Conservative Blogger
Sunday, February 25, 2018
Supreme Court case seeks disclosure of credit card fees to benefit consumers
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| FILE -- This April 4, 2017, file photo, shows the Supreme Court Building is seen in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) |
Every time a consumer swipes his or her credit
card, the credit card company collects a fee. Do most consumers know
this? Probably not. That’s because American Express rules prohibit
retailers from educating consumers about these fees or giving consumers
benefits for using lower-cost cards.
Although retailers are fighting for
the right to disclose these fees, credit card companies are determined
to keep consumers in the dark.
To change these rules, retailers support a lawsuit that
will be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday. The case, Ohio
et al. v. American Express, began when the federal government and 11 states sued American Express, claiming that its rules violate U.S. antitrust laws.After weeks of testimony and extensive briefing, a federal district court agreed. An appellate court later reversed the decision. Now the final determination will be made by the Supreme Court.
Retailers have been fighting the credit card networks’ unfair rules and anti-competitive practices for decades. The rules the Supreme Court will consider are but one example. They prevent consumers from getting basic information about the true costs of their payment choices, and prevent retailers from offering their own incentives or rewards to consumers who choose lower fee payment options.
Keeping consumers in the dark has allowed the banks and credit card networks to control the rewards they give to select customers while jacking up the fees charged to merchants – fees that are ultimately passed on to every customer in the form of higher prices.
For retailers, the solution is simple: let in the light.
Consumers crave transparency. They want to know the origins of their salmon and their T-shirts. They want to know what chemicals are in their water bottles and the calorie content of their breakfast. They use smartphones to read reviews and to compare prices on products right in the store.
Consumers use this information to make purchasing decisions that best fit their lifestyles and their budgets. Why shouldn’t they be allowed to know how much they’re paying to use their credit cards? Or be given the option at checkout to choose additional benefits for using a less expensive payment option?
The informed consumer is at the core of modern retail. Empowered consumers increase retail competition, which in turn gives consumers more choices and lower prices.
The absence of similar transparency in the credit card market – because of American Express’s rules – has stifled competition in the payments space. The resulting higher fees increase prices for all consumers whether they pay by card, cash, check, or government benefits.
Transparency is the best way to prevent those with market power from stifling competition and innovation. Amex’s rules are the antithesis of the free market principles retailers embrace.
As the U.S. Supreme Court hears this case, America’s retailers hope the court will strike down American Express’s rules in order to allow transparency, marketplace competition and consumer choice to prevail.
Deborah White, senior executive vice president and general counsel for the Retail Industry Leaders Association and president of the Retail Litigation Center
Trump talks Dems' memo, guns and border wall in exclusive interview with Fox News
President Donald Trump urged the
nation “to all come together” Saturday night as he discussed the
Democrats' FISA rebuttal memo, potential new gun legislation and plans
for a border wall in an exclusive interview with Fox News.
Speaking with Jeanine Pirro, host of
"Justice with Judge Jeanine," Trump said the Democrats' FISA rebuttal
memo “verified” the contents of Republican U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes' memo,
which was released previously.
The president asserted that that was likely the reason why Democrats didn’t push hard for their own memo to be released. Nunes, R-Calif., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, asserts in his document, made public Feb. 2, that the FBI may have relied on questionable sources to obtain a surveillance warrant in connection with the investigation into possible Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
The Democrats' memo, released Saturday, defends the FBI's actions.
Pirro noted that months of investigation into possible ties between the Russians and the Trump campaign and administration have not led to any “reference of collusion.”
“There is no collusion,” Trump replied.
“I don't want to sound braggadocious, but I was a far better candidate than [Hillary Clinton]. ... Frankly, that's what it was all about. It was nothing to do with Russians,” he said.
When asked about Twitter comments by U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee and a harsh critic of the president, Trump responded by calling for national unity rather than division.“I don't want to sound braggadocious, but I was a far better candidate than [Hillary Clinton]. ... Frankly, that's what it was all about. It was nothing to do with Russians.”
