quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 22:57 schreef Hdero het volgende:
Heb je er bewijs voor dat het een scam is?

quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 22:57 schreef Hdero het volgende:
Heb je er bewijs voor dat het een scam is?

quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 22:34 schreef monkyyy het volgende:
Donald Trump to congressman who was shot: ‘That’s a hell of a way to lose weight’

quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 22:34 schreef monkyyy het volgende:
Donald Trump to congressman who was shot: ‘That’s a hell of a way to lose weight’

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 00:22 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Het stembiljet in kwestie wat meegeteld wordt:

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

A three- judge panel declined to certify the recount of a key House race today, saying that a questionable ballot should be counted in favor of the Republican and tying a race that Democrats had thought they had won by a single vote.

"The court declares there is no winner in this election," said Newport News Circuit Court Judge Bryant L. Sugg, after the judges deliberated for more than two hours.

He said the ballot in question contained a mark for Democrat Shelly Simonds as well as a mark for Republican Del. David Yancey but that the voter had made another mark to strike out Simonds' name.

Election officials presiding over the five-hour recount on Tuesday had discarded that ballot. But Republicans challenged that decision in court Wednesday, saying the voter had selected every other Republican on the ballot and intended to vote for Yancey.

The court's decision leaves the race for the 94th District tied at 11,608 votes each for Yancey and Simonds.

And it leaves the balance of power in the state legislature at 50-49, in favor of Republicans - at least for now.

In the case of a tie in a House race, state law says the winner is chosen by lot - essentially, a coin toss.

James Alcorn, the chairman of the state board of elections, said the winner will likely be chosen by drawing a name out of a glass bowl. He said he is conferring with staff to figure out the date and method.

But it doesn't end there. If the loser of the coin toss is unhappy with that result, he or she can seek a second recount.

SPOILER

News of the court decision pulsed through political circles that, just a day before, had been roiled by the notion that Simonds had taken the seat from Yancey by a single vote in the recount, ending 17 years of Republican control of the lower chamber.

As he was leaving the courthouse Wednesday, Yancey said "the ruling today makes certain every vote in this historic election was counted."

Republican leaders said they became aware of the suspect ballot after the recount had been completed Tuesday - and after both Republican and Democratic observers signed off on the process, and Republicans congratulated Simonds.

"During the recount, election officials were presented with an overvote," said a statement from House GOP leaders Kirk Cox, Tim Hugo and Nick Rush. "One Republican official, and a recount observer, believed at the time the ballot was a clear vote for Delegate David Yancey. However, a Democratic official persuaded the Republican official to not count the ballot. This morning, the Republican official wrote a letter to the recount court explaining that he made the wrong decision yesterday, and that he believes the ballot should count for Delegate Yancey."

"We asked the recount Court to consider this ballot," they said. "After review, the recount court agreed to count the ballot for Delegate Yancey. The Court has confirmed the election result as a tie vote."

"While it appeared yesterday that Shelly Simonds was elected, it's obvious now that the result will remain unclear for a while longer," they said.

Simonds, who appeared on national television as recently as Wednesday morning as the surprise victor of a tense recount that reset state politics, could not immediately be reached for comment.

It is not clear whether a final decision in the Simonds-Yancey matchup will settle control of the House of Delegates.

Even as the court was considering whether to certify Tuesday's recount in the 94th House District, two other recounts are taking place this week - at least one of which may further reshuffle politics in Richmond.

On Wednesday, officials were recounting ballots cast in Richmond's District 68, where the Democrat leads by 336 votes. And a recount is set for Thursday in Fredericksburg's District 28, where the Republican leads by 82 votes. Democrats have challenged that race in federal court, where they are seeking a new election because more than 100 voters were mistakenly given ballots for the wrong legislative district.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 00:22 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Het stembiljet in kwestie wat meegeteld wordt:

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 22:34 schreef monkyyy het volgende:
Donald Trump to congressman who was shot: ‘That’s a hell of a way to lose weight’

quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 22:57 schreef Hdero het volgende:
Heb je er bewijs voor dat het een scam is?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 00:22 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Het stembiljet in kwestie wat meegeteld wordt:

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 00:22 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Het stembiljet in kwestie wat meegeteld wordt:

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 09:15 schreef archito het volgende:

[..]

Weet iemand vergelijkbare zaken in de VS in het verleden?

Vanuit Nederlands perspectief is het vreemd dat dit stembiljet is goedgekeurd maar in de VS kunnen de regels heel anders zijn natuurlijk.
Ik geloof ook wel dat deze stemmer oprecht op de republikein wilde stemmen overigens, maar de regels moeten wel voor iedereen hetzelfde zijn.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 09:15 schreef archito het volgende:

[..]

Weet iemand vergelijkbare zaken in de VS in het verleden?

Vanuit Nederlands perspectief is het vreemd dat dit stembiljet is goedgekeurd maar in de VS kunnen de regels heel anders zijn natuurlijk.
Ik geloof ook wel dat deze stemmer oprecht op de republikein wilde stemmen overigens, maar de regels moeten wel voor iedereen hetzelfde zijn.

twitter:

funder twitterde op woensdag 06-12-2017 om 16:42:31 The 16 women who accused Trump of sexual assault are telling their story in one video-please share this far & wide.… https://t.co/MdnEXQFEwi reageer retweet

quote:

House Republicans swear they had enough time to review a 500-page conference report released last Friday night before they voted on what they thought would be the final tax bill Tuesday. But when we asked GOP lawmakers supporting the legislation this week for just one basic detail of the bill ― the tax bracket percentages for individual income ― hardly anyone could list them.

HuffPost had to ask 18 House Republicans to identify the tax brackets before we finally came across one member who could: Rep. Chris Stewart of Utah..

To be clear, we were just looking for seven figures: 10 percent, 12 percent, 22 percent, 24 percent, 32 percent, 35 percent and 37 percent. We were not looking for congressional representatives to display some savant-like ability and provide the income thresholds for each bracket. We just wanted to see if Republicans knew this one simple element of a bill they were rushing into law.

Well... https://www.huffingtonpos(...)74b8e4b0b0e5a79ec354

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 11:40 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
Republikeinen hebben geen idee (So what else is new? )

Aan een aantal Republikeinen werd geraagd welke tariefgroepen de nieuwe belastingwet kent. Ze hoefden geen details te geven, alleen de percentages, maar pas de 18e senator had het juiste antwoord. Een aantal weigerde zelfs te antwoorden en liep weg.

[..]

quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 22:34 schreef monkyyy het volgende:
Donald Trump to congressman who was shot: ‘That’s a hell of a way to lose weight’

quote:

Op woensdag 20 december 2017 23:12 schreef Nintex het volgende:
Het had moeten zijn: "Tax cuts VICTORY" of de "Biggest tax cuts in history"

Niet zo gek dat al Trump zijn tegenstanders het niets vinden, hij is aan het winnen dat kunnen ze niet hebben. Ze balen als een stekker dat de Midden klasse een kerstcadeautje krijgt van Oom Donald en per februari al minder belasting hoeft te betalen.

De hele haatcampagne van Trump kan niks en bereikt niks is in een klap getorpedeerd.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:38 schreef Abschirmdienst het volgende:
Haha, hij weet telkens weer z'n proletengrappen te toppen.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:50 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:

[..]

Trumps eigen manier om gewicht te verliezen is ook niet mis hoor! In zijn bio's heeft hij namelijk 1 inch bij zijn lengte opgeteld (is nu 5ft3) zodat hij in de BMI-schaal nét niet meer "obese" is. Jammer alleen dat hij volgens zijn rijbewijs nog steed 5ft2 is.

(Eigenlijk een beetje zoals George W. Bush de armoede in de VS significant wist terug te dringen door de officiële armoedegrens te verlagen waardoor er minder mensen onder vielen. )

Trump is overigens niet de zwaarste president, hij wordt hierin gepasseerd door William Howard Taft (1909–1913) die 152 kilo woog en Grover Cleveland die 118 kilo aantikte.

https://www.mensjournal.c(...)vestigation-w462910/

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:52 schreef Puddington het volgende:
Wacht, is Trump maar 1.57 meter?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:53 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
sorry

[..]

*verbetert typfoutje* sorry

dan was het écht een ukkie geweest

quote:

“You just gave me and Anderson Cooper a huge tax break,” Tapper said, while pointing out that critics will accuse the GOP of favoring tax cuts for the wealthy over protecting social safety nets.

“Democrats are going to use this issue [and say] ... ‘See, this is what the Republicans do. They cut taxes for people, especially the wealthy, and then they come after the social safety net programs because all of a sudden they are concerned about the deficit,’” Tapper added.

The unpopular tax bill Republicans just passed is projected to add a whopping $1.4 trillion to the national debt.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)2c69e4b0b0e5a79f85fe

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:48 schreef Chewie het volgende:

[..]

Jij hebt je duidelijk zeer goed verdiept in dit belastingplan dus dan kun je ons ook vast haarfijn voorrekenen wat de voordelen zullen zijn voor de gemiddelde Amerikaan?

Of wil je liever als een simplist door blijven trollen?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:21 schreef AnneX het volgende:
Zojuist zag ik een misselijkmakende liefdesverklaring van Pence

twitter:

deannie7112011 twitterde op woensdag 20-12-2017 om 18:25:00 Omg that was disgusting. Pence is literally crawling up Trump's ass. reageer retweet

twitter:

tatrbell twitterde op woensdag 20-12-2017 om 18:31:29 My god man have some self respect!!! reageer retweet

quote:

Drug overdose deaths hit an all-time high in 2015. Then 2016 came along.

It’s official: In 2016, more Americans died of drug overdoses than any other year on record — the latest harrowing development in America’s opioid epidemic.

The latest figures come from a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The agency has been releasing preliminary figures for overdose deaths throughout the year, but this new report provides a final, official count for 2016.

Last year, more than 63,600 people died of drug overdoses, up from more than 52,400 in 2015. About two-thirds of overdose deaths — more than 42,200 — were linked to opioids. (That may be an underestimate; one study found that opioid overdose deaths, although not overall overdose deaths, are likely undercounted.) And for the first time, the deadliest opioid was not conventional painkillers or heroin — but non-methadone synthetic opioids like fentanyl, which were linked to more than 19,400 overdose deaths in 2016.

SPOILER

Drug overdose deaths in America



In comparison, more than 58,000 US soldiers died in the entire Vietnam War, nearly 55,000 Americans died of car crashes at the peak of such deaths in 1972, more than 43,000 died due to HIV/AIDS during that epidemic's peak in 1995, and nearly 40,000 died of guns during the peak of firearm deaths in 1993. Drug overdoses in 2016 killed more people than any of those.

Another CDC report released on Thursday found that life expectancy in the US dropped for the second year in a row — by 0.1 years to 78.6 — in part due to a rise in unintentional injuries, such as overdoses.

The CDC’s preliminary data for 2017 only goes through May. But based on the very early numbers, it looks like 2017 may be even worse.

The numbers show the evolution of the opioid epidemic.

The opioid crisis began in the 1990s, when doctors became increasingly aware of the burdens of chronic pain. Pharmaceutical companies saw an opportunity, and pushed doctors — with misleading marketing about the safety and efficacy of the drugs — to prescribe opioids to treat all sorts of pain.

Doctors, many exhausted by dealing with difficult-to-treat patients with chronic pain, complied — in some states, writing enough prescriptions to fill a bottle of pills for each resident. The drugs proliferated, landing in the hands of not just patients but also teens rummaging through their parents’ medicine cabinets, other family members, friends of patients, and the black market.

In comparison, more than 58,000 US soldiers died in the entire Vietnam War, nearly 55,000 Americans died of car crashes at the peak of such deaths in 1972, more than 43,000 died due to HIV/AIDS during that epidemic's peak in 1995, and nearly 40,000 died of guns during the peak of firearm deaths in 1993. Drug overdoses in 2016 killed more people than any of those.

Another CDC report released on Thursday found that life expectancy in the US dropped for the second year in a row — by 0.1 years to 78.6 — in part due to a rise in unintentional injuries, such as overdoses.

The CDC’s preliminary data for 2017 only goes through May. But based on the very early numbers, it looks like 2017 may be even worse.

The numbers show the evolution of the opioid epidemic.

The opioid crisis began in the 1990s, when doctors became increasingly aware of the burdens of chronic pain. Pharmaceutical companies saw an opportunity, and pushed doctors — with misleading marketing about the safety and efficacy of the drugs — to prescribe opioids to treat all sorts of pain.

Doctors, many exhausted by dealing with difficult-to-treat patients with chronic pain, complied — in some states, writing enough prescriptions to fill a bottle of pills for each resident. The drugs proliferated, landing in the hands of not just patients but also teens rummaging through their parents’ medicine cabinets, other family members, friends of patients, and the black market.

Eventually, some painkiller users moved on to other opioids, like heroin or fentanyl and its analogs. Not all painkiller users went this way, and not all opioid users started with painkillers.

But statistics suggest many did: A 2014 study in JAMA Psychiatry found 75 percent of heroin users in treatment started with painkillers, and a 2015 analysis by the CDC found people who are addicted to painkillers are 40 times more likely to be addicted to heroin. (Although a more recent study found that while a majority of people in treatment for opioid use disorder in 2015 started with painkillers, an increasing amount started with heroin compared to the decade before.)

The issue has really turned into two simultaneous crises — which Keith Humphreys, a Stanford University drug policy expert, has described as the dual problems of “stock” and “flow.”

On one hand, you have the current group of opioid users who are addicted; the people in this population need treatment or they will simply find other, potentially deadlier opioids to use if they lose access to prescribed painkillers. On the other hand, you have to stop new generations of potential drug users from accessing and misusing opioids.

Addressing these crises will, experts say, require tens of billions of federal dollars. As I previously explained, we have a pretty good idea of what those resources should go to: They could be used to boost access to treatment (particularly the highly effective medication-assisted treatment), pull back lax access to opioid painkillers while keeping them accessible to patients who truly need them, and adopt harm reduction policies that mitigate the damage caused by opioids and other drugs.

Some states are attempting to seriously confront this crisis. Vermont, for example, has built a “hub and spoke” system that treats addiction as a public health issue and integrates treatment into the rest of health care. Possibly as a result, Vermont had the lowest overdose death rate in 2016 out of any state in New England. (For more on Vermont, check out my in-depth breakdown of the state’s system.)



Addressing all of this, however, will take an acknowledgment of the crisis and serious resources to do something about it. Despite some funding here and there, the level of commitment that experts say is required has not come from the federal government — and so the crisis keeps getting worse and worse.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 15:39 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
The latest data makes it official: 2016 was by far America’s worst year for drug overdose deaths

[..]

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:48 schreef Chewie het volgende:

[..]

Jij hebt je duidelijk zeer goed verdiept in dit belastingplan dus dan kun je ons ook vast haarfijn voorrekenen wat de voordelen zullen zijn voor de gemiddelde Amerikaan?

Of wil je liever als een simplist door blijven trollen?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 15:39 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
The latest data makes it official: 2016 was by far America’s worst year for drug overdose deaths

[..]

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 18:25 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Ik dacht dat Trump er wat tegen ging doen.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 18:30 schreef Abschirmdienst het volgende:

[..]

Heeft 'ie ook gedaan, meer repressie en minder behandeling. Z'n strategie is om zo snel mogelijk alle gebruikers te laten overdoseren, dan blijft er niemand meer over immers.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 18:32 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Dat is te begrijpen als je het negervraagstuk wil oplossen, maar hier gaat het vooral over blanken die sterven. Die hebben toch wel recht van bestaan?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 18:32 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Dat is te begrijpen als je het negervraagstuk wil oplossen, maar hier gaat het vooral over blanken die sterven. Die hebben toch wel recht van bestaan?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 19:23 schreef Szura het volgende:
Slappe theedoek Paul Ryan, je weet wel die man die zogenaamd zo lang twijfelde, kroop ook weer in de reet van Trump. Wat een walgelijke gladde aal is dat toch.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 19:35 schreef Nintex het volgende:
Trump jaar 1

- Economie groeit als kool
- ISIS verslagen
- Belastingen gaan omlaag
- 50% minder(!) illegale migratie
- Soft coup tegen de extremisten in Saudi Arabie

Linkse huillies en media machine: "boehoehoehoehoe Trump is zo een nare man, onze linkse hobbies moeten we zelf voor gaan betalen "

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 19:35 schreef Nintex het volgende:
Trump jaar 1

- Economie groeit als kool door maatregelen van Obama
- ISIS verslagen door Rusland en Iran
- Belastingen gaan omlaag voor de allerrijksten
- 50% minder(!) illegale migratie, niemand wil er immers nog heen
- Soft coup tegen de extremisten in Saudi Arabie. Islamitische Putin geïnstalleerd.

Linkse huillies en media machine: "boehoehoehoehoe Trump is zo een nare man, onze linkse hobbies moeten we zelf voor gaan betalen "

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 19:56 schreef BlackLining het volgende:

[..]

Fixed.

Linkse hobbies Welke dan, zoal?

quote:

Solyndra Scandal
Key coverage of the investigation into Solyndra, the Silicon Valley startup that collapsed, leaving taxpayers liable for $535 million in federal guarantees .

quote:

In its determination to secure a nuclear deal with Iran, the Obama administration derailed an ambitious law enforcement campaign targeting drug trafficking by the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah, even as it was funneling cocaine into the United States, according to a POLITICO investigation.

quote:

The House Oversight Committee let loose with a scathing assessment of Eric Holder in a recent report, accusing the Barack Obama-era attorney general of outright misleading Congress on its investigation of the “Fast and Furious” gun-running scandal.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 19:35 schreef Nintex het volgende:
Trump jaar 1

- Economie groeit als kool
- ISIS verslagen
- Belastingen gaan omlaag
- 50% minder(!) illegale migratie
- Soft coup tegen de extremisten in Saudi Arabie

Linkse huillies en media machine: "boehoehoehoehoe Trump is zo een nare man, onze linkse hobbies moeten we zelf voor gaan betalen "

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 20:04 schreef AnneX het volgende:

[..]

Het gekke is, dat ik al die tijd en in de hele reeks jouw opmerkingen als ‘sarcastische samenvatting’ lees...

quote:

Op vrijdag 17 november 2017 17:57 schreef Tchock het volgende:

[..]

