Wed, December 18, 2024

by: Sydney Morning Herald

Albanese has taken hits but isn't a terrible PM. Cut him some slack

Despite the media pile-on, it has not been a terrible first-term government. The Labor leader brings substance to the job and is moving Australia forward after years of inaction.

by: Sky News Australia

There is a 'significant increase' in government expenditure

Australian Industry Group Chief Executive Innes Willox says there is a "significant increase" in government expenditure. This comes after Treasurer Jim Chalmers delivered the government's Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) for 2024-25.

by: Fox Business

LARRY KUDLOW: There is no growth strategy right now in the political system

FOX Business host Larry Kudlow says it is no wonder why "stocks are falling day after day" as he analyzes the state of the American economy on "Kudlow."

by: France 24

Musk's possible meddling in UK politics stirs concern

Concerns are growing in the UK as tech billionaire Elon Musk takes an increasingly close interest in Britain's political scene, appearing to cosy up to hard-right firebrand lawmaker Nigel Farage.

by: The New York Times

Transition Live Updates: Trump Denounces Spending Deal as Shutdown Looms

President-elect Donald J. Trump tapped Herschel Walker on Tuesday to be the U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas. Mr. Walker is a longtime Trump ally and former football star who generated national headlines in his failed run for a Senate seat in Georgia in 2022. Read more ›

by: Time

Bipartisan Government Funding Plan Collapses After Trump Intervenes Days Before Shutdown

"Republicans need to stop playing politics," said the White House Press Secretary ... Trump is looking for Johnson to pass a debt ceiling extension some 48 hours before a partial government shutdown. Meanwhile, the bipartisan package that Trump ...

by: Detroit Free Press

Why the Biden administration is selling border wall materials

Surplus border wall materials are being auctioned, sparking debate over border security and federal resource management.

by: FOX59 News

Massie drops colorful analogy opposing foreign aid, mocks Speaker Johnson with AI-generated image

Thomas Massie likened U.S. foreign aid to an individual watering their neighbor's yard while their own house burns, and illustrated his point with an AI image of Speaker Mike Johnson.

by: The New York Times

Trump Criticizes Spending Deal, Pushing Congress Toward a Shutdown

The president-elect weighed in against the mammoth spending package after Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy had spent the day attacking it and warning Republicans not to support it.

by: NJ.com

Trump ally Elon Musk amps up efforts to torpedo spending bill

The spending deal was met with swift backlash from conservatives in the House, with many Republicans lamenting the bill for including large amounts of spending. Musk, a close advisor of President-elect Donald Trump, tried to torpedo the bill starting early Wednesday morning in a flurry of posts to social media platform X.

by: FOX59 News

'Pattern of disregard': Red states seek court action against Biden admin's 'shameful' border wall disposal

Texas' General Land Office is pushing for action on what it says is a "shameful" disposal of border wall materials by the federal government from a district court.

by: thenightly

LATIKA M BOURKE: The sad and sorry saga of the Australian Embassy in Kyiv under Penny Wong

Labor's decision to reopen the embassy, on the eve of the federal election and nearly three years after the war began, is as unforgivably late as their buffet of implausible excuses.

by: ABC

Social Security Fairness Act clears Senate procedural hurdle, on path for final passage

In a final lame-duck push, the Senate will attempt to pass legislation aimed at providing full Social Security benefits to millions of Americans this week.

by: Modern Healthcare

Trump says he opposes stopgap government spending bill

President-elect Donald Trump — just days before federal funding is set to expire — said he wants lawmakers to also include an increase to the debt ceiling in the package

by: News Tribune

Meet Simone Carter, McClatchy's new Washington state government reporter

Reporter Simone Carter, a Texas native who previously worked for the Dallas Observer and Newsweek, has joined The Olympian to cover Washington state government for the state capital's newspaper as well as McClatchy's three other sites in the state.

by: Business Insider

Elon Musk bashes Congress' government funding bill

House Speaker Mike Johnson said he spoke with Musk about his displeasure Tuesday night, though the DOGE cohead said on X that the bill shouldn't pass.

by: The New York Times

Trump's Criticism of Spending Deal Raises Fears of Government Shutdown

The president-elect weighed in against the mammoth spending package after Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy had spent the day attacking it and warning Republicans not to support it.

