October 3rd, 2017 - October 7th, 2017. 324-328 days since the Nov 8, 2016, election of some rich asshole, no.45, and 256-260 days since the Jan 20th inauguration.

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7 October 2017

Donald Trump on Harvey Weinstein, via Twitter

One of the biggest stories over the last week has revolved around film producer #Harvey Weinstein and the #Sexual Harassment allegations surrounding him. As expected, #Donald Trump decided to speak out with his own thoughts on the matter.

Trump on Weinstein

Earlier this week, the New York Times broke a bombshell story revealing that film producer and co-founder of Miramax, Harvey Weinstein, had been accused of various acts of sexual harassment going back decades. One of the centerpieces around the NYT article was actress Ashley Judd, who claims Weinstein invited her to his home to watch him shower. Other names like Rose McGowan double down on the story, while Fox News reporter Lauren Sivan went on to accuse Weinstein of masturbating in front of her.

In response, Weinstein quickly hired legal representation, denying the allegations in the process. One high-profiled lawyer brought on to defend the Miramax co-founder was Lisa Bloom, who then decided to quit the team on Saturday after massive backlash. As the drama continued, Donald Trump took time to give his thoughts, as reported by CBS News on October 7.

While speaking to reporters outside the White House on Saturday was Donald Trump, who was heading off to North Carolina for a fundraiser. While the president fielded many questions, including the latest scandal surrounding his relationship with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the former host of "The Apprentice" was asked about the allegations involving Harvey Weinstein.

"I’ve known Harvey Weinstein for a long time," Donald Trump said, before adding, "I’m not at all surprised to see it." As expected, it didn't take long before critics of the commander in chief fired back, pointing out his own history of sexual assault and harassment allegations.

Twitter reacts

Following Donald Trump's remarks about Harvey Weinstein, those who oppose the president made sure to speak out. "Takes one to know one I guess," one tweet read.

"Trump saw him regularly at the meetings," another Twitter user added.

"I’m sure they’ve had many of those sick locker room discussions he loves to have," yet another tweet noted. "You know him a long time? Uhm! Would it be bc you both have the same behavioral pattern?" an additional tweet wondered.

"So you gave each other tips, swapped stories, did Cosby attend the bull sessions?" one Twitter user asked. "Meaning he was totally cool with it and probably did it together," one social media user noted. As the negative reaction continued, it showed that the controversial history Donald Trump has with women was not going to be forgotten anytime soon.

Republicans shaking in their boots after Trump calls Schumer begging for help on healthcare

BOB BRIGHAM
06 OCT 2017 AT 21:57 ET

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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and President Donald Trump (R-NY), composite image.

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Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill are anxious after President Donald Trump on Friday called Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to discuss health care reform.

“The initial reaction among some Republicans was consternation, even though they didn’t know the upshot of the call,” Mike Allen and Jonathan Swan report for Axios.

A “well-wired” Republican told Axios that the failure to repeal the Affordable Care Act means President Trump, “can move without hesitation or ideological impediment to make a deal.”

The same source predicted it would “depress” Republican turnout in the 2018 midterm elections, “as Trump voters are further disconnected from the Congressional wing.”

Despite the early speculation on the political outcome, the report notes, “it’s not known what Trump proposed or how Schumer responded.”

‘Always at Trump’s expense’: Watch the Fox News segment that prompted the president’s ‘equal time’ rant

TRAVIS GETTYS
07 OCT 2017 AT 11:54 ET

Pete Hegseth and Dean Cain (Fox News)

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President Donald Trump spent Saturday morning live-tweeting “Fox & Friends” before heading to his private club to golf.

The president’s complaints about late-night talk show hosts were evidently prompted by a Fox News segment an hour earlier on the same topic.

“Is this for ratings?” asked co-host Pete Hegseth. “Is this because they’ve always been leftists and it’s unleashed because of Trump? Why are we getting politics late night?”

Philip Wegmann, a columnist for the Washington Examiner, told the hosts that he thought political jokes should be nonpartisan and truthful.

“Well, making fun of the president has always been part of late-night television,” Wegmann said. “It’s actually, you know, healthy for democracy. But there needs to be truth in kidding, not partisan ideology. I think where a lot of these late-night comics went wrong they swapped liberal talking points out for their punch lines.”

Wegmann complained that ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel had reportedly consulted on technical details with Sen. Chuck Schumer’s office on his Affordable Care Act monologue.

“He literally worked with Chuck Schumer’s office on that material,” Wegmann said. “It’s a total joke.”

Co-host Dean Cain agreed, saying viewers wanted light-hearted entertainment and not jokes about the president.

“I like those guys, but I don’t like watching them, personally, (because) I don’t want to get that politics,” Cain said. “I don’t mind jokes, but the hard politics, it’s — and it’s always at Trump’s expense, not in a joking way, just kind of mean-spirited always. People are getting sick of it, I think.”

Wegmann blamed declining late-night talk show ratings on their political content.

“If you are going to stay up that late for late night comedy, you want a laugh, you don’t want a lecture,” Wegmann said. “The problem here is they are not even original. You can you turn on any major news network and get criticism of President Trump.”

An hour later, the president logged into Twitter to make exactly the same points to demand “equal time.”

