PEORIA - Lt. Governor Sheila Simon will emphasize the importance of strong female role models and empowerment of young girls on Wednesday at the Girl Scouts of Central Illinois leadership luncheon. The luncheon is part of the Girl Scouts' "Year of the Girl" celebration that recognizes the organization's 100th anniversary. The national campaign encourages individuals and community networks to foster growth and leadership opportunities for young girls so they may reach their full potential.

Simon will draw on her own experience as a professor, prosecutor and mother as she delivers her keynote address, outlining opportunities for women and girls to continue to achieve.

"I want my daughters to grow up without perceived limitations of what they can accomplish and achieve in this world," Simon said. "Every young woman should have a strong network of support, and we can help create that environment within our communities."

DATE: Wednesday, September 26

TIME: 11:30 a.m.

PLACE: Peoria Civic Center, 201 SW Jefferson Avenue, Peoria

###

Wednesday, the Inspector General for the Department of Justice issued his report on ATF's Operation Fast and Furious.

This report is a significant milestone for the family of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry.

He was killed in a firefight with illegal aliens who were armed with illegal guns from Fast and Furious.

Attorney General Holder delayed any discipline for the officials responsible for Fast and Furious until after this report was released.

The time for accountability has finally come.

There are no more excuses for inaction.

The Inspector General's non-partisan review confirmed virtually everything I heard from whistleblowers over the last year and a half.

The Justice Department tried to push all the blame on the ATF and officials in Phoenix.

But, the Inspector General confirmed that senior officials in Washington ignored red flag after red flag.

Senior officials in both the Justice Department and ATF knew or should have known that Operation Fast and Furious was putting guns into the hands of criminals.

But, they ignored the risks and failed to take steps to protect public safety.

The Inspector General also confirmed that there were major information-sharing failures between law enforcement agencies.

We are still going through the nearly 500 page report, as well as 309 pages of new documents that the Justice Department produced late Wednesday.

However, I was surprised to learn from the report that Attorney General Holder testified that he doesn't remember the conversation with me about Fast and Furious in my office on January 31, 2011.

I remember that conversation.

My staff told the Attorney General that day what whistleblowers had told us.

Specifically, we discussed in that meeting that two weapons that ATF let go in Fast and Furious were found at the murder scene of Border Patrol Agent Terry.

I emphasized that I was personally bringing it to his attention because these were very serious and credible allegations, not a just run-of-the-mill letter.

Yet, even after that meeting, the Department didn't take it seriously.

The Inspector General's independent report says so explicitly:

"We do not believe that the gravity of this allegation was met with an equally serious effort by the Department to determine whether ATF and the U.S. Attorney's Office had allowed the sale of hundreds of weapons to straw purchasers."

The Justice Department claimed that its process for writing letters to Congress was sound.

But its February 4, 2011 response was false.

DOJ later withdrew it and claimed it relied on bad information from ATF and the U.S. Attorney's Office.

However, the Inspector General agreed with me that the Justice Department's response was seriously flawed?and not just the initial response.

The Inspector General also found that the Justice Department knew its initial reply wasn't true when it reaffirmed the denial of the whistleblower allegations in a May 2, 2011 letter to me.

Instead of acknowledging that it was wrong, the Department repeatedly doubled-down on its denials.

For example, Attorney General Holder said on multiple occasions since November 2011 that the wiretap affidavits authorized by Justice Department headquarters did not put senior leadership on notice that ATF was walking guns.

Most recently, on June 7 of this year the Attorney General went before the House Judiciary Committee.

At this point, many Members of Congress had obtained and read the affidavits, even though the Justice Department did not want us to see them.

Members who reviewed them said that the affidavits contained evidence of gunwalking.

But, Attorney General Holder testified:

"I've looked at these affidavits.  I've looked at these summaries. There's nothing in those affidavits as I've reviewed them that indicates that gun walking was allowed."

Well, now the Inspector General has read them too.

His independent, non-partisan conclusion is at odds with the Attorney General.

