LABOR, ECONOMY & THE CLIMATE - page 21

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a conspicuously timed report last week, informing lawmakers on what would happen if a major presidential nominee left the ticket ahead of the November election. CRS briefings are often requested by Members of Congress and their staff. That suggests that Trump’s electoral implosion in recent days has some lawmakers curious about what would happen if the real estate mogul is removed from the ticket or steps down before November 8. “Although it might be assumed that the vice presidential… Keep Reading

The US government has spent, on average, one billion dollars a year over the last decade on public relations, with the Department of Defense accounting for more than half of that advertising expenditure, according to a federal watchdog. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported that agencies dished out more than $900 million last year on PR and advertising—a slight increase from 2014, but below the $1.3 billion spent on outreach in 2009. A main driver of PR spending, the GAO found, is the Pentagon, which averaged… Keep Reading

Debt collectors are pursuing payments from people who attended a for-profit college that went bankrupt after numerous fraud-related lawsuits, despite the Department of Education promising them avenues for debt relief. Only 5 percent of the 80,000 former students of Corinthian Colleges who are eligible for debt discharge under department programs formulated since 2015 have been granted that right, according to an investigation by the staff of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Of those 76,000 people being pursued for Corinthian-related obligations, over 30,000 have seen government benefits… Keep Reading

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said that she believes the largest banks in the country can legally exist, days before a handful of them are due to submit reports to the Fed that could lead to their breaking-up. “We believe it is possible, even though it is extremely challenging for [these] organizations to comply with the law,” she said, in testimony before the House Financial Services Committee. Yellen made the remarks in response to questions about Wells Fargo that had been asked by Rep. Brad… Keep Reading

Radio ads are blanketing the nation’s capital ahead of proceedings in the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, in a case that could, literally, determine the fate of the world. On Tuesday, the appellate court will hear oral arguments in a suit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan—the Obama administration’s proposal to thwart rising global temperatures. The initiative would cut carbon emissions by nearly one-third by 2030 by imposing emissions caps on new plants. It is strongly opposed, however, by twenty-four states and the… Keep Reading

Vice President Joe Biden said that “our only real shot” of Congress approving the Trans-Pacific Partnership is a vote during the upcoming lame duck session. Biden made the remarks on Wednesday at the Council of Foreign Relations in New York, while conceding the agreement has a “less than even chance” of passage. “Sometimes when there’s no election to face and people are leaving and others who are staying, they may see the wisdom of TPP,” said Biden, according to Reuters. One consideration might involve post-Congressional… Keep Reading

The proposed mergers between Monsanto and Bayer and Dow Chemical and Dupont would create a duopoly that controls 70 percent of the entire world’s agricultural technology market, according to testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The claim was made Tuesday by the president of a non-profit organization dedicated to fighting cartel behavior, at a hearing alongside executives from the four companies. Diana Moss, head of the American Antitrust Institute, noted that the plans to merge are already occurring amid “increasingly high prices paid by farmers… Keep Reading

Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf appeared before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday to assuage lawmakers’ concerns about the massive bank’s management practices. Instead, some questioned if the firm should even legally exist. Stumpf apologized for recent revelations about the bank, which was found to have opened more than 2 million accounts in their customers names, without proper authorization, to boost sales numbers. But he stressed that the wrongdoing was carried out by “only one percent” of the bank’s total workforce of 100,000 employees. Senators… Keep Reading

A Washington, DC-based oversight group is demanding a federal probe into how a nearly a mile long section of the Trail of Tears was ripped up during an unauthorized construction project at the sacred site. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) filed a complaint with the Department of Agriculture’s Secretary and Inspector General, calling for an investigation into the US Forest Service, which oversaw the damage to the historic trail. “This is one the most blatant official desecrations of a sacred site in modern American… Keep Reading

Donald Trump said that he would stick with Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) as the leader of his transition team, the day after federal prosecutors said that Christie was aware of a 2013 bridge closure, which had been ordered in retaliation for the lack of a political endorsement. In a statement made to The New York Times, the Republican Presidential nominee lauded Christie, giving no indication he would drop the embattled governor. “I have known and liked Chris for 15 years,” Trump said. “After his recent… Keep Reading