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"Arbitrary power is most easily established on the ruins of liberty abused to licentiousness." George Washington




From Zachary Taylor by John S. D. Eisenhower. In 1849, President Zachary Taylor felt that the newly acquired territories of California and Oregon were too distant and should have governments that were independent of the United States:

"Taylor's inaugural address was innocuous enough. Before a crowd of twenty thousand at the East Portico of the Capitol, he expressed humility at being chosen to be chief magistrate of the Republic. He paid compliments to his future associates in govern­ment, to the Congress, and to the judiciary. He rendered more than the usual obeisance to the memory of George Washington and em­phasized once again Washington's admonition against entangling alliances. In only one paragraph of a short address did he express concepts differing from [his predecessor President James] Polk's philosophy, that is, in his according precedence in domestic issues to the Congress.

'It shall be my duty to recommend such constitutional mea­sures to Congress as may be necessary and proper to secure encouragement and protection to the great interests of agri­culture, commerce, and manufacture, to improve the rivers and harbors, to provide for the speedy extinguishment of the public debt, to enforce strict accountability on the part of all officers of the Government and the utmost economy in all public expenditures; but it is for the wisdom of Congress it­self, in which all legislative powers are vested in the Consti­tution, to regulate these and other matters of domestic policy. I shall look with confidence to the enlightened patri­otism of that body .... '


"Such deference toward Congress was foreign to Polk's basic phi­losophy of government, but what really upset him was a casual remark that Taylor made regarding the newly conquered territory of California, the attainment of which had been a keystone of the Polk administration.

'Something was said which drew from General Taylor the ex­pression of views and opinions which greatly surprised me. They were to the effect that California and Oregon were too distant to become members of the Union, and that it would be better for them to be an independent government. He said that our people would inhabit them and repeated that it would be better for them to form an independent govern­ment for themselves. These are alarming opinions to be en­tertained by the President of the United States .... General Taylor's comments, I hope, have not been well considered.'" [Delanceyplace.com]




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The latest on M&A

Here’s a quick dose of health care merger news for you: Carolinas HealthCare, which is attempting to merge with UNC Health Care, is absorbing a smaller hospital system in Georgia called Navicent Health. Carolinas also rebranded itself as Atrium Health as it looks to grow into a bigger force in the South.
Between the lines: It’s a more significant deal locally than it is nationally. But these are the types of mergers that academics and policymakers have warned raise prices (and therefore insurance premiums) for local residents. [Axios Vitals, February 9, 2018]



CANDIDATES






DOJ






EDUCATION













ICE, DEPORTATION & EXPULSION 






IMMIGRATION





Business groups opposed to Goodlatte bill: The Coalition for the American Dream - made up of tech companies like Uber, Airbnb and Spotify - sent a letter to congressional leaders voicing its opposition to Rep. Bob Goodlatte's hardline immigration bill, H.R. 4760 (115), which would cut immigration by almost 40 percent in 2019. [POLITICO's Morning Agriculture, February 12, 2018]



INFRASTRUCTURE




Here's the big takeaway for the tax world, after noting that the White House believed one of the central problems was that the process for building and maintaining the country's bridges and roads was too centralized and Washington-focused: "Many infrastructure advocates believe that the real fix that's needed is a permanent new revenue stream, something Trump's plan doesn't address."
It's not just that Trump and other key Republicans haven't embraced raising the gas tax. The Trump plan also calls for directly providing $200 billion for infrastructure over a decade, through spending cuts, which is also meant to unlock another $1.3 trillion from, among others, private investors and localities - an idea that some advocates believe to be a longshot. "Another source of controversy is the plan's heavy preference for doling out money to states and communities that are willing to put up the most cash on their own. Democrats say that would cause cities and states to hike taxes and fees on their residents, and would heavily disadvantage large projects such as the multibillion-dollar effort to rebuild rail infrastructure in and around New York City. [POLITICO's Morning Tax, February 12, 2018]

