Month: September 2021

See The I-49 Connector Before It Opens; The Missouri-Arkansas Commute Just Got Faster, Bella Vista Bypass

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KODE:

There was a time when old Highway 71 curved through the Ozarks and Boston Mountains from Kansas City, Missouri, to Fort Smith, Arkansas. However about 30 years ago the building began towards what will open September 30, 2021. Gov. Parson from Missouri and Gov. Hutchinson from both states will cut the ribbon in a special ceremony. Then it will open the following day to all traffic..

The final five miles of I-49 to connect Missouri to Arkansas, making 290 continuous interstate miles in this Midwest corridor. Traffic studies show that volume will increase by 40% as I-49 will connect at the north terminus to the east/west I-70. Then in Arkansas to I-40 the south terminus. 

Biden Administration Appoints New Syria Policy Chief

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Al-Monitor:

The policy to leave US troops in post-IS Syria was devised under the auspices of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as Trump administration officials saw in the country’s stalemated battlefield an opportunity to deny Russia and Iran — Assad’s main foreign backers ­— a clean victory in the region.

Trump sought repeatedly to undo the policy and pull US forces from the country, citing what he called “endless war.” Top advisers pushed back on those orders, however. Outrage from some US officials over Turkey’s attacks against Kurdish-led forces amid Trump’s October 2019 withdrawal order led the former president to reverse his decision.

Biden administration officials have indicated US troops are not leaving Syria anytime soon and have added new sanctions on the Assad regime. Washington continues to insist the regime implement reforms in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254 calling for free and fair elections in Syria.

One of President Trump’s greatest foreign policy blunders was his failure to get our troops out of Syria. But he tried.

Turkey Sends More Troops To Syria Before Erdogan’s Visit To Russia

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MENA:

Turkey has sent more troops to north-western Syria as it prepares for a critical meeting with the leaders of Russia and Iran next week, signalling its determination to continue blocking an assault on one of the Syrian war’s last front lines.

The government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is concerned an attempt by Russian-backed Syrian forces to move on the rebel bastion of Idlib would send more refugees streaming towards the Turkish frontier.

Ghani’s Escape Deep-Sixed Afghanistan’s High Council Deal With Taliban, Says Top Official

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TASS:

The government of ex-Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has discarded an agreement reached by Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation with members of the Taliban (outlawed in Russia) over the establishment of a cabinet that would be in line with the interests of all political and ethnic country’s groups, Leader of the Hezb-e Wahdat Islami Afghanistan party Karim Khalili said on Wednesday.

“Under Ashraf Ghani’s presidency, we maintained a peaceful policy towards the Taliban. I was one of the founding architects of the peaceful approach promoted by Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation. We [reached an agreement] to create a government which would respect the rights of all ethnic and political groups, the Taliban side agreed with that. However, Ghani’s government deep-sixed this deal. Having fled and left everything to the Taliban, he thus paved the way for its domination,” Khalili noted.

Basically what Zalmay Khalilzad said.

US Orders Turkey To Immediately Withdraw All Its Troops From Libya

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Greek City Times:

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stressed the need for the immediate withdrawal of Turkish troops from Libya, including all foreign troops and mercenaries.

Blinken made the demand yesterday during a ministerial conference that took place on the sidelines of the 76th UN General Assembly.

The Ministerial Conference on Libya was held with the participation of the countries of the Berlin Process, neighbouring African states along with Greece and Spain, which participated as observers.

In his statement, the US Secretary of State strongly supported the immediate withdrawal of all foreign troops and mercenaries from the country, not hesitating to directly name Turkey.

Libya: Haftar Stands Down From Military Role Before Polls

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Al Jazeera:

Haftar heads the eastern-based LNA and waged war on western factions after the country split in 2014, including a 14-month offensive to take Tripoli that was repelled last year after devastating areas of the capital.

Libyan media said the step opens the way for Haftar to run as a presidential candidate under a controversial new law.

National elections were pushed as a way to end Libya’s decade-long crisis, but have been enmeshed in bitter arguments over legitimacy that may unravel a months-long peace process.

He is probably the world’s best bet for resolving the chaos from which Libya has been plagued since the Obama-Biden Administration decided to transform the country into jihadi terrorist Disneyland.

FBI Director Says Afghanistan Could Become Terrorist Sanctuary After U.S. Withdrawal

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National Review:

The Biden administration has assured that it can still conduct reconnaissance over Afghanistan to monitor growing threats, likely by operating bases in neighboring countries. However, military officials have acknowledged that U.S. surveillance capabilities are restricted without a presence stationed on the ground in Afghanistan. To bridge the intelligence gap created by U.S. departure, some U.S. security personnel have suggested entering into intelligence- or base-sharing deals with nations in proximity to Afghanistan, such as Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, or Tajikistan, the New York Times reported.

Lawmakers Storm Out Of Classified Afghanistan Briefing After Questions Go Unanswered

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CNN:

Multiple lawmakers angrily stormed out of a classified briefing with members of the Biden administration on Afghanistan on Wednesday morning, according to three sources familiar with the briefing.

The Republican and Democratic lawmakers grew frustrated after State Department, Pentagon, Department of Homeland Security, and Office of the Director of National Security officials failed to answer their basic questions during the briefing for members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the sources told CNN.

