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Trump Administration

Tillerson On Latin American Tour Calling For Regime Change In Venezuela

February 6, 2018 Staff, Telesurtv.net , , , , ,
Representatives of more than 50 social and political organizations rejected the U.S. secretary of state's visit to Mexico, where he was declared persona non grata. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's first tour of Latin America got off to a rocky start on Friday with U.S. ally Mexico distancing itself from his suggestion that Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro could be toppled by his own military. Tillerson ruffled feathers across the region on the eve of his five-nation tour with comments in Texas defending 19th-century U.S. foreign policy in Latin America and suggesting the Venezuelan army could manage "a peaceful transition" from Maduro, Reuters reports. Both Maduro and his defense minister condemned the comments on Friday, and even Mexico – no friend of the Venezuelan government...

Trump’s Drone Kill Rate 80 Times Greater Than Under Bush

February 6, 2018 By Whitney Webb, Mintpressnews.com , ,
During the 2016 election, Donald Trump – quite successfully – managed to convince a sizable portion of the electorate that he would take a much more anti-interventionist stance, in terms of U.S. military entanglements abroad, than would his contender Hillary Clinton. Yet, throughout his first year as president, such differences have been few and far between. In particular, it has been Trump’s dangerous expansion of the drone war that has authoritatively destroyed any illusion that Trump would genuinely put “America first” — and put an end to dangerous military operations abroad that only serve to exacerbate the horrendously bungled War on Terror. For instance, after gutting the already lax regulations on drone strikes and giving the CIA free rein to kill whomever they choose...

The Democrats’ Half-Assed Answer To The Trump Tax Cuts

February 5, 2018 Max B. Sawicky, Jacobinmag.com , , , ,
The Democratic Party brain trust is floating new ideas on taxes. Their economics are questionable and their politics are worse. From the heart of Barack Obama’s exiled brain trust comes Jason Furman, former head of Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers, with a proposal in the Wall Street Journal to “repeal and replace” the recent Trump/Republican tax cuts. How do his ideas compare to alternatives that might appeal to readers of this journal — not to mention the vast legions of Berniecrats and The Resistance. Furman’s analysis provides a useful window into the concerns of financial elites. To be fair, he takes aim at certain sources of tax relief for the rich, including those related to capital gains and “pass-through” entities (a form of business organization often used by medium-to-large-sized companies).

Liberal Totalitarianism And The Trump Diversion

February 3, 2018 Ajamu Baraka, Dissidentvoice.org ,
The ongoing political circus in the capital of the world’s most powerful empire opens almost daily  with a new act each day showcasing an even more bizarre and more revealing display of the internal rot of a culture and a political system in decline. The day before Donald Trump’s first State of the Union address, the Russia-gate drama took an unexpected and dangerous turn with the vote by the House Intelligence Committee to release a now classified memo that alleges that senior members of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) may have misled the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA court) in order to secure a warrant to engage in what Republicans assert is a politically motivated effort that spied on the Trump campaign before he won the 2016 election and attempted to undermine his presidency.

Trump’s Financial Arsonists

February 2, 2018 By Nomi Prins, Tomdispatch.com , ,
There’s been lots of fire and fury around Washington lately, including a brief government shutdown. In Donald Trump’s White House, you can hardly keep up with the ongoing brouhahas from North Korea to Robert Mueller’s Russian investigation, while it already feels like ages since the celebratory mood over the vast corporate tax cuts Congress passed last year. But don’t be fooled: none of that is as important as what’s missing from the picture.  Like a disease, in the nation’s capital it’s often what you can’t see that will, in the end, hurt you most. Amid a roaring stock market and a planet of upbeat CEOs, few are even thinking about the havoc that a multi-trillion-dollar financial system gone rogue could inflict upon global stability.  But watch out.

As Trump Unfurls Infrastructure Plan, Iowa Bill Seeks To Criminalize Pipeline Protests

February 2, 2018 By Steve Horn, Desmogblog.com , , , , ,
The Iowa Senate has advanced a bill which critics say could lead to the criminalization of pipeline protests, which are being cast as “terrorist activities.” Dakota Access pipeline owner Energy Transfer Partners and other companies have lobbied for the bill, Senate Study Bill 3062, which opens up the possibility of prison time and a hefty fine for those who commit “sabotage” of critical infrastructure, such as oil and gas pipelines. This bill, carrying a criminal punishment of up to 25 years in prison and $100,000 in fines, resembles the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act, a “model” bill recently passed by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). That ALECbill, intended as a template for state and federal legislation, was based on Oklahoma's HB 1123...

Trump Infrastructure Plan: Pay Tolls And Privatized Highways

January 31, 2018 By Steven Rosenfeld, Mintpressnews.com , , ,
As President Donald Trump delivers his first State of the Union address Tuesday, pay close attention to his next big priority—an infrastructure plan—which, over time, could eclipse the trillion-dollar giveaway to the rich in the GOP’s just-passed tax plan. And track the response from Democrats, who will have to decide if they will back a plan drafted by privatization proponents, or if Democrats will represent the public and say no to years of paying off infrastructure bonds sold by Wall Street—tax free to investors—but eating up future tax revenues while imposing new user fees like highway tolls. “[The GOP-passed] tax cuts have slowly opened the door to Wall Street, construction giants, and global water companies, who see enormous potential for profits,” wrote Donald Cohen, president of In the Public Interest, an anti-privatization advocacy group.

