Top U.S. & World Headlines — August 30, 2019

Interview:

https://youtu.be/9gVFR1DBpQU

Week In The News: Hurricane Dorian, A Narrowing 2020 Field, Potential Trade Talks With China (On Point)

All eyes on Hurricane Dorian. The 2020 field narrows. China signals trade talks could be back on. Oklahoma’s $572 million judgment against Johnson & Johnson. Epstein’s accusers have their day in court. The roundtable weighs in.
Interview:
https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2019/08/30/hurricane-dorian-2020-field-trade-china

Friday News Roundup – Domestic (Joshua Johnson, The 1A) 2019-08-30

Interview:
https://the1a.org/shows/2019-08-30/friday-news-roundup-domestic

Friday News Roundup – International (Joshua Johnson, The 1A) 2019-08-30

Interview:
https://the1a.org/shows/2019-08-30/friday-news-roundup-international

US official confirms that Trump tweeted out a picture from a classified intelligence briefing - Business Insider

A US official told CNBC that a photo of an Iranian launch pad that President Donald Trump tweeted Friday afternoon came from an intelligence briefing Trump received earlier that day. ....
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-tweeted-classified-intelligence-briefing-photo-2019-8

Trump administration proposes weaker monitoring of major greenhouse gas - The Hill

A newly proposed Trump administration rule would allow for weaker monitoring of methane, a major greenhouse gas contributing to global warming.
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/459285-trump-administration-proposes-weaker-methane-regulations

The brain nutrient vegans need to know about - BBC News

People on vegan or plant-based diets must ensure they are getting enough choline, say experts.....
https://www.bbc.com/news/health-49509504

Aides Admit Trump Was Faking Those “Phone Calls” With China - Vanity Fair

The president was reportedly "eager to project optimism that might boost markets," which should hearten the Chinese.....
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/08/donald-trump-china-call-fake

Most 2020 Democrats Want a Public Option. L.A. Already Has One. - The Atlantic

In 2013, Los Angeles County implemented its own version of the health-care reform. It's delivered change, but not the revolution some advocates want.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/08/los-angeles-public-option-2020-democrats/597115/

School official harassed trans teen in bathroom, lawsuit claims - NBC News

The lawsuit alleges an assistant principal followed a trans student into the boys' bathroom at a West Virginia high school and said, "You freak me out."....
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/school-official-harassed-trans-teen-bathroom-lawsuit-claims-n1047741

The bizarre dog whistles in a campaign video Trump tweeted out, explained - Vox

It features fascist imagery and swinging bull testicles.....
https://www.vox.com/2019/8/29/20838289/trump-fascist-lion-head-bull-testicles-video-twitter

Get to Know a Grifter: Andy Ngo

https://youtu.be/OYx_M0de2MI

CHEETO CHRIST STUPID-CZAR - Randy Rainbow Song Parody

https://youtu.be/gW2SEpWWqXM

Trump signals his desire to illegally stay in office as he rages against James Comey over 'stolen time' - Raw Story

Not the first time he has done this, President Donald Trump on Friday morning insinuated he would like to extend his term beyond the four years granted by the nation's constitution when he posed as a question the idea of being granted back "stolen time" that was taken from him because of the investigation of Special Counsel Robert Mueller and accusations of misconduct by former FBI head James Comey....
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/trump-signals-his-desire-to-illegally-stay-in-office-as-he-rages-against-james-comey-over-stolen-time/

Trump admin blocking visits to border sites, Dems say - ABC News

The House Oversight and Reform Committee is objecting to the Trump administration's decision to block committee staffers from conducting additional visits at 11 border detention facilities after visits last week revealed serious problems....
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/house-dems-trump-admin-blocking-visits-border-sites-65268806

The Trump Administration Is Now Deporting Kids With Cancer - Vanity Fair

The new policy is a major departure from longstanding legal practice, which allowed the federal government to exercise discretion where a little humanity is warranted. Unfortunately for sick kids, humanity is not part of Trump's agenda.....
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/08/medical-deferred-action-deportations

