Month: February 2017

At VMI, Ruth Bader Ginsburg reflects on a monumental ruling

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg made a poignant visit to the Virginia Military Institute on Wednesday, her first trip to the state-funded school she profoundly changed some 20 years ago by striking down its all-male admissions policy. In a talk before the school’s cadets, Ginsburg said she knew her opinion, which opened the doors to women, “would make VMI a better place” and thought that those who were initially opposed would learn from their women classmates “how much good women could do for the institution.”

The GOP’s incredible, shrinking Obamacare repeal

Donald Trump’s presidency is off to an explosive start: A clash with the media over crowd size on Inauguration Day; the theatrical unveiling of a Supreme Court nominee; and the launch of an immigration crackdown that sparked nationwide protests. But across town on Capitol Hill, Republican lawmakers have been working away at the monumental task of overhauling Obamacare in the opposite fashion – quietly, slowly and with little fanfare.

DeVos nomination on thin ice with 2 GOP senators opposed

Education Secretary-designate Betsy DeVos testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 17 at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. WASHINGTON>> Donald Trump’s nomination of school choice activist Betsy DeVos as education secretary is on thin ice after two Republican senators vowed to vote against her.

GOP pushes 2 top Cabinet picks through to full Senate

In this Jan. 19, 2017 file photo, Treasury Secretary-designate Steven Mnuchin testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee. Republicans on Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2017, muscled through President Donald Trump’s nominees for Treasury and Health after the majority GOP suspended committee rules, a power grab in the latest escalation of partisan tensions in Congress.

Here We Go Again: Trump Administration Threatens Iran

National Security Advisor Mike Flynn came out on Wednesday to make a brief statement putting Iran “on notice.” Flynn complained about Iran’s ballistic missile tests, about a Yemeni Houthi attack on a Saudi naval vessel in the Red Sea and about “weapons transfers” and “support for terrorism.”

only Minnesota’s attorney general

Donald Trump has won the presidency after narrowly carrying a few states to put him above 270 electoral votes.But according… **NOTE: THE FORM LETTER IS BLANK. WE WILL ACHIEVE MAXIMUM IMPACT WITH UNIQUE LETTERS.

Michael Burgess will lead the GOP charge on unwinding Obamcare

U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Lewisville, speaks to a reporter in his office on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on Feb. 1, 2017. WASHINGTON – In a delegation packed with chairmen and some of the most bombastic members of Congress, one of the quieter Texas members this week took on one of the most daunting U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess , a Lewisville Republican, led his first hearings this week to unwind the Affordable Care Act, the Democrats’ 2010 health care overhaul.

Montebello councilman wants to look at becoming a a sanctuary citya

MONTEBELLO >> Councilman Art Barajas said it may be time for his city to become a “sanctuary city” even as President Donald Trump is moving to cut off federal grants to jurisdictions that restrict cooperation with immigration agencies, But Barajas said many surrounding cities and school districts, including the Montebello Unified School District, already have declared sanctuary status and Montebello should consider it. “I want to explore the possibility of our city ,” Barajas said.

Little heard in public, Bannon is quiet power in Oval Office

It is a mark of Steve Bannon’s extraordinary sway in the Trump White House that a man who has spoken so little in public over the past two weeks is getting so much credit – and blame – for what’s going on. The conservative media executive’s fingerprints are on virtually every significant move taken by President Donald Trump, from Trump’s sweeping order to suspend the country’s refugee program and block visitors from seven Muslim-majority countries to the nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.

Rep. Eshoo introduces bill for Trumpa s tax returns

A Bay Area congresswoman has introduced legislation requiring President Donald Trump and future presidential candidates to release their tax returns. The proposed bill calls for the public disclosure of three years of federal tax returns by the sitting president and candidates regardless of party affiliation.

