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The top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee said presidential counselor Kellyanne Conways public pitch for Ivanka Trumps clothing line was a "blatant" violation of federal ethics rules.

This was a textbook case of violation" of the rules, Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, told ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos on "This Week" on Sunday. "You cannot go out there as an employee of the government and advertise for [Ivanka] Trump or anybody else and their products. You can't do that.

Conway, a counselor to President Trump, responded in an interview on Fox News on Thursday to a recent decision by some retailers to stop carrying Ivanka Trump's line of clothing and accessories.

"This is just a wonderful line," Conway said. "I own some of it, I fully -- I'm going to give a free commercial here," Conway said. "Go buy it today, everybody. You can find it online."

Cummings and the House Oversight Committee's GOP chair, Jason Chaffetz, sent a joint letter Thursday to the Office of Government Ethics asking them to review Conways comments.

"Conway's statements appear to violate federal ethics regulations," they state in the letter. "In this case, Conway's statements from the White House using her official title could appear to constitute an explicit endorsement and advertisement for Ivanka Trump's personal business activities." The letter asks the office to act promptly to send the committee its recommendation on what appropriate disciplinary action (such as reprimand, suspension, demotion or dismissal) be brought against the office or employee.

Federal ethics rules bar executive branch employees from endorsing products and using their public office for the private gain of friends or family.

Stephanopoulos asked Cummings about White House senior policy adviser Stephen Millers remarks earlier on This Week on Sunday that Conway had given a lighthearted, flippant response thats been blown out of proportion by the media.

Cummings said, "That's just absolutely not true. It was not flippant. As a matter of fact, she said, she made it clear, 'I am going to give some free advertisement today for Ivanka Trump.'"

"It was wrong," the Maryland Democrat said.

Asked by Stephanopoulos what disciplinary action he thinks should take place, Cummings said it is up to the Office of Government Ethics to "see how blatant this was."

"I personally think it was very blatant," the congressman said. "I think it was intentional."

Cummings said the ethics office will "make a recommendation," but that any decision on the matter is up to President Trump.

The problem here, George, is that the person who will mete out the punishment, if you will, will be the president. And it seems as if this may not be a big deal to him, but it is a big deal to me, and it is a big deal to Chairman Chaffetz.

Stephanopoulos also asked Cummings about recent public criticism of another White House senior staff member, National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who, according to ABC News sources, spoke to Moscow's ambassador about U.S. sanctions against Russia prior to President Trump's taking office. The conversation occurred at the time President Obama was hitting Russia with new sanctions for its alleged cyberhacking and interference in the U.S. election.

Flynn's alleged discussion of sanctions with the Russian ambassador raises legal questions about private citizens engaging in diplomacy that could undermine the intent of a sitting president.

Cummings was asked by Stephanopoulos whether he agrees with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi that Flynns security clearance should be revoked pending the conclusion of an investigation into the matter.

"Yes, I think that's an appropriate action," Cummings said on "This Week." But, George, there's something else that needs to be asked. That is, did the president instruct Gen. Flynn to talk to the ambassador? And did he know about it? If he knew about this conversation, when did he know it? That, to me, that is the key question. And we need to find out what that answer is.

Cummings also remarked on Vice President Mike Pence stating publicly in January that Flynn did not discuss sanctions in his conversations with the Russian ambassador.

"Then for Gen. Flynn to be walking that back, that's not good enough," Cummings said. "He is the national security adviser. He is supposed to be the one to make sure that these kinds of things don't happen. And here he is, embroiled in all of this."

I think it's going to be very interesting to see what happens over the next week. I would be very interested to know how the vice president feels after he was basically thrown under the bus, the congressman said.