by: The Daily Signal

Trump, Vance Throw Curveball Into Spending Fight as Hill Scrambles to Fund Government

The continuing resolution to avoid a government shutdown by funding the government until March is not being received well on Capitol Hill.

by: NBC News

Trump opposes funding bill, pushing government closer to a shutdown

Elon Musk joined a wave of right-wing fury against a bill to keep the government open. Now, the president-elect says he wants big changes too before this weekend's deadline.

by: BizPac Review

'This is an early test': Ramaswamy dissects 1,500 pg. spending bill, says it 'should fail'

DOGE is getting a test run as Vivek Ramaswamy read all 1,500+ pages of a spending bill and then gave his advice.

by: ABC

Editorial Roundup: United States

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad: Dec. 12 The Washington Post says Joe Biden shouldn't use preemptive pardons

by: The New York Times

Inside a Huge Spending Deal: Disaster Money, a Football Stadium and More

The mammoth year-end federal funding measure congressional leaders agreed on does far more than just keep the government running. It is stuffed with all manner of policy and other changes.

by: Mother Jones

Trump's Billionaire Cabinet Is Unprecedented

The president-elect has tapped five reported billionaires for cabinet posts: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum for interior secretary, hedge funder Scott Bessent for treasury secretary, Cantor Fitzgerald chief Howard Lutnick for commerce secretary,

by: PBS

Senate defense bill to raise troop pay and bar trans care for minors to receive final vote

Lawmakers said those were key to improving the quality of life of service members at a time when many military families rely on food banks and other government assistance programs to make ends meet. "It includes major quality of life improvements ...

by: Governing

Who Depends Most on Washington? Rural Counties That Voted Heavily for Trump

More than anything it's the simple result of Americans growing older, a fact of life we haven't come to grips with politically.

by: The Daily Telegraph

Scottish Labour leader attacks Starmer's 'deeply disappointing' Waspi women decision

Russell Findlay, the Scottish Tory leader, said: "Anas Sarwar thought he would stroll into Bute House in 2026, but Sir Keir Starmer is wrecking Scottish Labour's campaign by breaking every promise he made before the general election and betraying pensioners, farmers, businesses and workers."

by: USA Today

Larry Bucshon says he's figured out his post-Congress career

It's a well-worn and not necessarily surprising path 8th District Rep. Larry Bucshon will follow when he leaves Congress next month after 14 years.

by: ktvq

Congress would get pay raise if lawmakers pass government funding bill

If the funding bill passes, members of Congress could receive a raise of up to 3.8%, or about $6,600 annually. Congress has to pass the bill, which also includes $100 billion for disaster relief, before Saturday to avoid a partial government shutdown.

by: Sydney Morning Herald

Why my bosses are both out of a job. But spa builders are doing OK

What's in a job title? Everything, if your job just happened to disappear as part of a major revamp by the bureau of statistics of the nation's thousands of occupations.

by: The Hill

Congress strikes deal to avert government shutdown

Congressional leaders have struck a bipartisan deal to keep the government funded beyond a looming Dec. 20 shutdown deadline. Legislation rolled out by leadership on Tuesday would kick the Friday

by: Yahoo News UK

Why has Elon Musk met Nigel Farage and what could it mean for Reform UK?

The billionaire owner of X is reportedly keen to influence UK politics, but would the current rules allow him to?

by: WLRN

'Culture for Service and Service for Humanity': Phi Beta Sigma Way touches down in Miami Gardens

The City of Miami Gardens will rename a section of Northwest 191st Street "Phi Beta Sigma Way" on Dec. 19. The Rho Sigma Chapter, established in 1927, has played a pivotal role in South Florida, advocating for education and social justice.

by: MSN

A Guide to Some of the Key Movers and Influencers in Trump's Orbit

Feature / While showboats like Elon Musk and RFK Jr. get all the attention, the real power in a second Trump term is likely to be wielded by quietly effective bureaucrats and policy intellectuals like these men and women.

by: The Daily Mirror

Map shows how many WASPI women missed out in your area and how much they would have got

