Facebook co-founder, CEO Mark Zuckerberg kicks-off nationwide tour with visit to Alabama
The founder of Facebook made a special visit to Alabama over the weekend. Mark Zuckerberg, 32, passed through the Yellowhammer State a road trip across the country as part of a challenge to visit all 50 states with his wife Priscilla Chan. This week they’re touring the South. While in the Yellowhammer State, the couple spent their time eating shrimp, listening to stories from local business owners, fishermen, oyster farmers on Saturday, and even taking attending a local church service in downtown Mobile on Sunday. They also watched the Mobile Mardi Gras parade and talked to families affected by the BP oil spill and Hurricane Katrina. “We had lunch with Dominick Ficarino, a fourth generation shrimper, and workers from the local fishing business right on the dock… One of the families we met were the Zirlotts — they run an oyster farm and are succeeding by using Facebook and Instagram to show their product directly to chefs,” the digital media mogul said on his personal Facebook page. He concluded, “We are all part of many communities. The strength of these local communities is what makes up our social fabric and that’s what enables us to come together as a global community as well.” On Monday, Zuckerberg continued his ventures in Selma where he checked out the Selma Time-Journal building. Zuckerberg’s US-trip has many across the country scratching their heads, asking themselves once again if the media mogul is gearing up for a 2020 presidential run against incumbent President Donald Trump. Zuckerberg shot down similar rumors in late January, saying he’s “focused on building our community at Facebook and working on the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative,” which funds science and education. Only time will tell if that sticks.
Thousands of demonstrators across U.S. say ‘Not My President’
Thousands of demonstrators turned out Monday across the U.S. to challenge Donald Trump in a Presidents Day protest dubbed Not My President’s Day. The events on the federal holiday didn’t draw nearly as many people as the million-plus who thronged the streets following the Republican president’s inauguration a month earlier, but the message was similar. Thousands of flag-waving protesters lined up outside Central Park in Manhattan. Many in the crowd chanted “No ban, no wall. The Trump regime has got to fall.” They held aloft signs saying “Uphold the Constitution Now” and “Impeach the Liar.” A rally in downtown Los Angeles also drew thousands. Demonstrators there called attention to Trump’s crackdown on immigration and his party’s response to climate change and the environment. Organizers said they chose to rally on the holiday as a way to honor past presidents by exercising their constitutional right to assemble and peacefully protest. In Chicago, several hundred rallied across the river from the Trump Tower, shouting “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Donald Trump has got to go.” Rebecca Wolfram of Chicago, who’s in her 60s, said concerns about climate change and immigrant rights under Trump prompted her to start attending rallies. “I’m trying to demonstrate as much as possible until I figure out what else to do,” said Wolfram, who held a sign that said “Old white ladies are really displeased.” Several hundred demonstrated in Washington, D.C. Dozens gathered around the fountain in Dupont Circle chanting “Dump Trump” and “Love, not hate: That’s what makes America great.” Dozens marched through midtown Atlanta for a rally named with a Georgia flavor: “ImPEACH NOW! (Not My) President’s Day March.” Hundreds of protesters chanting “This is what democracy looks like” marched through Salt Lake City. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that the crowd marched to push back against Trump and his administration’s stance on such issues as the environment, immigration, free speech and Russia. Some people raised signs that said “Not My President,” while others held up a large American flag. Protester Reg Brookings warned the crowd that Trump is trying to divide the country by making such groups as immigrants the enemy. A small but unruly group of protesters faced off with police in downtown Portland, Oregon. The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the police confronted the crowd in front of the Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building. Police took some people into custody. Hundreds of Trump opponents and supporters turned out in Rapid City, South Dakota. A larger anti-Trump faction stood on a street corner as part of a “Not My President” protest, similar to other demonstrations being held across the country. A group supporting the president lined up on a different corner at the same intersection. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Donald Trump taps military strategist as national security adviser
President Donald Trump has tapped Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, a prominent military strategist known as a creative thinker, as his new national security adviser, replacing the ousted Michael Flynn. Trump announced the pick Monday at his Palm Beach, Florida, club and said McMaster is “a man of tremendous talent and tremendous experience.” The president’s choice further elevated the influence of military officers in the new administration. Trump, who has no military or foreign policy experience, has shown a strong preference for putting generals in top roles. In this case, he tapped an active-duty officer for a post that’s sometimes used as a counterweight to the Pentagon. McMaster, who wore his uniform for the announcement, joins Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, both retired generals, in Trump’s inner circle of national security advisers. The White House said Monday McMaster plans to remain on active military duty. He will take on the challenge of leading a National Security Council that has not adjusted smoothly