Subject: Daily News Clips 1/31/14
From: "Sam Losow" <[email-masked]>
To: "undisclosed-recipients:"
Date: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 10:22:34 -0500

*National News:*

*Stem cell breakthrough may be simple, fast, cheap
*<http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/29/health/stem-cell-discovery/index.html?iref=allsearch>
We run too hard, we fall down, we're sick -- all of this puts stress on the
cells in our bodies. But in what's being called a breakthrough in
regenerative medicine, researchers have found a way to make stem cells by
purposely putting mature cells under stress.

Two new studies published Wednesday in the journal Nature describe a method
of taking mature cells from mice and turning them into embryonic-like stem
cells, which can be coaxed into becoming any other kind of cell possible.
One method effectively boils down to this: Put the cells in an acidic
environment.

"I think the process we've described mimics Mother Nature," said Dr.
Charles Vacanti, director of the laboratory for Tissue Engineering and
Regenerative Medicine at Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston and senior
author on one of the studies. "It's a natural process that cells normally
respond to."
..........................................................................................

*Prosecutors ask for the death penalty for Tsarnaev*
Attorney General Eric Holder has authorized federal prosecutors to
seek the death
penalty for<http://theweek.com/article/index/243597/should-prosecutors-seek-the-death-penalty-for-dzhokhar-tsarnaev>Dzhokhar
Tsarnaev, the surviving Boston Marathon bombing suspect. Three people died
and 260 were injured in twin explosions of two homemade bombs allegedly
planted by Tsarnaev and his older brother, Tamerlan, who was killed in a
shootout with police. Tsarnaev, 20, also faces state charges for the murder
of MIT Police Officer Sean Collier, whom authorities say the brothers
murdered while fleeing. [*The Boston
Globe*<http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/2014/01/30/federal-prosecutors-seek-death-penalty-against-marathon-bombing-suspect-dzhokhar-tsarnaev/C9wfpKi5WrETurHtqlTIMK/story.html>
]
..........................................................................................

*New York says it is dropping its stop-and-frisk appeal*
New York City's new mayor, Bill de Blasio, announced a deal Thursday to
drop an appeal of ajudge's
ruling<http://theweek.com/article/index/248176/is-this-the-end-of-stop-and-frisk>
calling
for major reforms in the city's controversial stop-and-frisk
crime-reduction policy, which civil rights lawyers have said violates
minorities' rights. De Blasio said the city had agreed to the appointment
of a monitor to end the program's "overuse," delivering on one of his key
campaign promises. The move, he said, would ensure that "everyone's rights
are protected."
[*Newsday*<http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/de-blasio-announces-deal-to-drop-stop-and-frisk-appeal-1.6909548>
]
..........................................................................................

*Facebook stock soars*
Facebook stock shot up by 16 percent on Thursday after a strong quarterly
earnings report that exceeded Wall Street's expectations. Ad revenue was up
by 76 percent year-over-year to $2.34 billion. The biggest gains came in
mobile ads, which accounted for the majority of the social network's ad
revenue for the first time.
Facebook<http://theweek.com/article/index/255344/facebook-is-not-doomed-to-die-like-myspace>
is
also nearing one billion active users. The jump in the share price
increased CEO Mark Zuckerberg's fortune by $3 billion (to $29.7 billion)
before the day ended. [*Mashable
<http://mashable.com/2014/01/30/facebook-stock-high/>*, NBC
News<http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/zuckerberg-makes-3b-one-day-facebook-stock-surges-2D12023691>
]
..........................................................................................

*Amanda Knox's murder conviction reinstated*

An Italian court on Thursday found Amanda Knox and her Italian former
boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, guilty of the 2007 murder of her British
roommate, Meredith Kercher. The ruling reinstated a 2009 guilty verdict
that was overturned on appeal. Knox was sentenced to 28 years and six
months. She did not return to Italy for the trial after returning home when
she won the first appeal. Knox said she was "frightened and saddened" by
the verdict. Sollecito's lawyer vowed an appeal to Italy's highest court. [
*Reuters*<http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/30/us-knox-verdict-guilty-idUSBREA0T1U520140130>
]
..........................................................................................

*Obama finds corporate help for the long-term unemployed*
President Obama told CNN that 300 companies, including industry leaders
such as Walmart, Apple, and Ford, have agreed to participate in a plan to
find jobs for some of the nation's long-term
unemployed<http://theweek.com/article/index/254579/time-is-up-for-the-long-term-unemployed-what-now>,
many of whom lost benefits at the start of the year. Obama said that many
people who lost jobs in the recession have been out of work so long that
employers are seeing the gaps in their resumes and "weeding them out"
without even interviewing them. Obama said he would formally announce the
plan on Friday.
[CNN<http://edition.cnn.com/2014/01/30/politics/obama-tapper-interview/index.html?hpt=hp_t2>
]
..........................................................................................

