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Representative Niki Tsongas spoke during a news conference in May on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

US Representative Niki Tsongas said Wednesday that she would not seek another term after representing her Lowell-based district for a decade, an unexpected move that will leave a rare open seat in the states congressional delegation.

Tsongas, 71, who had shown all signs of running in 2018, said it was a time for her to retire from public life and enjoy her children and grandchildren.

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Her decision stunned political insiders, potential successors who have been waiting for years for an open congressional seat, and even her close political colleagues in the district. It also ripped up the political premise that the states 2018 congressional races would hardly be noticed, setting off a rush of speculation about who would succeed her.

For Tsongas, it was clearly a very personal decision that she shared with very few.

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I have learned in life that there is a time for endings and for new beginnings, she said in a statement.

Niki Tsongas announced on Wednesday that she wont seek another term in Congress.

After much thought, I have decided that this is one of those times.The time feels right most especially because of my desire to spend more time enjoying and celebrating my wonderful and growing family, she said.

The Lowell Democrat was elected to the seat that was being vacated in 2007 by then-US Representative Marty Meehan, who served 14 years in Congress.

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Tsongas serves on the US House Armed Services Committee, where she has made a reputation working on sexual abuse and veterans issues.

I am particularly very proud of the work we did challenging the sexual assault issues in the military, she said in a phone interview.

Meehan, now the president of the University of Massachusettts, said Tsongas work on the committeee had produced profound changes in the culture that women face in the armed services.

It was not just assault but the whole culture that she changed, he said.

US Senator Elizabeth Warren,in a tweet, praised Tsongas as a fighter who served as a model for her.

Congresswoman Niki Tsongas is more than my colleague shes a mentor and a friend, Warren wrote. She has shown me how tough women fight for families in Massachusetts and across this country.

Her decision in 2007 to enter elective politics had roots in her marriage to one of the states leading political figures. Her late husband, Paul Tsongas, a former Lowell city councilor and Middlesex County commissioner, held the seat for two terms after his election in 1974 and is credited with leading the efforts to revitalize his native city. He later went on to serve one term in the US Senate and ran a strong but unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1992.

His election ended the GOPs decades-long grip on the district and marked the beginning of the election of a series of liberal Democrats, including Niki Tsongas herself.

But what was for decades the Fifth District and is now labeled the Third District since redistricting in 2012 has changed around its edges, creating less of a liberal tilt to the seat.

In the future, said Dan Payne, a Democratic media consultant who has advised candidates in that district, that district is very unlikely to elect someone as liberal as Tsongas.

But the Third District favors Democrats overall, choosing that partys presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, in last years presidential race with 57 percent of the vote over Donald Trumps 35 percent.

It currently runs along the New Hampshire border, from Haverhill, through Lowell and Lawrence to Fitchburg, Gardner, and Winchendon, stretching south to Marlborough and Hudson while also taking in the southern Middlesex County towns of Wayland, Acton, and Concord.

Tsongas unexpected move is much like what her husband did in 1984 when, in one of the most dramatic political events the state has seen in decades, he announced he would not run for a second six-year Senate term. He had been diagnosed with lymphoma. He died in 1997 from complications from cancer treatments.

Meehan said Paul Tsongas would have been extremely proud of his wifes tenure in the job he had held for four years work that included helping the urban communities in the district on economic development issues and looking after the interests of the Massachusetts companies that dominate the defense industry.

Serving in this district demands a very high standard that was set by Paul Tsongas, Meehan said. Niki exceeded that high standard and I know Paul would be very proud of her service.

In her statement, Tsongas described her time in office as a heartfelt honor ... guided all along by an extraordinary role model in my late husband Paul.

She also said she felt proud that her 2007 election marked the first time Massachusetts had sent a woman to Congress in 25 years.

Since that door cracked open, the Commonwealth has elected another female member of Congress, our first female US Senator, and in my district, 50% of our state legislators are now women, paving the way for even more women from our state to serve in political office bringing their voices to all we value as a country, Tsongas said.

