Lima Charlie's U.S./D.C. Week in Review

|17th of June – Lima Charlie’s U.S./Washington End-of-Week News Briefing:

#OrlandoUnited – The worst mass shooting in US History began at 2:02 AM on June 12^th, this past Sunday. Orlando Police Chief John Mina reported that an officer working at the Pulse Nightclub received a call for shots fired. After engaging in an exchange of gunfire with #OPD, gunman Omar Mateen held hostages in the gay nightclub’s restroom. Around 2:30 Mateen called 911 three times, allegedly professing allegiance to ISIS and memorializing his intent to commit an act similar to the Boston Bombing. Around 5:05 AM, Police rescued about 30 hostages and breached the building using a Bearcat to break a hole in the wall. At 5:53 AM, #OPD shot Mateen and 2 hours later, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer delivered a statement to his community, conveying messages of #Strength and #Resilience. Lima Charlie honors the 49 victims of this tragic event and offers heartfelt condolences to their families:

Stanley Almodovar III, 23 years old

Amanda Alvear, 25 years old

Oscar A Aracena-Montero, 26 years old

Rodolfo Ayala-Ayala, 33 years old

Antonio Davon Brown, 29 years old

Darryl Roman Burt II, 29 years old

Angel L. Candelario-Padro, 28 years old

Juan Chevez-Martinez, 25 years old

Luis Daniel Conde, 39 years old

Cory James Connell, 21 years old

Tevin Eugene Crosby, 25 years old

Deonka Deidra Drayton, 32 years old

Simon Adrian Carrillo Fernandez, 31 years old

Leroy Valentin Fernandez, 25 years old

Mercedez Marisol Flores, 26 years old

Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz, 22 years old

Juan Ramon Guerrero, 22 years old

Paul Terrell Henry, 41 years old

Frank Hernandez, 27 years old

Miguel Angel Honorato, 30 years old

Javier Jorge-Reyes, 40 years old

Jason Benjamin Josaphat, 19 years old

Eddie Jamoldroy Justice, 30 years old

Anthony Luis Laureanodisla, 25 years old

Christopher Andrew Leinonen, 32 years old

Alejandro Barrios Martinez, 21 years old

Brenda Lee Marquez McCool, 49 years old

Gilberto Ramon Silva Menendez, 25 years old

Kimberly Morris, 37 years old

Akyra Monet Murray, 18 years old

Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, 20 years old

Geraldo A. Ortiz-Jimenez, 25 years old

Eric Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, 36 years old

Joel Rayon Paniagua, 32 years old

Jean Carlos Mendez Perez, 35 years old

Enrique L. Rios, Jr., 25 years old

Jean C. Nives Rodriguez, 27 years old

Xavier Emmanuel Serrano Rosado, 35 years old

Christopher Joseph Sanfeliz, 24 years old

Yilmary Rodriguez Solivan, 24 years old

Edward Sotomayor Jr., 34 years old

Shane Evan Tomlinson, 33 years old

Martin Benitez Torres, 33 years old

Jonathan Antonio Camuy Vega, 24 years old

Juan P. Rivera Velazquez, 37 years old

Luis S. Vielma, 22 years old

Franky Jimmy Dejesus Velazquez, 50 years old

Luis Daniel Wilson-Leon, 37 years old

Jerald Arthur Wright, 31 years old

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Presidential candidates #HillaryClinton and #DonaldTrump both spoke out following the Orlando attack on Sunday to address how to prevent such attacks in the future. Both were accused of manipulating facts. Clinton stated that those “too dangerous to get on a plane” should be “too dangerous to buy a gun in America” while the insinuated no-fly list did not include the shooter after the FBI had removed him. Trump stated, “the killer, whose name I will not use, or ever say, was born in Afghan, of Afghan parents, who immigrated to the United States.” Trump had misspoken, as his teleprompter read correctly that the shooter was born in the United States.

