We are currently in the process of rebuilding the Berning Media Network website & team. We are shooting for an August 1st relaunch where BMN will come back bigger and better with more content than ever. The website is being brought back after popular demand via the Instagram page. Thank you for the support and I look forward to getting this website back up and running. – Patrick Vinson
Category: News
Presidency Beyond Recognition in Comparison to its Founding Days…
Giovanni LoPiccolo
President Trump “certainly believes he has the power” to fire special counsel Robert Mueller III, according to White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders during a press conference on April 10th, 2018 (reported by CNN). This is yet another one of the Trump’s Administration’s methods in trying to undermine the legitimacy and importance of Robert Mueller, and his investigation into money-laundering and possible Trump-Russia collusion during the 2016 election. It is no alternative fact that President’s can fire special counsels, as they can do so by ordering the Attorney General to (in this case, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein since Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the Russia investigation – smart move, Jeff).
If the President of the United States fires an investigator who is investigating the possibility of money laundering, collusion, bribery, or even treason, that is a big signal. Obviously, he is trying to hide something from being revealed. Right now, Donald Trump is just ever so closely inching towards doing just that. He has continuously barraged the Justice Department on Twitter, and has berated Attorney General Jeff Sessions on numerous occasions.
He is obstructing justice without blatantly crossing the line. We now have an executive branch with the ability to stop investigations of itself, an executive branch that can go to war without an approving Congressional declaration, and a White House that can undermine justice and simultaneously hide within the drapes of executive privilege.
Can the Presidency be controlled? Or is the nation barreling towards an authoritarian government where its elected body of representatives can’t keep up with their original constitutional duties of checks and balances? This current moment in American history will be remembered and referred to as a crossroads of its destiny. Will we allow such a demagogue undermine our republic, our democratic values, and our justice system?
I believe that with the Presidency of Donald Trump, we need more regulations on who can run for President. If we can’t change the Constitution via amendments, then we can turn to our states to legislate and craft specific requirements on how you can get on the national ballot and earn that state’s electoral votes. Of course, these are just suggestions, they are opinions.
1. First, whoever is running for President and Vice President should release his or her tax returns. Maryland was the first state to require this, by passing a law in early March 2018 that requires Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates to show their tax returns. Donald Trump hasn’t paid taxes in about 18 years, yet he complains some companies (Amazon) don’t pay enough in taxes, and passed a corporate tax cut… he finessed all of you who bought into that scheme.
2. Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates must take a mental health exam from three different, independent, doctors (not your personal physician), and be deemed stable and sane to be on the ballot. Remember when Donald Trump claimed that a woman like Hillary Clinton would be too emotional to be President? That’s pretty interesting because almost everyday I get a CNN alert about something stupid Trump says or does, complaining about something or someone.
3. Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates must have held political office for at least four years to be on the national ballot. Teenagers need tens of hours of driving practice to get their drivers licenses. Most careers today require you have a high school diploma. Why is it that to hold the highest office in the United States, all you need is to be 35, a naturalized citizen, and have to have lived 14 years in the country?
One of the biggest battles between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in 2016 was who had more experience? Both have been in government for decades, yet did different things. They were both qualified in their own right, yet here we have a TV reality star billionaire representing the 99%. Just doesn’t make sense. So, spend some time in lower levels of government, get your hands dirty, work with the people. Get a taste of what its like to lead, and we’ll see if you’re ready to move up in the chain.
4. Give Congress back its power of war/peace-making, and when to use nuclear weapons. Recently, Bernie Sanders introduced a bill called the War Powers Resolution to rein in the Presidency, and get out of the war in Yemen. It didn’t pass. The fear of letting Congress decide when to go to war is that there’s too many people to make a swift and quick decision. It would take more than an hour to get 535 members on Capitol Hill, not enough time to respond to an incoming nuclear warhead.
One solution could give that power of nuclear bomb usage and war-making to the Armed Services Committee of the Senate. The Senate Armed Services Committee has fourteen members, composed of senators from both political parties. Within the fourteen member committee are seven subcommittees, smaller groups tasked with more specific agendas; such as the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Subcommittee on Personnel, and Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities. One potential subcommittee could be the Subcommittee of Nuclear Action/Response, whose sole responsibility is when, where, and how to use nuclear weapons.
We should be aware by now that the Electoral College, which was a system to prevent the election of demagogues, has failed. We should be aware by now that the US has gotten itself into a myriad of crises and military conflicts that are lasting years, because of Presidents’ choices. We should be aware by now that if a man with significant wealth, and a talent in appealing to your anger/frustration, can become the world’s most powerful leader. A man that can wipe his own, dirtied, slate clean…
Sources:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-president-tax-returns-20180305-story.html
https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/10/politics/robert-mueller-donald-trump-white-house/index.html
You can read more about the Senate Committees here:
https://www.senate.gov/general/committee_membership/committee_memberships_SSAS.htm
2nd Amendment – “Relic of the 18th Century…” – Says Retired Supreme Court Justice Stevens. Repeal It.
Giovanni LoPiccolo
Former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, who retired from the nation’s highest court in 2010, recently wrote an op-ed in the New York Times, which was published on March 27th, calling for the repeal of the 2nd Amendment. This is perhaps the most controversial topic in America, and even more interesting to note that former Justice Stevens is a lifelong Republican.
The year is 1789, and the Constitution of the United States replaces the Articles of Confederation. The closely knit alliance of states had now become a true nation with a proper central government; a single military, headed by a President, led by a two-housed Congress, and kept in check by a Supreme Court. Just a few years prior, from 1786 to 1787, farmers were able to hold the state of Massachusetts hostage; dubbed Shays Rebellion.
