Cleveland Sports Forum

Even liberal papers such as the NY Times and Washington (Com)Post is touting Trump's economical plan now.

.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/01/us/p ... .html?_r=0

"The Trump Effect: Business, Anticipating Less Regulation, Loosens Purse Strings

A wave of optimism has swept over American business leaders and it's beginning to translate into the sort of investment in new plants, equipment and factory upgrades that bolsters economic growth, spurs job creation - and may finally raise wages significantly."

.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/pol ... 2b3cc0b89c

Trump’s first-year jobs numbers were very, very good

On Friday morning, the government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics released employment numbers for December, bookending President Trump’s first year in office. ... With those numbers in hand, we can now compare Trump’s first year in office to his predecessors’. And in that comparison, Trump comes out looking pretty good.

Relative to the figure from January in each president’s first year in office (excluding those presidents who took office after a death or resignation), Trump saw one of the biggest percentage-point drops in the unemployment rate. … Under Trump, there were 1.8 million more people working in December than in January. Under Obama, 4.3 million fewer. …

Between January and December of last year, the country added 184,000 manufacturing jobs, the third-most of the presidents for whom data is available after Carter and John Kennedy. … Trump’s consistently celebrated the economic numbers the country has seen during his time in office and the numbers from the BLS certainly give him some reason to do so.

By the way, there is a new report that says Apple is set to repatriate 200 billion dollars of their 252 billion that is currently sitting in offshore accounts.

The article goes on to say that the money will be taxed at 15%, and the article says that will be roughly 40 billion. But my math says 35 billion, but whatever. That is quite a chunk of cash going into our treasury.

This is why I said the liberal were wrong when they acted like the tax cuts were going to run up the deficit. They never take into account things like this. (repatriating of corporations offshore money was one of the items I specifically mentioned at the time)

Dramatic tax cuts have always equaled more tax revenue in our countries history. I really doubt it will be different this time.

CNN still has not reported on the huge bombshell from Politico last week that the Obama administration forced a U.S. Task Force targeting a billion dollar Hezbollah criminal organization to back off and let it go so they could complete the horrible Iran nuclear deal. Even after congress has called for an investigation and the Dept. of Justice have ordered a review of the matter.

But if you watch the liberal main stream media you are so very well informed.

Trump says he’s ‘like, really smart,’ ‘a very stable genius

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump, portrayed in a new book as a leader who doesn’t understand the weight of his office, took to Twitter on Saturday to defend his mental fitness and boast about his intelligence, saying he is “like, really smart” and “a very stable genius.” He posted a series of tweets from Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland, a few hours before holding meetings on the 2018 legislative agenda with Republican congressional leaders and Cabinet members.

https://www.apnews.com/2bb960fda0264c48 ... le-genius'


Is Your Child Lying to You? That’s Good

Should parents be troubled when their kids start to deceive them? Odds are, most of us would say yes. We believe honesty is a moral imperative, and we try to instill this belief in our children. Classic morality tales like “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” and “Pinocchio” speak to the dangers of dishonesty, and children who lie a lot, or who start lying at a young age, are often seen as developmentally abnormal, primed for trouble later in life. But research suggests the opposite is true. Lying is not only normal; it’s also a sign of intelligence.

[ WELL THAT EXPLAINS A LOT ]

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/05/opin ... ght-region

Foreign governments are finding ways to do favors for Trump’s business

WASHINGTON In Indonesia, a local government plans to build a road to shorten the drive between the main airport on the island of Bali and the new high-end Trump resort and golf course. In Panama, the country’s federal government intervened to ensure a sewer system around a 70-story Trump skyscraper shaped like a sail in Panama City would be completed. And in other countries, governments have donated public land, approved permits and eased environmental regulations for Trump-branded developments, creating a slew of potential conflicts as foreign leaders make investments that can be seen as gifts or attempts to gain access to the American president through his sprawling business empire.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation- ... 31074.html

Republican Senators Target Christopher Steele—and the Reason Is Obvious
Anything to distract from the big picture:
Putin’s attack on the US and Trump-Russia contacts.

