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Policy

Pie chart depicting total federal spending, or government expenditure categories. (Photo: AdobeStock/GKSD/PPD)

Pie chart depicting total federal spending, or government expenditure categories. (Photo: AdobeStock/GKSD/PPD)

Writing a column every day can sometimes be a challenge, in part because of logistics (I have to travel a lot, which can make things complicated), but also because I want to make sure I’m sharing interesting and relevant information.

My task, however, is very easy on certain days. When Economic Freedom of the World is published in the autumn, I know that will be my topic (as it was in 2017, 2016, 2015, etc). My only challenge is to figure out how to keep the column to a manageable size since there’s always so much fascinating data.

Likewise, I know that I have a very easy column about this time of year (2017, 2016, 2015, etc) since that’s when the Social Security Administration (SSA) releases the annual Trustees Report.

It’s an easy column to write, but it’s also depressing since my main goal is to explain that the program already consumes an enormous pile of money and that it will become an every bigger burden in the future.

Here are the 1970-2095 budgetary outlays from the latest report, adjusted for inflation. As you can see, the forecast shows a huge increase in spending.

The good news, as least relatively speaking, is that we’ll also have inflation-adjusted growth between now and 2095, so the numbers aren’t quite as horrifying as they appear. That being said, Social Security inexorably will consume a larger share of the private economy over time.

Now let’s examine a second issue. Most news reports incorrectly focus on the year the Social Security Trust Fund runs out of money.

But since that “Trust Fund” is filled with nothing but IOUs, I think that’s an utterly pointless piece of data. So every year I show the cumulative $43.7 trillion cash-flow deficit in the system. Using inflation-adjusted dollars, of course.

Assuming we don’t reform the program, think of these numbers as a reflection of a built-in future tax hike.

You won’t be surprised to learn, by the way, that politicians such as Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton already have identified their preferred tax hikes to fill this gap.

Let’s wrap up.

Veronique de Rugy of Mercatus accurately summarizes both the problem and the solution.

The single largest government program in the United States will soon have an annual budget of $1 trillion a year. …The program is Social Security, and our national pastime seems to be turning a blind eye to its dysfunctions. …Since 2010, it has been running a cash-flow deficit—meaning that the Social Security payroll taxes the government collects aren’t enough to cover the benefits it’s obliged to pay out. …

Veronique punctures the myth that there’s a “Trust Fund” that can be used to magically pay benefits.

Prior to 2010, the program collected more in payroll taxes than was needed to pay the benefits due at the time. The leftovers were “invested” into Treasury bonds through the so-called Old Age Trust Fund, which is now being drawn down. …In fact, the Treasury bonds are nothing but IOUs. …Treasury…doesn’t have the money: It has already spent it on wars, roads, education, domestic spying, and much more. So when Social Security shows up with its IOUs, Treasury has to borrow to pay the bonds back. …Did you catch that? Past generations of workers paid extra payroll taxes to bulk up the Social Security system. But the government spent that additional revenue on non-retirement activities, so now your children and grandchildren will also have to pay more in taxes to reimburse the program.

So what’s the solution?

Veronique explains we need to reform the system by allowing personal retirement accounts. She was even kind enough to quote me cheerleading for the Australian system.

Congress should shift away from Social Security into a “funded” system based on real savings, much as Australia and others have done. The libertarian economist Daniel J. Mitchell notes that, starting in the ’80s and ’90s, that country has required workers to put 9.5 percent of their income into a personal retirement account. As a safety net—but not as a default—Australians with limited savings are guaranteed a basic pension. That program has generated big increases in wealth. Meanwhile, Social Security has generated big deficits and discouraged private saving. Who would you have emulate the other?

Though I’m ecumenical. I also have written favorably about the Chilean system, the Hong Kong system, the Swiss system, the Dutch system, the Swedish system. Heck, I even like the system in thee Faroe Islands.

The bottom line is that there’s been a worldwide revolution in favor of private savings and the United States is falling behind.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) released the

Opinion

Baker Jack Phillips decorates a cake in his Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado, on September 21, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

Baker Jack Phillips decorates a cake in his Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado, on September 21, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

There’s a big controversy about whether business owners with traditional religious beliefs should be coerced by government into doing business with gay couples who want to get married.

