January 26, 2017

Alex Jones: White House offered Infowars press credentials

Source: The Hill

Radio show host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’s website Infowars has been offered White House press credentials, Jones said in a video he posted Wednesday.

"Here's the deal, I know I get White House credentials, we've already been offered them, we're going to get them, but I've just got to spend the money to send somebody there," Jones says in the clip.

"I want to make sure it's even worth it. I don't want to just sit there up there like ‘I’m in the media, look our people are there.’ “

White House press secretary Sean Spicer indicated Monday that four "Skype seats" would be made available to some journalists who are outside of a 50-mile radius of Washington, D.C.. It is not known when the Skype seats will be deployed during daily press briefings.

Read more: http://thehill.com/media/316252-alex-jones-white-house-offered-infowars-press-credentials

January 25, 2017

Carl Edwards not ruling out US Senate run in '18

Source: Associated Press

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Carl Edwards remains a hot topic in NASCAR, two weeks after his abrupt retirement as a full-time driver.

Terry Smith, a political science professor at Columbia College, speculated in a Wednesday piece for KBIA's Talking Politics that Edwards will challenge U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill in Missouri next year. McCaskill, a Democrat, is in her second term.

Edwards didn't exactly rule it out when reached by The Associated Press. He texted: "I believe firmly in the principles that the U.S. was founded upon. If I could help, I definitely would consider it."

Edwards also stressed that has no such plans at the moment, but also quoted Gen. Douglas MacArthur: "No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation."

Read more: http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/politics/elections/carl-edwards-not-ruling-out-us-senate-run-in/article_79d3ed4f-6fe5-52d7-9c39-017c3cb6910c.html

January 25, 2017

Contractor files $2 million lawsuit against Trump for unpaid bills

Source: The Hill

A Maryland-based electrical company is suing President Trump’s Washington, D.C. hotel for than $2 million, Politico reports.

AES Electrical, also called Freestate Electrical, alleged that its employees had to work “nonstop” to complete electrical and fire alarm systems before the hotel’s “soft opening” in September and its grand opening in October. It says it never received payment for its work.

The lawsuit also argues that without Freestate, the real estate mogul would not have been able to hold an event at the hotel in September.
“At the time of the ‘soft opening,’ Donald J. Trump, President of Defendent, Trump Old Post Office, LLC, was a U.S. presidential candidate and the ‘soft opening’ had to occur to permit Mr. Trump’s nationally televised campaign event from the Hotel on September 16, 2016, which was to honor U.S. veterans,” the lawsuit says. “But for Freestate’s acceleration of work and performance of extra work on the project, this event would not have been able to occur.”

Freestate also noted that its work before the hotel’s “grand opening” on Oct. 26 was timed just before the Nov. 8 election in order to generate “positive press coverage.”

Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/316098-contractor-files-2-million-against-trump-for-unpaid-bills

January 25, 2017

Trudeau welcomes Trump's Keystone XL decision

Source: CBC News

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is strongly in favour of Donald Trump's decision to green-light the Keystone XL pipeline project, a move he says will be a boon for Canadian jobs and government coffers, and help a hobbled Alberta recover from the steep decline in oil prices.

Trudeau said he has spoken to the new U.S. president twice, and on both occasions he pressed upon him Canada's steadfast support for the $8-billion project, which could carry more than 800,000 barrels of Alberta oil a day to refineries in Texas.

"I reiterated my support for the project. I've been on the record for many years supporting [Keystone XL] because it leads to economic growth and good jobs for Albertans," he told reporters assembled in Calgary for the federal cabinet retreat.

"We know we can get our resources to market more safely and responsibly while meeting our climate change goals," he said, adding Premier Rachel Notley's hard cap on oilsands emissions will ensure Canada meets its reduction targets.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-cabinet-keystone-xl-1.3949754

January 25, 2017

Trump says he'll send in feds if Chicago doesn't fix 'horrible carnage going on'

Source: CNN

President Donald Trump, for the first time since taking office, has tweeted about violence in Chicago, saying: "I will send in the Feds" if they don't fix the "horrible 'carnage'" going on.