Christopher Steele is not the issue. Yet the former British intelligence official who wrote a series of unconfirmed reports on Trump-Russia connections during the 2016 campaign seems to have become the main target of congressional Republicans. On Friday, two Republican senators—Charles Grassley of Iowa and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina—released a letter they had sent the previous day to the Justice Department and the FBI requesting a criminal investigation of Steele. There have been no other known congressional criminal referrals related to the Russian attack on the 2016 presidential election or to interactions between Trump associates and Russians during the campaign.

Pause for a moment and ponder this. The US intelligence community has concluded that Vladimir Putin ordered a clandestine act of information warfare against the United States to harm Hillary Clinton and help Donald Trump during the election. And during that race, Trump’s camp had a series of contacts with Russians or suspected cut-outs. Also throughout the time Putin’s operation was under way, Trump and his lieutenants kept denying this assault was happening—even after his top campaign aides were informed that Moscow wanted to secretly assist Trump and after Trump was briefed by US intelligence agencies that Russia was behind the hack-and-dump assaults targeting Clinton and the Democrats. That is, the public now knows that the United States was attacked by Putin, that Trump associates were interacting with Russians during this period, and that Trump and his crew, intentionally or not, provided cover for Moscow by insisting no such operation was occurring.

Yet what now draws the ire of congressional Republicans the most is Steele and his reports.

The Republican Party, which for decades claimed it was the party that championed patriotism and national security, has jettisoned these priorities for Trump protectionism. It simply doesn’t seem to give much of a damn about what happened during the 2016 campaign and what Trump did to encourage or assist the Russian operation to subvert a US election. Steele may now well be the latest victim of the GOP’s abdication of its responsibility to safeguard the country.

[ The true heroes in this investigation are Meuller, Mark Corallo ( Former Trump legal team spokesman who quit because he believed statement on Trump Tower meeting was obstruction of justice ), and Christopher Steele ( for being the ONLY person to report wrongdoing during the trump campaign ) ]

http://www.businessinsider.com/trumps-s ... ice-2018-1

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/201 ... s-obvious/

The Supreme Court Is About to Hear a Case That Could Unleash a New Wave of Voter Purges

Millions of Americans could be kicked off the voter rolls.

When it comes to purging names from the voter rolls, the state of Ohio is second-to-none. Since becoming secretary of state in 2011, Republican Jon Husted has excised more than 2 million voters from the state’s registration lists. On Wednesday, the US Supreme Court will hear arguments in a high-stakes case over whether one of Husted’s controversial methods for removing voters violates federal law. Civil rights groups say that Ohio’s policy discriminates against minorities, who tend to vote less often, and that it prevents eligible voters from casting ballots. According to a Reuters analysis of voter rolls in Ohio’s three largest counties, people in Democratic neighborhoods were struck from the rolls at twice the rate of people in Republican areas. Moreover, Reuters notes, “neighborhoods that have a high proportion of poor, African-American residents are hit hardest.” Five other states use similar processes to purge their voter rolls, but Ohio’s program is the most aggressive.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/201 ... er-purges/

The Interior Department Has Cleared the Way for Energy Developers to Destroy Natural Habitats

And opened the door for lots of lawsuits.

Just before Christmas, the Interior Department quietly rescinded an array of policies designed to elevate climate change and conservation in decisions on managing public lands, waters and wildlife. Order 3360, signed by Deputy Secretary David Bernhardt, explains that the policies were rescinded because they were “potential burdens” to energy development. The sweeping order, which Bernhardt signed Dec. 22., affects a department that manages a fifth of the nation’s land, 19 percent of U.S. energy supplies and most of the water in the 12 Western states. It fulfills a high-profile executive order by Trump and a secretarial order from Zinke, both announced in March. Interior did not publicize the order but posted it on its website with other secretarial orders.

[ SNEEKY - That's what this administration is all about - Lies & Deceipt ]

http://www.motherjones.com/environment/ ... -habitats/

U.S. trade deficit rises to near six-year high on record imports

Jan 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. trade deficit increased more than expected in November as imports of goods surged to a record high amid strong domestic demand, making it likely that trade will subtract from economic growth in the fourth quarter. Imports of goods jumped to a record high of $204.0 billion in November. Capital goods imports were the highest on record. Imports of consumer goods rose to their highest level since March 2015. The strong growth in imports is being driven by robust consumer demand. Overall exports of goods are being supported by recent dollar depreciation and a strengthening global economy, which is helping to underpin the manufacturing sector. Exports to China fell 1.9 percent. The politically sensitive U.S.-China trade deficit rose 0.6 percent to $35.4 billion in November.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa- ... SKBN1EU1B7

Puerto Rico expects full power in May as some turn to solar

Jan. 5 (UPI) -- It could be another four months before power is fully restored in Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria, leaving some residents of the island to turn to solar power alternatives. Patty Coffey, the deputy district engineer for the Army Corps of Engineers, told The Tennessean full power is expected by the end of May. This expected deadline is close to the start of the 2018 hurricane season.

