U.S. Accuses S.&P. of Fraud in Suit on Loan Bundles New York Times ...The Justice Department filed civil fraud charges late on Monday against the nation’s largest credit-ratings agency, Standard & Poor’s, accusing the firm of inflating the ratings of mortgage investments and setting them up for a crash when the financial crisis struck...
Land Battles Rise as U.S. Eyes 450,000 Miles of New Pipe Bloomberg ...With the natural gas industry estimating that 450,000 miles (724,000 kilometers) of pipelines need to be built in the next 25 years, a distance to the moon and almost back to earth, conflicts will multiply over eminent domain, or the legal power to condemn private property...
30,000 Golden Dawn Supporters March in Athens Under Neo-Nazi Banners International Business Times ...The party has been able to capitalise on the harsh austerity that has been imposed as a condition of Greece maintaining its Eurozone membership. As Greece's economic fortunes have plummeted, so Golden Dawn's fortunes have soared...
UK Declares New Powers to Break Up Banks TIME ...Britain’s treasury chief warned the country’s banks on Monday that they face being broken up if they fail to protect their retail operations from their riskier investment arms...
Google CEO Warns about China's hacking manufacture this ...In a world that is becoming increasingly digital, the willingness of China’s government and state companies to use cyber crime gives the country an economic and political edge, they say...
Everybody’s working for the…health care benefits Washington Post ...Three-quarters of retirees said they worked longer than they would have otherwise to maintain access to their health plan...
Koch-Funded Rand Paul Introduces National ‘Right To Work’ Bill To Senate Bold Progressives ...Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) just introduced a federal so-called “right to work” law that would undermine labor organizing nationwide...
Beltway-aired Super Bowl ad goes after union card check MSNBC ...Football fans in the Washington, D.C. area were treated to an anti-card check ad from the conservative Center for Union Facts (CUF) right before kickoff...
Ohio Gov. John Kasich's budget would slash income taxes, lower and broaden the sales tax and revamp oil and gas tax The Plain Dealer ...Kasich's sweeping tax reform plan calls for a 50 percent income tax reduction for almost every small business over the next two years, and a 20 percent cut for individuals. The 5.5 percent sales tax rate would drop to 5 percent, but more services would be subjected to the tax, helping to make up for the lost revenue...
Wisconsin: State pension board rejects request for $200M for economic development initiatives Pioneer Press ...The board that oversees Wisconsin's pension program for public employees has
rejected a request by the head of Gov. Scott Walker's semi-private economic
development agency to tap $200 million from the fund to invest in risky startup
businesses...
Voter Advocacy Groups Say Mo. ID Bills Unfair, Unconstitutional KBIA ...This week lawmakers in Jefferson City are taking another crack at requiring Missouri voters to show a photo ID when they go to the polls...
Unions promise legal battle if pension benefits touched, leading lawmakers wary WITF ...The two largest public sector unions in Pennsylvania said Friday that they’ll sue the state if their members’ pension benefits are changed...
Fighting continues over anti-union bill Lawrence Journal World ...House Bill 2023 would prohibit the ability of teachers and public union members to have automatic payroll deduction that would go to a political action committee...
LePage again warns schoolchildren off newspapers Bangor Daily News ...“My greatest fear in the state of Maine: newspapers,” LePage told children at the St. John Catholic School...
Walmart Workers Get Organized—Just Don't Say the U-Word Mother Jones ... UFCW pledged to the NLRB that it would not try to unionize Walmart workers and would ease up on picketing for 60 days... OUR Walmart wants the same things a real union wants, but it is not a union. It can't bargain with management or bring grievances on behalf of workers. But it is a new toehold for the union...
Talks to resume between Durham, school bus drivers' union WCSC ...Negotiations between Durham School Services and the Teamsters Local 509 union representing many of the company's drivers were set to resume on Monday...