Read more:
Top Democrat on House Oversight panel: Kellyanne Conway made 'blatant' violation of ethics rules - ABC News

(1 of ) In this Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, photo, water flows down Oroville Dam's main spillway, in Oroville, Calif. Water began flowing over the emergency spillway on Saturday for the first time in its nearly 50-year history after heavy rainfall. In addition to the emergency spillway, water also flowed through the main spillway that was significantly damaged from erosion. Officials said they'll assess the damage starting Monday. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (2 of ) California Highway Patrol officer Ken Weckman directs traffic as residents evacuate Marysville, Calif., Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017. Thousands of residents of Marysville and other Northern California communities were told to leave their homes Sunday evening as an emergency spillway of the Oroville Dam could fail at any time unleashing flood waters from Lake Oroville, according to officials from the California Department of Water Resources. (Paul Kitagaki Jr./The Sacramento Bee via AP) (3 of ) Kendra Curieo waits in traffic to evacuate Marysville, Calif., Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017. Thousands of residents of Marysville and other Northern California communities were told to leave their homes Sunday evening as an emergency spillway of the Oroville Dam could fail at any time unleashing flood waters from Lake Oroville, according to officials from the California Department of Water Resources. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (4 of ) In this Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, water flows down Oroville Dam's main spillway, near Oroville, Calif. Water began flowing over the emergency spillway at the Oroville Dam on Saturday for the first time in its nearly 50-year history after heavy rainfall. In addition to the emergency spillway, water also flowed through the main spillway that was significantly damaged from erosion. Officials said they'll assess the damage starting Monday. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (5 of ) In this Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, water flows down Oroville Dam's main spillway near Oroville, Calif. Water began flowing over the emergency spillway at the Oroville Dam on Saturday for the first time in its nearly 50-year history after heavy rainfall. In addition to the emergency spillway, water also flowed through the main spillway that was significantly damaged from erosion. Officials said they'll assess the damage starting Monday. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (6 of ) Jason Newton, of the Department of Water Resources, takes a picture of water going over the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Water started flowing over the emergency spillway, at the nation's tallest dam, for the first time Saturday morning after erosion damaged the Northern California dam's main spillway.(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (7 of ) This Friday, Feb. 10, 2017 image from video provided by the office of Assemblyman Brian Dahle shows water flowing over an emergency spillway of the Oroville Dam in Oroville, Calif., during a helicopter tour by the Butte County Sheriff's office. About 150 miles northeast of San Francisco, Lake Oroville is one of Californias largest man-made lakes, and the 770-foot-tall Oroville Dam is the nation's tallest. (Josh F.W. Cook/Office of Assemblyman Brian Dahle via AP) (8 of ) Jason Newton, left, of the Department of Water Resources, takes a picture of water going over the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Water started flowing over the spillway,at the nation's tallest dam, for the first time Saturday morning after erosion damaged the Northern California dam's main spillway.(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (9 of ) A employee of the Department of Water Resources watches as water flows over the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Water started flowing over the spillway, at the nation's tallest dam, for the first time Saturday morning after erosion damaged the Northern California dam's main spillway.(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (10 of ) Muddy water rushes down the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam, Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Water started flowing over the emergency spillway at the nation's tallest dam for the first time Saturday after erosion damaged the Northern California dam's main spillway.(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (11 of ) E. Knight uses his smartphone to record muddy water rushing down the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam, Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Water started flowing over the emergency spillway at the nation's tallest dam for the first time Saturday after erosion damaged the Northern California dam's main spillway. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (12 of ) In this Feb. 11, 2017, photo released by the California Department of Water Resources, water flows over an emergency spillway at the Oroville Dam at Lake Oroville in Oroville, Calif. Water will continue to flow over the emergency spillway at the nation's tallest dam for another day or so, officials said Sunday. (Albert Madrid/California Department of Water Resources via AP) (13 of ) This Feb. 11, 2017, photo released by the California Department of Water Resources shows the main spillway, bottom, and an auxiliary spillway, upper, of the Oroville Dam at Lake Oroville in Oroville, Calif. Water will continue to flow over the emergency spillway at the nation's tallest dam for another day or so, officials said Sunday. (Albert Madrid/California Department of Water Resources via AP) (14 of ) A driver waits in traffic to evacuate Marysville, Calif., Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017. Thousands of residents of Marysville and other Northern California communities were told to leave their homes Sunday evening as an emergency spillway of the Oroville Dam could fail at any time unleashing flood waters from Lake Oroville, according to officials from the California Department of Water Resources. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

OLGA RODRIGUEZ AND DON THOMPSON

ASSOCIATED PRESS | February 12, 2017, 5:33PM

| Updated 2 minutes ago.

