Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Senate Dems block key plank of Obama trade agenda

Own Party is weary of him.


President Obama suffered a defeat at the hands of his own party on Tuesday, as Senate Democrats blocked a key component of the president's trade agenda.
After fierce lobbying on both sides of the issue, the bid to start debate -- on expanding the president's authority to negotiate trade deals -- failed on a 52-45 vote. It needed 60 votes to advance.
The president's supporters will likely try again, but the vote nevertheless marks a stinging rebuke of a major Obama priority by members of his own party. Republicans mostly had aligned with Obama on the issue and, after the failed test vote, urged Obama's fellow Democrats to drop their resistance.
"What we just saw here is pretty shocking," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said, accusing congressional Democrats of standing with "special interests."
At issue is Obama's push for so-called "fast track" authority -- which would let him negotiate trade deals that Congress can reject or ratify, but not amend. In the short-term, he wants to use this to pursue a broad trade pact with Japan and other Pacific nations.
But many Democrats aligned with labor unions in warning about the impact on U.S. jobs, and openly opposed the White House. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., recently told reporters he's a "hell no" on the proposal. And Obama and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., for days have traded jabs on the matter, with the president calling Warren's claims "absolutely wrong."
Several Democrats later said Obama erred by pointedly criticizing Warren, most recently in an interview with Yahoo News. Democratic senators said they also are tired of seeing the Democratic president cozy up to Republicans on trade.
The issue indeed has left Obama oddly aligned with Republicans, while trying to sway enough Democrats to join in support. With 54 Republicans in the Senate, the White House needed a handful of Democrats on board.
But labor unions, liberal groups and others vehemently oppose the legislation. It faces "poison pill" amendments, showdowns over "currency manipulation" and, eventually, similar confrontations in the House.
Lobbying for and against the legislation hit overdrive this week. Key groups scheduled almost hourly events on Capitol Hill ahead of Tuesday afternoon's vote. Obama devoted much of the weekend to trade, visiting a Nike plant in Oregon. Obama maintains that U.S. goods and services need better access to the 95 percent of world consumers who live in other countries.
If Obama can ultimately get the trade measure passed, he's likely to ask Congress to approve the Trans-Pacific Partnership being negotiated with 11 other countries, including Japan, Vietnam, Canada and Mexico. Other free-trade proposals could follow.
 But several Democrats say they will back fast track only if Republican leaders clear a path for three other trade measures. One, to renew the African Growth and Opportunity Act, is uncontroversial.
The second calls for Trade Adjustment Assistance, which provides federal aid to workers displaced by trade agreements. Republicans don't like it, but reluctantly acknowledge it's the price for winning even modest Democratic support.
The third bill, involving Customs enforcement, is the stickiest. It includes a measure to take actions against countries that keep their currency artificially low, which makes their exports more attractive. The Obama administration opposes the "currency manipulation" measure, saying it could invite international challenges to the Federal Reserve's policies meant to boost the economy.
Some Democrats also want to force Republicans to deal first with a surveillance measure that Democrats consider more pressing. That strategy suggests Obama might have better luck on trade in a month or so.

