Sunday, February 19, 2017
Hillary Clinton reemerges from loss to ovations in safe NYC bubble
Mrs Arrogant should be sitting in jail. |
Remember Mouthy Merl Streep ? |
Remember Huma Abedin ? |
She may have been the loser but Hillary Clinton is still getting the ovations, especially in her town, New York.
After a devastating loss, Clinton is recovering her New York state of mind with the help of the Big Apple's fashion, entertainment and theater crowds, who always supported her and now have embraced her back into the fold.
It turns out that many New Yorkers — loud, opinionated, even obnoxious on occasion — have a soft spot for the ex-first lady, ex-senator, ex-secretary of state, ex-Democratic presidential nominee who has become one of them, even more so than native-born Donald Trump. He couldn't even win his childhood district in Queens (she got 85% of the vote; he got less than 14%)Thus, it was Clinton who got the crowd on its feet Thursday when she appeared at Grand Central Terminal for a U.S. Postal Service ceremony unveiling a collection of 11 stamps featuring the late Oscar de la Renta and his designs — long favored by Clinton (and Ivanka Trump during her father's inaugural festivities).
Anderson Cooper was the emcee. Vogue's fashion doyenne Anna Wintour was there. Former Mayor Mike Bloomberg, a bigger billionaire than Trump, was there. But it was Clinton who stirred with a rousing paean to de la Renta's fashion savvy and his immigrant roots in the Dominican Republic. The pointed jab at the anti-immigration policies of the man who beat her was not lost on her audience.
"What a fitting person to be chosen by our Postal Service, mentioned, by the way, in the Constitution, something we should all read and re-read in today’s times, and its choice of this immigrant, who did so much for our country, his country," she said. "And let there be many, many more immigrants with the love of America that Oscar de la Renta exemplified every single day.”Then there was her fun dinner with her SNL doppelganger, Kate McKinnon, at Orso Wednesday night, where much laughter was heard emanating from the table, according to The New York Post (not a fan), which tweeted a picture that was then retweeted.
And don't forget the repeated ovations when she takes her seat in an audience before showtime on Broadway; the latest roar of cheers was on Wednesday night after the McKinnon dinner, when she turned up for the musical Sunset Boulevard at the Palace Theater, a moment documented by scores of tweets and selfies.
And it wasn't the only one. With more time for relaxing and entertainment these days, Clinton has been taking in multiple shows in New York, according to Playbill.
On Feb. 1, when she and husband Bill Clinton attended In Transit, they started chanting her name.Earlier, on Jan. 8, when she and her husband and daughter Chelsea Clinton, showed up for the final performance of the Broadway revival The Color Purple, she got several ovations from the sold-out audience, and another round of applause when she was acknowledged by the cast after the show, according to the New York Times.
There is even talk, drummed up by the likes of the New York Post and conservative news sites such as Rightwingnews.com (definitely not fans), that Clinton would run for mayor of New York this year, challenging Democrat incumbent Bill de Blasio and possibly becoming the first female mayor of the city she won with nearly 80% of its presidential vote.
So far, the scoffing about this exceeds the cheering. "Unlikely," concludes Errol Louis, host of Inside City Hall on NY1, in an essay on CNN. "It's safe to assume that nobody in her right mind — certainly nobody as familiar with the workings of government and politics as Clinton — would lightly take on the headaches of the nation's largest city for such nakedly political reasons."
And if she did run, one thing is likely: The ovations would stop.
Trump to meet with 4 possible candidates for national security adviser
President Trump is scheduled to interview at least four candidates for the U.S. national security adviser position in Florida on Sunday.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One Saturday, Trump said he had "many, many that want the job."
Trump also hinted he had a favorite to fill the position.
"I've been thinking about someone for the last three or four days, we'll see what happens," Trump said. "I'm meeting with that person. They're all good, they're all great people."
Reuters reported that Trump also told reporters on Air Force One that he plans to “make a decision over the next couple of days.”
Scheduled to discuss the job with the president at Mar-a-Lago were his acting adviser, retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg; John Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations; Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster; and the superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Lt. Gen. Robert Caslen.
White House spokesman Sean Spicer said more meetings for the job could happen, which is now open after retired Gen. Michael Flynn was asked to resign earlier this week.
Flynn resigned at Trump's request Monday after revelations that he misled Vice President Mike Pence about discussing sanctions with Russia's ambassador to the U.S. during the transition. Trump said in a news conference Thursday that he was disappointed by how Flynn had treated Pence, but did not believe Flynn had done anything wrong by having the conversations.
