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  • US aides: Venezuela opens backchannel over jailed American

    Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro welcomed a visit by a top-ranking Republican congressional staffer last month to discuss the possible release of a Utah man jailed for more than 20 months in this v

    CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro welcomed a visit by a top-ranking Republican congressional staffer last month to discuss the possible release of a Utah man jailed for more than 20 months in this volatile South American nation, six U.S. congressional and administration aides told The Associated Press.

    It’s not known if there has been any progress in the backchannel talks to secure Joshua Holt’s freedom, but the mere fact that Maduro met with the staffer, and in turn sent an envoy of his own this week to Washington, may be a sign of movement in a case that has become a major irritant as tensions between the two countries rise.

    The unannounced discussions began when Caleb McCarry, a Republican aide on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, traveled to Caracas in February and met with Maduro and first lady Cilia Flores to discuss Holt’s imprisonment, said the aides, who agreed to discuss the matter only if not quoted by name because the talks are sensitive.

    They said McCarry, who has known Maduro for more than 15 years, made the unusual visit at the request of Sen. Orrin Hatch, a Republican from Utah. While in Caracas, McCarry visited Holt in jail, delivering him a letter from Hatch.

    The Trump administration is said to be aware of McCarry’s lobbying, though there is no indication it has lent support to the effort. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert declined to comment Monday when asked about the informal talks, saying only: “We are disappointed Mr. Holt has still not been released on humanitarian grounds.”

    The behind-the-scenes dialogue prompted a surprise visit this week to Washington by a trusted ally of Maduro, Gov. Rafael Lacava of Carabobo state, to discuss Holt, three congressional aides familiar with the visit said.

    Holt, 25, traveled to Caracas in June 2016 to marry a fellow Mormon he met online practicing his Spanish. The couple was waiting for her U.S. visa when they were arrested during a police raid on the government-built housing complex where they were living in her apartment. Venezuelan authorities alleged Holt was stockpiling “weapons of war.”

    U.S. officials have repeatedly demanded Holt’s release on humanitarian grounds, considering the charges against him and his wife, Thamara Candelo, to be trumped up and politically motivated.

    His imprisonment while awaiting trial in a Caracas jail where some of Maduro’s chief opponents are being held has further strained relations already marred by U.S. sanctions and almost-daily accusations by Maduro that the U.S. is working with his opponents to topple his socialist administration. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on a recent trip to South America warned that the U.S. may slap crippling oil sanctions on Venezuela and cheered on the prospect of the Venezuelan military overthrowing Maduro.

    The visit by Lacava, who traveled to Washington on Sunday after being granted a U.S. visa, has been met with hostility by Sen. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican who is a harsh critic of Maduro and has President Donald Trump’s ear on policy toward Venezuela.

    Rubio, in an email sent by his office to fellow Republicans on the Foreign Relations Committee, decried Lacava’s visit as an attempt to negotiate Holt’s freedom in exchange for sanctions relief or the release of the first lady’s two nephews who were convicted last year in a New York federal court for drug trafficking.

    The message cites press reports about Lacava’s alleged involvement in money laundering and other criminal activity. It also says Rubio has received assurances from the White House and State Department that no one in the Trump administration will meet with Lacava.

    “The fact that Rafael Lacava is even coming to the U.S. to negotiate a sanctions-for-hostage deal proves that Holt is being held as leverage,” says the email, a copy of which was obtained by AP and whose authenticity was confirmed by Rubio’s office. “The very news of high-level meetings would be used by Maduro to sow confusion and doubt in the minds of our regional allies about the commitment of the United States to sanctions.”

    Lacava could not be reached and has not commented publicly since Rubio criticized him in a tweet Sunday. Venezuela’s Communications Ministry declined to comment.

    One congressional aide said that Lacava had only requested meetings on Capitol Hill and that the sole purpose of those meetings is to urge the release of Holt and not negotiate anything in exchange. Any discussion of sanctions relief that may be on Lacava’s agenda is unlikely to come up, since that is a matter for the administration to decide, the aide added.

