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☆ A federal judge accused Facebook of 'gaslighting' users impacted by data breaches and fined the site and its lawyers nearly $1 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Facebook and its lawyers have been fined $925,078 as part of an ongoing class action lawsuit. A judge said in a ruling that Facebook spent years "trying to gaslight" the court about its conduct. "It's almost as if Facebook and Gibson Dunn spent the better part of three years trying to gaslight their opponents, not to mention the Court." "And hopefully, this ruling will create some incentive for Facebook and Gibson Dunn (and perhaps even others) to behave more honorably moving forward." Gibson Dunn lawyers listed in the suit and representatives for Facebook did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

Feb 9 (Reuters) - A Republican New York state senator filed a lawsuit on Thursday seeking to force a Senate vote on Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul's pick to be the state's chief judge, after lawmakers blocked the nomination last month. State Senator Anthony Palumbo, who represents a Long Island district, said in a complaint filed in state court that New York's constitution requires the full 63-member Senate to vote on whether to confirm appellate judge Hector LaSalle to the post. Palumbo in the lawsuit said the state constitution, which requires the governor to appoint a chief judge "with the advice and consent of the Senate," was designed to prevent such an outcome. LaSalle is the first nominee for chief judge to be rejected by the Senate committee. New York's chief judge heads the seven-member Court of Appeals, which has the final say in interpreting state laws, and oversees the state's massive court system.

☆ U.S. Senate Republicans put Biden on notice over debt ceiling
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( David Morgan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A debt ceiling increase would require support from nine Republicans, 48 Democrats and three independents who caucus with Democrats to meet the Senate's 60-vote filibuster rule for most legislation. The one-page letter surfaced a day after Biden characterized Republicans as a party of "chaos and catastrophe" while criticizing their refusal to approve a debt ceiling increase without spending cuts. The White House, which has repeatedly voiced opposition to debt ceiling negotiations, was not immediately available for comment. On Tuesday, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said any solution to the debt ceiling debate would have to come from talks between Biden and House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy. It was not clear whether the Senate Republicans notified McCarthy about their letter ahead of time.

☆ Brazilian ex-senator takes over as Petrobras CEO; shares fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Marta Nogueira | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Prates was unanimously approved by the board, on which he will also hold a seat, Petrobras said in a securities filing. He has said the Lula government would not take an aggressively interventionist approach to Petrobras. Petrobras made bumper payouts in recent quarters, but Prates has said the company cannot "just keep tapping sub-salt oil and paying dividends". Prates, who was a senator for the past four years, is the first politician in several years to hold a high-ranking office at Petrobras. Earlier in the day, the Brazilian Senate's official gazette published the resignation of Prates as a lawmaker.

☆ Mitch McConnell gloats about the 'big dilemma' facing Democrats over Kyrsten Sinema's independent Senate bid in Arizona
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Democrats will soon have to decide whether to back a Democrat or Kyrsten Sinema in Arizona. But he took the opportunity to praise the first-term senator while boasting about the situation facing the Democratic Party as she prepares to run for re-election in 2024. "I think it is a big dilemma for the Senate Democratic majority to decide whether to support her or to support somebody running on the Democratic ticket," he added, visibly smirking. For now, Sinema's vote is crucial for maintaining the party's 51-seat majority in the Senate. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont — another independent who caucuses with Democrats — has previously made noise about potentially backing a primary challenger to Sinema.

☆ Sen. Sanders asks Moderna not to hike COVID vaccine price
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Michael Erman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Boxes containing the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are prepared to be shipped at the McKesson distribution center in Olive Branch, Mississippi, U.S. December 20, 2020. Senator Bernie Sanders sent Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) a letter this week asking the drug company to halt planned U.S. price increases on its COVID-19 vaccine, saying price hikes could make the shot unaffordable for millions of Americans. Sanders said in his letter that raising prices would be particularly egregious after the U.S. government provided around $1.7 billion to fund development of the vaccine. The Vermont senator has railed against high drug prices and backed Medicare-for-all, and his chairmanship of the HELP committee could put drug companies in his crosshairs. Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine sales were around $18.4 billion in 2022.

