Fiat Chrysler has announced that it is laying off 1,300 workers at its Sterling Heights, Michigan plant.
Category: Money
Fmr Obama Defense Secretaries: There Was ‘Micromanagement,’ ‘Overcorrection,’ Lack of Fundamental Understanding In WH
Former Defense Secretaries Robert Gates, Leon Panetta, and Chuck Hagel criticized the Obama administration’s “operational micromanagement”, “cautiousness and overcorrection, which makes it appear that the United States is hesitant to take action”, and lack of understanding of “the tremendous responsibility the United States has” in interviews for the “Rising Threats: Shrinking Military” special that were broadcast on Wednesday’s “Special Report” on the Fox News Channel. Gates said, “It was the operational micromanagement that drove me nuts. Of, White House and NSC staffers calling senior commanders out in the field and asking them questions, of second-guessing commanders.” And “When I was Deputy National Security Advisor, if I would have tried to, even as deputy, if I had tried to call a field commander, going around Dick Cheney, who was Secretary of Defense, or Colin Powell, who was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, I’d have had my head handed to me, probably personally by the president.” Gates added that he “told the combatant commanders…If you get calls from the White House staff, you get a call from the president, that’s one thing. That’s totally okay. That’s the chain of command. But you get a call from one — some White House or
Bernie on Fire: Hillary Should Apologize to Iraq War Victims, Americans Who Lost Jobs Due to Bad Trade Deals
On Wednesday, a fiery Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) reportedly said Hillary Clinton should apologize to the victims of the Iraq War and Americans who lost their jobs due to bad trade deals that Clinton supported. According to CBS News, Sanders made his remarks after reporters pressed him about calls for him to apologize to Sandy Hook victims. A fiery Sanders said @HillaryClinton might also want to apologize to people who lost their jobs due to trade deals she supported. — Nancy Cordes (@nancycordes) April 6, 2016 Asked @BernieSanders abt calls for him to apologize to Sandy Hook victims. He said maybe @HillaryClinton shld apologize to Iraq War victims. — Nancy Cordes (@nancycordes) April 6, 2016 When Sanders again told the New York Daily News recently that victims of gun violence should not be able to sue gun manufactures, a daughter of one of the Sandy Hook victims said Sanders should apologize for “putting the gun lobby above our families.” The Clinton campaign has been politicizing the tragedy to highlight Sanders’s weaknesses with the left on gun control issues.
Chart of the Week: Why Congress Needs to Act on the Zika Virus
For months now, Americans who have been traveling or reading news reports have heard about the risk posed by the Zika virus, particularly those posed to pregnant women. In early January, President Obama convened his top advisors to formulate a proactive response to this epidemic — including working closely with state and local elected officials, non-profits, health experts, and disease experts — to contain and prevent the spread of the virus.
In February, he asked Congress to support these efforts by providing $1.9 billion in emergency funding to combat Zika by supporting mosquito control, disease detection and testing, vaccine development, and support for maternal women’s health.
And since the President made that request, we’ve learned more concerning facts about this disease:
- Sexual transmission of the virus is more common than initially believed
- The impact on fetal brain development is likely starker and more serious than first understood
- In the U.S., the geographical range of the particular mosquito that transmits Zika far exceeds our initial estimation
The Center for Disease Control has laid out an estimated range of the mosquitos that carry this disease in the United States this year. And while this map is not meant to represent risk for spread of the Zika virus, it shows where people may come into contact with the kinds of mosquitos that could be carrying this disease.
We find ourselves in a rare moment where we have advance warning on a disease, and the likely birth defects that are associated with it, will be arriving in the U.S. Governors, state and local leaders are already working with us to get ahead of this threat.
However, Congress continues to do nothing about the emergency funding. Because we cannot continue to fund a robust response to this disease without adequate resources, particularly for our partners in state and local government who will bear much of this burden, we are re-programming nearly $600 million of existing funds to address Ebola to help support our Zika response.
