North Carolina GOP Wins Voter Fraud Alert Case!

Touch-Screen Voters In North Carolina Will Be Alerted Prior To Casting Ballots


Voters who use ATM-style machines to cast ballots in Tuesday's election will be asked to read a notice instructing them to carefully review their selections and make sure they register correctly, a Federal Judge ordered Saturday.

U.S. District Court Judge Malcolm Howard ordered the North Carolina State Board of Elections and its executive director, Gary Bartlett, to have all Poll Workers tell each voter using the touch screens to read the alert, then ask to be notified of problems.

All precincts using the ATM-style devises must keep logs of complaints and how they're resolved.

Howard's order settles a Republican Lawsuit against the North Carolina State Board of Elections over voting equipment the party contends is unreliable, often erroneously casting votes for Democrats.

State elections officials say the machines work and voters are aware that they should make sure their ballots are correct before they cast them.

Howard held a rare Saturday hearing - he said it was his first in two decades - to resolve the complaint before Election Day. Twenty-three counties will use touch-screen machines for voting Tuesday; none are in the Triangle.

Thomas Farr, the lawyer representing N.C. State GOP Chairman Tom Fetzer and local party officials and voters, said Bartlett knew of the touch-screen machine problems for weeks but did not do enough to remedy them.

The two sides offered vastly different assessments of the touch-screen iVotronic.

Farr said the machines caused widespread problems during the early voting period that ended Saturday.

After the hearing, Johnnie McLean, the state elections board deputy director, said the equipment works well.

"We have every confidence in the voting system that North Carolina has," she said. "I've seen no evidence that we should feel differently."

The GOP Lawsuit gave examples of voters who said they had to correct their ballots three times to cast their votes for Republicans, as they intended, rather than Democrats. The order doesn't get to the root of the problem of unreliable equipment, Farr said, but may result in voters examining their ballots carefully.

Susan Nichols, a special deputy Attorney General representing Bartlett and the elections board, told Howard an order was not necessary because Bartlett had already done, or planned to do, everything it instructed.

Elections board members don't want to imply "there are widespread problems not being addressed by the elections administration," she said.

Farr wanted the public notices to state the extra vigilance was required under a Federal court order. Nichols resisted, saying the board was worried about creating an impression that the elections had been taken over by a federal judge.

The voter alerts will not include information about Howard requiring them.




North Carolina GOP Files Suit Over Touch-Screen Voting Machines


The North Carolina Republican Party on Friday filed a federal lawsuit over concerns about the operation of touch-screen Voting machines.

Party Chairman Tom Fetzer said Thursday that the GOP has received several complaints from voters trying to vote a straight Republican ticket that the touch-screen machines recorded their votes as a straight Democratic ticket.

"These machines have a history of being problematic," he said.

He said he suspects the error occurs when the screen is unsure of what the voter pressed.

"The voter's vote is defaulted to the top line, which in most instances is the Democratic line on the ballot," he said.

Johnnie McLean, deputy director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, said there is no default for the machines, which she said are recalibrated every morning to ensure they're working properly.

Thirty-five counties are using touch-screen machines for early voting, including Mecklenburg and Guilford.

Fetzer didn't say how many complaints have been lodged or where the voters lived.

McLean said the elections board has received "isolated" complaints from New Hanover and Craven counties. Some complaints are from Democrats who said the machines recorded their votes incorrectly for Republicans.

"We don't see a widespread issue," she said.

Fetzer said he wants warnings posted at the polls to alert voters of the potential problem. He also wants poll workers to retain daily printouts of vote totals to compare later with the tabulations provided by the touch-screen machines and to retain records of all complaints about the machines.

"We're not satisfied at all with the State Board of Elections' response to date," he said. "It's an incompetence situation at the State Board of Elections."

Andrew Whalen, executive director of the North Carolina Democratic Party, called Fetzer's allegations of voting improprieties "reckless and absurd."

"I can only assume he is trying to lay a groundwork of excuses for his party’s upcoming electoral failures or attempting to suppress turnout by alleging fraud when there is no evidence of it," Whalen said in a statement.


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Sources: McClatchy Newspapers, WRAL, Google Maps

North Carolina Is Bleeding Jobs! Lawmakers Cooking Numbers!

A Closer Look At N.C.'s Unemployment Rate

Can't find a job?

It's easy to blame yourself as you watch the state's unemployment rate plunge, from 11.2 in March of this year to 9.6 in September. You see state political leaders taking a victory lap on television and that makes you feel even worse. If other unemployed people seem to be getting jobs, family and friends point out, surely you can too.

You've been pounding the pavement for months though, and you keep hearing that things are getting better, but you've got this gut sense that they are actually getting worse.

You're not imagining this. The state of North Carolina is bleeding jobs. As in losing them. Gone. Buh-bye. How can that be if the unemployment rate is going down?

