Light News Dump | Debate 2 Tonight

72 Percent of All Rural Hospital Closures Are in States That Rejected the Medicaid Expansion — States that refused Obamacare's Medicaid expansion are hemorrhaging hospitals in rural areas
https://www.gq.com/story/rural-hospitals-closing-in-red-states

Election Fraud in North Carolina Leads to New Charges for Republican Operative
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/30/us/mccrae-dowless-indictment.html

The New Guy in Charge of Public Lands Thinks We Should Sell It All
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/j5wynb/the-new-guy-in-charge-of-public-lands-thinks-we-should-sell-it-all

National Archives releases Reagan's racist call with then-President Nixon, ex-Reagan library director says
https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/31/politics/ronald-reagan-richard-nixon-monkeys-african-countries/index.html
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/ronald-reagan-uses-racist-language-against-africans-in-released-tape-2019-7

Fed Cuts Interest Rates For 1st Time Since 2008
https://www.npr.org/2019/07/31/734060292/fed-cuts-interest-rates-for-1st-time-since-2008

Another House Republican exiting: GOP Rep. Mike Conaway to retire from Congress | House Intelligence Committee member Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas) won't seek re-election next year, Politico reported Tuesday, citing multiple GOP sources. | This is the 5th retirement of a GOP lawmaker in 2 weeks, as Politico journalist Jake Sherman notes. Conaway had served in Congress for 15 years.
https://amp.axios.com/gop-rep-mike-conaway-to-retire-from-congress-4cf827e0-6c05-4035-82e1-4527c2a39bd4.html
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/07/30/conaway-retirement-1441298

Kevin Durant may no longer play for the Golden State Warriors, but he certainly made his mark in the Bay Area. Aside from the stellar on-court play - which included three All-Star selections, three All-NBA selections, two titles, and two NBA Finals MVPs in his three years - Durant was heavily involved in the community, with myriad philanthropic efforts. His latest - and possibly final - involvement in the community is a beauty. Durant announced that he and his business, Thirty Five Ventures, through his charity, the Kevin Durant Charity Foundation, had finished an outdoor basketball court in San Francisco. And as far as courts go, you can’t make one much prettier than this.
https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/2019/7/30/20747931/2019-nba-warriors-nets-kevin-durant-kd-ventures-basketball-court-san-francisco
https://www.instagram.com/p/B0jrXEBDIU9/

Ben Carson Booted Off Baltimore Church Property After Attempting To Hold Presser
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/ben-carson-kicked-out-church-property-baltimore-presser

House panel seeks documents related to secret CBP Facebook groups that ridiculed migrants
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/house-panel-seeks-documents-related-to-secret-cbp-facebook-groups-that-ridiculed-migrants/2019/07/31/e6507d08-b39f-11e9-8949-5f36ff92706e_story.html

North Korea conducts second missile test in six days
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-39499007

State budget cuts ’destroy any chance’ of economic recovery in Anchorage, AEDC forecast says
https://www.adn.com/business-economy/2019/07/31/state-budget-cuts-destroy-any-chance-of-economic-recovery-in-anchorage-aedc-forecast-says/

Trump considers plan to cut taxes on the rich. Again.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/07/31/trump-administration-considers-innovative-plan-cut-taxes-rich-again/

Arizona tells US Supreme Court that the Sackler family is 'looting' money to avoid legal penalties in opioid cases
https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/31/politics/arizona-sackler-purdue-pharma-supreme-court/index.html

Corporate and Foreign Interests Behind White House Push to Transfer U.S. Nuclear Technology to Saudi Arabia | Prepared for Chairman Elijah E. Cummings
https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/Trump%20Saudi%20Nuclear%20Report%20July%202019.pdf

Drugmakers to pay $70 million over deals to keep cheap generics off the market
https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/07/drug-makers-to-pay-70-million-over-deals-to-keep-cheap-generics-off-the-market/

California professors install seesaws along U.S.-Mexico border wall
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/california-professors-install-seesaws-along-u-s-mexico-border-wall-n1036056

Boris Johnson faces Supreme Court bid to make him stand trial over campaign ‘lies’ - Private prosecutor seeks permission to appeal previous ruling over ‘£350m a week’ claim
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/boris-johnson-brexit-supreme-court-vote-leave-nhs-bus-trial-appeal-a9029506.html

Judge overturns IRS rule that shielded political donors’ identities
https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-07-31/judge-overturns-irs-rule-shielded-political-donors-identities

Trump Orders Navy to Strip Medals From Prosecutors in War Crimes Trial
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/31/us/politics/trump-navy-seal-war-crimes.html

Zack Greinke Traded Up To World-Series Bound Houston Astros, Congrats Zack On Landing In The Playoffs And Possibly Making The World Series. League F!cked LOL

World Series will likely be Houston Astros vs Los Angeles Dodgers and I'll be rooting for many players on both sides.......

Light News Dump

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signs bill that requires Presidential candidates - Trump included - to release his tax returns to appear on primary ballot. The Constitution does not dictate how and why a candidate is placed on the ballot therefore under the 10th amendment of the Constitution is up to the states. Different states have different rules and requirements for being placed on the state Presidential ballot.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/30/us/politics/california-trump-tax-returns.html

Trump aide submitted drafts of 2016 'America First' energy speech to UAE for edits, emails show
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-aide-submitted-drafts-2016-america-energy-speech/story?id=64634140

Democrats introduce constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/455342-democrats-introduce-constitutional-amendment-to-overturn-citizens-united

Wisconsin Republican won’t allow Democratic legislator who uses wheelchair to phone in to committee meetings because he says it’s ‘disrespectful’
https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-nw-wisconsin-paralyzed-legislator-20190729-y3g2kpgfufdidaq7okxkficj4y-story.html

Led by Ted Cruz, GOP Senators Call on Trump to Bypass Congress to Give Rich Americans Another Tax Cut
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/07/30/led-ted-cruz-gop-senators-call-trump-bypass-congress-give-rich-americans-another-tax

YEP: Chauncy DeVega: Still Believe Trump's Racism Won't Get Him Re-Elected? That's What You Thought The Last Time Too [salon.com]

https://www.salon.com/2019/07/30/still-believe-trumps-racism-wont-get-him-re-elected-thats-what-you-thought-the-last-time-too/

Still Believe Trump's Racism Won't Get Him Re-Elected? That's What You Thought The Last Time Too

There's zero downside for Trump in his hateful rhetoric. Don't underestimate the depth of racism in America


Chauncey DeVega

July 30, 2019 11:00AM (UTC)

It must be all that "economic anxiety."

In a series of tweets last weekend Donald Trump ramped up his racist attacks on black and brown people, demanding why "so much money" was sent to the Maryland district of Rep. Elijah Cummings, the black Democrat who chairs the House Oversight Committee. He claimed Cummings' district was "the worst run and most dangerous anywhere in the United States."

     No human being would want to live there. Where is all this money going? How much is stolen? Investigate this corrupt mess immediately!

    ....As proven last week during a Congressional tour, the Border is clean, efficient & well run, just very crowded. Cumming District [sic] is a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess. If he spent more time in Baltimore, maybe he could help clean up this very dangerous & filthy place

Trump also described Cummings as a "brutal bully,"

    ... shouting and screaming at the great men & women of Border Patrol about conditions at the Southern Border, when actually his Baltimore district is FAR WORSE and more dangerous. His district is considered the Worst in the USA ...

Of course Donald Trump believes that black men are scary giant brutes, even when talking about a 68-year-old member of Congress known for his courtly demeanor, even with political opponents. This is the racial logic of lynch law, slavery and Jim Crow. It lives on in "post-racial" America and the Age of Trump.

So Trump's brief lull in launching racist attacks against black and brown people is now over. Yet somehow the narrative that Trump's appeal is based on "economic anxiety" still persists among the mainstream news media and what is a mostly white commentariat.

Similarly, almost three years into Trump's presidency there is still a fear among many in the news media of labeling him a racist and a fascist, despite the supporting evidence he offers on a daily basis. Trump offers an abundance of evidence in support of such conclusions.

Instead, Donald Trump is orbited by phrases such as "racially charged," "racially insensitive," "racially provocative," "racially inflammatory" or other nonsensical terms built upon evasion and moral cowardice.

Ego and laziness means that many narratives about the Age of Trump and other matters of public concern continue to be given life, even when manifestly untrue because people who should know better refuse to do the research and other work necessary to dispel them.

There is also a reluctance by both individuals and institutions, especially the powerful and influential, to admit they were wrong.

There is a persistent and apparently unshakable belief in the inherent goodness and innocence of whiteness. To state plainly that many millions of white Americans are racists and white supremacists (and yes, some are also indeed fascists) is treated by many journalists and other opinion leaders as verboten.

Trump's advisers know the power of racism and white supremacy. Moreover, unlike most  reporters and commentators, Trump's minions are willing to publicly state that racism (which they pretty up as "nativism") holds great appeal for Republican voters. On Friday, the Washington Post reported that Trump's inner circle had concluded that "the overall message" of his racist tweets "was good for the president among  his political base— resonating strongly with the white working-class voters he needs to win reelection in 2020."

    This has prompted them to find ways to fuse Trump's nativist rhetoric with a love-it-or-leave-it appeal to patriotism ahead of the 2020 election, while seeking to avoid the overtly racist language the president used in his tweets about the four congresswomen ....

    Bryan Lanza, an adviser to Trump's 2016 campaign and transition, said that although he did not like the "Send her back!" chants, he hoped Republicans would double down rather than back down from their attacks on the four lawmakers.

    "Usually, when they are faced with charges of racism, Republicans hide a little bit. And the president's not hiding," he said. "And I think that's what the Republican voters like about him."

Because they are afraid to speak in clear and direct terms about the persistence of racism and white supremacy in America, many analysts will try to make this more complicated than it really is.

