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☆ Who is Special Counsel Jack Smith in the Trump documents case?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Sarah N. Lynch | Thomson Reuters | Sarah N. Lynch Is The Lead Reporter For Reuters Covering The U.S. Justice Department Out Of Washington | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, June 8 (Reuters) - Jack Smith, the U.S. special counsel who has pursued criminal charges against former President Donald Trump over retention of classified government records, has earned a reputation for winning tough cases against war criminals, mobsters and crooked cops. This case is unlike any other that Smith has brought because of who is being charged. One of the two investigations that Smith took over involved Trump's handling of classified documents he retained after leaving the White House in January 2021. Trump's own attorney Evan Corcoran emerged as a key witness in the documents investigation. In 2008, Smith left to supervise war crime prosecutions at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Persons: Jack Smith, Donald Trump, General Merrick Garland, Smith, Attorney Bragg, Mark Lesko, Greenberg Traurig, Trump, Joe Biden's, Evan Corcoran, Corcoran, Mike Pence, Robert Morgenthau, Morgenthau, Todd Harrison, McDermott Will, Emery, Harrison, Charles Schwarz, Abner Louima, Ronell Wilson, Salih Mustafa, Sarah N, Lynch, Andy Sullivan, Will Dunham Organizations: U.S, Trump, Manhattan, Attorney, Attorney's, White, Harvard Law School, New, New York City, York City, Criminal, Justice Department, Kosovo Liberation Army, Thomson Locations: New York, Washington, Brooklyn, York, The Hague, Kosovo, Serbia

☆ Americans hate tipping so much it was once banned in 7 states
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Jacob Zinkula | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

By the 1700's, tipping in Europe had evolved from masters tipping servants to customers tipping service-industry workers. Seven states passed anti-tipping legislation in the early 1900sBy the early 1900s, early grumblings about tipping had escalated into full-fledged anti-tipping movements. But in 1919, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled that the state's anti-tipping law was unconstitutional, and other states followed by striking down or repealing their own similar legislation. Tipping persists in the US todayDespite originating in Europe, tipping has become deeply ingrained in American culture. Today, while many Americans aren't fans of tipping, and some restaurants have tried doing away with the practice, tipping is unlikely to be banned anywhere in the US anytime soon.

☆ Veterans benefits, Social Security and Medicare payments, and SNAP could be among the first federal programs at risk if the US defaults in 10 days, a new analysis says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The US could default on its debt in as soon as ten days if Congress doesn't raise the debt ceiling. The Bipartisan Policy Center estimated which federal programs would be at risk in the days following a default. Social Security and Medicare payments, veterans benefits, and SNAP could be among the first to go. In the first ten days of June, the government could be unable to afford the following programs:Bipartisan Policy Center analysis of federal programs impacted by potential debt default. "If the debt ceiling isn't raised, there will be some hard choices to make about what bills go unpaid," Yellen said.

[1/2] Sayfullo Saipov, the suspect in the New York City truck attack is seen in this handout photo released November 1, 2017. Saipov used a Home Depot rental truck to mow down people on a path along the Hudson River on Manhattan's West Side, according to prosecutors. He had hoped to the attack would help him gain membership in Islamic State, or ISIS, they said. Most of the people scheduled to speak at the hearing are traveling from Argentina and Belgium. Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York and Brendan O'Brien in Chicago; Editing by Will DunhamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Still, Bremen is the first federal state to hold an election this year and as such, the results will be closely watched. The conservatives are polling in second place on 26-28%, meaning the SPD could win back its pole position in its traditional stronghold. But the Left party is on fragile ground at a national level due to internal strife which could have regional repercussions. That has given a boost to local right-wing populist party Buerger in Wut (Citizens in Rage). It is focusing on immigration and fighting crime and is now polling 9-10%, up from 3% a few months ago.

