Overnight Energy: Interior chief could face months-long DOJ probe | Agencies to 'encourage' tree burning for energy | Watchdog finds Gettysburg park chief broke ethics rules

View in your browser     ZINKE COULD FACE MONTHS-LONG JUSTICE INVESTIGATION: Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke could be facing a months-long investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ) now that his agency's internal watchdog has referred one of its probes to the DOJ. The investigation, which is expected to focus on a personal real estate deal Zinke made with Halliburton Co. Chairman David Lesar, according to The New York Times, sets the stage for a comprehensive review of the former Montana lawmaker's business ties. Interior's Office of the Inspector General (IG) referred one of its investigations into Zinke to the DOJ more than two weeks ago. The specific nature of the investigation into Zinke has not been made public, and DOJ is not commenting on the matter. Public integrity law experts said that if the probe ends up focusing on business transactions, that would likely involve criminal conflict-of-interest statutes that prohibit federal employees from participating "personally and substantially" in decisions in which they or a relative have a financial interest. "The conflict-of-interest statute requires a very high level of criminal intent," said one attorney who formerly worked in DOJ's Public Integrity Section, the office that generally deals with federal ethics cases. "You have to prove that he knew he was violating the law." Violators of the conflict-of-interest law can face up to five years in prison and a $50,000 fine per violation. In June, Politico reported that Zinke and his wife were part of an investment that he initially proposed in 2012. The project, a large commercial development on a former industrial site, is largely backed by a group funded by Lesar, and a foundation established by Zinke is playing a key role in the plans. Read more here.   Happy Birthday Ryan Zinke!!: November 1 marks the Interior secretary's birthday. He celebrated with a surprise performance by the musical team at the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park. Others used Zinke's big day to remind the public about recent reports that the DOJ is considering an investigation into him. Environmental action group Friends of the Earth, protested outside the Interior Department's Washington, D.C. headquarters today with a paper-mache life-size mask of Zinke. One tweet from the group read: Enjoy your birthday at @Interior, Ryan Zinke! It may be your last one here... #FireZinke   In other Cabinet secretary news... What's EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler's favorite candy?: Well it's not 100 Grand bars. He tells The Hill's Tim Cama via Twitter that he's a big plain M&M fan.   Happy Thursday!  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.   TRUMP OFFICIALS TO ENCOURAGE TREE BURNING FOR ENERGY: Three federal agencies said Thursday that they're working to embrace burning trees and other biomass to create energy in a "carbon-neutral" way. The heads of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Department of Energy (DOE) sent a letter to Congress outlining how they are carrying out a mandate from a law passed earlier this year to ensure that policies "reflect the carbon-neutrality of forest bioenergy and recognize biomass as a renewable energy source." "EPA, USDA, and DOE will encourage the use of biomass as an energy solution, striving for consistency across federal policies and programs," the agencies' leaders said in the letter. "Working together, the agencies can tap their respective expertise in harnessing the energy potential of this country, and their experience in protecting the environment and working with foresters, farmers and other land owners." Labeling wood burning as environmentally friendly is at odds with environmental groups and some scientists, who say that the process of creating electricity, steam or other energy forms from wood releases all of the carbon dioxide that the trees had previously removed from the atmosphere. William Schlesinger, a biogeochemist who used to lead the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, wrote in Science magazine earlier this year that burning wood is likely a net negative for the environment. Read more here.   GETTYSBURG PARK CHIEF VIOLATED ETHICS RULES WHEN ACCEPTING 23K FLIGHTS: The former head of Gettysburg National Military Park accepted over $23,000 in travel vouchers and gifts from a private, non-government organization over the course of two years, actions a government watchdog is calling criminal. Ed Clark, who served as superintendent of the park until last year, additionally violated ethics rules by soliciting funds on behalf of the private Gettysburg Foundation, according to a report released by the Department of Interior Inspector General's Office on Thursday. The inspector general found that Clark solicited the funds in a non-official "liaison to the foundation" role that included hosting a foundation-funded dinner for his government employees. The watchdog investigation, which started in September 2016 following an anonymous complaint, found that Clark traveled 