The Third District was the venue for one of the states most famous congressional races when a decorated Vietnam veteran, John F. Kerry, won the Democratic nomination in a crowded field, only to lose the general election to a former Republican legislator from Andover who had lost his seat two years earlier.

His antiwar position had made Kerry a national figure, but his move into the district to seek a congressional seat created deep resentment among local Democrats.

The loss sent Kerry, who was shattered by the experience, into the political wilderness until he won an election to be lieutenant governor in 1982 and then ran successfully for the US Senate seat that Paul Tsongas vacated.

More here:
Lowell Democrat Niki Tsongas won't seek another term in Congress - The Boston Globe

Sen. Daniel Squadron, D-New York, speaks during a news conference at the state Capitol on Monday, May 9, 2016, in Albany, N.Y. The New York Senate Elections Committee has briefly considered legislation to close a campaign finance loophole for limited liability companies, its Republican members voting to send it to another committee. Squadron, the lead sponsor, urged the Elections Committee to send it to a floor vote in the Republican-controlled chamber instead, where all senators would have to publicly show their positions. (AP Photo/Mike Groll) less Sen. Daniel Squadron, D-New York, speaks during a news conference at the state Capitol on Monday, May 9, 2016, in Albany, N.Y. The New York Senate Elections Committee has briefly considered legislation to close ... more Photo: Mike Groll Senate Democratic Policy Group Chair Daniel Squadron speaks as the Senate Democratic Conference unveils a set of policy initiatives to help New York families during the critical early childhood period on Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016, during a news conference at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y. (John Carl D'Annibale / Times Union) less Senate Democratic Policy Group Chair Daniel Squadron speaks as the Senate Democratic Conference unveils a set of policy initiatives to help New York families during the critical early childhood period on ... more Photo: John Carl D'Annibale State Senator Daniel Squadron, Common Cause/NY and good government advocacy groups urged Senate Majority Leader Flanagan to hold a full senate vote on S.60 to close the "LLC loophole" during a press conference held Thursday morning May 28, 2015 at the State Capitol in Albany, N.Y. (Skip Dickstein/Times Union) less State Senator Daniel Squadron, Common Cause/NY and good government advocacy groups urged Senate Majority Leader Flanagan to hold a full senate vote on S.60 to close the "LLC loophole" during a press conference ... more Photo: SKIP DICKSTEIN, ALBANY TIMES UNION State Senator Daniel Squadron, Common Cause/NY and good government advocacy groups urged Senate Majority Leader Flanagan to hold a full senate vote on S.60 to close the "LLC loophole" during a press conference held Thursday morning May 28, 2015 at the State Capitol in Albany, N.Y. (Skip Dickstein/Times Union) less State Senator Daniel Squadron, Common Cause/NY and good government advocacy groups urged Senate Majority Leader Flanagan to hold a full senate vote on S.60 to close the "LLC loophole" during a press conference ... more Photo: SKIP DICKSTEIN, ALBANY TIMES UNION

Sen. Daniel Squadron, left, voices demands for the removal of Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos during session on Wednesday, May 6, 2015, at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union)

Sen. Daniel Squadron, left, voices demands for the removal of Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos during session on Wednesday, May 6, 2015, at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union)

Democrat Daniel Squadron quitting state Senate seat

ALBANY State Sen. Daniel Squadron, D-Brooklyn, will resign from the Senate on Friday, he announced Wednesday morning.

In an emailed statement, Squadron said he has decided to try to make a difference in states across the country by pushing policies and candidates "that will create a fairer and more democratic future."

"It's not possible to take on this challenge and continue to be a full-time legislator, which is what I always promised I would be," he said.

"When I was first elected in 2008 in a season of hope and change, I hoped to bring enthusiasm for government to the district, and a government to be more proud of to Albany," his statement continues. "Though progress has sometimes been slow and there is much more to do in this much less hopeful time the many constituents, colleagues, and staff with whom I've partnered have kept that enthusiasm, and pride in public service, alive."

In an op-ed in the Daily News, Squadron he knocked the fact that Democrats do not have a majority despite having the numbers to control the chamber.

