Month: November 2018

Week 96 in Trump

Posted on November 27, 2018 in Politics, Trump, Uncategorized

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you all got past any awkward political discussions and had a wonderful holiday with family. How did Trump spend his Thanksgiving? At Mar-a-Lago confounding our troops and journalists. To journalists, he denies the CIA’s findings on Khashoggi; threatens Mexico, attacks Hillary’s use of her personal email while defending Ivanka’s use of her personal email; says the GDP was going down to “like minus 4” when he took office (which is untrue); and suggests he’ll shut down the government if he doesn’t get his border wall. When asked about what he’s most thankful for, Trump pretty much just says he’s thankful for himself (and his family).

To troops he talks about barbed wire and troop deployment at the border; says we have no good trade deals (which a commander on the other end contradicts); criticizes the Navy for using electromagnetic catapults instead of steam (because EM is too hard to figure out, and which again an officer contradicts); and asks if the troops in Afghanistan are enjoying themselves. And then he goes golfing while former president Obama dishes food at a soup kitchen.

Here’s what else happened this week in politics…

Russia:

  1. New emails show that Steve Bannon and Cambridge Analytica were involved in disinformation campaigns for Brexit. We already knew they were both involved in fostering nationalist populist movements in the U.S. elections in 2016. But now we know that Bannon, who then worked at Cambridge Analytica, was included on emails with Arron Banks, the leader of the Leave.EU campaign. The emails suggest that all three were involved in fundraising and media campaigns for both Brexit and the U.S. elections.
  2. Trump gives Robert Mueller his handwritten answers to the questions from the special counsel in the Russia investigation. He did not answer questions about his actions as president, including about obstruction of justice.
  3. The House Judiciary Committee subpoenas James Comey and Loretta Lynch for closed door hearings about how they handled the investigations into Hillary Clinton’s email server and the investigations into the Trump campaign and Russia.
  4. And speaking of emails, Ivanka used a personal email account to send government documents. Trump says it’s nothing like Hillary because at least she didn’t delete 30,000 of them. Fact of the matter is, we don’t know how many emails Ivanka’s deleted from that account.
  5. And speaking of James Comey and Hillary Clinton, Trump told White House counsel earlier this year that he wanted the DOJ to prosecute both of them. It’s not clear on what charges.
    • White House counsel told Trump he didn’t have the authority to order such a prosecution. He could request an investigation, but that, too, could be impeachable.
    • Trump is considering the appointment of a second special counsel to investigate the Comey and Clinton.
    • Trump thinks FBI Director Christopher Wray is weak for not investigating Clinton more thoroughly.
  1. A judge orders George Papadopoulos to start serving his two-week prison sentence on the Monday after Thanksgiving. Papadopoulos was trying to get his sentence stayed while a court decides whether Mueller has overreached in his investigation.
  2. Russia opened fire on three Ukrainian ships in the Kerch Strait, a strategic waterway for both countries. Ukrainian military says Russia also seized the three vessels.
    • Ukraine will vote on whether to declare martial law.
    • The UN Security Council calls an emergency meeting to discuss it.

Courts/Justice:

  1. Trump blasts a federal judge for blocking his restrictions on asylum seekers and calls the judge an “Obama judge.” Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts hits back, saying there are no “Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges.” Roberts also says we should all be grateful to have independent judiciary.
  2. Trump responds, picking a fight with our Supreme Court Chief Justice. He specifically calls out the Ninth Circuit for their decisions around immigration.
  3. And then Chuck Schumer blows his retort by saying that he doesn’t always agree with Roberts‘ partisan decisions, but he agrees with Roberts that judges aren’t partisan. Whoops.

Healthcare:

  1. Trump’s administration approves Kentucky’s work requirements for Medicaid for a second time. The requirements were modified slightly because they were already struck down in court once.
  2. Ohio considers legislation to criminalize abortion and to redefine personhood to include any unborn human.
  3. A federal judge permanently blocks Mississippi’s ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

International:

  1. As you read the following, remember this quote from Trump during a 2015 campaign rally:
    “Saudi Arabia, I like the Saudis. I make a lot of money with them. They buy all sorts of my stuff. All kinds of toys from Trump. They pay me millions and hundreds of millions.”
    • Trump tries to cast doubt on the CIA conclusion that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was behind the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. This isn’t the first time he’s done this; Trump has also publicly doubted U.S. intelligence findings that Russia, and specifically Putin, meddled in our 2016 elections.
    • Trump says he won’t punish Saudi Arabia for the killing, because the country is a critical ally and that our strategic and economic relationships are too important to derail over a journalist. At issue is primarily oil, military equipment sales, and their partnership with us against Iran.
    • Trump justifies this by bringing up economic deals with Saudi Arabia that either don’t exist or that are inflated.
    • Meanwhile, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announces that Germany will end arm sales to Saudi Arabia. Finland and Denmark follow suit.
    • Congress issues a request to Trump’s administration to investigate the crown prince’s role in Khashoggi’s death.
  1. The U.S. has dropped more bombs in Afghanistan so far in 2018 than it has in any other year of this war. Even though it’s the longest war we’ve fought, the Taliban has retaken half of Afghanistan.
  2. On top of that, a suicide bomber kills at least 50 at a religious gathering in Afghanistan celebrating the birth of the prophet Muhammad.
  3. Syrian officials say that terrorist rebels launched a chemical attack near Aleppo, so they respond with an airstrike. The rebels deny carrying out the chemical attacks. The airstrikes violate the truce brokered by Russia and Turkey.
  4. Demonstrators rally across France all week to protest the gas tax.
  5. European Union leaders formally agree on a deal with the UK for Brexit. It still needs to be approved by Theresa May’s government.
  6. Reports are that talks with North Korea have stalled, and they’ve made no progress on reducing their nuclear arsenal or production.

Legislation/Congress:

  1. House Republicans elect Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to minority leader.

Family Separation:

  1. The number of migrant children in U.S. custody is at an all-time high of 14,030. Largely to blame is the new rule of fingerprinting people who are willing to be sponsors (and who might be family to the minor in question). At least 40 sponsors who don’t have legal status were arrested after the rule took effect. The number of detained children is almost triple what it was last year.
  2. As part of a settlement of three separate lawsuits over the family separation policy, the DOJ agrees to give some parents a second chance to apply for asylum. This includes some parents who were already deported. The lawsuits say that the asylum interview process was skewed by the parents’ distress at being separated from their children.

