Free Republic

Obama IRS Scandal Continues – JW Forces IRS to Disclose New Documents JW Files Lawsuit on Obama’s Illegal Russia Leaks Rutland, Vermont Citizens Oust Mayor Caught in Refugee Dishonesty Obama IRS Scandal Continues – JW Forces IRS to Disclose New Documents We have no intention to allow the extra-legal activities of President Obama’s administration to fade into the sunset now that he is out of office. Particularly egregious was his using the might of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to target groups that disagreed with his political views. And heel dragging at the IRS continues. This week Judicial Watch...

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has called on Congress to raise the United States debt limit "at the first opportunity." In a letter to congressional leaders dated Wednesday, Mnuchin said the Treasury will stop issuing certain state and local securities on March 15, when the most recent suspension of the debt limit expires. Mnuchin said the Treasury will likely start aking "extraordinary measures" the next day, when the U.S. will be at its statutory limit, to prevent default. "As I said in my confirmation hearing, honoring the full faith and credit of our outstanding debt is a critical commitment. I encourage...

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Thursday that he wants to see "very significant" tax reform passed before Congress' August recess, in what could prove a tough task as lawmakers work through a complex agenda. "We want to get this done by the August recess. We've been working closely with the leadership in the House and the Senate and we're looking at a combined plan," he told CNBC in his first television interview since assuming office. President Donald Trump has repeatedly made pledges for tax reform and regulatory cuts since he took office, creating optimism among business executives and investors. So...

The United States on Friday sanctioned 13 individuals and 12 entities under U.S. Iran sanctions authority, days after the White House had put Iran "on notice" over a ballistic missile test and other activities.

Senate Republicans pushed through a pair of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees Wednesday, upending standard committee rules to circumvent a Democratic boycott. The Senate Finance Committee advanced a pair of Trump’s nominees with only Republican members present — Steven Mnuchin to head the Treasury Department, and Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.) as secretary of Health and Human Services.

Senate Republicans took an extraordinary step Wednesday to move forward with two of President Donald Trump's top Cabinet nominees after confronting a boycott from Democrats across the aisle. Republican lawmakers on the Senate Finance Committee -- the panel that oversees the nomination of Steve Mnuchin to be Treasury secretary and Rep. Tom Price to be secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services -- gathered for the second day in a row with Democrats on the committee refusing to show up. Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican, pointing to the "extraordinary circumstances" of the meeting, allowed the Republicans...

Senate Democrats have succeeded in delaying for one day a scheduled committee vote on President Donald Trump’s nomination of Steven Mnuchin to be treasury secretary. The Senate Finance Committee said Monday that the meeting to vote on the nomination, which had been scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, will now take place at 10 a.m. Tuesday. Democrats said they requested the delay to allow lawmakers to attend a candlelight vigil protesting Trump’s travel ban aimed at seven Muslim-majority countries. Mnuchin clashed with Democrats during a lengthy confirmation hearing on Jan. 19. He was accused of failing to protect thousands of homeowners...

I'm recalling the thing in Wizard of Id where Blanche, the wizard's wife says "It's a sin to waste food" and the wizard replies "The sin was committed before it got to me..." A more realistic adage related to food says that if there is ever any sort of a question about food, toss it; no meal is worth major stomach grief. In the case of Steve Mnuchin, the take I'm getting is that there are too many question marks in the picture and at least a couple of them are too big; in my view, the guy's nomination should...

Donald Trump’s oft-used excuse for not releasing his tax returns is that they are still under audit at the US Internal Revenue Service—no matter that this doesn’t prevent their release—but if his pick for Treasury secretary gets his way, the interminable audit may end sooner. Steven Mnuchin, the investor tapped by Trump for the top job in US economic policy, told lawmakers at his confirmation hearing today (Jan. 19) that he would like to expand the workforce at the IRS and modernize technology there in order to collect more taxes. “The IRS headcount has gone down quite dramatically, almost 30%...

A new commemorative coin from the U.S. Mint and Treasury features a fresh depiction of Lady Liberty. With a crown of stars in her hair and a toga-like dress, she's as patriotic as ever. She's also, for the first time on an officially minted coin, portrayed as a black woman. The United States Mint unveiled the 24k gold coin in commemoration of their 225th anniversary. Gaze upon her beauty in full:

U.S. government officials say Treasury Secretary Jack Lew could release early images of redesigned $5, $10 and $20 bills in an effort to pressure the Trump Administration away from reversing their plans. . . . ...in the throes of the primary election, Trump called the move “pure political correctness” and suggested moving Tubman to a lower denomination like the $2 bill. “Andrew Jackson had a great history. I think it’s very rough when you take somebody off the bill,” Trump said last spring.

