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babylonsister
babylonsister's Journal
babylonsister's Journal
May 12, 2019
To spend any time listening to the Trump faithful is to live in perpetual cognitive dissonance. It is to hear Melania complain about cyber bullies or Don Jr. lament the loss of civility and to marvel at their ability to maintain straight faces. And yes, one feels the same when Graham questions Buttigieg’s faith after defending Trump’s.
But one also feels something else: a too-familiar sense of Christianity — white, conservative Christianity, at least — once again standing athwart onrushing change with its hand up yelling, “Stop!” They did it when Martin Luther King preached of his dream, when Betty Friedan decided she’d had enough, when Harvey Milk demanded the right to be. They are doing it again now. And you have to wonder:
Don’t they ever get tired of being wrong? Don’t they ever tired of being the last ones to get it?
more...
https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/leonard-pitts-jr/article229709994.html?fbclid=IwAR1K8N0YsUstjNqYNFBxvpg_TgoNK6oVPJlcKmVR9oBmEV9fCBo86Ua4KMk
Leonard Pitts Jr.: Billy Graham's son questions Buttigieg's faith -- after defending Trump's
Billy Graham’s son questions Buttigieg’s faith — after defending Trump’s | Opinion
By Leonard Pitts Jr.
April 26, 2019 03:50 AM, Updated April 26, 2019 06:54 AM
snip//
Yet white evangelicals — Graham prominent among them — embraced this swaggering sybarite and accepted him as a Christian. Trump, Graham once told an interviewer, “defends the faith.” Pete Buttigieg? Not so much. Last week, Graham attacked the South Bend mayor and Democratic presidential aspirant in a series of Twitter rants like the following:
“Mayor Buttigieg says he’s a gay Christian. As a Christian I believe the Bible which defines homosexuality as sin, something to be repentant of, not something to be flaunted, praised or politicized. The Bible says marriage is between a man & a woman — not two men, not two women.”
To spend any time listening to the Trump faithful is to live in perpetual cognitive dissonance. It is to hear Melania complain about cyber bullies or Don Jr. lament the loss of civility and to marvel at their ability to maintain straight faces. And yes, one feels the same when Graham questions Buttigieg’s faith after defending Trump’s.
But one also feels something else: a too-familiar sense of Christianity — white, conservative Christianity, at least — once again standing athwart onrushing change with its hand up yelling, “Stop!” They did it when Martin Luther King preached of his dream, when Betty Friedan decided she’d had enough, when Harvey Milk demanded the right to be. They are doing it again now. And you have to wonder:
Don’t they ever get tired of being wrong? Don’t they ever tired of being the last ones to get it?
more...
https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/leonard-pitts-jr/article229709994.html?fbclid=IwAR1K8N0YsUstjNqYNFBxvpg_TgoNK6oVPJlcKmVR9oBmEV9fCBo86Ua4KMk
May 12, 2019
Posted on Sun, May 12th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Trump’s Strategy Of Stonewalling House Democrats is Backfiring
By blanket refusing to comply with Congress, Trump is setting himself up for defeat in the courts.
Trump is hurting his own defense with a blanket undermining of congressional oversight
MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner explained, “He is not a tactical thinker. He is hurting his own cause. Here is why. If he were to say, listen, I am now getting inundated with subpoenas and myself and my lawyers will take a look at these subpoenas one at a time and try to determine whether there’s a privilege we can assert. They’re not doing that. He said basically, constitutional oversight be darned. I’m not complying with any subpoenas, even those that I haven’t seen yet. What that is the president announcing he is basically disregarding the Congress’ authority and responsibility to perform oversight, checks and balances. It would be no different than if Congress said, you know what? We’re going to pass legislation, Mr. President, and we’re not going to send it to you for we’re going to declare it’s the law. That would be congress acting unconstitutionally. That’s what the president is doing.”
