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politics | NPR Online News | https://www.npr.org/2019/10/25/773100403/as-ukraine-affair-expands-so-could-giulianis-legal-exposure | As Ukraine Affair Expands, So Could Giuliani's Legal Exposure | 2019-10-25 | politics | Once a fixture on cable channels and Sunday news shows , President Trump 's personal attorney , Rudy Giuliani , has all but disappeared since two of his associates were arrested this month on campaign finance charges .
The former New York City mayor 's sudden reticence may have been spurred by a concern about his own potential legal peril as his dealings reportedly come under scrutiny by federal investigators .
There is ample reason for Giuliani to be worried , legal experts tell NPR . They point to a range of activities in which Giuliani has engaged over the years that may be of interest to investigators .
The most recent of these , of course , is tied to Ukraine and Giuliani 's connections to two recently indicted associates , Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman .
The pair face conspiracy , false statement and other charges linked to alleged campaign finance violations .
The indictment recounts an alleged scheme by Parnas and Fruman to get the then-U.S. ambassador to Ukraine , Marie Yovanovitch , removed from her post . The indictment also says the pair was pursuing this goal at the behest of a Ukrainian official .
While nothing in the indictment implicates Giuliani , he too was pushing for Yovanovitch 's dismissal . House investigators have reviewed material filed by an anonymous State Department whistleblower that Democrats have called `` propaganda '' about Yovanovitch that was sent to the State Department by Giuliani .
But it 's unclear whether Giuliani 's efforts were linked to those of Parnas and Fruman or whether Giuliani was even aware of them .
Former Rep. Pete Sessions , R-Texas , who was approached by Parnas and Fruman when he was a congressman as part of their alleged scheme , is complying with a grand jury subpoena for documents about what he knows about the matter .
One lawyer said that this suggests prosecutors working for the U.S. Attorney 's Office for the Southern District of New York believe there could be much more to learn .
`` What that tells me is that there is a broad-ranging investigation into all sorts of potential wrongdoing by Giuliani , by the Ukrainian businesspeople , '' said Joshua Ian Rosenstein , an attorney with the firm Sandler Reiff Lamb Rosenstein & Birkenstock .
`` It 's unclear where that investigation is going to go at this point , how broad it is at this point and exactly what the focus is . ''
But , he added , it does indicate that the Justice Department `` it taking this seriously . ''
Giuliani enlisted Parnas ' and Fruman 's help to dig up dirt in Ukraine on the family of former Vice President Joe Biden and conspiracy theories tied to the 2016 election . Parnas has told NPR that he helped translate and arrange interviews for Giuliani with former Ukrainian officials .
Parnas ' company , Fraud Guarantee , paid Giuliani $ 500,000 to consult on technology and provide legal advice , Giuliani has said .
All of those sinews are of potential interest to investigators .
And with an indictment hanging over Parnas and Fruman , former prosecutors say those two are under pressure to cooperate and spill whatever they may know about Giuliani , including their conversations with him and any directions he might have given them .
Ukraine aside , questions have also been raised about other Giuliani activities that — from the outside — look at lot like foreign lobbying , experts say .
Foreign lobbying is regulated by the Foreign Agents Registration Act , or FARA . It requires that individuals who are doing political or public relations work on behalf of a foreign entity disclose that fact to the Justice Department .
In Giuliani 's case , questions have been raised about positions he has advocated on issues related to Turkey that align with Ankara 's interests .
Giuliani reportedly pushed Trump to extradite a Turkish cleric , Fethullah Gulen , who lives in exile in Pennsylvania . The Turkish government for years has been pressuring the U.S. to hand over Gulen , whom Ankara blames for the failed 2016 coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan .
Giuliani also reportedly used an Oval Office meeting with Trump to argue for a prisoner swap with Turkey . The swap would have involved sending back to Turkey a Turkish-Iranian gold trader named Reza Zarrab , who was indicted in New York .
Zarrab , who had ties to Erdogan , ultimately pleaded guilty , cooperated with prosecutors and provided testimony implicating the Turkish president in a massive corruption scheme .
Giuliani 's ties to an Iranian dissident group known as the MEK has also raised eyebrows . The group was listed by the State Department as a foreign terrorist organization before being removed from the list in 2012 .
Politics The Evolution Of Rudy Giuliani The Evolution Of Rudy Giuliani Listen · 6:13 6:13
For years , Giuliani has made speeches on the group 's behalf and has been paid for his efforts .
Giuliani told NPR that the Justice Department has never contacted him about his activities and whether they fall under the rubric of foreign lobbying .
Former Attorney General Michael Mukasey , who also has delivered speeches for years on behalf of the MEK , recently registered with the department 's FARA Unit .
Giuliani added that he was not contacting U.S. officials with a specific request and therefore he is not required to register . But FARA experts says that 's an incorrect reading of the law .
`` That itself is a fundamental misunderstanding of what FARA requires , '' said attorney Rosenstein , who specializes in advocacy law .
`` Making speeches on behalf of a foreign political party within the United States where those speeches are aimed at influencing the views of the U.S. public or the U.S. media , with reference to the national or political interests of that party , falls squarely within the ambit of regulated conduct under FARA . ''
The Justice Department has put a recent emphasis on FARA enforcement , particularly in the wake of the Russia investigation .
One high-profile setback came in September when former Obama White House counsel Greg Craig was found not guilty of making false statements to the Justice Department about work he did for the Ukrainian government . | 0FnkOv7u8EQ01XnY | 1 | Rudy Giuliani | -0.8 | Ukraine | -0.4 | Politics | 0 | null | null | null | null |
republican_party | Fox Online News | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/03/04/cruz-blasts-trump-as-phony-conservative-in-front-cpac-crowd.html | Cruz blasts Trump as phony conservative in front of CPAC crowd | 2016-03-04 | republican_party | Republican presidential candidate Sen.Ted Cruz blasted Donald Trump Friday as a phony conservative who must be stopped before he wins the presidential nomination .
In a speech to the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor , Md. , Cruz said , “ It ’ s easy to talk about making America great again -- you can even put that on a baseball cap .
“ But do you understand the principles that make America great in the first place ? ”
Cruz said Trump was in no position to answer that question .
Fresh from a bitter Super Tuesday battle and rancorous debate Thursday night , Cruz appeared relaxed in jeans . He took full advantage of Trump ’ s announcement earlier in the day that he would be skipping the event , which is typically considered a required stop for Republican candidates seeking to woo the conservative base .
Dr. Ben Carson , who spoke after Cruz on Friday , announced he was formally leaving the race . Sen. Marco Rubio was expected to appear on Saturday , while Ohio Gov . John Kasich spoke earlier on Friday .
Citing rallies in Kansas and Florida , where there are upcoming primary battles , Trump demurred , leaving a hole in the CPAC schedule .
“ I think someone told him ( Fox News host ) Megyn Kelly was going to be here , ” Cruz said , joking . “ But worse , he was told conservatives were going to be here . Even worse , he was told there would be libertarians here . Even worse , young people were going to be here . ”
“ I hope none of you have a degree from Trump University , ” he said , referring to the lawsuits against Trump ’ s now defunct online school .
Cruz was only interrupted once by audience members chanting “ Trump ! Trump ! Trump ! ” The audience applause was otherwise enthusiastic as Cruz revived a key charge against Trump from Thursday night - that he has been funding and cozying up to Democrats for years .
Referring to the loss of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court , Cruz warned that the court is now “ one justice away ” from the loss of religious liberty and the second amendment right to bear arms .
“ Let me be very clear to every man and woman here at CPAC , I will not compromise away your religious liberty . I will not compromise away your second amendment right to keep and bear arms , ” Cruz said .
He also poked at Trump , whom he said suggested in a previous debate that the U.S. should be neutral in order to negotiate in the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians . “ As president I have no intention of being neutral . America will stand unapologetically with the nation of Israel . ”
Joking on stage with Fox News ’ Sean Hannity , Cruz also suggested Hillary Clinton should get used to “ orange pant suits ” in case she 's indicted in the ongoing email controversy and that for the first time , a general election debate may be “ convened in Leavenworth . ” | VNzJemkzGUSLUMTf | 2 | CPAC | 1.3 | Presidential Elections | -0.9 | Donald Trump | 0.8 | Republican Party | -0.1 | Ted Cruz | 0 |
free_speech | Reason | https://reason.com/archives/2018/01/12/stop-scaremongering-the-press-is-freer-t | Stop Scaremongering. The Press Is Freer Than It's Ever Been | 2018-01-12 | Freedom Of The Press, Free Speech | The Committee to Protect Journalists , a group alleging to promote press freedom and the rights of journalists , gave President Donald Trump the Overall Achievement in Undermining Global Press Freedom Award in its Press Oppressors awards this week . The story was giddily retweeted across the liberal Twitterverse because , one imagines , people actually believe it .
Watching Trump and the media slap fight like a couple of sloshed Real Housewives has n't done wonders for the country , granted . But setting aside the melodrama , and the Kabuki theater , and the symbiotic relationship between the two , the fact is that self-serving complaints about American press freedoms being in peril are unqualified bunk .
For one thing , the very breadth and intensity of the anti-Trump press illustrates there are few inhibitions or no strictures on their freedom of expression . Trump 's attacks on journalists—some of them brought on by their own shoddy and partisan behavior—are often unseemly and unhealthy , but it has n't stopped anyone from engaging , investigating , writing , saying , protesting or sharing their deep thoughts with the entire group—every day , all the time .
That 's not to say average Americans do n't have plenty of reasons to be worried about the future of free expression . There are forces gathering that aspire to criminalize dissent and punish Americans for their unpopular opinions . In fact , many of the loudest voices crying out about Trump 's fascism fully support these efforts , rationalize them or are complicity silent .
`` While previous U.S. presidents have each criticized the press to some degree , they have also made public commitments to uphold its essential role in democracy , at home and abroad , '' claims the Committee to Protect Journalists . It 's true the last president made many public commitments to uphold the press 's essential role in democracy while he was secretly scouring the phone records of reporters and an editor of the Associated Press to uncover leakers . Democrats showed their commitment to a free and open press by siccing the Justice Department on a Fox News reporter and calling him a criminal `` co-conspirator '' for attempting to solicit leaked classified information , as journalists have been doing forever .
If the Trump administration , which has a bigger leak problem than any in history , were to engage in anything resembling this kind of behavior , it would rightly be considered a massive scandal . Every newscast and every front page would lead with it .
But it 's not just about the past . While Trump 's efforts to stop fabulist Michael Wolff 's Fire and Fury from being published are silly and counterproductive and sure to fail , he is merely accessing the legal rights that all Americans enjoy . In the meantime , Democrats currently support new laws that would allow the state to ban political books and documentaries . The years of President Obama made overturning the First Amendment via the overturn of Citizens United a tenant of the Democratic Party platform . Obama , in perfect syntax , engaged in an act of norm breaking by calling out the Supreme Court publicly for upholding First Amendment . That was rhetoric , too . Few defenders of the press seemed bothered by any of it .
Those claiming that the president of the United States ( Obama or Trump ) is `` overall '' more detrimental to press freedoms than the leaders of Russia , Turkey , Egypt or China not only denigrates those truly fighting for press freedoms in authoritarian nations but also shows us that they do n't really understand how American rights work to begin with . Because not only is the United States far more superior in its embrace of open political discourse than authoritarian states , or developing nations , or ( nearly ) every state in Middle East ; the United States is superior to Western European nations , as well .
There is no country in Europe that boasts as healthy an environment for press freedom or free speech as the United States—and considering the attitude of elites , it 's doubtful they want that dynamic to change . In Europe , libel laws are frequently used by the rich and powerful to suppress unfavorable coverage . In England , for example , Trump would likely have been able to quash the Wolff book . In Germany , the state demands that private online outlets govern speech that does n't comport with their diktats .
In France , the government will decide what is real news . The European Commission Code of Conduct features an array of demands for the government to police speech , which includes online `` hate speech '' —a perpetually flexible and easily abused phrase—among other things . Increasing numbers of Americans , some no doubt worried about Trump fascism , support the implementation of these kinds of laws here .
The press is probably safer from government interference ( we can talk about megacorporations instilling speech codes another time ) than it was from 2001 to 2016 . The internet is freer for everyone , including journalists , because of the administration 's deregulatory efforts . Political discourse is in better hands because of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch . And after an eight-year hibernation , the press has rediscovered its purpose as the opposition party . | 296d271116a618d0 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
environment | USA TODAY | http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/03/10/president-trumps-budget-expected-roll-back-funding-climate-research/99014224/ | President Trump's budget expected to roll back funding of climate research | 2017-03-10 | environment | WASHINGTON — President Trump isn ’ t just keeping a campaign promise to roll back climate change regulations . He appears to be moving ahead to do away with the science behind the effort .
The White House has drafted a preliminary budget blueprint that would hack hundreds of millions of research dollars out of the EPA and other agencies tracking the effects of global warming in what would be a stark contrast to the policies under President Obama .
Environmental activists say rolling back rules designed to protect health and ecology is bad enough . But gutting the fact-finding and academic analysis behind the rules poses far-reaching consequences .
`` If the Trump administration pulls the plug on this , the world goes dark , '' said David Doniger , director of the climate and clean air program at the Natural Resources Defense Council .
Among the proposed cuts the White House could unveil Thursday as part of its official budget :
EPA science funding , including half the money for studies of the agency ’ s Air , Climate , and Energy Research Program . Bill Becker , executive director of the Association of Clean Air Agencies , which includes the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality as a member , was unable to release the proposal from the Trump administration but confirmed the figures .
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research funding to support climate research and the satellite programs that provide the basis for the Obama-era policies aimed at reducing the use of fossil fuels . The cut could be as much as 17 % , according to The Washington Post .
NASA programs coordinating the launch of satellites that monitor changes in sea level , carbon levels and air temperatures that help provide the justification for climate change rules .
Such a move would be applauded by key GOP lawmakers who challenge the science behind climate change and the resulting environmental regulations they say have stunted economic growth .
Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Lamar Smith , Texas Republicans who both chair congressional panels that oversee the space program , have each called for NASA to transfer earth science to other agencies so it can focus on deep space exploration .
Some of those reported cuts could change based on review and comment from individual agencies . But environmental activists are not optimistic the proposal coming out next week will change from earlier drafts that make good on the president ’ s campaign promises to roll back “ job-killing ” environmental regulations .
Trump vowed in October to “ cancel all wasteful climate change spending from Obama-Clinton , including all global warming payments to the United Nations . ”
The president said cutting such funding would save $ 100 billion over eight years , money that could be used “ to help rebuild the vital infrastructure , including water systems , in America ’ s inner cities , ” he said during last year ’ s presidential campaign . More recently , Trump is trying to find ways of supporting a $ 54 billion increase in Defense spending without raising taxes .
Environmental activists and many Democrats say Trump ’ s proposed cuts not only would ignore what President Obama called the greatest threat to the planet , but also hamper global response because of the leading role the U.S. plays as a research engine for the international science community .
Annual federal funding for climate change research , technology , international assistance and adaptation has increased from $ 2.4 billion in 1993 to $ 11.6 billion in 2014 spread among 13 federal agencies , according to the Government Accountability Office . An additional $ 26.1 billion for climate change programs and activities was included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009 .
That money is spent in a variety of ways : satellites that track Earth ’ s vital signs , government-funded research to measure natural phenomenon such as deforestation , ice melt and habitat migrations , ocean buoys that monitor water temperatures , and agencies that track the health effects of global shifts .
“ Earth science is not unique ( to the U.S. ) . There ’ s a lot of very good science around the world , ” said Doniger of the NRDC . “ But the U.S. has a very heavy commitment in terms of the expertise , who the scientists are and , more importantly , where does the data come from ... It 's really foolish to blind yourself to the information and the information collection effort . ''
U.S. efforts to track climate change have grown steadily over the past 25 years as the scope of the potential threat has become clearer particularly to America ’ s coastal communities .
Coasts are sensitive to sea level rise , changes in the frequency and intensity of storms , increases in precipitation , and warmer ocean temperatures , according to the EPA . In addition , the agency concludes rising atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide are causing the oceans to absorb more of the gas and become more acidic , which “ can have significant impacts on coastal and marine ecosystems . ”
Trump has called climate change a hoax perpetrated by China . EPA chief Scott Pruitt in a CNBC interview Thursday said he does not believe carbon dioxide is a primary contributor to global warming .
Those views by the two people who may have the most to say about the government ’ s role in addressing climate change run counter to the conclusions by an overwhelming portion of the scientific community , including the EPA itself .
“ Carbon dioxide is the primary greenhouse gas that is contributing to recent climate change , ” according to the agency ’ s website . And `` human activities , such as the burning of fossil fuels and changes in land use , release large amounts of CO2 , causing concentrations in the atmosphere to rise . ”
Government-funded research has helped pinpoint particularly vulnerable parts of the country , notably Florida , whose 1,350 miles of coastline are constantly battered by rising sea levels and fierce storms .
Climate change is of special concern to Florida Sen. Bill Nelson , the top Democrat on the Commerce , Science and Transportation Committee , which oversees NASA and NOAA . Nelson pressed newly installed Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross during his confirmation hearing for assurances he would not squelch climate science at agencies , including NOAA , under his purview .
Ross , who has a home in Palm Beach , assured Nelson he has no intention of instructing his employees to fudge or hide information on the science behind rising temperatures .
“ I support the dissemination of valid information to the public , ” Ross told the senator . “ No valid information should be concealed . In general , I have great respect for the scientific quality of NOAA ; I think the communication of factual information and data is very , very important . ” | BD1oKeqKbYIIdSku | 1 | Donald Trump | -1.6 | Environment | -1.5 | Climate Change | -0.4 | White House | -0.2 | null | null |
civil_rights | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/jun/4/forest-service-hit-for-border-patrol-call/ | Forest Service hit for Border Patrol call | 2012-06-04 | civil_rights | A federal department ruled last week that the Forest Service violated a Spanish-speaking woman ’ s civil rights by calling the Border Patrol to help translate during a routine stop , saying it was “ humiliating ” to Hispanics and an illicit backdoor way to capture more illegal immigrants .
The ruling by the Agriculture Department ’ s assistant secretary for civil rights could change policies nationwide as law enforcement agencies grapple with how far they can go in trying to help the Border Patrol while not running afoul of racial profiling standards .
Assistant Secretary Joe Leonard Jr. said calling the Border Patrol automatically “ escalates ” encounters between Hispanics and law enforcement . He ruled that the Forest Service can not routinely summon the Border Patrol for assistance and said the agency now must document suspected racial profiling nationwide .
“ Given the increased risk of being questioned about immigration status during an interaction with [ Border Patrol ] , the policy of using BP for interpretation assistance is problematic in all situations because it places a burden on [ limited English proficient ] individuals that non-LEP individuals do not experience , ” Mr. Leonard ruled .
The case stems from a 2011 incident in Olympic National Forest in Washington in which a Forest Service officer encountered a Hispanic couple who he said appeared to be illegally harvesting plants on the federal lands .
The couple didn ’ t speak English and he didn ’ t speak fluent Spanish and , anticipating that situation , he called the Border Patrol for backup and translating .
But when a Border Patrol agent arrived , the couple fled . The woman was apprehended , but the man jumped into a river to try to escape and drowned . The Border Patrol took the woman into custody but released her several days later , reportedly on humanitarian grounds .
The Northwest Immigrant Rights Project complained to the Agriculture Department , which oversees the Forest Service , and last week ’ s ruling was the result .
Matt Adams , legal director of the project , said the Border Patrol has been expanding its reach in the Northwest and that has meant more encounters well away from the border .
“ They ’ ve got nothing to do out there as far as their traditional mission , that is enforcing people coming through the border . So in order to justify those expanded numbers , they utilize these other tactics , ” Mr. Adams said . “ At the end of the day , they can drag in bigger numbers , but it ’ s not focused on the border . ”
His group is challenging other federal agencies ’ use of the Border Patrol for translation services , and has filed requests under the Freedom of Information Act seeking logs for how often agents are used for translation .
Last week ’ s ruling relies in part on an executive order issued during the Clinton administration that says language is interchangeable with national origin , which is protected by federal law .
Groups that push for English-language policies in the U.S. called the new ruling illegal and said the government appeared to be granting special language rights to illegal immigrants .
“ The ACLU and illegal alien rights groups are well aware that American courts have never upheld their argument that language and national origin are equal , so they battle out these disputes in private between the agencies in order to come to a settlement where both the courts and the taxpayers are absent from the table , ” said Suzanne Bibby , director of government relations for ProEnglish . “ This is their new strategy because they know they will lose in the courts . ”
A spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection , which oversees the Border Patrol , said the agency is reviewing the ruling but is committed to civil rights .
The union that represents Forest Service employees didn ’ t return a call seeking comment .
In the proceedings , the Forest Service fought on behalf of its officer . It pointed to an operational memo with the Border Patrol that said they are allowed to back up each other . Since Forest Service employees generally are not trained in Spanish , Border Patrol agents are particularly helpful in backing up encounters with Hispanics , the agency said .
Mr. Leonard ’ s 40-page ruling underscored deep mutual distrust on both sides in the town of Forks , in northwestern Washington .
Town residents who told the review board that the Forest Service officer involved in the 2011 stop was known for harassing Hispanics and for working with the Border Patrol .
Meanwhile , the Forest Service officer said he felt like the Hispanic community had been “ tracing ” his movements .
Mr. Leonard was skeptical of the officer ’ s reasoning and said he found the complaints from the community more convincing .
Underpinning the ruling were some key legal arguments : First , that the complainant was entitled to visit the national forest ; second , that a law enforcement stop affects the availability of the service provided by the national forest ; and third , that the Forest Service must take steps to protect those with limited English , including making them not feel unduly threatened .
“ A policy that causes individuals to actually flee from the service being provided does not provide meaningful access , ” Mr. Leonard wrote . | ysfZ5XVS8Fbsw0mY | 2 | Civil Rights | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
state_department | Daily Kos | http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/12/20/1612986/-State-Department-worried-Trump-is-going-to-be-the-real-madman-of-foreign-policy-theory | State Department worried Trump is going to be the real madman of foreign policy theory | 2016-12-20 | state_department | Foreign policy is a tricky beast for any new president , at any time . But 2016 presents some particular international challenges : ISIS , Syria , Russia and the Ukraine , Russia and Syria , China and Iran ( to name just a few ) . When a new president is on the way , traditional adversaries might test the waters a bit by , say , seizing a U.S. unmanned research drone . Just to see what happens . It 's a period of uncertainty for the foreign policy establishment , an establishment that relies entirely upon norms , rules of engagement that have been agreed upon , protocol . And here comes Trump , freaking the hell out of everybody .
As Trump veers from one surprise tweet to the next—at times misspelled 140-character statements that seem to contradict decades of U.S. foreign policy , State Department bureaucrats are facing a unique challenge : How to follow the lead of a president who seems uninterested in consistency , protocol and nuance ? In Trump ’ s November phone call to Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif , for example , he called Pakistan a “ fantastic country , fantastic place of fantastic people , ” neglecting to mention Pakistan ’ s involvement in fomenting terrorism against U.S. interests , a major point of tension for American presidents since Al Qaeda and its affiliates set up shop in Pakistan after the September 11 attacks . On December 2 , Trump spoke by phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen , a move breaking with nearly four decades of protocol in U.S.-China relations . This seemingly impulsive personal style makes it extremely difficult for the State Department bureaucracy to interpret Trump and follow his example . Do these new developments signal a real shift in U.S. alliances or are they offhand remarks ? Will Twitter be the primary platform for Trump to issue new statements of foreign policy ? If so , how much will the State Department be involved in the shaping , coordination and vetting of such messages ?
No one in the Trump sphere seems to be able to do anything about that itchy Twitter finger , or the phone calls . Or maybe , in their arrogance and ignorance , they do n't understand the import of what it is Trump is doing . This is all terrifying for the State Department , which has the responsibility of carrying out that policy and of protecting continuity and consistency in the messages that the rest of the world is hearing .
Back when Tricky Dick Nixon was president , the canny president coined what he called the `` madman '' theory of foreign policy . He wanted foreign leaders , adversaries , to think that he was irrational and volatile and capable of doing anything on a whim . That was intended to send the message to adversaries that the U.S. should not be provoked . But it was a facade carefully crafted and communicated through his foreign policy team , one that they understood and used with some restraint . And with a knowledge of the world in which they were operating . Out of it came one good—totally unexpected and maybe even a little irrational—the beginnings of a rapprochement with China .
Now we 've got an actual madman going to the White House , a man who appears to have no control over his impulses and no understanding of why following them is dangerous . For the existing State Department employees , it 's a problem . Ambassador Richard A. Boucher , a former Department spokesman under no less than six secretaries of state , explains that `` until the president gives a clear statement about where America stands in the world with our enemies and allies , it will be hard for career people to take that and turn it into policy . ''
For the career State Department folks , this is a deeply unsettling prospect , one in which we get cozy with Russia and they have to worry about things like whether housing visiting foreign dignitaries in Trump hotels will create international incidents . | HpRaD6sDmrDLY9nV | 0 | Donald Trump | -1 | State Department | -0.8 | Politics | -0.8 | Foreign Policy | -0.6 | null | null |
media_industry | Vox | https://www.vox.com/2020/5/7/21248713/tara-reade-joe-biden-sexual-assault-accusation | The agonizing story of Tara Reade | 2020-05-07 | media_industry | In April 2019 , a woman named Tara Reade reached out to me with a clear , consistent story to tell about her experience as a staffer in Joe Biden ’ s Senate office in 1993 . I spent hours on the phone with her , and many more tracking down possible witnesses and documents , trying to confirm her account .
Reade told me that a senior aide told her Biden liked her legs and that he wanted her to serve cocktails at a fundraiser for him , a request she found demeaning and declined . When she later complained to others in the office that Biden would put his hands on her shoulder , neck , and hair during meetings in ways that made her uncomfortable , she says she was blamed and told to dress more conservatively . Within a few months , she said , her responsibilities had been stripped and she felt she was being pushed out of the job . She went back home to California deflated .
Reade told me that she wanted me to think of this story as being about abuse of power , “ but not sexual misconduct. ” Her emphasis was on how she was treated in Biden ’ s office by Senate aides , who she said retaliated against her for complaining about how Biden touched her in meetings . “ I don ’ t know if [ Biden ] knew why I left , ” she said . “ He barely knew us by name . ”
She sent me an email that evening with an essay she ’ d written . Her local paper in California , the Union , published a similar version a few weeks later with a line she ’ d sent to me , too : “ This is not a story about sexual misconduct ; it is a story about abuse of power . It is a story about when a member of Congress allows staff to threaten or belittle or bully on their behalf unchecked to maintain power rather than modify the behavior . ”
Last year , Reade encouraged me to speak with a friend of hers who counseled her through her time in Biden ’ s office in 1992 and 1993 . The friend was clear about what had happened , and what hadn ’ t .
“ On the scale of other things we heard , and I feel ashamed , but it wasn ’ t that bad . [ Biden ] never tried to kiss her directly . He never went for one of those touches . It was one of those , ‘ sorry you took it that way. ’ I know that is very hard to explain , ” the friend told me . She went on : “ What was creepy was that it was always in front of people . ”
I wanted to break this story . Badly . About half a dozen women had stepped forward around the time I spoke with Reade to say they were bothered by how Biden had touched them at events . I wrote a column praising them for staring down the political media that had given him a pass for all those years . Reade ’ s story took these complaints further — showing how even lower-grade inappropriate conduct can have real consequences for a woman ’ s career , an important subject that we still don ’ t talk about nearly enough .
I knew I wasn ’ t the only reporter Reade was talking to . The New York Times had three reporters on the story , she told me . On April 3 , the day after we first spoke , she texted me four times . She wanted to know when I planned to publish , and she warned me that other outlets were getting ready to do so .
That day , the Union published an article with her story . This happens sometimes . It ’ s happened to me , many times . You fight for a story that would be explosive if you could prove it , but you can ’ t . I continued reporting on her story for a few more weeks after the story broke , but I didn ’ t get enough . ███ did not publish anything about Reade in 2019 . Neither did the major outlets that I know were pursuing the story , including the Times , the Washington Post , and the Associated Press .
In March 2020 , Reade resurfaced with a new allegation , which she told on The Katie Halper Show . In addition to her account of her experience with office staff , Reade said that in 1993 , Biden forced an unwanted sexual encounter on her . She said Biden pushed her against a wall on the Capitol grounds , kissed her , and then digitally penetrated her — all against her will .
Biden ’ s campaign did not respond publicly to Reade ’ s claims in 2019 . On May 1 , Biden answered questions about the allegations for the first time on MSNBC ’ s Morning Joe . He denied all of Reade ’ s claims and underscored his denial of the sexual assault allegation . “ I ’ m saying unequivocally , it never , never happened , ” he told host Mika Brzezinski .
Three aides whom Reade said she approached about her complaints in 1993 told the New York Times that they also dispute her account . “ I never once witnessed , or heard of , or received , any reports of inappropriate conduct , period — not from Ms. Reade , not from anyone , ” said Marianne Baker , Biden ’ s longtime executive assistant . “ I have absolutely no knowledge or memory of Ms. Reade ’ s accounting of events , which would have left a searing impression on me as a woman professional , and as a manager . ”
When Reade ’ s story reemerged in a new form , I went through my reporting notes and interview transcripts from a year ago . I spoke with Reade last week for several hours over the course of multiple interviews . Reade and I have had a good rapport . She ’ s optimistic and idealistic , even , as one friend told me , to a fault . When she tells her account , she becomes emotional . She seems sincere .
If I were an old friend of Reade ’ s and she told me this same story privately over the course of a year , I doubt I would question her account . The brain processes traumatic experiences differently , making it difficult for some survivors to share them as a linear narrative . And the personal nature of a sexual assault can saddle victims with feelings of shame and doubt . It ’ s not easy to talk about . Many sexual assault survivors never speak of the experience at all .
But I ’ m not an old friend . I ’ m a journalist . Reade came to me because she wanted to share her story with the world , not just with me . It was clear in our conversations that she understood the difference . I listened to her , I interviewed relevant sources , and I returned to her many times in an attempt to get more information to help me find more corroboration .
Reade ’ s latest allegation is far more serious and comes in a far more fraught political context . The story that both she and her corroborating witnesses are telling has changed dramatically . This leaves me — all of us — in an agonizing place . I ’ ve written many articles through the Me Too era . It ’ s unrealistic to demand “ perfect ” victims . And , like most who come forward with allegations of sexual misconduct or assault , Reade has suffered for speaking out . In several exchanges this year and last year , she ’ s shown me disturbing messages she ’ s received online .
As my colleague Anna North writes , there has long been an ambiguity in the Me Too movement . The rallying cry has been to “ believe women. ” But the acts of journalism that have driven the movement forward have been built on extraordinary amounts of evidence : They usually include not just consistent corroboration but oftentimes multiple stories , stacked on top of each other . Taking on powerful men over these issues was unthinkable just a few years ago . It ’ s required herculean effort .
Reporters who ’ ve succeeded in forcing powerful men to be held to account relied on an incredible amount of reporting to do it .
For example , Irin Carmon , who , along with Amy Brittain , exposed Charlie Rose for an alleged decades-long pattern of sexual harassment , had pursued the story for years . When their exposé appeared in the Washington Post , it was built on accusations from eight women , three on the record . Carmon and Brittain found consistency across the women ’ s stories and strong corroboration of each account :
There are striking commonalities in the accounts of the women , each of whom described their interactions with Rose in multiple interviews with The Post . For all of the women , reporters interviewed friends , colleagues or family members who said the women had confided in them about aspects of the incidents .
Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein fell in 2017 after Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey of the New York Times published the accounts of dozens of women who said Weinstein had assaulted or harassed them over the previous 30 years . Ronan Farrow published another story shortly after in the New Yorker , an account that included 13 accusations of sexual assault , three of them rape . All three reporters have gone on to write books about the incredible lengths they went to in order to get the story .
Eight women have now said they ’ ve been made uncomfortable by Biden in public settings . Reade is the lone woman to accuse him of sexual assault . This is a situation out of her control , but it means that reporters can ’ t build a story about Biden around a pattern of behavior , where multiple accusers boost one another ’ s story . Instead , reporters are looking at Reade ’ s account in isolation — and that account has changed .
When we spoke a year ago , Reade told me the only named sources she could give me were her deceased mother and the friend I spoke to . A recently uncovered tape of her mom on Larry King Live appears to corroborate Reade ’ s claim that she was struggling in Biden ’ s office in 1993 , but does not include an assault allegation . When I reconnected with the friend I spoke to last year , who had previously told me Biden had not assaulted Reade , she told me a version of the story that matched Reade ’ s latest account .
This year , Reade said to Halper that she also told her brother about the alleged assault and harassment . He later told the Washington Post in an interview that he remembers his sister was upset in 1993 about Biden touching her neck and shoulders . He followed up with a Post reporter a few days later over text message to say Reade also said Biden “ put his hands under her clothes . ”
Since then , a former neighbor of Reade ’ s , Lynda LaCasse , has come forward in an interview with Business Insider . She said Reade spoke about the harassment and assault claims in 1995 . I asked Reade why she hadn ’ t mentioned LaCasse to me a year ago , or to Halper , or to the first few reporters she told about her assault allegation , including the New York Times , which was working on a deep dive into her story at the same time . She said LaCasse hadn ’ t seemed like a relevant source because she ’ d talked to her two years after the alleged incident took place . Reade added that she told reporters about two other anonymous friends later who hadn ’ t seemed relevant to her either . When asked a similar question by the Associated Press , which had been working on the story , too , Reade didn ’ t respond .
If Reade had told a consistent story and shared all of her corroborating sources with reporters , if those sources had told a consistent story , if the Union piece had shaken loose other cases like hers , or if there were “ smoking gun ” evidence in Biden ’ s papers , her account might have been reported on differently in mainstream media a year ago . It is not fair to an individual survivor that their claims require an extraordinary level of confirmation , but it ’ s what reporters have found is necessary for their stories to hold up to public scrutiny and successfully hold powerful men accountable . So we are here .
When Halper asked Reade why she didn ’ t mention the assault allegation originally , she responded by blaming the media :
Well , I was going to tell the whole thing … the whole history with Biden . … But the way I was being questioned , it made me so uncomfortable that I didn ’ t trust it . And no offense to the reporters out there , it ’ s just maybe that ’ s something that can be learned , how to talk to somebody who got . … Because I just really got shut down . … And the narrative [ they ] really wanted it to be was that it wasn ’ t a sexual thing . Like don ’ t say it ’ s sexual . And so I was like , okay , I guess I can ’ t really say the whole story . …
But that wasn ’ t the narrative I wanted . I wanted the truth . And I certainly had no qualms about the accusations being of sexual misconduct . Reporters at many outlets , including the reporters Reade spoke to , have not shied away from reporting on detailed sexual assault allegations . In the Me Too era , reporters have been aggressive in uncovering stories of powerful men who , for far too long , have abused and assaulted women with no consequences .
In the interview with Halper and in her most recent conversations with me , Reade was critical of how major outlets treated her story . For example , in the interview with Halper , Reade said she contacted “ someone at the Washington Post and then they never really followed up . ”
The Washington Post says that it interviewed Reade “ on multiple occasions — both this year and last — as well as people she says she told of the assault claim and more than a half-dozen former staffers of Biden ’ s Senate office , ” a fact Reade conceded to me in an interview .
In a recent conversation , I asked Reade why she would say the media was shutting her down when she was initially so adamant with me ( and other outlets ) that this wasn ’ t a misconduct story . The only answer she gave was that she was speaking about the response to her claims “ collectively. ” And in her opinion , the added details still fit her construct that “ this is not a story about sexual misconduct , ” because , she told me , sexual assault itself is about power .
I spoke with Reade ’ s friend again this week . She said that Reade had told her about the alleged assault the week it happened in 1993 . I asked the friend why , then , did she volunteer so explicitly that Biden “ never tried to kiss her ” or touch her inappropriately . “ It just organically rolled out that way , ” the friend said . “ [ Reade ] and I had many conversations a year ago about what her degree of comfort was . She wanted to leave a layer there , and I did not want to betray that . It just wasn ’ t my place . ”
Reade told me last year that she gave a supervisor a written statement voicing her complaints about how she ’ d been treated in the office . The complaint was limited to the harassment allegation , not the misconduct allegation , she told me this year .
I helped Reade in 2019 request documents from a few offices to try to find the record . ( Personnel files wouldn ’ t be released to a third party , like a reporter . ) First , she put in a request with the Senate secretary ’ s office , which maintains some employment records . That office provided a copy of her payroll history , which confirmed her dates of employment and salary .
We next tried the Office of Personnel Management , which maintains federal records of employment , but the office was not able to track down a file in its electronic system . I then checked with a source who worked in a warehouse across the country where it would most likely have ended up to see if there was a physical file stashed there . He couldn ’ t find one .
One place the complaint could have landed is back in the Senate office , though that wouldn ’ t be proper protocol . Biden is now under pressure to check files maintained by the University of Delaware . He gave the university his Senate documents in 2012 under the condition they ’ d remain sealed until two years after his time in office . The time frame was extended when he decided to run for president .
When asked on Morning Joe if he would have the documents reviewed , Biden said he would not , maintaining a personnel file wouldn ’ t be there and that the files are about his policy decision-making , speechwriting , etc .
Biden says that if a complaint exists , it would be held by the National Archives and they should release any relevant documents . He also sent a letter to the Senate secretary ’ s office asking for any relevant records , a request the office declined because any records that might exist are “ strictly confidential . ”
Reade herself says the complaint didn ’ t include the assault accusation , so finding the complaint — or failing to find it — would neither corroborate nor debunk the most serious allegation .
The complaint could corroborate Reade ’ s claims of sexual harassment , which Biden also denies . But it ’ s well established that Biden has over the years touched women in a way that some have said made them uncomfortable , and Biden has acknowledged this publicly . Whether or not one finds his apology for that adequate , it ’ s the assault accusation that has made Reade the center of attention . All parties agree that the complaint wouldn ’ t speak to that .
All of this leaves me where no reporter wants to be : mired in the miasma of uncertainty . I wanted to believe Reade when she first came to me , and I worked hard to find the evidence to make certain others would believe her , too . I couldn ’ t find it . None of that means Reade is lying , but it leaves us in the limbo of Me Too : a story that may be true but that we can ’ t prove .
There ’ s another issue at play , which Biden supporters and critics of Reade have pointed to in response to her allegation . A year ago , Reade went to mainstream , national outlets including the Times , the Post , and the Associated Press . It was in the middle of a competitive Democratic primary . She had no obvious connection to any candidate . And if voters or the party pushed Biden out , it was unclear who would benefit .
This year , Reade has emerged as an ardent Bernie Sanders supporter , with a much more damaging story to tell about Biden , who is now the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee . She went public with the rape accusation on a podcast sympathetic to Sanders and followed up with Ryan Grim of the Intercept , an outlet that has been consistently critical of Biden .
A few weeks before Reade spoke to Halper , she replied to a tweet from Grim seeming to tease that a story was coming . Reade declined to elaborate on what she meant in the tweet , directing me to a spokesperson . Grim said he hadn ’ t noticed the reply when she sent it , and he didn ’ t speak with her for the first time until March 8 , almost a week later .
Yup . Timing ... wait for it .... tic toc — taratweets ( Alexandra Tara Reade ) ( @ ReadeAlexandra ) March 4 , 2020
Reade ’ s supporters on the left see the Democratic establishment ’ s response to her accusation as hypocritical , particularly compared to how party leaders rallied around Christine Blasey Ford when she testified in the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation hearings . In Ford ’ s case , there was near-universal support for her . Critics on the left say that Democrats should stand up for Reade , and that the “ believe women ” rallying cry should apply even when it ’ s not politically convenient .
But Democrats have largely lined up behind Biden . Top Barack Obama alumni have said that they vetted Biden fully in 2008 and found no evidence of the kind of behavior Reade describes . Rising Democratic star Stacey Abrams recently said , “ I believe Joe Biden. ” Sen. Elizabeth Warren penned an op-ed with Biden . Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand , seen as a Me Too leader for her push to oust Sen. Al Franken after he was accused of sexual misconduct , headlined an event for Biden this week .
Many liberals have said now and during the Franken saga that the Democratic Party has held itself to a ridiculous standard . Donald Trump has admitted on tape to what Reade accuses Biden of doing and still denies the accounts of more than 20 women who have accused him of sexual misconduct . And given that the goal of beating Trump is paramount this fall , some see dwelling on an accusation that has yet to be definitively proven as a damaging distraction .
“ My story never changed . I just didn ’ t come forward with all the details . It ’ s really simple , ” she said to me . “ I held back this story because I was afraid of a powerful man . ”
Every day at ███ , we aim to answer your most important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives . Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding . ███ ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and an economic downturn . Your financial contribution will not constitute a donation , but it will enable our staff to continue to offer free articles , videos , and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires . Please consider making a contribution to ███ today . | bhRyJsmKRHQf69bI | 0 | Joe Biden | -0.1 | Tara Reade | -0.1 | News Media | -0.1 | Sexual Misconduct | -0.1 | Media Industry | -0.1 |
immigration | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/27/politics/obama-spanish-interviews/index.html?hpt=po_c1 | Immigration reform coming soon, Obama tells Spanish networks | 2013-03-27 | immigration | He tells both networks he expects an immigration bill on the Senate floor next month
A debate over guest workers wo n't derail reform efforts , Obama says
The president also discusses his upcoming trip to Mexico and Costa Rica
U.S. President Barack Obama had a clear message in interviews with two of America 's largest Spanish-language broadcast television networks on Wednesday : Immigration reform is coming soon .
A group of lawmakers are close to working out the details of their proposal , Obama said .
`` I 'm actually very optimistic that when they return in early April we will see a bill ready to move through the process , '' he told Telemundo .
`` The most important thing is that we are seeing a strong compromise to resolve the problem , '' he said . `` I 've got my own legislation , I 'm prepared to step in , but I do n't think that 's going to be necessary . ''
In another interview that aired at the same time on Univision , the president made a similar point .
`` My sense is that they are close , '' Obama told Univision . `` My expectation is we 'll see a bill on the floor of the Senate next month . ''
His comments to Telemundo and Univision -- in interviews that were conducted in English and aired in dubbed Spanish -- were part of the president 's latest push to ignite congressional movement on immigration reform
If a bill is introduced next month , Obama told Telemundo he was `` confident we can get it done certainly before the end of the summer . ''
But there was a key issue that had yet to be resolved : how to construct a guest worker program for the future .
The senators were haggling over details like how much low-skilled guest workers would be paid , and how many workers would be allowed into the country each year , the source said .
According to the source , the eight senators -- four Democrats and four Republicans , who released the framework for their plan in January -- were confident last week that they would be ready to unveil the highly anticipated immigration bill early in the week of April 8 , when Congress returns to work .
On Wednesday , Obama told Telemundo he did n't think the debate over guest workers would derail reform efforts .
`` I disagree that it 's threatening to doom the legislation . ... I think there is commitment among this group of Democratic and Republican senators to get this done , '' he said .
When the reporters from Telemundo and Univision both noted that many Latin American governments do not feel like they 're a priority for the Obama administration , the president described his upcoming trip .
`` I 'm really looking forward to the opportunity to visit Mexico . I 'm going to be there in early May , '' Obama told Telemundo . `` Sometimes the relationship gets characterized as being just about borders or just about drug cartels . There is so much more in terms of commerce , trade and energy . '' | wdg1Dgoa16z27byf | 0 | Immigration | 0.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
world | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/24/world/europe/ukraine-protests-up-to-speed/index.html?hpt=hp_t1 | Up to speed: Uncertainty reigns in a divided Ukraine | 2014-02-24 | world | Story highlights Ousted President Viktor Yanukovych was in Crimea on Sunday , an official says
An arrest warrant has been issued for Yanukovych over the killings of civilians
Russia recalls its ambassador from Ukraine to Moscow for consultations
Parliament appoints an acting president ; a former prime minister is freed from prison
The turmoil in Ukraine has swept aside its president , brought about the release a prominent opposition leader and raised fears the country could break apart .
After the bloodshed in the streets of Kiev last week -- the deadliest violence Ukraine has suffered since its independence 22 years ago -- the political twists and turns came thick and fast over the weekend .
As a new week begins , uncertainty has taken a hold in the divided nation as Ukraine tries to reshape its political landscape .
An arrest warrant has been issued for ousted President Viktor Yanukovych over the killings of civilians , a government official said Monday . But officials do n't know where he is .
Here 's what you need to know to get caught up :
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The Parliament voted to oust Yanukovych , a key demand of protesters . It appointed seasoned lawmaker Oleksandr Turchinov as a new speaker who will take on Yanukovych 's duties until new elections in May .
Turchinov , a longtime ally of opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko , has promised a new interim government by Tuesday .
`` We have a legitimate source of authority in Kiev , which is the democratically elected Parliament and a democratically , constitutionally elected speaker of parliament , who is acting president , '' Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski , who helped broker a peace deal between the government and the opposition , said on CNN 's Fareed Zakaria GPS .
But Yanukovych claims he 's still in charge , saying he was forced to leave Kiev because of a `` coup . ''
`` I do n't plan to leave the country . I do n't plan to resign . I am the legitimate President , '' he said Saturday in a televised broadcast .
But acting Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Monday that arrest warrant has been issued for Yanukovych .
`` As of this morning , a criminal case on mass killings of civilians has been opened . Yanukovych and several other officials have been placed on the wanted list , '' Avakov wrote Monday on his Facebook page .
Unclear . He made his TV broadcast from Kharkiv , a pro-Russian stronghold near the border . And he reportedly tried to board a charter plane Saturday night in the eastern city of Donetsk , but was turned away because he did n't have the right papers .
On Sunday , he was staying at his private residence in Balaklava in the southern region of Crimea , Avakov said , adding that Yanukovych is believed to traveling in three vehicles with his chief of staff .
But Avakov said he does n't know where Yanukovych was Monday .
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He 's definitely not in his lavish presidential compound near Kiev that thousands of Ukrainians have now been able to explore after he fled . People have been roaming around the mansion and its vast grounds , staring at the opulence in which Yanukovych lived , including peacocks , vintage cars and a huge galleon-style riverboat for parties .
His political party appears to have turned against him , saying it blames him for the `` robbery and deception '' of the nation . It accused Yanukovych of making illegal orders that led to casualties , financial debt and shame in the eyes of the world .
But it 's notable that Yanukovych was recently in Kharkiv , in eastern Ukraine . It 's his traditional support base and a predominantly Russian-speaking region .
People in the east , the country 's industrial heartland , tend to look to Russia as Ukraine 's key ally . Many of them are suspicious of the Europe-leaning views of those in western Ukraine , who were at the heart of the protests against Yanukovych that filled central Kiev for months .
The demonstrations began after Yanukovych scrapped a European Union trade deal and turned toward Russia for financial support .
A lot of people with Russian heritage in eastern Ukraine feel that their cultural identity is under threat with the pro-European side in the ascendancy in Kiev .
`` I think that divide goes very , very deep -- it 's regional , it 's linguistic , it 's religious , '' New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof , whose father grew up in Ukraine , told CNN 's Zakaria .
In many parts of Ukraine , people have toppled statues of former Russian communist leader Vladimir Lenin , a founder of the Soviet Union . The statues are symbols of Russian pride .
In Kharkiv , a tense rift has opened up between those who want to tear down the city 's Lenin statue , one of the biggest in the country , and those who want to keep it .
Some analysts say they fear parts of eastern Ukraine could push to break away from a pro-Western government in Kiev in favor of Russia .
The task for Yanukovych 's opponents is to chart a course for Ukraine that keeps all sides on board .
Acting President Turchinov said Sunday that Ukraine is ready to talk to Kremlin to try to improve relations , but made clear that Kiev 's return to European integration would be a priority .
Russia 's ambassador to the United Nations , Vitaly Churkin , condemned what he called Western attempts to influence the outcome of the turmoil in Ukraine .
`` Either they do n't understand the consequences of what they 're doing , or they 're engaged in a very provocative game of destabilizing Ukraine and therefore Eastern Europe , '' he said in a post on his official Twitter account .
The Russian foreign ministry says it has recalled its ambassador from Ukraine to Moscow for consultations , citing `` the aggravation of the situation . ''
Everybody 's waiting to see what Russian President Vladimir Putin , a key backer of Yanukovych , does next .
`` If you look through Putin 's eyes specifically , this is his area of interest , '' said David Remnick , the editor of The New Yorker and a former foreign correspondent in Moscow .
Putin , whose country just finished hosting the Winter Olympics in Sochi , wo n't quietly let Ukraine shift into a Western orbit , Remnick said .
`` I think Putin is in a very tough , assertive mode and it has nothing to do with snowboarding , it has to do with his geostrategic , regional interests , '' he said . `` It has to do with differentiating himself from the West , morally as well as politically , and I think he 's a very tough figure to deal with now . ''
National Security Adviser Susan Rice warned that it `` would be a grave mistake '' if Putin intervened militarily in the crisis .
`` The United States is on the side of the Ukrainian people , '' she said on NBC 's `` Meet the Press . '' The people expressed themselves peacefully , she said , and Yanukovych `` turned on '' the people by using violence against them .
But Washington has a delicate task getting involved in a crisis in an area that Russia sees as its backyard .
On Sunday , U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov about Ukraine , expressing support for the results of the Parliament 's decisions and asking Russia not to not use military force in the country , according to a senior State Department official .
The State Department has warned U.S. citizens to defer all non-essential travel to Ukraine .
Poland 's Sikorski , meanwhile , urged Ukrainian leaders to keep dialogue open with Moscow .
`` The new Ukrainian government needs to be in touch , needs to have a conversation with Russia , which is an important neighbor , just like Poland , '' he said . `` Because , apart from anything else , Ukraine needs the lower gas price and does n't want Russia to play the separatist card . ''
There are plenty of candidates but no clear favorite yet . Turchinov , who Parliament appointed acting leader , is at the helm until elections on May 25 .
`` The challenge for the opposition moving forward from here is going to be maintaining unity , '' said CNN correspondent Phil Black .
Former world champion heavyweight boxer Vitali Klitschko has been the most well-known opposition figure during the crisis . He heads the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reforms party . There 's also Arseniy Yatsenyuk , a former foreign minister .
Former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko , considered a hero of a 2004 revolution against Yanukovych , was released Saturday after 2½ years behind bars .
She had lost to Yanukovych in elections in 2010 . A year later , she was sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of abuse of authority over a natural gas deal negotiated with Russia .
After her release , she addressed cheering crowds in Kiev 's Independence Square , calling Yanukovych a `` terrible dictator . ''
`` There 'll be no Ukraine but the Ukraine you want , '' she said . `` And I 'm the guarantor of that Ukraine . ''
She said Sunday that she does n't want to be considered for the nomination for prime minister , suggesting she may have her eye on the presidency .
But some observers say the protests in Kiev have fed a desire for a new , untainted generation of leaders to step forward .
`` A lot of people who made this revolution feel like this movement has created a lot of new leaders , a lot of young leaders -- that now it 's their turn , '' Julia Ioffe , senior editor at The New Republic , told `` CNN Newsroom . ''
The unrest began November , when Yanukovych turned his back on trade talks with the European Union . Instead , Russia offered to lend money to Ukraine in a deal worth billions of dollars and lower the gas prices it charges .
The Ukranian economy is struggling , plagued by corruption , inefficiency and heavy government debt .
But the pact with Russia prompted protesters into the streets of Kiev .
They stayed in the center of the city for months in a standoff with security forces that occasionally flared into the violence .
The situation worsened dramatically last week as clashes between the two sides intensified and gunfire broke out , leaving 88 people dead .
Amid the chaos on the streets , foreign diplomats stepped up efforts to find an agreement between Yanukovych and the opposition to end the fighting .
On Friday , the intense negotiations resulted in a breakthrough deal to reduce the president 's powers and roll back parts of the Constitution , which gave them to him .
Yanukovich then left the capital and security forces withdrew from key protest areas -- setting in motion the changes that unfolded over the weekend . | FapXjMSEA3dqBSaO | 0 | World | -0.4 | Ukraine | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
healthcare | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/17/politics/health-care-scenarios/index.html | Five scenarios: Health care options before the justices | 2012-06-17 | Healthcare | Story highlights The election-year rulings will guide how Americans receive medical care
They will also set boundaries for how government regulation can affect a range of social areas
The government 's key lawyer fielded more than 100 questions from the bench
The Supreme Court is set to release its much-anticipated rulings on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act , the comprehensive health care law enacted two years ago .
The election-year rulings will not only guide how every American receives medical care but will also establish precedent-setting boundaries for how government regulation can affect a range of social areas . Your health and your finances could be on the line .
The outcome 's possibilities are myriad : a narrow or sweeping decision ? A road map to congressional authority in coming decades ? Which bloc of justices , which legal argument will win the day ?
Here are five scenarios -- strategic markers of a sort -- to watch as the high court weighs in on health care .
The first question the high court tackled in its seven-hour marathon argument in March was something few observers had expected : It boiled down to whether the law 's individual mandate is a `` tax '' that could prevent the court from considering the broader constitutional questions .
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A little-known federal law -- the Anti-Injunction Act , dating back to 1867 -- bars claimants from asking for a refund on a tax until it has been paid .
This `` gateway '' issue could render moot all the other pending health care questions if the justices think the minimum coverage requirement amounts to a tax .
Most justices seemed reluctant to take that route at the public argument session ; they appeared eager to move on and address the broader , more vital constitutional questions . But citing the Anti-Injunction Act might give cautious justices a way out of deciding the explosive issue in an election year .
The majority might conclude that the political branches can best resolve the conflicts , at least for now , or that the matter can be handled after the November elections .
Some court watchers have called this the health care `` sleeper issue '' that could delay a decision on the constitutionality of the individual mandate for at least four years .
Baseball statisticians have nothing on the legal bar . After the arguments , wonky lawyers began counting the number of questions -- some hostile , some polite -- that the nine justices had tossed at opposing counsel . The somewhat squishy idea : the more questions a lawyer gets , the tougher it will be to prevail .
During the two hours of debate over the most closely watched aspect -- the individual mandate -- Solicitor General Donald Verrilli fielded more than 100 questions from the bench . His opponents -- private attorneys Paul Clement and Michael Carvin -- together faced only about 87 . Verrilli , as the federal government 's key lawyer before the high court , was defending the law from a coalition of 26 states seeking its nullification .
Verrilli , in the view of many court-watchers , had a bad day , struggling at times to find his voice and fend off a furious rhetorical assault by some skeptical members of the bench .
Chief Justice John Roberts was especially tough -- he interrupted Verrilli 23 times , but only on seven occasions on the other side .
As a former government and private advocate before joining the bench , the 57-year-old chief personally argued 39 cases at the high court and was widely regarded as among the best at making his case .
In 2004 , while a federal appeals court judge , Roberts wrote a law review article explaining why query counts matter .
`` The secret to successful advocacy is simply to get the [ Supreme ] Court to ask your opponent more questions , '' he wrote .
But a perceived `` weak '' argument or a voluminous volley of questions does not necessarily spell doom for the Obama administration . Getting nine intellectual hotshots with big egos to line up all the time along `` expected '' conservative-liberal lines is largely a myth .
Only eight of the 55 full opinions released by the court this term have been decided by a one-vote margin . Of course , the most contentious cases are normally the last to be finished , and the number of 5-4 rulings is likely to rise with the 15 or so petitions remaining on the docket . But closely `` divided '' decisions are not the norm overall .
Some legal and political scholars hold out hope the court will offer a united 9-0 voice behind the law 's mandate , whatever the outcome , hoping such a decision would instill political and public confidence . They point to the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education case , in which the justices -- despite internal disagreements -- came together to unanimously strike down racial segregation in public facilities .
But this is a different court and health care in many ways is unique in the court 's jurisprudence -- the scale , scope , and political underpinnings all make it especially complex and contentious .
A recent `` Time '' magazine cover featured an intense , distinguished-looking older man , wearing glasses and the slightest of smiles . Most Americans would not recognize him if he walked down the grocery store aisle .
But , as with most hot-button Supreme Court cases , Justice Anthony Kennedy -- the moderate-conservative often referred to as the `` swing '' justice -- could decide whether the individual mandate stands .
So many are watching the native of Sacramento , California , who turns 76 next month , as well as another fellow conservative .
`` With the four more liberal justices almost certain to vote to uphold the individual mandate , the administration is really hoping for the votes of either the chief justice , who signaled that he had questions for both sides , or the traditional swing vote in the court , Anthony Kennedy , who really was tough on the government lawyer but toward the end suggested that maybe insurance was special enough that he could vote to uphold the mandate , '' said Thomas Goldstein , SCOTUSblog.com publisher .
Even the perception that his vote might be in play builds Kennedy 's power from within , and makes him one to watch .
Will the Supreme Court think big when issuing its decision -- sweeping pronouncements on the scope of federal vs. state power when it comes to the Commerce Clause ? Or will a narrow approach be the way the justices reach consensus , some sort of workable solution that would give Congress clear guidance going forward -- the discretion to perhaps reshape health care in a way that meets constitutional scrutiny .
The key may be how the court 's shaky conservative majority defines a long-standing bedrock principle : judicial deference .
Some states have long complained that their autonomy is being eroded by creeping federal intervention on spending matters .
Article 1 of the Constitution gives Congress the power to `` lay and collect ... taxes to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States '' and to `` regulate commerce ... among the several states . ''
Such authority has long been broadly interpreted , including when imposing conditions on recipients , be they individuals or states .
Every student of government knows the Supreme Court has the power to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional . The precedent-setting 1803 Marbury v. Madison decision remains a cornerstone of federal court authority , codifying the idea of separation of powers as an enduring hallmark of the American system of government .
That power has been used wisely -- judiciously , if you will -- over the years . The courts by their nature are reluctant to frustrate the will of the political branches , which are accountable directly to the people .
It is a message President Obama himself offered just days after oral arguments in the health care cases were completed .
`` The point I was making is that the Supreme Court is the final say on our Constitution and our laws , and all of us have to respect it , but it 's precisely because of that extraordinary power that the court has traditionally exercised significant restraint and deference to our duly elected legislature , our Congress , '' said the former law school professor . `` And so the burden is on those who would overturn a law like this . ''
Some conservatives interpreted those and remarks the day before as political interference in an independent branch of government .
`` The president crossed a dangerous line this week , and anyone who cares about liberty needs to call him out on it , '' Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , R-Kentucky , said . `` The independence of the court must be defended . Regardless of how the justices decide this case , they 're answerable , above all , to the Constitution they swore to uphold . The fact that this president does not appear to feel similarly constrained to respect their independence does n't change that one bit . So respectfully , I would suggest the president back off . ''
The justices themselves are not prepared to back off when they issue their decision . Nor are they likely as individuals to back into the political firestorm sure to follow . Their ruling will speak for itself -- however big , small , or confusing it may be . After that , the justices will again retreat largely from public view , to begin a three-month recess . | aeb367880986fd17 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | The Guardian | https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jun/14/sarah-sanders-trump-press-secretary-good-riddance | Good riddance, Sarah Sanders: Washington's worst communicator | 2019-06-14 | White House, Sarah Sanders, Politics | For 94 days , the outgoing White House press secretary gave no press briefing in the press room just a few steps from the press office that she nominally ran .
For more than three years , Sanders made no meaningful news on behalf of a boss who considers it his presidential priority to make as much meaningless news as possible .
'It 's astonishing ' : The demise of the daily White House press briefing Read more
With all the resources of the federal government ’ s communications machine at her fingertips , Sanders was the least resourceful communicator in Washington : a hapless and hopeless observer to every crisis , real or manufactured by the man sitting in the Oval Office , just down the hallway from her own .
In other words , she was the perfect spokeswoman for a perfectly lazy president .
Play Video 2:43 Sarah Sanders and her fiery relationship with the media – video
Sanders may have demonstrated few obvious qualities as a press secretary : she earned no trust from the media , possessed no information to share with the world and enjoyed no grasp of policy or even politics .
She had no special insights into Donald Trump ’ s thinking and no special relationship with him either . Other than this : her capacity to dodge responsibility and the truth were a polished mirror of his character .
Normal spokespeople would have been mortified by the revelations of Robert Mueller that , by Sanders ’ own admission , she just made stuff up when she briefed the press .
Speaking the day after the president fired then FBI director James Comey , Sanders told the media that “ countless members of the FBI ” – representing what she called “ the rank-and-file of the FBI ” – had lost confidence in Comey . She claimed that this was the reason why Comey was fired , even though Trump himself would later tell NBC News that his decision was because of “ this Russia thing ” .
Sanders later admitted to Mueller that she fabricated the entire smear . “ She also recalled that her statement in a separate press interview that rank-and-file FBI agents had lost confidence in Comey was a comment she made ‘ in the heat of the moment ’ that was not founded on anything , ” Mueller stated in his report .
But who really needs credibility , a sense of shame or any degree of self-respect when you ’ re working for Trump ?
Speaking to Fox News after the Mueller report destroyed what was left of her reputation , Sanders worked her way through a few more fabrications . “ Look , I acknowledged that I had a slip of the tongue when I used the word ‘ countless ’ , but it ’ s not untrue , ” she said .
That is some World Cup-quality lying . The single sentence includes at least three lies and there are only 21 words in it : an average of one lie for every seven words .
There was no acknowledgement of a slip of the tongue ( lie No 1 ) . It was no slip of the tongue ( lie No 2 ) . And she stands by the lie with the weasel words of a double negative about its non-untruthfulness ( lie No 3 and quite possibly No 4 ) .
You don ’ t get to lie as well as that by chance or amateur skill . It takes dedication and effort on the training ground to make it look so easy and natural .
Which all makes the faux controversy about Michelle Wolf ’ s roasting of Sanders so very precious . Back in 2018 , several otherwise sensible journalists rose nobly to defend Sanders after Wolf took apart the press secretary at the White House correspondents ’ dinner .
“ I actually really like Sarah , ” Wolf said . “ I think she ’ s very resourceful . Like , she burns facts and then she uses that ash to create a perfect smoky eye . Like , maybe she ’ s born with it . Maybe it ’ s lies . It ’ s probably lies . ”
Noble-minded reporters thought this was mightily rude of a professional comedian , mentioning Sanders ’ makeup in the same breath as her mendacity .
But that was before Mueller revealed that Sanders lied to all of them shamelessly about the biggest news about Comey .
That was before she told them all the Trump administration was doing “ everything in our capacity ” to care for children arriving at the border , as news broke of several of them dying in US custody .
It was also before she brashly claimed the Trump administration had made a historic recovery effort in Puerto Rico , after experts said as many as 5,000 Americans died there in the botched recovery after Hurricane Maria .
Other long-serving press secretaries have traditionally gone on to lucrative jobs in the private sector as spokespeople for large corporations and consultants advising powerful CEOs . But who in their right mind would want to give a communications job to such a poor communicator with so little credibility ?
Trump himself tweeted that she was returning to her home state of Arkansas , suggesting she should run for governor , just like her father .
This would be abnormal for a former press secretary , but there was nothing normal about Sanders . If you can ’ t make a living lying to the media in public relations , you may as well lie to them as a candidate for public office .
There ’ s a song that asks : “ How can I miss you when you won ’ t go away ? ” But you were never really here , so that ’ s OK . | 1f76e29ab6eab547 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | The Guardian | https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jul/17/republican-health-bill-senators-oppose-vote | Senate will vote to repeal Obamacare without replacement, after new healthcare bill stumbles | 2017-07-18 | US Senate, Politics | Republican Mitch McConnell calls for vote on clean repeal, after senators Mike Lee and Jerry Moran come out against latest effort to replace Obamacare Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has announced that the Senate will vote on a clean repeal of Obamacare without any replacement, after two Republican senators broke ranks to torpedo the current Senate healthcare bill. Senators Mike Lee of Utah and Jerry Moran of Kansas came out on Monday night in opposition to McConnell’s Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA), the Senate version of the controversial healthcare reform bill that passed the House in May. Republicans hold a bare 52-48 majority in the upper chamber and two members of the GOP caucus, the moderate Susan Collins of Maine and the libertarian Rand Paul of Kentucky, already opposed the bill, along with all 48 Democrats. The announcement from Moran and Lee made it impossible for Republicans to muster the 50 votes needed to bring the BCRA to the floor. Instead, McConnell announced late on Monday night that the Senate would vote on a bill to simply repeal Obamacare without any replacement in the coming days. The Kentucky Republican said in a statement: “Regretfully, it is now apparent that the effort to repeal and immediately replace the failure of Obamacare will not be successful.” He added that “in the coming days” the Senate would vote on repealing the Affordable Care Act with a two-year-delay. The Senate passed a similar bill in 2015, which was promptly vetoed by Barack Obama. McConnell’s plan echoes a statement made by Donald Trump in a tweet on Monday night, in which the president urged a repeal of Obamacare with any replacement to come in the future. “Republicans should just REPEAL failing ObamaCare now & work on a new Healthcare Plan that will start from a clean slate. Dems will join in!” Trump wrote. In January, an analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that repealing Obamacare without a replacement would result in 32 million people losing insurance by 2026, including 19 million who would lose Medicaid coverage. It would also cause premiums to rise by as much as 50% in the year following the elimination of key planks of the healthcare law, including the repeal of Medicaid expansion and cost-sharing subsidies. Premiums would nearly double over a decade. The CBO said this would happen in large part because the individual mandate, which requires all Americans to have health insurance, would be repealed, while some insurers are likely to pull out of the market. As a result of the changes, many of those remaining enrolled would likely be older and sicker, which the CBO expected would cause insurers to raise rates dramatically. Republicans should just REPEAL failing ObamaCare now & work on a new Healthcare Plan that will start from a clean slate. Dems will join in! The announcement from Lee and Moran came as Trump was having dinner at the White House with a number of senators who support the bill. Trump talked to several conservatives on the phone over the weekend, including Lee, in an attempt to win their support. In a tweet, Lee noted that he could not support “this version” of the bill. Moran used the same language on Twitter. Both voted for a clean repeal of the Affordable Care Act in 2015, albeit with the expectation that it would be vetoed by Obama and not become law. In an op-ed for the Resurgent, a conservative online publication, Lee cited the fact that the current bill did not incorporate an amendment that he introduced with Ted Cruz to allow insurance companies to offer bare-bones insurance plans. In Lee’s argument, the mandate that insurance companies cover pre-existing conditions resulted in “a hidden tax” which meant that “middle-class families are being forced to pay billions in higher health insurance premiums to help those with pre-existing conditions”. In a statement, Moran took a slightly different tack. He said: “There are serious problems with Obamacare, and my goal remains what it has been for a long time: to repeal and replace it. This closed-door process has yielded the BCRA, which fails to repeal the Affordable Care Act or address healthcare’s rising costs.” The Kansas Republican also warned that the current legislation “leave[s] the federal government in control of everyday healthcare decisions”, which he said made it “more likely that our healthcare system will devolve into a single-payer system, which would require a massive federal spending increase”. The announcement came shortly after a Senate vote on the healthcare bill was delayed due to the hospitalization of John McCain. The Arizona senator had a blood clot removed from above his left eye on Friday night and was unable to fly to Washington as a result. On Saturday, McConnell said the Senate would “defer consideration” of the bill while McCain recovered. A number of other moderate Republican senators have yet to take positions on the bill, most notably Dean Heller of Nevada. Although a repeal of Obamacare without providing for a immediate replacement has long been popular with conservatives, many other Republicans have been skeptical of this approach because of the potential political cost. In contrast, McCain said in a statement that Republicans should start the process of passing a healthcare bill over. “Congress must now return to regular order [and] hold hearings,” said the Arizona Republican. In a statement, the Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, said: “This second failure of Trumpcare is proof positive that the core of this bill is unworkable.” He added: “Rather than repeating the same failed, partisan process yet again, Republicans should start from scratch and work with Democrats on a bill that lowers premiums, provides long-term stability to the markets and improves our healthcare system.” On Tuesday morning, Trump returned to the subject, writing: “We were let down by all of the Democrats and a few Republicans. Most Republicans were loyal, terrific & worked really hard. We will return! “As I have always said, let ObamaCare fail and then come together and do a great healthcare plan. Stay tuned!” Lauren Gambino contributed reporting | ad31472529d482c7 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
coronavirus | ProPublica | https://www.propublica.org/article/doctors-are-hoarding-unproven-coronavirus-medicine-by-writing-prescriptions-for-themselves-and-their-families | Doctors Are Hoarding Unproven Coronavirus Medicine by Writing Prescriptions for Themselves and Their Families | 2020-03-24 | coronavirus | ███ is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power . Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they ’ re published .