The unemployment rate is horribly misleading. As former business writer and MeckDeck.com blogger Jeff Taylor pointed out, since March, when the unemployment rate in North Carolina hit a high for the year of 11.2 percent, the state has actually lost 8,700 jobs.

For those who know how to read it, Friday's jobs report was a bloodbath as 6,700 jobs disappeared statewide in a single month. According to the state employment security commission's seasonally adjusted estimates, the total employed number in September was 4,048,220. That's down from 4,054,885 in August.

An eighth grader could see the arc in state employment in this simple graph on the Employment Commission website. For the first five months of the year, total employment grew steadily as the state and the nation appeared to be slowly recovering. Then it hit a wall in May with a high of 4,095,438 and began to reverse course.

Ever wonder why economists now say they don't expect things to improve until at least 2012 despite the drop in the unemployment rate? This is why.

So why is the state unemployment rate going down? Because 13,186 people dropped out of the state labor pool in September, presumably leaving the ranks of those actively hunting for a job in frustration. That's why the unemployment rate continues to go down even as thousands of jobs vanish.

Meanwhile, the political cabal running the state jumped to take credit for another decrease in unemployment rate ahead of the election. They credited their economic policies, which included, uh, hiking taxes in the middle of a recession and um, spending more than they did the year before while claiming to be broke. As you can see, that's going smashingly.

We can only hope for another tax hike and spending increase next year. Maybe we can knock the raw jobs number down to three million and so many people will give up looking for work that the unemployment rate will go down even further ... like to 8 percent. Problem solved.

As Taylor points out, there were 282,775 fewer jobs in the state in September than there were in January 2008, at the height of pre-recession employment.

The raw job numbers aren't just headed to Hades in North Carolina. The national trend is almost identical as the total employed numbers drop and the workforce shrinks because people have given up looking for a job and dropped out.

Between January and April, according to the Employment Security Commission, total seasonally adjusted employment in this country grew by 1,122,000 jobs, a good sign. Then it abruptly reversed course, declining by 64,000 by September. That means that roughly 12 percent of that decline was in North Carolina. Not good.

If you are struggling with the stigma of unemployment, which can eat at your self-image after a while, know this: It's likely not your fault. You are not alone. And you may want to consider a move to Texas. Half the net new jobs in the country were created there over the past year.

The state has no income tax, barebones regulation of business and is among the nation's 10 lowest for overall tax burden. (North Carolina regularly ranks among the top 10 to top 11 highest-taxed states.)

Perhaps this is all just a fluke. Maybe things will get better. But if I were unemployed, I'd be loading up the U-Haul and heading west.


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Sources: Creative Loafing, Meck Deck Blog, McClatchy Newspapers, WRAL, Youtube, Google Maps

Obama's Hopeless 11th Hour Battle Cry: Decision 2010

President Obama Comes Home To Rally Democrats


On a beautiful Fall night in Chicago, a huge crowd, well into the thousands on the city's south side, welcomed President Barack Obama back to his old neighborhood. Tonight's "Move America Forward" Rally near University of Chicago, attracted "tens of thousands of people" according to event organizers.

With only three days left until Election day, President Obama wasted no time telling the crowd, "I need you to knock on some doors. I need you to get out and vote." President obviously happy to be back in his old stomping grounds, said, "I can't think of anything better than being with my hometown crowd that is fired up. Plus, I'm going to sleep in my own bed tonight." But the President's message was clear, "Chicago, in three days you have the chance to set the direction of this state and this country for years to come and just like you did in 2008, you can defy conventional wisdom."

This is the third time President Obama has traveled to Chicago in the past few months to campaign for Illionis Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias. Giannoulias, currently Illinois Treasurer, is in a heated race with republican candidate, US Rep. Mark Kirk.

Before the President's speech, rap artist Common, a Chicago native, fired up the crowd with his music and then took a few minutes to remind people to get out and vote. "I wanna encourage everybody to vote on Tuesday. Go vote. Democratic. We support Barack Obama. We want health care and education. So we're here supporting Barack Obama and the Democratic movement."

Tonight's rally is at the Midway Plaisance Park in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, about a mile south of President Obama's Chicago home. The rally is the third stop for President Obama today as he criss-crosses the country rallying voters to get out and vote on Election day.

Other high profile democrats at tonight's rally included, Chicago's Mayor, Richard M. Daley, who will not run for re-election next year, Illinois' senior US Senator Dick Durbin and junior US Senator, Roland Burris.



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Sources: Fox News, MSNBC, Google Maps

Decision 2010 Makes Voters Want To "SCREAM!" (Videos)

Charges Of Voter Fraud Ignite Accusations Of Racism Against Justice Department, Tea Party


With just 3 days to go until Election Day, charges of voter intimidation and voter fraud are flying, and the Justice Department, which has been rocked by accusations of reverse racism in its handling of similar allegations, is likely to take on as many cases as it did in the 2008 presidential year.