This is not nearly enough to protect us from the significant threat posed by Zika. It’s a temporary fix, and not a long-term solution.
As our Director of Management and Budget Shaun Donovan said this morning:
“Without the full amount of requested emergency supplemental funding, many activities that need to start now would have to be delayed, or curtailed or stopped, within months. For example, without supplemental funding, testing and manufacturing of vaccine candidates beyond the earliest stages of clinical trials would not be possible. In addition, lack of supplemental funding would prevent us from developing platform technologies for vaccine candidates for this Zika response and from accelerating the response to emerging infectious diseases in the future.
Absent supplemental funding, we will need to delay contracting with manufacturers for the development of faster and more accurate diagnostic tests, which are needed to ensure that those who think they have been exposed to Zika can get tested. In particular, there is a critical need for point-of-care diagnostics that are faster and do not require laboratory capacity. Similarly, starting mosquito surveillance and control activities now, prior to the summer months which are peak season for mosquitoes, and prior to the start of the rainy season in Central America and the Caribbean, is prudent.”
As it gets warmer, the reach of these mosquitos will increase, and the need for a robust response will be more and more urgent. We have the opportunity to do get ahead of this epidemic, but Congress needs to do its part.
Who Funds Bitcoin Core Development? How the Industry Supports Bitcoin’s ‘Reference Client’
Funding Bitcoin development seems to have always been problematic. While the Bitcoin industry collectively has raised more than a billion…
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Levin on ‘Stop Trump’ Supporters Voting for Hillary or Staying Home: ‘Frauds,’ ‘Fakes,’ ‘Asinine,’ ‘Buffoons’
Tuesday on his radio show, conservative talker Mark Levin discussed the so-called “Rule 40” of the Republican National Convention and how it could impact the outcome of the GOP’s presidential nominating process at the RNC in Cleveland in July. Levin argued the rule was not specific as to when it was applied and also noted there were some questions as to how it would impact the vice-presidential nominating process. However, he touted Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) as being the candidate that would adhere to the rules of the convention and said following rules, despite what Cruz’s opponents, be it GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump or anyone in the so-called “Stop Trump” movement, may lobby for in terms of rule changes, was essential for the process. He was particularly critical of those in the “Stop Trump” movement that would opt not to vote, or to vote for Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton, should the general election match-up be Clinton versus Trump. “Now those people out there, those people out there who are saying ‘stop Trump,’ I can understand ‘stop Trump’ in a primary process,” Levin said. “But stop Trump or you’ll vote for Hillary? Stop Trump or you won’t vote at
Levin on ‘Stop Trump’ Supporters Voting for Hillary or Staying Home: ‘Frauds,’ ‘Fakes,’ ‘Asinine,’ ‘Buffoons’
Tuesday on his radio show, conservative talker Mark Levin discussed the so-called “Rule 40” of the Republican National Convention and how it could impact the outcome of the GOP’s presidential nominating process at the RNC in Cleveland in July. Levin argued the rule was not specific as to when it was applied and also noted there were some questions as to how it would impact the vice-presidential nominating process. However, he touted Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) as being the candidate that would adhere to the rules of the convention and said following rules, despite what Cruz’s opponents, be it GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump or anyone in the so-called “Stop Trump” movement, may lobby for in terms of rule changes, was essential for the process. He was particularly critical of those in the “Stop Trump” movement that would opt not to vote, or to vote for Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton, should the general election match-up be Clinton versus Trump. “Now those people out there, those people out there who are saying ‘stop Trump,’ I can understand ‘stop Trump’ in a primary process,” Levin said. “But stop Trump or you’ll vote for Hillary? Stop Trump or you won’t vote at
Hillary Clinton Rages Against China During AFL-CIO Speech
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is vowing to get tough on China if she is elected president.
Overstock Invests in Bitt to Launch Official Digital Currencies in the Caribbean Islands
Overstock announced a strategic investment in Bitt, a Caribbean-based fintech company whose goal is to persuade Caribbean island nations to…
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