Donald Trump is a racist. There are many millions of white people in America who are also racists. The Republican Party is the country's (and probably the world's) leading white identity organization. Conservatism and racism are functionally one and the same thing in America. Social scientists have shown that Republicans are more likely to be racists than are Democrats. Donald Trump is giving his voters what they want. In that regard he is a good salesman and sound marketer.

Despite hand-wringing to the contrary and claims that Trump's brand of overt unapologetic racism will supposedly hurt him at the polls with "suburban white women" or "traditional college-educated Republicans in the suburbs" (or with the almost-mythical "Obama to Trump voters") there is much evidence to suggest that racism will again be the key to the White House in 2020.

https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/is-trumps-use-of-white-identity-politics-strategic/

Overall, the electorate is not much different from the one that put Trump in the White House in 2016. White racial resentment lifted him to the White House, with the very likely help of Russian interference. While there are projections of record voter turnout and a highly energized public (both against and in favor of Trump) there are few reasons to believe that what happened in 2016 will not happen again in 2020. Yes, the 2020 presidential election is a referendum on this president, who is now a known quantity. But Trump was a highly divisive and controversial figure when he ran for president in 2016. That too has not changed.

Trump is still remarkably popular among his base. In fact, he enjoys the most consistent level of support among his voters of any president in the history of modern public opinion polling.

There may be some Republicans and other Trump voters who experience temporary feelings of discomfort with the president's racism, but this is not likely to be a disqualifying factor in their vote for him in 2020. Their discomfort is with Trump's style, not with the "substance" of what he is saying.

The public is highly polarized. Racists have found their natural home in the post-civil rights era Republican Party. Racism has a "spillover" effect across a range of public policy matters that on the surface appear to be "race-neutral."

Political scientist Michael Tesler convincingly demonstrates in his book "Post-Racial? or Most-Racial?" that these dynamics are all connected to one another. The outcome? There are few electoral penalties for Donald Trump and the Republican Party if they continue to use white racial grievance politics and overt racism as their dominant political strategy.

Trump and his supporters are racial authoritarians. His racist attacks on nonwhite people are widely popular among Republican voters and right-leaning independents.

Moreover, many such Americans are living vicariously through his regime's cruelty towards nonwhites. As such, Donald Trump's concentration camps are a thrilling spectacle for his voters and other supporters.

Across the right-wing echo chamber, white people have been repeatedly told that they are "losing their country" to nonwhites. This is absurd nonsense, but white racial logic is not built upon reason. All that matters is that Republicans and right-leaning independents believe this. They will support Trump and the Republican Party in order to "defend" their notion of America from this nonexistent enemy Other.

A recent poll from Pew provides additional insight into the Trump strategy of using naked racism and white supremacy to win the 2020 election. The Associated Press summarizes these findings:

https://www.apnews.com/277fe31ea2234658a991243a9c6f2466

    Polls show stark differences in assessments of the state of race relations and Trump's impact by party identification, along with racial and ethnic identity and educational attainment.

    In Pew's poll, fully 84% of Democrats said Trump has worsened race relations, while only about 2 in 10 Republicans agreed. About a third of Republicans said Trump has made progress toward improving race relations, while a quarter said he has tried but failed. [Emphasis added.]

    Majorities of Americans who are black, Hispanic and Asian said Trump has made race relations worse, compared with about half of white Americans. Among white Americans, views diverged by education — 64% of whites with a college degree think Trump has worsened race relations, compared with 41% of those without.

These results largely reflect the way that partisanship drives support for Trump — as well as well-deserved hostility toward him.

Some plain facts. Donald Trump has said some white supremacists are "very fine people," he is heralded by white supremacists and other members of the New Right as a hero and a symbol of white power. He slurs entire "races" of nonwhite people as natural born rapists, murderers, and thieves, human vermin and snakes; he has tried to ban Muslims from entering America and repeatedly attacks nonwhite people as ungrateful traitors who should leave the country. For 30 percent of Republicans to conclude that Trump has "improved race relations" requires that a person suspend all reason — unless they are actually defining "race relations" in some other way.

For Trump's white voters, perhaps, "race relations" is taken to mean dominating and abusing black and brown people (a more polite phrasing might concern a "respect for tradition" or for "what is normal," or the sentiment that some people are "not comfortable with change"). From this point of view, "race relations" are "good" when nonwhites are compliant, obedient and remain silent about demands for justice, equality or fairness.

One cannot overlook how white America's understanding of "race relations" is also highly suspect in other ways as well: during the height of the civil rights movement against Jim Crow in the 1960s and 1950s, a large proportion of white Americans actually believed that "race relations" were good and that black Americans had fair and equal opportunities in America.

http://www.timwise.org/2016/07/what-does-it-mean-to-be-wrong-for-so-long-reflections-on-black-reality-and-white-delusion/

Ultimately, "race relations" is not just a measure of action but also of symbolism. To wit, the election of Barack Obama, and then his re-election, caused a white rage temper tantrum that helped to elect an overtly racist president.

Political scientists and others have shown that Barack Obama spoke less about racial matters than previous presidents. He also did little in terms of public policy to address the specific needs of nonwhites. Obama's actions did not matter to the white gaze and imperiled whiteness: his blackness and the humanity, dignity, intelligence and grace of his black family were taken as an insult.

https://www.amazon.com/Identity-Crisis-Presidential-Campaign-Meaning/dp/0691174199

The better angels among us would like to believe that Trump's strategy of racial grievance-mongering, white victimology, and racist attacks against black and brown people will be a net negative, alienating more potential white voters than it wins him.

Then again many of these same hopeful voices also believed, until the early hours of Nov. 9, 2016, that Donald Trump would never be elected president of the United States in the first place.

Chauncey DeVega

Chauncey DeVega is a politics staff writer for Salon. His essays can also be found at Chaunceydevega.com. He also hosts a weekly podcast, The Chauncey DeVega Show. Chauncey can be followed on Twitter and Facebook.

The Democratic presidential candidates take the stage for the second round of debates Tuesday and Wednesday in Detroit. A lot is on the line for the candidates, who have been engaged in back-and-forths over race and health care coming into this round of debates.

https://www.npr.org/2019/07/30/746375451/your-guide-to-tonights-democratic-presidential-debate

When is the debate?

Tuesday night's debate begins at 8 p.m. ET. It's slated to last two hours.

Which candidates are onstage Tuesday night?

In order of their placement onstage, left to right: Spiritualist and author Marianne Williamson; Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio; Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.; South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg; Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.; Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.; former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas; former Gov. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo.; former Rep. John Delaney, D-Md.; and Gov. Steve Bullock, D-Mont.

Light News Dump

The American Civil Liberties Union today announced that it will seek to expedite proceedings before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in order to restore a permanent block on border wall construction using unauthorized military funds. The announcement comes after the Supreme Court temporarily granted the administration’s request to unfreeze up to $2.5 billion in military funds for wall construction while the Ninth Circuit considers the merits of the government’s appeal. The decision comes in an ACLU lawsuit on behalf of the Sierra Club and Southern Border Communities Coalition challenging the president’s abuse of emergency powers for border wall funds Congress denied. “This is not over. We will be asking the federal appeals court to expedite the ongoing appeals proceeding to halt this irreversible and imminent damage from Trump's border wall. Border communities, the environment, and our Constitution’s separation of powers will be permanently harmed should Trump get away with pillaging military funds for a xenophobic border wall Congress denied,” said Dror Ladin, staff attorney with the ACLU’s National Security Project, who successfully argued the case at the district and appellate court levels. Despite tonight’s Supreme Court order, which is temporary and limited to the $2.5 billion in military funds, the matter will go back to the Ninth Circuit, where the government had initially appealed a district court order blocking wall construction using the military funds. The Ninth Circuit denied the government’s motion to temporarily lift the block, but had not completed consideration of arguments on the merits of the government’s appeal when the government asked the Supreme Court to temporarily lift the block.
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-comment-supreme-court-order-border-wall-lawsuit

Late Friday evening, the Supreme Court gave the Trump administration a temporary green light to begin construction of the border wall using military funds Congress denied. The order, while temporary and limited to specific wall projects where fencing already exists, threatens to permanently damage border communities, the environment, and our Constitution’s separation of powers. But it’s not the “big victory” President Trump quickly declared. The fight continues. Most importantly, the Supreme Court has not yet decided the case. The case — which we filed on behalf of the Sierra Club and Southern Border Communities Coalition (SBCC) — now goes back to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. There, we’ll be asking the court to further expedite ongoing appeal proceedings. It’s important to be clear on what the 5-4 majority of the Supreme Court actually said on Friday. The Supreme Court didn’t give Trump’s abuse of emergency powers the stamp of approval, or say anything about whether the wall construction was lawful. Nor did the Supreme Court say that our clients lack standing — even the government concedes that Sierra Club and SBCC members face harm from the construction of a 30-foot wall on the lands they use and treasure. Instead, in temporarily granting the administration’s request to begin wall construction, the majority’s brief, one-paragraph order stated that “the Government has made sufficient showing at this stage that the plaintiffs have no cause of action to obtain review.” The words “at this stage” are key. To receive a temporary stay, which the government was asking for here, the bar is lower than for normal review. The government has to show only a “fair possibility” in prevailing on the cause of action issue. At the next stage, when our case is given full consideration, the government would have to actually establish that our clients, who are indisputably harmed by Trump’s abuse of powers, still can’t call on the courts to stop the president’s illegal power grab. That’s a much higher bar, and one the government has failed to meet in lower courts. Moreover, there are centuries-old precedents empowering courts to halt lawless executive action, and the Supreme Court has long recognized those precedents. There is a strong reason to believe it will do so again in a case where the illegality is as blatant as the president taking funds Congress deliberately and expressly denied.
https://www.aclu.org/blog/national-security/supreme-court-order-no-big-victory-trumps-border-wall-fight-continues

Alaska defunds scholarships for thousands of university students ahead of fall semester
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/alaska-defunds-scholarships-thousands-university-students-ahead-fall-semester-n1035231

India achieves target of doubling tiger count 4 years before deadline
https://www.businesstoday.in/latest/trends/tiger-census-india-achieves-target-four-years-before-deadline/story/368716.html