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2018/01 ... m_medium=8

Russia High Court Upholds Election Ban for Opposition Leader

Russia's Supreme Court has upheld a ruling barring opposition leader Alexei Navalny from running in the March presidential election. The high court upheld the Central Election Commission's decision banning Navalny from running because of his conviction on criminal charges. Navalny and his followers say those charges were politically motivated. Navalny has called for demonstrations across Russia on January 28 to protest the country's upcoming presidential vote. Polls say that incumbent President Vladimir Putin will likely win another six-year term when the election is held on March 18. Navalny contends that Putin, who has spent the last 17 years as either president or prime minister, has been in power too long. The opposition leader says Putin's popularity is largely due to biased state media and an electoral system that excludes legitimate opponents.

https://www.voanews.com/a/russia-suprem ... 95082.html

<

Trump washes his hands of insurgency against GOP incumbents

THURMONT, Md. (AP) — President Donald Trump says he’s done campaigning for insurgents challenging incumbent Republican members of Congress. Trump told reporters after meeting GOP House and Senate leaders at Camp David on Saturday that he’s planning a robust schedule of campaigning for the 2018 midterm elections and that includes involvement in the Republican primaries. He’ll campaign for incumbents, he said, and “anybody else that has my kind of thinking.” But after a stinging loss in Alabama, Trump said he’s done supporting challengers, declaring: “I don’t see that happening.” Trump had supported Roy Moore after he won the GOP primary. Moore’s defeat in the subsequent special election handed Democrats another seat in the Senate.....A long list of high-stakes topics were on the agenda, from national security and infrastructure to the budget and 2018 midterm election strategy. Though Democrats were not included in the discussions, the leaders — some dressed casually in jeans, khakis and sweaters — said they were optimistic that more Democrats would be working with Republicans.
[ Just wondering why the Democrats should trust trump and the GOP after getting screwed the entirety of the 2017 political scene - I call bullshit. Especially when you know how erratic trump is. trump gives - takes away - gives back - takes away !!! Democrats should be wary of this administration. As we have seen, they can't be trusted. I believe in bi-partisan decisions but how can you trust an administration built on lies and deceit ?? ]

https://www.apnews.com/58c0ca3225734a19 ... incumbents


Former President Barack Obama is to be the first guest on David Letterman’s new monthly Netflix talk show, the streaming network announced Friday. It will be one of Mr. Obama’s only interviews since he left office. (In the fall, he recorded an interview with Prince Harry for BBC Radio 4.) The show — titled “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman” — is to begin Jan. 12. It will also mark a return to prominence for Mr. Letterman, who last hosted “Late Show With David Letterman,” which ended in 2015.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/05/arts ... tflix.html


Soon the Only Coral Reefs We See Will Be on the Nature Channel

“It will be so profoundly reshaped that it’s kind of a scientific no-man’s land.”
For decades, marine scientists have been warning of the demise of coral reefs in a warming world. But now, those warning calls have reached a full-scale alarm, leaving researchers at a loss for exactly how best to save the reefs. A study published Thursday in Science by some of the world’s top coral experts amounts to a last rites for the ecosystems often referred to as “the tropical rainforests of the sea.” Scientists surveyed 100 reefs around the world and found that extreme bleaching events that once occurred every 25 or 30 years now happen about every five or six years.

http://www.motherjones.com/environment/ ... e-channel/


The GOP’s New Year’s Resolution: Make Russia Go Away

The congressional inquiries are limping to an end as Republicans target the Justice Department.

