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elections | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/oct/28/walker-romney-independent-choice-president/ | WALKER: Romney ΓΒ’Γ’β¬Òβ¬Β an Independent choice for president | 2012-10-28 | elections | America is at a critical crossroads . We have strayed from the principles and values on which our nation was founded . We also face a range of challenges that threaten our collective future , chief among these being how to grow the economy , generate jobs and put our nation β s deteriorating finances in order .
Over the past seven years I have traveled to 49 states addressing the public on our huge fiscal challenges and how to address them , including a recent 34-day , 27-state and 9,500-plus mile national fiscal responsibility bus tour . During this trip , I solicited voters β views on ways to restore fiscal sanity .
I learned that an overwhelming majority of voters feel that putting our nation β s finances in order should be a top priority for the Congress and the president . Yet very few believe that the current Washington line-up is likely to make real progress in 2013 . A super-majority also support putting everything on the table to achieve a fiscal grand bargain , including a combination of spending reductions and additional tax revenue . Americans all over the country expressed disgust with hyper-partisanship , huge ideological divides and lack of progress on a range of key challenges facing our nation . An overwhelming percentage of Americans also agreed with my assessment that America β s greatest deficit is a leadership deficit .
Time and time again I have been asked , β who should I vote for ? β or β who do you plan to vote for ? β These questions have become more frequent and urgent with the approach of the elections .
As a political independent for the past 15 years , a former U.S. Comptroller General and a national leader on fiscal responsibility and government transformation issues , I make decisions regarding who to vote for on a case by case basis according to a set of clearly defined and consistently applied criteria that ignore party affiliation . After all , no political party has a monopoly on the best people and best ideas .
From a fiscal perspective , I am convinced that both major presidential candidates want to achieve a β grand bargain , β although they clearly differ on how to get there . Unfortunately , while I would prefer to make a decision based on a candidate β s reform plans , neither of the major presidential candidates has outlined a comprehensive and specific fiscal reform plan that meets the six reform criteria that I have advocated . This plan must be pro-growth , socially equitable , culturally acceptable , mathematically accurate , politically feasible , and have meaningful bipartisan support . Therefore , I am basing my decision on who to support as president and other federal offices on the following criteria :
The person β s commitment to fiscal responsibility and real transformation of government .
The person β s commitment to working on a bipartisan basis to achieve real results .
Applying these criteria has led me to decide to vote for both Republicans and Democrats in the upcoming federal election races in my home state of Connecticut . Clearly the most important decision is my vote for president , our nation β s CEO .
Based on the above principles , I believe that Gov . Mitt Romney is the clear choice for president . He has proven leadership ability in all sectors of our economy . He has demonstrated an ability to achieve real results even with a legislative body that is controlled by the opposition party . He has stated a commitment to fiscal responsibility and true government transformation . I was personally reassured by a meeting with him covering his commitment and approach to tax , defense and several other key fiscal issues . Finally , Mr. Romney has experience in transforming and turning around entities in all three sectors of the economy .
A President Romney would have far more influence over a Republican-controlled House , which seems to be assured . President Obama had his chance to lead by advocating for the recommendations of his own Simpson-Bowles Commission . He failed to do so . It β s time to give someone else the opportunity to lead in defusing the ticking debt bomb that threatens our position in the world , national security , standard of living at home and even our domestic tranquility .
Given the current state of our country and political system , I believe that this is the most important federal election in my lifetime . I encourage all registered voters to exercise their right to vote . I also encourage people to develop their own criteria and vote for the people who they feel best meet them , irrespective of party label . The future of our families and our country just may depend on it . | 1nrUxC3O1MuC811S | 2 | Election2012 | 0.1 | Presidential Elections | 0.1 | Elections | 0 | null | null | null | null |
elections | National Review (News) | https://www.nationalreview.com/2020/08/kamala-harris-vice-presidential-pick-strengths-weaknesses/ | Is Kamala Harris as Safe a VP Pick as She Seems? | 2020-08-12 | 2020 Election, Kamala Harris, Presidential Elections, Joe Biden, Elections | National Review This Is What Democracy Looks Like The Partisan Chaos Unfolding in Minnesota They Gave Trump the Center, and He Took It Gerrymandering Isnβt Why Republicans Won the House in 2024 Jimmy Carter Was an Unsung Hero on Election Integrity So, itβs Kamala. After all the speculation about whom Biden might pick to be his running mate, he chose the woman most likely to get the nod all along, according to the betting markets. The California senator was and is widely seen as the βsafeβ choice, given the constraints Biden had imposed on himself. He pledged to pick a woman, and after the George Floyd protests he seemed increasingly likely to pick an African-American woman. Harris checks both boxes, and as the only black female Democratic senator or governor in the United States, she definitely seems to be a safer pick in the middle of an economic and health crisis than a former state legislator from Georgia, the mayor of Atlanta, or a little-known House member from Florida or California. Harris was vetted somewhat by the press during her presidential campaign, and she can be a poised speaker β the kind of relentlessly on-message politician who will likely avoid any campaign-destroying gaffes. But was Harris really the safest and smartest pick? To win in 2020, Biden needs to turn out the moderate voters who abandoned Republicans in 2018. And with that in mind, Harris certainly comes with some risks. Republicans have been painting Biden as a stalking horse for the left wing of the Democratic party: Sure, Biden might say he opposes the Green New Deal and Medicare for All, goes the Republican message, but just you watch whoβs really going to hold power. And the Democratic presidential nominee who turns 78 in November β amid a plague that is particularly deadly to the elderly β went ahead and picked a running mate who supports Medicare for All and the Green New Deal and federal legislation that would override state laws restricting late-term abortions . . . and on and on. Despite her attempts to align with the left wing of the Democratic Party on almost every matter of policy, Harris did little to generate actual enthusiasm on the left during the Democratic primary. She hemmed and hawed on Medicare for Allβs politically toxic proposal to abolish private health insurance and made the preposterous claim that universal health care would not require any new taxes on the middle class. She effectively portrayed Biden as a racist for opposing forced busing in the 1970s, and then backtracked on whether she now supported new forced-busing measures. Although naming an African-American woman is supposed to be a compassionate response to the police killing of George Floyd, Joe Biden and fellow 2020 candidate Tulsi Gabbard ripped Harris apart at the debates on criminal justice. βBiden alluded to a crime lab scandal that involved [Harrisβs] office and resulted in more than 1,000 drug cases being dismissed. Gabbard claimed Harris βblocked evidence that would have freed an innocent man from death row until she was forced to do so.β Both of these statements are accurate,β the Sacramento Bee reported after a July 2019 Democratic debate. At the same time, Harris is vulnerable to attacks from the right on criminal justice. Democratic senator Dianne Feinstein called on Harris to seek the death penalty in 2004 for a man who murdered police officer Isaac Espinoza with an AK-47, but Harris refused to do so. Last year, Espinozaβs widow spoke on camera about Harris for the first time in a tearful interview. βShe did not call me,β Renata Espinoza told CNN. βI felt like she had just taken something from us. She had just taken justice from us.β In Harrisβs 2010 campaign for California attorney general, her only statewide race against a Republican, she won by less than one point even as Democratic gubernatorial and senatorial candidates won by double digits on the same ballot. Itβs true that any running mate comes with risks, and some of the problems that dogged Harris in the Democratic presidential primary will be smaller problems in the general election. Her lackluster style on the stump wonβt matter much in a campaign without real campaign events. Her tendency to be evasive and hedge on policy in interviews wonβt be as much of a temptation: She can fall back on saying her agenda as vice president would be Bidenβs agenda. But the fact remains that Harris would be a heartbeat away from the presidency, and thatβs why former national-security adviser Susan Rice may have been a smarter pick. Her experience in the White House could have reassured voters sheβd know what to do in a crisis, and she could have aligned herself squarely with Biden on matters of policy, so there would be less worry among voters that Bidenβs vice president would pursue a far-left agenda in the event that Biden canβt serve out a full term. For all the boxes Harris does check, she doesnβt check either of these. McConnell intends to serve the remainder of his term, which ends in January 2027. As the bodies were turned over, βhundreds of βinnocent Gazansβ dance to music, and happily film this tragic event,β the Israeli government said. Gotham-mayhem pics still jolt while Hollywood-glam pics merely amuse. Europe can again become the place the world talks about when it talks about the economic frontier. Europeans have nothing to lose but their August of leisure. Thereβs moral equivalence, and then thereβs a total moral inversion. Trump breaks things only to pretend he is fixing them. Β© 2025 National Review Newsletters Β© 2025 National Review | a879ad4ba9cbb510 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
sexual_misconduct | NPR Online News | https://www.npr.org/2017/12/02/567997439/another-democrat-faces-calls-to-resign-because-of-sexual-harassment-allegations | Another Democrat Faces Calls To Resign Because Of Sexual Harassment Allegations | 2017-12-02 | sexual_misconduct | Another Democrat Faces Calls To Resign Because Of Sexual Harassment Allegations
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi , D-Calif. , has called for a fellow Democrat to resign after allegations surfaced that the freshman lawmaker sexually harassed a staffer during his campaign .
Rep. Ruben Kihuen , D-Nev. , is accused of making repeated unwanted sexual advances toward his then-finance director who was identified only as Samantha in an article published by BuzzFeed News on Friday . According to the report , the woman worked for Kihuen between December 2015 and April 2016 .
During that time , according to the report , then-candidate Kihuen on two occasions touched her thighs without consent and `` propositioned her for dates and sex despite her repeated rejections . ''
On one occasion in February 2016 , after attending a fundraiser , the woman says , Kihuen followed her to her car and told her : `` 'You look really good , I 'd like to take you out if you did n't work for me . ' ``
Pelosi has issued a statement calling for Kihuen to step down .
`` Across the nation , in every industry , brave women are coming forward to share stories of harassment that must be heard . `` In Congress , no one should face sexual harassment in order to work in an office or in a campaign . The young woman 's documented account is convincing , and I commend her for the courage it took to come forward . `` In light of these upsetting allegations , Congressman Kihuen should resign . ''
The BuzzFeed report goes on to say the woman was not sure how to report the uncomfortable interactions with Kihuen but did speak to a midlevel staffer at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to let him know why she was abruptly quitting the campaign .
Kihuen won the Democratic primary and defeat Republican incumbent Cresent Hardy last year to become the first Latino elected to the House of Representatives from Nevada , according to his biography on his congressional website .
The first-term congressman released a statement to BuzzFeed News on Friday , saying he takes the `` matter seriously and is not indicative of who I am . ''
`` The staff member in question was a valued member of my team . I sincerely apologize for anything that I may have said or done that made her feel uncomfortable . ''
Kihuen 's office has not responded to NPR 's request for comment .
Contacted by NPR , the DCCC echoed Pelosi . `` Members and candidates must be held to the highest standard , '' Chairman Rep. Ben Ray Lujan , D-N.M. , said in a statement . `` If anyone is guilty of sexual harassment or sexual assault , they should not hold elected office . Congressman Kihuen should resign . ''
The allegations leveled at Kihuen come as a wave of sexual misconduct and sexual harassment allegations have engulfed powerful men in industries from entertainment to business to media β including NPR β and in Congress .
Earlier this week Pelosi , along with House Speaker Paul Ryan , R-Wis. , and Rep. James Clyburn , the highest-ranking African-American member of Congress , called on Rep. John Conyers , D-Mich. , to resign .
Conyers , the most senior member of Congress and a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus , is facing mounting pressure to resign after multiple women have come forward accusing him of sexual harassment , including a former staffer Marion Brown who received a $ 27,000 payment not to discuss details of his alleged misconduct . She spoke about Conyers earlier this week on NBC 's Today show .
Conyers , who is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee , has stepped down from his post as ranking member of the powerful House Judiciary Committee , but remains in office . He was hospitalized in Michigan because of stress this week , according to his lawyer .
Across the Capitol , the Senate Ethics Committee confirmed Thursday that it has opened a preliminary inquiry into allegations regarding Sen. Al Franken , D-Minn. Franken is accused of groping multiple women . In a recent interview with Minnesota Public Radio , Franken said that he was ashamed of his actions , but that he would not leave office .
`` I 'm going to take responsibility . I 'm going to be held accountable , and I 'm going to try to be productive in the way I speak about this , '' Franken said . | iRUaYWqBIXHntd8m | 1 | Sexual Misconduct | -2.4 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
middle_east | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/sep/13/protesters-storm-us-embassy-yemen/ | Protesters storm U.S. Embassy in Yemen | 2012-09-13 | middle_east | SANAA , Yemen ( AP ) β With chants of β Death to America β and β Death to Israel , β hundreds of protesters angered by an anti-Islam film stormed the U.S. Embassy compound in Yemen β s capital and burned the American flag on Thursday , the latest in a series of attacks on American diplomatic missions in the Middle East .
The string of assaults this week β in Yemen , Egypt and the storming of a U.S. Consulate in Benghazi , Libya , that killed four Americans , point to an increased boldness among Islamists who have become more powerful since last year β s wave of revolts toppled authoritarian leaders .
The anger over the movie denigrating Islam β s Prophet Muhammad also has put the region β s new leaders β some of whom are themselves Islamists β in a difficult corner , between a base demanding a free hand to respond to the insult and U.S. pressure to crack down . In the past , protests have broken out over perceived insults to Islam from the West , but in Arab countries they never escalated to the degree of breaching embassies , suggesting that hard-liners now feel they can act with impunity .
Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi quickly apologized to the U.S. for the embassy attack and vowed track down the culprits , just as Libya β s president did . Egypt β s Islamist president , Mohammad Morsi , who had been slow to speak out on Tuesday β s assault on the embassy in Cairo , promised Thursday that his government would not allow attacks on diplomatic missions .
U.S. officials suspect the Libya assault may have been a planned terror operation rather than a spontaneous mob assault . While protesters in other countries were unarmed , a crowd bristling with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades overwhelmed the consulate in Benghazi late Tuesday , killing the ambassador and three other Americans .
Protests also are erupting in other countries . In Egypt , protesters clashed with riot police who had pushed them away from the embassy the night before .
In Iraq , several hundred Shiite hard-liners protested in Baghdad β s Shiite stronghold of Sadr City . The leader of an Iranian-backed Shiite militia that previously attacked U.S. troops , Asaib Ahl al-Haq , threatened anti-U.S. attacks .
The movie β will put all the American interests in Iraq in danger , β the militia leader , Qais al-Khazali , told the Associated Press .
In Iran , about 50 protesters shouted , β Death to America , β outside the Swiss Embassy , which looks after U.S. diplomatic interests in Iran . Riot police kept the crowd away from the building .
Hundreds converged Thursday on the U.S. Embassy in the Yemeni capital , Sanaa , which is heavily barricaded because of past al-Qaeda-linked attacks on the compound . Yemeni guards at checkpoints on roads leading up to the compound did nothing to stop the crowd , said Ahmed Darwish , a witness who was at the scene .
The crowd swarmed over the embassy β s entrance gate . Men with iron bars smashed the thick , bulletproof glass windows of the entrance building while others clambered up the wall . Some ripped the embassy β s sign off the outer wall .
Inside the compound grounds , they brought down the American flag in the courtyard and replaced it with a black banner bearing Islam β s declaration of faith : β There is no God but Allah. β They did not enter the main building housing the embassy β s offices , some distance away from the entry reception . Demonstrators set tires ablaze and pelted the compound with rocks .
Yemeni security forces who rushed to the scene fired in the air and used tear gas to disperse the demonstrators , driving them out of the compound after about 45 minutes and sealing off the surrounding streets .
The embassy said no one was harmed in the attack .
β All embassy personnel are safe and accounted for , β spokesman Lou Fintor said .
Mr. Hadi offered his β sincere apologies β for the attack and promised to catch those behind it . He said the attack was carried out by a β rowdy crowd β as part of a conspiracy to derail Yemen β s close relations with Washington .
The assault appeared to be a copycat of the protest Tuesday night at the U.S Embassy in Cairo , when angry youths climbed the walls and brought down the flag , though they largely refrained from any material damage .
Yemen is home to al Qaeda β s most active branch , and the United States is the main foreign supporter of the Yemeni government β s counterterrorism campaign . The government on Tuesday announced that al Qaeda β s No . 2 leader in Yemen was killed in an apparent U.S. airstrike , a major blow to the terror network .
The spreading violence comes as outrage grows over a movie called β Innocence of Muslims , β produced by anti-Islam campaigners in the U.S. , that mocked Islam β s Prophet Muhammad . The amateurish video was produced in the U.S. and excerpted on YouTube . It depicts Muhammad as a fraud , a womanizer and a madman in an overtly ridiculing way , showing him having sex and calling for massacres .
Egyptian protesters clashed Thursday with police near the U.S. Embassy in Cairo . Police used tear gas to disperse the protesters , and the two sides pelted each other with rocks . But unlike Tuesday , the police kept the protesters away from the embassy compound .
The Interior Ministry , which is in charge of police , said 16 protesters and 13 policemen were wounded in the clashes , which broke out overnight and were ongoing . Twelve protesters have been arrested , it said .
Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi , speaking while on a visit to Brussels , vowed on Thursday not to allow attacks on foreign embassies in Cairo , saying the Egyptian people reject such β unlawful acts . β
Afghanistan β s government , meanwhile , sought to avert any protests as past anger over perceived insults to Islam has triggered violence in the country .
President Hamid Karzai canceled an official visit to Norway and spoke by phone with President Obama to convey his condolences for the deaths of the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other diplomats , a statement said . He also discussed the β film and the insulting of holy Islamic values , β but the statement provided no other details . | LzxzRKyLie61KC1J | 2 | Middle East | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Guest Writer - Right | http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/02/05/clinton-vs-sanders-hillary-shows-weakness-but-bernie-is-no-barack-obama.html | OPINION: Hillary shows weakness but Bernie is no Barack Obama | 2016-02-05 | Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Debates, Presidential Elections, Elections | Imagine Hillary Clinton β s relief , come Wednesday morning , when she no longer has to grovel before New Hampshire β s famously prickly primary electorate .
It means no credibility leapfrogging as in 2008 when , following a third-place humiliation in Iowa , she told a New Hampshire debate audience : β I β m running on 35 years of change . β
Or , on Thursday night in Durham , New Hampshire , with Clinton repeatedly invoking the Bin Laden raid β be it her hard work on behalf of President Obama -- or her hard work , post-Obama , on the speech circuit .
About Thursday night β s Democratic debate β the only time Hillary Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders will meet before Tuesday β s Granite State primary , some observations :
A Damsel . In Distress ? Eight years ago in New Hampshire , Hillary β s back was against the wall : another decisive loss to Barack Obama and her campaign would come to an abrupt end . We remember it now as the week in which Hillary departed from her icier norm and shed a tear .
The question in 2016 : is Clinton β s current position anything to cry about ? Yes , she ended up in a dead heat in Iowa with Sanders despite enjoying a 40-point lead there last summer . New Hampshire is problematic : it β s a 20-point deficit , if this post-Iowa NBC News/Marist poll is to believed .
But Sanders is no Obama β neither in his organizational skills or ability to build a majority coalition among Democratic voters . Unlike 2008 , when she was on the wrong side of history ( with a party and a nation looking to make a larger statement ) , Clinton needn β t panic in the moment .
Which begs this question about the candidate β other than if and when she β ll shed a tear between now and Tuesday :
Why Can β t She Be Herself ? As the Clinton team ponders how to move on post-New Hampshire , it might want to place a call to the past campaigns of Mitt Romney , John McCain and Bob Dole .
All were presidential nominees in their 60 β s or 70 β s , running a second ( in Dole β s case , a third ) and final time as their party β s establishment choices . All made the tactical error of election-year conversions to more ideological personae that rang hollow with their party β s grassroots activists . Of course , all three lost .
The same β s true of Hillary at present : atop the Democratic pyramid longer than Americans have owned iPhones , she β s a known quantify β resume-solid , most likely a dealmaker like her husband should she get his former job .
Yet her oft-repeated β I β m a progressive who likes to get things done β sounds too much like a catchphrase when stacked up against a 74-year-old fervent socialist who says what he means and means what he says , Leninist though it may be .
From the debate β s outset , an edgy-looking Clinton was intense β and intent on making the point that Sanders β 18 trillion wish list of expansive government is but pipe dream .
She β s right , of course . But she β s missing the point : Successful Democratic presidential candidates thrive on personality and passion . The party β s most fabled standard-bearers β JFK , Bill Clinton , Obama β ran as optimists , not scolds . The sooner someone convinces Clinton that it β s time to shift from upbraid to upbeat β and stop trying to beat up Bernie β the better her long-term prospects .
Bernie Didn β t Burn Her . When the debate reached its big expected moment β Clinton and her Goldman Sachs honoraria , on the heels of Sanders β s ad attacking Goldman Sachs β economic impact β Bernie whiffed .
Sanders didn β t use Clinton β s Willie Sutton-like defense of accepting $ 675,00 from Goldman Sachs for three speeches ( β that β s what they offered β ) against her β MNBC β s Rachel Maddow had to bring it up . As Clinton repeatedly invoked unspecified β hedge-fund billionaires β vested in her political demise , Sanders passed on any mention of Clinton β s son-in-law who is a hedge-fund manager .
Making a quick buck is a Clinton family trait . Bill and Hillary have amassed over $ 25 million in speaking fees since 2014 . Daughter Chelsea earned $ 600,000 annually as an NBC News β special correspondent '' β by one estimate , she made about $ 26,724 for each minute she appeared on air ( then again , probably a sore subject at a MSNBC-run debate ) .
But it ties to a larger point that will haunt Hillary come the general election : as with the server controversy , the Clintons have a penchant for cutting corners , offer strained justifications and live by a different set of standards and rules . It β s part of why voters struggle with Hillary β s trustworthiness , yet Sanders lacks the cutthroat skill to exploit it . Clinton β s lucky a more adroit rival β s not in this race .
What Went Missing . Bill Clinton went largely unmentioned in the 90-minute debate .
In what may be a campaign first this election cycle , America was spared any talk of Donald Trump .
Trump wants a recount in Iowa , as do some Democrats . To its credit , MSNBC raised the topic β though it should have been in the debate β s opening moments , not 80 minutes later .
MSNBC missed the chance to press Sanders on whether he β ll endorse Clinton should she prevail .
In 2009 , Clinton joined her former rival β s administration . Is there a place for Sanders in a Hillary administration ?
She dodged a question about making him a running mate , but said Sanders would be her first courtesy call should she become the nominee .
Earlier this week , Gallup released this analysis finding that 20 U.S. states are β red β ( solidly or leaning Republican ) versus only 14 β blue β Democratic states . In 2009 , Gallup painted 33 states blue and only five red .
As the two candidates argued over which one of them would be the more devoutly progressive after eight years of a decidedly liberal president , the irony was front and center β and to the left : Hillary or Bernie will win this Democratic battle . | e25cfa894666dee9 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
republican_party | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/the-gops-virginia-problem-86977.html | The GOP's Virginia problem | 2013-01-31 | republican_party | McDonnell has been popular , but Marshall ( left ) and Cuccinelli ( right ) have caused problems . The GOP 's Virginia problem
As GOP leaders in Washington look to remake their national brand , they don β t have to look far to find their first real challenge .
In the eyes of party strategists , Virginia β s off-year elections represent a first opportunity to bounce back from the losses of 2012 β a chance to reset the political debate in a critical swing state , send off popular Gov . Bob McDonnell on a high note and deliver a national message about the direction of the Republican Party .
If only the Republican state Legislature , local conservative leadership and de facto gubernatorial nominee could stick to the talking points . Instead , national Republicans fear the true believers in Richmond could shout down their fledgling message of prudence and moderation in a state that β s easy prey for much of the political media .
The GOP-held state Senate rocked Old Dominion politics less than two weeks ago by passing a daring plan to redraw the legislative map , rushing the proposal through as a potentially decisive Democratic lawmaker was out of town for Inauguration Day . In the days since then , legislators again stirred national attention by flirting with β before ultimately discarding β a proposal to divvy up Virginia β s Electoral College votes by congressional district , effectively rigging the state for the GOP .
All of that came as a highly unwelcome sequel to the 2012 uproar over a Virginia measure β championed by conservative state Del . Bob Marshall β mandating ultrasound procedures for women seeking abortions .
It was less than a year ago that Democrats seized on that issue as a national cause , using it to drive Virginia women away from the GOP ticket from Mitt Romney on down . Within Virginia , Republicans blame the ultrasound firestorm for undercutting McDonnell as a vice presidential contender and damaging Senate candidate George Allen , who ultimately lost to former governor Tim Kaine .
Now , the same legislative body that steered the 2012 GOP message off course has struggled to refocus on a winning agenda for 2013 . The still-unresolved redistricting controversy , Republicans say , has been an unwanted distraction from McDonnell β s ambitious proposals to overhaul education and transportation . The Virginia House of Delegates is expected to decide soon whether or not to take up the Senate β s provocative new legislative map , with McDonnell β s legacy and national profile once again at stake .
McDonnell β s office declined to comment for this story . Republican Lt. Gov . Bill Bolling , who has criticized the state GOP since withdrawing from the governor β s race late last year , lamented what he called a relentlessly divisive atmosphere in the Virginia capital .
β I β ve been very disappointed that this session has taken on such a partisan tone . That β s certainly not what we wanted or expected . We have some very big issues on the table this year like transportation funding and education reform , and we don β t want to see those issues compromised because of partisan spats over redistricting or anything else , β Bolling , who has toyed with an independent run for governor , told βββ . β Unfortunately , this is becoming more and more of a way of life in the Virginia General Assembly . Over the past several years , we β ve seen these types of partisan spats to a degree unlike anything we β ve historically seen in Virginia . β
The stakes are far higher than in your garden-variety state legislative wrangling : Virginia has become one of the most important swing states in the country , a traditional GOP stronghold that now has two Democratic U.S. senators and voted twice for President Barack Obama .
A triumphant last year for McDonnell , capped by a victory for Republicans in the 2013 governor β s race , could at least start the process of turning back that tide .
At the moment , it β s an open question whether the GOP will have the discipline to pull that off . While polls show the 2013 governor β s race is highly competitive , Republicans have felt distinctly anxious in recent weeks over a series of hard-right comments by state Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli , a hero of national conservatives who has continued to speak out on issues such as contraception and the Affordable Care Act despite outside pressure to pivot toward the middle . | pJL7GPvej9iYss4z | 0 | Republican Party | -0.1 | Politics | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | Vox | https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/1/2/16838808/trump-2017-record | What Trump didnβt do in 2017 | 2018-01-02 | white_house | Political journalists cover what happens in American politics . That β s the job . And so , over the past year , we β ve written about the tax bill , the travel ban , the resistance , the tweets , the regulatory repeals , the looting of the American government . It was a long 2017 .
What we miss in those stories is what doesn β t happen . But what doesn β t happen matters too . Time , energy , and money are limited . Opportunity costs are real , and that β s particularly true in a White House as unfocused , understaffed , and ill-managed as this one .
And so , in my 2017 retrospective , I want to explore some of the things the Trump administration didn β t do , and the price we may pay for it .
In 2016 , the most recent year for which we have data , a record 63,000 Americans died from drug overdoses β and two-thirds ( and possibly more ) of those deaths were opioid-related . To put that in perspective , that β s more Americans than died from HIV/AIDS in the worst year of the epidemic , more Americans than die annually from motor accidents or gun violence . If current trends continue , opioids could kill 650,000 over the next decade .
This is a crisis that needs not just money but also focus , leadership , and creativity . Progress is possible β Vermont β s success has proven that . The federal government could be scaling up Vermont β s program ; it could be throwing its vast scientific and public health resources into research and support ; it could be spending real money on a race-to-the-top program to fund , study , and expand promising state and local responses ; it could be working to change our cultural understanding of addiction , our counterproductive tendency to treat it as a moral failure .
Instead , capital β both financial and political β that could have gone toward solving the opioid epidemic was plowed into undermining the Affordable Care Act and funneling trillions in tax cuts to corporations . Trump eventually declared a state of emergency over the opioid crisis , but didn β t even ask for new funding to fight it . According to a member of his own opioid commission , he β s been β all talk and no follow-through . β
The opioid crisis is just one example . Others abound . Climate change , outdated infrastructure , college affordability , mass incarceration , child care , and much more deserves to be on a list like this . There was a vast array of problems more pressing , and policies more promising , than those the Trump administration pursued in 2017 .
We will pay the cost for what the Trump administration did over the past year , of course , but we will also pay the price for what we did not do with that time and those resources instead . That price will be harder to see , but in the long run , it will likely be higher .
What if we hadn β t spent the last year trashing America β s global leadership ?
In 2017 , the Pew Research Center surveyed 37 countries and found β a median of just 22 % said they have confidence in Trump to do the right thing in world affairs. β Trump β s behavior , meanwhile , has frayed our most important relationships . β The times in which we could completely depend on others are , to a certain extent , over , β Angela Merkel , the chancellor of Germany , said , in a stunning rebuke to the EuropeanβAmerican alliance .
The world looks at America and sees a weakening power with chaotic domestic politics and a correspondingly unpredictable foreign policy .
All this has left China , with its expansionist ambitions , floored at its luck . Evan Osnos , who covered China for the New Yorker , told me that Trump β has been such a gift to them that they are suspicious it β s real . A few thousand years of history have taught them the universe is cruel , and they can β t quite figure out how it was that the cosmos delivered to them this American counterpart who seems so hell-bent on giving China a historic opportunity for leadership. β ( Osnos expands on this idea in a must-read new piece . )
The time spent destroying America β s global leadership , giving China an opportunity to accelerate its rise , and rewarding Russia for interfering in our elections could , under another administration , have been time spent building new relationships , modernizing our military , leading the world β s fight against climate change , taking cybersecurity seriously , and preparing ourselves for the problems of the future .
And America β s global brand matters for reasons beyond geopolitics . As our standing drops , consider the inventors who , looking at an angry and unwelcoming America , may not come here , the PhD students who may choose not to stay here , and thus the companies and ideas that will not be born here , and perhaps not born at all . It has been to America β s benefit that Silicon Valley took root here . Its successor may not .
These are costs we will never quite know if we β ve paid . You don β t miss the business that didn β t get founded , the patent that never got filed , the experiment no one ever attempted . Similarly , if countries developing in this era attach themselves a bit more closely to China β s model than to our own , if they look at America and see a society that β s less worth of emulation than was once true , there will be a cost to that too β a cost in liberty around the globe , in the values that animate the international order , and it could be immense , even if we never quite realize we β re paying it .
Politics in the Trump era is , for many , a terrorizing distraction , a daily obsession . It crowds out other questions , pursuits , ideas , discussions . Trump has weaponized social media and cable news , he has mastered the news cycle by owning our outrage , he has learned that he can command the conversation by lobbing incendiaries into our cultural and tribal divides .
As a result , he takes up inordinate mental space , among both his supporters and his opponents . As this analysis from Echelon Insights shows , Trump dominated the national conversation on every single day of 2017 :
What if we had not spent all of 2017 thinking about Donald Trump ? What if all those mornings hadn β t been dominated by his tweets , if all those evenings hadn β t been spent absorbing new evidence that his campaign was linked to Russia and that he was trying to obstruct the FBI β s investigation ? What other conversations would we have had , what other issues would have filled the space ?
I don β t pretend to know the answer . But I do n't believe that the role politics is playing in so many of our lives now is healthy , that the daily pitch and tone of the conversation is constructive . Even if you celebrate political engagement , and I do , this isn β t a renewed civic spirit , but a sense of emergency , of threat . It , too , is a cost , and we are paying it daily , with untold long-term consequences for our country . | XVnQvEOI5tGsrF6U | 0 | White House | -1.5 | Politics | -0.8 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | Fox Online News | https://www.foxnews.com/politics/pompeo-rejects-legal-claim-by-isis-bride-shes-a-non-citizen-terrorist-shes-not-coming-back | Pompeo rejects legal claim by ISIS wife: 'She's a non-citizen terrorist -- she's not coming back' | white_house | Secretary of State Mike Pompeo , speaking to `` Fox News Sunday , '' forcefully rejected a lawsuit filed against the Trump administration this week by the father of an Alabama woman who left the U.S. to join the Islamic State group , saying in no uncertain terms that she is a `` non-citizen terrorist '' who `` is not coming back . ''
In the federal court filing , Ahmed Ali Muthana argued that his daughter , Hoda Muthana , 24 , is an American citizen by birth and that the White House should recognize her citizenship and `` accept Ms. Muthana and her son back into the United States and to use all available means to do so . '' But Pompeo countered that Muthana had deliberately endangered U.S. soldiers and would not prevail in court .
`` She 's a non-citizen terrorist ; she has no legal basis for a claim of U.S. citizenship , '' Pompeo told anchor Chris Wallace . `` She 's not coming back to the United States to create the risk that someday she 'd return to the battlefield and continue to put at risk American people , American kids , American boys and girls that were sent to help defeat ISIS -- she put them at risk , she 's not a U.S. citizen , she 's not coming back . ''
Muthana , 24 , has pleaded with officials to let her back into the U.S. following her recent escape from ISIS and capture by Kurdish forces . She was born in 1994 in Hackensack , N.J .
Muthana β s father was a diplomat , which her legal representative , Hassan Shibly , acknowledged Wednesday . According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services , children born in the United States to accredited foreign diplomatic officers do not acquire citizenship under the 14th Amendment since they are not born subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S. at the time .
However , Shibly says Muthana β s father stopped being a diplomat months before Hoda was born in New Jersey .
Pressed by Wallace as to the legitimacy of Muthana 's claim of birthright citizenship , and whether her father 's diplomatic status was the issue , Pompeo responded : `` There 's litigation ongoing . Here 's what I can tell you : We have a strong legal basis for our claim she 's not a citizen , and she 's not coming back . ''
TAMMY BRUCE : SO-CALLED 'ISIS BRIDES ' DESERVE THE SAME COMEUPPANCE AS MALE TERRORISTS
Pompeo 's comments echoed his remarks in a statement on Wednesday , when he stated that Muthana had `` no right to a passport , nor any visa to travel to the United States . We continue to strongly advise all U.S. citizens not to travel to Syria . β
President Trump also tweeted that he had instructed Pompeo to deny Muthana 's attempt to return .
Separately , Pompeo discussed the upcoming summit between North Korea leader Kim Jong Un and Trump in Hanoi , Vietnam , which is slated for Wednesday and Thursday . Kim was on a train Sunday to Vietnam , according to state media , and it could take more than two days for the train to travel through China to Vietnam .
`` There β s been no change in U.S. policy since the time I β ve been secretary of state and frankly even before that when I was CIA Director , '' Pompeo , who was also set to depart for Hanoi , told Wallace . `` Our objectives are clear , our mission is clear . President Trump β s also said this is going to take time . There may have to be another summit . We may not get everything done this week . We hope we β ll make a substantial step along the way . ''
Their first summit last June in Singapore ended without substantive agreements on the North 's nuclear disarmament and triggered a months-long stalemate in negotiations as Washington and Pyongyang struggled with the sequencing of North Korea 's nuclear disarmament and the removal of U.S.-led sanctions against the North .
`` I 've spent a lot of time with Chairman Kim , '' Pompeo said . `` My time is on the ground today , continuing to flesh out paths forward , developing a roadmap for a path forward between the two countries . We 're determined to achieve that . It 's important for the world 's security . ''
Pompeo said the summit `` might be one day , might be two days '' or even longer . In his upcoming meeting with Trump , experts say Kim will seek a U.S. commitment for improved bilateral relations and partial sanctions relief while trying to minimize any concessions on his nuclear facilities and weapons .
Asked whether North Korea has given concrete indications that it is willing to provide an inventory of its nuclear arsenal , or surrender its weapons , Pompeo acknowledged some progress has stalled .
`` In June of last year , in Singapore , Chairman Kim unequivocally stated he would denuclearize his country . There were other pillars that we committed to as well . We 've made progress on some , less so on others . This is a complicated process . ''
Pompeo continued : `` I was CIA Director at one point . The history is difficult . The previous administration 's policy was to allow the North Koreans to test [ nuclear weapons ] , pray they 'd stop , and then cower when they threatened us . Test , pray , and cower . That 's been upended by President Trump . We 've put real economic pressure on the North Koreans . We 've built out ... the world 's coalition to communicate to Chairman Kim that now is the time , now is the moment -- and I hope we 'll make real progress on that this week .
Trump tweeted after the Singapore summit that there was `` no longer '' a nuclear threat with North Korea , and said repeatedly at rallies that `` we fell in love '' and `` he wrote me beautiful letters . '' On Sunday , Pompeo suggested Trump 's rhetoric was strategic .
ANALYSIS : AS SOCIALISM COLLAPSES IN VENEZUELA , TRUMP RESISTS ITS ENCROACHMENT IN U.S .
`` Relationships matter , '' Pompeo said . `` They affect everything in our lives . Whether it 's grand strategy and denuclearization , or simpler things . Relationships absolutely matter . It 's important that the two leaders are able to effectievly communicate . ''
On Twitter earlier Sunday , Trump wrote that he has a `` great relationship with Chairman Kim , '' and added that `` President Xi of China has been very helpful in his support of my meeting with Kim Jong Un . The last thing China wants are large scale nuclear weapons right next door . Sanctions placed on the border by China and Russia have been very helpful . '' Trump also wrote that Kim realizes that denuclearization would lead to `` rapid growth '' for the isolated , impoverished nation .
U.S. defense officials are not planning any troop reductions in the region , but some have indicated that they would not be surprised if Trump puts reductions on the table as part of his negotiations with Kim . Other possibilities that worry many in Seoul include that Trump will suspend or drastically downsize another major set of military drills this spring , or that he 'll settle for a deal where the North abandons its long-range missile program aimed at the U.S. while not addressing the North 's shorter-range missiles targeting Seoul and Tokyo .
Closer to home , Pompeo additionally condemned the Venezuela military for continuing to block U.S. humanintarian aid , calling the violence `` the worst of the worst of a tyrant . ''
A U.S.-backed drive to deliver foreign aid to Venezuela this weekend met strong resistance as troops loyal to President Nicolas Maduro blocked the convoys at the border and fired tear gas on protesters in clashes that left two people dead and some 300 injured .
`` We β re very hopeful that in the days and weeks and months ahead , the Maduro regime will understand that the Venezuelan people have made its days numbered , '' Pompeo said .
As night fell Saturday , U.S.-backed opposition leader Juan Guaido refrained from asking supporters to continue risking their lives trying to break through the government 's barricades at the Colombian and Brazilian borders . Instead , he said he would meet Vice President Pence on Monday in Bogota at an emergency meeting of mostly conservative Latin American governments to discuss Venezuela 's crisis .
`` Every option is on the table , '' Pompeo said . `` We 're going to do the things that need to be done to make sure ... that democracy reigns and that there 's a brighter future for the people of Venezuela . ''
Throughout the turbulent day Saturday , as police and protesters squared off on two bridges connecting Venezuela to Colombia , Guaido made repeated calls for the military to join him in the fight against Maduro 's `` dictatorship . '' Colombian authorities said more than 60 soldiers answered his call , deserting their posts in often-gripping fashion , though most were lower in rank and did n't appear to dent the higher command 's continued loyalty to Maduro 's socialist government .
In one dramatic high point , a group of activists led by exiled lawmakers managed to escort three flatbed trucks of aid past the halfway point into Venezuela when they were repelled by security forces . In a flash the cargo caught fire , with some witnesses claiming the National Guardsmen doused a tarp covering the boxes with gas before setting it on fire . As a black cloud rose above , the activists β protecting their faces from the fumes with vinegar-soaked cloths β unloaded the boxes by hand in a human chain stretching back to the Colombian side of the bridge .
`` They burned the aid and fired on their own people , '' said 39-year-old David Hernandez , who was hit in the forehead with a tear gas canister that left a bloody wound and growing welt . `` That 's the definition of dictatorship . ''
Turning to the Middle East , Pompeo asserted that the U.S. was `` hopeful that we will have a coalition '' in Syria , but added , `` I don β t have anything to announce this morning . '' He stressed that he was confident `` Europeans will understand the risk and the threat , and be partners alongside of us . ''
The White House announced this week it would leave a small residual force of approximately 400 troops in Syria , amid concerns that Trump 's previously announced full withdrawal would imperil U.S.-allied Kurds .
`` The announcement this week that we β re still going to have a residual footprint inside of Syria makes sense in the context of our mission statement , '' Pompeo said . `` And the tactics will change as time goes on . We β ll use different tactics in different parts of the world to fight back against radical Islamic terrorism . President Trump β s committed to doing that . '' | VTuj93h1ZmfD1rQD | 2 | Politics | 0.7 | White House | 0.3 | Mike Pompeo | 0.3 | null | null | null | null | |
gun_control_and_gun_rights | Christian Science Monitor | http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Editorial-Board-Blog/2013/0513/On-guns-For-a-conversation-rather-than-debate-start-with-these-questions?nav=90-csm_category-topStories | On guns: For a conversation rather than debate, start with these questions | 2013-05-13 | gun_control_and_gun_rights | The deep civic divide over guns was the focus of an April 11 , 2013 storytelling and civil dialogue hosted by The βββ in partnership with the Public Conversations Project and The Mantle Project .
Participants created questions of curiosity that would be tools for less polarized conversations . We include some of them here and we encourage you to add your own in the comments section :
What does a gun symbolize to you ? What might it symbolize to others ? What comes to mind when you think of all these symbols ?
Could you imagine sitting down with someone who has a totally different perspective from yours on guns ? And listening ? Without interrupting ?
With the assumption that everyone wants to reduce gun deaths , why is the debate so polarized and why ca n't the multiple positions start from this area of common ground for policies and actions that are workable ? Do you see any common ground between those for and against guns ?
There seems to be a β gun rights β culture , a β gun control β culture , and maybe a β gun safety β culture . Are these cultures reconcilable ? How might we develop a culture that has the benefits of all these without the risks of any of them ?
If you were to become a gun owner , what would you do to ensure the safety of others around you ? How would you care for the weapon ? What steps would you take ?
For gun owners : What are the top two or three positive emotions or feelings that guns bring to you and/or your family ? What do you use your gun for ?
For those against guns : What feelings do you associate with firearms ? What are the factors that should be taken into account when regulating guns ?
Are there ways to address the fears of gun advocates that would preserve their essential liberty while gaining their support for measures that would protect society better ?
As a gun owner or supporter of firearms , what do you think would be the type of regulation or education that would be most useful in minimizing gun violence ?
Is the instinct to defend life , liberty and loved ones innate biologically , spiritually , or a social construct ?
How much has the popular media β movies , video , games , news β affected your view of guns ?
How do we agree to disagree on the use of guns yet focus on preventing the misuse ?
Get the Monitor Stories you care about delivered to your inbox . By signing up , you agree to our Privacy Policy
Could you appreciate a dialogue on guns that acknowledges the presence and use of guns in our world rather than fans the fire of one β side β or another ? | nAa6tat1QPUd1d6O | 1 | Gun Control And Gun Rights | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
immigration | Fox News Digital | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/07/08/clinton-california-lawmakers-condemn-san-francisco-sanctuary-policy/ | Clinton, California lawmakers condemn San Francisco's 'sanctuary' policy | 2015-07-08 | Immigration | It seems you clicked on a bad link and stumbled upon our 404 page | ead007587f8c4ff4 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | Slate | http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2016/12/introducing_this_is_fake_slate_s_tool_for_stopping_fake_news_on_facebook.html | Only You Can Stop the Spread of Fake News | 2016-12-13 | media_bias | One of the more extreme symptoms of media dysfunction in the past several months has been the ascendance of β fake news β βfabricated news stories that purport to be factual .
The phenomenon is not altogether novel , but the scale at which it is now being produced and consumed is unprecedented . A BuzzFeed data analysis found that viral stories falsely claiming that the Pope had endorsed Donald Trump , that Hillary Clinton was implicated in the murder of an FBI agent , that Clinton had sold weapons to ISIS , all received more Facebook engagement than the most popular news stories from established outlets such as the New York Times and CNN . Made-up stories with a liberal slant made the rounds as well , although the evidence suggests they propagated less widely . And the fakery didn β t stop with the election : The β Pizzagate β meme , which inspired an armed man to open fire inside a Washington , D.C. , pizzeria earlier this month , began as a conspiracy theory but has been widely circulated by fake news sites .
At a time when trust in the media is at an all-time low and political polarization is intensifying , fake news is hardly the only pox afflicting our democracy . But it is one against which we can try to inoculate ourselves , and perhaps one another .
βββ has created a new tool for internet users to identify , debunk , andβmost importantlyβcombat the proliferation of bogus stories . Conceived and built by βββ developers , with input and oversight from βββ editors , it β s a Chrome browser extension called This Is Fake , and you can download and install it for free either on its home page or in the Chrome web store . The point isn β t just to flag fake news ; you probably already know it when you see it . It β s to remind you that , anytime you see fake news in your feed , you have an opportunity to interrupt its viral transmission , both within your network and beyond .
Once you install the extension , as you scroll through your Facebook feed , stories that βββ has identified as fake news will be flagged with a red banner over the preview image , informing you that they β ve been debunked . What differentiates This Is Fake from some other , earlier experiments in fake-news prevention is that the banner links directly to an article from a reputable source that debunks the story in question , and it prompts the user to share the debunking as a comment on the offending post . This is the antiviral functionality , one whose success depends on your participation . When the tool sees a fake story in your feed , it will look like this :
Similarly , stories from websites we β ve identified as serial fabricators will be flagged with a banner noting that their source is known for spreading fake news . Users who have installed This Is Fake and connected it to their Facebook accounts can also help us build our running list of fake stories and repeat offenders by flagging them for our moderators .
So how do we decide which stories count as fake ? It β s a crucial question , and a surprisingly tricky one . The short answer is that we rely on crowdsourcing and human moderation by βββ staffers and contributors , who will manage a database of flagged sites and links .
Here β s the longer answer : Until recently , fake news often referred to the news satire of publications like the Onion and shows like The Daily Show . But the term was given new meaning by the recent flood of false news stories concocted primarily to deceive rather than to lampoon or poke fun . And in the wake of the election , fake news has become a political football , with some Trump critics blaming it for his victory while some Trump supporters throw the label back at the mainstream media . In the process , the phrase fake news has threatened to become a catchall for a motley array of perceived problems in public discourse , from partisan propaganda to misleading tweets or headlines , to biased or flawed news coverage by major media organizations . Even works of commentary and opinion journalism now risk being labeled β fake news β by readers who disagree with their premises or conclusions .
Propaganda , bias , and misleading headlines are all issues worthy of attention in a broader examination of the media . So are the factual errors that established media organizations routinely make in the course of their work , whether through honest error or negligence . These problems deserve to be addressed in their own right and called by their own distinct names .
Yet there remains the smaller , simpler , and more discrete problem of stories that are designed to look like news articles but whose key β facts β have been invented by their authorsβand persuasively debunked by reputable sources . It is this problem that This Is Fake is intended to mitigate .
Even this narrow definition of fake news is not without its complications , of course . β Pope Endorses Donald Trump β appears to have been invented from whole cloth by a website that traffics almost exclusively in β fantasy news. β But the story about Clinton selling weapons to ISIS is rated by Snopes as a β mixture β of truth and fiction , because it appears to have been at least loosely rooted in claims by WikiLeaks β Julian Assange that U.S.-supplied weapons made their way into ISIS β s hands .
We count both of these as fake news , because their core assertions are demonstrably and intentionally false . We apply the same standard to bogus stories that appeal to liberal viewpoints . But we would not count as fake news a story whose core claims are a matter of genuine dispute , with evidence on both sides . Nor would we count as fake news an opinion column that makes a prediction that turned out to be false , a news story that contains factual errors peripheral to its main point , or a work of analysis or commentary that uses hyperbole to advance a controversial argument . We hope users will use the tool in that spirit , and not to indiscriminately flag stories whose tone or viewpoint irks them . ( We also distinguish between news and conspiracy theories , which may be genuinely believed by the people who purvey them . Our database focuses on the former , although it β s worth noting that fake news stories often have their roots in conspiracy theories . )
While our moderators will exercise their best judgment and cite sources wherever possible , we know that there is no acid test for fake news . This tool is not perfect , and indeed no such tool ever can be . It β s also possible that you β ll install This Is Fake and see nothing flagged save for the occasional story shared by your estranged uncle . The point is to find fake news where it is spread and reach out to the people in your timeline who are spreading it . We hope that by combining crowdsourcing with thoughtful human curation , we can improve upon or at least complement some other early efforts that either relied on static , third-party lists or used rudimentary artificial intelligence to tackle a problem that is probably too nuanced for A.I . to solve . We also know that Facebook and Google are working on various tools to disincentivize fake news on their platforms , although both have historically proved reticent to exercise human editorial judgment . With This Is Fake , our intent is to build an ever-growing database that proves helpful to its users and provides at least a modest counterweight to the forces that drive fake news β virality .
Fake news is not the whole problem with media credibility today , nor the largest one . But it β s one that we as an industry and a society should be able to tackle together , regardless of our political differences . We invite you to join us in the effort . | Wfma1gHLsoAUWUYw | 0 | Media Watch | -0.3 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
justice | Christian Science Monitor | http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2015/1229/With-affluenza-teen-s-capture-questions-about-justice-in-America | With 'affluenza' teen's capture, questions about justice in America | 2015-12-29 | justice | By many accounts , what Ethan Couch received in 2013 did not represent justice . The then-16-year-old was sentenced by a Texas judge to probation and a California rehab center after pleading guilty to four counts of manslaughter after driving drunk and killing four people in a high-speed crash outside Fort Worth .
At a press conference Tuesday , Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson said that the justice system struggled to fulfill its promise `` the first time '' in the Couch case .
Mr. Couch is likely to face a tougher sentence as he β s extradited from Mexico after being caught Monday night in Puerta Vallarta , accused of breaking his parole agreement .
During the trial , a psychologist dubbed Couch β s condition β affluenza β β a term he later regretted using β suggesting that the teen β s wealthy parents were partly responsible for an upbringing where he never faced real consequences for his actions . The term struck a chord with Americans , with the case coming to symbolize the extent to which the justice system treats rich whites differently than poor blacks .
The timing of his capture is likely to once again raise similar questions about equal justice under the law , observers say .
The manhunt for Couch concluded on the same day that a grand jury in Cleveland declined to bring charges against two police officers who killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014 . The boy had been playing with a pellet gun in a park when he was fatally shot .
β You can β t help but be struck by the juxtaposition of the Tamir Rice grand jury decision and [ the Couch case ] , β says Daniel Filler , a law professor at Drexel University in Philadelphia . β What we see is how apparently neutral rules are always applied case by case , whether it β s parole officers or judges or police officers , based on cultural factors . β
It isn β t the first time that the Couch case has been juxtaposed uncomfortably with the death of a black teenager . For many Americans transfixed by the Trayvon Martin shooting in 2012 and the trial of the man who killed him the following year , the verdict in the Couch case offered more distinct β proof of separate justice systems in this country , one for the rich and another for the poor , and Ethan became the face of wealth and privilege , β as Michael Mooney wrote in Dallas Magazine for a May feature on Couch and his parents .
The Couch case β along with the acquittal of George Zimmerman , Martin β s shooter β came one year before the street protest crescendo that built in the wake of a series of high-profile deaths of black men and women at police hands around the country .
β What is the likelihood if this was an African-American , inner-city kid that grew up in a violent neighborhood to a single mother who is addicted to crack and he was caught two or three times ... what is the likelihood that the judge would excuse his behavior and let him off because of how he was raised ? '' Dr. Suniya Luthar , a psychologist who specializes in the costs of affluence in suburban communities , told The Associated Press in 2013 .
A growing list of such disparities have affected how Americans think about how punishment is meted out in the United States . The Pew Research Center recently reported that only 32 percent of Americans think the country has made enough changes to its justice system , down from 49 percent in 2014 . Likewise , the percentage of Americans who say that more change is needed rose from 46 to 59 percent in the same span .
During the Couch trial , the judge ultimately disregarded the argument that his parents were at fault . Instead , she kept Couch out of jail partly under a state initiative to focus juvenile delinquents on rehabilitation instead of punishment . The sentence came after Ethan pleaded guilty to four counts of manslaughter .
The terms of his parole suggest he could now face up to 10 years in prison . That would represent half the amount requested by prosecutors after the crash , in which Couch barreled his dad β s F-350 truck into a group of good Samaritans helping a stranded driver . His blood alcohol level three hours after the crash was three times the legal limit , according to court testimony .
Whatever the judge β s reasons , the sentencing sparked outrage and raised larger questions about US justice . β Being rich is now a get-out-of-jail-free card , β read one headline in the magazine The Week . At least symbolically , the Couch verdict stands as a pronounced American moment , where deeply held misgivings about justice were highlighted through what seemed an obvious injustice .
Such biases are notoriously difficult to tease out by policy changes alone . Yet what β s unmistakable , Professor Filler says , is that events like the capture of Couch in Mexico raise public awareness about glitches in the promise of equal protection , which in turn can act as a check on the law .
β Every time you add a layer of risk that someone will detect misconduct , I think you increase the chances that misconduct [ in the justice system ] will be reduced , β Filler says . | wXOOpod4C6s40o6Z | 1 | Justice | -0.4 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
immigration | Newsmax | http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Barack-Obama-executive-action-immigration-amnesty/2014/11/14/id/607433/ | Obama Doubles Down on Commitment to Act on Immigration | 2014-11-14 | Immigration, Barack Obama | President Barack Obama on Friday took time out of his diplomatic trip to Asia to send a firm message to Washington that he is unrepentant about his plans to bypass Congress and take executive action on immigration . `` They have the ability to fix the system . What they do n't have is the ability to do is expect me to stand by with a broken system in perpetuity , '' Obama said at a joint news conference with Myanmar dissident leader Aung San Suu Kyi , according to Politico . `` It 's way overdue . We 've been talking about it for 10 years now and it 's been consistently stalled . `` The president insisted that unless Congress issues legislation first , he is determined to act before the end of the year on proposals that are expected to include extending amnesty and work permits to possibly millions of illegal immigrants . `` I gave the House over a year to at least give a vote on the Senate bill . They failed to do so , '' Obama said , according to Politico . `` I indicated to Speaker [ John ] Boehner several months ago that if Congress failed to act , I would use all lawful authority that I possess β¦ That 's going to happen . And that 's going to happen before the end of the year . `` Republicans have been ratcheting up their threats that Obama 's decision to act will set off an adversarial relationship with Congress so soon after both sides had pledged to move forward constructively following the shake-up from the midterm elections . `` We 're going to fight the president tooth and nail if he continues down this path , '' Boehner told reporters Thursday , according to The Washington Post . `` This is the wrong way to govern . This is exactly what the American people said on Election Day they did n't want . `` During his news conference , the president appeared to respond with his own warning to Republicans , saying he is against any approach to governance where `` having a disagreement on a single issue suddenly [ becomes ] a deal-breaker on every issue . `` `` Democracy can not work that way , '' he added , according to Politico . `` There will always be some differences . `` Obama also reiterated a previous promise that if congressional Republicans put forward a reform proposal , he will revoke any executive actions that he put into effect , Politico reported.The president 's comments come as Republicans grapple with a strategy to derail the president 's plans . A rift is developing within the party about the best way forward , threatening to undermine the party 's post-election pledges to proceed with unity.At least 50 conservative lawmakers are pushing to leverage the upcoming spending bill to force Obama to stand down . Their plan is to stipulate in the legislation that the president can not act unilaterally , an approach that would likely trigger a government shutdown when the president refuses to capitulate.The leadership has not yet developed a clear alternative other than ruling out the possibility of a shutdown . One option they are considering is to allow the executive action to take effect but work to undermine its provisions incrementally over the coming months.A lawsuit over the president 's misuse of his authority is also an idea that has been floated.A senior administration official said the president has still not decided the timing for his announcement , but The New York Times reported Thursday that Obama may announce his planned action as soon as next week.According to reports , final decisions about the details of the plan have not been made , but by some accounts , a proposal may grant amnesty to as many as 5 million illegal immigrants . Officials said it could also authorize amnesty for parents of children who are U.S. citizens or legal residents and give them the right to obtain work documents.Meanwhile , Democrats and immigration rights supporters are pushing for Obama to extend amnesty to as many migrants as possible . In recent days , they have been rallying behind the president 's decision to take action , saying it is not out of step with other presidents who have acted unilaterally on major issues , the Post said . | 8a7a268db7efd4c3 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
lgbt_rights | PinkNews | https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2020/07/14/jared-polis-colorado-state-ban-gay-panic-murder-defence-district-attorney-amanda-gall/ | Colorado becomes the eleventh state to ban the horrifying βgay panicβ murder defence. Only 39 more to go | 2020-07-14 | Criminal Justice, Justice, LGBTQ Issues | Governor of Colorado Jared Polis at his inauguration ( Rick T. Wilking/Getty )
Colorado has become the 11th US state to outlaw the horrifying β gay panic β legal defence used to justify the murder of LGBT+ people .
The controversial legal strategy claims that discovering a victim β s sexuality or gender identity causes the defendant to suffer from a state of temporary insanity , leading to violence and murder .
Unfortunately it still is a valid legal defence in the vast majority of the US , with the exception of California , Connecticut , Hawaii , Illinois , Maine , Nevada , New Jersey New York , Washington and Rhode Island .
Colorado has now followed suit thanks to governor Jared Polis , the first openly gay man in the country to be elected governor .
β We β ve come a long way here in Colorado since our days as the Hate State , β he said as he signed the bill , SB20-221 , on Monday ( July 13 ) .
β We really went from a place where discrimination was legalised in the 1990s to where we are today , where Colorado is a leader . β
The bill states that such justifications for violent actions appeal to irrational fears and hatred , and that legally sanctioned discrimination against sexual orientation or gender identity must end .
As well as Polis , the 22 elected district attorneys also supported the legislation .
Its passing was celebrated by many LGBT+ advocates including Amanda Gall , a sexual assault resource prosecutor with the Colorado District Attorneys β Council .
β I think it β s long overdue , frankly . That we β re the eleventh state just points out that the American Bar Association is correct when they say every state should do this . I hope other states follow , β she told KOAA News .
She explained that although the β gay panic β defence was used infrequently , it did still occur β and once a person has been acquitted in Colorado , regardless of the defence , the case can be sealed .
β This bill is going to make it possible to have safer and healthier communities for all in Colorado , β she said .
β When somebody is targeted because of their sexual orientation or gender , we want to make sure that that victim has a fair day in court , and this bill is going to help us ensure that there aren β t biased arguments or bigoted arguments in our courtrooms here in Colorado . β
SB20-221 was one of several LGBT+ protection bills signed by Polis , including legislation granting coverage for HIV/AIDS prevention medications and a new process for getting government documents for one β s gender identity . | 1dc602f2a6f77598 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
criminal_justice | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2017/07/29/police-trump-speech-violence/522561001/ | Police after Trump speech: We don't tolerate 'roughing up' prisoners | 2017-07-29 | criminal_justice | Police after Trump speech : We do n't tolerate 'roughing up ' prisoners
CLOSE When speaking to law enforcement about MS-13 gang activity , President Trump said , `` do n't be too nice '' to suspects . The crowd cheered . βββ
Law enforcement agencies condemned police violence Friday after President Trump advised New York officers `` do n't be too nice '' during arrests .
New York City Police Department Commissioner James P. O'Neill , in a statement Saturday , said proposing police deviate from anything other than `` reasonable and necessary '' use of force is `` irresponsible . ''
`` The NYPD 's training and policies relating to the use of force only allow for measures that are reasonable and necessary under any circumstances , including the arrest and transportation of prisoners , '' the statement said . `` To suggest that police officers apply any standard in the use of force other than what is reasonable and necessary is irresponsible , unprofessional and sends the wrong message to law enforcement as well as the public . ''
The commissioner 's remarks came a day after Trump seemed to encourage police violence while speaking to a group of officers on Long Island , N.Y .
β Like when you guys put somebody in the car and you β re protecting their head , you know , the way you put their hand over , like , don β t hit their head and they β ve just killed somebody , don β t hit their head , I said , β You can take the hand away , OK ? β '' the president said .
The statement drew laughs and applause from the crowd . Hours later , the local Suffolk County Police Department ( SCPD ) issued two tweets clarifying that it does n't allow violence .
`` The SCPD has strict rules & procedures relating to the handling of prisoners . Violations of those rules are treated extremely seriously , '' the department said . `` As a department , we do not and will not tolerate roughing up of prisoners . ''
The SCPD has strict rules & procedures relating to the handling of prisoners . Violations of those rules are treated extremely seriously . β Suffolk County PD ( @ SCPDHq ) July 28 , 2017
As a department , we do not and will not tolerate roughing up of prisoners . β Suffolk County PD ( @ SCPDHq ) July 28 , 2017
The International Association of Chiefs of Police also issued a statement stressing that officers are extensively trained to ensure use of force is applied carefully .
`` Law enforcement officers are trained to treat all individuals , whether they are a complainant , suspect , or defendant , with dignity and respect , '' the organization said . `` This is the bedrock principle behind the concepts of procedural justice and policy legitimacy . ''
The police department in Gainesville , Fla. , also felt compelled to chide the president for his words .