I quote from his report: "[T]he affidavits described specific incidents that would suggest...ATF was employing a strategy of not interdicting weapons or arresting known straw purchasers."

In fact, much of the Inspector General's report is redacted because those affidavits are still under seal.

Chairman Issa and I asked the Justice Department months ago to move to unseal them so the public could decide for themselves.

Now the Inspector General has joined us and is also calling on the Department to ask for permission from the court to release the affidavits.

The Justice Department should have filed that motion months ago.

Unsealing the affidavits will allow the American people and the Terry family to see the whole story.

The details in those affidavits show that senior officials knew or should have known about gunwalking in Fast and Furious.

The Inspector General independently confirmed this point, contrary to Attorney General Holder's denials.

Those denials by the Attorney General show either incompetence or lack of truthfulness.

Congress created an explicit statutory duty for certain senior Justice Department officials to authorize all wiretap applications.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General Jason Weinstein, who served directly under Criminal Division head Lanny Breuer, was one of the officials who approved some of those affidavits.

Senior officials like Mr. Weinstein tried to claim that they shouldn't be held accountable because they only read memos summarizing the wiretaps?not the full wiretap applications.

But, the Inspector General found that Justice Department officials should review more than just the cover memo.

He said that under the statute they have a responsibility to be informed before authorizing wiretap applications.

Yet the Inspector General also found that even "a reader of the ... cover memorandum would infer from the facts that ATF agents did not take enforcement action to interdict the weapons or arrest [straw purchasers]."

So, the memo Mr. Weinstein admits he did read indicated that ATF had walked guns, according to the Inspector General.

Back in September of last year, Attorney General Holder said at a press conference:

"The notion that somehow or other this thing reaches into the upper levels of the Justice Department is something that...I don't think is supported by the facts."

Maybe the Attorney General doesn't think someone who reports directly to the head of the Criminal Division is a senior official, but I do.

As a result of the Inspector General's findings, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Weinstein has resigned.

Weinstein should be held accountable but he shouldn't take the fall for more senior officials who are also culpable.

Mr. Weinstein reported directly to Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer.

When the Justice Department sent its letter to me denying ATF ever walked guns, Breuer knew otherwise.

He knew in 2010 about gunwalking in another case, Operation Wide Receiver.

That was long before the allegations in Fast and Furious.

Yet he waited nine months before emails about Wide Receiver were about to be produced to Congress before he publicly apologized for not doing more about gunwalking in Wide Receiver.

I asked Breuer whether he had seen the draft of February 4 false letter to me.

Breuer testified: "I cannot say for sure whether I saw a draft of the letter that was sent to you."

Then, a month after Breuer's testimony, the Justice Department released more documents showing that Breuer was sent five drafts of the letter before it was sent to me.

He forwarded three of them to his personal email account.

Breuer still maintained in written responses that it was "highly unlikely" he had read the letter because he was in Mexico when it was sent.

On this matter, the Inspector General report contained a significant factual error.

The report read: "The OIG found no e-mail messages from Breuer in which he proposed edits, commented on the drafts, or otherwise indicated he had read them."

That is not true.

In response to one of the drafts Breuer received, he commented that to Weinstein that it was "great work."

That may not be a proposed edit, but it is certainly a comment.

Thus, Breuer's statement to Congress is simply not credible.

Emails show that Breuer was very engaged in the process, asking for and receiving updates from Weinstein at each stage of the drafting.

Breuer and Weinstein sent multiple emails to each other on the matter each day, with Breuer asking after a quiet period: "Jason, let me know what's happening with this."

Rather than holding him accountable for this evidence, the Inspector General report gives him a pass.

Worse, new emails produced Wednesday show that Breuer was in the weeds about his deputy, Jason Weinstein, coming to brief Senate Judiciary Committee staff a week after the Justice Department's false letter.

On February 13, 2011, Breuer sent an email about such details as what specific questions my staff asked of Weinstein at the briefing.

