‘Mistakes Were Made’: US’ $100 Million Niger Air Base May Have Violated Law - IG Report

The US Department of Defense Investigator General’s (IG) latest report highlights the US Air Force may have broken laws, bypassed Congress and put service members in danger while rushing to construct a $100 million Nigerien Air Base.

Last week, the DoD IG released a redacted version of its evaluation of the Air Force’s Air Base 201 in Agadez, Niger, and the installation’s construction - which began in October 2013 but was not completed until spring 2019.

The agency recommended the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller begin a preliminary review to determine whether the service violated the Antideficiency Act when it used $3.7 million in procurement funds - rather than military construction funds - to purchase a dozen guard towers.

While military construction funds require the service to notify Congress, procurement funds do not require such notice, but they are designated for financing equipment.

The DoD IG’s 72-page report also noted that the Air Force skirted Congress when it split construction requirements for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations into six separate operations and maintenance projects that totaled $5.4 million.

“However, all of the projects were known and each project on its own would not result in a ‘complete and useable facility,’ which means the projects should have been combined and reported to Congress,” the report said.

According to the agency, both US Africa Command (AFRICOM) and the Air Force failed to complete necessary site surveys for Air Base 201’s design and construction.

Additionally, a number of safety and security requirements set by the DoD were not met during this period, such as the installation of “solar airfield lighting that did not conform to the electrical power requirements to provide continuous uninterrupted visual airfield lights.”

After examining the cases made by the DoD IG, AFRICOM acknowledged that the correct actions were not always taken, but the command insisted no laws were broken.

“A few procedural missteps occurred in an effort to build a functional air base in a very remote area under very austere conditions,” AFRICOM spokesman Air Force Col. Chris Karns said in an emailed statement to the Air Force Times, noting that “mistakes were made” and procedures will be “tightened up” as a result.

“The construction of Nigerien Air Base 201 provides a valued capability to address and monitor the deteriorating security situation in the Sahel,” Karns added.

The DoD IG expressed in its report that while the agency has respect for both AFRICOM and the Air Force, their difficult circumstances “did not negate the responsibility for ensuring that construction projects were programmed in accordance with appropriation laws and regulations and construction, operations and security standards.”

https://sputniknews.com/africa/202004101078912687-mistakes-were-made-us-100-million-niger-air-base-may-have-violated-law—ig-report/

Evaluation of Niger Air Base 201 Military Construction

https://media.defense.gov/2020/Apr/02/2002273624/-1/-1/1/EVALUATION%20OF%20NIGER%20AIR%20BASE%20201%20MILITARY%20CONSTRUCTION%20DODIG-2020-077.PDF

Hmmmm '201'

Who needs FEMA camps when you can keep people terrified in their own homes???

Gun-Rights Groups Sue Massachusetts Over Gun Store Shutdowns

State ignored federal guidelines, removed gun stores from 'essential business' list

A collection of gun-rights groups filed a federal suit on Thursday against Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker (R.) challenging his order to close gun stores.

The gun-rights activists said the governor's shutdown order violates the Second Amendment by effectively banning the lawful purchase of guns and ammunition in the state. They asked the United States District Court for Massachusetts to strike down the order and allow gun stores to reopen.

"Defendants' acts prohibiting the operation of any and all consumer-oriented firearms businesses operates to completely prohibit law-abiding individuals from purchasing ammunition, and to effectively prevent most of them from purchasing firearms," the complaint says. "Independently and collectively, these acts stand as a perpetual bar on acquiring firearms and ammunition for the purpose of protecting one's self and family (or indeed, for any other lawful purpose)."

The suit is the latest in a string of cases across the country challenging the closure of gun retailers in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The outcome could determine how far the emergency powers of state and local officials extend and where they butt up against constitutional rights.

The federal government has attempted to prevent such legal battles by adding gun stores, ranges, and manufacturers to its "essential business" list in coronavirus guidelines provided to state and local officials. That designation led Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Los Angeles County, and Wake County, N.C., to reverse previous closure orders. Massachusetts, which allowed gun stores to remain open in the first weeks of the outbreak, removed gun stores from its "essential" business list just days after the Department of Homeland Security updated the federal recommendations.

Gun-rights groups have argued gun stores are "essential" and should be allowed to remain open during the pandemic.

"Closing gun stores and preventing citizens from exercising their Second Amendment rights is not the way to fight a viral pandemic," said Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, which is a plaintiff in the Massachusetts case.

The shutdown order has angered local activists and led the Massachusetts-based group Commonwealth Second Amendment to join the suit. Spokesman Brent Carlton compared closing gun stores to shuttering media outlets. "The Baker administration can no more block exercise of the Second Amendment by preventing Massachusetts residents from purchasing firearms than the Trump administration can limit the First Amendment by closing the New York Times or CNN," he said.

Adam Kraut, director of legal strategy for plaintiff Firearms Policy Coalition, said the shutdown order violates the principles that Massachusetts was founded upon.

https://freebeacon.com/coronavirus/gun-rights-groups-sue-massachusetts-over-gun-store-shutdowns/

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam signs five gun control bills into law

The Democrat told gun control activists, 'This is an exciting day for me'

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) is celebrating after signing five new gun control bills into law on Friday as part of the agenda he promised when Democrats won control of both chambers of the commonwealth's General Assembly in November.

What are the details?

Gov. Northam announced he signed into law a "red flag" bill, an expansion of background checks, and reinstated a limit that restricts Virginians from purchasing more than one handgun in a one-month period "to help curtail stockpiling of firearms and trafficking."

Citizens of the commonwealth will also now face a civil penalty if they do not report a lost or stolen firearm to law enforcement within 48 hours, and will face a criminal charge for leaving "a loaded, unsecured firearm in such a manner as to endanger" a child younger than 14.

"This is an exciting day for me," Northam told gun control activists during a conference call on Friday, according to Fox News. He added, "It was time to have our legislators come to Richmond and to take votes and pass laws, and that's exactly what they did this year."

Democratic Speaker of the House Eileen Filler-Corn also took a victory lap on Friday, saying in a statement, "In November, Virginians called out loud and clear for meaningful legislation to address gun violence in the Commonwealth. They demanded action and we delivered."

While Northam made gains with his gun-control platform this week, his push to ban so-called assault weapons failed in February when a handful of moderate Democrats joined Republicans in shutting down the initiative in a Senate committee following protests from gun owners.

Undeterred, Northam has vowed to take up the assault weapons ban again next year, acknowledging that he "came up short" on that goal, ABC News reported. The governor vowed, "I will not stop."

https://www.theblaze.com/news/virginia-gov-ralph-northam-signs-five-gun-control-bills-into-law

FCC Commissioner: Left tries to weaponize FCC to shut down coverage of president

According to FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, the left is weaponizing the agency to get coverage of President Trump’s briefings shut down. He spoke with One America’s John Hines in this exclusive interview.

https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/fcc-commissioner-left-tries-to-weaponize-fcc-to-shut-down-coverage-of-president/