Tag Archives: US Politics

Making it official. Absolute power, that is. I remind you of this history [of Richard Nixon] because over the weekend, The New York Timespublished a letter from President Trump's lawyers to special counsel Robert Mueller, which includes this stunning passage: It remains our position that the President's actions here, by virtue of his position as the chief law enforcement officer, could neither constitutionally nor legally constitute obstruction because that would amount to him obstructing...

Must-read.  Its' a very positive article, but unfortunately, the job guarantee is not presented in terms of the basic issue — the choice between a buffer stock of employed or buffer stock of unemployed, and how the former is superior using efficiency and effectiveness as criteria. The other key issue is how the JG is an integral aspect of policy formulation that promises to reconcile the trifecta of growth, employment and price stability, previous thought to be impossible without...

Sen. Bernie Sanders, speaking at a policy forum here Tuesday, identified a singular roadblock to achieving success on a host of progressive policies — and it wasn’t the Trump administration. It’s American oligarchy. Bingo! USA TODAYSen. Bernie Sanders says this one issue keeps progressive policies from advancing Nicole Gaudiano, USA TODAY

Mike  Whitney lays out the plot for a soft coup. It is Donald Trump’s duty to defend the office of the President and the right of the American people to choose their own leaders through democratic elections. Both of those institutions are currently under attack, and there is a real danger that the republican system of government, which we have enjoyed for over 200 years, is about to be lost. So let’s cut to the chase: The results of the 2016 election have never been accepted by a small group...

Well, to be clear, Trump is a big problem. But he’s not the cause of our problems. To understand why, we have to go back to the 70s, when conservatives and oligarchs launched a de facto coup that ultimately ushered in a New Dark Ages. Conservatives like Lewis Powell and Milton Friedman were mounting a counterattack on the progressive policies of the New Deal, in an attempt to make America more “business friendly.” As I detail in my book WTF, America? How the US Went Off the Rails and How...

The comprehensive survey by the Pew Research Center released Thursday found deep partisan divides over whether the country is achieving some of the values critical to maintaining democratic principles. Suggests that populism is on the rise across the population asa whole regardless of the partisan divide and large cohort that self-identifies as independent. This in turn suggests different forms of populism. The Hill Survey: Most say US not living up to its democratic idealsReid Wilson

The need for more popcorn is unending. Please pass the popcorn.ReutersDemocrats sue Russia, Trump campaign for alleged 2016 election conspiracy Mark Hosenball, David AlexanderAlsoTrump returns fire.Zero HedgeTrump To "Counter" DNC Lawsuit; Seeks Servers, Clinton Emails And "Pakistani Mystery Man" Tyler Durden

Excellent. The Democratic Party establishment as the real villains in the piece.JacobinAn Interview With Glenn Greenwald The consequences of this villainy. Incessant Kremlin-baiting of President Trump is risking a Cuban missile–like crisis that he, unlike JFK in 1962, may not be permitted to resolve peacefully. The Nation‘Russiagate’ Allegations Continue to Escalate the Danger of War With Russia Stephen F. Cohen | Professor Emeritus of Russian Studies, History, and Politics at New York...

The country is divided into two hostile camps, a division as much geographic as ideological. On one side are the big cities, the centers of progressive politics and home to social movements for women, for gay people, for minorities, and to an unprecedented wave of immigrants. Many of the immigrants look and dress very differently from residents of longer standing, marking them as followers of a different religious faith. Many are refugees from an unprecedented wave of war and civil war....

The back story. Not only did the deep state get to DJT, it's resulting in the loss of his base. They add to already foreboding headwinds for Republicans ahead of the midterms, in which polls show a generic Democrat leading a generic Republican by more than seven points on average. Disappointment with Trump could accentuate that gap by suppressing turnout among voters who supported the President in 2016. FortuneProminent Trump Supporters Skeptical, Uncertain, and ‘Sick’ as Syria Attack...