Will Outcry over Iran’s Conviction of Jason Rezaian Move Obama to Act?

- October 12, 2015

Despite the grim news, the conviction may actually increase the odds for a diplomatic solution. Late last month, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani strongly indicated the desire for a prisoner swap. Currently, 19 Iranians are being held within the U.S. for violating its sanctions policy against Iran. In an interview with CNN’s Christine Amanpour, Rouhani said “If the Americans take the appropriate steps and set them [Iranians held in the U.S.] free, certainly the right environment will be open and the right circumstances will be created for us to do everything within our power and our purview to bring about the swiftest freedom for the Americans held in Iran as well.” Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters Sunday night “I have yet to hear directly from the Iranians on anything direct,” adding that, “We’ve had some conversations but … we’ll wait and see where we are.”

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User Groups, Congressman push E-Free Act to Revoke PMA Status for Bayer’s Essure

- October 12, 2015

Congressman Fitzpatrick’s law simply reads: “Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment 8 of this Act, the Commissioner of Food and Drugs shall issue an order under section 515(e) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 360e(e)) withdrawing approval for Essure System.” Essure Problems is also asking others who have experienced complications from the device to also send their Representatives this letter (which is provided in Word Doc. Format at the bottom of the page).

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Is it Paul Ryan or Bust for House Speaker?

- October 11, 2015

It appears that there is no viable candidate that could possibly satisfy the 42-member far-right Freedom Caucus or the Tea Party, and still garner the 218 votes needed for election without requiring the help of Democrat votes. The Freedom Caucus, who backed conservative Floridian Daniel Webster, essentially pushed McCarthy to drop out of consideration. There is one ‘non-candidate,’ however, who looks poised to deliver the GOP from its internal division, having the consensus support of nearly the entire Republican Party: former vice-presidential nominee and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI).

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Former Chicago Public School CEO to Plead Guilty on Bribery Charges

- October 9, 2015

In addition to the offending parties, the investigation, which is still ongoing, raises questions into the conduct of the Emanuel administration. Speaking of the charges Thursday following and awards banquet, the mayor said that he was “both disappointed (and) saddened by the details around the charges.” Emanuel added, “I think when people serve the public, they should uphold the trust the public puts in them. At least based on the details around the charges, that wasn’t the case here.” Nobody from the administration was subpoenaed during the investigation according to spokesperson Kelly Quinn; but given the connection between Solomon, who also helped recommend Jean-Claude Brizard, who Byrd-Bennett succeeded, as Emanuel’s first CPS CEO in 2011, speculation of foreknowledge remains high.

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CFPB to Propose Forced Arbitration Changes

- October 8, 2015

The proposed regulation would not completely ban the practice in its entirety, but instead force to add a section that states that the arbitration procedures do not apply if a complaint has been certified by a judge for class-action litigation. Codrary said about the provision, “Under this proposed approach, consumers would again get their day in court to hold companies accountable for potential wrongdoing. We think that’s quite important.” The rule would also require companies to publicly post which claims have been brought to arbitration and the awards issued.

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Fantasy Football ‘Brothels’ Exposed!

- October 7, 2015

The scandal erupted on September 27th after Draft Kings mid-level content manager Ethan Haskell inadvertently revealed data regarding what players were on many of the site’s participants’ rosters. The next day, Haskell finished second in a million-dollar FanDuel contest, netting $350,000. Although both companies released a joint statement insisting that they both have strict fraud control mechanisms to prevent impropriety by employees, the companies will continue to investigate the matter. Draft Kings released a statement to Forbes late Monday saying that Mr. Haskell’s FanDuel fantasy picks were locked in at 1:00pm on the 27th, meaning he could not edit his roster, and that the data breach occurred at 1:40, meaning that the data could not have influenced his picks.

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Supreme Court Declines to Take up Newman Insider Trading Case

- October 6, 2015

The case of Todd Newman and Anthony Chiasson, where were convicted of insider trading in 2012, during New-York’s U.S. attorney, Preet Bharara’s astounding six-year run of 85 insider trading convictions before losing a case which netted him 60 other convictions. Last December, however, the 2nd Circuit overturned the Newman convictions, ruling that Bharara stretched the limits of insider trading laws too far, citing insufficient evidence. At issue is whether or not the giver of the confidential information must receive a benefit from providing the tip, and whether or not that benefit must be concrete and tangible to be considered insider trading.

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Mosaic Hit with $2 Billion Federal Penalty for Phosphate Waste

- October 3, 2015

The world’s largest producer of phosphate for use as fertilizer The Mosaic Company, based out of Plymouth, Minnesota, has agreed to a historic $2 billion settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ). The EPA accused the company of improperly storing and disposing over 60 billion pounds of phosphogypsum waste,

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