Human body ‘close to thermal limits’ due to extreme heatwaves caused by climate change, scientist says | Recordbreaking heat has swept through Europe this week with temperatures topping 40C - in places such as South Asia & the Persian Gulf, people are already enduring temperatures reaching up to 54C | Despite all the body's thermal efficiencies, these areas could soon be uninhabitable, according to Loughborough University climate scientist Dr Tom Matthews in The Conversation.
https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/exteme-global-temperatures-heatwave-human-body-limits-a9023421.html
https://theconversation.com/heatwave-think-its-hot-in-europe-the-human-body-is-already-close-to-thermal-limits-elsewhere-121003

A teenager who accused a prominent local politician of rape in India has been involved in a fatal car crash, with the family and prominent opposition leaders calling foul play. The 19-year-old alleged rape victim was travelling with her lawyer and two female relatives when their car was rammed by a truck in a head-on collision. The two female relatives, one of whom was also a witness in a related case, died in the crash, while the alleged rape victim and her lawyer are in critical condition in hospital. The woman, from Unnao in Uttar Pradesh state, says she was raped in 2017 by Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a member of the state’s legislative assembly for Narendra Modi’s ruling BJP party. The case came to prominence in April 2018 when the woman attempted to set herself on fire outside the residence of Yogi Adityanath, the BJP chief minister of the state, accusing police of failing to act. A day later, her father – who had brought the case to police on her behalf – died in hospital after he was beaten, allegedly by a group of men including Mr Sengar’s brother.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/unnao-rape-case-death-woman-india-politician-truck-lawyer-kuldeep-sengar-a9025116.html

U.S. judge blocks Medicaid work requirements in New Hampshire
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-healthcare-medicaid-new-hampshire/u-s-judge-blocks-medicaid-work-requirements-in-new-hampshire-idUSKCN1UO21R

New Documents Show Corporate and Foreign Interests Seek to Influence U.S. Nuclear Policy | “Today’s report reveals new and extensive evidence that corroborates Committee whistleblowers and exposes how corporate and foreign interests are using their unique access to advocate for the transfer of U.S. nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia. The American people deserve to know the facts about whether the White House is willing to place the potential profits of the President’s personal friends above the national security of the American people and the universal objective of preventing the spread of nuclear weapons.” | New documents and communications show that IP3, the private company lobbying the White House to transfer U.S. nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia, repeatedly sought a $120 million investment from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.  It is unclear if the company ultimately received the investment. | New documents show that IP3 officials have had unprecedented access to the highest levels of the Trump Administration, including meeting directly with President Trump, Jared Kushner, Gary Cohn, KT McFarland, and Cabinet Secretaries Rick Perry, Steven Mnuchin, Mike Pompeo, Rex Tillerson, James Mattis, and Wilbur Ross. IP3 described the Trump Administration as “an extended team member.” | New documents show that Thomas J. Barrack, Jr.—a longtime personal friend, campaign donor, and inaugural chairman—negotiated directly with President Trump and other White House officials to seek powerful positions within the Administration—including Special Envoy to the Middle East and Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates—at the same time he was (1) promoting the interests of U.S. corporations seeking to profit from the transfer of nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia; (2) advocating on behalf of foreign interests seeking to obtain this U.S. nuclear technology; and (3) taking steps for his own company, Colony NorthStar, to profit from the same proposals he was advancing with the Administration. | The White House has completely refused to cooperate with the Committee’s investigation and has not produced a single document in response to the Committee’s requests.  For the most part, the federal agencies involved have followed suit.  As a result of the White House’s actions, it may be necessary for the Committee to seek compulsory process to obtain information from the White House, federal agencies, and individual Trump Administration officials. |
https://oversight.house.gov/news/press-releases/new-documents-show-corporate-and-foreign-interests-seek-to-influence-us-nuclear
https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/Trump%20Saudi%20Nuclear%20Report%20July%202019.pdf
https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/Trump%20Saudi%20Nuclear%20Report%20July%202019%20-%20Appendix%20A.pdf

Light News Dump

Dozens of gold miners have invaded a remote indigenous reserve in the Brazilian Amazon where a local leader was stabbed to death and have taken over a village after the community fled in fear, local politicians and indigenous leaders said. The authorities said police were on their way to investigate. Illegal gold mining is at epidemic proportions in the Amazon and the heavily polluting activities of garimpeiros – as miners are called – devastate forests and poison rivers with mercury. About 50 garimpeiros were reported to have invaded the 600,000-hectare Waiãpi indigenous reserve in the state of Amapá on Saturday.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/28/amazon-gold-miners-invade-indigenous-village-brazil-leader-killed

Nadler says Trump should be impeached because 'he's violated the laws six ways from Sunday'
https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/28/politics/jerry-nadler-trump-investigation-impeachment/

Jerry Nadler: We have impeachment resolutions before the House Judiciary Committee
https://www.axios.com/impeachment-jerry-nadler-house-judiciary-committee-3bc2483e-b44c-4063-9c80-629ad4aaa8c7.html

Rural hospitals struggle in states that declined Obamacare
https://www.newbernsj.com/news/20190728/rural-hospitals-struggle-in-states-that-declined-obamacare

Baltimore Sun editorial board lashes out at Trump: 'Better to have a few rats than to be one'
https://thehill.com/homenews/media/455033-baltimore-sun-lashes-out-at-trump-in-fiery-editorial-better-to-have-a-few-rats

Trump critics post photos of poverty, homelessness in Republican districts across U.S.
https://www.newsweek.com/trump-critics-post-photos-poverty-homelessness-republican-districts-across-us-1451472

Special Counsel Mueller and FBI Director Wray Just Confirmed We Need to Do More to Protect Our Democracy From Putin’s Interference. So Why is Majority Leader Mcconnell Blocking Commonsense Election Security Legislation?
https://www.democrats.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/special-counsel-mueller-and-fbi-director-wray-just-confirmed-we-need-to-do-more-to-protect-our-democracy-from-putins-interference-so-why-is-majority-leader-mcconnell-blocking-commonsense-election-security-legislation

Trump Wants to Declare Antifa a Terrorist Organization, Even Though Right-Wing Extremists Have Been More Violent
https://www.newsweek.com/trump-wants-declare-antifa-terrorist-organization-even-though-right-wing-extremists-have-been-1451444

Illinois eliminates statute of limitations for sex crimes
https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/455024-illinois-eliminates-statue-of-limitations-for-sex-crimes

Republican States are illegally ordering schools to paint "In G/d We Trust" on the walls of public schools. | South Dakota’s Republican lawmakers said it was about history — the motto appears on money, on license plates and in the fourth stanza of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” It’s also likely to be discussed in the classroom, where historical inquiry is a key part of the state’s social studies curriculum. But legislators said they wanted to make it more clear; they wanted to “reaffirm” it. So this fall, when students return to school, a new and compulsory message will greet them: “In God We Trust.” It’ll be the first new academic year since South Dakota’s GOP leadership passed a law requiring every public school to display the American maxim “in a prominent location” and in a font no smaller than 12 by 12 inches. South Dakota joins a growing list of states that force their schools to display the motto. At least half a dozen passed “In God We Trust” bills last year, and 10 more have introduced or passed the legislation so far in 2019. Similar signage is going up in Kentucky schools this summer, and Missouri could be next.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2019/07/27/red-state-is-plastering-god-we-trust-walls-public-schools-its-mandatory/

U.S. cybersecurity agency uses pineapple pizza to demonstrate vulnerability to foreign influence. Within 24 hours of the first tweet, the fake war on pineapple had begun to have its intended effect.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/u-s-cybersecurity-agency-uses-pineapple-pizza-demonstrate-vulnerability-foreign-n1035296?cid=sm_npd_nn_fb_ma

State department now illegally requires social media information from visa applicants
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/state-department-now-requires-us-visa-applicants-to-share-social-media-accounts-2019-06-01/

Beyer, House Democrats Introduce Fair Representation Act Following Supreme Court Decision On Gerrymandering
https://beyer.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=4487

Leading architects and engineers are calling for all-glass skyscrapers to be banned because they are too difficult and expensive to cool. “If you’re building a greenhouse in a climate emergency, it’s a pretty odd thing to do to say the least”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jul/28/ban-all-glass-skscrapers-to-save-energy-in-climate-crisis

Dan Coats Expected to Step Down as Intelligence Chief. To replace him, the people said, the president was likely to tap Representative John Ratcliffe, a Texas Republican and staunch defender of Mr. Trump. As a member of the House Judiciary Committee, he sharply questioned Robert S. Mueller III...at last week’s hearing.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/28/us/politics/dan-coats-intelligence-chief-out.html

Coats recently announced the creation of a new, senior-level position within the intelligence community whose focus will be on coordinating its election security efforts. He has basically been fired for doing so. A pro-Trump lackey will be replacing him
https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/intel-chief-dan-coats-creates-new-role-to-coordinate-election-security-efforts/

2.5 years in, the Trump admin has had significantly more cabinet turnover than any modern President for the entirety of their first term. Upon Coat's resignation, this is what nominees for the 22 cabinet level positions look like:

    1 Resigned in Protest (Mattis)
    5 Resigned in Disgrace (Acosta, Zinkie, Price, Shulkin, Pruitt)
    3 Withdrawn in Disgrace Pre-Confirmation (Puzder, Jackson, Shanahan)
    5 Fired (Tillerson, Sessions, Kelly, Nielsen, Coats)
    1 Resigned - Cabinet Position Abolished (Haley)
    1 Resigned Normally (McMahon)
    2 Forced to become Chief of Staff (Kelly, Mulvaney)
    2 embroiled in serious, likely terminal, controversy (Ross, Bernhardt)
    4 embroiled in less serious controversy, fates unclear (Carson, DeVos, Mnuchin, Chao)
    3 relatively normal cabinet appointees (Perdue, Perry, Lighthizer)

That's to say nothing of his Campaign Chairman or National Security Advisor, both of whom are now convicted felons, or the dumpster fires at crucial WH positions like Comms Director or Press Secretary.

