;)
Wednesday
Jun062018
The Commentariat -- June 7, 2018
Afternoon Update:
Jim Tankersley & Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "A White House economic analysis of President Trump's trade agenda has concluded that Mr. Trump's tariffs will hurt economic growth in the United States, according to several people familiar with the research. The findings from the White House Council of Economic Advisers have been circulated only internally and not publicly released..., making the exact economic projections unknown. But ... top White House officials continue to insist publicly that Mr. Trump's trade approach will be 'massively good for the U.S. economy.' The chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, Kevin Hassett, an economist who came to the administration from the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank, dodged questions at a White House briefing on Tuesday about whether tariffs would hurt [the] economy.... Asked whether the administration's economists had modeled the impact that a trade war with China would have on the United States economy, Mr. Hassett said Mr. Trump was a great negotiator...." ...
... "Trump Heads to G-7 Meeting after Alienating Most U.S. Allies." Michael Shear of the New York Times: "Ahead of the summit meeting, finance ministers from the other six countries that form the Group of 7, or G-7, condemned Mr. Trump's trade decisions in an extraordinary rebuke of a member nation's president. And some of the leaders themselves have threatened to boycott the usual end-of-meeting communiqué.... Rarely -- if ever -- has there been the kind of visceral and unanimous outrage at an American president among the nation's most important allies, who for decades have seen the closest of relationships with the leader of the free world as a paramount foreign policy priority. Mr. Trump has repeatedly poked his counterparts in the eye -- ignoring their pleas to remain a part of the Paris climate treaty, the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact and the Iran nuclear deal, and more recently by branding their steel and aluminum industries threats to national security, and therefore subject to tariffs." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: Nice to see everybody -- reporters, editors (even Time magazine), European leaders, some suddenly-honest GOP short-timers -- finally catching up with us here at Reality Chex. At some level, Trump realizes what a disaster his presidency is, which is why he's always boasting about how great a job he's doing. But his unparalleled failure also will serve only to make him more crazy.
The King & Dukes of Haphazard. Eliana Johnson of Politico: "National security adviser John Bolton has yet to convene a Cabinet-level meeting to discuss ... Donald Trump's upcoming summit with North Korea next week, a striking break from past practice that suggests the Trump White House is largely improvising its approach to the unprecedented nuclear talks. For decades, top presidential advisers have used a methodical process to hash out national security issues before offering the president a menu of options for key decisions. On an issue like North Korea, that would mean White House Situation Room gatherings of the secretaries of state and defense along with top intelligence officials, the United Nations ambassador, and even the Treasury secretary, who oversees economic sanctions. But since Trump agreed on a whim to meet with ... Kim Jong Un on March 8, the White House's summit planning has been unstructured, according to a half-dozen administration officials."
** "President Trump Still Way Too Lazy to Do His Job." Jonathan Chait: "Donald Trump possessed less relevant experience and subject expertise for the job of president than any person ever elected to the job. Those deficits can be offset, to a degree, with dogged study and hard work. But rather than make up for his historical lack of qualifications, Trump has compounded the problem with historical laziness. He famously lounges in front of the television having 'Executive Time' until 11 a.m., checks out early, refuses to read briefings, and otherwise disdains the most important parts of his job. Three new reports highlight the laziness problem." Read on. The update is excellent, too: "Asked if he's prepared for the North Korea summit, Trump assured a reporter that he is.... 'I think I'm very well prepared,' Trump said, 'I don't think I have to prepare very much. It's about attitude. It's about willingness to get things done.'"
Another Entry for Amazing List of "Stupidest Things Donald Trump Ever Said." Andrea Zelinski & St. John Barned-Smith of the Houston Chronicle: "... on a conference call with state and federal leaders in preparation for another dreadful hurricane season..., Trump thanked the Coast Guard for its service in helping save 16,000 people after Harvey, Hurricane Maria and other storms.... 'Sixteen thousand people, many of them in Texas, for whatever reason that is. People went out in their boats to watch the hurricane,' Trump said. 'That didn't work out too well.' Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez took umbrage with the president's remarks, crediting civilians with making an 'extraordinary effort' with their own boats to rescue neighbors, relatives and pets as Hurricane Harvey flooded the Texas coast.... 'I didn't see anyone taking the approach that would reflect his comments,' Gonzalez said. 'I'll be sure to invite the president to ride out the next hurricane in a jon boat in Galveston Bay the next time one approaches,' he added. No one could explain the president's comment." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: Like many of his cult followers, Trump is oblivious to the world around him. He doesn't understand how elementary things work, & he has little interest in finding out. Here he assumes that ordinary citizens who went out to save others (something it would never occur to him to do himself) were instead out on pleasure cruises for death-defying joy rides.
CBS/AP: "Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says that the Trump administration has reached a 'definitive agreement' with Chinese telecom giant ZTE that Ross claims 'imposes the most strict compliance that we've ever had on any company, American or foreign.' In an interview on CNBC, Ross said penalties amounted to $1 billion and that ZTE agreed to install new management and a compliance team picked by the U.S. The agreement is controversial: ZTE had been sanctioned by the U.S. for doing business with North Korea and Iran. It was blocked from purchasing parts from U.S. companies, sanctions that had crippled the company. The Trump administration has walked a fine line, stressing that any ZTE deal is separate from ongoing trade negotiations with China. And that the punishment for ZTE's past actions is tough enough."
