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

Humanitarian Outcomes says in its new report that there were 251 separate attacks in 30 nations last year involving 460 humanitarian workers. But about 75% of all these attacks occurred in just five countries: Afghanistan, Syria, South Sudan, Pakistan and Sudan. Afghanistan is by far the worst place for humanitarian missions, with 81 workers dying there in 2013.   read more

Producers of small wind turbines in the United States aren’t selling as many of their units to American operators, so they’ve shifted their sales efforts to foreign buyers. The move comes largely because Congress did not renew a $13 billion subsidy, the Wind Production Tax Credit (WPTC), designed to help the wind industry in the U.S.   read more

While serving in the Office of Legal Counsel, Barron and another lawyer, Marty Lederman, wrote the first of two memorandums that sought to rationalize how the administration could target and kill an American Islamic cleric, Anwar al-Aulaqi, in Yemen for his suspected ties to al-Qaeda. Their first attempt to explain how the Central Intelligence Agency could legally assassinate al-Aulaqi was only seven pages long.   read more

The plaintiffs claim the trouble started in April 2009, when then-White House counsel Gregory Craig informed Executive Branch operations that any FOIA requests that might have “White House equities” should go through his office. The term has never been defined, but some agencies are taking it to mean any document that mentions the White House.   read more

The U.S. Department of Justice contends that company officials were aware of illegal shipments from online pharmacies, but accepted them anyway, which if proven would make FedEx criminally liable. But now prosecutors have added money-laundering charges and the company could face a fine of $1.6 billion if found guilty on all counts.   read more

A big mistake in developing the program, according to Williams, was a lack of proper government oversight. The feds provided money for the program, while the states took care of licensing training programs. However, officials are prohibited from recommending schools to prospective students, which leaves unscrupulous colleges an opening to exploit those looking for a new career.   read more

The Senate, charged with approving President Barack Obama’s ambassadorial choices, is sitting on 34 such nominations, as well as 20 political appointments of people selected to lead American embassies around the world. One area of particular concern is Africa, which has a 20% vacancy rate in its U.S. embassies. Nine career Foreign Service officers are awaiting confirmations for those jobs.   read more

In response to orders from the White House, the DOE has established a Web portal through which anyone can read research produced with public funds. The new site, known as PAGES (Public Access Gateway for Energy and Science), is expected to feature 20,000 to 30,000 additions annually on a wide range of scientific subjects. Papers will become available one year after their publication in a journal.   read more

The Public Integrity Unit at the time was focused on one of Perry’s pet projects, the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas. One of its executives, Jerry Cobbs, was indicted last December after an $11 million grant went through the agency without proper review, according to The Dallas Morning News. The money went to Peloton Therapeutics, one of whose investors had given $440,000 to the campaigns of Perry and Lt. Governor David Dewhurst.   read more

Using information compiled by industry, the Environmental Integrity Project discovered that 33 drillers had used diesel fuels in at least 351 wells, and in the process, violated the Safe Drinking Water Act over a four-year period from 2010 to 2014. Furthermore, about 30% of the companies tried to hide their use of the fuel by changing their filings, which went into an industry-run database, FracFocus.   read more

The change in energy policy means Pemex, the state-run oil company, will cease to have complete control over oil and gas production for the first time since 1938. Foreign oil companies will now be able to bid on oil projects, particularly those in the Gulf of Mexico, where there has been almost no exploration south of the border.   read more

With as few as 8% of registered voters showing up to vote in some recent elections, the Los Angeles Ethics Commission has urged the City Council to consider improving turnout with a lottery pilot program. No actual vote would be required, but those participating would have to show up at the polls to participate. There was no decision on what the grand prize for participating in the democratic process.   read more

O’Malley, an attorney in St. Louis, is a longtime supporter of President Barack Obama. O’Malley has strong Irish roots; all four of his grandparents were born in Westport, County Mayo, Ireland. Until being nominated for the Dublin post, O’Malley held dual Irish and American citizenship, but gave up his Irish citizenship to accept the ambassadorial position.   read more

For the past 65 years presidents of both parties have continued a tradition started by Harry Truman—appointing a woman as U.S. Treasurer. No, not the Secretary of the Treasury; white men appear to have a lock on that job. The treasurer is responsible for “oversight” of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and of the U.S. gold reserves in Fort Knox. And her signature appears on the paper currency printed during her term.   read more

A suit (pdf) was filed last week by two men, at least one of whom has ties to the No Berkeley Beverage Tax campaign, which receives funding from the American Beverage Association. It claims that the city substituted the phrase “high-calorie, sugary drinks” for “sugar-sweetened beverage” in the ballot language. The plaintiffs, Anthony Johnson and Leon Cain, would prefer the phrase “sugar-sweetened beverage products” to be used.   read more

In July 2015, Dr. David J. Skorton, who is currently president of Cornell University, will become the 13th secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. He has said he hopes to keep his medical license current when he becomes secretary of the Smithsonian.   read more