Kerry becomes 1st top U.S. diplomat to visit Somalia

John Kerry

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Secretary of State John Kerry made an unannounced trip to Somalia Tuesday in a show of solidarity with a government trying to defeat al-Qaeda-allied militants and end decades of war in the African country. He is the first top U.S.diplomat ever to visit Somalia.
Kerry arrived at Mogadishu's airport shortly before noon local time, greeted by Somalia's president and prime minister on the tarmac. He immediately entered a series of planned meetings that include both of them along with regional leaders and civil society groups.
"I'm glad to be here," Kerry said.
"This is a great moment for us. Thank you for the time to be with us," President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said as they sat down together.
The trip was made under tight security conditions. Somalia's government only found out a day ago that Kerry would join the State Department's top Africa official, Linda Greenfield-Thomas, on the voyage. And the fact that he was only dipping his toe in Somalia, and not venturing past the airport, highlighted just how dangerous and unstable the country remains.
"The next time I come, we have to be able to just walk downtown," Kerry told Somalia's president. Mohamud replied, downtown "is very different now."
     
Top of the agenda is the fight against al-Shabab. African forces and U.S. drone strikes have crippled the organization's leadership in recent years and left the extremists without much of the territory they once controlled or the cash flows needed to reverse their losses.
But as al-Shabab has decentralized, the militants in some ways have become even more dangerous, expanding their activities in Kenya and other neighboring countries. Last month's massacre at Kenya's Garissa University College killed 148 people, mostly students, and underscored the group's capacity to carry out relatively unsophisticated but extremely deadly terrorist attacks far from its bases of operations.
Kerry's trip is designed "to reinforce the United States' commitment to supporting Somalia's ongoing transition to a peaceful democracy," spokeswoman Marie Harf said in a statement.
"He will discuss security cooperation and Somalia's progress towards meeting its reform and development benchmarks," she said. "He will also meet with civil society leaders to discuss the importance of a vibrant NGO sector and thank African Union troops for their role in stabilizing Somalia."
Somalia has been without a truly functioning, nationwide government for two-and-a-half decades. After warlords ousted dictator Siad Barre from power in 1991, they quickly turned on one another and plunged the country into anarchy. Militias, Islamist extremist groups and Somalia's nominally national military all vied for power before the tide turned against al-Shabab earlier this decade. Piracy also has been a major problem.
Yet even as a relative calm has settled over parts of the country, including Mogadishu, Somalia remains fraught with a painful history for the United States.
American troops were sent there in 1992 on a peacekeeping mission to help stave off a national famine. They left two years later in humiliation after the "Black Hawk Down" debacle when Somali militiamen shot down two U.S. helicopters. Eighteen servicemen were killed in the crash and subsequent rescue attempt, the indelible memory being the images of American bodies dragged through Somalia's streets.
The Obama administration is banking on Mohamud's government to turn a new page toward democracy and economic development. The U.S. has provided hundreds of millions in military support to build up and professionalize the army, and is working with Mohamud to try to usher in a broader, more representative government over the next 18 months.
If that effort is successful and stability expands, officials say the U.S. could re-establish an American embassy in the capital before President Barack Obama leaves office. For now, the president has nominated a career diplomat, Katherine Dhanani, to serve as the first U.S. ambassador to the country since 1991, with the idea that she would operate out of Nairobi and make regular trips into Somalia.
Britain, Italy and several other countries already have embassies in Mogadishu.
Kerry's brief foray comes a day after extensive counterterrorism and refugee talks with Kenya's government, much of it deeply tied to the situation north of the border. For the Kenyans, stability in Somalia can't come soon enough. They are scrambling to combat al-Shabab and even have threatened to begin emptying the sprawling Dadaab refugee camp, the world's largest with some 350,000 Somali inhabitants.
Kerry said he received assurances from President Uhuru Kenyatta that no unilateral action would take place to close Dadaab as the U.S. and others try to make Somalia safe enough to accommodate large-scale refugee returns.
Their discussions came as the region's refugee crisis becomes increasingly complex, with war in nearby Yemen creating conditions so dire that some people are even fleeing to Somalia.
Aid agencies are undertaking contingency planning for a prolonged conflict in Yemen that could prompt 100,000 people to escape across the Gulf of Aden to Somalia and 30,000 to Djibouti this year. It's unclear how Somalia, in particular, would be able to handle such an influx given its persistently high levels of violence.

