Restaurants warn NY push for $15 wage could close hundreds of businesses

Critics are blasting a New York Wage Board decision to hike the minimum wage to $15 an hour for fast food establishments that threatens to close hundreds of businesses. 
The International Franchise Association, which represents tens of thousands of major chain restaurants and their franchisees, said that the decision could lead to massive job losses and closed stores.
The "New York wage board decision to discriminate against the quick service food industry will cost jobs and potentially cause small businesses to close," IFA president & CEO Steve Caldeira said in a statement. "Applying a new mandatory minimum wage increase to a narrow group of businesses creates an un-level playing field for owners that provide important entry-level jobs and valuable experience for millions of workers across the state of New York."
A wage board consisting of two labor friendly appointees and one entrepreneur voted to hike the starting wage to $15 -- more than double the $7.25 federal level and a 70 percent increase from the $8.75 statewide wage -- after several weeks of hearings. The board convened after a years-long pressure campaign by labor giant Service Employees International Union (SEIU) targeting McDonalds and other fast food establishments. SEIU spent more than $20 million on front groups that sponsored protests at McDonalds locations across the country in 2014.
The wage hike could have an immediate effect on small businesses. The franchise model relies on entrepreneurs paying licensing fees to parent companies in order to operate under the company umbrella; the typical franchisee takes home about $50,000 each year with one-in-three restaurant owners earning less than $25,000 per year. The new $15 minimum wage would give the average full-time fast food workers a starting salary of more than $30,000.

‘Flat-out lie’: Cruz calls McConnell a liar on Senate floor

An extraordinary scene unfolded on the Senate floor Friday as Republican Sen. Ted Cruz bluntly accused Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of lying and said he's running the Senate like his Democratic predecessor. 
The charges from the Texas senator and GOP presidential candidate were a rare departure from the Senate's usual staid decorum, even for a politician famous for his fiery speeches.
At issue were assurances Cruz claimed McConnell, R-Ky., had given that there was no deal to allow a vote to renew the federal Export-Import Bank -- a little-known federal agency that has become a rallying cry for conservatives. Cruz rose to deliver his remarks moments after McConnell had lined up a vote on the bank.
"It saddens me to say this. I sat in my office, I told my staff the majority leader looked me in the eye and looked 54 Republicans in the eye. I cannot believe he would tell a flat-out lie, and I voted based on those assurances that he made to each and every one of us," Cruz said.
"What we just saw today was an absolute demonstration that not only what he told every Republican senator, but what he told the press over and over and over again, was a simple lie."
Reports had emerged earlier this year that McConnell privately pledged a vote on the Ex-Im Bank, in exchange for winning support on President Obama's trade agenda. Cruz says he was assured at the time there was no deal.
He also charged that the Senate under Republican control is no different from when Harry Reid of Nevada ran the chamber and was accused by the GOP of shutting down debate and limiting amendments.
"Now the Republican leader is behaving like the senior senator from Nevada," Cruz complained. He also derided an announcement from McConnell that the Senate will vote Sunday to repeal Obama's health care law, calling it "an empty show vote" and "exercise in meaningless political theater" because the legislation will inevitably fail to get the 60 votes needed to advance.
"We keep winning elections and then we keep getting leaders who don't do anything they promised," Cruz said.
The majority leader was not on the Senate floor when Cruz issued his attack, and ignored reporters who tried to ask him about it in the Capitol's hallways. A spokesman said McConnell would have no response.
McConnell and Cruz have never had a thriving relationship. The new majority leader's allies earlier this year derided Cruz's Senate record, complaining that he often speaks out but has skipped important developments.
Some close to McConnell call Cruz, "Mr. 1 percent," referring to his share of support in the crowded race for the GOP presidential nomination. Recent polls have him a few points higher among more than a dozen contenders.
Cruz has grown increasingly outspoken about his contempt for McConnell and other Republicans, using his newly published book, "A Time for Truth," to attack his colleagues on various fronts and accuse them of failing to stand up for their principles.
It is rare for a senator to launch such a heated attack on the floor. Senate rules say, "No Senator in debate shall, directly or indirectly, by any form of words impute to another Senator or to other Senators any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a Senator."

