Feb 20, 2019

Federal ethics agency rejects Wilbur Ross' financial disclosure

Sec. Commerce Wilbur Ross. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

In a letter made public on Tuesday, the Office of Government Ethics wrote that Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross again failed to comply with his ethics agreement by submitting an inaccurate annual financial disclosure and falsely claiming he sold a bank stock.

Details: The issue centers on the roughly $15,000 stake Ross has in the company BankUnited, which the Center for Public Integrity unearthed in December. Ross was supposed to sell it within 90 days of his Senate confirmation, or by May 2017, and claimed that he did so in his financial disclosure. Ross said in a statement to CNN that he thought the stock had been sold, but there had been a miscommunication with his agent.

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Ursula Perano

2 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Supreme Court expands religious freedoms in schools, employment

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

The Supreme Court ended its term with a series of rulings on religion's role in schools, the workplace and access to health care.

Why it matters: The decisions elevated protections for people and employers of faith, while curtailing those of religion teachers, the nonreligious taxpayer and women who rely on their workplaces' health care plans for contraception.

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Axios

Updated 3 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Global: Total confirmed cases as of 2 p.m. ET: 12,573,041 — Total deaths: 561,865 — Total recoveries — 6,915,740 — Map.
U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 2 p.m. ET: 3,213,902 — Total deaths: 134,420 — Total recoveries: 983,185 — Total tested: 38,919,421 — Map.
Public health: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter: "Please wear a mask to save lives" — Fauci hasn't briefed Trump on the coronavirus pandemic in at least two months — We're losing the war on the coronavirus.
Food: How the coronavirus pandemic boosted alternative meat.
Sports: Charge of "money grab" by college football.
World: India reimposes lockdowns as coronavirus cases soar.
🎧 Podcast: Rural America has its own coronavirus problem.

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Mike Allen

4 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Scoop: Don Jr. plans convention-week Biden book

Cover via Don Jr.

Donald Trump Jr., in quarantine since girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle tested positive for the coronavirus, says he's used the time to finish a book that he'll self-publish the week of the Republican convention, at the end of August.

What he's saying: Don Jr., whose controversial blasts connect with President Trump's base, told me in a phone interview that "Liberal Privilege" will be his effort to paint a picture of Joe Biden and his record that the press ignores.