Trump continues to validate our best instincts about the man, and our greatest hopes. Not only does he know how to keep his friends close and his enemies closer, but he knows how and who to pick in a way to utterly confound and bewilder the liberals and Demo-gogs. Both Mnuchin, exec at Goldman - Sachs to Treasury and Ross, finance Billionaire, to Commerce. These guys have been huge political contributors,Trump has just robbed the Dems Blind with these appointments. Plus they know what they're doing, and they know the score and they understand Donald Trump.

It appears Elizabeth Warren does not think too highly of President-elect Donald Trump's nomination of Steven Mnuchin for Treasury secretary. In a statement, the Massachusetts senator said Mnuchin was involved in the worst kind of lending practices that led to the financial crisis during his time as head of mortgage lending at Goldman Sachs. "Steve Mnuchin is the Forrest Gump of the financial crisis — he managed to participate in all the worst practices on Wall Street," Warren said in a statement, according to Politico's Ben White. "He spent two decades at Goldman Sachs helping the bank peddle the same...

Following the news that Steve Mnuchin would be US Trasury Secretary, Wall Street analysts offered mixed predictions on which policies Donald Trump’s choice for Treasury secretary may pursue, as they have little to go on other than Mnuchin’s background with Goldman, buying/selling the former Indy Mac. The prevailing consensus is that Mnuchin’s Wall Street past will lead to easing regulations, tax policies; but at the same time, Mnuchin may not help larger banks as he may focus on regionals and/or seek to distance himself from his GS/IndyMac past. For now optimism dominates, as banks gain, with the KBW banks...

Mnuchin will be Treasury Secretary Ross will lead the Commerce Department. President-elect Donald Trump has filled more top posts on his economic team — picking former Goldman Sachs executive Steven Mnuchin as treasury secretary and financier Wilbur Ross to lead the Commerce Department. Mnuchin is confirming that he and Ross are joining Trump’s Cabinet, pending confirmation by the Senate. He tells CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in an interview Wednesday that “we’re thrilled to work for the president-elect and honored to have these positions.” Mnuchin says “sustained economic growth” is the chief priority of the incoming administration and he says “we can...

Donald Trump will nominate Steve Mnuchin, who has ties to both Wall Street and Hollywood, to be treasury secretary, according to a report Tuesday. The 53-year-old, who also served as finance director for the presidential campaign, was at Trump Tower on Tuesday to meet with the transition team.

Steven Terner Mnuchin, a financier with deep roots on Wall Street and in Hollywood but no government experience, is expected to be named Donald J. Trump’s Treasury secretary as soon as Wednesday, sources close to the transition say. Mr. Mnuchin, 53, was the national finance chairman for Mr. Trump’s campaign. He began his career at Goldman Sachs, where he became a partner, before creating his own hedge fund, moving to the West Coast and entering the first rank of movie financiers by bankrolling hits like the “X-Men” franchise and “Avatar.” As Treasury secretary, Mr. Mnuchin would play an important role...

<p>Theranos, the biotech company started by a 19-year-old Stanford dropout, has another hurdle to cross in its whole "we're totally a legit blood-testing company" campaign. This time, it turns out that tens of thousands of blood tests were voided, making them totally invalid. Whoops!</p>

President-elect Donald Trump has narrowed the field of candidates for Treasury secretary to Steven Mnuchin and Jonathan Gray, multiple sources tell CNN. Mnuchin, 53, is a former Wall Street exec turned Hollywood producer. And Gray, 46, is a billionaire in charge of real estate for the Blackstone private equity firm. Both Mnuchin and Gray would be seen as political moderates. Gray is a registered Democrat and Mnuchin has contributed to both parties. Last week, Trump's first picks for senior positions were seen as very conservative.

We haven't really written much about the insane Theranos scandal, though we discussed it on our podcast. The whole story is pretty crazy -- involving a heavily hyped up company that appeared to basically be flat out lying to everyone about what it could do. The company still exists, but barely. The company's founder and CEO, who was plastered across magazine covers and compared frequently to Steve Jobs, has been banned from running a lab for two years, and the company is now facing a $140 million lawsuit from its biggest partner, Walgreens, who claims that Theranos repeatedly lied to...