Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

Billionaire Activist: AOC Is The Centrist, Not Howard Schultz | The Beat With Ari Melber | MSNBC | 01/30/19 | 10:29

What The Left Gets Wrong About Bernie Sanders And Elizabeth Warren
HP | Zach Carter | 01/31/19

Socialism is having a big moment in America. After a surge in popularity during the financial crisis of 2008, the long-verboten political label at last lost its toxicity after Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential run and the election of democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) in 2018. Among self-identified Democrats, socialism is now more popular than capitalism, reflecting a trend that has been evident among young voters for years.

Bankers and billionaires are, of course, desperate to reverse this political tide. Eyeing the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, the CEO of one giant bank recently told Politico that the party's nominee "can't be Warren and it can't be Sanders." To plutocrat Michael Bloomberg, Sanders is a "demagogue" preaching "unreason," while Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) will transform the United States into a "non-capitalistic" system where "people are starving to death," like "Venezuela."

... For once, the big-brain intellectuals have it wrong, and the delusional, selfish plutocrats are right. Whatever Warren and Sanders say to establish their political brands, the two senators do in fact represent a very similar way of thinking about politics. That's why billionaires hate them both. ... Read more

Should Billionaires Even Exist?
HP | Emily Peck | 01/30/19

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren believe some Americans have too much money, and they're not alone.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) proposed placing a 2 percent tax on wealth over $50 million and 3 percent on assets over $1 billion. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said she wants to increase the marginal tax rate on those earning more than $10 million a year. ... Read more

Chris Christie: Trump 'Blew It' With The Shutdown | Stephen Colbert | 01/30/19 | 8:30

Deep Freeze Envelops Midwest, Even Stops The Mail
HP | AP | 01/30/19

The bitter cold is the result of a split in the polar vortex that allowed temperatures to plunge much further south than normal.

A deadly arctic deep freeze enveloped the Midwest with record-breaking temperatures Wednesday, triggering widespread closures of schools and businesses, and prompting the U.S. Postal Service to take the rare step of suspending mail delivery to a wide swath of the region.

Officials throughout the region were focused on protecting vulnerable people from the cold , including the homeless, seniors and those living in substandard housing. Some buses were turned into mobile warming shelters to help the homeless in Chicago, where temperatures plunged to minus 19 degrees (negative 28 degrees Celsius) early Wednesday, breaking the previous record low for the day set in 1966. ... Read more

Blistering Australian heat is shattering records and killing wildlife
Axios | Andrew Freedman | 01/25/19

Australia is in the grips of what has become a historic, unrelenting series of extreme heat events that have broken all-time temperature records.

The big picture: The heat waves, which have touched every state and territory in the country, began in November and have extended through January. With temperatures exceeding 120°F (48.8°C) in some locations, this summer may go down in history as Australia's hottest on record. In addition, January is likely to be the nation's hottest month on record.

By the numbers: The heat intensified this week in parts of Australia, threatening the country's all-time record high temperature of 123.3°F (50.7°C). According to Weather Underground meteorologist Bob Henson, at least 28 locations in Australia set all-time record highs on Thursday. ... Read more

Donald Trump and the Yankee Plot to Overthrow the Venezuelan Government
TheIntercept | author | 01/30/19

The White House is openly plotting to bring down the government of Nicolas Maduro in Caracas. It is being openly promoted as a campaign to steal Venezuelan oil for the benefit of U.S. corporations, and some powerful Democrats are cheering Trump on and joining the conspiracy. Elliott Abrams, one of the premiere butchers of the U.S. dirty wars in Central America in the 1980s, has been named the point man in the effort to bring regime change to Venezuela. This week on Intercepted: Investigative journalist Allan Nairn talks about the history of U.S. crimes in Central America, the time he told Abrams, on national television, he should stand trial for war crimes, and the threat of U.S. military action in Venezuela. Corporate media coverage of Venezuela has been atrocious and largely uniform with the role of successive U.S. administrations in destabilizing the country almost never highlighted. Former Hugo Chávez adviser Eva Golinger and journalist and educator Roberto Lovato discuss how Venezuela was thrust into economic crisis, who is responsible, and what Washington really wants. ... Read more
Intercepted Podcast: Donald Trump and the Yankee Plot to Overthrow the Ve... | TheIntercept | 01/30/19 | 1hr

Polar Vortex Clobbers Midwest With Record-Breaking Cold
HP | AP | 01/29/19

Wind chills in northern Illinois could fall to -55 degrees by Wednesday.

Extremely cold, record-breaking temperatures are settling across parts of the Midwest after a powerful snowstorm pounded the region overnight Monday, and forecasters are describing the subzero weather on the way as potentially life-threatening.

Minneapolis Public Schools announced there would be no classes through Wednesday, when the region will experience frigidly low temperatures not seen in a quarter century.

"You're talking about frostbite and hypothermia issues very quickly, like in a matter of minutes, maybe seconds," said Brian Hurley, a meteorologist with the Weather Prediction Center. ... Read more
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'I expect to be acquitted and vindicated': Roger Stone on Mueller indictment | This WeekABC | 01/28/19 | 13:08

'Roasted And Toasted': MSNBC Host Says Trump's Biggest Backers Have Turned On Him
HP | Ed Mazza | 01/29/19

Ari Melber says the president may have finally lied to the wrong people.

MSNBC host Ari Melber said President Donald Trump may have finally burned the wrong people with his lies: his supporters.

"They are blowing up in Trump's face," Melber said, pointing to criticism he's been taking from figures on the right, including Fox Business host Lou Dobbs, who has been a staunch supporter. Until now. ... Read more
Watch Trump's Journey: Wall To Cave To 'Perjury Trap House' | The Beat With Ari Melber | MSNBC | 01/28/19 | 7:45

Key Mueller Witness Outs Stone For Attempted Wikileaks Collusion | The Beat With Ari Melber | MSNBC | 01/28/19 | 9:09

Watch: Ari Melber's Interview With 4 Key Mueller Witnesses | The Beat With Ari Melber | MSNBC | 01/23/19 | 39:22

Cliff Sims, author of 'Team of Vipers', Helped Curate Trump's Enemies List | Stephen Colbert | 01/29/19 | 8:46

Midwest, Northeast Brace For 'Deadly' Sub-Zero Freeze
HP | Reuters | 01/28/19

Temperatures in Chicago could drop to an astounding -25 degrees by Tuesday night, the National Weather Service said.

A blast of super-cold arctic air is bringing dangerous sub-zero cold to the U.S. Midwest and Northeast as the system cartwheels through the Dakotas into Chicago, Illinois, and on to New England.

By Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning, Chicago will hit an astounding 20-to-25 below-zero Farhenheit, the National Weather Service said. "This is dangerous, deadly cold," said Richard Bann, meteorologist with the NWS's Weather Prediction Center in College Park Maryland. "Exposed skin loses heat fast, like you don't even know." ... Read more
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Newly Independent Howard Schultz, former Starbucks CEO, Depicts Democrats As Health Care Radicals
HP | Maxwell Strachan | 01/27/19

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz kicked off a potential 2020 presidential run on Sunday by ripping his former party, depicting the Democrats' health care proposals as unrealistic and financially unfeasible.

