A Retrospective
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Statement of David Rybicki Deputy Assistant Attorney General Department of Justice
STATEMENT OF DAVID RYBICKI DEPUTY ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL CRIMINAL DIVISION DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BEFORE THE TOM LANTOS HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION AT A HEARING ENTITLED “PURSUING ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ATROCITIES” PRESENTED June 13, 2019 STATEMENT OF DAVID RYBICKI DEPUTY ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BEFORE THE TOM LANTOS HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION AT A HEARING ENTITLED “PURSUING ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ATROCITIES” PRESENTED JUNE 13, 2019 Thank you for inviting the Department of Justice to testify at this hearing. Pursuing justice on behalf of victims of atrocity crimes is a mission of great and manifest importance. As the Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Division who supervises a key participant in that mission – the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section – I am pleased to address the Justice Department’s ongoing efforts against the perpetrators of atrocity crimes and other human rights and humanitarian law offenses. It is especially fitting that this hearing on the subject of the U.S. Government’s efforts to hold accountable the perpetrators of atrocity crimes and other human rights violations is being held before a commission named after the late Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever to serve in the Congress of the United States. His life was saved in wartime Budapest, Hungary, through the legendary efforts of Raoul Wallenberg, a courageous American-educated Swedish diplomat. Wallenberg’s herculean efforts to rescue Hungarian Jews were significantly funded by the United States government and, in recognition of his extraordinary heroism in the face of evil, he was posthumously made an honorary United States citizen by Act of Congress in 1981 – an action that was endorsed by the Reagan Administration in part based on the recommendation of the Department’s Criminal Division. -
Witnesses' Bios
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom Hearing Religious Freedom in Nigeria: Extremism and Government Inaction Panel Frank Wolf was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from the 10th District of Virginia in 1980. He announced that he would leave the Congress in December 2014, at the end of his 17th term, to focus exclusively on human rights and religious freedom. In announcing his decision, Wolf said that as a follower of Jesus, he is called to work for justice and reconciliation, and to be an advocate for those who cannot speak for themselves. In January 2015, Wolf was appointed the first-ever Wilson Chair in Religious Freedom at Baylor University, a post he held through 2016. That same month he joined the 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative, a newly created religious freedom group, from which he retired in September 2018 as Distinguished Senior Fellow. Wolf is the author of the International Religious Freedom Act, which infused America’s first freedom – religious freedom – into U.S. foreign policy by creating the International Religious Freedom Office at the State Department headed by an Ambassador-at-Large, and the bipartisan, independent U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Wolf also founded and served as co-chairman of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. Wolf received his B.A. degree from Penn State University in 1961 and his law degree from Georgetown University in 1965. Mike Jobbins leads Global Affairs and Partnerships at Search for Common Ground. He joined Search in 2008 and has designed, developed and managed conflict resolution, violence prevention, and inclusive governance programs. -
The United States and Democracy Promotion in Iraq and Lebanon in the Aftermath of the Events of 9/11 and the 2003 Iraq War
The United States and democracy promotion in Iraq and Lebanon in the aftermath of the events of 9/11 and the 2003 Iraq War A Thesis Submitted to the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of PhD. in Political Science. By Abess Taqi Ph.D. candidate, University of London Internal Supervisors Dr. James Chiriyankandath (Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Commonwealth Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London) Professor Philip Murphy (Director, Institute of Commonwealth Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London) External Co-Supervisor Dr. Maria Holt (Reader in Politics, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Westminster) © Copyright Abess Taqi April 2015. All rights reserved. 1 | P a g e DECLARATION I hereby declare that this thesis is my own work and effort and that it has not been submitted anywhere for any award. Where other sources of information have been used, they have been duly acknowledged. Signature: ………………………………………. Date: ……………………………………………. 2 | P a g e Abstract This thesis features two case studies exploring the George W. Bush Administration’s (2001 – 2009) efforts to promote democracy in the Arab world, following military occupation in Iraq, and through ‘democracy support’ or ‘democracy assistance’ in Lebanon. While reviewing well rehearsed arguments that emphasise the inappropriateness of the methods employed to promote Western liberal democracy in Middle East countries and the difficulties in the way of democracy being fostered by foreign powers, it focuses on two factors that also contributed to derailing the U.S.’s plans to introduce ‘Western style’ liberal democracy to Iraq and Lebanon. -
CDIR-2018-10-29-VA.Pdf
276 Congressional Directory VIRGINIA VIRGINIA (Population 2010, 8,001,024) SENATORS MARK R. WARNER, Democrat, of Alexandria, VA; born in Indianapolis, IN, December 15, 1954; son of Robert and Marge Warner of Vernon, CT; education: B.A., political science, George Washington University, 1977; J.D., Harvard Law School, 1980; professional: Governor, Commonwealth of Virginia, 2002–06; chairman of the National Governor’s Association, 2004– 05; religion: Presbyterian; wife: Lisa Collis; children: Madison, Gillian, and Eliza; committees: Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Budget; Finance; Rules and Administration; Select Com- mittee on Intelligence; elected to the U.S. Senate on November 4, 2008; reelected to the U.S. Senate on November 4, 2014. Office Listings http://warner.senate.gov 475 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 .................................................. (202) 224–2023 Chief of Staff.—Mike Harney. Legislative Director.—Elizabeth Falcone. Communications Director.—Rachel Cohen. Press Secretary.—Nelly Decker. Scheduler.—Andrea Friedhoff. 8000 Towers Crescent Drive, Suite 200, Vienna, VA 22182 ................................................... (703) 442–0670 FAX: 442–0408 180 West Main Street, Abingdon, VA 24210 ............................................................................ (276) 628–8158 FAX: 628–1036 101 West Main Street, Suite 7771, Norfolk, VA 23510 ........................................................... (757) 441–3079 FAX: 441–6250 919 East Main Street, Richmond, VA 23219 ........................................................................... -
The Wolf Act Amendments to the U.S. International Religious Freedom Act: Breakthrough Or Breakdown?