Travel Ban/Immigration/Discrimination:

  1. Now that factions of the migrant caravan are starting to arrive at our southern border, Trump decides to start pulling troops out and letting them go home.
  2. A judge blocks Trump’s effort to make it illegal for immigrants to apply for asylum if they don’t enter the country at a point of entry. Our asylum law only says you have to present yourself for asylum within a year of being physically in the country, which is how Cubans arriving in boats were able to request asylum in Florida.
  3. The Trump administration and Mexico come to an agreement that would allow migrants in the caravans to stay in Mexico while their asylum applications are processed. He then threatens to close the southern border if we have to. Mexico says this isn’t a permanent solution.
  4. Migrants in the caravans who didn’t apply for asylum in Mexico and who make it to Tijuana are staying in makeshift shelters as they are not allowed to enter the U.S. to apply for asylum.
  5. In one presser, Trump says he shut down the border, then says he will shut down the border if he has to, and then says he already did. Turns out, certain entries were shut down along the border for short periods over Thanksgiving week.
  6. Trump authorizes troops to use lethal force against migrants at the border. What could possibly go wrong?
  7. Border Patrol closes the San Ysidro entry point on Sunday (the day vacationers are trying to get back to the U.S.). They also use tear gas on a group of migrants who broke away from a peaceful march to rush the entry point. They say it was because people were throwing rocks, and Mexico says they’ll deport any migrants who did. San Ysidro is one of the world’s busiest international border crossings.
  8. A member of Trump’s administration defends the use of tear gas saying it’s natural; just pepper, water, and alcohol. You can spray it on your nachos. Wow. To that I say, try spraying it on yourself.
  9. Officials in Mexico put immigrants waiting to apply for asylum on wait lists. Some officials demand money in return for letting migrants pass.
  10. Trump revokes Obama’s guidance that protected transgender people in prison from rape and violence. Under Trump’s rules, prisons must use a person’s biological sex to determine where they’re housed.
  11. Trump asks the Supreme Court to hear cases against his transgender ban in the military. This would bypass the legal process, so it’s doubtful they’ll hear it now. He seems to be putting in quite a bit of effort against the transgender community. I’m curious why.
  12. The Mashpee Indian tribe could lose their land’s status as a reservation based on a new court decision involving a casino developer and a group of right-wing activists. This would be the first time in 60 years that reservation land would be removed from trust in the U.S.

Climate/EPA:

  1. The U.S. government tells Taylor Energy Co. that they have to stop an oil spill that’s leaked thousands of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico each day for over 14 years. But it makes sense to open all our waters to more drilling, right?
  2. A new report from Trump’s administration finds that climate change could reduce our GDP by 10% by the end of the century. This is the second part of their findings. The first part, released last fall, found that there’s no other explanation for climate change than humankind. Here are some of the findings:
    • Climate change will have a huge effect on farming, reducing some crops by as much as 75% and reducing the number of hours a day that farm workers can work.
    • It will also hurt the fishing and seafood industry with acidification of our oceans.
    • There will be an increase in insect-spread diseases, like Ebola and Zika virus. Asthma and allergies will also worsen.
    • Food-borne and waterborne diseases will increase.
    • Wildfires could increase by six times, and flooding will also have a dramatic increase.
  1. Another study finds that better landscape management could store enough carbon to offset our output by 21% (this is a huge amount). The top actions include reforestation (and not culling trees in the first place) and planting cover crops for off-years on farms.
  2. Officials recall romaine lettuce across the country and in Canada due to an E. Coli outbreak.
  3. On a related note, after E. Coli outbreaks in 2011, Congress ordered the FDA to create safety rules requiring produce growers to test their water supplies regularly. That would’ve gone into effect this year, but Trump put those regulations on hold for at least four more years. Most California and Arizona growers had volunteered to follow those rules.
  4. Spain announces an energy plan that would require them to reduce carbon emissions by 90% by 2050 (compared to 1990 emissions).

Budget/Economy:

  1. The stock market had another shaky week, with the Dow Jones dropping 551 points in one day, erasing all the gains made in 2018. The five major tech stocks have lost over $1 trillion in two months.
  2. Gas and oil drilling applications in Wyoming are up more than 400% in the past five years, partly due to higher oil prices, better technology, and Trump’s push for U.S. energy dominance.
  3. Some farmers are not only unable to sell their crops to China because of the trade wars, they also can’t find places to store their harvest until it can be used. Most elevators that usually buy and store the crops are full; some are taking advantage of the need and are charging farmers additional fees. Some farmers with damaged crops are just plowing this year’s crops under.
  4. Soybean exports to the EU have risen slightly this year, while exports to China have tanked, as you can see below.

Elections:

  1. At least six major companies request that Mississippi Senate candidate Cindy Hyde-Smith return their campaign contribution because of her recent seemingly racist comments. Tip to politicians: If you apologize right away, these things would be non-issues.
  2. California Republicans work to regroup after losing every House seat in Orange County, a traditionally Republican stronghold.
  3. Democrats won the popular vote in the House by almost 9 million votes, increasing their seats by 39 (with one race yet to be decided, but leaning toward the Democrat). That 8% margin is the largest for either party in a midterm election.
  4. Conversely, Republicans won seats in the Senate. There’s one runoff election yet to go, so they’ll increase their seats by 1 or 3, depending on the outcome of the runoff.

Miscellaneous:

  1. Since a judge ordered Trump to reinstate Jim Acosta’s press pass, the White House says they’ll come up with a code of conduct. If Acosta breaks any of the new rules, he’ll be kicked out again.
  2. A shooter at Chicago Mercy hospital kills three, including a police officer, a doctor, and a recent grad. The gunman himself is also dead.
  3. A shooter in a Kentucky mall opens fire, injuring two. Police kill the gunman. Except that he wasn’t really the gunman; he was just black and licensed to carry. It takes the police a few days to correct the record. Not surprisingly, protests erupt.
  4. A review by Trump’s administration of his regulation rollbacks finds that these rollbacks will result in increased costs in multiple ways: there will be an increase in deaths from pollution, an increase in medical bills, and an increase in student debt.