Breuer wrote: "The goal - and by all accounts it seems to have worked - was to communicate that ATF's work in the AZ case and others like it reflected sound judgment and investigative work."

It is clear that Breuer was in the weeds enough to know that what the Justice Department was communicating to me was undermined by the gunwalking he knew about in Wide Receiver.

He should have come forward in February 2011 and told Congress that he knew ATF had walked guns.

His failure to do so, coupled with his attempt to mislead Congress, are why I have called for him to resign or be fired.

Now Attorney General Holder has been saying for months that he would hold off on any personnel action until the Inspector General report was released.

Mr. Attorney General, it's time to hold people accountable.

I'd like to close with language from a statement that the family of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry issued:

"The Department's failures chronicled in the report had deadly and tragic consequences for hundreds of innocent American and Mexican victims of violent crimes.

"And our son, friend, relative and hero, Brian Terry, is dead.

"Questions and concerns should have been raised before the weapons purchased in this failed government sting wound up in the hands of drug dealers and killers, including those who killed Brian.

"The focus today should not be on political spin control nor on praise for the DOJ supervisors who chose to resign in light of the report's findings, but rather on the gross negligence of the Department documented in the report and the tragic consequences of that negligence."

-30-
Amana - Richard Hannay, usually just an ordinary guy, is suddenly caught up in whispers of espionage, daring escapes and close encounters with beautiful women in this hilarious man-on-the-run play opening Thursday, Oct. 11 at 3 p.m. at The Old Creamery Theatre's Main Stage, 39, 38th Ave., Amana.

You'll have fun keeping up with the action in this comic thriller adapted by Patrick Barlow, from the novel by John Buchan. The 39 Steps is based on the movie by Alfred Hitchcock. The cast consists of Vaughn Irving of Santa Fe, New Mexico, Lisa Margolin of Iowa City, Sean McCall of Marengo and Nicholas Hodge of South Amana.

Directed by Tom Milligan of West Amana, The 39 Steps runs through Nov. 11 and is rated Theatre PG. Tickets are $27 for adults and $17.50 for students. Show times are Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays at 3 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.

Walk-ins are welcome if seats are still available. Reservations are recommended. Call the box office at 800-35-AMANA (352-6262) or visit us online at oldcreamery.com Student rush tickets are $12. No reservations accepted for rush tickets. Come to the box office no earlier than 30 minutes before a performance for this special rate. For more information or to order tickets, call The Old Creamery Theatre at 800-35-AMANA (352-6262) or visit the web site at www.oldcreamery.com

The Old Creamery Theatre Company is a not-for-profit professional theatre founded in 1971 in Garrison, Iowa. The company has been bringing live, professional theatre to the people of Iowa and the Midwest for 41 years.

The War on Me

By: Letha Hadady, D.Ac.

Politicians arguing on the campaign trail carve up crucial issues of health and well-being by reducing them, especially Medicare and Medicaid, to numbers. Republicans would privatize Medicare, turning over this essential safety net for our seniors to private insurance companies. Have you dealt with one of your insurance companies lately?

Obamacare, passed into law by a Democratically controlled Congress, cuts some $700 billion from Medicare by limiting payments to doctors and hospitals. This will add to the list of hospitals and clinics going broke and to the physicians who refuse to accept patients who are on Medicare. Medicaid, which pays not only for services to the poor but nursing care for the elderly, is already in the tender grip of the hard-up states and is being slashed.

Politicians forget that everybody suffers from reduced health care. Germs and their attendant illnesses don't care about the numbers: If I am sick, you are likely next in line. A hospital that must cut its cleaning staff will spread illness not only to its own patients but to the public. When it comes to health care, we are all in this together?which is why we must individually do more to protect ourselves, our families, and everybody else.

