Tag: Donald Trump

The ‘Swamp’ Donald Trump Promised to ‘Drain’ is Growing Again

The following article by Emily Cadei was posted on the Newsweek article February 8, 2017:

Instead of draining the swamp, Trump might be the best thing that’s happened to lobbyists since expense accounts.

Al Mottur admits to not only counting his chickens before they hatched but putting out all the fixings for a fried chicken feast. The veteran Democratic lobbyist went into Election Day assuming Hillary Clinton would be America’s 45th president, and as a member of Clinton’s national finance committee who helped raise more than $1 million for her campaign, that would have been a victory not just for his party but also for his bottom line. “I was thinking, This is going to be great for my firm,” recalls Mottur, a senior partner at D.C. lobbying powerhouse Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber and Schreck, which represents such companies as Anheuser-Busch, FedEx and Comcast. Continue reading “The ‘Swamp’ Donald Trump Promised to ‘Drain’ is Growing Again”

Trump’s immigration order means bureaucrats have to decide who’s a “real” Christian

The following article by Elizabeth Shakman Hurd was posted on the Washington Post website February 8, 2017:

People protest President Trump’s travel ban order at Washington Dulles International Airport on Jan. 28. (Yeganeh Torbati/Reuters)

President Trump’s executive order on immigration has a clause that is supposed to protect religious minorities. Trump has made clear he has in mind primarily Christians from the Middle East. If implemented, individuals who can show evidence of being persecuted as Christian will qualify for a fast lane into the United States.

It would also mean that immigration officials would have to hone their theological skills — because they will be in charge of determining who belongs to what religion. Many commentators have noted the constitutional problems with administering a “religious test.” But the practical and theological problems are equally daunting.

Would U.S. definitions for “real” membership in each religion violate the Establishment Clause?

The order says that the United States will “prioritize refugee claims made by individuals on the basis of religious-based persecution, provided that the religion of the individual is a minority religion in the individual’s country of nationality.” Continue reading “Trump’s immigration order means bureaucrats have to decide who’s a “real” Christian”

Kellyanne Conway Throws Gutter Ball, Massacres Facts

The following article by Kurt Eichenwald was posted on the Newsweek website February 7, 2017:

Kellyanne Conway, a senior adviser to President Donald Trump, wants the press and the public to stop commenting on her citation of the fictitious “Bowling Green Massacre” to justify the travel ban from seven majority-Muslim countries.

No.

In fact, the most important piece of the Conway statement has been lost amid the ridicule and jaw-dropping disbelief that a White House official believed in a nonexistent mass slaughter and used it to justify an unprecedented policy. Conway’s full comment is one of the starkest revelations to date to explain the childish, dishonest, incompetent and authoritarian behavior of White House officials in communicating with the public, a reality that ultimately puts this administration at risk of self-destruction. Continue reading “Kellyanne Conway Throws Gutter Ball, Massacres Facts”

Joe Scarborough: Trump’s dangerous lie about Russia

The following commentary by Joe Scarborough was posted on the Washington Post website February 7, 2017:

(Don Emmert/Agence France-Presse; Natalia Kolesnikova/Getty Images)

President Trump’s claim that America is morally on parwith Russia’s corrupt dystopian regime was so historically ignorant that even timid Republicans felt compelled to speak out this week. Perhaps that is because remaining silent in the face of such a morally disorienting claim would make them look like fools. Vladimir Putin is, after all, the same ruthless autocrat who kills journalists and political rivals who cross his path. He is also the same man who called the Soviet Union’s collapse “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.”

The evil empire Putin admires says much about the tyrant our new president defends. Burning with resentments carried over from a fallen empire, Comrade Putin hopes to rebuild the U.S.S.R. one invasion at a time. And while Putin pursues that delusional dream, Trump should be reminded exactly what kind of world his new friend wants to create. Continue reading “Joe Scarborough: Trump’s dangerous lie about Russia”

Melissa McCarthy on SNL shows the power comedians have under a Trump presidency

The following article by Elahe Izadi was posted on the Washington Post website February 7, 2017:

At left, Melissa McCarthy as Sean Spicer on SNL (Will Heath/NBC); at right, Sean Spicer during a Jan. 31 briefing (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

No attempt to ridicule Donald Trump’s controversies — from his remarks about Mexicans to the “Access Hollywood” tape — could derail his successful road to the White House.

Trump acknowledged as much a year ago when he spoke about supporters so loyal that “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters.”

But that was candidate Trump. Now Trump is running the government as a president who cares very deeply about appearances — so much so that a “Saturday Night Live” sketch could affect how he does it. Continue reading “Melissa McCarthy on SNL shows the power comedians have under a Trump presidency”

Why Trump’s Nordstrom Tweet May Have Crossed An Ethical Line

The following article by Elizabeth Segran was posted on the Fast Company website February 8, 2017:

Once the official @POTUS account retweeted his criticism of its decision to drop Ivanka’s products, everything changed

U.S. President Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka walk to board Marine One at the White House in Washington, D.C., on February 1, 2017.
[Photo: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images]
After a week of major retailers dropping Ivanka Trump’s products, the #GrabYourWallet boycott made its biggest impact ever today when it prompted the president of the United States to respond with an angry tweet that may have crossed an ethical line, say government ethics experts.

This morning, just 20 minutes into a national security briefing in the Oval Office, President Trump went on Twitter to take a swing at Nordstrom, which announced last Thursday that it would no longer sell Ivanka Trump products: “My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person — always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!” Within seconds, the share price of the retailer, which attributed its decision to the brand’s poor performance, dipped for a few minutes before quickly recovering. Later, the official @POTUS account retweeted Trump’s tweet, a possible ethics violation which illustrates the conflicts of interest inherent in the real-estate mogul’s new role as the president. Continue reading “Why Trump’s Nordstrom Tweet May Have Crossed An Ethical Line”

Trump lashes out at Nordstrom in a tweet for dropping his daughter’s apparel line

The following article by Sarah Halzack was posted on the Washington Post website February 8, 2017:

In January, days before President Trump’s inauguration, his daughter Ivanka Trump declared that she’d be stepping away from her management role at the clothing and shoe brand that bears her name.

And yet, on Wednesday, the president lashed out on Twitter at department store Nordstrom over its decision to stop carrying Ivanka Trump products, saying his daughter “has been treated so unfairly” by the retailing giant. Continue reading “Trump lashes out at Nordstrom in a tweet for dropping his daughter’s apparel line”

Why ISIS, Al Qaeda, And Iran’s Mullahs All Love Donald Trump

The following article by Gene Lyons was posted on the National Memo website February 8, 2017:

Have Americans really become a nation of gullible cowards? Sometimes it looks that way. Take President Trump’s executive order banning travel from seven Middle Eastern and North African countries. If you think it has anything whatsoever to do with protecting against terrorist attacks, then you haven’t been paying attention.

The Trump administration’s policies are designed not to deal with real problems in the visible world, but to rile up partisan ignoramuses here in the USA. Also to stimulate nativism and fear of dark-skinned foreigners, and to make Democrats appear to be defending Muslims instead of the Constitution. Continue reading “Why ISIS, Al Qaeda, And Iran’s Mullahs All Love Donald Trump”