The Justice Department is looking into allegations of voter intimidation by poll watchers in predominantly minority neighborhoods in Harris County, Texas, during the first day of early voting. A liberal blog suggested that some of the poll watchers could be members of a local Tea Party group.

But the Justice Department has made clear that its investigation has nothing to do with the Tea Party.

"There is no investigation into any specific political organization, including the Tea Party, at this time regarding this matter," DOJ spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said in a written statement.

In another set of fly-by charges, Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, who is battling to capture President Obama's old U.S. Senate seat in Illinois, accused his Republican opponent, Rep. Mark Kirk, of setting up voter fraud-watch areas in Chicago in an attempt to discourage black voters.

That claim, disputed by Kirk -- he argued that Giannoulias might be the last person in Illinois to think the state doesn't have fraud problems -- could benefit Democrats among an energized urban electorate in a non-presidential cycle likely to be dominated by suburban voters.

Taken together, the complaint and the report shifts the spotlight back on past and current accusations of racism against the Obama administration and the Tea Party movement.

The Justice Department has been fending off charges of reverse racism ever since two former Civil Rights Division attorneys alleged that the department under Attorney General Eric Holder follows a policy of not bringing civil rights charges against black defendants on behalf of white victims.

The Tea Party movement has been repeatedly accused of harboring racist elements ever since some Tea Party activists catcalled U.S. lawmakers, including some minority members, during an anti-'Obamacare' protest on Capitol Hill earlier this year.


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Sources: CNN, Daily Beast, Fox News, Freedom Lighthouse, MSNBC, Youtube, Google Maps

Stewart/ Colbert "Sanity" Rally Draws Thousands Of Voters

Stewart's Rally For "Sanity" Draws Insane Crowd


“Good luck trying to get through that crowd to the stage.”

Those were the first words I heard within 15 minutes of joining the large crowd that flocked to the National Mall Saturday for the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear hosted by comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.

To say that you couldn’t see the stage, or even hear it, wouldn’t be an exaggeration— many had to climb a tree (literally) to even catch a glimpse of the one jumbo TV screen.

“We did the march-of-the-penguins walk in the crowd for about an hour,” Georgetown University student Anam Raheem told me. “But it was too crowded; we had to turn back.”

Thousands of rally goers brought signs and costumes in support of politically hot-button issues.

“I came to meet some people,” said Mark Feeney, a resident of Buffalo, New York who sported a green outfit with a sign that displayed the benefits of marijuana. “But we have to be smart, not stupid. If we legalize pot, we’ll create more revenue and jobs.”

Although Proposition 19, which would legalize recreational marijuana in California, was one of the more common issues seen on signs, other topics were equally supported, such as abortion, equality for gays, space travel, and most vehemently, backlash against the Tea Party movement.

“I came to have fun,” Pennsylvania resident Eric Hafner said, “But we need to also show people that extremism is really overblown.”

Tea Party candidate Christine O’Donnell was most widely targeted, with many rally goers dressed as witches or giant tea bags, holding signs that read, “Tea Party rallies need more tea.”

Despite both Stewart and Colbert’s appeal to a younger generation, there was an eclectic age range of rally goers, including marijuana-supporting seniors.

“We love both the ‘Daily Show’ and ‘The Colbert Report,'” said Diane Gatley who is 61. “Back to sanity for us. They’re truthy.”

Although the stage and entertainment was unseeable for at least half the rally goers there, there was a sense of community support that’s hard to find on a daily basis.

As one rally goer attempted to scale a tree for a better view of the stage, the crowd chanted, “Yes, you can!"










Stewart, Colbert Preside Over Light-Hearted, Star-Studded D.C. Rally


Assisted by a colorful cast of characters, Comedy Central funnymen Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert held a raucous rally on the National Mall Saturday in typical fashion before a cheering throng of supporters.

Amidst all the hilarity, however, the "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear" carried a message about Americans turning their backs on hate and working together to make the world a better place.

Stewart and Colbert staged a mock battle, with Stewart supporting peace and sanity and Colbert promoting fear before a crowd that stretched nearly the length of the mall, most of the distance between the Capitol and the Washington Monument.

During the rally's opening, Colbert appeared on a video screen, saying he was trapped in his "fear bunker" and worried no one had shown up. Drawn by cheers, however, Colbert ascended to the stage in a device like that used to bring up the trapped Chilean miners earlier this month, wearing a superhero costume.

Former "Saturday Night Live" character Father Guido Sarducci -- played by comedian Don Novello -- provided a benediction, thanking God for "making it so easy to find parking spaces." And actor Sam Waterston of "Law and Order" fame read a poem entitled "Are You Sure?" about fears including "funnel clouds and hail/Anthrax in the mail ... someone's robbing your house/I can see through your blouse/Your mother was right, you chose the wrong spouse."