*Economic growth picked up in late 2013*
The American economy grew at a strong annual rate of 3.2 percent in the
fourth quarter of 2013, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday.
That's slower than the summer's pace, but still better than the first half
of the year, when tax increases and federal spending cuts slowed down the
recovery. "What's encouraging is that consumer spending and business
investment improved, showing healthier underlying growth in the economy,"
Bank of America Merrill Lynch economist Michelle Meyer said. [*The New York
Times*<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/31/business/us-economy-grew-3-2-in-fourth-quarter.html?hpw&rref=business&_r=0>
]
..........................................................................................

*Syria is stalling on chemical arms dismantlement, US says*
The U.S. is accusing the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of
using stalling tactics to delay the destruction of its chemical weapon
stockpile<http://theweek.com/article/index/249897/a-year-to-destroy-syrias-chemical-weapons-is-an-unrealistic-goal>.
The dismantling of Syria's arsenal "has seriously languished and stalled,"
Robert Mikulak, the U.S. representative to the Organization for the
Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said. The criticism marked an escalation in
international skepticism that Assad was committed to surrendering his
chemical arms. [*Associated
Press*<http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/us-syria-comply-chemical-arms-deal-22302394>
]

..........................................................................................

*Obama selects the next head of the NSA*
President Obama has picked Vice Admiral Michael Rogers to be the next head
of the National Security Agency, a senior Defense Department official said
Thursday. Rogers, a cryptologist and head of the Navy's cyber warfare arm,
will also lead the U.S. cyber command. Rogers' selection comes as the NSA
faces widespread
criticism<http://theweek.com/article/index/255670/does-the-public-still-care-about-the-nsa>
for
data mining tactics exposed in secret documents leaked by fugitive former
NSA contractor Edward Snowden. He will replace Director Gen. Keith
Alexander, who's leaving in March. [*USA
Today*<http://www.freep.com/usatoday/article/5061671>
]
..........................................................................................

Missouri likely to pass new voter ID
law<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2014/01/31/missouri-likely-to-pass-voter-id-bill-this-year/>
Missouri could become the latest state to institute new rules requiring
voters to show identification at the polls under a measure being considered
by the state Senate. And after earlier versions were struck down by the
state Supreme Court, Republicans believe they have fixed provisions to
which the court objected.

The new version of the law, which was subject to a hearing earlier this
week in the state Senate, would allow voters without proper identification
to receive new IDs without cost. Voters who can't afford an identification
and voters born before 1941 would be able to cast a provisional ballot
under the new legislation.

That the bill is originating in the Senate is significant, observers said,
because the upper chamber has been the hurdle in recent years. The state
House has passed voter identification legislation in each of the last seven
years, but those bills have all died in the Senate.

*Biden News:*

*Vice President Joe Biden to handle job training reform efforts for
Obama*<http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20140131/NEWS02/301310022/Vice-President-Joe-Biden-handle-job-training-reform-efforts-Obama>
WASHINGTON -- Vice President Joe Biden's latest marching orders are to help
Americans get the skills they need for good, in-demand jobs.

Obama announced the plan during Tuesday night's State of the Union address.
On Thursday, he signed an order for an "across-the-board" review, to be led
by Biden, of how to reform federal training programs to help make them more
job-driven.

"We've got a lot of programs, but not all of them are doing what they
should be doing to get people (trained) for jobs that exist right now,"
Obama said Thursday while promoting his agenda at a General Electric
facility in Waukesha, Wis. "And we've got to move away from what my Labor
Secretary, Tom Perez, calls "train and pray" - you train workers first and
then you hope they get a job."

*Opinion:*

Fixing Immigration, in
Principle<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/31/opinion/fixing-immigration-in-principle.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>

As Republicans creep in the right direction, here's hoping against hope for
a breakthrough on immigration reform this year.

*DE News:*

*Markell signs bill raising the minimum
wage*<http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20140131/NEWS02/301310036/Markell-signs-bill-raising-minimum-wage>

Delaware's hourly minimum wage will increase to $8.25, a $1 increase over
the national minimum passed quickly Thursday by the General Assembly and
signed into law an hour later by Gov. Jack Markell.

The increase in wages will affect an estimated 40,000 Delaware workers, or
about 10 percent of the workforce, according to state labor officials.

