Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
DonViejo
DonViejo's Journal
DonViejo's Journal
March 2, 2019
Democratic presidential hopefuls are introducing themselves to voters in some of the earliest states that will weigh in on their campaigns to take on President Donald Trump in the 2020 election
By MEG KINNARD Associated Press CHARLESTON, S.C. — Mar 2, 2019 12:28 AM ET
Democratic presidential hopefuls are introducing themselves to voters in some of the earliest states that will weigh in on their campaigns to take on President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.
Candidates are fanned out in South Carolina and Iowa on Saturday, spending time with voters in two of the states that hold the earliest balloting next year. Sens. Cory Booker and Sherrod Brown are both in South Carolina, site of the South's first primary. Sen. Elizabeth Warren will be courting voters in Iowa.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar attends a Gridiron Club dinner in Washington, an event where politicians traditionally poke fun at the press and other politicians. Sen. Bernie Sanders is in Brooklyn to officially launch his campaign.
The visits come as Trump addresses a gathering of conservatives near Washington.
###
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/2020-democratic-hopefuls-fanning-early-voting-states-61425134
2020 Democratic hopefuls fanning out in early-voting states
Democratic presidential hopefuls are introducing themselves to voters in some of the earliest states that will weigh in on their campaigns to take on President Donald Trump in the 2020 election
By MEG KINNARD Associated Press CHARLESTON, S.C. — Mar 2, 2019 12:28 AM ET
Democratic presidential hopefuls are introducing themselves to voters in some of the earliest states that will weigh in on their campaigns to take on President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.
Candidates are fanned out in South Carolina and Iowa on Saturday, spending time with voters in two of the states that hold the earliest balloting next year. Sens. Cory Booker and Sherrod Brown are both in South Carolina, site of the South's first primary. Sen. Elizabeth Warren will be courting voters in Iowa.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar attends a Gridiron Club dinner in Washington, an event where politicians traditionally poke fun at the press and other politicians. Sen. Bernie Sanders is in Brooklyn to officially launch his campaign.
The visits come as Trump addresses a gathering of conservatives near Washington.
###
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/2020-democratic-hopefuls-fanning-early-voting-states-61425134
March 2, 2019
After mostly brushing off deficit concerns for two years, the White House now plans to reposition itself as an unlikely enforcer of fiscal responsibility.
By ANDREW RESTUCCIA and NANCY COOK 03/01/2019 07:07 PM EST
The self-described “king of debt” is about to get religion.
In the next several months, the Trump administration faces several big spending and budget showdowns with Congress. And after mostly brushing off deficit concerns while pushing through a costly tax-cut plan, the White House now plans to reposition itself as an unlikely enforcer of fiscal responsibility led by its new top budget official, a veteran of the conservative group Heritage Action.
The series of budget fights will come into focus on Saturday, when the U.S. government hits its debt limit, already at a record of roughly $22 trillion. That won’t cause an immediate crisis, thanks to Treasury’s ability to keep paying the bills for a limited amount of time using a power known as “extraordinary measures.”
Still, Saturday marks the beginning of a series of budget challenges for the Trump White House. The next marker comes on March 11, when the White House is scheduled to release the president’s broad budget priorities, which will feature a call for deep spending cuts — and be dead on arrival in the Democratic-led House. Administration officials have been meeting for weeks to devise a strategy to dramatically boost defense spending, fulfilling a promise to Trump’s base, while at the same time placing a strong new rhetorical emphasis on deficit concerns in a bid to undermine Democratic demands for more spending on nondefense programs like foreign aid, education and environmental protection.
It’s a long-shot plan certain to face accusations of hypocrisy — especially since it’s coming from Trump, who once boasted, “I’ve made a fortune by using debt.” Privately, many White House officials also dismiss the notion that the federal debt is a major problem.
more
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/01/trump-deficit-democrats-1198671
Deficit-swelling Trump White House plans to use deficit against Democrats
After mostly brushing off deficit concerns for two years, the White House now plans to reposition itself as an unlikely enforcer of fiscal responsibility.