OROVILLE Thousands evacuated their Northern California homes Sunday evening after authorities warned an emergency spillway in the countrys tallest dam was in danger of failing and unleashing uncontrolled flood waters on towns below.

About 30 miles southeast of Chico, Lake Oroville is one of Californias largest man-made lakes, and the 770-foot Oroville Dam is the nations tallest.

At least 130,000 people were asked to evacuate over concerns the dams emergency spillway could fail. Hundreds of cars were in bumper-to-bumper traffic on highways and at least two shelters said they were at capacity.

The erosion at the head of the emergency spillway threatens to undermine the concrete weir and allow large, uncontrolled releases of water from Lake Oroville, the California Department of Water Resources said. Those potential flows could overwhelm the Feather River and other downstream waterways, channels and levees.

Officials say Oroville Lake levels had decreased by Sunday night as they let water flow from its heavily damaged main spillway but noted that water was still spilling over the dam.

The cities of Oroville, Gridley, Live Oak, Marysville, Wheat land, Yuba City, Plumas Lake, and Olivehurst were all under evacuation orders.

The evacuation order went out around 4 p.m. after engineers spotted a hole that was eroding back toward the top of the spillway.

Butte County Sheriff Koney Honea said engineers with the Department of Water Resources informed him shortly after 6 p.m. that the erosion on the emergency spillway at the Oroville Dam was not advancing as fast as they thought.

Unfortunately they couldnt advise me or tell me specifically how much time that would take so we had to make the very difficult and critical decision to initiate the evacuation of the Orville area and all locations south of that, he said. We needed to get people moving quickly to save lives if the worst case scenario came into fruition.

Honea said there is a plan to plug the hole by using helicopters to drop rocks into the crevasse.

Water began flowing over the emergency spillway at the Oroville Dam in Northern California on Saturday for the first time in its nearly 50-year history after heavy rainfall. Officials earlier Sunday stressed the dam itself was structurally sound and said there was no threat to the public.

Residents of Oroville, a town of 16,000 people, should head north toward Chico, and other cities should follow orders from their local law enforcement agencies, the Butte County Sheriffs office said.

The Yuba County Office of Emergency Services asked residents in the valley floor, including Marysville, a city of 12,000 people, to evacuate and take routes to the east, south, or west and avoid traveling north toward Oroville.

The California Department of Water Resources said it is releasing as much as 100,000 cubic feet per second from the main, heavily damaged spillway to try to drain the lake.

Department Kevin Dossey told the Sacramento Bee the emergency spillway was rated to handle 250,000 cubic feet per second, but it began to show weakness Sunday at a small fraction of that. Flows through the spillway peaked at 12,600 cubic feet per second at 1 a.m. Sunday and were down to 8,000 cubic feet per second by midday.

Unexpected erosion chewed through the main spillway during heavy rain earlier this week, sending chunks of concrete flying and creating a 200-foot-long, 30-foot-deep hole that continues growing. Engineers dont know what caused the cave-in, but Chris Orrock, a spokesman for the state Department of Water Resources, said it appears the dams main spillway has stopped crumbling even though its being used for water releases.

The lake is a central piece of Californias government-run water delivery network, supplying water for agriculture in the Central Valley and residents and businesses in Southern California.

Read more:
Oroville Dam's backup spillway set to fail; evacuations ordered - Santa Rosa Press Democrat

Its Neil Gorsuch, and Senate Democrats are in full howl as they try desperately to claw traction from a situation they created. Its amusing, pathetic and not a little dangerous.

Comforted by the foolish belief that, because he hadnt a popular majority President Trump is a passing aberration they can ignore, Democrats from safe seats in the bastions of Progressivism continue to sneer at his voters and ignore his picks. Heres a thought: If you take your dishes and dolly and go home when you cant have your way, it reveals you for the petulant children you are, bereft of the character for the responsibility your office confers.