Back in 2015, I explained that the real issue is freedom of association, not whether gay marriage is right or wrong (I’ve always wondered why government should have any role in marriage, but that’s a separate topic).

It’s time to revisit this issue now that the Supreme Court has released its decision on the case involving a Colorado baker who didn’t want to decorate a cake for a gay wedding. The Wall Street Journal opines that the decision was in favor of the baker, but on very narrow grounds.

The Supreme Court ruled 7-2 Monday for a baker who refused to custom-bake a cake for a same-sex wedding out of sincere religious belief. …this apparent victory for religious freedom may be short-lived. …While seven Justices on the High Court held for Mr. Phillips, the majority decision could have gone the other way had some facts been different. Writing for the majority, Justice Kennedy notes that Mr. Phillips was “entitled to a neutral decision-maker.” …As is his wont, Justice Kennedy strains to avoid a clear and decisive ruling. While “religious and philosophical objections [to same-sex marriage] are protected, it is a general rule that such objections” don’t allow the denial of services “under a neutral and generally applicable public accommodations law,” he writes. Perhaps the best that can be said is that florists, make-up artists, photographers and other people of faith have lived to fight another day. A ruling against Mr. Phillips would have been catastrophic for religious liberty, but the majority’s muddle provides only gossamer protection. …The message is that governments can punish religious beliefs as long as they keep their animus toward religion in the closet.

Since I’m not a lawyer, I’m not sure what to think about the Court’s contorted decision.

But as a libertarian, I think the government should not be involved.

Jeff Jacoby of the Boston Globe understands what the issue is all about. Here’s some of what he wrote shortly before Trump’s inauguration.

Freedom of association is a vital human right. …I support…the singers who refuse to sing for Trump, the fashion designers who refuse to design, the landlords who refuse to rent, the dancers who refuse to dance. No one should be forced to play a role in a celebration they want nothing to do with, or to hire themselves out to clients they would prefer not to serve. …if a caterer turns down a request to prepare the meals for Trump’s inauguration? Or a florist declines to provide the floral arrangements? Or a calligrapher says “thanks but no thanks” to addressing the invitations? I’d back them, too, and for reasons having nothing to do with Trump or Republicans or inaugurations — and everything to do with freedom of association. The right to discriminate — to choose with whom we will and won’t associate — is vital to human liberty. A dressmaker who can’t say no to a commission to design a gown isn’t free, and it doesn’t matter whether the gown is for a first lady or for the brides in a lesbian wedding. A liberal baker who declines to create a lavish cake decorated with the words “Congratulations, President Trump” is entitled to as much deference as a black baker who declines to decorate a cake with the Confederate flag, or a Muslim baker who declines to decorate a cake with the message “No Muslim Immigrants.” …Tolerance and pluralism are important values in a free society. So are choice and association. Your choices may not be mine; my preferred associations may not be yours. In a diverse, live-and-let-live culture, our differences are manageable — as long as government doesn’t interfere.

This controversy should have nothing to do with sexual preference. One of my former interns is gay, but does not want to force others to associate with him.

Being a gay libertarian…you are a pariah among your peers. …So-called civil rights groups like the American Civil Rights Union…say…that “when businesses are open to the public, they’re supposed to be open to everyone.” …Well, folks, I am gay myself – I am even married – and I stand by Philipps’ right to discriminate against whoever he wants. That, of course, makes me a traitor, a turkey voting for Thanksgiving – and if I were African American, it would also make me an Uncle Tom. …many liberals stand by the ACLU’s faulty reasoning… Faulty because it implies that, once you start selling a product or service, you automatically lose your right to freely and voluntarily interact with other people. It’s opened to the public, so it suddenly becomes public “property”… Following that logic, a Muslim baker would be forced to make a cake with Mohammed’s face on it – an unspeakable moral crime in Islam – Hooters would have to hire anyone as a server and gay bathhouses would have to welcome female patrons. …the infamous Jim Crow laws not only maintained an apartheid-like state for African Americans, but they also dictated how private businesses needed to interact with these people. …instead of having government force businesses to serve anyone, I want it to let them discriminate in the open. This way, I know exactly where not to do business. Because even if I were heterosexual, I would very likely boycott businesses that discriminate on arbitrary traits like sexual orientation or skin color. It’s not a crime – no one’s life or property is endangered by this refusal of doing business – but it goes against my moral standards of treating every human being as an equal.

