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Day 34
Thursday, February 23, 2017
In the Aftermath of Watergate, new rules were enacted to limit the number of people in the White House that could contact the Justice Department and the FBI on ongoing criminal investigations. These people are the President, the Vice-President, the President’s Counsel and the Deputy Counsel.
Tonight, CNN revealed in an exclusive report: “the White House asked the FBI to knock down media reports about contacts during the presidential campaign between Donald Trump’s associates and Russian known to US intelligence” (Anchor Erin Burnett 2/23/2017).
CNN and the New York Times first reported about these contacts on February 14, 2017.
According to CNN, White House Chief of Staff, Reine Priebus reached out to the FBI director, James Comey, to ask him to dispute the media reports. The FBI refused the White House request because the investigation into the alleged contacts between members of the Trump campaign and Russian officials is continuing.
If confirmed the communication between the White House and the FBI is a violation of the procedures enacted in the post Watergate era.
The White House and the FBI refused to comment tonight’s CNN report.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/23/politics/fbi-refused-white-house-request-to-knock-down-recent-trump-russia-stories/
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Day 25
Tuesday, February 14, 2017
General Flynn, the National Security Advisor is asked to resign by President Trump after leaks revealed that he talked to the Russian ambassador during the transition and just after President Obama imposed new sanctions of Russia as a result of Russia hacking the DNC.
Did President elected Trump instructed General Flynn to talk with the Russian ambassador and let him know that the Trump administration will lift these sanctions?
This is the ONLY question.
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?
Sign one or all the petitions that have been circulating today on the net asking for a bi-partisan commission to investigate the matter or to investigate the relationship between President Trump and Russia: the DNC and Change.org are among the organizations circulating petitions.
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Day 24
Monday, February 13, 2017
Pictures speak a thousand words: BFF Trump and Abe discussing sensitive information in an al Fresco “situation room”.
Richard DeAgazio, a member of Mar-a-Lago club and a Trump supporter, couldn’t help but brag on Facebook. The pictures he posted show the Commander in Chief and his new BFF Premier Abe of Japan dining Al Fresco in the public dining room at Mar-a-Lago and looking at documents under the flashlights of their aids’ many iphones.
We know now that this scene happened before the two world leaders made their short joined appearance in front of the cameras to condemn North Korea’s latest ballistic missile launch.
One could wonder why the President’s entourage did not deem it necessary to have the meeting take place in a private and secure environment.
This bizarre public display occurred just a few days after Newsweek learned that senior staffers in the Trump administration were using a private RNC email server, apparently the same private email server used by the Bush administration that claimed it lost 22 million emails.
Responding to the Newsweek report, two senators, Tom Carper (D-Delaware) and Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) wrote to White House Counsel Donald McGahn and “ requested information on whether the White House staff’s reported use of private email accounts complies with the the Presidential Records Act (PRA) of 1978.” (Newsweek 2/14/2017) According to Newsweek, the senators asked the White House counsel to provide more information no later than February 10. The White House has not yet responded.
Still according to Newsweek, the two senators sent letters to the White House and the Department of Defense today, “inquiring about reports that Trump is still using his personal, unsecured smartphone, and using a personal, unsecured Twitter account, despite reports before he took office that he had traded in his phone for an encrypted communications device”. (Newsweek 2/14/2017).
Today Senator Tom Carper also voiced his disconcert regarding the Facebook pictures. “It is as inconceivable as it is troubling that our president and his advisors found it appropriate to discuss matters of our national security in an open and clearly accessible environment,” Carper told Newsweek in a statement. “President Trump should be well aware by now of the appropriate protocol to safeguard our nation’s secrets. I urge President Trump and his team to quickly reevaluate their security protocols and, in the future, treat these sensitive matters with the discretion they deserve and the appropriate manner of treatment they demand and typically receive from presidential administrations.”