to Trump’s leadership. The president suggested he does not trust holdovers from the Obama administration and complained about leaks to reporters. His decision to put his top political adviser on the senior committee of the National Security Council drew sharp criticism. On Friday, the head of the council’s Western Hemisphere division was fired after he criticized Trump’s policies and his inner circle of advisers. Trump said Monday that retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, who had been his acting adviser, will now serve as the National Security Council chief of staff. He also said he would be asking John Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, to work with them in a “somewhat different capacity.” McMaster is viewed as soldier-scholar and creative thinker. He has a doctoral degree in history from the University of North Carolina and has been heavily involved in the Army’s efforts to shape its future force and its way of preparing for war. He is currently the director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center, a sort of military think tank, at Fort Eustis, Virginia. Outside of the Army, he may be best known for his 1997 book, “Dereliction of Duty,” a searing indictment of the U.S. government’s mishandling of the Vietnam War and an analysis of what he called the “lies that led to Vietnam.” The book earned him a reputation for being willing to speak truth to power. McMaster commanded troops in both American wars in Iraq — in 1991, when he fought in a storied tank battle known as the Battle for 73 Easting, and again in 2005-2006 in one of the most violent periods of the insurgency that developed after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. He is credited with using innovative approaches to countering the insurgency in the northern Iraqi city of Tal Afar when he commanded the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment. He later served as a special adviser to the top U.S. commander in Iraq. McMaster was Trump’s second choice to replace Flynn, who has been under FBI investigation for his contacts with Russian officials. Trump dismissed Flynn last week after revelations that the adviser had misled Vice President Mike Pence about the nature of his discussion with Russia’s ambassador to the U.S. during the presidential transition. Trump said in a news conference Thursday that he was disappointed by how Flynn had treated Pence, but did not believe Flynn had done anything wrong by having the conversations. Trump’s first choice to replace Flynn, retired Vice Adm. Robert Harward, turned down the offer. Trump announced his choice sitting between McMaster and Kellogg in a luxurious living room at the resort property. The president told reporters that Vice President Mike Pence had been involved in the process, but he did not elaborate. Trump brought four candidates for the position to Mar-a-Lago over the weekend for in-person interviews, McMaster among them. McMaster called the appointment a “privilege.” It was not clear how closely McMaster’s and Trump’s views align. On Russia, McMaster appears to hold a much dimmer view than Trump of Moscow’s military and political objectives in Europe. In remarks at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in May 2016, McMaster said Russia managed to annex Crimea and intervene militarily in eastern Ukraine “at zero cost” from the international community. McMaster said Moscow’s broader goal is to “collapse the post-Cold War security, economic and political order in Europe and replace that order with something that is more sympathetic to Russian interests.” In his current role, McMaster has been studying the way Russia developed and executed its campaigns in Crimea and Ukraine, where it used what some call “hybrid warfare” — part political, part disinformation, part military. Sen. John McCain, an increasingly vocal Trump critic, called McMaster an “outstanding” choice. “He is a man of genuine intellect, character, and ability. He knows how to succeed,” he said in a statement. “I give President Trump great credit for this decision, as well as his national security cabinet choices.” The position of national security adviser does not require Senate confirmation. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Robert Bentley to create grocery tax task force
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley will sign an executive order on Tuesday creating a group focused on reviewing the sales tax related to groceries. The Grocery Tax task force will take the information they gather and recommend to the Governor and the Legislature changes that ensure a fair and equitable tax while encouraging a healthier Alabama. Bentley briefly outlined plans for the task force during his annual State of the State address earlier this month. This year we will launch a new effort to help put money back into the pockets of Alabama families. Alabama is one of only four states with no tax break on groceries, placing a greater burden on low-income families and those on a fixed-income. A task force made up of experts from fields such as education, healthcare, taxation and revenue, and the economy will study the impact of removing the sales tax on food. The group will compare best practices from comparable states and deliver its recommendation to me this Fall. I want to remove the state tax on food. Every family in Alabama should be able to find a good job and feed their families without being overly taxed. “Ending the state grocery tax would boost the economy and help millions of Alabama families make ends meet. We’re glad the governor recognized the need for Alabama to untax groceries, and we hope lawmakers will move quickly to end this regressive tax once and for all,” Alabama Arise State Coordinator Kimble Forrister told al.com following the 2017 State of State address. Bentley will sign the order at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday in the Old House Chamber of the Alabama State Capitol.
