7/30/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 30, 2020



Mary Trump explains why the president is so ‘drawn’ to Vladimir Putina
July 29 - ...“I think there are plenty of reasons to believe that’s the case,” said Mary Trump. “But, you know, I can speak to the resemblance that Putin may have to my grandfather. One of the things my grandfather did was, you know, through neglect, abuse, and pressure, was turn Donald into somebody who was eminently useful to smarter, and more powerful men. And I think part of the charm, although, again, I am not privy to any conversations with them — I imagine Putin understands exactly how to manipulate Donald, you know, whether or not there are financial incentives.”

She went on to describe a particularly brutal incident for the president when his brother dumped mashed potatoes on his head and everyone laughed. To this day, Mary said, Trump still crosses his arms and gets visibly upset about it...   source
  • Judy Woodruff:
    In an interview released today, President Trump said that he had not challenged President Vladimir Putin over Russian efforts to pay the Taliban to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
    The two leaders spoke just last week, for the seventh time in recent months.
    As Nick Schifrin reports, this comes as the administration also cemented plans to withdraw and redeploy American forces in Europe.     source

PBS NewsHour live episode, July 29
July 30, 2020

7/29/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 29, 2020


Democrats seek to shame Barr over politics at the Justice Department

July 28 - Democrats clashed with Attorney General William P. Barr on Tuesday at a congressional hearing marked by angry recriminations over racial justice protests in Portland, Ore., and around the country, as the nation’s top law enforcement official said additional agents were needed to subdue aggressive, violent crowds.


The hearing before the House Judiciary Committee was acrimonious from the outset, as liberal lawmakers accused the conservative attorney general of politicizing the Justice Department through his deployment of federal agents to U.S. cities, his involvement in high-profile prosecutions of people connected to President Trump, and his posture toward the upcoming presidential election.

Lawmakers spent months seeking Barr’s testimony on a host of issues related to the Trump administration’s interactions with the Justice Department. With the attorney general finally seated at the witness table, Democrats mostly made speeches or talked over him as he attempted to answer their questions, seemingly squandering any chance of getting new information or an admission out of him.

“This is a hearing; I thought I was the one who was supposed to be heard,” Barr said in exasperation.

In a thick fog of partisan bickering, indignant lawmakers argued about everything from mask-wearing etiquette to bathroom breaks. In the afternoon, the committee chairman, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) initially refused Barr’s request for a five-minute break. “You’re a class act,” the attorney general said sarcastically, before Nadler relented.

Many of the angriest exchanges focused on the federal government’s response to protests over police misconduct and brutality, with Nadler accusing the attorney general of deploying more manpower to spark ugly confrontations with protesters because, the lawmaker argued, Trump believes such confrontations will scare Americans into voting for him.

“You are projecting fear and violence nationwide in pursuit of obvious political objectives. Shame on you, Mr. Barr,” Nadler said...     more
AG Barr Defends Response To Portland Protests In Tense Congressional Hearing | NBC Nightly News
Jul 29, 2020
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7/28/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 28, 2020

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The body of civil rights leader and politician John Lewis has arrived in Washington DC, ahead of a week of ceremonies marking the life of the famed activist. Lewis died on July 17, aged 80 - the last surviving member of the Big Six, who together organized the 1963 March on Washington. He was among the original 13 Freedom Riders who rode buses across the South in 1961 to challenge segregation in public transportation. The riders were attacked and beaten, and one of their buses was firebombed. But the rides changed the way people traveled, and set the stage for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. From Monday Lewis will lie in state in the Capitol - the first black politician to receive one of the highest of American honors. 

Joe and Jill Biden pay their respects to Rep John Lewis at the Capitol as the civil rights activist becomes first black lawmaker to lie in state in the Rotunda while guard of honor collapses in 96 degree heat

Representative John Lewis died on July 17 at the age of 80 after a battle with pancreatic cancer
Lewis, born in Troy, Alabama, will lie in state from Monday in Washington, beneath the rotunda of the Capitol

July 28 - Joe and Jill Biden paid their respects to Rep. John Lewis at the Capitol in Washington DC on Monday as the famous civil rights activist became the first Black lawmaker to lie in state beneath the Rotunda.