    McCarry knows Maduro from their time together on the Boston Group, an informal gathering from across the political spectrum – Democrats, Republicans, socialists and capitalists – from both countries that worked discreetly to repair relations between the two countries following a brief coup in 2002 against then-President Hugo Chavez. The U.S. recognized the government that arose briefly from the failed coup.

    Maduro and Flores were members of the Venezuelan delegation of lawmakers that traveled to Massachusetts, along with U.S. representatives like then-Sen. John Kerry. McCarry at the time worked for one of the Republican founders of the now-defunct group and over the years has maintained ties to many Venezuelan officials. He also accompanied Sen. Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican who is chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, on a trip to Caracas in 2015.

    ___

    Joshua Goodman on Twitter: https://twitter.com/APjoshgoodman

  • Plan to open drilling off Pacific Northwest draws opposition

    The Trump administration’s proposal to expand offshore drilling off the Pacific Northwest coast is drawing vocal opposition in a region where multimillion-dollar fossil fuel projects have been blocked

    SEATTLE (AP) – The Trump administration’s proposal to expand offshore drilling off the Pacific Northwest coast is drawing vocal opposition in a region where multimillion-dollar fossil fuel projects have been blocked in recent years.

    The governors of Washington and Oregon, many in the state’s congressional delegation and other top state officials have criticized Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s plan to open 90 percent of the nation’s offshore reserves to development by private companies.

    They say it jeopardizes the environment and the health, safety and economic well-being of coastal communities.

    Opponents spoke out Monday at a hearing that a coalition of groups organized in Olympia, Washington, on the same day as an “open house” hosted by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

    Attorney General Bob Ferguson told dozens gathered – some wearing yellow hazmat suits and holding “Stop Trump’s Big Oil Giveways” signs – that he will sue if the plan is approved.

    “What this administration has done with this proposal is outrageous,” he said.

    Oil and gas exploration and drilling is not permitted in state waters.

    In announcing the plan to vastly open federal waters to oil and gas drilling, Zinke has said responsible development of offshore energy resources would boost jobs and economic security while providing billions of dollars to fund conservation along U.S. coastlines.

    His plan proposes 47 leases off the nation’s coastlines from 2019 to 2024, including one off Washington and Oregon.

    Oil industry groups have praised the plan, while environmental groups say it would harm oceans, coastal economies, public health and marine life.

    Washington Gov. Jay Inslee met with Zinke over the weekend while in D.C. for the National Governors Association conference and again urged him to remove Washington from the plan, Inslee spokeswoman Tara Lee said Monday.

    There hasn’t been offshore oil drilling in Washington or Oregon since the 1960s.

    There hasn’t been much interest in offshore oil and gas exploration in recent decades though technology has improved, said Washington’s state geologist David Norman.

    “It’s a very active place tectonically. We have a really complicated tough geology. It’s got really rough weather,” Norman said.

    There’s more potential for natural gas than oil off the Pacific Northwest, said BOEM spokesman John Romero. A 2016 assessment estimates undiscovered recoverable oil at fractions of the U.S. total.

    Proponents have backed the idea as a way to provide affordable energy, meet growing demands and to promote the U.S.’s “energy dominance.” Emails to representatives with the Western States Petroleum Association and the American Petroleum Institute were not immediately returned Monday.

    Sixteen members of Washington and Oregon’s congressional delegation last month wrote to Zinke to oppose the plan, saying gas drilling off the Northwest coastline poses a risk to the state’s recreational, fishing and maritime economy.

    Kyle Deerkop, who manages an oyster farm in Grays Harbor for Oregon-based Pacific Seafood, worried an oil spill would put jobs and the livelihood of people at risk.

    “We need to be worried,” he said in an interview, recalling a major 1988 oil spill in Grays Harbor. “It’s too great a risk.”

    Tribal members, business owners and environmentalists spoke at the so-called people’s hearing Monday organized by Stand Up To Oil coalition.

    The groups wanted to allow people to speak into a microphone before a crowd because the federal agency’s open house didn’t allow that. Instead the open house allowed people to directly talk to staff or submit comments using laptops provided.

    ___

    AP Photographer Ted S. Warren contributed to this report.