N.Y. Times throws shade on Robert Bentley appointing Luther Strange to U.S. Senate
A new article in The New York Times casts a shadow on Gov. Robert Bentley’s appointment of former Attorney General Luther Strange to the U.S. Senate. Author Alan Blinder writes that Strange, who was elected Alabama Attorney General in 2010 and 2014, has seen his popularity wane after accepting the appointment, especially considering his former office was in spearheading an investigation into the scandal-plagued governor. Though no state lawmakers have come forward with evidence, many have publicly opined that Strange’s appointment was an attempt Bentley to quash the investigation. Whether or not that was Bentley’s goal, Strange was quoted after his appointment that speculation about inquiries on Bentley was “unfair to him and unfair to the process,” adding that “we have never said in our office that we are investigating the governor.” Strange also deflected any appearance of impropriety by saying prosecutors in the Attorney General’s office would “relentlessly pursue the rule of law.” “My own commitment to rooting out corruption in government speaks for itself,” he said. “That vow has never wavered and will continue to guide me as I serve the people of Alabama in the U.S. Senate.” Strange’s replacement, Steven Marshall, confirmed soon after he took the job that there was indeed an investigation into Bentley and he appointed a special prosecutor to take the reigns on the case. Matt Hart, one of the lawyers responsible for the conviction of former House Speaker Michael Hubbard, is also involved in the inquiry. Still, some state lawmakers say the cloud surrounding Strange’s appointment could hamstring him during the 2018 special election to decide former U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions permanent replacement. “He would have been solid, and he probably would have beaten the governor’s appointment,” said Republican State Rep. Corey Harbison, adding that “Luther’s ambition to become a United States senator caused him to do things that I don’t think he would have done in normal circumstances.”
Alabama business roundup: Headlines from across state – 2/20/17 edition
What company is downsizing again in the Yellowhammer State? Who holds the key to auto industry boom in the state? Which Alabama company has purchased a defunct power plant in Maine? Answers to the these questions and more in today’s Alabama business roundup. Alabama NewsCenter: Mercedes holds key to Alabama auto industry boom In the 20 years since Mercedes-Benz began producing the M-Class SUV in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama’s auto industry has roared to life in communities across the state. Vehicle production has steadily risen to make Alabama one of the Top 5 auto-producing states in the U.S. Last year, for the second year in a row, workers at Mercedes, Honda and Hyundai combined to build more than 1 million vehicles. Jobs are on the rise, too, growing by more than 200 percent over the past 15 years. In 2016, there were 38,730 jobs at auto, engine and motor parts manufacturers in the state, up from 12,760 in 2001, according to data supplied by the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama (EDPA). The average annual earnings of all of those jobs combined is $70,680. Meanwhile, the economic output of the state’s auto and parts manufacturing industries has grown from an estimated $1.1 billion in 1997 to about $6.2 billion by 2014, according to the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Alabama. On Feb. 14, 1997, the day the first customer-ready M-Classes began rolling off the assembly line, no one dreamed where it would lead, said Steve Sewell, EDPA executive vice president. “The growth and economic impact have far exceeded our expectations, and the industry’s extraordinary success has earned the state a reputation as a top business location,” he said. ‘Fertile ground’ While Mercedes started it all, the industry would not be what it is without the major contributions of Honda and Hyundai, which built their own auto assembly plants in the state in the years following the M-Class debut, as well as Toyota’s engine plant and hundreds of suppliers and support businesses. But Mercedes’ decision to build its first U.S. manufacturing plant in Alabama was a signal seen around the world that the state was fertile ground for new business opportunities, said Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “That decision was the key that opened the doors to an industry that continues to create new opportunities today,” he said. “It was a vote of confidence from a premium automaker with a long and storied history of innovation and excellence that saw great potential in Alabama.” That signal is still reverberating globally, as Mercedes has completed multiple expansions at its Tuscaloosa County operations, Canfield said. Today, the facility, known as Mercedes-Benz U.S. International Inc., has seen investment valued at more than $4.5 