jimnyc
12-20-2017, 09:00 PM
A few things happening already!
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Triumphant Trump celebrates tax win _ but some fear backlash
WASHINGTON (AP) — A triumphant President Donald Trump and jubilant fellow Republicans celebrated the passage of their $1.5 trillion tax overhaul Wednesday as a “historic victory for the American people.” The American people, however, will need some convincing.
As Trump and GOP lawmakers gathered at the White House to cheer their first major legislative achievement — and the biggest tax changes in a generation — some Republicans warned that the party could face a painful political backlash against an overhaul that offers corporations and wealthy taxpayers the biggest benefits and triggers the loss of health care coverage for millions of Americans.
There was no hint of anxiety at the White House, though, as the president and congressional Republicans pushed any qualms aside and reveled in a much-needed win at the end of a year marked by GOP infighting and political stumbles.
“We are making America great again,” Trump declared, personally thanking his “little team” of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan, before lawmakers lavished praise upon a president they have often openly criticized.
“I don’t know if we’ll have bigger moments, but we hope to,” said Trump.
Rest - https://apnews.com/2d9e099660064f2b8a8fc2237b4e7e4e/It's-a-done-deal:-Congress-wraps-up-massive-tax-package
Congress votes to open Alaska refuge to oil drilling
Congress voted Wednesday to open Alaska’s remote Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and natural gas drilling, ending more than four decades of heated debate on the matter.
The House voted 224-201, mostly along party lines, to pass the Republicans’ tax overhaul bill, which has the ANWR drilling provision attached to it.
It followed the Senate’s 51-48 vote along party lines early Wednesday morning to pass the bill. The House had passed it earlier Tuesday as well, before the GOP had to make small changes to comply with rules allowing for a 51-vote passage in the Senate as a budget reconciliation measure.
No Democrats voted for the bill on Tuesday, and only 12 House Republicans voted against it.
Rest - http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/365772-congress-votes-to-open-alaska-refuge-to-oil-drilling
AT&T, Comcast giving $1,000 bonuses to hundreds of thousands of workers after tax bill
AT&T is paying bonuses of $1,000 to more than 200,000 U.S. employees.
AT&T's CEO said it was in response to tax reform.
The House of Representatives on Wednesday sent tax reform legislation to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it soon.
Telecom giant AT&T was quick to respond to news of U.S. tax reform, announcing it would give some employees bonuses once the legislation is signed into law.
AT&T said in a press release Wednesday that it would give more than 200,000 of its U.S. workers who are union members a special bonus of $1,000. The company also increased its capital expenditures budget by $1 billion in the U.S.
"Congress, working closely with the President, took a monumental step to bring taxes paid by U.S. businesses in line with the rest of the industrialized world," CEO Randall Stephenson said in a statement. "This tax reform will drive economic growth and create good-paying jobs. In fact, we will increase our U.S. investment and pay a special bonus to our U.S. employees."
Rest - https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/20/tax-reform-reaction-att-is-giving-bonuses-to-200000-employees.html
Wells Fargo, Fifth Third Bancorp unveil minimum wage hikes after tax bill passage
Fifth Third and AT&T are paying employees special bonuses after getting tax cuts under the Republican tax plan.
Wells Fargo said Wednesday that it would boost minimum wages for employees to $15 an hour, following Fifth Third's similar announcement.
Fifth Third Bank headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio. Fifth Third Bank to give bonuses, raise minimum wage after tax bill passage
2 Hours Ago | 00:38
Fifth Third Bancorp will pay more than 13,500 employees a bonus and raise the minimum wage of its workforce to $15 an hour after the passage of the Republican tax plan that will cut the bank's corporate tax rate.
Fifth Third is yet another company to announce a bonus for employees because of the tax plan. AT&T said earlier Wednesday that it would pay more than 200,000 U.S. employees $1,000 each and increase its capital spending budget by $1 billion.
Wells Fargo, meanwhile, also said it would be boosting its minimum wage for employees to $15 an hour, which was prompted by the tax plan. The San Francisco-based bank also said it would target $400 million in donations to community and nonprofit organizations next year.
Rest - https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/20/fifth-third-bancorp-unveils-bonuses-minimum-wage-hike-after-tax-bill-passage.html
ANOTHER TAX WIN: Boeing to Spend $300M on Workers and Charity
The Boeing Company, America’s largest aerospace firm, tweeted Wednesday that the just passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will allow them to spend $300 million on “employee-related and charitable investment.”
“On behalf of all of our stakeholders, we applaud and thank Congress and the administration for their leadership in seizing this opportunity to unleash economic energy in the United States,” Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg said in a press release. “It’s the single-most important thing we can do to drive innovation, support quality jobs and accelerate capital investment in our country.”
“For Boeing, the reforms enable us to better compete on the world stage and give us a stronger foundation for the investment in innovation, facilities and skills that will support our long-term growth,” Muilenburg continued.
According to the same release, the exact allocation of the $300 million is still being worked out, but the broad strokes are as follows:
$100 million for corporate giving, with funds used to support demand for employee gift-match programs and for investments in Boeing’s focus areas for charitable giving: in education, in our communities, and for veterans and military personnel.
$100 million for workforce development in the form of training, education, and other capabilities development to meet the scale needed for rapidly evolving technologies and expanding markets.
$100 million for “workplace of the future” facilities and infrastructure enhancements for Boeing employees.
