Day 40: A Speech

So, tonight Trump gave a speech. I can summarize it for you quickly (with thank to an unnamed colleague):

"Fear, fear, lies, fear, nationalism, fear, lies, nationalism, lies, fear, cherrypicking, lies."

(Seriously, the guy's been speaking for more than an hour. I've just saved you a lot of time!) I'll post some links to analyses tomorrow. Most of what I heard was repetitions of previous dubious claims and misinformation, embedded with shallow promises and over-inflated self-congratulatory remarks.

Today was otherwise a fairly depressing day. Here's what I've seen:

• Trump has claimed that Obama is behind all of the protests that have recently occurred. The guy seriously thinks he is above reproach.
• Facing mounting criticism over the botched Yemen raid and the revelations that no actionable intelligence has resulted from it, Trump blames the raid on the military. This is a stark departure from previous Presidents, who have shouldered the burden of their decisions that went down badly. Trump sincerely believes that if it's a problem, it's because of somebody else.
• Betsy DeVos, notoriously uneducated person in charge of public education, has praised historically black colleges and universities for providing "options" to students, completely overlooking this history of segregation in this country. She has been rightly pilloried. (Original statement)
• Trump signed a couple of executive orders today. The first requires the EPA to review an Obama regulation on waterways, which Republicans have decried as governmental overreach. (Original text) Of course, the aim of the original regulation was to ensure that half the country has potable drinking water...
• The second executive order was regarding HBCUs. I haven't seen a lot of analysis of this one, but it doesn't read like it really has any teeth. Furthermore, hidden in the text is a revocation of an Obama-era order on the same subject (usually a bad sign). (Original text)
• Trump also signed two bills today, both regarding women in science. Note that neither bill called for more funding to improve women's access to science, but requires NASA and the NSF to report on how they are taking action. Insofar as I can tell, these bills passed with bipartisan support, but neither of them really has teeth.
• I mentioned previously that Trump's health care plan was catering to the wealthy. Here's another analysis, with exactly the same conclusion.
• Yesterday, I pointed out that the new Commerce Secretary had some shady Russian links. Here is an overview of them (video), and here is text analysis.
• The FCC Chairman has declared Net Neutrality a mistake. This is the opening salvo in an effort to undermine the foundations of the internet. Get your pitchforks ready folks, because we're going to have to fight for this one.
• Jewish Community Centers continue to receive a ridiculous number of bomb threats in addition to the desecration of their cemeteries, and Trump has the audacity to say that it's probably Jewish people responsible. Given the sharp uptick in antisemitism that can largely be blamed upon Trump, continuing to shift responsibility and indeed blame the victims is abhorrent.

Day 39: A wild budget appeared!

Something something Oscars something something Moonlight something La La Land something something. Surely nothing important happened?

Today's administrative news was dominated by their budget proposal. Let's have at it.

• Trump's first budget proposal is in. What do you think it contains? If you said huge spending increases for the military and commensurate cuts to all domestic programs and foreign aid, you'd be right! The proposal requires taking out $54 billion from domestic programs/foreign aid, which essentially means terminating a lot of them completely, but without touching social security/medicare. Expect this budget to be DOA in Congress.
• Trump's pick for Secretary of the Navy has withdrawn from consideration, citing trouble disentangling themselves from financial conflicts of interest.
• The Justice Department has reversed course on the Texas voter ID laws, having come to the conclusion (under their new head, Jeff Sessions), that suppressing the vote is AOK. I hope the ACLU will be sufficiently scathing without the support of the government.
• Further evidence that the administration is trying to bury the Russia story. Not only are they trying to convince the intelligence agency to help them, they're trying to pressure the media to help them too. But of course, nothing to hide here.
• Apparently hiring 10,000 ICE agents is tough, because you have standards for such a job. So, they're planning on lowering standards to actually fill the roles. This is the worst idea in a long list of terrible ideas regarding immigration enforcement.
• Wilbur Ross, Trump's proposed Secretary of Commerce, has been confirmed, despite allegations of shady deals involving Russia.
• House democrats forced Republicans to take a stand on releasing Trump's tax returns (or not). It failed in a party-line vote, with two Republicans abstaining.

Apparently George Dubbya broke his silence today to make some thinly-veiled remarks about the media and politics. Just in case you're feeling nostalgic for the days of dubbya, here's an analysis to remind you of the shit that his administration got up to regarding the media.

Day 38: Calm Before the Storm

We're expecting a budget outline this coming week (expect it to be bad), as well as a new immigration order (expect it to be worse). Finally, we're getting Trump's first speech to congress on Tuesday (expect it to be disastrous). So, buckle your seatbelts! As usual, I'm not posting rumors, just actions.

• Republicans have admitted that they want to suppress the vote because it hurts their election chances. They're usually not so brazen about it. This is a major problem with the American electoral system: you can be rewarded for suppressing the vote. This incentivizes doing exactly that, of course.
• The administration is trying to crack down on leaks by staffers in the White house. I am highly amused that news of the crackdown was supposed to remain secret, but was promptly leaked. Keep it up, staffers. We're rooting for you.
• Republican in charge of House Intelligence Committee balks at investigating Trump's Russian links. Simply put, this is the House turning a completely blind eye to the President, because he'll rubber stamp their agenda. This is, of course, utter bullshit.
• Speaking at the CPAC (conservative garbage convention), the head of the EPA said that its opponents are justified in wanting to eliminate the agency. Given the good that the agency has done in cleaning up the air and waters around the country since its creation, calling for its elimination is bad at best, calling for its elimination as its head is utterly disgraceful. I wonder how morale is at the EPA nowadays?
• Another act of vandalism/desecration at a Jewish ceremony. No word from the administration (which is absolutely the least antisemitic administration in the history of the country, you know), of course.
• Informal talks with North Korea are apparently off, after news that a forbidden nerve agent was used in the assassination of the North Korean leader's brother.

