Free Republic

POLITICAL power is rarely ceded without good reason. So eyebrows were raised last week when the US Department of Commerce decided to relax its grip on the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the body responsible for the naming system that ensures that when you type a web address, your browser knows where to go. In future, governments and other international organisations will be able to nominate staff to sit on one of ICANN's three newly created steering committees, something the DoC had resisted for years. "What it really means," says ICANN's chief executive Rod Beckstrom, "is that...

U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue says a campaign by the White House and its allies to undermine his $200-million-a-year association has largely failed — and actually has helped raise even more money for its pro-business efforts. In a 75-minute interview with POLITICO, Donohue dismissed recent defections by Apple and at least four other companies, which quit over the Chamber’s opposition to Democratic climate change legislation — as essentially meaningless. “Members come and go all the damn time,” he said.

The White House may want to diffuse its spat with the Chamber of Commerce, but Big Labor clearly has no such intentions. Anna Burger, secretary-treasurer of the Service Employees International Union and chairwoman of the five-union federation Change to Win, slammed the big business lobby and its president, Tom Donohue, in a letter delivered today to House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank and Rep. Spencer Bachus, the ranking Republican on the committee.

President Obama recently shifted authority for approving sales to China of missile and space technology from the White House to the Commerce Department -- a move critics say will loosen export controls and potentially benefit Chinese missile development. The president issued a little-noticed "presidential determination" Sept. 29 that delegated authority for determining whether missile and space exports should be approved for China to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke.

At an event Wednesday to launch its ‘Dream Big’ campaign to promote the American free enterprise system, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue said that people, not government, will create the jobs needed for economic recovery. “The government can support a few jobs in the short-run, but over the long-run only the private sector, powered by free enterprise, can keep America working,” Donohue said in his prepared remarks. “We believe it is imperative to remind, educate, and persuade our fellow citizens and leaders that it was a free enterprise system based on individual initiative, hard work, and personal responsibility...

ZURBATIYAH, Iraq, Oct. 5, 2009 – Work to improve commerce and security in Iraq continued as a cargo transload area opened along the Iraq-Iran border following a ribbon-cutting ceremony here Sept. 26. Army Maj. Gen. Richard J. Rowe, director of Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq’s training and advisory mission, talks with Maj. Gen. Isam Salih Yaseen, Zurbatiyah port director for Iraq’s border enforcement department before a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a cargo transload area at the Zurbatiyah, Iraq, point of entry on the Iraq-Iran border, Sept. 26, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Bethany L. Little  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image...

With the U.S. secretaries of energy and commerce in China this week, much of the attention focused on the standoff over emissions reductions or small breakthroughs in clean-tech cooperation. But yesterday, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said something amazing—U.S. consumers should pay for part of Chinese greenhouse-gas emissions. From Reuters: “It’s important that those who consume the products being made all around the world to the benefit of America — and it’s our own consumption activity that’s causing the emission of greenhouse gases, then quite frankly Americans need to pay for that,” Commerce Secretary Gary Locke told the American Chamber of...

WASHINGTON, July 7, 2009 – U.S. forces are helping to equip Afghan forces with the tools they need to improve security and commerce in Afghanistan. Army Spc. Jacob Morris constructs a covering for Combat Outpost Penich's new water pump as construction at the six-month-old base in Afghanistan’s Kunar province nears completion, July 3, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Matthew C. Moeller  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. In recent days, U.S. forces trained Afghan border police on the use of up-armored Humvees, advised farmers to boost crop production and, to improve quality of life for their own, put the...

A piece of legislation is before the U.S. House that could drive up your electricity bill by 47 percent. The proposed bill would put a cap on carbon dioxide emissions output for all electricity companies. As part of a national effort alerting rate-payers, Grand Valley Power is sending a letter to their customers. they know their customers are hurting in this economic climate, and urges them to speak up.

“Supporters and critics alike agree that capitalism is at a crossroads,” said U.S. Chamber President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue.