‘The Outsiders’ House: Tiny Tulsa Museum Drawing Big Names

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Fox 4:

The Outsiders House Museum was created by Danny Boy O’Connor, formerly of the hip-hop group House of Pain. It’s been a labor of love for O’Connor, who bought the house several years ago and renovated it.

The modest white bungalow with a wide front porch was used as a central set in the 1983 film “The Outsiders,” which was based on S.E. Hinton’s classic 1967 novel of the same name.

“That was our ‘Gone with the Wind.’ That was our ‘American Graffiti.’ Every generation finds the cool archetypes of who we could be, and that for me was the movie,” O’Connor said in a recent interview inside the house. He said visitors have ranged “from 8 to 80 — to everything in between. It’s usually the whole family. It’s a family museum.”

Arkansas Recreational Marijuana Ballot Initiative Underway

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KUAR:

Under the amendment, residents who are at least 21 could grow up to 12 marijuana plants. Depending on the license acquired, licensees could sell marijuana plants, seeds and products. Also, those in jail for nonviolent, marijuana-related crimes would be released, and anyone convicted of such offenses would have their records expunged. He said the former would affect thousands of people, and the latter would impact tens of thousands who could enter the workforce and reduce the unemployment rate.

Oklahoma Activists Finalize Language For Two 2022 Marijuana Ballot Initiatives

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Marijuana Moment:

Under the recreational legalization measure, adults 21 and older would be able to possess up to eight ounces of marijuana that they purchase from retailers, as well as whatever cannabis they yield from growing up to 12 plants for personal use.

Marijuana sales would be subject to a 15 percent excise tax, and the initiative outlines a number of programs that would receive partial revenue from those taxes. The money would first cover implementation costs and then would be divided to support water-related infrastructure, people with disabilities, substance misuse treatment, law enforcement training, cannabis research and more.

Lawmakers To Propose Legislation To End Oklahoma Grocery Tax

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Fox 25:

Some of the strongest points made in favor of the tax are actually about protecting cities, but Representative John Waldron says cutting the tax wouldn’t impact the budget of cities since it goes into the state’s general fund.

“Municipalities also have their sales taxes, this would not be affected by a cut in the state’s grocery tax. I’m sure the state can find a way to balance its budget without having to levy more taxes on the backs of working moms trying to feed their families,” he said.

Biden Tells UN He Pulled US Out Of Afghanistan To Swap ‘Relentless War’ For ‘Relentless Diplomacy’

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Independent:

Mr Biden made the remarks as he has sought to tell the global stage that America has returned from its retreat from the international community during his predecessor Donald Trump’s presidency.

Just ask the French about our relentless diplomacy.

President Trump is the one who negotiated the Doha Agreement, which pulled us out of Afghanistan. All President Biden did was deliberately botch the May 1 deadline in order to foment the humanitarian catastrophe which our political, diplomatic, military, and intelligence Establishment will seize upon in their effort to re-invade Afghanistan.

Afghan Resistance Leaders, Long Backed by CIA, Have Fled Following Taliban Takeover

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The Intercept:

The son of Afghanistan’s most celebrated anti-Taliban resistance leader has escaped into neighboring Tajikistan, less than a month after vowing to defend his homeland “no matter what happens.”

Ahmad Massoud, son of the late Northern Alliance leader Ahmad Shah Massoud, fled to Tajikistan shortly after the Taliban seized control of the Panjshir Valley on September 6, according to a senior U.S. intelligence official, a Pentagon consultant, and two former senior Afghan government officials. Massoud was joined a few days later by Amrullah Saleh, the former Afghan vice president and longtime intelligence chief, who left Afghanistan by helicopter, the senior U.S. official and two former Afghan officials said.

The Afghan Republic has fallen. Of course Saleh and Massoud both live to fight another day, and they can return when they want. They can sponsor an insurgency against the Taliban. The Taliban are good insurgents, but they are not accustomed to being on the other end of an insurgency. This could be the end of the Afghan civil war, but it is most likely the beginning of the Afghan civil war’s newest phase.

Biden Claims The US Is ‘Not At War,’ Despite Combat Deployments To Iraq And Syria, And Counter-Terror Missions In Africa

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Business Insider:

Biden’s speech was part of a wider effort to move on from the 20-year Afghanistan war, which ended with an ignominious withdrawal at the end of August. “The President will essentially drive home the message that ending the war in Afghanistan closed a chapter focused on war and opens a chapter focused on purposeful, effective, intensive American diplomacy,” a senior administration official told reporters ahead of Biden’s speech.

But Biden’s claim ignores ongoing US military engagements abroad, including in Iraq, Syria, and Africa, underscoring the difficulty of closing the chapter in the way Biden envisions.

Pentagon Chief Orders Review Of Deadly Drone Strike In Afghanistan

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The Hill:

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has tasked Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall with overseeing the investigation, which will be conducted by Lt. Gen. Sam Said, the Air Force inspector general.

“Part of that review will be to examine the investigation itself, the thoroughness of the investigation, to study the degree to which any policies, procedures or targeting mechanisms may need to be altered going forward, if any, and of course to then take a look at what levels of accountability might be appropriate and if so at what level,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said in a briefing.