Juliet Eilperin, et al., of the Washington Post: "Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt asked members of his 24/7 security detail to run errands for him on occasion, including picking up his dry cleaning and taking him in search of a favorite moisturizing lotion, according to two individuals familiar with those trips.... The top Democrat on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Sen. Thomas R. Carper (D-Del.), reiterated his call that Pruitt step down." Mrs. McC: So not just his office staff but also his security staff, which he needs not only to protect him from economy-class travelers who yell at him but also to serve as his personal shoppers, nap-time monitors (requires busting down door), headhunters for Mrs. Pruitt, stuff like that.
CBS/AP: "The Trump administration is disbanding a panel of experts focused on protecting consumers from financial abuse. Members of the panel, called the Consumer Advisory Board, say Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Acting Director Mick Mulvaney has dissolved the group, which includes consumer advocates, financial industry representatives, community leaders and others. The board advises the CFPB, a federal agency formed after the housing crash to prevent financial abuse. Mulvaney, told the board's 25 members that they are being replaced and the panel overhauled, according to two of the members.... Under Dodd Frank, the 2010 financial reform law that created the CFPB, the consumer panel is required to meet twice a year. But meetings were repeatedly cancelled since Mulvaney took the helm at the bureau in November." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: Meant to link a story on this yesterday. Thanks to Akhilleus for discussing Mulvaney's Bank Protection Racket & Consumer Rip-off Bureau in today's Comments.
Hannity Advises Mueller Witnesses to Destroy Evidence. But He Was Kidding! Philip Bump of the Washington Post: "On the Friday before Labor Day in 2016, the FBI released a set of documents ... including ... an interview with a Clinton staffer who reported having destroyed with a hammer at least two mobile devices used by the former secretary of state.... The destruction of those retired devices helped prevent anyone from potentially retrieving their contents, including foreign agents.... On Wednesday night..., CNBC reported... [that Robert] Mueller and his team have also been requesting access to their phones, allowing investigators to peruse messages sent over systems that would otherwise be hard to acquire.... [So Sean] Hannity offered new advice to those targeted by Mueller's probe. '... He wants the phones turned over, even texts that are on what are called "encrypted apps: like WhatsApp or Signal, or one of these things,' he said. '... If I advised them to follow Hillary Clinton's lead, delete all your emails and then acid-wash the emails and the hard drives on the phones, then take your phones and bash them with a hammer to little itsy-bitsy pieces, use BleachBit, remove the SIM cards, and then take the pieces and hand it over to Robert Mueller and say: "Hillary Rodham Clinton, this is equal justice under the law."' He was kidding, he later insisted-- while repeating the same advice." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: To be clear, the Clinton staffer destroyed devices to protect U.S. secrets (and likely received authorization or instructions to do so); Hannity is advising witnesses to destroy what could be evidence of crimes against the U.S.
*****
Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "The White House has assembled the paperwork to pardon dozens of people, two sources with knowledge of the developments tell CNN, signaling that ... Donald Trump is poised to exert his constitutional power and intervene, in some instances, where he believes the Justice Department has overstepped. The administration has prepared the pardoning paperwork for at least 30 people, the sources tell CNN.... Who Trump pardons has oftentimes come as a jolt to his own staff, and on some occasions, the person being pardoned.... Trump has not followed the typical procedure for granting pardons...." ...
... Jonathan Swan of Axios: "President Trump has signed a commutation for Alice Johnson, currently serving a life sentence for a nonviolent drug offense, according to a source with direct knowledge. CNN reported earlier today that the White House had prepped the paperwork for a pardon for Johnson while The Washington Post reported last night that he had been considering doing so.... Johnson's cause was championed last week at the White House by Kim Kardashian West.... Per a source familiar, White House counsel Don McGahn is skeptical of the merits of pardoning Johnson." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...
Burgess Everett of Politico: "... Donald Trump called Bob Corker on Wednesday morning to try to dissuade the GOP senator from filing an amendment that would allow Congress to block his steel and aluminum tariffs on U.S. allies.... The Tennessee senator is unbowed and plans to introduce his amendment to a defense policy bill on Wednesday afternoon with a bipartisan group of senators. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is also planning to lead a delegation of Republican senators to the White House to express their disapproval of the president's new tariffs, according to senators and aides.... Corker may not even be able to get a vote on his proposal. Senators are already at loggerheads over amending the defense bill, and Corker acknowledged that his amendment has a lot to do with it. The Senate has not held an amendment vote on the floor since March." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...
... Update. Michael Collins & Eliza Collins of USA Today: "Sen. Bob Corker said Tuesday that 'a large number' of Senate Republicans are supporting his call for legislation challenging President Trump's decision to impose steep tariffs on U.S. trading partners.... Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday he would not allow the Corker tariff proposal to be brought up as a freestanding bill. But he did not shoot down the idea of attaching it to the defense legislation."
G-6 + Jerk. Damian Paletta & Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: "President Trump plans to confront other world leaders at a summit in Quebec on Friday over what he believes is a global economic system tilted against the United States, several people briefed on the plan said, escalating tensions with U.S. allies who have expressed outrage at his pivot toward protectionism. The summit will put Trump face to face with leaders he has antagonized on a range of issues, including the environment and the U.S. withdrawal last month from the international nuclear accord with Iran. But the two-day meeting of the Group of Seven, which will bring together many of the world's leading economies in a picturesque Canadian mountain town, has crystallized into a showdown over trade after Trump's recent insistence on new barriers that the other nations see as petty and insulting. Most of the other countries represented have a trade beef with Trump that is unlikely to be resolved at the summit -- and for each the standoff is one more sign that the United States is pulling back from traditional global leadership roles." ...
