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In a surprising discovery, the Palm Beach Post first reported that according to state records, Orlando shooter Omar Mateen - who as we reported earlier was licensed as a security guard and also holds a firearms license - was employed by the US subsidiary of G4S plc, a British multinational security services company, whose US-headquarters are located in Jupiter, Fla, and which also happens to be the world's largest security company by revenue. ... But where it gets more disturbing is that as Judicial Watch reported several days ago, in a post titled, "DHS Quietly Moving, Releasing Vanloads Of Illegal...

Nearly half of unemployed Americans have quit looking for work, and the numbers are even worse for the long-term jobless, according to a poll released Wednesday that paints a grim picture of the labor market. Some 59 percent of those who have been out of work for two years or more say they have stopped looking, the Harris Poll of unemployed Americans showed. Overall, 43 percent of the jobless said they have given up, according to the poll released in conjunction with Express Employment Professionals, a job placement service. "This is a tale of two economies," Express CEO Bob Funk...

Have anyone of us contemplated this dilemma? Here we have a nation, run by liberals and socialists. And this year we have seen how it all ended. Just like in Greece and Maybe Puerto Rico. No Money, and in the case of Venezuela, no food. By now they have probably wiped out most of their pets and farm animals. But they have to eat meat once in a while. What are they going to do? cross over in their neighboring nations and kidnap any animal walking the streets and take them back home for dinner?

A Kansas military base abruptly canceled an upcoming prayer breakfast that featured retired Lt. General Jerry Boykin after complaints were lodged that Boykin is anti-Muslim and anti-gay. Military Religious Freedom Foundation founder Mikey Weinstein told Army Times that Boykin’s invitation had caused great angst among soldiers at Fort Riley – leading some to break down in tears. “I have clients of ours weeping on the phone about this,” he said. Weeping? Oh, please. “I sincerely doubt that America can expect to win wars if the people who are tasked to do so are frightened by an old retired general with...

Depending on how much credence you give to "whisper listings," there are between 27 and 50 $100,000,000+ houses on the market; last year, only two houses in that bracket sold worldwide. The glut of super-duper-ultra-luxury houses on the market worries economy-watchers, who view the oversupply as a bellwether for a housing crash -- the last glut (which wasn't nearly as pronounced as the current one) was in 2007/8.

At the RoboUniverse expo in New York City, robots of all shapes and sizes were being put to work. Companies showed off automated machines designed to perform tasks that many humans would consider less than desirable. “There are certain tasks in our society… that will stay on and not be attractive for humans to do. And we cannot get rid of them if we want to live our lives in the usual fashion,” said Preben Hjørnet, founder and CEO of robotics startup Blue Workforce. “Robots have no conscience, no self-awareness, so they’ll never be social,” Hjørnet added, “But they don’t...

After weeks of delays, House Republicans are moving forward with legislation to help Puerto Rico manage $70 billion in debt. A revised bill introduced late Wednesday would create a control board to help manage the U.S. territory’s financial obligations and oversee some debt restructuring. Though it is the third version of the legislation, those objectives remain unchanged. House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop, R-Utah, has led negotiations on the bill and has worked closely with House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., congressional Democrats and the White House. The aim has been to write legislation that could pass both the House...

U.S. intelligence officials said Friday they are concerned Venezuela is slipping into a crisis that could lead to a coup attempt or a government crackdown on dissent. Reuters reports: In a bleak assessment of Venezuela’s worsening crisis, the senior officials expressed doubt that unpopular leftist President Nicolas Maduro would allow a recall referendum this year, despite opposition-led protests demanding a vote to decide whether he stays in office…They said one “plausible” scenario would be that Maduro’s own party or powerful political figures would force him out and would not rule out the possibility of a military coup. Still, they said...

Donald Trump assailed the media on Monday for what he said was a misrepresentation of his comments on debt, rejecting the notion that he would have the United States default on his debt. "I said if we can buy back government debt as a discount. In other words, if interest rates go up and we can buy bonds back as a discount, if we are liquid enough as a country we should do that. In other words, we can buy back debt as a discount," the presumptive Republican nominee said in a telephone interview on CNN's "New Day." Those who...

Update: PR Governor Padilla has spoken... -PUERTO RICO GOVERNOR SAYS WON'T PAY DEBT TOMORROW -PUERTO RICO GOVERNOR SAYS ISLAND WON'T PAY DEBT MONDAY -PUERTO RICO GOVERNOR: GOVERNMENT SIGNED MORATORIUM BILL YESTERDAY -PUERTO RICO NEEDS DEAL W/ CREDITORS AND/OR CONGRESS: GARCIA And of course, demands a bailout... -PUERTO RICO GOVERNOR CALLS ON U.S. CONGRESS, PAUL RYAN FOR HELP And then threatens... -CRISIS WILL GET WORSE IF U.S. CONGRESS DOESN'T HELP: GARCIA -PUERTO RICO GOVERNOR CONCLUDES REMARKS TO COMMONWEALTH A default on the $422 million due today is "virtually certain," S&P Global Ratings said April 11.

