It was probably a bit too much to ask the 435-member Democratic National Committee to admit to their role (as the party apparatus) in the colossal failure to get the candidate the majority of Americans (by 3 million votes) said they wanted as their President. How hard can it be to get the actual winner of the vote inaugurated? I guess if you're the Democratic Party, just because you win the Super Bowl, it doesn't mean you get to wear the Super Bowl ring. That makes sense, right? 435 honchos of the party and none of them had a pencil or a map or the ability to do electoral college math? No one had a plane ticket to give the candidate to visit Wisconsin for seven long months during the campaign? Too busy polishing their "SUPER DELEGATE" plaques on their desks?
So, I get it -- this was not the group that was going to install a Bernie-loving, Detroit-bred, Muslim-American and hardcore successful grassroots organizer who had helped orchestrate turning a Midwestern red state blue a few years ago. They wanted to play it safe and so they picked a decent guy. The good news is that Tom Perez is not a step backward to the old conservative Democratic DLC days. He is not Al Frum. He is a progressive and shares most of Keith Ellison's agenda, just as Hillary had adopted 80% of Bernie's plans. So, not the end of the world, and maybe a surprise to boot down the road. We will hope and pray for this.
Of course, it was not helpful yesterday, before the election of the new chair, that the 435 leaders of the Democratic Party voted against President Obama's ban on the Party taking corporate PAC money. Corporate lobbyists can now write big checks so they can get their pipelines, their TPP trade deals (that cost them the election in the rust belt), and so they can keep the for-profit health insurance industry intact. Not a good sign. The Party still doesn't get it and they clearly don't see the millions in the streets, the thousands packing the town hall meetings or the Capitol Hill switchboards that are still jammed, 37 days in a row now (202-225-3121).
Ok, fine. We'll work with the hand we're dealt. And here's how -- with a very clear message to the old guard of the Democratic leadership: We're not "uniting" with you - you're uniting with US. We, the people, the majority, the Resistance, will LEAD and we enthusiastically welcome you to follow. We will be the ones stopping Trump and we welcome you to watch and learn how a pissed-off majority - who have twice in 16 years seen the winner we elected not being inaugurated - operates. We are fierce, we are relentless and we are right. We have the moral and patriotic wind at our backs because the majority Americans agree with us. We will not "compromise" or find "common ground" with misogynists, racists and haters. We won't give an inch and we will show you how to do that. Nonviolent mass protest. In-person visits and daily calls to our elected representatives. Running for office and throwing some of you who are appeasers and collaborators out. Writing checks to Planned Parenthood and ACLU. Pushing for true universal health care in Blue States where we can get it passed. And convincing the 100 million members of America's largest political party -- The Non-Voters Party -- to join us at the polls in 2018 for a raucous and legally riotous overthrow of the Republican Congress.
So, DNC, watch, listen, and join. Follow our lead. You essentially work for us (although none of us know how it is in this democracy you get picked to be on the DNC, but we have a feeling it has something to do with each of us running for precinct delegate in our neighborhoods, so we'll do that, too!).
Thank you for making Keith Ellison the deputy chair of the party and thank you Keith for also deciding to stay in Congress. Let's help Tom Perez and the executive committee follow the Resistance and use all the means available to them to stop Trump and do good for the country.
Meanwhile, many in the Resistance will become active in their local Democratic Parties, run for local leadership and field candidates for next year's elections. Eventually, that 435-member committee will more closely resemble what the people want. I'll say it again -- how a party like the Democrats could WIN the popular vote in SIX OF THE LAST SEVEN Presidential elections but end up holding ZERO power in ANY branch of government in 2017 is a humiliation of gargantuan proportions. Who's with me in saying "NO MORE!" Let's take the loser "L" off the "D".
~ MICHAEL MOORE
Sunday, February 26, 2017
5 Ways Republicans Reaffirmed Their Awfulness This Week
So how is the GOP doing its part to screw over anyone who isn’t lining its pockets or furthering its death cult intentions? Here’s a list of six ways Republicans reaffirmed their awfulness this week.
See the Six Ways at AlterNet.
‘I want an investigation’: Father of slain SEAL blames Trump’s carelessness and ego for son’s death
The father of a Navy SEAL killed during a mission that Donald Trump approved just a week into his administration blames the president for his son’s death.
William Owens told The Miami Herald that he refused to meet with Trump when the remains of son, William “Ryan” Owens, were returned to Dover Air Force Base.
“I’m sorry, I don’t want to see him,” Owens recalled explaining to the chaplain. “I told them I don’t want to meet the president.”
“I told them I didn’t want to make a scene about it, but my conscience wouldn’t let me talk to him.”
Owens questioned Trump’s motivation for signing off on a mission just six days into his presidency.
William Owens told The Miami Herald that he refused to meet with Trump when the remains of son, William “Ryan” Owens, were returned to Dover Air Force Base.
“I’m sorry, I don’t want to see him,” Owens recalled explaining to the chaplain. “I told them I don’t want to meet the president.”
“I told them I didn’t want to make a scene about it, but my conscience wouldn’t let me talk to him.”
Owens questioned Trump’s motivation for signing off on a mission just six days into his presidency.
More: Raw Story.
U.S. intercepts capture senior Russian officials celebrating Trump win
The ebullient reaction among high-ranking Russian officials — including some who U.S. officials believe had knowledge of the country’s cyber campaign to interfere in the U.S. election — contributed to the U.S. intelligence community’s assessment that Moscow’s efforts were aimed at least in part at helping Trump win the White House.
