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President Joe Biden signed legislation Friday to avoid a potentially catastrophic rail strike after Congress approved the measure this week. Biden had pressed lawmakers to pass the measure after railway workers vowed to strike by Dec. 9 if an agreement couldn't be reached. The Senate voted down an amendment 52 to 43, championed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., that would have added seven days of paid sick leave for rail workers to the deal. “Let me be clear: This struggle is not over,” Sanders said after the sick leave amendment failed. “At a time of record-breaking profits for the rail industry, it is disgraceful that railroad workers do not have a single day of paid sick leave.”"I know this bill doesn't have paid sick leave.

☆ ABB’s $327 Million Bribery Settlement Arrives in U.S. Court
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Dylan Tokar | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

The U.S. court hearing was part of a globally coordinated deal that extends to authorities in South Africa, Switzerland and Germany, with the apparent bulk of the fines being collected in South Africa. The settlement is the first that U.S. authorities have reached in coordination with authorities in that country. The Kusile Power Station, a coal-fired power plant in South Africa. Switzerland on Friday said it was issuing a fine of 4 million Swiss francs, equivalent to about $4.3 million dollars. The Justice Department said it anticipated a related settlement with German authorities, but didn’t indicate a time frame.

☆ South Africa's ruling party to decide Ramaphosa's fate over 'Farmgate' scandal
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

JOHANNESBURG, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Senior officials in South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC) were gathering on Friday to decide whether President Cyril Ramaphosa should stay on after an inquiry found evidence of misconduct over cash hidden at his farm. The president's future has been in doubt since a report by a panel of experts was made public on Wednesday. The South African rand stabilised on Friday, after closing 2% weaker against the dollar on Thursday on speculation that Ramaphosa was going to resign. Local media reported widely that he was considering quitting on Thursday but was then convinced by his own supporters within the NEC to stay. "We are quite determined that the president has to stay," Mathole Motshekga, an NEC member, told local Radio 786.

☆ Swiss engineering group ABB fined $4.3 mln
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] The logo of Hitachi ABB is seen at an office building in Zurich, Switzerland September 10, 2020. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File PhotoZURICH, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Swiss engineering and technology group ABB (ABBN.S) has been fined 4 million Swiss francs ($4.3 million) by the country's Attorney General in connection with a bribery case in South Africa. The company agreed to pay 2.5 billion rand ($144.51 million) in punitive reparations to South Africa within 60 days from Dec. 1, the NPA's statement said. This is in addition to 1.6 billion rand ($92.48 million)the company paid back to South African state power utility Eskom in 2020. ABB was found guilty of improper payments and other compliance issues at the Kusile power station after a wide-scale investigation into state corruption concluded in June 2022.

☆ GOP senators threaten to delay major military bill over Covid vaccine mandate
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Julie-Tsirkin-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Julie Tsirkin | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON — Several Republicans are warning they will drag out Senate consideration of a massive military policy bill unless they get a vote on ending a Covid vaccination mandate for service members. The senators’ threat could delay final passage of the annual bill, which Congress has consistently passed, but it would not prevent the Senate from eventually voting on the legislation. It is insane.”The other GOP senators calling for a vaccination vote are Rick Scott of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah and Mike Braun of Indiana. The Biden administration has had a mixed record on Covid vaccination mandates in court. The proposal put forth by the seven GOP senators is unlikely to get a vote without the support of Senate Republican leaders.

☆ Reaction to expert panel report on South Africa's Ramaphosa
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, former minister and chairwoman of the African Union Commission, attends the 54th National Conference of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa December 17, 2017. REUTERS/Siphiwe SibekoJOHANNESBURG, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Cyril Ramaphosa's future as South African president was in question on Thursday, a day after a panel report found preliminary evidence he may have committed serious misconduct. "We need to look at the report, study its implications very carefully, follow the parliamentary processes and allow matters to take their course." NKOSAZANA DLAMINI-ZUMA, EX-WIFE OF FORMER PRESIDENT JACOB ZUMA"I think the president has to step aside now and answer to the case." JOHN STEENHUISEN, LEADER OF MAIN OPPOSITION PARTY, THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE (DA)"The report is clear and unambiguous.