billion and has the capacity to produce 300,000 vehicles per year. Another expansion, which includes a new body shop, major enhancements to the SUV assembly shop and upgraded logistics and IT systems, is in the works. The project is valued at $1.3 billion and will create 300 jobs. “Mercedes’ initial vote of confidence in Alabama has been proven correct time and time again, thanks to the company’s strategic vision and the skill and dedication of their workers here who have helped them achieve and surpass those goals,” Canfield said. ‘Transformational impact’ Alabama’s business recruiters often say the Mercedes success story helps in courting other companies, and not just those in the auto industry. The automaker’s presence here helped usher in a new era of foreign direct investment in Alabama, in industries including automotive, aerospace, chemical and more. In 2015 alone, the state’s FDI topped $3.4 billion. Mercedes has lifted other areas of the state’s economy, too. The company is consistently Alabama’s top exporter, and in 2015 alone shipped more than $5 billion in products to 135 markets around the world. Overall auto exports for that year, the latest for which data is available, topped $7 billion, a record annual total and a 5.8 percent growth from the previous year. Exports of motor vehicle parts reached $1.2 billion, an 18 percent increase. “Mercedes has had a transformational impact on Alabama’s auto industry, as well as the state and its economy as a whole,” Canfield said. “With new growth on the horizon for the company in Tuscaloosa County, we anticipate even more opportunities for Alabama workers and support businesses throughout the state.” AL.com: Google Fiber downsizing again, says it’s still coming to Huntsville Google Fiber is losing hundreds of employees, according to press reports, but it still plans to bring its Gigabit Internet service to Huntsville. Google Access, the part of the larger Google empire that oversees fiber, is moving hundreds of fiber employees to other jobs, the website Business Insider reports. The report says no employees will be laid off, but they will be moved to divisions that are growing such as cloud and hardware. Earlier reports said Google wouldn’t expand to several cities as originally planned, and there has been speculation that Alphabet, the Google parent company, will sell the fiber division. Business Insider discounted the sale reports on Wednesday. “Google Fiber is committed to Huntsville. Once the Huntsville Utilities fiber network is built we intend to bring Google Fiber to Huntsville as planned,” a spokeswoman said Wednesday. “We can’t wait to share Google Fiber with the Rocket City.” Birmingham Business Journal: Alabama company buys defunct Maine power plant A newly formed Alabama company recently purchased a mothballed biomass power plant in northern Maine and plans to create about 300 jobs there. The company, 42 Railroad Ave LLC, plans to bring the former Sherman Development Power Plant in Stacyville, Maine online as a renewable energy facility. The company was recently established by CEO Steven Johnson, a longtime renewable energy investor and redevelopment entrepreneur, and focuses on heavy industrial and small-town revitalization projects. The company bought the 24 megawatt power generation station from Niagara Worldwide LLC after more than four years of negotiations, according to a press release. A purchase price was not made available. Johnson said
Alabama Retail Association: Alabama lawmakers consider move of state’s tax-free holiday weekend
The state’s education budget committees have signed off on moving Alabama’s back-to-school sales tax holiday from the first full weekend of August to the third weekend of July. Wednesday, Feb. 15, the House Ways and Means Education Committee approved HB132 by Rep. Lynn Greer, R-Rogersville; and the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee approved SB136 by Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence. Both bills now move to their respective chambers for consideration. The date change will ensure the tax holiday occurs before the start of the school year throughout the state. Several years in its 11-year history, the August sales tax holiday occurred after school had started in many areas of the state, making it impossible for parents to take advantage of the tax savings. Twice in that history, sales tax collections experienced a decline in the month of August (See graphic below). Both years, the tax holiday occurred at the absolute latest possible time it could, Aug. 7-9, well after most schools had started classes. Alabama Retail championed this tax holiday and made its passage our top legislative priority in 2006, the year the holiday began. Your association supports having the tax holiday start on the third Friday of July each year. If enacted, the timing change would begin with the 2017 tax holiday, moving it to July 21 to 23. ••• This article was first published on the Alabama Retail Association website.
