U.S.A.'s latest news

The closing argument for tax reform
President Donald J. Trump spoke before a crowd in the White House Grand Foyer yesterday to lay out—in concrete terms—what tax cuts would mean for the typical American household. “As we speak, Congress has reached an agreement on tax legislation that will deliver more jobs, higher wages, and massive tax relief for American families and for American companies,” the President said.

Here’s the President’s case by the numbers:
$2,000+: What the typical family of four earning $75,000 will see in income tax cuts, slashing their tax bill in half
$4,000: How much incomes are expected to rise across the board as a result of tax cuts on U.S. businesses
1/3: The amount one sample Ohio family in the 25-percent bracket and paying nearly $14,000 in taxes would reduce their yearly tax burden
3%: The level of growth the U.S. economy has already surged to—tax reform would take it even further

Watch President Trump and five working families make the case for tax reform.

Bonus: “Tax bill is Christmas present Americans have been waiting for,” says Alfredo Ortiz


‘Transparency and engagement is the right way to go’
Recent history reminds Americans that cybersecurity will be at the top of everyone’s mind in the years ahead. In just one example, the 2015 U.S. Office of Personnel Management data breach saw the records of as many as 4 million people compromised.

In May, President Trump signed an executive order to strengthen the cybersecurity of the federal government’s networks and critical infrastructure. Yesterday, Chris Liddell of the White House’s American Technology Council and Jack Wilmer of the Office of Science and Technology Policy announced that a final report was ready.

“We certainly feel like transparency and engagement is the right way to go,” Liddell said. “The 50 actions articulated in the report will complement existing agency efforts to modernize citizen-facing services.”

Read Liddell and Wilmer’s blog post, and see the full web-friendly report here.


Coming today: The President’s 2018 regulatory agenda
Economic growth has climbed back above 3 percent, and the Administration’s deregulation push is a big part of the reason why.

President Trump will speak this afternoon about the progress made on the deregulation front in 2017 and highlight the publication of his “2018 Unified Regulatory Agenda.”

Here’s what the President will tell Americans:
Agencies have substantially exceeded the White House’s “1 in, 2 out” directive that halts growth of the administrative state
Net regulatory costs were flat to negative in 2017
There will be a significant negative regulatory cost in 2018—with all agencies contributing to the effort

Watch the President speak live at 2:30 p.m. EST.
PHOTO OF THE DAY

First Lady Melania Trump attends a Toy for Tots event | December 13, 2017 (Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks)
POTUS TODAY

Today, the President will have lunch with Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and Secretary of Defense James Mattis.

Later, the President will participate in an event regarding deregulation and meet with the Chairwoman of the Republican National Committee.
SPECIAL NOTE

Check out our latest Facebook 360 Photo to take a look inside the White Houseduring the Christmas season!

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Career Spotlight: Forestry Service Are your students interested in nature and science? Find out how four early-career researchers and scientists at the U.S. Forest Service got their start.

Weighing Planets with NASA How can you weigh planets without putting them on a scale? Take this opportunity to teach your students about measuring the weight of planets using gravitational pullwith NASA's Space Place.

Budgeting at the Grocery Store The holidays mean a lot of time and money spent at the grocery store. Turn your next trip there into a money lesson with these tips from CFPB. Marmex Corp Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall Of Blue Pearl All Natural Male Enhancement Supplement, Due To Undeclared Sildenafil Orange, CA, Marmex Corp is voluntarily recalling All lots of Blue Pearl All Natural Male Enhancement Supplement, 500mg to the consumer level. FDA analysis has found the products to contain sildenafil. The presence of the undeclared active ingredients renders them unapproved drugs for which safety and efficacy have not been established. Use of products with undeclared sildenafil may pose a threat to consumers because the active ingredient may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs (such as nitroglycerin) and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels. Consumers with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease often take nitrates and might be the most likely to get affected. To date, Marmex Corp has not received any reports of adverse events related to this recall. FTC Obtains Court Order Banning Work-at-Home Operators from Selling Business Opportunities and Business Coaching Services Defendants must give up $1.5 million under settlement with FTC The operators of a work-at-home scheme the Federal Trade Commission sued earlier this year for deceptive practices are banned from selling business opportunities and business coaching services under a settlement with the Commission. The settlement order resolves an FTC case brought in August 2017, alleging that the scheme lured consumers into buying an online system, falsely promising they would earn thousands of dollars working from home. Operating as Work At Home EDU, Work At Home Program, Work At Home Ecademy, Work At Home University, Work At Home Revenue, and Work at Home Institute, the defendants used online “native” advertising – promotional content that resembles the non-advertising material beside it – to reach consumers who were researching work-at-home opportunities on the internet. For example, they placed a link to their Work At Home EDU website near an article about working from home on the website Forbes.com. The defendants – Bobby J. Robinson, Michael Sirois, Bob Robinson LLC, Mega Export 2005 Inc., Mega Export USA Inc., and Netcore Solutions LLC – were charged with violating the FTC Act and the FTC’s Business Opportunity Rule. The Rule requires business opportunity sellers to make certain disclosures to help consumers evaluate the opportunity, and prohibits such sellers from making earnings claims without adequate substantiation. For instance, a business opportunity seller is required to provide consumers with a written statement that explains how many other consumers actually achieved the earnings the seller claimed are possible, among other things. The settlement order also prohibits the defendants from misrepresenting material facts about any product or service, imposes a partially suspended judgment of $35.1 million, and requires the defendants to turn over funds and assets valued at approximately $1.5 million. The Commission vote approving the stipulated final order was 2-0. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, entered the order on December 7, 2017. NOTE: Stipulated final orders have the force of law when approved and signed by the District Court judge. Statement by Federal Trade Commission Acting Bureau of Competition Director Bruce Hoffman on the Court Ruling Granting a Preliminary Injunction in the Sanford Health/Mid Dakota Clinic Matter Federal Trade Commission Acting Bureau of Competition Director Bruce Hoffman issued the following statement regarding the U.S. District Court ruling yesterday that granted the request of the FTC and the Attorney General’s Office of North Dakota for a preliminary injunction in the proposed merger of Sanford Health and Mid Dakota Clinic in the Bismarck-Mandan region of North Dakota: “The Court's Dec. 13 ruling temporarily blocking Sanford Health’s proposed acquisition of Mid Dakota Clinic is good news for patients and their families in the Bismarck and Mandan metropolitan area. We look forward to proving at trial that this merger would likely reduce competition, resulting in higher prices and lower quality of adult primary care physician services, pediatric services, obstetrics and gynecology services, and general surgery physician services in that area of North Dakota.”