Ik interpreteer die posts van Nintex meestal als sarcastisch.

twitter:

benrileysmith twitterde op woensdag 20-12-2017 om 22:34:22 EXC: US making plans for 'bloody nose’ military attack on North Korea. https://t.co/oFjNBu0vrD reageer retweet

twitter:

W7VOA twitterde op woensdag 20-12-2017 om 22:41:00 "One option is destroying a launch site before it is used by the regime for a new missile test. Stockpiles of weapo... https://t.co/Je6uVU7RPG reageer retweet

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 20:04 schreef AnneX het volgende:

[..]

Het gekke is, dat ik al die tijd en in de hele reeks jouw opmerkingen als ‘sarcastische samenvatting’ lees...

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 20:27 schreef Nintex het volgende:

twitter:

benrileysmith twitterde op woensdag 20-12-2017 om 22:34:22 EXC: US making plans for 'bloody nose’ military attack on North Korea. https://t.co/oFjNBu0vrD reageer retweet

twitter:

W7VOA twitterde op woensdag 20-12-2017 om 22:41:00 "One option is destroying a launch site before it is used by the regime for a new missile test. Stockpiles of weapo... https://t.co/Je6uVU7RPG reageer retweet

Prepare for complete and total victory

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 20:44 schreef truthortruth het volgende:

[..]

Wat is een bloody nose attack? Zoiets als de boel bombarderen en dan doen alsof je neus bloed?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 20:59 schreef Ulx het volgende:
Geen idee. Trump kreeg geen steun van ZK en Japan vandaag, dus waarschijnlijk boeit het hem weinig of er veel doden bij zo'n actie vallen.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 12:48 schreef Chewie het volgende:

[..]

Jij hebt je duidelijk zeer goed verdiept in dit belastingplan dus dan kun je ons ook vast haarfijn voorrekenen wat de voordelen zullen zijn voor de gemiddelde Amerikaan?

Of wil je liever als een simplist door blijven trollen?

quote:

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (NEA), the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (Public Law 114-328) (the “Act”), section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)) (INA), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,

I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, find that the prevalence and severity of human rights abuse and corruption that have their source, in whole or in substantial part, outside the United States, such as those committed or directed by persons listed in the Annex to this order, have reached such scope and gravity that they threaten the stability of international political and economic systems. Human rights abuse and corruption undermine the values that form an essential foundation of stable, secure, and functioning societies; have devastating impacts on individuals; weaken democratic institutions; degrade the rule of law; perpetuate violent conflicts; facilitate the activities of dangerous persons; and undermine economic markets. The United States seeks to impose tangible and significant consequences on those who commit serious human rights abuse or engage in corruption, as well as to protect the financial system of the United States from abuse by these same persons.

I therefore determine that serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States, and I hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat.

twitter:

RandPaul twitterde op donderdag 21-12-2017 om 15:33:50 Time to investigate high ranking Obama government officials who might have colluded to prevent the election of… https://t.co/sPyC6odohF reageer retweet

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 21:49 schreef Refragmental het volgende:
Zojuist een nieuwe executive order getekend

https://www.whitehouse.go(...)ts-abuse-corruption/

[..]

National Emergency!!!

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 21:58 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

National Emergency lijkt me wat bizar om op te treden tegen corruptie en mensenrechtenschendingen buiten eigen grenzen. Bovendien wat potsierlijk van een dergelijk corrupte regering van hemzelf, dus vraag me af in wat voor handelingen dat dan uitmondt en wat hier nu eigenlijk bedoeld wordt.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 21:58 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

National Emergency lijkt me wat bizar om op te treden tegen corruptie en mensenrechtenschendingen buiten eigen grenzen. Bovendien wat potsierlijk van een dergelijk corrupte regering van hemzelf, dus vraag me af in wat voor handelingen dat dan uitmondt en wat hier nu eigenlijk bedoeld wordt.

quote:

Presidents have continued to use their emergency authority subject to the provisions of the act, with 32 national emergencies declared between 1976 and 2001.[7] Most of these were for the purpose of restricting trade with certain foreign entities under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. 1701-1707).

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:08 schreef Ulx het volgende:
Oh. Hij gaat landen boycotten die tegen de VS stemden vandaag. Maar alleen de kleintjes aan het taalgebruik te zien. Waar al weinig aan verdiend wordt.

Ik betwijfel of een land als Rusland, oh, wacht even....

quote:

Executive Order Blocking the Property of Persons Involved in Serious Human Rights Abuse or Corruption

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:02 schreef Nintex het volgende:

[..]

Bron?

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:14 schreef Wombcat het volgende:
Was overigens handig als Refragmental ook de titel had gekopieerd, want die zegt meer over de doelstelling:

[..]

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:14 schreef Refragmental het volgende:
Met deze EO kan hij blijkbaar de assets bevriezen van personen gelinked aan mensensmokkel e.d. En wanneer van een persoon de assets zijn bevroren, en deze krijgt toch nog financiele hulp van anderen, kan van deze anderen ook weer de assets worden bevroren.

Ik kan niet zeggen dat ik dit een slechte EO vind.
Alles om mensensmokkel en erger tegen te gaan

quote:

US sanctions top Myanmar general, others under Magnitsky Act

The Trump administration on Thursday announced sanctions against a Myanmar general accused of ethnic cleansing, the first such move against the Southeast Asian nation since it began to democratize during the Obama administration.

Maung Maung Soe is a general who oversaw the military’s operations against the Rohingya in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, a violence campaign Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has declared an example of ethnic cleansing.

Twelve other individuals were also targeted by the sanctions over alleged human rights abuses and corruption.

“The Department is committed to protecting and promoting human rights and combatting corruption with all of the tools at our disposal,” Tillerson said Thursday of the new sanctions. “Today’s actions advance our values and promote the security of the United States, our allies, and our partners.”

The penalties will freeze the assets of those targeted and restrict their access to the global financial system, a senior administration official said.

Trump on Thursday signed an executive order announcing the new sanction efforts, which also target another 39 entities and individuals under the Global Magnitsky Act. In signing the order, Trump also declared "a national emergency" in regards to global corruption and human rights abuses.

The new sanctions are the first to be imposed since the expansion of the act under the Obama administration in 2016.

“We as an interagency over the last year have taken an expansive view of the implementation of the Global Magnitsky Act,” said one senior administration official.

Other individuals sanctioned include the former head of an elite police force in Ukraine, Sergey Kusiuk, and the former president of Gambia, Yahya Jammeh. Artem Chayka, whose father is Russia’s prosecutor general, is also on the list, as is a top financial adviser to the president of South Sudan.

“Treasury is freezing their assets and publicly denouncing the egregious acts they’ve committed, sending a message that there is a steep price to pay for their misdeeds,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said of the individuals targeted.

“At the direction of President Trump, Treasury and our interagency partners will continue to take decisive and impactful actions to hold accountable those who abuse human rights, perpetrate corruption, and undermine American ideals.”

quote:

Washington – Today, the Trump Administration launched a new sanctions regime targeting human rights abusers and corrupt actors around the world. Building on the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act passed by Congress last year, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order (Order) today declaring a national emergency with respect to serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world and providing for the imposition of sanctions on actors engaged in these malign activities. In an Annex to the Order, the President imposed sanctions on 13 serious human rights abusers and corrupt actors. In addition, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), acting on behalf of the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Attorney General, imposed sanctions on an additional 39 affiliated individuals and entities under the newly-issued Order.

“Today, the United States is taking a strong stand against human rights abuse and corruption globally by shutting these bad actors out of the U.S. financial system. Treasury is freezing their assets and publicly denouncing the egregious acts they’ve committed, sending a message that there is a steep price to pay for their misdeeds,” said Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin. “At the direction of President Trump, Treasury and our interagency partners will continue to take decisive and impactful actions to hold accountable those who abuse human rights, perpetrate corruption, and undermine American ideals.”

As a result of today’s actions, all of the assets within U.S. jurisdiction of the individuals and entities included in the Annex to the Order or designated by OFAC are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them. Further details on these designations are included below.

SPOILER

Yahya Jammeh

Yahya Jammeh (Jammeh), the former President of The Gambia who came to power in 1994 and stepped down in 2017, has a long history of engaging in serious human rights abuses and corruption. Jammeh created a terror and assassination squad called the Junglers that answered directly to him. Jammeh used the Junglers to threaten, terrorize, interrogate, and kill individuals whom Jammeh assessed to be threats. During Jammeh’s tenure, he ordered the Junglers to kill a local religious leader, journalists, members of the political opposition, and former members of the government, among others. Jammeh used the Gambia’s National Intelligence Agency (NIA) as a repressive tool of the regime – torturing political opponents and journalists. Throughout his presidency, Jammeh routinely ordered the abuse and murder of those he suspected of undermining his authority.

During his tenure, Jammeh used a number of corrupt schemes to plunder The Gambia’s state coffers or otherwise siphon off state funds for his personal gain. Ongoing investigations continue to reveal Jammeh’s large-scale theft from state coffers prior to his departure. According to The Gambia’s Justice Ministry, Jammeh personally, or through others acting under his instructions, directed the unlawful withdrawal of at least $50 million of state funds. The Gambian Government has since taken action to freeze Jammeh’s assets within The Gambia.

In a related action, OFAC designated Africada Airways, Kanilai Group International, Kanilai Worni Family Farms Ltd, Royal Africa Capital Holding Ltd, Africada Financial Service & Bureau de Change Ltd, Africada Micro-Finance Ltd, Africada Insurance Company, Kora Media Corporation Ltd, Atlantic Pelican Company Ltd, Palm Grove Africa Dev’t Corp. Ltd, Patriot Insurance Brokers Co. Ltd, and Royal Africa Securities Brokerage Co Ltd.

Roberto Jose Rivas Reyes

As President of Nicaragua’s Supreme Electoral Council, drawing a reported government salary of $60,000 per year, Roberto Jose Rivas Reyes (Rivas) has been accused in the press of amassing sizeable personal wealth, including multiple properties, private jets, luxury vehicles, and a yacht. Rivas has been described by a Nicaraguan Comptroller General as “above the law,” with investigations into his corruption having been blocked by Nicaraguan government officials. He has also perpetrated electoral fraud undermining Nicaragua’s electoral institutions.

Dan Gertler

Dan Gertler (Gertler) is an international businessman and billionaire who has amassed his fortune through hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of opaque and corrupt mining and oil deals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Gertler has used his close friendship with DRC President Joseph Kabila to act as a middleman for mining asset sales in the DRC, requiring some multinational companies to go through Gertler to do business with the Congolese state. As a result, between 2010 and 2012 alone, the DRC reportedly lost over $1.36 billion in revenues from the underpricing of mining assets that were sold to offshore companies linked to Gertler. The failure of the DRC to publish the full details of one of the sales prompted the International Monetary Fund to halt loans to the DRC totaling $225 million. In 2013, Gertler sold to the DRC government for $150 million the rights to an oil block that Gertler purchased from the government for just $500,000, a loss of $149.5 million in potential revenue. Gertler has acted for or on behalf of Kabila, helping Kabila organize offshore leasing companies.

In a related action, OFAC designated Pieter Albert Deboutte, Fleurette Properties Limited, Fleurette Holdings Netherlands B.V., Gertler Family Foundation, Oil of DR Congo SPRL, Jarvis Congo SARL, International Diamond Industries, D.G.D. Investments Ltd., D.G.I. Israel Ltd, Proglan Capital Ltd, Emaxon Finance International Inc., Africa Horizons Investment Limited, Caprikat Limited, Foxwhelp Limited, Caprikat and Foxwhelp SARL, Lora Enterprises Limited, Zuppa Holdings Limited, Orama Properties Ltd, DGI Mining Ltd, and Rozaro Development Limited.

Slobodan Tesic

Slobodan Tesic (Tesic) is among the biggest dealers of arms and munitions in the Balkans; he spent nearly a decade on the United Nations (UN) Travel Ban List for violating UN sanctions against arms exports to Liberia. In order to secure arms contracts with various countries, Tesic would directly or indirectly provide bribes and financial assistance to officials. Tesic also took potential clients on high-value vacations, paid for their children’s education at western schools or universities, and used large bribes to secure contracts. Tesic owns or controls two Serbian companies, Partizan Tech and Technoglobal Systems DOO Beograd, and two Cyprus-based companies, Grawit Limited and Charso Limited. Tesic negotiates the sale of weapons via Charso Limited and used Grawit Limited as a mechanism to fund politicians.

In a related action, OFAC designated Preduzece Za Trgovinu Na Veliko I Malo Partizan Tech DOO Beograd-Savski Venac (“Partizan Tech”), Charso Limited, Grawit Limited, and Technoglobal Systems DOO Beograd.

Maung Maung Soe

In his former role as chief of the Burmese Army’s Western command, Maung Maung Soe oversaw the military operation in Burma’s Rakhine State responsible for widespread human rights abuse against Rohingya civilians in response to attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army. The Secretary of State determined on November 22 that the situation in northern Rakhine state in Burma constituted ethnic cleansing. The United States Government examined credible evidence of Maung Maung Soe’s activities, including allegations against Burmese security forces of extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, and arbitrary arrest as well as the widespread burning of villages. Security operations have led to hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees fleeing across Burma’s border with Bangladesh. In August 2017, witnesses reportedly described mass killings and arson attacks by the Burmese Army and Burmese Border Guard Police, both then under Maung Maung Soe’s command in northern Rakhine State. In August 2017, soldiers described as being from the Western Command allegedly entered a village and reportedly separated the inhabitants by gender. According to witnesses, soldiers opened fire on the men and older boys and committed multiple acts of rape. Many of the women and younger children were reportedly also shot. Other witnesses described soldiers setting huts on fire with villagers inside.

Benjamin Bol Mel

Benjamin Bol Mel (Bol Mel) is the President of ABMC Thai-South Sudan Construction Company Limited (ABMC), and has served as the Chairman of the South Sudan Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture. Bol Mel has also served as South Sudanese President Salva Kiir’s principal financial advisor, has been Kiir’s private secretary, and was perceived within the government as being close to Kiir and the local business community. Several officials were linked to ABMC in spite of a constitutional prohibition on top government officials transacting commercial business or earning income from outside the government.

Bol Mel oversees ABMC, which has been awarded contracts worth tens of millions of dollars by the Government of South Sudan. ABMC allegedly received preferential treatment from high-level officials, and the Government of South Sudan did not hold a competitive process for selecting ABMC to do roadwork on several roads in Juba and throughout South Sudan. Although this roadwork had been completed only a few years before, the government budgeted tens of millions of dollars more for maintenance of the same roads.

In a related action, OFAC designated ABMC Thai-South Sudan Construction Company Limited and Home and Away LTD.

Mukhtar Hamid Shah

Shah is a Pakistani surgeon specializing in kidney transplants who Pakistani police believe to be involved in kidnapping, wrongful confinement, and the removal of and trafficking in human organs. As an owner of the Kidney Centre in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Shah was involved in the kidnapping and detention of, and removal of kidneys from, Pakistani laborers. Shah was arrested by Pakistani authorities in connection with an October 2016 incident in which 24 individuals from Punjab were found to be held against their will. Impoverished and illiterate Pakistanis from the countryside were reportedly lured to Rawalpindi with the promise of a job, and imprisoned for weeks. Doctors from the Kidney Centre were allegedly planning to steal their kidneys in order to sell them for a large profit. Police state that one of the accused arrested in connection with the events estimated that more than 400 people were imprisoned in the apartment at various times.

Gulnara Karimova

Gulnara Karimova (Karimova), daughter of former Uzbekistan leader Islam Karimov, headed a powerful organized crime syndicate that leveraged state actors to expropriate businesses, monopolize markets, solicit bribes, and administer extortion rackets. In July 2017, the Uzbek Prosecutor General’s Office charged Karimova with directly abetting the criminal activities of an organized crime group whose assets were worth over $1.3 billion. Karimova was also charged with hiding foreign currency through various means, including the receipt of payoffs in the accounts of offshore companies controlled by an organized criminal group, the illegal sale of radio frequencies and land parcels, siphoning off state funds through fraudulent dividend payments and stock sales, the illegal removal of cash, the non-collection of currency earnings, and the import of goods at inflated prices. Karimova was also found guilty of embezzlement of state funds, theft, tax evasion, and concealment of documents. Karimova laundered the proceeds of corruption back to her own accounts through a complex network of subsidiary companies and segregated portfolio funds. Karimova’s targeting of successful businesses to maximize her gains and enrich herself in some cases destroyed Uzbek competitors. Due in part to Karimova’s corrupt activities in the telecom sector alone, Uzbeks paid some of the highest rates in the world for cellular service.

Angel Rondon Rijo

Angel Rondon Rijo (Rondon) is a politically connected businessman and lobbyist in the Dominican Republic who funneled money from Odebrecht, a Brazilian construction company, to Dominican officials, who in turn awarded Odebrecht projects to build highways, dams, and other projects. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Odebrecht is a Brazil-based global construction conglomerate that has pled guilty to charges of conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and agreed to a criminal fine of $4.5 billion. In 2017, Rondon was arrested by Dominican authorities and charged with corruption for the bribes paid by Odebrecht.

Artem Chayka

Artem Chayka (Chayka) is the son of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation and has leveraged his father’s position and ability to award his subordinates to unfairly win state-owned assets and contracts and put pressure on business competitors. In 2014, reconstruction of a highway began, and Chayka’s competitor for supplying materials to the project suddenly fell under prosecutorial scrutiny. An anonymous complaint letter with a fake name initiated a government investigation against the competitor. Government inspectors did not produce any documents confirming the legality of the inspections, and did not inform subjects of the investigation of their rights. Traffic police were deployed along the route to the competitor, weight control stations were suddenly dispatched, and trees were dug up and left to block entrances. The competitor was forced to shut down, leaving Chayka in a position to non-competitively work on the highway project. Also in 2014, Chayka bid on a state-owned stone and gravel company, and was awarded the contract. His competitor contested the results and filed a lawsuit. Prosecutors thereafter raided his home. After Chayka’s competitor withdrew the lawsuit, prosecutors dropped all charges.

Gao Yan

Gao Yan (Gao) was the Beijing Public Security Bureau Chaoyang Branch director. During Gao’s tenure, human rights activist Cao Shunli was detained at Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau Chaoyang Branch where, in March 2014, Cao fell into a coma and died from organ failure, her body showing signs of emaciation and neglect. Cao had been arrested after attempting to board a flight to attend human rights training in Geneva, Switzerland. She was refused visitation by her lawyer, and was refused medical treatment while she suffered from tuberculosis.

