Here Comes the Police State: New Laws Aim for Brutal Crackdown on Protest

The following article by Sarah Lazare was posted on the Alternet website February 24, 2017:

Draconian bills are advancing at state level under cover of Trump’s “law and order” platform.

The rise of right-wing populism in the United States—from the White House to state legislatures—has been met with public resistance on a stunning scale. Millions have taken to the streets, staged direct actions and flooded airports to resist a flurry of presidential decrees targeting undocumented, black, refugee, LGBTQ and poor communities. And long before Trump took the White House, the Black Lives Matter movement and indigenous water protectors at Standing Rock were leading the way with sustained mobilizations in the face of staggering repression.

Now, under cover of the Trump administration’s “law and order” platform, Republican lawmakers at the state level—often with the backing of police unions—are advancing a spate of bills aimed at crushing this groundswell. The proposed legislation would impose draconian penalties on protest organizers and participants, expanding local powers to put demonstrators in jail, seize their assets and further criminalize property destruction. Continue reading “Here Comes the Police State: New Laws Aim for Brutal Crackdown on Protest”

Trump And Russia: Is It Watergate Yet?

The following article by Joe Conason was posted on the National Memo website February 26, 2017:

As Donald Trump and his subordinates lash out wildly to suppress discussion of his presidential campaign’s alleged collusion with the Kremlin, they only fan intuitions of a truly monumental scandal. With their latest attempts to manipulate the Federal Bureau of Investigation and intimidate the Washington press corps, they are clumsily encouraging comparisons with Watergate — although as usual with this crew, it isn’t so simple to distinguish malevolence from incompetence.

The New York Times and CNN clearly struck a sensitive nerve with reports that the FBI is investigating multiple contacts last year between Russian officials and the Trump campaign. Whatever the nature of those contacts and officials, such stories fit neatly into the long-developing narrative of an illicit effort by Kremlin operatives to sway our presidential election on Trump’s behalf, through email hacking, fake news reports, hired internet trolls, and other means. Continue reading “Trump And Russia: Is It Watergate Yet?”

Trump to skip White House correspondents’ dinner: ‘No reason for him to go in and sit and pretend’

The following article by Amy B. Wang and Cleve R. Wootson, Jr., was posted on the Washington Post website February 26, 2017:

A timeline of President Trump’s battle with the media since
he took office on Jan. 20. (Thomas Johnson/The Washington Post)

President Trump will not attend the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, after a campaign and early tenure during which he has continually battled with the press.

Trump announced his decision on Twitter late Saturday afternoon. The dinner is scheduled for April 29. Continue reading “Trump to skip White House correspondents’ dinner: ‘No reason for him to go in and sit and pretend’”

When Trump, Cabinet diverge on foreign policy

The following article by Annie Linskey was posted on the Boston Glob website February 26, 2017:

Trump listened as Defense Secretary Jim Mattis spoke last month at the Pentagon.

President Trump triggered deep concern when he discussed the merits of seizing Iraqi oil during a speech at the CIA just after taking office. But a few weeks later, on Presidents’ Day, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis was in Baghdad assuring the Iraqis that the United States doesn’t take oil — it pays for it.

The exact same day, on a different continent, Vice President Mike Pence was massaging another one of Trump’s ideas, trying to calm Europeans meeting in Brussels by saying the United States is committed to the NATO alliance.

It was just one head-snapping day in the massive mop-up operation that Trump administration officials at many levels find themselves toiling to accomplish. The goal is to soothe world leaders who are trying to unlock the puzzle of when to take Trump at his word and when to believe the often more conciliatory statements of his surrogates.

It’s a question that voters grappled with during last year’s campaign: Does one take him seriously or literally? Or both? And since his inauguration, the world is in the same unsettling position. Continue reading “When Trump, Cabinet diverge on foreign policy”

Pro-Trump megadonor is part owner of Breitbart News empire, CEO reveals

The following post by Elise Viebeck and Matea Gold was posted on the Washington Post website February 24, 2017:

Conservative donor Rebekah Mercer has directed her family’s resources into an array of groups on the right. (Photo courtesy of the Media Research Center/Photo courtesy of the Media Research Center)

Breitbart News Network, the far-right media outlet that heralded President Trump’s rise and was once led by his top White House strategist, is owned in part by a wealthy conservative family that poured millions into propelling Trump into office, the company’s chief executive acknowledged Friday.

