The Senate approved a sweeping $1.1 trillion spending bill Saturday night to fund most of the federal government through the next fiscal year.
A small group of conservatives, led by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), had tried to block debate on the bill by raising concerns with Obama’s immigration policy, forcing a marathon weekend session. The move infuriated their colleagues, particularly Republicans who complained that forcing senators to stay in session produced nothing positive for the GOP and only helped Democrats in their bid to approve a final batch of Obama’s nominees for government posts.
Read More...
|
|
|
President Obama's unilateral executive action on immigration will make hundreds of thousands, perhaps more than a million, illegal immigrants eligible for federal transfer payments. That will be done primarily through two widely used programs — the Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC, and the Additional Child Tax Credit, or ACTC.
As it turns out, those two programs are already among the most corrupt and fraud-ridden in the entire federal government. A newly-released report from the inspector general of the Internal Revenue Service confirms that the EITC is plagued by fraud (which was already well known) and also reveals for the first time that the ACTC is even worse.
The two programs, intended for low-income workers, are what is known as refundable tax credits. That means they give workers a tax refund that is larger than their tax liability. So a family with a tax bill of $1,000 might receive an EITC "refund" of $5,000, meaning the family doesn't write a check to the government but rather receives a check from the government. The ACTC works similarly for low-income workers with children.
Supported by both political parties over the years, the programs were intended to encourage work and strengthen families. Their growth has been extraordinary in recent years — payments increased 40 percent from 2007 to 2012 alone. And now both are beset by staggering levels of fraud.
Read More...
|
|
|
Western Journalism has extensively reported on MIT economist and Obamacare consultant Jonathan Gruber since several statements he made regarding the secretive nature of that law’s passage became public last month.
Gruber appeared before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Tuesday to answer questions about those remarks, which included his reference to “the stupidity of the American voter” as an integral factor in enacting Obamacare. He also cited a “lack of transparency” during the bill’s drafting phase as a “huge political advantage.”
South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy questioned Gruber in an attempt to determine exactly what motivated the professor to make such comments.
“Do you think not being a politician is a defense?” Gowdy asked. “Is that your defense this morning?”
Read More...
|
|
|
 |
American hostage Luke Somers,
|
President Barack Obama has "strongly condemned the barbaric murder" of U.S. hostage Luke Somers, a photojournalist, by al Qaeda terrorists during a secret rescue operation by American commandos and the Yemeni government. A South African hostage, Pierre Korkie, was also fatally shot during the operation.
Korkie, a teacher, was to be freed Sunday, as the relief group Gift of the Givers was helping secure his release. However, the U.S. wasn't aware of the ongoing negotiations for his release, and Washington was given three days by the al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula to comply with unspecified demand, according to CNN.
President Obama ordered Friday's mission because "there were compelling reasons to believe Mr. Somers' life was in imminent danger," Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel was quoted as explaining.
Read More...
|
|
|
A second night of demonstrations over the chokehold death of unarmed black man Eric Garner swept America on Thursday, with people protesting over the grand jury decision not to indict the white police officer involved in his death. NYC Police Commissioner Bill Bratton has meanwhile claimed that policing is "under attack" in the wake of the protests, and that police officers feel that they are "under assault."
Reuters reported that the protests in New York and other U.S. cities began during the evening rush hour, with people marching on the streets and bringing traffic to a near-standstill.
Close to 3,000 people congregated at New York's Time Square close to midnight, chanting: "Who do you protect?" at hundreds of police officers. Some of the demonstrators were reportedly shoved on to the sidewalks by officers, while dozens were arrested.
Read More...
|
|
|
While many Americans were out buying Christmas presents on "Black Friday," the U.S. national debt surpassed $18 trillion.
According to the official numbers released by the U.S. Treasury Department, at the end of the workday on Friday, the total national debt was $18,005,549,328,561.45
According to usdebtclock.org, which maintains a rolling estimate of the national debt based upon the official numbers released by the U.S. Treasury Department, the current debt amounts to $56,369 for each U.S. citizen, or $153,729 for each U.S. taxpayer. Current federal tax revenue is about $3.1 trillion.
Read More...
|
|
|
Counterterrorism officials in the U.S. and the United Kingdom have been quietly discussing an outright ban on hand-carried luggage aboard airplanes for weeks now in the wake of intelligence reports that suggest al-Qaida may be planning to target planes around Europe before the Christmas holidays.
The Express newspaper reported that U.K. officials have intelligence that suggests al-Qaida has been planning a high-profile attack on five commercial flights sometime before Christmas. U.S. officials confirmed to NPR that they had been aware of the threat but could not say how far the plot had progressed and whether revealing it publicly now makes it less likely.
The plot, the U.K. newspaper reports and U.S. officials confirm, is thought to involve the smuggling of bombs onto planes bound for major cities in Europe. The plan did not seem to include any U.S.-bound flights, U.S. officials told NPR.
Read More...
|
|
|