Polls:

  1. 59% of Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling race relations, with Democrats and African Americans having the highest rates of disapproval. I think African American gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum summed it up when he said:

“I have not called the president a racist, but there are racists in his sympathizers who believe he may be, which is why they go to his aid, which is why he has provided them cover. I believe his cover has led to much of the degradation in our political discourse.”

Week 95 in Trump

Posted on November 19, 2018 in Politics, Trump

If you’re watching the fracas around the tight races in our elections, just know that it’ll be exponentially more contentious in close races in 2020. This is a practice run for lawyers to dive in, learn the process, and figure out which legal attacks work and which don’t. They’ll be working now to tweak the rules in their party’s favor. It’s pretty crazy that our votes are so up for question. Why aren’t we better at this? How do other countries ensure that only eligible voters vote? How do they ensure more people vote? Why is it so easy to vote in other developed countries? I’m sure they look at our circus and laugh.

And speaking of circuses, here’s what happened last week in politics…

Russia:

  1. Trump has a little Twitter meltdown, tweeting that the Mueller investigation has gone nuts and that they’re threatening witnesses and screaming and shouting at people. Huh? We haven’t heard much from Mueller in the weeks surrounding the elections.
  2. Trump also calls Mueller’s staff a gang of Democrat thugs who only want to protect <insert list of Trump’s perceived enemies here>. Mueller’s staff is made up of both Democrats and Republicans, and Mueller is also Republican.
  3. New texts show that Roger Stone and Randy Credico shared information about Wikileaks just before Wikileaks started releasing John Podesta’s emails. In a text thread between the two, Credico says “Hillary’s campaign will die this week.”
  4. The texts also show that Credico was keeping Stone up to date on Julian Assange’s plans in the days before the emails were release.
  5. So now Robert Mueller is looking into whether Stone employed witness intimidation to stop Credico from talking.
  6. The DOJ accidentally leaks that they filed secret charges against Julian Assange. The disclosure came in a different court case as a copy and paste error into court documents.
  7. The Mueller investigation looks into John Hannah, an advisor to Dick Cheney and member of Trump’s transition team. He apparently had dealings with George Nader and Joel Zamel, who are both subjects of the investigation.
  8. Trump says that he’s answered the written questions Mueller submitted to him, but he hasn’t given his answers to Mueller yet because you have to be careful when people have bad intentions. He says it was very easy and he did it all by himself.
  9. George Papadopoulos is facing two weeks in jail, yet he asks a judge to delay the sentence until a challenge to the constitutionality of Mueller’s appointment is resolved.
  10. Russian hacker Cozy Bear sends emails containing malware to attempt to get access to government, think tank, and business computers. Cozy Bear impersonates a State Department aide in the emails.
  11. A federal judge refuses Concord Management and Consulting their motion to dismiss the charges filed against them by Mueller’s team.

Legal Fallout:

  1. Last year when Facebook was being highly criticized by activists for for compromising user privacy, they hired a Republican opposition research firm to boost their own reputation by smearing those activists. The smears included bringing George Soros into the mix.
  2. The research firm also discredited other tech companies, and was beginning a campaign against the Senators who would be questioning Sheryl Sandberg over the issue. Facebook has since cut ties with the firm.

Courts/Justice:

  1. The state of Maryland files a lawsuit challenging the appointment of Matt Whitaker to Acting Attorney General. The suit says that Trump doesn’t have the constitutional authority to appoint him and that he broke federal law by doing to. The suit is based on these legal grounds:
    • Federal rules of succession say that Rod Rosenstein should have the position.
    • The Attorney General is a principal officer, so they must be appointed by the president and approved by the Senate (so Trump could’ve moved someone to the position who had already been confirmed by the Senate to a different post).
  1. Senate Republicans urge Trump to nominate a new Attorney General quickly. They’re hoping he’ll select someone more traditional than Whitaker.
  2. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, calls for Whitaker to recuse himself from the Russia investigation due to his relationship with Sam Clovis, a subject of the investigation.
  3. Matt Whitaker has an interesting background, very different from those of his predecessors:
    1. Owned a day-care center.
    2. Owned a concrete supply business and trailer manufacturer.
    3. Led a taxpayer-subsidized affordable housing effort in Iowa, but abandoned it when it stalled and the state threatened him with a lawsuit. He defaulted on the loan
    4. Was a U.S. Attorney for 5 years in Iowa.
    5. Ran a small legal practice.
  4. Jeff Flake threatens to vote against Trump‘s judicial nominees if the Senate doesn’t pass legislation to protect Mueller. Susan Collins wavers on that for a hot minute before she refuses to do the same.
  5. Trump endorses the bipartisan First Step Act, a prison reform bill that would ease some of the harsh criminal justice laws implemented in the 80s and 90s and that disproportionately affect African Americans and other minorities.
    • The bill lowers mandatory minimum sentences and reduces penalties for three strikes; and while Trump says the laws will continue to clamp down on violent crimes, the bill reduces sentences for people who use a gun in the commission of a crime.
    • The bill has the support of the ACLU and the Koch family.
    • Jared Kushner brought the bill forward to Trump.
    • Democrats pushed to have the changes be retroactive for minor offenders already serving time, but that did not end up in the bill.
  1. The Supreme Court will hear arguments about whether Wilbur Ross can be compelled to testify in the lawsuit over adding a citizenship question to the census.

Healthcare:

  1. The FDA approves a new opioid named Dsuvia, which is 10 times stronger than fentanyl. This, while we’re in the middle of one of the worst drug epidemics in our history, brought to you by opioids.
  2. The FDA almost bans flavored e-cigarettes, but then backs down and limits the sales instead.
  3. Pfizer plans to raise drug prices by around 5% next year after holding prices down this year as a promise to Trump.