He wrote that upon election in 2008, he believed in state government's potential.

"I still do," Squadron wrote. "But over the years I have seen it thwarted by a sliver of heavily invested special interests. In the state Senate, for example, Democrats have repeatedly been denied control of the chamber by cynical political deals, despite winning an electoral majority including in 2016."

The eight-member Independent Democratic Conference has a majority coalition with the Senate Republicans, who number 32 members (the bare minimum needed to control the chamber) because Brooklyn Democrat Simcha Felder sits with the conference.

As Squadron notes in his op-ed, the 26th Senate District, which covers parts of Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan, is a safely Democratic seatbased on voter enrollment.

The seat would be filled this November during off-cycle elections, though if the Legislature were to return before then for some reason, the number of registered Democrats in the chamber would be 31 (22 mainline Democratic senators Squadron is currently the 23rd eight members of the IDC and Felder).

In a statement, Democratic Conference Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins wished Squadron luck.

"Daniel Squadron has been a fantastic Senator, a dedicated public servant, and a dear friend," she said. "Senator Squadron was a strong advocate for his community and for all New Yorkers. He worked tirelessly to make our state a better, fairer, and more ethical place. I look forward to working with him on the national level to spread progressive values and responsible government. I thank Daniel for his service and wish him the best of luck on this new challenge."

Squadron's exit may not be the only in the Senate before the end of the year. Democratic Senators George Latimer of Westchester County and Ruben Diaz Sr. of the Bronx are seeking local elected positions. Republican Sen. Phil Boyle of Long Island is running for Suffolk County Sheriff.

Should all of those senators leave, the Senate math obviously would further fluctuate. Any of their exits would key up special elections (or, if they resign, elections in November) for their seats.

Squadron's decision to leave comes at a time when Democratic voters in some areas have become impassioned about installing a Democratic majority in the Senate, a task that is easier said than done because of internal politics.

Their pleas led the state Democratic Committee to adopt a resolution last month calling for Senate re-unification, much to the chagrin of the IDC, led by Sen. Jeff Klein of the Bronx. Party brass said that though the party doesn't get involved in primaries, the resolution encourages people to primary the independent Democratic senators.

Only one senator was in attendance at that meeting in Colonie, Sen. Leroy Comrie of Queens, who stood to applaud the resolution.

Still, the IDC hasn't backed down.

"The reason why the Democratic Party is losing across the nation and at home is that they are coopted by a small band of misfits who continue to talk to each other in echo chambers and refuse to acknowledge that the party of Roosevelt, Kennedy and Clinton no longer has the ability to communicate with working-class voters," IDC spokeswoman Candice Giove said at the time. "The Independent Democratic Conference will continue to fight for the working class and espouse the hopes and aspirations of all New Yorkers. Big tent Democratic politics is good government and good politics. We will see you at the polls."

News of Squadron's resignation coincidentally came as new account emerged of a meeting last month between Gov. Andrew Cuomo criticized by some for not doing more to reunify the Democratic factions and the mainline Democratic senators. The New York Times reported Wednesday that Cuomo suggested that the IDC had a better understanding of the suburbs than the mainline Democrats.

Stewart-Cousins, who represents Westchester County, replied, according to the Times: "You look at me, Mr. Governor, but you don't see me. You see my black skin and a woman, but you don't realize I am a suburban legislator. Jeff Klein doesn't represent the suburbs. I do."

A Cuomo spokeswoman told the Times that the comment "was not of particular note" and the meeting was friendly and positive.

mhamilton@timesunion.com 518-454-5449 @matt_hamilton10

The rest is here:
Democrat Daniel Squadron quitting state Senate seat - Albany Times Union

State Sen. George Muoz, a conservative Democrat from Gallup, announced Tuesday hell seek the partys nomination for state land commissioner in the June primary election.

Muoz, 50, joins former State Land Commissioner Ray Powell Jr. and Garrett VeneKlasen, executive director of the New Mexico Wildlife Federation, in the Democratic race.