Cost of Trump's 'zero-tolerance' pledge: Detained, neglected and unvaccinated migrant children - The Hill

Apart from the fact that these policies are simply indefensible, this rationale is also disingenuous in suggesting it is intended to deter migration.
https://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/459018-cost-of-trumps-zero-tolerance-pledge-detained-neglected-and-unvaccinated

If your Google Calendar seems like it's been hacked, here’s what to do - Quartz

A bizarre phenomenon bubbling up around the internet seems to have come to a head in the last few days. If you use Google as your calendar, you may have noticed a series of events on it that you don't remember being invited to, and probably have no interest in attending. ....
https://qz.com/1696839/how-to-stop-spam-events-on-your-google-calendar/

‘The beginning of the end for celibacy’: Amid global shortages, could Catholics allow married priests? - The Washington Post

In the sprawling Amazon region, the Catholic Church is severely short on priests. Clerics trek from one town to the next, sometimes requiring military transport to get to their remote destinations. Communities can go months without a visit. The church, as a result, is struggling to hold its influence......
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/a-bid-to-allow-married-priests-in-the-amazon-ignites-debate-about-celibacy/2019/08/15/eff96f7a-b78e-11e9-8e83-4e6687e99814_story.html

DOJ watchdog says James Comey broke FBI policy by keeping, leaking Trump meeting memos - CNN Politics

Former FBI Director James Comey violated agency policies when he retained and leaked a set of memos he took documenting meetings with President Donald Trump early in 2017, the Justice Department's inspector general said in a report released Thursday.....
https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/29/politics/james-comey-ig-report/index.html

Trump's Praise of Putin Mocked On Russian TV With 'Señorita' Mash-Up - Newsweek

A prominent Russian television news program has mocked Donald Trump's attempts to reach out to Vladimir Putin, after the U.S. president said he wanted his Russian counterpart at the next summit of the world's biggest economies. Trump' promotion of Putin during the G7 summit in Biarritz, France, got a cool reception among other world leaders.....
https://www.newsweek.com/russia-trump-putin-g7-kremlin-1456705

A 'NY Times' report hides the truth: Israel's airstrikes across the Mideast are arguably designed to sabotage Trump-Iran talks - Mondoweiss

A New York Times article on on Israel's recent attacks across the Middle East rattled on for 43 paragraphs without a single mention of Netanyahu's incentive to sabotage the possible Trump-Iran detente. Is this deliberate bias — or just incompetence?....
https://mondoweiss.net/2019/08/airstrikes-designed-sabotage/

Trump heavily considering blocking $250M in military aid to Ukraine - CNN Politics

President Donald Trump is heavily considering a plan to block $250 million in military assistance to Ukraine, a move that would further ingratiate him to Russian President Vladimir Putin....
https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/29/politics/trump-ukraine-military-assistance/index.html

EPA to loosen federal rules on methane, a powerful greenhouse gas linked to climate change, officials say - The Washington Post

The proposed rule would reverse standards enacted under President Barack Obama that require oil and gas operations to install controls on their operations to curb the release of methane at the well head and in their transmission equipment, including pipelines and storage facilities. ....
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/08/29/trump-administration-reverse-limits-methane-powerful-greenhouse-gas/

Migrants Imprisoned After Mississippi ICE Raid Get Little Mercy In Court - HuffPost

She'd lived in the United States for years. An ICE agent acknowledged she posed no security risk. She regularly attended her local Baptist church. And her 18-year-old son was a U.S. citizen.But Magistrate Judge Linda Anderson rejected the Guatemalan migrant's request for release on bond, citing the woman's alleged use of an alias and a lack of witnesses to testify to her community ties. The decision left her son sobbing outside the courtroom.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/migrants-mississippi-ice-raid-court_n_5d67d7d4e4b063c341fc05e1

