News Alert: Trump rails against Dems at Pennsylvania rally as Hurricane Michael batters Florida

View in your browser     Trump rails against Dems at Pennsylvania rally as Hurricane Michael batters Florida President Trump praised his own record as “the greatest revolution to ever take place in our country” during a speech at a full-to-capacity hockey arena in Erie, Pa., on Wednesday evening. The grandiose claim was part of a broader call for voters to turn out in next month’s midterm elections to back Republican candidates who face a challenging electoral landscape. Read the full story here           Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for News Alerts     Forward News Alerts     You Might Like       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Overnight Energy: Interior punishes more than 1,500 workers for misconduct | EPA removes 22 Superfund sites from list | DOJ nominee on environment nears confirmation

View in Browser     INTERIOR PUNISHES 1,500 FOR HARASSMENT, MISCONDUCT: The Interior Department has punished more than 1,500 employees for harassment or other misconduct since the beginning of last year. The revelation came Wednesday in a department-wide email obtained by The Hill in which Deputy Secretary David Bernhardt updated employees on the state of the administration's attempted crackdown on misconduct. Bernhard also told workers about new changes to address workplace concerns included developing action plans to curtail inappropriate behavior and expanding an ethics program within the agency. "From day one, [Interior] Secretary [Ryan] Zinke and I have been committed to leaving the Department in better shape than we found it; this includes addressing employee misconduct and harassment and improving our ethics program," Bernhardt wrote in the email. In April, the department released its first comprehensive policy on the Prevention and Elimination of Harassing Conduct. Bernhardt, in the email, urged staff to continue to come forward with any concerns. "Despite these efforts, we can only take action when we are aware of misconduct or unethical behavior. For this to happen, employees have to be willing to come forward. I want you to know that your leadership is listening, and we are committed to holding individuals accountable when they have failed in their duties and obligations," he wrote. Zinke has long blamed the Obama administration for failing to react to harassment concerns within the Interior Department, which includes the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service. Read more.   Happy Wednesday! Welcome to Overnight Energy, The Hill's roundup of the latest energy and environment news. Please send tips and comments to Timothy Cama, tcama@thehill.com, and Miranda Green, mgreen@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @Timothy_Cama, @mirandacgreen, @thehill. CLICK HERE to subscribe to our newsletter.   EPA REMOVES 22 SUPERFUND SITES FROM LIST: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) removed more sites from its Superfund list in the last fiscal year than any year in more than a decade. The agency on Wednesday announced that it deleted 18 complete sites and four parts of sites from the Superfund list in fiscal 2018, the most since 2005. Deletion means that the EPA has formally declared that the contamination has been cleaned and monitoring has confirmed it. "Under President Trump, EPA is deleting Superfund sites from the National Priorities List at the fastest pace in more than a decade," acting EPA chief Andrew Wheeler said in a statement. "This remarkable accomplishment is proof that cleaning up contaminated lands and returning them to safe and productive use is a top priority of the Trump EPA." While Wheeler boasted about the milestone to support the Trump administration's agenda to put a new emphasis on Superfund cleanups, the cleanups started years or decades ago, and most were completed before President Trump took office. The Superfund agenda, initially implemented as a top priority by former EPA chief Scott Pruitt last year, aimed in part to expedite cleanup actions and remove more sites from the list. More than 1,300 places nationwide are on the list, which gives the EPA authority to order companies to remediate sites or to use federal funding if necessary. Read more.   DOJ ENVIRONMENT NOMINEE NEARS CONFIRMATION: The Senate moved Wednesday toward confirming Jeffrey Clark to be the Trump administration's top environment attorney at the Department of Justice. Senators voted 53 to 44, mainly along party lines, to end debate on Clark, setting him up for a final confirmation vote as soon as Thursday. As the assistant attorney general for the environment and natural resources division, Clark's responsibilities would include defending Trump administration policies at agencies like the EPA and Interior against court challenges, enforcing laws against polluters and certain cases involving American Indian rights. Clark is currently a partner at Kirkland & Ellis. He has faced criticism from Democrats and environmentalists, who predict that he would prioritize industry over environmental protections. He has defended BP from claims involving the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster and said climate change science is "contestable," among other things. Jeffrey Wood has been acting head of the environment and natural resources division since Trump took office in January 2017.   