Charlie Rangel

Charlie Rangel, (AP) – Hours after Rep. Charles Rangel of New York walked out of his ethics trial; a House panel began deliberations Monday on his 13 counts of alleged financial and fundraising misconduct.

Eight House members judging Rangel earlier had rejected his plea for a postponement. Rangel told the committee in an emotional statement that his lawyers abandoned him because he ran out of money after paying them some $2 million.

The proceeding went on without Rangel. The panel of four Democrats and four Republicans accepted the argument of House ethics committee chief counsel Blake Chisam that no contested facts existed. Therefore, no witnesses were summoned and the committee began closed-door deliberations on whether House rules were broken.

If the judges decide Rangel violated any House rules, the full ethics committee would hold a hearing on how Rangel would be punished. The most likely sanction would be a House vote deploring his conduct.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

WASHINGTON (AP) – Rep. Charles Rangel of New York walked out of his ethics trial Monday after pleading in vain for a postponement, saying his lawyers abandoned him because he ran out of money after paying them some $2 million. The proceeding went on without him.

With Rangel gone, House ethics committee chief counsel Blake Chisam pushed for a decision on the 13 counts of fundraising and financial conduct that allegedly violated House rules

Rangel, a 20-term congressman representing New York’s famed Harlem neighborhood, once had great influence as chairman of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee. He has raised millions for other Democrats, but told the ethics panel he had no more money to pay his attorney.

The 80-year-old Rangel said the trial would cost another $1 million in attorney’s fees.

Rangel sought a delay so he can establish a legal defense fund, but the panel basically decided the 2½-year-old case has gone on long enough — and Congress has little time left in the lame duck session that commenced Monday.

Rangel’s former lawyer, Leslie Berger Kiernan, did not immediately respond.

Chisam, assuming the role of prosecutor at the rare public airing of in-House issues, played a video of a Rangel speech on the House floor in August. Rangel acknowledged in that presentation that he’d used House stationery to raise money for a college center named after him, and that he’d been tardy in filing taxes and financial disclosure statements. But he said he never intended to break any rules.

Chisam told an ethics panel of four Republicans and four Democrats that “there are no … issues as to any material facts in this case. As a result the case is ripe for a decision.”

Chisam said “I see no evidence of corruption” by Rangel, but rather, that the congressman was “overzealous” and “sloppy in his personal finances.”

Chisam said Rangel could have legally raised money for the Charles B. Rangel Center at City College of New York by asking the ethics committee for permission to solicit nonprofit organizations. However, he would not have been able to use congressional letterheads or employees in the fundraising, as he is charged with doing.

The counsel also said Rangel used a subsidized apartment in New York City as a campaign office when the lease required that it be for residential use only.

“At the same time, the landlord was evicting other tenants at an increased rate” for failing to follow the same lease terms, Chisam said.

Several members of the committee angrily criticized Rangel’s lawyers for leaving the case just weeks before the hearing.

Vermont Democratic Rep. Peter Welch said that no law firm should be “taking the money…and kicking their client by the side of the road.” Chisam then read aloud the 13 charges of alleged financial and fundraising wrongdoing that have been brought against Rangel.

The panel’s chairwoman, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., called a recess in late morning so members could hold a closed session on whether it was necessary to call witnesses, given Rangel’s absence.

In imploring the ethics panel for a continuance, Rangel had said earlier Monday that “50 years of public service is on the line.” He said he had run out of money to pay his previous attorney, and insisted he wouldn’t attend any further hearings without legal representation.

He said his lawyers had indicated to him that it could cost another $1 million to defend him at the ethics proceeding.

Rangel stands accused of 13 counts of financial and fundraising misconduct that violated House rules.

The panel was sitting as a jury in a House committee room for a proceeding that was open to the public. It was only the second time this type of hearing was held under a revamped system of in-house ethics policing adopted by lawmakers two decades ago.

If the panel finds that Rangel broke the rules, the House ethics committee could recommend that the House vote to condemn his conduct.

“My family has caught hell” in the investigation that has lasted 2½ years, Rangel said.

The ethics committee chairman, Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., had told Rangel that the panel might not have time to judge his conduct before this Congress adjourns. A postelection lame duck session began Monday.

Rangel said that his fate should not depend on the congressional calendar, but on fairness.

“I am being denied the right to have a lawyer right now, because I don’t have the opportunity to have a legal defense fund set up,” he said.

“I truly believe I am not being treated fairly,” Rangel said.

The ethics investigation goes back to at least July 2008. Only former Rep. James Traficant, D-Ohio, who was expelled from the House after a criminal conviction, has faced a similar trial since current House ethics procedures were adopted two decades ago.

Key charges portray Rangel as a veteran congressman who thought he could ignore rules on disclosing his assets, and improperly used official resources to raise money for a college center that was a monument to his career.

But an allegation that caught the public’s eye was his failure to declare rental income to the IRS from a resort unit he owned in the Dominican Republic.

The case has generated its share of political game-playing. Republicans on the House ethics committee demanded that the proceeding be held before the election, when the trial of the House’s fourth-most-senior member could have embarrassed Democrats. Lofgren rejected the request.

Rangel has acknowledged ethical lapses, but he has argued that he did not intend to break the rules.

The charges allege violations of:

—A House gift ban and restrictions on solicitations. Rangel is accused of using congressional staff, letterhead and workspace to seek donations for the Charles B. Rangel Center for Public Service at the City College of New York. The requests usually went to charitable arms of businesses with issues before Congress, including Rangel’s Ways and Means Committee.

—A U.S. government code of ethics. Several allegations fall under this code, among them: Accepting favors (the Rangel Center donations) that could be construed as influencing Rangel’s congressional duties; acceptance of a rent-subsidized New York apartment used as a campaign office, when the lease said it was for residential use only; and failure to report taxable income.

