Chicago Sun-Times: All posts by politicswires2014-12-19T06:59:52-06:00https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/politicswires/rss2014-12-19T06:59:52-06:002019-05-11T10:10:13-05:00Watch: President Obama's year-end press conference - Chicago
<p>President Obama holds a year-end press conference at the White House.</p><p> </p><p> <br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/19/18598192/watch-president-obama-s-year-end-press-conferencepoliticswires2014-12-18T11:59:39-06:002019-05-11T08:09:40-05:00Obama calls during 'Ask the Governor' show - Chicago
<p>BOSTON — Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has fielded hundreds of calls during his monthly “Ask the Governor” radio show. But this one was different.</p><p>One caller said Thursday: “Uh, governor, this is Barack Obama, formerly of Somerville.”</p><p>The president was indeed calling into the show on WGBH-FM to congratulate Patrick, a friend and political ally who’s wrapping up two terms in office.</p><p>Obama lived in Somerville, a Boston suburb, while attending Harvard Law School.</p><p>During the call, the president had a little bit of fun with Patrick.</p><p>“I’ve got a few complaints about service in and around the neighborhood, but I’ve moved down south since that time,” Obama said.</p><p>Patrick, the state’s first black governor, at first seemed unconvinced that it was really Obama on the phone. And he gently chided the president for having trouble saying “Massachusetts.”</p><p>It was Patrick’s final radio show. He leaves office on Jan. 8.</p><p>ASSOCIATED PRESS<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18575272/obama-calls-during-ask-the-governor-showpoliticswires2014-12-18T08:53:49-06:002019-05-09T10:52:50-05:00Obama OKs new sanctions against Russia, but won't enforce them - Chicago
<p>WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama signed legislation Thursday authorizing new sanctions on Russia but said he does not plan to impose the penalties outlined in the measure.</p><p>White House officials have said Obama has concerns that the measure was not in line with his policy of enacting sanctions in tandem with the European Union. The U.S. and Europe have sought to present a united front against Russia over Moscow’s provocations in Ukraine.</p><p>“Signing this legislation does not signal a change in the administration’s sanctions policy, which we have carefully calibrated in accordance with developments on the ground and coordinated with our allies and partners,” Obama said in a statement. He added that he could use the authorities included in the measure “if circumstances warranted.”</p><p>The legislation required the president to impose penalties on a Russian state-owned arms dealer and other defense companies, but it also gave him the ability to waive the penalties.</p><p>White Houses sometimes chafe at congressionally-mandated sanctions because revoking the penalties requires legislative action. Obama has told Russian President Vladimir Putin he would roll back U.S. sanctions if Russia stopped meddling in Ukraine, but keeping that promise would potentially be more cumbersome considering the penalties approved on Capitol Hill.</p><p>Even as Obama skirts the sanctions included in the legislation, the U.S. and EU are moving forward with other penalties. On Thursday, the EU imposed a ban on investment in Crimea, the strategically important peninsula Russia annexed from Ukraine earlier this year. The U.S. is expected to soon announce a similar package of penalties.</p><p>The legislation also gives the president the authority to send Ukraine anti-tank weapons, counter-artillery radar and tactical surveillance drones. However, administration officials said previously that Obama was not expected to act on that authority.</p><p>Ukrainian officials have been pressing the U.S. to supply its military with weapons and ammunition to fight Russian-backed forces in eastern Ukraine. Obama has resisted those requests because he fears lethal assistance would antagonize Russia and perhaps spur Moscow to launch a full-scale invasion.</p><p>ASSOCIATED PRESS<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18552387/obama-oks-new-sanctions-against-russia-but-won-t-enforce-thempoliticswires2014-12-18T08:47:46-06:002019-05-09T09:26:20-05:00IRS head: Budget cuts could delay tax refunds - Chicago
<p>WASHINGTON — IRS Commissioner John Koskinen says budget cuts just enacted by Congress could delay tax refunds next year.</p><p>At a news conference Thursday, Koskinen said taxpayer services will be hurt, and fewer agents will be auditing returns. He said about half the people who call the agency for assistance won’t be able to get through to a person.</p><p>Congress cut the IRS budget by $346 million for the budget year that ends in September 2015. The $10.9 billion budget is $1.2 billion less than the agency received in 2010.</p><p>The cuts come as the IRS is starting to play a bigger role in implementing President Barack Obama’s health law. For the first time, taxpayers will have to report on their tax returns whether they have health insurance.</p><p>BY STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18538937/irs-head-budget-cuts-could-delay-tax-refundspoliticswires2014-12-18T06:48:48-06:002019-05-09T10:15:20-05:00Virginia lawmaker who spends nights doing time in jail resigns - Chicago
