Nov 2023 Mod notice:
There may be other, more specific, threads about some aspects of US politics, but this one tends to act as a hub for all sorts of related news and information, so it's usually one of the busiest OTC threads.
If you're new to OTC, it's worth reading the Introduction to On-Topic Conversations
and the On-Topic Conversations debate guidelines
before posting here.
Rumor-based, fear-mongering and/or inflammatory statements that damage the quality of the thread will be thumped. Off-topic posts will also be thumped. Repeat offenders may be suspended.
If time spent moderating this thread remains a distraction from moderation of the wiki itself, the thread will need to be locked. We want to avoid that, so please follow the forum rules
when posting here.
In line with the general forum rules, 'gravedancing' is prohibited here. If you're celebrating someone's death or hoping that they die, your post will get thumped. This rule applies regardless of what the person you're discussing has said or done.
Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2019/04/04/day-805/
The House Judiciary Committee called on Barr to release Mueller's summaries that were prepared as part of the Trump-Russia report. "If these recent reports are accurate … then those summaries should be publicly released as soon as possible," chairman Jerry Nadler said. Nadler also called on Barr to produce "all communications" about the Mueller report between the special counsel's office and the Justice Department. (Reuters)
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-nadler-idUSKCN1RG2OS
2/ The Department of Justice defended Barr's handling of Mueller's 400-page report on possible obstruction and Russian interference, saying they didn't disclose the full report because "every page" contained protected grand jury information and it "therefore could not be publicly released." A full report is expected to be released by mid-April after "appropriate redactions." (Politico / Wall Street Journal / CNN)
Rand Paul blocked a resolution calling for Mueller's report to be released publicly. It was the fifth time that Republicans blocked the resolution, which unanimously passed in the House last month. (Axios)
3/ Trump accused the New York Times of being a "Fake News paper" with no "legitimate sources" after it reported that Mueller's team believes that the report is more damaging than Barr has indicated. "In fact, they probably had no sources at all!" The Times story was corroborated by the Washington Post and NBC News. (Axios / Daily Beast)
4/ The House voted to end American involvement in the Yemen war and cut off support for the Saudi-led coalition. The bill now heads to Trump, who is expected to veto it – his second veto as president – and Congress lacks the votes to override him. The White House claimed the resolution raises "serious constitutional concerns." It's the first time Congress has invoked the War Powers Resolution to try and stop a foreign conflict. (Associated Press / New York Times / Politico / CNBC / The Guardian)
https://apnews.com/263d2069e3a0450b9f6329d01004de0c
5/ The House approved legislation reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act with new provisions to prohibit gun sales to convicted domestic abusers and stalkers. The National Rifle Association opposed the bill and said it'd be "scoring" how lawmakers vote on the bill to measure future ratings and endorsements in elections. (NPR / New York Times / Washington Post / CNN)
https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/04/politics/donald-trump-mexico-border-threat/index.html
Jared Kushner was among one of the 25 White House officials whose security clearance was initially denied but later overturned. A whistleblower in the White House's personnel security office said she and another career employee determined that Kushner had too many "significant disqualifying factors" to receive a clearance. (Washington Post)
Trump intends to nominate Herman Cain for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board. Cain ran for the 2012 GOP president nomination, but dropped out after sexual harassment allegations. Cain also co-founded a pro-Trump super-political action committee, America Fighting Back PAC, which claims that "America is under attack" and "we must protect Donald Trump and his agenda from impeachment." (Axios / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal)
Trump's nominee to lead the Interior Department continued lobbying clients for several months after vowing to end his lobbying activities. In November 2016, David Bernhardt filed a legal notice formally ending his status as a lobbyist, but continued his work until as late as April 2017. (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/04/climate/david-bernhardt-interior-lobbying.html
FBI Director Christopher Wray said that white supremacy is a "persistent" and "pervasive" threat to the U.S. After the New Zealand mosque massacre last month, Trump said he didn't consider white nationalism to be a rising global threat. (CNN)
https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/04/politics/fbi-director-wray-white-supremacy/
Ugh, f*ck off, NRA. If y'all could hurry up and go bankrupt
soon, I'd appreciate it.
Quick, get a bunch of liberals to found pro-Trump Super PACs. Maybe he'll nominate them without realizing his mistake.
Speaking of nominations, Ron Vitiello (acting head of ICE) has been withdrawn from consideration.
No one was informed of this ahead of time, and Homeland Security thought it was some sort of paperwork snafu.
Edited by TheRoguePenguin on Apr 4th 2019 at 10:44:10 AM
So... hope this is the right thread for this but the US just revokes the visa of an ICC prosecutor investigating the behaviour of US and allied soldiers in Afghanistan. (link
)
![]()
Distinction without a difference for me. To expand on it, I see the probable final outcome of either abolishing or reforming ICE as similar in the end, except the first is a much messier (but extremely populist) process.
Edited by Grafite on Apr 5th 2019 at 11:30:30 AM
Life is unfair...Essentally a lawmaker in Albama is proposing a law that .."would make carrying out an abortion at any stage of the pregnancy punishable by 10 to 99 years in jail."
I don't see it getting passed for obvious reasons but that someone actually thought it was a really good idea astounds me,but I think it's because every so often someone proposes a crazy unpassable law this,I think they do it just to see how far they can take plus it makes them the focus of attention perhaps so they can get their actual proposals passed
What can I say,it's a hot button topic for a reason
Edited by Ultimatum on Apr 5th 2019 at 10:41:39 AM
have a listen and have a link to my discord serverLooks like Kushner is doing a good thing behind Trump's back and quietly pushing to expand legal immigration: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/04/03/jared-kushner-expand-legal-immigration-1249950
Trump already trolling Biden on Twitter for his sexual misconduct allegations.
Like he's remotely the person to talk about the issue, besides being petty as usual. And I hate myself for getting a chuckle out of it.
Let's not go overboard, here. Biden has been accused of making women uncomfortable by being overly familiar and doing things like putting his hands on their shoulders or touching their face. Trump as been accused (by at least one of his ex-wives) of straight-up rape. Neither is acceptable, but they're in no way equivalent, either.
Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.

"So in short, what happened with Trump in the Republican primaries can't automatically happen in the Democrat primary."
It functionally cannot. A closely fought primary would end up with a contested convention. At the convention, one candidate must secure a majority. If Republicans followed the Democratic system, it's likely a negotiated compromise would have emerged that shut Trump out.
Trump is the ultimate system-type player in politics. Without the structural quirks of the GOP and the American electoral system, he would have lost long ago.
"For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."