• Man admits Election Day burglary of Nancy Pelosi house, cops say

    Uncredited / AP

    Kevin Michael Hagan, seen in a photo provided by Napa County Sheriff's Office, is suspected of breaking into House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's home.

    By NBCBayArea.com

    A suspect was arrested on suspicion of burglarizing the California home of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi as voters went to the polls, a sheriff's captain in Napa County said.

    Kevin Michael Hagan, 21, admitted six burglaries since Halloween, including two at Congresswoman Pelosi's residence on Zinfandel Lane outside St. Helena on Monday and again on Tuesday, which was Election Day.

    Capt. Tracy Stuart said nobody was home at the time and it's unknown what was taken. Pelosi was re-elected on Tuesday night.

    Deputies found a glass door to the main Pelosi residence and a glass door to the pool house had been smashed when they responded to an alarm there around 2:50 p.m. local time (5:50 p.m. ET) on Nov. 5.

    No one was home at the time and it's unknown what was taken, Stuart said.

    Read more news from NBCBayArea.com

    On Nov. 6 at 9:50 a.m. local time (12:50 p.m. ET), a caretaker at the Pelosi home discovered plywood that was placed over the broken glass doors the day before had been removed, and someone entered the main house and pool house, Stuart said.

    It appeared someone looked through drawers and cabinets, Stuart said.

    Mark Wilson / Getty Images

    House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi walks up to speak at a news conference on Oct. 2 in Washington, D.C.

    Sheriff's deputies responded at 10:10 a.m. (1:10 p.m. ET) Wednesday to a residence at 2150 Silverado Trail outside St. Helena after a caretaker found an upstairs door open and a locked bedroom door, Stuart said.

    Thinking someone might be inside the house, the caretaker called police, Stuart said.

    A sheriff's deputy discovered a window had been removed and a suspect was inside the house, Stuart said.

    Hagan was found and admitted burglarizing the Pelosi residence twice and two other properties on Zinfandel Lane, Stuart said.

    Stuart said Hagan did not realize it was Pelosi's home the first time he burglarized it but he was aware the second time.

    Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner, and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi both drove in the first nails on the platform that will be erected on the U.S. Capitol in January for the next president's inauguration. NBC's Brian Williams reports.

    Hagan took deputies to the properties and he was arrested on suspicion of 10 counts of burglary, felony vandalism and a violation of probation for prior burglaries and thefts, Stuart said.

    Hagan had a watch and coin collection taken from the Pelosi residence and Bose headphones taken from another victim's residence, Stuart said. He was booked into the Napa County jail.

     

  • Giffords makes rare public appearance to accept award

    Matt York / AP file

    Former U.S. Rep Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., in a January 2012 picture.

    By Jason Strachman Miller, msnbc.com

    Former Congresswoman Gabrielle "Gabby" Giffords made a rare public appearance Tuesday night to accept the “We Are EMILY Award” from Emily’s List, a political advocacy organization that supports pro-choice women seeking office.

    “Gabby’s unimaginable courage has been an inspiration to everyone in this room tonight,” said Emily’s List President Stephanie Schriock.

    While Giffords did not personally accept the award, her mother, Gloria Giffords, accepted and spoke on her behalf. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., said Gabby’s attendance at the event was a testament of how much Emily’s list has meant to her.

    Wasserman Schultz nodded at Giffords as she told the crowd, “This is an incredibly well deserved honor.”

    During the presentation, Giffords smiled as she sat onstage flanked by her mother and good friend, Wasserman Schultz. Speaking before the hundreds in attendance, Minority leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., summed up the former Congresswomen’s impact in Washington.

    “She spoke out courageously and quickly distinguished herself as a shining star who embodies the best of public service,” she said noting that her time in public service was far from over.

    The yearly Emily's List award is given to recognize women who have changed the face of political power and provided leadership and inspiration.

    The former Congresswoman’s mom said her daughter has been a constant source of inspiration during her recovery from an assassination attempt in Jan. 2011 in which Giffords’ was shot in the head.

    Giffords mom took the podium on behalf of the former congresswoman and quickly addressed her role of accepting the award for her daughter.

    “Obviously the ideal situation isn’t for me to be up here accepting this award on behalf of Gabby, but life’s not perfect.”

    As the former Congresswoman’s mom reached the “self-sacrifice” part of Gifford’s message during her speech, she struggled to hold back tears. Gloria spoke of her daughter’s determination, saying “she’s working tirelessly on her recovery.”

    Emily's List also used the event to unvail an award named in Giffords' honor: the “Gabrielle Giffords Rising Star” award.