☆ Lawmakers urge SEC to crack down on Chinese retail giant Shein over alleged forced labor
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — Bipartisan lawmakers are urging the nation's top markets regulator to require Chinese fast-fashion giant Shein to disclose potential forced labor practices ahead of the company's possible initial public offering in the United States. "As a global company, Shein takes visibility across our entire supply chain seriously. We have zero tolerance for forced labor." "Other experts argue that it is appropriate to presuppose that any product made in the XUAR is made with forced labor." Independent coalition Shut Down Shein has also called on the SEC to deny IPO registration to Shein unless it provides proof of compliance with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

☆ How ‘Forever Chemicals’ Are All Around Us, From Winter Coats to Fast-Food Wrappers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Jemal R. Brinson | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing the first federal limits for six PFAS chemicals in drinking water. The chemicals have been used in industry and consumer products worldwide for more than 70 years because of their ability to resist water, grease and stains and to put out fires. PFAS, also dubbed forever chemicals, have been found in firefighting foam, drinking water, fast-food containers, dental floss, landfills, hazardous waste sites, manufacturing or chemical-production facilities, fish caught from contaminated water and dairy products from livestock exposed to the chemicals.

☆ EPA Proposes Regulations for ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Kris Maher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Known as forever chemicals because they take a long time to break down, PFAS have been found throughout the environment. The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday proposed the first federal limits on so-called forever chemicals in public drinking water, a move that is expected to cost water utilities billions of dollars to filter out substances that have contaminated the water supplies of millions of people. The agency is proposing maximum allowable levels in the nation’s public drinking-water systems for two compounds in a class of chemicals known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, which were used for decades in carpeting, clothing, food packaging, firefighting foam and other consumer and industrial products. The EPA also said it would regulate four other PFAS chemicals by requiring treatment if the combined level reaches a certain concentration.

☆ EPA Proposes Limits for ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Kris Maher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Known as forever chemicals because they take a long time to break down, PFAS have been found throughout the environment. The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday proposed the first federal limits on so-called forever chemicals in public drinking water, a move that is expected to cost water utilities billions of dollars to filter out substances that have contaminated the water supplies of millions of people. The EPA is proposing maximum allowable levels for two compounds in a class of chemicals known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Known as forever chemicals because they take a long time to break down, they were used for decades in carpeting, clothing, food packaging, firefighting foam and other consumer and industrial products.

☆ New York bike path attacker spared death penalty after jury deadlocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Luc Cohen | Thomson Reuters | Reports On The New York Federal Courts. Previously Worked As A Correspondent In Venezuela | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Jane RosenbergNEW YORK, March 13 (Reuters) - Sayfullo Saipov, the man convicted of killing eight people in an attack on a Manhattan bike path in 2017, was spared the death penalty on Monday after a federal jury deadlocked on whether he should be executed. Saipov's case is the first federal death penalty trial since President Joe Biden, a Democrat, took office in 2021 after pledging during his campaign to abolish capital punishment. Jurors agreed that other aggravating factors weighed in favor of the death penalty, including that Saipov planned his attack in advance and carried it out to support Islamic State. Patton said in his closing argument that the death penalty was "not necessary to do justice." Prosecutors sought the death penalty despite U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland's July 2021 moratorium on federal executions so the Department of Justice could review its use of the punishment.

☆ A reading of more than 200,000 jobs added in February would be the Fed's trigger for a big March rate hike, Barclays says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Fed will likely upsize its March rate hike if the February jobs report shows 200,00 or more jobs added, Barclays said. Investors on Tuesday quickly pushed up the odds the Fed deliver a rate hike of a half-percentage point after downsizing the pace to 25 basis points last month. The February jobs report due Friday is expected to show the world's largest economy added 203,000 jobs, with a steady unemployment rate of 3.4%. The January jobs report trounced expectations with growth of 517,000 jobs. Such moves would put the peak of the Fed's benchmark interest rate at 5.5%-5.75% assuming that after June, the Fed sees sufficient evidence that slowing in employment and wages warrant a pause in rate hikes, Barclays said.

☆ Alphabet set to report fourth-quarter results after the close
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Jennifer Elias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Google parent Alphabet will report fourth-quarter earnings Thursday after the close of regular trading. Revenue: $76.53 billion, according to Refinitiv estimates. $76.53 billion, according to Refinitiv estimates. $8.25 billion, according to StreetAccount estimates. $7.43 billion, according to StreetAccount estimates.