27 times to attend events organized by the foundation between February 2014 and October 2016. Clark did not seek ethics approval prior to taking each foundation-paid trip and often flew on a private jet, which is a violation of federal law, the report noted. Additionally, he allegedly covered his tracks by submitting false travel vouchers on the cost of the trips. One example highlighted in the report was a $400 cost estimate Clark submitted for flying on the private plane owned by a construction company frequently used by the foundation. The inspector general's own estimate of the costs of the plane travel was over $7,000. The four trips he took were also estimated to have cost the company $13,762. The report additionally found that Clark accepted meals and other gifts from the foundation as compensation for his services. On a number of occasions Clark also requested and pocketed full per diem reimbursement for meals and travel from the National Park Service (NPS) on the days the foundation paid for those services. Worth noting: The inspector general's office referred the investigation to U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, but it declined to prosecute Clark.   OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY: A new solar farm is coming to the California desert, with the Trump administration's blessing Vet for Tampa zoo accused of killing manatees through malpractice Thousands of radiated tortoises seized from traffickers in Madagascar   IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Check out Thursday's stories ... -Trump administration promises to 'encourage' tree burning for energy -Watchdog: Gettysburg park chief violated ethics rules, accepted $23K in vouchers -Environmental group adds $20 million more investment to midterm elections -Dems accuse Energy Department of 'failure' to follow efficiency law -Newark residents outraged after testing reveals lead contamination in water -Zinke could face months-long Justice investigation         Did a friend forward you this email? 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Watch live: West Virginia Senate debate

View in your browser     Watch live: West Virginia Senate debate On Thursday evening, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is set to go head-to-head in a debate against Republican challenger Patrick Morrisey. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report lists the Senate race as "lean Democratic." The debate is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. ET. 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.

On The Money: Trump, Xi speak amid rising trade tensions | Kudlow rules out deal to raise minimum wage | Commerce to review tariff exemption process | Google employees walk out to protest harassment

View in your browser     Happy Thursday 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 talks trade with Chinese president amid heightened tensions: President Trump said Thursday that he spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping amid heightened trade tensions between the world's two largest economies. Trump in a tweet described their phone conversation as "long and very good" and said they placed a "heavy emphasis" on trade. The president indicated they would discuss the issue at next month's Group of 20 (G-20) summit of world economic powers. Such a meeting has not yet been officially announced by the White House. "Just had a long and very good conversation with President Xi Jinping of China. We talked about many subjects, with a heavy emphasis on Trade. Those discussions are moving along nicely with meetings being scheduled at the G-20 in Argentina," Trump tweeted. "Also had good discussion on North Korea!" The Hill's Jordan Fabian fills us in here.   What comes next: Trump warned earlier this week that he was ready to move ahead with billions of dollars worth of new tariffs on Chinese goods if he doesn't reach an agreement with Xi. "I have $267 billion waiting to go if we can't make a deal," he told Fox News's Laura Ingraham on Tuesday.  "I'd like to make a deal right now," he added, but said that China is "not ready." Bloomberg reported on Monday that the U.S. was preparing to slap tariffs on all remaining Chinese imports by early December if talks between Trump and Xi at the G-20 fail to ease trade tensions. White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow said Thursday that the talks could include trade and laid blame for the tensions between the U.S. and China at Beijing's feet. "If we could reach a satisfactory deal with China, the tariffs could be pulled," Kudlow said, specifying that agreements would have to be reached on issues such as intellectual property theft and property ownership. If the sides fail to reach a deal, he added, "then the president will continue to aggressively pursue his agenda." "The principal culprit is China," Kudlow said. "I think only they can break the logjam."   Tensions keep rising: The Justice Department on Thursday announced new charges against a Chinese state-owned company, a Taiwanese company and three Taiwanese nationals for engaging in economic espionage on behalf of the Chinese government.  The entities and individuals charged are accused of stealing trade secrets from Micron Technology, an U.S.