Sergey Kusiuk

Sergey Kusiuk (Kusiuk) was commander of an elite Ukrainian police unit, the Berkut. Ukraine’s Special Investigations Department investigating crimes against activists identified Kusiuk as a leader of an attack on peaceful protesters on November 30, 2013, while in charge of 290 Berkut officers, many of whom took part in the beating of activists. Kusiuk has been named by the Ukrainian General Prosecutor’s Office as an individual who took part in the killings of activists on Kyiv’s Independence Square in February 2014. Kusiuk ordered the destruction of documentation related to the events, and has fled Ukraine and is now in hiding in Moscow, Russia, where he was identified dispersing protesters as part of a Russian riot police unit in June 2017.

Julio Antonio Juarez Ramirez

Julio Antonio Juarez Ramirez (Juarez) is a Guatemalan Congressman accused of ordering an attack in which two journalists were killed and another injured. Guatemalan prosecutors and a UN-sponsored commission investigating corruption in Guatemala allege that Juarez hired hit men to kill Prensa Libre correspondent Danilo Efrain Zapan Lopez, whose reporting had hurt Juarez’s plan to run for reelection. Fellow journalist Federico Benjamin Salazar of Radio Nuevo Mundo was also killed in the attack and is considered a collateral victim. Another journalist was wounded in the attack.

Yankuba Badjie

Yankuba Badjie (Badjie) was appointed as the Director General of The Gambia’s NIA in December 2013 and is alleged to have presided over abuses throughout his tenure. During Badjie’s tenure as Director General, abuses were prevalent and routine within the NIA, consisting of physical trauma and other mistreatment. In April 2016, Badjie oversaw the detention and murder of Solo Sandeng, a member of the political opposition. In February 2017, Badjie was charged along with eight subordinates with Sandeng’s murder. Prior to becoming Director General, Badjie served as the NIA Deputy Director General for Operations. Prior to becoming a member of the NIA’s senior leadership, Badjie led a paramilitary group known as the Junglers to the NIA’s headquarters to beat a prisoner for approximately three hours, leaving the prisoner unconscious and with broken hands. The following day, Badjie and the Junglers returned to beat the prisoner again, leaving him on the verge of death.

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:24 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Als het klopt dat dit is om de gestelde zaken te bestrijden en dat dan ook gebeurt zonder aanziens des persoons/lands zou het denk ik de eerste keer zijn dat ik het eens ben met een concrete actie van deze regering?

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 21:56 schreef Nintex het volgende:

twitter:

RandPaul twitterde op donderdag 21-12-2017 om 15:33:50 Time to investigate high ranking Obama government officials who might have colluded to prevent the election of… https://t.co/sPyC6odohF reageer retweet

Drain the Swamp.

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:44 schreef MrRatio het volgende:
Nog meer profiteurs van de tax cuts:

Wells Fargo, the San Francisco bank that has been hurt by a scandal involving the opening of 3.5 million unauthorized client accounts, also said it would boost its minimum wage to $15 per hour, an 11% increase from its current hourly rate of $13.50, once the law was passed. The pay raise will go into effect in March 2018, the company said.

Aerospace giant Boeing said it would move forward with $300 million in investments as a result of the new tax law, including $100 million in employee training and education and $100 million to enhance Boeing facilities as part of its "workforce of the future" initiative.

"Each of these investments benefits Boeing's most important strength – our employees – and reflects the real-time impact and economic benefit of the reforms," Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg, said in a statement.

Media and cable company Comcast said it would award special $1,000 bonuses to more than 100,000 eligible employees. The company, which also owns NBCUniversal, said it also expects to spend more than $50 billion over the next five years investing in infrastructure to improve and extend broadband plant and capacity, and its television, film and theme park offerings.

"With these investments, we expect to add thousands of new direct and indirect jobs," the company said in a media release.

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 23:34 schreef thesiren.nl het volgende:

[..]

En over een paar maanden krijg je te horen dat al deze extratjes extra aftrekbaar zijn waardoor ze nog minder hoeven te betalen. Dit gaat echt zo een enorm gat in de begroting slaan dat ze met de volgende keer als het schuld plafond moet worden verhoogt de democraten nu wel dwars gaan liggen.

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:14 schreef Refragmental het volgende:
Met deze EO kan hij blijkbaar de assets bevriezen van personen gelinked aan mensensmokkel e.d. En wanneer van een persoon de assets zijn bevroren, en deze krijgt toch nog financiele hulp van anderen, kan van deze anderen ook weer de assets worden bevroren.

Ik kan niet zeggen dat ik dit een slechte EO vind.
Alles om mensensmokkel en erger tegen te gaan

quote:

Dan Gertler

Dan Gertler (Gertler) is an international businessman and billionaire who has amassed his fortune through hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of opaque and corrupt mining and oil deals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Gertler has used his close friendship with DRC President Joseph Kabila to act as a middleman for mining asset sales in the DRC, requiring some multinational companies to go through Gertler to do business with the Congolese state. As a result, between 2010 and 2012 alone, the DRC reportedly lost over $1.36 billion in revenues from the underpricing of mining assets that were sold to offshore companies linked to Gertler. The failure of the DRC to publish the full details of one of the sales prompted the International Monetary Fund to halt loans to the DRC totaling $225 million. In 2013, Gertler sold to the DRC government for $150 million the rights to an oil block that Gertler purchased from the government for just $500,000, a loss of $149.5 million in potential revenue. Gertler has acted for or on behalf of Kabila, helping Kabila organize offshore leasing companies.

In a related action, OFAC designated Pieter Albert Deboutte, Fleurette Properties Limited, Fleurette Holdings Netherlands B.V., Gertler Family Foundation, Oil of DR Congo SPRL, Jarvis Congo SARL, International Diamond Industries, D.G.D. Investments Ltd., D.G.I. Israel Ltd, Proglan Capital Ltd, Emaxon Finance International Inc., Africa Horizons Investment Limited, Caprikat Limited, Foxwhelp Limited, Caprikat and Foxwhelp SARL, Lora Enterprises Limited, Zuppa Holdings Limited, Orama Properties Ltd, DGI Mining Ltd, and Rozaro Development Limited.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 00:25 schreef dellipder het volgende:


Verder ook heel interessant dat de AG vandaag opdracht heeft gegeven tot heropening/opnieuw behandelen van de Uranium One zaak. https://www.nbcnews.com/n(...)ium-one-deal-n831436

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 23:41 schreef thesiren.nl het volgende:
Als China stopt met kopen van Amerikaanse obligaties dan is het gauw afgelopen met het laten oplopen van de staatschuld. Het is niet voor niks dat de Fed de rente verhoogt, het risico word steeds groter op de leningen.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 05:09 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Dan is China zijn geld ook kwijt.

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:35 schreef monkyyy het volgende:

[..]

Er gaan zelfs geruchten dat Obama compagne heeft gevoerd voor Clinton.

HUGE IF TRUE, STAY TUNED.

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Op donderdag 21 december 2017 22:14 schreef Refragmental het volgende:
Met deze EO kan hij blijkbaar de assets bevriezen van personen gelinked aan mensensmokkel e.d. En wanneer van een persoon de assets zijn bevroren, en deze krijgt toch nog financiele hulp van anderen, kan van deze anderen ook weer de assets worden bevroren.

Ik kan niet zeggen dat ik dit een slechte EO vind.
Alles om mensensmokkel en erger tegen te gaan

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 08:46 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Dus over het belastingplan heb je geen mening, maar je komt hier wel even juichen omdat Trump een lullige EO heeft getekend?

Sorry hoor, maar dit is dus illustratief voor de Trumpisten in deze reeks (en ja, daar ben jij er gewoon een van). Het blijft bij gejuich en discussies over zaken die ertoe doen worden gemeden.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:00 schreef klappernootopreis het volgende:

[..]

Niet alleen Trumpisten Juichen: De Republikeinen graaien er op het moment driftig op los, en niemand die ze hier voor op hun vingers tikken. https://www.huffingtonpos(...)b7f7e4b06d1621b2394b.

Let op mijn woorden: Dit soort "kerstcadeautjes" moeten worden terugbetaald aan Trump in de vorm van een door het congres gesteunde Saturday Night Massacre, waar Robert Mueller en Rod Rosenstein zonder dat Trump er direct voor aansprakelijk kan worden gemaakt, effectief geloosd kunnen worden. De republikeinen zijn hier al mee bezig met een nogal logge poging om Mueller in discrediet te brengen.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:08 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Denk eerlijk gezegd dat het einde sowieso in zicht is voor de GOP. Migranten/minderheden drukken een steeds grotere stempel op de verkiezingen. En slechts een klein deel daarvan stemt Republikeins. Het zal voor de partij in de toekomst steeds moeilijker worden om verkiezingen te winnen. Dus is het inderdaad logisch dat ze nog een keer de winkel leegroven.

Je zou er kwaad van worden. Godzijdank woon ik niet in dat verschrikkelijke land.

En voor de Trumpisten in deze reeks: nee, ik ben niet tegen belastingverlaging, integendeel. Maar laat die dan vooral ten goede komen aan de middenklasse in plaats van de superrijken. Dat is ook goed voor de economie, omdat middeninkomens hun extra inkomsten niet oppotten maar uitgeven.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:08 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Denk eerlijk gezegd dat het einde sowieso in zicht is voor de GOP. Migranten/minderheden drukken een steeds grotere stempel op de verkiezingen. En slechts een klein deel daarvan stemt Republikeins. Het zal voor de partij in de toekomst steeds moeilijker worden om verkiezingen te winnen. Dus is het inderdaad logisch dat ze nog een keer de winkel leegroven.

Je zou er kwaad van worden. Godzijdank woon ik niet in dat verschrikkelijke land.

En voor de Trumpisten in deze reeks: nee, ik ben niet tegen belastingverlaging, integendeel. Maar laat die dan vooral ten goede komen aan de middenklasse in plaats van de superrijken. Dat is ook goed voor de economie, omdat middeninkomens hun extra inkomsten niet oppotten maar uitgeven.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:13 schreef klappernootopreis het volgende:

[..]

Het is ook een onzalig plan om met een belastingplan het bedrijfsleven te pushen om personeel aan te nemen omdat ze minder belasting hoeven te betalen. Personeel neem je aan als je er werk voor hebt, niet als je er geld voor hebt. Dat weet elke manager.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:08 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Denk eerlijk gezegd dat het einde sowieso in zicht is voor de GOP. Migranten/minderheden drukken een steeds grotere stempel op de verkiezingen. En slechts een klein deel daarvan stemt Republikeins. Het zal voor de partij in de toekomst steeds moeilijker worden om verkiezingen te winnen. Dus is het inderdaad logisch dat ze nog een keer de winkel leegroven.

Je zou er kwaad van worden. Godzijdank woon ik niet in dat verschrikkelijke land.

En voor de Trumpisten in deze reeks: nee, ik ben niet tegen belastingverlaging, integendeel. Maar laat die dan vooral ten goede komen aan de middenklasse in plaats van de superrijken. Dat is ook goed voor de economie, omdat middeninkomens hun extra inkomsten niet oppotten maar uitgeven.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:18 schreef Beatific het volgende:
https://nos.nl/l/2208809

Wat een afgang...

101Barz Videoclipz - New Wave - No Go Zone (Prod. Jack $hirak)

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:19 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:

[..]

Het einde van de Republikeinse Partij wordt al zo ongeveer sinds de oprichting van de Republikeinse Partij voorspeld. Ja, ze hebben de demografische ontwikkelingen tegen zich. Maar tegelijkertijd ligt de participatie in die groepen veel lager dan die onder de traditionele Republikeinse kiezers. En veel mensen schuiven op naar rechts naarmate ze ouder worden. Over 20 jaar zal hun invloed inderdaad minder zijn, maar het is wensdenken om te zeggen dat het einde in zicht is.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:22 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Je zit natuurlijk wel met het feit dat met name Hispanics niet bepaald gelijkmatig verdeeld zijn over de VS, al kan dat ook geleidelijk aan nog veranderen. Zijn wel sterk vertegenwoordigd in staten als Arizona en Texas en met name laatstgenoemde zijn nu qua presidentsverkiezingen nog gewoon standaard 36 Republikeinse kiesmannen. Als je als partij de dichtbevolkte staten aan de Ooskust, Texas, Arizona en Californië standaard verliest, dan wordt het erg lastig om de presidentsverkiezingen nog te winnen.
Voor de senaat en het huis ligt dat weer anders. In de senaat ben je juist gebaat bij winst in zoveel mogelijk staten ongeacht het inwonertal en in het huis wordt er ook nogal creatief geschoven met districten waardoor je ook binnen staten ondanks een minderheid van de stemmen nog wel een meerderheid van de afgevaardigden kan veroveren.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 09:45 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:
Waarschijnlijk oud nieuws voor de vaste users in deze reeks, maar vind het toch het vermelden waard.

Trumps dreigementen werken niet: overgrote deel VN verwerpt zijn Jeruzalem-besluit

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 08:46 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Dus over het belastingplan heb je geen mening, maar je komt hier wel even juichen omdat Trump een lullige EO heeft getekend?

Sorry hoor, maar dit is dus illustratief voor de Trumpisten in deze reeks (en ja, daar ben jij er gewoon een van). Het blijft bij gejuich en discussies over zaken die ertoe doen worden gemeden.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:13 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

Het blijft bij janken over het vermeende onrecht dat jou wordt aangedaan en juichen om futiele Trump-'overwinningen'.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:21 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Je moet je Trump obsessie toch echt eens loslaten.
Al was deze EO getekend door de kerstman, boeit niet, het gaat om de EO zelf, en die vind ik goed. Elk initiatief om mensensmokkel tegen te gaan juich ik toe... ongeacht wie het initiatief maakt. Jij lijkt echter niet verder te komen dan "Trump, ugh".

Je roept constant discussies te willen, maar zodra iemand een andere mening heeft kom je niet verder dan wat debiel gescheld en het in hokjes willen stoppen van die persoon. Over inhoud gaat het nauwelijks, zo ook met deze EO, je hebt nog geen woord gezegd over de inhoud, maar weet wel flink te kankeren over mensen die deze EO goed vinden. Kansloos.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:29 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

De EO is niet meer dan een statement. Het is alsof Rutte zegt dat mensensmokkel niet moet kunnen. Sta je dan ook te juichen?

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:34 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Een statement?
Er worden assets bevroren van personen en bedrijven gelinked aan mensensmokkel en het breken van basale mensenrechten.
Er is een lijst uitgebracht van personen en bedrijven waarvan er nu al assets bevroren zijn, en deze lijst kan nog uitgebreid worden per EO. Dit is gelijk al een flinke slag tegen mensensmokkel.
Staat allemaal in de posts die ik vannacht heb gemaakt.

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Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:44 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Oh, gaat hij die sancties tegen Poetin nu eindelijk uitvoeren?

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:47 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Daar is Refregmental niet in geïnteresseerd. Die wil het alleen hebben over de goede dingen die Trump doet.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:44 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Oh, gaat hij die sancties tegen Poetin nu eindelijk uitvoeren?

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:47 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Daar is Refregmental niet in geïnteresseerd. Die wil het alleen hebben over de goede dingen die Trump doet.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:55 schreef klappernootopreis het volgende:

[..]

Als je een winterschilder inhuurt die je huis verft zonder iets aan de houtrot te doen, dan is de waardering voor zijn werk maar van korte duur.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 11:17 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Whataboutism

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 11:23 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Trump zijn belofte om de swap te drainen is ie vooralsnog niet nagekomen.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 12:30 schreef klappernootopreis het volgende:

[..]

Het probleem van Trump is dat hij selectief wil drainen, de blubber moet wegvloeien maar de drollen moeten blijven hangen. Het is ALLES of niets. Zichzelf sparen werkt niet. Trump heeft absoluut geen schone lei.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 11:53 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:
Maar goed, Trump doet voor de verandering iets fatsoenlijks en dat is voor bepaalde lieden blijkbaar reden om te juichen, ondanks dat het nog maar zeer de vraag is of die EO effect sorteert.

Een kinderhand is snel gevuld, zullen we maar zeggen.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:02 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:
En als klap op de vuurpijl beloont de POTUS zichzelf, zijn familie en zijn rijke vrienden met een giga-belastingvoordeel.

En de domme middenklassers die op hem hebben gestemd krijgen een paar kruimels en zijn hem daar nog dankbaar voor ook.

quote:

The Trump Organization won approval on Thursday to build a wall it has sought for more than a year ― not along the U.S.-Mexico border, but on a golf course in the west of Ireland.

The Trump International Golf Links and Hotel Doonbeg, one of several golf courses owned by President Donald Trump’s business empire, was given the go ahead to construct two sea walls along the border of the property to protect the land from coastal erosion. The 2,000-foot and 850-foot barriers are dramatically scaled down from original plans to build a 1.7-mile structure, which was rejected by local county officials a year ago.

The Trump Organization has spent $330 million to acquire and develop golf course since it started such projects in 1997, according to Reuters. Trump has often sparked controversy in defense of his courses, including an instance where he sent a letter to a Scottish minister calling proposed wind farms near one of them “monsters.”

As part of the application, golf course officials argued that the effects of global warming, including a rise in sea levels, would increase coastal erosion rates.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)1cf7e4b025f99e15c344

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 11:17 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Whataboutism

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:25 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
De muur komt er overigens wel, maar dan in Ierland:

[..]

quote:

In the 39 states whose residents use the federal HealthCare.gov to enroll, 8.8 million people signed up for private insurance policies for 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Thursday. The total will likely be at least slightly higher than 8.8 million because the agency is still processing some applications.

For the first time, a federal government run by people vehemently opposed to the very existence of the Affordable Care Act and health insurance exchanges was in charge of planning and carrying out an enrollment push. Trump openly rooted for Obamacare to “fail”, bragged about hastening that outcome, slashed the advertising budget by 90 percent and cut funding for enrollment counselors by 40 percent overall.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)23b6e4b025f99e15c6f7

twitter:

trbrtc twitterde op vrijdag 22-12-2017 om 00:47:22 @Nieuwsuur to new US ambassador: "You mentioned [..] that there are no go-zones in the Netherlands and that cars an… https://t.co/HdsIWZVnMI reageer retweet

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:42 schreef Bluesdude het volgende:

twitter:

trbrtc twitterde op vrijdag 22-12-2017 om 00:47:22 @Nieuwsuur to new US ambassador: "You mentioned [..] that there are no go-zones in the Netherlands and that cars an… https://t.co/HdsIWZVnMI reageer retweet

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:42 schreef Bluesdude het volgende:

twitter:

trbrtc twitterde op vrijdag 22-12-2017 om 00:47:22 @Nieuwsuur to new US ambassador: "You mentioned [..] that there are no go-zones in the Netherlands and that cars an… https://t.co/HdsIWZVnMI reageer retweet

quote:

De twee autobranden in Oostknollendam van afgelopen nacht zijn aangestoken. Dat heeft burgemeester Tange van Wormerland gezegd op een persconferentie. De auto's waren van de lokale GroenLinks-fractievoorzitter Harold Halewijn en zijn vrouw.