The #SCOTUS has a little under three weeks left before it is scheduled to recess for the summer. Before this break, however, the court is set to rule on 3 high-profile cases concerning #AffirmativeAction #Immigration and #Abortion. A decision in what may be the most critical abortion case in almost 25 years will soon be handed down, as will a Texas University affirmative action ruling, and a challenge to a #POTUS executive order on legal immigration. With Justice #ElenaKagan recused from the affirmative action lawsuit due to her work as a solicitor general in the matter, a four-judge majority could end up delivering the ruling. In the remaining two cases, a 4-4 ruling would result in the lower courts’ ruling standing. Down to eight members since the death of Justice #AntoninScalia in February, the #SCOTUS still has 19 opinions left to release before the end of June.

In a #PhotoFinish, Creator was ushered into the winner’s Circle on Sunday at the #2016BelmontStakes. Preakness victor Exaggerator entered the race as the favorite, only to come up short to Creator whose Co-Owner, Celebrity Chef Bobby Flay finally got to see a win for the colt he had supported since the Kentucky Derby, where Creator finished 13^th.

On Sunday Night, the #Broadway community had a monumental task. Following the deadliest shooting in US history, the group delivered the #TonyAwards with a somber, uniting opening statement by host #JamesCorden: “All we can say is you’re not on your own right now. Your tragedy is our tragedy.” And the show went on. The night belonged to Hamilton which took home 11 awards and opened and closed the show.

U.S. stock futures suffered on Tuesday, suggesting that Wall Street could face a fourth straight loss. The sagging was attributed to investor reactions to a #FederalReserve policy meeting and the coming U.K. vote on membership of the #EuropeanUnion. Opinion polls that have shown support for “leave” and “remain” at neck-and-neck, surveys suggesting growing support for an “out” vote on June 23. Randy Frederick, managing director of Trading & Derivatives at Schwab Center for Financial Research stated that, “If the U.K. stays in the European Union there is very limited upside for stocks, because essentially it’s just a status quo. If they vote to leave, there is a lot of room for downside.”

On Tuesday, the US Court Of Appeals for the #DCCircuit decisively upheld the Federal Communications Commission’s authority to regulate the internet and enforce net neutrality. This decisions stands as a powerful legal victory for not only the #FCC but all internet users who will now be able to continue to benefit from open internet regulations.

#Microsoft made its biggest acquisition ever on Monday by acquiring #LinkedIn for $26.2 billion, making it its most ambitious move in years and marking a shift further removed from the PC software. Silicon Valley experts attribute this decision to Microsoft’s new ability to connect LinkedIn with #Skype, its email system and other Microsoft enterprise products so it can, in the words of one, “recreate the connective tissue for enterprises.” This acquisition can be contrasted with a list of high-profile acquisition failures by Microsoft, including the infamous $6 billion acquisition of Nokia.

Donald Trump banned the #WashingtonPost from campaign events due to their lack of “journalistic integrity”. The ban followed the print of the Washington Post’s article entitled, “Donald Trump suggests President Obama was involved with Orlando shooting,” which was shortly changed before Trump’s commentary to “Donald Trump seems to connect President Obama to Orlando shooting.” Trump has had similar issues with the press in the past, most notably last month when he called out certain reporters at a press conference, stating, “I think the media is frankly, made up of people [who] in many cases — not in all cases — are not good people” and singling some out by name. He stated that his approach to the press would remain unchanged if he were to become president. Thomas Burr, the National Press Club president, stated after the May press conference, “Donald Trump misunderstands — or, more likely, simply opposes — the role a free press plays in a democratic society,” He continued, “Reporters are supposed to hold public figures accountable. Any American political candidate who attacks the press for doing its job is campaigning in the wrong country. In the United States, under our Constitution, a free press is a check on politicians of all parties. If we are to demand that other countries respect the tradition of a free press we must also practice that here at home.”

#BernieSanders is not being vetted as #HillaryClinton’s running mate, sources told the WSJ that he is not particularly interested in the job and believes he will exert the strongest influence in the Senate. Clinton is, however, considering #ElizabethWarren, who comes closely to Sanders on many issues. The search for Clinton’s running mate is in preliminary stages at the moment, candidates only being considered based upon public information and private conversations about issues. Clinton has not yet asked anyone to submit tax returns or any other personal information.

