Trump Jerusalem Cartoons

From Oprah to Trump’s tough talk, media attack the president; and other journalistic disasters of the week

Trump touts economic progress in first year

President talks GDP growth, stock market gains and immigration in wide-ranging interview with the Wall Street Journal; reaction and analysis from Glenn Hall, chief editor for the Dow Jones Newswires.

It was a week that blew through controversies faster than our winter bomb cyclone. Oprah Winfrey’s Golden Globes speech and speculation that she will run for president, the Michael Wolff book even journalists dispute, DACA and, finally, the storm following President Donald Trump’s purported use of the word “s---hole” to describe Africa, Haiti and El Salvador during a discussion on immigration with a bipartisan group of senators.

The president tweeted Friday morning saying the reports about his meeting with the senators were inaccurate. His tweet stated: “The language used by me at the DACA meeting was tough, but this was not the language used. What was really tough was the outlandish proposal made – a big setback for DACA!”

DACA stands for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. President Trump has said the program, which allows about 700,000 immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally by their parents when they were children to remain in the U.S. temporarily, will end in March unless Congress passes new legislation that he signs into law. The program was created by an executive order signed by President Obama.
Two Republican senators at the meeting where Trump supposedly used the offensive language – David Perdue of Georgia and Tom Cotton of Arkansas – issued a statement Friday saying that “we do not recall the President saying these comments specifically.” However, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said the president referred to some nations as “s---hole” countries at the meeting and said the president made some comments that were “hate-filled, vile and racist.”
It was the kind of week where the media overreacted to almost everything. So much so that their Public Enemy No. 2 – Steve Bannon – was barely an afterthought as he left his job heading up Breitbart News following a falling out with President Trump.
Journalists don’t seem to grasp that if everything is an apocalypse then nothing is. That includes everything from the new tax cuts for 80 percent of taxpayers to the latest Trump tweet to the president getting two scoops of ice cream.
Many journalists had taken time off during the holidays and were clearly trying to make up for lost time – especially at CNN. It was hard to tell which topic they embraced with more zeal, but the “s---hole” comment was the perfect capstone to a biased week.
CNN anchors battled to see who could use the offensive word the most aggressively the night the story broke. Chris Cuomo outdid other anchors on his network. CNN used it in a chyron on his new show and elsewhere. He even wrote it on a whiteboard beneath the words: “THIS IS WHO HE IS.” It was like he was channeling a potty-mouth liberal version of Glenn Beck.
Cuomo moved into full lecture mode, telling the resistance: “It’s not OK. It is who he is.” Somewhere he lost the difference between words said in private versus ones broadcast repeatedly on TV.
NBC Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent Andrea Mitchell tweeted her unsubtle view: “It's been a tough day for intelligence experts, foreign policy advocates, and basic human beings.”
The New York Times published a story devoted to the media coverage, under the headline: “After Donald Trump Said It, How News Outlets Handled It.” The paper led with NBC’s Lester Holt, acting like journalists had never heard rough words before. “Holt opened the ‘NBC Nightly News’ on Thursday with a parental warning: ‘This may not be appropriate for some of our younger viewers.’”
The Washington Post led its website with: “Trump attacks protections for immigrants from ‘shithole’ countries.”
The story was omnipresent. The only issue was how many of the eight letters of the vulgar word news organizations actually used. NPR White House Correspondent Scott Horsley tweeted the deadpan NPR position: “We are using s***hole online. Note the third asterisk in keeping with NPR style. – NPR editors.”
