Barbara McQuade | Forget Roy Cohn, Future Presidents Would Ask 'Where's My Bill Barr?'

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Barbara McQuade | Forget Roy Cohn, Future Presidents Would Ask 'Where's My Bill Barr?' 

Barbara McQuade, The Daily Beast
McQuade writes: "Trump wanted an attorney general who would protect him, and he got one who defended him and misrepresented Mueller's report."
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John Oliver. (photo: HBO)

John Oliver Says Donald Trump Was Saved From Russian Collusion by 'Incompetence' and 'Disobedience'
Ewan Palmer, Newsweek
Palmer writes: "John Oliver, host of HBO's Last Week Tonight, said the two 'key factors' that might have saved President Donald Trump from prosecution, as revealed in Robert Mueller's long-awaited report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, were 'cartoonish levels of disorganization and incompetence' of those around him."
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Brett Kavanaugh. (photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Supreme Court Will Decide if It Is Legal to Fire Someone for Being LGBTQ
Ian Millhiser, ThinkProgress
Millhiser writes: "Altitude Express Inc. v. Zarda and Bostock v. Clayton County both ask whether existing federal law prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes v. EEOC asks the same question about anti-trans discrimination."
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Chelsea Manning speaking via video call with Peter Greste at the Antidote festival at the Sydney Opera House on 2 September. (photo: Prudence Upton)

US Appeals Court Denies Manning's Bail Request, Upholds Contempt Finding
Sarah N. Lynch, Reuters
Lynch writes: "A federal appeals court on Monday denied a request by former U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to be released from jail on bail, and upheld a lower court's decision to hold Manning in civil contempt for refusing to testify before a grand jury."
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White metal crosses mark graves at the cemetery. (photo: Michael Spooneybarger/Reuters)

'A Type of Justice': Florida Reform School Yields Evidence of More Graves
Richard Luscombe, Guardian UK
Luscombe writes: "Evidence of an additional 27 'possible' graves discovered at the site of the Dozier School for Boys confirms that the final chapters of a dark episode have yet to be written."
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Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg speaks during the Extinction Rebellion protest at Marble Arch in London, Britain April 21, 2019. (photo: Reuters)

Extinction Rebellion: London Climate Protesters Seek Talks With Government
teleSUR
Excerpt: "Climate change protesters who have brought parts of London to a standstill said Sunday they were prepared to call a halt if the British government will discuss their demands."
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American farmers use chlorpyrifos, a pesticide tied to brain and nervous system issues, on crops such as apples, broccoli, corn and strawberries. (photo: Stephanie Chapman/Flickr)

'Finally!': Court Orders EPA to Stop Stalling Potential Ban on Pesticide Tied to Brain Damage in Kids
Jessica Corbett, EcoWatch
Corbett writes: "In a ruling welcomed by public health advocates, a federal court on Friday ordered the Trump administration to stop stalling a potential ban on a pesticide linked to brain damage in children, giving regulators until mid-July to make a final decision."
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Ms. Hamnett in Falls Church, Va. Last month, she retired as the top official overseeing pesticides and 
toxic chemicals at the E.P.A. “I had become irrelevant,” she said about changes there under the Trump 
administration (photo: Jared Soares/NYT)

Why Has the EPA Shifted on Toxic Chemicals? An Industry Insider Helps Call the Shots

By Eric Lipton, The New York Times

22 October 17

A scientist who worked for the chemical industry now shapes policy on hazardous chemicals. Within the E.P.A., there is fear that public health is at risk. (At right, a signing ceremony for new rules on toxic chemicals.)

or years, the Environmental Protection Agency has struggled to prevent an ingredient once used in stain-resistant carpets and nonstick pans from contaminating drinking water.

The chemical, perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, has been linked to kidney cancer, birth defects, immune system disorders and other serious health problems.

So scientists and administrators in the E.P.A.’s Office of Water were alarmed in late May when a top Trump administration appointee insisted upon the rewriting of a rule to make it harder to track the health consequences of the chemical, and therefore regulate it.