`` The @ POTUS made remarks today that endorsed and condoned police brutality , '' the department tweeted . `` GPD rejects these remarks and continues to serve with respect . ''
The @ POTUS made remarks today that endorsed and condoned police brutality .
GPD rejects these remarks and continues to serve with respect . β Gainesville Police ( @ GainesvillePD ) July 29 , 2017
`` Those that applauded and cheered should be ashamed , '' added department spokesman Ben Tobias .
I do not agree with or condone @ POTUS remarks today on police brutality .
Those that applauded and cheered should be ashamed . β Ben Tobias ( @ GPDBenTobias ) July 28 , 2017 | 9lUMxO7uSpm16uAg | 1 | Donald Trump | -0.4 | Trump | -0.3 | Criminal Justice | -0.2 | Gainesville Police | -0.2 | NYPD | -0.1 |
elections | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/28/politics/republican-debate-fact-check/index.html | CNBC debate: CNN's Reality Check team inspects the claims | 2015-10-28 | elections | Washington ( CNN ) The Republican candidates for president gathered in Boulder , Colorado , for their third debate Wednesday , and CNN 's Reality Check team spent the night putting their statements and assertions to the test .
The team of reporters , researchers and editors across CNN selected key statements and rated them : True ; Mostly True ; True , but Misleading ; False ; or It 's Complicated .
Reality Check : Jeb Bush on part-time work , workforce participation and poverty
Bush attacked President Barack Obama on three points about jobs and poverty under his tenure .
`` They 're ( Republicans ) concerned that Washington is so dysfunctional , it is holding them back ; there are lids on people 's aspirations . Six point five million people working part time . Workforce participation rates , lower than they were in 1977 . Six million more people living in poverty than the day that Barack Obama got elected president . ''
`` They 're concerned that Washington is so dysfunctional it is holding them back . There are lids on people 's aspirations . Think about it : six and a half million people working part-time . ''
Bush is right that in June , there were 6.5 million part-time workers who want more hours . That 's compared to 4.4 million a decade ago .
It has since dropped to 6 million , as of September .
The higher number of part-time workers is a remnant of the Great Recession . The large spike occurred in the final months of former President George W. Bush 's time in office . The problem has actually abated somewhat during Obama 's tenure , falling from 8 million the day he took office .
Many of the part-time workers find the hours they 're seeking by working more than one job , though the percentage of workers who have multiple jobs has also declined in recent years .
Bush then said : `` Workforce participation rates , lower than they were in 1977 . ''
When it comes to workforce participation , only 62.4 % of Americans are employed or looking for a job , the lowest since 1977 . This decline predated Obama .
Why is this happening ? Part of it is that America 's workforce is aging and the Baby Boomers are retiring . It is also declining because women are leaving the workforce to care for their children and men are dropping out in large part because they ca n't find positions that pay decently or they do n't have the education and skills to land employment . Finally , the U.S. has a sizable number of working-age folks out on disability with chronic health conditions .
And finally , Bush said : `` Six million more people living in poverty than the day that Barack Obama got elected president . ''
On poverty , the increase Obama took office is actually larger that Bush said : The number of Americans in poverty has risen by 6.9 million to 46.7 million people last year . But the raw number does n't take into account the growth in the U.S. population . When Obama was elected , the share of people in poverty was 13.2 % . The most recent numbers show the poverty rate as 14.8 % , down from a high of 15.1 % in 2010 .
Fiorina made the claim that `` if you 're a small business owner today , you are being crushed . We have 400,000 small businesses forming every year in the country . How great is that ? They are employing themselves and potentially employing others . The bad news is we have 470,000 going out of business every year . And why ? They cite Obamacare . ''
Fiorina appears to be citing Small Business Administration statistics on the number of small business `` deaths '' in 2011 . This was at least four years before Obamacare 's mandate on employers took effect .
Obamacare does not apply to small businesses with fewer than 50 full-time employees . Employers with more than 100 workers had to provide affordable insurance to most of them starting this year . Companies with 50 to 100 staffers have until next year to comply .
The SBA defines small businesses as those with fewer than 500 workers . Certainly , some small businesses subject to health reform are straining to adhere to the rules . The National Federation of Independent Businesses is a strong critic of Obamacare , saying the mandate is hurting their members and not lowering their cost of providing health insurance .
But there 's no indication that Obamacare is costing jobs . Few employers subject to the mandate report changing their staffing or hiring because of Obamacare , according to the 2015 Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research & Education Trust survey .
Attacking President Barack Obama 's economic record , Cruz cited statistics showing conditions worsening for women under Obama 's tenure , claiming Democrats running for president are avoiding the topic .
`` Under Barack Obama , 3.7 million women have entered poverty . ... Under Barack Obama and the big government economy , the median wage for women has dropped $ 733 , '' Cruz said .
A review of data from the Census department -- which the Republican National Committee cites when circulating the exact same statistics -- indicates that Cruz is utilizing figures from 2011 and 2012 .
Cruz is right that between 2008 and 2012 , 3.7 million women fell below the poverty line . He 's also correct that in 2011 , the median income for women is $ 732 less than it was in 2008 .
Even using updated figures , Cruz 's assertion that women 's income has fallen holds up . The median income for women in 2014 was still lower than it was in 2008 .
Changes in Census methodology between 2008 and 2014 make it difficult to precisely pinpoint how much lower median incomes are , though the trend is clearly downward -- roughly 3 % lower than six years before .
Underlying Cruz 's claim is that Obama 's economic policies led to the drop in incomes , an assertion that 's difficult to back up given the financial crisis predated Obama 's inauguration .
But he 's accurate that based on the numbers , women 's median incomes are worse off than they were in 2008 .
Carson insisted he did n't say his tax rate would be 10 % , saying he merely used tithing as an `` analogy . '' He said his rate would be `` much closer to 15 % . ''
Earlier this month , Carson told Marketplace that he uses a 10 % flat tax because it 's `` easy to work with the numbers '' and reiterated that it would be closer to 15 .
But Carson has , at least once , put a more exact figure on his flat tax idea and it was close to 10 % . Speaking in Aiken , South Carolina , in September , Carson said his personal income tax rate would `` probably '' be 11.5 % along with a 4 % value-added tax on nonessential goods .
`` Just to clarify , I actually think it would be probably be a bit more than 10 % . It 's probably going to be about 11.5 % . And it 's probably going to require a 4 % -- what would you call it ? A value-added tax on non-essentials . That would keep us revenue neutral . We only need to be revenue neutral in the beginning because there 's a lot of waste that could be cut out of our system . ''
Christie said , `` 71 % of federal spending today is on entitlements and debt service . ''
The spending categories that constitute `` entitlements '' vary by source , but this seems largely accurate , using the budgets for the major entitlement programs and debt servicing costs from fiscal year 2015 .
In August , the bipartisan non-profit Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget calculated that 68 % of total spending in 2015 went to `` mandatory and interest spending . '' The group noted that by the time the next president takes office in 2017 , those categories are expected to reach 71 % of the total federal budget .
Calculated a different way , the Bipartisan Policy Center estimates that discretionary spending amounts to about 31-32 % of the total federal budget . The remaining 68-69 % can be attributed to entitlements and debt service .
Chris Christie on Hillary Clinton wanting to raise Social Security taxes
`` Here 's the difference between me and Hillary Clinton , '' Christie said . `` What Hillary Clinton is going to say and has said before is she wants to raise Social Security taxes . ''
Clinton has said that the U.S. needs to look at raising the Social Security tax cap on people who make more than $ 250,000 per year -- but she has not formally proposed doing so .
On August 11 , Clinton was asked at a Claremont , New Hampshire , town hall meeting about the Social Security tax cap -- the fact that Americans do not pay Social Security taxes on anything they earn above a certain amount . That limit is $ 118,500 this year .
`` I can understand why you 'd think that was unfair , '' Clinton said . `` We do have to look at the cap , and we have to figure out whether we raise it or whether we raise it a little and then jump over and raise it more higher up . ''
Although Clinton has left the clear impression she is supportive of raising the tax , she has not formerly proposed raising it , as Christie suggests .
The Ohio governor touted his economic record , primarily that he created 347,000 jobs as governor and moved the budget from a deficit to a surplus . But Trump quickly hit back on Kasich 's claims : `` He hit oil , he got lucky with fracking . That is why Ohio is doing really well . ''
JUST WATCHED Trump : Kasich got lucky with fracking Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Trump : Kasich got lucky with fracking 01:07
Fracking first took off in Ohio four years ago . Since then , it has attracted more than $ 22 billion in investments to the state , and the industry estimated that it would create 200,000 jobs . However , independent analysts concluded that job growth has not been nearly as robust as first predicted .
Independent analysts concluded that Ohio 's job growth has not been nearly as robust as first predicted .
IHS Global Insight , an economic analysis company , attributed the improving economy in Ohio to the fact that the manufacturing industry was expanding and that the population was growing slowly . They determined that the auto and plastics industries were the main drivers of growth -- not fracking .
Reality Check : Donald Trump denies saying Marco Rubio was Mark Zuckerberg 's 'personal senator '
In a question about the nation 's immigration laws , and specifically H-1B visa policy , Trump was pressed about whether he ever referred to Rubio as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg 's `` personal senator '' because of their stance over those visas . `` I never said that , I never said that , '' Trump told CNBC moderator Becky Quick . `` Somebody 's really doing some bad fact-checking . '' Trump was pressed on it again moments later and repeated his assertion .
It turns out that is exactly what it says on his campaign website in a section about immigration reform proposals :
`` Raising the prevailing wage paid to H-1Bs will force companies to give these coveted entry-level jobs to the existing domestic pool of unemployed native and immigrant workers in the U.S. , instead of flying in cheaper workers from overseas . This will improve the number of black , Hispanic and female workers in Silicon Valley who have been passed over in favor of the H-1B program . Mark Zuckerberg 's personal Senator , Marco Rubio , has a bill to triple H-1Bs that would decimate women and minorities . ''
Trump said , `` I never filed for bankruptcy , but many , many people did . What happened with Atlantic City is very , very disgraceful . Hundreds of companies I have opened , I have used it three times , maybe four times , came out great . ''
Donald Trump has filed four business bankruptcies , which Bankruptcy.com says makes Trump the top filer in recent decades .
`` I never went bankrupt by the way , as you know . Everybody knows . Out of hundreds of companies , hundreds of deals , I 've used the law four times . Made a tremendous thing . I 'm in business . I did a very good job . But I will say this : People are very , very impressed with what I 've done , the business people . ''
Trump has never filed for personal bankruptcy . But he has filed four business bankruptcies , which Bankruptcy.com says makes Trump the top filer in recent decades . All of them were centered on casinos he used to own in Atlantic City . They were all Chapter 11 restructurings , which lets a company stay in business while shedding debt it owes to banks , employees and suppliers .
Marco Rubio , defending himself against accusations he 's been overly absent from the Senate as he runs for president , cited previous lawmakers running for president who also missed votes while out on the campaign trail .
JUST WATCHED Rubio and Bush go head-to-head Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Rubio and Bush go head-to-head 01:26
`` This is another example of the double standard that exists in this country between the mainstream media and the conservative movement , '' he said .
He cited three former Democratic senators who ran for their party 's nomination -- Bob Graham of Florida and John Kerry of Massachusetts in 2004 , and Barack Obama of Illinois on 2008 -- that he said also missed large percentages of votes as they campaigned .
Rubio has missed 34 % of his votes in the Senate so far this year , according to GovTrack .
Graham missed 32 % of votes in 2003 , the year he declared his candidacy . That rate spiked to more than 70 % in the late summer , as the race heated up .
Kerry 's absentee rate was even higher -- 64 % in 2003 , and close to 90 % in 2004 , spiking after he had secured the Democratic nomination .
Then-Sen. Obama missed 26 % of his votes in 2007 and 64 % in 2008 , and skipped almost all of the votes in the months directly leading up to the election .
But unlike those men , Rubio has said he 's finished with his Senate career , whether he wins the presidency or not . That fact has led to calls for his resignation now , including Wednesday night from Jeb Bush , a Florida resident .
Ultimately , however , Rubio 's defense that uses historic data is true .
`` Social Security is not just a concept to me , '' Graham said at the undercard debate . `` I know why it exists . Fifty percent of today 's seniors would be in poverty without a Social Security check . I promise you , if you make me your president , I will save Social Security because I know why it exists . ''
Without Social Security benefits , 50 % of seniors would have been in poverty in 2014 , according to the Census Bureau .
Reality Check : Bobby Jindal on cutting the Louisiana state budget
`` What we did is cut ( Louisiana ) state spending . We cut our budget 26 % ... We have 30,000 fewer state employees than the day I took office , '' Louisiana Gov . Bobby Jindal said at the undercard debate .
Jindal says he cut the budget by 26 % , but the New Orleans Times-Picayune wrote in 2011 that much of the decline was due to the petering out of federal recovery funds in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and the end of President Barack Obama 's federal stimulus funding .
It 's true he cut the number of state employees by 30,000 . The state government payroll now stands at just under 85,000 , down from just over 114,000 , according to federal data .
But what Jindal did n't say is that his state has suffered from financial shortfalls for years , in part because of the economic downturn and in part because of the governor 's refusal to raise taxes . Falling oil prices have also wreaked havoc . He and state legislators had to wrestle with a massive budget gap of $ 1.6 billion earlier this year .
Reality Check : George Pataki says Hillary Clinton 's private email server was hacked and state secrets were stolen
`` We have no doubt that ( Hillary Clinton 's server ) was hacked and that state secrets are throughout to the Iranians , the Russians , the Chinese and others , '' former New York Gov . George Pataki said .
Clinton has said it was a `` mistake '' to use a private email server in her home during her tenure as secretary of state and has apologized for the confusion it has caused . She and her aides have also asserted that there was no classified information stored or sent on the server .
JUST WATCHED Pataki : Clinton 's email server was hacked , secrets stolen Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Pataki : Clinton 's email server was hacked , secrets stolen 00:24
Since the discovery of the arrangement , the Justice Department is now looking into how the information on Clinton 's server was handled , and Clinton 's aides have turned the server over to the FBI as part of that probe .
The intelligence community and State Department inspectors general also revealed in July that some of Clinton 's emails contained classified information that was not identified correctly , but State Department officials maintain the information was not classified at the time it was sent .
But as to whether the server itself was breached by a foreign government and its contents accessed , there were reports in August that Russian hackers tried to break into her server five times . However , reporting by CNN to date has shown that five emails sent to her under the subject line of `` Uniform Traffic Ticket '' were part of a widespread phishing effort dating back to 2011 that was prevalent and that New York State Police had flagged for people to be aware of . While the presence of the emails shows there was a risk of vulnerability to Clinton , there is no evidence she ever fell for the hoax . There is also no evidence the scam was specifically directed at Clinton .
And there has been no indication to date of any Iranian , Chinese or other entities penetration of the server .
`` Barack Obama is the first president in American history to hold our military hostage , '' former New York Gov . George Pataki said at the undercard debate , going on to suggest that Obama 's recent veto of the National Defense Authorization Act was the first time a U.S. president had held up military funding .
Pataki was referring to last week when Obama rejected the bill over a disagreement with Congress -- issuing a veto in public for the first time in his presidency -- because of the way it circumvented mandatory spending cuts and impeded his efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay naval prison .
But at least four of Obama 's predecessors vetoed annual Defense Authorization Acts :
-- President Jimmy Carter objected to the bill in 1979 because it funded a $ 1 billion nuclear-powered aircraft carrier .
-- President Ronald Reagan sent the 1988 NDAA back to Congress since it shrank U.S. missile defense programs .
-- Missile defense programs were again the problem in 1996 , when President Bill Clinton turned down the NDAA since he believed a new defense system violated international law .
-- And in 2007 , President George W. Bush vetoed an NDAA since it could have frozen Iraqi assets that were held in U.S. banks - holding up military funding as two U.S.-led wars were raging in Iraq and Afghanistan .
Ultimately , Obama 's veto of the NDAA will likely have little effect on the Pentagon 's operations . If the budget agreement currently making its way through Congress passes , as is expected , caps on military spending will increase by $ 25 billion for the next two years .
Pataki 's suggestion that Obama is the first commander-in-chief to hold up defense funding over disagreements in Congress does n't match up with history . | 6FRgFNDb41PHobTf | 0 | Facts And Fact Checking | -0.9 | Elections | -0.3 | Presidential Elections | -0.2 | Debates | 0 | null | null |
politics | Guest Writer - Left | http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/13/opinion/donald-trump-is-right-about-justice-ruth-bader-ginsburg.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-right-region®ion=opinion-c-col-right-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-right-region&_r=0 | OPINION: Donald Trump Is Right About Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | 2016-07-13 | Politics | Advertisement Supported by Editorial By The Editorial Board Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg needs to drop the political punditry and the name-calling. Three times in the past week, Justice Ginsburg has publicly discussed her view of the presidential race, in the sharpest terms. In an interview with The Times published Sunday, Justice Ginsburg said, βI canβt imagine what the country would be β with Donald Trump as our president,β joking that if her husband were alive, he might have said, βItβs time for us to move to New Zealand.β Earlier, in an interview with The Associated Press that appeared on Friday, when asked to consider a Trump victory, Justice Ginsburg replied, βI donβt want to think about that possibility, but if it should be, then everything is up for grabs.β Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like. Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook and Twitter (@NYTOpinion), and sign up for the Opinion Today newsletter. Advertisement Enjoy unlimited access to all of The Times. See subscription options | 0155e2c433dc8c01 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | New York Times - News | https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/23/us/politics/trump-khashoggi-killing-saudi-arabia.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage | Trump Shrugs Off Khashoggi Killing by Ally Saudi Arabia | 2019-06-23 | politics | There were 15 of them . Most arrived in the dead of night , laid their trap and waited for the target to arrive . That target was Jamal Khashoggi , a prominent Saudi critic of his country β s government and its young crown prince . Since his killing in Istanbul , Turkish media has released a steady drip feed of evidence implicating Saudi officials . Weeks of investigation by The Times builds on that evidence and reconstructs what unfolded , hour-by-hour . Our timeline shows the ruthless efficiency of a hit team of experts that seemed specially chosen from Saudi government ministries . Some had links to the crown prince himself . After a series of shifting explanations , Saudi Arabia now denies that this brazen hit job was premeditated . But this reconstruction of the killing , and the botched cover-up , calls their story into serious question . It β s Friday morning , Sept. 28 . Khashoggi and his fiancΓ©e , Hatice Cengiz , are at the local marriage office in Istanbul . In order to marry , he β s told that he needs Saudi paperwork and goes straight to the consulate to arrange it . They tell him to return in a week . It all seems routine , but it β s not . Inside there β s a Saudi spy , Ahmed al-Muzaini , who β s working under diplomatic cover . That very day , he flies off to Riyadh and helps concoct a plan to intercept Khashoggi when he returns to the consulate . Fast-forward to Monday night into Tuesday morning . Saudi agents converge in Istanbul aboard separate flights . Muzaini , the spy , flies back from Riyadh . A commercial flight carries a three-man team that we believe flew from Cairo . Two of the men are security officers and they β ve previously traveled with the crown prince . A private jet flying from Riyadh lands around 3:30 a.m. That plane is often used by the Saudi government , and it β s carrying nine Saudi officials , some who played key roles in Khashoggi β s death . We β ll get to Team 3 later on , and for now focus on these men from Team 2 . This is Salah al-Tubaigy , a high-ranking forensics and autopsy expert in the Saudi interior ministry . Turkish officials will later say his role was to dismember Khashoggi β s body . Another is Mustafa al-Madani , a 57-year-old engineer . As we β ll see , it β s no accident that he looks like Khashoggi . And this is Maher Mutreb , the leader of the operation . Our investigation into his past reveals a direct link between Mutreb and the Saudi crown prince . When bin Salman toured a Houston neighborhood earlier this year , we discovered that Mutreb was with him , a glowering figure in the background . We found him again in Boston , at a U.N. meeting in New York , in Madrid and Paris , too . This global tour was all part of a charm offensive by the prince to paint himself as a moderate reformer . Back then , Mutreb was in the royal guard . Now , he would orchestrate Khashoggi β s killing . And his close ties to the crown prince beg the question , just how high up the Saudi chain of command did the plot to kill go ? Early Tuesday morning , Khashoggi flies back from a weekend trip to London . He and the Saudis nearly cross paths at the airport . The Saudi teams check into two hotels , which give quick access to the consulate . Khashoggi heads home with his fiancΓ©e . He β d just bought an apartment for their new life together . By mid-morning , the Saudis are on the move . Mutreb leaves his hotel three hours before Khashoggi is due at the consulate . The rest of the team isn β t far behind . The building is only a few minutes away on foot , and soon , they β re spotted at this entrance . Mutreb arrives first . Next , we see al-Tubaigy , the autopsy expert . And now al-Madani , the lookalike . The stage is almost set . A diplomatic car pulls out of the consulate driveway and switches places with a van , which backs in . Turkish officials say this van would eventually carry away Khashoggi β s remains . From above , we can see the driveway is covered , hiding any activity around the van from public view . Meanwhile , Khashoggi and his fiancΓ©e set out for the consulate , walking hand-in-hand . In their final hour together , they chat about dinner plans and new furniture for their home . At 1:13 p.m. , they arrive at the consulate . Khashoggi gives her his cellphones before he enters . He walks into the consulate . It β s the last time we see him . Inside , Khashoggi is brought to the consul general β s office on the second floor . The hit team is waiting in a nearby room . Sources briefed on the evidence , told us Khashoggi quickly comes under attack . He β s dragged to another room and is killed within minutes . Then al-Tubaigy , the autopsy expert , dismembers his body while listening to music . Maher Mutreb makes a phone call to a superior . He says , β Tell your boss , β and β The deed was done. β Outside , the van reportedly carrying Khashoggi β s body pulls out of the side entrance and drives away . At the same time , the Saudis begin trying to cover their tracks . While Khashoggi β s fiancΓ©e waits here where she left him , two figures leave from the opposite side . One of them is wearing his clothes . Later , the Saudis would claim that this was Khashoggi . But it β s al-Madani , the engineer , now a body double pretending that the missing journalist left the consulate alive . Yet there β s one glaring flaw : The clothes are the same , but he β s wearing his own sneakers , the ones he walked in with . Meanwhile , the van that β s allegedly carrying Khashoggi β s body makes the two-minute drive from the consulate to the Saudi consul β s residence . There β s several minutes of deliberations but the van eventually pulls into the building β s driveway . Again , it β s hidden from public view . It β s now three hours since Khashoggi was last seen . The body double hails this taxi and continues weaving a false trail through the city . He heads to a popular tourist area and then changes back into his own clothes . Later , we see him joking around in surveillance footage . Over at the airport , more Saudi officials arrive on another flight from Riyadh . They spend just five hours in Istanbul , but we β re not sure where they go . Now we pick up Maher Mutreb again , exiting from the consul β s house . It β s time for them to go . Mutreb and others check out of their hotel and move through airport security . Al-Muzaini , the spy , heads to the airport too . But as they β re leaving Istanbul , Khashoggi β s fiancΓ©e is still outside the consulate , pacing in circles . She β ll soon raise the alarm that Khashoggi is missing and she β ll wait for him until midnight . The alarm spreads around the world . Nine days later , the Saudis send another team to Istanbul . They say it β s to investigate what happened . But among them are a toxicologist and a chemist , who also has ties to the hit team . He and Tubaigy attended a forensics graduation days before Khashoggi was killed . Turkish officials later say that this team β s mission was not to investigate , but to cover up the killing . Now the Saudi story has changed , and prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for several suspects in Khashoggi β s killing . But that doesn β t include Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman , who many Western government officials are convinced authorized the killing . Khashoggi β s remains still haven β t been found . | FzPsUmNp4EizHTuT | 0 | Politics | 0 | Donald Trump | 0 | Iran | 0 | null | null | null | null |
immigration | The Guardian | https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/feb/09/judges-deny-trump-travel-ban-enforcement-uphold-order | US travel ban hits major setback as judges uphold temporary restraining order | 2017-02-09 | Travel Ban, Immigration | Judges upheld order issued last week to prevent 90-day travel ban from seven Muslim-majority countries and 120-day freeze on US admission of any refugees
Donald Trump β s controversial travel ban suffered a major setback on Thursday after a panel of three judges upheld an injunction against the president β s order banning arrivals from seven Muslim-majority countries .
In its unanimous ruling , the three judges on the ninth circuit court of appeals upheld the temporary restraining order , which was issued by Judge James Robart , a federal district court judge in Washington state , and has blocked the enforcement of many key parts of the executive order .
The court found that β the government has not shown a stay is necessary to avoid irreparable injury. β In particular , its ruling noted β the government has pointed to no evidence that any alien from any of the countries named in the order has perpetrated a terrorist attack in the United States . Rather than present evidence to explain the need for the executive order , the government has taken the position that we must not review its decision at all . β
Almost immediately , Trump tweeted his response : β SEE YOU IN COURT , THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE ! β
Speaking to reporters in the West Wing shortly after that the ruling , he characterized it as β a political decision β and said that β the safety of the nation is at stake β . Trump added that he β looks forward to seeing them in court β .
Thursday β s ruling does not end all litigation over the executive order , which sparked international outcry when it was first issued . Instead , it simply means that its provisions β which include a 90-day travel ban from seven Muslim-majority countries , a 120-day freeze on admission of any refugees into the United States , as well as indefinite halt to admitting any refugees from Syria β can not be enforced again as the legal battle moves forward . There are roughly 20 lawsuits against the travel ban currently making their way through courts in various states .
US travel ban - a brief guide The executive order signed by Donald Trump suspends the entire US refugee admissions system , already one of the most rigorous in the world , for 120 days . It also suspends the Syrian refugee program indefinitely , and bans entry to the US to people from seven majority-Muslim countries β Iran , Iraq , Libya , Somalia , Sudan , Syria and Yemen β for 90 days . The order has prompted a series of legal challenges , while thousands of Americans have protested outside airports and courthouses in solidarity with Muslims and migrants .
On Robart β s injunction , the federal government can now ask the supreme court to review the ninth circuit β s ruling . But the unanimous ruling suggests that the Trump administration will face an uphill battle .
The supreme court could also sidestep controversy and defer an appeal , leaving the ruling in place as the case works its way through other courts .
The appeals court decision follows a hearing on Tuesday night , at which lawyers for the state of Washington , which was challenging the ban , argued with attorneys for the justice department .
August Flentje , the lawyer for the federal government , argued that the ban was β plainly constitutional β , noting that Congress has granted the president the authority to suspend certain classes of immigrants . However , he additionally argued that the decision should not be subject to judicial review , noting that β judicial second-guessing of the president β s national security determination in itself imposes substantial harm on the federal government and the nation at large β .
The court rejected much of this argument in its ruling . The panel wrote β although courts owe considerable deference to the president β s policy determinations with respect to immigration and national security , it is beyond question that the federal judiciary retains the authority to adjudicate constitutional challenges to executive action β .
Ruling from the US ninth circuit court of appeals on the travel ban .
In contrast , Noah Purcell , the solicitor general of Washington state who was arguing to keep the injunction , cited Trump β s campaign trail promise to impose β a total and complete shutdown on Muslims entering the United States β and raised the specter of religious discrimination .
The court , though , did not base its decision on this argument , although it noted β we reserve consideration of these claims until the merits of this appeal have been fully briefed β .
Instead , it found that the government had not shown it was sufficiently likely to succeed in a court hearing on the question of whether the executive order restricted without due process an affected individual β s ability to travel .
The judges β ruling was also scathing in parts , essentially calling into question the government β s credibility .
Travel ban ruling suggests supreme court would be tough to convince Read more
On the confusion over the rights of lawful permanent residents caught up in the travel ban , the ruling notes : β At this point , however , we can not rely upon the government β s contention that the executive order no longer applies to lawful permanent residents . β
Then later continues : β Moreover , in light of the government β s shifting interpretations of the executive order , we can not say that the current interpretation by White House counsel , even if authoritative and binding , will persist past the immediate stage of these proceedings . β
Also in the opinion , the judges wrote that β it is well established that evidence of purpose β from a case β s context can be used in court β meaning that the states can cite Trump β s claims and tweets , for instance about his preference for Christians and call for a β complete and total shutdown of Muslims β , as admissible evidence .
Trump β s long history of controversial statements , the court suggested , can therefore be used as legal weapons against him .
The decision immediately set off a political firestorm on both sides of the aisle . Donna Brazile , the chair of the Democratic National Committee , celebrated the decision in a statement . β This is a massive blow to the White House . The court upheld that we do not discriminate based on religion . That is what terrorists do , and what terrorists want us to do . β
The Washington state attorney general , Bob Ferguson , agreed : β The bottom line this is a complete victory for the state of Washington . β
β We are a nation of laws as I have said β¦ from day one , those laws apply to everyone in our country and that includes the president of the United States . β
Trump tries to salvage travel ban amid numerous legal briefs to block it Read more
In contrast , Senator Tom Cotton , a Republican from Arkansas , railed against the ruling . β No foreigner has a constitutional right to enter the United States and courts ought not second-guess sensitive national-security decisions of the president . This misguided ruling is from the ninth circuit , the most notoriously left-wing court in America and the most reversed court at the supreme court , β said Cotton in a statement .
Senior White House aide Kellyanne Conway , speaking on Fox News , expressed confidence that the ruling simply represented a bump in the road . β It is an interim ruling and we are fully confident that when we get our day in court and argue it on the merits we will prevail . β
Purcell said on Thursday : β The judges did their jobs carefully and well and we appreciate their work . β
He added : β We are not usually in the limelight light like this , and we β re not used to it . β
Oliver Laughland , Claire Phipps , Julia Carrie Wong and Alan Yuhas contributed reporting . | 2add9e462e5538a2 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
middle_east | ABC News (Online) | https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-claiming-big-success-syria-make-white-house/story?id=66467652&cid=clicksource_4380645_null_hero_hed | Trump claims 'breakthrough' on Syria, lifts sanctions on Turkey: 'We're getting out' | 2019-10-23 | Syria, Turkey, Sanctions, Middle East | Trump has been harshly criticized by both Republicans and Democrats on Syria. President Donald Trump, facing harsh criticism from both Republicans and Democrats for his abrupt decisions on Syria, claimed a "breakthrough" on Wednesday, saying the ceasefire on Turkey's border with Syria was now "permanent." "Early this morning, the Government of Turkey ... said that they would be stopping combat and their offensive in Syria, making the ceasefire permanent, and it will indeed be permanent," Trump said in a formal statement from the White House. Trump said sanctions the U.S. imposed on Turkey would be lifted "unless something happens that we're not happy with." "Todayβs announcement validates our course of action," he said, saying it had been scorned. "Now, people are saying: 'Wow, what a great outcome.'" He claimed that the ceasefire is the sole outcome of his administration's efforts. Trump's announcement, though, came a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced they had reached a separate deal for control of northeastern Syria -- where U.S forces have been withdrawn. "This was an outcome created by us, the United States, and nobody else," Trump said. "No other nation, very simple. We're willing to take blame and we're also willing to take credit." βWe have done them a great service and we've done a great job for all of them," he said, speaking of the U.S.-allied Syrian Kurds and Syrian civilians caught in the crossfire. "And now we're getting out. A long time. We were supposed to be there for 30 days. That was almost 10 years ago,β he said, noting what he said was his promise to get the U.S. out of long-standing wars. Turkey and Syria have been fighting for centuries, Trump said, adding, "Let someone else fight over this long-bloodstained sand. We've done a great job and now we're getting out." Pres. Trump on withdrawing troops from Syria: "Let someone else fight over this long bloodstained sand." https://t.co/gIjrUk6LJt pic.twitter.com/ZoZ5W2xWCE The president also said he had spoken with the commander of the Syrian Kurdish forces who Trump claimed βcould not have been more thankfulβ and that he assured Trump that βISIS is under very, very strict lock and key, and the detention facilities are being strongly maintained.β The presidentβs claim that the Syrian Kurds are βhappyβ with the U.S. withdrawal seemed to be contradicted by images of some Kurds throwing rotten vegetables at withdrawing U.S. troops, Ahmed Omar, the president of the Syrian Democratic Council, said Monday that the Kurds have been βsaddenedβ by the withdrawal and what he said was the slaughter of his people by Turkish forces: βThey [Turks] said they want to kill hundreds of thousands of us ...This is why I ask President Trump to stop the attacks ... Help us to reach a political solution. We want peace. We are peaceful people.β Just after touting success on Wednesday, though, the president seemed to doubt his own assessment saying permanent is "questionable" in that region. "However, you would also define the word permanent and that part of the world is somewhat questionable," Trump said. Even as Trump made his announcement, the top U.S. envoy for Syria, Amb. James Jeffrey, was testifying on Capitol Hill and seemed to contradict the president's assessment of success. "The Turkish incursion into northeast Syria is a tragedy, it was long-standing U.S. government policy in two administrations to keep that from happening and we were clearly not successful." The president first teased the announcement on Twitter Wednesday morning. In his tweet, the president touted βbig successβ on the Turkish-Syria border, heralding that a safe zone has been created and that the ceasefire has held. "Big success on the Turkey/Syria Border. Safe Zone created! Ceasefire has held and combat missions have ended. Kurds are safe and have worked very nicely with us. Captured ISIS prisoners secured. I will be making a statement at 11:00 A.M. from the White House. Thank you!" Trump tweeted. Big success on the Turkey/Syria Border. Safe Zone created! Ceasefire has held and combat missions have ended. Kurds are safe and have worked very nicely with us. Captured ISIS prisoners secured. I will be making a statement at 11:00 A.M. from the White House. Thank you! The president's tweet comes a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced they had reached a separate deal on how to divide up and control northeastern Syria -- from which U.S. forces recently withdrew. The deal came just before the U.S.-Turkish halt in hostilities reached its deadline, with a senior Trump administration official touting it as "one of the best ceasefires I've ever seen." But as the remaining 1,000 U.S. troops withdraw from northeast Syria at President Trump's command, critics have blasted Trump and his administration for ceding this territory to Turkey, Russia and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who has overseen a brutal war against his own people, and giving up leverage to accomplish U.S. goals in the region, including ensuring the defeat of the Islamic State and expelling Iranian forces from Syria that threaten U.S. allies, especially Israel. The deal between Erdogan and Putin calls for Syrian Kurdish forces and their weapons to be removed from a buffer zone the length of the border in northeastern Syria -- an expansive area where these forces live now that extends 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) in from the border. Turkey would maintain control of the portion it now has, thanks to its agreement with the U.S., while Assad's forces, backed by Russia, would secure the rest of it. ABC News' Conor Finnegan contributed to this report. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events | a85fa469bad63bda | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | CNBC | https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/06/unemployment-benefits-ended-for-millions-of-americans-these-programs-may-help.html | Unemployment benefits ended for millions of Americans. These extended pandemic programs may provide help | 2021-09-06 | Economy And Jobs, Life During Covid-19, Unemployment, Coronavirus Recovery, Sustainability | People wait in line in Louisville, Kentucky, as Kentucky Labor Cabinet reopened 13 regional Career Centers for in-person unemployment insurance services on April 15, 2021. Amira Karaoud | ReutersEnhanced federal unemployment insurance put in place during the coronavirus pandemic ended this weekend, after nearly a year and a half. That means some 9 million people will lose all benefits and another 3 million will see weekly checks reduced by $300, according to an estimate by The Century Foundation. The end of the federal unemployment insurance programs comes as the delta variant of coronavirus continues to threaten the economic recovery from the pandemic and sweeping lockdowns to curb the disease last year. At the same time, a few other pandemic-era programs have recently been extended and may offer help to those still out of work, or offset some of the loss of the extra money. Of course, many of these programs have specific eligibility requirements, so not all unemployed Americans will necessarily be able to access them. Here's what unemployed Americans may be able to rely on in the coming months.watch nowwatch nowThe U.S. Department of Education in August extended the moratorium on payment and interest of federal student loans one final time, through Jan. 31. That means that some 42 million borrowers with student debt don't have to make a payment on most federal loans until next February and won't see their balances grow. In the meantime, people who are worried that they won't be able to resume payments in February, or pay as much per month as they used to, should check in with their student loan servicers now. They may be able to switch payment plans, meaning they'd owe less each month. 4. Enhanced child tax credit For those with eligible children, the child tax credit may be providing some additional relief as unemployment insurance ends. In August, the IRS and U.S. Department of the Treasury sent some $15 billion in monthly advance payments to 61 million kids. That was the second of six payments from the enhanced child tax credit, which started in July. The enhanced credit boosted the existing benefit to $3,000 from $2,000 and added a $600 bonus for kids under the age of 6 for the 2021 tax year.watch now | 0b62bd65389bb89a | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | TheBlaze.com | https://www.theblaze.com/news/2018/08/17/new-calif-bill-would-force-restaurants-to-offer-only-water-or-milk-as-drink-options-on-kids-menus | New Calif. bill would force restaurants to offer only water or milk as drink options on kids menus | 2018-08-17 | politics | Newly passed legislation in California would prohibit restaurants from offering any drinks other than water or milk on kids menus . Now it 's headed to Democratic Gov . Jerry Brown 's desk for his signature .
Senate Bill 1192 dictates that menus at privately owned businesses can list only water or milk as default drink options to accompany kids meals . The purported aim is to curb obesity and diabetes in children by discouraging the consumption of sugar-laden beverages .
Under the bill , kids are n't prohibited from consuming or ordering alternative beverages `` if the purchaser requests one , '' but eateries ca n't advertise that kids meals include any drink selections other than `` water , sparking water , or flavored water , as specified , or unflavored milk or a nondairy milk alternative . ''
The bill has passed the California Senate and Assembly and is awaiting the governor 's signature . The bill was authored by state Sen. Bill Monning ( D ) and is backed by the American Heart and Stroke Association , MomsRising , Public Health Advocates , YMCA , and the Latino Coalition for a Healthy California .
The American Cancer Society also supports the legislation . Spokeswoman Stephanie Winn told KOVR-TV , `` Cancer is fought in the halls of government , not just in the halls of the hospital . ''
Winn added , `` Some of these kids are drinking up to three sodas a day . This is setting them up for tremendous cancer risks down the road . Because now we know that 20 percent of all cancers are tied to being overweight . ''
Assemblyman Kevin McCarty ( D ) argued for the bill 's passage prior to voting for the measure , telling his colleagues in the chamber , `` Kids ' meals should n't come with a side order of diabetes , obesity or cardiovascular disease , '' the Sacramento Bee reported .
Republican Assemblyman Matthew Harper criticized the proposed law , saying , `` What 's next ? Are we going to insist that you have to have kale in your salad unless you specifically ask otherwise ? ''
Monning told CalMatters the legislation is `` a thoughtful approach to giving families choice , making sure the choice is a healthful one but not taking away the right if they want to order the sugar-sweetened beverage . ''
If Gov . Brown signs the bill , California would be the first state in the U.S. to have such a law . | VXSNHS12CKh7uCA1 | 2 | Politics | 0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
energy | Politico | http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2015/05/inside-war-on-coal-000002?hp=t3_r | Inside the war on coal | 2015-05-26 | energy | The war on coal is not just political rhetoric , or a paranoid fantasy concocted by rapacious polluters . It β s real and it β s relentless . Over the past five years , it has killed a coal-fired power plant every 10 days . It has quietly transformed the U.S. electric grid and the global climate debate .
The industry and its supporters use β war on coal β as shorthand for a ferocious assault by a hostile White House , but the real war on coal is not primarily an Obama war , or even a Washington war . It β s a guerrilla war . The front lines are not at the Environmental Protection Agency or the Supreme Court . If you want to see how the fossil fuel that once powered most of the country is being battered by enemy forces , you have to watch state and local hearings where utility commissions and other obscure governing bodies debate individual coal plants . You probably won β t find much drama . You β ll definitely find lawyers from the Sierra Club β s Beyond Coal campaign , the boots on the ground in the war on coal .
Beyond Coal is the most extensive , expensive and effective campaign in the Club β s 123-year history , and maybe the history of the environmental movement . It β s gone largely unnoticed amid the furor over the Keystone pipeline and President Barack Obama β s efforts to regulate carbon , but it β s helped retire more than one third of America β s coal plants since its launch in 2010 , one dull hearing at a time . With a vast war chest donated by Michael Bloomberg , unlikely allies from the business world , and a strategy that relies more on economics than ecology , its team of nearly 200 litigators and organizers has won battles in the Midwestern and Appalachian coal belts , in the reddest of red states , in almost every state that burns coal .
β They β re sophisticated , they β re very active , and they β re better funded than we are , β says Mike Duncan , a former Republican National Committee chairman who now heads the industry-backed American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity . β I don β t like what they β re doing ; we β re losing a lot of coal in this country . But they do show up . β
Coal still helps keep our lights on , generating nearly 40 percent of U.S. power . But it generated more than 50 percent just over a decade ago , and the big question now is how rapidly its decline will continue . Almost every watt of new generating capacity is coming from natural gas , wind or solar ; the coal industry now employs fewer workers than the solar industry , which barely existed in 2010 . Utilities no longer even bother to propose new coal plants to replace the old ones they retire . Coal industry stocks are tanking , and analysts are predicting a new wave of coal bankruptcies .
This is a big deal , because coal is America β s top source of greenhouse gases , and coal retirements are the main reason U.S. carbon emissions have declined 10 percent in a decade . Coal is also America β s top source of mercury , sulfur dioxide and other toxic air pollutants , so fewer coal plants also means less asthma and lung diseaseβnot to mention fewer coal-ash spills and coal-mining disasters . The shift toward cleaner-burning gas and zero-emissions renewables is the most important change in our electricity mix in decades , and while Obama has been an ally in the war on coalβnot always as aggressive an ally as the industry claimsβthe Sierra Club is in the trenches . The U.S. had 523 coal-fired power plants when Beyond Coal began targeting them ; just last week , it celebrated the 190th retirement of its campaign in Asheville , N.C. , culminating a three-year fight that had been featured in the climate documentary β Years of Living Dangerously . β
Beyond Coal isn β t the stereotypical Sierra Club campaign , tree-huggers shouting save-the-Earth slogans . Yes , it sometimes deploys its 2.4 million-member , grass-roots army to shutter plants with traditional not-in-my-back-yard organizing and right-to-breathe agitating . But it usually wins by arguing that ditching coal will save ratepayers money .
Bloomberg has donated to the Sierra Club 's vast war chest . | Getty | Getty | Getty
Behind that argument lies a revolution in the economics of power , changes few Americans think about when they flick their switches . Coal used to be the cheapest form of electricity by far , but it β s gotten pricier as it β s been forced to clean up more of its mess , while the costs of gas , wind and solar have plunged in recent years . Now retrofitting old coal plants with the pollution controls needed to comply with Obama β s limits on soot , sulfur and mercury is becoming cost-prohibitiveβand the EPA is finalizing its new carbon rules as well as tougher ozone restrictions that should add to the burden . That β s why the Sierra Club finds itself in foxholes with big-box stores , manufacturers and other business interests , fighting coal upgrades that would jack up electricity bills , pushing for cheaper renewables and energy efficiency instead . In a case I watched in Oklahoma City , every stakeholder supported Beyond Coal β s push for a utility to buy more low-cost wind powerβincluding a coalition of industrial customers that reportedly included a Koch Industries-owned paper mill .
β They β re not burning bras . They β re fighting dollar to dollar , β says attorney Jim Roth , who represented a group of hospitals on Beyond Coal β s side in the Oklahoma case . β They β ve become masters at bringing financial arguments to environmental questions . β
As the affordability case for coal has lost traction , the industry β s defenders have portrayed the war on coal as a war on reliability , an assault on 24-hour β baseload β plants that provide juice when the sun isn β t shining and the wind isn β t blowing . They ask how the Sierra Club expects America to run its refrigerators around the clockβsince it also opposes nuclear power and has a separate Beyond Gas campaign . Duncan β s group started a Twitter meme warning that Americans could end up # ColdInTheDark , and even Bloomberg suggested to me in a recent interview that the Club β s leaders seem to want Americans to wear loincloths and live in caves .
In fact , neither the decline of coal , nor the boom in renewables has blacked out the grid , and Beyond Coal β s leaders are confident electricity markets can handle much more intermittent power . In any case , they see coal as the lowest-hanging fruit in the struggle to stabilize the climate , not only our dirtiest fossil fuel but the one with the cheapest alternatives . In the long run , combating global warming will depend on a multitude of factors , from electric vehicles to carbon releases from deforestation to methane releases from belching cows , but for the next decade , our climate progress depends mostly on reducing our reliance on the black stuff . Coal retirements have enabled Obama to pledge U.S. emissions cuts of up to 28 percent by 2025 , which has , in turn , enabled him to strike a climate deal with China and pursue a global deal later this year in Paris .
β We β ve found the secret sauce to making progress in unlikely places , β says Bruce Nilles , who leads Beyond Coal from the Club β s San Francisco headquarters . β And every time we beat the coal boys , people say : β Whoa . It can be done . β β
The Sierra Club can β t claim full credit for the coal bust . It didn β t ratchet down the prices of gas , wind and solar or enact the flurry of EPA rules ratcheting up the price of coal , although its lobbyists and lawyers have pushed hard for government support for renewables while fighting in court over just about every coal-related regulation . It didn β t produce the energy efficiency boom that has reined in electricity demand , either . Still , a Bloomberg Philanthropies analysis found that at least 40 percent of U.S. coal retirements could not have happened without Beyond Coal β s advocacy . The status quo wields a lot of power in the heavily regulated power sector , where economics and mathematics don β t always beat politics and inertia . The case for change keeps getting stronger , but someone has to make the case .
When Mary Anne Hitt , Beyond Coal β s national director , first visited Indianapolis to fight an inner-city plant , the headline in the Star was : β Beyond Coal β s Director Faces Tough Sell in Indiana. β But after two years of door-knocking , phone-banking and educating officials on the new realities of electricity , the Sierra Club and its local partners helped shut down the plant . Hitt has seen the same kind of miracle in Chicago , in Omaha , alongside a Paiute tribe reservation in Nevada , even in coal strongholds like Kentucky . It β s starting to feel more like a pattern than a miracle .
β David is fighting Goliath every day , and David keeps winning , β Hitt says .
Energy analysts have a way of making Goliath β s new underdog status seem inevitable . Then again , it wasn β t long ago that their burning question about the U.S. coal industry was not how fast it would go away , but how fast it would grow .
Mike Duncan , a former RNC chairman who now heads the industry-backed American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity , says of Beyond Coal : β I don β t like what they β re doing ; we β re losing a lot of coal in this country . But they do show up. β | AP Photo
The story of coal is a rich vein in the American story , powering our industry , our railroads , our politics . For decades , the work of extracting coal after millions of years undergroundβso dangerous for some , so lucrative for othersβwas seen as God β s work . The alchemy of converting coal into valuable energy was seen as a fulfillment of America β s destiny to exploit nature for the benefit of mankind , even as the smog spewing out of coal smokestacks was seen as part of the dystopia of urban life .
These days , growing concerns about climate have heightened concerns about coal , which produces 75 percent of the power sector β s carbon , and more emissions than all our cars and trucks combined . But even at the dawn of the 21st century , the George W. Bush administration β s main concern about coal power and fossil energy in general was that the U.S. wasn β t producing enough of it . In 2001 , an energy task force led by Dick Cheney , after a series of secret meetings with fossil-fuel executives , called for a new power-plant construction boom , warning that the alternative was a national reprise of the rolling blackouts that had just roiled California . Utilities quickly proposed about 200 new coal plants , and faced no organized national opposition . Coal plants have a useful lifespan of at least 40 years , so the U.S. was poised to lock in a new generation of dirty power . And all that new capacity was poised to destroy any incentive to develop clean wind or solar power .
That β s when the Sierra Club got into its first big coal fight over a proposed billion-dollar plant south of Chicago , a welcome-to-the-NFL episode . The Chicago area already had poor air qualityβthe coal plants around the Loop were known as the Ring of Fireβand local volunteers , led by an indefatigable German immigrant named Verena Owen , were desperate to block the project . Their cause seemed hopeless , but for Owen , who is now Beyond Coal β s lead volunteer , it was personal . Her best friend had struggled to breathe whenever the air was hazy and eventually died of lung disease , leaving behind a daughter in kindergarten . β I don β t know how many people we ended up saving , but I know one we didn β t , β Owen says .
The first time Nilles , at the time a lawyer for the Sierra Club β s Midwest office in Chicago , tried to attend a hearing about the plant , union members who supported the project came early and packed the hall while the Club was holding a news conference . Illinois regulators soon rubber-stamped the permit . Owen and Nilles can still recite the date and time of the news dump : Friday , Oct. 10 , 2003 , at 5:10 p.m. , so the bureaucrats could ignore their calls and escape for the weekend . And the industry had an even easier time of it elsewhere . Nilles later reviewed the record for another billion-dollar plant that broke ground in Iowa about the same time , and discovered there hadn β t been a single public comment in opposition .
β Everything was going full speed in the wrong direction , and we had no capacity to fight , β he says . β We realized we needed a strategy . Fast . β
The strategy that Nilles devised was to fight every new plant from every conceivable environmental , economic and political angle . The Sierra Club began organizing boot camps to teach lawyers and volunteers around the region how to block coal permits . Demand for the seminars was so intense that , at one point , Nilles β boss had to remind him that Texas was not part of the Midwest . But he figured Texans who breathed air and drank water had as much to lose from exposure to coal-fired pollutants as Midwesterners had . Some of the Club β s funders thought his fight-everything-everywhere approach was unrealistic during a national coal rush , but every proposed plant was in someone β s backyard , and the Club had members in every corner of the country . Nilles couldn β t imagine telling any of them their communities would have to be sacrificed for the greater tactical good .
Environmentalists have always been good at blocking stuff , and over the next few years , the kitchen-sink strategy produced some improbable victories . Nilles exploited threats to an endangered clover to delay the Chicago-area plant , and the utility eventually abandoned it . A local Sierra Club chapter stopped a massive plant in Kentucky coal country after a 63-day hearing , convincing regulators that the proposal had inadequate pollution controls , and that adequate controls would be exorbitant for ratepayers . These were shoestring crusades with expert witnesses crashing on the couches of volunteers , but the victories felt contagious , spreading hope to activists in other states who read about them on the Club β s coal listserv .
Meanwhile , the Sierra Club was canvassing its members to develop a new long-term strategic plan . To the surprise of then-Director Carl Pope , they overwhelmingly wanted climate and energy to be the top priority , a major shift for a group that had emphasized wilderness conservation since its creation by the legendary outdoorsman John Muir . At a meeting in Tucson in early 2006 , the Club β s board voted to build the fledgling Midwestern anti-coal effort into a national campaign . Climate activists are often accused of wasting energy on symbolic movement-building efforts with relatively limited impact on emissions , like their crusades to stop Keystone and get universities to divest from fossil fuels . Beyond Coal β s leaders do oppose the pipeline and support the divestment movement , but the rationale for the campaign was all about hunting where the ducks are .
β It was existential necessity : Look how many coal plants they want to build . Look how much carbon they β d produce . Well , it β s game over if we don β t stop them , β Pope recalls . β If we were going to focus on climate , we had to focus on coal . β
In a bow to political realism , the initial goal was to make sure coal was β mined responsibly , burned cleanly and disposed of safely. β But the campaigners didn β t really believe coal could be burned cleanly . The original mouthful of a mission soon evolved to β Move Beyond Coal , β then just β Beyond Coal. β It was a much simpler message , helping to unite a variety of activistsβworking for specific neighborhoods , Indian tribes , mountains targeted by mining outfits , public health , environmental justice , clean energy , and the climateβagainst a common enemy . The Sierra Club would be the one constant presence in the war on coal , but it began partnering with more than 100 local , regional and national groups in its battles around the country .
The campaign was remarkably successful . Nilles and his team scoured every permit application for vulnerabilities and managed to block all but 30 of the 200 plants proposed in the Bush era . The nice thing about fighting new plants was that they didn β t exist yet , so it only took one deal breakerβtoo much smog in a high-smog area , too close to a national park , too expensive for ratepayers , whateverβto break a deal . Some of the plants that did get built still haunt Nilles , but those defeats did not doom the decarbonization of America . The game was not over .
By 2008 , with the economy crashing and power demand slumping , utilities had stopped pushing new coal plants . That β s when Nilles began plotting to go after old onesβan even tougher challenge , but a vital one to avoid the game-over scenario . He had moved to the liberal college town of Madison , and he was amazed that an old coal plant a mile from his home still had no pollution controls ; it was way dirtier than the new plants he was fighting around the country . The nation β s fleet of existing coal plants was still emitting nearly 2 billion tons of carbon and causing an estimated 13,000 premature deaths every year . It felt good to stop projects that would have increased those numbers , but Nilles wanted to use the Club β s newfound expertise to reduce them .
β It β s a lot easier to throw ourselves in front of bulldozers to stop something than it is to shut something down that β s already part of the community , paying taxes , generating power , providing jobs , β Nilles says . β But that β s where the emissions are . β
That was also the year Obama won the presidency , creating hope for stricter EPA regulation of sulfur , soot and ozone , plus the first-ever regulations of mercury , coal ash and carbon . As difficult as it would be to kill plants that had been operating for decadesβtwo-thirds of the coal fleet predated the Clean Air Act of 1970βNilles thought the combination of top-down rules from Washington and bottom-up pressure at state and local hearings could force utilities to confront investment decisions they had been delaying all those decades . Most utilities would need approval from their financial and environmental regulators before they could install expensive pollution controls . And while the utilities might be happy to charge their customers tens of millions of dollars for upgrades in order to comply with one new ruleβplus a tidy profit they β re usually guaranteed for capital improvementsβutility commissions might not let them start down that road if they faced hundreds of millions of dollars in additional compliance costs from rules still to come .
Once again , the campaign produced some inspiring early wins , including the retirement of that antiquated plant near Nilles in Madison . He also filed a lawsuit against his alma mater , the University of Wisconsin , to get it off coal . The Club quickly found that when it could stop investor-owned utilities from getting a blank check to charge ratepayers for coal upgrades , they would usually shut down the plants rather than risk shareholder dollars . That was even true in coal country , where homeowners , businesses and regulators were just as allergic to pricey upgradesβand utilities were just as reluctant to foot the bill themselves . As Nilles β new deputy , Hitt , a West Virginia activist who had spent years trying to stop mining companies from blowing up mountains in Appalachia , found she could do more to protect the mountains by shutting down the plants that used their coal .
Beyond Coal had grown from three staffers to a 15-state operation , but it still lacked the scale to fight 523 plants all over the country . It needed to get a lot bigger . That β s when the combative billionaire who has financed his own wars on guns , tobacco and Big Gulps took an interest in the war on coal .
Beyond Coal β s pivotal moment came at a meeting in Gracie Mansion about , of all things , education reform . Michael Bloomberg , the Wall Street savant-turned media mogul-turned New York City mayor , was looking for a new outlet for his private philanthropy . It quickly became clear that education reform would not be that outlet .
β It was a terrible meeting in every way , and Mike was angry , β recalls his longtime adviser , Kevin Sheekey . β I said : β Look , if you don β t like this idea , that β s fine . We β ll bring you another. β He said : β No , I want another now . β β
As it happened , Sheekey had just eaten lunch with Carl Pope , who was starting a $ 50 million fundraising drive to expand Beyond Coal β s staff to 45 states . The cap-and-trade plan that Obama supported to cut carbon emissions had stalled in Congress , and the carbon tax that Bloomberg supported was going nowhere as well . Washington was gridlocked . But Pope had explained to Sheekey that shutting down coal plants at the state and local level could do even more for the climateβand have a huge impact on public health issues close to his boss β s heart .
β That β s a good idea , β Bloomberg told Sheekey . β We β ll just give Carl a check for the $ 50 million . Tell him to stop fundraising and get to work . β
Bloomberg had never thought of himself as a Sierra Club kind of guy . But he saw coal as a killer , as well as the main threat to the climate , and the Club was in the field doing something about it . His only demand was a more analytical approach to the war on coal , with measurable deliverables , complex predictive models for vulnerable plants , and KPIβKey Performance Indicators , as Pope later learned .
β The Sierra Club had never heard of KPI , β Pope says . β We just had a gut instinct for what would work . The mayor said : β Oh , no , no . This will be data-driven . β β
On a sweltering day in July 2011 , Bloomberg announced his gift to the Club on a boat he had chartered on the Potomac River , in front of a 63-year-old coal plant he had always noticed on flights into Washington . He saw it as a perfect illustration of the city β s inability to get anything done .
β You β d think the politicians would at least care about the air they breathe themselves ! β Bloomberg marveled to me in a recent interview .
That plant on the Potomac is now closed . So is the Massachusetts plant that Mitt Romney once said β kills people , β a line Obama actually used against him in coal-state campaign ads in 2012 . So are all of Chicago β s plants , as Mayor Rahm Emanuel boasted in his first campaign ad in 2015 . Overall , the 190 plants that U.S. utilities have agreed to retire will eliminate about one fourth of America β s coal-fired capacity , a total of 79 gigawatts . And for every watt of coal capacity they β re taking out of commission , they β ve already installed a watt of wind or solar capacity . The Clean Air Task Force estimate of coal-fired premature deaths is down to about 7,500 a year , a decrease of 5,500 since Beyond Coal went national . And Bloomberg β s early support has helped attract more than $ 100 million from top foundations and wealthy individuals like the Silicon Valley billionaire Tom Steyer , the climate movement β s top political donor .
β It β s a reminder that you can do a lot with no help from Congress , β Bloomberg says . β I just wish we could point out the specific people who were saved . β
To coal backers , Beyond Coal is pure urban elitist lunacy , the kind of nightmare you get when a nanny-state mayor from New York hooks up with eco-radicals from San Francisco and a liberal president in Washington . Republican Senator James Inhofe of Oklahomaβchairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee , author of β The Greatest Hoax , β thrower of a Senate-floor snowball designed to highlight the folly of global-warming alarmismβtold me it β s hard to believe some Americans actually want to keep our abundant energy resources in the ground .
β It β s a war on all fossil fuels , and coal is the No . 1 target , β Inhofe says . β You got a president who doesn β t care how many jobs it costs , and rich people who don β t care how much money they spend . They can do a lot of damage . β
I got to watch the war in Inhofe β s state , and the damage wasn β t getting done the way Inhofe imagined . The job creators were siding with the environmentalists . Economics was the most powerful weapon in the Sierra Club β s arsenal .
At a dry hearing in a drab courtroom in Oklahoma City , a methodical Beyond Coal attorney named Kristin Henry , whose bio identifies her as β one of the few environmentalists who would never be caught wearing Birkenstocks , β was pinning down an Oklahoma Gas & Electric executive with a barrage of wouldn β t-you-agrees , isn β t-it-trues , and would-it-be-fair-to-say β s . The power company was out of compliance with a federal air-quality rule called β regional haze , β so it was offering to convert one of its two coal plants into a natural gas plant . Henry knew she couldn β t stop that . But OG & E also wanted to install massive new scrubbers on the other plant so it could keep burning coal for decades to come . Henry was determined to stop that .
In the 90 minutes Henry spent cross-examining OG & E β s Joseph Rowlett in early March , she didn β t ask a single question about climate or public health . She focused exclusively on OG & E β s request for the largest rate increase in state history , a 15 percent hike to finance the utility β s $ 700 million compliance plan . Through her deadpan , leading questions , she portrayed OG & E as a company desperate to get its customers to foot the bill to prop up an inefficient plant , pursuing retrofits it would never consider if its own shareholders had to swallow the costs , operating in a dream world where regional haze was coal β s only challenge . At one point , she got Rowlett to admit his calculations assumed there would be no additional coal regulations for the next thirty years , even though the EPA intends to finalize at least four new coal regulations this year alone .
β Isn β t it true you β re assuming zero over the next 30 years ? β Henry asked .
The Sierra Club , even though it didn β t sound much like the Sierra Club , was clearly in hostile political territory . Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt , a conservative Republican who has spearheaded a national campaign to protect fossil fuels from legal challenges , had joined OG & E in fighting the EPA haze rule all the way to the Supreme Court . Now he was supposed to be representing consumers at the OG & E hearing before the Oklahoma Corporation Commission , but he hadn β t even filed a brief about the record rate hike . β That β s unheard of , β one commission official told me . Pruitt didn β t attend the hearing , eitherβthe day it began , he was in Tulsa with Mike Huckabee raising money for his PACβbut one of his deputies who did attend occasionally raised objections when OG & E witnesses were asked uncomfortable questions .
But if the political deck seemed stacked against the Sierra Club , Henry held the economic cards . In Oklahoma , coal imported from Wyoming now costs more per kilowatt hour than the abundant gas under the ground or the wind that famously comes sweeping down the plain . In another recent haze case , the Sierra Club cut a deal requiring Oklahoma β s other major utility to phase out its only coal plant and buy 200 megawatts of windβand the bids came in so low , the utility ended up buying 600 megawatts of wind . That β s why Wal-Mart , the hospital group and the coalition of industrial ratepayers all supported Beyond Coal β s push for more wind in the OG & E case . Cheap electricity has a way of scrambling political alliances .
