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Of silver linings: Trump’s Presidency, the Demise of the Major Parties, and the Need for a New Progressive Movement
By Dave Lindorff
Let’s look on the bright side.
Focus: The Clinton Foundation - Nov 5, 2016
ARCHIVE: Ex-Im beneficiaries are heavy Clinton Foundation donors - The Daily Caller
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Focus: The Hillary Clinton's FBI Investigation - Nov 3, 2016
Sources: 99 percent chance foreign intel agencies breached Clinton server - Fox News
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WH deflects questions on FBI-DOJ feuding over Clinton Foundation probe - Washington Examiner
'Clinton Cash' author: FBI is not ‘going rogue' based just on my book (VIDEO) - Fox News Insider
WikiLeaks: Clintons sell political favors to Clinton Foundation donors - Observer
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WikiLeaks: Clinton camp rigging primaries as early as 2014 - Observer
Assange: WikiLeaks did not receive Clinton emails from Russian govt - RT News
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Focus: The Hillary Clinton's FBI Investigation - Nov 2, 2016
Huma Abedin new focus of Clinton email Investigation - freebeacon.com
Perjury? Huma Abedin swore to turn over all devices containing State Department emails - townhall.com
Flashback: Huma Abedin got three paychecks from State Dept., the Foundation, and Clinton-affiliated consulting firm - townhall.com
VIDEO: Hacktivist group Anonymous release video about Huma Abedin - YouTube
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FBI's Clinton Foundation investigation now 'a very high priority,' sources say - Fox News
DOJ Assistant Attorney General Peter Kadzik gave Clinton camp 'heads up' about testimony - Fox News
Feds knew about, helped secure Clinton's server In 2011 - The Daily Caller
VIDEO: Former FBI Asst. Director: Original Clinton probe ‘not a real investigation' - Fox News
Hacked Emails show Clinton campaign communicated with State - ABC News
McCaul: If elected, Hillary Clinton could be impeached - POLITICO
POLLS: Independents leaning toward Trump in polls after FBI furor erupts - McClatchy DC
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Focus: Hillary Clinton Emails - Nov 1, 2016
Clinton aide left classified info behind on 2010 China trip - Fox News
Podesta paid $7,000 a month by top Clinton campaign donor - POLITICO
Analysis: The Clinton e-mails are critical to the Clinton Foundation investigation - National Review
Clinton camp questions FBI release of Marc Rich pardon files - POLITICO
WikiLeaks: Sheikh agreed to pay Bill Clinton $2 million per trip to Ethiopia - LifeZette
Wikileaks: Turkey's Erdogan was attempting to buy favor with Clinton campaign - freebeacon.com
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The choice this year is easy: Why No Leftist, Progressive or Liberal Should Vote for Hillary Clinton
By Dave Lindorff
With one week to go in this year’s presidential election -- an astonishing and depressing contest in which the two least-liked and least-trusted candidates in history are the two choices put up by our two main political parties -- it’s time to look at why left and liberal people should not vote for the Democratic Party’s nominee, Hillary Clinton.
This Natural Disaster Assistance Law Is Why Other States Are Policing Dakota Access Pipeline Protests
Cross-Posted from DeSmogBlog
Almost exactly 20 years ago, President Bill Clinton signed into law a bill creating an interstate agreement for emergency management. That inconspicuous law has opened the door for the current flood of out-of-state law enforcement agents present at the continuing protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) in North Dakota.
Focus: FBI Investigation of Hillary Clinton - Oct 31, 2016
Grassley wants to know if Justice Dept. blocked Clinton Foundation probe - Washington Examiner
Letter of Senator Grassley to Comey on the Clinton investigation - judiciary.senate.gov
F.B.I. begins review of Clinton aide’s emails - The New York Times
Donald Trump warns of a 'constitutional crisis' if Hillary Clinton wins - LA Times
FBI agents pressed Justice unsuccessfully for probe of Clinton Foundation - The Washington Post
Clinton Foundation got $28 million for favors to Morocco - The Daily Caller
ARCHIVE: The Clinton Foundation left a toxic legacy in Colombia, critics say - Fusion
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Focus: FBI Director James Comey - Oct 30, 2016
Harry Reid's letter to FBI Director Comey about the Clinton email investigation - reid.senate.gov
Clinton campaign asks ex-prosecutors to criticize FBI Director James Comey - The Daily Beast
In op-ed, former Dem and GOP deputy attorney generals say 'Comey is damaging democracy' - NBC News
FBI Director James Comey begins briefing Congressional leaders on email review - ABC News
GOP House Judiciary Chair Goodlatte: Comey asked to release as much as he could - newsmax.com
FBI obtains warrant to examine Clinton emails: U.S. media - Reuters
DOJ objected to FBI disclosure of new steps in Clinton probe, sources say - ABC News
FBI in internal feud over Clinton Foundation probe - WSJ
Judicial Watch sues for FBI records of Loretta Lynch, Bill Clinton tarmac meeting - BizPac Review
POLL: Trump behind 1 percent, Clinton hurt by FBI bombshell - Washington Examiner
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Michael Moore Owes Me $4.99
Michael Moore has made some terrific movies in the past, and Where to Invade Next may be the best of them, but I expected Trumpland to be (1) about Trump, (2) funny, (3) honest, (4) at least relatively free of jokes glorifying mass murder. I was wrong on all counts and would like my $4.99 back, Michael.
