Trump Signs Executive Order Targeting Law Firm Jenner and Block
Trump signed the order at a White House event on Tuesday, the latest in a series of measures going after prominent law firms over work they did tied to the myriad investigations and prosecutions that the president faced during his first term in office and after.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a few seconds ago
- Yahoo
GE Appliances shifts more production to US as part of a $3 billion investment
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — GE Appliances plans to shift production of refrigerators, gas ranges and water heaters out of China and Mexico as part of a more than $3 billion investment to expand its U.S. operations in Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and South Carolina. The investment — the second-largest in the Louisville-based company's history — is expected to add more than 1,000 jobs while ramping up domestic production and modernizing plants in the next five years. 'Our long-term strategy is about manufacturing close to our customers,' said CEO Kevin Nolan. 'With lean manufacturing, upskilling our workforce and automation, the math works for manufacturing in the United States.' The majority of GE's appliance production is already in the U.S. and the shift means only that the company will transfer more work to its domestic plants. GE will relocate production of gas ranges from Mexico to a plant in Georgia, while six refrigerator models now made in China will be manufactured at its Alabama plant, the company said. In June, the company said it would move production of clothes washers from China to its sprawling manufacturing complex in Louisville. The reshoring announcements come as President Donald Trump tries to lure factories back to the United States by imposing import taxes — tariffs — on foreign goods. GE Appliances said Wednesday that the first phase of its new investment will begin at plants in five Southern states — Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina. 'We are defining the future of manufacturing at GE Appliances by investing in our plants, people and communities,' Nolan said. 'No other appliance company over the last decade has invested more in U.S. manufacturing than we have, and our $3 billion, five-year plan shows that our commitment to U.S. manufacturing will continue into the future.' The multiyear plan includes ramping up production of gas ranges that have been made in Mexico but will shift to the company's plant in LaFayette, Georgia, the company said. Production of six refrigerators now made in China will move to its plant in Decatur, Alabama. GE's plant in Camden, South Carolina, will add production of electric and hybrid heat pump water heaters, doubling the factory's output and employment once the project is complete, the company said. The plant now produces gas water heaters. Production of the company's electric and hybrid water heaters — now made in China — will shift to South Carolina. In Selmer, Tennessee, its plant will produce two new models of air conditioners. The latest investment includes the June announcement that GE Appliances will pump $490 million into its Kentucky complex to produce a combo washer/dryer and a lineup of front load washers that are now made in China. In all, production of more than 15 models of front load washers will shift to the company's Louisville complex — known as Appliance Park, it said. Once its new plan is fully implemented, GE Appliances will have invested $6.5 billion across its 11 U.S. manufacturing plants and nationwide distribution network since 2016, it said. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Wednesday that the investment shows his state's ability to support world-class companies with a skilled workforce and the resources needed to thrive. 'GE Appliances has established Kentucky as America's destination for advanced manufacturing and job creation, and today's news shows this iconic company's unwavering belief in the commonwealth and the role we play in their success,' Beshear said. GE Appliances handles product design and engineering work at its Louisville headquarters but doesn't make all of its products in the U.S. It contracts with other manufacturers, including in China, for some of its production where it doesn't have capacity or needs access to a global supply chain. The company said its core business strategy is to base production in the United States, and investments announced in June and on Wednesday are another step toward achieving that goal. The company said it's partnering with universities, technical schools and high schools to help ensure that its plants and other facilities have a trained workforce. 'Infrastructure and tools matter, but they are not enough,' said Bill Good, vice president of supply chain for GE Appliances. 'America's manufacturing renaissance will be built by people." GE Appliances is a subsidiary of the China-based Haier company. Overall, GE Appliances says it contributes more than $30 billion annually to the U.S. economy and supports more than 113,000 jobs – both directly and indirectly – through its operations, suppliers and distribution network. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
a few seconds ago
- Yahoo
How the unraveling of two Pentagon projects may result in a costly do-over