Henry and the lawyers for OG & E β s corporate customers formed a kind of tag team , taking turns blasting the company for refusing to even study new wind power . They repeatedly pointed out that in-state competitors as well as Florida and New Mexico utilities were buying Oklahoma wind for just 2 cents per kilowatt hour , even cheaper than coal without pollution controls , while OG & E hadn β t purchased new wind in four yearsβeven though its ads boasted about its commitment to wind . When its witnesses claimed their transmission lines were too congested to add new wind , Henry produced internal documents suggesting the congestion could be fixed for about 3 percent of the cost of the new coal scrubbers . As she pointed out , other Oklahoma utilities have much higher percentages of wind power on their systems .
Closing coal plants can sound radical , but Henry framed it for the Republican utility commissioners as the conservative response to EPA rules , avoiding the risk of β stranded β investments in outdated plants that might have to be shut down anyway . The most economical way to meet haze limits , she suggested , would be to stop burning the coal that causes the haze . Al Armendariz , who was Obama β s Dallas-based regional EPA administrator and is now Beyond Coal β s Austin-based regional representative , says the Club β s victories in states like Georgia , Mississippi and Kentucky have helped normalize the idea of abandoning coal in Oklahoma .
β We get respect because of our track record , β Armendariz says . β When we say a utility isn β t acting prudently , people can β t just dismiss us as β Oh , of course the Sierra Club says that. β They see how we keep winning . They see these big industrial customers agreeing with us . Then they look at the numbers and see we β re right . β
Still , there β s no denying the war on coal is leading America into uncharted territory . The Sierra Club wants to eliminate all coal power by 2030 , but what will replace it ? Wind and solar , despite their rapid Obama-era growth , still make up just 5 percent of U.S. power capacity . And while technologies to store renewable energy ( such as Tesla β s newly announced battery packs ) are getting cheaper , they β re still a rounding error on the grid . Beyond Coal β s leaders are content to push cleaner power and let utilities figure out how to deliver it , but as OG & E Vice President Paul Renfrow told me : β That β s easy for them to say . We have to keep the lights on . β
Inhofe thinks the Sierra Club is simply obsessed with rooting out fossil fuels , citing β the guy who wants to crucify people β as an example of its extremism . He meant Armendariz , who left the EPA after he was caught on tape suggesting that harsh sanctions for law-breaking oil and gas companies could scare others into compliance , just as public crucifixions helped keep the peace in Roman times .
β The Sierra Club wants to stop coal now ? β Inhofe asked . β You β ll see , they β ll be after gas next . β
Long-term , he β s right . While the Club accepted some donations from natural gas interests under Pope , it is now formally committed to eliminating gas as well as coal by 2030 , and it has helped block new gas plants in cities like Austin and Carlsbad , California . After its victory last week in Asheville , Beyond Coal vowed to keep fighting to overturn Duke Energy β s decision to build a new gas plant to replace its 50-year-old coal plant . Even Bloomberg thinks the Club β s opposition to the fracking boom that has helped replace so much domestic coal with domestic gas is silly .
That said , Beyond Coal β s leaders , including Armendariz , understand that Beyond Gas is more aspirational than practical for now . They deeply prefer renewables to gas , but they almost as deeply prefer gas to coal . In Oklahoma City , Henry grilled OG & E witnesses about why they wanted to spend $ 500 million on scrubbers for coal boilers that could be retrofitted to burn gas for just $ 70 million . She shredded the implausible assumptions OG & E had made in its economic models to make scrubbing coal look cheaper than converting to gas , forcing one witness to admit gas prices were already 25 percent lower than his low-cost scenario . I sat in on one friendly lunch the Club β s legal team had with lawyers for a Conoco Phillips front group ; they all hoped to move OG & E beyond coal , and gas is clearly part of the short-term solution .
When Brune took over the Sierra Club in 2010 , he halted the club β s gas-industry gifts . | Getty
β We want to be principled but pragmatic , β says Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune , who stopped the Club β s gas-industry gifts when he took over in 2010 . β We β ve wrestled with this , and there β s a definite disagreement with Bloomberg . We don β t see gas as an environmental fix . But we acknowledge that we still need some gas . β
Coal is different . Bloomberg calls it β a dead man walking. β When he made his initial gift to the Sierra Club , the goal was to secure the retirements of one third of the coal fleet by 2015 . The Club is only slightly behind schedule , and in April , Bloomberg came to Washington to announce another $ 30 million donation , with a new goal of retirement announcements for half of the fleet by 2017 . β We β re doubling down on an incredibly successful strategy , β Bloomberg said .
The campaign β s leaders believe coal has already passed a tipping point toward oblivion . Coal giants like Alpha Natural Resources , Arch Coal and Walter Energy are struggling to stay afloat . Just last week , in addition to the retirement announcement for the Asheville plantβas well as another for a Milwaukee plant that wasn β t official enough for Beyond Coal to count as # 191βthe insurance giant AXA announced that it will sell off more than $ 500 million worth of coal investments , the largest financial institution to flee the space to date , while the EPA announced it was closing a loophole that allowed virtually unlimited emissions from malfunctioning coal plants , a response to yet another Sierra Club lawsuit . And the more dirty plants get shut down , the more residents near other dirty plants are asking : Why not ours ?
It β s hard to change the status quo , no matter how compelling the economic logic . Beyond Coal does not just deploy data . It organizes rallies and petitions and float-ins on kayaks ; it shames utility executives on billboards and airplane banners ; it mobilizes its members to show up at boring hearings where showing up can make a difference . If the Oklahoma City case displayed the war on coal as a numerical dispute , another hearing I watched south of Detroit was more like a street fight .
River Rouge is a depressed community at the city β s edge , a blightscape of boarded-up bungalows , overgrown lots and pawn shops . There β s no grocery store and virtually no medical services , but there is a nice little park where kids play at the playground and adults fish in the Detroit River . Unfortunately , the park smells like rotten eggs , thanks to sulfur dioxide from a DTE Energy coal plant overlooking the playground . Michigan health officials have called this area β the epicenter of the state β s asthma burden. β The fish aren β t safe to eat , either , though people eat them .
β It β s just an unhealthy situation , β says Alisha Winters , a local resident and mother of seven children , two with asthma . β They figure they can get away with dumping on us . β
The EPA has called out this area β s elevated sulfur dioxide levels , and last year Republican Governor Rick Snyder β s administration floated a compliance plan that would have required DTE to upgrade the coal-fired River Rouge Power Plant or ( more likely ) close it . But DTE proposed an alternative plan with no costly upgrades , and the state quietly accepted it . The Sierra Club has been mobilizing opposition ever since , drawing an unusual coalition of local whites , African-Americans , Latinos and Arab-Americansβas well as a busload of white liberals from Ann Arborβfor an environmental hearing in mid-March . The hearing had to be moved from City Hall to a school auditorium to accommodate the groundswell of protests , a far cry from that Chicago-area hearing over a decade ago where the Sierra Club got frozen out .
β We β re getting people to cross borders , physical and imaginary , β says Rhonda Anderson , a sharecropper β s daughter who is now an organizer for Beyond Coal .
If the Oklahoma City hearing was financial , the River Rouge hearing was political , a multiracial show of force in β I Love Clean Air β T-shirts . Every speaker opposed the DTE plan , including an Indian-American medical student , an Arab-American law student , an African-American asthma educator , a Latina anti-poverty activist and a white nun . Ebony Elmore , a child care provider who lives a block from the plant , talked about her four siblings and three nieces with asthma , as well as her two parents with pulmonary disease . I happened to ask Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell , who was watching the testimony from the side of the hall , why she was there , just as another resident started telling a story about an 11-year-old local girl who died because she couldn β t get to her inhaler in time .
A few days later , Governor Snyderβwhose top campaign supporters included one Michael Bloombergβannounced a new effort to cut Michigan β s reliance on coal . That would have been a huge political burden for Snyder if he had run for president in a GOP primary , where β anti-coal β will be an epithet like β anti-gun β or β anti-freedom , β but he decided not to run , and coal is becoming a huge economic burden for his industrial state .
The already frenetic national pace of plant retirements will have to double for Beyond Coal to meet its 2017 goal , but utilities will face daunting investment decisions over the next two years . The EPA recently settled a sulfur lawsuit with the Sierra Club that could replicate the River Rouge dilemma across the nation . The agency has also imposed regional haze plans that already are replicating the Oklahoma dilemma in Arizona , Arkansas and Texas . Today , Beyond Coal has more than 100 legal cases pending over power supply . Meanwhile , it β s pursuing a new strategy on the power demand side , pushing blue states like Oregon to stop importing coal-fired electricity , which could shutter plants in red states like Montana . Even inside Texas , the Club has worked with relatively progressive cities like Austin , San Antonio and El Paso to replace their coal power with renewables .
Beyond Coal is also continuing to lobby and litigate in Washington , pushing Obama to drop his β all-of-the-above β approach to energy and formally enlist in the war on coal . Obama has not been as maniacally anti-coal as the industry suggests , punting on ozone rules in his first term to avoid alienating voters in Ohio , issuing relatively weak restrictions on coal ash , taking a lenient approach to mining on public land , floating carbon rules with mild targets for the most coal-reliant states . Still , when you add up all he β s done and all he β s doing , you get a tremendously uncertain regulatory environment . Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentuckyβwhose wife , Elaine Chao , recently quit the Bloomberg Philanthropies board over coalβhas urged states to defy the Clean Power Plan , but utilities with fiduciary responsibilities don β t engage in much civil disobedience . They have already shut down dozens of plants to comply with mercury rules the Supreme Court could still strike down , and they β re starting to think about carbon , too .
Some coal advocates still hold out hope that the decline can be reversed if Republicans can win the presidency and keep Congress . β We β ve got a Congress that β s sympathetic , but we β ve still got a bureaucracy running amok , β says Mike Duncan , the RNC chairman-turned-coal advocate . β That will play in 2016 . Obviously , anytime you elect a leader , it β s important to this industry . β
If the EPA stands down under the next president , the pace of retirements could slow . But it probably won β t stop . The trends are too strong . Nilles recently met with leaders of the utility Southern Company , which has slashed its dependence on coal in half over the past five years . Its executives rejected his vision of a coal-free America by 2030 , but some of them suggested 2050 could be realistic . In any case , the Sierra Club won a lot of coal fights during the pro-coal Bush administration , because they were ultimately local fights over local air .
The fights also have a global context . The Earth is already getting hotter , and the death of American coal would not avert a climate catastrophe if the rest of the world did not follow our lead . But the decline of American coal emissions will help U.S. negotiators insist that other countries do their part in the global negotiations in Paris . And while critics of climate action often grumble that it would be foolish for the U.S. to make sacrifices when China is still building a new coal plant every week , that β s no longer true . China actually decreased its coal use last year , and is shuttering all four plants in smog-shrouded Beijing . The trends killing coal in Americaβcheap gas , wind and solar ; more energy efficiency ; stricter regulationsβare trending abroad as well . Cash-strapped U.S. mining firms are desperate to solve their domestic problems by selling more coal in foreign markets , but the Sierra Club has helped lead the fight to block six proposed coal export terminals in the Pacific Northwest , which will help keep even more coal in the ground .
There will be no formal surrender in the war on coal , no battleship treaty to mark the end . But Beyond Coal β s leaders believe they can finish most of their work setting the U.S. electric sector on a greener path over the next five years . The next phase of the war on carbon would be to try to electrify everything elseβcars and trains that use oil-derived gasoline and diesel , as well as homes and businesses that rely on natural gas and heating oil . Nilles hopes power companies like OG & E and DTE that Beyond Coal has spent the last decade fighting withβbut then cutting deals withβcan become allies in Phase Two . And allies will be vital , because if King Coal seems like a rich and powerful enemy , it β s a pushover compared to Big Oil .
β Once we β ve taken out coal , we β ll need to take on oil , and who better to help than our new friends in the utility sector who can make money from electrification ? β Nilles says with a grin . β It β s a long fight . This is how we win . β | zcQD42oxUdNN3l7Z | 0 | Coal | -1.5 | Energy | -0.5 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
campaign_finance | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2014/04/democrats-democracy-alliance-liberal-donors-105972.html?hp=t1 | The left's secret club plans for 2014, 2016 | 2014-04-24 | campaign_finance | Democracy Alliance conferences are typically kept hush-hush . | AP Photos The left 's secret club
Some of the country β s biggest Democratic donors β including Tom Steyer and Jonathan Soros β are huddling behind closed doors beginning Sunday in Chicago with union bigwigs and progressive superstars like Bill de Blasio to plan how to pull their party β and the country β to the left .
The setting is the annual spring meeting of the Democracy Alliance , a secretive club of wealthy liberals that β s the closest thing the left has to the vaunted Koch brothers β political network .
The DA , as the liberal group is known to insiders , is increasing its ranks of rich donors for the first time in years and is gearing up to spend huge sums on political data , voter registration , ground organizing and advertising to influence the 2014 midterms and 2016 presidential elections . Potentially more significant , the groups β donors also could play an important role in determining whether the post-Barack Obama Democratic Party embraces the rising tide of progressive populism or hews to a more cautious , centrist course β in other words , whether the Hillary Clinton wing or Elizabeth Warren wing will seize the reins .
The Spring Investment Conference will feature a number of Clinton allies and others associated with the centrist wing β including Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz , Kentucky Senate candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes and Obama senior adviser Valerie Jarrett . But the conference β which kicks off Sunday night at a Ritz Carlton ballroom with a dinner keynoted by de Blasio β is also seen as a coming out party of sorts for the group β s progressives , who have expressed some measure of dissatisfaction with what they see as a level of timidity on their pet issues from the Obama White House .
According to a conference agenda obtained by βββ , panels will focus on elevating progressive issues like income inequality , climate change , drug reform , gun control , abortion rights and the death penalty .
It β s not all serious business , though . Social events include a wine party featuring selections from wineries owned by DA donors , a private curator-led tour of the Art Institute of Chicago and a performance by β The Daily Show β co-creator Lizz Winstead , who the agenda says will deploy her β comedic genius β to take a β light-hearted look at the conservative Right and the decay of the Fourth Estate . β
DA conferences are typically kept hush-hush , with locations tightly held , press barred from the sessions and participants prohibited from discussing the proceedings .
Invitations are coveted by all manner of Democrats . Several representatives from Obama β s orbit are expected at the Ritz , including White House Political Director David Simas and campaign adman Larry Grisolano . They β re participating in a panel on winning health care strategies in state races , while Organizing for Action , the nonprofit group formed from the remnants of Obama β s campaign to push his second-term agenda , is hosting donors for an open house at its headquarters . And former Obama political guru David Axelrod is slated to deliver a speech titled β Reflections on a Career in Journalism , Politics , and the Obama Journey . β
The courting of rich Democrats in Chicago comes as some of the party β s top names continue a discordant character assault on major conservative donors as eroding the very fabric of American democracy . Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has repeatedly blasted the billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch as β un-American β and accused them of β actually trying to buy the country . β
Democracy Alliance partners , as the group calls its members , pay annual dues of $ 30,000 and are required to contribute a total of at least $ 200,000 a year to recommended groups . Since its inception in 2005 , the DA has steered upward of $ 500 million to a range of groups , including pillars of the political left such as the conservative media watchdog Media Matters , the policy advocacy outfit Center for American Progress and the data firm Catalist β all of which are run by Clinton allies .
While those groups will be represented in Chicago , DA insiders and observers are watching the conference closely for signs of a leftward tack away from the Democratic Party β s strategy .
Steyer , the San Francisco hedge fund billionaire trying to raise money for a planned $ 100-million midterm spending spree on behalf of environmentally minded candidates , is hosting a session called β Putting Climate Change at the Forefront of American Politics , β and is expected to hold one-on-one meetings to solicit checks from interested DA partners .
And the conference will mark the beginning of a new DA leadership regime that is replacing the Obama and Clinton loyalists who had been running the organization .
β I anticipate the Democracy Alliance becoming both more progressive and more aggressive in the coming years , β said Erica Payne , who helped found the club , and now runs the Agenda Project , a progressive communications nonprofit . β That will disturb centrist Democrats , but it will be healthy and productive for the country . They need to be challenged on these things . β
New DA President Gara LaMarche , who comes from the ranks of liberal philanthropy , is regarded as more independent from the Democratic Party than his predecessor Kelly Craighead . A former Clinton White House staffer and longtime Hillary Clinton assistant , she had helped raise money for Obama and Democratic super PACs closely linked to party leaders .
And in June , the board is expected to elect a new chair to replace Rob McKay , an heir to a Taco Bell fortune who has been chair since 2006 . McKay , an early Obama supporter , sat on the board of Priorities USA , the super PAC that boosted Obama β s 2012 reelection campaign and this year switched its allegiances to Clinton in advance of a hoped-for 2016 presidential campaign .
National Education Association executive John Stocks , is among the leading candidates to replace McKay , DA sources say , and would be the group β s first chair who is not a major donor and who hails from organized labor .
Stocks and McKay did not respond to requests for comment , while LaMarche rejected the idea that the DA is turning sharply left , let alone that it intends to pull the Democratic Party in that direction . Rather , he wants to help the group be a place for donors to work things out privately .
β Our contribution to the debate about the direction of the Democratic Party post-Obama is more to be a forum where those discussions can take place than an interest group pushing a certain set of positions , β he said . β It β s about having more focus and impact and asking ourselves about where the accumulated dollars of these progressive donors will be best spent in the coming years . β
He added , β With respect to electoral politics at the presidential level , the DA has to be like Switzerland . β
LaMarche worked as an official at the Open Society Foundations , which were founded by leading DA donor George Soros , and then at the Atlantic Philanthropies . Under his leadership , the DA has recruited 10 new partners this year after years of stagnant or declining membership .
Payne called LaMarche β a visionary leader with enormous intellectual and institutional stature , not to mention deep relationships with very serious money people. β Citing income inequality , Wall Street reform and climate change as areas in which DA partners want Democrats to be more aggressive , Payne suggested they would rebel against Clinton if she tapped the same officials who shaped economic policy in her husband β s administration and then again in Obama β s .
β A lot of this is about whether Bob Rubin and Larry Summers will control the economic policies of the Democratic Party or whether leaders more like Elizabeth Warren will set the agenda , β Payne said . β Democracy Alliance members , broadly speaking , are not Rubinites . β
The group suffered from the perception that it put its thumb on the scale for Obama during his bitter battle with Clinton in the 2008 Democratic primary , when a few DA donors quietly steered big sums to pre-super PAC outside groups supporting Obama . Some of Clinton β s loyalists left the group in disgust .
Now , many leading players in the DA are aligned behind Clinton , including Houston trial lawyers Steve and Amber Mostyn , billionaire financier George Soros , as well as David Brock and Harold Ickes , the founders of Media Matters and Catalist , respectively .
But there are others who are considered likely to support a liberal alternative like Warren . Despite insisting she won β t run , the Massachusetts senator continues to generate 2016 interest from liberals , and was lobbied to reconsider by some DA partners when she attended the group β s November meeting at Washington β s Mandarin Oriental hotel . After Warren firmly rejected their entreaties , the DA members began discussing other liberal alternatives , according to a source with knowledge of the Mandarin meeting . The Progressive Change Campaign Committee , which helped coax Warren into running for the Senate in 2012 and then boosting her campaign , and now is working to raise her profile in2016 presidential primary states , was recently added to a DA roster of suggested grantees . And health care tech entrepreneur Paul Egerman , who was Warren β s national finance director , last year became the DA β s treasurer .
As the 2012 Republican presidential primary demonstrated in stark terms , recent federal court cases including the 2010 Citizens United decision have created a landscape in which a single megadonor or small group thereof can upend a primary by spending huge sums to try secure a nomination for their favored candidate .
The DA was formed in 2005 partly to try steer big liberal money away from elections . Founding donors including Soros , McKay and insurance magnate Peter Lewis ( who died in November and will be honored in Chicago ) were somewhat disillusioned after donating the lion β s share of the $ 200 million spent by outside groups trying to defeat President George W. Bush the preceding year , and their goal was to use the DA to channel cash into think tanks and advocacy groups intended to help liberals win the long-term war of ideas rather than any given election .
The DA in recent years has reintegrated political spending outfits into its portfolio , including recommending donations to Democratic super PACs run by allies of Obama , Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi .
LaMarche acknowledged β there is a degree of irony , obviously β in liberal participation in big money politics while decrying it . But , he said β most progressives live with that irony by not wanting to unilaterally disarm in the system that we have . They have to live in the system that we have , and try to win in the system that we have , while at the same time putting a lot of energy into trying to change that system . β
The Democracy Alliance has steered cash to groups pushing to limit the role of money in politics , and the Chicago conference includes a panel on money-in-politics reform moderated by Soros β s son Jonathan , though George Soros is not expected to be in Chicago . Jonathan Soros co-founded a super PAC called Friends of Democracy that in 2012 spent $ 2.5 million β donated largely by Soros and his family β boosting candidates who support campaign finance reforms including enhanced disclosure , and it plans to spend as much as $ 6 million in 2014 .
While Friends of Democracy discloses its donors , many DA-recommended groups do not , because they are registered under a section of the Tax Code β 501 ( c ) β that doesn β t require such disclosures . And the DA seeks to guard its donors β identities , escorting a βββ reporter from a 2010 meeting .
But David Donnelly , who is sitting on the panel with Soros and helps run Friends of Democracy and a separate campaign finance reform nonprofit , rejected a suggestion that the DA β s own secrecy undermines its support for groups pushing disclosure .
β You β re talking about a story on it , so what β s the secret ? β he said . β I β m not sure what the secret is about who we are and what we do . So I β m not sure there β s a whole lot of there there . β | C6cjt4JHmMsVtMQ7 | 0 | Campaign Finance | 0.6 | Democratic Party | 0.4 | Election2014 | 0 | Election2016 | 0 | null | null |
us_senate | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2013/11/harry-reid-nuclear-option-100199.html?hp=f1 | Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday | 2013-11-21 | us_senate | Reid is furious that Republicans have thwarted the president 's nominations . | AP Photos Senate goes for 'nuclear option '
The Senate approved a historic rules change on Thursday by eliminating the use of the filibuster on all presidential nominees except those to the U.S. Supreme Court .
Invoking the long-threatened β nuclear option β means that most of President Barack Obama β s judicial and executive branch nominees no longer need to clear a 60-vote threshold to reach the Senate floor and get an up-or-down vote .
Speaking at the White House , Obama praised the Senate action , accusing Republicans of attempting to block his nominees based on politics alone , not on the merits of the nominee .
β This isn β t obstruction on substance , on qualifications . It β s just to gum up the works , β he said .
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid ( D-Nev. ) used the nuclear option Thursday morning , meaning he called for a vote to change the Senate rules by a simple majority vote . It passed , 52 to 48 . Three Democrats voted against changing the rules β Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan , Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Mark Pryor of Arkansas .
β It β s time to change the Senate before this institution becomes obsolete , β Reid said in a lengthy floor speech on Thursday morning .
A furious Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-Ky. ) , who tried to recess the Senate for the day before the rules change could get a vote , said after the minority β s power was limited by Democrats : β I don β t think this is a time to be talking about reprisal . I think it β s a time to be sad about what has been done to the United States Senate . β
But McConnell quickly noted that Republicans could fix the problem in the upcoming midterm elections if they regain the majority : β The solution to this problem is an election . The solution to this problem is at the ballot box . We look forward to having a great election on 2014 . β
The debate over the filibuster β and specifically its use on D.C . Circuit nominees β has been raging for nearly a decade , stretching back to when George W. Bush was president and Democrats were in the minority . But changing the Senate rules has always been avoided through a piecemeal deal , a gentleman β s agreement or a specific solution , not a historic change to the very fabric of the Senate .
But since Obama β s nomination , the β nuclear option β has reared its head three times in less than a year β each time getting closer to the edge . Many in the Senate privately expected that this go-round would be yet another example of saber rattling , but Reid said pressure was increasing within his own party to change the rules .
The blockade of three consecutive nominees to a powerful appellate court was too much for Democrats to handle β and Reid felt compelled to pull the trigger , explaining that β this is the way it has to be . β
It didn β t take long for Republicans to begin circulating both Reid β s and Obama β s past statements opposing a rules change . But the majority leader said that things escalated to a level that even he had not thought possible in 2005 , when a β Gang of 14 β banded together to stop a rules change .
β They have done everything they can to deny the fact that Obama has been elected and then reelected , β he said . β I have a right to change how I feel about things . β
( Earlier on βββ : Court nominees : Battleground for partisan politics )
Senate Democrats were quick to use their newfound powers , voting in the early afternoon to end the filibuster on Patricia Millett β s nomination to the D.C . Circuit Court of Appeals . The vote was 55-43 , with two senators voting present . Before the change earlier Thursday , Millett would have needed 60 votes to clear the procedural hurdle and move on to a confirmation vote . But now , she needed just 51 to advance .
In his speech , Obama noted that in the few decades before he took office , about 20 nominees were filibustered . Since he took office , close to 30 judicial and political nominees have had their nominations blocked .
β It β s no secret that the American people have probably never been more frustrated with Washington , and one of the reasons why that is , is that over the past five years , we β ve seen an unprecedented pattern of obstruction in Congress that β s prevented too much of the American people β s business from getting done , β Obama said . β Today β s pattern of obstruction just isn β t normal . We can β t allow it to become normal . β
Obama also cited the filibuster of a gun control bill earlier this year , although Thursday β s rule change would preserve the filibuster for Supreme Court picks and legislation . | tWkII651yu90Q5Iy | 0 | Politics | 1.1 | US Senate | -1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
race_and_racism | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/06/04/confederate-statues-richmond-virginia-robert-e-lee-removed-other-states/3144226001/ | Richmond is taking down Confederate statues: Is this the end for other Confederate memorials? | 2020-06-04 | race_and_racism | RICHMOND , Va. β The statue of Robert E. Lee has towered over Richmond for more than 100 years . In recent days , though , it 's been conveying a different message - words like `` Black lives matter '' are covering its stone pedestal .
At least a hundred people gathered on a muggy Thursday afternoon near the monument to the Confederate commander after Gov . Ralph Northam announced it was to come down `` as soon as possible . ''
Protesters on Monument Avenue have circled the Lee statue and four others β also soon to be removed β in recent days as demonstrations have erupted around the United States over racial inequality , police brutality and the deaths of many black Americans , including George Floyd . He was killed after a white police officer held his knee to Floyd 's neck for more than eight minutes , as other officers stood by .
James Kelley , 29 , has been attending the protests in Richmond . `` I think also just being that we were the capital of the Confederacy , if anyone 's going to lead by example , it needs to be us , '' said Kelley , wearing a bright yellow bicycle vest with the words `` Justice for George Floyd . ''
Demonstrators spray painted the Lee statue and the others of J.E.B . Stuart , Jefferson Davis , Thomas `` Stonewall '' Jackson and Matthew Fontaine Maury . They wanted to see them come down after years of the monuments being protected by state law , despite being `` racist symbols of oppression and inequality , '' as Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney put it .
`` I 've looked at ( the monument ) , and I 've been like , 'Why do I live here . Why do I look at this every day ? Why is that there ? ' '' said Jessica Phelps , 26 , a California transplant who lives on Monument Avenue half a block from the Lee statue .
Lifelong city resident Reggie Meyers brought his teenage son Thursday night to see the statue covered in graffiti .
`` A lot of the time , people do n't get to understand the magnitude of something without seeing it , '' Meyers said . `` They read about it , they hear about it , but they do n't get to experience it . When you get to experience something like this , then it 's on your front door , and you have to ask yourself , 'What do I have to do , to make it better ? ' ''
Richmond is n't alone . Around the U.S , demonstrations over the death of Floyd and racial inequality have sparked both protesters and city officials to remove , deface or announce plans to take down many Confederate memorials .
While the decision in Richmond signals a positive step for those who want to see the monuments removed , experts warn that the push to take them down and address what sparked them to be erected still has a long way to go .
Among the locations where mayors , protesters and even groups dedicated to Confederate history have taken down statues or announced plans :
In Montgomery , Alabama , on Monday , another statue of Lee was toppled in front of its namesake high school . Cheers went up among a small crowd gathered to watch the fallen general as cars circled the area and honked .
In Birmingham , Alabama , Mayor Randall Woodfin ordered workers to take down a 50-foot-tall Confederate obelisk on Monday night after a group of protesters failed to knock it down . The night before , the group dismantled the brass cast of Charles Linn , a captain in the Confederate Navy , from its base .
The city of Mobile , Alabama , removed a bronze figure of Admiral Raphael Semmes early Friday , without making any public announcement . Semmes was a Confederate commerce raider , sinking Union-allied ships during the Civil War , and the statue had become a flashpoint in the city .
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett announced Thursday that a monument dedicated to Confederate soldiers who died at a Union prison camp in the city will be removed from a park .
A statue outside the Tennessee State Capitol of Edward Carmack , a controversial former lawmaker and newspaper publisher who espoused racist views , was torn down Saturday .
The United Daughters of the Confederacy removed a statue of a soldier gazing south in Alexandria , Virginia , on Tuesday .
The Arkansas division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy also announced that a Confederate soldier monument in Bentonville will be removed from the downtown square and relocated to a private park .
`` We 've seen an increasing number of these statues being taken down , '' said Sara Bronin , a University of Connecticut law professor who focuses on land use and historic preservation . `` You are seeing an increasing number of instances where local leaders are assessing what these statutes were intended to convey and determining that that 's not something they want to see in their cities anymore . ''
The memorials ' removals come after yearslong battles in some cases to see the markers taken down .
For those who want to see the memorials gone , the statues are seen as symbols of racism that prop up and honor not only the slave-holding men they depict but also a system of racial inequality . Defenders of the memorials say they symbolize American values and Confederate history .
In recent years , debates around the statues have become rallying points for some white nationalist organizations . In Charlottesville , Virginia , the deadly 2017 rally was prompted by the city 's plan to remove Confederate statues .
After the nine black members of a bible study group in Charleston , South Carolina , were killed by a white supremacist previously seen photographed with a Confederate battle flag , a renewed interest in the memorials spread around the country .
According to a February 2019 report from the Southern Poverty Law Center , more than 100 Confederate symbols around the country have been removed since the Charleston attack .
In South Carolina , legislation was passed to remove Confederate flags from the statehouse . New Orleans removed its last Confederate-era monument by May 2017 .
However , more than 770 Confederate monuments are currently standing across the U.S. and nearly 1,800 Confederate symbols or names are emblazoned on government buildings , schools and parks , among other infrastructure , according to Lecia Brooks , spokesperson for the Southern Poverty Law Center .
If more cities and counties try to remove the memorials , there will be continued challenges , Bronin said .
In Alabama , for example , Attorney General Steve Marshall has already filed a lawsuit against Birmingham 's Woodfin , seeking $ 25,000 from the city as a violation of a state law protecting like monuments . Similarly , in Montgomery , police said the group that knocked down the Lee statue had been arrested .
At least six states , Alabama , Georgia , Mississippi , North Carolina , South Carolina and Tennessee , have laws that protect the monuments , Brooks said .
`` Because of those preservation laws , many Confederate symbols stand β for now , '' she added . `` But the fight to remove them never stopped and those who want these symbols of white supremacy removed from their public spaces will continue to press forward . ''
Walter D. Kennedy , chief of heritage operations for the Sons of Confederate Veterans , said his group has pushed to keep these laws in place in some states in order to protect `` traditional American values . ''
`` When you attack a Confederate solider , you 're attacking family . . . it 's not some esoteric , academic discussion , '' said Kennedy , whose great grandfather 's tombstone marks the Confederate States of America .
Kennedy said it 's not that he is opposed to the removal of these monuments in communities where people want them taken down . It 's their destruction that he fears .
`` Let 's see if we can work together . If the community has changed . . . if they do n't like what 's there , then let 's work together , '' he said .
Representatives for the United Daughters of the Confederacy , another group that works to protect the monuments , did not immediately respond to βββ 's request for comment .
Northam said the statue of Lee would be held in storage until further discussions can determine its future . Lt. Gov . Justin Fairfax told βββ at the site of the statue Thursday that he had no timetable for the statue 's immediate removal , but that it could happen before July 1 .
Asked about defenders ' argument of the history of the statue , Fairfax , only the second African American elected to statewide office in Virginia , said : `` We do n't need to be bound by history , we should know it , but we do n't need to be bound by it and this history is a history of oppression is a history of excluding people from the promise that America makes to all its citizens . ''
The decision to take down the statues of Lee and other Confederate veterans on Monument Avenue in Richmond is long overdue , said Northam .
`` From the beginning , there was no secret about what the statue meant , '' he said . When the Lee statue was erected in 1890 , Lee had been dead for 20 years .
More than 150,000 people gathered in Richmond as thousands of others worked to put the statue up , Northam said . Most people attending the event were waving the Confederate flag , even though the Civil War had been over for 25 years , he added .
`` Instead of choosing to heal the wounds of the American Civil War , they chose to keep them right here in Richmond , '' said Northam , who was embroiled in scandal last year over a racist yearbook photo showing blackface . Northam apologized but defied calls to step down , vowing instead to address racial inequities in Virginia during the remainder of his term .
Bronin said that the arguments by supporters of the statues fall short in that the memorials themselves are not historic . While some were erected shortly after the war , it took decades for others to rise .
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center report , a spike in the number of Confederate memorials came around 1900 and lasted into the 1920s , a period that saw the establishment of Jim Crow laws and a revival of the Ku Klux Klan .
Then , in the 1950s and '60s , more monuments were erected during the heart of the Civil Rights Movement .
`` The statues are not history . They are meant to commemorate one history , '' Bronin said . `` White leaders wanted to build white supremacy . ''
For the Lee statue in Richmond , Northam acknowledged a similar motivation . Five Confederate statues dot Monument Avenue . While four are owned by the city of Richmond , the largest and most grand , the statue of Lee , is state-owned . Lawmakers who called for it to be built wanted it to last forever , Northam noted .
`` They needed the statues to remain forever β because they helped keep the system in place , '' he said .
University of Richmond historian Julian Hayter said the history of the statues in Richmond can not be divorced from other systems that propped up racial inequality in the city for years .
The four other statues on Monument Avenue were erected in the early 1900s , during a period when African Americans had their voting rights suppressed and Virginia had one of the lowest voter turnout rates in the United States , Hayter said .
`` It 's impossible to separate the Confederate situates in Commonwealth and Richmond from Jim Crow era segregation , '' Hayter said .
During its last legislative session , however , Virginia lawmakers passed a bill allowing localities to determine whether to keep memorials . Previous state law prevented cities like Richmond and Charlottesville , which had strong local support for their removal , from taking them down .
Hayter said years of Republican control in the state general assembly prevented the laws from being overturned . Once Democrats took control , it became clear that the statues were likely to come down , he said .
The law goes into effect July 1 , and its how Stoney , the city 's mayor , plans for the other four Confederate statues on Monument Avenue to be removed .
`` Ladies and gentlemen , it 's time . It 's time . It 's time to put an end to the lost cause and fully embraced the righteous cause , '' Stoney said at a news conference Thursday .
The law is one of a number of measures taken by Northam and other Democrats in Virginia to address racial inequality in the state . Other measures include setting up a commission to strike racist laws still on the books in Virginia and the removal of Lee-Jackson Day as a state holiday .
Northam said taking down the statue of Lee would signal a new day in Virginia .
`` The legacy of racism also continues as part of a system that touches every person and every aspect of our lives β whether we know it or not , '' Northam said . `` So it 's time to acknowledge the reality of institutional racism , even if you ca n't see it . ''
For Hayter , it 's not enough just to remove the statues . For years , narratives around the Civil War and the Confederacy have been baked into state education systems , and the effects of segregation-era policies can still be felt in Richmond 's schools and housing , he said .
`` If these monuments are taken down and there is no attempt to correct this narrative , then this is a squandered opportunity , '' Hayter said .
Contributing : Sean Jones , The Progress-Index ; Brad Zinn , The News Leader ; Melissa Brown , Kirsten Fiscus and Krista Johnson , Montgomery Advertiser ; Justin L. Mack , Indianapolis Star ; Adam Tamburin and Natalie Allison , Nashville Tennessean ; The Associated Press | 3U1eS04CHvQa3f84 | 1 | Inequality | -0.2 | Civil Rights | -0.1 | Race And Racism | -0.1 | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | CNBC | https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/06/jobs-report-july-.html | Payrolls increase 943,000 in July as unemployment rate slides to 5.4% | 2021-08-06 | Economy And Jobs, Unemployment, Coronavirus Recovery | watch nowHiring rose in July at its fastest pace in nearly a year despite fears over Covid-19's delta variant and as companies struggled with a tight labor supply, the Labor Department reported Friday. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 943,000 for the month while the unemployment rate dropped to 5.4%, according to the department's Bureau of Labor Statistics. The payroll increase was the best since August 2020. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for 845,000 new jobs and a headline unemployment rate of 5.7%. However, estimates were diverse amid conflicting headwinds and tailwinds and an uncertain path ahead for the economy.Average hourly earnings also increased more than expected, rising 0.4% for the month and are up 4% from the same period a year ago, at a time when concerns are increasing about persistent inflationary pressures. "The data for recent months suggest that the rising demand for labor associated with the recovery from the pandemic may have put upward pressure on wages," the BLS said in the report, though it cautioned that the Covid impact is still skewing data and wage gains are uneven across industries. Markets reacted positively to the report, with the Dow and S&P 500 hitting new record highs at the open Friday morning. "It feels like a Goldilocks report. You have not too hot in terms of wages, but not too low in terms of job gains," said Beth Ann Bovino, chief U.S. economist at S&P Global Ratings. The drop in the headline unemployment rate looked even stronger considering that the labor force participation rate ticked up to 61.7%, tied for the highest level since the pandemic hit in March 2020. A separate calculation that includes discouraged workers and those holding jobs part-time for economic reasons fell even further, to 9.2% from 9.8% in June."This not only was a strong jobs report by nearly every measure, it also signals more good things to come," said Robert Frick, corporate economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. As has been the case for the past several months, leisure and hospitality led job creation, adding 380,000 positions, of which 253,000 came in bars and restaurants. The sector took the hardest hit during the pandemic but has been showing consistent gains during the economic reopening. The unemployment rate for leisure and hospitality tumbled to 9% in July from 10.9% in June and compared to 25% a year earlier, though there are still about 1.8 million fewer workers than prior to the pandemic. Wages in the sector rose 1.2% month over month and are up 3.1% from a year earlier. Education also showed strong gains, with 261,000 new hires. The BLS cautioned, however, that the pandemic has distorted the sector's numbers and likely elevated the number for July. That also left private payrolls up 703,000 for the month, about in line with expectations. Professional and business services contributed 60,000, and transportation and warehousing added 50,000. Sectors also showing increases were other services (39,000), health care (37,000), manufacturing (27,000), information (24,000), financial activities (22,000) and mining (7,000). Retail posted a loss of 6,000 while construction and wholesale trade were flat.watch now | 39a100df83126cf4 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | New York Times - News | http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/08/after-jobs-report-obama-tries-to-change-the-subject/?ref=politics | After Jobs Report, Obama Tries to Change the Subject | 2012-09-08 | elections | SEMINOLE , Fla. β President Obama on Saturday began hammering away at the Republican ticket β s plans for Medicare , using a campaign swing through Florida , with its large number of retired and elderly voters , to try to turn the page from anemic employment growth , his biggest weakness , to entitlements , a Democratic strength .
Kicking off a two-day bus tour through this perennial swing state , the president told a rally here that Mitt Romney β s running mate , Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin , had proposed overhauling Medicare and replacing it with a voucher system that could mean higher costs for beneficiaries .
β Florida , you should know I will never turn Medicare into a voucher system , β Mr. Obama said to rousing cheers from a crowd of 11,000 at St. Petersburg College , Seminole . β No American should have to spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies . β
The president β s advisers have indicated that they are eager to re-engage their opponents on their Medicare plan , while the Romney camp would prefer to talk about the economy . A government report on Friday showed that employers had eased up on hiring in August , adding just 96,000 jobs , compared with 141,000 in July . The unemployment rate dropped to 8.1 percent from 8.3 percent , but that was largely because of people leaving the work force entirely .
Mr. Romney has sought to blunt Mr. Obama β s Medicare offensive with attacks of his own , something Obama advisers appeared to await eagerly .
β If they want to have a discussion about who do you trust on Medicare for the next 60 days as their central argument , you know we ought to send them an in-kind contribution , β David Plouffe , Mr. Obama β s senior adviser , told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday . β We β re happy to have that discussion . We think people trust the president more on Medicare . β
The president grabbed that mantle on Saturday and ran with it . β We will reform and strengthen Medicare , β he told the rally , β but we β ll do it by reducing the costs of health care , not by dumping the costs on seniors . β
For good measure , he threw in several more lines in his stump speech aimed at older people , who he said β are saving an average of $ 6,000 on prescription drugs because of Obamacare . And by the way , I do care. β That was a reference to the derogatory phrase that Republicans have given his health care overhaul . These days , the president has embraced the label with open arms .
β I like the name β Obamacare , β β he said . Mr. Romney β says he β s going to repeal it . That β s because Romney doesn β t care . β
With 58 days to go until Election Day , the battle for seven or so fiercely contested swing states has intensified . No state is more crucial than Florida , with its 29 electoral votes and its diverse mix of conservative Southerners , Hispanics , African-Americans and elderly and Jewish voters .
Mr. Obama does not appear to have much of a shot with conservative Southerners , but he is fighting mightily for the rest . That is why his weekend bus tour was straddling the center of the state , in the territory that hosted the Republican National Convention two weeks ago . Mr. Obama won Florida in 2008 .
After Seminole , the president traveled up Interstate 4 toward Orlando , with a stop in Kissimmee . On Sunday , he was to head down to Melbourne and then West Palm Beach , ground zero for the Bush-Gore election recount of 2000 .
Mr. Romney , a former Massachusetts governor , was focusing his efforts Saturday on Virginia , another state that Mr. Obama captured in 2008 and that he has made a priority in his re-election bid .
At his first stop , in Virginia Beach , Mr. Romney led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance , using it as a jumping-off point to criticize Mr. Obama and the Democrats for initially passing a convention platform that did not mention God .
β The promises that were made in that pledge are promises I plan on keeping if I am president , and I β ve kept them so far in my life , β Mr. Romney told the cheering audience . β That pledge says β under God. β I will not take β God β out of the name of our platform . I will not take God off our coins , and I will not take God out of my heart . β
The stop in Virginia Beach and an appearance at the start of the Sprint Cup Series Nascar race in Richmond , is intended to help him shore up his lead among white working-class voters .
Although the president trails Mr. Romney in this crucial demographic , some polls still show Mr. Romney underperforming among those voters . Mr. Romney β s choice of Mr. Ryan as his running mate was also expected to help him win over working-class whites and the Republican conservative base , many of whom were wary of Mr. Romney during the primary contests .
For Mr. Romney , the son of a Detroit auto executive turned Michigan governor courting working-class voters may be a challenge . He is Harvard educated and has an estimated net worth of more than $ 200 million .
During a visit to the Daytona 500 this year , Mr. Romney ran into some trouble when he said that while he did not follow the sport as closely as some ardent fans did , he had β some great friends who are Nascar team owners. β His opponents used the comment to portray him as wealthy and out of touch with the concerns of average voters .
Mr. Obama has made repeated campaign stops in Virginia , particularly courting black voters around the Richmond area to try to drive up their turnout . He has also focused on liberal-leaning areas of Northern Virginia .
Besides the on-the-ground campaigning this weekend , the Sunday morning talk shows were on the candidates β agendas . Mr. Romney was to make his first appearance of the campaign season on β Meet the Press β on NBC , and Mr. Obama and Mr. Ryan were scheduled to appear on β Face the Nation β on CBS .
Helene Cooper reported from Seminole , Fla. , and Ashley Parker from Boston and Charlotte , N.C . | E9vUQI438dsOPZmb | 0 | Presidential Elections | 0.3 | Elections | 0.3 | Jobs | 0 | Economy And Jobs | 0 | null | null |
education | Newsweek | https://www.newsweek.com/petition-supporting-professor-fired-islamophobia-signed-thousands-1772610 | Petition Supporting Professor Fired for Islamophobia Signed by Thousands | 2023-02-07 | Education, Religion And Faith, Islamophobia, Arts And Entertainment, Higher Education, Free Speech, Culture War, Censorship | Jack Dutton is a Newsweek Reporter based in Cape Town, South Africa. His focus is reporting on global politics and international relations. He has covered climate change, foreign affairs, migration and public health extensively. Jack joined Newsweek in January 2021 from The National where he was Night Editor and previously worked at Euromoney, where he edited a B2B magazine on the aviation industry. He is a graduate of Sussex University. Languages: English. You can get in touch with Jack by emailing j.dutton@newsweek.com Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. A petition supporting the re-instatement of a professor who was fired by an arts college for showing depictions of the Prophet Muhammad, which is strictly forbidden for many practicing Muslims, has garnered more than 10,000 signatures. Erika LΓ³pez Prater was dismissed by Hamline University in November for including in her class discussion a medieval Islamic painting of the prophet receiving Quranic revelations, which features in the manuscript copy of Rashid al-Din's Compendium of Chronicles dating back to 14th century Iran. The private liberal arts college is based in Minnesota. The day after the lecture by LΓ³pez Prater featuring the images, a Muslim student contacted the college administration to complain. The professor apologized to the student via email the next day but the matter continued to escalate, with Hamline's Associate Vice President of Inclusive Excellence David Everett on November 7 circulating an email among colleagues describing the lecture as "undeniably inconsiderate, disrespectful, and Islamophobic." Four days later on November 11, The Oracle reported that Hamline's administration had decided to fire Prater. The Oracle reported that the professor had clarified the purpose of the class discussion and provided a content warning before showing students the image. "I am showing you this image for a reason," she is quoted as saying beforehand. "And that is that there is this common thinking that Islam completely forbids, outright, any figurative depictions or any depictions of holy personages. While many Islamic cultures do strongly frown on this practice, I would like to remind you there is no one, monothetic Islamic culture." An international group of scholars and studentsβboth Muslim and non-Muslimβspecializing in Islamic history, studies and arts wrote a letter on December 24 that formed the basis of the petition calling for LΓ³pez Prater to be reinstated to her position at the university. ΒAs of Tuesday morning, the petition had garnered 10,400 signatures. In the letter, the academics "express our outrage" that LΓ³pez Prater was dismissed. "It is our understanding that Dr. LΓ³pez Prater noted in her syllabus that such images would be included in the course, that the visual exercise and discussion were optional, and that she gave verbal cues both before and after the image was shown in their online class," it said. "The student who complained about its inclusion in the course was thus given not one but several opportunities to not engage with the image (and it should be noted that a number of faculty do not include such warnings or options to disengage from historical evidence in their courses)." "Due process appears to have been entirely suspended, thus raising serious concerns about faculty governance and rights at Hamline University," the letter added. The Muslim Public Affairs Council also released a statement on Monday in support of LΓ³pez Prater, insisting that she did everything appropriate before showing the portrait and should not have been fired. "It is with great concern that the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) views the firing of an art professor, Erika LΓ³pez Prater, from Hamline University on the grounds of showing a fourteenth-century painting depicting the Prophet Muhammad," the statement said. "We issue this statement of support for the professor and urge the university to reverse its decision and to take compensatory action to ameliorate the situation." Newsweek has contacted Hamline University forΒ comment. Jack Dutton is a Newsweek Reporter based in Cape Town, South Africa. His focus is reporting on global politics and international relations. He has covered climate change, foreign affairs, migration and public health extensively. Jack joined Newsweek in January 2021 from The National where he was Night Editor and previously worked at Euromoney, where he edited a B2B magazine on the aviation industry. He is a graduate of Sussex University. Languages: English. You can get in touch with Jack by emailing j.dutton@newsweek.com Jack Dutton is a Newsweek Reporter based in Cape Town, South Africa. His focus is reporting on global politics and international relations. He has covered climate change, foreign affairs, migration and public health extensively. Jack joined Newsweek in January 2021 from The National where he was Night Editor and previously worked at Euromoney, where he edited a B2B magazine on the aviation industry. He is a graduate of Sussex University. Languages: English. You can get in touch with Jack by emailing j.dutton@newsweek.com Jack Dutton is a Newsweek Reporter based in Cape Town, South Africa. His focus is reporting on global politics and ... Read more Newsletters in your inbox See all Company Editions: Contact Terms of Use Β© 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC | f89256aad808f7c8 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | National Review | http://www.nationalreview.com/article/443466/california-madness-hypocritical-coastal-elites-soak-middle-class | Itβs Still a Mad, Mad California | 2017-01-03 | politics | Coastal elites set rules for others , exempt themselves , and tolerate rampant lawlessness from illegal aliens .
One reason for the emergence of outsider Donald Trump is the old outrage that elites seldom experience the consequences of their own ideologically driven agendas .
Hypocrisy , when coupled with sanctimoniousness , grates people like few other human transgressions : Barack Obama opposing charter schools for the inner city as he puts his own children in Washington β s toniest prep schools , or Bay Area greens suing to stop contracted irrigation water from Sierra reservoirs , even as they count on the Yosemite β s Hetch Hetchy project to deliver crystal-clear mountain water to their San Francisco taps .
The American progressive elite relies on its influence , education , money , and cultural privilege to exempt itself from the bad schools , unassimilated immigrant communities , dangerous neighborhoods , crime waves , and general impoverishment that are so often the logical consequences of its own policies β consequences for others , that is . Abstract idealism on behalf of the distant is a powerful psychological narcotic that allows caring progressives to dull the guilt they feel about their own privilege and riches .
Nowhere is this paradox truer than in California , a dysfunctional natural paradise in which a group of coastal and governing magnificoes virtue-signal from the world β s most exclusive and beautiful enclaves . The state is currently experiencing another perfect storm of increased crime , decreased incarceration , still ongoing illegal immigration , and record poverty . All that is energized by a strapped middle class that is still fleeing the overregulated and overtaxed state , while the arriving poor take their places in hopes of generous entitlements , jobs servicing the elite , and government employment .
Pebble Beach or La Jolla is as far from Madera or Mendota as Mars is from Earth . The elite coastal strip appreciates California β s bifurcated two-class reality , at least in the way that the lords of the Middle Ages treasured their era β s fossilized divisions . Manoralism ensured that peasants remained obedient , dependent , and useful serfs ; meanwhile , the masters praised their supposedly enlightened feudal system even as they sought exemptions for their sins from the medieval Church . And without a middle class , the masters had no fear that uncouth others would want their own scaled-down versions of castles and moats .
Go to a U-Haul trailer franchise in the state . The rental-trailer-return rates of going into California are a fraction of those going out . Surely never in civilization β s history have so many been so willing to leave a natural paradise .
Yet collate that fact with the skyrocketing cost of high-demand housing along a 400-mile coastal corridor . The apparent paradox is no paradox : Frustrated Californians of the interior of the state without money and who can not afford to move to the coastal communities of Santa Monica or Santa Barbara ( the entire middle class of the non-coast ) are leaving for low-tax refuges out of state β in β if I can not afford the coast , then on to Idaho β fashion . The state β s economy and housing are moribund in places like Stockton and Tulare , the stagnation being the logical result of the policies of the governing class that would never live there . Meanwhile , the coastal creed is that Facebook , Apple , Hollywood , and Stanford will virtually feed us , 3-D print our gas , or discover apps to provide wood and stone for our homes .
Crime rates are going up again in California , sometimes dramatically so . In Los Angeles , various sorts of robberies , assaults , and homicide rose between 5 and 10 percent over 2015 ; since 2014 , violent crime has skyrocketed by 38 percent . This May , California β s association of police chiefs complained that since the passage of Proposition 47 β which reclassified supposedly β nonserious β crimes as misdemeanors and kept hundreds of thousands of convicted criminals out of jail β crime rates in population centers of more than 100,000 have increased more than 15 percent . California governor Jerry Brown has let out more parolees β including over 2,000 serving life sentences β than any recent governor .
How does that translate to the streets far distant from Brentwood or Atherton ?
Let me narrate a recent two-week period in navigating the outlands of Fresno County . A few days ago my neighbor down the road asked whether I had put any outgoing mail in our town β s drive-by blue federal mailbox , adjacent to the downtown Post Office . I had . And he had , too βto have it delivered a few hours later to his home in scraps , with the checks missing , by a good Samaritan . She had collected the torn envelopes with his return address scattered along the street . I β m still waiting to see whether my own bills got collected before the thieves struck the box .
Most of us in rural California go into town to mail our letters , because our rural boxes have been vandalized by gangs so frequently that it is suicidal to mail anything from home .
Most of us in rural California go into town to mail our letters , because our rural boxes have been vandalized by gangs so frequently that it is suicidal to mail anything from home . ( Many of us now have armored , bullet-proof locked boxes for incoming mail ) .
On the same day last week , when I was driving outside our farm , I saw a commercial van stopped on the side of the road on the family property , with the logo of a furniture- and carpet-cleaner company emblazoned on the side . The driver was methodically pumping out the day β s effluvia into the orchard . When I approached him , he assured me in broken English that there was β no problem β all organic. β When I insisted he stop the pumping , given that the waste water smelled of solvents , he politely replied , β Okay , already , I β m almost done. β When it looked as if things might further deteriorate , the nice-enough polluter agreed to stop .
In the interior of green California , it is considered rude or worse to ask otherwise pleasant people not to pump out their solvent water on the side of the road . Down the road , I saw the morning β s new trash littered on the roadway β open bags of diapers and junk mail . Apparently California β s new postmodern law barring incorrect plastic grocery bags ( and indeed barring free paper grocery bags ) has not yet cleaned up our premodern roadsides . Remember : California knows it dare not enforce laws against trash-throwing in rural California ; that β s too politically incorrect and would be impossible to enforce anyway . Instead , it charges shoppers for their bags . In California , the neglect of the felony requires the rigid prosecution of the misdemeanor .
I was in my truck β and suddenly I felt blessed that I was lucky enough to have it . Last summer it was stolen from a restaurant parking lot in Fresno when my son borrowed it to go to dinner . The truck was found four days later , still operable but with the ignition console torn apart and the interior ruined , amid the stench of trash , marijuana butts , beer bottles , waste , and paper plates still full of stale rice .
During this same recent 14-day period , my wife stopped at her office condo in Fresno to print out a document . She left the garage door open to the driveway for ten minutes . Ten minutes is a lifetime in the calculus of California thievery . Her relatively new hybrid bicycle was immediately stolen by a fleet-footed thief . I noted to her that recent parolees often walk around the streets until they can afford to buy or manage to steal a car β and therefore for a time like bikes like hers . That same week , her bank notified her that her credit card was canceled β after numerous charges at fast-food franchises showed up in Texas . Cardinal rule in California : Be careful in paying for anything with a credit card , because the number is often stolen and sold off .
Cardinal rule in California : Be careful in paying for anything with a credit card , because the number is often stolen and sold off .
I thought things had been getting better until these awful two weeks . One-third of a mile down my rural street , in the last 24 months , at least the swat team crashed a drug/prostitution/fencing operation hidden in a persimmon orchard . The house across the street from that operation was later surrounded by law enforcement to root out gang members . Forest fires started by undocumented-alien pot growers were down in the nearby Sierra . I hadn β t lost copper wire from a pump in two years .
I once also thought the proof of American civilization was predicated on three assumptions : One could confidently mail a letter in a federal postal box on the street ; one in extremis could find safe , excellent care in an emergency room ; and one could visit a local DMV office to easily clear up a state error .
None are any longer true . I β ll never put another letter in a U.S. postal box , unless I β m in places like Carmel or Atherton that are in the Other California .
Two years ago , I was delivered by ambulance to a local emergency room after a severe bike accident ; on fully waking up , I saw a uniformed police officer standing next to my bed to protect fellow ER patients from the patient in the next cubicle β a felon who had punched his fist through a car window in a failed burglary attempt and who was now being visited by his gang-member relatives .
Not long ago , the DMV did not send me the necessary license sticker . Online reservations were booked up . So I made the mistake of visiting the local regional office without an appointment , where I first got my license 47 years ago β the office then was a model of efficiency and professionalism . A half-century later , a line hundreds of feet long snaked out the door . The office is designated as a DMV center for licensing illegal aliens . The entire office , in the linguistic and operational sense , is recalibrated to assist those who are here illegally and to make it difficult if not impossible for citizens to use it as we did in the past . After 20 minutes , when the line had hardly moved , I left .
What makes the law-abiding leave California is not just the sanctimoniousness , the high taxes , or the criminality . It is always the insult added to injury . We suffer not only from the highest basket of income , sales , and gas taxes in the nation , but also from nearly the worst schools and infrastructure . We have the costliest entitlements and the most entitled . We have the largest number of billionaires and the largest number of impoverished , both in real numbers and as a percentage of the state population .
California crime likewise reflects the California paradox of two states : a coastal elite and everyone else . California is the most contentious , overregulated , and postmodern state in the Union , and also the most feral and 19th-century .
On my rural street are two residences not far apart . In one , shacks dot the lot . There are dozens of port-a-potties , wrecked cars , and unlicensed and unvaccinated dogs β all untouched by the huge tentacles of the state β s regulatory octopus .
Nearby , another owner is being regulated to death , as he tries to rebuild a small burned house : His well , after 30 years , is suddenly discovered by the state to be in violation , under a new regulation governing the allowed distance between his well and his leach line ; so he drills another costly well . Then his neighbor β s agricultural well is suddenly discovered by the state regulators to be too close as well , so he breaks up sections of his expensive new leach line . After a new septic system was built by a licensed contractor and a new well was drilled by a licensed well-driller , he has after a year β $ 40,000 poorer β still not been permitted to even start to rebuild his 900-square-foot house .
From her nest in Rancho Mirage , a desert oasis created by costly water transfers , outgoing senator Barbara Boxer rails about water transfers .
In the former case , the owner of port-a-potties and shacks clearly can not pay and belongs to an exempt class of the Other . The latter owner is a rare law-abiding Californian , and so he has a regulatory target on his back β because he is someone of the vanishing middle class who can and will do and pay as ordered . He is an endangered species whose revenue-raising torment is necessary to exempt others from the same ordeal .
In feral California , we suffer not just from too many and too few applications of the law , but from the unequal enforcement of it . When the state has one-fourth of its population born in another country , dozens of sanctuary cities exempt from federal law , and millions residing here illegally , it makes politicized cost-benefit choices .
Feral California out here is a live-and-let-live place , a libertarian β s dream ( or nightmare ) . The staggering costs for its illegality are made up by the shrinking few who nod as they always have and follow the law in all its now-scary manifestations .
# related # The rich on the coast tune out . From her nest in Rancho Mirage , a desert oasis created by costly water transfers , outgoing senator Barbara Boxer rails about water transfers . When Jerry Brown leaves his governorship , he will not live in Bakersfield but probably in hip Grass Valley . High crime , the flight of small businesses , and water shortages can not bound the fences of Nancy Pelosi β s Palladian villa or the security barriers and walls of Mark Zuckerberg and other Silicon Valley billionaires β who press for more regulation , and for more compassion for the oppressed , but always from a distance and always from the medieval assumption that their money and privilege exempt them from the consequences of their idealism . There is no such thing as an open border for a neighbor of Mr. Zuckerberg or of Ms. Pelosi .
A final window into the California pathology : Most of the most strident Californians who decry Trump β s various proposed walls insist on them for their own residences . | 1wYgwVpPTmZieRVU | 2 | California | -5.6 | Politics | -0.9 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
culture | CNN (Web News) | https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/25/tech/instagram-hiding-likes-influencers/index.html | Influencers prepare for an Instagram without likes | 2019-09-25 | culture | New York ( CNN Business ) With over 23,000 followers on Instagram , Sam McAllister may not have quite as big of an audience as influencers like Kim Kardashian or Lele Pons . But one of McAllister 's major selling points has been his number of likes .
It 's not uncommon for an Instagram post from McAllister , a 23-year-old photographer , to rack up more than 1,000 likes.One breathtaking photo of a Venice , Italy canal shot from above received nearly 6,000 likes . Another shot of the Eiffel Tower topped 4,000.Withthat level ofengagement , he 's managed to build a side hustle , doing work on paid campaigns for companies such as airline Aer Lingus and an energy drink maker .
But now , he 's wary that brands could pass him over for opportunities . In recent months , Instagram has been testing hiding likes in several countries , including Ireland , where McAllister lives , as well as Australia and New Zealand .
`` The fact that my posts are massively engaged has paid off for me , '' McAllister , whose day job is working at payments startup Stripe , told CNN Business . `` My main concern right now is that the number of followers a user has now defaults to be the main metric . ''
Related : Risk Takers : The 20 leaders pushing global business forward
Instagram has framed the move as an attempt to `` reduce pressure '' on the platform . The thinking : not getting enough likes can negatively impact some users ' self-esteem . But with this one tweak , Instagram could rattle some social media influencers like McAllister who 've worked to build a business on the platform , forcing them to adapt and make changes to their strategy .
Facebook FB `` We understand that the number of likes is an important metric for many creators , and while this test is in exploratory stages , we are thinking through ways for creators to communicate value to their partners , '' a spokesperson for , which owns Instagram , told CNN Business .