By ANDREW RESTUCCIA and NANCY COOK 03/01/2019 07:07 PM EST
The self-described “king of debt” is about to get religion.
In the next several months, the Trump administration faces several big spending and budget showdowns with Congress. And after mostly brushing off deficit concerns while pushing through a costly tax-cut plan, the White House now plans to reposition itself as an unlikely enforcer of fiscal responsibility led by its new top budget official, a veteran of the conservative group Heritage Action.
The series of budget fights will come into focus on Saturday, when the U.S. government hits its debt limit, already at a record of roughly $22 trillion. That won’t cause an immediate crisis, thanks to Treasury’s ability to keep paying the bills for a limited amount of time using a power known as “extraordinary measures.”
Still, Saturday marks the beginning of a series of budget challenges for the Trump White House. The next marker comes on March 11, when the White House is scheduled to release the president’s broad budget priorities, which will feature a call for deep spending cuts — and be dead on arrival in the Democratic-led House. Administration officials have been meeting for weeks to devise a strategy to dramatically boost defense spending, fulfilling a promise to Trump’s base, while at the same time placing a strong new rhetorical emphasis on deficit concerns in a bid to undermine Democratic demands for more spending on nondefense programs like foreign aid, education and environmental protection.
It’s a long-shot plan certain to face accusations of hypocrisy — especially since it’s coming from Trump, who once boasted, “I’ve made a fortune by using debt.” Privately, many White House officials also dismiss the notion that the federal debt is a major problem.
more
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/01/trump-deficit-democrats-1198671
March 2, 2019
Republicans pound abortion 'infanticide' message
Source: Politico
Democrats say the GOP arguments are inflammatory and inaccurate, but Republicans are already seizing on the issue in their 2020 strategy.
By ALICE MIRANDA OLLSTEIN 03/02/2019 06:46 AM EST
Republicans’ amped-up focus on so-called late term abortions has brought new energy to the issue for their conservative base — forcing Democrats to respond to rhetoric about infanticide.
The GOP plans to keep at the message through the 2020 election, even if they lose the battle in Congress to pass a “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors” bill, H.R. 962, that abortion-rights advocates warn could add new pain to already wrenching medical decisions. Under criticism, Republicans' language has only continued to escalate, including President Donald Trump’s charge this week that Democrats “don’t mind executing babies AFTER birth.”
Democrats are “taking a barbaric position,” said Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), the No. 2 Republican in the House. “It's a radical far-left shift they’ve taken and, frankly, most Americans are sickened by that.”
So far the tactics aren’t swaying Democrats, who are highly unified around abortion rights and accuse the GOP of spreading inflammatory misinformation. To redirect the conversation, they hope to focus on aspects of women’s health where they are on more solid ground — for instance by, attacking the Trump administration’s recent move to cut funding for Planned Parenthood, congressional aides said.
Read more: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/02/republicans-abortion-infanticide-1231437
March 2, 2019
More bad news for middle America after corporate taxes were slashed.
By Mary Papenfuss
There’s more bad news for taxpayers. A government report has revealed that 11 million taxpayers are losing out on $323 billion worth of deductions due to a punishing change in President Donald Trump’s tax law.
The hard news comes after early filers were stunned by shrinking — to vanishing — tax refunds.
The deduction wallop detailed in the government report centers on capped deductions for state and local taxes — including real estate taxes. Formerly all local taxes could be deducted for federal taxes; now it’s capped at $10,000, which particularly hurts homeowners in major metropolitan areas — especially in the Northeast and California — where housing tends to be more expensive.
The cap was imposed to help pay for huge tax cuts to corporations, whose taxes were slashed by 40 percent, from 35 percent to 21 percent.
more
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/tax-deduction-turmp-323-billion_n_5c7a2da1e4b0e1f77651b412
11 Million Taxpayers Losing $323 Billion In Deductions In Trump Tax Hit
More bad news for middle America after corporate taxes were slashed.
By Mary Papenfuss
There’s more bad news for taxpayers. A government report has revealed that 11 million taxpayers are losing out on $323 billion worth of deductions due to a punishing change in President Donald Trump’s tax law.