US cautions Israel on civilian casualties as ground invasion continues.

US cautions Israel on civilian casualties as ground invasion continues

White House calls on Israel to restrict itself to 'precise operation' in Gaza while stressing its right to defend itself

Israeli troops and tanks are engaged in fierce fighting in Gaza following the launch of a military ground operation on Thursday night with the initial aim of eliminating Hamas tunnels that could be used to launch attacks on Israel.

Hamas warned Israel of the "dreadful consequences" of the conflict's escalation, while the US urged its close ally to restrict itself to a "precise" operation.

In a night of sustained bombardment as well ground fighting, Israel suffered its first military casualty of the 11-day war. The dead soldier – named as Eitan Barak, 20 – was possibly killed by so-called friendly fire in the north of Gaza. Two others were injured.

The Palestinian death toll since the start of the conflict exceeded 250, including at least 11 who were killed overnight. Israel launched air strikes against more than 100 targets overnight.

The Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, and the defence minister, Moshe Ya'alon, instructed the army to be prepared to expand the ground operation. The mobilisation of a further 18,000 reservists was authorised overnight, bringing the total on standby to about 60,000 in addition to those in service.

Netanyahu was due to make a statement on the escalation of the military operation on Friday morning, and his inner security cabinet was convening.

"In light of Hamas's incessant criminal aggression and dangerous infiltration into Israeli territory, Israel must act to protect its citizens," a statement from the prime minister's office said.

"Operation Protective Edge will continue until it has achieved its purpose – restoring quiet to the citizens of Israel for an extended period, with significant damage to the infrastructure of Hamas and other terrorist organisations in the Gaza Strip."

IDF spokesman Brig Gen Moti Almoz said: "We are now entering the second part of the operation. We delivered a hard blow to Hamas: We attacked thousands of targets, destroyed infrastructure, hurt operatives. Large ground troops are taking over targets in the Gaza Strip, operating against tunnels and infrastructure."

The US called on Israel to restrict itself to a "precise operation" on the ground in Gaza while stressing its right to defend itself against rocket attacks.

In a statement late on Thursday, the state department said Netanyahu had telephoned the US secretary of state, John Kerry, to explain his decision "to launch an operation to target the threat of further terrorist infiltration through tunnels into Israel".

It continued: "The secretary reaffirmed our strong support for Israel's right to defend itself against terrorist threats emanating from tunnels into Israel and expressed our view that this should be a precise operation to target tunnels, as described in a statement from the Israel Defence Forces."

It said Kerry emphasised the need to "avoid further escalation and to restore the 2012 ceasefire as soon as possible".

Hamas responded to the invasion with characteristic rhetoric. "We warn Netanyahu of the dreadful consequences of such a foolish act," Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters.

A statement issued by Hamas warned Israel: "We're with you in the field, and we aren't afraid of the ground assault."

The UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, accused Israel of ignoring calls for restraint. "I regret that despite my repeated urgings, and those of many regional and world leaders together, an already dangerous conflict has now escalated even further," he said.

Israeli troops entered the Gaza Strip at 10.30pm local time on Thursday, under massive supporting fire from air, sea and land.

According to military analyst Alex Fishman, writing in Yedioth Ahronoth: "The tanks, which serve as the heart of the assault force, received an order to open fire at anything that moved. The area and the targets are due to be seized by the morning hours. From here on, [the army] will start to clear the ground, in what could last for several days, depending on political developments."

The initial aim is to destroy tunnels dug by Hamas from Gaza into Israel for the purpose of launching attacks, and to secure and expand the 'buffer zone'' inside Gaza's perimeter in order to prevent short-range rocket launches into Israel.

However, Hamas is likely to attempt to suck Israeli troops deeper into Gaza, increasing the risk of military casualties.

The escalation of the conflict came on the 10th day of military action, a point at which military leaders may have calculated that a limit on what could be achieved by aerial bombardment could be achieved.

The decision to launch a ground invasion was reportedly taken by the security cabinet on Tuesday night, following Hamas' rejection of a ceasefire proposal tabled by Egypt.

But the discovery of a tunnel on Thursday morning, through which a dozen militants were attempting to reach a kibbutz in southern Israel, is thought to have been a deciding factor to go in.

Israel halted bombardment for five hours on Thursday to allow people in Gaza to restock with food and cash and visit relatives.

