One of the difficulties in resisting the Trump administration, the Republican Congressional majority, and Republican state legislatures (plus the occasional non-Republican who obliges us to resist their nonsense, too, like we don't have enough to worry about) is keeping on top of the sheer number of horrors, indignities, and normalization of the aggressively abnormal that they unleash every single day.
So here is a daily thread for all of us to share all the things that are going on, thus crowdsourcing a daily compendium of the onslaught of conservative erosion of our rights and our very democracy.
Stay engaged. Stay vigilant. Resist.
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Earlier today by SKM:
The Press Promotes an Election Narrative with Little Evidence, But Serves to Conceal Possible Meddling. And by me:
Inside the Converted Walmart Where 1,500 Migrant Children Are Being Detained and
Trump Heaps Praise on Kim: "We Understand Each Other".
Here are some more things in the news today...
More on the Inspector General's report from Chris Strohm at Bloomberg:
Comey Broke from FBI Procedures in Clinton Probe, Watchdog Finds. "Former FBI Director James Comey 'deviated' from bureau and Justice Department procedures in handling the probe into Hillary Clinton, damaging the agencies' image of impartiality even though he wasn't motivated by politics, the department's watchdog found in a highly anticipated report. 'While we did not find that these decisions were the result of political bias on Comey's part, we nevertheless concluded that by departing so clearly and dramatically from FBI and department norms, the decisions negatively impacted the perception of the FBI and the department as fair administrators of justice,' Inspector General Michael Horowitz said in the report's conclusions, which were obtained by Bloomberg News."
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This exchange between CNN anchor Erin Burnett and Republican Senator Jim Risch regarding Donald Trump saying he trusts Kim Jong Un is really
something:
Burnett: Here's what the President of the United States is saying about Kim Jong Un!
[shows clip of Trump saying: "I do trust him, yeah. I think he trusts me, and I trust him." CNN's Jim Acosta asks: "And you do trust him?" Trump replies: "I do. You know, as I told you, in six months — the answer is: I do."]
Burnett: You don't have any concern about him being so adamant that he trusts a murderous dictator that he's met for five hours one time?!
Risch: Erin! You would have to be the most naive person on the face of the earth to think that the President of the United States is gonna walk in, meet with the guy for a bit, and walk out of there and say, "Well, I trust him—"
Burnett: Well, that's exactly what he did, Senator!!!
Risch: I'm telling you, he understands verification. We are gonna have verification or we're not gonna have a deal. [edit] I know you people are trying to put a rough spin on this, a negative spin on this, but this is an entirely different situation than what we had 120 days ago. Give him a break! At least give him some credit for saying that they're no longer testing—
Burnett: I would have to say, Senator, I don't think we're putting a rough spin. I think we're saying the President of the United States came out of a meeting and said "I trust a guy" with the record he has. That is exactly what happened. That's not spin. That's a fact. [crosstalk] So what I'm asking you is: Why are those facts the way they are? Is it okay that he did that?! Do you support that he did that?! Because I'm not putting a spin on it. I'm just playing for you what he did.
Risch: Yeah. Well, you will recall that in the past leaders have said, "Well, we're gonna trust, but we're gonna verify." And I can tell you, that is exactly where the President of the United States is today.
LOL except
no he's not though.
In related news...
Kate Riga at TPM:
Trump Salutes North Korean General, Breaks with American Precedent. "As circulated by North Korean state media, footage shows [Donald] Trump saluting a top North Korean military official, a stunning display of respect from the American President to a hostile and oppressive regime."
Barbara Starr, Pamela Brown, and Ryan Browne at CNN:
Trump Administration Expected to Suspend August U.S.-South Korea Drill as Pentagon Scrambles.
The Trump administration is expected to announce the formal suspension of planning for major August multilateral military drills on the Korean Peninsula as soon as Thursday, according to several administration officials with knowledge of White House, State Department and Defense Department planning on how to carry out [Donald] Trump's decision announced at the Singapore summit.
Detailed Pentagon guidance is expected this week on carrying out Trump's decision to suspend so-called "war games" with South Korea. The Pentagon's post-Singapore involvement in this issue is raising questions about whether the President sought military advice ahead of making his decision.
As the dust settles from the historic summit, some details about how Trump got the idea to offer a suspension of military exercises to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un are becoming clearer.
A source familiar with the matter pushed back on the idea that Trump got the idea to halt joint exercises from Russian President Vladimir Putin. The source said that, if anything, it's something that came from Chinese President Xi Jinping, who has been very vocal about it and has had direct conversations with Trump about the matter. The term "war games" was also a term coined by China and North Korea.
Oh good. So Donald Trump is a puppet of
two hostile regimes. Cool.