The whole episode was a reminder how much journalists edit when they want. During President Obama’s exit interview with Vanity Fair, he admitted: “I curse more than I should, and I find myself cursing more in this office than I had in my previous life.” Then added: “And fortunately both my chief of staff and my national-security adviser have even bigger potty mouths than me, so it’s O.K.” Other than Biden’s famous F-bomb, this is a side to the Team Obama we never saw.
2. Let’s Elect Oprah: When journalists weren’t freaking out about President Trump doing almost anything, they were celebrating a potential opponent. The Sunday night Golden Globes featured longtime TV and movie star Oprah Winfrey winning the Cecil B. DeMille award. Her speech celebrated the press, so journalists loved it. She noted journalists’ “insatiable dedication to uncovering the absolute truth.” Her speech turned to the #MeToo campaign and told about the “ability to maintain hope for a brighter morning, even during our darkest nights.”
The speech was almost universally seen as a pre-announcement announcement of her campaign to become the next president of the United States. Oprah is a self-made billionaire (who I watched making her name on the Baltimore show “People Are Talking”) and left-wing journalists and activists acted like they had found their populist counterpoint to Trump.
The race was on to see which outlet would celebrate Oprah more. NBC even tweeted out backing for her presidency. “Nothing but respect for OUR future president,” the official account stated, above a gif of a smiling Oprah. It was later taken down and blamed on “a third party.”
CNN was all in. Political Analyst April Ryan described Oprah as an “outstanding” candidate who could “definitely win.” Political Commentator Van Jones envisioned her as “probably the most beloved human being on Earth” and the “queen of the universe.” Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter said “her hopeful message – ‘A new day is on the horizon’ – could have doubled as a campaign rallying cry.”
CBS was nearly as bad, leading its nightly newscast with Oprahmania. Chief Congressional Correspondent Nancy Cordes described it as “vintage Winfrey.” “But fans thought they heard something more, the crescendo of a campaign address,” she added. One wonders how many of those fans were outside the nation’s newsrooms.
Entertainment media piled on. Ellen DeGeneres called the speech “a barn burner.” Actress Meryl Streep was awed: “Wow! … where do I send that check, you know?” “The View” Co-host Joy Behar called Oprah “Donald Trump’s worst nightmare.”
3. The Wolff in The White House: By week’s end, it was almost impossible to recall that journalists had spent hours promoting the Michael Wolff book that even they didn’t believe. (Two hours to be exact on ABC, CBS and NBC.)
CNN Host Jake Tapper had a telling Twitter exchange with Washington Post media reporter Paul Farhi going over what they considered flawed about the book. Tapper asked: “Do you believe Wolff’s assertion that 100% of the president’s senior advisers and family members questions his intelligence and fitness for office? That’s the main argument of the book.” Farhi’s response showed the problem of the book: “100 percent? No.”
Tapper responded: “He asserts that it’s 100%. So how one then is supposed to regard his credibility?”
Despite that skepticism, Wolff was everywhere. He declared his book “will finally end ... this presidency,” but claimed to “have no political agenda.” MSNBC Host Chris Matthews celebrated the book’s facts. He said he “love[s] the facts in your book because it is a non-fiction book with a lot of facts.”
Those “facts” were certainly … something. MSNBC hyped the “speculation” that Trump is “dyslexic.”  Even lefty provocateur Stephen Colbert was skeptical, asking Wolff: “So how much of it should I believe?” CNBC’s Sara Fagen told ABC perpetual lefty Anchor George Stephanopoulos that the total was only “50 percent.”
Luckily for Wolff, the media didn’t let those “facts” get in the way of them promoting his book off the shelves.
4. Trump Is _____: The rest of the week was filled with invective – journalists and celebrities bashing President Trump any way they could.