... Josh Dawsey, et al., of the Washington Post: "The president has vented privately about Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as their trade tensions have spilled into public view. He has mused about finding new ways to punish the United States' northern neighbor in recent days, frustrated with the country's retaliatory trade moves. And Trump has complained to aides about spending two days in Canada for a summit of world leaders, believing the trip is a distraction from his upcoming Singapore summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to three people familiar with Trump's views. In particular, the president said Tuesday to several advisers that he fears attending the Group of Seven summit in rural Charlevoix, Quebec, may not be a good use of his time because he is diametrically opposed on many key issues with his counterparts -- and does not want to be lectured by them. Additionally, Trump has griped periodically both about German Chancellor Angela Merkel -- largely because they disagree on many issues and have had an uneasy rapport -- as well as British Prime Minister Theresa May, whom he sees as too politically correct, advisers say. Behind the scenes at the White House, there have been staff-level discussions for several days about whether Trump may pull the plug on the trip and send Vice President Pence in his stead, as he did for an April summit of Latin American leaders in Peru." ...
... Trump Mad at Canada for Burning Down White House. Daniel Victor of the New York Times: The War of 1812 "figured prominently in a discussion between President Trump and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada on May 25. According to CNN's unnamed sources, President Trump asked Mr. Trudeau, 'Didn't you guys burn down the White House?'... Canada didn't become a nation until 1867, long after British troops did, in fact, burn down the White House in 1814." Mrs. McC: It's so wrong to blame Trump for this itty-bitty goof. He's been studying history under the tutelage of State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert. (See yesterday's Commentariat for context.) ...
... Jeet Heer, who is Canadian, does point out that "Trump is not entirely wrong about the War of 1812." ...
... Kevin Drum: "I know it's easy to sit at my desk and advise world leaders to tell Trump off, but really, they should tell Trump off. It's the only thing that works. Forbearance and good personal relations get you nowhere with Trump, as Trudeau, Shinzo Abe, Emmanuel Macron, and others have all learned. Just tell him to call back when he's ready to talk like an adult and then hang up the phone." ...
... digby: "... I hope that our erstwhile allies band together and teach Trump a lesson. He's out of control." ...
... Brooke Seipel of The Hill: "The World Bank is warning that trade tensions between the United States and other countries could trigger a financial crisis equivalent to the decline seen in 2008. In its Global Economic Prospects report, the World Bank warns that tariff increases would have 'severe consequences' for global trade and could cause a decline similar to that seen in 2008, or worse if tariffs are increased beyond the maximum level allowed by the World Trade Organization." --safari (Also linked yesterday.)
In More Excellent Diplomacy News ... Rick Gladstone of the New York Times: "Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, 'got back on his hands and knees and begged' for the United States to revive the Singapore summit meeting after President Trump abruptly scrapped it last month, one of Mr. Trump's lawyers, Rudolph W. Giuliani, said Wednesday. The remarks by Mr. Giuliani, apparently intended to portray Mr. Trump as a tough negotiator, may have lobbed a disruptive obstacle into the salvaged meeting less than a week before it is set to happen. The remarks could easily offend officials in North Korea, where a cultlike autocracy exalts Mr. Kim as a deity who cannot be seen as servile and weak. 'If the North Koreans needed a reason to cancel the meeting, the Americans just gave it to them,' said Evans J.R. Revere, a former State Department diplomat who specializes in North Korea."
Simon Tisdall of the Guardian: "China's expanding efforts to impose its will on neighbours through diplomatic, commercial and military pressure -- the so-called Xi doctrine -- have drawn the sharpest riposte to date from the Trump administration with Taiwan once again the main flashpoint in a sea of accelerating Sino-American rivalry.... China has accelerated efforts to isolate Taiwan diplomatically, using its economic clout to pressure countries and international institutions into breaking off ties ... including the deployment of its own aircraft carrier in the strait.... The US response is being closely watched for signs of weakness by America's other allies in the region, who are also feeling the squeeze.... Dangerous US-China flashpoint issues appear to be multiplying fast." --safari (Also linked yesterday.)
Steven Erlanger & Milan Schreuer of the New York Times: "In a letter to senior Trump administration officials, European foreign and finance leaders this week tacitly acknowledged that their efforts to preserve the West's nuclear deal with Iran were failing. In the letter, sent on Monday to the Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the European leaders cited 'security interests' in requesting that companies in Europe be granted an exemption from United States sanctions that would be imposed as a result of President Trump's decision to withdraw from the pact.... The plea is considered unlikely to produce the relief the Europeans want, since the Trump administration's stated intention is to pressure Tehran into agreeing to an entirely new set of negotiations.... On Tuesday..., Iran announced that it was preparing its nuclear facilities to resume large-scale uranium enrichment and had built a factory for constructing advanced centrifuges should Europe fail to preserve the deal."
This Russia Thing, Etc., Ctd.
