The driver in a double-fatal crash of a Tesla had a blood-alcohol content of 0.21 percent at the time her car crashed and burned in Indianapolis in November 2016. The early morning crash killed driver Casey Speckman, 27, and passenger Kevin McCarthy, 44, when the Tesla electric car hit a tree and crashed into a building.
Day: February 8, 2017
Businessman Chris Kennedy to run for Illinois governor
In this Sept. 11, 2014, file photo, University of Illinois Board of Trustees Chairman Chris Kennedy, listens during a trustees meeting in Urbana, Ill.
Read Coretta Scott King’s Letter That Got Sen. Elizabeth Warren Silenced
One day after Senate Republicans invoked a conduct rule to end Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s speech against the nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions as attorney general, a 1986 letter from Coretta Scott King urging the Senate to reject Sessions’ nomination as a federal judge is gaining new prominence. Warren was reading aloud from the letter by King, the widow of Dr. Martin Luther King, when she was interrupted by the presiding chair of the Senate, who warned her of breaking Rule 19 , which forbids members from imputing to a colleague “any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a Senator.”
Even If You Expect Obamacare To Be Repealed, Don’t Skip Paying Tax Penalty Now
As Republicans move to overhaul the health law, should people bother paying the penalty for not having health insurance when they file their taxes this year? Or will they be able to sign up on the exchange for 2018 after their COBRA benefits end? I didn’t have health insurance for part of last year and thought I’d get stuck paying a penalty. Now the new administration is talking about not enforcing the insurance requirement.
Designers to Protest the Election of President Donald Trump at New York Fashion Week
Hillary Clinton’s name was the center of attraction at the New York Fashion Week prior to the elections in which her rival was victorious. Even Anna Wintour arranged for a fundraiser for Clinton.
Senate GOP silences Warren over criticism of Sessions
Senate Republicans silenced Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren for criticizing colleague and Attorney General-nominee Jeff Sessions with the words of Coretta Scott King from three decades ago challenging his record on race. Warren, whose name has been prominent in speculation about the 2020 presidential race, was given a rare Senate rebuke Tuesday night for impugning a fellow senator and she was barred from saying anything more on the Senate floor about Sessions, R-Ala.
Defense Department may lease space at Trump Tower
Dump trucks sit outside of Trump Tower as security is increased in the area on Election Day on November 8, 2016 in New York City. “In order to meet official mission requirements, the Department of Defense is working through appropriate channels and in accordance with all applicable legal requirements in order to acquire a limited amount of leased space in Trump Tower,” Lt.
Report: Driver in double fatal Tesla crash was intoxicated
Police say the driver of a speeding Tesla electric car that crashed and burned in Indianapolis, killing her and a passenger, was too drunk to drive. Indianapolis police released an updated report Wednesday on the November crash.
Trump defends travel ban, blasts “political” courts
President Trump defended his travel ban Wednesday morning, and accused the judiciary branch of becoming “political,” just as his executive order continues to face legal challenges in federal court. The president talked about his embattled executive order during an address to the Washington, D.C.conference of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, which represents the sheriffs and heads of large police forces around the country.
Today in History
In 1587, Mary, Queen of Scots was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in England after she was implicated in a plot to murder her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I. In 1952, Queen Elizabeth II proclaimed her accession to the British throne following the death of her father, King George VI.
Israeli groups sue to stop law legalizing settlement homes
In the first concrete attempt to counter the contentious new law legalizing thousands of West Bank settlement homes, two Israeli rights groups on Wednesday asked the country’s Supreme Court to overturn the measure. Adalah and the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center appealed to the high court, asking it to block implementation of the bill passed in parliament this week that sets out to legalize dozens of settler outposts built on privately owned Palestinian land.
Nine Senate Democrats Say Gorsuch Deserves a Vote
1. Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware: “I’m not going to do to President Trump’s nominee what the Republicans in the Senate did to President Obama’s. I will push for a hearing and I will push for a vote.”
Bill to Abolish Public Funding for Presidential Candidates Passes House Committee
On February 7, the House Administration Committee passed HR 133 by a vote of 5-3. Here is the text .
