States take on welfare reform -- with nod from Trump

Missouri lawmakers in Jefferson City are the latest to consider welfare reform legislation.  (Associated Press)

Republicans nationwide are taking a swing at reforming welfare, with the latest initiative approved by the Missouri House last week.
The Show Me State's plan would toughen rules for people who misspend benefit money. If it passes the state Senate and gets the governor's signature, it would ensure that no welfare money is spent on tobacco, alcohol and other prohibited items, or at businesses like strip clubs or liquor stores.
It would also bar the state's welfare recipients from using electronic benefit cards to withdraw money from ATMs.

"We're looking at an effort to give folks an opportunity to correct a series of bad habits."

"We're looking at an effort to give folks an opportunity to correct a series of bad habits," Republican state Rep. Hannah Kelly says. The lawmaker amended the bill to include the increased penalties.
"The overall purpose is to make sure we have the funds we need for those in dire need," she said.

Missouri state Rep. Hannah Kelly, R-Mountain Grove  (Missouri House of Representatives)

Not everyone is on board with Missouri's welfare reform plan. The Kansas City Star published a scathing editorial Wednesday, blasting Republicans for “election year posturing” and dictating behaviors “right down to whether someone can drink a cold one on a summer evening.”
“Republicans have bigger fish to fry, don’t they?” the newspaper asked.
Wisconsin overhaul
But elsewhere, such "tough love" measures have been attracting interest.
In Wisconsin, for example, Gov. Scott Walker pushed through last month a sweeping welfare overhaul package.
Among the changes, the reform expands work requirements for welfare benefits and now covers not only able-bodied childless adults but parents with school-aged children as well. It also increases the minimum work or job training hours for both adults and parents from 20 to 30 hours a week.
It also creates mandatory drug testing, screening and treatment requirements to become eligible for public housing. Photo IDs will now be required to participate in the food stamp program.
The approved initiative, however, will have to wait until a federal waiver is granted to ensure its legality. But there is no indication the Trump administration will try to stop it.
“We had a really good discussion about what we need to do,” state Sen. Chris Kapenga told MacIver News Service about a recent meeting at the White House. “It was very encouraging to see the Trump administration fully behind reforming the system as it is because they see it doesn’t work.”
Kentucky reforms
One such waiver was given earlier this month to a welfare reform effort in Kentucky. Lawmakers in Kentucky approved a measure forcing people to either work or volunteer to keep their Medicaid benefits.
Under the legislation, only “able-bodied” adults who receive health benefits through Medicaid – a federal-state health insurance program for the poorest in the country – are required to work, NPR reported. Disabled people, parents, pregnant women and the elderly are not subject to the requirement.
"Kentucky is leading the nation in this reform in ways that are now being replicated all over the nation," Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin said, in announcing the measure’s approval.

Rahm Emanuel Cartoons

President Trump to level new round of tariffs, investment restrictions against China

President Trump is expected to level a new round of “protective” tariffs and “investment restrictions” against China on Thursday, White House officials told Fox News.
Last August, the president instructed U.S. Trade Representative Amb. Robert Lighthizer to consider an investigation of Chinese laws, policies, and practices which may be harming American intellectual property rights, innovation, or technology development.” Lighthizer determined that an investigation was warranted, and it began under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.
“Tomorrow the president will announce the actions he has decided to take based on USTR’s 301 investigation into China’s state-led, market-distorting efforts to force, pressure and steal U.S. technologies and intellectual property,” White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah said in a statement Wednesday.
An administration official told Fox News on Wednesday that the tariffs, which could amount to $30 billion or more, are not meant to “punish” China, but rather designed to “recover damages” from China’s unfair trade practices.
The investment restrictions, on the other hand, are meant to blunt China’s attempts to “capture the technology businesses of the future.” The official told Fox News that China’s practice of taking over international technology companies—including those in the U.S.—distorts markets, and destroys the innovation cycle.
The 2017 Annual Report of the U.S.-China Committee recommended that the president “prohibit the acquisition of U.S. assets by Chinese state-owned or state-controlled entities, including sovereign wealth funds.”
An official told Fox News that the president is expected to follow along the recommendations of the committee.
A White House official said Wednesday that China has had a long time to address concerns raised by the U.S., dating back to the Clinton administration.
“We have given a great deal of thought to what they might do, and how they might react,” a USTR official said Wednesday. “And what the potential reaction could mean for us…it’s not as simple to say it’s a simple end game.”