7/27/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 27, 2020

Donald Trump greets supporters in Bedminster WITHOUT a mask - but stands six feet away and tosses them 'Keep America Great' hats
President Donald Trump stopped to say hello to about 50 supporters Sunday who had gathered at an intersection several miles from his New Jersey golf club
The president did not wear a mask, but kept his distance from the crowd, tossing 'Keep America Great' hats at his fans.
He could be heard telling the group 'thank you' before hopping back in his SUV and heading back to his Bedminster resort.
Earlier in the weekend he golfed with NFL great Brett Favre, tweeting Sunday, 'A good golfer - hits it LONG!'
Trump was also the 'special guest' at an event put on by America First Action, but press wasn't allowed in.
July 26 - President Donald Trump stopped to say hello to about 50 supporters Sunday who had gathered at an intersection in Bedminster, New Jersey several miles down the road from his private golf club where he's spent the weekend.

  
Trump - who was not wearing a mask to prevent the spread of the coronavirus - got out of his black SUV and was handed a stack of 'Keep America Great' baseball hats to toss into the crowd.
 
The president stayed about six feet away from the group and could be heard telling them 'thank you.' ...     more

7/26/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 26, 2020


Portland police declare ‘unlawful assembly’ as protesters continue to clash with federal agents
By Kiran Moodley


July 25 -There’s been another night of unrest in the US state of Oregon as thousands of protesters took to the streets again in support of racial justice.


Officers dressed in camouflage fired tear gas and flash grenades to disperse crowds outside the federal court building overnight after declaring it an ‘unlawful assembly’.     Video

Joe Biden Leading Donald Trump In Latest Pennsylvania Polls

July 25 - Three right-leaning polls released in recent days show presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden leading President Trump in battleground state Pennsylvania. 
Biden Calls Trump First Racist President In U.S. After Immigrant Details Racial Profiling Story
Jul 23, 2020
Former Vice President Joe Biden called President Trump the first racist president in U.S. history. The comments came during a town hall where Suk Kim, a South Korean immigrant detailed a story about being racially profiled and expressed concern over Trump’s rhetoric about the coronavirus.

7/25/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 25, 2020

US officials seize control of Chinese Consulate in Houston
July 24 - Officials believed to be with the U.S. State Department kicked open a door leading into the Chinese Consulate in Houston.
A van loaded with federal agents pried open the backdoor to the consulate after failing to gain entry through three different doorways a little over an hour after officials with the Chinese government left the complex Friday afternoon.
It was a busy day at the consulate as anti-communist protesters heckled a group of workers who emptied the contents of the consulate building into a moving van before leaving.
China orders US consulate in Chengdu to close | DW News
Jul 24, 2020
China has ordered the United States to close one of its consulates in a tit-for-tat move. The foreign ministry has given US officials 72 hours to leave the consulate in the south western city of Chengdu. It comes after Washington told Beijing to shut its diplomatic mission in Houston, Texas, earlier this week. On Tuesday, the US accused two Chinese nationals of attempting to steal Covid-19 vaccine research. Relations between the powers are at their lowest in 40 years. The Chinese foreign ministry defended its move saying it was a legitimate response to a provocation by the US.

7/24/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 24, 2020

Trump has dug himself into a deeper hole in Florida, highlighting how far he's slipped among seniors
 A new Quinnipiac University poll has President Donald Trump down 13 points to former Vice President Joe Biden in Florida.

July 24 - President Donald Trump, officially a Florida man, is slipping in his new home state to former Vice President Joe Biden.

A new Quinnipiac University poll spells trouble for the president's reelection prospects, even factoring in Quinnipiac's tendency to over-sample Democrats in the recent past (FiveThirtyEight gives them a +0.2% mean-reverted bias for Democrats and a B+ rating).