Kochland: How David Koch Helped Build an Empire to Shape U.S. Politics & Thwart Climate Action

Billionaire conservative donor David Koch died Friday at the age of 79 from prostate cancer. David Koch — who was worth some $42 billion — and his brother Charles poured massive amounts of money into funding climate change denial through conservative think tanks and politicians. The Koch brothers founded the political advocacy group Americans for Prosperity in 2004, which is credited with turning the “tea party” into a full-fledged political movement. They also backed “right-to-work” efforts, which aim to weaken labor rights and quash union membership. The brothers made their fortune running Koch Industries, the second-largest privately held company in the United States. We speak with the business journalist Christopher Leonard, who just last week published a major new book examining the business dealings of the Koch brothers. It’s titled “Kochland: The Secret History of Koch Industries and Corporate Power in America.”....
https://youtu.be/WIWeD8jy-iQ

Former Fed official Dudley urges central bank not to ‘bail out’ Trump on the economy - The Washington Post

The former New York Fed chief also say the central bank 'should consider how its actions will affect the 2020 vote since the president's reelection 'arguably presents a threat to the U.S. and global economy.'...
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/bill-dudley-urges-fed-not-to-bail-out-trump-on-trade/2019/08/27/3a294bea-c8da-11e9-a1fe-ca46e8d573c0_story.html

Trump is lying to farmers’ faces, and they’re finally getting angry about it - The Washington Post: Opinion

Trump's trade war is hammering them, and he can't gaslight it away.....
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/08/27/trump-is-lying-farmers-faces-theyre-finally-getting-angry-about-it/

Alabama Republicans are urging Rep. Ilhan Omar's expulsion from Congress - USA TODAY

A resolution passed by the Alabama Republican Party says Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar "has engaged in rhetoric that explicitly runs counter to American values and patriotism." Omar responded on Twitter by making reference to former Judge Roy Moore.....
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/08/27/alabama-gop-rep-ilhan-omar-expulsion-congress/2135327001/

Trump at G-7: His comments on Obama, Crimea show he has no loyalty.

This week, at the G-7 meeting in France, President Donald Trump stood before the world and, for three horrifying minutes, displayed utter incomprehension of allegiance to the United States. https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/08/trump-did-not-represent-us-g7.html

A Top Financier of Trump and McConnell Is a Driving Force Behind Amazon Deforestation - The Intercept

Steve Schwarzman is the CEO of the Blackstone Group, which partially owns a Brazilian firm that is helping transform the Amazon from jungle to farmland.....
https://theintercept.com/2019/08/27/amazon-rainforest-fire-blackstone/

Trump's press secretary trots out ridiculous new excuse to justify the president's lies - Raw Story

President Donald Trump has shattered records for presidential dishonesty during his two-and-a-half years in office, and the Washington Post reported earlier this month that the president has made more than 12,000 false or misleading claims over the course of his tenure.
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/trumps-press-secretary-trots-out-ridiculous-new-excuse-to-justify-the-presidents-lies/

'The Bible stays': Pence hypes false conspiracy theory that Obama ordered Christianity out of VA hospitals - Raw Story

Vice President Mike Pence suggested on Wednesday that President Barack Obama is to blame for removing Bibles and other religious symbols from Veterans Affairs hospitals. While speaking to the American Legion National Convention, Pence vowed to "make room for the spiritual needs" of veterans.....
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/the-bible-stays-pence-hypes-false-conspiracy-theory-that-obama-ordered-christianity-out-of-va-hospitals/

Trump accuses Fox News of ‘heavily promoting Democrats,’ urges followers to look for another news outlet - The Washington Post

In tweets, the president said the conservative network is "letting millions of GREAT people down!"....
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-accuses-fox-news-of-heavily-promoting-democrats-urges-followers-to-look-for-another-news-outlet/2019/08/28/1adec124-c99e-11e9-be05-f76ac4ec618c_story.html

