DOJ investigates Nebraska parade float critical of Obama

presidential-float-flapjpeg-00d1a_s640x439The U.S. Department of Justice has sent a member of its Community Relations Service team to investigate a Nebraska parade float that criticized President Obama.

A Fourth of July parade float featured at the annual Independence Day parade in Norfolk sparked criticism when it depicted a zombie-like figure resembling Mr. Obama standing outside an outhouse, which was labeled the “Obama Presidential Library.”

The Nebraska Democratic Party called the float one of the “worst shows of racism and disrespect for the office of the presidency that Nebraska has ever seen.”

Read more at The Washington Times

U.S. Forest Service bans exploding targets

Seven fires in Rocky Mountains blamed on devices

DENVER – The U.S. Forest Service announced a ban on exploding targets Monday, citing them as a major cause of wildfires.

Shooters who use exploding targets have ignited 16 wildfires since last year, including seven in the Forest Service’s Rocky Mountain region of Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Nebraska and South Dakota.

The ban extends to all national forests and grasslands in those five states.

The public should understand that exploding targets can cause fires, said John Walsh, the U.S. Attorney for Colorado.

“You don’t want to have on your conscience starting a huge forest fire,” Walsh said.

A month before the Boston Marathon bombings, the FBI warned that commercial “exploding targets” used for recreational rifle shooting could power homemade bombs on American streets.

Read more and see video at The Durango Herald

To Sidestep Obamacare, Wendy’s Reduces Hours for Hundreds in Nebraska

Employees at various Wendy’s restaurant locations in Nebraska will work fewer hours this year, reportedly due to costs associated with Obamacare.

Under the new healthcare law, businesses with 50 or more “full-time” employees must offer health benefits to their staffers working between 32 and 38 hours. Non-managerial workers at Omaha-area Wendy’s will see their hours cut to 28 hours a week, according to local NBC affiliate WOWT.

Gary Burdette, vice president of operations for the Wendy’s franchise, acknowledged the cuts are an attempt by the franchise owner to reduce the number of full-time employees at his Wendy’s locations to avoid offering health care benefits to his staff, according to WOWT.

Wendy’s spokesman Denny Lynch stressed in a Huffington Post interview that the decision of franchise owner Scott King was his alone and not “a company decision.”

“Our franchisees are independent businesspeople, and they make the decisions regarding their restaurant teams. As small-business employers, our franchisees are facing rising food and operating costs and many new government regulations,” Lynch said.

Read more at Newsmax.com