  • Alaska governor details plans for trade trip to China

    Alaska Gov. Bill Walker on Monday announced details of a spring trade mission to China that aims to build off existing relationships between the state and the Asian country.

    JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Alaska Gov. Bill Walker on Monday announced details of a spring trade mission to China that aims to build off existing relationships between the state and the Asian country.

    The announcement comes amid mounting trade tensions between the U.S. and China. The trip, which Walker first mentioned in his State of the State speech in January, is set for May.

    China has been a top export market for Alaska goods, and the state has been working to strengthen ties with the country as it pursues potential partnerships for a natural gas line project. Walker, an independent, played host to China’s president in Anchorage last April.

    In November, Walker and Keith Meyer, president of the state-sponsored Alaska Gasline Development Corp., signed an agreement with leaders of China Investment Corp., the Bank of China and Sinopec, a major oil and gas company.

    The agreement calls for the parties to explore the feasibility of investing in the gas project, which proposes to move gas from Alaska’s North Slope to Asian markets, and pursue terms to advance the project, including the potential for Sinopec to be involved in engineering, construction and other aspects. The agreement does not obligate any party.

    Meyer downplayed the trade tensions between the U.S. and China and the pushback against China by President Donald Trump.

    “Really, the pushback is a message to buy more stuff from the United States. And, again, that’s where I think Alaska has the stuff that China wants,” Meyer told reporters from Anchorage Monday. “So I think the message is quite harmonious with our mission.”

    Walker’s office said the governor, his international trade director and Alaska’s commerce commissioner will travel with business representatives. The state plans a competitive application process for participants, who must pay their way.

    Alaska Senate Majority Leader Peter Micciche, a Republican, said lawmakers need a lot more information about the gas project before deciding whether they can support it.

  • Oregon Democrats abandon bill to oust teachers’ union critic from state education board

    Democrats in the Oregon legislature have shelved a hotly contested bill that would have removed an outspoken critic of the teachers’ union from the State Board of Education.

    Democrats in the Oregon legislature have shelved a hotly contested bill that would have removed an outspoken critic of the teachers’ union from the State Board of Education.

    Kim Sordyl, a lawyer and mother of two children attending Portland public schools, was chosen last year by Secretary of State Dennis Richardson to represent him on the board, but the bill would have forced her to vacate the seat by requiring him to name a full-time state employee.

    House Democrats approved the legislation last week on a party-line vote despite an uproar from her supporters, but the Senate Democratic leadership told news outlets that the bill won’t advance before the end of the session, which could come as early as this weekend.

    Proponents argued that the legislation was needed to clarify the original intent of the 2009 bill adding two non-voting members to the board, while Mr. Richardson said the effort was “clearly designed to silence an advocate for our children’s education.”

     

    This is a victory for our children, their education, and for transparency. It should be clear that bills designed specifically to silence an advocate for our children’s education is the wrong direction for our state. https://t.co/Wox5b1VjhD#orpol

    — Dennis Richardson (@OregonSOS) March 2, 2018

     

    Ms. Sordyl, a Democrat who has filed numerous complaints against school districts on behalf of parents, was appointed to the board by the Republican Richardson after he was elected in 2016.

    The legislation was proposed by Democratic state Rep. Margaret Doherty, a 22-year consultant for the Oregon Education Association, which Ms. Sordyl has fought for years over rules designed to protect teachers that also make it more difficult to remove abusers.

    Ms. Sordyl said Friday she hoped an ethics investigation would be conducted into what she described as Ms. Doherty’s “unethical and dishonest abuse of her position.”

    “We should all be vigilant over the Representatives who voted in favor of silencing a voice for students,” she said in an email. “They appear to be loyal to union donors at the expense of student health, safety and education.”

    Ms. Doherty, who no longer works for the OEA, had no immediate public comment, but she indicated last month at a committee hearing that she didn’t know Ms. Sordyl.

    Republican political consultant Jonathan Lockwood called the bill’s shelving a defeat for the Democratic establishment.

    “The system is broken and it was only after Oregon Democrats were found out for targeting an outspoken advocate that this legislation died,” said Mr. Lockwood in a statement. “This was a battle victory, but the war against Gov. Kate Brown’s status quo is not over.”