GOP's Saccone concedes to Democrat Lamb in Pennsylvania special House race

Beat by the pretty boy.

Republican Rick Saccone conceded defeat to Democrat Conor Lamb in a special U.S. House election in southwestern Pennsylvania Wednesday, eight days after voters went to the polls.
Lamb tweeted that Saccone had "congratulated me [and] graciously conceded last Tuesday's election" and said he was "[r]eady to be sworn in & get to work for the people" of the state's 18th congressional district.
The upset victory means that Democrats must pick up a net of 23 Republicans seats to regain control of the House of Representatives in November's midterm elections.
If there is no GOP challenge to the results, Lamb could be sworn in after April 2, when the last of the four counties in the district expects to finish certifying the result.
With all precincts reporting in the immediate aftermath of the March 13 special election, Lamb led Saccone by 627 votes out of more than 228,000 cast. However, Lamb's lead grew to around 750 votes as election officials in the Pittsburgh-area district counted provisional, military and overseas ballots.
Lamb will succeed Republican Tim Murphy, who resigned in October amid a sex scandal that featured text messages in which the pro-life politician urged his mistress to consider getting an abortion when she believed she was pregnant.
Underscoring Lamb's status as the underdog in the race, President Trump won the 18th district by 20 points in 2016 while Murphy was re-elected to an eighth term without facing a Democratic opponent.
In the race, the 33-year-old Lamb downplayed opposition to Trump, who remains more popular in the district than nationally. He opposed sweeping new gun regulations and supported Trump's steel tariffs, but he is a fierce critic of Republicans' tax cuts and their economic and health care policies.
Saccone, 60, adhered to Republican orthodoxy and openly embraced Trump, who tweeted many times on his behalf and campaigned in person twice, including a raucous rally the Saturday before voters cast ballots.
Outside Republican groups spent more than $10 million -- about seven times as much as outside groups spent for Lamb -- with much of it attacking Lamb as a stooge for national Democrats, particularly House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. Lamb, however, distanced himself from Pelosi and held national Democrats at arm's length while he easily outraised Saccone in campaign cash.
Saccone, meanwhile, was hurt by an anti-union voting record in the state Legislature, which had motivated union members in a district with a long history of steel making and coal mining to vote against him.
Lamb and Saccone are expected to run for Congress in separate districts later this year after the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania redrew the state's congressional district map.