Excellent analysis. Indeed, I’d like to take partial credit. Except Pierre already was a solid libertarian when he started working for me.

Here’s another column with the same perspective, which appeared in the Federalist.

…it should be simple to appreciate why religious people who deeply oppose socially changing marriage to include same-sex couples would not wish to endorse or participate in a same-sex wedding. …Masterpiece Cakeshop, as with many caterers, florists, and photographers, has merely declined to participate in an event or associate their brand with that event. Why do LGBT activists perceive this as a direct attack on the validation of their relationships? …I would not seek employment or request a table at a Planned Parenthood event and expect them to accommodate me. Why would I help them raise money or support their business model? If I encountered an individual morally uncomfortable with participating in an activity with me and my boyfriend, such as couple photos or planning a party, it would be uncomfortable for me to force her. …I would be taken aback by a rejection, I would feel it is my responsibility to choose another photographer rather than force another person to violate her faith for my satisfaction.

Interestingly, some folks on the left openly express their affinity for discrimination. Here’s Michael Moore exercising his right not to do business with theaters in North Carolina, along with a comment by someone who wants Moore to be philosophically consistent.

Ouch, that retort had to leave a mark. Though Moore isn’t bothered by hypocrisy, so he probably doesn’t care.

And speaking of hypocrisy, I wonder what my friends on the left think of the following examples of discrimination.

Here’s freedom of association in action, as reported by the Washington Times.

A boy whose letter to President Trump made national headlines last month reportedly wanted a pro-Trump cake for his birthday party, but his mother was unable to find a baker willing to fulfill the order. …his mother “made him one herself, because she couldn’t find a bakery willing and able to do it.” Michael P. Farris is president, CEO and general counsel of the Alliance Defending Freedom, …wondered why bakers are allowed to decline to make birthday cakes supporting Mr. Trump, but not wedding cakes supporting same-sex marriage. …“The fact is that these cake shops have freedom of speech,” he continued. “They have the right to decline to use their artistic talents to celebrate events or promote messages that violate their beliefs, even if it offends a nice little kid.”

Kudos to Mr. Farris. He wants sauce for the goose to be sauce for the gander. But more important, he wants the right sauce, i.e., nobody should be coerced by government to associate with others.

The New York Post highlights another example of how freedom of association works.

Bartenders at a West Village hot spot served up discrimination — with a liberal twist — refusing to serve a customer because he was wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat, according to a lawsuit. …Greg Piatek, 30, an accountant from Philadelphia, claims he was snubbed…by workers at The Happiest Hour on West 10th Street over his conservative fashion statement… “Anyone who supports Trump — or believes what you believe — is not welcome here! And you need to leave right now because we won’t serve you!” Piatek claims he was told as he was shown the door by a manager. …Piatek’s lawyer Paul Liggieri called the incident “humiliating,” saying it was his client’s “saddest hour.”

I think Mr. Piatek is being a snowflake. If some establishment didn’t want to serve me because of my libertarian values, I would shrug my shoulders and find a place that did value my cash.

I just wish folks on the left had the same perspective. Moreover, I wonder if they’ve considered the implication of their approach. This humorous item from Libertarian Reddit could become reality if the government had the power to force all of us to do business with each other.

Who needs free will when your government can get involved instead? from r/Libertarian

And here’s another story showing how people choose to discriminate.