Mogelijk heeft de daad iets te maken met de eventuele komst van asielzoekers naar de gemeente Wormerland. Tange noemt dat een denkbaar scenario. "Maar we hebben daar geen aanwijzing voor", zegt hij.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 10:21 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Je moet je Trump obsessie toch echt eens loslaten.
Al was deze EO getekend door de kerstman, boeit niet, het gaat om de EO zelf, en die vind ik goed. Elk initiatief om mensensmokkel tegen te gaan juich ik toe... ongeacht wie het initiatief maakt. Jij lijkt echter niet verder te komen dan "Trump, ugh".

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 11:23 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Vreemd genoeg ben ik het hier volledig mee eens
Trump zijn belofte om de swap te drainen is ie vooralsnog niet nagekomen.
Persoonlijk vind ik dat wel 1 van de belangrijkere zaken, alleen verzaakt Trump dus, en dat neem ik hem niet in dank af.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:59 schreef Bluesdude het volgende:
Ik denk dat er wekelijks auto's in de fik worden gezet in Nederland. In Amerika ook natuurlijk.
Maar dat het land daardoor in chaos is...... ? Lijkt wel wishfulthinking van die Amerikaan.

Ik vond dit over 2015

[..]

https://nos.nl/artikel/20(...)-brand-gestoken.html

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:59 schreef Bluesdude het volgende:
Ik denk dat er wekelijks auto's in de fik worden gezet in Nederland. In Amerika ook natuurlijk.
Maar dat het land daardoor in chaos is...... ? Lijkt wel wishfulthinking van die Amerikaan.

Ik vond dit over 2015

[..]

https://nos.nl/artikel/20(...)-brand-gestoken.html

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 14:43 schreef Blik het volgende:

[..]

Tja, als er 1000 auto's in de fik worden gestoken in een jaar, dan zal er vast wel een keer één tussen zitten van een politicus

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 14:47 schreef Bluesdude het volgende:

[..]

Ja.. dan lult die Amerikaan toch uit zijn nek.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:27 schreef Bernhard.von.Galen het volgende:

[..]

Niet echt. Tot dusver zijn de EO's niets meer dan voornemens / wensenlijstjes gebleken. Er bestaan geen vervolgstappen.

quote:

In an Annex to the Order, the President imposed sanctions on 13 serious human rights abusers and corrupt actors. In addition, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), acting on behalf of the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Attorney General, imposed sanctions on an additional 39 affiliated individuals and entities under the newly-issued Order.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 14:10 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Trump heeft nepotisme op vele vlakken naar een ongekend niveau getild, maar afgezien daarvan is 'draining the swamp' vooral een loze roeptoeterterm van de vorm 'DE HOGE HERUH VULLEN HUN ZAKKUH EN NAAIUH DE HARDWERKENDE MAN!!!'. Er zijn genoeg zaken waar je concreet van zou kunnen zeggen dat er wat aan moet gebeuren. De invloed van lobbyisten bijvoorbeeld. Er zijn vrij veel zaken waar de publieke opinie heel duidelijk afwijkt van wat er in Washington wordt besloten. Dat is een constatering. De relevante vraag is wat je eraan gaat doen. Natuurlijk moet het niet zo zijn dat lobbyisten feitelijk aan verkapte omkoping doen, maar aan de andere kant is het ook wel prettig dat bijvoorbeeld bij zorgvraagstukken wel enige input komt vanuit zorgprofessionals, farmaceuten, patiëntenverenigingen en andere 'belanghebbenden', vanuit de tech sector waar het aankomt op netneutraliteit en ga zo maar door.

Ook het feit dat mensen switchen tussen banen als beleidsmaker op een bepaald terrein bij de overheid en switchen naar het bedrijfsleven of vice versa is een voorbeeld. Dat kun je verbieden of beperken omdat het tot onwenselijke belangenbehartiging zou leiden, het nemen van beslissingen die leiden tot lucratieve baantjes ná een overheidscarrière of ga zo maar door. Ook hier geldt echter weer dat je ook weer niet zonder expertise kunt, die mensen vaak opdoen door te werken in de private sector. In Nederland is er bijvoorbeeld veel kritiek op het feit dat de overheid zelf geen expertise op het gebied van IT in huis heeft, maar afhankelijk is van externen met een behoorlijk eigenbelang bij het oneindig rekken van IT projecten.

Dat verschil tussen roeptoetertermen en concreet beleid is de kern van de politiek en helaas blijven heel veel mensen in dit soort topics hangen in eerstgenoemde. Of dat nou 'yes we can! / change!' of 'MAGA / Draining the Swamp' is. Ik wil dat types met een aangeboren hersenafwijking zoals Nintex niet direct kwalijk nemen, maar het is wel jammer dat mensen met iets meer hersens vaak ook vervallen in dergelijk simplisme.

Het belastingplan is een ander voorbeeld. Dat is echt een heel complex geheel waarvan zelfs vele experts nauwelijks kunnen inschatten wat de effecten zijn. Zo wordt bijvoorbeeld de verlaging van de corporate tax rate van 35 naar 20 of 22 (weet niet eens wat de uiteindelijke versie bevat) bejubeld, maar als je dan kijkt naar de theoretische tax rate (die heel hoog is) en de praktische tax rate (die vanwege alle complexe aftrekposten en constructies een stuk lager uitvalt), dan is het maar de vraag wat nou het exacte effect is van die maatregel. Dat is zeer zeker interessante materie om hier te bediscussiëren, maar het blijft doorgaans bij hele tribale discussies die feitelijk neerkomt op 'mijn teampje is voor / tegen, dus ik ga maar een beetje de cheerleader uithangen'.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 14:06 schreef Knipoogje het volgende:

[..]

Weet je, ik ben het met je eens in deze discussie
Maar tegen anderen zeggen dat ze Trump obsessie moeten loslaten terwijl je zelf een Clinton obsessie hebt (en dat ook gewoon toegeeft) is een soort slecht ge-agede Trump tweet uit 2012

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 15:09 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Ik ben het zowaar eens met je volledige betoog.
Een term als drain the swap klinkt pakkend. Maar men moet zich vooral realiseren dat het politieke wereldje uitermate complex is en dit dus absoluut niet simpel te doen is... als het al mogelijk is binnen 1 termijn.

Ik ben vooral voorstander van het weghalen van corruptie uit de politiek, en daar heeft Trump tot nu toe nog niks laten zien behalve dan acties de verkeerde kant op. Hopelijk brengt de toekomst beter nieuws op dat vlak.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 15:09 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Ik ben het zowaar eens met je volledige betoog.
Een term als drain the swap klinkt pakkend. Maar men moet zich vooral realiseren dat het politieke wereldje uitermate complex is en dit dus absoluut niet simpel te doen is... als het al mogelijk is binnen 1 termijn.

Ik ben vooral voorstander van het weghalen van corruptie uit de politiek, en daar heeft Trump tot nu toe nog niks laten zien behalve dan acties de verkeerde kant op. Hopelijk brengt de toekomst beter nieuws op dat vlak.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 18:36 schreef Falco het volgende:

Moment Dutch journalist debunks US ambassador’s ‘fake news’ claim

wtf

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 18:36 schreef Falco het volgende:

Moment Dutch journalist debunks US ambassador’s ‘fake news’ claim

wtf

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 18:39 schreef skysherrif het volgende:

[..]

Je denkt dat die onderhand hier nog niet is gepost?

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 13:42 schreef Bluesdude het volgende:

twitter:

trbrtc twitterde op vrijdag 22-12-2017 om 00:47:22 @Nieuwsuur to new US ambassador: "You mentioned [..] that there are no go-zones in the Netherlands and that cars an… https://t.co/HdsIWZVnMI reageer retweet

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 18:46 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Het is nog niet eerder gepost.

quote:

At this sprawling steel mill on the outskirts of Philadelphia, the workers have one number in mind. Not how many tons of steel roll off the line, or how many hours they work, but where they fall on the plant’s seniority list.

In September, ArcelorMittal, which owns the mill, announced that it would lay off 150 of the plant’s 207 workers next year. While the cuts will start with the most junior employees, they will go so deep that even workers with decades of experience will be cast out.

“I told my son, ‘Christmas is going to be kind of scarce, because mommy’s going to lose her job soon,’” said Kimberly Allen, a steelworker and single parent who has worked at the plant for more than 22 years. On the seniority list, she’s 72nd.

The layoffs have stunned these steelworkers who, just a year ago, greeted President Trump’s election as a new dawn for their industry. Mr. Trump pledged to build roads and bridges, strengthen “Buy America” provisions, protect factories from unfair imports and revive industry, especially steel.

But after a year in office, Mr. Trump has not enacted these policies. And when it comes to steel, his failure to follow through on a promise has actually done more harm than good.

SPOILER

Foreign steel makers have rushed to get their product into the United States before tariffs start. According to the American Iron and Steel Institute, which tracks shipments, steel imports were 19.4 percent higher in the first 10 months of 2017 than in the same period last year.

That surge of imports has hurt American steel makers, which were already struggling against a glut of cheap Chinese steel. When ArcelorMittal announced the layoffs in Conshohocken, it blamed those imports, as well as low demand for steel for bridges and military equipment.

James Rockas, a spokesman for the Commerce Department, said the administration was “aware of the plight of American steel workers and will continue working to halt unfair trade practices that harm our economy and kill American jobs.”

In 2008, before the financial crisis struck, the plant ran around the clock. Now, the mill coughs to life just five days a week, for eight hours at a time. The machines shovel 10-ton steel slabs into a furnace, where they are heated to 2,000 degrees, then funnel them through giant rollers and cooling jets of water, like a massive, fiery carwash.

The plant’s specialty is ultrastrong, military-grade steel — something that Eric Smith, a former Army paratrooper who has worked at the plant for over 30 years, prides himself on. Mr. Smith ranks 16th on the plant’s seniority list, and he expects to survive the coming round of layoffs.

He grew up just down the street. The weathered houses of his old neighborhood on that dim day were fringed with icicle lights, evergreen bows and flags paying homage to Santa and the Philadelphia Eagles.

As a boy, he would long to work at the factory as he passed it. These days, he said, he gets a sinking feeling as he goes through the turnstile and enters the plant.

“You just got to keep on pushing forward. It is sad that Christmas time is coming around,” he said. “You don’t want to splurge for your kids like you want to, because the plant may be closing.”

While he didn’t support Mr. Trump, Mr. Smith said he hoped that the president would follow through on his plans. “It’s still kind of early,” he said.

Reforming trade was one of the president’s signature campaign promises, and in his first months in office, Mr. Trump issued dozens of executive actions. One pulled the United States out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a 12-country trade pact. Others ordered investigations into imports or renegotiations of trade pacts.

Uncertainty about how these measures will reshape trade rules is now weighing on many industries. Companies are waiting to invest, or finding additional suppliers outside the United States, executives in agriculture, automobiles, solar energy and information technology have said.

In April, the president ordered parallel investigations into imports of steel and aluminum under the little-used Section 232 of a 1962 trade law, which permits sweeping restrictions to protect national security.

Earlier this year, tariffs seemed imminent. Wilbur Ross, the commerce secretary, said in late May that he expected to conclude the steel investigation by the end of June.

And in early June, Mr. Trump told a crowd in Cincinnati, “Wait till you see what I’m going to do for steel and your steel companies,” vowing that he would “stop the dumping” of products at superlow prices by other countries.

“We’ll be seeing that very soon. The steel folks are going to be very happy,” he said.

But the announcement never came.

That appears to be caused partly by internal divisions within the White House. Some officials, like Mr. Ross — a former steel executive who was on ArcelorMittal’s board until he was confirmed in February — wanted to push ahead with tariffs. But others, including economic and national security advisers, worried about repercussions, trade advisers say.

The tariffs had plenty of opponents. Automakers, food processors and companies in other industries that use steel and aluminum in their products complained that tariffs would drive up costs and make them less competitive, ultimately sacrificing more American jobs than they would save. Steel exporters, like the European Union, threatened retaliation. Prominent economists highlighted the risk of a trade war.

“I think the White House is immobilized, because they have such a cacophony of voices,” said Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat from Ohio who describes himself as an ally of the president on trade. “This administration doesn’t seem to know what it thinks about trade.”

The administration will face a series of deadlines on the steel measure next year. The Commerce Department must present the results of its investigation to the president by Jan. 15. The president will then have 90 days to decide what to do.

President Trump and his advisers say they have been focused on the tax legislation, which Congress passed this week. The White House has said that it plans to turn to trade measures, including the steel investigation, once the bill is signed into law.

Still, the delay has threatened to fracture the brittle alliance the president has forged with some labor unions, who liked Mr. Trump’s populist approach to trade.



Senator Bob Casey Jr., a Democrat from Pennsylvania, said the administration’s commitment to workers would probably be an issue in the 2018 midterm elections. “They’ve sat on this for far too long,” he said.

The United Steelworkers, the union that includes the workers in Conshohocken, has historically aligned with Democrats. But many workers opposed trade agreements forged by Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama and viewed Hillary Clinton’s stance on trade as insincere.

In a shift in the politics of trade, the union has defended the Trump administration’s trade agenda against the criticisms of traditionally Republican business groups, like the Chamber of Commerce.

But Scott Paul, the president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, a trade group that represents steelworkers, said he had “a profound sense of frustration that the president has been using steelworkers as political props.”

“The president’s own words and lack of action have actually put the industry in a worse position than if he had done nothing at all,” he said.

Kameen Thompson, the union president at the Conshohocken plant, said many workers had voted for Mr. Trump because of his support for steel. “You want to vote for what you believe is going to help you keep a job,” Mr. Thompson said.

Ms. Allen, whose father worked at the Conshohocken plant before her, was not a Trump supporter. “He told them what they wanted to hear so they would vote for him, and now they’re seeing what president he is,” she said.

But other workers who supported the president are keeping the faith.

Chuck Hauer, who has worked at the plant for 22 years and ranks around 80 on the seniority list — meaning he is likely to be laid off — said he had voted Republican because he believed that Mr. Trump was “for the people.” He said he still believed that the tariffs would happen, though perhaps not soon enough to save him.

“He’s just delaying it,” Mr. Hauer said of the president. “And I think the delay is hurting us more than he knows.”

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 18:48 schreef Ulx het volgende:
Ik heb nooit beweerd dat het niet eerder is gepost.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 18:39 schreef skysherrif het volgende:

Je denkt dat die onderhand hier nog niet is gepost?

quote:

More than 700 people have left the Environmental Protection Agency since President Trump took office, a wave of departures that puts the administration nearly a quarter of the way toward its goal of shrinking the agency to levels last seen during the Reagan administration.

Of the employees who have quit, retired or taken a buyout package since the beginning of the year, more than 200 are scientists. An additional 96 are environmental protection specialists, a broad category that includes scientists as well as others experienced in investigating and analyzing pollution levels. Nine department directors have departed the agency as well as dozens of attorneys and program managers. Most of the employees who have left are not being replaced.

The departures reflect poor morale and a sense of grievance at the agency, which has been criticized by President Trump and top Republicans in Congress as bloated and guilty of regulatory overreach. That unease is likely to deepen following revelations that Republican campaign operatives were using the Freedom of Information Act to request copies of emails from E.P.A. officials suspected of opposing Mr. Trump and his agenda.

The cuts deepen a downward trend at the agency that began under the Obama administration in response to Republican-led budget constraints that left the agency with about 15,000 employees at the end of his term. The reductions have accelerated under President Trump, who campaigned on a promise to dramatically scale back the E.P.A., leaving only what he called “little tidbits” in place. Current and former employees say unlike during the Obama years, the agency has no plans to replace workers, and they expect deeper cuts to come.

“The reason E.P.A. went down to 15,000 employees under Obama is because of pressure from Republicans. This is the effort of the Republicans under the Obama administration on steroids,” said John J. O’Grady, president of American Federation of Government Employees Council 238, a union representing E.P.A. employees.

SPOILER

ProPublica and The New York Times analyzed the comings and goings from the E.P.A. through the end of September, the latest data that has been compiled, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. The figures and interviews with current and former E.P.A. officials show the administration is well on its way to achieving its goal of cutting 3,200 positions from the E.P.A., about 20 percent of the agency’s work force.

Jahan Wilcox, a spokesman for the E.P.A., said the agency was running more efficiently. “With only 10 months on the job, Administrator Pruitt is unequivocally doing more with less to hold polluters accountable and to protect our environment,” he said.

Within the agency, science in particular is taking a hard hit. More than 27 percent of those who left this year were scientists, including 34 biologists and microbiologists; 19 chemists; 81 environmental engineers and environmental scientists; and more than a dozen toxicologists, life scientists and geologists. Employees say the exodus has left the agency depleted of decades of knowledge about protecting the nation’s air and water. Many also said they saw the departures as part of a more worrisome trend of muting government scientists, cutting research budgets and making it more difficult for academic scientists to serve on advisory boards.

“Research has been on a starvation budget for years,” said Robert Kavlock, who served as acting assistant administrator for the Office of Research and Development before retiring in November. But under earlier buyouts, Mr. Kavlock said, the agency later hired nearly 100 postdoctoral candidates to help continue critical agency work.

“There wasn’t a reinvestment this time around,” he said. “There’s a hard freeze.”

Scientists, for the most part, are also not being replaced. Of the 129 people hired this year at the E.P.A., just seven are scientists. Another 15 are student trainee scientists. Political appointees, however, are on the rise. The office of Scott Pruitt, the agency administrator, was the only unit that saw more hires than departures this year.

In addition to losing scientists themselves, the offices at the E.P.A. that deal most directly with science were drained of other workers this year. The Office of Research and Development — which has three national laboratories and four national centers with expertise on science and technology issues — lost 69 people, while hiring three. At the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, responsible for regulating toxic chemicals and pesticides, 54 people left and seven were hired. And in the office that ensures safe drinking water, one person was hired, while 26 departed.

