Gee Whiz, Saxby Chambliss Actually Said 'Hormones' Turn Troops into Rapists

Gee Whiz, Saxby Chambliss Actually Said 'Hormones' Turn Troops into Rapists

There was an important conversation on Capitol Hill between the nation's top military officials, the Senate Armed Services committee, and a bunch of other men today — the senior senator from Georgia among them — but Saxby Chambliss, in what was surely the most astonishing moment of a hearing on the sexual assault crisis in the armed forces, essentially blamed military rapes on "the hormone level created by nature." Here's the full quote:

The young folks coming in to each of your services are anywhere from 17 to 22 or 23. Gee whiz, the hormone level created by nature sets in place the possibility for these types of things to occur. So we've got to be very careful how we address it on our side.

Make no mistake: Chambliss, as The Huffington Post's Amanda Terkel notes, spent much of a long day behind the deis decrying the recent string of reports out of the Pentagon and analyzing a pending bill to do something about the epidemic. But Chambliss's phrasing almost sounded as if he wanted to defend the attackers: "[H]is comments echo the "boys will be boys" mentality that has been used throughout the years to dismiss sexual harassment and assault and avoid taking action to prevent them," Terkel writes.

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Blaming rapes on nature and hormones also paints the sad picture that men are somehow naturally inclined to becoming rapists. "You want your misandry? I'll give you your misandry: Thinking that male hormones make men rapists is straight-up misandry," tweeted The Daily Beast's Amanda Hauser.

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Chambliss, of course, is known for running his mouth. Back during a debate on same-sex marriage in March, the retiring Senator stated: "I'm not gay ... So I'm not going to marry one." Those words prompted a pretty great Stephen Colbert segment.

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But Chambliss outdid himself today, nearly hijacking a hearing with much more at stake. Sen. Kirstin Gillibrand — one of a few very key women on a committee in a room otherwise visually dominated by men — had the runner-up quote of the marathon hearings, stating: "Not every single commander can distinguish between a slap on the ass and a rape." And that would get attention any other day when Chambliss wasn't busy giving America his best Todd Akin.

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Here's the full video:

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Meet the Unconstitutional Abortion Bill That's Advancing Through the House

Meet the Unconstitutional Abortion Bill That's Advancing Through the House

Republican Representative Trent Franks wanted this May to be the sequel to America's "Newtown moment" on gun control. But instead of pushing for background checks, Franks is trying to pass a nationwide ban on abortions after 20 weeks. Even though his pitch — America would be so outraged by the Gosnell trial that they'd support, even demand, legislation similar to his — didn't pan out, the bill itself is still making its way through the House.

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Today, the bill (which originally only applied to D.C) was passed along by a House Judiciary subcommittee chaired by Franks in an expanded form — if it were to become law, which seems unlikely, it would now apply nationwide. The bill will move to the full committee, chaired by Rep.Bob Goodlatte, R-Va, who has a pretty consistent anti-abortion voting record. Franks, in a statement, declared today a personal win:

"I understand the unfortunate reality that today's markup will be surrounded by some degree of controversy. But we, as a nation, find ourselves at a point at which we don't offer unborn children even the most basic protections – even protections we extend to animals and property. The trial of Kermit Gosnell exposed late abortions for what they really are: relocated infanticide...I pray we use this as a 'teachable moment,' in the words of President Obama, and can agree that, at the very least, we are better than dismembering babies who can feel every excruciating moment. I look forward to the bill's moving on the full judiciary committee and to an eventual vote on this necessary, common-sense measure."

Franks's bill is called the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, and is similar to a state law in Franks's home state of Arizona, recently struck down in a federal court. It would ban abortions after 20 weeks, with exceptions only if the mother's life is in danger. In other words, later-term abortions for pregnancies resulting from incest, rape, and those that could pose significant (but non-lethal) health threats to the mother would be outlawed. The percentage of abortions affected in the country by the bill would be tiny — just 1.5 percent of abortions are performed after 21 weeks. So why would anti-abortion activists aim so low? Because the bill, if it became law, and if it survived a constitutional challenge (reminder: those are pretty big "if's"), would change the constitutional standard for determining the legality of abortions. As we explained before, the cut-off point of 20 weeks is based on what's called the fetal pain standard, which relies on a scientifically disputed claim that fetuses can feel pain at that point. That's against the precedent set by the Supreme Court, which has ruled that abortions are legal so long as the fetus isn't "viable," which is usually around 24 weeks. Any law like Franks's would, by going against that precedent, likely see a swift challenge in court, which is exactly what anti-abortion opponents are hoping for.