Only the best people, folks.


Jared Kushner owns Baltimore area housing projects that have racked up hundreds of building code violations |https://www.newsweek.com/trump-jared-kushner-baltimore-housing-projects-racked-code-violations-1451479

32,000 Jews live in Baltimore district, Trump: 'No human' wants to
https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/32000-Jews-live-in-Baltimore-district-Trump-No-human-wants-to-597016

Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) said there's no way the Republican-controlled Senate would impeach President Trump even if House Democrats started an inquiry. "The issue for Democrats is, are we going to spend all our time talking about impeachment, which we know they can't get him in the Senate?" McAuliffe said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." "I mean, he could rob a bank and the Senate would not convict him. It doesn't matter," he added.
https://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/455059-ex-virginia-governor-trump-could-rob-a-bank-and-senate-wouldnt

Hundreds of Alaska children expected to lose access to pre-K under governor’s budget veto
https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/education/2019/07/26/hundreds-of-alaska-children-expected-to-lose-access-to-pre-k-under-governors-budget-veto/

We Are African Americans, We Are Patriots, And We Refuse To Sit Idly By [washingtonpost]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/we-are-african-americans-we-are-patriots-and-we-refuse-to-sit-idly-by/2019/07/26/c02ade6c-af16-11e9-8e77-03b30bc29f64_story.html?utm_term=.fde8224c91d5

We Are African Americans, We Are Patriots, And We Refuse To Sit Idly By

By Clarence J. Fluker, C. Kinder, Jesse Moore and Khalilah M. Harris

July 26

This op-ed is co-signed by 149 African Americans who served in the Obama administration.

This post has been updated.

We've heard this before. Go back where you came from. Go back to Africa. And now, "send her back." Black and brown people in America don't hear these chants in a vacuum; for many of us, we've felt their full force being shouted in our faces, whispered behind our backs, scrawled across lockers, or hurled at us online. They are part of a pattern in our country designed to denigrate us as well as keep us separate and afraid.

As 149 African Americans who served in the last administration, we witnessed firsthand the relentless attacks on the legitimacy of President Barack Obama and his family from our front-row seats to America's first black presidency. Witnessing racism surge in our country, both during and after Obama's service and ours, has been a shattering reality, to say the least. But it has also provided jet-fuel for our activism, especially in moments such as these.

We stand with congresswomen Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib, as well as all those currently under attack by President Trump, along with his supporters and his enablers, who feel deputized to decide who belongs here — and who does not. There is truly nothing more un-American than calling on fellow citizens to leave our country — by citing their immigrant roots, or ancestry, or their unwillingness to sit in quiet obedience while democracy is being undermined.

We are proud descendants of immigrants, refugees and the enslaved Africans who built this country while enduring the horrors of its original sin. We stand on the soil they tilled, and march in the streets they helped to pave. We are red-blooded Americans, we are patriots, and we have plenty to say about the direction this country is headed. We decry voter suppression. We demand equitable access to health care, housing, quality schools and employment. We welcome new Americans with dignity and open arms. And we will never stop fighting for the overhaul of a criminal-justice system with racist foundations.

We come from Minnesota and Michigan. The Bronx and Baton Rouge. Florida and Philadelphia. Cleveland and the Carolinas. Atlanta and Nevada. Oak-town and the Chi. We understand our role in this democracy, and respect the promise of a nation built by, for and of immigrants. We are part of that tradition, and have the strength to both respect our ancestors from faraway lands and the country we all call home.

Our love of country lives in these demands, and our commitment to use our voices and our energy to build a more perfect union. We refuse to sit idly by as racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia are wielded by the president and any elected official complicit in the poisoning of our democracy. We call on local, state and congressional officials, as well as presidential candidates to articulate their policies and strategies for moving us forward as a strong democracy, through a racial-equity lens that prioritizes people over profit. We will continue to support candidates for local, state and federal office who add more diverse representation to the dialogue and those who understand the importance of such diversity when policymaking here in our country and around the world. We ask all Americans to be a good neighbor by demonstrating anti-racist, environmentally friendly, and inclusive behavior toward everyone in your everyday interactions.

The statesman Frederick Douglass warned, "The life of a nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful and virtuous." This nation has neither grappled with nor healed from the horrors of its origins. It is time to advance that healing process now through our justice, economic, health and political systems.

Expect to hear more from us. We plan to leave this country better than we found it. This is our home.

Saba Abebe, former special assistant, Office of Economic Impact and Diversity, Energy Department

Tsehaynesh Abebe, former adviser, U.S. Agency for International Development

David Adeleye, former policy specialist, White House

Bunmi Akinnusotu, former special assistant, Office of Land and Emergency Management, Environmental Protection Agency

Trista Allen, former senior adviser to the regional administrator, General Services Administration

Maria Anderson, former operations assistant, White House

Karen Andre, former White House liaison, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Caya Lewis Atkins, former counselor for science and public health, Department of Health and Human Services

Roy L. Austin Jr., former deputy assistant to the president, White House Domestic Policy Council

Kevin Bailey, former special assistant, White House; senior policy adviser, Treasury Department

Jumoke Balogun, former adviser to the secretary, Labor Department

Diana Banks, former deputy assistant secretary, Defense Department

Desiree N. Barnes, former adviser to the press secretary, White House

Kevin F. Beckford, former special adviser, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Alaina Beverly, former associate director, Office of Urban Affairs, White House

Saba Bireda, former senior counsel, Office for Civil Rights, Education Department

Vincent H. Bish Jr., former special assistant to the assistant secretary of strategic program management, Department of Health and Human Services

Michael Blake, former director for African American, minority and women business enterprises and county and statewide elected officials, White House

Tenicka Boyd, former special assistant, Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Education Department

Tanya Bradsher, former assistant secretary for public affairs, Department of Homeland Security

Stacey Brayboy, former chief of staff, Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Agriculture Department

Allyn Brooks-LaSure, former deputy associate administrator for external affairs, Environmental Protection Agency

Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, former director of coverage policy, Office of Health Reform, Department of Health and Human Services

Quincy K. Brown, former senior policy adviser, Office of Science and Technology Policy, White House

Taylor Campbell, former director of correspondence systems innovation, White House

Crystal Carson, former chief of staff to the director of communications, White House

Genger Charles, former general deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Housing, Federal Housing Administration, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Glorie Chiza, former associate director, Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, White House

Sarah Haile Coombs, special assistant, Department of Health and Human Services

Michael Cox, former special assistant to the assistant secretary for intergovernmental affairs, Commerce Department

Adria Crutchfield, former director of external affairs, Federal Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Joiselle Cunningham, former special adviser, Office of the Secretary, Education Department

Charlotte Flemmings Curtis, former special adviser for White House initiatives, Corporation for National and Community Service

Kareem Dale, former special assistant to the president for disability policy, White House

Ashlee Davis, former White House liaison, Agriculture Department

Marco A. Davis, former deputy director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics

Russella L. Davis-Rogers, former chief of staff, Office of Strategic Partnerships, Department of Education

Tequia Hicks Delgado, former senior adviser for congressional engagement and legislative relations, Office of Legislative Affairs, White House

Kalisha Dessources Figures, former policy adviser, White House Council on Women and Girls

Leek Deng, former special assistant, Bureau for Global Health, U.S. Agency for International Development

Tene Dolphin, former chief of staff, Economic Development Administration, Commerce Department

Monique Dorsainvil, former deputy chief of staff, Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, White House

Joshua DuBois, former executive director, Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships; former special assistant to the president, White House

Dru Ealons, former director, Office of Public Engagement, Environmental Protection Agency

Rosemary Enobakhare, former deputy associate administrator for public engagement and environmental education, Environmental Protection Agency

Karen Evans, former assistant director and policy adviser, Office of Cabinet Affairs, White House

Clarence J. Fluker, former deputy associate director for national parks and youth engagement, White House Council on Environmental Quality

Heather Foster, former public engagement adviser and director of African American affairs, White House

Kalina Francis, former special adviser, Office of Public Affairs, Treasury Department

Matthew "Van" Buren Freeman, former senior adviser, Minority Business Development Agency, Commerce Department

Cameron French, former deputy assistant secretary for public affairs, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Jocelyn Frye, former deputy assistant to the president and director of policy and special projects for the first lady, White House

Bernard Fulton, former deputy assistant secretary for congressional relations, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Stephanie Gaither, former confidential assistant to the deputy director, Office of Management and Budget, White House

Demetria A. Gallagher, former senior adviser for policy and inclusive innovation, Commerce Department

Lateisha Garrett, former White House liaison, National Endowment for the Humanities

W. Cyrus Garrett, former special adviser to the director of counternarcotics enforcement, Department of Homeland Security

Bishop M. Garrison, former science and technology directorate adviser, Department of Homeland Security

Lisa Gelobter, former chief digital service officer, Education Department

A'shanti F. Gholar, former special assistant to the secretary, Labor Department

Jay R. Gilliam, former special assistant, U.S. Agency for International Development

Artealia Gilliard, former deputy assistant secretary for transportation policy, Transportation Department

Brenda Girton-Mitchell, former director, Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Education Department

Jason Green, former associate counsel and special assistant to the president, White House

Corey Arnez Griffin, former associate director, Peace Corps

Kyla F. Griffith, former special adviser to the secretary, Commerce Department

Simone L. Hardeman-Jones, former deputy assistant secretary, Office of Legislative and Congressional Affairs, Education Department

Thamar Harrigan, former senior intergovernmental relations adviser, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Dalen Harris, former director, Office of Intergovernmental and Public Liaison, Office of National Drug Control Policy, White House

Khalilah M. Harris, former deputy director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans; former senior adviser, Office of Personnel Management

Adam Hodge, former deputy assistant secretary for public affairs, Treasury Department

Valerie Jarrett, former senior adviser, White House

Will Yemi Jawando, former associate director, Office of Public Engagement, White House