Is China really a modern country? Can China be a modern country? Paul Midler’s book leaves you wondering. After studying Chinese at college, Midler lived and worked in mainland China through the 1990s before returning to the U.S.A. to take a business degree. In 2001 he went back to China, setting himself up as a consultant to American importers dealing with Chinese manufacturers. This has given him profound insights into the Chinese way of doing business. In Poorly Made in China he shares those insights. After reading his book, you will find yourself thinking carefully before putting Made in China...

- President Barack Obama’s nominee to head the U.S. Census Bureau pledged Friday that he will keep politics out of the 2010 population count and will not push for sampling – a controversial method he has previously advocated. Robert Groves, currently director of the University of Michigan Survey Research Center, is also a former associate director of the Census Bureau in the early 1990s.

Many states are looking for ways to increase their tax revenue by taxing purchases made online. This extends to third party solicitors located in another state. Our Constitution infers that states are restricted from enacting laws that burden or restrict interstate commerce. Let’s stop this tax now.

During World War II, my father was a U. S. Navy Signalman assigned to an outfit named the Armed Guard, whose purpose was to protect and assist the merchant shipping which was vital to the war effort. The Armed Guard was effective in many cases in protecting merchant ships against the Nazi privateers. If the Somali pirates want a war, here's a way to combat them.

Clean up your fumes or stay away. That's the message US officials are sending to all vessels approaching US coasts. On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency announced its intention to designate the US coastal region an "emission control area" within four years. Ships entering US coastal waters, which typically extend 370 kilometres from the coast, will need to meet the highest clean air standards under international law. To approach the US, international vessels will have to cut sulphur emissions by 98 per cent on average by either burning cleaner fuel or chemically "scrubbing" their exhaust. Annual shipping emissions are thought...

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has said the world's poor people should not be forced to pay for the global financial crisis. President Lula said white, blue-eyed people - not Indians, nor black, nor poor people - had created and spread the crisis throughout the world.

Sales at the nation's retailers fell slightly less than expected in February, suggesting that the economic deceleration may at least be slowing, according to a government report on Thursday. The Commerce Department said retail sales declined 0.1 percent from January, better than the 0.5 percent drop that economists had expected, but nonetheless returning to negative territory after a surprise 1.8 percent gain in January. Not including automobiles, which dragged down the overall number, sales ticked up 0.7 percent after a 1.6 percent gain in January. Retailing analysts and economists said that sales in February were helped by a decline in...

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's likely third pick for Commerce secretary is former Washington Gov. Gary Locke, a senior administration official said Monday. Locke, a Democrat, was the nation's first Chinese-American governor when he served two terms in the Washington statehouse from 1997 to 2005.

Does that mean, when Obama finally finds someone who has no integrity, has paid their taxes, and isn’t involved with phony contracts, that we will end up with a third rate Commerce Secretary? (or will third rate, be over qualified for Obama's team?)

This story isn't getting nearly as much attention as it should. After nominating Republican Senator Judd Gregg as Commerce Secretary, the Obama administration announced it was taking the census away from Commerce and taking over the job of counting the American people. This should scare you, because it is a clear abuse of power. Martha Zoller of Human Events summarized it this way: The preservation and expansion of the Democrat majority is the only reason the Obama Administration is exercising its power and taking over the Census. Last week, without much fanfare, The White House moved control of the Census...

(2009-02-13) — With the announcement that Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) has pulled out of his bid to become President Barack Obama’s Secretary of Commerce the Republican National Committee (RNC) today offered Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) as a replacement. “Sen. Specter is a career lawyer and politician, but he’s a fast learner and could be quickly trained to run the Commerce Department,” said RNC Chairman Michael Steele. “Of course, Republicans would miss his stalwart, reliable voting in the Senate. Conservatives never have to wonder how Arlen Specter will vote.” White House insiders suggested Sen. Specter could get the same deal from...

OBAMA BURNED: GREGG WITHDRAWS AFTER POLICIES TOO MUCH TO STOMACH Thu Feb 12 2009 16:18:14 ET For Immediate Release: Thursday, February 12, 2009 Senator Gregg Statement on His Withdrawal for Consideration of U.S. Commerce Secretary Sen. Gregg stated, “I want to thank the President for nominating me to serve in his Cabinet as Secretary of Commerce. This was a great honor, and I had felt that I could bring some views and ideas that would assist him in governing during this difficult time. I especially admire his willingness to reach across the aisle. “However, it has become apparent during this...