UNIVERSITY of PENNSYLVANIA JOURNAL of LAW & PUBLIC AFFAIRS Vol. 4 Jan. 2019 No. 2 THE WOLF ACT AMENDMENTS TO THE U.S. INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ACT: BREAKTHROUGH OR BREAKDOWN? Robert C. Blitt* This Article takes a critical look at the major changes brought about by recent amendments to the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA). The first section briefly traces IRFA’s key features and operation since its enactment, including an overview of the statute’s institutions and reporting and sanctioning mechanisms. This section also highlights the ongoing debate regarding IRFA’s legitimacy and offers a summary of the major criticisms leveled against the statute, as well as the responses raised in its defense. With this background in place, the Article turns to an analysis of the legislative history surrounding the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act (Wolf Act) between 2015 and 2016. This bipartisan legislative initiative envisioned a wide range of amendments intended to address some of IRFA’s past shortcomings. Among the changes initially put forward, IRFA’s narrow focus on states would be expanded to include violent nonstate actors responsible for violating freedom of religion or belief. In addition, the original Wolf Act called for boosting the responsibilities and profile of IRFA’s institutional actors, increasing funding for the promotion * Professor of Law, University of Tennessee College of Law. The author was USCIRF’s International Law Specialist from 2004-2006. The impetus for this project flowed from participation in an academic seminar entitled “War and Peace and Religion: Religious Freedom during Russian-Ukrainian Conflict” held at Yaroslav the Wise National Law University in Kharkiv, Ukraine in 2018. -
Supreme Court of the United States
No. 14-1504 IN T HE Supreme Court of the United States ROBERT J. WITTMAN, BOB GOODLATTE, RANDY FORBES, MORGAN GRIFFITH, SCOTT RIGELL, ROBERT HURT, DAVID BRAT, BARBARA COMSTOCK, ERIC CANTOR & FRANK WOLF, Appellants, v. GLORIA PERSONHUBALLAH & JAMES FARKAS, Appellees. On Appeal From The United States District Court For The Eastern District Of Virginia BRIEF OPPOSING APPELLEES’ MOTIONS TO DISMISS OR AFFIRM MICHAEL A. CARVIN Counsel of Record JOHN M. GORE JONES DAY 51 Louisiana Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20001 (202) 879-3939 [email protected] August 4, 2015 Counsel for Appellants Robert J. Wittman, Bob Goodlatte, Randy J. Forbes, Morgan Griffith, Scott Rigell, Robert Hurt, David Brat, Barbara Comstock, Eric Cantor & Frank Wolf i TABLE OF CONTENTS Page TABLE OF AUTHORITIES ....................................... ii BRIEF OPPOSING APPELLEES’ MOTIONS TO DISMISS OR AFFIRM .............................. 1 I. APPELLEES FAIL TO REHABILI- TATE THE MAJORITY’S MISAPPLI- CATION OF EASLEY AND ALABAMA ......... 4 II. APPELLEES FAIL TO REHABILI- TATE THE NARROW TAILORING ERRORS ......................................................... 10 III. APPELLANTS HAVE STANDING ............... 11 III. CONCLUSION ............................................... 13 ii TABLE OF AUTHORITIES Page(s) CASES Ala. Leg. Black Caucus v. Ala., 135 S. Ct. 1257 (2015) ............................ 1, 4, 10, 11 Bush v. Vera, 517 U.S. 952 (1996) ................................................ 9 Cantor v. Personhuballah, 135 S. Ct. 1699 (2015) ............................................ 3 Easley v. Cromartie, 532 U.S. 234 (2001) .......................................passim Hall v. Virginia, 276 F. Supp. 2d 528 (E.D. Va. 2003) ................... 11 Hollingsworth v. Perry, 133 S. Ct. 2652 (2013) .................................... 11, 12 In re Primus, 436 U.S. 412 (1978) ................................................ 4 Johnson v. Mortham, 915 F. Supp. 1529 (N.D. Fla. 1995) .............. -
Yeshiva of New Haven Edgewood Elm Housing
YESHIVA OF NEW HAVEN ·- EDGEWOOD ELM HOUSING Thirty-'Fifth cA"nniversary (jathering in honor of HONORABLE MARTIN M. LOONEY CONNECTICUT STATE SENATE MAJORITY LEADER Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History N ew Haven, Connecticut 29 Sivan 5772 j une 19, 2012 /\.~ ~'~' :>j>)l·~ ~ ,.$ 7·~. ODD _, ooo ~e. f, DOD .S DOD f. DOD J DOD ______________ .r DOD ~ ~ DOD DOD ~ ------------------------------------ DOD Program Greeting .... ............... ....................Rabbi Mordechai E. Feuerstein Spiritual Leader, Suburban Torah Center - Livingston, New Jersey Address ...........................................Robert C. 'Bud' McFarlane Chairman and CEO, McFarlane Associates, Inc. National Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan Civic Achievement Award ........................ Honorable Martin M. Looney Connecticut State Senate Majority Leader Remarks ............. ............................... ....... .Clifford D. May President, Foundation for Defense of Democracies Presentation ....... .. ................................. .. Rabbi Daniel Greer Founder and President Edgewood Elm Housing & Yeshiva of New Haven Salutation ......................................Honorable John DeStefano, Jr. Mayor, City of New Haven Appreciation ............................................Rabbi Aviad S. Hack Joumal Chairman The Chairman of the Program this evening is Honorable John A. Keyes, Judge, New Haven Probate Court /\.~ ~'~' :>j>l>·~ ~ ..$' l·u ODD -!' ooo ~e DOD t 6 DOD ___________________________________________________________________ ? BBBDOD 4 The -