Drugs vanish at some VA hospitals
Federal authorities are stepping up investigations at Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers due to a sharp increase in opioid theft, missing prescriptions or unauthorized drug use by VA employees since 2009, according to government data obtained by The Associated Press. Doctors, nurses or pharmacy staff at federal hospitals — the vast majority within the VA system — siphoned away controlled substances for their own use or street sales, or drugs intended for patients simply disappeared. Aggravating the problem is that some VA hospitals have been lax in tracking drug supplies. Congressional auditors said spot checks found four VA hospitals skipped monthly inspections of drug stocks or missed other requirements. Investigators said that signals problems for VA’s entire network of more than 160 medical centers and 1,000 clinics, coming after auditor warnings about lax oversight dating back to at least 2009. “Drug theft is an area of concern,” Jeffrey Hughes, the VA’s acting assistant inspector general for investigations, told AP. He said the monthly inspections could help the VA uncover potential discrepancies and root out crime. Both the inspector general’s office and the Drug Enforcement Administration said they have increased scrutiny of drug thefts from the VA, with the DEA reporting more criminal investigations. It’s not clear if the problem is worse at the VA than at private facilities, where medical experts and law enforcement officials say drug theft is also increasingly common in a time of widespread opioid abuse in the U.S. But the VA gets special scrutiny from lawmakers and the public, given Americans’ esteem for ex-servicemembers served by the agency and because of past problems at the VA, especially a 2014 wait-time scandal in which some patients died. “Those VA employees who are entrusted with serving our nation’s wounded, ill and injured veterans must be held to a higher standard,” said Joe Davis, spokesman for Veterans of Foreign Wars. The drug thefts will be among the challenges facing newly confirmed VA Secretary David Shulkin, who served as the department’s undersecretary of health while the drug problem was growing. At his confirmation hearing this month, Shulkin said he was proud that the VA identified the opioid addiction problem before others did and “recognized it as a crisis and began to take action.” Still, the VA acknowledges it has had problems keeping up with monthly inspections and said it was taking steps to improve training. It also said it was requiring hospitals to comply with inspection procedures and develop plans for improvement. It did not respond to AP requests made three weeks ago to provide a list of VA facilities where drugs had been reported missing or disciplinary action was taken, saying it was still compiling the information. Reported incidents of drug losses or theft at federal hospitals jumped from 272 in 2009 to 2,926 in 2015, before dipping to 2,457 last year, according to DEA data obtained by AP. “Federal hospitals” include the VA’s more than 1,100 facilities as well as seven correctional hospitals and roughly 20 hospitals serving Indian tribes. The inspector general’s office estimates there are nearly 100 open criminal probes involving theft or loss of VA controlled substances. Three VA employees were charged this month with conspiring to steal prescription medications including opioids at the Little Rock, Arkansas, VA hospital. The inspector general’s office says a pharmacy technician used his VA access to a medical supplier’s web portal to order and divert 4,000 oxycodone pills, 3,300 hydrocodone pills and other drugs at a cost to the VA of $77,700 and a street value of $160,000. Christopher Thyer, the U.S. attorney overseeing the case, said the employees were abusing their position to steal from taxpayers and “poison the communities we live in with dangerous drugs.” The drug thefts from VA also raise the possibility that patients will be denied medication they need or that they will be treated by drug-impaired staff. In one case, a former VA employee in Baltimore pleaded guilty on charges that he injected himself with fentanyl intended for patients heading into surgery, then refilled the syringes with saline solution. Patients received solution tainted with the Hepatitis C virus carried by the employee. Dr. Dale Klein, a VA pain management specialist, said some of his patients suspected they weren’t getting the drugs they needed, including one patient with an amputated leg who had to do without morphine because a VA pharmacy said it did not have enough in supply. Klein, who is part of a whistleblowers network called VA Truth Tellers, ran a VA pain clinic from 2015 to 2016 and has filed a retaliation claim against VA, saying the VA restricted his work after he voiced complaints. The VA has said it was looking into the claims. Klein described several of VA’s inventory lists as inconsistent or a “slapdash rush job.” That concern was underscored by the findings from the Government