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Donald Trump

Newsletter: Being Prepared To Turn Crisis To Our Advantage

February 18, 2017 Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, www.PopularResistance.org , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
By Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers for Popular Resistance. With the Trump administration floundering and the movement opposed to him expanding, we need to be prepared for a possible shock doctrine moment, whether intentional or not, that could be used to unify the country around an unpopular president and shut down political dissent. If a crisis occurs, we need to use it, not to unify behind the President, but to rapidly explain how the crisis is part of the failed government policies of both parties, that it is a systemic problem of which Trump is a symptom and that the crisis means the movement must expand. If we succeed we will advance our cause even in a crisis whether it is self-created, provoked or blow back. We will not only blunt the potential of a Reichstag moment but turn it to our advantage to serve transformation of the nation. If we are to succeed, we must start preparing now. Those who are prepared for crisis, do best when it occurs.

Planting Seed For Strikes In Trump Era

February 18, 2017 Deirdre Fulton, www.commondreams.org ,
By Deirdre Fulton for Common Dreams - Galvanized in response to the Trump administration's attacks on immigrants, women, the LGBTQ community, and the environment, Friday's action "amplifies a new chapter of nonviolent resistance ushered in over the last six weeks by calling for strikes that grow in number and power," the statement reads, pointing to other strike actions planned for March 8 and May 1, as well as "a heightening resistance throughout the summer." The #F17Strike, as it was being called, also came on the heels of Thursday's national "Day Without Immigrants," as well as more localized walk-out actions in Wisconsin and New York. And in a piece published this week at YES! Magazine, senior editor James Trimarco posited that "Feb. 17 is just the beginning." While "[i]t's not the American way for workers across industries to stage a one-day walkout to make a statement," as columnist Shirley Leung wrote in Friday's Boston Globe, she wondered: "Could that change in the Trump era?"

Trump Appeals To Military & Against Press And Courts

February 18, 2017 ,
By Barry Grey for WSWS - In an extraordinary appearance Monday at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, President Donald Trump dispensed with democratic protocol to deliver a political speech. He denounced the press and implicitly suggested the formation of a presidential-military alliance against the courts and the Constitution. In his brief remarks, Trump lavished praise on the Central Command and Special Forces Command troops that are based at MacDill. He began by thanking the military for its lopsided vote in his favor in last November’s election. “And I saw those numbers—and you like me and I like you,” he said. He continued: “And we’re going to be loading [MacDill] up with beautiful new planes and beautiful new equipment… We’re going to load you up.” He returned to this theme several times, stating at one point, “We will make a historic financial investment in the Armed Forces of the United States…”

Trump Will Use Every Weapon To Stamp Out Grassroots Resistance

February 18, 2017 Douglas Williams, www.theguardian.com , ,
By Douglas Williams for The Guardian - Pundits say Donald Trump is “undermining democracy”. But their concern is often just about elite institutions: the media, the judiciary, the electoral system. What is ignored is the effect that the Trump administration will have on the social movements, which serve as pillars of the resistance. If these fall, our democracy will be irreparably harmed. Democracy extends far beyond the ballot box – it includes the active participation of labor and racial justice movements in civil society. People tend to think that voting and electioneering are the sum total of democracy. It makes sense in a way; media influences public opinion, and the eyes of the media are trained on the horse-race aspects of American politics. But thinking this way misses the bigger picture. When we see Black Lives Matter rallying for racial equality, or when the Water Protectors at Standing Rock camp out for weeks to protect their water supply, that’s democracy.

Union Of Concerned Scientists Is Creating Way For Federal Scientists To Report Abuses

February 17, 2017 Nicholas Kusnetz, www.insideclimatenews.org ,
By Nicholas Kusnetz for Inside Climate News - Many of President Donald Trump's words and actions have federal scientists worried their work will be politicized or suppressed. Now, one advocacy group is responding with a step-by-step guide for scientists to securely share information about any foul play. The Union of Concerned Scientists, whose mission is to protect scientific integrity, has created a webpage for federal scientists to report abuses, with instructions on how to avoid detection or hacking. Trump has called climate change a hoax, and one of his administration's first moves was to remove pages from the White House and State Department websites that referred to the issue. The Trump administration has sent memos and directives to agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Park Service, that some employees reportedly interpreted as gag orders, though some of the directives were later reversed or disavowed.