Inside this still nascent industry , influencers and marketers are now openly debating how detrimental the impact of this change could be . Some , like Kamiu Lee , CEO of influencer marketing platform Activate , expect it will initially create `` confusion , '' but she predicts the industry will `` figure it out '' in the long-term . Others , including Felicity Palmateer , a professional surfer from Australia with 184,000 Instagram followers , said hiding likes could make it that much harder for aspiring influencers to break into the industry .
`` It sucks for people who have [ high ] engagement , but not as many followers , '' she said . `` I 'd be pissed off . ''
In just under a decade since Instagram launched , a growing number of celebrities , fitness gurus , fashion bloggers , interior designers , authors , and more have turned to the photo-centric social network to build a following and a new revenue stream . Once established on Instagram , many influencers branch out with branded content , product lines , podcasts , books , and even their own online courses on how to build a social media following .
The most highly-paid influencers such as Kylie Jenner can make more than $ 1 million per Instagram post , At the heart of this industry is a simple premise : people can turn their popularity into profit . Sometimes , a lot of profit.The most highly-paid influencers such as Kylie Jenner can make more than $ 1 million per Instagram post , according to one report
Related : Risk Takers : The 20 leaders pushing global business forward
Brands will often partner with social media stars on sponsored Instagram posts to reach that person 's unique audience . When brands consider partnering with an influencer , they take into account factors such as likes , comments , followers and what type of content they post .
Before working with an influencer , brands typically will ask for screenshots of the influencer 's back-end Instagram analytics , which offer more in-depth information such as the age ranges and gender breakdown of their followers , which countries their audience is located in and how many accounts a certain post reached .
Lee 's firm calculates engagement by adding likes and comments divided by followers . If likes go , then the value of them will be `` devalued , '' Lee said . Hiding likes could create `` near-term inefficiencies in how some of these deals get done , '' she said .
Not all influencers are worried . As Roz Purcell , an Irish influencer with nearly 300,000 followers on Instagram , put it : `` We 're all just going to have to evolve . ''
As with so many changes in the tech industry , Instagram 's move could have wide and unknown consequences . That may range from people possibly `` liking '' fewer posts to making it harder to discern who bought fake followers .
Several influencers and marketers told CNN Business there is concern that hiding likes will make it harder to sniff out which accounts have bought fake followers to fraudulently inflate their popularity . Previously brands -- and average users -- could see that an account with one million followers only received 50 likes on a photo , and determine that its follower count was probably fake .
Instagram has been working to crack down on this practice , which is against its policies .
`` When we find spammy activity , we work to counter and prevent it , including blocking accounts and removing violating content . We 're also constantly working to improve our technology in this area . ... Every day we block millions of fake accounts at registration , '' the Facebook spokesperson said .
Still experts see reason to be optimistic about hidden likes .
Joe Gagliese , CEO of Viral Nation , a firm that connects companies with influencers for deals , said brands should be looking beyond likes anyway . He argues they should take into account information such as the influencer 's audience demographics and how well their persona matches with the brand and its values .
`` That vanity number is n't a representation of how powerful someone can be , '' he said . `` Likes are a very casual form of engagement . A lot of people like stuff without even really looking at it or they 're so used to tapping the like button . '' | QTOMRCc3ZbyWd8iz | 0 | Social Media | -0.3 | Instagram | 0.2 | Facebook | 0 | Culture | 0 | Technology | 0 |
business | Associated Press | https://apnews.com/article/justice-department-sues-google-c6afce17327b30a098b1bd6a7e947b81 | Justice Dept. sues Google over digital advertising dominance | 2023-01-25 | Business, Google, Big Tech, Media Industry, Justice Department, Merrick Garland, Economy And Jobs, Monopoly | Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. The Justice Department and eight states sued Google on Tuesday, alleging that its dominance in digital advertising harms competition. (Jan. 24) Attorney General Merrick Garland, joined by Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta and Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Departmentβs Antitrust Division, speaks at the Department of Justice in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023. The Justice Department and several states have sued Google, alleging that its dominance in digital advertising harms competition. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) FILE - A sign is shown on a Google building at their campus in Mountain View, Calif., on Sept. 24, 2019. The Justice Department and several states sued Google on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023, alleging that its dominance in digital advertising harms competition. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File) Attorney General Merrick Garland, joined by Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, speaks at the Department of Justice in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023. The Justice Department and several states have sued Google, alleging that its dominance in digital advertising harms competition. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks at the Department of Justice in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023. The Justice Department and eight states sued Google on Tuesday, alleging that its dominance in digital advertising harms competition. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Attorney General Merrick Garland looks to Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Departmentβs Antitrust Division as he speaks at the Department of Justice in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023. The Justice Department and several states have sued Google, alleging that its dominance in digital advertising harms competition. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) WASHINGTON (AP) β The Justice Department and eight states filed an antitrust suit against Google on Tuesday, seeking to shatter its alleged monopoly on the entire ecosystem of online advertising as a hurtful burden to advertisers, consumers and even the U.S. government. The government alleged in the complaint that Google is looking to βneutralize or eliminateβ rivals in the online ad marketplace through acquisitions and to force advertisers to use its products by making it difficult to use competitorsβ offerings. Itβs part of a new, if slow and halting, push by the U.S. to rein in big tech companies that have enjoyed largely unbridled growth in the past decade and a half. βMonopolies threaten the free and fair markets upon which our economy is based. They stifle innovation, they hurt producers and workers, and they increase costs for consumers,β Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a news conference Tuesday. For 15 years, Garland said, Google has βpursued a course of anti-competitive conductβ that has stalled the rise of rival technologies and manipulated the mechanics of online ad auctions to force advertisers and publishers to use its tools. In so doing, he added, Google βengaged in exclusionary conductβ that has βseverely weakened,β if not destroyed, competition in the ad tech industry. The suit, the latest legal action brought by the government against Google, accuses the company of unlawfully monopolizing the way ads are served online by excluding competitors. Googleβs ad manager lets large publishers who have significant direct sales manage their advertisements. The ad exchange, meanwhile, is a real-time marketplace to buy and sell online display ads. Garland said Google controls the technology used by most major website publishers to offer advertising space for sale, as well as the largest ad exchange that matches publishers and advertisers together when ad space is sold. The result, he added, is that βwebsite creators earn less and advertisers pay more.β The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, demands that Google divest itself of the businesses of controlling the technical tools that manage the buying, selling and auctioning of digital display advertising, remaining with search β its core business β and other products and services including YouTube, Gmail and cloud services. Alphabet Inc., Googleβs parent company, said in a statement that the suit βdoubles down on a flawed argument that would slow innovation, raise advertising fees, and make it harder for thousands of small businesses and publishers to grow.β Digital ads currently account for about 80% of Googleβs revenue, and by and large support its other, less lucrative endeavors. Tuesdayβs lawsuit comes as the U.S. government is increasingly looking to rein in Big Techβs dominance, although such legal action can take years to complete and Congress has not passed any recent legislation seeking to curb the influence of the tech industryβs largest players. The European Union has been more active. It launched an antitrust investigation into Googleβs digital ad dominance in 2021. British and European regulators are also looking into whether an agreement for online display advertising services between Google and Meta breached rules on fair competition. An internet services trade group that includes Google as a member described the lawsuit and its βradical structural remediesβ as unjustified. Matt Schruers, president of the Computer & Communications Industry Association, said competition for advertising is fierce and the βgovernmentsβ contention that digital ads arenβt in competition with print, broadcast, and outdoor advertising defies reason.β Dina Srinivasan, a Yale University fellow and adtech expert, said the lawsuit is βhugeβ because it aligns the entire nation β state and federal governments β in a bipartisan legal offensive against Google. In December 2020, 16 states and Puerto Rico sued Google over the exact same issues. The current online ad market, Srinivasan said, βis broken and totally inefficient.β The fact that intermediaries are getting 30% to 50% of the take on each ad trade is βan insane inefficiency to have baked into the U.S. economy.β She called it βa massive tax on the free internet and consumers at large. It directly affects the viability of a free pressβ as well. As with many highly complex technical markets, it has taken time for federal and state regulators and policymakers to catch up with and understand the online ad market. Srinivasan noted that it took a decade before they woke up to the perils of high-speed trading in financial markets and began adopting measures to discourage it. This lawsuit seeks to apply to the digital ad market the same rules that apply to the financial markets, she said. Brokers, banks and other companies that have sometimes competing interests arenβt permitted to own the New York Stock Exchange. Google held nearly 29% of the U.S. digital advertising market β it includes all the ads people see on computers. phones, tablets and other internet-connected devices β in 2022, according to research firm Insider Intelligence. Facebook parent company Meta is second, with nearly 20% of the market. Amazon is a distant, but growing, third. But thatβs not the lawsuitβs concern. It is focused on the technical market mechanisms that Google controls, including the ad server it developed building on the 2008 purchase of market-dominating DoubleClick. DOJ says Google has a more than 90% share of the business that serves ads to websites and controls about 80% of the βbuy-sideβ Google Ads network where advertisers compete to place ads. Google, the lawsuit states, has over the past 15 years βused acquisitions and market power across adjacent ad tech markets to quash the rise of rivals, tighten its control over the manner and means through which digital advertising transactions occur, and prevent publishers and advertisers from working effectively with Googleβs rivals.β This is the latest legal action taken against Google by either the Justice Department or local state governments. In October 2020, for instance, the Trump administration and 11 state attorneys general sued Google for violating antitrust laws, alleging anticompetitive practices in the search and search advertising markets. Asked why the Justice Department would bring the suit when a similar complaint has already been filed by states, Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter, the departmentβs top antitrust official, said, βWe conducted our own investigation, and that investigation occurred over many years.β The states taking part in Tuesdayβs suit include California, Virginia, Connecticut, Colorado, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Tennessee. AP Technology Writer Ortutay reported from San Francisco and Bajak from Boston. AP Technology Writer Matt OβBrien contributed to this report. This story was first published on January 25, 2023. It was updated on January 25, 2023 to correct the number of states involved in a 2020 lawsuit. It was 16, not 35. | d03c77d6cbad11eb | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | Newsmax | http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/rand-paul-hillary-benghazi/2013/08/07/id/519270 | Rand Paul: Hold Obama Accountable for Benghazi Cover-up | 2013-08-07 | Benghazi, Rand Paul, White House, Politics | Did Hillary Clinton tell the truth ? She appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in January and testified that she had no knowledge of a CIA gun-running operation in Benghazi.Clinton β s exact words were , β You β ll have to direct that question to the agency that ran the annex , β and then she claimed that she did not know whether a gun-running operation was taking place.In March , The New York Times reported that the CIA has been involved with secret shipments of weapons to Syria for over a year : β The airlift , which began on a small scale in early 2012 and continued intermittently through last fall , expanded into a steady and much heavier flow late last year , the data shows . It has grown to include more than 160 military cargo flights by Jordanian , Saudi , and Qatari military-style cargo planes landing at Esenboga Airport near Ankara , and , to a lesser degree , at other Turkish and Jordanian airports. β CNN now reports that at least 35 American agents were in Benghazi and the CIA is doing everything possible to prevent them from testifying to Congress.Did Clinton lie because the CIA program was classified ? Is it OK to lie to Congress about classified programs ? President Obama 's national intelligence director , James Clapper , lied to the Senate in March of this year when he testified that no American records were being collected by the NSA . He tried to explain his prevarication by saying that he responded in the least untruthful way he knew how because the program was classified.It is a felony to lie to Congress . Individuals who lie to Congress can receive five to 10 years in prison . I know of no exception for lying about classified programs.Clapper 's lie has seriously damaged the credibility of the intelligence community . The NSA initially claimed that terrorist plots were stymied by the suspicionless searches of phone records . However , on closer questioning , it admits that each of the foiled plots really began with other intelligence , not from information unique to searching American phone records.Even more important than the details of the spying scandal is whether or not officials from the executive branch will be allowed to lie to Congress without repercussions.Much has been made of the altered talking points in the aftermath of the Benghazi assassinations , but I think almost everyone has fallen for the president 's misdirection campaign . The altered talking points were never about trying to get anyone to believe that the attack was not perpetrated by terrorists . By its very nature the attack was an act of terrorism , and no thinking human ever doubted otherwise.The misdirection campaign was always about the CIA annex and the gun-running operation . The administration feared an Iran-Contra-like scandal so close to the election . Many Republicans fell for the bait because they support arming the Islamic rebels in Syria.As Fox News reported , β On the night of Sept. 11 , in what would become his last known public meeting , Stevens met with the Turkish Consul General Ali Sait Akin , and escorted him out of the consulate front gate one hour before the assault began at approximately 9:35 p.m. local time. β According to the Times of London , a Libyan ship `` carrying the largest consignment of weapons for Syria β¦ has docked in Turkey . '' The shipment reportedly weighed 400 tons and included SA-7 surface-to-air anti-craft missiles and rocket-propelled grenades.A few months later , the Wall Street Journal reported that the State Department presence in Benghazi `` provided diplomatic cover '' for the now-exposed CIA annex.Does anyone really believe that Hillary Clinton , said to be the leading supporter of arming the Islamic rebels , did not know of the CIA operation ? There is only one way to find out . Chairman Issa should depose Hillary Clinton and bring her back before the House Oversight committee . He should ask : Did you have any knowledge of the CIA gun-running operation in Benghazi ? And he should also ask : Did you have any conversations with military personnel about not sending reinforcements to Benghazi from Tripoli or elsewhere ? The American people have not forgotten about the Benghazi attacks and the innocent lives that were taken that day . We deserve real , honest answers from our president and his administration , not a cowardly misdirection campaign . | d533b5820b1ca7e3 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
federal_budget | Washington Times | https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/dec/22/congress-eyes-long-shutdown-lawmakers-give-pre-chr/ | Congress eyes long shutdown as lawmakers give up on pre-Christmas deal | 2018-12-22 | federal_budget | The first day of shutdown negotiations has been a bust .
While President Trump met Saturday at the White House with some of the Republicans who talked him into a border wall-fueled shutdown , Congress spun its wheels .
The House gaveled into session and Speaker Paul D. Ryan immediately put the chamber into a recess , blocking any attempts at floor action . The Senate was in session a little longer , notching more than three hours of mostly empty floor time .
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell closed out the session by saying he was sending lawmakers home for Christmas , and would next hold a full session on Thursday β signaling the shutdown will last at least until then .
β It β s really simple , β the Kentucky Republican said . β Sixty votes in the Senate , a majority in the House and President Trump β s signature . That β s what we need . β
But the two sides appear to be moving further apart , not closer .
The president canceled his plans to head to Florida for Christmas , and the White House announced the first lady would return β she β d gone ahead of him β to spend the holiday here .
And Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer said Mr. Trump must give up his dream of more border wall before Democrats will accede .
β If you want to open the government , you must abandon the wall , plain and simple , β the New York Democrat said on the Senate floor Saturday .
Democrats are convinced the president , who for months has threatened to orchestrate a government shutdown , will be blamed by voters .
Mr. Trump , for his part , said there was a lot of β fake news β about the shutdown , but didn β t say what in particular he objected to about the coverage .
More than 25 percent of the government that β s funded by discretionary spending ran out of money at midnight .
Given the weekend and the upcoming holidays for Christmas Eve and Christmas β Mr. Trump declared Dec. 24 a holiday this year β the real effects won β t be felt by most government workers until Wednesday .
About 800,000 employees are in the departments and agencies that lost funding . Of those , 420,000 are deemed essential enough to have to continue working β though they won β t be paid until the shutdown ends . The other 380,000 are to be furloughed .
The Senate on Friday passed a bill to guarantee those furloughed workers will still be paid for the time they were out of work .
That legislation has not passed the House , though every previous major shutdown has ended with workers being given backpay for time they didn β t work .
The chief sticking point in negotiations is Mr. Trump β s demand for $ 5 billion in border wall money .
The White House had signaled earlier this week he would sign a bill without it , but he reversed himself on Thursday and vowed a veto unless he got his money .
Most Republicans have rallied around Mr. Trump , while Democrats appear nearly unanimous in their opposition to him . | stxY5Uf8MQf20SrA | 2 | Federal Budget | -0.5 | Economy And Jobs | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | New York Times - News | http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/12/business/economy/family-net-worth-drops-to-level-of-early-90s-fed-says.html?ref=todayspaper | Family Net Worth Drops to Level of Early ΓΒ’Γ’β¬ÒβΒ’90s, Fed Says | 2012-06-12 | economy_and_jobs | β It fills in details to a picture that we already knew was quite ugly , and these details very much underscore that , β said Jared Bernstein , an economist at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities who served as an adviser to Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. β It makes clear how devastating this has been for the middle class . β
Given the scale of those losses , consumer spending has remained surprisingly resilient . The survey also illuminates where the money is coming from : American families saved less and only slowly repaid debts .
The share of families saving anything over the previous year fell to 52 percent in 2010 from 56.4 percent in 2007 . Other government statistics show that total savings have increased since 2007 , suggesting that a smaller group of families is saving more money , while a growing number manage to save nothing .
The survey also found a shift in the reasons that families set aside money , underscoring the lack of confidence that is weighing on the economy . More families said they were saving money as a precautionary measure , to make sure they had enough liquidity to meet short-term needs . Fewer said they were saving for retirement , or for education , or for a down payment on a home .
The report underscored the limited progress that households had made in reducing the amounts that they owed to lenders . The share of households reporting any debt declined by 2.1 percentage points over the last three years , but 74.9 percent of households still owed something , and the median amount did not change .
The decline in reported incomes could have increased the weight of those debts , tying up a larger share of families β take-home pay . But one of the rare benefits of the crisis , historically lower interest rates , has helped to offset that effect . Families also have been able to reduce debt payments by refinancing into mortgages with longer terms and deferring repayment of student loans and other obligations .
The survey also confirmed that Americans are shifting the kinds of debts they carry . The share of families with credit card debt declined by 6.7 percentage points to 39.4 percent , and the median balance fell 16.1 percent to $ 2,600 .
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Families also reduced the number of credit cards that they carried , and 32 percent of families said they had no cards , up from 27 percent in 2007 .
Conversely , the share of families with education-related debt rose to 19.2 percent in 2010 from 15.2 percent in 2007 . The Fed noted that education loans made up a larger share of the average family β s obligations than loans to buy automobiles for the first time in the history of the survey .
The cumulative statistics concealed large disparities in the impact of the crisis .
Families with incomes in the middle 60 percent of the population lost a larger share of their wealth over the three-year period than the wealthiest and poorest families .
One basic reason for this disproportion is that the wealth of the middle class is mostly in housing , and the median amount of home equity dropped to $ 75,000 in 2010 from $ 110,000 in 2007 . And while other forms of wealth have recovered much of the value lost in the crisis , housing prices have hardly budged .
Those middle-income families also lost a larger share of their income . The earnings of the median family in the bottom 20 percent of the income distribution actually increased from 2007 to 2010 , in part because of the expansion of government aid programs during the recession . Wealthier families , which derive more income from investments , were also cushioned against the recession .
The data does provide the latest indication , however , that the recession reduced income inequality in the United States , at least temporarily . The average income of the wealthiest families fell much more sharply than the median , indicating that some of those at the very top of the ladder slipped down at least a few rungs .
Ranking American families by income , the top 10 percent of households still earned an average of $ 349,000 in 2010 .
The average net worth of the same families was $ 2.9 million . | YExl4mzIqB9WLosg | 0 | Economy And Jobs | -0.3 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | Newsmax | http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/justice-clemency-drug-offenders/2014/04/21/id/566798/ | Obama Aims to Give Clemency to More Drug Offenders | 2014-04-21 | White House, Barack Obama, DEA, Politics | Nonviolent drug convicts who have served long sentences could leave prison sooner , as President Barack Obama plans to consider additional clemency applications , Attorney General Eric Holder says.The White House wants to `` restore a degree of justice , fairness , and proportionality for deserving individuals who do not pose a threat to public safety , '' Holder said in a video released Monday . `` The Justice Department is committed to recommending as many qualified applicants as possible for reduced sentences . `` The effort will focus on prisoners who were sentenced under minimum guidelines to more time behind bars than they would face if they committed the same type of crime now , Holder said , as federal prisoners `` sentenced under the old regime '' have ended up serving longer sentences . `` We 're dealing with a particular problem , and that is that I think the pendulum swung a little too far in the '80s , '' Holder said.The Justice Department is establishing new criteria to allow a wider variety of applications to be considered , and Holder said the Office of the Pardon Attorney will likely hire several new attorneys to handle the applications.Obama has granted only 10 commutations in his more than five years of office , Politico reports . In addition , he has granted 52 pardons , all to convicts who had finished serving their time.During a congressional hearing earlier this month , Virginia Republican Rep. Randy Forbes said the commutation plan goes too far . `` Can you give me any precedent of previous attorney generals ' offices who have solicited petitions for pardons or clemency limited to a particular category of crime ? '' Forbes said , complaining that there are offenders in prison for `` white-collar crime or campaign finance laws or a host of other areas that have been over-criminalized , all who also do the overcrowding that we β re very concerned with , but have a much lower recidivism rate . `` Tennessee Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen asked during the same hearing if the government has considered a group commutation of all those sentenced under laws that have eased , including a law that imposed greater penalties for crack cocaine instead of the powder form.Holder said the government is looking more for individuals who would be deserving and who lack ties to violence or gangs.While Obama 's clemency acts would be on the federal prison level , California Gov . Jerry Brown has gotten a jump start on the state level , granting pardons to 63 people last week.The Democratic governor 's office announced the pardons Friday , reports The Huffington Post , saying that those pardoned had all completed their sentences and have been out of custody for more than 10 years without committing more crimes.More than 40 of the people Brown pardoned were convicted of possessing , selling or making controlled substances , but after getting out of prison , many are active in public service , such as drug counseling or working to support nonprofit organizations.In the notices , Brown wrote that the people being pardoned had `` lived an honest and upright life , exhibited good moral character and conducted [ themselves ] as law-abiding citizen [ s ] . '' The pardons do n't erase the convictions from the person 's record , but they do restore rights such as voting , and in some cases , owning a licensed firearm.Brown , who is Catholic , has often timed his pardons during the Christian holidays , generally granting them around Christmas and Easter , including 63 pardons granted this year on Good Friday . He pardoned 127 people last Christmas , including 93 for drug-related crimes.Other California governors , though , were not as forgiving . Govs . Arnold Schwarzenegger , Gray Davis , and Pete Wilson granted a total of just 29 pardons over two decades . | 3f3da0e92fce9780 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Mother Jones | http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/04/hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders-drop-out-election | This Is Why Hillary Clinton Can't Tell Bernie Sanders to Drop Out | elections | Hillary Clinton β s lead in delegates over rival Bernie Sanders is now almost insurmountable as they move toward the conclusion of the Democratic presidential primary contest . But Clinton has not called on him to drop out of the race , for one simple reason : the example her own campaign set in 2008 .
Eight years ago this month , Clinton was trailing hopelessly behind then-Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination . On May 1 , 2008 , Clinton loaned her bankrupt campaign $ 1 million ( following at least $ 10 million in earlier loans ) . Before the end of that week , pundits were calling the contest for Obama , whose May 6 win in the North Carolina primary , by 14 points , had made his delegate lead essentially insurmountable . β We now know who the Democratic nominee will be , β Tim Russert said on MSNBC after the results came in . Less than a week later , Obama surpassed Clinton in the superdelegate count , signaling that the party establishment was shifting behind the presumptive nominee .
But Clinton was determined to fight until the last votes had been cast . She would go on to win contests in West Virginia , Kentucky , and South Dakota before the primary ended on June 3 , even though there was no way for her to make up her deficit in the delegate count .
Along the way , the Clinton campaign put forward every conceivable argument to justify staying in the race . It used wins in states like Pennsylvania , Indiana , and Kentucky to claim that Obama was losing support among white working-class voters and that she would be the stronger general election candidate . On May 5 , it began to argue about the delegate math , making the case that the number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination was actually 2,209 , not 2,025 , the figure that had been cited up until thenβand that if neither campaign reached that new number , Clinton was prepared for a floor fight at the party β s convention . On May 23 , Clinton justified her continued White House bid by noting that in 1968 , Democratic presidential hopeful Robert Kennedy was assassinated in June , after winning the California primary . And lurking in the background in these final weeks was the rumor that Republican operatives had gotten hold of a tape of Michelle Obama disparaging β whitey . β
Eight years later , Clinton knows she can not turn around and tell Sanders it β s time to leave the race , even though her current lead over Sanders , at about 300 delegates , is larger than the nearly 160-delegate lead Obama had over her after the North Carolina primary in 2008 . The Sanders campaign had $ 17 million on hand as of the latest public filings at the end of March , giving it far more fighting power than the broke Clinton effort had at the same point in 2008 .
So the Clinton team has been careful not to say Sanders should drop out . After her victory in New York , Clinton β s communications director , Jennifer Palmieri , told reporters that the campaign expected Clinton to be the nominee but that Sanders had a right to continue to fight . Instead of focusing on Clinton β s refusal to bow out in 2008 , her campaign is talking up her unequivocal support of Obama after the primary was overβsuggesting that that is the example Sanders should follow . In late May 2008 , she said she and Obama β do see eye-to-eye when it comes to uniting our party to elect a Democratic president in the fall. β And when she announced her withdrawal from the race on June 7 , she forcefully threw her support behind Obama and urged her fans to do the same .
β I think she set a gold standard for how people who don β t end up with the nomination , who lose in that effort , should come together and help the party , β Palmieri said on the night of the New York primary last month .
What Clinton isn β t mentioning is that before she tried to unify the party , she was questioning Obama β s appeal to white voters , hoping that a bombshell video would surface and help take down her rival , and entertaining a convention floor fight . Despite her team β s claims of magnanimity , at this point eight years ago , Clinton was five weeks and a few attacks shy of giving into the inevitable and uniting the party . | qQxQaDALl5v7X0CB | 0 | Hillary Clinton | 0.7 | Barack Obama | 0.4 | Presidential Elections | 0.3 | Bernie Sanders | 0.1 | Elections | 0 | |
criminal_justice | Politico | https://www.politico.com/news/2023/11/15/paul-pelosi-jan-6-riot-00127267 | Prosecutors grapple with alternate reality defense in Paul Pelosi trial | 2023-11-15 | Criminal Justice, Justice, Paul Pelosi, Nancy Pelosi, Politics, Conspiracy Theories | California The trial has become something of a test of what happens when certain far-out strains of digital-age American radicalism collide with the criminal justice system. Defendant David DePape (center) testifies Tuesday in the federal trial against him in U.S. District Court in downtown San Francisco. | Courtroom artist Vicki Behringer By Dustin Gardiner and Kyle Cheney 11/15/2023 05:01 AM EST Link Copied SAN FRANCISCO β The man who attacked the husband of Rep. Nancy Pelosi came armed with a hammer, zip ties and fevered delusions about her role in a make-believe plot by elites to destroy the nation. Now, facing trial a year later, the 43-year-old Canadianβs lawyers are trying to beat serious felony charges on a technicality β arguing that he wasnβt interfering with Pelosiβs role in Congress when he broke into the coupleβs home demanding to know βWhereβs Nancy?β and striking her elderly husband in the head with a hammer. Instead, David DePapeβs attorneys say, he sought to hold her captive over her βwholly unrelatedβ role in a bizarre conspiracy theory. They are effectively claiming that he was living in an alternate reality where her role as speaker of the House did not factor into his thinking. As a result, the trial has become something of a test β not just of DePapeβs guilt or innocence, but of what happens when certain far-out strains of digital-age American radicalism collide with the criminal justice system. The defenseβs argument reflects the growing prevalence of a certain kind of extremism in American politics β internet fever swamps, supercharged during the Covid-era as many isolated and marginalized Americans scoured fringe message boards. Now, many of those who pursued fantastical plots to violent ends β including the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol β are asking judges and juries to factor in those breaks from reality when they render judgment. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. For DePape, a verdict on that argument could come as soon as Wednesday when jurors get the case after a weeklong trial in federal court in San Francisco. DePapeβs argument is reminiscent of one lodged by dozens of people charged in the Jan. 6 attack, including some who burst into the halls of Congress shouting βWhere are you, Nancy?β While many stormed inside the Capitol with a plan to prevent lawmakers from certifying Joe Bidenβs presidential victory, others have claimed they were unaware that lawmakers were conducting business that day β or believed the job had already been done when they got inside. In some cases, that argument has helped defendants wriggle out of the most serious charges they faced: obstruction of an official proceeding. Judges and juries have largely rejected the claims of Jan. 6 rioters. But a handful of judges have found that some rioters could not face weightier charges because they had no clue what was happening in the Capitol and therefore couldnβt have intended to block certification of Bidenβs victory over Donald Trump. U S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson found that one defendant β who surged with the Jan. 6 mob onto the Senate floor β had such a βunique stew in his mindβ that she couldnβt be sure he had any idea he was breaking the law. The parallel arguments, in high-profile cases of political violence that gripped the nation, are emblematic of Americaβs descent into online and social media-driven conspiracy theories. That trend has created a more complicated path for prosecutors, who must prove criminal intent to convince juries to convict DePape and the Jan. 6 rioters on more severe felony charges that carry longer prison terms. DePape told jurors Tuesday during his rambling and tear-filled testimony that he didnβt target Pelosi to prevent her from serving in Congress. He said his real intent was to reveal a sinister plot. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. βI wanted to use her to expose the truth,β DePape said, testifying that he planned to wear a unicorn costume he brought to her home and interrogate Pelosi on camera about what he believes are Democratic plots against former President Trump. David DePapeβs (left) attorneys have focused heavily on the far-right podcasts and internet echo chambers that influenced him in the months before the attack. | Courtroom artist Vicki Behringer Heβs facing two charges: attempted kidnapping of a U.S. official (which requires the intent to interfere with official duties) and assault on an immediate family member of a U.S. official (which also requires the intent to interfere with or retaliate against the official over their duties). The kidnapping charge carries a 20-year prison sentence and the assault has a 30-year term. Prosecutors have called the defenseβs argument outlandish. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Vartain Horn said DePapeβs actions and words before and after the attack show βthere is ample evidence of retaliationβ against Pelosi over her official role as the former speaker of the House. DePape and his attorneys have admitted that he planned to hold Pelosi captive and struck Paul Pelosi with a hammer, a brutal attack captured in grainy police body camera footage. The defense has, instead, leaned into the Hail Mary argument that DePape shouldnβt be found guilty on more severe charges that he sought to impede, interfere or retaliate against Pelosi over her role in Congress. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. DePapeβs attorneys are essentially implying that the charges against him belong in state court, not federal court. DePape faces a separate trial on state charges for the attack, and defeating federal charges could make it easier for his attorneys to negotiate a potential plea deal with local prosecutors. βHe did something awful, but as you will hear, it was not on account of Nancy Pelosiβs duties as a member of Congress,β Jodi Linker, DePapeβs attorney, told the jury. βThis case here in federal court is a narrow one. The case here is about the βwhy.ββ That nuanced argument is strikingly similar to the case of a young Pennsylvania woman who broke into Pelosiβs office on Jan. 6 but claimed she didnβt know the building was the U.S. Capitol. Defendant Riley Williams argued that despite her conduct that day β which included pushing against police officers in the Capitol rotunda and cheering a mob in Pelosiβs office as several others purloined a laptop β she couldnβt be convicted of obstructing Congressβ business because she didnβt have any awareness of what was happening in the building. Williams was ultimately convicted of multiple felonies for her actions, but jurors deadlocked on the obstruction charge. DePapeβs attorneys have focused heavily on the far-right podcasts and internet echo chambers that influenced him in the months before the attack. He testified Tuesday that he spent most of his free time playing video games while listening to fringe podcasters like Tim Pool, Jimmy Dore and Glenn Beck. The defendant said the podcasts convinced him that Pelosi and other Democratic officials were smearing Trump with lies and protecting a cabal of pedophiles. DePape is a follower of the QAnon conspiracy movement, an evolving series of allegations against celebrities and political figures that attempts to tarnish them with false allegations of pedophilia and other crimes. DePapeβs list of targets included Pelosi, Hunter Biden, Rep. Adam Schiff, Gov. Gavin Newsom, actor Tom Hanks and a queer studies professor and scholar β all of whom he believes are villains sprung from delusional online conspiracy theories. βMany of us do not believe any of that,β Linker told the jury. βBut the evidence in this trial will show that Mr. DePape believes these things, he believes them with every ounce of his being.β Your guide to Donald Trumpβs unprecedented overhaul of the federal government. Your guide to Donald Trumpβs unprecedented overhaul of the federal government. 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immigration | Politico | https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/20/sessions-justice-department-staff-exit-1005559 | Immigration hawks fear DOJ staff exodus | 2018-11-20 | immigration | The Justice Department is facing a likely senior staff exodus once President Donald Trump taps a permanent replacement for ousted Attorney General Jeff Sessions , creating a leadership vacuum that has troubled hard-line immigration activists .
According to more than a half-dozen former and current administration officials , at least four top officials β mostly Sessions loyalists β have either quit or are eyeing the exit as they await Trump β s decision on who will succeed their former boss , who implemented and vigorously defended even Trump β s most controversial immigration policies .
Among those leaving are Danielle Cutrona , a senior counsel to Sessions who had been with him since his Senate days . She departed DOJ last Friday . Rachael Tucker , a senior counselor to the attorney general , could also exit β in the next couple of months , β citing her fidelity to Sessions , or possibly take another job within the agency , said two sources close to the situation . Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeff Wood , another former Sessions Senate staffer , may also soon make an exit , according to one senior administration official .
And while the White House could find another strident immigration hawk to lead DOJ and name ideologically similar aides , several of the names being floated for attorney general β such as former New Jersey Gov . Chris Christie and George H.W . Bush-era Attorney General Bill Barr β represent a more GOP establishment line on the subject .
βββ Playbook newsletter Sign up today to receive the # 1-rated newsletter in politics Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from βββ . You can unsubscribe at any time .
It β s a situation that conservatives who support reduced immigration have long feared . Even Trump β s critics concede that Sessions β staff has dutifully guided the president β s hard-line immigration policies , propped up the president 's most contested executive actions and added a record number of adjudicators to U.S. immigration courts . Sessions also made headlines for his defense of the administration β s decision to separate migrant children from parents who have crossed the border illegally .
More recently , Sessions personally guided the White House as Trump attempted to dramatically limit asylum applications , removing some language in the process and ultimately signing off on the new rule , according to two DOJ officials .
β For better or for worse , you can not say [ Sessions ] has not had a very profound impact , β said Leon Fresco , head of the DOJ β s Office of Immigration Litigation under President Barack Obama .
β He β s been a guiding force in moving both the DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security to draft and implement some of the most restrictive rules on immigration , β he added .
A DOJ leadership void could leave DHS to take up the immigration mantle , a prospect that worries advocates of stricter border laws , many of whom have been disappointed in current DHS chief Kirstjen Nielsen 's performance . While DHS has the power to enforce immigration policies β a topic Trump recently claimed Nielsen could be `` much tougher '' on β DOJ is the agency that can set uncompromising rules .
And DHS may soon be poised to get a more pugnacious leader on the subject , increasing the chance that the agency asserts itself more on topics like border crossings . Trump is considering replacing Nielsen with Thomas Homan , a tough-talking lawman who once recommended charging so-called sanctuary-city politicians β with crimes . β
β Depending on who is named DHS secretary , some leadership may shift back over to the person in that role , β said Jessica Vaughan , director of policy studies at the conservative Center for Immigration Studies .
Without Sessions and his cohort of aides atop the agency , immigration hard-liners are wondering whether his protΓ©gΓ© , senior White House policy adviser Stephen Miller , can stay the course on the administration 's effort to remake decades of immigration policy by boosting border enforcement and immigration prosecutions and challenging states that refuse cooperation with federal immigration authorities .
β Everyone involved on immigration issues has witnessed a long list of things that got done '' under Sessions , said Vaughan . A fan of Sessions , Vaughan griped about the lack of an β obvious candidate β to take control of the agency if the president wants immigration to continue to be one of its highest-priority issues .
The uncertainty surrounding Trump β s pick for attorney general , combined with growing expectations that the White House won β t announce its nominee until mid-December at the earliest , has left some fifth-floor staffers feeling as though they β re in limbo , wondering whether it β s time to leave the administration or worth the wait to see who takes over as attorney general . Sessions has encouraged his loyalists to stick around to see who might take over for him .
Although Cutrona has already left DOJ , several other senior leaders eyeing the door are expected to stick around long enough to ensure β a smooth transition , β said one senior administration official , who claimed staffers who have been at the agency since Trump β s inauguration are `` burnt out . '' And a DOJ spokesperson said Tucker `` plans to stay [ and ] may take on a different role , '' though such a move has yet to be finalized or announced .
Matthew Whitaker , Sessions β former chief of staff , has taken over as acting attorney general , but multiple sources said they doubt Trump will nominate Whitaker to take over permanently . Whitaker β s appointment has also been challenged by Democratic lawmakers and conservative legal scholars , including George Conway , the husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway , who argue that Trump illegally evaded the normal DOJ line of succession . The White House has justified its decision by pointing to the Vacancies Reform Act , which allows the president to temporarily fill most empty executive branch positions .
To replace Whitaker , the White House is looking at a slate of candidates . In addition to Christie and Barr , Trump is eyeing Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar , outgoing Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and Solicitor General Noel Francisco . Mark Filip , a deputy attorney general during the George W. Bush administration , is another option . McClatchy also reported that the White House had discussed the job with Janice Rogers Brown , a retired D.C. circuit judge and former California Supreme Court justice .
β [ Sessions ] would want them to stay there and do their job if they really enjoy it , β said a source close to the former attorney general , adding that β some are still going to feel that out of a sense of loyalty [ they ] need to leave . β | Wio1nAd317Mn6OUA | 0 | Justice Department | 0.4 | Immigration | 0.3 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | The Hill | http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/312431-wikileaks-founder-obama-admin-trying-to-delegitimize-trump | WikiLeaks founder: Obama admin trying to βdelegitimize' Trump | 2017-01-02 | politics | WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says there 's an `` obvious '' reason the Obama administration has focused on Russia 's alleged role in Democratic hacks leading up to Donald Trump Donald John TrumpGOP senators balk at lengthy impeachment trial Warren goes local in race to build 2020 movement 2020 Democrats make play for veterans ' votes MORE 's election .
β They β re trying to delegitimize the Trump administration as it goes into the White House , β Assange said during an interview with Fox News 's Sean Hannity airing Tuesday night , according to a transcript of excerpts from the network .
β They are trying to say that President-elect Trump is not a legitimate president , '' Assange said during the interview , which was conducted at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London , where he has been staying .
`` Our publications had wide uptake by the American people . They β re all true , β Assange continued . β But that β s not the allegation that β s being presented by the Obama White House . β
Assange reiterated the group 's denial that Russia was the source of the Democratic documents released over the summer .
β Our source is not a state party , so the answer for our interactions is no , β he said .
In December , Assange told Hannity that the documents the anti-secrecy group received looked β very much like they β re from the Russians β but said his source was not them .
When asked if he thought WikiLeaks influenced the 2016 election , Assange pointed to private comments from members of the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton2020 Democrats make play for veterans ' votes The Memo : Democrats confront prospect of long primary Manafort sought to hurt Clinton 2016 campaign efforts in key states : NYT MORE 's campaign in documents published by the group .
β Did [ WikiLeaks ] change the outcome of the election ? Who knows , it β s impossible to tell , '' Assange said .
`` But if it did , the accusation is that the true statements of Hillary Clinton and her campaign manager , John Podesta , and the DNC head Debbie Wasserman Schultz , their true statements is what changed the election . β | xdAZgEyDd3RHTGnV | 1 | WikiLeaks | 0.3 | Politics | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
environment | New York Times - News | http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/06/opinion/two-enlistees-in-the-climate-wars.html?ref=politics | Two Enlistees in the Climate Wars | 2013-03-06 | environment | In 2009 , President Obama pledged to reduce America β s greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020 . Thanks to several factors , the country is halfway there . On Monday , Mr. Obama announced the appointment of two seasoned officials who could fulfill that pledge β but only if the president himself helps them navigate the formidable political obstacles ahead .
Mr. Obama nominated Gina McCarthy , an experienced clean air regulator , to run the Environmental Protection Agency , and Ernest Moniz , an M.I.T . physicist and strong advocate of natural gas and nuclear power , to run the Energy Department . Both believe global warming is one of humanity β s most pressing challenges . Both have deep experience β Ms. McCarthy as an assistant administrator at the E.P.A . and an adviser to Republican governors in Connecticut and Massachusetts , Mr. Moniz as an under secretary of energy in the Clinton administration .
Both will be required to use their regulatory authority creatively and aggressively . There is zero chance that Congress will enact the β bipartisan , market-based solution to climate change β that Mr. Obama called for in his State of the Union address . This means that his second-term agenda on climate change will run through Ms. McCarthy β s and Mr. Moniz β s agencies , and will depend almost entirely on executive actions that do not require Congressional approval . Here are three strategies that could make a big dent in carbon emissions .
ΒΆInvoke the E.P.A. β s authority under the Clean Air Act to limit pollution from stationary sources , chiefly fossil-fuel power plants that account for almost 40 percent of the country β s carbon emissions . The agency has already proposed strict standards requiring new power plants to capture their emissions , an untested technology . The bigger problem is what to do with existing plants , which provide a big chunk of the nation β s electricity and which can not be shut down quickly or by fiat . Devising a gradual phaseout will require ingenuity and persistence in the face of what are sure to be strong legal and political challenges from industry . | dHg0y0EufprQaFCl | 0 | Global Warming | 1 | Environment | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
us_military | Reuters | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-defense-bergdahl/no-prison-for-u-s-army-deserter-bergdahl-who-trump-wanted-dead-idUSKBN1D30VT | No prison for U.S. Army deserter Bergdahl, who Trump wanted dead | 2017-11-04 | US Military, Bowe Bergdahl, Defense And Security | FORT BRAGG , N.C. ( βββ ) - U.S. Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl on Friday was spared prison for endangering his comrades in arms when he deserted in Afghanistan in 2009 , a sentence swiftly condemned by President Donald Trump , who while seeking election had called for his execution .
β The decision on Sergeant Bergdahl is a complete and total disgrace to our Country and to our Military , β Trump posted on Twitter from Air Force One as he flew to Asia at the start of a lengthy tour of the region .
A military judge recommended that Bergdahl should be dishonorably discharged from the service , demoted to private and forfeit $ 10,000 in pay . Army Colonel Jeffery Nance took less than a minute to render his decision and made no other comment .
Bergdahl was captured eight years ago by the Taliban after walking off his combat outpost . He endured torture and malnutrition while held prisoner by the insurgent group for nearly five years . His case sparked a national debate over whether he was a victim or a villain .
The soldier , who had pleaded guilty to desertion and misbehavior before the enemy , faced a maximum term of life in prison .
Late Friday morning , the 31-year-old Hailey , Idaho , native trembled as he waited to hear his punishment in a courtroom in Fort Bragg , North Carolina .
Defense lawyers , who had urged Nance to show leniency , said after sentencing that Bergdahl was relieved and eager to move on , though they would not discuss his plans . Bergdahl has remained on active duty at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio , Texas .
β This has been a terrible ordeal , β said one of his lawyers , Eugene Fidell .
Neither Bergdahl nor prosecutors , who had sought a 14-year prison term , commented .
Soldiers who testified about the hardships and injuries suffered in the hunt for Bergdahl after he walked off his post in Paktika province in June 2009 without permission said they were disappointed by the sentence .
β It β s definitely a slap in the face , β former Army Specialist Jonathan Morita said in a phone interview . Morita β s right hand was mangled by a rocket-propelled grenade during a July 2009 raid seeking intelligence on Bergdahl β s whereabouts .
Along with criticism over the years from U.S. political leaders and fellow soldiers over the dangerous searches prompted by Bergdahl β s actions , the conditions of his release sparked controversy .
U.S. Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl ( R ) arrives at the courthouse for the eighth day of sentencing proceedings in his court martial at Fort Bragg , North Carolina , U.S. , November 3 , 2017 . βββ/Jonathan Drake
In May 2014 , Bergdahl was handed over to U.S. special operations troops in Afghanistan in exchange for five Taliban detainees , who were released from the Guantanamo Bay prison and flown to Qatar .
Last year , as a Republican presidential candidate , Trump called Bergdahl β a no-good traitor who should have been executed . β
Responding to a defense motion on Trump β s comments , Colonel Nance ruled they had not influenced him nor affected Bergdahl β s chances of a fair sentence . However , the judge said he would consider them a mitigating factor .
Defense attorney Fidell said on Friday that Americans should be offended by Trump β s behavior .
β President Trump β s unprincipled effort to stoke a lynch-mob atmosphere while seeking our nation β s highest office has cast a dark cloud over the case , β he said .
A dishonorable discharge , issued for the most serious offenses , cuts off all military and veterans benefits , including healthcare from the Department of Veterans Affairs .
That could pose difficulties for Bergdahl , who , according to testimony , suffered significant nerve damage while a Taliban prisoner and has several mental health conditions .
His punishment must be approved by the commanding general of the U.S. Army Forces Command and then will automatically be reviewed on appeal . The discharge will not take effect until an appellate court affirms Bergdahl β s conviction and sentence .
Defense lawyers said he was a young , hardworking soldier who did not understand the full consequences of his actions when he left to report what he said were problems in his unit .
Bergdahl apologized in court this week for the pain he caused fellow service members and admitted he had made β a horrible mistake . β
But prosecutors said Bergdahl knew he would trigger alarm in the war zone . They acknowledged he suffered during his years as a Taliban prisoner , but argued it resulted from his choices and did not diminish the harm he caused others .
Retired Army Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Addicott said he was surprised by the judge β s decision .
β You had several members of our military who have been maimed for the rest of their life because of what Bergdahl did , so he should have received jail time , in my opinion , β said Addicott , now a law professor at St. Mary β s University in San Antonio , Texas . | 6d12f914a39fc0d8 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
world | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/24/world/europe/ukraine-protests-up-to-speed/index.html?hpt=hp_t1 | Up to speed: Uncertainty reigns in a divided Ukraine | 2014-02-24 | Ukraine, World | Story highlights Ousted President Viktor Yanukovych was in Crimea on Sunday , an official says
An arrest warrant has been issued for Yanukovych over the killings of civilians
Russia recalls its ambassador from Ukraine to Moscow for consultations
Parliament appoints an acting president ; a former prime minister is freed from prison
The turmoil in Ukraine has swept aside its president , brought about the release a prominent opposition leader and raised fears the country could break apart .
After the bloodshed in the streets of Kiev last week -- the deadliest violence Ukraine has suffered since its independence 22 years ago -- the political twists and turns came thick and fast over the weekend .
As a new week begins , uncertainty has taken a hold in the divided nation as Ukraine tries to reshape its political landscape .
An arrest warrant has been issued for ousted President Viktor Yanukovych over the killings of civilians , a government official said Monday . But officials do n't know where he is .
Here 's what you need to know to get caught up :
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The Parliament voted to oust Yanukovych , a key demand of protesters . It appointed seasoned lawmaker Oleksandr Turchinov as a new speaker who will take on Yanukovych 's duties until new elections in May .
Turchinov , a longtime ally of opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko , has promised a new interim government by Tuesday .
`` We have a legitimate source of authority in Kiev , which is the democratically elected Parliament and a democratically , constitutionally elected speaker of parliament , who is acting president , '' Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski , who helped broker a peace deal between the government and the opposition , said on CNN 's Fareed Zakaria GPS .
But Yanukovych claims he 's still in charge , saying he was forced to leave Kiev because of a `` coup . ''
`` I do n't plan to leave the country . I do n't plan to resign . I am the legitimate President , '' he said Saturday in a televised broadcast .
But acting Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Monday that arrest warrant has been issued for Yanukovych .
`` As of this morning , a criminal case on mass killings of civilians has been opened . Yanukovych and several other officials have been placed on the wanted list , '' Avakov wrote Monday on his Facebook page .
Unclear . He made his TV broadcast from Kharkiv , a pro-Russian stronghold near the border . And he reportedly tried to board a charter plane Saturday night in the eastern city of Donetsk , but was turned away because he did n't have the right papers .
On Sunday , he was staying at his private residence in Balaklava in the southern region of Crimea , Avakov said , adding that Yanukovych is believed to traveling in three vehicles with his chief of staff .
But Avakov said he does n't know where Yanukovych was Monday .
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He 's definitely not in his lavish presidential compound near Kiev that thousands of Ukrainians have now been able to explore after he fled . People have been roaming around the mansion and its vast grounds , staring at the opulence in which Yanukovych lived , including peacocks , vintage cars and a huge galleon-style riverboat for parties .
His political party appears to have turned against him , saying it blames him for the `` robbery and deception '' of the nation . It accused Yanukovych of making illegal orders that led to casualties , financial debt and shame in the eyes of the world .
But it 's notable that Yanukovych was recently in Kharkiv , in eastern Ukraine . It 's his traditional support base and a predominantly Russian-speaking region .
People in the east , the country 's industrial heartland , tend to look to Russia as Ukraine 's key ally . Many of them are suspicious of the Europe-leaning views of those in western Ukraine , who were at the heart of the protests against Yanukovych that filled central Kiev for months .
The demonstrations began after Yanukovych scrapped a European Union trade deal and turned toward Russia for financial support .
A lot of people with Russian heritage in eastern Ukraine feel that their cultural identity is under threat with the pro-European side in the ascendancy in Kiev .
`` I think that divide goes very , very deep -- it 's regional , it 's linguistic , it 's religious , '' New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof , whose father grew up in Ukraine , told CNN 's Zakaria .
In many parts of Ukraine , people have toppled statues of former Russian communist leader Vladimir Lenin , a founder of the Soviet Union . The statues are symbols of Russian pride .
In Kharkiv , a tense rift has opened up between those who want to tear down the city 's Lenin statue , one of the biggest in the country , and those who want to keep it .
Some analysts say they fear parts of eastern Ukraine could push to break away from a pro-Western government in Kiev in favor of Russia .
The task for Yanukovych 's opponents is to chart a course for Ukraine that keeps all sides on board .
Acting President Turchinov said Sunday that Ukraine is ready to talk to Kremlin to try to improve relations , but made clear that Kiev 's return to European integration would be a priority .
Russia 's ambassador to the United Nations , Vitaly Churkin , condemned what he called Western attempts to influence the outcome of the turmoil in Ukraine .
`` Either they do n't understand the consequences of what they 're doing , or they 're engaged in a very provocative game of destabilizing Ukraine and therefore Eastern Europe , '' he said in a post on his official Twitter account .
The Russian foreign ministry says it has recalled its ambassador from Ukraine to Moscow for consultations , citing `` the aggravation of the situation . ''
Everybody 's waiting to see what Russian President Vladimir Putin , a key backer of Yanukovych , does next .
`` If you look through Putin 's eyes specifically , this is his area of interest , '' said David Remnick , the editor of The New Yorker and a former foreign correspondent in Moscow .
Putin , whose country just finished hosting the Winter Olympics in Sochi , wo n't quietly let Ukraine shift into a Western orbit , Remnick said .
`` I think Putin is in a very tough , assertive mode and it has nothing to do with snowboarding , it has to do with his geostrategic , regional interests , '' he said . `` It has to do with differentiating himself from the West , morally as well as politically , and I think he 's a very tough figure to deal with now . ''
National Security Adviser Susan Rice warned that it `` would be a grave mistake '' if Putin intervened militarily in the crisis .
`` The United States is on the side of the Ukrainian people , '' she said on NBC 's `` Meet the Press . '' The people expressed themselves peacefully , she said , and Yanukovych `` turned on '' the people by using violence against them .
But Washington has a delicate task getting involved in a crisis in an area that Russia sees as its backyard .
On Sunday , U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov about Ukraine , expressing support for the results of the Parliament 's decisions and asking Russia not to not use military force in the country , according to a senior State Department official .
The State Department has warned U.S. citizens to defer all non-essential travel to Ukraine .
Poland 's Sikorski , meanwhile , urged Ukrainian leaders to keep dialogue open with Moscow .
`` The new Ukrainian government needs to be in touch , needs to have a conversation with Russia , which is an important neighbor , just like Poland , '' he said . `` Because , apart from anything else , Ukraine needs the lower gas price and does n't want Russia to play the separatist card . ''
There are plenty of candidates but no clear favorite yet . Turchinov , who Parliament appointed acting leader , is at the helm until elections on May 25 .
`` The challenge for the opposition moving forward from here is going to be maintaining unity , '' said CNN correspondent Phil Black .
Former world champion heavyweight boxer Vitali Klitschko has been the most well-known opposition figure during the crisis . He heads the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reforms party . There 's also Arseniy Yatsenyuk , a former foreign minister .
Former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko , considered a hero of a 2004 revolution against Yanukovych , was released Saturday after 2Β½ years behind bars .
She had lost to Yanukovych in elections in 2010 . A year later , she was sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of abuse of authority over a natural gas deal negotiated with Russia .
After her release , she addressed cheering crowds in Kiev 's Independence Square , calling Yanukovych a `` terrible dictator . ''
`` There 'll be no Ukraine but the Ukraine you want , '' she said . `` And I 'm the guarantor of that Ukraine . ''
She said Sunday that she does n't want to be considered for the nomination for prime minister , suggesting she may have her eye on the presidency .
But some observers say the protests in Kiev have fed a desire for a new , untainted generation of leaders to step forward .
`` A lot of people who made this revolution feel like this movement has created a lot of new leaders , a lot of young leaders -- that now it 's their turn , '' Julia Ioffe , senior editor at The New Republic , told `` CNN Newsroom . ''
The unrest began November , when Yanukovych turned his back on trade talks with the European Union . Instead , Russia offered to lend money to Ukraine in a deal worth billions of dollars and lower the gas prices it charges .
The Ukranian economy is struggling , plagued by corruption , inefficiency and heavy government debt .
But the pact with Russia prompted protesters into the streets of Kiev .
They stayed in the center of the city for months in a standoff with security forces that occasionally flared into the violence .
The situation worsened dramatically last week as clashes between the two sides intensified and gunfire broke out , leaving 88 people dead .
Amid the chaos on the streets , foreign diplomats stepped up efforts to find an agreement between Yanukovych and the opposition to end the fighting .
On Friday , the intense negotiations resulted in a breakthrough deal to reduce the president 's powers and roll back parts of the Constitution , which gave them to him .
Yanukovich then left the capital and security forces withdrew from key protest areas -- setting in motion the changes that unfolded over the weekend . | 1b211aeee059f423 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
banking_and_finance | CNN Business | https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/24/investing/dow-stock-market-today/index.html | Stocks end higher after dramatic selloff | 2022-01-24 | Banking And Finance, Stock Market, Business, Economy And Jobs, Wall Street, Dow Jones | New York CNN Business βOn a wild day on Wall Street, stocks ended the day higher with a stunning turnaround just before the closing bell. Stocks began the day with a dramatic selloff.US stocks opened in the red as investors worried about the Federal Reserveβs plans to hike interest rates, tensions in Ukraine, earnings season and β of course β inflation.At the low point of the session, the market was on track for its worst day since October 2020, with the Dow down more than 1,000 points.But with just minutes to go in the trading session, the major indexes reversed course and turned green. The Dow finished 0.3%, or 99 points, higher.What on earth happened to turn things around? The selloff may have just gone a bit too far.βInvestors may have gotten a bit too pessimistic about the growth outlook,β said Oanda senior market analyst Edward Moya in the late afternoon.The S&P 500 (SPX), the broadest measure of the US equities market, also ended up 0.3%. During the session, the index had been on track to fall into correction. But it wasnβt meant to be, at least not on Monday: Last week, it logged its worst week since March 2020.The Nasdaq Composite (COMP), which entered correction territory last week, closed up 0.6%.The wild swings of the day were also visible in the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), or Vix, which soared during the day but ended the session βonlyβ 3.2% higher.CNNβs Fear & Greed Index still flashed fear Monday afternoon, but the level was slightly less severe than on Friday.Each day last week, stocks fared worse in the final hour of trading, which tends to be a bad sign for the next day, said TD Ameritrade chief market strategist JJ Kinahan.βAfter a tough start for stocks in 2022, investors are looking for reasons to expect a rebound,β said Jeff Buchbinder, equity strategist for LPL Financial, in emailed comments.βAfter more than doubling off the pandemic lows in March 2020, without anything more than a 5% pullback in 2021, stocks probably needed a break,β he added. βThat doesnβt, however, make this dip feel much more comfortable.βA lot to digestInvestors also have a lot on their plate this week.Earnings season has moved on to Big Tech, including Microsoft (MSFT), IBM (IBM), Intel (INTC) and Apple (AAPL), which report results this week.Then thereβs the Fed meeting, concluding with Wednesdayβs policy statement and subsequent press conference. As of Monday morning, market expectations for this week are that the central bank will keep interest rates near zero for a little longer, according to the CME FedWatch tool. But for the next meeting, which isnβt until March, expectations of a quarter-percentage-point rate hike were near 90% Monday afternoon.Expectations are only part of the game. The Fed could also conclude that inflation has run too hot at the end of 2021 and crank up rates more β or sooner.Treasury yields, which track interest rate expectations, were off last weekβs highs Monday but inched higher in the late afternoon. The 10-year bond yielded 1.76% around the time of the close after climbing past 1.8% for the first time since before the pandemic last week.While the Fed is trying to get inflation down by normalizing its pandemic-era policies, the US economy is grappling with the fallout from the Omicron variant. Americaβs private sector output growth slowed in January as the highly infectious variant put more pressure on the already-battered supply chain and existing labor shortage, according to the IHS Markit flash composite purchasing managersβ index.Making matters worse, investors are anxiously watching the situation in Ukraine as fears mount that the country could be invaded by Russia.The news that the United States and United Kingdom are withdrawing some staff from the local embassies isnβt exactly breeding confidence the situation will resolve quickly and European stock markets are sharply lower as well.Commodities markets are feeling the pressure of the rising tensions and analysts believe oil prices could soar if the situation escalated. On Monday afternoon, however, US oil prices settled down 2.1% at $83.31 per barrel.β CNN Businessβ Julia Horowitz contributed to this report. | 04bdb3fa8cc4983d | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
us_senate | The Hill | https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/417040-mcconnell-flake-clash-over-protecting-mueller-probe | McConnell, Flake clash over protecting Mueller probe | 2018-11-16 | us_senate | Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Addison ( Mitch ) Mitchell McConnellGOP senators balk at lengthy impeachment trial Graham : Senate trial 'must expose the whistleblower ' Graham says Schiff should be a witness in Trump impeachment trial MORE ( R-Ky. ) and Sen. Jeff Flake Jeffrey ( Jeff ) Lane FlakeLindsey Graham basks in the impeachment spotlight Kelly , McSally virtually tied in Arizona Senate race : poll βββ 's 12:30 Report β Presented by Nareit β White House cheers Republicans for storming impeachment hearing MORE ( R-Ariz. ) clashed during a closed-door lunch meeting Thursday , with McConnell challenging Flake β s effort to force a vote on legislation protecting special counsel Robert Mueller Robert ( Bob ) Swan MuellerSpeier says impeachment inquiry shows 'very strong case of bribery ' by Trump Gowdy : I '100 percent ' still believe public congressional hearings are ' a circus ' Comey : Mueller 'did n't succeed in his mission because there was inadequate transparency ' MORE .
McConnell pressured Flake to back off his strategy of blocking judicial nominees in the Senate Judiciary Committee in an effort to force a vote on his bill that would protect the special counsel from being fired without good cause .
Flake , however , dug in his heels and made clear that he β s not going to budge .
McConnell was equally implacable , according to senators who witnessed the argument .
β It β s a standoff , β said a Republican senator who attended the lunch .
Their fight reflects a larger divide within the GOP conference .
Some GOP senators argue the chamber should pass legislation to protect Mueller .
Flake and Sens . Lindsey Graham Lindsey Olin GrahamGOP senators balk at lengthy impeachment trial Graham : Senate trial 'must expose the whistleblower ' Graham says Schiff should be a witness in Trump impeachment trial MORE ( R-S.C. ) and Thom Tillis Thomas ( Thom ) Roland TillisThis week : House kicks off public phase of impeachment inquiry Progressive veterans group launches campaign labeling Trump as a 'national security threat ' Trump rules out total rollback of Chinese tariffs MORE ( R-N.C. ) have co-sponsored legislation that would codify Justice Department rules requiring that a special counsel only be fired for good cause .
Critics , however , contend that there β s no danger of President Trump Donald John TrumpGOP senators balk at lengthy impeachment trial Warren goes local in race to build 2020 movement 2020 Democrats make play for veterans ' votes MORE firing Mueller and predict the bill would die in the GOP-controlled House .
The fate of the Mueller investigation became a more pressing concern to some Republican senators after Trump forced Attorney General Jeff Sessions Jefferson ( Jeff ) Beauregard SessionsSanford : 'It carries real weight ' to speak against Trump 'while in office ' Medill dean 'deeply troubled by the vicious bullying and badgering ' of student journalists Trump has considered firing official who reported whistleblower complaint to Congress : report MORE to resign immediately after the midterm elections .
He then named Matthew Whitaker , Sessions 's chief of staff and a critic of Mueller 's Russia probe , to serve as acting attorney general .