MAGA..! - pics

https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/cw1r28/maga/

Gun Violence Costs Americans Billions Every Year. A California Mayor Has a Plan to Make Gun Owners Pay for It - Mother Jones

Two weeks after a mass shooting at Gilroy, California's annual garlic festival in late July, the mayor of San Jose proposed a radical plan to address gun violence: Require all firearm owners to own liability insurance.....
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/08/gun-violence-costs-americans-billions-every-year-a-california-mayor-has-a-plan-to-make-gun-owners-pay-for-it/

Richard Wolff explains feud with Jordan Peterson

Marxist economist and Democracy At Work founder Richard D. Wolff explains his feud with University of Toronto psychology professor Jordan Peterson.
https://youtu.be/pmRN6plLeHU

The Koch brothers tried to build a plutocracy in the name of freedom

The Kochs have always believed that rich people had the right to rule over everyone else, democracy be damned....
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/aug/28/the-koch-brothers-tried-to-build-a-plutocracy-in-the-name-of-freedom?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Nadler tees up post-recess showdown with Trump - The Hill

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler is teeing up a post-recess showdown with President Trump as the New York Democrat pushes for impeachment behind the scenes.....
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/459143-nadler-tees-up-post-recess-showdown-with-trump

Trump directs aides to fast-track his wall — even if it breaks the law - The Washington Post

The White House is making an all-out push to get hundreds of miles of border barriers built before November 2020, largely to fulfill Trump's signature campaign promise....
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/immigration/take-the-land-president-trump-wants-a-border-wall-he-wants-it-black-and-he-wants-it-by-election-day/2019/08/27/37b80018-c821-11e9-a4f3-c081a126de70_story.html

Trump should be impeached and removed for promising pardons to build border wall -- according to America's founders - Raw Story

President Donald Trump has reportedly promised to pardon officials who break the law to fulfill his campaign promise to build a border wall -- and the founders explicitly recommended impeachment and removal for those actions.
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/trump-should-be-impeached-and-removed-for-promising-pardons-to-build-border-wall-according-to-americas-founders/

Russian oligarch bombshell would ‘make impeachment proceedings absolutely inevitable’: NBC analyst - Raw Story

Fast-tracked impeachment hearings will occur this fall if the bombshell report is true that President Donald Trump had loans with Deutsche Bank co-signed by Russian oligarchs close to Vladimir Putin. ....
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/russian-oligarch-bombshell-would-make-impeachment-proceedings-absolutely-inevitable-nbc-analyst/

Trump deserves impeachment quite apart from the Mueller report - The Washington Post: Opinion

We've forgotten how lawless his entire presidency is.....
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/08/28/trump-deserves-impeachment-quite-apart-mueller-report/

Trump’s Unpardonable Admission About His Border Wall - The Atlantic

The president wants to spend billions of taxpayer dollars for a project that he acknowledges is largely symbolic—even if it breaks the law.....
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/08/trump-pardons-border-wall/596962/

4 things to know about the Trump administration’s new rule on detaining migrant children - The Washington Post

On Wednesday, the Trump administration released a regulation that would allow it to detain migrant children indefinitely. The new rule, which is not yet in effect, would end the 1997 consent decree known as the Flores Settlement Agreement, which put in place protections for migrant children who arrive at the border. The Flores agreement limits how long children can be detained and requires that they be placed in the least restrictive setting possible. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/08/24/new-trump-administration-rule-allows-children-be-detained-indefinitely-heres-what-you-need-know/

Ex-white nationalist issues horrifying warning Trump's government is neglecting the 'domestic extremism problem' - Raw Story

Former white supremacist Christian Picciolini noted in an interview with MSNBC Sunday that the United States is dealing with a severe domestic terrorism problem, but that the Donald Trump administration is asleep at the wheel. ....
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/ex-white-nationalist-issues-horrifying-warning-trumps-government-is-neglecting-the-domestic-extremism-problem/