By contrast, Mr. Pruitt’s office hired 73 people to replace the 53 who left.

“I think it’s important to focus on what the agency is all about, and what it means to lose expertise, particularly on the science and public health side,” said Thomas Burke, who served as the agency’s science adviser under Mr. Obama. “The mission of the agency is the protection of public health. Clearly there’s been a departure in the mission.”

Mr. Wilcox disputed that assessment and said the agency remained an attractive workplace for scientists.

“People from across E.P.A. were eligible to retire early with full benefits,” he said in an emailed statement. “We currently have over 1,600 scientists at E.P.A. and less than 200 chose to retire with full benefits.”

The impact of losing so many scientists may not be felt for months or years. But science permeates every part of the agency’s work, from assessing the health risks of chemical explosions like the one in Houston during Hurricane Harvey to determining when groundwater is safe to drink after a spill. Several employees said they feared the departures with few replacements in sight would put critical duties like responding to disasters and testing water for toxic chemicals in jeopardy.

As of Dec. 6, there were 14,188 full-time employees at the E.P.A. By comparison, there were 17,558 workers at the end of the first year of the George W. Bush administration and 17,049 by the end of the first year of President Obama’s term. The E.P.A. offered two major buyouts during the Obama administration, losing 900 employees in 2013 and an additional 465 the following year. Hundreds of other workers left through attrition and were not replaced.

Mr. Pruitt’s office has described the current buyout process as a continuation of Obama administration efforts to ensure that payroll expenses do not overtake funding for environmental programs.

Agency staff said they believed the Trump administration was purposely draining the E.P.A. of expertise and morale.

Ronnie B. Levin spent 37 years at the E.P.A. researching policies to address lead exposure from paint, gasoline and drinking water, most recently working as a lead inspector at the agency’s regional office overseeing New England. She retired in November after what she described as months of low morale at the agency. And with the lead enforcement office targeted for elimination as part of Mr. Trump’s proposed budget, she said, “It was hard to get your enthusiasm up” for the job.

“This is exactly what they wanted, which is my biggest misgiving about leaving,” Ms. Levin said. “They want the people there to be more docile and nervous and less invested in the agency.”

Lynda Deschambault, a chemist and physical scientist who left the E.P.A. at the end of August after 26 years, said her office in Region 9, based in San Francisco, had been hollowed out. The office saw 21 departures this year and no hires. “The office was a morgue,” she said.

Conservatives who helped lead the Trump administration’s transition and prepared for eliminating vast parts of the agency said scientists’ worries were misplaced.

“To me it’s not necessarily a sign of catastrophe,” said David M. Kreutzer, a senior researcher at the Heritage Foundation who advised Mr. Trump on the E.P.A. during the transition. He said the agency under President Obama was engaged in “phenomenal overreach” and that the Trump administration’s efforts were aimed at correcting that.

In proposing this year to slash the E.P.A.’s budget by 31 percent, Mick Mulvaney, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, called the effort part of Mr. Trump’s plan to eliminate entrenched government workers.
[/quote]
“You can’t drain the swamp and leave all the people in it,” Mr. Mulvaney said. “So, I guess the first place that comes to mind will be the Environmental Protection Agency.”

Jan Nation, who works in E.P.A.’s Region 3, based in Philadelphia, where 46 people either retired or took a buyout this year, lamented the administration’s approach to federal workers.

“We are not the swamp. The swamp are all the people who don’t have a specific function to make our government work,” Ms. Nation said. “If you have a swamp to drain, I know people in the Army Corps of Engineers who can do it.”

quote:

President Donald Trump suggested Friday that Republicans and Democrats who have been at odds over nearly every major policy issue this year might soon come together on an infrastructure plan “for the good of the country.”

“At some point, and for the good of the country, I predict we will start working with the Democrats in a Bipartisan fashion,” the president wrote on Twitter Friday morning. “Infrastructure would be a perfect place to start. After having foolishly spent $7 trillion in the Middle East, it is time to start rebuilding our country!”

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op vrijdag 22-12-2017 om 14:05:06 At some point, and for the good of the country, I predict we will start working with the Democrats in a Bipartisan… https://t.co/YVl8tAcSOk reageer retweet

SPOILER

A massive infrastructure package has been on Trump’s to-do list since last year’s presidential campaign and is the policy goal where he is most likely to find cooperation from Democrats, at least in theory. But Trump has spent much of the year bashing members of the opposing party over his efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare and pass a package of tax cuts, as well as over the ongoing Russia investigation, which he has described as a hoax created by Democrats to excuse Hillary Clinton’s loss in last year’s election.

While the White House has yet to come forward with its plan – Trump administration officials have said they plan to release a list of principles sometime before the president’s state of the union address next month – early indications point to a wide gap between what the White House is expected to propose, $200 billion in federal spending paired with state and local money as well as private investment, and the $1 trillion in new infrastructure that Democrats have suggested.

Unlike the tax bill that Republicans passed through Congress this week, any infrastructure package would need 60 votes to clear the Senate, meaning the White House will need Democratic support if Trump is to tick off another item from his list of policy goals.

quote:

Op donderdag 21 december 2017 23:37 schreef Knipoogje het volgende:

[..]

Sterker nog. Ze gaan knippen in de subsidies en extraatjes voor armen, dus die mensen die hun loon van $13,50 naar $15 zien gaan houden onder de streep minder over. En hun healthcare gaat met duizenden dollars omhoog, want geen ACA meer.

quote:

President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist Steve Bannon and his former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski have been asked to testify to House lawmakers investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Both men were sent letters this week by the House Intelligence Committee asking them to testify in early January, according to an official familiar with the panel’s schedule.

The committee hasn’t yet received a response from either Bannon or Lewandowski. The invitation, which didn’t come in the form of a subpoena compelling them to testify, was for a "voluntary interview" in the committee’s offices, which means it would be held behind closed doors, the official said.

The letter doesn’t lay out specific reasons the committee wants to interview them, or the questions the panel wants to pose, but it makes clear that the interviews are part of the Russia investigation.

SPOILER

Bannon, who worked as Trump’s top strategist during the campaign and for several months in the White House, hasn’t been publicly accused of any wrongdoing.

Bannon was a key member of Trump’s team when the president fired national security adviser Michael Flynn and FBI director James Comey.

During the campaign, Bannon was also a liaison to its data-analytics firm, Cambridge Analytica.

Alexander Nix, the chief executive officer of Cambridge Analytica, met with the House Intelligence probe earlier this month. Nix faced questions about whether he sought material from WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange that was stolen from computers of the Democratic National Committee and John Podesta, who managed Democrat Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.

Lewandowski’s Role

Lewandowski was fired as campaign manager on June 20, 2016, and replaced by Paul Manafort, who has been indicted for money laundering charges by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Before Lewandowski left, he was among among several senior Trump campaign officials who received communications from foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos about his outreach to the Russian government, according to published news accounts.

The Washington Post reported last month that court filings show Papadopoulos wrote to Lewandowski several times to let him know that the Russians were interested in forging a relationship with the campaign.

The Post said that included one message in May 2016, in which Papadopoulos forwarded to Lewandowski an offer of “cooperation” from a Russian with links to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“Is this something we want to move forward with?” he asked. There was no indication of how Lewandowski responded, wrote the Post. Lewandowski has said publicly he doesn’t recall whether he received emails from Papadopoulos, who pleaded guilty in early October to lying to federal agents about his outreach to Russia.

quote:

Back in the 1960s, smog in major U.S. cities was so thick it blocked the sun. Rivers ran brown with raw sewage and toxic chemicals. Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River and at least two other urban waterways were so polluted they caught on fire. Lead-laced paint and gasoline poisoned children, damaging their brains and nervous systems. Hazardous working conditions killed an average of 14,000 workers annually, nearly three times the number today.

In the 1960s New York was one of the dirtiest cities in the country. Garbage incinerators routinely rained ash on city streets, while coal- and oil-fired power plants spewed a noxious mix of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and toxic metals. On Thanksgiving weekend in 1966 the smog was so bad it killed some 200 people.

Waterways like the Hudson River were just as filthy. In 1965, then-New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller called the Hudson “one great septic tank”: 170 million gallons of raw sewage fouled the river daily while factories along its banks treated it as a waste pit. A General Motors plant in Sleepy Hollow, 27 miles north of New York City, poured its paint sludge directly into the river. General Electric manufacturing plants in Fort Edwards and Hudson Falls dumped about 1.3 million pounds of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), a probable human carcinogen, into the river, and a 200-mile stretch from Hudson Falls to Manhattan has been one of the country’s most hazardous waste sites.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)16ade4b0d86c803c6ecf

quote:

The Interior Department notified the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine with a stop work order Dec. 7, and said a decision on canceling the contract would be made within 90 days, the academies said in a statement.

The order is the second time in four months that the Interior Department has abruptly cut off funds to the National Academies for a safety study. The department’s Office of Surface Mining in August stopped funding for research on health effects of people in Appalachia living near mountaintop mining operations.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)937ae4b025f99e16162b

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 21:15 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
dus dan blijven er twee over: Kamala Harris of Chris Murphy?

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 21:15 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Lijstje met wat gespeculeer over democratic kandidaten in 2020: https://www.washingtonpos(...)tes-for-2020-ranked/

15. Dwayne "The Rock" Johsnon
14. Terry McAuliffe (Governor van Virginia)
13. Howard Schultz (voormalig Starbucks CEO)
12. Deval Patrick (voormalig Governor van Massachesetts)
11. Oprah Winfrey
10. Andrew M. Cuomo (Governor van New York)
9. Sherrod Brown (Senator van Ohio)
8. Jerry Brown (Governor van California)
7. Chris Murphy (Senator van Connecticut)
6. Cory Booker (Senator van New Jersey)
5. Kamal D. Harris (Senator van California)
4. Kirsten Gillibrand (Senator van New York)
3. Elizabeth Warren (Senator van Massachusetts)
2. Joe Biden (voormalig VP onder Obama)
1. Bernie Sanders (Senator van Vermont)

Voor mij zouden qua leeftijd afvallen (60+ dan): Sanders, Biden, Warren, Jerry Brown, Sherrod Brown, Andrew Cuomo, Oprah Winfrey, Deval Patrick, Howard Schultz, Terry McCauliffe.

Dan hou je over: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Murphy, Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gilibrand. Mja,... Dwayne Johnson zie ik niet als politicus, Booker als gemankeerd, Gilibrand als op een heksenjacht voor eigen gewin... dus dan blijven er twee over: Kamala Harris of Chris Murphy?

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 21:36 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:

[..]

Waarom die leeftijdsgrens?

Mijn voorkeur gaat (voorlopig) uit naar Elizabeth Warren nu Franken afgevallen is.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 21:36 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
nu Franken afgevallen is.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 21:15 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Lijstje met wat gespeculeer over democratic kandidaten in 2020: https://www.washingtonpos(...)tes-for-2020-ranked/

15. Dwayne "The Rock" Johsnon
14. Terry McAuliffe (Governor van Virginia)
13. Howard Schultz (voormalig Starbucks CEO)
12. Deval Patrick (voormalig Governor van Massachesetts)
11. Oprah Winfrey
10. Andrew M. Cuomo (Governor van New York)
9. Sherrod Brown (Senator van Ohio)
8. Jerry Brown (Governor van California)
7. Chris Murphy (Senator van Connecticut)
6. Cory Booker (Senator van New Jersey)
5. Kamal D. Harris (Senator van California)
4. Kirsten Gillibrand (Senator van New York)
3. Elizabeth Warren (Senator van Massachusetts)
2. Joe Biden (voormalig VP onder Obama)
1. Bernie Sanders (Senator van Vermont)

Voor mij zouden qua leeftijd afvallen (60+ dan): Sanders, Biden, Warren, Jerry Brown, Sherrod Brown, Andrew Cuomo, Oprah Winfrey, Deval Patrick, Howard Schultz, Terry McCauliffe.

Dan hou je over: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Murphy, Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gilibrand. Mja,... Dwayne Johnson zie ik niet als politicus, Booker als gemankeerd, Gilibrand als op een heksenjacht voor eigen gewin... dus dan blijven er twee over: Kamala Harris of Chris Murphy?

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 21:56 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:

[..]

Oprah Winfrey seriously

Alhoewel ik dat ook over Trump zou hebben gezegd in 2013

Overigens, dit zijn potentiële kandidaten voor de primaries. Het lijkt me een interessantere vraag om eerst na te denken over wie er waarschijnlijk aan de primaries gaan meedoen. Dan vallen er al een aantal af namelijk.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 22:10 schreef Blik het volgende:

[..]

Bij The Rock heb je geen twijfels?

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 18:41 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:

[..]

Echt he? Eerst zijn eigen uitspraak ontkennen en het als fake news wegzetten en vervolgens ook nog eens ontkennen dat hij het fake news noemde

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 22:11 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
De kans dat er geen absolute meerderheid is voor 1 kandidaat in 2020 in de democratic primaries lijkt trouwens wel redelijk zoals de vlag nu hangt. Zou ook wel interessant zijn.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 23:06 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Dat lijkt me een beetje koffiedik kijken. Hangt er maar net vanaf welke dynamiek er gaat ontstaan en in hoeverre meerdere kandidaten ook financieel in staat gaan zijn om lang mee te doen.

quote:

EX-PROSECUTORS WARN TRUMP: DON’T YOU DARE!

A bipartisan group of 22 former federal prosecutors has urged President Donald Trump to stand by his recent statements and allow special counsel Robert Mueller to conduct his investigation into Russia’s role in the 2016 election without interference.

Ensuring the special counsel can conduct his investigation "free from interference or fear of reprisal" is essential "to the interests of justice and public trust," they wrote.

"We do not know where Mr. Mueller’s investigation may lead but, from our own experience, we know that Mr. Mueller must be permitted to continue the difficult job with which he has been charged," the letter reads. "Seeking his removal would have severe repercussions for Americans’ sense of justice here at home and for our reputation for fairness around the world."

John Roberts, Fox News’ chief White House correspondent, reported Friday that sources told him Trump’s attorneys have "a very good relationship with Mueller’s office" and that the special prosecutor is not in danger of losing his job.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 23:31 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
_{gebruikt tinypic al 15 jaar}

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 23:32 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

Ja, het was toen wel goed natuurlijk. Maar ja, het bleek niet heel effectief om dit te gebruiken voor publieke forums, omdat de spike in gevraagde bandbreedte in bepaalde gevallen niet afdoende is. Imgur is in mijn ervaring echt veel en veel beter wat dat betreft.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 23:42 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:

[..]

[ afbeelding ]

Is dit beter?

quote:

President Donald Trump told aides he was eager to take questions Friday and hold a news conference to tout his accomplishments before leaving for Mar-a-Lago, but some advisers argued against it.

The aides were eager to avoid him being besieged with questions about the investigation into Russian election meddling and other matters that could overshadow the tax bill he had signed into law, two White House officials told CNN.

The President's schedule remained in flux over the last day, amid questions about whether he would stage a public bill-signing ceremony of the tax legislation or hold a news conference. Many previous presidents have held year-end news conferences before leaving for Christmas vacations.

For two straight days, Thursday and Friday, White House aides were told to prepare for a news conference of some kind.

Both plans were scrapped.

Friday morning, aides finally said the President would sign the tax and government funding bills in private. When the pool protested, saying the pictures from a White House photographer wouldn't be used, news reporters and photographers were hastily escorted into the Oval Office for the signing.

The President's mood was bright and he seemed eager to answer a few questions. Aides appeared on higher alert than normal, with Chief of Staff John Kelly and other aides attempting to kick reporters out and get the President on Marine One to Mar-a-Lago.

Trump answered several questions, including whether he had learned anything from the legislative process related to the tax overhaul, whether he would travel to sell the tax package and whether he wished he had started his congressional agenda with infrastructure.

"We're going to get infrastructure," Trump told reporters. "Infrastructure is the easiest of them all. We're very well on our way. We have essentially repealed Obamacare. You know, the individual mandate was a very big factor in this bill, frankly. A lot of people don't talk about it because the tax cut is so important."

As reporters kept pressing Trump, aides moved closer and closer to the Resolute Desk, gently prodding reporters and photographers to leave the Oval Office. With the President still talking, chief economic adviser Gary Cohn and other officials stood in front of the desk, all but blocking Trump's view.

Finally, White House chief of staff John Kelly also joined in and asked the press to leave, saying: "Helicopter is running out of gas," referring to Marine One that was waiting to take the President to Air Force One.

quote:

President Donald Trump's commission investigating voter fraud must give one of its Democratic members access to more of the panel's records, a federal judge ruled Friday night.

U.S. District Court Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said Maine Secretary of State Matt Dunlap appeared to have been denied documents needed to be an active player in the deliberations of what is formally known as the President's Advisory Commission on Election Integrity.

"Plaintiff has a right, as a commissioner, to 'fully participate' in the proceedings of the Commission. In the Court’s view, his assertion that he will be unable to fully participate without the information contained in relevant documents that the Commission has not shared with the public has merit," wrote Kollar-Kotelly, an appointee of President Bill Clinton.

The judge said she was issuing an injunction to prevent "dysfunction" at the commission, but her effort to keep the panel on track may be too little, too late. The group held its last meeting in September and officials have said it will not meet again this year.

The commission was expected to issue a report early next year. But several members say it has been dormant for a couple of months and there appears to be little chance of a report emerging in the next few months.

In her 24-page opinion, Kollar-Kotelly cited three instances where she said Dunlap was not given adequate access to information needed to participate in the panel's deliberations. The judge said Dunlap should have been informed about and seen a draft of a controversial request asking states to submit their voter rolls and other sensitive, but publicly-available, information about voters.

quote:

A panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday ruled against the third iteration of President Trump

's travel ban, saying it goes against federal law.

"We conclude that the President’s issuance of the Proclamation once again exceeds the scope of his delegated authority," the court said in its ruling.

The most recent iteration of the ban bars people from eight countries – six of which are predominantly Muslim – from coming to the U.S.

The San Francisco-based appeals court, however, said the Trump administration could continue to bar individuals from countries in the Middle East and North Africa from entering the U.S. if they do not have a "bonafide" relationship with someone in the U.S.

The court said the ruling would be put on hold pending any review by the Supreme Court.

In the ruling, the court said that "the Proclamation’s indefinite entry suspensions constitute nationality discrimination in the issuance of immigrant visas," and that it discriminates against travelers and immigrants in the same vein as Trump’s previous travel bans.