McConnell argued at the lunch meeting that the legislation would chew up precious floor time during the lame-duck session and leave less time for must-pass bills such as the unfinished spending bills and the farm bill , according to sources familiar with the conversation .
Flake , who is retiring at the end of this Congress , didn β t buy that argument .
He replied that Democrats wouldn β t object to speedy consideration of the special counsel protection bill because their entire caucus supports it , sources said .
Flake argued that the bill could be dealt with in a day as long as other members of the GOP conference didn β t object to it and force McConnell to waste time getting through a filibuster .
Some Republican senators floated the compromise of crafting some kind of nonbinding resolution that would express support for protecting Mueller and future special counsels from unjustified dismissal .
But Flake rejected that option , too . He argued that the Judiciary Committee passed the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act in April by a 14-7 vote and the Senate should act on it , instead of some nonbinding measure that hasn β t yet received committee review .
Flake , a member of the Judiciary Committee , tried to force McConnell β s hand Thursday by saying he would continue to object to moving Trump β s judicial nominees to the floor unless the special counsel protection bill gets a vote .
Asked if there β s any chance that McConnell will let Flake have a vote , Sen. John Thune John Randolph ThuneSenate GOP waves Trump off early motion to dismiss impeachment charges Trump encounters GOP resistance to investigating Hunter Biden Republicans warn election results are 'wake-up call ' for Trump MORE ( S.D . ) , who was elected Wednesday as the next Senate Republican whip , said , β I don β t think he has any intention at this point of going down that path . β
McConnell has stated repeatedly that there is no danger of Trump firing Mueller and says he supports the special counsel completing his investigation .
Flake said after the lunch that while some colleagues have tried to pressure him , others have voiced support .
Asked Thursday if fellow GOP senators are unhappy with his hardball approach to getting a vote , Flake said , β That β s a safe assumption . β
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Charles ( Chuck ) Ernest GrassleySpeaker Pelosi , it 's time to throw American innovators a lifeline Barr : Inspector general 's report on alleged FISA abuses 'imminent ' Pelosi aide hopeful White House will support drug-pricing bill despite criticism MORE ( R-Iowa ) held more than 15 judicial nominees at a committee business meeting Thursday after Flake declared he would block them .
Speaking to reporters afterward , Grassley said he didn β t think he could move any more nominees without Flake β s support unless he can convince Democrats on the panel to vote with him .
Republicans control 11 seats on the committee while the Democrats have 10 . That means if Flake votes `` no '' and Democrats stay unified , Republicans can β t report nominees with favorable nominations .
McConnell could try to bring those nominees to the floor without committee approval , but it would break precedent and undermine the panel β s role .
β That β s never been done as far as I know , β Grassley told reporters Thursday morning . β I don β t think that would be done . β
McConnell has made confirming Trump β s judicial nominees his top priority in 2018 and regularly touts how many judges the Senate has confirmed to federal appellate and district courts .
Grassley suggested on Thursday that many of the nominees pending in committee might have to wait until next year and that the Senate should focus on the 35 nominees already passed out of committee .
Sen. Cory Gardner Cory Scott GardnerTariffs threaten 1.5M jobs : Study This week : House kicks off public phase of impeachment inquiry Progressive veterans group launches campaign labeling Trump as a 'national security threat ' MORE ( R-Colo. ) predicted that McConnell would find some way through the impasse because he places so much importance on nominees .
β Mitch McConnell is a judicial nominations machine β¦ so anything that β s going to slow that down he β s obviously going to [ fix ] , β he said .
Flake says there is growing support within his conference for passing a bill to protect Mueller .
β Ultimately the pressure will build for us to bring this bill to the floor or to put it as part of the spending bill so it β s part of must-pass legislation , β he said .
Grassley , who voted for the special counsel protection bill on the committee level , said Thursday that it deserves a vote .
β It β s legitimate that the bill be brought up , β he said . β It would satisfy me if it became law because I voted for it . β
β There are some who are not on the committee who will vote for this , β he said of Senate GOP colleagues . β It will pass on the floor . β
The legislation would codify existing Justice Department regulations requiring that the special counsel can only be fired for good cause by a Senate-confirmed department official .
It would also create a 10-day window for a judge to decide whether any termination of a special counsel is for good cause and stop the firing if it fails to meet the cause requirement . | lK06EgQUVrMGjuJv | 1 | Politics | -0.8 | Jeff Flake | 0.7 | US Senate | -0.7 | Russia Probe | 0.6 | Mitch McConnell | -0.5 |
violence_in_america | Fox Online News | http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/04/cleveland-kidnapper-ariel-castro-found-hanging-in-cell/ | Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro found hanging in cell | 2013-09-04 | violence_in_america | The Cleveland man who kidnapped three women and sexually assaulted them for nearly a decade in his basement was found dead in his jail cell Tuesday night after an apparent suicide .
A statement from the Ohio Department of Corrections said Ariel Castro , 53 , was found hanging in his cell at the Correctional Reception Center in the town of Orient at 9:20 p.m. local time . After prison medical staff attempted to perform life-saving measures , Castro was transferred to The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus , where he was pronounced dead at 10:52 p.m .
Castro 's death is being investigated by the Ohio State Police and the Department of Corrections . According to the statement from the latter , Castro was being kept in protective custody , isolated from other inmates due to his high profile , and was subject to checks every 30 minutes . He was in the cell by himself when he was found . Department spokeswoman JoEllen Smith told the Associated Press that Castro was not on suicide watch , which entails constant surveillance .
An Ohio coroner confirmed reports that Castro did indeed commit suicide by hanging himself , apparently with a bed sheet , Reuters reported .
Castro 's attorneys tried unsuccessfully to have a psychological examination of Castro done at the Cuyahoga County Jail , where Castro was housed before he was turned over to state authorities following his conviction , his attorney , Jaye Schlachet , told The Associated Press early Wednesday . Schlachet said he could not immediately comment further .
Castro , a former school bus driver , was sentenced to life in prison plus 1,000 years on August 1 for kidnapping and sexually assaulting Amanda Berry , Michelle Knight , and Gina DeJesus while holding them captive in his house .
He even fathered a daughter with Berry , but was barred from seeing the child after a judge rejected his request for visitation rights as a consequence of his sentence . Investigators say the women were bound with chains , repeatedly raped and deprived of food and bathroom facilities . Knight told investigators she was beaten and starved several times to force her to miscarry .
In a rambling statement , he told the judge he was not a monster , but a man suffering from a pornography addiction , saying `` I 'm not a monster . I 'm sick . ''
Knight was the only one of the three who appeared in court at his sentencing .
`` You took 11 years of my life away , and I have got it back , '' she said in the hushed courtroom . `` I spent 11 years in hell . Now your hell is just beginning . ''
The three women were kidnapped between 2002 and 2004 . DeJesus was 14 at the time of her abduction , while Berry was 16 and Knight was 20 years old . They escaped May 6 , when one of the women broke down part of a door and yelled to neighbors for help . Castro was arrested that evening .
In an interview last month after Castro 's conviction , Schlachet and attorney Craig Weintraub said their client clearly fit the profile of sociopathic disorder and that they hoped researchers would study him for clues that could be used to stop other predators . | QEGpKeys8Hb7E4wa | 2 | Violence In America | 2.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | American Spectator | https://spectator.org/did-the-media-force-a-false-narrative-on-the-trayvon-martin-case/ | Did the Media Force a False Narrative on the Trayvon Martin Case? | media_bias | There has been widespread reporting of the civil lawsuit for $ 100 million being brought by attorney Larry Klayman on behalf of George Zimmerman , the man who shot and killed Trayvon Martin almost eight years ago . At the core of the lawsuit is the claim that the key witness against Zimmerman at his trial , Rachel Jeantel , was a fake witness pretending to be Diamond Eugene , the 16-year-old girl who was on the phone with Trayvon in the last minutes before his death . The lawsuit , based on investigative reporting by documentary producer Joel Gilbert , targets Trayvon β s parents , their lawyer Benjamin Crump , both Jeantel and the real Diamond Eugene , prosecution lawyers and the state of Florida , all of whom , according to the lawsuit , knew or should have known of the witness substitution . The Martin case had far-reaching implications , poisoning race relations and resulting in the creation ( by its own account ) of Black Lives Matter . For Klayman , setting the record straight in this case and imposing high damages β has the potential to break the back of the race-baiting industry , to set a precedent that you can β t get away with this stuff anymore . β
Not on the list , but , as Gilbert points out , β a main culprit in this story , β are the mainstream media . Zimmerman was taken into custody by the Sanford , Florida police following the shooting and released without charges . This was because their investigation found his claim that he had acted in self-defense convincing . According to Zimmerman β s story , he was a member of Neighborhood Watch in his housing complex , which had experienced a wave of robberies . He had called the non-emergency number of the police when he saw a suspicious person hanging around in the rain . He left his car briefly when he was asked in which direction the person had gone , but returned to it and did not see Trayvon Martin until the latter jumped him , broke his nose , and pummeled his head on the concrete path while he cried for help . His story was supported both by his injuries and eyewitness testimony . But the media fastened on the alternative narrative promoted by the Martin family and their attorney , Crump , of a white racist vigilante who willfully gunned down an unarmed black child buying snacks for his younger brother .
In fact , Zimmerman was Hispanic ( the media would come up with the term β white Hispanic β to deal with this uncomfortable fact ) , an Obama voter and a mentor for black troubled youth . On the other hand , Trayvon was not the 10- or 12-year-old whose picture was distributed to and by the media but 17 and over six feet tall , with a penchant for using his fists that had contributed to his being suspended from high school three times that school year .
That the state of Florida put Zimmerman on trial despite the findings of the Sanford police was due to the huge nationwide campaign , based on the alternative narrative , demanding Zimmerman be prosecuted . The pressure became irresistible when Crump suddenly emerged with a new witness . On March 19 , 2012 , three weeks after the shooting , Crump produced excerpts from a recorded phone interview he had conducted with someone he identified as Diamond Eugene , who had been on the phone with Trayvon when he died . The girl said that Trayvon told her Zimmerman followed and challenged him , initiating the altercation . CNN β s legal analyst immediately claimed that testimony β dispels the notion of self-defense . β
Bolstered by the new witness , the state set out to prosecute Zimmerman , and on April 2 , prosecutors went out to interview Diamond Eugene , whose address they obtained from Trayvon β s mother , Sybrina Fulton . On arrival , they were told Diamond was at a different address , and when they arrived there , Rachel Jeantel came forward and identified herself as Diamond Eugene .
In Gilbert β s reconstruction of events , Diamond Eugene , who only reluctantly and belatedly came forward under what Crump in a TV interview admitted was pressure from the Trayvon camp , had now balked , whether because she did not want to commit perjury under oath or because she did not want her boyfriend to know she had also been romancing Trayvon β or both . The β solution β was to substitute Rachel Jeantel , whom Gilbert believes ( on the basis of DNA evidence ) is Diamond Eugene β s half-sister , although she is poles apart in appearance and intelligence and proved a terrible witness on the stand .
The media , for all its obsession with the story , showed no interest in exploring even surface aspects that should have aroused suspicion . Crump had repeatedly emphasized that Diamond Eugene was a minor , only 16 years old . Rachel Jeantel was 18 . Nor did anyone puzzle over the oddity that someone named Rachel Jeantel should be nicknamed β Diamond Eugene. β The media are equally lazy and irresponsible this time around . Their reaction to having their narrative upended has been to bury the story , and when that has proved no longer possible , to heap scorn on it β they β ve done everything but look into it .
When Gilbert introduced his documentary and accompanying book , both entitled The Trayvon Hoax : Unmasking the Witness Fraud that Divided America , at a press conference in Washington on September 16 , 2019 , the mainstream media ignored the story . The only coverage was by a handful of conservative websites , including American Thinker , World Net Daily , and Townhall . This was despite dogged efforts by Gilbert to enlist the interest of Florida papers that had breathlessly , day by day covered the original story . The answer by each reporter , when there was a response at all , was a variation on the reply he received from the managing editor of the Miami Herald , Rick Hirsch : β Thanks for reaching out . We are going to pass. β Gilbert is nothing if not dogged , and when he followed up to ask why , he says that several reporters were frank that they were afraid to be first with the story , anticipating they would set off a social media storm that would include demands that they be fired .
Simply ignoring the story ceased to be possible when Klayman ( founder of the invaluable gadfly Judicial Watch ) filed his lawsuit demanding an attention-grabbing $ 100 million , the content of the suit closely following Gilbert β s documentary . Gilbert β s reporting was a painstakingly thorough and imaginative piece of investigative journalism . He obtained Trayvon β s telephone records ( which of course the prosecution also had ) and went through 750 pages , including thousands of tweets and photos . It was immediately apparent Rachel Jeantel could not be Diamond Eugene . Trayvon , Gilbert realized , was a social star with many female friends , whom their photos and messaging showed to be slim , trim , and smart , nothing like the slow-witted , overweight Rachel Jeantel . Finding a photo of Diamond , however , proved frustrating until Gilbert came upon tweets in which Diamond says she is at that moment sending photos of herself , and Gilbert realized that all the photos are time-stamped , so he could match the photos to the tweets . But even once he had her picture ( a pretty girl , as he had expected ) Gilbert did not have her identity , and tracking her down was a challenging task , which Gilbert describes in both his documentary and book .
While the size of the lawsuit made the story news , other methods to undercut the story β s impact came into play . Gilbert and Klayman had scheduled a press conference and showing of the film at the Coral Gables Art Cinema on December 5 . The theater abruptly canceled when , according to its co-executive director Brenda Moe , it was blasted in emails , phone calls , and a social media firestorm . ( What Moe did not say publicly , but that Gilbert says she told him , was that the mayor of Coral Gables had phoned , and city council members and their attorney were in her lobby as she spoke to him , demanding that she cancel the showing . ) No other forum willing to risk the fallout has thus far been found .
Most of the media coverage of the Klayman lawsuit has consisted of a brief statement that Zimmerman alleges witness substitution followed by Crump β s characterization of the claims as β baseless imaginings. β Crump is almost always given the last word : β I have every confidence that this unfounded and reckless lawsuit will be revealed for what it is β another failed attempt to defend the indefensible and a shameless attempt to profit off the lives and grief of others . β
When the mainstream media has gone beyond this , they have clung to the old narrative . Zimmerman remains the villain β this time for cruelly re-victimizing the grieving family . The Miami Herald concludes its editorial on the lawsuit : β We have one request of Zimmerman : Please , go away and leave Trayvon β s parents alone. β An opinion piece in the same paper by Fabiola Santiago is even more scathing : β How much more injustice can one family take ? β¦ His family is the aggrieved party in this tragedy . But George Zimmerman isn β t done being a scumbag. β In an op-ed , CNN β s legal analyst , Joey Jackson , ignores the legal issues ( a legal analyst should find a hoax witness no small matter ) . Instead , he excoriates Zimmerman : β How disgusting , distasteful and unfortunate that even nearly eight years later a young black life could mean so little to the person who took it awayβ¦ . It β s as if he β s saying : β How dare prosecutors seek to hold me accountable for taking this young man β s life β does it really matter ? β β Columnist for the Tribune chain Mary Sanchez attributes the lawsuit to Zimmerman β s bad character , β the aspect of personality that grounds intent and guides action. β ABC Nightly News , after dismissing the lawsuit out of hand as based on β the unsubstantiated claim β that there had been a fake witness , talks of β growing outrage β that it had been filed , leaving the family feeling that Zimmerman β is victimizing them again . β
What was lacking in all the mainstream media coverage was any attempt to examine the evidence Gilbert laid out β or even to look at Gilbert β s documentary or read his book . Two black professors , Glenn Loury from Brown University and John McWhorter from Columbia University , did both , and on Loury β s β Bloggingheads β TV program provided the most thoughtful coverage of the story to date . Both admit to being very uncomfortable that the source is Joel Gilbert , in Loury β s words β a right-wing journalist who makes birther-like accusations about Barack Obama , a guy who comes on the Alex Jones show , a conspiracy theorist. β And yet both agree that Gilbert β s β very meticulous case , β his β almost astonishingly diligent β investigation had totally transformed their view of the Trayvon Martin case . And both see the case ( and several other prominent racially charged cases since ) as β a terrible indictment of journalism , β which had abandoned objectivity to indulge in β a kind of cheerleading frenzy to pile on to a narrative that is evidence of either virtue signaling β¦ or just a kind of crass partisan our side versus their side and we β re gon na win . β
But what of the media argument that George Zimmerman walked free while the Martin family lost their son and should not suffer more at the hands of the man who shot him , even if in self-defense ? Klayman β s response is , β They say hasn β t this family suffered enough but they wanted to put my client in prison for life. β Moreover , despite being exonerated by the jury , in the court of public opinion Zimmerman remained guilty , pursued by the media narrative . He was β withdrawn β from the courses he was taking in criminal justice when the New Black Panthers called in a bomb threat , no one would give him a job for fear of becoming the target of an angry mob , and he was fearful of being seen in public ( a reasonable fear given that he escaped an assassination attempt by inches β the shooter was sentenced to 20 years ) . Zimmerman reacted to his pariah status by acting out , further damaging his prospects and making portraying him as a bad apple even more convincing .
Benjamin Crump , in contrast , rode to fame as a civil rights lawyer and spokesman on the Trayvon case . He obtained his cut of the large settlement for the Martin parents from the housing complex where Trayvon died . He is author of the recently published Open Season : Legalized Genocide of Colored People , in which Trayvon Martin β s death serves as a prime example of supposed β legalized genocide. β ( Along with the state of Florida , HarperCollins , Crump β s publisher , is the other deep pocket named in the Zimmerman suit , in this case for publishing what the lawsuit claims are inaccurate statements about the Martin case . ) Martin β s mother , Sybrina Fulton , became a political figure in the wake of her son β s tragic death , speaking at the Democratic convention in 2016 . She is now running for Dade County Commissioner , with Hillary Clinton drumming up campaign contributions for her . ( Gilbert points out she clearly knew Rachel Jeantel was not Diamond Eugene because she had met with Diamond and driven her home weeks before the prosecution looked for her . ) Even Rachel Jeantel profited ; her disabilities led a group of black professional women to mentor and support her .
Ironically , while the media is , as Gilbert has said , β a main culprit in this story , β it is also a victim . Its very success in creating β narratives β has led to a climate in which the media fears to depart from them . Even professors Loury and McWhorter , securely tenured and far from the typical run of media group-thinkers , were fearful . Shortly after Gilbert released the documentary , Loury says he told his viewers he and McWhorter β were going to set the world on fire about a topic that you just couldn β t believe , it was so hot . And then we weaseled out . Under the excuse it was just unspeakable , it was like something even to talk about what we couldn β t talk about would be talking too much about it. β They stepped up to the plate when the lawsuit produced a wave of coverage , even if so much of it was hostile . But Loury was quite right about the backlash . In its wake , a chastened Loury said he β listened to his viewers β and submitted to being lectured on the case on air by journalist Robert Wright , the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Bloggingheads TV .
Zimmerman β s lawsuit may not bring the answers it promises . The case could be thrown out on the basis of issues unrelated to the merits . The first test will be early in 2020 ; the lawsuit is currently being served with a request for discovery , and the opposition has 45 days to respond , doubtless with a request for dismissal . Or the case could eventually be settled out of court . This makes the role of the media all the more important . Will fear continue to triumph over willingness to scrutinize the core facts ? Will any mainline news source , any β investigative β television program , reexamine the evidence Gilbert lays out ? Will they search out new evidence ? Will any of them follow up with probing interviews of the protagonists in this drama ? The Trayvon Martin case became a match that ignited race relations , making it important to know if those involved deceived the court and the public . And because Gilbert brings baggage that allows the media , however unfairly , automatically to discredit his work , it is all the more vital that mainstream media do the necessary due diligence to ascertain the truth . As Loury said in his original broadcast on Gilbert β s documentary , β If you want to make a real moral argument that has political effect in this country , you can β t base it upon hoaxes , lies , and ruses . β | 4BIZZ1hiDqltF1ZI | 2 | Media Industry | -0.8 | Trayvon Martin | -0.3 | Race And Racism | 0.3 | George Zimmerman | -0.3 | Journalism | 0 | |
healthcare | Townhall | http://townhall.com/tipsheet/sarahjeanseman/2013/11/04/the-pressure-is-on-obamacare-site-to-go-down-every-night-for-repairs-privacy-concerns-n1735642 | The Pressure is On: Obamacare Site to Go Down Every Night for Repairs, New Privacy Concerns | 2013-11-04 | healthcare | One day after the Health Insurance Marketplace closed for its longest maintenance work yet , the government announced the Obamacare website will be unavailable to applicants every night β with additional down times to be determined .
`` The Health Insurance Marketplace online application is n't available from approximately 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. EST daily while we make improvements . Additional down times may be possible as we work to make things better . The rest of the site and the Marketplace call center remain available during these hours . ''
The pressure to mend the failing system is on . President Obama selected former CEO Jeffrey Zients , now a White House economics advisor , to head a β tech surge β to repair the site . The team is confident it will have the site running smoothly for the β vast majority of users β by the end of November .
Some argue the site should not be operating at all until all technical bugs have been squashed .
β It 's pretty clear I think to those of us that have been watching this roll out that the technological base was not sufficientβ¦.I said this directly to the president 's chief of staff , they ought to take down the website until it was right , β Senator Dianne Feinstein ( D-CA . ) said on CBS β Face the Nation Sunday .
Republican Representative Mike Rogers ( R-MI . ) expressed similar sentiments to CBS :
β Here 's the problem . They 're trying to change a tire on a car going 75 miles an hour down the expressway . That 's not the way cyber security works . And unfortunately , both Diane and I both know the real threats to these systems when you have nation states , organized crime groups and criminals trying to get information that is now available on these websites . They need to take the site down , stabilize it -- meaning they ca n't continue to add codeβ¦ β
Security seems to be a growing concern . Insurance companies have already reported flawed incoming enrollment data such as duplicate forms , missing fields and spouses listed as children .
Additionally , a security breach was disclosed this week by a man from North Carolina . As reported by the Heritage Foundation :
Justin Hadley logged on to HealthCare.gov to evaluate his insurance options after his health plan was canceled . What he discovered was an apparent security flaw that disclosed eligibility letters addressed to individuals from another state . β I was in complete shock , β said Hadley , who contacted Heritage after becoming alarmed at the breach of privacy .
The government is taking liberties with personal information in a way that private corporations would never dare , according to Rep. Rogers :
β Amazon would never do this . ProFlowers would never do this . Kayak would never do this . This is completely an unacceptable level of security . β
Questionably unsafe and indisputably glitch-laden , HealthCare.gov has already consumed over $ 500 million in taxpayer money β how many more resources must it be fed before it β s secure and operating ? | 0LLsU188glBD55OA | 2 | Obamacare | -1.3 | Healthcare | -0.6 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | BBC News | http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41796255 | Trump rages on Twitter at Clinton and Russia inquiry 'witch hunt' | 2017-10-29 | Presidential Elections, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Russia Probe, Elections | US President Donald Trump has launched a Twitter tirade about the `` guilt '' of Hillary Clinton and the opposition Democratic Party .
His Sunday morning outburst came amid reports that the first arrest in the Russian collusion inquiry would be made this week , possibly as early as Monday .
Mr Trump insisted allegations of collusion between his campaign and Russia were `` phony '' and a `` witch hunt '' .
He said Republicans were united behind him , before urging : `` DO SOMETHING ! ''
Media reports say the first charges have been filed in the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election to assist Mr Trump .
It is not clear what the charges are and whom they are targeting , CNN and Reuters report , quoting unnamed sources .
Mr Trump issued a series of four tweets on Sunday morning :
`` Never seen such Republican ANGER & UNITY as I have concerning the lack of investigation on Clinton made Fake Dossier ( now $ 12,000,000 ? ) , ....
`` ... the Uranium to Russia deal , the 33,000 plus deleted Emails , the Comey fix and so much more . Instead they look at phony Trump/Russia , ....
`` ... 'collusion , ' which does n't exist . The Dems are using this terrible ( and bad for our country ) Witch Hunt for evil politics , but the R 's ...
`` ... are now fighting back like never before . There is so much GUILT by Democrats/Clinton , and now the facts are pouring out . DO SOMETHING ! ''
About an hour later he tweeted : `` All of this 'Russia ' talk right when the Republicans are making their big push for historic Tax Cuts & Reform . Is this coincidental ? NOT ! ''
Critics on Twitter were quick to accuse him of attempting to divert attention from the Russian investigation by complaining about the lack of focus on an opponent he defeated in the presidential election nearly a year ago .
US intelligence agencies have already concluded that the Russian government sought to help Mr Trump win the election .
Mr Mueller 's investigation is looking into any links between Russia and the Trump campaign . Both deny there was any collusion .
His team is known to have conducted extensive interviews with several current and former White House officials .
Mr Mueller , a former FBI director , was appointed by the department of justice as special counsel in May shortly after Mr Trump fired FBI director James Comey .
Mr Trump said on Friday that it was now `` commonly agreed '' that there was no collusion between him and Russia but said that there were links between Moscow and Mrs Clinton .
Republican lawmakers have said that a uranium deal with a Russian company in 2010 , when Mrs Clinton was secretary of state , was sealed in exchange for donations to her husband 's charity .
A Congressional investigation has been opened into the case . Democrats say it is an attempt to divert attention from the alleged ties between Russia and Mr Trump . | 441a6f80f9ec2aef | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Politico | http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/83537.html?hp=t1_3 | Republicans ponder painful way forward | 2012-11-08 | elections | Few Republicans expected the president to win in an Electoral College blowout . Republicans ponder way forward
Republicans found themselves gazing into an electoral abyss Wednesday , registering the full impact of a 2012 election that exposed crippling weaknesses in the party β s political infrastructure and demographic appeal .
The takeaway among party leaders was virtually unanimous : The GOP faces a years-long challenge of reaching out to Americans beyond its predominantly white , male base and updating a voter turnout machine that β s woefully out of date .
Exactly how to do that is a tougher question , Republicans acknowledged . In any case , there β s broad agreement that it will take national leadership from a charismatic politician β Florida Sen. Marco Rubio β s name came up repeatedly β to begin the process of bouncing back .
Only a revived national party β currently a fractured institution , with power divided between traditional organizations like the Republican National Committee , the two chambers of Congress and a host of separately funded outside groups β can address the structural problems that doomed Republicans Tuesday night , GOP leaders said .
β It β s a wake-up call . It β s a wake-up call , β Ohio Sen . Rob Portman said of the party β s trouncing this week .
West Virginia Rep. Shelley Moore Capito , who β s considering a Senate bid in 2014 , said Republicans had to confront the reality that they β re β not diversified like the country β and risked losing women voters and minorities in future cycles .
β It β s a broader issue than women just being concerned about abortion . There β s a concern that people in the Republican Party want to intervene in the choices women have , β Capito said . β The candidates reflect the predominant members of our party . If we β re going to be a party of a big tent , we can β t keep leaving people out . We β re not diversified like the country . β
She cited her 27-year-old daughter , saying that women that age just don β t accept β any limitation of their choices . β
And Virginia Lt. Gov . Bill Bolling , Mitt Romney β s state chairman in the Old Dominion and a candidate for governor in 2013 , acknowledged that Republican β voter identification and mobilization β¦ didn β t produce the kind of results that we thought it would produce . β
β We did not get the voter turnout that we anticipated getting , β Bolling said . β We have got to do a better job reaching out to women , to Latinos , to young voters . And if we don β t do that , we β re going to have a hard time winning elections on a national level . β
What began on election night as a sense of shock β Republicans recognized Barack Obama might win reelection , but few expected an Electoral College blowout β deepened into something more depressive on Wednesday as the sweep of the party β s defeat became clear . | z8WJ28FWVDKSZPDL | 0 | Election2012 | -0.6 | Presidential Elections | -0.6 | Elections | -0.6 | null | null | null | null |
federal_budget | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2013/03/president-obamas-shuttle-diplomacy-88719.html?hp=t1 | Is President Obama serious about a grand bargain? | 2013-03-12 | federal_budget | If Obama fails to hit the right notes , his overtures may only worsen GOP concerns . Is Obama serious ?
President Barack Obama β s unusual tour of Capitol Hill this week could answer a central question dogging his renewed effort to strike a grand bargain on deficit reduction :
Starting Tuesday , Obama will shuttle between basement House meeting rooms and ornate Senate parlors , giving Republicans and Democrats a rare opportunity over three days to press him directly on how far he β s willing to go on taxes and entitlements to complete a comprehensive deal β a major piece of unfinished business from his first term .
The shuttle diplomacy is a new tactic for the president , who kept his distance from Congress for most of his presidency . He seems to believe that if he looks Republicans in the eye and explains his plan , they will think he sincerely wants a big deal to contain the deficit and honestly wants to tackle the big problems , despite the large policy gulf between them .
Obama allies say that the president might be able to convert a few Republicans if he listens to their concerns , and gives them consideration . But the differences between the two parties aren β t surface-level issues that can be smoothed over by coddling . They are deep and defining principles . If Obama fails to hit the right notes , his overtures may only exacerbate GOP concerns .
This week β s meetings could begin easing the tense Obama-GOP relationship , fractured by years of failed entreaties , miscommunication , scorched-earth campaign tactics and deep ideological differences .
But the expectations for both a sustainable civil alliance and a grand bargain remain low for one very simple reason : The parties are further apart on taxes and entitlements than they were in 2011 when Obama and House Speaker John Boehner ( R-Ohio ) first entered into talks and came close to striking the ever-elusive grand bargain .
Take tax reform β something both sides want . Obama says an overhaul of the Tax Code should include new revenue to help pay down the national debt and offset spending cuts . But Republicans , still sour over agreeing to $ 600 billion in tax rate hikes as part of the fiscal cliff deal , are more adamant than ever that tax reform not raise a dime of new revenue .
Congressional Democratic leaders are firmly opposed to entitlement changes such as raising the Medicare eligibility age and restructuring Social Security β both just a starting point for Republicans in a negotiation . Obama is somewhere in the middle , willing to go further than his party on entitlements if he gets enough in return from Republicans on taxes . How far , however , is unclear . | CEBTHZYEQ63uJOt9 | 0 | Federal Budget | -0.2 | Economy And Jobs | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | Fox Business | https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/uaw-strike-spreads-more-gm-stellantis-facilities-ford-spared-amid-progress-talks | UAW strike spreads to more GM, Stellantis facilities, Ford spared amid progress in talks | 2023-09-22 | Economy And Jobs, United Auto Workers, Strikes, Labor, Auto Industry | The United Auto Workers (UAW) union on Friday broadened its strike against General Motors and Stellantis citing a lack of progress in negotiations, although the union spared Ford from new strike activity after the two sides agreed on some provisions in their talks.UAW President Shawn Fain said that union members will go on strike at all the parts distribution facilities for GM and Stellantis, the parent company of brands like Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram. The new strike activity covers 38 locations across 20 states in all nine of the UAWβs regions and will affect approximately 5,600 union members, which brings the number of UAW workers on strike to roughly 18,600."Both GM and Stellantis have rejected our profit-sharing proposals and both companies have rejected our proposals to convert temps. So today at noon Eastern time, all of the parts distribution centers at General Motors and Stellantis are being called to stand up and strike," Fain said. The union is seeking pay raises amounting to 40% over a new four-year contract in addition to expanded benefits and other provisions, while the automakersβ pay offers have been closer to 20% with an immediate 10% increase.UAW STRIKE AGAINST DETROIT BIG THREE AUTOMAKERS COULD EXPANDThe UAW is running what it calls a "stand up strike" in which some of the unionβs locals are asked to go on strike incrementally as the union sees fit to ratchet up the leverage on the auto companies. The unionβs leaders believe that gives them flexibility in escalating the strike as needed up to a potential nationwide strike."Stellantis and GM in particular are going to need some serious pushing," Fain said.Ticker Security Last Change Change % F FORD MOTOR CO. 9.59 +0.04 +0.47% GM GENERAL MOTORS CO. 44.22 -1.69 -3.68% STLA STELLANTIS NV 9.72 -0.49 -4.80%GM countered in a statement calling the UAW's escalation of the strike "unnecessary" and adding, "The decision to strike an additional 18 of our facilities, affecting more than 3,000 team members plus their families and communities, adds validity to the blueprint identified in last nightβs leaked texts β that the UAW leadership is manipulating the bargaining process for their own personal agendas.""We have contingency plans for various scenarios and are prepared to do what is best for our business, our customers, and our dealers," GM's statement continued. "We have now presented five separate economic proposals that are historic, addressing areas that our team members have said matters most: wage increases and job security while allowing GM to succeed and thrive into the future. We will continue to bargain in good faith with the union to reach an agreement as quickly as possible."LAYOFFS, WORK STOPPAGES MOUNT IN UAW STRIKE AGAINST BIG THREEStellantis said in a statement, "Following yesterday's publication of comments made by the UAW's Communications Director and the subsequent strike announcement, we question whether the union's leadership has ever had an interest in reaching an agreement in a timely manner. They seem more concerned about pursuing their own political agendas than negotiating in the best interests of our employees and the sustainability of our U.S. operations given the market's fierce competition.""The fact is, we made a very competitive offer yesterday that includes all our current full-time hourly employees earning between $80,000 and $96,000 a year by the end of the contract (a 21.4% compounded increase); a long-term solution for Belvidere; and, significant product allocation that allows for workforce stability through the end of the contract. And yet, we still have not received a response to that offer. We look forward to the UAW leadership's productive engagement so that we can bargain in good faith to reach an agreement that will protect the competitiveness of our Company and our ability to continue providing good jobs," the company added.The UAWβs broadened strike activity does not apply to any Ford facilities , as Fain cited "real progress" in negotiations with the company, but noted, "We have more work ahead of us before we can reach an agreement." Among the concessions he said the UAW has secured are the reinstatement of a cost-of-living allowance, conversion of all current temps, plus additional income security for workers in the event of a layoff that includes up to two years of healthcare."Ford is working diligently with the UAW to reach a deal that rewards our workforce and enables Ford to invest in a vibrant and growing future," Ford said in a statement. "Although we are making progress in some areas, we still have significant gaps to close on the key economic issues. In the end, the issues are interconnected and must work within an overall agreement that supports our mutual success."TESLA COULD BE A WINNER IN THE UAW STRIKE AGAINST DETROITβS BIG THREEFain went on to call for President Biden to join the UAW workers on the picket line and said, "We invite and encourage everyone who supports our cause to join us on the picket line from our friends and families all the way up to the President of the United States."Biden expressed support for the UAWβs strike and has considered sending administration officials to help facilitate talks without mediating, although he has not done so yet. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Thursday that "we appreciate the fact that they are still at the negotiating table having this conversation. It is important that we result in a win-win agreement."GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERETemporary layoffs and work stoppages have mounted at the Big Three since the strike began on Sept. 15. Parts shortages stemming from facilities where workers have gone on strike have had a spillover effect, causing other facilities to idle as they run out of necessary parts or storage space.FOX Businessβ Philip Bodinet contributed to this report.This is a developing story and may be updated. Please check back for updates. | 78a7898e37f1a747 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
banking_and_finance | MarketWatch | https://www.marketwatch.com/story/americans-spent-their-stimulus-checks-on-discretionary-goods-such-as-bikes-video-games-and-clothes-target-and-walmart-ceos-say-2020-05-20 | Americans use their $1,200 stimulus checks to splurge at Walmart, Target and Best Buy β hereβs what theyβre buying | 2020-05-20 | banking_and_finance | While many Americans have used their stimulus checks to cover basic needs such as groceries , mortgage or rent , there β s evidence people are also spending the money on non-essentials including electronics , clothes and toys , according to major retailers .
β Call it relief spending , as it was heavily influenced by stimulus dollars , leading to sales increases in categories such as apparel , televisions , video games , sporting goods and toys , β Walmart WMT , +0.06 % Chief Executive Doug McMillon said during the company β s earnings call Tuesday .
Target TGT , -1.13 % , BJ β s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc. BJ , -2.03 % and Best Buy Co. BBY , +4.62 % also saw increased consumer demand for discretionary goods in mid-April as the stimulus payments from the $ 2.2-trillion CARES Act flowed into Americans β bank accounts , the companies β CEOs said this week . Apple AAPL , +0.25 % saw an uptick in demand for its products β across the board , β CEO Tim Cook said April 30 .
Related : Best Buy β s stock rises after profit , revenue and same-store sales fall less than expected
β At Walmart and Target , shoppers bought more TVs , electronics , gaming equipment and apparel . Walmart also saw more demand for adult-sized bikes . β
At Walmart , Target , shoppers bought more TVs , electronics , gaming equipment and apparel . Walmart also saw increased demand for adult-sized bikes .
BJ β s CEO Lee Delaney told investors on Thursday that the company saw β relatively significant growth β in discretionary categories , including electronics and TVs .
β We would imagine that there is certainly an impact from stimulus checks that are impacting the business , β Delaney said . β But I think it β s right to assume there is some benefit flowing through from stimulus checks in the business . β
( BJ β s did not respond to a request for a further comment . )
At Best Buy , customers used their stimulus checks to buy computing and gaming equipment , Corie Barry , the company β s CEO , said on it Thursday earnings call .
β Like many other retailers , we saw sales benefit during the last three weeks of the quarter as customers undoubtedly chose to spend some of their government stimulus money on the products and services we provide , β Barry said .
( Best Buy did not respond to a request for a further comment . )
The different phases of the pandemic have shaped shoppers β choices . As stay-at-home orders were enacted across the country , β parents became teachers , β McMillon said on Walmart β s earnings call . β Adult bicycles started selling out , as parents started to join the kids . An overlapping trend then started emerging related to DIY and home-related activities . β
Consumers also bought sewing machines and bandanas to make their own face masks , he said .
Sales took off in mid-April when many Americans began to receive their $ 1,200 stimulus checks . Within 10 days of receiving their stimulus checks , households spent around one quarter to one third of it , research shows .
See also : Walmart spent nearly $ 900 million on the coronavirus in Q1 and says it β s a β reasonable assumption β that they β ll spend that much in Q2
Before the checks were issued on April 15 , there was β not as much demand β for discretionary goods at Walmart , said spokesman Randy Hargrove , adding that sales increased β towards the end of the quarter . β
Target Corp. also experienced β a rapid increase in traffic and sales β for discretionary goods driven by the distribution of stimulus checks , CEO Brian Cornell said on the company β s Wednesday earnings call . β We certainly saw an uptick as we reported starting on April 15 , as those checks arrived across America , β Cornell said on the company β s call .
β Before the checks were issued on April 15 , there was β not as much demand β for discretionary goods at Walmart , said spokesman Randy Hargrove β
Customers , he said , are β still seeing the benefits of the stimulus check. β People are shopping across all categories including apparel , which has been especially hard hit by the coronavirus-driven economic downturn .
( Costco COST , +0.99 % declined to comment on whether it has experienced the same trend in sales related to stimulus payments . )
iPhone maker Apple also saw sales increase after stimulus payments went out , Cook said on the company β s April 30 earnings call . β A part of it is due to just our new products , β Cook said . But another part of it is also β due to the stimulus programs taking effect in April. β ( Apple did not respond to βββ β s request for a further comment . )
Unlike Target and Walmart , which have remained open during the coronavirus outbreak and can sell apparel in-stores , β non-esential β clothing retailers including Gap GAP , +8.84 % , Nordstrom NRD , +2.77 % and Nike NKE , +3.49 % have been forced to close many stores across the country . As a result , retailers in the apparel industry have offered consumers online deals comparable to Cyber Monday .
Still , many Americans have used their stimulus checks to stock up on essentials . That β s especially true for those who received their checks in the first wave of stimulus payments , said Stuart Sopp , CEO and founder of Current , a New York City-based mobile-banking startup .
In mid-April when payments were initially distributed , β most people immediately spent on groceries , β said Sopp . Many Current members , he said , also took cash out of ATMs to β pay friends back and pay their bills. β He added , β People were struggling for basic life essentials and the stimulus payments really helped them , which I think is what it was all about . β
In the next wave of payments , which occurred towards the end of April , more people used the funds β for everyday means , β Sopp said . That included ordering more food delivery and takeout , and gas .
The $ 3 trillion coronavirus aid package the House of Representatives passed last week , dubbed the HEROS Act , calls for a second round of stimulus checks . President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated that they are in no rush to sign the relief package to law . Trump has shown support for a second round of stimulus checks .
If people do end up receiving a second stimulus check , Sopp predicts most will use the money for the same purposes .
Best Buy β s Barry said Thursday that β the impact of current to potential future government stimulus actions β is something the company will keep an eye on β for the remainder of the year . β | aaTmu39ZfMCUHfBq | 2 | Economy And Jobs | 0.5 | Economic Policy | 0.5 | Coronavirus | 0.5 | Life During Covid-19 | 0.3 | null | null |
politics | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/06/07/trump-fox-news-says-pelosi-disgrace-after-her-prison-remark/1378052001/ | Trump calls Nancy Pelosi 'nasty, vindictive, horrible person,' after prison remark | 2019-06-07 | politics | President Donald Trump called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi a `` nasty , vindictive , horrible person '' after reports leaked that she told her caucus she did n't want to impeach the president , but rather `` see him in prison . ''
Speaking to Fox News ' Laura Ingraham on Thursday in Normandy , France amid D-Day commemorations , Trump responded to her remark , which was reported by the Washington Post and Politico .
`` I think she 's a disgrace . I actually do n't think she 's a talented person , '' the president said . `` I 've tried to be nice to her because I would have liked to have gotten some deals done . She 's incapable of doing deals . She 's a nasty , vindictive , horrible person . ''
The reports say Pelosi , a California Democrat , told congressional colleagues tasked with investigating the president 's business and finances , among other inquiries , that β I don β t want to see him impeached , I want to see him in prison . '' Pelosi has tried to stave off calls from Democrats to begin an impeachment inquiry against Trump .
Harry Reid : Former senator changes opinion , says House should open Trump impeachment inquiry
When reached by βββ , Ashley Etienne , a Pelosi spokesperson , would not confirm or deny the remarks but said in a statement that `` Speaker Pelosi and the Chairs had a productive meeting about the state of play with the Mueller report . They agreed to keep all options on the table and continue to move forward with an aggressive hearing and legislative strategy , as early as next week , to address the president β s corruption and abuses of power uncovered in the report . β
`` It 's the most disgusting thing what she 's allowed to happen to her district , with needles , with drug addicts with people living in the middle of the streets , with people living in the sidewalks , '' he said . `` She ought to focus on that because she 's a disaster . ''
Pelosi , who also attended the ceremony in Normandy , refused to get drawn in , telling reporters : β I don β t talk about the president while I β m out of the country . That β s my principle . '' | nQI8wwwYc0JiayQh | 1 | Nancy Pelosi | -0.9 | Donald Trump | -0.8 | Politics | 0 | null | null | null | null |
world | NPR Online News | http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/04/16/524234564/historic-referendum-in-turkey-grants-more-power-to-president | Historic Referendum In Turkey Grants More Power To President | 2017-04-16 | world | Turkey 's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim declared victory in the referendum bid to convert Turkey from a parliamentary to a strong president system of government .
The historic referendum , which passed by a narrow margin , grants more power to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan , who promised when he was elected in 2014 to be a `` different kind of president . ''
But even as Erdogan 's supporters set off fireworks to celebrate their victory , Turkey 's main opposition party said they will challenge many of the votes .
Erdogan said he hopes the referendum results would benefit Turkey , and that the nation made a `` historic decision , '' in an address after Yildirim 's declaration .
The vote has divided Turkey , with supporters claiming the change will bring stability and efficiency to the government , while opponents have said that the move is a dangerous step toward one-man rule . Under the changes , President Erdogan could stay in power through 2029 .
As NPR 's Peter Kenyon reported in a preview , `` the vote comes at a perilous time . ''
`` Turkey remains under a state of emergency declared last July , following a failed coup that left nearly 300 people dead . The Erdogan government has used the emergency powers to conduct a sweeping purge of the military , judiciary and civil service . More than 100,000 people have been fired or arrested , including more than 100 journalists . ''
The opposition to the referendum said it 's been difficult to run an effective campaign in this environment of fear and sweeping arrests . The AP reports that supporters of the `` yes '' vote have dominated the airwaves , while supporters of the `` no '' vote have complained of intimidation .
Under the new system , power will be concentrated under the president , who was previously head of state , but not head of government . President Erdogan has taken a more active role than his predecessors , but until the referendum the Prime Minister remained the chief executive .
The new system will no longer require the president to be nonpartisan , so Erdogan can rejoin the party he co-founded , and have increased influence over who runs for Parliament . Critics say there 's also a loophole in the new laws that could allow Erdogan to run for a third term . The prime minister role will also be done away with after the next election in 2019 .
NPR 's Peter Kenyon has reported that there is one change pro-democracy groups are applauding though β the end of military courts .
But many also fear that the new system will endanger democracy in Turkey β a key U.S. ally and NATO member . | q1kiBs1vM6hQCqag | 1 | Turkey | -0.1 | World | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | USA TODAY | http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/10/16/interior-no-more-new-arctic-oil-leases-remainder-obamas-presidency/74083734/ | Interior: No more new Arctic oil leases for remainder of Obama's presidency | 2015-10-16 | white_house | WASHINGTON β The Obama administration is canceling its plans to sell oil drilling rights in the Arctic Sea through 2017 , a remarkable turnaround since expanding drilling by approving new drilling permits for Shell Oil earlier this year .
But Royal Dutch Shell 's decision last month to suspend its oil exploration in offshore Alaskan waters β citing disappointing results from a well in the Chukchi Sea β prompted the Interior Department to cancel further oil leases .
β In light of Shell β s announcement , the amount of acreage already under lease and current market conditions , it does not make sense to prepare for lease sales in the Arctic in the next year and a half , β said Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell .
The Obama administration came under fire from environmental groups after approving permits for Shell to drill even as President Obama was embarking on a three-day trip to Alaska to highlight the effects of climate change in the Arctic . Those same groups applauded Friday 's move , with the Natural Resources Defense Council calling it `` an essential reprieve '' for Arctic Waters .
`` The next step should be to take Arctic and Atlantic waters off the table to oil and gas drilling for good , '' said NRDC 's Franz Matzner .
Also Friday , the department also denied requests by Shell and the Norwegian company Statoil to extend existing years beyond 10 years . Both companies had asked for five-year extensions , arguing that they should have more time because regulations had prevented them from exploring for oil . Without those extensions , the leases will expire by 2020 .
Sen. Lisa Murkowski , R-Alaska , said the decision was `` absurd . '' The Interior Department is throwing up regulatory roadblocks to prevent drilling , she said β and then using the lack of drilling to justify canceling the lease sales .
β This is a stunning , short-sighted move that betrays the Interior Department β s commitments to Alaska and the best interests of our nation β s long-term energy security , '' said Murkowski , who chairs the Senate Energy Committee . `` Today β s decision is the latest in a destructive pattern of hostility toward energy production in our state that began the first day this administration took office , and continued ever since . '' | L8R1Sjt9dIUP0aiZ | 1 | White House | -0.2 | Politics | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Politico | http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/83305.html?hp=t2_s | The looming GOP civil war -- whether Mitt wins or not | 2012-11-05 | elections | Whether or not Mitt Romney wins , his party must confront its demographic crisis . The looming GOP civil war
WEST CHESTER , Ohio β Mitt Romney β s boisterous rally here Friday night featured both the promise of the Republican Party β s future and a sharp reminder of why the GOP may lose its second consecutive presidential race on Tuesday .
The scene in this Cincinnati suburb also set the stage for the party β s coming inner struggle to define itself no matter this cycle β s outcome .
A cadre of young and diverse Republican officials took the stage to speak before Romney . Florida Sen. Marco Rubio , Louisiana Gov . Bobby Jindal and New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte each made the case for their nominee and offered a reminder of the strength of the GOP β s bench .
But they did so before a crowd that was nearly all-white and their appearances were sandwiched in between slashing speeches from a familiar roster of older white males like Rudy Giuliani , who took it upon himself to demand that President Barack Obama resign over the Benghazi attacks .
Regardless of whether Romney wins or loses , Republicans must move to confront its demographic crisis . The GOP coalition is undergirded by a shrinking population of older white conservative men from the countryside , while the Democrats rely on an ascendant bloc of minorities , moderate women and culturally tolerant young voters in cities and suburbs . This is why , in every election , since 1992 , Democrats have either won the White House or fallen a single state short of the presidency .
β If we lose this election there is only one explanation β demographics , β said Sen. Lindsey Graham ( R-S.C. ) .
But Republicans are divided on the way forward . Its base is growing more conservative , nominating and at times electing purists while the country is becoming more center than center-right . Practical-minded party elites want to pass a comprehensive immigration bill , de-emphasize issues like contraception and abortion and move on a major taxes-and-spending deal that includes some method of raising new revenue .
But many rank-and-file Republicans in Congress and grass-roots activists won β t sanction amnesty for undocumented immigrants , are determined to advance restrictions on abortion and have no appetite for any compromise with Democrats on fiscal issues . And that doesn β t even get at the growing cleavage on foreign policy in the GOP between the party β s hawkish wing and the rising voices who prefer a more restrained role abroad .
There β s not much of a moderate wing left in the GOP , but the pragmatism versus purity battle that looms on the horizon could be as fierce as Republicans have seen since the Goldwaterites sought to wrest control of the party in the 1960s .
Now , as then , the establishment is made up mostly of older pragmatists , such as Romney , House Speaker John Boehner and former Florida Gov . Jeb Bush . And it β s the younger β Red Dawn Republicans , β like Jindal and likely Texas senator to-be Ted Cruz , who are the true believers . | iskjXoDSeiyHVN9S | 0 | Republican Party | -0.5 | Barack Obama | 0.5 | Election2012 | 0 | Mitt Romney | 0 | Presidential Elections | 0 |
state_department | Christian Science Monitor | http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Foreign-Policy/2015/0813/US-flag-to-be-raised-in-Cuba-How-much-real-change-is-coming-to-the-country-video | US flag to be raised in Cuba: How much real change is coming to the country? | 2015-08-13 | state_department | When Secretary of State John Kerry raises the Stars and Stripes over the reopened US Embassy in Havana Friday , there will no longer be a menacing billboard blaring an anti-imperialist message from across the street .
And no longer will Cuban security authorities be taking down the name of every Cuban citizen entering the American diplomatic mission β as happened for years until the two long-estranged governments reopened their respective embassies last month .
But as symbolically significant as Friday β s ceremony along Havana β s waterfront MalecΓ³n will be β it will be the first visit to Cuba by a secretary of State since 1945 β it remains unclear how much real change the warm-up in US-Cuba relations will bring .
For both bilateral government relations and the Cuban people , experts in US-Cuba relations predict change will occur , but will be slow .
β Cuba is changing , but that change is not happening fast enough . Cuba needs to speed up the process of change , β says Carlos Saladrigas , chairman of the Cuba Study Group , an organization of Cuban-Americans supporting President Obama β s opening to Cuba .
Change , he says , will be slowed by drags on the process both from inside Cuba and from the United States . The US embargo , which can be lifted only by Congress , will continue to act as a brake on change , he says , even as the Cuban government β s fears of losing control of the country β s political and economic evolution join in slowing things down .
β Cuba can not change as long as the embargo is in force , β says Mr. Saladrigas , who blames the trade impediment for limiting the ability of US businesses to interact with Cubans and encourage their entrepreneurial spirit .
He also blames a timid and wary Cuban government for the slow pace of change . Noting that the communist government β s much-ballyhooed list of allowed private-sector self-employment activities has not changed in four years , he says , β That β s been a disappointment .... You can not ignite an economy by going so slow . β
Evidence that the US also intends to go slow in pressing for change in Cuba could be found in Friday β s agenda .
Secretary Kerry β s day in Havana is expected to be heavy on symbolism yet cautious in terms of its political engagement with Cubans . The US has not invited to Friday β s flag-raising ceremony any of the political dissidents it has worked with for years to foster political change in Cuba , State Department officials confirmed Wednesday .
In interviews this week , Kerry characterized the ceremony as a β government-to-government β affair that wouldn β t have the space to accommodate everyone . He said he would meet later in the day with dissidents and human rights groups .
Kerry is now expected to hold a separate flag-raising ceremony with human rights advocates and other representatives of Cuban civil society at the residence of the Embassy β s chief of mission .
State Department officials said the two-ceremony solution would avoid the prospect of Cuban government officials boycotting the Embassy ceremony β a slap that would have gotten reestablished relations off to a sour start .
But critics of Mr. Obama β s normalization of relations with Cuba quickly jumped on the relegation of dissidents to a side ceremony as further proof of what they see as the administration β s willingness to bend over backward to meet Cuban government demands .
β Cuban dissidents are the legitimate representatives of the Cuban people and it is they who deserve America β s red carpet treatment , not Castro regime officials , β Republican presidential candidate and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio said in a statement Wednesday . He called Kerry β s arrangement for a separate low-key meeting with dissidents a β slap in the face β to Cuba β s democracy advocates .
The sanitized guest list at the Embassy β s flag-raising ceremony may ensure attendance by high-level Cuban officials , but that does not mean the Cuban government has gotten over its suspicions of US intentions , say some Cuban experts close to the government β s thinking .
A sizable share of the Cuban government and political elite suspects that the heralded Obama opening to Cuba is really only a β change in tactics , β says Carlos Alzugaray Treto , a professor at the University of Havana β s Center for Hemispheric and United States Studies .
The fear is that the new US approach to Cuba is still about β regime change , β he says , only now it β s in seductive clothing . β Politically it β s like the Roberta Flack song , it β s β Killing me softly with [ your ] song , β β says Professor Alzugaray , who like Saladrigas spoke Thursday on a conference call arranged by the Wilson Center in Washington .
The mantra for that part of the government is , β We can not trust these guys , β Alzugaray says . Reinforcing that sector β s skepticism is a continuation of what the former Cuban diplomat calls β subversive policies towards Cuba , β including US government TV and radio broadcasts into Cuba , the US military base on Cuban territory at GuantΓ‘namo , and especially the embargo .
β The embargo is the symbol of the regime-change policy of the US towards Cuba , β he says .
Still , Alzugaray says change is coming to Cuba , nudged forward by more than just the normalization of relations with the US . Other β big change elements β at work , he says , are a continuing transition to a new economic model and the country β s β generational transition β β from the generation of the revolution to a much younger generation .
Those forces will also usher in new pressures for political change and an β expansion of the democratic bases of Cuban society , β Alzugaray says .
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But those pressures for change will continue to be restrained by the decades-old β siege mentality β in Cuba engendered by the US trade embargo . So his advice to Americans who want to see change in Cuba ? Lift the embargo .
β If you lift that , β he says , β there will be more stimulus for a debate in Cuba . β | i5mGrYXWrCd6L5Sl | 1 | State Department | 0 | Politics | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
labor | The Boston Globe | http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2014/08/11/market-basket-workers-squeeze-company-reversing-years-labor-defeats/qUQq5YgaBAKx0GdvZvs0jN/story.html | Market Basket a rare case in labor world | 2014-08-11 | labor | The job actions at Market Basket demonstrate the power and voice that employees can have when they unite for a cause , but the high-profile drama is a highly unusual case in labor relations , specialists said . It may be difficult , they add , to draw many conclusions for other workers across the country who are struggling for better wages , working conditions , and benefits .
In one of the highest-profile worker movements in years β and in one of the most union-friendly states in the country β organized labor is on the sidelines .
Market Basket workers don β t have a union . But they achieved in three weeks what few unions have accomplished in recent years : They stood up to their multibillion-dollar employer , won local and national sympathy for their struggle , and stayed united .
β It β s a very , very special case , β said Ron Seeber , a Cornell University professor of industrial and labor relations . β It β s hard to imagine this happening in many other settings . β
Analysts also note Market Basket employees have not achieved their central demand : the restoration of their ousted boss , Arthur T. Demoulas , as president of the company .
As the walkout stretches into its fourth week , the financial risks and pressures on workers and the broader movement only intensify .
The decision last week to cut back hours for part-time employees β and consequently , their paychecks β could open fissures between part-timers and their more senior full-time co-workers .
Market Basket workers have mostly emptied the stores of groceries and customers , held massive rallies in support of the former president , and garnered national attention with stories in The New York Times , on CBS News , and even in Esquire magazine , which called the protest movement the β last stand for the middle class . β
Many of the workers have said they fear that without Arthur T. at helm , their decent wages and good benefits will disappear .
This job action is not about management demands to roll back wages , eliminate traditional pensions in favor of 401 ( k ) plans , or cut health benefits β issues that can divide employees with different ages and pay tiers .
There is a single focus : restoring Arthur T. as head of the company . He was dismissed in late June by the company β s board , which is controlled by his archrival and cousin , Arthur S. Demoulas .
β There β s no division about what they want , β said Peter Derouen , a spokesman for the United Food and Commercial Workers , Local 791 , a union that represents workers at Shaw β s Supermarkets Inc. β This is a one-issue fight . β
The fight also has involved nearly the entire 25,000-person workforce , from cashiers to store managers .
Usually , when front-line workers walk out in protest , mid-level managers take over , doing the work and buffering the company β s bottom line from potential financial losses .
But in the Market Basket fight , the company β s managers β from high-level supervisors to directors and department heads at individual stores β have been a key force in the protest movement . They have helped organize the rallies and demonstrations , encouraged customer boycotts , and supported lower-level workers .
Nelson Lichtenstein , director of the Center of the Study of Work , Labor and Democracy at the University of California Santa Barbara , pointed out that national labor law bars managers from participating in unions .
β Here you have an example of the advantages of not being within the law , β Lichtenstein said .
β This is clarifying . If you β re really going to have a revival of the labor movement in America , all these phony distinctions about who is a manager and who is a worker . . . have to be cast aside . β
A more conventional labor protest took place at a Market Basket competitor , Shaw β s , in 2010 , when unionized warehouse workers struck for four months over pay and health benefits . The result was much less damaging to Shaw β s .
That chain β s managers hired replacement workers and were able to keep the stores open for customers .
As the cost to families and finances mounted , some striking Shaw β s employees crossed the picket lines . Ultimately , the union settled for a deal that was comparable to the one it had rejected earlier .
A 2012 strike at Caterpillar Inc. had similar results . Union machinists at an Illinois plant walked off the job after the company demanded a wage freeze and benefit cuts , despite the heavy equipment maker β s strong profits . Less than four months later , they returned to work and agreed to most of the company β s demands .
β Over the few past decades , when we β ve seen workers resist . . . the workers have lost , β said Jake Rosenfeld , a sociology professor at the University of Washington and the author of β What Unions No Longer Do . β
Nationally , the number of strikes has plummeted , from 317 in 1973 to just 15 last year , according to the US Department of Labor .
If the Market Basket action succeeds , it may offer worker movements a sliver of hope after a series of defeats , Rosenfeld said .
β The situation seems to be unprecedented , β he said . β It β s still very early , β he said , noting that union actions can go on for months .
But now a downside to the revolt has emerged : Thousands of Market Basket workers are not going to be paid this week , because their hours have been cut to zero since there is so little business at the stores .
The brunt has been felt by the company β s part-time employees , who make up a majority of its workforce . Meanwhile , store managers and their assistants are still at work and are being paid .
The longer a standoff lasts , the harder it can be on workers who are going without a paycheck , said Paul Feeney , a spokesman for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers , Local 2222 , in Dorchester .
In 2011 , members of the electrical workers union went on strike against Verizon Communications Inc . But they went back to work after two weeks and returned to the negotiating table , eventually preserving some pay and benefits when a new contract was finalized more than a year later .
When strikes stretch on , unions may help with funds to aid workers with family and living expenses , but the amounts are usually a fraction of the regular paychecks .
Market Basket organizers have set up a fund-raising site that asks workers who are being paid to help support warehouse workers and truck drivers who walked off the job and prevented deliveries of fresh food to the stores , leaving shelves mostly empty .
Audra Makuch , assistant to the regional director for the United Food and Commercial Workers union , said her organization has received phone calls from part-time Market Basket workers who are increasingly concerned they will lose out in this family feud .
β They β ve done amazing work bringing the company to their knees , β Makuch said , β but as people lose their hours , people are getting scared . β
Feeney , from the electrical workers union , said the Market Basket saga puts companies on notice that employees still have some leverage .
More from today 's paper Verizon workers , he added , will soon start renegotiating their contract . β Hopefully , β he said , β we β ll use that momentum . β | 1bD3H7yHftt4vZO4 | 0 | Labor | -0.4 | Unions | -0.2 | Economy And Jobs | 0 | null | null | null | null |
cybersecurity | CNN (Web News) | https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/14/tech/nsa-microsoft-patch/index.html | NSA alerted Microsoft to major Windows security flaw | 2020-01-14 | NSA, Microsoft, Technology, Cybersecurity | Washington , DC ( CNN Business ) The National Security Agency recently alerted Microsoft to a major flaw in its Windows operating system that could let hackers pose as legitimate software companies , agency officials said on Tuesday .
issued a software update on Tuesday to fix the vulnerability , as part of its normal schedule for releasing softwarepatches .