Moore's new movie is a film of him doing a stand-up comedy show about how wonderfully awesome Hillary Clinton is -- except that he mentions Trump a bit at the beginning and he's dead serious about Clinton being wonderfully awesome.
This film is a text book illustration of why rational arguments for lesser evilist voting do not work. Lesser evilists become self-delusionists. They identify with their lesser evil candidate and delude themselves into adoring the person. Moore is not pushing the "Elect her and then hold her accountable" stuff. He says we have a responsibility to "support her" and "get behind her," and that if after two years -- yes, TWO YEARS -- she hasn't lived up to a platform he's fantasized for her, well then, never fear, because he, Michael Moore, will run a joke presidential campaign against her for the next two years (this from a guy who backed restricting the length of election campaigns in one of his better works).
Brief note about Trump adviser General Michael Flynn's article about the Middle East
I strongly disagree with the opinions of Trump adviser General Michael Flynn in his article about the Middle East. I hope that, if Trump becomes President, will reject his advices. A few excerpts from the above mentioned article:
"Today, the Shiite Crescent is a real threat, not only to our Sunni allies, especially Egypt and Jordan, but also presents a direct threat to the national security of the United States.”
"a government [Iraq] that is influenced and controlled by Iran, the number one state sponsor of radical Islamic terrorism.”
"There is no difference between the ideology of ISIS and the Iranian regime, except ISIS is Sunni and Iran is Shiite. They both have goals of establishing an Islamic global caliphate using military force."
This is my take: The real enemy in the Middle East and elsewhere (Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, Nigeria, Somalia, etc) is not Iran, but Sunni terrorism (Islamic State and other groups) sponsored primarily by Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar. The President of Iran Hassan Rouhani is a moderate reformist open to dialogue with United States. It is in the interest of United States to engage and talk with him and avert a return of the anti-American hardliners at the helm of the Iran government.
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Talk Nation Radio: Timeka Drew on Protecting Voter Rights
https://soundcloud.com/davidcnswanson/talk-nation-radio-timeka-drew-on-protecting-voter-rights
Timeka Drew is National Director of the Liberty Tree Foundation, a position she has served in since February of 2016. Previously she served as Liberty Tree's Communications Director and worked as lead organizer of the Global Climate Convergence. Timeka came to the Liberty Tree community via her work with the Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign (PPEHRC) and local democracy, food sovereignty, and anti-racist organizing in Los Angeles and her hometown of Fort Wayne, Indiana.
For more information, see http://libertytreefoundation.org and http://NoMoreStolenElections.org
Total run time: 29:00
Host: David Swanson.
Producer: David Swanson.
Music by Duke Ellington.
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Syndicated by Pacifica Network.
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Focus: U.S. Presidential Elections and the Independents - Oct 20, 2016
According to the post-debate CNN poll 44% of Independents said that Trump won the debate while 40% said that Clinton won. This is opposite to what all registered voters (including Independents, Democrats and Republicans) said. In the same poll 52% all registered voters said that Clinton won the debate while 39% said that Trump won.
While the vast majority of Democrats and Republicans will not change their mind in the coming weeks about which presidential candidate to vote (unless there are major revelations about Clinton or Trump), many Independents are volatile and still undecided about whom to vote. The post-debate YouGov poll shows that the 61% of voters undecided or selecting third party candidates would choose Trump while only 39% would choose Clinton if they had to choose between the two. Moreover 90% of respondents not voting for or leaning toward Clinton would never vote for Clinton, while 78% of respondents not voting for or leaning toward Trump would never vote for Trump. Independents are a major factor to determine the next U.S. President given the fact that, according to Gallup, they are the largest voting bloc: the percentage of American that identify as Independents are 40%, as Democrats 32% and as Republicans 27%.