The Supreme Court decided earlier this month that it would allow the latest travel ban to take effect, while litigation ran its course.

A Richmond, Va.-based appeals court must rule on the ban before the Supreme Court revisits the matter.

The Trump administration has pushed for a travel ban since January, which it says is necessary to safeguard national security. But each iteration of the ban has run into legal disputes, prompting the administration to issue increasingly narrow orders that could muster legal challenges.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 22:11 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
De kans dat er geen absolute meerderheid is voor 1 kandidaat in 2020 in de democratic primaries lijkt trouwens wel redelijk zoals de vlag nu hangt. Zou ook wel interessant zijn.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 08:25 schreef Knipoogje het volgende:

[..]

Nadeel is dat ze elkaar gaan lopen zwartmaken, waardoor ze GOP genoeg materiaal aanleveren om hun eigen smearcampagne op te zetten en jaren vooruit te kunnen. Vergeet niet dat bij normale politici 1 of 2 dingetjes het einde van je carriere kunnen betekenen terwijl een Trump niet geswiftboat kan worden. Zelfs 1000 swiftboats helpen niet.

1 pocahontas nothingburger kan een Warren al de meerderheid kosten.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 09:15 schreef vipergts het volgende:

[..]

Warren zal wel zo slim zijn dat ze niet meedoet tenzij ze 1 van de hooguit 2 kandidaten is. Die mensen moeten wel een ongelofelijk bord voor hun kop hebben als ze nog eens voor gaas gaan bij het Trump trucje

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 05:21 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
En met die travel ban wil het ook nog niet erg lukken

9th Circuit rules against Trump's third attempt at travel ban

[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 03:56 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
Ow ja al een tijd niks meer gehoord van deze commissie.....

Court: Trump voter fraud commission must give Democrat member full access

Maine secretary of state is entitled to see and copy the panel's records, judge rules.

[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 10:20 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Trump heeft weer eens een "poll":

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Do you believe the Fake News Media will fairly cover President Trump’s first year approval rating?

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 05:21 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
En met die travel ban wil het ook nog niet erg lukken

9th Circuit rules against Trump's third attempt at travel ban

[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 10:20 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Trump heeft weer eens een "poll":

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 08:25 schreef Knipoogje het volgende:

[..]

Nadeel is dat ze elkaar gaan lopen zwartmaken, waardoor ze GOP genoeg materiaal aanleveren om hun eigen smearcampagne op te zetten en jaren vooruit te kunnen. Vergeet niet dat bij normale politici 1 of 2 dingetjes het einde van je carriere kunnen betekenen terwijl een Trump niet geswiftboat kan worden. Zelfs 1000 swiftboats helpen niet.

1 pocahontas nothingburger kan een Warren al de meerderheid kosten.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 11:03 schreef nostra het volgende:

[..]

_!

Ik vraag me wel ernstig af wat er met dit soort gegevens - of 'vijandige' twitterberichten - gebeurt. Zou me niets verbazen als je wat extra lastige vragen bij de douane krijgt als je je kritisch over Donald hebt uitgelaten.

quote:

House Republicans are investigating contact between the FBI's top lawyer and a Mother Jones reporter in the weeks before the left-leaning outlet broke the first news story about the existence of a disputed dossier alleging ties between President Donald Trump and the Kremlin, according to two congressional GOP sources who described documents linking the two men.

[...]

Fusion's connection to Democrats, too, has added to GOP suspicion about the document's veracity, though congressional investigators and the FBI have attempted to corroborate its contents. Republicans have raised questions about whether the FBI used the document to obtain surveillance warrants against Trump campaign officials, and they're beginning to examine how the dossier made its way into the hands of news media.

quote:

David O’Neill, chief conservation officer at the Audubon Society, called the Migratory Bird Treaty Act “one of the most important conservation laws” on the books.

“Christmas came early for bird killers,” he said in a statement. “By acting to end industries’ responsibility to avoid millions of gruesome bird deaths per year, the White House is parting ways with more than 100 years of conservation legacy.”

The century-old law has protected more than 1,000 species of migratory birds, including eagles, terns, sandpipers and geese. It prohibited anyone from pursuing, hunting, capturing, killing or possessing birds or their parts without proper permits.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)7e2de4b0b0e5a7a217ad

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 22:13 schreef Euribob het volgende:

[..]

Valt me nog mee dat Kanye er niet bij staat.

quote:

Op vrijdag 22 december 2017 15:09 schreef Refragmental het volgende:

[..]

Ik ben het zowaar eens met je volledige betoog.
Een term als drain the swap klinkt pakkend. Maar men moet zich vooral realiseren dat het politieke wereldje uitermate complex is en dit dus absoluut niet simpel te doen is... als het al mogelijk is binnen 1 termijn.

Ik ben vooral voorstander van het weghalen van corruptie uit de politiek, en daar heeft Trump tot nu toe nog niks laten zien behalve dan acties de verkeerde kant op. Hopelijk brengt de toekomst beter nieuws op dat vlak.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 13:34 schreef monkyyy het volgende:
Gister was er een reportage in Nieuwsuur over de opioid crisis in Amerika.

https://www.npo.nl/nieuwsuur/22-12-2017/VPWON_1273453

Vanaf 20:23, voor de geïnteresseerden. Heftig hoor.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 10:20 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Trump heeft weer eens een "poll":

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 10:20 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Trump heeft weer eens een "poll":

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 13:29 schreef Tijger_m het volgende:
Ah, daar is redpilled weer met de dagelijkse opsomming van onbewezen aantijgingen die allemaal uiteraard waar zijn want "FOX news", een organisatie die zichzelf niet eens een nieuws organisatie noemt, ondersteunt het.

Met een beetje geduld komt Trump nog wel eens goed in de problemen, maar voorlopig is hij, zijn kinderen en zijn vrienden een stuk rijker geworden dankzij zijn wetgeving. Mogen we Trump wel dankbaar voor zijn.

Oh, en natuurlijk de benoeming van Hoekstra als ambassadeur in Nederland, een man die struikelt over zijn eigen leugens, altijd leuk.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 14:13 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
Nogal, ja.

Bij Trump horen toch minstens "Dismal" en "He's gonna get us all killed"

quote:

U.S. Ambassador Denies Anti-Muslim Comments, Then Denies Denial On Dutch TV

In 2015, on a panel called “Muslim Migration Into Europe: Eurabia Come True?” at the David Horowitz Freedom Center’s Restoration Weekend, Hoekstra warned of a “stealth jihad” taking place in the United States and Europe, and claimed that the Netherlands, his native country, was in a state of “chaos” due to the migration of Muslims.

“There are cars being burned. There are politicians that are being burned ... and yes, there are no-go zones in the Netherlands,” Hoekstra said.

Reporter Wouter Zwart questioned the new ambassador about those comments, but Hoekstra categorically denied that he ever made those remarks: “I didn’t say that. That is actually an incorrect statement. We would call it fake news,” he said. “I never said that.”

The video of the interview then cut to a clip of Hoekstra making the exact comments he had just denied. When Zwart again pressed the ambassador, saying, “You call it fake news,” Hoekstra jumped in to deny that he had even said that. “I didn’t call that fake news. I didn’t use the words today.”

When President Donald Trump announced Hoekstra’s appointment as ambassador to his country of origin, a Dutch newspaper said the president was putting “a Dutchman in the Netherlands — but it is a Dutchman from the Netherlands of the ’50s.”

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 16:07 schreef OllieA het volgende:
Wel sad dat The Best! geen optie is.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 11:03 schreef nostra het volgende:

[..]

_!

Ik vraag me wel ernstig af wat er met dit soort gegevens - of 'vijandige' twitterberichten - gebeurt. Zou me niets verbazen als je wat extra lastige vragen bij de douane krijgt als je je kritisch over Donald hebt uitgelaten.

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 21:10 schreef Whiskers2009 het volgende:
Hoekstra heeft een statement gemaakt: https://mobile.twitter.com/petehoekstra/status/944616425284685824

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 21:14 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

Wat een nikszeggend statement. Regret the exchange? Dus het spijt hem dat hij loog over wat hij zei in de spanne van een minuut of 2 of dat het gesprek plaatsvond? Waarom zo'n halfbakken excuus ... ugh..

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 09:15 schreef vipergts het volgende:

[..]

Warren zal wel zo slim zijn dat ze niet meedoet tenzij ze 1 van de hooguit 2 kandidaten is. Die mensen moeten wel een ongelofelijk bord voor hun kop hebben als ze nog eens voor gaas gaan bij het Trump trucje

quote:

The Trump administration said Friday it will renew mining leases to extract copper and nickel adjacent to a Minnesota wilderness area, reversing an Obama administration decision and giving a victory to a Chilean billionaire who is renting a mansion to the family of the president’s elder daughter.

Mr. Trump’s elder daughter, Ivanka, and her husband, Jared Kushner —both top White House advisers—are paying $15,000 a month to rent their six-bedroom home in the nation’s capital from Mr. Luksic. The Chilean billionaire bought the house just after the November 2016 election for $5.5 million.

https://www.wsj.com/artic(...)nka-trump-1513989674

Elizabeth Warren & Bernie Sanders: Democratic Priorities in our Budget

SPOILER

Sanders doet me trouwens altijd aan den Uyl denken

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 21:27 schreef Whiskers2009 het volgende:
https://mobile.twitter.com/ProPublica/status/944618046035058688

Wat een walgelijke uitspraken (mits waar)

quote:

Haiti had sent 15,000 people. They “all have AIDS,” he grumbled, according to one person who attended the meeting and another person who was briefed about it by a different person who was there.

quote:

Late to his own meeting and waving a sheet of numbers, President Trump stormed into the Oval Office one day in June, plainly enraged.

Five months before, Mr. Trump had dispatched federal officers to the nation’s airports to stop travelers from several Muslim countries from entering the United States in a dramatic demonstration of how he would deliver on his campaign promise to fortify the nation’s borders.

But so many foreigners had flooded into the country since January, he vented to his national security team, that it was making a mockery of his pledge. Friends were calling to say he looked like a fool, Mr. Trump said.

According to six officials who attended or were briefed about the meeting, Mr. Trump then began reading aloud from the document, which his domestic policy adviser, Stephen Miller, had given him just before the meeting. The document listed how many immigrants had received visas to enter the United States in 2017.

More than 2,500 were from Afghanistan, a terrorist haven, the president complained.

Haiti had sent 15,000 people. They “all have AIDS,” he grumbled, according to one person who attended the meeting and another person who was briefed about it by a different person who was there.

Forty thousand had come from Nigeria, Mr. Trump added. Once they had seen the United States, they would never “go back to their huts” in Africa, recalled the two officials, who asked for anonymity to discuss a sensitive conversation in the Oval Office.

As the meeting continued, John F. Kelly, then the secretary of homeland security, and Rex W. Tillerson, the secretary of state, tried to interject, explaining that many were short-term travelers making one-time visits. But as the president continued, Mr. Kelly and Mr. Miller turned their ire on Mr. Tillerson, blaming him for the influx of foreigners and prompting the secretary of state to throw up his arms in frustration. If he was so bad at his job, maybe he should stop issuing visas altogether, Mr. Tillerson fired back.

Tempers flared and Mr. Kelly asked that the room be cleared of staff members. But even after the door to the Oval Office was closed, aides could still hear the president berating his most senior advisers.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, denied on Saturday morning that Mr. Trump had made derogatory statements about immigrants during the meeting.

“General Kelly, General McMaster, Secretary Tillerson, Secretary Nielsen and all other senior staff actually in the meeting deny these outrageous claims,” she said, referring to the current White House chief of staff, the national security adviser and the secretaries of state and homeland security. “It’s both sad and telling The New York Times would print the lies of their anonymous ‘sources’ anyway.”

While the White House did not deny the overall description of the meeting, officials strenuously insisted that Mr. Trump never used the words “AIDS” or “huts” to describe people from any country. Several participants in the meeting told Times reporters that they did not recall the president using those words and did not think he had, but the two officials who described the comments found them so noteworthy that they related them to others at the time.

SPOILER

The meeting in June reflects Mr. Trump’s visceral approach to an issue that defined his campaign and has indelibly shaped the first year of his presidency.

Seizing on immigration as the cause of countless social and economic problems, Mr. Trump entered office with an agenda of symbolic but incompletely thought-out goals, the product not of rigorous policy debate but of emotionally charged personal interactions and an instinct for tapping into the nativist views of white working-class Americans.

Like many of his initiatives, his effort to change American immigration policy has been executed through a disorderly and dysfunctional process that sought from the start to defy the bureaucracy charged with enforcing it, according to interviews with three dozen current and former administration officials, lawmakers and others close to the process, many of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to detail private interactions.

But while Mr. Trump has been repeatedly frustrated by the limits of his power, his efforts to remake decades of immigration policy have gained increasing momentum as the White House became more disciplined and adept at either ignoring or undercutting the entrenched opposition of many parts of the government. The resulting changes have had far-reaching consequences, not only for the immigrants who have sought to make a new home in this country, but also for the United States’ image in the world.

“We have taken a giant steamliner barreling full speed,” Mr. Miller said in a recent interview. “Slowed it, stopped it, begun to turn it around and started sailing in the other direction.”

It is an assessment shared ruefully by Mr. Trump’s harshest critics, who see a darker view of the past year. Frank Sharry, the executive director of America’s Voice, a pro-immigration group, argues that the president’s immigration agenda is motivated by racism.

“He’s basically saying, ‘You people of color coming to America seeking the American dream are a threat to the white people,’” said Mr. Sharry, an outspoken critic of the president. “He’s come into office with an aggressive strategy of trying to reverse the demographic changes underway in America.”

A Pledge With Appeal

Those who know Mr. Trump say that his attitude toward immigrants long predates his entry into politics.

“He’s always been fearful where other cultures are concerned and always had anxiety about food and safety when he travels,” said Michael D’Antonio, who interviewed him for the biography “The Truth About Trump.” “His objectification and demonization of people who are different has festered for decades.”

Friends say Mr. Trump, a developer turned reality TV star, grew to see immigration as a zero-sum issue: What is good for immigrants is bad for America. In 2014, well before becoming a candidate, he tweeted: “Our government now imports illegal immigrants and deadly diseases. Our leaders are inept.”

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op dinsdag 05-08-2014 om 14:55:55 Our government now imports illegal immigrants and deadly diseases. Our leaders are inept. reageer retweet

But he remained conflicted, viewing himself as benevolent and wanting to be liked by the many immigrants he employed.

Over time, the anti-immigrant tendencies hardened, and two of his early advisers, Roger J. Stone Jr. and Sam Nunberg, stoked that sentiment. But it was Mr. Trump who added an anti-immigrant screed to his Trump Tower campaign announcement in June 2015 in New York City without telling his aides.

“When do we beat Mexico at the border? They’re laughing at us, at our stupidity,” Mr. Trump ad-libbed. “They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems,” he continued. “They’re bringing drugs; they’re bringing crime; they’re rapists.”

During his campaign, he pushed a false story about Muslims celebrating in Jersey City as they watched the towers fall after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in New York. He said illegal immigrants were like “vomit” crossing the border. And he made pledges that he clearly could not fulfill.

“We will begin moving them out, Day 1,” he said at a rally in August 2016, adding, “My first hour in office, those people are gone.”

Democrats and some Republicans recoiled, calling Mr. Trump’s messaging damaging and divisive. But for the candidate, the idea of securing the country against outsiders with a wall had intoxicating appeal, though privately, he acknowledged that it was a rhetorical device to whip up crowds when they became listless.

Senator Tom Cotton, Republican of Arkansas, whom Mr. Trump consults regularly on the matter, said it was not a stretch to attribute Mr. Trump’s victory to issues where Mr. Trump broke with a Republican establishment orthodoxy that had disappointed anti-immigrant conservatives for decades.

“There’s no issue on which he was more unorthodox than on immigration,” Mr. Cotton said.

Ban Restarts Enforcement

Mr. Trump came into office with a long list of campaign promises that included not only building the wall (and making Mexico pay for it), but creating a “deportation force,” barring Muslims from entering the country and immediately deporting millions of immigrants with criminal records.

Mr. Miller and other aides had the task of turning those promises into a policy agenda that would also include an assault against a pro-immigration bureaucracy they viewed with suspicion and disdain. Working in secret, they drafted a half-dozen executive orders. One would crack down on so-called sanctuary cities. Another proposed changing the definition of a criminal alien so that it included people arrested — not just those convicted.

But mindful of his campaign promise to quickly impose “extreme vetting,” Mr. Trump decided his first symbolic action would be an executive order to place a worldwide ban on travel from nations the White House considered compromised by terrorism.

With no policy experts in place, and deeply suspicious of career civil servants they regarded as spies for President Barack Obama, Mr. Miller and a small group of aides started with an Obama-era law that identified seven terror-prone “countries of concern.” And then they skipped practically every step in the standard White House playbook for creating and introducing a major policy.

The National Security Council never convened to consider the travel ban proposal. Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary at the time, did not see it ahead of time. Lawyers and policy experts at the White House, the Justice Department and the Homeland Security Department were not asked to weigh in. There were no talking points for friendly surrogates, no detailed briefings for reporters or lawmakers, no answers to frequently asked questions, such as whether green card holders would be affected.

The announcement of the travel ban on a Friday night, seven days after Mr. Trump’s inauguration, created chaotic scenes at the nation’s largest airports, as hundreds of people were stopped, and set off widespread confusion and loud protests. Lawyers for the government raced to defend the president’s actions against court challenges, while aides struggled to explain the policy to perplexed lawmakers the next night at a black-tie dinner.

White House aides resorted to Google searches and frenzied scans of the United States Code to figure out which countries were affected.

But for the president, the chaos was the first, sharp evidence that he could exert power over the bureaucracy he criticized on the campaign trail.

“It’s working out very nicely,” Mr. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office the next day.

At a hastily called Saturday night meeting in the Situation Room, Mr. Miller told senior government officials that they should tune out the whining.

Sitting at the head of the table, across from Mr. Kelly, Mr. Miller repeated what he told the president: This is what we wanted — to turn immigration enforcement back on.

Mr. Kelly, who shared Mr. Trump’s views about threats from abroad, was nonetheless livid that his employees at homeland security had been called into action with no guidance or preparation. He told angry lawmakers that responsibility for the rollout was “all on me.” Privately, he told the White House, “That’s not going to happen again.”