    The State Board of Education has seven voting members appointed by the governor and approved by the state Senate, as well as two non-voting members, one named by the Secretary of State and the other by the State Treasurer.

  • Man who shot himself outside White House has died: Secret Service

    A man is dead after he shot himself in the head with a handgun Saturday outside of the White House, according to the Secret Service.

    A man is dead after he shot himself in the head with a handgun Saturday outside of the White House, according to the Secret Service.

    “At approximately 11:46 AM, a white male suffered a self-inflicted gun-shot wound to the head outside the North White House fence line,” the Secret Service said in a statement Saturday afternoon.

    “The subject is deceased,” the statement said.

    Authorities have identified the person but are withholding his name until their next of kin is notified, the Secret Service said.

    The man appeared to have approached an area near the fence line, removed a concealed handgun and fired several rounds, according to the Secret Service.

    None of the shots immediately appeared to have been aimed toward the White House, and no other persons were injured as a result of the incident, the Secret Service said. Neither President Trump nor the first lady were were at the White House at the time of the shooting.

    Mr. Trump is currently in Florida and has been briefed on the incident, White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley told reporters Saturday.

    The D.C. Metropolitan Police Department will be the lead agency investigating the shooting, the Secret Service said.

    It was not immediately clear if law enforcement fired any shots during Saturday’s incident, and the MPD did not immediately return a message requesting additional information.

    The area on the north side of the White House near where the shooting occurred is typically open to pedestrians but is policed heavily. Last week, meanwhile, a woman was arrested for allegedly driving her automobile while armed with a gun into a barricade nearer the building’s eastern entrance.

  • Upskirting victims push to fill loophole in Alabama law

    Six months after a stranger snapped a photo up Tatum Hollon’s dress in Walmart, she walked out of her local courthouse feeling robbed of justice. The judge dismissed the charge against the man who too

    MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Six months after a stranger snapped a photo up Tatum Hollon’s dress in Walmart, she walked out of her local courthouse feeling robbed of justice. The judge dismissed the charge against the man who took the photo because no law existed to prosecute his actions.

    “It felt like I was violated all over again,” Hollon, 36, a stay-at-home mom from Prattville, told The Associated Press. “We came forward and they said, we’d love to help but there’s nothing we can do. And it breaks you.”

    Her case caught the attention of Sen. Clyde Chambliss, a Republican and father of three daughters from Prattville, who introduced a bill to criminalize what has come to be called upskirting. All U.S. states prohibit photography of individuals in a private place like a dressing room where they can expect privacy. More than half also ban upskirting and photos of intimate body parts in a public place. Last week, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens was indicted for allegedly taking a photo of a nude or partially nude woman in 2015 and transmitting it in a way that could be accessed by a computer.

    Chambliss’ bill would make taking a picture or video of a person’s intimate body parts without consent and with a reasonable expectation of privacy a misdemeanor. If the images are distributed with sexual intent, it would be a felony punishable by up to two years in prison. The bill passed the Senate and moves to the House for a final vote.

    Hollon was in Prattville’s Walmart in April 2017 when a man crouched behind her and took a picture up her dress. The next day, Hollon reported to the police because she wanted to protect her 15-year-old daughter in the future, she said as her eyes welled with tears.

    Michelle Lunsford, 46, a sales associate from Millbrook, had a similar experience with the same man in Prattville’s Lowes a month earlier. After she saw Hollon post a video of the man on Facebook, the women pressed charges together. Prattville prosecutors tried to use Alabama’s aggravated criminal surveillance law that prohibits photography in private places to convict the perpetrator, but stores didn’t qualify as private.

    Barry Matson, the Executive Director of Alabama’s Office of Prosecution Services, has encountered cases of inappropriate photos taken from cameras hidden in shoes or installed inside tanning salons. He said there’s a loophole in current legislation: although child pornography laws protect minor victims, the same safeguards don’t exist for adults in Alabama.

    The bill initially received pushback for charging everyone – regardless of their age – with a felony. The legislation was amended to only charge individuals over 16 with a felony. Tim Thrasher, the regional director for Alabama’s Youth Advocate Programs, said he was concerned about harsh penalties for teenagers and suggested education as a deterrent.

