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Bill Jones: Join a purely positive campaign – the United Way’s effort to strengthen community

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New developments arise regarding future of Irem Temple building

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; U.S. Rep. Lou Baretta Friday said President-elect Donald Trump &#8220;made three fine selections&#8221; when he announced he has chosen U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions for Attorney General, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn as Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and U.S. Rep. Mike Pompeo as director of the Central Intelligence Agency.</p><p>&#8220;I know all three of these men,&#8221; Barletta said. &#8220;These are three vital roles to be filled in today&#8217;s dangerous world &#8212; our top law enforcement officer and two senior officials who will lead the way in keeping the United States safe from threats from around the world.&#8221;</p><p>An Associated Press story said all three have been fierce critics of President Barack Obama&#8217;s handling of terrorism and international relations. In tapping Sessions and Flynn, Trump is also rewarding loyalty from two of his most ardent supporters during the presidential campaign.</p><p>The AP story said Trump is a foreign policy novice and his early moves on national security are being closely watched both in the U.S. and overseas. Sessions, R-Alabama, and Pompeo, R-Kansas, would both require Senate confirmation before assuming their designated roles; Flynn would not.</p><p>&#8220;Senator Sessions is a man of tremendous integrity with the highest regard for the rule of law,&#8221; Barletta said. &#8220;We have worked closely together on the issue of illegal immigration, and I have no doubt that he will make an exemplary attorney general of the United States.&#8221;</p><p>Barletta said he and Pompeo were elected to serve in the House of Representatives the same year. He said Pompeo is &#8220;an excellent choice&#8221; to run the CIA.</p><p>&#8220;He&#8217;s a West Point and Harvard graduate and has sat on the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, so his credentials for this important post are beyond reproach,&#8221; Barletta said.</p><p>Barletta also said Gen. Flynn will bring the experience of a career military man to the role of National Security Advisor.</p><p>&#8220;He&#8217;s also served as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and as the assistant director of National Intelligence,&#8221; Barletta said. &#8220;If you were drawing up a candidate for such an important position, you would describe General Flynn.&#8221;</p><p>Barletta is looking forward to working with all three as the Trump administration continues to take shape.</p><p>In an emailed news release from the Trump Transition Team that has been meeting in New York City, Trump said it was &#8220;an honor&#8221; to nominate Sessions to serve as attorney general.</p><p>Trump also had high praise for Flynn and Pompeo.</p><p>The AP story said Flynn has called Islam a &#8220;political ideology&#8221; that &#8220;hides behind being a religion.&#8221; Trump said in a statement Friday that Flynn would be &#8220;by my side as we work to defeat radical Islamic terrorism, navigate geopolitical challenges and keep Americans safe at home and abroad.&#8221;</p><p>Sessions was the first senator to have endorsed Trump, rallying behind the Republican&#8217;s hard-line immigration policies, the AP story said, adding the Alabama lawmaker could face obstacles in his confirmation hearing, even with Republicans in control of the Senate.</p><p>The AP story said Trump is still weighing a range of candidates for other leading national security posts. His choices for Secretary of State are said to include former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who met with Trump Thursday.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Barletta </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_Barletta_Lou_2-7.jpg</photo0><caption0>Barletta </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_Trump-Transition-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">A woman stops for a selfie with a heavily-armed New York City police officer at the main Fifth Avenue entrance to Trump Tower in New York City. Outside Donald Trump&#8217;s gilded skyscraper, many in the slow-moving sidewalk throng come for the sole purpose of snapping selfies, some to capture a bit of history. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_Trump-Transition-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>A woman stops for a selfie with a heavily-armed New York City police officer at the main Fifth Avenue entrance to Trump Tower in New York City. Outside Donald Trump&#8217;s gilded skyscraper, many in the slow-moving sidewalk throng come for the sole purpose of snapping selfies, some to capture a bit of history. </caption1><photoCredit1>Kathy Willens | AP </photoCredit1></div></div>

Rep. Barletta praises Trump’s selections for top positions