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Today's Constitution and Civil Justice subcommittee markup of the bill ended with a 6-4 vote down party lines. Democrats on the subcommittee, noting that the bill was unconstitutional, also objected to the visual their discussion created: the 10-person subcommittee is entirely made up of men. Democratic Rep. John Conyers of Michigan put it this way, according to the Huffington Posts's report on the markup: "No good has ever come from an all-male committee deciding the law about a woman's body. This is not appropriate."

Nuke missile crews cite morale-sapping pressures

WASHINGTON (AP) — Officers with a finger on the trigger of the Air Force's most powerful nuclear missiles are complaining of a wide array of morale-sapping pressures, according to internal emails obtained by The Associated Press.

The complaints shed fresh light on dissatisfactions roiling this critical arm of the Air Force, an undercurrent that has captured the attention of the service's leaders.

Key themes among the complaints include working under "poor leadership" and being stuck in "dead-end careers" in nuclear weapons, one email said. The sentiments were expressed privately by members of the 91st Missile Wing at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., in an unpublished study for the Air Force. The complaints also said there was a need for more experienced missile officers, a less arduous work schedule and "leaders who will listen."

Taken together, the complaints suggest sagging morale in arguably the most sensitive segment of the American military. The 91st at Minot operates 150 intercontinental ballistic missiles — one-third of the entire ICBM force. The missiles stand in underground silos on constant alert for launch within minutes of a presidential order.

In the nuclear missile business, morale is not a trivial matter. Mental state is treated as a vital sign — like physical health, criminal record and technical knowhow — that must be monitored to indicate whether an individual is fit to be trusted with weapons of such destructive power.

The question of morale at Minot coincides with trouble inside the ranks of the 91st. The Associated Press reported on May 8 that 17 launch crew members — representing about 10 percent of the launch crew force — had been taken off duty for remedial training following a poor showing in a key portion of an inspection. The story was based on an April 12 internal Air Force email that said the 91st suffered from "rot" within its ranks, including tolerance of weapons safety rules violations. Air Force leaders told Congress the problem was less about poor performance than about poor attitude.

Last week the Air Force said two additional launch officers at Minot had been sidelined, for a total of 19. An Air Force spokesman, Lt. Col. Ronald Watrous, said that 10 of the 19 had completed the two-month process of regaining certification. Most of the rest are expected to do so by the end of this month.

The AP obtained a second internal Air Force email describing morale issues at Minot, which were hinted at broadly in the first email. Both notes were written by Lt. Col. Jay Folds, deputy commander of the unit in charge of the 91st's three missile squadrons at Minot.

The second Folds email, dated March 21, said complaints were registered in a confidential study initiated by the Air Force's most senior officer, Gen. Mark Welsh, who was considering "solutions to our problems." The study was done between December 2012 and February 2013 by the Rand Corp., a federally funded think tank that Welsh enlisted to study workforce issues inside the three missile wings, including the one at Minot.

The email briefly summarized complaints at Minot; it did not refer to what people at the other two missile wings — at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo., and Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. — told the researchers.

The Air Force confirmed to the AP that Folds and his immediate superior, Col. Bryan Haderlie, are leaving their posts, but Watrous, spokesman for the Air Force Global Strike Command, said both are being moved in a "normal rotation."

In a telephone interview about the Rand study and the Folds emails, Maj. Gen. Michael J. Carey, who as commander of the 20th Air Force is responsible for all three missile wings, acknowledged a degree of discontent at Minot but said more study is required before he and Welsh can pinpoint all the dimensions of the issue.

Asked about the complaints about weak leadership, Carey said on May 31, "I certainly take it to heart."

Carey, who was briefed on Rand's findings on March 20, said that despite the various complaints, morale at Minot is "not bad." He said that on a recent visit to the 91st he found missile crews optimistic and upbeat.

"They are not unhappy," he said. Carey said some complaints are rooted in a lack of communication from higher headquarters about plans for modernizing the nuclear force even as the Air Force faces tighter budgets.

Carey said he could not provide a copy of Rand's findings because they have not yet been presented to Welsh. The study was based on interviews with missile launch officers as well as enlisted airmen who support that work.