News of the vulnerability and patch were first reported by independent journalist Brian Krebs , who said Microsoft provided its software fix to the military and key infrastructure companies ahead of Tuesday 's public release .
Microsoft said in a statement Monday night that it provides advance versions of its updates to some users under a special testing program . Jeff Jones , a senior director at Microsoft , declined to discuss specifics of the flaw `` to prevent unnecessary risk to customers . ''
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday .
The NSA 's rare announcement of the flaw , along with its decision to warn Microsoft rather than exploit the bug for intelligence purposes , underscores the magnitude of the threat it could pose to businesses , consumers and government agencies worldwide .
The NSA said that , while it has shared vulnerability information with the private sector in the past , this marks the first time that it has come forward publicly to do so . The agency said the decision reflects an effort to build trust with cybersecurity researchers .
`` Part of building trust is showing the data , '' Anne Neuberger , the NSA 's director of cybersecurity , told reporters on a conference call Tuesday . Because the NSA has never allowed itself to be linked to a vulnerability disclosure , she said , `` it 's hard for entities to trust that we take this seriously . And ensuring vulnerabilities can be mitigated is an absolute priority . ''
The NSA did not use the vulnerability to exploit adversaries , and the bug was turned over to Microsoft as soon as it was discovered , Neuberger added . She said the NSA has not detected any other entities using the bug .
The Department of Homeland Security said on the call that it would issue a bulletin to federal agencies advising them to install the Microsoft patches immediately .
The flaw concerns a core Windows function that verifies the legitimacy of apps and programs , a feature known as CryptoAPI .
`` It 's the equivalent of a building security desk checking IDs before permitting a contractor to come up and install new equipment , '' said Ashkan Soltani , a security expert and former chief technologist for the Federal Trade Commission .
By compromising that validation feature , hackers could easily impersonate `` good '' software companies to install bad software , Soltani said , potentially allowing them to spy on computer users or hold their devices hostage for ransom . | 3b4a255c6ca256fb | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
lgbtq_issues | National Review (News) | https://www.nationalreview.com/news/biden-administration-proposes-title-ix-change-to-prohibit-total-bans-on-trans-athletes/ | Biden Administration Proposes Title IX Change to Prohibit Total Bans on Trans Athletes | 2023-04-07 | LGBTQ Issues, Transgender Issues, Sports, Schools, Education, Gender, Women's Issues, Men's Issues, Department Of Education, Federal State And Tribal Powers | National Review Trump Praises Muskβs DOGE Team During Joint Hannity Interview for Helping Implement Executive Orders Senate Confirms Howard Lutnick to Be Commerce Secretary Trump Administration Eliminates DEI Considerations from Federal Contracting Guidelines Trump Signs Executive Order Aimed at βReducing Barriersβ to IVF New Pro-Life Coalition Seeks to Redefine Abortion Discourse with $30 Million Investment The Biden administration on Thursday unveiled a proposal that would prohibit schools from instituting policies that βcategorically ban transgender students from participating on sports teams consistent with their gender identity.β The policy would allow schools to implement certain limitations in the interest of fairness or safety, however. The proposed rule, which would impact any school or college that receives federal funding, would expand Title IX protections to include gender identity. Under the proposal, a βone-size-fits-allβ ban on transgender athletes playing on teams that match their stated gender identity would be a violation of Title IX. The rule, which is likely to face challenges, will face a lengthy approval process. βThe U.S. Department of Education (Department) proposes to amend its regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) to set out a standard that would govern a recipientβs adoption or application of sex-related criteria that would limit or deny a studentβs eligibility to participate on a male or female athletic team consistent with their gender identity,β the Education Department wrote. βEvery student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination,β education secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement. However, the White House said in a news release that the proposal βalso recognizes that in some instances, particularly in competitive high school and college athletic environments, some schools may adopt policies that limit transgender studentsβ participation.β βThe proposed rule would provide schools with a framework for developing eligibility criteria that protects students from being denied equal athletic opportunity, while giving schools the flexibility to develop their own participation policies,β the White House said. Any permitted limitation would be required to serve βimportant educational objectives,β such as fairness in competition and reduction of injury risks. Limitations would be more likely to be approved for older students in more competitive environments. The proposal comes as at least 16 states have enacted legislation to ban biological male students from competing in high school womenβs interscholastic sports, per the Associated Press. Several of the bans also cover intramural, club and college sports. Bans in three states have been put on hold amid legal challenges. Nicole Neily, the president of Parents Defending Education, said the proposed rule shows the Biden administration βis trying to have their cake and eat it too: inject gender identity into athletics while placing the onus upon school districts to determine whether doing so would be problematic or not.β βWithout a doubt, institutions are going to err on the side of βinclusion,β because they fear the wrath of the Education Department β thus, achieving the Departmentβs end goal while allowing them to maintain plausible deniability that they coerced districts into doing so,β Neily said in a statement. Send a tip to the news team at NR. Under the SECβs new guidance, undertaking βspecific actions on a social, environmental, or political policyβ may be seen as a violation. Usually the State Departmentβs FTO designations are reserved for groups like al-Qaeda or ISIS instead of money-driven cartels. After Trump left office, there was a βrapid return to underreportingβ under Biden, according to the National Association of Scholars. His tone and false claims can be explained by personal history more than anything else. The MTA immediately filed a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court challenging the decision. Ernst has already laid out a blueprint for how Loeffler can improve the SBAβs various loan programs and make the agency run more efficiently. Β© 2025 National Review Newsletters Β© 2025 National Review | 40d7a085f8135de8 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
middle_east | Politico | https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/29/jordan-drone-iran-biden-00138363 | How the enemy drone that killed 3 US soldiers in Jordan evaded detection | 2024-01-30 | Middle East, Defense And Security, US Military, Israel Hamas Violence, Jordan, Iran, Iraq, Drone Strikes | Defense The assault has put renewed pressure on the Biden administration to respond more forcefully to attacks on U.S. troops. U.S. Marines and members of the Jordanian Armed Forces conduct weapons training during exercise Infinite Defender 23 in Jordan on Aug. 19, 2023. | Sgt. Angela Wilcox/U.S. Naval Forces Central Command By Lara Seligman 01/29/2024 01:08 PM EST Updated: 01/29/2024 06:21 PM EST Link Copied An enemy drone launched by Iranian proxies that killed three U.S. soldiers was able to evade detection by approaching the base in Jordan as a U.S. drone was returning to the facility, according to a Defense Department official. The attackers, members of an Iran-backed militia, saw an βopportunityβ and βexploitedβ it, said the official, who was granted anonymity to discuss a developing security situation. The assault, which dramatically escalated the situation in the Middle East, has put renewed pressure on the Biden administration to respond more forcefully to the more than 160 attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq, Syria and now Jordan. And former senior military officials are now calling on Biden to respond forcefully, including to strike back at Iran itself. Meanwhile, the DOD official and a second U.S. official told POLITICO that an hour and a half after the strike on Tower 22, Iranian proxies launched another drone at a U.S. base just across the border in Syria, al-Tanf Garrison. A U.S. drone, RTXβs Coyote uncrewed aerial system, shot it down, the DOD official added. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. Tower 22 and al-Tanf Garrison are just kilometers apart, and U.S. drones often defend both, the DOD official said. The drone struck the living quarters at Tower 22 early in the morning on Sunday while troops were still in their beds, Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh told reporters on Monday. The Pentagon on Monday identified the three soldiers who were killed as Sgt. William Jerome Rivers, Spc. Kennedy Ladon Sanders, and Spc. Breonna Alexsondria Moffett, all assigned to the 718th Engineer Company at Fort Moore, Ga. More than 40 service members were also injured in the attack, including five who were diagnosed with traumatic brain injury, Singh said. Those troops were some of the eight who were medically evacuated from the base to Baghdad diplomatic support center for additional care; three are scheduled for βimminent transport to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, for follow-on care,β she said. Singh said the attack βhas the footprints of Kataib Hezbollah,β referring to an Iran-backed militia group that the U.S. has previously blamed for attacks in Iraq and Syria. However, the Pentagon has not made a final assessment as to which group is responsible. Singh would not comment on how the drone penetrated U.S. air defenses, but said the Pentagon is looking at how to βbetter defineβ its defenses in the region and βprevent future attacks like this from happening again.β This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. The Wall Street Journal was first to report that the enemy drone approached as a U.S. drone was also returning to base, although officials quoted in that report said the simultaneous approaches created confusion. Biden on Sunday said the U.S. βshall respond,β but the strikes continued on Monday, with Iranian proxies launching an attack at U.S. patrol base al-Shaddadi, in northeast Syria, according to the second U.S. official. Overall, U.S. troops have been attacked 165 times since Oct. 17: 66 times in Iraq; 98 in Syria; and once in Jordan, the official said. Tower 22 is a small outpost typically housing only 300 to 350 troops, said retired Gen. Joseph Votel, who served as head of U.S. Central Command from 2016 to 2019. The base in Jordan sits close to the triple border with Syria and Iraq, and is attached to the Rukban refugee camp. The base serves as a crossing point for U.S. special operations forces moving into Syria, and is a a logistics hub supporting the fight in Syria against the Islamic State, Votel said. U.S. training of Jordanian forces also takes place there, he said. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. This is a modal window. The living quarters at Tower 22 are βvery temporary,β he said. βYou would not find brick-and-mortar buildings at a location like that.β Republican members of Congress on Sunday called on Biden to target Iran directly in response. On Monday, former senior military officials joined in, as retired Adm. James Stavridis, the former supreme allied commander of NATO, proposed seizing an Iranian naval or commercial vessel. Votel in an interview urged Biden to send an βunambiguousβ message that the U.S. holds Iran responsible. Washington should consider striking assets βof value to Iran and [causing] them to pay a price for this,β he said, for instance taking out leaders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or Quds Force, or sites associated with those organizations. A U.S. strike on Iranian soil βshouldnβt be off the table,β but is only one of the options that should be considered, he said. βIran, I think, is responsible for this,β Votel said. βIran is always trying to push the limits as far as they can go.β Matt Berg contributed to this report. Your guide to Donald Trumpβs unprecedented overhaul of the federal government. Your guide to Donald Trumpβs unprecedented overhaul of the federal government. Loading You will now start receiving email updates You are already subscribed Something went wrong Β© 2025 POLITICO LLC | 366e398657dc78c7 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/04/25/president-trump-just-had-his-bluff-called-again/?utm_term=.5f562644705e | President Trump just had his bluff called β again | 2017-04-25 | Federal Budget, Economy And Jobs | clockThis article was published more than 7 years ago For the second time in two major legislative battles, the Trump White House has issued an ultimatum β only to back down. In the health care debate, the president was going to force a House vote on the package and dare skeptical Republicans to vote against replacing Obamacare, before abandoning that plan in the face of defeat. | 9537419f5f808670 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
violence_in_america | HuffPost | https://www.huffpost.com/entry/jan-6-hearings-trump-prime-time_n_62a20599e4b06169ca87cf81 | Jan. 6 Hearing Opens With Trump's AG William Barr Calling Stolen Election Claim 'Bullshit' | 2022-06-10 | 2020 Election, Capitol Chaos, Donald Trump, Election Integrity, January 6 Committee, Justice, Liz Cheney, Politics, Violence In America | Senior White House Correspondent, HuffPost WASHINGTON β Donald Trumpβs own attorney general told the then-president that his claims of a βstolenβ election were βbullshit,β according to videotaped testimony revealed Thursday night at the House Jan. 6 select committeeβs first public hearing. βI told the president it was bullshit, and I didnβt want to be a part of it,β Barr told committee investigators during his deposition. Committee chair Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, said in his opening remarks that the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol was the culmination of a βconspiracyβ to hold on to power. βJan. 6 was the culmination of an attempted coup. The violence was no accident.β The two-hour presentation recapped a yearβs worth of investigative work by the committee, tying together numerous strands that have been known to the public into a story as well as offering nuggets of new information. Vice chair Liz Cheney, a Wyoming Republican, said in her opening remarks that Americans would hear how Trump resisted calls by his own staff to take action as the violent unfolded on his television screen. βYou will hear testimony that, βThe president did not really want to put anything out calling off the riot or asking his supporters to leave.β You will hear that President Trump was yelling and βreally angryβ at advisers who told him he needed to be doing something more,β she said. βAnd aware of the riotersβ chants to hang [Vice President] Mike Pence, the president responded with this sentiment, βMaybe our supporters have the right idea.β Mike Pence βdeserves it,ββ Cheney added. She also offered a preview of the coming hearings. Mondayβs hearing will lay out evidence of how early Trump knew, his lies notwithstanding, that he had actually lost the election, using testimony from his own campaign staff. The third hearing, set for Wednesday, will showcase Trumpβs attempt to fire the acting attorney general who refused to help him overturn the election and replace him with an official who would. Cheney said they would hear evidence of how Trump allies in the House, including Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Scott Perry, requested Trump for pardons before he left office. βMultiple other Republican congressmen also sought presidential pardons for their roles in attempting to overturn the 2020 election,β she said. Subsequent hearings would cover Trumpβs attempt to pressure Vice President Mike Pence to declare Trump the winner during the certification ceremony; Trumpβs fake elector scheme to generate pro-Trump slates in states he had actually lost; and finally Trumpβs work to summon his mob for the express purpose of attacking the Capitol to pressure Pence and lawmakers to do as he wanted. βThe attack on our Capitol was not a spontaneous mob,β she said. The committee also began linking the actual breach of the Capitol to encouragement by Trump, starting with his statement during one of the 2020 presidential debates: βProud Boys, stand back and stand by.β A video by committee investigator Marcus Childress said membership in the group tripled after Trumpβs statement, and that when Trump told his followers to come to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, the Proud Boys saw in it more than just encouragement. βThe extremists, they took it a step further. They took it as a call to arms,β Childress said. U.S. Capitol Police officer Caroline Edwards, who suffered a brain injury when she became the first officer injured in the attack, said the west front of the Capitol was turned into a βwar zone,β something she thought she would never see. βIβm not combat trained. That day, it was just hours of hand-to-hand combat. I saw my friends with blood all over their faces. I was slipping in peopleβs blood.β Many of the details in the presentation had been reported over the previous months, but some information has never been disclosed publicly. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley, for example, told investigators that while Mike Pence spoke to him multiple times to demand the deployment of troops to the Capitol, Trumpβs chief of staff Mark Meadows had a different concern. βWe have to kill the narrative that the vice president is making all the decisions. We need to establish the narrative ... that the president is still in charge and that things are steady,β Milley said he told him. Thursdayβs prime-time hearing, carried live by all three major broadcast networks, is the first of a half dozen sessions the committee plans to hold before the end of the month. Committee members hope to show Americans how Trump was at the center of a scheme to remain in power despite having lost reelection. Trump and his allies spent the days leading up to the hearing trying to delegitimize it by calling it partisan β even though it has two GOP members, including Cheney β and saying itβs out to get him. House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy, who, according to newly released audio, favored a committee to investigate Jan. 6 before he spoke extensively to Trump and changed his mind, said at a Thursday morning news conference: βIt is the most political and least legitimate committee in American history.β And Trump himself, in a series of posts on his own social media platform, repeated his lie that the 2020 election had been βriggedβ and βstolenβ from him, and he insulted what he called the βunselectβ committee. President Joe Biden, who called on Trumpβs mob to disperse on Jan. 6 and called on Trump to ask them to do so, praised the hearing while appearing at the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles. βA lot of Americans are going to see for the first time some of the details,β he said. The committee has been working for nearly a year, having interviewed and taken depositions from more than 1,000 witnesses and collected 140,000 pages of documents. It will expire with this Congress and, if Republicans win control of the chamber as expected, will almost certainly not be renewed. It was created when Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi decided to move ahead with a βselectβ committee after Republicans blocked a resolution to create an independent commission, similar to what was done after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. She then nixed McCarthyβs attempt to place election-result denying Trump supporters like Ohioβs Jim Jordan on the committee, which led to McCarthy pulling all of his selections. Pelosi responded by appointing two Republicans to the committee: Illinoisβs Adam Kinzinger and, as vice chair, Cheney. Both were among the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump for inciting the Jan. 6 attack, and both have been vocal critics of other Republicans who downplay the seriousness of that day or claim that Trump had not done anything wrong. Trump, despite losing the election by 7 million votes nationally and 306-232 in the Electoral College, became the first president in more than two centuries of elections to refuse to hand over power peacefully. His incitement of the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol β his last-ditch attempt to remain in office β led to the deaths of five people, including one police officer, the injury of 140 more officers and four police suicides. The next four years will change America forever. But HuffPost won't back down when it comes to providing free and impartial journalism. For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience to qualifying contributors who support our fearless newsroom. We hope you'll join us. You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest β we could use your help again. We won't back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can't do it without you. For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience. to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you'll join us. You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest β we could use your help again. We won't back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can't do it without you. For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience. to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you'll join us. Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages. Nevertheless, Trump remains the dominant figure in the Republican Party and is openly speaking about running for the presidency again in 2024. You have the right to opt-out of the sale or sharing of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences. | 6e95e2701f2276ca | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
immigration | Wall Street Journal - News | https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-is-expected-to-sign-border-security-deal-11550064070?mod=hp_lead_pos1 | Trump Is Expected to Sign Border-Security Deal | immigration | WASHINGTONβPresident Trump is likely to sign the border-security legislation finalized Wednesday that would keep the government from closing this weekend , people familiar with his plans said , but he continues to look for ways to supplement the modest funding it contains for barriers .
Mr. Trump said he would take a serious look at the legislation , which includes far less money for barriers on the U.S.-Mexico border than he has demanded , but gave no assurance he would sign it . He said he doesn β t want to see another government shutdown , while also indicating he continued to seek ways to find more funding for the wall beyond what Congress is allocating .
β We have got a lot of funds for a lot of other things , β Mr. Trump said , without providing details . β With a wall , they want to be stingy . We have options that most people don β t really understand. β In the past , Mr. Trump has floated declaring a national emergency to redirect funds to the wall , bypassing Congress .
Democrats are expected to challenge any efforts to move money around without congressional approval .
The text of the bill was released late Wednesday after lawmakers sorted out some last-minute complications . The biggest snag focused on whether to include back pay for federal contractors to make up for lost compensation during the record-long partial government shutdown that ended last month . Democratic lawmakers supported the back pay , but the White House balked at it .
Lawmakers also debated an extension of the Violence Against Women Act , which provides funding for programs to prevent domestic violence and bolster prosecutions . House Democrats pushed instead to reintroduce later a new version of the bill that would prevent people under protective orders from possessing firearms and would bar evictions of victims of domestic violence based on the actions of abusers .
When negotiations had wrapped up Wednesday night , lawmakers had decided not to include a reauthorization of VAWA or back pay for contractors in the bill , according to a senior Democratic aide .
The Senate and House were expected to vote Thursday on the spending package . It is expected to pass both chambers , though it will face opposition from lawmakers on both the left and right ends of the political spectrum .
The people familiar with Mr. Trump β s plans said that unless something unexpected emerged that made the bill less palatable , they expected him to back it . β We β ll be looking for land mines because you could have that , β the Republican president said Wednesday , referring to the legislation .
Administration officials cautioned that no final decision has been made , and that the White House was still reviewing the deal .
The deal , backed by congressional leaders in both parties , would fund the Department of Homeland Security , which oversees the border , and a group of other federal agencies through September . It would allocate $ 1.38 billion for 55 miles of physical barriersβincluding bollard fencing and levee walls , but not concrete wallsβalong the Rio Grande Valley of the U.S.-Mexico border , according to congressional aides . That marks a far lower funding level than the $ 5.7 billion that Mr. Trump had sought for a wall .
Some conservative lawmakers and commentators have bashed the deal for not having more wall funding , including Fox News host and Trump adviser Sean Hannity , who called it a β garbage compromise. β But an administration official cast the deal as a win for Mr. Trump β s border-security agenda .
β We are a long way from Pelosi β s $ 1 , β the official said , referring to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ( D. , Calif. ) joking last month that she would allot $ 1 for Mr. Trump β s wall .
Still , a person close to Mr. Trump expected him to make clear that he isn β t happy about the bill when he ultimately signs it . Mr. Trump has resigned himself to the fact that lawmakers won β t agree on more wall funding , the person said , but is confident that he can divert funds from elsewhere in the administration to the wall .
β As long as he β s fighting for any mechanism , I would think it plays well , β the person said . β No one in the U.S. gives a crap how you do it.β¦They don β t read that part of the stories . β
In an interview Wednesday with Fox News , White House press secretary Sarah Sanders pointed to some benefits that the administration sees in the deal , such as that it provides a total of $ 23 billion in funding for the budgets for Customs and Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement .
Like Mr. Trump , she also suggested that the White House could augment the border-wall money provided by Congress through other means . Mr. Trump β and his team have been looking at everything possible to get the funding they need in order to complete the wall , β she said .
Liberal Democratic lawmakers raised concerns Wednesday over the number of ICE detention beds funded in the bill and ICE β s continued ability to transfer money to fund more beds than Congress had authorized . Democrats had hoped to place limits on the number of ICE beds .
Rep. Pramila Jayapal ( D. , Wash. ) , co-chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus , said she leaned β very strongly β against the bill β unless we have a guarantee from the administration that they β re actually going to listen to what Congress does and our appropriated amounts . β
A bipartisan group of 17 lawmakers has been trying to cut a deal since the end of the five-week shutdown . Mr. Trump has pressed for a spending bill that includes funding for a border wall , which Democrats have opposed , instead backing other forms of barriers .
The bill provides far less funding for border barriers than deals that Mr. Trump had previously rejected . In January 2018 , Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York , the Democratic leader , offered Mr. Trump $ 25 billion over an unspecified period to be used for a border wall , paired with a path to citizenship for young immigrants .
Funding for many government agencies is set to expire at 12:01 a.m. Saturday unless Congress passes spending legislation and Mr. Trump signs it into law . A lapse in funding would force hundreds of thousands of federal workers again to go on unpaid furlough or to work without pay .
A sticking point in the final stretch of negotiations has been providing back pay for federal contractors . While Congress has provided back pay to federal employees who worked without pay or were furloughed during the shutdown , many contractors have so far not been compensated for the weeks they couldn β t work .
Democratic lawmakers had pushed to include a back-pay provision for federal contractors in the funding deal , but the White House has resisted the move . A Trump administration official familiar with the legislation said that providing back pay to the private employees would be costly and complicated to administer .
β They just won β t accept it , β Mrs. Pelosi said of Republicans blocking efforts to get federal contractors back pay . β It β s hard , but we β re still pushing . We have to keep trying , because it β s totally unfair . β | VnEdCJslRwaaUIfw | 1 | Donald Trump | -0.3 | Border Security | 0.2 | Immigration | 0.2 | null | null | null | null | |
media_bias | Politico | https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/28/trump-conspiracy-theoryhunter-biden-433131 | MAGA scrambles to repair the Hunter Biden narrative | 2020-10-28 | Media Bias, Polarization, Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Corruption, Fox News Bias | 2020 elections Instead of publishing the more salacious allegations, conservative media has been more focused on covering alleged suppression of the story. Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie speaks with former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani on Sept. 27, 2020. | Joshua Roberts/Getty Images By Tina Nguyen 10/28/2020 04:30 AM EDT Updated: 10/29/2020 09:28 AM EDT Link Copied Weeks ago, when Rudy Giuluani first threw the contents of Hunter Bidenβs alleged laptop online, he promised a trove of even more damning information 10 days before the election. Yet with less than a week to go, Giuliani, President Donald Trumpβs personal lawyer, is still moving down the conservative media food chain, looking for takers. The Wall Street Journal and Fox News have both reported finding no evidence that former Vice President Joe Biden benefited from the Hunter Biden business dealings that have drawn scrutiny. More explicitly pro-Trump media outlets β OAN, Breitbart, Newsmax β have mostly shied away from publishing fresher, more salacious allegations. And conservative talking heads β pundits, politicians and loud MAGA Twitter personalities alike β have been more focused on the meta narrative around the laptop, arguing that mainstream media, social media companies and the deep state are conspiring to prevent President Donald Trumpβs reelection by suppressing the story. When Breitbart did touch on new revelations, it preemptively distanced itself, carefully framing a fresh trove of emails as an independent investigation by Peter Schweizer, author of βClinton Cash,β the 2015 look into the Clinton familyβs extensive foreign financial ties that made several overstated or inaccurate claims. So the story has gone elsewhere. Videos apparently showing Hunter Biden in compromising positions, allegedly obtained from the laptop, have been uploaded to a Chinese website owned partially by Steve Bannon, the former Trump aide who has been helping Giuliani. The explicit photos ended up on Gateway Pundit, a site known for promoting conspiracy theories about various Democratic figures. An email allegedly tying Hunter Biden to a Kazakh oligarch ended up in the British tabloid The Daily Mail, with only a passing mention of Biden. Other details have been published by outlets connected to prominent conservative super PACs. Ultimately, the bulk of fresh allegations have been reduced to public statements from Tony Bobulinski, Hunter Bidenβs former business partner, who found a willing partner in Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Tuesday night. Bobulinski got an extensive, 45-minute segment to lay out his case to Carlsonβs millions of viewers. Yet elsewhere, Giuliani has groused on his podcast, βCommon Sense,β that the public can only find out the truth from him, βbecause Iβm not allowed on main television to tell you these things.β CEO Jack Dorsey is synonymous with Twitter. But when it comes to the policies that could affect the election, Vijaya Gadde is the most important Silicon Valley executive you've never heard of. POLITICO's Nancy Scola reports on the woman behind Twitter's biggest decisions. Itβs not the way Trumpworld would have wanted it. As much disdain as the presidentβs supporters have for the media, their ultimate goal was to place a story in a well-known, conservative-leaning outlet that conclusively showed Biden profiting off his sonβs business deals. Doing so would simultaneously establish the conservative mediaβs journalistic prowess and bolster MAGA claims of mainstream media bias. But no A-list conservative outlet has published anything living up to those claims. Instead, these outlets have turned their firepower toward other reliable topics: social media bias; deep state plots; and the mediaβs failure to cover a story they themselves have backed away from, leaving Giuliani and Bobulinski to sell the story to the fringe. βI think weβre seeing a tactic of something like flooding the zone,β said Chris Looft, the senior editor of First Draft, a nonprofit that works to combat disinformation. βAnd it could be backfiring, in that all of these leads are circulating, but none of them are really getting all the attention that would be required for an outlet like The Wall Street Journal to give them any attention.β A group of Trump allies initially tried to give the story to The Wall Street Journal in the hopes of an exposΓ©, according to The New York Times. But as the Journal reviewed the Hunter Biden documents, Giuliani and Bobulinski started to push every part of the story everywhere β first in the New York Post, then across OAN, Newsmax and whatever outlet would take their content. Then a second trove of emails dropped, given to Schweizer and published on Breitbart. But with bits and pieces of the entire Hunter Biden narrative floating across the conservative mediasphere, few people on the right have been able to explain who, exactly, did what, on behalf of whom. Last week, Sebastian Gorka, a former White House official and conservative radio host, asked Bannon on his radio show, when the bombshell was coming. βSteve, I implore you, we are 15 days out from the election. When is the big shoe drop going to drop?β he asked. At that point, though, the majority of the Hunter story had, in fact, already dropped. Even the president himself has had a hard time citing the convoluted storyline, making arcane references during the last debate, randomly bringing up pieces of the story during his rallies, and referring, frequently, to the βlaptop from hellβ but not explaining whatβs actually on the device. βYou know the laptop? You know what itβs called? I said it last night in Wisconsin. Itβs called the laptop from hell. Right?β Trump declared Sunday night at a rally in Manchester, N.H. βThat laptop. That laptop is not good.β Angelo Carusone, a longtime monitor of conservative media and president of the progressive group Media Matters for America, said the situation has all the ingredients of a scandal, but that no one can agree on exactly what the scandal is. βThey have this diary, but it doesnβt actually say anything. They have these videos, but they donβt really demonstrate anything about Joe Biden, so most mainstream outlets arenβt going to pick it up,β Carusone said. βBut in order to scandalize it, you would need Fox News and the rest of the right-wing echo chamber to sing from that page, and theyβre not.β There is, Looft argued, a straightforward problem with it. βThere hasnβt been evidence in those emails that any of these deals actually happened, or that Hunterβs relationship with Joe was the deciding factor,β Looft said. βIβm not commenting on the story itself. Iβm just talking about the sourcing. I mean, itβs just these emails.β But the insinuation of the story, and its promotion by the president, is enough to keep the emotional core of the narrative alive. Stories about the Hunter story keep popping up on lesser right-wing blogs, and coverage about the elitesβ alleged censorship of the story dominates the conservative news cycle. βThatβs a side effect of a broader trait of media consumption online, which is that recommendation algorithms tend to direct people to material thatβs already familiar to them,β Looft said. The timeline is certainly working against Trumpβs allies, though. About 70 million Americans have already cast their votes. And with less than a week left before the election, the window for conservatives to center around a singular narrative about Hunter Bidenβs alleged crimes β and how they actually connect with Joe Biden β is closing by the day. On Tuesday night, Bobulinski made his final pitch to America. Appearing on Tucker Carlsonβs Fox News show, he laid out his claims about the Biden familyβs business dealings with China in 2017, flashing emails, texts and documents. It was his attempt to paint a coherent narrative: βJoe Biden and the Biden family are compromised,β he told Carlson. The appearance brought immediate gratification to the conservative world, ranging from calls to investigate Biden to calls for the story to break out of the right-wing echo chamber. βOne ruleβ should govern: However news organizations dealt w/ allegations of Russian collusion w/@realDonaldTrump, it should deal w/these,β tweeted prominent conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt. And Trump immediately picked up on it at a Tuesday night rally. βSome bad news just came out on Biden,β he said, referencing Bobulinskiβs just-concluded appearance. βYouβll find out about it tomorrow.β A few minutes later, Trump ticked through a synopsis of the interview, reading it off the teleprompter. βLock him up,β the crowd chanted. Still, over on the Fox Business Network on Tuesday night, Giuliani was threatening to storm off the set of Lisa Kennedy Montgomeryβs show mid-interview, after the host compared his allegations to the mostly unverified Russian dossier. βYou are now repeating lying propaganda β I think our interview is now over,β he shouted, starting to tear off his microphone and flapping his hands in anger, before agreeing to stay until the end of the segment. CORRECTION: This report has been updated to change the spelling of Chris Looft. Your guide to Donald Trumpβs unprecedented overhaul of the federal government. Your guide to Donald Trumpβs unprecedented overhaul of the federal government. Loading You will now start receiving email updates You are already subscribed Something went wrong Β© 2025 POLITICO LLC | c6db13921886c2e8 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
gun_control_and_gun_rights | Matthew McConaughey | https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2022/06/06/matthew-mcconaughey-editorial-time-responsible-choices-guns/7523836001/ | Itβs time to act on gun responsibility | 2022-06-08 | Gun Control And Gun Rights, Matthew McConaughey, Uvalde Shooting, White House, Arts And Entertainment, Violence In America, Bipartisanship, Mass Shootings, Gun Violence | I am a father, the son of a kindergarten teacher, and an American. I was also born in Uvalde, Texas. Thatβs why Iβm writing this. I believe that responsible, law-abiding Americans have a Second Amendment right, enshrined by our founders, to bear arms. I also believe we have a cultural obligation to take steps toward slowing down the senseless killing of our children. The debate about gun control has delivered nothing but status quo. Itβs time we talk about gun responsibility. There is a difference between control and responsibility. The first is a mandate that can infringe on our right; the second is a duty that will preserve it. There is no constitutional barrier to gun responsibility. Keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous people is not only the responsible thing to do, it is the best way to protect the Second Amendment. We can do both. More:Matthew McConaughey returns to Uvalde hometown to pay respects after Robb Elementary school shooting Depraved acts of violence, with guns as the weapon of choice, are ripping apart families, tearing at peopleβs faith, and shredding the fabric of our society. We have an epidemic of indiscriminate mass shootings, of parents burying their children, of inaction, and buck-passing. Saving the unnecessary loss of lives is not a partisan issue. The need for mental health care, school safety, the prevalence of sensationalized media coverage, and the decaying state of American values are all long-term societal factors that must be addressed, but right now, we donβt have the luxury of time. We need to focus on corrections and countermeasures that can also and immediately reduce the gun violence tragedies that have become too common in our country. We need to make the lost lives matter. Our leaders must make bipartisan compromises on a few reasonable measures to restore responsible gun ownership in our country. I believe: 1) All gun purchases should require a background check. Eighty-eight percent of Americans support this, including a lot of responsible gun owning Texans. β¦ Iβve met them. Dylann Roof, who killed nine people in a black church in South Carolina in 2015, got his pistol without a completed background check due to a legal technicality. The system failed. Gun control activists call this a loophole. I call it incompetence. 2) Unless you are in the military, you should be 21 years old to purchase an assault rifle. Iβm not talking about 12-gauge shotguns or lever-action hunting rifles. Iβm talking about the weapon of choice for mass murderers, AR-15s. The killer in my hometown of Uvalde purchased two AR-15s for his eighteenth birthday, just days before he killed 19 students and two teachers. He obeyed the law. Had the law been different, perhaps I wouldnβt be writing this today. 3) Red Flag Laws should be the law of the land. These measures, which are already in effect in 19 states and Washington, D.C., empower loved ones or law enforcement to petition courts to temporarily prevent individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others from purchasing or accessing firearms. These laws must respect due process, judicial review, and hold account individuals who may abuse such laws. 4) We need to institute a national waiting period for assault rifles. Individuals often purchase weapons in a fit of rage, harming themselves or others. Studies show that mandatory waiting periods reduced homicides by 17 percent. Gun suicides account for the majority of U.S. gun deaths. A waiting period to purchase an assault rifle is an acceptable sacrifice for responsible gun owners when it can prevent a mass shooting crime of passion or suicide. 'What is it that we truly value?' Matthew McConaughey reacts to mass shooting in his hometown Integrating gun safety training, safe storage proposals, and bolstering school safety are also beneficial, but are not government-only solutions. Companies, private organizations, and responsible gun owners have a big role to play. I want to be clear. I am not under the illusion that these policies will solve all of our problems, but if responsible solutions can stop some of these tragedies from striking another community without destroying the Second Amendment, they're worth it. This is not a choice between guns or no guns. Itβs the responsible choice. Itβs the reasonable choice. Itβs a quintessentially American choice: Where I have the right to be me, you have the freedom to be you, and we have the responsibility to be US. To find common ground on this issue, both sides are going to have to answer the call and reach for the higher ground of our collective responsibility. Business as usual isnβt working. βThatβs just how it isβ cannot be an excuse. The heinous bloodshed of innocent people cannot become bearable. If we continue to just stand by, weβre living a lie. With every right there comes a duty. For ourselves, our children, and our fellow Americansβwe have a duty to be responsible gun owners. Please do yours and protect the Second Amendment through gun responsibility. Itβs time for real leaders to step up and do whatβs right, so we can each and all just keep livinβ. The author is a native of Uvalde, an Austin resident, founder of the just keep livin Foundation, and a father of three. | 47cfac783d004d14 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/02/01/whats-behind-clashes-over-super-secret-house-memo-here-what-you-need-know/1085902001/ | Why releasing the super-secret Nunes memo is so divisive: What you need to know | 2018-02-01 | politics | No one seems to be neutral on a so-called `` secret memo . '' The document , written by Republicans from the House Intelligence Committee , either reveals `` shocking '' spying abuses by the FBI and Justice Department or is just a Republican-created distraction from special counsel Robert Mueller 's Russia investigation as it moves closer to President Trump .
The issue not only pits Democrats against Republicans on the already deeply-divided committee , it has also turned into a tense struggle between the White House and its own FBI and Justice Department , which oppose the release .
The memo , based on highly classified documents provided by the FBI , is the work of the House Intelligence Committee , under the leadership of controversial chairman Rep. Devin Nunes , R-Calif. , who served on the Trump transition team .
The Republicans have said the memo reveals surveillance abuses by the FBI and the Justice Department in the early stages of the FBI probe into potential ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump presidential campaign .
Republican House members say the memo 's `` shocking '' revelations threatened democracy itself β which they declined to disclose because revealing classified information is a federal crime .
`` The facts contained in this memo are jaw-dropping and demand full transparency , '' said Rep. Matt Gaetz , R-Fla. , after reading the memo . `` There is no higher priority than the release of this information to preserve our democracy . ''
Republican lawmakers and even the president have alleged in the past that intelligence agencies spied on Trump and his associates during the campaign and the transition period right before Trump took office .
Trump has been telling confidants in recent days that he believes the memo will validate his concerns that the FBI and Justice Department had conspired against him , according to one outside adviser familiar with those conversations but not authorized to speak publicly about private discussions , the Associated Press reports ..
The president also has told allies that he believes the memo bolsters his belief that accusations of collusion between his campaign and Russian officials are false and part of a conspiracy to discredit his election .
Democrats have called the memo a β cherry-picked β list of GOP talking points that attempts to distract from the committee β s own investigation into Russian meddling in the election that sent Trump to the White House .
Not directly , but Democrats say the document is a misleading attempt by Nunes and other Republicans to cast doubt on Mueller 's investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election , possible collusion by the Trump campaign with Russia and possible obstruction of justice by Trump .
Mueller , a former FBI director , was appointed by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in May to conduct the investigation .
Mueller 's probe has so far resulted in guilty pleas by former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn and former campaign aide George Papadopoulos on charges of lying to the FBI . Former campaign chairman Paul Manafort and his associate , Rick Gates , were charged in October with conspiracy , money laundering and acting as unregistered foreign agents . Both men pleaded not guilty .
FBI and Department of Justice officials , appointed by Trump , have complained that they have not been able to extensively view the memo , which the committee voted this week to turn over the White House to decide whether it should be made public .
In an extraordinary move on Wednesday , the FBI under director Christopher Wray declared in a public statement that it has β grave concerns β about the accuracy of the classified memo . β As expressed during our initial review , we have grave concerns about material omissions of fact that fundamentally impact the memo β s accuracy , β the FBI said .
The Justice Department said in a letter last week that it would be β extraordinarily reckless β to release the memo without first giving the FBI and the department the chance to review it .
In addition , Wray and Rosenstein made a direct appeal to White House chief of staff John Kelly not to release the memo , warning that it could set a dangerous precedent .
Rep. Adam Schiff of California , a former prosecutor who serves as the Intelligence Committee 's senior Democrat , said Republicans are trying to distract from Mueller 's investigation . He says the memo is `` rife with factual inaccuracies . ''
He also charges that only two members of the committee , he and Rep. Trey Gowdy , R-S.C. , have read the underlying documents on which the memo in based . He says Nunes has not even read the classified material .
Schiff says the memo provides `` a distorted view of the FBI . '' He says this `` may help carry White House water , but it is a deep disservice to our law enforcement professionals . ''
Democrats on the committee prepared their own competing memo `` exposing the misleading character of the Republicans β document , '' according to Schiff , but the panel voted not to release it .
In addition , Schiff wrote Nunes a letter on Wednesday charging that `` material changes '' had been made to the memo after it was voted on and that the version handed over to the White House `` is not , in fact , the same document . ''
Jack Langer , a spokesman for Nunes , says the changes are only minor .
Opinions vary , generally splitting along party lines . Last week , Rosenstein and Wray warned Kelly that releasing the memo could set a dangerous precedent , according to a person familiar with the conversation , the AP reports . Rosenstein also told Kelly the memo didn β t accurately characterize the FBI β s investigative practices , the person said .
Although the document is still classified , so the contents are still not fully known , members of the panel suggest that it could go into details regarding the super-secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court , which oversees applications by law enforcement for electronic surveillance , physical searches and other forms of investigation actions for foreign intelligence purposes .
Gowdy , who was with Wray when the FBI director reviewed the memo last week , said the FBI director did not raise any national security concerns . Gowdy said the memo doesn β t reveal any intelligence methods but does reveal β one source . β
Schiff , writing in The Washington Post , said the release would threaten long-standing relations between Congress and those agencies that keep government secrets .
`` Intelligence agencies can no longer be confident that material they provide the committee will not be repurposed and manipulated for reasons having nothing to do with national security , '' he writes . `` As a result , they will be far more reluctant to share their secrets with us in the future . ''
Likewise , former attorney general Eric Holder tweeted that release of the memo `` puts at risk our intel capabilities in order to derail a legitimate criminal investigation . This is unheard of β it is dangerous and it is irresponsible ''
Despite the objections of the FBI , the DOJ and Democratic members of the Intelligence Committee , the House voted on a party-line vote this week to release the document from the committee and turn it over to the White House to decide whether to make it public .
Although the White House was given five days to decide , there seems little doubt it will be released , perhaps as early as Thursday .
President Trump was caught on an open mic following his State of the Union address telling one GOP lawmaker that he `` 100 % '' supported release of the document . In addition , Kelly told Fox radio Wednesday that he expected the memo to be released β pretty quick . β
The White House counsel β s office has been in possession of the memo , officials say . The National Security Council is leading a review , which will also involve the White House legal team . | bcHJ6WAmIRALhMss | 1 | FISA | -0.5 | Politics | 0.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
education | Fox Business | https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/federal-student-loan-repayments-restart-education-secretary-confirms | Federal student loan repayments to restart, education secretary confirms | 2023-05-15 | Education, Student Loans, Student Loan Forgiveness, Banking And Finance | Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. The Education Department is "preparing to restart" federal student loan debt repayments after a three-year pause now that the COVID-19 pandemic emergency has ended, Secretary Miguel Cardona told lawmakers on Thursday. The Education Department is "preparing to restart" federal student loan debt repayments after a three-year pause now that the COVID-19 pandemic emergency has ended, Secretary Miguel Cardona told lawmakers this week. Cardona revealed the administration's intentions at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Thursday, when Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., asked him why the government should forgive student loan borrowers when President Biden is demanding that Congress pay its debt obligations in arguments with Republicans over the debt limit. Britt, a first-term senator, cited remarks about the federal debt made Monday by White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and asked if Cardona agreed. "If you buy a car, you are expected to pay the monthly payments. If you buy a home, you are expected to pay the mortgage every month. That is the expectation," Jean-Pierre said. BIDEN ASKS STUDENT LOAN COMPANIES TO PREPARE FOR END TO PAYMENT PAUSE Education Secretary Miguel Cardona testifies during the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies hearing on the "FY2024 Request for the United States Department of Education," in Rayburn B ( Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images / Getty Images) Cardona said he agreed with the White House. Britt then said, "that same logic must apply to student loans. "We agree, and we're preparing to restart repayment because the emergency period is over, and we're preparing our borrowers to restart," Cardona responded. He added that the HEROES Act, which the Biden administration has controversially argued empowers the secretary of education to reduce or eliminate federal student loan debt obligations, "provides me the opportunity to create a waiver for those who are impacted significantly by the pandemic β very similar to small businesses the year before, where Congress provided a little bit of support." Cardona did not provide Congess with a specific timeline for the administration's plan when asked. STUDENT LOAN REFINANCE INTEREST RATES EDGE DOWN FOR 5-YEAR LOANS ONLY President Joe Biden speaks about student loan debt forgiveness in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Aug. 24 in Washington. (AP/Evan Vucci / AP Images) Politico reported earlier this month that the Department of Education issued guidance to student loan companies last November about collecting federal student loan payments once payments resume sometime in October this year. Student loan servicers are reportedly required to alert borrowers of payment resumption after Aug. 31. Federal student loan payments were paused and interest rates reduced to 0% in March 2020, when President Donald Trump signed the CARES Act in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The student loan pause has since been extended multiple times by the Biden administration. Biden, who is running for re-election, has proposed forgiving up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt and up to $20,000 for those who received Pell Grants β a plan that is currently being challenged in court. If Biden is permitted to carry out his plan, he could eliminate a total of $441 billion in student debt from more than 40 million borrowers, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. SUPREME COURT ALLOWS $6 BILLION IN PAYMENTS TO CONTINUE IN STUDENT LOAN RELIEF CASE Members of the public walk by as student loan debt holders take part in a demonstration outside the White House staff entrance to demand that President Biden cancel student loan debt July 27, 2022, at the Executive Offices in Washington, D.C. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images for We, The 45 Million / Getty Images) Students study in the Rice University Library on Aug. 29, 2022, in Houston. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images / Getty Images) Federal student loan debt stands at $1.635 trillion and is carried by more than 43.8 million borrowers, according to EducationData.org. Should the Supreme Court give Biden the green light for relief, those eligible would need to have individual incomes of less than $125,000 or $250,000 if theyβre married couples. GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE The White House announced last November that federal student loan payments would resume 60 days after the Education Department is allowed to initiate its student loan forgiveness plan or after Supreme Court litigation is resolved β whichever comes first. FOX Business' Javier Simon contributed to this report. Quotes displayed in real-time Get a brief on the top business stories of the week, plus CEO interviews, market updates, tech and money news that matters to you. We've added you to our mailing list. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. | 95de3afb0b6a939c | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
supreme_court | Vox | https://www.vox.com/2018/9/24/17897296/believe-survivors-walkout-kavanaugh-ford-ramirez | Progressive activists think they have a shot at stopping Brett Kavanaugh | 2018-09-24 | supreme_court | Monday seemed like a fairly quiet day in the US Senate , as senators gradually returned from their weekends home . But it was chaos inside the Hart and Russell Senate Office buildings .
About 1,000 people protesting Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh β including more than 100 Yale Law School students β were arrested by Capitol Hill police on Monday morning , according to organizers . Their voices , chanting β I believe Anita Hill ! I believe Dr. Ford ! β reverberated around the Senate β s marble hallways as their hands were zip-tied and they were led away .
They weren β t alone β at 1 pm on Monday , women around the country staged a national walkout in solidarity with Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez , the two women accusing Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct . Kavanaugh has denied the allegations .
The protests against Kavanaugh are much larger than any against Trump β s first Supreme Court nominee , Justice Neil Gorsuch , who was confirmed last year . On Monday alone , about 45 people were arrested in the office of Sen. Susan Collins ( R-ME ) , one of the key Senate swing votes on Kavanaugh and a target of protests .
Protester outrage has featured prominently in Kavanaugh β s confirmation hearings since Day 1 . Kavanaugh couldn β t even complete his opening statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee a few weeks ago ; protesters ( nearly all of them women ) leaped out of their seats to disrupt the proceedings . Demonstrators β main concerns were then about the possibility a conservative justice could vote to overturn Roe v. Wade or strike down the Affordable Care Act .
β We made a very conscious decision to engage in acts of civil disobedience , β said activist Linda Sarsour , national co-chair of the Women β s March . β We wanted the story when these hearings started [ to ] not be business as usual . β
Protests only intensified after the accusations of sexual assault and misconduct . Outside the four walls of the Senate , more than 600,000 people have signed a MoveOn.org petition to stop Kavanaugh , and more than 50,000 have called their senators urging them to vote no . In August , tens of thousands of protesters across the country held a day of action to demonstrate against Trump β s pick .
β That has never happened around a Supreme Court justice before , β said Erica Mauter , who is coordinating Kavanaugh protests for MoveOn . β Progressives don β t usually mobilize around the Supreme Court . β
Protesters are much more fired up against Kavanaugh β s nomination than they were for Gorsuch , but that doesn β t necessarily mean Kavanaugh leans more to the right than Gorsuch . Trump β s first Supreme Court justice is very conservative .
Protesters are more concerned about the shifting balance of power on the Court if Kavanaugh is confirmed . Gorsuch was replacing the late Justice Antonin Scalia ( a noted conservative ) . Kavanaugh , if confirmed , would take the place of Justice Anthony Kennedy , one of the court β s most prominent swing votes .
β The difference between Gorsuch and Kavanaugh [ was ] a very conservative judge was replacing another conservative judge , β Mauter said . β While we didn β t want that to happen , it didn β t change the balance of the court . β
That fact , plus the emerging allegations , first reported in the Washington Post and the New Yorker , respectively , that Kavanaugh attempted to force himself on Ford when the two were high school and drunkenly exposed himself to Ramirez when the two were freshmen at Yale University , has stirred protests to a fever pitch .
It β s a different scene than Justice Clarence Thomas β s confirmation hearings in 1991 , when Thomas accuser Anita Hill testified about the justice β s sexual harassment toward her and other women .
Hill testified in front of an all-male Senate Judiciary Committee who made it clear they were not taking her allegations seriously . More than 1,600 African-American women took out an ad in the New York Times after their shock and anger that he had made it through the confirmation process successfully . Thomas famously called the controversy around Hill β s testimony a β high-tech lynching. β He was eventually confirmed .
Activists say they don β t want a repeat of 1991 . On Monday , a group of men β led by ALS patient and activist Ady Barkan β were arrested in the Capitol as a show of solidarity with women survivors of sexual assault . People shared their own stories of being harassed or assaulted , all before being arrested by Capitol police .
Activist @ AdyBarkan , who has ALS , is being led away by Capitol police right now . Anti-Kavanaugh protest has mostly been broken up . pic.twitter.com/GxomocgsqX β Ella Nilsen ( @ ella_nilsen ) September 24 , 2018
β It was powerful for women to see men get arrested , β Sarsour said .
Ford and Kavanaugh are supposed to testify in front of the Senate on Thursday , even as Ford says she is receiving death threats and has had to move her family out of her home for going public with her story . Kavanaugh , meanwhile , has continued to insist both Ford and Ramirez β s stories didn β t happen , most recently in a Monday night interview with Fox News .
On Thursday , women activists plan to protest silently around the Capitol building in a show of support for Ford . They will wear T-shirts emblazoned with her name and the phrase β I believe women . β
β We will be outside , we will be there , β Sarsour said . β We hope she knows we β ve got her back . β
A few activists said they used to think Kavanaugh β s eventual confirmation would be inevitable , but they now see a glimmer of hope that his confirmation to the Court can be stopped . Republicans desperately want to confirm the judge before the November midterms ; if Democrats succeed in an unlikely chance to retake the Senate , it would be much more difficult for Republicans to confirm a conservative justice to the court . And Kavanaugh is considerably more embattled with the allegations hanging over his head .
What was looking nearly impossible earlier this summer is now looking considerably more possible .
β Over the last six to seven weeks , I have begun to have a sense of optimism , β said Ana Maria Archila , co-director of CPD Action , one of the groups organizing the protests . | MH2lS1u5DuZNq8j7 | 0 | Brett Kavanaugh | -0.1 | Progressives | 0 | Supreme Court | 0 | null | null | null | null |
polarization | Charles Blow | https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/13/opinion/trump-impeachment-unity.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage | What Unity? | 2021-01-14 | Polarization, Impeachment, Donald Trump, Republican Party, Democratic Party | Advertisement Supported by Some argue that impeachment is divisive. Thatβs fine with me. By Charles M. Blow Opinion Columnist As the House of Representatives voted Wednesday to impeach Donald Trump for a second time, some Republicans argued that such a move β a constitutional obligation, really β was unnecessarily divisive at a time when the nation should be healing and proposing unity. The irony is that this plea is being made by many of the same legislators who just last week were supportive of Trumpβs scheme to fraudulently overturn the results of a free and fair election, thereby disenfranchising millions of voters who formed the majority of the electorate. But, beyond that, whenever I hear politicians appealing for unity, I am befuddled. What do they mean by βunityβ? What does βunityβ mean to America? Yes, America can be unified in pride or defense. But unity doesnβt always exist, even when our country is attacked, or when we are engaged in war. Support for the American Revolution was by no means universal, and at one point, failing to entice enough recruits for the rebellion among white colonists, the government began to enlist thousands of Black ones, a move it had resisted. Resistance to the wars in Vietnam and now Iraq and Afghanistan is well known and somewhat entrenched. In the case of the Vietnam War, for instance, the percentage of people who believed that the United States did the right thing by fighting in Vietnam has remained below a quarter of the population, according to polling. If anything, America is united against the governmentβs approach to the war. We are having trouble retrieving the article content. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe. Advertisement | 6112f92b73367a62 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | Guest Writer | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/jan/5/peter-morici-why-good-jobs-are-too-few-wages-so-po/ | OPINION: Why good jobs are too few, wages so poor | 2016-01-05 | economy_and_jobs | Americans are justified to be angry about the economic recovery . As President Obama enters his final year , good-paying jobs remain scarce and family incomes are down about $ 1,650 on his watch .
Since Ronald Reagan ran the country , the availability of attractive employment has been trending down and slowing economic growth is often blamed . During Mr. Obama β s recovery , gross domestic product has advanced at a 2.2 percent annual pace , whereas the comparable figures for Reagan and Bill Clinton were 4.6 and 3.7 percent .
But that puts the story backward β the lack of workers adequately trained for a more technological demanding workplace is slowing growth , not the other way around .
Automation has been an enduring theme throughout American history . First , reapers and tractors consolidated farms and sent workers to factories . Then machines replaced workers in manufacturing , pushing them into more highly paid professions in medicine , education and technology but also less well-paid occupations in restaurants , retailing and other services .
Until recently , computer-programmed machines could be taught strenuous and repetitive tasks like attaching a heavy , rigid fender onto an automobile . Going forward , robots will increasingly replace people in activities requiring more subtle manual dexterity β like making shirts and harvesting fruit β and those requiring more complex cognitive processes like masonry construction , driving limousines and building new robots that adapt to changing environmental conditions .
The drugstore I visit in Washington no longer has cashiers β just a group of checkout machines and one clerk to assist technologically flummoxed patrons . Over the next two decades , robots will be capable of unloading pallets , stocking shelves , filling prescriptions , and generally running the store with minimal human intervention .
By 2030 , it will become technologically possible to replace 90 percent of the jobs as we know them by smart machines . The real challenge will be training most Americans to engage in intellectually demanding and creative work , or the globalization of technology and competition will relegate most of us to very low-paying work better left to androids .
In 2016 , Americans should be skeptical , not merely of false promises to restore prosperity made by Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump , but also outraged by the handiwork of mainstream politicians .
The latter β s efforts to make a high school diploma universal have made it a nearly worthless credential . Less than 40 percent of 12 graders are ready to read or learn math at the college level , and many fewer have skills to enter technically demanding positions without post-secondary training .
A college diploma is not much better . After pushing millions of unqualified students into universities through affirmative action and government loan programs , four in 10 graduates lack the complex reasoning skills needed for white-collar work as it exists today , never mind as it will be after machines equipped with high-level artificial intelligence can replace armies of stockbrokers , insurance adjusters and restaurant managers over the next several decades .
Meanwhile the president and his presumptive heir , Hillary Clinton , remain obsessed with sexism in education and the workplace . That nearly 60 percent of college degrees are now awarded to women and females often earn more than males in comparable positions are inconvenient facts when there are voters to be misled to extend a political dynasty .
And conservatives β including the likes of Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio β oppose universal standards for more academic rigor like the Common Core .
The future lies in educating Americans , not being angry about false injustice or an omnipresent state , but rather in building and teaching the machines that will do the work that has burdened humanity since the first branch was shaped into a hunting implement .
Without young people trained and encouraged to do that sophisticated work , the locus of prosperity will permanently shift from America to Asia , where pragmatic leaders urge children to study engineering , not the superstitions peddled by pious academics and deceitful politicians .
β’ Peter Morici is an economist and business professor at the University of Maryland , and a national columnist . | BTyRCynCGwyc54nA | 1 | Economy And Jobs | -0.4 | Wages | 0.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | New York Times - News | https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/07/us/politics/stephen-miller-cnn-trump-bannon-apology.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news | Bannon Tries Backing Away From Explosive Comments | 2018-01-07 | politics | β This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration β period β both in person and around the globe. β That now famous press briefing marked the beginning of the Trump administration and became a punchline . β This will be the largest audience to witness an Emmys β period. β But nearly one year later , similar verbal uppercuts on the press have defined how the Trump administration reacts to criticism . Defending your boss is nothing new . But the way they do it is . β Negative β No , that it β s O.K . β no , excuse me . Oh , no , no , no , no. β β But there β s a difference β there β s a very big β I β m sorry . I β m not finished. β β That is one of the most outrageous , insulting , ignorant and foolish things you β ve ever said. β On Sunday , it happened again . Trump senior adviser Stephen Miller was asked about the president β s mental stability . Here β s how he responded . β But I think in the toxic environment that you β ve created here in CNN and cable news , which is a real crisis of legitimacy for your network . And we saw it , of course , with the extremely fake news you reported about the Don Jr. and WikiLeaks story. β And it didn β t end well . β You β ve attemped to filibuster by talking about your fights with the president. β β No , hold on a sec. β β I want to ask you a question. β β And I think I β ve wasted enough of my viewers β time . Thank you , Stephen. β β As Republican lawmakers call for Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign ... β Since Trump came into office , his administration has vowed to fight the news media β tooth and nail β over what it sees as unfair attacks . Perhaps no one does this more often or more aggressively than the president himself . β Wait a minute . I β m not finished . I β m not finished , fake news. β β Buzzfeed , which is a failing pile of garbage. β White House adviser Kellyanne Conway does this often . β This president is not trusted by the American people. β β No , that β s wrong . You know what β s a problem for this nation , that you refuse β CNN used to be a place where people can tune in and get the news all day long . Now they get spin and people β s opinions. β Sarah Huckabee Sanders , the White House press secretary , does too . β There β s a very big difference between making honest mistakes and purposefully misleading the American people , something that happens regularly . You can β t say β I β m not done. β H.R . McMaster , the national security adviser , defended Trump after reports that he revealed highly classified intelligence to Russia . β I think the real issue , and I think what I β d like to see really debated more , is that our national security has been put at risk by those violating confidentiality. β While every president has grumbled about coverage , Trump has proved to be the most vocal in at least a generation . After Miller β s recent appearance , Trump tweeted out his support . So it appears that in Trump β s eyes , it β s not only important what you say , but how you say it . | 763qp80zLtzgoOrH | 0 | Steve Bannon | -0.5 | Politics | 0.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
severe_weather | BBC News | https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8r55xgvv36o | Power lines, hikers, arson: What might have sparked LA's devastating fires? | 2025-01-17 | California, Wildfires, California Wildfires, West Coast Fires, Arson, Crime, Immigration | The hiking trail through Temescal Canyon in western Los Angeles is a favourite of locals. Towering above the twisting roads and manicured homes that make up the Pacific Palisades, urban hikers seeking an escape from America's famously gridlocked city have a clear view of the pristine waters of the Pacific. Now the green, brush-lined path in the canyons is grey and burned as far as the eye can see. Yellow police tape surrounds the path up to the trail. Police guarding this area are calling it a "crime scene" and prevented BBC reporters, including me, from getting any closer. It's where investigators think the deadly blaze that destroyed so many homes in the area may have started. A similar scene is playing out across town in the north of the city. There, the community of Altadena was levelled by a different fire that ignited in the San Gabriel Mountains. Investigators in both locations are scouring canyons and trails, and examining rocks, bottles, cans β any debris left behind that might hold clues to the origins of these blazes, which are still unknown. It's the one thing on-edge and devastated Angelenos are desperate to know: how did these fires start? Without answers, some in fire-prone California are filling in the gaps themselves. Fingers have been pointed at arsonists, power company utilities or even a blaze days prior in the Pacific Palisades that was snuffed out but may have re-ignited in the face of Santa Ana winds blowing at 80-100mph (128-160 kmph) last week. Investigators are examining all those theories and more. They're following dozens of leads in the hopes that clues in burn patterns, surveillance footage and testimony from first responders and witnesses can explain why Los Angeles saw two of the most destructive fire disasters in US history ignite on 7 January, so far killing 27 people and destroying more than 10,000 homes and businesses. But this tragic mystery will take time to solve β possibly as long as a year. "It's just too early," Ginger Colbrun, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles division of the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) told the BBC. "Everyone wants answers, we want answers, the community wants answers. They deserve an explanation. It just takes time." The first trace of the Palisades Fire may have been spotted by Kai Cranmore and his friends as they hiked in Temescal Canyon, on a trail frequented by nature lovers and California stoners alike. It's not uncommon for visitors to bring alcohol and music, relaxing in nature by Skull Rock β a landmark rock formation along the trail. In a series of videos posted online, Mr Cranmore and his friends are seen running down the canyon on the morning of 7 January. His first videos show a small cloud of smoke billowing from a hill as they navigate through brush and rock formations in a desperate escape. Out of breath, they comment on having smelled fire before seeing smoke rising. In further clips, that small cloud gets darker and flames can later be seen cresting over the hilltop. "Dude, that's right where we were standing," one person exclaims in the video as flames whip in the distance. "We were literally right there," another chimes in. The videos of the hikers are being examined as part of the official investigation into the origin of the Palisades Fire, Ms Colbrun of the ATF confirmed, saying their experience is just one of many tips and potential leads that have been flagged to authorities. "The investigators, they're talking to everyone," she said. Some on the internet were quick to blame the group for the fire, noting how close they were to the blaze when it erupted. Even actor Rob Schneider posted about the hikers, asking his followers to help identify them. In interviews with US media outlets, members of the hiking group noted how fearful they became as people started online attacks. One of the men said he deleted his social media accounts. "It's scary," one of the group told the LA Times. "Just knowing as a matter of fact of our experience that we didn't do it but then seeing the amount of people that have different theories is overwhelming." Ms Colbrun said investigators were also speaking to firefighters who responded to a blaze days earlier that sparked nearby in the same canyon. A persistent theory holds that a small fire on 1 January was never fully extinguished and reignited six days later as winds picked up. The Palisades Fire is thought to have erupted around 10:30 local time on 7 January, but several hikers told US media they'd smelled smoke earlier that morning as they used the trail. A security guard who works near the trail told the BBC he'd seen smoke or dust for several days in the area. The morning of the blaze he was patrolling the neighbourhood bordering the canyon and called firefighters as a plume of smoke formed. But Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone was dismissive of speculation the the two fires in the Palisades, nearly a week apart, could be connected. "I don't buy it. Personally, I don't buy it," he told the BBC. "I believe that a week is too long for a fire to get re-established that wasn't fully contained." He acknowledged such incidents do happen but they are rare. While Chief Marrone's agency is not leading the probe into the Palisades Fire, he said investigators were also examining the possibility of arson. "We had numerous fires in the LA County region almost simultaneously, which leads us to believe that these fires were intentionally set by a person," Chief Marrone said. He adds that about half of the brushfires the agency typically responds to are intentionally set. Chief Marrone has been primarily focused on the other side of town, dousing the Eaton Fire that tore through much of Altadena. It levelled whole neighbourhoods, destroyed blocks of businesses and killed at least 17 people. The agency is working with Cal Fire, California's state-wide fire agency, to investigate the cause of that blaze and where it ignited. The Eaton Fire erupted shortly after sunset on 7 January - hours after firefighters became overwhelmed in the Palisades. Jeffrey Ku captured what could be some of the earliest footage of the fire. A Ring doorbell camera on his home captured the moment his wife came to pull him outside. "Hey babe, I need you to come out here right now," she tells him as her hair whips in the fierce winds. "We have a very big problem." "Oh no!" Mr Ku can be heard saying as bright orange flames light up the sky. At that point, the fire was still small. It was blazing under a large metal utility tower on the mountainside. In a series of videos, Mr Ku documented how quickly it spread β each update carrying more worry in his voice as he and his wife packed what they could to leave. "Please God, please God save us, save our house. Please God, please," he says in one β the whole sky now glowing yellow-orange. Sirens echo around him. The large metal utility tower Mr Ku recorded is now a focus for fire investigators. Utility providers have been blamed for some of California's worst fires, including the 2018 Camp Fire that killed 85 people and destroyed the town of Paradise. In 2019, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) agreed a $13.5bn (Β£10.2bn) settlement with victims of the Camp Fire and other wildfires in the state. In the week since the Eaton Fire, there have already been at least five lawsuits filed against Southern California Edison, the power provider that operates the tower seen in Mr Ku's video. The company says it has not found any evidence that its equipment was responsible for the fire and is reviewing the lawsuits. In a statement, it said its preliminary analysis of transmission lines across the canyon showed there were "no interruptions or operational/electrical anomalies in the 12 hours prior to the fire's reported start time until more than one hour after the reported start time of the fire". Additionally, the company said its distribution lines to the west of Eaton Canyon "were de-energized well before the reported start time of the fire" as part of its fire safety shut-off program. Chief Marrone told the BBC that investigators were looking into all possibilities, including whether the tower may have been where a spot fire ignited β meaning the initial blaze could have been started elsewhere but then spread to the tower through flying embers. He explained the tower where the fire was spotted is not like those seen in neighbourhoods. Rather than a wooden pole with a small, easy-to-blow transformer or slim wires, this was a massive metal transmission tower with high voltage lines as thick as a fist. These types of lines aren't typically the cause of fires because they're computerised, he said, and the system automatically turns off power once there is an issue. He noted, though, that investigators were looking into whether Southern California Edison's systems operated properly that night and cut power. Cal Fire cautioned against casting any blame so early in the probe. "We want to make very sure that we're not pointing any fingers in any direction because we've seen what happens when someone is falsely accused," Gerry MagaΓ±a, deputy chief of operations, told the BBC in an interview. "It causes chaos." Additional reporting from Hannah Green and Emma Pengelly The horse, named Deuce, which had slipped down a slope, was rescued by firefighters. Crews responded on Saturday to wildfires on heathland at Upton Heath in Dorset. Debris and mud flow pushes a fire department car into the Pacific as a rainstorm lashed LA county. January's wildfires have exacerbated the decline of Hollywood's once booming film and television industry. A wildfire has burnt through 55% of Amsterdam Island, a French foreign territory in the Indian Ocean. Copyright 2025 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. | a039641485cf7478 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
federal_budget | Reason | https://reason.com/2020/02/28/the-national-debt-is-unsustainable-and-the-pentagons-finances-are-a-total-mess-federal-audit-says/ | The National Debt Is 'Unsustainable' and the Pentagon's Finances Are a Total Mess, Federal Audit Says | 2020-02-28 | Debt, Economy And Jobs, Government Accountability Office, Pentagon, Military, Federal Budget | The federal government 's books are in such bad shape that auditors ca n't even do their jobs , and the national debt is growing at an `` unsustainable '' rate , the Government Accountability Office ( GAO ) warned in its annual comprehensive review of the government 's financial statements .