The hard news comes after early filers were stunned by shrinking — to vanishing — tax refunds.
The deduction wallop detailed in the government report centers on capped deductions for state and local taxes — including real estate taxes. Formerly all local taxes could be deducted for federal taxes; now it’s capped at $10,000, which particularly hurts homeowners in major metropolitan areas — especially in the Northeast and California — where housing tends to be more expensive.
The cap was imposed to help pay for huge tax cuts to corporations, whose taxes were slashed by 40 percent, from 35 percent to 21 percent.
more
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/tax-deduction-turmp-323-billion_n_5c7a2da1e4b0e1f77651b412
March 2, 2019
Candace Owens, director of communications for Turning Point USA, attempted to disprove the existence of racism Friday during her CPAC remarks by explaining that she herself has never been a slave.
“Stop selling us our own oppression,” she said. “Stop taking away our self-confidence by telling us that we can’t because of racism, because of slavery. I've never been a slave in this country.”
Over the past year, Owens has been behind much of rapper Kanye West’s on-and-off-again love affair with President Trump. Her comments about slavery are reminiscent of West’s controversial rant to TMZ in which he asserted, “You hear about slavery for 400 years. For 400 years? That sound like a choice.”
###
https://www.thedailybeast.com/candace-owens-at-cpac-racism-is-over-because-ive-never-been-a-slave?ref=home
Candace Owens at CPAC: Racism Is Over Because 'I've Never Been a Slave'
Candace Owens, director of communications for Turning Point USA, attempted to disprove the existence of racism Friday during her CPAC remarks by explaining that she herself has never been a slave.
“Stop selling us our own oppression,” she said. “Stop taking away our self-confidence by telling us that we can’t because of racism, because of slavery. I've never been a slave in this country.”
Over the past year, Owens has been behind much of rapper Kanye West’s on-and-off-again love affair with President Trump. Her comments about slavery are reminiscent of West’s controversial rant to TMZ in which he asserted, “You hear about slavery for 400 years. For 400 years? That sound like a choice.”
###
https://www.thedailybeast.com/candace-owens-at-cpac-racism-is-over-because-ive-never-been-a-slave?ref=home
March 2, 2019
Sen. Mazie Hirono Slams Trump: He’s ‘More Than Willing’ to Believe Murders, Dictators Over His Own Intel Community
by Tamar Auber | Mar 2nd, 2019, 12:06 am
Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) told CNN’s Brianna Keilar on Friday that President Donald Trump is more than willing to take the word of dictators and murderers over the information from his own intel community. Keilar, who was filling in for Wolf Blitzer, asked for Hirono’s reaction to Trump saying his comments about Otto Warmbier were misinterpreted.
She then played a clip of Trump saying this at the press conference: “I did speak to him [Kim Jong Un about Warmbier]. He felt very badly. He knew the case very well. He knew it later. Got a lot of people, big country. A lot of people. In those prisons and those camps, you have a lot of people. Some really bad things happened to Otto.”
After the clip ended, Keilar noted that Trump responded to the rebuke from the Warmbeirs for his comments by saying he blames North Korea. However, Keilar stressed, he still did not blame Kim Jong Un directly. She then asked the senator’s thoughts.
Hirono noted that when it came to these matters “North Korea is Kim Jong Un.”
“Once again, the president tries to walk back. We all know what we heard,” Hirono continued on. “Don’t trust our lying ears, our lying eyes. Give me a break. This whole thing was very tragic.”
The senator then said this: “Again, points out how the president is more than willing to take the word of dictators or murderers over the information that he gets from his own Intel community.”
###
https://www.mediaite.com/tv/sen-mazie-hirono-slams-trump-hes-more-than-willing-to-believe-murders-dictators-over-his-own-intel-community/
Sen. Mazie Hirono Slams Trump: He's 'More Than Willing' to Believe Murders, Dictators Over...