Cat Stevens, also known as Yusuf Islam, sang his song "Peace Train" as part of a duel with Ozzy Osbourne singing "Crazy Train." Stewart stopped Osbourne, rooting for Islam, as Colbert urged Osbourne on. The two compromised on the O'Jays, who showed up to sing their hit "Love Train."

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and "Star Wars" robot R2-D2 showed up to provide a lesson in tolerance and against stereotyping. "We're all on the same team," said Abdul-Jabbar, referencing Colbert and Stewart's discussion about Muslims.

There were some serious notes struck during the event, however. Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow performed a musical number about changing the world, including the lyrics, "The least that I can do is care."



And as the rally drew to a close, Stewart spoke about resisting fearmongering and working together, saying most Americans don't live their lives solely as Republicans or Democrats, but as "people who are just a little bit late for something they have to do, often something they do not want to do. But they do it."

Some may paint the nation as fragile and torn by hate, he said, "but the truth is ... we work together to get things done every damn day."

"There will always be darkness, and sometimes the light at the end of the tunnel isn't the promised land," Stewart said. "Sometimes it's just New Jersey. But we do it anyway, together."

Stewart awarded his "Medals of Reasonableness" to recipients including Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga, who lost a perfect game in June when an umpire mistakenly called what would have been the last batter safe at first base despite the fact replays showed he was clearly out. Galarraga, who lives in Venezuela, accepted via videotape, telling the audience the umpire is "a good man."

Another recipient was Velma Hart, chief financial officer for AMVETS, who challenged President Barack Obama at a town hall meeting in September; and comedian and wrestler Mick Foley; and Jacob Isom. A video of Isom telling how he swiped a kerosene-soaked Quran from would-be burners, telling them, "Dude, you have no Quran," went viral, and was set to a dance mix.

Colbert's "Medals of Fear" went to recipients including a 7-year-old girl who he said had more courage than the media organizations who did not send representatives to cover the rally out of fear they would appear biased, as well as to "Anderson Cooper's tight black T-shirt." Colbert said that when CNN's Cooper "shows up on your front yard, you know something terrible has happened in your community." A small black T-shirt was brought on stage on a hanger, and the medal hung on it.

Stewart and Colbert announced the rally in September, less than three weeks after conservative talk-show host Glenn Beck hosted a much-publicized "Restoring Honor" rally on the National Mall, urging large crowds to "turn back to God" and return America to the values on which it was founded.


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Sources: CBC, CBS News, CNN, Daily Beast, Fox News, MSNBC, Youtube, Google Maps

"Charlotte School Closings Are Inevitable!" BROKE, Segregated System!

CMS Superintendent: School Closings Are Inevitable

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Dr. Peter Gorman said Friday that he's never seen a Budget crisis like the one the district is facing now.

Gorman focused on the district's money woes during his "State of Our Schools" address, which he gave at the Government Center in uptown Charlotte Friday morning.

Gorman said CMS is losing about $150 million in funding.

Because of the Budget crisis, CMS is considering closing some schools next year.

In protest of a plan to close their school, about 500 Harding High School students walked out of class Thursday. They stood arm-in-arm, asking CMS to save their school.

Gorman said Friday morning that school closings are inevitable.

"We've cut from district office. We've cut from transportation. We've cut from support operations. We've cut teachers. We've cut site based administrators. We've cut counselors. We've cut media specialists. We've cut in virtually every area," Gorman said.

The news during Gorman's address wasn't all negative. The superintendent said CMS' graduation rate this year increased from 64 to 69 percent, and 108 schools reached "high growth" compared to only 16 in 2005.

Gorman proposed that CMS needs to start paying teachers based more on performance, not just years of teaching or credentials.





CMS Recommends New School-Closing Changes Involving Waddell & Harding High Schools


Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools will recommend to the Board of Education new changes in its proposed school consolidations, closings and other revisions as part of the board’s comprehensive review of the district’s schools.

Under the proposed change, E.E. Waddell High School would remain open and the partial International Baccalaureate (IB) magnet program now at Harding University High School would move to Waddell. Harding would close as a high school and its campus would become home to the K-8 language immersion magnet program now located at Smith Academy of International Languages. An earlier proposal recommended that Smith Academy be relocated to E.E. Waddell, which would have been closed as a high school. The math and science program at Harding would close and a math and science program will open at Phillip O. Berry Academy High School.

South Mecklenburg and West Mecklenburg high schools now would not be affected by any of the proposed changes. Previously, South Mecklenburg was to receive some students from Waddell, while Harding was to receive some students from West Mecklenburg.

Under the proposed changes, students at Harding would have the opportunity to continue in partial IB, go to the math and science program at Phillip O. Berry, or to attend their assigned home school. The new recommendation would allow Waddell students to attend their assigned home school, which is consistent with the guiding principles adopted by the Board of Education as part of its comprehensive review of schools.