A nationwide shortage of two drugs touted as possible treatments for the coronavirus is being driven in part by doctors inappropriately prescribing the medicines for family , friends and themselves , according to pharmacists and state regulators .
“ It ’ s disgraceful , is what it is , ” said Garth Reynolds , executive director of the Illinois Pharmacists Association , which started getting calls and emails Saturday from members saying they were receiving questionable prescriptions . “ And completely selfish . ”
Demand for chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine surged over the past several days as President Donald Trump promoted them as possible treatments for the coronavirus and online forums buzzed with excitement over a small study suggesting the combination of hydroxychloroquine and a commonly used antibiotic could be effective in treating COVID-19 .
Reynolds said the Illinois Pharmacists Association has started reaching out to pharmacists and medical groups throughout the state to urge doctors , nurses and physician assistants not to write prescriptions for themselves and those close to them .
“ We even had a couple of examples of prescribers trying to say that the individual they were calling in for had rheumatoid arthritis , ” he said , explaining that pharmacists suspected that wasn ’ t true . “ I mean , that ’ s fraud . ”
In one case , Reynolds said , the prescriber initially tried to get the pills without an explanation and only offered up that the individual had rheumatoid arthritis after the pharmacist questioned the prescription .
In a bulletin to pharmacists on Sunday , the state association wrote that it was “ disturbed by the current actions of prescribers ” and instructed members on how to file a complaint against physicians and nurses who were doing it .
“ People are losing their minds about this product , ” said Brian Brito , president of SMP Pharmacy Solutions in Miami . “ We ’ re selling so much of this stuff and people are just stockpiling it prophylactically if anybody in their family gets sick — they ’ re just holding on to it . ”
Get Our Top Investigations Subscribe to the Big Story newsletter .
The two drugs are only available through a prescription and can not be purchased over the counter . Hydroxychloroquine , sold under the brand name Plaquenil , is approved to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis while chloroquine is an anti-malarial treatment .
There is little evidence that the drugs work to treat coronavirus , although clinical trials are underway to find out . But as coronavirus cases multiply and protective gear for medical workers vanishes from emergency rooms , many patients and physicians see the drugs as the only hope to reverse the course of serious disease .
Brito said his pharmacy had about 800 tablets on Monday and were nearly sold out in about an hour . One doctor called and asked for 200 tablets , but the company refused . “ He was a little upset about it but he understood and he went quickly from 200 to 42 tablets , which is essentially treating two people , ” Brito said . “ So yeah , they ’ re stockpiling it . ”
A pharmacist in Houston , who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation and violating patient privacy , said he was recently asked by a surgeon for an unusually large quantity with unlimited refills . “ He said it was because his wife had lupus , ” the pharmacist said , “ but when I asked him for her name and diagnosis , he told me just to put it in his . ”
Lupus patients are reporting difficulty in refilling their prescriptions for the drug . On Monday , the Lupus Foundation of America issued a joint statement asking the White House Coronavirus Task Force to “ take action to ensure current supplies are allocated for patients taking them for indicated uses. ” Several states in the past few days have already moved to limit prescriptions of the drugs , neither of which is approved to treat the coronavirus . Trump , in press conferences and tweets over the past week , has promoted the use of the drugs as potentially blunting the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak .
Read More Lupus Patients Can ’ t Get Crucial Medication After President Trump Pushes Unproven Coronavirus Treatment Trump ’ s unproven claim that hydroxychloroquine could be used to treat COVID-19 has led to hoarding , putting Lupus patients and others at even greater risk . As of Saturday afternoon , Anna Valdez had 27 pills left . That number is now down to 25 .
“ It ’ s unfortunate that a news conference , I think prematurely , made it sound like this was the answer , and that ’ s led to this panic , ” Michelle Petri , director of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine ’ s Lupus Center , said Friday . “ I have spent the last two days trying to help lupus patients who actually need their refills. ” She said some patients have refills on back order while others are being provided smaller amounts than usual .
The West Virginia Board of Pharmacy , in an alert Saturday , ordered pharmacists to limit new prescriptions to no more than 30 tablets and only to cases where the drugs were being used for approved indications .
“ Currently , both nationally and in West Virginia , some prescribers have begun writing prescriptions for these drugs for family , friends , and coworkers in anticipation of Covid-19 related illness , ” the board wrote .
Texas and Ohio have also restricted prescribing of the drugs . Louisiana on Sunday also issued an emergency rule limiting when the drugs can be prescribed , citing “ inappropriate use ” and “ hoarding. ” On Monday , the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy said it was rescinding that order because manufacturers had boosted distribution of the drugs .
Experts are warning that any use of the drugs outside of a hospital setting can be dangerous , and admonished doctors to stop prescribing the medicines inappropriately .
Daniel Brooks , the medical director of the Banner Poison and Drug Information Center in Phoenix , said it was “ immoral ” for physicians to hoard the medications .
“ One should not be selfish and scared , especially medical providers , ” he said . “ I find it incredibly embarrassing and unfortunate that physicians appear to be prescribing these medications inappropriately . ”
This weekend Brooks cared for a man in his 60s who died after ingesting a version of chloroquine commonly used to clean fish tanks . The man , who thought he might have COVID-19 , took a small amount of the substance in a misguided effort to treat his symptoms . His wife was also hospitalized after taking the substance but survived .
Brooks said the amount the couple ingested was equivalent to a couple days ’ worth of prescription chloroquine .
Ken Thai , the owner of a chain of Los Angeles-area pharmacies , said his stores are witnessing a rash of inappropriate prescribing .
“ A lot of physicians , unfortunately , are writing high amounts for more than the required number of tablets and calling in five , six , seven and eight prescriptions at a time , ” he said . “ I don ’ t want to insinuate what is going on , but it is very unusual . ”
He said his pharmacists are declining to fill suspicious orders and telling prescribers they don ’ t have enough of the medication on hand to complete those requests . Among the prescriptions flagged are those for people who have not previously taken the drug as well as orders from doctors who do not typically treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis patients .
“ If a doctor is writing a prescription for himself or aunts and uncles , that is usually a red flag for us , ” he said . “ Whatever we have in stock , we have to preserve for the patients we currently service . ”
On Twitter , pharmacy workers traded stories about dentists and opthamologists requesting hydroxychloroquine under dubious pretenses . “ A dentist just tried to call in scripts for hydroxychloroquine + azithromycin for himself , his wife , & another couple ( friends ) , ” tweeted a pharmacist in Eugene , Oregon . “ I have patients with lupus that have been on HCQ [ Hydroxychloroquine ] for YEARS and now can ’ t get it because it ’ s on backorder . ”
Steve Moore , president of the Pharmacists Society of the State of New York , said medical providers hoarding the drugs is occuring in the state , which has the highest number of coronavirus cases in the country .
“ That ’ s a double whammy , ” he said . “ We ’ re potentially taking that medication away from patients with autoimmune conditions and patients with the actual virus that may need treatment . ”
Tell Us More About Coronavirus Are you a public health worker , medical provider , elected official , patient or other COVID-19 expert ? Help make sure our journalism is responsible and focused on the right issues . This form requires JavaScript to complete . Powered by Screendoor . | 7PP9CNwOKbLbkSA4 | 1 | Public Health | -0.4 | Medicine | -0.4 | Coronavirus | -0.2 | null | null | null | null |
immigration | HuffPost | https://www.huffpost.com/entry/public-charge-department-of-homeland-security-final-rule_n_5d449198e4b0ca604e31fb51 | The Trump Administration Just Made It Harder To Apply For Green Cards And Visas | 2019-08-12 | Immigration, Green Cards, Visas | Politics Fellow, HuffPost The Department of Homeland Security officially published a change to what’s known as the “public charge” rule on Monday that would make it much harder to apply for a green card or earn a visa. The new policy, which is set to go into effect in mid-October, expands the definition of what would make an applicant likely to become a “public charge,” someone who the government has deemed would be dependent on it, thus rendering them ineligible for legal permanent residency status. In October 2018, the DHS released its proposal for expanding the criteria for what constitutes a “public charge” to include those receiving non-cash government services, like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), when evaluating applications for visas and legal permanent residency. Currently, people are generally only considered public charges if they use cash assistance or long-term institutional care the government is funding. The rule change also creates other factors to be weighed in consideration of the “totality of circumstances” aspect of the rule when evaluating green cards and visa applications including English proficiency, income level and health conditions. (Refugees and asylum-seekers, among others, are exempted from the rule.) After the release of the DHS proposal, the rule went through a 60-day public comment period, during which the department received over 260,000 comments about the proposal. It reached the desk of the Office of Management and Budget on July 12. Currently, the limited public charge definition means the regulation is not often used to justify the rejection of an application. The administration is purporting to solve the “the alleged but illusory problem that immigrants are eating up taxpayer funds,” said Doug Rand, an Obama administration veteran who co-founded Boundless Immigration, a technology company that helps immigrants get green cards and citizenship. Rand added the change “makes no sense,” as undocumented immigrants are not allowed to access federal public benefits. He also said that the proposal was the administration’s effort at making “profound” changes to the immigration system without congressional approval. A study released in July found that 8.3 million children, most of whom are citizens, enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program or SNAP are at potential risk of being disenrolled, with more than 5 million of those children having specific medical needs. The researchers predict that between nearly 1 and 2 million children with specific medical needs will ultimately be disenrolled as a result of the rule change. The rule’s public benefits component will not be applied retroactively, meaning those seeking green cards and visas who were enrolled in these public benefits programs before the rule was enacted will not be penalized for it. The English proficiency criteria “privileges people from certain countries where English is already spoken,” according to Jackie Vimo, a policy analyst at the National Immigration Law Center. The change to the public charge is one of multiple instances of the Trump administration attempting to change immigration policy without having to go through Congress. There’s also the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s proposal released on May 10 to halt eligibility for families with members holding different immigration statuses, or “mixed-status” families, in public and Section 8 housing, as well as other changes to the public charge rule and its enforcement. Together, these changes “turn our immigration system into green cards for the highest bidder,” Vimo said. While only those seeking green cards and visas are impacted by the rule, experts warn of a “chilling effect” that will prompt eligible immigrants to unenroll in government services. The chilling effect has already begun due to the fear generated by the proposal, ever since the idea was first reported on in February 2018. A study from May found that one in seven adults in immigrant families have avoided public benefits programs, including some who would not be affected by the rule. Rand believes that the “chilling effect is part of the intent.” “A very large number of people are likely to disenroll from public benefits from which they are perfectly entitled under U.S. law,” he said. In a letter sent July 24 obtained by HuffPost, 18 state attorneys general, spearheaded by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson (D), claimed the Department of Homeland Security “entirely failed” in their estimation of the cost of their proposed public charge rule change. The lawmakers requested a meeting with the agency to further discuss the officials’ “significant concerns about the severe impact” of the proposed rule on their residents. They argue the rules would cause “extensive injury” to the economies of their states and to their states’ residents — it would cause loss of health insurance, medical access, and food and cash benefits. The next four years will change America forever. But HuffPost won't back down when it comes to providing free and impartial journalism. For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience to qualifying contributors who support our fearless newsroom. We hope you'll join us. You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We won't back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can't do it without you. For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience. to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you'll join us. You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We won't back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can't do it without you. For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience. to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you'll join us. Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages. “If implemented as proposed, the rules will result in a reduction of total economic output, a drop in workers’ wages, and elimination of jobs in our states,” the attorneys general wrote. The OMB did not accept their request for a meeting. Ferguson told HuffPost that they are “exploring our legal options” and “actively preparing for a potential lawsuit” and that he is “confident you’ll see litigation from the states on the matter.” The city of Baltimore and nonprofit public policy organization Democracy Forward sued President Donald Trump and the Department of State in November 2018 for their attempt to alter the public charge rules. They argued the Trump administration moved forward with its plans despite understanding that the rule change would deter lawfully present immigrants and naturalized citizens from obtaining the services they need and are eligible for. You have the right to opt-out of the sale or sharing of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences. | dff780aa81398b0a | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
coronavirus | ZeroHedge | https://www.zerohedge.com/political/second-major-california-sheriff-openly-rebels-against-newsom-lockdown | Second Major California Sheriff Openly Rebels Against Newsom Lockdown | 2020-12-06 | Coronavirus, California, Public Health, Gavin Newsom | The Broadening Bull After the explosions in DAX, XLF, China Tech and even ARKK - what is the next potential laggard catch-up play? Let's examine various aspects of this broadening rally and why the Energy sector could be next as a cheap, underowned underperformer. Europe is back European stocks are having their best start to a year since 2000. For once even outperforming S&P500. There are also early signs of spring coming to the European economy - and peace in Ukraine would add to that. Let's kick the tires on the European rally. Are you in the wrong trades and feeling FOMO? Is Gold becoming the new Bitcoin and how much higher will it trade? Equities are also off to a great start. Is this really becoming the parabolic Roaring 20's? Become a Premium sub for only $1 per day to be in the know on the must-have trades. Click here to read more. Assistance and Requests: Contact Us Tips: tips@zerohedge.com General: info@zerohedge.com Legal: legal@zerohedge.com Advertising: Contact Us Abuse/Complaints: abuse@zerohedge.com Make sure to read our "How To [Read/Tip Off] Zero Hedge Without Attracting The Interest Of [Human Resources/The Treasury/Black Helicopters]" Guide It would be very wise of you to study our privacy policy and our (non)policy on conflicts / full disclosure.Here's our Cookie Policy. How to report offensive comments Notice on Racial Discrimination. | 0f10df01fab1811c | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
cybersecurity | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/09/politics/russian-hacking-cyberattacks-us-government/index.html | How Russian hacking has tied US government in knots | 2016-09-09 | Cybersecurity, Technology | Washington ( CNN ) Whatever Vladimir Putin 's goal is in a year-long campaign of apparent cyberattacks against the US political system , the Russian leader has accomplished this much : tying the US government in knots over what to do about it .
There 's debate in the Obama administration about how to respond to the hacks targeting Democratic Party organizations and increasing evidence that Russian hackers also were behind attacks on election registration websites .
FBI and Justice Department officials believe there 's strong evidence to warrant publicly naming Russia as responsible for the political organization attacks , law enforcement and intelligence officials briefed on the investigation say .
But there is opposition from US intelligence agencies and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence , who have cautioned about moving to `` name and shame '' Russia , in part because of concerns about Russian retaliation and the possible exposure of US intelligence operations , the routine spy work that the US carries out against Russia and other countries .
White House officials , meanwhile , are cautious for other reasons , administration officials say : the political overtones of making such an attribution against Russia weeks before the US presidential election . Some White House officials also believe the FBI and intelligence agencies have more work to do to show definitive links between Russian intelligence hackers , whom US investigators believe stole documents from the Democratic National Committee , and WikiLeaks , the organization that published the material the weekend before the Democratic Party 's convention .
An administration official said there 's no effort to slow down attribution of the hacks .
`` As senior law enforcement officials have said , there is an active , ongoing investigation into recent cyberintrusions against the DNC and related entities , '' the official said . `` The law enforcement and intelligence communities will reach their own conclusions in due course . Policy decisions regarding public attribution for these intrusions are contingent on the results of that investigation , which we are careful not to get ahead of . ''
Intelligence and law enforcement officials do n't believe the Russian goal is necessarily to get a particular candidate elected . Instead , the goal appears to be to sow dissension and raise doubts about the US political system , according to US intelligence and law enforcement officials . It 's similar to Russian activity in recent years in Europe , the officials said .
Putin `` is taking advantage of the political environment in the US right now , '' one US official said .
This week , congressional leaders and staff returned from vacation and received briefings on the sprawling US hacking investigation . They were told by US intelligence and law enforcement officials that there is now near-certainty that Russian intelligence is behind cyberhacking attacks against targets ranging from the DNC and other political organizations tied to Democrats to Washington think-tanks and even reporters at The New York Times , according to US officials familiar with the briefings .
JUST WATCHED Hacking expert : 'Not surprised ' hackers hit NY Times Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Hacking expert : 'Not surprised ' hackers hit NY Times 04:33
There 's also increasing confidence that recent attacks against election registration websites in Illinois and Arizona link back to Russian government hackers , though those ties are still being examined , the officials said .
The briefing was persuasive for some Republican lawmakers and staff who have been skeptical of claims by Democrats and Hillary Clinton 's campaign of Russian involvement , according to congressional aides . That could pose new discomfort for members of Congress who have endorsed Donald Trump and who focus on national security .
Trump and his campaign have cast doubt about Russian involvement .
`` I think it 's probably unlikely . Maybe the Democrats are putting that out -- who knows , '' Trump said in an interview with Larry King that aired on Russia Today . `` If they are doing something , I hope that somebody 's going to be able to find out so they can end it . Because that would not be appropriate at all . ''
The prospect of Russian hacking activity affecting confidence in the US election is foremost in the minds of US government officials .
JUST WATCHED Hackers breach election databases in Illinois , Arizona Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Hackers breach election databases in Illinois , Arizona 01:23
US officials do n't view the hacks of election-registration websites to be a threat to the vote count . Voting machines and tabulations systems are n't connected to the Internet , which would be the way hackers could tamper with results .
`` It would be very difficult to -- through any sort of cyberintrusion -- to alter the ballot count , simply because it is so decentralized and so vast , '' Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said Thursday . `` You 've got state governments , county governments , local governments involved in the election process . It would be very difficult to alter the count . ''
There are concerns , however , about hackers tampering with registration data and causing voters to show up at their polling places on election day to find they are n't on the voting rolls . While those types of problems are common and happen during every election , the heightened concern about Russian hacks could amplify such issues this year . And that , officials fear , could affect public confidence in the election outcome .
`` There are troubling signs that hostile foreign cyberactors are working to undermine our political process , '' Rep. Michael McCaul , chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee , said in a statement . `` This is a direct provocation that goes to the heart of American democracy . Every American should be able to walk away from the ballot box and know that their voice has been heard . We can not allow such action to go unanswered , which is why President Obama should send a clear signal to intruders : attempts to influence US elections or destabilize the integrity of our electoral process will be met with severe consequences . '' | 355e69df223296f5 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/01/17/cohen-poll-rigging/2601299002/ | Michael Cohen offered Liberty University CIO $50,000 to rig two online polls for Trump, report says | 2019-01-17 | elections | CLOSE Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen is back in the headlines for a meeting he had back in 2015 in Trump Tower . Veuer 's Nick Cardona has the details . Buzz60
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump 's former fixer and personal attorney Michael Cohen paid a technology expert to rig online polls in Trump 's favor , according to The Wall Street Journal .
John Gauger , the owner of Red Finch Solutions and chief information officer at Liberty University , said Cohen offered him $ 50,000 to manipulate two news sites ' polls , the Journal reported Thursday , citing a government document and a person familiar with the matter .
Gauger said Cohen handed him a Walmart bag loaded with about $ 12,000 in cash during a 2015 meeting at Cohen 's Trump Organization office . Cohen also threw in a boxing glove he said was once worn by a Brazilian mixed-martial arts fighter.But he never paid Gauger the remainder of the promised $ 50,000 , the Journal said .
Cohen did not deny the report in a tweet Thursday morning , saying , `` What I did was at the direction of and for the sole benefit of '' Trump .
`` I truly regret my blind loyalty to a man who does n't deserve it , '' wrote the man who once said he would `` take a bullet '' for the president .
As for the @ WSJ article on poll rigging , what I did was at the direction of and for the sole benefit of @ realDonaldTrump @ POTUS . I truly regret my blind loyalty to a man who doesn ’ t deserve it . — Michael Cohen ( @ MichaelCohen212 ) January 17 , 2019
But Cohen did deny giving Gauger cash . `` All monies paid to Mr. Gauger were by check , '' he said , according to the Journal .
Gauger did not appear to have much success at moving the needle in the polls he was paid to manipulate . In January 2014 , Cohen asked Gauger to sway a CNBC online poll on the top American business leaders with a program that could vote for Trump repeatedly , the Journal report said . But Trump did not break into the top 100 .
In February 2015 , Cohen asked Gauger to boost Trump in a Drudge Report poll on potential 2016 Republican presidential candidates , according to Gauger . Trump ended up coming in fifth with 5 percent of the vote .
Cohen also asked Gauger to create a Twitter account with the handle @ WomenForCohen that would be run by a female friend of Gauger 's to portray Cohen as a `` sex symbol '' and hype his statements in favor of Trump 's presidential campaign , the Journal reported .
`` Women who love and support Michael Cohen . Strong , pit bull , sex symbol , no nonsense , business oriented , and ready to make a difference ! '' reads the account profile . The profile was created in May 2016 and remains active with just 527 followers as of Thursday morning .
`` We ca n't wait ! ! ! You will do a fantastic job ! You are amazing leader & speaker # ThanksDonald # AmericaFirst , '' reads a Dec. 28 , 2016 tweet , the last one posted to the account . That tweet was in response to one from Cohen 's announcing he would be an honoree at one of the pre-inaugural balls after Trump 's election victory .
From Trump fixer to federal inmate : Timeline of Michael Cohen 's role in Russia probe
We ca n't wait ! ! ! You will do a fantastic job ! You are amazing leader & speaker # ThanksDonald # AmericaFirsthttps : //t.co/0iuc1ODlzb — Women For Cohen ( @ WomenForCohen ) December 29 , 2016
Best looking men award goes to 👇🏻 We love you guys ! # ThankYouTour2016 # MakeAmericaGreatAgainhttps : //t.co/d4x8kYkwTn — Women For Cohen ( @ WomenForCohen ) December 3 , 2016
Gauger said the last time he spoke to Cohen was in April 2018 , after the lawyer 's office , home and hotel room were raided by the FBI , the Journal reported . `` It ’ s not a big deal , '' Gauger said Cohen told him about the investigation .
Last month , Cohen was sentenced to three years in federal prison after pleading guilty to crimes related to tax evasion , campaign finance violations and lying to Congress .
More : Michael Cohen , Trump 's former lawyer , is sentenced to three years in prison for 'dirty deeds '
Although Gauger said Cohen never paid him the full promised amount , Cohen did ask the Trump Organization in January 2017 to reimburse him $ 50,000 for `` tech services , '' prosecutors for the Southern District of New York said when Cohen was charged in August .
The request was made in a handwritten note , along with his bill for the $ 130,000 in hush money paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels . That payment comprised one of the campaign finance violations to which Cohen pleaded guilty . He claims payment , which constituted an illegal campaign contribution , was made at Trump 's direction .
More : President Trump denies Michael Cohen 's claims of 'dirty deeds '
The Journal reported that Trump 's attorney Rudy Giuliani said if Cohen requested a $ 50,000 reimbursement but only paid Gauger $ 12,000 to $ 13,000 , it shows Cohen is a `` thief . ''
`` If one thing has been established , it ’ s that Michael Cohen is completely untrustworthy , '' Giuliani told the Journal . Since calling Cohen `` an honest , honorable lawyer '' in May 2018 , Giuliani has sharply questioned Cohen 's credibility , calling him `` pathetic '' and a `` serial liar . ''
At his sentencing , Cohen said he committed his crimes out of `` blind loyalty '' to Trump and that he felt it was his `` duty to cover up his dirty deeds . '' Cohen is expected to be grilled about those `` dirty deeds '' when he testifies Feb. 7 before the now Democratically controlled House Oversight Committee .
More : Top Democrats warn Trump against obstruction ahead of Michael Cohen 's public testimony | 0gzanB9ofcXjg0RR | 1 | Michael Cohen | -0.2 | Presidential Elections | 0.1 | Elections | 0 | null | null | null | null |
politics | Christian Science Monitor | http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2015/0322/America-s-political-royalty | America's political royalty | 2015-03-22 | politics | In a nation of 319 million people , America ’ s 2016 presidential election could well come down to a rematch between two of its greatest modern political families : the Bushes and the Clintons .
Hillary Rodham Clinton is crushing it in polls for the Democratic nomination . The former secretary of State , senator , and first lady leads her nearest potential competitor – Vice President Joe Biden – by an average of 44 percentage points in major polls . And she hasn ’ t even taken the first formal step toward running . In terms of fundraising and organizing , though , Mrs. Clinton is all in .
Jeb Bush , the son and brother of former presidents , is at or near the top of the vast potential Republican field in most polls . The former governor of Florida has some commanding advantages : the Bush family ’ s killer Rolodex and , flowing from that , the ability to raise vast sums of money . At one recent fundraiser , tickets went for $ 100,000 a pop .
Like Clinton , Mr. Bush has lived and breathed politics at the highest level for decades . For both , politics is the family business . Both epitomize “ establishment . ”
Many Americans , when asked , recoil at the prospect of another Clinton-Bush presidential race , an echo of the 1992 contest that pitted then-Arkansas Gov . Bill Clinton against President George H.W . Bush . The United States was founded in rebellion against royal privilege and inherited status . As children , Americans are told that anyone can grow up to be president . And yet throughout US history , voters have regularly gravitated toward “ brand name ” political families .
“ There ’ s this paradox in the American body politic , ” says Barbara Perry , a presidential scholar at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville . “ We always say that we want someone who ’ s up from the log cabin , but we are drawn to the wealthy , noblesse oblige candidates as well . ”
How did we reach this moment , when two A-list political families – one with generations of wealth , the other of humble origins but now just as privileged – could end up facing off for the presidency ?
It ’ s no accident . Citizens United , the Supreme Court ruling that opened the floodgates of outside spending on campaigns , has raised the stakes exponentially for presidential fundraising . That gives a huge advantage to candidates with entree to big money .
So far , Clinton has effectively cleared her party ’ s field . Bush hasn ’ t , but even his competitive status is telling : What other politician , eight years out of statewide office , could pull that off ? It ’ s all about the Bush name . And in a presidential cycle in which the major-party candidates may have to raise $ 2 billion each – almost double what President Obama and Mitt Romney raised in 2012 – viability begins with money .
That 2016 could feature two dynastic titans is also the product of deliberate planning . With the Bushes , “ this is conscious , intergenerational preparation , ” says Cal Jillson , a political scientist at Southern Methodist University in Dallas . “ Go back to Senator Bush out of Connecticut , and then everybody after that . ”
He is referring to the family patriarch , Rebublican Sen. Prescott Bush , father of George H.W . and grandfather of George W. and Jeb .
With the Clintons , the presidential gleam is visible in the iconic photograph of a teenage Bill Clinton shaking hands with President John F. Kennedy in 1963 , when Clinton was a delegate to the American Legion Boys Nation in Washington , D.C .
“ Hillary married that , in a conscious sort of way , and has prepared herself , ” says Mr. Jillson .
The parties ’ establishments and the news media are complicit . They naturally gravitate toward brand-name politicians during the so-called invisible primary – the early period of fundraising and buzz-generation , up until the start of the actual primaries . So do many voters , which seems ironic given their distrust of government and politicians .
“ There is some kind of strange comfort in going for the same thing , even though that means you ’ re going for people from the system , ” says Julian Zelizer , a historian at Princeton University .
“ People are searching for someone who might be able to work through the gridlock in Washington , who might be able to survive in a very contentious and difficult political system . That kind of experience , whether it ’ s through family or through official positions , becomes attractive to people . ”
There are no sure things in politics . But in the race for the Oval Office , Clinton and Bush have an enormous head start .
American political dynasties are older than the republic itself . Samuel and John Adams , second cousins , were signers of the Declaration of Independence . Upon the founding of the United States , John Adams served two terms as the first vice president , then one term as the second president .
The Adamses sealed their identity as an American “ royal family ” of sorts when son John Quincy Adams was elected the sixth president in 1824 . But long before John Quincy rose to the top , the Adams “ brand ” already had a monarchist tinge . John Adams in fact vehemently opposed hereditary monarchy and titles , according to biographer David McCullough . But Adams didn ’ t do his image much good early in his vice presidency when he suggested that George Washington be called “ His Majesty the President. ” The Senate settled simply on “ President of the United States . ”
But Adams did believe in a strong executive . And when he ran to succeed Washington as president , the Republican press mocked the portly Adams as “ His Rotundity . ”
“ Were Adams to be elected , warned the Boston Chronicle , the principle of hereditary succession would be imposed on America , to make way for John Quincy , ” Mr. McCullough writes in his book “ John Adams. ” With Thomas Jefferson , Adams ’ s opponent in the election of 1796 , the Boston paper said that no one need worry since Jefferson had only daughters , McCullough notes .
Adams beat Jefferson anyway . But four years later , the populist Jefferson deprived Adams of a second term . In 1824 , John Quincy Adams ran for president , and the “ monarchist ” charge returned . “ The father whom he so much admired was to a considerable extent a liability , ” says Fred Kaplan , author of “ John Quincy Adams : American Visionary . ”
John Quincy won – barely . As in the election of 2000 , when another son of a one-term president ran for the job himself , the election of 1824 produced an inconclusive result ( which was decided by the House of Representatives ) . But unlike George W. Bush , who won a second term , John Quincy Adams lost reelection . The charge of “ elitist ” and even “ crypto-monarchist ” bit again .
The John Quincy story matters , not only because it shows how fears of hereditary succession lingered in the US decades after its founding , but also for its relevance to the Bush family . The second President Bush felt a kinship to John Quincy , and kept a portrait of the sixth president in the private dining room off the Oval Office .
“ I hung it as an inside joke with Dad , ” who had teased him about “ Q , ” writes George W. Bush in his memoir .
Still , the comparison between Q and W is easily overdrawn . In a way , John Quincy was more like the first President Bush than the second . John Quincy and George H.W . each brought a long , distinguished résumé of federal government service to the presidency . Indeed , in George W. ’ s first presidential race , his dad was a net asset , according to an August 2000 Gallup/CNN/USA Today poll archived by the Roper Center at the University of Connecticut .
Twenty-five percent of Americans said that former President George H.W . Bush made them feel more favorably toward George W. Bush , versus 15 percent who said the father made them less favorable toward the son , the poll found .
Today , polls show a decided tilt against the dynastic element of Jeb Bush ’ s expected candidacy . In January , 34 percent of registered voters said that the presidencies of Bush ’ s father and brother make them less likely to support Jeb , versus only 9 percent who said they make them more likely , according to an ABC News/Washington Post poll .
Hillary Clinton , in contrast , gets a net boost from her husband , according to the same poll . Some 24 percent of registered voters said Bill Clinton ’ s presidency made them more likely to support Hillary , versus 16 percent who said it made them less likely . She also gets a gender boost : Twenty-four percent said they were more likely to support her because she ’ d be the first female president , while 11 percent said they ’ d be less likely to support her .
The other “ dynasty presidencies ” in American history – those of the Harrisons and the Roosevelts – also present a mixed picture of how the family dynamic can affect a campaign .
William Henry Harrison , the ninth president , served for only one month , in 1841 . ( He fell ill and died after delivering the longest inaugural address in US history . ) But his legacy still hung over his grandson , Benjamin Harrison , when he ran for president in 1888 . Puck cartoonist Joseph Keppler invented “ Grandpa ’ s Hat ” to ridicule the younger Harrison .
“ Ben , a man of modest stature , was depicted each week as lost under a gigantic hat , ” writes Brookings Institution scholar Stephen Hess in a 2009 op-ed in The Washington Post on political dynasties . Harrison won the election , but the cartoons continued . “ The longer he was president , the more buried in the hat ; by 1892 he had disappeared altogether , with Uncle Sam asking , ‘ Where is he ? ’ ”
The Roosevelts present a happier family tale , and a bipartisan one . Theodore , a Republican ( president from 1901 to 1909 ) and Franklin , a Democrat ( president from 1933 to 1945 ) were only fifth cousins , though bound tightly by Franklin ’ s marriage to Teddy ’ s niece Eleanor and by their exceptional political skills .
Franklin deeply admired his older cousin . “ It was Theodore Roosevelt ’ s passionate idealism and principled leadership of 1907-1908 that was crucial in turning Franklin away from high society and toward grassroots politics at a critical period of the young law clerk ’ s life , ” write James MacGregor Burns and Susan Dunn in their book “ The Three Roosevelts . ”
The Roosevelts ’ career paths had striking parallels . Both served as assistant secretary of the Navy and governor of New York , and not by coincidence .
“ In terms of Franklin Roosevelt ’ s career , putting him in a position to run for president , Teddy absolutely was essential , ” says Thomas Whalen , a historian at Boston University . When Franklin first ran for president in 1932 , “ there was a feeling of nostalgia for Teddy . ”
Most dynasties fade over time . On Mr. Hess ’ s top 10 list ( see story , page 30 ) , only three families – the Kennedys , the Bushes , and the Frelinghuysens – still have members in elective office : Rep. Joseph Kennedy III ( D ) of Massachusetts , state Sen. Edward Kennedy Jr. ( D ) of Connecticut , Republican Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush , and Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen ( R ) of New Jersey .
The Bushes and the Kennedys represent two models of dynasty-building .
“ You ’ ve got the WASPy , blue-blood , Roosevelt-Bush model , which I would call ‘ noblesse oblige , ’ ” Ms. Perry says . “ Then you have the immigrant , striving , up-from-the-peat-bogs-of-Ireland model of the Kennedys . ”
In the Bush model , epitomized by the first President Bush , the culture was not to call attention to oneself – thus , his clipped syntax that avoids the word “ I . ”
“ The Catholic Kennedys were shunned and ostracized by Boston Brahmins , ” says Perry . “ These were two very different societies and cultures and religions and family roots . The Kennedys called attention to themselves . ”
Today , the “ showiness ” of the Kennedys is gone ; they are as much an “ old money ” family as the Bushes . The Bush dynasty is changing , too . Jeb Bush is a Roman Catholic convert , and his wife is from Mexico . Their children , including politician son George P. Bush , are half Latino , emblematic of America ’ s growing diversity .
That the Kennedys and Bushes are still in politics is the exception : For every political scion who succeeds politically , there are dozens who don ’ t . Some get only so far and then wash out . F.D.R . Jr. served three terms in the House before a failed campaign for governor of New York . Another F.D.R . son , James , served five terms in the House before losing a nomination for mayor of Los Angeles .
Hess suggests this rule : “ Voters give the children of important dynasts one free pass , a step up the political ladder before they must prove themselves . ”
Hess also observes that the way to build a political dynasty is to have lots of children . In the past , that meant having lots of boys – and keeping the wild side in check , or at least out of public view .
“ If you look at the Kennedys , the Bushes , and F.D.R. ’ s sons , all had playboy elements , ” says Perry . “ When they were young and irresponsible they were young and irresponsible . Some overcome that , like George W. and J.F.K . and Teddy [ Kennedy ] , and some do not . ”
Today , the rise of political daughters expands dynastic potential . In the 2014 midterms , several big-name “ daughters of ” ran and failed to win seats for the Democrats . ( One exception is newly elected Rep. Gwen Graham ( D ) of Florida , daughter of a former governor and senator . ) But it can be argued that the women who lost at least kept the races competitive , in part because of their famous last names , such as now-former Sen. Mary Landrieu ( D ) of Louisiana and Michelle Nunn , a Democrat who ran for the Senate from Georgia .
Clinton ’ s start as a political wife is , in a way , a throwback to the era when the only way a woman could get ahead in politics was through her husband . But Clinton ’ s active participation in her husband ’ s presidency and eight years as a senator made her a formidable ( though unsuccessful ) presidential candidate in 2008 . Now , with her four years as secretary of State , Clinton has added to her résumé , but also has more to answer for in her expected second try at the presidency .
Clinton can expect to benefit from her husband ’ s strong economic record . But she can also expect another rehash of the scandals and intrigues of her husband ’ s presidency – many of which involved her , from Whitewater and the White House travel office controversy to President Clinton ’ s affair with Monica Lewinsky . Some critics of Hillary judge her harshly for staying with her husband .
All presidential candidates are called upon to answer for their past . But when your father and brother are ex-presidents , their pasts are also relevant . In Jeb Bush ’ s case , crucial decisions from his brother ’ s presidency – starting with a war in Iraq based on faulty intelligence – have quickly become Exhibit A . In a Feb. 18 speech to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs , he almost pleaded for mercy .
“ Look , just for the record , one more time , I love my brother , I love my dad , I actually love my mother as well . Hope that ’ s OK , ” Bush said to laughter . “ And I admire their service to the nation and the difficult decisions that they had to make , but I ’ m my own man , and my views are shaped by my own thinking and my own experiences . ”
Later , in response to a question , Bush allowed that “ there were mistakes made in Iraq , for sure. ” Bush has also said he doesn ’ t want to “ re-litigate the past , ” but the questions have only started – especially as instability throughout the Middle East remains a live issue .
Family matriarch Barbara Bush used to think that “ more than two or three families ” should run for high office . Now the former first lady is all for another Bush presidency .
Last April , most Americans – 69 percent – agreed with her original view , according to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey . And of those , most said their opinion applied equally to Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush .
Another Bush presidency would be unprecedented – he would be the third from one family , and the only presidential brother to reach the Oval Office . A Hillary Clinton presidency would also be without parallel , as she would be the first woman in the job and the first to succeed a spouse .
Not that either candidate has a guarantee . Eight years ago , Clinton seemed headed for the Democratic nomination and the presidency . The big money was rolling in and she had the nation ’ s savviest political practitioner , Bill Clinton , at her side . Then Barack Obama happened .
Today , there appears to be no Obama on the horizon ( as long as Sen. Elizabeth Warren ( D ) of Massachusetts stays out ) , and Clinton seems as sure a thing as any for either party , at least this far out . Bush is another matter . He ran his last campaign , reelection to the Florida governorship , 13 years ago . To most Americans , he is a blank slate . Bush could raise all the money in the world , but if he doesn ’ t impress primary and caucus voters , it will be for naught .
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Americans could just say , “ Enough ! ” The prospective Republican field is full of fresh faces , starting with Gov . Scott Walker of Wisconsin , Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida , and Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky , himself from a political family ( though of a maverick sort ) .
Despite a history of voting for dynastic candidates , Americans “ could reach a tipping point when you have one Bush too many or one Clinton too many or one Kennedy too many , ” says Perry , the University of Virginia historian . “ But these families are very skilled at how they perpetuate themselves . They continue to polish their images. ” ρ | zDgtUAJhE4LfqlSm | 1 | Politics | 0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
fiscal_cliff | NPR Online News | http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/12/13/167159547/on-fiscal-cliff-majority-of-public-sides-with-democrats-pew-poll-says | On 'Fiscal Cliff,' Majority Of Public Sides With Democrats, Pew Poll Says | 2012-12-13 | fiscal_cliff | On 'Fiscal Cliff , ' Majority Of Public Sides With Democrats , Pew Poll Says
As the end-of-year tax increases and spending cuts known as the `` fiscal cliff '' near , `` Democrats are in a strong position with the public , '' the Pew Research Center reports .
A new national poll Pew released this morning shows that :
-- `` When it comes to the reaching an agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff , 55 % say Obama is making a serious effort to work with Republicans . But just 32 % say Republican leaders are making a serious effort to work with Obama on a deficit deal . ''
-- President Obama 's `` first post-reelection job approval rating has risen to 55 % , up five points since July and 11 points since the start of the year . Obama 's job rating is markedly higher than George W. Bush 's first job measure ( 48 % ) after he won reelection in 2004 . ''
-- `` By a 53 % to 33 % margin , the public sees the Republican Party , rather than the Democratic Party , as 'more extreme in its positions . ' Democrats , on the other hand , are seen as `` more willing to work with leaders from the other party '' by roughly two-to-one ( 53 % vs . 27 % ) . ''
The national survey of 1,503 adults was conducted Dec. 5-9 . Pew says that `` 900 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone , and 603 were interviewed on a cell phone , including 300 who had no landline telephone . '' The margin of error on results from the full survey is +/- 2.9 percentage points .
The results echo those of a survey Pew did for The Washington Post in late November and earlier in December . In that poll , 53 percent of those surveyed said Republicans would be `` more to blame '' if there 's no agreement reached to avoid going over the so-called cliff . Twenty-nine percent said Obama would be to blame . | OrXa3pgSStpn5v36 | 1 | Democratic Party | 1.3 | Fiscal Cliff | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | Townhall | https://townhall.com/tipsheet/bethbaumann/2019/02/06/stacey-abrams-sotu-response-was-bizarre-and-a-based-on-lies-n2540867 | Stacey Abrams SOTU Response Was Bizarre (And It's Based on Lies) | 2019-02-06 | politics | Failed gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams prepared the Democrats ' response to President Trump 's State of the Union address . Going into it , none of us really knew what to expect but honestly , the bar was n't set too high . Abrams never conceded to Brian Kemp and she 's continually pushed the idea that `` voter suppression '' ( not the people 's voice ) is what kept her from winning her bid for governor of Georgia .
Although the Democrats might not have known exactly what President Trump was going to address on Tuesday night , whoever wrote her speech cast a really , really wide net . She mentioned issues Trump did n't even touch on , like gun control and climate change . Not only that , but the response was focused on Abrams personal story . And while she tried to use her own anecdotal experiences to deliver a message , it came off as selfish and rather narcissistic .
Our power and strength as Americans lives in our hard work and our belief in more . My family understood firsthand that while success is not guaranteed , we live in a nation where opportunity is possible . But we do not succeed alone -- in these United States , when times are tough , we can persevere because our friends and neighbors will come for us . Our first responders will come for us . It is this mantra - this uncommon grace of community - that has driven me to become an attorney , a small business owner , a writer , and most recently , the Democratic nominee for Governor of Georgia . My reason for running for governor was simple : I love our country and its promise of opportunity for all , and I stand here tonight because I hold fast to my father 's credo -- together , we are coming for America , for a better America .
Is this her way of hinting that Americans should always help others ? Specifically , is she referring to Democrats ' desire to help illegal aliens ?
What 's so wrong with Americans standing up and deciding that we must help our own people before we help other nations . We 're so busy fighting everyone 's battles for them that we fail to address our own crises here at home , in America . President Trump has made it his personal mission to make sure we put America first . And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that .
Just a few weeks ago , I joined volunteers to distribute meals to furloughed federal workers . They waited in line for a box of food and a sliver of hope since they had n't received a paycheck in weeks . Making their livelihoods a pawn for political games is a disgrace . The shutdown was a stunt engineered by the President of the United States , one that defied every tenet of fairness and abandoned not just our people - but our values .
President Trump warned Democrats . He told them he wanted a border wall . It should n't come as a surprise . He campaigned on building a wall years ago . He specifically told Democrats last year , when he signed the budget , that next year he wanted border wall funding or a shutdown would happen . They called his bluff and guess who came out looking like the fool ? The Dems .
This was n't a `` stunt '' that abandoned people . This was a promise he was fulfilling to the American people . Democrats are the ones who refused to compromise with him . He was willing to extend protections for DREAMers and what was Speaker Pelosi 's response ? `` We wo n't give one dollar for the border wall . ''
If you want to point the finger at anyone , look at madam speaker .
For seven years , I led the Democratic Party in the Georgia House of Representatives . I did n't always agree with the Republican Speaker or Governor , but I understood that our constituents did n't care about our political parties -- they cared about their lives . So , when we had to negotiate criminal justice reform or transportation or foster care improvements , the leaders of our state did n't shut down -- we came together . And we kept our word .
Great . You had an accomplishment . What does this have to do with Trump 's vision ? Oh , right . Nothing .
Our most urgent work is to realize Americans ' dreams of today and tomorrow . To carve a path to independence and prosperity that can last a lifetime . Children deserve an excellent education from cradle to career . We owe them safe schools and the highest standards , regardless of zip code . Yet this White House responds timidly while first graders practice active shooter drills and the price of higher education grows ever steeper . From now on , our leaders must be willing to tackle gun safety measures and the crippling effect of educational loans ; to support educators and invest what is necessary to unleash the power of America 's greatest minds .
As a nation , we 've agreed to educate our kids from kindergarten through 12th grade . Anything beyond that is up to the individual . Part of having the `` equality of opportunity '' aspect has to end somewhere . If we made sure every single person was walked through life , from education to career , we 'd have people complaining that they were discriminated against if they became a plumber while their friend became a lawyer . People would still not be happy . At some point , we have to take responsibility for our future and make our own decisions . When the government has their hand in every single aspect of our lives , we 're one step closer to living in a tyrannical society , the one thing our founding fathers worried about .
In Georgia and around the country , people are striving for a middle class where a salary truly equals economic security . But instead , families ' hopes are being crushed by Republican leadership that ignores real life or just does n't understand it . Under the current administration , far too many hard-working Americans are falling behind , living paycheck to paycheck , most without labor unions to protect them from even worse harm . The Republican tax bill rigged the system against working people . Rather than bringing back jobs , plants are closing , layoffs are looming and wages struggle to keep pace with the actual cost of living .
She must be referring to GM 's massive layoffs . She must not know that the company decided to restructure so they could free up capital for the future . Trump and various members of Congress tried to save those jobs to no avail .
We know bi-partisanship could craft a 21st century immigration plan , but this administration chooses to cage children and tear families apart . Compassionate treatment at the border is not the same as open borders . President Reagan understood this . President Obama understood this . Americans understand this . And Democrats stand ready to effectively secure our ports and borders . But we must all embrace that from agriculture to healthcare to entrepreneurship , America is made stronger by the presence of immigrants - not walls .
1 ) No one is `` caging children . '' As retired Border Patrol agent Hector Regalado told me , families are separated from the general population . If Border Patrol suspects the adult is pretending to be the child 's parents , they seek greater intel . And guess what ? This is n't new . It 's something that happened under President Obama 's leadership as well .
2 ) If Democrats were willing to secure the border , why did Nancy say not even one dollar would go toward building a wall ? `` Securing our ports and borders '' means putting up a wall . Not giving money to a wall is not securing the border . Plain and simple
3 ) Trump did n't say immigrants are n't welcome . He said legal immigrants are welcome and we need to keep people from dangerously crossing the desert to come to America .
Rather than suing to dismantle the Affordable Care Act , as Republican Attorneys General have , our leaders must protect the progress we 've made and commit to expanding health care and lowering costs for everyone .
We were also told we could keep our doctors and that our payments would go down . Remember those talking points ? They 're not the case for the majority of Americans .
We can do so much more : Take action on climate change . Defend individual liberties with fair-minded judges . But none of these ambitions are possible without the bedrock guarantee of our right to vote . Let 's be clear : voter suppression is real . From making it harder to register and stay on the rolls to moving and closing polling places to rejecting lawful ballots , we can no longer ignore these threats to democracy . While I acknowledged the results of the 2018 election here in Georgia -- I did not and we can not accept efforts to undermine our right to vote . That 's why I started a nonpartisan organization called Fair Fight to advocate for voting rights .
`` Fair-minded judges '' mean people who are progressive and share their ideals . Everyone else is tipping the scale .
And when did Abrams accept the results ? That 's news in itself .
This is the next battle for our democracy , one where all eligible citizens can have their say about the vision we want for our country . We must reject the cynicism that says allowing every eligible vote to be cast and counted is a `` power grab . '' Americans understand that these are the values our brave men and women in uniform and our veterans risk their lives to defend . The foundation of our moral leadership around the globe is free and fair elections , where voters pick their leaders -- not where politicians pick their voters .
Translation : It 's okay for illegal aliens to vote in our elections as long as Democrat wins . If a Dem does n't win then there 's `` voter suppression . ''
Guess that means Disney characters should be allowed to vote too , right ?
America achieved a measure of reproductive justice in Roe v. Wade , but we must never forget it is immoral to allow politicians to harm women and families to advance a political agenda . We affirmed marriage equality , and yet , the LGBTQ community remains under attack .
Are you freaking kidding me ? Democrats are still defending infanticide . Still . Harming women and families is bad but murdering babies is okay ? Talk about sick , twisted logic .
So even as I am very disappointed by the President 's approach to our problems -- I still do n't want him to fail . But we need him to tell the truth , and to respect his duties and the extraordinary diversity that defines America .
The Democrats say they do n't want President Trump to fail but if he succeeds that means their policies are crap . That means they 'd have to reevaluate their stance on positions they 've clung to . And you know they do n't want that . | LTkc2TgYut0Q2NDv | 2 | State Of The Union | -0.2 | Stacey Abrams | 0.2 | Politics | -0.1 | null | null | null | null |
lgbt_rights | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/17/sport/us-delegation-russia-olympics/index.html | U.S. delegation to Russian Olympics includes gay athletes | 2013-12-17 | Russia, Barack Obama, LGBTQ Issues | Story highlights Gay athletes Billie Jean King and Caitlin Cahow in U.S. delegation to Sochi Winter Olympics
U.S. will not be sending any high-ranking officials , which is seen as a snub to Russia
Cahow will be in the party appearing at the closing ceremony
The United States ' delegation to the upcoming Winter Olympics in Russia wo n't include a member of President Barack Obama 's family or an active Cabinet secretary , but it will include openly gay athletes - a clear jab at Russia 's recent anti-gay laws .
Billie Jean King , the tennis legend , will join figure skater Brian Boitano at the games ' opening ceremonies on February 7 , the White House said Tuesday .
Former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano , White House aide Rob Nabors and the U.S. ambassador to Russia will round out the delegation to the Sochi games .
King was one of the first professional athletes to come out as gay in the 1980s .
Two weeks later , a group led by Deputy Secretary of State William Burns will attend the closing ceremony . Speed skaters Bonnie Blair and Eric Heiden , as well as openly gay hockey player Caitlin Cahow , will also attend .
JUST WATCHED White House skipping Sochi Olympics Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH White House skipping Sochi Olympics 02:23
JUST WATCHED Being gay in Sochi Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Being gay in Sochi 03:01
JUST WATCHED Billie Jean King on `` my calling '' Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Billie Jean King on `` my calling '' 00:55
JUST WATCHED King still fights for tennis equality Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH King still fights for tennis equality 05:49
JUST WATCHED Gay Olympian : We 've come a long way Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Gay Olympian : We 've come a long way 02:20
`` In the selection of this delegation , we are sending the message that the United States is a diverse place , '' White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Wednesday , pointing to Napolitano , a former Cabinet secretary , as evidence of the delegation 's distinction .
It 's the first time in more than a decade the President , vice president , first lady or former president has n't attended an Olympic opening or closing ceremony . First lady Michelle Obama led the delegation to 2012 's Summer Olympics in London , and President George W. Bush made the trek to China for Beijing 's games in 2008 .
Vice President Joe Biden and his wife led a U.S. group to the last Winter Games , held in Vancouver .
The absence of high-ranking U.S. officials amounts to a snub to Russia , whose relationship with the United States has fractured over the past year . Admitted NSA leaker Edward Snowden , wanted on espionage charges in the United States , was granted temporary asylum in Moscow , and Russian President Vladimir Putin has used Russia 's veto on the United Nations Security Council to block action in Syria .
Obama canceled a meeting with Putin that was scheduled for September , though the two met as part of a larger group of world leaders at the Group of 20 conference in St. Petersburg .
Fueling the rift between the nations are new laws in Russia banning gay `` propaganda '' -- a law critics say is so vague that anyone can be prosecuted for wearing a rainbow T-shirt or holding hands in public with someone of the same sex .
Carney noted on Wednesday the selection of gay athletes was n't the first time Obama has voiced concern over the Russian policy .
`` That 's not a message we would wait to send through this manner , '' Carney said . `` We have been very clear -- the President has been very clear that he finds it offensive , the anti-LGBT legislation in Russia . ''
Obama told Jay Leno in August he had `` no patience for countries that try to treat gays or lesbians or transgender persons in ways that intimidate them or are harmful to them , '' and during his visit to Russia earlier this year , Obama met with the leaders of Russian social activist groups . | 5c84cd74b73026af | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | National Review | https://www.nationalreview.com/2020/05/the-hydroxychloroquine-meltdown/ | The Hydroxychloroquine Meltdown | 2020-05-19 | media_bias | A pharmacy worker shows pills of hydroxychloroquine used to treat the coronavirus at the CHR Centre Hospitalier Regional de la Citadelle Hospital in Liege , Belgium , April 22 , 2020 . ( Yves Herman/Reuters )
The president claims he ’ s taking it as a prophylactic . The media met that with hysteria instead of conscientious coverage .
President Donald Trump claims that he ’ s taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure against contracting coronavirus , and that he has taken zinc and antibiotic azithromycin as well .
There ’ s no consensus that hydroxychloroquine is an effective therapeutic treatment for COVID-19 ( early studies have yielded different results , and the NIH recently began a controlled clinical trial ) . Few people I ’ ve read argue that it ’ s a useful prophylactic . Nevertheless , the frenzied and childish reaction to Trump ’ s championing what amounts to a commonly used prescription drug is more destructive than his annoying habit of bringing it up .
A CNN columnist warns of “ the danger in Trump ’ s decision to self-medicate. ” If Trump is taking the drug , it ’ s been prescribed and presumably he ’ s being monitored , yet the CNN piece tries to create impression that the president is popping hydroxychloroquine tablets like mints to soothe his anxieties .
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called Trump ’ s remarks about hydroxychloroquine “ dangerous , ” though for the general public , the drug itself is no more dangerous than a vast number of pharmaceuticals used every day by millions of Americans to help them live with less pain or to keep them alive .
“ Side effects of hydroxychloroquine include paranoia , hallucinations and psychosis , ” notes the New York Times ’ Michelle Goldberg , reading one of the many rare side effects of the drug . Wait until she reads the warning labels on the abortifacients that she wants the government to subsidize .
For that matter , we ’ re often lectured that killing an unborn baby is a decision made solely by a woman in conjunction with her doctor . Yet taking hydroxychloroquine is apparently a joint decision between a man , his doctor , every Democrat in congress , all the anchors on CNN , and an entire slate of New York Times op-ed columnists .
The most reckless media personality on the issue has been Trump ’ s former bestie , Joe Scarborough , who repeatedly told his audience this morning that hydroxychloroquine will “ kill you “ :
So he is not taking something that his own administration has said will kill you . That his own FDA said will kill you . That the [ Department of Veterans Affairs ] said will kill you . … That ’ s what doctors will say , too . The FDA said , take it if you ’ re in the hospital or take it if you ’ re in a closely watched clinical trial . But , don ’ t take it unless you ’ re under those two circumstances . So the president is not taking it , and yet , and yet , he ’ s telling Americans that they should take it .
Not a single one of these agencies says hydroxychloroquine “ will kill you. ” That would be asinine . What the FDA recently noted is that there are elevated risks associated with COVID-19 patients taking the medication , which is entirely different . As far as I know , Trump has never explicitly instructed Americans to take it . What I do know is that hundreds of thousands of young people who use the drug , often to save their lives , are hearing media personalities and politicians liken it to cyanide . Hundreds of thousands of older men and women who take hydroxychloroquine for rheumatoid arthritis are hearing media personalities and politicians telling them their lives are danger .
The conscientious way to cover Trump ’ s hydroxychloroquine usage would be to point out that there ’ s no proof that the drug will help treat the coronavirus , though tests are still ongoing . Instead , we are subjected to an overwrought lecture series of nasty , childish , partisan attacks and misleading stories about a couple ingesting fish-tank cleaner .
“ I would rather he not be taking something that has not been approved by the scientists , especially in his age group , and in his , shall we say , weight group : ‘ Morbidly obese , ’ they say , ” says House speaker Nancy Pelosi to Anderson Cooper .
Now , it should be noted that there are all kinds of side effects to commonly used drugs . Take , for instance , the anti-wrinkle drug Botox , which not only comes with a laundry list of warnings but has also been known to spark botulism symptoms that killed several Americans . Scientists have approved hydroxychloroquine for 70 years ; every day doctors prescribe it on- and off-label . If Trump and his doctor think it ’ s okay for him to take it , that ’ s his business .
Whether hydroxychloroquine will be useful in this particular fight is yet to be determined . But COVID-19 aside , the drug doesn ’ t “ kill people. ” It saves people . The fearmongering isn ’ t helping anyone . | mnL6XHILfLwXDb3x | 2 | Donald Trump | -0.3 | Hydroxychloroquine | -0.2 | Healthcare | -0.1 | Coronavirus | 0 | null | null |
religion_and_faith | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/02/21/billy-graham-hailed-man-passion-faith/858930001/ | 'The passing of an era': Billy Graham hailed as man of passion, faith | 2018-02-21 | religion_and_faith | Billy Graham is being remembered , mourned and celebrated around a world to which he unflaggingly preached Christ 's gospel with every communications technology he could tap , with a peerless evangelistic organization , and with an eloquence and sincerity that got people out of their seats to come to Jesus .
This most careful and moderate of men was praised for an evangelical zeal that many compared to the Apostle Paul 's 1,800 years earlier .
`` It 's a blessing he 's been released to be with Jesus , '' said Dana Robert , a Boston University religion professor who as a girl answered Graham 's altar call at his crusade in her native Baton Rouge in 1970 .
`` He lived a good life , '' she said , `` and he can say , as Paul did in his letter to Timothy , ' I have fought the good fight , I have finished the race , I have kept the faith . ' For him , death is not the end . ''
More : Why almost everyone wants to say thank you to the legendary Billy Graham
Larry Ross , Graham 's longtime spokesman , said the evangelist showed courage and faith through his long physical decline . `` He was faithful to the end , '' he said . `` He showed how to finish well . ''
News of Graham 's death spread throughout Christendom — from missionaries ' huts in Africa to back-country Bible Belt churches to mighty Southern Baptist temples .
His life was recalled by Protestants , Catholics , Muslims and Jews ; by those who attended one of his crusades , or dozens ; by those who only saw him on TV or heard him on the radio ; by those who knew him mostly as a pastor to presidents .
`` It 's the passing of an era , '' said Randall Balmer , a Dartmouth College expert on evangelical Christianity . He called Graham `` the most prominent religious celebrity of the 20th Century , '' a period that included popes John XXIII and John Paul II , the 14th Dalai Lama , Mother Teresa and Norman Vincent Peale .
Even if the audiences for his many broadcasts are n't counted , Balmer said , `` he preached to more people in person than anyone in history . ''
Those with some of the strongest impressions of Graham saw him at his final big public events :
• Baltimore , July 2006 : Craig Allen , 74 , of Finksburg , Md. , heard Graham 's last major sermon , delivered in Oriole Park at Camden Yards . `` His perseverance despite his health was phenomenal . They brought him out on a cart , and they had to help him up to the mic . And then , boy , he delivered a powerful sermon . No matter how he felt , he was going to give it his all . ''
• New Orleans , March 2006 : Michael Freeland , 59 , of Metairie , La. , who lost most of his real estate business after Hurricane Katrina the previous year , attended with his wife and two sons . He said Graham 's presence after the storm , especially after announcing his retirement the previous year , `` meant a lot to us . He was old , he 'd lost his wife . You could see his frailty . But once he started to preach , you could feel an energy . That was the Holy Spirit . That was him doing something he was passionate about . ''
• New York City , June 2005 : Maggie Rousseau and her husband , Bill , drove 14 hours from Savannah , Ga. , to see Graham for the first time . Given the evangelist 's health , they knew it would be the last . `` There was just something about him , '' Maggie said. `` I do n't know what it was , but you believed him . On the crusades , on TV , he spoke , and you listened . ''
But some said Graham 's impact already has diminished . Several years ago , when Balmer asked one of his classes at Dartmouth if they knew who Billy Graham was , only 25 % raised a hand .
Robert described him as essentially a phenomenon of the Greatest and Boomer generations .
`` When I was young , the whole family watched him on television , like Walter Cronkite . When he came to town , everyone went to the crusade , '' she recalled. `` But I do n't think the Millennials even know who he was . '' | iToGNpCrlWqSyw12 | 1 | Religion And Faith | 0.5 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_industry | Daily Beast | https://www.thedailybeast.com/x-tries-to-preemptively-swat-down-newsguard-misinfo-report | NewsGuard: Twitter/X Made Money Off Israel-Hamas War Misinfo | 2023-11-25 | Media Industry, Elon Musk, Twitter, Misinformation, Media Bias, NewsGuard, Israel Hamas Violence | NewsGuard on Wednesday afternoon dropped a report that found that 200 advertisements on the platform formerly known as Twitter from 86 prominent brands, governments, non-profits, and educational institutions showed up on feeds next to viral posts spouting misinformation about the Israel-Hamas war. Analysts studied 30 posts with a combined 92 million views by ten previously identified “repeated spreaders of misinformation about the conflict.” Some of the claims include that the Oct. 7 Hamas attack was a “false flag” and that CNN had manufactured footage of a rocket attack on a news crew in Israel. On Nov. 21, following NewsGuard contacting X about the report, Musk posted that X Corp would donate “all revenue from advertising & subscriptions associated with the war in Gaza to hospitals in Israel and the Red Cross/Crescent.” NewsGuard questioned X about Musk’s reference to the revenue streams and the misinformation accounts that made money off the advertisements but received an automated reply. This comes after the safety account for X posted early Wednesday afternoon, warning about an upcoming “report” by the rating system NewGuard. X launched an immediate counteroffensive that claimed NewsGuard “pressure[s] companies to buy their ‘fact-checking’ services” in a “profit over any principle model.” According to NewsGuard’s About page, analysts use artificial intelligence to “operate the trust industry’s most accountable and largest dataset on news.” NewsGuard also describes its rating process as based on nine “apolitical” criteria, including whether the site repeatedly publishes false or misleading content and whether it references multiple sources.X Corp will be donating all revenue from advertising & subscriptions associated with the war in Gaza to hospitals in Israel and the Red Cross/Crescent in Gaza — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 21, 2023NewsGuard | 69fcac74b930f7e9 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
coronavirus | USA TODAY | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/10/22/fda-approves-remdesivir-covid-19-hospital-patients/3733648001/ | FDA approves remdesivir as treatment for COVID-19 patients in hospital | 2020-10-23 | Coronavirus, Public Health, Life During Covid-19, Safety And Sanity During COVID-19 | The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved the antiviral drug remdesivir as a treatment for patients with COVID-19 who require hospitalization. Given through an IV, remdesivir works to stop replication of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, according to the drug's manufacturer, California-based Gilead Sciences Inc. Previously authorized by the FDA for emergency use to treat COVID-19, the drug is now the first and only approved COVID-19 treatment in the United States, Gilead said in a release. “Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gilead has worked relentlessly to help find solutions to this global health crisis,” Gilead CEO Daniel O’Day said in a statement. “It is incredible to be in the position today, less than one year since the earliest case reports of the disease now known as COVID-19, of having an FDA-approved treatment in the U.S. that is available for all appropriate patients in need.” The drug cut the time to recovery by five days – from 15 days to 10 on average – in a large study led by the U.S. National Institutes of Health. It had been authorized for use on an emergency basis since spring. President Donald Trump was treated with remdesivir when he was hospitalized with COVID-19 earlier this month. More:Trump COVID-19 treatment: President had stakes in Regeneron and Gilead, makers of antibody cocktail, Remdesivir Remdesivir received a guarded endorsement in April from Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health, when it was announced as a new tool in the fight against the virus at a presidential news conference. The drug also is known by its brand name, Veklury. "In the United States, Veklury is indicated for adults and pediatric patients (12 years of age and older and weighing at least 40 kilograms) for the treatment of COVID-19 requiring hospitalization," Gilead said in the statement. "Veklury should only be administered in a hospital or in a health care setting capable of providing acute care comparable to inpatient hospital care," Gilead said. Gilead’s chief medical officer, Dr. Merdad Parsey, said that “we now have enough knowledge and a growing set of tools to help fight COVID-19.” The drug is either approved or has temporary authorization in about 50 countries, he noted. A large study of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 conducted by the World Health Organization recently found that remdesivir had no effect on deaths, the need for ventilation or length of hospital stay, though some have criticized the research. Contributing: The Associated Press | c9323b4ec094c017 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | Vox | https://www.vox.com/2020/6/10/21284651/new-york-times-tom-cotton-media-liberal-conservative-black-lives-matter | America is changing, and so is the media | 2020-06-10 | media_bias | In January 1939 , the Atlantic published an article titled “ I Married a Jew. ” In it , the author set out “ to tell the world how it really is between a Jew and a Christian , since the world is evidently so intensely interested . ”
She confesses that her husband , though lovely in many respects , “ still has the Jewish hypersensitivity toward all criticism of his race. ” She admits that she frequently tries “ to see things from the Nazis ’ point of view and to find excuses for the things they do , ” only to be met by the “ hurt confusion of my husband. ” She argues that Jews “ must make some practical and rational effort to adapt their ways more graciously to the Gentile pattern , since they prefer to live in Gentile lands. ” She confesses that “ our hottest argument concerns the question whether there exists such a thing as a Jewish problem . ”
This piece makes its way around the internet every so often as a memento from an anti-Semitic time capsule . The appended comment is always along the lines of : Can you believe the Atlantic published that ? The unstated , but obvious , corollary , is no reputable outlet — least of all the Atlantic — would publish any such piece today . An editor would read the words “ It is only when Ben is surrounded by his family that he lapses into Jewish ways , and then , no doubt , because of his early Jewish training , ” DM her colleagues in astonishment , and send the submission to the trash .
There have always been boundaries around acceptable discourse , and the media has always been involved , in a complex and often unacknowledged way , in both enforcing and contesting them . In 1986 , the media historian Daniel Hallin argued that journalists treat ideas as belonging to three spheres , each of which is governed by different rules of coverage . There ’ s the “ sphere of consensus , ” in which agreement is assumed . There ’ s the “ sphere of deviance , ” in which a view is considered universally repugnant , and it need not be entertained . And then , in the middle , is the “ sphere of legitimate controversy , ” wherein journalists are expected to cover all sides , and op-ed pages to represent all points of view .
Those boundaries , thankfully , change over time . In 1939 , the ideas in “ I Married a Jew ” were in the sphere of legitimate controversy . In 2020 , they ’ re firmly in the sphere of deviance . Those boundaries are changing again now . The difference is that the change — and the conversation behind it — is playing out in public .
Last week , the New York Times op-ed section solicited and published an article by Sen. Tom Cotton ( R-AR ) arguing that the US military should be deployed to “ restore order to our streets. ” The piece set off an internal revolt at the Times , with staffers coordinating pushback across Twitter , and led to the resignation of James Bennet , the editor of the op-ed section , and the reassignment of Jim Dao , the deputy editor .
That same week , Stan Wischnowski , the top editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer , resigned after publishing an article by the paper ’ s architecture critic titled “ Buildings Matter , Too. ” David Boardman , the chair of the board that controls the Inquirer , said Wischnowski had done “ remarkable ” work but “ leaves behind some decades-old , deep-seated and vitally important issues around diversity , equity and inclusion , issues that were not of his creation but that will likely benefit from a fresh approach . ”
One interpretation of these events , favored by frustrated conservatives , is that a generation of young , woke journalists want to see the media remade along activist lines , while an older generation believes it must cover the news without fear and favor , and reflect , at the very least , the full range of views held by those in power .
“ The New York Times motto is ‘ all the news that ’ s fit to print , ’ ” wrote the Times ’ s Bari Weiss . “ One group emphasizes the word ‘ all. ’ The other , the word ‘ fit . ’ ”
Another interpretation is that the range of acceptable views isn ’ t narrowing so much as it ’ s shifting . Two decades ago , an article like Cotton ’ s could easily be published , an essay arguing for abolishing prisons or police would languish in the submissions pile , and a slogan like “ Black Lives Matter ” would be controversial . Today , Black Lives Matter is in the sphere of consensus , abolishing prisons is in legitimate controversy , and there ’ s a fight to move Cotton ’ s proposal to deploy troops against US citizens into deviance . The idea space is just as large as it ’ s been in the past — perhaps larger — but it is in flux , and the fight to define its boundaries is more visible .