“We need intelligence that brings our nation together and a lot of people are tearing our nation apart. ... We have to come together as a nation.”
'I get things done'
The president was also asked about the accomplishments of his administration during its first year -- and what made them possible.
“I think that I’ve had a lot of good ideas and I have a lot of energy. I get things done,” Trump said.
Trump added that the Republicans' tax cut bill -- signed into law in December -- was a key reason why his approval ratings were high, but suggested that cuts in regulations may have been even more popular.
“I don’t think any administration has done as much as we’ve done in the first year, I don’t think it’s even close,” Trump said.
Action on guns
He also spoke about gun regulation in wake of the Feb. 14 massacre in Parkland, Fla.
“I’ve spoke to many senators, many congressman ... and I think we’re going to have a great bill put forward very soon having to do with background checks,” Trump said.
But he added there was “no bigger champion of the Second Amendment” protecting the rights of gun owners than him -- and reiterated his stance that teachers should be able to protect schools through with “concealed [carry] permits.”
Trump said that assuring gun purchasers' mental stability would also be a strong part of improving background checks.
“Somebody who is mentally ill should not have a weapon, should not have a gun,” he said. “We’re drawing up very strong legislation right now having to do with background checks, mental illness. I think you’re going to have tremendous support.”
'I'd like to have a parade'
Trump also spoke about his idea of having a military parade to celebrate the nation's service members and veterans.
“I’d like to have a parade, a lot of the generals would like to have a parade to celebrate what we’re doing,” he said, adding that the event could possibly be held July 4 or on Veterans Day in November.
Trump also discussed his progress with immigration legislation, saying that although Democrats have agreed to support a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, he “needs more” in order to finalze a comprehensive immigration plan.
“We need something to do with chain migration, we need something to do with visa lottery ... We want people to come in through merit,” he said.
Trump ended with some thoughts on first daughter Ivanka Trump’s visit to South Korea for the Winter Olympics.
“There is no better representative we can have go over to a pretty tough place right now in the world," he said. "We cannot have a better, smarter representative.”
Condoleezza Rice says US needs to consider Second Amendment's place in 'modern world'
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| Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (2010 Getty Images) |
This month's massacre in Parkland, Fla., seems like
a key moment in the nation's ongoing debate about the Second Amendment,
former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said during a radio
interview Friday.
“I think it is time to have a
conversation about what the right to bear arms means in the modern
world,” Rice told radio host Hugh Hewitt on Friday. “I don’t understand
why civilians need to have access to military weapons. We wouldn’t say
you can go out and buy a tank.”
More specifically, Rice said weapons like the AR-15
rifle that authorities say shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz, 19, used to
kill 17 students and teachers Feb. 14, shouldn't be available to
civilians, the Washington Times reported.But Rice, who served under President George W. Bush, made clear that she remains a believer in the Second Amendment.
“We can’t throw away the Second Amendment and keep the First,” she said, adding that she considers the first two amendments to the Constitution to be “indivisible.”
Hewitt then asked if Rice -- being an educator herself as a political science professor at Stanford University -- supports the idea of teachers carrying guns as a deterrent to potential campus shootings.“We can’t throw away the Second Amendment and keep the First.”
Rice said she doesn’t think that is “going to be the answer,” the Washington Times reported.
“I don’t really like the idea, frankly, of a gun in my classroom,” she said.
Rather, she supports looking to law enforcement and guards as ways for protection.
Rice, 63, was exposed to senseless violence at an early age, having grown up in Birmingham, Ala., where the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in 1963 resulted in the deaths of four young girls. She has written and spoken frequently about the impression the horrific event made on her.
She told Hewitt that despite her reservations about weapons in the classroom, the proposal merited a serious discussion.