• New York Times Columnist Nicholas Kristof accused Trump of “authoritarian tendencies.”

• CNN Host Anderson Cooper compared Trump to “Wile E. Coyote and Kelly from ‘The Office’” because all pretended to be smart.

• “Morning Joe” Host Joe Scarborough claimed Trump proved he “wasn’t” “in complete control of his mental facilities.” (Yes, Joe said “facilities,” not faculties.) He also pretended Trump listens to the “voices in his head.”

• Actor Robert De Niro complained: “the world is suffering from the real Donald Trump.”

• And TBS’s “Full Frontal” Host Samantha Bee, D-Only Theoretically Funny, announced plans for “The Apology Race,” where her “correspondents will travel the globe to apologize for every garbage thing Donald Trump does.” Reminiscent of the last apology tour we saw that was done by President Barack Obama.

Iran protesters thank Trump, call for stronger sanctions

They are risking their lives to bring freedom to Iran, and vow to continue their protests.

"These uprisings have just begun. People are not at all willing to give up," one activist told Fox News from the streets of Iran.

"Their patience has come to an end and they have nothing to lose. Iran will surely not fall down and people will not retreat from their demands."
The defiance comes as President Trump announced Friday that he is waving sanctions against Iran under the controversial 2015 nuclear deal one last time, and gave the European allies four months to change the terms of the agreement or he may seek to scrap it.
The protesters we talked to demand even harsher sanctions.
"They should impose major sanctions on the regime," one protester demanded. Another added there "should be sanctions for human rights violations."
The protesters are members of the long banned opposition group, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI, also known as the MEK). The group's leader, Maryam Rajavi, has been directly blamed by the Iranian government for fomenting the unrest.
Social media videos show supporters unveiling large banners with Rajavi's photo over highway overpasses, and continuing their opposition.
Punitive measures sought
The group is calling for Iran’s oil exports to also be subject to sanctions, the ability of the Tehran regime to access the international banking system to be cut off, as well as other punitive measures.
The activists predict stronger methods will work, and are thanking the president and the American public for keeping up the pressure.
"We thank you President Trump. We call on all of the supporters of the people who press this regime from different fronts, to put pressure with you and overthrow with us," the activist told Fox News in broken English.
He and others said they are grateful that the Trump administration is expressing support for the resistance that has been staging many of the protests. The demonstrations started Dec. 28, and the government claims that they have largely been quelled.
That is why the activists are looking to the United States for inspiration -- and more help.
"Iranian people want to achieve a democratic and independent government, and play a role in it," said one.
"In Iran taxis and buses and public places, you heard people talking that they are happy that the United States and President Trump is actually taking actions on the side of the Iranian people and as you know, the overthrow of this regime and establishment of a free country is in the interest of the entire world.
“This support should continue, and years of appeasement should end. People are very determined and do not retreat despite this severe crackdown."
The demonstrators deny the protests are largely over. Videos posted on social media show activists attacking government outposts, such as firebombing police stations, destroying government property, and chanting anti-regime slogans.
Common goal
Fox News interviewed the protesters through a social media app that demonstrators have been using to evade the government crackdown on the internet.
The protesters we interviewed asked that their locations remain hidden, and their voices altered or not even used at all, out of fears that they could be identified by the government and arrested.
But they all expressed a common goal. They insisted the movement will not end until the hardline theocratic regime is finally ousted.
"To reach this goal they know the value of the support," one activist told us.
The support from the White House has included President Trump's harsh criticism of the regime and its treatment of the demonstrators.
On Jan. 3, Trump tweeted: "Such respect for the people of Iran as they try to take back their corrupt government. You will see great support from the United States at the appropriate time!"
Earlier this week a White House statement condemned the regime and its mass arrests of protesters. It also said "reports that the regime has tortured or killed some of these demonstrators while in detention are even more disturbing. We will not remain silent as the Iranian dictatorship represses the basic rights of its citizens and will hold Iran's leaders accountable for any violations."
One activist was so scared that he refused to talk, and instead texted this about the president's views.
"He is correct and we approve of what he spoke. He should help the Iranian people. We need internet because the internet in Iran is banned. We ask President Trump to convince European Union to ban the Mullah. We want President Trump to widespread Iranian sound all over the world and show Mullah's injustice to the people of the world."
'Obama failed to act'
In announcing the waiver decision, the president appeared to do just that. The White House statement included several references to the regime's treatment of the protesters:
"The Supreme Leader and his Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps use mass arrests and torture to oppress and silence Iran's people. ... We are calling on all nations to lend similar support to the Iranian people, who are suffering under a regime that is stifling basic freedoms and denying its citizens the opportunity to build better lives for their families -- an opportunity that is every human being's God-given right. ...
“President Obama failed to act as the Iranian people took to the streets in 2009. He turned a blind eye as Iran built and tested dangerous missiles and exported terror. ... (The Iran deal) has served as a slush fund for weapons, terror and oppression, and to further line the pockets of corrupt regime leaders. The Iranian people know this, which is one reason why so many have taken to the streets to express their outrage."
The president's comments slamming the regime have been echoed by other top administration officials as well.
"Iran is the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the world," Vice President Mike Pence told the Voice of America earlier this month. "To see the people of Iran rising up, to demand change in their country, should hearten every freedom loving American and people who cherish freedom around the world."
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the U.N. Security Council last week, "They (the protesters) are acting of their own will, on their own behalf, for their own future. Nothing will stop Americans from standing in solidarity with them. In 2009, the world stood by passively while the hopes of the Iranian people were crushed by their government. In 2018, we will not be silent."
Thousands arrested
The NCRI says there have been demonstrations in at least 132 cities and that upwards of 8,000 protesters have been arrested. One Iranian lawmaker was quoted as saying the number was closer to about 4,000.
One activist texted us that his motivation to overthrow the ruling regime, is simple.
"We have no life in Iran. Our life and death is equal. We have nothing to miss. We want freedom. Just poverty, unemployment and corruption is the result of the Mullah regime ... young people are unemployed. Educated people escape to other countries. Our country has a brain drain problem. The regime does not concern the Iranian people and suppresses any protest and throws people in jail. We want Mr. (Trump) to help us in whatever way he knows."
Another was also very clear.
"Nobody wants to go back, we want to go forward. People what a free republic, that is what people have been chanting. We know that we need to be at risk for a revolution. This is an inevitable revolution and we accept it."