“ Those are political decisions , ” says Charles Whitaker , dean of the Medill School of Journalism . “ They are absolutely governed by politics — either our desire to highlight certain political views or not highlight them , or to create this impression that we ’ re just a marketplace of ideas . ”
I was a blogger in the early aughts , before I ever imagined becoming a journalist . That was , in retrospect , when the mainstream media began losing control over the conversation , though it was hard to imagine it at the time . In 2005 , I was hired at the American Prospect . I went on to spend four years at the Washington Post and then co-found ███ in 2014 . Over that time , the media has changed , dramatically , because the world has changed dramatically . Four trends in particular are converging to create the current moment .
First , business models built around secure local advertising monopolies collapsed into the all-against-all war for national , even global , attention that defines digital media . The New York Times , the LA Times , and the Washington Post might have competed for scoops in the ’ 80s , but they didn ’ t really compete for subscribers because they were rooted in different places . Now , they do — and they also compete with hundreds of other outlets . An audience that has more choices is an audience that has more power . Outlets are more sensitive to how they ’ re perceived because the threat of losing readers is very real .
Second , the nationalization of news has changed the nature of the audience . The local business model was predicated on dominating coverage of a certain place ; the national business model is about securing the loyalties of a certain kind of person . This has been a particular challenge for the Times , which wants to be the paper of record for everyone but is a particularly central institution for liberals and is often caught in conflict with President Trump and his allies . But it goes far beyond the Times . All publishers are now in a tighter feedback loop with their audience ’ s interests and perspectives , chasing a more segmented audience , in ways that put more pressure on their own coverage decisions . I ’ ve written about this transformation at length , and I don ’ t think its importance can be overstated .
Third , America is in a moment of rapid demographic and generational change . Millennials are now the largest generation , and they are far more diverse and liberal than the generations that preceded them . The oldest millennials are now 40 , the youngest 26 — which means they increasingly dominate workplaces , and they are a customer base any healthy business needs . In newsrooms , specifically , they are now numerous enough , senior enough , and powerful enough to make their views heard . And their views on which ideas go into which spheres are different from the generation that preceded them . Their emphasis on a diverse and inclusive workplace is different from the generations that preceded them . That isn ’ t to deny the existence of leftist boomers or alt-right millennials , but the center of generational gravity is changing , and institutions are changing in response .
“ Organizations that have embraced the mantra that they need to diversify have not as quickly realized that diversifying means they have to be a fundamentally different place , ” says Jelani Cobb , the Ira A. Lipman professor at the Columbia Journalism School and a staff writer at the New Yorker . “ If you want to bring in different perspectives , you ’ ll have a different culture and different environment that will lead you to make different decisions . ”
Fourth , the rise of social media empowered not just the audience but , crucially , individual journalists , who now have the capacity to question their employer publicly , and alchemize staff and public discontent into a public crisis that publishers can ’ t ignore . Almost as important is the existence of internal communication channels like Slack that create spaces where staffers can easily communicate and coordinate .
“ Reporters aren ’ t shut down by their bosses who say , ‘ These are our standards , this is how it ’ ll be done , ’ ” says Whitaker . “ They have a whole other platform on which to continue that discussion , rally troops . That ’ s throwing everyone for a loop . ”
It ’ s also forcing conversations and debates that would have once remained private into the public . There ’ s nothing new about generational and technological upheaval transforming the news — Matt Pressman ’ s On Press : The Liberal Values That Shaped the News is an excellent account of this dynamic in a past generation — but it used to be a quieter process , with debate contained inside newsrooms and change happening through retirement and recruitment . Now it happens , at least in moments of rupture , in public .
The media prefers to change in private . Now it ’ s changing in public .
The news media likes to pretend that it simply holds up a mirror to America as it is . We don ’ t want to be seen as actors crafting the political debate , agents who make decisions that shape the boundaries of the national discourse . We are , of course . We always have been .
“ When you think in terms of these three spheres — sphere of consensus , of legitimate debate , and of deviancy — a new way of describing the role for journalism emerges , which is : They police what goes in which sphere , ” says Jay Rosen , who teaches journalism at NYU . “ That ’ s an ideological action they never took responsibility for , never really admitted they did , never had a language for talking about . ”
It ’ s interesting to imagine what would ’ ve happened if the Times had simply never solicited Cotton ’ s op-ed , or if he had submitted it and they had passed . The answer , quite clearly , is nothing . That would have been perfectly normal . It ’ s because the op-ed was reclassified as deviant after its publication , through a semi-public process , that it ’ s become such a flashpoint . It made visible a process that is often invisible , and it turns out that process is messy and contested .
Trump has sharpened the contradictions here . He and his allies operate in ways that are fundamentally opposed to the basic values that animate newsrooms . This has long caused newsrooms trouble — consider the endless effort to find euphemisms for the word “ lying ” when describing the president ’ s comments in headlines . With Cotton ’ s op-ed , the decision that ultimately got made pushed the views held by the president of the United States and most of his supporters into a sphere of deviance — or maybe a more modern term would be “ deplorability. ” That is not the kind of choice news outlets are comfortable making .
One of the central instabilities of the era is that media and cultural power runs 10 years ahead of demography , and political power 10 years behind . Donald Trump and the Republican Party hold power because our system of government empowers an older , whiter , more reactionary minority to wield majority political power through the structure of the Electoral College , the design of the Senate , and the lifetime appointments of the Supreme Court . But they feel locked out of cultural and media power , which is disproportionately urban , diverse , and focused on serving the rising generation of consumers and tastemakers .
You see that collision here . Both sides feel the other is illegitimate , that they ’ re misusing their power and betraying the values of the institutions they control . In truth , they ’ re fighting over those values , over the boundaries of the debate , and the differences have become sharp enough to force institutions to pick a side . That ’ s new , particularly for the institutions that used to be able to straddle , and even define , the divides . But it reflects changes that have been reshaping the country for decades .
“ The Times used to be the ecosystem , ” says Cobb , “ and now the Times is in an ecosystem , and it ’ s vulnerable to what happens there . ”
Every day at ███ , we aim to answer your most important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives . Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding . ███ ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and an economic downturn . Your financial contribution will not constitute a donation , but it will enable our staff to continue to offer free articles , videos , and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires . Please consider making a contribution to ███ today . | I8WpGkyEne0R0wuZ | 0 | Media Industry | -0.1 | Media Bias | -0.1 | Culture | 0.1 | Free Speech | 0 | null | null |
politics | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/may/19/obama-designate-national-monument-new-mexico/ | Obama to designate national monument in New Mexico | 2014-05-19 | politics | President Obama on Wednesday will declare a national monument in southern New Mexico , delivering a win for environmentalists but angering ranchers and local law enforcement , who say the land restrictions will end up creating a safe haven for drug cartels to operate within the U.S .
Mr. Obama will declare about 500,000 acres as the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument . About half of that land is expected to be set aside as wilderness , meaning it will be closed to vehicles and construction .
Local ranchers say it ’ s a land grab that will interfere with their grazing rights , and border security advocates said the move will make it tougher for federal agents and local police to patrol the land , leaving a security gap that Mexican smuggling cartels will exploit .
“ This is about opposing so many thousands of acres that is going to create nothing more than a pathway for criminals to get into this country to do their criminal acts , ” Dona Ana County Sheriff Todd Garrison told The ███ in a telephone interview Monday .
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency refuted the claim that the national monument designation would threaten border security .
“ This designation will in no way limit our ability to perform our important border security mission , and in fact provides important flexibility as we work to meet this ongoing priority , ” said spokeswoman Jenny Burke . “ CBP is committed to continuing to work closely with the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Forest Service to maintain border security while ensuring the protection of the environment along the border . ”
The monument has been in the works for some time and has been controversial from the start .
Conservationists and tourism businesses have been pushing for the designation , hoping it will bring more visitors .
“ The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument will help protect our way of life while allowing for responsible development and expanding opportunities for all Americans to enjoy the beauty and multi-cultural history of this unique landscape , ” Billy Garrett , Dona Ana County Commission chairman , said in a statement .
But land rights advocates said it is the precursor to more conflicts like the recent standoff in Nevada , where a rancher refused to comply with a court order that he stop grazing on Bureau of Land Management property , prompting the BLM to confiscate his cattle , though they were returned after a public outcry .
The BLM , which is part of the Interior Department , will administer the national monument .
The land contains five mountain ranges with fragile landscapes , prehistoric rock art and more recent historic sites such as a training area for the Apollo astronauts .
The monument would cover hundreds of thousands of acres right next to the Mexican border .
New Mexico ’ s representatives in Congress have been divided over the monument . Rep. Stevan Pearce , a Republican , called for a 50,000-acre monument , one-tenth the size of the one Mr. Obama will designate .
But the half-million-acre proposal has the backing of the state ’ s U.S. senators , both of them Democrats .
“ An Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument will preserve important cultural links to our past and strengthen southern New Mexico ’ s economy by boosting tourism and recreational opportunities , like hunting , hiking , camping , and horseback riding , ” Sen. Martin Heinrich said in a statement .
Only Congress can declare a national park , which stops most land uses . But under the 1906 Antiquities Act the president has the power to declare national monuments , which offer heightened environmental protections .
The New Mexico monument is Mr. Obama ’ s second designation this year . In March , he added 1,600 acres in the Point Arena-Stornetta region to the California Coastal National Monument established by President Clinton in 2000 . House Republicans said the action wasn ’ t necessary because they had passed similar legislation that was awaiting Senate action .
About half the Organ Mountains monument will be designated as wilderness , the highest level of protection , closing it to motorized vehicles and human construction .
Sheriff Garrison said that will shut down roads that his department uses to patrol the land , though he said the cartels are unlikely to stop using it just because it is declared wilderness .
“ My fear is these areas will be used more than they are now because they ’ ll have access to it that will be private and closed off to every law-abiding citizen , ” the sheriff said . “ I believe this monument will hamper law enforcement ’ s ability to effectively patrol the area we need to patrol . ”
Administration officials said the declaration will incorporate a 2006 agreement between the Interior Department and the Homeland Security Department that allows U.S. Border Patrol some access to the land .
That agreement prevents most routine patrols through wilderness , though it does allow them to continue to follow smugglers in hot pursuit .
The agreement has been controversial for both sides of the immigration debate . Environmentalists and some immigrant rights advocates argue that the Border Patrol has used the arrangement to trample pristine land . Border security advocates say agents ’ hands are tied when they are in pursuit of illegal immigrants and drug smugglers .
Rep . Rob Bishop , a Utah Republican who has studied the issue , argues that the environmental restrictions have indeed hurt the Border Patrol ’ s ability to do its job .
Hours before news of the designation broke Monday , Mr. Bishop , chairman of the Natural Resources Committee ’ s public lands subcommittee , sent a letter to Mr. Obama asking him to hold off until the border can be controlled .
“ It ’ s irresponsible to focus efforts on new land designations rather than finding solutions to existing criminal activities plaguing the border , ” the congressman wrote .
Mr. Bishop pointed to a case that was in the headlines last week , in which a National Park Service employee at Chiricahua National Monument in Arizona detailed the vicious attack she suffered at the hands of an illegal immigrant . Authorities said the man smashed her head into a metal bathroom door and hit her head with a rock , striking so hard that the rock broke . | 9KPQIm3vTZQQ2fwV | 2 | Politics | -0.4 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | Christian Science Monitor | http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/DC-Decoder/2014/0107/Is-long-term-unemployment-worse-than-it-appears-video | Is long-term unemployment worse than it appears? (+video) | 2014-01-07 | economy_and_jobs | A move to renew emergency benefits for the long-term unemployed passed a key procedural vote Tuesday , as 60 US senators voted to move forward with debate on the measure .
If the Senate approves the measure , it remains unclear whether the Republican-led House will follow suit .
The basic question at issue , economically , is whether the challenge of long-term unemployment is still big enough to warrant “ emergency ” response . That raises the question : Just how many would-be workers are unemployed for lengthy periods these days ?
The answer is a lot , even using the Labor Department ’ s official tally of the unemployed . And the number goes higher , because not all the long-term jobless are included in that mainstream count .
Some 1.3 million Americans who have been out of work at least 26 weeks saw emergency benefits run dry on Dec. 28 , when year-end budget talks left the program an unresolved issue and it expired . By some estimates , another 3.6 million people are likely to enter the ranks of the long-term unemployed ( and to be eligible for the benefits if they reappear ) at some point during 2014 .
The total number of long-term unemployed goes beyond those eligible under an emergency benefits program , economists say . Consider that the program 's 1.3 million beneficiaries , late in 2013 , were just a fraction of the 4.1 million people whom the Labor Department counted as unemployed for more than 26 weeks . That larger group includes people who have already exhausted the extended benefits . Beyond the official long-term unemployed , more than 760,000 others are counted by the Labor Department as `` discouraged , '' meaning they have stopped looking for work .
That ’ s the backdrop for the current situation , in which many labor-market experts on both the left and right are supporting the restoration of emergency benefits .
“ Simply put ... it ’ s much harder for the long-term unemployed to find a job right now than it has been in the past when emergency federal benefits were allowed to expire , ” writes Michael Strain of the conservative American Enterprise Institute in Washington .
The rationale behind unemployment insurance ( UI ) is to cushion workers and their families during the time it takes them to find a new job . In the current climate , another rationale for extending benefits is simply as an incentive for the jobless to not give up hope .
“ It keeps them in the labor force looking for work , ” says Chad Stone , chief economist at the liberal Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington . People must keep up the job search to collect the support payments .
By contrast , dropping out of the job market tends to damage people ’ s earning prospects when they eventually try to jump back in , economists say . When that happens to a lot of Americans at once , it means lower productive potential for the whole economy .
“ If we let emergency federal UI benefits expire , then the best guess based on the research is that more long-term unemployed workers will simply quit looking for a job and exit the labor force than will take a job they have been too choosy to take , ” Mr. Strain wrote recently in the National Review .
Usually , the federal-state program called unemployment insurance provides income support for up to 26 weeks ( half a year ) after someone loses a job . The Labor Department considers anyone out of work longer than that , and actively on the job hunt , as among the “ long-term unemployed . ”
The Emergency Unemployment Compensation , or EUC , program , which was launched in 2008 , makes jobless benefits run as long as 73 weeks per person in states with very high unemployment rates .
Some good news : America ’ s unemployment rate is now down to 7 percent of the workforce , as of November , well below its 10 percent recession-era peak .
But the progress still leaves long-term unemployment much higher than usual .
The long-term unemployed alone account for 2.6 percent of the US labor force . That ’ s down from a post-recession peak above 4 percent , but it ’ s still far higher than the number usually is even in the depths of a recession .
The benefits typically pay an amount equal to about half a worker ’ s prior salary .
Progress in the overall job market , meanwhile , can mean the emergency benefits for individual workers shrink . That ’ s because the law works on a formula where the duration of benefits hinges on a state ’ s unemployment rate .
In most states , unemployment has fallen enough that , if the emergency benefit is renewed , it will mean individuals have aid for 40 to 63 weeks , not the 73-week maximum .
Even before the EUC program expired in December , only 41 percent of unemployed workers were eligible for and receiving either state or federal jobless aid , down from 65 percent 2010 , according to the National Employment Law Project , which is pushing for Congress to extend the benefits .
This shift is occurring even though it ’ s still taking people much longer than normal to find new jobs .
The average duration of unemployment was 37 weeks as of September 2013 – more than 20 weeks longer than pre-recession levels , and down by only 1.2 weeks since the end of 2012 , the National Employment Law Project says .
All this helps explain why some Republicans joined Democrats in the Senate to move forward with debate on restoring EUC .
Many Republicans in Congress argue that extending the benefits again should be contingent on making sure the move doesn ’ t add to federal deficits – such as by finding new spending cuts to offset the cost .
One lingering question is how many long-jobless Americans have dropped out of the labor force . Although the Labor Department counted 762,000 of these “ discouraged ” workers in November , some economists point to declining participation in the labor force as a hint that the number may be higher .
If the participation rate matched pre-recession levels , some 5 million additional Americans would be in the labor force today . But it ’ s hard to know how much of this post-recession decline is due to the weak job market and how much is due to baby-boom demographics , as growing numbers of adults turn 65 .
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Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told a gathering of economists in November that the Fed will be looking for clues on this point as it weighs whether the economy and job market are returning to health over the next couple of years .
What ’ s clear , though , is that the problem of long-term joblessness remains large . | ZpFSKTyMLPwBPMSd | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/16/opinion/castellanos-clinton-obama-romney/index.html?hpt=po_c1 | Obama missed chance to seal victory over Romney | 2012-09-16 | Election 2012, Presidential Elections, Elections | Story highlights Alex Castellanos : Bill Clinton showed that appeal of `` New Democrat '' ideas is still strong
He says President Obama missed opportunity to position himself with Clinton
The race remains close , though Obama has an edge given the electoral map , Castellanos says
He says an unexpected comment or event could make a big difference
Sixteen years ago , though it seems less , the silver-haired author of the best speech at the Democratic convention declared `` the era of big government is over . ''
Twelve years later , the next Democratic president , Barack Obama , declared that the era of big government being over was over .
One week ago in Charlotte , North Carolina , Bill Clinton returned to reclaim both the leadership of his party and his legacy .
Clinton danced gracefully in his natural environment , a stage surrounded by 20,000 adulators . His 50-minute performance was a master class in practical politics .
`` Listen to me now ... listen to this , '' professor Clinton repeatedly schooled his audience . The good old boy patiently showed a convention hall of energetic left-wingers how to move back to the middle and win .
Once before , Clinton had rescued his party from its excesses . When he came to national office , the big-spending Democratic Party of the New Deal , the Great Society and George McGovern had exhausted its fiscal credibility . Clinton inherited a party that his country could not trust with its checkbook .
The baby-boomer governor changed that . As the late David Broder of The Washington Post wrote , `` Clinton pirouetted and placed himself at the head of the fiscal responsibility parade . ''
Clinton and his talented team , notably Paul Begala and James Carville , now CNN contributors , understood , `` It 's the economy , stupid . '' They prided themselves on their balanced budgets , with little gratitude for the GOP Congress that cut capital gains taxes in 1997 and helped produce four of them .
They embraced middle-class tax cuts , at least rhetorically . The New Democrats were born and , politically , it worked : The populist Democrat from Arkansas transformed his party from a festival of limousine liberals to a home for pickup-truck-driving , balanced-budget-loving , working people . After years in the liberal wilderness , Democrats re-earned the chance to govern . They relearned how to win .
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From the moment he took office , on the economic issues the country cares about , Obama has governed as an old Democrat , not a new one . As former Sen. Fred Thompson said in 2008 , `` He 's George McGovern without the experience . '' Obama has driven his party back in time to top-down , industrial-age solutions and spending that does not end .
The opening day of the Charlotte convention reflected Obama 's old Democratic Party .
Want to start a business ? Democrats laughed at the idea that a young man or woman might borrow money from his or her parents . The consensus at this convention was that they were entitled to take money from other people 's parents . Delegates cheered at opportunities to take profits and property from the remaining , benighted , few Americans who still pay taxes instead of take taxes .
In Charlotte , people who would never break into someone 's home and take what was not theirs celebrated a government that uses tax law to do it for them . Then Clinton took the stage and , in a temporary expression of sanity , lectured Democrats about overindulging . You have to appreciate the irony in that .
Clinton said , `` Do n't you ever forget , when you hear them talking about this , that Republican economic policies quadrupled the national debt before I took office , in the 12 years before I took office , and doubled the debt in the eight years after I left , because it defied arithmetic . President Obama 's plan cuts the debt . ''
The comparison was poignant : If Obama had similarly embraced Simpson-Bowles or any kind of bold deficit reduction in his remarks the following night , he would be wiping the floor with the Romney campaign .
Was Clinton 's speech honest ? Slick Willie 's great talent is his artistry , not his accuracy . But Clinton can count electoral votes . He knows how to win .
The electoral map adjacent , illustrating what Romney must do to win without Ohio , is daunting for the Republican spear-carrier .
Today , Romney would probably lose New Hampshire , Iowa and New Mexico . He lags in Ohio .
Take those states away and Romney has to bat a thousand in an unforgiving chain of swing states . Prediction website Intrade now puts the odds of victory at 61 % for Obama to 38 % for Romney . It is hard to argue that Obama does not have an edge at this point .
After Clinton spoke , I concluded on CNN , `` This will be the moment that probably re-elected Barack Obama . '' Hyperbole ? Perhaps . But if you think Obama is slightly favored to win this election , as I do , you might ask : What has been the best moment of Obama 's campaign ? It was n't the candidate 's speech at the convention . It was Bubba pointing his finger , biting his lower lip and rewriting the campaign plan .
Clinton did n't just give Obama an endorsement , he gave the Obama campaign a narrative . Before Clinton spoke , no one in his or her right mind had a rationale for keeping Obama as president . After he spoke , they did .
Trust me , Clinton said seductively , give the kid another chance . Tomorrow 's gon na be better . Like Moses , Old Bill told us the greatest risk would be stopping now , in the desert , and turning back from the Promised Land . Over 2000 years , that 's proved a powerful narrative .
But Clinton did n't just try to rebrand the Democrats as the party of economic responsibility . He tried to rebrand it as his Democratic Party . High above the Charlotte convention center , Bill planted a Clinton flag .
There is a war going on for the soul of the Democratic Party . Obama 's differences with Clinton are n't just personal . Is the 2016 Democratic Party going to reflect Wednesday night , Bill Clinton and New Democrats ? Or Thursday night , Barack Obama and Old Liberals ?
Hillary Clinton would like to know . She is waiting in the wings .
Watching Biden speak refreshes memories of George W. Bush crossing the oratorical high wire . We hold our breath when Biden talks , awaiting the possibility of an exciting rhetorical plunge from a great height to concrete .
Biden made it all the way across , performing with sincerity and dignity . He demonstrated the gift he gives his president and his country ; a fierce , bulldog-like loyalty . Biden told us of his president 's courage , which was evident : Obama gave Biden a live microphone .
Biden gave a better speech than his boss and advanced an important argument : Obama is the Man of Steel , Biden told us , a narrative introduced the previous night by Obama 's former chief of staff , Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel . Team Obama must have research telling them it is hard for the Romney campaign to trump Obama 's commander in chief credential . Within a week , four American diplomatic personnel would be lost in Benghazi , Libya . Biden and Emanuel were prescient .
The spiritual and intellectual poverty of the closing speech of the convention must have been a disappointment , even for Team Obama .
Whether you are a Republican or a Democrat , in a time of crisis , you want your president to lead .
Obama seemed incapable of it . At his best , the Secretariat of the '08 campaign performed like an old and tired contender . At his worst , he appealed to the worst in us , continuing to polarize us for his own political gain .
When a contributor is on air at CNN , viewing a small screen hung under a TV camera , it is hard to appreciate the big-monitor experience most Americans enjoy in their living rooms , bedrooms or man caves . A few days after Charlotte , at home , I finally saw the Obama speech on my big screen . I was surprised at what I had missed .
Obama 's eyes , during his moment in the light , were heavy and vacant . The Believer did not believe . He was reading his speech with a touch of sadness . I was struck that Obama thought less of himself for stooping to this characterless politics , something he once imagined beneath him . Four years ago , all of us , especially the speaker , hoped he could be a better man .
As a fan of political theater , I 've said that an Obama speech is like sex : The worst ever is still excellent . After Thursday night , I 've changed my mind . Sex is better , perhaps because it is less frequent .
In a country where nearly 60 % of Americans believe we are headed in the wrong direction , it does n't take a Harvard lawyer , Republican or Democrat , to see what a winning campaign looks like : It offers a new direction . Obama proposed none of that .
After Clinton 's speech , I commented on CNN that `` I would recommend to my friend Paul ( Begala ) here , tonight when everybody leaves , lock the doors . You do n't have to come back tomorrow . This convention is done . '' Team Obama may wish they had done so . In the short term , Obama energized his base and reminded Americans what they liked about him four years ago . Any modest bounce Obama enjoys from this convention , however , will be not because he converted a new audience but because he revved up his dispirited voters .
With his little speech about nothing , Obama made the case for a new president better than Mitt Romney did .
Politics is about opportunities taken and moments of greatness missed .
In Charlotte , Clinton passed the New Democrat cup to Obama . Why did the Old Democrat forsake him , skipping the opportunity to take on government spending and pick up Clinton voters in the center ?
No doubt , there is an animosity between the two men and Obama wants his own time in the sun , not Clinton 's reflected glory . The obvious reason , however , may be that the two men do n't agree on government .
Obama , ever the romantic community-organizer and liberal dreamer , has a more European worldview than the pragmatic Arkansas governor who had run a state before he became president . Clinton 's endorsement is valuable to this president precisely because , on economics , Obama is much further left than his Democratic predecessor .
Even when saying nothing , Obama could not resist boasting , of all things , about his modesty .
Obama told us , `` I 'm far more mindful of my own failings , knowing exactly what Lincoln meant when he said , ' I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go . ' ''
This man of limited accomplishment told us he was as humble as Abraham Lincoln .
For a moment , I feared he would also ask , `` Is n't Michelle 's husband terrific ? ''
On rare occasions , I 've seen races like this one : A candidate who can not conceivably get elected runs against an opponent who ca n't possibly beat him . The contest reduces itself to a tug-of-war . Moving an inch is gaining a mile . Eventually , in these campaigns , something yields .
This tug-of-war election has been stock-still since the primaries . Obama has made no case why he should be president the next four years . Romney has not explained why he would be better . Big , antipodal views still strain against each other , unyielding . We are torn between two incompatible visions of what this country should be .
This tension is becoming unsustainable . There is a growing chance the rope breaks . It may be when one candidate rises to his feet in debate and gives us the 2012 iteration of Reagan 's , `` I 'm paying for this microphone ! '' Or when a campaign , afraid of falling behind , speaks rashly . Or when an international crisis produces a rallying effect benefiting the incumbent , even when it is the president 's own vacillation that has emboldened our enemies .
This is how earthquakes happen , when nothing moves and tension builds . Then , suddenly , tectonic plates collide .
In this stalemate between the movable object and the resistible force , something soon has to give . | fb3df21ae4ea53be | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | National Review | http://www.nationalreview.com/article/443751/obama-farewell-address-self-loving | No, You Didn’t | 2017-01-11 | politics | The president is leaving the same way he came in : with a great deal of vague and fruity talk about “ hope and change , ” very little of genuine interest , and an undercurrent of bitterness communicating his unshakeable belief that the American people just simply are not up to the task of fully appreciating History ’ s unique gift to them in the person of Barack Obama .
And he is so terribly disappointed in us ! Having just endured the electorate ’ s rejection of his party and his mode of politics with the election of Donald Trump , and grimly considering the likely dismantling of much of his executive-order legacy , President Obama gave a speech about how our democracy has failed and why . You ’ ll be something less than shocked to learn that his belief is that Americans are so beguiled and befouled by racism and prejudice that we failed to cultivate the sacred spark the Promethean president handed down to us .
Oh , and we watch too much Fox News and read too many Facebook posts from that right-wing uncle of myth and lore , which deprives us of a “ common baseline of facts . ”
Barack Obama ’ s sales pitch was threefold . ( His boasting about “ marriage equality ” suggests that he may have forgotten he ran against that , so he might need some reminding . ) First , he would end our expensive , bloody , and thankless campaign in Iraq and replace the assertive thinking behind it with a more sensitive and intelligent global stance that would raise America ’ s standing in the world and usher in a new era of peace , cooperation , and security . Second , he would turn his attention to domestic affairs , especially the vexing question of health care , which he proposed to rationalize through a single , large , complex package of legislation ( and subsequent regulations ) that would transcend ideology and be driven instead by disinterested empiricism in the pursuit of pragmatic and effective outcomes . Third — third because the crisis that precipitated it came relatively late in the electoral season — he would lift the country up from the recession that followed the 2008–09 financial crisis , relying on a series of “ investments ” in infrastructure projects , renewable-energy research , and the like , steering clear of the policies that had for years disproportionately enriched the wealthy , especially large institutional investors and their executives , structuring his policies in a way that would maximize benefits to the middle class and those aspiring to it .
The president did not spend a great deal of time revisiting every jot and tittle of his record in office last night , and neither will we . Historians will have a great deal to say about it , but we expect their judgment to be severe . As commander-in-chief , President Obama effectively lost the peace in Iraq , made a series of missteps that enabled the rise and the flourishing of the Islamic State ( the so-called junior varsity of Islamic terrorism ) , helped turn Syria into a humanitarian disaster with his empty threats and then turned the mess over to the gentle offices of Moscow and Tehran , and failed to take seriously the threat of continued jihadist terror in the United States — all those episodes of workplace violence and that ferocious pack of “ lone wolves ” that has been so horribly active that we are becoming inured to its predations .
Historians will have a great deal to say about Obama ’ s presidency , and we expect their judgment to be severe .
At home , President Obama ’ s signature health-care program is a shambles , deservedly unpopular across the political spectrum , a resounding legislative and administrative failure that may well be undone early in the Trump administration . The economy is , to be sure , in much better shape than it was when Obama took office ; how much credit his policies deserve for that might be indicated in some part by the fact that employment and wage improvements were most robust toward the end of his tenure rather than near the beginning or middle , suggesting the possibility that such measures as the stimulus bill either did very little to improve them or actually delayed organic recovery . Many more words will be written about this , but they will be in the main more expansive considerations of his failures and their causes than odes to his intelligent leadership , which never has been much in evidence .
Last night was billed as a forward-looking speech , but it was in no small part an evening of recriminations : Not only are those who resist his agenda racists , who care only about “ people who look like them , ” he also went so far as to argue that people who disagree with him about climate change are un-American , acting in a way that is contrary to the spirit of the country . His illiberalism in this matter is really quite remarkable , although perhaps that should not be surprising : Even as he paid lip service to free speech and the value of dissent , his colleagues and his attorney general are working to sue , and perhaps prosecute , those with nonconforming views on global warming . He further proposed adopting new norms in media and political discourse that would suffocate criticism of his party , its policies , and its philosophy .
So , what is to be done ? He proposed rewriting campaign-finance laws and redrawing congressional districts to make it easier to elect Democrats . ( He did not put it exactly that way , but that is what he proposed . ) This , according to the man whose administration weaponized the IRS for political purposes and whose executive usurpations were repeatedly thrown out by the courts , is necessary because Congress is “ dysfunctional. ” For the imperial executive to argue for weakening the democratically elected legislative branch in the course of a speech purportedly dedicated to revitalizing our democracy was quite something .
His short encomium to his wife was excellently said . “ You have made me proud , and you have made the country proud , ” he said . At least he made her , finally , proud of the country as well .
Barack Obama will remain in office for a little while still , but we might reasonably consider last night ’ s speech the end of the Obama presidency . That is because in spite of serving his time during a historical era jam-packed with events — in the Middle East , in China , in Russia ( which has grown larger ) , in the United States , enterprises of great pitch and moment — Barack Obama has spent eight years under the misconception that the job of the president consists mainly in the making of speeches . And for a man who rose to national attention on the basis of his oratory , he has said relatively little that is memorable . That is because he has relatively little to say , being a man who brought no new ideas or insights to the office , only a pointlessly grandiose sense of his own specialness . He is a man who stood astride History muttering “ You ’ re welcome , you ingrates . ” | fkJ1ObtLupwfLBeH | 2 | Sports | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
death_penalty | American Spectator | http://spectator.org/dont-kill-the-death-penalty-in-california/ | Don’t Kill the Death Penalty in California | 2016-08-28 | Capital Punishment And Death Penalty, Justice | Opponents of California ’ s death penalty have been highly successful at thwarting executions since the state resumed executions in 1992 after a 20-year hiatus . Their latest ploy is Proposition 62 , which would repeal the death penalty and resentence death row inmates to life without parole . Measure sponsors argue that capital punishment presents the risk of executing an innocent person , but also state that California ’ s death penalty is “ simply unworkable . ”
That ’ s a cheeky stand , coming from the corner that has been throwing monkey wrenches into the criminal justice system to subvert death penalty law . Over the years , appellate attorneys have introduced endless time-sucking , frivolous appeals that have jammed the courts , largely on technical grounds that have nothing to do with guilt or innocence , e.g. , the trial lawyer wasn ’ t top-drawer ; the defendant ’ s parents were abusive ; lethal injection may not be painless .
In 2006 , lawyers argued that convicted torturer-murderer Michael Morales might feel pain in his last moments because of the state ’ s three-drug lethal injection protocol . A federal judge granted their appeal and effectively froze the capital punishment pipeline for a decade .
California Gov . Jerry Brown had pledged to implement the death penalty , even though he personally opposes it , yet his corrections department was happy to sit back and let the law not work for years . In exasperation , the tough-on-crime Criminal Justice Legal Foundation filed a lawsuit on behalf of the families of murder victims of two death row inmates to prod the state into developing a drug protocol that should pass muster with the U.S. Supreme Court . California Attorney General Kamala Harris , who also said she would uphold California ’ s law despite her personal objections , tried to block the suit on the dubious grounds that the victims ’ families “ lack standing. ” She failed . The families won . Sacramento finally devised a one-drug protocol , which should go into effect after a vetting period expected to end soon .
So now , just as the obstructionists are about to run out of string , they have put a measure on the November ballot to end California ’ s death penalty .
Anti-death penalty activist Matt Cherry of Death Penalty Focus told the San Francisco Chronicle editorial board that capital punishment “ has failed in California. ” Since 1992 , he added , “ just 13 people have been executed , ” which he noted constitutes about 1 percent of the 930 individuals sentenced to death since 1978 . It ’ s like an extorting mobster telling an honest businessman that it no longer pays to work hard and follow the rules : “ You might as well just toss me the keys to the shop and save yourself some heartache . ”
In their ballot argument , Prop 62 supporters warn that when executions resume , California risks executing an innocent person — someone like Carlos DeLuna , who was executed in 1989 before an “ independent investigation later proved his innocence. ” Problem : Texas executed DeLuna . Prop 62 ’ s backers can ’ t name an exonerated individual from California ’ s post-1978 death row because there aren ’ t any .
In 2012 , I asked Gov . Brown whether he had considered appointing a panel to recommend death row inmates deserving of a commutation . Brown personally remains a death penalty opponent , so his answer is instructive : “ As attorney general , I think the representation was good . I think people have gotten exquisite due process in the state of California . It goes on for 20 or 25 years , and to think that they ’ ve missed anything like they have in some other states , I have not seen any evidence of it . None . I know people say , ‘ Oh , there have been all these innocent people. ’ Well , I have not seen one name on death row that ’ s been told to me . ”
At a different editorial board meeting , former San Quentin State Prison Warden Jeanne Woodford , Ana Zamora of Death Penalty Focus and Berkeley law professor Elisabeth Semel vigorously defended all of the high jinks played by anti-death penalty lawyers . They oppose both the death penalty and Prop 66 , which is supposed to streamline executions .
Why does it take a year to process an appeal based on a convicted killer ’ s childhood ? Why doesn ’ t the Habeas Corpus Resource Center focus on worthy appeals and stop jamming up the courts with frivolous paper — and then complain about court backlogs ? Why have opponents gone after the state for getting lethal injection drugs from compounding pharmacies or other states , after opponents made it impossible to secure drugs from once-legal sources ? The answer to everything : Defense attorneys have to do it because “ it ’ s the law . ”
If California voters should decide to repeal capital punishment , do not believe for one minute they won ’ t use every dirty trick to undermine life without parole . And they ’ ll tell you they have to because “ it ’ s the law . ” | d728afdda7c8f884 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
environment | USA TODAY | http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/09/04/president-obama-china-united-states-xi-jinping/89862210/ | Obama downplays alleged diplomatic snub by China | 2016-09-04 | environment | BEIJING — President Obama tried to downplay talk of an orchestrated diplomatic snub by China on Sunday as leaders from the G-20 major world economies began a summit in the east Chinese city of Hangzhou .
Speaking ahead of the opening ceremony on Sunday afternoon , Obama said people should not “ over-crank ” a series of heated altercations between U.S. and Chinese officials in the 24 hours since he arrived in the communist country .
`` I think this time maybe ... the seams are showing a little more than usual in terms of some of the negotiations and jostling that takes place behind the scenes , '' he said . `` And , in fairness , when delegations travel to the United States , sometimes there are issues about our security procedures and protocols that they 're aggravated with but do n't always get reported on . ''
Tensions over protocol began almost as soon as Air Force One touched down in Hangzhou on Saturday . No mobile staircase was prepared for the U.S. president to exit the front door of the plane , forcing him to leave via the lower back door , which has its own stairs .
He also was the only national leader not to be provided with red carpet on arrival .
Obama said it was not the first time “ things like this had happened , ” saying they have also occurred whilst visiting close allies .
`` Part of it is we also have a much bigger footprint than a lot of other countries , '' he said . `` And we 've got a lot of planes and a lot of helicopters and a lot of cars and a lot of guys , and if you 're a host country , sometimes it may feel a little bit much . ''
Amid struggle for Syria deal , Obama and Putin to meet Monday
Obama insisted that the tensions did not detract `` from the broader scope of the relationship . As we saw yesterday , President Xi and I continued what has been a historic joint project to elevate climate change issues . The bilateral discussions that we had yesterday were extremely productive and continue to point to big areas of cooperation . When I bring up issues like human rights , there are some tensions there that perhaps do n't take place when President Xi meets with other leaders , but that 's part of our job , that 's part of what we do . ''
The comments came after Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping spent several hours on Saturday in wide-ranging bilateral talks , touching on the environment , the South China Sea , protectionism and human rights .
The two parties , the world ’ s biggest carbon emitters , announced they would formally join the Paris Climate Change Agreement .
“ Where countries like China and the United States are prepared to show leadership and to lead by example , it is possible for us to create a world that is more secure , more prosperous , and more free than the one that was left for us , ” Obama said in announcing America 's adoption of the agreement .
Yet despite this and other points of agreement , there was plenty of evidence of tension .
Chinese officials blocked U.S. travelling media from watching the president disembark , shouting “ this is our country ” at a U.S. diplomat when she tried to argue this was not the norm for presidential arrivals .
Five contentious issues for Obama and Turkey 's president to discuss Sunday
National Security Advisor Susan E. Rice and her deputy , Benjamin J. Rhode , were also blocked from approaching President Obama on the tarmac . Later she said the Chinese had done things that “ weren ’ t anticipated . ”
The tussles continued as the Chinese reportedly cut American press access to the bilateral events . When Obama and Xi went for a walk along Hangzhou 's famous West Lake in the evening , the press pack was reduced from six to one , the Washington Post reported .
At the same time as playing down the tensions , the president also defended media norms in the U.S. and other Western nations .
`` We think it 's important that the press have access to the work that we 're doing , that they have the ability to answer questions , '' Obama told members of the media on Saturday. `` And we do n't leave our values and ideals behind when we take these trips . '' | fOlzZrdnIxHZTlRc | 1 | Foreign Policy | -0.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | Reuters | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-impeachment/trump-blasts-censure-idea-as-house-panel-readies-impeachment-report-vote-idUSKBN1Y71LP | Trump blasts censure idea as House panel readies impeachment report vote | 2019-12-04 | Donald Trump, US House, House Intelligence Committee, White House, Politics | WASHINGTON ( ███ ) - U.S. President Donald Trump solicited foreign interference to boost his re-election chances , undermined national security and ordered an “ unprecedented ” campaign to obstruct Congress , Democrats said on Tuesday in a report that lawmakers will use as the basis of any formal impeachment charges .
In the 300-page report , Democrats leading the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee leveled allegations of sweeping abuse of power by Trump , saying he used U.S. military aid and the prospect of a White House visit to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to undertake investigations that would benefit Trump politically .
Republican Trump , who will stand for re-election in November 2020 , denies any wrongdoing and calls the inquiry a hoax .
The heart of the impeachment probe is whether Trump misused the power of his office to pressure Ukraine to investigate the son of former Vice President Joe Biden , a leading contender for the Democratic nomination to face Trump in the 2020 election .
The public release of the report is a milestone in a weeks-long investigation into whether Trump should be removed from office over his dealings on Ukraine . It summarizes hours of private testimony and televised hearings in which former government officials described a months-long effort to pressure Ukraine to carry out the investigations sought by Trump in July .
The report ’ s completions hands the process over to the House Judiciary Committee , which will now be responsible for drafting actual articles of impeachment should lawmakers decide to move forward . That panel will begin proceedings on Wednesday .
In the report , Democrats detail accusations that Trump obstructed their investigation , including refusing to provide documents and testimony from his top advisers , unsuccessful attempts to block career government officials from testifying and intimidation of witnesses .
The Democrats argue that “ damage ... will be long-lasting and potentially irrevocable if the President ’ s ability to stonewall Congress goes unchecked . ”
Making their case to move forward with impeachment , the report said that “ any future President will feel empowered to resist an investigation into their own wrongdoing , malfeasance , or corruption , and the result will be a nation at far greater risk of all three . ”
In a news conference , House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff described Trump as a “ president who believes that he is beyond indictment , beyond impeachment , beyond any form of accountability and indeed above the law . ”
Trump , who is in London for a NATO summit , repeated accusations that Democrats are using the impeachment process to engage in a politically-motivated attack seeking to undo the results of the 2016 presidential election by removing him from office . Opinion polls show Americans are bitterly divided over impeachment .
White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said Democrats had conducted a “ one-sided sham process ” that had failed to produce any evidence of wrongdoing by Trump .
“ This report reflects nothing more than their frustrations . Chairman Schiff ’ s report reads like the ramblings of a basement blogger straining to prove something when there is evidence of nothing , ” Grisham said in a statement .
The 300 page Trump-Ukraine Impeachment Inquiry Report is seen after being released by the U.S. House Intelligence Committee in Washington , U.S. , December 3 , 2019 . ███/Jim Bourg
Lawmakers and the public have heard testimony from current and former officials that military aid was withheld from Ukraine and that a White House meeting with Zelenskiy was conditioned on Kiev announcing a probe into Biden , as well as one into a debunked conspiracy theory about Ukrainian interference in the 2016 U.S. election .
The report was approved by the intelligence panel on a partisan vote on Tuesday evening . The vote was 13-9 . It was not immediately clear how each member voted .
If the full House eventually votes to approve formal impeachment charges , a trial would be held in the Republican-led U.S. Senate , where a two-thirds majority of those present would be required to convict Trump and remove him from office .
The report also brought to light new allegations by Democrats about phone calls between Trump ’ s Republican allies .
The report suggested wrongdoing within the executive branch extended beyond Trump .
The report said many of Trump ’ s “ closest subordinates and advisors , ” including White House acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney , Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Energy Rick Perry aided Trump ’ s efforts to pressure Ukraine and withheld information from Congress . Senior administration officials declined to testify in the proceedings .
The report cited dozens of previously unreported phone records of contact between Trump ’ s personal lawyer , Rudy Giuliani , Giuliani ’ s associates , the House Intelligence Committee ’ s top Republican , Devin Nunes , and the White House ’ s Office of Management and Budget .
The phone records were obtained from AT & T , the report says .
An AT & T statement acknowledged the company complied with a request .
“ Like all companies , we are required by law to provide information to government and law enforcement agencies , ” the statement said . “ In all cases , we ensure that requests for assistance are valid and that we act in compliance with the law . ”
A spokesman for Nunes did not respond to a request for comment .
The report also sought to push back at a frequent defense of trump by Republican lawmakers - that the political novice was simply doing what all presidents do .
“ The President ’ s misconduct was not an isolated occurrence , nor was it the product of a naïve president , ” the report argues .
Republicans , in an advance rebuttal report released on Monday , said Democrats had not established that Trump had committed an impeachable offense .
Trump and other Republicans have suggested that Biden and his son Hunter Biden , who was on the board of a Ukrainian energy company , should be investigated for corruption . The Bidens have denied wrongdoing . | 9b8f72d3a512bdbf | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
china | CNN Digital | https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/23/china/china-position-political-settlement-ukraine-intl-hnk/index.html | China calls for Russia-Ukraine ceasefire as claims to neutrality questioned | 2023-02-25 | China, Ukraine War, Russia, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Ukraine | Hong Kong CNN —China has reiterated its calls for a political settlement to the Ukraine conflict on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion, as Beijing comes under increasing pressure from the United States and its allies over its growing partnership with Moscow.In a newly released position paper Friday, China’s Foreign Ministry called for a resumption of peace talks, an end to unilateral sanctions, and stressed its opposition to the use of nuclear weapons – a stance Chinese leader Xi Jinping communicated to Western leaders last year.The 12-point document is part of Beijing’s latest efforts to present itself as a neutral peace broker, as it struggles to balance its “no-limits” relationship with Moscow and fraying ties with the West as the war drags on.“Conflict and war benefit no one. All parties must stay rational and exercise restraint, avoid fanning the flames and aggravating tensions, and prevent the crisis from deteriorating further or even spiraling out of control,” the paper said.Beijing’s claim to neutrality has been severely undermined by its refusal to acknowledge the nature of the conflict – it has so far avoided calling it an “invasion” – and its diplomatic and economic support for Moscow.Western officials have also raised concerns that China may be considering providing Russia with lethal military assistance, an accusation denied by Beijing.Russian President Vladimir Putin meets Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China, in Moscow on Feb. 22, 2022. Cao Yang/Xinhua/Getty Images/FILEThe policy document reiterates many of China’s standard talking points, which include urging both sides to resume peace talks. “Dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solution to the Ukraine crisis,” it said, adding that China will play a “constructive role,” without offering details.And despite claiming the “sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be effectively upheld,” the document fails to acknowledge Russia’s violation of Ukrainian sovereignty.Moscow and Kyiv have both showed some interest in the position paper, but their responses on Friday also emphasized the enormous obstacles to dialogue.The Russian Foreign Ministry said it “highly appreciates the sincere desire” of China to contribute to settling the conflict, and added that Moscow is open to achieving the goals of its so-called special military operation through political and diplomatic means, including the recognition of “new territorial realities” – something which Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has sworn never to concede.Zelensky appeared open to speaking with China, telling a Friday news conference that he was pleased China was beginning to talk about how to end Ukraine’s conflict with Russia – but asked what steps might follow Beijing’s words. He said that China talked about territorial integrity in general terms but had not specified any country, adding that Ukraine needed to work on these issues with China.“It doesn’t say whose territorial integrity but our country’s territorial integrity has been violated,” Zelensky said.When asked how he would bring countries geopolitically removed from Ukraine onto his side, Zelensky said: “As far as I know, China respects territorial integrity, historically, has respected it and therefore must do whatever they can for the Russian Federation to leave our territory because that would mean respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.”Thinly veiled criticismMuch of the language used in the document appears targeted at the West. In a thinly veiled criticism of the United States, the paper said, “Cold War mentality” should be abandoned.“The security of a region should not be achieved by strengthening or expanding military blocs. The legitimate security interests and concerns of all countries must be taken seriously and addressed properly,” it said, apparently echoing Moscow’s view the West provoked the war through the expansion of NATO.It also appears to criticize the wide-ranging economic sanctions imposed by the US and other Western countries on Russia. “Unilateral sanctions and maximum pressure cannot solve the issue; they only create new problems,” it said. “Relevant countries should stop abusing unilateral sanctions and ‘long-arm jurisdiction’ against other countries, so as to do their share in deescalating the Ukraine crisis.”The paper was swiftly criticized by American officials, with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan saying the war “could end tomorrow if Russia stopped attacking Ukraine and withdrew its forces.”“My first reaction to it is that it could stop at point one, which is to respect the sovereignty of all nations,” Sullivan told CNN. “Ukraine wasn’t attacking Russia. NATO wasn’t attacking Russia. The United States wasn’t attacking Russia. This was a war of choice waged by Putin.”In Beijing, the ambassador of the European Union to China, Jorge Toledo, told reporters at a briefing that China’s position paper was not a peace proposal, adding that the EU is “studying the paper closely,” according to Reuters.Ukraine, meanwhile, called the position paper “a good sign” but urged China to do more.“China should do everything in its power to stop the war and restore peace in Ukraine and urge Russia to withdraw its troops,” Ukraine’s Chargé d’Affaires to China Zhanna Leshchynska said at the same briefing in Beijing.“In neutrality, China should talk to both sides: Russia and Ukraine, and now we can see China is not talking to Ukraine,” she said, noting that Kyiv was not consulted before the release of the paper.The position paper was first discussed last week by top diplomat Wang Yi at a security conference in Munich, as he attempted to cast Beijing as a responsible negotiator for peace during a diplomatic charm offensive in Europe.Wang visited Moscow as the final stop of his European tour, and met with Putin on Wednesday.Putin, who welcomed Wang with outstretched arms as the Chinese diplomat entered the meeting room, said relations between Russia and China were “reaching new milestones.”“Russian-Chinese relations are developing as we planned in previous years. Everything is moving forward and developing,” Putin told reporters as he sat beside Wang. “Cooperation in the international arena between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China, as we have repeatedly said, is very important for stabilizing the international situation.”Wang said the two countries “often face crisis and chaos, but there are always opportunities in a crisis.”“This requires us to identify changes more voluntarily and respond to the changes more actively to further strengthen our comprehensive strategic partnership,” Wang said. | 1332b641205a7611 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
republican_party | Breitbart News | https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2020/01/03/tucker-carlson-washington-wanted-war-iran-decades/ | Tucker Carlson: ‘Washington Has Wanted War with Iran for Decades — They May Have Finally Gotten It’ | 2020-01-03 | Tucker Carlson, Donald Trump, Qasem Soleimani, Iran, Iraq, Republican Party, Politics | Friday during his show ’ s opening monologue , Fox News Channel ’ s Tucker Carlson warned the U.S. airstrike that resulted in the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani could lead the United States to a showdown against Iran .
According to the “ Tucker Carlson Tonight ” host , such a war would defy the will of most Americans and contradict statements President Donald Trump made during his successful 2016 campaign . However , some in Washington have been championing a war against Iran and may continue to push the country in that direction , he explained .
CARLSON : Yesterday , as you know , an American airstrike killed an Iranian general called Qasem Soleimani . For the past 21 years , Soleimani commanded the Quds Force , which is responsible for paramilitary operations outside the national borders of Iran . In that role , Soleimani was believed to be a patron of the Shia militias that regularly attacked American troops during the Iraq war . He was also a major player in Syria during their civil war , as well as in the campaign against ISIS . Though he was little known to the American public , Soleimani was among the most famous living figures in Iran , and also among the most powerful — according to some accounts , second only to the supreme leader of that country .
The Iranian government has already vowed to extract what it has called “ forceful revenge ” against the United States , in response to his death . Now , whether that will happen , and what form it might take , remains to be seen . But it ’ s no exaggeration to say that by the next time this show airs , we could be engaged in a conflict — a real conflict — with Iran .
From Iran ’ s perspective , we ’ re already there . If Iranian forces killed the chairman of our joint chiefs of staff , for example , would you consider it an act of war ? You would . So what happened yesterday wasn ’ t just another symbolic bombing sortie , of the kind we ’ ve seen in Syria . It was a pivot point . Neocons in Washington understood that immediately .
“ Congratulations to all involved in eliminating Qasem Soleimani , ” tweeted disgraced former National Security Advisor John Bolton . “ Hope this is the first step to regime change in Tehran. ” End quote .
That , of course , has been the neocon objective all along . The president though has for years has opposed that objective . In a statement , he saidthat regime change and war aren ’ t the point at all .
TRUMP : We took action last night to stop a war . We did not take action to start a war .
We do not seek regime change . However , the Iranian regime ’ s aggression in the region , including the use of proxy fighters to destabilize its neighbors , must end , and it must end now .
If Americans anywhere are threatened , we have all of those targets already fully identified , and I am ready and prepared to take whatever action is necessary .
CARLSON : According to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo , meanwhile , Soleimani was killed to forestall planned attacks on Americans . But as he later conceded , those attacks would have occurred in the Middle East , not here in America :
POMPEO : President Trump ’ s decision to remove Qasem Soleimani from the battlefield saved American lives . There ’ s no doubt about that . He was actively plotting in the region to take actions , a big action as he described it , that would have put dozens if not hundreds of American lives at risk .
And last night was the time that we needed to strike to make sure that this imminent attack that he was working actively was disrupted .
BERMAN : Was there any imminent threat to the U.S. homeland ?
POMPEO : These were threats that were located in the region .
CARLSON : “ Threats in the region. ” If you don ’ t live in Washington , here ’ s a translation : That would be in hostile Middle Eastern countries , places where American troops would never be in the first place , were it not for the insistent demands of non-geniuses like Max Boot and John Bolton . But nevermind . No one in Washington is in the mood for big-picture questions right now , questions — the obvious ones like : Is Iran really the greatest threat we face ? And , who ’ s actually benefiting from this ? And , why are we continuing to ignore the decline of our own country , in favor of jumping into another quagmire , from which there ’ s no obvious exit ? If we ’ re still in Afghanistan 19 sad years later , what makes us think there ’ s a quick way out of Iran ? And so on . Nobody ’ s thinking like that right now .
Instead , chest-beaters like Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska make the usual warlike noises — the ones they always make . “ This is very simple , ” Sasse wrote in a statement last night . “ General Soleimani is dead because he was an evil bastard who murdered Americans , ” which is essentially true . Soleimani was a bad guy . But does that make killing him , quote , “ very simple ” ? Of course not . Nothing about life , and certainly not about killing , is ever “ very simple. ” Any politician who tells you otherwise is dumb or lying .
Yes , Soleimani was linked to the deaths of Americans . But Mexico and China are also linked to deaths of Americans . Each has flooded our country with narcotics , from which tens of thousands of Americans die every single year . So does that mean we get to bomb Oaxaca ? Can we start assassinating generals in the People ’ s Liberation Army ? Maybe Ben Sasse will call for that too . Like a lot of former consultants , he ’ s a very tough character .
But before we enter into a single new war , a criterion that ought to be met . Our leaders should be required to explain how the conflict will make the United States richer and more secure . There are a lot of bad people in this world . We can ’ t kill them all . It isn ’ t our job . Our government exists to defend and promote the interests of American citizens . Period . That ’ s why we have a government . Has the killing of Soleimani done that ? Maybe . No one ’ s in Washington is explaining how . Instead , like Ben Sasse , they ’ re telling us what an awful person he was . He clearly was . So ? That ’ s irrelevant .
Meanwhile , it ’ s pretty clear that things could start to move in the wrong direction pretty quickly . We ’ re praying they don ’ t but they could . How do we know ? Because we ’ ve seen it before .
We ’ ve fought quite a number of wars in and around the Middle East in recent decades . We attacked Saddam Hussein twice , as you know . In the end , we killed him . We invaded and occupied Afghanistan . We toppled Mommar Qaddafi in Libya . We fought ISIS in Syria and then stuck around afterward for some reason . We ’ ve joined humanitarian missions in Lebanon and Somalia . Our special forces have been quietly fighting in Yemen , Pakistan , Niger , who knows where else . Many other places .
In every single place , the conflicts have turned out to be longer , bloodier , and more expensive than we were promised . The benefits — often they been non-existent : A lot of lectures about how the people we ’ re killing deserve to die . I hope that makes you feel better .
What do the American people feel about all of this , no that anyone cares ? It ’ s too soon to know what they think of killing Soleimani , but just five months ago , after months of supposed Iranian provocation , Americans didn ’ t seem to view Iran as a major concern . Not even close .
In a Gallup poll last August , just 18 % of Americans said they backed military force to shut down Iran ’ s nuclear program . Seventy-eight percent said they preferred diplomacy and economic sanctions alone .
So in democracy you would think this would matter . But as is so often the case , the preferences of actual Americans don ’ t enter the equation . They ’ re immaterial . In 2016 , Donald Trump ran on a promise of fewer foreign adventures considering the ones we embarked upon didn ’ t go very well . He vowed instead to focus on America ’ s problems here at home , which are growing . Against the odds , he won that election probably because of that promise . But ever since , Washington , including some around the president , have been committed to ignoring the results of that election and its implications . Washington has wanted war with Iran for decades . They have been working toward it . They may have finally gotten it . | 91bc84710069fc25 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
housing_and_homelessness | Fox Online News | https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-newsom-california-homeless-crisis-federal-intervention | Trump warns Newsom: If California homeless crisis persists, feds 'will get involved' | housing_and_homelessness | President Trump issued a warning to California Gov . Gavin Newsom on Wednesday , threatening federal intervention if Newsom is unable to solve his state 's homeless crisis .
`` Governor Gavin N has done a really bad job on taking care of the homeless population in California . If he can ’ t fix the problem , the Federal Govt . will get involved ! '' Trump tweeted .
The Golden State has led the nation in the number of homeless people with an estimated total of over 129,972 in January 2018 , according to a Department of Housing and Urban Development [ HUD ] report . Just over 68 percent of the homeless population in California , the most populous U.S. state , is also categorized as unsheltered .
Earlier this month , Newsom blamed the Trump administration over rising homelessness in cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco , saying the White House was taking no action on `` Housing First , '' the governor 's approach to solving homelessness . The proposal would involve getting people in homes first , and potentially adding job-skills training or addiction services later .
`` They 're not serious about this issue , '' Newsom said . `` They 're playing politics with it ... expect nothing but division coming from the folks at HUD and the Trump administration . ''
On Christmas day , Trump retweeted Fox Nation host Tomi Lahren who responded to Newsom 's earlier comment , blasting him for his lack of accountability .
`` Take accountability , Gavin , '' Lahren wrote . `` This is your state and you and your democratic cohorts created this mess . You can ’ t blame @ realDonaldTrump forever . Step away from the hair gel and get to work ! ! ! ''
Trump 's latest criticism of the governor came a month after he attacked Newsom for doing a `` terrible job of forest management '' as wildfires raged across California .
He also put pressure on Newsom by suggesting there wo n't be any more federal funding to battle the wildfires unless the state improved its forest management system .
Earlier this week , Newsom released a video supporting Trump 's impeachment .
`` Trump has spent 2019 attacking our institutions and fellow Americans . Locking kids in cages . Sucking up to the NRA . Trying to take your healthcare away . Giving tax cuts to the wealthy . And denying climate change , '' he wrote . `` So we 're leaving him in the dust . '' | Asps7SfakSKVrxTS | 2 | California | -0.7 | Donald Trump | 0.3 | San Francisco | -0.2 | null | null | null | null | |
immigration | CBS News | https://www.cbsnews.com/news/thousands-of-unaccompanied-migrant-children-could-be-detained-indefinitely/ | Thousands of unaccompanied migrant children could be detained indefinitely | immigration | An unprecedented number of unaccompanied migrant children are at risk of spending the rest of their childhoods in federal custody , ███ learned in an exclusive interview with the head of the Office of Refugee Resettlement ( ORR ) , the agency that cares for these children .
The federal government is required to pursue `` prompt and continuous efforts toward family reunification '' of unaccompanied migrant children , according to a landmark court settlement , but for thousands of kids in ORR care , that reunion may never happen .
`` Unfortunately , I have well over 4,000 of those children in my care at this time at the Office of Refugee Resettlement , '' the director , Jonathan Hayes , told ███ in June . `` So conceivably someone could come into our care at 15 years old and not have an identifiable sponsor in the United States and remain with us for a few years . ''
On their 18th birthdays , many of the children will be taken from ORR 's youth holding facilities , referred to as shelters , to adult detention centers operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) .
The number of children in this group has risen sharply in recent years , an `` alarming '' and `` deeply concerning '' trend , according to three former agency officials who spoke with ███ .
Children in ORR custody are labeled internally as belonging to one of four groups : Category One children have an identified parent or legal guardian — referred to as a sponsor — in the U.S. ; Category Two kids may end up with a relative ; Category Three children have potential sponsors who identify as distant family or close family friends .
The children who may be stuck in federal custody — Category Four — have no identifiable sponsor , according to the government .
As of June , Category Four children represented roughly one-third of all kids in ORR care , a far greater portion than in past years , according to former ORR Director Bob Carey , who served during the last two years of the Obama administration .
`` It 's deeply concerning . It 's a significant increase from what we saw during the Obama administration . I think the numbers were really small , I would think under 10 percent , '' said Carey , who is now a policy adviser at the nonprofit Exodus Institute .
A February 2016 report by the Government Accountability Office called the use of Category Four designations `` rare . ''
Another former ORR official , who asked not to be named , called the sudden change troubling . `` Having a third of kids be CAT 4 , there 's something that 's strange about that , '' the former ORR official said . `` That 's alarming to me , particularly because the system was never designed for long-term care . ''
A landmark 1997 court settlement known as the Flores Agreement requires the federal government to try to unite unaccompanied migrant children with relatives as quickly as possible . However , those efforts may be harder to fulfill than in previous years , according to Mark Greenberg , former Acting Assistant Secretary of the Administration for Children and Families , which oversees ORR . Greenberg said potential sponsors may be too afraid to come forward , a view shared by Carey and the other former ORR official .
All three said they 've long feared that the Trump administration 's immigration policy changes would have a `` chilling effect '' on potential sponsors . They cited the `` zero tolerance '' initiative that separated children from parents and a now-scrapped 2018 rule mandating that all members of a sponsors ' household be fingerprinted , as well as talk of raids by ICE .
Agency statistics show in fiscal year 2018 there was a dramatic drop in the percentage of children released from ORR care compared to previous years .
Texas attorney Ricardo de Anda represents a 9-year-old former Category Four boy who was separated from his father in May 2018 as a result of `` zero tolerance . '' They fled Guatemala after the father , an Evangelical Christian , had been `` brutally attacked and tortured by members of ( the 18th Street Gang ) because of ... preaching against a life of crime , '' according to a federal court complaint filed by de Anda .
The father was sent back to Guatemala and is in hiding , but has had maintained contact with U.S. attorneys . With no other family in the U.S. , the boy was classified as Category Four . During the next nine months he would be moved to four different ORR facilities , breaking his leg along the way , according to de Anda .
De Anda located a family who wanted to take the boy in , and introduced the boy 's parents to them through a series of video conferences and phone calls . The father signed forms at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala agreeing to designate the family as the boy 's sponsor .
ORR rejected the request , according to court documents . `` Per policy , we are not able to reunify any child with people that are not known by the family , '' the agency wrote to de Anda . That policy is known as the `` pre-existing relationship '' rule .
The boy sued and was allowed to go live with the sponsor family . ORR did not respond to questions about the boy 's case .
De Anda thinks more kids should get the opportunity afforded his client . He says the government should get rid of the Category Four classification altogether .
`` The reason children are stacking up in in these detention camps is because ORR does not allow qualified American families to take these children in , '' de Anda said . `` I know for a fact , just from my practice , how many Americans are willing to open their doors to take these children in . But the door is absolutely closed to them . And as a result these children are stacking up and they 're languishing . ''
For many kids in long-term ORR care , life can be particularly unstable , said attorney Neha Desai , Director of Immigration at the nonprofit National Center for Youth Law .
`` A couple of kids I can think of off the top of my head have been in our custody literally for years , bouncing up and down ( between various facilities ) , '' Desai said .
She said kids are often beholden to the case workers tasked with vetting their sponsors .
`` A case worker that is actively and creatively exploring options for a youth may be able to pursue a potential sponsor that another less zealous case manager may have never identified in the first place , '' Desai said .
Some Category Four children end up in ORR 's foster care system , but the majority remain in ORR 's network of nearly 170 shelters , some of which have been the subject of withering widespread criticism . The largest such shelter , in Homestead , Florida , was criticized in May by some of its own child residents in the form of testimonials filed in court . Children there described fear and anxiety over punishment for breaking seemingly small rules — showering too long , or hugging a sibling in violation of a no-touching policy .
An Amnesty International report released July 17 found at least 97 Category Four children in Homestead . The facility 's director said that for children without sponsors , the preference is for them to be `` repatriated , '' or deported , rather than risk that they remain in a non-relative 's home where trafficking could be a risk .
`` Amnesty International is alarmed by this rationale , which could result in children being unlawfully returned to harm in the countries that they fled , '' the report 's authors wrote .
As attorneys , advocates and former ORR officials track similar cases , they question how the system could be both seemingly overflowing with unplaceable kids , while also apparently becoming more efficient by the day .
Agency statistics show the average length of care for migrant children dropping from a high of 93 days in November 2018 to as low as 45 days in June .
`` I 'm not sure how those numbers are being calculated , because it does n't really make sense if some children are not being released to sponsors and they 're staying in our care , '' Carey said .
He and others said they want the agency to release statistics that differentiate between the average length of care for children who have been released , and the average length of care for all children currently in ORR custody .
ORR did not reply to questions seeking average statistics that differentiate between the average length of care for children who are released , and the average length of care for the agency 's entire population , including those who remain in custody .
ORR statistics show the overall population of unaccompanied migrant children has decreased from more than 13,000 in June to 10,100 as of Tuesday , amid an annual summertime decrease in immigration across the southern border . It is not clear if the number of children labeled Category Four has also decreased during that time .
`` They could be indefinitely in our custody which is not a healthy situation for children , not knowing what their future is , not having access to recreation , education , being separated from their family members . And these children are for the most part already traumatized , '' Carey said . | rO7QQubeFxr5ocFq | 0 | ICE | -0.2 | Immigration | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | |
justice | The Hill | http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/311448-left-right-prep-for-battle-royal-over-sessions | Left, right prep for battle royal over Sessions | 2016-12-22 | justice | Conservative and liberal groups are gearing up for a battle royal over Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions Jefferson ( Jeff ) Beauregard SessionsMedill dean 'deeply troubled by the vicious bullying and badgering ' of student journalists Trump has considered firing official who reported whistleblower complaint to Congress : report Northwestern student paper apologizes for coverage of 'traumatic ' Jeff Sessions event MORE that some activists say will be so explosive , it could even overshadow a fight over Donald Trump Donald John TrumpTrump faces high stakes in meeting with Erdoğan amid impeachment drama Democrats worry they do n't have right candidate to beat Trump Trump threatening to fire Mulvaney : report MORE ’ s pick for the Supreme Court .
Nearly 150 outside groups on the left mobilizing to stop Sessions have delivered a stern , no-compromise message to incoming Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer Charles ( Chuck ) Ellis SchumerDivided Supreme Court leans toward allowing Trump to end DACA Ilhan Omar blasts Pete King as an 'Islamophobe ' after he announces retirement : 'Good riddance ' Top Senate Dem : Officials timed immigration policy around 2020 election MORE ( D-N.Y. ) .
The groups plan to make Sessions ’ s past comments about race the defining element in his confirmation battle .
“ We ’ ve already been engaged with Schumer ’ s office with a real demand that he should stand up and fight and we will fight anyone who seeks to be an enabler for a racist overseeing our Justice Department , ” said Rashad Robinson , the executive director of Color of Change , which describes itself as the nation ’ s largest online racial justice organization .
“ People really have two choices . Either they ’ re OK with racism or they ’ re not . And if they ’ re not , then they ’ ve got to stand up against Jeff Sessions , ” Robinson said .
Sessions was blocked by a Republican-controlled Senate from a judicial appointment in 1986 over racial comments he allegedly made as a U.S. attorney for Alabama .
Sessions was accused 30 years ago of describing the NAACP as “ un-American ” and having “ anti-traditional American values ” and joking that he thought the KKK was `` OK until I learned they smoked pot . ”
The late former assistant U.S. attorney , Thomas Figures , who was black , claimed that Sessions , his supervisor at the time , called him “ boy . ”
E.T . Rolison Jr. , who served as assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Alabama and obtained the conviction of a local Klan leader , testified in an affidavit signed this month that he never heard Sessions call Figures “ boy . ”
Figures in his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1986 said he remembered Rolison and another assistant U.S. attorney , Ginny Granade , witnessed to the event .
Granade signed an affidavit in March of 1986 stating she never heard Sessions call him that .