Other key pieces of information gathered by U.S. spy agencies include the identification of “actors” involved in delivering stolen Democratic emails to the WikiLeaks website, and disparities in the levels of effort Russian intelligence entities devoted to penetrating and exploiting sensitive information stored on Democratic and Republican campaign networks.
More: Washington Post.
Steve Bannon’s disturbing views on ‘genetic superiority’ are shared by Trump
On Sunday the New York Times published a profile on Bannon, casting him as a “combative populist.” Buried deep within the profile is an account of Bannon talking about his belief in the “genetic superiority” of certain people and his support for restricting voting rights to only property owners.
Restricting voting to only property holders would take the country back centuries to its founding — when only white, male property holders could vote in most states. Today, such a restriction would disenfranchise huge swaths of people, including students, people of color, young Americans, many city dwellers, and low-income populations.
Far from populism, this is Revolutionary-era elitism drawn along racist lines. And for white nationalists, it’s a familiar goal.
More: ThinkProgress.
A Lie by Any Other Name
These are lies; good old-fashioned lies, baldfaced and flat-out lies.
Some have suggested that we in the media should focus a bit less on these lies — some of them issued in tweets and some in interviews or news conferences — and focus more on policies, particularly the ineptitude of the gathering cabinet and the raft of executive orders that Trump himself is signing.
But I take the position that this is all worthy of coverage, that there are simply different kinds of news being unearthed about this administration that exist on different strata.
To take it even further, it may be these seemingly smaller infractions that produce the greater injury because the implications are more profound. Trump does not simply have “a running war with the media,” as he so indecorously and disrespectfully spouted off while standing on the hallowed ground before the C.I.A. Memorial Wall. He is in fact having a running war with the truth itself.
Donald Trump is a proven liar. He lies often and effortlessly. He lies about the profound and the trivial. He lies to avoid guilt and invite glory. He lies when his pride is injured and when his pomposity is challenged.
More NY TIMES.
Saturday, February 25, 2017
Trump Opens Mouth, Lie Emitted
Early this morning (Saturday, February 25), President Donald Trump took to Twitter to brag about the decrease in the national debt since Inauguration Day.
"The media has not reported that the National Debt in my first month went down by $12 billion vs a $200 billion increase in Obama first mo," Trump wrote.
One might wonder where Trump was getting those figures. As The Hill points out, those exact numbers were shared by the conservative blog, Gateway Pundit on Thursday, February 23. Their report reads, "On January 20th, the day of the Trump Inauguration, the US Debt stood at $19,947 billion. On February 21st, a month later, the US Debt load stood at $19,935 billion. Trump cut the US Debt burden by $12 billion and 0.1% in his first month in office!" Incidentally, the same report was repeated on Fox News by Herman Cain – just a little while before Trump's tweet.
To start, Trump hasn't passed any orders pertaining to the budget since he took office. As economist Dan Mitchell explained, "Considering that Trump hasn’t enacted any fiscal legislation, it’s a bit of a stretch for him to take credit for any changes in debt levels." Mitchell also added that the debt levels tend to fluctuate in a short-term time period.
Furthermore, Trump's proposed plans for the country are likely to increase the national debt – by a lot. A recent report from the Council on Foreign Relations determined that Trump's campaign promises could significantly broaden the budget deficit. The report cites Trump's pledge to "rebuild our military" which includes the addition of 50,000 soldiers, an expansion of the Navy's fleet, and the addition of planes to the Air Force – a plan that, to date, has not contained cost estimates.
More here.
Friday, February 24, 2017
Trump calls the media ‘the enemy of the American People’
Although Trump has long colorfully criticized news coverage and sparred with reporters who question him, he had not yet labeled the fourth estate as being an enemy of the country. On the campaign trail, some of Trump's supporters would heckle and threaten reporters who covered his rallies, and his tweet Friday came 24 hours before his first political rally as president.
It took the president two tries to properly post his message, which came soon after he arrived at his luxury oceanfront estate for the weekend. The first tweet, which was quickly deleted, contained a number of extra spaces and listed the Times, CNN and NBC, ending with this conclusion: “SICK!” The second tweet added ABC and CBS to the list, while removing “SICK!” Both tweets labeled those organizations as being “the FAKE NEWS media.”
More here.
GOP congressman says fewer people with health insurance is a ‘good thing’
A handful of GOP lawmakers are now taking up Klein’s charge — with one of them even claiming that a Republican plan that leads to a higher national uninsurance rate would be a good thing.
“If the numbers drop,” Rep. Mike Burgess (R-TX) said Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference, “I would say that’s a good thing.” He went on to argue that more people without health care would be a positive thing for the United States because it would mean that “we’ve restored personal liberty in this country.”
More here.
You can have the personal liberty to just die already when you get sick! Say what????
FBI refused White House request to knock down recent Trump-Russia stories
But a White House official said late Thursday that the request was only made after the FBI indicated to the White House it did not believe the reporting to be accurate.
White House officials had sought the help of the bureau and other agencies investigating the Russia matter to say that the reports were wrong and that there had been no contacts, the officials said. The reports of the contacts were first published by The New York Times and CNN on February 14.
The direct communications between the White House and the FBI were unusual because of decade-old restrictions on such contacts. Such a request from the White House is a violation of procedures that limit communications with the FBI on pending investigations.
Late Thursday night, White House press secretary Sean Spicer objected to CNN's characterization of the White House request to the FBI.
"We didn't try to knock the story down. We asked them to tell the truth," Spicer said. The FBI declined to comment for this story.
More here.
Trump's deportation plan could cost taxpayers half a trillion dollars
In a speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday, Trump outlined what he called his administration's "swift and strong action to secure the southern border." He said his administration would be "throwing" gang members, drug dealers and criminal aliens out of the country and "will not let them back in."