Prior to the implementation of the Constitution, the United States had no unitary armed forces. Each state had their own militias, as allowed by the very weak and state-centered Articles of Confederation. Farmers who turned into protestors didn’t want the state to enforce the collection of taxes and took matters into their own hands. This was just one of the last straws for the constitutional framers, who have come to realization that the current system wasn’t working.
Then comes the Constitution, and with it, the Bill of Rights. The second, being the right to bear arms. This comes just years after the American Revolution. The fear of England’s vengeance lingered in the mind of every American… being once again oppressed by a non-democratic, totalitarian, authoritarian figure. That was over two hundred years ago, and that fear has been dead for a long time.
Guns can be used for hunting. Guns can be used to defend your property. But in no world should citizens have guns meant to maim and kill human beings. That is something we must address, as for just mentioning the repeal of the 2nd Amendment would cause a disastrous infighting in the United States, between conservatives and liberals. We are not at risk of being oppressed or having every single right taken away by the federal government. We are not at risk of being ruled by a totalitarian dictator. We are not at risk of losing our right to vote. And our states are not at risk of losing their already self-delegated autonomy.
The United States Congress isn’t coming after you, or after your right to vote, your right to protest peacefully, your right to freedom of religion, or your right of freedom of the press, etc. (That does not mean that there aren’t any flaws with our current system). The federal government is too busy giving us what we need to survive and thrive; running water, electricity, roads, hospitals for the sick, housing for the homeless, schools for our children, and so on. We all pay taxes, together, to use that money for all of our benefit. And before the Constitution, it was different, very different.
Political scholar Joseph Zimmerman wrote a book called Contemporary American Federalism, and details in its chapter 2 – Establishment of the Federal System, “…Congress was handicapped in carrying out its responsibilities by five major defects in the articles [Articles of Confederation] that made Congress largely an advisory body. First, Congress lacked the power to levy taxes and was dependent for revenue on funds supplied to the treasury by the states…”
A federal government without any real power could not even collect taxes to ensure the establishment of necessities, so could you imagine if we were still in that system? We can’t remain engaged in a system built out of fear of what could happen. We need a system that is built on what the people need. We, the people, need protection from homicidal people’s ability to obtaining an assault rifle. We, the people, need to live in a country where we aren’t afraid to send our kids to school because of the possibility of a mass shooting. We don’t need guns to protect ourselves from the federal government, we aren’t their enemy. We put our leaders into office, and we hold them accountable. This obsession with guns must come to an end.
So, what direction do we go in now? Could the 2nd Amendment be repealed? Well, the way to repeal an amendment is to implement another constitutional amendment overriding it. The way to get a constitutional amendment is for two-thirds of the House of Representatives and two-thirds of the Senate to pass it. Then, three-fourths of the states have to affirm it. So, instead of going to the comments sections of every social media platform and attacking one another on this issue, we get our leaders to start it up. If we really want to make change, let’s get our representatives in Congress to vote on such a resolution. If it somehow gets through Congress, each state should hold a referendum on whether to affirm or reject the proposal. That way, we can truly determine if this is what America wants and needs.
Sources:
https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/27/politics/john-paul-stevens-second-amendment/index.html
Zimmerman, Joseph Francis, 1928 – Contemporary American Federalism : the growth of national power / Joseph F. Zimmerman
Catalan ex-President Puigdemont’s detention in Germany is answered by mass protests in Barcelona
Carles Puigdemont was detained by German police yesterday while crossing from Denmark on his way back to Belgium. On Friday the Spanish government reactivated an international arrest warrant for Puigdemont. Spain sent a request to the Finnish authorities to detain Puigdemont, who was on a visit to promote the Catalan independence cause. However, the request was written in Spanish and there was a delay while authorities in Madrid had it translated into English. In the meantime, Puigdemont left the country.
The Catalan ex-President had been living near Brussles in self-imposed exile after a Spanish judge had issued a national arrest warrant. Puigdemont is wanted on charges of sedition, rebellion and misuse of public funds after being highly involved in the October referendum which vies for the quest for Catalan independence from Spain.
Puigdemont spent the night in a prison in the north German town of Neumünster and will appear before a German judge on Monday. His court appearance, however, will be a formality to confirm his identity. German judges will have to assess if there is an equivalent to the Spanish charges in German law, which is known as “dual criminality”. The extradition procedure lasts about two months. If it formally begins, then a judge will decide whether Puigdemont will be kept in custody. The charges he faces in Spain could result in up to 30 years in prison.
After the news of his detention, protests broke out across Catalonia on Sunday. At least 98 people were injured in clashes with police and six arrests were made. In central Barcelona, protesters chanted “Freedom for the political prisoners” and “This Europe is shameful!” as they headed to the offices of the European Commission and the German consulate.Spanish news agency Efe estimated crowds of 55,000 in the centre of the city. Smaller demonstrations were held in Girona, where Puigdemont once served as mayor, Tarragona and Lleida. Some protesters also formed road blocks in various locations.
Fire in Russian shopping center over 60 people
At least 64 people have died in a fire which started in a shopping and entertainment complex in the Siberian city of Kemerovo. Many of the victims are children, as school holidays had just started, while ten people are still listed as “missing”. The building’s shops, cinema and bowling alley were packed at the time of the incident. Videos posted on social media showed people jumping from windows to escape the flames.
It is still unknown what started the fire, but authorities have already launched an investigation. “According to preliminary information, the roof collapsed in two cinemas,” Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement. Four people have been detained for questioning, including the head of the company that manages the shopping centre, according to the Investigative Committee. The owner of the Winter Cherry complex is among those being held.