Louis Nelson of Politico: "Special counsel Robert Mueller's office is 'trying very, very hard to frame' ... Donald Trump, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani said at a conference Wednesday in Israel. Giuliani said Mueller's team, tasked with investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election and allegations that the Trumpcampaign colluded in those efforts, is composed of '13 highly partisan Democrats ... (who) are trying very, very hard to frame him to get him in trouble when he hasn't done anything wrong.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: This is a shocking lie to tell anywhere, much less while visiting an ally with whom we share intelligence. It's also probably pretty effective: if you're having trouble defending your vote for Trump because he's such a corrupt fuck-up, it really helps if you "find out" that the DOJ & the FBI are "trying to frame" Trump, so you can ignore every charge the Mueller team may assert. ...
... Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "Speaker Paul D. Ryan contradicted President Trump's assertions of a broad conspiracy by federal law enforcement on Wednesday, joining other lawmakers in saying that the F.B.I. did nothing wrong by using a confidential informant to contact members of the Trump campaign as it investigated its ties to Russia. And he said that Mr. Trump should not try to pardon himself, despite the president's assertion two days earlier that he has the power to take such a step. 'I don't know the technical answer to that question, but I think obviously the answer is he shouldn't,' Mr. Ryan told reporters. 'And no one is above the law.' Mr. Ryan's warning was the latest indication that the president is beginning to face trouble on Capitol Hill, where members of his own party are showing small signs of resistance. From international trade and China to immigration and the conduct of his cabinet, serious dissent from at least some Republicans is beginning to boil over." Mrs. McC: Ryan is retiring. ...
... Kyle Cheney & Rachel Bade of Politico: "Rep. Tom Rooney, a top Republican lawmaker on the House Intelligence Committee, is ripping ... Donald Trump's unsupported claim that the FBI inserted a spy inside his campaign. 'What is the point of saying that there was a spy in the campaign when there was none?' Rooney said in an interview on Wednesday. '... It's like, "Lets create this thing to tweet about knowing that it's not true." ... Maybe it's just to create more chaos but it doesn't really help the case.'... Rooney, a three-term Florida Republican who is retiring at the end of the year, was one of three GOP House members to lead the Intelligence Committee's year-long Russia probe after Chairman Devin Nunes stepped aside." Emphasis added.
Elie Mystal of Above the Law: "I'm not going to pretend I know the answer to the question: Can the President pardon himself?... Every speck of digital ink spilled contemplating the scope President's pardon power without talking about impeachment is a waste. This is not 'Philosophy of Laws: 101.' Instead, open your book 'So you've elected a despot' to chapter 1, page 1. It says right there: 'Does your system allow for the impeachment of said despot, and peaceful removal from power?' If YES, then you can stop reading. Impeachment or the 25th Amendment are the only Constitutional ways to remove a sitting president from power. That's the full list of despotic remedies.... It doesn't MATTER if he pardons himself. If Congress won't act, he can do ANYTHING HE WANTS.... The only relevant legal question is: what happens after Trump leaves office? Will he be arrested, like, the day a new president is sworn in? If so, will a preemptive self-pardon carry sway with whatever legal authorities are arrayed against former-President Trump? I don't know the answer to that question either, but at least it's one worth asking." --safari (Also linked yesterday.)
Brian Schwartz of CNBC: "Special counsel Robert Mueller's team is requesting that witnesses turn in their personal phones to inspect their encrypted messaging programs and potentially view conversations between associates linked to ... Donald Trump, sources told CNBC. Since as early as April, Mueller's team has been asking witnesses in the Russia probe to turn over phones for agents to examine private conversations on WhatsApp, Confide, Signal and Dust, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Fearing a subpoena, the witnesses have complied with the request and have given over their phones, the sources said."
Follow the Money. Carole Cadwalladr & Stephanie Kirchgaessner of the Guardian: "A Cambridge Analytica director apparently visited Julian Assange in February last year and told friends it was to discuss what happened during the US election.... Brittany Kaiser, a director at the firm until earlier this year, also claimed to have channelled cryptocurrency payments and donations to WikiLeaks. This information has been passed to congressional and parliamentary inquiries in the UK and US. Cambridge Analytica and WikiLeaks are already subjects of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, but the revelations open up fresh questions about the precise nature of the organisations' relationship. There was no known connection until October last year, when it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica had 'reached out' to Assange in July 2016 and offered to help him index and distribute the 33,000 emails that had been stolen from Hillary Clinton."
The Warp Zone. Zack Beauchamp of Vox: "Late on Tuesday, President Trump tweeted something that's embarrassing even by his standards: an unfounded conspiracy theory that originated in some of the internet's worst 'fake news' corners. 'Strzok-Page, the incompetent & corrupt FBI lovers, have texts referring to a counter-intelligence operation into the Trump Campaign dating way back to December, 2015,' the president wrote. 'SPYGATE is in full force!'... [W]hat happened, it seems, is that a conspiratorial interpretation of texts between two FBI employees, one entirely unfounded in the actual evidence, got laundered from the fringe right-wing media to the right-wing mainstream through Fox News personalities -- and eventually reached up to a member of Congress and the president of the United States. This says something profound about the way the country is broken today -- about how Trump and the conservative media have combined forces to warp the way millions of Americans understand the world around them." --safari
The Lady & the Weightlifter. Anthony Cormier, et al., of BuzzFeed: "Amid intense scrutiny of contacts between Donald Trump's inner circle and representatives of Vladimir Putin, Ivanka Trump's name has barely come up. But during the campaign, she connected her father's personal lawyer with a Russian athlete who offered to introduce Donald Trump to Putin to facilitate a 100-story Trump tower in Moscow, according to emails reviewed by BuzzFeed News and four sources with knowledge of the matter. There is no evidence that Ivanka Trump's contact with the athlete -- the former Olympic weightlifter Dmitry Klokov -- was illegal or that it had anything to do with the election. Nor is it clear that Klokov could even have introduced Trump to the Russian president. But congressional investigators have reviewed emails and questioned witnesses about the interaction, according to two of the sources, and so has special counsel Robert Mueller's team, according to the other two."
