The majority of voters did not vote for Donald Trump for president; the majority of voters did not vote for Republican candidates for the Senate; and fewer than 51% of voters cast their ballots for Republican candidates for the House of Representatives. The Republican Party now controls the White House, both houses of Congress and the Supreme Court, no matter how that came to be. I believe it is worth bearing in mind that a majority of U.S. citizens did not support the Republican winners.   read more

In 1950, a special commission convened by California Governor Earl Warren completed publication of four groundbreaking reports on the growing threat of organized crime in the state. When researchers recently sought access to the material, they were told the documents were sealed and unavailable until 2028 because of confidentiality concerns.   read more

State health officials said that until more studies can be performed, it was necessary to stop fracking because of the risks it poses to residents’ water supplies. The decision comes in the wake of state environmental and health reports that concluded New York citizens would be placed at risk by continued fracking operations. “We cannot afford to make a mistake,” said acting state Health Commissioner Howard Zucker. “The potential risks are too great. In fact, they are not fully known.”   read more

Obama’s executive move protects a region that provides 40% of the nation’s wild-caught seafood and which supports up to $2 billion in commercial fishing every year. Bristol Bay is the natural habitat for numerous endangered species, including walruses, seals, sea otters, seals, and several species of whales. “It’s something that’s too precious for us just to be putting out to the highest bidder,” Obama said in announcing his decision. Environmental groups lauded the move.   read more

Freedom declared bankruptcy after the accident in which 10,000 gallons of the industrial chemical MCHM leaked into the nearby Elk River. The toxic chemicals broke through an aging tank in the plant, which is on the river bank upstream from the county’s municipal water intake. “A survey by two state agencies and the [CDC] later concluded that a fifth of the area’s households that were surveyed had individuals who experienced symptoms consistent with exposure to the chemical,” said the Times.   read more

Corinthian Colleges, described as “one of the most abusive and deceptive for-profit college companies” in the country, was on its way to going out of business when student loan collector ECMC said it wanted to buy it. Officials in the U.S. Department of Education approved the deal in which ECMC will pay $24 million for 56 campuses operating under the names Everest and WyoTech. David Halperin says that ECMC stepping in to assume control of the schools is a “terrible mistake.”   read more

These days, many students are looking at the cost of a legal education and getting serious sticker shock. Top schools easily demand $55,000 a year for tuition, and the “low end” options cost in the $40,000 range. Furthermore, many law graduates aren’t getting jobs as lawyers after they finish school and pass the bar exam. Currently there are fewer U.S. jobs for attorneys, thanks to growing online legal services and outsourcing of positions to other countries.   read more

The ACLU has honored nine officials who took a stand against torture of U.S. detainees. Air Force Colonel Morris Davis, who was chief prosecutor for the military commissions at Guantánamo Bay from 2005 to 2007, advocated for a policy barring the use of evidence obtained through torture. His effort failed, and when Pentagon General Counsel William Haynes became Haynes’ boss, he resigned. “The guy who said waterboarding is A-OK, I was not going to take orders from. I quit,” Davis reportedly said.   read more

“While we recognize Senator Coburn’s reputation as a budget hawk, clearly the minor cost of this bill would have a tremendous payoff to help save lives in our community," said IAVA founder Paul Reickhoff. "This isn’t about spending new money – it’s about honoring the commitment we owe to the men and women who put on the uniform. With the suicide crisis continuing, it is unconscionable for a lone Senator to block a fair vote and for Congress to leave Washington without dealing with this crisis.”   read more

Acting SSA commissioner Carolyn Colvin publicly said the collection efforts would end, but the collections have continued. Some who were reimbursed for the refunds they never received have said the SSA turned around and came after them again for the overpayments. At least five of these individuals are now suing the agency to halt the practice once and for all. The agency’s actions have stirred up members of Congress on both sides of the aisle.   read more

New York businessman George Tsunis blundered his way through his Senate confirmation hearing earlier this year. Under questioning from senators, Tsunis mistakenly labeled Norway’s prime minister a “president” and insulted the Progress Party, accusing it of spewing “hatred” and being “fringe elements” in Norwegian politics. Senator John McCain, whom Tsunis supported in 2008 to the tune of $50,000, excoriated his former supporter during confirmation hearings.   read more

One big problem is the Justice Department office that is supposed to keep updated records is actually “a record-keeping mess.” That has allowed nearly half of required disclosures to be filed late. The law also doesn’t require lobbyists to disclose when they disseminated the materials. Even when lobbyists are found to be in noncompliance with the law, they’re not likely to get into trouble. The Justice Department rarely seeks an injunction against the offender.   read more

More than 160,000 pounds of depleted uranium projectiles and millions of artillery shells were left, unexploded, at the firing range. The Army, however, is showing no signs of cleaning up the mess. In fact, it's asking the NRC to allow them to halt environmental testing of the area. Some local residents worry that the radioactive materials will spread during rains. “The Army never thought much about the future,” said Mike Moore. “No thought was given that you've ruined this land forever.”   read more

The tower “is evidence of a breakdown at NASA, which used to be a glorious symbol of what an American bureaucracy could achieve," wrote the Post's David Fahrenthold. "In the Space Race days of the 1960s, the agency was given a clear, galvanizing mission: reach the moon within the decade. In less than seven, NASA got it done. Now, NASA has become a symbol of something else: what happens to a big bureaucracy after its sense of mission starts to fade.”   read more

More than 200 years after the fact, Congress has finally decided to spend money on preserving battlefields from some of the most critical wars in American history. In a first, lawmakers have expanded the federal matching grants program that until now only supported landmarks from the Civil War. Now the Civil War Battlefield Preservation Program will also be able to accept requests to fund and preserve battlefields from the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.   read more

Morrissey was allowed to enter into a work-release program, which permits him to continue his duties as a public official. He is allowed to drive his own car between the jail house and his legislative office. And if he doesn’t show up at the jail? “We understand that the legislature can run late into the night; but we will know where he is,” Henrico County Sheriff Michael Wade told the Dispatch. A monitoring device has been secured to Morrissey’s ankle.   read more

Last year, 3.93 million births were recorded in the country. That total represented a slight drop from 2012 but a much more significant one compared to 2007. The fertility rate has fallen 9% since then--an “all-time low,” according to the CDC. The agency also reported that birth rates reached record lows in 2013 among women under age 30. A demographic breakdown revealed that the number of births has dropped for whites, Hispanics and blacks since 2007.   read more