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babylonsister
babylonsister's Journal
babylonsister's Journal
January 31, 2019
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/01/donald-trump-hotel-kuwait-government-emoluments/
Once Again, the Kuwaiti Government Puts Money Right into Trump’s Pocket
Who cares what the Constitution says?
David CornJanuary 30, 2019 6:21 PM
It’s not news. But it still worth headlines: President Donald Trump collects money directly from foreign governments. He does this when overseas governments (and foreign corporations and persons) spend money at his hotels. These properties are owned by him through the the Trump Organization. (When he became president, he turned the business over to his kids, but retained ownership.) So if the Saudi Crown Prince hits New York City with his oversized entourage and obtains a block of room’s at a high-end Trump hotel, the money goes straight into the coffers of Trump’s family business. And this is exactly what happened last year. (That particular transaction was substantial enough to be responsible for a 13 percent uptick in the hotel’s business.)
Trump’s fancy hotel in Washington, DC, has been the recipient of revenue from governments, people, and parties with interests before the US government and motive to curry favor with Trump. One such entity: the government of Kuwait. As the below invitation shows (at link), the Gulf State is holding its independence anniversary shindig at the Trump International Hotel next month. This will mark the third year in a row that the Kuwaitis have decided to grace Trump’s hotel with their presence and petro-dollars.
These transactions are arguably violations of the Constitution’s emoluments clause, which prohibit a president from accepting any sort of gift from an overseas source—an anti-bribery measure that the Founding Fathers obviously believed necessary. A lawsuit claiming Trump has violated this part of the Constitution has been working its way through the courts, and oral arguments for the case are scheduled for March. The suit, which was filed by the attorneys general for Maryland and Washington, DC, cites the annual Kuwaiti bash as one of several violations of the emoluments clause.
It seems like Trump and the Kuwaitis don’t mind providing more potential evidence.
David Corn: Once Again, the Kuwaiti Government Puts Money Right into Trump's Pocket
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/01/donald-trump-hotel-kuwait-government-emoluments/
Once Again, the Kuwaiti Government Puts Money Right into Trump’s Pocket
Who cares what the Constitution says?
David CornJanuary 30, 2019 6:21 PM
It’s not news. But it still worth headlines: President Donald Trump collects money directly from foreign governments. He does this when overseas governments (and foreign corporations and persons) spend money at his hotels. These properties are owned by him through the the Trump Organization. (When he became president, he turned the business over to his kids, but retained ownership.) So if the Saudi Crown Prince hits New York City with his oversized entourage and obtains a block of room’s at a high-end Trump hotel, the money goes straight into the coffers of Trump’s family business. And this is exactly what happened last year. (That particular transaction was substantial enough to be responsible for a 13 percent uptick in the hotel’s business.)
Trump’s fancy hotel in Washington, DC, has been the recipient of revenue from governments, people, and parties with interests before the US government and motive to curry favor with Trump. One such entity: the government of Kuwait. As the below invitation shows (at link), the Gulf State is holding its independence anniversary shindig at the Trump International Hotel next month. This will mark the third year in a row that the Kuwaitis have decided to grace Trump’s hotel with their presence and petro-dollars.
These transactions are arguably violations of the Constitution’s emoluments clause, which prohibit a president from accepting any sort of gift from an overseas source—an anti-bribery measure that the Founding Fathers obviously believed necessary. A lawsuit claiming Trump has violated this part of the Constitution has been working its way through the courts, and oral arguments for the case are scheduled for March. The suit, which was filed by the attorneys general for Maryland and Washington, DC, cites the annual Kuwaiti bash as one of several violations of the emoluments clause.
It seems like Trump and the Kuwaitis don’t mind providing more potential evidence.
January 31, 2019
House Democrats Just Told the Pentagon to Redo Its Climate Change Report
They were outraged by the first version.