Karine Jean-Pierre, former northeast political director, Office of Political Affairs, White House

A. Jenkins, former director, Center for Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Commerce Department

Adora Jenkins, former press secretary, Justice Department; former deputy associate administrator for external affairs, Environmental Protection Agency

W. Nate Jenkins, former chief of staff and senior adviser to the budget director, Office of Management and Budget, White House

David J. Johns, former executive director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans

Brent Johnson, former special adviser to the secretary, Commerce Department

Broderick Johnson, former White House assistant to the president and Cabinet secretary for My Brother's Keeper Task Force

Carmen Daniels Jones, former director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Agriculture Department

Gregory K. Joseph II, former special assistant, Office of the Executive Secretariat, Energy Department

Jamia Jowers, former special assistant, National Security Council

Charmion N. Kinder, former associate, Press Office of the First Lady, White House; former assistant press secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Elise Nelson Leary, former international affairs adviser, National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Kimberlyn Leary, former adviser, White House Council on Women and Girls

Daniella Gibbs Léger, former special assistant to the president and director of message events, White House

Georgette Lewis, former policy adviser, Department of Health and Human Services

Kevin Lewis, former director of African American media, White House; former principal deputy director of public affairs, Justice Department

Catherine E. Lhamon, former assistant secretary for civil rights, Education Department

Tiffani Long, former special adviser, Economic Development Administration

Latifa Lyles, former director, Women's Bureau, Labor Department

Brenda Mallory, former general counsel, White House Council on Environmental Quality

Dominique Mann, former media affairs manager, White House

Shelly Marc, former policy adviser, Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, White House

Tyra A. Mariani, former chief of staff to the deputy secretary, Education Department

Lawrence Mason III, former domestic policy analyst, Office of Presidential Correspondence, White House

Dexter L. McCoy, former special assistant, Office of the Secretary, Education Department

Matthew McGuire, former U.S. executive director, The World Bank Group

Tyrik McKeiver, former senior adviser, State Department

Tjada D'Oyen McKenna, former assistant to the administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development

Solianna Meaza, former special assistant to associate administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development

Mahlet Mesfin, former assistant director for international science and technology, Office of Science and Technology Policy, White House

Ricardo Michel, former director, Center for Transformational Partnerships, U.S. Agency for International Development Global Development Lab

Paul Monteiro, former associate director, Office of Public Engagement, White House

Jesse Moore, former associate director, Office of Public Engagement, White House

Shannon Myricks, former specialist, Office of Management and Administration Information Services, White House

Melanie Newman, former director of public affairs, Justice Department

Fatima Noor, former policy assistant, Domestic Policy Council

Bianca Oden, former deputy chief of staff, Agriculture Department

Funmi Olorunnipa, former ethics counsel, White House Counsel's Office

Elizabeth Ogunwo, former White House liaison, Peace Corps

Stephanie Sprow Owens, former deputy director, Reach Higher, Education Department

Denise L. Pease, former regional administrator of the northeast and Caribbean region, General Services Administration

Danielle Perry, former special adviser to the assistant secretary, Agriculture Department

Allison C. Pulliam, former special assistant, Office of Presidential Personnel, White House

Colby Redmond, former advance specialist, Office of the Secretary, Commerce Department

Derrick Robinson, former researcher, Office of Communications, White House

Lynn M. Ross, former deputy assistant secretary for policy development, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Sarah Rutherford, former press and media operations assistant, White House

Alexander Sewell, former special assistant, Export-Import Bank

Michael Smith, former special assistant to the president and senior director of Cabinet affairs for My Brother's Keeper, White House

Russell F. Smith, former deputy assistant secretary for international fisheries, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Commerce Department

Jackeline Stewart, former press secretary, General Services Administration

Angela Tennison, former leadership development director, Education Department

Kenny Thompson Jr., former special assistant to the president and director of message events to the vice president, White House

Ivory A. Toldson, former executive director, White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Fred Tombar, former senior adviser to the secretary for disaster recovery, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Christopher R. Upperman, former assistant administrator for public engagement, Small Business Administration

Malik Walker, former senior adviser for congressional and legislative affairs, Office of Personnel Management

Jason R.L. Wallace, former director of scheduling and advance, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Myesha Ward, former assistant U.S. trade representative for intergovernmental affairs and public engagement

Clarence Wardell III, former presidential innovation fellow

Benjamin E. Webb, former executive director of policy and planning, Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security

C'Reda J. Weeden, former executive secretary, Department of Health and Human Services

Tonia Wellons, former associate director, Office of Strategic Partnerships, Peace Corps

Antonio White, former senior adviser, Treasury Department

Monae White, former special projects manager, Education Department

Aketa Marie Williams, former director of strategic communications, Office of the Undersecretary, Education Department

Jonta Williams, former adviser to the assistant administrator for Africa, U.S. Agency for International Development

Jessica Wilson, former special assistant, Office of Policy, Department of Homeland Security

Taj Wilson, former deputy associate counsel, White House

Candace Wint, former director of advance, Department of Housing and Urban Development

Brent C. Woolfork, former managing director, Overseas Private Investment Corporation

Tarrah Cooper Wright, former special assistant to the secretary, Department of Homeland Security

Ursula Wright, former associate assistant deputy secretary, Education Department

Carl Young, former adviser and assistant, Office of Management and Budget, White House

Stephanie Young, former senior adviser, Office of Public Engagement, White House

David N. Zikusoka, former senior adviser for weapons of mass destruction and nonproliferation, Office of the Vice President, White House

Light News Dump

Reminder: Republican Supreme Court Justices rule Trump can use military funds for border wall construction
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/26/us/politics/supreme-court-border-wall-trump.html

In Rant Against Cummings, Trump Slams African-American Majority District as “Rodent-Infested Mess”
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/07/trump-cummings-rat-infested-tweets/

Trump calls Baltimore a "disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess."
https://www.axios.com/trump-baltimore-elijah-cummings-d13dfd02-6383-4161-8b98-75d50fc506d4.html
Trump attacks Rep. Elijah Cummings and Baltimore, quoting 'Fox & Friends' segment
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-elijah-cummings-tweets-dangerous-filthy-baltimore-2019-7

Immigration Officials Snatch 9-Year-Old U.S. Citizen Heading To School, Hold Her For 2 Days
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/julia-isabel-amparo-medina-immigration-border_n_5c96aa60e4b0a6329e177fbb

Congress Should Not Go on Vacation for Six G\ddamn Weeks | In that time, the president* will be the whole entire government
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a28524384/congress-recess-six-weeks-bad-idea/

Judge tosses Kentucky teen’s lawsuit over viral encounter with Native American man
https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2019-07-26/judge-tosses-kentucky-teens-lawsuit-over-viral-encounter-with-native-american-man

Rand Paul Fights Sanctions on Russian Pipeline
https://www.thedailybeast.com/nord-stream-2-sen-rand-paul-fights-sanctions-on-russian-pipeline

Team Trump Hires Miss Michigan One Week After She Was Stripped of Title for ‘Offensive’ Tweets
https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/trump-team-adds-miss-michigan-one-week-after-she-was-stripped-of-title-for-offensive-tweets/

2016: Mexico will pay for the Wall!
2017: The Senate will pay for the Wall!
2018: GoFundMe will pay for the Wall!
2019: The Pentagon will pay for the Wall!

If we could harness the energy of Republicans moving goal posts, we'd be able to go energy independent from the middle east in MINUTES.

Study: the US could have averted about 15,600 deaths if every state expanded Medicaid | The real impact of Republican’s rejection of Medicaid expansion under Obamacare.
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/7/23/20703776/medicaid-expansion-obamacare-health-care-2020

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_interference_in_the_2016_United_States_elections

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_interference_in_the_2016_United_States_elections

"The Russian government interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election with the goal of harming the campaign of Hillary Clinton, boosting the candidacy of Donald Trump, and increasing political or social discord in the United States.

The Internet Research Agency, based in Saint Petersburg and described as a troll farm, created thousands of social media accounts that purported to be Americans supporting radical political groups, and planned or promoted events in support of Trump and against Clinton; they reached millions of social media users between 2013 and 2017. Fabricated articles and disinformation were spread from Russian government-controlled media, and promoted on social media. Additionally, computer hackers affiliated with the Russian military intelligence service (GRU) infiltrated information systems of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), and Clinton campaign officials, notably chairman John Podesta, and publicly released stolen files and emails through DCLeaks, Guccifer 2.0 and WikiLeaks during the election campaign. Finally, several individuals connected to Russia contacted various Trump campaign associates, offering business opportunities to the Trump Organization and damaging information on Clinton."

The Most Prosecuted Federal Offense In America: A Primer On The Criminalization Of Border Crossing [lawfare]

https://www.lawfareblog.com/most-prosecuted-federal-offense-america-primer-criminalization-border-crossing

The Most Prosecuted Federal Offense In America: A Primer On The Criminalization Of Border Crossing

By Jessica Zhang, Andrew Patterson

Thursday, July 25, 2019, 8:41 AM

Overview

The federal statute criminalizing illegal entry into the United States, 8 U.S.C. § 1325(a), has become an unlikely focus of the Democratic presidential primary. During the first round of debates, Julián Castro called for decriminalizing § 1325, and since then a large number of candidates have publicly expressed support for decriminalization. Elizabeth Warren released a comprehensive immigration platform earlier this month, outlining her own plan to decriminalize immigration violations.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1325
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/julian-castro-immigrants-2020-democrats_n_5d143402e4b0d0a2c0ab8e74
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/decriminalizing-border-crossing-democrats-2020_n_5d15884ee4b03d6116392906

Supporters of decriminalization argue that criminalization is unnecessary, given that immigration violations already carry civil penalties, and that prosecutions under § 1325 waste government resources, allow for abusive use of prosecutorial power and do little to deter undocumented crossings. Meanwhile, candidates who have refused to support decriminalization of immigration violations, such as Joe Biden and Beto O'Rourke, have argued that decriminalization of § 1325 would not unilaterally end family separation.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-07-15/democrats-clash-over-how-to-defeat-trump-on-immigration-in-2020

So what precisely does § 1325 do? Why is it important? And what effect would decriminalizing illegal entry into the U.S. really have?