Accountability Office, released last week, that drug stockpiles were not always being regularly inspected. Klein’s attorney, Natalie Khawam, says she’s heard similar complaints from other clients at their VA hospitals. The GAO review, covering January 2015 to February 2016, found the most missed inspections at VA’s hospital in Washington, D.C., according to a government official familiar with confidential parts of the audit. Monthly checks were missed there more than 40 percent of the time, mostly in critical patient care areas, such as the operating room and intensive care units. That adds to the risk of veterans not receiving their full medications. The Washington hospital also missed inspections of the facility’s pharmacy for three straight months, violating VA policy, according to the official, who insisted on anonymity to reveal findings that weren’t public. In the last year, the hospital had at least five incidents of controlled substances that were “lost” or otherwise unaccounted for, according to the DEA. Other problems were found in VA hospitals in Seattle, Milwaukee and Memphis, Tennessee. Milwaukee had the fewest, which the GAO attributed to a special coordinator put in place to ensure inspection compliance. Responding
Bradley Byrne: The 21st century workforce
A lot has changed since the 1930s. For example, in 1938, Franklin Roosevelt was President, and you could buy a loaf of bread for ten cents. Since then, the Internet was invented, more jobs are based in technology, and almost every American has a cell phone. Sadly, some of our nation’s most important labor laws, like the Fair Labor Standards Act, date back to the 1930s. One could argue that the needs of the workforce have changed a lot in just the last decade, but they have most certainly changed over the last eighty years. Clearly, something is still holding our economy back. Since 2009, the economy has grown at an average annual pace of just 1.5 percent. Wage growth remains largely stagnant, as the average hourly earnings for today’s worker is roughly the same as they were in 2009. Meanwhile, 7.6 million Americans are searching for work, and nearly six million individuals are working part-time hours when they really want full-time jobs. Our outdated labor laws and policies play a significant factor in limiting economic growth, and it is time we examine how to reform these important laws to allow for more flexibility for workers in the 21st Century. This is a topic I covered last week in my first hearing as Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Workforce Protections. The American workforce has transformed dramatically since some of our labor laws were passed, and the challenges facing workers and employers today are substantially different than they were in the 1930s. However, our labor policies have failed to adapt. Our confusing and outdated labor policies are especially harmful to small businesses. Big businesses and large corporations often have entire divisions and lawyers set aside to figure out how to comply with rules and regulations. Smaller businesses, which make up the overwhelming majority of our economy in Southwest Alabama, do not have the same resources. When small businesses suffer, American workers suffer. It is clear our nation’s labor rules were designed for another era and no longer reflect the realities of the 21st Century workforce. That’s why it is so disappointing the Obama Administration missed an opportunity to streamline and modernize these important worker protections. Instead, the previous administration spent its time and resources advancing an extreme and partisan agenda that would stifled workplace flexibility and limited opportunities for career advancement. We must do better. Thankfully, we are in a new era now, and I am optimistic the Trump Administration will pursue policies that benefit American workers. Just last week, President Trump announced his nomination of Alexander Acosta to serve as Secretary of Labor. From his time on the National Labor Relations Board to his service as a U.S. Attorney, Mr. Acosta has a clear record of protecting American workers and upholding the law. As Chairman of the Workforce Protections Subcommittee, I am committed to working with Mr. Acosta to find solutions to update our labor and workplace laws and help bring them into the 21st Century. Just as important, I want to find ways to eliminate confusion and uncertainty that make it harder for small businesses to grow and expand. We cannot accept the economic struggles of the last few years as the new normal. The American people have clearly spoken, and they expect their leaders in Washington to put the country on a better path and finally get the economy moving again, which means more and better paying jobs. That is a top priority for me and our unified Republican government. I look forward to making a positive impact on behalf workers in Southwest Alabama and across the country. • • • Bradley Byrne is a member of U.S. Congress representing Alabama’s 1st Congressional District.
