News and Issues
If You're Looking For A Link To the Mueller Report, Look No Further
Editor's Note:
We're not downloading the entire Mueller report, but here is the Justice Department URL to read the report at:
Report On the Investigation Into Russian Interference In The 2016 Election, Vol I and II; Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller, III
https://www.justice.gov/storage/report.pdf?_ga=2.80421777.744576135.1555603755-461170982.1555603755
Mueller received the following military awards and decorations:
Safari To the Serengeti For A Birthday Trip, Both Hair-Raising and Life Transforming
Sonja Zalubowski writes: The scenes stirred something in my bones, my blood, my very genes. This sense of witnessing how the world must have been once at the very beginning. The Serengeti is not far from the Olduvai Gorge where Mary Leakey in 1978 discovered the footprints of our earliest known ancestors, the hominids known as Australopithecenes from more than three million years ago. No cattle drivers or farmers here. The animals were doing quite well at maintaining nature's balance all on their own. I felt humbled, reverent and in awe. But, I also recognized how raw and dangerous and right there in front of us all this was. more »
States Struggle to Pay for Police Body Cameras: Only a Handful of States Have Figured Out How To Pay For Them
In New Jersey, legislation enacted requires officers or the vehicles they routinely use in traffic stops to have cameras. Texas is going to be probably the first state with a full comprehensive body camera bill. The New Orleans PD plans to purchase 350 body cameras, but is budgeting $1.2 million over five years, mostly for data storage. Many states are debating the issues that surround police cameras without tackling the funding question said Richard Williams, a criminal justice policy specialist. more »
The Supreme Court Hearing on Obergefell v. Hodges, Also Known As The Same-Sex Marriage Case
Editor's Note:Editor's Note: Hearings of arguments in 14-556, Obergefell v. Hodges, and consolidated cases on Tuesday, April 28th have been completed. Stay up to date with the audio recordings and transcripts and read opinions from links to the ScotusBlog and The New York Times. Audiotapes of the hearings and transcripts are on the Court's website. more »
States Try More Tax Breaks for Seniors: 36 States With An Income Tax Allow Some Exemptions For Pension Benefits
For some of the states looking to cut taxes, it’s an effort to stop older folks from decamping to more tax-friendly places when they retire. For others, it's a way for lawmakers to curry favor with one of the most politically plugged-in demographic groups, which also is the wealthiest. "They are worth more, dollar-wise, than young people," said US Census Bureau spokesman Robert Bernstein.
About a half dozen states are considering giving new tax breaks to seniors over 65, although they already enjoy favorable treatment by the federal government and by most states on their income and property taxes.
For some of the st… more »