Until there are more details of the plan, much of which will require congressional approval, estimates are sketchy. But by any full accounting, the fiscal and economic costs would be huge.
Recently the Trump administration has backed off earlier pledges to deport anyone in the country illegally — Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said Thursday "there will be no mass deportations" after he met with Mexican officials.
Still, the Trump administration also this week directed government agencies to, among other things, begin rounding up and deporting anyone in the country illegally, whether or not they have committed serious crimes.
If the U.S. would seek to remove the entire population of the estimated 11 million undocumented workers now in the U.S., it would cost upwards of half trillion dollars, according to one estimate. It could also wipe out a chunk of the American economy roughly the size of the annual gross domestic product of Texas.
The new Trump initiative includes hiring thousands of new immigration agents, building new detention centers and constructing a southern border wall that was a centerpiece of Trump's election campaign.
More here.
Majority Of Americans Believe Trump Doesn’t Understand His Job
According to a new poll reported by CBS News, six out of every 10 Americans do not believe that Donald Trump understands his job as President of the United States. They do not believe that he understands the complexities involved in this job, or the responsibilities that go along with being the President of the United States. 60% of this country doesn’t think that Donald Trump has any idea what he’s doing, and they’re absolutely right, but again, this is something Donald Trump warned us about. When he campaigned and said, “We have a problem with illegal immigration. Let’s build a wall,” not exactly a well-thought out plan. Not exactly something that’s feasible or affordable, but he just said it. During a meeting with intelligence officials, he asked three separate times, “Why can’t we just nuke them?” When talking about enemies to the United States. That is a scorched earth approach to anything, because he doesn’t understand the fine-tuned operations that the US military is capable of doing, capable of pulling off.
But that’s the problem. Donald Trump came into office as a man who had never spent a single day of his life in American politics as an elected representative of the people, and suddenly he gets thrust into the most powerful position on the planet, knowing absolutely nothing. He knows nothing about the law. He knows nothing about how to draft a law. That’s why he’s got people like Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller drafting these executive orders, and apparently, according to Trump himself, he’s not even really reading them. That’s how Steve Bannon ended up on the National Security Council, because Donald Trump didn’t quite read that executive order thoroughly enough, and Bannon just slipped that in there.
This is a problem. We have a know-nothing president.
More here.
White House blocks news organizations from press briefing
The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Politico and BuzzFeed were also excluded from the meeting, which is known as a gaggle and is less formal than the televised Q-and-A session in the White House briefing room. The gaggle was held by White House press secretary Sean Spicer.
In a brief statement defending the move, administration spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said the White House "had the pool there so everyone would be represented and get an update from us today."
The pool usually includes a representative from one television network and one print outlet. In this case, four of the five major television networks -- NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox News -- were invited and attended the meeting, while only CNN was blocked.
And while The New York Times was kept out, conservative media organizations Breitbart News, The Washington Times and One America News Network were also allowed in.
Both CNN and the Times protested the decision.
More here.
Tuesday, February 14, 2017
Election Redo 2017"™ Watch:
President* Trump said in the past that nobody in his campaign had any communications with Russia. The NYT reports LOTS of Trump campaign communications with Russia:
Phone records and intercepted calls show that members of Donald J. Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and other Trump associates had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence officials in the year before the election, according to four current and former American officials.
American law enforcement and intelligence agencies intercepted the communications around the same time that they were discovering evidence that Russia was trying to disrupt the presidential election by hacking into the Democratic National Committee, three of the officials said. The intelligence agencies then sought to learn whether the Trump campaign was colluding with the Russians on the hacking or other efforts to influence the election.
The officials interviewed in recent weeks said that, so far, they had seen no evidence of such cooperation.
But the intercepts alarmed American intelligence and law enforcement agencies, in part because of the amount of contact that was occurring while Mr. Trump was speaking glowingly about the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin. At one point last summer, Mr. Trump said at a campaign event that he hoped Russian intelligence services had stolen Hillary Clinton’s emails and would make them public.
The officials said the intercepted communications were not limited to Trump campaign officials, and included other associates of Mr. Trump. On the Russian side, the contacts also included members of the Russian government outside of the intelligence services, the officials said.
American law enforcement and intelligence agencies intercepted the communications around the same time that they were discovering evidence that Russia was trying to disrupt the presidential election by hacking into the Democratic National Committee, three of the officials said. The intelligence agencies then sought to learn whether the Trump campaign was colluding with the Russians on the hacking or other efforts to influence the election.
The officials interviewed in recent weeks said that, so far, they had seen no evidence of such cooperation.
But the intercepts alarmed American intelligence and law enforcement agencies, in part because of the amount of contact that was occurring while Mr. Trump was speaking glowingly about the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin. At one point last summer, Mr. Trump said at a campaign event that he hoped Russian intelligence services had stolen Hillary Clinton’s emails and would make them public.
The officials said the intercepted communications were not limited to Trump campaign officials, and included other associates of Mr. Trump. On the Russian side, the contacts also included members of the Russian government outside of the intelligence services, the officials said.
More at the NYT.
So far, there's been no evidence of cooperation in election influence, but one still has to wonder what Putin has on Trump. I still think the tax returns would shed light on that, but Trump won't release 'em. It's no surprise to me that Trump is being soft on Russia, even as Russia shoots off missiles in violation of treaties and sends spy ships off our shores.
IMPEACH, dammit!