<p>RICHMOND, Va. — A Virginia state lawmaker who is working as a legislator and lawyer by day and returning to a jail cell at night said Thursday he is resigning but plans to run in a special election for his seat.</p><p>Democratic Delegate Joseph D. Morrissey accepted a plea last week on a misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. According to prosecutors, the 57-year-old Morrissey and a 17-year-old girl who worked for him as a receptionist had sex multiple times at his law office in August 2013 and texted their friends about it.</p><p>At a news conference in his Capitol office, Morrissey struck a defiant tone, saying there is no precedent for a sitting lawmaker to be expelled from office for committing a misdemeanor crime. Several high profile Democrats had called on him to step down after he entered an Alford plea last week. The plea means a defendant acknowledges there is sufficient evidence for a conviction but does not admit guilt.</p><p>He was sentenced to 12 months in jail with six suspended but will ultimately serve three months, according to one of his attorneys. Morrissey is in a work-release program that allows him to work as a legislator and lawyer by day while spending nights in a Henrico County jail.</p><p>Morrissey said he plans to run for his same seat in a special election set for Jan 13.</p><p>“It is the voters and not political pundits and not partisan caucuses that should decide who serves in office,” Morrissey said.</p><p>Morrissey’s decision to run again surprised many, including House Speaker William J. Howell. Morrissey indicated to the speaker he was resigning, but did not say he planned to seek his seat again, according to the speaker’s spokesman Matthew Moran.</p><p>“This is a despicable, arrogant political stunt that should disgust each and every citizen of Virginia,” Howell said in a statement.</p><p>Morrissey has a long history of courting controversy.</p><p>A 1991 courthouse fistfight with a defense attorney earned Morrissey, then Richmond’s chief prosecutor, a five-day jail sentence.</p><p>After losing his re-election bid in 1993 under the cloud of bribery and perjury charges on which he was later acquitted, Morrissey went into private practice. He capitalized on the widely reported courthouse brawl by calling himself a “fighter” for his clients on ads plastered on city buses and decorating his office with boxing gloves.</p><p>Fisticuffs with a building contractor led to a misdemeanor assault and battery conviction and suspension of Morrissey’s law license in 2000. Three years later, the state bar revoked his license for failing to tell clients about the suspension. Unable to practice law, he taught in Ireland and then Australia before returning to Virginia in 2006 and winning four House elections in a row.</p><p><a class="Link" href="http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/alan-suderman" target="_blank" >ALAN SUDERMAN,</a> ASSOCIATED PRESS<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18546627/virginia-lawmaker-who-spends-nights-doing-time-in-jail-resignspoliticswires2014-12-18T06:34:06-06:002019-05-11T09:52:34-05:00White House: 'Sophisticated actor' hacked Sony - Chicago
<p>WASHINGTON — The White House says evidence shows the hack against Sony Pictures was carried out by a “sophisticated actor” with “malicious intent.”</p><p>But spokesman Josh Earnest is declining to blame North Korea. Earnest says he doesn’t want to get ahead of investigations by the Justice Department and the FBI.</p><p>A U.S. official says federal investigators have linked North Korea to the attack. The official spoke on condition of anonymity earlier this week.</p><p>Sony has canceled the Christmas Day release of “The Interview” after many theaters said they would hold off on showing the film.</p><p>Threats have been made against theaters planning to show the film, which is a comedy about a plot to assassinate North Korea’s leader.</p><p>ASSOCIATED PRESS<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18595014/white-house-sophisticated-actor-hacked-sonypoliticswires2014-12-18T06:32:33-06:002019-05-09T11:34:40-05:00In another step toward 2016, Jeb Bush steps down from Barclays - Chicago
<p>WASHINGTON — Jeb Bush is stepping down from an advisory role with British banking giant Barclays.</p><p>A Bush spokesman said Thursday that the former Florida governor would resign his senior advisor position at the end of the year. Bush has been with the banking and financial services firm since 2009.</p><p>The move is another sign that Bush is moving toward a 2016 presidential bid. The likely Republican contender issued a statement this week that he’s actively exploring a run.</p><p>Bush has yet to step away from a series of other business interests. He raised more than $60 million as chairman and manager of a new private equity fund as recently as September.</p><p>Opposition researchers in both parties are already sifting through the business activity seeking fodder for attack.</p><p>STEVE PEOPLES, Associated Press<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18559304/in-another-step-toward-2016-jeb-bush-steps-down-from-barclayspoliticswires2014-12-18T03:36:54-06:002019-05-11T09:41:44-05:00George Ryan applauds move on Cuba, says will be good for Illinois - Chicago
<p>Former Gov. George Ryan says restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba will open new markets for the United States.</p><p>Ryan visited Cuba in 1999 and met with then-President Fidel Castro. It was the first visit by a U.S. governor to Cuba since Castro’s 1959 revolution. Ryan on Wednesday praised President Barack Obama’s shift in U.S.-Cuba policy. Ryan congratulated Obama and said “it’s not an easy political thing to do.”</p><p>The Republican says he thinks it will open markets for Illinois grain and farm products.</p><p>Obama’s announcement was accompanied by the exchange of imprisoned spies and the celebratory release of American Alan Gross, a government contract worker who had been held in Cuba for five years.</p><p>Ryan says he wrote to Fidel Castro earlier this year urging Gross’ release.</p><p>ASSOCIATED PRESS<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18593102/george-ryan-applauds-move-on-cuba-says-will-be-good-for-illinoispoliticswires2014-12-18T01:35:51-06:002019-05-11T08:00:12-05:00Unemployment applications drop to lowest point since October - Chicago