And finally, because Texas can't figure out what transgender means, a transgender boy has been required to participate in girl's wrestling. He won the state championships, which has ruffled a few feathers. Maybe they'll learn something from this? That might be a hard ask...

Day 37: Health insurance for none!

It's Saturday, so less political news than usual. However, there was an election!

• Title Story (Huffington Post): Democrats easily win state senate seat in Delaware in special election. This is the first special election since anti-Trump sentiment kicked into overdrive, and the effect was visible.
• More analysis on the Republican health insurance plan. The bottom line? Significantly fewer people covered.
• Agencies in Trump's administration suggest that there is no evidence that a travel ban is effective. As we could have all predicted. And of course, Trump has rejected his intelligence community's report.
• First concrete actions on building a wall with Mexico taken. I cannot believe that we are seriously wasting time and money on this.
• New executive order that slipped by on Friday: Trump takes aim at regulation again. (Full text) Here's my favorite lines from Trump: "Does it make life better or safer for American workers or consumers?" and "Trump says for years, he has heard complaints from corporate executives about overly burdensome regulations". Note - most regulations are in place to make life better for American workers or consumers at the expense of corporate executives. There is now way that Trump intends for this to help the little people.
• This article on how ICE agents presently view themselves is horrifying. A colleague put it well: "CBP and ICE are the new paramilitaries. Trump knows that even after everyone else has abandoned him, he'll be able to count on CBP and ICE, because we formed them by giving a bunch of dumb Republicans guns and the ability to detain."

Day 36: The End of the Free Press

So, Trump gave a speech today, at a conservatism event. He's railing against corporate Washington, whilst simultaneously giving corporations their biggest gifts in years (without a fucking trace of irony). He claimed that people were lining up for blocks to hear him speak. They weren't. Nothing else he said was worth paying attention to (and honestly, nor were these statements). Oh, and did you know that Facebook was bankrolling that little event?

In other news:

• The White house denied entry to a number of news outlets to a press conference, based on the administration's displeasure with those outlets. You know you've screwed up badly when you eject the BBC, and Fox News calls you out on it. Also? This is my favorite headline.
• Trump claimed that the US runs a trade deficit with every single other country in the world. The Washington Post found at least 15 countries where that is not true. 
• So, it turns out that asking the Whitehouse asking the FBI to suppress rumors is not only immoral, it's illegal (and they themselves have confirmed the violation). Anything going to happen? Doubt it.
• Around 750 people were detained within a 24 hour period during the implementation of the illegal travel ban. The administration continues to peddle its lies, of course.
• Serious analysis suggests that Trump won the election because his name came first on the ballot papers for a number of key states. In civilized countries, the ballot orderings are always randomized.
• Your friendly reminder that Trump's team has extensive links to white supremacy groups around the globe.
• Republicans continue to crack down on protests. At least 18 states have introduced legislation to suppress unwanted protests. Autocracy at work. (Note: Most of these bills would not pass constitutional muster, meaning that they're simply a waste of taxpayer dollars.)

If you want to groan a little more, ask yourself: which bathroom should Laverne Cox use? People tearing down transgender rights are really just revealing themselves as prejudiced bigots.

Today's news felt like a rough end to the week. Go and have a drink. You probably need it.

Day 35: Private Prison Lobbyists Earn Their Paycheck

Another day at work, another half-dozen ways the administration is trying to kill us. Where to even begin?

• Obama's order ending the federal use of private prisons (because let's face it, those companies are incredibly shitty companies) was just rescinded by the administration (Jeff Sessions in particular). Well fuck.
• CBP, working with ICE, checked ID documents from everybody on a domestic flight as it landed in JFK. This should not be happening. It reeks of a surveillance state.
• Trump has upped the ante yet again, claiming his deportation force is a military operation. This is disturbing. His press secretary tried to say the President didn't mean that, but just gave his usual meaningless word salad.
• Republicans continue to cover Trump's ass, just so they can get his signature on their legislative agenda. This time, they're burying a resolution of inquiry in committee. If Republicans believed in any form of accountability, they would be supporting this.
• Ivanka Trump is pushing for increased child care benefits for the wealthy. Because the poor don't need childcare?
• The White house asked the FBI to publicly denounce reports of communications between Trump's team and Russia. Oh? I wonder, what are they trying to hide?
• Trump wants more nukes. Having enough firepower to destroy the world a few hundred times over is insufficient, apparently.

Day 34: Recess is when you play

Congress is still in their recess, which means a slow news week, politically speaking. Highlights from today include the following:

• Two stories: This is what happens when you start mass deportations. Hint: it leads to completely needless suffering.
• Standing Rock has been raided, with all people forcibly evacuated. I am beyond words.
• Trump undoes transgender protections in schools. Claiming it's a state's rights issue? How on earth did protecting a marginalized population become a fucking state's rights issue?
• The administration is still blaming 'paid protestors' (as if that was ever a thing). This time, they're complaining that constituents demanding representation (democracy, right?) are giving their representatives a hard time, attempting to marginalize them by what is tantamount to name-calling. Apparently when the Tea Party does it, it's grassroots, but it's not OK on the other side. Don't forget: constituents are paying the salary of the so-called public servants.
• EPA boss Scott Pruitt is arm-in-arm with the industries he's now supposed to be policing. Nothing we didn't already know, but the email release sure confirms it.
• Federal data continues to disappear. The era of transparency has ended, folks.
• The administration continues to think highly of Guantanamo Bay, AKA depriving people of rights and due process by claiming they're not on US soil.

