Category Archives: business news

business news, International news

Tax returns, Donald; release them

Do I really have to bring up those damn tax returns again?

I guess I do. So … therefore, I shall.

Russian operatives are disputing Donald J. Trump’s denials that he had any contact with them during the 2016 presidential campaign. The president keeps saying he has “nothing to do with Russia. I have no deals there. I have no businesses there.”

Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera …

We don’t know if the president is telling the truth. He does have a way of, you know, lying to us about this and that.

The tax return issue keeps popping up. The president won’t release them. We keep getting conflicting reports from senior aides who say (a) he’ll never release them, (b) he’ll do so when the Internal Revenue Service’s “routine audit” is complete or (c) he’ll do so in due course (whatever that means).

About the only way we’re going get anything approaching the full truth about whether Trump has anything to do with Russia is to see those tax returns.

It’s a reasonable request, Mr. President. You’ve said on occasion you’ll release them. Then you’ve backed away.

He would be the first president in decades to refuse to come clean with the people he represents.

The truth, sir. And yes, we can handle the truth.

business news

After all that … council makes a great AEDC choice

Well, that was a bit of a bumpy ride but the Amarillo City Council finally finished a short trip down a rocky road.

It chose Laura Street — a certifiable force of economic development nature — to fill a vacancy on the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation.

The vacancy occurred when Ginger Nelson resigned while announcing her candidacy for mayor.

The council voted 4-1 to select Street, with Councilman Randy Burkett casting the lone negative vote; hmmm, imagine that.

The ride got a bit bumpy toward the end of this process when applications for the AEDC post went missing. They were “overlooked” by council members. One applicant, real estate developer Perry Williams, emerged as a “favorite” for the spot when his application was discovered. It turned out Williams wasn’t answering city requests to meet with him — and then he pulled his name out of consideration.

The council looked a bit like a gang that couldn’t shoot straight.

Then it hit pay dirt with Street’s appointment. Street has been active in civic and business affairs for years and she brings a huge demonstrated commitment to the city’s economic well-being to her new post.

AEDC’s mission has been revamped a bit since the resignation of City Manager Jarrett Atkinson. The former interim manager, Terry Childers, took some of AEDC’s duties away from the board and placed them in the hands of City Hall staffers. AEDC president and CEO Buzz David retired and moved to Washington state. Now the corporation has a new CEO and it has a full complement of board members.

What’s more, the city has a new manager — Jared Miller — who got the job largely on the basis of his emphasis and experience with economic development.

So, let’s get busy.

business news, national news, political news

Puzder pulls out, thanks to ex-wife’s interview

Andrew Puzder shouldn’t have been nominated as labor secretary in the first place.

He favors automation; he opposes the minimum wage; he is no friend of the working man and woman.

None of that doomed his nomination. Oh, no! The death knell was rung when a decades-old videotape surfaced that shows Puzder’s former wife telling Oprah Winfrey that Puzder abused her. He threatened her, bullied her.

Puzder — a fast-food restaurant mogul — then pulled out.

Vetting, anyone?

I have blogged already about Donald Trump’s lack of vetting as he has looked for Cabinet officers. I thought the worry was overblown.

But here we are. A labor secretary who apparently hadn’t been vetted properly being done in by an old videotaped interview.

It appears that a lot more careful vetting of Puzder’s history could have prevented the president from suffering this embarrassing end to one of his Cabinet selections.

That presumes, of course, that Donald Trump would be embarrassed.

business news, local news

Pace quickens on downtown reshaping

Is it me or does the pace of downtown Amarillo’s transformation appear to be picking up steam?

I don’t get downtown as much as I used to, but the things I keep seeing and hearing give me hope that this Panhandle outpost city is getting its act in gear as it concerns the reshaping of its downtown profile.

Another storefront on Polk Street — the city’s one-time “main drag” — is getting a new tenant after being dark for longer than I can remember. The old Levine Building has some construction fencing around the ground floor and will be the site of yet another new eatery along Polk.

Crush is moving it location across from where it currently does business; we’re getting that two-story/over-under restaurant nearby; the Embassy Suites is continuing to progress; that parking garage next door is getting closer to completion, with retail outlets making lease arrangements to do business once they start parking vehicles inside.

West Texas A&M University is continuing to rip apart the old Commerce Building to transform that structure into a new WT downtown Amarillo campus.

I am acutely aware that much work needs to be done on major structures. The Barfield Building remains dark; and let’s not forget — if anyone will let us forget — the Herring Hotel, which remains the dream of its owner, Bob Goodrich.

But much of downtown’s face already has been lifted. By my way of thinking, so have some spirits been lifted as Center City continues its work to promote the downtown district. Much of the work done by what used to be called Downtown Amarillo Inc. — I am not clear on the status of that organization — is continuing at a steady pace.

