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“What does it mean to you to be an American?”


America is the great experiment. It's the experiment where you can come and worship the god of your choice. It's the place where you can come and have disagreements but work together, to come even to a compromise and maybe my way, your way, there's a third way. 
That's the ideal. And I think America at its best promotes that. It's a great experience where people can come together and work together in community... . 
In our church family, loving our Muslim neighbors and inviting them to use our church facilities for Friday prayers and activities, sends a strong message that Christians and Muslims not only can tolerate one another, but they can love and respect one another.
Our country can be a place for our citizens of all races and faiths to come together and strive for the common good. My congregation, in our small way has done just this.
Pastor Fred Schenker



ICE, DEPORTATION & EXPULSION 



This week, Members of Congress passed yet another spending bill, kicking the can down the road yet again. This is the FOURTH time they’ve voted on a budget without following through on their promise to keep Dreamers safe and families together. They wagered that we wouldn’t be paying attention, that our voices defending civil rights wouldn’t be loud enough to cut through the fake news. They thought we wouldn’t notice when they broke their promise, and that our commitment to making change had run out.
They were wrong. We’re not done yet. Not. Even. Close.
I want to be crystal clear: ICE agents prowling our communities, snatching teachers, doctors, engineers, moms, dads, students and others doesn’t make our communities safer.1 Attorney General Sessions’ plan to throw people in jail who are caught carrying small amounts of marijuana doesn’t make our communities safer.2 Banning refugees and immigrants because of their country of origin or their religion doesn’t make our communities safer.3
The only way we can prove them wrong is to use our hands, our feet, and our voices. Together, we can demonstrate how we make our communities safer -- by showing up, and taking collective action.
See you out there,
Virginia Sargent, ACLU People Power





Let's call the immigration proposal Trump laid out last night what it is: a white supremacist ransom note. Trump proposes that in order to secure our own safety, we must watch members of our families be deported. This is a cruel and false solution to the problem that Trump created when he ended DACA.  Our work is clear: We will do everything in our power to tell Congress that they already have the solution to the crisis Trump created: Pass the Dream Act now. It's our movement, our allies, and the majority of the American people against Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, and his racist administration. We need every volunteer, every donor, every single voice in this fight to make sure we pass a Dream Act.
Trump created the crisis that immigrant youth are facing. And now, he is using that crisis to push a white supremacist proposal which would go after our parents, Black immigrants and the very idea that families should be together. Trump says that he will give citizenship to immigrant youth only if the country agrees to his sick immigration plan. And if we don’t accept — he will deport us all. We refuse to be used as hostages to secure Trump's white supremacist wish list.  Our movement is getting stronger and gaining support every single day.
Thank you for everything,

Cristina and the rest of the team at United We Dream














HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE 






Several news outlets are reporting that former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon is going to defy a subpoena and refuse to testify before the House Intelligence Committee, supposedly because there hasn't been an agreement on the scope of the questioning. The Republicans on the panel subpoenaed Bannon after he refused to answer some questions in an earlier appearance. Bannon has fallen out of favor with Trumpites, but if they like you, they won't force you to testify (see Donald Jr.). [Fast Forward Boston Globe, February 6, 2018]


BEHIND THE SCENES -- CALIFORNIA REP. DEVIN NUNES, the House Intelligence Committee chairman, took a victory lap, of sorts, Tuesday morning in a closed GOP strategy meeting. He told his colleagues in HC-5 -- a basement room, in which they served Chick-fil-A -- that Republicans were right to release the memo. [PoliticoPlaybook, February 6, 2018]



HEALTHCARE




What me worry? Healthcare VCs tell me that they aren't worried about the new Amazon/Berkshire/JPM effort, instead arguing that it will shake legacy trees in a way that is beneficial to the startup ecosystem. Per Venrock's Bryan Roberts:

"While I think the Amazon/Berkshire/JPM effort will likely take a long time to generate material improvement at scale, in the short term I think it will act as a bogeyman, an existential threat, to many incumbents across the healthcare system.  This may create enough angst to generate a dramatically greater receptivity to novel approaches - whether technology, business model, etc. — by the large players — whether for usage or M&A or internal development." [Pro Rata, February 6, 2018]







"U of C stakes its claim as the anti-Berkeley," by Crain's Chicago Business' Lynne Marek: "University of Chicago President Robert Zimmer has created a name for himself nationwide as a defender of free speech on college campuses, but some fear it could prove more harmful than helpful. His mantra of 'constant open discourse' will soon be put to the test. A U of C professor has invited former Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, called a racist by some, to speak at the university. The prospect of handing Bannon a microphone and platform to speak at the school touched off a wave of opposition, with student protests, faculty objections and alumni rebukes. How Zimmer manages the clash of ideas and the potential for, or reality of, violence may burnish or tarnish his school's stellar brand." [POLITICO Illinois Playbook, February 6, 2018]