The public will have an opportunity to learn more about the revised changes at a previously scheduled community forum from 6 to 8 p.m. tonight at South Mecklenburg High School, 8900 Park Road. An additional community forum for Harding parents and others affected by the proposed changes at Harding has been scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 27, in the gymnasium at Harding High School.


The revised recommendation will be presented to the Board of Education at its regularly scheduled meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 26, at the Government Center, 600 E. Fourth St. More than 70 of the district’s 178 schools would be affected by changes made as part comprehensive review proposal.

If adopted by the Board of Education, the changes would become effective starting with the 2011-12 school year along with other changes under the comprehensive review. A vote by the board is scheduled Nov. 9.

The Board meeting will be televised on cable channel 3 and will be available for viewing online following the meeting.


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Sources: Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, WCNC, Google Maps

GOP's Winning Strategies For 2010 & 2012 (Video)

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Sources: UC Berkeley, Telebivision, Youtube, Google Maps

Jon Stewart & Stephen Colbert Host D.C. "Sanity" Rally

Stewart, Colbert Preside Over Light-Hearted, Star-Studded D.C. Rally


Assisted by a colorful cast of characters, Comedy Central funnymen Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert held a raucous rally on the National Mall Saturday in typical fashion before a cheering throng of supporters.

Amidst all the hilarity, however, the "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear" carried a message about Americans turning their backs on hate and working together to make the world a better place.

Stewart and Colbert staged a mock battle, with Stewart supporting peace and sanity and Colbert promoting fear before a crowd that stretched nearly the length of the mall, most of the distance between the Capitol and the Washington Monument.

During the rally's opening, Colbert appeared on a video screen, saying he was trapped in his "fear bunker" and worried no one had shown up. Drawn by cheers, however, Colbert ascended to the stage in a device like that used to bring up the trapped Chilean miners earlier this month, wearing a superhero costume.

Former "Saturday Night Live" character Father Guido Sarducci -- played by comedian Don Novello -- provided a benediction, thanking God for "making it so easy to find parking spaces." And actor Sam Waterston of "Law and Order" fame read a poem entitled "Are You Sure?" about fears including "funnel clouds and hail/Anthrax in the mail ... someone's robbing your house/I can see through your blouse/Your mother was right, you chose the wrong spouse."

Cat Stevens, also known as Yusuf Islam, sang his song "Peace Train" as part of a duel with Ozzy Osbourne singing "Crazy Train." Stewart stopped Osbourne, rooting for Islam, as Colbert urged Osbourne on. The two compromised on the O'Jays, who showed up to sing their hit "Love Train."

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and "Star Wars" robot R2-D2 showed up to provide a lesson in tolerance and against stereotyping. "We're all on the same team," said Abdul-Jabbar, referencing Colbert and Stewart's discussion about Muslims.

There were some serious notes struck during the event, however. Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow performed a musical number about changing the world, including the lyrics, "The least that I can do is care."



And as the rally drew to a close, Stewart spoke about resisting fearmongering and working together, saying most Americans don't live their lives solely as Republicans or Democrats, but as "people who are just a little bit late for something they have to do, often something they do not want to do. But they do it."

Some may paint the nation as fragile and torn by hate, he said, "but the truth is ... we work together to get things done every damn day."

"There will always be darkness, and sometimes the light at the end of the tunnel isn't the promised land," Stewart said. "Sometimes it's just New Jersey. But we do it anyway, together."

Stewart awarded his "Medals of Reasonableness" to recipients including Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga, who lost a perfect game in June when an umpire mistakenly called what would have been the last batter safe at first base despite the fact replays showed he was clearly out. Galarraga, who lives in Venezuela, accepted via videotape, telling the audience the umpire is "a good man."

Another recipient was Velma Hart, chief financial officer for AMVETS, who challenged President Barack Obama at a town hall meeting in September; and comedian and wrestler Mick Foley; and Jacob Isom. A video of Isom telling how he swiped a kerosene-soaked Quran from would-be burners, telling them, "Dude, you have no Quran," went viral, and was set to a dance mix.

Colbert's "Medals of Fear" went to recipients including a 7-year-old girl who he said had more courage than the media organizations who did not send representatives to cover the rally out of fear they would appear biased, as well as to "Anderson Cooper's tight black T-shirt." Colbert said that when CNN's Cooper "shows up on your front yard, you know something terrible has happened in your community." A small black T-shirt was brought on stage on a hanger, and the medal hung on it.

Stewart and Colbert announced the rally in September, less than three weeks after conservative talk-show host Glenn Beck hosted a much-publicized "Restoring Honor" rally on the National Mall, urging large crowds to "turn back to God" and return America to the values on which it was founded.