Dan SpinelliJanuary 30, 2019 3:35 PM
Earlier this month, the Pentagon released a landmark report that identified the 79 American military installations most vulnerable to the “effects of a changing climate.” The 22-page filing frankly acknowledged the security implications of climate change—in dramatic contrast with President Trump’s very public global warming skepticism—but Democrats roundly criticized its failure to include several details requested by Congress, including specific cost estimates to protect or replace the ten most vulnerable bases from each of the military services.
Now those lawmakers want a complete do-over.
In a letter released Wednesday afternoon, three Democratic members of the House Armed Services panel, including Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.), urged acting defense secretary Patrick Shanahan to compile another report by April that “thoroughly and clearly addresses” the criteria requested by Congress.
more...
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/01/house-democrats-just-told-the-pentagon-to-redo-its-climate-change-report/
House Democrats Just Told the Pentagon to Redo Its Climate Change Report
House Democrats Just Told the Pentagon to Redo Its Climate Change Report
They were outraged by the first version.
Dan SpinelliJanuary 30, 2019 3:35 PM
Earlier this month, the Pentagon released a landmark report that identified the 79 American military installations most vulnerable to the “effects of a changing climate.” The 22-page filing frankly acknowledged the security implications of climate change—in dramatic contrast with President Trump’s very public global warming skepticism—but Democrats roundly criticized its failure to include several details requested by Congress, including specific cost estimates to protect or replace the ten most vulnerable bases from each of the military services.
Now those lawmakers want a complete do-over.
In a letter released Wednesday afternoon, three Democratic members of the House Armed Services panel, including Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.), urged acting defense secretary Patrick Shanahan to compile another report by April that “thoroughly and clearly addresses” the criteria requested by Congress.
“They clearly ignored the requirement in the law,” says Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI), one of the signatories, who had described himself as “deeply disappointed” with the original report. “The report they issued was completely unsatisfactory.” Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the ranking member on the Senate Armed Services panel, said the report carried “about as much value as a phonebook.” Smith immediately demanded another report that “rigorously confronts the realities of our warming planet.”
more...
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/01/house-democrats-just-told-the-pentagon-to-redo-its-climate-change-report/
January 31, 2019
January 30, 2019 1:16PM ET
Who Needs Career Intelligence Officials When You Have Fox News?
The president bashed the intelligence community on Twitter, questioning their assessments of Iran, ISIS and North Korea
Ryan Bort
Concerned as its agencies are with finding facts, President Trump has made sure to keep his distance from the United States intelligence community since taking office. Despite their wealth of expertise, he’s been reluctant to consider their security assessments as any more credible than what he happens to hear on Fox & Friends every morning. It isn’t hard to understand why, and it goes beyond Fox’s use of colorful graphics. The former presents the president with hard truths about dangers facing the nation that he is duty-bound to confront; the latter tells him that all is well — or, if it’s not, that it’s someone else’s fault — and that he’s doing a great job.
On Tuesday, the nation’s top intelligence officials briefed Congress on of North Korea, Iran and ISIS — all issues on which Trump has claimed varying degrees of victory. Their assessments didn’t exactly jibe with what the president would like to believe. Trump responded by attacking the intelligence community, tweeting on Wednesday that its officials are “extremely passive,” “naive” and “wrong,” particularly regarding their assessment of Iran. According to National Intelligence Director Dan Coats, whose warnings about Russian interference in America’s elections Trump has essentially ignored, Iran is still complying with the Obama administration’s nuclear deal, which Trump dramatically abandoned in May. “We do not believe Iran is currently undertaking activities we judge necessary to produce a nuclear device,” said Coats.
snip//
https://twitter.com/LouDobbs/status/1090411475997466624
The reason Coats and the rest of the intelligence community are second-guessing the president is because the president has absolutely no clue what he’s talking about. Unfortunately for America, Fox News will always be there to insist to him that he does.
Who Needs Career Intelligence Officials When You Have Fox News?
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-intel-officials-786414/January 30, 2019 1:16PM ET
Who Needs Career Intelligence Officials When You Have Fox News?