U.S. official: Missile shot down Malaysia Airlines plane.

U.S. official: Missile shot down Malaysia Airlines plane

A Malaysia Airlines passenger jet crashed in a rebel-controlled part of eastern Ukraine on Thursday, spurring swift accusations from Ukrainian officials that "terrorists" shot down the aircraft.

The United States has concluded a missile shot down the plane, but hasn't pinpointed who was responsible, a senior U.S. official told CNN's Barbara Starr.

The Boeing 777 with 298 people aboard fell from the sky near the town of Torez in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, officials said. A top Ukrainian official said the plane, which was on the way from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was flying at about 10,000 meters (nearly 33,000 feet) when the missile hit.

Nationalities aboard MH17
154 Dutch
43 Malaysian (including 15 crew)
27 Australian
12 Indonesian
9 British
4 German
4 Belgian
3 Filipino
1 Canadian
41 Unverified

A radar system saw a surface-to-air missile system turn on and track an aircraft right before the plane went down, the senior U.S. official said. A second system saw a heat signature at the time the airliner was hit, the official said. The United States is analyzing the trajectory of the missile to try to learn where the attack came from, the official said.

The Obama administration believes Ukraine did not have the capability in the region -- let alone the motivation -- to shoot down the plane, a U.S. official told CNN's Jake Tapper.

What we know about the MH17 crash

Flight attendant loses friends on MH17

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said the plane never made a distress call.

He called for an international team to have full access to the crash site.

Malaysia Airlines jet crashes in Ukraine

Deadly airline disasters

MH370 partner: 'Wounds opened up again'

Biden: MH17 apparently shot down

Video reportedly shows MH17 crash

"We must and we will find out precisely what happened to this flight. No stone will be left unturned," he said.

"If it transpires that the plane was indeed shot down, we insist that the perpetrators must swiftly be brought to justice," Najib said.

Ukrainian officials maintained that pro-Russian separatists were behind the crash.

The timeline before MH17 crashed

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Ukraine's military campaign against the separatists was to blame.

"This tragedy would not have happened, if there had been peace on that land, or in any case, if military operations in southeastern Ukraine had not been renewed," Putin said in televised remarks. "And without a doubt the government of the territory on which it happened bears responsibility for this frightening tragedy."

Ukraine's state security chief accused two Russian military intelligence officers of involvement and said they must be punished.

Valentyn Nalyvaichenko said he based his allegation on intercepts of phone conversations between the two officers. "Now you know who carried out this crime. We will do everything for the Russian military who carried out this crime to be punished," he told reporters.

The jet plunged toward the ground in a fireball, leaving a trail of black smoke behind in the sky.

Emergency crews scrambled to what witnesses described as a staggering scene of death and utter destruction.

"People said the plane kind of exploded in the air, and that everything rained down in bits and pieces, the plane itself, the people inside," said Noah Sneider, an American freelance journalist who interviewed witnesses at the scene.

Charred wreckage stretched for kilometers, he said. Stunned rescue workers and rebel fighters combed the area, Sneider said, planting sticks with white cotton ribbons where they found bodies in the fields.

"As you walk through the fields, you see a man with his cracked iPhone sticking out of his pocket. You see sort of people's clothing everywhere. Most of it's kind of ripped off by the air. There's some suitcases and stuff in a pile by the road," Sneider said.

There were many bodies left to be found as night fell, he said, and people were trying to figure out what to do next.

Locals in the rural area trying to help were overwhelmed, he said. Firemen who rushed to put out the flames found they had a hose with holes in it, spraying water everywhere, he said.

"One man said to me, 'Nothing's happened in this village for 30 years, and now this,'" Sneider said.

As details emerge, accusations fly

Details -- and accusations -- quickly poured in about Thursday's crash, which came the same week that Ukrainian officials said a Russian fighter shot down a Ukrainian military transport plane while the aircraft was in Ukrainian airspace.

Anton Gerashchenko, adviser to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry, said in a Facebook post that "terrorists" fired on the plane operating a Buk surface-to-air missile system.

Report: Malaysia plane crashes in Ukraine

First images of Malaysia Airlines debris

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko described the crash as a "terrorist action."

"We do not exclude that the plane was shot down and confirm that the Ukraine Armed Forces did not fire at any targets in the sky," Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said, according to his website.