International:

  1. A study of satellite images shows that North Korea is continuing it’s ballistic missile program at 16 hidden bases. Trump says not to worry; he’ll let us know if anything goes wrong.
  2. Mike Pence says North Korea doesn’t have to give us a list of their nuclear weapons and missile sites before Trump meets with Kim Jong Un again. Even though North Korea has, according to Pence, steadfastly avoided providing that information.
  3. North Korea announces a successful and significant test of an “ultra-modern tactical weapon.”
  4. Angela Merkel joins Emmanuel Macron in his calls for a European Union military force, something that would be a complement to NATO forces.
  5. While more than 50 countries sign on to a cybersecurity pact during the Paris Peace Forum, the U.S., China, Russia, and North Korea refuse. Is this our new clique? The purpose of the pact is to create international laws and standards for cyberwarfare and security.
  6. Cabinet ministers in the UK reluctantly approve Theresa May’s Brexit deal.
  7. The chief negotiator for Brexit, Dominic Raab, resigns over disagreements with the deal. That’s followed by the resignation of a second minister, the work and pensions secretary.
  8. The U.S. sanctions 17 Saudis accused of taking part in Jamal Khashoggi’s murder. Legislators say the punishments don’t go far enough, and introduce bipartisan legislation to increase congressional oversight and to suspend the sale of military weapons to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has indicted 11 people in the murder, and is seeking the death penalty for five of them.
  9. The CIA concludes that the Crown Prince ordered Khashoggi’s murder, though there is no solid evidence.
  10. The director for the Persian Gulf region on our National Security Council resigns. She was responsible for our policies toward Saudi Arabia.
  11. Trump is reviewing how he can extradite a U.S. resident to Turkey at the request of Turkish president Erdogan. Erdogan is convinced that a Turkish cleric living in the U.S. was behind the attempt coup a few years ago, and Trump is trying to placate Erdogan so he’ll ease up on Saudi Arabia.
  12. Trump closed the office that tracked released Guantanamo detainees and has now lost track of a bunch of them.

Legislation/Congress:

  1. Outgoing Senator Heidi Heitkamp introduces new legislation to address the issue of missing and murdered Native American Women. The Savanah Act will help give tribal law enforcement tools they need to solve these crimes.
  2. After retaking the House, Democrats say their first bill will focus on strengthening our democracy. It’ll address automatic voter registration (AVR), restoring the Voting Rights Act, public financing of elections, and gerrymandering. They also want to overturn Citizens United through a constitutional amendment.
  3. Chuck Grassley will head the Senate Finance Committee next year, and Lindsey Graham will replace him as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Travel Ban/Immigration/Discrimination:

  1. Hate crimes were up again in 2017. Reported hate crimes rose 17%, compared to a 6% rise in 2016.
    • Of the single-bias hate crimes, nearly 60% were based on race or ethnicity, 21% on sexual orientation, 2% on gender identity, and .6% on gender.
    • Religious hate crimes made up 20.6% of all hate crimes: 58% were against Jews, 18.6% were against Muslims, and 10% were against Christians.
  1. Police shoot an armed black security guard who had just apprehended an active shooter. The police chief calls Jemel Roberson a brave man. They wouldn’t have shot this hero if he were white. Period.
  2. Just when women were feeling more empowered by #MeToo… Betsy DeVos releases her new rules guiding how colleges and universities handle allegations of sexual assault. The new rules give more rights to the accused and narrow the definition of sexual harassment. I’m all for due process, but women need to feel safe coming forward.
  3. The first groups of migrants that splintered off the caravan arrive in Tijuana, Mexico, near the border. The numbers reported are conflicting so far, but a group of about 80 LGBTQ people who were being harassed on the caravan have arrived and are trying to obtain appointments with Customs and Border Patrol.
  4. By the end of the week, the number of arrivals is in the thousands, and protests break out in Tijuana by residents who don’t want the migrants there.
  5. Confirmation hearings begin for Trump’s nominee to head ICE, Ron Vitiello. He’s a 30-year border patrol veteran. Vitiello refuses to deny the possibility that the agency will once again start separating families at the border.
  6. A judge rules that neo-Nazis don’t have a first amendment right to harass private citizens. The lawsuit stems from the Daily Stormer’s online harassment of a real estate agent in Whitefish, Montana, home of white supremacist Richard Spencer.
  7. The number of U.S. citizens applying for asylum in Canada rose 600% in 2017. The number is still small—around 2,500—and the rise is largely a result of Trump’s threats to end TPS for certain immigrants. Out of fear of being deported from the U.S., they’re taking their U.S.-born children to Canada to seek asylum. A judge recently blocked Trump from ending TPS while the case goes through court.
  8. Trump again floats the possibility that he’ll let the government shut down if he doesn’t get funding for the wall.

Climate/EPA:

  1. Police arrest Trump’s top EPA official in the southeast for a scheme to help a coal company avoid paying the high costs of cleaning up a toxic waste site.
    • Before Trump appointed Trey Glenn to the position, Glenn was an industrial lobbyist and worked for the coal company in question. He lobbied to stop the federal government from declaring the toxic waste site a Superfund site.
    • In 2009, Glenn resigned from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management because of another ethics scandal for which he was not charged.
  1. The death toll in the California wildfires is up to 78, with around 1,000 still missing.
  2. Trump tours the areas devastated by the wildfires with outgoing governor Jerry Brown and incoming governor Gavin Newsom.
  3. Trump says that the President of Finland told him that they rake their forests to prevent forest fires, so we should too. Finland’s president says he never said that. Also, Finland gets a ton of rain and snow, and has a much colder climate. Also different kinds of trees than California.
  4. Trump also says there’s no climate change and that he wants great climate. I hear ya. We all want that.
  5. Trump plans to nominate Andrew Wheeler, who is temporarily heading the EPA, to head the department permanently. Before working in government, Wheeler was a fossil fuel industry lobbyist.
  6. Trump doesn’t want to give Puerto Rico any more relief funds because he thinks they’re using it to pay off their debt. Turns out, they aren’t.

Budget/Economy:

  1. The original bump in corporate reinvestment from the tax reform plan of 2017 is fizzling. After two quarters of strong increases in capital reinvestment, the last quarter only rose at an annual pace of .8%
  2. Also, in the time since tax reform passed, the 1,000 largest companies have eliminated almost 140,000 jobs. That’s almost double the amount the say they created.
  3. Not surprisingly for a $2.7 trillion operation, the Pentagon fails it’s first comprehensive financial audit.
  4. The computer system at the VA broke down last summer, and vets have been receiving their GI bill payments late or not at all ever since.
  5. The administration lists its priorities for the next two months. Notably missing from the list is anything about the 10% tax cut he promised the middle class before the election and any mention of the migrant caravan.
  6. Under Ben Carson, over 1 in 28 multifamily properties subsidized by HUD failed recent inspections. This is up 30% from 2016. Trump’s hiring freeze decimated HUD staff, so now they don’t have enough staff to deal with this heavier case load. Carson also wants to raise rents on these families.
  7. Saudi Arabia is floating deep cuts in oil output over dissatisfaction with all the waivers that Trump allowed for the Iran sanctions.
  8. A lawsuit against Betsy DeVos alleges that she didn’t cancel debt that students owed colleges that were shut down. Last month, a judge ruled that she had to enact the regulations around debt cancellation immediately.