The president bashed the intelligence community on Twitter, questioning their assessments of Iran, ISIS and North Korea
Ryan Bort
Concerned as its agencies are with finding facts, President Trump has made sure to keep his distance from the United States intelligence community since taking office. Despite their wealth of expertise, he’s been reluctant to consider their security assessments as any more credible than what he happens to hear on Fox & Friends every morning. It isn’t hard to understand why, and it goes beyond Fox’s use of colorful graphics. The former presents the president with hard truths about dangers facing the nation that he is duty-bound to confront; the latter tells him that all is well — or, if it’s not, that it’s someone else’s fault — and that he’s doing a great job.
On Tuesday, the nation’s top intelligence officials briefed Congress on of North Korea, Iran and ISIS — all issues on which Trump has claimed varying degrees of victory. Their assessments didn’t exactly jibe with what the president would like to believe. Trump responded by attacking the intelligence community, tweeting on Wednesday that its officials are “extremely passive,” “naive” and “wrong,” particularly regarding their assessment of Iran. According to National Intelligence Director Dan Coats, whose warnings about Russian interference in America’s elections Trump has essentially ignored, Iran is still complying with the Obama administration’s nuclear deal, which Trump dramatically abandoned in May. “We do not believe Iran is currently undertaking activities we judge necessary to produce a nuclear device,” said Coats.
snip//
https://twitter.com/LouDobbs/status/1090411475997466624
The reason Coats and the rest of the intelligence community are second-guessing the president is because the president has absolutely no clue what he’s talking about. Unfortunately for America, Fox News will always be there to insist to him that he does.
January 31, 2019
Posted on Wed, Jan 30th, 2019 by Sean Colarossi
Democrats And Republicans Finally Agree: The Best Way To Govern Is To Ignore Trump
As Congress negotiates a deal that would keep the government open past the February 15 deadline, Democrats and Republicans have seemingly reached agreement on at least one thing: Ignoring Donald Trump is the best way to govern the country.
As MSNBC’s Chris Hayes laid out on Wednesday night, after Trump’s border wall tantrum kept the government shut down for over a month, nobody in Washington wants him near future negotiations.
https://twitter.com/politicususa/status/1090789229490262016
Chris Hayes said:
more...
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/01/30/democrats-republicans-agree-govern-ignore-trump.html
Democrats And Republicans Finally Agree: The Best Way To Govern Is To Ignore Trump
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/01/30/democrats-republicans-agree-govern-ignore-trump.htmlPosted on Wed, Jan 30th, 2019 by Sean Colarossi
Democrats And Republicans Finally Agree: The Best Way To Govern Is To Ignore Trump
As Congress negotiates a deal that would keep the government open past the February 15 deadline, Democrats and Republicans have seemingly reached agreement on at least one thing: Ignoring Donald Trump is the best way to govern the country.
As MSNBC’s Chris Hayes laid out on Wednesday night, after Trump’s border wall tantrum kept the government shut down for over a month, nobody in Washington wants him near future negotiations.
“Donald Trump is now engaged in another battle over his unpopular border wall with an even weaker hand and everyone seems to know it except for one man, the president,” the MSNBC host said. “The increasingly irrelevant and ineffectual president is just about the only person in Washington who does not understand just how badly the shutdown damaged his own position.”
