Michael Biesecker, Author at Valley News

FILE - In this March 3, 2013 file photo elephants drink water in the Chobe National Park in Botswana. Botswana's government says it has lifted its ban on elephant hunting, a decision that is likely to bring protests from wildlife protection groups. (AP Photo/Charmaine Noronha, File)

Botswana hires firm to fight bad publicity after lifting elephant hunting ban

by Brian Slodysko Associated Press, and Michael Biesecker Associated PressMay 25, 2019

WASHINGTON — The Botswanan government has enlisted a public relations firm with deep ties to Hollywood to push back against the bad publicity generated by the southern African nation’s decision to lift its ban on elephant hunting.42 West, a firm…

FILE - In this Tuesday, March 20, 2018 file photo, giraffes and zebras congregate under the shade of a tree in the afternoon in Mikumi National Park, Tanzania. The Trump administration has taken a first step toward extending protections for giraffes under the Endangered Species Act, following legal pressure from environmental groups. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Thursday that its initial review has determined there is “substantial information that listing may be warranted” for giraffes. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)

Giraffes a tentative step closer toward federal protections

by Michael Biesecker Associated PressApril 25, 2019

FILE - In this May 16, 2018 file photo, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt appears before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee on budget on Capitol Hill in Washington. A federal appeals court has ruled that the Trump administration endangered public health by keeping a top-selling pesticide chlorpyrifos on the market, despite extensive scientific evidence that even tiny levels of exposure could harm babies’ brains. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to remove chlorpyrifos from sale in the United States within 60 days. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Court Orders Ban on Harmful Pesticide, Says EPA Violated Law

by Michael Biesecker Associated PressAugust 9, 2018

Watchdog: Pruitt’s Privacy Booth Illegal

by Michael Biesecker The Associated PressApril 16, 2018

In this Nov. 15, 2017 photo, Edgardo de León sits in his living room with a hole in the ceiling caused by the whip of hurricane Maria, in Cataño, Puerto Rico. A newly created Florida company with an unproven record won more than $30 million in contracts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide emergency tarps and plastic sheeting for repairs to hurricane victims in Puerto Rico. Bronze Star LLC never delivered those urgently needed supplies, which even months later remain in demand on the island. (AP Photo/Carlos Giusti)

Company Never Delivered Needed Supplies to Puerto Rico

by Tami Abdollah Associated Press, and Michael Biesecker Associated PressNovember 28, 2017

FILE - In this June 11, 2014 file photo, former Blackwater Worldwide guard Nicholas Slatten leaves federal court in Washington. A federal appeals court on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, overturned the first-degree murder conviction of a Slatten, ordering a new trial for the man prosecutors say fired the first shots in the 2007 slayings of 14 Iraqi civilians at a crowded traffic circle in Baghdad. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)

U.S. Court Upends Murder Conviction of Blackwater Contractor

by Michael Biesecker Associated PressAugust 4, 2017

FILE - In this Aug. 15, 2016 file photo, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks in Scranton, Pa. The State Department said Monday, Aug. 22, 2016, it is reviewing nearly 15,000 previously undisclosed emails recovered as part of the FBI's now-closed investigation into the handling of sensitive information that flowed through Hillary Clinton's private home server. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

FBI: New Clinton Emails Recovered

by Michael Biesecker Associated Press, Eileen Sullivan Associated Press, and Chad Day Associated PressAugust 22, 2016

California Attorney General Kamala Harris answers questions about a settlement with Volkswagen during a news conference Tuesday, June 28, 2016, in San Francisco. Volkswagen will spend up to $15.3 billion to settle consumer lawsuits and government allegations that it cheated on emissions tests in what lawyers are calling the largest auto-related class-action settlement in U.S. history. Up to $10 billion will go to 475,000 VW or Audi diesel owners, who thought they were buying high-performance, environmentally friendly cars but later learned the vehicles' emissions vastly exceeded U.S. pollution laws. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

VW Will Pay Record Fine On Emissions

by Michael Biesecker Associated Press, and Tom Krisher And Dee-Ann Durbin Associated PressJune 28, 2016