According to aides who were present when Trump discussed the issue, but who choose to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, Trump said he was sick of Vance and wanted to fire him. “I wanted him to be my attack dog,” said Trump, “but he appears foolish on television. He dropped the college football trophy. He met with Pope Francis and the next day the pope died. Vance is toxic, and I don’t want him to come near me. He just doesn’t look as good on television as I thought he would.”   read more

The House investigation into how some of the nation’s most prestigious universities acquire fetal tissue has prompted charges of intimidation and coercion, escalating a battle that some researchers fear could shut down studies seeking cures for Parkinson’s disease, the Zika virus and a host of other conditions. University officials fear that the release of the names sought by lawmakers could endanger lives if anti-abortion activists decide to target those involved in fetal tissue research.   read more

Cell site simulators, also known as Stingrays, raise privacy concerns because they can sweep up information about bystanders’ phones and precisely locate people, including inside their homes. Flying a Stingray over a major metropolitan area magnifies the concern by subjecting potentially large numbers of bystanders to privacy violations.The heavily redacted documents we obtained shed a bit of additional light on use of invasive cell site simulators on aircraft.   read more

An industry effort to relax mileage goals could set off conflict with the Obama administration, whose pledge to reduce emissions, as part of last year’s Paris climate accord, includes making gains in vehicle fuel efficiency. Cheap gas prices are prompting consumers to buy trucks and SUVs instead of small cars, hybrids or electric vehicles. With lower gas prices, sales of low-mileage pickups and SUVs have skyrocketed. Meanwhile, electric and hybrid models are languishing in dealer showrooms.   read more

"If businesses are starting to look at North Carolina and says this is not the environment we want to be in, that could have some blowback, and McCrory would be in the bull's-eye," Professor Bitzer said. Thursday evening, state and national gay-rights advocates joined about 400 people at a Raleigh church to vow to fight on when the General Assembly reconvenes next month and in November at the ballot box to elect Cooper and throw out legislators who voted for the law.   read more

Because chronic alcoholism is a medical disability, the Ninth Circuit called it unconstitutional to classify a "habitual drunkard" as lacking good moral character, reversing a deportation order 2-1 Thursday.   read more

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, condemned the calls for surveillance, saying it sends "an alarming message to American Muslims who increasingly fear for their future in this nation and to all Americans who value the Constitution and religious liberties." Democratic hopeful Bernie Sanders blasted the Republican candidates' proposal. "That would be unconstitutional — it would be wrong," he said.   read more

Lawmakers from states that have been ravaged by opioid addiction said such labeling changes have "done little" to help their communities. "Unfortunately, it has taken FDA far too long to address the grave risks of these drugs that have claimed the lives of thousands this year alone," said Sen. Markey. Critics of the FDA, including Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing, called on the agency to add such warnings years ago. Doctors are not required to follow the FDA's label instructions.   read more

Pummill failed to exercise proper oversight as Graves and Rubens transferred lower-ranking managers and then stepped into the vacant positions themselves, keeping their senior-level pay while reducing their responsibilities. Accountability at the VA "is almost non-existent," Rep. Miller said. "This dysfunctional status quo will never change until we eliminate arcane civil service rules that put the job security of VA bureaucrats ahead of the veterans they are charged with serving."   read more

During the war, the women were considered civilians. But since 1977, federal law has granted them status as veterans. They had been eligible since 2002 to have their ashes placed at Arlington with military honors. But the Army ruled last year that the WASPs never should have been allowed in and revoked their eligibility. McSally's bill reverses that decision.   read more

Consultants' techniques to discourage workers from forming unions have become more sophisticated — more akin to modern political campaigns than workplace discussions. “Decisions that workers make about whether to choose to stand together are often influenced by paid consultants, or persuaders, who are hired by employers to craft the management message being delivered to workers,” said Labor Secretary Perez. “About 75% of employers hire such persuaders, and too often, workers do not know.”   read more

Anxieties run higher among Republicans in large part because of the ferocious and at times juvenile nature of the insult-laden campaign, which has featured taunts over character and even manhood. About six in 10 Republican primary voters say the overall tone of their party’s nomination fight has been more negative than in past campaigns. And 60% of Republican primary voters said the campaign had made them feel mostly embarrassed about their party.   read more

Doctoral candidate Ryan Shapiro sent Freedom of Information Act requests to the CIA, National Security Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency and the FBI looking for records mentioning former South African President Nelson Mandela, hoping to learn if the U.S. had a role in Mandela's 1962 arrest and imprisonment. The CIA and NSA blocked his requests, with the CIA claiming the search would be "unreasonably burdensome" and the NSA refusing to confirm or deny the existence of Mandela-related records.   read more

More than 40 millionaires in New York state have written to Gov. Cuomo and top lawmakers calling on them to consider raising taxes on the state's wealthiest residents to help address poverty and rebuild failing infrastructure. "(W)e have both the ability and the responsibility to pay our fair share," the letter states. "We can well afford to pay our current taxes, and we can afford to pay even more." Those signing the letter include Abigail Disney, Leo Hindery and Steven C. Rockefeller.   read more

Republican presidential candidates denounce "Obamacare" for a litany of woes. But some prominent conservative experts recognize that the law has increased coverage. The prospect of taking away health care coverage from millions of people could trigger a backlash if the eventual GOP nominee's plan to replace it is seen as coming up short. "Repealing the law without a plausible plan for replacing it would be a mistake," said a policy paper from 10 leading GOP health policy experts.   read more

The dolphin-safe labels are supposed to ensure that canned, dried and frozen tuna has been caught without endangering dolphins. Schools of tuna tend to gather and swim with some species of dolphins. Fishermen often have located tuna by tracking dolphins with speedboats and helicopters, then circling them with nets to get at tuna underneath. To earn a 'dolphin-safe' label, tuna must have been caught on a fishing trip that did not involve harming, trapping or killing dolphins.   read more

Trump business associate Felix Sater pleaded guilty in a major Mafia-linked stock fraud scheme in the late 1990s. Even after learning about Sater's background, Trump tapped Sater for a business development role in 2010 that included the title of senior adviser to Trump, and had an office in the Trump headquarters. Sater's criminal past drew attention because of his ties to Trump. But legal disputes over Sater's efforts to cooperate with the government also raises questions about court secrecy.   read more