Hispanic and black groups didn’t like the idea of Republican Judd Gregg being named Commerce Secretary and having responsibility for the census. No, no, no. Didn’t like it at all. So President Obama compliantly stripped census responsibilities away from Gregg and said the Director of the Census would now report directly to the White House. Republicans know that when Obama said “White House,” he really means Rahm Emanual, long-time Democratic political operative and nastiest man in Washington, DC. The census is important politically because it is used to re-apportion congressional districts and to dole out federal funding. So it probably...

This in not a vote of confidence for Commerce Secretary nominee Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H. This appears to be a "cave in" to the democratic Hispanic base. They have had concerns about his nomination. Everyone knows the census data can be manipulated for partisan political reasons. A Republican working for a Democrat would be the perfect nonpartisan person to oversee the 2010 census. Instead, the White House wants to put Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel in charge. When you consider the shoddy way Republicans were treated over the stimulus bill and this partisan power grab, bipartisan cooperation in Washington is...

Sen. Judd Gregg yesterday declined all comment on reports that the White House will strip him of his authority over the federal Census Bureau even before he becomes Secretary of Commerce. Gregg spokesman Laena Fallon said all comment would come from the White House. The Census Bureau is a key part of the Department of Commerce. The Capitol Hill publication Congressional Quarterly yesterday reported that the White House, responding to minority groups' concerns about Gregg's commitment to funding the census, has decided to have the director of the Census Bureau report directly to the White House. Minorities are traditionally concerned...

States’ Rights Wronged by: Heather Latham, February 06, 2009 During the infancy of the United States of America, one of the main complaints of federalism is that it would take away the power of the states. Thence the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution was born, with the intent to protect those rights. But, that was over two hundred years ago—now, according to some scholars, to preserve federalism, we must take away some of that power—at any cost to those founding principles. At a recent American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI), Larry E. Ribstein discussed his book The Law...

The director of the Census Bureau will report directly to the White House and not the secretary of Commerce, according to a senior White House official. The decision came after black and Hispanic leaders raised questions about Commerce Secretary nominee Judd Gregg ’s commitment to funding the census. Gregg, New Hampshire’s senior senator, voted in committee and on the floor for a 1995 Republican budget that envisioned the elimination of the Commerce Department. Of even more concern to black and Hispanic leaders, Gregg battled President Clinton over a request for “emergency” funding for the 2000 census. “Secretary of Commerce-designate Judd...

The significance of Obama's naming Gregg at Commerce was lost amid the Daschle disaster yesterday. No one in Washington has been more persistent or more passionate about reining in entitlement programs, which the GAO tallies at $53 trillion in unfunded liabilities. Today Gregg said Obama "specifically asked me to come down to address this." The Commerce post is traditionally a shill for business interests and a plum handed out to a president's closest political ally or fundraiser. That's what the originial pick, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson would have been. Naming Gregg means Obama has in mind something entirely different....

President ObamaÂ’s new candidate to run the Commerce Department voted in favor of abolishing the agency as a member of the Budget Committee and on the Senate floor in 1995. Sen. Judd Gregg , R-N.H., whose nomination was expected to be announced Tuesday, also worked in the Senate to trim the departmentÂ’s budget as head of the Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations Subcommittee. GreggÂ’s 1995 votes were cast for the fiscal 1996 budget resolution, a nonbinding blueprint that outlined the GOPÂ’s fiscal priorities after Republicans won full control of Congress for the first time in 40 years. The Senate version of the controversial...

Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez has asked the two Commerce Committee chairs, Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Henry Waxman (D-CA) for $250M to bridge the current converter box coupon problem, noting that his request would keep the DTV transition on track for 2/17/09 and may not even go over the total $1.5B already budgeted. Meanwhile, according to Reuters, Democrats in the House are looking to throw $650M at the problem.