Last winter I retreated to my favorite hotel in the Florida Keys to finalize my most recent book, Naturally Pain Free (Sourcebooks, July 2012). While sunning at the pool I noticed a strange bite on my arm ? from a flying insect or a spider? The bug bite was not warm or itchy, but I began to feel slightly feverish. After two decades running an alternative health practice based on traditional Asian medicines, I know trouble when I feel it. I quickly consulted a local physician who, even before the test proved positive, assured me I had contracted MRSA, the most dangerous of antibiotic-resistant staph infections.

Left untreated, MRSA can eat into flesh, and once it enters the bloodstream it is deadly. Rampant in hospitals, superbugs such as MRSA presently account for 100,000 deaths annually in the United States alone. Superbugs may be passed on at the pool, beach, gym, or yoga class. Pets can catch MRSA and pass it on to their owners. The Infectious Diseases Society of America warns, "because bacteria are constantly evolving and outsmarting the drugs used against them ... we are losing the ability to fight lethal infections."

I passed on my infection to my lifelong partner (with a kiss and by sharing bedsheets,) but I learned not only how MRSA is treated but how to avoid it, which I incorporated into Naturally Pain Free. Personalized prevention (at home and in public) is the first defense for any illness and there are many natural therapies you can try that don't require a prescription.

How's your blood pressure? A little on the high side? You have lots of company. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 67 million Americans have hypertension but less than half are being treated. The condition can and does lead to discomfort, strokes, and heart attacks, the No. 1 killer of men and women.

Fortunately, you can lower your blood pressure by making a few dietary changes, doing simple, non-challenging exercises, and adding a few time-tested herbal remedies to your daily routine. (The information is available on my website, http://www.AsianHealthSecrets.com.)

Whether on my website, Facebook, or call-in radio shows, I am often asked for advice about curing or ameliorating pain -- backache, headache, carpal tunnel syndrome, toothache. The best answer is to take measures to ensure the body does not need to generate pain to call your attention to an underlying illness. However, an almost universal treatment to mitigate pain is centuries-old: acupuncture.

Many people suffer migraines. The most effective remedy addresses the source of head and neck pain, including tension, digestive problems or muscle spasm. But a tea made with Chinese chrysanthemum flowers will also help. For eyestrain headaches I often recommend a tea made with nourishing Tibetan goji berries.

This season, notices for flu shots seem to be in every pharmacy and even supermarkets. Here is a simple preventive for colds and flu: Gargle twice a day with a couple drops of Australian tea tree oil in a half-glass of warm water, and swab the inside of the nose with a Q-tip and tea tree oil.

There is talk of politicians waging a war on women. I say it is a war on men and women ? on you and me. While personal prevention is the first shield against illness, we also must have easy access to affordable medical care in order to treat illnesses and avoid spreading them.

Tell the politicians by voting in November. But first, vote for yourself by practicing the art of self-defense.

About Letha Hadady

Letha Hadady is globally renowned for her expertise in traditional Asian and alternative health. The author of five books, including her latest "Naturally Pain Free," Letha has made extensive appearances on TV, talk radio and the internet. Letha is an adjunct faculty member for New York Open Center, and The Renfield Center for Nursing Education, Beth Israel Medical Center in New York. She has led stress-management workshops and acted as a natural product consultant for Sony Entertainment Inc., Dreyfus, Ogilvy & Mather, and Consumer Eyes, Inc. in New York. Her website is http://www.asianhealthsecrets.com.

Washington, D.C. - Congressman Dave Loebsack today announced that the City of Davenport will receive a $100,000 grant to establish a year round farmers market.  The funding comes from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farmers Market Promotion Program.

"This funding will help to connect local farmers to the local community and consumers," said Loebsack.  "In addition to promoting new economic opportunities and growth in the area, the expanded farmers market season will provide new opportunities for farmers and increased access to fresh and healthy products for consumers."

The funding will be used to improve infrastructure at the Freight House Farmers Market that will facilitate a year round market for local and regional foods, including refrigerated storage and value added processing and packaging equipment, infrastructure for electronic purchasing, and a certified kitchen incubator for educational training and classes for producers and consumers.