Background

This renewed interest among the Democratic candidates stems from the Trump administration's use of § 1325 in its family separation policy from last year. In April 2018, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions directed federal prosecutors along the southwestern border to adopt a "zero-tolerance" policy for all offenses referred for prosecution under the illegal entry statute. This policy led to thousands of children being separated from their family members at the border. Adults were criminally convicted and placed in criminal detention, while the children were sent to Office of Refugee Resettlement facilities and foster care. (Family separation has continued despite the end of a formal zero-tolerance policy. More than 700 children were taken from their relatives between June 2018 and May 2019 under an exception to the injunction issued by a federal district judge for instances in which the parent poses a danger to the child or has a serious criminal record or a gang affiliation.)

https://perma.cc/H5JB-LFG9
https://www.aclu.org/issues/immigrants-rights/immigrants-rights-and-detention/family-separation
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Trump-administration-still-separating-hundreds-of-14029494.php

Generally, being present in the United States without proper authorization is a civil, not a criminal, violation. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may place someone in removal proceedings or levy a fine for violating immigration law, but individuals may not be charged with a crime for merely being in the United States without lawful authorization.

https://casetext.com/case/arizona-v-united-states-7

However, Title 8 of the federal code criminalizes entering the country without authorization. Section 1325(a), or improper entry, applies to migrants who enter into the United States without proper inspection at a port of entry, avoid examination or inspection, or make false statements while entering or attempting to enter. Violation of § 1325(a) as a first offense is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine, up to six months' imprisonment, or both. Section 1326, or illegal reentry, applies to migrants who unlawfully reenter; attempt to reenter; or are found in the United States after having been previously removed, excluded, deported or denied admission. This crime is a felony, and those convicted may be punished with up to two years' imprisonment. The term of imprisonment may be enhanced up to a maximum of 20 years if the individual's prior removal was based on past crimes.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1325
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1326

Illegal entry and reentry are heavily prosecuted crimes today. In 2016, more than half of federal criminal prosecutions were for immigration violations, with the vast majority of those prosecutions brought under §§ 1325 and 1326. In April 2019, 65.6 percent of federal prosecutions filed in U.S. magistrate courts had a lead charge under § 1325, and 28.2 percent had a lead charge under § 1326. The number of prosecutions are still a relatively small proportion of total apprehensions per year by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). This was true even under Sessions's zero-tolerance policy: Even a generous estimate still puts prosecutions at only 32 percent of total apprehensions of adults outside a port of entry. However, the process by which these crimes in particular are prosecuted allows for large numbers of individuals to be processed, charged and convicted.

https://trac.syr.edu/tracreports/crim/446/
https://trac.syr.edu/tracreports/bulletins/immigration/monthlyapr19/fil/
https://trac.syr.edu/tracreports/crim/494/
https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/520/

Operation Streamline

Prosecutions for improper entry and reentry happen most commonly under a set of policies known as Operation Streamline, which was conceived in 2005 out of CBP's struggles to respond to changing migration patterns. The history of its inception is described by Joanna Lydgate in a 2010 article in the California Law Review.

https://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/californialawreview/vol98/iss2/5/

During that time, the vast majority of noncitizens apprehended at the border were Mexican nationals who were quickly deported through a "voluntary return" program, which consisted of the noncitizen signing some papers before being bused back across the border. But CBP was increasingly faced with people the agency called "OTMs," or "other-than-Mexicans," mostly people arriving from Central America. Non-Mexican nationals could not be "voluntarily returned" to Mexico and so were detained and put into regular removal proceedings. (The expedited removal process by which recent entrants are summarily deported, created in 1996 by Congress, would not be rolled out along the whole southern border until 2006.)

Non-Mexican citizens who awaited their removal hearings waited in detention an average of 90 days. With increasing migration from countries other than Mexico, The DHS quickly ran out of bed space and began releasing people with a court date.

At this point, the leadership of the border patrol station in Eagle Pass, Texas—where the detention bed-space shortage was especially acute—approached the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas with a proposal to criminally prosecute all "OTMs" in the sector. Putting these people in the criminal justice system would free up detention space for the DHS to keep people detained during their removal proceedings. The U.S. Attorney's Office rejected this plan as being obviously discriminatory on the basis of national origin. So the DHS came up with a new plan: Prosecute everyone.

To prosecute many thousands of border crossers, the DHS worked with the federal courts and U.S. attorney's offices to develop a streamlined system. The system, which is still in use today, relies on federal magistrate judges, who are empowered to handle cases involving petty offenses like illegal entry. Their creation in the 1960s was supported by immigration officials looking for mechanisms to speed up §§ 1325 and 1326 prosecutions during similar zero-tolerance efforts. These judges accept guilty pleas from dozens of people at a time, in some cases up to 90. The many defendants receive a single lawyer between them, who meets with each client for a few minutes at a time. In some jurisdictions, the whole process—from meeting with defense counsel to guilty plea and sentencing—happens within a single day.

https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/magistrate-judgeships
https://lawecommons.luc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1425&context=luclj

For prosecuting felony illegal reentry charges, prosecutors generally rely on "fast-track" plea agreements, which involve charging someone with illegal reentry and then offering to drop the charge to one or more counts of illegal entry in exchange for a guilty plea. Defendants receive a shorter sentence in exchange for a quick guilty plea, which enabled dockets to swell with illegal reentry prosecutions and allowed U.S. attorney's offices and courts to  process these cases more quickly.

Prosecutions under Operation Streamline increased throughout the Obama administration, although families with children were generally not prosecuted. Prosecutions then increased dramatically under the Trump administration, spurred by then-Attorney General Sessions's order to federal prosecutors to adopt a zero-tolerance posture toward immigration violations, leading to the forcible separation of children from parents. While not the first administration to adopt a zero-tolerance policy, the Trump administration appears to have been the first to actually attempt prosecution of 100 percent of border crossers, something previous administrations had never envisioned.

https://trac.syr.edu/tracreports/bulletins/immigration/monthlymay19/fil/
https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1049751/download
https://lawecommons.luc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1425&context=luclj

Criticisms of Operation Streamline and Zero Tolerance

Operation Streamline, and the Trump administration's escalation of it, is based on a deterrence theory—that seeing a no-nonsense response to irregular entry will dissuade foreign nationals from even attempting a crossing. Sessions claimed in his order to prosecutors that Operation Streamline effectively reduced irregular migration in the past. Indeed, as the initiative was being rolled out along the border in 2005-2009, the DHS touted its success by pointing to decreasing apprehension rates along the border.

https://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1100&context=californialawreview

Several other factors, however, provide a better explanation for the decrease in migration to the United States. While the economic crisis probably explains some of the decline, border apprehension levels had in fact already been decreasing since roughly 2000. The reasons for this decline are not very clear, but increased immigration enforcement (apart from criminal prosecutions) likely played a role. During the Clinton administration, CBP saw massive staffing increases and focused on a strategy of "prevention through deterrence" that aimed to push migrants to more hostile terrain by vigorously guarding easy crossing areas. This resulted in increased reliance on smugglers, driving up the cost of crossing the border, which probably depressed immigration. The surge in criminal prosecutions occurred years after these initiatives.

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2009/11/19/how-the-recessions-affecting-immigration/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4252712/
https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/141/include/rep141plot2.html
https://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/417994-bill-clintons-attempts-to-secure-the-border-caused-a-humanitarian-crisis
https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/the-cost-of-a-tighter-border-people-smuggling-networks/

But whatever the deterrent effect of Operation Streamline during the Bush administration, it is difficult to argue that prioritizing criminal prosecutions had a deterrent effect when deployed by the Trump administration: After a summer of zero-tolerance prosecution and family separation, border apprehensions surged in 2019.

In addition to doubts over its effectiveness, critics of Streamline worry that prioritizing immigration offenses diverts resources away from prosecution of more serious crimes. Law professor and former U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade has cautioned on Lawfare that increasing immigration prosecutions may mean that U.S. attorneys have to forego "more important matters—such as gang violence, drug smuggling, and human trafficking." Indeed, in the Southern District of California, that appears to be what happened. A federal district judge, criticizing increasing prosecutions of entry crimes from the bench, told a U.S. attorney's office that "this is not the best use of judicial or Justice Department resources to keep seeing these types of cases." Immigration prosecutions have put immense pressure on federal court dockets.

https://www.lawfareblog.com/trumps-zero-tolerance-immigration-policy-leaves-no-room-discretion
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/06/22/zero-tolerance-immigration-crackdown-diverting-resources-drug-cases/727532002/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/federal-judge-criticizes-prosecutors-over-increase-in-illegal-immigration-cases/2019/01/10/98d4692e-103c-11e9-84fc-d58c33d6c8c7_story.html?utm_term=.af8ef2d35e04
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-immigration-prosecutions/concerns-over-u-s-court-backlog-grow-with-rising-border-prosecutions-idUSKBN1IA310

Mass prosecutions of dozens of people all represented by one lawyer also raise serious due process concerns. One federal judge in Arizona pointed out that after lining up about 90 defendants, "we ask them to waive their constitutional rights. Defendants in other parts of the country do not have to give up critical rights in this atmosphere, only in the border districts because of this exploding caseload."

https://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/californialawreview/vol98/iss2/5/

Effects on Immigration Relief

The impact of an illegal entry or reentry conviction extends beyond the fine or imprisonment imposed by the district court. Entry and reentry convictions, like all criminal convictions, can have detrimental consequences on an individual's immigration case and may make it impossible for an individual to eventually adjust his or her status to legal permanent resident. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, individuals may be deemed inadmissible if they have been convicted of two or more offenses for which the aggregate sentence of confinement is five or more years. Illegal entry or reentry could thus contribute to an individual's inadmissibility, which would bar him or her from adjustment of status (becoming a legal permanent resident).