https://twitter.com/politicususa/status/1090789229490262016
Chris Hayes said:
Donald Trump is now engaged in another battle over his unpopular border wall with an even weaker hand and everyone seems to know it except for one man, the president. Today lawmakers from both parties met for the first time to try to head off another Trump shutdown. And a temporary bill to fund the government runs out 16 days from now and they all seem to be paying as little attention as possible to the president of the United States. Trump has not held a public event in five days, he’s been holed in the White House rage tweeting about whatever he sees on Trump TV on DVR and attacking a former staffer who wrote a tell-all book. Trump did manage to briefly weigh in on the negotiations early this morning … and then everyone kind of just ignored him. … The increasingly irrelevant and ineffectual president is just about the only person in Washington who does not understand just how badly the shutdown damaged his own position. His approval rating is down and a majority of Americans continue to oppose his border wall that, you’ll remember, Mexico was supposed to pay for. There is massive opposition to Trump declaring a national emergency to try to get funding for the wall, which he has flirted with, and even greater opposition to enforcing the nation to endure another shutdown. … Back in November, a poll found Republicans with a 10-point advantage on handling border security. But in the wake of the Trump shutdown, it’s the Democrats who now have a nine-point advantage. I mean think about that: The president of the United States used the full force of his bully pulpit to make an argument to the American people, and he managed to convince them that his opponents are right.
more...
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/01/30/democrats-republicans-agree-govern-ignore-trump.html
January 31, 2019
https://www.thedailybeast.com/white-house-inquiry-finds-no-evidence-for-trumps-duct-tape-and-prayer-rug-claims
1. BASELESS an hour ago
White House Inquiry Finds No Evidence for Trump’s Duct-Tape and Prayer-Rug Claims
Reuters / Carlos Barria
White House Inquiry Finds No Evidence for Trump's Duct-Tape and Prayer-Rug Claims
https://www.thedailybeast.com/white-house-inquiry-finds-no-evidence-for-trumps-duct-tape-and-prayer-rug-claims
1. BASELESS an hour ago
White House Inquiry Finds No Evidence for Trump’s Duct-Tape and Prayer-Rug Claims
Reuters / Carlos Barria
An internal Trump administration inquiry has found no evidence to support the president’s claims that prayer rugs have been found at the Mexican border or that smugglers are binding women with duct tape to traffic them, ABC News reports. While putting forward his case for border-wall funding, President Trump has repeatedly claimed that women have been discovered covered in duct tape and quoted an anonymous rancher claiming that multiple Muslim prayer rugs had been found by farmers near the Mexican border. Administration officials reportedly launched an effort to find evidence to support the president’s claims but, according to an official who spoke to ABC News, absolutely no evidence has been found. It’s been noted by CNN that prayer rugs at the border and duct-taped women were featured in the 2015 fictional crime film Sicario in which FBI agents fight Mexican drug cartels.
January 30, 2019
Mitch McConnell: making Election Day a federal holiday is a Democratic “power grab”
McConnell is saying the quiet part out loud on voting rights.
By Tara Golshan Jan 30, 2019, 4:40pm EST
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell doesn’t think Election Day should be a federal holiday because that would give Democrats too much power.
McConnell took to the Senate floor Wednesday to rail against HR 1, the sweeping anti-corruption proposal House Democrats have put forward as their first bill in the majority. Among many other measures, it proposes making Election Day a federal holiday and encourages private sector businesses to do the same.
McConnell, who calls the bill the “Democratic Politician Protection Act,” sees that as a “power grab.”
The proposal to make Election Day a federal holiday is based on a simple reality: A wide swath of the American public doesn’t vote — and most of those nonvoters say they skipped the polls because they had to work or get kids to school and didn’t have the time.
more...
https://www.vox.com/2019/1/30/18203936/mitch-mcconnell-election-day-federal-holiday
Mitch McConnell: making Election Day a federal holiday is a Democratic "power grab"
Mitch McConnell: making Election Day a federal holiday is a Democratic “power grab”
McConnell is saying the quiet part out loud on voting rights.
By Tara Golshan Jan 30, 2019, 4:40pm EST
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell doesn’t think Election Day should be a federal holiday because that would give Democrats too much power.
McConnell took to the Senate floor Wednesday to rail against HR 1, the sweeping anti-corruption proposal House Democrats have put forward as their first bill in the majority. Among many other measures, it proposes making Election Day a federal holiday and encourages private sector businesses to do the same.
McConnell, who calls the bill the “Democratic Politician Protection Act,” sees that as a “power grab.”
