The Oregonian – by Gordon R Freidman

The Oregon Court of Appeals on Thursday upheld a decision by Oregon’s labor commissioner that forced two Gresham bakers to pay $135,000 to a lesbian couple for whom the bakers refused to make a wedding cake.

Melissa and Aaron Klein made national headlines in 2013 when they refused to bake a cake for Rachel and Laurel Bowman-Cryer, citing their Christian beliefs. The Bowman-Cryers complained to the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, saying they had been refused service because of their sexual orientation.   Continue reading “Appeals court upholds fine against Christian bakers who refused to make same-sex wedding cake”

The Guardian

Donald Trump on Thursday said he was “very disappointed that China is allowing oil to go into North Korea” and said such moves would prevent “a friendly solution” to the crisis over Pyongyang’s nuclear program.

Earlier, China said there had been no sanction-breaking oil transfers between Chinese ships and North Korean vessels, of the kind described by a South Korea newspaper, Chosun Ilbo, which said spy satellites had detected 30 instances of such transfers since October.   Continue reading “Trump ‘very disappointed’ in China over alleged oil supplies to North Korea”

The Oregonian – by Maxine Bernstein

In a July 5 email, Ryan Payne’s lawyers asked prosecutors for copies of all threat assessments prepared before the April 2014 standoff between Cliven Bundy’s supporters and federal officers trying to impound Bundy’s cattle for years of failing to pay grazing fees and fines.

Prosecutors characterized the defendants’ continued push for the assessments as another in their “long list of frivolous and vexatious pleadings.”   Continue reading “Unsealed motions in NV Bundy case detail prosecution’s violations”

Fox News

A U.S. Border Patrol agent was wounded after being struck by a bullet fired from Mexico, authorities said Wednesday.

The agent, whose name was not released, was shot from the Mexican side of the Rio Grande River near Brownsville where he was assigned to patrol it by boat, according to the Brownsville Herald.   Continue reading “Border Patrol agent wounded from bullet shot from Mexican side, agency says”

The New American – by Dave Bohon

Continuing his efforts to make California a “sanctuary state” for illegal immigrants, California Governor Jerry Brown pardoned two convicted felons December 23 who were slated to be deported back to their native Cambodia. Brown’s actions bring to 150 the number of immigrant criminals he has either pardoned or whose sentences he has commuted to prevent their ejection from the United States in sweeps by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service.

The two men, 39-year-old Mony Neth and Rottanak Kong, 42, came to the United States as children when their parents fled the communist Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia. Kong was convicted of felony joyriding in 2003 and Neth was convicted in 1995 on a felony weapons charge with a gang enhancement.   Continue reading “California Governor Pardons Felons Set for Deportation”

Bloomberg – by Tom Metcalf and Jack Witzig

The richest people on earth became $1 trillion richer in 2017, more than four times last year’s gain, as stock markets shrugged off economic, social and political divisions to reach record highs.

The 23 percent increase on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a daily ranking of the world’s 500 richest people, compares with an almost 20 percent increase for both the MSCI World Index and Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.   Continue reading “World’s Wealthiest Became $1 Trillion Richer in 2017”

Bloomberg

China’s imports of liquefied natural gas from the U.S. jumped last month as the country snatched up a record volume of the fuel to meet surging demand for heating and industrial use.

Shipments from the U.S. totaled 407,325 metric tons in November, up from nothing the same month a year earlier and 57 percent from October, placing one of the world’s newest LNG sellers as the third-biggest supplier to China, behind stalwarts Australia and Qatar.  Continue reading “U.S. Gas Sales to China Boom as Buyers Seek to Avoid Pinch”

Yahoo News

NEW YORK (AP) — Three large U.S. cities filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against the Department of Defense, arguing that many service members who are disqualified from gun ownership weren’t reported to the national background check system.

New York City, San Francisco and Philadelphia said in court papers that the military’s broken system for relaying such information helped spur the massacre of 26 people inside a Texas church last month.   Continue reading “Cities sue Defense Dept. over gun-check system failures”

Fox News

A Pennsylvania family was ordered by their homeowner’s association to take down their Jesus Christmas display after one of the neighbors reported it as offensive.

Mark and Lynn Wivell of Adams County, a Gettysburg subdivision, said they put up their Jesus display last Saturday, FOX43 reported.