Pentagon wants individuals to stop guarding recruiting stations

The Pentagon asked Friday that individuals not stand guard at the military recruiting offices in the wake of the deadly Chattanooga terror attack.
Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said in a statement that Secretary of Defense Ash Carter “is currently reviewing recommendations from the services for making our installations and facilities safer - including our recruiting stations” following the July 16 attack that left four Marines and a Navy sailor dead.
“While we greatly appreciate the outpouring of support for our recruiters from the American public, we ask that individuals not stand guard at recruiting offices as it could adversely impact our mission, and potentially create unintended security risks,” Cook added.
In the days following the attack, citizens groups, veterans, local law enforcement and the National Guard have stood watch outside of recruiting offices across the country. It’s also raised questions over a 23-year-old federal policy that leaves service members unable to defend themselves on Pentagon property.
The governors of Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma,  Texas and Wisconsin have all signed orders in the last several days to allow National Guard troops to carry loaded guns on bases and at military recruiting centers in their states.

Moral Cartoon

House OKs bill to crack down on 'sanctuary cities,' White House threatens veto

The House approved legislation Thursday to punish so-called “sanctuary cities” for failing to cooperate with federal immigration authorities, in the first congressional response to a brazen murder earlier this month in San Francisco allegedly committed by an illegal immigrant.  
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., would penalize jurisdictions that bar the collection of immigration information or don't cooperate with federal “detainer” requests, by blocking them from receiving certain federal law enforcement grants and funding.
It passed 241-179. The Senate is considering similar legislation.
“Sanctuary city policies needlessly endanger American lives by refusing to honor the federal government’s authority to enforce immigration laws,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the Obama Administration’s own foolish policies enable rogue local governments to defy federal immigration laws. All too often, these reckless policies create preventable tragedies.”
The legislation already faces a White House veto threat. The White House said the bill “fails to offer” comprehensive reforms and undermines current efforts to remove dangerous convicted criminals and work with local law enforcement.
Angry Democrats accused Republicans of aligning themselves with Donald Trump and his brash anti-illegal immigrant views.
The legislation is the first passed since the July 1 killing of Kathryn Steinle on a California pier.
Steinle, 32, was allegedly shot by Juan Francisco Lopez Sanchez, an illegal immigrant who had been released from city sheriff’s department custody in April.
According to federal immigration officials, Sanchez had already been deported five times and had a lengthy felony criminal record. After serving most of his recent sentence, federal officials turned him over to San Francisco in March on an outstanding warrant – and the city released him weeks later without notifying the feds.
The city argued it had no grounds on which to hold him.
Steinle’s case sparked a fresh round of debate about local jurisdictions – the so-called sanctuary cities – that don’t cooperate with federal immigration authorities in order to protect those legally living in the U.S. Steinle’s father Jim testified this week on Capitol Hill in support of changes to the law.
"There are criminals motivated by malice and a conscious disregard for the lives of others, and there are cities more interested in providing a sanctuary for those criminals than they are in providing a sanctuary for their law-abiding citizens," Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., said. "This is more than an academic discussion. ... It is quite literally life and death."
But Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, said the bill was “not about grabbing criminals” but about “grabbing headlines.”
Members of both parties endorsed Steinle's plea but offered different diagnoses of the problem, with Republicans calling for more enforcement of the law and Democrats calling for a comprehensive immigration overhaul, something House Republicans have blocked for years.
The comments echoed the years-long national debate over immigration, but this latest chapter comes at a moment when immigration has become a hot-button issue on the presidential campaign trail, thanks to Trump's provocative claims about Mexican immigrants being "rapists" and "criminals."
Trump traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border on Thursday to continue his focus on the issue, to the dismay of many Republicans who fear his campaign risks further alienating Latino voters from the Republican Party. House Republicans rejected Democratic attempts to connect their legislation with Trump's campaign.
"We have a horrible tragedy that was preventable," said Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, when asked about the link. "Cities do not have the right to ignore federal laws that require them to incarcerate people who have committed serious felonies."
Not all House Republicans were backing the bill. Rep. Carlos Curbelo, R-Fla., a supporter of a comprehensive overhaul, said Thursday's bill wouldn't have prevented Kathryn Steinle's death to begin with.
"This is an exercise, this is not a solution," Curbelo told reporters. "This may generate a headline, but it's not going to solve a problem."
But other House Republicans viewed Thursday's vote as just the first step in advancing a slate of enforcement-focused immigration bills centered on beefing up border security and cracking down on immigrants with criminal records. Such an approach would ignore the advice of some Republican Party leaders who've urged the party to reach out to Latino voters by embracing comprehensive overhaul legislation including a path to citizenship for the 11.5 million people in the country illegally.
"The appetite for amnesty has diminished dramatically after we see the carnage in the streets of America at the hands of criminal aliens that should have been removed from the country," said Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa. "And so that means that now the climate is much better to try to move down the line on enforcement."

