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Trump Raged Against Refugees from Somalia

October 7, 2019 at 9:09 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“In the first few months of his administration, President Trump asked then-acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke why he could not ban refugees from ‘fucking Somalia’ in a bout of rage at his Bedminster golf club,” CNN reports.

“The episode, detailed in the new book titled Border Wars, reveals the President’s belief that people from Somalia posed a danger to the US. Months earlier, Trump targeted foreign nationals coming to the US from eight countries, including Somalia, in his ‘travel ban’ executive order.”

The book states: “Both he and Stephen Miller seemed to have a particular dislike for Somalia, often citing it or its nationals when they spoke of the potential dangers of refugees and other immigrants.”

Bush’s Chief of Staff Backs Impeachment Probe

October 7, 2019 at 8:05 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Former White House chief of staff Andy Card told MSNBC that he supported the House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry of President Trump, saying that “clearly lines have been crossed.”

Said Card: “I do think an impeachment inquiry is warranted.”

Health Problems Cast Cloud Over Sanders Campaign

October 7, 2019 at 8:00 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Bernie Sanders has been sidelined for nearly a week — after failing for almost three days to disclose that he had a heart attack. It’s unclear when the 78-year-old senator will return to the stump. His campaign has yet to divulge the severity of his heart attack,” Politico reports.

“And that sequence of events unfolded as he’s been eclipsed in the polls by the other progressive icon in the race, Elizabeth Warren.”

Why Trump Can’t Tweet His Way Out of This

October 7, 2019 at 7:30 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Jack Shafer: “You needn’t believe the hype about President Trump being a 21st-century media wizard to concede he has a special talent for powershifting through the gears of the news cycle to blow past whatever current event might threaten his presidency. Whether it’s a function of Trump’s volatility or a measure of his craft, he has a knack for freezing out damaging news by creating his own news storms that transfix the press. He fires members of his Cabinet and staff, over-reaches with executive orders, picks fights with a Gold Star mother and football players, engages in ad hominem, and insults entire friendly countries.”

“In recent days as bad news has swelled around him, Trump has taken to screaming ‘treason’ and ‘coup’ at full volume to divert the news flow. But this time Trump’s hydraulics don’t seem to be working. Instead of Trump flooding the news cycle, the news cycle has begun to flood Trump. His special talents—if they really exist—have begun to fail him, and he seems to know it.”

The Humiliation of Lindsey Graham

October 7, 2019 at 7:19 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Charlie Sykes: “Graham told himself: by staying close to Trump, he could influence him and prevent horribly bad decisions. Others made the same calculation, but Graham made the uber-tradeoff, because the stakes were so high. What did it matter if he had to endure temporary embarrassments, abase himself on cable television, or even become a political punchline, if he could stop Trump from impulsive decisions regarding Russia or North Korea? Or Syria?”

“The world saw Graham as a craven, cringing Uriah Heep. Graham saw himself as someone who could save the world, or at least the Kurds.”

“Graham calculated: If he didn’t play golf with Trump and indulge his penchant for pillow talk, Trump would be putting and chatting with Rand Paul, listening to the counsels of isolationism, appeasement and international amorality. He was not simply the adult in the room; he was the adult BFF in the room, who would temper Trump’s worst instincts.”

“And then came Trump’s decision. Despite Graham’s compulsive turd-polishing of the last few years, Trump didn’t even consult him before making the decision to abandon the Kurds. Graham, who had given up so much self-respect to prevent just this outcome, was not even in the room. He didn’t even get a text.”

White House Insists Trump Didn’t Give Turkey Green Light

October 7, 2019 at 7:09 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The White House is insisting that President Trump did not offer Turkey a ‘green light’ to slaughter U.S.-backed Kurdish forces in northern Syria last night and that the U.S. would not bear responsibility for any Islamic State, or ISIS, resurgence in the area,” Axios reports.

“Confusion and concern followed the sudden announcement last night that Trump had decided to pull U.S. troops from the ‘immediate area’ into which Turkish troops are expected to advance. Turkey fiercely opposes the primarily Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces, which holds the area and helped the U.S. retake swathes of Syria from ISIS, leading to bipartisan accusations that Trump is abandoning an ally.”

The Guardian: Trump left isolated as allies revolt over U.S. withdrawal from Syria.

Trump Digs In on Syria Decision

October 7, 2019 at 5:57 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

President Trump “dug in on his decision to pull U.S. troops out of northern Syria as Turkey prepares an operation in the region, while members of his own party lined up to criticize the move,” The Hill reports.

Trump said he has “great respect” for the prominent Republicans who are urging him to reconsider his strategy, but that “it’s time to come back home.”

He added: “We’ve been there for many, many, many years beyond what we were supposed to be. Not fighting. Just there. Just there. And it’s time to come back home.”

$50K Bounty Offered for Whistleblower Identity

October 7, 2019 at 5:17 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Lawyers for the whistleblower said “certain individuals” had offered a $50,000 “bounty” for any information on the whistleblower’s identity after the official complained to a government watchdog that President Trump had pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to investigate his political rival, Joe Biden, Reuters reports.

Records Contradict Warren’s Claim She Was Fired

October 7, 2019 at 4:52 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Riverdale Board of Education approved a second-year teaching contract for a young Elizabeth Warren, documents show, contradicting the Democratic presidential candidate’s repeated claims that she was asked not to return to teaching after a single year because she was ‘visibly pregnant,'” the Washington Free Beacon reports.