☆ Sen. Bernie Sanders urges Moderna not to hike price of Covid-19 vaccines
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday urged Moderna not to quadruple the price of its Covid-19 vaccine once distribution of the shots moves to the commercial market. In a letter to Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel, Sanders called the price increase "outrageous." Private health insurance premiums would also rise as a consequence of a vaccine price hike , Sanders wrote. Pfizer is also considering raising the price of its Covid vaccine to $110 to $130 per dose. Moderna's Covid vaccine is the company's only commercially available product.

☆ Sen. Mike Braun's Indiana gubernatorial bid jump-starts the GOP's first open Senate seat race of 2024
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Warren Rojas | Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Republican Sen. Mike Braun is running for governor of Indiana in 2024. He filed the paperwork to create the new Mike Braun for Indiana, Inc., campaign committee in late November and has since rolled out a promotional website. "I'm very confident Indiana will stay in Republican hands," Daines told Insider between votes at the US Capitol. And fortunately for the Hoosier State, we have a lot of talented people who might run for that seat," Young told Insider at the US Capitol. The Banks and Spartz campaigns did not immediately respond to requests for comment about prospective Senate runs in 2024.

☆ 'Secure 2.0' clears Congress as part of omnibus appropriations bill, will bring more changes to U.S. retirement system
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Sarah O'Brien | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Three years after the Secure Act of 2019 ushered in the first major changes to the U.S. retirement system in more than a decade, more modifications are now on their way. Dozens of retirement-related provisions collectively known as "Secure 2.0" are included in a $1.7 trillion omnibus appropriations bill that received approval from the House on Friday — following the Senate's nod on Thursday — and will head to President Joe Biden for his signature. Secure 2.0 "addresses gaps that have left some people on the sidelines of retirement savings, unable to access the workplace retirement plans that do so much good in establishing the capability and habit of savings," said Susan Neely, president and CEO of the American Council of Life Insurers. The Secure 2.0 provisions are intended to build on improvements to the retirement system that were implemented under the 2019 Secure Act. Those changes included giving part-time workers better access to retirement benefits and increasing the age when required minimum distributions, or RMDs, from certain retirement accounts must start — to age 72 from 70½.

[1/2] U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walk down the Colonnade to the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S., December 21, 2022. The planning for Zelenskiy's speech began in October, according to a Pelosi aide, when she met with Ruslan Stefanchuk, chairman of Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada. Zelenskiy, Fried said, "didn’t go to Berlin, Brussels, London or Paris" for his first trip abroad since the start of the war. The optics of Zelenskiy receiving a hero's welcome as a defender of democracy carries a message far deeper than military aid. In a Senate speech he described Zelenskiy as "a leader who is fighting for his life, fighting for his country's survival and fighting to preserve the very idea of democracy."

☆ U.S. Senate $1.66 trillion gov't funding bill secures enough votes to advance
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 20 (Reuters) - A $1.66 trillion bill to fund the U.S. government secured enough support to advance in the Senate's first procedural vote on the matter on Tuesday. Voting was continuing. Reporting by Richard Cowan; Editing by Scott MaloneOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. Congress aims to pack additional measures into government funding bill
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Richard Cowan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Democrats and Republicans alike aim to tuck as many legislative wish-list items as possible into the "omnibus" bill funding the government through the end of its fiscal year on Sept. 30, 2023, without derailing the whole package. "Republicans simply were not going to lavish extra-liberal spending" on non-defense programs into the omnibus bill, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said last week. The Senate's cumbersome rules mean that it could take a few days for the funding bill even to come to a vote, after which the House will need to pass it. Another add-on to the spending bill appeared certain: Republican and Democratic leaders have agreed to clarify and tighten the way U.S. presidential election winners are certified by Congress. Lawmakers and their aides spent the weekend gauging how to wedge other special initiatives into this catch-all spending bill.