With the new year, Republicans are eager to shut down probes of what President Trump has called “this Russia thing.” They are pressing to rapidly complete congressional inquiries into the Trump campaign’s interactions with Russia while working to undermine special counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing investigation..... For months, Republicans have pursued a strategy that boils down to: obstruct, divert, and undercut. They have stymied Democratic efforts to probe various Russia threads, mounted diversionary inquiries related to Hillary Clinton, and sought to kneecap the special counsel investigation by launching an attack on the credibility of the Justice Department itself. On Friday, two Republican Senators, Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, asked the Justice Department to investigate whether former British Intelligence officer Christopher Steele, the author of a series of memos detailing allegations regarding Trump and Russia, broke the law by lying to federal authorities about his contacts with reporters regarding his findings. The request marked the first known congressional criminal referral related to the Trump-Russia scandal, and it targeted a figure known for exposing Trump’s Russia ties.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/201 ... a-go-away/


It’s Not Just Freezing Classrooms in Baltimore. America’s Schools Are Physically Falling Apart.

More than half of American schools are estimated to be in buildings that are not up to standard.

This week, as the “bomb cyclone” ravaged cities along the East Coast, schools across the northeastern and southern United States were forced to shut down due to inclement weather and freezing temperatures. But Baltimore schools remained open during the first half of the week despite broken heating systems that caused some classroom temperatures to dip below 40 degrees. And although schools closed on Thursday and Friday, the debate over who’s responsible for the inadequate heating and water systems in the city’s aging school buildings—and how to fix the underlying problem—rages on..... The plight of Baltimore students first reached national consciousness on Wednesday, when a video of students discussing the conditions with former NFL linebacker turned elementary school teacher Aaron Maybin went viral. “What’s the day been like for you today?” Maybin asked. “Cold!” the kids, some in jackets and hoodies, shouted together. Parents and teachers shared images of kids bundled in coats and thermostats on social media.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/201 ... ing-apart/


Kushner’s Financial Ties to Israel Deepen Even With Mideast Diplomatic Role

Last May, Jared Kushner accompanied President Trump, his father-in-law, on the pair’s first diplomatic trip to Israel, part of Mr. Kushner’s White House assignment to achieve peace in the Middle East...... Shortly before, his family real estate company received a roughly $30 million investment from Menora Mivtachim, an insurer that is one of Israel’s largest financial institutions, according to a Menora executive...... The deal, which was not made public, pumped significant new equity into 10 Maryland apartment complexes controlled by Kushner’s firm. While Mr. Kushner has sold parts of his business since taking a White House job last year, he still has stakes in most of the family empire — including the apartment buildings in and around Baltimore.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/07/busi ... v=top-news


With renewed vigor, U.S. top court scrutinizes curbs on voting

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Government officials across the United States try to maintain accurate voter rolls by removing people who have died or moved away. But a case coming before the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday explores whether some states are aggressively purging voter rolls in a way that disenfranchises thousands of voters......The justices will hear arguments in Republican-governed Ohio’s appeal of a lower court ruling that blocked its policy of erasing from voter registration lists people who do not regularly cast a ballot. Under the policy, such registration is deleted if the person goes six years without either voting or contacting state voting officials.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa- ... SKBN1EW0HG


Bannon praises Trump Jr as a 'patriot' and 'good man' after book criticism

Former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon in a new statement praised Donald Trump Jr. as a "patriot" and a "good man" and expressed "regret" for his delayed response to quoted criticism in a book released last week. "He has been relentless in his advocacy for his father and the agenda that has helped turn our country around," Bannon said in a statement provided to Axios, referring to Trump Jr. Bannon added that his support for President Trump and his agenda is "unwavering." "President Trump was the only candidate that could have taken on and defeated the Clinton apparatus," he said. "I am the only person to date to conduct a global effort to preach the message of Trump and Trumpism; and remain ready to stand in the breech for this president's efforts to make America great again."