Forced to Back Down

Amid the turbulent first weeks, Mr. Trump’s attempt to bend the government’s immigration apparatus to his will began to take shape.

The ban’s message of “keep out” helped drive down illegal border crossings as much as 70 percent, even without being formally put into effect.

Immigration officers rounded up 41,318 undocumented immigrants during the president’s first 100 days, nearly a 40 percent increase. The Justice Department began hiring more immigration judges to speed up deportations. Officials threatened to hold back funds for sanctuary cities. The flow of refugees into the United States slowed.

Mr. Trump “has taken the handcuffs off,” said Steven A. Camarota of the Center for Immigration Studies, an advocacy group that favors more limits on immigration.

Mr. Obama had been criticized by immigrant rights groups for excessive deportations, especially in his first term. But Mr. Camarota said that Mr. Trump’s approach was “a distinct change, to look at what is immigration doing to us, rather than what is the benefit for the immigrant.”

The president, however, remained frustrated that the shift was not yielding results.

By early March, judges across the country had blocked his travel ban. Immigrant rights activists were crowing that they had thwarted the new president. Even Mr. Trump’s own lawyers told him he had to give up on defending the ban.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions and lawyers at the White House and Justice Department had decided that waging an uphill legal battle to defend the directive in the Supreme Court would fail. Instead, they wanted to devise a narrower one that could pass legal muster.

The president, though, was furious about what he saw as backing down to politically correct adversaries. He did not want a watered-down version of the travel ban, he yelled at Donald F. McGahn II, the White House counsel, as the issue came to a head on Friday, March 3, in the Oval Office.

It was a familiar moment for Mr. Trump’s advisers. The president did not mind being told “no” in private, and would sometimes relent. But he could not abide a public turnabout, a retreat. At those moments, he often exploded at whoever was nearby.

As Marine One waited on the South Lawn for Mr. Trump to begin his weekend trip to Palm Beach, Fla., Mr. McGahn insisted that administration lawyers had already promised the court that Mr. Trump would issue a new order. There was no alternative, he said.

“This is bullshit,” the president responded.

With nothing resolved, Mr. Trump, furious, left the White House. A senior aide emailed a blunt warning to a colleague waiting aboard Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland: “He’s coming in hot.”

Already mad at Mr. Sessions, who the day before had recused himself in the Russia investigation, Mr. Trump refused to take his calls. Aides told Mr. Sessions he would have to fly down to Mar-a-Lago to plead with the president in person to sign the new order.

Over dinner that night with Mr. Sessions and Mr. McGahn, Mr. Trump relented. When he was back in Washington, he signed the new order. It was an indication that he had begun to understand — or at least, begrudgingly accept — the need to follow a process.

Still, one senior adviser later recalled never having seen a president so angry signing anything.

Soft Spot for ‘Dreamers’

As a candidate, Mr. Trump had repeatedly contradicted himself about the deportations he would pursue, and whether he was opposed to any kind of path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. But he also courted conservative voters by describing an Obama-era policy as an illegal amnesty for the immigrants who had been brought to the United States as children.

During the transition, his aides drafted an executive order to end the program, known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. But the executive order was held back as the new president struggled with conflicted feelings about the young immigrants, known as Dreamers.

“We’re going to take care of those kids,” Mr. Trump had pledged to Senator Richard J. Durbin during a private exchange at his Inauguration Day luncheon.

The comment was a fleeting glimpse of the president’s tendency to seek approval from whomever might be sitting across from him, and the power that personal interactions have in shaping his views.

In 2013, Mr. Trump met with a small group of Dreamers at Trump Tower, hoping to improve his standing with the Hispanic community. José Machado told Mr. Trump about waking up at the age of 15 to find his mother had vanished — deported, he later learned, back to Nicaragua.

“Honestly,” Mr. Machado said of Mr. Trump, “he had no idea.”

Mr. Trump appeared to be touched by the personal stories, and insisted that the Dreamers accompany him to his gift shop for watches, books and neckties to take home as souvenirs. In the elevator on the way down, he quietly nodded and said, “You convinced me.”

Aware that the president was torn about the Dreamers, Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, quietly reached out in March to Mr. Durbin, who had championed legislation called the Dream Act to legalize the immigrants, to test the waters for a possible deal.

After weeks of private meetings on Capitol Hill and telephone conversations with Mr. Durbin and Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican supportive of legalizing the Dreamers, Mr. Kushner invited them to dinner at the six-bedroom estate he shares with his wife, Ivanka Trump.

But Mr. Durbin’s hope of a deal faded when he arrived to the house and saw who one of the guests would be.

“Stephen Miller’s presence made it a much different experience than I expected,” Mr. Durbin said later.

Confronting the ‘Deep State’

Even as the administration was engaged in a court battle over the travel ban, it began to turn its attention to another way of tightening the border — by limiting the number of refugees admitted each year to the United States. And if there was one “deep state” stronghold of Obama holdovers that Mr. Trump and his allies suspected of undermining them on immigration, it was the State Department, which administers the refugee program.

At the department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, there was a sense of foreboding about a president who had once warned that any refugee might be a “Trojan horse” or part of a “terrorist army.”

Mr. Trump had already used the travel ban to cut the number of allowable refugees admitted to the United States in 2017 to 50,000, a fraction of the 110,000 set by Mr. Obama. Now, Mr. Trump would have to decide the level for 2018.

At an April meeting with top officials from the bureau in the West Wing’s Roosevelt Room, Mr. Miller cited statistics from the restrictionist Center for Immigration Studies that indicated that resettling refugees in the United States was far costlier than helping them in their own region.

Mr. Miller was visibly displeased, according to people present, when State Department officials pushed back, citing another study that found refugees to be a net benefit to the economy. He called the contention absurd and said it was exactly the wrong kind of thinking.

But the travel ban had been a lesson for Mr. Trump and his aides on the dangers of dictating a major policy change without involving the people who enforce it. This time, instead of shutting out those officials, they worked to tightly control the process.

In previous years, State Department officials had recommended a refugee level to the president. Now, Mr. Miller told officials the number would be determined by the Department of Homeland Security under a new policy that treated the issue as a security matter, not a diplomatic one.

When he got word that the Office of Refugee Resettlement had drafted a 55-page report showing that refugees were a net positive to the economy, Mr. Miller swiftly intervened, requesting a meeting to discuss it. The study never made it to the White House; it was shelved in favor of a three-page list of all the federal assistance programs that refugees used.

At the United Nations General Assembly in September, Mr. Trump cited the Center for Immigration Studies report, arguing that it was more cost-effective to keep refugees out than to bring them into the United States.

“Uncontrolled migration,” Mr. Trump declared, “is deeply unfair to both the sending and receiving countries.”

More Disciplined Approach

Cecilia Muñoz, who served as Mr. Obama’s chief domestic policy adviser, said she was alarmed by the speed with which Mr. Trump and his team have learned to put their immigration agenda into effect.

“The travel ban was a case of bureaucratic incompetence,” she said. “They made rookie mistakes. But they clearly learned from that experience. For the moment, all of the momentum is in the direction of very ugly, very extreme, very harmful policies.”

By year’s end, the chaos and disorganization that marked Mr. Trump’s earliest actions on immigration had given way to a more disciplined approach that yielded concrete results, steered in large part by Mr. Kelly, a retired four-star Marine general. As secretary of homeland security, he had helped unleash immigration officers who felt constrained under Mr. Obama. They arrested 143,000 people in 2017, a sharp uptick, and deported more than 225,000.

Later, as White House chief of staff, Mr. Kelly quietly persuaded the president to drop his talk of Mexico paying for the wall. But he has advocated on behalf of the president’s restrictionist vision, defying his reputation as a moderator of Mr. Trump’s hard-line instincts.

In September, a third version of the president’s travel ban was issued with little fanfare and new legal justifications. Then, Mr. Trump overruled objections from diplomats, capping refugee admissions at 45,000 for 2018, the lowest since 1986. In November, the president ended a humanitarian program that granted residency to 59,000 Haitians to since a 2010 earthquake ravaged their country.

As the new year approached, officials began considering a plan to separate parents from their children when families are caught entering the country illegally, a move that immigrant groups called draconian.

At times, though, Mr. Trump has shown an openness to a different approach. In private discussions, he returns periodically to the idea of a “comprehensive immigration” compromise, though aides have warned him against using the phrase because it is seen by his core supporters as code for amnesty. During a fall dinner with Democratic leaders, Mr. Trump explored the possibility of a bargain to legalize Dreamers in exchange for border security.

Mr. Trump even told Republicans recently that he wanted to think bigger, envisioning a deal early next year that would include a wall, protection for Dreamers, work permits for their parents, a shift to merit-based immigration with tougher work site enforcement, and ultimately, legal status for some undocumented immigrants.

The idea would prevent Dreamers from sponsoring the parents who brought them illegally for citizenship, limiting what Mr. Trump refers to as “chain migration.”

“He wants to make a deal,” said Mr. Graham, who spoke with Mr. Trump about the issue last week. “He wants to fix the entire system.”

Yet publicly, Mr. Trump has only employed the absolutist language that defined his campaign and has dominated his presidency.

After an Uzbek immigrant was arrested on suspicion of plowing a truck into a bicycle path in Lower Manhattan in October, killing eight people, the president seized on the episode.

Privately, in the Oval Office, the president expressed disbelief about the visa program that had admitted the suspect, confiding to a group of visiting senators that it was yet another piece of evidence that the United States’ immigration policies were “a joke.”

Even after a year of progress toward a country sealed off from foreign threats, the president still viewed the immigration system as plagued by complacency.

“We’re so politically correct,” he complained to reporters in the cabinet room, “that we’re afraid to do anything.”

twitter:

EricTrump twitterde op zaterdag 23-12-2017 om 13:47:58 #JournalismIsDead https://t.co/xZaJD5ADb7 reageer retweet

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op zaterdag 23-12-2017 om 21:27:05 How can FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, the man in charge, along with leakin’ James Comey, of the Phony Hillary… https://t.co/9vYPo8QMbI reageer retweet

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op zaterdag 23-12-2017 om 21:30:06 FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is racing the clock to retire with full benefits. 90 days to go?!!! reageer retweet

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 01:31 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:

SPOILER

twitter:

EricTrump twitterde op zaterdag 23-12-2017 om 13:47:58 #JournalismIsDead https://t.co/xZaJD5ADb7 reageer retweet

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op zaterdag 23-12-2017 om 21:27:05 How can FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, the man in charge, along with leakin’ James Comey, of the Phony Hillary… https://t.co/9vYPo8QMbI reageer retweet

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op zaterdag 23-12-2017 om 21:30:06 FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is racing the clock to retire with full benefits. 90 days to go?!!! reageer retweet

quote:

Andrew McCabe, the FBI’s deputy director who has been the target of Republican critics for more than a year, plans to retire in a few months when he becomes fully eligible for pension benefits, according to people familiar with the matter.

McCabe spent hours in Congress this past week, facing questions behind closed doors from members of three committees. Republicans said they were dissatisfied with his answers; Democrats called it a partisan hounding.

McCabe, 49, holds a unique position in the political firestorm surrounding the FBI . He was former director James B. Comey’s right-hand man, a position that involved him in most of the FBI’s actions that vex President Trump and in the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while secretary of state, a matter that still riles Democrats.

McCabe won’t become eligible for his full pension until early March. People close to him say he plans to retire as soon as he hits that mark. “He’s got about 90 days, and some of that will be holiday time. He can make it,’’ one said.

A spokesman for McCabe declined to comment, as did an FBI spokesman.

Word of McCabe’s plans drew a response Saturday from Trump, who in a Twitter post characterized the move as “racing the clock to retire with full benefits.”

SPOILER

When Trump fired Comey in May, McCabe stayed to run the agency until a new director was in place and to take the political heat for decisions made by his former boss.

“Andy’s in a difficult position now . . . because of the hyperpartisan political environment,’’ said John Pistole, who held the FBI’s No. 2 job for six years under former director Robert S. Mueller III. Mueller now serves as special counsel, running the investigation into whether any Trump associates conspired with Russian agents to interfere with the 2016 election.

Pistole said McCabe “is weathering the storm.”

“It’s disappointing,” he added, “to see how the criticism of the FBI is being used to try to undermine the credibility of the Mueller investigation. I think they’ve figured out they can’t undermine Bob’s integrity, so they’re just going to go after whoever they can dig up any dirt on.’’

Within the agency, there is praise — but also some criticism — for how McCabe has handled his role. Still, he has become a lightning rod in the political storms buffeting the bureau. Conservatives have called for heads to roll at the FBI, and McCabe is atop the lists of many. But current and former FBI officials said it would be dangerous to appease those demands.

“It would send a terrible message to move him now, but it’s also a terrible situation he’s in,’’ said one law enforcement official.

Last week, the FBI’s top lawyer, James Baker, told colleagues he was being reassigned, according to people familiar with the matter.

The pressure on McCabe has only intensified. He got an eight-hour grilling from the House Intelligence Committee on Tuesday and returned to Congress on Thursday to face more than nine hours of questions from the House Judiciary and Oversight committees.

Other senior FBI officials, including those who worked closely with McCabe and Comey, are expected to face similar questioning from Congress next year.

Republicans are focusing in particular on the FBI’s relationship with the author of a dossier containing allegations against Trump. The bureau offered to pay the author of that document after the election to keep pursuing leads and information, but the agreement was never finalized, The Washington Post reported earlier this year.

The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), has called for McCabe’s ouster, saying he “ought to go for reasons of being involved in some of the things that took place in the previous administration. We want to make sure that there’s not undue political influence within the FBI — the [Justice] Department and the FBI.”

Democrats emerging from Thursday’s questioning of McCabe urged him to resist Republicans’ calls to step down, saying the GOP’s new focus on McCabe smells of political opportunism.

McCabe should not be fired because of “biased political commentary,” said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.).

Trump and his supporters have made clear they want McCabe gone, but as a civil service employee, he can’t be fired outright without a clear finding of major wrongdoing.

Christopher A. Wray became the FBI’s director in August, and a new leader typically appoints a new deputy to help run the agency. When Comey became director in 2013, for example, he got a new deputy after about two months.

But within the FBI, even reassigning McCabe is viewed by many as a bad idea. It would be seen as caving to political demands and might provoke calls for additional housecleaning, according to current and former law enforcement officials.

McCabe rose quickly through the FBI’s senior ranks, only to find himself, beginning last year, the subject of intense partisan fighting about his conduct.

Republicans attacked him after reports that his wife, a Democratic candidate for a Virginia Senate seat in 2015, had received hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign donations from the political action committee led by a close ally of the Clintons. He had also been part of discussions with Justice Department officials that critics said prevented FBI agents from more aggressively pursuing their investigation of the Clinton Foundation. Agents were trying to determine whether donations to the foundation were made with an expectation of government favors from Clinton or her allies.

After reports about those issues surfaced in October 2016, then-candidate Trump singled out McCabe for criticism, and congressional Republicans demanded detailed answers from the FBI about his role in the Clinton probes — questions they insist remain unanswered.

In a separate Twitter post on Saturday, Trump expressed his incredulity once more, asking how “How can FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, the man in charge, along with leakin’ James Comey, of the Phony Hillary Clinton investigation (including her 33,000 illegally deleted emails) be given $700,000 for wife’s campaign by Clinton Puppets during investigation?”

McCabe’s role is being examined by the Justice Department’s inspector general, who has said a report on how the Clinton probe was handled should be finished by spring.

In May came Comey’s firing, which left the FBI, according to one person inside the bureau, “permanently playing defense.’’

McCabe was suddenly in charge, and, according to people familiar with the matter, law enforcement officials began to investigate the president for obstruction of justice.

In early December, McCabe faced yet another controversy. The Post reported that one of his senior advisers, FBI lawyer Lisa Page, had exchanged numerous pro-Clinton and anti-Trump text messages with Peter Strzok, the top FBI agent on Mueller’s probe. The special counsel removed Strzok when he learned of their communications; Page had left the Mueller team two weeks earlier for what officials said were unrelated reasons. In one text, Strzok wrote that he thought Clinton should win “100,000,000-0.’’

More problematic for McCabe is a text in which Page told Strzok, “I want to believe the path you threw out for consideration in Andy’s office that there’s no way he gets elected — but I’m afraid we can’t take that risk. It’s like an insurance policy in the unlikely event you die before you’re 40.’’

Republican lawmakers have seized on the text as evidence that Strzok, Page and possibly McCabe were involved in an effort to somehow ensure Trump would not win the election. But people familiar with the exchange said that the two were debating how overtly they should begin investigating Trump, and that one of the factors they considered was the likelihood he could win the presidency — which they deemed small.

Even that explanation presents a headache for McCabe because it places a conversation in his office about how the expected election outcome should or should not affect the FBI’s investigative decisions.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 02:10 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
Yups McCabe zit deze ellende nog even uit tot maart 2018.

Facing Republican attacks, FBI’s deputy director plans to retire early next year

[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 23 december 2017 22:34 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
Misschien moeten Sanders en Warren er maar een duobaan van maken

Elizabeth Warren & Bernie Sanders: Democratic Priorities in our Budget

SPOILER

Sanders doet me trouwens altijd aan den Uyl denken

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 02:23 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:

[..]

Met je 49ste al je volledige pensioen opgebouwd? Waar kan ik solliciteren?

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 02:23 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:

[..]

Met je 49ste al je volledige pensioen opgebouwd? Waar kan ik solliciteren?

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 13:34 schreef Tijger_m het volgende:

[..]

Met 20 dienstjaren mag je in diverse law enforcement eenheden met pensioen. Je krijgt dan uiteraard geen volledig pensioen maar je kan dan, wat men noemt, gaan double dippen, dus een baan naast je pensioen nemen.
Soms gaan mensen met 20 jaar pensioen, zeg bij de NYPD, en gaan dan als particuliere beveiliger werken of voor een andere overheidsdienst.

quote:

Trump’s Credibility Is So Low That Americans Don’t Believe They’re Getting A Tax Cut

President Donald Trump’s falsehood-rich style appears to have come back to bite him as he brags about his only major legislative accomplishment.

Having passed tax cuts that provide modest help to most Americans, Trump and GOP leaders are finding that most Americans just don’t believe it.

A CNN poll earlier this month found that only 21 percent of respondents believed they would be better off under the tax plan, while 37 percent believed they would be worse off. Another 36 percent thought they would not be affected much either way.

