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Jared Kushner releases documents about Russian investigation
By Stefanie Sciolaro
In recent weeks, Jared Kushner, has voluntarily released documents in regards to his role in the firing of FBI Director James Comey. Jared Kushner is the son-in-law of President Trump and a White House senior advisor.
Kushner released the documents to special counsel Robert Mueller who is currently investigating into Russian meddling and the possibility of obstruction of justice in the firing of Comey. The documents released are similar to those from the campaign and the transition, including any contact with Russia.
Kushner is not a target for the investigation but investigators are working to determine his role in Comey being fired. There is speculation as to how much influence Kushner had on President Trump’s decision to fire Comey, but White House sources said Trump made the decision on his own after watching Comey’s testimony in May.
People close to the White House, Kushner included, said they had no part in the decision and were merely in favor of it, but some sources said he was a driver in the decision.
Kushner’s participation in the data analytics operations of the 2016 Trump campaign, his relationship with Michael Flynn, who is the former national security adviser, and Kushner’s own Russian contacts, according to sources, are also being looked into.
SUNY Oswego’s College Republicans Club uses beach ball to promote free speech
by Briana Watson
OSWEGO, NY – On Wednesday October 25th, the College Republicans Club at SUNY Oswego put up a 8-foot beach ball in front of Penfield Library to promote free speech. The beach ball was used as a medium to encourage students to write anything they wanted whether they were political views or their Instagrams.
President of the College Republicans Club Tyler Toomey said that using the beach ball as a medium for free speech is an event that is being held on other campuses along the east coast.
“It’s a pretty big event through some nonprofit organizations nationwide so we got in contact with them and they actually drove the ball from D.C down to us last night,” Toomey said.
Student Shelby Stewart took the opportunity to express her political views.
“I wrote that I support Trump…because a lot of people wrote a lot of liberal things and I feel like there’s not very many Republicans on campus,” Stewart said.
Stewart said she hopes that by having the beach ball present that it will inspire unity on campus.
“I think if anything it’s going to unite everybody because they see that the College Republicans aren’t just saying, ‘You can’t write anything on it if it’s not Republican’. So I think hopefully, it just going to unite campus and show that people can get along,” Stewart said.
For more information on the College Republicans Club visit the Oswego College Republicans facebook page or their Laker Life page.
Oswego County sets date for budget proposal
By Krystal Cole
OSWEGO, N.Y.– Oswego County’s 2018 Budget proposal is expected to have no increase in property tax.
The overall budget is currently around $202 million. If no changes are made before the final version, taxpayers will actually see a decrease in their property tax.
These numbers are not set in stone however, as the county is still waiting on figures from the state.
A final vote on the budget will be taken on December 14 at 7 p.m.
Fall foliage peaks at SUNY Oswego
By Renee Dunn
OSWEGO, N.Y– Autumn is considered by some people as one of the most beautiful times of the year because of leaves changing, and the peak of Fall is here in Oswego. Strong leaf colors are being expected for several sections of Jefferson, St. Lawrence and Oswego counties this week.
According to I Love NY.com, the Thousand Islands-Seaway region of New York, which includes Oswego County, will experience 80 to nearly 100 percent leaf color change this week. This means that oak, maple, and sweetgum trees will be bright shades of red, yellow and orange while fewer areas of muted green, orange and purple remain.
For the students of SUNY Oswego, this color change of foliage brings about many opportunities to explore all of the beauty the campus has to offer. SUNY Oswego’s outdoor club takes trips in the fall to view the leaves changing colors, which peak at different times around the state.
“The adirondacks start first so we got a jump start a few weeks ago in the adirondacks to see the peak. Now it’s in the central New York region, [so we] kind of just drift with the leaves to chase the peak colors for the best hikes for our club members,” Meteorology student and co-president of SUNY Oswego’s Outdoor’s club Zach Butler said.
Rice Creek Field Station also offers opportunities to watch the change in seasons. Rice Creek has trails that are open during daylight hours that can be used for viewing the changing of the leaves in the fall. Student’s can also educate themselves on the ecosystem of Rice Creek at the field station’s wildlife exhibit.
Other areas of New York, such as Long island, are still in their midpoint of color change and are expected to reach their peak later in the month.
For more information and to view a map of peak fall foliage, visit https://smokymountains.com/fall-foliage-map/.