The GAO singled out the Pentagonβas it has every year since 1990 , when federal auditors first started trying to peer into the black hole of military spendingβfor `` serious financial management problems . '' That includes more than 1,300 new issues raised during this year 's incomplete audit of the Defense Department . Despite those persistent financial problems , the Pentagon has seen a huge boost in spending under the Trump administration .
Of the 24 federal departments and agencies subject to annual audits under a 1990 law , only the Pentagon and the Department of Housing and Urban Development failed to get a clean review this year . Note that a clean review does not mean there was no wasteful spendingβmerely that auditors at least were able to see where the spending was going .
`` Resolving the problems outlined in our audit report is of utmost importance given the federal government 's reported fiscal path , '' wrote Gene L. Dodaro , U.S. comptroller general and the head of the GAO , in a letter to Congress and President Donald Trump . `` Absent policy changes , the federal government continues to face an unsustainable long-term fiscal path . ''
Measured as a share of the entire U.S. economy , the national debt has doubled in just 12 years and is on pace to grow to historical highs within the next decade . The federal government 's budget deficitβthe gap between how much revenue it raises and how much money it spendsβis expected to exceed $ 1 trillion this year .
`` While the estimated magnitude of the fiscal gap is subject to a substantial amount of uncertainty , it is nevertheless nearly certain that current fiscal policies can not be sustained indefinitely , '' the GAO 's report concluded . The sooner the growth of the deficit and debt can be slowed or reversed , the less those policies are likely to affect economic growth .
But is anyone listening ? Lawmakers from both major parties have worked together in recent years to pass budgets that exploded annual deficits and added to the debt . Democrats running for president are promising to hike federal spending by trillions of dollars to pay for free college , government-run health care , and the fight against climate changeβand even though they are also promising to raise taxes , the math does n't add up . That means deficits will continue to grow . Meanwhile , President Donald Trump has abandoned any pretense of fiscal conservatism , and most of his party has followed suit .
But the report is right there for them to see . When the past decade 's fiscal recklessness hits the fan , they wo n't be able to claim that no one saw this coming . | a397604716073eb4 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | Politico | https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/11/joe-biden-media-2020-1488835 | Biden camp thinks the media just doesnβt get it | 2019-09-11 | media_bias | The first thing you notice at a Joe Biden event is the age : Many of the reporters covering him are really young . Biden is not . The press corps , or so the Biden campaign sees it , is culturally liberal and highly attuned to modern issues around race and gender and social justice . Biden is not . The reporters are Extremely Online . Biden couldn β t tell you what TikTok is .
Inside the Biden campaign , it is the collision between these two worlds that advisers believe explain why his White House run often looks like a months-long series of gaffes . For a team in command of the Democratic primary , at least for now , they β re awfully resentful of how their man is being covered . And yet supremely confident that they , not the woke press that pounces on Biden β s every seeming error and blight in his record , has a vastly superior understanding of the Democratic electorate . This is the central paradox of Biden β s run : He β s been amazingly durable . But he gets no respect from the people who make conventional wisdom on the left .
β I do n't know of anybody who has taken as sustained and vitriolic a negative pounding as Biden and who has come through it with the strength he has , β said a top Biden adviser . β So why isn β t the argument not that he 's a β fragile front runner , β but instead why is this guy so strong ? How is he able to withstand this ? Because it is unrelenting . Every story that has been written about Biden for a month has been negative ! I would ask Warren and Sanders and these folks : He β s been pummeled for months . For months ! So why is he going to fall apart now ? β
In mid-June , when I spent a few days on the Biden campaign trail , one of the biggest stories on Twitter to circulate about his swing through eastern Iowa was about a young female activist who said she felt intimidated by Biden when she asked him a question about his reversal on the Hyde Amendment . A photo of the encounter went viral , with almost 25,000 likes and retweets . To many influential commentators on lefty Twitter , where Biden is sometimes accorded only slightly more respect than Donald Trump , it was a disrespectful and blatant act of Biden mansplaining . Vice reported breathlessly , β In the photo , Biden , the current Democratic frontrunner , is pointing his finger in Cayo β s face with his eyebrows raised . β
βββ Playbook newsletter Sign up today to receive the # 1-rated newsletter in politics Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from βββ . You can unsubscribe at any time .
During another stop , at a diner in Eldridge , Biden β s only comment that made news was a cringe-inducing remark to a 13-year-old girl β s brothers : β You β ve got one job here , keep the guys away from your sister. β He β s been using a version of this avuncular bit of schtick for years , but this time it created a furious Twitter outrage cycle . ( Biden seems to have learned a lesson and abandoned the line . )
On the same trip , Biden spoke at a mid-day event in Clinton , Iowa . At one point he discussed the benefits of electric scooters as a transportation solution in city centers , and he explained that after a rider hops off a scooter , he plugs it in . He pantomimed someone inserting a power cord into an outlet , which , as anyone who has used one knows , is not what you do . Reporters , myself included , snickered at the micro-gaffe .
To many Biden supporters , who polls consistently show are older , more working class , and more culturally conservative , these alleged gaffes are eye-rolling examples of the absurdity of the press or the woke left . They think the young activist in eastern Iowa should toughen up , that the throwaway line to the 13-year-old is endearing , and that Biden β s lack of precision when he speaks , about scooters or so many other things , is a sign of his authenticity . And they grouse that Biden is held to a standard President Donald Trump is not .
How Democrats see such episodes is at the heart of the Democratic primary . One side views these sorts of typical Biden campaign-trail moments as evidence of a politician well past his prime β casually sexist in a way that might have gone unremarked in , say , 1973 when he first joined the Senate . His supporters see them as good examples of why he β s the lovable Democrat best-suited to beat Trump . What is clear is that the critics , who are louder and more visible online and on cable TV , have had absolutely no impact on changing Biden β s status as the steady front-runner in the race .
This woke-working class divide is at the heart of the most salient fact about the Democratic primaries : Nothing has damaged Biden . Biden entered the race with about 30 percent support nationally and he has that same 30 percent today .
Perhaps this could all begin to change tomorrow night in Houston , when for the first time Biden and his two closest competitors , Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders , will be on the same debate stage . But so far , just as the press has been unable to disrupt Biden β s bond with his core thirty , his Democratic opponents seem similarly at a loss to understand , let alone undo , Biden β s enduring appeal .
Given Biden β s resilience and consistent lead in the national polls , his advisers range from bemusement to rage in their frustration with how he has been treated by the press and many liberal elites .
They brandish the many predictions of his demise as evidence of their more sophisticated understanding of the Democratic electorate . β He β s still leading the race nationally . He 's leading in Iowa . It looks like he 's in a dead heat in New Hampshire , β said the top Biden adviser . β I do n't know why the story in New Hampshire is n't how Bernie Sanders went from sixty to fourteen . And why is it that Biden is beating Warren in Massachusetts ? And he 's way ahead in South Carolina . And this is all on the back end of really the most vicious press I think anyone 's experienced . So that to me is a statement of strength . And anyone who 's sitting around waiting for him to fall apartβyou know what , it has n't happened yet . β
To Biden β s advisers and allies , the gap between a press corps , as well as the wider online political class , that is largely in its twenties and thirties and a candidate who would be 78 at his Inaugural explains a lot about why the pundits and Twitter activists are so confounded by the former vice president β s resilience .
β You have a press corps in which most of them were in college when Barack Obama ran for president and they have fundamentally no understanding and experience in how politics works , β said a well-known Democrat backing Biden . β They have not really covered a true Democratic primary ever because there hasn β t been one since 2008 . The 2016 race didn β t become a real primary until very late and the press corps never thought Bernie would win . And Bernie never got the treatment from the press corps that opponents like him typically get . So they haven β t seen this kind of race . β
This dynamic has produced what Beto O β Rourke might call a fuck-you attitude inside Biden world toward the press and liberal social media influencers who drool over Elizabeth Warren β s every policy paper and see Biden as hopelessly square .
The well-known Democrat said of the Biden press corps , β They view this party as dominated by woke millennials and through the lens of coastal issues . They are products , increasingly , of fairly elite schools and they don β t talk to a lot of voters who don β t look and talk like them except their parents , who also tend to be similar to them . Occasionally they are shocked to learn they have relatives who voted for Donald Trump . And they were not on the ground in the Midwest primaries for governor races in 2018 in Michigan and Ohio and Wisconsin where more moderate and older and more experienced candidates won against young cool left β often people of color β primary opponents . β
They are , this person argued , obsessed with a Democratic Party that exists only on Twitter . She pointedly noted that there are Democrats β outside of those 18,000 voters in Queens , β referring to the total vote share β it was actually closer to 17,000 β for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in her June 2018 primary victory . β And by the way , those didn β t even tend to be the economically disadvantaged people of color who live in that district . They were the quote β new people β if you talk to anyone from New York . β
Her point was that the AOC phenomenon β is emblematic of what most reporters think is going on nationally . β
To Biden world , it β s the media β s cultural affinity for this New New Left that explains why the Biden-will-soon-collapse storyline has such staying power .
β I get this question all the time : Why does the press hate him so much ? β she said . β And the answer is because they are younger and they want someone cooler . β
Last Saturday , 19 of the Democrats running for president spoke at an all-day convention of the New Hampshire Democratic Party in Manchester . The event attracts the state β s most important activists , as well as a good smattering of Democratic political junkies from around the northeast , and campaigns are under pressure to create some theatrics with supporters and signage and post-convention parties in nearby parks and beer halls .
On stage before the party delegates , several candidates began to make a more robust case against Biden . Elizabeth Warren owned the room , and the day , with an electric performance that also showcased her campaign β s ability to organize . She brought in many supporters from Massachusetts and outfitted them with inflatable thunder sticks , producing a well-choreographed but authentic audience response that her campaign immediately used for a promotional video . ( β We did the same thing with Dukakis in β 88 , β one longtime Democratic strategist noted about busing in supporters from the neighboring state . )
Biden β s message is that Trump represents a unique threat that requires Democratic voters to be careful and ultimately risk averse in choosing a nominee to face him βan unmistakable warning not to elect someone too far to the left , such as Warren or Sanders .
Warren β s response remains subtle , for now . β There is a lot at stake and people are scared , β Warren told the crowd on Saturday . β But we can β t choose a candidate we don β t believe in because we β re scared . And we can β t ask other people to vote for someone we don β t believe in . I am not afraid and for Democrats to win you can β t be afraid either . β
The assumption embedded in Warren β s line is that many of Biden β s supporters aren β t really enthusiastic about him , that they are backing him out of some misguided sense of obligation and fear , which also might explain his modest crowds and the lack of any Biden thunder-stick moments in this campaign .
This line of attack drives people inside the Biden campaign mad . To them it smacks of elitism and suggests that Warren and her most vocal supporters believe that Biden β s voters , who polls consistently show are more likely to be working class and people of color , are somehow not smart enough to understand why they support him .
β This gets back to the vitriol of the left , β said the prominent Democrat . β They seem to feel like , β Why don β t you dumb voters see what we see ? If we yell at you enough will you start to listen to us ? β β
β The party is older than people think . It β s more centrist than people think , β said the senior Biden adviser . He noted that Biden β s favorability rating among Democrats has been in the mid 70s since the start of this race .
β But they say he 's out of step with the party ! Well he β s the only person to demonstrate substantial support across a multiracial coalition . So actually he is most in step with the party . But no one ever sees it that way because that is not the world as seen through Twitter . β
Speaking early in the day on Saturday , Biden gave his typical stump speech about beating Trump and rebuilding the middle class , but the only thing that really made any news was when , at one point , he accidentally said β hump β instead of β Trump . β
Other candidates have begun beta testing a more direct anti-Biden message , and the intensity of the message seems closely correlated with how poorly the candidate β s campaign is faring . β Democrats are long past believing that we want to be led by folks that supported the Iraq war and are long past a generation of politicians that could n't do anything about the income stagnation that exists in this country , β Sen. Michael Bennet told me in an interview backstage . β When you hear the vice president , who I 've nothing but the highest regard for , say that if we just get rid of Trump it will all go back to normal , which is what he 's saying , it misses the 10 years that I 've been in the Senate when it 's never been normal . And for the last six years of the Obama administration he couldn β t get anything done . β
Like others , Bennet argued that the polls were misleading and would get more volatile as voters focused more closely on the race . β If history is any guide , the people that are leading today are not going to be the people that win in Iowa and win in New Hampshire , β he insisted , adding with self-deprecation : β And I 'm prepared to let history be our guide since I 'm at 1 percent today . β
After his speech , Mayor Pete Buttigieg and his husband , Chasten , played cornhole and ate ice-cream at a nearby park while mixing with supporters . In an interview , he made an anti-Biden case that put him somewhere between Warren and Bennet .
β Every single time Democrats have won it 's somebody who 's generally viewed as outside of Washington , typically somebody from a new generation and somebody with a different approach , β he told me , noting the victories of Kennedy , Carter , Clinton and Obama . β And every time we 've tried to do something very conventional , and very safe and had a very established Washington nominee , every time we 've come up short . This is not just a pattern . This has essentially been an iron law for the last 50 or 60 years . β
The Biden camp scoffs at the generational argument . β The last guy who tried this was out of the race in a week , that congressman from California , β said the senior Biden adviser , who couldn β t remember the name of 38-year-old Eric Swalwell , who tried in vain to create a viral moment about generational change during the first debate . β He was going to pass the torch . β
Swalwell told me he was wrong that this was the right moment for that message and doubted that a candidate like Buttigieg would be any more successful than he was . β I felt like I was in a bad traffic jam with no offramp and no way to get ahead , β he said in an interview about his short-lived campaign . β And certainly the lead car was the vice president . I don β t know if this is a generational election because of who the president is . Beating him is so important because of who he is and what a threat to democracy he is . It is still early and there are still other generational candidates but my sense is that this isn β t a β Don β t Stop Thinking About Tomorrow β election . The stakes are so high with this president that there is a fear of rolling the dice . β
Younger candidates like Pete Buttigieg have angled themselves as a generational change β but Joe Biden 's team has dismissed the need for a fresher face . | Charlie Neibergall/AP Photo
Perhaps the one line of attack that just might work against Biden is , at least for the moment , the only area of criticism considered strictly off limits by almost every campaign . Most of Biden β s opponents are scared to directly confront the one issue that both his gaffes and all the talk about generational change tiptoe around : his age .
I rode with Steve Bullock , the governor of Montana , to the convention arena . He is supremely confident and polished and in the back seat of his SUV discussed his successes as governor , his frustrations about being excluded from the next debate , and his concerns about the leftward lunge of his party . The only time he seemed to hold back was when I raised the issue of whether Biden was really up for the job . β I think that 's one for the voters to figure out more than me , β he said . ( His campaign manager escalated the rhetoric slightly in a memo sent to reporters on Tuesday that said , β there is a growing fear that the candidates promising revolutions are out of step with general election voters while others fear Vice President Biden may be unable to take down Trump . β )
In the afternoon , the issue of Biden β s age and mental acuity suddenly burst open in the airless media room where most of the candidates , though not Biden , spoke with reporters after their speeches . I asked Rep. Tim Ryan , who the previous day had been quoted saying that Biden was β declining , β whether he meant declining in the polls or mentally declining and he made it clear he meant the latter . Pressed further by another reporter , he would only say β there β s a lack of clarity β when Biden speaks . ( β You know , with Ryan , if he declines anymore he 's going from like one to zero , β the senior Biden adviser told me in response . )
But Ryan was alone in raising the issue . Afterward I visited Sen. Amy Klobuchar in her suite and , she too refused to engage on the subject when I mentioned Ryan β s remarks . β I 'm running my own campaign , β she said through bites of an apple , explaining why she wouldn β t discuss Biden or any of her other opponents . After five minutes of pressing her about how to differentiate herself from Biden , she essentially ended the interview . Like several other candidates , her strategy remains one of waiting for Biden β s collapse rather than trying to trigger it .
But offstage , in the backrooms of the SNHU Arena and nearby hotel lobbies where activists and aides gathered , the discussion frequently turned to whether Biden is up to the task of facing Trump .
β The narrative that Biden has staying power is bullshit , β said a senior adviser to one of Biden β s rivals . β It is just too fucking early . Did we not learn anything from 2016 that polls are shit ? The dude does not know what is going on . He is not in fighting shape to beat Trump . You put him on stage together with Trump and they β re both gon na forget shit but Trump is sharper . The dude is just old and it β s showing and they β re fighting every day to make the case that β s not happening but it is . β
But only Bakari Sellers , a former South Carolina state legislator and supporter and informal adviser to Sen. Kamala Harris , was willing to say the quiet part out loud .
β Joe Biden has been running for president since before I was born , β Sellers said . β Joe Biden is nearly 80 years old and he β s running to be president of the United States . My dad was president of an HBCU and will be 75 this year and his doctors told him he couldn β t do it anymore . He didn β t have the energy and strength to lead that campus anymore . Doesn β t mean he wasn β t a great man and a great leader and a great visionary . But it is a justifiable conversation . β
Sellers went further and lumped Sanders and Warren into the debate about age . β The three front-runners are all older than Ronald Reagan was when he took over , β he said . β Democrats are afraid of criticism , which is silly to me . But we are going to have a contentious primary on vigor and issues about fitness to be president . β
Then he paused and added , β But at the end of the day I β ll take a 90-year old Joe Biden over Donald Trump . β
The tricky part about attacking Biden is that few Democratic voters have any hostility toward Biden personally . The most aggressive public attack against him was by Harris in the first debate , when she confronted him about his past positions on busing and working with segregationist senators . She juiced her fundraising in the days following the debate and received a spike in national polls , but her numbers soon settled back down to where they were , at about seven percent . Biden β s advisers now frequently mention the episode as a cautionary tale for others .
β Kamala going after Biden didn β t really work out for her so I β m curious to see how many try that again on Thursday , β said a Democrat close to the Biden campaign . β How do you tear down the front-runner that everyone actually likes ? β
He added , β Do I believe that Joe Biden is the future of the party ? No . But he β s the right person to beat this president in 2020 . '' | OvlCNrKK6O8Uz7RB | 0 | Joe Biden | 0.8 | Presidential Elections | 0.2 | Elections | 0 | Media Bias | 0 | null | null |
terrorism | Townhall | http://townhall.com/tipsheet/danieldoherty/2014/12/14/breaking-hostage-crisis--at-cafe-in-sydney-australia-n1931778 | BREAKING: Hostage Crisis Unfolding at Chocolate Cafe in Sydney, Australia | 2014-12-14 | terrorism | The rise of ISIS-inspired terrorist threats in Australia has been a growing problem . Last September , for example , hundreds of officers conducted a series of raids throughout Sydney and Brisbane that authorities claimed stopped a major terrorist plot in its tracks . More than a dozen suspected terrorists were apprehended and detained .
Now , however , a cafΓ© in the same city has reportedly been overrun by a lone gunman , and civilians are being detained against their will . A black , Arabic flag has also been put on display :
Hostages were being held inside a central Sydney cafe where a black flag with white Arabic writing could be seen in the window , local television showed on Monday , raising fears of an attack linked to Islamic militants . Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he was convening a meeting of the cabinet 's national security committee for a briefing on what he called a hostage situation in Australia 's commercial capital . Australia , which is backing the United States and its escalating action against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq , is on high alert for attacks by radicalised Muslims or by home-grown fighters returning from the conflict in the Middle East . Dozens of heavily armed police surrounded the Lindt Cafe in Martin Place , home to the Reserve Bank of Australia , commercial banks and close to the New South Wales ( NSW ) state parliament .
Local news captured the horrifying scene in real time . Stay tuned for updates .
A black flag with white writing was put in the window of the cafe . It is not an Islamic State flag . The flag appears to bear the Shahada , an Islamic creed which reads : β There is no god but the God , Muhammad is the messenger of God. β It β s can be a benign symbol and appears across the Islamic world , including on the Saudi Arabian flag . But it has also been embraced by jihadi groups such as Jabhat Al-Nusra , an Al-Qaeda affiliate currently fighting in Syria .
New South Wales Police and the Australian Federal Police are currently responding to a reported hostage-taking incident in Martin Place in Sydney . I have spoken with NSW Premier Mike Baird and offered him all possible Commonwealth support and assistance . The National Security Committee of Cabinet has also convened for briefings on the situation . This is obviously a deeply concerning incident but all Australians should be reassured that our law enforcement and security agencies are well trained and equipped and are responding in a thorough and professional manner . We will provide regular updates as further information becomes available .
Flag in # MartinPlace cafe siege belongs to Syrian extremist group Jabhat al-Nusra which has links to ISIS & Al Qaeda http : //t.co/kFhIdabcDu β Lisa Daftari ( @ LisaDaftari ) December 15 , 2014
Australian police commissioner calls hostage crisis `` very contained '' http : //t.co/S9y0YBnJUs pic.twitter.com/Glov6o7EI5 β NBC News ( @ NBCNews ) December 15 , 2014
UPDATE : Amazingly , several hostages were able to flee to safety . Others , however , are still trapped . | GmdtwziQHr3bH7JX | 2 | Terrorism | -2.6 | Sydney | 0.5 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
us_house | NPR Online News | http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/10/27/452139065/white-house-and-gop-congressional-leaders-reach-budget-deal | White House And GOP Congressional Leaders Reach Budget Deal | 2015-10-27 | us_house | Just days before the election of a new speaker of the House , lame-duck Speaker John Boehner , R-Ohio , made good on one last promise β that he 'd try to `` clear the barn '' for his successor .
In one fell swoop , two thorny issues were crossed off the to-do list : raising the debt ceiling by next Tuesday and coming up with a budget agreement .
Shortly before midnight , the 144-page budget resolution was submitted to the House Rules Committee . The tentative agreement raises federal spending by $ 80 billion over the next two years , evenly splitting that increase between defense and domestic programs . Some of that is paid for by cuts to Medicare and Social Security disability benefits . Negotiators also agreed to lift the debt ceiling until March 2017 .
`` This is one of those moments when it 's important that leadership step in and take the ball and run with it , '' said Rep. Steve Womack , R-Ark. , in support of the deal .
But as soon as details leaked , many hard-line conservatives objected to being excluded from the negotiations . The deal was reportedly reached in talks that involved only five parties : the top two Republicans in Congress , the top two Democrats and the White House .
`` This is what we 've been going through for five years , '' said Rep. Justin Amash , R-Mich. , `` where the leadership team negotiate a deal without speaking to any members of the [ Republican ] conference β apparently not even the committee chairmen who are in key positions β and then expect all of us to vote for it . ''
While Boehner hopes `` clearing the barn '' will make his successor 's job easier , some members of the Republican caucus point out his presumptive heir β Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin β will inherit a deal many Republicans are already grousing about . They say Ryan should have been involved in the negotiations .
But Rep. Bill Flores , R-Texas , said it 's better that Ryan 's fingerprints are missing from this budget deal .
`` I think this somewhat insulates Paul [ Ryan ] , '' said Flores . `` But I still believe if there 's somebody that does n't like this and they 're passionate about it , that they 'll take out their feelings on Paul . ''
The House could vote on this budget agreement as soon as Wednesday β the same day Republicans are expected to officially nominate Ryan as the next speaker . | UZaac5bTAmqLqPe8 | 1 | Politics | -0.8 | US House | -0.4 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | The Flip Side | https://www.theflipside.io/archives/sanders-ends-campaign | Sanders Ends Campaign | elections | β With so much on the line in the November election , tired epithets like β neoliberal β and β corporate Democrat β should not blind anyone to the chasm of competence and compassion between Biden and Donald Trump . With his acknowledgment of political arithmetic , Sanders guarantees that Biden will have seven months to unify the Democratic Party and work to defeat Trump . And to his credit , Sanders leaves the race without ever having mounted a personal attack on Biden that Republicans could use against the former vice president this fall. β Walter Shapiro , New Republic
Others write , β What we hope Sanders doesn β t take from his failed candidacy β or communicate to his fervent followers β is a conviction that the process was rigged against him and that a conspiracy of party leaders and the β billionaire class β stymied his campaign . The truth is that , as an independent senator who viewed the Democratic Party as an instrument for his ambitions rather than a political home , Sanders faced resistance not just from benighted bigwigs but from ordinary Democratic voters , including older African Americansβ¦ β This page has expressed concerns about [ Biden β s ] sharpness , his gaffes and his ability to stand up to Trump forcefully during a general election campaign , and we fear that his presence in the race cast too great a shadow over a new and less familiar generation of candidates with compelling ideas . But we also believe that it β s vital that voters bring to an end the incompetent and corrupt administration of Donald Trump . It is imperative that Sanders do a better job in 2020 leading his supporters to back Biden in November than he did in getting out the vote for Hillary Clinton in 2016β¦ For his part , Biden must show Sanders β supporters that he shares their goals for a more just , humane and equitable society , even if he differs on how to achieve them. β Editorial Board , Los Angeles Times
Many note that β Sanders β campaign was , truly , funded by regular people : As one oft-cited analysis found , the professions found most disproportionately often among his donors included β bartender , β β vet assistant , β β butcher , β and β fast food worker β β¦ Even as Biden passed him in 2020 , he continued to be the preferred candidate of lower-income voters . But it wasn β t enough , and it β s not a coincidence that the candidate who defeated him told donors at New York City β s Carlyle Hotel last June that β nothing would fundamentally change β about their positions in society if he were electedβ¦ β Over and over , voters heard from business leadersβeven the ones who typically support Democratsβthat Sanders β plans would , e.g. , β bankrupt the health-care system β and β be a disaster for our country β and that they would rather vote for Trump than the senator from Vermontβ¦ The result was Sanders losing repeatedly in primaries in which a crucial subset of voters who liked his proposals chose Biden because of his presumably superior electabilityβ¦ In four or more years , Sanders β successorsβthe AOCs and Marie Newmans and , depending on how things go , perhaps the Elizabeth Warrens againβmight ride the significant momentum he has created to do things differently . But for now , money still talks . β Ben Mathis-Lilley , Slate
β Everyone in the field agreed that the government role in health care should be more expansive , that education spending should go up , that there should be more income support for the poor , that the welfare state should be extended into matters related to child care and family leave , and that the country needs to be more aggressive about environmental regulation , gun regulation , anti-racism , and LGBTQ rights while taking a less harsh approach to criminals and immigrants . The entire argument in modern Democratic Party politics , in other words , is simply over how far left to go on a range of issues , not about which direction to take the country or the party . Sanders can take a bow. β Matthew Yglesias , Vox
β When Sanders launched his first campaign in 2015 , he was pretty close to a joke candidate : The septuagenarian Jewish socialist from Brooklyn , a senator from one of the smallest , weirdest states in the nation , was going to take on the former secretary of state and first lady , who had virtually the entire Democratic Party apparatus behind her . Good luck , ha ha . When he decided to run again in 2019 , he was almost universally described β by the same pundit class that misjudged him the first time around β as an afterthought or throwbackβ¦ The pundits were wrong about Bernie Sanders , and then they were right . Both things are trueβ¦ He was never going to be president , but he got a lot closer to that possibility than any of us expected . β Andrew O'Hehir , Salon
The right worries that despite his failure to win the nomination Sanders has successfully moved the Democratic party to the left .
The right worries that despite his failure to win the nomination Sanders has successfully moved the Democratic party to the left .
β He lost against former Vice President Joe Biden because he couldn β t figure out how to grow beyond his core base . Consider the numbers : In Iowa and New Hampshire , he won the support of roughly 25 percent of participants and won the popular vote in each . In Nevada , he got 33 percent of the vote . But when the field narrowed , he still got roughly a third of the vote β and it wasn β t enough , as supporters of the other candidates decided to vote for Bidenβ¦
β But even though the β Bernie base β is just a third of the Democratic party β it β s an important third β and Biden needs to ensure solid support from them if he β s to win in Novemberβ¦ Looking at voters who are undecided or with other candidates , it β s clear why Biden is looking to those Sanders voters . Among voters who disapprove of Trump , Biden has a solid lead , but fully 14 percent ( one in seven ) say they β re planning on voting for a third-party candidate , will refuse to vote , or say they still β don β t know. β In an election that likely will be decided by a small number of voters in a small number of states , losing one in seven voters who ought to be in your column should give Biden pause . β
β [ Bernie ] never won the percentages this time β round that he did in 2016 against Hillary Clinton . It β s now clear that his success then was more about being the only alternative to her β the only practical protest vote against her coronation β than about the appeal of his blame-the-rich , grow-the-government message . Still , the most successful socialist and Jewish candidate for president in US history has made his markβ¦
β Where Obama ran in 2008 promising to cut taxes overall by nearly $ 3 trillion in a decade ( while raising them on the rich , yes ) , Clinton in 2016 proposed to raise them by $ 1.4 trillion , and all the candidates this year called for even bigger tax hikes . Biden , last we noticed , wants $ 3.4 trillion . β
β Predictions from his high tide in February that Sanders would be the Reagan of the Democrats now look embarrassingly premature . He did not transform his party ; it came together with startling speed and cohesiveness to reject him in favor of a man who has been in D.C. for half a century and lives and breathes the old Senate norms of bipartisan centrism and corporate fundraisingβ¦
β [ But ] Like conservatives in 1965-68 , Sanders-style progressives now have a message , a self-identity as a faction , a generation of younger spokespeople in Congress and state governments , and a sympathetic apparatus of writers , pundits , and think-tankersβ¦ While this may be a day to celebrate the defeat of socialism within the Democratic Party , the fight that Sanders started almost alone in 2016 is far from over . Both the right and the center-left would be foolish to think it is . β
β [ The ] β authenticity , β they always say , is Bernie β s strength , but it β s also a weakness . When he throws brimstone at private employers , voters know he means it . When he sees a silver lining in Fidel Castro β s Cuba , voters know he means that , too . How will fans of this combo take to Joe Biden ? Mr. Sanders on Wednesday called Mr. Biden β a very decent man , who I will work with to move our progressive ideas forward. β That β s notably short of an endorsement ...
β A second question is whether Mr. Biden can placate the Bernie bros without repelling independent voters . Mr. Biden praised Mr. Sanders and his supporters on Wednesday for having β changed the dialogue in America , β including on universal health care and free college . β While Bernie and I may not agree on how we might get there , β Mr. Biden said , β we agree on the ultimate goal for these issues and many more. β Hold on to your wallets , folks . β | cQvsi9Rsm6rJQnFl | 1 | Presidential Elections | 0.3 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | |
media_industry | New York Post (News) | https://nypost.com/2025/01/22/media/cnn-nbc-news-planning-mass-layoffs-report/ | CNN plans to lay off hundreds of employees, cut costs; NBC plots firings | 2025-01-23 | CNN, NBC, Layoffs, Media Industry, Politics, Business, Economy And Jobs, Television | CNN boss Mark Thompson reportedly plans to announce mass layoffs Thursday β just days after he warned top on-air talent including Jake Tapper and Anderson Cooper that they ought to avoid βpre-judgingβ President Trump. The ratings-challenged cable news pioneer will lay off hundreds of employees as it refocuses the business around a global digital audience, CNBC reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The job cuts come as CNN, owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, looks to rearrange its linear TV lineup and build out digital subscription products, CNBC said, adding that it will help CNN lower production costs and consolidate teams. Some shows produced in New York or Washington may move to Atlanta, where production can be done more cheaply, the report said. NBC News, owned by Comcast, is also planning job cuts later this week, according to the report. While there is no exact number, the layoffs will be well under 50. Comcast and Warner Bros. Discovery did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Washington Post, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, said earlier this month it would lay off about 4% of its workforce or less than 100 employees in a bid to cut costs, as the storied newspaper grapples with growing losses. In November, the Associated Press said it would cut about 8% of its workforce as it looks to modernize its operations and products. News of CNNβs culling comes after Thompson reportedly cautioned staffers βagainst expressing any outrage of their ownβ during the inauguration. Thompson, a former BBC and New York Times executive, convened a virtual editorial meeting Sunday that included Tapper, Cooper and scores of other senior news personalities to discuss CNNβs coverage of the inaugural ceremonies that took place the next day in Washington, DC, according to the Status newsletter. During the meeting, Thompson βmade it clear that he did not want the coverage to relitigate the past,β according to Status reporter Oliver Darcy β an allusion to CNNβs historically hostile relationship with Trump. Thompson asked his charges to avoid editorializing as well as to steer coverage away from focusing on Trumpβs legal problems, including convictions for falsifying business documents related to the alleged Stormy Daniels βhush moneyβ payment, according to the report. Instead, he urged CNN staffers to focus on Trumpβs second term and to be βopen-mindedβ about the next four years, according to Status. A CNN spokesperson declined to comment. At the end of the call, Thompson reportedly opened the floor to allow staffers to ask questions, but nobody spoke up, the report said. βWhat Thompson and other top brass had communicated was clear and none of the meeting participants apparently had the desire to question the guidance,β Darcy wrote. On Tuesday, Thompson convened yet another virtual editorial call to reiterate his message. Thompson told CNN staff that they should remain βtough-mindedβ in coverage while at the same time being βfair-minded,β according to Status. During the call, Virginia Moseley, CNNβs executive editor, joked that CNN was βout of practiceβ handling the relentless news cycle generated by Trump, a challenge that will quickly intensify in the coming years. Thompsonβs strategy marks a shift in the networkβs coverage of Trump under former CNN boss Jeff Zucker. CNN has struggled to keep up with MSNBC and Fox News in the ratings race β which was reflected in the numbers for the inauguration. Fox News, which shares common ownership with The Post, dominated television viewership during Trumpβs inauguration, drawing 10.3 million viewers between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. ET, surpassing all other networks. ABC (with 4.7 million viewers), NBC (4.4 million) and CBS (4.1 million) followed. With Post wires Advertisement Unknown | 8b21257117fde3b2 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
healthcare | Fox News | http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2013/03/22/obamacare-turns-three-separating-rhetoric-from-reality/ | ObamaCare turns three -- a checkup on the rhetoric vs. the reality | 2013-03-22 | healthcare | Saturday marks ObamaCare β s third anniversary , and President Obama and Democrats across the country will surely celebrate its greatest achievement to date : survival . The health care law narrowly survived a Supreme Court challenge , repeated attempts by House Republicans to repeal it and , with President Obama β s reelection , seems to be set for implementation next year .
But survival is a pretty low bar for the law , and far from the lofty claims made on its behalf .
In 2009 , President Obama said that β it β s important for us to make sure that 46 million people who don β t have health insurance get it . And I think it β s important for us to bend the curve , separate and apart from coverage issues , just because the system we have right now is unsustainable and hugely inefficient and uncompetitive . β
The Obama administration β s claim that the law would rein in spending undoubtedly persuaded wavering Congressional Democrats to push it across the finish line .
In a new report from the Manhattan Institute , Rhetoric and Reality , my colleague Yevgeniy Feyman and I try to summarize the best evidence to date on the impact that the law is having on health care costs today β and whether or not it is likely to contain costs in the future .
Based on the best currently available data , we project that ObamaCare will increase , not decrease , U.S. health care spending .
Certainly , the near term trends aren β t favorable for the law . Since the passage of the law , household premiums for private insurance have increased by 11.3 percent , outpacing even the growth of medical inflation ( 6.8 percent ) . Last year , Congressional analysts also projected that employer-based family coverage will cost $ 20,000 by 2016 , an increase of 27 percent over 2012 rates . Looking a little further ahead , premiums are expected to rise steadily through 2021 , except for a brief dip in 2014 .
( The β dip β kicks in when ObamaCare β s exchange subsidies begin , transferring costs from individuals and families to taxpayers . But shifting costs is not the same thing as containing costs . )
In fact , a recent survey of insurance companies by the American Action Forum , a think tank , found that market reforms included in ObamaCare will spike health insurance premiums , particularly for younger and healthier people . ObamaCare requires insurers to sell richer benefit packages , but the main cost increases come from new rules like rating bands , that limit the discounts insurers can offer to younger policyholders compared to older ones , and prohibit premium variations based on gender and health status .
ObamaCare also includes new taxes on everything from insurance companies to prescription drugs , costs likely to be passed along to families and small businesses shopping for coverage .
ObamaCare didn β t invent America β s health care woes , and shouldn β t be blamed for the ones we already have . The U.S. already spends over $ 2 trillion on health care , approaching 18 percent of U.S. GDP . And health care costs were rising much faster than income or GDP growth for decades before ObamaCare came along .
But the point of the law was to fix the system β not add to its burdens . The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ( CMS ) predicts that the law will add about $ 500 billion to U.S. spending between 2012 and 2021 .
To be fair , ObamaCare does contain several small pilot projects , all of them well meaning , designed to reform the supply or delivery of health care . But existing pilot programs thus far have had mixed or disappointing results . And some projects , like the widespread implementation of electronic health records , seem to have increased costs in some cases , by making it easier for providers to bill for additional services .
Other experiments , like Medicare β s Accountable Care Organization ( ACO ) program , may also be cost increasing , by encouraging hospital consolidation that allows them to increase prices .
One area where ObamaCare devotes far too little attention is reforming the demand for health care services . For all of our talk about the crushing cost of American health care , on average , consumers only spend about 11 cents out of pocket for health care β the fifth lowest average among OECD countries . And research suggests that when out of pocket spending is lower , health care spending increases because consumers are only paying a tiny fraction of the total bill .
By 2021 , ObamaCare will push U.S. out of pocket spending even lower than it is today , to just over 9 percent . This may accelerate price increases by insulating the newly insured largely from the costs of the care they consume .
Defenders of the law like to point out that CBO scores the law as reducing the deficit . But this is only because the law brings in more revenues ( through taxes and penalties ) than it spends over a ten year period . And recently , health care cost growth has slowed somewhat . But there is no reason to attribute the slowdown to ObamaCare , since its main provisions haven β t even kicked in . And lower Medicare spending is largely ( 75 percent ) attributable to lower drug spending in Medicare β s Part D benefit , which started in 2006 .
On net , we found evidence that ObamaCare will do very little to slow U.S. health care spending , and may actually increase it .
While the Congressional debate has focused on repealing ObamaCare , a more politically palatable option may be reforming it by focusing on demand side reforms β like moving most non-poor Americans into higher deductible health plans paired with savings accounts and lowering subsidies on the exchanges ( currently subsidies extend to families making up to $ 94,000 annually ) to focus on low-income families , and building effective systems that allow consumers to easily compare the price and quality of health care options .
An anniversary is supposed to be the time for celebration . For ObamaCare , its third anniversary signifies how little the law has accomplished , and the enormous health care challenges still facing the country . | NYQgksptDN84ufVP | 2 | Healthcare | -0.9 | Obamacare | -0.8 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Fox News | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/08/17/trump-campaign-undergoes-overhaul.html | Trump shakes up campaign with new manager, chief exec | 2016-08-17 | elections | Donald Trump , hitting reset on his 2016 campaign , is preparing to roll out his first wave of general election TV ads in four pivotal battleground states after shaking up the top echelon of his team in a bid to focus his message and make up lost ground in the polls against Hillary Clinton .
β I am committed to doing whatever it takes to win this election , and ultimately become President because our country can not afford four more years of the failed Obama-Clinton policies which have endangered our financial and physical security , β the Republican nominee said in a statement early Wednesday announcing the latest staffing changes .
In what was described as an expansion , Trump promoted pollster Kellyanne Conway to campaign manager and named Stephen Bannon , the co-founder of Breitbart News , as campaign chief executive . Trump said in the statement that Paul Manafort , who took over following the departure of Corey Lewandowski in June , will maintain his current title and work closely with Conway and Bannon on the campaign moving forward .
Meanwhile , a senior Trump aide told βββ the campaign will be rolling out TV ads Friday in the battleground states of Ohio , Pennsylvania , Florida and North Carolina .
This would be three days earlier than Manafort originally planned β the campaign had been preparing to launch ads after the Olympics , which end Sunday . Clinton , though , has been plastering the airwaves with ads , while taking a significant post-convention lead in a number of battleground and national polls .
Trump seems to be changing up his approach , amid concerns that his off-the-cuff style could be hurting him in the general election environment . In a shift , he delivered a scripted speech to a rally audience Tuesday night in Wisconsin , appealing to minority voters in part by accusing Clinton of `` bigotry '' and saying she sees African-Americans as no more than votes to be won .
In an interview with βββ , Trump voiced confidence in the state of his campaign .
β We β ve got a lot of money in the bank and I haven β t spent any of it , β he said , while confirming his campaign would be airing ads soon .
In a statement , Trump also called Conway and Bannon β extremely capable . β
Conway told βββ that β everyone else β on the campaign will remain in place .
β This is an expansion during the busy homestretch in the campaign , β she added .
Trump will step off the stump Wednesday in order to attend his first classified briefing from intelligence officials , at the FBI office in New York .
On a conference call , Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook suggested little would change for Trump despite the staffing changes .
β What β s become clear from this is that no matter how much the establishment wants to clean Donald Trump up β¦ and get him on message , he has officially won the fight to let Trump be Trump , β he said . β It β s time that we believe him . β
Though Trump previously has resisted repeated calls from fellow Republicans to change his approach on the campaign trail that has powered his surge to the top of the GOP field in the primary season , recent poll numbers have showed that Clinton has a sizeable lead in several key states . It could force Trump to pivot as the campaign moves forward , though he still downplays that possibility .
`` You know , I am who I am , '' he told a local Wisconsin television station Tuesday . `` It 's me . I do n't want to change . Everyone talks about , 'Oh , well you 're going to pivot , you 're going to . ' I do n't want to pivot . I mean , you have to be you . If you start pivoting , you 're not being honest with people . ''
The Associated Press reported that the moves were discussed at a lengthy senior staff meeting at Trump Tower Tuesday while the billionaire mogul was on the road . Additional senior hires are expected to come in the next few days .
Trump , whose campaign is built on his persona as a winner , said several times that the campaign is `` doing well , '' and said his speech hours earlier in Wisconsin Tuesday was well-received .
`` We 're going to be doing something very dramatic , '' Trump added .
In the Wisconsin outing , Trump accused Clinton of `` bigotry '' and being `` against the police , '' claiming that she and other Democrats have `` betrayed the African American community '' and pandered for votes .
Clinton campaign spokeswoman Jennifer Palmieri responded with a statement early Wednesday accusing Trump of being the bigot instead .
`` With each passing Trump attack , it becomes clearer that his strategy is just to say about Hillary Clinton what 's true of himself . When people started saying he was temperamentally unfit , he called Hillary the same . When his ties to the Kremlin came under scrutiny , he absurdly claimed that Hillary was the one who was too close to Putin . Now he 's accusing her of bigoted remarks -- We think the American people will know which candidate is guilty of the charge , '' she said . | De8qdCk7I20mb8RQ | 2 | Donald Trump | -0.2 | Presidential Elections | -0.1 | Elections | -0.1 | null | null | null | null |
general_news | Vox | https://www.vox.com/videos/2022/12/27/23523151/2022-rewind-year-review-video | 2022, in 7 minutes | 2022-12-30 | General News, Abortion, Border Crisis, LGBTQ Issues, Criminal Justice, Climate Change | Thereβs an overwhelming amount of news, but not enough context. At Vox, we do things differently. Weβre not focused on being the first to break stories β weβre focused on helping you understand what actually matters. We report urgently on the most important issues shaping our world, and dedicate time to the issues that the rest of the media often neglects. But we canβt do it alone. We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today? Running up that hill with 8 billion people. by Kimberly Mas Halley Brown, Christophe Haubursin, Bridgett Henwood, Coleman Lowndes, Rajaa Elidrissi In 2022, the world population crossed 8 billion people β and we felt the scale of this monumental milestone in hundreds of ways. After over two years of lockdowns and quarantines, people eagerly restarted their lives, but there were certainly growing pains. Weddings and travel skyrocketed, but so did lost luggage and global inflation rates. Taylor Swift broke Ticketmaster. Cryptocurrency was headed toward a great year until it really, really wasnβt. 2022 tested the world population as we tested out life in a new phase of the pandemic. Russia invaded Ukraine, and aid relief flooded into the war-torn country. Refugees were welcomed into surrounding countries, and those who stayed behind inspired people around the world. Global protests cried out for justice in Iran. Football teams stood up for migrant workers and the LGBTQ+ community at the World Cup. Cuba legalized same-sex marriage. The world froze for a moment when Englandβs longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, died. And we all watched a lot of TikTok. As we head into 2023, take a moment to look back at the events that defined the year. To see more Vox videos, check out our YouTube page. For more on 2022 from Vox.com: Alissa Wilkinsonβs The 25 best movies of 2022Constance Gradyβs Voxβs 16 best books of 2022Marin Coganβs Antisemitism isnβt new. So why did 2022 feel different? Understand the world with a daily explainer plus the most compelling stories of the day, compiled by news editor Sean Collins. This tool might just change movies forever. A practical guide to your bird flu fears. ο»ΏA new AI tool says it can detect similarities in fingerprints that humans canβt. The science isnβt so straightforward. Did you vote? Think of the video as a kind of emotional palate cleanser before the new year. Β© 2025 Vox Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved | bbc09175bc4d5ca9 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
supreme_court | Reuters | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-kavanaugh/woman-details-sexual-assault-allegation-against-trump-court-nominee-idUSKCN1M70CY | Woman details sexual assault allegation against Trump court nominee | 2018-09-28 | Brett Kavanaugh, Christine Blasey Ford, Sexual Misconduct, Supreme Court | WASHINGTON ( βββ ) - Fighting to salvage his U.S. Supreme Court nomination , Brett Kavanaugh angrily denied on Thursday a university professor β s accusation that he sexually assaulted her 36 years ago in a day of dramatic testimony that gripped the country .
Christine Blasey Ford , her voice sometimes cracking with emotion , appeared in public for the first time to detail her allegation against Kavanaugh , a conservative federal appeals court judge chosen by President Donald Trump for a lifetime job on the top U.S. court .
Ford told the Senate Judiciary Committee she feared Kavanaugh would rape and accidentally kill her during the alleged assault in 1982 , when both were high school students in Maryland .
She said she was β 100 percent certain β it was Kavanaugh who assaulted her .
Kavanaugh testified after Ford finished her appearance , claiming he was the victim of β grotesque and obvious character assassination β orchestrated by Senate Democrats . He said he β unequivocally and categorically β denied Ford β s allegation and vowed he would not back down .
β I will not be intimidated into withdrawing from this process , β Kavanaugh added .
Although they were at no point in the hearing room together , the clash pitted his word against hers .
The almost nine hours of intensely emotional testimony came against the backdrop of the # MeToo movement against sexual harassment and assault and had millions of Americans riveted to their TV screens and smart phones .
Ford has emerged in the eyes of many American women as a compelling figure in the # MeToo movement that is usually associated less with the names of victims and more with a list of high-profile men accused of misconduct .
It was not clear , however , if the drama changed the views of any senators .
The Senate , controlled 51-49 by Trump β s fellow Republicans , must now decide whether to vote to confirm Kavanaugh after the extraordinary nearly nine-hour hearing .
Four senators β Republicans Susan Collins , Lisa Murkowski and Jeff Flake along with Democrat Joe Manchin β are seen as possible swing voters whose decisions will determine whether Kavanaugh is approved or rejected .
Kavanaugh was nominated by President Donald Trump and his confirmation would cement conservative control of the Supreme Court with disputes over abortion rights , immigration , gay rights , voting rights and transgender troops possibly heading toward the justices soon .
The Judiciary Committee , on which Republicans hold an 11-10 majority , was to meet on Friday morning and several senators said they expected it to vote then . The full Senate could vote within days .
Writing on Twitter after the hearing , Trump said of Kavanaugh : β His testimony was powerful , honest , and riveting . Democrats β search and destroy strategy is disgraceful and this process has been a total sham and effort to delay , obstruct , and resist . The Senate must vote ! β
Kavanaugh at times choked back tears , especially when he mentioned that his daughter suggested they pray for Ford , when he spoke of his father and when he mentioned women friends who had rallied to support him .
Kavanaugh sharply attacked Democratic senators , calling himself the victim of β a calculated and orchestrated political hit β fueled by anger on the left at Trump β s 2016 election win over Democrat Hillary Clinton , his conservative judicial record , and revenge on behalf of Clinton and her husband , former President Bill Clinton .
β I swear today , under oath , before the Senate and the nation , before my family and God , I am innocent of this charge , β Kavanaugh told the Judiciary Committee .
Ford , a psychology professor at Palo Alto University in California , said over four hours of testimony that a drunken Kavanaugh attacked her and tried to remove her clothing at a gathering of teenagers when he was 17 years old and she was 15 .
β With what degree of certainty do you believe Brett Kavanaugh assaulted you ? β Democratic Senator Dick Durbin asked Ford .
β One hundred percent , β she replied , remaining firm and unruffled even under questioning by a sex crimes prosecutor hired by the committee β s Republicans .
When Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein asked her if it could be a case of mistaken identity , as Kavanaugh and some Republican senators have suggested , Ford replied : β Absolutely not β .
U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh testifies before a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for Kavanaugh on Capitol Hill in Washington , U.S. , September 27 , 2018 . βββ/Jim Bourg
Murkowski , one of the three moderate Republican senators who have not announced whether or not they will support Kavanaugh , told βββ : β I find Dr. Ford β s testimony to be credible . β
For his part , Kavanaugh testified he was β 100 percent certain β none of the alleged incidents of sexual misconduct occurred .
Democrats lauded Ford β s testimony as credible , brave and , in the words of Senator Cory Booker , β nothing short of heroic . β
β I want to thank you for your courage . And I want to tell you I believe you . ... And I believe many Americans across the country believe you , β Democratic Senator Kamala Harris said .
While some Republicans and Trump have called the allegations by Ford and the two other women part of a smear campaign , Ford told the committee she had no political motivation , adding : β I am an independent person and I am no one β s pawn . β
Ford was seated at a table in the packed hearing room flanked by her lawyers , facing a bank of senators . She told the senators she was β terrified β to testify but felt it was her civic duty to come forward .
β Brett groped me and tried to take off my clothes . He had a hard time because he was very inebriated and because I was wearing a one-piece bathing suit under my clothing . I believed he was going to rape me . I tried to yell for help , β Ford said , adding that Kavanaugh and a friend of his , Mark Judge , were β drunkenly laughing during the attack . β
Democratic senators sought to score political points during their five minutes apiece of questioning Ford . The panel β s Republican senators , all men , did not question her , assigning that task to Rachel Mitchell , a sex crimes prosecutor .
While Mitchell probed Ford β s account looking for gaps , her questioning seemed disjointed . She took turns with the Democratic senators to ask questions in five-minute segments , disrupting her flow .
During Kavanaugh β s testimony , Republican senators sidelined Mitchell and asked their own questions .
The bitter fight over Kavanaugh β s nomination is unfolding just weeks before the Nov. 6 congressional elections in which Democrats are trying to seize majority control of Congress from the Republicans . It has also deepened the country β s political polarization .
Kavanaugh , sitting alone at the witness table , said he wanted to testify as soon as Ford β s allegation emerged last week and was not surprised other allegations followed .
β In those 10 long days , as was predictable and as I predicted , my family and my name have been totally and permanently destroyed by vicious and false additional accusations , β he said , as his wife sat behind him .
Kavanaugh repeatedly tangled with Democratic senators , interrupting several of them , including Feinstein and Amy Klobuchar , during testy exchanges .
When Klobuchar asked him about his teenage drinking , he threw the question back at her , asking her whether she had ever been blackout drunk . He later apologized for the question .
Kavanaugh was careful not to denounce Ford , noting he wished her β no ill will. β He said he was not questioning that Ford may have been sexually assaulted by someone in some place at some time , but that he had never assaulted her or anyone else .
Some Democrats have called on Kavanaugh to withdraw in light of the allegations . At the hearing , Republican Senator Lindsey Graham castigated Democratic senators , seeking to rally Republicans not to abandon the nominee .
β This is the most unethical sham since I β ve been in politics , β Graham said .
Ford said Kavanaugh put his hand over her mouth to stop her from screaming during the assault . She added : β This was what terrified me the most , and has had the most lasting impact on my life . It was hard for me to breathe , and I thought that Brett was accidentally going to kill me . β
Her strongest memory of the incident , Ford said , was the β uproarious laughter between the two ( Kavanaugh and Judge ) and their having fun at my expense. β She said the laughter had haunted her ever since .
Two other women , Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick , have accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct in the 1980s .
Ramirez accused Kavanaugh of exposing himself during a drunken dormitory party during the 1983-84 academic year when both attended Yale University .
Swetnick said she witnessed efforts by Kavanaugh and others to get girls drunk at parties so they could be raped . She said Kavanaugh was present at a 1982 party where she was raped .
Trump , who has himself faced accusations of sexual misconduct , chose Kavanaugh to succeed Justice Anthony Kennedy , who retired effective in July . | a3e35884e11cda36 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | National Review | http://www.nationalreview.com/article/443060/cutting-red-tape-blue-states-illinois-shows-how | How to Cut Red Tape in Blue States | 2016-12-15 | economy_and_jobs | For years , Wisconsin and Indiana policymakers have worked to lure businesses away from neighboring Illinois . Highway signs asked commuters if they were β Illinoyed β with the state β s overbearing business regulations and high taxes . Many business owners packed up and left . As the Illinois Policy Institute points out , Illinois is one of only four states that have seen no private-sector job growth in the 21st century .
When Republican Bruce Rauner was elected as governor in 2014 , his message was clear : cut job-killing red tape . Delivering on this promise , Rauner issued Executive Order 16-13 on October 17 . The goal of this executive order , Rauner writes on the state β s website , is β to reduce the amount of red tape , paperwork , and regulatory burdens by at least 25 % over the course of the next two years , and save people from paying at least $ 250,000,000 in government fees . β
To reach these goals , Rauner provides seven guidelines , including making sure that regulations are up to date , understandable , consistent , necessary , and not unduly burdensome . Each state agency must complete a review of its administrative rules to make sure they follow these guidelines . Regulations that fail to meet the new standards can be repealed or reformed .
To oversee these efforts , the executive order establishes the Illinois Competitiveness Council . The council is made up of Chairwoman U-Jung Choe and representatives from the governor β s office and several regulatory agencies . Though there are many types of business regulation that are ripe for change , one of the welcome focuses of the council will be the reform of occupational licensing .
Occupational licensing requires people to first get government β s permission before they may work in certain professions . These permission slips often come with hefty time and financial burdens that act as disincentives to work . As stated in the executive order : β Licensing rules cause those seeking a license a delay in pursuing their chosen profession and create anti-competitive barriers to entry into the marketplace. β Furthermore , licensing schemes disproportionately harm young and low-income Americans , a reality that President Obama acknowledged last year .
Occupational-licensing reform in Illinois is long overdue . In the Institute for Justice β s comprehensive report on state licensing , Illinois ranked 30th in terms of overall requirements and burdens . Out of the 102 low- and middle- income occupations evaluated in IJ β s report , 40 required a license in Illinois . Clearly Illinois β s barriers to work affect far more professionals than highly paid doctors , lawyers , and accountants .
The number of licenses issued by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulations has increased 184 percent over the last 20 years . This follows the national upward trend in licensing that has occurred since the 1950s . University of Minnesota economist Morris Kleiner estimates that 25 percent of Illinois workers now require government β s permission to work . For comparison , Indiana licenses only 15 percent of its overall workforce .
Many Illinois licenses do little to ensure public safety , as demonstrated by the less-burdensome standards in other states . For example , Illinois is one of few states that licenses pharmacy technicians . While Illinois mandates two years of training , this substantial time burden is difficult to justify when 39 states do not license the occupation at all .
Similarly , if California requires only 365 days of training and no tests to become a preschool teacher , there is no reason for Illinois to mandate five times more training ( 1,825 days ) and three more tests to teach young children .
Illinois makes cosmetologists complete 350 days of education and training while Emergency Medical Technicians need to complete only 26 days .
Additionally , there is often no correlation between safety risks and licensing burdens . Illinois makes cosmetologists complete 350 days of education and training while Emergency Medical Technicians need to complete only 26 days of training . While cutting , styling , and dying hair could warrant some level of government-approved competency , it is difficult to believe that cosmetology poses more of a safety risk than an occupation that literally requires professionals to hold lives in their hands .
One of the roadblocks to reforming overbearing licensing schemes is that those who are kept out of work have few ways to organize and make their voices heard . To remedy this problem , Governor Rauner β s program created a Red Tape Reduction Portal where Illinoisans can flag state regulations that hold their businesses back .