    The bill also exempts Department of Corrections officers who conduct strip searches or investigations in jails, sparking some concern.

    “If they’re acting within the furtherance of their duties, that’s a good exception,” said Brad Ekdahl, Prattville city prosecutor. “If they’re using and making videos for sexual gratification, that’s a different issue.” Situations would be prosecuted case-by-case, he said.

    Hollon and Lunsford don’t know what happened to the photos their perpetrator took. Nearly a year later, the women are wary in public. Hollon carries pepper spray and a taser in her purse and plans to get a pistol permit. Lunsford said she tells her 9-year-old daughter to wear shorts under her dress when they go shopping.

    “If this bill does get passed, they’re not going to get away with it. That’s my justice,” Lunsford said. “It’s nice knowing our daughters are protected.”

  • Colorado House expels Democratic state legislator over sexual-harassment claims

    The Colorado House voted Friday to expel a Democratic state legislator faced with complaints of sexual harassment filed by five women, including a Democratic colleague.

    The Colorado House voted Friday to expel a Democratic state legislator faced with complaints of sexual harassment filed by five women, including a Democratic colleague.

    Elected in 2012, state Rep. Steve Lebsock was ousted in a 52-9 vote after an emotional six-hour floor debate, then made the stunning announcement that he had changed his party registration from Democrat to Republican immediately before the vote.

     

    I changed party affiliation at 3:02pm. As I walked down to speak for the last time, approx. 4pm, I handed the minority leader a document with affiliation change. Nothing was planned. He did not know about party change before. #copolitics

    — Steve Lebsock (@RepLebsock) March 3, 2018

     

    The switch was apparently made so that the vacancy would be filled by a Republican rather than a Democrat — Democrats had led the charge to remove him from office — although Colorado Democratic Party officials were confident they would ultimately regain the Thornton seat.

    “As far as Lebsock goes, the Republicans can have him. As far as the seat, we’re looking into it. Either way, we’re confident the district will be represented by a Democrat by the time the next session begins,” said the party in a statement.

    Mr. Lebsock became the first Colorado legislator to be expelled in more than 100 years and the second state lawmaker expelled this year over sexual-misconduct allegations in the wake of the #MeToo movement.

    Last month, the Arizona House voted 56-3 to expel Republican state Rep. Don Shooter after an investigation found he had made “unwelcome sexualized comments” to a number of women.

    At least 14 legislators in 10 states have stepped down in the last year after being accused of sexual harassment, according to the Associated Press.

    A week ago, California state Sen. Tony Mendoza, a Democrat, resigned rather than face an expulsion vote over “a pattern of unwelcome flirtation and sexually suggestive behavior towards several female staff members” and other women, according to the investigation.

    In Colorado, Democratic state Rep. Faith Winter filed a complaint in November against Mr. Lebsock, saying he touched her inappropriately and pursued her aggressively for sex as lawmakers gathered at a bar to celebrate the end of the legislative session in May 2016.

    “I said no, five times. Five times. Not once, not twice, five times,” said Ms. Winter in her floor statement on Colorado Politics. “I used all the tools women have to say no. I laughed it off, I told him to go home to his girlfriend, I said no directly. Nothing worked. Each time I said no he became angrier, he stood closer, he stood over me. I felt unsafe.”

    Two Democratic state legislators said they were so worried about retaliation from Mr. Lebsock that they began wearing bulletproof vests to work several weeks ago.

    Mr. Lebsock fought the sexual-misconduct accusations, releasing the results of a polygraph that he passed and describing some of the allegations as exaggerated or false. He has also argued that his case has not received due process.

    “Our investigations in this body should be held at the very highest standard,” said Mr. Lebsock before the vote. “This investigation has been anything but a highest standard. In fact it’s been the lowest of standards.”

    The state constitution holds that, “The person appointed to bill the vacancy shall be a member of the same political party, if any, as the person whose termination of membership in the general assembly created the vacancy.”

    Democrats held a 37-28 majority in the state House, meaning that having Mr. Lebsock’s seat flip to Republican would not affect the balance of power.