Video @ link:
Trump is hurting himself on multiple fronts
As Kirschner explained, Trump is sealing his fate legally. Politically, Trump has damaged himself by refusing to comply. Trump’s stonewalling keeps these investigations at the top of the news headlines and makes the president look guilty. Republicans can repeat their mantra of no collusion, no obstruction daily, but if this is the case why is there no compliance with subpoenas and document requests?
It is not a difficult question to answer. The White House and congressional Republicans don’t want Democrats to have the evidence.
Trump is in survival mode. He is acting like a president who is living on borrowed time.
The just say no to everything Democrats ask for strategy has backfired, and beginning this week, the damage will start to mount for the White House and Trump.
Trump's Strategy Of Stonewalling House Democrats is Backfiring
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/05/12/trumps-strategy-of-stonewalling-house-democrats-is-backfiring.htmlPosted on Sun, May 12th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Trump’s Strategy Of Stonewalling House Democrats is Backfiring
By blanket refusing to comply with Congress, Trump is setting himself up for defeat in the courts.
Trump is hurting his own defense with a blanket undermining of congressional oversight
MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner explained, “He is not a tactical thinker. He is hurting his own cause. Here is why. If he were to say, listen, I am now getting inundated with subpoenas and myself and my lawyers will take a look at these subpoenas one at a time and try to determine whether there’s a privilege we can assert. They’re not doing that. He said basically, constitutional oversight be darned. I’m not complying with any subpoenas, even those that I haven’t seen yet. What that is the president announcing he is basically disregarding the Congress’ authority and responsibility to perform oversight, checks and balances. It would be no different than if Congress said, you know what? We’re going to pass legislation, Mr. President, and we’re not going to send it to you for we’re going to declare it’s the law. That would be congress acting unconstitutionally. That’s what the president is doing.”
Video @ link:
Trump is hurting himself on multiple fronts
As Kirschner explained, Trump is sealing his fate legally. Politically, Trump has damaged himself by refusing to comply. Trump’s stonewalling keeps these investigations at the top of the news headlines and makes the president look guilty. Republicans can repeat their mantra of no collusion, no obstruction daily, but if this is the case why is there no compliance with subpoenas and document requests?
It is not a difficult question to answer. The White House and congressional Republicans don’t want Democrats to have the evidence.
Trump is in survival mode. He is acting like a president who is living on borrowed time.
The just say no to everything Democrats ask for strategy has backfired, and beginning this week, the damage will start to mount for the White House and Trump.
May 12, 2019
By Lindsay Powers
May 8, 2019
Queen's Guitarist Calls for New Live Aid Concert to Fight Climate Change
The guitarist promises his band will “help in any way we can.”
Why Global Citizens Should Care
Live Aid thrust philanthropy into homes around the world, shining a spotlight on poverty, and showed that doing good deeds can also be fun. Any time global citizens are encouraged to come together and take action, it’s a good thing. Find out how you can join us in taking action here.
Queen's Brian May is ready to party (for a good cause) like it’s 1985.
The guitarist has spoken out about how he’d love a repeat of the iconic ‘80s Live Aid concert — but this time to raise money and awareness about climate change. The first concert was the largest-scale benefit of its time, watched by 1.5 billion people in more than 150 countries, and raising an estimated $245 million for Ethiopian famine relief.
Queen performed at Live Aid alongside U2, Madonna, Elton John, David Bowie, Mick Jagger, and Phil Collins, who played in London and then hopped on the Concorde to take the stage again in Philadelphia hours later.
Queen’s prominent role in the concert was featured in the 2018 film Bohemian Rhapsody, which won this year's Academy Award for Best Picture, among others.
"It probably would take the younger generation to take that bull by the horns," May told the Daily Mirror. "We'd help in any way we can, but think that's what it would require."
But May admits times have changed, and throwing an updated Live Aid that only focuses on climate change wouldn’t be “as easy as it seems.”
more...