"Every American deserves the right to have access to quality health care," Schultz told "60 Minutes" correspondent Scott Pelley. "But what the Democrats are proposing is something that is as false as the wall ? and that is free health care for all, which the country cannot afford." ... Read more

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz says he's considering independent run for president | TYT | 01/27/19 | 13:53

What's next on the wall showdown
Axios | Jonathan Swan | 01/28/19

President Trump has set a Feb. 15 deadline for a deal to get his wall money, and he's signaled he'll declare a national emergency or use other executive powers if he can't get the money through Congress.

The big picture: White House officials I've spoken to claim that House Democrats have privately signaled they're willing to fund a border barrier. (They won't say who.) But even these same White House officials aren't trying to spin that the "conference" to negotiate border security will yield a breakthrough. As the NYT's Jonathan Martin put it: "This is not, to put it mildly, a build-the-wall crew." ... Read more

Collusion: How Central Bankers Rigged the World by Nomi Prins

In this searing exposé, former Wall Street insider Nomi Prins shows how the 2007-2008 financial crisis turbo-boosted the influence of central bankers and triggered a massive shift in the world order.

Central banks and international institutions like the IMF have overstepped their traditional mandates by directing the flow of epic sums of fabricated money without any checks or balances. Meanwhile, the open door between private and central banking has ensured endless opportunities for market manipulation and asset bubbles--with government support.

Through on-the-ground reporting, Prins reveals how five regions and their central banks reshaped economics and geopolitics. She discloses how Mexico navigated its relationship with the US while striving for independence and how Brazil led the BRICS countries to challenge the US dollar's hegemony. She explains how China's retaliation against the Fed's supremacy is aiding its ongoing ascent as a global superpower and how Japan is negotiating the power shift from the West to the East. And she illustrates how the European response to the financial crisis fueled instability that manifests itself in everything from rising populism to the shocking Brexit vote.

Packed with tantalizing details about the elite players orchestrating the world economy--from Janet Yellen and Mario Draghi to Ben Bernanke and Christine Lagarde--Collusion takes the reader inside the most discreet conversations at exclusive retreats like Jackson Hole and Davos. A work of meticulous reporting and bracing analysis, Collusion will change the way we understand the new world of international finance.

NOMI PRINS How to survive and develop during the currency crisis | 10/14/18 | 28:16

Trump Associate Roger Stone Indicted In Mueller Investigation
HP | Ryan J. Reilly and Lee Moran | 01/25/19

The longtime Republican political operative was in touch with WikiLeaks and Russian hackers during the 2016 campaign.

Roger Stone, an eccentric longtime Republican strategist with a tattoo of Richard Nixon's face on his back, was arrested early Friday on criminal charges that include obstruction of an official proceeding, false statements and witness tampering.

A federal grand jury impaneled by special counsel Robert Mueller charged Stone in a seven-count indictment. FBI agents arrested him at his home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Stone was to appear in court later Friday. ... Read more

Law Versus Power: Our Global Fight for Human Rights by Wolfgang Kaleck

Wolfgang Kaleck, best known as Edward Snowden's lawyer, is a human rights activist extraordinaire. For more than two decades, he has travelled the world to fight alongside those suffering injustice at the hands of powerful players, people who, prior to the arrival of Kaleck and his colleagues, often enjoyed impunity.

Kaleck's work has taken him to Buenos Aires, to stand with the mothers of youngsters "disappeared" under the Argentinian military dictatorship; to exiled Syrian communities, where he assembled the case against torture mandated by those high up in the Assad government; to Central America, where he collaborated with those pursuing the Guatemalan military for its massacres of indigenous people; to New York, to partner with the Center for Constitutional Rights in taking action against Donald Rumsfeld for the "enhanced interrogation techniques" he greenlighted after 9/11; and to Moscow, where he represents the whistle-blower Edward Snowden, "a likeable man whose talents go far beyond his technical skills."

In recounting his involvement in such cases, Kaleck gives full voice to those he is representing, emphasizing the courage and persistence they bring to the global search for justice. The result is a book crammed with compelling and vivid stories, underscoring the notion that, while the world is often a terrible place, universal standards of human rights can prevail when people are willing to struggle for them.

Is the US Orchestrating a coup in Venezuela? | TRNN | 01/22/19 | 27:06

The Crisis In Venezuela, Explained | TYT | 01/24/19 | 19:33

Sphere of Influence: how American Libertarians are Remaking Latin American Politics
TheIntercept | Lee Fang | 08/09/17

FOR ALEJANDRO CHAFUEN, the gathering this spring at the Brick Hotel in Buenos Aires was as much a homecoming as it was a victory lap. Chafuen, a lanky Argentine-American, had spent his adult life working to undermine left-wing social movements and governments in South and Central America, and boost a business-friendly version of libertarianism instead.

It was a lonely battle for decades, but not lately. Chafuen was among friends at the 2017 Latin America Liberty Forum. The international meeting of libertarian activists was sponsored by the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, a leadership-training nonprofit now known simply as the Atlas Network, which Chafuen has led since 1991. At the Brick Hotel, Chafuen was reveling in recent victories; his years of work were starting to pay off, thanks to political and economic circumstances -- but also because of the network of activists Chafuen has been working for so long to cultivate.

Over the past 10 years, leftist governments have used "money to buy votes, to redistribute," said Chafuen, seated comfortably in the lobby. But the recent drop in commodity prices, coupled with corruption scandals, has given an opportunity for Atlas Network groups to spring into action. "When there is an opening, you have a crisis, and there is some demand for change, you have people who are trained to push for certain policies," Chafuen noted, paraphrasing the late Milton Friedman. "And in our case, we tend to favor to private solutions to public problems."

Chafuen pointed to numerous Atlas-affiliated leaders now in the spotlight: ministers in the new conservative government in Argentina, senators in Bolivia, and the leaders of the Free Brazil Movement that took down Dilma Rousseff's presidency, where Chafuen's network sprang to life before his very eyes. ... Read more

'Folded Like A Cheap Suit': Twitter Users Taunt Trump For Being 'Outplayed' By Pelosi
HP | Ed Mazza | 01/24/19

President Donald Trump on Wednesday night announced he would not deliver the State of the Union address on Jan. 29 as originally planned, and his critics on social media are calling it a win for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

Pelosi had earlier this month asked that he postpone the speech due to the ongoing government shutdown. On Wednesday, Trump said he would not.

"It would be so very sad for our Country if the State of the Union were not delivered on time, on schedule, and very importantly, on location!" he said in a statement. ... Read more

Billionaires COWER At Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Tax Proposal | TYT | 01/23/19 | 15:46

With Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Americans Finally have a Politician Who Agrees with Them About Taxes
TheIntercept | Jon Schwarz | 01/21/19

Here's what Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said that wound everyone up: The U.S. should tax income over $10 million per year at a top rate of 60 or 70 percent.

Republicans responded by shamelessly lying about what this meant, pretending that Ocasio-Cortez was advocating a tax rate of 70 percent on all income. Some older Democrats, such as House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, adopted the standard Democratic tactic of cowering in fear before a deceptive Republican onslaught, like abused dogs.

