US News Roundup: GM contract vote by striking UAW workers heads into final hours; Massachusetts accuses Exxon in lawsuit of climate change deceit


Reuters | Washington DC | Updated: 25-10-2019 05:29 IST | Created: 25-10-2019 05:25 IST
US News Roundup: GM contract vote by striking UAW workers heads into final hours; Massachusetts accuses Exxon in lawsuit of climate change deceit
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Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

After Ken Fisher no-show, LA pension system terminates his firm

The Los Angeles fire and police pension system voted to terminate Fisher Investments on Thursday over allegedly sexist comments made by founder Ken Fisher earlier this month. Five of the system's nine commissioners voted during a webcast meeting to remove the $511 million the system had under management with the firm, of which Fisher is the majority owner.

GM contract vote by striking UAW workers heads into final hours

Striking workers at General Motors Co factories in the United States finish voting on Friday on a proposed four-year contract that could end a 39-day strike that has cost the No. 1 U.S. automaker more than $2 billion according to Wall Street. With about one-third of the United Auto Workers union votes counted as of Thursday morning, an estimated 55% of the remaining members would have to vote "no" for the proposed deal to fail, said Kristin Dziczek, vice president of industry, labor and economics at the Center for Automotive Research in Michigan.

Massachusetts accuses Exxon in lawsuit of climate change deceit

The state of Massachusetts sued Exxon Mobil Corp on Thursday, accusing the oil giant of misleading investors and consumers for decades about the role fossil fuels play in climate change. Attorney General Maura Healey filed the lawsuit shortly after Exxon lost a bid to delay the filing until after it is done defending itself in a trial that began Tuesday over similar allegations brought by the state of New York.

Explainer: Protesting Republicans say impeachment probe violates Trump's rights. Is that true?

Republican lawmakers on Wednesday stormed a hearing room at the U.S. House of Representatives where a Pentagon official was to testify in the impeachment probe of President Donald Trump, yelling that it was unfair and violated Trump's rights. The lawmakers were echoing objections made by White House Counsel Pat Cipollone in an Oct. 8 letter to top House Democrats that said Trump's lawyers must be allowed to call and cross-examine witnesses, access evidence, and be afforded other "basic rights guaranteed to all Americans."

Mourners remember the late U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings' kindness

Mourners lined up early on Thursday to pay their respects to the late Representative Elijah Cummings, a powerful legislator and civil rights activist who became the first African-American to lie in state in the U.S. Capitol - a high honor usually bestowed upon presidents and military leaders. The casket bearing Cummings' body was carried up the East Front steps of the Capitol by an honor guard and taken into National Statuary Hall, where leading members of Congress saluted the 13-term congressman from Baltimore.

Hundreds told to flee, almost 200,000 without power in California wildfires

A wind-driven wildfire roared across a swath of northern California wine country on Thursday, prompting the evacuation of some 2,000 Sonoma County residents, including the entire town of Geyserville, where about a dozen homes were destroyed. The Kincade fire was the most severe of several blazes raging throughout California as utility companies cut off electricity to nearly 200,000 homes and businesses across the state in precautionary outages to reduce wildfire risks from high winds.

Obama, Clintons, Pelosi to speak at late congressman Cummings' funeral

Former U.S. presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, along with former presidential candidate and Senator Hillary Clinton, are among a who's-who list of the Democratic Party slated to speak on Friday at the late Congressman Elijah Cummings' funeral. Representative Cummings' office released a list late Wednesday of the 10 pallbearers and 15 speakers slated for the funeral Friday at the New Psalmist Baptist Church in Cummings' hometown of Baltimore.

Former U.S. President Carter leaves hospital after breaking pelvis

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter left hospital on Thursday after being admitted with a minor pelvic fracture, the Carter Center said, following the second accident this month for the country's oldest living president. Carter, 95, fell at his home in Plains, Georgia, on Monday night and was looking forward to returning there to continue recuperating, the center said in a statement.

White House plans to end federal subscriptions to New York Times, Washington Post

The White House said on Thursday it is planning to order federal agencies to end their subscriptions to the New York Times and the Washington Post after repeated criticism of their coverage by President Donald Trump. White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said in a statement that the move would generate savings, but Trump on Monday said the White House would likely end its subscriptions to the papers because they are "fake," a term he has used to describe coverage that he views as unfavorable.

Puerto Rico unveils $20 billion plan to revamp island's power grid

Puerto Rico's undependable power network would be modernized and decentralized under a $20.3 billion, 10-year plan announced on Thursday by government officials of the bankrupt U.S. commonwealth. The so-called GridMod plan, developed with federal, local and private sector input, targets repair and reconstruction measures designed to strengthen the network and ensure its resilience against natural disasters like the devastating hurricanes that struck Puerto Rico in 2017, according to a statement from Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced's office.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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