Day 33: Deportation Central

Trump, who ran on an incredibly antisemitic platform and has frequently used antisemitic imagery, slogans and policy, has recently come under attack for encouraging people to be antisemitic. Especially since he gave no statement yesterday condemning repeated bomb threats against Jewish communities and the desecration of a Jewish cemetery. So, today he gave a weak-as-water statement saying "antisemitism bad", obviously written by somebody else, because you know, optics. I love this response: The Anne Frank Center for Mutual Respect described Mr Trump's response as "a pathetic asterisk of condescension".

In other news today:

• New deportation rules have been announced. This is all dehumanizing and absolutely horrible. Trump promised a deportation force, and that's what we're getting. Of particular note is the expansion of expedited removals, which removes court hearings for people who've been here less than two years. A society is measured by how they treat their most vulnerable, and the US has just jumped into the mud pits to wrestle with the worst of them.
• So, Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, the new National Security Adviser? Seems to be liked in the army, but has zero experience in politics, Pentagon or Washington DC. Looks like he'll fit in just fine with the rest of the clown car.
• Ties between Trump and Russia just keep on turning up...
• How is Trump spending his time? Golf: 25 hours. Tweeting: 13 hours. Intelligence briefings: 6 hours. Your President.

In good news, Texas' latest round of abortion restrictions got thrown out of court.

Day 32: Not My President's Day

Today saw protests across the country against the administration. Otherwise, it was a reasonably quiet day.

• We have a new National Security Adviser: HR McMaster. I don't know all that much about him; I guess we'll find out more over the coming days.
• The administration seems to think that they need a new immigration order. A draft is circulating, and expected to be released soon. I expect immediate protests.
• In response to the irresponsible non-modelling done by the administration, economists are concerned that the government will no longer provide accurate data. (See also this)
• More analysis of the Republican health care proposal. The basic gist: screw over the poor, cut medicaid, screw over the poor, and severely cut health subsidies. The only winners: people who already have money.
• Trump promised to work so hard he wouldn't have time for golf. Hence, his aides are no longer letting people know when he's playing golf, because it's happening so often. Yup, this is a news item today. This is what we've come to.

Day 31: Trump invades IKEA

Last night at Trump's "I need to feel like the people love me" rally, he claimed that Sweden had just had an extremist attack. The world was briefly confused, before realizing that this was the perfect opportunity to mock Trump once again.

• As promised. And the mockery.
• There was actually a minor extremist attack in Sweden earlier this year: by a bunch of neo-Nazis. Not by immigrants.
• Trump is having trouble spinning this one, but decides to blame it on Fox.
• Trump is a compulsive liar. But you already knew that.
• This one isn't official yet, but looks like it's getting that way. The administration plans to greatly expand the categories that will get you deported. Expect official confirmation soon. Particularly heinous: "Instead, migrants who have been charged with crimes but not convicted would be prioritized for deportation." It's far too easy to charge somebody with something. Much harder to convict them.

Day 30: Stand by your public broadcaster

A slow news Saturday. Trump continues to be terrible.

• Want to take part in government? Join one of Trump's clubs! He'll let you watch the nominees get selected!
• Trump declared the media an "enemy of the people". This has obvious historical dictatorial overtones. He is, of course, completely unaware of these.
• Pence gave a speech to the international community, where he said the US stood behind NATO, but repeated the demand that other countries pull their weight. He also called on Russia to behave.
• The FBI has at least three probes into Russian behavior ongoing. Some details were released.
• Trump's budget office is planning on culling popular programs, according to its draft budget. I say we trim spending on Trump's security instead. We'll save far more that way.

Day 29: Mourning the EPA

The EPA got it's new administrator today. How long until climate change causes irreparable harm? I shudder to think.

• Today's new confirmation is Scott Pruitt as director of the EPA (in an almost-party-line vote). As a sworn opponent of the EPA and denier of climate change, you know this is going to be bad for the environment.
• This didn't make any news that I read, but apparently on Thursday, the senate confirmed Mick Mulvaney as director of the Office of Management and Budget in a party-line vote.
• Secret service security and travel expenses for Obama cost in the ballpark of $100 million over 8 years. It's taken one month for Trump to rack up $10 million, at taxpayer's expense. This makes me livid.
• Trump was considering calling in the National Guard to organize deportations. There was a furious response, and the idea has apparently been shelved. Here is the memo.
• House Republicans outlined a plan to replace the Affordable Care Act. Details are sketchy, but it looks shaky at best.
• Trump declares media the "enemy of the people". No sir, you are the enemy of the truth. This is blatantly driving partisanship and undermining a foundation of our democracy.
• Republicans don't believe that women should have access to healthcare: House passes bill aimed at reducing funding to Planned Parenthood, undoing an Obama regulation.
• Trump was apparently given a favor by the Chinese government in exchange for supporting the "One China policy". Very shady (read: impeachable) dealings going on here.
• Trump requested that government economists make up numbers for their forecasts. His promises were a recipe for an exploding deficit, so they're literally making shit up instead of making proper forecasts.

Day 28: A press conference

So, today was dominated by a press conference. Here's what the press thought of it.