Sarah Fitzpatrick & Tracy Connor of NBC News: "Stormy Daniels says in a new lawsuit that her former attorney betrayed her and became a 'puppet' for ... Donald Trump and his personal lawyer while still representing her. The filing Wednesday alleges that Trump attorney Michael Cohen 'hatched a plan' and 'colluded' with the adult film actress' lawyer, Keith Davidson, to get her to go on Fox News in January and falsely deny she had an affair with Trump more than a decade ago. Cohen even referred to Davidson as 'pal' in one text cited in the complaint. The lawsuit against Davidson and Cohen also claims that Trump was aware the two attorneys were communicating and coordinating for his benefit -- unbeknownst to Daniels.... 'Mr. Davidson abdicated his role as an advocate and fiduciary of his client Ms. Clifford and instead elected to be a puppet for Mr. Cohen and Mr. Trump in order to advance their interests at the expense of Ms Clifford,' the suit says."
Trumpy Takes a Field Trip
We're now exporting energy for the first time. Never did it. Now we're exporting energy. -- President Trump, speaking at a briefing at FEMA headquarters on Wednesday
The United States has exported energy sources like coal, natural gas, petroleum and electricity for decades.... The United States is still a net importer. Additionally, data from the energy statistical agency shows that the United States was a net exporter for several years before 1953. -- Linda Qiu of the New York Times
Adam Raymond of New York: "President Trump and Vice-President Pence visited the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Wednesday and lavished the agency with praise for its work in 2017, making no mention of the recent study that put the death toll in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria at 4,645."
Gossip Page. Adam Edelman & Dartunorro Clark of NBC News: "First lady Melania Trump made her first public appearance in nearly a month on Wednesday, tamping down rumors about her noticeable absence from the public eye after she underwent a kidney procedure. The first lady sat next to ... Donald Trump at the headquarters of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for a 2018 hurricane season briefing with the vice president and several cabinet officials also in attendance." Mrs. McC: No, no, I'm sure that was a body-double. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
... Frank Dale of ThinkProgress: "Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus are calling for an independent commission to investigate the Trump administration's response to Hurricane Maria and the storm's aftermath in Puerto Rico.... Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) vowed to introduce legislation that would lead to the creation of an independent commission -- though passing it in the current Republican-controlled Congress will be a challenge." --safari
Miranda Carter in the New Yorker: "One of the few things that Kaiser Wilhelm II, who ruled Germany from 1888 to 1918, had a talent for was causing outrage.... One of the many things that Wilhelm was convinced he was brilliant at, despite all evidence to the contrary, was 'personal diplomacy.'... The Kaiser viewed other people in instrumental terms, was a compulsive liar, and seemed to have a limited understanding of cause and effect.... I published ... a book that was, in part, about Kaiser Wilhelm.... Ever since Donald Trump started campaigning for President, the Kaiser has once again been on my mind -- his personal failings, and the global fallout they led to." Read on. --safari
Miriam Jordan of the New York Times: "A federal judge in San Diego on Wednesday refused to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's practice of taking children from immigrants when they arrive at the border to seek asylum, ruling that the 'wrenching separation' of families may violate the Constitution's guarantees of due process. 'Such conduct, if true, as it is assumed to be on the present motion, is brutal, offensive, and fails to comport with traditional notions of fair play and decency,' Judge Dana M. Sabraw of the Southern District of California wrote in his 25-page opinion. The judge rejected the government's claim that the practice of family separations -- one of the most controversial features of the government's crackdown on illegal immigration -- cannot be challenged on constitutional grounds, though he did dismiss a separate challenge claiming that the practice violates asylum laws."
Brady Dennis, et al., of the Washington Post: "Two of Scott Pruitt's most trusted aides have given notice that they are leaving the Environmental Protection Agency as its embattled administrator faces growing scrutiny over his spending and management decisions, according to current and former agency officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel moves. The departures of Sarah Greenwalt, Pruitt's senior counsel, and Millan Hupp, his director for scheduling and advance -- both of whom had worked with Pruitt since his days as Oklahoma attorney general -- leave the EPA chief increasingly isolated as he faces a dozen federal spending and ethics probes.... The departures are the latest and possibly most significant in a growing list of political appointees who have left the agency.... Trump praised Pruitt at a FEMA event today and said the EPA is 'doing very, very well.'" ...
... Elaina Plott: "Hupp, who worked as the director of scheduling and advance, has been entangled in many of the scandals dogging EPA Administrator Pruitt. According to one top EPA official, the 26-year-old was 'tired of being thrown under the bus by Pruitt,' and weary of seeing her name constantly appear in headlines about the agency. Officials began drafting her resignation paperwork on Monday morning, just after portions of her congressional testimony had been made public.... When reached by phone, Jahan Wilcox, an EPA spokesperson, would not comment. He said: 'You have a great day, you're a piece of trash.'" Mrs. McC: Needless to say, an agency spokesperson in any other administration who called a reporter asking a routine question "a piece of trash" would be fired on the spot. No word Wilcox has cleared out his desk or been frog-marched out of the building. ...