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/queen-guitarist-live-aid-climate-change/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=global&utm_campaign=general-content&linkId=67220381&fbclid=IwAR3-DAIVHzqdleVu54D3TFDi_DiF-Ndvb0snSP79gXEm2_eV1-5yTI3fhJU
Queen's Guitarist Calls for New Live Aid Concert to Fight Climate Change
By Lindsay Powers
May 8, 2019
Queen's Guitarist Calls for New Live Aid Concert to Fight Climate Change
The guitarist promises his band will “help in any way we can.”
Why Global Citizens Should Care
Live Aid thrust philanthropy into homes around the world, shining a spotlight on poverty, and showed that doing good deeds can also be fun. Any time global citizens are encouraged to come together and take action, it’s a good thing. Find out how you can join us in taking action here.
Queen's Brian May is ready to party (for a good cause) like it’s 1985.
The guitarist has spoken out about how he’d love a repeat of the iconic ‘80s Live Aid concert — but this time to raise money and awareness about climate change. The first concert was the largest-scale benefit of its time, watched by 1.5 billion people in more than 150 countries, and raising an estimated $245 million for Ethiopian famine relief.
Queen performed at Live Aid alongside U2, Madonna, Elton John, David Bowie, Mick Jagger, and Phil Collins, who played in London and then hopped on the Concorde to take the stage again in Philadelphia hours later.
Queen’s prominent role in the concert was featured in the 2018 film Bohemian Rhapsody, which won this year's Academy Award for Best Picture, among others.
"It probably would take the younger generation to take that bull by the horns," May told the Daily Mirror. "We'd help in any way we can, but think that's what it would require."
But May admits times have changed, and throwing an updated Live Aid that only focuses on climate change wouldn’t be “as easy as it seems.”
more...
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/queen-guitarist-live-aid-climate-change/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=global&utm_campaign=general-content&linkId=67220381&fbclid=IwAR3-DAIVHzqdleVu54D3TFDi_DiF-Ndvb0snSP79gXEm2_eV1-5yTI3fhJU
May 12, 2019
‘Why not me?’ Big-city mayors watch with envy as Buttigieg surges
‘The irony is that the South Bend mayor is being taken seriously and the New York mayor’s not.’
By DAVID SIDERS
05/12/2019 06:49 AM EDT
Updated 05/12/2019 10:40 AM EDT
LOS ANGELES — No mayor has ever ascended directly to the White House. So, Pete Buttigieg’s surprising performance in the Democratic primary has been met with a dose of excitement in the nation’s city halls — along with some humility.
Buttigieg, the mayor of Indiana’s fourth-largest city, has been steeped in television coverage, raised millions of dollars and been photographed with his husband, Chasten, for the cover of Time magazine.
Meanwhile, New York’s Bill de Blasio, the mayor of the nation’s largest city, is having difficulty persuading anyone — the media, his own constituents — to take his potential run for president seriously.
“Everybody’s going to laugh at him” if he runs, said Doug Herman, a Democratic strategist. “The irony is that the South Bend mayor is being taken seriously and the New York mayor’s not.”
snip//
But what Buttigieg’s success brought to light more than anything is that the particulars of the position were never all that important — that the lane that once appeared to exist for mayors was, in fact, incidental to the office.
more...
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/05/12/pete-buttigieg-2020-mayors-1317436
'Why not me?' Big-city mayors watch with envy as Buttigieg surges
‘Why not me?’ Big-city mayors watch with envy as Buttigieg surges
‘The irony is that the South Bend mayor is being taken seriously and the New York mayor’s not.’
By DAVID SIDERS
05/12/2019 06:49 AM EDT
Updated 05/12/2019 10:40 AM EDT
LOS ANGELES — No mayor has ever ascended directly to the White House. So, Pete Buttigieg’s surprising performance in the Democratic primary has been met with a dose of excitement in the nation’s city halls — along with some humility.
Buttigieg, the mayor of Indiana’s fourth-largest city, has been steeped in television coverage, raised millions of dollars and been photographed with his husband, Chasten, for the cover of Time magazine.