Italy: Impossible to Govern?
Giovanni LoPiccolo
Holding a national election on March 4th, the Republic of Italy still does not have a government. Currently being led by Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni of the Democratic Party, the election failed to yield any party to reach the 40% threshold necessary to form a government. This is the same land that once was home to a Republic and Empire which stood for 500 plus years, so what’s happening?
Since the end of World War II, Italy has had over sixty governments. That’s just not healthy. No government has had the time to properly settle and let its programs take effect, and give substantial results. The closest to that happening was actually from the currently leading party; Partito Democratico, Democratic Party, which its programs have been helping the economy recover slowly.
The biggest parties in Italy are the following:
- 5 Stelle – Five Star Movement: Populist party with no allegiances to a specific side of the political spectrum, second place in March 4th election. Led by Luigi Di Maio. (Mainly compose of left-wing/progressive candidates and politicians).
- Lega Nord – Northern League (or the League as its been called recently): Right wing party led by Matteo Salvini, and garnered the most votes of any party in the March 4th election, roughly 37%.
- Forza Italia – Go Italy: Center-right wing party led by former Prime Minister, and tax fraud convict, Silvio Berlusconi.
- Partito Democratico (PD)- Democratic Party: Once led by former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, a center-left party (they resemble corporate/establishment Democrats here in the US).
This election was one filled with pure anger at the establishment system in Italy, both at Berlusconi’s party and the PD. Over the past few years, due to European Union mandates, Italy has seen an enormous influx of migrants from Northern Africa, and it has become the most contentious issue. Mix that with poverty and unemployment in the southern regions of the country, resentment towards unproductive politicians, and decades of political stalemate, it gives us an equally displeasing result.
5 Star doesn’t want to make a coalition government with other parties to form a government, nor does PD. Berlusconi has a coalition with the League, but it isn’t enough to have a majority. So, if the Italians want a functioning government, 5 Star would have to make a coalition with either the League or PD. Now, the League has had its instances of racism, so the populist 5 Star shouldn’t really make a deal with them. The PD claims that the 5 Star is not suitable to lead, yet they are so close to governing. It’s a big mess, and makes one wonder how could they fix this.
This is possibly one of the biggest downsides to a multi-party system government. You have too many bickering ideologies and people who think they are right and their method is what will lead to a prosperous government. As we’ve seen in Germany, it took Chancellor Angela Merkel six months to form a coalition to begin governing. Yes, in the US, our two parties are corrupt and shut out a lot of differing voices, but at least we have a government that can easily be replaced if it isn’t working out well (every four years).
If the Italian parties can’t form a coalition, one of the last solutions is to call for another election. That would most likely split the vote even more and cause people not to vote out of sheer anger with the system. What can be done?
Italy is known for corruption, sadly enough, and many of the politicians who are corrupt blame the problems on the EU. That includes Brussels (the EU capital) and Germany (since Germany has the strongest economy in Europe and basically is its de facto leader in the bloc). But, maybe, the EU should be making more decisions for Italy. The European Union leadership is not flawless in any regard, they need to look at each member state differently and place regulations and mandates according to their current situation. Perhaps encourage neighboring nations to take in more refugees, instead of having Italy take on the most.
We suddenly run into the argument that “Well, Italy is a sovereign nation and shouldn’t give up its sovereignty.” Yes, it shouldn’t. However, let’s not forget that for the past sixty years that country has not shown any significant progress, is drowning in debt (132% of its GDP, according to Eurostat), and is saddled with corruption. The idea of the European Union was to form a community based on progress through teamwork and enfranchising all nations of Europe, and that comes with a cost. Being a part of a community means looking out for one another, and that goes for a continental community as well.
We know that with every issue there isn’t just one reason to why it happened in the first place. Letting Europe make more decisions for Italy isn’t going to magically give it a functioning government. As mentioned above, the PD’s programs and policies have been leading to the economy growing, slowly but surely. The debt is still climbing, being the second most indebted country in Europe, after Greece.
Multi-party systems are better for democracies, they give us more choices, but the proportional system currently being used in Italy isn’t working. Nobody is willing to work together because of their preconceived notions of one another (the PD and 5 Star). Like in the US, we’ve run into the issue of people thinking that this way is the only way. 5 Star will need the PD if it wants to create a better Italy, they’re the closest parties on the political spectrum. Like here in the US, our Democratic Party is broken into two wings, yet when standing together can do some pretty good things. Things like; passing the Affordable Care Act in 2010, preventing the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, enacting the Dodd-Frank banking regulations after the Great Recession, and so forth. These are the small building blocks we need to make it even better. Single-payer and a progressive taxation system could come next, once Trump is gone.
The point is 5 Star is going to have to work with PD if it wants to begin laying groundwork for its agenda. The PD’s slow recovery programs and 5 Star’s progressive plans can yield good results for the Italian people. Patience is key. You don’t see Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren demanding the Democratic Party follow their every word, no, they still spread their messages of being progressive yet also work with the tools they have in front of them.
Sources:
Graph: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-43247500
Garbage pollution in Pacific Ocean becomes 3x larger than France
According to a three-year study published in Scientific Reports Friday, the patch known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is about 1.6 million square kilometers in size — up to 16 times bigger than previous estimates.
According to NOAA’s Marine Debris Program:
“The debris is continuously mixed by wind and wave action and widely dispersed both over huge surface areas and throughout the top portion of the water column. It is possible to sail through the “garbage patch” area and see very little or no debris on the water’s surface. It is also difficult to estimate the size of these “patches,” because the borders and content constantly change with ocean currents and winds. Regardless of the exact size, mass, and location of the “garbage patch,” manmade debris does not belong in our oceans and waterways and must be addressed.”
