January 2, 2018

Why the 2018 Midterms Are So Vulnerable to Hackers

January 2, 2018 at 9:50 am EST By Taegan Goddard

New Yorker: “On a technical level, the American election system is almost as vulnerable as it was in 2016. According to U.S. intelligence, Russian hackers tested the vulnerabilities of registration rolls in twenty-one states, but did not alter the vote tallies. Halderman, who testified recently in Congress about gaps in election defenses, told me, ‘Unfortunately, there haven’t been widespread security improvements so far. We can be sure that our adversaries have been paying attention, and so they may be more likely to try attacking election systems in November.’ At the Def Con hackers’ conference in July, attendees demonstrated that they could break into thirty voting machines of multiple types, some in as little as ninety minutes. Without altering the results, hackers could sow doubt about the outcome by shutting down or disrupting voting machines on Election Day.”

“How much of an effect could Russian interference actually have in 2018? The effects could be meaningful, even if they never touch the tallies directly.”

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https://politicalwire.com/2018/01/02/2018-midterms-vulnerable-hackers/

January 2, 2018

Republicans May Write Off Florida House Seat

January 2, 2018 at 9:02 am EST By Taegan Goddard

“The GOP’s inability to find top-shelf candidates to run for Ileana Ros-Lehtinen’s U.S. House seat has some Republicans ready to write off the race and shift money and attention to more winnable contests,” the Miami Herald reports.

“The seat that encompasses Little Havana, most of downtown Miami and Miami Beach is now considered unwinnable by some Republicans in Congress and fundraisers who could infuse millions into a competitive congressional race.”


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https://politicalwire.com/2018/01/02/republicans-may-write-off-florida-house-seat/

January 2, 2018

What will Trump do in 2018? Welfare Reform, O'Care Repeal & Infrastructure are Top Priorities

WHAT WILL TRUMP DO IN 2018? WELFARE REFORM, OBAMACARE REPEAL AND INFRASTRUCTURE ARE TOP PRIORITIES

BY NICOLE GOODKIND ON 1/2/18 AT 11:41 AM

The Trump administration is riding high on its historic tax plan win, and it’s hoping to harness that energy in pursuing an ambitious legislative agenda in the new year. With 2018 comes the midterm elections, and Republican senators and representatives are hoping to get a few more legislative wins under their belts before their voters head to the polls in November.

President Donald Trump has indicated that his two major priorities are welfare reform and a $1 trillion infrastructure bill, but there’s much more on the docket. In what is expected to be a busy year, here are the topics that will likely dominate your news feeds for the next 12 months.

Infrastructure

Sweeping infrastructure reform legislation will likely be the first agenda item presented by congressional Republicans in 2018. The Trump administration and the GOP leadership have been working to come together on a $1 trillion plan to revamp America’s crumbling roads, bridges, airports and railroads.

Republicans have indicated, however, that the bill will largely focus on streamlining bureaucracy and ending agency review processes instead of physical building. The bill will also focus on public-private partnerships and on halting regulations that make it difficult for companies to build.

more
http://www.newsweek.com/trump-2018-infrastructure-welfare-obamacare-768100

January 2, 2018

Gingrich: GOP 'can win a surprising election this fall' if Dems are 'party of socialism'

BY JOE CONCHA - 01/02/18 11:18 AM EST

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich on Tuesday said Republicans "can win a surprising election this fall" if they focus on economic growth and jobs and "let the Democrats be the party of socialism" in an interview on Fox News.

The argument comes as many cable news networks continue to preview the new year with a look ahead to the 2018 midterms, which most polling shows decidedly favoring Democrats.

"You’re seeing pay go up, you're seeing jobs increase, you’re seeing a sense of confidence," Gingrich, also a Fox News contributor, told Fox & Friends.

"If the Republicans, led by the president, can focus in on winning the argument about the tax bill, spend the whole year pounding away at the notion jobs are created by businesses, cutting taxes and cutting get regulations creates jobs, and let the Democrats be the party of socialism, big government, and big bureaucracy, I think we can win a surprising election this fall," he continued.

more
http://thehill.com/homenews/media/367042-gingrich-gop-can-win-a-surprising-election-this-fall-if-dems-are-party-of

January 2, 2018

U.S. Power Will Decline In 2018, Says Report

Source: Newsweek Magazine




DONALD TRUMP'S AMERICA FIRST PROGRAM WILL MAKE U.S. WEAKER: REPORT

BY GRAHAM LANKTREE ON 1/2/18 AT 9:49 AM

America’s influence on the world stage will decline in 2018 due to President Donald Trump’s America First policies, according to a new global risk report.