Elections:

  1. Amid the chaos around ballot counts, and signature mismatches, and lawsuits from both sides, Trump seeks adds fuel to the fire by saying we have to use the vote count in Florida from election night. Meaning most people whose mail-in ballots arrived on or around election day wouldn’t have their votes count. This includes military personnel currently abroad.
  2. Rick Scott gives a press conference in front of his governor’s mansion accusing Democrats of trying to steal the election. This quickly results in multiple lawsuits over ethics and abuse of power. Scott does recuse himself from certifying the elections.
  3. A judge tells both sides to ramp down the rhetoric.
  4. Both Scott and Trump say there are ballots that are missing or forged (no evidence for this, BTW). The elections were also complicated by all the people displaced after the hurricane.
  5. A federal judge extends the deadline to resolve ballots for Florida voters whose ballots were rejected because of signature inconsistencies. The decision comes just hours before the machine recount deadline in the still-too-close-to-call Senate race between Rick Scott and Bill Nelson.
  6. While Scott doesn’t prevail in most of the lawsuits that came up (and a judge admonishes him for making unsubstantiated claims), the recount didn’t bring the race close enough to help Nelson win. Scott is declared the winner in the end.
  7. Also Republican Rick DeSantis defeats Andrew Gillum for governor of Florida. Congratulations, Florida. Not only can you not run an election, but now you’ve elected an overt racist to lead your state.
  8. Meanwhile in Georgia, a federal judge orders that the election results be delayed due to concerns about their voting systems and how provisional ballots are being handled.
  9. A judge also finds that the way ballots were handled in Gwinnet County violated the Civil Rights Act.
  10. In the end, after a series of accusation and lawsuits, Brian Kemp is declared the winner and Stacey Abrams sort of concedes. She plans to continue her lawsuit to ensure everyone’s vote is counted in future elections.
  11. After a similarly tight race in Arizona, Kyrsten Sinema defeats Martha McSally to become the first female Senator from that state. McSally took some heat from her party for not engaging in the same elections shenanigans as are happening in Florida and Georgia.
  12. Mia Love, who’s running in Utah, sues for her campaign to be allowed to verify the signatures on ballots. Love says that poll monitors can observe counting, but they can’t challenge decisions.
  13. All these lawsuits, but particularly those in Florida, bring into question voting laws requiring ballot signatures to match county records. Voting by mail has expanded too quickly for states to put standardized processes in place.
  14. Trump says you need to have an ID to buy cereal, so why not to vote? Then he says that voter fraud happens when someone votes, and then changes into a costume in their car and comes back to vote a gain. For the record, I’m fine with voter ID as long as the onus is on the government to ensure that every single eligible voter has such an ID free of charge.
  15. There are still races to be decided, but at this point, Democrats have increased their seats in the House by the largest amount since 1974, after the Watergate scandal and Nixon’s resignation. Democrats netted 37 House seats with four still undecided, and Republicans netted two Senate seats with 1 runoff coming up on Nov. 27.
  16. Cindy Hyde-Smith isn’t scoring many points in the run-up to her runoff election. Last week she said she’d be in the front row if Trump invited her to a public hanging (her opponent is black). This week, she says it’d be a great idea to make it harder for liberal folks to vote, and especially some college students.

Miscellaneous:

  1. CNN and Jim Acosta file a lawsuit to get his press pass reinstated. The suit is against Trump and six of his aides who enforced revoking his press pass.
  2. Fox News files an amicus brief in support of CNN and Jim Acosta in their lawsuit to get Acosta’s press pass returned. Fox News says that Secret Service passes for journalists shouldn’t be weaponized.
  3. It seems what’s good for the U.S. when it comes to press freedoms isn’t good for anyone else, though. Mike Pence tells Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of Myanmar, to release two journalists who were arrested for covering the government-sanctioned violence against Rohingya Muslims.
  4. A judge forces the Trump administration to temporarily restore Jim Acosta’s press pass while the lawsuit goes through the courts. His ruling isn’t based on first amendment rights, though; it’s based on the administration’s lack of due process.
  5. Continuing with the NRA/Physician feud, a group of 22 surgeons releases a set of reform recommendations for gun safety. Eighteen of them own guns themselves. We’ve heard these all before and watched them die in Congress: stronger background checks, better safety training, and improved technologies to prevent accidental discharge.
  6. Trump says that one of his greatest achievements is reducing the media’s credibility among U.S. citizens. Great. Making America Dumb Again.
  7. Several prominent Republican attorneys, led by Kellyanne Conway’s husband George, announce a new group they call “Checks and Balances.” Their goal is to bring back conservative support for the rule of law, and they’re worried about Trump’s efforts to consolidate power.
  8. Many of these lawyers are also members of the Federalist Society, which has had a huge influence on GOP politics. It’s power has never been greater than right now, because Trump has let them select the bulk of his judicial nominees.
  9. Michael Avenatti is arrested on suspicion of domestic violence and posts $50,000 bail. He denies wrong-doing, and the details are sketchy.
  10. Deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel got on Melania’s bad side during their trip to Africa in October. Though Melania requested it, John Bolton refused to fire Ricardel after the trip. This week Melania tweets that Ricardel doesn’t deserve the honor of working in the White House.
  11. Trump offers Ricardel the post of Ambassador to Estonia. She declines, receives dozens of offers elsewhere, and moves to a new government position.
  12. Betsy DeVos has armed security 24/7, the only cabinet member to have an armed detail.
  13. Trump honors Sheldon Adelson’s wife with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Adelson donated $30 million to Trump’s campaign and $100 million to Republicans in the midterm elections.

Polls:

  1. 61% of Democrats see Republicans as racist/bigoted/sexist. 31% of Republicans feel the same about Democrats.