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Sources: CBS News, CNN, Daily Beast, MSNBC, Youtube, Google Maps

Yemeni Authorities Arrest Woman Involved In U.S. Terror Plot

Yemeni Forces Arrest Woman Believed Linked To Plot


A woman believed to be connected to a plot to send explosive packages bound for the United States has been arrested in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, according to a Yemeni government official and a reporter with the state news agency.

Authorities have scrambled to find those responsible for sending two suspicious packages that were found in the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano told CNN that the plan to send explosives on a flight to the United States has the "hallmarks of al Qaeda."

Yemen has become a key battleground for al Qaeda since a local affiliate calling itself al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was established in 2009.

One of the packages was discovered at Britain's East Midlands airport containing "viable explosives" that could have brought down an aircraft upon detonation, British Home Secretary Theresa May said Saturday.

"We believe that the device was designed to go off on the airplane," said Prime Minister David Cameron. "We cannot be sure about the timing when that was meant to take place.There is no early evidence that that was meant to take place over British soil, but of course we cannot rule it out."

The preliminary U.K. investigation indicates that the target may have been an aircraft, May said, but authorities do not believe the perpetrators would have known the location of the device had they detonated it.

May said that there is no indication of any other attack on British soil, and the threat level in the United Kingdom remains unchanged at severe.

All the packages from Yemen that authorities were looking for have been found and did not pose a threat, a U.S. law enforcement official said.

The suspected terror plot involved two suspicious packages found abroad, addressed to Jewish organizations in the United States, that contained considerable amounts of explosive material.

President Barack Obama confirmed that the packages originated in Yemen.

"We also know that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula ... continues to plan attacks against our homeland, our citizens, and our friends and allies," he said during a press briefing on the incident Friday.

"Initial examination of those packages has determined they do apparently contain explosive material," Obama said.

The devices were "professionally" loaded and connected using an electric circuit to a mobile phone chip tucked in a printer, Dubai police told WAM, the official news agency for the United Arab Emirates.

They were packed in toner cartridges and designed to be detonated by a cell phone, a source close to the investigation told CNN.



Police said they were tipped off about the possibility of an explosive device in postal packages onboard a FedEx flight to Dubai. The device had been shipped first from the Yemeni capital of Sanaa to Doha, Qatar, on a Qatar Airways flight, the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority said Saturday.

The Saudi government provided U.S. officials with tracking numbers of the two packages, enabling quick tracing to the United Kingdom and Dubai, a source told CNN.

"We know that the perpetrators of this -- and it has the hallmarks of al Qaeda, the AQAP -- they are constantly trying things to test our system," Napolitano said, referring to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

"What happened is you have great information sharing from the Saudis," Napolitano said Saturday. "We were immediately able to work across the globe to get these packages segregated."

Pressed by CNN's T.J. Holmes on whether the United States would have known about the plot had it not been for the Saudis, she said, "We certainly got the heads-up from the Saudis."

"I don't want to go into other intelligence," she said. "That would be inappropriate. I don't play the 'what if' game. What if the Saudis hadn't told us? We share information. We share information like this across the globe. The ability for passengers to travel safely is a global issue and all countries of the world need to be involved here."

Obama thanked King Abdullah on Saturday for Saudi Arabia's key role in disrupting the plot, the White House said.

Cameron, meanwhile, lauded the cooperation among several countries and said Britain has banned packages to and from Yemen.

Mohammed Albasha, a Yemen Embassy spokesman in Washington, said no UPS or FedEx flights take off or land in Yemen. He said his government is investigating, but it was too early to speculate or reach any conclusions.

Yemen is cooperating with regional and international partners, including the United States and the United Kingdom, the spokesman said.

A Yemeni government official, who was not authorized to speak to the media, said Saturday that police would close UPS and FedEx offices in the country as part of the investigation. Packages bound to the United States from Yemen "are being inspected and scrutinized as part of the investigation," the official said.

He said workers at local UPS and FedEx offices were questioned, as were other cargo workers.

Obama's presidential counterterrorism advisor John Brennan spoke to Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Saleh, stressing "the importance of close counterterrorism cooperation, including the need to work together on the ongoing investigation into the events over the past few days," according to the White House.

The package found at East Midlands Airport contained a "manipulated" toner cartridge and had white powder on it as well as wires and a circuit board, a law enforcement source said Friday. A similar package set to be shipped on a FedEx cargo plane was discovered in Dubai, officials there said.

The source close to the investigation said the type of material found in the devices was PETN, a highly explosive organic compound belonging to the same chemical family as nitroglycerin. Six grams of PETN are enough to blow a hole in the fuselage of an aircraft.

PETN was allegedly one of the components of the bomb concealed by Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab, the Nigerian man accused of trying to set off an explosion aboard a Northwest Airlines flight as it approached Detroit, Michigan, on December 25.

AbdulMutallab is alleged to have been carrying 80 grams of PETN in that botched attack -- also believed to be the workings of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

By comparison, the source said the two devices found Friday contained multiple times more PETN.