The massive pile of swirling trash, located between California and Hawaii, was found to have had the highest concentration of plastic ever recorded in one area.
Ghost nets, or discarded fishing nets, make up almost half the 80,000 metric tons of garbage floating at sea, and the researchers believe that around 20% of the total volume of trash is debris from the Japanese tsunami in 2011.
The study utilized two aircraft surveys and 30 vessels to cross the debris field, and the team was made up with international scientists, university’s and the Ocean Cleanup Project.
Along with nets to survey and collect trash, researchers also used two six-meter-wide devices to help measure medium to large-sized objects. An aircraft was also equipped with advanced sensors to be able to collect 3D scans of the ocean garbage. They ended up collecting a total of 1.2 million plastic samples and scanned more than 300 square kilometers of ocean surface.
The bulk of the pile is made up of larger objects while only 8% of the mass is microplastics, or pieces smaller than 5 millimeters in size.
“We were surprised by the amount of large plastic objects we encountered,” Chief Scientist Julia Reisser said in a statement.
“We used to think most of the debris consists of small fragments, but this new analysis shines a new light on the scope of the debris.
In the Fall of 2017, groups of environmentalists called on the United Nations to declare the Great Pacific Garbage Patch a country, called “The Trash Isles,” complete with its own passport and currency, called debris.
They reached out to nearly 200,000 people to become citizens, including celebrities Their first citizen to take the offer was former US vice president and environmentalist Al Gore.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch was first discovered in 1997 by oceanographer Charles Moore when he sailed home to Southern California after finishing the Transpacific Yacht Race, from California to Hawaii.
“I was confronted, as far as the eye could see, with the sight of plastic,” wrote Moore about his discovery in Natural History.
“In the week it took to cross the subtropical high, no matter what time of day I looked, plastic debris was floating everywhere: bottles, bottle caps, wrappers, fragments.”
Three dead in southern France terrorist attack
A man who took hostages at a supermarket in the French town of Trèbes has been shot by police after a standoff that lasted three hours. According to government sources, the suspect is now dead after also taking part in a couple other incidents today. In Carcassone, a town 15 minutes away from Trèbes, he is believed to have hijacked a car, killing one passenger and injuring the driver. He also shot and wounded a policeman who was jogging with colleagues in Carcassonne. The suspect is then believed to have driven to Trèbes, where he took hostages in the Super-U supermarket in the small town.
Reports say the gunman, believed to be Moroccan, pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group. He is said to have been heavily armed and demanding the release of Salah Abdeslam, the most important surviving suspect in the 13 November 2015 attacks in Paris, which killed 130 people. It is also believed that the suspect was known to French intelligence services and that his mother is now at the scene.
A security source explained that most employees and customers at the supermarket had “managed to flee”. Hundreds of police officers have been deployed to the area and the vicinity has since been cordoned off. Counter-terrorism prosecutors are leading the investigation but few details have been provided.
Putin wins russian elections by massive landslide
Vladimir Putin has been reelected as President of Russia in an election which saw him gather over 75% of the popular vote. The former KGB spy will now sit at the head of the Kremlin until 2024, making him the country’s longest serving leader since Joseph Stalin. His main opponent, Alexei Navalny, was barred from taking part in the elections, making it a comfortable day for Putin at the polls. He was followed by Pável Grudinin, of the Communist Party (12,2%), nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovski (5,6%) and Ksenia Sobchak (1,5%), with the rest of candidates not even managing 1% of the votes.
Putin now has six years to solve his country’s main problems, like fighting against poverty or making Russia’s economy stronger. Other issues, like its involvement in the Syrian Civil War, its alleged interference in the American elections of 2016, or its role in the poisoning of the former Russian spy Serguéi Skripal in British territory will also call for him to take action.
But maybe even more important is the need for Putin to name a successor to his thrown, seeing as 2024 will probably be his last year in power. The Russian Constitution doesn’t allow for the president to keep his place for more than two successive terms. In six years time, Putin will be 72, and it seems unlikely that he will step down just to take part in the next elections – like he did in 2008. During a recent interview with NBC, the current Russian President also dismissed the idea that he will try to change the law to keep himself in power.
The Latest – Your Berning Week
Giovanni LoPiccolo
The Trump Administration continues on its path of absolute chaos and loss of direction, Elizabeth Warren on her future, gun control battles, new CIA Director nominee’s shady history, and more to catch up on with The Latest – Your Berning Week. You can read more about the following issues on the Berning Media Network homepage!
Sunday, March 11th
- Senator Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts states she’s not running for President, specifying that right now she’s running for re-election for her Senate seat, and is continuing to fight for the everyday, hard-working, Americans.
Elizabeth Warren is one of a few progressives that is constantly reminded that there’s yet another Presidential election coming up, not even halfway through the current term, and it seems she’s given an answer to shut the media up. It is frustrating when people speculate a lot about something as heavy as running for the head of state of the most powerful nation in the world, which comes with much responsibility. All she did was solidify her path ahead of her, working to make America fairer for the rest of us, and deliver justice to the 1% that have too much wealth. Elizabeth Warren is most likely going to win a second term as Senator of Massachusetts. She did not explicitly say that in 2020 she will not run for President.
Tuesday, March 13th
- Rex Tillerson has been fired from his position as Secretary of State, which was announced on Twitter by Donald Trump.