“Just what America needs, another paid holiday and a bunch of government workers being paid to go out and work ... [on Democratic] campaigns,” he snarked on the Senate floor. “This is the Democrat plan to restore democracy? ... A power grab.”
The proposal to make Election Day a federal holiday is based on a simple reality: A wide swath of the American public doesn’t vote — and most of those nonvoters say they skipped the polls because they had to work or get kids to school and didn’t have the time.
more...
https://www.vox.com/2019/1/30/18203936/mitch-mcconnell-election-day-federal-holiday
January 30, 2019
Trump blocked pay raises for 2 million workers. The House just voted to restore them.
Trump said the government couldn’t afford cost-of-living increases for civilian federal employees.
By Alexia Fernández Campbell@AlexiaCampbellalexia@vox.com Jan 30, 2019, 3:10pm EST
President Donald Trump canceled annual pay raises for federal employees last year — and now members of Congress are trying to restore them.
On Wednesday, the House passed a bill that would give civilian workers a 2.6 percent cost-of-living increase for 2019. They were supposed to receive an automatic 2.1 percent pay bump starting in January, but Trump canceled it in December — just days after he shut down the government and withheld paychecks for nearly 800,000 employees.
Furloughed employees are now back at work, waiting for their first paycheck of the year and back pay to cover the ones they missed during the 35-day shutdown. But Trump’s decision to reopen the government for three weeks — without funding for a border wall— did not include a raise.
That means roughly 2 million people won’t get an annual pay raise this year, including Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Members of Congress, though, think they can still make it happen. Senate Democrats introduced another bill on Tuesday calling for the 2.6 percent raise, which would match the increase given to military service members. So far, the bill has no Republican support, but GOP Senate leaders had previously been willing to give employees a 1.9 percent raise.
Whether or not they can make a deal with the Senate is up in the air, and the raise may end up as part of the negotiations over the next government spending bill, which Congress must pass by February 15 to keep the government open. The main barrier to a deal, however, is the president, who has shown little to no concern for the impact his decision would have on the livelihoods of American workers.
more...
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/1/30/18203613/house-pay-raise-federal-workers?fbclid=IwAR0yesc51CYWBHcyfgUJFkxhgBoItw0nPxh_0UZSnqkjtXFArZYaEA1Y2Vw
Trump blocked pay raises for 2 million workers. The House just voted to restore them.
Trump blocked pay raises for 2 million workers. The House just voted to restore them.
Trump said the government couldn’t afford cost-of-living increases for civilian federal employees.
By Alexia Fernández Campbell@AlexiaCampbellalexia@vox.com Jan 30, 2019, 3:10pm EST
President Donald Trump canceled annual pay raises for federal employees last year — and now members of Congress are trying to restore them.
On Wednesday, the House passed a bill that would give civilian workers a 2.6 percent cost-of-living increase for 2019. They were supposed to receive an automatic 2.1 percent pay bump starting in January, but Trump canceled it in December — just days after he shut down the government and withheld paychecks for nearly 800,000 employees.
Furloughed employees are now back at work, waiting for their first paycheck of the year and back pay to cover the ones they missed during the 35-day shutdown. But Trump’s decision to reopen the government for three weeks — without funding for a border wall— did not include a raise.
That means roughly 2 million people won’t get an annual pay raise this year, including Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Members of Congress, though, think they can still make it happen. Senate Democrats introduced another bill on Tuesday calling for the 2.6 percent raise, which would match the increase given to military service members. So far, the bill has no Republican support, but GOP Senate leaders had previously been willing to give employees a 1.9 percent raise.
“Congress can override, and Congress should override this executive order,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), who represents a district with thousands of federal workers.
Whether or not they can make a deal with the Senate is up in the air, and the raise may end up as part of the negotiations over the next government spending bill, which Congress must pass by February 15 to keep the government open. The main barrier to a deal, however, is the president, who has shown little to no concern for the impact his decision would have on the livelihoods of American workers.
more...