After finding Sayfullo Saipov guilty of committing murder with the goal of joining the militant group Islamic State, also known as ISIS, the Manhattan jury will return on Feb. 6 to consider whether the death penalty is appropriate punishment. The only point of contention between prosecutors and Saipov's lawyers was whether the defendant carried out the attack in order to join Islamic State, which the United States brands a terrorist organization. These included murder and attempted murder to gain entrance to Islamic State, providing material support to a terrorist organization, and damage or destruction of a motor vehicle. The U.S. Department of Justice said in September that it intends to seek the death penalty for Saipov, despite a moratorium on federal executions since July 2021 as the department reviews the practice. Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler, Bill Berkrot and David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

REUTERS/Mike Blake/File PhotoJan 26 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge has blocked a California law that sought to penalize doctors who spread "misinformation or disinformation" about COVID-19 while he considers a pair lawsuits challenging it on free speech grounds. "At no point has the State of California been able to articulate the line between permissible and impermissible speech." Under AB 2098, doctors can be disciplined for spreading misinformation about COVID, defined as "false information that is contradicted by contemporary scientific consensus contrary to the standard of care." They said that doctors who give harmful advice to patients are already subject to malpractice lawsuits and discipline under existing state law. Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

One man carried out his attack with a gun banned by the state, while the other used a gun he legally owned, police said. Even in California, a state with some of the country's strictest gun laws, the limits can be sidestepped. The prospects for new federal gun laws are dim. The majority of guns used in mass shootings were obtained legally, according to the nonprofit Violence Project, which maintains a database of attacks. Chunli Zhao legally owned the gun used in the Half Moon Bay attack on Monday, police said.

☆ Premarket stocks: Investors are underestimating inflation...Again
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Investors are holding their breath in anticipation of Thursday morning’s Consumer Price Index inflation report — arguably the most important piece of economic data so far this year. There’s a lot riding on the outcome — if inflation keeps falling, that could support a market rally, while higher-than-expected inflation could send stocks sinking. Asian stocks enter bull market as investors bet on ChinaUS stocks may be volatile, but in Asia markets are soaring. The retreat will likely cause Wells Fargo to lay off at least some employees, though the bank did not announce any specifics. The move comes as Wells Fargo continues to be in trouble with regulators.

☆ Trial of Sayfullo Saipov, accused of killing 8 people in truck terror attack on NYC bike path, begins
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Marlene Lenthang | Marlene Lenthang Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Opening arguments kicked off Monday in the federal trial of Sayfullo Saipov, the Uzbek immigrant who in 2017 plowed a rented pickup truck on a New York City bike path, killing eight people in its path of destruction. The Oct. 31 attack was the deadliest terrorist attack in New York City since Sept. 11, 2001. Police said Saipov, then 29, was inspired by the Islamic State terrorist group, or ISIS, in launching the attack. How the attack unfoldedIn the attack, Saipov rented a white Home Depot pickup truck in Passaic, New Jersey, and drove it into Manhattan where the streets were filling up with Halloween festivities. Investigators later found a note that Saipov left in the truck, claiming the attack was in the name of ISIS.

☆ Terrorism trial begins against accused New York bike path killer
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors were due to make opening statements on Monday in the trial of the man charged with using a truck to kill eight people on a Manhattan bike path on Halloween in 2017. It is the first federal death penalty trial under U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat who took office in January 2021. According to prosecutors, Saipov chose Halloween because he thought more people would be on the streets, and also planned to strike the Brooklyn Bridge. Prosecutors have told the court they intend to show the 12-member jury photographs and videos of the attack. Federal executions had resumed in 2020 under then U.S. President Donald Trump, a Republican, after a 17-year hiatus, with 13 executions carried out before Trump left office in 2021.

☆ Here are 22 of the top LGBTQ news stories of 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Jo Yurcaba | Jo Yurcaba Is A Reporter For Nbc Out. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +12 min

Here are 22 of our top LGBTQ news stories of the year. Ron DeSantis signed the controversial Parental Rights in Education law — or what critics have dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill — on March 28. 'It’s already having an impact': LGBTQ people fear abortion rights reversalA supporter of gay marriage waves a flag in front of the Supreme Court on June 25, 2015. Nicola Goode / Prime VideoAmazon’s “A League of Their Own” series, which debuted Aug. 12 and was inspired by the 1992 cult classic by director Penny Marshall, brought much-needed representation to the screen for lesbians and other queer women, who celebrated how “gay, gay, gay” it was. Biden signs same-sex marriage bill at White House ceremonyPresident Joe Biden signs the Respect for Marriage Act on the South Lawn of the White House on Dec. 13.