Monday, February 13, 2017
The New American Resistance
This is where I stand. I make no apologies to any or all of my FB friends for this. I know some of you are tired of political postings and rants. But apart from the cutesy posts of recipes, flowers, seashells, balloons, and my daily diary, FB is a vehicle to express my outrage of how far my country has fallen on the humanity scale. To me it is a useful vehicle for my activism. The person who lost the popular vote and now occupies the White house - and the majority of the Republicans in congress - are a threat to me and my way of life, to my children, and to my grandchildren. So I will #RESIST and I will be part of the resistance. You can join in or not. If not then you probably need to unfriend me now. I won't play nice. Our country's well-being demands it.
Those who say we should give 45 a chance, need to realize that I will not forget how he refused to admit the legitimacy and even the citizenship of President Obama and I will always remember how badly his supporters treated that president for 8 years. Those who tell me that we should "work together" with him because he won the election and he is everyone's president, need to know that this is not going to happen.
•I will not "work together" to build a wall.
•I will not "work together" to persecute Muslims.
•I will not "work together" to break up families and deport parents.
• I will not "work together" to roll back protections for LGBTQ communities.
•I will not "work together" to help Russia destroy America.
•I will not "work together" to make propaganda equal fact.
•I will not "work together" to shut out refugees from countries where we destabilized their governments, no matter how bad they might have been, so that we could have something more agreeable to our oligarchy.
•I will not "work together" to lower taxes on the 1%.
•I will not "work together" to increase taxes on the middle class and poor.
•I will not "work together" to help him line the pockets of himself and his cronies.
•I will not "work together" to weaken (or demolish) environmental protection.
•I will not "work together" to sell American lands to companies which then despoil those lands.
•I will not "work together" to remove civil rights from anyone.
•I will not "work together" to waste trillions more on our military when we already have the strongest in the world.
•I will not "work together" to alienate countries that have been our allies for as long as I have been alive.
•I will not "work together" to slash funding for education.
•I will not "work together" to take basic assistance from people who are at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder.
•I will not "work together" to allow torture and "black op" prison sites.
•I will not "work together" to "take their oil."
•I will not "work together" to get rid of common sense regulations on guns.
•I will not "work together" to eliminate the minimum wage.
•I will not "work together" to suppress scientific research, be it on climate change, fracking, or any other issue where a majority of scientists agree that Trump and his supporters are wrong on the facts.
•I will not "work together" to criminalize abortion or restrict health care for women.
•I will not "work together" to increase the number of nations that have nuclear weapons.
•I will not "work together" to put even more "big money" into politics.
•I will not "work together" to violate the Geneva Convention.
•I will not "work together" to give the Ku Klux Klan, the Nazi Party and white supremacists a seat at the table, or to normalize their hatred.
•I will not "work together" to deny health care to people who need it.
•I will not "work together" to increase the profits of the insurance companies.
•I will not "work together" to deny medical coverage to people on the basis of an alleged or actual "pre-existing condition."
•I will not "work together" to increase voter suppression.
•I will not "work together" to normalize tyranny.
•I will not "work together" with anyone who is, or admires, tyrants and dictators.
•I will not "work together" with 45 or anyone who supports him, because I will not allow one man to feed upon the fears of the populace, blaming minorities for their condition or their inability to thrive.
Instead, I will use my voice and my hands, to reach out to the uninformed, and anyone else who will LISTEN. I will call a lie a lie, a fact a fact, and alternative facts propaganda. If you agree, please copy and re-post and if you can, sign your name below mine. Also, if I have left anything out, feel free to add it to this list. This is the first step in becoming part of The Resistance.
Those who say we should give 45 a chance, need to realize that I will not forget how he refused to admit the legitimacy and even the citizenship of President Obama and I will always remember how badly his supporters treated that president for 8 years. Those who tell me that we should "work together" with him because he won the election and he is everyone's president, need to know that this is not going to happen.
•I will not "work together" to build a wall.
•I will not "work together" to persecute Muslims.
•I will not "work together" to break up families and deport parents.
• I will not "work together" to roll back protections for LGBTQ communities.
•I will not "work together" to help Russia destroy America.
•I will not "work together" to make propaganda equal fact.
•I will not "work together" to shut out refugees from countries where we destabilized their governments, no matter how bad they might have been, so that we could have something more agreeable to our oligarchy.
•I will not "work together" to lower taxes on the 1%.
•I will not "work together" to increase taxes on the middle class and poor.
•I will not "work together" to help him line the pockets of himself and his cronies.
•I will not "work together" to weaken (or demolish) environmental protection.
•I will not "work together" to sell American lands to companies which then despoil those lands.
•I will not "work together" to remove civil rights from anyone.
•I will not "work together" to waste trillions more on our military when we already have the strongest in the world.
•I will not "work together" to alienate countries that have been our allies for as long as I have been alive.
•I will not "work together" to slash funding for education.
•I will not "work together" to take basic assistance from people who are at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder.
•I will not "work together" to allow torture and "black op" prison sites.
•I will not "work together" to "take their oil."
•I will not "work together" to get rid of common sense regulations on guns.
•I will not "work together" to eliminate the minimum wage.
•I will not "work together" to suppress scientific research, be it on climate change, fracking, or any other issue where a majority of scientists agree that Trump and his supporters are wrong on the facts.
•I will not "work together" to criminalize abortion or restrict health care for women.
•I will not "work together" to increase the number of nations that have nuclear weapons.
•I will not "work together" to put even more "big money" into politics.
•I will not "work together" to violate the Geneva Convention.
•I will not "work together" to give the Ku Klux Klan, the Nazi Party and white supremacists a seat at the table, or to normalize their hatred.
•I will not "work together" to deny health care to people who need it.
•I will not "work together" to increase the profits of the insurance companies.
•I will not "work together" to deny medical coverage to people on the basis of an alleged or actual "pre-existing condition."