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/1/30/18203613/house-pay-raise-federal-workers?fbclid=IwAR0yesc51CYWBHcyfgUJFkxhgBoItw0nPxh_0UZSnqkjtXFArZYaEA1Y2Vw
January 30, 2019
POLITICS 01/30/2019 11:21 am ET Updated 1 hour ago
Rep. Jackie Speier Nominates Christine Blasey Ford For Prestigious Profile In Courage Award
The award, which is usually reserved for public officials and politicians, celebrates “political courage.”
By Alanna Vagianos
snip//
A staffer for the congresswoman confirmed to HuffPost that Speier did submit a formal nomination for Ford. Past recipients of the Profile in Courage Award include former President Barack Obama, former President Gerald Ford and former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.).
https://twitter.com/RepSpeier/status/1090084380196900866
Speier told HuffPost on Wednesday afternoon that she nominated Ford for the prestigious award because she feels there is “no one more deserving of this honor,” adding that Ford is “a hero of the highest caliber.”
more...
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/christine-blasey-ford-award-jackie-speier_us_5c51b30be4b0d9f9be6b555b?utm_source=politics_fb§ion=politics&utm_campaign=hp_fb_pages&utm_medium=facebook&ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013&fbclid=IwAR20a1e1ODaDCY788izfzsDDsrx80lplz1r61nzH-GnIN89Jl4TF2nO4q9k
Rep. Jackie Speier Nominates Christine Blasey Ford For Prestigious Profile In Courage Award
POLITICS 01/30/2019 11:21 am ET Updated 1 hour ago
Rep. Jackie Speier Nominates Christine Blasey Ford For Prestigious Profile In Courage Award
The award, which is usually reserved for public officials and politicians, celebrates “political courage.”
By Alanna Vagianos
snip//
A staffer for the congresswoman confirmed to HuffPost that Speier did submit a formal nomination for Ford. Past recipients of the Profile in Courage Award include former President Barack Obama, former President Gerald Ford and former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.).
https://twitter.com/RepSpeier/status/1090084380196900866
Speier told HuffPost on Wednesday afternoon that she nominated Ford for the prestigious award because she feels there is “no one more deserving of this honor,” adding that Ford is “a hero of the highest caliber.”
“She is the face of women speaking truth to power in the fight for equality,” Speier said. “She is the face of every sexual assault survivor who has had to defend herself or himself when it is the perpetrator who should be on trial. She spoke for so many who have been robbed of justice.”
“And she did all of this knowing she was guaranteed to suffer ceaseless character assassination attempts, torment and abuse,” the congresswoman added.
“And she did all of this knowing she was guaranteed to suffer ceaseless character assassination attempts, torment and abuse,” the congresswoman added.
more...
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/christine-blasey-ford-award-jackie-speier_us_5c51b30be4b0d9f9be6b555b?utm_source=politics_fb§ion=politics&utm_campaign=hp_fb_pages&utm_medium=facebook&ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013&fbclid=IwAR20a1e1ODaDCY788izfzsDDsrx80lplz1r61nzH-GnIN89Jl4TF2nO4q9k
January 30, 2019
U.S. Formally Withdraws From Unesco,...Agency That Aims to Build Peace Through Cultural Understandin
Sigh. Of course we did. 
http://www.artfixdaily.com/news_feed/2019/01/23/7278-the-us-withdraws-from-unesco-the-un-agency-that-aims-to-build-pea?fbclid=IwAR2nqy0li9tAQMYsgQjRpa8pqUhNZlOMLqWo7GZZC6RqkcFefLSekd63ynU
The U.S. Formally Withdraws From Unesco, the U.N. Agency That Aims to Build Peace Through Cultural Understanding
January 23, 2019 14:49
Trevi Fountain, part of the historic center of Rome that is protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
This month, the United States officially left Unesco, the United Nations' cultural and scientific organization. The U.S. was a founding member of Unesco, which was established following the horrors of the World War II era.
