Latest news with #WilliamBarr
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
CA drops ‘green' big-rig mandates, ending legal fight with Bill Barr-linked group
FIRST ON FOX: California has agreed to drop many of its Advanced Clean Fleet (ACF) mandates dictating stringent emissions standards for big rigs, following a year-long court battle with an anti-regulations group whose legal arm is led by former Attorney General William Barr. California Attorney General Rob Bonta and California Air Resources Board (CARB) executive Steven Cliff agreed in court documents filed Friday to withdraw their ACF mandates, leading the American Free Enterprise Chamber of Commerce (AmFree) to drop its legal challenge. In a document signed by Obama-appointed federal Judge Troy Nunley and obtained by Fox News Digital, Cliff and Bonta agreed to present a repeal proposal for the ACF requirements in a public hearing no later than Oct. 31. They also agreed not to retroactively enforce any such regulations. While a timeline in the court filing cited California had applied for an environmental waiver from the Biden administration in 2023, AmFree originally sued on ground that Sacramento's regulations violated the Clean Air Act because a waiver was never obtained. Dozens Of States Lobby Epa To Deny California Waiver Forcing Out-of-state Strucks To Comply With Green Mandate The regulations had been in effect since 2024, directing trucking firms to rapidly transition fleets from diesel to zero-emission vehicles. Read On The Fox News App At the time, Barr called the move a "threat to our American free enterprise" and suggested the restrictions would lead to "negligible" environmental benefits at best while causing negative economic repercussions. "This ruling is the final nail in the coffin of California's crazy attempt to eliminate the traditional trucking sector, and yet another example of Gavin Newsom's complete failure in California," said AmFree CEO Gentry Collins. "Even after the American public resoundingly voted to steer the country in a new direction last November, liberal states like California are hellbent on implementing a green agenda that consumers don't want and technology cannot support," said Collins, a former Iowa GOP official. Youngkin Declares Independence From California As Virginia Exits Emissions Pact "AmFree will remain vigilant, holding blue states to account for their misguided crusade that defies common sense and flies in the face of consumer choice and freedom, and ensuring that completely failed politicians like Gavin Newsom eager to run away from their liberal records are reminded of the disastrous policies that occurred on their watch." The group positions itself as a more free-market alternative to the pro-business stalwart U.S. Chamber of Commerce. An official for CARB noted that not all the elements of the ACF regulations are being dropped, and that the proposal will seek repeal of "certain elements" and move against enforcement of other requirements of the regulatory effort. "CARB remains committed to protecting public health using existing authorities as well as new and alternative approaches," the official told Fox News Digital. One major regional trucking outfit celebrated the news, telling Fox News Digital that firms across the country had a shared interest in seeing California's mandates be reversed. "Here in Alabama and also across America, we stand up every day for our members to defend free enterprise and stand against failed policies from states like California," said Alabama Trucking Association CEO Mark Colson. "We're proud to unite with AmFree and our allies on the ground in California to accomplish shared goals and get our economy roaring again." The nixing of the regs is only the latest in several sudden reversals of green mandates, as Congress has overturned at least three Biden-era EPA waivers that were officially granted to California to allow it to self-regulate its own emissions standards. But a Newsom spokesman said California's "nation-leading transition to cleaner cars and trucks doesn't end here." "We're years ahead of schedule in meeting our goals — with tens of thousands of zero-emission trucks on the road already," Daniel Villaseñor told Fox News Digital. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, praised the rollback of California's clean-cars mandate as a win to "protect American workers and consumers from radical and drastic policy." "The impact of California's waiver would have been felt across the country, harming multiple sectors of our economy and costing hundreds of thousands of jobs in the process," Moore Capito said. The big-rig regulations had required operators of several types of fleets to begin transitioning to zero-emissions tractor-trailers. Fox News Digital reached out to Bonta and CARB for article source: CA drops 'green' big-rig mandates, ending legal fight with Bill Barr-linked group
Fox News
3 days ago
- Business
- Fox News
CA drops ‘green' big-rig mandates, ending legal fight with Bill Barr-linked group
FIRST ON FOX: California has agreed to drop its Advanced Clean Fleet (ACF) mandates dictating stringent emissions standards for big rigs, following a year-long court battle with an anti-regulations group whose legal arm is led by former Attorney General William Barr. California Attorney General Rob Bonta and California Air Resources Board (CARB) executive Steven Cliff agreed in court documents filed Friday to withdraw their ACF mandates, leading the American Free Enterprise Chamber of Commerce (AmFree) to drop its legal challenge. In a document signed by Obama-appointed federal Judge Troy Nunley and obtained by Fox News Digital, Cliff and Bonta agreed to present a repeal proposal for the ACF requirements in a public hearing no later than Oct. 31. They also agreed not to retroactively enforce any such regulations. While a timeline in the court filing cited California had applied for an environmental waiver from the Biden administration in 2023, AmFree originally sued on ground that Sacramento's regulations violated the Clean Air Act because a waiver was never obtained. The regulations had been in effect since 2024, directing trucking firms to rapidly transition fleets from diesel to zero-emission vehicles. At the time, Barr called the move a "threat to our American free enterprise" and suggested the restrictions would lead to "negligible" environmental benefits at best while causing negative economic repercussions. "This ruling is the final nail in the coffin of California's crazy attempt to eliminate the traditional trucking sector, and yet another example of Gavin Newsom's complete failure in California," said AmFree CEO Gentry Collins. "Even after the American public resoundingly