Mike Pence tries to reassure anxious Europeans on U.S. support
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence moved Monday to assuage European Union fears about the strength of Washington’s support for the union and its commitment to European security through the NATO military alliance. During meetings in Brussels, Pence said he was acting on behalf of President Donald Trump “to express the strong commitment of the United States to continued cooperation and partnership with the European Union.” “Whatever our differences, our two continents share the same heritage, the same values and above all the same purpose: to promote peace and prosperity through freedom, democracy and the rule of law,” he told reporters after talks with EU Council President Donald Tusk. Trump’s benevolence toward Russian President Vladimir Putin and campaign rhetoric that included branding NATO obsolete and vowing to undo a series of multinational trade deals has sparked anxiety in Europe. Trump was also supportive of Britain’s vote last year to leave the 28-nation EU, a withdrawal known as Brexit. And he has suggested that the EU itself could soon fall apart. Tusk, who chairs meetings of EU leaders, said he had been reassured after “open and frank talks” with Pence, but made clear that the bloc would watch closely to ensure the U.S. acts on its words of support. “I heard words which are promising for the future, words which explain a lot about the new approach in Washington,” Tusk said. He underlined that “too many new and sometimes surprising opinions have been voiced over this time about our relations — and our common security — for us to pretend that everything is as it used to be.” “We are counting, as always in the past, on the United States’ wholehearted and unequivocal — let me repeat, unequivocal — support for the idea of a united Europe,” Tusk said. “The world would be a decidedly worse place if Europe were not united.” He asserted: “The idea of NATO is not obsolete, just like the values which lie at its foundation are not obsolete.” Tusk added, “Both Europeans and Americans must simply practice what they preach.” After talks with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg across town, Pence reiterated the administration’s strong support for the alliance, but warned that Trump wants to see “real progress” by the end of the year on boosting defense spending. NATO leaders agreed in 2014 that alliance members needed to start spending at least 2 percent of their gross domestic product by 2024. Only five nations currently do so: the United States, Britain, Poland, Estonia and Greece. “The truth is many others, including some of our largest allies, still lack a clear and credible path to meet this minimum goal,” Pence said. Asked what the administration would do if allies failed to meet the defense spending target, Pence said, “I don’t know what the answer is to ‘or else,’ but I know that the patience of the American people will not endure forever.” Pence’s meetings in Brussels were aimed at assuring European leaders that his words reflected the views of Trump and would not easily be swept away at the whim of the U.S. president or undermined by statements issued on Twitter. Pence, as he did in an address Saturday at the Munich Security Conference, also said Trump would demand that Russia honor its commitments to end the fighting in Ukraine. “In the interest of peace and in the interest of innocent human lives, we hope and pray that this cease-fire takes hold,” he said. The vice president also noted the “heartbreaking” suicide bombings at the Brussels airport and subway system in March 2016, and said the U.S. would continue to collaborate with EU partners to address safety and combat terrorism. “The United States’ commitment to the European Union is steadfast and enduring,” he said. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Donald Trump tries to move past controversies, toward legislating
As President Donald Trump begins his second month in office, his team is trying to move past the crush of controversies that overtook his first month and make progress on health care and tax overhauls long sought by Republicans. Both issues thrust Trump, a real estate executive who has never held elected office, into the unfamiliar world of legislating. The president has thus far relied exclusively on executive powers to muscle through policy priorities and has offered few details about what he’ll require in any final legislative packages, like how the proposals should be paid for. The White House also sent conflicting signals about whether the president will send Congress his own legislative blueprints or let lawmakers drive the process. White House chief of staff Reince Priebus told The Associated Press that he expects a health care plan to emerge in “the first few days of March.” Pressed on whether the plan would be coming from the White House, Priebus said, “We don’t work in a vacuum.” On Sunday, White House advisers held a three-hour meeting on health care at Trump’s South Florida club, their third lengthy discussion on the topic in four days. Gary Cohn, the former Goldman Sachs banker now serving as Trump’s top economic adviser, and newly sworn in Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin have been leading talks with Republican lawmakers and business leaders on taxes. Neither man has prior government experience. Republicans long blamed Democrats for blocking efforts to overhaul the nation’s complicated tax code and make changes to the sweeping 2010 health care law signed by President Barack Obama. But with the GOP now in control of both the White House and Congress, making good on those promises rests almost entirely with the president and his party. To some Republicans’ chagrin, both issues were overshadowed during Trump’s first month. The president spent more time publicly fighting the media than selling Americans on his vision for a new health care law. Fresh questions emerged about Trump’s ties to Russia, particularly after national security adviser Michael Flynn was fired for misleading the White House about his conversations with