Shannon Vavra
Shannon Vavra
Featured Facts Matter

50 infrastructure projects for Trump

Dave Schwarz / The St. Cloud Times via AP

The projected cost of $137.5 billion in 2017 falls just below Trump's trillion dollar promises, per McClatchy. Half the money to back the projects would reportedly be backed privately.

Here are a few prime suspects for upgrades:

  • I-95 upgrades in North Carolina
  • New terminal in Kansas City airport
  • High-speed railway between Dallas and Houston
  • Replacing the nation's radar-based air traffic control system
Featured Facts Matter

Elon Musk gets chummy with Tillerson

Ringo H.W. Chiu / AP

Musk Tweeted out support for the Secretary of State nominee today. Rex Tillerson has received the necessary votes from the Senate Committee, but has yet to be confirmed by the full body.

He Tweeted in response to The Economist:

This may sound surprising coming from me, but I agree with The Economist. Rex Tillerson has the potential to be an excellent Sec of State. — Elon Musk

And in response to a Bloomberg Reporter:

Rex is an exceptionally competent executive, understands geopolitics and knows how to win for his team. His team is now the USA. — Elon Musk

The double take? Musk runs two clean energy companies. Tillerson has not had the cleanest record on renewables as the CEO of ExxonMobil.

Featured Facts Matter

McCain rips into OMB pick

At a Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing John McCain tore into Mick Mulvaney over some of his defense votes.

Did you vote to cut defense spending?

Mulvaney: "That I don't remember."
McCain: "I would remember if I voted to cut our defenses the way that you did, Congressman. Maybe you don't take it with the seriousness that it deserves…It's clear from your record that you've been an impediment to that for years."

Did you vote to withdraw troops from Afghanistan?

Mulvaney: "I was doing the best I could to represent the people of South Carolina."
McCain: "Don't you know where 9/11 came from? I know one thing about South Carolina: a majority of them don't support a full withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan."

What's next: Despite the McCain theatrics Mulvaney is on track for confirmation. Even Bernie Sanders hailed him as a "straight-shooter"

Featured Facts Matter

DAPL and Keystone XL pipeline companies soar

Tom Stromme / The Bismarck Tribune via AP

The companies involved in the Dakota Access Pipeline and the Keystone XL all jumped on news today Trump is signing executive orders to push the projects forward.

Data: Yahoo Finance; Graphic: Lazaro Gamio / Axios
Featured Facts Matter

DOJ pushes back on privacy lawsuit

Michel Euler / AP

The law: Today, the Justice Department filed a motion to dismiss the Microsoft lawsuit that challenges the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. The law allows the government to get customers' data from companies secretly, which Microsoft says violates customers' Fourth Amendment rights. Twitter, Apple and Amazon filed court briefs supporting Microsoft's claims.

Balance this one: The DOJ argues Microsoft can't argue on behalf of its customers' Fourth Amendment rights — only the customers can. But…based on the way the laws currently plays out, customers can't file suit since they aren't aware their data is being collected in the first place.

I'm disturbed by the idea that you can have an invasion of rights or privacy without ever disclosing it…Microsoft customers have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the content they have stored. - U.S. District Judge James Robart, who has not yet issued a ruling on the motion
Featured Facts Matter

Say hello to your new CIA Director

Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP

The Kansas native has enough votes to take on his new role. He was first in his class at West Point, and served several terms in Congress.

Update: The final vote was 66-32.

Featured Facts Matter

McConnell to Trump: don't add to the debt

Zach Gibson / AP

Senate majority leader came on strong tonight at the White House congressional leadership huddle and told Trump he can't burden the U.S. with $1 trillion in debt, according to the AP. He insisted POTUS lay out a plan that can be fully funded.

The Senate's no. 2, John Cornyn, who relayed the news, said infrastructure is "an area maybe to find common ground" but that "Sen. McConnell made the important point it needs to be paid for because we've got $20 trillion in debt."

Featured Facts Matter

Congressional leadership ushered into White House

Susan Walsh / AP

As the pool was leaving the room, POTUS said "we're about to make a big deal," and everyone laughed, per the pool report. Trump added they all have a "beautiful, beautiful relationship."

Who was there: Mitch McConnell, John Cornyn, Paul Ryan, Kevin McCarthy, Chuck Schumer, Dick Durbin, Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, Mike Pence, Reince Priebus, Jared Kushner, Steve Bannon, and Trump.

One fun thing: Meatballs were served.

Featured Facts Matter

Trump signs Obamacare executive order

Evan Vucci / AP

Before hitting inaugural balls, Trump signed an executive order "that directs the departments and the agencies to ease the burden of Obamacare as we transition to repeal and replace,'' spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters. Separately White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus issued a government-wide order freezing new regulations.

What it means: nothing. A GOP aide said the order is "pretty much a nothingburger." The real action on repeal and replace is still on the Hill.

Featured Facts Matter

Apple follows FTC suit and sues Qualcomm

Raimond Spekking via Wikimedia Commons

The claims: As the WSJ reports, Apple seeks $1 billion in rebate payments from Qualcomm over claims that Qualcomm placed "onerous, unreasonable and costly" terms on Apple as a way to retaliate against Apple for cooperating with a South Korean anititrust probe into Qualcomm's licensing practices. The probe smacked a $583 million fine onto Qualcomm last month.

A damning nugget: Apple alleges that after they cooperated with the South Korean probe, Qualcomm "attempted to extort Apple into changing its responses and providing false information to the KFTC in exchange for Qualcomm's release of those payments." Qualcomm didn't immediately comment on the suit.

Join the club: This comes three days after the Federal Trade Commission announced its own law suit against Qualcomm alleging it made Apple exclusively use its chips in exchange for reducing the fees the iPhone maker pays Qualcomm for patent licenses.

Update:

  • Qualcomm's responds: EVP and General Counsel Don Rosenberg told Axios that Apple "has been actively encouraging regulatory attacks on Qualcomm's business in various jurisdictions around the world."
  • Apple's responts: Apple told Axios that to protect Qualcomm's "business scheme Qualcomm has taken increasingly radical steps, most recently withholding nearly $1B in payments from Apple as retaliation for responding truthfully to law enforcement agencies investigating them."