    This story was based in part on wire-service reports.

  • Politicizing Parkland: DNC enlists student survivor for election-year voter drive

    Not only have major left-wing activist groups partnered with Parkland students to push for gun control, but the Democratic National Committee has enlisted at least one shooting survivor to campaign on

    Not only have major left-wing activist groups partnered with Parkland students to push for gun control, but the Democratic National Committee has enlisted at least one shooting survivor to campaign on its behalf.

    The DNC issued a get-out-the-vote email Friday signed by Sara Imam, who wrote a first-person plea urging people to join the Democratic Party’s #IWillVote campaign in order to commit to “ending gun violence.”

    “I turned 18 the day after the shooting, and I immediately registered to vote. But many of my fellow survivors can’t vote yet, and we are counting on you to stand up for young people at the ballot box,” said Ms. Imam.

    The plea links to a DNC sign-up for campaign emails and texts with the message, “When more people vote, Democrats win. It’s that simple.”

    In 2017, we saw what a difference we can make when we turn out to vote: 39 🔴 to 🔵 flips, Democratic governors in VA and NJ, and a Democratic senator in AL.In 2018, it’s time to double down. Commit to vote, then RT this video so your friends do, too: https://t.co/ZKn8fJEh9zpic.twitter.com/jSVog1TGHH

    — The Democrats (@TheDemocrats) March 2, 2018

    A slew of progressive advocacy groups, including Planned Parenthood, Everytown for Gun Safety and the American Federation of Teachers, are helping organize the “student-led” March for Our Lives movement, “which is quickly evolving from a student-run social media effort to end gun violence into one backed by some of the most influential activists in the country,” BuzzFeed reported.

    Also involved is Rep. Debra Wasserman Schultz, Florida Democrat, who represents the Broward County area and previously chaired the DNC.

    Our kids will lead the way. The energy behind this march will be powerful. Our community will join with communities across America and mark my words, we will be relentless until we stop guns from killing more of our children. Join us. https://t.co/WltLy4vfkN

    — Debbie Wasserman Schultz (@DWStweets) February 18, 2018

    Women’s March LA co-executive director Deena Katz submitted the application for the March 24 protest in Washington, D.C., one of dozens of March for Our Lives events scheduled nationwide and abroad, as the Washington Times reported Feb. 21.

    Conservatives have criticized Democrats and gun-control advocates for politicizing the tragedy, while progressives have blasted the right for calling for “thoughts and prayers” without taking action in the form of legislation to restrict firearms access.

    News outlets have also been rebuked for characterizing the movement as organized by a small band of students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, without mentioning involvement of activist groups.

    “Why did it take two weeks to discover Parkland students’ astroturfing?” asked the Federalist in a Thursday post.

    “For two weeks, journalists treated power as if it were magical. It’s not. It’s mechanical,” said the Federalist’s David Hines. “The people organizing the response to Parkland, and a host of other causes, know that. So should you.”

    Ms. Imam emphasized the role of students in calling for gun-control legislation in the aftermath of the Feb. 14 shooting, which left 17 dead.

    “Students like me are protesting, marching, and speaking out for our right to live free from the fear of gun violence,” Ms. Imam said in the DNC email. “We are talking to our elected officials and debating the president himself to demand new gun laws that will keep us safe.”

  • Nathan Deal, Georgia governor, signs bill without Delta tax break after NRA rift

    Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed Friday a tax-reform bill that eliminated a lucrative tax break for Delta Airlines over dropping its partnership with the National Rifle Association, but the airline ins

    Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed Friday a tax-reform bill that eliminated a lucrative tax break for Delta Airlines over dropping its partnership with the National Rifle Association, but the airline insisted that there are no hard feelings.

    Delta CEO Ed Bastiancalled the Republican governor a “great friend” despite the signing of the $5 billion tax-cut legislation, which was shorn by the state Senate of a $50 million jet-fuel tax exemption last week in retaliation for Delta’s ending of its discount deal for NRA members.

    Delta announced Feb. 24 that it would eliminate the membership discount, prompting Republican Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle to vow that he would kill any airline tax break until the company reinstated its partnership with the NRA.