[ SAD! Gotta Be Humiliating For Bannon ! I Think Of What I Might Do Under The Same Situations. My "Sugar Family" Cuts Me Off, The Breibart Threats, Etc. I Guess I Would Get Down On My Knees And Beg Also. Gotta Wonder Who's Running The Country, The Mercers Or trump And His GOP Cohorts ??? ]

http://thehill.com/homenews/administrat ... d-good-man


Republicans on the run: Retirements could be trouble for Trump and party

"When the president visited Utah last month, he said I was a fighter. I've always been a fighter. I was an amateur boxer in my youth, and I brought that fighting spirit with me to Washington. But every good fighter knows when to hang up the gloves.” With those words, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) became the latest member of Congress to announce that he will not be seeking another term. The spate of recent retirements led to speculation about a widespread exodus by Republicans from Trumpland......It is first important to note that, of the 38 GOP members of Congress planning to retire (or having already retired), 13 are planning to seek another political office (or have new roles in the Trump administration).....some members of Congress are retiring in the wake of personal scandal.....However, even if we only look at the remaining retirements that number would exceed the average number of total retirements per party (11 members) per Congress since 1974

http://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/367 ... nd-the-gop


Graham: I would not serve in Trump's Cabinet

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Sunday that he would not serve in President Trump’s Cabinet. Graham answered “no” when NBC’s Chuck Todd asked if he would serve in Trump’s Cabinet should the president ask him to do so. “We will not be hearing the name Secretary Graham on any Cabinet agency,” Todd followed up.
“You got it,” Graham told “Meet the Press.” Graham was a frequent critic of Trump during the Republican primary, but has shifted his tone over the course of the last year. The South Carolina lawmaker has heaped praise on Trump for his foreign policy, including Trump’s decision to de-certify the Iran nuclear deal.

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/3678 ... ps-cabinet


‘Falling apart?’ Trump’s insults not forgotten in Atlanta

ATLANTA (AP) — When President Donald Trump swoops into Atlanta for a VIP seat at college football’s biggest game, he’ll enjoy the Southern hospitality of a city he disparaged a year ago as “falling apart” and “crime infested.” ATLANTA (AP) — When President Donald Trump swoops into Atlanta for a VIP seat at college football’s biggest game, he’ll enjoy the Southern hospitality of a city he disparaged a year ago as “falling apart” and “crime infested.”

https://www.apnews.com/d0465a956d384da6 ... in-Atlanta


Trump takes credit for dialogue between North and South Korea, says 'talks are a good thing'

President Donald Trump claimed on Thursday that talks between North and South Korea likely would not have occurred without his tough rhetoric against Pyongyang. Lambasting "failed 'experts'" discussing the matter as "fools," Trump questioned whether the two nations would have engaged in conversation had he not been "firm, strong and willing to commit our total 'might' against the North." The president also welcomed the development as a "good thing."

Iran bans the teaching of English in primary schools, official says

Move comes after warnings by Islamic leaders that early learning of language opened way to western ‘cultural invasion’

Iran has banned the teaching of English in primary schools, a senior education official has said, after Islamic leaders warned that early learning of the language opened the way to a western “cultural invasion”. “Teaching English in government and non-government primary schools in the official curriculum is against laws and regulations,” Mehdi Navid-Adham, head of the state-run high education council, told state television. “The assumption is that in primary education the groundwork for the Iranian culture of the students is laid,” he said.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/ ... icial-says


Mexico's Trumpian populist could mean trouble for Donald Trump

If the left-leaning nationalist wins Mexico's presidency, it could boost tensions over immigration, trade and border security.

MEXICO CITY — Andrés Manuel López Obrador's campaign rhetoric can make him sound like a Mexican Donald Trump. The left-leaning front-runner in Mexico’s presidential race is overtly nationalistic, pushes “Mexican people first” policies and peppers his speeches with anti-establishment slogans that thrill the working-class Mexicans who flock to his rallies. But while his style might be distinctly Trumpian, his policy prescriptions could not be more different. Indeed, the election of the former mayor of Mexico City could be disastrous for Trump and his administration, creating an even more charged relationship between the two countries that could reduce cooperation on border security, trade and immigration.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/ ... 9?lo=ap_b1


Russia meddling in Mexican election: White House aide McMaster

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The Russian government has launched a sophisticated campaign to influence Mexico’s 2018 presidential election and stir up division, a senior White House official said in a video clip published by Mexican newspaper Reforma. U.S. National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said in a speech last month to the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation that there was already evidence of Russian meddling in Mexican elections set for July. “We’ve seen that this is really a sophisticated effort to polarize democratic societies and pit communities within those societies against each other,” said McMaster in a previously unreported video clip from Dec. 15 that was posted on Twitter by a reporter with Mexican daily newspaper Reforma on Saturday.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mexi ... SKBN1EW0UD


'This is further proof of President Trump’s war on California'

Democrats are convinced the president is singling out the biggest blue state for punishment.