• Title story
• The conference was ostensibly to announce the new pick for the Secretary of Labor. They never really got there. For the most part, Trump ranted against the press, and told people asking about antisemitism to be quiet. The whole thing was off-the-cuff: unhinged and incoherent, in typical Trump style. I appreciate Shakesville's take on this: "That press conference was an exhibition of abuse. Bigotry, insults, gaslighting, lies, manipulation, threats, self-aggrandizing, silencing." Here's my favorite coverage. [Transcript]
• Harward, the new pick for the National Security Advisor, turned down the offer of the post.
• Continuing to up the ante, ICE is now targetting churches providing services to the homeless. I am furious at the level of debasement that this federal agency is lowering itself to in the name of serving the "President".
• Trump is upset with the leaks, so he's getting a friend to come and review all the intelligence agencies to make them stop. The agencies are, of course, terrified that their independence and effectiveness will be curtailed (so that they don't find out what Trump is up to). The autocracy grows.
• Alexander Acosta is the new nominee for Secretary of Labor. He has a history of suppressing the vote (or trying to) and shady hiring practices. What, did you expect better?
• Republicans want to gut the endangered species act, because it gets in the way of mining companies from "making jobs". Just like I'd like to gut the Republican party, because it gets in the way of making people's live's better. Note their primary complaint: of the 1600 species added to the list, only ~70 have ever been removed. This is because it's hard to bring a species back from the brink of extinction, numskulls!
• Republicans have stopped holding town-hall events, because they're scared of being challenged.
• Republicans are acting as the rear guard for the administration: an investigation into leaks has been requested, but one into Flynn's actions is deemed unnecessary given his resignation.
• Of course, the Justice Department isn't going to pursue charges against Flynn.

What wonderful times we live in, folks!

Day 27: Get your house in order!

Not only did Flynn resign, but one of the nominations was scarpered today. Things look grim in DC.

• Title story
• And you thought it didn't get any better: Puzder withdraws nomination for Labor Secretary amid falling Republican support. This guy was atrocious. Do you think the next one will be any better? 
• Trump's campaign staff had constant contact with Russia during the election. As a friend said on Facebook: there are two possible reactions. "Oh shit!" and "No shit!"
• Republicans now calling for probe into Flynn's actions. Would be better if it was an independent committee rather than a partisan senate committee, but I'll take what I can get.
• US ups the ante with NATO, demanding European countries pull their weight. Not surprising, given previous rhetoric. However, this sounds a lot like a stick when a carrot might be a better approach to begin with.
• Pence is claiming ignorance over Flynn allegations. Don't believe him for one minute.
• Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Trump met today. The major message from the US: no more insistence on a two-state solution. Honestly, what other solution can there be? This seems very strange to me. Notable moment: Trump downplays antisemitism in his administration with typical bullshit response.
• Senate rolls back Obama-era gun regulation. The regulation prevented people with disabilities who could not manage their own finances from owning a gun. Appropriate statement: "I don't know why we think that somebody who literally can't manage their own financial affairs could be a responsible gun owner".
• Trump's executive orders are getting in the way of bee conservation, amid concern that an important pollinator is heading extinct. Oh, and the new head of the EPA? Thinks that neonicotinoids have nothing to do with bee populations plummeting...
• Undocumented immigrant protected by DACA held for deportation. Worse, ICE agents arrest a woman who was just awarded a protective order against her abusive partner, based on a tip from that partner. This is inhumane and absolutely disgusting.
• Trump's likely science adviser calls climate modellers a "glassy-eyed cult". I can't believe this guy is a scientist. Trump must have searched hard to find him.

I read up on Watergate last night. This administration is strongly careening that way, turning the Whitehouse into a criminal enterprise.

Day 26: Aftermath

The story of the week continues: what happened with Michael Flynn? Lots unfolding today. Here are the highlights:

• Flynn appears to have lied under oath regarding his conversations with Russia, opening himself to a felony perjury charge.
• There are calls for investigations into Flynn's actions, and for good reason. Republicans aren't interested, probably because they're worried about what else might be dug up.
• Republicans claim leaks illegal and vow crackdown. Despite them being very much in the public interest. You see, the problem isn't that he lied and was involved in shady dealings with a foreign state, the problem is that he was caught.
• Meanwhile, other Republicans are becoming worried about Russian influence in the Whitehouse. 
• Speaking of Russia, it's begun violating weapons treaties. This does not bode well.
• The Office of Government Ethics advises that Kellyanne Conway be disciplined over her promotion of Ivanka Trump's brand. We'll see if that actually happens.
• The Whitehouse website has draft versions of executive orders, conflicting with the Federal Register.
• Senate confirms Linda McMahon to lead Small Business Administration. This one wasn't particularly contentious, and most Democrats supported her.
• Republicans voted down a proposal to release Trump's tax returns. Too busy covering their own ass to worry about the bigger picture.
• European nations are worried about inconsistent and worrying signals from the US.
• ICE (immigration officers) backed out of a meeting where they would have had to justify recent deportation crackdowns.

Day 25: The first Russian casualty

Oh boy, are we making up for having a quiet weekend!

• Judge refuses to halt Dakota Acces Pipeline work, convinced by arguments that there's time for court action before oil starts flowing.
• Trump and Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau met in Washington today. Nothing particularly newsworthy there, insofar as I can tell.
• Our administration is going to be scandal-ridden as long as it stands. Tonight, the first scalp has been claimed: Michael Flynn resigns as National Security Director. I haven't pointed to this unfolding story previously, as it was mostly speculation and rumors about his ties to Russia, but it's now worth reading up on.
• Steve Mnuchin is confirmed as Treasury Secretary in a party-line vote, pouring more swamp water into DC than ever before. This is an appalling choice for so many reasons, the least of which is that his corporate resume at Goldman Sachs is a masterclass in corporate malpractice, leading to the GFC a decade ago. He's also known for tax-evasion and has numerous links to dodginess in the Cayman Islands. Finally, he was Trump's top fund-raiser in the election. Buying power, anybody?
• Compare this to the new Veteran Affairs Secretary, who was voted in with no opposition.
• Trump dealt with the North Korean missile affair while in the restaurant at his hotel. This is insane and completely irresponsible! THIS IS NOT NORMAL.
• Under Attorney General Sessions, we can no longer rely on the Justice Department to fight for voting rights. This is chilling, and states are already celebrating.
• In an unusual decision, a federal judge struck down a voting district plan in Wisconsin for partisan gerrymandering. Almost all previous gerrymandering cases have been based on race. It looks like the courts might finally be receptive to a mathematical measure of gerrymandering?

