New York Sues Big Oil Over Climate Change
Big Apple sues big oil over climate change. Bloomberg: "New York City’s effort to hold oil and gas producers responsible for costs related to the environmental effects of their products faces an uphill battle as it tries to stretch current law to address climate change. The biggest city in the U.S. sued BP Plc, Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil Corp., and Royal Dutch Shell Plc claiming they’re the world’s largest industrial contributors to climate change. Several California municipalities, including San Francisco and Oakland, previously brought similar cases. The city is seeking to build on successful legal challenges against producers of asbestos, cigarettes and lead paint. New York is using the centuries-old legal concepts of 'public nuisance' -- an illegal threat to community welfare, such as a brothel, drug den or illegal hazardous waste dump -- and "private nuisance,' an unreasonable interference with the use of someone else’s land."
White House Admits Zero Evidence Of 2016 Voter Fraud
White House admits it has zero evidence of voter fraud in 2016 election. ThinkProgress: "In a court filing on Tuesday, the White House announced that it had not uncovered any preliminary findings of voter fraud in the 2016 election and that it would be destroying confidential voter data initially collected for President Trump’s controversial voter fraud commission, which was disbanded on January 3. The revelation stands in stark contrast to previous comments made by both Trump and former commission vice chair and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who claimed in an interview with right-wing outlet Breitbart one week ago that all investigation work would be 'handed off' to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), implying that Democrats were becoming 'uncomfortable' with how much Republicans had discovered thus far. Trump also claimed previously that the commission — created in May 2017 and charged with identifying 'vulnerabilities in voting systems' that could lead to fraud — had uncovered “substantial” findings which would be handed over to DHS. Tuesday’s court filing contradicted those claims."
Trump Waives Punishment For Bank He Owes $130M
Trump administration waives punishment for convicted banks. International Business Times: "The Trump administration has waived part of the punishment for five megabanks whose affiliates were convicted and fined for manipulating global interest rates. One of the Trump administration waivers was granted to Deutsche Bank — which is owed at least $130 million by President Donald Trump and his business empire, and has also been fined for its role in a Russian money laundering scheme... Trump’s financial relationship with the firm has prompted allegations of a conflict of interest. The bank has not only sought the Labor Department waiver from the administration, it has also faced Justice Department scrutiny and five separate government-appointed independent monitors. Meanwhile, the New York Times recently reported that federal prosecutors subpoenaed Deutsche for 'bank records about entities associated with the family company of Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser.' All of these interactions with the Trump administration and the federal government are transpiring as Deutsche serves as a key creditor for the president’s businesses."
Republican Tax Plan Punishes Blue State Colleges
Republican tax plan hurts colleges in blue states most. Bloomberg: "This year’s tax overhaul slapped a 1.4 percent levy on the annual investment income of the wealthiest private university endowments. Republicans targeted the measure so narrowly that it ended up as a tax almost entirely on elite blue-state institutions. Twenty-two of the 28 colleges that are likely to be subject to the tax reside in Democratic Congressional districts, and those schools could pay 90 percent of the $200 million a year the government expects to collect, according to a Bloomberg analysis. It’s a form of political payback, some academics say."
More From OurFuture.org:
What It Takes to Manage the Indian Health System. Mark Trahant: "What qualifications are needed to manage and possibly reform the Indian health system? It’s Indian Country’s largest employer with more than 15,000 on the payroll and many, many more people who work in health care for tribes, non-profits and other related agencies. The IHS budget is $6.1 billion. Yet it’s also the least funded national health care delivery system, operating in a political atmosphere where critics ask, why can’t it do more? Trump's nominee to head the IHS, Robert Weaver, comes from insurance, not medicine, and if confirmed, will be the least educated director of the Indian Health Service ever."