This is another example of why the Trump Administration is unstable, dangerous, and erratic. There is chaos. Turnover rate in the White House is significantly higher than Trump’s predecessors, and is not a good sign. With each passing day, Trump is feeling more and more pressure. We have the Russia investigation by Robert Mueller, the media, and Stormy Daniels’ presence, of course. Rex Tillerson is no saint, he was the head of Exxon Mobil and clearly a person who looks for profit first, however, he was possibly the most steady-minded individual in the Trump Administration. Tillerson brought stability to the White House and even reassurance to other world leaders whenever Trump would say something out of line. With Tillerson gone, it will be difficult to say how the meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will go…
Wednesday, March 14th
- Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner rejected a common sense gun control legislation that would require gun dealers to have licenses.
Here we have yet another example of a politician who’s in the bloodied palms of the NRA. When it comes to shootings and guns, Republicans just can’t seem to grasp how these horrors continue to plague our society. However, if there’s any other incident, let’s say a dog put into an overhead bin on an airplane, then we know exactly what the problem is. It’s just infuriating and disappointing at the same time how motivated by money many people are. It’s a disappointing aspect of humanity, that many of us place materialistic things above morality.
Thursday, March 15th
- Sister of the Charleston shooter, Morgan Roof, brought weapons to school the day of national school walk-out, which was for gun-control awareness.
The eighteen year old Morgan Roof had pepper spray, a knife, and marijuana in her backpack upon being arrested. This is a clear signal that there are still many twisted minds among our youth. Not only due to mental illness, but also due to not having access to proper psychiatric treatment and therapy. This girl’s brother, Dylann Roof, shot up a church in Charleston, and most likely did not process it appropriately. There are many factors in why these shootings happen in the first place, and is headed by the fact we have weapons that shouldn’t be in the hands of people, as well as people who shouldn’t have any guns at all due to their personal issues. Such as having a history of mental illness, depression, domestic violence, any form of abuse or violence for that matter.
Friday, March 16th
- Gina Haspel has been nominated by President Trump to lead the CIA, due to Rex Tillerson’s firing, and current CIA Director Mike Pompeo being nominated for the position of Secretary of State. She’s been a part of the CIA during George W. Bush’s tenure, and oversaw inhumane interrogation tactics: torture.
A segment from Patrick Vinson’s article, Bush Administration Member Nominated for CIA Chief Has Dark Past with CIA Torture Sites, “Wells Dixon from the Center on Constitutional Rights said in a statement that “Gina Haspel disgraced herself by participating in the CIA torture program and the destruction of criminal evidence. We do not believe she should be director of the CIA. Rather, she should be in jail.”” Liz Cheney, daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, responded by saying that those who carried out these programs shouldn’t be chastised due to the results yielded (claiming it gave us intel on Osama Bin Laden’s whereabouts).
That argument contradicts the idea that if you see something bad happening and you don’t intervene, you’re just as guilty. Whereas in this case, she’s overseeing the inhumane actions of the CIA! President Trump just keeps filling the swamp with more disgusting and abhorrent creatures upon each resignation or firing within his Administration.
Saturday, March 17th
- Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired FBI Director Andrew McCabe just a day he could receive his retirement benefits, including his pension, after over twenty years of service.
This is the second FBI Director to be fired from President Trump with no clear reason other than how the President is feeling. The Russia investigation is going places, Robert Mueller isn’t on a wild goose hunt, he is connecting the dots, slowly but surely. It isn’t all about collusion, obviously, there’s more to it. There are finances involved, and the FBI is onto it. Trump is yet again explicitly obstructing justice by firing this FBI Director. What more does the Republican Party need at this point to show that this man has done something illegal and is trying to hide it? Impeachment is definitely on the horizon.
Retired Army General Claims Donald Trump is a “National Security threat”, claiming him to be a Putin puppet
On Friday the 4-star Army General , Barry McCaffrey, slammed Donald Trump claiming him as a “serious threat to U.S. national security” for his failure to protect the nation from “active Russian attacks.”
The General also accused President Donald Trump in a tweet Friday of being “under the sway” of Russian president Vladimir Putin” for some “unknown reason.”
NBC interview:
O’DONNELL: I know you didn’t choose those words lightly.MCCAFFREY: No, not at all. You know, I’ve been fairly critical of the President for a variety of reasons, but what really, I think, the turning point in my mind was his reluctance to personally stand with the Brits over what has been a documented series of essentially Russian intelligence murders in London, and the latest one being really a signature attempt at assassination of the former Russian intelligence officer and his daughter using a chemical agent that was clearly only available to former Soviet operatives.
McCaffrey is also the military analyst for NBC News and also the president of his own consulting firm, BR McCaffrey Associates, was director of Office of National Drug Control Policy under President Clinton from 1996 to 2001. His military background includes three Purple Heart medals for injuries sustained during his service in Vietnam, two Silver Stars for valor, and two Distinguished Service Crosses.
Featured photo from NBC
Jeff Sessions Fires FBI Director, 48 hours before being able to collect benefits
On Friday night the United States Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired now Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, which comes just a day before he could retire.
Though McCabe stepped down as Deputy Director in late January, he remained on the federal payroll, planning to retire on Sunday. The firing places his federal pension in jeopardy.
Sessions said the firing was justified because an internal review apparently found that McCabe had leaked information to the press and mislead investigators. McCabe denied the claims, saying he was fired because he is a key witness to the Russia investigation.
In a statement, McCabe said:
“This attack on my credibility is one part of a larger effort not just to slander me personally, but to taint the FBI, law enforcement and intelligence professionals more generally. It is part of the administration’s ongoing war on the FBI and the efforts of the special counsel investigation, which continue to this day. Their persistence in this campaign only highlights the importance of the special counsel’s work.”