[1/3] South African president Cyril Ramaphosa speaks at the Green Hydrogen Summit at Century City in Cape Town, South Africa, November 29, 2022. The inquiry centred on the theft of a millions of dollars of cash from the billionaire president's farm in 2020, which came to light in June. The country's biggest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, has called for an early election and the report has plunged the governing African National Congress (ANC) into crisis. The ANC's executive committee is due to meet to discuss the panel report on Thursday evening. Asked by Reuters about a local media report that Ramaphosa was due to address the nation on Thursday, Ramaphosa's spokesman Vincent Magwenya said: "An announcement is imminent.

☆ Kim Jong Un's daughter makes her second public appearance
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s daughter made a public appearance again, this time with missile scientists and more honorific titles as her father’s “most beloved” or “precious” child. Others showed Kim’s daughter clapping her hands, exchanging handshakes with a soldier or talking to her father as people cheered in the background. “Kim Ju Ae is expected to appear occasionally at Kim Jong Un’s public events and take a succession training.”Revealing the young Ju Ae came as a huge surprise to foreign experts, as Kim Jong Un and his father Kim Jong Il were both first mentioned in state media dispatches after they became adults. Cheong, however, said Kim Jong Il had Kim Jong Un in mind as his heir when his son was 8 years old. Cheong cited his conversations with Kim Jong Un’s aunt and her husband, who defected to the United States.

☆ A jet built by China and Pakistan may soon be the most widely operated combat aircraft in the world
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

China and Pakistan jointly developed the JF-17 combat jet, which first entered service in 2007. At the same time, China was showcasing the JF-17 at the annual China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zuhai, China. The events were the latest attempts by China and Pakistan to market their jointly developed fourth-generation fighter jet to international customers. JF-17 ThunderA Pakistan Air Force JF-17 takes off at a base in northern Pakistan in June 2013. The single-seat, single-engine jet is known in Pakistan as the JF-17 Thunder and as the FC-1 Xiaolong in China.

WASHINGTON, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. health official celebrated and vilified as the face of the country's COVID-19 pandemic response, used his final White House briefing on Tuesday to denounce division and promote vaccines. True to form, Fauci used his final press briefing to strongly encourage Americans to get COVID vaccines and booster shots, and touted the effectiveness of masks, all of which became partisan totems in the United States. NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci joins White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre for the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, U.S. November 22, 2022. He made his first appearance at the White House press briefing in 2001, according to the broadcaster C-SPAN. Democrats accused Trump of presiding over a disjointed response to the pandemic and of disregarding advice from public health experts including Fauci.

☆ GOP operative convicted of funneling Russian donation to Trump's 2016 campaign
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Christina Wilkie | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In this Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016, file photo, Jesse Benton arrives for his sentencing hearing at the federal courthouse in Des Moines, Iowa. WASHINGTON — A Republican political operative and former campaign aide was convicted in federal court this week of funneling $25,000 from a Russian businessman to Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. The money for the donation originally came from Roman Vasilenko, a former Russian naval officer turned multilevel marketer and CEO of the "Life is Good International Business Academy." When Benton paid the Trump Victory committee for the ticket, he used his own credit card, pocketing the remaining $75,000 from Vasilenko. Thursday's conviction marks the second time that Benton has been found guilty of a campaign finance crime.

WASHINGTON — House Republicans' majority will be smaller than expected, but they're eager to use their new oversight powers and pass a spate of bills to draw contrasts with Democrats and give the Biden administration heartburn. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., joined by Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., left, and Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, in Washington on July 21, 2021. A growing number of Republicans say they have their sights set on impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, bashing his handling of the border surge. LegislationDemocrats still occupy the White House, so any legislation Republicans pass on a partisan basis won’t be signed into law by Biden. But House Republicans say they will waste no time showing the parties’ stark differences as they battle for control of the White House in 2024.

☆ Drive Capital's Mark Kvamme is raising a fund that's like a sovereign wealth fund for Ohio, one month after stepping down from the $2.2 billion venture-capital firm he cofounded
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In October, Mark Kvamme said he was stepping down at Drive Capital, the venture firm he founded. The so-called Ohio Fund will raise money mostly from Ohio institutional investors, sources said. The new fund — whose working title is "Ohio Fund" — has drawn comparisons to a sovereign wealth fund, because Kvamme plans to raise capital from mostly Ohio institutions. Unlike the venture firm he founded, the Ohio Fund will invest in multiple asset classes, including other funds, public stocks, private companies in Ohio, and infrastructure, sources said. He stayed one year before striking out on his own with ambitions to start a venture firm.

