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Atlanta's Mayor Signs Executive Order To "Mitigate" Impact Of Georgia's Voting Restrictions
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By Shabibilicious
Merrick Garland rapidly erasing Trump effect at Justice Department
Zachary Basu Fri, April 30, 2021, 5:30 AM Attorney General Merrick Garland is quickly negating the Trump administration’s law enforcement legacy, dismaying conservatives with a burst of aggressive reversals and new policies.
Why it matters: As a former prosecutor and respected federal judge, Garland's devotion to the rule of law has always been core to his identity. That reputation has taken on new importance in his first 50 days on the job, after four years of allegations that Trump's DOJ was improperly politicized.
Attorney General Bill Barr played a central role in the Trump administration's most high-profile controversies, from undermining the Russia investigation to intervening in the cases of indicted Trump associates to ordering the forcible clearing of protesters in Lafayette Square Park.
DOJ's broad authority also overlaps with many of the issues at the top of President Biden's agenda, including restoring faith in government, promoting racial justice and police reform, and curbing gun violence.
Driving the news: Liberal fears that the soft-spoken Garland might resist prosecuting Trump and his allies for the sake of unity were partially eased on Wednesday, when news broke that federal agents had raided the Manhattan home of Rudy Giuliani.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, which Giuliani once led, is known to be highly independent.
But under Attorney General Bill Barr, the department repeatedly blocked SDNY prosecutors from executing a search warrant for Giuliani's electronic records in the final months of 2020, according to the New York Times.
The Justice Department also announced on Wednesday that three Georgia men were charged with federal hate crimes in the shooting of Ahmaud Arbery, whose death was a rallying cry during last year's racial-justice protests.
In Michigan, a superseding indictment was filed against five men accused of plotting last year to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, with prosecutors referring to the alleged crimes as "domestic terrorism" for the first time.
That shift comes amid new developments in the investigation of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, which has been described as the most complex probe in DOJ history. Garland, who played a leading role in the prosecution of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, has vowed to make prosecuting the Capitol rioters his "first priority."
Other major steps taken in Garland's first 50 days include:
"Pattern or practice" investigations into the Minneapolis and Louisville police departments, following the deaths last year of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
A 30-day "expedited review" into how DOJ can better prosecute and track hate crimes amid a surge in violence against Asian Americans.
The revocation of a Trump-era policy that restricted federal funding for "sanctuary cities."
Responsibility for five of the six executive actions on gun control ordered by Biden.
What to watch: Garland's commitment to depoliticizing DOJ will undergo a key test when a charging decision is made in the case of Hunter Biden, whose finances are under investigation.
Special counsel John Durham is also expected to submit a report concerning alleged abuses by Obama-era intelligence officials during the Russia investigation.
https://news.yahoo.com/merrick-garland-rapidly-erasing-trump-093008298.html
GO RV, then BV
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By Shabibilicious
Key GOP senators say they’re open to corporate tax increase
Kadia Goba Thu, April 22, 2021, 8:45 PM Some key Republican senators won't rule out raising additional revenue from corporations, and told Axios they may be willing to close loopholes that allow big businesses to eliminate their overall tax bill.
Why it matters: While President Biden’s proposal to raise the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28% to pay for his infrastructure plan has been met with near-uniform GOP opposition, there’s some appetite to ensure corporations pay more.
Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.
“I'm willing to do some things on the revenue front if they can do some things on the-way-the-government-works front,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
“The way you do that is you sort of put some limit on write-offs,” Graham added.
“I believe everybody should pay their fair share,” said Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.). “I come from the world of small business. So, I scratch my head when big corporations don't pay their fair share of taxes.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) used the occasion to lobby for a flat tax.
“I think the tax code is filled with loopholes and subsidies that aren't fair," he said. "The answer isn't to eliminate every exemption and keep rates high — that's a massive tax increase. The answer is to eliminate the exemptions and lower rates."
Some of the comments came the same day Senate Republicans introduced their own infrastructure plan that included “protecting against any corporate or international tax increases.”
Driving the news: The president has highlighted a study from the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy showing 55 corporations actually received $3.5 billion in tax rebates, instead of paying approximately $8.5 billion in taxes on some $40.5 billion in income.
"It's just not fair. It's not fair to the rest of the American taxpayers," Biden said when he unveiled his corporate tax proposal on April 7.
Go deeper: The president has proposed raising an additional $2 trillion from corporations by focusing on three areas.
He wants to raise their basic tax rate from 21% to 28%.
For U.S. multinationals, he plans to increase taxes on their foreign earnings from 10.5% to 21%.
He has also proposed a 15% minimum tax he wants to apply to all corporations — a catchall to prevent companies from lowering their tax payments to zero.
Be smart: While the president favors a 28% rate, Senate Democrats already appear to be settling on a 25% rate, as Axios reported this week.
https://news.yahoo.com/key-gop-senators-open-corporate-004535967.html
GO RV, then BV
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By Shabibilicious
New evidence leads judge to revoke bail for Proud Boy leaders involved in Capitol riot
Shawna Chen Mon, April 19, 2021, 2:38 PM A federal judge will revoke bail for two leaders of the Proud Boys, a paramilitary right-wing extremist group, after they were released while awaiting trial for their involvement in the Capitol insurrection, Politico reports.