Atlantic City has so little money left that it could miss a $1.8 million bond payment due Sunday, a step that would make it the first New Jersey municipality to default on debt since the Great Depression. The Jersey Shore gambling destination has endured years of strain as a third of its casinos shut down. But now its cash levels are low enough that bankruptcy is a possibility for the 39,000-population city, according to Mayor Don Guardian.

Suggesting that Bernie Sanders has been treated unfairly by the Democratic Party, Donald Trump on Tuesday said that the Vermont senator should abandon his run for the Democratic nomination and instead seek an independent path to the White House. "Bernie Sanders has been treated terribly by the Democrats — both with delegates & otherwise," Trump tweeted. "He should show them, and run as an Independent!" Sanders and his campaign have indicated that the senator, who was still listed as an independent on his Senate website as early as this month, will continue to be a Democrat in future elections.

... Bank of America (BAC) on Thursday announced it set aside $997 million to protect from loan losses, mainly in the bank's $22 billion energy portfolio. Wells Fargo (WFC) warned of "significant stress" and "deterioration" in the oil and gas space. The problems there forced Wells Fargo to add $200 million in loan-loss reserves, its first increase to this rainy-day fund since 2009. And JPMorgan Chase increased its provisions for credit losses by 88%, mostly due to the oil, natural gas and pipeline business. It was enough to cause JPMorgan's (JPM) first drop in profits since late 2014. ...

The Sentinel has offered to let me publicly take responsibility for my recent building code violation. I appreciate that. Until very recently, I have had a tenant in a small room behind my house. Renting out this unit was not permitted under the city’s Building Code. As someone making rules about housing, I should not have been breaking the rules. This was a mistake. I am sorry.

With Donald Trump set for a yuuge victory in tomorrow's Super Tuesday slugfest - oddsmakers see 80% chance of Trump being the nominee - tensions are mounting dramatically within the Republican establishment. As The FT reports, many mainstream Republicans believe Mr Trump would struggle to beat Hillary Clinton and are urgently rallying around their man Rubio with some senior Republicans saying privately that they might consider voting for Mrs Clinton if Mr Trump were to end up as their party nominee as one conservative commentator exclaimed "we are on the verge of a real meltdown in the Republican party." Trump's...

HANAHAN, South Carolina -- 2016 GOP presidential frontrunner Donald J. Trump tells reporters here that his pledge to support the eventual GOP nominee is now void because the Republican National Committee, along with local and state GOP factions, is stacking debate audiences with donor class officials. "The RNC is in default," Trump said at the press conference. "Just so you understand, the RNC is in default. When somebody is in default, that means the other side can do what they have to do. The RNC is in default." Trump's point is that the RNC has defaulted--through its actions against his...

n what appears to be an extraordinary snub of White House budget director Shaun Donovan, the Republican chairs of the House and Senate Budget Committees announced on Thursday they would not host Donovan’s testimony on President Obama’s final budget submission next week. Obama will unveil his fiscal 2017 budget request next Tuesday, just barely meeting the statutory deadline for submitting a new budget to Congress. But Senate Budget Committee Chair Mike Enzi (R-WY) and House Budget Committee chief Tom Price (R-GA) issued a joint statement tonight saying Donovan wasn’t welcome to testify because the administration wasn’t serious about addressing the...

Federal Reserve Bank of New York officials secretly conducted real-time exercises during the 2011 and 2013 debt-limit crisis that demonstrated the federal government could function during a temporary shutdown by prioritizing spending, even as Treasury Secretary Jack Lew publicly claimed many times that such efforts were “unworkable,” according to a new report by the House Financial Services Committee obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation. The staff report, to be released Tuesday, charges that Lew and other Obama administration officials deliberately misled Congress and the public during the federal budget and debt limit showdowns in both years. The committee will...

Survey Reveals Bankers in China Fearing High Credit Risk By: Faraz Haleem Published: January 25, 2016 at 06:56 am EST The recent slowdown in the world's second largest economy has created several economic challenges, such as industries overcapacity and decline in manufacturing activities. The situation has mounted pressure on banking sector, owing to the rise in credit and default risks. China Banking Association (CBA) and PwC jointly released a survey; showing that 82% bankers believed that credit risk is high in industries with excess capacity. The industries include steel, iron, shipping, and cement, according to "China bankers' survey report (2015)",...

"...Daniel Yergin, founder of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates, said it is impossible for OPEC to knock out the US shale industry though a war of attrition even if large numbers of frackers fall by the wayside over coming months. Mr Yergin said groups with deep pockets such as Blackstone and Carlyle will take over the infrastructure when the distressed assets are cheap enough, and bide their time until the oil cycle turns. "The management may change and the companies may change but the resources will still be there," he told the Daily Telegraph. "It takes $10bn and five to...