What I fear about the terrible executive cabinet that we are getting (apart from their terrible policies) is that they make a lot of executive decisions that don't get reported on, and due to this, it will be difficult to hold them publicly accountable.

Day 24: North Korea enters the negotations

Only one major headline today: North Korea launches missile test. Trump issued a statement saying that the US stood by its ally Japan. I hope a similar statement regarding South Korea is released soon. I'm curious what the response to North Korea will be, as this is almost definitely a deliberate attempt to provoke Trump.

Plenty of other rumors, proposals, comments, etc today. I'll report on them as they lead to concrete action.

Day 23: The Weekend is for Resting

I haven't been paying a huge amount of attention today, but it appears to have been a quiet day for the administration regardless.

• Whitehouse signals reversal on transgender rights. We knew this was coming, but it's a backwards step nonetheless.
• ICE raids continue, causing panic in Hispanic communities. You're going to be hearing about this a lot. Do NOT let it become the new normal.
• Proposal to require visitors to the US to disclose passwords to email accounts and social media. This is beyond horrifying, and a terrible invasion of privacy.

Day 22: Anybody else feel like they're rapidly aging?

No stand-out news today, although the first one here is really awful.

• ICE agents have performed raids in at least 6 cities. This is horrifying: "That undocumented immigrants with no criminal records were arrested and could potentially be deported sent a shock through immigrant communities nationwide amid concerns that the U.S. government could start going after law-abiding people." To be absolutely clear: the majority of these people are just trying to live ordinary, law-abiding lives (other than the 'felony' of providing a fake social security number or being in the country undocumented), and these actions are destroying lives and families while instilling fear into communities.
• Apparently Obama's "fiduciary rule" was contentious enough to be taken to court multiple times. So far, three courts have upheld the rule. This is good news: it increases the odds of the rule actually being implemented, despite Trump's opposition.
• Obamacare critic Tom Price confirmed as Health Secretary in a party-line vote. Another person sworn to destroy the agency they now lead.
• Trump vows to make a new executive order to halt immigration. Sigh.
• More foreign policy: meeting with Japan's Abe, and a call with China's president. Somebody looks to have taught him a little bit before talking to China, apparently.
• A quiet executive order was signed without fanfare, appearing only on the Whitehouse website today. All it seems to do is specify an order of succession in the Justice department. (Full text)
• FBI Terrorism Taskforce investigating Standing Rock activists. So, instead of putting terrorism resources where they should be, they're assigning them to US tribal citizens? Disgusting. All while Trump refuses to acknowledge white supremacist terrorism.

I've added a new "Resistance" page on the right, in case you are interested in touching base with local activists.

Day 21: Roosters come home to nest

It's a snow day in New England, so I'm on top of things early! Of course, we're only halfway through the day, and already so much destruction is occurring. Let's wade into it...

Along with the usual bucket of excrement today, there were three new executive orders.

• One was a national version of the "Blue lives matter" law, which basically took a group of people (law enforcement) who are already highly protected by the law (remember that these guys are almost untouchable in the court system), and significantly increased penalties for "attacks" against them. "Resisting arrest", which the police apply indiscriminately, is now a felony in Louisiana, for example. This is a big step towards turning America into a police state. There was, of course, no mention of the hundreds of people killed by police each year.
• Another tasks the Attorney General with creating a task force to reduce crime in America.
• The text of the third hasn't been released, only its title: "Enforcing federal law with respect to the transnational criminal organizations and preventing international trafficking". [Update: Here is the text.]

I haven't found any analysis of the second or third yet. I expect them both to be terrible. The third appears to be a thinly-veiled crackdown in immigration. While not explicitly mentioned, one gets the strong sense that that's going to be the end result.

In other news:

• In his first speech as Attorney General, Sessions made the following remark: "We have a crime problem. I wish the rise that we're seeing in crime in America today was some sort of aberration or blip. We need to end that lawlessness that threatens the American people." This is manifestly untrue. Once again, the administration is actively manufacturing crises to justify the suppression of people's rights.
• Kellyanne Conway wades into the Nordstrom debacle by breaking the law. We have those laws for a reason. I expect them to be upheld. The administration is not above the law. [Update: Republicans are pushing back! Wow!]
• Construction at Standing Rock is underway. This country needs to stop prioritizing oil over people.
• In bad news for nuclear non-proliferation, Trump proposed to Putin that we do away with the New START treaty. This guy doesn't even know what the treaty does, he just thinks that Obama negotiated it, so it has to be bad. This guy has absolutely no idea of the havoc he is wreaking on the world stage.
• Trump's deportation orders are starting to hit home. A Mexican woman who's lived in the US more than 20 years, with two children in the country, is being deported. Tearing apart families in this regard is so completely fucked up. Her crime? Using a false social security number so she could have a job. Graphic evidence from protestors against the deportation. I am ANGRY.
• Trump has no idea what civil forfeiture is (hint: it's terrible), but he's all for it because his police buddies like the money it brings them!
• Those calls you're making? Keep it up! Republican senators complain about phone jam.
• Trump is so busy being terrible that the Trump-Russia scandal isn't getting talked about.