California Rep. Henry Waxman said Thursday the environment and U.S. economy depend on congressional action to confront the threat of climate change. Waxman, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, spoke as he opened Congress' first hearing on climate legislation. A group of 14 corporate

Gov. Chris Gregoire is out of state, but her office won't say where she is. Gregoire was set to be the keynote speaker Tuesday at a pre-legislative session forum sponsored by The Associated Press, but her office canceled Monday afternoon. Legislative director Marty Brown will stand in for Gregoire at the forum. Spokesman Pearse Edwards said that Gregoire will be making an announcement Tuesday morning, and that no further information would be released before then.

Transition: Bill Richardson's withdrawal as commerce nominee is billed as a stumble for Obama that will leave him in a lurch. It's not, and it won't. Obama just needs to look in better places for good private-sector prospects.Richardson was not the worst person who could have been named to lead the Commerce Department, but he was hardly the best. With the governor mired in a corruption scandal for many months in New Mexico, Obama's acceptance of his withdrawal may have been a response to the potential backlash of multiple political scandals around Democrats in the country. Obama said he accepted...

NBC News is reporting that New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson - tapped by Barack Obama to be his Secretary of Commerce - is withdrawing his name for the post because of a pending investigation of a company that has been doing business with his state of New Mexico. Here is a video report on Richardson's withdrawal. . . . (see video)

If “cash is king,” then Middle East coffers are irresistibly enticing. During a recent tour of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, Deputy Treasury Secretary Robert Kimmitt applauded the “growing role” of Arab banks in the U.S. economy. Treasury is seeking buyers for its newly acquired bailout assets because more than $1 trillion in cash is urgently needed to rescue the largest U.S. banks. However, cash from the Arabian Gulf comes with a vital string attached: Islamic banking, erroneously viewed as an ancient practice. In fact, Islamic banking is a newly invented institution: “Neither classical nor medieval Islamic civilization featured...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A federal grand jury is investigating how a California firm that contributed to the political activities of New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, the nominee to head the Commerce Department, won a lucrative government contract. A person familiar with the proceedings told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the panel is looking into possible "pay-to-play" dealings between CDR Financial Products and someone in a position to push the contract through with the state of New Mexico. The person asked not to be named because the proceedings are secret.

More than 5,000 people have been killed in Mexico's out of control drug cartel wars this year, so why is our government opening even more border crossings at this time with Mexico. Many elected officials are ignoring Mexico's raging war against the drug cartels and instead of focusing on safety and public security, trying to widen the openings in our border with Mexico strictly for commerce purposes. DOBBS: Disturbing new details emerging tonight from Mexico proving that the raging drug cartel wars there are far more deadly than the government of Mexico has previously admitted. The U.S. response, however, is...

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson will be named President-elect Barack Obama's Commerce Secretary at a Chicago press conference tomorrow. Richardson will become the first Hispanic named to Obama's cabinet. It will be Richardson's third go round in a presidential cabinet. The 61-year old was both United Nations ambassador and Energy Secretary during the Clinton administration.

If Gov. Bill Richardson becomes America's next secretary of commerce as expected, he'll take over a sprawling agency with almost 40,000 employees and a host of wildly divergent challenges. First — and perhaps most important given the current financial crisis — Richardson will have a seat at the table when President-elect Barack Obama convenes his economic team to talk about solutions. While Timothy Geithner, Obama's choice for treasury secretary, and Lawrence Summers, who will lead the National Economic Council, are seen as key players, Richardson should have an important role in promoting American business and advising on international trade.

SEATTLE – A shop that lets you pay what want [sic] is becoming another casualty of the sagging economy. Come Thanksgiving, the OpShOp on Seattle’s Queen Anne Hill will close its doors. "I ask people when they pay to pay with their head or their heart,” said OpShOp owner Jane Horowitz. From whimsical holiday plates to obscure albums to hundreds of other items, the customer determines the price for everything. "I also like telling the person who left it where it's going. I think making that connection is vital to every community,” said Horowitz. "It's an act of human generosity...