a Russian envoy. The White House botched the rollout of a refugee and immigration executive order, Trump’s most substantive policy initiative to date, and the directive was quickly blocked by the courts. Priebus said the distractions did not slow down work happening behind the scenes on the president’s legislative priorities. “Obviously with the White House staff, you’re able to walk and chew gum at the same time,” Priebus said. “The economic team isn’t screwing around with the legal case and the lawyers aren’t screwing around with tax reform.” One of the biggest questions on Capitol Hill is how involved Trump plans to be in legislative minutia. One GOP leadership aide whose office has been working with the White House described the president as a “big picture guy” and said he expected Trump to defer to Capitol Hill on health care in particular. The aide was not authorized to speak publicly and insisted on anonymity. Priebus said he expects Congress to pass both a tax package and legislation repealing and replacing Obama’s health care law by the end of the year. But the White House’s outward confidence belies major roadblocks on both matters. After spending years criticizing “Obamacare,” Republicans are grappling with how to replace it and pay for a new law. While some lawmakers worry about getting blamed for taking health insurance away from millions of people, others worry the party won’t go far enough in upending the current system. “My worry now is that many people are talking about a partial repeal of Obamacare,” Rep. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said. “If you only repeal part of it and you leave it some sort of Obamacare light, which some are talking about, my fear is the situation actually gets worse.” Trump has said he wants to keep popular provisions like guaranteeing coverage for people with pre-existing medical conditions and allowing young people to stay on their parents’ insurance plans until age 26. He’s also raised the prospect of allowing people to buy insurance across states lines, which is not part of the law. On taxes, Republicans have a potentially more vexing impasse. House Republicans want to scrap the 35 percent tax on corporate profits, which is riddled with exemptions, deductions and credits, and replace it with a “border adjustment tax.” The system would tax all imports coming into the U.S., but exclude exports from taxation. House Speaker Paul Ryan‘s office has been vigorously promoting the idea to Trump, who has called the system “too complicated.” Some House aides have privately voiced optimism that the White House is coming around, though Priebus would only say that border adjustment was “an option we’re all discussing and debating.” The president has said he plans to release a “phenomenal” tax plan in the coming weeks. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
AP, other media ask judge to order release of iPhone records
The Associated Press and two other news organizations asked a judge Monday to force the federal government to reveal how much it paid for a tool to unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino, California, shooters. The news organizations said in a court filing there was “no adequate justification” for the FBI to continue to withhold information on the cost of the tool or the identity of the vendor that sold it. They said their requests were narrowly tailored and, contrary to the arguments of the FBI and Justice Department, did not seek information that would jeopardize national security or be exploited by America’s enemies. “While it is undisputed that the vendor developed the iPhone access tool, the government has identified no rational reason why knowing the vendor’s identity is linked in any way to the substance of the tool, much less how such knowledge would reveal any information about the tool’s application,” lawyers for the news organizations wrote in the filing to the U.S. District Court in Washington. The AP, Vice Media LLC and Gannett, the parent company of USA Today, sued the FBI in September. The news organizations sought to learn more about the mysterious transaction that cut short a legal dispute in which the government won a court order to force Apple Inc. to unlock the work phone of Syed Rizwan Farook, who along with his wife killed 14 people in the December 2015 San Bernardino attack. The FBI had maintained for weeks that only Apple could access the information on its phone, which was protected by encryption, but announced in March that it had ultimately broken or bypassed the company’s digital locks with the help of an unidentified third party. The government has refused to say how it acquired the tool or how much it paid, though FBI Director James Comey dropped a hint in April when he said the cost was more than he would make for the duration of his job— roughly seven years. The Justice Department last month provided some heavily redacted records from the transaction, but withheld critical details that the AP was seeking. The government argued that the information it withheld, if released, could be seized upon by “hostile entities” that could develop their own “countermeasures” and interfere with the FBI’s intelligence gathering. It also said that disclosure “would result in severe damage to the FBI’s efforts to detect and apprehend violators of the United States’ national security and criminal laws through these very activities and methods.” But in their latest court filing, the news organizations said they never sought the sensitive information the FBI has said it wants to protect, such as how the tool worked. They said the government was improperly invoking national security exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act, which they say mandates the release of the information. “Release of this information goes to the very heart of FOIA’s purpose, allowing the public to assess government activity — here, the decision to pay public funds to an outside entity in possession of a tool that can compromise the digital security of millions of Americans,” the lawyers wrote. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