DOE CYBER OFFICIAL GETS SWORN IN, AGAIN: The Department of Energy held a grand swearing-in ceremony at its headquarters Wednesday for Karen Evans, the new assistant secretary for the agency's office of cybersecurity, energy security and emergency response (CESER). Evans was sworn in in early September after gliding through Senate confirmation, but leaders wanted a bigger ceremony, complete with private sector attendees. In celebrating Evans, Perry said she'll help carry out the new cybersecurity focus at DOE that was central to creating CESER. "DOE is on the front lines of this battle to protect our nation, our energy infrastructure," he said. "And it's a battle, don't get confused that this is not a battle. It's a battle that's becoming more dangerous every day. These threats continue to grow, they metastasize, they attack with greater frequency and scale and sophistication every day." "The sustained and growing threat of cyberattacks to our energy infrastructure requires us to think differently," he continued. Evans has long been in the federal information technology world, including a six-year stint at the White House Office of Management and Budget under President George W. Bush. Perry created CESER in February, taking some of the office of electricity's responsibilities and adding a new cybersecurity focus.   ON TAP THURSDAY: The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing to examine blackstart, the process for restoring electricity after a complete blackout.   OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY: Michigan officials are putting "Do Not Eat The Fish" signs along the Huron River due to contamination concerns, Michigan Radio reports. The World Bank declined to help fund a planned power plant in Kosovo because it would use coal, Reuters reports. A new report in Nature says dramatic shifts in the world's food system are necessary to protect the climate, including big reductions in meat, the Washington Post reports.   IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Check out Wednesday's stories ... - More than 1,500 Interior employees removed or reprimanded for harassment, misconduct - Rick Scott 'scared to death' for people who didn't evacuate from Hurricane Michael - Hurricane Michael makes landfall in Florida as Category 4 storm - EPA removes 22 cleaned-up sites from Superfund list - Oil industry, green groups join to oppose Trump's ethanol plan         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Energy Newsletters     Forward Energy Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

On The Money: Trump says 'Fed has gone crazy' after stock drop | Dow down over 800 points | Tech rout, interest rate fears drive market slide

View in your browser     Happy Wednesday and welcome back to On The Money. I'm Sylvan Lane, and here's your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line. See something I missed? Let me know at slane@thehill.com or tweet me @SylvanLane. And if you like your newsletter, you can subscribe to it here: http://bit.ly/1NxxW2N. Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@thehill.com, vneedham@thehill.com, njagoda@thehill.com and nelis@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane, @VickofTheHill, @NJagoda and @NivElis.   THE BIG DEAL--Trump after stock drop: 'The Fed has gone crazy.' President Trump on Wednesday said the Federal Reserve "has gone crazy" with a series of planned interest rate increases after U.S. stocks suffered their worst daily losses since February. Trump told reporters on Air Force One that the Fed had raised rates too quickly after being asked his reaction to Wednesday's massive stock sell-off, according to pool reports. "No, I think the Fed is making a mistake. They're so tight," Trump said. "I think the Fed has gone crazy. So you can say that, 'well that's a lot of safety actually. And it is a lot of safety, and it gives you a lot of margin. But I think the Fed has gone crazy." The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 832 points Wednesday afternoon, losing 3.2 percent on the day. The Nasdaq composite fell 4 percent and the S&P 500 lost 3.3 percent as investors sought safe havens from rising interest rates. Trump said the Wednesday stock slide was "actually...a correction that we've been waiting for, for a long time," but reiterated his frustration with the Fed.  "I really disagree with what the Fed is doing, okay?," Trump said. I've got more on the developing story here, and keep reading for a breakdown on the bloody day on Wall Street.    ON TAP TOMORROW Senate Banking Committee holds a hearing on cryptocurrencies and blockchain, 10 a.m.   LEADING THE DAY Dow drops more than 800 points amid tech rout, interest rate fears: U.S. stocks slid sharply Wednesday as investors sought safe havens from rising interest rates and the feared reversal of years of consistent gains for technology companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 832 points Wednesday afternoon, losing 3.2 percent on the day. The Nasdaq composite fell 4 percent and the S&P 500 lost 3.3 percent as U.S. stocks took their worse daily losses since February. The Dow's Wednesday skid was its third-worst daily loss by points.   Stocks in tech companies that led the bull market of the past decade suffered the heaviest losses as investors pulled back from the sector. Shares of Amazon, Netflix, Facebook, Apple and Twitter all fell sharply throughout the day. I unpack what went on today right here.   