“Look, if people need to train people to protect our
schools, and perhaps even communities want to consider whether or not
they need guards to protect the schools, it’s a sad thing to think that
we might, then that’s something that we should look at,” Rice said. She told Hewitt that talking across “our differences is extremely important” and that communities have to “pull together.” “We have to start listening to each other, first and
foremost,” Rice said of the people from all sides of the debate on gun
control.NRA defends itself after corporations pull away
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| A cap and shirt are displayed at the booth for the National Rifle Association (NRA) at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at National Harbor, Md., Feb. 23, 2018. |
The National Rifle Association defended itself in
no uncertain terms Saturday after numerous companies sought to cut ties
with the gun lobby following the nation's latest mass shooting.
“Let it be absolutely clear,” the
organization said in a statement. “The loss of a discount will neither
scare nor distract one single NRA member from our mission to stand and
defend the individual freedoms that have always made America the
greatest nation in the world.”
The statement came two days after Wayne LaPierre, the
NRA’s executive vice president, delivered a fiery speech at the
Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Maryland.The NRA, which represents about 5 million members, has faced public outcry following a mass shooting Feb. 14 in Parkland, Fla., that killed 17 people. That outcry has mostly taken the form of calls for gun control legislation and for boycotts of companies that partner with the NRA on discount offers and other consumer inducements.
On Saturday, United and Delta Airlines joined the list of companies separating themselves from the gun group. Previous companies to do so include MetLife, Symantec and rental car companies Hertz, Budget, Avis and Enterprise.
Those moves prompted Saturday's response from the NRA, which asserted that those corporations had “decided to punish NRA membership in a shameful display of political and civic cowardice.”
NRA BACKLASH: THESE ARE THE COMPANIES CUTTING TIES
The NRA's statement argued that other factors besides gun ownership were to blame for events like the Parkland massacre.
“The law-abiding members of the NRA had nothing at all to do with the failure of that school’s security preparedness, the failure of America’s mental health system, the failure of the National Instant Check System or the cruel failures of both federal and local law enforcement,” its statement said.
However, the Washington Post reported that the NRA fought the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, which mandated federal background checks on firearm purchasers, suing the federal government once the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) was up and running. The NRA had argued that the entire law, including the NICS provision, be struck down as unconstitutional, the report said.
15 brands have now ended their relationship with the @NRA:
1. @MetLife
2. @symantec
3. @BestWestern
4. @Wyndham
5. @Alamo
6. @NationalPro
7. @Enterprise
8. @FNBOmaha
9. @Hertz
10. @Budget
11. @Avis
12. @NortonOnline
13. @northAmericanVL
14. @SimpliSafe
15. @ChubbNA#BoycottNRA
Saturday, February 24, 2018
Manafort faces new charges in Mueller probe, blasts ex-partner for pleading guilty
A federal grand jury unsealed new charges against
ex-Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort in Special Counsel Robert
Mueller’s Russia probe on Friday, as Manafort blasted his former
business partner Rick Gates for pleading guilty in the case.
Mueller’s office unsealed a
superseding indictment against the 68-year-old Manafort, including
conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money,
failing to register as an agent of a foreign principal, giving false and
misleading Foreign Agents Registration Act statements and providing
other false statements.
Meanwhile, Gates pleaded guilty Friday afternoon to
federal conspiracy and false-statement charges at a Washington
courthouse, in a strong indication he plans to cooperate with the probe.As Gates entered his plea, Manafort issued a brief statement maintaining his innocence and swiping at his former associate.
“Notwithstanding that Rick Gates pled today, I continue to maintain my innocence," Manafort said in a statement. "I had hoped and expected my business colleague would have had the strength to continue the battle to prove our innocence. For reasons yet to surface he chose to do otherwise."
Both Gates and Manafort were in business together and worked on the Trump campaign.
A federal grand jury in Virginia on Thursday had returned a 32-count indictment against Gates and Manafort on tax evasion and bank fraud charges.
"This does not alter my commitment to defend myself against the untrue piled up charges contained in the indictments against me,” Manafort said of Gates' plea.
A superseding criminal complaint says Gates is charged with conspiracy against the United States between 2006 and 2017.
Gates is also accused of making a false statement Feb. 1 to the Special Counsel’s Office and the FBI about a March 2013 meeting between Manafort, a lobbyist and a member of Congress.