Intleditorial-sacramento

Trump’s refugee order disgraceful, incompetent overreach Editorial The Sacramento Bee If any American value was served by President Donald Trump’s inhumane treatment of hundreds of ordinary people from Muslim-majority nations this weekend, we would like to know what it is. How sickening it was to watch Trump’s draconian executive order on refugees play out, indefinitely banning entry to Syrian refugees and suspending US travel for visa and, for a time, even green card holders from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

Facebook Beats Wall St Estimates

Facebook cruised past Wall Street’s earnings and revenue expectations on Wednesday with strong growth in its mobile ad business, demonstrating that controversy over so-called “fake news” and inaccurate advertising measurements had little impact on its financial performance. With quarterly profit of $3.57 billion, more than double the $1.56 billion it reported a year ago, the company showed no signs of slowdown in growth.

Navy upgrades Pacific carrier wing with new E-2D Hawkeye

The Navy bolstered its airborne radar and detection capabilities in the Pacific with the Thursday arrival of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 125 at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan. VAW-125’s presence signifies a shift for the Navy as it continues relocating the bulk of Carrier Air Wing 5 – the USS Ronald Reagan’s aviation wing – from Naval Air Station Atsugi, southwest of Tokyo.

Melania Trump announces first staff pick

Elite California school forced to cancel speech by right-wing firebrand Milo Yiannopoulos as students set off fireworks at cops, tear down barricades and set the campus ablaze in protest Emma Stone’s personal trainer reveals how YOU can get her toned abs, arms and legs – with these simple tips Former US serviceman who shot and killed a Denver transit officer was a ‘radical Muslim who had jihadist material in his backpack’ and had recently been kicked out of a mosque Pair arrested in London over crippling cyber attack on Washington DC’s CCTV network just days before Trump was sworn in as president F-16 jet pilot accidentally kills civilian and injures Air Force service member by releasing munitions during training exercise on New Mexico military range Mother-of-one teacher, 28, at school for children with behavior problems ‘had an eight-month affair with a student, 16, and said she was … (more)

Cubans Stranded In Mexico Say Return To The Island Is Not An Option

NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico, Feb 2 –Scores of Cubans meet every day at the Gateway to the Americas International Bridge in Nuevo Laredo on the US border after an odyssey through 10 countries, never knowing if they would achieve their dream of entering the United States, but with the conviction that returning to the island is “not an option.” More groups of Cubans kept arriving over the weekend until their number now tops 400.

Trinidad And Tobago Confirms Links Of Nationals To Terrorist Groups

PORT OF SPAIN, Feb 2 –The Government of Trinidad and Tobago has confirmed the link of more than 100 nationals to terrorist activities and groups abroad, the Guardian newspaper informed today. In an address to the Senate, Homeland Security Minister Edmund Dillon said many of those people offered false information to the authorities when they left the country.

Lake Darling to be lowered

In the wake of the first Spring Runoff Outlook issued by the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency, Lake Darling will be lowered below its prescribed operating level in preparation for snowmelt runoff. Frank Durbian, Souris River Basin Complex manager, says the current operating plan is to draw down Lake Darling well below its normal spring operating level of 1,596 feet.

UC Berkeley cancels Milo Yiannopoulos event amid violent protest

After a protest at UC Berkeley turned violent Wednesday night, campus officials announced that a scheduled speech by right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos was canceled. The Breitbart News editor was set to deliver a speech inside a UC Berkeley campus building but hundreds of protesters began throwing fireworks and pulling down the metal barricades police set up to keep people from rushing into the building.

Anti-Trump Republican eyes party switch in deep-blue Hawaii

A Republican lawmaker in deep-blue Hawaii is considering switching parties to become a Democrat after she was pressured to give up her leadership role for criticizing President Donald Trump. Rep. Beth Fukumoto said Republican Party members asked her to resign as Minority Floor Leader after she spoke at the Women’s March in Hawaii.