•I will not "work together" to increase voter suppression.
•I will not "work together" to normalize tyranny.
•I will not "work together" with anyone who is, or admires, tyrants and dictators.
•I will not "work together" with 45 or anyone who supports him, because I will not allow one man to feed upon the fears of the populace, blaming minorities for their condition or their inability to thrive.
Instead, I will use my voice and my hands, to reach out to the uninformed, and anyone else who will LISTEN. I will call a lie a lie, a fact a fact, and alternative facts propaganda. If you agree, please copy and re-post and if you can, sign your name below mine. Also, if I have left anything out, feel free to add it to this list. This is the first step in becoming part of The Resistance.
Russian mole resigns. One down one (or more?) to go
After a month of trying to make the story go away, our Mole In Chief™ finally fired his assistant Russki mole.
"America The Humane"™ Report
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Eh, forget all that. Trump sez they're gonna kill us all and taek are jerbs. Just look at that little terrorist!
Arrest Trump and Flynn (and others?) for treason!
It comes out tonight that Trump's "Administration" has known for a month that General Flynn could be blackmailed by Russia. The "Administration" sat on this info for a month. How is this possible?
It becomes more and more evident that Trump and Flynn are sellouts to Russian strongman Putin. The government of the USA is in the hands of RUSSIA! It's evident that Putin has Trump by the financial nuggets. That would explain two things: 1). Trump won't release his taxes, which undoubtedly show deep financial dealings with Russia, 2). Trump is protecting his fellow Russian mole Flynn.
This crap isn't funny any longer. Trump and Flynn (and others?) need to be arrested NOW and charged with treason.
It becomes more and more evident that Trump and Flynn are sellouts to Russian strongman Putin. The government of the USA is in the hands of RUSSIA! It's evident that Putin has Trump by the financial nuggets. That would explain two things: 1). Trump won't release his taxes, which undoubtedly show deep financial dealings with Russia, 2). Trump is protecting his fellow Russian mole Flynn.
This crap isn't funny any longer. Trump and Flynn (and others?) need to be arrested NOW and charged with treason.
Our Russian mole in the White House...
President Donald Trump and several associates continue to draw intense scrutiny for their ties to the Russian government.
A dossier of unverified claims alleges serious conspiracy and misconduct in the final months of the 2016 presidential campaign. The White House has dismissed the dossier as fiction, and most of the claims remain unverified. The timeline of major events, however, lines up.
The document includes one particularly explosive allegation — that the Trump campaign agreed to minimize US opposition to Russia's incursions into Ukraine in exchange for the Kremlin releasing negative information about Trump's opponent, Hillary Clinton. The timing of events supporting this allegation also lines up.
A dossier of unverified claims alleges serious conspiracy and misconduct in the final months of the 2016 presidential campaign. The White House has dismissed the dossier as fiction, and most of the claims remain unverified. The timeline of major events, however, lines up.
The document includes one particularly explosive allegation — that the Trump campaign agreed to minimize US opposition to Russia's incursions into Ukraine in exchange for the Kremlin releasing negative information about Trump's opponent, Hillary Clinton. The timing of events supporting this allegation also lines up.
More here.
Sunday, February 12, 2017
COMRADE TRUMPSKI
What’s going on was explained lucidly by a senior Pentagon intelligence official, who stated that “since January 20, we’ve assumed that the Kremlin has ears inside the SITROOM,” meaning the White House Situation Room, the 5,500 square-foot conference room in the West Wing where the president and his top staffers get intelligence briefings. “There’s not much the Russians don’t know at this point,” the official added in wry frustration.
More here.
BLOWING UP A RIGHT WING MYTH
Do non-citizens, say, immigrants, have rights under the Constitution of the USA? Constitution says...... YES!
The due process clause of the 14th Amendment:
No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any PERSON of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any PERSON WITHIN ITS JURISDICTION the equal protection of the laws.
And the 5th Amendment:
No PERSON shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any PERSON be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
A reminder, the definition of "person": a human being regarded as an individual.
synonyms: human being, individual, man/woman, child, human, being
HELP NEEDED IN THE FIELDS
Migrant workers are not feeling the love with Trump's anti-immigrant actions, so they are not showing up to do work in the fields, out of fear. Growers are already seeing problems in getting their produce picked.
There is a solution, but good luck getting Americans to do the hard manual labor!
There is a solution, but good luck getting Americans to do the hard manual labor!
Sunday, February 5, 2017
How Trump’s immigration order could hurt the U.S. economy
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s executive order suspending immigration from seven majority-Muslim countries could slow the U.S. economy by hampering two of the nation’s top export industries: tourism and higher education.
“Broad-brush policies like this people barrier impede growth and certainly do not accelerate it,” David Kotok, chief investment officer at Cumberland Advisors, wrote in an e-mail. “Trump has now set back the positive elements of global exchange in both goods and services.”
Foreign tourists provide critical support to the U.S. economy. In 2015, they spent roughly $199 billion on items ranging from hotel rooms and restaurant meals to plane tickets and amusement parks. That spending counts as exports. Travel and tourism made up nearly 9 percent of U.S. exports that year.
“The message got around the world that the United States was an unfriendly country to visit — that it’s a big hassle to visit there,” said Edward Alden, a senior fellow at the Council and author of “The Closing of the American Border,” a book about U.S. security after 9/11.
Given the disruptions at U.S. airports caused by Trump’s immigration order, which were widely covered by television news around the world, “it’s that story all over again,” Alden said.
Many high-tech companies have also opposed Trump’s order because they say it blunts their competitive edge in recruiting high-skilled talent.
