Government

Senate Votes To Make Daylight Savings Time Permanent

Reuters reports: The U.S. Senate voted unanimously on Tuesday to make Daylight Savings Time permanent, a move supporters say would make winter afternoons brighter and end the twice changing of clocks. The measure still needs approval from the U.S. House of Representatives and the backing of President Joe Biden. On Sunday, most of the United States resumed Daylight Savings Time, …

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Senate Approves $1.5T Spending Bill In 68-31 Vote

CNN reports: The Senate voted on a bipartisan basis Thursday evening to pass a massive $1.5 trillion government funding bill that includes $13.6 billion in aid to Ukraine. The bill, which the House passed Wednesday evening, can now be sent to President Joe Biden to be signed into law. The final tally in the Senate was 68-31. Government funding is …

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House Passes $1.5T Spending Bill In Late Night Vote

The New York Times reports: The House on Wednesday passed a sprawling $1.5 trillion federal spending bill that includes a huge infusion of aid for war-torn Ukraine and money to keep the government funded through September, after jettisoning a package to fund President Biden’s new Covid-19 response effort. Bipartisan approval of the first major government spending legislation of Mr. Biden’s …

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FDA: Family Dollar Products Might Contain Rat Feces

Via press release from the FDA: Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is alerting the public that several categories of FDA-regulated products purchased from Jan. 1, 2021, through the present from Family Dollar stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee may be unsafe for consumers to use. The impacted products originated from the company’s distribution facility in …

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Feds Seize $100M Worth Of Fake Super Bowl Swag

The Los Angeles Times reports: Nearly $100 million in counterfeit sports-related items were seized at flea markets and retail outlets around Los Angeles in the lead-up to Super Bowl LVI, federal officials announced this week. More than 267,500 items, including fake jerseys, jackets, hats, rings, souvenirs and tickets were seized as part of “Operation Team Player,” a joint effort involving …

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House Approves Major Overhaul Of USPS Finances

The New York Times reports: The House on Tuesday approved the most significant overhaul of the Postal Service in nearly two decades, seeking to address the beleaguered agency’s financial woes and counter pandemic-era mail delays that became a flash point in the 2020 elections. The service has teetered on the brink of insolvency for years, as repeated efforts to revamp …

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FAA Nixes FedEx’s Request For Anti-Missile Lasers

Reuters reports: The Federal Aviation Administration said on Tuesday it was withdrawing proposed conditions that could have allowed delivery company FedEx Corp to install a laser-based missile-defense on Airbus A321-200 airplanes. The FAA said Tuesday it “has determined that further internal study is necessary.” The FAA said to avoid confusion “a comment period on a proposal that the agency is …

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House Raises Debt Ceiling In 221-209 Party Line Vote

CBS News reports: The resolution introduced in the Senate on Tuesday to raise the debt limit by $2.5 trillion passed along party lines, 50 to 49. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer said this would mean Congress won’t have to fight about raising the debt limit again until 2023 — beyond the midterm elections. The legislation headed to the House of …

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House Approves Debt Ceiling Bill In Party Line Vote

The New York Times reports: The House approved legislation on Tuesday that would pave the way for a swift increase in the debt ceiling amid a Republican blockade, after congressional leaders in both parties agreed to try an unusual maneuver that could avert the threat of a first-ever federal default. The 222-to-212 vote came after days of quiet bipartisan talks …

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House Approves $768 Billion Defense Spending Bill

CBS News reports: The House on Monday night approved the 2022 annual defense bill, which authorizes programs and spending guidelines for the Pentagon and other national security programs, includes changes to military prosecutions, more money for Ukraine and a pay raise for service members. The bill had bipartisan support, garnering 363 votes. Fifty-one Democrats and 19 Republicans voted against it. …

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Tentative Deal Reached To Avert Government Shutdown

The Washington Post reports: House and Senate leaders on Thursday announced they had reached a deal on a bill to fund the government into mid-February, opening the door for lawmakers to narrowly avoid a shutdown entering this weekend. The agreement on a new stopgap spending measure set the House on a path to vote before the end of the day, …

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Pentagon Forms Task Force To Investigate UFO Reports

From the Department of Defense: Today, Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks, in close collaboration with the Director of National Intelligence, directed the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence & Security to establish within the Office of the USD(I&S) the Airborne Object Identification and Management Synchronization Group (AOIMSG) as the successor to the U.S. Navy’s Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force. …

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US To Stiffen Vax Mandate At Canada/Mexico Borders

The Associated Press reports: President Joe Biden will require essential, nonresident travelers crossing U.S. land borders, such as truck drivers, government and emergency response officials, to be fully vaccinated beginning on Jan. 22, the administration planned to announce. A senior administration official said the requirement, which the White House previewed in October, brings the rules for essential travelers in line …

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NASA Craft Will Test Deflecting Of Asteroids [VIDEO]

Axios reports: SpaceX is set to launch a NASA spacecraft on a mission to learn how to change the course of an asteroid in deep space. The mission — called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) — will test the technology needed to redirect a dangerous asteroid if one is ever found on course with Earth. Once in space, DART …

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State Dept: Do Not Travel To Germany Or Denmark

Reuters reports: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the State Department on Monday advised against travel to Germany and Denmark because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases in those countries. The CDC elevated its travel recommendation to “Level Four: Very High” for the two European countries, telling Americans they should avoid travel there, while the …

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NYC Suspends Dozens Of Workers For Fake Vax Cards

The New York Times reports: Several dozen New York City workers have been suspended without pay as a part of an investigation into the use of fake vaccine cards at the Department of Sanitation, a city official with knowledge of the investigation said. The Department of Sanitation garnered particular attention for a single-day increase of nine percentage points — taking …

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Hackers Compromise FBI’s External Email System

Bloomberg News reports: Hackers compromised the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s external email system on Saturday. The hackers sent out tens of thousands of emails from an FBI email account warning about a possible cyberattack, according to the Spamhaus Project, which tracks spam and related cyber threats. The FBI said it, along with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, is “aware …

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NY Child Vax Incentive: Chance For Full College Ride

The New York Daily News reports: Gov. Hochul wants school kids to give it the old college try when it comes to getting a COVID vaccine. New York is raffling off 50 full free rides to either a SUNY or CUNY college as part of the state’s latest enticement to get immunized, Hochul announced on Tuesday. The incentive program, dubbed …

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AP: Thousands Of Intel Officers Still Not Vaccinated

The Associated Press reports: Thousands of intelligence officers could soon face dismissal for failing to comply with the U.S. government’s vaccine mandate, leading some Republican lawmakers to raise concerns about removing employees from agencies critical to national security.  Several intelligence agencies had at least 20% of their workforce unvaccinated as of late October, said U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart, a Utah …

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Federal Memo: PA Drone Meant To Disrupt Power Grid

CNN reports: A drone that crashed near a Pennsylvania power substation last year was likely meant to damage or disrupt the electric equipment, according to a federal law enforcement bulletin obtained by CNN. The July 2020 incident is the first known case of a “modified unmanned aircraft system likely being used in the United States to specifically target energy infrastructure,” …

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