###

Attached are photos featuring Governor Pat Quinn on his trade mission to Brazil holding several productive meetings with Brazilian business leaders and industry groups with the goal of strengthening partnerships that will boost Illinois' economy and create jobs.

Governor Quinn is shown met with business leaders on Monday from the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo, which is the largest business organization in the country, representing more than 130 industry groups.

For updates on Governor Quinn's trip, visit www.Illinois.gov or follow him on Twitter at @GovernorQuinn. More information about Illinois trade and business opportunities can be found on the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity's website at www.illinoisbiz.biz.

 ###

Moline, IL... State Representative Rich Morthland (R-Cordova) is encouraging residents to join him by signing an online petition that calls on the Governor to implement, without delay, the bi-partisan Medicaid reform package enacted earlier this year. One of the key components of the SMART Act is increased scrutiny of Medicaid eligibility standards.

"Previous and current administrations have failed to take the necessary steps to remove people from the Medicaid program who may have enrolled when eligible, and then became ineligible for various reasons such as finding a job, an increased household income, or the aging out of a child," explained Morthland. "By removing these individuals who no longer qualify from the rolls, it is estimated to save taxpayers hundreds of millions."

The reform package contains tight timeframes for the procurement of an eligibility verification vendor. While the initial requirements have been met, it was revealed last week that the contracted vendor, Maximus Health Services, does not anticipate starting the reviews until January 2013.

"The entire Fiscal Year 13 budget framework relies on the timely and efficient implementation of the reforms. The selected vendor has previous experience that would allow for an expedited timeframe.  If eligibility verification is delayed a full six months into FY13, funding will be jeopardized to those in our community who truly need it."

Morthland is encouraging residents to visit http://morthland.ilhousegop.org/save-state-350-million-by-implementing-medicaid/ today and sign the petition urging Governor Quinn to end the delay.

#####

By Senator Tom Harkin

Iowa is the world's breadbasket, yet surprisingly, food insecurity is a problem that affects one out of every eight people living in our state.  And Iowa is not alone; according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture some 50 million people living in the U.S. face hunger.

September is Hunger Action Month -- designed to bring awareness to widespread hunger in America and a good time to volunteer your time in the local community to help end hunger.   The Food Bank of Iowa has teamed up with Feeding America for "30 Ways in 30 Days" - a calendar of ideas for one good deed a day to help solve this pressing problem.   Any one of the "30 Ways" is an opportunity for us to make a difference in the lives of Iowans who face hunger - including the one in five children across the state, at risk of not having enough to eat.

While all of these ideas are things we can do on our own, there are plenty of ways to get involved with a group as well.  Donating excess food from your community garden, or including your employer's donation match form along with your contribution to your local pantry, food bank, or shelter are small actions that can go a long way toward helping your neighbors put food on their tables.  If you are a business owner, make sure to sign up your business to be a part of the 2012 Combat Hunger food drive November 15th and 16th in Des Moines.

You can start with simple things like wearing orange in honor of Hunger Action Month, reading a book about hunger to bring awareness to this national crisis, volunteering at your local shelter or soup kitchen, or trying to feed your entire family for a day on only$7 - the average daily food stamp benefit for a family.

As the former Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, I have been fortunate enough to lead the efforts to enact the 2002 and 2008 farm bills. These bills and other initiatives expanded food support to millions of Americas by ensuring access to nutrition programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, school meals, child and adult food programs, and food assistance for disaster relief. I am extremely proud of what we have been able to accomplish, but our work is far from over.

As Iowans, we have a unique gift to come together and support each other. Hunger Action Month presents the perfect opportunity to do just that.  So look up your closest food bank and see how you can help, or go online to foodbankiowa.org to check out the "30 Ways in 30 Days" calendar to help stop hunger now.

A PDF version of this article can be found here.