Gates could become a key cooperator for Mueller with intimate knowledge of Manafort's years of political consulting work in Ukraine, as well as other events that have sparked the interest of federal investigators.
United States District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said Gates could face 48 to 71 months in prison and a fine of $20,000 to $200,000. The plea documents say Gates “shall cooperate fully, truthfully, completely, and forthrightly” with the special counsel’s office.
According to the complaint, Gates and Manafort worked as unregistered agents of the government of Ukraine, generating tens of millions of dollars in income.
The White House on Friday distanced itself from Gates.
“This indictment has nothing to do with the White House or the president,” deputy White House communications director Mercedes Schlapp said Friday on Fox News. “As you know, we have been cooperative with the special counsel. And as we continue to see, there's no evidence of collusion, no evidence of wrongdoing. “
Prosecutors accuse Gates and Manafort of hiding payments from Ukraine by laundering money through “scores of United States and foreign corporations, partnerships, and bank accounts.”
MANAFORT, GATES INDICTED ON NEW TAX AND BANK FRAUD CHARGES
Millions were funnelled into foreign companies and bank accounts in Cyprus, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the Seychelles, the complaint says. But the duo falsely claimed they had no foreign bank accounts, prosecutors said.
The complaint says Gates and Manafort were required under the law to report their work for foreign governments but did not do so.
Prosecutors also accuse Gates and Manafort of responding with a "series of false and misleading statements” when the Department of Justice asked about their activities in 2016.
Manafort used his hidden overseas wealth to enjoy a lavish lifestyle in the United States, without paying taxes on that income, the complaint says. Gates is also accused of using money from offshore accounts to pay for personal expenses, including his mortgage, children’s tuition and interior decorating of his Virginia residence.
Gates transferred more than $3 million from offshore accounts to other accounts under his control, according to the complaint.
It says more than $75 million flowed through Gates and Manafort’s offshore accounts.
It would mark the fifth publicly known guilty plea in the special counsel probe into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin during the 2016 campaign.
Gates had access at the highest levels of the campaign at the same time that Manafort, Donald Trump Jr. and Jared Kushner met with a team of Russians in Trump Tower in June 2016.
He was also in the top ranks of the campaign when then-Sen. Jeff Sessions held a pair of undisclosed meetings with Russian ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak.
For a few months in 2016, Gates was indispensable to Trump, leading the ground effort to help Trump win the Republican nomination and flying from state to state to secure Republican delegates in a scramble that lasted all the way until the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.
But his power and influence waned once Trump fired Manafort in August 2016.
The plea also comes quickly on the heels of a stunning indictment last week that laid out a broad operation of election meddling by Russia, which began in 2014, and employed fake social media accounts and on-the-ground politicking to promote the campaign of Donald Trump, disparage Hillary Clinton and sow division and discord widely among the U.S. electorate.
Gates initially pleaded not guilty and has been facing up to 12.5 years in jail -- based on a 12-count indictment handed up in October accusing him and Manafort of acting as unregistered foreign agents and conspiring to launder millions of dollars they earned while working on behalf of a pro-Russian Ukrainian political party.
Military parade planners eye Veterans Day for event, official says
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| The largest military parade in American history was in 1865 |
Plans for President Trump’s requested military
parade in the nation’s capital are moving forward after National
Security Adviser H.R. McMaster ordered the military to start planning
the event for Veterans Day, a senior U.S. official confirmed Friday to
Fox News.
Trump has requested that the
procession run from the White House to Capitol Hill on the national
holiday, which this year coincides with the 100th anniversary of the end
of World War I.
The date of the planned parade: Nov. 11.McMaster drafted a memo for the Pentagon earlier this week, reportedly telling Secretary of Defense James Mattis, per a request from Trump, to lay out "concepts of operation for this event," Politico reported, citing a senior administration official.
Inspiration for a military parade in Washington, D.C., was reportedly first spawned after the president attended France’s Bastille Day as the guest of honor in July. Trump admired the country’s celebrations and called the parade “magnificent.”