Week 94 in Trump

Posted on November 13, 2018 in Politics, Trump

Even without last week’s midterm election, there was a lot going on last week. And the election isn’t even fully decided yet; in some places, the counting is still going on and there are runoff elections coming up. Several races have not yet been called, and a few are already looking like they’ll automatically trigger a recount. I’m sure by the time I post this, some of the election info will be obsolete. There was a lot that was interesting about this election, so I’ll summarize it all in a later blog post after things shake out.

Here’s what else happened last week…

Russia:

  1. The day after the midterm elections, Jeff Sessions tenders his resignation as Attorney General at Trump’s request. Until Trump nominates his permanent replacement, DOJ Chief of Staff Matthew Whitaker will serve as Acting Attorney General. The administration expects additional turnover after the elections, with possible ousters of Rod Rosenstein, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Jim Mattis, Ryan Zinke, Kirstjen Nielsen, and Wilbur Ross.
  2. Whitaker will take over Rod Rosenstein’s responsibilities in overseeing the Russia investigation. Whitaker has been a frequent talk-show guest speaking out strongly against the Russia investigation.
  3. A federal court orders Robert Mueller to explain how all this might influence Andrew Miller’s case. Miller has refused to respond to subpoenas and is challenging the constitutionality of Mueller’s appointment.
  4. Sessions’ firing results in over 900 protests and rallies held across the country in support of protecting Mueller and his investigation.
  5. Paul Manafort isn’t fully cooperating with Mueller’s investigation even though that was part of his agreement.
  6. Mueller’s team has begun writing their final report, though Trump has still not decided whether he’ll answer their questions.
  7. Russia had said Trump would meet with Putin in France at the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI. They did not end up meeting.
  8. After taking the House in the midterms, Democrats plan to open several investigations into Russia’s meddling in our elections, into actions taken by the administration around healthcare and education, and into Trump’s finances. Trump says he’ll take a “warlike posture” against Democrats should they decide to investigate him. He likens this to a game, saying Republicans can play the game better. But he also says he’ll make deals with Democrats.

Legal Fallout:

  1. The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump was involved in almost every action in the payments to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal to keep them quiet about their affairs with him. The deals were made in the run-up to the 2016 elections, so are likely violations of campaign finance laws.
    • Trump has denied knowing anything about the $130,000 payout to Daniels.
    • David Pecker, CEO of American Media Inc., used the National Enquirer to buy off Karen McDougal.
    • Michael Cohen has admitted they made the payoffs to influence the outcome of the presidential election.

Courts/Justice:

  1. Kellyanne Conway’s husband writes an op-ed outlining why he thinks Whitaker’s appointment is unconstitutional. I’m dying to know what their home life is like.
  2. World Patent Marketing, where Matt Whitaker once served on the advisory board, is under FBI investigation for defrauding consumers out of millions of dollars. As part of his work there, he used his previous position as a federal prosecutor to intimidate consumers who attempted to get their money back.
  3. 29 days after Trump is on record saying he knows Matt Whitaker and that he’s a great guy, Trump says he doesn’t know Matt Whitaker. Kellyanne Conway confirms that Trump does, indeed, know Matt Whitaker.
  4. Whitaker says he won’t slash Mueller‘s budget and will allow the probe to continue unhindered.
  5. The harassment and death threats against Christine Blasey Ford continue. She’s had to move four times, she hired private security, and she hasn’t been able to return to her job.
  6. On his way out the door, Jeff Sessions gives us one parting shot by putting restrictions on consent decrees between the DOJ and local police departments. Consent decrees let federal agencies create agreements with local PDs to overhaul departments accused of civil rights violations. The new restrictions include:
    • Top political appointees must approve the agreements.
    • There must be evidence of additional violations beyond unconstitutional behavior.
    • All consent decrees must have an end date.

Healthcare:

  1. Trump issues the final version of new rules allowing employers to deny contraception coverage to employees based on religious grounds. His previous versions of the rules are pending litigation, but he issues the new ones anyway.

International:

  1. 60 business leaders in the UK are pushing for another Brexit vote, hoping to overturn the previous one (which frankly doesn’t seem to be working out well for the UK). They say none of the exit deals in the works are as good as what’s in place now.
  2. Turkey shares the audio recording of Jamal Khashoggi’s murder in the Saudi Consulate in Turkey. Saudi Arabia, the U.S. , Britain, France, and Germany all have a copy.
  3. Trump meets with global leaders in France to commemorate the 100-year anniversary of the end of WWI. When he arrives, Trump insults French President Macron in an angry tweet over Macron’s call for an EU army. He actually seems pretty sullen the whole trip.
  4. When a reporter asks Trump and Macron about Trump’s tweet, Macron reassuringly pats Trump’s knee to defuse tensions. Trump didn’t react at all.
  5. On the 243rd birthday of the Marine Corps, Trump forgoes attending a ceremony in France at a military cemetery (Aisne-Marne) where they buried the Marines who fought at Belleau Wood. They say his helicopter can’t operate in the rain (really?) and that he didn’t want to plug up the roads with a motorcade.
  6. And finally, while 60 other world leaders perform a symbolic walk up the Champs-Elysées to a World War I remembrance at the Arc de Triomphe, Trump and Putin both take private cars.
  7. Gun and air fights break out between Hamas and Israeli military in the Gaza Strip after a covert Israeli operation is uncovered. Eight people are dead.
  8. Over a year ago, Saudi intelligence discussed assassinating Iranian enemies. The Saudi official implicated in the death of Jamal Khashoggi had a meeting with businessmen who tried to sell him on a plan to sabotage Iran’s economy.

Legislation/Congress:

  1. Wonder why we all think we hate Congress? Here’s part of why. A Washington Post and ProPublica study finds that the legislative branch is weak. Party leaders dictate what goes on and most of our elected officials don’t really get a say. Also, the threat of government shutdowns keeps us at an impasse. House committees met almost twice as often to deliberate legislation in 2005/2006 as they did in 2015/2016. Senate committees met around 3.5 times as often.