Meanwhile, New York’s Bill de Blasio, the mayor of the nation’s largest city, is having difficulty persuading anyone — the media, his own constituents — to take his potential run for president seriously.
“Everybody’s going to laugh at him” if he runs, said Doug Herman, a Democratic strategist. “The irony is that the South Bend mayor is being taken seriously and the New York mayor’s not.”
snip//
But what Buttigieg’s success brought to light more than anything is that the particulars of the position were never all that important — that the lane that once appeared to exist for mayors was, in fact, incidental to the office.
“He’s not carrying the flag for mayors,” said Rebecca Katz, a progressive consultant who advised Cynthia Nixon in her primary campaign against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo last year. “Mayor is part of his qualification, [but] he’s running as a millennial, he’s running as a veteran, he’s running a historic candidacy as the first LGBTQ candidate. So there’s a lot of things that make Buttigieg special.”
Still, she said, "I think when mayors, when other elected officials look at his actual qualifications, it’s easy to see how they could look in the mirror and say, 'Why not me?'”
Still, she said, "I think when mayors, when other elected officials look at his actual qualifications, it’s easy to see how they could look in the mirror and say, 'Why not me?'”
more...
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/05/12/pete-buttigieg-2020-mayors-1317436
May 12, 2019
Posted on Sun, May 12th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Adam Tells Trump That His Reelection Is Not Going To Happen
https://twitter.com/ABCPolitics/status/1127560766058422273
Adam Schiff was right
The political energy in this country is focused on defeating Donald Trump. Our body politic has institutionally reacted to Trump’s corruption like it is trying to reject a bad organ to save itself. Trump can bluster and claim that he is going to be reelected, but so far, the energy is not there. His crowds are straggling out of his rallies while he is still talking. Trump has done nothing to expand the electoral map, as swing states that he carried in 2016 are showing signs of slipping away from him in 2020.
His”great economy” hasn’t been good for working people. Healthcare is an issue that is on everyone’s minds, and the nation seems ready to move on from Trump and back to stability.
Adam (Schiff) Tells Trump That His Reelection Is Not Going To Happen
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/05/12/adam-schiff-trump-lose-2020.htmlPosted on Sun, May 12th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Adam Tells Trump That His Reelection Is Not Going To Happen
Rep. Schiff responded to Trump on ABC’s This Week, “That’s not going to happen, and I don’t think this country could survive another four years of a president like this who gets up every day and tries to find new and different ways to divide us. He doesn’t seem to understand that a fundamental aspect of his job is to try to make us a more perfect union, but that’s not at all where he’s coming from, and he’s going to be defeated. He has to be defeated because I don’t know how much more our democratic institutions can take of this attack on the rule of law.”
https://twitter.com/ABCPolitics/status/1127560766058422273
Adam Schiff was right
The political energy in this country is focused on defeating Donald Trump. Our body politic has institutionally reacted to Trump’s corruption like it is trying to reject a bad organ to save itself. Trump can bluster and claim that he is going to be reelected, but so far, the energy is not there. His crowds are straggling out of his rallies while he is still talking. Trump has done nothing to expand the electoral map, as swing states that he carried in 2016 are showing signs of slipping away from him in 2020.
His”great economy” hasn’t been good for working people. Healthcare is an issue that is on everyone’s minds, and the nation seems ready to move on from Trump and back to stability.
May 12, 2019
The suit names 20 major drug manufacturers—including Pfizer, Teva, Novartis, and Mylan—as well as more than a dozen senior executives, who the complaint accuses of deleting evidence after the states began their investigation in 2014.
more...