Trump’s Scottish golf courses just posted multi-million dollar losses — for the third year running

NEWSWEEK
07 OCT 2017 AT 19:15 ET

October 7, 2017

Harriet Sinclair

Posted with permission from Newsweek

For the third year running, Donald Trump has lost million of dollars on his Scottish golf courses, a financial report shows.
The president’s losses at two resorts in the highland totaled $23 million according to a report from Britain’s Companies House, with the golf courses also recording falling revenues, The Associated Press reported.
Unlike at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, which appears to have benefitted from the businessman’s election to office, his properties in Scotland are not in the same situation.
A report from The Washington Post revealed in May that the draw of the president at Mar-a-Lago had boosted ticket sales to events held there, which also hiked its membership fees from $150,000 to $200,000 at the beginning of 2017.
“Now that you have all this security, it just creates [the idea], ‘You’re special by being there,’” Jennifer McGrath, from the charity Hearing the Ovarian Cancer Whisper, told The Post.
“Now that it’s the president’s winter home, there’s that great chance that he might pop into your event. And that’s kinda good, too," she added.
However, the president has not received the same reaction in Scotland, where residents close to the company’s second resort on the North Sea coast have registered their objections to what have been described as bullying tactics by the company in an attempt to continue development in the area, AP reported.
In addition, the number of signatures petitioning Trump’s plans to build an 18-hole golf course in the North Sea coastal area of Scotland have reached 94,860.
Trump is not personally involved in running the organization, control of which has been handed over to his two oldest sons, but he retains a financial stake in the company, which has not seen success in Scotland over the past few years.
Indeed, revenue from the two courses in Scotland dropped by 21 percent between 2015 and 2016, from $15 million in 2015 to $11.7 million in 2016.

‘You’re all over TV all the time!’: Internet mocks Trump for griping comedians should give him ‘equal time’

TRAVIS GETTYS
07 OCT 2017 AT 09:14 ET

President Donald J. Trump arrives at the Memorial Amphitheater during the 149th annual Department of Defense (DoD) National Memorial Day Observance. (DoD Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. James K. McCann)

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President Donald Trump complained that late night comedians should be required to balance their jokes about him with praise — and Twitter users buried him in mockery.

Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel has recently become known for his scathing takedowns of Trump and Republican policies — especially proposals to repeal the Affordable Care Act — and the president griped that enough is enough.

Twitter users quickly pounced.

Veterans explain why Trump is trying to goad Kim Jong-un — and it’s frightening

NOOR AL-SIBAI
07 OCT 2017 AT 19:39 ET

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A combination photo shows a Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) handout of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un released on May 10, 2016, and Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump posing for a photo after an interview with Reuters in his office in Trump Tower, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S., May 17, 2016. REUTERS/KCNA handout via Reuters/File Photo & REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo

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Earlier on Saturday, President Donald Trump took to Twitter with cryptic warnings that “only one thing will work” in his ever-growing tensions with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

“Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid,” Trump tweeted. “Hasn’t worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, makings fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!”

According to Vote Vets, a progressive veterans group, Trump may be trying to provoke the North Korean leader into striking first.

“We need to take seriously the possibility that Donald Trump is trying to goad Kim Jong-un into a first strike, so he can respond,” the group tweeted later in the afternoon.

Check out Trump’s tweets — and the veterans’ response, below.

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We need to take seriously the possibility that Donald Trump is trying to goad Kim Jong-un into a first strike, so he can respond.

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Trump confirms he called Chuck Schumer to discuss deal on ‘great’ health care bill

REUTERS
07 OCT 2017 AT 09:47 ET

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Fresno, California on May 27, 2016. / AFP / JOSH EDELSON (Photo credit should read JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images)

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U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he had called the top Senate Democrat to probe interest in working on a “great” healthcare bill to replace Obamacare, after his fellow Republicans’ failed attempts to roll back the law.

Republicans fell short several times this year in their drive to repeal former President Barack Obama’s signature domestic accomplishment, a promise they had campaigned on for seven years. Trump has been frustrated by the failure, openly taunting Republicans as “total quitters” and “fools” this summer over their inability in the Senate to replace the law formally known as the Affordable Care Act.On Saturday, Trump dangled the possibility of reaching a deal with Democrats over a new healthcare bill, saying he had reached out to Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on Friday.

“I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows!”

A spokesman for Schumer did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Axios first reported Trump’s call to Schumer on Friday.

Last month, Trump sided with Democrats in a surprising debt limit deal that blindsided Republicans and left conservative groups aghast.

As a candidate for the presidency, Trump said he would pursue “insurance for everybody,” would not institute cuts to Medicaid and would “take care of everybody.” But the Trump-supported Republican proposals to repeal and replace Obamacare would have resulted in tens of millions of Americans losing their health insurance, according to analyses by the Congressional Budget Office.

Democrats acknowledge that Obamacare needs to be improved but have urged bipartisan efforts to fix problems in the law.

October 07, 2017 - 06:14 PM EDT

Trump to sign order rolling back health insurance regulations: report

BY JULIA MANCHESTER

The order will direct the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and Treasury to make it easier for individuals to group together and purchase insurance through "association health plans," according to the report.

The president also directs the agencies in the order to roll back the Obama administration regulations of "short-term medical insurance," which is a cheap limited protection option that the former administration claimed was did not provide adequate coverage for individuals.

The regulation requiring insurance plans to cover a set of package benefits will also be rolled back, according to The Journal.

The order is seen as an effort from the president to roll back parts of ObamaCare after his administration and Republicans failed to fulfill their seven-year campaign promise to repeal and replace the law.

The report comes after Trump tweeted on Saturday that he called Senate Minority Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Friday to discuss health care reform.

The move is most likely to unsettle Republicans, who have already watched Trump partner with congressional Democrats on a debt ceiling deal.

Republicans and Trump are in the process of trying to score their first legislative victory this year in the mold of tax reform.

The New Birth Control Rule Is All Kinds of Illegal

"Everyone has the right to practice their religion but they don’t have the right to practice it on someone else."

Susan Rinkunas

Oct 6 2017, 6:00pm

Today, the Trump administration posted a rule that allows any employer to stop covering birth control if they have religious or moral objections—effective immediately. The rule also allows individual people to object to participating in an employer plan that covers birth control. The administration argues that this move is needed to protect religious freedom, but legal experts and women's health groups vociferously disagree and argue that it is illegal on multiple fronts.

Quick reminder about the existing rules: The Affordable Care Act mandates that health insurance cover preventive services for women without co-pays or coinsurance; the independent Institute of Medicine (IOM) determined that birth control was one of the services worth covering. The no-cost provision applies to all FDA-approved contraceptive methods, from the pill to the IUD, and sterilization for women. This mandate has been in effect since August 2012.