In the earlier email obtained by the AP, Folds said there was "such rot" within the force that launch officers tolerated weapons safety rule violations, possible violations of missile launch codes and other failings deemed unacceptable. The AP story based on that email triggered strong responses from some in Congress, including Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who wondered aloud what lay behind the turmoil inside the missile force.

Part of the answer, in the view of many experts, is the shrinking role and size of the U.S. nuclear force and, consequently, a reduced sense of purpose among launch crews who do 24-hour shifts in control centers buried deep below ground.

The U.S. has 450 deployed ICBMs, down from about 1,000 at the end of the Cold War, and current projections call for only 420 within five years. Some have argued for eliminating the missiles altogether.

Hans Kristensen, a nuclear weapons expert at the Federation of American Scientists, said that ICBM launch crew officers have told him over a period of years that morale has been on the decline.

"You can't take away the fact that the mission they sit and wait for" — to launch a nuclear attack — "is very unlikely to ever happen," Kristensen said. "That affects career choices and morale because they talk to their other Air Force buddies who come home after flying B-52s over Afghanistan or Iraq and it's very exciting to be in that part of the Air Force" while the ICBM launch crews "sit in a hole in the Midwest and wait for nothing."

A Pentagon advisory panel report two years ago cited multiple aspects of a morale problem within the nuclear force. It said the Air Force's traditional emphasis on fighter and bomber operations leaves nuclear officers feeling marginalized, all the more because their work is out of public view and veiled in secrecy.

"They perceive a lack of knowledge of and respect for their mission from within the larger Air Force," the panel reported.

Robert L. Goldich, a military affairs expert formerly with the Congressional Research Service, said the Air Force faces a difficult task in attracting and keeping high-quality officers to fill the missile launch crew positions.

"They can of course assign new second lieutenants involuntarily, as any service does, but that wouldn't exactly create high esprit de corps in a component of the Air Force that just seems less and less relevant — and, importantly, is virtually unknown to the American public," Goldich said in an email exchange.

___

The World May Never See Rob Ford's Crack Video After All

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford says he did nothing wrong in connection to a controversy over rerouted TTC buses.

The World May Never See Rob Ford's Crack Video After All

And just like that, one of the most enticing political scandals in quite some time potentially goes up in smoke. Gawker's John Cook just updated the world on the site's crowdfunded efforts to purchase the video of Rob Ford (allegedly!) smoking crack cocaine, and it is not a breakthrough — even if the truth is out there, even if the other team hunting down the tape (besides the cops, and Ford) says the sellers are "running scared right now."

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Cook reports he heard from the middle man handing negotiations between Gawker and the video's sellers on Friday, but now it's missing. "It's gone. Leave me alone," was the message relayed to Cook. The Atlantic Wire emailed Cook on Monday to ask how negotiations for the footage were going and Tuesday's update, evidently, is why we didn't receive a response. A full $200,000 "crackstarter" or not, the video was no longer for sale. Dammit. Cook has more info on why, exactly, the first hard video evidenceof a major elected official doing drugs while in office has now likely vanished:

According to the intermediary, these two factors—a fear of being identified, and a strong desire from the Somali community to make the whole thing go away—led the owner of the video to go to ground and soured the owner's relationship with the intermediary. I frankly find it difficult to believe that a crack dealer would be more responsive to the desires of his ethnic community than to a $200,000 bounty. But I have heard independently from others familiar with the goings-on in Toronto that leaders in its Somali community have determined who the owner is and brought intense pressure to bear on him and his family. Toronto's "Little Mogadishu" neighborhood is located in the ward Rob Ford represented when he was a city councillor; though he is a conservative and a racist buffoon, I am told he has long-standing connections to Somali power brokers there.

Ford initially offered a carefully worded denial about being addicted to crack cocaine, a week after Gawker broke the scandal wide open. (The Toronto Star also says its staffers have viewed but not obtained the video.) But, three days later, Ford was comfortable enough to claim the video doesn't exist, a postion he's held in many interviews since.

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Where the video went, though, is pretty unclear. The police allegedly knew of its existence, and where to find it, a few days after the video leaked. The big problem? So did members of Ford's staff, and some remain employed at Toronto city hall. (Many have quit over the last few weeks.) Cook also points to the leaked details, mostly from the mayor's staff, that led to the media locating the Etobicoke apartment on Dixon Road in Ford's former riding, or district, where the tape was allegedly being held.