Marge Baker , executive vice president of People for the American Way , a liberal advocacy group that has long been involved in Supreme Court battles , estimated that about 150 outside groups “ are in some way involved ” in the battle against Sessions . Fifty to 60 organizations are “ at the table ” on a regular basis to plot strategy , she said .
Conservative groups are just as determined to win Sessions ’ s confirmation .
Led by the Judicial Crisis Network , groups on the right are mobilizing a counteroffensive similar to what has been seen during past fights over Supreme Court vacancies .
The Judicial Crisis Network last week launched a six-figure digital ad buy targeting the Washington , D.C. market praising Sessions ’ s record , featuring several clips of Trump touting him as “ so highly respected ” and an “ unbelievable guy . ”
Carrie Severino , the chief counsel and policy director of the group , says it ’ s prepared to pour in more resources depending on what liberal groups do .
“ We are certainly are ready to do more if it seems necessary . We want to see if Democrats take it to the next level , ” she said .
Sessions , who is in his fourth term in the Senate , was one of Trump ’ s earlier supporters .
He ’ s best known nationally as a hard-line foe of immigration reform , and he ’ s seen positions that were once on the fringe of his own party carry Trump to the White House .
Liberals view him as hostile to their positions on issues ranging from hate crimes and violence against women to voting rights and immigration .
Sessions only needs 51 votes to be confirmed , and GOP senators will be under enormous pressure to support one of their own . Republicans hold 52 seats in the chamber .
Severino said she thinks liberal groups are looking for a scalp to make up in some small way for Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonDemocrats worry they do n't have right candidate to beat Trump Krystal Ball credits Gabbard 's upswing in 2020 race to 'feckless ' Democratic establishment Outsider candidates outpoll insider candidates MORE ’ s dispiriting defeat last month .
“ My impression is he was the first one announced to the cabinet right out of the gates . You could expect this was going to happen because people were going so crazy out of the election , ” she said .
Conservative allies on Friday launched the website ConfirmSessions.com to defend his record as senator and Alabama ’ s attorney general . It features endorsements from a range of Republicans on the Judiciary Committee as well as Quinton Ross , the Democratic minority leader of the Alabama state senate .
Severino says she has briefed “ dozens of groups ” on the right and cited the Heritage Foundation , Tea Party Patriots and the Susan B. Anthony ’ s List as groups that are involved .
The issue could be perilous for Schumer , who wants to give Democratic colleagues running for reelection in states won by Trump the room to back the president-elect nominees .
That could put the new Democratic leader in between groups on the left pressing hard for him to build a Democratic wall against Sessions , and centrist Democrats who don ’ t want to cross voters back home .
Sen. Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth Ann WarrenDemocrats worry they do n't have right candidate to beat Trump Overnight Energy : BLM staff face choice of relocation or resignation as agency moves | Trump says he 's 'very much into climate ' | EPA rule would expand limits on scientific studies Krystal Ball credits Gabbard 's upswing in 2020 race to 'feckless ' Democratic establishment MORE ( D-Mass . ) , who is more in tune with the liberal wing of the party than many of her Democratic colleagues in Congress , was one of the first members of the Senate to pounce on Sessions ’ s nomination as unacceptable .
The fight so far is playing out over procedural lines , with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Charles ( Chuck ) Ernest GrassleyOvernight Health Care : Top health official defends contract payments to Trump allies | Vaping advocates confident Trump will turn from flavor ban | Sanders gets endorsement from nurses union McConnell , GOP leaders say they wo n't be watching House impeachment hearing Poll : 1 in 5 US adults report trouble affording prescription drugs MORE ( R-Iowa ) and Sen. Dianne Feinstein Dianne Emiel FeinsteinHarris shares video addressing staffers the night Trump was elected : 'This is some s -- - ' Centrist Democrats seize on state election wins to rail against Warren 's agenda Senate talks on stalled Violence Against Women Act reauthorization unravel MORE ( Calif. ) , the incoming senior Democrat on the panel , playing the starring roles .
Grassley has scheduled two days of hearings on Sessions for Jan. 10 and Jan. 11 . He and other Republicans don ’ t want the nomination to get bogged down and argue that Grassley is following the precedent Democrats set for President Obama ’ s first nominee to serve as attorney general , Eric Holder Eric Himpton HolderObama celebrates 'great night for our country ' after Democrats ' victories in Virginia and Kentucky After Obama-era abuses , Republican hysteria over impeachment process is absurd Lawmakers come together to honor Cummings : 'One of the greats in our country 's history ' MORE , when they controlled the Senate in 2009 .
Democrats say they want more time to review Sessions ’ s record , pointing out they have 150,000 pages of material to review from his long legal and Senate career . They note that the late Sen. John Ashcroft ( R-Mo . ) , President George W. Bush ’ s nominee to serve as attorney general , received four days of hearings in 2001 .
Outside of Congress , much of the organizing on the left is being conducted through the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights , which views the Sessions nomination as one of the defining battles of Trump ’ s first months in office .
“ We are getting many , many people on some of these calls , ” said Scott Simpson , the director of media and campaigns at the Leadership Conference . “ People are bringing their best researchers , their best legal minds , their best field people and communications people on this .
“ This is the first big battle to keep the country from moving backward , ” he added . “ We have this surge in hate crimes and it ’ s going to be up to this attorney general to enforce the laws and Sessions voted against the hate crimes law . ”
Different liberal groups are putting together various advertising and voter mobilization plans .
Robinson , the executive director of Color of Change , said “ we will have resources for our advertising ” that will target “ elected leaders around the country as well as corporate , business and media leaders ” who are lining up as “ enablers . ”
MoveOn.org , another liberal advocacy group , is developing a video that will feature civil rights leaders commentating on Sessions ’ s record that the group plans to release next month , said Ben Wikler , the group ’ s Washington director . | Xm9OasX6RPV7YGpD | 1 | Jeff Sessions | -1.2 | Attorney General | -0.8 | Justice | 0 | null | null | null | null |
world | BBC News | https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-46020745 | Angela Merkel to step down as German chancellor in 2021 | 2018-10-29 | Europe, World | Germany's Angela Merkel has said she will step down as chancellor in 2021, following recent election setbacks. "I will not be seeking any political post after my term ends," she told a news conference in Berlin. She also said she would not seek re-election as leader of the centre-right CDU party in December. She has held the post since 2000. The CDU was severely weakened in Sunday's poll in the state of Hesse, the latest in a series of setbacks. Both the CDU and its national coalition partners, the Social Democrats, were 10 percentage points down on the previous poll there. The election comes just weeks after Mrs Merkel's Bavarian sister party, the CSU, suffered huge losses in a state parliament vote. Parties like the left-leaning Greens and the far-right, anti-immigration AfD have grown in national support following the 2017 general election, as backing for the major centre parties has waned. By Jenny Hill, BBC's Berlin correspondent Angela Merkel did her best to maintain her famous poker face but at times she looked rather sad as she announced what amounted to an official - albeit drawn-out - farewell to German politics. She has always insisted that if she is to lead Germany, she must also lead her party. The announcement is intended to silence critics in her party and win back the voters who have deserted the CDU in favour of parties like AfD and the Greens, but it also reflects her dwindling grip on power. Much depends on her successor as party leader. If it is a loyalist - like Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer - Germany might see a smooth transition to a new chancellor, possibly allowing Mrs Merkel to see out her term. But the vultures are circling. Already an old rival, Friedrich Merz, has announced his candidacy. If one of Mrs Merkel's adversaries prevails as party leader, her chancellorship becomes uncomfortable and possibly untenable. Mrs Merkel said she took "full responsibility" for poor performance. "As chancellor and leader of the CDU I'm politically responsible for everything, for successes and for failures," she said. "When people are telling us what they think of how the government was formed and what they think of our work during the first seven months of this parliament... then it is a clear signal that things can't carry on as they are. "The time has come to open a new chapter." She also made it clear she would not handpick her successor as party leader and would "accept any democratic decision taken by my party". Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer would be the obvious choice for Merkel loyalists to replace her. She is currently the party secretary. However, Health Minister Jens Spahn, a leading critic of the chancellor's open-door migration policies, has also announced his candidacy. And Friedrich Merz, a former leader of the CDU-CSU parliamentary group and an old rival to Mrs Merkel, has thrown his hat into the ring. Mrs Merkel's CDU plunged 11 percentage points to 27% in Sunday's elections in the central state of Hesse, according to preliminary results. This was the party's worst showing in the state since 1966. The SPD, which is in coalition with the CDU nationally, fell by a similar amount to 19.8%. The main beneficiaries were the Greens, who paradoxically share power with the CDU in the state and have now drawn level with the SPD, and the far-right AfD, who rose to 13%. The Hesse vote follows a pattern of losses for the two main parties, with the AfD doing particularly well in eastern states. Also on 14 October, the CDU's Bavarian ally, the CSU, lost its absolute majority in the state's parliament which it has dominated since 1957. Like in Hesse, the SPD also lost badly and the Greens and AfD surged. While the Greens appear to have benefited from the SPD's slump in support, it seems clear that the centre-right has lost voters to the AfD. Part of the reason could be anger at Mrs Merkel's decision to open Germany's borders to large numbers of migrants, a move which the AfD has vehemently opposed. Copyright 2025 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. | fae77600ab3a4b73 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
state_department | Townhall | http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2015/08/13/surprise-hillarys-email-server-is-blank-n2038307 | Surprise: Hillary's Email Server Is Blank | 2015-08-13 | state_department | As Guy has been writing about all week , Hillary Clinton has been forced by the FBI to turn over the personal email server she used during her time at Secretary of State to conduct official government business . Earlier this week we learned from the Inspector General that Clinton had at least two classified , top secret emails hosted on her server . Keep in mind the server was a ) not secure b ) it 's illegal to send or receive classified information on a private email account or server .
Yesterday the FBI got their hands on Clinton 's server and to no one 's surprise , it is blank . From Fox News ( bolding is mine ) :
The FBI has taken possession of the personal e-mail server used by Hillary Clinton during her tenure as secretary of state , according to a published report .
Barbara Wells , an attorney for Denver-based computer services firm Platte River Networks , told The Washington Post that federal agents picked up the server from a private data center in New Jersey Wednesday afternoon . The attorney told the paper that the server `` was blank '' and no longer contained useful information .
`` The information had been migrated over to a different server for purposes of transition , '' Wells told the paper . `` To my knowledge the data on the old server is not available now on any servers or devices in Platte River Network ’ s control . '' Wells added that the company had cooperated with the FBI and had been told it was not a target of the investigation .
The Justice Department is looking into whether classified information was improperly stored on or passed through the server , which Clinton used for all her correspondence during her time as secretary of state .
Imagine that . The woman who deleted tens-of-thousands of emails she deemed `` personal '' before leaving the State Department has wiped her server clean before the FBI was able to get their hands on it . Not a smidgen of corruption , I 'm sure .
In March , a defiant Clinton declared the private server would never be turned over because it contained personal emails between herself and her husband Bill Clinton , in addition to details about her daughter 's wedding . | NqFCPhBDeEUC0fqa | 2 | Hillary Clinton | -0.8 | State Department | -0.8 | Politics | -0.8 | Emails | 0 | Election2016 | 0 |
us_senate | The Hill | https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/435025-trumps-attacks-on-mccain-exacerbate-tensions-with-senate-gop | Trump's attacks on McCain exacerbate tensions with Senate GOP | 2019-03-21 | us_senate | President Trump Donald John TrumpGOP senators balk at lengthy impeachment trial Warren goes local in race to build 2020 movement 2020 Democrats make play for veterans ' votes MORE ’ s disparaging attack on the late Sen. John McCain John Sidney McCain2020 Democrats make play for veterans ' votes The Memo : Democrats confront prospect of long primary Defending their honor as we hear their testimony MORE ( R-Ariz. ) is upsetting Senate Republicans who see the repeated insults on a war hero and former pillar of the Senate as unnecessary and corrosive .
Trump has lashed out at McCain four times in the last five days , most recently at an event in Ohio on Wednesday where he spent a full five minutes on the senator — at one point even evoking the McCain 's state funeral .
“ I gave him the kind of funeral that he wanted , which as president I had to approve , ” Trump told workers , who went silent during the remarks , at a tank factory in Lima . “ I don ’ t care about this , I did n't get a thank you . That 's OK . ”
Several Republican senators have spoken out against the president ’ s remarks , which come days after the Senate rebuked the president by overturning his emergency declaration to build a wall on the Mexican border .
That vote , which led to Trump ’ s first veto as president , underscored the brewing tensions between Trump and GOP senators , which are being exacerbated by the president ’ s insults of McCain .
The strongest pushback against Trump ’ s putdowns of McCain came Wednesday when Sen. Johnny Isakson Johnny IsaksonVeterans face growing threat from online disinformation Eleven GOP senators sign open letter backing Sessions 's comeback bid Juan Williams : Republicans flee Trump MORE ( R-Ga. ) , usually a soft-spoken senator , chastised Trump for his behavior .
Isakson , the chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee , urged the president to show more respect to combat veterans such as McCain .
“ It ’ s deplorable what he said , ” Isakson said in a radio interview with Bill Nigut of “ Political Rewind . ”
“ It will be deplorable seven months from now if he says it again , ” he added .
“ We don ’ t talk about our veterans in any way but to brag on them for the service they render . ''
Isakson said he hopes other Senate GOP colleagues will also speak out .
“ I hope my other members will say what they think when they think it ’ s appropriate and the way they think it ’ s appropriate to do so , ” he said .
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Addison ( Mitch ) Mitchell McConnellGOP senators balk at lengthy impeachment trial Graham : Senate trial 'must expose the whistleblower ' Graham says Schiff should be a witness in Trump impeachment trial MORE ( R-Ky. ) joined Isakson in defending McCain but stopped short of criticizing Trump directly .
“ Today and every day I miss my good friend John McCain . It was a blessing to serve alongside a rare patriot and genuine American hero in the Senate , ” McConnell wrote in a Wednesday tweet that served to provide Isakson with some political cover .
“ His memory continues to remind me every day that our nation is sustained by the sacrifice of heroes , ” he said .
Isakson noted Wednesday that he and McConnell had dinner on Tuesday night at an Atlanta restaurant , although he says he didn ’ t discuss with the leader his plans to call out Trump .
Former Sen. Jeff Flake Jeffrey ( Jeff ) Lane FlakeLindsey Graham basks in the impeachment spotlight Kelly , McSally virtually tied in Arizona Senate race : poll ███ 's 12:30 Report — Presented by Nareit — White House cheers Republicans for storming impeachment hearing MORE ( R-Ariz. ) , McCain ’ s home-state colleague for nearly six years , said Isakson ’ s comments reflect broader concern within the Senate GOP conference over Trump ’ s behavior .
“ Johnny is a decent man . Any decent politician or decent person is offended by this kind of talk , especially six months after John McCain ’ s death , ” Flake told ███ .
“ Johnny is very soft-spoken so it must have just hit the tipping point . The fact that Johnny is speaking up lets you know how far the president has gone , ” he added .
But it ’ s far from clear if that will be the case .
Many Republicans have been reluctant to speak out against the president for fear of sparking a primary challenge . Isakson is not up for reelection until 2022 .
Sen. Lindsey Graham Lindsey Olin GrahamGOP senators balk at lengthy impeachment trial Graham : Senate trial 'must expose the whistleblower ' Graham says Schiff should be a witness in Trump impeachment trial MORE ( R-S.C. ) , McCain ’ s best friend in the Senate , did not call out Trump over his disparaging remarks about McCain over the weekend , though he defended his friend . Graham is up for reelection in 2020 .
“ He stepped forward to risk his life for his country , served honorably under difficult circumstances , and was one of the most consequential senators in the history of the body . Nothing about his service will ever be changed or diminished , ” Graham tweeted Sunday .
He did later call Trump ’ s criticism of McCain “ a huge mistake . ”
Most of the criticism of Trump has come from people like Flake who are former GOP senators — though their remarks , like Isakson ’ s , are said to reflect the feelings of other senators .
Former Sen. Judd Gregg ( R-N.H. ) , who served 18 years in the Senate with McCain and was an adviser to McConnell ’ s leadership team , said “ it ’ s almost an attack on Sen. McCain and his incredible record of service to the United States but it ’ s an attack on the Senate and I think that ’ s the way most senators probably view it . ”
He questioned whether the tensions could lead to problems for Trump with the Senate , however .
“ I don ’ t know where it goes . His relationships with the Congress are so weak now that I don ’ t think he can hurt it anymore , ” he said .
Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer Charles ( Chuck ) Ellis SchumerOvernight Health Care : Trump officials making changes to drug pricing proposal | House panel advances flavored e-cig ban | Senators press FDA tobacco chief on vaping ban Chad Wolf becomes acting DHS secretary Schumer blocks drug pricing measure during Senate fight , seeking larger action MORE ( N.Y. ) on Wednesday tried to take advantage of the rift among Republicans by announcing that he will reintroduce legislation to rename the Russell Senate office building , a memoriam to the late Sen. Richard Russell Jr. ( D-Ga. ) , a longtime opponent of civil rights legislation , after McCain instead .
Isakson , however , dismissed the effort as “ playing politics ” and said he would wait for recommendations from a committee , including members of McCain ’ s family , on how to best honor his former colleague .
Trump lashed out at McCain over the weekend after court documents confirmed that McCain shared a dossier of compromising allegations about Trump immediately after the 2016 presidential election to then-FBI Director James Comey James Brien ComeyThere are poor ideas , bad ones and Facebook 's Libra Trump has considered firing official who reported whistleblower complaint to Congress : report Broadcast , cable news networks to preempt regular programming for Trump impeachment coverage MORE , whom Trump later fired .
Sen. Mitt Romney Willard ( Mitt ) Mitt RomneyJon Huntsman expected to run for governor in Utah Trump Jr 's 'Triggered ' debuts at No . 1 on NY Times bestseller list Club for Growth extends advertising against House Dems over impeachment MORE ( R-Utah ) , who lost the Republican presidential nomination to McCain in 2008 , called out Trump ’ s attacks on Tuesday .
“ I can ’ t understand why the President would , once again , disparage a man as exemplary as my friend John McCain : heroic , courageous , patriotic , honorable , self-effacing , self-sacrificing , empathetic , and driven by duty to family , country , and God , ” Romney tweeted on Tuesday .
Other Republicans have shied away from challenging Trump , notably Sen. Martha McSally Martha Elizabeth McSallyThis week : House kicks off public phase of impeachment inquiry Progressive veterans group launches campaign labeling Trump as a 'national security threat ' Advocates step up efforts for horse racing reform bill after more deaths MORE ( R-Ariz. ) , who was appointed to fill McCain ’ s vacant seat in December and faces a tough reelection next year .
McSally praised McCain Wednesday as “ an American hero , ” tweeting “ everyone should give him and his family the respect , admiration , and peace they deserve . ”
That response , however , drew criticism from EJ Montini , an opinion columnist for The Arizona Republic , who said it didn ’ t go far enough .
“ She ’ s afraid . She has an election coming up in 2020 , and she ’ s afraid that if she speaks honestly about Trump , he ’ ll turn on her , ” he wrote . | 60Zt3lRyGTLG1Cfo | 1 | John McCain | 0.9 | Donald Trump | -0.8 | US Senate | 0 | Politics | 0 | null | null |
politics | The Guardian | https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/aug/07/manafort-trial-latest-rick-gates-defence-lawyers-question | Paul Manafort's lawyers to question Rick Gates's credibility after explosive testimony | 2018-08-07 | politics | Under cross examination at the tax evasion and bank fraud trial of his ex-boss Paul Manafort , Gates struggled to give clear answers
A former campaign aide to Donald Trump lived a “ secret life ” including an extramarital affair in London , a court heard on Tuesday .
Rick Gates , under cross examination at the tax evasion and bank fraud trial of his former boss Paul Manafort , admitted that he had “ another relationship ” involving first-class flights and luxury hotels , but denied these were funded with money embezzled from Manafort .
Manafort ex-business partner Rick Gates testifies they committed crimes together Read more
Manafort , a former Trump campaign chairman , has pleaded not guilty to 18 counts of bank and tax fraud and failing to disclose foreign bank accounts . His defence team is seeking to pin the blame on Gates , who they say was responsible for day-to-day operations of the business .
In a dramatic moment before the jury , Manafort ’ s defence counsel , Kevin Downing , put it to the government ’ s star witness : “ There ’ s another life , right , the other Rick Gates ? The secret Rick Gates ? ”
Play Video 4:47 Russia inquiry : how Trump 's inner circle could bring him down – video explainer
Gates , who is 46 and married , admitted : “ There was a period in my life , about 10 years ago , when I had a relationship , yes . ”
With a nod to linguistic differences for what Americans refer to as an apartment , Downing pressed : “ As part of your secret life did you maintain a flat – is that what they call it ? – in London ? ”
Paul Manafort trial : prosecutors seek to paint picture of luxe lifestyle Read more
Gates acknowledged that he did for two months and that he took first class flights and stayed in “ fancy hotels ” around Europe , but said the money came from bonuses rather than illicit gains . “ I had a period of time when I had another relationship , ” he added .
As well as being a senior aide on Trump ’ s election campaign , Gates served as the deputy chairman of the US president ’ s inaugural committee . On Tuesday , he admitted it was possible he had sought to cheat the committee with false expenses claims .
“ Did you submit personal expenses to the inaugural committee for reimbursement ? ” Downing asked .
Gates appeared nervous on the witness stand at the court in Alexandria , Virginia , blinking frequently , his throat apparently dry as he spoke . He frequently used the phrases “ It ’ s possible ” and “ I don ’ t recall ” as Downing challenged him about inconsistencies in testimony he gave to the special counsel ’ s office .
“ When did you start providing false and misleading information to the special counsel ’ s office ? ” the defence counsel asked bluntly .
Gates struggled so badly to give a straight answer that eventually Judge T S Ellis III was forced to intervene . “ Did you provide false information or did you have a bad memory ? ” he asked .
Gates finally admitted that he had provided false information prior to striking a plea agreement . “ I did , to one count , your honour , ” he said .
He has already admitted embezzling some funds from Manafort . Downing pressed him on the specifics of their business relationship : which payments to Gates were authorised and which were not . Regarding a trading company Manafort had started with a partner in 2011 , he asked with deep scepticism : “ You ’ re asking the jury to believe Mr Manafort authorised another $ 250,000 as a bonus ? ”
Why is Paul Manafort risking it all to face Mueller charges in court ? Read more
Downing wondered aloud why Gates had shown “ perfect recollection ” during examination by the government but was now much less precise under cross-examination by Manafort ’ s defence . He challenged the witness : “ Have they [ the special counsel ’ s office ] confronted you with so many lies you can ’ t remember any of it ? ”
Gates testified that he stole from Manafort because he was living beyond his means . Downing asked : “ Was it for your secret life ? ”
The witness replied defensively : “ It ’ s not a secret life . It went to an account my wife knew about . ”
Though he has at times seemed evasive under cross-examination , Gates insisted that he now acknowledges his mistake and is taking responsibility for it , whereas Manafort is not .
But Downing challenged again : “ After all the lies you ’ ve told and fraud you ’ ve committed , you expect this jury to believe you ? ”
Earlier on Tuesday , the prosecution had continued to question Gates , who described how millions of dollars were allegedly funneled from entities controlled by Ukrainian businessmen into Manafort ’ s shell companies in Cyprus .
Although the allegations of collusion between Donald Trump and Russia are not at issue in this trial , any significant blows to the government ’ s case are likely to be seized on by the president ’ s defenders , including conservative media , to support his contention that Mueller ’ s investigation is a “ rigged witch-hunt ” .
Paul Manafort lawyers want mention of Trump banned in Virginia trial Read more
Gates pleaded guilty in February and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors under a deal that could lead to a reduced sentence . On Monday , he testified that he helped Manafort file false tax returns and hide his foreign bank accounts . He was aware that Manafort was acting as an unregistered foreign agent in lobbying for Ukraine , he said .
On Tuesday , the court was shown a series of emails , contracts and what prosecutor Greg Andres referred to as “ fake invoices ” , in which Gates altered the template to show the name of a shell company instead of Manafort ’ s . This was a way to decrease Manafort ’ s taxable income , added Gates , who did not report the money to Manafort ’ s bookkeeper or accountants .
Manafort ’ s political work included advising Viktor Yanukovych on policy after he won the Ukrainian presidency , Gates said . “ Mr Manafort worked with the local political officials and helped implement policy initiatives based on the campaign promises . ”
For this Manafort was paid $ 4m a year , in quarterly payments of $ 1m , Gates recalled , though at some point the currency switched from US dollars to Euros . His consultancy work also included “ Engage Ukraine ” , an effort to help Ukraine join the European Union .
Government lawyers have previously referred to Yanukovych as Manafort ’ s “ golden goose ” . After Yanukovych lost power in 2014 , “ I would say it decreased the income stream ” , Gates , wearing a blue suit , told the court matter-of-factly .
He added Manafort worked for a time for the Opposition Bloc , the party that replaced Yanukovych ’ s Party of Regions , but it was out of power and so “ income streams were more difficult to come by ” .
By July 2015 , the court heard , Manafort was struggling financially . Andres asked : “ Was he having trouble paying his bills ? ” Gates replied : “ He was . ”
Gates said he and Manafort turned to a Cypriot lawyer , whom he referred to in court as “ Dr K ” , who set up bank accounts and shell companies on Manafort ’ s behalf and “ handled everything ” .
FBI investigates Russian-linked Cyprus bank accused of money laundering Read more
When an individual sets up an entity in Cyprus , Gates explained , their name does not appear on any of the paperwork . He said of Manafort : “ I believe he understood his name would not be represented , nor would mine . ”
As Manafort came under pressure to pay his bills , he was forced to seek loans , the court heard . Gates said he was responsible for collecting all relevant documents for the loan applications .
Andres asked him : “ Did you provide false information to the banks ? ’ | cUNBHIlo0Pz4TaW2 | 0 | Russia Probe | -1.3 | Rick Gates | -0.8 | Politics | 0 | null | null | null | null |
nsa | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/06/politics/nsa-internet-mining/index.html?hpt=po_c1 | Top U.S. intel official challenges reports that spy agencies mined Internet data | 2013-06-06 | NSA, Defense And Security | Story highlights Director of national intelligence says the reports have `` numerous inaccuracies ''
He stresses that , per the law , U.S. citizens and people in U.S. ca n't be targeted
Washington Post , Guardian report U.S. agencies tapped the servers of tech giants
Facebook , Apple , others say they do n't allow direct access to their servers
America 's top intelligence official on Thursday night challenged news reports claiming Facebook posts , Gmail messages and more have been intercepted for years in a vast data-mining operation , saying the reports `` contain numerous inaccuracies . ''
The Guardian , a British newspaper , and the Washington Post reported Thursday that U.S. intelligence agencies had access to the central servers of nine of the country 's biggest technology firms including Microsoft , Apple , Google , Yahoo and Facebook .
The Post reported the program -- called PRISM -- underwent `` exponential growth '' since its founding in 2007 . In fact , the newspaper said the program has become the leading source of raw material for the National Security Agency , the secretive U.S. intelligence operation that monitors electronic communications .
Yet several tech giants whose servers were reportedly ensnared in the program denied any knowledge of it Thursday .
And James Clapper , the director of national intelligence , questioned the Guardian and Post articles in a statement Thursday night .
He referred to Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act , which he noted was recently reauthorized by Congress -- one of the bodies , along with the executive branch and Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court , with oversight over aspects of intelligence gathering .
Section 702 , Clapper added , `` is designed to facilitate the acquisition of foreign intelligence information concerning non-U.S. persons located outside the United States . ''
`` It can not be used to intentionally target any U.S. citizen , any other U.S. person , or anyone located within the United States , '' he said in his statement .
While he made no mention of data mining , Clapper did defend the American intelligence effort generally , saying , `` Information collected under this program is among the most important and valuable foreign intelligence information we collect , and is used to protect our nation from a wide variety of threats . ''
Clapper also called out the person or people behind `` the unauthorized disclosure of information about this important and entirely legal program , '' saying such apparent leaks are `` reprehensible and risks important protections for the security of Americans . ''
The Post reported that its reporters had been provided a detailed briefing presentation document on the PRISM program .
The program has been running since 2007 and has undergone `` exponential growth '' since then , the Post reported . It is now the leading source of raw material for the National Security Agency , the secretive U.S. intelligence operation that monitors electronic communications .
According to a briefing slide published by the Guardian , PRISM began with data from Microsoft in 2007 . The program began collecting data from Yahoo in 2008 and from Google , Facebook and the message system PalTalk in 2009 . YouTube became a source in 2010 , Skype and AOL in 2011 and Apple in late 2012 , the slide claims .
The NSA declined to comment , but several companies -- many of them using similar language -- denied Thursday any knowledge of such a program .
Microsoft , for instance , said in a statement it only provides user data when legally required and for specific accounts -- adding that `` if the government has a broader voluntary national security program to gather customer data we do n't participate in it . ''
Jodi Seth , a spokeswoman for Facebook , said the social media giant works to `` carefully scrutinize any ... request for compliance '' and does not give government agencies `` direct access '' to its servers .
Apple spokesman Steve Dowling offered a similar response -- saying Apple hands over information only when a government agency gets a court order . Dowling added that his company has never heard of PRISM .
`` We disclose user data to government in accordance with the law , and we review all such requests carefully , '' a Google spokesman said in response to the stories . `` From time to time , people allege that we have created a government 'back door ' into our systems , but Google does not have a 'back door ' for the government to access private user data . ''
Even with these denials and Clapper 's defense , President Barack Obama 's administration has come under growing scrutiny in recent days over his record on balancing citizens ' right to privacy and the government 's efforts to combat terrorism .
That includes news , first reported on Wednesday by the Guardian and commented on by U.S. politicians , that the FBI and National Security Agency have been collecting the phone records of millions of Americans -- specifically Verizon customers and perhaps others -- over a several year period .
Days after taking office in 2009 , Obama vowed , `` Transparency and the rule of law will be the touchstones of this presidency . '' But on Thursday , the left-leaning Huffington Post conflated Obama with his predecessor George W. Bush while a New York Times editorial said `` the administration has now lost all credibility '' when it comes to overreaching in the name of fighting terrorism .
`` Mr. Obama is proving the truism that the executive branch will use any power it is given and very likely abuse it , '' the Times ' editorial said . | 3b9cfaba3c719be8 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
china | Vice | https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/889n4x/hong-kongs-government-is-now-calling-pro-democracy-protesters-terrorists | Hong Kong's Government Is Now Calling Pro-Democracy Protesters ‘Terrorists’ | 2020-05-25 | china | Want the best of ███ News straight to your inbox ? Sign up here .
Hong Kong erupted in chaos again Sunday as thousands of protesters marched through the city to protest Beijing ’ s plans to impose tough new national security laws , which many fear will spell an end to the city ’ s freedoms .
On Monday , the pro-Beijing government ’ s top security official denounced the protesters as terrorists , claiming the unrest only underlined the need for the controversial new laws outlawing treason , secession and sedition .
READ : China ’ s “ nightmare ” national security law has instantly reignited Hong Kong ’ s protest movement
Police fired tear gas and water cannons at demonstrators who gathered despite coronavirus social distancing rules limiting gatherings to eight people . Many protesters carried umbrellas , symbols of the city ’ s protest movement , while others chanted “ Free Hong Kong , ” and “ Hong Kong independence is the only way out . ”
At least 180 people were arrested , Hong Kong police said , most for illegal assembly or misconduct , while 10 people were admitted to hospital .
Among the injured was a 41-year-old solicitor who was reportedly beaten by a group of black-clad protesters after they got into an altercation over a roadblock that protesters had set up in the central district of Causeway Bay . The Hong Kong Law Society and the city ’ s Justice Secretary , Teresa Cheng , strongly condemned the assault .
The rally , which was by far the city ’ s largest since the coronavirus outbreak , was motivated by public outrage over Beijing ’ s announcement last week it plans to impose a law banning `` treason , secession , sedition and subversion '' in Hong Kong . Opponents of the proposed law believe it will be used to crack down on government critics , silence free speech , and effectively spell the end of “ one country , two systems . ”
But the show of mass opposition has done nothing to dissuade the city ’ s pro-Beijing government from changing course . Secretary for Security John Lee said Monday that Sunday ’ s clashes only highlighted `` the need and urgency of the decision to be deliberated ” by the National People ’ s congress , Hong Kong ’ s rubber stamp parliament .
`` Terrorism is growing in the city and activities which harm national security , such as 'Hong Kong independence ' , become more rampant , '' Lee said in a statement .
`` In just a few months , Hong Kong has changed from one of the safest cities in the world to a city shrouded in the shadow of violence , '' he said , adding that police had made a number of seizures of firearms and explosives in recent months .
Ray Chan , a pro-democracy lawmaker in Hong Kong 's Legislative Council , shot back at the smear on social media . “ Call us terrorists , whatever you want , after the Wuhan Virus outbreak , China has no more credibility in the world , ” he wrote .
READ : China is accusing Hong Kong protesters of “ kidnapping ” the economy
Simon Cheng Man-kit , the UK-based head of overseas Hong Kong activist group the Umbrella Union , told ███ News that the threat of the “ draconian ” security laws had rekindled Hong Kongers ’ “ passion and determination ” to fight for their freedom .
“ It is the rulers , not the people , who cause the terrorism , ” he said . “ More protests will come . ”
Hong Kong 's mini-constitution , the Basic Law , states that it has to implement national security laws that prohibit treason , sedition , and acts of subversion against Beijing . But Hong Kong ’ s government has never passed the laws , due to widespread public opposition and fears it would be used to smother civil liberties in the city . A previous attempt to pass them , in 2003 , resulted in mass street protests that led to the bill being shelved .
READ : Hong Kong gamers protested inside Animal Crossing . Now Hong Kong wants to ban it
Now Beijing , impatient with the city ’ s protest movement , has said it intends to break the gridlock by imposing the laws itself . While both Beijing and the Hong Kong government have signalled their intent to allow this as soon as possible , the Hong Kong Bar Association , a professional organization for barristers in the city , flagged up a number of legal concerns about the proposal Monday , saying it believed Beijing did not have the power to impose the laws on the city as it intended .
Protests are expected to kick off again on Wednesday , when Hong Kong ’ s legislature is due to give a second reading of a bill that would make it a crime to denigrate China ’ s national anthem .
Cover : Hong Kong riot police fire tear gas as hundreds of protesters march along a downtown street during a pro-democracy protest against Beijing 's national security legislation in Hong Kong , Sunday , May 24 , 2020 . ( AP Photo/Vincent Yu ) | YJyD3MjMR1DonQhg | 0 | China | -1.5 | Hong Kong | 1.3 | Hong Kong Protests | 0.2 | Free Protest | 0 | Democracy | 0 |
us_senate | CBN | http://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/politics/2017/january/confirmation-battle-begins-on-capitol-hill-what-to-expect | Confirmation Battle Begins on Capitol Hill: What to Expect | 2017-01-09 | US Senate, Politics | A big confirmation battle begins this week on Capitol Hill . Republicans want to move quickly to put President-Elect Donald Trump 's cabinet in place . But Democrats say the confirmation process is moving too fast .
Two Trump cabinet confirmation hearings are scheduled for Tuesday , and five more on Wednesday .
Among them : Sen. Jeff Sessions for attorney general , Betsy Devos for education secretary , Mike Pompeo for CIA director , Rex TIllerson for secretary of state and Elaine Chao for transportation secretary .
The confirmations of Sessions , Tillerson , and Devos are expected to be the most contentious . But Democrats changed the rules when they controlled the Senate ; now nominees only need a simple majority to gain Senate approval .
Democrats want to slow down the process because background checks have yet to be completed on most of Trump 's cabinet picks .
Republicans argue the president-elect has the right to have most of his cabinet in place when he takes office . But the director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics says the fast pace of the hearings is putting undue pressure on investigators who are reviewing the backgrounds of the nominees
But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says it 's no more pressure than when Obama first came into office . The Senate approved seven picks the first day of Obama 's presidency .
`` We did n't like most of them either , '' said McConnell . `` But he won the election . ''
`` All of these little procedural complaints are related to their frustration in having not only lost the White House but having lost the Senate , '' said McConnell . `` I understand that , but we need to sort of grow up here and get past that . ''
In their final days in office , both the president and vice president made some last minute digs against Trump .
Vice President Joe Biden said the president-elect needs to `` grow up '' and stop tweeting inflammatory statements .
And Obama suggested the same in a final interview with ABC 's George Stephanapolous . The president suggested Trump needs to learn the difference between campaigning and governing .
`` As soon as you walk into this office after you 've been sworn in you 're now in charge of the largest organization on earth . You ca n't manage it the way you manage a family business , '' insisted Obama .
The president also said he thinks his signature law , Obamacare , will survive , though he admits it may be called something else .
`` My hope is the president-elect , members of Congress from both parties look at where have we objectively made progress , where things are working better . Do n't undo things just because I did them , '' said Obama .
He added he doubts the Republicans will come up with a better system than Obamacare .
On Friday , after an intelligence briefing on Russian hacking , the president-elect admitted Russia , China and others are consistently trying to hack a number of U.S. institutions .
Trump responded to intelligence agency findings that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the hack of the DNC computers saying , `` There was absolutely no effect on the outcome of the election . ''
While many members of the U.S. Congress have expressed concern over the vulnerability of the United States to foreign computer hacks , many express doubts and say there is little substance to the intelligence reports .
Among the skeptics is former CIA Director Michael Hayden who said he had a `` sense of disappointment '' about a lack of specifics after reading the intelligence report
Regardless , even those who believe the U.S. intelligence findings on Russian hacking fell short , there 's growing consensus throughout Washington that the government -- and U.S. corporations -- need to beef up anti-hacking , cyber security efforts . | 2c8f45bb3f288f66 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
north_korea | Townhall | https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2017/11/12/trump-take-to-social-media-to-hit-back-at-short-and-fat-kim-jong-un-n2408228 | Trump Take To Social Media To Hit Back At 'Short and Fat' Kim Jong-un | 2017-11-12 | north_korea | North Korea and its nuclear weapons program have plagued the U.S. for years . What to do with all of these missile tests ? How do we negotiate ? It ’ s all documented . With President Donald Trump , some people do think that his Twitter and overall personality could make a nuclear exchange more likely . So , as the president finishes the last leg of his Asia trip , he decided to take to Twitter and bash North Korean Kim Jong-un “ short and fat. ” This came after the Asian dictator called Trump “ old . ”
“ Why would Kim Jong-un insult me by calling me ‘ old , ’ '' tweeted the president . “ When I would NEVER call him `` short and fat ? '' Oh well , I try so hard to be his friend - and maybe someday that will happen ! ”
Why would Kim Jong-un insult me by calling me `` old , '' when I would NEVER call him `` short and fat ? '' Oh well , I try so hard to be his friend - and maybe someday that will happen ! — Donald J. Trump ( @ realDonaldTrump ) November 12 , 2017
Future history books : `` World War III began after a series of seemingly comic tweets escalated into a nuclear exchange . '' — Ben Shapiro ( @ benshapiro ) November 12 , 2017
Calling Trump “ old ” isn ’ t exactly what the North Koreans said about Trump ; they called him an “ old lunatic ” after his address to the South Korean National Assembly this week ( via The Guardian ) :
Trump has been working to rally global pressure against North Korea ’ s nuclear weapons program on the trip to Asia . In a stern speech delivered in South Korea ’ s National Assembly on Tuesday , he said : “ Do not underestimate us . And do not try us ... The weapons you ’ re acquiring are not making you safer , they are putting your regime in grave danger . Every step you take down this dark path increases the peril you face. ” On Saturday , the North ’ s Foreign Ministry responded in a statement : “ Reckless remarks by an old lunatic like Trump will never scare us or stop our advance . On the contrary , all this makes us more sure that our choice to promote economic construction at the same time as building up our nuclear force is all the more righteous , and it pushes us to speed up the effort to complete our nuclear force. ” At a news conference in Vietnam on Sunday after his tweets , Trump said it was possible he could be friends with Kim one day and that it would be “ very , very nice ” but he was not sure that it would happen . Asked if he could see himself being friends with Kim , Trump said : “ That might be a strange thing to happen but it ’ s a possibility . If it did happen it could be a good thing , I can tell you , for North Korea , but it could also be good for a lot of other places and be good for the rest the world . It could be something that could happen . I don ’ t know if it will but it would be very , very nice. ” Trump has traded insults and threats with Kim in the past amid escalating tensions over Pyongyang ’ s nuclear and missile programs . North Korea conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear bomb test on September 3 , prompting another round of UN sanctions .
We ’ ll see what happens now . Glean what you will from this , but no—I don ’ t think nuclear war is coming because of a tweet . | UmmynbD8ENm4P5TE | 2 | North Korea | -2.6 | World | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
abortion | Fox News Opinion | http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2018/06/26/supreme-court-nifla-decision-is-major-victory-for-pro-life-groups-and-women-vindication-for-first-amendment.html | Supreme Court NIFLA decision is major victory for pro-life groups and women, vindication for First Amendment | 2018-06-26 | abortion | Tuesday ’ s 5-4 Supreme Court decision overturning a California law that required pro-life pregnancy centers to provide women with information about abortion is a victory for the First Amendment , for women seeking support during their pregnancies , and for the pregnancy centers .
The decision came in the case of National Institute of Family and Life Advocates ( NIFLA ) v. Becerra .
Every pregnancy is tough . Pregnancy without sufficient support , financial or emotional , can seem impossible . Every year , pregnancy centers across the United States offer a helping hand to thousands of women so that they can confidently choose life for their babies .
These centers provide women personalized attention and care during and after pregnancy , free of charge . Many offer pregnancy tests , ultrasounds , prenatal education and classes on parenting . They also offer tangible support like maternity and baby clothes , diapers and wipes , and even strollers and car seats to lighten the financial burden of caring for a newborn .
But the most important service found at a pregnancy center is caring . When walking through the doors of a pregnancy center , women find the kind of care and attention that reinforces their dignity as women and helps them prepare to become mothers .
Rather than celebrate the work of these nonprofit centers , California tried to impede it . Through California ’ s Freedom , Accountability , Comprehensive Care and Transparency Act – commonly known as the Reproductive FACT Act – the state targeted pro-life pregnancy centers and forced them to direct women towards abortion , the state ’ s preferred response to an unexpected pregnancy .
Under the California law , pregnancy centers were required to notify their clients about the state ’ s free or low-cost family planning programs , which include abortion services . Centers that failed or refused to become abortion-promoting billboards were subject to cumulative fines .
But something got in the way of the California law : the First Amendment of the Constitution .
The First Amendment ’ s guarantee of free speech includes the right not to be forced by the government to speak . California ’ s FACT Act did just that , by requiring pro-life pregnancy centers to promote the state ’ s family planning programs , which include abortion .
As Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas , who wrote the majority opinion in the NIFLA case , forcefully stated : “ California can not co-opt ( pregnancy centers ) to deliver its message for it. ” The government can ’ t force people to promote an idea they oppose , like the notion that abortion is the solution to a challenging pregnancy .
The Supreme Court ’ s decision to strike down California ’ s law vindicates the First Amendment ’ s prohibition on compelled speech . But more importantly , it vindicates women and the pregnancy centers who help them .
California ’ s FACT Act was just one example of a troubling trend of cities and states targeting pro-life pregnancy centers .
An amicus brief filed by the Catholic Association in the NIFLA case on behalf of 13 clients of pregnancy centers recounts the experiences of these women and their unwavering opposition to attempts to force centers to promote abortion or shutter their doors . Each woman felt challenged by the circumstances she faced and turned to her local pregnancy center for support .
The unique needs and concerns of these women were heard and responded to with genuine compassion by pregnancy center staff .
As Melissa , one of the 13 women who courageously came forward to share her story , remarked : “ I feel like every woman who walks through those doors gets the same treatment – open , loving , very warm – especially if you don ’ t have any other supports . ”
At pregnancy centers , these women were offered an authentic choice and the chance to flourish and thrive as mothers , despite their circumstances .
Laura chose to carry her pregnancy to term even though it meant losing the relationship with her child ’ s father . A pregnancy center eased the financial burden by offering free diapers and wipes , and the center ’ s counseling services helped Laura recover from the emotional abuse of her prior relationship .
Angela faced a different challenge . Alone and addicted to drugs , Angela reached out to center staff to help her stay clean for the sake of her developing child . Angela ’ s son , now a precocious 2-year-old , is the apple of his mother ’ s eye . Angela still receives counseling and support as she raises her son and prepares to enter the workforce .
One woman , Melissa , when asked to respond to the charge that pregnancy centers are deceptive , flatly retorted that such a claim is “ bogus. ” Another , Judith , said that she wants to “ shout from the rooftops ” that there are places to go for women who chose abortion to heal from their grief .
These women – and countless others across the country – are unequivocal in their gratitude for the life-affirming care and support they found at their local pregnancy centers . That these centers can operate , safeguarded by the Constitution from attempts to undermine their profoundly pro-woman message , is a great win for women everywhere . | hoRBMsYP0G2r8EKb | 2 | Supreme Court | 1.1 | Abortion | 0.7 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
women's_issues | Wall Street Journal - News | https://www.wsj.com/articles/title-ix-cases-get-faster-review-under-trump-1529714386 | Title IX Cases Get Faster Review Under Trump | women's_issues | WASHINGTON—The Education Department under President Donald Trump has been closing Title IX gender-discrimination complaints against universities and colleges at a significantly faster clip than Obama officials , federal data show .
The administration ’ s desire to more quickly wrap up these investigations , which generally involve alleged sexual assaults on campus , reflects years of protest from universities and some conservative groups that the Democratic administration of former President Barack Obama was using individual assault cases to open broad , yearslong investigations into university practices .
Under Mr. Obama , Title IX complaints that closed between 2010 and 2016 had remained open an average of 150 days . That number stayed fairly constant other than in 2013 when the administration wrapped up cases faster than in other years—an average of 78 days .
In 2017 , when Mr. Trump , a Republican , took office , the average length of an open complaint was 88 days . Cases opened in the first four months of this year were resolved after an average of 39 days .
Rapid Pace Average number of days for the Department of Education to resolve Title IX complaints against colleges and universities : Trump in office 200 days Obama in office 150 100 50 0 ’ 15 2010
Last year , the Education Department under Secretary Betsy DeVos opted to end an Obama-administration practice of broadening individual student ’ s complaints to look for systemic issues in how schools were handling sexual assault and harassment . Schools often complained the inquiries were excessive or unfair .
That expansive approach meant the department was focusing too much on schools and not enough on students who felt they had been wronged , said Peter McDonough , general counsel of the American Council on Education , which represents university presidents .
Mr. McDonough said the policy under Mr. Obama created a “ perception that investigators had to find something…And on campuses , it became seen as a ‘ gotcha ’ game . ”
Civil-rights advocates disagreed , saying Mr. Obama ’ s more expansive approach drilled to the root of discrimination . The current practice of closing cases as quickly as possible , they said , risks overlooking systemic violations that may be affecting more than one student .
Catherine Lhamon , who headed the Education Department ’ s civil rights office in Mr. Obama ’ s second term , said the only times the department opened broader cases were for high-profile investigations involving Michigan State University and the University of Southern California . Both cases featured much-publicized medical faculty members accused of assaulting numerous patients .
Ms. Lhamon said those cases reflect a broader reality that sexual harassment exists widely on campuses , and that one person ’ s case can shed light on whether the university has mishandled similar situations .
“ That ’ s a red flag that if you don ’ t look , someone else will be harmed , ” Ms. Lhamon said . “ So why would the department that is charged with preventing harm against every student , why would you think , ‘ We don ’ t need to look ? ’ ”
The data , released to The Wall Street Journal under the Freedom of Information Act , contain all Title IX complaints against colleges and universities between 2010 and early May of this year .
Under Mr. Trump ’ s administration , the percentage of investigations ending in resolution agreements , which lay out policy changes for the institution and include a monitoring period , also fell . Nearly one in 12 cases ended in resolution agreements during Mr. Obama ’ s tenure , compared with closer to one in 50 under Mr. Trump .
Most complaints that didn ’ t reach resolution agreements were dismissed , though the Trump administration has also dismissed a higher number of cases , the Journal found . More than 90 % of the cases since 2017 have been dismissed , while in the six years prior , that figure was closer to 67 % .
The Education Department can dismiss a case because the department determines it lacks jurisdiction or if it finds the allegation fails to state a violation , lacks sufficient detail , or is speculative or incoherent . The Journal ’ s data don ’ t indicate the justification for individual case dismissals .
Liz Hill , an Education Department spokeswoman , said resolving complaints without long delays is a priority for the Office for Civil Rights .
“ Part of what makes OCR ’ s mission meaningful is that OCR weighs in on crucial civil-rights issues in a timely way , ” she said . “ Without an effort at timely resolution , a student complaining of civil-rights violations in , say , middle school might not get an answer from OCR until he or she has graduated from high school . ”
The administration has more broadly been looking to change the department ’ s approach to enforcement of Title IX , the 1970s-era law prohibiting gender discrimination in educational settings .
In September , Mrs. DeVos rescinded a controversial Obama-era policy that directed schools to use a standard of evidence that was less rigorous than some schools had been employing . The standard , known as “ preponderance of the evidence , ” meaning simply “ more likely than not , ” is the typical standard applied in civil-rights lawsuits ; however , some due-process advocates said that standard made it too easy for schools to find an accused person guilty .
The administration hopes to release its own set of rules as early as September , and Education Department officials may mandate a higher standard of evidence , according to people familiar with their conversations . | F9bD9OY3Wj26mAwa | 1 | Women's Issues | 0.7 | Title IX | 0.7 | Education | -0.1 | General News | 0 | null | null | |
justice | American Spectator | https://spectator.org/the-smearing-of-jeff-sessions/ | The Smearing of Jeff Sessions | 2017-03-04 | Justice, Jeff Sessions | Craven Republicans , looking for a pat on the head from the mainstream media , can always be counted on to echo its idiotic demands . The phony controversy over the Trump campaign ’ s imaginary ties to Putin is the latest pitiful example of this phenomenon .
Instead of exposing the hyper-partisanship behind this media obsession , these Republicans are humoring it . We hear from them craven calls for a “ special prosecutor ” to investigate and demands that attorney general Jeff Sessions submit to one because he had , in his capacity as a senator , a grand total of two unimportant encounters with the Russia ambassador . How shocking . Who knew that senators and ambassadors from major countries with whom we have diplomatic relations interact ? Extraordinary .
To the hyperventilating twits on Morning Joe , Ted Cruz made the obvious point : “ What we are seeing is a lot of political theater . This morning , everyone is in high dudgeon about the meeting . The underlying meeting is a nothing burger . It ’ s what senators do every day . Meeting with foreign ambassadors , that ’ s part of the job . I think everyone is getting all worked up because it ’ s a chance to beat up the attorney general and to beat up the president . ”
The media coverage of this nontroversy has been nothing short of Kafkaesque , with heavy-breathing headlines about Sessions failing to “ disclose ” his meetings with the ambassador . This is the cheapest of cheap shots , as lawyer Robert Barnes notes :
Senator Franken , during the Attorney General confirmation proceedings , talked about “ ties to Russia ” and asked if Senator Session had discussed the Trump campaign “ with Russian government officials. ” Sessions answered he had not . Sessions has no “ ties with Russia ” and there is no evidence he discussed the Trump campaign with any Russian official . The attempt to conflate Sessions doing his job as a Senator — meeting with ambassadors — as meaning he must have talked about campaign tactics or the campaign at all is patently ludicrous… Franken asked about “ a continuing exchange of information during the campaign between Trump surrogates and intermediaries for the Russian government. ” Sessions answered : “ I ’ m not aware of any of those activities . I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign and I did not have communications with Russians , and I ’ m unable to comment on it. ” Anyone reading the actual exchange can see Sessions was referring to no communications “ as a surrogate ” just as the question ’ s very long pre-amble specifically referenced the focus of the question to that subject matter . Nothing about Sessions ’ answer was false , nor could it be construed to be materially false or willfully false , or even false at all . Notably , Senator Franken chose not to ask Sessions about his contacts with Russian officials over the years in his duties as a Senator on the Armed Services Committee . Sessions ’ first meeting of the Russian ambassador was in public , and likely known to Franken and others . Franken could not have interpreted Sessions ’ answer as anything but an answer to the question asked about campaign contacts with Russian government officials , which no evidence supports ever occurring .
It is difficult to overstate what loathsome partisans the Democrats are . Having spent the Cold War scolding Republicans for anti-Russian provocations , they now encourage infinitely less serious ones , all for the sake of trying to score partisan points against Trump . Pro-Soviet pacifists have suddenly turned into anti-Russian warmongers in the hopes of undercutting Trump . Blessed are the troublemakers — that is now the motto of pacifist Democrats . They have gone from demanding “ dialogue ” with America ’ s enemies to forbidding it .
And is Russia even threatening vital American interests ? No . So what is all of this feverish anti-Russian talk about ? Well , they tried to “ tip the election to Trump , ” cry the Democrats . Maybe , maybe not . What we know with certainty is that the U.S government , under Barack Obama , tried to tip the election to Hillary and damage Trump . Should we investigate that ? Should Congress appoint a special investigator to ferret out how many U.S. government officials helped Hillary ? And what about the influence of pro-Hillary foreign governments on the election ? Does that require a special prosecutor too ?
All of this is nonsense , and Republicans shouldn ’ t surrender an inch to it . Those who do deserve to be primaried . At a time when they should be exposing the pathological partisanship of the media and Democrats , they are placating it . There is also an annoying faux-hawkishness about it all , cavalier posturing that could get America into another stupid war . One could take the nonstop Putin-bashing seriously if these Republicans actually detailed how Russia endangers America , but they can ’ t . So in the end it is just chic chest-beating , and over a country no worse than countless others with whom America has diplomatic relations .
The media and Dems are looking to scalp Sessions not for any misdeeds but for his conservatism , and these Republican frauds are helping them . That the chattering has even turned to whether he should “ resign ” is a measure of the partisan hysteria of the moment . Every Dem under the sun is rushing to a microphone to call for his resignation . With a straight face , Nancy Pelosi even called for prosecuting him : “ Jeff Sessions lied under oath during his confirmation hearing before the Senate . ”
In their desperate anti-Trump histrionics , the Dems look less like Eugene McCarthy than Joe McCarthy . | 75a2859f25b13d30 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
europe | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/22/politics/eu-referendum-brexit-donald-trump/index.html | Brexit: The UK's Donald Trump moment | 2016-06-22 | Brexit, Europe, World | A toxic political brew is percolating around the UK 's decision Thursday to leave the European Union , a fateful vote with consequences not just for America 's closest historical ally but for Western stability that could trigger economic and political reverberations in the United States .
While the vote is designed to settle Britain 's long-ambivalent attitude toward Europe , the underlying themes of the referendum look familiar to anyone who has been transfixed by the turbulent U.S. presidential election .
The similarities in the two campaigns suggest powerful shared tensions are tearing at the world 's most enduring English-speaking democracies . The forces unleashed seem likely to rattle the respective political systems for years to come .
They both feature a torrent of populist anger , fear-mongering by politicians , hostility toward distant elites and bitterness toward the ruling political , media and business establishment .
In the U.S. and the UK , emotion and hyperbole have become a constant undercurrent of politics and are being used as a weapon by politicians in both camps , right and left , `` Leave '' and `` Remain . ''
Former London mayor Boris Johnson warned in May that the E.U . was the latest manifestation of a 2,000-year project to unify Europe under a single government .
`` Napoleon , Hitler , various people tried this out , and it ends tragically , '' Johnson told the Sunday Telegraph in arguing for leaving the European Union . `` The EU is an attempt to do this by different methods . ''
Such emotive rhetoric is reminiscent of Trump 's own claims that the independence of the United States itself is under threat .
`` We will no longer surrender this country or its people to the false song of globalism , '' Trump said in a major foreign policy speech in Washington in April .
And among voters , the anger is palpable in both countries .
In the United States , clashes have broken out between supporters and opponents of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee , while the debate is as coarse as it has been in living memory .
JUST WATCHED Town , husband mourns loss of British MP Jo Cox Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Town , husband mourns loss of British MP Jo Cox 02:52
In the United Kingdom , politicians of all sides were shocked by the killing of pro-Europe lawmaker Jo Cox of the Labour Party on Thursday . The man charged with her murder said when asked his name at a court appearance on Saturday : `` Death to traitors , freedom for Britain . ''
In Britain , as in the U.S. , the atmosphere has been particularly soured by an emotive debate about a wave of migration from the south and a perception that newcomers threaten the ethnic and political characteristics of each nation .
And at the center of both the referendum and the U.S. presidential election is the idea that the political status quo is not working for voters and that elected leaders are either incompetent or not listening .
JUST WATCHED Brits talk Brexit , immigration and 'white privilege ' Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Brits talk Brexit , immigration and 'white privilege ' 01:56
`` On the one hand , we have disenchantment with elites , '' said Nicholas Dungan , a leading expert in European politics with the Atlantic Council . `` On the other hand , it seems extraordinarily difficult for the elites to actually get anything done . The reason people are upset with the leadership class is not because of their leadership , it 's because of their lack of leadership . ''
Professor Robert Tombs of St. John 's College , Cambridge University , said many U.K. voters are frustrated that politicians do n't seem to be listening .
`` There is a sense that people feel that standard centrist politics is no longer representing them , and that has meant membership ( in ) political parties , and the proportion of people voting all over the Western world , has fallen , '' said Tombs , author of the book `` The English and Their History . ''
He continued , `` There is a sense that politics no longer matters , or that the people who run mainline politics are no longer in contact with the people who vote for them . ''
In the United States , that has enabled Trump to muster grassroots fury to stage a hostile takeover of the Republican Party . It also fed the `` political revolution '' ignited by Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders , motivated not just by anger against Washington politicians but another form of elites : Wall Street titans .
The frustration runs particularly deep in Britain , where anti-Europe voters are not just motivated by fury toward members of Parliament but the regulations drafted by faceless bureaucrats in Brussels who execute EU policies -- and whom they can not kick out of office in an election .
JUST WATCHED Brexit : The immigration number that matters Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Brexit : The immigration number that matters 01:16
There is also a current of nationalism at work . It 's not unusual , for instance , to see both Eurosceptics and Trump supporters utter the phrase : `` I want to take our country back . ''
In each country , such feelings have translated to hostility toward outsiders .
In Britain , immigrants from struggling Eastern European states willing to work for low wages have become targets in a nation , like the U.S. , in which globalization has badly hit heavy industry .
Brexit : What will immigration look like if Britain leaves the EU ?
In the United States , Trump has accused undocumented migrants , most of them from Latin America , of undercutting U.S. workers . Trump has also slammed foreign actors like China and Japan for fleecing the U.S. in trade deals . The immigration question has been exacerbated by the flows of refugees from Middle East wars into southern Europe and opposition to the core E.U . principle of free movement of peoples between member states.In the United States , Trump has accused undocumented migrants , most of them from Latin America , of undercutting U.S. workers . Trump has also slammed foreign actors like China and Japan for fleecing the U.S. in trade deals .
Similarly , Eurosceptics have argued that , freed from the constraints of the European Union , British companies will be more competitive .
There is also the unconventional populist appeal that figures leading the establishment critiques have cultivated by expressing both their personalities and previously taboo sentiments .
In the United States , unorthodox outsiders like Trump and Sanders have left opponents -- like the entire Republican presidential field and Democratic presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton -- flat-footed .
Britain has its own colorful political characters -- most prominently Johnson , who like Trump , operates from beneath an improbable edifice of blond hair . The former London mayor grabbed a leadership role in the Brexit campaign that many observers see as positioning to become the next prime minister .
And UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage last week sparked outrage among opponents by posing in front of a poster that suggested waves of brown-skinned immigrants were poised to swamp Britain , recalling Trump 's labeling Mexican illegal immigrants criminals and racists .
Those leading the pro-Europe `` Remain '' campaign in Britain struggled to match the personality of the exit camp . Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron , despite winning the election last year , is mistrusted by many voters . Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn does n't even enjoy majority support among lawmakers of his own party and is viewed as too left-wing by many others .
And the American president also has not seemed successful in moving British sentiment : In London in April , President Barack Obama made a personal appeal for the UK to stay in the EU that did not seem to register in polls .
For Trump , Brexit is one more policy on which to oppose Obama . The billionaire businessman expressed support for the `` Leave '' side last month .
`` I think maybe it 's time , especially in light of what 's happened , with the craziness that 's going on with the migration , with people pouring in all over the place , '' Trump told `` Good Morning Britain '' on ITV in March .
While no one knows how the referendum will turn out , there is one thing that everyone in Britain agrees on -- the referendum is the most important election in years .
And it is a vote that splits the U.K. Scotland and Northern Ireland are generally seen as more pro-Europe , while England -- with the exception of London -- and much of rural Wales are seen as harboring majorities in favor of Brexit .
There is at least one more common ideological similarity between the U.S. and UK .
Leading British Conservative Michael Gove , who broke with his boss Cameron to support leaving the EU , suggested that the United States is a model for the independence and self-determination the Brexit forces desire .
`` The ability to choose who governs us , and the freedom to change laws we do not like , were secured for us in the past by radicals and liberals who took power from unaccountable elites and placed it in the hands of the people , '' Gove wrote in a personal statement explaining his position in February .
`` Like the Americans who declared their independence and never looked back , '' he continued , `` we can become an exemplar of what an inclusive , open and innovative democracy can achieve . '' | 0c406630d6e03386 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | Fox News Digital | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/12/23/rand-paul-celebrates-festivus-with-airing-grievances-against-dc/ | Rand Paul celebrates 'Festivus' with airing of grievances against DC | 2013-12-23 | Politics | It seems you clicked on a bad link and stumbled upon our 404 page | 7b2401e1ab5b0771 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Breitbart News | http://www.breitbart.com/london/2016/09/21/surprise-that-will-end-trump-globalists-registering-8-million/ | Soros-Linked ‘October Surprise That Will End Trump’: The Campaign To Register 8 Million ‘Global Citizens’ To Vote | 2016-09-21 | Donald Trump, George Soros, Globalization, Presidential Elections, Elections | A new campaign , touted as the “ October surprise that will end Trump ” , is seeking to mobilise a “ secret swing state ” of more than 8 million mostly unregistered “ global citizens ” and “ progressive ” Americans living abroad to vote in the U.S. election .
The initiative was launched in London in the United Kingdom on Wednesday by ‘ Avaaz ’ , a registered U.S. charity and one the world ’ s largest and most powerful activist groups linked to globalist billionaire George Soros . Campaigners toured from the University College London down to Parliament blasting Bruce Springsteen ’ s ‘ Born in the USA ’ while chanting “ Don ’ t Vote Trump ” from an open top bus .
While illegal for registered U.S. charities to work with or for presidential candidates , a spokeswoman for Avaaz denied any connection to the Hillary campaign when quizzed . Campaigners with Avaaz however , were recorded shouting , “ Vote for Hillary ! ” during the demonstration .
A huge 88 per cent of Americans living abroad did not register to vote in the last presidential election , and Avaaz points out that “ this massive untapped voting block ” is much more likely to be “ progressive ” because “ 56 per cent of us [ in the UK ] have masters degrees ” and overwhelmingly donated to Democratic candidates in the last three presidential primaries .
In a press release , Avaaz references a new Oxford University study that found “ America ’ s overseas voters… could decide the US presidency in 2016 ” . When combined , the potential 8 million voters around the world , “ would make up the 13th largest state ” , they say .
Just 12 per cent of Americans abroad were registered to vote in 2012 , and “ the reason they don ’ t vote is that it ’ s a complicated process for them to register from abroad and many Americans miss the deadline ” , Meredith Alexander , the Campaigns Director for Avaaz , told Breitbart London .
Her charity , which has also campaigned for “ refugee rights ” and against Brexit , claims to have “ enlisted over 30 million people around the world to share ” a new “ super easy ” tool enabling left wing American expats to register to vote quickly en mass .
The 8 million Americans abroad almost never vote . This dead easy tool can fix that but only if we make it famous : https : //t.co/z4l7lekdub — Avaaz ( @ Avaaz ) September 13 , 2016
“ Avaaz has created the world ’ s first , global , citizen ’ s get-out-the-vote drive ” , Ms. Alexander added . “ The more people that share it on Facebook , the more Americans abroad will see it , and the more we will be able to stop the global threat of Trump ” .
The group chose London for the launch as the UK has the “ largest concentration of US expats outside of North America ” , and at the event several Americans registered to vote before the media to prove how easy it is with Avaaz ’ s new tool .
“ For months , the world has sat on the sidelines , horrified by Trump ’ s hate . Now , global citizens have a way to fight back ” , Emma Ruby-Sachs , Deputy Director of Avaaz added .
The charity ’ s website encourages people to email potential U.S. voters in other countries , giving them a template that reads :
“ 8 million Americans abroad could defeat Trump… if they vote ! I wanted to make sure you saw this new overseas registration tool that makes voting dead-easy . It literally takes a few minutes : ) ” .
The official campaign makes no mention of other presidential candidates , and is framed as simply anti-Trump . Banners on the bus today insisted the campaign it is “ not authorised by any candidate or candidate office ” and linked to Avaaz.org/VoteAbroad , an unintentionally close sound to ‘ Voter Fraud ’ – an issue which campaigners will be keen to avoid discussion of .
“ We are a charity in the United States , we are governed by American law , and we are not allowed to coordinate with any candidate ” , Ms. Alexander explained to Breitbart London .
“ But , we are absolutely allowed to advocate for our position , ” she added . “ And our position is that Trump is a global threat ” .
Her argument was that Avaaz was not working for Hillary , which would be illegal , but was instead dedicated to issues like climate change and opposing nuclear weapons , and therefore must oppose Mr. Trump and his policies , which implicitly means backing Hillary .
“ Whether it ’ s banning Muslims or building walls , the man sows division wherever he goes , and that ’ s part of the reason Avaaz wanted to make sure everyone , everywhere can help stop Trump ” , Ms. Alexander added .
Avaaz launched in 2007 to agitate for various left-wing causes including animal rights and mass migration . They organised the biggest climate change march in the UK ’ s history and the Guardian has described them as “ the globe ’ s largest and most powerful online activist network ” .
They claim to be “ independent and accountable ” and “ wholly member-funded ” . Yet , they were formed by the merger of several establishment groups including MoveOn.org – a group that received $ 1.46 million from George Soros during the 2004 election cycle – and Res Publica , which has received grants totalling $ 250,000 from the liberal billionaire ’ s Open Society group .
Furthermore , Avaaz co-founder Ricken Patel has worked for – either directly or as a consultant – numerous globalist foundations and corporations such as the Rockefeller Foundation and the Gates Foundation .
According to POLITICO , Mr. Soros has committed around $ 25 million to assisting Hillary Clinton and Democratic Party causes at this election cycle .
Avaaz also campaigned against the UK leaving the European Union under the banner : “ Choose Love , Vote Remain ” .
Meredith Alexander said , “ Avaaz is just as strongly in support of trying to stop Brexit as we are of trying to stop Trump ” and that it is “ part of the same challenge ” of suppressing populist , anti-globalist movements .
“ You have forces of division that are rising in a number of countries , whether it ’ s here with Brexit… the Austrian presidential election , or the American presidential election . The threats that we are facing right now tend to be threats that need global coordination , ” she said , mentioning the “ refugee crisis ” and the “ climate crisis ” .
Ms. Alexander also praised London ’ s Muslim Mayor , Sadiq Khan , for touring America to give his endorsement to Hillary Clinton . She said : “ I absolutely hope that he has an effect ” .
