JULY 20: Donald Trump shakes hands with Governor Mike Pence during a welcome arrival event with their families at the Great Lakes Science Centre on July 20, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump received the number of votes needed to secure the party’s nomination.
Month: December 2016
No intel briefing for electors, DNI says
OCTOBER 20: Director of National Intelligence James Clapper speaks about the domestic security landscape, and ways to address today’s domestic terrorist threats, during a forum hosted by the National Security Alliance on October 20, 2016 in Washington, DC. Electoral College electors will not receive an intelligence briefing on Russian interference in the 2016 election, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said Friday.
Volkswagen, regulators get more time to seek emissions deal
Volkswagen, U.S. regulators and attorneys for vehicle owners have made “substantial progress” on a deal for the remaining 80,000 diesel cars caught in the company’s emissions cheating scandal but need more time to negotiate, a federal judge said Friday. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco gave the parties until Monday to report back on whether they had reached a settlement.
Coast Guard seizes 26.5 tons of cocaine
More than 26 tons of cocaine worth $2 billion have been seized by the US Coast Guard and Royal Canadian Navy, officials said Thursday. Approximately 100 suspected drug smugglers were apprehended at sea and turned over to federal authorities, said Vice Adm.
Training center mistakenly exposed students to deadly ricin
A federal terrorism response center in Alabama mistakenly used the lethal form of the toxin ricin as it trained thousands of firefighters, paramedics and other emergency responders during the past five years. Federal Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman Alexa Lopez said FEMA’s Center for Domestic Preparedness is supposed to use a form of ricin that is safe to humans in training exercises.
Review: In ‘Barry,’ a young Obama, long before ‘hope’
This image released by Netflix shows Devon Terrell as Barack Obama in a scene from “Barry.”
Obama signs massive water bill that could impact Delta
President Barack Obama on Friday quietly signed and bequeathed to President-elect Donald Trump a massive infrastructure bill designed to control floods, fund dams and deliver more water to farmers in California’s Central Valley. While attempting to mollify critics’ concerns over potential harm to the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, Obama signed the $12 billion bill in a distinctly low-key act.
Alameda: City’s largest solar power system unveiled
The largest solar power system that operates under Alameda Municipal Power will reduce the equivalent of carbon dioxide emissions by 20,000 metric tons over its quarter-century lifespan. The energy savings also equals more than 48 million car miles or almost 22 million pounds of coal burning, according to Blue Oak Energy, which installed the rooftop and carport system at 1420 Harbor Bay Parkway.
Byron Williams: Trump as president not a movie we have seen
I recently interviewed Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen about the Declaration of Independence. She shared one of the underreported aspects of the nation’s founding: The establishment of governing came before the revolution.
Thomas Sowell: Where we are and what needs to be done
We are now in a kind of political no-man’s-land between an administration on its way out and a new administration taking shape. Predictions are always risky – and nowhere more so than in times like these.
Biz Break: Reaction to Oraclea s results is a study in its transition
What’s Inside Oracle’s Stocking? Well, on Friday, it was a lot of coal. At least that’s what Oracle’s investors gave the business-software behemoth after its latest quarterly results.
Following Bill Ackman Into Chipotle, But Now Paying Even Less Than Him
Chipotle Mexican Grill is trading at a discount to intrinsic value and will positively reward patient investors who are emotionally detached from any negative press surrounding CMG. CMG is a fast-casual restaurant that sells Mexican food, mostly in the US with a small footprint of restaurants in Europe.
Everything you need to know about Trump’s inauguration
The countdown clock on the White House transition is winding down as specifics about Donald Trump’s inauguration are being finalized. The Trump team announced that it’s going to stick with the campaign slogan that helped get the real estate developer elected, saying that “Make America Great Again” will be the inaugural theme.
2016 Election’s Biggest Losers: Blacks – 2016 Election’s…
It was a total rejection of the progressive liberal ideology. But the real loser was black political power throughout the country.