In the post debate YouGov poll 48% of all voters nationally vote for Clinton while 44% vote for Trump. In the pre debate Quinnipiac poll 47% of all likely voters vote for Clinton and 40% for Trump while 42% of Independents vote for Trump and 38% for Clinton.
Note: in the YouGov poll, the presidential candidates were virtually tied on most issues discussed in the debate except trade and fairness of U.S. elections. On gun control, 48% say they agree with Clinton versus 47% for Trump. On taxes, 49% pick Clinton against 46% for Trump. On US-Russia relations, Clinton 47%, Trump 46%. On Supreme Court nominations, 48% for Trump and 47% for Clinton. 50% to 47%, more agreed with Trump on immigration. Trump had a more significant lead on trade: 50% to 41%. Similarly, Clinton led by more on the "fairness of U.S. elections" 50% to 39%.
Social Security checks to rise just 0.3% in 2017: Screwing With and Screwing the Elderly and Disabled
By Dave Lindorff
Rigged
The 2016 Republican presidential primary was rigged. It wasn't rigged by the Republicans, the Democrats, Russians, space aliens, or voters. It was rigged by the owners of television networks who believed that giving one candidate far more coverage than others was good for their ratings. The CEO of CBS Leslie Moonves said of this decision: "It may not be good for America, but it's damn good for CBS." Justifying that choice based on polling gets the chronology backwards, ignores Moonves' actual motivation, and avoids the problem, which is that there ought to be fair coverage for all qualified candidates (and a democratic way to determine who is qualified).
The 2016 Democratic presidential primary was rigged. It wasn't rigged by bankers, misogynists, Russians, Republicans, or computer hackers. It was rigged by the Democratic National Committee and its co-conspirators in the media, many of whom have helpfully confessed (in case it wasn't obvious) in emails leaked from the DNC and from John Podesta. The DNC chose Hillary Clinton and worked hard to make sure that she "won." Nobody has produced a hint of evidence as to who leaked the emails that added unnecessary confirmation of this rigging, but they should be thanked for informing us, whoever they are.
The FBI investigation of Hillary Clinton's misuse of email was as rigged as the non-prosecution of the CEO of Wells Fargo. The U.S. political system is bought and paid for. Without millions of dollars to funnel to television networks for advertising, any candidate is rigged right out of participating. This rigging of the system is not fixed by someone like Donald Trump pretending for a while that he won't take bribes, that he'll spend only his own money, because most people don't have that kind of money to spend. This rigging is not fixed by making someone like Hillary Clinton take her bribes through her family foundation or requiring that her political action committees remain theoretically separate from the campaign they are collaborating hand-in-glove with, because money buys power.
The debates are rigged by a private entity with no official status that calls itself the Commission on Presidential Debates and transforms open debates among multiple candidates into exclusively bipartisan joint appearances with many large and fine points negotiated beforehand.
What Hillary Clinton Privately Told Goldman Sachs
At first glance, Hillary Clinton's speeches to Goldman Sachs, which she refused to show us but WikiLeaks claims to have now produced the texts of, reveal less blatant hypocrisy or abuse than do the texts of various emails also recently revealed. But take a closer look.
Clinton has famously said that she believes in maintaining a public position on each issue that differs from her private position. Which did she provide to Goldman Sachs?
Yes, Clinton does profess her loyalty to corporate trade agreements, but at the time of her remarks she hadn't yet started (publicly) claiming otherwise.
I think, in fact, that Clinton maintains numerous positions on various issues, and that those she provided to Goldman Sachs were in part her public stances, in part her confidences to co-conspirators, and in part her partisan Democratic case to a room of Republicans as to why they should donate more to her and less to the GOP. This was not the sort of talk she'd have given to labor union executives or human rights professionals or Bernie Sanders delegates. She has a position for every audience.
In the speech transcripts from June 4, 2013, October 29, 2013, and October 19, 2015, Clinton was apparently paid sufficiently to do something she denies most audiences. That is, she took questions that it appears likely she was not secretly briefed on or engaged in negotiations over ahead of time. In part this appears to be the case because some of the questions were lengthy speeches, and in part because her answers were not all the sort of meaningless platitudes that she produces if given time to prepare.
