LABOR, ECONOMY & THE CLIMATE - page 18

Senate Republicans changed committee procedures to advance Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee chair John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) on Thursday suspended rules requiring at least one member of the minority to be present for a quorum. Republicans then one-by-one voted to approve of Trump’s choice to be the leading US environmental regulator, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt. Senate Democrats on the committee had boycotted the vote on Pruitt because they were unhappy with answers he gave them during… Keep Reading

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe said that it is “ready to fight” the Trump administration’s push to finish the Dakota Access Pipeline, after US Senator John Hoeven (R-N.D.) announced that plans are moving forward. Hoeven said Tuesday evening that Acting Army Secretary Robert Speer has directed the Army Corps of Engineers “to proceed with easement needed to complete” the oil pipeline. Officials from Standing Rock responded, claiming any such move would be illegal, with an internal review of the project underway. “The Army Corps lacks… Keep Reading

Annual statistics released Thursday by the Department of Labor show that the national rate of union membership dropped by 1.6 percentage points over the course of the Obama presidency. The percentage of US workers belonging to unions was 10.7 in 2016, down from 11.1 percent on a year-over-year basis. Union membership rate either dropped or remained stagnant every year under President Obama, eroding from 12.3 percent in 2009. The absolute quantity of union members, too, was down under President Obama. In 2009, there were 15.3… Keep Reading

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to head the Department of Health and Human Services came out of a confirmation hearing on Wednesday battered by questions about his financial dealings. Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee picked up on critical reporting showing that HHS nominee Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.) purchased stock in healthcare companies while simultaneously pushing legislation to benefit those same firms. Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash), the ranking Democrat on the panel, specifically pressed Price about his investments in a biotech company… Keep Reading

Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) refused to commit to withdrawing from ongoing lawsuits against the EPA that he himself helped file as Oklahoma Attorney General. Scott Pruitt said Wednesday he would decide to withdraw from agency matters, only after consulting EPA ethics officials. Pruitt also recognized that the added layer of bureaucracy was unnecessary, when deciding that conflicts of interest require his withdrawal from agency matters. “Clearly, there is discretion to recuse,” he told Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), during his confirmation hearing… Keep Reading

The Trump transition team is now in open-war against a federal ethics office as questions of impropriety continue to loom over the President-elect and his nominees. Incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus warned Office of Government Ethics Director Walter Schaub on Sunday to “be careful” about raising concerns over the many conflicts-of-interest attached to the incoming President of the United States. In a notice last Friday to all executive branch employees, but subtly directed at the President-elect, Schaub had reminded the workforce about rules against… Keep Reading

A government report released on Monday tied the poor health outcomes of Native Americans to a lack of consistent management at federal hospitals tasked with caring for indigenous people in the US. According to an analysis by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Indian Health Service (IHS) has practiced only “limited and inconsistent” oversight of its network of hospitals. The lack of health care standards, the watchdog reported, is a contributing factor to the shorter life expectancy of many Native American populations. The GAO noted… Keep Reading

President-elect Donald Trump has yet to provide tangible assurances that he won’t use the presidency to boost his personal profits. Meanwhile, one major American bank, which doesn’t’ have to provide such assurances, is already cashing in “big league” on Trump’s win last month–an event followed by high-profile government appointments for executives of the firm. Wall Street behemoth Goldman Sachs has seen its stock prices ascend by 33 percent since Election Day, and is responsible for the lion’s share of the gains on the Dow Jones Industrial… Keep Reading

Wells Fargo has been temporarily banned by federal regulators from establishing foreign branches and acquiring non-bank entities. The troubled Wall Street behemoth was slapped with the penalties under the Dodd-Frank Act, for failing to submit adequate bankruptcy resolution plans–for the second time this year. If Wells does not produce sufficient plans by the end of March 2017, the ban will be extended and the bank will be subject to caps on its non-bank and broker-deal assets—limiting the firm to the amount it owned at the… Keep Reading

Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Education owes state regulators $5.3 million in fines for violating election laws, five left-leaning senators said Wednesday. Federal political action committees (PACs) run and financed, in part, by Betsy DeVos were hit with the penalties in 2006 by Ohio enforcement officials. The groups were found to have been in violation of exceeding legal limits on donations. “Rather than pay the fines for violating the law, the All Children Matter PACs simply ceased operation and never paid the significant sum… Keep Reading