#https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/13/us/politics/donald-trump-administration.html#http://www.newsweek.com/senators-register-alarm-trump-white-house-security-556915
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Day 23
Sunday, February 12, 2017
BFF
According to the New York Times, the “missile launched on Sunday by North Korea was either a medium- or an intermediate-range missile, according to the American military, and not an intercontinental missile, or ICBM, capable of reaching the United States. The missile flew 310 miles before dropping harmlessly into the Sea of Japan, according to the South Korean military"
Reacting from Mar-a-Lago to the news of North Korea’s missile launch, Prime Minister Abe of Japan and President Trump stood next to each other to make a short and tempered declaration to the press:
“North Korea’s most recent missile launch is absolutely intolerable… North Korea must fully comply with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions” declared Abe.
“I just want everybody to know and understand that the United States of America stands behind Japan, its great ally, 100%,” added Trump.
A weekend of golf and a provocation from North Korea and Abe and Trump are now BFF. What happened to the campaign rhetoric?
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Day 22
Saturday, February 11, 2017
ICE at work: the week of raids and arrests of undocumented immigrants.
THE PROMISES
“Anyone who has entered the United States illegally is subject to deportation. That is what it means to have laws and to have a country. Otherwise we don't have a country.” Candidate Trump clearly stated his intentions in his immigration speech on the campaign trail in Phoenix, Arizona.
President Trump doubled up on January 25, 2017 by signing an executive order on Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements. This week, the Administration made good on the electoral promises.
WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
This past week only, the Federal agents of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted raids in California, New York, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri and Wisconsin. In total close to 700 people were arrested. It remains unclear if all the people arrested were undocumented immigrants with criminal convictions.
According to VOX “What distinguished last week’s raids from the Obama era were three things: First, ICE agents broke with years of Obama-administration policy by making “collateral arrests” — arresting unauthorized immigrants who happened to be in the place they were raiding, even if they didn’t have a warrant for them. Second, the agency deliberately coordinated a series of nationwide raids, scooping up more people in less time than ICE raids typically do.” Under the Obama administration, 409,849 people were deported in 2012, the largest number of deportation in a single year.
It is not clear at this point if last week arrests signaled the beginning of an agressive campaign or were just punctual raids at the national scale.
#https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/08/31/heres-what-donald-trump-said-in-his-big-immigration-speech-annotated/?utm_term=.78#https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/01/25/executive-order-border-security-and-immigration-enforcement-improvements#http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/2/14/14596640/immigration-ice-raids
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Day 20
Thursday, February 9, 2017
Checks and Balances: at work. “No one is above the law not even the President.” The 9th Circuit Court in San Francisco ruled unanimously against reinstating the travel ban.
THE PROMISES
Tonight’s decision is without a doubt a resounding defeat for President Trump.
WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
The court ruling:
“To rule on the Government’s motion, we must consider several factors, including whether the Government has shown that it is likely to succeed on the merits of its appeal, the degree of hardship caused by a stay or its denial, and the public interest in granting or denying a stay. We assess those factors in light of the limited evidence put forward by both parties at this very preliminary stage and are mindful that our analysis of the hardships and public interest in this case involves particularly sensitive and weighty concerns on both sides. Nevertheless, we hold that the Government has not shown a likelihood of success on the merits of its appeal, nor has it shown that failure to enter a stay would cause irreparable injury, and we therefore deny its emergency motion for a stay.”
htps://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/02/09/us/document-Ninth-Circuit-s-Decision-on-Trump-s-Travel-Ban.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=a-lede-package-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news
The court ruling indicates that:
1. The Court rejects the Trump administration’s position that the President’s decision on matter of security cannot be questioned.
2. The Court acknowledges that the plaintiffs raised First Amendment questions regarding the government being not authorized to favor one religion over another.
3. The Court recognizes that both sides presented valid arguments
4. The Court did not find evidence that the security of the country was in imminent danger.
5. The Court insists that the Fifth Amendment does not only protect citizens (garantie of due process)
The President who has been very critical of the 3 judge panel reacted a few minutes after the ruling was made public. He reacted on Twitter: “SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS A STAKE!” (all in capital letters).
As for the Democrats, many joined the President on Twitter: Hillary Clinton twitted “3-0″ and Eric Holder, Obama’s Attorney General, summarized well what Democrats feel:
WHAT CAN HAPPEN NEXT?
