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High-powered guests at a controversial dinner series hosted by former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo were treated to custom-made gifts that cost taxpayers more than $10,000, according to documents obtained by an independent watchdog this week. Pompeo spent a total of $10,433 on 400 engraved pens made in China, embossed with the emblem of the Madison Dinners, an event series that raised concerns within the State Department inspector general’s office over its questionable diplomatic value and political overtones.The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a liberal-leaning government watchdog also known as CREW, obtained documents on the customized gifts through...

There has been quite a bit of speculation on whether voters should have used Sharpies to cast their ballots in Maricopa County. Social media posts being circulated in the Phoenix area are saying that if anyone used a Sharpie to fill out their ballot, their votes could be tossed. We received several messages on Election Day and into Wednesday that many polling places offered Sharpies to those voting in person. However, there were reports that some Sharpie-filled ballots were not counted, while others who used ballpoint pen had no issues. Video of voters complaining about poll workers handing them sharpies...

Louisiana Rep. Mike Johnson offered Nancy Pelosi some souvenir acquittal pens after the Senate voted ‘not guilty’ on articles of impeachment Wednesday. Johnson, a member of President Trump’s impeachment defense team, can apparently troll with the best of them. “Just in case Speaker Pelosi is too torn up to hand out acquittal pens, I went ahead and picked some up for our exceptional impeachment defense team,” Johnson tweeted. First off – a ‘torn up’ pun referencing the House Speaker’s staged temper tantrum at the State of the Union is a thing of beauty. Second, Johnson is subtly blasting Pelosi for...

President Trump appeared to mock House Speaker Nancy Pelosi this week by gleefully handing out souvenir pens at the USMCA signing ceremony — a move that came after Pelosi was slammed for handing out souvenir pens with her name on them on the day she signed the resolution to transmit two articles of impeachment against Trump to the Senate. Pelosi, D-Calif., gave out the commemorative pens Jan. 15 to a number of House Democrats who were involved in impeachment, a stark contrast from what she had repeatedly said was a “somber” and “prayerful” act. This led a number of commentators...

Wait.. is he mocking Nancy?

Thought it well past time to get a 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs discussion thread going, now just 2 games into the 2017 Playoffs.

FORT MADISON, IOWA -- Only ghosts and shadows haunt the empty halls of Sheaffer Pens, the onetime giant pen manufacturer on H Street. Its locked doors and worn brick stand like weary sentinels along the banks of the Mississippi in this struggling southeast Iowa river-and-railroad town. Rust weeps through the paint on the window frames; the once magnificent illuminated-letters sign with the trademark white dot that faced Illinois is gone, no longer serving as a gatekeeper for its fortress of employees. At its peak, it employed more than 2,500 people in a town of 14,000; nearly everyone here had someone...

Two teenagers accused of killing a manafter he introduced them to a female prostitute will be charged with second-degree murder, a judge ruled Thursday morning... Llano told police he had Hypollite in a choke hold while Xolo stabbed him with a pen and hit him with a broken glassbottle. Xolo denied using the bottle but admitted to stabbing Hypollite with a pen. When officers arrived, they saw two teenagers hitting a man who was on the ground, said Hallandale Police Chief Dwayne Flournoy. The teenagers then ran away. Officers soon found Hypollite's body.

You didn't have to believe in omens to find it a bit odd that on the subway ride toward Mellon Arena yesterday, "I'm gettin' nuttin' for Christmas" seemed to be squawking in a continuous loop. This was right at the top of zero hour, when the long-awaited, viciously anticipated casino licensing issue would finally be decided. Twenty minutes later, the Penguins had begun practice on the NHL's oldest living hockey pond, and at precisely 11:27 a.m., the franchise learned it was indeed getting nothing for Christmas. Oh yeah, mommy and daddy are mad, the NHL is mad, even the Rooneys...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2006 – Who could better share pearls of wisdom with military kids about how to cope during a parent's deployment or yet another move than a military wife and mom who's gone through the travails herself for more than 20 years? Angela Sportelli-Rehak, a Marine Corps wife and mother, is working on her third book to help military children cope with the challenges of military life. Courtesy photo   Angela Sportelli-Rehak, wife of Marine Corps Lt. Col. Dennis Rehak, combined her personal experience with background as a professional counselor and professor to write two children's books about...

LA authorities warn of more booby-trapped pens Dan Glaister in Los Angeles Wednesday December 7, 2005 The Guardian (UK) The authorities in Los Angeles have issued a warning to pupils after the discovery of three exploding pens. The latest booby-trapped device went off on Friday morning when a pupil picked up a marker pen lying on the floor in the boys' toilets. It went off in his hands. In August two other devices went off at El Monte district schools, injuring two others. The victims suffered minor burns and scratches on their hands and faces. Article continues

PITTSBURGH (AP) - The Pittsburgh Penguins have hired an adviser from the Al Gore and John Kerry U.S. presidential campaigns to help in the NHL team's pursuit of a gambling licence. David Morehouse, a 44-year-old native of Pittsburgh, will serve as the Penguins' senior consultant for special projects. The state legislature legalized slot machines last year. The Penguins plan to use proceeds from the slots parlour to build a new downtown arena. Morehouse most recently served as John Kerry's travelling chief of staff. He was a senior adviser to Al Gore from 1999-2001, working on the Gore presidential campaign. He...

When term papers get graded this school year, many students who turn in sloppy work won't be seeing red. An increasingly popular grading theory insists red ink is stressful and demoralizes students, while purple, the preferred color, has a more calming effect. "I never use red to grade papers because it stands out like, 'Oh, here's what you did wrong.' " said Melanie Irvine, a third-grade teacher at Pacific Rim Elementary in Carlsbad. "Purple is a more approachable color." Irvine said that in elementary schools, it's unnecessary to point out every error. Instead, a teacher should find a more delicate...

Man arrested for going 140 mph over limit Wabasha, MN, Sep. 21 (UPI) -- The Minnesota State Patrol pilot couldn't believe his stopwatch when he clocked a motorcycle on U.S. 61 traveling at 205 mph. "I was in total disbelief," Al Loney told Tuesday's St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press. "I had to double-check my watch because, in 27 years, I'd never seen anything move that fast." In fact, Looney said the motorcycle was traveling faster than his airplane. Loney radioed another state trooper, who stopped the two motorcyclists Saturday and arrested the faster rider, Samuel Armstrong Tilley, 20, for reckless...