GOP posts text of $1.3T spending bill with shutdown deadline days away

Congressional Republican leaders released the final version of a proposed $1.3 trillion spending bill Wednesday evening, approximately 52 hours before the deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown.
The 2,232 page "omnibus" bill was made public hours after House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., dashed through a Washington snowstorm to meet with President Trump at the White House amid concerns that Trump's support for the package was wavering. The White House later said the president backed the legislation, even as some conservative Republicans balked at the size of the spending increases and the rush to pass the bill.
The powerful House Rules Committee was scheduled to meet later Wednesday to prepare the bill for debate in the full House. Leaders have said they hoped to start voting as soon as Thursday, but a stopgap measure may be needed to ensure federal offices remain open at midnight Friday when funding for the government expires.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., signaled his support for the bill that he said "puts workers and families first."
"Every bill takes compromise, and there was plenty here, but at the end of the day we Democrats feel very good because so many of our priorities for the middle class were included," said Schumer.
In contrast, the conservative House Freedom Caucus said all 32 of its members would vote unanimously against the bill.
"The policy proposals outlined in this ... bill are not consistent with what we told the American people we would do when they sent us to Washington. Many of the policies in the bill are in fact the opposite of what we promised," the caucus statement read. "This is an insult to America’s taxpayers, as well as their many rank-and-file representatives who had no say in the omnibus negotiations."
Both sides of the aisle have been keen to avoid a repeat of the shutdown in January, which came after lawmakers clashed over the state of the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which gave protection to illegal immigrants brought to the country as children. DACA was set to expire this month, but that expiration has been delayed by court orders.
The bill does not include a DACA provision and also gives limited funding to border security measures that President Trump had pushed for.
Trump had called for $1.6 billion for 74 miles of border wall, with an extra $1.1 billion for technology and other assets. Instead, the omnibus appropriates $1.57 billion for barriers along the border, but none of it for the new prototypes he recently visited in California.
The money would fund about 33 miles of new construction in the San Diego area and the repair of about 60 miles of existing segments, some that double as levees, along the Rio Grande in Texas.
In one win for immigrant advocates, negotiators rejected Trump's plans to hire hundreds of new Border Patrol and immigration enforcement agents.
"We are disappointed that we did not reach agreement on Dreamer protections that were worthy of these patriotic young people," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who vowed that Democrats "will continue to ask the Speaker to give us a vote to protect Dreamers and honor our values."
The Associated Press reported that the bill would include an $80 billion bump for the Pentagon, giving Trump and GOP hawks a major victory as it brings the military budget to over $700 billion.
In a statement, Ryan said the agreement "marks the beginning of a new era for the United States military."
"Our service members are the finest in the world, but the poor state of our military readiness has left them under-equipped and underprepared for the threats they face," Ryan said. "This legislation fulfills our pledge to rebuild the United States military."
"No bill of this size is perfect," Ryan added. "But this legislation addresses important priorities and makes us stronger at home and abroad."
The bill also includes the so-called "Fix NICS" measure meant to strengthen the federal background check system for gun purchases as Congress attempts to respond to respond to the deadly assault on a Florida high school and other shootings.
The measure would provide funding for states to comply with the existing National Instant Criminal Background Check system and penalize federal agencies that don't comply. The bipartisan measure was approved in the House, but stalled in the Senate amid concerns by some Republicans about restricting gun rights without due process and complaints by Democrats that it does not go far enough to address gun violence.
"The calls from the American people to address gun violence in our schools and communities have been deafening, and I’m grateful we’ll soon get that chance,” Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, a driving force behind the bill, said. "Fixing the background check system will help save lives and reduce the likelihood of what occurred in Parkland and Sutherland Springs from happening again."
The spending bill also includes more than $2 billion to train school officials and law enforcement officers how to identify signs of potential violence and intervene early, install metal detectors and take other steps to "harden" schools to prevent violence.
The House approved the STOP School Violence Act earlier this month, but the measure has not been taken up in the Senate.
The bill states that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can do research on gun violence, though not advocacy, an idea Democrats pushed.
The plan also removes a much-debated earmark protecting money for a rail tunnel under the Hudson River, a top priority for Schumer. Trump had vowed to veto the bill over the earmark. However, the project would remain eligible for federal funding, however, and a Schumer aide said it was likely to win well more than half of the $900 million sought for the project this year.
Both parties touted $4.6 billion in total funding to fight the nation's opioid addiction epidemic, a $3 billion increase. Child care and development block grants would receive a huge $2.4 billion increase to $5.2 billion. And an Obama-era transportation grant program known as TIGER would see its budget tripled to $1.5 billion. Head Start for preschoolers would get a $610 million boost, while an additional $2.4 billion would go for child care grants.

Obama's EPA appointees spent as much, or more, on travel than Trump's Pruitt, data show

Former Obama administration EPA directors spent as much or even more on international travel than the agency’s current chief, Scott Pruitt, who is facing widespread criticism for wasteful spending.
The Trump appointee to the Environmental Protection Agency has gotten in hot water after revelations that taxpayers had to foot the bill for Pruitt's $120,000 trip to Italy last summer to attend a meeting of G-7 ministers and a private tour of the Vatican.
EPA POSTPONES PRUITT’S ISRAEL TRIP AMID TRAVEL COST SCRUTINY
Nearly $90,000 was spent on food, hotels, commercial airfare and a military jet used by the EPA director and nine other members of the agency’s staff. More than $30,000 was spent on providing a security detail during the trip.

Around $40,000 in total was also spent for a four-day trip to Morocco in December, where Pruitt promoted American natural gas exports.

But as the media continue to criticize Pruitt and his “luxury” international travel, his expenses are nothing out of the ordinary – or even lower – compared to previous EPA directors under the Obama administration, who avoided the criticism.

Lisa Jackson, who was the EPA director between 2009 and 2013, spent over $332,000 on airfare and security for four international trips, on average $83,000 per trip,  (AP)

"The double standard couldn't be more clear: Under Barack Obama's EPA the media chose not to report on expenditures to protect the EPA administrator for international travel or the costs of their trips," Jahan Wilcox, an EPA spokesman, told the Washington Free Beacon.
"But under the Trump administration the costs to protect our government officials is somehow scandalous."

"The double standard couldn't be more clear: Under Barack Obama's EPA the media chose not to report on expenditures ... But under the Trump administration the costs to protect our government officials is somehow scandalous."

Lisa Jackson, who was Obama's EPA director between 2009 and 2013, spent more than $332,000 on airfare and security for four international trips, on average $83,000 per trip, according to documents obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
She spent $64,963 for trips to Tel Aviv; $59,950 to Rio de Janeiro; $51,436 to Montreal; and $155,764 to Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shanghai.