President Trump calls for stricter punishment for terriorists
by Amada Caba
N.Y.– “We have to come up with punishment that’s far quicker and far greater than the punishment these animals are getting right now,” President Trump said in response to yesterday’s terrorist attack in NYC.
The attack left eight people dead. The suspect is 29-year old Sayufllo Saipov from Uzbekistan who lives in New Jersey. It has been confirmed that the attack was made in the name of ISIS.
The president said he views the way the United States prosecutes terrorists as a laughing stock. The president said this in front of the head of the justice Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
The president’s speech relates to what he has proposed during his campaign which threatened to torture and “load up” suspects in Guantanamo Bay.
Sarah Sanders, the White House press secretary, defended the President of the United States by claiming that he said “the process has people calling us a joke and calling us a laughingstock” and that he was just expressing his frustrations with the lengthy judicial process that comes with cases like this.
Earlier today, Governor Andrew Cuomo called the President’s tweets “unhelpful” and “not factual”.
“You play into the hands of the terrorist to the extent that you disrupt, divide and frighten people in the society. The tone should be the opposite on all level,” said Gov. Cuomo.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio also warned people to not stereotype all Muslims as extremists as this would only makes the situation worse.
Kate Randazzo named NEWHL player of the week
By Nick Schmidt,
This past week, Lakers defender Kate Randazzo earned herself the NEWHL player of the week. Randazzo tallied four assists in Friday’s 5-0 rout of New England College. On Saturday, Randazzo netted the overtime game winner against Castleton with 39 seconds left in the overtime period. Randazzo and the Lady Lakers return to the ice this Saturday to take on Elmira College.
International student prepare for December graduation
By Fan Shi
OSWEGO, NY– SUNY Oswego’s career services held a graduate school fair and career fair to help students prepare for their December graduation and some international students were searching for a promising future.
International student Zhixing Zhai said that he is nervous for graduation and hopes to find an opportunity that will allow him to stay in the United States.
“You can see a lot of opportunities and chances here because there are so many universities. But you are not sure which one you are going to get in eventually. And this process made me very stressful,” Zhai said.
Other international students said they are struggling to find jobs. South Korean Senior Soyoung Moon said she finds it is difficult to accomplish a perfect resume.
“The resume structure between our country and the United States is very different.” Soyoung said.
SUNY Oswego career services offers help to students trying to put together a resume. They have a resource room where someone works with students in resume writing, guiding them towards internships and doing the same with job opportunities. Some of their other services include taking professional photos for LinkedIn profiles and helping students plan their future.
SUNY Oswego director of Career Service Gary Morris said they are improving their services for international students.
“We have some staff members who are kind of specialize to the systems we can give advantage to the international students. We try to stay a breath of the changing landscape of visa. We explore different products and software online like going global that details information that literally hundreds of countries out there to help our professional staff and our students staff better understand and be sense to the culture differences in different countries,” Morris said.
For more information on SUNY Oswego’s Career Services, visit https://www.oswego.edu/career-services/.
SUNY Oswego hosts open house for prospective students
High school students from near and far traveled to Oswego on Saturday, October 28th, to visit SUNY Oswego’s Open House. The open house was hosted by the office of admissions.
The Open House gave students and families an opportunity to talk with faculty and explore the campus buildings including academic buildings, residence halls, and dining halls. Just over a hundred tables were set up in the Marano Campus Center. Students and parents had the chance to talk to representatives from financial aid, career services, athletics, international education, and experience-based education.
“The people are very friendly and i felt very welcomed here. the campus is very modern and beautiful so it was easy to find my way around,” High School Senior Allison Smith said.
To schedule a visit register at www.oswego.edu/visit or for more information about when future open houses will be visit oswego.edu/events.
Oswego begins World War I remembrance project
By Victoria Costa
Oswego, N.Y.– City Historian Mark Slosek and a group of volunteers are working on a project that commemorates World War I. The group wants to refresh and improve monuments with the help of the city Veterans’ Council, Oswego American Legion, and Oswego Department of Works.
The local and county veterans’ groups will assist in identifying World War I veterans graves. On Memorial Day 2018, the graves will be marked with a flag and traditional poppy flower.
On November 11, 2018, Armistice Day, the group wants to encourage the clergy to give “Promise of Peace” sermons and to encourage community “Bells To Ring” at 11AM to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of the war.
“We hope this will help people remember and help our youth remember what an important event World War I was,” Slosek said.
The group received a favorable recommendation from members of the Common Council when they presented the plan.