☆ U.S. holds sale of drilling rights off Alaska coast
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 30 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday will hold a sale of oil and gas drilling rights off the coast of Alaska, the first federal auction in the region in more than five years. The agency had scrapped the Cook Inlet sale earlier this year before the IRA passed, citing a lack of industry interest. Cook Inlet stretches 180 miles (290 km) from Anchorage to the Gulf of Alaska. There are 14 active federal leases in Cook Inlet, all of which were purchased by Houston-based Hilcorp at the last federal auction in the region in 2017. Operating oil and gas platforms in the area are all in state waters, but oil production has declined substantially since peaking in the 1970s.

☆ Convicted ringleader in Michigan governor kidnapping plot faces sentencing
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Steve Gorman | Industry Insight | Saw Law Firms Move Past The Pandemic Into A More Client-Focused Service Environment | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Dec 27 (Reuters) - The convicted leader of a foiled plot by members of right-wing militia groups to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer faces a possible life term in prison when he is sentenced on Tuesday in U.S. District Court. Co-defendant Barry Croft Jr., another member of the Three Percenters militia group, was convicted of the same charges at the same trial and was scheduled for sentencing on Wednesday. Fox and Croft were among 13 men arrested in October 2020 on state or federal crimes in the kidnapping conspiracy. The same jury failed to reach a verdict for Fox and Croft, resulting in a mistrial for them. Two other men who pleaded guilty to kidnapping conspiracy charges testified for the prosecution at the first federal trial and during the retrial of Fox and Croft about four months later.

☆ 3M, DuPont, Other Makers Expected to Face New Drinking Water Rules on ‘Forever Chemicals’
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Kris Maher | Bob Tita | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

PFAS testing at a laboratory in Holland, Mich. New drinking water standards could require thousands of public water systems to install additional filtration systems. New federal drinking water standards could ratchet up legal pressure on 3M Co., DuPont de Nemours Inc. and other companies that manufactured or used so-called forever chemicals. The Environmental Protection Agency has been stepping up scrutiny of chemicals known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. The agency has said it is planning to propose the first federal drinking water limits on them in the coming months, a move some legal experts say could prompt additional lawsuits against PFAS manufacturers.

“Nearly every single state in the nation has passed at least one significant gun safety law since Sandy Hook,” concluded the report, first obtained by NBC News. Gun violence has gone from being a political third rail to a kitchen table topic in just ten years. Nearly every American will know a victim of gun violence in their lifetime.”Former Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz., hugs Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Ga., at the Giffords Gun Violence Memorial in front of the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., on June 7. Still, gun safety advocates face tall hurdles to achieving other goals, like banning semi-automatic assault-style weapons and large-capacity ammunition. Republicans just won control of the House, almost certainly ending hopes for stricter gun laws for the foreseeable future.

☆ Strong midterm turnout in Georgia sparks new debate about a controversial election law
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Fredreka Schouten | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —The strong turnout in Georgia’s runoff election that cemented Democrats’ control of the US Senate is sparking fresh debate about the impact of the state’s controversial 2021 election law and could trigger a new round of election rule changes next year in the Republican-led state legislature. “There’s no truth to voter suppression,” Raffensperger said in an interview this week with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, a day after Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock secured reelection in the first federal election cycle since Georgia voting law took effect. State election officials had opposed casting ballots on that date, saying Georgia law prohibited voting on a Saturday if there is a state holiday on the Thursday or Friday before. In the CNN interview earlier this week, Raffensperger suggested that the Republican-controlled General Assembly might revisit some of the state’s election rules, including potentially lowering to 45% the threshold needed to win a general election outright. “There will be a push for this in the upcoming legislative session,” said Daniel Baggerman, president of Better Ballot Georgia, a group advocating for the instant runoff.

☆ Biden administration grants $75 million to relocate three Native tribes away from rising oceans
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Emma Newburger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Department of the Interior under the Biden administration is providing three Native American tribes $75 million to relocate from coastal areas at risk of destruction, a decision that comes after tribes across the country competed for the first federal grants designed to relocate communities facing climate change threats. The Newtok Village and Native Village of Napakiak in Alaska, as well as the Quinault Indian Nation in Washington state, will each receive $25 million to begin relocating buildings inland and away from rising seas. The administration is also awarding $5 million grants to eight more tribes to help them plan for relocation. Historically oppressed and disenfranchised tribal groups across the U.S. are more exposed to the effects of climate change. The federal government is now beginning to relocate entire Native communities in order to adapt to climate change and minimize the damage from future climate-related disasters.

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