The hullabaloo was understandable: Ocasio-Cortez's forthright advocacy demonstrated that American politics, against the odds, can sometimes be about what Americans want. After the "60 Minutes" episode aired, The Hill commissioned a poll that found that 59 percent of registered voters support raising the top marginal tax rate to 70 percent. The idea, The Hill wrote, even receives "a surprising amount of support among Republican voters. ... 45 percent of GOP voters say they favor it." ...

*****Monetizing climate change
Axios | Amy Harder | 01/24/19

The storylines dominating climate change news are usually doom and gloom, but corporate America sees some new ways to integrate a warmer world into its business models.

Driving the news: That conclusion was gleaned from disclosures from more than 7,000 companies worldwide (1,800 in the U.S.) that were collected by CDP, a London-based nonprofit that asks companies to report their environmental impact.

Giuliani's Media Blitz Draws Ire Of Trump And Some Allies
HP | Jonathan Lemire and Eric Tucker | 01/22/19

The president reportedly told confidants that Giuliani had "changed the headlines" for the worse.

Rudy Giuliani's latest media blitz, which was filled with a dizzying array of misstatements and hurried clarifications, agitated President Donald Trump and some of his allies, who have raised the possibility that the outspoken presidential lawyer be at least temporarily sidelined from televised interviews.

Trump was frustrated with Giuliani, according to three White House officials and Republicans close to the White House who were not authorized to speak publicly about private conversations. The president told advisers that he felt his lawyer had obscured what he believed was a public relations victory: the special counsel's rare public statement disputing portions of a BuzzFeed News story that Trump instructed his former attorney, Michael Cohen, to lie before Congress.... Read more

A "go big" idea to end the shutdown
Axios | Jonathan Swan | 01/23/19/span>

A new immigration idea has been circulating over the past 24 hours at senior levels inside the White House and on Capitol Hill: Give a path to green cards to the 700,000 current DACA recipients, three sources familiar with the conversations tell Axios.

The state of play: Republican senators, including James Lankford of Oklahoma, have advocated for this idea. And Jared Kushner has relayed the idea to his colleagues in the White House as a possible way to break the congressional deadlock. ... Read more

'Feel like I'm going to strangle you': Shutdown breaks Congress' spirit
Politico | Burgess Everett | 01/17/19

A week of setbacks to end the shutdown has left lawmakers in a dark mood.

A dismal mood has descended on Capitol Hill as the shutdown concludes its 27th day. The House speaker and the president are at war. A bipartisan Senate push to reopen the government failed for a second consecutive week. And no shutdown talks are even planned between party leaders.

"I feel like I'm going to strangle you," quipped one senator who's tried in vain to find a breakthrough when a reporter asked about their state of mind.

That lawmaker was joking, probably, but the vibes in the Capitol are funereal at best. And with most members headed home for a long weekend, the partial shutdown is essentially guaranteed to enter into its second month. It's an unheard-of impasse even in a capital that's seen debt crises, blunt budget cuts and scores of unprecedented political conflicts over the past decade. ... Read more

Team of Vipers: My 500 Extraordinary Days in the Trump White House by Cliff Sims

After standing at Donald Trump's side on Election Night, Cliff Sims joined him in the West Wing as Special Assistant to the President and Director of White House Message Strategy.

He soon found himself pulled into the President's inner circle as a confidante, an errand boy, an advisor, a punching bag, and a friend. Sometimes all in the same conversation.

As a result, Sims gained unprecedented access to the President, sitting in on private meetings with key Congressional officials, world leaders, and top White House advisors. He saw how Trump handled the challenges of the office, and he learned from Trump himself how he saw the world.

For five hundred days, Sims also witnessed first-hand the infighting and leaking, the anger, joy, and recriminations. He had a role in some of the President's biggest successes, and he shared the blame for some of his administration's worst disasters. He gained key, often surprising insights into the players of the Trump West Wing, from Jared Kushner and John Kelly to Steve Bannon and Kellyanne Conway.

He even helped Trump craft his enemies list, knowing who was loyal and who was not.

And he took notes. Hundreds of pages of notes. In real-time.

Sims stood with the President in the eye of the storm raging around him, and now he tells the story that no one else has written?because no one else could. The story of what it was really like in the West Wing as a member of the President's team. The story of power and palace intrigue, backstabbing and bold victories, as well as painful moral compromises, occasionally with yourself.

With Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Americans Finally have a Politician Who Agrees with Them About Taxes
TheIntercept | Jon Schwarz | 01/21/19

Here's what Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said that wound everyone up: The U.S. should tax income over $10 million per year at a top rate of 60 or 70 percent.

Republicans responded by shamelessly lying about what this meant, pretending that Ocasio-Cortez was advocating a tax rate of 70 percent on all income. Some older Democrats, such as House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, adopted the standard Democratic tactic of cowering in fear before a deceptive Republican onslaught, like abused dogs.

The hullabaloo was understandable: Ocasio-Cortez's forthright advocacy demonstrated that American politics, against the odds, can sometimes be about what Americans want. After the "60 Minutes" episode aired, The Hill commissioned a poll that found that 59 percent of registered voters support raising the top marginal tax rate to 70 percent. The idea, The Hill wrote, even receives "a surprising amount of support among Republican voters. ... 45 percent of GOP voters say they favor it." ... Read more

Rep. Ocasio-Cortez And Stephen Eat Ben & Jerry's | Stephen Colbert | 01/22/19 | 8:10

Rudy Giuliani's Afraid Lying For Trump 'Will Be On My Gravestone'
HP | Nick Visser | 01/22/19

Trump's attorney also claims he didn't believe he'd said anything untruthful and had "a sense of ethics that is as high as anybody you can imagine."

dy Giuliani said he's worried his defense of President Donald Trump could affect his decades-long legacy in politics but still feels his client is one of the "most unfairly" treated people in modern history.

"I am afraid it will be on my gravestone. 'Rudy Giuliani: He lied for Trump.'" the former New York City mayor told The New Yorker's Isaac Chotiner. "Somehow, I don't think that will be it. But, if it is, so what do I care? I'll be dead. I figure I can explain it to St. Peter. He will be on my side." ... Read more

The real Trump bombshell
Axios | Jim VandeHei | 01/22/19

It's easy to lose sight of what truly matters in this Russia investigation. And, to be fair, only Robert Mueller truly knows. But lost in the buzz around the BuzzFeed story, was a bombshell floated by Trump's own lawyer, Rudy Giuliani.

What he said: In remarks that he yesterday tried to walk back as "hypothetical," Giuliani admitted Trump's team may have been working on -- and updating him on -- a potential Trump Tower in Moscow all the way up to Election Day. ...

Undeclared North Korea: The Sino-ri Missile Operating Base and Strategic Force Facilities
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beyondparallel.csis.org | Joseph Bermudez, Victor Cha and Lisa Collins | 01/21/19

Located 212 kilometers north of the DMZ, Sino-ri is an operational missile base that houses a regiment-sized unit equipped with Nodong-1/-2 medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBM). It is one of the oldest of approximately 20 undeclared missile operating bases and is reported to serve as the headquarters of the Strategic Rocket Forces Nodong missile brigade. It may have also played a role in development of the newest generation Pukkuksong-2 (KN-15) ballistic missile first tested or unveiled by North Korea on February 12, 2017. ... Read more

The world has been doing little to reduce its debt
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 01/22/19

Last year, the world's debt rose to $244 trillion, or 318% of global GDP, the Institute of International Finance (IIF) found.