"The quantity of PETN in these devices was about five times the volume used at Christmas" by AbdulMutallab, Col. Richard Kemp, the former chairman of the British government's Cobra Intelligence Group, told CNN affiliate ITN. The plot "does appear to be a typical al Qaeda-type operation," he said, agreeing that an explosion could have brought down an aircraft.

A source closely involved in the investigation said the detonating substance was Lead Azide. Lead Azide is a "very powerful initiator" which is easily prepared and is a standard substance in detonations, the source said.

Kemp said al Qaeda remains intent on carrying out a "spectacular attack" comparable to the September 11, 2001, attacks on U.S. soil.

Both packages bore addresses in the United States, "specifically two places of Jewish worship in Chicago," Obama said.

The packages led to increased searches of cargo planes and trucks in several U.S. cities, said law enforcement sources with detailed knowledge of the investigation.

White House counterterrorism chief John Brennan said that "the materials that were found and the device that was discovered were intended to do harm."

The Transportation Security Administration on Friday stopped all packages originating from Yemen, and shipping companies UPS, FedEx and DHL all said they were complying with the order. May said Saturday that all cargo into or through the United Kingdom originating in Yemen was halted as well.

The U.S. Postal Service announced it has temporarily suspended acceptance of inbound international mail originating in Yemen.

Counterterrorism officials are taking the threat "very seriously," Obama said. The Department of Homeland Security said it has taken measures to intensify security.

"We have put in place enhanced protections for cargo and passengers emanating from Yemen and making sure we identify all packages coming from there," Napolitano said Saturday. She stressed that officials are acting out of "an abundance of caution."

A security expert in the United Arab Emirates noted that Dubai is under major pressure as the main cargo center in the region. Dubai has a system that re-screens every parcel, even if it is not the final destination for the package, said Mustafa Al Ani, security director at the Gulf Research Center.

"The investigation about the bomb is global -- it's not just about Dubai," he told CNN. Still, Al Ani pointed out that it took "a very short time" for UAE officials to discover the device once they received intelligence.

"Without information or intelligence, such explosives are very difficult to detect," he said.



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Sources: CNN, MSNBC, Telegraph.co.uk, Google Maps

Chicago Jewish Center Target Of Al-Qaeda Terror Plot

Chicago Synagogues On Alert After Suspicious Devices Found On Planes


Cargo planes and trucks in several U.S. cities were inspected Friday after investigators found suspicious packages in at least two locations abroad, said law enforcement sources with detailed knowledge of the investigation.

U.S. officials believe that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, commonly referred to as AQAP, is behind the incident.

One suspicious package, found in the United Kingdom, contained a "manipulated" toner cartridge but tested negative for explosive material, the source said. It led to heightened inspection of arriving cargo flights in Newark, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and a UPS truck in New York.

The package had white powder on it as well as wires and a circuit board, a law enforcement source said; someone shipped it from Sanaa, Yemen, with a final destination of Chicago, Illinois. A similar package has been discovered in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, the source said.

Authorities were looking for about 13 other packages shipped from Yemen, a law enforcement source said. Some of them have been found and an investigation of those has not indicated they are a threat, the source said.

There is no specific intelligence indicating the other packages are a threat or that they are in the United States, the source said, but authorities want to check them as a precaution.

A Yemeni diplomat in Washington said his government has opened a full-scale investigation into the incident but it was too early to speculate or reach any conclusions.

Investigators were looking for a "possible nexus to terrorism," a U.S. official said.

"We are taking this very seriously," the official said.

The plot could be a dry run to test Western security, another official told CNN.

The Department of Homeland Security said it "had taken a number of steps to enhance security," including "heightened cargo screening and additional security at airports."

"Passengers should continue to expect an unpredictable mix of security layers that include explosives trace detection, advanced imaging technology, canine teams and pat downs, among others," DHS said in a statement. "As always, we remind the public to remain vigilant and report suspicious activity to local law enforcement."

Some Jewish religious leaders in Chicago were alerted Friday, said Linda Haase, spokeswoman for the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago.

"We were notified about this earlier this morning," she said. "We are taking appropriate precautions and we are advising local synagogues to do the same."

Lucille Price, a receptionist at Anshe Emet Synagogue, said Chicago police made them aware of the reports and asked them to keep an eye out for suspicious packages among any deliveries that arrived Friday.

But congregation leaders at two prominent Chicago synagogues, Temple Sholom and Chicago Sinai Congregation, told CNN they were not made aware of any attempts to ship bombs or hazardous material to them.

In the United Kingdom, police were investigating the suspicious package at a freight distribution center at East Midlands Airport, about 100 miles north of London, said airport spokesman Russell Craig. U.K. Home Secretary Theresa May said the package, which originated in Yemen and was addressed to a U.S. destination, was discovered during a search of a cargo flight. The package is being examined, she said.