CNN's Richard Quest, an aviation expert, said that it would be "extremely unusual" for an airliner at nearly 33,000 feet to be shot down.

From the ground, one could simply look up and tell whether a plane was a commercial aircraft, he said. "So something is absolutely appalling that's gone on here."

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said that Ukraine's president had accepted an offer of U.S. experts to help investigate the crash.

"They will be on their way rapidly to see if we can get to the bottom of this," he said.

Biden said the plane was apparently shot down, adding "not an accident, blown out of the sky."

Who was on the plane?

The 15 crew members on Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 were all Malaysian nationals, officials said.

Malaysia Airlines also gave a breakdown of the known nationalities of the 283 passengers: 154 were Dutch, 27 were Australians, 28 were Malaysians, 12 were Indonesian, nine were from the United Kingdom, four were from Germany; four were from Belgium, three were from the Philippines and one was Canadian. Authorities were still trying to determine the nationalities of the other passengers.

The International AIDS Society said in a statement that "a number of colleagues and friends" were on the plane, on the way to attend the 20th International AIDS Conference in Melbourne, Australia.

"At this incredibly sad and sensitive time the IAS stands with our international family and sends condolences to the loved ones of those who have been lost to this tragedy," the statement said.

Russia-Ukraine dispute

The route the Malaysian plane was on, between Kuala Lumpur and the Netherlands, is a common one, CNN aviation safety consultant Mary Schiavo said Thursday. She said that the plane was flying over a troubled area and that close communication with air traffic controllers would be a key necessity.

Torez is in a rebel-held area.

In hostile or disputed areas, "any alteration from your course, and you can have a problem," Schiavo said.

Map: Approximate route of MH17

Tensions have been high between Ukraine and Russia since street protests forced former pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych from power in February. Russia subsequently annexed Ukraine's southeastern Crimea region, and a pro-Russian separatist rebellion has been raging in Ukraine's eastern Luhansk and Donetsk regions.

Ukrainian forces have been struggling to quell the separatist unrest. Ukraine's government has accused Russia of allowing weapons and military equipment, including tanks, to cross the border illegally into the hands of pro-Russian separatists.

The Pentagon said Wednesday that Russia now has 12,000 troops on the border with Ukraine, as well as some heavy weapons. The troop numbers had fallen to about 1,000 previously from a high of an estimated 40,000 forces earlier this year.

READ: Obama imposes new sanctions on Russia over Ukraine

On Thursday, CNN reported that Ukrainian officials said a Russian fighter shot down a Ukrainian jet Wednesday as the jet flew in Ukrainian airspace.

Tensions are high over that incident, separate from the breaking news of the Malaysian flight Thursday.

Three months ago, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration prohibited U.S. airlines from flying in areas not far from where Flight 17 reportedly crashed Thursday. "Due to the potential for conflicting air traffic control instructions from Ukrainian and Russian authorities and for the related potential misidentification of civil aircraft, United States flight operations are prohibited until further notice in the airspace over Crimea, the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov," the FAA said in April. Thursday's plane crash reportedly was in eastern Ukraine, scores of miles north-northeast of the Sea of Azov.

On Thursday, French transportation official Frederic Cuvillier ordered that French airlines avoid Ukrainian airspace until the cause of Thursday's Malaysia Airlines crash is known, the French Transportation Ministry said in a news release.

People inspect wreckage thought to be from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in Ukraine. This image was posted to Twitter.

Airline's troubles

Thursday's crash marks the second time this year that Malaysia Airlines has faced an incident involving a downed plane.

On March 8, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappeared. That Boeing 777 had 239 people on board. Searchers have found no trace of 370 or its passengers, despite extensive search efforts.

Flight 370 probably flew into the southern Indian Ocean on autopilot with an unresponsive crew, Australian authorities said last month.

During the early phase of the search for Flight 370, aircraft and ships scoured vast stretches of the surface of the southern Indian Ocean but found no debris.

Pings initially thought to be from the missing plane's flight recorders led to a concentrated underwater search that turned up nothing.

A new underwater search, farther south, will be broadly in an area where planes and vessels had already looked for debris on the surface of the water. It is expected to begin in August.

The first Boeing 777 entered service in June 1995, and the airplane has flown almost five million flights, accumulating more than 18 million flight hours, according to Boeing's web site. The plane is capable to flying up to 43,100 feet.