This was the first statement that McCabe had spoken candidly of his anger at the Trump White House. In it, he portrayed a remarkable picture of an administration that tried to politicize its principal law enforcement arm, the FBI, and discredit several of the bureau’s longtime leaders, all in an effort to escape scrutiny of Trump by the special counsel.
McCabe noted in his statement that he had knowledge that could be useful to Mueller’s investigation into events involving the president.
Unlike Trump’s removal of Comey last year, which produced a widespread resentment inside the FBI, McCabe’s termination was recommended by the agency that he has served for 21 years.
This Sunday is McCabe’s 50th birthday, which would have made him eligible for certain substantial retirement benefits. Now thanks to the current administrations moves, those benefits are up in the air.
Featured photo via CBC News
FBI Deputy Director says Obama DoJ forced the FBI to erase half a million criminal background checks
On Wednesday we found out that under former President Barack Obama, the Department of Justice directed the FBI to drop more than 500,000 names of fugitives with outstanding arrest warrants from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. This came from the current FBI deputy director David Bowdich, who testified on Wednesday.
During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing about law enforcement’s faulty response to Parkland, Florida shooter Nikolas Cruz, California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein asked Bowdich about the removal.
“That was a decision that was made under the previous administration,” Bowdich testified. “It was the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel that reviewed the law and believed that it needed to be interpreted so that if someone was a fugitive in a state, there had to be indications that they had crossed state lines. Otherwise they were not known to be a fugitive under the law and the way it was interpreted.”
Fugitives from justice are barred from buying a firearm under federal law. But the exact definition of a fugitive from justice has been a strung out debate between the Department of Justice and the ATF.
According to a report that was done by The Washington Post, the FBI considered anyone who has an outstanding arrest warrant to be a fugitive. Meanwhile, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives defines a fugitive as someone who has an outstanding arrest warrant and has crossed state lines.
At the end of former President Barack Obama’s final term, the argument between the agencies came to a end. The Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel ended up siding with the ATF’s interpretation of what a fugitive is.
Under President Donald Trump, the DOJ defined a fugitive as a person who went to another state to dodge criminal prosecution or evade giving testimony in criminal court, and implemented the Office of Legal Counsel’s decision. This decision meant that around half a million fugitives were removed from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
Current President Donald Trumps Attorney General Jeff Sessions has recently announced that the Justice Department will “aggressively” be pursing anyone who is caught lying on their background check when purchasing a firearm.
Click here for the full clip of David Bowdichs testimony
Featured photo via Washington Post
GOP Senator: “My Party Might Not Deserve to Lead”
Giovanni LoPiccolo
Those are the words of Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona, speaking at the National Press Club, who has lately been calling for a restoration of civility and humane behavior to American politics, as well as a reevaluation of support of President Donald Trump. The Senator from Arizona is one of the few moderates remaining in the Senate, as well as one the very few non-radical members of the Republican Party that has succumbed to extremism.
“If we are going to cloister ourselves in the alternative truth of an erratic leader, if we are going to refuse to live in a world that everyone else lives in … then my party might not deserve to lead…” stated the Senator.
Jeff Flake is an open-minded individual who sees and understands that the words, actions, and behavior of this Republican President and Republican Congress are taking a toll on America’s values and even our stability as a nation. The Senator has decided not to run for re-election in 2018, opening a path for a Democrat to take his place.
Senator Flake even mentioned that his party seems to have a case of amnesia when it comes to all the issues our country has faced in modern history, and seemed to be happening all over again. Just in time for the Senate’s passing of the banking deregulation just a few days ago, about ten years after the Great Recession of 2008 (when the big banks had free reign). The Republican Party does, in fact, have amnesia, or more so selective memory.
The Reagan tax cuts in the 80s failed, as did the Bush tax cuts in the 2000s, which led to our 2008 recession in the first place. The real situation here is that these members of Congress pushing for tax cuts and deregulation of the financial industry aren’t stupid, they aren’t ignorant of the past, they are being paid by their corporate donors to do so. The rollback on major parts of the Dodd-Frank financial regulations (which were implemented after the 2008 crisis) was approved by 67 senators. Republicans only have a majority of 52 seats, clearly showing some Democrats voted for the bill as well.
Although Flake’s speech wasn’t directed at this bill deregulating the banks, or specific policies, it was more about the principles of the Republican Party. He’s stated, “Never has a party abandoned, fled its principles and deeply held beliefs so quickly as my party did in the face of the nativist juggernaut…We have become strangers to ourselves.” The Republican Party has fallen from its grace, fallen from a position of upholding fiscally conservative and traditional values. Becoming a party that divides, a party that chooses profit over people, and chooses the NRA over lives. And instead of condemning the racist and idiotic statements blatantly spoken by our President, they go along with it.
A big problem is institutionalism. The institutions of our federal government, specifically the legislative and executive have become far too intertwined. The party that has a President in power have become too complicit to what the President says or does. Yes, they have every right to pursue their agenda, but it’s become more about blind loyalty. Yes, a member of Congress may fear that if they go against the will of the President (of that same party) the party leadership will effectively ruin their career by supporting a challenger. However, if more Senators and Representatives spoke up, they can’t all be replaced.
We don’t know if Jeff Flake really has the courage, to criticize Trump and the GOP, or is just doing it because he knows his career in Congress is over. Far too many members of Congress have become servants of the Party, not servants of the people, which is what their job is. They are representatives, they are supposed to represent our views and ideals, not solely do what the Party commands. Senator Flake is right, we have become strangers to ourselves, all these problems are converging together to make a heaping mess for our country and our leaders choose not to deal with them.