Speaking of which... Alberto Nardelli and Julia Ioffe at BuzzFeed:
Trump Told World Leaders Crimea Is Russian Because Everyone There Speaks Russian. "Donald Trump told G7 leaders that Crimea is Russian because everyone who lives there speaks Russian, according to two diplomatic sources. Trump made the remarks over dinner last Friday during a discussion on foreign affairs at the G7 summit in Quebec, Canada, one of the diplomats told BuzzFeed News. ...During the dinner, Trump also seemed to question why the G7 leaders were siding with Ukraine. The president told leaders that 'Ukraine is one of the most corrupt countries in the world,' the source said." JFC. This is the U.S. President straight-up being a Kremlin mouthpiece. He was full-tilt spewing Russian propaganda at the G7.
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David A. Fahrenthold at the Washington Post:
New York Files Suit Against Donald Trump, Alleging His Charity Engaged in 'Illegal Conduct'. "The New York attorney general on Thursday filed suit against [Donald] Trump and his three eldest children alleging 'persistently illegal conduct' at the president's personal charity, saying Trump repeatedly misused the nonprofit — to pay off his businesses' creditors, to decorate one of his golf clubs, and to stage a multimillion dollar giveaway at his 2016 campaign events. In the suit, filed Thursday morning, attorney general Barbara Underwood asked a state judge to dissolve the Donald J. Trump Foundation. She asked that its remaining $1 million in assets be distributed to other charities and that Trump be forced to pay at least $2.8 million in restitution and penalties. Underwood also asks that Trump be banned from leading any other New York nonprofit for 10 years." Welp.
Well, Sarah, I'm guessing that CBS assumed you just would have lied, which is why they didn't bother asking you.
[Content Note: Nativism] Elham Khatami at ThinkProgress:
Baltimore to Lose Dozens of Skilled Immigrant Teachers, Thanks to Trump's Crackdown on H-1B Visas. "Nearly 25 Baltimore public school teachers will see their visas expire at the end of June, when they will be forced to return to the Philippines and Jamaica, where they're from, compounding Baltimore's already severe teacher shortage. According to the
Baltimore Sun, the teachers came to the United States in the mid-2000s on H-1B visas, which allow employers to hire skilled foreign workers in a range of fields like technology, research, and education. Baltimore City Public Schools hired the teachers to fill positions in the math, science, and special education fields."
[CN: Harassment; threats; doxxing] Jason Wilson at the Guardian:
Doxxing, Assault, Death Threats: The New Dangers Facing U.S. Journalists Covering Extremism. "As Kenoyer's experience suggests, the vitriol and threats from the far right are disproportionately targeted at women, and anyone else whose identity departs from the alt-right's ideal type — white men. Ellerbeck, the CPJ coordinator, says that gender identity, ethnicity, and sexual orientation are all factors that affect a reporter's 'risk profile' for attacks." Yes. Also: This is not a "new danger." It's an old danger that journalists and advocate writers have been facing for decades from multiple right-wing factions,
especially radical extremist anti-choicers.
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[CN: Corruption; human rights abuses] Lindsay Gibbs at ThinkProgress:
Your Complete Guide to Corruption at the 2018 Men's World Cup in Russia. "FIFA awarded Russia the 2018 World Cup back in 2010. Since then, Russia has interfered with foreign elections, propped up a murderous regime in Syria, invaded Ukraine, gotten kicked out of the G8 for invading Ukraine, poisoned its enemies, and been sanctioned for facilitating the one of the biggest state-sponsored doping scandals in the history of sports at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. And yet, here we are. ...[A]ccording to Human Rights Watch, we are currently in the middle of the 'worst human rights crisis in Russia since the Soviet era.' And FIFA has done next to nothing about it."
Nico Hines and Adam Rawnsley at the Daily Beast:
Sanctioned Russians Are Making a Killing from the World Cup. "The World Cup — with its international TV audience of billions — is being hosted in Russia for the first time, and bringing with it a multimillion-dollar orgy of sponsorship, tourism, global advertising, and massive construction projects. Despite their supposed exile from the global economy, companies and oligarchs targeted by the U.S. Treasury were among those securing some of the best contracts linked to the showpiece finals. ...The Daily Beast asked six of the World Cup sponsors, including Coca-Cola and Visa, about the tournament's links to sanctioned entities, but none of them chose to reply. ...It seems a tougher sanctions regime could have forced global brands and bodies like FIFA to think twice about effectively endorsing the Kremlin and its backers. We now know, if it's purely a question of moral judgment, it's a challenge too far."
[CN: Homophobic violence] Josh Jackman at Pink News:
Gay World Cup Fan Left with Brain Injuries After Brutal Attack. "There have long been fears of violence against LGBT people travelling to the country for the tournament — which starts on June 14 — with the Government directing fans to advice telling them to hide their sexuality in public. LGBT activist group Pride in Football also revealed that it had been sent death threats saying that any gay fans going to the World Cup would be hunted down and stabbed. And it appears that these fears have been realised, with reports indicating that a gay couple — who had travelled to Russia to cheer on France — have been beaten in St Petersburg."
Fuck FIFA. These men's blood is on their hands, too.
What have you been reading that we need to resist today?
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