Trump Plans To Double-Down On Mistake Of The War On Drugs

February 17, 2017 y Phillip Smith, www.alternet.org ,
By y Phillip Smith for AlterNet - In a sharp break with the Obama administration, which distanced itself from harsh anti-drug rhetoric and emphasized treatment for drug users over punishment, President Trump this week reverted to tough drug war oratory and backed it up with a series of executive orders he said are "designed to restore safety in America." "We're going to stop the drugs from pouring in," Trump told law enforcement professionals of the Major Cities Chiefs Association on Wednesday. "We're going to stop those drugs from poisoning our youth, from poisoning our people. We're going to be ruthless in that fight. We have no choice. And we're going to take that fight to the drug cartels and work to liberate our communities from their terrible grip of violence." Trump also lambasted the Obama administration for one its signature achievements in criminal justice reform, opening the prison doors for more than 1,700 drug war prisoners...

Boycott’s Work, Make CEO’s Nervous

February 17, 2017 Jennifer Kaplan, www.bloomberg.com ,
By Jennifer Kaplan for Bloomberg - The president himself urged consumers to boycott brands while on the campaign trail, including Macy’s Inc. and Oreo cookies. More recently, he upbraided Nordstrom Inc. for dropping the product line of daughter Ivanka, opening another front in the boycott wars. Coca-Cola Co., PepsiCo Inc., Starbucks Corp., Nike Inc., Uber Technologies Inc., Under Armour Inc. and Kellogg Co. are just some of the companies that have faced the wrath of infuriated consumers on both sides in the past year. Their reactions have included direct challenges to the president’s policies, attempts to stay above the fray by appearing nonpolitical -- and silence. “It’s more important than ever for companies to understand who they are and the value that they contribute to society, to their employees, to their communities and to their consumers,” Spring said. “Because those values need to be the platform upon which they decide whether or not to respond to current events.”

We Will Not Pay: Withholding Taxes To Fight Trump

February 17, 2017 Joanna Walters, www.theguardian.com , ,
By Joanna Walters for The Guardian - The new president has driven some to make a statement with their bank accounts – despite fears such a protest could send demonstrators to jail. Andrew Newman always pays his taxes, even if he hates what the government is doing with them. But not this year. For him, Donald Trumpis the dealbreaker. He’ll pay his city and state taxes but will refuse to pay federal income tax as a cry of civil disobedience against the president and his new administration. Newman is not alone. A nascent movement has been detected to revive the popularity of tax resistance – last seen en masse in America during the Vietnam war but which has been, sporadically, a tradition in the US and beyond going back many centuries. “My tax money will be going towards putting up a wall on the Mexican border instead of helping sick people.

Zapatistas Demand ‘Grassroots Resistance’ Against Trump’s Walls

February 17, 2017 Staff, www.telesurtv.net , ,
By Staff of Tele Sur - “We call for grassroots movements to resist, resist and rebel against the persecution, the arrests and deportations." The Zapatista Army of National Liberation, EZLN, called on all of its members and supporters to rally behind the immigrants currently facing arrest, deportation and human rights abuses at the hands of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration. “We call for grassroots movements to resist, resist and rebel against the persecution, the arrests and deportations ... Because every human being has the right to live in freedom and dignity in the place he finds the best for himself, and has the right to fight to stay there,” said the communique, calling resistance an act of "duty.” Signed by Subcomandante Moises and Subcomandante Galeano, the document reinforced the idea that migrants and refugees are “not alone” and that the Zapatistas, "even with our limited possibilities," fully support their struggle.

Trump-Netanyahu Meeting Lays Ground Or One-State Solution

February 17, 2017 Ali Abunimah, www.electronicintifada.net , , ,
By Ali Abunimah for Electronic Antifada - US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a joint press conference at the White House on Wednesday morning, before going into their much-anticipated bilateral meeting. Asked about whether the US was still wedded to a two-state solution, Trump broke with longstanding orthodoxy. “I am looking at two states or one state, and I like the one that both parties like,” the president said. On settlements, Trump reaffirmed to Netanyahu, “I’d like to see you hold back on settlements for a little bit.” Advocates of a two-state solution, including the previous US administration and European governments, see it as the only way to rescue Israel as a racist state that ensures its Jewish demographic majority through a battery of racist laws – a situation they refer to as “peace.”