Republican Aubrey Dunn Jr., who was elected land commissioner in 2014, is running for Congress instead of seeking re-election. Patrick Lyons, a former land commissioner now serving on the Public Regulation Commission, is seeking the GOP nomination for his old job.

In an interview Tuesday, Muoz said he decided to run for the land commissioners job because his son went to college out of state.

I can sense hes not going to be coming back, he said.

As land commissioner, Muoz said, he can ensure a steady revenue stream for public schools and that better schools will improve New Mexicos economy and its ability to retain young people.

Public schools are the chief beneficiaries of interest from the state Land Grant Permanent Fund. That fund receives revenue from leases of land managed by the State Land Office, which includes more than 9 million acres of surface and 13 million acres of minerals.

Asked whether he supports a proposed constitutional amendment to tap the permanent fund specifically for money for early childhood education, Muoz said, I think the permanent fund is good where its at.

Of the three Democratic candidates, Muoz is the most conservative, which could help him in rural parts of the state, especially if Powell and VeneKlasen divide the progressive vote. But Muoz told The New Mexican, I dont think we should be putting partisan labels in this race.

Both Powell and VeneKlasen have strong support from environmentalists. And in his announcement, Muoz sounded as if hes also pursuing support from the conservation and environmentalist communities, stressing his support for clean energy on public lands.

Lets build the largest solar farm in the country on state land, he said. Were on that path. Why not be in front of it? New Mexico, he said, has unlimited resources in solar and wind.

He said energy produced in New Mexico and transmitted to other states should be taxed to benefit this state.

In a news release, he described himself as an avid conservationist and sportsman, who understands the importance of protecting New Mexico public lands for future generations.

New Mexico Conservation Voters, which compiles annual rankings for legislators on environmental issues, gives Muoz just a 50 percent lifetime score, making him the third lowest-ranked Democrat in the Senate.

On the issue of climate change, Muoz said, The question is how much is natural and how much is caused by humans. He said he doesnt have the answer to that question.

Muoz, the son of former Gallup Mayor Ed Muoz, owns a construction and property management company in Gallup.

Elected to the Senate in 2008, hes a member of the Senate Finance Committee. In 2013, he and then-Rep. Luciano Lucky Varela, D-Santa Fe, led the legislative effort to shore up the finances of the state retirement system.

In 2010, Muoz successfully sponsored legislation that allows people with concealed-carry licenses to take their guns into restaurants with beer and wine licenses. The National Rifle Association in 2016 gave Muoz a 100 percent rating and sponsored an appreciation event for him last year at a Gallup restaurant.

During this years legislative session, Muoz led the charge against a bill that would have carved out an exception to state rules on renting property.

The legislation would have allowed the Children, Youth and Families Department to extend its lease on office space in Albuquerque. Muoz challenged the bill when it went through the Senate Finance Committee, and he blasted it as fishy and a sweetheart deal for somebody when it reached the Senate floor.

The bill passed the Senate, but four days later after The New Mexican began asking about more than $26,000 in political contributions from property owners to Gov. Susana Martinez and her political committees the administration pulled the bill, saying earlier claims of no political connections were an honest mistake.

Excerpt from:
Conservative Democrat Muoz running for State Land Office - Santa Fe New Mexican

Senator Bob Menendez / Getty Images

BY: Brent Scher August 9, 2017 1:45 pm

A last-ditch attempt by Democratic senatorBob Menendez (N.J.) to avoid a federal corruption trial slated to start next month was rejected by a federal judge on Wednesday.

Menendez, accused of giving political favors to Florida eye doctor Salomon Melgen in exchange for campaign contributions and gifts, asked that the case against him be dismissed on account of the Supreme Court's 2016 decision to overturn the corruption conviction offormer Virginia governorBob McDonnell (R.).

Menendez's attorneys argued that none of the alleged assistance he offered Melgen were "official acts," and therefore, based on the Supreme Court's McDonnell decision, the legal argument against him was invalid.

U.S. District Court Judge William Walls said the determination of whether Menendez performed an "official act" in his attempts to benefit Melgen will be made during the trial, which is set to begin on Sept. 6.