By Alexandra Alper WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Donald Trump's Navy and Air Force are poised to cancel two nearly complete software projects that took 12 years and well over $800 million combined to develop, work initially aimed at overhauling antiquated human resources systems. The reason for the unusual move: officials at those departments, who have so far put the existing projects on hold, want other firms, including Salesforce and billionaire Peter Thiel's Palantir, to have a chance to win similar projects, which could amount to a costly do-over, according to seven sources familiar with the matter. Trump took office vowing to rid the government of what he calls waste and abuse. The website of the Department of Government Efficiency, the agency he created to spearhead those efforts, lists over $14 billion in Defense Department contracts it claims to have cancelled. But seven months into his presidency, some of his own actions have complicated DOGE's work, from firing the Pentagon's inspector general to issuing an executive order prioritizing speed and risk-taking in defense acquisitions. Coupled with high-level vacancies in the Navy and Air Force that persisted well into the summer, the moves limit oversight of the Pentagon's contracting process and risk wasting hundreds of millions of additional taxpayer dollars as old projects are thrown out and new projects are agreed to, Reuters reporting based on sources, internal emails and documents, shows. 'There is a very real sense that we are in the regulatory Wild West with this administration – and it should come as no surprise that the traditional limits of 'normal contracting' are repeatedly going to be pushed and pressed in this environment,' said Franklin Turner, a federal contracting lawyer at McCarter & English. He said it is legal for the government to terminate any contract "for convenience," but said the Pentagon would be on the hook to reimburse the companies for wind-down costs plus take on the cost of any new replacement project. Trump officials say the administration is striving to make the contracting process more efficient. "Defense Secretary Hegseth is doing a great job restoring a focus on warfighters at the DOD while carrying out the American people's agenda to more effectively steward taxpayer dollars," White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said in a statement. Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson said the agency is taking "swift action" to fix the "antiquated" defense contracting process by implementing Trump's executive orders. "This is how we will rebuild the military with necessary speed while ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent wisely in the process,' she added. 'STRATEGIC PAUSE' In 2019, Accenture said it had won a contract to expand an HR platform to modernize the payroll, absence management, and other HR functions for the Air Force with Oracle software. The project, which includes other vendors and was later expanded to include Space Force, grew to cost $368 million and was scheduled for its first deployment this summer at the Air Force Academy. An April "status update" on the project conducted by the Air Force and obtained by Reuters described the project as "on track," with initial deployment scheduled for June, noting that it would end up saving the Air Force $39 million annually by allowing it to stop using an older system. But on May 30, Darlene Costello, then-Acting assistant Secretary of the Air Force, sent out a memo placing a "strategic pause" on the project for ninety days and calling for the study of alternate technical solutions, according to a copy of the memo seen by Reuters that was previously unreported. Costello, who has since retired, was reacting to pressure from other Air Force officials who wanted to steer a new HR project to SalesForce and Palantir , three sources said. Palantir co-founder Thiel was an early backer of President Donald Trump and has close ties with key Washington lawmakers, including Vice President JD Vance, whom he supported in a 2022 U.S. Senate race. Palantir in April won a $30 million contract from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to develop an operating system that identifies undocumented immigrants and tracks self-deportations, its largest single award from the agency among 46 federal contract actions since 2011. The Air Force said in a statement that it "is committed to reforming acquisition practices, assessing the acquisition workforce, and identifying opportunities to improve major defense acquisition programs." Accenture, Costello, Palantir and SalesForce did not respond to requests for comment. Space Force, which operates within the Air Force, was set to receive the Air Force's new payroll system in the coming months. But it is also pulling out of the project because officials there want to launch yet another HR platform project to be led by Workday, according to three people familiar with the matter. The service put out a small business tender on May 7 for firms to research HR platform alternatives, with the goal of selecting a company that will recommend Workday as the best option, the people said. Space Force did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Now the Air Force and Space Force "want to start over with vendors that do not meet their requirements, leading to significant duplication and massive costs," said John Weiler, director of the Information Technology Acquisition Advisory Council, a government-chartered nonprofit group that makes recommendations to improve federal IT contracting. Oracle said in a statement it was "working closely with DOGE to accelerate the government's transformation to modern technology at the best price for the taxpayer." 