Juan Williams: The real story behind Trump's attack on me - The Hill

OPINION: President Trump misrepresented a brief interaction as part of his larger war on a free press.....
https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/458707-juan-williams-the-real-story-behind-trumps-attack-on-me

Trump’s company could save millions if interest rates fall as he demands - The Washington Post

In the five years before he became president, Trump borrowed more than $360 million via four loans from Deutsche Bank for his hotels in Washington, D.C., and Chicago, as well his 643-room Doral golf resort in South Florida. The payments on all four properties vary with interest rate changes, according to Trump’s official financial disclosures.....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trumps-company-could-save-millions-if-interest-rates-fall-as-he-demands/2019/08/24/5e5df684-c5a9-11e9-b5e4-54aa56d5b7ce_story.html

A rational immigration system is the answer to U.S. worker shortages - The Washington Post: Opinion

Far from making America great again, Trump's policies are likely to transform the United States into a second Japan.
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/opinions/a-rational-immigration-system-is-the-answer-to-us-worker-shortages/2019/08/25/b396bada-c5c4-11e9-b72f-b31dfaa77212_story.html

Trump boasted 'I always find a way to win' and we should take that threat very seriously - Raw Story

When the authoritarian leader speaks, it is best to believe him. Last Friday on Twitter, Donald Trump proclaimed that Democrats' attempts to defeat him would prove fruitless: But it won't work because I always find a way to win, especially for the people! ....
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/trump-boasted-i-always-find-a-way-to-win-and-we-should-take-that-threat-very-seriously/

Title X Has Never Paid for Abortions—But the Trump Administration Gutted It Anyway - FORTUNE

Title X clinics have never been able to use those funds for abortion....
https://fortune.com/2019/08/26/what-is-title-x-funding-planned-parenthood/

Trump’s presser confirms it: He has no idea why he’s losing the trade war - The Washington Post: Opinion

The world's worst negotiator strikes again.....
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/08/26/trumps-presser-confirms-it-he-has-no-idea-why-hes-losing-trade-war/

The Wall Street Journal found third-party merchants selling thousands of unsafe, mislabeled, and banned products on Amazon - Business Insider

The platform was found to have 4,152 items that were deemed unsafe by federal agencies, labeled misleadingly, or banned by federal regulators by a report from The Wall Street Journal. These listings, many of which were changed or taken down after The WSJ alerted Amazon of them....
https://www.businessinsider.com/amazons-marketplace-houses-thousands-of-unsafe-products-2019-8

The 1619 Project details the legacy of slavery in America

Four hundred years ago this month, the first enslaved people from Africa arrived in the Virginia colony. To observe the anniversary of American slavery, The New York Times Magazine launched The 1619 Project to reframe America’s history through the lens of slavery. The project lead, reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones, joins Hari Sreenivasan to discuss...
https://youtu.be/Q14BTdS6BRc

Trump made the G7 a train wreck — and he plans make the next one a corruption bonanza - Raw Story

It's not clear President Donald Trump could ever get what he wants out of the G7 summits. He's torn by two conflicting desires: the desire to be loved by everyone across the world, and the desire to promote his nationalist, authoritarian, right-wing agenda, which won him power in the United States but inevitably brings him into conflict with other leading democracies...
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/trump-made-the-g7-a-train-wreck-and-he-plans-make-the-next-one-a-corruption-bonanza/

CNN panel torches Trump's bonkers lie about Melania and Kim Jong-un: 'Truth doesn't matter' - Raw Story

According to a CNN "New Day" panel, Donald Trump's lie that his wife is friends with North Korea's Kim Jong-un is a product of his imagination that he believes is real...
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/cnn-panel-torches-trumps-bonkers-lie-about-melania-and-kim-jong-un-truth-doesnt-matter/