Tag: Donald Trump

Trump to Ask for Sharp Increases in Military Spending, Officials Say

The following article by Glenn Thrush, Kate Kelly and Maggie Haberman was posted on the New York Times website February 26, 2017:

President Trump with the director of the Office of Management and Budget, Mick Mulvaney, left, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, right, at the White House last week. Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times

President Trump will instruct federal agencies on Monday to assemble a budget for the coming fiscal year that includes sharp increases in Defense Department spending and drastic enough cuts to domestic agencies that he can keep his promise to leave Social Security and Medicare alone, according to four senior administration officials.

The budget outline will be the first move in a campaign this week to reset the narrative of Mr. Trump’s turmoil-tossed White House.

A day before delivering a high-stakes address on Tuesday to a joint session of Congress, Mr. Trump will demand a budget with tens of billions of dollars in reductions to the Environmental Protection Agency and State Department, according to four senior administration officials with direct knowledge of the plan. Social safety net programs, aside from the big entitlement programs for retirees, would also be hit hard. Continue reading “Trump to Ask for Sharp Increases in Military Spending, Officials Say”

Top 10 Risks and Remedies for Trump’s Conflicts of Interest

The following article by Liz Kennedy and Danielle Root was posted on the Center for American Progress website February 24, 2017:

Overview

Trump’s corrupt conflicts of interest threaten America’s national security, economy, and democracy; citizens, Congress, and the courts have important tools to demand accountability and exercise oversight.

Introduction and summary

President Donald J. Trump’s dangerous, unprecedented, and unconstitutional business conflicts of interest pose grave risks to America’s interests at home and abroad. The full extent of Trump’s indebtedness and foreign entanglements remain unknown while he continues to hide his tax returns. Moreover, because his business and financial ties are largely undetermined there is every reason to fear that Trump will provide favors and special treatment to his business partners and that foreign states and businesses will have too much power over the Trump administration and its decisions. The public will rightly question whether Trump’s actions are made for the benefit of the American people or to further his own financial gains. Continue reading “Top 10 Risks and Remedies for Trump’s Conflicts of Interest”

The Three Most Dangerous Trump Lies

The following article was posted on the TrumpAccountable.org website February 27, 2017:

President Trump at a news conference in the East Room of the White House on Feb. 16, 2017.

Donald Trump’s affiliation with the truth throughout his presidential campaign, and his career in business, has been called into question repeatedly. And a recent piece in the Huffington Post claims that Trump’s administration has reached the unenviable “100 lie” mark faster than any previous administration.

Most of the lies that Trump or his representatives have told are exaggerations or overstatements and many, like his repeated claims about inauguration crowd size or how much golf he plays, are not directly relevant to policy or decisions that have an impact on Americans. We could argue that ANY dishonesty from elected officials is important to explore and address – and minor exaggerations or boastful claims have brought down previous politicians. But three of President Trump’s lies are of particular concern because they indicate specific weaknesses or policy issues that are important for the country. Continue reading “The Three Most Dangerous Trump Lies”

Today’s WorldView: An Act of American Terror in Trump’s Heartland

The following article by Ishaan Tharoor was in the February 27, 2017 Washington Post’s Today’s World View e-newsletter:

To most Americans, a shooting that took place last Wednesday will be remembered as just another incident of gun violence in a country where homicides are tragically commonplace and where far too many disturbed loners have ready access to firearms.

To many Indians, though, the murder of Srinivas Kuchibhotla in a suburban Kansas town was the harshest warning yet about the reality of President Trump’s America.

Kuchibhotla, an aviation systems engineer at satellite navigation company Garmin, was having an after-work drink with his friend and colleague Alok Madasani at their regular bar in Olathe, a town 20 miles southwest of Kansas City. The duo, Indian nationals who both received their masters degrees in the United States and were on valid visas, were confronted by 51-year-old Adam Purinton, who started hectoring them with ethnic slurs. Continue reading “Today’s WorldView: An Act of American Terror in Trump’s Heartland”

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”