☆ BlackRock executive and Texas Republicans spar over climate actions
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Ross Kerber | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 15 (Reuters) - A BlackRock Inc (BLK.N) executive and Texas state senators sparred over the firm's membership in an investment group aiming to limit climate change at a hearing on Thursday. Republicans at the hearing, which was webcast, questioned if BlackRock's membership in the Climate Action 100+ committed it to putting too much pressure on portfolio companies to take steps to reduce emissions. BlackRock Senior Managing Director Dalia Blass said the firm had maintained its independence within the group. “We have one bias, and that's to get the best risk-adjusted returns for our clients," Blass said. Reporting by Ross Kerber Editing by Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is in a heap of trouble, says Sen. Pat Toomey
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is in a heap of trouble, says Sen. Pat ToomeySen. Pat Toomey, the lead Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, joins CNBC's 'Squawk Box' to discuss the Senate's hearing on the fallout of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried's arrest, and more.

☆ A market downturn hasn't made activist investing any easier. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

But even with a market downturn, activist investors' campaigns haven't been the cakewalk some might expect. Insider's Daniel Geiger, Rebecca Ungarino, and Casey Sullivan spoke to industry insiders — including famed activist investor Carl Icahn — about why the current landscape isn't as accepting as some might think to activist campaigns. But when the going gets tough, the tough get going, and a difficult market environment doesn't mean we'll see the number of campaigns decrease. Click here to read more about why top activist investors like Carl Icahn say this line of work is riskier than ever. Here's a five-step plan to help you decide when that side gig you have should be the only gig you have.

☆ Kyrsten Sinema's bombshell split from the Democratic Party could be more about sidestepping a tough 2024 primary than a principled stand against partisanship
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Bryan Metzger | Nicole Gaudiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

But the decision means she'll avoid what likely would've been a bruising Democratic primary campaign. That means her decision may be as much about side-stepping what was expected to be a tough Senate primary campaign in 2024 as it is a principled stand against partisan politics. In a statement on Friday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer made clear that the party's functional 51-49 majority next year would remain. Unfortunately, Senator Sinema is once again putting her own interests ahead of getting things done for Arizonans." As Senate majority leader, Schumer has control of who serves on committees in the chamber.

☆ Syracuse University is preparing to revoke Rudy Giuliani's honorary law degree
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Hanna Kang | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Syracuse University is preparing to implement a process for revoking honorary degrees. "Now that we're moving to implement, we have to wait to formally introduce it through committees and the University Senate." These recommendations were submitted to Syverud and the University Senate, and were combined into a report presented to the Board. The University is reviewing the resolution recently passed by the University Senate to rescind Rudy Giuliani's honorary degree." Apart from Syracuse University — President Joe Biden is a graduate of the Syracuse University College of Law, incidentally — the hold-outs include St. John Fisher University in New York, Loyola University Maryland, The Citadel in South Carolina, and Georgetown University in Washington, DC.

☆ Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez mocks Kyrsten Sinema's announcement to leave the Democratic Party and register as an independent: 'She lays out no goals for Arizonans'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ocasio-Cortez joins a number of Democrats who criticized Sinema on Friday over her bombshell decision to leave the party and register as an independent. The Arizona Democratic Party blasted the first-term senator, saying in a statement that her "party registration means nothing if she continues not to listen to her constituents." Sinema's announcement comes after Democrats expanded their Senate majority in the midterm elections, allowing the party to move more quickly on legislation and nominations. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and the White House responded to Sinema's decision on Friday by declaring the Senate's new 51-49 power balance remains unchanged. "I believe she's a good and effective Senator and am looking forward to a productive session in the new Democratic majority Senate," Schumer said in a statement.