Travel Ban/Immigration/Discrimination:

  1. Ramping up the fear baiting, Trump floats a plan to deploy up to 15,000 troops to our border with Mexico to stop the migrant caravan. If my math is right, that’ll end up being around 10 soldiers for each migrant who makes it this far. It’s estimated to cost around $220 million. The Pentagon says the caravan poses no threat.
  2. There are an estimated 200 vigilante (and unregulated) armed militia members patrolling the border between the U.S. and Mexico.
    • The troops that Trump sent to the border are have to deal with the militias as well as their regular duties.
    • The militias have a record of stealing military supplies from troops deployed there.
    • The militias think we are under literal attack from people trying to cross the borders illegally and have put out calls to increase their numbers.
  1. Yet another federal appeals court rules that Trump can’t immediately end DACA. Even though there are three cases pending, Trump has asked the Supreme Court to rule on it now.
    • Note: Congress has always had the power to fix this, but has been unable to agree on the most minor immigration reform.
  1. Remember when we found out that Motel 6 was letting ICE know when people with Hispanic sounding names checked in? Well that was illegal, and now Motel 6 will pay out $7.6 million to their Hispanic guests. As part of the settlement, Motel 6 is forbidden from sharing guest information without a subpoena or warrant.
  2. The average number of people in ICE detention each day reaches a record high (44,631 people). This is larger than the number that Congress has approved funding for.
  3. The University of Virginia bans 10 people from their campus for their participation in the Unite the Right rally last year in Charlottesville. The ban is in effect for four years.
  4. Trump changes the rules of asylum so only people who show up at a port of entry can seek asylum. Previously, you had to seek asylum within a year of being physically present in the country. Lawsuits against the move are already filed.
  5. Major TV stations drop or refuse to even air an ad from Trump’s political team that was deemed so racist that even Fox News stopped airing it. The ad’s purpose was to drum up fear of Central American and Latin American immigrants.
  6. A review by ABC News found 17 cases of violent criminal acts or threats of violent acts where Trump’s name was invoked. There were none invoking his name in protest; rather 16 of the 17 cases have direct evidence of the suspect or perpetrator echoing Trump’s rhetoric. The suspects and perpetrators are mostly white men and the victims are mostly minorities. ABC News was unable to find similar cases carried out in Barack Obama’s name nor George W. Bush’s name.

Climate/EPA/Environment:

  1. The Supreme Court denies Trump’s request for a stay in the lawsuit brought by a group of young people against the government for its lack of action on climate change.
  2. Heavy rains and flooding devastate areas in Italy, killing at least 17 people. The rains have also destroyed around 14 million trees, devastating forests.
  3. A federal judge halts construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline saying that the environmental impact studies aren’t complete.
  4. A UN report says that it’s possible that the hole in the ozone layer could be fixed by the 2060s, thanks to the ban on chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons.
  5. Wildfires devastate California once again, burning down almost the entire community of Paradise in the north and threatening suburbs of Los Angeles in the south. The death toll is at least 31.
  6. In a tweet, Trump blames California for the wildfires, saying they mismanage their forest land. But the fires started on federal land, and California didn’t create the drought nor the Santa Ana winds that make the fires so much worse. Trump says there’s no reason for these fires. Firefighters say climate change is to blame.
  7. The International Firefighters Association criticize Trump for putting out a tweet like that at a time when lives and homes are being lost. They call his words reckless and irresponsible; The California Firefighters Association calls him ill-informed.
  8. Trump hasn’t read his own administration‘s National Climate Assessment report, but he says he thinks that climate change will probably reverse itself. Problem solved.
  9. The EPA’s website previously removed over 80 climate change websites, and noted that they were updating the site to reflect the administration’s views. Now they’ve removed the note about updating and any links to the archived climate change website from Obama’s administration.

Budget/Economy:

  1. The price of oil reached a four-year-high in October, and then proceeded to slide 21% to below $70 a barrel. The price rose because of imminent sanctions on Iran, but then dropped when Russian, Saudi, and U.S. oil companies overcompensated to make up the difference.
  2. The Trump administration reimposes all sanctions against Iran that Obama lifted under the joint agreement. The sanctions include an oil ban and are against over 700 Iranian banks, companies, and people.
  3. Trump grants China, India, Italy, Greece, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Turkey waivers; so Iran might not be hit as hard as originally thought.
  4. The Trump administration isn’t watchdogging the big banks and corporations as much as previous administrations. SEC penalties are down 62% under Trump and criminal prosecution by the DOJ is down 72%. Maybe they all just cleaned up their act? Ha! I crack myself up.
  5. U.S. businesses paid 50% more in tariffs this September than last September, paying out $4.4 billion.

Elections:

  1. Despite a lack of evidence of voter fraud, Trump and Sessions both warn that there will be fraud in the midterm elections.
  2. Voter enthusiasm is up! Election day has the highest voter turnout for a midterm election in over 50 years, partly due to a drastic increase in young people voting.
  3. Democrats take back the House after 8 years of Republican control. With several races still too close to call, and some recounts pending, Democrats are predicted to take 35-40 seats. Republicans hold on to the Senate, and are predicted to gain 1-2 seats.
  4. Democrats took 7 additional governorships, including in Colorado (where they elected the first openly gay governor and their first Jewish governor) and in Kansas (where the leader of Trump’s voter fraud commission, Kris Kobach, lost his bid).
  5. At least 111 women win elections. We elect the first Native American women and the first Muslim women to Congress. Maine and South Dakota elect their first female governors.
  6. The people elect a number of open LGBTQ people to Congress.
  7. The North Dakota representative who sponsored the voter ID laws that disproportionately affected Native Americans loses his seat to a Native American woman.
  8. A few “notable” Republicans who won:
    • Representative Chris Collins: Under felony indictment for securities fraud.
    • Representative Duncan Hunter: Under felony indictment on 60 counts of conspiracy, fraud, and campaign finance violations.
    • Dennis Hof: Deceased brothel owner in Nevada.
    • Arthur Jones: Self-proclaimed Nazi.
  1. But Democrats aren’t immune:
    • Keith Ellison: Accused of domestic violence (but is requesting an investigation).
    • Bob Menendez: His corruption trial ended with a hung jury and charges were dismissed.
  1. U.S. intelligence officials say they haven’t seen any evidence of any foreign state interfering in the voting systems.
  2. Some of the races from the midterms are so tight they can’t be called, and some states will be counting votes into December. And everyone is suing in Florida, Arizona and Georgia to stop ballot counts, to make sure all ballots are counted, or to stop ballot counters from discarding ballots.
  3. Georgia, Florida, and Arizona are hotbeds of political gamesmanship after the elections. After observing the vote count for a bit, I say let these people do their jobs. They take their work very seriously.
  4. In California, Harley Rouda and Josh Harder both pull ahead of their Republican opponents in late counting, with Harley’s race being called for him. Two other races in Orange County are tightening and are too close to call, though 538 gives the Democratic candidates the highest probabilities.
  5. Cindy Hyde-Smith is in a special election runoff with Mike Espy. She says that if Trump invited her to a public hanging, she’d be first in line. Racist to begin with, but given that her opponent is black that comment is unconscionable.
  6. North Carolina got a reprieve on redrawing their unconstitutionally gerrymandered district lines for this election, but they must redraw them for 2020.
  7. In a ballot measure, Florida votes to reinstate voting rights to 1.4 million ex-felon Floridians. Previously, Governor Rick Scott decided which ex-felons could get their rights reinstated on a case-by-case basis.