REPORT: Hillary Clinton’s son-in-law is shutting down his hedge fund
New York-based Eaglevale Partners, the hedge fund co-founded by Marc Mezvinsky, closed in December and is in the process of returning money to clients, according to Bloomberg. Mezvinsky’s foray into the hedge fund world has been plagued with troubles.
How Hollywood “Solved” It’s Oscar Racism
When the nominations were announced for the 89th Academy Awards there was an audible gust of relief heard emanating from Dream Land. After the past two years of lily-white nominations, which generated the reactionary hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, the Academy has turned things around.
Veterans return to Standing Rock, ‘not backing off’ pipeline protests
A few hundred veterans gathered on Dec. 4, 2016 in a field south of a Dakota Access Pipeline protest camp near Cannon Ball, N.D. to hear welcoming remarks from protest leaders. Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., said Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017, that the Acting Secretary of the Army has directed the Army Corps of Engineers to proceed with an easement necessary to complete the pipeline.
Watch: Fmr. Senator threatened with Rule 19 explains why Liz Warren was shut down
Despite what the Democrats and the media would have the public believe, Republicans voting to bar Senator Elizabeth Warren on Tuesday night is neither outrageous nor particularly rare. Former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum explained on CNN Wednesday morning that while in office he himself was warned with Rule 19. “Rule 19 was brought up when I was up on the floor, [when he was] going after some folks.”
President Donald Trump speaks to the Major County Sheriffs’…
President Donald Trump on Wednesday slammed the court that is deliberating his immigration and refugee executive order for having motivations he described as “so political.” Jayne Novak, left, smiles as she stands with her husband, Allen Novak, newly-arrived from Iran, and their daughter Nikta, as they stand with a flag and pose for cameras Monday, Feb. 6, 2017, at Seattle Tacoma International Airport in SeaTac, Wash.
Bustos will decide in a month
U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill., said Tuesday that she has given herself 30 days to decide whether to run for governor and that she’ll weigh such factors as whether a downstate figure “with my brand of politics” can appeal to a statewide audience – and if she has the skills to make a difference in the infamously deadlocked state. [] “As I weigh this, it is a matter of where can I make the biggest difference and how can I be in a position to help our state and region as much as possible,” she said.
GOP senior statesmen making push for a carbon tax
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with county sheriffs in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with county sheriffs in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017.
*** UPDATED x2 – Issues formal statement – Kennedy confirms bid ***…
An adviser says Democratic businessman Chris Kennedy plans to run for Illinois governor in 2018 against Republican incumbent Bruce Rauner. He said something interesting about the “Because Madigan!” angle used by the Republicans here.
Senator blocked from speaking in fierce attorney general debate
A Democratic senator has been barred from speaking during debate on the attorney general nominee after Republicans said she violated a Senate rule. Sen. Elizabeth Warren was interrupted, told to sit down and barred from speaking Tuesday during debate on President Donald Trump’s attorney general nominee, Sen. Jeff Sessions .
Sen. Sessions on track for confirmation as attorney general
The Senate is working overtime toward confirming President Donald Trump’s close ally, Sen. Jeff Sessions, to become the nation’s top law enforcement officer as attorney general. The Alabama Republican appears headed toward confirmation on Wednesday evening by a nearly party-line vote.
Bribe Bully Beg Borrow Steal
On February 10, 2016, the Indiana-based furnace company Carrier announced that it would close two factories in the U.S.-one in Indianapolis and one in Huntington-and shift production to Mexico. Just three days later, presidential longshot Donald Trump bragged on Twitter: “I am the only one who can fix this.
The Carrot, the Stick, and the Buggy Whip
As 2016 came to a close, dictionary makers Merriam-Webster posted a pathetic little tweet-a cry for help, really-that quickly went viral: “‘Fascism’ is still our #1 lookup. # of lookups = how we choose our Word of the Year.
Betsy DeVos’s Biggest Sin is Supporting School Choice, Not Lack of Experience
The Democrats, along with their cohorts in the media, did a terrific job in making Betsy DeVos’s lack of experience in the public school system the be-all, end-all of whether or not somebody can run the Department of Education. The caterwauling from Democrats, ignorant celebrities, and dunderhead media personalities managed to advance that narrative.
10 Things to Know for Today
In this Jan. 21, 2017, file photo, protesters stage a candlelight vigil calling for impeached President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. The Pyeongchang Olympics have been drawn into the country’s biggest political scandal in decades.