Kentucky to add Medicaid work requirement; first state to follow Trump plan

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin announces federal approval of Kentucky's Medicaid waiver in the Capitol Rotunda in Frankfort, Ky., Friday, Jan. 12, 2018.  (Alex Slitz/Lexington Herald-Leader via AP)

Kentucky received the green light Friday to require many of its Medicaid recipients to work in order to receive coverage.

The Bluegrass State thus becomes the first state to act on the Trump administration’s unprecedented change that could affect millions of low-income people receiving benefits.

Under the new rule, adults age 19 to 64 must complete 80 hours of "community engagement" per month to keep their care. That includes working a job, going to school, taking a job-training course or volunteering.
"There is dignity associated with earning the value of something that you receive," Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin said. "The vast majority of men and women, able-bodied men and women ... they want the dignity associated with being able to earn and have engagement."

"There is dignity associated with earning the value of something that you receive. The vast majority of men and women, able-bodied men and women ... they want the dignity associated with being able to earn and have engagement."

- Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin

Kentuckians also will be required to pay up to $15 a month for their insurance, with basic dental and vision being eliminated entirely. However, those benefits can be earned back through a rewards program, such as getting an annual physical, completing a diabetes or weight management course or participating in an anti-smoking program.
The change was approved Friday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The Trump administration announced Thursday it would allow for states to impose work requirements for people receiving Medicaid.
Bevin, a Republican, said the decision stemmed from concern about public health. Despite the fact that more Kentuckians have insurance, they’re not becoming any healthier, he said.
The state, along with the rest of Appalachia, falls behind the rest of the U.S. in 33 out of 41 population health indicators, according to a recent study. Bevin believes the new work requirement will help change the statistic.
Bevin’s office also stated in its proposal to Washington that the move will save taxpayers more than $300 million over the next five years, and estimated that up to 95,000 people could lose their benefits because they either didn’t comply with the new rule or they obtained jobs that pay too much money and push them out of the low-income bracket.
However, there are some exemptions to the work requirements that will be enforced starting in July and remain in effect for five years. Pregnant women, full-time students, former foster care youth, primary caregivers of children and the elderly and full-time students will not be affected.
People deemed “medically frail,” a broad term that encompasses people who are battling drug and alcohol addiction, will also be exempt.
Critics of the new plan said the changes could lead to many low-income families being denied needed coverage because of technicalities and challenging new paperwork.
Democratic U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, who represents Louisville, calling it a “dangerous and irresponsible” decision that will lead to the “financial ruin” or thousands of families that reside in Kentucky.
Medicaid covers more than 70 million people, or about one in five Americans. Currently, the largest government health insurance program does not required people to have a job or be employed to receive the benefits.

Obama rips Fox News viewers: ‘You are living on a different planet’

The Real World For Him.

Former President Barack Obama resurfaced on Friday and took a shot at Fox News viewers, saying they’re “living on a different planet” than people who consume mainstream media.

Obama made the remarks on the premiere of the new monthly Netflix series “My next guest needs no introduction with David Letterman,” which hit the streaming service on Friday morning. Early in the episode, Obama asked Letterman about his retirement but the veteran talk show host quickly let the former president know who was boss.

“Now here’s how this is gonna work. I’m gonna ask you stuff, and then you respond to stuff,” Letterman joked.
Letterman then asked Obama what he considers the more dangerous threat to a democracy, the president demeaning the press or a foreign power sabotaging the voting process. Both options are clearly jabs at President Trump and Obama answered without mentioning the current president’s name.
“One of the biggest challenges we have to our democracy is the degree to which we don’t share a common baseline of facts,” Obama said. "If you watch Fox News, you are living on a different planet than you are if you are listening to NPR.”

"If you watch Fox News, you are living on a different planet than you are if you are listening to NPR.”

The response got a big round of applause from the presumably liberal crowd at the City College of New York. Obama has a long history of taking shots at Fox News but the recent comment marks his first public attack on the network and its viewers since leaving the White House.
While Trump is often criticized for attacking the media and labeling CNN as “fake news,” Obama’s comment is a reminder that the White House and the press have sparred for decades. Obama once even accused Fox News of “attacking” his administration during an interview with CNBC.
Letterman said goodbye to his long-running talk show two years ago and has launched a six-episode series on Netflix. In each hour-long episode, Letterman conducts a long-form conversation with a single guest, and explores topics of his own outside the studio.
George Clooney, Malala Yousafzai, Jay-Z, Tina Fey, and Howard Stern are scheduled to be guests on Letterman’s show over the next five months.
Brian Flood covers the media for Fox News. Follow him on Twitter at @briansflood.