Trump threatens independent run, on sidelines of border visit

Donald Trump made a splashy visit Thursday to the U.S.-Mexico border in a bid to draw attention to illegal immigration. But on the sidelines, he was making news for other reasons -- his threat to mount an independent run for the White House if the Republican Party won't welcome him. 
The warning, made in an interview with The Hill, comes as Trump faces some of the toughest criticism yet from fellow Republican candidates. Trump said the Republican National Committee "has not been supportive," and suggested if he does not clinch the nomination and is not "treated" well by Republicans, he'd consider an independent bid.
Asked about the remarks Thursday during his border visit, Trump did not rule out an independent run but said: "I want to run as a Republican. ... I think I'll get the nomination."
Trump's comments immediately raise questions about whether the billionaire businessman and political provocateur -- who is leading several primary polls -- could siphon off votes from a GOP presidential nominee, potentially helping the Democrat. As a self-funded candidate, he would not have to worry about donations drying up if he does poorly in the Republican primaries and caucuses and considers setting out on his own.
Meanwhile, Trump tried to keep the focus Thursday on border security and immigration enforcement. At his border press conference, he said: "I think I'll win the Hispanic vote."
The visit was overshadowed not only by his comments to The Hill but by a local Border Patrol union canceling a scheduled meeting shortly before his arrival.

More on this...

• Trump visits US border in Texas amid uproar over immigration

• Trump gets a tour- and education - at the border

Hector Garza, president of the National Border Patrol Council Local 2455 chapter, issued a statement Thursday morning saying, "After careful consideration of all the factors involved in this event and communicating with members of the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) at the National level, it has been decided by Local 2455 to pull out of all events involving Donald Trump."
He said the border with Mexico is "not secure," and an "honest discussion" is needed with the American people. But he expressed concern that a meeting with Trump would have been portrayed as an endorsement. "As Local 2455, our intentions to meet with Mr. Trump was to provide a 'Boots on the Ground' perspective to not only Mr. Trump, but to the media that would be in attendance at this event," he said. "Just to be clear, an endorsement was never discussed for any presidential candidate. Local 2455 does not endorse candidates for any political office."
In a written statement, the Trump campaign said the local union was "totally silenced directly from superiors in Washington who do not want people to know how bad it is on the border --- every bit as bad as Mr. Trump has been saying."
Trump maintained he had been invited by them in the first place.
The campaign said, "It is unfortunate the local union of Border Patrol Agents received pressure at a national level not to participate and ultimately pulled out of today's event."
The Trump campaign's original itinerary said he would meet with the Local 2455 Executive Board. He was also meeting with local law enforcement, including federal agents from several agencies.
The visit comes as Trump both rises in the Republican primary polls and battles criticism from both sides of the aisle for recent comments -- first, for calling some Mexican illegal immigrants "rapists," and then, for questioning Sen. John McCain's "war hero" reputation over the weekend.