Brian Ashworth…was in the office when one of his employees walked back to tell him that a woman and four or five men…were in the dining room of Ace Biscuit & Barbecue… One wore a “Make America Great Again” shirt, and another had a shirt promoting the British white nationalist punk band, Skrewdriver. A third man sported a shirt that said, “Pinochet Helicopter Company,” a reference to former right-wing Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, accused of tossing Communists and other political opponents from aircraft. …the group was behaving, minding its own business. …”One employee said to me, ‘Brian, be cool. Let them eat,’” the restaurant owner recalled. …Suddenly, the young man in the Skrewdriver shirt threw up a Nazi salute, which the others reciprocated, he said. “That was it. Oh my God, are you kidding me? ‘Get out of here. You’ve got to go,’” Ashworth told them, admittedly in unkind words. …They countered that they had rights, and Ashworth conceded they had rights but said, as a business owner, …he reserves the right to deny service to other groups. His employees don’t have to serve them, he said.

Amen.

I imagine most of my leftist friends will agree with the restaurant owner’s decision, but there’s part of the story that may cause them heartburn.

“I got a round of applause from the customers who saw me throw them out,” he said. “A round of applause is good, but it doesn’t keep anybody safe.” …He decided to close for the day, for the safety of his staff and customers. …Ashworth brought his two .45-caliber pistols to work… He supposes he’ll keep bringing them to work until he feels safe again.

Last but not least, Marissa Mayer explains for FEE how she doesn’t think government should get involved solely because someone does not want to do business with her.

This week I was denied a service because the company’s values are at odds with the values that Alliance Defending Freedom stands for — values I personally hold. And guess what? I’m okay with that. …Using my work information, I signed up for an online course created by Moceanic, a team of talented fundraisers who have created a coaching and training business to help writers better connect with donors. …What I didn’t know when I signed up for the course, however, is that Moceanic does a lot of work with organizations such as the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, and LGBT activist organizations. …ADF and these organizations don’t exactly share the same values. …I received an email notifying me that they had refunded the cost of the course with no explanation as to why. I was a little perplexed by the email… That’s when I starting digging deeper into the brains behind Moceanic, and it didn’t take long for me to discover the values statement on their website. …”we reserve the right to choose not to train people working directly for, or on behalf of, organisations whose missions or values do not align with ours.” …I get it… Moceanic shouldn’t be forced to coach me on how to speak in a way that generates excitement and engagement for a cause that they disagree with any more than Jack should have to create a cake celebrating a marriage that conflicts with his beliefs.

Marissa is intellectually consistent and practices tolerance.

Too bad the same can’t be said for many other people.

I’ll close by noting that we all discriminate. We discriminate in the foods we buy, the friends we choose, the people we love, and the businesses we patronize. And I don’t think the government should coerce us to make different choices.

That being said, we also should recognize that some choices are fine and some choices are bad.

Because I have the taste buds of a child, I discriminate against restaurants with spicy food. Plenty of my friends tease me for my limited tastes, but I can’t imagine anyone (other than my mother when I was a kid) wanting to force me to eat foods I don’t like.

But what if I wanted to discriminate against people simply because of their race or religion? In that case, I would hope my friends would cease to be my friends and instead would upbraid me for my moral failings (I also hope some of them would be like Daryl Davis or Matthew Stevenson and try to rescue me from such odious forms of collectivism).

However, I wouldn’t want them to enlist government coercion. Believing in free speech also means allowing reprehensible forms of free speech. Believing in a free press also means allowing awful viewpoints. Believing in freedom of association means allowing disgusting forms of discrimination.

So bake a cake or don’t bake a cake. But if you have a bad reason for not baking a cake, you won’t be getting my business (even if your discrimination is economically rational).

Should business owners with traditional religious beliefs

Economy

U.S. jobless claims graph on a tablet screen.

U.S. jobless claims graph on a tablet screen.

The Labor Department said jobless claims fell 1,000 to a seasonally-adjusted 222,000 for the week ending June 2, beating the median forecast. The 4-week moving average gained to 225,500, an increase of 2,750 from the previous week’s revised average.

The previous week’s average was revised up by 500 from 222,250 to 222,750.

Claims taking procedures in Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands have still not returned to normal and extended benefits were payable in the Virgin Islands during the week ending May 19.

Lagging claims data are very strong and indicate a continued demand for labor.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2 percent for the week ending May 26, unchanged from the previous week’s unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending May 26 was 1,741,000, an increase of 21,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised down by 6,000 from 1,726,000 to 1,720,000.