1, If the President is true to his words and believes that it is a matter of national security, he will go back to the drawing board and write immediately a new order or consult with Congress to address the dire terrorist threat to our country.
2. After a circuit court has ruled on a case, either party may choose to appeal to the Supreme Court. Unlike circuit court appeals, however, the Supreme Court is usually not required to hear the appeal. (https://www.justice.gov/usao/justice-101/federal-courts)
While the confirmation hearings of Judge Gorsuch haven’t started yet, the Supreme Court could deadlock in a 4-4 tie. Will the Supreme Court accept to listen to the case?
#http://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/318865-five-key-quotes-from-courts-decision-on-trumps-travel-ban#https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/09/us/politics/appeals-court-trump-travel-ban.html?rref=homepage&module=Ribbon&version=origin®ion=Header&
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Day 19
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
One is silenced, one is confirmed and one keeps insulting the judiciary.
“She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.” Mitch Mcconnell said as why Elizabeth Warren was silenced last night in the Senate. The Senate majority leader offered Senator Warren a great gift last night, a gift that made headlines in the press, a daylong trending on the net and a new hashtag on Tweeter.
Jeff Sessions was confirmed 52-47 as the new US Attorney General. One Democrat, Joe Manchin III W.Va. broke ranks and voted with the Republicans.
Meanwhile, President Trump insults once again the judiciary, this time the 3 judges of the 9th Circuit of Appeal : “I don’t ever want to call a court biased, so I won’t call it biased,” Trump said. “But courts seem to be so political, and it would be so great for our justice system if they would be able to read a statement and do what’s right.”
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Day 18
Tuesday, February 7, 2017
Is the honeymoon over?
Struggle with official appointments… Fight in Federal Court… Clash on the Senate floor… Fall back in Yemen… And bad showing in the polls: Tuesday was another toxic day for the Trump Administration who wrestles to implement its campaign rhetoric and design relevant policies.
THE PROMISES
With Betsy DeVos confirmation as Secretary of Education, Donald Trump seems to make good on his electoral promise of school choice.
The immediate future of the executive order pertaining to the Travel ban is now in the hands of three judges of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeal in San Francisco. The Trump Administration may suffer a major setback. A central campaign promise, Making America Safe Against, could be heading to the Supreme Court.
WHAT DOES IT ALL MEANS?
Confirmation of Betsy DeVos
The Republicans delayed the confirmation of Senator Jeff Session as Attorney General in order to allow him to cast his vote in favor of DeVos. However, contrary to their Democratic counterparts, the Republicans were not able to speak in a unanimous voice; two Republicans broke ranks and voted against the nominee: Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.
To break the 50-50 tie, Vice-President Pence was called to the floor to cast the decisive vote. This was the very first time a Vice-President was called to the rescue in a cabinet nomination. Will that unprecedented move repeat itself in the future?
This nomination happened after weeks of protest. Betsy DeVos was highly criticized for her lack of experience: “she has never run, taught in, attended or sent a child to an American public school, and her confirmation hearings laid bare her ignorance of education policy and scorn for public education itself. She has donated millions to, and helped direct, groups that want to replace traditional public schools with charter schools and convert taxpayer dollars into vouchers to help parents send children to private and religious schools.” (New York Times, Editorial Board Op-Ed, February 7, 2017)
On a policy level, Betsey DeVos is an outspoken defender of school vouchers that allow the spending of public dollars on religious schools. With the voucher, parents can send their kids to the school of their choice, including parochial or religious schools. This a direct attack on the separation of State and Church and it remains to be proven that such a policy impact positively students’ scores.
The Future of the Travel Ban
THE EVENTS
1. On Friday, February 3, 2017 James Robart, United States federal judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, issued a nationwide temporary restraining order halting the Trump Administration executive order. The American borders were immediately opened again to citizens of the Seven banned countries.
2. The Trump administration filed an emergency motion requesting an "immediate administrative stay" to block James Robart’s ruling.