Keir Starmer faces fury over Labour's decision to reject compensation for over 3.5million women in spite of a bombshell watchdog report calling for payouts of nearly £3,000

by: BBC

Badenoch attacks PM over 'cruel' Winter Fuel Payment cuts in final PMQs of year

by: KXXV News Channel 25

Texas school districts asked to return $16 million in federal funding for special education services

The request comes after an audit found Texas improperly billed the federal government for reimbursements related to Medicaid-eligible students.

by: WESA

Pa. casts 19 Electoral College votes for Donald Trump

Pennsylvania's 19 Republican electors submitted ballots in support of President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance on Tuesday at the state Capitol in Harrisburg. The largely ceremonial vote brings the country one step closer to a nationwide congressional certification in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6.

by: The Scranton Times-Tribune

Musk and Trump are viewed roughly the same by Americans, new poll finds

Musk's attachment to Trump has created an alliance between America's most powerful politician and its richest businessman — and roughly the same percentages of Americans have favorable views of each, according to a new poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

by: MSN

Biden Slaps Down Trump and Explains the Mystery Drones

President Joe Biden on Tuesday made his first public comments about recent reports of unexplained drone sightings in the northeast. Asked by reporters what was behind the drones, Biden answered: "Nothing nefarious,

by: MSN

The president has a right to confidential and intelligence funds

I HAVE been accused by Duterte loyalists, both of the ex-president and the incumbent vice president, of being a blind apologist of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Someone even alleged that among political analysts and columnists,

by: MSN

Trump team to reverse Biden EV and emissions initiatives -report

The transition team's recommendations include bolstering measures to block automotive imports from China and imposing global tariffs on battery materials.

by: MSN

Keir Starmer, David Lammy and Ed Miliband are begging you to punish Labour Party

As the Labour Party breaks yet another promise, it's worth reminding us that the betrayal of WASPI women isn't the only thing we should remember.

by: MSN

China has expanded its nuclear force and strengthened ties to Russia, the Pentagon says

China is expanding its nuclear force, has increased military pressure against Taiwan and has strengthened its ties with Russia over the past year, according to a Pentagon report Wednesday that details actions accelerating key areas of conflict with the United States.

by: MSN

House reverses course and plans to release Matt Gaetz ethics report

House reverses course and plans to release Matt Gaetz ethics report - Now-former congressman at center of years-long probe into allegations of sexual misconduct

by: MSN

Gov. Holcomb's tenure: Growth, controversy and future plans

News had a final sit-down interview with Holcomb, reflecting on the past eight years and looking forward to the future.

by: MSN

Trump says U.S. government "knows" where mysterious NJ drones came from

President-elect Donald Trump said the federal government knows where the drones spotted over New Jersey originated from, but he didn't offer evidence to support the claim.

by: syracuse.com

Congress unveils funding deal with more than $100 billion in disaster aid

Washington — Congressional leaders have unveiled a stopgap spending bill that will keep the federal government funded through March 14 and provide more than $100 billion in emergency aid to help states and local communities recover from Hurricanes Helene and Milton and other natural disasters.

by: Daily Express

Lee Anderson's scathing two-word attack on Keir Starmer after PM 'told lies to pensioners'

The outspoken Reform MP spoke out as details Labour backtracking on pledges to pensioners and WASPI women have emerged.

'This is an early test': Ramaswamy dissects 1,500 pg. spending bill, says it 'should fail'

DOGE is getting a test run as Vivek Ramaswamy read all 1,500+ pages of a spending bill and then gave his advice.

The article from BizPac Review discusses entrepreneur and 2024 presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy's critique of a 1,500-page spending bill. Ramaswamy, who has been vocal about his opposition to what he perceives as excessive government spending, argues that the bill, which was released late at night with a short deadline for review, exemplifies the dysfunction in Washington. He points out that the bill contains numerous earmarks and lacks transparency, making it nearly impossible for legislators to thoroughly review its contents before voting. Ramaswamy believes this process undermines democracy and insists that the bill should fail, advocating for a more accountable and transparent legislative process. He uses this as an example to illustrate why he believes significant changes are needed in how Congress operates.

Read the Full BizPac Review Article at:
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2024/12/18/this-is-an-early-test-ramaswamy-dissects-1500-pg-spending-bill-says-it-should-fail-1510600/