 I'll update this page below if I see anything else from today.

• Trump held his first meeting on Veterans Affairs. Nobody from VA was invited, only those who stand to profit from privatizing "healthcare" for veterans. This administration does not care about the people.
• States are taking after Trump's attack on sanctuary cities. This is just awful. A speeding ticket is no justification for deportation.
• BREAKING: The Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit has refused to overrule the Seattle court's stay on the immigration order. The ruling contemptuously shuts down every government argument. "It is beyond question that the federal judiciary retains the authority to adjudicate constitutional challenges to executive action." (Text of the order)

If you're interested in reading why DeVos was such a bad candidate for Secretary of Education, here is an excellent writeup.

Day 20: A racist attorney general for a racist president

The steamrolling over American rights and values continues apace today.

• Conflict of interest? Nothing to see here! The Pentagon is looking into renting a floor on Trump tower, at a cost of $1.5 million per year. Because the President is leaving them little choice. I wonder who benefits from this arrangement?
• Trump is using his presidential twitter account to attack Nordstrom for ditching his daughter's brand. He's justifiably taking a lot of flack for this other obvious conflict of interest.
• Spicer continues to lie through his teeth. This time, he's claiming terrorist attacks in Atlanta.
• More stories of international diplomacy are leaking out. This time, we're finding out about how conversations with France went. (Spoiler alert: badly!)
• The senate confirmed Sessions as Attorney General today. This marks a bleak day for American. The previous two Attorney Generals, Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch, both brought honor to the position. I can't say the same about Sessions. There was also a little incident where Republicans used slavery-era rules to silence Elizabeth Warren for no particular reason.
• Two deeply chilling stories about "Just following orders". As was seen in Nazi Germany (and further in the famous Milgram experiment), you don't need monsters to follow your orders. Just ordinary people.
• People with a bit of knowledge of history are worrying about what Trump's reaction to a Reichstag Fire would be. The Reichstag Fire was the (likely orchestrated) incident in 1930's Germany that Hitler used to suspend civil liberties and strongly consolidate his power.
• Republicans continue to have their head firmly in the sand. From Autocracy USA: "Further indication that GOP is willing to overlook or allow any Trump excesses and power grabs, so long as it meets their political objectives."

In a twist of good news, Obama's climate action plan is working really well! (too bad Republicans want to kill it!)

Day 19: Who Needs Public Education?

The assault on all that's decent continues. In today's edition:

• Betsy DeVos was confirmed as Secretary of Education. Despite a huge resistance movement, the vote came down to 50-50, with Pence breaking the tie. Republicans are firmly in Trump's pocket, if they couldn't muster opposition to a truly abominable nomination.
• Media outlets around the country defended their record against the administration's list of "under-reported terrorist attacks". Outlets pointed out that whoever wrote the document can't spell, made up attacks that didn't happen, cared only about Muslims attacking white people, didn't care about Muslims attacking Muslims (the majority of terrorist attacks), and didn't care about White people attacking anybody. Furthermore, the vast majority of attacks received coverage by multiple outlets, sometimes dominating headlines for a week. Those that didn't were typically very small affairs. The whole thing is a farce that some poor staffer was lumped with.
• Trump met with sheriffs who support his wall idea today. He claimed that the murder rate is the highest it's been in 47 years, which is demonstrably false (it's a smidgen higher than last year, but lower than every year before that). He also offered to "destroy" the career of a state senator who a sheriff disagreed with. Petty and vindictive. Not a presidential combination.
• The US Army Engineers told congress that they will award the easement required for the Dakota Access Pipeline. =( I've nothing else to say.
• The Federal Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit heard from lawyers on the immigration ban. A ruling is expected within a week or so.
• A House committee voted to eliminate the Electoral Assistance Commission, the only body in the country tasked with ensuring the security of elections in the country. Amidst claims of electoral fraud and vote-rigging, of course, eliminate a commission whose sole purpose is to ensure free and fair elections.
• 'Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to President Donald Trump, said Monday that the administration will continue using the term "fake news" until the media understands that their "monumental desire" to attack the President is wrong.' Wow. Just wow. The administration truly believes that it is above criticism, and continues to work to erode trust in the media.
• The House of Representatives voted to repeal a variety of laws today. We'll see if the senate takes those bills up.
• Trump continues to attack any institution that opposes him. Opening paragraph: "President Trump appears to be laying the groundwork to preemptively shift blame for any future terrorist attack on U.S. soil from his administration to the federal judiciary, as well as to the media."

A healthy democracy requires an independent judiciary in addition to a free and respected press. The "founding fathers" understood this. For a party who claims to cling to the constitution, the Republicans seem to be sorely in need of a lesson in civics.

Day 18: Oh look, a wild Monday appeared!

And you know what that means? The administration has to make up for not doing anything for two days!