Gina McCarthy, the agency’s director between 2013 and 2017, embarked in 10 international trips, spending nearly $630,000 on airfare and security, on average $63,000 per trip.  (AP)

Gina McCarthy, the agency’s director between 2013 and 2017, embarked on 10 international trips, spending nearly $630,000 on airfare and security, on average $63,000 per trip.
The documents revealed costs for McCarthy’s journeys to Ghana ($68,382), Peru ($45,140), Tokyo ($74,738), Paris ($41,321), Dubai ($90,368), Tokyo ($67,703), Florence ($56,193), Vancouver ($62,247), Vietnam ($68,268), and Beijing ($55,385).
The figures for previous EPA officials also don’t reflect the full picture – the cost of providing security for Pruitt is significantly higher as he was subjected to a number of credible threats of violence, including death threats, after he took office.
Authorities determined that the threats were real and the EPA inspector general’s office recommended 24/7 security for the director, costing taxpayers roughly $2 million a year, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf Cartoons

Senate Intel Committee pushes for election security upgrades ahead of 2018 midterms

Top Senate Intelligence Committee lawmakers on Tuesday called Russia “relentless” in its attempt to meddle in the 2016 U.S. elections and warned that state election officials need to strengthen their safety nets against future cyberattacks ahead of the midterm elections in November.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the panel, previewed some of the committee's recommendations for improving the nation's election infrastructure at a bi-partisan news conference.
“We’ve got to get some standards in place,” Burr said.
Among other things, the committee recommended that Congress "urgently pass" legislation to boost assistance to states and establish a voluntary grant program. It also recommended that Washington "clearly communicate" that attacks on elections are hostile and to "respond accordingly."
The recommendations also include creating a voluntary state election security grant program, and urges states to “rapidly replace outdated and vulnerable voting systems.”
“At a minimum, any machine purchased going forward should have a voter-verified paper trail and no WiFi capability,” the draft summary states.
The news conference took place moments after the White House confirmed President Trump congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on his recent re-election win. The victory raised some eyebrow after video emerged of what appeared to be people stuffing ballot boxes.
At Tuesday’s press conference, both Republicans and Democrats were united in their belief Russia tried to influence the U.S. elections.
"The Russians were relentless in their attempts to meddle," Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, told reporters.
Russian agents targeted election systems in 21 states ahead of the 2016 general election, the Department of Homeland Security has said, and separately launched a social media blitz aimed at inflaming social tensions and sowing confusion.
Top U.S. intelligence officials have said they've seen indications Russian agents are preparing a new round of election subterfuge this year.
DHS took nearly a year to inform the affected states of hacking attempts, blaming it in part on a lack of security clearances. Lawmakers in both parties have pressed the department on why it took so long.
“One of the most frustrating things is that in the aftermath of the hacking, it took the Department of Homeland Security nearly nine months nine months to notify the top election officials that their states and systems had been messed with,” Warner said.
On Wednesday, the lawmakers are scheduled to hold a lengthy public hearing looking into attempted hacks on state elections systems in 2016 and the federal and state response to those efforts.
The committee has prepared a larger report on the issue, one of what could be several reports to come out of the committee's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
Overall, experts say far too little has been done to shore up vulnerabilities in 10,000 U.S. voting jurisdictions that mostly run on obsolete and imperfectly secured technology.
However, there is no evidence that any hack in the November 2016 election affected election results, but the attempts spooked state election officials who sought answers about how their systems had been potentially compromised.
Warner has said he thinks the process to prevent such hacking needs to be more robust, especially since Trump has not addressed the matter as an urgent problem.
"We've got bipartisan agreement we have to do something on this," Warner said earlier this year.
The Senate intelligence panel has put off making any assessments about whether Trump's 2016 campaign in any way coordinated with Russia. Though that is one part of the panel's investigation, Burr and Warner have decided to focus on less controversial issues where all members agree.