    Emily’s List states the award will “honor women who demonstrate the sort of commitment to community, dedication to women and families and determination and civility that have been the highlights of Giffords’ career."

    Gloria said the former Congresswoman is “especially touched and honored” by the award. Before leaving the podium Gloria leaned in and offered hope to the crowd on behalf of her daughter.

    Giffords’ mom said she is striving for a full recovery and her future remains very bright.

    “She’ll be back fighting alongside of you,” she said.

  • Limbaugh: Contraception advocate should post online sex videos

    Find More @ http://www.DailyRushbo.com

    By NBC News and msnbc.com staff

    Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh, already under fire from Democrats over his language in discussing a Georgetown University law student who testified about contraception, ratcheted up his rhetoric on Thursday, saying the student should post an online sex video if taxpayers are forced to pay for contraception.

    Limbaugh on Wednesday had referred to student Sandra Fluke as a “slut” for supporting a requirement that health insurance cover contraception. On his radio show Thursday, Limbaugh went a little further:

    "So Miss Fluke, and the rest of you Feminazis, here's the deal. If we are going to pay for your contraceptives, and thus pay for you to have sex. We want something for it. We want you post the videos online so we can all watch."

    House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi had called on Limbaugh to apologize Thursday about the “slut” comment, made after Fluke testified recently about contraception before an unofficial Democratic committee.

    Here's what Limbaugh said on Wednesday’s edition of Premiere Radio Networks' The Rush Limbaugh Show:

    "What does it say about the college coed Susan Fluke [sic], who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex? What does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute. She wants to be paid to have sex.

    "She's having so much sex she can't afford the contraception. She wants you and me and the taxpayers to pay her to have sex. What does that make us? We're the pimps.

    "The johns, that's right. We would be the johns -- no! We're not the johns. Well -- yeah, that's right. Pimp's not the right word."

    Fluke had been turned away in February from testifying before the Republican-controlled House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on the Obama administration's policy requiring that employees of religion-affiliated institutions have access to health insurance that covers birth control.

    Radio host Rush Limbaugh, one of the loudest voices of the conservative movement, had strong words for women who want contraception coverage. NBC's Anne Thompson reports.

    The Health and Human Services Department ruled earlier this year that, under the new health care law, religious-affiliated institutions such as hospitals and universities must include free birth control coverage in their employee health plans.

    That mandate has raised a storm of criticism and protests from Catholic leaders and others who disapprove of contraception on religious grounds. The issue continues to divide the Congress. On Thursday, the Senate defeated a proposal that would have allowed employers and health plans to opt out of paying for medical services that are contrary to their religious beliefs or moral convictions.

    Fluke later testified at an unofficial Democratic-sponsored hearing on Feb. 23, where her comments about the importance of reproductive health care to women drew applause from a small group in attendance, including Pelosi.

    She said that contraception can cost a woman more than $3,000 during law school.

    On Thursday, Pelosi denounced Limbaugh's comments about Fluke and called on GOP leaders and members to denounce the “slut” remark:

    "When Sandra Fluke testified before the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee after Republicans attempted to silence, she courageously spoke truth to power. As a result, today, she has been subject to attacks that are outside the circle of civilized discussion and that unmask the strong disrespect for women held by some in this country. We call upon the Republican leaders in the House to condemn these vicious attacks on Ms. Fluke, which are in response to her testimony to the Congress. Democrats will always stand up for women's health and women's voices."

    Fluke released a statement Thursday in response to Limbaugh's rhetoric, saying "numerous commentators have gone far beyond the acceptable bounds of civil discourse.

    "No woman deserves to be disrespected in this manner. This language is an attack on all women, and has been used throughout history to silence our voices.

    "The millions of American women who have and will continue to speak out in support of women's health care and access to contraception prove that we will not be silenced."

    Meanwhile, a bomb squad was called to Limbaugh's house in Palm Beach after a suspicious package was reported there. 

    Security staff for the iconic conservative talk show host found a package with an electronic plaque that they believed was suspicious and contacted authorities, WPTV reported.

    But the package, delivered to his North Ocean Boulevard home, was actually a "business opportunity" from a radio listener, a Palm Beach Police spokesman told The Palm Beach Post.

    Read more about the Limbaugh bomb scare at NBCMiami.com

    When the bomb squad opened the package at about 7 p.m., it saw that it contained an electronic plaque on President Abraham Lincoln's assassination, spokesman Fred Hess said.

    Police were able to get in touch with the sender in Pennsylvania, who apologized for sending a package that could be construed as dangerous, according to WPTV.

    NBC News' Luke Russert and msnbc.com's Sylvia Wood contributed to this report, which includes material from NBCMiami.com.

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