3. The 9th Circuit Court in San Francisco denies the emergency stay
THE RULE
1. “Once the federal district court has decided a case, the case can be appealed to a United States court of appeal. There are twelve federal circuits that divide the country into different regions.” (https://www.justice.gov/usao/justice-101/federal-courts). The Trump administration has appealed Judge Robart’s decision in The 9th Circuit court in San Francisco. This is the Circuit Court that covers the following districts (Alaska, Arizona, Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Northern District of California, Southern District of California, District of Hawaii.
2. Each circuit court has multiple judges. The 9th Circuit Court has 29 judges and is by far the largest circuit court in the country. Circuit court judges are appointed for life by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
3. Appeals to Circuit Courts are first heard by a panel, consisting of three Circuit Court judges. Parties file “briefs” to the court, arguing why the trial court’s decision should be “affirmed” or “reversed.” (https://www.justice.gov/usao/justice-101/federal-courts). This is what the Trump Administration did early on Sunday.
4. After the briefs are filed, the court will schedule “oral argument” in which the lawyers come before the court to make their arguments and answer the judges’ questions. The oral argument took place on Tuesday, February 7 via conference call.
THE JUDGES
The three judges who heard the “oral argument” are: Judge William C. Canby Jr., appointed by President Jimmy Carter and based in Phoenix; Judge Michelle T. Friedland, appointed by President Barack Obama and based in San Francisco; and Judge Richard R. Clifton, appointed by President George W. Bush and is Honolulu.
THE ARGUMENTS
1. August E. Flentje, the Justice Department’s lawyer argued that the President immigration, that his motives should not be questioned by the court and that the executive order did not discriminate on the basis of religion.
2. Noah G. Purcell, Washington State’s solicitor general replied that the executive order was religious discrimination. He quoted candidate Trump’s speech of December 7th, 2015, “Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on.”
The 9th Circuit Court should rule on the case in the next few days. “ Either party may choose to appeal to the Supreme Court. Unlike circuit court appeals, however, the Supreme Court is usually not required to hear the appeal.” (https://www.justice.gov/usao/justice-101/federal-courts).
Also in the news today
Senator Warren was silenced on the Senate floor as she was reading a 1986 letter from Coretta Smith King. Martin Luther King’s widow wrote this letter to then Senator Thurmond in opposition to the confirmation of Sessions as a federal district court judge for the Southern District of Alabama. First Elizabeth Warren was warned against speaking ill of a colleague senator (Senate rule 19). Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader invoked rule 19 to silence his colleague from Massachussetts. As for Elizabeth Warren, she considered that she had been “red carted” on Jeff Session’s nomination.
Yemen, in retaliation from being placed on the Travel ban list of seven countries, announced today that the U.S are not welcome anymore to conduct counter-terrorism ground operations in the country. This decision comes just after the Trump administration conducted last week its first commando raid in Yemen. This operation first presented by President Trump as a success has resulted in fact in the death of a Navy seal and many civilian casualties. In addition there is word now that the strike had the secret objective- to kill the head of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. In an audio message, Qassim Al-Rimi revealed that he survived the raid.
A new Quinnipiac poll indicates that Americans disapprove of President Trump’s recent immigration moves. “Americans oppose the ban on travel from select Muslim-majority nations by 51-46; they oppose the ban on refugees from all nations by 60-37; and they oppose the ban on Syrian refugees in particular by 70-26.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/07/us/politics/betsy-devos-education-secretary-confirmed.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/07/us/politics/trump-travel-ban-court.html?action=click&contentCollection=us&module=NextInCollection®ion=Footer&pgtype=article&version=newsevent&rref=collection%2Fnews-event%2Fdonald-trump-white-house
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/07/us/politics/trump-immigration-ban-hearing-appeal.html?action=click&contentCollection=Politics&module=RelatedCoverage®ion=EndOfArticle&pgtype=article
http://thehill.com/policy/international/318185-strike-in-yemen-missed-al-qaeda-leader-report
https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2017/02/07/a-new-poll-shows-a-surprisingly-big-public-swing-against-trumps-muslim-ban/?utm_term=.809475995297
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