Houses of worship were always exempt from the rule but other groups, including religious nonprofits, hospitals, and universities, have challenged the law. After the craft store Hobby Lobby sued the government and the Supreme Court ruled in its favor, so-called "closely held" businesses were able to opt out of covering contraceptives and instead shift the full cost to the health insurer. But they had to file paperwork for that to happen and some groups, like the Little Sisters of the Poor, argued that signing the form made them complicit in the provision of birth control.

The rule posted to the Federal Register today would allow any employer, including large, for-profit companies, to stop covering birth control altogether. We're not just talking about the return of co-pays; it's possible that women would have to pay the entire cost of their prescription out of pocket. The document itself says: "These final rules will result in some enrollees in plans of exempt entities not receiving coverage or payments for contraceptive services." Employers who want an immediate exemption would have to notify their employees; if they want to change it starting in 2018 they simply need to include it in the summary of benefit changes from the health insurance provider.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services told Vice News: "No American should be forced to violate his or her own conscience in order to abide by the laws and regulations governing our healthcare system. Today's actions affirm the Trump Administration's commitment to upholding the freedoms afforded all Americans under our Constitution."

But "all Americans" apparently doesn't include those who can get pregnant. Brigitte Amiri, senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a phone call with reporters today that the rule (which is really two separate rules for religious and moral objections) is "blatantly unconstitutional," adding, "they both violate the separation of church and state and also discriminate against women by allowing their employers to have a license to withhold a benefit that is guaranteed by law, based on their religious or moral beliefs."

During the call, the following groups all said they planned to file lawsuits challenging the rule as early as today: the ACLU, the Center for Reproductive Rights, the National Women's Law Center, the Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the California attorney general.

The religious freedom argument is a flawed one, according to Richard Katskee, legal director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. "Religious freedom is the right to believe or not, worship or not, as you see fit. It is never the right to use the government to impose the costs, burdens, and harms of your beliefs on other people," Katskee says. "Our First Amendment protects against that and the government doesn't have the right to override that by regulation."

As California Attorney General Xavier Becerra put it, "Everyone has the right to practice their religion but they don't have the right to practice it on someone else."

The Trump administration may also be in hot water for issuing what's known as an interim final rule, which goes into effect immediately, rather than after a 60-day public comment period as required by the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The document notes that "the Departments have determined that it would be impracticable and contrary to the public interest to delay putting these provisions in place until a full public notice-and-comment process is completed." Still, the Trump administration will accept comments until December 5.

"That is part of the major concern with this rule, that they didn't take the appropriate steps under the APA," says Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Women's Law Center. Amiri added: "Both rules are being rammed through on an emergency basis where there is absolutely no emergency."

There is also vagueness about what the administration means by a "moral" objection. In the past, religious groups have argued that life begins at conception, so they don't want to cover IUDs and emergency contraception like Plan B since those birth-control methods can prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus. (Doctors consider implantation, not fertilization, to be the start of pregnancy.)

So is a moral objection something like a conservative employer not wanting unmarried women to have birth control because they disagree with sex outside of wedlock? We don't know, Goss Graves says. "Is it an attack on single parents? Is it an attack on pregnancy more generally? Is it an attack on the very idea about where women should work and how they should work? We have no idea what they mean by 'moral' and it's disturbing that they would take this step, move directly in opposition of what the Supreme Court has already said they had to do, which was ensure that women get the coverage that they need and that you could do so while protecting religious liberties," she says.

Katskee adds, "There's no statutory authority for anything like the moral exemption, which is another problem." The Religious Freedom Restoration Act does not provide protection for moral and conscientious objections.

As long as this rule is in effect, it means that women's healthcare can be dictated by where they live. Multiple states have moved to codify Obamacare's birth-control mandate but there are many others without a law on the books that would be affected. California was the first state to pass a law ensuring free birth control in 2014, and now Illinois, Vermont, Maryland, Nevada, Maine, Hawaii, and Oregon have adopted similar contraceptive equity laws. Massachusetts is working to pass a bill right now. New York was also considering a bill but it died in the state senate in June.

"Even though this rule can't affect the laws that exist in many states that require contraception coverage, that doesn't mean that it's acceptable for the federal government to be giving this license to discriminate," says Amiri of the ACLU.

The document says it doesn't affect the many other ways that women can get subsidized birth control:

Moreover, there are multiple Federal, State, and local programs that provide free or subsidized contraceptives for low-income women. Such Federal programs include, among others, Medicaid (with a 90 percent Federal match for family planning services), Title X, community health center grants, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

Except, of course, the Trump administration has proposed slashing most of those and more, says Dana Singiser, vice president of public policy and government affairs at the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. "Some of the very programs that the Trump HHS has cited that could possibly fill the void created by these rules are the very ones that they are systematically attacking," she says. "That is everything from their various efforts to gut the Medicaid program, to eliminate the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, to eliminate Title X, and, of course, to defund Planned Parenthood.

"The numbers about where else women might be able to receive birth control at no copay, those are simply magical numbers that can't paper over how egregious this assault on women's health is."

White House: Trump is the one 'keepingthe world from chaos'

BY MAX GREENWOOD - 10/06/17 03:31 PM EDT

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Friday responded to Sen. Bob Corker's (R-Tenn.) suggestion that a select group of Trump administration officials "help separate our country from chaos," arguing that it is President Trump who is "keeping the world from chaos."

"I think the president is the one that's keeping the world from chaos," Sanders said. "He has an incredible team around him that's helping him lead that effort, and he's had tremendous accomplishments on the international stage by working with allies and confronting enemies."

"We're going to continue doing that. We're going to continue doing that as a team with the president leading that effort."

Corker said Wednesday that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary James Mattis and White House chief of staff John Kelly were helping to maintain order within a chaotic administration.

"I think Secretary Tillerson, Secretary Mattis and chief of staff Kelly are those people that help separate our country from chaos, and I support them very much," Corker, who announced late last month that he would not seek reelection next year, told reporters on Capitol Hill.