“As part of our Christmas decoration, we would display the name Jesus to point out to everyone that we in this family believe that the reason for the season is to celebrate the birth of Jesus,” said Mark Wivell told FOX43.   Continue reading “Pennsylvania family ordered to take down Jesus Christmas display after neighbor said it was ‘offensive’”

Yahoo News

Bitcoin has been on a tear this past year with the value of the cryptocurrency jumping from $8,000 to nearly $20,000. Well that run hit an abrupt end today as the price crashed as much as 23 percent on Coinbase. The price briefly dipped below $12,000 on some exchanges at around 7:30 am London time.

The drop — which wiped more than $4,000 from the value of bitcoin at one point — was the highest percentage loss of value that bitcoin has seen this year. The cryptocurrency was valued at just $998 on January 1 2017 and it soared to a record high of nearly $20,000 on some exchanges earlier this week.   Continue reading “Bitcoin and almost every other cryptocurrency crashed hard today”

The Hill

President Trump on Friday signed the sweeping Republican tax bill into law, enacting his first major legislative accomplishment since winning the White House.

Trump spoke at length during the signing, thanking Republicans in Congress for getting the legislation to his desk and predicting it would help the economy.

“It’s going to be a tremendous thing for the American people. It’s going to be fantastic for the economy,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “It’s going to keep companies from leaving our shores and opening up in other countries.”   Continue reading “Trump signs tax bill into law”

Las Vegas Sun

Metro Police said one of their captains who had been reported missing earlier today has been found.

Capt. James LaRochelle had last been seen about 2 a.m. driving a tan Land Rover near Desert Foothills Drive and Charleston Boulevard, police said.   Continue reading “Las Vegas police captain reported missing found safe”

The Hill – by Josh Delk

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have signed off on a plan to separate families who are caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, officials close to discussions on the proposal told The New York Times.

Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen has final approval power, however, and officials told the newspaper that she has yet to sign off on the plan. The White House favors the proposed policy, the newspaper reported.   Continue reading “ICE approves plan to separate families at border: report”

Reuters

TOKYO, Dec 22 (Reuters) – Japan’s liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) imports from the United States are expected to double in 2017 to a record and account for around for around half of its total purchases, government and shipping data showed.

The surge comes as shale oil and gas output lifts overall U.S. production to rival that of Saudi Arabia and Russia.   Continue reading “US LPG exports to Japan seen setting record in 2017”

Fresno Bee – by Jim Guy

Fresno and Madera County law officers are now investigating up to 10 shootings in which drivers are randomly fired upon, officials said Thursday.

Detectives are looking for a dark-colored, four-wheel-drive pickup with oversize tires and an extended or crew cab, Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims said during a news conference Thursday morning. She was joined at the conference by Madera County Sheriff Jay Varney and California Highway Patrol Capt. Eric Johnson, commander for the Fresno area. Valley Crime Stoppers also upped the reward to $3,000 for anyone who provides information leading to an arrest.   Continue reading “Someone driving a big pickup is believed to be randomly shooting at drivers”

Nextrush Free

There was word from Washington late Wednesday that Attorney General Jeff Sessions has ordered an expert on discovery evidence to review the Bunkerville case and advise the next step or steps.

A spokesman for the Justice Department says “the Justice Department takes this issue very seriously”.   Continue reading “Bunkerville Standoff: Attorney General Sending Expert To Advise Next Step”

Department of Justice

President Trump’s Executive Order on Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to collect relevant data and provide quarterly reports on data collection efforts. On Dec. 18, 2017, DOJ and DHS released the FY 2017 4th Quarter Alien Incarceration Report, complying with this order.[1]  The report found that more than one-in-five of all persons in Bureau of Prisons custody were foreign born, and that 94 percent of confirmed aliens in custody were unlawfully present.   Continue reading “Departments of Justice and Homeland Security Release Data on Incarcerated Aliens—94 Percent of All Confirmed Aliens in DOJ Custody Are Unlawfully Present”

The Guardian – by Peter Beaumont

The United Nations general assembly has delivered a stinging rebuke to Donald Trump, voting by a huge majority to reject his unilateral recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

The vote came after a redoubling of threats by Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, who said that Washington would remember which countries “disrespected” America by voting against it.   Continue reading “UN votes resoundingly to reject Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as capital”

Washington Examiner – by Anna Giaritelli

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has directed the Justice Department to interview FBI agents about evidence in a previous investigation into a foreign uranium deal that may have been connected to Bill and Hillary Clinton, according to a report published Thursday morning.

The interviews come a month after Congress asked Sessions to look into whether a second special counsel should be opened to investigate what has become known as the Uranium One deal, one Justice official told NBC News.   Continue reading “FBI agents who probed Uranium One deal now under Justice Department scrutiny”