“Broad-brush policies like this people barrier impede growth and certainly do not accelerate it,” David Kotok, chief investment officer at Cumberland Advisors, wrote in an e-mail. “Trump has now set back the positive elements of global exchange in both goods and services.”
Foreign tourists provide critical support to the U.S. economy. In 2015, they spent roughly $199 billion on items ranging from hotel rooms and restaurant meals to plane tickets and amusement parks. That spending counts as exports. Travel and tourism made up nearly 9 percent of U.S. exports that year.
Some economists say they worry that Trump’s order could create an echo of the post-9/11 period, when travel to the United States plunged, in part because of much tighter security. In the 10 years that followed — a period the travel industry recalls ruefully as the “lost decade” — the U.S. share of overseas travel fell by nearly one-third, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. That cost the U.S. economy $500 billion.
“The message got around the world that the United States was an unfriendly country to visit — that it’s a big hassle to visit there,” said Edward Alden, a senior fellow at the Council and author of “The Closing of the American Border,” a book about U.S. security after 9/11.
Given the disruptions at U.S. airports caused by Trump’s immigration order, which were widely covered by television news around the world, “it’s that story all over again,” Alden said.
Many high-tech companies have also opposed Trump’s order because they say it blunts their competitive edge in recruiting high-skilled talent.
~The Denver Post
Meet the Bush-appointed federal judge who halted Trump’s executive order
This judge is hardly "so called".
But Robart had been called judge for more than a decade. President George W. Bush nominated him to the federal court for Washington’s western district court in 2004. Though he had held no judgeship before, senators of both parties praised him.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., introduced him to the judiciary committee as a man who had fostered six children with his wife.
Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, D-Vt., went over Robart’s 30 years as a lawyer – up to his work at the time as managing partner at Lane Powell Spears Lubersky, where he handled mostly commercial law cases.
Utah’s Republican Sen. Orrin G. Hatch noted Robart’s “representation of the disadvantaged” – including his work representing “southeast Asian refugees.”
But Robart had been called judge for more than a decade. President George W. Bush nominated him to the federal court for Washington’s western district court in 2004. Though he had held no judgeship before, senators of both parties praised him.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., introduced him to the judiciary committee as a man who had fostered six children with his wife.
Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, D-Vt., went over Robart’s 30 years as a lawyer – up to his work at the time as managing partner at Lane Powell Spears Lubersky, where he handled mostly commercial law cases.
Utah’s Republican Sen. Orrin G. Hatch noted Robart’s “representation of the disadvantaged” – including his work representing “southeast Asian refugees.”
More here.
As Trump’s policies stoke fears, Denver’s Muslim community worries about eroding trust in law enforcement
Colorado law enforcement has won praise for reaching out to the Muslim community
A late-night e-mail from a Denver mosque’s leaders to a federal homeland security agent about a visitor who appeared to be radicalized was the result of years of work to establish trust between law enforcement and Colorado’s Muslim community.
Now, some worry the relationship that has been forged through community meetings, worship services and meals could be eroded by President Donald Trump’s actions toward Muslim countries and his vows to fight radical Islamic terrorists.
Nadeen Ibrahim, a 22-year-old activist in Denver’s Muslim community, said she appreciates the intentional, sustained efforts that federal authorities have made to establish the relationship. But she is concerned about the future.
Muslims fear Trump’s nomination of Jeff Sessions, a conservative Alabama senator, to be U.S. attorney general, Ibrahim said.
Now, some worry the relationship that has been forged through community meetings, worship services and meals could be eroded by President Donald Trump’s actions toward Muslim countries and his vows to fight radical Islamic terrorists.
Nadeen Ibrahim, a 22-year-old activist in Denver’s Muslim community, said she appreciates the intentional, sustained efforts that federal authorities have made to establish the relationship. But she is concerned about the future.
Muslims fear Trump’s nomination of Jeff Sessions, a conservative Alabama senator, to be U.S. attorney general, Ibrahim said.
More here.
Garrison Keillor: Those five million outlaw voters
Meanwhile, we are dealing with the idea that five million Americans, registered to vote in more than one place, hit the road on Election Day to cast as many ballots as possible for Hillary Clinton, a mass migration not seen except in Godzilla movies, and yet it was so poorly managed that, despite cheating ON A SCALE NEVER BEFORE SEEN IN HUMAN HISTORY, she lost the Electoral College.
The Illinois Democrats forgot to go up to Wisconsin and Michigan, the New Yorkers didn't cross over to Pennsylvania. Pathetic! And dead people too! Democratic precinct workers may have bought the driver's licenses of deceased voters from corrupt undertakers and smudged the photographs and come to the polls right after lunch when the pollwatchers are sleepy and not paying close attention. Five million left-wing outlaws! Eighty-thousand votes in the right places -- a dunk shot! -- she would be Madam President today, but even with five million, she couldn't put the ball in the basket! Sad. (It's like owning a casino and going bankrupt: How do you go broke when you can rig the slot machines?)
Five million is an alternative fact. Other alternatives would be: (1) There was not much cheating at all. (2) There are five million Syrian refugees in this country whom we know nothing about. (3) That is the president's natural hair color.
The Illinois Democrats forgot to go up to Wisconsin and Michigan, the New Yorkers didn't cross over to Pennsylvania. Pathetic! And dead people too! Democratic precinct workers may have bought the driver's licenses of deceased voters from corrupt undertakers and smudged the photographs and come to the polls right after lunch when the pollwatchers are sleepy and not paying close attention. Five million left-wing outlaws! Eighty-thousand votes in the right places -- a dunk shot! -- she would be Madam President today, but even with five million, she couldn't put the ball in the basket! Sad. (It's like owning a casino and going bankrupt: How do you go broke when you can rig the slot machines?)