Backdrop: The two largest contributors to the rise in debt have been emerging market corporate entities and developed market governments. ... Read more

Trump administration separated thousands more migrant children at US border than previously known
independent.co.uk | Clark Mindock | 01/18/19

"More children over a longer period of time" were separated from their family at the border than were previously known, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) inspector general told reporters on Thursday. "How many more children were separated is unknown, by us and the HHS."

The new report illustrates the impact of the Trump administration's policy of deterrence through separation, which was heavily criticised last year after media reports documented the methods used to separate asylum-seeking families after arrived on the US border seeking refuge. ... Read more

Trump's Treatment Of Migrant Children Is MONSTROUS | TYT | 01/19/19 | 6:02

2020 presidential election: Track which candidates are running
Axios | staff | 01/21/19

2 stark stats as the global elite descend on Davos
Axios | staff | 01/21/19

1. Wealth held by the world's billionaires has grown from $3.4 trillion in 2009, right after the meltdown, to $8.9 trillion in 2017. (UBS and PwC Billionaires Insights via Bloomberg)
2. The 3.8 billion people who make up the world's poorest half saw their wealth decline by 11% last year. (Oxfam, which works to alleviate poverty, via AP)

The circular firing squad: Mueller targets turn on each other
Politico | Darren Samuelsohn | 01/21/19

Rudy Giuliani sent an unmistakable message Wednesday night: It's everyone for themselves. During a CNN interview, President Donald Trump's personal lawyer blurted out that the only person he knows about who didn't collude with Russia was Trump himself. Although Giuliani tried to walk back his comments on Thursday, the remarks put the sprawling web of people caught up in special counsel Robert Mueller's probe on notice: No one is coming to save you.

The Team Trump infighting has been a prosecutor's dream for Mueller, opening up an ever-widening window into the behind-the-scenes workings of a rookie politician whose campaign has been under investigation for years. The special counsel and federal prosecutors have already benefited from the internal sniping, flipping Trump's former lawyer, national security adviser and campaign chairman. ... Read more

Exclusive: The making of Trump's Enemies List
Axios | Jonathan Swan, Mike Allen | 01/18/19

President Trump was frustrated about leaks -- specifically leaks attributed to "White House officials" -- that were critical of him.

Behind the scenes: Cliff Sims, a young White House communications aide who had bonded with Trump during the campaign, slipped through the private dining room and was ushered into the private study, just off the Oval Office.

As recounted in Sims' memoir -- "Team of Vipers: My 500 Extraordinary Days in the Trump White House," out Jan. 29 from Thomas Dunne Books ... Read more

Team of Vipers: My 500 Extraordinary Days in the Trump White House by Cliff Sims

After standing at Donald Trump's side on Election Night, Cliff Sims joined him in the West Wing as Special Assistant to the President and Director of White House Message Strategy.

He soon found himself pulled into the President's inner circle as a confidante, an errand boy, an advisor, a punching bag, and a friend. Sometimes all in the same conversation.

As a result, Sims gained unprecedented access to the President, sitting in on private meetings with key Congressional officials, world leaders, and top White House advisors. He saw how Trump handled the challenges of the office, and he learned from Trump himself how he saw the world.

For five hundred days, Sims also witnessed first-hand the infighting and leaking, the anger, joy, and recriminations. He had a role in some of the President's biggest successes, and he shared the blame for some of his administration's worst disasters. He gained key, often surprising insights into the players of the Trump West Wing, from Jared Kushner and John Kelly to Steve Bannon and Kellyanne Conway.

He even helped Trump craft his enemies list, knowing who was loyal and who was not.

And he took notes. Hundreds of pages of notes. In real-time.

Sims stood with the President in the eye of the storm raging around him, and now he tells the story that no one else has written?because no one else could. The story of what it was really like in the West Wing as a member of the President's team. The story of power and palace intrigue, backstabbing and bold victories, as well as painful moral compromises, occasionally with yourself.

Brexit is giving us a grim preview of gridlock gone worse
Axios | Dave Lawler | 01/18/19

American readers are no strangers to the notion of a hopelessly divided government or the inevitable result: gridlock. But what if gridlock isn't an option and consensus is required on an issue of profound consequence?

The big picture: We're finding out now in the U.K., and it ain't pretty.

Axios' Shane Savitsky writes that bitter rifts between and within the U.K.'s major political parties have made consensus elusive, or even impossible: ... Read more

What we learned from the BuzzFeed News report that Trump told Cohen to lie to Congress
Vox.com & buzzfeednews.com | Andrew Prokop | 01/18/19

A bombshell new report claims that Donald Trump "personally instructed" his then-attorney Michael Cohen to lie to Congress in 2017 -- perhaps the strongest indication yet that the president may have criminally tried to obstruct justice in connection with the Russia scandal.

The report comes from Jason Leopold and Anthony Cormier of BuzzFeed News, and it claims that Trump "directed" Cohen to lie about talks to build a Trump Tower Moscow. The story also claims that Mueller has substantial evidence and testimony (beyond just Cohen's word) to prove it, though it does not lay out what specifically this evidence indicates.

If true -- and it's worth being cautious about that, as with any anonymously sourced new report -- it could be a game changer. ... Read more

How Trump has changed America in two years
TheGuardian | Julian Borger | 01/18/19

If there has been one defining trait in the foreign policy of the Trump era, it is confusion -- not only in the frequent gaps between the paths taken by the president and his own administration, but also in the morass of contradictions and U-turns in his own impulses.

Trump has insisted on bringing back US troops from Syria and Afghanistan, but has at times shocked his advisers with a bellicosity, towards Iran in particular, that risks starting new wars.

While demonising the government in Tehran, Trump has decided not to directly contest Iranian influence in Syria with US troops. He threatened "fire and fury" against North Korea, but has since claimed to have "fallen in love" with Kim Jong-un, although the young dictator has yet to show any inclination to dismantle his nuclear arsenal. ... Read more

What the fight over Trump's border wall is really about
Axios | Stef W. Kight | 01/17/19

Here's what gets lost in the fight: this wouldn't be the first time we ever built border barriers or beefed up security. There's already fencing along as much as 690 miles of the border between the U.S. and Mexico, and the number of border agents has almost tripled in the past two decades.

Why it matters: But that still leaves more than half of the almost 2,000-mile border uncovered, and there are gaps and dilapidated fencing in the barriers that are in place. The fight that has shut down the government is basically about 234 miles of new border wall that President Trump wants, according to the Trump administration's latest request. ... Read more
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A Nation of Nations: A Great American Immigration Story by Tom Gjelten

In the years since the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, the foreign-born population of the United States has tripled. Americans today are vastly more diverse than ever. They look different, speak different languages, practice different religions, eat different foods, and enjoy different cultures.

In 1950, Fairfax County, Virginia, was ninety percent white, ten percent African-American, with a little more than one hundred families who were "other." Currently the Anglo white population is less than fifty percent, and there are families of Asian, African, Middle Eastern, and Latin American origin living all over the county. "In A Nation of Nations, National Public Radio correspondent Tom Gjelten brings these changes to life" (The Wall Street Journal), following a few immigrants to Fairfax County over recent decades as they gradually "Americanize." Hailing from Korea, Bolivia, and Libya, the families included illustrate common immigrant themes: friction between minorities, economic competition and entrepreneurship, and racial and cultural stereotyping.

