The following political cartoon was posted on the National Memo website February 27, 2017:
View the original post here.
Tag: Trump Administration
Nominee to be Navy secretary withdraws
Philip Bilden, President Trump’s pick for secretary of the Navy, is the
second nominee to withdraw his name for consideration to lead one of the biggest armed
services. Bildensaid ethics requirements would cause him “undue disruption and
materially adverse divestment of my family’s private financial interests.”
(Reuters)
Why mass deportations are costly and hurt the economy
The following article by Mark Humphery-Jenner was posted on the Conversation website February 27, 2017:
President Donald Trump has pledged to deport several million undocumented immigrants and recently set a plan in motion targeting those with criminal records (of any kind).
While the ethical issues with mass deportations have received lots of attention, the economics haven’t been explored as comprehensively. And the costs of mass deportations will likely be significant.
These include the impact on economic growth and the labor force, which have received some coverage, but there are several other factors that ought to be considered, such as the debts and dependents left behind by those deported and the costs of giving them the boot.
Undocumented immigrants and debt
To start with undocumented immigrants are able to amass debt in the U.S., and being deported makes it less likely they’ll honor it. This imposes risks on the financial system and on lenders in particular. Continue reading “Why mass deportations are costly and hurt the economy”
Did President Trump save 77,000 coal mining jobs?
The following article by Glenn Kessler was posted on the Washington Post website February 27, 2017:
“If we had not overturned this rule, we were looking at nearly 70,000 jobs across the country.”
— Unidentified participant in President Trump’s signing of H.J. Resolution 38, eliminating the Stream Protection Rule, Feb. 16, 2017
“I’m really pleased that we repealed a regulation that was going to be very, very damaging to my state. I went to the White House this week to see him sign. The repeal would have cost 77,000 jobs in the coal industry.”
— Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), interview on ABC’s “This Week,” Feb. 19 Continue reading “Did President Trump save 77,000 coal mining jobs?”
Trump’s $5 Trillion Attack On America’s Values And Reputation
The following article by @LOL was posted on the National Memo website February 27, 2017:
Donald Trump wants you terrified.
If you’re Muslim, he wants you to expect to be harassed every time you take a plane, even if you’re Muhammad Ali’s son. If you have family or friends who are documented, he wants you to think they can be snatched away at any time, even when seeking protection from a potential abuser. If you’re a legal immigrant, he wants you to know that if you’re shot and killed in cold blood, the president will not even bother to mourn you with a tweet.
This week, Adam Purinton reportedly shot Srinivas Kuchibhotla and Alok Madasani at a bar in Olathe, Kansas. Kuchibhotla died. Continue reading “Trump’s $5 Trillion Attack On America’s Values And Reputation”
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 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”
On Average, Trump’s Early Actions on Economy Cost Middle-Class Households $1,331
The following article by Molly Cain was posted on the Center for American Progress website February 27, 2017:
President Donald Trump’s major economic policy actions in his first 39 days form a concerning agenda that puts corporate profits ahead of everyday Americans. After just one month in office, President Trump has already endangered Americans’ retirement savings and access to expanded overtime pay and affordable mortgages. While President Trump has undermined the economic security of the middle class, he has also ensured that the wealthy have benefited by beginning to rollback regulations on the financial and energy industries. A new Center for American Progress Action Fund analysis found that President Trump’s early policy actions set the middle class on a path to lose nearly $189.5 billion over the next decade or, on average, $1,331 per middle-class household. Meanwhile, these same policies will provide Wall Street and Big Industry $106 billion over the same period.
Nearly $189.5 billion cost to the middle class
Trump’s executive order takes $150 billion over 10 years from middle-class retirees
One of President Trump’s first executive orders was aimed at eliminating the fiduciary rule. Also known as the conflicts of interest rule, the fiduciary rule protects Americans saving for retirement from self-dealing financial advisers who line their own pockets instead of acting in the best interest of their clients. According to a U.S. Department of Labor analysis, before the fiduciary rule, the underperformance associated with conflicts of interest—in the mutual funds segment alone—was expected drain $210 billion from American individual retirement accounts, or IRAs, over the next 10 years. Getting rid of the fiduciary rule might make financial advisers very happy, but it will cost retirees $210 billion over the next 10 years. Continue reading “On Average, Trump’s Early Actions on Economy Cost Middle-Class Households $1,331”
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”
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?”