This Is What Record-Low Unemployment Looks Like in America
In towns where workers are scarce, employers are boosting pay and perks and stepping up recruiting—all while trying to avoid raising prices.
Portland, Maine’s historic district. PHOTOGRAPHER: GREGORY HALPERN FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK
By and March 15, 2018, 8:00 PM GMT+11
What will happen when the U.S. unemployment rate falls below 4 percent, which is expected to occur by this summer? One way to tell is to look at cities where joblessness is already lower than that. Bloomberg News reporters traveled to Iowa, Georgia, and Maine. What they saw there is encouraging. They discovered that employers have found ways to cope with tight labor markets and still make money. Businesses have pulled in workers from the sidelines—including retirees, immigrants, and the homeless—and retooled processes to use less labor. Some have raised pay considerably for certain jobs, but so far there are no signs of an overall wage explosion. That should embolden those at the Federal Reserve who want to raise interest rates slowly to give growth a chance.
Portland, Maine: Making Do With Fewer Workers
Population: 66,937
Unemployment rate: 1.8%
Average weekly wages: $924
From polished sea-salt caramel balls to truffles packaged with hand-tied bows, the treats on sale at Wilbur’s of Maine Chocolate Confections in Freeport exude artisanal charm. While that’s a source of pride for owner Andrew Wilbur, whose parents started the business, he’s staring down a dilemma. Manufacturing workers are hard to come by in Freeport, which is 15 miles north of Portland and part of its statistical area. At 1.8 percent, the unemployment rate is the third-lowest in the country. “It’s made me think, Do I go to more mechanization?” Wilbur says from inside his production plant, where three employees are making candy in what look like mini cement mixers.
Employees at Wilbur’s of Maine Chocolate Confections in Freeport.PHOTOGRAPHER: GREGORY HALPERN FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK
Wilbur has raised wages for his 40 employees by more than 20 percent over the past three years, but he’s passed hardly any of his costs onto consumers. Business at his three brick-and-mortar outlets is already unchanged or down, and he would have lost online and wholesale customers if he’d raised prices substantially, he says.
It takes a full year for these employees to get up to speed and five for them to hit what Wilbur, without a hint of irony, calls “the sweet spot.” With inexperienced workers starting at $12 to $14 an hour, onboarding is becoming a major expense. Lowering his voice a little, Wilbur admits that he’s changed some of his packaging to make it less labor-intensive, including doing away with hand-applied labels.
Shipwreck & Cargo, a souvenir shop in downtown Portland that stocks items such as lobster-printed boxers and Maine blueberry tea, staffed its floor with only two sales assistants during the busy summer season instead of the usual three. The supply of workers has dried up just as the tourism industry is on an upswing, says store manager Jennifer Smith. “You want the right people, standing and smiling in front,” says Smith, who adds that the applicant pool has gotten smaller and less qualified in the five years she’s been running the shop.
The leisure and hospitality sector is the backbone of the local economy, but professional and business services have been engines of growth in recent years. Weekly wages in the Portland region have been moving up gradually, climbing in line with the national average through the first three quarters of 2017, the latest figures show. Inflation in the Northeast has been running below 2 percent.
One big reason employers are struggling to fill slots is that Maine’s population growth has leveled off. The state has the highest median age in the country at 44. “Last year, I was unable to get how many people I needed. I was probably short one and a half people,” says Tammara Croman, the manager of Portland’s Pomegranate Inn, whose eight guest rooms are outfitted with exuberant floral wallpapers and works by local artists. She says the operation ran at full capacity last summer, though with too-few housekeepers, it wasn’t able to accommodate as many early check-ins. “We end up having to hire people who we wouldn’t normally,” says Croman, who’s already put out feelers for the summer.
Applicants with no relevant experience are asked to come in for three-week trials, which gives Croman a chance to see if they’re cut out for the work—a mix of housekeeping and customer service. “It allows you to see the person’s work ethic, if they’re showing up on time, if they’re doing a good job,” she says.
The workforce challenges have been “top of mind for a while, and I don’t know if we see an end in sight,” says Quincy Hentzel, head of the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce. That said, it isn’t all bad. “Businesses are extremely appreciative of their good employees and working really hard on retention,” she says. “That’s wonderful.”
A tight labor market also means that employees can afford to be picky. At Wilbur’s chocolate shop, two store managers left last year because they had better prospects in administrative work. While the business managed to hire replacements, mounting payroll costs are weighing on profit margins. Pointing to a large, hand-painted chocolate Easter bunny in his factory, Wilbur shakes his head. “We probably make a lot of people happy,” he says, “but I’m not sure that we cover the bills.” —Jeanna Smialek
Marietta, Georgia: Casting a Wider Net
Population: 60,941
Unemployment rate: 3.7%
Average weekly wages: $1,139
Lanre Bakare, a 36-year-old Nigerian immigrant, was homeless and had little marketable work experience when he was accepted into a training program run by CobbWorks Inc., a federally funded nonprofit that matches workers and businesses in the construction, logistics, information technology, and health-care fields. Now he earns $40,000 annually as an analyst managing vendors and supplies at residential construction sites in Cobb County, Ga., and the surrounding area. Eleven months into the job, Bakare still marvels at his salaried status and is looking forward to that most dreaded of employment rituals: the performance review. “I’m really excited,” he says. “We’re going to talk about if they are going to increase my job, what are my possibilities.”
Lanre Bakare.PHOTOGRAPHER: JOHNATHON KELSO FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK
CobbWorks has been around since 2000 but has recently expanded its outreach, training people with spotty work histories or criminal backgrounds who employers wouldn’t have considered a few years ago. Companies can no longer afford to be as picky. Unemployment in Cobb County, whose seat is Marietta, a city of 61,000 about 20 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta, was 3.7 percent in December. Weekly wages in the area rose more slowly than the national average through the first three quarters of 2017, the latest figures show. Inflation, meanwhile, has been moving up relatively quickly in the Atlanta area, climbing 3.3 percent in February compared with the nation’s 2.2 percent.
Marietta’s biggest employer, hospital network WellStar Health System, says it’s not feeling the labor crunch because of a decade-long campaign to ensure its pay and benefits are competitive. Attrition at WellStar is below the national average for the sector, according to spokesman Keith Bowermaster. The city’s No. 2 employer, Lockheed Martin Corp., is relatively insulated from local labor trends because the market for aerospace engineering work is national.
But some smaller businesses in the area are scrambling. That’s particularly true in the Cobb Galleria and adjacent Cumberland Mall areas, a few miles south on I-75, where office buildings, hotels, stores, restaurants, and a new ballpark for the Atlanta Braves compete for workers. “We’ve had fast-food restaurants offering bonuses,” says Roger Tutterow, an economist at Kennesaw State University. He’s also seen signs that labor shortages are constraining certain industries, noting that the number of building permits issued last year was half what it was during the boom that preceded the housing bust, even though demand for new homes is running high.
Several Marietta companies report they’re improving benefits to hang on to employees and attract new ones. InfoMart Inc., a 137-person operation that performs background screenings for companies, began paying 100 percent of its employees’ health insurance premiums this year, up from 75 percent. It also rehabbed its office space to make it more “collaborative-looking,” says Senior Vice President Tim Gordon, who’s especially keen to attract millennials. InfoMart also allows its tech employees to work from home four out of five days a week.
Paul Lubertazzi.PHOTOGRAPHER: JOHNATHON KELSO FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK
Just outside the city limits, Gas South LLC, a natural gas retailer, raised its minimum wage to $15 an hour in late 2016 and now offers every employee—including those in its call center—a one-month paid sabbatical every five years on top of regular vacation time. It also pays its workers’ health insurance premiums and has equipped its call center employees so they can work from home. “We did some research into the cost of living and discovered that some of our people were really struggling,” says Chief Executive Officer Kevin Greiner. “With more money comes less stress. It helps us recruit and keep quality people.”
Paul’s Pot Pies is one of several storefronts lining Marietta’s well-appointed town square, which is outfitted with a gazebo, flowering trees, and boxes of blooming tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths. Its proprietor, Paul Lubertazzi, added $2 to the hourly pay of his minimum-wage workers eight months ago because he says he was afraid he’d lose them to other businesses. A pickup in sales of his frozen pastry pies, which cost $9 to $25, helped pay for the increase. But the cost of many of his ingredients, particularly vegetables, has risen too, which is why he plans to raise prices sometime this year: “I wanted to do it in January, but I’m holding off,” Lubertazzi says. “People do complain.” —Margaret Newkirk
Ames, Iowa: Building an Employee Pipeline
Population: 66,191
Unemployment rate: 1.5%
Average weekly wages: $833
“Join our team,” beckons the chyron in foot-tall red lettering outside the Taco John’s in Ames, Iowa. Across the street, a cactus-shaped sign at TacoTime declares that it, too, is hiring.
“Help wanted” signs are a common sight in Ames, which boasts the lowest unemployment rate in the nation—1.5 percent. From behind the beige laminate cashier counter of the Taco John’s, manager Justin Cornelius says this outpost of the Tex-Mex chain raised pay by 50¢ an hour in the fall. Still, turnover has increased, because workers have more options than they did a few years ago. Cornelius himself is a fill-in; he’s been on loan from a Des Moines restaurant since December. Usually, it takes four to six weeks to find a permanent manager. In Ames it’s been 10 weeks and counting.
Two miles north, at O’Donnell Ace Hardware, manager Tausha Tjernagel says her store has lifted wages every six months for the past year and a half. She’s now starting full-time workers with no experience at $11 an hour, well above the state’s $7.25 minimum. Even so, Tjernagel has had to ask employees to be flexible to fill holes in the schedule. Older part-timers who’d prefer a weekday morning shift are spending their Saturdays ringing up lawn fertilizer or stocking shelves with hammers and nails. But that’s better than letting checkout lines get longer, which is what several town residents say is happening at other retailers. Says Tjernagel: “We make it so that it’s not noticeable to our customers.”
Tausha Tjernagel.PHOTOGRAPHER: WALKER PICKERING FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK
Wait times aren’t the only pain a supercharged labor market is causing in this city of 66,000, home to the world’s largest gnome statue and Iowa State University. The school is Ames’s largest employer, as well as a magnet for companies across the Midwest that are fighting the region’s brain drain. Locals say prices haven’t been picking up rapidly, and inflation in the Midwest as a whole continues to run below 2 percent. Average weekly wages grew slightly faster than national wages through the first three quarters of 2017—though a separate data series on hourly earnings showed a pop in Ames in January, which is early evidence that faster gains may be materializing.
There are other signs the local economy is running hot. A home price index shot up 7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017. Kellie Mullaney, a career development adviser at Iowa State, recalls that when she and her husband bought their home three years ago, listings sold in a day: “It seemed like the price range we were in, everyone else was in, too.”
To get around the housing constraint, businesses are trying to make it easier for workers to commute in from elsewhere. Mary Greeley Medical Center—one of Ames’s largest employers—is working on setting up a ride-sharing program for employees who live in nearby Story City or Des Moines, where the unemployment rate is 2 percentage points higher.
The Ames Chamber of Commerce has been targeting the 6 percent of the local population that’s underemployed. It’s promoting a community college program in Des Moines that will train people, often at no charge, for jobs in advanced manufacturing. Staffers have been pushing it at local food banks and through local faith leaders, hoping to absorb any labor market slack.
Some companies are trying to snap up workers before they hit the job market. At Iowa State’s College of Engineering, internship postings by Ames companies rose 20 percent in 2017, far exceeding the 2 percent increase in postings overall, says Mullaney.
A collection of modern buildings perched in the middle of a former cornfield abutting the campus is a freshly built monument to employers’ growing desperation. Workiva Inc., a software company that’s referred to locally as the “Google of the Midwest,” expanded its presence in the research park in 2014, and John Deere & Co. opened a “strategic technology office” last year.
The lobby of Vermeer Corp.’s two-year-old office, where 3D-printed art displays hang on the wall opposite minimalist lounge chairs, looks more like a trendy hotel than the outpost of a manufacturer of heavy machinery for the agriculture, mining, and construction industries. Vermeer’s headquarters are more than an hour’s drive away, in Pella, Iowa, but the company enlarged its operation here in part because managers wanted to keep in touch with summer interns, who were getting recruited to other companies amid intense demand. “If we want the top talent, we have to be competitive,” says Sara Hunter, whose job is to build relationships between Vermeer and the university, while strolling through a massive warehouse where students can come to design test equipment. “That pipeline is key.” —Jeanna Smialek
Population figures as of July 1, 2016; Unemployment rates as of December 2017; Average wages as of 3Q 2017; Sources: Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Tuesday, March 20, 2018
Facebook's value plunges $37 billion on data controversy - CNN Money
Facebook's value plunges $37 billion on data controversy
by Chris Isidore @CNNMoney
March 20, 2018: 2:25 AM ET
Facebook shares took a big hit Monday, shaving about $37 billion off the value of the company.
The stock tumbled about 7% Monday on news that data firm Cambridge Analytica, which had ties to Trump's campaign, reportedly accessed information from about 50 million Facebook users. This is the stock's biggest drop, on a percentage basis, in four years.
Even after Monday's plunge, Facebook is still one of the nation's most valuable companies, with a market cap of about $500 billion. It's behind only Apple (AAPL), Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT) and about even with Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA).
Mark Zuckerberg holds about 400 million shares of Facebook (FB), and his net worth plunged by about $5 billion Monday afternoon. Shares closed the day down $12.53.
Of course even with the single-day drop the value of his holdings, Zuckerberg still owns about $70 billion worth of Facebook shares. That's enough to make him the sixth richest man in the world, according to Forbes' real-time billionaire tracker.
To put the dollar drop in context though, when Zuckerberg took Facebook public in 2012, the value of Zuckerberg's Facebook shares was about $19 billion. Facebook posted a drop of greater than 7% in a single day on seven different occasions in its early days of trading. But this is the biggest single-day slide ever in terms of dollar value for the stock.
The stock fell Monday after the Cambridge Analytica controversy prompted some outside observers to suggest that Facebooks should be more regulated. Some users have vowed to stop using Facebook and there are also questions about what the company will have to do to restore public trust in Facebook's commitment to privacy and data protection.
-- CNN's Paul La Monica, Patrick Gillespie, Matt Egan and Dylan Byers contributed to this report
by Chris Isidore @CNNMoney
March 20, 2018: 2:25 AM ET
Facebook shares took a big hit Monday, shaving about $37 billion off the value of the company.
The stock tumbled about 7% Monday on news that data firm Cambridge Analytica, which had ties to Trump's campaign, reportedly accessed information from about 50 million Facebook users. This is the stock's biggest drop, on a percentage basis, in four years.
Even after Monday's plunge, Facebook is still one of the nation's most valuable companies, with a market cap of about $500 billion. It's behind only Apple (AAPL), Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT) and about even with Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA).
Mark Zuckerberg holds about 400 million shares of Facebook (FB), and his net worth plunged by about $5 billion Monday afternoon. Shares closed the day down $12.53.
Of course even with the single-day drop the value of his holdings, Zuckerberg still owns about $70 billion worth of Facebook shares. That's enough to make him the sixth richest man in the world, according to Forbes' real-time billionaire tracker.
To put the dollar drop in context though, when Zuckerberg took Facebook public in 2012, the value of Zuckerberg's Facebook shares was about $19 billion. Facebook posted a drop of greater than 7% in a single day on seven different occasions in its early days of trading. But this is the biggest single-day slide ever in terms of dollar value for the stock.
The stock fell Monday after the Cambridge Analytica controversy prompted some outside observers to suggest that Facebooks should be more regulated. Some users have vowed to stop using Facebook and there are also questions about what the company will have to do to restore public trust in Facebook's commitment to privacy and data protection.
-- CNN's Paul La Monica, Patrick Gillespie, Matt Egan and Dylan Byers contributed to this report
CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA: FIRM OFFERED TO SECRETLY FILM POLITICIANS IN COMPROMISING SITUATIONS, INVESTIGATION FINDS - Independent
20/3/2018
INDYTECH
CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA: FIRM OFFERED TO SECRETLY FILM POLITICIANS IN COMPROMISING SITUATIONS, INVESTIGATION FINDS
Alexander Nix, chief executive of Cambridge Analytica (right) and Mark Turnbull, the managing director of Cambridge Analytica Political Global (left) / Channel 4 News
Chief executive offers to 'send some girls around to candidate’s house', adding Ukrainian girls 'are very beautiful, I find that works very well'
HARRIET AGERHOLM
@HarrietAgerholm
Senior executives at troubled data company firm Cambridge Analytica have been secretly filmed saying they can entrap politicians in compromising situations, a new investigation claims.
Chief executive Alexander Nix said the company could offer bribes and the services of sex workers to officials and use evidence of the interactions as leverage, according to the footage.
Cambridge Analytica is credited with helping Donald Trump win the US presidency and was employed by the Leave campaign during the UK’s referendum on EU membership.
Cambridge Analytica: Chris Wylie tells Channel 4 News data for 50 million Facebook profiles was obtained
The undercover footage, to be broadcast on Channel 4 on Monday night, comes after The Observer reported the firm illegally harvested 50 million Facebook profiles to target certain voters.
The films provide further insight into the apparent extent of the company’s power and how much sway over political systems the group seemed to believe they had.
When asked about finding damaging material on political opponents, Mr Nix was filmed saying the company could “send some girls around to the candidate’s house”, adding that Ukrainian girls “are very beautiful, I find that works very well”.
In another exchange in the footage, Mr Nix described how the company could bribe politicians and use evidence of the exchange against them. “We’ll offer a large amount of money to the candidate, to finance his campaign in exchange for land for instance, we’ll have the whole thing recorded, we’ll blank out the face of our guy and we post it on the internet,” he said.
The conversations were secretly filmed at a series of meetings at London hotels over four months, between November 2017 and January 2018, where an undercover reporter for Channel 4 News posed as a fixer for a wealthy client hoping to get candidates elected in Sri Lanka.
Facebook stock loses $25bn amid huge ‘data breach’ scandal
It has been alleged Mr Nix misled the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, which is now asking him to provide further information. He denies the claims.
Also in attendance at the meetings were Mark Turnbull, the managing director of Cambridge Analytica Political Global, and the company’s chief data officer, Dr Alex Tayler.
Mr Turnbull described how Cambridge Analytica could gather damaging material on opponents and discreetly post it on social media and the internet.
He said: “... we just put information into the bloodstream of the internet, and then, and then watch it grow, give it a little push every now and again… like a remote control. It has to happen without anyone thinking, ‘that’s propaganda’, because the moment you think ‘that’s propaganda’, the next question is, ‘who’s put that out?’”.
The executives were also filmed saying Cambridge Analytica and its parent company Strategic Communications Laboratories had worked on more than two hundred elections across the world, including in Nigeria, Kenya, the Czech Republic, India and Argentina.
On Monday, the Information Commissioner's Office announced it was seeking a warrant to raid Cambridge Analytica and seize the company's servers.
A Cambridge Analytica spokesman said: “We entirely refute any allegation that Cambridge Analytica or any of its affiliates use entrapment, bribes, or so-called ‘honey-traps’ for any purpose whatsoever.
“Cambridge Analytica does not use untrue material for any purpose.”
They also said opposition research and intelligence gathering were common and legitimate practices.
Donald Trump hires lawyer who accused FBI and Justice department of 'plot' to frame president - Independent
20/3/2018
Donald Trump hires lawyer who accused FBI and Justice department of 'plot' to frame president
I 'have full confidence that he will be a great asset in our representation of the President', says other Trump attorney Jay Sekulow
Alexandra Wilts Washington DC
Joseph E diGenova during a television interview in March 2016 C-Span
Donald Trump has hired a lawyer who accuses the FBI and Justice Department of trying to frame the president with false charges of colluding with the Russian government.
Joseph diGenova, a Washington lawyer and former US attorney for the District of Columbia, will join the legal team later this week, according to attorney Jay Sekulow, one of the president’s other personal lawyers.
“I have worked with Joe for many years and have full confidence that he will be a great asset in our representation of the President,” Mr Sekulow told the New York Times.
Ex-Trump aide says Mueller interview would be ‘fraught with peril’
Mr diGenova has pushed the theory that the Russia investigation is all just a “brazen plot” to frame Mr Trump.
“There was a brazen plot to illegally exonerate Hillary Clinton and, if she didn’t win the election, to then frame Donald Trump with a falsely created crime,” he said on Fox News in January. “Make no mistake about it: A group of FBI and DOJ people were trying to frame Donald Trump of a falsely created crime.”
Little evidence has emerged to support Mr diGenova’s theory.
The addition of Mr diGenova to Mr Trump’s legal team is another possible indicator that the President is working to discredit Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
Mr Mueller is attempting to figure out if Mr Trump’s campaign advisers coordinated with the Kremlin.
Robert Mueller has former FBI chief’s memos of interactions with Trump
Mueller reportedly issues subpoena to Trump Organization
Donald Trump ‘discussed Robert Mueller’s investigation with key witnes
Over the weekend, Mr Trump criticised the Russia investigation on Twitter, saying that it should not have been started because there was no collusion between his campaign and Russia.
“It was based on fraudulent activities and a Fake Dossier paid for by Crooked Hillary and the [Democratic National Committee], and improperly used in [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] COURT for surveillance of my campaign. WITCH HUNT!” Mr Trump tweeted, questioning the legitimacy of the investigation.
Donald Trump hires lawyer who accused FBI and Justice department of 'plot' to frame president
I 'have full confidence that he will be a great asset in our representation of the President', says other Trump attorney Jay Sekulow
Alexandra Wilts Washington DC
Joseph E diGenova during a television interview in March 2016 C-Span
Donald Trump has hired a lawyer who accuses the FBI and Justice Department of trying to frame the president with false charges of colluding with the Russian government.
Joseph diGenova, a Washington lawyer and former US attorney for the District of Columbia, will join the legal team later this week, according to attorney Jay Sekulow, one of the president’s other personal lawyers.
“I have worked with Joe for many years and have full confidence that he will be a great asset in our representation of the President,” Mr Sekulow told the New York Times.
Ex-Trump aide says Mueller interview would be ‘fraught with peril’
Mr diGenova has pushed the theory that the Russia investigation is all just a “brazen plot” to frame Mr Trump.
“There was a brazen plot to illegally exonerate Hillary Clinton and, if she didn’t win the election, to then frame Donald Trump with a falsely created crime,” he said on Fox News in January. “Make no mistake about it: A group of FBI and DOJ people were trying to frame Donald Trump of a falsely created crime.”
Little evidence has emerged to support Mr diGenova’s theory.
The addition of Mr diGenova to Mr Trump’s legal team is another possible indicator that the President is working to discredit Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
Mr Mueller is attempting to figure out if Mr Trump’s campaign advisers coordinated with the Kremlin.
Robert Mueller has former FBI chief’s memos of interactions with Trump
Mueller reportedly issues subpoena to Trump Organization
Donald Trump ‘discussed Robert Mueller’s investigation with key witnes
Over the weekend, Mr Trump criticised the Russia investigation on Twitter, saying that it should not have been started because there was no collusion between his campaign and Russia.
“It was based on fraudulent activities and a Fake Dossier paid for by Crooked Hillary and the [Democratic National Committee], and improperly used in [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] COURT for surveillance of my campaign. WITCH HUNT!” Mr Trump tweeted, questioning the legitimacy of the investigation.
Cambridge Analytica: Warrant sought to inspect company - BBC News
20/3/2018
Cambridge Analytica: Warrant sought to inspect company
Alexander Nix, CEO of Cambridge Analytica was filmed by undercover reporters for Channel 4 News
The UK's Information Commissioner says she will seek a warrant to look at the databases and servers used by British firm Cambridge Analytica.
The London-based company is accused of using the personal data of 50 million Facebook members to influence the US presidential election in 2016.
Its executives have also been filmed by Channel 4 News suggesting it could use honey traps and potentially bribery to discredit politicians.
The company denies any wrongdoing.
Fresh allegations
On Monday, Channel 4 News broadcast hidden camera footage in which Cambridge Analytica chief executive Alexander Nix appears to suggest tactics his company could use to discredit politicians online.
In the footage, asked what "deep digging" could be done, Mr Nix told an undercover reporter: "Oh, we do a lot more than that."
He suggested one way to target an individual was to "offer them a deal that's too good to be true and make sure that's video recorded".
He also said he could "send some girls around to the candidate's house..." adding that Ukrainian girls "are very beautiful, I find that works very well".
Mr Nix continued: "I'm just giving you examples of what can be done and what has been done."
Cambridge Analytica: The story so far
Facebook data sharing - time to act?
Channel 4 News said its reporter had posed as a fixer for a wealthy client hoping to get a political candidate elected in Sri Lanka.
However, Cambridge Analytica said the report had "grossly misrepresented" the conversations caught on camera.
"In playing along with this line of conversation, and partly to spare our 'client' from embarrassment, we entertained a series of ludicrous hypothetical scenarios," the company said in a statement.
"Cambridge Analytica does not condone or engage in entrapment, bribes or so-called 'honeytraps'," it said.
Media captionMr Nix spoke to BBC Newsnight before the Channel 4 report was aired on Monday night. He declined to be interviewed after the undercover footage was broadcast
Mr Nix told the BBC's Newsnight programme that he regarded the report as a "misrepresentation of the facts" and said he felt the firm had been "deliberately entrapped".
UK Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham is investigating Cambridge Analytica over claims it used personal data to influence the US presidential election.
Christopher Wylie, who worked with the company, claimed it amassed the data of millions of people through a personality quiz on Facebook that was created by an academic.
Investigation
Ms Denham demanded access to the firm's databases and servers after it missed her Monday deadline.
"I'm not accepting their response so therefore I'll be applying to the court for a warrant," she told Channel 4.
She said she wanted to understand how data was "processed or deleted by Cambridge Analytica".
'Violation'
Cambridge Analytica insists it followed the correct procedures in obtaining and using data, but it was suspended from Facebook last week.
Facebook, meanwhile, will hold an open meeting with its employees later to discuss the matter, tech news website The Verge is reporting.
Facebook said it has hired its own digital forensic team to audit Cambridge Analytica.
"This is part of a comprehensive internal and external review that we are conducting to determine the accuracy of the claims that the Facebook data in question still exists," the firm said.
Facebook's value falls $37bn amid backlash
Zuckerberg pressed to face breach concerns
"If this data still exists, it would be a grave violation of Facebook's policies and an unacceptable violation of trust and the commitments these groups made."
Facebook said Aleksandr Kogan, the creator of the personality app from which the data had been harvested, had agreed to be audited, but Mr Wylie - who made the claims about the way the data was gathered and used - had declined.
How to protect your data on Facebook
There are a few things to be aware of if you want to restrict who has access to your data.
Keep an eye on apps, especially those which require you to log in using your Facebook account - they often have a very wide range of permissions and many are specifically designed to pick up your data
Use an ad blocker to limit advertising
Look at your Facebook security settings and make sure you are aware of what is enabled. Check the individual app settings to see whether you have given them permission to view your friends as well as yourself.
You can download a copy of the data Facebook holds on you, although it is not comprehensive. There is a download button at the bottom of the General Account Settings tab. However bear in mind that your data may be less secure sitting on your laptop than it is on Facebook's servers, if your device is hacked.
You can of course, simply leave Facebook, but the campaign group Privacy International warns that privacy concerns extend beyond the social network.
"The current focus is on protecting your data being exploited by third parties, but your data is being exploited all the time," said a spokeswoman.
"Many apps on your phone will have permission to access location data, your entire phone book and so on. It is just the tip of the iceberg."
Cambridge Analytica: Warrant sought to inspect company
Alexander Nix, CEO of Cambridge Analytica was filmed by undercover reporters for Channel 4 News
The UK's Information Commissioner says she will seek a warrant to look at the databases and servers used by British firm Cambridge Analytica.
The London-based company is accused of using the personal data of 50 million Facebook members to influence the US presidential election in 2016.
Its executives have also been filmed by Channel 4 News suggesting it could use honey traps and potentially bribery to discredit politicians.
The company denies any wrongdoing.
Fresh allegations
On Monday, Channel 4 News broadcast hidden camera footage in which Cambridge Analytica chief executive Alexander Nix appears to suggest tactics his company could use to discredit politicians online.
In the footage, asked what "deep digging" could be done, Mr Nix told an undercover reporter: "Oh, we do a lot more than that."
He suggested one way to target an individual was to "offer them a deal that's too good to be true and make sure that's video recorded".
He also said he could "send some girls around to the candidate's house..." adding that Ukrainian girls "are very beautiful, I find that works very well".
Mr Nix continued: "I'm just giving you examples of what can be done and what has been done."
Cambridge Analytica: The story so far
Facebook data sharing - time to act?
Channel 4 News said its reporter had posed as a fixer for a wealthy client hoping to get a political candidate elected in Sri Lanka.
However, Cambridge Analytica said the report had "grossly misrepresented" the conversations caught on camera.
"In playing along with this line of conversation, and partly to spare our 'client' from embarrassment, we entertained a series of ludicrous hypothetical scenarios," the company said in a statement.
"Cambridge Analytica does not condone or engage in entrapment, bribes or so-called 'honeytraps'," it said.
Media captionMr Nix spoke to BBC Newsnight before the Channel 4 report was aired on Monday night. He declined to be interviewed after the undercover footage was broadcast
Mr Nix told the BBC's Newsnight programme that he regarded the report as a "misrepresentation of the facts" and said he felt the firm had been "deliberately entrapped".
UK Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham is investigating Cambridge Analytica over claims it used personal data to influence the US presidential election.
Christopher Wylie, who worked with the company, claimed it amassed the data of millions of people through a personality quiz on Facebook that was created by an academic.
Investigation
Ms Denham demanded access to the firm's databases and servers after it missed her Monday deadline.
"I'm not accepting their response so therefore I'll be applying to the court for a warrant," she told Channel 4.
She said she wanted to understand how data was "processed or deleted by Cambridge Analytica".
'Violation'
Cambridge Analytica insists it followed the correct procedures in obtaining and using data, but it was suspended from Facebook last week.
Facebook, meanwhile, will hold an open meeting with its employees later to discuss the matter, tech news website The Verge is reporting.
Facebook said it has hired its own digital forensic team to audit Cambridge Analytica.
"This is part of a comprehensive internal and external review that we are conducting to determine the accuracy of the claims that the Facebook data in question still exists," the firm said.
Facebook's value falls $37bn amid backlash
Zuckerberg pressed to face breach concerns
"If this data still exists, it would be a grave violation of Facebook's policies and an unacceptable violation of trust and the commitments these groups made."
Facebook said Aleksandr Kogan, the creator of the personality app from which the data had been harvested, had agreed to be audited, but Mr Wylie - who made the claims about the way the data was gathered and used - had declined.
How to protect your data on Facebook
There are a few things to be aware of if you want to restrict who has access to your data.
Keep an eye on apps, especially those which require you to log in using your Facebook account - they often have a very wide range of permissions and many are specifically designed to pick up your data
Use an ad blocker to limit advertising
Look at your Facebook security settings and make sure you are aware of what is enabled. Check the individual app settings to see whether you have given them permission to view your friends as well as yourself.
You can download a copy of the data Facebook holds on you, although it is not comprehensive. There is a download button at the bottom of the General Account Settings tab. However bear in mind that your data may be less secure sitting on your laptop than it is on Facebook's servers, if your device is hacked.
You can of course, simply leave Facebook, but the campaign group Privacy International warns that privacy concerns extend beyond the social network.
"The current focus is on protecting your data being exploited by third parties, but your data is being exploited all the time," said a spokeswoman.
"Many apps on your phone will have permission to access location data, your entire phone book and so on. It is just the tip of the iceberg."
Cambridge Analytica: The story so far - BBC News
20/3/2018
Cambridge Analytica: The story so far
By Zoe Kleinman
Technology reporter, BBC News
It's a sensational story containing allegations of sleaze, psychological manipulation and data misuse that has provoked an internationally furious response.
Tech giant Facebook and data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica are at the centre of a dispute over the harvesting and use of personal data - and whether it was used to influence the outcome of the US 2016 presidential election or the UK Brexit referendum.
Both firms deny any wrongdoing.
How has Cambridge Analytica been accused of sleazy tactics?
Channel 4 News sent an undercover reporter to meet executives from data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica.
The firm had been credited with helping Donald Trump to presidential victory.
The reporter posed as a Sri Lankan businessman wanting to influence a local election.
Cambridge Analytica boss Alexander Nix was apparently filmed giving examples of how his firm could discredit political rivals by arranging various smear campaigns, including setting up encounters with prostitutes and staging situations in which apparent bribery could be caught on camera.
Alexander Nix, CEO, Cambridge Analytica: "These sort of tactics are very effective"
The firm denies all the claims and says the documentary was "edited and scripted to grossly represent the nature of those conversations". It claims the conversations were led by the reporters.
"I must emphatically state that Cambridge Analytica does not condone or engage in entrapment, bribes or so-called 'honeytraps', and nor does it use untrue material for any purpose," said Mr Nix.
What was Facebook's role?
In 2014 a quiz on Facebook invited users to find out their personality type.
It was developed by University of Cambridge academic Aleksandr Kogan (the university has no connections with Cambridge Analytica).
As was common with apps and games at that time, it was designed to harvest not only the user data of the person taking part in the quiz, but also the data of their friends.
Facebook has since changed the amount of data developers can scrape in this way.
Christopher Wylie, who worked with Cambridge Analytica, alleges that because 270,000 people took the quiz, the data of some 50 million users, mainly in the US, was harvested without their explicit consent via their friend networks.
Mr Wylie claims the data was sold to Cambridge Analytica, which then used it to psychologically profile people and deliver pro-Trump material to them.
Cambridge Analytica denies any of it was used as part of the services it provided to the Trump campaign.
Is this against Facebook's terms?
The data was gathered using Facebook's infrastructure at that time, and many other developers had taken advantage of it - but the data was not authorised for them to share with others.
The other key point is that even the people directly taking part in the personality quiz would have had no idea that they were potentially sharing their data with Donald Trump's election campaign.
Facebook say when they learned their rules had been breached, they removed the app and demanded assurances that the information had been deleted.
Cambridge Analytica claims that it never used the data, and deleted it when Facebook told it to.
Both Facebook and the UK Information Commissioner want to find out whether it was properly destroyed, as Mr Wylie claims it was not.
What has the official response been?
There are calls for Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to testify before Congress
US senators have called on Mark Zuckerberg to testify before Congress about how Facebook will protect users.
The head of the European Parliament said it would investigate to see if the data was misused.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said she was "very concerned" about the revelations.
How can you protect your data?
There are a few things to be aware of if you want to restrict who has access to your data.
Keep an eye on apps, especially those which require you to log in using your Facebook account - they often have a very wide range of permissions and many are specifically designed to pick up your data
Use an ad blocker to limit advertising
Look at your Facebook security settings and make sure you are aware of what is enabled. Check the individual app settings to see whether you have given them permission to view your friends as well as yourself.
You can download a copy of the data Facebook holds on you, although it is not comprehensive. There is a download button at the bottom of the General Account Settings tab. However bear in mind that your data may be less secure sitting on your laptop than it is on Facebook's servers, if your device is hacked.
You can of course, simply leave Facebook, but the campaign group Privacy International warns that privacy concerns extend beyond the social network.
"The current focus is on protecting your data being exploited by third parties, but your data is being exploited all the time," said a spokeswoman.
"Many apps on your phone will have permission to access location data, your entire phone book and so on. It is just the tip of the iceberg."
Cambridge Analytica: The story so far
By Zoe Kleinman
Technology reporter, BBC News
It's a sensational story containing allegations of sleaze, psychological manipulation and data misuse that has provoked an internationally furious response.
Tech giant Facebook and data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica are at the centre of a dispute over the harvesting and use of personal data - and whether it was used to influence the outcome of the US 2016 presidential election or the UK Brexit referendum.
Both firms deny any wrongdoing.
How has Cambridge Analytica been accused of sleazy tactics?
Channel 4 News sent an undercover reporter to meet executives from data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica.
The firm had been credited with helping Donald Trump to presidential victory.
The reporter posed as a Sri Lankan businessman wanting to influence a local election.
Cambridge Analytica boss Alexander Nix was apparently filmed giving examples of how his firm could discredit political rivals by arranging various smear campaigns, including setting up encounters with prostitutes and staging situations in which apparent bribery could be caught on camera.
Alexander Nix, CEO, Cambridge Analytica: "These sort of tactics are very effective"
The firm denies all the claims and says the documentary was "edited and scripted to grossly represent the nature of those conversations". It claims the conversations were led by the reporters.
"I must emphatically state that Cambridge Analytica does not condone or engage in entrapment, bribes or so-called 'honeytraps', and nor does it use untrue material for any purpose," said Mr Nix.
What was Facebook's role?
In 2014 a quiz on Facebook invited users to find out their personality type.
It was developed by University of Cambridge academic Aleksandr Kogan (the university has no connections with Cambridge Analytica).
As was common with apps and games at that time, it was designed to harvest not only the user data of the person taking part in the quiz, but also the data of their friends.
Facebook has since changed the amount of data developers can scrape in this way.
Christopher Wylie, who worked with Cambridge Analytica, alleges that because 270,000 people took the quiz, the data of some 50 million users, mainly in the US, was harvested without their explicit consent via their friend networks.
Mr Wylie claims the data was sold to Cambridge Analytica, which then used it to psychologically profile people and deliver pro-Trump material to them.
Cambridge Analytica denies any of it was used as part of the services it provided to the Trump campaign.
Is this against Facebook's terms?
The data was gathered using Facebook's infrastructure at that time, and many other developers had taken advantage of it - but the data was not authorised for them to share with others.
The other key point is that even the people directly taking part in the personality quiz would have had no idea that they were potentially sharing their data with Donald Trump's election campaign.
Facebook say when they learned their rules had been breached, they removed the app and demanded assurances that the information had been deleted.
Cambridge Analytica claims that it never used the data, and deleted it when Facebook told it to.
Both Facebook and the UK Information Commissioner want to find out whether it was properly destroyed, as Mr Wylie claims it was not.
What has the official response been?
There are calls for Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to testify before Congress
US senators have called on Mark Zuckerberg to testify before Congress about how Facebook will protect users.
The head of the European Parliament said it would investigate to see if the data was misused.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said she was "very concerned" about the revelations.
How can you protect your data?
There are a few things to be aware of if you want to restrict who has access to your data.
Keep an eye on apps, especially those which require you to log in using your Facebook account - they often have a very wide range of permissions and many are specifically designed to pick up your data
Use an ad blocker to limit advertising
Look at your Facebook security settings and make sure you are aware of what is enabled. Check the individual app settings to see whether you have given them permission to view your friends as well as yourself.
You can download a copy of the data Facebook holds on you, although it is not comprehensive. There is a download button at the bottom of the General Account Settings tab. However bear in mind that your data may be less secure sitting on your laptop than it is on Facebook's servers, if your device is hacked.
You can of course, simply leave Facebook, but the campaign group Privacy International warns that privacy concerns extend beyond the social network.
"The current focus is on protecting your data being exploited by third parties, but your data is being exploited all the time," said a spokeswoman.
"Many apps on your phone will have permission to access location data, your entire phone book and so on. It is just the tip of the iceberg."
Monday, March 19, 2018
The UK and EU agree terms for Brexit transition period - BBC News
20/3/2018
The UK and EU agree terms for Brexit transition period
The UK and EU have agreed on a "large part" of the agreement that will lead to the "orderly withdrawal" of the UK.
Brexit negotiators Michel Barnier and David Davis said they had agreed terms for a transition period, calling the announcement a "decisive step".
But issues still to be resolved include the Northern Ireland border.
The transitional period is set to last from 29 March, 2019 to December 2020, and is intended to smooth the path to a future permanent relationship.
Mr Barnier said there was also an agreement on the rights of 4.5m EU citizens in the UK and the 1.2m UK citizens in the EU after Brexit, including giving EU citizens arriving in the UK during the transition the same rights and guarantees as those who arrive before Brexit.
Laura Kuenssberg: Done deal but work ahead
Brexit: All you need to know
The proposed deal will include an emergency "backstop" option to avoid a hard border that would allow Northern Ireland to stay in the single market and the customs union - a move which Theresa May had opposed.
The UK will also be able to negotiate and sign trade deals during the transition period.
BBC Breaking News
✔
@BBCBreaking
EU's negotiator Michel Barnier hails "decisive step" towards UK's orderly withdrawal from EU http://bbc.in/2FRRZag
11:04 PM - Mar 19, 2018
Both the UK and the EU hope the terms of an agreement on the transitional period can be signed off by Theresa May's fellow leaders at the EU summit this week.
Mr Barnier said the new draft legal text marks a "decisive step" but added that it was "not the end of the road".
Mr Davis said the move provided further certainty for businesses and included safeguards for fishing quotas during the transition period.
"We must seize the moment and carry on the momentum of the last few weeks," he said.
"The deal today should give us confidence that a good deal for the UK and EU is closer than ever before."
Labour's shadow Brexit secretary Keir Starmer MP welcomed the transition deal, calling it "a step in the right direction".
'Extend transition' call divides MPs
What is the Brexit 'transition' phase?
"It is welcome that they have finally struck a deal on transition and now the government must prioritise negotiating a final agreement that protects jobs, the economy and guarantees there will be no hard border in Northern Ireland," he said.
But Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen's Federation, said the agreement for fishing during the implementation period fell "far short of an acceptable deal".
"We will leave the EU and leave the Common Fisheries Policy, but hand back sovereignty over our seas a few seconds later," he said. "Our fishing communities' fortunes will still be subject to the whim and largesse of the EU for another two years."
Skip Twitter post by @daily_politics
BBC Daily Politics and Sunday Politics
✔
@daily_politics
“When the giddiness dies down in Brussels, what happens next?” @jo_coburn asks @adamfleming about the future status of UK-EU Brexit agreement document, which was revealed on Monday morning #bbcdp
11:32 PM - Mar 19, 2018
See BBC Daily Politics and Sunday Politics's other Tweets
Among other issues the two sides have had to negotiate for the transition period have been what role the European Court of Justice has in the UK, whether the UK can negotiate future trade deals with non-EU countries as well as the continuing issues of Gibraltar post-Brexit.
The current proposal includes the emergency "backstop" to avoid a hard border in Ireland which BBC Europe editor Katya Adler said was "something Theresa May said no UK PM could sign up to".
The UK and EU hope that if a transition deal is agreed negotiations can focus on what sort of permanent future relationship the UK and EU will have - with the aim of a deal being agreed in the autumn to allow time for EU member states and the UK Parliament to ratify it before Brexit next March.
The UK and EU agree terms for Brexit transition period
The UK and EU have agreed on a "large part" of the agreement that will lead to the "orderly withdrawal" of the UK.
Brexit negotiators Michel Barnier and David Davis said they had agreed terms for a transition period, calling the announcement a "decisive step".
But issues still to be resolved include the Northern Ireland border.
The transitional period is set to last from 29 March, 2019 to December 2020, and is intended to smooth the path to a future permanent relationship.
Mr Barnier said there was also an agreement on the rights of 4.5m EU citizens in the UK and the 1.2m UK citizens in the EU after Brexit, including giving EU citizens arriving in the UK during the transition the same rights and guarantees as those who arrive before Brexit.
Laura Kuenssberg: Done deal but work ahead
Brexit: All you need to know
The proposed deal will include an emergency "backstop" option to avoid a hard border that would allow Northern Ireland to stay in the single market and the customs union - a move which Theresa May had opposed.
The UK will also be able to negotiate and sign trade deals during the transition period.
BBC Breaking News
✔
@BBCBreaking
EU's negotiator Michel Barnier hails "decisive step" towards UK's orderly withdrawal from EU http://bbc.in/2FRRZag
11:04 PM - Mar 19, 2018
Both the UK and the EU hope the terms of an agreement on the transitional period can be signed off by Theresa May's fellow leaders at the EU summit this week.
Mr Barnier said the new draft legal text marks a "decisive step" but added that it was "not the end of the road".
Mr Davis said the move provided further certainty for businesses and included safeguards for fishing quotas during the transition period.
"We must seize the moment and carry on the momentum of the last few weeks," he said.
"The deal today should give us confidence that a good deal for the UK and EU is closer than ever before."
Labour's shadow Brexit secretary Keir Starmer MP welcomed the transition deal, calling it "a step in the right direction".
'Extend transition' call divides MPs
What is the Brexit 'transition' phase?
"It is welcome that they have finally struck a deal on transition and now the government must prioritise negotiating a final agreement that protects jobs, the economy and guarantees there will be no hard border in Northern Ireland," he said.
But Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen's Federation, said the agreement for fishing during the implementation period fell "far short of an acceptable deal".
"We will leave the EU and leave the Common Fisheries Policy, but hand back sovereignty over our seas a few seconds later," he said. "Our fishing communities' fortunes will still be subject to the whim and largesse of the EU for another two years."
Skip Twitter post by @daily_politics
BBC Daily Politics and Sunday Politics
✔
@daily_politics
“When the giddiness dies down in Brussels, what happens next?” @jo_coburn asks @adamfleming about the future status of UK-EU Brexit agreement document, which was revealed on Monday morning #bbcdp
11:32 PM - Mar 19, 2018
See BBC Daily Politics and Sunday Politics's other Tweets
Among other issues the two sides have had to negotiate for the transition period have been what role the European Court of Justice has in the UK, whether the UK can negotiate future trade deals with non-EU countries as well as the continuing issues of Gibraltar post-Brexit.
The current proposal includes the emergency "backstop" to avoid a hard border in Ireland which BBC Europe editor Katya Adler said was "something Theresa May said no UK PM could sign up to".
The UK and EU hope that if a transition deal is agreed negotiations can focus on what sort of permanent future relationship the UK and EU will have - with the aim of a deal being agreed in the autumn to allow time for EU member states and the UK Parliament to ratify it before Brexit next March.
Putin's defeated presidential rivals claim he falsely DOUBLED his share of the vote in rigged election - Daily Mail
'Russia is turning into North Korea': Putin's defeated presidential rivals claim he falsely DOUBLED his share of the vote in rigged election
Vladimir Putin officially won Sunday's election with 77 per cent of the vote
But his political opponents say his real level of support is around 40 per cent
Putin was accused of trying to turn Russia into a dictatorship like North Korea
CCTV captured ballot boxes in Moscow being stuffed with voting slips
By WILL STEWART IN MOSCOW FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 20:08 AEDT, 19 March 2018 | UPDATED: 20:25 AEDT, 19 March 2018
Vladimir Putin has been accused of fraudulently doubling his vote share in the dirtiest election since the fall of the Soviet Union.
The Russian strongman won Sunday's election with a reported 77 per cent of the vote on a 67 per cent turnout, his best result in four elections which grants him another six years in power.
But his political opponents have accused him of using blatantly dishonest tactics amid video evidence of ballot boxes being stuffed, claims of goons waiting at polling stations, and other irregularities in voting data.
Vladimir Zhirinovsky, a political opponent of Vladimir Putin, has said the strongman fraudulently doubled his share of the vote in Sunday's election +10
Vladimir Zhirinovsky, a political opponent of Vladimir Putin, has said the strongman fraudulently doubled his share of the vote in Sunday's election
Pavel Grudinin (left) called the ballot the 'dirtiest' since the Soviet Union collapsed, while Grigory Yavlinsky (right) insisted the country was moving toward a 'dangerous abyss'
Putin officially received 77 per cent of the vote on a 67 per cent turnout, but that comes amid video evidence of ballot boxes being stuffed and other irregularities +10
Putin officially received 77 per cent of the vote on a 67 per cent turnout, but that comes amid video evidence of ballot boxes being stuffed and other irregularities
Ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky - who came third - said rigging was so great that Putin's real level of support in a free poll would be no more than 40 per cent.
Communist candidate and runner-up Pavel Grudinin said the poll was 'dishonest' and 'the dirtiest' since the Soviet Union collapsed.
'Regretfully, [opposition politician Alexei] Navalny was right. One can vote two or three times, and there are such examples in Moscow region.'
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Navalny - seen as the biggest threat to Putin - was banned from standing but his calls for a boycott of the election flopped if the turnout figure is accurate.
The independent mayor of Yekaterinburg Yevgeny Roizman warned of a lurch towards authoritarianism with Putin back in the Kremin.
'The quality of life will get progressively worse,' he said.
'But each new election turnout will be higher, the president's rating will keep rising — and North Korea will grow closer and closer.'
Zhirinovsky - aged 71 and a veteran of six presidential elections - said: 'There is no democracy [in Russia], there is no competition.
Ksenia Sobchak, the only female election candidate, said her supporters had been arrested and her campaign intimidated during the election +10
Ksenia Sobchak, the only female election candidate, said her supporters had been arrested and her campaign intimidated during the election
Mayor of Yekaterinburg Yevgeny Roizman warned that Russia is turning into North Korea as memes began circulating of Putin superimposed on to the body of Kim Jong-un (left) and showing him as a Tsar (right)
'[There is] just one candidate from the Kremlin and all others are 'pugs'.
'In reality, Putin should have a lesser percentage.'
His genuine figure in a free European-style election would be 'no more than 40 per cent', he insisted.
The only female candidate, TV presenter Ksenia Sobchak, said sarcastically: 'I do acknowledge that today Putin enjoys majority support, secured by various methods.'
She described a 'dirty campaign…particularly…the arrests of our supporters in various cities, as well as attempts at intimidating us.'
Another veteran candidate trounced in the poll, liberal Grigory Yavlinsky, insisted it was not a 'real election'.
'The county is moving to a dangerous abyss, bad times are ahead and there are fewer opportunities to change this,' he warned.
Critics looked at the results in Chechnya - where almost 92 per cent were reported to have backed Putin - as evidence is suspicious results.
Putin won the same percentage in Tuva, home region of loyalist defence minister Sergei Shoigu in Siberia.
Putin is now poised to shake-up his regime after his election landslide, with lacklustre premier Dmitry Medvedev tipped for the axe by the scheduled 7 May inauguration date.
Video playing bottom right...
The latest result is officially Putin's best in four elections, meaning he will end his political career on a high note unless he changes the constitution so he can run again +10
The latest result is officially Putin's best in four elections, meaning he will end his political career on a high note unless he changes the constitution so he can run again
CCTV captured ballot boxes being stuffed with filled-in votes in one district of Moscow +10
CCTV captured ballot boxes being stuffed with filled-in votes in one district of Moscow
In another Moscow district and election official was also seen filled a ballot box with votes +10
In another Moscow district and election official was also seen filled a ballot box with votes
Veteran foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, who led the charge against Britain in the current nerve agent spy scandal, is also set to depart.
Putin - who will be 71 if he completes a full term - is seen as wanting to revitalise his regime by propelling younger cadres into power and grooming an ultra-loyal successor to protect himself from corruption charges in his retirement.
The Russian constitution bans Putin from standing for election again, unless he changes the rules.
Memes of the all-powerful Putin went wild on Russian social media - mocking him as a tsar-for-life, and morphing into Soviet-era stagnation ruler Leonid Brezhnev - or Kim Jong-un.
Putin's supporters hailed the result and claimed it showed Britain's attempts to interfere with the poll - by exploiting the Salisbury nerve agent poisoning - had spectacularly failed.
Valentina Matviyenko - speaker of the Russian upper house of parliament - hit out at the 'brazen and cynical interference in Russia's internal affairs'.
She wanted this 'will not be left unnoticed', making clear she was referring to the West.
'We faced a really powerful Russophobic information, political and economic pressure on the country, which was expected to influence the attitudes of people,' she said.
The aim was to force people to boycott the poll or vote against Putin, she indicated.
'We proved once again that one cannot speak the language of ultimatums with our country,' said Matviyenko.
'The opposite happened. People got united … and the fact that more people came to polling stations than at the previous election is the main sign.'
Putin in his victory speech said the outcome showed the 'confidence and hope' of the Russian people.
Hinting at changes, he said: 'Our thoughts will turn to the future of our great country -and the future of our children.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5517417/Putin-rivals-claim-falsely-DOUBLED-vote-Russias-election.html#ixzz5ABx0L7hq
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Does China Produce More Competent Leaders Than America? - Huff Post ( source : Associated Press )
13/3/2018
Does China Produce More Competent Leaders Than America?
By Daniel A. Bell
ASSOCIATED PRESS
This piece is adapted from Daniel A. Bell’s new book, “The China Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy,” Princeton University Press.
BEIJING — Do the meritocratic features of the China model produce more competent leaders than democratic elections in America? In key ways, this seems certainly true.
Political meritocracy has a long history in China. Its modern incarnation dates from the post-Mao reform era. Following the chaos of the Cultural Revolution, China’s leaders decided that public officials should have the managerial skills, professional knowledge and broad understanding of China and the world necessary to lead the country to full modernity and global prominence. Hence, party leaders emphasized that the selection and promotion of cadres should be based on expertise rather than revolutionary energy.
The government established (reimposed) a competitive national university entrance examination system in the late 1970s, and the first step for most officials is to be admitted to university. Then they must be admitted to the party — students compete fiercely to join the party, and usually the party selects students with high academic achievement and leadership qualities, preferably from elite universities. In the early 1990s, the government established nationwide ultracompetitive public service examinations (including written and oral tests), and today most aspiring officials must succeed at these examinations after they graduate from university.
There is more emphasis on technical competence for appointment to posts in the government system compared to recruitment for positions in the Communist Party hierarchy, but there are not separate tracks for professional civil servants and political officials, and appointment to posts for successful candidates depends on level of education and experience.
The most important provisions for the management of cadres above the county/division level (xianchu ji) are contained in the “Regulation on Selection and Appointment of Party and Government Leading Cadres“ issued in 2002 by the CCP Organization Department. There are requirements of education and experience for appointment and promotion to political posts; generally, the higher the level, the more demanding the requirements.
To be promoted to leading party and government posts at the section (village) head level, officials must have at least a college diploma and have worked at a deputy post for more than two years. To be promoted to posts higher than the county (division) level, candidates must have held at least two positions at lower level organs, and candidates who are promoted from deputy to head generally must have worked at the deputy post for more than two years.
Leading cadres at the bureau level (ju, si, ting) or above should have at least a bachelor’s degree. Once a year, the Organization Department reviews quantitative performance records for each official in the higher grades, carries out interviews with superiors, peers and subordinates, vets the official’s personal conduct and uses public opinion surveys to assess the public’s general satisfaction or dissatisfaction with that official’s performance. Committees then discuss the data and promote the winners.
Getting to the Top Takes Decades
To get to the top, party officials must typically start from leadership at a primary level office and then be promoted successively to the township level, a county division, a department bureau and the province/ministry level. A public official aiming to reach the position of vice-minister has to be promoted from senior member to deputy section chief, section chief, division chief, deputy division chief, division chief, deputy bureau chief, bureau chief and vice-minister. If one meets the minimum length of service at each rank, one needs at least 20 years to reach the position of vice-minister.
During this process, officials are typically rotated through the civil service, state-owned enterprises, and government-affiliated social organizations such as universities and community groups, as well as serving in different parts of the country. The top candidates are sent for further training at party and administrative schools in China, and many promising officials are sent to top universities abroad to learn best administrative practices from around the world.
“Out of seven million leading cadres, only one out of 140,000 makes it to the province/ministry level.”
Out of seven million leading cadres, only one out of 140,000 makes it to the province/ministry level. A select few move up the ranks and make it to the party’s Central Committee and then the 25 member Politburo. The members at the very apex of political power — the Standing Committee of the Politburo — must normally have served as governors or party secretaries of two provinces, each the size and population of most countries.
In short, top leaders must pass through a battery of merit-based tests and accumulate decades of extensive and diverse administrative experience. In contrast, as Eric X. Li puts it, “a person with Barack Obama’s pre-presidential professional experience would not even be the manager of a small county in China’s system.” Notwithstanding its importance for understanding China’s reforms and future political prospects, political meritocracy is perhaps the least-studied aspect of the China model.
This process of meritocratic selection at the top fits within the broader frame of the “three planks” of the Chinese model. The other planks are democracy at the bottom and experimentation in the middle.
This three-plank model points to different ways of selecting and promoting leaders at different levels of government. Each combines elements of the other.
Democracy at the Bottom
The first plank — democracy at the bottom — includes elements of the other planks of experimentation and meritocracy. Electoral democracy at the bottom started off as an experiment in selected villages before it was generalized to the rest of the country; and there is a meritocratic check on the system in the form of a party secretary at the village level appointed from above who is often more educated than elected leaders and has the task of trying to ensure the implementation of Beijing-driven policies that may be unpopular, such as birth control and land acquisition.
Experimentation in the Middle
The second plank — experimentation in the middle — includes forms of democracy and meritocracy: there have been democratic elections in selected townships in Sichuan province and experiments with democratic practices such as public opinion polling as part of the evaluation process for cadres at higher levels of government; and meritocratically selected leaders at the top often decide which experiments to carry out and which ones should be generalized to other parts of the country.
The third plank — meritocracy at the top — also includes forms of democracy and experimentation: there has been increased use of democratic practices such as contested intraparty balloting to select and promote leaders at high levels of government; meritocratic practices such as open and competitive examinations for public officials started as pilot projects in certain provinces and central administrative organs in the late 1980s before they were spread to the rest of the country, and there has even been experimentation with different practices and institutions at the very top, such as varying the number of spots on the Standing Committee of the Politburo to suit different needs at different times.
“The higher the level of government, the more meritocratic the political system.”
Overall, however, political reform over the past three decades has been informed by commitment to the general principles of the China model: the lower the level of government, the more democratic the political system; experimentation is more likely to take place, including experiments with brand new practices and institutions, in between the lowest and highest levels of government; and the higher the level of government, the more meritocratic the political system.
This system of vertical democratic meritocracy is, in my view, the best way of reconciling political meritocracy and electoral democracy in a large country, although I believe the time will come when it will have to be put to a referendum to boost its legitimacy.
With all the issues we know — the tendency toward cronyism and corruption above all — there clearly remains a large gap between the ideal and the reality of political meritocracy in China. But it is possible, and desirable, to substantially reduce that gap without introducing electoral democracy at the top.
Does China Produce More Competent Leaders Than America?
By Daniel A. Bell
ASSOCIATED PRESS
This piece is adapted from Daniel A. Bell’s new book, “The China Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy,” Princeton University Press.
BEIJING — Do the meritocratic features of the China model produce more competent leaders than democratic elections in America? In key ways, this seems certainly true.
Political meritocracy has a long history in China. Its modern incarnation dates from the post-Mao reform era. Following the chaos of the Cultural Revolution, China’s leaders decided that public officials should have the managerial skills, professional knowledge and broad understanding of China and the world necessary to lead the country to full modernity and global prominence. Hence, party leaders emphasized that the selection and promotion of cadres should be based on expertise rather than revolutionary energy.
The government established (reimposed) a competitive national university entrance examination system in the late 1970s, and the first step for most officials is to be admitted to university. Then they must be admitted to the party — students compete fiercely to join the party, and usually the party selects students with high academic achievement and leadership qualities, preferably from elite universities. In the early 1990s, the government established nationwide ultracompetitive public service examinations (including written and oral tests), and today most aspiring officials must succeed at these examinations after they graduate from university.
There is more emphasis on technical competence for appointment to posts in the government system compared to recruitment for positions in the Communist Party hierarchy, but there are not separate tracks for professional civil servants and political officials, and appointment to posts for successful candidates depends on level of education and experience.
The most important provisions for the management of cadres above the county/division level (xianchu ji) are contained in the “Regulation on Selection and Appointment of Party and Government Leading Cadres“ issued in 2002 by the CCP Organization Department. There are requirements of education and experience for appointment and promotion to political posts; generally, the higher the level, the more demanding the requirements.
To be promoted to leading party and government posts at the section (village) head level, officials must have at least a college diploma and have worked at a deputy post for more than two years. To be promoted to posts higher than the county (division) level, candidates must have held at least two positions at lower level organs, and candidates who are promoted from deputy to head generally must have worked at the deputy post for more than two years.
Leading cadres at the bureau level (ju, si, ting) or above should have at least a bachelor’s degree. Once a year, the Organization Department reviews quantitative performance records for each official in the higher grades, carries out interviews with superiors, peers and subordinates, vets the official’s personal conduct and uses public opinion surveys to assess the public’s general satisfaction or dissatisfaction with that official’s performance. Committees then discuss the data and promote the winners.
Getting to the Top Takes Decades
To get to the top, party officials must typically start from leadership at a primary level office and then be promoted successively to the township level, a county division, a department bureau and the province/ministry level. A public official aiming to reach the position of vice-minister has to be promoted from senior member to deputy section chief, section chief, division chief, deputy division chief, division chief, deputy bureau chief, bureau chief and vice-minister. If one meets the minimum length of service at each rank, one needs at least 20 years to reach the position of vice-minister.
During this process, officials are typically rotated through the civil service, state-owned enterprises, and government-affiliated social organizations such as universities and community groups, as well as serving in different parts of the country. The top candidates are sent for further training at party and administrative schools in China, and many promising officials are sent to top universities abroad to learn best administrative practices from around the world.
“Out of seven million leading cadres, only one out of 140,000 makes it to the province/ministry level.”
Out of seven million leading cadres, only one out of 140,000 makes it to the province/ministry level. A select few move up the ranks and make it to the party’s Central Committee and then the 25 member Politburo. The members at the very apex of political power — the Standing Committee of the Politburo — must normally have served as governors or party secretaries of two provinces, each the size and population of most countries.
In short, top leaders must pass through a battery of merit-based tests and accumulate decades of extensive and diverse administrative experience. In contrast, as Eric X. Li puts it, “a person with Barack Obama’s pre-presidential professional experience would not even be the manager of a small county in China’s system.” Notwithstanding its importance for understanding China’s reforms and future political prospects, political meritocracy is perhaps the least-studied aspect of the China model.
This process of meritocratic selection at the top fits within the broader frame of the “three planks” of the Chinese model. The other planks are democracy at the bottom and experimentation in the middle.
This three-plank model points to different ways of selecting and promoting leaders at different levels of government. Each combines elements of the other.
Democracy at the Bottom
The first plank — democracy at the bottom — includes elements of the other planks of experimentation and meritocracy. Electoral democracy at the bottom started off as an experiment in selected villages before it was generalized to the rest of the country; and there is a meritocratic check on the system in the form of a party secretary at the village level appointed from above who is often more educated than elected leaders and has the task of trying to ensure the implementation of Beijing-driven policies that may be unpopular, such as birth control and land acquisition.
Experimentation in the Middle
The second plank — experimentation in the middle — includes forms of democracy and meritocracy: there have been democratic elections in selected townships in Sichuan province and experiments with democratic practices such as public opinion polling as part of the evaluation process for cadres at higher levels of government; and meritocratically selected leaders at the top often decide which experiments to carry out and which ones should be generalized to other parts of the country.
The third plank — meritocracy at the top — also includes forms of democracy and experimentation: there has been increased use of democratic practices such as contested intraparty balloting to select and promote leaders at high levels of government; meritocratic practices such as open and competitive examinations for public officials started as pilot projects in certain provinces and central administrative organs in the late 1980s before they were spread to the rest of the country, and there has even been experimentation with different practices and institutions at the very top, such as varying the number of spots on the Standing Committee of the Politburo to suit different needs at different times.
“The higher the level of government, the more meritocratic the political system.”
Overall, however, political reform over the past three decades has been informed by commitment to the general principles of the China model: the lower the level of government, the more democratic the political system; experimentation is more likely to take place, including experiments with brand new practices and institutions, in between the lowest and highest levels of government; and the higher the level of government, the more meritocratic the political system.
This system of vertical democratic meritocracy is, in my view, the best way of reconciling political meritocracy and electoral democracy in a large country, although I believe the time will come when it will have to be put to a referendum to boost its legitimacy.
With all the issues we know — the tendency toward cronyism and corruption above all — there clearly remains a large gap between the ideal and the reality of political meritocracy in China. But it is possible, and desirable, to substantially reduce that gap without introducing electoral democracy at the top.
World's top economists warn US to pull back from triggering global trade war - Telegraph
World's top economists warn US to pull back from triggering global trade war
Donald Trump
Donald Trump has slapped tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, but top economists warn he is doing more harm than good to the US CREDIT: ALEX WONG/GETTY
Tim Wallace
17 MARCH 2018 • 7:21PM
Dozens of the world’s top economists have called on the US to pull back from a trade war, warning that it will have ruinous consequences for the country and the wider world economy.
President Donald Trump’s aluminium and steel tariffs will hurt far more Americans than they will help, Chicago Booth University’s IGM Forum of 43 economists, warned.
Every one of the esteemed panel disagreed with the statement that the tariffs would “improve Americans’ welfare”.
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Chicago’s Austan Goolsbee said the tariffs are the economic equivalent of “punching [your]self in [the] face”.
Nobel prizewinner Richard Thaler said: “In net we want more trade, not less. This is unlikely to help and runs the risk of starting a trade war.”
“Sad,” he added, in imitation of President Trump’s tweeting style.
@realDonaldTrump
When a country (USA) is losing many billions of dollars on trade with virtually every country it does business with, trade wars are good, and easy to win. Example, when we are down $100 billion with a certain country and they get cute, don’t trade anymore-we win big. It’s easy!
9:50 PM - Mar 2, 2018
Yale University professor Christopher Udry said: “It will improve some Americans welfare, and hurt many others. On balance it’s a very costly way to help those who gain.”
Harvard’s Eric Maskin compared it to the Smoot-Hawley tariffs of the Thirties which were blamed for worsening the Great Depression.
“I thought we had learned our lesson with Smoot-Hawley,” he wrote.
The decisive survey is a sharp rebuke to President Trump’s claim that “trade wars are good, and easy to win”.
He has argued that the US’s trade deficits mean it is “losing many billions of dollars on trade with virtually every country it does business with”.
Richard Thaler
Nobel prizewinning economist Richard Thaler is one of those critical of the protectionist plans CREDIT: GEOFF PUGH
Mr Trump’s tariffs of 25pc on steel imports and 10pc on aluminium are being introduced on grounds of “national security” as the US’s own metals industry is struggling to compete with cheaper imports.
The row has been intensified by accusations of subsidised metal being unfairly “dumped” on US markets.
The EU has hit back, threatening to retaliate with tariffs on imports of US orange juice, bourbon, Harley-Davidson motorbikes and Levi’s jeans – all iconic American products, typically made in critical swing states in US elections. Such a response is aimed at hitting the US economy where it hurts, but also shows how quickly trade spats can balloon into full-scale trade wars across swathes of products.
Economists at ING calculated that a 1pc rise in the price of all imports into the US and into the EU would boost domestic production in the US by 0.07pc and the EU by 0.1pc, but hit the wider economy to the tune of 0.36pc and 0.28pc of GDP respectively. As a result, any benefit of the tax is more than outweighed by the damage inflicted.
Former Goldman Sachs executive and ardent free-trader Gary Cohn was the president’s top economic adviser until the first week of this month, when he resigned after losing the argument on tariffs.
That raised fears Mr Trump was moving in a more protectionist direction. But his new choice to head the White House’s National Economic Council, Larry Kudlow, is also a critic of the tariffs.
Donald Trump
Donald Trump has slapped tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, but top economists warn he is doing more harm than good to the US CREDIT: ALEX WONG/GETTY
Tim Wallace
17 MARCH 2018 • 7:21PM
Dozens of the world’s top economists have called on the US to pull back from a trade war, warning that it will have ruinous consequences for the country and the wider world economy.
President Donald Trump’s aluminium and steel tariffs will hurt far more Americans than they will help, Chicago Booth University’s IGM Forum of 43 economists, warned.
Every one of the esteemed panel disagreed with the statement that the tariffs would “improve Americans’ welfare”.
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Chicago’s Austan Goolsbee said the tariffs are the economic equivalent of “punching [your]self in [the] face”.
Nobel prizewinner Richard Thaler said: “In net we want more trade, not less. This is unlikely to help and runs the risk of starting a trade war.”
“Sad,” he added, in imitation of President Trump’s tweeting style.
@realDonaldTrump
When a country (USA) is losing many billions of dollars on trade with virtually every country it does business with, trade wars are good, and easy to win. Example, when we are down $100 billion with a certain country and they get cute, don’t trade anymore-we win big. It’s easy!
9:50 PM - Mar 2, 2018
Yale University professor Christopher Udry said: “It will improve some Americans welfare, and hurt many others. On balance it’s a very costly way to help those who gain.”
Harvard’s Eric Maskin compared it to the Smoot-Hawley tariffs of the Thirties which were blamed for worsening the Great Depression.
“I thought we had learned our lesson with Smoot-Hawley,” he wrote.
The decisive survey is a sharp rebuke to President Trump’s claim that “trade wars are good, and easy to win”.
He has argued that the US’s trade deficits mean it is “losing many billions of dollars on trade with virtually every country it does business with”.
Richard Thaler
Nobel prizewinning economist Richard Thaler is one of those critical of the protectionist plans CREDIT: GEOFF PUGH
Mr Trump’s tariffs of 25pc on steel imports and 10pc on aluminium are being introduced on grounds of “national security” as the US’s own metals industry is struggling to compete with cheaper imports.
The row has been intensified by accusations of subsidised metal being unfairly “dumped” on US markets.
The EU has hit back, threatening to retaliate with tariffs on imports of US orange juice, bourbon, Harley-Davidson motorbikes and Levi’s jeans – all iconic American products, typically made in critical swing states in US elections. Such a response is aimed at hitting the US economy where it hurts, but also shows how quickly trade spats can balloon into full-scale trade wars across swathes of products.
Economists at ING calculated that a 1pc rise in the price of all imports into the US and into the EU would boost domestic production in the US by 0.07pc and the EU by 0.1pc, but hit the wider economy to the tune of 0.36pc and 0.28pc of GDP respectively. As a result, any benefit of the tax is more than outweighed by the damage inflicted.
Former Goldman Sachs executive and ardent free-trader Gary Cohn was the president’s top economic adviser until the first week of this month, when he resigned after losing the argument on tariffs.
That raised fears Mr Trump was moving in a more protectionist direction. But his new choice to head the White House’s National Economic Council, Larry Kudlow, is also a critic of the tariffs.
Congress aims for six-month shutdown ... of budget squabbles - Reuters
MARCH 19, 2018 / 1:09 AM / UPDATED 20 HOURS AGO
Congress aims for six-month shutdown ... of budget squabbles
Richard Cowan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress, facing yet another government shutdown deadline at midnight on Friday, will try this week to approve a massive spending bill that would end lawmakers’ nettlesome budget infighting, at least through Sept. 30.
Republican leaders in the House of Representatives hope to unveil soon the product of long negotiations over a $1 trillion spending bill. It would fund all of the federal government’s activities, except for the gigantic “mandatory entitlement” programs such as Social Security and Medicare, which do not have to be renewed annually.
The Republican-controlled Congress was supposed to have completed this work by Sept. 30, 2017, the start of fiscal 2018, but it has not done that. Instead, the government has been running on a series of short-term, stopgap funding measures.
Senator Durbin: No government shutdown over budget
Senator Durbin: No government shutdown over budget
As of Sunday, negotiators were still trying to put the finishing touches on a longer-term bill. Its progress has been slowed by partisan flashpoints between Republicans and Democrats, including immigration policy.
Failure to pass this major spending bill by the end of Friday would leave Congress with two options: force federal agencies to suspend operations ranging from national park lands to medical research due to a lack of funds; or pass another in a series of stopgap bills.
In January, Washington was plunged into partial shutdown mode for a weekend because of disagreements on a stopgap bill.
Some conservative Republicans are likely to vote against the major bill, which could push budget deficits for fiscal 2018 to more than $800 billion. That would give Democrats leverage to make demands to win their votes needed for passage.
Democrats are resisting President Donald Trump’s call for money to start building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and to hire more immigration enforcement agents.
Republicans want to insert gun-related measures, including one to provide new grants for school safety programs and one to tighten background checks on gun purchases. Both fall far short of what gun control advocates want.
Republicans regularly push for anti-abortion initiatives in spending bills, and this year’s is no different.
Negotiators were also seeking to fund new infrastructure projects. There also was a fight underway over the costly New York-to-New Jersey “Gateway Program” railroad tunnel project, which Trump opposes.
If Congress does manage to pass its “omnibus” spending bill by Friday, that would not end budget infighting for good.
Lawmakers would then have until Sept. 30 to pass a dozen separate spending bills for fiscal 2019, which begins on Oct. 1, or resume their game of blaming each other for possibly causing shutdowns.
Reporting by Richard Cowan; editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Jonathan Oatis
Congress aims for six-month shutdown ... of budget squabbles
Richard Cowan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress, facing yet another government shutdown deadline at midnight on Friday, will try this week to approve a massive spending bill that would end lawmakers’ nettlesome budget infighting, at least through Sept. 30.
Republican leaders in the House of Representatives hope to unveil soon the product of long negotiations over a $1 trillion spending bill. It would fund all of the federal government’s activities, except for the gigantic “mandatory entitlement” programs such as Social Security and Medicare, which do not have to be renewed annually.
The Republican-controlled Congress was supposed to have completed this work by Sept. 30, 2017, the start of fiscal 2018, but it has not done that. Instead, the government has been running on a series of short-term, stopgap funding measures.
Senator Durbin: No government shutdown over budget
Senator Durbin: No government shutdown over budget
As of Sunday, negotiators were still trying to put the finishing touches on a longer-term bill. Its progress has been slowed by partisan flashpoints between Republicans and Democrats, including immigration policy.
Failure to pass this major spending bill by the end of Friday would leave Congress with two options: force federal agencies to suspend operations ranging from national park lands to medical research due to a lack of funds; or pass another in a series of stopgap bills.
In January, Washington was plunged into partial shutdown mode for a weekend because of disagreements on a stopgap bill.
Some conservative Republicans are likely to vote against the major bill, which could push budget deficits for fiscal 2018 to more than $800 billion. That would give Democrats leverage to make demands to win their votes needed for passage.
Democrats are resisting President Donald Trump’s call for money to start building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and to hire more immigration enforcement agents.
Republicans want to insert gun-related measures, including one to provide new grants for school safety programs and one to tighten background checks on gun purchases. Both fall far short of what gun control advocates want.
Republicans regularly push for anti-abortion initiatives in spending bills, and this year’s is no different.
Negotiators were also seeking to fund new infrastructure projects. There also was a fight underway over the costly New York-to-New Jersey “Gateway Program” railroad tunnel project, which Trump opposes.
If Congress does manage to pass its “omnibus” spending bill by Friday, that would not end budget infighting for good.
Lawmakers would then have until Sept. 30 to pass a dozen separate spending bills for fiscal 2019, which begins on Oct. 1, or resume their game of blaming each other for possibly causing shutdowns.
Reporting by Richard Cowan; editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Jonathan Oatis
Trump keeps up attacks on Mueller, McCabe, Comey - CNN Politics
Trump keeps up attacks on Mueller, McCabe, Comey
Jennifer Hansler
By Jennifer Hansler, CNN
Updated 0005 GMT (0805 HKT) March 19, 2018
Flake: Hope GOP lawmakers stand up for Mueller
Sessions fires FBI's Andrew McCabe
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
McCabe learned he was fired from media reports
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Who is Andrew McCabe?
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 13: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe listens during a news conference to announce significant law enforcement actions July 13, 2017 at the Justice Department in Washington, DC. Attorney General Jeff Sessions held the news conference to announce the 2017 health care fraud takedown. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Conservative media: McCabe part of 'deep state'
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
FBI deputy director McCabe stepping down
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Source: Wray hints report led to McCabe's exit
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) presides over a meeting about immigration with Republican and Democrat members of Congress in the Cabinet Room at the White House January 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. In addition to seeking bipartisan solutions to immigration reform, Trump advocated for the reintroduction of earmarks as a way to break the legislative stalemate in Congress. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Trump doesn't recall asking McCabe who he voted for
Tapper: McCabe flap reveals GOP double standard
Jeff Flake SOTU 01NOW PLAYING
Flake: Hope GOP lawmakers stand up for Mueller
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 13: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe listens during a news conference to announce significant law enforcement actions July 13, 2017 at the Justice Department in Washington, DC. Attorney General Jeff Sessions held the news conference to announce the 2017 health care fraud takedown. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Flake on McCabe firing: Horrible day for democracy
Could congressman's offer save McCabe's pension?
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 23: Former Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John Brennan testifies before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on Capitol Hill, May 23, 2017 in Washington, DC. Brennan is discussing the extent of Russia's meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and possible ties to the campaign of President Donald Trump. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Ex-CIA chief to Trump: US will triumph over you
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
Journalist: The real reason Trump wanted McCabe fired
douglas brinkley ctn
Historian: This is 'Friday Night Slaughter'
Trump celebrates McCabe firing on Twitter
McCabe denies he misled investigators
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey. (Photo by Pete Marovich/Getty Images)
Sessions fires FBI's Andrew McCabe
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
McCabe learned he was fired from media reports
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Who is Andrew McCabe?
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 13: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe listens during a news conference to announce significant law enforcement actions July 13, 2017 at the Justice Department in Washington, DC. Attorney General Jeff Sessions held the news conference to announce the 2017 health care fraud takedown. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Conservative media: McCabe part of 'deep state'
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
FBI deputy director McCabe stepping down
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Source: Wray hints report led to McCabe's exit
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) presides over a meeting about immigration with Republican and Democrat members of Congress in the Cabinet Room at the White House January 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. In addition to seeking bipartisan solutions to immigration reform, Trump advocated for the reintroduction of earmarks as a way to break the legislative stalemate in Congress. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Trump doesn't recall asking McCabe who he voted for
Tapper: McCabe flap reveals GOP double standard
Jeff Flake SOTU 01
Flake: Hope GOP lawmakers stand up for Mueller
Flake on McCabe firing: Horrible day for democracy
Could congressman's offer save McCabe's pension?
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 23: Former Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John Brennan testifies before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on Capitol Hill, May 23, 2017 in Washington, DC. Brennan is discussing the extent of Russia's meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and possible ties to the campaign of President Donald Trump. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Ex-CIA chief to Trump: US will triumph over you
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
Journalist: The real reason Trump wanted McCabe fired
douglas brinkley ctn
Historian: This is 'Friday Night Slaughter'
Trump celebrates McCabe firing on Twitter
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
McCabe denies he misled investigators
(CNN)President Donald Trump started his Sunday morning by lashing out at special counsel Robert Mueller's team, former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, and former FBI Director James Comey.
Just a day after news that Mueller had interviewed McCabe and asked him about Comey's firing, Trump attacked the special counsel's team, seeming to suggest it has a partisan bias.
"Why does the Mueller team have 13 hardened Democrats, some big Crooked Hillary supporters, and Zero Republicans? Another Dem recently added ... does anyone think this is fair? And yet, there is NO COLLUSION!," Trump wrote on Twitter.
Robert Mueller and his pursuit of justice
Robert Mueller and his pursuit of justice
Trump's criticism of Mueller, a Republican, appears to be the first time he has attacked the special counsel by name on Twitter, according to an archive of Trump's tweets. However, CNN, citing a person familiar with the matter, reported in January that Trump called for Mueller's firing last June; The New York Times was first to report that incident, citing four people told of the matter; Trump has denied calling for the special counsel's ouster.
Trump's attack on Mueller came after his personal lawyer, John Dowd, called for an end to the special counsel's probe into Russian election meddling.
"I pray that Acting Attorney General Rosenstein will follow the brilliant and courageous example of the FBI Office of Professional Responsibility and Attorney General Jeff Sessions and bring an end to alleged Russia collusion investigation manufactured by McCabe's boss James Comey based upon a fraudulent and corrupt dossier," Dowd told CNN in a statement, reacting to the news of McCabe's firing on Friday night by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Dowd told CNN he was speaking on his own behalf, although he had earlier told the Daily Beast, which first reported the statement, that he was speaking on behalf of the President. Dowd's comment wasn't authorized by the President, a person close to Trump told CNN.
White House special counsel Ty Cobb emphasized in a statement Sunday night that Trump is not considering firing Mueller.
"In response to media speculation and related questions being posed to the administration, the White House yet again confirms that the President is not considering or discussing the firing of the special counsel, Robert Mueller," Cobb said.
The President also called into question news that McCabe had written memos about their interactions. A source told CNN Saturday that Mueller's team has those memos.
Manic morning raises stakes for Mueller probe
Manic morning raises stakes for Mueller probe
"Spent very little time with Andrew McCabe, but he never took notes when he was with me," Trump tweeted. "I don't believe he made memos except to help his own agenda, probably at a later date. Same with lying James Comey. Can we call them Fake Memos?"
McCabe's attorney, Michael Bromwich, issued a statement on Twitter Sunday afternoon in response to the President, saying the tweets prove Trump "corrupted the entire process that led to Mr. McCabe's termination and has rendered it illegitimate."
"We will not be responding to each childish, defamatory, disgusting & false tweet by the President. The whole truth will come out in due course," he wrote.
McCabe told CNN that he had three in-person interactions and one phone call with Trump.
White House legislative affairs director Marc Short downplayed Trump and Dowd's comments in an interview with moderator Margaret Brennan on CBS's "Face the Nation," saying neither Trump nor anyone else in the White House is suggesting not cooperating fully with the Mueller investigation.
"Everyone in the White House has cooperated on this, and what I said is that we have cooperated in every single way, every single paper they've asked for, every single interview," Short said. "And I think the reality, Margaret, is that yes, there's a growing frustration that after more than a year and millions and millions of dollars spent on this, there remains no evidence of collusion with Russia."
Trump's attacks on the special counsel team reinforced demands by Democrats to protect Mueller's investigation. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Mark Warner, the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued calls to defend the probe following Dowd's comments.
Schumer said in a statement Sunday morning: "The President is floating trial balloons about derailing the Mueller investigation. Our Republican colleagues, particularly the leadership, have an obligation to our country to stand up now and make it clear that firing Mueller is a red line for our democracy that cannot be crossed."
CNN's Pamela Brown, Laura Jarrett, Gloria Borger, Veronica Stracqualursi, and Sophie Tatum contributed to this report.
Jennifer Hansler
By Jennifer Hansler, CNN
Updated 0005 GMT (0805 HKT) March 19, 2018
Flake: Hope GOP lawmakers stand up for Mueller
Sessions fires FBI's Andrew McCabe
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
McCabe learned he was fired from media reports
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Who is Andrew McCabe?
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 13: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe listens during a news conference to announce significant law enforcement actions July 13, 2017 at the Justice Department in Washington, DC. Attorney General Jeff Sessions held the news conference to announce the 2017 health care fraud takedown. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Conservative media: McCabe part of 'deep state'
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
FBI deputy director McCabe stepping down
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Source: Wray hints report led to McCabe's exit
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) presides over a meeting about immigration with Republican and Democrat members of Congress in the Cabinet Room at the White House January 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. In addition to seeking bipartisan solutions to immigration reform, Trump advocated for the reintroduction of earmarks as a way to break the legislative stalemate in Congress. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Trump doesn't recall asking McCabe who he voted for
Tapper: McCabe flap reveals GOP double standard
Jeff Flake SOTU 01NOW PLAYING
Flake: Hope GOP lawmakers stand up for Mueller
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 13: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe listens during a news conference to announce significant law enforcement actions July 13, 2017 at the Justice Department in Washington, DC. Attorney General Jeff Sessions held the news conference to announce the 2017 health care fraud takedown. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Flake on McCabe firing: Horrible day for democracy
Could congressman's offer save McCabe's pension?
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 23: Former Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John Brennan testifies before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on Capitol Hill, May 23, 2017 in Washington, DC. Brennan is discussing the extent of Russia's meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and possible ties to the campaign of President Donald Trump. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Ex-CIA chief to Trump: US will triumph over you
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
Journalist: The real reason Trump wanted McCabe fired
douglas brinkley ctn
Historian: This is 'Friday Night Slaughter'
Trump celebrates McCabe firing on Twitter
McCabe denies he misled investigators
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey. (Photo by Pete Marovich/Getty Images)
Sessions fires FBI's Andrew McCabe
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
McCabe learned he was fired from media reports
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Who is Andrew McCabe?
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 13: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe listens during a news conference to announce significant law enforcement actions July 13, 2017 at the Justice Department in Washington, DC. Attorney General Jeff Sessions held the news conference to announce the 2017 health care fraud takedown. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Conservative media: McCabe part of 'deep state'
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
FBI deputy director McCabe stepping down
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Source: Wray hints report led to McCabe's exit
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) presides over a meeting about immigration with Republican and Democrat members of Congress in the Cabinet Room at the White House January 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. In addition to seeking bipartisan solutions to immigration reform, Trump advocated for the reintroduction of earmarks as a way to break the legislative stalemate in Congress. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Trump doesn't recall asking McCabe who he voted for
Tapper: McCabe flap reveals GOP double standard
Jeff Flake SOTU 01
Flake: Hope GOP lawmakers stand up for Mueller
Flake on McCabe firing: Horrible day for democracy
Could congressman's offer save McCabe's pension?
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 23: Former Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John Brennan testifies before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on Capitol Hill, May 23, 2017 in Washington, DC. Brennan is discussing the extent of Russia's meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and possible ties to the campaign of President Donald Trump. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Ex-CIA chief to Trump: US will triumph over you
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 21: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting on the FBI's budget requests for FY2018 on June 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. McCabe became acting director in May, following President Trump's dismissal of James Comey.
Journalist: The real reason Trump wanted McCabe fired
douglas brinkley ctn
Historian: This is 'Friday Night Slaughter'
Trump celebrates McCabe firing on Twitter
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 11: Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee with the other heads of the U.S. intelligence agencies in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The intelligence officials were questioned by the committee during the annual hearing about world wide threats to United States' security. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
McCabe denies he misled investigators
(CNN)President Donald Trump started his Sunday morning by lashing out at special counsel Robert Mueller's team, former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, and former FBI Director James Comey.
Just a day after news that Mueller had interviewed McCabe and asked him about Comey's firing, Trump attacked the special counsel's team, seeming to suggest it has a partisan bias.
"Why does the Mueller team have 13 hardened Democrats, some big Crooked Hillary supporters, and Zero Republicans? Another Dem recently added ... does anyone think this is fair? And yet, there is NO COLLUSION!," Trump wrote on Twitter.
Robert Mueller and his pursuit of justice
Robert Mueller and his pursuit of justice
Trump's criticism of Mueller, a Republican, appears to be the first time he has attacked the special counsel by name on Twitter, according to an archive of Trump's tweets. However, CNN, citing a person familiar with the matter, reported in January that Trump called for Mueller's firing last June; The New York Times was first to report that incident, citing four people told of the matter; Trump has denied calling for the special counsel's ouster.
Trump's attack on Mueller came after his personal lawyer, John Dowd, called for an end to the special counsel's probe into Russian election meddling.
"I pray that Acting Attorney General Rosenstein will follow the brilliant and courageous example of the FBI Office of Professional Responsibility and Attorney General Jeff Sessions and bring an end to alleged Russia collusion investigation manufactured by McCabe's boss James Comey based upon a fraudulent and corrupt dossier," Dowd told CNN in a statement, reacting to the news of McCabe's firing on Friday night by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Dowd told CNN he was speaking on his own behalf, although he had earlier told the Daily Beast, which first reported the statement, that he was speaking on behalf of the President. Dowd's comment wasn't authorized by the President, a person close to Trump told CNN.
White House special counsel Ty Cobb emphasized in a statement Sunday night that Trump is not considering firing Mueller.
"In response to media speculation and related questions being posed to the administration, the White House yet again confirms that the President is not considering or discussing the firing of the special counsel, Robert Mueller," Cobb said.
The President also called into question news that McCabe had written memos about their interactions. A source told CNN Saturday that Mueller's team has those memos.
Manic morning raises stakes for Mueller probe
Manic morning raises stakes for Mueller probe
"Spent very little time with Andrew McCabe, but he never took notes when he was with me," Trump tweeted. "I don't believe he made memos except to help his own agenda, probably at a later date. Same with lying James Comey. Can we call them Fake Memos?"
McCabe's attorney, Michael Bromwich, issued a statement on Twitter Sunday afternoon in response to the President, saying the tweets prove Trump "corrupted the entire process that led to Mr. McCabe's termination and has rendered it illegitimate."
"We will not be responding to each childish, defamatory, disgusting & false tweet by the President. The whole truth will come out in due course," he wrote.
McCabe told CNN that he had three in-person interactions and one phone call with Trump.
White House legislative affairs director Marc Short downplayed Trump and Dowd's comments in an interview with moderator Margaret Brennan on CBS's "Face the Nation," saying neither Trump nor anyone else in the White House is suggesting not cooperating fully with the Mueller investigation.
"Everyone in the White House has cooperated on this, and what I said is that we have cooperated in every single way, every single paper they've asked for, every single interview," Short said. "And I think the reality, Margaret, is that yes, there's a growing frustration that after more than a year and millions and millions of dollars spent on this, there remains no evidence of collusion with Russia."
Trump's attacks on the special counsel team reinforced demands by Democrats to protect Mueller's investigation. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Mark Warner, the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued calls to defend the probe following Dowd's comments.
Schumer said in a statement Sunday morning: "The President is floating trial balloons about derailing the Mueller investigation. Our Republican colleagues, particularly the leadership, have an obligation to our country to stand up now and make it clear that firing Mueller is a red line for our democracy that cannot be crossed."
CNN's Pamela Brown, Laura Jarrett, Gloria Borger, Veronica Stracqualursi, and Sophie Tatum contributed to this report.
Australia bushfire: Dozens of buildings feared lost in Tathra - BBC News
19/3/2018
Australia bushfire: Dozens of buildings feared lost in Tathra
An Australian town's residents flee via the beach as a bushfire sweeps in
More than 70 homes and buildings are feared to have been destroyed in a bushfire in Australia, authorities say.
The fast-moving fire engulfed the New South Wales (NSW) coastal town of Tathra late on Sunday local time.
Authorities said locals were evacuated to a nearby town and there were no reports of anyone missing.
Earlier, separate blazes in Victoria destroyed up to 18 properties. Authorities described the bushfires as the worst of Australia's summer season.
In Tathra, about 450km (280 miles) south of Sydney, four people were treated for smoke inhalation and one firefighter was injured, authorities said.
Many residents left the town by walking along the beach on Sunday as temperatures reached up to 38C (101F).
"The smoke was thick and black. You could see the rescue helicopter with the water and you know it was all so real," one local, Simone Ward, told the BBC.
She said that most people had left with only a few belongings. The town has about 1,600 residents.
Tathra residents walk along a beach to seek shelter in a neighbouring town
The bushfire in Tathra, New South Wales, following hot and windy conditions
The fire had not been contained after burning through more than 1,000 hectares, the NSW Rural Fire Service said on Monday.
"This fire ran more than 7km (four miles) before it impacted on those properties so there is a huge fire perimeter for us to contain," deputy commissioner Rob Rodgers told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
How Australia's extreme heat might be here to stay
The deadly threat of hot weather and bushfires
He said weather conditions on Monday would make it easier to battle the fire.
The bushfires in Victoria destroyed up to 18 properties and killed livestock in rural areas north of the town of Warrnambool, authorities said.
The fires affected at least 40,000 hectares and were probably sparked by lightning on Saturday, according to officials.
In September, Australians were warned to prepare for a dangerous bushfire season after one of the driest winters on record.
Australia bushfire: Dozens of buildings feared lost in Tathra
An Australian town's residents flee via the beach as a bushfire sweeps in
More than 70 homes and buildings are feared to have been destroyed in a bushfire in Australia, authorities say.
The fast-moving fire engulfed the New South Wales (NSW) coastal town of Tathra late on Sunday local time.
Authorities said locals were evacuated to a nearby town and there were no reports of anyone missing.
Earlier, separate blazes in Victoria destroyed up to 18 properties. Authorities described the bushfires as the worst of Australia's summer season.
In Tathra, about 450km (280 miles) south of Sydney, four people were treated for smoke inhalation and one firefighter was injured, authorities said.
Many residents left the town by walking along the beach on Sunday as temperatures reached up to 38C (101F).
"The smoke was thick and black. You could see the rescue helicopter with the water and you know it was all so real," one local, Simone Ward, told the BBC.
She said that most people had left with only a few belongings. The town has about 1,600 residents.
Tathra residents walk along a beach to seek shelter in a neighbouring town
The bushfire in Tathra, New South Wales, following hot and windy conditions
The fire had not been contained after burning through more than 1,000 hectares, the NSW Rural Fire Service said on Monday.
"This fire ran more than 7km (four miles) before it impacted on those properties so there is a huge fire perimeter for us to contain," deputy commissioner Rob Rodgers told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
How Australia's extreme heat might be here to stay
The deadly threat of hot weather and bushfires
He said weather conditions on Monday would make it easier to battle the fire.
The bushfires in Victoria destroyed up to 18 properties and killed livestock in rural areas north of the town of Warrnambool, authorities said.
The fires affected at least 40,000 hectares and were probably sparked by lightning on Saturday, according to officials.
In September, Australians were warned to prepare for a dangerous bushfire season after one of the driest winters on record.
International team to test Salisbury poison Russian spy - BBC News
19/3/2018
International team to test Salisbury poison Russian spy
Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, are in a critical condition in hospital
International experts are due in the UK to assess the type of nerve agent used to poison ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury.
A team from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) will visit the military research base at Porton Down in Wiltshire.
Experts at the site say the agent is of a type first developed by the Russians.
President Putin said the idea of state involvement - before Sunday's election and the World Cup - was "unimaginable".
Speaking after winning a fourth term as leader, he insisted Russia had destroyed all of its chemical weapons, adding it was "nonsense" to implicate his government in the attack on 4 March.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson had earlier accused Moscow of stockpiling the agent used in the attack.
What are Novichok nerve agents?
Russian spy: What we know so far
Mr Johnson is travelling to Brussels to seek further support for Britain's stance, from both the European Union and Nato.
The delegation from the Netherlands-based OPCW, which polices the prohibition of chemical weapons, will also meet senior detectives.
They have been invited by the UK to independently verify the nerve agent used and will take at least two weeks to produce results.
Ventilation system theory
Sergei Skripal, 66 and Yulia Skripal, 33, remain critically ill in hospital. They were found slumped on a bench near a shopping centre in the centre of Salisbury, having visited a pub and a restaurant.
The experts from the OPCW will visit Porton Down
The Metropolitan Police are treating the attack as attempted murder.
They have renewed their appeal for sightings of Mr Skripal's burgundy BMW 320D saloon car, registration HD09 WAO, in Salisbury on the morning of 4 March.
According to sources cited in a report on ABC News in the US, Mr Skripal and his daughter may have been exposed to the nerve agent through the vehicle's ventilation system.
Police say they have recovered 762 exhibits and are trawling through about 4,000 hours of CCTV footage.
Officers said they were "making good progress in what is a painstaking investigation that is likely to be ongoing for weeks, if not months".
Next steps
Prime Minister Theresa May told MPs last week that the substance used in the attack had been identified as belonging to a group of military-grade nerve agents known as Novichok, developed by the Soviet Union.
Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, Boris Johnson said: "We actually have evidence within the last 10 years that Russia has not only been investigating the delivery of nerve agents for the purposes of assassination, but has also been creating and stockpiling Novichok."
Police say their investigation will take "weeks, if not months"
On Saturday, the Russian foreign ministry said UK staff would be expelled from Moscow within a week, in response to Britain's decision to expel 23 Russian diplomats.
It also said it would close the British Council in Russia, which promotes cultural ties between the nations, and the British Consulate in St Petersburg.
The prime minister has said the UK government would consider its next steps "in the coming days, alongside our allies and partners".
Meanwhile, the shadow attorney general Shami Chakrabarti reiterated Labour's position that the incident was either a "loss of control" by the Russian state or a "malevolent directed attack".
John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, said Labour had given a "constructive critique" in response to the incident which others "had misread".
He told ITV's Peston on Sunday: "We support exactly what the prime minister said and we condemn Russia for this, condemn them."
International team to test Salisbury poison Russian spy
Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, are in a critical condition in hospital
International experts are due in the UK to assess the type of nerve agent used to poison ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury.
A team from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) will visit the military research base at Porton Down in Wiltshire.
Experts at the site say the agent is of a type first developed by the Russians.
President Putin said the idea of state involvement - before Sunday's election and the World Cup - was "unimaginable".
Speaking after winning a fourth term as leader, he insisted Russia had destroyed all of its chemical weapons, adding it was "nonsense" to implicate his government in the attack on 4 March.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson had earlier accused Moscow of stockpiling the agent used in the attack.
What are Novichok nerve agents?
Russian spy: What we know so far
Mr Johnson is travelling to Brussels to seek further support for Britain's stance, from both the European Union and Nato.
The delegation from the Netherlands-based OPCW, which polices the prohibition of chemical weapons, will also meet senior detectives.
They have been invited by the UK to independently verify the nerve agent used and will take at least two weeks to produce results.
Ventilation system theory
Sergei Skripal, 66 and Yulia Skripal, 33, remain critically ill in hospital. They were found slumped on a bench near a shopping centre in the centre of Salisbury, having visited a pub and a restaurant.
The experts from the OPCW will visit Porton Down
The Metropolitan Police are treating the attack as attempted murder.
They have renewed their appeal for sightings of Mr Skripal's burgundy BMW 320D saloon car, registration HD09 WAO, in Salisbury on the morning of 4 March.
According to sources cited in a report on ABC News in the US, Mr Skripal and his daughter may have been exposed to the nerve agent through the vehicle's ventilation system.
Police say they have recovered 762 exhibits and are trawling through about 4,000 hours of CCTV footage.
Officers said they were "making good progress in what is a painstaking investigation that is likely to be ongoing for weeks, if not months".
Next steps
Prime Minister Theresa May told MPs last week that the substance used in the attack had been identified as belonging to a group of military-grade nerve agents known as Novichok, developed by the Soviet Union.
Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, Boris Johnson said: "We actually have evidence within the last 10 years that Russia has not only been investigating the delivery of nerve agents for the purposes of assassination, but has also been creating and stockpiling Novichok."
Police say their investigation will take "weeks, if not months"
On Saturday, the Russian foreign ministry said UK staff would be expelled from Moscow within a week, in response to Britain's decision to expel 23 Russian diplomats.
It also said it would close the British Council in Russia, which promotes cultural ties between the nations, and the British Consulate in St Petersburg.
The prime minister has said the UK government would consider its next steps "in the coming days, alongside our allies and partners".
Meanwhile, the shadow attorney general Shami Chakrabarti reiterated Labour's position that the incident was either a "loss of control" by the Russian state or a "malevolent directed attack".
John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, said Labour had given a "constructive critique" in response to the incident which others "had misread".
He told ITV's Peston on Sunday: "We support exactly what the prime minister said and we condemn Russia for this, condemn them."
Russia election: Putin basks in election he could not lose - BBC News
19/3/2018
Russia election: Putin basks in election he could not lose
By Sarah Rainsford
BBC News, Moscow
How the Russian election unfolded
It was the victory rally he never doubted he'd join. Two hours after the last polling stations in western Russia closed, Vladimir Putin strode on stage beneath the Kremlin walls to declare his re-election.
With a broad smile, he thanked the country for what he called "a vote of confidence" and promised to work for the future of a great nation. He then led the crowd of loyal, flag waving fans braving the freezing cold in a chant of "Russia! Russia!"
This was an election with eight candidates but one clear winner from the very start.
Russia's most popular opposition politician Alexei Navalny had been excluded and a communist candidate was vilified by state-run media.
The society-girl-turned-activist Ksenia Sobchak ran her entire campaign on the basis she would lose.
Ms Sobchak (right) visited Mr Navalny (left) at his office on polling day
President Putin shunned the pre-election debates entirely while the other candidates made threats or burst into tears. No wonder some critics called the whole event a circus.
Dancing to Putin's tune
Turnout was the only real variable. So the vast majority of election billboards were not for individual candidates but simply reminders that Russians were "choosing a president".
On voting day itself there was music and entertainment to help pull in the crowds.
At one central Moscow polling station a man on a balalaika played Western rock hits in front of a stall selling cheap pies.
Life in Putin's Russia explained in 10 charts
Google's most popular Putin search queries answered
There was a mini-ice hockey game for children, and face-painting. Pensioners could take the chance to sign up for activities including ballroom dancing and keep fit.
It was all part of the effort to secure maximum support for another six years of Vladimir Putin.
A child is pictured playing at one polling booth in Moscow on Sunday
The vote was held on the anniversary of Russia's annexation of Crimea, the moment when the president's rating had soared to a historic high.
"I want to see change, I am so tired of his leadership," Olga said, after casting her ballot for the only female candidate in the race. "I want to see my country develop in a different way."
"I'm not voting for Putin," Kirill agreed, recalling that Vladimir Putin had been in power since 2000. "He's been president too long and should go."
Does Putin's Russia reject the West?
Vladimir Putin: Russia's action man president
'Better than Trump': What young Russians think of Putin
But the final result - a landslide victory - showed that the vast majority of voters disagreed.
"We have started to live much better under Putin, patriotism is spreading. It's wonderful," Gelena Zakharova said, one of many smartly-dressed voters emerging from a central Moscow polling station.
"Russia has become a very powerful country. We're rising from our knees. I really like it."
'Tough guy'
As Russia has "risen" relations with the West have sunk, most lately with furious accusations from the UK over the poisoning of a former Russian spy.
Shortly after his victory speech, Mr Putin made his first extended comments on the case calling claims of Russian involvement "utter nonsense" and insisting his country destroyed all chemical weapons "unlike our partners".
Most people here are baffled by the whole story.
The voters' mandate gives Mr Putin another six years as the country's president
To some, like Dmitry heading into another central Moscow polling station, it's a chance for their president to act tough on the world stage.
"He's one of the most powerful politicians in the world; a real tough guy and that's good."
But squaring up to the West only has limited appeal according to political analyst Ekaterina Shulman.
"The besieged fortress mentality is very useful to mobilise the incumbent. It reinforces the idea that there's no alternative," she says. "But it makes the electorate anxious and tired. It wears them out."
Ultimately she argues the focus will have to shift to people's real concerns - their shrinking wealth, health care, housing and education.
But judging by Vladimir Putin's first comments after victory, a sudden thaw in relations with the West looks unlikely.
Russia election: Putin basks in election he could not lose
By Sarah Rainsford
BBC News, Moscow
How the Russian election unfolded
It was the victory rally he never doubted he'd join. Two hours after the last polling stations in western Russia closed, Vladimir Putin strode on stage beneath the Kremlin walls to declare his re-election.
With a broad smile, he thanked the country for what he called "a vote of confidence" and promised to work for the future of a great nation. He then led the crowd of loyal, flag waving fans braving the freezing cold in a chant of "Russia! Russia!"
This was an election with eight candidates but one clear winner from the very start.
Russia's most popular opposition politician Alexei Navalny had been excluded and a communist candidate was vilified by state-run media.
The society-girl-turned-activist Ksenia Sobchak ran her entire campaign on the basis she would lose.
Ms Sobchak (right) visited Mr Navalny (left) at his office on polling day
President Putin shunned the pre-election debates entirely while the other candidates made threats or burst into tears. No wonder some critics called the whole event a circus.
Dancing to Putin's tune
Turnout was the only real variable. So the vast majority of election billboards were not for individual candidates but simply reminders that Russians were "choosing a president".
On voting day itself there was music and entertainment to help pull in the crowds.
At one central Moscow polling station a man on a balalaika played Western rock hits in front of a stall selling cheap pies.
Life in Putin's Russia explained in 10 charts
Google's most popular Putin search queries answered
There was a mini-ice hockey game for children, and face-painting. Pensioners could take the chance to sign up for activities including ballroom dancing and keep fit.
It was all part of the effort to secure maximum support for another six years of Vladimir Putin.
A child is pictured playing at one polling booth in Moscow on Sunday
The vote was held on the anniversary of Russia's annexation of Crimea, the moment when the president's rating had soared to a historic high.
"I want to see change, I am so tired of his leadership," Olga said, after casting her ballot for the only female candidate in the race. "I want to see my country develop in a different way."
"I'm not voting for Putin," Kirill agreed, recalling that Vladimir Putin had been in power since 2000. "He's been president too long and should go."
Does Putin's Russia reject the West?
Vladimir Putin: Russia's action man president
'Better than Trump': What young Russians think of Putin
But the final result - a landslide victory - showed that the vast majority of voters disagreed.
"We have started to live much better under Putin, patriotism is spreading. It's wonderful," Gelena Zakharova said, one of many smartly-dressed voters emerging from a central Moscow polling station.
"Russia has become a very powerful country. We're rising from our knees. I really like it."
'Tough guy'
As Russia has "risen" relations with the West have sunk, most lately with furious accusations from the UK over the poisoning of a former Russian spy.
Shortly after his victory speech, Mr Putin made his first extended comments on the case calling claims of Russian involvement "utter nonsense" and insisting his country destroyed all chemical weapons "unlike our partners".
Most people here are baffled by the whole story.
The voters' mandate gives Mr Putin another six years as the country's president
To some, like Dmitry heading into another central Moscow polling station, it's a chance for their president to act tough on the world stage.
"He's one of the most powerful politicians in the world; a real tough guy and that's good."
But squaring up to the West only has limited appeal according to political analyst Ekaterina Shulman.
"The besieged fortress mentality is very useful to mobilise the incumbent. It reinforces the idea that there's no alternative," she says. "But it makes the electorate anxious and tired. It wears them out."
Ultimately she argues the focus will have to shift to people's real concerns - their shrinking wealth, health care, housing and education.
But judging by Vladimir Putin's first comments after victory, a sudden thaw in relations with the West looks unlikely.
Russia election: Muted Western reaction to Putin victory _ BBC News
19/3/2018
Russia election: Muted Western reaction to Putin victory
How the Russian election unfolded
World leaders are congratulating Vladimir Putin on his election for a new six-year term as Russian president, but so far no Western leaders have responded to his victory.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said his country's partnership with Russia was at its "best level in history".
Mr Putin got more than 76% of the vote, official results show.
He said he was considering changes to his government, including the post of prime minister.
Former President Dmitry Medvedev has held the post since he changed places in 2012 with Mr Putin, who has ruled the country as either president or prime minister since 1999.
The main opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, was barred from the race.
Putin basks in election he could not lose
Google's most popular Putin search queries answered
Russia's action man president
What has been the reaction around the world?
In a congratulatory message to Mr Putin, China's Mr Xi said: "Currently, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership is at the best level in history, which sets an example for building a new type of international relations."
The leaders of Kazakhstan, Belarus, Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba were among others who also sent their best wishes.
But no Western leaders have so far made any comment. Tensions between Russia and the West have deepened in recent weeks after the poisoning of an ex-spy in Britain, which the UK government blamed on Russia.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, arriving for a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, questioned the fairness of the election and said Russia would remain a difficult partner, but added: "We want to remain in dialogue."
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, meanwhile, focused on the poisoning, which she condemned as "absolutely unacceptable".
Russian spy: What we know so far
What are Novichok nerve agents?
The UK expelled 23 Russian diplomats from London, prompting a tit-for-tat response from Moscow. The US, which has backed the UK's condemnation of Russia, recently imposed sanctions on a group of Russians over alleged interference in the 2016 election.
What happened in the election?
The scale of victory - which had been widely predicted - appears to be a marked increase in Mr Putin's share of the vote from 2012, when he won 64%. Turnout, at more than 67%, also appears to be up.
Addressing a rally in Moscow, Mr Putin said voters had "recognised the achievements of the last few years".
His nearest competitor, millionaire communist Pavel Grudinin, received slightly less than 12%.
The race also included Ksenia Sobchak, a former reality TV host, and veteran nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky - they got less than 2% and less than 6% respectively.
In some areas, free food and discounts in local shops were on offer near polling stations.
What criticisms have there been?
Video recordings from polling stations showed irregularities in a number of towns and cities across Russia. Several showed election officials stuffing boxes with ballot papers.
Mr Navalny was excluded from the election because of an embezzlement conviction that he said was manufactured by the Kremlin.
Turnout was reported to be more than 67% - higher than in the last vote
In his first reaction to the election result, Mr Navalny indicated he had been unable to contain his anger.
"Now is the season of Lent. I took it upon myself never to get angry and not to raise my voice. Oh well, I'll try again next year," he tweeted.
Life in Putin's Russia explained in 10 charts
Does Putin's Russia reject the West?
'Better than Trump': What young Russians think of Putin
During polling day, independent election monitoring group Golos reported hundreds of irregularities.
They include webcams at polling stations obstructed by balloons and other obstacles, as this video from the Siberian city of Kemerovo posted by the group demonstrates:
3:28 AM - Mar 19, 2018
But Ella Pamfilova, head of the Central Electoral Commission, said there were only half as many reported violations compared to 2012, and that none had been serious.
Sunday's vote was also the first in Crimea since Russia seized the region from Ukraine. Mr Putin's victory rally coincided with the anniversary of the annexation.
The annexation was bitterly contested by Kiev and ratcheted up tensions between Russia and the West. Russians living in Ukraine were unable to take part in Sunday's vote because access to Russian diplomatic missions was blocked by the Kiev government.
What next for Russia?
The BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Moscow says a sudden thaw with the West seems unlikely, given Mr Putin's first comments after his victory.
Western governments are expecting more cyber-attacks and attempts to disrupt elections, previous cases of which have been blamed on Russia.
But some analysts believe that squaring up to the West has only limited appeal, and sooner or later the Russian president will have to address domestic concerns like education, housing and health care.
The question also remains about whether Mr Putin will continue as president after this term ends.
According to the constitution he is required to step down in 2024, but he could change the rules to eliminate term limits.
However, he does not seem willing to carry on for too long, and laughed off a question from a journalist about standing in 2030.
European newspapers see Cold War climate
By BBC Monitoring
Germany's Bild tabloid asks "Has the poison thriller helped Putin?" and quotes Mr Putin's campaign spokesperson thanking Britain for "unjustly accusing Russia" and putting pressure on Moscow "at the right time" which led to a surge of Russian voters "gathering around the centre of power - and that is Putin".
French business daily Les Echos says Mr Putin was "re-elected in a Cold War climate". The paper adds: "Vladimir Putin has won the bet that was impossible to lose: to be re-elected amid a full-scale crisis with the West."
Poland's conservative Rzeczpospolita says Mr Putin's re-election means a "further policy of confrontation with the West". One expert tells the paper: "Russia has depleted its means of development, meaning that now Russia will only rely on force and expansion".
Russia election: Muted Western reaction to Putin victory
How the Russian election unfolded
World leaders are congratulating Vladimir Putin on his election for a new six-year term as Russian president, but so far no Western leaders have responded to his victory.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said his country's partnership with Russia was at its "best level in history".
Mr Putin got more than 76% of the vote, official results show.
He said he was considering changes to his government, including the post of prime minister.
Former President Dmitry Medvedev has held the post since he changed places in 2012 with Mr Putin, who has ruled the country as either president or prime minister since 1999.
The main opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, was barred from the race.
Putin basks in election he could not lose
Google's most popular Putin search queries answered
Russia's action man president
What has been the reaction around the world?
In a congratulatory message to Mr Putin, China's Mr Xi said: "Currently, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership is at the best level in history, which sets an example for building a new type of international relations."
The leaders of Kazakhstan, Belarus, Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba were among others who also sent their best wishes.
But no Western leaders have so far made any comment. Tensions between Russia and the West have deepened in recent weeks after the poisoning of an ex-spy in Britain, which the UK government blamed on Russia.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, arriving for a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, questioned the fairness of the election and said Russia would remain a difficult partner, but added: "We want to remain in dialogue."
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, meanwhile, focused on the poisoning, which she condemned as "absolutely unacceptable".
Russian spy: What we know so far
What are Novichok nerve agents?
The UK expelled 23 Russian diplomats from London, prompting a tit-for-tat response from Moscow. The US, which has backed the UK's condemnation of Russia, recently imposed sanctions on a group of Russians over alleged interference in the 2016 election.
What happened in the election?
The scale of victory - which had been widely predicted - appears to be a marked increase in Mr Putin's share of the vote from 2012, when he won 64%. Turnout, at more than 67%, also appears to be up.
Addressing a rally in Moscow, Mr Putin said voters had "recognised the achievements of the last few years".
His nearest competitor, millionaire communist Pavel Grudinin, received slightly less than 12%.
The race also included Ksenia Sobchak, a former reality TV host, and veteran nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky - they got less than 2% and less than 6% respectively.
In some areas, free food and discounts in local shops were on offer near polling stations.
What criticisms have there been?
Video recordings from polling stations showed irregularities in a number of towns and cities across Russia. Several showed election officials stuffing boxes with ballot papers.
Mr Navalny was excluded from the election because of an embezzlement conviction that he said was manufactured by the Kremlin.
Turnout was reported to be more than 67% - higher than in the last vote
In his first reaction to the election result, Mr Navalny indicated he had been unable to contain his anger.
"Now is the season of Lent. I took it upon myself never to get angry and not to raise my voice. Oh well, I'll try again next year," he tweeted.
Life in Putin's Russia explained in 10 charts
Does Putin's Russia reject the West?
'Better than Trump': What young Russians think of Putin
During polling day, independent election monitoring group Golos reported hundreds of irregularities.
They include webcams at polling stations obstructed by balloons and other obstacles, as this video from the Siberian city of Kemerovo posted by the group demonstrates:
3:28 AM - Mar 19, 2018
But Ella Pamfilova, head of the Central Electoral Commission, said there were only half as many reported violations compared to 2012, and that none had been serious.
Sunday's vote was also the first in Crimea since Russia seized the region from Ukraine. Mr Putin's victory rally coincided with the anniversary of the annexation.
The annexation was bitterly contested by Kiev and ratcheted up tensions between Russia and the West. Russians living in Ukraine were unable to take part in Sunday's vote because access to Russian diplomatic missions was blocked by the Kiev government.
What next for Russia?
The BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Moscow says a sudden thaw with the West seems unlikely, given Mr Putin's first comments after his victory.
Western governments are expecting more cyber-attacks and attempts to disrupt elections, previous cases of which have been blamed on Russia.
But some analysts believe that squaring up to the West has only limited appeal, and sooner or later the Russian president will have to address domestic concerns like education, housing and health care.
The question also remains about whether Mr Putin will continue as president after this term ends.
According to the constitution he is required to step down in 2024, but he could change the rules to eliminate term limits.
However, he does not seem willing to carry on for too long, and laughed off a question from a journalist about standing in 2030.
European newspapers see Cold War climate
By BBC Monitoring
Germany's Bild tabloid asks "Has the poison thriller helped Putin?" and quotes Mr Putin's campaign spokesperson thanking Britain for "unjustly accusing Russia" and putting pressure on Moscow "at the right time" which led to a surge of Russian voters "gathering around the centre of power - and that is Putin".
French business daily Les Echos says Mr Putin was "re-elected in a Cold War climate". The paper adds: "Vladimir Putin has won the bet that was impossible to lose: to be re-elected amid a full-scale crisis with the West."
Poland's conservative Rzeczpospolita says Mr Putin's re-election means a "further policy of confrontation with the West". One expert tells the paper: "Russia has depleted its means of development, meaning that now Russia will only rely on force and expansion".
Donald Trump warned by Republicans over Mueller's Russia inquiry - BBC News
19/3/2018
Donald Trump warned by Republicans over Mueller's Russia inquiry
Donald Trump's use of Twitter to attack opponents is unprecedented
US President Donald Trump has been warned by fellow Republicans against interfering in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigations.
It came after he attacked Mr Mueller's inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
In tweets at the weekend, Mr Trump reiterated that there had been "no collusion" between his team and Russia and called the probe a "witch hunt".
He added that it was dominated by "hardened Democrats".
Mr Mueller, a highly regarded former head of the FBI, is a Republican.
@SenJohnMcCain
Special Counsel Mueller has served our country with honesty and integrity. It’s critical he be allowed to complete a thorough investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election — unimpeded.
8:25 AM - Mar 19, 2018
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said Mr Mueller should be allowed to proceed without interference, and that many Republicans shared his view.
He also warned Mr Trump against any attempt to dismiss Mr Mueller.
"If he tried to do that, that would be the beginning of the end of his presidency, because we're a rule of law nation," Mr Graham said.
Who's who in Russia-Trump inquiry?
Trump Russia: Key questions answered
What is a special counsel?
Republican Senator Jeff Flake, a frequent Trump critic, said it appeared the president's latest comments seemed to be preparing the ground for the firing of Mr Mueller.
"I don't know what the designs are on Mueller, but it seems to be building toward that, and I just hope it doesn't go there... We can't in Congress accept that," he told CNN.
"I'm just puzzled by why the White House is going so hard at this, other than that they're very afraid of what might come out."
AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, Paul Ryan, said: "As the Speaker has always said, Mr Mueller and his team should be able to do their job."
Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer accused Mr Trump of "floating trial balloons about derailing" the investigation.
"Our Republican colleagues, particularly the leadership, have an obligation to our country to stand up now and make it clear that firing Mueller is a red line for our democracy that cannot be crossed," he said in a statement.
@realDonaldTrump
Why does the Mueller team have 13 hardened Democrats, some big Crooked Hillary supporters, and Zero Republicans? Another Dem recently added...does anyone think this is fair? And yet, there is NO COLLUSION!
11:35 PM - Mar 18, 2018
The president's comments came a day after his lawyer, John Dowd, said it was time for the special counsel's investigation to end. Initially Mr Dowd said he was speaking for the president but later clarified he was "speaking for myself".
Also on Sunday, White House lawyer Ty Cobb said in a statement: "In response to media speculation... the White House yet again confirms that the President is not considering or discussing the firing of the Special Counsel".
Earlier the president berated former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe, who was fired on Friday and former FBI director James Comey, whom Mr Trump sacked last year.
In a tweet, Mr Trump accused him of lying under oath before Congress, and described the contemporaneous notes that Mr McCabe and Mr Comey took following discussions with him as "fake memos".
Mr McCabe has given memos about conversations he had with President Trump to the Mueller inquiry, US media say. The memos could support claims that Mr Trump sought to obstruct justice.
A showdown is coming
Analysis by Anthony Zurcher, BBC North America reporter
Robert Mueller has admirers on all sides of US politics
With a weekend free of scheduled presidential obligations, Donald Trump has ratcheted up the rhetoric directed toward Mr Mueller.
Perhaps it is because the president feels emboldened by the one-two punch of the Republican intelligence committee conclusion that there was no "collusion" between the Trump camp and Russia, and his attorney general's decision to fire former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe. Or maybe it is because Mr Trump is on edge following reports that Mr Mueller is now looking into the Trump Organization's business dealings with Russia.
Whatever the reason, the president spent the weekend swinging at "hardened Democrats" on Mr Mueller's team and "sanctimonious" former FBI director James Comey, and celebrating Mr McCabe's unceremonious exit.
And so the president's strategy comes into shape. Paint his critics and investigators as anti-Trump, deep-state establishment forces and the entire inquiry as based on a biased and corrupt premise. The next step would be to claim any evidence of wrongdoing unearthed by Mr Mueller is irretrievably tainted.
That, of course, isn't much of a legal defence. In a war for public opinion, however, it's a place where his side could dig in.
Why was McCabe fired?
Mr McCabe had already stepped down from his deputy post in January, but was sacked just two days short of his 50th birthday when he was expected to retire.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions said an internal investigation had concluded that Mr McCabe "made an unauthorised disclosure to the news media and lacked candour - including under oath - on multiple occasions".
The White House said it left the decision to fire Mr McCabe (right) to Mr Sessions (left)
Although the decision to fire Mr McCabe was made by Mr Sessions, Mr Trump had criticised him for months.
He has publicly pointed to donations that Mr McCabe's wife, a Democrat, received from a Clinton ally when she ran for the state Senate in 2015 as evidence that Mr McCabe was politically biased.
He welcomed the news of his dismissal as a "great day for democracy".
Republican memo accuses FBI of abusing power
Trump renews attack on 'disgraceful' FBI
What could the memos say?
News that Mr McCabe had kept records of his conversations with Mr Trump at the time he was acting FBI director emerged on Saturday.
US media say the memos will support Mr Comey's account of the circumstances of his dismissal last May.
Media captionComey's most revealing moments
Mr Comey has testified that Mr Trump asked him for his "loyalty" and requested he drop an inquiry into his disgraced former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
He, too, has said he kept contemporaneous notes of his dealings with the president.
Responding to his firing, Mr McCabe said he was being punished because he had indicated that he would corroborate Mr Comey's version of events.
Donald Trump warned by Republicans over Mueller's Russia inquiry
Donald Trump's use of Twitter to attack opponents is unprecedented
US President Donald Trump has been warned by fellow Republicans against interfering in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigations.
It came after he attacked Mr Mueller's inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
In tweets at the weekend, Mr Trump reiterated that there had been "no collusion" between his team and Russia and called the probe a "witch hunt".
He added that it was dominated by "hardened Democrats".
Mr Mueller, a highly regarded former head of the FBI, is a Republican.
@SenJohnMcCain
Special Counsel Mueller has served our country with honesty and integrity. It’s critical he be allowed to complete a thorough investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election — unimpeded.
8:25 AM - Mar 19, 2018
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said Mr Mueller should be allowed to proceed without interference, and that many Republicans shared his view.
He also warned Mr Trump against any attempt to dismiss Mr Mueller.
"If he tried to do that, that would be the beginning of the end of his presidency, because we're a rule of law nation," Mr Graham said.
Who's who in Russia-Trump inquiry?
Trump Russia: Key questions answered
What is a special counsel?
Republican Senator Jeff Flake, a frequent Trump critic, said it appeared the president's latest comments seemed to be preparing the ground for the firing of Mr Mueller.
"I don't know what the designs are on Mueller, but it seems to be building toward that, and I just hope it doesn't go there... We can't in Congress accept that," he told CNN.
"I'm just puzzled by why the White House is going so hard at this, other than that they're very afraid of what might come out."
AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, Paul Ryan, said: "As the Speaker has always said, Mr Mueller and his team should be able to do their job."
Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer accused Mr Trump of "floating trial balloons about derailing" the investigation.
"Our Republican colleagues, particularly the leadership, have an obligation to our country to stand up now and make it clear that firing Mueller is a red line for our democracy that cannot be crossed," he said in a statement.
@realDonaldTrump
Why does the Mueller team have 13 hardened Democrats, some big Crooked Hillary supporters, and Zero Republicans? Another Dem recently added...does anyone think this is fair? And yet, there is NO COLLUSION!
11:35 PM - Mar 18, 2018
The president's comments came a day after his lawyer, John Dowd, said it was time for the special counsel's investigation to end. Initially Mr Dowd said he was speaking for the president but later clarified he was "speaking for myself".
Also on Sunday, White House lawyer Ty Cobb said in a statement: "In response to media speculation... the White House yet again confirms that the President is not considering or discussing the firing of the Special Counsel".
Earlier the president berated former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe, who was fired on Friday and former FBI director James Comey, whom Mr Trump sacked last year.
In a tweet, Mr Trump accused him of lying under oath before Congress, and described the contemporaneous notes that Mr McCabe and Mr Comey took following discussions with him as "fake memos".
Mr McCabe has given memos about conversations he had with President Trump to the Mueller inquiry, US media say. The memos could support claims that Mr Trump sought to obstruct justice.
A showdown is coming
Analysis by Anthony Zurcher, BBC North America reporter
Robert Mueller has admirers on all sides of US politics
With a weekend free of scheduled presidential obligations, Donald Trump has ratcheted up the rhetoric directed toward Mr Mueller.
Perhaps it is because the president feels emboldened by the one-two punch of the Republican intelligence committee conclusion that there was no "collusion" between the Trump camp and Russia, and his attorney general's decision to fire former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe. Or maybe it is because Mr Trump is on edge following reports that Mr Mueller is now looking into the Trump Organization's business dealings with Russia.
Whatever the reason, the president spent the weekend swinging at "hardened Democrats" on Mr Mueller's team and "sanctimonious" former FBI director James Comey, and celebrating Mr McCabe's unceremonious exit.
And so the president's strategy comes into shape. Paint his critics and investigators as anti-Trump, deep-state establishment forces and the entire inquiry as based on a biased and corrupt premise. The next step would be to claim any evidence of wrongdoing unearthed by Mr Mueller is irretrievably tainted.
That, of course, isn't much of a legal defence. In a war for public opinion, however, it's a place where his side could dig in.
Why was McCabe fired?
Mr McCabe had already stepped down from his deputy post in January, but was sacked just two days short of his 50th birthday when he was expected to retire.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions said an internal investigation had concluded that Mr McCabe "made an unauthorised disclosure to the news media and lacked candour - including under oath - on multiple occasions".
The White House said it left the decision to fire Mr McCabe (right) to Mr Sessions (left)
Although the decision to fire Mr McCabe was made by Mr Sessions, Mr Trump had criticised him for months.
He has publicly pointed to donations that Mr McCabe's wife, a Democrat, received from a Clinton ally when she ran for the state Senate in 2015 as evidence that Mr McCabe was politically biased.
He welcomed the news of his dismissal as a "great day for democracy".
Republican memo accuses FBI of abusing power
Trump renews attack on 'disgraceful' FBI
What could the memos say?
News that Mr McCabe had kept records of his conversations with Mr Trump at the time he was acting FBI director emerged on Saturday.
US media say the memos will support Mr Comey's account of the circumstances of his dismissal last May.
Media captionComey's most revealing moments
Mr Comey has testified that Mr Trump asked him for his "loyalty" and requested he drop an inquiry into his disgraced former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
He, too, has said he kept contemporaneous notes of his dealings with the president.
Responding to his firing, Mr McCabe said he was being punished because he had indicated that he would corroborate Mr Comey's version of events.
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