Corker also said that he hoped Tillerson, Mattis and Kelly would stay in their positions. His comments came shortly after Tillerson held a hastily scheduled news conference on Wednesday to push back on reports that he had considered resigning over the summer.

Pressed on what he meant by "chaos," Corker responded that the three Trump administration officials "work very well together to make sure the policies we put forth around the world are ... sound and coherent."

"There are other people within the administration, in my belief, that don't," Corker said.

Corker, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has spoke critically of Trump in the past. Last month he said the president had not shown the "competence" to succeed in the White House, comments that the White House later called "outrageous."

Trump officials roll back birth controlmandate

BY JESSIE HELLMANN - 10/06/17 11:15 AM EDT 13,765

The Trump administration on Friday rolled back an ObamaCare requirement that employers include birth control coverage in their health insurance plans.

Under highly anticipated rules published Friday, any for-profit or non-profit employer or insurer can stop following the birth control mandate on moral and religious grounds.

The changes also let publicly traded companies obtain a religious exemption but not a moral one.

The rules take effect immediately.

ObamaCare mandated that employers offer health insurance that covers birth control without a co-pay, with exemptions for houses of worship and some companies.

According to senior HHS officials on a press call Friday, employers will not have to file anything with the government to stop offering the birth control coverage; instead, they simply have to notify their employees of the decision.

The move could potentially impact millions of Americans who now receive birth control with no co-payments.

The changes follow an executive order President Trump signed in April that instructed the Department of Health and Human Services to address "conscience-based objections" to the mandate, which has faced strong opposition from religious schools, charitable organizations and priests and nuns.

Shortly after Trump’s executive order, former HHS Secretary Tom Pricevowed he would take “action in short order to follow the president’s instruction to safeguard the deeply held religious beliefs of Americans who provide health insurance to their employees.”

The decision is a big win for social conservatives, a voting bloc that strongly supported Trump in the presidential election.

Senior HHS officials who declined to be named said the intent of the rule is to provide "relief" to groups that have been engaged in legal battles over the mandate since its inception in 2012.

"We should have space for organizations to live out their religious ideas and not face discrimination because of their religious ideas. That was the case beforehand, and that ends today," said one HHS official.

The officials argued that 99.9 percent of women won't be affected by the rule, a conclusion they reached by considering the 200 entities that have participated in lawsuits against the federal government over the mandate.

An earlier study commissioned by the Obama administration showed that more than 55 million women have access to birth control without co-payments because of the mandate.

When the mandate was implemented, it required all health insurance offered by the vast majority of employers to cover at least one of 18 forms of birth control approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

The action has already drawn lawsuits.

Both the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Women’s Law Center said Friday they would challenge Trump administration's changes in court.

“Today’s outrageous rules by the Trump Administration show callous disregard for women’s rights, health, and autonomy. By taking away women’s access to no-cost birth control coverage, the rules give employers a license to discriminate against women," said Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the NWLC.

"This will leave countless women without the critical birth control coverage they need to protect their health and economic security. We will take immediate legal steps to block these unfair and discriminatory rules.”

Top Democrats quickly criticized the move as bad for women's health.

"This is wrong, it’s outrageous, and I will be pushing every Republican who claims to care about women’s health and economic security to join me in fighting back against it," said Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), ranking Democrat on the Senate Health Committee.

Conservative groups cheered on the changes as a win for religious freedom.

"This onerous mandate is a burden on employers, individuals, and religious organizations who, because of their beliefs concerning the protection of unborn human life, are faced with the decision to violate sincerely held religious or moral beliefs, pay steep fines, or forgo offering or obtaining health insurance entirely," said Melanie Israel, a research associate at the Heritage Foundation.

"Americans will remain free to make their own decisions about, and purchase or find coverage for, the drugs and devices at issue in the mandate. And, entities with objections will not be forced to be complicit in choices that would violate their religious or moral convictions."

Updated at 1:55 p.m.

Trump vented to Tillerson about lawbarring US companies from bribing foreign officials: report

BY BRANDON CARTER - 10/06/17 08:26 PM EDT 360

President Trump reportedly vented to Secretary of State Rex Tillersonabout federal laws preventing American businesses from bribing foreign officials, The New Yorker reported Friday.

A source familiar with the exchange told the magazine that Tillerson was visiting the White House in February when Trump brought up the topic in their discussion.

It’s unclear which part of the law Trump was reportedly complaining about.

According to the report, Tillerson told Trump about an exchange he had with Yemen’s oil minister during his time at Exxon Mobil. Tillerson told Trump the Yemeni official offered him a bribe to get Exxon to agree to an oil deal.

Tillerson said he refused and told the Yemeni official that they’d have to “play straight.” The official said Tillerson used the anecdote to explain to Trump that U.S. businesses don't need to use bribes, but that they “could bring the world up to our own standards,” according to The New Yorker.

The anecdote came in a piece titled "Rex Tillerson at the breaking point," looking at the secretary of State amid fresh attention to tensions between him and the president.

Tillerson held a hastily scheduled press conference on Wednesday to push back on an NBC News report that he had considered resigning earlier this year and had also referred to Trump as a "moron" during a meeting with national security officials at the Pentagon over the summer.

Tillerson denied that he ever considered resigning, but didn’t explicitly deny the claim that he referred to Trump as a "moron."

“The places I come from, we don’t deal with that kind of petty nonsense,” Tillerson said. “I’m just not going to be part of this effort to divide this administration.”

State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert later denied that Tillerson had used the language.

NBC reported further on Thursday that Trump was “furious” after hearing the initial report about Tillerson and reportedly “fumed” to chief of staff John Kelly and others.

Trump has repeatedly blasted NBC after the initial report, demanding the network apologize and calling it a “disgrace to good reporting.”