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed on Feb. 6 that Trump requested that the Department of Defense “explore a celebration at which all Americans can show their appreciation.”
“President Trump is incredibly supportive of America’s great service members who risk their lives every day to keep our country safe,” she added.
President Trump reveals winners of his ‘Fake News’ awards
President Trump revealed the winners
of his self-proclaimed ‘Fake News’ awards Wednesday night on Twitter --
with The New York Times topping the list.
CNN also came out as a “winner,” with the left-leaning news network making the list four times.
The list, published on GOP.com, noted
that “studies have shown that over 90 percent of the media’s coverage
of President Trump is negative.” It went on to call 2017 “a year of
unrelenting bias, unfair news coverage and even downright fake news.”Coming in first place was The New York Times’ Paul Krugman for his prediction that the stock markets would never recover from Trump’s election.
In a bit of irony, the Dow Jones industrial average closed above 26,000 for the first time on Wednesday.
The Times was followed by ABC News’ Brian Ross for his botched report that Trump advised former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to make contact with Russian officials during the 2016 campaign.
The list pointed to a false CNN report that Trump had early access to “hacked documents” from WikiLeaks, a video that suggested Trump overfed fish in a visit with the Japanese prime minister and a report that former FBI Director James Comey would deny saying Trump was told he was not under investigation.
The Times appeared on the list again for a false report that the Trump administration hid a report on climate change.
Newsweek sent out a tweet Wednesday evening acknowledging its “award.”
The final “winner” on the list, as Trump described it: “And last, but not least: 'RUSSIA COLLUSION!' Russian collusion is perhaps the greatest hoax perpetrated on the American people. THERE IS NO COLLUSION!”
The website carrying the results of the “Fake News Awards” crashed because it was flooded with visitors after Trump tweeted out the link.
Without naming anyone, Trump also tweeted out his praise for the “many great reporters.”
He continued, “Despite some very corrupt and dishonest media coverage, there are many great reporters I respect and lots of GOOD NEWS for the American people to be proud of!”
Below is the full list of winners of the 2017 Fake News Awards.
1) The New York Times’ Paul Krugman claiming markets would ‘never’ recover from a Trump presidency
2) ABC News' Brian Ross’ bungled report on former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn
3) CNN falsely reporting the Trump campaign had early access to hacked documents from WikiLeaks
4) TIME report that Trump removed a bust of Martin Luther King, Jr. from the Oval Office
5) The Washington Post’s Dave Weigel tweeting that Trump’s December rally in Pensacola, Fla., wasn’t packed with supporters
6) CNN’s video suggesting Trump overfed fish during a visit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
7) CNN’s retracted report claiming Anthony Scaramucci-Russia ties
8) Newsweek report that Polish First Lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda did not shake Trump’s hand
9) CNN report that former FBI Director James Comey would dispute President Trump’s claim he was told he was not under investigation
10) The New York Times report that the Trump administration had hidden a climate-change study
11) In Trump’s words, "‘RUSSIA COLLUSION!’ Russian collusion is perhaps the greatest hoax perpetrated on the American people. THERE IS NO COLLUSION!”
Trump supporter, 76, blames ‘fake news’ CNN for threats following reporter ambush
CNN correspondent Drew Griffin ambushed the Trump supporter outside her home earlier this week because she may have unwittingly promoted a Russian-coordinated event during the 2016 election. Now she's receiving threats on social media, and she lays the blame at the news network's feet.
Goldfarb had her full name plastered on the video that was tweeted out to CNN’s nearly 40 million followers. Her house number was also visible for much off the video. Her crime? Unknowingly organizing a pro-Trump event on Facebook that was influenced by the Russians, who are accused of meddling in the election.
Fox News reached Goldfarb, of Pembroke Pines, Fla., via Facebook Messenger and she declined a phone interview because she wants the “situation to go away.” She says she's been bombarded since Griffin showed up at her door.
