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Pa. election probe that Trump falsely touted as a sign of vote-rigging ended without charges
PHILADELPHIA — Federal prosecutors in Harrisburg announced Friday they had found “insufficient evidence” of a crime in an election investigation that President Donald Trump and his allies had repeatedly touted as a sign of vote-rigging in Pennsylvania. The case, involving nine military ballots found discarded in a Luzerne County trash bin, was unusual from the start. Breaking with traditional Justice Department norms that prohibit discussing most ongoing investigations — especially ones that could influence elections — then-U.S. Attorney David J. Freed sent out a news release confirming the pr...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
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Many states resist adapting worker safety rules to pandemic
When Corey Hill reports for work at the Daimler Trucks manufacturing plant in Cleveland, North Carolina, he knows he won’t be able to stay a safe physical distance from his coworkers on the assembly line. Because the plant’s machinery can’t be moved, his union fought for and secured other protections, including temperature checks, a mask mandate, testing transparency and paid sick time. While his plant has seen several COVID-19 cases during the pandemic, it has so far avoided a major outbreak. He knows many workers in his state aren’t so lucky. Throughout the pandemic, state labor officials in...
Stateline.org
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Many states resist adapting worker safety rules to pandemic
When Corey Hill reports for work at the Daimler Trucks manufacturing plant in Cleveland, North Carolina, he knows he won’t be able to stay a safe physical distance from his coworkers on the assembly line. Because the plant’s machinery can’t be moved, his union fought for and secured other protections, including temperature checks, a mask mandate, testing transparency and paid sick time. While his plant has seen several COVID-19 cases during the pandemic, it has so far avoided a major outbreak. He knows many workers in his state aren’t so lucky. Throughout the pandemic, state labor officials in...
Stateline.org
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Seattle schools’ special education services during COVID-19 subject of US Department of Education investigation
SEATTLE — The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is investigating Seattle Public Schools after hearing “disturbing reports” about how the district handled special education during the pandemic. In a letter sent Tuesday to Superintendent Denise Juneau, Education Department officials cite concerns that some students with disabilities went without specialized instruction — and some teachers weren’t allowed to provide it. “According to one local news report last spring, the District told its special education teachers ‘not to deliver specially-designed instruction,’ and disallo...
The Seattle Times
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Klobuchar to publish book on antitrust as scrutiny of tech firms intensifies
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., will publish a book on antitrust – the latest sign that ascendant Democrats will turn up the heat on big tech in 2021. The book, ”Antitrust: Taking on Monopoly Power from the Gilded Age to the Digital Age” will be published by Knopf in April. “Corporate consolidation, monopoly power, dark money, and rising levels of income inequality are problems that require a newly invigorated pro-competition agenda,” said Klobuchar, the top Democrat on the the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights. “My book traces the history of ...
New York Daily News
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Hospital leaders in California ask governor to suspend some regulations as COVID-19 patients flood facilities
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients pouring into medical facilities, hospital leaders urged California Gov. Gavin Newsom to temporarily suspend some regulatory requirements so that doctors and nurses “can focus on patient care and not on paperwork.” “It is challenging when we are in the circumstance that we are in, especially in Southern California, in the San Joaquin Valley, where we have zero ICU capacity left,” said Carmela Coyle, president and chief executive officer of the California Hospital Association, in a teleconference Friday with news reporters. “We are creating s...
The Sacramento Bee
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Some pandemic protections for consumers could become permanent
Consumer complaints to federal and state agencies exploded this year, fueled by a global crisis that financially stressed millions of Americans and disrupted thousands of businesses’ normal operations. Now state legislators and consumer advocates across the country are pushing for permanent protections to address the gaps in consumer law exposed by the pandemic. The COVID-19 crisis has put Americans at greater risk of defaulting on loans or falling behind on rent. State consumer protection offices and attorneys general have faced a deluge of reports about price-gouging, fake COVID-19 cures and...
Stateline.org
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EconoMeter: To rebalance economy after COVID, should federal minimum wage be increased?
Irish prime minister Micheál Martin said last week his government is looking at substantially increasing the minimum wage to jumpstart, or at least rebalance, the economy following the pandemic. Much as in the United States, Irish low-wage workers felt the brunt of the pandemic while higher-wage workers were able to stay employed working from home. Martin's plan refers to the increase in the minimum wage as a "living wage." President-elect Joe Biden said during his campaign that he wanted a $15-an-hour federal minimum wage. However, some economists have noted concern that a higher minimum wage...
The San Diego Union-Tribune
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V-8 to volts: How do American muscle brands transition to EVs?
From California to New York to Washington, regulators increasingly are looking to phase out gasoline-powered cars in favor of electrics. That could pose challenges for some legacy Detroit brands. Take Dodge for example. The performance brand has built its current lineup on V-8 powered Challenger and Charger muscle cars harkening back to the company's 1960s muscle-car roots. Dodge's earth-shaking 700-horsepower Hellcat engines have pulled buyers into showrooms. Even the three-row Durango family-hauler has a Hellcat option. But can Dodge convince customers to buy stealthy battery-powered machine...
The Detroit News
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Uber will charge significantly more per trip as new Seattle law goes into effect Jan. 1
Uber will charge customers about 25% more on each trip starting Jan. 1, as Seattle's new minimum wage law for ride-hailing drivers goes into effect. By April 1, as the compensation for drivers fully phases in, fares could increase by 50% compared to today's prices, said Harry Hartfield, a spokesperson for Uber. The new wage requirements, unanimously approved by the Seattle City Council in the fall, are meant to keep compensation for Uber and Lyft drivers on par with other workers in the city who will earn at least the $16.69 minimum wage starting next year. Lyft hasn't announced an immediate p...
The Seattle Times
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