Victoria Friedman , Rachel Megawhat , and Raheem Kassam contributed to this article | e23ea4f8d0153294 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
north_korea | Fox Online News | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/06/03/mattis-calls-north-koreas-threats-clear-and-present-danger-criticizes-ally-china.html | Mattis calls North Korea's threats 'clear and present danger,' criticizes ally China | 2017-06-03 | north_korea | Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said in no uncertain terms Saturday that North Korea presented a `` clear and present danger , '' while also criticizing China for ratcheting up the tension over contested islands in the South China Sea .
His sharp words for both countries suggested he believed China would , out of self-interest , pressure North Korea to halt its nuclear and missile programs even as Washington pushes Beijing to change course in the South China Sea .
Speaking at an international security conference in Singapore , Mattis said the Trump administration was encouraged by China 's renewed commitment to working with the U.S. and others to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons . He also said he thought Beijing ultimately would see Kim Jong Un 's regime as a liability rather than an asset .
He was , however , unrelentingly critical of North Korea , a politically and economically isolated nation whose leaders have long viewed the United States as a military threat , in part because of periodic U.S. military exercises with South Korea , which the rogue nation sees as preparations for attacks aimed at destroying its ruling elite .
Mattis called North Korea an `` urgent military threat . '' In a question-and-answer session with his audience of national security experts from across the globe , he was asked whether the U.S. might attack the North pre-emptively and without warning South Korea in advance .
`` We 're working diplomatically , economically , we 're trying to exhaust all possible alternatives to avert this race for a nuclear weapon in violation of ... the United Nations ' restrictions on North Korea 's activities , '' he said . `` We want to stop this . We consider it urgent . ''
China blocked tough new sanctions against North Korea that the United States pushed in the U.N. Security Council on Friday . However , the Security Council did vote unanimously to add 15 individuals and four entities linked to the North 's nuclear and missile programs to a U.N. sanctions blacklist .
Still , Mattis said the U.S. was fully committed to working with its global partners , Reuters reported . `` Like it or not , we are a part of the world ... What a crummy world if we all retreat inside our borders , '' he replied .
In his speech to the Shangri-La Dialogue , sponsored by the International Institute for Strategic Studies , Mattis sought to balance his hopeful comments on China with sharp criticism of what he called Beijing 's disregard for international law by its `` indisputable militarization '' of artificial islands in disputed areas of the South China Sea .
`` We oppose countries militarizing artificial islands and enforcing excessive maritime claims unsupported by international law , '' he said . `` We can not and will not accept unilateral , coercive changes to the status quo . ''
Rep. Mac Thornberry , a Republican from Texas and chairman of the House Armed Services Committee , told a news conference later that he believed Mattis had effectively stressed the U.S. commitment to allies in the Asia-Pacific region .
`` He was very clear , very strong , '' said Thornberry , who led a bipartisan congressional delegation on an Asia tour and attended Saturday 's Singapore conference .
Overall , Mattis ' speech struck a positive , hopeful tone for cooperation and peace in the Asia-Pacific region , where he and his predecessors have made it a priority to nurture and strengthen alliances and partnerships .
`` While competition between the U.S. and China , the world 's two largest economies , is bound to occur , conflict is not inevitable , '' he said . `` Our two countries can and do cooperate for mutual benefit . We will pledge to work closely with China where we share common cause .
`` While the North Korean regime has a long record of murder of diplomats , of kidnapping , killing of sailors and criminal activity , its nuclear weapons program is maturing as a threat to all , '' Mattis said . `` As a matter of national security , the United States regards the threat from North Korea as a clear and present danger . ''
The U.S. has about 28,500 troops permanently based in South Korea , a defense treaty ally . | Mc7oElD2vetQgf54 | 2 | North Korea | -1.4 | James Mattis | 0.2 | China | -0.1 | World | 0 | null | null |
middle_east | The Flip Side | https://www.theflipside.io/archives/turkeys-offensive-in-syria | Turkey’s Offensive in Syria | middle_east | “ Turkey vowed to press ahead with its offensive in northern Syria on Tuesday despite U.S. sanctions and growing calls for it to stop. ” Reuters
Many on both sides are criticizing the US troop withdrawal and Turkey ’ s military operation :
“ Trump may indeed have campaigned on getting out of Syria . He didn ’ t campaign on potentially freeing thousands of Islamic State fighters , greenlighting ethnic cleansing , or empowering Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and Russian president Vladimir Putin . A serious policy of disengagement from the Middle East would require working with our allies in the region and elsewhere . It would involve intense planning by the Pentagon and State Department . And , most importantly , it would necessitate tough negotiations with the Turks to minimize our betrayal of a people who lost some 11,000 troops fighting at our side . ”
“ History is littered with instances of one-time allies abandoned by Washington to their fate… Yet the decision by the Trump administration to quit Syria stands apart because the status quo was entirely sustainable . American forces were not taking high numbers of casualties . The region under control of the Kurds was largely quiet . Islamic State fighters were penned up . There wasn ’ t major international pressure for the United States to withdraw . If the Trump administration had wanted to acquiesce to Mr. Erdogan ’ s pleadings to let Turkey take stronger actions in service of its own national security , it could surely have managed such steps in a far more measured and coordinated manner… The decision makes as little sense strategically as it does morally . ”
“ Mr . Trump was able to project an image of strength in his early days as he prosecuted the war against ISIS and used force to impose a cost on Mr. Assad for using chemical weapons . But that image has faded as he has indulged his inner Rand Paul… This is simple-minded isolationism , and it ’ s a message to the world ’ s rogues that a U.S. President has little interest in engaging on behalf of American allies or interests . Friends like Israel and Saudi Arabia are quietly dismayed , while Iran , Russia and Hezbollah can ’ t believe Mr. Trump has so glibly abandoned U.S. commitments and military partners . ”
“ Even operating within the constraints that Trump has foolishly adopted , there are actions the U.S. could—and should—take to mitigate the damage . If he must allow Turkey to create a 20 km ‘ safe zone ’ in Syrian territory , the U.S. should take responsibility for making it actually safe , because what is currently a military onslaught could quickly become a humanitarian crisis… if we move fast with a proposed buffer , before the long-term consequences of Trump ’ s support for Turkey ’ s invasion are manifest , we might still be able to get partners to help us , and mitigate the damage . ”
“ Our troops are scrambling to safely get out of the affected areas and the Kurds have signed on to cooperate with Assad ’ s Syrian army . But we ’ re definitely going to start making steel more expensive… or something… This sounds like the President wants to impose sanctions on Turkey for doing precisely what Erdogan told him he was going to do . How do you invade a country and start fighting without precipitating a humanitarian crisis ? People who are being invaded by a foreign army are pretty much facing a humanitarian crisis by definition . ”
“ [ Sanctions have ] , in short , become the Trump administration ’ s one consistent move when confronted with the world ’ s most complex problems : squeeze countries economically while staying open to dialogue and offering to release the economic vise if they mend their ways . The administration has proved adept at the squeeze , but more inept when it comes to changing behavior . It has so far failed to achieve its desired outcomes in Iran , North Korea , Venezuela , and now Syria… To extinguish a military conflagration unfolding in real time , the administration is resorting to measures that notoriously take a lot of time to come to fruition . The U.S. financial system is powerful , but not so powerful that it can swiftly stop a military assault in its tracks . ” | CBSFWYTkJEgzqDD5 | 1 | Turkey | -0.1 | Syria | -0.1 | Middle East | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | |
sports | NPR Online News | http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/05/27/409925096/6-top-world-soccer-officials-arrested-in-switzerland-on-u-s-corruption-charges | Top FIFA Officials Arrested In Switzerland On U.S. Corruption Charges | 2015-05-27 | sports | Arrest and search warrants have been executed against senior FIFA officials and several executives for what the Justice Department says was a corrupt scheme that gleaned `` well over $ 150 million in bribes and kickbacks '' over the course of 24 years .
The department announced that it has indicted 14 people from the U.S. and South America — including nine senior officials with FIFA , soccer 's international governing body . Seven of the FIFA officials were arrested in Switzerland early Wednesday .
`` This really is the World Cup of fraud , '' says Richard Weber , chief of the IRS ' Criminal Investigation unit , `` and today we are issuing FIFA a red card . ''
Acting upon a U.S. request , Swiss police apprehended the seven FIFA officials at the Baur au Lac , a luxury hotel on Lake Zurich where they had gathered ahead of FIFA 's pending presidential election .
Of the nine officials who were indicted , two of them are FIFA vice presidents . Charges in the 47-count indictment include bribery , racketeering , money laundering and wire fraud . Five corporate executives were also indicted .
FIFA says it has provisionally banned those who were named in the charges .
Nearly all of the charges center on tournaments and other activities that took place in the U.S. and South America . The bribes allegedly influenced the awarding of media and marketing rights to international tournaments .
U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch also says U.S. investigators linked both the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and the 2011 FIFA presidential election to corruption .
A sponsorship deal between Brazil 's national soccer team and `` a major U.S. sportswear company '' was also tied to bribery , the attorney general says .
Also Wednesday morning , Swiss federal prosecutors said they had opened an investigation into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups , which were awarded to Russia and Qatar , respectively . But FIFA is reiterating that it would not consider moving those tournaments .
Update at 2:50 p.m . ET : Blatter : 'We Understand The Disappointment '
Breaking a silence that had drawn speculation and criticism as it lingered , FIFA President Sepp Blatter says that while the events are `` unfortunate , '' FIFA is taking steps to root out corruption , and `` we welcome the actions and the investigations by the U.S. and Swiss authorities . ''
He added : `` such misconduct has no place in football and we will ensure that those who engage in it are put out of the game . Following the events of today , the independent Ethics Committee ... took swift action to provisionally ban those individuals named by the authorities from any football-related activities at the national and international level . ''
Calling it a difficult time for soccer , Blatter said , `` We understand the disappointment that many have expressed . ''
Announcing the charges , U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch says the accused officials `` corrupted the business of worldwide soccer '' to enrich themselves .
At a mid-morning news conference in New York , Lynch said that `` beginning in 1991 , two generations of soccer officials '' in the U.S. and South America used positions of trust to obtain money in return for help in securing marketing and media rights and other favors .
Lynch said federal agents are executing search warrants at CONCACAF offices in Miami today . And she said the federal investigation found that the Copa America tournament , which is set to be played in the United States next year for the first time , was also the center of bribes .
She stated that the money involved was found to be `` $ 110 million — nearly a third of the legitimate costs '' for several years ' worth of rights to the tournament .
Lynch noted that a former CONCACAF president who ostensibly served without pay actually received some $ 10 million in bribes .
`` Jeffrey Webb and Jack Warner — the current and former presidents of CONCACAF , the continental confederation under FIFA headquartered in the United States — are among the soccer officials charged with racketeering and bribery offenses , '' the U.S. Justice Department said earlier today .
[ See the full list of those indicted at the bottom of this post . ]
The seven people arrested today are among nine senior FIFA officials — including two of the group 's current vice presidents — the U.S. has indicted . Charges in the 47-count indictment include bribery , racketeering , money laundering , and wire fraud . Five U.S. and South American corporate executives were also indicted .
`` It spans at least two generations of soccer officials who , as alleged , have abused their positions of trust to acquire millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks . And it has profoundly harmed a multitude of victims , from the youth leagues and developing countries that should benefit from the revenue generated by the commercial rights these organizations hold , to the fans at home and throughout the world whose support for the game makes those rights valuable . ''
The U.S. attorney 's charges were first reported by The New York Times .
At a news conference today , FIFA spokesman Walter De Gregorio said the organization 's president , Sepp Blatter of Switzerland , was not a target of the investigations and that Friday 's election for FIFA president would go ahead as scheduled . Blatter is being challenged by Jordanian Prince Ali Bin al-Hussein .
The U.S. is requesting the extradition of the seven officials . Swiss authorities said the detainees will be questioned Wednesday and have the right to contest their extradition .
In addition to the 14 people indicted in the U.S. case , an additional four individuals and two corporations had earlier pleaded guilty under seal . In those arrangements , at least three people each forfeited more than $ 1 million — including one , Brazilian sports executive José Hawilla , who agreed to hand over $ 151 million .
According to the Swiss Federal Department of Justice and Police , the U.S. says others are accused of bribing the officials :
`` The bribery suspects — representatives of sports media and sports promotion firms — are alleged to have been involved in schemes to make payments to the soccer functionaries — delegates of FIFA ( Fédération Internationale de Football Association ) and other functionaries of FIFA sub-organizations — totaling more than USD 100 million . In return , it is believed that they received media , marketing , and sponsorship rights in connection with soccer tournaments in Latin America . According to the US request , these crimes were agreed and prepared in the US , and payments were carried out via US banks . ''
In the investigation concerning Russia and Qatar , Swiss authorities raided FIFA 's headquarters early this morning , seizing electronic data and documents . Swiss prosecutors said they will interview 10 FIFA executive committee members who took part in the votes to award the World Cup to Russia and Qatar .
FIFA spokesman De Gregorio said FIFA had gone to Swiss authorities in November with concerns that the bidding process was corrupt .
`` This is the consequences of what we initiated , '' said De Gregorio . `` So it 's a surprise that it happened today , but it 's not a surprise that it happened .
`` We can not investigate as the police can or a general prosecutor can . So that 's the reason why we did it and that 's the reason why we fully cooperate . ''
FIFA governs the world 's most popular sport . The multibillion-dollar organization has been accused of bribery and corruption for decades .
Jeffrey Webb : Current FIFA vice president and executive committee member , CONCACAF president , Caribbean Football Union ( CFU ) executive committee member and Cayman Islands Football Association ( CIFA ) president .
Eduardo Li : Current FIFA executive committee member-elect , CONCACAF executive committee member and Costa Rican soccer federation ( FEDEFUT ) president .
Julio Rocha : Current FIFA development officer . Former Central American Football Union ( UNCAF ) president and Nicaraguan soccer federation ( FENIFUT ) president .
Costas Takkas : Current attaché to the CONCACAF president . Former CIFA general secretary .
Jack Warner : Former FIFA vice president and executive committee member , CONCACAF president , CFU president and Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation ( TTFF ) special adviser .
Eugenio Figueredo : Current FIFA vice president and executive committee member . Former CONMEBOL president and Uruguayan soccer federation ( AUF ) president .
Rafael Esquivel : Current CONMEBOL executive committee member and Venezuelan soccer federation ( FVF ) president .
José Maria Marin : Current member of the FIFA organizing committee for the Olympic football tournaments . Former CBF president .
Nicolás Leoz : Former FIFA executive committee member and CONMEBOL president .
Alejandro Burzaco : Controlling principal of Torneos y Competencias S.A. , a sports marketing business based in Argentina , and its affiliates .
Aaron Davidson : President of Traffic Sports USA Inc. ( Traffic USA ) .
Hugo and Mariano Jinkis : Controlling principals of Full Play Group S.A. , a sports marketing business based in Argentina , and its affiliates .
José Margulies : Controlling principal of Valente Corp. and Somerton Ltd .
The cases of the people and corporations that previously pleaded guilty date back to 2013 . They include : | OtQihbTgcksAZ3MH | 1 | Soccer | -9.8 | Sports | -0.8 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | NPR Online News | http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/06/01/154131119/unemployment-rate-8-2-percent-in-may-as-just-69-000-jobs-added | May's Jobs Report Far Worse Than Expected | 2012-06-01 | economy_and_jobs | 'Lousy ' News : Just 69,000 Jobs Added In May ; Jobless Rate At 8.2 Percent
Those are just three of the words economists are using to describe the news that just 69,000 net jobs were added to public and private payrolls last month — and that the nation 's jobless rate edged up to 8.2 percent from April 's 8.1 percent .
The news has raised fears that the hoped-for strengthening of the economy may not materialize .
We posted on the news and followed with details from the report and reaction to it . It 's now 11:22 am . ET , here 's our original post and earlier updates :
The nation 's unemployment rate rose to 8.2 percent in May from 8.1 percent in April as just 69,000 jobs were added to public and private payrolls , the Bureau of Labor Statistics said this morning .
Both numbers are disappointments . Economists had expected BLS would say the jobless rate had stayed at 8.1 percent and that payrolls expanded by at least 150,000 jobs .
We 'll be adding to this post as we gather more data from the report and reactions to it , so hit your `` refresh '' button to be sure you 're seeing our latest updates .
Update at 11:20 a.m . ET : `` Jobs slowdown adds to global fears , '' The Wall Street Journal says .
Nigel Gault , chief economist at IHS Global Insight , writes that `` 2012 is beginning to look horribly like 2011 — initial high hopes that the recovery was kicking into high gear , subsequently dashed . ''
Update at 9:54 a.m . ET . Weak , Lousy , Horrid ; Pick Your Word :
Reuters rounds up reactions from some economists here . Among the words they use for the news :
Update at 9:45 a.m . ET : White House Says Economy Is Still `` Fighting Back '' From Crisis :
`` We are still fighting back from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression , '' the president 's top economic adviser , Alan Krueger , writes on the White House blog . `` There is much more work that remains to be done to repair the damage caused by the financial crisis and deep recession that began at the end of 2007 . ''
And he makes the case that `` it is critical that we continue the president 's economic policies that are helping us dig our way out of the deep hole that was caused by the severe recession . ''
Update at 9:34 a.m . ET : `` Stocks Drop On Weak Jobs News . ''
Update at 9:26 a.m . ET . On The Political Impact ; A `` Gut-Punch For Team Obama '' :
`` Why is this presidential race close ? And why might it get closer ? '' asks MSNBC 's First Read blog . `` Look no further than today 's jobs report for May , which is a gut-punch for Team Obama . ''
Update at 9:20 a.m . ET . Romney Calls Report `` Devastating News , '' Blames Obama 's `` Failed '' Policies .
The political repercussions are staring to be felt . Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney 's campaign just sent this statement to reporters :
`` Today 's weak jobs report is devastating news for American workers and American families . This week has seen a cascade of one bad piece of economic news after another . Slowing GDP growth , plunging consumer confidence , an increase in unemployment claims , and now another dismal jobs report all stand as a harsh indictment of the president 's handling of the economy . `` It is now clear to everyone that President Obama 's policies have failed to achieve their goals and that the Obama economy is crushing America 's middle class . The president 's re-election slogan may be 'forward , ' but it seems like we 've been moving backward . We can do so much better in America . That 's why I 'm running for president . ''
Our colleague Jacob Goldstein this morning looked at `` Three Years Of An Awful Recovery , '' over at the Planet Money blog .
Update at 9:07 a.m . ET . Income , Consumer Spending Figures Also Weak :
Meanwhile , the Bureau of Economic Analysis says Americans ' personal income rose just 0.2 percent in April from March and that consumer spending grew by a modest 0.3 percent . The income gain , the slowest in five months , raises concerns `` about the ability of Americans to keep spending in the future , '' The Associated Press writes .
Update at 9:04 a.m . ET . `` Marginally Attached '' Workers Also On The Rise .
`` In May , 2.4 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force , up from 2.2 million a year earlier . ... These individuals were not in the labor force , wanted and were available for work , and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months . They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey . ''
Update at 9:01 a.m . ET . There Are 5.4 Million `` Long-Term Unemployed '' :
According to BLS , `` the number of long-term unemployed ( those jobless for 27 weeks and over ) rose from 5.1 to 5.4 million in May . These individuals accounted for 42.8 percent of the unemployed . ''
Update at 8:58 a.m . ET . What 's Going On ? `` Broad Uncertainty '' :
Here 's how The Wall Street Journal is summing things up :
`` Nearly three years after the recession ended , the economy has failed to gain traction amid broad uncertainty related to Europe 's debt crisis , the potential for steep U.S. tax increases and spending cuts next year , and signs of slower growth in developing countries . ''
`` U.S. stock futures are plummeting after the release of a report on the job market that was far weaker than economists expected . Dow Jones industrial average futures , which were down 100 points before the report came out at 8:30 a.m . ET Friday , dropped an additional 100 points within minutes . ''
Economists sometimes talk about `` virtuous '' and `` vicious '' cycles . Basically , once the economy gets on a roll it can continue to expand as confidence , incomes and jobs all rise and build on each other . Conversely , when things are n't going well that can create a downward spiral .
`` Bigger job and wage gains are needed to jumpstart a self- sustaining increase in hiring and consumer spending that will boost the expansion . At the same time , a looming recession in the euro area and slower growth in China and Brazil may prompt American companies to reduce headcount until they see more evidence the U.S. economy is n't faltering . ''
Here 's how The Associated Press sums up the news : `` The dismal jobs figures could fan fears that the economy is sputtering . ''
Update at 8:46 a.m . ET . Sharp Slowing From First Quarter :
According to BLS , in the first quarter the average monthly gain in payrolls was 226,000 . But payrolls grew by just 77,000 in April and 69,000 in May .
Update at 8:44 a.m . ET . Number Of `` Discouraged Workers '' Remains High :
In another sign of the labor market 's weakness , BLS says `` there were 830,000 discouraged workers in May , about the same as a year earlier . ''
Update at 8:39 a.m . ET . Sharp Downward Revision Of April 's Gain :
BLS initially thought payrolls grew by a net 115,000 jobs in April , but now says just 77,000 positions were added that month . | 7MIwxPf0ZlKDwu3Q | 1 | Economy And Jobs | -1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
middle_east | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/feb/3/iranian-executions-spiking-despite-thaw-with-west-/ | Iranian executions spiking despite thaw with West, ?moderate president? | 2014-02-03 | middle_east | The number of executions carried out by Iranian authorities — often hanging dubiously convicted citizens from construction cranes in public — has risen sharply since President Hassan Rouhani took office in August , a surge most likely because of a secret power struggle within Iran ’ s notoriously veiled political system .
Away from positive news coverage of the Obama administration ’ s push for nuclear detente with Iran , the Islamic republic is executing about 66 people per month , 19 more per month than during the 2-year period before Mr. Rouhani took office , according to an analysis of figures compiled by nonpartisan groups including Amnesty International , the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center and various Iranian opposition activists in Washington .
Critics of the nuclear deal are citing the executions as evidence that Mr. Rouhani is far from the moderate reformer that many portrayed him to be upon his ascension to the presidency .
But U.S. intelligence sources , human rights advocates and high-level sources on Capitol Hill caution against jumping to that conclusion . In interviews with The ███ , several sources said reasons for the surge in executions are complex .
“ There are indications that the Iranian regime is executing more people now compared to just a year ago , ” one U.S. intelligence official told The Times on the condition of anonymity in order to speak freely about sensitive issues . “ But it ’ s difficult to identify any overarching political strategy behind Tehran ’ s actions . ”
Mr. Rouhani may have a political mandate from Iran ’ s supreme leader , Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , to thaw relations with the West . But sources say the president may have limited control over the nation ’ s judiciary , where decisions are made by other players — including Islamist hard-liners with mandates of their own from Ayatollah Khamenei .
A leading theory is that the leader of the Iranian judiciary , Sadeq Larijani , is green-lighting more executions in an attempt to smear Mr. Rouhani ’ s image as a moderate . The spike in hangings also may result from Ayatollah Khamenei ’ s desire to hammer home to Iranians that the mullahs ’ grip on society remains tight — even if Mr. Rouhani is seen to be spreading the rhetoric of reform on the world stage .
Either way , human rights advocates say , Iran is flagrantly violating international law .
After Amnesty International ’ s claim that 33 people were hanged in a single week last month , the top human rights office at the United Nations noted that “ 28 women and a number of political prisoners ” were among those executed in 2013 . The office also said the killings were based on convictions that do not meet the “ most serious crimes ” threshold under international law .
“ The persistent execution of individuals for exercising their rights to freedom of assembly , association and affiliation to minority groups contravenes universally accepted human rights principles and norms , ” said Ahmed Shaheed , U.N. special rapporteur for the situation of human rights in Iran .
An analysis of statistics compiled by the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center shows that in the six months since Mr. Rouhani took office , 399 people — or 66.5 per month — have been executed . In the 31 months prior , a total of 1,457 — 47 per month — were put to death .
The number of Iran ’ s executions was higher in 2011 , when 660 were killed , according to the center , which is based in New Haven , Conn . In 2012 , the number dipped to 522 but then climbed to 624 last year .
The United States , which often is criticized for its capital punishment practices , carried out 43 executions in 2011 and in 2012 , and 39 in 2013 , according to the Death Penalty Information Center .
While there are some pointed examples of people being hanged purely for ethnic and political reasons , human rights groups say about 70 percent of executions were for drug-related charges .
With little evidence that the charges were fabricated as cover to execute opposition activists , some wonder whether a cadre of hard-line judges may be engaged in a campaign to discourage drug use — particularly in anticipation of a surge after the much-anticipated U.S. military pullout from neighboring Afghanistan , the source of much of the heroin , opium and other drugs on the Iranian black market .
The catch is that Iran ’ s narcotics law makes no distinction between possession and heavy trafficking , which has paved the way for authorities to execute people on minor charges . It ’ s a reality made all the more disturbing , human rights groups say , by the fact that Iranian minorities — specifically Kurds — make up a disproportionate number of those being hanged .
Some believe Iran ’ s executions will derail prospects for a long-term thaw in relations with West .
“ Iranian authorities ’ attempts to change their international image are meaningless if at the same time executions continue to increase , ” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui , a deputy director at Amnesty International , which opposes all executions everywhere .
The situation is adding to unease in Washington , where lawmakers are split over the recent push for diplomacy with Tehran . Most Democrats , including Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California , who heads the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence , call for patience while nuclear negotiations proceed .
“ History has taught us that we are not dealing with an honest broker , ” Rep. George Holding , North Carolina Republican and member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs , said on the House floor last week . “ The election of President Rouhani does nothing to change the fact that the supreme leader is still in charge . ”
Others argue that Mr. Rouhani is under immense pressure , walking a tightrope between easing tensions with the West and preventing disruption inside Iran .
“ We ’ re clearly seeing a power struggle playing out in Iran between the hard-liners , who aren ’ t willing to compromise an inch on the nuclear program , and Rouhani , who has placed great emphasis on engagement with the West , ” said Rep. Eliot L. Engel of New York , the ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs .
“ The hard-liners , ” Mr. Engel told The Times , “ are willing to do what it takes to sully the image of Rouhani in the eyes of the West . ”
The U.S. intelligence official said Iranian Judiciary Chief Sadeq Larijani “ could be trying to send a message that tolerance has its limits . ”
Iranian sources highlight Mr. Larijani as the face of Tehran ’ s resistance to international criticism over executions . He responded harshly to the United Nations last week , declaring at a meeting with religious and political leaders in Iran that the Islamic republic “ will never cave to this type of pressure ” from Western-backed entities , according to a report by Al-Monitor , which cited a pro-regime Persian-language website as its source .
There are signs that some in Mr. Rouhani ’ s inner circle are at odds with Mr. Larijani and have been angered by the executions . As hangings spiked in November , Ali Younesi , a reformist member of Iran ’ s parliament and Mr. Rouhani ’ s special assistant in ethnic and minority affairs , said “ extremist elements ” in the government were responsible .
His comments were cited by the New York-based International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran , which said “ sources close to the Rouhani government ” privately claimed that some executions were “ actions as sabotage . ”
According to those sources , the execution surge is “ intended to deprive the government of the chance to present a more positive portrayal of Iran on the international arena , and to discredit Rouhani and his team , casting doubt on whether he is able to deliver his campaign promises to safeguard the nation ’ s basic rights . ”
But the extent to which blame should fall on Mr. Larijani is not clear . Another source who spoke with The Times said human rights advocates may be overlooking evidence of closeness between the judiciary chief and Mr. Rouhani .
One of Mr. Larijani ’ s brothers is parliament Chairman Ali Larijani , who is believed to be closely aligned with Mr. Rouhani in the push for a nuclear deal with the West .
Others point out that Mr. Rouhani named Mostafa Pourmohammadi in August to become justice minister . At the time , Human Rights Watch noted that Mr. Pourmohammadi , previously a deputy intelligence minister , has long been implicated in the government ’ s 1988 executions of thousands of political dissidents , as well as the assassinations of several intellectuals in 1998 .
Overanalysis of the politics behind the spike in executions may be irrelevant , said some Iran analysts . They said that whatever is playing out in Tehran is occurring beneath the gaze of the supreme leader — the only figure truly capable of changing the nation ’ s policies .
After Tehran ’ s violent crackdown on pro-reform demonstrators in 2009 , it has been a common perception in Washington that widespread public frustration burns deeply beneath the Islamic republic ’ s surface .
“ At times of widespread popular discontent , the regime in Tehran uses executions , in particular public hanging of convicts , as a means of terrorizing the public and reminding Iranians of the power of the central government , ” said Ali Alfoneh , a researcher at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies specializing in the inner workings of the Iranian regime .
“ Therefore , ” Mr. Alfoneh said , “ the rise in the number of executions signifies both popular discontent and the regime ’ s nervousness . ”
Ali Safavi , an Iranian opposition activist and the spokesman in Washington for the National Council of Resistance of Iran , said the “ wave of executions since Rouhani took office has all the eerie hallmarks of 1988 , ” when Tehran ’ s leaders yielded to a U.N.-brokered deal to end the Iran-Iraq war .
With no clear victory in the war , acceptance of the Western-backed negotiation triggered infighting across the highest ranks of Tehran ’ s secretive power structure and resulted in increased domestic repression .
At the time , Islamic republic founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini famously proclaimed that he “ drank the chalice of poison of the cease-fire , ” said Mr. Safavi , adding that “ this time , Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has reluctantly begun drinking the chalice of poison of nuclear retreat . ”
“ The regime is keen to warn the Iranian people that the smiles and sweet-talking with Western interlocutors will not translate into any easing of the absolute repression that has permeated the country in the past three decades , ” said Mr. Safavi , known in Washington for his close ties to the People ’ s Mujahedeen of Iran , a group also known as the MEK .
“ The question for the international community , ” Mr. Safavi said , “ is whether they will focus on these egregious abuses of the most fundamental rights of the Iranian people and hold the regime accountable , as they attempt to resolve the nuclear question . ” | W76DaGFqxrwHqU85 | 2 | Iran | -0.2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
coronavirus | Newsmax (News) | https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/president-joe-biden-pandemic-covid/2022/09/19/id/1088156/ | Biden's 'Pandemic Is Over' Declaration Ripped by Experts, GOP | 2022-09-19 | Coronavirus, Joe Biden, Public Health, Healthcare, Booster Shots | President Joe Biden's "60 Minutes" declaration "the pandemic is over" is drawing a response Monday, but not quite a joyous one."The pandemic is over," Biden said Sunday. "We still have a problem with COVID. We're still doing a lot of work on it, but the pandemic is over."Health experts are saying the pandemic is not actually over yet, while Republicans are saying Biden and Democrats need to move to unwind their strict COVID-19 public policies and protocols then, if it indeed was over."With the pandemic officially over, now it's time to end all vaccine mandates," Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., tweeted Sunday.Biden's comment even flies in the face of a $22.4 billion White House request this month for COVID-19 funding in the next continuing resolution to fund the government. Republicans want unused COVID-19 funds from past appropriations to be used first, as The Wall Street Journal reported."It's completely off base," Scripps Research Translational Institute Director Dr. Eric Topol told the Journal. "It's an illusion. We have millions of people with long COVID and no vaccine that blocks transmission."The Biden administration released its updated COVID-19 Global Response and Recovery Framework last week "to end the emergency phase of the pandemic," the Journal reported."If 'the pandemic is over' as Biden says, then all of the president's emergency powers predicated on a pandemic, all COVID vax mandates, the emergency powers of every governor, Emergency Use Authorizations, and the PREP act should all be voided tomorrow," Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., tweeted Sunday.Former Trump administration Surgeon General Jerome Adams criticized Biden, too."I understand what he was trying to say but such rhetoric is hurtful, dangerous, and scientifically untrue," Adams tweeted. "Nice to see some people call it out."George Washington University Dr. Leana Wen said the pandemic is over in that we have COVID-19 here to stay."One definition of a pandemic is something that changes the way we live, work, and go to school," Wen told the Journal. "For most Americans, COVID-19 is no longer dominating their lives and is now being understood as another infectious disease risk, more akin to the flu than a dire deadly disease."There have been 95 million COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and more than 1 million deaths, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data shows.But the 7-day average of new cases is near 61,000 after being 970,000 per week Jan. 17, and hospitalizations are around 4,100 per week, dropping 80% since mid-January, according to the report. | 2a7877050fa83162 | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2016/09/donald-trump-win-gop-insiders-227916 | GOP insiders: Maybe Trump can win | 2016-09-09 | elections | Once resigned to a November defeat , swing state Republicans are increasingly optimistic about Donald Trump ’ s chances now that the GOP presidential nominee has closed a once-yawning deficit in the polls against Hillary Clinton .
That ’ s according to The ███ Caucus — a panel of activists , operatives and strategists in 11 battleground states , 10 of which President Barack Obama carried in 2012 . While a majority of GOP insiders still say Clinton would carry their state if the election were held today , significantly more Republicans now say Trump would win than even just a few weeks ago .
But despite Trump ’ s improving prospects , GOP insiders express little confidence in the Trump campaign ’ s infrastructure — particularly compared with how Democrats feel about Clinton ’ s campaign .
Still , the uptick in how Republicans view Trump ’ s chances is striking . In this week ’ s survey , 61 percent of GOP insiders said Clinton would win their state , but the 39 percent who picked Trump to win is a new high-water mark for the GOP nominee . It ’ s a measure The ███ Caucus tracks on a weekly basis , and for most of August , only about one-in-five Republican insiders thought Trump would win their state .
“ Trump has turned the tide in Ohio , and he would win by a microscopic margin if the race were held today , ” said a Republican there . ( All respondents completed the survey anonymously . )
“ The political landscape has changed in the past few weeks in Colorado , as well as the nation , ” added a Republican there . “ Reluctant Republicans are realizing the choice is ideological , angry Bernie supporters just ca n't support Hillary because of what the DNC leaks exposed , and independents are indicating many will also throw support for Trump in Colorado because Hillary is so toxic . ”
An Iowa Republican added : “ Hillary has spent millions here . She 's pounded on him for months , unopposed and unrelenting . And she 's still behind . She 's functionally the incumbent and she has little to no room for growth . In short : she has n't put him away , she probably ca n't put him away , so he wins . ”
Still , many Republicans still think Clinton ’ s organizational advantage will prevail .
“ Tightening numbers make the ground game even more important , ” said a New Hampshire Republican , “ and without a Trump ground game … he ca n't win here . ”
GOP insiders are mostly downcast about the state of Trump ’ s organization . Only 17 percent said they have “ a lot of confidence ” in the Trump campaign infrastructure in their state , while 39 percent have “ only some confidence ” in the campaign , and 44 percent have “ no confidence at all . ”
Democrats are much more confident about Clinton ’ s campaign : 82 percent said they have “ a lot of confidence , ” much more than the 17 percent who express “ only some confidence ” and 1 percent who have “ no confidence at all . ”
Anecdotes from the field about the Trump ground game amount to the stuff of nightmares for national Republicans .
— A Colorado Republican : “ The most visible manifestation of Trump 's campaign in Jefferson County , Colorado , is a small office in a low-rent building that also happens to feature a psychic and a massage parlor . Add to that the constant robocalls , and Trump 's Colorado effort has the look and feel of a county commissioner campaign . ”
— A Florida Republican said Trump was operating the “ weakest Republican campaign in the state since … well , I 've only been working here 30 years and can not think of one worse . ”
— A Michigan Republican : “ The Trump campaign hired a number of staff , but they are all from out of state . ”
—A New Hampshire Republican : “ Are you telling me there is a Trump infrastructure in New Hampshire ? I have more confidence in the Red Sox ' bullpen than I do in the Trump infrastructure . ”
— An Ohio Republican : “ They have a pro at the top , ” in state director Bob Paduchik , “ but he has a staff of C players . Right now , they are putting a premium on yard sign locations vs. an actual Get Out The Vote effort . ”
— A Pennsylvania Republican : “ They seem to have signs out and about , so I suppose they have something in place . ”
— A Virginia Republican : “ Republican officials tell me they are having a hard time getting Trump signs , and the locals have to pay for them . So far I have seen no walk-around literature , which we had at this point in 2008 and 2012 . ”
“ The Trump campaign infrastructure is in better shape in Iowa than in other states , ” said a Republican there , “ primarily because of the establishment support he has attracted there . However , the campaign is still far behind the Clinton effort in terms of staff and resources on the ground . It may not matter , though , because a drive through rural Iowa reveals a far greater level of organic support for Trump than for Clinton . ”
Added an Ohio Republican : “ Bob Paduchik knows Ohio very well , and he 's an elite political operative with few peers . If he 's given the resources , he can help Trump win Ohio . ”
For Democrats , Clinton ’ s more developed and sophisticated organization is a panacea at a time when the polls are tightening . In addition to the strong ratings insiders gave her campaign , the vast majority of Democrats , 94 percent , said she would win their state if the election were held today , though that 's down from a range of 98 percent to 100 percent in the past five weeks .
“ Just here in Hamilton County we have five Hillary offices , three dozen paid field staff and hundreds of engaged volunteers , ” said an Ohio Democrat . “ Trump does not have a single office . ”
A North Carolina Democrat called it the “ best I have ever seen here . Better than Obama in 2008 or 2012 . ”
Even so , some Democrats are less satisfied with Clinton ’ s organization .
“ It is good , but it is n't anywhere close to Obama , ” said a Florida Democrat .
“ This is a young , talented team but only knows what Brooklyn tells them , ” added an Iowa Democrat . “ They are n't spending enough to cancel how low her numbers are in the state . ”
And one New Hampshire Democrat recalled Clinton ’ s landslide loss to Bernie Sanders in the first-in-the-nation primary .
“ The infrastructure is good . But is the candidate ? ” the Democrat asked . “ Bernie blew the same team Clinton out of the water in February . Infrastructure can only go so far with a flawed candidate . ”
These are the members of The ███ Caucus , not all of whom participated in this special survey :
Colorado : Ryan Call , Laura Carno , Matt Chandler , Will Coyne , Adam Eichberg , Mark Ferrandino , Cole Finegan , Michael Fortney , Andrew Freedman , Ted Harvey , Craig Hughes , Owen Loftus , Pete Maysmith , Frank McNulty , Karen Middleton , Christopher Murray , BJ Nikkel , Josh Penry , Rick Ridder , Alan Salazar , Janice Sinden , Pat Steadman , Pat Waak , Steve Welchert , Taylor West , Roxane White , Rob Witwer
Florida : Fernand Amandi , Scott Arceneaux , JP Austin , Tim Baker , Dennis K. Baxley , Slater Bayliss , Dave Beattie , Wayne Bertsch , Ron Book , Pamela Burch Fort , Jose Calderon , Kevin Cate , Kelly Cohen , Gus Corbella , Brian Crowley , Elizabeth Cuevas-Neunder , Justin Day , Judith Diaz , Nelson Diaz , John Dowless , Ryan Duffy , Jessica Ehrlich , Joe Falk , Alia Faraj-Johnson , Mark Ferrulo , Damien Filer , Marty Fiorentino , Rich Heffley , Nick Iarossi , David Johnson , Eric Johnson , Marian Johnson , Eric Jotkoff , Chris Korge , Jackie Lee , Susan MacManus , Beth Matuga , Fred Menachem , Jon Mills , Joe Mobley , Ben Pollara , Andrea Reilly , Steve Schale , April Schiff , Max Steele , Roger Stone , Richard Swann , Kevin Sweeny , Christian Ulvert , Steve Vancore , Ashley Walker , Andrew Weinstein , Andrew Wiggins , Ryan Wiggins , Rick Wilson
Iowa : Tim Albrecht , Brad Anderson , Rob Barron , Jeff Boeyink , Bonnie Campbell , Dave Caris , Sam Clovis , Jerry Crawford , Sara Craig , John Davis , Steve Deace , John Deeth , Derek Eadon , Ed Failor Jr. , Karen Fesler , David Fischer , Ben Foecke , Doug Gross , Steve Grubbs , Tim Hagle , Bob Haus , Joe Henry , Drew Ivers , Jill June , Lori Jungling , Jeff Kaufmann , Brian Kennedy , Jake Ketzner , David Kochel , Chris Larimer , Chuck Larson , Jill Latham , Jeff Link , Dave Loebsack , Mark Lucas , Liz Mathis , Jan Michelson , Chad Olsen , David Oman , Matt Paul , Marlys Popma , Troy Price , Christopher Rants , Kim Reem , Craig Robinson , Sam Roecker , David Roederer , Nick Ryan , Tamara Scott , Joni Scotter , Karen Slifka , John Smith , AJ Spiker , Norm Sterzenbach , John Stineman , Matt Strawn , Charlie Szold , Phil Valenziano , Jessica Vanden Berg , Nate Willems , Eric Woolson , Grant Young
Michigan : Jill Alper , Saul Anuzis , Andrea Bitely , Lori Carpentier , Howard Edelson , Jordan Gehrke , Steve Hood , Darwin Jiles Jr. , Joe Lehman , Dennis Lennox , Katie Packer , Ronna Romney McDaniel , John Truscott , Stephanie White , John Yob
Nevada : Mac Abrams , Greg Bailor , Barbara Buckley , Yvanna Cancela , Bob Cavazos , Linda Cavazos , Jim DeGraffenreid , Andrew Diss , Peter Ernaut , Ryan Erwin , Chip Evans , Jay Gerstema , Oscar Goodman , Ryan Hamilton , Dan Hart , Pat Hickey , Zach Hudson , Jeremy Hughes , Megan Jones , Lindsey Jydstrup , Adam Khan , Peter Koltak , Roberta Lange , Sam Liberman , Laura Martin , Michael McDonald , Chuck Muth , Erven Nelson , Kristen Orthman , Neal Patel , Nick Phillips , Jon Ralston , Andres Ramires , Emmy Ruiz , Scott Scheid , Mike Slanker , James Smack , Paul Smith , Jack St. Martin , Mari St. Martin , Daniel Stewart , Brendan Summers , Riley Sutton , Robert Uithoven , Michelle White , Ed Williams , Heidi Wixom
New Hampshire : Charlie Arlinghaus , Arnie Arnesen , Patrick Arnold , Rich Ashooh , Dean Barker , Juliana Bergeron , D.J . Bettencourt , Michael Biundo , Ray Buckley , Peter Burling , Jamie Burnett , Debby Butler , Dave Carney , Jackie Cilley , Catherine Corkery , Corriveau , Fergus Cullen , Lou D ’ Allesandro , James Demers , Mike Dennehy , Sean Downey , Steve Duprey , JoAnn Fenton , Jennifer Frizzell , Martha Fuller Clark , Amanda Grady Sexton , Jack Heath , Gary Hirshberg , Jennifer Horn , Peter Kavanaugh , Joe Keefe , Rich Killion , Harrell Kirstein , Sylvia Larsen , Joel Maiola , Kate Malloy Corriveau , Maureen Manning , Steve Marchand , Tory Mazzola , Jim Merrill , Jayne Millerick , Claira Monier , Greg Moore , Matt Mowers , Terie Norelli , Chris Pappas , Liz Purdy , Tom Rath , Colin Reed , Jim Rubens , Andy Sanborn , Dante Scala , William Shaheen , Stefany Shaheen , Carol Shea-Porter , Terry Shumaker , Andy Smith , Craig Stevens , Kathy Sullivan , Chris Sununu , James Sununu , Jay Surdukowski , Donna Sytek , Kari Thurman , Colin Van Ostern , Deb Vanderbeek , Mike Vlacich , Ryan Williams
North Carolina : Don Davis , Francis X . De Luca , Anita Earls , Jonathan Felts , Tami L. Fitzgerald , Dylan Frick , Taylor Griffin , Robin Hayes , Morgan Jackson , Patsy Keever , Theresa Kostrzewa , Michael Luethy , Ray Martin , Thomas Mills , Melissa L. Reed , Chris Sgro , Paul Shumaker , Dee Stewart , Brad Thompson , Bruce Thompson , Charlie Wallin , Doug Wilson
Ohio : Jerry Austin , Greg Beswick , Matt Borges , Erica Bruton , Tim Burke , Janet Carson , Jai Chabria , Martha Clark , Bob Clegg , Damareo Cooper , Jo Ann Davidson , Michael Dawson , Bill DeMora , Cindy Demse , Kathy Dicristofaro , Katie Eagan , Michael Gonidakis , Wes Goodman , Joe Hallett , Ian James , Melissa Klide Hedden , David Leland , Nick Martin , Rhine McLin , David Pepper , Molly Shack , Mark R. Weaver
Pennsylvania : Chris Borick , Larry Ceisler , Valentino DiGiorgio , Jason Ercole , Dan Fee , Charlie Gerow , Marcel Groen , Leslie Gromis Baker , Mark Harris , Nan McLaughlin , Aubrey Montgomery , Christopher Nicholas , Nachama Soloveichik , David Sosar , Todd Stephens , Doc Sweitzer , David Thornburgh , Ray Zaborney
Virginia : Ray Allen , Sandra Brandt , Marc K. Broklawski , Patsy Brown , Janet Carver , John Cosgrove , Brian Coy , Doris Crouse-Mays , Tom Davis , Julie Dime , Abbi Easter , Mike Farris , John Findlay , Joe Fitzgerald , Sean Harrison , Margo Horner , Robert Hurt , Gaylene Kanoyton , Chris LaCivita , Sue Langley , Frank Leone , Robert G. Marshall , Tucker Martin , Ed Matricardi , Susan J. Rowland , Peter Snyder , Susan Swecker , Jo Thoburn
Wisconsin : Meg Andrietsch , Mary Arnold , Kevin Barthel , Mike Basford , Rebecca Bonesteel , Barry Burden , Terri Burl , Jim Camery , Patrick Guarasci , Robert Hansen , Gary Hawley , Marian Krumberger , Emily Nehring , Jason Rae , Brandon Scholz , John Zapfel | Q4NUx84EPs3y0xvu | 0 | Donald Trump | 0 | Republican Party | 0 | Presidential Elections | 0 | Elections | 0 | null | null |
russia | Daily Beast | https://www.thedailybeast.com/2nd-steele-memo-russia-blocked-mitt-romney-as-sec-of-state | 2nd Steele Memo: Russia ‘Blocked’ Mitt Romney as Secretary of State | 2018-03-05 | Russia | A new New Yorker profile of Trump-Russia dossier author Christopher Steele reports on a lesser-known memo the former MI-6 spy allegedly discussed with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators. According to the report, in late November 2016, Steele relayed information from his Russian sources that senior Kremlin officials had intervened to block Mitt Romney as President-elect Trump’s choice for secretary of State. Reporter Jane Mayer writes that Moscow had asked Trump to appoint someone who would be willing to lift sanctions related to Ukraine and cooperate with Russia’s involvement in Syria. Romney, long a vocal hawk on Russia, declined to comment for the report. The White House said the former GOP presidential nominee was never a first choice for the job, and declined to comment on “any communications that the Trump team may have had with Russia on the subject.”The New Yorker | 62f6ee6f99df84d2 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
white_house | Fox Online News | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/03/06/stormy-daniels-sues-trump-says-hush-agreement-is-invalid-because-didnt-sign-it.html | Stormy Daniels sues Trump, says 'hush agreement' is invalid because he didn't sign it | 2018-03-06 | white_house | Adult film star Stormy Daniels sued President Trump on Tuesday , claiming the nondisclosure agreement she signed isn ’ t valid because it lacks Trump ’ s signature .
Daniels , whose real name is Stephanie Clifford , filed the lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court . The complaint , which was posted online by her lawyer , Michael Avenatti , alleges the “ Hush Agreement ” — as it ’ s referred to in the lawsuit — Daniels signed regarding her relationship with Trump is invalid because he never signed it himself .
Daniels and Trump ’ s personal lawyer , Michael Cohen , signed the non-disclosure agreement on Oct. 28 , 2016 , the suit said . Trump was elected president less than two weeks later .
A copy of the agreement shows Daniels , identified as “ Peggy Peterson , ” signed the paperwork , but Trump , identified as “ David Dennison , ” did not .
STORMY DANIELS CLAIMS SHE 'S FREE TO TALK ABOUT TRUMP AFTER PAYMENT ADMISSION
The lawsuit claims the two had an “ intimate relationship ” during the summer of 2006 in Lake Tahoe , and it continued “ well into the year 2007. ” Daniels and Trump reportedly met at least once “ in a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel ” during this time .
Cohen admitted last month that he paid Daniels $ 130,000 out of his own pocket in October 2016 to keep mum about her relationship with Trump . He said the payment was lawful and not a campaign contribution or campaign expenditure “ by anyone . ”
“ Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford , and neither reimbursed me for the payment , either directly or indirectly , ” a statement from Cohen read .
After Cohen released that statement , Daniels said the “ hush agreement ” was invalid .
“ Everything is off now , and Stormy is going to tell her story , ” Daniels ’ manager , Gina Rodriguez , said .
Trump vehemently denies the affair , Cohen has said . A recent statement attributed to Daniels also denied the encounter , though she later seemed to challenge whether the statement originated from her .
TRUMP 'S LAWYER 'S PAYMENT TO PORN STAR STORMY DANIELS WAS REPORTED AS SUSPICIOUS BY BANK
The adult film actress first detailed her account of an alleged extramarital affair with Trump in 2011 on the celebrity website The Dirty , and it was picked up before the 2016 election by The Smoking Gun .
In Touch Weekly published a 2011 interview last month in which the actress — whom the magazine said passed a polygraph exam — claimed the two had sex on one occasion and described subsequent in-person meetings , phone calls and discussions about a possible TV appearance . | r21usGGA5cMPpSjg | 2 | White House | -0.4 | Politics | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/oct/17/post-debate-candidates-court-womens-vote/ | Post-debate, candidates court women’s vote | 2012-10-17 | elections | Trying to regain a clear lead among female voters , President Obama and Democrats said Wednesday that Mitt Romney ’ s second debate performance showed the Republican presidential nominee will not stand up for women ’ s rights and mocked him for saying he brought “ binders full of women ” as job candidates with him when he became Massachusetts governor .
Mr. Romney , meanwhile , countered that millions of women have suffered under Mr. Obama ’ s watch , warning that another four years would yield more of the same .
“ Why is it there are 3.6 million more women in poverty today than when the president took office ? ” Mr. Romney said at a rally in Chesapeake , Va. “ This president has failed America ’ s women . They ’ ve suffered in terms of getting jobs ; they ’ ve suffered in terms of falling into poverty . ”
By the time the day was done , the Obama forces had accused Mr. Romney of not appointing enough women to his gubernatorial Cabinet , and the Romney forces had highlighting news reports of Mr. Obama nurturing a “ boys ’ club ” environment at the White House that marginalized women .
The back-and-forth began a night earlier in the town hall debate between the two men at Hofstra University in New York . When a voter asked how they would handle pay disparities between men and women , both men attacked , arguing the other has been a failure for women .
It served as clear reminder that both candidates recognize the importance of appealing to female voters .
A September poll from the Pew Research Center showed that Mr. Obama led Mr. Romney by 18 points among women . But that storyline changed dramatically in a later Pew poll — released after Mr. Obama ’ s widely panned first debate performance — that found Mr. Romney had pulled even . A USA Today/Gallup poll released this week also showed that Mr. Romney trailed Mr. Obama by a single percentage point among women in a dozen swing states .
That would be a bad omen for Mr. Obama , who held a 13 percentage-point advantage among women in the 2008 election , according to exit polling . Mr. Obama ’ s 1-point victory among men in 2008 was only the second time in 30 years a Democrat didn ’ t lose the male vote .
“ To the extent that President Obama can exploit the gender gap , he has a very good chance of being re-elected . And to the extent that Mitt Romney can mitigate the gap , his electoral prospects are more positive , ” said professor Jennifer L. Lawless , director of the Women and Politics Institute at American University .
She said Mr. Obama ’ s performance at Tuesday ’ s debate likely “ rebuilt any gender gap that might have been lost over the course of the last week and a half . ”
Over the course of 90 minutes , Mr. Obama reminded voters that the first bill he signed into law , the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act , granted women more time to file pay-discrimination lawsuits .
He also criticized Mr. Romney for refusing to take a stand on that law , accused him of supporting legislation that would have allowed employers not to cover contraception in their health-insurance plans . He also said Romney-backed Republican efforts to stop taxpayer dollars from being spent on Planned Parenthood would hurt women in more ways than one .
Mr. Romney pushed back , arguing that the president mischaracterized his positions . He said his business-friendly stances will make it easier for women to find good jobs and earn more pay .
Mr. Romney also sought to reassure a young woman at the debate that he understood the issue of pay equity , sharing the story of how he brought “ binders full of women ” with him to his job as Massachusetts governor .
“ We took a concerted effort to go out and find women who had backgrounds that could be qualified to become members of our Cabinet . I went to a number of women ’ s groups and said , ‘ Can you help us find folks ? ’ And I brought us whole binders full of — of women , ” he said .
Mr. Obama ridiculed the comment during a campaign stop in Iowa on Wednesday , saying , “ We don ’ t have to collect a bunch of binders to find qualified , talented , driven young women , ready to learn and teach ” right now in the fields of science , technology , engineering and math . | ypRagGgTm5XBkApG | 2 | Presidential Elections | -0.1 | Elections | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
science | Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/04/20/starship-spacex-test-launch/ | Unmanned Starship explodes over gulf after liftoff | 2023-04-20 | Space, SpaceX, Explosion, Space Exploration, Elon Musk, Science | SpaceX’s Starship lifted off the pad in Southern Texas and cleared the launchpad, its first milestone, but then began tumbling as it was preparing for stage separation and the vehicle came apart some four minutes into flight. 1/3 Follow Technology Thursday’s Starship explosion underscored the concerns of the American Bird Conservancy, which has opposed SpaceX’s operations at Boca Chica in South Texas because of the facility’s impacts on wildlife habitat and the species that rely on it, including species listed under the Endangered Species Act. SpaceX’s first fully integrated Starship launch attempt was what’s sometimes called a “successful failure.” And one of the main successes was that the rocket with the spacecraft on top of it survived what’s known as “Max Q” or the moment when the most aerodynamic forces are conspiring to tear the rocket apart. During Max Q the rocket is still in a somewhat dense part of the atmosphere, but it’s also beginning to pick up speed, which puts even more pressure on it. Crowds gathered along the coast of South Padre Island to watch the SpaceX’s Starship, the most powerful rocket to ever fly, lift off it’s launch pad in Texas. Four minutes into flight, the crewless rocket tumbled and then exploded over the Gulf of Mexico. See more photos from the scene and the explosion here. The Federal Aviation Administration said it would oversee the mishap investigation, as is standard practice any time a rocket fails. “A return to flight of the Starship/ Super Heavy vehicle is based on the FAA determining that any system, process or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety,” the agency said in a statement. It added that, “No injuries or public property damage have been reported.” As part of its Starship development program, SpaceX has been building a fleet of Super Heavy boosters and Starship spacecraft at its facility in South Texas that it calls Starbase. “Last year, the Starbase team produced four Starship Super Heavy boosters and five Starships along with their 200th Raptor 2 engine,” Siva Bharadvaj, a SpaceX operations engineer, said on the company’s live broadcast. “And they’re only scaling up from there.” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson congratulated SpaceX on its launch, despite the disappointing ending. Congrats to @SpaceX on Starship’s first integrated flight test! Every great achievement throughout history has demanded some level of calculated risk, because with great risk comes great reward. Looking forward to all that SpaceX learns, to the next flight test—and beyond. https://t.co/ZYsh5VkxsA Online, many were applauding SpaceX as well. “Congratulations to @SpaceX on today’s launch of Starship, the tallest & most powerful rocket ever launched!” the National Air and Space Museum tweeted. “Although Starship experienced a ‘rapid unscheduled disassembly’ before stage separation, the test provided good data to the Starship team to prepare for the next one.” SpaceX wants to use Starship as the rocket that would launch its Starlink internet satellites. NASA wants to use it to land astronauts on the moon. The failure of the first test flight won’t change that. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson tweeted out congratulations to SpaceX after the test ended. Starship may have exploded, but it still met one of the major milestones SpaceX set out for the flight: It didn’t blow up the launchpad. The massive rocket lifted off successfully and didn’t explode until it was on its way to space. If the rocket gets “far enough away from the launchpad before something goes wrong, then I think I would consider that to be a success,” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said before the flight. “Just don’t blow up the launchpad.” SpaceX’s Kate Tice said it was unclear what caused the rocket to come apart. She said that “teams will continue to review the data and work toward our next flight test.” Starship started tumbling after a successful liftoff as it was preparing for stage separation, and the vehicle was lost some four minutes into its flight. “Obviously, this is does not appear to be a nominal situation,” SpaceX’s John Insprucker said during the broadcast. The rocket came apart over the Gulf of Mexico. The Super Heavy booster and the Starship spacecraft have lifted off from SpaceX’s launch facility in Boca Chica, Tex. Crossing its first milestone, clearing the tower. SpaceX’s launch director called a hold with 40 seconds to go before liftoff. The teams are now working toward scheduling a new launch time. The window extends to 10:30 a.m. Eastern, so there’s still time to execute the launch. SpaceX’s John Insprucker said on the live broadcast that the teams were working on a pressurization issue. The teams should know shortly if they are able to continue. SpaceX put out a warning for the residents of South Texas in the area of the launch: Starship will be loud. “Residents of Cameron County and those in the nearby area may hear a loud noise resulting from the rocket’s 33 Raptor engines firing upon ignition and as the vehicle launches toward space, but what people experience will depend on weather and other conditions,” it said in a statement. Elon Musk has said the mission has about a 50 percent chance of succeeding. If it fails, he said the company would simply try again, incorporating any lessons from the previous flight. In a statement, the company said that “with a test such as this, success is measured by how much we can learn, which will inform and improve the probability of success in the future as SpaceX rapidly advances the development of Starship.” SpaceX hopes the rocket will launch successfully. But the chance of an explosion is real. The rocket has never flown before, and the company has a history of blowing things up. The Federal Aviation Administration is the agency charged with protecting the public, and it requires space companies to take measures to ensure no one gets hurt in the event of an accident. SpaceX uses a rocket-grade kerosene to fuel its workhorse rocket, the Falcon 9. For Starship, SpaceX decided to use methane instead. There are a few reasons for this. Methane burns cleaner and creates a lot less soot, which is important for engines that are intended to be reused again and again. Methane fuel could also be produced on Mars, which is SpaceX’s ultimate goal. If that goal becomes reality, Starship would be able to be refueled on the Red Planet for return trips home. SpaceX was forced to call off the launch of Starship on Monday morning after a valve stuck while ground crews were loading extremely cold liquid propellants into the vehicle. The company hopes it’ll be able to launch Thursday, but the first launches of new rockets often face delays, especially rockets as big and complicated as Starship. Cape Canaveral in Florida has been home to rocket launches since the dawn of the Space Age. People line the shore at Cocoa Beach or the Banana River to watch launches. They crowd bars and restaurants with views of the launchpad. In both appearance and functionality, SpaceX’s Starship is a sharp contrast with NASA’s tried-and-true approach, designed with reusable components, greater thrust and to accommodate far more people and cargo. Read our full visual story to see inside Starship and NASA’s SLS to see the starkly different approaches to getting off of Earth. SpaceX has begun loading the rocket with its propellants, liquid oxygen and liquid methane. But it warned in a tweet that it is “keeping an eye on the weather.” It’s a cloudy, foggy morning in South Texas, and the launch site is difficult to see. The entire fueling process should take about an hour and 39 minutes. SpaceX is now tracking for a liftoff at 9:28 a.m. Eastern time. When rockets take off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., there is nothing but ocean for hundreds of miles. Launching from SpaceX’s facility in South Texas, however, is a little trickier. | 179aa0733e05d405 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
coronavirus | The Marshall Project | https://www.themarshallproject.org/2020/06/15/is-child-abuse-really-rising-during-the-pandemic | Is Child Abuse Really Rising During The Pandemic? | 2020-06-15 | coronavirus | As the coronavirus pandemic continues to overtake America , dozens of headlines are suggesting that social distancing and lockdowns could be causing a surge in child abuse .
This article was published in partnership with The Daily Beast .
Here ’ s the theory : Americans are losing their jobs at a rate unseen since the Great Depression , intensifying the strains on low-income families at risk of abusing or neglecting their children . During months of closed schools and shelter-in-place orders , such parents have also been tasked with full-time child care , a recipe for conflict in the home . Meanwhile , investigators and reporters of child maltreatment , such as teachers , are trying to monitor kids ’ safety over Zoom , which is hardly adequate if their abuser is hovering just off-screen .
This all makes intuitive sense . And there is frightening reporting that at some hospitals , there have been more cases than usual of the most severe types of child abuse—including head injuries—in recent months , causing profound concern .
Coronavirus Coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic , criminal justice and immigration . Related Stories
For most Americans , it is nothing short of horrific to think of even a single child being so injured by his or her own parents or family members as to require emergency medical treatment .
Yet family advocates , child welfare experts and state agency officials told ███ in interviews that any assumption of a significant spike in abuse may be premature—or overblown . And they are concerned , they say , that amid a national discussion about the over-policing of Black and brown people , it is mostly poor families of color who will be increasingly policed and stigmatized as a result of such hypothesizing .
“ We have a child welfare system that is particularly , extremely sensitive to the media , so we should be very sure of narratives before we put them out there , ” said Emma Ketteringham , managing director of the family defense practice at the Bronx Defenders in New York City , an organization that provides free legal services for low-income people .
Historically , sensationalized rhetoric about child abuse has led to more children being removed from their parents— “ and it is a really , really big deal to separate a child from his or her family , ” Ketteringham said .
It ’ s an even bigger deal these days . Ongoing social distancing rules mean that once a family is pulled apart , they will have less opportunity for in-person visitation , and with many courts still closed , less ability to fight to get their child back .
Experts say it could be months before we have solid statistics on these trends , but for now , here is what we do and do not know about child abuse amid the COVID-19 pandemic :
There is no statistical evidence of a spike in child abuse . But that could just be because teachers and others haven ’ t been able to monitor kids .
Many journalists and child advocates have noted that there may be a lack of data showing the purported increase in child abuse because , due to school closures and stay-at-home orders , there have been fewer “ eyes on children ” to report what is happening to kids . Teachers and educators , for instance , who like nurses and social workers are mandated by law to report any signs of child maltreatment , normally make the most calls to child abuse hotlines , according to federal child maltreatment data .
To be sure , while stuck at home , young people have clearly been less able to tell a teacher , pediatrician , neighbor or other trusted adult what they are experiencing .
But before the pandemic , reports by teachers and school staff were not substantiated 90 percent of the time , according to federal data—raising questions about whether losing these reports is actually a major problem .
Hotline calls made by teachers , who even in normal times can only guess at what is going on in their students ’ homes , just do not turn out to be validated very often , according to data from the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect .
One 2017 study in the American Journal of Public Health on the system of mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse , including by teachers , found that it has no effect on detecting the physical abuse of children .
Elizabeth Bartholet , faculty director of the child advocacy program at Harvard Law School , says that such findings may be misleading—they may simply reflect the inability or unwillingness of under-resourced child protection agencies to actually respond to , investigate and substantiate the allegations that come in .
Still , many child welfare experts and officials told ███ that losing hotline reports amid the pandemic is not the catastrophic problem it has been made out to be in news reports—because they do not identify and prevent most child abuse anyway .
In other words , we don ’ t catch the majority of child abuse in America even in normal circumstances .
Multiple studies of child maltreatment indicate that the majority child abuse in this country is not actually identified and addressed . And roughly 90 percent of children who are killed as a result of abuse or neglect did not have previous cases with a child protective services agency , according to federal data .
Experts give conflicting answers as to why this is . “ That ’ s a gaping hole in our knowledge , ” said Andy Barclay , statistical expert at the child welfare research organization Fostering Court Improvement .
Possible reasons include the obvious : child abuse typically happens in private , behind closed doors .
Some children ’ s rights advocates reiterate that some child maltreatment also gets missed because child welfare agencies too often opt to triage or not to investigate allegations , both because of a lack of funding and caseworkers and also because of the ideological priority that many place “ on keeping children , at some or great risk , with their families , ” said Bartholet of Harvard Law School .
Others say the excess of hotline calls may itself be the issue .
“ There may be a ‘ needle in a haystack ’ problem , ” said Josh Gupta-Kagan , an expert on child welfare at the University of South Carolina School of Law . “ The more reports ( especially for low-level stuff ) there are , the harder it is for [ Child Protective Services ] to identify and respond appropriately to the serious stuff , and that creates a negative feedback loop ” in which people who actually know about severe child abuse “ see calling CPS as likely to do nothing . ”
Now , with lower caseloads , child welfare workers may actually be able to focus on real abuse , because the reports coming in are more likely to be accurate .
Pre-coronavirus , state child protection agencies spent their time and taxpayer funds investigating “ hunches , vague suspicions , better-safe-than-sorry beliefs ” and false reports often having to do with families simply being poor , wrote Jane M. Spinak , an expert on family law at Columbia Law School , in an essay in a new e-book published by the university . Not getting as many of those calls , she wrote , “ will give investigators more time to scrutinize when children are actually in danger . ”
In Florida , for example , child abuse reports were down in the spring but verifications of abuse reports jumped by more than 10 percent , according to state data .
But in other states where there isn ’ t complete data yet , this too is largely speculation at this point .
Meanwhile , poor parents of color are being monitored and investigated less .
According to interviews with nearly a dozen parents as well as child welfare experts and attorneys , low-income mothers and fathers have for these past few months no longer been subjected to as many child welfare calls stemming from their poverty—nor to the invasive , scary visits from government agents that follow .
Sarah Harris is a subway train conductor in New York City—she says she usually works midnights—as well as a single mother of two boys , ages 9 and 3 . In the past , she says , teachers have called child-services on her for not providing her older son with the proper ADHD medicine . She also worried that catching up on sleep during the day would subject her to calls about not supervising her kids .
We Are Witnesses Intimate portraits of people who have been touched by the criminal justice system
Harris says that like many parents , she is feeling the stresses of coronavirus . She works all night then has to help home-school her children . She can ’ t de-stress by taking the kids to the wax museum or by going out to have a cocktail .
But for once she does not feel like she is getting reported all the time for her parenting mistakes . “ Poor people are usually constantly inspected by all these agencies , ” she said . “ Now there is kind of a peacefulness . ”
Yet the speculation about increasing child abuse , advocates worry , is already creating new kinds of surveillance of these vulnerable families .
Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva in April announced that due to the drop in child abuse reports , police officers there would begin doing regular door-knocks at what he called at-risk homes . ( The city ’ s child protection agency then nixed this plan on the grounds that it would be harmful , not helpful , to marginalized families . ) In dozens of states , public service ads on TV and Facebook have been encouraging untrained members of the public to look for signs of abuse among struggling families—which could be distorted by their class and race biases , parent advocates say . It ’ s not clear yet whether reports of this sort are occurring .
And the Computing Technology Industry Association , the international trade-association for tech companies and consultants , is recommending data tools to child protection officials—saying that unemployment rates and frequency of 311 calls , for instance , could be used to identify neighborhoods where child abuse is likely spiking .
“ They ’ re basically saying , ‘ Let ’ s go find the poor people , ’ ” Lexie Gruber , a child welfare data expert , said of the technology association 's proposal to find unemployed families . Gruber has testified on Capitol Hill , including about her own experience as a former foster youth .
In an emailed statement , the authors of the association ’ s recommendation to track unemployment rates and other poverty metrics said they wholeheartedly agree that data must be analyzed and acted upon “ with a lens toward equity and an awareness of the disproportionality that is present in child welfare . ”
Some children ’ s rights activists counter that when the physical safety of children is on the line , what would actually be discriminatory would be to not investigate what ’ s happening to them just because they are poor or Black or brown .
We do know that when the country is in economic distress , child neglect increases .
Lower income clearly means less ability to provide children with food , shelter , clothing and healthy living conditions .
But , in an echo of recent calls to re-imagine law enforcement , parent advocates say the system should respond by offering help , including economic help , not by policing families and potentially separating them . If a kid is not getting enough food during the pandemic , they say , the best thing is to call a food bank , not to call child protective services .