It's been half a century since the Immigration and Nationality Act changed the landscape of America, and no book has assessed the impact or importance of this law as A Nation of Nations. With these "powerful human stories...Gjelten has produced a compelling and informative account of the impact of the 1965 reforms, one that is indispensable reading at a time when anti-immigrant demagoguery has again found its way onto the main stage of political discourse"

New Study Concludes Greenland Ice Sheet Is Melting Even In Winter
TRNN | Dimitri Lascaris | 01/17/19

Dr. Neil Fraser explains that warm water below the surface enters Greenland's fjords in winter-time

As the world hurdles toward potentially catastrophic global warming, the scientific community has become increasingly concerned about the world's largest ice sheets and the growing danger that their melting will cause devastating sea level rise. Of particular concern to scientists is the melting of the Greenland ice sheet. Scientists estimate that it contains enough water to raise global sea levels by an average of about six meters, or twenty feet. This would obviously render numerous major coastal cities largely uninhabitable and precipitate massive flows of desperate climate refugees. Now, a new study has revealed what many would have thought unthinkable until now, that parts of the massive Greenland ice sheet are melting, even in the frigid Arctic winter. ... Read more
New Study Concludes Greenland Ice Sheet Is Melting Even In Winter | TRNN | 01/17/19 | 9:12

Trump's virtual reality presidency
Axios | Jonathan Swan | 01/17/19

One of the hardest things about reporting on President Trump is his tendency to propose wild ideas out loud and then repeat them before coming to his senses or getting talked off the ledge.

The big picture: The media, us very much included, break news on controversial ideas that never happen, leaving all of us to wonder: Was this a real idea killed by exposing it, or a POTUS brain blip? It's the virtual reality dimension of this presidency. ...

Ex-Trump aide Gary Cohn calls shutdown 'completely wrong'
Politico | Matthew Choi | 01/17/19

The shutdown, which entered its 27th day Thursday and is the longest in history, shows no sign of ending soon as Democrats and the White House remain at an impasse over granting Trump more than $5 billion for a wall on the southern border. While Trump called the wall necessary for national security, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called it "immoral," leading to a standoff that has furloughed thousands of federal workers and threatened basic public infrastructure.

"I don't understand what the outcome is here, and I don't understand where we're going with it," Cohn said in the interview. "I'm confused as to what the White House's strategy is on this a little bit." He added the furloughing of thousands of federal workers "makes absolutely no sense whatsoever." ... Read more

New U.S. Oil And Gas Drilling To Unleash 1,000 Coal Plants' Worth Of Pollution By 2050
HP | Alexander C. Kaufman | 01/16/19

The great American fracking boom threatens to undermine efforts to avoid climate catastrophe in this century.

Amid mounting calls to phase out fossil fuels in the face of rapidly worsening climate change, the United States is ramping up oil and gas drilling faster than any other country, threatening to add 1,000 coal plants' worth of planet-warming gases by the middle of the century, according to a report released Wednesday.

By 2030, the U.S. is on track to produce 60 percent of the world's new oil and gas supply, an expansion at least four times larger than in any other country. By 2050, the country's newly tapped reserves are projected to spew 120 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

That would make it nearly impossible to keep global warming within the 2.3 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial averages, beyond which United Nations scientists forecast climate change to be catastrophic, with upward of $54 trillion in damages. ... Read more

But then, there is always Tar Sands!!
Click to zoom in
Tar Sands is a messy job

Trump's war on science: how the US is putting politics above evidence
TheGuardian | author | date

Experts say the administration is blatantly dismantling proven programs, and the consequences could be dire

Donald Trump's administration is cutting programs scientists say are proven to protect Americans, from pollution safeguards to teen pregnancy prevention and healthier school lunches, with effects that could last for years.

Experts who have worked in the federal government under Republicans and Democrats say both have sometimes put politics ahead of science but none have done so as blatantly as Trump. And they warn the consequences could continue long into the future.

"It's as egregious as I've ever seen it, starting from the very top with the president just denying the existence of science, manipulating the system on behalf of special interests," said the former surgeon general Richard Carmona, who testified to Congress that the George W Bush administration pushed him to weaken or suppress public health findings. ... Read more

How the White House is prepping for Democrats' onslaught
Axios | Jonathan Swan | 01/16/19

Despite President Trump's lack of personal interest in the planning, the White House Counsel's Office is now moving fast to prepare for the twin threats of Robert Mueller and the new Democratic House majority.

The big picture: These threats dwarf anything that any president has faced since Bill Clinton. There's a surge of internal action after a slow start: Planning for Democratic oversight only began in earnest at the senior level in November.

Much of the mid-level White House staff remains oblivious to what's going on behind the scenes. But the new White House Counsel, Pat Cipollone, has impressed the officials he's dealt with and Republican legal eminences I have spoken to.

- A senior White House official said Cipollone has added 17 attorneys since coming on board after the midterms. ... Read more

2020 vision: Women rule
Axios | Mike Allen, Alexi McCammond | 01/15/19

Out of the gate, Democratic women are swarming the 2020 presidential race -- outnumbering and outmaneuvering men with early announcements.

What's happening: Sen. Elizabeth Warren started the trend, followed by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii. In coming days, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York will continue the trend. Sen. Kamala Harris of California will soon after cement the trend. ... Read more

Antarctica is losing ice 6 times faster than in 1980s
Axios | Andrew Freedman | 01/15/19

Antarctica is shedding ice at an increasingly rapid rate, potentially imperiling coastlines around the world as sea levels increase in response, a new study finds.

Why it matters: Antarctica is already contributing a growing amount to sea level rise, the study found, and things could get much worse. ...

1. From 1979 to 1990, the average annual ice mass loss rate was 40 billion metric tons per year.
2. This jumped to 252 billion metric tons per year, between 2009 to 2017.

'Acting' in name only: Mulvaney staffs up West Wing
Politico | Nancy Cook | 01/11/19

Although Mick Mulvaney is technically only an "acting" chief of staff, he's still quickly reshaping the West Wing in his own image.

"By keeping the 'acting' title, he gives himself an out in case things go south," said a Republican close to the White House. "He can say he was only the acting chief, if his relationship with the president sours in six months. Then, he won’t be fired." Essentially, Mulvaney has become an "acting" chief of staff in name only.

Essentially, Mulvaney has become an "acting" chief of staff in name only. Mulvaney recently hired Rob Blair, an associate director of national security programs at the Office of Management and Budget, as the White House's new senior adviser to the chief, according to one administration official and the Republican close to the White House. Blair will join four other budget agency veterans who moved into the West Wing in late December, including the new principal deputy-chief-of-staff Emma Doyle. ... Read more

Unthinkable
TheAtlantic | Jeffrey Goldberg | current

50 Moments That Define an Improbable Presidency

Trump's Weekend Jeanine Pirro Interview Baffles White House Aides
HP | AP/Darlene Superville | 01/14/19

The president called in to the Fox News show amid a shutdown stalemate and new Russia headlines.

