DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

CNN —Top congressional negotiators announced Tuesday evening that an agreement had been reached for a framework that should allow lawmakers to complete a sweeping full-year government funding package. The comments from McCarthy may even add more urgency to the effort to reach a deal before the new Congress convenes. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin warned about the prospects of the government funding fight moving into next year. If a broader bipartisan deal does come together, it would be poised to pass both chambers. The lawmakers are hoping to include the provision in the government spending bill that Congress is scrambling to craft.

☆ U.S. Congress creeps toward deadline to pass $1.5 trillion funding bill
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Richard Cowan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] A man walks past the U.S. Capitol building as a government shutdown looms in Washington, U.S., September 30, 2021. Over the weekend, behind-the-scenes efforts made progress toward a deal on an "omnibus" spending bill. That prompted Senate Appropriations Chairman Patrick Leahy to pull back from a plan to introduce a Democratic-written funding bill this week. "Chairman Leahy feels that sufficient progress in negotiations took place over the weekend to delay the introduction of the omnibus appropriations bill for the time being. But it was promptly attacked by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.

The NDAA is expected to get a vote in the Senate this week and be approved with bipartisan support. Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the ranking Republican member on the Senate Appropriations Committee, has told reporters the two sides are roughly $26 billion apart. Or it could extend the shutdown deadline into the next Congress, which will convene on January 3, and when Republicans take control of the House. That change in majority in the House would dramatically alter the dynamic for negotiations and likely make it far harder to reach a broader funding deal. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, outlined the argument for his party in his own floor remarks on Thursday.

WASHINGTON—A top Senate Democrat said that his party planned to introduce an omnibus spending bill on Monday, aiming to pressure Republicans to accept a deal or risk an alternative that would freeze government spending at current levels for the full year and cut off the ability to reallocate money in military and other programs. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D., Vt.) said that the measure would provide defense funding at the level Congress is authorizing in its separate defense policy bill—some $858 billion, or roughly a 10% increase—while also paying for what he called a needed increase to nondefense programs.

☆ Patrick Lyoya’s Family Sues Grand Rapids, Policeman Who Fatally Shot Him
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Joseph De Avila | Jennifer Calfas | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The family of Patrick Lyoya , a Black man who was killed during a traffic stop this spring, is suing the city of Grand Rapids, Mich., and the former police officer who shot him in the back of the head. The civil lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, alleges former Grand Rapids police officer Christopher Schurr violated federal law and Mr. Lyoya’s constitutional rights through use of excessive force.

☆ Democrats in U.S. Congress aim to pressure Republicans with go-it-alone funding bill
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Richard Cowan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Congress has until Dec. 16 to either pass an "omnibus" bill funding the government through Sept. 30, 2023, or a shorter "continuing resolution" to avoid a partial government shutdown. Some conservative Republicans have urged a short-term bill, to delay talks on a full-year bill into January when they will have a stronger negotiating position. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell drew a hard line in opposition. For the last several years, Congress has appropriated government funding that was roughly evenly split between defense and non-defense programs. If the Democrats' effort fail in the Senate next week, Congress might have to resort to a stop-gap funding bill that simply extends current funding levels.

He got away with it because in a 50-50 Senate, Manchin had a ton of leverage and could force Senate Democratic leaders to make numerous concessions or else get nothing passed. Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images fileA 51-49 Senate majority doesn’t completely quell Democratic headaches over having to corral their own. Like Manchin, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona has bucked her Democratic colleagues. In a 51-49 Senate, Democrats also will have unilateral power to issue subpoenas. This leaves Senate Democrats in a much rosier position concerning chickens and just about everything else.

[1/2] Demonstrators protest the killing of Patrick Lyoya, an unarmed Black man who was shot and killed by a Grand Rapids Police officer during a traffic stop on April 4, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S., April 16, 2022. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado/File PhotoDec 7 (Reuters) - The family of an African refugee who was shot and killed during a traffic stop in Grand Rapids, Michigan, has filed a civil lawsuit against the city and a former police officer charged with murdering him. The suit was filed on Wednesday in the U.S. District Court in Western Michigan, according to online records, on behalf of the family of Patrick Lyoya, a 26-year-old immigrant from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The attorneys will detail the lawsuit against Schurr and Grand Rapids, a city of less than 200,000 residents in western Michigan, at a news conference later on Wednesday. The attempted arrest unfolded after the officer stopped Lyoya over suspicions involving his license plate.

The number of pregnant women and new mothers dying from drug overdoses grew dramatically as the pandemic took hold, reaching a record high in 2020, a new study finds. "It goes to an ever higher level of stigma among pregnant women." She does not work with pregnant women or those with substance use disorder, but did crunch the numbers for the new research. "Overdose deaths in general have increased, and pregnant women aren't immune to the effects of addiction," Wright said. A Biden administration report, released in October, called for broader access to opioid treatment medication among pregnant women and de-stigmatize addiction treatment during pregnancy.

