- Kansas Provides Compelling Evidence of Failure of "Supply-Side" Tax Cuts (CBPP) "In 2012 and 2013, at the urging of Governor Sam Brownback, lawmakers cut the top rate of the state’s income tax by almost 30 percent and the tax rate on certain business profits to zero. In sum, there is overwhelming empirical evidence that Kansas’ enormous tax cuts failed to improve the state’s economic performance relative to its neighboring states and all 50 states taken together to any significant degree. This is true whether one looks at job creation, economic output, or new pass-through business formation."
BUSINESS:
- About That Joint: Marijuana Start-Ups Pass (NYT) "Well, obviously: because nobody smokes marijuana anymore. Everyone’s vaping it. Or eating, drinking, sipping, dabbing, sucking on lozenges, chewing on gum... These are a few of the inventions of an increasingly sophisticated set of marijuana start-ups, which argue that by pushing the industry past smoke, they can make cannabis convenient and ubiquitous — the drug of the future, and the next great American bonanza. By breaking marijuana free from smoking and its paraphernalia, new delivery methods — especially portable vapes — are transforming the image and utility of cannabis, and helping it grab a mainstream audience."
- SEC investigating GE charge; company posts $10 billion loss (Reuters) "GE announced the probe after reporting a $10-billion loss in the latest quarter, hurt by a $6.2 billion charge to increase insurance reserves, which it disclosed last week, and steep declines in profit in its power and transportation divisions."
- The Dark Side of America’s Rise to Oil Superpower (Bloomberg) "America is on pace to become the world’s biggest oil producer. ... With shale surging, U.S. imports of Saudi oil plunged to a 30-year low. When OPEC cuts production to raise prices, shale drillers can boost output, undermining OPEC. Biggest loser to keeping prices low is likely Russia. U.S. energy dominance isn’t all that and a bag of chips, particularly since climate change repercussions will only get more expensive and the political influence of erratic petro-states will still persist."
HEALTH:
- New research will radically change response to strokes (WaPo) "The research is upending doctors’ long-held belief that they have just six hours to save threatened brain tissue from lack of blood flow when a major vessel to the brain is blocked. Wednesday’s research suggests they may have as long as 16 hours in many cases; a study published three weeks ago with a different group of stroke victims put the outer limit at 24 hours for some."
IMMIGRATION:
- Mayors Cancel Meeting With Trump as Justice Dept. Squeezes Sanctuary Cities (NYT) "In a letter, the Justice Department asked 23 cities and states for any documents showing whether their law enforcement arms had withheld such information [from federal immigration authorities]. Mr. Sessions said he would subpoena local governments that failed to respond in a full and timely manner."
- Border Wall ‘Off the Table,’ Schumer Says, as Immigration Progress Unravels (NYT) "Mr. Schumer’s decision to renege, made on Sunday but revealed publicly on Tuesday, marked another turn in the fluid debate over how to shield from deportation hundreds of thousands of young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children."
- Trump Should Trade the Wall for Better Immigration Policy (National Review) "The problem with the wall is not necessarily that it’s a bad idea. It’s that it has become a symbol detached from policy considerations. Meanwhile, there are faster and more effective ways to deal with the problem of illegal immigration and the drugs 'pouring' into our country, which mostly come through legal ports anyway. If Trump wanted a clear — and immediate — win on illegal immigration, he’d evolve and recognize that the wall’s greatest utility might be as a bargaining chip."
NET NEUTRALITY UPDATE:
- AT&T wants Congress to draft a net neutrality law. Here’s why that’s a big deal. (WaPo) "In a series of full-page ads Wednesday in major newspapers such as The Washington Post and the New York Times, AT&T chief executive Randall Stephenson proposed an 'Internet Bill of Rights' that could help guarantee an open Internet, one in which online content is not blocked or slowed down by telecom or cable companies. The 2015 rules were rolled back late last year by a Republican majority at the Federal Communications Commission... The Senate is expected to vote this year on legislation aimed at overruling the FCC's repeal. AT&T's proposal represents a different legislative path. Lawmakers have periodically considered a national net neutrality law, but so far Democrats and Republicans have failed to produce a meaningful compromise."
- Montana becomes first state to implement net neutrality after FCC repeal (The Hill) "The order makes his state the first to push back on the Federal Communications Commission’s decision to repeal the open internet rules last month. The order says that in order to receive a contract with the state government, internet service providers must not engage in blocking or throttling web content or create internet fast lanes. Those practices were all banned under the Obama-era 2015 net neutrality order."
- Defying the FCC, New York’s governor has signed an executive order on net neutrality (WaPo) "...Andrew M. Cuomo, signed an executive order...designed to flout the Federal Communications Commission's recent decision to repeal its net neutrality rules. ...the orders require state officials to purchase Internet service only from broadband companies that abide by the principles of net neutrality. ...Cuomo's decision is significant because the state is among the country's most populous. As a massive consumer of Internet service, the state government could compel broadband providers who do business with New York to abide by net neutrality, even if federal regulations do not require it."
TRUMPTEL:
- Trump Says He Is Willing to Speak Under Oath to Mueller (NYT) "I’m looking forward to it,' Mr. Trump said of talking to Mr. Mueller, ending months of speculation over whether he would submit to questions from the special counsel, who is also believed to be looking into whether the president sought to thwart the inquiry."
BOTTOM OF THE NEWS:
- The Absolute F-cking Best Swear Word For You (Time) "Scientifically speaking, swearing is good for you. It deadens pain and enlivens our emotional discourse. The most cathartic swear word is never going to be a universal. It’s always going to be a product of the values of the people who surrounded you growing up."
TODAY'S SONG:
- Bora Bora (Beltek)
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