Deja vu: The White House is "swinging for the fences with a $1.5 trillion initiative that is light on new federal dollars - but could inspire a wave of toll roads, ease decades-old regulations and permanently change cities' and states' expectations for assistance from Washington." The plan is already meeting some resistance from fiscal conservatives balking at the price tag (which has ticked up in recent weeks) and Democrats who say the amount of federal funding included is nowhere near enough to put a dent in the multitrillion-dollar infrastructure backlog nationwide.
Coming soon: The administration's sales pitch - in addition to rehashing well-worn details about how the plan's $200 billion federal pie would be sliced up - focused on where the White House sees the federal government's role. "Not only are we not walking away from the federal responsibility; we're taking even more responsibility to ensure that we get infrastructure funding and permitting on a sustainable track for generations," an official said Saturday. But, from the White House's point of view, that means leaving it up to states and localities to come up with the bulk of the funding they need for their priority projects - a prospect that's already drawn rebukes from Democrats the administration will need to enact a plan [POLITICO's Morning Transportation, February 12, 2018]









ISIS





Egypt just launched a new offensive against ISIS-linked fighters in the Sinai, the Washington Post reports. "The government has ordered up all branches of the security forces, including the air force and navy, dispatched soldiers and police to tighten control of its land borders. Warships have been deployed along its coast to 'cut the terrorists' supply lines and ensure they do not get backup, the military said in a statement."
The aim: "tighten control of the country's crossing points with neighboring countries and to cleanse the areas that are terrorist strongholds to safeguard the Egyptian people from the evils of terrorism and extremism."
Context: Presidential elections are just around the corner in March. President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi's popularity, the Post writes, "has declined amid economic austerity measures, rising prices and high unemployment. He has either arrested or sidelined all credible challengers in next month's presidential elections, all but insuring his reelection. By going after the Islamic State, Sissi is hoping to regain popular support." [The D Brief, February 9, 2018]









UNIONS

California health care union pulls ballot measure- SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West this week pulled one of three statewide propositions it filed in a year that the labor union has been seeking to put more local and state measures on the ballot than in the past six years combined, Victoria Colliver reports. The measure, a proposal to curb "excess" reserves accrued by health insurers appeared to be directed at Kaiser Permanente; Kaiser officials have said its status as both an insurer and a hospital network would mean it would surpass the threshold. After pulling the measure, SEIU-UHW has announced nearly a month of protests to be held at 32 Kaiser hospitals throughout the state. The union objects that Kaiser has built up billions in reserves, yet plans to seek "cuts that undermine patient care." [Politco Pulse, February 9 2018]



GAMES











Pelosi Holds House Floor For DREAMers

Pelosi advocates ‘Dreamers’ for more than 8 hours. WaPo: "House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi commandeered the House floor Wednesday for a day-into-night marathon plea to Republicans for action on immigration, casting the fate of young undocumented immigrants in moral terms... The speech underscored that Democrats lack the leverage they insisted they would have in spending showdowns with Republicans. Pelosi and others repeatedly promised immigration activists and the party base they would force a vote sparing undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children from deportation after President Trump rescinded the program in September. Instead, Democrats’ ineffectiveness has angered those same activists and the voters critical in a midterm election year with control of the House at stake. Pelosi, who began talking shortly after 10 a.m., sought the same assurances Democrats have gotten in the Senate — the promise of debate on an immigration bill, the one glimmer of hope on an issue that seems to defy resolution." [Progressive Breakfast, February 8, 2018]



NOTE: The news sources here vary.  Not all sources have the same credibility, but in an effort to share some different perspectives, they are included here.  This compendium itself cannot claim to be unbiased.  Please take into consideration where these different perspectives originate in assessing their value.  Thank you

NOTE: I have no official connection to any organization from which information is shared.. Occasionally, I post informational material and/or an opportunity to donate or join as  a "community service" announcement.  These again are shared for their varying perspectives.

Any books listed are random or topic-related to something else in the post.  Think of these as a "library bookshelf" to browse.  They are shared for informational or entertainment value only, not as being recommended
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