• Trump spent the weekend (and today) tweeting. You can look them up if you like, but I'm warning you - they're utterly bullshit and not worth wasting your time on.
• The appeals court asked for submissions regarding the immigration executive order, due today. Here's a short take from the submission against the order, and the Justice department's submission in favor of the order.
• Both Trump and the Press Secretary suggested that the media is purposefully not reporting or under-reporting terrorist attacks. Don't believe a word they say, because they're both pathological liars. Even better: they said they'd release a list of terrorist attacks that were suppressed by the media. Don't hold your breath though.
• Trump has no fucking clue what he's doing, and signs anything that's put in front of him without reading it. Pence is having a field day, and Bannon managed to insert himself into the National Security Council without Trump reading the fucking thing he was signing. The rest of the article goes into detail about Trump's lonely new life moping around the Whitehouse, watching Fox news.
• Protestors at Standing Rock against the Dakota Access Pipeline are being rounded up, arrested, and shoved into metal cages. This includes any journalists in the area. This is utterly, utterly abhorrent.
• The senate confirmation vote on Betsy DeVos, the wildly unqualified nominee for Secretary of Education, is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. Democrats are unified against her, and even two Republicans have said they will not vote for her. That leaves a 50-50 split, with Pence holding the casting vote. Tomorrow we will find out if any other Republican senators have a spine. Democrats are currently holding the floor of the senate for 24 hours to speak out against her.
• Trump has no idea what he's doing in international relations. The following paragraph is buried in this article: "national security aides have sought information about Polish incursions in Belarus, an eyebrow-raising request because little evidence of such activities appears to exist". The administration is literally trying to manufacture crises to take advantage of.
• Discontent with the fact that nobody likes the administration, they're claiming that all protestors are paid protestors in it for the money. No, literally, that's what they're claiming. This is something that cannot go unquestioned. Step #1: Deligitimize the press. Step #2: Deligitimize protests. Step #3: Embrace totalitarianism.

I've been pointed to this awesome webpage, which is compiling a list some of Trump's lies, along with fact checks. There is obviously far more garbage than one news organization can keep up with, because Trump's statements, once you disregard the nonsensical ones, are primarily comprised of lies.

Day 17: Sing-a-song-of-Mike-Pence

A quiet Sunday today. Most political news resolved around talking up the court action over the immigration order.

• The appeals court rejected the government's request to block the lower court's stay order. Good news.
• Trump's latest defense of Putin: "We're not all that good either, guys..."

No other concrete action today that pertains to the administration, insofar as I can tell.

Day 16: The Administration is Not Happy

It's Saturday, so news is a bit slower today. The primary story for today is the repercussions of last night's nation-wide stay by a Seattle judge on the immigration order.

• This time, the State department and CBP was quick to act on the judicial order. Some sense of normalcy has returned to international travel. The visas that were "provisionally" revoked are being reinstated. While this is a good thing, there is definitely a sense of fear that it's only going to be temporary.
• Trump has been fuming. Not only was the official response "outrageous", but Trump's tweets this morning were aimed at discrediting the judiciary. An emergency appeal has, of course, been filed. Note that Trump's tweets put the appeals court in a tough position: oppose the administration and bring the judiciary and the executive head to head, or agree with the administration in discrediting their own. Neither sounds appealing, pun intended. There is a good reason why past presidents have not taken aim at individual judges.
• Bureau of Indian Affairs officers called in to remove protestors at Standing Rock. Well fuck. These guys have spent their careers supporting the protestors (in principle). A heinous act, aimed at sowing discord and dispersing opposition to the pipeline.
• The FCC chair is already dismantling net neutrality. I haven't seen this widely reported, but we really should be making more ruckus about it.
• In Trump's conflicts of interest this weekend, he has two events planned at his own resorts. How is this not exploiting the presidency for personal gain?
• Finally, the US has upped the ante against Iran, escalating the conflict of words by declaring Iran the biggest state sponsor of terrorism. This is not going to end well.
• I said yesterday that the Republican's plan consists of one word: repeal. And here we go: a document titled "Roadmap to Repeal". Note that a lot of the repeal energy is coming from the Koch brothers and the oil and mining industries, who have spent large sums of money lobbying congress. These repeals are not for the benefit of the people at all, they are for the benefit of large businesses.

Any chance we can repeal this congress and start again?

Day 15: Republicans reveal their agenda

It seems that the agenda can be summed up in three words: repeal, repeal, repeal. Nobody in the GOP is having an original thought other than "repeal". All of the legislation they're pushing (except for Religious Freedom fuckery) is based around undoing protections for consumers, workers, the environment, and the economy. None of it is based around any meaningful desire to improve anything, and none of them have an original thought in their head.

There's been a lot of talk happening this week, and today was when talk solidified into action. Here's what I've found.

• Immigration order cancelled 100,000 visas. Yup, that's right. Go ahead and fuck over 100,000 people. Note that each of those visas cost at least $250 if not a lot more, which isn't chump change to most people.
• Vaguely-worded immigration order looks set to kill tourism. This was one really poorly-worded order.
• The immigration order was just barred nation-wide by a Seattle judge. From what I read, it sounds like the entire order was stayed (correction: only most of it is stayed: more detailed report including text of order). This is the most wide-reaching judicial response to date. White House response at 10:05 pm EST: "At the earliest possible time, the Department of Justice intends to file an emergency stay of this outrageous order and defend the executive order of the President, which we believe is lawful and appropriate. The president’s order is intended to protect the homeland and he has the constitutional authority and responsibility to protect the American people." Good luck with that. Every court has ruled against you so far.
• Congress kills stream-protection rule. The Obama administration had, after a lot of effort, updated a 1970's era environmental regulation that was so vaguely-worded it was unenforceable, giving it some teeth. Of course, Republicans don't care how polluted waterways become from mining operations.
• Kellyanne Conway is at it again with her "alternative facts", making up a massacre that never happened to justify immigration ban. I swear, the point of this is to keep the media busy debunking stupidity so that other crap they do gets less reporting.
• US announces new sanctions on Iran, following up on their earlier declaration that Iran was "on notice".
• Congress axes a financial disclosure rule for mining and oil companies. Hmm. I wonder who benefits from this?
• Completely going against his promise to "be tough on Wall St", Trump signed an executive order beginning to dismantle regulations on Wall St. Is anybody surprised? These are the rules that have kept things running more smoothly since the GFC in 2008, and they're on the chopping block, because it's too hard for Wall St to make money without doing incredibly shady things.
• Trump also set the Fiduciary Rule in his sights, shelving it for 6 months. You know, the one that says that anybody looking after your money has to have your best interests in mind, rather than their own? This one was even widely supported by industry, and is a significant step backwards, reeking of kleptocracy. The entire memorandum reads like bullshit, and that's being unkind to bulls. (Original text)
• You know how Republicans like to dismiss protesters as "paid protesters"? Looks like they're projecting! They're paying people to support DeVos for the cabinet position.
• Senate launches an investigation into Russian electoral involvement. However, because it's being run by the Republicans in a committee where they have a majority, don't expect them to actually look into anything important.
• The new CIA deputy director is an expert at torture. Literally. Does that make you feel safer?

