Ho hum, Bloomberg analysis finds American CEOs paid much more generously than foreign CEOs. I'm sad to learn that the income gap between CEOs and workers isn't that much better in Germany or Australia than it is here. But I'm happy to learn that the Conservative government in Great Britain has proposed CEO-worker pay-ratio disclosures -- though, to be fair, they're probably being pulled leftward by a revitalized Labour Party.
The flesh is willing, but I'm not sure the tax scam will "doom" Republicans at the ballot box in the 2018 midterms. I mean, I could be wrong, especially given that Americans are so much smarter about cutting taxes for the rich than when Tha Bush Mobb was cutting taxes for the rich, but, really, those health care "reform" votes are what should doom Republicans in November. Taxes are still a little abstract for people (though maybe not this time next year, amirite?), whereas losing your health care is quite real. Still, Democrats, bash the bill. It deserves it.
First folks got all excited that President Trump dissolved his odious Voter "Integrity" Commission, and then folks got all unnerved that the Department of Homeland (sic) Security (sic) would be taking over at least some of its work, but many observers think DHS won't "want to be the second person to jump on a live grenade," as put by a Loyola law professor. And yes, it is true that we'll attend whatever the DHS decides to do with its new mandate, but dig, if you will, Mr. Trump's statement whining about the "endless legal battles" the commission faced, as if you have some sort of right not to be sued when you do evil.
Mike Ludwig at TruthOut discusses how much damage Attorney General Sessions can do in ending the Obama-era effort to leave states with legalized marijuana alone. Long story short: "Sessions can't stop the inevitable, but he can harm a lot of people trying," and those people are most likely going to be the same people always harmed by the "war on drugs": black and brown people. The good news? Congress might simply refuse to fund any DOJ effort to meddle with the pot trade as it's legal in California, Washington, Colorado, and other states.
Department of the Interior now requires staff to ensure that anyone who gets a grant from the department "promote(s) the priorities" of the current Administration. Why, I can only guess how many laws that breaks! And, naturally, Interior has halted at least two studies (one about the health effects of coal mining, the other about fossil fuel inspections) that don't line up with the President's "priorities." But why do we talk about his priorities, and not ours?
Finally, let's not get too excited about the possibility of Oprah Winfrey running for President. She's obviously more substantial and accomplished than The Rock, let alone the White House's current occupant, but if you remember that the Roman Republic started going downhill when generals started becoming consuls, you won't really want an America vacillating between this mogul or that one as President. Yes, anyone can be President in America, but that doesn't mean everyone should be President.
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