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

One of the studies estimated that the cuts would kill about 2.1 million jobs in 2013, including 746,000 direct jobs, 433,000 indirect jobs, and 959,000 induced jobs. A different but consistent study estimated defense-related job losses at between 900,000 and 1.2 million. On the non-defense side, a National Education Association study estimated that cuts to education would cost about 80,000 jobs, and an Aerospace Industries Association report foresaw between 40,000 and 132,000 jobs.   read more

Of the eight cases DOJ called recent, two were filed before Oct. 1, 2011, including the case of Chicago attorney Norton Helton, who was sentenced on January 18, 2012, to 15 years in prison for his involvement in 102 fraudulent mortgage bailout transactions. The case against Helton was filed in October 2006.   read more

Former pro cyclist Lance Armstrong did not to contest doping allegations brought by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). But legal observers believe that he may be liable, both civilly and criminally, for his doping and lying to cover it up, based on sworn testimony from 26 people.   read more

In what may be a first, Oakland, California, is suing the U.S. Department of Justice for cracking down on a medical marijuana dispensary in the city. Federal law enforcement began forfeiture proceedings in July against Harborside Health Center, which has operations in Oakland and San Jose, causing losses of $1.4 million in business taxes.   read more

President Barack Obama has nominated Keith Kelly, an Army veteran who has been a state-level labor official, as the next Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans’ Employment and Training Services (VETS), an agency in the Department of Labor that provides resources and services to help veterans locate grants, training, and employment opportunities.   read more

The U.S. Department of the Treasury has designated the MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha, street gang with Los Angeles roots as an international criminal group, with membership at 6,000-10,000 nationwide, allowing the federal government to target the finances of a gang for the first time.   read more

A recent poll of Detroit residents shows that 50% of them would live elsewhere if they could and 40% want to leave within 5 years. If all of them actually exit, Detroit would be left with only 428,000 residents. More than half of those polled said crime is their biggest daily challenge.   read more

To date, Rove’s Crossroads GPS and American Crossroads have spent a combined $174.3 million, with more than 70.5% of this money coming from undisclosed contributors. Some may wonder why a campaign contributor would want to remain anonymous. One reason is that donors sometimes receive negative publicity. Others may give to one candidate, but hedge their bets by remaining anonymous in case the other candidate wins.   read more

An obscure office within the U.S. Department of Commerce collected another Nobel Prize in physics this week, giving it four in the last 15 years. David J. Wineland, a physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physics. Wineland has worked at NIST for 37 years.   read more

McCarthy served as deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement from 2002 to 2004, senior advisor for Counter Terrorism from 2004 to 2006, and special coordinator for Venezuelan Affairs from 2006 to 2008. She returned to Europe to serve as deputy chief of mission at the embassy in Athens, Greece, from 2008 to 2010. Since September 27, 2010, she has been principal deputy assistant secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs.   read more

Logan worked as a “Private Wealth Associate” in the Private Banking and Investment Group at Merrill Lynch from March 2006 to March 2009, when Merrill Lynch, a casualty of the 2008 financial crisis, was taken over by Bank of America. Undaunted, Logan founded his own firm, The Nations Group, LLC, which works with Native American tribes on asset management, investment strategies, and financial education.   read more

Only nine states—Colorado, Virginia, Florida, Iowa, Ohio, Nevada, New Hampshire, Wisconsin and North Carolina—are considered competitive. This concentration of competitive states explains why 93% of the $746 million spent to date on TV ads (or $697 million) has gone into so few states. These hotly-contested states contain less than 25% of all American voters.   read more

Experts say the number of Protestants has declined because more Americans are not part of any religious movement or institution. One-fifth of respondents said they have no religious affiliation, and among people under 30, the rate is even higher: one third. For the first time in history, there are no Protestants on the U.S. Supreme Court and, also for the first time, neither of the members of the Republican presidential ticket is Protestant. Mitt Romney is Mormon and Paul Ryan Catholic.   read more

In small Brooks County in South Texas, the remains of 50 immigrants were found in 2011. This year the number has already reached 104. Most of the victims came from Central America. The main reasons for the increased death toll this year are thought to be extreme heat and drought conditions, as well more aggressive border enforcement that has forced human smugglers to venture into more hostile terrain.   read more

Of the $117 million spent by political action committees on advertisements concerning the presidential race since Labor Day, about 75% (or $80 million) have had anti-Obama messages. Overall, 90% of the ads have attacked either Obama or Romney, while less that 10% have had a positive message.   read more

Instead of obtaining statistics from the National Marine Fisheries Service, as current law allows, “the public might have to go through private fishing companies to access information about their fishing and its impact on the ecosystem,” according to OMB Watch. This change could create a conflict of interest, OMB Watch adds, because fishermen might be afraid to reveal details about their catches.   read more