Trump's first choice to replace Flynn, retired Vice Adm. Robert Harward, turned down the offer.
Trump tweeted on Saturday that he “will be having many meetings this weekend at The Southern White House.”
I'm a Democrat (and ex-CIA) but the spies plotting against Trump are out of control
Trump tries to get back on message in epic news conference |
By Bryan Dean Wright
Over the past few months, America has lurched from partisan warfare to the cliffs of an existential crisis.
Multiple reports show that my former colleagues in the intelligence community have decided that they must leak or withhold classified information due to unsettling connections between President Trump and the Russian Government.
Said an intelligence officer: “I know what's best for foreign policy and national security… And I'm going to act on that.”
Some of us might applaud this man, including a few of my fellow Democrats. In their minds, this is a case of Mr. Smith Goes to Langley to do battle against a corrupt President Trump.
One small problem. The intelligence officer quoted above was actually Aldrich Ames, a CIA traitor whose crime of treason in the 1980s and 1990s resulted in the compromise of more than 100 assets. Many were tortured and executed as a result.
Ames’ flawed logic is eerily similar to that of his present-day colleagues who are engaged in a shadow war with their commander in chief. They, too, have decided that their superior judgment is more important than following the law.
For the sake of argument, however, let’s assume that these officials are somehow different than Ames. Let’s suppose that they have compelling pieces of information that indeed suggest Trump or his staff have committed treason.
When you’re trained as a spy, you’re taught how to handle these kinds of situations. Upon learning the information, it gets tightly compartmented (restricted) and sent to the Department of Justice or Congress for investigation. If the evidence is found to be credible, the constitution makes clear what happens next: impeachment.
That’s how American democracy should work.
And that’s precisely how it has been working. According to former Vice President Biden, there’s been an on-going investigation into the alleged connections between Trump and Russia. All of us should take heart in knowing that the system is functioning exactly as designed.
However, some of America’s spies are deciding that that’s not enough. For reasons of misguided righteousness or partisan hatred, they’ve taken it upon themselves to be judge, jury, and executioner. They have prosecuted their case in the court of public opinion, with likeminded media outlets such as CNN, The New York Times, and the Washington Post serving as court stenographers.
Elected by no one, responsible only to each other, these spies have determined that Trump is guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors.
Days ago, they delivered their verdict. According to one intelligence official, the president “will die in jail.”
I understand how this might feel appealing to deeply partisan Democrats. After all, I didn’t want Trump to win either. But the solution to fighting this subpar president cannot be encouraging a network of spies to tip the scales back in our political favor. We must instead let the system continue to work, as it has, and make our case to the American people during future elections.
If you’re not convinced, imagine the consequences of letting spies decide not just Trump’s fate but other political winners and losers too. Imagine how they might treat our candidates next.
Flash-forward to November 4, 2020, where Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have defeated Donald Trump and Mike Pence for the White House. Democrats will celebrate in the streets. The liberal spies will smile.
Mission accomplished.
Conservative spies, however, will take a darker view. To them, their liberal colleagues will have gotten away with political murder. They’ll be looking for revenge.
Welcome to the new America. It’s now their turn to burn democracy down. And they’ve got the tools and motivation to do it.
This is the slippery slope of political tribalism that, up until a few months ago, I would have thought impossible in America. Certainly it happens in third world nations but not here. I was trained to believe that we were exceptional.
In the culture of America’s spies, you live and die by a set of rules. One of them is a sacred pledge of allegiance to the constitution and commander in chief. Spies may not like a president or their policies but they must salute their leader nonetheless. If they cannot, they are told to resign.
Spies also take a vow of secrecy, specifically to keep classified information hidden from anyone who doesn’t have an authorized need to know. It’s a commitment one keeps for a lifetime. And should that vow be violated, the consequences are dire. Prison time. Colleagues and informants killed. Enemies emboldened. The country less safe.
Spies also accept and embrace a final rule: there must be an unbreakable wall between government workers and the democratic process.
Why?
Because many spies have access to powerful tools that, if used improperly, could cause incredible damage to the nation’s stability. Accordingly, clandestine officers have a special covenant with the American people – codified by the Hatch Act – that limits their participation in politics.
During my time as a CIA officer, I quickly learned why all these rules were in place. I read people’s emails. I listened to phone calls. I recruited assets that told the dirtiest and most embarrassing of secrets. I came to realize that my power was both an awesome responsibility and, at times, wickedly seductive.