... Trump Is Only Person in White House Who Likes Scotty. Get Out! Emily Holden, et al., of Politico: "EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt loves eating at the White House mess, an exclusive U.S. Navy-run restaurant open only to White House officials, Cabinet members and other dignitaries. But apparently he liked it too much, and the White House asked him to please eat elsewhere sometimes." ...
... Marcy's So Mean. Lisa Ryan of New York: "Marcy Kaptur of Ohio decided to insert an amendment into the EPA interior bill limiting the amount of taxpayer funds Pruitt could use on individual pens to just $50 ... and it passed!"...
... Tribal Protections. Kyla Mandel of ThinkProgress: "House Republicans on Wednesday afternoon blocked an effort by Democrats to increase funding for the [EPA's] watchdog, which is tasked with investigating the many scandals surrounding agency administrator Scott Pruitt.... [V]oting along party-lines 21-26, Republicans rejected an amendment introduced by Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) to increase the OIG's funding for 2019. 'It's hard to imagine that there is a more overworked inspector general than at the EPA these days,' Pocan said. 'This is not a Democrat/Republican thing, this should be a good government thing.'" --safari
** Mike Levine of ABC News: "The Justice Department's internal watchdog has concluded that James Comey defied authority at times during his tenure as FBI director, according to sources familiar with a draft report on the matter. One source told ABC News that the draft report explicitly used the word 'insubordinate' to describe Comey's behavior. Another source agreed with that characterization but could not confirm the use of the term. In the draft report, Inspector General Michael Horowitz also rebuked former Attorney General Loretta Lynch for her handling of the federal investigation into Hillary Clinton's personal email server, the sources said.... The draft of Horowitz's wide-ranging report specifically called out Comey for ignoring objections from the Justice Department when he disclosed in a letter to Congress just days before the 2016 presidential election that FBI agents had reopened the Clinton probe, according to sources. Clinton has said that letter doomed her campaign.... Horowitz's draft report [also] cited Comey for failing to consult with Lynch and other senior Justice Department officials [in July 2016] before making his announcement on national TV [re: closing the e-mail! investigation]. While saying there was no 'clear evidence' that Clinton 'intended to violate' the law, Comey insisted the former secretary of state was 'extremely careless' in her 'handling of very sensitive, highly classified information.'"
Steven Myers & Jane Perlez of the New York Times: "A crisis over a mysterious ailment sickening American diplomats and their families -- which began in Cuba and recently appeared in China -- widened on Wednesday as the State Department evacuated at least two more Americans from China. The Americans who were evacuated worked at the American Consulate in the southern city of Guangzhou, and their colleagues and family members are being tested by a State Department medical team, officials said. It is unclear how many of them are exhibiting symptoms, but officials expect more American personnel to be evacuated. For months, American officials have been worried that their diplomats have been subjected to targeted attacks involving odd sounds, leading to symptoms similar to those 'following concussion or minor traumatic brain injury,' the State Department says."
Congressional Races. Carl Hulse & Jonathan Martin of the New York Times: "Democrats enhanced their prospects for winning control of the House with Tuesday's coast-to-coast primary results, skirting potential calamity in California and lining up likely gains in New Jersey and possible victories in Iowa and New Mexico. The Democratic Party had feared disaster in California, where a quirky 'jungle primary' gives the November ballot to the top two finishers, regardless of party. But Democratic contenders there leveraged financial and strategic help from the national party to weather the winnowing primary, and ensure that they will field candidates in multiple districts that they will most likely need if they are to win control in November.... Republicans avoided their own worst-case scenario as well, securing a spot in the California governor's race, which should help bring G.O.P. voters to the polls this fall to vote for their party's House candidates.... Republican voters also chose strong candidates in Southern California for the showdown in November."
Extra-Special Rich-White-Boy Sentence Leads to Recall. Maggie Astor of the New York Times: "Aaron Persky, the California judge who drew national attention in 2016 when he sentenced a Stanford student to just six months in jail for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman, was recalled on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press. He is the first judge recalled in California in more than 80 years. Judge Persky, 56, had served on the Santa Clara County Superior Court since 2003, and he began his most recent six-year term in June 2016.... The judge said he thought [Brock] Turner [-- the assailant --] would 'not be a danger to others' and expressed concern that 'a prison sentence would have a severe impact' on him. He did not mention the impact of the assault on the victim, known publicly only as Emily Doe, who described her suffering in a more than 7,000-word statement that went viral soon after it was published by BuzzFeed." (Also linked yesterday.)
** Presidential Race 2020. Eric Levitz of New York runs down the many reasons Democrats should reject a presidential bid by Howard Schultz, founder of Starbucks.
Shane Goldmacher of the New York Times: "Former President Bill Clinton's book tour for his first novel keeps getting interrupted by a familiar character from his past: Monica Lewinsky. After Mr. Clinton reacted defensively on the 'Today' show on Monday when asked about Ms. Lewinsky..., he tried to walk back the tenor of his remarks, if not fully the substance, on Tuesday. 'When something that was that painful is thrown up again after 20 years after it was fully litigated, you tend to freeze up -- and it wasn't my finest hour,' Mr. Clinton said at a TimesTalk event in Manhattan." (Also linked yesterday.)
Giovanni Russonello of the New York Times: "Samantha Bee apologized on 'Full Frontal' on Wednesday for using a severe epithet to describe Ivanka Trump last week.... (Bee devoted the next section of her show to the detention facilities where the Trump administration is now housing immigrant children separated from their parents by Border Patrol agents.)" With video.