State Initiative Links Private Sector, Higher Ed Community to Provide $155,000 in Scholarships, Internships to Brazilian Students Studying in Illinois

BRASILIA, BRAZIL - September 25, 2012. Continuing his economic trade mission to Brazil, Governor Pat Quinn today announced a new initiative that will help increase educational opportunities between Illinois and Brazil, attract more Brazilian students to the state, and promote Illinois' colleges and universities as global leaders in education. Under the initiative, Illinois-based companies will provide tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships as well as internships to Brazilian students studying in Illinois.

Today's announcement builds on Governor Quinn's commitment to strengthen education in Illinois, and supports President Obama's "100,000 Strong in the Americas" goal, an initiative to increase study between Latin America and the Caribbean and the United States.

"As one of the world's largest economies, Brazil is an important partner for Illinois as we expand our relationships overseas and boost our global competitiveness," Governor Quinn said. "The agreements we're announcing today will strengthen our commercial ties, increase tourism and build a pipeline of educated, skilled workers who are better prepared for a 21st century global economy."

Illinois-based companies including the Motorola Solutions Foundation and Ingredion Inc. (formerly Corn Products) will donate $155,000 in scholarship funds to support undergraduate students attending Illinois schools for the upcoming 2013-2014 school year through the Science Without Borders Program. In addition, Tate & Lyle will provide internships to two Brazilian students at its Illinois facility.

"As the philanthropic arm of a global company, the Motorola Solutions Foundation is proud to partner with Governor Quinn to support the next generation of science and engineering professionals in Brazil," said Matt Blakely, director, Motorola Solutions Foundation. "We look forward to meeting the scholars and seeing all they will accomplish."

Illinois already has 91 students from Brazil's Science Mobility or "Science Without Borders" Program, an initiative of the Brazilian government to provide scholarships to Brazilian undergraduate students for one year of study at colleges and universities in the United States

Scholarships are given primarily to students in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Students in the program will return to Brazil to complete their degrees. Nine Illinois colleges/universities already qualify for Science without Borders.

During his visit today, Governor Quinn also announced that officials with the University of Illinois, Illinois Institute of Technology and DePaul University have entered into agreements with the Brazilian Federal Agency for Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education to promote educational, scientific and technological activity. The institutions will work together to facilitate undergraduate and graduate exchange programs where students will study at their home and visiting schools. The agreement also opens the door to joint research opportunities.

For updates on Governor Quinn's trip, visit www.Illinois.gov or follow him on Twitter at @GovernorQuinn. More information about Illinois trade and business opportunities can be found on the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity's website at www.illinoisbiz.biz.

 ###

Bettendorf – On Friday, October 12, 2012, from 5:30-7:00 pm, the Family Museum will host a grand opening of the River and Bridges gallery for Family Museum members and VIP guests. This invitation-only event celebrates the completion of Phase I of a $1.2 million renovation. Media outlets are welcome to attend.

Phase I (of three) includes a 28 foot indoor waterplay table which resembles an actual stretch of the Mississippi River and allows guests to add obstacles and raise or lower water levels as they watch their boat make the journey down the river. Visitors will play on three new bridge structures designed to look and feel like the I-74 Bridge, the Arsenal Bridge, and the Centennial Bridge. The gallery brings the bridges of the Quad Cities into the Family Museum and puts children and families into, onto, and over these magnificent structures. Through sounds, games, and hands-on building materials, these bridges become accessible to people of all ages. Various stations throughout the gallery include a bridge art table, a bridge building area, a wooden train track, and an interactive crane. Clouds, geese flying in the sky, and hand-painted river murals spanning two walls surround guests and make the experience truly breathtaking.

This Family Museum renovation has been made possible through the generosity of the following organizations: City of Bettendorf, Scott County Board of Supervisors, State of Iowa - Vision Iowa CAT Grant, Hubbell-Waterman Foundation, Alcoa Foundation, Scott County Regional Authority, Riverboat Development Authority, Modern Woodmen of America, Dorothea LeClair Bequest, Family Museum Foundation, Community Foundation of the Great River Bend, 3M Foundation, Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust, and Grainger.

Phase II is scheduled to begin January 2, 2013.

###

Pages