Sen. Mazie Hirono Slams Trump: He’s ‘More Than Willing’ to Believe Murders, Dictators Over His Own Intel Community
by Tamar Auber | Mar 2nd, 2019, 12:06 am
Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) told CNN’s Brianna Keilar on Friday that President Donald Trump is more than willing to take the word of dictators and murderers over the information from his own intel community. Keilar, who was filling in for Wolf Blitzer, asked for Hirono’s reaction to Trump saying his comments about Otto Warmbier were misinterpreted.
She then played a clip of Trump saying this at the press conference: “I did speak to him [Kim Jong Un about Warmbier]. He felt very badly. He knew the case very well. He knew it later. Got a lot of people, big country. A lot of people. In those prisons and those camps, you have a lot of people. Some really bad things happened to Otto.”
After the clip ended, Keilar noted that Trump responded to the rebuke from the Warmbeirs for his comments by saying he blames North Korea. However, Keilar stressed, he still did not blame Kim Jong Un directly. She then asked the senator’s thoughts.
Hirono noted that when it came to these matters “North Korea is Kim Jong Un.”
“Once again, the president tries to walk back. We all know what we heard,” Hirono continued on. “Don’t trust our lying ears, our lying eyes. Give me a break. This whole thing was very tragic.”
The senator then said this: “Again, points out how the president is more than willing to take the word of dictators or murderers over the information that he gets from his own Intel community.”
###
https://www.mediaite.com/tv/sen-mazie-hirono-slams-trump-hes-more-than-willing-to-believe-murders-dictators-over-his-own-intel-community/
March 2, 2019
by Tamar Auber | Mar 1st, 2019, 11:18 pm
During a conversation with Chris Cuomo on CNN Friday night, legendary journalist Carl Bernstein warned that the nation is in a “cold civil war” that President Donald Trump is in great danger of igniting.
“We are in a cold civil war in this country, and Trump has brought that cold civil war and every day brings it closer and closer to ignition,” Bernstein warned. “And that is the great danger because everything he does plays to this base that is his way of staying in office, if he can stay in office and be re-elected.”
He continued on: “It’s all about that base. It’s not about uniting the American people as most previous presidents have tried to put together some kind of coalition with people in the center. Trump has made no attempt to do that.”
Bernstein further noted that Trump has been “absolutely brilliant” in tapping into the fact “working people, middle-class people in this country have been screwed over for the last 30, 35 years.”
Moments before, Cuomo had suggested that Trump supporters have low expectations of politicians. Bernstein though, said, he did not think that was the case. Instead, he said “vicious politics” is at work.
“What they see in Trump, many people, is someone who feeds their often — their prejudices but also who feeds their desire to see the other side wiped out. We are really seeing a kind of vicious politics,” he explained.
###
https://www.mediaite.com/tv/carl-bernstein-our-country-is-in-a-cold-civil-war-in-great-danger-of-being-ignited-by-trump/
Carl Bernstein: Our Country is in a 'Cold Civil War' in Great Danger of Being Ignited by Trump
by Tamar Auber | Mar 1st, 2019, 11:18 pm
During a conversation with Chris Cuomo on CNN Friday night, legendary journalist Carl Bernstein warned that the nation is in a “cold civil war” that President Donald Trump is in great danger of igniting.
“We are in a cold civil war in this country, and Trump has brought that cold civil war and every day brings it closer and closer to ignition,” Bernstein warned. “And that is the great danger because everything he does plays to this base that is his way of staying in office, if he can stay in office and be re-elected.”
He continued on: “It’s all about that base. It’s not about uniting the American people as most previous presidents have tried to put together some kind of coalition with people in the center. Trump has made no attempt to do that.”
Bernstein further noted that Trump has been “absolutely brilliant” in tapping into the fact “working people, middle-class people in this country have been screwed over for the last 30, 35 years.”
Moments before, Cuomo had suggested that Trump supporters have low expectations of politicians. Bernstein though, said, he did not think that was the case. Instead, he said “vicious politics” is at work.
“What they see in Trump, many people, is someone who feeds their often — their prejudices but also who feeds their desire to see the other side wiped out. We are really seeing a kind of vicious politics,” he explained.