Way Beyond the Beltway
David Harding of AFP: "On the first anniversary of a bitter Gulf diplomatic rift, Qatar's foreign minister on Tuesday declared his country stronger than ever and said it was open to dialogue with its regional rivals.... Diplomatic efforts led by Kuwait and the United States have so far stalled though there are tentative plans for talks in September.... Doha would continue with its purchase of the Russian S-400 air defence missile system. Saudi leaders have asked French President Emmanuel Macron to intervene to prevent the deal going ahead, raising fears of military action in the dispute. Raising the military stakes yet further, Qatar's defence minister Khalid bin Mohamed Al-Attiyah, said Tuesday that Doha wanted to join NATO." --safari
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Reader Comments (20)
Best comment I've seen re Canada burning down the White House was in New York magazine.
"Who knew American history could be so complicated."
Pat
Upon consideration of the "Russer" thing, do you remember seeing the Trump Tower Moscow project sketches? You can see them here:
https://www.buzzfeed.com/anthonycormier/trump-moscow-micheal-cohen-felix-sater-campaign?utm_term=.ryx47Qqwy#.bcpDRErdo
I'm confident this play by Putin might rank as the biggest and most successful troll in modern international politics. Putin gave hints at "approving" the building, which was projected to the tallest building IN EUROPE. And not only that, the tallest building towering over Moscow was supposedly going to have the word TRUMP emblazoned across the skyline.
Does anybody really believe Putin would agree to let Trump attain this symbolic apogee of Russia, in exchange for some petty money laundering and luxury suite services? Vladdy Boy is known for a "you scratch my back, I might let you live" governance strategy. Unless Trump is providing even bigger services, I'm far from convinced. And letting an American huckster dominate the skyline of the nationalistic, jingoistic Russian capital? Never in his life.
The grandiosity of the project is a naked play on Trump's narcissism and hyperbolic intuitions. Trump signing that letter of intent, knowingly to be financed by the sanctioned VTB bank (the same night of the 3rd Republican debate!), was the symbolic delivery of his nutsack into Putin's gleeful grasp. It's been there ever since.
@safari: Excellent commentary––and I think you are absolutely correct. The image you gave me of Putin holding–-very tightly–-Trump's nutsack will stay with me all morning.
I'm off to have my yearly physical––I'm sure I will be diagnosed with Trumpaphilia; a malady that no pill can cure.
@PD Pepe: I hope that's Trumpophobia, not Trumpaphilia.
@safari: Trump's strategic mistake on the Moscow deal is such an obvious one that only Trump could miss it: instead of calling the tallest building in Europe "Trump Tower Moscow," he would have had to call it "Putin Palace, with a big Cyrillic P -- "Ԥ" -- at the tippy-tip-top of the phallic building. I'm not kidding.
Puh-leeze
I am a fan of Jeet Heer's work but I have to make a point about his attempt to kind of, sort of support little trumpy's latest historical gaffe.
Heer's point, and that of a Confederate writer Dan McLaughlin whom he quotes, is that Canada was part of the British empire during the War of 1812 and thus the little king's wrong-ass question might actually not be that far off the historical mark. McLaughlin was particularly snarky in his snipe at CNN's Jim Acosta, remarking that he must not have known that Canada was not independent of Britain at the time.
Sorry boys. Anybody with a high school education knows that. All except Trump, apparently.
Even though Canadian militia took part in the war on the side of their imperial overlords, it was British troops who burned the White House. Trump's question is directed at Canadians and made, very likely, to put Trudeau back on his heels in the ongoing tariff spat initiated by trumpy, perhaps as a way of casting a cloud over American-Canadian relationships and perhaps offer himself some historical rationale for sticking it to our biggest trading partner. If the little king truly understood history, he wouldn't have tried to blame Canada for the conflagration. Whatever else Canadians did during the war, they did so under the direct command of the British.
I'm so fucking tired of people constantly giving this ignorant lout the benefit of the doubt. "Oh, that Donald, he's so freakin' smart, of course he knows it was the British but he was trying to something, something, something the Canadians."
Horseshit. He's an idiot. That's it.
Can't wait for whatever historical tidbits he throws at the North Koreans next week. "Didn't you guys bomb Pearl Harbor? No? Well, you look like those guys..."
This is good. His musty majesty made the cover of Time.
Maybe The Capital Steps could produce a new musical called "The King is I."
Protection Racket
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, brainchild of Elizabeth Warren, birthed into existence as part of Dodd-Frank, is being smothered to death by Trump and his hit man, Mick Mulvaney.
Mulvaney, you may recall, made a career out of trying to kill the CFPB. Now he runs it. Gee...funny how that works, in'it? Kinda like appointing the official testicle washer of the extraction industries to kill the EPA, and handing the Department of Education over to a billionaire Jesus freak who thinks education is spelled M-O-N-E-Y.
But at least on the surface, the CFPB had some, however little, input from consumer advocates who weren't in the pocket of the banks and predatory lenders. This input came from a consumer advisory council.
But not no more.
Mulvaney fired all of them.
Not needed. Ho-hum. He can take care of them consumers hisself (wink, wink). The protection he's offering is for banks, not average Americans. A real racket.