Trump surprised his aides by deciding, with just a few hours' notice, to call in to Jeanine Pirro's show on Fox News on Saturday night to push back against coverage of his presidency on multiple fronts, particularly published reports about his approach toward Russia.

Even then, the president avoided directly answering when Pirro asked whether he currently is or has ever worked for Russia. The question came after The New York Times reported that law enforcement officials began investigating, in 2017, whether Trump had been working on behalf of Russia against U.S. interests. The newspaper said the investigation came after the president's firing of FBI Director James Comey. ... Read more

Full interview: President Trump responds to Russian asset allegations, border updates | FoxNews | 01/12/19 | 21:28

BREAKING President Trump News Today 1/13/2019 | BREAKING CNN State of The Union Jan 13, 2019 | 01/13/19 | 42:33

Most Americans Hold Trump Responsible For Government Shutdown, New Polls Show
HP | Ariel Edwards-Levy | 01/13/19

Most Americans hold President Donald Trump responsible for the partial government shutdown, according to a slate of just-released surveys, including the fourth wave of HuffPost/YouGov's shutdown tracking poll.

The share of Americans who regard the shutdown as "very serious" now stands at a new high of 50 percent, the HuffPost/YouGov survey finds, up from 29 percent in an initial survey taken just before Christmas. ... Read more

Trump Is Actually Taking Steps To Secure Wall Funding Through A National Emergency
HP | Lydia O'Connor | 01/10/19

Insiders told both The Washington Post and CNN that Trump is laying the groundwork for this controversial move.

With no end in sight to the government shutdown, President Donald Trump's administration is reportedly laying the groundwork to declare a national emergency to access funds for his much-debated wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Sources familiar with the preparations told The Washington Post and CNN that Trump is eyeing billions of unspent dollars from the Defense Department's disaster recovery and military construction coffers to build the wall ? a project for which Democrats have refused to approve funding and that Trump is unwilling to bend on. ... Read more

In '04, President Donald Trump Said To 'Go Through' Concrete Wall | 01/10/19 | 1:27

Proof of Collusion: How Trump Betrayed America by Seth Abramson

For the first time, the full, explosive record of the unthinkable: how a US president compromised American foreign policy in exchange for the promise of future business and covert election assistance.

Looking back at this moment in history, historians will ask if Americans knew they were living through the first case of criminal conspiracy between an American presidential candidate turned commander in chief and a geopolitical enemy. The answer might be: it was hard to see the whole picture. The stories coming in from around the globe have often seemed fantastical: clandestine meetings in foreign capitals, secret recordings in a Moscow hotel, Kremlin agents infiltrating the Trump inner circle...

Seth Abramson has tracked every one of these far-flung reports and now in, Proof of Collusion, he finally gives us a record of the unthinkable--a president compromising American foreign policy in exchange for the promise of future business and covert election assistance. The attorney, professor, and former criminal investigator has used his exacting legal mind and forensic acumen to compile, organize, and analyze every piece of the Trump-Russia story. His conclusion is clear: the case for collusion is staring us in the face. Drawing from American and European news outlets, he takes readers through the Trump-Russia scandal chronologically, putting the developments in context and showing how they connect. His extraordinary march through all the public evidence includes: ...

Proof of Collusion, Attorney Seth Abramson analyzes Trump and Russia from every angle | Salon Talks | current | 25:33

'Never been more depressed': Trump kills Graham effort to end shutdown
Politico | Burgess Everett | 01/10/19

By BURGESS EVERETT 01/10/2019 02:01 PM EST Updated 01/10/2019 06:30 PM EST Share on Facebook Share on Twitter President Donald Trump has rejected a plan proposed by a bloc of Senate Republicans who had hoped to break an impasse over the government shutdown, leaving Congress and the White House with little obvious way out of the extended battle over Trump's border wall.

On the 20th day of the shutdown, the GOP group tried to jump start bipartisan talks before Trump declares a national emergency to get his wall. But the president rejected their idea to allow congressional committees to sort out his border wall request while the government reopened, deeming the idea likely to leave him with nothing to show for the shutdown.

Vice President Mike Pence and acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney had been consulting with senators about the matter on Thursday. Pence and Mulvaney took the idea to the president, who shot it down, according to multiple people directly involved in the talks. While the congressional committees could still take up Trump's border wall plan, the president opposes the idea of opening the government before serious wall negotiations have begun, the people said. He told Senate Republicans he believes he is winning the fight and will not sign any stopgap bills at this point. ... Read more

All aboard the Flat Earth cruise -- just don't tell them about nautical navigation
TheGuatdian | author | date

The cruise, organized by the Flat Earth International Conference, promises to be a lovely time. Flat earthers -- who include the rapper B.o.B. and reality television person Tila Tequila -- will be able to enjoy restaurants, swimming pools and perhaps even an artificial surf wave.

There's just one problem for those seeking to celebrate the flatness of the Earth. The navigational systems cruise ships, and other vessels, use rely on the fact that the Earth is not flat: theoretically puncturing the beliefs of the flat Earth crowd. ... Read more

Rod Rosenstein To Leave DOJ Once New Attorney General Confirmed: Reports
HP | Liza Hearon | 01/09/19

Rosenstein, who appointed special counsel Robert Mueller, reportedly will depart as soon as next month.

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who has been a target of criticism by President Donald Trump over his appointment of Robert Mueller to lead the investigation into Russian interference in the election, plans to leave his post in the coming weeks, according to reports.

Rosenstein, a career prosecutor, will leave the Department of Justice shortly after Trump's pick for attorney general, William Barr, is confirmed by the Senate, ABC News first reported, citing "multiple sources familiar with his plans." CNN and CBS News also reported Rosenstein's planned departure. ... Read more

A new paradox for Mr. Disruption
Axios | Steve LeVine | 01/10/19

In "The Prosperity Paradox," Harvard professor Clay Christensen and two co-authors seek to unravel why, despite decades of aid amounting to a cumulative $4.3 trillion, many poor nations remain impoverished. In terms of income per capita, at least 20 of these countries are worse off after the assistance.

Quick take: What wealthy countries are chronically doing is attacking only the outward signs of poverty -- bad water, poor roads, disease. They should stop. ... Read more

The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty by Clayton M. Christensen, Efosa Ojomo, Karen Dillon

Global poverty is one of the world's most vexing problems. For decades, we've assumed smart, well-intentioned people will eventually be able to change the economic trajectory of poor countries. From education to healthcare, infrastructure to eradicating corruption, too many solutions rely on trial and error. Essentially, the plan is often to identify areas that need help, flood them with resources, and hope to see change over time.

But hope is not an effective strategy.

Clayton M. Christensen and his co-authors reveal a paradox at the heart of our approach to solving poverty. While noble, our current solutions are not producing consistent results, and in some cases, have exacerbated the problem. At least twenty countries that have received billions of dollars' worth of aid are poorer now.

