LOS ANGELES TIMES: Paul Ryan mostly got raves for the “optics” of his speech Wednesday night before the Republican National Convention, winning the image battle on the biggest night of his young political life. But by the time the reviews came piling in after midnight, the Republican vice presidential nominee had taken a serious beating […]
Month: August 2012
California’s marijuana industry under attack
CNN: Since 1996, the state has allowed marijuana growers and distributors to operate legally with little oversight. All it takes is a doctor’s note or a claim that one is a “caregiver,” a loosely interpreted term. More than 1,000 dispensaries are in business, employing thousands more and providing state and local governments as much as […]
Harrisburg debt over hang problem is in wrong courtroom
Forbidden to file for municipal bankruptcy by Gov. Corbett and bond-friendly lawmakers, Harrisburg debt crisis drags on in state court. Harrisburg City Council appears ready to defy a Commonwealth Court judge’s order that it enact a 1 percent increase of the city’s earned income tax.
Amazon.com to begin collecting PA sales tax
From the CENTRE DAILY / AP: Beginning Saturday, Amazon.com Inc. will start collecting Pennsylvania sales tax on orders that are shipped to the state, a spokesman said Wednesday. The online retail giant had previously refused to register to collect Pennsylvania’s 6 percent levy on its orders.
Franco Harris embarks on quest to lessen Penn State sanctions
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW: Franco Harris is on a mission to visit all 18 NCAA board members seeking leniency for Penn State University to restore some of his alma mater’s erased gridiron glory. The Hall of Fame former Pittsburgh Steelers running back began his quest on Tuesday in California, where he tried to meet with UCLA Chancellor […]
Critics see a wrinkle in new voter ID card process for PA-born voters
From WITF: …Remember: the Department of State voter ID, or the DOS ID, as we’ll call it, was created by the state as a “safety net” – an additional ID option for people having difficulty forking over the documents required to get a PennDOT license – like a birth certificate and a Social Security card. The DOS ID requires none of that. Registered voters only need their Social Security number and two proofs of residence.
Mike Huckabee rallies Southern Baptists for Todd Akin
POLITICO: Mike Huckabee rallied hundreds of Southern Baptists on a conference call Friday night in support of Todd Akin, offering advice about how they can help the embattled Missouri Senate candidate stay in the race — while acknowledging Akin still may have to bow out…. “Today, the rhetoric was dramatically dialed back,” he said. “You […]
News analysis: Ryan says ‘America needs a turnaround’
USA TODAY: The 42-year-old Wisconsin congressman strode on stage at the Republican National Convention on Wednesday night to a cheering welcome as he accepted the party’s nomination as vice president and signaled the emergence of a more conservative, more combative generation of leaders who are reshaping the Republican Party. Of course, it is the 65-year-old […]
Egypt puts ex-PM Shafiq on border watchlist
ALJAZEERA: …Egyptian authorities will detain [Ahmed] Shafiq, former President Hosni Mubarak’s last prime minister, for questioning over an alleged corruption case if he returns from abroad, el-Saeidy said on Wednesday. “The investigative judge decided to put General Ahmed Shafiq’s name on the watch and travel ban lists based on investigations over his illegal allocation of […]
Joe Paterno FBI file reveals threats, gambling theory
WASHINGTON OPOST: …The voluminous file depicts Paterno as careful, level-headed and intimately connected to the years-long investigations, down to suggesting the involvement of gamblers after the first threat arrived in October 1976. One of the letters to a Paterno staffer in December 1977 mocked the FBI’s involvement and Paterno’s gambling theory. “So you think I […]
INTELLIGENCER JOURNAL NEW ERA
Concerning “Statement by a Group of Past Chairs of The Pennsylvania State University Faculty Senate Regarding the Freeh Report, the NCAA Consent Decree, and Their Academic Implications”: (Nothing) WATCHDOG: We could not find mention either in Wednesday’s print edition or by 7:30 AM on Wednesday at Lancasteronline.com. Either the news editor is on vacation or […]
Court: GOP’s Texas Redistricting Plan Intentionally Discriminated Against Hispanics
TPM: A redistricting plan signed by Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) intentionally discriminated against Hispanic voters, a three-judge panel unanimously ruled Tuesday. The judges found that seats belonging to white incumbent members of Congress were protected under the plan while districts belonging to incumbent minorities were targeted for changes. The court was “persuaded by the […]
Iran Said to Send Troops to Bolster Syria
From the WALL STREET JOURNAL: Iran is sending commanders from its elite Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and hundreds of foot soldiers to Syria, according to current and former members of the corps.
Consumer confidence falls in August, job worries blamed
USA TODAY: Americans are feeling worse about the economy than they have in a long time — a fact that could have wide-reaching implications everywhere from Wal-Mart to the White House. The New York-based Conference Board‘s consumer confidence index in August fell to 60.6, down from a revised 65.4 in July and the 66 level […]