ENVIRONMENT






BILL SPOTLIGHT: Sens. John Boozman, Jim Inhofe, Cory Booker and Dianne Feinstein introduced bipartisan legislation Friday to modernize investment in water infrastructure and amend the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014. The "Securing Required Funding for Water Infrastructure Now (SRF WIN) Act," S. 2364 (115), in part would authorize $200 million annually over five years to support state revolving fund projects exclusively, and would allow thousands of vetted drinking water and wastewater projects to receive funding, effectively eliminating the need for EPA to process the loan applications. [POLITICO's Morning Energy, February 5, 2018]




ENERGY






EDUCATION

ALEXANDER, MURRAY FAR APART ON HIGHER EDUCATION REWRITE: Senate education chairman Lamar Alexander on Thursday laid out a framework for rewriting the Higher Education Act, issuing a white paper that calls for changes to how colleges are held accountable for the federal dollars they receive. The paper says lawmakers should start with a "blank slate" by eliminating some current requirements, including cohort default rates, a measure of how many of a school's graduates default on loans; the so-called 90-10 rule, which requires for-profits to bring in at least 10 percent of revenue from non-federal sources; and gainful employment. 

- Sen. Patty Murray, the ranking Democrat on the committee, said Alexander's principles "would move us in the wrong direction and make it very clear we have some serious and tough issues to work through as we negotiate a comprehensive reauthorization of this important legislation, but I remain hopeful we can get this done as quickly as possible." She said rewriting the law should prioritize putting "students and taxpayers first - and that means strengthening our existing accountability provisions for schools that could be taking advantage of students, not weakening or eliminating them. And we should be holding all colleges accountable for successful outcomes for all groups of students." [POLITICO's Morning Education, February 2, 2018]



HHS





Group urges Azar to name Anne Schuchat as permanent CDC head. The Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health is the latest voice to endorse Schuchat, a longtime career official who's again serving as acting CDC head.

"She has very strong qualifications for the position, is a proven leader, has developed the trust of key Congressional leaders, and is well respected both inside and outside the CDC and the Department," the group writes to HHS Secretary Alex Azar. "Her exemplary leadership in managing emergency responses to influenza and other outbreaks is particularly notable." [POLITICO Pulse, February 5, 2018]

How Alex Azar spent his Wednesday. The HHS secretary had an Oval Office sitdown with Trump in the morning and posted details afterward on Twitter. "I had a productive meeting with @POTUS at the @WhiteHouse today," Azar tweeted. "We discussed #healthcare reform, lowering #drugprices, and combating the #opioids crisis." [POLITICO Pulse, February 8, 2018]








CANDIDATES








Immelt's next chapter: 
Boston, it turns out, hasn’t seen the last of Jeff Immelt.

Athenahealth has recruited the former GE CEO to be its new chairman, a coup of sorts for chief executive Jonathan Bush. Athena is separating the CEO and chairman roles, part of a number of changes taking place at the Watertown-based health IT company. Immelt, who also just joined a VC firm, will provide strategic advice and business connections as Bush looks to make his company a much bigger national player in the healthcare industry. Immelt is no stranger to this sector: He ran GE Healthcare before becoming GE’s CEO in 2001. He’s also no stranger to dealing with activist investors, and it’s a fair guess that Bush wouldn’t mind getting some counsel in that regard.

At GE, Immelt was challenged by Trian Fund Management as the company’s stock slumped. Immelt had made considerable progress in focusing GE on its digital industrial businesses -- jettisoning appliances, NBC, and much of GE Capital. But it wasn’t enough. Trian eventually pushed for more cuts, and a more solid cash flow. Immelt left GE earlier than expected, and successor John Flannery is looking to slim down GE even further.

Bush, meanwhile, has growth on his mind. But a hedge fund, Elliott Management, acquired a 9 percent stake in athena and pushed for changes. Bush trimmed his workforce  by 9 percent, hired a new CFO, and relinquished the chairmanship.  

Activist investors often emphasize short-term gains over long-term success. Although Immelt walked away from one of these tangles at GE, he could be walking into a new one. For now, though, Bush’s trademark ebullience remains intact as he pursues his ambitious vision with Immelt at his side. [Boston Globe Talking Points, February 7. 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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