State Department, intelligence watchdogs reportedly call for criminal probe of Clinton emails

The inspectors general for the State Department and the intelligence community reportedly have asked the Justice Department to open a criminal investigation into whether Hillary Clinton mishandled classified information by using a personal e-mail account while secretary of state.
According to The New York Times, an initial joint memorandum dated June 29 and sent to State Department Under Secretary for Management Patrick Kennedy said that a review of Clinton's e-mail archive contained "hundreds of potentially classified emails".
Clinton, who served as secretary of state during President Barack Obama's first term, has repeatedly denied sending or receiving any classified information on her personal account. However, the inspectors general wrote in a second memorandum last week that at least one of Clinton's emails that had been made public by the State Department contained sensitive information.
Clinton presidential campaign spokesman Nick Merrill issued a statement early Friday denying that Clinton had handled classified materials inappropriately.
"As has been reported on multiple occasions, any released emails deemed classified by the [Obama] administration have been done so after the fact, and not at the time they were transmitted," Merrill said.
The Times reported that senior Justice Department officials had not said whether they will open an investigation.

More on this...

• Hillary Clinton's presidential bid runs into a summer stall

The existence of Clinton's private e-mail account was first revealed in March of this year. Subsequent reports revealed that the account was run through a personal so-called "homebrew" server based at her New York home. The arrangement has raised questions about Clinton's adherence to federal open records laws and whether she used the account to shield herself from information requests by journalists and government transparency groups.
Clinton has maintained that she turned over all relevant federal records before deleting her emails off her sever. Amid heavy public criticism, she later asked the State Department to release 55,000 pages of emails she had turned over to them. An initial batch of 3,000 pages was made public June 30.
The next day, State Department spokesman John Kirby confirmed to Fox News that the department had retroactively deemed about 25 of the Clinton emails to be classified. The Times reports that in May, the State Department also acceded to a request by the FBI to retroactively classify a section of emails related to the 2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya. The Department's decisions don't mean Clinton knowingly sent classified information during her tenure as America's top diplomat.
The New York Times reports that the inspectors general also criticized the State Department for over-reliance on former Foreign Service officers to determine which information should be classified and failure to consult with the intelligence community on such matters.

Turkey agrees to allow US to use air base for strikes against ISIS

The United States may now launch manned and unmanned military strikes against ISIS from inside Turkey after the government there agreed to allow Washington expanded use of a key air base, a senior defense official confirmed to Fox News Thursday.
Prior U.S. airstrikes against the Islamic State have originated from aircraft carriers in the Gulf. However, Turkey has agreed to allow the U.S. expanded use of its Incirlik Air Base, located near the Turkish-Syrian border.
The U.S. military had been using the base in Turkey previously for drone missions and other support operations such as launching and recovering refueling aircraft. Military officials told The Wall Street Journal the agreement also opens up other bases in Turkey for potential use in the campaign against Islamic State.
The Defense Department released a statement Thursday night confirming that there had been discussions with Turkey about counter-ISIS efforts, but did not go into specifics about Incirlik.
"The United States and Turkey have held ongoing consultations about ways we can further our joint counter-ISIL efforts," the statement said. "We have decided to further deepen our cooperation in the fight against ISIL, our common efforts to promote security and stability in Iraq, and our work to bring about a political settlement to the conflict in Syria."
While the U.S. is planning to launch air strikes against ISIS from Turkey, the defense official who spoke to Fox News remained skeptical if Turkey would do the same and said that was the real question.
The news comes amid increasing violence along Turkey’s 560-mile long border with Syria. ISIS is believed to have been behind a suicide attack on Monday that killed 32 and injured 100 mostly Kurdish activists. Kurdish militants, many of whom blame Turkey for not doing more to stop ISIS, reportedly responded by killing two Turkish police officers. A border-area gunfight erupted Thursday between suspected-ISIS extremists and Turkish police, leaving at least one dead on each side.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked about the reported air base agreement during his Thursday briefing but also declined to discuss specifics.
President Obama spoke with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday night in a conversation the White House said focused on Turkey’s border security.
“The two leaders discussed efforts to deepen our cooperation in the fight against ISIL,” Earnest said.