“Is this who we are?”: Gitmo is America’s enduring shame
March 10th, 20210 “That’s certainly our goal and our intention.” This was the non-committal answer given by White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki when, on February 12, she was asked by a reporter whether the new Joe Biden administration intends to shut down the notorious Guantánamo Bay Prison by the end of the president’s first term in...
Chase Bank to discontinue Chase Pay from merchant apps and websites
March 9th, 20211 Chase Bank is discontinuing its Chase Pay digital wallet service at the end of March, the company announced on its website. The option to pay through Chase Pay will be removed from all merchant apps and websites. JPMorgan Chase & Co says its customers can instead link their Chase credit cards to their preferred shopping sites or...
CDC: Vaccinated people can socialize without masks, distancing
March 8th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced new guidelines that say people who are fully vaccinated — meaning two weeks after they have received the second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the single dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine — can safely gather with friends or family who are...
$1,400 checks will start to go out this month
March 7th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Biden said on Saturday that the U.S. Senate passage of his $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid bill means that $1,400 payments to most Americans will start to go out this month and the bill’s provisions will speed up manufacturing and distribution of vaccines. Biden, speaking at the White House after the...
Biden is on the verge of making the same dangerous mistakes as his predecessors
March 7th, 20210 By Frank Giustra and Andrew Bacevich If the escalating tensions between the United States and China aren't causing you concern yet, you've not been paying attention. Any conflict between the two superpowers would result in unimaginable devastation — if not physical, at least economic. And don't forget: Both China and the United...
Study: Michigan car ownership is the most expensive in the nation
March 6th, 20212 A new study reveals that Michigan is the most expensive state in which to own a car. Michigan residents pay $9,304 annually. They spend $2.37 per gallon of gas, drive an average of 14,121 miles a year, spend $5,740 for insurance coverage and $2,005 on car payments and maintenance. You can find the complete state-by-state report here:...
Activist wins defamation suit brought against her by Israeli soldier over FB post
March 5th, 20213 CALIFORNIA — Palestinian activist Suhair Nafal has won a defamation lawsuit brought against her by a former Israeli soldier who claimed Nafal’s Facebook post objecting to Israeli war crimes defamed and slandered her. The former Israeli soldier, Rebecca Rumshiskaya, sued Nafal in September over a viral Facebook post she published...
Delta employee tells man who missed flight he may have been flagged due to his Muslim name
March 5th, 20212 ST. LOUIS, MO — The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported this week an incident involving a Muslim man who says a Delta Air Lines employee told him he may have missed his flight at the city’s airport because he was flagged for his middle name. Abdallah Mohammed Eid, 28, a St. Louis native, posted a video of his interaction with the...
Senate delays debate on Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 bill while it is read aloud
March 5th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to take up President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid bill, but put off the start of a contentious debate until the full text of the 628-page bill is read aloud. The party-line vote of 51-50, with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie, illustrated that...
Fewer people will receive full $1,400 payments under Senate, Biden deal
March 3rd, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — Under a deal struck with President Biden, Senate Democrats plan to give $1,400 direct payments to fewer Americans, as part of the government's latest COVID-19 relief bill. Under the new agreement: Individuals who make up to $75,000 will still get the full $1,400, while the amount will reduce at incomes above...
Biden’s foreign policy: No joy in Mudville
March 3rd, 20210 By Thomas L. Knapp Well, at least he hasn't started any NEW wars! For four years, that was the excuse I got from anti-war Donald Trump supporters every time he escalated one of the several wars he inherited from George W. Bush and Barack Obama. I expect to start hearing it from anti-war Joseph Biden supporters soon. Trump was...
Biden, Dems, hide behind Senate rules to abandon $15 minimum wage
March 2nd, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Democratic party has effectively abandoned a push to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour as part of President Biden’s coronavirus relief legislation, despite wide popularity of the measure among Americans. Democratic leadership, including Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, said the...
Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine could be in arms within two days
March 1st, 20210 Eligible Americans can expect a shot of the new single-dose Johnson & Johnson (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine in their arms in the next day or two, the company’s CEO said on Monday. “We think literally within the next 24 to 48 hours Americans should start receiving shots in arms," Alex Gorsky, chairman and CEO of J&J, told NBC....