Georgia:

  1. In Georgia and Texas people report that their party-line ballots cast votes for a member of the wrong party. Officials blame old and outdated computer systems. This really highlights the need for an auditable paper trail in all elections.
  2. In fact, earlier this year a federal judge found that continuing to use the Georgia machines disenfranchises voters, but did not force them to replace the machines before the election.
  3. Brian Kemp is Georgia’s Secretary of State and tasked with overseeing elections, including his own election for governor. Just before the elections, he accuses the Democratic Party of trying to hack into the voter system. He says he’s opening an investigation and taking it to the DHS and FBI.
    • It turns out that what really happened is that a man discovered a way to download voter information through a security hole. He reported it to the Democratic voter protection director.
  1. When Kemp tries to vote, his voter card says “invalid.” He has to get a replacement to vote.
  2. There are calls for Kemp to recuse himself from the election process and then from the ballot counting process. Kemp only steps down to start transitioning to the governorship which has still not been called for him.
  3. Democrats accuse Kemp of multiple counts of voter suppression; Kemp accuses Democrats of trying to get people to vote illegally and of hacking into the elections system.
  4. Currently, Kemp’s percentage of the vote sits at 50.3%, just slightly above the required 50% threshold. Stacey Abrams hasn’t yet conceded, and is hoping to get all votes counted and force a runoff.
  5. Kemp, for his part, stepped down from the SoS position to start transitioning to the role of governor, though a runoff is still possible.
  6. Meanwhile, all the lawsuits alleging voter suppression and invalid ballot counts are still going on.

Arizona:

  1. Arizona Republicans sue to challenge how counties count ballots, saying the process should be standard. At issue is the fact that some counties allow fixes to things like missing information or mismatched signatures after election day (which sort of makes sense, since mail-in ballots don’t have to arrive until election day).
  2. Arizona Republicans and Democrats come to an agreement that gives rural counties the same ability to fix errors as in urban counties.
  3. Democrat Kirsten Sinema is projected to win Jeff Flake’s old Senate Seat. The more ballots that are counted in Maricopa County, the bigger her lead gets.
  4. While the NRSC (National Republican Senate Committee) alleges corruption and fraud against Democrats in the ongoing ballot count, both Martha McSally, Sinema’s Republican opponent, and Jeff Flake say there is no evidence to support that. The NRSC files a FOIA request of the Maricopa county recorder to turn over any correspondence he’s had with George Soros and Tom Steyer. Huh? I’m dying to see the results of that request.
  5. Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO), the NRSC chair, tells Face The Nation that the Maricopa County Recorder is “cooking the books” for Sinema.
  6. Cindy McCain also speaks out against the NRSC’s attempts to stop the ballot count.
  7. Speaking of McCain, on Veterans Day, the Wall Street Journal chose to run an op-ed by a defeated Minnesota Republican blaming McCain for the Republican losses in the election. Aside from the misguided premise, who runs an op-ed disparaging a deceased military hero on Veterans Day?

Florida:

  1. In Florida, Governor Rick Scott threatens to send police to seize ballots in Broward County for a race in which he is running. He says there’s rampant fraud because they’re trying to count all the ballots. Scott and his Democratic opponent, Bill Nelson, are likely headed toward a recount.
  2. Trump also makes accusations of fraud. Florida Law Enforcement says there have been no claims of fraud and no evidence of fraud.
  3. Trump sends lawyers down to help Rick Scott’s case.
  4. Bill Nelson files a lawsuit challenging the rejection of certain ballots.
  5. Actually, there are a lot of lawsuits going around. Here’s a recap of the Florida lawsuits.

Miscellaneous:

  1. In a contentious press conference after the midterm elections, Jim Acosta refuses to back down from questioning the president about whether there is any threat posed by the “caravan of migrants.”
  2. Trump suspends Acosta’s press pass.
  3. Sarah Huckabee Sanders retweets a doctored video to support their accusation that Acosta was overly aggressive with the woman handling the microphone. Her video makes it look like Acosta karate chopped the woman’s arm, and also deletes the part where he says “excuse me, ma’am.” Does she think we don’t have access to the real-time videos?
  4. Trump calls reporter April Ryan a “loser” who “doesn’t know what the hell she is doing.” He also responds to reporter Abby Phillips by saying angrily “what a stupid question that is” and “you ask a lot of stupid questions.”
  5. Trump threatens to revoke press passes for more journalists.
  6. An ex-marine kills 12 people at the Borderline Bar and Grill, a country bar in Thousand Oaks, CA. One of the dead is the responding officer. The gunman then kills himself. Some of the victims and people at the bar had also been in the crowds during the shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas last year.
  7. Just hours before the shooting, the NRA responds to a paper written by a group of physicians calling for a comprehensive approach to gun violence. The NRA tells doctors to stay in their lane, apparently not realizing that doctors are the ones left cleaning up the mess from gun violence. And doctors are the ones who have to tell people that their loved ones didn’t make it.
  8. Ruth Bader Ginsberg is hospitalized with fractured ribs (giving Democrats a collective panic attack), but she’s back a work within a few days.
  9. The Trump administration backs Sudan in a lawsuit brought by the families of military personnel killed in the bombing of the USS Cole. The lawsuit asserts that the bombers were funded by Sudan.
  10. A lawyer in the case of two men on trial for a bomb plot against Muslims in Kansas is pleading for leniency in the case, saying that Trump’s angry rhetoric spurred the plan. He says Trump’s language before the 2016 election fueled hysteria about Muslims and immigrants.