“The decline of US influence in the world will accelerate in 2018,” reads the study released Tuesday by Eurasia Group, a consultancy that advises hedge funds and multinational corporations about how politics will impact business.

“With little sense of strategic direction from the Trump White House, U.S. global power, used too aggressively by George W. Bush, then too timidly by Barack Obama, is sputtering to a stall,” the report finds.

Under Trump’s America First policies—including his protectionism, unilateralist approach to foreign policy, and confusing tweets and rhetoric about U.S. allies—the American-led world order has “eroded,” write the report’s authors, Eurasia Group’s President Ian Bremmer and Chairman Cliff Kupchan.

Read more: http://www.newsweek.com/us-power-will-decline-under-donald-trump-threatening-global-crisis-says-report-767891

January 2, 2018

Putin Says KGB Agent Past Helped Prepare Him To Lead

Source: Newsweek Magazine




BY LAUREN GILL ON 1/2/18 AT 9:51 AM

Russian President Vladimir Putin said his "previous work" as a Soviet spy for the notorious KGB prepared him for his role as head of state.

Putin, who worked for the secret Soviet security agency in East Germany and later in Moscow, told the interviewer that being a spy helped him to lead Russia and that he has not fundamentally altered his behavior, according to The Moscow Times.

"Yes, I’m in the limelight, but in my previous life I always tried to act as if I was constantly being watched," Putin added. "It's strange, but that's how it worked out, perhaps because of my previous work."

Putin served in the secret intelligence agency between 1975 and 1991, initially as an officer in East Germany, where his mission may have been to recruit East German Communist Party and Stasi officials, steal tech secrets, find compromising information about visiting Westerners, and travel undercover to West Germany.

Read more: http://www.newsweek.com/putin-says-kgb-agent-past-helped-prepare-him-russian-presidency-767908

January 2, 2018

Megyn Kelly to ex-white supremacist: Racist 'dog whistles' werent racist when we used them at Fox

Megyn Kelly to ex-white supremacist: Racist ‘dog whistles’ weren't racist when we used them at Fox News

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/01/megyn-kelly-to-ex-white-supremacist-racist-dog-whistles-werent-racist-when-we-used-them-at-fox-news/

January 2, 2018

Michele Bachmann says she's consulting with God on whether to run for Al Franken's Senate seat

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/01/watch-michele-bachmann-says-shes-consulting-with-god-on-whether-to-run-for-al-frankens-senate-seat/

January 2, 2018

Graham: I 'fully believe that if North Korea goes to the Winter Olympics, we do not'

Source: The Hill




BY REBECCA SAVRANSKY - 01/02/18 10:43 AM EST

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Monday said if North Korea goes to the Winter Olympics, the U.S. should not attend.

https://twitter.com/LindseyGrahamSC/status/947951249600733184

South Korea is hosting the 2018 Winter Olympics, set to begin next month in Pyeongchang.

On Monday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made comments about the Winter Olympics in a New Year's Day speech, indicating that the nation was ready to attend the games.

“North Korea’s participation in the Winter Games will be a good opportunity to show unity of the people, and we wish the games will be a success,” Kim said, according to NBC News.



Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/367037-graham-i-fully-believe-that-if-north-korea-goes-to-the-winter-olympics-we-do

January 2, 2018

Coal mining deaths skyrocket in 2017

Source: The Hill




BY TIMOTHY CAMA - 01/02/18 10:39 AM EST

Workplace deaths in the coal mining industry increased last year to their highest point in three years.

A total of 15 miners died on the job in 2017, Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) data show, compared with eight in 2016. That year saw the fewest mining deaths since records began.

The 15th death occurred early Friday morning at a Revelation Energy mine in Fayette County in southern West Virginia, West Virginia Public Broadcasting reported.

Thurman A. Watts died when a piece of machinery he was operating traveled over a wall.



Read more: http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/367034-coal-mining-deaths-skyrocket-in-2017