In NYC’s Russian enclaves, a big ‘nyet’ to hacking talk
Clutching a cobbler’s tool in his hand, Roman Gadayev defiantly lashed out against accusations that Russia meddled in the U.S. election to sway the vote to Donald Trump. “Simply impossible,” said the Kazakhstan native who runs a shoe repair shop near the Brighton Beach boardwalk.
Parts of Gatlinburg were destroyed by out of control wildfires.
KNOXVILLE President Barack Obama signed a disaster declaration Thursday, ordering federal funds be made available to victims of the fires that killed 14 and damaged or destroyed more than 2,400 structures in Gatlinburg and the surrounding Sevier County communities. Sevier County residents and business owners who sustained losses from wildfires during the period of Nov. 28 to Dec. 9 are eligible to receive federal funds, according to a news release from the White House.
U.S. electors expected to officially confirm Trump victory
The U.S. Electoral College is expected on Monday to officially select Republican Donald Trump as the next president in a vote that is usually routine but takes place this year amid allegations of Russian hacking to try to influence the election. At meetings scheduled in every state and the District of Columbia, the institution’s 538 electors, generally chosen by state parties, will cast official ballots for president and vice president.
Hope, Trump upstage ‘La La Land’s’ moment in the sun
Chart shows films with most Golden Globe nominates in 2017; 2c x 3 inches; 96.3 mm x 76 mm; By JOCELYN NOVECK Associated Press Donald Trump was not in attendance at the Golden Globes, but he was there in spirit – or more precisely, as the target of a slew of political barbs. By JOCELYN NOVECK Associated Press Donald Trump was not in attendance at the Golden Globes, but he was there in spirit – or more precisely, as the target of a slew of political barbs, not to mention an… Actress Meryl Streep earned a lifetime achievement award at the Golden Globes Sunday and in accepting, turned the spotlight away from herself.
Ethics reviews incomplete for several Trump picks
Several of President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet choices have not completed a full review to avoid conflicts of interest, the government’s ethics office says, even as Republican senators move quickly to hold at least nine confirmation hearings this week. In a letter to Senate leaders, the director of the Office of Government Ethics described the current status of several nominees, some of whom are billionaires and millionaires, in the ethics process and expressed concern about the lack of ethics reviews just days from committee hearings.
Romania: PM’s tieless look talking point in electoral race.
“Ciolos should wear a tie, to show he means business. That is what the tie represents, you mean business,” say Marian Ciopec, a business consultant.
Judge to hold hearing on stopping Wisconsin recount
Michigan residents walk towards the Michigan State Supreme Court for a rally to speak out against the courts decision to shut down Michigan’s recount on Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016 in Lansing. Michigan’s recount of presidential votes is over after a judge lifted an order that forced a statewide review of millions of ballots.
U.S. appeals court revives Clinton email suit
In a new legal development on the controversy over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s emails, an appeals court on Tuesday reversed a lower court ruling and said two U.S. government agencies should have done more to recover the emails. The ruling from Judge Stephen Williams, of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, revives one of a number of legal challenges involving Clinton’s handling of government emails when she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013.
Trump administration orders EPA contract and media blackout
The Trump administration has instituted a media blackout at the Environmental Protection Agency and barred staff from awarding any new contracts or grants, part of a broader communications clampdown within the executive branch. The prohibitions came to light Tuesday as the agency moved to delay implementation of at least 30 environmental rules finalized in the closing months of President Barack Obama’s term, a potential first step to seeking to kill the regulations.
Opinions
As we report in today’s edition, in the wake of the state’s presidential recount, county, city, and town clerks are being inundated with open-records requests related to the election, and some of the requests are quite significant. Friday, December 16, 2016 In his upcoming budget proposal, Gov. Scott Walker is proposing to establish a series of sunrise and sunset review commissions that would analyze proposed and existing occupational licenses to see if they are needed, or if they are too restrictive, and we think it is a good proposal that is long overdue.