Brady Cartoon


Boston University condemns prof's racist tweets after Terrier alums bark


Boston University had a weekend change of heart about a new professor's angry tweets about white people, after FoxNews.com and others reported on the racially-charged comments -- and Terrier alumni threatened to stop writing checks.
Saida Grundy, an incoming assistant professor of sociology and African-American studies at the school, tweeted in recent weeks that "white masculinity is THE problem for america’s (sic) colleges," white men are a "problem population,” and that she tries to avoid shopping at white-owned businesses. On Friday, her new employer's spokesman, Colin Riley, told FoxNews.com that the tweets came from Grundy's personal Twitter account and that she was "exercising her right to free speech and we respect her right to do so.”
" ... we are deeply saddened when anyone makes such offensive statements.”
- Colin Riley, Boston University spokesman
Then, amid a deluge of angry emails from former students, the school sought to amend the comment.
“The University does not condone racism or bigotry in any form and we are deeply saddened when anyone makes such offensive statements,” Riley told FoxNews.com Saturday.
The tweets were first noticed by a student at University of Massachusetts Amherst, Nick Pappas, who posted them on his website “SoCawlege.com” and questioned how Grundy could teach a diverse classroom given the racial hostility in her tweets.
“You have to teach college-aged white males eventually, no?... this seems like you are unqualified to grade their work as you clearly demonstrate some kind of special bias against them,” he wrote.
After the news broke, some alumni and donors wrote the school to complain.
“It is truly a sad day to be a BU alum,” one Boston University graduate from the class of 2008 told FoxNews.com, and shared a letter he had sent to University President Robert Brown and the dean of students.
“In light of the university’s willingness to invite vile rhetoric onto a campus that I spent four wonderful years at, I commit to never donate to Boston University,” he wrote in his letter.
Another wrote, “As a Boston University alumnus and a father of a son who will graduate from BU next week, I am deeply saddened by this revelation. It has become apparent that BU no longer supports a value system in line with human decency.”
Although Riley's condemnation of the racist tweets was new, he reiterated that Grundy had a right to sound off against white males.
“ ... the opinions expressed by Dr. Grundy, in what were seemingly private electronic messages, constitutes her opinion and we must recognize her right to have that opinion whether or not we agree,” Riley said.
Grundy did not respond to requests for comment from FoxNews.com, and has made her twitter account private. She will start working at the university in June.
Those who follow campus politics say they are not shocked.
"I'm not surprised that Boston University is hiring a racist to teach African-American Studies," David Horowitz, author of “Reforming our Univerisities,” told FoxNews.com. "Anti-white racism is rampant in Black Studies programs."
Horowitz added that the university’s reaction betrays double-standards on race.
“If she were a white racist rather than an anti-white racist, she would never be hired. Professors are supposed to be experts in some scholarly field, and professionals in their classroom discourse. They don't have a license to indoctrinate students in their prejudices -- whether those prejudices are right or left,” he said.
Grundy posted a number of other controversial tweets, for instance incorrectly claiming that only whites enslaved entire generations of people. “Deal with your white sh*t, white people. slavery is a *YALL* thing,” she said.
Free speech advocates say that Grundy should have a right to her speech, but say the university speech policy is hypocritical because it allows the university to censor offensive or bigoted speech if it wanted to.
“Professor Grundy should and must have the freedom to publicly express her opinions on controversial topics. Unfortunately, though, [she] could be punished if she were to send such tweets through the BU computer network, as the university bans ‘transmitting...offensive’ material,” Robert Shibley of Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) told FoxNews.com.
“In addition, if she were a student, she could also potentially be punished for violating policies banning ‘bigotry, hatred, and intolerance,’ and for not expressing her opinion ‘in good taste and decency.’ … [BU] should eliminate these policies so that it can defend every student and faculty member's right to free speech – not just Professor Grundy's.”

Jeb Bush dismisses dip in polls, defends immigration stance


Jeb Bush, in an exclusive interview with Fox News’ “The Kelly File,” rejected the suggestion that the momentum behind his likely presidential bid has slowed – calling recent polls “irrelevant” and urging those closely watching them to “take a chill pill.”
Bush, though widely expected to run for the Republican nomination, has held back as several other Republicans have officially announced their 2016 campaigns in recent weeks. As they dominate the headlines, some – notably, Bush’s presumed home-state rival, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio – have enjoyed a surge in the polls.
But Bush stressed in the interview with Fox News that he’s not a candidate yet.
“The polls are totally irrelevant,” the former Florida governor told show host Megyn Kelly. “I’m not a candidate yet. So … everybody needs to take a chill pill on the polls until it gets closer.”
In the roughly 22-minute interview, Bush addressed Common Core, immigration reform and his family’s political dynasty – all issues posing early challenges for him in a potential GOP primary. And he defended his 2016 exploratory efforts – first announced in mid-December – while taking a swipe at the campaign for Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton.
“I godo town hall meetings, don’t screen the questions, don’t have a protected bubble like Mrs. Clinton does, don’t have town hall meetings or roundtable discussion where I pick who gets to come and I screen the questions, and the press has to behave a certain way,” he said in his first full, on-camera TV interview this year.
While Bush continues to stay visible, his poll numbers have jumped around since he emerged as an initial GOP frontrunner earlier this year.
Fox News polling released late last month showed Rubio enjoying a bump after his mid-April campaign announcement, polling at 13 percent in the race for the GOP nomination. Bush slipped down to 9 percent in that survey.
The average of polling on RealClearPolitics.com shows Bush slipping only slightly, but his advantage over the rest of the field slimming considerably. He now pulls 16 percent of the vote but leads Rubio by just 1 percentage point, according to RealClearPolitics.com.
Bush, in the Fox News interview, continued to defend his stance on the English and math standards known as Common Core while acknowledging conservative criticisms.
He argued that schools must be held to higher standards and pointed to the program’s success in Florida, where he was governor from 1997 to 2007.
“I respect people having a view,” Bush said. “But the simple fact is, we need higher standards. They need to be state driven. The federal government should play no part in this either, either in the creation of standards, content or curriculum.”
He argued that only one-third of U.S. students are college or career ready and that Florida under his leadership led the country in learning gains, includes vastly improved graduation rates.
In response to criticism by conservatives that he supports a form of amnesty for illegal immigrants, Bush said he backs legal status -- but not citizenship -- for those who have entered the country illegally.
“A practical solution of getting to fixing the legal system is also allowing for a path to legalized status, not necessarily citizenship,” he said.
Nevertheless, he suggested that the country must take some kind of common sense approach to what to do with an estimated 11 million people living illegally in the United States, particularly children of illegal immigrants.
“What are we supposed to do, marginalize these people forever?” Bush asked.
He also suggested he would undo President Obama’s executive actions that suspend deportation for some illegal immigrants, under comprehensive reform legislation.
On the foreign policy front, Bush said that he would have authorized the 2003 invasion of Iraq, like his brother, President George W. Bush did, and said Clinton – who backed the authorization for use of force as senator -- also would have.
“And so would almost everybody that was confronted with the intelligence they got,” he told Megyn Kelly.
He also acknowledged that he indeed uses his brother as a foreign policy adviser but said he is not the only adviser. And he dismissed criticism that winning the White House would only extend the family’s presidential dynasty that started with his father, George H.W. Bush, in 1989.
“I love my brother, and I respect his service,” Bush said. “I haven’t been in Washington … ever. I’m not part of Washington.”