voted to steer the country in a new direction last November, liberal states like California are hellbent on implementing a green agenda that consumers don't want and technology cannot support," said Collins, a former Iowa attorney general. "AmFree will remain vigilant, holding blue states to account for their misguided crusade that defies common sense and flies in the face of consumer choice and freedom, and ensuring that completely failed politicians like Gavin Newsom eager to run away from their liberal records are reminded of the disastrous policies that occurred on their watch." The group positions itself as a more free-market alternative to the pro-business stalwart U.S. Chamber of Commerce. One major regional trucking outfit celebrated the news, telling Fox News Digital that firms across the country had a shared interest in seeing California's mandates be reversed. "Here in Alabama and also across America, we stand up every day for our members to defend free enterprise and stand against failed policies from states like California," said Alabama Trucking Association CEO Mark Colson. "We're proud to unite with AmFree and our allies on the ground in California to accomplish shared goals and get our economy roaring again." The nixing of the regs is only the latest in several sudden reversals of green mandates, as Congress has overturned at least three Biden-era EPA waivers that were officially granted to California to allow it to self-regulate its own emissions standards. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, praised the rollback of California's clean-cars mandate as a win to "protect American workers and consumers from radical and drastic policy." "The impact of California's waiver would have been felt across the country, harming multiple sectors of our economy and costing hundreds of thousands of jobs in the process," Moore Capito said. The big-rig regulations had required operators of several types of fleets to begin transitioning to zero-emissions tractor-trailers. Fox News Digital reached out to Newsom, Bonta and CARB for comment.
Gizmodo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Gizmodo
FBI Director Kash Patel Abruptly Closes Internal Watchdog Office Overseeing Surveillance Compliance
If there's one thing the Federal Bureau of Investigation does well, it's mass surveillance. Several years ago, then attorney general William Barr established an internal office to curb the FBI's abuse of one controversial surveillance law. But recently, the FBI's long-time hater (and, ironically, current director) Kash Patel shut down the watchdog group with no explanation. On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that Patel suddenly closed the Office of Internal Auditing that Barr created in 2020. The office's leader, Cindy Hall, abruptly retired. People familiar with the matter told the outlet that the closure of the aforementioned watchdog group alongside the Office of Integrity and Compliance are part of internal reorganization. Sources also reportedly said that Hall was trying to expand the office's work, but her attempts to onboard new employees were stopped by the Trump administration's hiring freezes. The Office of Internal Auditing was a response to controversy surrounding the FBI's use of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The 2008 law primarily addresses surveillance of non-Americans abroad. However, Jeramie Scott, senior counselor at the Electronic Privacy Information Center, told Gizmodo via email that the FBI 'has repeatedly abused its ability to search Americans' communications 'incidentally' collected under Section 702' to conduct warrantless spying. Patel has not released any official comment regarding his decision to close the office. But Elizabeth Goitein, senior director at the Brennan Center for Justice, told Gizmodo via email, 'It is hard to square this move with Mr. Patel's own stated concerns about the FBI's use of Section 702.' Last year, Congress reauthorized Section 702 despite mounting concerns over its misuses. Although Congress introduced some reforms, the updated legislation actually expanded the government's surveillance capabilities. At the time, Patel slammed the law's passage, stating that former FBI director Christopher Wray, who Patel once tried to sue, 'was caught last year illegally using 702 collection methods against Americans 274,000 times.' (Per the New York Times, Patel is likely referencing a declassified 2023 opinion by the FISA court that used the Office of Internal Auditing's findings to determine the FBI made 278,000 bad queries over several years.) According to Goitein, the office has 'played a key role in exposing FBI abuses of Section 702, including warrantless searches for the communication of members of Congress, judges, and protesters.' And ironically, Patel inadvertently drove its creation after attacking the FBI's FISA applications to wiretap a former Trump campaign advisor in 2018 while investigating potential Russian election interference. Trump and his supporters used Patel's attacks to push their own narrative dismissing any concerns. Last year, former representative Devin Nunes, who is now CEO of Truth Social, said Patel was 'instrumental' to uncovering the 'hoax and finding evidence of government malfeasance.' Although Patel mostly peddled conspiracies, the Justice Department conducted a probe into the FBI's investigation that raised concerns over 'basic and fundamental errors' it committed. In response, Barr created the Office of Internal Auditing, stating, 'What happened to the Trump presidential campaign and his subsequent Administration after the President was duly elected by the American people must never happen again.' But since taking office, Patel has changed his tune about FISA. During his confirmation hearing, Patel referred to Section 702 as a 'critical tool' and said, 'I'm proud of the reforms that have been implemented and I'm proud to work with Congress moving forward to implement more.' However, reforms don't mean much by themselves. As Goitein noted, 'Without a separate office dedicated to surveillance compliance, [the FBI's] abuses could go unreported and unchecked.' An annual transparency report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence shows that the FBI's searches for Americans' information has fallen. Last year, the FBI only used 5,518 query terms about Americans, compared to 57,094 in 2023 and 119,383 in 2022. While this looks like progress, it doesn't mean that the Office of Internal Auditing's work is done. 'The FBI should maintain its audits,' Scott said, 'and if they do, the FBI must make very clear who is responsible for continuing the internal audits and ensure the oversight gets done.'