LOS ANGELES — It’s been less than a week since the California Legislature reconvened for the year, and already the No. 1 issue here is emerging: what to do about Donald Trump. In the span of three days, the Trump administration threatened California’s burgeoning recreational marijuana market, proposed drilling off the California coast and pledged to increase immigration enforcement in the state — proposing to punish cities that get in the way. That came on the heels of his signing a tax bill that hit California harder than most other states. Following a year of provocations, the widespread feeling among Democrats is that the nation’s most populous state once again is under siege. “This is further proof of President Trump’s war on California,” Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León said.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/ ... ent-326376


Netanyahu tiptoes around U.S. threat to cut off Palestinian aid

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin trod carefully on Sunday around a threatened U.S. aid cut to Palestinians, stopping short of backing a funding halt as he repeated calls for a U.N. agency that helps Palestinian refugees to be dismantled. Netanyahu’s public comments appeared to reflect a desire to show support for a major ally, but also concern that choking off funds would deepen Palestinian hardship and could put Israel and militants on a course for war.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-isra ... SKBN1EW0M4


FBI launches new Clinton Foundation investigation

The Justice Department has launched a new inquiry into whether the Clinton Foundation engaged in any pay-to-play politics or other illegal activities while Hillary Clinton served as secretary of State, law enforcement officials and a witness tells The Hill.

http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/36 ... estigation


Reactors for Saudi Arabia are bad business and dangerous diplomacy

The last thing the Middle East needs is more nuclear technology. But a coterie of Washington “experts,” recently assembled on behalf of Saudi Arabia, argues otherwise and seem to have the ear of the Trump administration. Energy Secretary Rick Perry visited Saudi Arabia in December, and the State Department is taking steps toward signing a U.S.-Saudi nuclear umbrella agreement required by United States law as a preliminary to selling the country nuclear power reactors. What is worse, the White House is hinting it would not insist that Saudi Arabia accept the “gold standard,” that is, that it promise not to reprocess irradiated fuel to extract plutonium or enrich uranium — activities that open the door to rapid acquisition of nuclear weapons.

http://thehill.com/opinion/national-sec ... -diplomacy


Trump moves back 'Fake News Awards' citing high interest

President Trump on Sunday pushed back the date for his “Fake News Awards” to Jan. 17 as opposed to this coming Monday, citing high interest. “The Fake News Awards, those going to the most corrupt & biased of the Mainstream Media, will be presented to the losers on Wednesday, January 17th, rather than this coming Monday,” Trump wrote on Twitter.

[ Love The Games - They Move Up by two Days The Sale Of "Fire & Fury" So trump Moves Back By Two Days Citing High Interest - Gotta Admit trump Is Definitely a Reality Show Actor ]

http://thehill.com/homenews/administrat ... ews-awards

So, are we going to pay for the wall with Pesos?

After the tax cuts, that may be the only way to pay for the wall unless Mnuchin starts printing more greenbacks.

Explosion fears as fire rages on stricken oil tanker off China coast

No sign of 32 crew on Iranian-owned Sanchi, which was carrying 136,000 tonnes (1 million barrels - 42 million gallons) of light oil when it collided with a cargo ship

An Iranian oil tanker ablaze off the Chinese coast is at risk of exploding or sinking, as officials reported there were no signs of survivors 36 hours after the vessel erupted in flames. A huge fire was still raging around the stricken ship, which had been carrying 136,000 tonnes of light oil, or about 1m barrels, with fierce heat and thick black smoke billowing from the vessel and the surrounding sea......

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/ ... hina-coast



Congress lets tax on oil companies expire. It funded spill response

WASHINGTON - Congressional Republicans allowed a tax on oil companies that generated hundreds of millions of dollars annually for federal oil-spill response efforts to expire this week - a move that amounts to another corporate break in the wake of lawmakers’ sweeping tax overhaul late last month.

The tax on companies selling oil in the United States generated an average of $500 million in federal revenue per year, according to the Government Accountability Office. The money, collected through a 9 cents-per-barrel tax on domestic crude oil and imported crude oil and petroleum products, constituted the main source of revenue for the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund.

The fund has at least $5.75 billion in reserve. Intended to help the government respond quickly to accidents on land or offshore, it was established in 1986 but only got a stable source of funding in the wake of the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill.