“Minutes of an April 21, 1971, Riverdale Board of Education meeting obtained by the Washington Free Beacon show that the board voted unanimously on a motion to extend Warren a ‘2nd year’ contract for a two-days-per-week teaching job. That job is similar to the one she held the previous year, her first year of teaching. Minutes from a board meeting held two months later, on June 16, 1971, indicate that Warren’s resignation was ‘accepted with regret.'”

The Wealthiest Now Have the Lowest Tax Rate

October 7, 2019 at 4:35 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The 400 wealthiest Americans last year paid a lower total tax rate — spanning federal, state and local taxes — than any other income group, the New York Times reports.

“That’s a sharp change from the 1950s and 1960s, when the wealthy paid vastly higher tax rates than the middle class or poor. Since then, taxes that hit the wealthiest the hardest — like the estate tax and corporate tax — have plummeted, while tax avoidance has become more common.”

Supreme Court Asked to Decide on Faithless Electors

October 7, 2019 at 4:32 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Three presidential electors in Washington state who voted for Colin Powell in 2016 rather than Hillary Clinton and were fined under state law, are asking the US Supreme Court to take up their appeal and decide whether a state can bind an elector to vote for the state’s popular vote winner,” CNN reports.

“If the Supreme Court agrees to hear the appeal of the so-called ‘faithless electors,’ it could thrust the justices into yet another high-passion political fight in the heat of the 2020 presidential election.”

Democrats Consider Masking Identity of Whistleblower

October 7, 2019 at 4:23 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“House Democrats eager to protect a whistleblower who raised alarms over President Trump pressuring a foreign leader to investigate a political rival are considering testimony at a remote location and possibly obscuring the individual’s appearance and voice — extraordinary moves to prevent Trump’s congressional allies from revealing the identity,” the Washington Post reports.

“Democratic investigators are concerned that without such rare precautions, Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee could learn and then leak the identity of the whistleblower, who has agreed to answer questions before the intelligence committees in both the House and Senate.”

Pat Robertson ‘Appalled’ By Trump Decision

October 7, 2019 at 4:01 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Pat Robertson told his television audience he is “appalled” by President Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from northern Syria.

Said Robertson: “The President of the United States is in great danger of losing the mandate of Heaven if he permits this to happen.”

Giuliani Threatens to Sue Lawmakers

October 7, 2019 at 3:53 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rudy Giuliani tells Yahoo News that he is working with outside lawyers to prepare lawsuits against prominent Democrats such as House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff of California and Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.

Said Giuliani: “I got the highest grade in constitutional law.”

He revealed that private lawyers are studying public statements by Schiff and others to argue that they were not merely prosecuting a case against Trump but attempting to “deprive him of civil rights” and were engaging in a “conspiracy to remove the president at all costs.” Giuliani charged that Schiff was seeking to “inhibit me in my ability to defend” Trump.

Trump Got ‘Rolled’ By Turkey and ‘Has No Spine’

October 7, 2019 at 3:48 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A National Security Council source with direct knowledge of the discussions told Newsweek that President Trump got “rolled” by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Said the source, who heard the phone call: “President Trump was definitely out-negotiated and only endorsed the troop withdraw to make it look like we are getting something—but we are not getting something. The U.S. national security has entered a state of increased danger for decades to come because the president has no spine and that’s the bottom line.”

Trump’s Syria Move Blindsided National Security Team

October 7, 2019 at 3:13 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The White House’s announcement that U.S. forces are pulling back from northeastern Syria to allow a Turkish offensive there took the Pentagon and the government’s Syria point man by surprise ⁠— and the decision defied the current thinking of President Trump’s national security leaders,” Politico reports.

Said retired Adm. James Stavridis: “Everyone was absolutely flabbergasted by this. I tell you that as a fact. Nobody saw it coming, and that is a real problem when you’re trying to conduct not only foreign policy … but also military operations. That kind of whipsawing effect is extremely detrimental, not only in this tactical situation, but strategically as our planners try and prepare in other theaters, from North Korea to Afghanistan.”

Top Military Officers Unload on Trump

October 7, 2019 at 2:52 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Mark Bowden: “Military officers are sworn to serve whomever voters send to the White House. Cognizant of the special authority they hold, high-level officers epitomize respect for the chain of command, and are extremely reticent about criticizing their civilian overseers. That those I spoke with made an exception in Trump’s case is telling, and much of what they told me is deeply disturbing. In 20 years of writing about the military, I have never heard officers in high positions express such alarm about a president.”

“Trump’s pronouncements and orders have already risked catastrophic and unnecessary wars in the Middle East and Asia, and have created severe problems for field commanders engaged in combat operations. Frequently caught unawares by Trump’s statements, senior military officers have scrambled, in their aftermath, to steer the country away from tragedy. How many times can they successfully do that before faltering?”

Edwards Leads In Louisiana

October 7, 2019 at 2:48 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Mason-Dixon poll in Louisiana finds Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) comfortably leads his two chief Republican rivals with 45%, while Eddie Rispone (R) is at 22% and Ralph Abraham (R) is at 17%, with five days left to the primary election.

If there’s a run-off between Edwards and Rispone, 51% of those polled said they would vote for Edwards while 42% said they would cast a ballot for Rispone. 7% were undecided.

If a run-off occurs between Edwards and Abraham, the poll found 53% would back Edwards while 38% would support Abraham. 9% were undecided.