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http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/46430-why-has-the-epa-shifted-on-toxic-chemicals-an-industry-insider-helps-call-the-shots

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Environmental Destruction brought to AmeriKKKa by EPA Scott Pruitt, Bought & Paid For PROSTITUTE

This is lengthy, worth reading in its entirety!

Don't be distracted by Irrational Tweetie Rants from the mentally ill.

This matters!

Always there's a Dirty Energy Koch Brothers' connection to their Sock Puppet.

EPA Scott Pruitt has a soundproof room to prevent 'leaks.' What's he afraid of?



Another theme emerges in the calendar: Industry executives and conservative activists often scored meetings to press Mr. Pruitt to kill or modify Obama-era climate change regulations, particularly the so-called Clean Power Plan. A May 18 conference call included representatives from the State Policy Network and American Legislative Exchange Council, an organization with ties to Charles G. and David H. Koch, the billionaire industrialists.




The calendar of Scott Pruitt, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, shows he has met much more often with officials and lobbyists from companies he regulates than with environmentalists. (photo: Al Drago/The New York Times)

EPA Chief's Calendar: A Stream of Industry Meetings and Trips Home

By Eric Lipton and Lisa Friedman, The New York Times

06 October 17

or lunch on April 26, Scott Pruitt, the new administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, dined with top executives from Southern Company, one of the nation’s largest coal-burning electric utilities, at Equinox, a white-tablecloth favorite of Washington power brokers.

That evening, it was on to BLT Prime, a steakhouse inside the Trump International Hotel in Washington, for a meal with the board of directors of Alliance Resource Partners, a coal-mining giant whose chief executive donated nearly $2 million to help elect President Trump.

Before those two agenda items, Mr. Pruitt met privately with top executives and lobbyists from General Motors to talk about their request to block an Obama administration move to curb emissions that contribute to climate change.

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http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/46149-epa-chiefs-calendar-a-stream-of-industry-meetings-and-trips-home

When Government No Longer Protects

29 June 17 Need to Pull a Rabbit From the Hat Today! We are down to the last two days of the month and we are still far behind where we normally would be and more importantly where we need to be. Really need a little movement here. Marc Ash Founder, Reader Supported News Sure, I'll make a donation! Update My Monthly Donation Become a Fan of RSN on Facebook and Twitter If you would prefer to send a check: Reader Supported News PO Box 2043 Citrus Hts CA 95611

EPA Chief Met With Dow Chemical CEO Before Deciding Not to Ban Toxic Pesticide 
Lorraine Chow, EcoWatch 
Chow writes: "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Scott Pruitt met with Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris before deciding to reverse an earlier EPA decision to ban the company's toxic and widely used pesticide, chlorpyrifos." 
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Dow CEO Andrew Liveris and President Donald Trump at the White House. (photo: Reuters)

.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Scott Pruitt met with Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris before deciding to reverse an earlier EPA decision to ban the company's toxic and widely used pesticide, chlorpyrifos.

According to records obtained by the Associated Press, the EPA boss met with Liveris for about 30 minutes at a Houston hotel on March 9. Later that month, Pruitt announced that he would no longer pursue a ban on chlorpyrifos from being used on food, ignoring his agency's own review that even small amounts of the pesticide could impact fetus and infant brain development.

But EPA spokeswoman Liz Bowman insisted to the AP that Pruitt and Liveris were only "briefly introduced" at the energy industry conference where both men were featured speakers.

"They did not discuss chlorpyrifos," the spokeswoman said. "During the same trip he also met with the Canadian minister of natural resources, and CEOs and executives from other companies attending the trade show."

According to the AP, Pruitt also attended a larger group meeting with two other Dow executives, but Bowman said they did not discuss the pesticide.

The Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC), Pesticide Action Network and Earthjustice sued the EPA just days after Pruitt's decision to reverse the EPA's proposed ban on chlorpyrifos.

"The move adds to the Trump administration's growing roster of decisions informed by 'alternative facts,'" the NRDC's Nicole Greenfield wrote in a blog post about the lawsuit. "Nearly two decades' worth of scientific studies—including analyses by Pruitt's own agency—have documented the numerous risks this bug-killer poses to children and pregnant women."