“ If poverty itself is defined as neglect ( which it often is ) and the pandemic pushes more families into poverty ( which it has ) then in that sense yes , there will be a ‘ spike ’ in so-called ‘ child neglect ’ when the schools reopen and children are seen to have less in the way of food and clothing , ” Richard Wexler , executive director of the advocacy group National Coalition for Child Protection Reform , wrote in an email . “ The solution to this , of course , is money—not for the child welfare establishment , but for at-risk families . ”
Gov . Gavin Newsom of California has offered a potential example of this approach , providing $ 200 a month to families likely to lose their children to foster care .
Short of truly addressing poverty , experts and advocates say , another solution could be to have child protection services respond only to severe abuse cases while creating an entirely separate , less punitive system for calls that come in about forms of neglect arising from poverty , such as hunger and homelessness . These cases would be handled by social workers who would take a public-health approach to helping struggling parents .
“ The child welfare system was never either a humane response to child poverty or effective at identifying and preventing serious child abuse , ” said the Bronx Defenders ’ Ketteringham . Maybe post-pandemic , she said , it can come closer to being both . | ZknHG2ows4lplhEM | 1 | Child Abuse | -0.9987 | Coronavirus | 0 | Safety And Sanity During COVID-19 | 0 | Public Health | 0 | null | null |
taxes | CNN (Web News) | http://money.cnn.com/2012/11/26/news/economy/fiscal-cliff-tax/index.html?hpt=po_c1 | Fiscal cliff tax deal: Getting to $1 trillion | 2012-11-26 | taxes | Leaders in Washington say they want to make a `` down payment '' on deficit reduction and avert the fiscal cliff .
But the size of any down payment depends in large part on whether the two sides can agree on taxing the rich .
One proposal by President Obama and Democrats would raise close to $ 1 trillion over 10 years .
They want to let the Bush tax cuts expire on income over $ 200,000 ( $ 250,000 for married couples ) . They would raise the top two income tax rates , increase high-income households ' capital gains and dividend rates , and re-impose limits on personal exemptions and itemized deductions .
On the other side , House Speaker John Boehner and Republicans do n't want to raise tax rates on anyone .
But Republicans have also indicated they could accept curbs on tax breaks , as long as they are combined with cuts in spending through entitlement reform .
Neither party wants taxes to go up on the middle class .
So how do you get to $ 1 trillion in new tax revenue and ensure each party gets what it most wants ? Here are two options .
Democrats insist on raising rates on the rich . But would they compromise on how `` rich '' is defined ?
Republicans do n't want tax rates to go up . But would they accept higher rates on a small group of high-income people in a compromise that raised even more revenue by curbing tax breaks ?
If the answer is `` yes '' to both questions , here 's one way to get there .
Allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire on income over $ 500,000 ( instead of $ 250,000 ) could raise at least $ 315 billion over a decade , according to Tax Policy Center data .
If they expire on income over $ 1 million , at least $ 242 billion could be raised .
Then , to get close to the $ 1 trillion marker , lawmakers could curb tax breaks in a way that most heavily affects high-income households -- something Obama has himself proposed in the past .
One possibility : Cap the amount of itemized deductions that one may claim at $ 50,000 . That could raise roughly $ 749 billion over a decade , the Tax Policy Center estimates . Nearly 90 % of that revenue would come from households making more than $ 200,000 .
If lawmakers wanted to exclude charitable contributions from the cap , that still could raise $ 490 billion over 10 years .
Bottom line : Raising rates on some high-income households in combination with a $ 50,000 cap on itemized deductions could raise anywhere from $ 732 billion to $ 1.064 trillion over a decade .
If Democrats decide that raising tax burdens on the rich is a higher priority than raising rates , they may be able to work out a deal with Republicans strictly by limiting tax breaks .
Again the two sides could do it in ways that primarily affect the highest income households , which enjoy more than 40 % of the benefits of all tax expenditures .
As stated above , they could cap itemized deductions by a dollar amount .
Another option : limit the after-tax value of certain tax breaks .
For example , lawmakers could enact an after-tax cap that applies to itemized deductions , plus the child tax-credit and the tax-free benefit workers receive when their employer helps pay for their health insurance .
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget has done the math on that scenario .
A cap set at 2 % of one 's adjusted gross income or $ 10,000 , whichever is less , applied only to households making more than $ 200,000 , could raise more than $ 860 billion over 10 years . | T5gbmNvkj21Q256F | 0 | Taxes | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
politics | Townhall | https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2019/10/15/hunter-biden-speaks-out-about-working-for-foreign-companies-n2554729 | Hunter Biden Speaks Out About Working For Foreign Companies | 2019-10-15 | politics | Hunter Biden spoke out about his work for foreign companies in a rare interview broadcast on Tuesday .
He said he regrets giving a “ hook ” to those who wish to hurt his father but denied any wrongdoing .
`` I gave a hook to some very unethical people to act in illegal ways to try to do some harm to my father . That 's where I made the mistake , '' Biden told ABC News . `` So I take full responsibility for that . Did I do anything improper ? No , not in any way . Not in any way whatsoever . ''
“ What I regret is not taking into account that there would be a Rudy Giuliani and a president of the United States that would be listening to this ridiculous conspiracy idea , '' he added .
In the interview , however , he admitted he probably would not have been offered the job at Burisma Holdings , a natural gas company in Ukraine , if his last name wasn ’ t Biden .
“ I don ’ t know . I don ’ t know , probably not , ” he said . “ You know , I don ’ t think there ’ s a lot of things that would have happened in my life if my last name wasn ’ t Biden . ”
EXCLUSIVE : Hunter Biden says he does n't regret serving on board of Ukrainian gas company .
`` What I regret is not taking into account that there would be a Rudy Giuliani and a president ... that would be listening to this—this ridiculous conspiracy idea . '' https : //t.co/h6P0pJJhJR pic.twitter.com/FOeiXNkUjs — Good Morning America ( @ GMA ) October 15 , 2019
Biden made $ 50,000 per month with Burisma , despite having no background in energy , while his father was vice president helping shape policy toward Ukraine .
When asked why he left the board in April , he said , “ I think it 's pretty obvious why '' -- that it had become a `` distraction . ''
“ Because I have to sit here and answer these questions , ” he said .
Pressed about his qualifications , Biden admitted he did n't have any knowledge about natural gas or Ukraine , but he had `` as much knowledge as anybody else on the board . ''
The interview comes after reports that Biden is stepping down from the board of a Chinese-backed private equity firm .
He has pledged to forego working with foreign companies if his father is elected president . | ZdRlmls8tGvjTBZZ | 2 | Hunter Biden | 0.4 | Ukraine | 0 | China | 0 | Politics | 0 | null | null |
terrorism | NPR Online News | http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/04/24/178757439/boston-bombing-investigation-wednesdays-developments | Boston Bombing Investigation: Wednesday's Developments | 2013-04-24 | terrorism | The latest developments in the investigation into the bombings at the Boston Marathon and related news include :
When police cornered Dzhokhar Tsarnev in a boat in Watertown , they said they traded fire with the Boston bombing suspect .
Federal officials , however , are telling The Washington Post and the Associated Press that the suspect was unarmed at the time . The AP reports :
`` The officials tell The Associated Press that no gun was found in the boat . Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis said earlier that shots were fired from inside the boat . ''
The Post reports the federal officials they spoke to declined to say what made officers open fire .
Update at 5:42 p.m . ET . Sales Of 'Sweet Caroline ' Up :
Since the Boston bombings , sales of Neil Diamond 's Sweet Caroline have soared 597 percent .
`` Nielsen SoundScan said Wednesday the song sold 19,000 tracks this week . It sold 2,800 tracks the previous week and 1.75 million tracks to date . `` The crowd-pleasing song is a staple of Boston Red Sox games . It makes no specific mention of Boston or the Red Sox , but the team started playing it regularly at Fenway Park more than a decade ago and fans took to it . ''
From WBUR — `` Timeline : The Hunt For The Boston Marathon Suspects . ''
Update at 5:29 p.m . ET . Bombing Suspect Was Placed On Watch List :
`` The CIA asked the main U.S. counterterrorism agency to add the name of one of the suspected Boston Marathon bombers to a watch list more than a year before the attack , according to U.S . officials . ''
NPR 's Dina Temple-Raston reports that Tamerlan Tsarnaev , who was killed in a firefight with police , was placed on the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment ( TIDE ) list , a very large list that 's different from the Terrorist Watchlist or the No-Fly List , which are more significant .
`` The fact that his name was on the TIDE list does not indicate anything more about Tamerlan 's activities than has been reported already , '' Dina reports .
That is , as the Post reports , his name was added after Russian authorities warned the U.S. that Tsarnaev may have been radicalizing .
The Los Angeles Times , quoting a joint FBI-Department of Homeland Security bulletin sent to state and local law enforcement , reports that investigators believe the two homemade bombs used in the Boston Marathon blasts were triggered by remote controllers designed for toy cars .
`` Based on preliminary analysis of recovered evidence , each device likely incorporated an electrical fusing system using components from remote control toy cars such as a transmitter and receiver pair operating at 2.4 GHz , an electronic speed control used as the switch mechanism and sub-C rechargeable battery packs at the power source , '' read the bulletin , according to an official .
Both pressure cooker bombs used a low explosive mixture that incorporated nitrate and perchlorate-based oxidizers , the bulletin said . Investigators do n't know if the explosive was purchased that way or was mixed from different sources . The shrapnel included BBs and carpenter nails , the newspaper reported .
Update at 1:25 p.m . ET James Taylor 's `` Shower the People '' :
`` Shower the people you love with love `` Show them the way that you feel ''
James Taylor and a student group from MIT just honored slain officer Sean Collier with his song .
Update at 1:20 p.m . ET . For Slain Officer , An Irish Poet 's Words :
At the memorial service for MIT officer Sean Collier , Vice President Biden quotes poet Seamus Heany 's `` The Cure at Troy '' ( a translation of `` The Philoctetes '' by Sophocles ) :
`` History says , Do n't hope on this side of the grave . `` But then , once in a lifetime the longed for tidal wave of justice can rise up , and hope and history rhyme . ''
Update at 1:15 p.m . ET . Biden Says Terrorists `` Will Not Write The History Of This Nation '' :
`` I promise you , '' Vice President Biden said moments ago to the students at MIT , where campus officer Sean Collier is being remembered this hour , `` these events since 9/11 will not write the history of this nation . They will be a mere chapter . ...
`` We will not change and they [ terrorists ] will not marginalize us . They will eventually be marginalized , '' he added .
Update at 1:10 p.m . ET . Biden Is Struck By Slain Officer 's Life ; Condemns `` Cowardly Knock-off Jihadis '' :
At the memorial service for MIT police officer Sean Collier , who was killed Thursday night , Vice President Biden just said he was particularly struck in recent days by something a student told the news media about the officer : `` He loved us and we loved him . ''
`` From what I 've learned , '' Biden said , Collier lived a life devoted to helping others .
To the hundreds of police officers from around the nation who are at the service , Biden said `` we all owe you so much more than just honoring you on days of grief . '' And to their families , he said he salutes them for standing by the officers .
Of the suspects in the bombings and Collier 's death , Biden called them `` two twisted , perverted , cowardly knock-off jihadis . ''
`` It infuriates them that we refuse to bend , '' he said of terrorists .
Sean Collier , the MIT police officer who was shot and killed late Thursday — by the bombing suspects , authorities believe — is being remembered this hour at a service on the university 's Cambridge campus . Vice President Biden is among those in attendance . WBUR and BreakingNews.com are among the news outlets streaming the service .
Update at 10:10 a.m . ET . Tamerlan Tsarnaev And Family Collected Welfare Benefits Until Late 2012 :
The older of the two suspects in the bombings `` received welfare benefits from the state up until last year , when he became ineligible based on family income , '' The Associated Press reports . The wire service says `` a spokesman for the state Office of Health and Human Services on Wednesday confirmed a Boston Herald report that 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev , his wife and their toddler daughter had received benefits . ''
The Herald wrote earlier Wednesday that `` Tsarnaev was living on taxpayer-funded state welfare benefits even as he was delving deep into the world of radical anti-American Islamism . '' And it added that `` both of Tsarnaev 's parents received benefits , and accused brother bombers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan were recipients through their parents when they were younger , according to the state . ''
Neither the Herald nor the AP have turned up specifics about the exact type or amount of the benefits .
Update at 9:55 a.m . ET . Tsarnaev Remains In Fair Condition :
`` According to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center , Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is in fair condition , '' the FBI 's press office says .
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev , the surviving suspect , may be moved from Boston 's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center to another hospital because some of the victims of the bombing , and presumably their families , are also being treated at Beth Israel Deaconess and are upset that he 's there , CNN reports .
-- `` Brothers Suspected In Marathon Bombing May Have Planned To Go To NYC Next . '' The Boston Globe , following up on earlier reporting from The New York Times , writes Wednesday that Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev , the brothers who authorities say were behind the bombings , the killing of an MIT security officer and attacks on other police , `` may have planned to escape to New York last week with a car full of bombs . ''
The Globe reports that a senior law enforcement official says the brothers allegedly told the driver of an SUV they commandeered late Thursday that , `` We just killed a cop . We blew up the marathon . And now we 're going to New York . Do n't [ expletive ] with us . ''
-- Plot May Have Been Hastily Put Together . According to the Los Angeles Times , `` Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has told investigators that he and his older brother planned the Boston Marathon bombings only a week or so before the race , that they were operating alone , and that they received no training or support from outside terrorist groups , officials said Tuesday . ''
The Times ' story echoes some of what NPR 's Tom Gjelten reported Tuesday : `` Clues Suggest Boston Suspects Took A Do-It-Yourself Approach . ''
-- `` Bomb Suspect Influenced By Mysterious Radical . '' The Associated Press reports that `` in the years before the Boston Marathon bombings , Tamerlan Tsarnaev fell under the influence of a new friend , a Muslim convert who steered the religiously apathetic young man toward a strict strain of Islam , family members said . ''
-- Boylston Street Reopens . `` At about 3:35 a.m. , a passing police truck gave the all-clear . Officers began carrying barricades and piling them on the sidewalk . And just like that , with little fanfare or ceremony , Boylston Street was back open for business , '' the Globe 's Metro Desk blog says . `` Nine days after tragedy struck the finish line of the Boston Marathon , pedestrian traffic began to trickle onto the once-busy commercial thoroughfare that had been blocked off by police as a crime scene . ''
Later Wednesday , Vice President Joe Biden is expected to be among those in attendance at a memorial service for slain MIT officer Sean Collier , WBUR writes . The service will be at the university 's Briggs Field . WBUR 's coverage of the marathon bombings and their aftermath is collected here .
Our previous posts are here . They include this , from Tuesday : | JXRddfXYhb00v2Dr | 1 | Terrorism | -0.4 | Boston Bombing | -0.4 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
violence_in_america | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/21/opinion/louis-police-shooting/index.html?hpt=op_t1 | OPINION: Dark times in a divided New York City | 2014-12-21 | violence_in_america | ( CNN ) -- We do n't yet know what polluted swamp of mental sickness led Ismaaiyl Brinsley to embark on a multistate rampage that culminated with the barbaric , execution-style killing of NYPD Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos on a New York City street .
But the madman 's actions could not have happened at a worse time for a city already embroiled in a bitter public battle over police-community relations . It 's very possible that an important debate about race , policing and the proper use of force will be buried along with the martyred officers .
Weeks of street protests over a grand jury 's decision not to indict police officers who killed Eric Garner -- along with Mayor Bill de Blasio 's statements in sympathy with the goals of the demonstrators -- had already antagonized police unions ( which , to make matters even more fraught , are in the middle of trying to settle a contract with the city ) .
Even before the slaying of the officers , a war of words between de Blasio and union leaders had grown strikingly bitter , prompting New York 's most prominent cleric , Cardinal Timothy Dolan , to publicly call on both sides to ratchet down the rhetoric .
The call for civility had n't yielded much in the way of results -- the unions continued to bash the mayor , and a street demonstration earlier this month for the first time turned violent , with a pair of police officers beaten on the Brooklyn Bridge .
`` It 's not a time for political analysis , '' said a somber de Blasio at a press conference Saturday , shortly after meeting with the families of the slain officers . The mayor appeared shaken , in part because while entering the hospital where the dead officers ' bodies lay , he passed through a cordon of dozens of officers who pointedly turned their backs on him instead of saluting .
De Blasio 's call for a temporary halt to political warfare did n't stop his adversaries from going on the attack .
Typical of the criticism was a Twitter message from former Gov . George Pataki , a Republican who has been floating trial balloons about a possible run for president . Pataki pronounced himself `` sickened by these barbaric acts , which sadly are a predictable outcome of divisive anti-cop rhetoric of Eric Holder and Mayor de Blasio . ''
The statement is farfetched to say the least : Neither Pataki nor anybody outside the psychiatric profession has the slightest idea why Brinsley shot his girlfriend , traveled hundreds of miles to New York , randomly killed two policemen and then took his own life . Boldly claiming that the mayor and attorney general led Brinsley to murder by mere words raises a question Pataki ca n't possibly answer : Which speeches , exactly , made it all happen ?
`` There is blood on many hands tonight , '' said the president of the Patrolmen 's Benevolent Association , Patrick Lynch . `` Those that incited violence on the street in the guise of protest , that tried to tear down what New York City police officers did every day . We tried to warn it must not go on , it should n't be tolerated . That blood on the hands starts on the steps of City Hall , in the office of the mayor . ''
Watching the turmoil on television , you 'd never know that New York is on track to register the lowest number of murder and other serious crimes since the city began tracking numbers in the 1960s . The city has never been safer -- but rarely has it seemed so divided and angry .
Both sides are guilty of excess and poor judgment . `` Lynch 's fulminations about legitimate policy differences have been destructively overheated , '' the New York Daily News said in a recent editorial , condemning the union president for circulating a form officers can complete that asks de Blasio not to attend their funerals if they end up killed in the line of duty .
The mayor , who has openly supported the sentiment of demonstrators protesting the police killing of Garner , made mistakes of his own . De Blasio should have issued a harsh rebuke to activists who recently marched through the streets chanting `` Shoot Back ! '' and `` What do we want ? Dead cops ! '' The mayor should have agreed to Lynch 's demand that protest leaders loudly and publicly disavow such violent rhetoric .
Can things get worse ? Yes , they can . In 1992 , cops upset at then-Mayor David Dinkins staged a rally at City Hall that turned into a near riot , with 10,000 officers taking over a bridge , tramping on cars , and booing and cursing at superior officers and elected officials .
We have n't reached that point in New York -- yet . But these are dark , troubled times in an urban center where 20 years of dedicated effort by police and community have mostly conquered the true , common enemy -- the city 's criminals , who are surely enjoying the discord that allows them to thrive in our divided city . | yp5ulD6UPCfvkeNW | 0 | Violence In America | -0.5 | Police | 0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
immigration | The Oklahoman | https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/politics/state/2024/01/30/us-mexico-border-dispute-republicans-joe-biden-senate-may-have-bipartisan-deal/72395212007/ | US Sen. Lankord faces backlash from Republican Party over potential border deal | 2024-01-30 | Immigration, Politics, Polarization, Common Ground, Bipartisanship, Border, Mike Johnson, Donald Trump, 2024 Presidential Election, US Senate | The U.S. Senate is "very, very close" to a border control deal this week, Sen. James Lankford said Monday. Lankford, the Oklahoma Republican, has for months led negotiations with his Democratic Senate colleagues in the majority to develop a bipartisan border policy amid a record number of migrant encounters at the southern border. With an agreement closer than ever, former president Donald Trump publicly has railed against the effort by saying this border deal would be worse than having no deal at all. Lankford, a Republican who is Oklahoma's senior senator, has been working with Chris Murphy, D-Connecticut, and Arizona independent Kyrsten Sinema to craft legislation intended to improve the situation on the U.S.-Mexico border. "It will be the most significant shift in border law and enforcement than we've had in three decades, easily," Lankford said. While all specifics of the current proposal haven't been released, Lankford has said it increases restrictions on claims of asylum, adds detention beds so that migrants aren't immediately released, doubles the number of deportation flights and increases staffing for immigration hearings and border patrols. Lankford told The Oklahoman that the key feature of this bill is how it addresses the asylum process. He said the current rules that ease entry for asylum-seekers is being exploited. A decade ago, the border might see 21,000 people seeking asylum in the United States from political oppression or widespread violence at home. "Now we have that every two or three days. It's just a dramatic shift," Lankford said. Despite the urgency, there is evidence that members of Lankford's own party are working against him. Former president Donald Trump has leaned into the immigration issue and made it one of his biggest political talking points. Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, acknowledged privately to other Republican senators recently that Trump's opposition to the bipartisan deal being brokered now puts the party in a dilemma. It certainly puts any immediate improvement of the border situation in jeopardy. The demise of a bipartisan border deal would deny Biden the chance to claim a victory in addressing surging migration at the southern border — a topic that Republicans have hammered Biden over throughout his presidency. It would also let Trump continue his political attacks on border policies and immigration. "There's political pressure to say, 'If we fix the border now, then Biden's suddenly gonna get off the hook and it'll help his presidential campaign,'" Lankford said. Oklahoma's senior U.S. senator is also facing political attacks at home from his own party. In a controversial move, some members of the Oklahoma Republican Party met to censure Lankford last week over his work with Democrats to pass bipartisan legislation. The chair of the state party, Nathan Dahm, later blasted the meeting as illegal and said the censure was not an official position of the Oklahoma GOP. Under the package discussed in the Senate, the Department of Homeland Security would have the power to shut the border down when migrants seeking to cross without prior authorization exceed a daily average of 4,000 over a one-week period, CNN and other media outlets reported. And if migrant border crossings surpass an average of 5,000 a day, Homeland Security would actively close the border to migrants crossing illegally. "And if given that authority, I would use it the day I sign the bill into law," Biden said Friday. But like many things in Congress, the politics of one thing influence the politics of another. The border deal is part of a larger package that includes money to continue U.S. support of Israel and Ukraine. Still, Lankford is optimistic. "I think we're getting very, very close," he said. Any agreement reached by the Senate would also have to pass the Republican-led U.S. House, which adopted its own strict immigration policy last year. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., previously warned that the Senate bill would be dead on arrival. | 7c02f037b1c1b0ea | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | Newsweek | https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-booed-ufc-244-dana-white-masvidal-diaz-1469429 | TRUMP BEING BOOED AT UFC 244 EVENT A SURPRISE, SAYS POLITICAL SCIENTIST: 'THIS SHOULD BE HIS CROWD' | 2019-11-03 | Donald Trump, Protests, Media Bias | When you use this site, we collect personal information via technologies like cookies to improve your site experience. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising, and analytics partners. You can manage your cookie settings at any time. Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. President Donald Trump received heavy booing on Saturday night as he attended an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event in New York City. Though some cheered upon the president's arrival into Madison Square Garden for UFC 244—who entered alongside his two sons, some high-ranking Republicans, UFC President Dana White and a handful of Secret Service agents—boos dominated from the sell-out crowd, according to videos shared on social media. A small anti-Trump protest was also staged outside the arena—New York's most storied venue that lies in the heart of the city that Trump had previously called his home. A number of people tweeted footage of the booing and added their reactions to the jeering. Ian Bremmer, a political scientist who founded the Eurasia Group, said: "Honestly surprised to see Trump booed at Ultimate Fighting Championship. This should be his crowd." Another Twitter user, Keating Thomas, said: "Trump got booed at a UFC match? That's like if Bernie [Sanders] got booed at a vegan bakery in Brooklyn." Trump got booed at a UFC match? That’s like if Bernie got booed at vegan bakery in Brooklyn. It is the second time within a week the president was booed while attending a sporting event after also receiving a raucous reaction from baseball fans in game 5 of the World Series in Washington D.C. Trump retweeted different footage of his entrance into UFC 244 which said his arrival had a "positive reaction," but was filmed so close to speakers that blared AC/DC's rock song "Back In Black" that it was difficult to distinguish whether the noise was boos or cheers. Eric Trump also tweeted to say that the crowd was chanting "Donald Trump, Donald Trump... USA, USA," but this was shared with an image as opposed to a video. Signs reading "Remove Trump" and "Impeach Trump" could also be seen in the crowd. #NEW: Pres. Trump arrives at Madison Square Garden to a positive reaction from the crowd ahead of #UFC244 . pic.twitter.com/OIz8R8IkRu Despite the negative reaction of fans, White of the UFC stood by Trump and said it was a big moment for the sport. "It's amazing," he said in a press conference after the event. "If you had asked me ten years ago, I'd tell you the sport's going to do this and do that, but like baseball games for [George W.] Bush or like the NBA for [Barack] Obama and now the UFC has a president that attended one of the events. It's like one of the big deals. It's like we made it." White was instrumental in developing the sport from being a humble sideshow to boxing to growing it into a multi-million-dollar company that boasts deals with ESPN and produces household names such as Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey. The sport also faced numerous challenges in receiving mainstream acceptance as it was considered barbaric by some prominent figures and often compared to cock-fighting by politicians. The late Arizona Senator John McCain was among those to hold that view and he waged a long campaign to ban the sport. Trump was among those who supported the UFC at its early days however, hosting its events when the sport was shunned by other venues. "I would never say anything negative about Donald Trump because he was there when other people weren't," White added. Newsletters in your inbox See all Company Editions: Contact Terms of Use © 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC | ec919ab5daff1417 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
supreme_court | Fox Online News | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/07/10/kavanaugh-nod-touches-off-supreme-court-confirmation-battle-dems-warn-deaths-countless-women.html | Kavanaugh nod touches off Supreme Court confirmation battle; Dems warn of 'deaths of countless women' | 2018-07-10 | supreme_court | President Trump 's nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to replace retiring Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy has set the stage for a bruising confirmation battle , as Senate Democrats and liberal groups vowed to resist what could be a dramatic and long-lasting rightward shift on the Supreme Court .
Within seconds of Trump 's announcement in the White House Monday night , the far-left political action committee Democracy for America called Kavanaugh , 53 , a `` reactionary ideologue '' whose confirmation would `` directly lead to the deaths of countless women with the dismantling of abortion rights . ''
And in a statement , the Women 's March said ominously : `` Trump ’ s announcement today is a death sentence for thousands of women in the United States . ''
`` Stripping a woman ’ s ability to make decisions about her own body is state violence , '' the group continued . `` We can not let this stand . We will raise our voices and take to the streets . ''
In an embarrassing blunder , though , the Women 's March statement began : `` In response to Donald Trump 's nomination of XX to the Supreme Court '' -- indicating that the group did n't expect to have to change its pre-written press release much on Monday night .
“ Trump ’ s announcement today is a death sentence for thousands of women in the United States . '' — Women 's March statement
The mood outside the Supreme Court soured quickly throughout the evening , as protesters screamed and jostled in a markedly hostile atmosphere after Trump announced his selection .
Kavanaugh , who is Catholic and formerly served as a law clerk for Kennedy , has long said he would broadly respect legal precedent , including Roe v. Wade . In his time in the Bush White House and his twelve-year stint on the influential D.C . Circuit Court of Appeals , Kavanaugh has variously alarmed both pro-life and pro-choice advocates .
Top Senate Democrats , who have long said they would not seriously consider any of the candidates Trump was considering , also vowed to fight Kavanaugh , citing what they called an anti-abortion record .
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer , D-N.Y. , called for killing the nomination .
`` If we can successfully block this nomination , it could lead to a more independent , moderate selection that both parties could support , '' Schumer said .
He continued : `` In selecting Judge Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court , President Trump has put reproductive rights and freedoms and health care protections for millions of Americans on the judicial chopping block . ''
All eyes Monday night were on moderate Republicans including Sen. Susan Collins of Maine , as well as several red-state Democrats , including West Virginia 's Joe Manchin , North Dakota 's Heidi Heitkamp and Indiana 's Joe Donnelly .
Their votes could prove decisive in the upcoming nomination decision , because Republicans hold a slim 51-49 majority in the Senate . One prominent Republican , John McCain , is expected to be unable to vote because of his ongoing battle with brain cancer . Vice President Mike Pence could break a 50-50 tie in the Senate .
That means Republicans ca n't afford to lose any Republican votes unless they also pick off at least one Democratic senator .
In a statement , Collins -- who has vowed not to vote for a nominee who would overturn Roe v. Wade -- said only that she would scrutinize Kavanaugh carefully .
`` Judge Kavanaugh has impressive credentials and extensive experience , having served more than a decade on the D.C . Circuit Court of Appeals , '' Collins said . `` I will conduct a careful , thorough vetting of the President ’ s nominee to the Supreme Court . ''
Donnelly , a Democrat holding a vulnerable seat in red Indiana , echoed that assessment .
`` I will take the same approach as I have previously for a Supreme Court vacancy , '' Donnelly said . `` Following the president ’ s announcement , I will carefully review and consider the record and qualifications of Judge Brett Kavanaugh . ''
Kavanaugh 's lengthy insider D.C. record -- from his tenure on the bench , as well as his work in the Bush White House and on the Kenneth Starr report that led to Bill Clinton 's impeachment -- threatened to delay the confirmation process amid lawmakers ' promises to vet the new nominee .
Pro-choice advocates will likely focus on Kavanaugh 's decisions in cases like Priests for Life v. HHS , in which Kavanaugh wrote a dissent arguing that ObamaCare 's contraceptive coverage requirements put undue burdens on some religious beliefs .
They are also expected to emphasize Garza v. Hargan , a recent case in which Kavanaugh dissented from a ruling that the Trump administration should permit an illegal immigrant in federal custody to have an abortion . Kavanaugh 's dissent angered both sides of the abortion debate , because while Kavanaugh did not endorse the immigrant 's right to an abortion , his dissent also did not specifically deny her that right in all cases .
Meanwhile , pro-gun rights advocates might find comfort in Kavanaugh 's dissent in the landmark Heller case , when it was before the D.C . Circuit . Kavanaugh argued that a D.C. ordinance unconstitutionally infringed on residents ' right to own semi-automatic weapons by requiring them to keep them unloaded and unassembled , or bound by a trigger lock .
The Supreme Court eventually took the case and struck down the ordinance , and held that the Second Amendment protects the possession of semi-automatic weapons for purposes unrelated to militia use .
Despite Kavanaugh 's paper trail , White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Monday that she expected Kavanaugh to be confirmed by Oct. 1 .
But despite that optimistic claim , top Republicans predicted an epic tussle in the days ahead .
Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana , a member of the Judiciary Committee , said he was bracing for `` rough , tough , down in the dirt , ear-pulling , nose-biting fight . ''
For now , the next steps in the whirlwind process will be pleasantries . On Tuesday , Vice President Mike Pence and White House counsel Don McGahn will escort Kavanaugh to Capitol Hill .
They will then put him in the care of the so-called `` sherpa , '' former Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl , who will guide Kavanaugh through the nomination process , including his meetings with senators . | EhIYE1GHSJd0gY5W | 2 | Supreme Court | 0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
gun_control_and_gun_rights | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/14/politics/obama-assault-weapons/index.html | Obama treads carefully on assault weapons ban | 2012-12-14 | gun_control_and_gun_rights | Obama carefully avoided thorny Second Amendment questions during first term
Three guns recovered in Connecticut ; school shooting mostly killed children
A tearful Obama urges `` meaningful action '' to prevent more tragedies
The White House said President Barack Obama supports reinstatement of a federal ban on assault weapons -- a position he took in the 2008 campaign but failed to press during his first term .
`` It does remain a commitment of his , '' presidential spokesman Jay Carney told reporters as the nation reeled from a mass shooting in Connecticut that mainly killed school children .
An emotional Obama did not address that issue directly in a televised statement from the White House on the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown that killed 26 people , but he said something had to be done .
`` We 're going to have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this , regardless of the politics , '' said Obama , the father of two girls .
He wiped away tears when he spoke of the `` beautiful little kids '' killed in the massacre .
Police recovered three weapons from the scene : a semiautomatic .223-caliber rifle made by Bushmaster , a Glock and a Sig Sauer , both handguns , according to a source with knowledge of the investigation .
JUST WATCHED Gov . Malloy : Tragedy of unspeakable terms Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Gov . Malloy : Tragedy of unspeakable terms 01:34
JUST WATCHED 3rd grader describes shooting from class Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH 3rd grader describes shooting from class 01:44
`` We can not simply accept this as a routine product of modern American life . If now is not the time to have a serious discussion about gun control and the epidemic of gun violence plaguing our society , I do n't know when is , '' Rep. Jerrold Nadler , D-New York , said in a statement .
Congress approved a ban on assault weapons in 1994 . The prohibition , which expired in 2004 , did not eliminate them , but restricted their features , limiting magazine capacity to 10 rounds and regulating pistol grips , bayonet attachments and flash suppressors .
A Pew poll conducted after the 2011 assassination attempt on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords , D-Arizona , which killed six other people , found that 49 % of Americans said it was `` more important to protect the rights of Americans to own guns , '' while 46 % said it was `` more important to control gun ownership . ''
But a survey conducted by CNN/ORC International in August shortly after the deadly theater mass shooting earlier this year in Aurora , Colorado , found that 76 % of those surveyed believe `` there should be some restrictions on owning guns . ''
Obama supported a platform while running for president in 2008 that included reinstating the assault weapons ban , but has largely avoided the issue of gun control during his first term .
He wrote an opinion piece two months after the Giffords shooting acknowledging the importance of the Second Amendment right to bear arms and called for a `` focus '' on `` effective steps that will actually keep those irresponsible , law-breaking few from getting their hands on a gun in the first place . ''
Obama said at a presidential debate in October that he wanted a `` broader conversation '' in general about reducing gun violence .
`` Part of it is seeing if we can get an assault weapons ban reintroduced , '' he said .
The National Rifle Association , which advocates for gun rights , said in a statement that it would not have any comment on the Connecticut shooting `` until the facts are thoroughly known . ''
Kristin Goss , an associate professor of public policy and political science at Duke University and author of `` Disarmed : The Missing Movement for Gun Control in America , '' said earlier this year that the pro-gun control side of the issue `` has struggled to come up with a compelling narrative '' to persuade more people to support stricter gun laws .
`` For a long time , these gun violence rates and massacres spoke for themselves . They relied on that to make the case but were up against a very powerful but very well-disciplined and skillful army that was good at taking those arguments apart , '' Goss said . | tTW1AVPUC2YO8QXk | 0 | Sandy Hook School Shooting | -1.4 | Gun Control And Gun Rights | -0.3 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
us_house | Fox Online News | https://www.foxnews.com/politics/cohen-to-accuse-trump-of-knowledge-in-wikileaks-leak-plot-call-him-a-racist-conman | Cohen to accuse Trump of knowing about Roger Stone-WikiLeaks plot, but deny 'direct evidence' of Russia collusion | us_house | In his testimony before the House Oversight and Reform Committee on Wednesday , Michael Cohen will accuse his former client , President Trump , of knowing that his adviser Roger Stone was reaching out to WikiLeaks concerning the publication of stolen Democratic National Committee emails .
But Cohen apparently will not claim Trump directed those communications , and Cohen will specifically assert that he lacks direct evidence of improper collusion by the Trump campaign with Russia -- a significant admission , given Cohen 's longtime status as the president 's former top lawyer and fixer .
`` Questions have been raised about whether I know of direct evidence that Mr. Trump or his campaign colluded with Russia , '' Cohen will testify . `` I do not . I want to be clear . But , I have my suspicions . ''
In his prepared remarks , which were obtained by Fox News and first reported by Politico , Cohen will additionally point to what he will call an `` unusual '' episode in Trump Tower in approximately June 2016 , when Donald Trump , Jr. supposedly whispered about a `` meeting '' in Trump 's ear -- followed allegedly by Trump 's reply , `` Ok , good . Let me know . ''
Trump has maintained that he did not know in advance about the meeting -- backing up Trump Jr. , who told the Senate Judiciary Committee the same thing in September 2017 and would face potential criminal liability if he were lying . But the administration has changed its accounting of whether Trump was personally involved in drafting a response to media reports about the meeting .
Early Wednesday , President Trump tweeted that Cohen was `` lying in order to reduce his prison time , '' and referred to published reports that Cohen had been disbarred by the New York State Supreme Court -- reports that have not been independently confirmed by Fox News .
The president was tweeting from Hanoi , Vietnam -- where he is attending a summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un .
According to Cohen , `` nothing went on in Trump world , especially the campaign , without Mr. Trump ’ s knowledge and approval . So , I concluded that Don Jr. was referring to that June 2016 Trump Tower meeting about dirt on 18 Hillary with the Russian representative when he walked behind his dad ’ s desk that day . ''
Cohen is slated to outline a slew of other alleged misdeeds by Trump , including lying about his total assets to reduce his taxes and even trying to strongarm academic officials into keeping his SAT scores secret .
In a text message to the Washington Post , Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani strongly denied Cohen 's reported claims , and pointed to Cohen 's release of secret audio tapes of his conversations with Trump as evidence that Cohen ca n't be trusted .
`` It 's pathetic , '' Giuliani said . `` This is a lawyer who tapped his own client when he claimed he was being loyal . If you believe him you are a fool . He bragged he was connected to Russian organized crime and he may be . His father-in-law , who gave him millions [ to invest ] , was convicted of tax fraud in a money-laundering operation . Let 's see if these Democrats want to ask him about his many crimes having nothing to do with anyone but his coterie of business associates with questionable connections . ''
`` If you believe him you are a fool . '' — Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani
In perhaps the most significant portions of his opening statement , according to the transcript , Cohen tells Congress that Trump `` was a presidential candidate who knew that Roger Stone was talking with Julian Assange about a WikiLeaks drop of Democratic National Committee emails . ''
Stone , who has denied any wrongdoing , has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of obstruction , making false statements and witness tampering as part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller ’ s probe into possible Russian collusion by the Trump campaign .
Separately , Cohen will also call Trump a `` racist , '' a `` conman , '' and a `` cheat , '' all based , he will claim , on `` documents that are irrefutable . ''
`` I ’ m giving the Committee today three years of President Trump ’ s financial statements , from 2011-2013 , which he gave to Deutsche Bank to inquire about a loan to buy the Buffalo Bills and to Forbes , '' Cohen will say . `` It was my experience that Mr. Trump inflated his total assets when it served his purposes , such as trying to be listed among the wealthiest people in Forbes , and deflated his assets to reduce his real estate taxes . ''
Later , Cohen adds : `` Mr. Trump directed me to find a straw bidder to purchase a portrait of him that was being auctioned at an Art Hamptons event . The objective was to ensure that his portrait , which was going to be auctioned last , would go for the highest price of any portrait that afternoon . The portrait was purchased by the fake bidder for $ 60,000 . Mr. Trump directed the Trump Foundation , which is supposed to be a charitable organization , to repay the fake bidder , despite keeping the art for himself . ''
Cohen also claims he will provide `` copies of letters I wrote at Mr. Trump ’ s direction that threatened his high school , colleges , and the College Board not to release his grades or SAT scores . ''
The former Trump fixer will also provide what he calls proof for his previous claims that Trump organized hush-money payments to two women who claimed affairs with Trump .
`` He asked me to pay off an adult film star with whom he had an affair , and to lie to his wife about it , which I did , '' Cohen will testify . `` Lying to the first lady is one of my biggest regrets . She is a kind , good person . I respect her greatly – and she did not deserve that . I am giving the Committee today a copy of the $ 130,000 wire transfer from me to Ms. Clifford ’ s attorney during the closing days of the presidential campaign that was demanded by Ms. Clifford to maintain her silence about her affair with Mr. Trump .
`` I am providing a copy of a $ 35,000 check that President Trump personally signed from his personal bank 14 account on August 1 , 2017 – when he was President of the United States – pursuant to the cover-up , which was the basis of my guilty plea , to reimburse me – the word used by Mr. Trump ’ s TV lawyer -- for the illegal hush money I paid on his behalf , '' Cohen continues . `` This $ 35,000 check was one of 11 check installments that was paid throughout the year – while he was President . ''
In addition to lying to Congress , Cohen pleaded guilty last year to campaign finance violations for his involvement in the hush money payments . Federal prosecutors in New York have said Trump directed Cohen to arrange the payments to buy the silence of adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal in the run-up to the 2016 campaign . Cohen told a judge that he agreed to cover up Trump 's `` dirty deeds '' out of `` blind loyalty . ''
Cohen is set to begin a three-year prison sentence in May . Trump denies the allegations and says Cohen lied to get a lighter sentence .
The president and some commentators have also characterized Cohen as a `` rat '' -- an insult that Cohen will seek to address .
`` Over the past two years , I have been smeared as ' a rat ' by the president of the United States , '' Cohen will say . `` The truth is much different ''
Meanwhile , in a remarkable social media post on the eve of the hearing , a top Republican suggested that lurid details of Cohen 's private life may take center stage .
The blockbuster public testimony threatened to overshadow Trump 's summit in Vietnam with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un , prompting some observers to say the timing was more than coincidental .
Tuesday was the first of three consecutive days of congressional appearances scheduled for Cohen . After the public hearing Wednesday , he will appear before the House intelligence panel Thursday , again speaking in private .
Republicans are expected to aggressively attempt to discredit Cohen , given that he has acknowledged lying previously . White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement Tuesday it was `` laughable that anyone would take a convicted liar like Cohen at his word , and pathetic to see him given yet another opportunity to spread his lies . ''
RNC TELLS MICHAEL COHEN TO 'HAVE FUN IN PRISON , ' AS GOP PREPS WAR ROOM AHEAD OF TESTIMONY
Cohen will also suggest that Trump wanted him to lie to Congress about the aborted Trump Tower Moscow project -- a lie for which Cohen has pleaded guilty . But Cohen will stop short of saying Trump directly told him to lie , according to the transcript .
`` To be clear : Mr. Trump knew of and directed the Trump Moscow negotiations throughout the campaign and lied about it . He lied about it because he never expected to win the election , '' Cohen will say . `` He also lied about it because he stood to make hundreds of millions of dollars on the Moscow real estate project . And so I lied about it , too – because Mr. Trump had made clear to me , through his personal statements to me that we both knew were false and through his lies to the country , that he wanted me to lie . And he made it clear to me because his personal attorneys reviewed my statement before I gave it to Congress . ''
`` We 're witness testing , not witness tampering . '' — Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz
Buzzfeed News last month published a bombshell , discredited report , citing two law enforcement officials who said Cohen acknowledged to Mueller ’ s office that Trump told him to lie to Congress about a potential real estate deal in Moscow , and claim that the negotiations ended months before they did so as to conceal Trump ’ s involvement .
But Mueller issued his first public statement in more than a year to repudiate the BuzzFeed report just 24 hours after its publication , flatly asserting that the story was `` not accurate . '' The Washington Post has since reported that Mueller intended his rare denial to mean that the story was `` almost entirely incorrect , '' and that the Special Counsel 's Office immediately `` reviewed evidence to determine if there were any documents or witness interviews like those described , reaching out to those they thought might have a stake in the case . They found none . ''
One Republican House member , meanwhile , did more than just question Cohen 's credibility in the run-up to the hearing on Wednesday . Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted Tuesday that the world is `` about to learn a lot '' about Cohen and suggested he knew of disparaging information that could come out during his testimony .
Gaetz , a Trump ally who talks to the president frequently , is not a member of the committee that will question Cohen . He did not offer any evidence . Still , the tweet was extraordinary because his remarks appeared to some Democrats to constitute threatening or intimidating a witness .
In a tweet , House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote , `` I encourage all Members to be mindful that comments made on social media or in the press can adversely affect the ability of House Committees to obtain the truthful and complete information necessary to fulfill their duties . ''
Pelosi went on to suggest that Gaetz may have even opened himself to legal liability , warning that the Constitution 's Speech or Debate Clause -- which provides virtually absolute legal immunity to statements made by senators and representatives during congressional debates -- might not protect Gaetz , who made his comments away from the House floor .
`` We 're witness testing , not witness tampering , '' Gaetz countered in an interview with reporters . `` When witnesses come before Congress , their truthfulness and veracity are in question and we have the opportunity to test them . ''
Lanny Davis , one of Cohen 's lawyers , said in a statement that he would n't respond to Gaetz 's `` despicable lies and personal smears , except to say we trust that his colleagues in the House , both Republicans and Democrats , will repudiate his words and his conduct . ''
Democrats have been alternately suspicious of Cohen and eager to hear what he has to say . Sen. Mark Warner , the intelligence panel 's top Democrat , suggested in a brief statement to reporters outside Tuesday 's interview that Cohen had provided important information .
JUDGE NAP : COHEN TESTIMONY IS DESIGNED TO DISTRACT FROM SECOND TRUMP-KIM SUMMIT
`` Two years ago , when this investigation started , I said it may be the most important thing I am involved in in my public life in the Senate , and nothing I 've heard today dissuades me from that view , '' Warner said .
Senators on the intelligence panel attended Tuesday 's private meeting , a departure from the committee 's usual practice , where witness interviews are conducted by staff only . The Senate intel panel 's chairman , Richard Burr , suggested to The Associated Press before the meeting that his committee would take steps to ensure that Cohen was telling the truth .
`` I 'm sure there will be some questions we know the answers to , so we 'll test him to see whether in fact he 'll be truthful this time , '' Burr said .
At least one Republican member of the intelligence panel refused to go to the meeting . `` I do n't have any desire to go listen to a lying lawyer , '' said Texas Sen. John Cornyn . | VeP5x4ldK5dlkSGZ | 2 | Politics | -0.8 | Michael Cohen | -0.6 | US House | 0.4 | null | null | null | null | |
media_bias | Vox | http://www.vox.com/2015/6/4/8727455/journalism-gender-gap | The gender gap in American newspapers, in 2 charts | 2015-06-04 | media_bias | Over the past few years , there 's been an ongoing ( and much needed ) conversation about diversity in journalism . Mainly , there 's just not enough diversity in the field ( ███ is n't a stranger to this conversation ) . When it comes to topics like the racial tension in Ferguson or Caitlyn Jenner coming out , it 's valuable to both readers and news organizations for people who have a deep understanding of these issues to be the ones writing about them .
Case in point : the gender gap in media . The Women 's Media Center ( WMC ) , a nonprofit media advocacy group , just released its annual report on the status of women in media , and the organization found that journalism still has a lot of inequality in who is writing . In a survey of major newspapers across the United States , only the Chicago Sun-Times had more stories written by women than by men . The rest all trailed , with the New York Times and the Denver Post tying for the worst gender gap :
To be clear , studying an organization 's bylines might not paint the full picture of its editorial structure . The approach tells us a lot about the gender gap in reporting and writing , but it does n't tell us about women ( or lack of women ) in editorial and managerial positions .
`` Our research shows that women , who are more than half of the population , write only a third of the stories . Media tells us our roles in society — it tells us who we are and what we can be , '' president Julie Burton said in a statement about the report . `` This new report shows us who matters and what is important to media — and clearly , as of right now , it is not women . ''
Women are n't just underrepresented in overall bylines . They 're also underrepresented when it comes to the spheres of politics , foreign policy , business , technology , sports , science , and myriad other subjects . In fact , it 's easier to list the four subjects — education , health , religion , and lifestyle — that do have gender equality than to name the ones that do n't :
To see the full report , head over to the Women 's Media Center . | Xp9VcMOVWr6mcBHh | 0 | Women's Issues | 0.5 | Gender | 0.5 | Polarization | 0 | LGBTQ Issues | 0 | Media Bias | 0 |
europe | Fox Online News | https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-slams-macron-for-low-approval-ratings-french-surrender-to-the-nazis | Trump slams Macron for low approval ratings, French surrender to the Nazis | europe | President Trump on Tuesday ripped into French President Emmanuel Macron in a series of tweets -- hitting him on everything from his low approval ratings , to the French surrender to the Nazis in World War II , and suggesting U.S. wine is on par with French product .
Trump was tweeting after a visit to France over the weekend , where he marked the anniversary of the end of World War I . But the trip was marred after Macron said last week that Europe should build its own army , telling French radio : “ We have to protect ourselves with respect to China , Russia and even the United States of America . ”
TRUMP RIPS MACRON AFTER LANDING IN FRANCE OVER 'INSULTING ' CALL FOR EUROPEAN ARMY
Trump responded as he landed in France by describing the remarks as “ very insulting. ” On Tuesday , he returned to criticizing the idea by pointing to the French surrender to the Nazis during World War II .
“ Emmanuel Macron suggests building its own army to protect Europe against the U.S. , China and Russia . But it was Germany in World Wars One & Two - How did that work out for France ? ” he tweeted. ” They were starting to learn German in Paris before the U.S. came along . Pay for NATO or not ! ”
Trump has repeatedly returned to the subject of the NATO burden , which he says results in the U.S. paying a lot of money to protect European countries . NATO itself does not have a defense budget , but members commit to spending a minimum of 2 percent of their Gross Domestic Product to defense spending -- although a number of countries , including France , do not meet this commitment .
On Tuesday , Trump also made reference to Macron ’ s low approval ratings , which have dived into the 20s in recent months .
“ He was just trying to get onto another subject , ” he said .
He also said “ there is no country more Nationalist than France ” and ended with a flourish of : “ Make France Great Again ! ”
He may have been referring to comments Macron made over the weekend where he described nationalism as “ a betrayal of patriotism . ”
“ By putting our own interests first , with no regard for others , we erase the very thing that a nation holds dearest , and the thing that keeps it alive : its moral values , ” the Frenchman said .
The relationship between Trump and Macron has veered back and forth . In April , Macron paid a visit to Washington , where Macron called Trump “ cher Donald ” while Trump kissed the Frenchman and brushed “ dandruff ” off his shoulder . That affection was even on display over the weekend , when Macron reached over and squeezed Trump ’ s thigh during a bilateral meeting .
But since April , things have deteriorated as Trump has taken a hard stance toward tariffs with Europe , while Macron has cast himself as a leading proponent of globalism and has repeatedly criticized the kind of nationalism Trump espouses .
On Tuesday , Trump returned to the question of trade , and accused the French of making it hard for the U.S. to sell its wines into France .
“ On Trade , France makes excellent wine , but so does the U.S. , ” he said . | qqFYTB00cbC45HHm | 2 | Emmanuel Macron | -0.8 | France | -0.8 | Donald Trump | 0.7 | Europe | 0 | World | 0 | |
elections | Fox News | http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/11/18/arizonas-presidential-electors-being-harassed-urged-not-to-cast-vote-for-trump.html | Arizona's presidential electors being harassed, urged not to cast vote for Trump | 2016-11-18 | elections | Arizona ’ s presidential electors are reportedly being hit by a flood of emails and phone calls demanding they defy the voters in their state and choose Hillary Clinton instead of President-elect Donald Trump -- as part of a last-gasp bid to overturn the election .
Since Trump ’ s surprise victory on Nov. 8 , those opposed to his election have engaged in a number of strategies to attempt to nix the election or declare it invalid . Protests , many of them violent , have erupted in cities such as Portland and New York City .
Others , noting that Clinton appears to be on track to win the popular vote but still lose the election , have called for the scrapping of the Electoral College altogether . Retiring Sen. Barbara Boxer , D-Calif. , introduced a bill this week calling for the scrapping of the college – although it is almost certainly doomed to fail in a Republican-controlled Congress .
OUTGOING CALIFORNIA SEN. BOXER INTRODUCES BILL TO SCRAP ELECTORAL COLLEGE
Now in Arizona , a state which voted for Trump , activists are trying to overturn that by pushing the state ’ s members of the Electoral College to vote for someone other than Trump . The 11 members were chosen by the state Republican Party and are scheduled to assemble on Dec. 19 to cast their votes .
The Arizona Republic reports that the electors are not legally required to vote for Trump despite having pledged to support the party nominee . A number of electors told The Republic that they ’ ve been barraged with thousands of emails , phone calls and letters urging them to break that promise .
“ It is total harassment , ” Robert Graham , an elector and chairman of the state Republican Party , said . “ It started about a week ago . Now ? 'Bam ! ' It ’ s hardcore . ”
Graham said most of the pleas come from out of state and include one that called a vote against Trump “ an epitome of patriotism . ”
Bruce Ash , another elector and Arizona ’ s GOP national committeeman told the Republic he had also received hundreds in what he called “ an outright political maneuver. ” He said many of the calls were hateful .
`` They demonize me , they call me a homophobic , an isolationist , a bigot , a misogynist , and an anti-Semite , which is interesting because I 'm Jewish , '' he told the Republic .
Sharon Geise said she has received as many as 8,000 overtures , and now doesn ’ t even dare to answer her phone . | d1NKrEjtxJlyd9Pu | 2 | Donald Trump | -1 | Presidential Elections | 0 | Electoral College | 0 | Elections | 0 | null | null |
healthcare | Vox | https://www.vox.com/health-care/2020/1/13/21028702/medicare-for-all-taiwan-health-insurance | Taiwan’s single-payer success story — and its lessons for America | 2020-01-13 | healthcare | HUALIEN COUNTY , Taiwan — Thirty years ago , before she dyed her hair pink to cover up the white , Dr. Huei-wen Tien came to Xiulin , a township on the east coast of Taiwan severed from the island ’ s urban centers by a formidable mountain range .
She had agreed to serve for 10 years in an aboriginal community in exchange for her medical education . Unconventional by nature — her motorcycle helmet says “ Punk ” — Tien says she wanted a challenge . She found one here , where about 15,000 people , mostly of the Taroko tribe , live near the lush gorges of a national park that shares their name .
Diabetes , alcoholism , and heart disease are common problems among the Taroko . The indigenous people have endured displacement , forced assimilation , and discrimination over the centuries . They are also poorer than the ethnically Han Chinese who make up most of Taiwan ’ s population .
But they never have to worry about one thing : their health care . In Taiwan , everybody is covered . The Taiwanese health care system is built on the belief that everyone deserves health care , in Xiulin just as much as anywhere else . The costs to patients are minimal . And the government has set up special programs to deliver care to the people in Xiulin and their neighbors in Hualien County .
On a warm October afternoon , in a government health clinic in the foothills of the Zhongyang ( Central ) Mountain Range , Tien saw an older Taroko woman she ’ s treated for decades . They have a comfortable rapport . The doctor teased the patient for her high blood sugar , asked what she had for breakfast , and insisted the woman take her diabetes medication that she skipped that morning . ( The woman said she was busy . )
Tien then inserted the woman ’ s national health insurance card into a chip reader to pull up her medical record on the computer . The cards are ubiquitous in Taiwan , the signature of its single-payer health care system , carried by everyone from the woman in Xiulin to a venture biotech executive I met in Taipei .
In the 1990s , Taiwan did what has long been considered impossible in the US : The island of 24 million people took a fractured and inequitable health care system and transformed it into something as close to Sen. Bernie Sanders ’ s vision of Medicare-for-all as anything in the world .
I came here last October to learn what it takes to set up and sustain such a system . It ’ s one of several stops around the globe that ███ made this past fall , in an effort to learn how other countries tried to achieve universal and affordable health care . Our project , Everybody Covered , was made possible by a grant from The Commonwealth Fund .
There ’ s clearly a need for lessons . Compared to the rest of the developed world , America spends more money on health care and produces worse outcomes . By one advanced metric — mortality for causes that should be avoidable with accessible , high-quality health care — the United States ranked last among the G7 countries in 2016 . America ’ s infant mortality rate is almost double that of some of its peers . Nearly one in 10 Americans lack insurance . People go bankrupt over medical bills . Yet Americans still spend about twice as much money on health care per capita as the average comparable country .
No health care system is perfect . But most of America ’ s economic peers have figured out a way to deliver truly universal coverage and quality care . The United States has not .
“ Canada and virtually all European and Asian developed nations have reached , decades ago , a political consensus to treat health care as a social good , ” health care economist Uwe Reinhardt wrote in his book Priced Out shortly before his death in 2017 . “ By contrast , we in the United States have never reached a politically dominant consensus on the issue . ”
Taiwan made its choice in the 1990s and embraced single-payer . It has required sacrifice : by doctors who believe they ’ re forced to see too many patients every day ; by patients with complex and costly conditions who can ’ t always access the latest treatments ; by citizens who have been asked from time to time , and will be asked again , to pay more for their health care than they did before .
The vast majority of Taiwan ’ s citizens today approve of their health care system . They know it isn ’ t a utopia . The country has made hard choices to keep this program sustainable , and it will need to do so again . That is what it takes to realize the single-payer dream .
Taiwan took a broken system and built a new national health insurance program
In the 1980s , Taiwan wasn ’ t yet a democracy , but the stirrings of popular rule could be felt . At the time , about 40 percent of Taiwanese people lacked health insurance — some people lost everything , even their house , if they had a medical crisis . Desperate to outflank reformers , the ruling government convened high-profile meetings to fix its health care system .
One guest at a 1989 conference was the German-born Reinhardt , a Princeton economist who was married to Taiwan-born scholar Tsung-Mei ( May ) Cheng .
Reinhardt , who later co-wrote the seminal paper “ It ’ s The Prices , Stupid ” about American health care and helped define the health policy debate in the US in the 2000s , was asked what system he thought Taiwan should adopt . He thought it over and talked about it with his wife for a couple of nights in their hotel room .
Everybody Covered What the US can learn from other countries ’ health systems Two sisters . Two different journeys through Australia ’ s health care system .
He finally delivered his answer : single-payer . One national health insurance plan , run by the government , covering everybody .
In Reinhardt ’ s view , single-payer would be the most equitable and efficient program . It was similar to systems already in place in Canada and the United Kingdom . He came up with the metaphor of the “ single pipe ” — through which all the money for health care would flow — to convey the concept to public officials .
It was a convincing presentation . As Cheng and her husband left to return to the United States , they didn ’ t know what would happen next . “ We went back to Princeton , ” Cheng recalls , “ and six months later , we were told the government would accept your recommendation to go single-payer . ”
The national government would eventually fast-track the implementation of the new system to 1995 , hoping to get the chaotic transition period over before the first popular elections in 1996 . There was plenty of skepticism leading up to it . Industry , experts , and the public alike doubted the program would succeed . Labor protesters threw paper money traditionally used in a funerary rite when the legislature passed the single-payer bill in 1994 . A majority of people in Taiwan disapproved of the single-payer plan when it took effect .
But the program ’ s reputation quickly improved once people started to enjoy its benefits . Approval has dipped ( when premiums were hiked in the 2000s ) and risen ( when the rural health care program that employs Tien in Xiulin was implemented ) over the years , but there has always been a solid baseline of support . Today , approval of the national health insurance program hovers near its all-time high , over 80 percent . The system endures 25 years after it was established .
Part of its appeal is its simplicity . Everybody in Taiwan is insured through the National Health Insurance Administration ( NHIA ) . They receive an ID card as proof of coverage , which also stores their medical records . The Taiwanese program runs with extraordinary efficiency : About 1 percent of its funding is spent on administration , according to a 2015 review by Cheng . ( Compare that to the US , where researchers have estimated that private insurers spend around 12 percent of overhead , and hospitals spend around 25 percent on administrative work . ) Experts say Taiwan ’ s advanced IT infrastructure deserves a good share of the credit .
The benefits are quite comprehensive : hospital care , primary care , prescription drugs , traditional Chinese medicine . Patients must make copays when they visit the doctor or fill a prescription or go to the ER , but they are generally low , 360 NTD ( about $ 12 ) or less . Lower-income patients are given an additional break on their cost-sharing obligations . Higher-income patients can take out private insurance for certain things not covered by the single-payer program .
The system is mostly funded by payroll-based premiums , with contributions from workers and their employers , supplemented by more progressive income taxes and tobacco and lottery levies . Premiums have been raised twice in the past 18 years to cover the growing cost of the program . The most recent rate increase in 2010 moved the payroll income tax rate from 4.55 percent to 5.17 , a 14 percent increase .
In the early 2000s , again at Reinhardt ’ s recommendation , Taiwan converted to global budgets to pay for health care as another cost-control measure . This means that every year , government officials and private providers sit across a table and negotiate rates for services , with an annual cap set on the total payments to hospitals and doctors that the government will make . Health spending has stayed flat in recent years as a percentage of GDP , and it is growing at a slower rate in Taiwan than in the United States .
Taiwanese patients use a lot of health care , and it puts a strain on providers
What it all adds up to is a system that patients seem broadly happy with — maybe too happy , according to doctors and economists I met .
“ I believe we are too kind to our patient [ s ] , ” says Shou-Hsia Cheng , a health economics professor at National Taiwan University ( NTU ) who has worked at NHIA on and off over the years , “ which is not a good thing , actually . ”
Taiwanese people take advantage of their cheap , accessible health care . The average number of physician visits per year ( 12.1 ) is nearly twice that of other developed economies . There was a dramatic spike in use after single-payer was passed : A 1997 JAMA research paper led by Shou-Hsia Cheng found that physician visits among the newly insured doubled in the first year of the program compared to the year before .
That has had predictable downsides : Hospitals get crowded in Taiwan . The capacity of health care providers to attend to everyone in need can be stretched pretty thin .
I visited the National Taiwan University Hospital , a red-brick building in the heart of Taipei from the Japanese colonial period , one weekday afternoon . All of the clinic lobbies were full . The registration desk , run take-a-number style , was bustling , beeps constantly pinging over the PA system as patients ’ numbers were called .
On another morning , inside a north-central Taipei primary care clinic , several patients were already sitting along the walls , hooked up to machines receiving infrared therapy for chronic pain , just a few minutes after the doors opened . The one doctor on site looked a bit frazzled as he showed me around before his clinic filled up any further .
The scenes bring to mind something I heard from trauma surgeon Li-Jian Chien , a member of the Taiwanese doctors union that formed in 2012 out of the frustrations felt in the medical profession .
In Taiwan , he says , “ the patient [ is ] in heaven ” — but “ the doctor is in hell . ”
It ’ s the opposite of the United States , he elaborates , where high cost sharing leads people to skip necessary care for serious conditions .
Chien says national health insurance with negligible cost sharing has pushed doctors to the brink . His friend and fellow physician Bing-Hong Lin exclaimed at one point during our interview : “ We are not the Avengers ! ”
Surveys conducted by the government show health care providers have rather mixed opinions on the single-payer system — a significant plurality , 43 percent , said they were “ neutral ” in 2018 — a sharp contrast to the public ’ s sky-high favorability .
Chien says he sometimes sees the same patient dozens of times every year in the emergency department where he works , often for problems that aren ’ t emergencies . The low costs mean patients have little incentive to avoid the ER .
“ Everyone wants to live forever , but it ’ s impossible , ” Chien says . “ Some people abuse emergency , abuse health care . ”
At the same time , because Taipei has a lot of traffic accidents , injured drivers and pedestrians come through his emergency department ’ s doors all the time . His attention is divided when it shouldn ’ t be .
Lin has started doing cosmetic medicine for adults on the side because he has become so frustrated by his pediatric practice . It ’ s a more lucrative field , paid for privately by patients , with a less demanding workload . His is not an uncommon choice , according to experts . Lin still bitterly remembers being called back early from leave he had taken in 2005 to attend his father ’ s funeral , because there was a staffing shortage at the hospital where he was doing his residency .
Taiwanese hospitals and clinics are understaffed compared to the rest of the world : There are about 1.7 doctors in Taiwan for every 1,000 patients , which is well below the average of 3.3 in other developed countries . There are especially shortages of specialists in less urbanized parts of the country .
“ Taiwan ’ s low ratios would be considered inadequate by OECD standards , ” Tsung-Mei Cheng wrote in 2015 , “ especially in view of the high utilization of health care services in Taiwan . ”
The country does excel at keeping wait times short for services like cataract and hip replacement surgeries . But providers are feeling the strain .
Taiwanese doctors work about 10 more hours a week on average than those in the United States . A 2016 survey of hospital physicians found that working overtime was prevalent , and doctors who worked a lot of overtime were more likely to say they might leave the hospital where they worked .
Crowded facilities , like the NTU Hospital , are the norm . Hospitals supplement their medical payments with high-margin non-health care services — food courts , parking , and so on — to keep themselves solvent .
The worry is that Taiwan ’ s national health insurance has given patients such a good deal on medical care that they are overwhelming the system .
Patients must make sacrifices , too , like when a drug is too expensive to cover
The patients have their own grievances . They ’ ve seen their premiums hiked and more taxes introduced over the past two decades , and they will probably be asked again soon to chip in more money .
And though the benefits are comprehensive for most people , Taiwan still doesn ’ t cover everything . Costly treatments for rare conditions are sometimes excluded .
A new drug for spinal muscular atrophy — a genetic disorder that progressively breaks down the patient ’ s muscle tissue , resulting in early death — came on the market in the US in 2017 . The first year of treatment costs $ 750,000 . Yi Jie Li , a 25-year-old woman with spinal atrophy and an outspoken advocate who wrote the 2017 book 7,300 Days : The Most Ordinary Luxury , penned a letter to the NHIA pleading with it to cover the drug for the patients it could help .
The department replied in a letter , and the president of Taiwan called her on the phone . They said they would do their best . But the drug still isn ’ t covered .
New medicines sometimes debut in Taiwan a full five years after they came on the market in the United States . For patients who need those medications , every day of waiting is a trial .
“ Now the medicine is there , ” Li says , “ but you can not use ” it .
In some rural parts of the country , medical understaffing means less access to specialists and pediatricians . High use has frustrated doctors in the cities , but it ’ s patients who suffer if it ’ s hard for them to see a doctor or nurse .
Even though Taiwanese patients get a good deal on health care , they don ’ t come across as entitled . Some of the patients I met , including those who have faced the gravest diagnoses , seem acutely aware of the trade-offs demanded of them to keep a single-payer system sustainable .
Gloria Lin was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly before national health insurance took effect ; today she is president of the Taiwanese Cancer Patient Association . Her group plays a part in talks between government and providers about what will be covered ( and for how much ) .
She told me that of course she wants to see every new cancer drug covered by the government plan . But she also understands why that ’ s impossible : The system would become too expensive .
“ We don ’ t want it [ to go ] bankrupt , ” she says . “ We have to work hand to hand together to solve the problem . … We have to be sensible for each other . ”
Sustaining a single-payer system requires hard choices for patients , providers , and taxpayers
National health insurance achieved what the Taiwanese government hoped it would . Everybody can afford health care . People are living longer , healthier lives . But the ever-growing cost of providing health care to everybody makes it challenging for the program to remain financially sustainable .
The government keeps having to ask doctors , hospitals , and patients to make sacrifices to keep single-payer running . That ’ s not usually a political winner . No elected official is running on a campaign of higher premiums and higher copays .
But it helps that national health insurance has proven so popular . People want to make it work because single-payer has clearly improved Taiwanese lives .
One metric tells the tale : a rating based on medically amenable mortality , which gives a sense of how often people die of causes for which medical interventions should be available . In 1990 , before Taiwan ’ s single-payer program was implemented , the country held a rating around 60 , far behind the United States ’ rating of 80 . In 2016 , Taiwan had nearly caught up with the US , topping 85 ; the US sat at 88 , trailing its socioeconomic peers in Europe .
There is no doubt that medical care in Taiwan is better under single-payer , though it improved from a much worse status quo than the American system .
Today , Americans die prematurely of heart disease and lung cancer at higher rates than the Taiwanese . People in Taiwan live a little longer in general , though there are populations that encounter early deaths from alcohol use and stroke , just as some disadvantaged groups do in the United States . Yet overall , Taiwan spends 6 percent of its GDP on health care , about a third of what the United States does .
There is no comparison between the Taiwanese system of yesteryear — a 40 percent uninsured rate and the risk of financial catastrophe — and the one that exists today .
In the early 2000s , with health spending growing too quickly , the national health insurance office decided to institute the global budgets , a set pool of money that would cover all the medical services in a given year . Hong-Jen Chang , then the NHIA director , remembers seeing his effigy being decapitated in protests by hospital supporters . The opposition was overwhelming , and he had to resign over that decision in 2004 . That was also shortly after the first premium increase was approved .