The 4-week moving average fell 13,250 to 1,728,750, the lowest level for this average since December 8, 1973 when it was 1,715,500. The previous week’s average was revised down by 1,500 from 1,743,500 to 1,742,000.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending May 19 were in the Virgin Islands (3.9), Alaska (2.6), California (2.0), New Jersey (2.0), Connecticut (1.9), Puerto Rico (1.7), Pennsylvania (1.6), Illinois (1.5), Rhode Island (1.5), and Nevada (1.4).

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending May 26 were in New York (+1,628), Missouri (+1,125), Michigan (+1,023), Illinois (+917), and Tennessee (+748), while the largest decreases were in California (-3,999), Kentucky (-3,755), Pennsylvania (-1,511), Texas (-1,117), and Alabama (-837).

The Labor Department said jobless claims fell

Politics

President Donald J. Trump, left, hands a pen to Isaac Newton Farris Jr., a nephew of slain Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., after signing a proclamation in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. Alice Marie Johnson, right. (Photos: White House/CAN-DO Clemency Project)

President Donald J. Trump, left, hands a pen to Isaac Newton Farris Jr., a nephew of slain Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., after signing a proclamation in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. Alice Marie Johnson, right. (Photos: White House/CAN-DO Clemency Project)

President Donald Trump commuted the sentence of Alice Johnson, a 63-year-old great-grandmother who served nearly 22 years in federal prison for a first-time offense. The announcement, which last week People’s Pundit Daily (PPD) reported was imminent, comes after Kim Kardashian West visited the White House to speak on her behalf.

“Today, President Donald J. Trump granted a commutation to Alice Marie Johnson, a 63-year-old great-grandmother who has served almost 22 years in Federal prison for a first-time criminal offense,” the White House said in a statement. “Ms. Johnson has accepted responsibility for her past behavior and has been a model prisoner over the past two decades.”

For months, Ms. Kardashian West had been discussing the case with Jared Kushner, the president’s advisor and son-in-law. She took to Twitter elated over the news after speaking with Ms. Johnson.

“The phone call I just had with Alice will forever be one of my best memories,” she tweeted. “Telling her for the first time and hearing her screams while crying together is a moment I will never forget.”

On October 31, 1996, Ms. Johnson was given what she has referred to as “unexecuted death sentence.” She was charged with conspiracy to possess cocaine; attempted possession of cocaine and money laundering. She got a life sentence without parole.

Under financial distress, she got involved in the drug trade. She became a telephone mule, passing messages between the distributors and sellers. Ms. Johnson lost her decade-long job with FedEx — seven of which were in management — due to a gambling addiction. She filed for bankruptcy in 1991, her house was foreclosed on and her youngest son, Cory, was killed in a scooter accident in 1992.

“I made some very poor decisions out of desperation,” she wrote in an op-ed for CNN after Barack Obama refused to grant her clemency. “I participated in a drug conspiracy and I was wrong.”

It was her first offense and all charges were nonviolent. But 10 of her coconspirators were eager to make deals with the prosecution in exchange for dropped or reduced charges. She was left holding the bag of legal responsibility, alone. The co-defendants who testified against her were given sentences ranging from probation without jail time to 10 years.

Ms. Johnson was sentenced to life in prison without parole, plus 25 years.

Still, she has consistently taken responsibility for her actions and spent her more than two decades behind bars becoming an ordained minister, a mentor to young women who are also in prison and a screen play-writer.

“Since [Ms. Johnson’s] arrival at this institution, she has exhibited outstanding and exemplary work ethic,” Warden Arcala Washington-Adduci said of Ms. Johnson’s behavior as an inmate. “She is considered to be a model inmate who is willing to go above and beyond in all work tasks.”

Ms. Johnson’s case gained attention and made national headlines after she appeared in a Mic video op-ed in October 2017 from inside a federal prison in Aliceville, Alabama.

In an exclusive interview with Mic after the meeting at the White House, Mrs. Kardashian West said President Trump “really spent the time to listen to our case that we were making for Alice. He really understood, and I am very hopeful that this will turn out really positively.”