Tlaib reintroduces legislation to end discrimination in car insurance rates
February 28th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — A proposed legislation would end the car insurance industry’s practice of setting higher rates based on income, credit score, education levels and other factors unrelated to driving history and ability. U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) joined two of her colleagues to reintroduce the bill to ensure...
Science puts into question return to in-person learning, despite Democratic push
February 27th, 20210 A study conducted in elementary schools in a Georgia school district shows mask use and social distancing are sometimes inadequate in controlling the spread of the virus in schools. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cited the study this week, just weeks after it said there was little evidence that schools were......
House Dems pass $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill, including $1400 direct payments
February 27th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Democratic controlled House passed a sweeping COVID-19 relief bill early Saturday, by a mostly party-line 219 to 212 vote, and sent it on to the Senate, where Democrats planned a legislative maneuver to allow them to pass it without the support of Republicans. Democrats Kurt Schrader of Oregon and Jared Golden...
Pentagon: U.S. carries out airstrikes against Iraqi militia facilities in eastern Syria
February 26th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Thursday, President Biden ordered U.S. military airstrikes in eastern Syria, on the border with Iraq, against facilities belonging to what the Pentagon described as "Iran-backed militia", in a calibrated response to recent rocket attacks against U.S. targets in Iraq. The strikes appeared to be limited in scope,......
Vaccines begin showing results, new COVID-19 cases decline and flatten
February 26th, 20210 With a third COVID-19 vaccine around the corner, current vaccination efforts have already begun proving effective in curbing the pandemic in the U.S. and the world. A peer-reviewed Israeli study of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine showed the vaccine to be highly effective in preventing symptomatic coronavirus infections under real-world...
D.C. Police chief: Trump supporters want to “blow up” Capitol at State of the Union
February 25th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The acting chief of the U.S. Capitol Police in D.C. testified this week that Trump supporters want to “blow up” the building and kill “as many members as possible” when President Biden delivers his State of the Union address to Congress. The threat come from groups whose members were part of the deadly...
Dingell, dozens of law makers ask Biden for more transparency on U.S. involvement in Yemen war
February 25th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn) is joining dozens of lawmakers in urging transparency from the Biden administration regarding U.S. involvement in the Saudi/UAE-led coalition’s war in Yemen as the U.S. ends its support for "offensive" operations. In a letter expressing their strong support for President...
U.S. Senate confirms former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm as secretary of energy
February 25th, 20210 WASHINGTON D.C. — In a vote of 64-35, the Senate confirmed former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm to be secretary of energy. Granholm was President Biden’s nominee for the role. In recent years, Granholm has taken a deep interest in energy issues and was even considered to be a top candidate for the role had Hillary......
U.S. Supreme Court paves way for release of Trump’s tax returns
February 22nd, 20210 NEW YORK — Donald Trump suffered a major setback on Monday in his long quest to conceal details of his finances as the U.S. Supreme Court paved the way for a New York City prosecutor to obtain the former president's tax returns and other records as part of an accelerating criminal investigation. The justices without comment rebuffed...
Yemenis in the San Joaquin Valley: The embodiment of pride, duty and loyalty
February 22nd, 20210 By Nikhil Misra-Bhambri Most visitors to California, “The Golden State”, are unfamiliar with the large swath of barren farmland covering the state’s entire interior. Among the hardy immigrant laborers working the farms in the interior are a group of men from Yemen who started arriving in the 1950s to flee their nation’s......
Peters, others, call on postmaster general to restore on-time mail delivery
February 19th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, is leading 33 of his colleagues to press the U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to take action on persistent mail delays and ask what he is doing to restore on-time mail delivery. Peters previously released a...
Biden ready to return to Iran nuclear deal; lifts Trump-era sanctions
February 19th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Biden administration, through Secretary of State Antony Blinken, affirmed on Thursday it is willing to come to the negotiation table with Iran over a return to a nuclear accord, if Tehran came into full compliance with the deal. The Iran Nuclear Deal, first struck in 2015, is aimed at preventing the country......