Thanks To Trump The U.S. Economy Lost Jobs For The First Time In 7 Years

By Conover Kennard on October 6, 2017 9:48 am ·

After taking office, Donald Trump has repeatedly taken credit for President Obama’s economy and regularly touts jobs numbers on his Twitter timeline. Now that Trump’s economy is in effect, we doubt he’ll be tweeting about the labor market losing 33,000 jobs last month.

While some of this can be attributed to natural disasters, Trump has also failed to pass any major legislation.

Job growth in August and July was revised down, to 38,000 less than previously reported. Economists expected 75,000 new jobs instead of a 33,000 job loss.

The economy has added an average of 172,000 jobs a month over the past year but that has dropped to a 91,000 average over the past three months, showing a trend which is not in Trump’s favor.

Axios reports:

Economists widely blame the disruptive effects of Hurricanes Irma and Harvey for the disappointing number, because the survey methodology dictates that folks who didn’t get paid on the pay period that included September 12th are not counted as employed.

But the report also revised down the two previous monthly estimates of job growth, suggested the slowdown is not all weather related.

After Obama took office, he had quite a task on his hands in dealing with the cost of his predecessor’s wars, but he did it. Obama’s economy took an upward swing, even after natural disasters such as Hurricane Sandy and the floods which ravaged Louisiana. Throughout his campaign, Trump called Obama’s economy ‘a disaster’ but compared to other presidents, that was far from the truth.

Fact: Obama took office during the worst recession since the Great Depression when the economy was losing 750,000 jobs a month and already had lost a record 9 percent of GDP. Obama started with a weak economy due to his predecessor’s decisions but his final jobs report showed 75 consecutive months of growth.

The unemployment rate, however, just fell to 4.2 percent, and we’re sure Trump will bring that up. Let’s see how long that lasts because the former reality show star is now making war noises toward North Korea. Also, if Trump manages to get the GOP tax proposal in the works, we’ll see more reports like this one.

But for a guy whose ‘presidency’ has been based on undoing everything Obama has done, he sure did a good job of that with the first loss of jobs reported in 7 years.

WH Staffer Explains Trump’s ‘Calm Before The Storm’ Comment, Proves He Shouldn’t Be POTUS (VIDEO)

By Vera on October 6, 2017 11:36 am ·

By now, most of us – even conservatives – know that Donald Trump has no business being in the White House or running the country. Unfortunately for Trump, even the words of his own White House staffers can be used as evidence that he needs to be removed from office for his irresponsible behavior.

According to Axios.com, an anonymous White House staffer stated that Trump’s terrifying “calm before the storm” comment during a White House photo shoot didn’t mean anything – Trump was just “trolling” the media.

In an interview with MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle this morning, Axios political reporter Jonathan Swan said:

“I think there’s a high degree of probability that he’s trolling everyone.”

Apparently, this anonymous White House source had told Swan “Don’t you get it? He’s trolling all of you.”

America should be able to trust its president, but that’s clearly not the case with Trump. Swan pointed this out that Trump was extremely irresponsible to play around like this. Swan noted that when surrounded by military leaders, to “troll” about something like that “could have serious consequences.” Swan commented on Trump’s “madman kind of approach” and said:

“But this is what he does with national security. Obviously, there are risks to that kind of conduct.”

You can watch the interview below:

Trump’s behavior is reckless and dangerous. He makes comments and spews nonsense without even thinking about the consequences and how he might be hurting the country. A president should not be “trolling” anyone – he should be working hard to lead the country and take care of the critical issues that the American people are facing. Unfortunately, that is hardly the case with this imposter.

Trump Kicks Off Hispanic Heritage Month By Saying ‘Puerto Rico’ In Fake Accent (VIDEO)

By Conover Kennard on October 6, 2017 3:53 pm ·

Donald Trump kicked off Hispanic Heritage Month on Friday during an event at the White House. He did this after his thoroughly embarrassing tour of hurricane-devastated Puerto Rico in which he lobbed rolls of paper towels at victims of the hurricane and that was after he blamed the island for the natural disaster. Puerto Ricans are very proud people, but Trump tried to diminish them.

Trump spoke on different topics during his speech, from the economy to the Las Vegas massacre, then he addressed Puerto Rico which is now in crisis after Hurricanes Maria and Irma devasted the U.S. territory.

“We are also praying for the people of Puerto Rico,” Trump said while using an exaggerated Spanish accent.

“We love Puerrrrtoooo Ricooo,” he continued, again with the accent. “Puerto Rico,” he said again.

At that point, a woman yelled out, “We love you!” and Trump then said “and we also love Puerto Rico,” but this time, the fake president dropped his fake accent.

Watch:

Sure, the audience laughed because haha, we’re used to this ‘president’ offending every single group of Americans across the board. Perhaps a better way of honoring Puerto Ricans would be to not try to cover up his own misdeeds in handling the humanitarian crisis. On Oct. 4th, half of the residents in Puerto Rico had access to clean water and 5 percent of the island had electricity, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency website. However, by Oct. 5th, FEMA had removed statistics on Puerto Rico’s water and power supply from its website, so now we have no idea of what the island is dealing with and what they need to survive. The only thing FEMA left on its site was good news; not the real news which is very bleak.

Information on water access and electricity on the island is available only on a website maintained by the office of Gov. Rosselló, StatusPR. According to the website, 9.2 percent of the island has power and 54.2 percent of people have some form of drinking water.

But Trump says he “loves” Puerto Ricans as he mocks their accent.

WATCH: Mike Pence’s Photo Op With Puerto Rico Survivors Just Went TERRIBLY Wrong (VIDEO)

By Vera on October 6, 2017 5:01 pm ·

Proving that Donald Trump and his administration is the most clueless, out of touch team to ‘lead’ America, Vice President Mike Pence just had a really awkward run-in with one of the survivors of Hurricane Maria.

As Puerto Rico is absolutely ravaged from the recent hurricane, Trump has decided to turn his back on U.S. citizens and instead focus on attacking NFL players and the media. Meanwhile, his team is trying to do damage control to pick up the slack, and sent Pence to Puerto Rico to assure survivors that everything would be okay. Unfortunately, that plan backfired tremendously.