“So grateful to @realDonaldTrump, Jared Kushner & to everyone who has showed compassion & contributed countless hours to this important moment for Ms. Alice Marie Johnson,” she wrote in another tweet. “Her commutation is inspirational & gives hope to so many others who are also deserving of a second chance.”

“I hope to continue this important work by working together with organizations who have been fighting this fight for much longer than I have and deserve the recognition.”

This is one of more than 110 case studies identified by the ACLU that involve prisoners serving life without parole for nonviolent offenses.

“The punishments these people received are grotesquely out of proportion to the crimes they committed,” said Jennifer Turner, ACLU researcher and author of the report. “In a humane society, we can hold people accountable for drug and property crimes without throwing away the key.”

Worth noting, not all cases in the report, titled “A Living Death,” are like this case, meaning truly nonviolent in nature. It does include those charged with nonviolent crimes as part of a plea agreement.

“Despite receiving a life sentence, Alice worked hard to rehabilitate herself in prison, and act as a mentor to her fellow inmates. Her Warden, Case Manager, and Vocational Training Instructor have all written letters in support of her clemency,” the White House added. “While this Administration will always be very tough on crime, it believes that those who have paid their debt to society and worked hard to better themselves while in prison deserve a second chance.”

Ms. Johnson will be released from prison just after celebrating her 63rd birthday.

(Correction: A previous version of this article stated Alice Marie Johnson was 62-years old. She just celebrated her 63rd birthday.)

President Trump commuted the sentence of Alice

Economy

Cargo containers sit idle at the Port of Los Angeles as a back-log of over 30 container ships sit anchored outside the Port in Los Angeles, California, February 18, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

Cargo containers sit idle at the Port of Los Angeles as a back-log of over 30 container ships sit anchored outside the Port in Los Angeles, California, February 18, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

The Census Bureau and Bureau of Economic Analysis said the U.S. trade deficit narrowed sharply to $46.2 billion in April. That’s down $1.0 billion from a revised $47.2 billion in March and far under the $53.1 billion monthly average of the first quarter 2018 (1Q).

The 3-month average goods and services deficit decreased $2.2 billion to $49.6 billion for the three months ending in April. Average exports increased $2.9 billion to $209.3 billion and average imports increased $0.7 billion to $259.0 billion.

The report indicates a big net-positive for second-quarter (2Q) gross domestic product (GDP), which the Atlanta Federal Reserve currently forecasts at a whopping 4.5%.

Worth noting, imports of iron and steel mill products increased $228 million to $2.1 billion, with imports of bauxite and aluminum up slightly to $1.5 billion. Considering the U.S. imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum, it will be noteworthy to watch whether this reverses in the upcoming months.

The politically-sensitive U.S. trade deficit with China overall (goods and services) increased by $4.7 billion to $93.4 billion in the first quarter. Exports increased $0.7 billion to $49.0 billion and imports increased $5.3 billion to $142.4 billion.

But the goods deficit decreased $3.4 billion to $30.8 billion in April, as exports decreased $1.4 billion to $11.1 billion and imports decreased $4.7 billion to $41.9 billion.

The politically-sensitive U.S. trade deficit with Mexico

The goods-only surplus with South and Central America increased $1.0 billion to $4.1 billion in April. Exports increased $0.7 billion to $14.0 billion and imports decreased $0.3 billion to $9.9 billion

The Census Bureau and Bureau of Economic

Politics

President Executive Order (Photo: AP)

President Executive Order (Photo: AP)

President Donald Trump will sign the VA Mission Act of 2018 on Wednesday, bringing the department into the 21st century and expanding healthcare access to veterans. The new legislation is expected to be signed by President Trump this afternoon in the Rose Garden.

The U.S. Congress passed the VA Mission Act in May, which appropriates $52 billion for increasing heath care access for veterans outside of the VA system.

It is expected to be implemented in one year and will eventually replace the VA Choice Program, which was passed in 2014 in the wake of the VA scandal under the Obama Administration.

“This is another critical step in fulfilling our promise to fix the Department of Veterans Affairs. With these reforms to vital care services, we are returning the VA to its core mission,” House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said. “Importantly, the Veterans Choice Program will remain funded while a streamlined community care program is established, because no veteran should be without access to quality care.”