https://www.law.berkeley.edu/files/Operation_Streamline_Policy_Brief.pdf
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1182

Additionally, by having been convicted of a criminal offense, individuals often become a higher priority for criminal prosecution or DHS deportation if they are subsequently apprehended by the DHS. If they are apprehended and detained, the immigration judge will also weigh the individual's criminal history in determining whether to grant bond for release from immigration detention. Finally, discretionary decisions by immigration adjudicators often consider criminal history, even if that history is not enough to trigger any statutory bars or requirements. Immigration judges may decide discretionarily to deny asylum or deny a motion to reopen or to reconsider based on factors like past convictions. A criminal conviction can have serious negative repercussions on an individual's attempt at gaining immigration relief.

https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/sites/default/files/research/prosecuting_migrants_for_coming_to_the_united_states.pdf
https://repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1065&context=mjlr
https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/8/1003.23

Many of the  form plea agreements used by prosecutors for illegal entry and reentry convictions also include provisions that compel individuals to waive any claims to immigration relief, including claims of asylum and protection under the UN Convention Against Torture. Given that 99 percent of defendants in illegal entry and reentry cases plead guilty, and given the speed with which defendants are funneled through the criminal process under Operation Streamline, many individuals with strong claims to protective relief may never be able to assert their claims before being deported.

https://www.fd.org/sites/default/files/criminal_defense_topics/essential_topics/sentencing_resources/specific_guideline/fast-track-plea-agreements.pdf
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/591ccf16db29d6afe8606726/t/59f013ee32601e51d72eeb60/1508905967083/Arnpriester_Vol+45%2C+Issue+1.pdf

In recent years, as crises in Central America have sent many asylum seekers to the United States, human rights groups and others have raised growing calls to halt illegal entry prosecutions of asylum seekers. The government routinely convicts asylum seekers of illegal entry, despite a legal framework that makes asylum available whether or not someone entered at a port of entry. The language of the relevant statutes does not, on its face, prohibit the government from prosecuting asylum seekers, and an asylum claim or positive credible-fear finding is no defense to prosecution for illegal entry or reentry. The position taken by federal courts is that there is nothing preventing the government from both adjudicating asylum claims and prosecuting asylum seekers—as exemplified in a recent decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upholding the criminal convictions of several asylum seekers who were forcibly separated from their children, convicted of illegal entry in federal court and deported without them.

https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/sites/default/files/2018-Report-Punishing-Refugees-Migrants.pdf
https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=8709448723973074366&hl=en&as_sdt=6&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr
https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca5/18-50492/18-50492-2019-05-08.html

Critics of prosecution point out that Article 31 of the Refugee Convention provides that states "shall not impose penalties, on account of their illegal entry or presence" on refugees who "enter or are present in their territory without authorization." In 2015, the DHS's internal watchdog observed that this might be a problem for Operation Streamline: "Border Patrol does not have guidance on using Streamline for aliens who express a fear of persecution or return to their home countries, and its use of Streamline with such aliens is inconsistent and may violate U.S. treaty obligations." So how is the government able to flout the clear language of the Refugee Convention?

https://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1263&context=blrlj
https://www.oig.dhs.gov/assets/Mgmt/2015/OIG_15-95_May15.pdf

The attitude of successive administrations toward Article 31 may have been influenced by the federal courts' approach to interpreting the United States's domestic obligations under treaties. They have held several international treaties, including provisions of the Refugee Convention, to be non-self-executing—meaning that they cannot be enforced in domestic courts absent specific implementing legislation passed by Congress. The Refugee Act of 1980 generally implements the Refugee Convention but does not include anything tracking the language of Article 31.

https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=10573378013811664213&hl=en&as_sdt=40000006&as_vis=1

In Medellin v. Texas, the Supreme Court held several treaties to be non-self-executing while endorsing the idea of a "background presumption" that international agreements are not enforceable in U.S. courts. Justice Stephen Breyer, in dissent, argued that the Supreme Court's position is very difficult to square with the text of the Constitution: The Supremacy Clause provides that "all Treaties ... which shall be made ... under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby." However, since a domestic court is not likely to enforce the nonpenalization provision of Article 31, the government is essentially free to ignore the Refugee Convention's nonpenalization principle and prosecute people seeking humanitarian protection.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/06-984.ZS.html

Decriminalization

Although Congress could decriminalize entry crimes through legislation, decriminalization under a new presidential administration would more likely involve executive guidances changing prosecutorial priorities, as has been proposed by Warren. Although mere policy guidances leave practices open to be changed by future presidents, for individuals who cross the border while a decriminalization policy is in effect, such a policy can be the difference between asylum or removal.

https://medium.com/@teamwarren/a-fair-and-welcoming-immigration-system-8fff69cd674e

If a president were to direct the Department of Justice not to prosecute entry crimes, what would happen? The most immediate and obvious effect would probably be an unburdening of federal courts' and U.S. Attorneys' dockets and a refocusing of federal resources on other priorities. Proponents of decriminalization argue that stopping prosecution of entry crimes would not only alleviate the pressures of having such overburdened dockets but also have little impact on the federal government's other interests. The DHS will be free to continue bringing civil removal actions against individuals entering the U.S. without authorization, meaning that immigration laws would still be enforced. Federal prosecutors, meanwhile, could focus on more serious immigration crimes, like trafficking and smuggling. As for the deterrent effect of illegal entry prosecution, there simply is not much evidence that the threat of prosecution deters entry at all, especially with respect to asylum seekers. There is scant evidence that Operation Streamline deterred unlawful border crossing when it was first introduced, and the most attention-grabbing instance of its use—family separation in the summer of 2018—preceded a historic rise in border apprehensions.

https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/immigration-prosecutions
https://www.themarshallproject.org/2019/06/27/decoding-the-border-law-democrats-are-debating
https://www.lawfareblog.com/trumps-zero-tolerance-immigration-policy-leaves-no-room-discretion
https://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1100&context=californialawreview
https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/sw-border-migration

Opponents of decriminalization have little evidence to counter such arguments but, instead, rely on general instincts of the meaning of sovereignty, international borders and the rule of law. Regardless of whether there are deterring effects, they argue, criminalization supports the principle that countries control their own borders. Opponents, including Biden and O'Rourke, also contend that eliminating § 1325 would not prevent family separation and that pure focus on § 1325 diverts attention from the bigger, overarching problems with our immigration system.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/16/opinion/trump-2020.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/decriminalizing-the-border-is-not-in-anyones-interest/2019/07/01/27292360-9c36-11e9-85d6-5211733f92c7_story.html?utm_term=.32d259d23bb7
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-07-15/democrats-clash-over-how-to-defeat-trump-on-immigration-in-2020
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/decriminalizing-the-border-is-not-in-anyones-interest/2019/07/01/27292360-9c36-11e9-85d6-5211733f92c7_story.html?utm_term=.32d259d23bb7

The argument that the rule of law requires criminalization of illegal entry and reentry falls apart when one considers that there is no equivalent crime for losing legal status after entry. In other words, under current federal law, an immigrant who crosses the border without documentation may be prosecuted criminally, while an immigrant who enters on a tourist visa and stays beyond the period allowed cannot be. This disparate treatment stems from the racist roots of § 1325 itself, which was passed as part of a comprehensive effort to promote "whites only" immigration, while still allowing for the temporary migration of Mexican laborers. By the mid-1920s, American immigration quotas severely constricted immigration from anywhere other than Northern and Western Europe; however, southwestern employers fiercely opposed strict caps on Mexican immigrants, upon whom they were completely dependent for labor. In an effort to stem Mexican migration without provoking employers, segregationist Senator Coleman Livingston Blease proposed criminalizing illegal entry. The crime was designed to heavily impact Mexican migrants and, indeed, throughout the 1930s, between 85 and 99 percent of all individuals imprisoned for illegal entry were Mexican.

http://theconversation.com/how-crossing-the-us-mexico-border-became-a-crime-74604

Opponents of decriminalization are correct that decriminalization of § 1325 will not solve the biggest problems of our immigration system. However, that does not mean that the criminalization of entry is not a problem in and of itself. The deleterious effects of criminal prosecution on individual migrants, their children and their access to future immigration relief are significant. The threat of policies like Operation Streamline to principles of due process and international law are enough to argue that decriminalization of § 1325 would provide marked benefits to many, regardless of whether it would improve other aspects of our immigration system.

Conclusion

Calls for ending prosecutions for illegal entry and reentry are hardly proposals for "open borders." People who enter unlawfully are subject to deportation whether or not they are criminally prosecuted, and despite occupying a major portion of federal court dockets, only a small fraction of border crossers are prosecuted, and many of those who are now prosecuted are asylum seekers. It is also true, as a former DHS official in the Obama administration points out, that most of the current administration's efforts to deter asylum seekers would not be affected by decriminalizing of illegal entry. But the reinvigoration of the debate over criminalizing entry, ongoing now for about 90 years, is a welcome development at a time when illegal entry has become the most prosecuted federal offense in America, raising legitimate concerns about the correct use of judicial and prosecutorial resources as well as U.S. compliance with its international obligations.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/decriminalizing-the-border-is-not-in-anyones-interest/2019/07/01/27292360-9c36-11e9-85d6-5211733f92c7_story.html?utm_term=.d6913b1d28b7
https://lawecommons.luc.edu/luclj/vol44/iss1/2/

News Dump

Court Filing Says House Judiciary Committee is considering articles of impeachment against Trump | "Because Department of Justice policies will not allow prosecution of a sitting President, the United States House of Representatives is the only institution of the Federal Government that can now hold President Trump accountable for these actions," the committee wrote in a filing in U.S. District Court. "To do so, the House must have access to all the relevant facts and consider whether to exercise its full Article I powers, including a constitutional power of the utmost gravity—approval of articles of impeachment," the filing said.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/house-judiciary-committee-is-considering-articles-of-impeachment-against-trump-court-filing-says/