Why it matters: The judge said he was swayed by new evidence from prosecutors showing encrypted messages and profanity-laden social media posts from the defendants that vowed violence against lawmakers who planned to certify the election.
What they're saying: "The defendants stand charged with seeking to steal one of the crown jewels of our country, in a sense, by interfering with the peaceful transfer of power," Judge Timothy Kelly said about his decision. "It’s no exaggeration to say the rule of law ... in the end, the existence of our constitutional republic is threatened by it."
The ruling, previewed in a Monday court hearing, reverses an earlier decision to free the men pending trial. New evidence brought by prosecutors shows Ethan Nordean and Joseph Biggs played a key role in orchestrating the riots, according to Kelly, which became a deciding factor in the case.
Prosecutors say Nordean helped plan the Proud Boys' tactical strategy for Jan. 6: divide into smaller groups and overwhelm police.
Prosecutors are also holding Nordean and Biggs partially responsible for significant damage caused by a fellow Proud Boy who smashed a window with a riot shield. The group's actions led to one of the earliest breaches of the Capitol, per Politico.
https://news.yahoo.com/evidence-leads-judge-revoke-bail-183827521.html
GO RV, then BV
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By Shabibilicious
Trump calls for boycott of more companies over Georgia voting law
Rebecca Falconer Sat, April 3, 2021, 8:06 PM Former President Trump on Saturday added to a list of organizations he's calling on supporters to boycott for opposing Georgia's voting restrictions.
Driving the news: Trump on Friday urged a boycott of "woke companies" that have taken a stand and Major League Baseball for moving its All-Star Game out of Georgia, adding: "Are you listening Coke, Delta." In his new statement, he said: "Boycott Major League Baseball, Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines, JPMorgan Chase, ViacomCBS, Citigroup, Cisco, UPS, and Merck."
Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.
What else he's saying: Trump accused "Radical Left Democrats" of playing dirty by boycotting companies that offend them.
"Now they are going big time with WOKE CANCEL CULTURE and our sacred elections," Trump said.
"It is finally time for Republicans and Conservatives to fight back — we have more people than they do — by far!" he added, before making a series of complaints, including about the 2020 presidential election, and then wishing: "Happy Easter!"
The other side: Democrats have criticized the new law, with President Biden calling it "Jim Crow on steroids."
Citigroup declined to comment, and the other companies named in Trump's boycott list did not immediately return Axios' requests for comment.
Go deeper: CEOs, corporations speak out against Georgia's voting restrictions
Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-calls-boycott-more-companies-000612776.html
GO RV, then BV
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By Shabibilicious
Infrastructure Week may finally be looming on the horizon. Democratic senators pressure Biden to cut some taxes for rich people in infrastructure bill
Hans Nichols Mon, March 15, 2021, 8:51 PM Blue-state lawmakers are pressuring President Biden to cut some taxes — while he raises others — in the horse-trading for his next big package.
Why it matters: The cold math suggests Biden will be forced to sacrifice the size of his infrastructure ambitions or embrace even more deficit spending — and convince Congress to go along.
Stay on top of the latest market trends and economic insights with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
Driving the news: Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), are pressing the White House to repeal the $10,000 limit for deducting state and local taxes — the so-called SALT cap — from their federal tax bill.
Removing the limit — imposed by President Trump's 2017 tax reforms — would cost about $88.7 billion a year, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation.
Repealing the cap is deeply unpopular with progressives, who argue doing so would favor the rich.
But many voters in high-tax (and Democratic) states — like New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland and California — hate the limit. The provision is scheduled to expire at the end of 2026.
The big picture: The White House has been reluctant to put a price tag on its infrastructure plans, but Democrats close to the administration say it will likely be $1 trillion to $2 trillion.
Some Democrats, including Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), are demanding the president find new revenue to pay for at least part of the package.
Biden himself has never been crystal clear about what new spending needed to be offset with new taxes, and gave himself an out during the 2020 campaign by maintaining "one-time" spending didn't require tax increases.
He never defined what that means and essentially stopped talking about it after he secured the nomination.
He also didn’t include it in any of his “Build Back Better” tax and infrastructure proposal.
Go deeper: During the campaign, Biden proposed policies that would raise about $3 trillion in new revenue, according to the Penn Wharton Budget Model.
But Democrats close to the White House think new revenue will probably be a total of less than $1 trillion, with the easiest changes on the corporate, capital gains and personal side.
By the numbers: Manchin told Axios he would support the corporate tax rate increasing from 21% to 25%, which could yield $400 billion to $500 billion in new revenue over 10 years.
Returning the top personal rate to the pre-Trump 39.6% would bring in another $153 billion.
Taxing capital gains as ordinary income — which would eliminate the so-called “carried interest” loophole for private equity — adds another $178 billion.
The bottom line: The amount of new revenue Biden could raise night not exceed the amount of lost revenue from a full repeal of the SALT cap.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/democratic-senators-pressure-biden-cut-005109199.html
GO RV, then BV
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