential.
DEF	Chargers Defense	Chargers	vs. Titans	5	14	Teams have fared well playing against the Titans this season. The Chargers defense is the sleeper of the week.
DEF	Melonheads Defense	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	12	14	Even against a good offense, the Melonheads defense is debatably the best in the league. They're a good starting option unless you have something decisively better.
DEF	Titans Defense	Titans	@ Chargers	15	13	Drew Bledsoe is pretty flat-footed in the pocket and could be a victim of quite a few sacks.
DEF	Browns Defense	Browns	@ Texans	4	12	Facing the turnover machine Chuck Downfield might be just what the Browns defense needs to return to greatness.
DEF	Ponies Defense	Ponies	vs. Bears	7	12	Slow QB alert! Zena Fromme is a big sack target and the Ponies should have a field day.
DEF	Armadillos Defense	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	19	11	The Armadillos will have a tough time stopping Pablo Sanchez in the backfield, but they may be able to force him into a few turnovers.
DEF	Packers Defense	Packers	@ Jets	8	10	The Packers had an abysmal game all around, and the Jets defense is now waiting in the wings. We'll see how they handle the pressure.
DEF	Bears Defense	Bears	@ Ponies	15	9	The Bears defense is actually better than it was last season, but facing the 3-0 Ponies is something that no defense wants to do right now.
DEF	Eagles Defense	Eagles	@ Rams	9	9
DEF	Monsters Defense	Monsters	vs. Giants	12	9	Despite the name, the Monsters defense isn't very scary. They haven't been putting up too many fantasy points lately.
DEF	Cowboys Defense	Cowboys	@ Falcons	9	8
DEF	Giants Defense	Giants	@ Monsters	12	8	The Giants defense has been quite lackluster over the first three games, and a matchup against the Monsters doesn't improve their chances of succeeding.
DEF	Falcons Defense	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	12	7
DEF	Wombats Defense	Wombats	@ Colts	14	6	Ben None is running wild, and the Wombats might just get out of the way.
DEF	Rams Defense	Rams	vs. Eagles	10	5	The Eagles offense is on fire right now and I'm not sure what defense can stop them.
DEF	Patriots Defense	Patriots	vs. Vikings	3	4	The Patriots have been getting destroyed by opposing offenses, and coming up next is Amy Bostwick and the Vikings. Could be another disaster.
DEF	Hornets Defense	Hornets	@ 49ers	10	3	The Niners have been firing on all cylinders and will bust through the Hornets defense with ease.

Kickers

Pos	Player	Team	Opponent	Last Week	Projection
K	Reese Worthington	Eagles	@ Rams	3	4
K	Cathy Benitez	Monsters	vs. Giants	3	3
K	Jay Canasta	Rams	vs. Eagles	4	3
K	Lorrie Peters	Vikings	@ Patriots	4	3
K	Marcie Mallow	Wombats	@ Colts	1	3
K	Cullen Sullivan	49ers	vs. Hornets	4	2
K	Jenny Strauss	Chargers	vs. Titans	3	2
K	Wing Kwan	Cowboys	@ Falcons	1	2
K	Frankie McDoogle	Jets	vs. Packers	4	2
K	Eric Lebeaux	Melonheads	vs. Armadillos	5	2
K	Karla Karloff	Raiders	vs. Steelers	1	2
K	Ray Tran	Steelers	@ Raiders	1	2
K	Ricky Johnson	Armadillos	@ Melonheads	2	1
K	Cisco Kidd	Bears	@ Ponies	3	1
K	George Anderson	Browns	@ Texans	1	1
K	Amanda Craven	Colts	vs. Wombats	0	1
K	David Wilco	Falcons	vs. Cowboys	1	1
K	Spanky Simpson	Giants	@ Monsters	1	1
K	Hank Wilson	Hornets	@ 49ers	3	1
K	Jimmy Rockfish	Packers	@ Jets	0	1
K	Wanda Hudson	Patriots	vs. Vikings	1	1
K	Lance Lundergaard	Ponies	vs. Bears	1	1
K	Marky Dubois	Texans	vs. Browns	0	1
K	Johnny Omar	Titans	@ Chargers	0	1