<p>WASHINGTON — Fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week, a sign of solid job security and growing confidence among employers.</p><p>The Labor Department says weekly unemployment benefits applications dropped 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 289,000. That is the lowest level since late October.</p><p>The four-week average, a less volatile measure, declined 750 to 298,750.</p><p>Applications are a proxy for layoffs. The average has fallen nearly 13 percent in the past year, evidence the job market is improving. Companies are cutting fewer jobs as the economy expands and hiring has picked up.</p><p>In the first 11 months of this year, employers have added 2.65 million jobs. That already makes 2014 the best year for hiring since 1999.</p><p>CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER, AP Economics Writer<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18573452/unemployment-applications-drop-to-lowest-point-since-octoberpoliticswires2014-12-18T00:59:52-06:002019-05-09T09:41:38-05:00Will Congress stonewall Obama on Cuba? Not likely - Chicago
<p>WASHINGTON — Opponents of President Barack Obama’s sudden move to re-establish ties with Cuba have little chance of scuttling his effort in Congress.</p><p>His initiative faces some strong resistance among lawmakers and opened fissures in both parties. Criticism came mostly from Republicans, who say the new policy rewards Cuba’s decades-long policies of repression, human rights abuses and aggression, but some prominent Democrats voiced opposition, too.</p><p>Opponents spoke of holding up money to set up a full-service U.S. embassy in Havana, blocking Obama’s nominee as ambassador to Cuba or other such steps. But even if they were to pass sweeping legislation to stop what Obama wants to do, he could veto it and they are not likely to have the votes to override a veto.</p><p>Even though the GOP will control both the Senate and House come Jan. 6, Republicans will face pressure from businesses and the farm industry — eyeing opportunities for commerce in Cuba — not to stand in the way of expanded ties.</p><p>The Chamber of Commerce spent heavily in the midterm elections, investing $35 million to elect business-minded, predominantly Republican lawmakers. Its president, Thomas J. Donohue, said Wednesday that Obama’s actions “will go a long way in allowing opportunities for free enterprise to flourish.”</p><p>The U.S. declared an embargo on most exports to Cuba in October 1960 and severed diplomatic relations in January 1961. Three months later Fidel Castro declared Cuba a socialist state — just a day before the doomed, U.S.-sponsored Bay of Pigs invasion meant to topple him. After the hard-line Castro became ill in 2006, his brother, Raul, took charge of the nation, fewer than 100 miles off the southern coast of Florida.</p><p>Now Obama says he will ease economic and travel restrictions on Cuba and work with Congress to end the trade embargo. This, after Cuba released American Alan Gross, who had been imprisoned for five years, and a Cuban who had spied for the U.S. In exchange, the U.S. freed three Cubans jailed in Florida.</p><p>Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., one of three lawmakers who flew to Cuba before dawn to escort Gross home, praised Obama’s move.</p><p>Leahy, the top Democrat on the committee that oversees foreign aid, said that over the years he’s heard members of Congress tell presidents, “Hang tough on Cuba and those Castros will be out of there any day now.”</p><p>“That was said to President Kennedy, President Johnson, President Nixon, President Ford, President Carter — you see what I’m driving at,” Leahy said. “The fact is they are there. The fact is, Cuba is still there.</p><p>“Let’s start finding out ways to at least work through our differences, embrace areas where we are alike.”</p><p>Another Democrat, New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, the outgoing chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, voiced opposition to the new Cuban policy.</p><p>Menendez, whose parents are Cuban immigrants, said Cuba is not going to reform just because Obama believes that if he extends his hand in peace, the Castro brothers suddenly will “unclench their fists.”</p><p>He said Gross committed no crime, yet was imprisoned and subjected to cruel punishment for trying to help provide Internet access to Cuba’s small Jewish community.</p><p>“Let’s be clear, this was not a humanitarian act by the Castro regime,” Menendez said. “It was a swap of convicted spies for an innocent American.”</p><p>Splits were evident on the Republican side, too.</p><p>Republican leaders in the House and Senate condemned Obama’s action, as did Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a Cuban-American and potential presidential candidate. Rubio said the new U.S. policy would give Cuba a needed economic lift — something “the Castro regime needs to become permanent fixtures in Cuba for generations to come.”</p><p>However, Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., who also went to Cuba to accompany Gross home, said Obama’s move should not be seen as a concession. “My sense is that most of my colleagues feel that we’re long past due” in moderating the U.S. stance on Cuba.</p><p>“Certainly the policy is right and good politics usually follow good policy,” Flake said.</p><p>As well as restoring diplomatic relations, Obama plans to ease travel restrictions to Cuba for family visits, government business and educational activities, while tourist travel remains banned. Only lawmakers can revoke the trade embargo, though, and that appears unlikely to happen soon.</p><p>DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press</p><p><i>Associated Press writer Donna Cassata contributed to this report.</i><br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2014/12/18/18541470/will-congress-stonewall-obama-on-cuba-not-likelypoliticswires