Illegal immigrants, who dodged California ICE raid after Dem mayor's tip-off, re-arrested for new crimes

Three illegal immigrants, who avoided capture after Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf blew the whistle on a raid by federal immigration authorities last month, have since been re-arrested for new crimes including robbery and spousal abuse, ICE officials said.
Schaaf tweeted out a warning ahead of the raid in northern California last month, infuriating Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials and the Trump administration.
“How dare you!” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in California this month, addressing Schaaf. “How dare you needlessly endanger the lives of our law enforcement officers to promote a radical, open borders agenda.”
ICE officials eventually caught 232 illegal immigrants, many of them criminals, in the four-day sweep but said that hundreds more escaped because of Schaaf’s warning.
But on Tuesday, officials said that at least three of those who were targeted in the raid, but were not apprehended, had since been arrested for additional crimes.
One was a Mexican national arrested for robbery and gun crimes, who was released back into the community for a prior offense despite an ICE detainer request in November.
Another Mexican national was arrested for a DUI, despite having been deported three times and prior convictions for false imprisonment, DUI and battery of a spouse.
The third was a Mexican national who was arrested for corporal injury of a spouse, despite being deported twice and criminal convictions including drug possession, hit-and-run, DUIs, possessions of narcotics equipment and a parole violation.
Acting ICE Director Tom Homan mentioned the three cases at a roundtable on sanctuary cities at the White House on Tuesday. He also expressed frustration at the mixed messages coming from politicians in sanctuary states.
“We are told on one hand to focus efforts on criminals but those same folks who want to focus on criminals don’t let us into the county jails,” he said. “It just defies logic.”
'ANGEL FAMILIES' WANT TO SEE OAKLAND MAYOR PROSECUTED FOR THWARTING ICE RAIDS
While Homan has blamed Schaaf’s actions for the escape of as many as 800 illegal immigrants, it is unclear exactly how many evaded capture directly because of her actions. A DHS official told The New York Times that ICE agents typically find only about 30 percent of their targets during a sweep, meaning that many of those who evaded capture may not have been caught either way.
Schaaf has stood by her actions, saying the community is safer because of sanctuary city policies
“I do not regret sharing this information,” she said last month. “It is Oakland’s legal right to be a sanctuary city and we have not broken any laws. We believe our community is safer when families stay together.”
Last week an Oakland community organizer told Fox News that she was being supported by members of the community.
"People are really supportive of her because she took a stand," Emma Paulino said. "She is serving the people who elected her."
The Justice Department, which is also suing California over its sanctuary city policies, has said it is reviewing Schaaf’s actions, but has yet to make an announcement.

Democrat quits state Senate for new gov't job paying $100G more

Former North Carolina state Sen. Angela Bryant has joined the state's parole commission, an appointment by Gov. Roy Cooper. She will reportedly make about $100,000 more than her legislative salary.  (Angela Bryant state senator website)

Former North Carolina state Sen. Angela Bryant has joined the state's parole commission, an appointment by Gov. Roy Cooper. She will reportedly make about $100,000 more than her legislative salary.  (Angela Bryant state senator website)

A North Carolina Democrat resigned from the state Senate this week, on the same day she announced she was joining the state parole board -- at a pay raise of more than $100,000.
The state Senate received Sen. Angela Bryant’s resignation letter Monday, the same day Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper announced he was appointing Bryant to the state Post-Release Supervision & Parole Commission.
State law sets Bryant's board salary at $116,595 annually, about eight times more compared to her legislative salary at nearly $14,000, the Raleigh News & Observer reported.
Bryant said last month she would not seek re-election this fall, citing a redrawn Senate map making her district more difficult to win.
Cooper cited Bryant's "strong track record of diligent, thoughtful service to our state," as the reasoj behind the appointement, adding, "I know that will continue in her new role on the Parole Board," the News & Observer reported.
Bryant is an attorney and former North Carolina Industrial Commission deputy commissioner who had served in the Legislature since 2007.
"Thanks so much for the opportunity to serve the State in this great institution with the many great colleagues over my eleven years," Bryant wrote in her resignation letter, according to the newspaper. "I am also very thankful to the constituents of, at first House District 7, and then later Senate District 4, for electing me to serve in the legislature for six terms."
Bryant is a former member of the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Justice and Public Safety, the Rocky Mount Telegram reported. During her tenure, she worked on issues related to offender re-entry, and more favorable expunction laws and processes, the report said.
The parole commission's four members, appointed by Cooper, set conditions under which felons completing their sentences are released or can be paroled under old sentencing rules.
The independent agency does not hold formal hearings or meet with offenders to review cases, according to the News & Observer.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper delivers a speech in Washington, May 16, 2017.  (Reuters)

Since taking office in January 2017, Cooper has faced scrutiny over some hefty pay raises handed out to his Cabinet secretaries. In fact, as of last month, each of his Cabinet members draws a higher salary than Cooper's $144,349 per year.
The governor justified the raises by stating that his Cabinet was the most diverse in state history and the average Cabinet member had 22 years of experience.