He tweeted about the shootings there in early January, saying at the time as President-elect: "If Mayor can't do it he must ask for Federal help."

Tuesday night he wrote, "If Chicago doesn't fix the horrible 'carnage' going on, 228 shootings in 2017 with 42 killings (up 24% from 2016), I will send in the Feds."

Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump
If Chicago doesn't fix the horrible "carnage" going on, 228 shootings in 2017 with 42 killings (up 24% from 2016), I will send in the Feds!
9:25 PM - 24 Jan 2017

The Chicago Police Department tells CNN there have been 38 homicides and 182 shooting incidents in the city so far in 2017. Chicago Police only report homicides. They are not necessarily all shooting deaths.




Read more: Link to source

January 24, 2017

Minnesota gov. diagnosed with prostate cancer

Source: The Hill

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, he told the Minneapolis Star Tribune on Tuesday.

Dayton, 69, collapsed while delivering a state of the state address in front of a joint session of the state’s legislature on Monday night.

Dayton regained consciousness and got up by himself just a few minutes later, but promptly left the state capitol according to a statement released by his office.

Dayton said he received the diagnosis on Friday, and that he would undergo further testing after collapsing on Monday.

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/315883-minnesota-gov-diagnosed-with-prostate-cancer-report

January 24, 2017

Eastern Mosul liberated from ISIS, US-led coalition says

Source: The Hill

Eastern Mosul has been liberated by Iraqi security forces, the U.S.-led military coalition said Tuesday.

"After more than 100 days of hard urban combat, the government of Iraq and Iraqi security forces announced the liberation of Eastern Mosul, Jan 24," read a coalition statement.

The coalition said "clearance operations are ongoing" but that the Iraqi forces control all areas inside Mosul east of the Tigris river.

“This is a monumental achievement for not only the Iraqi security forces and sovereign government of Iraq, but all Iraqi people,” said Lt. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend, the commanding general of Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, the multi-national coalition tasked with militarily defeating ISIS.

Read more: http://thehill.com/policy/defense/315860-us-led-coalition-eastern-mosul-has-been-liberated-from-isis

January 24, 2017

Trump to announce Supreme Court pick next week

Source: The Hill

President Trump said Tuesday he will announce his selection to fill the Supreme Court vacancy “sometime next week.”

"I'll be making my decision this week, we'll be announcing next week," he told reporters in the Oval Office. "We have outstanding candidates, and we will pick a truly great Supreme Court justice."

Trump’s nomination to fill the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s seat is expected to trigger a high-stakes battle in the Senate.

The announcement comes hours before the president plans to sit down with Senate leaders at the White House to discuss his nominee to the high court.

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/313800-schumer-to-trump-tillerson-back-new-russia-sanctions

January 24, 2017

Senate committee clears Carson nomination

Source: The Hill

The Senate cleared the way on Tuesday for Ben Carson to take the helm of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The Senate Banking Committee approved Carson’s nomination, sending it to the floor for final confirmation.

President Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks need only a simple majority to clear the Senate, which means Carson can be confirmed with only Republican support, and Democrats cannot filibuster.

Senators only questioned Carson, who has never worked in government, for two and a half hours during his confirmation hearing earlier this month.


Read more: http://thehill.com/regulation/315799-senate-committee-clears-carson-nomination

January 24, 2017

CBO: Federal deficit to rise in 2019 for first time in decade

Source: The Hill

Federal deficits are expected to rise for the first time in nearly a decade, driving up the federal debt to almost unprecedented levels, according to analysis from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.

The federal budget deficit, the difference between government spending and revenue, increased in 2016 for the first time since 2009.

While the 2017 and 2018 deficits are projected to be lower due to the timing of certain payments, the difference is projected to rise from 2019 onward thanks to rising Social Security and Medicaid costs, according to CBO’s yearly budget and economic outlook for 2017 through 2027.

The economy is also expected to grow at an average of 2.1 percent of GDP, likely driven by consumer spending, business investment, and residential construction. The steady growth is expected to shrink a gap between actual and potential unemployment, leading to wage increases and moderate inflation.

Read more: http://www.thehill.com/policy/finance/315823-cbo-federal-deficits-to-rise-in-2019-for-first-time-in-decade