☆ The 5 best leadership books I read this year — and what they taught me about running a company
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( David Siegel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

For a roadmap for effective, kind leadership and smart decision-making, he shares 5 book recommendations. Publishing a leadership book gave me a newfound perspective on the genre. Here are the top five leadership books I read in 2022 and why I found each one particularly enriching. After reading The Promise of a Pencil, I learned how seemingly small acts can make a world of difference in communities. For anyone considering executive coaching or looking to find a coach, this book is a must-read.

☆ Exclusive: Horse racing-U.S. Senator McConnell pushing for legislative fix to safety law
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Rory Carroll | Thomson Reuters | Los Angeles-Based Sports Reporter Who Interviews The Most Impactful Athletes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 3 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell is pushing for a legislative fix to a law designed to make horse racing safer after an appeals court last month ruled it unconstitutional, a source with direct knowledge of the negotiations told Reuters. The changes to the law, which would provide greater federal oversight of the board charged with writing and implementing safety rules, would be included in a full-year spending bill, known as an omnibus, which could pass later this month. But the law was ruled unconstitutional by a federal appeals court in Louisiana, which said there was insufficient government oversight of the new authority in a case brought by various horse racing associations and some states. Opponents argue that HISA would replace states' regulatory structures and allow new fees to be imposed on the industry. Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; Editing by Ken FerrisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Over a decade after founding Grindr, Joel Simkhai wants a do-over
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Zachary Schermele | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

When Joel Simkhai left Grindr five years ago, he had a lot of time to think. Simkhai, a gay man and tech entrepreneur, helped launch the groundbreaking gay hookup and dating app in 2009. As recently as this year, the average daily time spent on Grindr per user was about an hour, according to The Guardian. The results of an online survey of nearly 100 Grindr users published in 2017 in the peer-reviewed journal Behavioral Medicine showed obese users reported significantly greater feelings of body dissatisfaction. But racist, discriminatory and exclusionist tropes — or euphemisms for them — continue to pervade a number of LGBTQ hookup and dating apps.

WASHINGTON — With the 2022 election over, Congress will return to work Monday with a packed to-do list for the final weeks of the year. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Susan Collins, R-Maine, is expected to get a vote in the lame duck session. A package of revisions to the bill easily cleared the Senate Rules and Administration Committee on a 14-1 vote in September. Same-sex marriage billThe House has passed a bipartisan bill to codify federal recognition of same-sex marriage. The Senate punted it to the lame duck session, with the leader of the effort, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., saying the chamber needed more time to secure 60 votes.

☆ 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.

☆ Democratic Rep. Peter Welch faces off against Republican Gerald Malloy in Vermont's US Senate election
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Hanna Kang | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Democratic Rep. Peter Welch is running against Republican Gerald Malloy to represent Vermont in the US Senate. Welch has represented Vermont's at-large congressional district for 15 years. Vermont's Senate race candidatesWelch, who has represented Vermont's at-large congressional district in the House since 2007, is running for Senate with a breadth of political experience. Prior to his time in Congress, Welch served in the Vermont State Senate for over a decade, during which he served as minority leader and president pro tempore. From 1856 through the election of 1988, Vermont went Republican in every election except 1964, when it voted for Lyndon Johnson over Barry Goldwater.

☆ 2 Denver firefighters declared a living woman dead without assessing her
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Minyvonne Burke | Minyvonne Burke Is A Senior Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Two Denver firefighters were suspended without pay after they declared a woman dead when she was actually alive, officials said. One of the firefighters, Lt. Patrick Lopez, was also demoted over the June 24 incident, the city's Department of Public Safety said in an order of disciplinary action. The order says that an officer went into the home, came out and said the woman had bluish-purple discoloration on the skin, fluid leaking from her body and smelled like she was decomposing. Lopez, according to the order, said the officer told firefighters they did not need to go inside the home because the woman was "obviously dead." An investigation determined that Lopez likely lied about the officer telling firefighters not to go into the home.

The drop is not just because industrial companies are turning down thermostats, they are also shutting down plants that may never reopen. And while lower energy use helps Europe weather the crisis sparked by Russia's war in Ukraine and Moscow's supply cuts, executives, economists and industry groups warn its industrial base may end up severely weakened if high energy costs persist. Reuters GraphicsThe International Energy Agency estimates European industrial gas demand fell by 25% in the third quarter from a year earlier. "We are doing all we can to prevent a reduction in industrial activity," an European Commission spokesperson said in an email. "From Jan. 1, we will be able to switch to oil," company executive Wolfgang Ott said, as the company seeks government help to cushion energy costs.

☆ These baristas are leading a nationwide campaign to unionize Starbucks. It came at a cost
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

Since then workers at 243 other stores spread over 38 states have voted to join Starbucks Workers United — that’s more than five stores a week. Still, most of the fired workers nationwide remain off the job, including Tambellini. “The pizza place next door [to the Starbucks store I worked at] offered me a job almost immediately,” said Tambellini. Starbucks employees and supporters react as votes are read during a union-election watch party in Buffalo, New York. The Starbucks workers are really demonstrating that it’s possible to unionize in an industry where it was thought of as impossible to organize, due to high turnover and a large percentage of young people,” he said.