-based semiconductor company. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the charges at a press conference, describing Chinese economic espionage as a grave threat to U.S. national security and economic competitiveness. "The problem has been growing rapidly, and along with China's other unfair trade practices, it poses a real and illegal threat to our nation's economic prosperity and competitiveness," Sessions said in remarks at the Justice Department. The indictment unveiled Thursday alleges that the defendants conspired to pilfer trade secrets from Micron, particularly information about dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), a technology used to store data in electronic devices that is manufactured by Micron, and pass it to the Chinese government. The Hill's Morgan Chalfant breaks it down here.   LEADING THE DAY Kudlow: Hurricanes could cost 60k jobs in October employment report: President Trump's top economic adviser said Thursday that White House economists expect devastating hurricanes to dampen the monthly federal jobs report to be released Friday. National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow said Thursday that the White House Council of Economic Advisers has analyzed the impact of October hurricanes on U.S. employment, and that he expects the storms to cost the country 60,000 jobs. "The CEA -- Council of Economic Advisers -- has taken a look at the hurricanes and we may see a 60,000 drop from the hurricanes. May. This is just a suggestion, this is very inexact," Kudlow said Thursday on Fox Business Network. Kudlow said that while he's anticipating a 60,000-job hit from the hurricane, the actual loss could be anywhere from 30,000 to 90,000 jobs. "We have to be careful here and recognize that probably, probably, you're going to get some noise from the hurricane.   A weird wrinkle: Kudlow did not specifically cite CEA as his source for the hurricane impact, but appeared to suggest it came from internal White House analysis. Federal jobs data is shared with the White House in advance of the report's release through secured communication lines and closely guarded by top administration officials.   The forecast: Private sector forecasters expect the economy to have added between 175,000 and 190,000 jobs in October, though the ADP national employment report released Wednesday showed businesses adding 227,000 jobs in October. More from Kudlow's busy Thursday: Kudlow said at a Washington Post event Thursday that the recent dip in the stock market, which has all but wiped out the gains for 2018, is partly due to election jitters. Economists and analysts will tell you that the correction is far more tied to signs that the U.S. economy is past peak growth with several challenges, like a trade war and fading global growth, ahead. Kudlow also said he would oppose any deal that would raise the federal minimum wage.   Voters credit Trump over Obama for booming economy: poll: More voters credit President Trump than former President Obama for the current state of the economy, according to a new poll. The Harris Poll, conducted with Harvard University's Center for American Political Studies, found that 47 percent of respondents said they believe President Trump is responsible for the current economy, compared to 21 percent who said they believe Obama is responsible. Among those surveyed, 15 percent said they think Republicans in Congress are responsible for the state of the economy, versus 10 percent who said the same of Democrats in Congress.   GOOD TO KNOW The Commerce Department's office of inspector general (IG) is planning to audit the process by which firms gain exemptions to U.S. tariffs, according to documents obtained by The Hill. Amazon's increased minimum wage went into effect on Thursday, providing a $15 per hour salary for all employees of the retail and technology giant. Google employees are staging walkouts at offices around the world to protest the company's handling of misconduct allegations against high-level executives. Shares of Apple fell 7 percent following the release of its third-quarter earnings as the company missed shipment estimates on iPhones, offered light guidance and announced major changes to its reporting structure, according to CNBC.  House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling told Reuters that he's still hopeful the Senate will pass more than three-dozen bills meant to boost business investment before the year is over.  BlackRock Inc. CEO Larry Fink said he expects to continue to invest in Saudi Arabia and that it's unclear who killed journalist Jamal Khashoggi. General Electric's mountain of debt is forcing the company to wean itself off the $1.1 trillion commercial bond market in favor of more expensive bank financing.   ODDS AND ENDS More than 50 companies signed onto a statement released Wednesday supporting transgender equality in the wake of a report that the Trump administration is seeking to change the legal definition of "gender" to exclude transgender and nonbinary people. First lady Melania Trump's trip to Cairo cost taxpayers more than $95,000, according to federal spending records.           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.