Chandra Crippen, a 36-year-old fast food worker in Wilmington, is one of
those living on minimum wage. The additional money won't solve her family's
problems, but it means "things could be possible," she said.

"My kids don't have shoes that they need, or clothes to wear every day. We
can't wash clothes on a weekly basis," Crippen said, adding that most of
her check now goes to feeding her family.

Markell signed the bill, saying it reflects "the commitment that I and many
members of the General Assembly share: we cannot wait any longer to get
this done."

"Raising the minimum wage represents one of the fastest ways we can act to
give a boost to many struggling working families," Markell said.

Carrie Leishman, president and CEO of the Delaware Restaurant Association,
said the time wasn't right for the minimum wage increase.

"This issue is about jobs and if you are looking at ways to create more
opportunity for people in the state of Delaware, we don't think this is the
answer," Leishman said.

President Barack Obama is advocating increasing the national minimum wage
to $10.10 an hour, although the proposal is not expected to pass Congress.
Obama signed an executive order this week setting the minimum wage for
workers covered by new federal contracts at $10.10 an hour.

Delaware lawmakers last voted to increase the minimum wage in 2005. It went
up again with an increase in the national minimum wage in 2010. The
increase to $8.25 was introduced and passed in the Senate last year, before
it stalled in the Democrat-controlled House Economic Development committee
with opposition from business groups.

Senate lawmakers last year removed a provision from the bill that would
have tied future increases in minimum wage to inflation. The bill signed
into law Thursday by Markell increases the hourly minimum to $7.75 on June
1 and increases it to $8.25 on June 1, 2015.

The legislation has been a hot topic in the first weeks of this year's
legislative session, with Republicans saying lawmakers on the other side
were rushing it through before the recess for budget hearings. They argued
the increase was too soon, could cost jobs, pile an additional financial
burden onto small businesses, and hurt those who need the extra dollars the
most.

Lawmakers defeated two last-minute amendments introduced by Rep. Mike
Ramone, R-Middle Run Valley, that would push back the implementation date
to Jan. 1 2015 and 2016, and in effect create a training wage for minors,
seasonal workers and those in the first 180 days of employment.

He said he'd like to revisit the idea of a training wage if he can muster
bipartisan legislative support.

Daisy Cruz, 32BJ SEIU Mid-Atlantic Director, said Thursday's vote was an
"important step in the the right direction for Delaware working families.'

"The current minimum wage is not enough to take care of a family and too
many hard-working Delawareans are falling into poverty," she said.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Robert Marshall, D-Wilmington West, said, "I think
what we all recognize, every member here of the Senate and the House, we
all feel good about the fact Delaware's minimum wage will be increased one
dollar, and we all know that Delaware workers win when the governor signs
the bill."

..........................................................................................

*Markell seeks incorporation fee
hike*<http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20140131/NEWS02/301310054/Markell-seeks-incorporation-fee-hike>

Gov. Jack Markell's next budget would cut $40 million from the state's
Transportation Trust Fund and raise taxes on companies formed in Delaware
to balance a $3.8 billion spending plan pressured by higher health care and
education costs.

The proposed transportation cuts would significantly reduce spending on
road and bridge projects unless lawmakers sign off on a separate plan from
the governor that would raise Delaware's per-gallon gas tax by 10 cents and
authorize additional trust fund borrowing. The tax and debt plan, which
Markell proposed Wednesday, would fund $500 million in road projects over
the next five years.

"There really will be very little room to do any new projects," if
lawmakers don't approve the proposal, Markell said during a 45-minute
budget briefing in Dover that was attended by lawmakers. "It means we have
the threat of roads that are not getting paved, it means we have bridges
that are not getting fixed as quickly as possible. I'm not trying to
overstate this. It's just the reality."

Senate Minority Leader Gary Simpson, criticized the governor for relying on
higher taxes to balance the budget, saying he opposed the higher business
taxes and the gas tax increase.

"It sort of seems like it was robbing Peter to pay Paul," Simpson said of
Markell's plan to cut transportation funding unless lawmakers raise taxes.
"That didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I think it's just the wrong
approach to go after businesses on the one hand and consumers on the other."

Markell's next budget, which would take effect July 1, would increase
spending by 3 percent over the current year's plan. Cutting cash planned
for the Transportation Trust Fund allows the governor to use that money to
pay for regular operations of the state, including education, Medicaid and
social services.

The governor's budget includes a 1 percent general pay raise for employees
at a cost of $15.6 million, and raises more than $100 million in new taxes,
including the proposal to raise the gas tax. Markell's budget does not
include any details on his plan to clean up state waterways, a program that
could also be funded with higher taxes. Details on that plan will come
within the next couple weeks, he said.

Higher corporate formation taxes in Markell's budget, necessary to cover
higher costs in public education and health care, are expected to generate
$51 million.

The governor's plan includes an increase in the annual tax on Limited
Liability Companies, Limited Partnership and General Partnerships from $250
to $300, which is projected to raise $33 million. An increase in the
minimum annual corporate franchise tax, which is paid by companies
incorporating in Delaware, from $75 to $175, will raise $18 million. The
higher taxes will likely have little impact on businesses that choose
Delaware as their corporate home. "We're in an upswing economy," said Jeff
Bullock, secretary of state.

Sen. Harris McDowell, a Wilmington Democrat and co-chair of the budget
writing Joint Finance Committee, praised the governor for the plan. "The
governor's people have done an excellent job of putting a budget together
with a fiscal package that made it work," McDowell said, adding he was
"pleased" that Markell included a 1 percent raise for state employees. "I'm
not sure it's enough," McDowell said.

Higher mandatory spending on health care and education drove expenses
higher in Markell's budget, his sixth as governor, with the state
experiencing relatively flat tax collections.

New education spending will cost the state $32.2 million next year,
including $18.9 million to pay for new teachers with a flood of new
students entering Delaware's public schools. Medicaid, the state-federal
health insurance program for the poor, will cost an additional $23.9
million. Debt service will add $17 million.

Markell is also proposing a $16 million cut to open space and farmland
preservation funds, and $1.5 million cut to the state's Energy Efficiency
Fund. Open space and farmland programs are among the first targeted for
cuts, but are often restored in the spring if revenue estimates come in
higher from the Delaware Economic and Financial Advisory Council.

Lawmakers won't complete work on the budget until June 30, the last day of
session.

Spending on new programs, many announced in Markell's State of the State
address last week, make up only a fraction of his proposed budget. Markell
budgeted $7 million in his capital plan to fund grants for builders
developing in downtown districts across the state.

Another $10 million is earmarked for container crane and infrastructure
improvements at the Port of Wilmington.

Markell budgeted $1 million to help fund workforce development efforts,
$265,300 to fund a new unit to investigate gun trafficking and $2 million
to combat substance abuse.

New programs only account for $7.4 million in the operations budget, or
less than .2 percent of budget growth..

..........................................................................................

*Casino earnings: Delaware's budget cash cow is drying
up*<http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20140131/NEWS02/301310043/Casino-earnings-Delaware-s-budget-cash-cow-drying-up>

Delaware's gambling industry continued to show signs of decline Thursday as
Dover Downs, the state's largest casino, reported net earnings that dropped
from $4.8 million in 2012 to a mere $13,000 last year.

The startling news comes as a state commission considering concessions to
struggling casinos delayed recommendations expected today that were
intended to offer a lifeline.

"This is something that deserves the appropriate amount of time and the
commission has worked hard for the past six months, but we're just not
totally there to make a quality recommendation," said state Finance
Secretary Tom Cook, a member of the Lottery and Gaming Study Commission.

Denis McGlynn, president and CEO of Dover Downs Gaming and Entertainment
and Dover Motorsports Inc., said the earnings drop, caused by an increase
in competition and disproportionate tax rates, validates long-held concerns
by casinos that the state has not kept up with a rapidly changing casino
industry.

"I think the numbers validate the story we've been telling everyone
basically, and most particularly those who do control our destiny," McGlynn
said.

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what next year is going
to look like," he said.

The casino reported revenues of $197.2 million as of Dec. 31, down from
$225.9 million in 2012. Expenses dropped from $215.6 million in 2012 to
$195 million last year, according to the casino's earnings report.

The casino is carrying $47 million in debt in the form of a revolving line
of credit, down from $58 million in 2012.

The casino's report showed small signs of improvement during the last
quarter of 2013, compared to the same period in 2012. Gaming revenues,
which came in at about $40.8 million last quarter, were down 5.7 percent
compared to the fourth quarter of last year.

But the casino cut its net losses in the fourth quarter to $418,000 when
compared to the $528,000 lost in the 2012 period. Other operating revenues
improved to about $5.8 million from $5.3 million, due in part to higher
food and beverage revenues, according to figures released by the casino.

The only way for the casino to survive without help from the state is to
continue cutting expenses, McGlynn said. In 2009, Dover Downs cut about 100
jobs. Since then, they've hired more part-time than full-time workers.

McGlynn said he didn't know if there would be jobs lost this year, but that
it was going to be "inevitable" if the casino couldn't get any relief from
the state.