While the U.S. withdrawal is newly in effect, the Trump administration announced the decision in 2017. The U.S. and Israel stopped paying dues to the organization after Unesco granted full membership to Palestine in 2011. Citing ongoing anti-Israel bias for its departure, the U.S. was over $600 million in arrears when it left. (The U.S. also withdrew for a period beginning in the 1980s, under the Reagan administration, over purported pro-Soviet bias and corruption claims.)
A new director general, Audrey Azouley, has just taken over the top post at Paris-based Unesco. She says the agency has recently made strides to combat anti-Semitism, also telling the New York Times, "I have tried hard to reduce the politicization and work for consenus."
Unesco, which stands for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, was formed to promote peace through international cooperation in endeavors of education, science and culture. Among its varied missions, Unesco has helped preserve over 1,000 World Heritage Sites in 167 countries, spearheaded cultural projects like the reconstruction of the mausoleums in Timbuktu after their destruction by extremists and launched a series of histories written by locals that tell the world's stories.
January 30, 2019
We Need Howard Schultz to Run for President Like Starbucks Needs Cockroaches
Robert Kuttner
January 28, 2019
The Democratic Party is finally willing to work for working people again. Schultz could really screw that up.
snip//
Politically, we have wall-to-wall Republican obstruction. And after three Democratic administrations that were far too Wall Street-afflicted, we are finally recovering a Democratic Party committed to working to benefit regular Americans.
Schultz could really screw that up. He is a social liberal who opposed Seattle’s $15 minimum wage—just what we don’t need. The political problem is that lots of suburban moderates, who defected to the Democrats in 2018 out of disgust with Trump, could vote for a guy like Schultz. And in a three-way, Trump could even get re-elected.
There is a long and depressing history of independents running as spoilers. The only time it broke to the advantage of the Democrats was in 1992, when the whacko H. Ross Perot took more votes from George H.W. Bush and helped Bill Clinton get elected with just 43 percent of the popular vote. In 2020, it would help Trump, because his hard-core 35 percent is not going to defect to support a Seattle latte billionaire.
There is already some chatter on social media about a Starbucks boycott. I’m not sure that would do the trick—he’s no longer CEO—but a billionaire centrist proposing to save America from Trump is the last thing America needs in 2020.
Starbucks has a history of creating demands for products that consumers didn't know they needed. They should gag on this one.
We Need Howard Schultz to Run for President Like Starbucks Needs Cockroaches
https://prospect.org/article/we-need-howard-schultz-run-president-starbucks-needs-cockroachesWe Need Howard Schultz to Run for President Like Starbucks Needs Cockroaches
Robert Kuttner
January 28, 2019
The Democratic Party is finally willing to work for working people again. Schultz could really screw that up.
snip//
Politically, we have wall-to-wall Republican obstruction. And after three Democratic administrations that were far too Wall Street-afflicted, we are finally recovering a Democratic Party committed to working to benefit regular Americans.
Schultz could really screw that up. He is a social liberal who opposed Seattle’s $15 minimum wage—just what we don’t need. The political problem is that lots of suburban moderates, who defected to the Democrats in 2018 out of disgust with Trump, could vote for a guy like Schultz. And in a three-way, Trump could even get re-elected.
There is a long and depressing history of independents running as spoilers. The only time it broke to the advantage of the Democrats was in 1992, when the whacko H. Ross Perot took more votes from George H.W. Bush and helped Bill Clinton get elected with just 43 percent of the popular vote. In 2020, it would help Trump, because his hard-core 35 percent is not going to defect to support a Seattle latte billionaire.
There is already some chatter on social media about a Starbucks boycott. I’m not sure that would do the trick—he’s no longer CEO—but a billionaire centrist proposing to save America from Trump is the last thing America needs in 2020.
Starbucks has a history of creating demands for products that consumers didn't know they needed. They should gag on this one.
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