Christopher Gregory/Getty ImagesDonald McGahn, Trump campaign counsel: I was at the top. Trump's 2016 campaign aides said they paid about 50 people, including part-time actors, to appear as supporters for his 2016 campaign announcement. Corey Lewandowski, Trump campaign managerCorey Lewandowski: I called my wife just as we were getting onto the plane. Stuff that would be from Mars on any other campaign was perfectly normal for the Trump campaign. Mark J. Terrill/AP photo Show less Trump at the Republican National Convention while Cruz speaks on July 20, 2016.

☆ Kentucky school bus crash leaves 18 students, driver injured
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A school bus crashed over an embankment and landed on its side Monday morning in rural Kentucky, sending the driver and 18 children to hospitals with injuries ranging from minor to severe, authorities said Monday. Students from elementary age through high school were aboard the bus en route to classes when the crash occurred on a state highway near Salyersville in eastern Kentucky, said Superintendent Chris Meadows of Magoffin County Schools. Andy Beshear said in a tweet that Kentucky State Police were on the scene, and “we are responding swiftly.”The bus exited state Route 40 near Salyersville and went over an embankment, state Trooper Michael Coleman said. Some of the injured were flown from the crash by helicopter and others were taken by ambulances and private vehicles, officials said. “That’s typical in any rural area where you have a lot of winding roads,” he saidThe school bus did not have seat belts, Meadows said.

☆ Doctors explain why pending 'ominous' cuts to Medicare would limit healthcare for seniors in the new year
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Reimbursements for doctors who see Medicare patients are set to be cut by up to 8.5% starting next year. Doctors warn cuts will prevent seniors from getting vital health services. Among them are Medicare cuts to doctors through the Physician Fee Schedule, which is used to determine which services doctors are reimbursed for, and how much they get. It affects the quality of care patients are able to get, and can even impact how many Medicare patients a healthcare provider can take on, Shalgain said. "And as that Medicare number goes down, you can't see as many Medicare patients," he said.

☆ The most prominent election-deniers lost their races. But at least 172 have won so far.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Kayla Gallagher | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

So far, at least 172 election deniers have won their races. Of the election deniers up for election, at least 172 have won their elections as of Monday morning at 9:30 a.m. There are 104 election deniers who have lost their races as of 9:30 a.m. Election deniers who have won their racesHigh-profile Republicans who have won their 2022 midterm races include Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. Election deniers who could impact 2024 battleground states if electedOut of the election deniers on the ballot, 171 were favored to win and 46 were in races considered competitive by election watchers.

☆ GOP Rep. Mo Brooks says it would be a 'bad mistake' to nominate Trump as the party's 2024 presidential nominee, calling his onetime ally 'incompetent' and 'crude'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rep. Mo Brooks said ex-President Donald Trump should not be the GOP presidential nominee in 2024. In an interview with AL.com, Brooks was highly critical of his onetime political ally. "I challenge anybody to make the argument that you can trust the word of Donald Trump," he said. "It would be a bad mistake for the Republicans to have Donald Trump as their nominee in 2024. "I did not fight for Donald Trump after the 2020 election," Brooks said.

☆ These top stock picks from Morgan Stanley are well positioned for 'resilient growth'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

There's a wide range of stock ready to pop regardless of what direction the market goes, according to Morgan Stanley. They include Epam Systems , Bill.com , SLB, Microchip Technology and Ingersoll Rand. Bill.com Holdings Bill.com has showed "solid execution yields resilient growth in a worsening macro," analyst Keith Weiss said following the company's earnings report earlier this month. Microchip Technology Shares of the semiconductor supplier are too attractive to ignore, analyst Joseph Moore said earlier this month. Bill.com "Solid Execution Yields Resilient Growth in a Worsening Macro ... Amid this macro warning sign, mgmt.