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/05/12/lawsuit-44-states-accuses-pharma-giants-multi-year-conspiracy-hike-drug-prices-over?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR1JWtVLzYxtiyAR_ZHJtzHLQt947zElT0Nmn-QhtHzV-rnf6sRG3j652JQ
Lawsuit by 44 States Accuses Pharma Giants of 'Multi-Year Conspiracy' to Hike Drug Prices by Over 1,
Lawsuit by 44 States Accuses Pharma Giants of 'Multi-Year Conspiracy' to Hike Drug Prices by Over 1,000%
"We have hard evidence that shows the generic drug industry perpetrated a multi-billion dollar fraud on the American people."
by Jake Johnson, staff writer
A far-reaching lawsuit filed Friday by the attorneys general of more than 40 states accused some of the nation's largest generic drug manufacturers of conspiring to inflate prices, in some cases by over 1,000 percent.
"We have hard evidence that shows the generic drug industry perpetrated a multi-billion dollar fraud on the American people," Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, whose state led the probe into the companies' practices, said in a statement.
"Teva and its co-conspirators embarked on one of the most egregious and damaging price-fixing conspiracies in the history of the United States." —Lawsuit
"We have emails, text messages, telephone records, and former company insiders that we believe will prove a multi-year conspiracy to fix prices and divide market share for huge numbers of generic drugs," said Tong.
"Teva and its co-conspirators embarked on one of the most egregious and damaging price-fixing conspiracies in the history of the United States." —Lawsuit
"We have emails, text messages, telephone records, and former company insiders that we believe will prove a multi-year conspiracy to fix prices and divide market share for huge numbers of generic drugs," said Tong.
The suit names 20 major drug manufacturers—including Pfizer, Teva, Novartis, and Mylan—as well as more than a dozen senior executives, who the complaint accuses of deleting evidence after the states began their investigation in 2014.
"The industrywide scheme affected the prices of more than 100 generic drugs," the New York Times reported Saturday, "including lamivudine-zidovudine, which treats H.I.V.; budesonide, an asthma medication; fenofibrate, which treats high cholesterol; amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for ADHD.; oral antibiotics; blood thinners; cancer drugs; contraceptives; and antidepressants."
more...
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/05/12/lawsuit-44-states-accuses-pharma-giants-multi-year-conspiracy-hike-drug-prices-over?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR1JWtVLzYxtiyAR_ZHJtzHLQt947zElT0Nmn-QhtHzV-rnf6sRG3j652JQ
May 12, 2019
Trump Blocking More Than 20 Investigations
May 11, 2019 at 8:17 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard
Trump Blocking More Than 20 Investigations
https://politicalwire.com/2019/05/11/trump-blocking-more-than-20-investigations/Trump Blocking More Than 20 Investigations
May 11, 2019 at 8:17 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard
“President Trump and his allies are working to block more than 20 separate investigations by Democrats into his actions as president, his personal finances and his administration’s policies, according to a Washington Post analysis, amounting to what many experts call the most expansive White House obstruction effort in decades.”
“Trump’s noncooperation strategy has shifted from partial resistance to all-out war as he faces mounting inquiries from the Democratic-controlled House — a strategy that many legal and congressional experts fear could undermine the institutional power of Congress for years to come. All told, House Democrats say the Trump administration has failed to respond to or comply with at least 79 requests for documents or other information.”
“Trump’s noncooperation strategy has shifted from partial resistance to all-out war as he faces mounting inquiries from the Democratic-controlled House — a strategy that many legal and congressional experts fear could undermine the institutional power of Congress for years to come. All told, House Democrats say the Trump administration has failed to respond to or comply with at least 79 requests for documents or other information.”
May 11, 2019
Posted on Sat, May 11th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Ukraine Tells Trump and Giuliani To Take Their Biden Smear And Get Lost
Ukraine’s message for Rudy Giuliani and Trump was to leave them out of their schemes to spread lies about Joe Biden.
Ukraine Tells Giuliani and Trump: Leave Us Out
Via The Washington Post:
more...