☆ Hong Kong Editors Go on Trial for Sedition Over Interviews With Activists
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Selina Cheng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Stand News editor Patrick Lam Shiu-tung, with glasses, was escorted by police officers into a van in December after they searched his Hong Kong office. HONG KONG—Two former editors of a Hong Kong news outlet went on trial for sedition over articles that prosecutors say promoted pro-democracy activists and attacked the government, a key case in authorities’ national security crackdown on the city’s once relatively free press. Two top editors for the now-defunct online news website Stand News, Chung Pui-kuen and Patrick Lam Shiu-tung, were arrested in December after hundreds of national security police raided their newsroom. The duo, who have been detained for almost a year, have pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiring to publish or reproduce seditious publications.

The former Michigan police officer who fatally shot Patrick Lyoya during a traffic stop in Grand Rapids in April will stand trial for the killing, a judge ruled Monday. Judge Nicholas Ayoub said enough evidence was presented in a preliminary hearing to require a jury to decide whether Christopher Schurr was justified in shooting Lyoya. These are questions of fact that the jury must decide based on the totality of the circumstances as presented by the evidence at trial,” Ayoub said in court order. The officer ended up restraining Lyoya with his knee to his back and ultimately shot him as he was facedown on the ground. Patrick Lyoya, 26, was shot and killed on April 4, after what police said was a traffic stop.

☆ Factbox: Threats and attacks on members of Congress
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Oct 28 (Reuters) - The assault on U.S. businessman Paul Pelosi, the husband of U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in their San Francisco home early on Friday morning comes amid a rising number of reported threats against members of Congress. According to data provided by the United States Capitol Police, a law enforcement agency charged with protecting members of Congress, cases related to "concerning statements and threats" jumped from 3,939 in 2017 to 9,625 in 2021. Aug. 29, 2022 - A Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty to threatening to shoot and kill an unnamed member of Congress, federal prosecutors said. Four of the people who stormed the Capitol died on the day of the attack. June 14, 2017 - U.S. Republican Representative Steve Scalise, then-Majority Whip, was shot in the hip and taken to the hospital after a gunman opened fire on Republican members of Congress at a baseball practice in Alexandria, Virginia, for their annual congressional charity game with Democratic members.

☆ Microsoft exec says gaming is 'somewhat resilient' to economic weakness
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Microsoft's head of gaming said Wednesday that video games can stand up to economic weakness, even as the software maker expects slower pickup in other parts of its business targeting consumers. Gaming remains a high priority for Microsoft, with the company working to close its $68.7 billion acquisition of publisher Activision Blizzard . Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, sounded optimistic about the prospects of the unit. "The video game industry has never been 'recession-proof,' but that line gets brought out every time the r-word is mentioned," Mat Piscatella, executive director and video game industry advisor at market researcher NPD Group, wrote in a July tweet. "People can play video games for hundreds of hours," he said.

☆ U.S. households await winter with dread due to high energy costs
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Across the U.S., families are looking to the winter with dread as energy costs soar and fuel supplies tighten. The National Energy Assistance Directors Association says energy costs will be the highest in more than a decade this winter. The pain will be especially acute in New England, which is heavily reliant on heating oil to keep homes warm. It’s projected to cost more than $2,300 to heat a typical home with heating oil this winter, the energy department said. But that level represents an overall reduction from last year, when federal pandemic relief pushed the total energy assistance package past $8 billion.

☆ DOJ says it needs more money for the Jan. 6 probe. The next spending bill may be its last chance.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Sahil-Kapur-Headshot.Jpg | Sahil Kapur | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration says it is in critical need of more money to bring the Jan. 6 rioters to justice. The Justice Department has told Congress that more than $34 million in funding is "critically needed" to fund the investigation. “The cases are unprecedented in scale and is expected to be among the most complex investigations prosecuted by the Department of Justice,” the Justice Department wrote to the legislative branch. Before they broke for recess, lawmakers involved in the talks told NBC News that the fate of the Justice request was still unsettled. I don’t have any problem giving the Justice Department the resources it needs to do that,” he said.

☆ Sen. Patrick Leahy Blocks $75 Million in Funding to Egypt, Citing Human Rights
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Chao Deng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Human rights groups say Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi oversees one of the world’s worst crackdowns on human rights. CAIRO—A U.S. senator blocked $75 million in military funding this year to Egypt, citing insufficient progress on the country’s treatment of political prisoners, despite recent prisoner releases by President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi . Sen. Patrick Leahy (D., Vt.), chairman of the Senate appropriations committee, informed the State Department that he would put the money it approved on hold ahead of a Sept. 30 deadline for the release of the funds.

Search resuls for: "Patrick L"

25 mentions found