16 days ago
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California would allow Jews to voluntarily identify their Jewish heritage on state forms under a bill the state Legislature passed Monday.
The bill, which lawmakers sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk, would require state agencies that collect demographic information to add "Jewish" as an option for ethnicity or ancestry. The goal is to give state officials and researchers better data on Jewish Californians, including their unemployment rates and representation in schools.
The data would enable lawmakers to create policies that address the needs of Jews in the state, said David Bocarsly, CEO of Jewish California, an advocacy group.
"It's about inclusion as a community," Bocarsly said, noting the Legislature has passed laws in recent years to collect more inclusive demographic data on Middle Eastern, North African and LGBTQ+ communities.
Some opponents of the bill are worried about the idea of the state collecting such data given the traumatic history of the **** government keeping records of Jews during the Holocaust. The proposal would bar agencies from disclosing "personal identifying information," and bill author Henry Stern, a Democratic state senator who is Jewish, said California already has robust privacy protections that should **** uage those concerns.
#state
The bill, which lawmakers sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk, would require state agencies that collect demographic information to add "Jewish" as an option for ethnicity or ancestry. The goal is to give state officials and researchers better data on Jewish Californians, including their unemployment rates and representation in schools.
The data would enable lawmakers to create policies that address the needs of Jews in the state, said David Bocarsly, CEO of Jewish California, an advocacy group.
"It's about inclusion as a community," Bocarsly said, noting the Legislature has passed laws in recent years to collect more inclusive demographic data on Middle Eastern, North African and LGBTQ+ communities.
Some opponents of the bill are worried about the idea of the state collecting such data given the traumatic history of the **** government keeping records of Jews during the Holocaust. The proposal would bar agencies from disclosing "personal identifying information," and bill author Henry Stern, a Democratic state senator who is Jewish, said California already has robust privacy protections that should **** uage those concerns.
#state
1 month ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Ethics Committee recommended Monday that Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., be censured after finding that he engaged in persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct toward two young female aides in his congressional office.
A censure registers the House's deep disapproval of a lawmaker's conduct that does not meet the threshold for expulsion.
Edwards, 65, has denied that any of his conduct was intended as a ******* ual or romantic advance, but the committee said his behavior would "lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such." It also described his actions as "beyond inappropriate."
The panel highlighted numerous examples of actions it considered improper, including Edwards providing the young women with lavish and recurrent gifts, making comments regarding their appearance and dress, inviting them to intimate dinners and vacations, and sending notes regarding his affection.
The Ethics panel found no evidence Edwards explicitly propositioned any person under his employ or engaged in any ******* ual activity with them. But it also said he failed to adhere to "the spirit of rules prohibiting ******* ual harassment of and unwanted advances to House staffers."
#House
A censure registers the House's deep disapproval of a lawmaker's conduct that does not meet the threshold for expulsion.
Edwards, 65, has denied that any of his conduct was intended as a ******* ual or romantic advance, but the committee said his behavior would "lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such." It also described his actions as "beyond inappropriate."
The panel highlighted numerous examples of actions it considered improper, including Edwards providing the young women with lavish and recurrent gifts, making comments regarding their appearance and dress, inviting them to intimate dinners and vacations, and sending notes regarding his affection.
The Ethics panel found no evidence Edwards explicitly propositioned any person under his employ or engaged in any ******* ual activity with them. But it also said he failed to adhere to "the spirit of rules prohibiting ******* ual harassment of and unwanted advances to House staffers."
#House
2 months ago
President Donald Trump's brazenly corrupt "settlement" of his lawsuit against the IRS included a jaw-dropping order in which Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche purported to shield him and his family from liability for tax violations and any other federal offenses they may have committed prior to May 19. During his confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Blanche, who is seeking Senate approval of his nomination as attorney general, repeatedly misrepresented the scope and nature of that sweeping immunity deal.
In response to questions from Sen. Richard Durbin (D–Ill.), Blanche preposterously claimed his promise of protection was "typical" of settlements between the IRS and taxpayers. "This type of settlement is done regularly," he said. "When we enter into settlements like that, we do it with all kinds of people. It's not just President Trump. It doesn't make any of those individuals above the law."
Blanche was referring to settlements of tax disputes. That comparison is inapt for several reasons.
First, Trump's lawsuit, which was joined by two of his sons and the Trump Organization, did not involve a dispute about tax liability. It alleged damages caused by an IRS contractor's illegal disclosure of the plaintiffs' tax returns, an issue that has nothing to do with the question of whether they owe the IRS money.
Second, even in cases that do involve alleged tax violations, it is not "typical" for settlements to include a promise that the IRS will never pursue any other claims based on past returns. After Blanche revealed his order, former IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel told the **** ociated Press he was not aware of any previous cases in which the IRS had agreed to "permanently forgo examination of previously filed tax returns for a specific person or business."
In response to questions from Sen. Richard Durbin (D–Ill.), Blanche preposterously claimed his promise of protection was "typical" of settlements between the IRS and taxpayers. "This type of settlement is done regularly," he said. "When we enter into settlements like that, we do it with all kinds of people. It's not just President Trump. It doesn't make any of those individuals above the law."
Blanche was referring to settlements of tax disputes. That comparison is inapt for several reasons.
First, Trump's lawsuit, which was joined by two of his sons and the Trump Organization, did not involve a dispute about tax liability. It alleged damages caused by an IRS contractor's illegal disclosure of the plaintiffs' tax returns, an issue that has nothing to do with the question of whether they owe the IRS money.
Second, even in cases that do involve alleged tax violations, it is not "typical" for settlements to include a promise that the IRS will never pursue any other claims based on past returns. After Blanche revealed his order, former IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel told the **** ociated Press he was not aware of any previous cases in which the IRS had agreed to "permanently forgo examination of previously filed tax returns for a specific person or business."