Sources:
https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/15/politics/jeff-flake-criticizes-gop-trump/index.html
(Image) https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/03/politics/jeff-flake-axe-files-cnntv/
Bush Administration Member Nominated for CIA Chief has Dark Past with US Torture Sites
This past week we saw now former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson been fired without any warning. This news was followed by an announcement from President Trump that Mike Pompeo would become the new Secretary of State.
President Donald Trump also announced his decision this week to nominate Gina Haspel, an intelligence official that civil libertarians argue “should be in jail” for her role in the former Bush administration’s torture regime, as the next CIA chief has came off as a torture apologists among America’s political elite.
Her nomination has been met with fierce backlash from politicians and advocacy groups who say her involvement in the brutal torture programs should disqualify her. Haspel joined the CIA in 1985 and ran a CIA “black site” prison in Thailand in 2002 that used “interrogation techniques” like waterboarding.
On Tuesday was Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wy.), who is Dick Cheneys’ daughter, tweeted in defense of the CIA’s torture program at Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who argued the Senate should closely scrutinize Haspel’s role in overseeing the torture of detainees at U.S. black sites overseas.
In openly praising the Bush torture regime and the “brave men and women” who carried it out, Cheney differentiated her position from that of many Washington establishment figures who have defended Haspel’s role in overseeing the Bush torture program this week, on the grounds that she was merely “following orders.”
Wells Dixon from the Center on Constitutional Rights said in a statement that “Gina Haspel disgraced herself by participating in the CIA torture program and the destruction of criminal evidence. We do not believe she should be director of the CIA. Rather, she should be in jail.”
On Thursday Jon Schwartz wrote an op-ed for The Intercept that argues the defense of Haspel offered by Hayden, former Obama officials, and some lawmakers is precisely the defense Nazis used during the Nuremberg trials following the Second World War.
While Nuremberg judges rejected the “Nuremberg defense” as illegitimate, “many members of the Washington, D.C. elite are now stating that it, in fact, is a legitimate defense for American officials who violate international law to claim they were just following orders,” Schwartz writes.
Trevor Timm who is the executive director of the Freedom of the Press Foundation, tweeted out a summary of the principal narratives of torture apologists, all of which serve to undermine all attempts to hold those who oversee violations of international law accountable for their actions.
Establishment politicians on the right and left have already begun to defend Gina Haspel’s past while Civil Liberties groups are ramping up efforts to stop her from being confirmed for the position.
So far only two Republicans have voices out against the nominees. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he would oppose her nomination, as did Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who was tortured while imprisoned during the Vietnam War, said she needed to “explain the nature” of her involvement in the program.
On Thursday Sen. Dianne Feinstein called on the CIA to declassify documents that detail the role that Gina Haspel played in the George W. Bush administration’s interrogation and detention program.
Feinstein sent a letter to Haspel and outgoing CIA Director Mike Pompeo saying that a full accounting of Haspel’s record in the Bush-era interrogation program is needed to evaluate her record.
Her letter said:
“As we move forward with the nomination process for Ms. Haspel, my fellow senators and I must have the complete picture of Ms. Haspel’s involvement in the program in order to fully and fairly review her record and qualifications, I also believe the American people deserve to know the actual role the person nominated to be the director of the CIA played in what I I’m director, faces a difficult confirmation battle over those actions, with Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky already opposed her nomination and Democrats planning to make that a key issue when she testifies on Capitol Hill.
During her 30-year CIA career, Haspel supervised the interrogation of terrorism suspects in Thailand, and she later was involved with the decision to destroy tapes of CIA interrogations.
Haspel, who is currently deputy CIA director, faces a difficult confirmation battle over those actions, with Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky already opposed her nomination and Democrats planning to make that a key issue when she testifies on Capitol Hill.
So far it isn’t clear what records the Senate will receive as part of Haspel’s confirmation process.
Sister of Charleston Church Shooter and Two Others Arrested for Bringing Weapons to School on day of Walkout
On Wednesday Morgan Roof, who is the 18-year-old sister of Dylann Roof, was arrested for having weapons on her at school. This happened the same day of the nationwide walkouts against gun violence.
A school resource officer at A.C. Flora High School in Columbia, South Carolina, allegedly discovered marijuana, pepper spray and a knife in Morgan Roof’s possession.
Morgan Roof is being charged with simple possession of marijuana and two counts of carrying weapons while on school grounds. Roof was also granted a $5,000 bond and ordered not to attend school while out, WIS reported.
NBC reported that Morgan Roof made a post on Snapchat that couldn’t be verified, that they say stated “your [sic] walking out for the allowed time of 17min, they are letting you do this, nothing is gonna change what tf you think it’s gonna do? I hope it’s a trap and y’all get shot we know it’s fixing to be nothing but black people walkin out anyway.”
In her social media post, Ms Roof seemed opposed to her classmates joining the thousands of students across the US walking out of class in memory of the 17 people killed at a Florida school last month.
Her racially charged post said in part, “I hope it’s a trap and y’all get shot”
Two other students were also arrested on Wednesday for carrying weapons on the grounds of Ms Roof’s school, AC Flora High School, local media reported.
Authorities found an unloaded handgun which students reportedly saw one of the 16-year-olds throw into a bush.
The incidents at the school are being treated separately, according to the school’s principal, who shared a letter on the school’s Twitter page.