Three quarters of cars produced by South Africa's auto industry, which accounts for 5% of gross domestic product and over 100,000 jobs, are exported, mostly to European countries. Martina Biene, Volkswagen South Africa's new managing director, told Reuters the company's manufacturing facilities in the country do not plan an immediate pivot to producing electric vehicles. "I think by 2035 there will be production of electric vehicles in Africa ... but in the meantime we will export probably less to Europe than other countries." Volkswagen South Africa produced over 129,000 vehicles last year along with more than 58,000 engines, mostly destined for exports. That would focus on selling South African-manufactured petrol and diesel vehicles in most markets and imported EVs in countries like Mauritius, Cape Verde and South Africa as demand for more environmentally friendly cars picks up there.

☆ North Korea fires ballistic missile toward sea, South says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea fired at least one ballistic missile toward its eastern sea on Wednesday as it extended a recent barrage of weapons demonstrations including what it described as simulated attacks on South Korean and U.S. targets last week. Some experts earlier said the results of the U.S. elections were not likely to change the Biden administration’s policies on North Korea. North Korea fired dozens of missiles last week, including an intercontinental ballistic missile that set off evacuation warnings in northern Japan, in an angry reaction to the U.S.-South Korea military exercises. Some experts say it’s possible that North Korea reached into the inventory of some of its older weapons to support the expanded scale of last week’s launches. “It may be in North Korea’s interest to hold some of its modern capabilities in reserve and test them at opportune occasions.

☆ Midterm elections live updates: Pennsylvania races, New Hampshire Senate race too early to call
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Brandy Zadrozny | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Sahil-Kapur-Headshot.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +109 min

Share this -Link copiedWisconsin Senate and governor's races too early to call It is too early to call the Senate and gubernatorial races in Wisconsin, according to NBC News. Share this -Link copiedNew Hampshire Senate race too early to call The Senate race in New Hampshire is too early to call, according to NBC News. Share this -Link copiedPennsylvania Senate and governor races are too early to call After polls closed at 8 p.m. While Maricopa County election officials initially categorized the problem as a “hiccup,” it took hours before a solution was identified early Tuesday afternoon. In Columbus County, election officials allegedly were harassed by an “observer following one-stop workers” and photographing or filming the workers, it said.

Edison Research projected that incumbent Republican Senators Tim Scott in South Carolina and Todd Young in Indiana would win re-election. Fox News projected Republican Rand Paul would win re-election in Kentucky and Democrat Peter Welch would win an open Senate seat in Vermont. I blame the current administration for that," said Bethany Hadelman, who said she voted for Republican candidates in Alpharetta, Georgia. A Republican Senate would hold sway over Biden's judicial nominations, including any Supreme Court vacancy, intensifying the spotlight on the increasingly conservative court. Those concerns swayed even some Republican leaning voters like Henry Bowden, 36, an Atlanta lawyer who said he voted for a mix of Republican and Democratic candidates.

☆ Kentucky rejects anti-abortion constitutional amendment in surprise victory for reproductive rights
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

\In a surprise victory for reproductive rights, voters in conservative Kentucky have rejected a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would have protected the state's abortion ban from legal challenge, NBC News projects. The defeat of the amendment in Kentucky is another indication that there are limits to anti-abortion politics even in conservative states. Kentucky's abortion ban makes performing the medical procedure a crime punishable by up to 5 years in prison. The defeat of the anti-abortion ballot measure in Kentucky is the second surprise victory for abortion rights in a conservative state since the Supreme Court overturned Roe over the summer. In August, voters in Kansas resoundingly rejected a measure that sought to strip abortion rights from the state constitution.

☆ A long-shot Democratic candidate raised more than $15.6 million to defeat Marjorie Taylor Greene. He lost by 31 points.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Marjorie Taylor Greene's Democratic opponent, Marcus Flowers, raised $15.6 million for his campaign. "Tomorrow, with your help, we could make history by defeating Marjorie Taylor Greene," Flowers wrote in a fundraising email sent on November 7, the night before the election. But let me make my case: We're building the most extensive Democratic campaign this district has EVER seen — and MTG is terrified." AP Photo/Ben GrayThe sum that Flowers raised is gargantuan for a congressional campaign, far outpacing the amounts raised by the party's most vulnerable members. Compare that to Democratic candidates in more competitive races, who have tended to raise between $3 and $10 million this year.

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