Two weeks down, and already 40% of people want Trump impeached.

Day 14: Adventures in Diplomacy

The news today mainly focuses on the diplomatic aspect of the administration. Overall, a reasonably quiet day.

(Headline from Bloomberg)

• Headlines hit last night reporting that a conversation between Trump and the Prime Minister of Australia was quite sour, with Trump pouring scorn on America's longtime ally. Australia has been a staunch ally of America since the end of World War I, so this is an abrupt change in attitudes. Others in the administration sought to mend the damage Trump left behind in his wake.
• Administration shifts closer to Obama foreign policy. There appear to be some level heads around. In particular, condemnation of Russian action in the Ukraine, and condemnation of Israeli settlements. Neither were statements I expected.
• Sanctions on Russia tweaked. Apparently there was some customs issue that was inadvertently targeted by the sanctions, and was being fixed by Obama officials. From the NY Times: "Apparently Russian border and customs officials are connected to the F.S.B., so theoretically, any visit to Russia that involves payment of a border tax is a violation of sanctions — it would be material support to the F.S.B." This was unintended.
• Trump prayed for ratings at the National Prayer Breakfast. I mean, the dude has everything else, right?
• More details about the Yemen raid have been emerging. In particular, the number of civilian casualties keeps on getting larger (23 by some estimates). Just about everything that could go wrong did. What do you expect for a raid planned over dinner in the Whitehouse?
• The Executive branch continues interfering with the Judicial branch regarding stays on the immigration order. This is the best-written story I've seen on the topic so far.

I should add that there was plenty of posturing, rumouring, threatening, and terrible legislation drafting happening today. If any of that belligerence actually materializes into something concrete, you'll see it here.

Day 13: Republicans Rewrite the Rules

The administration continues to reveal that it has no idea how international relations work, and Republicans demonstrate that they are willing to rewrite the rules when it suits them.

• A bizarre statement on Iran from the administration (original text). Iran is "officially on notice", which is completely meaningless. Apparently this is in response to an Iranian missile test. Here is the BBC's analysis, and CNN's analysis.
• Trump threatens to invade Mexico in phonecall. This includes a reference to "bad hombres" by Trump. I am disgusted with the administration's approach to diplomacy.
• Congressional committee rules require a quorum for votes. Democrats were denying that quorum for cabinet appointments, so Republicans decided to suspend the rules to ram through a vote. Democrats requested further questioning and investigation, but were being denied. Republicans have the gall to call this "unprecedented obstructionism", like they didn't obstruct any Obama appointments for longer than two days (*cough* Garland *cough*). Note that the inconsistencies in the appointee's confirmation hearings would typically be enough to scuttle an appointment. As a colleague of mine said - "If the Democrats had suspended senate rules to push through committee votes, the Republicans would have cried dictatorship".
• The White House is refusing to have interviews with CNN. This is incredibly petty. Particularly when you are happily granting interviews to fringe outlets.
• CBP continues to defy court orders; US Marshals not responding when requested. This appears to be from an on-the-ground journalist; I have not seen any corroboration yet.
• Standing Rock protest camps against the Dakota Access Pipeline were raided today. It's hard to get good news from Standing Rock, as mainstream media are swamped with the rest of GOPresidential fuckery. I read eyewitness reports that construction in the area has started. Everything is sounding terrible, and media coverage seems sparse. If you have a good link, please let me know in the comments.
• Tillerson was confirmed for Secretary of State today. The final vote count was 56-43, the lowest ever vote for Secretary of State. An oil executive is now in charge of our diplomatic relations. How can this possibly go bad?
• Trump gave an speech on Black History Month (to an audience of his friends). The speech was widely panned as "rewriting history", "rambling", "off-topic" and "disgraceful". Trump talked up a black activist, seemingly thinking him alive (he died in 1895). Afterwards, the press secretary doubled down on the statement with possibly the most inept response I've ever seen.
• The raid yesterday? 8 year old American girl killed. Navy SEAL killed. Can you imagine getting a phone call from Trump saying "I'm sorry, your son is dead, but he's a huge hero, the greatest hero"? The guy doesn't have an empathetic bone in his body.
• The President of Liberty University is going to head up a federal task force on education policy. For those who don't know, Liberty University is the largest Christian university in the US, and is "explicitly anti-feminist and anti-gay, and has a Civil War 'mourning room' that contains among its decorations a cross made from the hair of dead Confederate soldiers". The president of Liberty University promotes carrying concealed weapons on campus, to "end those Muslims before they walk in".
• The confirmation hearing for Betsy DeVos is in peril, after two Republicans have stated they will not support her. I implore you to call your representatives to urge they vote against DeVos (that goes for both Republicans and Democrats).

If you want something a little more uplifting, an excellent case for why we shouldn't "wait and see" what happens with Trump.