"My phone is ringing off the hook and I can't keep up with the emails and Facebook messages. I am being trashed by anti-Trump trolls on Facebook. This would have never happened if Fake News CNN had not caught me at home and ambushed me trying to coerce me into giving them the answers they were looking for,” Goldfarb told Fox News via the messaging app. “CNN is doing a great job exposing themselves as Fake News."
Goldfarb was called “public enemy number one,” a “traitor,” “miserable racist trash” and a treasonous hillbilly.” One Facebook user said she “should be arrested and tried for treason” in a series of messages arising in the wake of the CNN segment.This would have never happened if Fake News CNN had not caught me at home and ambushed me trying to coerce me into giving them the answers they were looking for."
Outspoken liberal actor Jon Cryer, co-star of "Two and a Half Men," tweeted out CNN’s video of the ensnarement and wrote, “We are dealing with a cult.” One user responded that Goldfarb should “move” and ought to be embarrassed to show her face in town. Yet another user called her a “complete moron,” and one person responded that “there's no witness protection program for the willfully ignorant.”
The episode puts the spotlight on CNN’s own coverage and promotion of an anti-Trump rally that was allegedly coordinated by Russian trolls fingered by Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. Back on Nov. 12, 2016, CNN gave “enthusiastic coverage to the Russian-organized anti-Trump rally that day, with live reports every hour,” according to the Media Research Center.
“They should do an ambush of their own producers,” Fox News’ Greg Gutfeld recently said on “The Five.”
Instead, Griffin approached Goldfarb on her own front lawn in Pembroke Pines, asking if she'd been part of a coverup. “The Russians? I don’t care if they were involved or not,” she said.
The combative CNN correspondent then asked if she was aware of the Russian influence, but Goldfarb quickly shot down his question. “They weren’t involved with us. Just make sure you report it correctly,” she said.
Griffin then shifted gears, asking her if she was involved in “Being Patriotic,” which is apparently the name of a Russian troll group. But Goldfarb responded that she was “very patriotic.”
Griffin continued to question her outside her home, essentially accusing her of complying with Russian trolls. Goldfarb eventually walked away, calling the allegations “bulls—t” on her way inside the house.
CNN’s verified Twitter account shared the video with the caption “A Florida woman who ran a Trump supporters page that unwittingly promoted a Russian-coordinated event on Facebook says she doesn’t believe that she was influenced by Kremlin-linked trolls.”
With the apparent shaming of her for being manipulated by Russians, CNN gave American trolls a green light to harass her on social media. She isn’t hard to find, as only one “Florine Gruen Goldfarb” appears in the search function on Facebook.
Her page features an Ivanka Trump photo and reveals that she is part of numerous conservative pro-Trump groups. Goldfarb said she has received messages from fellow Trump supporters across the globe who saw the CNN segment.
“I greatly appreciate their support,” Goldfard wrote to Fox News.
“The Five” co-host Jesse Watters established himself as a cable news star conducting man-on-the-street segments and ambush interviews. “I’ve done this dozens and dozens of times and ambushed people. I’ve never done it to a regular person outside of their house,” Watters said. “The guy can go to someone’s house with a camera and a mic, that’s fine. … His tone was so wrong and accusatory.”
Co-host Kimberly Guilfoyle added that Goldfarb would have “quite a lawsuit if anything happens to her” as a result of the CNN report.
Goldfard shared one of the threatening messages she has received with Fox News. She received it on Friday at 9:10 a.m. ET from a stranger on Facebook.
“Hey Comrade, I saw you being interviewed and denying helping Russians. You and all the Russian allies should go prison once we hang Trump for treason. Looking forward to impeaching your treasonous pos fake President, and coming after his enablers like you,” the message said.
While Goldfarb is concerned for her safety, she doesn’t want anyone feeling sorry for because of her advanced age.
“I may be 76 going on 77 but I am not an old lady. I have been active in politics for 10 years. Worked on many campaigns. In between my hobby is dancing, such as line dancing, couple dancing such as cha-cha, west and East Coast swing dances,” Goldfarb said.
Pembroke Pines police did not immediately respond to request for comment.
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