###
https://www.mediaite.com/tv/carl-bernstein-our-country-is-in-a-cold-civil-war-in-great-danger-of-being-ignited-by-trump/
March 2, 2019
A grand jury probe that began nine years ago is ongoing. And one of Julian Assange’s old crew is now talking. “I’m on the street... not in an embassy,” he tells The Daily Beast.
Kevin Poulsen
03.01.19 8:13 PM ET
Chelsea Manning isn’t alone.
Late Thursday, Manning revealed that she’s fighting a subpoena to testify before a grand jury that’s been investigating Julian Assange for nearly nine years. But Manning isn’t the only one being dragged into the aging probe of WikiLeaks’ first big haul. A former WikiLeaks volunteer who was also personal friends with Manning was subpoenaed last May. But unlike Manning, he did not fight the subpoena. He accepted an immunity deal offered by prosecutors.
It’s the second person in Assange’s broader orbit publicly known to have cooperated with prosecutors in their nearly decade-long pursuit of WikiLeaks.
Manning told the New York Times that she’s been subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia on March 5th. Manning, who was released from prison in 2017 on a clemency grant from Obama, vowed to fight the subpoena in court. “I am not going to contribute to a process that I feel is dangerous and could potentially place me in a position where I am forced to backtrack on the truth,” she told the paper.
She made good on that vow Friday morning by filing a motion to quash the subpoena, according to her attorney, New York lawyer Moira Meltzer-Cohen. “At the insistence of the clerk, the motion was filed under seal,” said Meltzer-Cohen in an email to The Daily Beast. “Our position is that litigation regarding the enforceability of a subpoena does not implicate grand jury secrecy, and we will move to have it unsealed. Chelsea, as you might expect, wants to bring some transparency to this process and hopes to be able to share the filing soon.”
more
https://www.thedailybeast.com/wikileaks-veteran-i-cooperated-with-feds-in-exchange-for-immunity?ref=home
WikiLeaks Veteran: I 'Cooperated' With Feds 'in Exchange for Immunity'
A grand jury probe that began nine years ago is ongoing. And one of Julian Assange’s old crew is now talking. “I’m on the street... not in an embassy,” he tells The Daily Beast.
Kevin Poulsen
03.01.19 8:13 PM ET
Chelsea Manning isn’t alone.
Late Thursday, Manning revealed that she’s fighting a subpoena to testify before a grand jury that’s been investigating Julian Assange for nearly nine years. But Manning isn’t the only one being dragged into the aging probe of WikiLeaks’ first big haul. A former WikiLeaks volunteer who was also personal friends with Manning was subpoenaed last May. But unlike Manning, he did not fight the subpoena. He accepted an immunity deal offered by prosecutors.
It’s the second person in Assange’s broader orbit publicly known to have cooperated with prosecutors in their nearly decade-long pursuit of WikiLeaks.
Manning told the New York Times that she’s been subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia on March 5th. Manning, who was released from prison in 2017 on a clemency grant from Obama, vowed to fight the subpoena in court. “I am not going to contribute to a process that I feel is dangerous and could potentially place me in a position where I am forced to backtrack on the truth,” she told the paper.
She made good on that vow Friday morning by filing a motion to quash the subpoena, according to her attorney, New York lawyer Moira Meltzer-Cohen. “At the insistence of the clerk, the motion was filed under seal,” said Meltzer-Cohen in an email to The Daily Beast. “Our position is that litigation regarding the enforceability of a subpoena does not implicate grand jury secrecy, and we will move to have it unsealed. Chelsea, as you might expect, wants to bring some transparency to this process and hopes to be able to share the filing soon.”
more
https://www.thedailybeast.com/wikileaks-veteran-i-cooperated-with-feds-in-exchange-for-immunity?ref=home
March 1, 2019
Pence likens Democratic health-care and energy agenda to socialism
Source: The Washington Post
By Anne Gearan March 1 at 4:06 PM
Vice President Pence warned Friday that “socialist” policies embraced by Democrats, including presidential candidates, risk throwing the country into the kind of economic free-fall and autocratic grip ravaging Venezuela.