Focus: Hillary Clinton's Emails - Oct 13, 2016
Judicial Watch releases new Hillary Clinton email answers given under oath - Judicial Watch
VIDEO: Sworn answers: Hillary Clinton responds to Judicial Watch questions - YouTube
FBI served with request for Hillary's backup device…object is in FBI's possession - Breitbart
Clinton aides sought to deny any classified data: WikiLeaks - Bloomberg Politics
James Comey and Loretta Lynch should be Impeached for whitewashing Clinton's crimes - GOPUSA
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FBI, DOJ roiled by Comey, Lynch decision to let Clinton slide by on emails, says insider - Fox News
VIDEO: FBI agents dismayed over James Comey's decision to not prosecute Hillary Clinton - YouTube
Former U.S. Attorney: Agents see FBI chief Comey as a ‘dirty cop’ - The American Spectator
Did the FBI chief lie to Congress about the Hillary email probe? - New York Post
Emails: Clinton aides touted her 'cordial relationship' with Loretta Lynch - Washington Examiner
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The Guy Who Went Viral from Presidential Debate Works for Coal Company Opposed to Climate Regulations
Cross-Posted from DeSmogBlog
After Kenneth Bone asked a question about energy to presidential nominees Donald Trump and Secretary Hillary Clinton at the presidential town hall debate on October 9, he quickly became a viral internet sensation.
That evening at Washington University in St. Louis, Bone asked, "What step will your energy policy take to meet our energy needs while at the same time remaining environmentally friendly and minimizing job loss for fossil power plant workers?"
Sex, lies, videotape...and hacked emails: Debate #2 Lost by Hillary Clinton on Points
By Dave Lindorff
Focus: The Hillary Clinton's FBI Investigation - Oct 5, 2016
Republicans blast FBI for 'astonishing' agreement to destroy Clinton aides' laptops - Fox News
VIDEO: Republicans blast FBI for 'astonishing' agreement to destroy Clinton aides' laptops - YouTube
House Oversight Committee ‘looking into' Clinton impeachment - yournewswire.com
Clinton spokesman defends lawyers' immunity agreements (VIDEO) - The Daily Caller
The FBI treated Clinton with kid gloves - WSJ
Cheryl Mills’s legal privileges, The evidence of a politicized Clinton probe keeps building - WSJ
Book: AG Lynch had ‘secret' meetings at White House about email probe - Fox News Insider
AUDIO: Ed Klein reveals bombshell facts about Hillary FBI Investigation - Townhall
Kaine's off: The FBI director isn't a Republican... anymore. - POLITICO
The hidden smoking gun: the Combetta cover-up - Clinton Email Investigation Timeline
Documents show Clinton server was plagued by breach attempts - Washington Examiner
State Department hands over 200 pages of Clinton Foundation emails - Washington Examiner
Clinton filled State Dept. board with friends, family and donors - Washington Examiner
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Department of Justice intervenes to cover up Hillary Clinton's Libyan gunrunning - RedState
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Koch Industries and Fracking Lobbyist Mike Catanzaro To Lead Trump Energy Team
Cross-Posted from DeSmogBlog
The Washington Post has reported that Mike Catanzaro, a former senior energy staffer for Republican Party House Majority Leader John Boehner with a track record of climate change denial, will lead Republican Party presidential candidate Donald Trump's energy transition team.
We got 8 years of change, but not much hope: President Barack Obama’s Crappy Legacy
By Dave Lindorff
Barack Obama came into the White House on a wave of passionate new voters, many of them black or young and white, becoming the nation's first black president and promising a new era of "hope and change."
Clinton Tuition Plan Will Find Foe in Military
By Pat Elder
Military recruiting will face its greatest threat since the end of conscription in 1973 if Hillary Clinton’s plan calling for free in-state tuition is enacted into law. Already, recruiting has become extraordinarily tough for the Pentagon, thanks largely to generally improving economic conditions. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has been noticeably silent on the issue and sticks to its narrative that youth sign up for patriotic reasons.
According to the Clinton website, “Tuition has ballooned out of control and has become increasingly unaffordable even at public colleges and universities.” Tuition has risen by nearly half in the last decade at four-year public colleges and universities, after inflation, while family incomes have remained stagnant.
Under the Clinton plan, every student from a family making $85,000 a year or less will be able to attend a 4-year public college or university tuition-free. This threshold will increase by $10,000 a year every year over the next four years so that by 2021, all students with a family income of $125,000 will have the opportunity to attend college for free. Students will be expected to work 10 hours a week to help defray the full cost of attendance.