☆ Trump-backed Walker loses: Three takeaways from Georgia U.S. Senate runoff
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( James Oliphant | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Republican U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker gives a concession speech during his election night party after losing the U.S. midterm runoff election to Democratic U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock beat Republican challenger Herschel Walker in a Georgia runoff election that fortified Democrats' Senate majority and handed the Republican Party another bitter loss to cap a disappointing midterm election season. Trump held two rallies for Walker in Georgia, but did not come to the state for the runoff, only phoning in to boost supporters on Monday night. That forced uncomfortable congressional Republicans to respond to Trump's statements in the days before the runoff election, pulling the focus from Walker's candidacy. At one rally prior to the runoff, Walker publicly mused about whether a werewolf could kill a vampire.

☆ Video: Why Jim Obergefell is not celebrating the Senate's same-sex marriage bill
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

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☆ Sen. Mike Braun filing to run for governor of Indiana kicks off the GOP's first open Senate seat race of 2024
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Warren Rojas | Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Republican Sen. Mike Braun has filed to run for governor of Indiana in 2024. "I'd say here in 10 days to a couple of weeks," Braun told congressional reporters of his current timetable. "I'm very confident Indiana will stay in Republican hands," Daines told Insider between votes at the US Capitol. And fortunately for the Hoosier State, we have a lot of talented people who might run for that seat," Young told Insider at the US Capitol. The Banks and Spartz campaigns did not immediately respond to requests for comment about prospective Senate runs in 2024.

☆ Federal officials to Herschel Walker committee: Learn how to add your campaign contributions
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Federal Election Commission issued a warning to Herschel Walker's joint fundraising committee. Walker faces Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock in the Georgia Senate runoff election on December 6. The FEC letter offers instructions on how the treasurer can double-check his addition on year-to-date totals and cash on hand. The FEC in 2021, for example, flagged Warnock's campaign for accepting contributions that exceeded federal donation limits. A Warnock victory would give Democrats a 51-49 Senate majority while a Walker victory would maintain the Senate's 50-50 split.

It would not bar states from blocking same-sex or interracial marriages if the Supreme Court allowed them to do so. A similar, but not identical, bill passed the House of Representatives earlier this year with support from 47 Republicans and all Democrats. The House would need to approve the Senate version before it is sent to President Joe Biden to sign into law. In June, the Supreme Court overturned the nationwide right to an abortion, undoing 50 years of precedent. In a concurring opinion, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the court should consider reversing other decisions protecting individual freedoms, including the 2015 ruling on gay marriage.

☆ For retirement-system changes proposed in Congress via 'Secure 2.0,' December is do-or-die time
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Sarah O'Brien | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

While no specific agenda has been released yet, supporters of the retirement-change proposals collectively called "Secure 2.0" are hopeful that it will be among the pieces of legislation that make it across the finish line. Increasing the extra amounts — so-called catch-up contributions — that individuals age 50 or older can put in their retirement accounts. watch nowThis year, the House passed its version of Secure 2.0, the Securing a Strong Retirement Act (H.R.2954), in late March with a bipartisan vote of 414-5. Secure 2.0 could be attached to a must-pass billAssuming that Secure 2.0 wouldn't get floor time for a vote on its own, supporters are hoping legislators will attach it to a must-pass bill this year. In September, Congress passed a stopgap measure to fund the government's 2023 fiscal year, which started Oct. 1, through Dec. 16.

☆ Rick Scott launches his Trump-backed challenge of Mitch McConnell to become Senate GOP leader
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Sen. Rick Scott is challenging Mitch McConnell to become the top Senate Republican. Scott's challenge comes as former President Donald Trump and some Senate Republicans blame McConnell for a lackluster midterm election. As Politico broke the news of Scott's challenge, McConnell's allies lashed out. As the leader of Senate Republicans' campaign arm, Scott played a key role in shaping his party's strategy. Unlike McConnell, Scott did not want the GOP to aggressively intervene in contested primaries, which led to Trump-backed challengers like Dr. Mehmet Oz and Don Bolduc emerging in key races in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, respectively.

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