The site’s financial backing from the Mercers further cements the family’s status as some of the most influential financiers of the Trump era. The news comes as Breitbart has enjoyed a higher profile within the White House press corps.

The Mercers’ investment in Breitbart has been previously reported by The Washington Post and other news outlets, but the family’s role as partial owners of the organization has never been officially confirmed. Larry Solov, Breitbart’s president and CEO, shared the company’s ownership information with a panel of congressional journalists as part of a process to get Capitol Hill press credentials for Breitbart reporters.

Solov said that he is also an owner of the company. The largest share is owned by Susannah ­Breitbart, the widow of site founder Andrew Breitbart, who died in 2012. Continue reading “Pro-Trump megadonor is part owner of Breitbart News empire, CEO reveals”

Trump administration sought to enlist intelligence officials, key lawmakers to counter Russia stories

The following article by Greg Miller and Adam Entous was posted on the Washington Post website February 24, 2017:

National Security reporter Greg Miller explains why the Trump administration is
enlisting the help of intelligence officials and Members of Congress to counter
Russia stories.(Jorge Ribas, Ashleigh Joplin/The Washington Post)
The Trump administration has enlisted senior members of the intelligence community and Congress in efforts to counter news stories about Trump associates’ ties to Russia, a politically charged issue that has been under investigation by the FBI as well as lawmakers now defending the White House.Acting at the behest of the White House, the officials made calls to news organizations last week in attempts to challenge stories about alleged contacts between members of President Trump’s campaign team and Russian intelligence operatives, U.S. officials said. Continue reading “Trump administration sought to enlist intelligence officials, key lawmakers to counter Russia stories”

What America Has To Say About Donald Trump’s Ethics

The following article by Jonathan D. Salant of NJ.com was posted on the National Memo website February 24, 2017:

President Trump speaks on Monday before signing an executive order while surrounded by small business leaders in the White House. (Andrew Harrer / Sipa USA)

As lawmakers seek to force Donald Trump to release his income tax returns, a majority of Americans indicated they believed the president has done something illegal or unethical.

In a McClatchy-Marist survey asking about potential conflicts of interest between Trump’s business holdings and his duties as president, just 41 percent said he had done nothing wrong, while 53 percent said Trump has done something illegal or unethical.

Trump broke with decades of precedent and refused to release his income tax returns while running for president. He has continued to say he will make them public once tax audits are done.

Trump’s popularity ‘sinking like a rock’

Continue reading “What America Has To Say About Donald Trump’s Ethics”

In December, Spicer said barring media access is what a ‘dictatorship’ does. Today, he barred media access.

The following article by Philip Bump was posted on the Washington Post website February 24, 2017:

This post has been updated.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer barred reporters from several large media outlets from participating in a scheduled press briefing Friday. Two months ago, in a panel discussion, he insisted that open access for the media is “what makes a democracy a democracy versus a dictatorship.” Continue reading “In December, Spicer said barring media access is what a ‘dictatorship’ does. Today, he barred media access.”

Fact-checking Donald Trump at CPAC

The following article by Jon Greenberg, Angie Drobnic Holan and Miriam Valverde was posted on the PolitiFact website February 24, 2017:

President Donald Trump spoke to an enthusiastic crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference Friday, bashing the media, attacking Obamacare, and touting his campaign promises, especially on immigration.

Trump has a point about moving on immigration. Through a flurry of executive orders, Trump has cast a wide net for people who will become deportation priorities. He’s also authorized the construction of a border wall with Mexico. PolitiFact has rated some of his promises on immigration as In the Works. (Read a summary of action on Trump’s immigration promises.) Continue reading “Fact-checking Donald Trump at CPAC”