LABOR, ECONOMY & THE CLIMATE - page 55

An analysis of campaign disclosures by a Washington-based non-profit watchdog has unearthed previously unknown connections between a political consultant who confessed to criminal electioneering activities and a trio of sitting Republican Senators. Last week, Tyler Harber pleaded guilty to charges that he unlawfully coordinated election activity between a 2012 Virginia congressional campaign that he was running and a Super PAC that he was managing under an alias. On Tuesday, the Sunlight Foundation revealed more information about Harber’s political activities. Although he was under suspicion for… Keep Reading

The House on Friday passed a bill that would cut taxes for businesses and increase the annual deficit by $77 billion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Despite their constant hand-wringing about the national debt, the legislation was carried by Republicans in a 272-142 vote split almost entirely along party lines. Thirty-three democrats voted for the measure, and one Republican, Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) voted against it. The bill would permanently increase business investment deductions to $500,000 from $25,000. “That change would… Keep Reading

A group of Republican legislators made waves last month when they announced the formation of the House Freedom Caucus–a conservative group created to take on “sacred cows” and “special interests,” as founding member Rep. Raul Labrador (R-Idaho) explained. But if progressives were hoping that the right-wing caucus would bolster a lefty-libertarian coalition against the Washington Consensus on national security issues, as Labrador intoned it could, the group’s first chair should give them pause. This week, it was revealed that Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), would lead… Keep Reading

It’s been more than a year and half since the Supreme Court gutted legislation that prevented voter discrimination in the United States, and prospects that Congress will fix the damage done are dimming. On Tuesday, Reps. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) and John Conyers (D-Mich.) introduced legislation to restore the 1965 Voting Rights Act, however the ranks of Republicans supporting the measure are negligible. So far, only three other Republicans have sponsored the bill. Last Congress, 11 GOP members supported similar legislation. The Voting Rights Amendment Act,… Keep Reading

Major strike activity in the US was at its lowest level last year since 2010, according to data released Wednesday by the Labor Department. The Bureau of Labor Statistics report found that “major work stoppages”–strikes involving 1,000 or more workers–fell, and the impact of those actions dropped by all measures on an annual basis for the second consecutive year. There were 11 major work stoppages recorded by BLS in 2014–down from 15 the year before and 11 in 2010. Last year’s strikes involved roughly 34,000 employees… Keep Reading

Time is running out before funding for the Department of Homeland Security dries up–a scenario that the head of the House Republican Policy Committee said he would welcome, if the President doesn’t adopt a policy on deportations suitable to conservatives. Appearing on CSPAN’s Washington Journal on Tuesday morning, Rep. Luke Messer (R-Ind.), was asked if the current GOP strategy of trying to defund President Obama’s executive actions on immigration justified shutting down DHS. “I believe it does,” Rep. Messer replied. “This is about way more… Keep Reading

Momentum continued to gather behind US workers’ hand at the bargaining table, as Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Tuesday showed that Americans are increasingly able to fill job vacancies. The ratio of seasonally-adjusted unemployed Americans to the number of job openings in the private sector fell to 1.9 in December, according to the BLS data release. The ratio, by The Sentinel’s measure, fell to its lowest point since November 2007, when it was last below two. On a year-over-year basis, the gauge fell by 1,… Keep Reading

At a hearing intended to reassure Americans that vaccinations are safe, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) suggested that the worst measles outbreak in decades is the result of undocumented immigrants, not conspiracy theories about medical practices. “Tell me, of those infected in the California epidemic, how many were native born Americans and how many had immigrated here?” Sen. Cassidy asked in Tuesday’s hearing on vaccinations before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. Dr. Anne Schuchat, the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and… Keep Reading

A Federal Reserve official could not confirm Tuesday that the central bank has taken action against HSBC for its tax evasion activities in Switzerland, after US officials received evidence over four years ago that the bank was helping American clients engage in the illegal practice. Maryann Hunter, a high-ranking Fed supervisor and and regulator, said that she couldn’t comment on ongoing investigations at a Senate Banking Committee hearing when questioned by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), but noted that the body has pursued three enforcement actions… Keep Reading

Toward the end of his tenure on Capitol Hill, former House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) faced conflict of interest allegations related to a ten billion dollar government security contract his wife had a stake in. Now out of office, questions may still linger about Rogers’ policy prescriptions after he made a pitch on Monday for companies to invest in cyber insurance policies. “There’s a new sector on cyber insurance,” Rogers said during a panel discussion on digital security at North Carolina State University’s… Keep Reading

Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell came out against “Audit The Fed” legislation gaining momentum on Capitol Hill, saying Monday that it wasn’t necessary because the central bank is sufficiently transparent. Powell warned that the legislation “would subject monetary policy to undue political pressure and place new limits on the Fed’s ability to respond to future crisis.” “These proposals are based on the assertion that the Federal Reserve operates in secrecy and was not accountable for its actions during the crisis,” he said, describing them as… Keep Reading