Hasher Jallal Taheb: DC attack suspect had hand-drawn diagram of West Wing

Federal authorities on Wednesday announced a terrorist case against a metro Atlanta resident accused of plotting to destroy the White House and other Washington D.C. government buildings. >> Read more trending news Hasher Jallal Taheb of Cumming, Georgia, was arrested in Gwinnett County and appeared briefly in court in downtown Atlanta in the case brought the FBI. Authorities said all threats have been neutralized and the suspect was believed to have been acting alone.  Taheb spoke of traveling to territory controlled by the Islamic State, prosecutors said. Please check back for updates.

Two mothers charged with selling drugs near elementary school

Two Cobb County mothers are facing nearly a dozen charges after police said they were dealing drugs near an elementary school.  Police said the women were prowling the neighborhood, which has several families with young children.  Neighbors told Channel 2’s Chris Jose that they called police on the women after they noticed the suspicious activity.  Hear from the daughter of one of the women arrested and why she’s thankful her mother’s behind bars, on Channel 2 Action News starting at 5:44 p.m.

TSA: “Financial limitations” causing airport screeners not to show up for work

After previously denouncing press reports of higher than normal absences of airport security personnel during a partial government shutdown as “fake news,” the Transportation Security Administration said on Wednesday that more of its employees are not showing up for work because of money issues caused by a missed paycheck last week, as the shutdown entered a 26th day with no resolution in sight. In a news release, the TSA stated that “many employees are reporting that they are not able to report to work due to financial limitations,” as the agency said its absentee rate was up from the same day a year ago. On Monday, the TSA reported 6.8 percent of unscheduled absences, compared to 2.5 percent on the same day a year earlier. On Tuesday, the unscheduled absence rate was 6.1 percent, compared to 3.7 percent on that date in 2018. TSA’s statement today acknowledging what federal employees have been warning about in our reporting for weeks- employees are calling out because of “financial limitations.” #GovernmentShutdown @wsbtv pic.twitter.com/ojCqOj9skU — Nicole Carr (@NicoleCarrWSB) January 16, 2019 The TSA did not provide any details on what airports might be experiencing the highest absentee rates for screeners, citing security concerns. “Aviation security remains an essential priority, and TSA does not want to create any perception that an adversary could use specific information to determine possible vulnerabilities,” the agency noted. Back on January 4, Department of Homeland Security spokesman Tyler Houlton ridiculed press reports of TSA airport staffing shortages, labeling it a ‘non-existent sickout.’ “More #FakeNews from @CNN,” Houlton tweeted. But since then, multiple examples have surfaced at airports in Miami, Houston, and other cities, where checkpoints – or entire terminals – have been shuttered, because of a lack of security screeners. If there is one group of workers impacted by the shutdown which members of Congress come into contact with the most – it would be TSA screeners at airport – as Democrats have repeatedly invoked stories of financial hardship involving furloughed federal workers. These are the faces of everyday families who are hurting as a result of the President’s shutdown. The photo I’m holding is of Becky Esquivel and her family. Becky works for TSA. I met with her and other federal workers last week to hear their stories. pic.twitter.com/yy1ZtN9uEM — Senator Jacky Rosen (@SenJackyRosen) January 16, 2019 The admission of “financial limitations” on workers not being employed came as the Trump Administration announced more federal employees are being called back to work – even though they can’t be paid until the Congress and the President solve the shutdown impasse, which started December 22 in a dispute over money for the President’s border wall. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Wednesday that Farm Service Agency workers would be brought back to their jobs for three days this month – all to help deal with a backlog of requests by farmers for financial aid, loans and other needs. Also, thousands of workers at the Internal Revenue Service are being brought back to their jobs, to insure that the tax filing season begins on time, at the end of January.