—The Ethics in Government Act and a companion House rule requiring “full and complete” public reports of a congressman’s income, assets and liabilities each year. Rangel is charged with a pattern of submitting incomplete and inaccurate disclosure statements. He only filed amended reports covering 1998 to 2007 after the investigative ethics panel began looking into his disclosures. He belatedly reported at least $600,000 in assets.

Legarrette Blount

Legarrette Blount, The former Oregon running back who punched a trash-talking player Boise State one year ago, got into a fight yesterday at a Tennessee Titans practice. According to Jim Wyatt of Tennessee: “When Blount won the football on a run play, his helmet was beaten off, and he was pushed and pushed several times by members of the defense … As a defensive end Eric Bakhtiari was in Blount’s face, the former Oregon again responded by punching him that creepy was similar to the punch he landed at the end of the Oregon-Boise State game. The big difference this time: Bakhtiari was wearing a helmet. But the right-handed punch hit him square in the mask. “What we do is not whether this was all a setup, a la Vernon Gholston and the Jets know. Coach Jeff Fisher said: “I am not disappointed.”

AFPC

Afpc, Brig. General A.J. Stewart took command of the Air Force Personnel Center on August 6, Randolf Air Force Base in Texas.

There were over 525 people attending the ceremony was Maj. Gen. McClain hand control of AFPC. It is now retiring from the Air Force having served for 33 years of service.

, Said Lt. Gen. Richard Newton, the Air Force A1, who presided over the ceremony: “This is something of a bittersweet day, I guess. KC has impacted the lives of many.”

He continued to state that nevertheless AFPC welcomes a strong leader in general Brig AJ Stewart.

Newton said: “AJ, we have work to do ahead. But you are the right leader at the right time.”

Brig. General A.J. Stewart, came from command of the Air Force Recruiting Service, which is also conveniently located in the same place. Brig. General A.J. Stewart said he is honored to be chosen to lead AFPC.

He said: “I hope they care as they take care of our nation.”

Major General K.C. McClain, in turn thanked the airmen and civilians of the AFPC for their hard work during his two years as commander.

She said, “I am so very proud of this team. AJ, who is booking a first-class team and I know they will too.”

Air Force Portal

Air Force Portal:The U.S. Air Force has announced its list of sergeants who were selected to promote Technical Sergeants. This list has been released today and shows that 7752 sergeants have been selected from a total of 37 185 who were eligible. This makes the selection ratio of 20.85%. At this rate, the selection seems a fair and appropriate decision that deserves absolutely select personnel for promotion. It’s definitely great news for the sergeants who are getting promoted by this development would put in a position that many people work very hard to achieve. Being a technical sergeant is something that most of the armed forces personnel and those who dream about 7752 people this is nothing less than a dream come true.

The list of selected Sergeants is available on the website of the U.S. Air Force. The site is called the Air Force Portal and the screen displays a large button that takes visitors to the score sheet. There is no membership, employment or access the information necessary to see the result. This result was publicly announced, and today. In some parts of the U.S. may already have been announced or shown publicly.

There is a very interesting thing on the list of sergeants selected and it is the diversity of the chosen people. There are people of all nationality and social and cultural origin in the United States Air Force. As for the list of what I would find Jews, Asians, Arabs, Libyans, Blacks and Muslims alike.

AFPC

AFPC:With civilian contractor conversions, new organizations stand and overall increases in civilian posts, the civil service of the Air Force continues to grow as officials seek to employ thousands of U.S. citizens.

Air Force Personnel Center officials have filled more than 3,000 new positions since the increase began earlier this year and is expected to announce more than 17,000 additional new jobs by the end of 2011 in USAJOBS.

USAJOBS is an online repository used by multiple federal agencies to advertise job vacancies around the world.

“These career opportunities cover a wide spectrum of skill sets needed to support national defense and the objectives of the Air Force, from specialists in information technology and aircraft simulator instructors auxiliary housing management and biologists, “said Michelle LoweSolis, the director of civilian force integration at AFPC. “The importance of our civilian work force can not be overstated, nor our desire to get the best qualified personnel in these positions.”

To guide individuals through the application process for the Air Force, the AFPC Employment website contains various resources Civil to include tutorials, salary information, eligibility criteria and the procurement authorities of special populations, such as military spouses, people with disabilities, students and veterans.

In November 2009, President Barack Obama announced the Veterans Employment Initiative, an initiative that “emphasizes federal agencies the importance of recruitment and training of veterans” who have valuable knowledge and technical skills.

The combination of the initiative to increase employment and recruitment gives airmen affected by the transition of power management the opportunity to be considered for federal employment.

When applying for federal jobs, veterans have three contracting authorities in order to be eligible: Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998, Veterans Recruitment Appointment, and 30 percent or more disabled.

A person who is eligible for veterans preference, or separated after three or more years of continuous active service performed under honorable conditions generally eligible for consideration under VEOA.

Any disabled veteran, a veteran who served on active duty in the Armed Forces during a war declared by Congress, or in a campaign or expedition for which has been an authorized campaign badge, a veteran who, while on active duty in the Armed Forces, participated in a military operation for which the Armed Forces Service Medal was awarded, or a separate man from active duty in the last three years may be eligible for consideration by the VRA.

The veteran retired from active military service with a disability rating of 30 percent or more, or the veterans who have been qualified by the Department of Veterans Affairs from 1991 or later to include disability determinations a branch of the Armed Forces at any time, as having a disability compensable service connected 30 percent or more may be eligible for consideration in appointing a special authority for 30 percent or more disabled veterans.