The Useful Idiocy Of Donald Trump

January 30, 2018 By Chris Hedges, Truthdig.com ,
The problem with Donald Trump is not that he is imbecilic and inept—it is that he has surrendered total power to the oligarchic and military elites. They get what they want. They do what they want. Although the president is a one-man wrecking crew aimed at democratic norms and institutions, although he has turned the United States into a laughingstock around the globe, our national crisis is embodied not in Trump but the corporate state’s now unfettered pillage. Trump, who has no inclination or ability to govern, has handed the machinery of government over to the bankers, corporate executives, right-wing think tanks, intelligence chiefs and generals. They are eradicating the few regulations and laws that inhibited a naked kleptocracy.

Guantánamo Attorneys Condemn Trump’s Planned Exec Order To Keep Prison Open

January 29, 2018 Staff, Ccrjustice.org , ,
News of Trump’s forthcoming executive order on Guantánamo is confirmation of what his words and actions have already shown: that he intends to keep the prison open and keep everyone in it imprisoned. As some men enter their 17th year of detention without charge, and five continue to languish while being cleared for release, the only thing Trump has to say or do about it is issue an order further entrenching the prison and effectively sanctioning detainees’ continued punishment. His defiance in the face of national and international calls for Guantánamo's closure is, of course, rooted in his executive hubris, his anti-Muslim animus, and his disregard for law, under which these detentions are without question unprecedented.

Trump & Fed: Shadow Bankers Deepening Control Of US Economy

January 26, 2018 Staff, Telesurtv.net , ,
Trump's imminent appointments of Fed chairs, vice-chairs and governors may prove the first step in the total capture of the US central bank by the shadow banker element in the US economy. What are sometimes referred to as 'shadow bankers' have been running the economy and drafting US domestic economic policy since Trump took office. 'Shadow banks' include investment banks, private equity firms, hedge funds, insurance companies, finance companies, and asset management companies. They exist outside the traditional commercial banking system (for example: Chase, Bank of America, Wells) and are virtually unregulated. Globally, they now control more investible liquid assets than do the world's commercial banks.

Thousands Protest At World Economic Forum In Davos

January 24, 2018 Ashitha Nagesh, Metro.co.uk   , ,
Thousands of people took to the streets of Zurich to protest against Donald Trump‘s presence at Davos. The US president has planned to attend the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Switzerland this week. In response, anti-capitalist activists called for protests under the slogans ‘Trump Not Welcome!’ and ‘Smash WEF!’ Trump is due to speak on Friday at the WEF meeting in the Alpine town of Davos, an annual meeting of global business and political leaders. That march went off peacefully, unlike violent anti-WEF protests in several Swiss cities that were held in the early 2000s. More than 4,000 Swiss soldiers have been deployed to guard DAvos, alongside 1,000 police officers. A no-fly zone was also put in place to protect delegates.

Anti-Trump Protest In Haiti Temporarily Shuts US Embassy

January 24, 2018 Staff, AP.org , , , ,
The U.S. Embassy in the Haitian capital closed Monday as demonstrators gathered outside to protest President Donald Trump. More than a 1,000 people marched toward the embassy. They were prevented from reaching the gates by barricades set up by Haitian police. Officers in helmets and carrying shields eventually fired several rounds of tear gas after some protesters threw rocks at them outside the heavily fortified compound. Many Haitians were angered over reported disparaging remarks about Haiti by Trump and his administration's decision to end a program that gave temporary legal residency to about 60,000 Haitians in the United States. The embassy said it would be closed for the afternoon and directed employees in a statement to keep away during the protest. It was expected to reopen Tuesday.

Dangers Of Focusing All Our Attention On Donald Trump

January 24, 2018 Jerome Roos, Roarmag.org , , ,
It’s been a year since Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States of America — and we’re already exhausted. Exhausted by the endless stream of sexist and racist bigotry pouring out of his hideous face and Twitter feed. Exhausted by the rapid succession of 24-hour scandals, one outrage sweeping another from the headlines before the immensity of the previous one has even begun to properly sink in. Exhausted by the immature personal grudges and individual fallings-out that are constantly played out in public amidst the gratuitous threats of nuclear annihilation. Exhausted by the gas-lighting narcissism, the power-hungry egotism and the self-aggrandizing vanity of a multi-billionaire businessman who has never known anything but public adulation for his inherited wealth.

FOIA Lawsuits Surge In Trump Administration’s First Year

January 20, 2018 Staff, Foiaproject.org , ,
Since the new administration took office at the end of January 2017, there has been a sharp jump in the number of lawsuits filed by individuals and organizations seeking court orders to obtain federal government records.[1] Suits brought by the news media and nonprofit advocacy organizations have fueled a significant part of this rise. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), requesters can file suit when information they are seeking is withheld and they have exhausted administrative appeals, or when the agency fails to even respond in a timely manner. Lawsuits this past fiscal year rose an astonishing 26 percent, and are continuing to climb. FOIA court cases are now up over 70 percent from just five years ago.

Congress Votes To Move Forward With Surveillance Under Trump

January 18, 2018 By Alex Emmons, Theintercept.com , , ,
A CRITICAL MASS of Senate Democrats voted with Republicans on Tuesday to shut down any further debate on a bill that strengthens the government’s spying powers. The bill would renew a key surveillance authority for the National Security Agency until 2023 and consolidate the FBI’s power to search Americans’ digital communications without a warrant. The motion, which passed 60-38, virtually guarantees that the final bill will pass likely later this week and quashes any opportunity to debate whether protections should be added. Eighteen Democrats — including Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who had previously proposed an amendment to restrict the FBI’s surveillance authority — voted in support of the motion. They were joined by 41 Republicans and one independent, Angus King, giving the pro-surveillance bloc the supermajority needed to push the bill forward. Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Dan Sullivan, R-Ala., did not vote.
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