Manuel Balce Ceneta, The Associated Press President Donald Trump congratulates Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell while House Speaker Paul Ryan watches at the White House after the final passage of tax overhaul legislation by Congress on Dec. 20. Re: “Debating the passage of the Republican tax-reform bill,” Dec. 23 letters …
Read More »Six years later, Penn State is still at war over the Jerry Sandusky scandal – The Denver Post
In July, Penn State’s board of trustees met to discuss the most important issues facing a school system with 99,000 students and a $5.7 billion budget. It took about three hours before someone brought up Jerry Sandusky and Joe Paterno. As the chairman tried to end the meeting, a hand …
Read More »IRS says it’s possible to prepay some property tax this year to save cash. Here are the rules
For households rushing to prepay property taxes before a new cap on deductions takes effect, the IRS released some good news Wednesday: In many cases, it will allow such a maneuver. That had been up for debate, because the new tax law was silent on such a scenario, even though …
Read More »Meet the nation’s first known Sikh woman to serve as a city mayor – Los Angeles Times
With a sharp crack of the gavel, Preet Didbal made history this month as the first known Sikh woman in the nation to preside as a city mayor. In Northern California’s Yuba City, Didbal’s rise to mayor was celebrated as a long-awaited affirmation of the Sikh community’s contributions in California. …
Read More »A Philippines grandmother fought to get a toxic coal stockpile out of her neighborhood. Three bullets stopped her – Los Angeles Times
Gloria Capitan couldn’t have imagined her fate. Her cause felt just, and her community was behind her. Besides, who would kill a 57-year-old grandmother? It had been a long two years. Since 2014, a coal stockpile down the road had been polluting her town, Lucanin, sickening her family and covering …
Read More »2017 was the year when North Korea became a threat to the U.S. mainland
North Korea’s totalitarian leader, Kim Jong Un, began 2017 by announcing his intention to launch a long-range ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States. The boast made headlines, but in one little noticed noticed passage, the young leader Kim also admitted entering the year “anxious and remorseful” about his …
Read More »The economic riddle for 2018: Will the middle and working classes see any gains from the big tax reduce?
The U.S. economy was the feel-good story of 2017 — the pace of real economic growth rising strongly and the stock market playing out a euphoric high. Corporate profits are at a record high and job growth is moving toward the level that economists consider full employment. But that came …
Read More »Trump called for a ‘really representative course of’ for managing public land. One already exists in Idaho
President Trump flew to Salt Lake City this month to remove 2 million acres from two national monuments in Utah, and to rebuke “distant bureaucrats” for acting to safeguard the West’s public domain without adequately consulting neighboring communities. “Under my administration, we will advance that protection through a truly representative …
Read More »Trump: China caught ‘RED HANDED’ allowing oil to reach North Korea
President Trump isn’t taking a holiday vacation from Twitter. In one of three tweets early on Thursday from his West Palm Beach golf club, he charged that China was “caught RED HANDED” allowing oil shipments to reach North Korean ports. Pronouncing himself “very disappointed,” Trump in effect was acknowledging the failure of …
Read More »Doug Jones certified as Alabama’s first Democratic senator in 25 years
Doug Jones on Thursday became the first Democrat in 25 years to be confirmed as winner of a U.S. Senate seat in Alabama, just hours after his opponent, controversial Republican Roy Moore, filed a lawsuit urging officials to delay certification because of “systematic election fraud.” The three Republicans who make …
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