IT Governance Structure Is Overly Complex and Does Not Function Effectively
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Inspector General Washington, DC 20546-0001 May 15, 2014 The Honorable Barbara A. Mikulski Chairwoman Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Committee on Appropriations United States Senate Washington, D.C. 20510 The Honorable Richard C. Shelby Ranking Member Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Committee on Appropriations United States Senate Washington, D.C. 20510 Subject: Status of Recommendations Made in Audit Report “NASA’s Information Technology Governance” Report No. IG-13-015 Dear Madam Chairwoman and Senator Shelby: In June 2013, the NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a report that found the decentralized nature of NASA’s operations and its longstanding culture of autonomy hinder its ability to implement effective information technology (IT) governance.1 We reported that NASA’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) has limited visibility and control over a majority of the Agency’s IT investments, operates in an organizational structure that marginalizes the authority of the position, and cannot enforce security measures across NASA’s computer networks. Moreover, the Agency’s IT governance structure is overly complex and does not function effectively. As a result, Agency managers tend to rely on informal relationships rather than formalized business processes when making IT-related decisions. We made eight recommendations in our audit to improve NASA’s IT governance structure to effectively balance compliance, cost, risk, security, and mission success and meet the needs of internal and external stakeholders. As directed by House Report 113-171 - approved by the explanatory statement to Public Law 113-76, the Consolidated Appropriations for FY 2014 - we are providing this update to keep you informed of the actions taken by NASA management in response to our IT governance recommendations. -
Supplemental Statement
Received by NSD/FARA Registration Unit 10/30/2018 11:22:49 AM OMB No. 1124-0002; Expires May 31,2020 u.s. Department of Justice Supplemental Statement Washington, dc 20530 Pursuant to the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended For Six Month Period Ending 9/30/18...... (Insert date) I - REGISTRANT 1, (a) Name of Registrant (b) Registration No. The Livingston Group, LLC #6344 (c) Business Address(es) of Registrant 499 S. Capitol Street, SW 2. Has there been a change in the information previously furnished in connection with the following? (a) If an individual: (1) Residence address(es) Yes □ No □ (2) Citizenship Yes □ No □ (3) Occupation Yes □ No Q (b) If an organization: (1) Name Yes □ No H (2) Ownership or control Yes □ No 0 (3) Branch offices Yes □ No 0 (c) Explain fully all changes, if any, indicated in Items (a) and (b) above. IF THE REGISTRANT IS AN INDIVIDUAL, OMIT RESPONSE TO ITEMS 3,4, AND 5(a). 3. If you have previously filed Exhibit C*1, state whether any changes therein have occurred during this 6 month reporting period. Yes □ No 0 If yes, have you filed an amendment to the Exhibit C? Yes □ No □ If no, please attach the required amendment. 1 'Hie Exhibit C, for which no printed form is provided, consists of a true copy of the charter, articles of incorporation, association, and by laws of a registrant that is an organization. (A waiver of the requirement to file an Exhibit C may be obtained for good cause upon written application to the Assistant Attorney General, National Security Division, U.S. -
Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Congressional-Executive Commission on China Hearing on China, Genocide and the Olympics Tuesd
Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Congressional-Executive Commission on China Hearing on China, Genocide and the Olympics Tuesday, May 18, 2021 – 1:00 p.m. Virtual vis Cisco WebEx Statement of Nancy Pelosi Speaker of the House Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, for bringing us together on this very important issue. It's about our values. It's about who we are as a country. It's about more than words. It's about actions. Thank you, and I thank you for the years of service that you have given to this. You never have faltered in all of it. I myself have lost my innocence on expecting people to behave in a way that is consistent with their words, when it comes to respecting human rights. But matters have only gotten worse in China, as you have pointed out, and the genocide recognized as a genocide should be reason for us to change our actions. But it's been an honor to serve with you and with Frank Wolf over the years, and I thank you for calling forth the bipartisanship of this to Senator Merkley. Jim McGovern has, as has Chris Smith, been a relentless, persistent advocate for human rights in China – well, throughout the world – but I've seen him in action speaking to the leadership of China, going to Tibet, talking – giving – undermining the misrepresentation that the Chinese are making about what is going on in Tibet. You talked about Hong Kong. We talked about human rights throughout China. But now this rises to the level of recognized genocide. -
Fitzgerald Subpoenas and Server Crashes
FITZGERALD SUBPOENAS AND SERVER CRASHES CREW reports something that I demonstrated clearly some time ago: materials subpoenaed by Patrick Fitzgerald in his CIA Leak Investigation were lost in the White House’s seemingly intractable problems with email. (h/t Laura Rozen) But CREW’s got new documents proving the case, including this Microsoft Post-Mortem documenting its efforts to conduct an email search in February 2004, in what is almost certainly the series of subpoenas Fitz issued shortly after taking over the investigation (the date referred to in the post-mortem–January 22–is the date Fitz issued his subpoenas). Here’s a summary of the key subpoenaed material: February 6 was Abu Gonzales’ deadline to turn third batch of documents over to DOJ, including "records on administration contacts with more than two dozen journalists and news media outlets." The journalists, with my best take of what the investigators were looking for in brackets, include: Robert Novak, "Crossfire," "Capital Gang" and the Chicago Sun-Times [duh!] Knut Royce and Timothy M. Phelps, Newsday [source for their confirmation of Plame’s status] Walter Pincus [Libby conversation, July 12 Plame conversation], Richard Leiby {background for profile], Mike Allen [identity of SAO], Dana Priest [identity of SAO] and Glenn Kessler [conversation with Libby], The Washington Post Matthew Cooper [duh!], John Dickerson [possible additional source, Ari’s "walk-up" conversation], Massimo Calabresi [possible additional source, Wilson interview], Michael Duffy [earlier article] and James Carney [earlier article], Time magazine Evan Thomas, Newsweek [why Evan Thomas? was he the "they’re coming after you" journalist?] Andrea Mitchell [see Tom Maguire], "Meet the Press," NBC Chris Matthews ["your wife is fair game"], "Hardball," MSNBC Tim Russert [Libby complaint], Campbell Brown [why Campbell Brown?], NBC Nicholas D. -
Defending International Religious Freedom: US Foreign Policy in the XXI Century
Defending International Religious Freedom: US foreign policy in the XXI century Luiza Rodrigues Mateo PhD candidate at State University of Sao Paulo [email protected] Paper prepared for the ISA-FLACSO Joint Conference, 2014, Buenos Aires First Draft. Please do not cite without permission. Abstract: In the contemporary world, religion has been largely re-defined. It has become increasingly evident in international arena as it composes identities and international religious movements, legitimates political process and origins conflicts. These new dynamics impose several challenges to International Relations, evoking a research Agenda that puts into question the mainstream theories of the field. We intend to mull about the intersections of religious and political spheres in United States. The main purpose is to comprehend the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 and its consequences, how the establishment defines religion and traces strategies to promote religious freedom abroad. Some questions come out: the American national identity, the Christian ethos, the Founding Fathers fundamentals rights heritage, the American exceptionalism, among others. In rhetoric and practice, the U.S. international religious freedom advocacy stresses the global controversy about the universality of Human Rights and the Modern experiment, distinct of the whole oriental tradition that hasn’t processed the liberalization, individualization and privatization of religion. Overall, the purpose is to understand how the international religious freedom policy