NHIA Director-General Dr. Po-Chang Lee told me that , after the presidential election this month , he would pitch the new government on increasing copayments so patients pay more out of pocket if they visit the doctor or hospital .
It may take more than that . Shou-Hsia Cheng , the NTU professor , predicted Taiwan would soon have to reevaluate its payments for end-of-life care . The country is currently debating how to expand long-term care for an aging population ; it ’ s not covered by the national health plan .
The financial crunch is coming . The NHIA , which ran surpluses for a while after the last round of rate increases , is now about to see its reserves run out .
“ Either we should increase the premium rate or increase the copayment , or we have to delete some coverage items , ” Chang , the former NHIA director , says . “ That will happen — not in two years , perhaps in 10 years . It will happen . ”
But in Taiwan , the need for premium increases or hospital budget caps isn ’ t considered an indictment of national health insurance , at least if approval ratings for the system are anything to go by . It ’ s part of the evolution of the system they have built . And because the underlying program is so popular , Taiwanese leaders are confident patients will be willing to do what ’ s needed to keep single-payer viable .
“ They will adjust , ” Cheng , the professor , says . “ I believe so . ”
Taiwan is realizing the dream of “ health care as a human right ”
Since the beginning , the debate in Taiwan has been about balancing the imperatives of equity and access that underpinned the national health insurance program . Perhaps there ’ s been no greater demonstration of that than seeing the health care system at work in the mountain township of Xiulin , where Tien was making her rounds .
A decade into the single-payer experiment , when Hong-Jen Chang was in charge of NHIA , health care access in places like Xiulin was still lacking . So he decided to start the rural care delivery program that covers Tien and her patients .
On the same day she treated the Taroko woman at her clinic , Tien ventured out to visit a bedridden stroke patient in his home and showed the same warmth , offering him a cheerful thumbs-up as she went through her exam . A few doors down , a diabetes patient with gout welcomed a nurse into his house , parakeets chirping at the front door , so she could take his blood sugar readings , something she does two or three times a week . Meanwhile , in the town hall , a pop-up Chinese medicine clinic was set up , and patients filed in to get acupuncture treatments .
Chang told me a health care delivery program like this was the natural endpoint for the single-payer experiment , a necessary extension of its services to reach a vulnerable population . Without it , the work of Taiwanese health reform would always be incomplete .
“ That ’ s the essence of universal health coverage , ” he says . “ The principle of health [ as a ] human right is that everybody regardless of geography , religion , gender , age should have the right to access . ”
The people here seem grateful . Wong Shin-Fa , a 63-year-old Taroko man , stopped me on the side of the road in Xiulin and asked me what I was doing there . When I said I was an American reporting on health care , he told me a story .
He had a Taroko friend in Los Angeles who broke his arm , he told me , with a government health worker interpreting . Rather than get it fixed in the United States , his friend decided to fly back to Taiwan and have it mended there because he said it would be cheaper .
Shin-Fa knew Tien and her shock of pink hair . He said she ’ s famous around those parts . He told me , “ The government takes good care of the Taroko people . ”
Ashley Pon is an editorial photographer based in Taipei , Taiwan .
The Everybody Covered project can be found at ███.com/covered . This series was made possible by a grant from The Commonwealth Fund . All content is editorially independent and produced by our journalists . | YdVbZlzloFPZMhl8 | 0 | Healthcare | 1.7 | Taiwan | 1.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
middle_east | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2013/11/iran-nuclear-negotiations-israel-palestine-99624.html?hp=t1 | Iran talks complicate U.S. push on Israeli-Palestinian negotiations | 2013-11-10 | middle_east | John Kerry 's comments in Israel Thursday raised concerns there . | REUTERS Iran talks complicate Israel push
President Barack Obama ’ s push to cut a deal with Iran over that country ’ s nuclear program could spell doom for his other Mideast priority : settling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict .
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ’ s angry reaction to the prospect of a short-term pact with Tehran is virtually certain to put an even bigger chill on already languishing U.S.-led Israeli-Palestinian talks , and the timing could make things even more difficult .
About six months are left in the nine-month time frame Secretary of State John Kerry laid out when Israelis and Palestinians agreed to resume peace negotiations in July on long-disputed issues including the status of Jerusalem ; borders of a Palestenian state and the fate of Israeli settlements in the West Bank . And Obama , Kerry and other U.S. officials are discussing a six-month agreement with Iran to halt its nuclear program in exchange for a temporary easing of international sanctions .
That means the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations are likely to be at their most delicate and momentous stage just as Israel , the U.S. and others are making a difficult and complicated assessment of whether Iran has complied with the interim nuclear deal and whether a permanent pact should be put in place .
“ The two toughest sets of decisions Israelis have to make … are roughly coming down to decision points during the same time period , ” said former U.S. Mideast peace negotiator Aaron David Miller , now with the Wilson Center . “ I don ’ t know whether it was done willfully or whether or not it just worked out this way , but … it makes it virtually certain the [ Israeli ] prime minister will only be able to handle one or the other . ”
Diplomatic talks in Geneva on Iran ended without agreement Saturday night but will resume Nov. 20 .
Netanyahu has been on a tear against the nascent Iran pact in recent days , denouncing it publicly as “ the deal of the century for Iran ” and “ a mistake of historic proportions. ” He complained that it would ease international sanctions that are biting severely on Iran , while not ensuring any reduction in Iran ’ s current nuclear capacity .
“ If this deal comes off in the way it ’ s being portrayed and if , in the end , you have an angry , aggrieved and fundamentally suspicious prime minister , you could basically hang a ‘ Closed-for-the Season ’ sign on the prospects of getting Netanyahu to make consequential decisions with respect to the Palestinian issue , ” Miller said . “ You create an added layer of complexity , which if combined with the already difficult problems that exist , could sink the whole enterprise . ”
“ There is certainly a political interaction connecting Prime Minister Netanyahu and how flexible he might be on one front in return for what kind of determination on the other , ” said former State Department spokesman P.J . Crowley . “ If Israel is beside itself on Iran , certainly there are political calculations in terms of how much pressure the U.S. can place on Israel on the Israeli-Palestinian front . ”
Some analysts see the White House ’ s new Iran push as a sign that Obama may be willing to write off an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal if he is forced to choose between resolving one problem or the other . Indeed , there was an early , tentative signal Friday that things might be moving in that direction .
When the White House announced Friday afternoon that Obama and Netanyahu spoke by telephone about the looming deal with Iran , there was no indication that the two men spoke about the Israeli-Palestinian issue , as the White House said they did in announcements of other phone conservations in August and October and in face-to-face talks in Washington in September .
“ The President provided the Prime Minister with an update on negotiation in Geneva and underscored his strong commitment to preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon , which is the aim of the ongoing negotiations between the P5+1 and Iran , ” the White House statement Friday said .
Spokespeople for the White House and the State Department did not respond requests for comment for this story or to a query about whether the Israeli-Palestinian issue came up during Friday ’ s conversation between the two leaders .
“ To the extent that these guys were not best friends at a personal level , but they had reached some kind of accommodation , this can obviously be very disruptive to that , ” said Crowley , now a professor at George Washington University .
The tension between the U.S. and Israel over the potential Iran deal also threatens to unwind some of the goodwill Obama built up with Israelis in March , during his first trip as president to the Jewish state . The high-profile journey seemed intended as a kind of bear-hug for the Israeli people and Jews around the world , aimed at reassuring them that he and the United States could be counted on as steadfast allies as Israel confronts serious security challenges .
“ What he ’ s doing now with regard to Iran undercuts the approach he adopted in March when he was in Israel , ” said Doug Feith of the Hudson Institute , a former undersecretary of defense during the George W. Bush administration .
“ ‘ Israel : we ’ ve got your back ’ will now be put in the same museum alongside ‘ You can keep your health plan if you want to ’ and ‘ There ’ s a red line if Syria uses nuclear weapons , ’ ” Feith added . “ What the president is doing time after time on issue after issue , foreign and domestic , is declaring policy in categorical terms that a few weeks or months later he issues a ‘ never mind ’ for . ”
Kerry ’ s comments on the peace process during a stop in Israel Thursday stirred concern among some there that the U.S. is turning up the heat on Israel .
“ If we don ’ t end the presence of Israeli soldiers perpetually within the West Bank , then there will be an increasing feeling that if we can not get peace with a leadership that is committed to nonviolence , you may wind up with leadership that is committed to violence , ” he said . | MhOmZFYu9jmy0M9A | 0 | Middle East | -0.1 | Iran | -0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | CBN | http://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/politics/2016/june/trump-rips-unfair-coverage-has-choice-words-for-abc-reporter | Trump Rips 'Unfair' Coverage, Has Choice Words for ABC Reporter | 2016-06-01 | Donald Trump, Media Bias, Presidential Elections, Elections | Republican presumptive presidential candidate Donald Trump told reporters at a testy news conference that allegations that he 's been less than honest about his donations to veterans ' groups were flatly wrong .
`` I am the only one in the world that could raise almost $ 6 million for the veterans , have uniform applause by the veterans groups and end up being criticized by the press , '' Trump said , before unloading on the press .
`` Look , I find the press to be extremely dishonest . I find the political press to be unbelievably dishonest , '' he continued , criticizing them for even questioning his donations .
`` I 'm not looking for credit , but what I do n't want is when I raise millions of dollars [ to ] have people say , like this sleazy guy right over here from ABC , he 's a sleaze in my book , '' he said looking at Tom Llamas , an anchor and correspondent for ABC News .
`` You 're a sleaze because you know the facts and you know the facts well , '' Trump said , to which Llamas retorted , `` Because I ask fair questions ?
Hillary Clinton pounced on Trump 's press tirade , calling the billionaire 's fundraiser for veterans a political stunt .
`` It took a reporter to shame him into actually making his contribution and getting the money to veterans , '' Clinton said .
Trump is also facing controversy over his real estate school . A California judge released previously sealed internal documents showing how Trump University was run , with students paying up to $ 35,000 for real estate classes .
But now some of the students are suing Trump , claiming fraud . The case , which Trump is expected to testify at , goes to trial just after the November presidential election . Trump says the judge in the case has been unfair and he 'll win the case .
Meanwhile , Clinton faces her own challenges . The FBI is still investigating her use of a private email server . But even if she 's indicted , a new poll , divided along party lines , shows voters want her to run anyway .
According to poll results , 70 percent of Democrats said she should keep running , while only 30 percent of Republicans support the idea and 46 percent of Independents were against it .
Clinton leads Trump by 1 percentage point in the RealClearPolitics average of polls .
Despite their problems with the public , the polls still show a dead-even race , with 43.8 percent favoring Clinton to 42.8 percent backing Trump . | d2e5ecccc770152e | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
economy_and_jobs | Christian Science Monitor | http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2015/0301/Here-come-the-jobs-finally | Here come the jobs, finally | 2015-03-01 | economy_and_jobs | Trevor Parkes has been through the tunnel called unemployment in post-recession America and come out the other side . In the summer of 2013 , he moved from Texas to Tennessee so his family could be closer to his wife ’ s parents . But when his new job evaporated with a layoff after just four months , Mr. Parkes was in trouble : unemployed in a difficult job market , edging toward age 50 , and with two kids moving through school .
Not least among his challenges : He was still a newcomer to the Nashville area , with few friends or connections to turn to for support . “ I was basically terrified , because I didn ’ t know anyone here , ” he says .
Even with his wife working in youth ministry , the year that followed was one of emotional turmoil . Parkes tried it all . Temp work . Networking with other parents at his kids ’ school . Contacting former employers . Mining online job boards . Each week , more résumés went out into the void .
Then this past fall , something changed . First came a small regional bank that actually wanted to interview him . Not long after came a call from the very bank that had laid him off . It was starting a new flood insurance underwriting division and hired Parkes to be part of the team .
The job means new confidence and financial security for Parkes and his family . It also represents a larger story of employment revival in the US economy .
Today ’ s US job market is healthier than you might realize . True , the recovery is incomplete . Even a good job market today won ’ t mean conditions are easy for US workers .
Yet the progress is real . And crucially , it ’ s helping to address one of the defining features of the Great Recession and its aftermath : the large number of people who are long-term unemployed and in many cases at risk of dropping out of the workforce altogether .
An improved job climate has , more broadly , revived economic spirits across America . For the first time since the Great Recession officially ended some 5-1/2 years ago , Gallup and CNN polls find a majority of Americans having a positive view of the economy .
Last year saw the strongest US employment growth since 1999 , and the official US unemployment rate has fallen to 5.7 percent of the labor force as of January , down from 6.6 percent a year before .
“ It ’ s certainly good news that payroll growth has eliminated a lot of the employment gap that resulted from the recession , ” says Andrew Levin , who is joining the economics faculty of Dartmouth College . “ But at the current pace of job creation , another 18 months to two years will probably be needed to reach full employment . ”
In fact , even as the undeniable gains give the United States lower joblessness than many European nations , the set of remaining challenges is also clear :
• Middle-class incomes had been stagnating and inequality widening even before the recession . Those trends have now become central political questions , gaining attention from Republican and Democratic leaders alike in the run-up to a presidential election in 2016 .
• From robots to smart phones , technology has opened new opportunities for consumers but is also disrupting traditional occupations . Economist Tyler Cowen distilled the worry in a 2013 book , “ Average Is Over , ” forecasting a future in which an educated elite pulls increasingly far ahead of everyone else .
• As the US emerges from the most protracted jobs bust since the Great Depression , a historically high number of working-age civilians are still without work or underemployed . Some have part-time jobs rather than the full-time ones they hope for . Some have grown so discouraged that they ’ ve stopped even looking for work .
One key worry is that many of the recession-sidelined Americans have become so detached from the workforce – losing skills , connections , marketability – that they may never work again .
Reviving the rate of labor force participation ( the share of US adults who are working or wanting to work ) may be a vital measure of whether America is really nearing “ full employment. ” That ’ s why , at this point , a month in which the unemployment rate edges up isn ’ t necessarily a bad thing – if it ’ s a sign of more people being drawn into the job hunt .
Economist Stephen Rose of George Washington University sees the challenges , but he also cautions against buying into a view of long-term pessimism . Time and again , he says , forecasts of a grim future have emerged in times of economic distress , technological change , or global competition – and then been proved wrong .
Already , in at least a few industries , a shortage of workers is starting to surface . Tim Bowe , chief executive of a product-development firm based near Boston , says the college- and graduate-degree scientists he ’ s looking to hire are hard to find .
“ The market is not even tightening , ” he says . “ It ’ s tight . ”
The company , called Foliage , hopes to grow its 600-person US workforce by 20 percent this year as it brings technology solutions to clients in industries from cars to industrial equipment .
Even beyond strong fields like math and sciences , employers have been adding jobs lately across a broad range of industries . The new positions include many low-paid ones in restaurants and retail shops . But many are also in professional services , sales , and skilled factory work . Fully 1 in 10 new jobs over the past year has come in construction , a welcome revival for an industry that was hit especially hard by the recession .
The job gains have actually been coming since the end of 2010 – and slower than anyone wished . But last year saw a pickup in the pace , a shift toward the better in public opinion about the economy , and forecasts of continued job creation in 2015 .
Even states such as Michigan and Ohio have seen high unemployment rates plummet , in part because of a revival of automotive and other manufacturing . And in 28 states , led by many west of the Mississippi , employment is now back above 2007 levels .
Young people between 16 and 24 years old , actually , have been the age group whose connections to work have most frayed since 2008 . Their rate of participation in the labor force took a drop after the recession that was twice as big as the drop for workers ages 25 to 34 or ages 45 to 54 .
Now that is changing . Rashid Nelson , a senior at Boston University , says he ’ s seen the job outlook improving steadily each year he ’ s been in college . And now he knows he has a job waiting , as an account manager for AT & T , selling telecommunication technologies to both small and large businesses .
“ I just wanted to put myself in a good position , ” he says of his intensive job hunt last fall . “ I didn ’ t want to be that one student who graduated and didn ’ t know what he was doing . ”
That focus , not just an improved job market , contributed to his finding a position . He majored in an area that ’ s in demand ( marketing ) , planned carefully ( leaving his Fridays clear of classes for potential travel for job interviews ) , and kept sending out applications during fall semester .
Today , as a student ambassador for Boston University ’ s Center for Career Development , he ’ s urging peers to do similar planning .
Older workers , too , are glad to see an improving employment climate . Sam Jarman of San Diego went through a long stint of unemployment – twice . Working in the mortgage industry , an epicenter of the financial crisis , he lost one job in 2008 . He found another in 2009 , making loan modifications for people at risk of foreclosure .
It was a high-level job ( managing other managers on the team ) but his job security was inversely related to the health of the economy . By early last year he was laid off again .
The business of making regular home loans was picking up , but he was 51 years old and says no one would hire him . “ They said , ‘ You ’ ve been out of the origination side for five years and a lot has changed . We want to hire someone who has more recent experience . ’ ”
Call it wisdom or desperation , Mr. Jarman began widening his efforts . “ I prayed , I networked , I was ready to take anything . I looked in health care , at Petco , Jack in the Box , ” he says . “ For the first time in 27 years , I considered leaving California because there were no jobs here . ”
But in October he landed one , in the lending industry and at a local credit union . He took a 25 percent pay cut and is one step down from his prior managerial level , but he ’ s glad to be there . “ I like it . There are good people here , and [ the company ] isn ’ t going to leave San Diego , ” he says . “ I feel more secure . ”
As of January , the Bureau of Labor Statistics still counts 2.8 million Americans as unemployed for more than half a year and still looking for work . Even when people do move forward , it ’ s not unusual for the process to be start-and-stop – with new jobs that don ’ t last very long .
The positive thing is simply this : From blue-collar workers to people like Jarman , more and more jobless workers are finding their way back to work .
One day last fall , Lidia Sotomayor was doing a dress rehearsal for that pivotal few minutes that could make or break her future – a job interview .
Her mock interviewer , a woman from a group called Platform to Employment , was in effect the drill sergeant in a boot camp for the long-term unemployed . ( “ They coddled you for the first hour , ” Ms. Sotomayor recalls of the five-week intensive program . )
Sotomayor fought through the tough questions , drawing on her training . Don ’ t be intimidated . Pause to think , but not for too long . In the end , the room of about two dozen other jobless people erupted in applause at her performance .
The rehearsal , and the confidence boost , soon bore fruit . She now has a job as a bookkeeper in a small company , based in her home city of Bridgeport , Conn. , that makes electric cable assemblies for business clients .
Her story offers a window on how today ’ s job market , though reviving , remains tougher than before the recession – and is being transformed by evolving technology .
Sotomayor was coached on how to craft a profile on the website LinkedIn and how that would help . She learned how companies are besieged by electronic job applications – and quickly weed through them in ways that winnow out lots of viable candidates .
Joseph Carbone , who heads the organization that created Platform to Employment , says the challenges for workers are long term as well as partly cyclical .
“ The days of getting a job and staying there for the rest of your working life , and not blending in any additional education or training – they ’ re gone , they ’ re over , ” he says . Managing one ’ s career means “ you ’ ve got to be vigilant . ”
As Mr. Carbone describes it , employers are simply warier of making a full-time hire than they used to be . If they can meet a workplace need with part-timers , temp workers , or contractors , that takes financial and regulatory liabilities off their shoulders . When they do hire full-timers , it comes with the expectation of continuous advancement in skills .
These aren ’ t new trends . “ Lifelong learning ” was becoming more than just a catchphrase even in the 1990s . But workplace change has accelerated . Switching jobs is fine , but being unemployed can quickly make one ’ s skills look out of date – not to mention being a financial drain .
Sotomayor says the training program hammered home a simple message : “ Stop the bleed ” by getting reemployed , even at a lower salary . If a new job isn ’ t within reach , Carbone urges people to do something to show they ’ re active – taking courses or volunteering , for instance . Such lessons apply to young and old alike .
Mr. Nelson , the soon-to-be college grad , is already steeped in the notion that he should keep his eye more than a few steps down the career trail . He has a long-term goal to build experience toward working as a sports marketing agent in professional basketball .
As more Americans who want jobs find them , they are shifting from belt-tightening to a new sense of confidence and new possibilities .
A job doesn ’ t define a person , after all , but for millions it does contribute to everything from their sense of purpose to their ability to help a charity or a neighbor in need .
For Andre Miles near Chicago , a job means something as simple as being able to treat his young children to a night of special fun .
“ I ’ m taking the whole family to Chuck E. Cheese ’ s tonight , ” he says by phone as he commutes homeward from his customer service job toward his wife and three young kids . That ’ s the kind of thing that had been cut out of the family budget in late 2012 , when his old job moved to Atlanta and he decided to stay in Illinois .
After a long time out of work , Mr . Miles landed a job in December with an assist from a group called Skills for Chicagoland ’ s Future . “ I have something to offer , ” Miles says , referring to his skills in customer service . But jobs are also allowing him and his wife to pursue possible new paths through additional schooling .
Randy Candelaria , who lives near Salt Lake City , found that getting a paycheck opened an even bigger door of opportunity : the potential to reconnect with his family and leave homelessness behind . His job is paying for a cellphone , which in turn has put him back in touch with his daughter and grandsons , ages 4 and 6 .
After two years without work and living in homeless shelters and at friends ’ homes , Mr. Candelaria considers his new employment at a custom countertop company an amazing breakthrough . For workers like him , with prison time in their past , the job market is tougher than for most .
“ It ’ s hard when you make mistakes and you wish you could go back and ‘ would have , should have , could have , ’ ” he says . “ Because of those choices , I have consequences , but it ’ s nice to know there are still programs and people who are willing to help . ”
Help came for him when he stopped in at the Utah Department of Workforce Services on a day when the office was uncommonly empty . He was just there to use the fax machine , not to do any prospecting . Still , he had registered with the agency , and began talking to employees who mentioned a job that was a possible fit for him . One phone call later , he had an interview – and later a job .
In Tennessee , Parkes no longer winces when he meets other parents who ask what he does for a living . The family budget has also expanded . While he was unemployed , the couple had shopped only at discount grocery stores , skipped getting health and dental insurance for themselves , and relied on help from family members and their church .
Now Parkes can focus on paying down his debts and looking more than a month down the financial road for himself and his family .
After persisting in maintaining a positive attitude through it all , Parkes also says the year of joblessness has put material success in perspective .
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“ I was talking with my son the other day about wealth and I asked him to define what being rich means , ” he says . “ To me , you just need a place to live . A place that keeps you warm at night , keeps you cool in the summer . Not being tied to debt – that ’ s what it means to be rich . ”
Contributing to this report were Carolyn Abate in San Francisco , Eilene Zimmerman in San Diego , Emiley Morgan in Salt Lake City , and Michael Holtz in Boston . | OACIid9joYKr8Ykh | 1 | Economy And Jobs | 1.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
labor | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/dec/12/right-to-work-victory-in-michigan/ | BUSH: Right-to-work victory in Michigan | 2012-12-12 | labor | American families and taxpayers may be just three weeks from going over the “ fiscal cliff , ” a move economists predict will shrink the nation ’ s economy and dramatically increase unemployment , but you wouldn ’ t know it by the way President Obama has been approaching negotiations with Congress .
Reasonable observers who have taken a look at the president ’ s latest proposals have come to the same conclusion : The president is more interested in winning a political victory of higher tax rates on higher-income earners than in making tough decisions to cut the deficit , kick-start the economy and empower job providers .
For an example of real , effective , no-holds-barred leadership in tough times , Mr. Obama ( and Republican congressional leaders , for that matter ) would be wise to look to Michigan . The quintessential Rust Belt dinosaur has undergone an amazing transformation , thanks to Gov . Rick Snyder and local legislative leaders who have shown a willingness these past two years — and in the past two weeks — to make difficult decisions and fight brutal political battles at significant risk not only to their careers but to their physical safety .
The Great Lakes State recently emerged from a “ lost decade. ” Michigan preceded the nation into recession , a victim of disastrous economic policies and a refusal by state leaders to make difficult decisions , especially those opposed by organized labor .
Two years ago , residents voted for a change , electing businessman and self-proclaimed political novice Rick Snyder as governor while sending a Republican , pro-business and pro-worker majority to the state House and a supermajority to the state Senate . The “ reinvention of Michigan ” has been nothing short of remarkable . Leaders made tough decisions and stood up to union bosses who long dominated the state decision-making . As a result , they rebuilt the state ’ s business climate and empowered local governments and public school districts to balance their books more precisely than at any time in recent memory .
Indiana ’ s decision earlier this year to become a right-to-work state presented new challenges for Lansing . Job-makers , who only recently had begun re-examining Michigan as a serious option , were lured a few miles southwest to a neighbor with a dramatically healthier labor climate .
Labor leaders like United Auto Workers President Bob King , who for two years enjoyed a working relationship with the Republican Mr. Snyder , compounded the challenge Indiana presented by pushing a constitutional amendment to give unions de facto veto power over state law .
Voters resoundingly defeated the measure , but job-makers took notice of Big Labor ’ s power grab and willingness to spend more than $ 30 million to overturn state policy . Why run the risk in Michigan when Indiana offered such a different alternative ?
Indiana ’ s labor reform and Big Labor ’ s power grab got Mr. Snyder ’ s attention . That ’ s why , in an earth-shattering move most observers thought would — and could — never happen , the Michigan Legislature last week approved freedom-to-work reforms , and Mr. Snyder signed them into law on Tuesday . The birthplace of Big Labor became the nation ’ s 24th right-to-work state .
Mr. Snyder , as well as state House Speaker Jase Bolger and state Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville , say freedom-to-work will help Michigan attract the new businesses and industries the state needs to compete in the 21st century . This not only will help the local economy recover faster — it puts Michigan on a path to have a healthy economy for years to come .
Mr. Snyder recognizes it is not enough for Michigan to survive . He wants Michigan to thrive and believes deeply that workplace fairness and equality legislation is an essential building block for Michigan ’ s long-term success .
The move was not popular among labor activists , who “ occupied ” Lansing . The UAW , AFL-CIO and others bused in hundreds — perhaps thousands — of union members from as far away as Chicago , Ohio , Alabama and even Ontario . Last Thursday , as lawmakers in labor ’ s backyard prepared to cast the most difficult votes of their careers , thousands of union activists stormed the Capitol building , while nearly a dozen broke through sealed doors into the Senate chamber .
Police were forced to use pepper spray to protect lawmakers and made eight arrests as union activists continued to threaten legislators , physically assaulted freedom-to-work reformers outside on the steps of the Capitol and did significant damage to the building itself .
Like Wisconsin Gov . Scott Walker , Indiana Gov . Mitch Daniels and legislative leaders in both states , Mr. Snyder and Michigan lawmakers are focused on doing the right thing , undeterred by union violence . They have demonstrated a remarkable willingness to put Michigan residents and the state ’ s economy above even their own personal safety .
Jeb Bush , former Republican governor of Florida , is chairman of the Foundation for Excellence in Education . | bNrXse0eFuqeQsrh | 2 | Labor | -1 | Economy And Jobs | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
abortion | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/apr/5/judge-kills-age-restrictions-morning-after-pill/ | Judge strikes down age restrictions on 'morning-after' pill | 2013-04-05 | abortion | A federal judge ’ s rebuke of how the Obama administration tried to restrict young teenage girls ’ access to morning-after pills opened a new vein in a festering debate over emergency contraception , which conservative critics equate with abortion .
Only this time , pro-life groups trod along narrow common ground with the Democratic president they have sparred with for years because of a mandate in his signature health care law that requires most employers to insure a broad spectrum of contraceptive drugs .
U.S. District Court Judge Edward Korman on Friday said Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius made an “ obviously political ” decision in 2011 — one year before President Obama ’ s re-election — to prohibit the sale of Plan B One-Step and its generic forms to girls younger than 17 unless they had a prescription .
In a blunt 59-page decision , he ordered the Food and Drug Administration to lift the age restriction within 30 days .
Pro-life groups have railed against the Obama administration for requiring faith-based nonprofits and corporations with religiously devout owners to insure contraception — including morning-after pills — under the Affordable Care Act . Dozens of lawsuits have been filed to contest the mandate , which may be headed for the Supreme Court .
Yet news of Judge Korman ’ s decision to broaden teen girls ’ access to emergency contraception found pro-life groups aligned with the White House — at least for a moment . The Susan B. Anthony List condemned the ruling , noting Mr. Obama and Mrs. Sebelius had “ agreed that requiring a prescription for potentially dangerous drugs is common sense . ”
“ Teen girls need parents , not unfettered access to abortion-inducing drugs , ” SBA President Marjorie Dannenfelser said .
Judge Korman ’ s unfavorable reading of Mrs. Sebelius ‘ actions focused on a 2011 memo to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg that described “ significant cognitive and behavioral differences ” between older adolescents and girls just entering their reproductive years .
The directive from HHS amounted to an unprecedented override of the FDA , which had supported expanded access to Plan B and its associated drugs . Yet the judge also accused the latter agency of dragging its feet .
“ The FDA has engaged in intolerable delays in processing the petition , ” he wrote . “ Indeed , it could accurately be described as an administrative agency filibuster . ”
HHS referred requests for comment on the ruling to the Department of Justice , although an official said the agency ’ s “ concern always has been and remains the health of young women nationwide . ”
“ The Department of Justice is reviewing the appellate options and expects to act promptly , ” spokeswoman Allison Price said .
The drug ’ s manufacturer , Teva Pharmaceuticals , also said it is reviewing the decision and has no immediate comment .
Yet Judge Korman ’ s decision for the Eastern District of New York reopens debate around a genre of drugs that has been in the political spotlight for years , particularly with the passage of Mr. Obama ’ s health care reforms . Last month , a bloc of House conservatives gathered with religious figures to unveil a bill that would exempt employers from the contraception mandate within “ Obamacare ” if it violates their religious freedoms or conscience .
Opponents of Mr. Obama ’ s mandate take particular exception to emergency drugs such as Plan B and Ella , which they refer to as “ abortifacients ” because of their reported capacity to distort the lining of the uterus .
Judge Korman said controversy around the case was exacerbated by the “ scientifically unsupported speculation that the drug could interfere with implantation of fertilized eggs , ” and because it dealt with access to emergency contraception for “ adolescents who should not be engaging in conduct that necessitates the use of such drugs . ”
Pro-choice activists and at least one Democratic politician quickly cheered the decision in Tummino v. Hamburg .
The Planned Parenthood Federation of America hailed the ruling as a “ significant and long-overdue step forward for women ’ s health that will benefit women of all ages . ”
“ [ Friday ’ s ] ruling highlights the importance of Food and Drug Administration regulations being based on science , not politics , ” said Sen. Patty Murray , Washington Democrat . | oEDpZHazn5395w6p | 2 | Abortion | 0.1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
race_and_racism | CalMatters | https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2022/06/reparations-california-task-force/ | Reparations could include tuition, housing grants, California task force says | 2022-06-06 | Black Americans, California, Economic Policy, Gavin Newsom, Race And Racism, Racial Justice, Reparations, Slavery | In summary California’s first-in-the-nation task force to identify reparations said business loans, housing grants, tuition, wage and job protections could provide redress for African Americans. California’s reparations task force released its first of two reports detailing the state’s history of slavery and racism and recommending ways the Legislature might begin a process of redress for Black Californians, including proposals to offer housing grants, free tuition and to raise the minimum wage. The 500-page study describes decades of state and federal government actions that harmed Black Americans — from American slavery to the more recent redlining, mass incarceration, police actions and the widening wealth gap between Blacks and whites. After police killed George Floyd and the subsequent nationwide protests, Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2020 signed legislation establishing the task force to study and develop a plan for reparations in the state. The law gave “special consideration” to Black Americans who are direct descendants to enslaved people. The task force report proposes dozens of recommendations, including that the Legislature “implement a comprehensive reparations scheme.” The final details — including the exact monetary amount of compensation and the number of Black Californians eligible — will be in a second report due to the Legislature by July 2023. The task force recommends establishing 10 new offices within state government to oversee administration of reparations, including an Office of African American/Freedmen Affairs to help people file claims for compensation and an Office of Freedmen Genealogy to help people prove their eligibility with genealogical research. It’s unclear how many people would qualify for reparations. The task force estimates that, despite California’s anti-slavery constitution, about 1,500 enslaved Black people were living in the state in 1852. Δ After slavery was formally abolished, California became a breeding ground for the Ku Klux Klan. The report says in the 1920s the KKK hosted more events in California than it did in Louisiana or Mississippi. In Los Angeles, the police department teemed with KKK members. In Kern County, klansmen routinely beat and kidnapped Black and Latino residents. “Black economic growth and prosperity have been critically hindered by racist policies aimed at suppressing African Americans even after end of slavery.” The report also referenced numerous instances of segregation and restrictive housing covenants across the state. And it described the wholesale destruction of several Black neighborhoods and cities. In the 1950s, for instance, the city of San Francisco razed Fillmore, a Black business district, destroying 883 businesses and displacing about 20,000 people from nearly 5,000 homes. The task force proposes that people who lost homes to government seizures, urban renewal projects, freeway construction, or racist attacks be eligible for housing grants and zero-interest loans. Their recommendations aim to not only address specific instances of violence or prior harm, but also to support future generations of Black Californians. The proposed Office of Freedmen Education and Social Services would offer free tuition for Black students in private K-12 education and those pursuing higher education in the state. It would also ensure that school curricula reflect a more “expansive discussion of the experiences of Black Americans in a way that is accurate and honest,” the report said. The task force also proposed raising the minimum wage, requiring health benefits and paid time off, and other workplace protections for workers in agriculture, hospitality, food and domestic industries where there were large numbers of Black workers but fewer worker protections, the report said. Black Californians seeking reparations would be able to file a claim through the Reparations Tribunal/ Redress Administration, the proposed arm of the reparations process that would accept or deny a request. “Without a remedy specifically targeted to heal the injuries that colonial and American governments have inflicted on 16 generations of Black Americans and dismantle the foundations of these systems,” the report reads, “the ‘badges and incidents of slavery’ will continue to harm Black Americans in almost all aspects of American life.” Kamilah Moore, chairperson of the task force, said its report is the first government publication providing remedies to institutional racism against Black people since the 1968 Kerner Commission, a federal study requested by President Lyndon Johnson. “This report is extremely timely and urgent. I hope that people use this not only as an educational tool, but as an organizing tool,” Moore said. “It is not only useful for people living in California, but for community members, constituents and organizers throughout the United States … to champion the causes of the African American community wherever they are.” In March the task force voted that African Americans who are direct descendants of enslaved or freed Black people living in the US before the end of the 19th century would be eligible for reparations. The task force is the only statewide initiative examining reparations. Cities such as Asheville, North Carolina and Evanston, Illinois have initiated reparations schemes at the local level, but at the federal level, HR 40, a bill that would commission a study on reparations, remains stalled in Congress. Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer, a Democrat representing Compton, is pushing to extend the life of the task force by another year. Under Assembly Bill 2296, which passed the Assembly, the task force would continue its study through July 2024. “Black economic growth and prosperity have been critically hindered by racist policies aimed at suppressing African Americans even after end of slavery,” he said in a statement. “I believe that … State Legislators will be receptive of the report’s analysis, but remain true to their obligation of questioning approach, costs, and implementation. The Reparations Task Force should remain empaneled for another year to help guide, advise, and review any issues or questions that may arise … The need to have the Task Force available to furnish its experts to help with matters once the Legislature determines what, if anything, comes from these studies will be crucial to the success of this monumental step towards healing.” Over the summer, partner organizations such as the California Black Power Network and the Black Equity Collective will host public listening sessions about the report findings. The task force will reconvene its hearings in Los Angeles in September. California’s first-in-the-nation task force to identify reparations for African Americans voted Tuesday to limit eligibility to those who can trace their lineage. A task force is helping state officials examine how African Americans have been harmed by slavery and systemic racism and, weighing that, how the state should respond. What reparations should there be? Read more from CalMatters Text Get breaking news on your phone. Download Keep up with the latest via our app. Sign up Receive free updates in your inbox. We’re CalMatters, your nonprofit and nonpartisan news guide. Our journalists are here to empower you and our mission continues to be essential. But we can’t keep doing this without support from readers like you. Please give what you can today. Every gift helps. Lil Kalish’s reporting, from Myanmar to the deserts of southern California, has appeared in the Guardian, LAist, Bitch Media, ARTnews, and other outlets. Before joining CalMatters, they were a fellow... More by Lil Kalish info@calmatters.org membership@calmatters.org Notifications | 73a931e6601707c0 | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
campaign_finance | Politico | http://www.politico.com/story/2014/08/billionaires-silent-after-big-splash-110211.html?hp=t1_s | Billionaires silent after big splash | 2014-08-21 | campaign_finance | Their absence comes as Senate Republican candidates in battleground states launch attack ads . | AP Photos Billionaire immigration push slows
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg , billionaire Michael Bloomberg and Citigroup exec Carlos Gutierrez gave immigration reform firepower last year when they lent their money or names to the cause .
But roughly two months before Election Day , the three groups the business titans helped launch are all but silent on the campaign trail . None of the three has purchased airtime for ads on immigration reform this fall .
Their virtual absence comes as Senate Republican candidates in battleground states are launching attack ads against Democrats accusing them of supporting “ amnesty , ” leaving pro-immigration reform candidates even more vulnerable and immigration reform even less likely to happen .
Gutierrez ’ s group , Republicans for Immigration Reform , has no plans to launch a counteroffensive . Despite being billed as the GOP rainmaker on immigration reform , the group has struggled to make inroads with big GOP donors .
“ With the problem at the border and the president ’ s rhetoric on executive action have totally poisoned the well , ” said Charlie Spies , who helped organized Republicans for Immigration Reform . “ I don ’ t think anybody believes anything can happen this year . ”
They aren ’ t alone . While American Action Network was heavily invested in pushing immigration reform when legislation was under discussion in the Senate , the multi-issue conservative group isn ’ t active on the ground or on TV trying to make an example of House Republicans who have blocked similar efforts in that chamber .
Bloomberg ’ s Partnership for a New American Economy also has no plans for major network or cable TV ad buys on immigration reform .
Zuckerberg ’ s FWD.us could go up with ads later this fall , but doesn ’ t have any time reserved as of yet .
Representatives from the groups cite a variety of reasons for not playing an active role in the election — everything from immigration reform not being a top issue this cycle to trying to save limited resources for when the legislative environment in Congress becomes better .
Still , it ’ s a stark contrast from earlier this year when immigration groups , GOP operatives , unions and others were putting a full-court press on House Republicans with ads , private meetings and in district lobbying to engage on the issue .
Some groups fed up with Republicans became aggressive last year . Kica Matos , a spokeswoman for the Fair Immigration Reform Movement said earlier this year that it was time to “ switch tactics from persuasion to punishment . ”
Many hoped the big outside groups would pick up that mantle .
Sill , Republicans have moved increasingly to the right on the issue of immigration , following the dramatic surge of illegal immigrants on the Texas border . And they aren ’ t afraid to show it . Attack ads have aired in Arkansas , Michigan and New Hampshire — key states for which party will control the Senate . Failed Alaska tea party Republican Senate candidate Joe Miller , who was vying to become the GOP nominee , went so far as to send out a mailer that depicted illegal immigrants as gang members .
President Barack Obama has signaled he will use executive actions regarding immigration reform in mid-September . When he does , it ’ s expected to incite the barrage of criticism on the campaign trail from Republicans even more .
The Latino Victory Project is trying to provide a backstop for Obama . The group , which was supported by actress Eva Longoria and Democratic megadonor Henry Muñoz , is launching cable TV ads in English and Spanish to run in Washington through the beginning of September that criticize House Republican leadership ’ s failure to act on immigration reform . The group also plans to run digital ads in Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King ’ s district .
Latino Victory Project ’ s Cristobal Alex said they decided to go up with the ads because there was a “ vacuum ” on the pro-immigration reform side , and expects to do another round of ads once Obama takes executive action on the issue .
He praised the other pro-immigration groups activity so far , but said it would be “ unfortunate if they pulled back at this moment . ”
The Service Employees International Union has also been running radio ads in Colorado , California and Nevada focused on Latino voters and trying to hold Republicans accountable for blocking immigration reform .
There ’ s little expectation that other pro-reform groups will join the Latino Victory Project anytime soon .
“ We ’ re not a party committee on spending , ” said one operative involved with setting strategy . “ We have helped people on both sides of the aisle before who were getting pounded . ”
Another top operative said that while they haven ’ t cut ads proactively , if the opposition were to go after Republican lawmakers who have supported immigration reform like Rep. Renee Ellmers ( R-N.C. ) or Sen. Lindsey Graham ( R-S.C. ) on the issue they would come out in force .
Consultants and supporters of the groups say that they continue to be engaged , but attacking House GOP leadership over immigration reform is counterproductive .
It ’ s a stark contrast to the aggressive rollout groups like Gutierrez ’ s Republicans for Immigration Reform and Zuckerberg ’ s FWD.us enjoyed last year .
Gutierrez , a Cuban immigrant and a veteran of the immigration wars having served as President George W. Bush ’ s top official on the issue , was billed as the GOP ’ s immigration reform rainmaker .
Despite being able to raise unlimited money , Republicans for Immigration Reform has struggled to meet early fundraising expectations . In part , the group had a hard time just as many GOP outside groups did following the disappointing 2012 election results and with some large donors preferring to give to groups set up so their contributions remain undisclosed .
During the heat of the immigration fight in late 2013 , the group did put out a full-page newspaper ad , robocalls and some polling .
Gutierrez ’ s group has brought in just $ 308,000 this cycle , spending the majority of that haul on communications and fundraising consulting fees and legal bills . It has not done an ad buy in 2014 or put any money toward independent expenditures , according to Federal Election Commission records .
Silicon Valley-backed FWD.us has had no problem bringing in millions of dollars and over the past year has done the majority of paid media in support of immigration reform , cutting national ads and district specific ads to support lawmakers like Ellmers in the primary .
The group is not up with any TV ads right now .
FWD.us President Joe Green said the group has used paid media to highlight why immigration reform is needed .
“ Since we started , we have stood by our champions and used paid media as a way to tell the stories that highlight why we need immigration reform , ” Green said . “ As we have in the past , we will continue in the future to use a variety of tactics including ads to back up our champions and persuade lawmakers to finally fix our broken immigration system . ”
The conservative-backed American Action Network and Bloomberg ’ s Partnership for a New American Economy are also fairly quiet on immigration reform this fall .
American Action Network ’ s Dan Conston defended the group ’ s activity supporting immigration reform .
“ During the heat of the debate , AAN was incredibly engaged in trying to pass immigration reform , from air cover on TV to a ground game in districts to releasing polling , policy studies and more , ” Conston said in an email , noting the group spent $ 1 million on efforts that included five ad buys , grass tops outreach in 20 districts last August and releasing polls showing a way forward for passing reform in the House .
AAN did “ everything they could to support immigration reform but it simply doesn ’ t appear realistic this year , ” said a source close to the group . “ They ’ re not about to attack or pressure House leaders , but rather be there to support it if a real chance for immigration reform reemerges . ”
The Partnership for a New American Economy is doing selective ads featuring the role immigrants play in the high tech and agribusiness sectors in D.C. , taxi cabs and at Washington Dulles International and Reagan National airports . The group is also doing digital ads in movie theaters , state fairs and rodeos in 16 districts .
Jeremy Robbins said the group is looking to do spots where they think it will be useful , but are not focused on specific races or taking on any lawmakers .
“ Our strategy is not attacking opponents , ” Robbins said . “ We will become over the next couple of years targeted on specific races . ” | 6r8NzTvyrHZ9JXhE | 0 | Immigration | 0.6 | Campaign Finance | 0.2 | Election2014 | -0.2 | null | null | null | null |
banking_and_finance | MarketWatch | https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-wall-street-sees-the-stock-market-on-the-verge-of-a-melt-up-2019-12-16?mod=home-page | Why Wall Street sees the stock market on the verge of a ‘melt-up’ | 2019-12-16 | banking_and_finance | Is the stock market on the brink of breaking into an unmitigated run-up to fresh records ?
That is the question a number of market strategists are exploring as the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA , +0.11 % , the S & P 500 SPX , +0.43 % , and the Nasdaq Composite COMP , +0.55 % indexes mount their latest concerted assault on all-time closing highs , powered by hope that the U.S. and China can forge a preliminary trade accord to resolve a prolonged battle over import duties .
A number of other geopolitical headwinds , at least momentarily , have died down , including concerns about market-roiling effects of uncertainty surrounding the Byzantine pathway toward a U.K. exit from the European Union .
Read : Stock market carves out fresh records as preliminary U.S.-China trade deal lifts optimism
Analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch , led by strategists Michael Hartnett , described the market as “ primed for Q1 2020 risk asset melt-up , ” with the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank still providing ample support to portions of the market and economy that have shown some signs of softness .
UBS Global Wealth Management Chief Investment Officer Mark Haefele said that a partial Sino-American trade resolution contributes mightily to the bullish thesis that a number of strategists have adopted . “ This could unlock further upside for equity markets , driven by an improvement in business confidence and a recovery in investment , ” Haefele wrote .
Check out : Why ‘ peak tariffs ’ set up stock market for more upside , according to one Wall Street bull
It is important to note that the a so-called melt-up is considered by market pundits as the end phase of an asset bubble and is usually , but not always , followed by a significant downturn in stock values . Strategists have predicted melt-ups a number of times over the past 18 months , with concerns growing about U.S. economic growth in its record-setting 11th year of expansion , supporting fears that an economic and stock-market pullback are inevitable .
A call by some market participants for further gains for equity indexes now comes as the S & P 500 has gained nearly 27.3 % in the year to date , the Dow has returned about 21 % so far this year and the Nasdaq has produced a year-to-date return thus far of about 33 % , according to FactSet data .
The strong performance has also translated into outsize gains for the small-capitalization Russell 2000 index RUT , +0.80 % , which is on track for a 24.4 % gain , its best annual return , if it holds , since 2013 , when it gained a whopping 37 % . Not too shabby for the small-cap benchmark , which had been buffeted the most by concerns that the U.S. economy might take cues from anemic growth in other countries .
The S & P 500 and Nasdaq also are on track to notch their best annual gains since 2013 , when the broad-market S & P returned 29.6 % and technology-laden Nasdaq rose 38.32 % .
Analysts at Morgan Stanley , led by Michael Wilson , chief U.S. strategist , have described the current state of bullish play as a trifecta of catalysts . Those include accommodative central banks , providing fresh liquidity to already-buoyant markets ; easing Brexit uncertainty ; and apparent progress toward a meaningful detente in China-U.S. trade relations .
That said , Wilson and his team say that earnings for companies will be challenged , with labor costs likely to rise among smaller-cap companies .
“ However , the percentage of S & P 1500 ( large- , mid- and small-cap ) companies with positive forward EPS growth has deteriorated meaningfully since 2018 , ” Morgan Stanley analysts wrote .
“ Further , the current level of this measure is worse than it was during the 2015–2016 manufacturing recession , a trend driven mainly by smaller-capitalization companies which are struggling with higher labor costs , ” they said .
Partly for that reason , among others , some analysts are pointing to growing signs that Wall Street investors are becoming overcomplacent about buoyancy in the market .
Notably , one measure of risk for future downturns , the Cboe Volatility Index VIX , -2.93 % , is on track for a 51 % decline this year , which would mark the gauge of coming volatility ’ s worst yearly drop on record . The index tracks bullish and bearish options on the S & P 500 for the coming 30-day period and has tumbled below a reading of 12 , well below its historical average of about 19 . The index tends to rise when stocks fall and vice versa . | DS53cOFpUPRLnzxm | 2 | Stock Market | 1.26 | Banking And Finance | 0.56 | Wall Street | 0.53 | China | 0.39 | Money | 0 |
elections | BBC News | https://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2020-53745148 | Kamala Harris VP pick: How she could help - or hurt - Joe Biden | 2020-08-12 | 2020 Election, Kamala Harris, Presidential Elections, Joe Biden, Elections | Sometimes the obvious pick is obvious for a reason. Kamala Harris was the front-runner to be Joe Biden's running mate pretty much since the moment the presumptive Democratic nominee announced in March that he would pick a woman to be on his ticket. She was a safe pick and a practical one. She's also now in the position to be the heir apparent for the Democratic Party - whether it's in four years because Biden loses in November or doesn't run for re-election or eight years if Biden serves two full terms. That could be why it seemed that there were so many attempts to knock Harris down a peg, or advance alternative candidates over the past month. This was, in effect, the first fight of the next presidential nomination contest, and Harris - whose ambitions are clear - now has a step on the competition. But determining future Democratic nominees is a battle for another day. The pressing concern for the party at the moment is how Harris might help Biden win the White House. Here are some strengths she brings to the ticket and, perhaps, some concerns Democrats may have. To put it bluntly, today's Democratic Party doesn't look like Joe Biden. It's young and it's ethnically diverse. It was increasingly obvious that the presumptive nominee needed to find someone younger and, well, less white to have a ticket that reflects the people who will vote for it. Harris, whose father was Jamaican and mother came from India, fills this particular need. She becomes both the first black woman and the first Asian to run on a major party presidential ticket. And although at 55 years old she's not exactly young, when compared to 77-year-old Joe Biden, she's downright spry. On Tuesday afternoon, before she was announced as Biden's pick, Harris tweeted about the need for diversity in the leadership of the party. "Black women and women of color have long been underrepresented in elected office and in November we have an opportunity to change that," she wrote. It turns out Harris could be directly responsible for some of that change. One of the traditional roles of a vice-presidential running mate is to get down and dirty with the opposition. While the person at the top of the ticket takes the rhetorical high road, the number-two cracks out the brass knuckles for the opposition. In 2008, Sarah Palin, John McCain's running mate, more than lived up to her nickname, Sarah the Barracuda, for instance. If this is a duty that falls on Harris, history suggests she will be up to the task. Biden certainly recalls that it was Harris who went after him with gusto during the first Democratic primary debate in July 2019, criticising his opposition to bussing to end segregation in public schools. Harris has also proven to be a very determined and aggressive interrogator during her time in the US Senate. Donald Trump clearly remembers this, as he remarked on Tuesday evening that he thought Harris was "extraordinarily nasty" to his second Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. Trump may not like it, but nasty may be exactly what Biden is looking for this autumn. One thing politicians who have run for national office have said time and time again is that it's impossible to understand the intense pressure such campaigns create until one has actually been in one. Although Harris's 2020 presidential bid was unsuccessful, and she dropped out before most of her competitors, she still knows what it's like to be under such scrutiny. When she launched her campaign before tens of thousands of supporters in January 2019, she was treated like a top-tier presidential contender. For a time in July, after her strong first debate performance, she rose towards the top of some primary polls. Harris has been through the fire, at least for a time, and knows what it feels like. If there were serious, dinosaur-sized skeletons in her closet, they would have come out by now. Given that she's already sought the presidency, its not impossible for many Americans to imagine her as president someday. The California senator may not have been the most dynamic candidate on the campaign trail in 2019, and she was certainly not nearly the most successful one, but at this point she's a known quantity. And for Biden, who is currently up in the polls, the fewer surprises the rest of the campaign the better. More than almost any of the other contenders for the vice-presidential spot, Harris comes from a law-enforcement background. Given the recent demonstrations over police brutality and allegations of institutional racism in law enforcement, Harris's resume may give some progressives within the Democratic Party pause. It certainly did during Harris's presidential campaign, when "Harris is a cop" was a derisive accusation thrown at the California senator on more than one occasion. Both as San Francisco district attorney and as California's attorney general, Harris has sided with police over suspects - even in cases where those suspects may have been wrongfully convicted. Although she's expressed personal opposition to the death penalty, she's supported its use while she's been in office. Being a hard-nosed crime-fighter may be an attractive attribute among independent and conservative-leaning voters in the general election, but if that support comes at the cost of enthusiasm for the Biden-Harris ticket on the left, then it may not be a net positive. Since the death of George Floyd, Harris has been outspoken in advocating law-enforcement reform, winning praise from some progressives. But it's safe to say they still harbour some doubts. Above, Harris having run a presidential campaign was noted as a mark in her favour. There's a flip side to that, however. Her campaign, while it started with a bang and had its moments, also had some serious flaws - and some of those flaws related to the candidate herself. Although Harris has a pretty moderate record as a senator and state attorney general, she tried to tack to the left during her presidential campaign. She came out in favour of free college education, the Green New Deal environmental programme and universal healthcare, for instance, but never sounded all that convincing about it. She particularly got tripped up on the question of whether private insurance should be banned - which, while fine with progressives, gives many moderate heartburn. "Let's eliminate all of that," she said rather glibly during one interview. "Let's move on." In this day and age, the death knell for politicians is to seem too political - to be perceived as willing to shift values and beliefs based on what the voters want. Sincerity, or at least the appearance of it, is a virtue voters prize - and part of the reason why Donald Trump became president. While his supporters didn't always agree with him, they felt like he speaks his mind. Harris's move from moderate, then to the left and now back, perhaps, to the Biden middle could leave some voters wondering where her core values lie - or if she has any core values at all. Copyright 2025 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. | 09a8e86f93107daf | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
general_news | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/sep/30/after-first-ebola-case-fears-turn-us-pandemic-prep/ | After first Ebola case, red flags emerge that U.S. unprepared for pandemic | 2014-09-30 | general_news | The confirmation Tuesday of the first Ebola case on U.S. soil emerges against a backdrop of increasing concern in America ’ s medical community that preparedness for a pandemic has stagnated or slipped in recent years because of tough economic times and increasing malaise since the 2001 anthrax threat .
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , America ’ s premier disease fighter , offered an air of confidence Tuesday in declaring that the first Ebola patient in Dallas was carefully contained .
But earlier this year , it sounded less optimistic about the U.S. health care system ’ s ability to fight a pandemic should a major disease outbreak occur .
“ CDC continues to work with reduced financial resources , which similarly affects state , local , and insular public health departments . … These losses make it difficult for state and local health departments to continue to expand their preparedness capabilities , instead forcing them to focus on maintaining their current capabilities , ” the CDC warned in a report this year .
CDC flagged several key trend lines , including congressional funding for public health emergency preparedness had shrunk by $ 1 billion from its highs shortly after the 2001 terrorist and anthrax attacks .
It also noted that state and local public health departments on the front lines of any health emergency have shed 45,700 jobs since the 2008 financial crisis .
The concerns , however , extend far beyond financial resources . The Department of Homeland Security inspector general issued a scathing report in September warning the department was woefully prepared for a pandemic , with expired medicines and inadequate resources to effectively equip its top responders in the field .
“ DHS may not be able to provide sufficient pandemic preparedness supplies to its employees to continue operations during a pandemic , ” the agency ’ s watchdog declared in a report made public Sept. 1 .
“ Without sufficiently determining its needs , the department has no assurance it will have an adequate amount of antiviral [ drugs ] to maintain critical operations during a pandemic , ” the report said , warning of the effects for offices such as the Secret Service , U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Transportation Security Administration .
Despite having the task of protecting the U.S. from dangerous threats , the Homeland Security Department “ did not keep accurate records of what it purchased and it received , ” the department ’ s inspector general found .
Homeland Security officials disagreed with much of the report , saying it was a misrepresentation of the agency ’ s preparedness for an outbreak .
Other preparedness concerns flagged in recent months include the ability of overburdened Border Patrol agents to screen immigrants for disease and inadequate tools to detect or combat a bioterrorist attack .
For instance , numerous government investigations have questioned the adequacy of the federal government ’ s premier biosurveillance system , code named BioWatch . The respected National Academies of Science questioned whether the current-generation system can detect hazards , and the next generation of the project is in danger of being canceled after the Government Accountability Office questioned its dealing with contractors .
“ Over the past several years , our work has identified significant shortcomings in the department ’ s ability to manage an expanding portfolio of major acquisitions , ” said the GAO report , dated June 10 . “ We recommended that before continuing the Gen-3 acquisition , DHS should carry out key acquisition steps , including reevaluating the mission need and systematically analyzing alternatives based on cost-benefit and risk information . ”
The message from the panoply of reports is clear : Although the U.S. clearly made strides after 2001 on pandemic preparation , those gains have stagnated and in some cases begun to reverse even as the risks for an outbreak grow with global travel and determined terrorists .
People say that Ebola looks “ so far away , it ’ s so remote , ” said Dr. J. Scott Ries , vice president of Christian Medical & Dental Associations , who worked with Ebola survivor Dr. Kent Brantly , who contracted the disease while treating Ebola patients in Liberia . “ Well now , anyone who has thought that will change their opinion . It ’ s here , like we predicted , and it ’ s time to massively ramp up our efforts to address this . ”
To be sure , the CDC says it will contain the incident in Texas , and the Ebola virus will not spread in the U.S. like it has in West African countries because of U.S. isolation methods , first-world medical care , and the fact that friends and relatives don ’ t intimately prepare bodies for burial as is customary in West Africa .
“ There is no doubt in my mind , we will stop it here , ” CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden said in a press conference Tuesday . Although Ebola is a “ scary disease , ” he said , “ we are stopping it in its tracks in this country . ”
Worrisome , however , is that the infected patient in Texas waited four days after he began experiencing symptoms to seek admission to the Dallas hospital . During that time , he was symptomatic and contagious . Ebola doesn ’ t spread via airborne methods like the flu does , but only through contact with bodily fluids such as blood , feces , urine and vomit .
The CDC said it was monitoring the people with whom the infected patient came into contact . Ebola starts with a high fever and leads to internal bleeding . In Africa , it has a mortality rate as high as 90 percent .
The West African countries of Liberia , Sierra Leone and Guinea have experienced the worst outbreak of the disease in history , killing more than 3,000 people there and infecting others . A total of 6,574 cases have been reported , according to the World Health Organization . There is a separate outbreak in Congo .
Dr. Ries said news of a U.S. Ebola case is “ no surprise , ” but there is also “ no need to panic . ”
“ We know how to deal with Ebola . While Ebola is highly infectious , it ’ s not highly contagious , ” he said , adding that the Dallas patient has been isolated and is being treated aggressively .
“ That ’ s the advantage we have here with our health system versus what they have in Sierra Leone , Liberia and Guinea , ” he said .
Nevertheless , U.S. policymakers renewed alarm that the African outbreak had reached American shores .
“ Communicable diseases do not stop at borders , ” said Rep. Edward R. Royce , California Republican and chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs . “ While the likelihood of a major outbreak in the United States is still very unlikely , with this case , it is more clear than ever that the rapid spread of Ebola in Guinea , Liberia and Sierra Leone presents a clear and present danger not only to West Africa , but the broader international community . ”
Sen . Rob Portman , Ohio Republican , renewed his call for the CDC to direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection to enact active screening of travelers demonstrating Ebola symptoms at U.S. ports of entry .
“ While I hope that this is an isolated case , today ’ s announcement serves as a reminder of the need for increased U.S. prevention efforts , ” Mr. Portman said in a statement . “ According to reports , the patient had recently travelled to West Africa and would have been a clear candidate for active screening . With this announcement , I hope the CDC will consider enacting elevated screening levels . ”
Three American medical missionaries other than Dr. Brantly became infected and fell ill in Africa while treating Ebola patients . All were flown back to the U.S. in isolation and have recovered .
“ The lessons learned ” from treating those workers at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta and elsewhere showed that “ this is a disease that we can manage with tech , ” said Michael G. Schmidt , vice chairman of the microbiology and immunology department at the Medical University of South Carolina .
Credit also goes , he said , to “ the convalescent serum and ZMAPP ” administered to Ebola patients , and the “ unsung heroes ” within local health departments , public health agencies and the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases “ who have been planning for this event since ” the Ebola outbreak flared up in March .
A White House statement said President Obama had spoken via phone Tuesday with Dr. Frieden and discussed Ebola isolation protocols and efforts to figure out where the patient may have contracted the virus .
The CDC said the Dallas patient was asymptomatic during his flight from Liberia to Dallas . Although he likely contracted the disease abroad , he was not contagious during air travel or noticeably sick on arrival .
CBP works in conjunction with the CDC to monitor travelers and attempt to contain any diseases that may be spread by travelers from abroad .
However , given CBP ’ s current resources and other strains at the border given the recent influx of unaccompanied minors , it may not be well-equipped to handle another crisis , the Congressional Research Service warned in a report .
“ In the current context of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa , CDC has emphasized exit-based airport screening from areas with Ebola , and not screening at [ point of entry ] in the United States , ” wrote Ruth Ellen Wasem , an immigration specialist in a Congressional Research Service report dated Aug. 13 .
Ms. Wasem warned that “ from an immigration standpoint , an outbreak of an infectious disease places substantial procedural and resource pressures on CBP . ” | ooEVwrEnoyFTaN9g | 2 | Ebola | -0.5 | General News | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null |
coronavirus | CNBC | https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/27/coronavirus-trump-national-security-advisor-robert-obrien-tests-positive.html | Trump national security advisor Robert O’Brien tests positive for coronavirus | 2020-07-27 | White House, Coronavirus Testing, Coronavirus | President Donald Trump's national security advisor, Robert O'Brien, has tested positive for the coronavirus.O'Brien has "mild symptoms and has been self-isolating and working from a secure location off site," the White House said in a statement Monday."There is no risk of exposure to the President or the Vice President. The work of the National Security Council continues uninterrupted," the White House said.O'Brien, 54, is among the highest-ranking members in Trump's orbit reported to have come down with the coronavirus.But other administration officials have previously been diagnosed with the virus. Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary, Katie Miller, tested positive for Covid-19 in May. That same month, a personal valet for Trump, who among other tasks served meals to the president, also tested positive.Kimberly Guilfoyle, an official on Trump's reelection campaign and the girlfriend of the president's oldest son, tested positive in July.On Monday afternoon, Trump told reporters at the White House that he did not know when O'Brien first tested positive, adding, "I haven't seen him lately."The White House has said Trump is regularly tested, as are all officials who come into close contact with the president and vice president.O'Brien earlier this month had traveled to Europe to meet with officials from the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy. He was photographed on that trip in close proximity with his European counterparts, none of whom appeared to be wearing masks during meetings, photos from the NSC's official Twitter account show.NSC TWEET 1NSC TWEET 2More than 4.2 million people in the U.S. have tested positive for Covid-19 and at least 146,900 have died, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.Bloomberg first reported O'Brien's diagnosis, citing people familiar with the matter. CNN and Politico followed with reports of their own.-- CNBC's Amanda Macias contributed reporting. | 0400f4a44077295d | 1 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/oct/23/internet-giants-show-power-to-shape-politics/ | How the liberal leanings of Google, Facebook shape the political landscape | 2017-10-23 | media_bias | Robert Epstein tried a simple experiment in the run-up to the presidential election : running searches on Google and Yahoo for political topics .
The results were stunning . Google searches returned twice as many pro-Hillary Clinton news articles as Yahoo searches .
Perhaps even more stunning was that men and blue-state residents saw more than double the number of pro-Clinton articles than women and people living in red states , Mr. Epstein , of the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology , and Robert E. Robertson , a professor at Northeastern University , argued in a report this year .
Mr. Epstein said he is still studying what caused the bias but worries that Google ’ s search algorithm — a form of artificial intelligence that chooses what results a searcher is looking for — ranked pro-Clinton articles ahead of positive articles about her opponent , Donald Trump .
Those algorithms have become the modern-day Walter Cronkite or Edward R. Murrow , deciding what news reaches the eyes and ears of Americans in an increasingly Google-Facebook-Twitter media environment .
In recent months , the focus has been on whether the companies were able to be manipulated by Russian-connected operatives who attempted to sow “ chaos ” in the U.S. surrounding last year ’ s elections .
But the power of the companies to shape American politics goes well beyond that .
“ The social media companies are the gatekeepers , ” said Frank Foer , a writer at The Atlantic and former editor of the New Republic who has authored a book on social media ’ s power . “ Whatever choices these companies make to elevate or bury information is very powerful and will have a big impact on what people read . ”
Conservatives say they have long suspected that some of the internet giants discriminate against them and their content . They point to whistleblowers who have acknowledged they were pushed to treat conservatives differently .
The companies have denied the claims . They insist the algorithms are designed to capture the most-read news stories across the political spectrum . A computer program can not distinguish between liberal and conservative , they say .
Mr. Foer , who says he is concerned about the level of power wielded by the algorithms the tech companies use , dismisses accusations of a liberal bias as “ conservative paranoia . ”
But an emerging set of studies suggests there is something to the concerns .
Mr. Epstein and Mr. Robertson , in their research , looked at 4,045 election-related searches on Google and Yahoo during a 25-day period from mid-October through Election Day . They found that the pro-Clinton articles swamped pro-Trump news .
“ The algorithms are not programmed with an equal time rule , ” said Mr. Epstein , a vocal Clinton supporter . “ They are programmed to put one thing ahead of another in a way that is highly secret and ever-changing . ”
He said his experiments show the power of news searches to affect politics and has found that he could boost support for a candidate by as much as 63 percent after just one Google search session . That is based on five experiments Mr. Epstein ran in two countries in which study participants changed their opinions of a candidate based on a manipulated search engine . He has dubbed this the “ search engine manipulation effect . ”
A separate study by Nicholas Diakopoulos , now at Northwestern University , analyzed the Google search results on Dec. 1 , 2015 . He searched for the names of all 16 presidential candidates and discovered Democrats , on average , had seven favorable search results among Google ’ s top 10 . Republican candidates , meanwhile , had only 5.9 positive articles in the top 10 .
Mrs. Clinton had five positive search results but only one negative on the first page , according to the study . Mr. Trump had four positive and three negative search results on the first page . Sen. Bernard Sanders , another Democratic candidate , had nine positive results without a single negative , and Republican candidate Sen. Ted Cruz had no positive results .
Mr. Diakopoulos ran a second study during the summer before the election and found the vast majority of sources selected for Google ’ s news box were left-leaning outlets . The New York Times , CNN and The Washington Post accounted for nearly 50 percent of Google news sources . Articles from Fox News , the only conservative news source among the 113 featured by Google during Mr. Diakopoulos ’ study , appeared about 1 percent of the time .
Google eliminated the news box in November . Company spokeswoman Maggie Shiels said the box ’ s algorithm picked up news across the internet .
“ There are several hundred signals that go into surfacing an answer , ” she said . “ The algorithm does not focus on political party or ideology . ”
The company is secretive about the algorithm and insists it is constantly tinkering with the formula . But it says it promotes articles based on “ freshness , location , relevance and diversity . ”
“ As a result , stories are sorted without regard to political viewpoint or ideology and you can choose from a wide variety of perspectives on any given story , ” the company says on its online explainer .
Analysts have caught some deeper glimpses over the years , based on testing and on information gleaned from patent applications Google has filed , saying Google judges trustworthiness and importance of a news site , how much content it produces and even length of stories to gauge whether to elevate a site ’ s content .
News operations , just like other website owners , invest a lot of time and money trying to figure out Google ’ s system , and an entire industry known as search engine optimization , or SEO , claims to offer shortcuts to earn more eyeballs .
Patents suggest search engines may be increasingly tailoring results to the individual ’ s history , promoting websites or story themes the searcher seems to select the most .
Mr. Diakopoulos said someone who searches for positive news about Trump is more likely to get exposed to conservative news , while someone who searches for left-leaning topics will receive more liberal news .
And then there is the issue of the press itself .
“ If 70 percent of the news media is liberal , you can expect there to be some unequal results to come from a search engine , ” Mr. Diakopoulos said .
That means the social media may not be biased , but instead is a reflection of the bias perceived in traditional media , said S. Robert . Lichter , director of the Center for Media and Public Affairs at George Mason University .
“ If you are getting a certain perspective from the major news outlets , that is going to be passed on through social media , which is the last link in the chain , ” he said .
But Mr. Epstein said the concern about who is creating the algorithm is just as concerning as the program itself .
“ When accused of a liberal bias , these companies say , ‘ It ’ s not us ; it ’ s the algorithm , ” he said . “ That is so hilarious because they programmed the algorithm . ”
Accusations of an indirect bias may not carry as much weight if not accompanied by accusations of direct bias by the social media companies .