Despite multiple major reforms under the Trump Administration, the White House cites a recent report to argue wait times are still too high. Veterans are waiting up to roughly 70 days to receive care.

“Passing this legislation is another promise made and promise kept to America’s Veterans under President Trump’s leadership, which has provided the most substantial VA reform in a generation,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement after passage in the U.S. Senate. “The Administration will continue implementing policies that transform and modernize the VA to better serve our nation’s heroes.”

President Donald Trump will sign the VA

Politics

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks while participating in a tour of U.S.-Mexico border wall prototypes near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in San Diego, California. U.S., March 13, 2018. (Photo: Reuters)

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks while participating in a tour of U.S.-Mexico border wall prototypes near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in San Diego, California. U.S., March 13, 2018. (Photo: Reuters)

President Donald Trump reacted to the primary results on Tuesday, tweeting they indicate there “may be a big Red Wave” instead of a Blue Wave in November.

“Great night for Republicans! Congratulations to John Cox on a really big number in California. He can win. Even Fake News CNN said the Trump impact was really big, much bigger than they ever thought possible,” he tweeted. “So much for the big Blue Wave, it may be a big Red Wave. Working hard!”

Republican businessman John Cox ran shocking strong and Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa ran shocking weak. Mr. Cox advances to face Democratic Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom in the general election for governor in November.

“Many more Republican voters showed up yesterday than the Fake News thought possible,” President Trump added. “The political pundits just don’t get what is going on out there – or they do get it but refuse to report the facts! Remember, Dems are High Tax, High Crime, easy to beat!”

The results have significant implications for the battle over the U.S. House of Representatives in November.

The Democratic Party needs to flip 23 Republican seats to retake control of the House and, out of the 53 seats in California, 14 are occupied by Republicans. Seven of those districts voted for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton over President Donald Trump in 2016.

With the exception of the Southern California seat being vacated by Republican Representative Darrell Issa in Congressional District 49, the GOP vote share was above 50% in the remaining target districts.

President Donald Trump reacted to the primary

Elections

Candidates in the 2018 California gubernatorial primary election from left to right: Assemblyman Travis Allen, businessman John Cox, Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom, Danny Chiang, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Candidates in the 2018 California gubernatorial primary election from left to right: Assemblyman Travis Allen, businessman John Cox, Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom, Danny Chiang, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Democratic Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom and Republican businessman John Cox will advance to the general election for California governor in November, PPD projects. Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa performed poorly, carrying only Imperial County.

In Los Angeles County, early returns showed Mayor Villaraigosa running third to Lt. Gov. Newsom and Mr. Cox, in that order. Update: Mayor Villaraigosa has performed much better in Los Angeles County on Election Day, pulling into second place there behind Lt. Gov. Newsom.

His improved standing in the vote rich county has propelled him ahead of Assemblyman Travis Allen for third place.

“Voters clearly rejected the school privatization agenda of the billionaires supporting Antonio Villaraigosa and showed their support of providing a free, public education to all students regardless of their ZIP code,” California Teachers Association President Eric Heins, said.

PPD also projects incumbent Senator Dianne Feinstein will finish first in the primary. However, Democrat Kevin de León and Republican James Bradley are still battling for second place, making it too close to call.

The results have significant implications for the battle over the U.S. House of Representatives in November.

The Democratic Party needs to flip 23 Republican seats to retake control of the House and, out of the 53 seats in California, 14 are occupied by Republicans. Seven of those districts voted for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton over President Donald Trump in 2016.

With the exception of the seat being vacated by Republican Representative Darrell Issa in Congressional District 49, the GOP vote share is (as of 2:20 AM EST) above 50% in the remaining target districts.

In other election news, Matt Rosendale has won the Republican primary for U.S. Senate in Montana, and will go on to face vulnerable incumbent Senator Jon Tester.

Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and Republican

Politics

FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe pauses while testifying before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) in Washington, U.S., June 7, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)
FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe pauses while testifying before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) in Washington, U.S., June 7, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

Andrew McCabe, the former deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), wants immunity in exchange for testimony and emails damaging to former director James Comey.  Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, requested testimony from Mr. McCabe and several other individuals involved in the investigation into Hillary Clinton.