As for congressional Republicans: Its your turn. You asked for this opportunity repeatedly, promising each time to do great things. Better get doing them instead of turning over every rock in sight, searching for another excuse to avoid action and responsibility. Time to cowboy up and keep your word; the president is.

The coming four years will be difficult; power fights to perpetuate itself, and that fight can be ugly. The battle over Neil Gorsuchs confirmation is a preview of things to come.

Already one can see the outline of attack. First, attempts to marginalize as extreme: Senator Schumers comments about bipartisan support was the opening shot; bipartisanship has long been the cry of the minority party, but if anyone thinks the left wing of Senate Democrats will accept someone to the right of Sonia Sotomayor, that person hasissues. Bipartisanship is Schumer-speak for No conservative need apply.

Second, calumny. Nancy Pelosi assures us Neil Gorsuch will poison our food, water, air and court appearances. If that does not work, he will doubtless slip into our homes in the dead of night and murder us all in our beds. Its utter lunacy, but its part of the standard Democrat playbook. Remember the television ad about Paul Ryan throwing his granny off a cliff?

Then theres the really nasty stuff: No, Neil Gorsuch did not found the Fascism Forever Club at Georgetown prep school. So say his classmates, teachers and school documents. But media from US News to Salon insisted he did until the story was exposed as another example of fake news. Expect much more of this.

Finally there is the argument that the seat really belongs to Merrick Garland, Obamas nominee whose name never came before the Senate. Nothing better illustrates the Democrats elitism and sense of entitlement: it is not Merrick Garlands seat, as it was not Antonin Scalias before him. It, as all others in government, belongs to the people; those who occupy them are merely temporary employees and its long past time many in Washington were reminded of that fact, unpleasant though it may be to them. One might also note that Senate Republicans were only heeding the advice of Joe Biden, who argued in 1992 as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee that no nominee of a president in his last year should be accepted; Senator McConnell simply repeated his argument.

Those who call for a filibuster of Gorsuch to pay them back for Garland seem to forget earlier examples of Democrat conduct toward Republican nominees, Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas among them. Everyone would now be better served by understanding that evil treatment will beget more of the same, causing unhealthy excitement among more rabid partisans and slowly poisoning the decorum on which our Republic depends.

Make no mistake. Progressives will oppose Neil Gorsuch not for reasons they will speak, but because he believes in the Heresy of Originalism: he thinks the Constitution means exactly what it says it does. No more, no less. This has profound implications, because it posits a federal government of strictly limited and explicit powers instead of one that feels perfectly justified in telling citizens how much fat they can consume and how little water a toilet must use.

Judge Gorsuch believes the Constitution should not be bent like a pretzel to accommodate fashionable social theory. If change be required, there is an explicit process that doesnt involve applying foreign law, as Justices Ginsberg and Breyer would like; nor searching constitutional penumbras for the shadows of shadows. He also understands that, in delineating rights one must be careful not to expand the rights of one group at the expense of the rights of others. For this alone, Progressives will try to bury him, by fair means or foul.

For this alone, he deserves a place on the nations highest court.

Morgan Liddick writes a weekly column for the Summit Daily News. Email him at mcliddick@hotmail.com

Link:
Liddick: Democrat nonsense over a nonesuch Gorsuch (column) - Summit Daily News

February 11, 2017 2:57 PM

DENVER (CBS4) Theres a push to level the playing field for charter schools in Colorado when it comes to funding.

According to CBS4 Political Specialist Shaun Boyd, it is one of the most contentious education bills this session. Supporters of the bill say combining all the charter school students into one district it would be the biggest in the state, and yet they say those students are being literally short-changed.

They say while charter schools educate 12 percent of public school students in the state they receive 20 percent less funding.

The bill before the Senate Education Committee would require school districts to share local property taxes equally with charter schools on a per-student basis.

Supporters say there are 125,000 charter school students in the state. If the bill passes, it would mean an additional $96 million for charter schools next school year.