Five million is an alternative fact. Other alternatives would be: (1) There was not much cheating at all. (2) There are five million Syrian refugees in this country whom we know nothing about. (3) That is the president's natural hair color.
More devastation of Dear Leader's silly charge of voter fraud here.
Friday, February 3, 2017
WHY TRUMP’S “AMERICA FIRST” POLICY IS DOOMED TO FAIL
...it’s already clear that much of the world is loudly rejecting Trump and his “America first” vision. Even before his election, only fourteen per cent of Canadians, nine per cent of Europeans, and nine per cent of Japanese said that they had confidence in Trump on matters of world affairs, according to a Pew survey last summer. Never before has a U.S. President triggered so much animosity among so many nations in so short a time as Trump did in his first week in office. Having previously blamed the Mexican government for intentionally sending “killers and rapists” to the United States, his move to start construction of a border wall and talk of new tariffs on Mexican imports to pay for it have plunged U.S.-Mexico relations to their lowest point in decades. His executive orders to suspend the admission of refugees to the United States, and to halt all immigration from seven Muslim countries—all in the name of fighting “radical Islamic terrorism”—send a message to the world’s 1.6 billion Muslims that Trump sees them as inherently suspect.
Like his Inauguration, Trump’s arrival in foreign capitals will likely spark large-scale protests. The British Prime Minister Theresa May’s invitation to Trump to visit London has already provoked outrage across the U.K. At the nato summit this spring, in Brussels, Europeans will remember that he called the city a “hellhole,” has said nato is “obsolete,” and that he hopes to have a “fantastic relationship” with Russia’s Vladimir Putin. When Trump visits Tokyo, protesters will recall his threat that the U.S. might need to “walk” away from its treaty obligations with Japan because, if the United States were attacked, Japanese would just “sit home and watch Sony television.” When he visits Seoul, South Koreans will remember his threat that “they’re going to have to defend themselves” against North Korea if they don’t pay the United States a greater share for their defense.
In this sense, Trump has already muzzled himself as a credible voice for America on the world stage.
Read about it here.
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
Resistance from within: Federal workers push back against Trump
Robert Reich sez: When I was secretary of labor, I found the permanent civil service to be the backbone of the Department. I depended on them. That’s why it’s noteworthy that the resistance is a growing inside federal departments, coming from federal workers charged with implementing Trump’s agenda. As the Washington Post reports:
1. Federal workers are in regular consultation with recently departed Obama-era political appointees about what they can do to push back against the new president’s initiatives.
2. They’re organizing. Last weekend, at a church in Columbia Heights, dozens of federal workers attended a forum to discuss how they can best oppose the Trump administration. At least 180 federal employees have signed up for a workshop next weekend, where experts will offer advice on workers’ rights and how they can express civil disobedience.
3. The State Department has emerged as the nexus of opposition to Trump’s refugee policy, in part because it has an official dissent channel where Foreign Service employees can register opposition without fear of reprisals. The channel, formed in 1971, has been used to raise policy objections to the Vietnam War and other conflicts. Several hundred employees signed the dissent cable objecting to Trump’s refugee policy.
4. At the Defense Department, a Twitter account protesting Trump’s policies has popped up with the handle @Rogue_DoD, tweeting everything from Defense Department documents warning about the effects of climate change to an opinion piece accusing Trump of insufficient consultation with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
5. At the Justice Department, an employee in the division that administers grants to nonprofits fighting domestic violence and researching sex crimes says the office has been planning to slow its work and to file complaints with the inspector general’s office if asked to shift grants away from their mission.
6. At the Health and Human Services Department, employees protested a White House ban on advertising and other outreach activities encouraging Americans to sign up for health plans through Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Their internal protest, combined with an outcry on social media, prompted the Trump administration to revise its directive in less than 24 hours.
7. Individual acts of resistance are breaking out all over the government. After Trump complained about the National Park Service using Twitter to compare the crowd sizes at his inauguration with the far larger assembly at Obama’s gathering in 2009, a gag order temporarily silenced the official social media account. In response, an ex-employee at Badlands National Park who still had access to its Twitter feed started posting facts about climate change. The rogue tweeter won more than 60,000 followers before park officials regained control of the account.
8. An immunologist who worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has created what he called a “resistance page,”@viralCDC, for CDC employees to post vaccine and public health information that workers believe the Trump administration may seek to remove from public view.
9. At the Environmental Protection Agency, two Twitter feeds, @altUSEPA and @ActualEPAFacts, have attracted more than 200,000 followers and call themselves part of “the Resistance.” (It’s not clear whether they’re run by outside activists or agency employees.)
I'm sure these are only the tips of a vast upsurge of resistance inside government. You see, most government workers want to do their jobs, and they believe in democracy. In the months and years ahead, they'll also be an important source of whistle-blowing.
Let us pause to appreciate and applaud our federal workforce.
The signs of popular dissent from President Trump’s opening volley of actions have been plain to see on the nation’s streets, at airports in the aftermath of his refugee and visa ban, and in the blizzard of outrage on social media. But there’s another level of resistance to the new president that is less visible and potentially more troublesome to the administration: a growing wave of opposition from the federal workers charged with implementing any new president’s agenda.
Less than two weeks into Trump’s administration, federal workers are in regular consultation with recently departed Obama-era political appointees about what they can do to push back against the new president’s initiatives. Some federal employees have set up social media accounts to anonymously leak word of changes that Trump appointees are trying to make.
And a few government workers are pushing back more openly, incurring the wrath of a White House that, as press secretary Sean Spicer said this week about dissenters at the State Department, sends a clear message that they “should either get with the program, or they can go.”