In May 2016 , a group of several former Facebook workers told technology blog Gizmodo that they routinely suppressed news about prominent conservatives , including Mitt Romney , Rand Paul and the American Conservative Union ’ s Conservative Political Action Conference . The employees , who worked as ‘ news curators , ’ also said stories reported by conservative outlets such as Brietbart and Newsmax were dismissed unless The New York Times , BBC or CNN covered the same article .
Facebook denied the accusations and said an internal study found virtually identical rates of liberal and conservative new topics . The company did concede bias could have occurred through improper human actions and it would take steps to prevent it from happening in the future . Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg invited 16 conservative leaders to the company ’ s headquarters for a meeting .
Mr. Zuckerberg opened the meeting acknowledging that both he and Facebook are liberal and that he knows little about the conservative movement , according those who attended . But Mr. Zuckerburg conceded that if Facebook wants to be an open marketplace of ideas , then it must be open to conservative viewpoints .
“ The meeting opened on a positive , honest note and went that way throughout the whole meeting , ” said Brent Bozell , president of the Media Research Center .
Mr. Bozell said Facebook has made a sincere effort since the meeting to include conservative voices .
“ We ’ ve never had a serious problem with Facebook , ” he said . “ Does that make us the exception to the rule ? I don ’ t know . ”
Zachary Moffatt , CEO of Targeted Victory , a Republican political strategy group , agreed that Mr. Zuckerberg was sincere and concerned about the perception of a liberal bias . Mr. Moffatt , who is working with Facebook ahead of the Senate hearings on the Russian ad buy , said Mr. Zuckerberg ’ s staff has followed up since the meeting .
“ I think Facebook is doing more to address the unconscious structural bias than other partners in this space , ” he said .
Conservative commentator Steven Crowder was among the voices blocked by the former Facebook workers . He said a social media bias against conservatives is real but sometimes gets obscured by conservatives claiming censorship when , in fact , they violated a site ’ s rules by spreading fake news or using a copyrighted image or song without permission .
“ There are too many conservatives screaming censorship , but they need to make sure they are not embarrassing Facebook with false stories or too many pop-ups , ” Mr. Crowder said . “ That does a disservice to everyone who has been harmed by some of these practices . It does happen , but , unfortunately , the people it happens to are not the ones who scream the loudest . ”
Mr. Crowder won a settlement with Facebook after filing a legal action seeking more information about the company ’ s advertising practices . He claimed Facebook refused to acknowledge his advertising payments . Mr. Crowder said he could not discuss whether the issue came from bias or mismanagement by Facebook ’ s advertising team because of the settlement agreement .
It ’ s not just Facebook and Google . Earlier this month , Twitter blocked a campaign ad by Rep. Marsha Blackburn , Tennessee Republican , claiming it included “ an inflammatory statement that is likely to evoke a strong reaction. ” In the ad , Ms. Blackburn said she helped stop Planned Parenthood from selling baby body parts .
Twitter initially said it would air the ad for Ms. Blackburn , who is running for U.S. Senate , if the line about the sale of baby body parts is removed . After the congresswoman went public , the social media site backtracked and allowed the ad to run .
“ The damage being done to conservatives is almost incalculable , ” said Seton Motley , a technology policy specialist and president of Less Government , a conservative organization dedicated to reducing government power . “ If network television media bias can give a candidate a 4- to 6-point advantage and social media giants have more power than the networks , can we even quantify a number ? ”
Google insists there is no truth to Mr. Epstein ’ s hypothesis that it could secretly influence an election outcome .
“ Claims that Google News is biased or favors one political point of view over another are just not true , ” Ms. Shiels said . “ The whole ethos of the product is to give people access to a rich and diverse world of news , views and perspectives . We are able to do that thanks to the more than 80,000 publications from around the globe that are part of the corpus . ”
The companies ’ denials are complicated by their executives ’ perceived political leanings .
Employees and affiliates of Alphabet Inc. , a Google holding company , donated nearly $ 1.6 million to Mrs. Clinton ’ s presidential aspirations and about $ 359,000 to her Democratic primary opponent Mr. Sanders , according to the Center for Responsive Politics . Mr. Trump , meanwhile , received roughly $ 23,000 from the company .
In fact , the top 16 candidates who received contributions from Alphabet employees were all Democrats . The top Republican was Rep. Greg Walden of Oregon , who received just over $ 23,000 .
Mr. Walden is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee , which is reviewing net neutrality legislation . Net neutrality , if imposed , would block internet providers from charging for or blocking online content .
Google and other social media companies have opposed such measures .
In total , 63 percent of Alphabet contributions in last year ’ s election went to Democrats and 22 percent went to Republicans — even though Republicans dominate elected offices at the national and state levels . The remaining 12 percent went to support independent candidates .
Facebook also donated heavily to the Democratic Party . Of the nearly $ 4.6 million Facebook employees and affiliates spent on last year ’ s election , 67 percent went toward Democrats and 32 percent went to Republican candidates . Mrs. Clinton received $ 478,000 from Facebook , while Mr. Trump received about $ 4,665 .
“ These companies are shockingly political , ” said Scott Cleland , who has authored a book about Google . “ They are the gatekeepers of all the world ’ s information , and everything they do has a political angle to it . ”
Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg was one of those in email communication with John Podesta , the Clinton campaign chairman , according to messages released by WikiLeaks .
“ I want HRC to win badly , ” Ms. Sandberg said in one missive . In a later email , she told Mr. Podesta she was looking forward to working with him “ to elect the first woman President of the United States ” and she was “ thrilled ” by the progress Mrs. Clinton was making .
The leaked Podesta emails also showed that Google had loaned its jet to Mrs. Clinton ’ s campaign staff on several occasions . Eric Schmidt , executive chairman of Alphabet , publicly supported Mrs. Clinton , and the Clinton campaign ’ s chief technology officer , Stephanie Hannon , and chief product officer , Osi Imeokparia , were former Google executives .
The Obama administration also built deep links with Google , where 22 former White House officials worked , while 31 Google executives went to work for the White House or were appointed to federal advisory boards , including the President ’ s Council of Advisers on Science and Technology and the President ’ s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness , according to a study by the Campaign for Accountability .
In total , nearly 250 people shuttled from government service to Google or vice versa during the Obama administration .
The same study found that Google representatives attended White House meetings more than once a week , on average , from the start of the Obama presidency through October 2015 . During that same period , Google lobbyists visited the White House 128 times , the most of any lobbyist during that time .
“ What Google and Facebook lost with a Trump victory is cronyism , ” Mr. Motley said .
Google and Facebook have increased their lobbying efforts over the past few months as Congress scrutinizes their power . Facebook spent $ 285 million on lobbyists from July through September , a 41 percent increase over the same period last year . Google spent $ 417 million during those three months , including hiring Republican lobbyists Jochum Shore & Trossevin PC to fight a bill that would penalize tech companies for content that promotes sex trafficking . The companies are fighting the bill because it weakens some of their legal protections .
Both Republicans and Democrats have come to respect the power and reach of the tech giants . Although Mr. Trump ’ s Twitter account gets the most attention , his campaign said it was Facebook that helped them win the presidential election .
Brad Parscale , who ran Mr. Trump ’ s digital team , said in a recent interview with CBS ’ s “ 60 minutes ” that he asked Facebook employees to be “ embedded inside our offices ” to help craft carefully tailored ads he said reached voters they never could have with television ads .
“ I think Donald Trump won , but I think Facebook was the method — it was the highway in which his car drove on , ” he told CBS .
Patrick Hynes , an adviser to the 2008 McCain and 2012 Romney Republican presidential campaigns , said he expects social media companies to double down on their support for Democrats in the 2020 election . He predicted efforts to silence Mr. Trump and others , similar to Twitter ’ s attempt to ban Ms. Blackburn ’ s ad .
“ The social media companies will engage in full-scale censorship with the approval or rejection of advertising content in the next presidential election , ” he said . “ Trump ’ s advertising will be critiqued in a way that they will not do to the Democrats . ” | is1JxKeleaWjxulM | 2 | Google | -0.4 | Facebook | -0.3 | Liberal Media Bias | 0 | Media Bias | 0 | null | null |
elections | Chicago Sun-Times | https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2020/1/11/21060679/michael-bloomberg-presidential-campaign-2020-chicago-democratic-nomination-laura-washington | Michael Bloomberg for president? That’s a tough sell to Chicagoans | 2020-01-11 | elections | The former New York City mayor , billionaire businessman , philanthropist , and now Democratic presidential candidate hit town last Wednesday in a high-profile push of his late-starting campaign .
His speech at Olive-Harvey Community College on Chicago ’ s Far South Side showcased his long-shot , unprecedented strategy .
Bloomberg is skipping the early primary and caucus states of Iowa , New Hampshire , Nevada and South Carolina , instead targeting the Super Tuesday contests and beyond .
Chicago and Cook County hold a treasure trove of Democratic votes in the March 17 primary .
Columnists In-depth political coverage , sports analysis , entertainment reviews and cultural commentary .
Chicago is also ground zero for the soda wars — the battle for Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle ’ s infamous tax on sweetened beverages . A tax mightily backed by Bloomberg .
The penny-per-ounce sugared beverage tax , approved by the county board in November 2016 , was designed to quell the unhealthy consumption of sugar-infused drinks and bring badly needed funds to the county ’ s hospitals and health programs .
Bloomberg was drubbed for cultivating a “ Nanny State ” in New York . He aggressively pushed policies and laws to curb the consumption of tobacco and soda that feed cancer , heart disease , obesity and other mortal perils .
The philanthropist spent $ 20 million to fund successful soda tax initiatives in San Francisco and Oakland , Calif .
He plowed several million dollars into ads supporting Cook County ’ s ill-fated tax , and supported Preckwinkle and the other like-minded officials .
I was with him all the way . The soda tax would have reduced sugar consumption , particularly among blacks and Latinos , who suffer particularly high obesity rates .
But it was poorly sold and deeply despised . The big soda lobby dived in with massive resources to stoke voter outrage . The tax was repealed in the fall of 2017 .
“ How dare they try to steer us to healthy living ! ” they snort .
“ How dare that billionaire , carpet-bagging cheerleader-of-good-health try to take our pop away ! ”
No wonder the campaign declined to make Bloomberg available to us pesky reporters . Instead , campaign manager Kevin Sheekey offered comments .
He was asked about the impact the soda tax controversy might have on the campaign .
“ Mike Bloomberg cares deeply about issues of public health , ” Sheekey declared . That includes “ a number is issues that have affected a number of populations in the minority community . He ’ s never backed off from his view that we have to address public health in this country . ”
Sheekey also noted Bloomberg ’ s long crusades against the tobacco and gun lobbies .
“ And so , yeah , Mike Bloomberg is not someone who turns his back on big issues , and I don ’ t expect him to start now . ”
Bloomberg made no mention of those crusades in his speech .
Instead , he touted his “ All-In Economy ” jobs plan , offering innovative strategies to reverse the economic devastation in communities like Chicago ’ s South and West sides .
The mostly white audience of 200 included a handful of local elected officials , but no high-powered pols .
No Rep. Robin Kelly ( D-Ill. ) , even though the event was in her 2nd District . Even though Kelly won her congressional seat in a highly competitive race , thanks to Bloomberg ’ s largesse .
Bloomberg boosted Kelly ’ s gun-control platform with $ 2.2 million from his antigun super PAC .
But Bloomberg ’ s nanny ways , and other stances , like his advocacy of stop-and-frisk policing policies in New York City , may not fly in Chicago . | Mx7T1PpHgGrtbL5U | 0 | Michael Bloomberg | -0.2 | Chicago | 0.2 | Decision2020 | 0 | Donald Trump | 0 | Elections | 0 |
us_congress | CNN (Web News) | https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/06/opinions/trump-impeachment-acquitted-opinion-avlon/index.html | Acquittal is not exoneration | 2020-02-06 | us_congress | John Avlon is a CNN senior political analyst . The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own . View more opinion articles on CNN .
( CNN ) Despite the Trump White House 's insistence that the President has been vindicated and exonerated by the Senate vote to not remove him from office , acquittal does not mean exoneration in an impeachment trial .
Trump 's acquittal in the Senate was always a foregone conclusion . No American president has been removed from office as a result of a Senate trial . In their wisdom , the founders placed the bar at an appropriately high two-thirds .
Nonetheless , impeachment will be in the first paragraph of Trump 's obituary . It puts him in a permanent presidential hall of shame .
And unlike the impeachments of Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton , this was not about something obscure like violating the `` tenure of office act '' or lying under oath about an affair . Instead , it was about something the Founding Fathers feared : foreign interference in our elections -- and none of his defenses hold up to scrutiny when the founders ' intent is examined .
So , do n't buy this idea that this is somehow Trump 's best week ever . Surviving impeachment is not a gold star . And while the President 's approval rating ticked up to 49 % , it is stunning that his 51 % `` removal rating '' -- the portion of Americans who thought the Senate should convict him -- remains higher than his approval rating .
Do n't forget that the President and his legal team argued all along that he did nothing wrong . Michael Purpura , one of his lead lawyers , argued , `` The facts and evidence of the case the house managers have brought exonerate the President . ''
This was not remotely true . Even `` Fox and Friends ' '' Steve Doocy knew something was wrong when he first heard in September about the call between Trump and the leader of Ukraine . `` If the President said , you know , I 'll give you the money , but you 've got to investigate Joe Biden , that is really off-the-rails wrong . ''
By the end of the trial , at least a half-dozen Republicans finally admitted what the President did was wrong and the evidence does not exonerate him . The Democrats had proven their case . But with the honorable exception of Mitt Romney , they all settled on some variation of saying that Trump 's conduct was `` improper but not impeachable . ''
Donald Trump was caught trying to pressure a foreign power to dig up dirt on a domestic political rival and then cover it up . What would George Washington say ? We do n't have to wonder -- it 's in his Farewell Address : `` ... foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of republican government . ''
John Adams wrote in a letter to Thomas Jefferson before the Constitution was ratified that `` as often as Elections happen , the danger of foreign Influence recurs . ''
And James Madison argued for impeachment at the Constitutional Convention , saying that a president might `` betray his trust to foreign powers . ''
What about the Trump Team 's argument that an impeachable offense requires that a crime has to be committed and that abuse of power is n't a legitimate cause for impeachment ?
Alexander Hamilton put the kibosh on that idea in Federalist 65 : `` The subjects of its jurisdiction are those offenses which proceed from the misconduct of public men , or , in other words , from the abuse or violation of some public trust . ''
And just in case that was n't clear enough , CNN contributor Jeff Engel pointed out in his book , `` Impeachment : an American History , '' that the founders understanding `` of the political nature of impeachable offenses '' would have been influenced by the North Carolina state constitution , which dubbed them `` offenses against the public interest which need not be indictable under the criminal law . ''
What about Republicans ' argument that obstruction of Congress was an absurd charge ? Some may cite George Washington 's executive privilege in a fight with Congress over the Jay Treaty .
But Washington specifically wrote that Congress could n't get its hands on his papers -- `` except that of an impeachment . ''
OK , what about this argument from Alan Dershowitz : `` And if a president did something that he believes will help him get elected , in the public interest , that can not be the kind of quid pro quo that results in impeachment ? ''
Not so much . As William Davie , a North Carolina delegate at the Constitutional Convention , argued : `` If he be not impeachable whilst in office , he will spare no efforts or means whatever to get himself reelected . ''
Because despite the desperate hopes of Republican senators longing to acquit the President , there is no sense that President Trump has learned his lesson . He refuses to admit wrongdoing , despite all the evidence . And Republicans ' lack of interest in even calling witnesses could open the door to a massive expansion of presidential power while effectively opening the door to foreign interference in our elections . This is happening at exactly the same time that we know foreign powers are trying to interfere in our elections
An elegant solution to this collective failure of political courage would have been to censure the President , as Sen. Joe Manchin proposed .
It required only a simple majority vote . And with more than a half-dozen Republican senators admitting that what Trump did was wrong , you 'd think that this would be an off-ramp between acquittal and removal , a way to formally say that it is not acceptable for presidents of either party to act this way . But it was dismissed by some senators , like Susan Collins , who said it was proposed too late in the process . So much for the idea that it 's never too late to do the right thing .
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But that 's why Mitt Romney 's speech carried the force of revelation for many -- a reminder that principles matter more than party loyalty and oaths `` to do impartial justice '' should be upheld . Fear of hyperpartisan reprisals and bullying tactics from the President should not be enough for senators or citizens to abandon their conscience or common sense . Moral courage is an essential quality in a functioning democracy .
For all their far-sighted insights into human nature , the Founding Fathers did not anticipate the ways that hyperpartisan polarization could short-circuit our system of checks and balances while causing the Senate to forget first principles . And so it 's up to all of us as citizens to reassert first principles and core values -- like truth defeats lies -- to change the equation and cause our elected officials to remember that decency and honesty can be the most practical form of politics . | m75L4fYUm9C6HaL4 | 0 | Donald Trump | -0.1 | US Senate | 0 | US Congress | 0 | Articles Of Impeachment | 0 | Impeachment | 0 |
immigration | The Hill | http://thehill.com/homenews/house/391982-gop-will-vote-on-immigration-next-week-sinking-discharge-petition | GOP will vote on immigration next week, sinking discharge petition | 2018-06-12 | immigration | House Republican leaders will bring a pair of immigration bills to the floor next week , sinking a push from reform-minded centrists to force votes on bipartisan bills opposed by GOP leadership .
The House will vote on a conservative immigration bill authored by Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte ( R-Va. ) and a more moderate compromise measure that is still being put together after weeks of closed-door negotiations facilitated by Republican leaders .
“ Members across the Republican Conference have negotiated directly and in good faith with each other for several weeks , and as a result , the House will consider two bills next week that will avert the discharge petition and resolve the border security and immigration issues , ” AshLee Strong , spokeswoman for Speaker Paul Ryan Paul Davis RyanDemocrats hit Scalia over LGBTQ rights Three-way clash set to dominate Democratic debate Krystal Ball touts Sanders odds in Texas MORE ( R-Wis. ) , said in a brief email .
“ The full Conference will discuss tomorrow morning and we 'll have more to share at that point . ''
While leadership ’ s announcement throws a wrench into moderates ’ plans , Rep. Carlos Curbelo Carlos Luis CurbeloOvernight Energy : Lawmakers show irritation over withheld Interior documents | Republican offers bipartisan carbon tax bill | Scientists booted from EPA panel form new group GOP congressman introduces bipartisan carbon tax bill Pelosi : GOP retirements indicate they 'll be in the minority , with Democrat in the White House MORE ( R-Fla. ) , sponsor of the discharge petition , said they will continue to pursue their discharge efforts .
“ While the legislation to be revealed in the coming days is based on the productive negotiations hosted by House Leaders over the last several weeks , it is vital our colleagues remain committed to the discharge petition , ” he said in a statement .
“ While we believe all parties have negotiated in good faith , until and unless we confirm the proposed legislation fully addresses the interests and concerns that unite us we must and will keep up the pressure . ”
They could relaunch the discharge effort , having one more shot to force votes on the issue on July 23 . Yet the discharge route would only get tougher in the weeks ahead , as former Rep. Charlie Dent Charles ( Charlie ) Wieder DentOvernight Health Care — Presented by Better Medicare Alliance — Federal judge blocks Trump from detaining migrant children indefinitely | Health officials tie vaping-related illnesses to 'Dank Vapes ' brand | Trump to deliver health care speech in Florida ███ 's Morning Report — Mueller testimony gives Trump a boost as Dems ponder next steps ███ 's 12:30 Report : Muller testimony dominates Washington MORE ( R-Pa. ) won ’ t be around to sign it . And at least one other endorser , Rep. Chris Collins Christopher ( Chris ) Carl CollinsIndicted GOP congressman Chris Collins resigns ahead of expected guilty plea ███ 's 12:30 Report : Trump steps up attacks on whistleblower , Schiff GOP Rep. Chris Collins to plead guilty to insider trading MORE ( R-N.Y. ) , said he ’ s been pushing for a vote on the Goodlatte bill all along .
The decision to bring the two bills to the floor is backed by GOP leaders and the chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus , Rep. Mark Meadows Mark Randall MeadowsImpeachment push threatens to derail bipartisan efforts on health care costs ███ 's 12:30 Report : Dems seize on Ukraine transcript in impeachment fight Gaetz : Some lawmakers reviewed transcript at White House MORE ( R-N.C. ) . Yet it ’ s unclear if the centrist GOP immigration reformers — whose discharge petition was the driving force behind any shot at immigration votes this year — are all on board .
Indeed , Ryan ’ s decision to side with Meadows and bring the Goodlatte bill directly to the floor would effectively quash the centrists ’ discharge petition — and with it , much of their leverage to dictate the debate over the fate of the so-called Dreamers , or young undocumented immigrants brought the U.S. as children . And it remains unclear if the compromise option — which is yet finalized — will win the moderates ’ backing .
Rep. Will Hurd William Ballard HurdHurd : ' I think we should be protecting the whistleblower ' Pelosi : Turning Texas blue is 'our hope for the future ' Sunday shows lineup : Trump impeachment dominates the talk circuit MORE ( R-Texas ) , one of the early champions of the discharge petition , took to the House floor late Tuesday night with a warning : an immigration bill that doesn ’ t have bipartisan support , he said , is sure to fail .
“ The only way that this body gets things done [ is ] if we work across the aisle to get things done , ” Hurd said .
GOP leaders have been scrambling to avoid a divisive immigration fight less than five months out from November ’ s midterm elections . They were successful in preventing the discharge petition from hitting the needed 218 signatures by promising a pair of on-the-fence centrists — Reps. Dennis Ross Dennis Alan RossWave of GOP retirements threatens 2020 comeback Israel should resist Trump 's efforts to politicize support Pro-Saudi Arabia think tank abruptly closes in Washington MORE ( R-Fla. ) and Dan Newhouse Daniel ( Dan ) Milton NewhouseHouse passes bill to protect 'Dreamers ' Immigrant Heritage Month should spur congressional action to fix immigration laws Thirty-four GOP members buck Trump on disaster bill MORE ( R-Wash. ) — floor action on an agricultural package that includes guest worker program reforms before the August recess .
“ Given this significant progress , I will not sign the discharge petition today , ” Newhouse said in a statement , shortly after Ryan ’ s office announced plans for immigration votes next week . “ I also commend the Speaker and the Majority Leader for committing to me personally to bring forward an immigration bill that addresses agriculture ’ s labor needs before the August district work period . ”
Before the House adjourned Tuesday evening , the discharge petition was just two signatures short of the number needed to move forward with the discharge petition and force a free-wheeling immigration debate after Rep. Henry Cuellar ( D-Texas ) opted to sign on Tuesday evening .
“ After conferring with Democratic leadership and receiving their commitment to help me fight the border wall , I signed the discharge petition to protect DREAMers and [ Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ] recipients . As one of the longest and strongest supporters of DACA in Congress , I am proud to add my signature , ” Cuellar said in a statement .
“ I will continue to fight against the border wall and work in a bipartisan manner to find cost-effective , 21st-century measures to securing our borders . ” | MJ7Two3n1ETZODj0 | 1 | GOP | 0.5 | Immigration | -0.2 | US Congress | 0.2 | null | null | null | null |
elections | Washington Times | http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/3/curl-virginia-voters-time-for-something-futile-and/ | CURL: Virginia voters: Time for something futile and stupid | 2013-11-03 | elections | On Nov. 5 , Virginia will hold its Tuesday Night Football game . Might be on Spike . Check your TV listings .
Why the Land of Presidents holds its gubernatorial elections in off years — no presidential or congressional races on the ballot — is anyone ’ s guess . Maybe state lawmakers want to see just how few voters will go to the polls .
And this year , turnout could well set a new record low . The latest polls show Virginians virtually hate the two candidates running for governor . Many will be casting their votes against one , rather than for the other ( aside from , of course , the Kool-Aid-drinking true believers on each side — you know who you are ) .
Terry McAuliffe , 56 , whose claim to fame is that he raised hundreds of millions of dollars for Bill Clinton and then for his first lady , has never held any elective office . ( And he wants to start off as governor ? Yes . Yes , he does . ) He ’ s involved in not one but two federal investigations , and , most recently , stories emerged that he might have made even more money off terminally ill people ( seriously ) . What ’ s more , he lives in McLean ( a suburb of Georgetown ) .
Then there ’ s Ken T. Cuccinelli II , 45 , a homegrown , up-from-the-bootstraps , blah blah blah . Good God , he ’ s boring . That monotone ! And he walked into the buzz saw of the Obama Playbook on women ’ s issues like abortion and reproductive health . Oh , and you ’ re also against divorce ? Wonder how the local media ( read : Washington Post ) will play that !
So , Tuesday ’ s game will go like this : McAuliffe will score at least six touchdowns , maybe seven . Cuccinelli will score five , and maybe a field goal or two . Book it .
With the other guy : Robert Sarvis . Never heard of him ? Too bad . You should have .
Mr. Sarvis , 37 , was born in Fairfax , the son of an English- and Irish-American and a Chinese immigrant . After attending one of the best high schools in the country , just miles from his home , he went to Harvard to study mathematics , then attended the University of Cambridge . He got a law degree at NYU , then earned a master ’ s in economics from George Mason University .
In the middle of a legal career , he left to join a software development business and founded a company that developed apps for Google ’ s emerging Android operating system . In between , he married a black pediatrician from Greenville , Miss. , and fathered two children .
Although he ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for a state Senate seat in 2011 ( out-raised by the Democrat 72-1 , with a war chest of just $ 26,000 ) , he left the party to become a Libertarian .
“ I realized that the Republican Party , at least in Virginia , in the current era , is not a good vehicle for liberty candidates , ” he told the Richmond Times-Dispatch , which this year has refused to endorse a candidate . “ Republicans are very strident on personal issues . ”
Him , not so much . On abortion , he sidesteps , saying it ’ s “ counterproductive to try to settle the matter through the coercive power of the state. ” He ’ s also a vocal advocate for gay marriage and calls for the legalization of marijuana . So much for the out-of-step Republican .
“ When they talk about liberty , ” he said of Republicans , “ they don ’ t mean any personal issues . There is very little respect for personal autonomy . ”
On other issues , he favors : protecting civil liberties ; returning health care regulation to the states , upholding gun rights , eliminating Virginia ’ s regressive “ car tax ” and overhauling the tax code . Run-of-the-mill Republican stuff .
The latest poll puts him at 13 percent — not bad for a third-party candidate , not good for a guy trying to become governor . But Mr. Sarvis lays out a simple path to victory over the two universally despised candidates : “ If everybody who ’ s voting against the other guy actually voted against both of them , I would win in a landslide , ” he said with a laugh last week in an interview . “ People feel locked into a two-party system , but the fact of the matter is — we don ’ t have to do it that way . ”
Most Americans agree : A Gallup poll in October found that 60 percent say the Democratic and Republicans parties “ do such a poor job of representing the American people that a third major party is needed A new low of 26 % believe the two major parties adequately represent Americans . ”
Is a vote for the third-party candidate Tuesday futile and stupid , a wasted vote ? Probably . And more , Mr. Cuccinelli has worked his way up the ranks and remains the most qualified candidate in the field .
But then again , the situation is dire . How long will Americans put up with choosing between two terrible candidates ?
Virginia ’ s plight brings to mind “ Animal House , ” and the conclusion reached by Delta Tau Chi frat leaders when faced with a do-or-die decision .
“ We got ta take these bastards , ” Otter says . “ Now , we could fight ‘ em with conventional weapons , but that could take years and cost millions of lives . Oh no . No , In this case , I think we have to go all out . I think this situation absolutely requires a really futile and stupid gesture be done on somebody ’ s part ! ”
Says Bluto , with total commitment : “ And we ’ re just the guys to do it . ”
• Joseph Curl covered the White House and politics for a decade for The ███ and is now editor of the Drudge Report . He can be reached at [ email protected ] and on Twitter @ josephcurl . | WWtWR8OTLAlhSH8i | 2 | Election2013 | -0.3 | Virginia | -0.2 | Elections | -0.2 | null | null | null | null |
donald_trump | New York Times (News) | https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/06/us/politics/trump-immunity-appeals-court.html | Federal Appeals Court Rejects Trump’s Claim of Absolute Immunity | 2024-02-06 | Donald Trump, Trump Indictments, Presidential Immunity, Criminal Justice, 2020 Election, Voting Rights And Voter Fraud, US Constitution, Jack Smith, 2024 Presidential Election | Trump Administration Advertisement Supported by The ruling answered a question that an appeals court had never addressed: Can former presidents escape being held accountable by the criminal justice system for things they did while in office? By Alan Feuer and Charlie Savage A federal appeals court on Tuesday rejected former President Donald J. Trump’s claim that he was immune from prosecution on charges of plotting to subvert the results of the 2020 election, ruling that he must go to trial on a criminal indictment accusing him of seeking to overturn his loss to President Biden. The unanimous ruling, by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, handed Mr. Trump a significant defeat. But it was unlikely to be the final word on his claims of executive immunity: Mr. Trump, who is on a path to locking up the Republican presidential nomination, is expected to continue his appeal to the Supreme Court. Still, the panel’s 57-page ruling signaled an important moment in American jurisprudence, answering a question that had never been addressed by an appeals court: Can former presidents escape being held accountable by the criminal justice system for things they did while in office? The question is novel because no former president until Mr. Trump had been indicted, so there was never an opportunity for a defendant to make — and courts to consider — the sweeping claim of executive immunity that he put forward. Advertisement The panel, composed of two judges appointed by Democrats and one Republican appointee, said in its decision that, despite the privileges of the office he once held, Mr. Trump was subject to federal criminal law like any other American. Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like. Alan Feuer covers extremism and political violence for The Times, focusing on the criminal cases involving the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and against former President Donald J. Trump. More about Alan Feuer Charlie Savage writes about national security and legal policy. More about Charlie Savage Advertisement Check out with card ©2025 The New York Times Company | a03c9534efb57510 | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | BuzzFeed News | https://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/colin-powell-said-clinton-minions-are-trying-to-drag-him-int?utm_term=.wjVl0dY7J#.omNal23OB | Colin Powell Said Clinton “Minions” Are Trying To “Drag” Him Into Email Controversies | 2016-09-14 | Presidential Elections, Elections | Powell said he had to throw a "mini tantrum" at a Hamptons party to get the attention of Clinton aides. BuzzFeed News Reporter BuzzFeed Staff BuzzFeed News Reporter Former Secretary of State Colin Powell was extremely frustrated both publicly and privately about Hillary Clinton's "minions" trying "to drag me in" to her email controversies, according to his personal emails seen by BuzzFeed News. In his frustration with the Hillary campaign, Powell lashed out at Clinton’s camp to Vernon Jordan, a longtime Democratic adviser. “I have told Hilleary’s [sic] minions repeatedly that they are making a mistake trying to drag me in, yet they still try.. The media isn’t fooled and she is getting crucified,” Powell wrote in May. “The differences are profound and they know it.” What exactly Powell told Clinton about his use of email while he was secretary of state became a point of reporting this summer. In an August 2016 email with NBC News reporter Andrea Mitchell, Powell said he wrote a memo to Clinton “describing what he did at the department.” “I told her how I was using my personal computer for [unclassified] emails. I said nothing about servers, basements, domains, Clinton foundation, government employees,” Powell wrote, reiterating that this information was not new, and was detailed in his latest book. “The Clintonistas have been trying for months to connect our usage,” Powell added. The website DCLeaks.com — which has reported, but not confirmed, ties to Russian intelligence services — obtained Powell’s emails. It may be the latest example of a Russian entity potentially trying to influence the US presidential election — in July, the FBI said it believed Russia was behind the hack of the Democratic National Committee’s internal emails right before they party’s convention. Powell told BuzzFeed News he had no comment. In late August 2016, he wrote that he “spent last week with [Clinton confidante] Cheryl Mills and the HRC team burying the email flap,” the retired four-star general wrote to a California official. “Sad thing it that HRC could have killed this two years ago by merely telling everyone honestly what she had done and not tie me into it. I told her staff three times not to try that gambit. I had to throw a mini tantrum at a Hampton's party to get their attention. She keeps tripping into these ‘character’ minefields.” The New York Times reported in August that Clinton told FBI agents that Powell told her to use personal email while in office. Over the past year, her campaign has noted repeatedly in public that he also used personal email. According to the FBI documents later released, Clinton told agents that Powell's instructions to her about her email did not factor into how she used email while secretary. House Democrats subsequently released an email Powell sent Clinton in 2009, after she asked for information on how to use a Blackberry at the State Department. In his response, Powell tells Clinton that he did not use a Blackberry, and instead used a computer with his personal account — his email did not go "through State Department servers." "However, there is a real danger. If it is public that you have a BlackBerry and it it (sic) government and you are using it, government or not, to do business, it may become an official record and subject to the law," Powell wrote. "Reading about the President's BB rules this morning, it sounds like it won't be as useful as it used to be. Be very careful. I got around it all by not saying much and not using systems that captured the data." Recently, in an August 2016 email, Powell wrote to a reporter with Thompson Reuters that he, unlike Clinton, used a “public server, AOL, not my own servers and domain.” He reiterated that he wrote about his use of email in his book, and briefed the “State IG, IC IG an the FBI,” and that “everyone in the department knew about it and were overjoyed.” That same month, in another email, Powell wrote that he tried to warn “[Clinton’s] people three times. I will send an even tougher counterattack from a Trump media friend.” And in August, in an email with the subject line “Re: CLINTON IN HIDING: 259 DAYS SINCE LAST PRESS CONFERENCE,” Powell compliments a New York Times article that said Clinton “was using private email before that dinner or the memo I sent her.” The dinner is in reference to a reported 2009 dinner party attended by former Secretaries of States Powell, Clinton, and Condoleezza Rice, where Powell allegedly suggested that Clinton use a personal email account. Both Powell and Rice have repeatedly said that have no recollection of the dinner. In another email with a journalist in July of 2016, in response to his allegedly using his home computer as secretary of state, Powell said that he brought the State Department “into the 21st Century” by replacing an “out of date” and “not functioning information system.” “I set about fixing. Fixed the pipes, bought everyone a computer (44,000.) I then went on line with my AOL account on a phone line to talk to my folks as well as some foreign officials. All unclassified,” Powell wrote. Powell goes on to write that he used a “State Computer” for “classified messaging.” “When I left I took no emails or records with me. No private servers in the basement, etc. No secrets----everyone in the Department knew what we were doing. No one ever said ‘bad boy,’” Powell wrote. Prior to the back and forth this summer, Clinton allies had often noted that Powell used a personal account during his tenure as secretary. Powell, in another email from February 2016, reiterated that he didn’t “tell Hillary to have a private server at home, connected to the Clinton Foundation, two contractors, took away 60,000 emails, has her own domain.” BuzzFeed News Reporter BuzzFeed Staff BuzzFeed News Reporter US residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data. You have the right to opt-out of the sale or sharing of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences. | b008d38525156cbd | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
media_bias | Politico | http://www.politico.com/blogs/on-media/2016/07/draft-its-official-roger-ailes-to-step-down-at-fox-news-225886 | It’s official: Roger Ailes to step down at Fox News | 2016-07-21 | media_bias | On Media Blog Archives Select Date… December , 2015 November , 2015 October , 2015 September , 2015 August , 2015 July , 2015 June , 2015 May , 2015 April , 2015 March , 2015 February , 2015 January , 2015
Roger Ailes | Getty It ’ s official : Roger Ailes to step down at Fox News
Roger Ailes will step aside as chairman and CEO of Fox News Channel , parent company Twenty-First Century Fox announced , just as the closing bell was rung Thursday afternoon .
Ailes ' departure follows allegations of sexual harassment by a former anchor at the TV channel , Gretchen Carlson . Fox hired an outside law firm to investigate the claims , as well as others made by current and former employees . Ailes has vigorously denied the claims , and the independent investigation had not been completed when Ailes announced his resignation Thursday .
Rupert Murdoch will `` become chairman and acting CEO of Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network , '' according to the official announcement . Murdoch traveled to New York on Thursday to personally address the Fox News newsroom , though many of its staff were in Cleveland , covering the Republican National Convention .
There , the group dialed in from its space in the convention center , `` Fox News Sunday '' host Chris Wallace told reporters who gathered outside the Fox space after the news of Ailes ' exit broke .
Wallace joined a small scrum of Fox talent , who waited to talk to reporters in Cleveland until after the call with Murdoch .
`` There are people in tears , '' Wallace said . `` I shed mine a couple of days ago when the stories started to come out . ... I ’ ve never known a boss who transmitted a sense of mission , who transmitted a sense a team and common purpose more than Roger did . The thing that ’ s different from any place I ’ ve ever worked is people feel a personal connection to Roger , and I think a lot of people feel a deep sense of personal loss . ''
Ailes , who founded the channel in 1996 thanks to a large investment by Rupert Murdoch and built it into a major driver of profit for its parent company , Twenty-First Century Fox , and a power player in the national media-political complex , found himself at odds with Murdoch ’ s two children , Lachlan and James , who are now leading the company .
“ Roger Ailes has made a remarkable contribution to our company and our country , '' said Murdoch in a statement . `` Roger shared my vision of a great and independent television organization and executed it brilliantly over 20 great years . Fox News has given voice to those who were ignored by the traditional networks and has been one of the great commercial success stories of modern media . It is always difficult to create a channel or a publication from the ground up and against seemingly entrenched monopolies . ... I am personally committed to ensuring that Fox News remains a distinctive , powerful voice . Our nation needs a robust Fox News to resonate from every corner of the country . To ensure continuity of all that is best about Fox News and what it stands for , I will take over as Chairman and acting CEO , with the support of our existing management team under Bill Shine , Jay Wallace and Mark Kranz . ”
It was the Murdoch sons who drove the decision to bring in outside investigators from the white-shoe law firm Paul , Weiss , Rifkind , Wharton & Garrison . It was not clear whether that investigation was complete , or had presented any findings to the company 's leadership , though multiple leaks led to stories about some of the investigation 's findings as it progressed over the past two weeks .
Ailes has staunchly denied the allegations by Carlson , which were delivered in a lawsuit filed with the New Jersey State Supreme Court two weeks ago , and his legal team has filed several preliminary motions aimed at taking the case out of court and into private arbitration .
Carlson 's lawyers responded to the news of Ailes ' resignation Thursday afternoon by taking credit for the ouster .
`` Within two weeks of her filing a lawsuit against Roger Ailes , Gretchen Carlson 's extraordinary courage has caused a seismic shift in the media world , '' the lawyers said in a statement . `` We hope that all businesses now understand that women will no longer tolerate sexual harassment and reputable companies will no longer shield those who abuse women . We thank all the brave women who spoke out about this issue . We will have more to say in coming days as events unfold . ''
None of the statements released by Fox News , Twenty-First Century Fox , Ailes or Rupert Murdoch directly addressed the accusations .
“ We join our father in recognizing Roger ’ s remarkable contributions to our company , '' the Murdoch brothers said in a statement . `` Our talented Fox News and Fox Business colleagues , up and down the organization and on both sides of the camera , have built something that continues to redefine the cable news experience for millions of viewers . We are enormously proud of their accomplishments . ''
But the Murdoch sons did signal a connection between workplace ethics and the events that unfolded Thursday afternoon .
`` For them , as well as for our colleagues across our entire organization , we continue our commitment to maintaining a work environment based on trust and respect , '' the statement continued . `` We take seriously our responsibility to uphold these traditional , long-standing values of our company . ”
Bret Baier , chief political anchor and host of `` Special Report with Bret Baier , '' told reporters in Cleveland that Murdoch 's remarks were a rallying cry .
“ Basically [ the gist of the call ] was we have a job to do , and he praised us for the coverage this week and said ‘ Let ’ s do what we do best. ’ Yeah it was continuity , that was the message that came out of the conference call , ” Baier said .
In a letter to Rupert Murdoch first published by The Drudge Report , Ailes said how `` proud '' he was of the success of Fox News , adding : `` Having spent 20 years building this historic business , I will not allow my presence to become a distraction from the work that must be done every day to ensure that Fox News and Fox Business continue to lead our industry . ''
As the news broke , Fox News security was attempting to establish a perimeter around Fox News ' space at the convention in Cleveland , where reporters had gathered to interview Fox News staff to get reactions to the news . At least one Fox staffer was visibly distraught by the news .
`` No , you can ’ t talk to anybody from Fox News , '' a security guard told gathered reporters .
But former Fox News anchor and current Fox News contributor Brit Hume , anchor Greta Van Susteren , anchor Chris Wallace and Baier addressed the reporters who had gathered there .
Baier , when asked whether he was among the Fox News talent that had a `` key man clause , '' which would allow him to leave Fox News Channel if Ailes does , responded `` Yeah , I am . ''
“ I can ’ t speak for anyone else . I know a number of people have things in their contracts that are whatever they ’ re called — key man clauses or something . I can ’ t speak for anyone else . ”
`` I ’ m really happy at Fox , and as long as , you know , things are going like they ’ re going , I think I couldn ’ t be happier , ” Baier added . `` I don ’ t think it ’ s going to change much from my perspective as what I do every day . I think a lot of what we do on the news side is bottom up and it ’ s always been that way . I ’ m betting that Rupert is going to continue with that same process . ”
Indeed , the surprise move of naming Rupert Murdoch himself captain of the ship , at least temporarily , appeared to have been important to many among Fox 's top talent in Cleveland covering the convention this week .
`` I will tell you , it was quite inspiring to all of us that Rupert Murdoch flew back and he ’ s taking over the helm and he made everyone feel really good . He ’ s not changing anything , '' Van Susteren told reporters . `` Change is always tough , but I think Rupert Murdoch coming back was a big deal for all of us . ''
Wallace told reporters he thought Murdoch ’ s taking of the mantle was a sign that stability would reign at the network .
“ I think you might have wondered about that if it had been any other successor than Rupert , ” he said , “ but I think the fact that the guy who came up with the idea for Fox News along with Roger is now taking the helm ensures that it ’ ll stay on its present course . ”
Ailes began his national media career as executive producer of the syndicated talk show “ The Mike Douglas Show. ” He subsequently entered the world of politics , becoming a critical adviser to President Richard Nixon and , later , George H.W . Bush . After leaving politics , he helped NBC launch the financial news channel CNBC , and later the channel America ’ s Talking , the first cable talk channel . “ America ’ s Talking ” was a predecessor of sorts to both Fox News and , more directly , MSNBC , which took over its channel space in 1996 .
In 1996 , Ailes launched Fox News for Murdoch ’ s News Corp. Fox News surpassed CNN in the ratings in 2002 and never really looked back . Ailes assumed control of the Fox TV stations group in 2005 , giving him oversight of the company ’ s owned and operated TV stations . In 2007 , Ailes launched his second cable business-news channel , Fox Business Network .
With Ailes ’ departure , the big question on the lips of most everyone in the TV news business is : What happens next ? Will any of FNC ’ s big-name stars leave ? And can the channel hold onto its seat atop the cable news landscape , or will CNN continue its ratings comeback ? | YOPuOgEhDzULsFKt | 0 | Media Industry | 0.3 | Media Bias | 0.3 | Media Watch | 0 | Roger Ailes | 0 | null | null |
white_house | Reason | https://reason.com/archives/2017/04/10/trumps-risky-syria-gambit | Trump's Risky Syria Gambit | 2017-04-10 | Syria, White House, Politics | In the worldview Donald Trump brought to the White House , all problems are easy . Fix the economy by getting tough with China . End illegal immigration by building a wall . `` Totally obliterate '' the Islamic State .
Even after the humiliating failure of an effort in the House to repeal and replace Obamacare , Trump declared : `` I know that we 're all going to make a deal on health care . That 's such an easy one . ''
Trump apparently thinks the same thing about one of the knottiest questions he has encountered—Syria . After a chemical weapons attack blamed on President Bashar Assad , Trump did n't spend much time agonizing before using cruise missiles against a Syrian air base . It 's a response that creates new dangers without solving old problems .
He obviously never read up on Dwight Eisenhower , who said : `` No easy problems ever come to the president of the United States . If they are easy to solve , someone else has solved them . ''
Syria is one of those no one has solved , mainly because it is virtually impossible . The country has been a charnel house since 2011 , when an armed uprising elicited savage responses from Assad—bombing hospitals , torturing opponents and starving civilians .
In 2012 , Barack Obama threatened U.S. retaliation if Assad used chemical weapons . When he used them anyway , Obama changed his mind , recognizing that major military measures had scant prospect of success but an excellent chance of catastrophe .
The options in Syria did not become more viable merely because Trump finally took note of what 's happening . In fact , they have gotten worse . Russia now has ground and air forces in Syria , fighting on the side of the regime .
Hawks accused Obama of facilitating Assad 's brutality by standing aside . But it was not until Trump arrived that this nerve gas attack occurred . Maybe Assad felt emboldened after the administration indicated his regime is `` a political reality that we have to accept , '' as press secretary Sean Spicer said March 31 . In that case , Trump is not compensating for Obama 's mistakes so much as his own .
It 's hard to have any confidence that this decision was made in a careful way , with a clear sense of purpose and a full understanding of the risks . The suddenness of Trump 's shift indicates he gave no more thought to his new position than he did to his previous , opposite one .
The important questions are : What will the strike accomplish , and where will it lead ? One taste of the lash is n't likely to shake Assad 's grip on power or deter him from killing his own people on a large scale—possibly even with chemical weapons .
National security adviser H.R . McMaster admitted Friday that the dictator `` will maintain the certain capacity to commit mass murder with chemical weapons , we think , beyond this particular airfield . '' The administration is trying to thread a very small needle . `` This was not a small strike , '' McMaster insisted , while noting that it was also `` not of a scope or a scale that it ( went ) after all such related facilities . ''
The exquisite calibration suggests Trump and his advisers want to reassure both the American people ( `` I 'm tough ! '' ) and the Russians ( `` Really , it 's nothing '' ) . It indicates he has no intention of bringing down Assad . Maybe someone told him that without Assad , the chaos and bloodshed in Syria would not abate but expand and intensify .
Apparently , Trump is averse to full-scale intervention , which would carry the risk of direct combat with Russians in the air or on the ground . But as the signs on ski slopes say , hazards exist that are not marked . Once the U.S. inserts itself into the fight against Assad , the chance of a misstep increases . With a little bad luck , we could find ourselves at war not only with the Syrian government but with a nuclear superpower .
Why take the risk ? Even if conflict with Russia could be avoided , making any real difference in the war would require a large number of U.S. ground troops for a long time . And the outcome would probably be a costly failure , kind of like Iraq and Afghanistan .
As every president learns , matters of war and peace look much simpler before you get to the White House . Obama came to understand that if we went to war in Syria , our adversaries might lose , but we would not win . Trump will learn that , too , but he may have to learn the hard way . | e341a21a2d6c09ef | 2 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
race_and_racism | CNN (Web News) | http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/30/opinion/randazza-sterling-privacy/index.html?hpt=op_t1 | Opinion: What happened to Sterling was morally wrong | 2014-04-30 | Race And Racism | Story highlights Marc J. Randazza : Donald Sterling 's First Amendment rights were n't violated in scandal
Government is n't punishing speech , he says , but Sterling 's ideas failed in marketplace
He says problem was recording of Sterling may have been illegal , leaking it morally wrong
Randazza : This could happen to any of our private conversations today and it 's chilling
This past week , my inbox blew up with e-mails asking whether Donald Sterling 's First Amendment rights were violated in the uproar over the Los Angeles Clippers owner 's racist remarks about black people . After all , he was simply expressing his views , however unpopular .
While he did have some rights violated , his First Amendment rights remain intact .
The First Amendment protects you from the government punishing you because of your speech . The NBA is a private club , and it can discipline Sterling all it wants .
What about the chorus of criticism ? Are we all violating his First Amendment rights by criticizing him ? We are punishing him for his speech .
Nope . The First Amendment does not insulate you from criticism . In fact , that 's the First Amendment in action . That is how the marketplace of ideas works . We float our ideas in the marketplace , and we see which idea sells .
Most everyone would agree that Sterling 's ideas fail in the marketplace of ideas . Nevertheless , I reluctantly stand on Sterling 's side today . What happened to him may have been illegal and was morally wrong .
Start with illegal . In California , you ca n't record a conversation without the knowledge or consent of both parties . The recording featuring Sterling and V. Stiviano may be the result of a crime . Once she gathered this information , someone leaked it ( she denies it was her ) -- and it went viral . This is where I think things went morally wrong .
We all say things in private that we might not say in public . Sometimes we have ideas that are not fully developed -- we try them out with our closest friends . Consider it our test-marketplace of ideas . As our ideas develop , we consider whether to make them public . Should we not all have the freedom to make that choice on our own ?
The Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy made his own stupid and bigoted statements , and he 's been nationally pilloried , too -- but he chose to make those statements to the world . He deserves every ounce of obloquy heaped upon him .
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But does Sterling ? Think about what his public character execution means . It means that we now live in a world where if you have any views that are unpopular , you now not only need to fear saying them in public , but you need to fear saying them at all -- even to your intimate friends . They might be recording you , and then that recording may be spread across the Internet for everyone to hear .
Is n't it bad enough that the National Security Agency can spy on all of us ? How can we complain when we condone giving our closest friends the ability to do worse -- perhaps just to try and destroy us .
In the novel `` 1984 , '' George Orwell wrote of the Telescreen , a device that beamed information into the home but that also spied on people constantly . Even if we were to stop the NSA in its tracks , would we still now live in a world where the Telescreen watches us ? Only instead of an oppressive government installing it in our apartments , it is conveniently placed in the hands of our dear friends .
The Sterling story is not that we found a bigot and dragged him to the gallows in the middle of the marketplace of ideas . The Sterling story is about how there is no more privacy . We live in a world where you can share your intimate photos with your lover , and they will wind up on a `` revenge porn '' website .
We live in a world where our intimate conversations will be recorded and blasted to billions of listeners . We live in a world where , say a gold digger can spy on her sugar daddy , and the world says that the creepy old guy is the bad guy .
Do n't get me wrong . Sterling does seem to be a bad person . But sometimes the bad person is also the victim , and he stands in for us . As you applaud Stiviano for bringing the racist old man 's views to light , consider if it were you speaking to a woman friend in what you thought was a private conversation .
Do we now live in a world where we can trust nobody ? Where there is no privacy ?
In this story , there are two villains . Sterling represents the bad old days . But Stiviano 's behavior represents the horrifying future . Should n't we condemn the complete breakdown of privacy and trust at least as loudly as we condemn some old man 's racist blathering ? | 6763140614919b0e | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
elections | The Hill | http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/290598-third-party-candidates-in-late-push-for-debate-stage | Third-party candidates in late push for debate stage | 2016-08-06 | elections | Third-party candidates are racing against the clock to meet the threshold to qualify for the presidential debate stage .
The first debate isn ’ t until Sept. 26 at Hofstra University in Hempstead , N.Y. , but the campaigns expect a decision on who makes the cut in early September , giving Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson Gary Earl JohnsonThe Trump strategy : Dare the Democrats to win Trump challenger : 'All bets are off ' if I win New Hampshire primary Scaramucci assembling team of former Cabinet members to speak out against Trump MORE and Green Party nominee Jill Stein about one month to hit the 15 percent national polling threshold .
The candidates and their campaigns are in an all-out sprint to boost their polling numbers ahead of that deadline .
Johnson and Green have surpassed one hurdle : Both are routinely included in the polls that will determine who makes the stage after being left out of many polls earlier in the cycle.But reaching 15 percent in five national surveys leading up to the debate remains a steep climb for the underfunded and little-known candidates .
But GOP pollster David Winston said they have a unique opportunity this year , when both major party presidential candidates — Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonGiuliani consulted with Manafort on Ukraine info : report California political donor indicted for 2 overdose deaths at his home Sanders heart procedures shines spotlight on age of top Democrats MORE for Democrats and Donald Trump Donald John TrumpSessions says he still supports Trump despite ouster as AG House Republicans voice concerns about White House 's impeachment messaging Giuliani consulted with Manafort on Ukraine info : report MORE for Republicans — have high disapproval ratings .
“ You have two historically unappealing candidates in Clinton and Trump that a majority view unfavorably , so a lot of voters are looking for alternatives , ” he said .
“ There ’ s a willingness to look at the third-party candidates this cycle but it hasn ’ t hit critical mass yet , so unless Trump and Clinton dramatically tank , it ’ s going to be hard to get into that first debate , ” Winston said .
Johnson , the former Republican governor of New Mexico , has approached the 15 percent mark in several surveys , reaching as high as 12 percent in a Fox News poll released this week .
Johnson ’ s campaign has so far relied heavily on pushing digital content over social media and media coverage to get his message out .
Johnson and running mate Bill Weld , the former Republican governor of Massachusetts , have participated in two prime-time town hall events on CNN .
The first , which was a let-down to many Libertarians , received fewer than 1 million viewers . The second , which took place Wednesday , was cheered by Johnson-Weld supporters and reached 1.6 million viewers , making it the most-watched cable news program in its time slot .
Now , the campaign is looking beyond the press to more traditional campaign activities .
Johnson and Weld will hold their first rallies of the cycle this weekend in Nevada and Utah . Additional rallies in Colorado and New Mexico are expected later .
The campaign is also set to release a national radio ad soon , and a national TV ad is in the works .
Weld has embraced the role of fundraiser for the campaign , boasting in the CNN town hall about having secured $ 1 million in commitments in one day . That would nearly match what the campaign had raised in the first half of the year .
And campaign manager Ron Nielson said small-dollar fundraising is also picking up . He said the ticket raised $ 500,000 in grassroots donations over a two-day stretch this month .
The Johnson-Weld campaign has more than 40 paid staffers now and nearly as many full-time volunteers .
Nielson is cautiously optimistic about their chances of making the first debate .
“ We think we ’ re moving up right now , ” he said . “ We see a lot of support . We feel good . We think we can get above 15 percent . ”
She has topped out at 6 percent in the polls and is only at 4 percent in the RealClearPolitics average .
The liberal Green Party candidate is making a concerted push attract supporters of former Democratic contender Bernie Sanders Bernie Sanders2020 Democrats push for gun control action at forum Sanders heart procedures shines spotlight on age of top Democrats Sanders uses health scare to promote 'Medicare for All ' MORE .
She has grabbed headlines for being fiercely critical of Clinton , though in a new television ad running on cable news she savages both major party candidates .
“ Donald Trump says despicable things but Hillary Clinton has a terrifying track record , '' she says .
Stein will get her own CNN town hall on Aug. 17 , which will be a big moment for her .
The third-party candidates suffered a setback on Friday when a district court judge threw out a case they brought against the Commission on Presidential Debates ( CPD ) challenging the polling threshold .
Johnson still has a separate legal challenge against the commission outstanding . The nonpartisan agency , which declined to comment for this story , could come under pressure as the debates near if Johnson or Stein are climbing in the polls .
Nielson , of Johnson ’ s campaign , lashed out at the agency in a statement .
“ With Governor Johnson consistently polling in double-digits , we continue to believe that the CPD should make the right and fair decision to invite him to participate in the upcoming debates , ” Nielson said .
“ There is clearly an unprecedented desire for alternatives to the Republican and Democratic nominees , and voters deserve an opportunity to see and hear that there are , in fact , other credible , serious choices , ” he continued . “ The CPD could act today to end the two-party stranglehold on the debates , and that is precisely what they should do . ''
Pollsters interviewed by ███ are doubtful either candidate will make the debate stage .
“ I think it 's unlikely , unless both major party candidates start leaching base support , ” said Monmouth University pollster Patrick Murray . “ While third-party candidates are set to do better this year than in most cycles , the 15 percent threshold is too high a hurdle . ”
If they miss on the first round , there will be a vice presidential match-up in October and two more presidential debates that month . | Uv4SITJJU0ivTQgl | 1 | Libertarian Party | 0.6 | Gary Johnson | 0.6 | Green Party | 0.2 | Jill Stein | 0.2 | Debates | -0.1 |
facts_and_fact_checking | FactCheck.org | https://www.factcheck.org/2023/05/factchecking-trumps-cnn-town-hall/ | FactChecking Trump’s CNN Town Hall | 2023-05-11 | Facts And Fact Checking, Donald Trump, CNN Bias, 2020 Election, Joe Biden | Former President Donald Trump’s town hall event felt like a lightning round of false and misleading claims — most of which we’ve heard before. Among them:He claimed the conservative group True the Vote found Democrats “stuffing ballot boxes” with “millions of votes” and it was caught “on government cameras.” It did not.Trump falsely claimed that he “didn’t ask” Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger “to find” him more votes. In a Jan. 2, 2021, call, Trump told Raffensperger: “I just want to find 11,780 votes,” which was one more than Trump needed to win the state.Then-Vice President Mike Pence didn’t have the legal right to send electoral votes back to the states, contrary to Trump’s claim that Pence “did something wrong” by not rejecting the votes in states he lost.Trump falsely claimed that “we have open borders,” when each month border officials have apprehended and expelled tens of thousands of people who illegally enter the country.He made an unsubstantiated claim that many of the immigrants coming illegally across the southern border are people released from prisons and mental institutions.The former president wrongly claimed that the Presidential Records Act allowed him to negotiate the return of presidential materials to the National Archives and Records Administration.President Joe Biden donated 1,850 boxes of records from his Senate years to the University of Delaware. There’s no evidence they contain classified information or that Biden refused to give them “back,” as Trump said.Trump claimed that “we were energy independent” during his administration, but the U.S. never attained 100% self-sufficiency and still relied on energy imports under Trump.He wrongly claimed that U.S. gasoline prices reached $9 under Biden. The highest weekly average price under Biden was about $5 in June 2022.Trump claimed that under Roe v. Wade, “They could kill the baby … after the baby was born.” The court opinion allowed states to prohibit abortion after fetal viability, with exceptions for the mother’s life and health.Trump — the leading candidate for the 2024 Republican nomination, despite a criminal indictment in New York and an ongoing criminal investigation in Georgia — took questions from New Hampshire Republicans and undeclared voters in the May 10 prime time event moderated by CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins.False Claims of Vote FraudStill refusing to accept the results of an election he lost, Trump made numerous false claims about how the 2020 presidential election was “rigged.” For example, Trump claimed, “If you look at True the Vote, they found millions of votes on camera, on government cameras, where [Democrats] were stuffing ballot boxes.”Trump is referring to the “2000 Mules” documentary by conservative filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza, which purported to provide evidence that thousands of so-called “mules” were employed to illegally stuff ballot drop boxes with fraudulent ballots. The film was based on research from the conservative group True the Vote, which used geotracking data of cellphones and noted people who were near numerous ballot drop boxes and liberal nonprofits. We reviewed the film’s claims and found the evidence lacking.When Georgia investigators looked into a handful of videos showing people depositing multiple ballots, it turned out to be people legally dropping off ballots for eligible voters in their immediate family. The House Jan. 6 committee released video of an interview of former Attorney General Bill Barr, who offered a blistering assessment, calling the cellphone data “singularly unimpressive” and saying the film simply “didn’t establish widespread illegal harvesting.”Call to Georgia Secretary of StateToward the end of the town hall, Collins revisited the topic of Trump’s baseless voter fraud claims.Collins asked Trump about his Jan. 2, 2021, phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — which has become the focus of a criminal investigation by the Fulton County district attorney’s office into whether Trump tried to illegally overturn the state’s 2020 presidential election outcome.Asked if he would still make that call today, knowing that it would lead to a criminal investigation, Trump said there was nothing wrong with the call and that he was merely “questioning the election.”Collins: You asked him to find you votes. Trump: I didn’t ask him to find anything.That’s false. Trump asked Raffensperger to find him enough votes so that he could win the state — after Joe Biden had already been certified and recertified as the winner in Georgia.“I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have because we won the state,” Trump told Raffensperger on the call.Specifically, Trump told Raffensperger to look in Cobb and Fulton counties — which were both won by Biden. “You will find you will be at 11,779 within minutes because Fulton County is totally corrupt,” Trump said on the call.Pence Didn’t Have Right to Reject Electoral VotesTrump was asked if he owed his vice president, Mike Pence, an apology over what happened during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and Trump’s repeated attempts to push Pence to refuse to count electoral votes.“No, because he did something wrong,” Trump said. “He should have sent the votes back to the state legislatures and I think we would have had a different outcome.”A constitutional expert told us Pence did not have the legal right to change or reject the electoral votes. The Electoral Count Act, which was signed into law in 1887, says the vice president is simply supposed to hand the tellers the state certifications after he opens them, and the tellers are then to read those documents and make a list of the votes.According to the Jan. 6 committee report, Pence and his counsel Greg Jacob and others told Trump that Pence did not have the authority to send those electoral votes back to the states. Even Trump’s lawyer John Eastman “admitted” that Trump had been advised that the vice president did not have the unilateral power to refuse to count votes under the Electoral College Act, but Trump “continued to pressure the Vice President to act illegally,” the report said.Trump said Pence and others were wrong, and that the proof is that “right after the election they all met – the RINOs [Republicans in name only] and the Democrats – and they worked out a plan to make sure that future vice presidents don’t do what I said you could do.” Congress revised the Electoral Count Act in December 2022, but only to “reaffirm” that a vice president’s role in the electoral vote counting process is “ministerial.” It was not an admission that the law previously allowed a vice president to take the steps Trump sought.Illegal ImmigrationThe U.S. does not “have open borders,” as Trump falsely claimed. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials, particularly Border Patrol agents, have continued to apprehend and expel tens of thousands of people who illegally cross the southern border each month, according to the most recent CBP data.In the Southwest Border Enforcement Report for fiscal year 2021, which was published in August 2022, the Office of Immigration Statistics said preliminary estimates indicated that the model-based apprehension rate in FY 2021 was about the same as the 78% average from FY 2018 to FY 2020, which were the three fiscal years when Trump was president the whole time. In its August 2020 Border Security Metrics Report, the Department of Homeland Security explained that the model-based apprehension rate is “the estimated share of all attempted unlawful border crossers between land [ports of entries] that is apprehended.”No Evidence for Prisons ClaimAs he has numerous times in recent months, Trump made the unsubstantiated claim that many of the immigrants coming illegally across the southern border are people released from prisons and mental institutions.“Look what is happening at our southern border,” Trump said. “Millions and millions of people are coming in. They’re being released from prisons. They’re being released from mental institutions.”We wrote about this claim in March when Trump said at a rally in Texas, “Other countries are emptying out their prisons, insane asylums and mental institutions and sending their most heinous criminals to the United States.” When making the claim, Trump has sometimes cited a news story he says he read, about a doctor at a mental institution in South America who said he no longer has people to take care of because all the patients are being sent to the U.S. We could not find any such story, and immigration experts we talked to said there’s simply no evidence that is happening.“I cannot prove this is false, but I follow migration in Latin America and the Caribbean quite closely and have never ever heard anything like this related to current migration from the region,” Andrew Selee, president of the Migration Policy Institute, told us. “I have never heard any credible claims that any country has been emptying its prisons or mental hospitals so that those released can migrate to the United States.”Presidential Records ActThe former president wrongly claimed that the Presidential Records Act allowed him to negotiate with the National Archives and Records Administration for the return of presidential materials he took with him after leaving office. A president can keep personal materials, but not presidential documents.The Presidential Records Act says that after a president’s term, the archivist “shall assume responsibility for the custody, control, and preservation of, and access to, the Presidential records of that President.”Trump claimed, “We were negotiating with them as per, as per the Presidential Records Act,” adding that “all of the sudden, they raided the house.”“They didn’t raid the house of Joe Biden,” Trump also said. CNN’s Collins correctly noted: “Joe Biden didn’t ignore a subpoena to get those documents back like you did.”As we’ve written, Trump took eight months to comply with NARA’s requests for the return of presidential documents he had at his Mar-a-Lago home. NARA then discovered classified documents among those records. In responding to a subpoena for more classified material, Trump’s lawyers handed over an envelope with 38 classified documents.Two months after that, the FBI obtained a court-approved search warrant for Mar-a-Lago and retrieved 13 boxes that contained “over one hundred unique documents with classification markings,” according to a court filing.Biden Documents at University of DelawareWhile talking about the Department of Justice’s investigation into his handling of classified documents, Trump repeated a claim that Biden mishandled and hid 1,850 boxes of classified records. “I have every right to [take classified documents] under the Presidential Records,” Trump said. (He doesn’t. See the section above on that act.) “Biden, on the other hand, he has 1,850 boxes.” Later on, Trump claimed that Biden “won’t give back the 1,850 boxes” and that “nobody even knows where they are.”But there is no evidence any of the boxes from Biden contain classified information, and their location is known.As we’ve written, Biden in 2012 donated more than 1,850 boxes of records from his years in the U.S. Senate to the University of Delaware. The documents are not available for public access following an agreement between Biden and the university at the time of the donation not to provide public access to any of the materials until “two years after the donor [Biden] retires from public life.” In October, a Delaware Superior Court judge upheld the University of Delaware’s refusal to provide access to the documents after the nonprofit Judicial Watch sought them through a Freedom of Information Act request.The Justice Department, with Biden’s consent, reviewed the documents and did not find any with classified markings, although some were taken for further review, CBS News has reported.‘Energy Independent’“We were energy independent” during his administration, Trump said.The U.S. never stopped relying on foreign sources of energy under Trump, as his claim suggested. During his presidency, for the first time in decades, the U.S. exported more energy than it imported; produced more energy than it consumed; and again became a net exporter of petroleum, which includes crude oil and refined products from crude oil, such as gasoline and other fuels. Even if “energy independence” was determined by being a net exporter or having more production than consumption, the country’s status has not changed under Biden.See “Examining U.S. ‘Energy Independence’ Claims” and “FactChecking Trump’s Presidential Bid Announcement“ for more.Gasoline PricesTrump falsely claimed that “energy” — a reference to gasoline prices — “went from $1.87 to $5, $6, $7, $8 and even $9.”The average price of regular gasoline was $2.38 per gallon the week Trump left office in January 2021, up from a low of $1.77 the final week of April 2020, according to Energy Information Administration figures. Under Biden, the average weekly price reached a record of $5.01 in June 2022. Most recently, the price was down to $3.53 the week of May 8.There was at least one California county where gas prices climbed to almost $10 a gallon in June 2022, but the highest average price for all of California — which usually has the country’s most expensive gas — was about $6.44 that month, according to AAA.As we have written before, experts have said that U.S. presidents have little influence over gas prices, which are mainly affected by the global price of crude oil, a fossil fuel that is refined into gasoline.AbortionTrump claimed that before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, “They could kill the baby in the ninth month or after the baby was born. Now they won’t be able to do that.” As we wrote in 2019 when he made a similar claim, killing a baby is a homicide.The 1973 Roe opinion said the government can’t interfere with a right to an abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy. Once a fetus is viable outside the womb, the government could restrict or prohibit abortions — but there must be exceptions for the mother’s life and health, which meant both physical and mental health, the court clarified in a companion case.Trump also said that abortion rights supporters were in favor of abortions very late in a pregnancy or “after the baby is born.” As we wrote recently, in 2021 and 2022, Democrats introduced a bill that, similar to Roe, would set a viability threshold for state restrictions, permitting abortions to be prohibited after viability but with exceptions for risks to the life or health of the mother. The two political parties disagree on what the “health” exception means, with Republicans viewing it as a loophole.The Supreme Court overturned Roe on June 24, 2022, leaving the issue of regulating abortion to the states.In 2020, the vast majority of abortions — 93.1% — in the U.S. occurred in the first trimester, at or before 13 weeks of gestation, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Less than 1% were performed at or after 21 weeks. A full-term pregnancy is typically 38 to 42 weeks.Editor’s note: FactCheck.org does not accept advertising. We rely on grants and individual donations from people like you. Please consider a donation. Credit card donations may be made through our “Donate” page. If you prefer to give by check, send to: FactCheck.org, Annenberg Public Policy Center, P.O. Box 58100, Philadelphia, PA 19102. | 4da9f9793d2e7ede | 0 | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null | null |
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