"Whether the acts alleged in the Superseding Indictment satisfy the definition of an official act under McDonnell is a factual determination that cannot be resolved before the Government has the opportunity to present evidence at trial," wrote Walls in his rejection of the dismissal request.

Menendez received campaign contributionsfrom Melgen, in addition to flights on private jets and luxury vacations.

Prosecutors allege Menendez askedgovernment officials to assist Melgen in his billings dispute with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Melgen was found guilty in April of Medicare fraud.

Menendez will be busy with court proceedings for four days a week beginning in September. Jury selection for the trial will begin later this month.

Polling has found that a majority of New Jersey voters think Menendez should have resigned shortly after the corruption charges were brought against him.

The indictment against Menendez also includes allegations that the senator assisted Melgen with visa applications for three of his girlfriends and colorful explanations of the trips that were gifted by Melgen, including a $5,000 stay in Paris for Menendez and his girlfriend.

Menendez and committees tied to him received over $750,000 in contributions from Melgen.

Read more here:
Judge: Democrat Bob Menendez Must Face Corruption Charge in Court - Washington Free Beacon

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FOSTER KLUG AND MATTHEW PENNINGTON

ASSOCIATED PRESS | August 9, 2017, 7:09AM

| Updated 6 hours ago.

SEOUL, South Korea In an exchange of threats, President Donald Trump warned Pyongyang of "fire and fury like the world has never seen" and the North's military claimed Wednesday it was examining plans for attacking Guam.

The high-level tit-for-tat follows reports that North Korea has mastered a crucial technology needed to strike the United States with a nuclear missile.

Despite regular North Korean threats against Guam, a U.S. territory in the Pacific about 2,100 miles (3,400 kilometers) from the Korean Peninsula, it is extremely unlikely that Pyongyang would risk the assured annihilation of its revered leadership with a pre-emptive attack on U.S. citizens. It's also not clear how reliable North Korea's mid-range missiles would be in an attack against a distant target given the relatively few times they've been tested.

Even so, the competing threats and Trump's use of North Korea-style rhetoric Pyongyang has long vowed to reduce Seoul to a "sea of fire" raise already high animosity and heighten worries that a miscalculation might spark conflict between the rivals.

The North Korean army said in a statement that it is studying a plan to create an "enveloping fire" in areas around Guam with medium- to long-range ballistic missiles. The statement described Andersen Air Force Base on Guam as a "beachhead" for a potential U.S. invasion of North Korea it needed to neutralize. It was unlikely the North's threat was a direct response to Trump's comments to the camera at his golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey.

South Korea's Unification Ministry, which deals with matters related to North Korea, said the North's army statement hurts efforts to improve inter-Korean relations. Ministry spokesman Baek Tai-hyun said Seoul remains committed to both dialogue and sanctions for solving the North Korean nuclear problem and called for Pyongyang to stop its provocations. Baek did not mention Trump's comments.

Trump spoke hours after reports indicated North Korea can now wed nuclear warheads with its missiles, including its longest-range missiles that may be able to hit the American mainland. The North has strived for decades to have the ability to strike the U.S. and its Asian allies, and the pace of its breakthroughs is having far-reaching consequences for stability in the Pacific and beyond.

The nuclear advances were detailed in an official Japanese assessment Tuesday and a later Washington Post story that cited U.S. intelligence officials and a confidential Defense Intelligence Agency report. The U.S. now assesses the North Korean arsenal at up to 60 nuclear weapons, more than double most assessments by independent experts, according to the Post's reporting.

"North Korea had best not make any more threats to the United States," said a stern-looking Trump, seated with his arms crossed and with his wife beside him. "They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen."

"He has been very threatening beyond a normal state. And as I said they will be met with fire, fury and frankly power the likes of which this world has never seen before."

The remarks appeared scripted, with Trump glancing at a paper in front of him. They evoked President Harry Truman's announcement of the U.S. atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945, in which he warned of "a rain of ruin from the air, the like of which has never been seen on this earth."