Federal judge agrees to reopen Hillary Clinton email lawsuit


A federal judge has agreed to reopen a lawsuit that seeks to gain access to emails from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s private server.
Judge Reggie B. Walton’s decision Friday came after the State Department and Judicial Watch, which brought the lawsuit, agreed that the documents that Clinton kept on her own email server separate from the government should be turned over.
“This is the first case that’s been reopened,” Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch told The Washington Times. “It’s a significant development. It points to the fraud by this administration and Mrs. Clinton.”
Previously, the court dismissed Judicial Watch's request, on the grounds that the documents did not exist.
Judicial Watch is a conservative, non-partisan educational foundation that promotes transparency and accountability in government.
Clinton provided about 30,000 emails to a House committee investigating the 2012 terror attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya but deleted 32,000 emails she considered personal and not government business.
According to The Washington Times, panel Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., cited “obstacles and frustrations” in dealing with the administration when pursuing access to Clinton’s emails.
“The legislative branch’s constitutional toolbox seems inadequate to uphold out task in seeking the truth,” Gowdy said.

Kremlin confirms Putin to meet with Kerry in Sochi


U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Russia Tuesday to news that the Kremlin had confirmed a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Black Sea resort town of Sochi.
The confirmation followed hours of limbo Monday during which the Kremlin refused to say whether Kerry and Putin would meet, despite U.S. officials' insistence that the talks would take place. A senior State Department official told the Associated Press tersely, "We usually don't go to Sochi to see Foreign Minister Lavrov."
Putin's spokesman welcomed Kerry's decision to travel to Russia. "We have repeatedly stated at various levels and the president has said that Russia never initiated the freeze in relations and we are always open for displays of political will for a broader dialogue," Dmitry Peskov told journalists in Sochi.
Kerry was to lay a wreath at a World War II memorial before meeting Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the brief visit, his first to Russia since May 2013 and the advent of the Ukraine crisis.
"This trip is part of our ongoing effort to maintain direct lines of communication with senior Russian officials and to ensure U.S. views are clearly conveyed," State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said in a statement.
Kerry plans to test Putin's willingness to push pro-Russia separatists in Ukraine to comply with an increasingly fragile ceasefire agreement, according to U.S. officials traveling with him.
Kerry will also seek to gauge the status of Russia's support for embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad, whose forces have been losing ground to rebels, and press Moscow to support a political transition that could end that war, the officials said.
In addition, Kerry will make the case to Putin that Russia should not proceed with its planned transfer of an advanced air defense system to Iran.
The Russian Foreign Ministry set a hostile tone for the visit by issuing a statement blaming Washington for the breakdown in relations between the two countries.
"The Obama administration chose the path of scaling back bilateral relations, proclaimed a course of isolating Russia on the international arena and demanded that those states that traditionally follow the lead of Washington support its confrontational steps," said the statement, which also claimed that Ukraine's crisis "was largely provoked by the United States itself."
White House spokesman Josh Earnest acknowledged the "complicated" relationship between the former foes, but insisted they could cooperate on "interests that benefit the citizens of both our countries."
Much hinges on violence decreasing in Ukraine, however.
The Western-backed government in Kiev continues to be embroiled in a sporadic conflict between government and separatist rebel forces in its eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk despite a cease-fire agreement sealed in mid-February. Russia was party to that deal; although the U.S. was not, one State Department official said it is important for Putin "to hear directly from the United States that we are firmly committed to (its) implementation."
Western nations say Russia supports the separatists with arms and manpower, and even directs some battlefield operations -- all claims Moscow denies. In return, the Russians bristle at Washington's provisions to Ukraine of military assistance in the form of hardware and training.
Diplomats in Moscow and Washington are at odds over a range of other issues.
Russia last month announced it would lift a five-year ban on delivery of an air defense missile system to Iran, drawing a hasty rebuke from the United States.
The White House said the missile system would give the Islamic republic's military a strong deterrent against any air attack. The Kremlin argues that the S-300 is a purely defensive system that will not jeopardize the security of Israel or any other countries in the Middle East.
On Syria, Russia has defied a chorus of international condemnation to remain allied with Assad.
Following his stop in Sochi, Kerry will travel to Antalya, Turkey, where he will attend a meeting of NATO foreign ministers Wednesday. Kerry will then return to Washington to attend meetings Thursday with Obama and top officials of the Persian Gulf Arab states, who are concerned about the possibility of a nuclear deal with Iran.

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