Friday, November 17, 2017

Jameis Winston faces NFL investigation for allegedly groping Uber driver

November 17, 2017 Leave a Reply

The NFL is investigating Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston after an Uber driver accused him of groping her in 2016. A league spokesperson told CBS News on Friday that "the matter is under review."

Uber says the female driver reported the incident shortly after the trip in March 2016. The company called Winston's alleged behavior "disturbing and wrong," adding that the NFL star was banned from the ride-sharing app after the incident occurred.
The driver, who spoke to BuzzFeed News, which first reported the news, claims that she picked up Winston in March 2016 when he asked her to stop at a drive-thru restaurant. While waiting in line, she claims Winston "reached over" and grabbed her crotch for three to five seconds. She says he only removed his hand when she objected.
Winston, 23, has denied the allegation, calling the driver's story false.
"The accusation is false, and given the nature of the allegation and increased awareness and consideration of these types of matters, I am addressing this false report immediately," he said in a statement. He added that he is supportive of the "national movement to raise awareness" of similar situations of sexual harassment.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers v New Orleans Saints
Jameis Winston #3 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers watches a replay on the screen from the sidelines after being hurt in the first half of a game against the New Orleans Saints at Mercedes-Benz Superdome on November 5, 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana. 
 WESLEY HITT / GETTY

"While I am certain that I did not make any inappropriate contact, I don't want to engage in a battle with the driver and I regret if my demeanor or presence made her uncomfortable in any way," Winston said.
The Buccaneers said they are in the process of "obtaining further information" on the incident. "We take these matters seriously and are fully supportive of the investigation that is being conducted by the NFL," the team said in a statement.
In 2016, Winston settled a civil lawsuit with a woman who accused him of raping her while he was attending Florida State University in 2012. The school settled a separate Title IX lawsuit filed by the woman for $950,000 in January of that year, The Associated Press reports. The university also made a five-year commitment to sexual assault awareness and prevention, and agreed to publish annual reports about the programs.
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Trump to pay own legal fees for Russia probe, plans to help pay bills of White House aides

November 17, 2017 Leave a Reply

Trump to pay own legal fees for Russia probe, plans to help pay bills of White House aides

AP TRUMP RUSSIA MONEY A FILE USA DC
There is no way to estimate the potential legal fees, given the potential length of Mueller's probe.
Some critics of the administration have raised ethical concerns about his a support fund for staff members, suggesting it could be seen as a way to influence their testimony. 
"A potential witness or target of an investigation (and boss of investigators) paying for legal fees of other potential witnesses or targets?" said Walter Shaub, a former head of OGE, said on Twitter last month after a separate report surfaced about Trump potentially paying legal bills for his staff. 
The special counsel is looking at possible links between Trump associates and Russians who sought to influence last year's presidential election against Hillary Clinton via email hacks and fake news.
Mueller is also looking at possible obstruction of justice in connection with Trump's abrupt firing of FBI Director James Comey in May, who at the time was in charge of the Russia investigation.
Trump has denied any involvement with Russia, and denounced the investigation as a witch hunt. 
Mueller's office has interviewed former White House members, including ex-chief of staff Reince Priebus, ex-spokesman Sean Spicer, and ex-aide Keith Kellogg. He also plans to interview current aides, including Communications Director Hope Hicks.
Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort and his business and campaign associate Rick Gates were recently indicted by a grand jury on charges they secretly worked on behalf of pro-Russian factions in Ukraine, then laundered millions of dollars in profits through foreign bank accounts. Mueller's prosecutors charged that the men sought to cover up their work even while they held senior roles in Trump’s campaign. 
In another case, ex-Trump foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to a charge that he lied to FBI agents about his contacts with a professor he believed "had substantial connections to Russian government officials" during the campaign. The professor offered him "dirt" — in the form of thousands of emails — on Clinton. 
Manafort, Gates, and Papadopoulos would not be eligible for the fund, which applies to people who worked in the White House.