The Thursday poll shows Biden leading Trump by 13 points in the Sunshine State, up 4 points from April.
—Political Polls (@Politics_Polls) July 23, 2020

Trump getting only 38% of the vote in Florida come Nov. 3 would be a shock and remains an unlikely prospect given the GOP's power in the state populated by wealthier retirees and a strong base of Republican voters in the Cuban-American diaspora.
Even so, the underlying trend is bad for Trump.
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7/23/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 23, 2020

Russia Says 'We Will Do What We Want' If U.S. Moves Troops Closer to Border

July 22 - Russia has warned it would retaliate if the U.S. military conducts movements along Russia's borders with member states of the NATO Western defense coalition as speculation mounts about whether President Donald Trump's partial withdrawal from Germany could lead to a heightened military presence in neighboring Poland.Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told the state-run Tass Russian News Agency that "of course, we closely analyze all this, including from the standpoint of military planning," after he was asked what Moscow's possible response to nearby NATO activities would be. "If any reinforcement would be deemed necessary, then, of course, all necessary measures will be taken," he said.

Trump confirms $2.8bn vaccine deal for 'China plague'

July 23 - In a media briefing where Donald Trump called the coronavirus "the China plague" and likened himself to Abraham Lincoln, the president confirmed pharma giant Pfizer will deliver the US 100 million vaccine doses.

The $2.8 billion deal could see the US buy another 500 million doses, if safe and effective, in an agreement Mr Trump called "Operation Warp Speed".

"We think we have a winner there," Mr Trump said, calling Pfizer's December delivery a "crucial step" to stop the virus spreading further across the US...     more

7/22/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 22, 2020


US coronavirus crisis to get worse before it gets better: Donald Trump
At his first formal White House virus briefing since the end of April, US President Donald Trump warned that the coronavirus crisis in the United States is likely to "get worse before it gets better."
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President Donald Trump conceded Tuesday that the worst of COVID-19 is yet to come as he held his first White House coronavirus briefing since April. 'It will probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better - something i don't like saying about things,' Trump said of the continuing global health crisis. :But that's the way it is, that's the way - that's what we have.' 'You look at the world, it's all over the world,' he said, deflecting from the severity of the pandemic in the U.S., adding viruses 'tend' to worsen before improving.

Donald Trump admits coronavirus 'will get worse before it will get better' as he tells people to wear a mask and stay out of bars - but says he should NOT be judged on handling of crisis

7/21/2020

White House News (白宮消息) | July 21, 2020


...Nonpartisan experts and political strategists told CNN they are afraid that the Supreme Court might once again be called upon to decide the election. Election lawsuits in state and local courts could be appealed up to the Supreme Court, which has a 5-4 conservative majority.

These experts also said congressional Republicans will play an important role in influencing Trump's behavior after the election. Though that dynamic could quickly change if Republicans lose their Senate majority, which stands at 53-47 but is in serious danger of slipping away.

"Once we have confirmed results, should Biden win in a fair election, it'll be incredibly important for Republicans on Capitol Hill to accept those results and participate in the peaceful transition of power," said Amanda Carpenter, a CNN contributor who was a top adviser to Cruz and other conservative Republicans before turning on Trump and raising the alarm about his behavior..
.   source
'Things could get very ugly': Experts fear post-election crisis as Trump sets the stage to dispute the results in November

July 20 - Washington (CNN)Voting experts and political strategists from across the political spectrum are increasingly alarmed about the potential for a disputed presidential election in November, one in which one candidate openly questions the legitimacy of the results or even refuses to concede.


These experts are keenly aware of President Donald Trump's well-documented history of lying about voter fraud and claiming that elections were "rigged" when he doesn't like the outcome. They also see a Democratic base that is still burned from 2016, when its nominee was dragged down in part by Russian meddling operation, won the popular vote, and lost to Trump.