Rest - http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2017/12/20/another-tax-win-boeing-spend-300m-workers-charity/
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Triumphant Trump celebrates tax win _ but some fear backlash
WASHINGTON (AP) — A triumphant President Donald Trump and jubilant fellow Republicans celebrated the passage of their $1.5 trillion tax overhaul Wednesday as a “historic victory for the American people.” The American people, however, will need some convincing.
As Trump and GOP lawmakers gathered at the White House to cheer their first major legislative achievement — and the biggest tax changes in a generation — some Republicans warned that the party could face a painful political backlash against an overhaul that offers corporations and wealthy taxpayers the biggest benefits and triggers the loss of health care coverage for millions of Americans.
There was no hint of anxiety at the White House, though, as the president and congressional Republicans pushed any qualms aside and reveled in a much-needed win at the end of a year marked by GOP infighting and political stumbles.
“We are making America great again,” Trump declared, personally thanking his “little team” of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan, before lawmakers lavished praise upon a president they have often openly criticized.
“I don’t know if we’ll have bigger moments, but we hope to,” said Trump.
Rest - https://apnews.com/2d9e099660064f2b8a8fc2237b4e7e4e/It's-a-done-deal:-Congress-wraps-up-massive-tax-package
Congress votes to open Alaska refuge to oil drilling
Congress voted Wednesday to open Alaska’s remote Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and natural gas drilling, ending more than four decades of heated debate on the matter.
The House voted 224-201, mostly along party lines, to pass the Republicans’ tax overhaul bill, which has the ANWR drilling provision attached to it.
It followed the Senate’s 51-48 vote along party lines early Wednesday morning to pass the bill. The House had passed it earlier Tuesday as well, before the GOP had to make small changes to comply with rules allowing for a 51-vote passage in the Senate as a budget reconciliation measure.
No Democrats voted for the bill on Tuesday, and only 12 House Republicans voted against it.
Rest - http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/365772-congress-votes-to-open-alaska-refuge-to-oil-drilling
AT&T, Comcast giving $1,000 bonuses to hundreds of thousands of workers after tax bill
AT&T is paying bonuses of $1,000 to more than 200,000 U.S. employees.
AT&T's CEO said it was in response to tax reform.
The House of Representatives on Wednesday sent tax reform legislation to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it soon.
Telecom giant AT&T was quick to respond to news of U.S. tax reform, announcing it would give some employees bonuses once the legislation is signed into law.
AT&T said in a press release Wednesday that it would give more than 200,000 of its U.S. workers who are union members a special bonus of $1,000. The company also increased its capital expenditures budget by $1 billion in the U.S.
"Congress, working closely with the President, took a monumental step to bring taxes paid by U.S. businesses in line with the rest of the industrialized world," CEO Randall Stephenson said in a statement. "This tax reform will drive economic growth and create good-paying jobs. In fact, we will increase our U.S. investment and pay a special bonus to our U.S. employees."
Rest - https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/20/tax-reform-reaction-att-is-giving-bonuses-to-200000-employees.html
Wells Fargo, Fifth Third Bancorp unveil minimum wage hikes after tax bill passage
Fifth Third and AT&T are paying employees special bonuses after getting tax cuts under the Republican tax plan.
Wells Fargo said Wednesday that it would boost minimum wages for employees to $15 an hour, following Fifth Third's similar announcement.
Fifth Third Bank headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio. Fifth Third Bank to give bonuses, raise minimum wage after tax bill passage
2 Hours Ago | 00:38
Fifth Third Bancorp will pay more than 13,500 employees a bonus and raise the minimum wage of its workforce to $15 an hour after the passage of the Republican tax plan that will cut the bank's corporate tax rate.
Fifth Third is yet another company to announce a bonus for employees because of the tax plan. AT&T said earlier Wednesday that it would pay more than 200,000 U.S. employees $1,000 each and increase its capital spending budget by $1 billion.
Wells Fargo, meanwhile, also said it would be boosting its minimum wage for employees to $15 an hour, which was prompted by the tax plan. The San Francisco-based bank also said it would target $400 million in donations to community and nonprofit organizations next year.
Rest - https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/20/fifth-third-bancorp-unveils-bonuses-minimum-wage-hike-after-tax-bill-passage.html
ANOTHER TAX WIN: Boeing to Spend $300M on Workers and Charity
The Boeing Company, America’s largest aerospace firm, tweeted Wednesday that the just passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will allow them to spend $300 million on “employee-related and charitable investment.”
“On behalf of all of our stakeholders, we applaud and thank Congress and the administration for their leadership in seizing this opportunity to unleash economic energy in the United States,” Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg said in a press release. “It’s the single-most important thing we can do to drive innovation, support quality jobs and accelerate capital investment in our country.”
“For Boeing, the reforms enable us to better compete on the world stage and give us a stronger foundation for the investment in innovation, facilities and skills that will support our long-term growth,” Muilenburg continued.
According to the same release, the exact allocation of the $300 million is still being worked out, but the broad strokes are as follows:
$100 million for corporate giving, with funds used to support demand for employee gift-match programs and for investments in Boeing’s focus areas for charitable giving: in education, in our communities, and for veterans and military personnel.
$100 million for workforce development in the form of training, education, and other capabilities development to meet the scale needed for rapidly evolving technologies and expanding markets.
$100 million for “workplace of the future” facilities and infrastructure enhancements for Boeing employees.
Rest - http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2017/12/20/another-tax-win-boeing-spend-300m-workers-charity/