The #USArmy celebrated its 241st Birthday, this past Tuesday, June 14th. Our Team at Lima Charlie would like to wish all our Soldiers in the Total Army Force Army a #HappyBirthday as they continue on in their two and a half-century legacy of strength and intrepid resolve #ArmyStrong #AlwaysReady #AlwaysLeading

On Wednesday night, Connecticut Senator #ChrisMurphy delivered the #9thLongestFilibuster in the US Senate’s history. Frustrated by Senate Republicans’ refusal to allow even the most minor gun control bills onto the floor for a vote, Murphy stood his ground for 15 hours on the floor of the US Senate. This particular filibuster was unusual because filibusters are traditionally used to prevent votes on a bill, while Murphy’s aim was to get Senate Republicans to consider voting on the gun control bills before them. Whether Murphy’s filibuster will achieve much remains to be seen. The marathon filibuster ended at 2:15 AM EST and the Senator ended the night by Tweeting, “I am proud to announce that after 14+ hours on the floor, we will have a vote on closing the terror gap & universal background checks.” Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, whom many consider as a possible running-mate for Presumptive Democratic Nominee Hillary Clinton, joined Murphy on the floor of the Senate to help him maintain his filibuster. She professed, “One side shouts it was a gun that killed all those people,” Warren added. “The other side shouts it wasn’t a gun, it was a terrorist that killed all those people. And through all of the shouting, we missed what should be obvious: It was a terrorist with a gun that killed all those people, a terrorist with hate in his heart and a gun in his hand that killed all those people.”

#Gold rose to a three-year high of 931.27 pounds per ounce, although gold priced in euros reaches its highest point since April 2013, at 1,175.22 euros. In the news of other precious metals, silver fell 0.22 percent to $17.47 an ounce, platinum lost 0.3 percent to $972.20 and palladium rose 0.37 percent at $534.50.

After the release of unimpressive US payroll data for May, expectations that the US central bank would soldier ahead with interest rate increases into the summer were swiftly dashed. #Brexit concerns gave the US a boost, and yesterday, the Federal Open Market Committee delivered enough fuel to make a new high, according to Saxo Bank’s head of commodity research, Ole Hansen.

In the latest #Tech news, the #USArmy announced that #CloudComputing will now make information and IT services available to their Soldiers, allowing for an avenue for this branch of the military to significantly improve its cybersecurity capacities, lower IT hardware and software costs, and deliver capability enhancements with greater efficacy.

In #Entertainment, a veteran-made, star-studded, post-pandemic comedy debuted last night in more than 350 theaters. Raking in $500,000 in advance ticket sales, the movie, “Range 15,” features a familiar cast, including William Shatner, Sean Astin, Randy Couture, Keith David, Mindy Robinson, and Danny Trejo. The film centers on a group of veterans who wake up to find the zombie apocalypse has taken over the United States. “Range 15” stars two Medal of Honor recipients, Leroy Petry and Clint Romesha, and military MMA icons Randy Couture, Brian Stann, and Tim Kennedy. The movie was made by Nick Palmisciano, Ranger up Founder and Writer/Producer, who partnered with Article 15 Clothing, a veteran-operated apparel maker with great viral-video success, to outfit his star cast.

The #PanamaCanal widening project is likely to have a major impact on America’s east-coast ports. The expansion project will change how freight moves around the world, possibly diverting traffic from the #SuezCanal and giving larger vessels the option of going through Panama. In previous years, many container ships on voyages to Asia to the eastern seaboard would arrive at west-coast ports like #LosAngeles and #LongBeach, then moving on to their destinations by rail or road. Larger ships might now sail directly to ports in the Gulf of Mexico or the east coast, increasing shipping times as well. Vessels with liquefied natural gas from America’s shale beds will have the chance to pass through the locks for the very first time, on their way to Asia. These ships are predicted to account for 20% of cargo by volume by the year 2020.

On Tuesday, the #USSenate made history, passing a $602 defense bill which included an amendment requiring women to register for the draft. Supporters of women who serve in combat roles call the bill a major step forward for women’s participation in the military. At the time that all military roles opened to women, the command of the Marine Corps, Gen. Robert Neller and the chief of staff of the Army, Gen. Mark Milley, expressed their support of the inclusion of women in the #SelectiveService.

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