Some of us faltered in our commitments. I remember colleagues who believed themselves above the rules, conducting quiet investigations into cheating wives or ex-boyfriends. They were eventually discovered and rightfully thrown out. They had demonstrated an inability to handle the burden of power.
And that is precisely what we are experiencing today. The spies who are plotting against President Trump are breaking U.S. laws. They’re violating their oaths. And they’re committing treason to remedy (perceived) treason.
They likely don’t see it that way, of course. But, then again, neither did Aldrich Ames.
With luck and aggressive investigations, these renegade spies will join their fallen colleague at the Allenwood Correctional Facility for the remainder of their lives.
I look forward to watching the gates forever close behind them.
Bryan Dean Wright is a former CIA ops officer and member of the Democratic Party. He contributes on issues of politics, national security, and the economy. Follow him on Twitter @BryanDeanWright.
As Trump gets tough on immigration, some officials fight what they say are erroneous 'sanctuary' designations
Crime |
Going to America |
Drugs |
Saratoga, N.Y., is on one widely circulated list, and wants off, said Undersheriff Richard Castle. It didn't make much difference until Trump said he would punish cities that limit or virtually prohibit local law enforcement from working proactively with immigration agents.
“We have no idea how we got on this list,” Castle told Fox News. “We notify [immigration officials] all along the way when we arrest someone, and we contact [immigration officials] to verify their status. We are willing to share all our records with immigration [agents], and if we have a suspected violation we will notify them.”
The list of sanctuary communities that has gotten the most attention since Trump became president was compiled by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), a Washington, D.C.-based organization that favors strict immigration policies.
Jessica Vaughan, a CIS analyst and its point person on sanctuary communities, put the list together, culling information from Homeland Security, as well as other sources such as media accounts and information gleaned directly from interviews of local government administrators.
Vaughan said she has a thorough method for putting a locality on the list.
“I look at whether they have a policy that blocks ICE access to jails,” Vaughan said. “Do they have a policy that blocks officers from communicating with ICE? I may ask them to give me a statement” to corroborate what they assert.
Then she checks the information with ICE, she said.
Vaughan said she decided to take Saratoga County off after she spoke with officials there about their objection to being on the list and looking into their practices.
Some counties end up on the list, apparently, because they require – often because of state rules – that ICE provide an administrative or judicial warrant along with a formal request that an illegal immigrant who has been arrested be held in detention until agents can arrive and begin deportation proceedings.
Both Saratoga and Bradford County, Pa., officials believe that was seen by groups compiling lists as an attempt by their agencies to put up roadblocks to ICE efforts to pick up an immigrant.
Bradford County Commissioner Doug McLinko said the community he represents had to start requiring a court order from ICE to hold a detained immigrant beyond a release date because of concerns over lawsuits.
“I’m appalled that we’re tagged as a sanctuary, we’re completely the opposite of that,” McLinko told Fox News. “We are a law and order county.
"It makes us very mad that we got grouped with sanctuary counties, just because some organization comes out with a list," he added.
Vaughan added that she does not expect that the Trump administration will go by CIS’s list and “start tearing up [federal funding] checks.”
In Ocean County, N.J., officials say they wrongly ended up on some lists of sanctuary communities.
“Absolutely, positively not,” a county public information officer, Richard Petersen, told Fox News. “We are not a sanctuary county. Frankly, we don’t know why that’s happened.”
A Trump executive order on immigration said that his administration would identify places that appear to have sanctuary policies that prohibit enforcing immigration laws and will deny those communities federal funding.
DHS officials say the Trump administration will establish its criteria for what constitutes a sanctuary city, county, or state.
“The Department of Homeland Security is working to implement the president’s executive orders,” said Gillian Christensen, acting press secretary, in an email to Fox News. “When we have more information to share about how sanctuary jurisdictions will be determined, we will.”
Regardless of where they stand on immigration enforcement and sanctuary policies, many local, county and state officials say they welcome a clear definition of a sanctuary community. There is no hard and fast definition, and now, more than ever, that can have dire consequences, they say.
Vic DeLuca, the mayor of Maplewood, N.J., which has an ordinance declaring itself a sanctuary city, says the concept of sanctuary communities has been distorted by Trump and others who oppose it.
“The president has polluted the term,” said DeLuca, who added that about 26 percent of Maplewood’s population is foreign-born. “He’s used it for his own benefit, to say that if you’re a sanctuary city you’re shielding criminals, you’re harboring fugitives.”
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