Everlinda Burgos, a survivor of Hurricane Maria from central Puerto Rico, ruined Pence’s photo op by holding the Trump administration accountable and pointing out that they weren’t doing nearly enough. As cameras rolled, Burgos put Pence on the spot and said:

“Don’t go to San Juan. Go inside the country, like where I live. I live in Naranjito, that’s inside the country. Right now, inside the country is where you’re going to see the disaster. Where you can’t — there’s towns you can’t go in.”

Burgos also nailed Pence’s boss by bringing up Trump’s disgusting, insensitive comment that Puerto Rico officials should be “very proud” that only sixteen people had died. Burgos said:

“You don’t know the people that has died there because they don’t know, they don’t have no communication. You know? So, right now they say 18 people died. No, no, no. We have more people died. But we don’t have no communication. So, go in.”

And things got even worse for Pence. Off-camera, a woman jumped in to correct Burgos and said the most current death toll stated thirty-four. Burgos added:

“Thirty-four today. Right now, that’s what they say outside.”

Pence didn’t know what the hell to say, so he muttered “Good to talk.” But Burgos wasn’t done with him. She said:

“I would like you to go to the center. Because that’s where the disaster is.”

Pence made a half-ass agreement and then asked, “You’ll be fine, your son, your family, and then you’ll be able to go home, right?” Clearly, he was still clueless of how bad the situation was, and likely had no intention of going through with his promise.

You can watch his awkward exchange with Burgos below:

The people of Puerto Rico deserve better.

WATCH: Pence’s photo op with Puerto Rico survivors gets awkward as hurricane victim chastises him

BOB BRIGHAM
06 OCT 2017 AT 15:21 ET

Vice President Mike Pence being scolded by Everlinda Burgos of Naranjito, Puerto Rico at the Orlando International Airport.

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A Hurricane Maria victim from central Puerto Rico chastised Vice President Mike Pence for the administrations attempts to spin the disaster.

“Don’t go to San Juan. Go inside the country, like where I live. I live in Naranjito, that’s inside the country,” Everlinda Burgos told Vice President Pence. “Right now, inside the country is where you’re going to see the disaster. Where you can’t — there’s towns you can’t go in.”

Burgos also disputed President Donald Trump’s contention that Puerto Rico officials should “be very proud” the death toll was only sixteen.

“You don’t know the people that has (sic) died there because they don’t know, they don’t have no communication. You know? So, right now they say 18 people died,” Burgos explained. “No, no, no. We have more people died. But we don’t have no communication. So, go in.”

A woman off-camera corrected, noting the death toll had been updated to thirty-four.

“Good to talk,” Pence replied to her focus on the rising death toll.“Thirty-four today. Right now, that’s what they say outside,” Burgos repeated.

“I would like yous to go to the center,” Burgos requested.

“Okay,” Pence agreed.

“Because that’s where the disaster is,” Burgos reminded.

“You’ll be fine, your son, your family, and then you’ll be able to go home, right?” Pence asked.

“I hope so,” Burgos replied, with a nervous laugh.

The Justice Department Just Said It’s Legal To Discriminate Against Transgender People

By Andrew on October 5, 2017 1:21 pm ·

In the Trump administration’s ongoing war on the LGBTQ+ community, the president has no greater champion than one Jefferson Beauregard Sessions, the head of the Justice Department. The Attorney General has a long history of animosity toward anyone outside his own tiny window of experience, including women, non-English speakers, “colored” folk, and especially those he has casually referred to as “ho-mo-SEK-shals” in court briefings (assuming he types in his own accent).

Back in July, Sessions attempted to argue, in the same vein as the unsuccessful attempt in Loving v. Virginia to maintain a ban on interracial marriage, that discrimination against gays and lesbians was constitutionally protected because it applied equally to men and women.

Now Sessions has narrowed his focus to the “T” part of his least favorite acronym: Transgender people. Early Thursday, the DOJ issued a memo stating their official position that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not protect transgender workers from discrimination for the same reason: Because employers wouldn’t be discriminating based on gender, since transgender people of any biological gender could be equally discriminated against.

Through spokesman Devin O’Malley, Trump’s Justice Department issued a statement on the reason for the reversal of an Obama-era memo which stated Title VII does apply, saying that the government can’t expand the meaning of a law beyond what Congress intended when it was passed:

“Unfortunately, the last administration abandoned that fundamental principle, which necessitated today’s action.”

You catch that? Necessitated. As in, we had to correct this, lest some weirdo think we might protect them when we don’t want to. Sessions and the DOJ felt it was necessary to clarify that transgender workers don’t have the same civil rights as everyone else, because you know, they’ve got nothing better to do. They’re certainly not focusing on the growing Nazi movement in America.

I wish I could say that I was confident the courts would strike this asinine decision down, but I’m just not. It’s hard to have faith in a Justice system that continues to protect white supremacists, gun fanatics, religious extremists, and anti-choice activists… All as they throw the most vulnerable among us to the wolves.

Trump administration to allow religious employers to deny birth control to their staff: report

NOOR AL-SIBAI
05 OCT 2017 AT 20:49 ET

Woman holding birth control pills (Shutterstock)

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President Donald Trump’s administration is poised to kill the Affordable Care Act’s “birth control mandate” that requires employers to offer birth control on their insurance, the New York Times reported.

Trump could deliver the new rules as early as Friday and put in jeopardy the free and low-cost birth control afforded to over 55 million people in the US.

The controversial mandate was at the heart of the Hobby Lobby Supreme Court case when the religious employer argued that being required to provide birth control to their employees violated their religious freedom.

Such exceptions are the target of at least one of the rules, which “offers an exemption to any employer or insurer that objects to covering contraceptive services ‘based on its sincerely held religious beliefs.'”