Trump Taps Ex-Labor Board Member Acosta To Be Labor Secretary

February 17, 2017 Robert Lafolla and Steve Holland, www.reuters.com , ,
By Robert Lafolla and Steve Holland for Reuters - In response to President Trump’s nomination of Alexander Acosta for labor secretary, Fight For $15 published the statement of Aiesha Meadows McLaurin, a Burger King worker from Chicago, IL: “Workers in the Fight for $15 just proved that when we stand together, even fast-food CEOs and presidents can’t ignore us. Working Americans need a labor secretary who will have our backs, not one who will hold us back. We look forward to learning more about Mr. Acosta’s record as the confirmation process unfolds. If confirmed, we will hold Mr. Acosta accountable as labor secretary and do whatever it takes to make sure that our voices are heard loud and clear in Washington. No matter who becomes labor secretary, we won’t back down for one second in our fight. We’ll keep taking to the streets, standing up and speaking out until we win $15 and a union rights for all.”

Containing Trump

February 16, 2017 Jonathan Rauch, wwwtheatlantic.com
By Jonathan Rauch for The Atlantic - He may well try to govern as an authoritarian. Whether he succeeds depends less on what he does than on how civil society responds. Whatever his intellectual and political gifts, Richard Nixon, the 37th president of the United States, was a cunning and dangerous criminal. For him, issuing illegal orders was literally just another day at the office. One such day, in July of 1971 (nearly a year before the Watergate break-in), found him ordering his chief of staff, H. R. Haldeman, to execute a burglary. The president was exercised about politically damaging documents that he imagined were possessed by scholars at the Brookings Institution, a respected Washington think tank, where I now work. “We’re up against an enemy, a conspiracy,” Nixon railed, banging on the desk for emphasis. “They’re using any means. We are going to use any means. Is that clear? Did they get the Brookings Institute raided last night?”

Would America’s First Populists Recognize Trump’s Populism?

February 16, 2017 Caleb Maupin, www.dandelionsalad.wordpress.com ,
By Caleb Maupin for Dandelion Salad - This isn’t from a Donald Trump speech. This isn’t from an alt-right rant against globalism. The above text comes from “Why Communism? Plain Talk on Vital Questions,” published in 1933 by Moissaye J. Olgin, a leader of the New York City branch of the Communist Party. The Communist Party and the unemployed councils it directed involved hundreds of thousands of working class people, black and white, both native-born and immigrants. Together they stopped evictions. Later in the decade, they organized industrial unions in a wave of sit-down strikes. With slogans like “Fight or Starve!” they pushed the Roosevelt administration to create many key reforms, such as Social Security, unemployment insurance, food assistance, and the Works Progress Administration. Olgin and the Communist Party’s methods of agitation were not new in 1933.

The Con

February 16, 2017 Ben Mallicote, www.benmallicote.com ,
By Ben Mallicote for The Con - You voted for Trump because Clinton was going to be in Wall Street’s pocket. Trump wants to repeal Dodd-Frank and eliminate the Fiduciary Rule, letting Wall Street return to its pre-2008 ways. You voted for Trump because of Clinton’s emails. The Trump administration is running its own private email server. You voted for Trump because you thought the Clinton Foundation was “pay for play.” Trump has refused to wall off his businesses from his administration, and personally profits from payments from foreign governments. You voted for Trump because of Clinton’s role in Benghazi. Trump ordered the Yemen raid without adequate intel, and tweeted about “FAKE NEWS” while Americans died as a result of his carelessness.

How Trump Regime Was Manufactured By War Inside Deep State

February 15, 2017 Nafeez Ahmed, www.informationclearinghouse.info ,
By Nafeez Ahmed for Information Clearing House - A systemic crisis in the global Deep System has driven the violent radicalization of a Deep State faction. President Donald Trump is not fighting a war on the establishment: he’s fighting a war to protect the establishment from itself, and the rest of us. At first glance, this isn’t obvious. Among his first actions upon taking office, Trump vetoed the Trans Pacific Partnership, the controversial free trade agreement which critics rightly said would lead to US job losses while giving transnational corporations massive power over national state policies on health, education and other issues. Trump further plans to ditch the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the EU and US, which would have diluted key state regulations on the activities of transnational corporates on issues like food safety...
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