What's going on:  Tech companies had boasted some of the best performing stocks of the recent surge and wooed billions of dollars from investors drawn to booming Silicon Valley titans. But a rash of security breaches, hacks, scandals and federal oversight have made the sector less attractive to traders. Investors have also been shaken by rising interest rates and bond yields. Higher borrowing costs typically narrow corporate profit margins and dampen investment. That pushes traders toward Treasuries and other products seen as safe havens.   What happens next: Stocks have been due for a correction, and this could be the start of a small deflation in overvalued equities. It could also be completely irrelevant in two weeks. It's too early to tell how long Wall Street's dismal October will stretch beyond this week, but the stock market was bound to come back to Earth at some point.   Chinese intel officer extradited to US to face economic espionage charges: A Chinese intelligence officer has been extradited to the United States to face economic espionage charges, U.S. officials announced Wednesday. The Justice Department said Yanjun Xu, an alleged operative for China's Ministry of State Security, has been arrested and charged with conspiring to commit economic espionage and steal trade secrets from major U.S. aviation and aerospace firms, including GE Aviation, which is based just outside Cincinnati.  The development represents a major feat for U.S. officials, who were able to apprehend a Chinese national alleged to be an active member of Beijing's intelligence and security agency operating in China.  It also comes as the Trump administration escalates its public criticism of China for what it views as unacceptable behavior by Beijing on several fronts. The Hill's Morgan Chalfant tells us more here about this wild story.   The background:  The U.S. alleges that Xu, an unindicted co-conspirator operating in China identified as "CF" and others targeted GE Aviation and other companies in and outside the United States since at least December 2013 in order to steal sensitive trade secrets. This included identifying experts working for these firms and recruiting and paying for them to come to China, sometimes under the false pretenses of giving a presentation at a university.  Xu, a deputy division director in the sixth bureau of the security agency's Jiangsu State Security Department, was primarily responsible for stealing trade secrets and other technical information from U.S. and European aviation and aerospace companies.   Why it matters: The U.S. detainment of a top Chinese intelligence official is the latest blow to the fraught relationship between Washington and Beijing. Tensions between the Trump administration and Xi Jinping government have exploded throughout the year over tariffs and geopolitical maneuvering.   Top White House economist 'hopeful' China's woes lead to trade deal: The top White House economist said Wednesday that he's hopeful that China's struggling economy will bring the Trump administration and Beijing closer to resolving their trade war. Kevin Hassett, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, argued on CNBC Wednesday that China should be eager to strike a trade deal with the U.S. because it would benefit the country's lagging economy. China has suffered from slower growth and a bear stock market through 2018. U.S. tariffs on Chinese exports are also expected to take a serious toll on the country's economy. Hassett said the Chinese economy could rebound quickly with help from the U.S., touting the Trump administration's recent renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement and a trade deal with South Korea. "If something like that happens with China, then everything in China is going to turn around on a dime and we're hopeful that's the scenario that they keep in mind," Hassett said. "We're all at the White House hopeful that talks can resume and that we can move to a positive place with China." I explain the obstacles ahead here.   GOOD TO KNOW Almost two-thirds of Americans polled say they haven't seen an increase in their take-home pay as a result of last year's Republican tax-cut bill, according to a new survey. Amazon sought to assure Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) that its employees will earn more after it raises its minimum wage despite discontinuing stock options and bonuses. The New York Times explains why American businesses still face a cloud of trade uncertainty as Trump seeks to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement. Voters in a new poll were closely divided on whether it's important that President Trump hasn't released his tax returns, after The New York Times reported last week that the president and his family had participated in "dubious" tax schemes. Struggling U.S. farmers are worried about a resurgent Russia, according to the Wall Street Journal.   ODDS AND ENDS Major League Baseball team owners are asking the IRS to let them in on lucrative tax deduction established through the 2017 tax-cut bill, according to the Wall Street Journal. James Murdoch, the outgoing chief executive of 21st Century Fox, is the favorite to replace Elon Musk as the chairman of Tesla, sources told the Financial Times on Wednesday. Seventy-eight percent of U.S. workers think that CEOs make too much compared to employees, according to a new survey by beqom, a compensation software company.           Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Finance Newsletters     Forward Finance Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2018 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.