1. Federal workers are in regular consultation with recently departed Obama-era political appointees about what they can do to push back against the new president’s initiatives.
2. They’re organizing. Last weekend, at a church in Columbia Heights, dozens of federal workers attended a forum to discuss how they can best oppose the Trump administration. At least 180 federal employees have signed up for a workshop next weekend, where experts will offer advice on workers’ rights and how they can express civil disobedience.
3. The State Department has emerged as the nexus of opposition to Trump’s refugee policy, in part because it has an official dissent channel where Foreign Service employees can register opposition without fear of reprisals. The channel, formed in 1971, has been used to raise policy objections to the Vietnam War and other conflicts. Several hundred employees signed the dissent cable objecting to Trump’s refugee policy.
4. At the Defense Department, a Twitter account protesting Trump’s policies has popped up with the handle @Rogue_DoD, tweeting everything from Defense Department documents warning about the effects of climate change to an opinion piece accusing Trump of insufficient consultation with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
5. At the Justice Department, an employee in the division that administers grants to nonprofits fighting domestic violence and researching sex crimes says the office has been planning to slow its work and to file complaints with the inspector general’s office if asked to shift grants away from their mission.
6. At the Health and Human Services Department, employees protested a White House ban on advertising and other outreach activities encouraging Americans to sign up for health plans through Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Their internal protest, combined with an outcry on social media, prompted the Trump administration to revise its directive in less than 24 hours.
7. Individual acts of resistance are breaking out all over the government. After Trump complained about the National Park Service using Twitter to compare the crowd sizes at his inauguration with the far larger assembly at Obama’s gathering in 2009, a gag order temporarily silenced the official social media account. In response, an ex-employee at Badlands National Park who still had access to its Twitter feed started posting facts about climate change. The rogue tweeter won more than 60,000 followers before park officials regained control of the account.
8. An immunologist who worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has created what he called a “resistance page,”@viralCDC, for CDC employees to post vaccine and public health information that workers believe the Trump administration may seek to remove from public view.
9. At the Environmental Protection Agency, two Twitter feeds, @altUSEPA and @ActualEPAFacts, have attracted more than 200,000 followers and call themselves part of “the Resistance.” (It’s not clear whether they’re run by outside activists or agency employees.)
I'm sure these are only the tips of a vast upsurge of resistance inside government. You see, most government workers want to do their jobs, and they believe in democracy. In the months and years ahead, they'll also be an important source of whistle-blowing.
Let us pause to appreciate and applaud our federal workforce.
Less than two weeks into Trump’s administration, federal workers are in regular consultation with recently departed Obama-era political appointees about what they can do to push back against the new president’s initiatives. Some federal employees have set up social media accounts to anonymously leak word of changes that Trump appointees are trying to make.
And a few government workers are pushing back more openly, incurring the wrath of a White House that, as press secretary Sean Spicer said this week about dissenters at the State Department, sends a clear message that they “should either get with the program, or they can go.”
Voter Suppression
If Donald Trump would like to investigate what he considers "voter fraud," perhaps he should start with his daughter, who is registered in New York and Pennsylvania; or his son-in-law who is registered in New York and New Jersey; or his press secretary who is registered in Virginia and Rhode Island; or his nominee to be Secretary of the Treasury who is registered in New York and California; or his senior advisor who is registered in New York and Florida; or the person he claimed was an “expert” on voter fraud who is registered in Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas.
The truth is, of course, that none of this is "voter fraud." People are not voting more than once and they are citizens entitled to vote. But stopping real voter fraud, which rarely occurs in the United States, is not Mr. Trump’s goal. Voter suppression is. His goal is to confuse the American people, lie about the issue and make it harder for poor people, people of color, young people and senior citizens to vote. Sadly this has been a long term goal of the Republican Party and in states like North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Michigan it undoubtedly had an effect in 2016.
As Ari Berman, who has done invaluable reporting on voting rights at The Nation noted, “on Election Day, there were 868 fewer polling places in states with a long history of voting discrimination, like Arizona, Texas, and North Carolina. These changes impacted hundreds of thousands of voters, yet received almost no coverage.”
Additionally we cannot talk about this issue without discussing the fact that 1 out of 13 African-Americans (and more than 1 in 5 African-Americans in Florida) are disenfranchised due to the criminal justice system according to the Sentencing Project. Despite having served their time in prison, they continue to lose their right to vote in elections.
We don’t need an investigation into "voter fraud." We need an investigation into voter suppression. ~ Bernie Sanders
The truth is, of course, that none of this is "voter fraud." People are not voting more than once and they are citizens entitled to vote. But stopping real voter fraud, which rarely occurs in the United States, is not Mr. Trump’s goal. Voter suppression is. His goal is to confuse the American people, lie about the issue and make it harder for poor people, people of color, young people and senior citizens to vote. Sadly this has been a long term goal of the Republican Party and in states like North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Michigan it undoubtedly had an effect in 2016.
As Ari Berman, who has done invaluable reporting on voting rights at The Nation noted, “on Election Day, there were 868 fewer polling places in states with a long history of voting discrimination, like Arizona, Texas, and North Carolina. These changes impacted hundreds of thousands of voters, yet received almost no coverage.”
Additionally we cannot talk about this issue without discussing the fact that 1 out of 13 African-Americans (and more than 1 in 5 African-Americans in Florida) are disenfranchised due to the criminal justice system according to the Sentencing Project. Despite having served their time in prison, they continue to lose their right to vote in elections.
We don’t need an investigation into "voter fraud." We need an investigation into voter suppression. ~ Bernie Sanders
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