Network's Andrea Mitchell and Chuck Todd reporting Obama will name his economic team Monday. 1:55pm UPDATE: The New York Times is reporting that Sen. Hillary Clinton has decided to quit her Senate seat and accept the post of Secretary of State, according to two Clinton confidants. Senior advisers to President-elect Barack Obama told the Times this morning that the offer had not been formally accepted and no announcement would be made until after Thanksgiving, but said they were convinced the deal was ready to be sealed. NBC News is reporting that President-elect Barack Obama will roll out his economic team...

With renewed controversy over the nature & extent of any proper Governmental role in the regulation of economic decisions that influence or control commercial activity, some comments are in order. Unfortunately, a background in which America may be on the cusp of economic chaos, is not a time when sober & reflective analysis is the "order of the day." The recent panic in Washington has set a tone both here and abroad; and while the focus there, notwithstanding the imposition of new "regulations" in financial markets, has been primarily on creating more liquidity by "appropriating" new funds out of fiat...

The Department of Commerce recently announced that the U.S. trade deficit reached $60.9 billion this past April. America's trade deficit increased by $600 million from April 2007 to April 2008, even though U.S. exports increased by $25 billion.Why is our country facing a rising trade deficit even though American-made exports grew 19.2% over the last year (April 2007 to April 2008)? The answer is found at gas stations across the country and in America's $34.5 billion petroleum deficit, which is roughly half of our monthly trade deficit. America's dependence on foreign energy forces us to import about 12 million barrels...

Sales of new homes rose in April for the first time in six months although the unexpected increase still left activity near the lowest level in 17 years. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that sales of new homes rose 3.3 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 526,000 units. But the government revised March activity lower to show an even bigger drop of 11 percent to an annual rate of 509,000, which was the weakest pace for sales since April 1991. Economists believe that new home sales will remain weak for some time as the housing industry...

For Immediate ReleaseOffice of the Press SecretaryMay 3, 2008 President's Radio Address   President's Radio Address  Audio  En Español       In Focus: Economy THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This week, the Commerce Department reported that GDP grew at an annual rate of six-tenths of a percent in the first quarter. This rate of growth is not nearly as high as we would like. And after a record 52 months of uninterrupted job growth, April was the fourth month in a row in which our economy lost jobs, although the unemployment rate dropped to five percent. My Administration has been clear and candid on...

Kusai, 24, pats the head of a neighborhood child in front of his store which opened its doors five months ago. "Sahwah has made it possible for me to open my shop and provide for my family," he said. Overall violence in Hawijah, Iraq has decreased nearly 80 percent since the inception of Sahwah and the standing up of over 7,000 Sons of Iraq here," according to Lt. Col. Christopher Vanek, commander, 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain Division. Photo by Staff Sgt. Margaret Nelson. HAWIJAH — A young man beginning a business to support his new...

Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher today announced the opening of the Ohio Department of Development's new international office in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The next site will cost taxpayers $50,000 a year.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Mobile phone maker Motorola Inc (MOT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday it will take a $104 million pre-tax charge in the first quarter related to severance charges for 2,600 employees. The company said the charge included $113 million in severance costs, offset by $9 million in reversals of accruals from previous periods. Motorola has been trying to revive its business after losing market share to rivals such as Nokia Oyj (NOK1V.HE: Quote, Profile, Research) and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS: Quote, Profile, Research). It said all of its business segments will be affected by these...

The following recalls have been announced: —About 16,400 Imaginarium multisided activity centers and Jungle activity centers, made in China and imported by Toys "R" Us Inc., because small parts on the toys can detach, posing a choking hazard to young children. The company has received 12 reports of small parts detaching from the activity centers. No injuries have been reported. The multisided activity center, with the item No. 69042, has moveable block letters, a clock face, sliding shapes and gears. The Jungle activity center, with the item No. 69083, has peg jumping monkeys, sliding fish, abacus beads and bead mazes....

A local clothing maker is putting a new spin on a sore subject: American Apparel Inc. is opening stores in China this spring, and stocking them with T-shirts, shorts and hoodies made in downtown L.A. Talk about going against the tide: One-third of the clothes sold in the U.S. come from China. Just 6% of the things we wear are made here.