Trump’s anti-abortion campaign promises appeared close to fulfillment in May, when he appointed a “birth control czar” that was a former lobbyist with the National Right to Live Committee and a legislative analyst for the Family Research Council, the Washington Post reported at the time.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz asks if Trump is a ‘moron’ or ‘just an obnoxious racist’ in searing essay

DAVID FERGUSON
05 OCT 2017 AT 14:43 ET

Donald Trump throws rolls of paper towels to survivors of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico (Screen capture)

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The Israeli newspaper Haaretz published a scathing op-ed piece on Thursday asking whether President Donald Trump is — as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson allegedly said — a “f*cking moron” or whether he’s “just racist and obnoxious.”

Columnist Chemi Shalev noted — like MSNBC’s Hallie Jackson — that in his Wednesday press conference, Tillerson declined to deny that he’d ever uttered the epithet to describe the president.

“Stupidity is one of the more easily accessible and widespread explanations for Trump’s behavior,” Shalev said. “It’s true that Trump has claimed in the past that his IQ is much higher than that of Obama or of comedian John Stewart, but in that case, he’s doing an excellent job of concealing his intelligence, as his visit this week to Puerto Rico showed.”

“(R)ather than trying to cheer up Puerto Ricans, as he did in Texas, or console them, as he would later do in Las Vegas,” wrote Shalev, “Trump insulted the island’s residents on their own home turf. He told them they should be grateful they weren’t hit with a ‘real catastrophe’ like Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans in 2005. He didn’t stop complaining about the drain of Puerto Rican recovery on the federal budget, which he didn’t even mention in Texas or Florida. And to cap it all off, Trump was filmed tossing out paper towels to his audience in a scene deemed by one broadcaster as ‘the least presidential ever.’”

Shalev pointed out that many Trump critics argue that stupidity shouldn’t necessarily be blamed when “obnoxious racism” is more likely the culprit.

“He has described himself as ‘the least racist person ever,’ but since he launched his presidential run by describing Mexican immigrants as rapists and murderers,” he wrote, “Trump has described Puerto Ricans as lazy, Muslims as wannabe terrorists, African-Americans as thugs, Jews as proficient with money and women as inferior sexual objects. It’s only among neo-Nazis, apparently, that Trump has found ‘some fine people.’”“Prejudice and racial stereotypes are such a prominent feature of his personality, they maintain, that he just can’t keep them under lock,” he wrote, then noted that the president has provided plenty of evidence to bolster those critics’ assessment.

Some Trump supporters argue that the reality TV game show host turned president is “crazy like a fox,” and using chaos and confusion to always have the upper hand. The problem with that assertion, said Shalev, is that Trump’s loose cannon nature all too often ends up undermining his administration.

“The U.S. president has shot himself in the foot so regularly that it is only natural to assume he may not be the sharpest pencil in the box,” he said. From the Comey firing to the bevy of loud, indiscreet attorneys hired by the White House to Trump’s “ham-handed” attempt to explain away his eldest son’s meeting with Russian operatives, the president can’t — as one conservative pundit said — stop tripping over his own “you-know-what.”

Shalev discussed Josh Marshall’s theory of “Trump’s razor” — a satirical take on “Occam’s razor,” the theory that the simplest explanation is almost always correct. “Trump’s razor” states that when faced with multiple explanations for a Trump phenomenon, “the stupidest is always the right one.”

“But even if we assume that Trump is far from stupid, and definitely not a ‘moron,’” Shalev concluded, “most people would agree that both his election and his presidency are an insult to America’s intelligence, as well as the world’s.”

Trump ‘Access Hollywood’ tape to play near White House

NEWSWEEK
05 OCT 2017 AT 18:15 ET

October 5, 2017

Greg Price

Posted with permission from Newsweek

It was just a few minutes of audio and video, but it was so packed with vulgar, sexist and curse-laden language that some expected it to derail Donald Trump’s run for the White House.
Now, just days removed from the one-year anniversary of the Access Hollywood tape’s release, a group devoted to fighting sexism wants to make sure President Trump and the rest of the country remember what he told Billy Bush while on a tour bus in 2005.

The group, Ultraviolet, will splash the video across a screen almost 10 feet high and 16 feet wide set in between the White House and the Washington Monument on Constitution Avenue, and the images and the audio of Trump’s comments will run over and over Friday for 12 consecutive hours. The clip will start rolling at 9 a.m. EDT.

During the lewd conversation, Trump told Bush how he tried to hit on Nancy O’Dell, then an Access Hollywood co-host, even though at the time he was married to Melania Trump, now the first lady. Trump claimed about O'Dell: “I did try to f--- her. She was married.”

Later in the exchange with Bush, Trump spoke about Days of Our Lives actress Arianne Zucker: “Yeah, that’s her. With the gold. I better use some Tic Tacs just in case I start kissing her,” he said. "You know, I’m automatically attracted to beautiful—I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything."

“Whatever you want,” Bush responded.

“Grab’em by the pussy," Trump then said. "You can do anything.”

After the tape was made public last year, the public outcry was immediate. Both Bush and Trump issued apologies, though Trump also called the release a “distraction,” and later tweeted that he was just engaging in “locker room talk” with Bush. He made the same claim during his second debate with Democrat Hillary Clinton.

In a statement, UltraViolet co-founder Shaunna Thomas called the Access Hollywood video "a vulgar display of Trump’s true colors. It was not so-called ‘locker room talk,’ it was a man bragging about sexually assaulting women. That man may now sit in the Oval Office, but we will not let him—or anyone else—forget the tape or those comments.”

Like many people around the country, Thomas believes the Trump caught on that tape is the one no different from the man who currently resides in the White House.

“The Donald Trump on that tape is the same Donald Trump that sits in the Oval Office every day, aggressively pursuing an anti-woman agenda, including the active dismantling of legal protections for survivors of sexual assault. That is why we are showing the video on loop in DC, and that is why it is all the more important that we stand up and ‘grab back,'” Thomas said.

While the event is not expected to draw a large crowd, other groups, including Planned Parenthood and Working Families, will also be taking part, and a rally will be held at Lafayette Square park in front of the White House at noon Friday.