Officials: CIA chief to visit Turkey, discuss security
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, walks to greet Ethiopia’s President Mulatu Teshome Wirtu, at the Presidential Palace, in Ankara Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, walks to greet Ethiopia’s President Mulatu Teshome Wirtu, at the Presidential Palace, in Ankara Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017.
Tax reform in the age of bad faith? No chance
I’m going to let you in on a little secret. LePage has no real interest in tax reform, and Democrats have zero incentive to play along with complicated schemes that shift taxes toward working people and give breaks to the wealthy.
Appeals court presses Trump administration on travel ban
A 34-year-old Dover man arrested in Massachusetts could be returned to New Hampshire as soon as Wednesday to face second-degree murder charges in the deaths of two women in Farmington.
City Council Oks food trucks and repeals panhandling ordinance
City Council Oks food trucks and repeals panhandling ordinance Hunter 2/8/17 The Iowa City Council has gone ahead and given the okay for food trucks to operate in the downtown. The vendors asked for a variance so that they could operate during the late night hours, after most of the brick and mortar restaurants have closed for the night.
Pennsylvania Senate passes bill targeting sanctuary cities
The Pennsylvania Senate advanced a measure on Tuesday that would cut off hundreds of millions of dollars in state subsidies to cities and counties that do not always honor detention requests from federal immigration authorities. The measure targeting sanctuary cities dovetails with a national debate being spearheaded by Pennsylvania’s U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey and President Donald Trump, both Republicans, as a top law-and-order priority.
Voting starts in Somalia’s presidential election
Sentencing is set Wednesday for an American-born Muslim convert convicted of helping to plot a 2015 attack on a Prophet Muhammad cartoon contest in Texas. Sentencing is set Wednesday for an American-born Muslim convert convicted of helping to plot a 2015 attack on a Prophet Muhammad cartoon contest in Texas.
Trump gets negative job rating, Snyder improving
Even though candidate Donald Trump won Michigan last November, he’s off to a rough start winning the job performance approval of Michiganders early in his presidency. Just three weeks into being America’s commander-in-chief, 48% of the 600 people polled statewide have an unfavorable opinion of President Trump, versus 39% who have a favorable impression of the former New York businessman.
Essential Politics: Eric Holder huddles in Sacramento
Few attorneys who bill by the hour end up posing for pictures with their clients, or stopping and answering questions from reporters. Good morning from the state capital.
As attorney general, Jeff Sessions will take center stage in some of…
Sen. Jeff Sessions, President Trump’s pick for attorney general, at his confirmation hearing in January. After enduring an unusually bitter confirmation battle for a sitting U.S. senator, Jeff Sessions will barely have time to settle into his fifth-floor office at the Justice Department before he takes center stage in some of the nation’s most acute controversies.
California is, like, totally out of control. Just the way we like it.
On Saturday, using his favorite 140-character medium, President Trump insulted the federal jurist who blocked his immigration order aimed at Muslim travelers, dismissing Judge James L. Robart as a “so-called judge.” Democratic U.S. Rep. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank, also on Twitter, responded tartly: “This ‘so-called’ judge was nominated by a ‘so-called’ President & was confirmed by the ‘so-called’ Senate.
Syria rejects Amnesty’s report of mass hangings as ‘untrue’
The left picture is of Alshogre taken on January 2017 in Stockholm, Sweden. The right pict… Sentencing is set Wednesday for an American-born Muslim convert convicted of helping to plot a 2015 attack on a Prophet Muhammad cartoon contest in Texas.
Court mulls travel ban: To compound whiplash, or calm it?
President Donald Trump’s travel ban… . Students from high schools and colleges throughout New York city protest with clenched fists, during a rally against President Donald Trump’s executive order banning travel from seven Muslim-majority nations, Tuesday Feb. 7,… .
Trump travel ban in hands of federal appeals court
A federal appeals court will decide whether to reinstate President Donald Trump’s travel ban after a contentious hearing in which the judges hammered away at the administration’s motivations for the ban, but also directed pointed questions to an attorney for two states trying to overturn it. It was unclear which way the three judges of the San Francisco-based 9th Circuit Court of Appeals would rule, though legal experts said the states appeared to have the edge.