The requests were sent out for next week and ahead of the release of the highly-anticipated report by Justice Department (DOJ) Inspector General Michael Horowitz, which details corruption and mishandling of the case by Mr. Comey, Mr. McCabe and former Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

Mr. Horowitz sent a criminal referral for Mr. McCabe to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C. He was fired after the review determined he lied multiple times, including under Oath, and leaked in “a manner designed to advance his personal interests.”

“Under the terms of such a grant of use immunity, no testimony or other information provided by Mr. McCabe could be used against him in a criminal case,” Michael Bromwich, a lawyer for Mr. McCabe, wrote to Chairman Grassley.

“Mr. McCabe is willing to testify, but because of the criminal referral, he must be afforded suitable legal protection.”

The internal probe into corruption under the Obama Administration was opened after the DOJ Inspection Division (INSD) referred it to Mr. Horowitz to determine whether information published by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) in an article on October 30, 2016, was an unauthorized leak. And if so, who was the source of the leak.

“FBI in Internal Feud Over Hillary Clinton Probe” also appeared in print on Monday, October 31, 2016, in an article entitled “FBI, Justice Feud in Clinton Probe.”

Mr. Comey, who has himself been caught in numerous falsehoods, denied ever being told about those media contacts and leaks.

The review concluded Mr. McCabe leaked information on the case in “a manner designed to advance his personal interests,” violated FBI Offense Code 2.5 (Lack of Candor – No Oath) and FBI Offense Code 2.6 (Lack of Candor – Under Oath).

Mr. Bromwich offered to provide emails to Chairman Grassley, which allegedly “demonstrate that Mr. McCabe advised former Director Comey, in October 2016, that Mr. McCabe was working with FBI colleagues to correct inaccuracies before certain media stories were published.”

“This is a textbook case for granting use immunity,” Mr. Bromwich added. “If this Committee is unwilling or unable to obtain such an order, then Mr. McCabe will have to no choice but to invoke his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.”

Update to Story

According to CNN, Chairman Grassley is more than interested in the offer. He wrote to the FBI on Tuesday requesting that Mr. McCabe “be released from a nondisclosure agreement that prevents him from providing those emails, among other records.”

Former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe has

Economy

Job seekers wait to meet with employers at a career fair in New York City, October 24, 2012. (Photo: Reuters)

Job seekers wait to meet with employers at a career fair in New York City, October 24, 2012. (Photo: Reuters)

The number of job openings in the U.S. reached a new record high of 6.7 million on the last business day of April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said. When the Labor Department (DOL) began tracking job openings in December 2000, the number of unemployed persons per job opening was a seasonally-adjusted 2.6%.

It’s now just 0.9%, an all-time low.

The job openings rate was 4.3% in April and the number of job openings was little changed for total private and for government. Hires and separations were little changed at 5.6 million and 5.4 million, respectively.

The hires rate was 3.8%. For separations, the quits rate was unchanged at 2.3% and the layoffs and discharges rate increased to 1.2%. Over the 12 months ending in April, hires totaled 66.1 million and separations were 63.7 million, for a net employment gain of 2.4 million.

Job openings increased in durable goods manufacturing (+33,000) and information (+26,000), but decreased in finance and insurance (-84,000).

Meanwhile, the Employment Situation in May, commonly referred to as the monthly jobs report, found the U.S. unemployment rate ticked down to 3.8%, the lowest since April 2000. That’s also a match for the lowest rate in half a century.

The U-6, which includes all persons marginally attached to the labor force plus total employed part time for economic reasons, has fallen from 8.4% since May 2017 to 7.6%. The unemployment rate for blacks and Hispanics are all at all-time record lows.

Survey data indicate that Americans are feeling the economic recovery ramp up under the Trump Administration. Americans are much more optimistic about the labor market.

A recent Rasmussen Reports found 68% of Americans believe it’s “possible for anyone who really wants to work to find a job” in the current environment, the highest number ever since tracking began in January 2009.

Fifty-eight percent (58%) say it’s “possible for just about anyone in the United States to work their way out of poverty,” also the highest since tracking began in January 2009.

The number of job openings in the

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