The Guardian
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Kash Patel scraps FBI unit monitoring surveillance rules compliance
The FBI director, Kash Patel, has scrapped a watchdog team set up to scrutinise a warrantless surveillance law he previously claimed was being abused to target supporters of Donald Trump. He has ordered the closure of the FBI's office of internal auditing, a unit set up during Trump's first presidency to uncover misuses of a contentious part of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa), the New York Times reported. The office was established in 2020 by William Barr, the then attorney general, following criticisms that Fisa's section 702 – which allowed for the electronic tracking of foreign nationals – had instead been used to surveil Americans they had been in contact with. Patel, who was a vocal critic of the FBI before being confirmed as Trump's nominee as its director, has frequently taken aim at Fisa, which has been more commonly criticised by left-leaning civil liberties groups. During his Senate confirmation hearings, Patel appeared to retreat from his previous stances by saying he he saw Fisa as a vital tool for collecting information and protecting national security. Closing the office set up to oversee Fisa could renew calls for the law, which was extended last year after heated debate, to be scrapped when it comes up for renewal again in 2026. Critics have expressed concern that section 702 – which legalised Fisa in 2008 as part of then president George W Bush's 'war on terror' – allows the government to collect information without a warrant from foreign targets even if they are communicating with US citizens, arguing that it violates Americans' constitutional right to privacy. Patel came to prominence as a Republican congressional staff member of the House of Representatives' intelligence committee in 2018 by criticising the FBI's applications under Fisa to wiretap a former Trump campaign adviser during the Russia investigation. The investigation had been launched into allegations that the Kremlin attempted to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. Although many of Patel's claims subsequently proved to be baseless, they supported Trump's claim that the Russia inquiry was part of a 'deep state' hoax. The office of internal auditing – the unit Patel is closing – was established after an inspector general's report in 2019 into the FBI's investigation revealed a different set of concerns, some of them unconnected with Trump. In response, Barr issued an order the following year stating the need for a 'robust internal compliance program … to ensure faithful compliance with the laws, policies, and procedures that govern [FBI] activities'. 'To enhance the FBI's existing compliance efforts, the director of the FBI is taking steps to build a more robust and exacting internal audit capability, including the creation of an office focused on auditing the FBI's national security activities,' Barr wrote, explaining the new unit's purpose. A separate office would be set up and headed by a senior FBI official to make sure that 'rigorous and robust auditing' is carried out, he added. The FBI has not commented on the latest developments. But the New York Times reported that both offices had been absorbed into the bureau's inspection division, while Cindy Hall, the leader of the office of internal auditing, had abruptly retired.
Wall Street Journal
02-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
In Google's Antitrust Case, a Guilty Verdict—for Advertising
A federal district court last year found Google guilty of 'maintaining a monopoly in two product markets in the United States—general search services and general text advertising—through its exclusive distribution agreements.' In these pages former Attorney General William Barr called it 'the most important antitrust case pursued by the U.S. government in decades.' Yet the government presented no evidence that consumers were harmed. It didn't argue that Google exhibited classic monopoly behavior by restricting supply and raising prices, since consumers pay nothing for Google's internet search service. Google's offense was using its massive resources to maintain its market position. Specifically, Google pays Apple $20 billion a year to have its search engine the default setting on the iPhone. The court deemed this payment an antitrust violation, and starting this week the court will hear arguments on the government's proposed penalties.
