Biden endorses Perez for DNC chair

Source: The Hill

Former Vice President Joe Biden is backing Tom Perez's bid to lead the Democratic National Committee (DNC), he announced Wednesday.

Biden, who served with the former Labor secretary during the Obama administration, lauded Perez as a "man of integrity and vision."

"He knows what it means to be a Democrat — that we are a party that fights for economic fairness for working families and believes that everyone is entitled to be treated with dignity, regardless of who they are, where they come from, or who they love," Biden said of Perez in a statement.

"We have a lot of good people vying for this important job. But I do think for this moment and in this time, Tom Perez is our best bet to help bring the party back. I’ve watched him work. I think I know his heart. That’s why I endorse him as the next Chairman of the DNC."

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/317360-biden-endorses-perez-for-dnc-chair

Michael Moore to Dems: Block Gorsuch or face primaries

Source: The Hill

Liberal filmmaker Michael Moore on Wednesday threatened any Senate Democrats who do not block President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee with primary challenges in their next election.

Trump announced his pick of Neil Gorsuch to succeed the late Justice Antonin Scalia on Tuesday, setting up a fierce confirmation battle between Democrats and Republicans.

Michael Moore ✔ @MMFlint
This Supreme Court pick was Obama's to make and it was stolen by Republicans. Democrats had better block this and demand a nom we approve.
7:01 AM - 1 Feb 2017

Michael Moore ✔ @MMFlint
Senate Dems, let's be very clear: You will filibuster & block this SC nom or we will find a true progressive and primary u in next election.

Senate GOP Bypasses Dem Boycott of Mnuchin, Price By Suspending Rules

Source: Talking Points Memo

Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday morning suspended the rules and voted to approve President Donald Trump's nominees to lead the Treasury Department and the Department of Health and Human Services even though Democrats on the committee were not present.

Democrats on the committee refused to vote on Steve Mnuchin and Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) until both nominees answered additional questions.

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/price-mnuchin-committee-passes?utm_content=buffer26684&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

White House walks back assertion military won't target US citizens overseas

The White House on Tuesday walked back its assertion that the military will never target U.S. citizens in overseas operations.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer told reporters earlier in the day that “no American citizen will ever be targeted” when asked whether the Trump administration would deliberately go after U.S.-born people with ties to extremists.

The statement represented a break with policy set under the Obama administration.

But a White House official later clarified that “U.S. policy regarding the possible targeting of American citizens has not changed.”

more: http://thehill.com/policy/defense/317234-white-house-walks-back-assertion-military-wont-target-us-civilians-overseas

It looks like at least some of President Obama's legacy will remain intact.

Nation's bacon reserves hit 50-year low as prices rise

Source: Cincinnati Enquirer

The country's bacon reserves are at the lowest levels in half a century.

In other words, pig farmers can't keep up with the world's sizzling appetite for those fatty, smoky strips of sheer eating pleasure.

The Ohio Pork Council, a Columbus-based non-profit, reported Tuesday that demand for frozen pork belly, frequently made into bacon, is outpacing supply.

“Today’s pig farmers are setting historic records by producing more pigs than ever,” said Rich Deaton, president of the organization. “Yet our reserves are still depleting.”

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2017/02/01/nations-bacon-reserves-hit-50-year-low-prices-rise/97327794/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Israeli Officials Are Worried That Trump Will Actually Move The US Embassy To Jerusalem

Source: Buzzfeed

WASHINGTON — King Abdullah of Jordan Tuesday told members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee that Israeli intelligence officials are worried that Trump will move forward with relocating the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

According to a lawmaker present at the meeting, who asked not to be named, King Abdullah said that Israeli officials are concerned that moving the embassy would “enflame tensions among radical groups.” Jordan’s Information Minister Mohammed Momani, has also called the move a “red line” for Jordan that would “inflame the Islamic and Arab streets” and serve as a “gift to extremists.”

“This has been a hypothetical for a long time and we prefer it stay that way,” said one Israeli intelligence officer, who spoke with BuzzFeed News earlier this month. “Moving the US Embassy is something which gains us little and which could, potentially, inflame tensions.”

The intelligence officer said that if the Trump made a big show out of moving the US Embassy it would almost certainly “end in unnecessary violence.”

Read more: https://www.buzzfeed.com/sheerafrenkel/israeli-officials-are-worried-that-trump-will-actually-move?utm_term=.ahNNzgPY4#.eowme3PD5

Man convicted in Key West bomb plot

Source: Associated Press

A federal jury has convicted a man of a plot to detonate a nail-filled backpack bomb on a Florida Keys beach that prosecutors said was inspired by the Islamic State extremist group.

Court records show the jury in Key West convicted Harlem Suarez, 25, on Tuesday of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and providing material support to a terrorist organization after a seven-day trial. Suarez faces a maximum of life in prison at sentencing set for April 18.

Suarez, whose family emigrated from Cuba, came to the FBI's attention through Facebook posts praising the Islamic State group and containing extremist rhetoric, according to an FBI affidavit.

"By intending to place an explosive device on a public beach, Harlem Suarez posed a grave threat to the residents and visitors of Key West," said Miami U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer in a news release. "Let this case serve as an example to others that the U.S. attorney's office and our law enforcement partners stand as a united front against all domestic threats."

Read more: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/florida/fl-ap-keys-backpack-bomb-plot-conviction-20170201-story.html

Gabbard to repay cost of Syria trip

Source: The Hill

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) will “personally reimburse the cost” of her controversial visit to Syria earlier this month, according to her office.

“Though the trip has met every requirement of the House Ethics Committee, the congresswoman has decided to reimburse [the Arab American Community Center for Economic and Social Services-Ohio] for the trip because it has become a distraction from the important issue at hand,” the statement read.

But Gabbard stood by her trip, which has drawn condemnation from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

“Do the American people want their taxpayer dollars to continue to be used in support of militant groups working hand-in-hand with al-Qaeda and ISIS in the effort to overthrow the Syrian government?” the statement said.

Read more: http://www.thehill.com/homenews/house/317270-gabbard-to-repay-syria-trip-costs

Senate panel approves McMahon to lead Small Business Administration

Source: The Hill

The Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee voted Tuesday to approve former World Wrestling Entertainment head Linda McMahon to lead the Small Business Administration (SBA).

The vote was 18-1, with the only "no" vote coming from Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.). The nomination now heads to the full Senate for a final vote.

McMahon faced friendly questions from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle during her confirmation hearing last week.

"It goes without saying that a nearly unanimous committee vote to approve her nomination shows that members from both sides of the aisle have great confidence that she is the right leader for the SBA," Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Small Business Committee, said in a release.

Read more: http://thehill.com/policy/finance/317149-senate-panel-approves-trump-pick-to-lead-sba

Israeli president apologizes to Mexico over Netanyahu border wall tweet

Source: The Hill

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin apologized to Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto Tuesday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted his apparent support for a wall on the Mexico-United States border.

"President Trump is right. I built a wall along Israel's southern border. It stopped all illegal immigration. Great success. Great idea," Netanyahu tweeted Saturday.

On a call with Peña Nieto Tuesday, Rivlin called the ensuing diplomatic rift a "misunderstanding," Spanish news agency EFE reported.

"We have no intention to compare Israel's security situation and the needs that emanate from it, and the situation faced by countries that are friends of Israel," Rivlin said.

Read more: http://thehill.com/latino/317150-israeli-president-apologizes-to-mexico-over-netanyahu-border-wall-tweet