[ Can't Blame The Politicians On All Coast Lines For Having Fears Of The Next Oil Spill And No Clean Up Funds Available - Worth Watching That Iranian Tanker Spill - trump Paying Back The Oil Companies Big Time - But He Does Have We Citizens Number 1 In His Agenda ]


http://www.houmatoday.com/news/20180105 ... l-response



'Drill, baby drill!' comes to oil safety regulator

The Trump administration wants to open virtually all federal waters to offshore drilling even as his administration pushes to relax regulations designed to prevent a repeat of the BP oil spill.

http://money.cnn.com/2018/01/05/investi ... index.html





Trump’s Interior Department Is Ill-Prepared to Deal with the Next Big Spill

Today, the Trump administration unveiled its vision to radically expand where it allows offshore oil and gas drilling. If implemented as outlined, this move would ensure that spilled oil washes ashore on more American beaches on both coasts. In addition to expanding drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, the administration’s draft plan disregards sound science and broad public opposition by proposing to allow oil and gas leasing in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans from Washington to Florida, as well as in dangerous environments in the Arctic Ocean.

https://www.americanprogress.org/issues ... big-spill/


[ It's One Thing To Destroy Obama's Legacy Because Of A Personal Vendetta - Quite Another Thing to Destroy Laws Put In Place To Save the Environment And The Citizens That Will Have To Put Up With The Effects Of Any Such Disasters - trump Could Give A Flying F*** Because He Won't Be Around To See the Effects Of His Decisions - This Guy And The GOP Are Making Some Evil Decisions - Thank You Mr. President ]

Americans' Optimism About Job Market Hit Record High in 2017

by Megan Brenan

56% viewed job market positively in 2017, up from 42% in 2016

Confidence in job market buoyed by Republicans since Trump's inauguration

40% of unemployed adults seeking jobs rated job market as good

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Americans' optimism about finding a quality job averaged 56% in 2017, the highest annual average in 17 years of Gallup polling and a sharp increase from 42% in 2016. Coinciding with rising optimism, the U.S. unemployment rate fell from an average 4.9% in 2016 to 4.4% in 2017, the lowest rate since 2000.

http://news.gallup.com/poll/225071/amer ... -2017.aspx

Dimon thinks economists are dead wrong about GDP, predicts 4% U.S. growth

Published: Jan 9, 2018

By Mark DeCambre

‘If we have a couple of years of good growth, that could justify the markets where they are. Four percent economic growth this year is possible’

Those were the thoughts of JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon, who offered a forecast for U.S. economic growth that outstrips even some of the more bullish economists.

Speaking during an interview with Fox Business’s Maria Bartiromo on Tuesday, Dimon said the recently signed tax legislation, which cuts the corporate tax rate to 21% from 35%, is likely to support higher levels for the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.34% the S&P 500 index SPX, +0.23% and the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +0.17% which have already rung up all-time highs in first several sessions of 2018, after a record-setting rally for the equity benchmarks last year.

Read: Dow set to resume record run after taking a breather

Dimon said he expects the “competitive tax rate” to encourage deal-making on Wall Street, pointing to Europe which he said is on pace to grow at a 3% rate. A reading of gross domestic product is slated for Jan. 26.

In the U.S., the economy grew at a 3.1% annual pace in the second quarter and a 3.2% annual rate in the third, according to the Commerce Department, exceeding the postrecession pace of near 2% A fresh estimate of gross domestic product is slated for Jan. 26.

However, few prominent economists are expecting GDP growth to hit a stellar 4% pace this year.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Glenn Hubbard, Columbia Business School dean, said corporate tax cuts aren’t likely to have the stimulative effect many are hoping. “It’s not going to raise us off to 4% GDP growth,” he told the newspaper. “But it’s not going to kill 10,000 people a year.”