'BEYOND EXASPERATED' In 2022, the Honolulu-based Nakupuna Companies took over a 2019 project with other firms to integrate the Navy's payroll and personnel systems into one platform using Oracle software and known as "NP2". The project, which has cost about $425 million since 2023, according to the Government Accountability Office, was set to be rolled out earlier this year after receiving a positive review by independent reviewer and consulting firm Guidehouse in January, according to a copy obtained by Reuters. But the head of Navy's human resources, now retired Admiral Rick Cheeseman, sought to cancel the project according to a June 5 memo seen by Reuters, directing another official to "take appropriate contractual actions" to cancel the project. Navy leaders instead mandated yet another assessment of project, according to a memo seen by Reuters, leaving it in limbo, two sources said. Cheeseman's reason for trying to kill the project was his anger over a decision by DOGE earlier this year to cancel a $171 million contract for data services provider Pantheon Data that essentially duplicated parts of the HR project. In an email obtained by Reuters, he threatened to withhold funding from the Nakupuna-led project unless the Pantheon contract was restored. "I am beyond exasperated with how this happened," Cheeseman wrote in a May 7 email to Chief Information Officer Jane Rathbun about the contract cancellation, arguing the Pantheon contract was not "duplicative of any effort." "From where I sit, I'm content taking every dime away from NP2 in order to continue this effort," he added in the email. Cheeseman did not respond to a request for comment. Rathbun and Pantheon Data declined to comment. The pausing of NP2 was "unexpected, especially given that multiple comprehensive reviews validated the technical solution as the fastest and most affordable approach," Nakupuna said in a statement, adding it was disappointed by the change because the project was ready to deploy. The Navy said it "continues to prioritize essential personnel resources in support of efforts to strengthen military readiness through fiscal responsibility and departmental efficiency." Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Inicia sesión para acceder a tu portafolio Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Se produjo un error al recuperar la información
Yahoo
a few seconds ago
- Yahoo
Crypto is having a breakout summer — and bitcoin isn't the reason: Morning Brief
Riding high from a series of legislative wins and a wave of new financial initiatives, crypto investors are on the up and up. Another blast of positive catalysts has given the crypto world even more room to run this week. And most notably, the big news items don't really involve bitcoin. Circle (CRCL), the issuer of the second-largest stablecoin, posted better-than-expected quarterly revenue for the first time since going public. Bitmine (BMNR), an Ethereum treasury company, announced plans to sell up to another $20 billion worth of stock to boost its holdings of the cryptocurrency. And an array of popular altcoins are gaining ground. The moves collectively reflect the warm embrace of the Trump administration, which has championed the crypto industry and shifted the regulatory environment long seen as an obstacle to the adoption and growth of digital currency. But the success of Wall Street's crypto hedges also underscores rising institutional interest. Despite the risks, and perhaps because of them, more investors are growing comfortable with crypto exposure. And companies are chasing the returns of amassing tokens in a feedback loop that, however fleeting and precarious, seems to be paying off. Sign up for the Yahoo Finance Morning Brief By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy Home to the fastest-growing major stablecoin over the past year, Circle shares are up more than 400% from its IPO price of $31 per share. As our colleague Ines Ferré reported, the company has been at the center of optimism over the stablecoin market following the passage of the GENIUS Act, legislation that creates a framework for digital tokens backed by assets such as the US dollar. Circle makes much of its money from interest income, specifically from short-term Treasury bills backing its stablecoin, USDC. After announcing a new blockchain network for stablecoin finance on Tuesday, shares rose another 3%. It's a play that could deliver some of crypto's promise for innovation to the financial services industry, and Wall Street and investors are paying attention — and making sure they're involved. Bitmine's surge highlights another pillar of crypto's ascendance in the financial world: the rise of crypto treasury companies. Riffing off the playbook of Strategy (MSTR), which sells new shares and debt to buy and hold more bitcoin, other players are finding success by accumulating other currencies, like ethereum. Bitmine, whose board is led by investor Tom Lee, announced this week that its holdings of ETH now account for roughly 1% of all tokens in circulation, sending the stock up more than 14%. The company's goal is to eventually reach 5% of the world's outstanding ETH tokens. Shares have surged over 600% this year. As this newsletter has written recently, the crypto accumulation strategy isn't working for every imitator, but it does work, as bitcoin continues to climb. But it's not just the dominant tokens that are gaining steam. Over the past week, the 10 largest digital currencies, according to data from CoinMarketCap, have gained. As our colleague Jake Conley reported, Ripple ( and Chainlink (LINK-USD) are among the altcoins rallying, fueled by an acquisition of a payment platform and the launch of a token reserve, respectively. The heady action seems far removed from the crypto winters of the past. But if this is the dawn of a new financial system, as crypto bulls like to profess, this summer is making it a lot easier to make that case. Hamza Shaban is a reporter for Yahoo Finance covering markets and the economy. Follow Hamza on X @hshaban. Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices
