The Daily Populous

Friday January 26th, 2018 day edition

image for Trump Ordered Mueller Fired, but Backed Off When White House Counsel Threatened to Quit

Mr. McGahn also told White House officials that Mr. Trump would not follow through on the dismissal on his own.

He has been involved in nearly every key decision Mr. Trump has made — like the firing of the former F.B.I. director — that is being scrutinized by Mr. Mueller.

Mr. McGahn was also concerned that firing the special counsel would incite more questions about whether the White House was trying to obstruct the Russia investigation.

Mr. Trump has significantly ratcheted back his criticisms of Mr. Mueller since he hired Mr. Cobb for his legal team in July.

He advised Mr. Trump that he had nothing to gain from combat with Mr. Mueller, a highly respected former prosecutor and F.B.I. director who has subpoena power as special counsel.

The White House has denied nearly a dozen times since June that Mr. Trump was considering firing Mr. Mueller.

Last month, as Republicans were increasing their attacks on the special counsel, Mr. Trump said in an interview with The Times that he believed Mr. Mueller was going to treat him fairly. »

Competition Bureau sues Ticketmaster for inflating prices with mandatory fees - National

Authored by globalnews.ca

The practice is misleading, officials said, because the ticket can never be purchased at the advertised price.

The Competition Bureau is a federal agency that is part of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada and oversees competition in Canada.

The bureau found that in order to resolve competition concerns Ticketmaster had to sell its subsidiary business Paciolan and license its ticketing system to its competitors. »

Mayor quits FCC committee, says it favors ISPs over the public interest

Authored by arstechnica.com
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The Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC) was set up by the FCC last year and is now releasing draft versions of its recommendations.

One member—the mayor of San Jose, California—quit the group today out of frustration that the recommendations favor the interests of private industry over municipalities.

The problem "became particularly apparent at our most recent meeting in Washington, DC," San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo told FCC Chairman Ajit Pai in his resignation letter. »

What Is the Legacy of Calvin and Hobbes?

Authored by bigthink.com
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Mr. Watterson himself has avoided the spotlight ever since, becoming, as one fellow cartoonist calls him, “the Sasquatch of cartoonists.”

In late 2007, Schroeder began interviewing fans of the comic in search of some sense of its cultural impact.

Dear Mr. Watterson goes back to the roots of Watterson’s life in the small town of Chagrin Falls, Ohio. »

3,500 Occult Manuscripts Will Be Digitized & Made Freely Available Online, Thanks to Da Vinci Code Author Dan Brown

Authored by openculture.com
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If there’s one thing The Da Vinci Code’s Dan Brown and “The Library of Babel”’s Jorge Luis Borges have in common it is a love for obscure religious and occult books and artifacts.

Brown, the Ritman notes, “is a great admirer of the library and visited on several occasions while writing his novels The Lost Symbol and Inferno.”

Just above, see a trailer for a documentary about the Ritman, founded by businessman Joost R. Ritman in 1984. »