I want to reiterate a critical point here. It is that a city’s health can be measured by the state of affairs in its downtown business/entertainment district. Look around Texas and you see cities working — with a wide range of success — at reviving their downtown districts. This isn’t rocket science, folks.

The proof of cities’ vitality can be found in any community that boasts a healthy central district. Fort Worth? Houston? San Antonio? They all are bustling.

Spare me the response that “We cannot be one of those cities. We aren’t that big.” I know that. My response is simply: economies of scale. We can produce a vital downtown district on a scale that fits a city of 200,000 residents.

What I am seeing is that we are proceeding toward that end.

Let us get busy, though, in getting some paperwork done to finalize that baseball franchise move from downstate to Amarillo so we can start work on that downtown ballpark.

business news, local news

Clumsiness breaks out at City Hall

Amarillo’s City Council is looking once again like a gang that cannot shoot straight.

It is looking to fill a slot on the Amarillo Economic Development Corp. board. It pushed the name of a prominent local developer, Perry Williams, to the top of its finalist list.

Then the candidate went missing in action. The city couldn’t find him. Williams wasn’t responding to efforts by the city to arrange an interview with him.

Then Williams — who is developing the huge Town Square residential/commercial project on Soncy Road — announced he was backing out. He pulled his application for the AEDC board.

Some media reporting indicates that his application had been “overlooked” by council members.

Huh? What the … ?

The council is looking at four finalists to fill the AEDC spot. I am acquainted with a couple of them, one of whom I would recommend for AEDC.

Sitting way out here in the peanut gallery, I am not sure if Williams backed out because of incompetence by the selection committee, or if he just decided at the last minute he had too much to do already … that he couldn’t devote the time needed to craft job-creation policies.

Service on the AEDC is a big deal. The AEDC is charged with using sales tax revenue to lure new businesses — and to enhance existing businesses — in the search for new jobs.

It does seem a bit strange, though, that the council would “overlook” an application, then push it forward — only to have an applicant suddenly become MIA.

Can we get an explanation? From somebody? Anybody?

business news, local news

No longer working for a living … but still in the game

2 Comments

This is the latest in an occasional series of blog posts commenting on upcoming retirement.

It has been four years and nearly six months since I quit my job at the Amarillo Globe-News.

I didn’t expect to resign when I did. Circumstances forced me to walk away from a career — and a craft — I had enjoyed to the fullest for nearly 37 years.

As sad as I was at the moment, I am spending far less time looking back and more time looking forward. The next big adventure awaits my wife and me as we continue this transition toward another full-time gig: retirement.

However, I want to share a gratifying experience that keeps repeating itself as I continue to work part-time as a customer concierge at Street Toyota in Amarillo.

I wear a name badge at work. I greet customers when they come into our service waiting area. I ask them if there’s anything I can do for them to make them comfortable: Do they need a ride somewhere while their vehicle is being serviced? Do they want something to drink while they wait? Those kinds of things.

Then I get one of those glances from customers who look at my name, look me in the eye and they might say something like: “John Kanelis … where do I know that name? Your name and face look familiar. Where did you retire from?”

I tell them I worked for nearly 18 years at the G-N. I wrote a column each week for the Opinion page and I edited the page and wrote editorials.

“Oh yeah! Now I remember!” comes the response.

“Are you still writing?” the customer might ask. “Oh yes, absolutely,” I tell them.

I told someone today that I intend to write for as long as I am able. Some folks actually ask me why. Why do you keep writing? My stock answer: It’s what I do.

I suppose this is my way of telling readers of this blog that I’ll keep pounding away for as long as I have most of my marbles and as long as I can instruct my fingers to write the sentences that pop into my noggin.

Plenty of you are kind enough to read and to respond. I don’t expect to please everyone who reads my musings. That’s all right, too. I got into the business of print journalism understanding that everyone’s values differ and they inform their own world view — just as my values have informed my own.

No sweat. Just keep bearing with me as we all march on down the road together.

Once I become a full-time retiree, I do not expect to suspend my desire to keep sharing my thoughts with you here. I will be retired, but I don’t intend to check out anytime soon.

business news, national news, political news

Army secretary pulls out; business interests get in the way

Vincent Viola is worth about $1.8 billion.

He was tapped by Donald Trump to be the next secretary of the Army. Oops! He dropped out today, citing the difficulty of severing his business ties from his upcoming public service.

Hmm. That sounds a bit familiar, yes?

http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/317893-trumps-army-secretary-nominee-withdrawing-report

The president himself is reportedly worth a lot more than Viola. He, too, has myriad business interests. Some folks believe he might be violating the U.S. Constitution’s prohibition against presidents taking money from foreign governments; it’s that “emoluments clause.”

If Viola couldn’t break his business interests loose in order to serve as Army secretary, how does the president of the United States make good on that requirement?