Focus: FBI Investigation of Hillary Clinton's emails - Oct 3, 2016
DOJ and FBI agreed to destroy laptops of Clinton aides with immunity deal: Lawmaker - Fox News
Analysis: FBI made ‘side deals' to destroy top Clinton aides' laptops - Townhall
It's time to impeach FBI Director Comey - GOPUSA
Judicial Watch: FBI used redacted documents to question Clinton aides - cnsnews.com
FBI Docs: Hillary deleted nearly 1,000 emails with David Petraeus - PJ Media
State Department admits it ‘lost' Clinton Foundation email - Breibart
It's alive: FBI files reveal how Clinton server was created in K Street lab - Fox News
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Before Presidential Debate, Obama Admin Weakened Endangered Species Act Under Oil Industry Pressure
Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Cross-Posted from DeSmogBlog
As eyes turned to the most viewed presidential debate in U.S. history, the Obama administration meanwhile quietly auctioned off thousands of acres of land for oil and gas drilling in national forests, opened up 119 million acres for offshore drilling leases in the Gulf of Mexico, and delivered a blow to the Endangered Species Act.
US Propaganda Campaign to Demonize Russia in Full Gear over One-Sided Dutch/Aussie Report on Flight 17 Downing
By Dave Lindorff
If the danger of the anti-Putin, anti-Russian disinformation propaganda campaign out of the Pentagon and promoted by the US corporate media weren't so serious, the effort itself might be laughable. I did laugh,
Focus: FBI Director James Comey's Congressional Testimony on Clinton Emails - Sept 28, 2016
Comey: Cheryl Mills' laptop contained 'some' classified information - Fox News
Comey silent on pending Clinton perjury probe - TheHill
ARCHIVE: FBI Director James Comey's Clinton Foundation connection - Breibart
ARCHIVE: Comey has long history of cases ending favorable to Clintons - WND
ARCHIVE: James Comey And KPMG: Isn't it ironic - Forbes
FBI doc dump on email case reveals role of 'confidential' Clinton aide - Fox News
Huma Abedin caught in falsehood—but no followup - Breibart
Hillary failed to take highest security training at State Dept in 2009 - The Daily Caller
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Focus: Syria question at the presidential debate - Sept 26, 2016
At the presidential debate Trump and Clinton may be asked what is their position regarding the new Syrian and Russian offensive in Aleppo. My answer is that the US mission is to defeat and eradicate Islamic State, not to remove Assad from power. According to a poll, after 15 years of wars the majority of US active duty troops oppose the regime change and nation building policies advocated by Hillary Clinton in Iraq, Libya and Syria, which led to loss of life, destruction, migrations and the rise of 'radical Islamic terrorism.’ Only the Syrian people, including the opposition, must decide who will be their leaders in a free, fair and UN supervised presidential and parliamentary elections. To this end US must drop demanding the ouster of Assad, which must not be a precondition for negotiations leading to a new Syrian constitution and democratic elections. Unfortunately, it is a fact that while Assad is willing to negotiate with the opposition, at this time the opposition is not ready to negotiate with Assad a peaceful end of the conflict.
To defeat Islamic State, US must cooperate with all State and non-State actors willing to fight that threat, including foremost Russia. Accidents such as the killing of Syrian troops and the bombing of the Aleppo aid convoy could have been prevented if a US-Russia cooperation were into effect. The US administration, who has been reticent, if not hostile, to establish such a cooperation, risks a confrontation with Russia on Syria (and also Ukraine), which will be a calamity for US and the world. Also China plans to boost counterterrorism efforts and cooperation with the Syrian government, including training for soldiers, military hardware deliveries and humanitarian aid. China has been an exporter of weapons systems to the Syrian government. Oilprice.com reports that "China will likely also play a key role in Syria’s post-conflict economic recovery….In December, China offered Syria 6 billion USD worth of investments in addition to 10 billion USD worth of existing contracts, as well as a significant deal signed between the Syrian government and Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei to rebuild Syria’s telecom infrastructure as part of China’s 900 billion USD ‘Silk Road’ infrastructure initiative."
Finally, a successful anti-Islamic State strategy must combine both military and political means, including aid, reforms, economic and job growth in Middle East and African countries where terrorism threatens State institutions.
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Focus: The Hillary Clinton's FBI Investigation - Sept 25, 2016
Cheryl Mills immunity bombshell: She avoided signing mandatory security forms - Breitbart
Obama used a pseudonym in emails with Clinton, FBI documents reveal - POLITICO
27 things we learned from Clinton's FBI files - Washington Examiner
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