Applying the rigorous and theory-driven analysis he is known for, Christensen suggests a better way. The right kind of innovation not only builds companies--but also builds countries. The Prosperity Paradox identifies the limits of common economic development models, which tend to be top-down efforts, and offers a new framework for economic growth based on entrepreneurship and market-creating innovation. Christensen, Ojomo, and Dillon use successful examples from America's own economic development, including Ford, Eastman Kodak, and Singer Sewing Machines, and shows how similar models have worked in other regions such as Japan, South Korea, Nigeria, Rwanda, India, Argentina, and Mexico

In '04, President Donald Trump Said To 'Go Through' Concrete Walls | 01/10/19 | 0:46

What's The Matter With the Democratic Party? Just Watch Pelosi and Schumer Respond to Trump's Wall Speech.
TheIntercept | Briahna Gray | 01/09/19

In under 10 minutes, he set up a clear, if familiar, argument: There is a crisis at the border. It threatens American security and depresses wages. The drugs brought across the border kill hundreds of Americans each week, and the immigrants themselves have committed thousands of crimes. All are equally guilty -- children are merely "pawns," not people. The wall will stop this tragedy, and the only thing preventing the wall from going up is Democrats, who opportunistically supported a barrier prior to Trump's presidency, but object to it now in bad faith.

Trump's spiel, as is typical of the president, was a jumble of half-truths, misrepresentations, and outright lies. And anticipating that, the Democratic leadership, in the form of Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York and Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, made Trump's dishonesty and hatefulness the theme of their response. ... Read more

Bernie Sanders Responds to Trump's Oval Office Address | TRNN | 01/08/19 | 11:02

President Trump addresses government shutdown and Democratic Response | ABC News | 01/08/19 | 42:48

Donald Trump fuels immigration fears in TV address on 'border crisis'
TheGuardian | David Smith | 01/09/19

"Law enforcement professionals have requested $5.7bn for a physical barrier," he said. "At the request of Democrats, it will be a steel barrier rather than a concrete wall. This barrier is absolutely critical to border security. It's also what our professionals at the border want and need.

"This is just common sense. The border wall would very quickly pay for itself. The cost of illegal drugs exceeds $500bn a year, vastly more than the $5.7bn we have requested from Congress. The wall will also be paid for indirectly by the great new trade deal we have made with Mexico."

Factcheckers have poured scorn on Trump's assertion that the trade deal, a successor to Nafta, means that Mexico is paying for the wall. The Mexican government has always refused to do so. And following the address, critics were quick to point out that Democrats are against money for a border wall -- whether steel or concrete. ... Read more

Fact-Checking Trump's Misleading And Outright False Claims From His Border Address
HP | Nick Visser, Carla Herreria, and Saba Hamedy | 01/09/19

President Donald Trump addressed the nation live from the Oval Office on Tuesday night in an attempt to drum up support for his border wall. But the 10-minute address, carried on every major television network in America, was rife with double-speak, cherry-picked statistics and outright falsehoods.

The firings and fury The biggest Trump resignations and firings so far
TheGuardian | Sam Morris and Francisco Navas | 01/08/19

The Trump presidency will be remembered for many things, but some of those who served it may prove tricky to recall. The former reality TV star has hired and fired staffers faster than he could ever jettison contestants on The Apprentice. High-profile appointees to august posts traditionally filled for years have struggled to stay for more than a couple of months -- sometimes even days -- before being fired or resigning.

By our count, Trump has overseen 44 high-profile departures in a blizzard of indecision and turmoil that would be hard for even the sharpest White House-watcher to recall. So here's a living document, designed to help you keep pace. ... Read more

All Major Networks To Air Trump's Address On The Border Wall
HP | Nick Visser | 01/07/19

The address on Tuesday will come in the midst of a partial government shutdown that has stretched into its third week.

ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC all confirmed Monday they would carry the president's speech at 9 p.m. Eastern time after Trump said he planned to address the country "on the humanitarian and national security crisis at our southern border." Some cable networks, including CNN and MSNBC, which cater to smaller audiences, said they plan to air the speech as well.

Shortly after the network confirmations, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) released a joint statement calling for Democrats to be given "equal airtime" to address the country. "Now that the television networks have decided to air the President's address, which if his past statements are any indication will be full of malice and misinformation, Democrats must immediately be given equal airtime," the pair said. ... Read more

Trump's new urgency on solving the shutdown
Axios | Jonathan Swan | 01/08/19

White House officials are increasingly concerned that the impending real-world effects of the shutdown could swamp Republicans if they don't find a way to make a deal fast.

The big picture: Trump's prime-time address at 9:00 ET tonight, his first from the Oval Office, is part of an urgent P.R. strategy designed to make up for what some Republican officials feel was a languid use of the president's bully pulpit over the holidays. ... Read more

Bernie's Revolution Is TERRIFYING The Establishment | TYT | 01/07/19 | 12:57

Bernie Sanders on the Issues | Bernie Sanders | current 01/08/19 | article

California Moves, Haltingly, Toward a Post-Lawn Future
MotherJones | Aleksandra Appleton | 01/06/19

Collins had had the lawn ripped out in 2015, at the peak of one of the worst recorded droughts in state history. He opted for wood chips and Sago palms instead. "I just got tired of trying to keep the grass green," he said. He's planning to put in artificial turf eventually--his wife prefers to retain the look of a lawn--but he says he would happily move to a new development where drought-friendly yards are standard.

Though Collins may have been one of the first, he is no longer alone. In his subdivision of more than 200 houses, by this reporter's count, at least 35 other residents have opted for rock beds or bricks, wood chips and Century plants, or plain dirt. ... Read more

Progressives Will Get Their Debate On Medicare For All -- And Questions Abound
HP | Jonathan Cohn | 01/07/19

The idea of creating a single national health insurance program for all Americans has been a big topic of political conversation since 2016, when Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) touted it during his Democratic presidential campaign. But Medicare for All couldn't be anything more than a rallying cry as long as Republicans controlled the levers of power in Washington.

Political circumstances are different now. Democrats hold the House majority and, as Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office confirmed to The Washington Post on Thursday, at least two committees will hold hearings on Medicare for All this year. Exactly what those hearings will entail isn't clear ? Democratic leaders aren't saying ? but one focus will be a bill that Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) plans to introduce in the next few weeks. ... Read more
Medicare for All -- How Can We Pay for It? | TRNN | 12/30/18 | 21:32

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Says There's 'No Question' About Trump's Racism
HP | Nick Visser | 01/06/19/span>

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said there's "no question" President Donald Trump is a racist, citing in an interview that aired Sunday the White House's response to white supremacist groups and ongoing rhetoric about migrant communities.

"The president certainly didn't invent racism. But he's certainly given a voice to it and expanded it and created a platform for those things," Ocasio-Cortez told "60 Minutes" correspondent Anderson Cooper during the segment. When asked if she believes Trump is a racist, she replied: "Yeah. Yeah, no question." ... Read more
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says "no question" Trump is a racist in "60 Minutes" interview | TYT | 01/06/19 | 1:05

When America Stared Into the Abyss
TheAtlantic | John Lawrence | date

he treasury secretary's voice exuded tension and urgency. "A very serious situation is developing," Henry Paulson warned House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the phone. "Nothing we can say will calm the situation until we come up with a policy that is overwhelming force!" Later that Thursday afternoon, Pelosi received the same dire message when she telephoned Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke; financial markets were seizing up, major Wall Street firms were on the brink of collapse, and the nation's economy hovered perilously on the edge of an abyss. Pelosi recalls asking, alarmed, "If things are this bad, why aren't you calling me?"

