Congressional Black Caucus to meet with president Trump

President Trump has invited all 49 members of the Congressional Black Caucus for a meeting at the White House next Wednesday, according to White House press secretary Sean Spicer.

Members of the group later accepted the invitation for the meeting set for March 22 at 3pm.

The Congressional Black Caucus confirmed the meeting with the following tweet:

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Yes, we are meeting w/ @realDonaldTrump on March 22 @ 3 PM. We will answer his campaign question to Black America: What do you have to lose?

— The CBC (@OfficialCBC) March 16, 2017

In spite of Trump's wiretapping lies the Congressional Black Caucus must still meet with him.

Video Tribute To Rock Icon Chuck Berry

Check out these four videos in tribute to Rock & Roll pioneer "Chuck" Berry which include performances of Johnny B. Goode, Roll Over Beethoven, and Maybellene. Rock on in Heaven!


Rest In Peace Rock Icon Chuck Berry


Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode (Live 1958)


Roll Over Beethoven - Chuck Berry LIVE


Chuck Berry - Maybellene (live 1958)

Francine Robertson is missing!

MARSHALL, TX: The Marshall Police Department is asking for the public's help in finding a woman missing since Tuesday.

Francine Robertson, 29, was last seen walking in the 2300 block of West Rusk Street, according to a news release from MPD.

She stands about 5'7" tall and weighs around 270 pounds. She was last seen wearing a gray T-shirt with black sleeves, blue jeans and no shoes.

Police say that Robertson may suffer from a mental illness. Her family members are concerned about her welfare.

Anyone who has seen Robertson or knows where she can be found is urged to call MPD at (903) 935-4575.

[SOURCE: KSLA]

White House courting of HBCUs ends with disappointing budget

After meetings with the Trump administration last month, leaders of historically black colleges and universities expressed cautious optimism that the increased funding they requested might actually make it into the White House budget. It did not.

Instead, Trump’s first presidential budget released Thursday calls for “maintaining” $492 million in appropriations for HBCUs and minority-serving institutions. Combined discretionary spending for those schools, however, is actually $577 million right now. The White House directed questions about the discrepancy to the Education Department, which did not respond to requests for comment.

There is no mention in the budget of any federal investment in scholarships, technology or campus infrastructure for historically black colleges that leaders requested. And instead of expanding Pell grants for low-income students to cover summer courses as they had asked, the budget raids nearly $4 billion from the program’s reserves.

“Less than three weeks ago, this administration claimed it is a priority to advocate for HBCUs but, after viewing this budget proposal, those calls ring hollow,” Rep. Alama Adams (D-N.C.), a graduate of the largest HBCU, North Carolina A&T State University, said in a statement.

Read more: White House courting of HBCUs ends with disappointing budget

Cleveland police dispatcher in Tamir Rice shooting suspended 8 days

A Cleveland police dispatcher was suspended for eight days for failing to warn officers in the 2014 shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice that a 911 caller had described the scene as probably a child with a fake gun, the boy's family lawyer said on Wednesday.

Reports of the suspension published in Cleveland on Tuesday led to criticism of authorities on social media under the Twitter hashtag #TamirRice, including "8 days suspension? How pathetic" and "the 911 dispatcher whose words lead to the terrible death of tamir rice, an INNOCENT 12 year old, should be FIRED, not simply suspended."

The shooting of the black child, who was playing with a replica gun that fired plastic pellets, by two white police officers was one of several that fueled scrutiny of police use of deadly force across the United States, particularly against minorities.

The family's lawyer Subodh Chandra said the dispatcher, Constance Hollinger, also received a disciplinary letter after a 10-month investigation that ended in February. An off-duty officer at the scene, William Cunningham II, was suspended for two days without pay.

Samaria Rice, Tamir's mother, has urged that anyone involved in the shooting be fired and Chandra said the mother considered Hollinger's eight day suspension without pay “unacceptable.”

Chandra publicly released a March 6 letter about the city's decision on Tuesday evening.

City and police union officials confirmed the letter's legitimacy.

The attorney for Hollinger, Keith Wolgamuth, could not be reached to comment.

Read more: Cleveland police dispatcher in Tamir Rice shooting suspended 8 days