The state's other casinos, which are private, told officials last year they
expect losses too. Delaware Park forecast a 17-percent drop in gross
revenues for 2013, while Harrington Raceway and Casino expected to lose
about 4 percent.

Last year, lawmakers passed a $477 million capital budget that included an
$8 million bailout for Delaware's casinos as a short-term fix.

The state commission, set up six months ago to offer legislators ideas on
how to help casinos in the long term, has been at loggerheads over how to
reform the industry. During a meeting last week, members discussed a dozen
possible options for legislators to consider, using revenue projections to
recommend how the state might surrender millions now collected from casinos.

Among them is the option of restoring the casinos' share of revenue from
video lottery games to pre-recession rates, which would cost the state
$25.5 million. Other options considered are sharing vendor fees, which
could cost the state up to $6.6 million; a reduction in the state's tax
rate on table games, which could cost $7.2 million; and a proposal to
implement a complimentary hotel room incentive program, costing the state
$3.3 million.

This year alone, state budget writers are relying on more than $180 million
in gambling taxes from the casinos. That's down from about $240 million in
2010.

Cook said he wasn't sure how many of the options considered by the
commission would make it to Legislative Hall for consideration, but that
relief for casinos could come from a combination of the options spread out
over a multi-year plan.

"The idea is to make sure that the revenue distribution is fair and
equitable," Cook said. "I think the landscape has changed significantly."

House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst, D-Bear, who sits on the
commission, said whatever the panel recommends has to be less than $10
million, because that's all the state can afford to give up.

"We realize there is a problem, but we as a state have a bigger problem,"
she said.

The process has been challenging, and the extension to make the
recommendations is needed, due in part to the news about Dover Downs, she
said.

"It was a combination of a lot of different things, that kind of helped it
along the way a little," Longhurst said. "When you get a surprise like
that, it sets you back a little."

McGlynn compared the options from the commission as a menu of sorts, saying
casinos like his could take it all in one bite, for example, with the
restoration of a tax rate, or take a combination of other options spread
over time.

The biggest financial relief for casinos would be if the state decided to
revert the video lottery tax structure to pre-recession rates. Video
lottery games, which include slots, are easily the biggest revenue
generator for casinos and the state, but several years ago legislators
dramatically increased the tax rate.

The tax rate on games is entirely too high, especially for the rate of
business and the competitive landscape, McGlynn said.

Prior to 2009, the state collected around 34 percent of that revenue, Cook
said. But lawmakers boosted the state's share of the pot to 38 percent, and
later to the current 43.5 percent, Cook said.

"If we were doing the business levels of what the casinos in Pennsylvania
and Maryland were enjoying, we could sustain ourselves," McGlynn said.

But it's hard to expect the state to revert the tax rate to pre-recession
numbers and give up such a big chunk of change in a single year, he said.

"They have fiscal needs too, and we're not insensitive to that," he said.

During last year's legislative session, casinos failed to persuade
lawmakers to lower the state's share of slots revenue. Currently, casinos
get 40.5 percent, and the state takes 43.5 percent, among the highest taxes
on gambling anywhere in the nation, experts have said.

But several commission members, including Cook, have said reverting back to
that amount is not feasible.

"To go back to pre-2009, with all due respect, you're not going to be able
to, given where we are at," he said. "I don't think that is the solution
either at this moment."

Cook said he favors a combination of the state sharing vendor costs with
hotels, and the hotel program. At Dover Downs, a complimentary hotel room
costs the casino $79. The commission is considering recommending that the
state pick up $33 of the cost.

That would pay back the casino, which expanded the hotel shortly before the
downturn, while the tax rate on video lottery was still low, McGlynn said.

Cook said he also favors a proposal that would split 50 percent of the
vendor costs Dover Downs Hotel and Casino incurs across the top, since it
is a publicly traded company. That would end up costing the state about
$2.7 million.

The state's other two casinos, Delaware Park and Harrington Raceway and
Casino, would be eligible for the same split, but only if they open up
their financial books to Cook, who could in turn, make a recommendation to
lawmakers if the two privately-held companies could participate, Cook said.
The two have been receptive to that idea, he said.

That would cost the state $6.6 million.

McGlynn said every little bit helps at this rate, but a cash injection is
just the start of what's really needed.

"There's a fairly significant delta between that and what we really need to
have done to reset the model," he said.

-- 
Sam Losow
*Finance Assistant*
Beau Biden, DE Attorney General
Office: (302) 295-8340
Cell: (202) 821-3399
[email-masked]