From the Trenches World Report
Enforce our Bill of Rights
The IRS announced Monday that it plans to start a new private debt-collection program in the spring.
The program was authorized by a transportation funding law enacted last December. Contractors will work on the government’s behalf to collect debts from taxpayers who owe money but whose accounts are no longer being worked on directly by the IRS. Continue reading “IRS set to use private debt collectors”
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The suspect in a Houston, Texas spree shooting has been killed, police said. At least six people sustained injuries. The scene is now “contained,” but residents have been asked to avoid the area.
The Houston Police Department has confirmed “an active shooter situation in a shopping center near the corner of Weslayan and Bissonnet in southwest Houston.” Continue reading “Houston shooting suspect is dead – police”
MEXICO CITY (AP) – Mexican immigration authorities said Saturday they have been hit by a surge of almost 5,000 Haitian, African and Asian migrants entering by the southern border in just a few days.
Recent experience suggests the 4,749 migrants entering through Mexico’s Tapachula immigration center on the Guatemalan border will soon try to reach the California border, with many expected to apply for asylum. Continue reading “Mexico hit by surge of 5K Haitian, African and Asian migrants on their way to the U.S.”
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Washington Post – by Anne Gearan and Sean Sullivan
Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of their first presidential debate, a senior Israeli official and both campaigns said Saturday.
The Israeli prime minister’s office did not provide further details, including whether the meetings were at Netanyahu’s invitation. The separate meetings Sunday in New York will follow Netanyahu’s annual visit to the United Nations General Assembly. The prime minister met with President Obama earlier in the week on the sidelines of the gathering of leaders. Continue reading “Trump, Clinton to meet with Netanyahu on eve of first debate”
The FBI released nearly 200 more pages of documents late today from its investigation into Hillary Clinton‘s use of a private email server, offering further insight into how FBI officials decided that charges were not warranted for the former secretary of state and her aides.
FBI Director James Comey has said repeatedly that while his agency’s investigation found no evidence to indicate Clinton knew classified information was being sent over her home server, the FBI did conclude that Clinton was “extremely careless” in the handling of classified information. Continue reading “FBI Releases 189 More Pages of Hillary Clinton Email Probe Documents”
Two former Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) employees have filed a class action in California seeking $2.6 billion or more for workers who tried to meet aggressive sales quotas without engaging in fraud and were later demoted, forced to resign or fired.
The lawsuit on behalf of people who worked for Wells Fargo in California over the past 10 years, including current employees, focuses on those who followed the rules and were penalized for not meeting sales quotas. Continue reading “Former employees file class action against Wells Fargo”
President Barack Obama on Friday vetoed legislation allowing families of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks to sue Saudi Arabia, which could prompt Congress to overturn his decision with a rare veto override, the first of his presidency.
Obama said the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act would hurt U.S. national security and harm important alliances, while shifting crucial terrorism-related issues from policy officials into the hands of the courts. Continue reading “Obama vetoes Sept. 11 Saudi bill, sets up showdown with Congress”
Washington Post – by David Nakamura
The Obama administration’s efforts to stem the flow of Central American migrants illegally crossing into the United States have largely failed two years after a border crisis prompted President Obama to order an emergency response.
The number of families and unaccompanied minors arriving in 2016 is on pace to exceed the total in 2014, when U.S. Border Patrol stations were overwhelmed along the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. They are coming primarily from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, an area sometimes called the Northern Triangle. Continue reading “Flow of Central Americans to U.S. surging, expected to exceed 2014 numbers”
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Clinton’s former chief of staff, Cheryl Mills, and two other staff members were granted immunity deals in exchange for their cooperation in the now-closed FBI investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server as secretary of state, says a Republican congressman.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, told The Associated Press on Friday that Mills gave federal investigators access to her laptop on the condition that what they found couldn’t be used against her. Continue reading “GOP lawmaker: FBI gave immunity to top Clinton aide”
YERUSHALAYIM – In a speech that mixed scorn, defiance and a surprising optimism, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday that the U.N. has become a “moral farce” but that the situation is rapidly changing for the better.
“The U.N. began as a moral force, and has become a moral farce,” Netanyahu said, citing the “obsession” with criticizing and condemning Israel at the international body. He noted that the U.N. passed 20 resolutions against Israel, and three against “the rest of the countries on the planet.” Continue reading “Netanyahu Predicts Bright Future for Israel at U.N.”
A Southern California elementary school student has been found to have leprosy, public health officials said Thursday, though they emphasize that the student’s school and community remain safe.
Two children from Indian Hills Elementary School in Jurupa Valley had initially been diagnosed by a local doctor with the condition known medically as Hansen’s disease, Riverside County health officials said. But this week they received results from the National Hansen’s Disease Laboratory Research Program in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and they showed that only one of the children had tested positive. Continue reading “Southern California Child Tests Positive for Leprosy”
Drivers from Tennessee and Georgia to New Jersey may soon breathe a collective sigh of relief as service is restored on Colonial Pipeline, cutting gasoline prices that have surged following a leak on the key line.
Still, the 12-day disruption on Colonial, the main artery that flows about 1.3 million barrels per day of fuel from the refining hub on the Gulf Coast to cities all the way up to the East Coast illustrates the impact even a relatively brief disruption can have on gasoline prices. Continue reading “Gasoline shortages highlight U.S. dependence on Colonial pipeline”
Rebel-held areas of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo saw the heaviest air strikes in months overnight, activists say, as a week-old truce collapsed.
An AFP news agency journalist reported that his entire street in the Bustan al-Qasr district was left burning after warplanes dropped incendiary bombs.
At least seven people, including three children, are believed to have died. Continue reading “Syria conflict: Warplanes set rebel-held Aleppo ablaze”
Washington Post – by Elise Viebeck
A House committee on Thursday is expected to begin the process of holding a former Hillary Clinton aide in contempt of Congress for his failure to appear before the panel under subpoena.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee announced it will mark up a contempt of Congress resolution if the ex-State Department aide, Bryan Pagliano, does not attend its 10 a.m. hearing to testify about his role in setting up Clinton’s private email server in 2009. Continue reading “House panel expected to move forward with contempt resolution against Clinton aide”
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon State Police trooper testified a government informant was driving Ammon Bundy when the Oregon standoff leader was arrested on his way to a community meeting north of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
Trooper Jeremiah Beckert said Wednesday that informant Mark McConnell alerted police that Bundy and other occupiers were traveling Jan. 26 and provided their location. Continue reading “Trooper: Driver for refuge occupier a government informant”
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Republicans in critical down-ballot races are taking a page from the Democrats’ playbook: They are talking up gun control measures.
Republican incumbents have faced increasing pressure from both their Democratic opponents and colleagues in the Senate to act on gun control legislation, particularly in the wake of several mass shootings that have occurred since late last year. Continue reading “Swing-state Republicans play up efforts for gun control laws”