Sarah Sanders battles CNN’s Jim Acosta: You have a 1st Amendment ‘responsibility’ to be ‘positive’ about Trump

DAVID EDWARDS
05 OCT 2017 AT 15:00 ET

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Jim Acosta and Sarah Sanders (Fox News/screen grab)

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White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders warned media this week that they had a responsibility not to report “fake news” but she was not as ready to place restrictions on Second Amendment freedoms.

During her Thursday White House briefing, Sanders agreed with the National Rifle Association (NRA) that so-called bump stocks that simulate fully-automatic gunfire might need to be regulated. Sanders also pointed out, however, President Donald Trump was a big supporter of the Second Amendment.

CNN correspondent Jim Acosta noted that the president had called on the Senate to investigate so-called “fake news,” a remark that was seemingly directed at mainstream outlets like CNN and NBC.

“Does he value the First Amendment as much as he values the Second Amendment?” Acosta wondered.

“Absolutely,” Sanders replied. “The president is an incredible advocate of the First Amendment, but with the First Amendment, with those freedoms also come responsibilities. And you have a responsibility to tell the truth, to be accurate.”

“I think we need to move towards a more fair, more accurate and, frankly, more responsible news media for the American people,” the press secretary insisted.“I think, right now, when we’ve seen recent information that says that only 5 percent of media coverage has been positive about this president’s administration, while at the same time, you have the stock market and economic confidence at an all-time high, ISIS is on the run, unemployment is at the lowest level it’s been in 17 years, we’ve cut regulations at an historic pace, we’re fixing the V.A. for our vets,” she complained. “You’ve only found 5 percent of your time to focus on some of those issues. And frankly, those are the issues that most Americans care about, not a lot of the things that you cover. Not a lot of the petty palace intrigue you spend your time on.”

Trump warns military leaders: Today is ‘calm before the storm’ — and tells them ‘you’ll find out’ what he means

SARAH K. BURRIS
05 OCT 2017 AT 19:52 ET

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President Donald Trump with senior military leaders (Photo: Screen capture)

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During a typical photo-op with a group of senior military leaders, President Donald Trump had an eerie warning.

“You know what this represents? Maybe it’s the calm before the storm,” Trump said, according to an NBC News video. “You’ll find out.”

Trump then delivered a speech telling the leaders that his top priority is to keep people safe and empower them to do their work.

“Recently, we have had challenges that we really should have taken care of a long time ago, like North Korea, Iran, Afghanistan, ISIS, and the revisionist powers that threaten our interests all around the world,” Trump told the group, according to a White House transcript. “Tremendous progress has been made with respect to ISIS, and I guess the media is going to be finding out about that over the next short period of time.”

Reporters repeatedly asked him to clarify “what storm,” but Trump refused to answer.

Watch below:

‘Very much a racist’: Former ‘Apprentice’ producer claims secret Trump tapes are ‘unfathomably despicable’

DAVID EDWARDS
05 OCT 2017 AT 13:43 ET

Donald Trump appears in leaked "Access Hollywood" video (screen grab)

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Former Apprentice producer Bill Pruitt revealed this week that President Donald Trump had been recorded saying “unfathomably despicable” and racist things during his time on the show.

Following last year’s leaked Access Hollywood tapes in which Trump brags about sexually assaulting women, Pruitt suggested in a tweet that Trump was on tape saying “far worse” things.

Newsweek reported that Pruitt disclosed additional details about Trump’s time on the show while speaking to NPR’s Embedded podcast this week.

“We recorded constantly, we went into the boardroom to set up discussions about how and who should get fired [on the show] without talking and saying directly who got fired, so there was a big ,long exchange, all of which was recorded,” Pruitt explained to NPR. “Out of those exchanges came some really unfathomably despicable words said by this guy who is a TV star. I heard it, I watched it and those things are somewhere in some warehouse.”

In addition to remarks about women, Pruitt said that Trump made remarks that were ”very much a racist issue” directed at African-Americans, Jewish groups and other minorities.

Pruitt also lamented that “a cultural icon emerged because we weren’t necessarily truthful about our portrayal.”“When you heard these things there’s the audible gasp that is quickly followed by a cough and then you just sort of carry on,” he recalled.

Listen to the audio below.

The Horror of a Trump Presidency

Monday, October 9, 2017

Trump breaks silence on Harvey Weinstein sex. harassment scandal, Twitter erupts

Donald Trump has decided to weigh in after the release of the bombshell report revealing film mogul Harvey Weinstein's alleged sexual harassment.

Trump on Weinstein

Twitter reacts

Republicans shaking in their boots after Trump calls Schumer begging for help on healthcare

‘Always at Trump’s expense’: Watch the Fox News segment that prompted the president’s ‘equal time’ rant

Trump’s Scottish golf courses just posted multi-million dollar losses — for the third year running

‘You’re all over TV all the time!’: Internet mocks Trump for griping comedians should give him ‘equal time’

Veterans explain why Trump is trying to goad Kim Jong-un — and it’s frightening

Trump confirms he called Chuck Schumer to discuss deal on ‘great’ health care bill

Trump to sign order rolling back health insurance regulations: report

WATCH: Mike Pence’s Photo Op With Puerto Rico Survivors Just Went TERRIBLY Wrong (VIDEO)

WATCH: Pence’s photo op with Puerto Rico survivors gets awkward as hurricane victim chastises him

Trump administration to allow religious employers to deny birth control to their staff: report

Israeli newspaper Haaretz asks if Trump is a ‘moron’ or ‘just an obnoxious racist’ in searing essay

Trump ‘Access Hollywood’ tape to play near White House

Sarah Sanders battles CNN’s Jim Acosta: You have a 1st Amendment ‘responsibility’ to be ‘positive’ about Trump

Trump warns military leaders: Today is ‘calm before the storm’ — and tells them ‘you’ll find out’ what he means

Watch below:

‘Very much a racist’: Former ‘Apprentice’ producer claims secret Trump tapes are ‘unfathomably despicable’

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