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/05/11/ukraine-tells-trump-and-giuliani-to-take-their-biden-smear-and-get-lost.html
Ukraine Tells Trump and Giuliani To Take Their Biden Smear And Get Lost
Posted on Sat, May 11th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Ukraine Tells Trump and Giuliani To Take Their Biden Smear And Get Lost
Ukraine’s message for Rudy Giuliani and Trump was to leave them out of their schemes to spread lies about Joe Biden.
Ukraine Tells Giuliani and Trump: Leave Us Out
Via The Washington Post:
Supporters of Ukrainian President-elect Volodymyr Zelensky — who is expected to take office in the coming weeks — said in interviews Saturday that they feared they were being pulled into a domestic political conflict in the United States, potentially at Ukraine’s expense.
….
A person close to Zelensky said the president-elect’s team viewed Trump’s interest in the investigations as a domestic U.S. matter and was determined not to let it distract from his agenda.
“This is definitely not our war,” the person close to Zelensky said. “We have to stay away from this as much as possible.”
The person said Zelensky, a TV comedian who ran on a strident anti-corruption agenda, would rule out using political pressure to lean on Ukrainian law enforcement to achieve any White House aims. The person close to Zelensky spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
….
A person close to Zelensky said the president-elect’s team viewed Trump’s interest in the investigations as a domestic U.S. matter and was determined not to let it distract from his agenda.
“This is definitely not our war,” the person close to Zelensky said. “We have to stay away from this as much as possible.”
The person said Zelensky, a TV comedian who ran on a strident anti-corruption agenda, would rule out using political pressure to lean on Ukrainian law enforcement to achieve any White House aims. The person close to Zelensky spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
more...
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/05/11/ukraine-tells-trump-and-giuliani-to-take-their-biden-smear-and-get-lost.html
May 11, 2019
Posted on Sat, May 11th, 2019 by Jason Easley
House Democrat Floats Arresting And Jailing Trump Officials For Contempt
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) said that Democrats should consider using the doctrine of inherent contempt to arrest and jail Trump administration officials.
Trump White House officials could be arrested and jailed for contempt
Video @ link~
Democrats need to add more pressure to Trump officials
House Democrats have a legal strategy and it is working. They are building cases to get Trump’s tax returns, and the full Mueller report evidence.
The political strategy has also been very effective. The constant investigations and Trump’s attempted obstruction of them are resulting in rising support for impeachment.
Rep. Doggett is talking about increasing the pressure to get compliance. Democrats could take the step of trying to issues arrest warrants and summons for testimony. It would help their cause to show the courts and the public that they are doing everything in their power to get the Trump administration to comply. The majority of Americans already believe that Trump is a dishonest criminal.
House Democrats should consider treating Trump and his administration like the criminals that they appear to be.
House Democrat Floats Arresting And Jailing Trump Officials For Contempt
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/05/11/house-democrat-floats-arresting-and-jailing-trump-officials-for-contempt.htmlPosted on Sat, May 11th, 2019 by Jason Easley
House Democrat Floats Arresting And Jailing Trump Officials For Contempt
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) said that Democrats should consider using the doctrine of inherent contempt to arrest and jail Trump administration officials.
Trump White House officials could be arrested and jailed for contempt
Rep. Doggett said on CNN, “We should consider the power of inherent contempt, an old doctrine that allows the Congress itself to issue a summons, arrest warrant to an official and demand they appear at a congressional hearing, be subject to fines, to jail time. I think we ought to explore contracting with area correctional institutions, provide additional support to the sergeant in arms, so the White House knows we’re serious.”
Video @ link~
Democrats need to add more pressure to Trump officials
House Democrats have a legal strategy and it is working. They are building cases to get Trump’s tax returns, and the full Mueller report evidence.
The political strategy has also been very effective. The constant investigations and Trump’s attempted obstruction of them are resulting in rising support for impeachment.
Rep. Doggett is talking about increasing the pressure to get compliance. Democrats could take the step of trying to issues arrest warrants and summons for testimony. It would help their cause to show the courts and the public that they are doing everything in their power to get the Trump administration to comply. The majority of Americans already believe that Trump is a dishonest criminal.