Trump - as he has done regularly whenever confronted with news he does not like - blamed the media for the plan's unpopularity. "The Massive Tax Cuts, which the Fake News Media is desperate to write badly about so as to please their Democrat bosses, will soon be kicking in and will speak for themselves," the president tweeted on Thursday.

Republicans counting on the tax cuts to give them a big political boost come next Election Day may be in for a disappointment.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 14:45 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
...en weer eentje in de categorie "commentaar overbodig"...

[..]

quote:

President George W. Bush’s 2001 tax cuts were larger than the ones just passed, and even included $600 “rebate” checks mailed to taxpayers. Yet just two years later, only 19 percent of Americans believed their taxes had gone down, while 32 percent believed their taxes had risen.

President Barack Obama and a Democratic Congress passed a payroll tax cut in 2010 that saved the typical family $1,000 through reduced payroll deductions. Voters again did not seem to notice it, and believed their taxes had gone up.

quote:

Parts of Puerto Rico Won't Have Power for 8 Months. What's the Holdup?

Some mountainous areas of Puerto Rico are going to be without electricity for as long as eight months, the United States Army Corps of Engineers said this week. It has been three months since Hurricane Maria swept through the island, knocking down tens of thousands of power poles and turning off virtually everyone’s lights. The amount of power being generated there is at about 65 percent of capacity — and it has been stuck around that level since late November.

We went to the Army Corps and the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority to find out why.

SPOILER

How long is it going to take to get the lights on?

Most of the island will have power by the end of February, said Gen. Diana M. Holland, commander of the South Atlantic Division of the Army Corps of Engineers. But the last stretch, the hard-to-reach rural areas, will not get power until the end of May, just in time for the 2018 hurricane season.

“Our power grid has never seen anything like this,” said Justo González, the interim director of the power authority, known as Prepa.

The Army Corps said the areas that were expected to take the longest were the central towns of Lares, Utuado and Adjuntas — together home to about 80,000 people.

What’s taking so long?

“The sheer amount of work,” said José E. Sánchez, an engineer at the corps who leads the power restoration task force. “The first time I saw it, I thought: ‘This is going to take a long time.’”
Continue reading the main story

The damage to an already outdated and poorly maintained grid was comprehensive. Lines went down, poles snapped, towers fell and substations flooded. There are 30,000 miles of electrical line in Puerto Rico, and about 63 percent of it was affected.

To underscore the scope of the work: Almost 50,000 power poles need to be repaired or replaced. Add 500 towers to that. And the towers are so heavy that helicopters cannot carry them, so they have to be installed in stages. It can take up to 10 days just to finish one.

And some of the supplies, such as the 30,000 power poles that were ordered on Oct. 6 — 16 days after the storm — are beginning to arrive only now. Some 400 miles of cable are expected to reach the island in the next two weeks, Mr. González said.

Why is there a delay in sending supplies?

Many of the items simply take a long time to manufacture, ship and offload, General Holland explained.

“The thing that challenges every mission that we’re doing here has been the logistics, the materials, just the physics of getting here,” she said.

Puerto Rico has struggled to obtain enough transformers, electrical fittings and electrical insulators, according to Prepa — to the point that crews have been assigned to recycle existing materials while they wait for new ones to arrive. That means uninstalling equipment from one place, certifying that it works and installing it somewhere else, without taking power away from the first location to light up the second. That process is inefficient, according to Mr. González.

“We have crews,” Mr. González said. “What we really need are materials.”

How many people have power and how many don’t?

The apparatus that allows the agency to know which customers have power, known as the outage management system, has been giving readings that are so out of whack nobody trusts them to be true, Mr. Sánchez said. So the government instead has been reporting how much power is being generated.

That number has fluctuated around 65 percent for weeks now. But because critical areas like hospitals and water treatment plants that consume lots of power were energized first, this does not mean 65 percent of households have power.

The generation amount has stalled, Mr. González said, because people are using less power as temperatures cool down and businesses and schools close for the holidays.

On Friday, Mr. González said that 73 of the island’s 78 municipalities have some sort of power, even if it comes from generators installed by the Army Corps of Engineers to create temporary power micro-grids. (Mr. Sánchez put the number of cities with electricity at about 55.)

The lights are mostly back on in Ponce. Culebra is running entirely on a generator the Army Corps installed at the local plant. The five municipalities that remain completely dark are Ciales and Morovis, in mountainous central Puerto Rico, and Maunabo, Naguabo and Yabucoa, in the southeast, where Hurricane Maria’s eye made landfall. The Army Corps is planning to put generators there to light at least the town squares of those cities.

Who is responsible for restoring power and how much is this work costing?

Power restoration is a joint responsibility of Prepa and the Army Corps, Mr. González said. Prepa establishes priorities for which parts of the grid to tackle first. The Army Corps is charged with buying the materials.

Some 3,500 people — from Prepa, the Army Corps and private contractors — are working on restoration, with about 1,000 more expected to arrive in mid-January from mainland utilities that signed mutual-aid agreements with Puerto Rico, Mr. González said.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has allocated $1.8 billion to the Army Corps.

Prepa has also spent about $75 million so far: About $40 million went to an Oklahoma company, Cobra, that Prepa hired to do repair work. More than $35 million went to Whitefish Energy Holdings, the Montana company Prepa hired as part of a widely criticized $300 million contract. FEMA has said it would not reimburse Puerto Rico for the Whitefish contract, but Mr. González said they were hoping the agency would reconsider.

How will the electricity be delivered?

Mr. González said his goal was to restore power by whatever means possible, even if it is with temporary generators or battery systems. Some homes were left in such bad shape that they might not be able to connect to the grid.

“What we want to do is bring electricity,” he said, no matter what form it takes. “Power is power.”

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 16:10 schreef Whiskers2009 het volgende:
Iedereen is ook wel errug gemeen tegen hem
https://mobile.twitter.co(...)s/944927689638662145

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 16:10 schreef Whiskers2009 het volgende:
Iedereen is ook wel errug gemeen tegen hem
https://mobile.twitter.co(...)s/944927689638662145

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 15:49 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
Of de GOP tegen die tijd nog door iemand wordt geloofd, is natuurlijk de vraag.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 15:30 schreef AnneX het volgende:
Dit is toch huilen.

quote:

“The rich will not be gaining at all with this plan,” Trump said after a Sept. 12 meeting with lawmakers at the White House.

quote:

Trump reportedly made the remark during dinner on Friday at the exclusive Florida resort, where initiation fees cost $200,000, just hours after he signed the bill into law. Asked for comment by CBS News, the White House on Saturday stood by its claims that the legislation would the benefit the middle class.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 19:44 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
...en weer iets waar alleen de titel alweer genoeg zegt.

Then...

[..]

Now...

Trump Told Friends at Mar-A-Lago: ‘You All Just Got a Lot Richer’

[..]

quote:

Barry Myers, is the CEO of AccuWeather. His company is highly successful and perhaps better known to many than NOAA itself. Basically, their business model is to take NOAA data and products on weather, developed with taxpayer dollars, and deliver them to the public in a proprietary form that customers want. He has been a strong advocate against NOAA having the capability to provide such products directly to the public, hence the rather boring form of NOAA forecasts which is interpreted and commoditized by companies like AccuWeather and many others.

AccuWeather has been active in efforts to undercut the role of NOAA. In 2005, AccuWeather, under the leadership of Myers’ brother Dr. Joel Myers, worked with Senator Rick Santorum on a bill to severely restrict the National Weather Service’s ability to provide weather forecasts to the public. The company donated to Santorum’s then Senate campaign and has been vocal about their interest in downsizing NOAA in the interest of privatizing weather forecasting.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:37 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Btw, wat klimaat betreft ... heb de indruk dat ik nog de enige ben (naast Molerus) die reageert in het wetenschappelijke klimaat topic van de mensen met een (in mijn ogen) enigszins redelijk standpunt. What gives? (Voor een link: W&T / Klimaatverandering - twijfel #9 )

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:37 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Btw, wat klimaat betreft ... heb de indruk dat ik nog de enige ben (naast Molerus) die reageert in het wetenschappelijke klimaat topic van de mensen met een (in mijn ogen) enigszins redelijk standpunt. What gives? (Voor een link: W&T / Klimaatverandering - twijfel #9 )

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:51 schreef Knipoogje het volgende:

[..]

Tja, weet je wat het is. Klimaatgekkies zijn extreem in de minderheid, maar heel vocaal. Daarom lijkt alsof het er heel veel zijn, maar zelfs op een roeptoeterforum als Fok waar iedereen met een sterke mening deze zo vaak en zo veel mogelijk uitdraagt zijn het altijd maar dezelfde paar. En nog een clubje van zure cynische posters die hun hele wereldbeeld hebben samengespannen uit lijntjes tussen Infowars en de hele reutemeteut aan andere websites die deze zure cynische posters tot hun verdienmodel hebben gemaakt. Ik zou er niet te veel aandacht aan schenken.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:58 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Ik ben al wel langer klaar met het absurde BNW-gehalte in serieuze fora.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:00 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Ik weet niet goed wat je verstaat onder "klimaatgekkies".

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:37 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Btw, wat klimaat betreft ... heb de indruk dat ik nog de enige ben (naast Molerus) die reageert in het wetenschappelijke klimaat topic van de mensen met een (in mijn ogen) enigszins redelijk standpunt. What gives? (Voor een link: W&T / Klimaatverandering - twijfel #9 )

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:58 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Ik ben al wel langer klaar met het absurde BNW-gehalte in serieuze fora.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:14 schreef Nintex het volgende:

[..]

Tja, Klimaatverandering bestaat, maar moeten wij volgend jaar 600 euro meer aan onze energiekosten betalen, omdat de aarde over 50 jaar 0.000002 graden warmer gaat worden.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:02 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

Ja, mss is dit het beste standpunt. Wat ik hier tegen heb is dat je je dan overgeeft aan de bullshit krachten die er spelen. Er zijn vast wel mensen die zich daadwerkelijk informeren of een beeld vormen aan de hand van de dingen die ze op dat soort plekken lezen.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:28 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Je ziet het hier ook al weer. Komt er een of andere lijmsnuiver dwepen met een striptekenaar die iets zegt over klimaatmodellen. Het is ook complexe materie natuurlijk en de nuances gaan mensen als Nintex met een zeer beperkt intellect de pet te boven, dus dan krijg je allerhande non-argumenten. Sowieso had ik vroeger nog wel het idee à la types als Dawkins dat mensen in de basis een consistent, coherent wereldbeeld zouden willen hebben, maar inmiddels heb ik me wel gerealiseerd dat wenselijkheid het wint van rationaliteit op vele vlakken. Haalde net in een ander topic ook nog een voorbeeldje aan van een NRC artikel met gevallen van vermijdbare vaccinatieziekten dat in de reacties ook weer overspoeld werd met vaccinatiegekkies.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:18 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Alleen wordt de aarde de komende 50 jaar niet slechts 0.0000002 graden warmer.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:58 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Ik ben al wel langer klaar met het absurde BNW-gehalte in serieuze fora.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:33 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

Wenselijkheid wint het alleen maar doordat andere mensen die het wel weten het opgeven is mijn indruk. Althans, de kans op winst van de ratio neem enorm toe als iedereen zijn steentje bijdraagt om de bullshit te bestrijden. Dat het individueel vermoeiend is en onzeker, dat staat buiten kijf.

twitter:

robertarampton twitterde op zondag 24-12-2017 om 23:16:27 “I’ll make a prediction - Santa is going to treat you well. Really well. The best he’s ever treated you.” https://t.co/VVO4GUOPr9 reageer retweet

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:39 schreef Monolith het volgende:

[..]

Dat is niet het punt dat ik maak. Het punt is dat rationele en empirische argumenten überhaupt geen effect sorteren op dat soort mensen. Dat bij creationisten de religieuze component dusdanig sterk is dat de rest er niet meer toe doet is natuurlijk geen verrassing, maar ook waar het klimaat- of medische wetenschap betreft geldt dat feitelijk.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:14 schreef Nintex het volgende:

[..]

Tja, Klimaatverandering bestaat, maar moeten wij volgend jaar 600 euro meer aan onze energiekosten betalen, omdat de aarde over 50 jaar 0.000002 graden warmer gaat worden.

Ik denk persoonlijk van niet. Daarbij wat Scott Adams altijd zegt. De modellen voor klimaatverandering en het verloop daarvan zijn gebaseerd op economische modellen en economische modellen kloppen nooit.

Ondertussen in het Witte Huis.

God Emperor Donald Trump en Melania volgen de kerstman via NORAD en bellen met kinderen
[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:18 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

Alleen wordt de aarde de komende 50 jaar niet slechts 0.0000002 graden warmer. Waar heb je deze desinformatie vandaan? Buiten dat is het natuurlijk zo dat als iets meer belast wordt dat elders de lasten omlaag kunnen. Ben wel benieuwd naar de lasten van het moeten aanpassen aan een oceaan die 7m hoger is dan nu.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 00:18 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

Alleen wordt de aarde de komende 50 jaar niet slechts 0.0000002 graden warmer. Waar heb je deze desinformatie vandaan? Buiten dat is het natuurlijk zo dat als iets meer belast wordt dat elders de lasten omlaag kunnen. Ben wel benieuwd naar de lasten van het moeten aanpassen aan een oceaan die 7m hoger is dan nu.

quote:

Eindoordeel
Het klopt dat het Nederlandse klimaatbeleid maar enkele tienduizendsten tot duizendsten van een graad aan opwarming schelen. Maar over het nut van klimaatbeleid zegt dat eigenlijk weinig.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 04:53 schreef Ryan3 het volgende:

[..]

Gaat alleen over maatregelen genomen in NL, en ja, klopt, maar niet zo wild als Nintex zei, kost ons ook niet 600 ¤/j. maar 50 ¤/maand per huishouden geloof ik.:

https://www.volkskrant.nl(...)pt-dit-wel~a4522331/

[..]

Waar we wel wat over het nut kunnen lezen over klimaatbeleid in NL, staat er niet bij.

quote:

Op zondag 24 december 2017 23:37 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Btw, wat klimaat betreft ... heb de indruk dat ik nog de enige ben (naast Molerus) die reageert in het wetenschappelijke klimaat topic van de mensen met een (in mijn ogen) enigszins redelijk standpunt. What gives? (Voor een link: W&T / Klimaatverandering - twijfel #9 )

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 10:10 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:

[..]

Ah, bedoelt hij dat. Valt me dan nog mee dat het effect per hoofd van de bevolking niet genomen is, dan had Crok zijn uitkomst nog eens kunnen aanlengen met een nul of 7.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 12:55 schreef SureD1 het volgende:
ben eens benieuwd of dat een tweet uitlokt..

twitter:

jaketapper twitterde op zondag 24-12-2017 om 17:52:18 The president retweeted an image of blood labeled “CNN” on the sole of his shoe. I noted it. Trump Adviser now faults *me* for “making this about” CNN. God bless us, everyone. reageer retweet

twitter:

JoeConchaTV twitterde op zondag 24-12-2017 om 16:00:00 The president needs to delete this. Criticism is fine when warranted, but this goes way too far with blood on the sole. There is a line and this crosses it. reageer retweet

twitter:

matthewjdowd twitterde op zondag 24-12-2017 om 14:47:29 White Evangelical Christians: is this the kind of leader that represents Jesus message of love and the hope of Bethlehem? reageer retweet

twitter:

BradMossEsq twitterde op zondag 24-12-2017 om 23:33:42 American journalists have died doing their job. When he's not calling them the enemy of the people, the President has now at least twice retweeted images of violence against CNN. reageer retweet

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op donderdag 23-12-2010 om 17:26:18 Wishing everyone a very Happy Holiday season! reageer retweet

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 14:32 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
PS:

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op donderdag 23-12-2010 om 17:26:18 Wishing everyone a very Happy Holiday season! reageer retweet

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 14:40 schreef nostra het volgende:
"We will no longer let the generosity of the American people be taken advantage of or remain unchecked."

quote:

"Infrastructure is by far the easiest. People want it -- Republicans and Democrats. We're going to have tremendous Democrat support on infrastructure as you know. I could've started with infrastructure -- I actually wanted to save the easy one for the one down the road. So we'll be having that done pretty quickly," Mr. Trump said at the White House Friday when he signed the tax overhaul.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 15:01 schreef Guus_Geluk7 het volgende:

[..]

Benieuwd of FOX hem nu beticht van deelname aan de zelfverzonnen 'War on Christmas'.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 15:21 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:

[..]

...lees: "Eigen schuld, dat krijg je er van als je niet blind onze Israel-politiek volgt."

Maar hoeven we dan ook de volgende keer als de VS ergens oorlogje wil spelen niet meer "vrijwillig verplicht" mee te doen? (De VN was trouwens zelf ook al bezig om de financiën efficiënter te besteden.)

.
en verder nog...

[..]

Trump heeft nog niet gezien hoe de infrastructuur er aan toe is? "Willen" is hier echt het probleem niet, Donald!

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 15:33 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:

[..]

Hoe denkt hij een gigantisch infrastructuur-plan te gaan betalen? Hij heeft al een groot gat in de begroting geslagen met zijn belastingplan.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 15:30 schreef Ulx het volgende:
Hoort dat geen zevenarmige kandelaar te zijn?

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 15:33 schreef KoosVogels het volgende:
Hoe denkt hij een gigantisch infrastructuur-plan te gaan betalen?

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 15:51 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:

[..]

"It will take about $3.6 trillion to put the entire country’s infrastructure in good working order." (bron: WaPo)
= 3,6 biljoen = 3.600.000.000.000 dollar

Dat gaan al die rijke mensen vrijwillig ophoesten vanuit hun taxkutkutkut?

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 15:01 schreef Guus_Geluk7 het volgende:

[..]

Benieuwd of FOX hem nu beticht van deelname aan de zelfverzonnen 'War on Christmas'.

Donald Trump Sends Giant Christmas Card to Lawmakers. #DonaldTrump #Christmas

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 16:31 schreef brokjespoes het volgende:
Altijd nog beter dan dat rare vuistje + niet goed uitgesmeerde bronzer van vorig jaar

[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 16:17 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:

[..]

Publiek-privaat, zal hoogstwaarschijnlijk door belastingvoordelen voor grote bouwbedrijven gefinancierd worden en door het heffen van tol op alle nieuwe bruggen.

quote:

Op maandag 25 december 2017 16:39 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]

Maar de waterleidingen en riolen en de verrotte stroomvoorziening dan?