Pence also said President Trump was right to leave the negotiating table with North Korea on Thursday and vowed that the United States will insist on eradicating the nuclear weapons threat in future talks.
Pence mocked Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a Democratic candidate challenging President Trump in 2020, as an out-of-touch socialist and the health-care and energy policies endorsed by several others among the 2020 Democratic field as big government.
“Democrats openly advocate an economic system that has impoverished millions of people around the world,” Pence said in an address to the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/pence-likens-democratic-health-care-and-energy-agenda-to-socialism/2019/03/01/5e522bfe-3c30-11e9-a2cd-307b06d0257b_story.html
March 1, 2019
By Rosalind S. Helderman and Manuel Roig-Franzia March 1 at 4:53 PM
At 1:25 p.m. on July 17, 2016, an Alitalia jet carrying Donald Trump’s longtime fixer and attorney Michael Cohen landed in New York, bringing him home after eight days celebrating his 50th birthday in Capri and Rome.
About 2 p.m. on July 20, a helicopter carrying Trump thumped down in a field in downtown Cleveland, delivering the presidential candidate in dramatic style to the Republican National Convention, already underway.
Between those two days — while Trump was in New York and the political world’s attention was trained on Cleveland — Cohen alleges that Trump received an important phone call from his decades-long confidant Roger Stone, alerting him that WikiLeaks was planning within days to release a cache of emails that would damage Hillary Clinton.
By the end of that week, right on the heels of Trump’s acceptance of the GOP nomination and as Democrats gathered in Philadelphia for their convention, WikiLeaks posted online thousands of internal Democratic Party emails that federal prosecutors allege were stolen by Russian operatives.
If true, Cohen’s account, which he provided in sworn testimony to the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday, would be a dramatic revelation — indicating that Trump misled the public about his knowledge of WikiLeaks’ plans and, importantly, provided false written testimony to special counsel
more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/two-days-in-july-as-republicans-convened-in-cleveland-did-trump-receive-a-heads-up-about-wikileaks/2019/03/01/064d3ab6-3b6d-11e9-aaae-69364b2ed137_story.html
Two days in July: As GOP convened in Cleveland, did Trump receive a heads-up about WikiLeaks?
Two days in July: As Republicans convened in Cleveland, did Trump receive a heads-up about WikiLeaks?By Rosalind S. Helderman and Manuel Roig-Franzia March 1 at 4:53 PM
At 1:25 p.m. on July 17, 2016, an Alitalia jet carrying Donald Trump’s longtime fixer and attorney Michael Cohen landed in New York, bringing him home after eight days celebrating his 50th birthday in Capri and Rome.
About 2 p.m. on July 20, a helicopter carrying Trump thumped down in a field in downtown Cleveland, delivering the presidential candidate in dramatic style to the Republican National Convention, already underway.
Between those two days — while Trump was in New York and the political world’s attention was trained on Cleveland — Cohen alleges that Trump received an important phone call from his decades-long confidant Roger Stone, alerting him that WikiLeaks was planning within days to release a cache of emails that would damage Hillary Clinton.
By the end of that week, right on the heels of Trump’s acceptance of the GOP nomination and as Democrats gathered in Philadelphia for their convention, WikiLeaks posted online thousands of internal Democratic Party emails that federal prosecutors allege were stolen by Russian operatives.
If true, Cohen’s account, which he provided in sworn testimony to the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday, would be a dramatic revelation — indicating that Trump misled the public about his knowledge of WikiLeaks’ plans and, importantly, provided false written testimony to special counsel
more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/two-days-in-july-as-republicans-convened-in-cleveland-did-trump-receive-a-heads-up-about-wikileaks/2019/03/01/064d3ab6-3b6d-11e9-aaae-69364b2ed137_story.html
Profile Information
Name: DonGender: Male
Hometown: Massachusetts
Home country: United States
Member since: Sat Sep 1, 2012, 03:28 PM
Number of posts: 60,536