But it wasn't clear what Trump, who is prone to hyperbole and bombast in far less grave situations, meant by the threat. White House officials did not elaborate, but U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson downplayed Trump's threat, saying the president intended to send a strong message "in language that Kim Jong Un can understand."

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Tillerson said Trump delivered the message the way he did because the North Korean leader "doesn't seem to understand diplomatic language." Trump wanted to make clear to North Korea that the U.S. has the "unquestionable ability to defend itself" and will protect itself and its allies, Tillerson said, adding Trump wanted to "avoid any miscalculation" by Pyongyang.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer issued a statement saying, "We need to be firm and deliberate with North Korea, but reckless rhetoric is not a strategy to keep America safe."

The Trump administration considers North Korea to be America's greatest national security threat and tensions have steadily risen this year.

Pyongyang responded angrily to the U.N. Security Council's adoption this weekend of new, tougher sanctions spearheaded by Washington. Tens of thousands packed Kim Il Sung Square in downtown Pyongyang on Wednesday for a rally that followed a familiar format of speeches from a balcony, with the crowd listening below, standing in organized rows interspersed with placards and slogans.

The sanctions followed intercontinental ballistic missile tests last month, the second of which was estimating as having a range that could reach more of the U.S. mainland. The newly revealed U.S. intelligence assessment indicates those missiles can carry nuclear warheads.

Denouncing the U.N. sanctions through state media, the North warned: "We will make the U.S. pay by a thousand-fold for all the heinous crimes it commits against the state and people of this country."

For North Korea, having a nuclear-tipped missile that could strike America would be the ultimate guarantee against U.S. invasion.

It is an ambition decades in the making. North Korea began producing fissile material for bombs in the 1990s and conducted its first nuclear test explosion in 2006. Four subsequent nuclear tests, the latest a year ago, have accelerated progress on miniaturizing a device something North Korea already claimed it could do. Over that span, multiple U.S. presidents have tried and failed to coax or pressure Pyongyang into abandoning its nuclear ambitions.

The secrecy of the North's nuclear program and the underground nature of its test explosions make it very difficult to properly assess its claims. But the new assessments from Japan and the U.S. suggest that doubts over the North's abilities are receding.

In an annual report, Japan's Defense Ministry on Tuesday concluded that "it is possible that North Korea has achieved the miniaturization of nuclear weapons and has developed nuclear warheads." Japan, a key U.S. ally, is a potential, front-line target of North Korean aggression.

The Post story, citing unnamed U.S. intelligence officials, went further. It said the Defense Intelligence Agency analysis, completed last month, assessed North Korea has produced nuclear weapons for ballistic missile delivery, including by intercontinental missiles.

Officials at the agency wouldn't comment Tuesday. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence also wouldn't discuss the report.

It's unclear how North Korea's new capabilities will immediately affect how the U.S. approaches the country's regular missile launches and occasional nuclear tests. The U.S. military has never attempted to shoot a North Korean missile out of the sky, deeming all previous tests to pose no threat to the United States. The U.S. could weigh military action if the threat perception changes.

The calculation of North Korea's nuclear arsenal at 60 bombs exceeds other assessments, which range from around one dozen to about 30 weapons. The assessments are typically an estimate of the amount of plutonium and enriched uranium North Korea has in its inventory rather than how much of that material has been weaponized. It's unclear how many, if any, miniaturized warheads North Korea has built.

Last month's ICBM tests highlighted the growing threat. Both missiles were fired at highly lofted angles and landed in the sea near Japan, but analysts said the weapons could reach Alaska, Los Angeles or Chicago if fired at a normal, flattened trajectory.

North Korea threatened to hit Guam with its Hwasong-12 missiles, which it says can carry a heavy nuclear warhead.

Not all technical hurdles have been overcome, however. North Korea is still believed to lack expertise to ensure a missile could re-enter the Earth's atmosphere without the warhead burning up. And it's still working on striking targets with accuracy.

___

Pennington reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Kim Tong-hyung and Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, Deb Riechmann in Washington and Catherine Lucey in New Jersey contributed to this report.

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President Trump, North Korea trade escalating threats of fire - Santa Rosa Press Democrat