Most voters dont know this. They are writing out a property tax check, or it comes out of their mortgage, and they think they are funding public schools; and sadly their local districts are putting their fingers on the scale that were going to fund some public schools, not all public school students, said Sen. Owen Hill, R-Colorado Springs.

We look at the needs of students individual needs so in order for us to meet those needs, we dont look at how much money comes into the district with the child. We take the entire pot of funds that are available all of those different sources, including local revenues as well as state. And then we do what we can do to meet the needs every individual student, Linda Van Matre with the Colorado Association of School Boards said.

Opponents say a one-size-fits-all approach to funding doesnt work and that school boards need flexibility to dole out funds based on things like the number of special-needs students in a school.

Lawmakers took up a similar bill last year and it failed, but after the election it isnt the same Legislature as last year and the bill has a Republican and a Democrat as cosponsors.

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Contentious Education Bill Has Republican & Democrat Sponsors - CBS Local

(1 of ) Muddy water rushes down the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam, Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Water started flowing over the emergency spillway at the nation's tallest dam for the first time Saturday after erosion damaged the Northern California dam's main spillway.(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (2 of ) Muddy water rushes down the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam, Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Water started flowing over the emergency spillway at the nation's tallest dam for the first time Saturday after erosion damaged the Northern California dam's main spillway.(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (3 of ) Water flows through break in the wall of the Oroville Dam spillway, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. The torrent chewed up trees and soil alongside the concrete spillway before rejoining the main channel below. Engineers don't know what caused what state Department of Water Resources spokesman Eric See called a "massive" cave-in that is expected to keep growing until it reaches bedrock. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) (4 of ) Water flows through break in the wall of the Oroville Dam spillway, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2017, in Oroville, Calif. Earlier this week, chunks of concrete went flying off the spillway, creating a 200-foot-long, 30-foot deep hole that continues to grow. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

MICHAEL BALSAMO AND RICH PEDRONCELLI

ASSOCIATED PRESS | February 11, 2017, 3:13PM

| Updated 15 hours ago.

OROVILLE, Calif. Water started flowing over an emergency spillway at the nations tallest dam, on Lake Oroville, for the first time Saturday after erosion damaged the Northern California dams main spillway.

Officials hoped to avoid using Oroville Dams emergency spillway, fearing it could cause trees to fall and leave debris cascading into water that rushes through the Feather River, into the Sacramento River and on to the San Francisco Bay. Crews prepared for several days, clearing trees and brush.

Water began running over the emergency spillway around 8 a.m., according to Californias Department of Water Resources. It was the first time the emergency spillway has been used in the reservoirs nearly 50-year history.

Water was expected to continuing flowing over the emergency spillway for 38 to 56 hours, agency spokesman Eric See said at a news conference Saturday afternoon. In addition to the emergency spillway, water is also flowing through the main spillway that was significantly damaged from erosion, he said.

This is a very unusual event for us here in Oroville, See said.

Unexpected erosion chewed through the main spillway earlier this week, sending chunks of concrete flying and creating a 200-foot-long, 30-foot-deep hole that continues growing. Engineers dont know what caused the cave-in that is expected to keep getting bigger until it reaches bedrock.

Bill Croyle, the Department of Water Resources acting director, said officials are continuously monitoring the erosion both on site and through cameras. This is mother nature kind of kicking us a few times here, he said.

Croyle said the main spillway will need a complete replacement from the damage. Officials noted earlier this week that the cost of repairing the dam could approach $100 million, but they noted the estimate was an early, ballpark figure.

Officials have stressed Oroville Dam is sound and there is no imminent threat to the public.

State officials also had been attempting to rescue millions of hatchery-raised fish imperiled by muddy water flowing downstream alongside the damaged spillway after sections of its concrete walls collapsed earlier this week

About 150 miles northeast of San Francisco, Lake Oroville is one of Californias largest man-made lakes, and the 770-foot-tall Oroville Dam is the nations tallest. The lake is a central piece of Californias government-run water delivery network, supplying water for agriculture in the Central Valley and residents and businesses in Southern California.

Continued here:
Water flowing over Lake Oroville's emergency spillway - Santa Rosa Press Democrat