May sought to assure Britons that "safety and security of the U.K." is her top priority.

"We are urgently considering what steps need to be put in place regarding security of freight originating from Yemen," she said. "For security reasons there are currently no direct flights from Yemen to the U.K."

She added that "at this stage there is nothing to suggest that any location in the U.K. was being targeted."

Meanwhile, U.S. authorities seemed most focused on inspecting cargo planes.

Investigators examined two UPS planes that landed at Philadelphia International Airport and another at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, said Mike Mangeot, a UPS spokesman. Authorities later gave the "all-clear" at the airport in Newark, U.S. and U.K. officials said.

Authorities are focusing on flights coming from Yemen into the United States, according to the source.

In Philadelphia, six packages from Yemen were found aboard the two UPS planes that were sitting on the tarmac, said a law

enforcement source with knowledge of the investigation. Though there was no specific threat related to the two planes, U.S. authorities said they decided to check the cargo to be extra cautious, the source said.

All cargo on the planes was to be inspected, even packages that did not originate in Yemen, a process that will take several hours, the source said

Hazardous material teams were using mobile equipment to check for biological, radioactive and chemical material as well as explosives, the source said.

One plane was parked in a remote area of the airport, by Gate 11. The other was near the UPS terminal, which is far from the passenger terminal.

The Transportation and Security Administration said authorities acted "out of an abundance of caution."

UPS said it is cooperating with authorities, and its shipment is being removed from the aircraft.

In Newark, investigators examined another UPS plane, Mangeot said. Police determined that there was no threat.

In New York, the bomb squad responded to a report of a suspected explosive device inside a package aboard a UPS truck, said deputy police commissioner Paul Browne. Police later concluded that the truck at the Metro Tech Center facility contained nothing harmful.





Explosive Devices On cargo Jets Trigger Terror Alert


Two suspicious packages were found on U.S.-bound cargo flights from Yemen overnight, the White House said Friday, triggering searches of other cargo flights that had landed in the U.S. and an investigation into whether al-Qaida was behind a new terror plot.

Sources told NBC News that both packages contained toner cartridges with wires and white powder. An official in Dubai, where one cartridge was found, said it was an "explosive device."

"The president was notified of a potential terrorist threat on Thursday night at 10:30," the White House said in a statement. President Barack Obama was to make a statement at 4:15 p.m. ET, and msnbc.com will carry it live.

Homeland Security said in a statement it was taking new measures, "including heightened cargo screening and additional security at airports."

The devices were found aboard U.S.-bound cargo planes in Britain and Dubai.

A law enforcement official told NBC that the two packages were addressed to a synagogue and a Jewish community center in Chicago.

One U.S. official said authorities are investigating whether the incident was a dry run for a plot to send bombs through the mail delivery system.

Yemen is the home of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, the offshoot branch that claimed responsibility for an attempted bombing of a U.S.-bound airliner last Christmas.

Test results for explosives were negative on the cartridge found in Britain, one law enforcement official said. The UPS cargo flight had been bound for Chicago but was at a British airport during a routine stopover when the cartridge was spotted.

Officials found the suspicious item during basic security screening.

In Chicago, synagogues were warned to be on alert Friday.

"We were notified this morning that synagogues should be on the alert," Linda Haase, associate vice president of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, told Reuters. "We are taking appropriate precautions and are advising local synagogues to do likewise."

TSA issues alert

The Transportation Security Administration earlier said that cargo flights that landed safely at Newark and Philadelphia airports were being searched after "reports of potentially suspicious items onboard."

"Out of an abundance of caution the planes were moved to a remote location where they are being met by law enforcement officials and swept," TSA added.

Two jets in Philadelphia belonging to UPS were searched. A federal law enforcement official told the AP that nothing suspicious was found.

The flight that landed at Newark, N.J., also was a UPS cargo jet. After the jet was searched, officials gave the all clear.

In New York, an Emirates commercial flight arrived from Dubai around 3:30 p.m. ET and was also being searched as a precaution.

The flight is carrying one of some 15 packages from Yemen that the U.S. wants to inspect, WNBC said.

"This is only because there is cargo from Yemen on the flight," said FBI spokesman Richard Kolko. "There is no known threat associated with this cargo or this flight."

Earlier Friday, a UPS truck was searched and then cleared in Brooklyn.

Al-Qaida active in Yemen

The United States has stepped up its training, intelligence and military aid to Yemen after the failed Christmas Day plot, for which the Yemeni wing of al-Qaida claimed responsibility.

The accused Christmas Day bomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, has told U.S. investigators he received the explosive device and training from al-Qaida militants in Yemen.

Yemen has been trying to quell a resurgent branch of al-Qaida, which has stepped up attacks on Western and government targets in the Arabian Peninsula country.


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Sources: ABC News, CNN, MSNBC, Telegraph.co.uk, Google Maps