Currently her brother Dylann Roof is waiting for execution at the Terre Haute Federal Prison in Indiana after he was sentenced to death last year in January. The self-proclaimed white supremacist killed nine black worshippers at a Charleston church in 2015.
North Western University on lockdown after shots fired in dorms
Evanston police tweeted Wednesday afternoon that people should stay out of the area of Emerson Street and Maple Avenue due to a shooting investigation, after a report came in of shots fired.
At 3:11 p.m. on Wednesday, Evanston police tweeted they checked the area and found “no evidence of a victim, scene or gunman.” Police said they are continuing to search and secure the area.
An emergency notification was sent out to staff and students at 2:40 p.m., according to the Daily Northwestern.
Northwestern tweeted out people should seek shelter and stay in a safe place. People were urged to stay away from the area.
This story is developing and will be updated when all clear is given.
Illinois Governor says No to Common Sense Gun law that would License Gun Dealers
On Tuesday, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner voted against a popular bill that would have licensed gun dealers. The previous day many Chicago leaders, including Mayor Rahm Emanuel and CPD Supt. Eddie Johnson, reached out to Rauner, saying that he should support the bill. The bill has been awaiting his signature for over two weeks now.
The bill that was vetoed was Senate Bill 1657, which would require criminal background checks for all gun shop employees. It would also require training that would help gun shop employees identify a buyer purchasing a gun for someone else.
(Photo via Chicago Tribune)
In a statement on Tuesday, Emanuel said:
“With one week left in his campaign, Governor Rauner just put his primary election ahead of his primary responsibility to protect the safety of the people of Chicago and Illinois. The governor’s decision was cruel, it was cold and it was calculated to benefit his own politics at the expense of public safety. This veto is a slap in the face to crime victims, faith leaders and police who have pleaded with Governor Rauner to protect public safety by signing the Gun Dealer Licensing Act. This failure will be his legacy.”
In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, Rauner said that Senate Bill 1657, “created onerous, duplicative bureaucracy that does little to improve public safety.”
Early Tuesday morning, Bruce Rauner appeared on a radio interview with WJPF News Radio. Where he said in the interview that, “I’m going to veto the bill, it’s just not right.”
Rauner continued to say in the radio interview that state laws should be tougher on repeat gun offenders. While also make schools safer, he suggested that “highly trained, highly well-armed security personnel at our schools who are very, very talented and able to protect our students.”
The NRA released a statement Tuesday night saying:
“The bills Gov. Rauner vetoed today were a dramatic overreach designed specifically to shut down as many Illinois federally licensed firearm dealers (FFLs) as possible. Now the law-abiding gun owners of Illinois need to let their lawmakers know this type of infringement upon their fundamental Second Amendment rights is completely unacceptable. Punishing legitimate businesses for the criminal actions of others is exactly why communities continue to suffer as their elected officials appear more concerned about making headlines instead of addressing the real problem; actual criminals.”
Featured video via Politico
Rex Tillerson removed as Secretary of State
On Tuesday Morning, United States President Donald Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, naming Mike Pompeo as his replacement.
President Trump tweeted that the new state secretary would do “a fantastic job”.
Rex Tillerson has only been in the role for just over a year, now joining the handful of others to leave the administration.
To replace the vacancy left by Pompeo, the U.S. president nominated Gina Haspel. If she is elected, then Haspel will be the first female director of the CIA.
In regards to why Trump dropped Tillerson, the president said he had differences that came down to personal “chemistry” between the two.
Rex Tillerson is the latest to be removed from the Trump administration, something that might sound like to a dream to others still in the administration.
Earlier this week Rex Tillerson canceled a trip to Kenya after suddenly falling ill. It isn’t certain if this was something Tillerson knew ahead of time, or if the President randomly decides to remove him from the position.
Featured photo is via VOA News as Rex Tillerson is sworn in as Secretary of State
Turks surround Kurdish-held Afrin
Turkish forces said on Tuesday that had surrounded the Kurdish-held city of Afrin, the main objective of Turkey’s offensive into northwest Syria.
A statement from Ankara said the armed forces, along with allied Syrian rebel groups, had also taken control of several key areas.
A Kurdish source confirmed that all road into the city are under attack by Turkish shellfire, reported BBC News.
Reports a day before described hundreds fleeing the city to nearby areas controlled by forces loyal to the Syrian government.
Ankara considers the YPG, or People’s Protection Units, as associated with the Kurdish Workers’ Party terror group in eastern Turkey, a claim Kurds in Syria and their western allies have vehemently denied.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan launched the offensive against Syrian Kurds on Jan. 20, to much condemnation from the United States.
The Syrian Democratic Forces, considered the most effective ground-fighting force against so-called Islamic State, is led and largely made up by Kurds.
The SDF is currently pushing back the last remnants of IS, along with Syrian government forces.
Damascus sent government-loyal troops to Afrin to support the Kurds against the Turkish aggression but it is not clear what their role has been in the last few days.
Kurdish spokesperson Nouri Mahmoud told Reuters news agency that Afrin had long been surrounded on all sides by enemy forces.
The only road out of a siege that was confirmed on Tuesday by the Britain-based Syrian Observatory of Human Rights in within the range of Turkish artillery fire and therefore unusable.
The Observatory reported that the city of Afrin, 90 villages and a nearby town were under siege.
The United Nations chief told the Security Council that the battle for Afrin, which is also the name for the territory, had resulted in “significant civilian displacement” with reports of “numerous casualties and damage to infrastructure”.
Some 324,000 were living in the Kurdish enclave before the Turkish offensive launched, according to U.N. figures.
More coverage to follow. Image of forces near Afrin, Syria from Hurriyet Daily News.
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