Of course, in true Trumpian fashion, once word got out about this latest evisceration, Mulvaney and his stooges went on the attack against the advisory council, claiming that all they did was jet into Washington on expensive junkets to be wined and dined and didn't care a whit about actually protecting the consumers (unlike Mulvaney, of course).
The script is already old. And in this instance, it's not like Republicans are looking the other way, letting Trump and his band of crooks kick consumers in the shins, giving the banks free rein again, they're cheering it on. They love sticking it to average Americans as long as their rich friends make out.
WHERE ARE THE FUCKING DEMOCRATS??!! They need to step up the attacks on this malicious band of cutthroats. We need to take the House and the Senate.
Chances of that happening?
Don't ask.
@ Bea
Very true, although I doubt Drumpf's very fragile ego could handle that. Unless of course they could rig up something like the "Trump-Pence" campaign logo where the "T" is hanging his limp weenie through the "P"'s orifice. That could work.
On another note, WTF is loony Rudy doing bashing pornstars and lecturing on Donny's sexual preferences while abroad in Israel? It's bad enough that our national discourse is required to spend so much time in the gutter ever since the arrival of our elected Moron, but the administration is now elevating and opining on our national scandals du jour abroad, to foreign audiences. Those questions could be ducked with ease, but instead they purposefully take them up head on.
I know norms have been obliterated by now and nothing should surprise us, but denigrating our institutions like the FBI/DOJ in front of foreign audiences while interjecting opinions on the valor of pornstars still astounds me.
Safari,
I don't know if Trump and Giuliani have anything you might call a strategy except to sow chaos and confusion wherever they roam.
Giuliani is especially embarrassing. He seems like a doddering idiot willing to say anything to keep his mug on the TV for as long as he can before senility, stupefaction, or total irrelevancy set in, whichever comes first.
At one time he had something approaching an okay reputation (that America's Mayor thing), but he has traded all of that in in the service of snarling, scratching, humping mongrel. I'd say "sad" if I gave a shit. If Trump ordered him to get on all fours and bark like a doggie, he'd ask "Which kind?".
And regarding the Trump Moscow fiasco, it seems that Trump gets played far more often than he wins. If he really were "the world's greatest negotiator" as Michael Cohen and others sucking up to his fat ass aver, why would he constantly have to go skulking around back alleys looking to jump into bed with shady characters, criminals, and con artists in order to make his "great deals"?
Why? Because for one thing, the self-proclaimed greatest real estate developer in the country has no choice. He screwed so many people, backed out of so many deals, refused to pay so many bills that no decent bank would do business with such an unsavory, pernicious deadbeat. So much for his great negotiating skills.
He's a moocher, a fraud, and a cheap huckster who sees himself as a genius. Another reason he gets played so often. If you believe that you're always the smartest guy in the room, its a lot easier for the people who really are smart to pick your pocket while telling you how great your hair looks.
"Whatever else Canadians did during the war, they did so under the direct command of the British."
Except, as you note Ak, there WERE no Canadians in 1814, they were all Brits.
BTW, some historians of the Revolution (I forget which now, sorry) held the opinion that the northern provinces, recently wrested by the UK from France (i.e., still with many many Catholic subjects), declined to join up with the Rebel 13 primarily because The Crown had just agreed to allow them to have a RC bishop -- the first in North America. When the American delegation parlayed, they explained to the northerners that under new enlightened governance there would be no state-sponsored bishops, the not-yet-Canadians declined the offer.
The U.S. got its first bishop (not state-sponsored), John Carroll, in 1790. Lesson learned: let them have their effin bishop if that's all it takes.
Here's a thought: the U.S. is ostensibly interested in negotiating "a better deal" with Iran.
If I were Iran, I would just tell DiJiT: "We'll accept whatever deal you make with N. Korea, sight unseen." By definition, because it's DiJiT's deal, it will be "the best" so its win-win all around, no?
Patrick,
Yes, they were members of the British empire, but what I meant was residents of Canada (who weren't a whole lot different from Americans before the revolution, ie, considered more like second class citizens of the realm) as opposed to British regulars.
I've been off line for a few days, someone in Eastern Europe of
some shithole country got into my computer.
So has the president* said or done anything stupid this week?
How about a war with Canada? If I go to Europe again, I'm not
from the USA, it's Canada all the way. Much easier to explain.
@Forrest: ...done anything stupid? That is an unnecessary question!
@ Forrest: Is water wet?
@forrest morris: If you go to Europe again, do NOT say you're from Canada, even though the temptation, at first blush, seems reasonable. On your way home, you might you be stopped at the U.S. border & asked to explain any pro-Canadian remarks you made to random Europeans. Worse, you could be pegged as a spy for a country that not only burned down the White House but is currently identified in Trump's tariff fiats as a security threat to the U.S. (This last bit is true.)
On the other hand, maybe Canada would grant you amnesty.
Today's Edsall is worth a look. In it he examines the decline of workers' bargaining power over the last forty years.
This paragraph says it all. "Two trends demonstrate the decline of labor and the ascent of business. Since 1979, after-tax corporate profits as a share of gross domestic product have grown by 22.8 percent, while the share of nonfarm business sector income going to labor has dropped by 10.3 percent."
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/07/opinion/trump-labor-capital-class-struggle.html?
In addition to the racism and misogyny (and the Electoral College), this is what gave us the Pretender.
Think a wall and a barrage of tariffs, whimsically levied, will fix it?
Well, this is surely the last straw for the remaining manly Republican Scott Pruitt-lovers out there. Face cream? OMG.