The judiciary committee just quietly crossed the threshold from oversight to impeachment investigation, and the media hasn't noticed, it's an impeachment inquiry without calling it an impeachment inquiry: House Dems to sue for Mueller grand jury information. The whole point of an impeachment inquiry is that you invoke Article I Section 2 in court filings and such as a basis for making a determination on exercising Congressional impeachment power. Which is exactly what the judiciary committee just did today. However it's too late. It's the end of July. Democrats should have done this the moment the Mueller report was released.
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/07/26/politics/nadler-democrats-grand-jury/

“Just asked Nadler if what they’re doing now is the same thing as an impeachment inquiry, and he said: “In effect.” And then he said the distinction is that impeachment inquiry is just about impeachment. His probe is a bit broader but could lead to recommendation of impeachment”
https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1154792920895152130

A Democratic aide confirms to me that @SpeakerPelosi signed off on the language @RepJerryNadler used today.
https://twitter.com/ThePlumLineGS/status/1154798882364284929

North Korea may have produced 12 nuclear weapons since first Trump-Kim summit:
https://thehill.com/policy/defense/454961-north-korea-may-have-produced-12-nuclear-weapons-since-first-trump-kim-summit

U.S. Supreme Court issued ruling tonight allowing Trump to use Pentagon funds for border wall | The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday handed President Donald Trump a victory by letting his administration redirect $2.5 billion in money approved by Congress for the Pentagon to help build his promised wall along the U.S.-Mexico border even though lawmakers refused to provide funding.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-wall/u-s-supreme-court-lets-trump-use-disputed-funds-for-border-wall-idUSKCN1UL2S7

Trump Admin Approves $26 Billion Dollar Deal for Trump International Hotel’s $195,000 Spender
https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/trump-admin-approves-billion-dollar-deal-for-trump-international-hotels-195000-spender/

Trump's Treasury Pick Said Obama Was a Muslim Who Took Orders From Terrorists
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/07/monica-crowley-barack-obama

Joe Manchin questions China’s promised $84 billion investment in West Virginia: ‘Something doesn’t make sense here’ | The deal was announced in 2017 as part of $250 billion in business agreements reached between the U.S. and China in connection with Trump’s visit to the country. Gov. Jim Justice said there would be “shovels in the ground” the following year.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/25/joe-manchin-questions-chinas-84-billion-investment-in-west-virginia.html

Donald Trump has given the US attorney general permission to share classified information about the Russia investigation with Devin Nunes, the Republican House Intelligence Committee ranking member who has called for Justice Department and FBI officials to be jailed over the probe. The US president said he had given William Barr “a total release” of documents relating to the investigation into Moscow’s interference in the 2016 election, and had also “given him authorisation to release it to whoever he wants”. “He’s got everything; everything he needs, he’s got,” he told Sean Hannity in an interview on Fox News on Thursday night. Mr Trump added: “He’s the attorney general of the United States, he’s has got a lot of very good people under him that I guess are involved and I gave them a total release. So, all of it’s been released and he has all of it. “I’ve also given him authorisation to release it to whoever he wants, whether it’s his people or frankly perhaps people like Devin Nunes, who is a star.” Mr Nunes, the former chair of the House Intelligence Committee, this week portrayed allegations that Mr Trump’s presidential campaign team colluded with Russia as a “hoax” comparable to “the Loch Ness monster”. Earlier this month, he described officials who triggered Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation as “a bunch of dirty cops”.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/mueller-investigation-trump-russia-devin-nunes-barr-classified-documents-a9022171.html

We're supposed to believe the Russians hacked into voting systems but did nothing once they got there? | It concluded that while there is no evidence that any votes were changed in actual voting machines, “Russian cyberactors were in a position to delete or change voter data” in the Illinois voter database. The committee found no evidence that they did so. While the report is not directly critical of either American intelligence agencies or the states, it described what amounted to a cascading intelligence failure, in which the scope of the Russian effort was underestimated, warnings to the states were too muted, and state officials either underreacted or, in some cases, resisted federal efforts to offer help. | Remember when we were all told that it was only a couple of precincts, then a couple of cities, then a couple of states? Remember when it was just data? Now, as far as we can read between the blacked-out lines, we are being asked to believe that the Russians could have deleted "voter data," that they "were in a position" to jack around with it, but, having achieved this monumental intelligence triumph, they didn't do anything with it?
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a28517486/russia-hack-election-systems-all-50-states/

Georgia election officials accused of destroying evidence
https://apnews.com/77fbf492e1684b72a9e1e2323ea4e8eb

Rep. Eric Swalwell: It's time for Trump's impeachment. Mueller's report gave us everything we need.
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/it-s-time-trump-s-impeachment-mueller-s-report-gave-ncna1034586

Trump administration to pay farmers $16bn to make up for damage from trade war with China
https://www.independent.co.uk//news/business/news/trump-china-us-trade-war-farmers-aid-economy-a9021741.html

Congress Will Sue To Enforce McGahn Subpoena Next Week, Nadler Says
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/congress-will-sue-to-enforce-mcgahn-subpoena-next-week-nadler-says

CNN editor praised murder of ‘Jewish pigs’ in terrorist attack on Israeli bus
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/cnn-photo-editor-called-jews-pigs-and-praised-their-deaths-in-old-tweets

Tokyo 2020 Olympic medals made from 80,000 tons of recycled mobile phones, electronics
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/07/24/tokyo-2020-olympic-medal-project-recycled-cellphones-electronics/1820927001/

A haul of seven frozen tiger carcasses found in a car in Hanoi has led to the arrest of a key wildlife trafficking suspect, as the country tries to tackle a well-worn smuggling route from Laos
https://www.france24.com/en/20190726-seven-dead-tigers-found-car-vietnam

U.S. Rep. Pete Olson announces he won't seek reelection : The Republican from Sugar Land was first elected in 2008. His seat is being targeted by national Democrats.
https://www.texastribune.org/2019/07/25/us-rep-pete-olson-retiring/

Top CBP Officer Testifies He’s Unsure if 3-Year-Old Is “a Criminal or a National Security Threat”
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/07/cbp-chief-brian-hastings-family-separation-judiciary-hearing-not-mueller.html

Trump adds $4.1 trillion to national debt. Here's where the money went | The biggest contributor to the $4.1 trillion that will be added to the national debt through 2029 is the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This signature tax cut legislation signed by Trump in 2017 single-handedly increased the debt by $1.8 trillion, according to CRFB. “If you were to extend all the expiring provisions from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, it would be about a trillion more on top of that, so it’s hugely expensive,” says CRFB’s senior vice president Marc Goldwein. “Some of this is done on a partisan basis, some of this is done on a bipartisan basis. But it’s all part of a culture of no longer worrying about how we’re going to pay for things and just assuming that future generations are going to cover the bill.”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-adds-41-trillion-to-national-debt-heres-where-the-money-went-162238723.html

Attackers break into home of Mexican investigative journalist, kill her dogs and steal her reporting records
https://www.newsweek.com/attackers-investigative-journalist-kill-dogs-steal-reporting-records-1451083
https://cpj.org/2019/07/mexico-journalist-lydia-cacho-robbed-dogs-killed.php

Nadler: We’re Pursuing a De Facto Impeachment Inquiry
https://news.yahoo.com/nadler-pursuing-facto-impeachment-inquiry-174503986.html

Mitch McConnell Received Donations from Voting Machine Lobbyists Before Blocking Election Security Bills
https://www.newsweek.com/mitch-mcconnell-robert-mueller-election-security-russia-1451361

Alaskan glaciers melting 100 times faster than previously thought
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/07/alaskan-glaciers-melting-faster-than-previously-thought/

Brazil's Bolsonaro blamed as illegal deforestation pushes Amazon Rainforest to 'tipping Point,' Expert warns.
https://www.newsweek.com/brazil-bolsonaro-illegal-deforestation-amazon-rainforest-tipping-point-1451270

'He wants to destroy us': Bolsonaro poses gravest threat in decades, Amazon tribes say - Indigenous leaders who say Brazil’s new president is trying to force them from their lands are braced for a new era of ruin
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/26/bolsonaro-amazon-tribes-indigenous-brazil-dictatorship

3 GOP Representatives Have Dropped Reelection Bids This Week Alone | Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL) announced Friday that she will not run for reelection in 2020, making her the third Republican to decide against a reelection bid this week. | Rep. Pete Olson (R-TX), representing a district experiencing rapid demographic change, announced his retirement on Thursday. Rep. Paul Mitchell (R-MI) bowed out Wednesday, citing the “rhetoric and vitriol.”|
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/martha-roby-gop-retirement-2020

An Army colonel has gone public with allegations that one of Trump's top military nominees sexually assaulted her in a hotel room
https://www.businessinsider.com/army-colonel-accuses-trump-military-pick-of-sexual-assault-2019-7

High-Fructose Corn Syrup and ethanol as a gas additive are created by politics, not need.
https://www.motherjones.com/food/2019/07/the-secret-history-of-why-soda-companies-switched-from-sugar-to-high-fructose-corn-syrup/

Abbas/Fatah (Palestinian West Bank government) declare suspension of all agreements with Israel. One of the agreements is the reason that the Palestinian Authority even exists so by announcing the end of all agreements the Palestinian Authority is kind of announcing the end of itself. This could be very bad news.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-49125785

Kellyanne Conway cites "domestic press corps" as possible threat to U.S. election security
https://www.newsweek.com/kellyanne-conway-press-election-security-threat-1451360

Meat eaters are officially destroying the planet, report warns
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/meat-eating-destroying-planet-report-warning-a7985071.html

India readies plan for $4 billion Tesla-scale battery storage plants. The country has an installed renewable energy capacity of about 80 gigawatts (GW) and is running the world’s largest renewable energy programme, with plans to achieve 175GW by 2022 and 500GW by 2030.
https://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-readies-plan-for-4-billion-tesla-scale-battery-storage-plants/amp-1564077561033.html