Paulson and Bernanke urgently requested the speaker to convene the bicameral congressional leadership to hear the George W. Bush administration's proposed response to the rapidly accelerating crisis. Pelosi agreed to call a meeting the next day. That might be too late, Bernanke cautioned. Indeed, without swift action, there might not be an American economy by the end of the weekend. ... Read more

They Live by John Carpenter | 1988 | 134:49

U.S. Ramps up Bombing of ISIS in Eastern Syria Following Trump Withdrawal Announcement
TheIntercept | Trevor Aaronson, Ali Younes | 01/03/19

AFTER PRESIDENT DONALD Trump announced the withdrawal of 2,000 troops from Syria last month, the U.S. military ramped up its bombing campaign against the Islamic State’s remaining territory in the eastern part of the country, according to sources on the ground and photographs we obtained.

The fiercest attacks in the past week have occurred in Al Kashmah, a village on the Euphrates River near the border with Iraq, according to three sources in eastern Syria. Amid U.S. airstrikes and artillery fire by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, civilians and family members of ISIS fighters fled to villages to the south, the sources said. While Al Kashmah has not yet fallen, the only people remaining there are fighters representing what has become the front line of the war against ISIS in Deir al-Zour province. ... Read more

House votes to reopen government despite Trump veto threat
Axios | Khorri Atkinson | 01/04/19

The House passed a short-term spending package Thursday night that would reopen eight government agencies through September and the Department of Homeland Security through February, but which does not include funding for President Trump's border wall.

Why it matters: The White House issued a statement Thursday formally threatening to veto the Democrats' proposed spending package if it passed. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the Senate won't take up any House spending bill that Trump won't sign. ... Read more

Donald Trump meets with Cabinet today amid government shutdown | CBS | 01/02/19 | 38:16

Rachel Maddow Breaks Down Where Donald Trump Gets His Conspiracy Theories
HP | Lee Moran | 01/04/19

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow on Thursday did a deep dive into where President Donald Trump may get some of his conspiracy theories.

The host of "The Rachel Maddow Show" pointed out that several of Trump's foreign policy talking points since taking office have appeared to directly parrot propaganda and fake news originally put forward by Russian President Vladimir Putin's government. ... Read more

Rachel Maddow Breaks Down Where Donald Trump Gets His Conspiracy Theories | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC | 01/04/19 | 13:38

Nancy Pelosi Heads To White House As Shutdown Continues | Morning Joe | MSNBC | 01/04/19 | 18:46

Will Senator Mitt Romney Be A Check On President Trump On Capitol Hill? | The 11th Hour | MSNBC | 01/04/19 | 8:27

President Trump Said He’d ‘Look Foolish’ To Take Deal He Previously Accepted | The Last Word | MSNBC | 01/03/19 | 15:39

What Do The Shifting Markets Mean For Businesses In 2019? | Velshi & Ruhle | MSNBC | 01/04/19 | 7:33

The polar vortex is about to split into 3 pieces

Axios | Andrew Freedman | 01/03/19

Scientists are seeing signs that global weather patterns toward the latter half of January and into February may shift significantly to usher in severe winter weather for parts of the U.S. and Europe.

How it works: The possible changes are being triggered by a sudden and drastic warming of the air in the stratosphere, some 100,000 feet above the Arctic, and by a resulting disruption of the polar vortex -- an area of low pressure at high altitudes near the pole that, when disrupted, can wobble like a spinning top and send cold air to the south. In this case, it could split into three pieces, and those pieces would determine who gets hit the hardest.

"In general, we see colder than normal temperatures over much of the U.S. and Europe/Northern Asia, and warmer than normal temperatures over Greenland and subtropical Africa/Asia" in the 60 days following sudden stratospheric warming events, Amy Butler, a research scientist at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, told Axios in an email.... Read more

Donald Trump meets with Cabinet today amid government shutdown | CBS | 01/02/19 | 38:16

House Democrats Start Investigating Trump This Morning
HP | Paul Blumenthal | 01/03/19

They plan to get answers on the president's anti-immigration policies and the conflicts of interest and corruption plaguing the administration.

Business Insider
magazine | author | date

Every nuclear bomb explosion in history (1945-2009) | current | 2:32

The deadly evolution of nuclear weapons | current | 3:16

Scoop: Trump's plan for today's shutdown meeting
Axios | Mike Allen | 01/02/19

On Day 12 of the shutdown, President Trump plans to hold today's meeting with congressional leaders in the Situation Room as a way of dramatizing security concerns at the border, according to Hill sources in both parties.

The big picture: Top House and Senate leaders from both parties RSVP'd "yes" to yesterday's invitation and will attend, I'm told. Talks were on ice over the holidays, lending drama to face-to-face negotiations despite widespread skepticism about a breakthrough. ... Read more

Mitt Romney: Trump failing the U.S. as a world leader
Axios | Neal Rothschild | 01/02/19

Two days before he'll be sworn in as the newest senator from Utah, Mitt Romney criticized President Trump as having "not risen to the mantle of the office" in an op-ed for the Washington Post.

The big picture: After excoriating Trump in a scripted appearance during the 2016 campaign, Romney has largely held his tongue in the first two years of the Trump presidency and stayed under the radar as he made -- and won -- his bid for the Senate. Read more

Donald Trump Fires Back At Mitt Romney: 'I Won Big, And He Didn't'
HP | Hayley Miller | 01/02/19

"Be a TEAM player," the president tweeted after the senator-elect's scathing op-ed.

President Donald Trump tore into Mitt Romney on Wednesday, a day after the Utah senator-elect's scathing op-ed in The Washington Post condemned the president's behavior.

Trump, responding to the piece, tweeted that Romney, a former GOP presidential candidate, should be "happy for all Republicans" and took a dig at outgoing Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who frequently criticizes the president but largely votes in favor of his policies.

"Here we go with Mitt Romney," Trump tweeted Wednesday. "Question will be, is he a Flake? I hope not." ... Read more

Four Days in Occupied Western Sahara -- A Rare Look Inside Africa's Last Colony | DN | current | 57:20

Steve Mnuchin is a Dunce
TheIntercept | Rebecca Burns, David Dayen | 01/01/19

THE STOCK MARKET has experienced its worst performance in December since the early 1930s. Despite brisk holiday shopping, the usual Santa Claus rally was canceled, in part thanks to a grinch named Steve Mnuchin.

The treasury secretary's inexplicable maneuver on Christmas Eve eve, announcing that he convened meetings -- by phone, from Cabo-- with the six largest banks and was reassured that America faced no liquidity problems, when nobody was particularly concerned that we did, sent markets into a volatile tailspin. It was as if the contractor you hired to fix a sticky door told you that your roof was probably in no immediate danger of collapse; that wasn't your preoccupation before, but it is now.

The stock market is not the economy, as long as jobs and paychecks continue to be strong. This was an unforced error that temporarily snagged the 10 percent of America that own 84 percent of all stocks. But Mnuchin's boneheaded actions reflected his dominant characteristics. He is a sycophant willing to debase himself, no matter how strongly, at the altar of Donald Trump. The president has convinced himself that the Federal Reserve is ruining his economy (and, like a stopped clock, he's not totally wrong), and Mnuchin's pronouncement of financial stability made no sense outside of a vain need to show his boss that everything was actually fine -- or, at least, that Mnuchin was doing things. ... Read more