Restoring sanity to licensing follows Rauner β s overall message that government should stand in the way of someone β s ability to earn a living only if doing so is necessary . The current licensing system in Illinois creates substantial time and financial barriers to work that often do little or nothing to ensure public safety . These barriers make it difficult for people to support themselves and those who rely on them . Rauner realizes that any successful push to reduce government overreach and dependency must also address barriers to work .
While cutting back regulation is never easy , there is reason to be optimistic about Illinois β s reform efforts . Other states such as Arizona , Colorado , Florida , Indiana , Kentucky , Massachusetts , Michigan , New Jersey , and Wisconsin all recently reformed their business regulations . Perhaps the most significant takeaway from Executive Order 16-13 is that even if state legislatures refuse to make necessary reforms , governors can singlehandedly follow through on their promises to open more work opportunities . | kJ4j2hGqOLjnaEpU | 2 | Economy And Jobs | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Fox News | https://www.foxnews.com/politics/democrats-aim-their-fire-at-trump-in-south-carolina-vie-for-frontrunner-status | Democrats aim their fire at Trump in South Carolina, vie for frontrunner status | elections | Democratic 2020 presidential hopefuls took to the stage in South Carolina on Saturday to take a series of swings at President Trump , and position themselves as the front runner in a packed race for the Democratic nomination in a vital primary state .
The candidates spoke at the state β s Democratic Party convention , using dramatic language to condemn the current occupant of the White House .
BIDEN , UNDER FIRE FOR COMMENTS ON SEGREGATIONISTS , GAVE EULOGIES FOR STROM THURMOND , ROBERT BYRD
Sen. Bernie Sanders , I-Vt. , described Trump as β the most dangerous president in American history β while Sen. Kamala Harris , D-Calif. , made a reference to her background as a prosecutor and called on Democratic activists to β prosecute β Trump β s record in office .
β Let 's prosecute the guy . Let 's prosecute that case , β she said .
Former Vice President Joe Biden , who is the frontrunner in the polls , was scheduled to speak in the evening -- and his rivals didn β t mention him by name , but sought to undercut the claim that he is the most electable candidate .
Harris urged voters not to β turn back the clock , β a possible reference to Biden β s representation of a prior era of American politics . Sen. Elizabeth Warren , D-Mass. , who has been creeping up the polls in recent weeks , said that her ideas could also reach Republicans .
β I believe that when we kept in the big fights for the big ideas that 's when it is that we draw in Democrats and Republicans , β she said . β That 's what it is that we make it worthwhile for people to get in the fight . That 's why we 're here to build a future not just for those who are born into privilege but to build a future for everyone . And that 's what my campaign is all about . β
Sen. Amy Klobuchar , D-Minn. , who has touted her success in moderate Midwest states , told the crowd that β I know how to win . β
Biden himself appeared on stage at a Friday evening fish fry held by House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn , D-S.C. , and touted his friendships with Clyburn and other South Carolina politicians . He also urged unity in his party , saying that whoever the nominee may be , β we have to stay together and elect a Democrat . β
Biden has been dogged by criticism in recent days over comments he made about being able to work with segregationist Democrats and β get things done β in decades past . He was criticized by Sen. Cory Booker , D-N.J. , who called on Biden to apologize , and on Saturday by Harris .
TRUMP CAMPAIGN SLAMS BERNIE SANDERS FOR CALLING FOR FREE HEALTHCARE FOR ALL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
β I β ve been very clear , I think his perspective on this is misinformed and if the people he was talking about with such affection had their way I would never have been able to be a United States senator , β she told reporters .
Biden had been scheduled to meet with black leaders behind closed-doors on Friday .
South Carolina boasts the largest electorate of the four early nominating states , and its mix of black voters and moderate whites gives candidates a proving ground ahead of a Super Tuesday slate that includes other similar Southern states and hundreds of delegates at stake .
The convention also gave Democrats an opportunity to pitch for support from African-Americans , with Sanders slamming what he called a β grotesque level of racial disparities in America . β
β We recently celebrated Juneteenth but a hundred and fifty four years after that day we see a racial gap that leaves the average black family with ten times less wealth than the average white family . We see the infant mortality rate in black communities more than double for white communities . We see young people African-Americans graduating college seven thousand dollars more in debt than white graduates . We see black women making 61 percent of what white men make . ''
β We are going to end that absurdity , β he said , before also declaring the criminal justice system β plagued by racism . β
Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend , Ind. , appeared after spending time at home after a black man was shot and killed by a police officer . Buttigieg was jeered by black protesters at home . He told the crowd in South Carolina that β we will heal and we will become stronger in the broken place . β
Harris , meanwhile , focused on Trump β s β Make America Great Again β slogan and asked whether it meant a return to segregation .
β Does that mean he wants to take us back to before schools were integrated ? β she asked . β Does that mean he wants to take us back before the Voting Rights Act was enacted ? Does that mean he wants to take us back before the Civil Rights Act was enacted ? Does he mean he wants to take us back before Roe v. Wade was enacted ? β
βββ β Jason Donner and The Associated Press contributed to this report | p3pPMZ0Yixsbc0aE | 2 | South Carolina | 0.4 | Democratic Party | 0.2 | Presidential Elections | 0 | Elections | 0 | null | null | |
trade | USA TODAY | http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/04/24/obama-hannonver-germany-trade-fair-visit/83463114/ | Obama pushes controversial trade deal in Germany | 2016-04-24 | trade | CLOSE At a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel , President Obama touted the benefits of trade deals like the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership agreement . VPC
HANNOVER , Germany β President Obama on Sunday defended a controversial trade deal between the United States and the European Union that he wants to finalize before leaving office in January .
Speaking at a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel , Obama said people around the world are unsettled by globalization but that trade has brought tremendous benefits and more jobs .
`` When people visibly see a plant lost or jobs lost , the narrative drives a lot of suspicion about these trade deals , '' he said . `` If you look at the benefits for our economies , it is indisputable that they are made stronger . ''
Obama said it was necessary to complete the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership ( TTIP ) agreement because 95 % of markets are outside U.S. borders . He said he was confident that TTIP could be completed by the end of the year . A separate trade pact covering 12 Pacific rim countries known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership could `` start moving forward '' once the U.S. presidential election is over , he said .
Obama praised Merkel several times during the news conference before the two leaders then opened the Hannover Messe , the world 's largest industrial technology trade fair .
`` This is as important a relationship as I have had during my presidency . Angela has been consistent and steady , '' Obama said . `` She has a really good sense of humor that she does n't always show in press conferences . That 's probably why she has lasted so long as a leader . She watches what she says . ''
He said Merkel was `` on the right side of history '' for her lenient policies to admit refugees , and she was `` courageous '' for her handling of Europe 's migrant crisis because it was a position that has harmed her political approval ratings .
Obama arrived in Germany on Sunday from London , where me met with British Prime Minister David Cameron , had lunch and dinner with members of the royal family and interjected his opinion into the United Kingdom 's contentious debate over whether that country should leave the EU .
Britain will hold a June 23 vote on the issue . The president angered anti-EU campaigners by saying the U.K. 's trade clout outside the 28-member bloc would be diminished .
TTIP 's supporters say the trade pact would make it easier and cheaper for companies on both sides of the Atlantic to do business together , as well as provide a much needed boost to the global economy amid persistent , sluggish growth . There is fierce opposition to TTIP in Germany β Europe 's largest economy and most important political voice β where it is believed the deal would erode consumer and environmental protections .
About 35,000 people marched in Hannover on Saturday against the proposed deal that would cover more than 800 million people .
Merkel said in the news conference that adopting TTIP was an important step that would allow European economies to grow . `` We need to speed matters up now , '' she said .
While in London , Obama said TTIP would bring millions of jobs and billions of dollars in benefits to both regions . About 300 U.S. companies are attending the trade show in Hannover .
Obama acknowledged that negotiating trade deals was `` tough β because countries want to fight for their domestic interests . β The main thing between the United States and Europe is trying to just break down some of the regulatory differences that make it difficult to do business back and forth , β the president said .
A recent survey published by the Bertelsmann foundation , a Germany-based research group , found only one in five Germans favors the proposed trade pact , and one in three would reject it completely . In the U.S. , only 18 % of respondents oppose TTIP , the report found .
`` Support for trade agreements is fading in a country that views itself as the global export champion , '' said Aart De Geus , the foundation 's chairman and chief executive . `` Trade is a key driver of the German economy . If it weakens , Germany 's economic power as well as its labor market could falter . ''
Obama and Merkel said they discussed a number of other issues in their meeting Sunday , including the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan , Libya and Syria .
Obama said American and German thinking was aligned regarding Syria , but they differ over the idea of carving out `` safe zones '' in Syria for the thousands of people fleeing violence .
β As a practical matter , sadly , it is very difficult to see how it would operate short of us essentially being willing to militarily take over a chunk of that country , β Obama said . | FMG9vpITQ7SHSdem | 1 | Germany | 1.4 | White House | 1.2 | Europe | 1.1 | Barack Obama | 0.5 | Trade | 0 |
mexico | Newsmax - News | http://www.newsmax.com/US/ISIS-border-threat-mexico/2014/09/02/id/592180/ | Ex-CIA Agent: ISIS Is in America; Some Have Entered from Mexico | 2014-09-02 | Middle East, CIA, ISIS, Mexico | Do You Approve Or Disapprove of President Obama 's Job Performance ?
Discover your risk for heart disease , take the test now !
Islamic State ( ISIS ) cells are already in the United States , and some of them have entered by crossing the Mexican border says former CIA agent Bob Baer.Baer told CNN'son Tuesday that people working in intelligence-gathering have told him they do n't know what ISIS members ' plans are , but `` it 's a definite concern . `` People who do this for a living are very alarmed , '' Baer said.Other ISIS members are American citizens who have been to Syria and have returned , he said . While intelligence agencies are aware of some of the people they suspect of being ISIS members and are working to gather evidence to apprehend them , they fear there are more that they do n't know about.ISIS , currently calling itself the Islamic State , has taken over large portions of Syria and Iraq , claiming to have set up a caliphate from which it will wage world jihad . A spokesman said recently that ISIS plans to raise `` the flag of Allah '' in the White House.The group released a video Tuesdayof American journalist Steven Sotloff.It was the second such video in the past two weeks.ISIS had threatened to behead Sotloff at the end of a video showing the beheading of American journalist James Foley if the United States did not cease airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq.Baer told CNN 's Tapper that he had expected the killings after U.S. airstrikes helped hinder ISIS ' efforts in Iraq . `` They have no choice in their minds but to strike back , '' Baer said.Foley and Sotloff were among at least four Americans publicly known to be held by ISIS , and Baer said they essentially grabbed the first American they could in order to carry out the grisly actions that they then released on video.With ISIS continuing to be hurt by American attacks , Baer said he expects them to continue to behead Western captives . `` I think there 'll be more , '' he said . | a5c2313acfff4921 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
nsa | Newsmax | http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/NSA-Surveillance-Diplomacy/2013/10/27/id/533268 | NSA Spying Threatens to Hamper US Foreign Policy | 2013-10-27 | NSA, Defense And Security | Secretary of State John Kerry went to Europe to talk about Mideast peace , Syria and Iran . What he got was an earful of outrage over U.S. snooping abroad .
President Barack Obama has defended America 's surveillance dragnet to leaders of Russia , Mexico , Brazil , France and Germany , but the international anger over the disclosures shows no signs of abating in the short run .
Longer term , the revelations by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden about NSA tactics that allegedly include tapping the cellphones of as many as 35 world leaders threaten to undermine U.S. foreign policy in a range of areas .
In Washington , demonstrators held up signs reading `` Thank you , Edward Snowden ! '' as they marched and rallied near the U.S. Capitol to demand that Congress investigate the NSA 's mass surveillance programs .
Urgent : Should the NSA Spy on Americans ? Vote Here Now
`` The magnitude of the eavesdropping is what shocked us , '' former French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said in a radio interview . `` Let 's be honest , we eavesdrop too . Everyone is listening to everyone else . But we do n't have the same means as the United States , which makes us jealous . ''
So where in the world is n't the NSA ? That 's one big question raised by the disclosures .
The British ambassador to Lebanon , Tom Fletcher , tweeted this past week : `` I work on assumption that 6+ countries tap my phone . Increasingly rare that diplomats say anything sensitive on calls . ''
Diplomatic relations are built on trust . If America 's credibility is in question , the U.S. will find it harder to maintain alliances , influence world opinion and maybe even close trade deals .
Madeleine Albright , secretary of state during the Clinton administration , recalled being at the United Nations and having the French ambassador ask her why she said something in a private conversation apparently intercepted by the French .
The French government protested revelations this past week that the NSA had collected 70.3 million French-based telephone and electronic message records in a 30-day period .
`` A lot of the things that have come out , I think are specifically damaging because they are negotiating positions and a variety of ways that we have to go about business , '' Albright said at a conference hosted by the Center for American Progress in Washington .
`` I think it has made life very difficult for Secretary Kerry . ... There has to be a set of private talks that , in fact , precede negotiations and I think it makes it very , very hard . ''
The spy flap could give the Europeans leverage in talks with the U.S. on a free trade agreement , which would join together nearly half of the global economy .
`` If we go to the negotiations and we have the feeling those people with whom we negotiate know everything that we want to deal with in advance , how can we trust each other ? '' asked Martin Schulz , president of the European Parliament .
Claude Moniquet , a former French counterintelligence officer and now director of Brussels-based European Strategic Intelligence and Security Center , said the controversy came at a good time for Europe `` to have a lever , a means of pressure ... in these negotiations . ''
To Henry Farrell and Martha Finnemore at George Washington University , damage from the NSA disclosures could `` undermine Washington 's ability to act hypocritically and get away with it . ''
The danger in the disclosures `` lies not in the new information that they reveal but in the documented confirmation they provide of what the United States is actually doing and why , '' they wrote in Foreign Affairs .
`` When these deeds turn out to clash with the government 's public rhetoric , as they so often do , it becomes harder for U.S. allies to overlook Washington 's covert behavior and easier for U.S. adversaries to justify their own . ''
They claim the disclosures forced Washington to abandon its `` naming-and-shaming campaign against Chinese hacking . ''
The revelations could undercut Washington 's effort to fight terrorism , says Kiron Skinner , director of the Center for International Relations and Politics at Carnegie Mellon University . The broad nature of NSA surveillance goes against the Obama administration 's claim that much of U.S. espionage is carried out to combat terrorism , she said .
`` If Washington undermines its own leadership or that of its allies , the collective ability of the West to combat terrorism will be compromised , '' Skinner said . `` Allied leaders will have no incentive to put their own militaries at risk if they can not trust U.S . leadership . ''
The administration asserts that the U.S. is amassing intelligence of the type gathered by all nations and that it 's necessary to protect the U.S. and its allies against security threats .
Kerry discussed the NSA affair in Europe with French and Italian officials this past week .
Most governments have not retaliated , but some countries are pushing back .
Germany and France are demanding that the administration agree by year 's end to new rules that could mean an end to reported American eavesdropping on foreign leaders , companies and innocent citizens .
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff canceled her official state visit to the White House . She ordered measures aimed at greater Brazilian online independence and security after learning that the NSA intercepted her communications , hacked into the state-owned Petrobras oil company 's network and spied on Brazilians .
Brazil says it is working with other countries to draft a U.N. General Assembly resolution that would guarantee people 's privacy in electronic communications .
A European Parliament committee approved rules that would strengthen online privacy and outlaw the kind of data transfers the U.S. is using for its spying program .
Urgent : Should the NSA Spy on Americans ? Vote Here Now
European lawmakers have called for the suspension of an agreement that grants U.S. authorities access to bank data needed for terrorism-related investigations .
`` We need trust among allies and partners , '' said German Chancellor Angela Merkel , whose cellphone was allegedly tapped by the NSA . `` Such trust now has to be built anew . '' | 3a46a6d01ea92c54 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
free_speech | Guest Writer - Right | https://townhall.com/columnists/johnandandyschlafly/2019/01/30/liberals-censor-free-speech-about-diversity-n2540484 | OPINION: Liberals Censor Free Speech About Diversity | 2019-01-30 | Diversity, Liberals, Free Speech | The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent the views of Townhall.com .
Another day , another innocent person is destroyed by the social media mob for an innocuous expression of free speech . The apostles of diversity police our speech and aggressively enforce a speech code according to β politically correct β liberal dogmas .
First it was Congressman Steve King ( R-IA ) , who was wrongly ostracized by his colleagues for wondering when the term Western Civilization became offensive . A week later it was 15-year-old Nick Sandmann , a junior at Covington Catholic High School , who was confronted at the March for Life by a β tribal elder β banging a drum .
Next in the hot seat was the president of the University of Notre Dame , Father John I. Jenkins . He kowtowed to the Native American Student Association by agreeing to cover up 12 large murals that depict Christopher Columbus β s arrival in the New World .
The latest victim of self-appointed guardians of diversity was the 78-year-old liberal journalist Tom Brokaw , the longtime NBC anchor . Brokaw , an icon of television news , is also known for chronicling the β greatest generation β of Americans who won World War II and came home to build the greatest country in the world .
In a rare appearance Sunday on Meet the Press , Brokaw commented that β Hispanics should work harder at assimilation . They ought not to be just codified in their communities , but make sure that all their kids are learning to speak English . β
The response to Brokaw β s good advice was fast and furious , to borrow a phrase from the Mexican gun-running operation approved by former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder . That improper operation , which was politically motivated to justify gun control , instead resulted in the 2010 murder of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry .
Aura Bogado , who is described as an investigative immigration reporter at Reveal , said Brokaw was β arguing classic white supremacist talking points in a deeply racist rant on national television. β Julio Ricardo Varela , the founder of LatinoRebels.com , said β It really was a punch in the gut to a lot of people . β
β It was not only factually incorrect , it was also xenophobia in action , β Varela added in his criticism of Brokaw . Liberal commentator Maria Cardona called Brokaw β a little out of touch . β
Cardona also insisted , unpersuasively , that β Latinos absolutely assimilate. β If that were really true , Latinos would be speaking English , but many of them aren β t .
Brokaw β s fellow commentator on Meet the Press , PBS NewsHour β s Yamiche Alcindor , said : β We need to adjust what we think of as America . The idea that Americans can only speak English , as if Spanish and other languages wasn β t always part of America , is in some ways troubling . β
People who can not speak , understand , read and write English will never be able to advance socially , economically or politically in our country . It β s not true that β Spanish and other languages β were β always part of America , β given that none of the Founding Fathers spoke or wrote in Spanish .
Within a few hours the liberal Brokaw went on an apology tour on Twitter , tweeting that he is β truly sorry β for his remarks , which he said were β offensive to many. β β I never intended to disparage any segment of our rich , diverse society which defines who we are , β Brokaw continued .
Brokaw even apologized to fellow panelist Yamiche Alcindor , saying she β s a β wonderful colleague and an important voice , β despite the fact that Alcindor β s views were directly contradictory to Brokaw β s . Like many Hispanic activists and lobbyists , Alcindor rejected the whole idea of assimilation .
On Fox News , Geraldo Rivera took a different tack , claiming that Hispanics are actually β assimilating at a rate that β s faster than any other ethnic group in our history. β But the official numbers from the Census Bureau show otherwise .
The American Community Survey enables the Census Bureau to track the number of households who self-report that they speak a language other than English at home . The fraction of U.S. households answering yes to that question has risen steadily over the last three decades , reaching 22 percent in 2017 ( the last year numbers are available ) , which is double the 11 percent in 1980 .
Most of the non-English speaking households are concentrated in a few areas close to our southern border , plus a few of our largest northern cities . In 39 U.S. counties , a majority of residents report that they speak a language other than English at home .
Many of those who speak another language at home claim they also speak English well or very well , but further studies have shown that is not the case . Nearly half were found to speak English at a level below basic , also known as functional illiteracy .
Spanish is presumed to be the common language south of the border , but among the people who arrived most recently , many did not speak or understand Spanish . They spoke only indigenous languages such as Q β eqchi β , which meant that U.S. officials were required to find translators to provide medical care .
John and Andy Schlafly are sons of Phyllis Schlafly ( 1924-2016 ) and lead the continuing Phyllis Schlafly Eagles organizations with writing and policy work . | 9ac26f7086f23d1f | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | Washington Examiner | http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/report-wilbur-ross-has-accepted-commerce-secretary-position/article/2608443?custom_click=rss | Report: Wilbur Ross has accepted commerce secretary position | 2016-11-30 | Politics | US COVID-19 deaths exceed 250,000 by Cassidy Morrison Restaurants face renewed threat to survival as COVID-19 spikes go nationwide by Jay Heflin NFL to roll out intensive coronavirus restrictions starting Saturday: Report by Spencer Neale Subscribe here to get all the latest headlines sent right to your inbox. We won't sell or share your personal information to inform the ads you see. You may still see interest-based ads if your information is sold or shared by other companies or was sold or shared previously. Dismiss Opt out | 9e1870b07009ea8c | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
immigration | Guest Writer - Right | https://townhall.com/columnists/derekhunter/2018/11/01/whats-the-point-of-citizenship-anymore-n2533707 | OPINION: Whatβs The Point Of Citizenship Anymore? | 2018-11-01 | immigration | The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent the views of Townhall.com .
On Tuesday , my wife and I went and voted early , mostly to get it out of the way while my dad and sister are visiting and they could watch our newborn . The experience was pretty much what you β d expect β paid temporary workers trying to remember their training , to varying degrees of success , in a community center β s gym with a bunch of other people looking to check the β civic duty β box . But something struck me this year that made me wonder what the point of citizenship is anymore .
My ballot in Maryland was in both English and Spanish . Maybe it β s been that way for years , I honestly don β t remember . On the way out the door , as always happens , someone tried to give me and my older daughter , a whole 17 months , an β I voted β sticker . I passed because I think they β re stupid and obnoxious β you shouldn β t celebrate doing what you β re supposed to do β but my wife , who took longer to vote because she skipped every race where there was only one person on the ballot , took one . It read , β I voted , yo vote. β It was then it occurred to me that the benefits of citizenship are either going away or pretty much gone .
Don β t get me wrong , I still have pride in the country , but the country is changing significantly , or more correctly it β s being changed , in a dramatic way I β m not sure people are aware of .
Why would a ballot need to be written in English and Spanish when , by law , you β re expected to be proficient in English in order to become a citizen and , therefore , be eligible to vote ?
What makes people β Americans β is being diluted and destroyed by Democrats willing to do anything to obtain power , except listen to the people they seek to represent .
There was a time , believe it or not , when immigrants came to this country with the desire to become an American , not a hyphenated American . There were always ethnic enclaves in major cities β a Little Italy , a Chinatown etc . β and immigrants moved there upon their arrivals . It made sense , they had limited to no English skills , so being able to communicate in their native tongue was understandable . But these enclaves were not their landing strips , it was their launching pads .
Immigrants stayed in those enclaves only as long as they had to in order to learn the language , learn what it took to assimilate . Then they moved on .
Now the opposite happens β immigrants are encouraged by Democrats to maintain their allegiance to their native land , to reject assimilation and maintain the cultures they , in many cases , fled . That leads to a nation of people with nothing in common and limited ability to communicate with each other . We never looked alike , but we could talk . It β s getting so we can β t anymore , and liberals love that .
If you never speak to anyone different from you , you get a perverted impression of the world . Just look at CNN and MSNBC . There is no debate there , only slight disagreements . They truly believe Donald Trump is lowering the discourse in this country and spreading hate while calling him Hitler , his supporters Nazis , and fantasizing about horrible things happening to the president , up to and including his assassination .
These same people insist encouraging assimilation into America by people seeking to become Americans is racist . β Celebrate diversity , β they scream , leaving off the implied β or else . β
Diversity based on pigment is the least relevant and interesting thing human beings can be , let alone β celebrate. β Skin color has always been an obsession of racists , and it still is . It β s what we have in common that makes us a nation . But having things in common leads to getting along , and getting along isn β t in the Democrats β playbook . So they seek to divide so they can manipulate . As I explain in my book , if you can convince people β the system is rigged against them , β and they suffer the setbacks , disappointments , and jerks everyone encounters in life , those setbacks become discouragements from trying in the future . Why try when you believe you literally can β t win ?
This creates a mass of people convinced a political party acting on their behalf is the only way to get ahead , to make life β fair. β But life isn β t fair , life is what you make of it . And you don β t make anything of your life waiting for someone else , some political party , to run blocker for you or do your heavy lifting .
Democrats are removing what it means to be an American from actually being an American for their own political gain .
Now the left is actively favoring illegal aliens over Americans and legal immigrants . Liberal jurisdictions across the country are spending untold millions of our tax dollars to defend people here illegally , granting in-state tuition , various forms of welfare benefits ( free meals as schools , picking up the tab for their health care , etc . ) , and voting rights in some areas for local elections ( for now ) .
They tell us illegal aliens are a boon to the economy , which is laughable . Some areas have gone so far as to plea down crimes by illegal aliens to avoid them getting on the radar of Immigration and Customs Enforcement . Would an American get that deal ? Of course not .
For an illegal alien to work in this country and β pay taxes , β as we β re told they do , they β d have to steal someone β s identity , someone β s Social Security number . That β s a serious crime with real victims , American victims of all backgrounds , and something for which American citizens would do real time for committing , but illegal aliens committing it is ignored .
So what β s the point of citizenship ? We aren β t granted special protections by government officials , we β re subject to our laws . People who break our laws to come here have a political party willing to bend over backwards to make sure they aren β t . Immigrants who come here legally aren β t encouraged to assimilate , they get ballots in their native tongue . How can you fully invest in a country if you can β t communicate in the common language ?
I want everyone with something to offer to come here , legally , and become an American . Democrats want anyone to come here , as long as they β re likely to vote for Democrats .
If Democrats regain power next week , what it means to be an American will be diluted even further . We just have to decide if we want to be a nation where it 's more advantageous to be here illegally than to be a citizen . Because that β s what β s really on the ballot Tuesday .
To defeat the liberal mob you first have to understand how it was created and how it is manipulated and controlled . Order a copy of Derek β s book , β Outrage , INC. : How the Liberal Mob Ruined Science , Journalism , and Hollywood , β to understand how the political left manipulates unsuspecting Americans to the point that they β d believe their lies and act on them . And subscribe to Derek β s daily podcast , it β s free ! Together they β ll help you stay sane and just might help you deprogram friends and family who β ve fallen prey to the mob mentality . | yYnajlcKZla85cYJ | 2 | Citizenship | -0.1 | Immigration | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
healthcare | NPR Online News | http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/01/04/168533375/bargain-over-fiscal-cliff-brings-changes-to-health-care | Bargain Over Fiscal Cliff Brings Changes To Health Care | 2013-01-04 | healthcare | The bill that prevented the nation from plunging over the fiscal cliff did more than just stop income tax increases and delay across-the-board spending cuts . It also included several provisions that tweaked Medicare and brought bigger changes to other health care programs .
The health care change that got the most attention saved doctors who treat Medicare patients from a cut in their pay . A really , really big cut , says David Bronson , president of the American College of Physicians and an internist in Cleveland .
`` We know that this would really devastate access to seniors , to just cut payment rates by almost 27 percent , '' says Bronson .
A pay cut that big would almost certainly drive doctors to stop taking new Medicare patients and perhaps even to drop existing ones . But the language in the bill was n't exactly what doctors were hoping for . It 's just another one-year delay in what 's become a familiar series since what just about everyone agrees is a flawed payment formula dating back to 2002 .
`` We 're happy that the cuts are n't going into place , but we 're hopeful that somehow this year a longer solution to get a stable payment system for physicians will get done , '' Bronson says .
Of course that 's been the plan every year since 2003 , when Congress first started putting off the cuts . It has n't happened yet .
Hospitals , meanwhile , are n't happy because this so-called doc fix was paid for , in part , by cutting $ 15 billion in Medicare and Medicaid payments to them over the next 10 years .
In the shorter term , Bronson says doctors are worried about what might happen when the across-the-board cuts known as the sequester are back on the table in just eight more weeks .
`` We 're particularly concerned about graduate medical education , '' he says . That 's the program in which the federal government helps pay for the training of young doctors , nurses and other medical professionals . `` That 's listed as a potential place where cuts could be made , and GME is vital to the medical workforce in this country . And we need to be expanding it , not reducing it , '' Bronson says .
But a health care program almost no one was watching was eliminated as part of the fiscal cliff deal . It was called the CLASS Act , and it was originally part of the 2010 health law . Added to the bill by Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts just before his death , the CLASS program was intended to provide publicly administered , long-term-care insurance at a modest cost .
`` Long-term care , in the broadest sense of it , is responsible for people , including families , the 355 days [ a year ] they 're not in the hospital and the 22 hours a day they 're not in the doctor 's office , '' says Larry Minnix , president of Leading Age , a group of more than 6,000 nonprofit providers of services to seniors and people with disabilities . `` There was no product available for those people and we thought it was time that that gap be filled , '' he says .
Republicans , however , saw the CLASS Act as a new and potentially unlimited government program that could n't possibly pay for itself .
`` We went from something that most every family is going to need but nobody wanted to talk about , into the most controversial part of it , '' said Minnix .
So in October 2011 , with the entire health law under legal attack , Obama officials put the CLASS Act into what Minnix refers to as an `` administration-induced coma . ''
`` We understand why they did it . It became too controversial at a controversial time , '' Minnix says .
But the administration had successfully fended off efforts to repeal the program , until now . At the insistence of Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia , CLASS was replaced by a new bipartisan commission charged with coming up with plans to help Americans pay for long-term care . It 's still essentially back to square one for the program .
Medicare has been a major sticking point in all the recent budget battles . And it 's likely to come up again in upcoming fights over the delayed budget cuts , raising the debt ceiling , and when last year 's temporary spending bills expire , all before the end of March .
`` We 're going to have three more cliff issues over the next three months , '' says health policy analyst Bob Laszewski . `` But we do n't even have a Medicare entitlement fix on the table , from either side . ''
Which means the 113th Congress is almost certain to get off to a rocky start . | siZeiMvQsVhlTTux | 1 | Healthcare | -0.3 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | The Week - News | http://theweek.com/articles/576727/travesty-rick-perrys-failed-campaign | The travesty of Rick Perry's failed campaign | 2015-09-14 | elections | Rick Perry dropping out of the 2016 presidential race is a damn shame . It 's an indictment of Republican voters , who express a preference for entertainers and oddities , of the Republican Party apparatus that allowed Perry to languish at a `` kid 's table '' debate , and the media institutions that spent more time talking about Donald Trump 's hat than the success of governors .
The GOP needed Rick Perry in these debates . Not because he is particularly great at debating β he 's not . And not because he has experienced any of the normal upward twitches associated with a successful campaign β he did n't . He should have been up there because anyone with any damn sense in their head knows he 's better qualified than half of the people on the stage , and he has a better story to tell .
Do people really believe Rick Perry is a less credible presidential candidate than Ben Carson ? Does anyone think Carly Fiorina is more credible in America 's high politics than Perry ? Or that Chris Christie has a better shot at uniting the party 's various factions and winning the White House ?
But I 'm addressing myself to the people who matter . And I mean that to sound contemptuous . I do n't feel any democratic angst to respect the opinions expressed in polls in the first weeks of September . If you surveyed likely voters , asking them to hum a few notes from a famous piece of music , the NBC chimes would outpoll Mozart and Beethoven every time .
There are people who matter in this process , the people who populate the mediating institutions of our politics in the Republican National Committee and in the media organizations that come up with rules for entry . And stupidly , these mediating institutions surrendered their own authority to that of opinion polls during a time when almost no one is paying attention to the election . They think it makes them look impartial and fair . It does n't . With 17 candidates , and so little mental energy to sort between them , any low-polling candidate could rip a memorable fart in the undercard debate and get enough free press and a subsequent polling bump to get into the top tier .
I do n't know why Rick Perry did n't do so himself . But it does n't matter . He was until recently the long-serving governor of Texas . That state 's governance is the best argument for his candidacy and for Republican control of the levers of state power . Texas has thriving , growing cities where middle-class families experience upward mobility and find employment . Texas was one of the first states to bounce back economically β yes , partly because the energy sector bounced back first . And Texas made up an oversized portion of the overall American economic recovery under Obama . And the recovery in Texas is is far more equitable than it is nationwide , reaching middle- and lower-class families , too .
Texas has a story Republicans should be anxious to share with the rest of the country . Unlike the Mormon-Mountain West , whose success may be partially attributable to strong bonds of social cohesion that can not be replicated by a political program , Texas is a diverse state , ethnically , religiously , and culturally . Texas looks like a possible future in which America is thriving .
That record of success should have been enough to overcome some of Rick Perry 's deficiencies in the highly unusual environment of a podium debate . The debates are a necessary evil , but it is stupid to pretend that being good in them is the measure of a presidency . If the best debaters made the best presidents , we 'd be living at the tail end of unprecedented conservative governance led by successive Pat Buchanan and Alan Keyes administrations .
That Rick Perry 's candidacy was buried by early polling numbers is a travesty . It 's an over-worshipful deference to democratic-looking tools , like opinion polls . The result is a process that unnaturally favors electoral-curiosities like Ben Carson , or candidates who can only credibly represent one sect within the national party , like Mike Huckabee . Or free-media bonanza candidates like Donald Trump .
Four years ago I trashed Rick Perry 's tax plan , and his performance as a campaigner . But he made credible moves to improve his policy shop , and became one of the brainier candidates in the race . The records that Chris Christie , Scott Walker , and Bobby Jindal are touting are far more ambiguous than Perry 's .
For the sake of the party , for the sake of honoring the success of Republican governance in a large state , Rick Perry 's presidential aspirations needed to be protected from the hurricane-season of stupidity . He did n't lose because he is a loser . He lost the way great poker players lose at tournaments with too many players . Pure dumb luck . | xnT0qVTb9odjlPls | 1 | Rick Perry | 0.2 | Presidential Elections | -0.1 | Elections | 0 | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | CNN (Web News) | http://money.cnn.com/2012/06/06/investing/stocks-markets/index.htm | Dow, S&P 500 post biggest gains of 2012 | 2012-06-06 | Markets, Banking And Finance | NEW YORK ( CNNMoney ) -- U.S. stocks rallied Wednesday , with the Dow and S & P 500 logging their best gains of the year , as investors grew hopeful that more stimulus for the global economy is around the corner .
`` There 's a lot of optimism from rumors that there will be some type of stimulus coming really soon , '' said Ryan Detrick , senior technical strategist at Schaeffer 's Investment Research . `` This might light the fuse and spark [ the markets ] higher . ''
The Dow Jones industrial average ( INDU ) jumped 287 points , or 2.4 % , its best one-day jump since Dec. 20 . The day 's gains pushed the blue-chip index back into positive territory for 2012 . The S & P 500 ( SPX ) rose 30 points , or 2.3 % , its best daily performance since Dec. 20 . The Nasdaq ( COMP ) added 67 points , or 2.4 % .
U.S. financial stocks led the broad-based rally . Shares of Bank of America ( BAC , Fortune 500 ) , Citigroup ( C , Fortune 500 ) , Morgan Stanley ( MS , Fortune 500 ) and JPMorgan Chase ( JPM , Fortune 500 ) all advanced .
Investors were encouraged after Atlanta Fed president Dennis Lockhart , who is a member of the Federal Reserve 's policy-setting committee , said that continuing Operation Twist is now `` an option on the table . '' The policy , which swaps short-term bonds for ones with a longer duration in order to keep interest rates low , is currently set to expire at the end of the month .
Stimulus hopes also grew for Europe . While the ECB left interest rates steady at 1 % on Wednesday , the decision was not unanimous .
`` A few members would have preferred to have a rate cut today , '' said bank president Mario Draghi . Many analysts expect the ECB to cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point at its next meeting in July , which would bring rates to a record low .
Draghi also said the central bank will continue to monitor developments closely and stands ready to act if necessary .
The ECB is under pressure to take additional steps to support the economy and restore confidence in financial markets . But Draghi stressed that monetary policy can not make up for a lack of action by euro-area political leaders .
`` There are some problems in the euro area that have nothing to do with monetary policy , '' said Draghi . `` I do n't think it would be right for monetary policy to fill other institutions ' lack of action . ''
Still , his comments were enough to spark optimism that leaders will take action as soon as needed .
Meanwhile , the EU also unveiled a plan Wednesday that would call for a Europe-wide banking union , which would deal with future banking crises on the continent rather than leaving them in the hands of their already struggling national governments . A specific size of the rescue fund to be created was not disclosed .
The proposal may take years to be enacted , so it wo n't do much to address Europe 's current banking crisis .
The ECB meeting and EU bank union plan came amid a deepening banking crisis in Spain , and ahead of a pivotal June 17 Greek election that could determine whether the nation remains in the eurozone .
Eurostat , the statistical office of the European Union , did not revise its estimate of first-quarter gross domestic product , the broadest measure of the economy . The agency said the 17 nations that use the euro saw a 0.1 % decline in GDP in the quarter , while the 27 nations in the European Union had a combined 0.1 % increase . The figures were an improvement from the fourth quarter 's decline of 0.3 % in both the eurozone and the EU .
U.S. stocks finished higher Tuesday , but gains were limited as investors weighed an upbeat U.S. economic report against Europe 's ongoing debt problems .
World markets : Asian markets ended mixed . The Shanghai Composite ( SHCOMP ) slid 0.1 % , while the Hang Seng ( HSI ) in Hong Kong added 1.4 % and Japan 's Nikkei ( N225 ) gained 1.8 % .
European markets finished with strong gains . Britain 's FTSE 100 ( UKX ) rose 2.2 % , the DAX ( DAX ) in Germany gained 2.2 % and France 's CAC 40 ( CAC40 ) jumped 2.1 % .
Economy : First-quarter productivity was revised to a 0.9 % decline from a previous estimate of a 0.5 % decline . Analysts were expecting a drop of 0.8 % .
The Federal Reserve 's Beige Book , a report covering economic activity in the bank 's 12 regional districts , suggested that the overall economy expanded at a moderate pace in April and May . While the economic outlook remains positive , the Fed said its `` contacts were slightly more guarded in their optimism . ''
Companies : Nasdaq OMX Group ( NDAQ ) said it plans to spend $ 40 million to compensate trading firms for losses caused by glitches in Facebook 's IPO .
Facebook ( FB ) shares rebounded Wednesday , after hitting a new low of $ 25.52 . Shares are still about 30 % below the IPO price of $ 38 .
Chesapeake Energy ( CHK , Fortune 500 ) is in advanced talks to sell almost all of its pipeline assets for more than $ 4 billion to Global Infrastructure Partners , according to a Bloomberg report , which lifted Chesapeake shares .
Shares of Hovnanian ( HOV ) jumped after the homebuilder posted a second-quarter profit on a rise in home sales .
Tempur-Pedic International ( TPX ) shares lost nearly half their value after the mattress company said it expects its second-quarter profit to plunge 50 % amid increased competition . The company also slashed its outlook for the year .
Currencies and commodities : The dollar slid against the euro and the British pound , but gained strength against the Japanese yen .
Oil for July delivery rose 73 cents to settle at $ 85.02 a barrel .
Gold futures for June delivery climbed $ 17.30 to settle at $ 1,634.20 an ounce .
Bonds : The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury fell , pushing the yield up to 1.65 % from 1.56 % late Tuesday . | c290d6b2f52ef0a9 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
republican_party | Salon | http://www.salon.com/2013/12/20/gops_new_filibuster_strategy_a_giant_temper_tantrum/ | GOP's new filibuster strategy: A giant temper tantrum | 2013-12-20 | Republican Party, Politics | Senate Republicans are still so piping mad over the filibuster changes on nominations that , well ... they 're going to cede total control of the chamber to Harry Reid and the Democrats over the weekend . Take that !
For the past couple of weeks , Senate Republicans have not been granting unanimous consent to shorten debate periods and bring various nominations to the floor , slowing the chamber 's schedule by using up all of the allotted debate time on each nomination . That 's continuing now with the 10 or so remaining nominations on the calendar year . ( Unless Democrats and Republicans can agree to some sort of deal -- ha ha -- unconfirmed nominees would have to be renominated in the new year . ) Reid seems to have settled on getting through four of the nominations before adjourning for the year , and getting everyone out of town sometime mid to late weekend after working around the clock for the next couple of days .
Now word is coming in that Democrats ' friends across the aisle may not even stick around for this weekend 's # senateparty . Daddy Cornyn says they can all go home and he and a few others will stick around to finish off the important work of annoying Democrats for no reason . From the Hill :
Senate GOP Whip John Cornyn ( Texas ) said it is up to individual senators if they want to stick around Congress on Friday and Saturday to vote on nominees Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid ( D-Nev. ) has put on the schedule . Cornyn said his leadership would make sure at least one Republican senator remains on or near the floor at all times to object to Democratic requests to waive various procedural hurdles . β I β m not sure how many Republicans will stick around , β said one GOP senator . β I don β t think the Democrats remembered how important it is to get unanimous consent on little things to make this place work . β
Right , because it was working so well before the filibuster changes . The fact is , it 's working pretty fine now . People are getting confirmed . It 's just taking some time while one party gets a temper tantrum out of its system . Because it is just a tantrum . The GOP lawmaker quoted in the Hill pretends there is some tactical goal here besides just making Democrats work another 48 hours to show them what 's what . The lawmaker `` predicted Democrats may have trouble gaining the 51 votes they need for a quorum to move the nominees if most Republicans take off . '' Well , there are more than 51 Democratic members of Congress and `` at least one Republican senator '' will have to stick around to execute the objection shenanigans , so that 's > 51 , so there you go . Tantrum , and nothing more .
They 're welcome to a tantrum , of course . It 's probably sucks to have your ability to block all nominees for no reason other than to make the other party look ineffectual taken away . So , sure , spend a couple of weeks forcing Senate Democrats to waste some hours , and maybe even duck out of work a couple of days early . In fact , why ever come back ? | 120c55c7e84f5111 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
free_speech | Fox News | http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/11/30/alan-dershowitz-what-trump-gets-right-and-wrong-about-flag-burning.html | OPINION: Alan Dershowitz: The First Amendment is not broken so letβs not try to fix it | 2016-11-30 | free_speech | Nearly all elected politician β from the president down to local city counselors β want to criminalize flag burning . No decent American wants to see our flag being desecrated . It β s a popular issue and politician glom on to popular issues .
That is why we have a Supreme Court : to prevent elected politicians from compromising unpopular basic liberties , such as freedom of expression for those whose views and actions we despise .
The late Justice William J. Brennan once said that if he saw someone burning his beloved American flag , he would punch him in the mouth , but he wouldn β t try to convict him of a crime . I would do neither . But nor would I applaud or join in the disgraceful display of anti-American hate .
The situation with regard to flag burning is exactly where it should be in a Democracy : nearly everyone despises flag burners , but the constitution forbids us from making it a crime .
The Constitution would also forbid President-elect Trump to take away the citizenship of flag burners .
The Supreme Court has not only held that flag burning is constitutionally protected , but also that citizenship can not be taken away even if a flag burner could be convicted of a crime . Denial of citizenship based on a criminal conviction has been ruled to be unconstitutional .
So President-Elect Trump is wrong on at least two counts : you can β t criminalize flag burning ; and you can β t take away the citizenship of flag burners .
As president , Trump may have the power to change the constitutional status of flag burning , by appointing justices who agree with the minority in the most recent 5-4 flag burning decision .
The late Justice Scalia was in the majority in that case , and if his replacement takes the minority view , the Supreme Court may change its decision . That would be a serious mistake , because of respect for precedent and because it would open a slippery slope for denying other basic freedoms of expression .
Candidate Trump would seem content with that , since he advocated changing the libel laws to make it easier to sue his critics . But any such change may boomerang against Trump himself , who uses defamation as a political weapon .
If the constitutional rules were loosened , Trump might be subject to defamation actions for calling people crooked , corrupt and other defamatory epithets . Being president doesn β t immunize the incumbent from being sued for mouthing off against his opponents .
So let β s leave the First Amendment alone . Let flag burners be ridiculed and despised in the court of public opinion . Let β s not make martyrs of them by hauling them before our courts of law .
The First Amendment has served us well for two and a quarter centuries . It has protected extremists both on the right and left . Most Americans , when polled , would prefer to ban speech they dislike : β Free speech for me , but not for thee . β
If Donald Trump had his druthers , he would interpret the First Amendment to protect what he says and does , while at the same time , permitting the government to punish what his critics β and those with whom he disagrees β say and do . But that is not the way freedom operates . Freedom of speech for anyone is freedom of speech for everyone . And denying freedom , of speech to anyone , has the potential of denying it to everyone .
The First Amendment is not broken so let β s not try to fix it . Freedom of expression is a principle that liberals and conservatives alike can and should support . Historically it has always been opposed by extremists on both the right and the left , who have no patience for dissenting points of view .
So President-elect Trump , please withdraw your tweet , develop a thicker skin for criticism , and stop tinkering with our freedom of expression .
If you ever see someone burning the American flag , don β t call the cops and don β t punch him in the nose . Just remind him that the flag he is burning is what protects his right to burn that flag . | z6FvDO7naieMVSDo | 2 | 1st Amendment | -1.1 | Free Speech | -0.8 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2019/07/27/2020-democratic-debates-how-can-candidates-stand-out/1674446001/ | 'This is it': 2020 candidates fight to stand out as debate stage looms | 2019-07-27 | elections | WASHINGTON β As a 2020 presidential candidate , Jay Inslee says he wants to bring β hope and confidence β to the climate change fight to save a dying planet .
But on the debate stage next week , his aim is a bit more modest : Get more people to recognize his face .
In a field of more than 20 candidates , the Washington governor acknowledges it β s been tough to break through , noting `` a third or less of the voters could pick me out of a lineup . ''
So as candidates like former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren look to solidify their place among top-polling candidates , lower-polling candidates find themselves in search of a signature moment that will lodge their names into voters brains around the country .
A zinger . An out-of-the-box idea . A line of attack on a fellow candidate . As the clock ticks , the pressure to make a splash is intensifying . The debates on July 30 and 31 may be the last time several candidates have a chance to make the case for their presidency before higher debate qualifying standards kick in .
`` I 'm hopeful that after this debate a whole bunch of these folks will be forced to see the writing on the wall and end their campaigns , '' said Jim Manley , a Democratic strategist who worked for former Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid .
He 's not alone . Many experts believe the massive pool of 25 Democratic candidates will shrink in the immediate aftermath of the debate but , they say , there are ways for candidates to try and distinguish themselves during these pivotal events and build off momentum after the eyes of the nation are on them .
More : 5 decades separate 2020 's presidential candidates . Here 's what that looks like .
On the campaign trail , Inslee wastes no time bringing up the one issue his campaign has revolved around : Climate change . But he 's routinely polling no higher than 1 % and admits he needs a breakout moment on his signature issue to build momentum .
`` I didn β t look at this [ race ] like playing the odds . I want the odds to be 100 percent that humanity is going survive . That β s the odds I β m interested in , '' he said at an event earlier this month in Portland . `` It β s not daunting to me that there β s a bunch of candidates . When you β re mission-driven , those odds don β t matter to you . ''
Experts say at the heart of Inslee 's campaign plan is hope to differentiate himself on a specific issue , which can be effective or can backfire .
CLOSE Who won the Democratic debate remains to be seen , but here are some of the best moments from the first ten contenders to take the stage . βββ
2020 presidential election : CNN to host climate change town hall with Democratic candidates
Robert Shrum , a longtime Democratic strategist , said in this case , it is n't working .
`` Inslee is running solely on climate change but almost every Democrat on that stage fundamentally agrees with him , '' Shrum said . `` So , it 's not necessarily a distinguishing argument . ''
Shrum said New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is doing something similar when it comes to addressing women 's issues , sexual assault and sexual harassment β issues Gillibrand has been outspoken on throughout her career but have n't stood in opposition to her Democratic counterparts .
`` I do n't think that if you just focus on women 's rights or the environment that you 're necessarily going to set yourself apart in a way that 's really needed at this point , '' he added .
Issues have broken through as a success in Sen. Elizabeth Warren 's campaign . The Massachusetts senator has rolled out policies and plans on a slew of topics , giving voters a clear vision of her progressive ideas .
A large part of this could be due her focus on the middle class and the wealthy , which are broad topics and overlap with most issues ; she has n't been pigeonholed into one set issue or category , said Kelly Winfrey , a professor at Iowa State University who focuses on political campaigns .
Winfrey said Warren also came into the race with more name recognition than many candidates and her policies as a whole have given her a persona in the race as the most prepared candidate .
`` The plans that she has released , which while they all seem to go back to economic equality , they cover different issues and have helped her branch out , '' she said . `` I mean , climate change does n't give you the latitude to tie into a lot of issues , but if you target equal pay , it does . ''
But there are other tactics to sticking out in this crowded field : attacking another candidate or having that one memorable line that sticks with voters , the latter becoming harder on crowded debate stages with 10 candidates fighting for air time .
Going after a fellow candidate has been markedly helpful to changing the dynamic of the race for one candidate : Sen. Kamala Harris .
CLOSE In night two of the Democratic debate , candidates bore down into issues , and each other . Kamala Harris went after Joe Biden for his past on busing . βββ
In the first debate , the California Democrat zeroed in on Biden in a now-infamous exchange where she challenged his comments about working with segregationists in the U.S. Senate and his stance on federally mandated busing to desegregate public schools . The exchange on busing was particularly powerful with Harris noting how the issue personally affected her as a child .
'That little girl is me ' : Kamala Harris attacks Biden with personal story about race
Harris took advantage of the moment as soon as the debate ended , selling merchandise with a photo of herself as a child on it . She soon after enjoyed a significant bump in several national polls .
The move did n't target just Biden , it took on the issue of race β a central issue thus far in the 2020 race β and illustrated to voters how Harris may take on Trump , which is the primary characteristic voters will be looking for , said Democratic strategist Kristen Hawn .
`` That 's what these debates are really about . In a way , it 's an audition , '' Hawn said . `` She looked like a fighter , she looked strong , which as a woman , it 's hard for us to come across as strong with also being likable , which is a sad truth . But she came off very well . ''
But attacking a fellow candidate also can fall flat or backfire . Rep. Eric Swalwell tried to paint Biden as too old to be president in the first debate . The California Democrat quoted Biden as saying 32 years ago that it was time to `` pass the torch '' to the younger generation .
Related : Eric Swalwell calls on Joe Biden to 'pass the torch ' during Democratic debates
CLOSE Rep. Eric Swalwell on Monday became the first candidate in the crowded 2020 Democratic presidential primary to exit the campaign , saying he would run for reelection to his California congressional seat next year . ( July 8 ) AP , AP
While the moment gained some social media buzz , it did n't substantially help Swalwell 's already struggling campaign . Within two weeks , he was the first Democrat to drop out of the race .
As the Democratic field begins the inevitable shrink , this debate takes on a particular sense of urgency for those candidates languishing at the bottom of polls .
It will be the last time candidates have the attention of the nation until the September debates , where it will be harder for candidates to qualify for the stage .
The DNC doubled the qualifications candidates need to hit for those debates . In the first two debates , candidates needed to poll at 1 % or have 65,000 unique donors . In the third debate in September , candidates will need to be polling at 2 % or have 130,000 unique donors .
`` I would expect handful , at least , to drop out after this , '' Winfrey said .
She said this debate will be an opportunity for those polling low to really try to connect with voters because as the race progresses , it becomes only gets more difficult . This could likely be their last shot to become competitive .
`` This is it , '' she said . `` If they do n't have a break-out moment in this debate , it means it will be fairly likely they wo n't have the momentum to stay in the race . ''
But if this round is like the last , it could mark another `` missed opportunity '' for longshot candidates , Winfrey added .
`` Most of those candidates polling toward the bottom of the pool are saying what everyone else is saying , '' she said . `` They simply haven β t made the case for the White House . ''
Manley , the Democratic strategist , said in reality it will all come down to one thing : money . And as time goes on , fundraising will dry up for some candidates and enthusiasm will be harder to sustain .
`` I 'm sure there will be some who will stay in this hoping for some momentum but they wo n't be able to without fundraising . If there 's no more money , it 's over , '' he said . `` Money is the mother of politics . ''
More : Yuge ? Bernie Sanders outraised by newcomer Pete Buttigieg . But Donald Trump crushes both of them . | PbAgZO8uviMBn5bm | 1 | Presidential Elections | -0.3 | Elections | -0.3 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
middle_east | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2013/05/benghazi-talking-points-91458.html?hp=t3_3 | State fretted over Benghazi talking points | 2013-05-15 | middle_east | Emails suggest the State Department was concerned about taking the blame . State fretted over Libya talking points
As the number of people handling the Benghazi talking points grew , the amount of information the document offered shrank .
Emails and documents released by the White House Wednesday reveal an editing process that valued caution over comprehensiveness as officials worked to remove language that would have assigned blame for the attack or suggested ways the incident could have been prevented . The release also showed that the CIA , and not the State Department , made the decision to scrub references to Al Qaeda , Al Qaeda-linked groups and prior terrorist attacks in the region .
But the newly public email chains suggest it was the State Department that was most concerned about taking the blame for the attack . State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland sought changes to the talking points that would shield the agency β then led by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton β from congressional accusations that it had failed to properly secure the post , given the unstable situation in that area .
At one point , Nuland even wrote to a chain of administration officials relaying her concern that the talking points could be used as a cudgel against the State Department .
Here β s how CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell , Nuland and the administration β s press officials determined what U.N . Ambassador Susan Rice and members of Congress would say to the media , starting with the Sept. 16 Sunday morning shows :
Friday , Sept. 14 , 2:27 p.m. : The first draft of the Benghazi talking points are circulated by the CIA β s Office of Congressional Affairs . It includes language stating that β we do know that Islamic extremists with ties to al-Qa β ida participated in the attack . β
That first draft also cites β initial press reporting β that β linked the attack to Ansar al-Sharia , β an Islamic militia group based in Libya , and said the U.S. could not β rule out that individuals had previously surveilled the US facilities , also contributing to the efficacy of the attacks . β
It describes the attacks as β spontaneously inspired by the protests at the US Embassy in Cairo and evolved into a direct assault against the US Consulate and subsequently its annex , β and noted that β on 10 September we warned of social media reports calling for a demonstration in front of the Embassy and that jihadists were threatening to break into the embassy . β
4:20 p.m. : Stephen Preston , the CIA β s general counsel , responds that U.S. officials should avoid making any statements that suggested specific groups were responsible for the attack : β In light of the criminal investigation , we are not to generate statements with assessments as to who did this , etc . β even internally , not to mention for public release . β
4:42 p.m. : In email traffic within the CIA , Morell scrubbed the talking points of the Al Qaeda reference , changing the language to read that the β crowd almost certainly was a mix of individuals from across many sectors of Libyan society . The investigation is on-going as to who is responsible . That being said , we do know that Islamic extremists participated in the violent demonstrations . β
That draft is subsequently shared with Tommy Vietor , then the White House national security spokesman , and Ben Rhodes , Obama β s deputy national security adviser .
6:21 p.m. : Vietor adds the word β Cairo β in the bullet point that spoke of the Sept. 10 social media warnings to clarify that they were at the U.S. Embassy in Egypt , not in Libya .
6:41 p.m. : Shawn Turner , the spokesman for Director of National Intelligence James Clapper , softens the language around the social media warning to say β we notified Embassy Cairo of social media reports β calling for a demonstration at the embassy .
CORRECTION : Corrected by : Elizabeth Titus @ 05/16/2013 10:59 AM CORRECTION : A previous version of this story misattributed who provided the draft of the talking points circulated at 9:24 p.m. Friday . It also misstated the time of the 11:25 a.m. message . | VERBtkysprE4lgEb | 0 | Middle East | -0.9 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
supreme_court | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/06/11/supreme-court-states-purge-voters-who-dont-vote/587316002/ | Supreme Court: States can purge voters who don't vote or respond to warnings | 2018-06-11 | supreme_court | WASHINGTON β Failing to vote can lead to getting knocked off voter registration rolls , a deeply divided Supreme Court ruled Monday in a decision that probably will help Republicans and hurt Democrats .
The court 's conservative majority ruled 5-4 that Ohio did not violate federal laws by purging voters who failed to vote for six years and did not confirm their residency . Ohio has the strictest such law in the nation .
The ruling protects similar laws in six states , including several electing governors or U.S. senators this fall . They are Pennsylvania , Georgia , Oregon , Oklahoma , West Virginia and Montana .
Civil rights groups challenged Ohio 's procedure for cleaning up voter registration rolls , arguing that it disproportionately affects minorities , the poor and people with disabilities . The Trump administration reversed the position taken by its predecessor and sided with Ohio .
Justice Samuel Alito noted in his majority opinion that about one in eight voter registrations in the USA are invalid or inaccurate . He said failing to vote can not be the sole reason for purging voters , but Ohio `` removes registrants only if they have failed to vote and have failed to respond to a notice . ''
`` A state violates the failure-to-vote clause only if it removes registrants for no reason other than their failure to vote , '' Alito said . By contrast , he said , Ohio waits six years before removal , following federal law `` to the letter . ''
Justice Stephen Breyer penned an 18-page dissent for the liberal wing of the court , marking the sixth time this term the four liberals have dissented as a bloc . Rather than focusing on messy voter rolls , he recited the history of literacy tests , poll taxes and other restrictions he said were designed to `` keep certain groups of citizens from voting . ''
Breyer noted that most voters simply ignore the warning notices , leaving their failure to vote as the principal cause for being purged from the rolls . The number who do n't vote or return notices far exceeds the number who actually have moved , he said .
`` The streets of Ohio 's cities are not filled with moving vans ; nor has Cleveland become the nation 's residential moving companies ' headquarters , '' Breyer said . Rather , Ohio 's process `` erects needless hurdles to voting of the kind Congress sought to eliminate . ''
The ruling could be a major victory for Republicans , who tend to benefit from lower voter turnout , and a stinging loss for Democrats , who do best in high-turnout elections . That 's because minorities , young people and those with lower incomes are most likely to be disenfranchised by the state 's policy .
β Make no mistake : This case was about nothing more than Ohio Republicans trying to tilt elections in their favor by blocking communities of color from the ballot box β all under the guise of preventing β voter fraud , β `` Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez said .
Justice Sonia Sotomayor made that point in a separate dissent , noting Ohio statistics show that the state 's process disproportionately affects minority , low-income , disabled and veteran voters .
`` This purge program burdens the rights of eligible voters , '' she said . `` At best , purged voters are forced to needlessly re-register if they decide to vote in a subsequent election ; at worst , they are prevented from voting at all because they never receive information about when and where elections are taking place . ''
Paul Smith , a veteran Supreme Court litigator who presented the challengers ' case in January , said the court 's ruling will hurt infrequent voters `` who have a certain political perspective . β
Myrna PΓ©rez , director of voting rights and elections at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law , warned that other states `` will take this decision as a green light to implement more aggressive voter purges as the 2018 elections loom . ''
Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted hailed the ruling as `` a victory for election integrity and a defeat for those who use the federal court system to make election law across the country . '' He said the state 's method of purging voters `` can serve as a model for other states to use . ''
And Tom Fitton , president of the conservative group Judicial Watch , said the decision `` should send a signal to other states to take reasonable steps to make sure that voters who died or moved away no longer remain on their voter rolls . ''
Ohio , often a bellwether in national elections , has removed thousands of people who did n't vote for two years , did n't return warning notices , then did n't vote for an additional four years . The state was sued after the 2015 election , when those who had not voted since Barack Obama was elected president in 2008 discovered they no longer were registered .
Under federal laws enacted in 1993 and 2002 , states can not remove voters from registration lists because of their failure to vote . They can do so if voters do n't respond to confirmation notices .
The question for the court was whether failing to vote could be the initial trigger leading to removal . The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in 2016 said no , which restored the votes of 7,515 Ohioans .
The case was the latest in a series of battles against attempts by some states to restrict voting rights and combat alleged voter fraud . Most of the states that backed Ohio have Republican governors or legislatures ; most of those opposed are governed by Democrats .
The Supreme Court has heard a bevy of voting rights cases since its controversial decision in 2013 striking down a key section of the Voting Rights Act , which had forced mostly Southern states to clear changes in election laws with federal officials .
Last term , the justices nixed the excessive use of race in redistricting by legislatures in North Carolina and Virginia ; a similar case from Texas is pending . This term , it faces cases from Wisconsin and Maryland challenging what opponents claim were election maps drawn by state legislators for purely partisan gain .
Ohio 's law was criticized as harsh because it kick-started the purging process after two years . During oral argument in January , Smith said , `` Most of the people who are purged have not moved . ''
U.S . Solicitor General Noel Francisco β whose office changed sides in the case after Trump replaced President Obama β said Ohio had the right to streamline `` over-inflated '' and `` bloated '' voter registration rolls .
More : Immigration , gay rights , politics , abortion , taxes , technology : Crunch time at the Supreme Court
More : Supreme Court rejects Pennsylvania Republicans ' fight over maps for U.S. House
More : Court fights could erase some of the Republicans ' edge in Congress , legislatures | 5FbR87DB8bEImfzC | 1 | Supreme Court | 0.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
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