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So: What now? There are allegedly more copies of the tape, thought to be stashed outside of Toronto city limits for safe keeping, but who controls the access to those tapes is also pretty unclear. For what it's worth, Michael Cooke, the editor of the Star, said this today:

"We are working towards obtaining it," Cooke said.

"The people who have this video, they're running scared right now. They're worried about deportation. They're worried about being charged criminally. But the video is slowly making its way to daylight, and when that happens, we'll all be better off."

Cook, of course, was probably the scandal lover's best bet for this footage ever surfacing. Indeed, earlier on Tuesday, various remaining Ford staffers were amazed when the press scrum outside of the mayor's office dwindled into nothingness. "We're not news anymore!" said Sunny Petrujkic, the mayor's acting press secretary.

Rising Mississippi River threatening towns

In this Tuesday, June 4, 2013 aerial photo, floodwaters surround the Argosy Casino complex in Alton, Ill. The casino has been closed because of the flooding since early Sunday and does not expect to re-open until at least Friday. (AP Photo/The Telegraph, John Badman) THE NEWS-DEMOCRAT AND THE POST-DISPATCH OUT

This Tuesday, June 4, 2013 aerial photo shows the flooded southbound lanes of U.S. Highway 67 after a levee broke Monday. The flooding closed the southbound lanes of the Clark Bridge, top, in Alton, Ill., to all traffic. (AP Photo/The Telegraph,John Badman ) THE NEWS-DEMOCRAT AND THE POST-DISPATCH OUT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Mississippi River communities scrambling Tuesday to fend off the rain-engorged waterway got discouraging news: More rains looming across much of the nation's midsection threatened to slow the potential retreat of the renegade river.

Such an outlook may not be welcomed in the northeast Missouri town of West Alton, where a makeshift levee's breach Monday fanned worries that the 570-resident town — which was mostly swept away by a flood in 1993 — would be inundated again. A voluntary evacuation advisory before the breach was fixed was heeded by just 15 percent of the town's residents, but "everyone else is ready to go at a moment's notice" if the hastily shored-up barrier shows signs of giving way, Fire Chief Rick Pender said Tuesday.

For now, he said, "everything is stable," with much of the flooding corralled in a railroad bed acting as a town-protecting channel.

"There are some spots not looking pretty (as defenses), but they're still holding the water back," Pender told The Associated Press by telephone. "Everyone is just monitoring the sandbags and barriers, waiting for this water to come down."

The latest National Weather Service forecasts suggest that was to happen later Tuesday. But more rains expected in coming days, from St. Louis north to Minnesota and westward across some of the Great Plains, stood to drop another inch of precipitation here and there, adding more water to the Missouri River and the Mississippi River into which it feeds, National Weather Service hydrologist Mark Fuchs said.

"We're not talking about huge amounts, but any amount when the soil already is wet is going to slow the rivers' retreat," Fuchs said from his St. Louis-area office. "If you take that into account, there's not going to be a big drop in the river levels any time soon."

Across the river in Illinois, in the 28,000-resident city of Alton north of St. Louis, floodwaters already forced the closure of the local casino and the scenic "Great River Road" leading out of it to the north. By late Monday, floodwaters had swamped some of the Clark Bridge linking the city to West Alton, halting traffic from making it into Missouri.

Yet there was reason for optimism: The National Weather Service as of Tuesday afternoon said the river at Alton was expected to crest that evening, some 13 feet above flood stage.

The worst was yet to come south of St. Louis near Cape Girardeau, Mo., where the river was to continue to swell higher until reaching a peak Thursday night, again some 13 feet above flood stage.

That rapid rise has produced a feverish sandbagging effort in nearby Dutchtown, where the river threatened to send water into about a third of the homes in the tiny town of about 100 people. It also was threatening to make another nearby community — Allenville, population 117 — an island. In Dutchtown, dozens of prison inmates bussed in were working shoulder to shoulder with other volunteers Tuesday, working to bolster the makeshift barrier.

"So far, the levees are doing fine," Dutchtown Alderwoman Shirley Moss said. "We still have a lot of water coming this way, and we're still all out here working. It's very treacherous, and you just don't know how much you need to do to prevent this water from coming into town.

"We're doing all we can, with all the help we can get."