Bush's toxic legacy in Iraq

Bush's toxic legacy in Iraq

                                          

 New America Foundation 

 ISIS, the brutal insurgent/terrorist group formerly known as al-Qaeda in Iraq, has seized much of western and northern Iraq and even threatens towns not far from Baghdad.

From where did ISIS spring? One of George W. Bush's most toxic legacies is the introduction of al Qaeda into Iraq, which is the ISIS mother ship.

If this wasn't so tragic it would be supremely ironic, because before the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, top Bush officials were insisting that there was an al Qaeda-Iraq axis of evil. Their claims that Saddam Hussein's men were training members of al Qaeda how to make weapons of mass destruction seemed to be one of the most compelling rationales for the impending war.

The U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency had by 2006 translated 34 million pages of documents from Hussein's Iraq and found there was nothing to substantiate a "partnership" between Hussein and al Qaeda.After the fall of Hussein's regime, no documents were unearthed in Iraq proving the Hussein-al Qaeda axis despite the fact that, like other totalitarian regimes, Hussein's government kept massive and meticulous records.

Police investigating sexting complaints at high school

Police investigating sexting complaints at high school

CARMEL, Ind. -- Police are investigating complaints that students at an Indiana high school are in possession of "inappropriate digital images" after widespread reports on social media that freshmen were being disciplined for having sexually explicit photos on their phones.

Police and officials at Carmel High School would not say whether the images were sexual in nature or what laws may have been broken. But students reported Thursday on Twitter that school administrators were conducting a "nude raid" and suspending those who had "sexts" saved on their cellphones.

Lt. Joe Bickel, Carmel Police Department spokesman, issued a statement Friday with few specifics, saying only that an investigation is ongoing into a complaint the department received Tuesday regarding the images.

"The Carmel-Clay Schools and the Carmel Police Department are currently working together in this investigation," the statement reads.

It would be the second sexting investigation in suburban Indianapolis schools in the past six months. Sexting is the exchange of nude photos through messaging programs such as Snapchat.

Under Indiana law on child pornography and exploitation, it is a felony offense to "present" or "exhibit" digital images of sexual conduct by someone younger than 18 — even when the messenger also is underage. A separate provision, applying only to phone images, lowers the minimum age to 16.

In December, more than a dozen cellphones were seized at Avon High School from students who were allegedly sharing nude images of their classmates. In that case, police discovered the images hidden in a cellphone app that was disguised as a calculator.

Authorities, however, declined to press charges.

In Carmel, officials were tight-lipped Friday about the allegations, which came to light during final exams. School officials did not return calls seeking comment.

Bickel would not elaborate on the images.

"There's a wide range of different types of images, so at this time (Chief Tim Green) doesn't want me to get into any specifics on what the images are," Bickel said. "We have talked to the prosecutor's office, and once the investigation's complete ... we'll determine at that point whether any law has been broken."

Donald Sterling agrees to allow wife to sell Clippers

Donald Sterling agrees to allow wife to sell Clippers

Donald Sterling has authorized his wife Shelly to sell the Los Angeles Clippers, and she will try to sell the team voluntarily, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.

The person spoke to USA TODAY Sports Friday on condition of anonymity because of the private nature of the talks.

The person declined to say why Shelly Sterling decided to change her mind after previously saying she would fight to keep her 50% ownership share of the team.

There are contingencies in the agreement, a second person with direct knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports. Shelly Sterling has agreed to sell the team as long as she retains a minority interest in the Clippers, according to the second person, who also requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the negotiations.

It was not immediately clear whether the NBA will agree to Shelly Sterling's terms. The NBA, which banned Sterling for life on April 29, has said its move to terminate Donald Sterling's ownership would also terminate any other ownership interest in the team.

A person with knowledge of her interest told USA TODAY Sports that Oprah Winfrey is still interested in putting together a bid with David Geffen and Larry Ellison. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no other announcement was being made.

VIDEO: FIVE BEST CANDIDATES TO BUY CLIPPERS

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On Tuesday at a press conference before the draft lottery, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said he was open to the idea of the Sterlings selling the team without conducting the special hearing on June 3 to terminate their ownership.

