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

Almost all chicken breasts tested by Consumer Reports—97%—tested positive for dangerous bacteria. The samples (300 of them) included chicken from organic and non-organic brands. The research also found that more than half of the samples contained fecal matter, and about 50% had at least one bacterium that’s resistant to three or more commonly prescribed antibiotics.   read more

The reforms would eliminate the statute of limitations for cases of sexual assault or rape; bar military commanders from overturning jury convictions in sexual assault and rape cases; criminalize any attempt to retaliate against people who report such crimes; require dishonorable discharges or dismissals of anyone convicted of such crimes; and provide civilian defense officials with more control over prosecutions.   read more

The Washington Post-ABC News poll found that 66% of respondents said the war has not been worth fighting. That view is held by 67% of Democrats, 54% of Republicans, and 71% of independents. During the 13-year conflict in Afghanistan, 2,289 U.S. troops have died and more than 19,000 have been wounded.   read more

The Obama White House has been ordered (pdf) by a federal judge to release a copy of an unclassified presidential directive after it tried to use “secret law” to keep it out of the hands of a government watchdog group. U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle also admonished the administration for the “unbounded nature” of its claim and thinking it had a “limitless” view of its power to withhold presidential communications from the public.   read more

If someone faces a $5,000 out-of-pocket expense for a $100,000-a-year drug, a charity steps in (with pharma money) to cover it. This results in the company making $95,000 from either the person’s insurer or Medicare. The drug maker also wins because the contributions to charity are tax deductible.   read more

Senator Mark Udall (D-Colorado) indicated that the classified CIA study may include critical assessments of the use of harsh interrogation techniques, such as waterboarding, to obtain information from detainees. He added that the undisclosed report could support the conclusions of the committee’s own study of the CIA torture program.   read more

The review of 200 ad buys showed that many commercial slots were purchased by unknown or obscure buyers or did not include how much was actually spent for the air time. In terms of actual numbers, fewer than one out of six ads targeting federal candidates disclosed the name of the candidate or election. As a result, voters are left in the dark not knowing which special interest might be behind an attack ad.   read more

What is the reason for the improved homicide numbers? City officials credit reform of the court system that allows more cases to go to trial, as well as policies that combine “data-driven law enforcement and old-school, shoe-leather police work,” according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. It was also noted that fewer gunshot victims are dying in the city’s emergency rooms—only 20% succumbed to bullet wounds this year, compared to 28% in 2012.   read more

Khobragade was dropping one of her daughters off at school when U.S. Diplomatic Security agents apprehended her in the street, handcuffed her and took her away. But what really created a furor was Khobragade being strip-searched and allegedly subjected to multiple cavity searches by U.S. marshals. She was also placed in a cell with drug addicts before being released on $250,000 bail.   read more

Health economists estimate that the nonprofit tax exemptions benefiting hospitals amount to more than $12 billion a year. In turn, however, these institutions are not giving back nearly that same amount to the needy. The New England Journal of Medicine reported earlier this year that hospitals spent an average of 7.5% of their operating costs on charity care and community benefit. Some spent less than 1%, while others about 20%.   read more

Border Patrol agents and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers have killed at least 42 people, including at least 13 Americans, since 2005. In none of these instances was the officer publicly known to have faced consequences from any government agency or court. Of the 24 people killed by Border Patrol agents in the last four years, eight were shot for throwing rocks, which the agency considers grounds for using lethal force.   read more

Things took a turn for the truly ugly during the government shutdown in October, when Chinese hackers took advantage of federal employees being furloughed, leaving no one around at the FEC to mind its computer network. Indeed, every one of its 339 employees had been sent home. The cyber-attack—possibly the worst act of sabotage in its four-decade history—reportedly crippled the commission’s systems.   read more

Six years ago, federal regulators tried to delist Yellowstone grizzlies, but a federal judge, Don Molloy, stopped the process after ruling that it was unclear from a scientific perspective how dependent grizzlies were on whitebark pine nuts as a food source. Whitebark pine trees in and around Yellowstone have been devastated by disease, which has killed nearly 75% of them.   read more

“I cannot imagine a more ‘indiscriminate’ and ‘arbitrary invasion’ than this systematic and high-tech collection and retention of personal data on virtually every single citizen for purposes of querying it and analyzing it without judicial approval,” Leon wrote. He described the agency’s spy technology as “Orwellian,” and added that “the author of the Constitution, James Madison...would be aghast” by the NSA’s work.   read more

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) shocked the soap industry this week when it demanded that manufacturers prove that antibacterial chemicals in their products are safe, or prepare to remove them. The decision comes after years of concerns by public health experts who warned that the chemicals may do more harm than good by negatively impacting human hormones and expanding the risk of drug-resistant infections.   read more

In Colorado, where lawmakers adopted several new gun bills in the wake of mass shootings in Aurora and in Newtown, Connecticut, many county sheriffs say they will not enforce them. In fact, all but seven of the 62 elected sheriffs in Colorado support a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the statutes. The new laws require background checks for private gun transfers and ban magazines of more than 15 rounds.   read more