Trump to pay own legal fees for Russia probe, plans to help pay bills of White House aides

November 17, 2017 Leave a Reply
Trump to pay own legal fees for Russia probe, plans to help pay bills of White House aides
AP TRUMP RUSSIA MONEY A FILE USA DC
WASHINGTON – President Trump plans to pay his own legal bills related to the Russia investigation, and is working on a plan to help current and former staff members pay their expenses, a White House attorney said Friday.
White House lawyer Ty Cobb said the president "is paying his own legal fees," and has authorized an effort to help his aides who have been drawn in to the investigations run by congressional and special counsel Robert Mueller. 
"The administration and others are working with the Office of Government Ethics and tax specialists to create a lawful mechanism for payment of fees for staffers," Cobb said. "It is expected to be operational shortly.”
Cobb said the Office of Government of Ethics must sign off on any plan. Trump's previous legal bills have been covered by the Republican National Committee.
There is no way to estimate the potential legal fees, given the potential length of Mueller's probe.
Some critics of the administration have raised ethical concerns about his a support fund for staff members, suggesting it could be seen as a way to influence their testimony. 
"A potential witness or target of an investigation (and boss of investigators) paying for legal fees of other potential witnesses or targets?" said Walter Shaub, a former head of OGE, said on Twitter last month after a separate report surfaced about Trump potentially paying legal bills for his staff. 
The special counsel is looking at possible links between Trump associates and Russians who sought to influence last year's presidential election against Hillary Clinton via email hacks and fake news.
Mueller is also looking at possible obstruction of justice in connection with Trump's abrupt firing of FBI Director James Comey in May, who at the time was in charge of the Russia investigation.
Trump has denied any involvement with Russia, and denounced the investigation as a witch hunt. 
Mueller's office has interviewed former White House members, including ex-chief of staff Reince Priebus, ex-spokesman Sean Spicer, and ex-aide Keith Kellogg. He also plans to interview current aides, including Communications Director Hope Hicks.
Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort and his business and campaign associate Rick Gates were recently indicted by a grand jury on charges they secretly worked on behalf of pro-Russian factions in Ukraine, then laundered millions of dollars in profits through foreign bank accounts. Mueller's prosecutors charged that the men sought to cover up their work even while they held senior roles in Trump’s campaign. 
In another case, ex-Trump foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to a charge that he lied to FBI agents about his contacts with a professor he believed "had substantial connections to Russian government officials" during the campaign. The professor offered him "dirt" — in the form of thousands of emails — on Clinton. 
Manafort, Gates, and Papadopoulos would not be eligible for the fund, which applies to people who worked in the White House.

Artist's War Horse sculpture banned from Norfolk roundabouts

November 17, 2017 Leave a Reply

Horse sculpture on roundaboutImage copyrightDAMIAN O'CONNOR
Image captionDamian O'Connor has been told to remove the sculpture from roundabouts

An artist has been told to stop displaying a giant horse sculpture on roundabouts by councillors who say it could cause accidents.
Damian O'Connor put his 10ft (3m) War Horse at several sites near Norwich.
Norfolk County Council said it was an "obstruction" and not allowed on "highway land", as reported in the EDP.
Mr O'Connor hit back at the "jobworths" and said drivers rarely crash into Nelson's Column or the Arc de Triomphe, which are also on roundabouts.
The artist, from Taverham, Norfolk, said the roundabouts near his home and on the new Northern Distributor Road were "a great stage for the work".
He said he wheels his horse, which is made from steel, wood and reeds, out to various roundabouts "at three in the morning, where he looks wonderful under the stars".

War horse sculpture on roundaboutImage copyrightDAMIAN O'CONNOR
Image captionThe artist said the roundabouts he put the horse on were very large

However, Norfolk County Council disagreed and wrote to him about his "item on the highway", saying he must "remove the item as soon as possible" or "further enforcement action" could be taken by the highways department.
The council also warned Mr O'Connor he could be liable for any "claim for civil damages for loss or personal injury" should his horse be deemed to have caused an accident.
Mr O'Connor described the council officer as a "jobsworth" and said the email was "daft" in his reply.
He also accused the council of "hypocritical twaddle" and questioned whether advertising space sold by the council on its roundabouts was also deemed to be a distraction.

