Senator Mitch McConnell has for months made clear it that he intended to fill as many judicial slots as possible before the end of this year.
Credit: Anna Moneymaker/The New York Times
WASHINGTON — Running out of federal court vacancies to fill, Senate Republicans have been quietly making overtures to sitting Republican-nominated judges who are eligible to retire to urge them to step aside so they can be replaced while the party still holds the Senate and the White House.
Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, who has used his position as majority leader to build a judicial confirmation juggernaut for President Trump over the past three years, has been personally reaching out to judges to sound them out on their plans and assure them that they would have a worthy successor if they gave up their seats soon, according to multiple people with knowledge of his actions.
It was not known how many judges were contacted or which of them Mr. McConnell had spoken […]
President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order for sanctions on Iran’s supreme leader in the Oval Office of the White House on June 24, 2019 as U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin looks on.
Credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty
Climate advocacy groups responded with swift condemnation Thursday after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he will recommend that President Donald Trump ask Congress for as much as $20 billion to purchase oil in what Barron’s reported “would essentially equate to a bailout of the U.S. oil industry, because several U.S. producers would likely go out of business if demand and prices stay low.”
“The Trump administration’s proposal to spend $20 billion for their oil industry buddies is as tone deaf as it is morally bankrupt.”
—Brett Hartl, CBD
“Let’s go out and buy… Fill up the reserve,” Mnuchin said in a Thursday morning interview with Fox Business Network, referring to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). The secretary’s comments about potential purchases that could fill the SPR for a decade came after Trump declared Friday that “we’re going to fill it right […]
Trump and some Trumpers
German lawmakers and government officials voiced outrage at reporting Sunday that the Trump administration is seeking to secure exclusive rights to a potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by the German firm CureVac as the pandemic spreads and takes lives across the globe.
The German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, citing an anonymous German government official, reported Sunday that the Trump administration offered CureVac $1 billion to hand the U.S. exclusive rights to a potential COVID-19 vaccine.
Trump wants the vaccine “only for the USA,” the German official said. The New York Times confirmed late Sunday that the Trump administration attempted to persuade CureVac to move its research to the U.S., offering the company what one German official described as a “large sum” of money.
“Germany is not for sale,” economy minister Peter Altmaier declared in response to the bombshell reporting, which White House officials said was overblown.
“International cooperation is important now, not national self-interest,” said conservative lawmaker Erwin […]
Conspiracy broadcaster Alex Jones has used the outbreak to step up his aggressive pitching for bulk food products and other survival goods sold on his website.
Credit: Jonathan Drake/Reuters
The far right in America has received the coronavirus pandemic in much the same manner as any other event: with disinformation, conspiracies and scapegoating. Many seem to see it as a significant opportunity, whether it is for financial gain, recruiting new followers, or both.
The delayed and much criticized response to coronavirus by the Trump administration has helped them, leaving many Americans confused, bereft of information and looking for answers. A situation in which people are panic-buying supplies is ideal for a movement powered by fear and lies.
Apocalyptic narratives – whether of societal collapse, biblical rapture, or race war – are the central way that the a spectrum of far-right movements draw in followers and resources. These narratives use fear […]
As Trump Limits Guest Workers From Mexico Amid Coronavirus, Farmers Warn of Labor and Food Shortages
Agricultural workers work in Salinas, California.
Credit: Michael Davidson/Flickr/cc
While images of barren grocery store shelves grab headlines and circulate on social media as people worldwide stock up on staples to get through the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, farmers in the United States are warning that the Trump administration’s decision to limit seasonal workers from Mexico could soon lead to labor and food shortages.
“Under the new restrictions, American farmers will not have access to all of the skilled immigrant labor needed at a critical time in the planting season. This threatens our ability to put food on Americans’ tables.”
—Zippy Duvall, American Farm Bureau Federation
The U.S. government announced Monday that “in response to the global pandemic COVID-19, and in line with the Mexican government’s call to increase social distancing, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City and all U.S. consulates in Mexico will suspend routine immigrant and nonimmigrant visa services starting March 18, 2020, and until further notice.”
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue reportedly told growers on a call Tuesday that consulates in Mexico will continue processing applications […]
Remote Viewing the Year 2060