House Democrats should consider treating Trump and his administration like the criminals that they appear to be.
May 11, 2019
Retired Supreme Court Justice: Trump 'exercising powers that do not really belong to him'
By Caroline Kelly
Updated 7:13 PM EDT, Fri May 10, 2019
(CNN) Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens accused President Donald Trump of exceeding his presidential powers in an interview published Thursday, telling The Wall Street Journal that the President "has to comply with subpoenas."
Stevens' remarks come as the court battle over Trump's financial records ramps up, with Judge Amit Mehta overseeing the first hearing in the standoff between the Democrat-led House Oversight Committee and the President next week. The committee has subpoenaed Trump's long-standing accounting firm Mazars USA for several years' worth of the President's financial statements, and the President has sued the committee and Mazars to block the firm from complying.
Asked about the modern political landscape, Stevens told the Journal, "I think there are things we should be concerned about, there's no doubt about that."
As to how the Supreme Court would handle a case between Trump and the Democrat-led House of Representatives, Stevens told the paper, "I wouldn't want to predict that anybody's going to take the incorrect view. But certainly, the correct view is pretty clear."
Stevens, who served on the Supreme Court from his appointment by President Gerald Ford in 1975 until his retirement in 2010, is a lifelong Republican whose rulings often leaned left. He wrote the dissenting opinion in Bush v. Gore in 2000 and the majority opinion in Rasul et al v. Bush in 2010 deciding that detainees at Guantanamo must have a court-martial.
Stevens has weighed in on current political events since his retirement, suggesting in October that then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh should not sit on the court. Stevens' op-ed in the New York Times last year encouraging gun control advocates to try to repeal the Second Amendment prompted Trump to respond on Twitter, "NO WAY."
Retired Supreme Court Justice: Trump 'exercising powers that do not really belong to him'
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2019/05/10/politics/john-paul-stevens-wsj-trump/index.html?fbclid=IwAR2s04QNgT8z6hjj74TtiGD53SFbQ3DlUOSSl5V2t6MTSNcBD40_81vItbkRetired Supreme Court Justice: Trump 'exercising powers that do not really belong to him'
By Caroline Kelly
Updated 7:13 PM EDT, Fri May 10, 2019
(CNN) Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens accused President Donald Trump of exceeding his presidential powers in an interview published Thursday, telling The Wall Street Journal that the President "has to comply with subpoenas."
Stevens' remarks come as the court battle over Trump's financial records ramps up, with Judge Amit Mehta overseeing the first hearing in the standoff between the Democrat-led House Oversight Committee and the President next week. The committee has subpoenaed Trump's long-standing accounting firm Mazars USA for several years' worth of the President's financial statements, and the President has sued the committee and Mazars to block the firm from complying.
Asked about the modern political landscape, Stevens told the Journal, "I think there are things we should be concerned about, there's no doubt about that."
"The President is exercising powers that do not really belong to him," Stevens added. "I mean, he has to comply with subpoenas and things like that."
As to how the Supreme Court would handle a case between Trump and the Democrat-led House of Representatives, Stevens told the paper, "I wouldn't want to predict that anybody's going to take the incorrect view. But certainly, the correct view is pretty clear."
Stevens, who served on the Supreme Court from his appointment by President Gerald Ford in 1975 until his retirement in 2010, is a lifelong Republican whose rulings often leaned left. He wrote the dissenting opinion in Bush v. Gore in 2000 and the majority opinion in Rasul et al v. Bush in 2010 deciding that detainees at Guantanamo must have a court-martial.
Stevens has weighed in on current political events since his retirement, suggesting in October that then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh should not sit on the court. Stevens' op-ed in the New York Times last year encouraging gun control advocates to try to repeal the Second Amendment prompted Trump to respond on Twitter, "NO WAY."
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