Horse sculptureImage copyrightDAMIAN O'CONNOR
Image captionThe horse is made from steel, wood and reeds

Mr O'Connor said he was not trying to sell his work but was displaying it to "commemorate the millions of horses lost in wars".
The artist said he had not yet heard back from the council.
However, a spokesman for the authority told the BBC they had "used our discretion in this case but now had to ask that the sculpture is removed and the owner finds a more suitable place to promote the artwork".
The council has a "legal duty" to consider whether "anything on highway land [could] cause an unnecessary or dangerous obstruction, or reduce visibility", he added.

Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic close out final ‘Mike & Mike’ with grand appreciation

November 17, 2017 Leave a Reply
Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic close out final ‘Mike & Mike’ with grand appreciation
If you’re Mike Greenberg of ESPN’s “Mike & Mike,” you thank your viewers and listeners by reminiscing about the early days: “When we started, there wasn’t a smaller gig in the business. It was the ultimate grass-roots effort that people started waking up and listening to us and said: ‘Hey, these two guys on the radio, they’re not bad, they seem to talk about football in a pretty entertaining way.’ And they told their friends. And they told two friends. And that’s how this turned from whatever it was to whatever it is now … all the visits to the White House and the Letterman appearances and all that … it doesn’t happen without all of you who were with us from the beginning.”
Millions have spent their mornings with Greenberg, the fastidious metrosexual Northwestern alum and Mike Golic, the jovial ex-jock from Notre Dame. So it was only fitting that #MMSayThanks was the top trend on Twitter during Friday’s show.
Said Greenberg: “We were on before there was ‘Pardon the Interruption,’ before there was ‘Around the Horn,’ before there was ‘First Take,’ which was previously ‘Cold Pizza.’ Through all that of it we have done our best and tried to make people a little bit less miserable in their mornings. If we have succeeded in that, then we accomplished everything we needed to.”
Responded Golic: “We figured if we laughed, hopefully you laughed along with us.”
Friday’s show opened with Greenberg saying: “Math is not my strong suit. But with the help of a calculator and a whole lot of estimating, I believe we have done right around 14,000 hours of ‘Mike & Mike’ going back to January of 2000. We have four left to do and will make them count.”
He then joked: “A lot of nice things are being said about us that we’re not always accustomed to.”
Golic replied: “No, we’re not. That’s why I try to get right to the bad stuff being said about us. Makes me feel more at home – like I’m in my home.”
Last week Greenberg told the Tribune that he would not make plans for an elaborate farewell and that he appreciated having a break before “Get Up,” his new ESPN TV show with Jalen Rose and Michelle Beadle, debuts April 2.
Golic will continue in the “Mike & Mike” slot, pairing with Trey Wingo and Mike Golic Jr.
ESPN president John Skipper appeared in studio on Friday’s show and said: “There’s a great song from Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks called: ‘How can we miss you if you don’t go away?’ The good news is, we don’t have to miss you.”
The final show ended with Greenberg and Golic bringing family members on the set.
“The most important words that I can think of today are: Thank you,” Greenberg said.
Then he choked up: “Thank you for choosing this all these years.”
When the show debuted Jan. 2, 2000, Greenberg pointed out, Urban Meyer was the wide receivers coach at Notre Dame.
Golic: “Dan Marino was the all-time leader in passing touchdowns. He’s now fifth.”
Greenberg: “Mark Zuckerberg was 15 years old; he’s now the fifth-richest person in the world.”
Various celebs feted the pair with videos aired during the final four-hour show.
As NFL great Jim Kelly put it: “I will miss the jabs that both of you took at each other and when the show was over both, I’m sure, walked away with an appreciation for one another. That’s what made you guys the best!”