Just wondering … you know?

business news, national news, political news

Finally, a Trump policy worth endorsing

I told you I would say something positive if Donald J. Trump ever did something worthy of an endorsement while he is president of the United States.

Here it comes.

I like the ban he has placed on those who leave federal employment, meaning they cannot work for at least five years as lobbyists after they leave public office.

Some of them would face lifetime bans.

There you go. I’ve just broken my lengthy string of critical comments against Trump.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-sets-5-year-and-lifetime-lobbying-ban-for-officials/ar-AAmm1nh?li=BBmkt5R&ocid=spartandhp

According to The Associated Press: “Most of the people standing behind me will not be able to go to work,” Trump joked, referring to an array of White House officials lined up behind him as he sat at his desk in the Oval Office. The officials included Vice President Mike Pence, chief of staff Reince Priebus, senior strategist Steve Bannon and counselor Kellyanne Conway. “So you have one last chance to get out.”

I’ve long lamented the revolving door that separates public service from private lobbying. In Texas, for instance, legislators can leave public office and step virtually immediately into lobbying positions. It allows these ex-lawmakers to use their intimate contacts and their influence on government agencies to the benefit of their new employers: the firms they represent as registered lobbyists.

Trump says that won’t happen with those who work within his administration. This, I submit, is a welcome reform in the relationship between government agencies and the lobbying firms that seek to benefit from government money.

business news

Big surprise: ‘We were pioneers’

PORTLAND, Ore. — Surprises can reach out and bite you at any moment … which is why they’re called “surprises,” yes?

I got one today while having lunch with my oldest friend on the planet. It’s not that Dennis is old; it’s that we go back to the seventh grade at Parkrose Heights Junior High School when we first made each other’s acquaintance.

We were 12 years of age.

We would hook up time and again as kids and then we went to work at the same McDonald’s restaurant near our northeast Portland home.

We worked for a gentleman who owned the franchise at that eatery. HIs name was Oliver Lund. He seemed to me — I was 16 when I started working there — to be an old man even then.

Little did I know …

Today at lunch, Dennis presented me with a community newspaper article about that very same Ollie Lund, who just retired — at the age of 88 — from the restaurant business. For 55 years he operated that particular McDonald’s and some others.

Here’s what I learned upon reading that article. Our restaurant was the 117th such McDonald’s ever built in the United States of America. Think about that. One hundred seventeenth!

How many of them are there now? Thousands of them! In the United States and around the world. Thousands, man!

Ollie was among a group of Navy veterans who got together, pooled their money and bought these franchises.

I started working at the McDonald’s in suburban northeast Portland on the day after my 16th birthday, which was in December 1965. My buddy Dennis started working there shortly after that.

This was an amazing discovery today at lunch.

First of all, I was sure that Ollie was 80-something when I worked for him back in the day; then again, when you’re 16 everyone older than, say, 30 looks to be in their 80s.

What has kept Ollie going all these years? It had to be his positive outlook. He was a mentor who became our friend. I would leave for a couple of years after being inducted into the U.S. Army in 1968. I came back to work there after my two years in the Army and, yep, Ollie was still there. I didn’t work there for very long. I re-enrolled in school in late 1970 and got married the following September.

Ollie came to our wedding.

This is a bit timely as well, given that a new movie has just been released about the life and career of Ray Kroc, the founder of what became the McDonald’s chain.

Dennis and I laughed out loud today while catching up. It was Dennis who then reminded me: “We were pioneers.”

Who knew?

I am delighted to know this good man is still among us and is seemingly as vibrant today as he was in the old days.

Wow!

business news

Yes, Mr. President, many of us do care about those returns

Donald “Smart Person” Trump and his senior White House aides say that “people don’t care” about his tax returns — which the president hasn’t yet released to the public.

Actually, Mr. President, I care. So do millions of other Americans. We care, sir, about how you’ve collected all those billions of dollars who you say you possess. We care about whether you’ve been involved in foreign government-sponsored business activity. We care about whether any of those foreign entities have put money in our pocket, which — I’m sure you’re aware — violates the “emoluments clause” in the U.S. Constitution.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/petition-demanding-donald-trump-release-his-tax-returns-breaks-white-house-record/ar-AAmhJtZ?li=BBmkt5R&ocid=spartandhp

A petition is circulating that reportedly is breaking some sort of White House record. It contains a lot of signatures from many concerned Americans wanting the president to release those returns.

He has said he would do so. Then his senior adviser, Kellyanne Conway, said he wouldn’t. Then the president — or perhaps it was Conway — said he’d do so when the IRS completed its “routine audit.”

There’s also this thing about the boasting the president did about the wealth he has accumulated. He bragged constantly on the campaign trail about how rich he is, which means he made it the public’s business. So, if he’s really that rich, I’d like to see it for myself.

I’m not nearly alone among Americans who are concerned about the release of those returns. Come clean, Mr. President. Those of us you purport to represent want to know.