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/dimon ... 2018-01-09

Dow rises 100 points, adds to record on optimism ahead of earnings season

Fred Imbert | @foimbert

Published 1 Hour Ago

U.S. equities rose to record highs on Tuesday as investors remained optimistic about the market heading into the corporate earnings season.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 100 points to hit an intraday record. The S&P 500 also hit a fresh all-time intraday high rising 0.2 percent. Health care and financials were the best-performing sectors in the S&P 500. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.1 percent; it also hit a record.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/09/us-stoc ... t-boj.html

'The engine of the economy roared back to life': US small business confidence hit a record-high in 2017

Bob Bryan

The Small Business Optimism Index from the National Federation of Independent Businesses came in at 104.9 in December.
The average monthly reading for the index in 2017 was 104.8, the highest for any year in its history.
Both the NFIB's CEO and chief economist attributed the boost in confidence to policy changes under the Trump administration.

Small-business confidence hit a record high in 2017, according to the National Federation of Independent Businesses.

The National Federation of Independent Businesses on Tuesday released its Small Business Optimism Index for, capping "an all-time record setter" of a year in 2017, according to the right-leaning lobbying group.

The optimism index came in at 104.9 in December. According to the NFIB, the index's average monthly level was 104.8 in 2017, the highest in the history of the the survey.

Juanita Duggan, the president and CEO of the NFIB, pinned the increase in optimism on policy changes from Washington under President Donald Trump.

"With a massive tax cut this year, accompanied by significant regulatory relief, we expect very strong growth, millions more jobs, and higher pay for Americans," Duggan said in the release.

NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg also credited Trump's election for the surge in optimism.

"The 2016 election was like a dam breaking," Dunkelberg said. "Small business owners were waiting for better policies from Washington, suddenly they got them, and the engine of the economy roared back to life."

The NFIB, a lobbying group, came out against the original version of the Republican tax bill, saying it would not be wholly beneficial to small business owners.

But after changes that made the tax cut more generous for owners of entities known as pass-through businesses, in which the owner of the business books profits as their personal income, the NFIB supported the final version that became law.

Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said that while the group's headline number remained encouraging, some of the underlying trends for owners' actual spending intentions remained lagging.

Shepherdson noted that the percentage of owners saying they were actually increasing capital expenditures — making large investments in their businesses — remained near a nine-month low in November.

"The index strengthened in the spring and early summer but then dropped immediately after the hurricanes," Shepherdson wrote. "Its failure then to rebound is disconcerting and hard to explain, but at least it appears no longer to be falling. Still, we need to see stronger numbers over the next few months if the story of sustained strength in capex this year is to materialize."

The NFIB survey is one of a slew of readings that have improved this year, along with consumer confidence and manufacturer surveys from the various Federal Reserve branches.

So far the dramatic increase in survey confidence has caused a solid increase in economic activity, but not a dramatic increase beyond the long-term trend for the post-recession recovery.

http://www.businessinsider.com/small-bu ... vel-2018-1

Sheriff Joe Arpaio Running for Senate

Months after being pardoned by President Trump, former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio announced Tuesday that he will run for U.S. Senate. The 85-year-old combative lawman now becomes the most high-profile Republican to mount a run for a retiring GOP Sen. Jeff Flake’s seat. Arpaio was convicted of ignoring a federal court order in a racial-profiling case and sentenced to jail time; but Trump, a friend and supporter of the firebrand sheriff, pardoned him over the summer. “I have a lot to offer. I’m a big supporter of President Trump,” Arpaio told the Washington Examiner. “I’m going to have to work hard; you don’t take anything for granted. But I would not being doing this if I thought that I could not win. I’m not here to get my name in the paper, I get that everyday, anyway.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/sheriff-j ... for-senate

Trump administration says no oil drilling off Florida coast

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The Trump administration says it will not allow oil drilling off the coast of Florida, bowing to pressure from Republican Gov. Rick Scott.

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke (ZIN’-kee) said after meeting with Scott Tuesday that drilling would be “off the table” when it comes to waters in the eastern Gulf of Mexico and in the Atlantic Ocean off Florida.

Zinke announced plans last week to greatly expand offshore oil drilling from the Atlantic to the Arctic and Pacific oceans. The plan was immediately met with bipartisan opposition on both coasts.

Scott, who is expected to run for Senate this year, came out against the plan when it was first announced.

President Donald Trump, who frequently spends time in Florida, won the state’s 29 electoral votes in the 2016 election.

[ WOW! Just Like That !?!?! Let's Hope That What's Good For The Goose Is Good For The Gander - It would Be Awesome If All The Coastal States Do the Same - Save The Environment ]

https://www.apnews.com/9562d01b637849b9 ... rida-coast