    I will kill any tax legislation that benefits @Delta unless the company changes its position and fully reinstates its relationship with @NRA. Corporations cannot attack conservatives and expect us not to fight back.

    — Casey Cagle (@CaseyCagle) February 26, 2018

    In a Friday statement, Mr. Bastian that he considered the governor to be a “friend” and thanked him for his work on the issue.

    “I have tremendous respect and admiration for Governor Nathan Deal, and thank him for the work he has done on the jet fuel tax exemption,” Mr. Bastian said. “He is a great friend to Delta. I know this action by the state legislature troubled him as it does all of us.”

    Mr. Deal said at a Wednesday press conference he would keep working to resolve the rift.

    “Delta made a statement or an action that caused this dispute to erupt,” Mr. Deal said. “I’ve tried my best to resolve it within the time frame we have available to us. I am still hopeful that some of those feelings and positions can be rectified, but they could not be in the time frame we were operating under.”

    More than a dozen companies have dropped their NRA membership partnerships following the Feb. 14 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, which left 17 dead.

    Mr. Bastian said that the airline is reviewing its partnerships and would rescind deals with other political organizations.

    “While Delta’s intent was to remain neutral, some elected officials in Georgia tied our decision to a pending jet fuel tax exemption, threatening to eliminate it unless we reversed course,” Mr. Bastian said. “Our decision was not made for economic gain and our values are not for sale. We are in the process of a review to end group discounts for any group of a politically divisive nature.”

    He added that Atlanta would remain the airline’s home, despite overtures from states such as New York and Virginia.

    “None of this changes the fact that our home is Atlanta and we are proud and honored to locate our headquarters here,” Mr. Bastian said. “And we are supporters of the Second Amendment, just as we embrace the entire Constitution of the United States.”

  • Rideshare drivers mostly earning less than minimum wage: MIT report

    Motorists making some extra cash by hauling around Uber or Lyft customers are mostly earning less than minimum wage, and nearly a third of ride-hailing drivers are losing money behind the wheel, accor

    Motorists making some extra cash by hauling around Uber or Lyft customers are mostly earning less than minimum wage, and nearly a third of ride-hailing drivers are losing money behind the wheel, according to researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

    The median profit before taxes earned by ride-hailing drivers at either service is about $3.37, or less than half of the minimum wage in most states, researchers at MIT’s Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research wrote in their newly published working paper, “Economics of Ride-Hailing: Driver Revenue, Expenses and Taxes.”

    Culled from interviews conducted with over 1,100 Uber and Lyft drivers, the analysis “provides one of the first detailed estimates of ride-hailing profit,” its authors wrote.

    The MIT researchers quizzed respondents with questions like how many miles they drive and the types of car they use, then factored in the costs of insurance, fuel, maintenance, repairs and depreciation to reach their figures.

    Seventy-four percent of drivers earn less than the minimum wage in their state, while 30 percent “are actually losing money once vehicle expenses are included,” the report said.

    “We were surprised by the numbers; they seemed pretty low,” co-author Stephen Zoepf, executive director of Stanford’s Center for Automotive Research, told the San Francisco Chronicle.

    Indeed, Mr. Zeopf said he plans to crunch the numbers with a different formula as his findings are questioned by both San Francisco-based companies, the newspaper reported Friday.

    “While the paper is certainly attention grabbing, its methodology and findings are deeply flawed. We’ve reached out to the paper’s authors to share our concerns and suggest ways we might work together to refine their approach,” Uber spokesperson Michael Amodeo said in a statement.

    “We have not yet reviewed this study in detail, but an initial review shows some questionable assumptions,” said Lyft.

    Uber and Lyft launched in 2009 and 2012, respectively, leaving a limited window for research into either of the nation’s two largest ride-hailing companies.

    Nonetheless, previous studies have suggested drivers receive significantly more than MIT’s researchers concluded. A 2015 study funded by Uber found that drivers overall in Denver, Detroit and Houston earned less than $13.25 an hour after expenses. More recently, a 2017 survey conducted by the RideShareGuy blog and cited by Uber in response to the MIT study reported average hourly earnings of $15.68.