"I'll only say that Mr. Sterling still owns the Los Angeles Clippers. Mrs. Sterling as I understand it through a trust owns 50% of the team, as well," Silver said. "It is their team to sell, and so he knows what the league's point of view is, and so I'm sure if he wanted to sell the team on some reasonable timetable, I'd prefer he sell it than we go through this process. … I'm open to that."

The Clippers are owned by the Sterling Family Trust, in the names of Donald and Shelly Sterling. The trust will be bequeathed to their children upon death.

Shelly Sterling's attorney, Pierce O'Donnell, has been in ongoing talks with the NBA as she tried to keep her stake in the team.

The NBA charged Sterling with damaging the league and its teams with his racist comments and said he engaged in other conduct that hurt its relationship with fans and merchandising partners.

Sterling was banned for life and fined $2.5 million by Commissioner Adam Silver after the release of a recording in which he made racist remarks. His attorney had said last week that Sterling would not pay the fine and did not warrant any punishment.

PHOTOS: DONALD STERLING THROUGH THE YEARS

Longtime Clippers owner Donald Sterling, shown in 2010, has been banned by the NBA. Flip through this gallery for more of Sterling.  Mark J. Terrill, AP

FULLSCREEN

Kevin Johnson and Donna Leinwand Leger, USA TODAY

Kevin Johnson and Donna Leinwand Leger, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — The U.S. accused Chinese military officials of hacking into several U.S. enterprises, including Westinghouse and U.S. Steel, to steal "significant" amounts of trade secrets and intellectual property in an indictment made public Monday.

It is the first time the U.S. has charged a state actor in a criminal cyber espionage case.

The Chinese hackers, using military and intelligence resources, downloaded massive amounts of industrial information, including strategic plans, from U.S. businesses, the indictment said. In addition to Westinghouse Electric and U.S. Steel, victims included Solar World, United Steel Workers Union, Allegheny Technologies Inc.and Alcoa.

The indictment, out of western Pennsylvania, charges five military "hackers," officers in the Chinese People's Liberation Army, with directing a conspiracy to steal information from six American companies in critical industries, including nuclear power, solar power and metals.

Federal authorities allegedly traced hackers to a single building in Shanghai. The hacking began in 2006 and continued until last month, federal authorities said. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Carlin identified the hackers as unit 61398 of the Chinese military.

Attorney General Eric Holder called it a case of "economic espionage."

The case "represents the first ever charges against a state actor for this type of hacking," Holder said. "The range of trade secrets and other sensitive business information stolen in this case is significant and demands an aggressive response."

Holder said the Chinese hackers stole information that would give insight into "the strategy and vulnerabilities" of the American companies and give Chinese companies a competitive advantage.

In one instance, Carlin said hackers stole cost, pricing and strategy information from Solar World's computers, allowing Chinese competitors to price exports well below cost and take market share from Solar World. In another instance, hackers stole design plans from Westinghouse computers as the company was negotiating with a Chinese state-owned company to construct a nuclear power plant, he said.

"In the past, when we brought concerns such as these to Chinese government officials, they responded by publicly challenging us to provide hard evidence of their hacking that could stand up in court," Carlin said. "Well today, we are. For the first time, we are exposing the faces and names behind the keyboards in Shanghai used to steal from American businesses."

Romney: N.H. police official should resign for 'vile' Obama remark

Romney: N.H. police official should resign for 'vile' Obama remark

Mitt Romney is calling on a New Hampshire police commissioner  to apologize and resign for using a racial epithet in reference to President Obama.

“The vile epithet used and confirmed by the commissioner has no place in our community: He should apologize and resign,” Romney said in a statement first reported by The Boston Herald.

Robert Copeland, the police commissioner of Wolfeboro, N.H., refused to apologize and sent a statement to his fellow commissioners after a resident complained to the town manager that she overheard the slur used by Copeland.

“I believe I did use the ‘N’ word in reference to the current occupant of the White House,” Copeland, 82, wrote to his fellow commissioners last week. “For this, I do not apologize — he meets and exceeds my criteria for such.”

Romney, the 2012 GOP presidential nominee, owns a vacation home in Wolfeboro and spends every summer with his family at the New Hampshire house.

About 20 black people live in Wolfeboro, according to the Associated Press.

Copeland won a new three-year term on the Wolfeboro police commission in March. None of the town’s police officers is black or a member of an another minority group,according to CBS News. Town Manager David Owen has said he and the town’s board of selectmen cannot remove an elected official from office.