Flailing Trumpsters Upset a Hijacked Nation

The Trump Gang, hardly two weeks in the White House, is giving strong, petulant signals that it is hijacking the checks and balances of our democratic institutions. Coupling the Boss’s easily brusiable ego, marinated in infinite megalomania, with ideologues harboring objectives that would have frightened Nixonites and Reaganites alike, a runaway train is leaving the station.

1st inmate to get sex reassignment moves to female prison

Inmates inside a Delaware prison where two staff members were being held hostage Wednesday evening reached out to a newspaper in two phone calls to explain their concerns A jury has convicted a Minnesota man who shot and wounded five black men demonstrating against the fatal shooting of a black man by Minneapolis police officers Officials say the first U.S. inmate to receive state-funded sex-reassignment surgery has been moved to a women’s prison Immigration courts are making a technical switch to focus more on deportation hearings for immigrants jailed by the federal government A Republican lawmaker in deep-blue Hawaii is considering switching parties to become a Democrat after she was pressured to give up her leadership role for criticizing President Donald Trump A parole panel has recommended the release of a former follower of cult leader Charles Manson after California governors … (more)

Mavs owner Cuban questions “hypocrisy” of Trump’s order

Inmates inside a Delaware prison where two staff members were being held hostage Wednesday evening reached out to a newspaper in two phone calls to explain their concerns A jury has convicted a Minnesota man who shot and wounded five black men demonstrating against the fatal shooting of a black man by Minneapolis police officers A jury has convicted a Minnesota man who shot and wounded five black men demonstrating against the fatal shooting of a black man by Minneapolis police officers Officials say the first U.S. inmate to receive state-funded sex-reassignment surgery has been moved to a women’s prison Officials say the first U.S. inmate to receive state-funded sex-reassignment surgery has been moved to a women’s prison Immigration courts are making a technical switch to focus more on deportation hearings for immigrants jailed by the federal government Immigration courts are making a … (more)

Trump Pushback Leading to Surge in Buffalo Democrat Volunteers

For the last month or so, college student Thomas Arida has been doing clerical work and answering phones for the Erie County Democratic Committee. With the next general election roughly nine months away, it’s not the most exciting time for local politics, but Arida says after watching the presidential election he wanted to get involved anyway.

Builders accidentally dug up Blue Peter time capsule

President Trump honors first military casualty of his presidency by meeting fallen SEAL’s coffin – and takes Ivanka with him Is Trump drawing up an even stricter migration crackdown? Draft executive order touts deportation for receiving benefits and crackdown on work visas ‘Not a good start to Black History Month’: NBC under fire after Tamron Hall turns down millions and abruptly QUITS after network cancels her Today time slot to make room for Megyn Kelly Pair arrested in London over crippling cyber attack on Washington DC’s CCTV network just days before Trump was sworn in as president F-16 jet pilot accidentally kills civilian and injures Air Force service member by releasing munitions during training exercise on New Mexico military range Female teacher, 28, at Pennsylvania school for students with behavioral problems is arrested ‘for having sex with 16-year-old girl in eight-month … (more)

Editorial, Feb. 2, 2017: Gorsuch should get full and fair public hearing

In a deeply divided country, is it any surprise that President Donald J. Trump’s nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court already is lining up as another partisan and hostile battle? And while Republicans sowed this discord by blocking President Obama’s last nominee to the high court, Democrats have a choice to either play the revenge card, or take a higher road and conduct the kind of full and fair hearings on the nomination they wanted from Republicans.

Why Democrats are Panicking: Gov. Walker: White House interested in…

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said Wednesday that he spoke with Vice President Mike Pence about how the White House can implement on a federal level parts of the Republican governor’s contentious policy that all-but eliminated collective bargaining for public sector unions in the state. President Donald Trump has talked about wanting to weaken collective bargaining protections for federal employees, most of whom can’t currently bargain over wages or benefits, to make it easier to hire and fire government workers and base pay on merit rather than tenure.