The U.S. will deploy thousands of additional troops to the Middle East as tensions with Iran mount following the airstrike that killed Qasem Soleimani, CNN reports.
Archives for 2020
Manufacturing Activity Hits 10-Year Low
The Institute of Supply Management’s index of manufacturing activity hit its lowest level since the end of the Great Recession, Axios reports.
“It shows worsening conditions for the U.S. manufacturing sector, which has been in contraction for five straight months, and reignites concerns about the trade war’s impact on the economy.”
Methodist Church Will Split Over Gay Marriage
“The United Methodist Church is expected to split into more than one denomination in an attempt to bring to a close a years-long and contentious fight over same-sex marriage,” the Washington Post reports.
“The historic schism would divide the third-largest religious denomination in the United States.”
Biden Runs Three New Ads In Iowa
Playbook: “Joe Biden is cycling three new ads into his $4 million Iowa ad buy. It’s a six-figure buy that will run in the Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Quad Cities and Sioux City media markets.”
“The first ad is Soul, which reiterates Biden’s message that the fabric of American society will change if Trump has another four years in office. Integrity has testimonials from people about Biden’s character. They also have a 15-second spot, Enough which has a Des Moines firefighter praising Biden.”
An Incredibly Risky Gamble
“President Trump’s decision to strike and kill the second most powerful official in Iran turns a slow-simmering conflict with Tehran into a boiling one, and is perhaps the riskiest move made by the United States in the Middle East since the invasion of Iraq in 2003,” the New York Times reports.
Robert Reich: “And Trump did it without consulting Congress. He has no support from our allies. He has no exit strategy for a war with Iran. America is still bogged down in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has no credibility anywhere, with anyone, because he has lied about everything.”
Eric Trump Hinted at Strike Against Iran
In a now deleted tweet, Eric Trump apparently knew about the U.S. strike against an Iran military commander — and hinted to the world about it — two days before it happened.
Said Trump: “Bout to open up a big ol’ can of whoop ass #DontMessWithTheBest #USAUSAUSA”
Another GOP Congressman Calls It Quits
Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN) announced Friday that he will not seek reelection, The Hill reports.
Ex-CIA Director Predicts ‘Dead Civilian Americans’
Former Acting CIA Director Michael Morell told CBS News there would be “dead civilian Americans” as a result of the killing of Qassem Suleimani.
Said Morell: “Suleimani was an evil genius, he had a lot of American blood on his hands. The world is a better place without him. The problem is that comes at a very high cost.”
He continued: “Number one, there will be dead Americans, dead civilian Americans, as a result of this. Possibly over the next few days in any place where Iran has its proxies. Iraq is the most likely place, but also Lebanon, Bahrain, other places in the Middle East.”
Why Democrats Say They Might Not Vote to Convict Trump
“Senate Democrats are expected to almost unanimously declare President Trump guilty at the end of his impeachment trial. But senators across the party’s spectrum insist they haven’t made up their mind,” Politico reports.
“It’s a bid to entice a handful of Senate Republicans to join their push for new documents and witnesses involved in the president’s Ukraine scandal, particularly those who have expressed dismay with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s vow to coordinate closely with the White House.”
It Was a Cover Up
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Flashback Quote of the Day
“Our president will start a war with Iran because he has absolutely no ability to negotiate. He’s weak and he’s ineffective. So the only way he figures that he’s going to get reelected — and as sure as you’re sitting there — is to start a war with Iran.”
— Donald Trump, in a video from Trump Tower on November 16, 2011.
Trump Needs to Coax More Votes from a Shrinking Base
“President Trump’s 2020 election strategy relies largely on the white, working-class base that he excited in 2016. But he faces a demographic challenge: The electorate has changed since he was last on the ballot in ways likely to benefit Democrats,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Working-class, white voters are projected to decline by 2.3 percentage points nationally as a share of eligible voters, compared with the last election, because they are older and therefore dying at a faster rate than are Democratic groups. As those voters pass on, they are most likely to be replaced by those from minority groups or young, white voters with college degrees—groups that lean Democratic.”
“That means Mr. Trump will have to coax more votes from a shrinking base—or else find more votes in other parts of the electorate.”
GOP Senator Will Move to Dismiss Impeachment Charges
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) said on Twitter he will introduce a motion to dismiss the impeachment charges against President Trump.
Playbook: “Our sources tell us that moving legislation to dump the charges is not a realistic strategy at the moment — but it does show the potential perils of the hold-the-articles strategy. This wouldn’t pass at this point — it might not even make it to the floor — but in a few weeks if the articles don’t end up in the Senate, this could gain steam, our sources tell us.”
Trump Taunts Iran on Twitter
After ordering the assassination of a top Iran military commander, President Trump taunted Iran on Twitter: “Iran never won a war, but never lost a negotiation!”
That suggests Trump thinks the action will somehow bring Iran back to the negotiating table.
Pompeo Claims Attack Was ‘Imminent’
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed on CNN that the targeted U.S. air strike that killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani was meant to disrupt an “imminent” attack against Americans in the Middle East.
Said Pompeo: “It was the time to take this action so that we could disrupt this plot, deter further aggression from Qasem Soleimani and the Iranian regime — as well as to attempt to de-escalate the situation. The risk of doing nothing was enormous. The intelligence community made that assessment, and President Trump acted decisively last night.”
It Is War
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Warren’s Fundraising Dips Slightly
Sen. Elizabeth Warren raised $21.2 million for her presidential campaign in the fourth quarter of 2019, “a slight dip from the previous quarter and behind three of her top rivals for the Democratic nomination,” the New York Times reports.
Klobuchar Raised More Than $11 Million
Sen. Amy Klobuchar raised $11.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2019, “a sum that was more than twice what she collected during the prior three months but still left her no better than sixth in fund-raising for the last three months among Democrats running for president,” the New York Times reports.