The American Academy of Pediatrics also sent a letter to Pruitt on Tuesday, urging the EPA to ban the pesticide and called the agency's decision to allow its use a threat to children's health.

A lot has been reported about Dow's seemingly close ties with Trump. The company donated $1 million to the presidential inauguration. Additionally, Liveris leads President Trump's advisory council on manufacturing. In February, Liveris received Trump's pen after he signed the "Enforcing the Regulatory Reform Agenda" executive order aimed at eliminating regulations that the administration claims are damaging to the U.S. economy, but some worry that the measure will roll back critical environmental protections.

The Associated Press reported in April that Dow is pressuring the Trump administration to throw out a 10,000-page government risk study on three pesticides under review, including chlorpyrifos. The government scientists found that chlorpyrifos is "likely to adversely affect" 1,778 of the 1,835 animals and plants in its study.

According to the Sierra Club, this is just the latest in a long list of examples of the Trump administration working with corporate polluters before reversing public safeguards to protect families from corporate negligence:

• In February, automakers sent a letter to Pruitt and Trump asking for lighter fuel economy standards. In March,Donald Trump announced a review of U.S. vehicle fuel-efficiency standards from 2022-2025 put in place by the Obama administration, effectively reopening a process the Obama administration had ended ahead of an April 2018 deadline. This review goes against the massive public support for cleaner, more fuel efficient cars.


• In his first few weeks in office, Pruitt met with executives of fossil fuel and energy companies numerous times. Since these meetings the Trump administration has:


• Rolled back methane safeguards, a move highly praised by oil and gas executives who now have a free pass to pollute.


• Gutted the clean water rule, long pushed for and praised by business and industry execs who are able to gain financially from the dangerous deregulation.


• Touted an anti environmental and pro-polluter agenda from a coal mine.


• Left the Paris Climate Agreement, a move opposed by much of the American public, but supported by coal executives.

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/44378-epa-chief-met-with-dow-chemical-ceo-before-deciding-not-to-ban-toxic-pesticide

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RSN: Bill Moyers | All of Donald Trump's Lies

28 June 17 PM

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TO MY FELLOW SUPPORTERS - We're kind of a family. We keep RSN going and I love you. Thank you for donating. You get it. Marc and his staff work hard to keep us current on Progressive issues, Politics, Black Lives Matter, Bernie Sanders, Robert Reich, etc. etc, etc. We don't want to lose the best thing going. But some people choose to read RSN every day and not contribute. I now turn directly to YOU who are not contributing. Don't run and hide. I'm talking to you. You're starting to piss me off. In a big way. You like getting something for nothing. Who doesn't? But what you don't realize is that the only way to keep this amazing newsletter ALIVE is to DONATE. Even if it's a little now and then it would help. It doesn't even have to be $27/month the way Bernie raised millions. I'll let Marc set that monthly donation amount for being able to sustain the publication. Please, be part of our family and let us know you think RSN is worth keeping alive. / Your fellow RSN reader, Carrie Honigman

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Bill Moyers | All of Donald Trump's Lies 

Bill Moyers, Moyers & Company
Moyers writes: "This weekend, The New York Times performed a noble public service by publishing nearly every lie Donald Trump has told since taking the oath of office (just four months and a few days ago, but it seems like an eternity, no?). The op-ed chart of tiny but readable font fills the entire page, until at one point, in the mind's eye, they appear to morph into termites burrowing deep into the foundation of democracy, leaving sawdust in their wake."
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Three Chicago Cops Indicted for Cover-Up of Laquan McDonald Shooting
Megan Crepeau, Dan Hinkel, Jason Meisner and Jeremy Gorner, The Chicago Tribune
Excerpt: "Detective David March and patrol Officers Thomas Gaffney and Joseph Walsh, who was Van Dyke's partner on the night of the shooting, were each charged with conspiracy, official misconduct and obstruction of justice, according to a 12-page indictment."
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If Republicans Lose the Healthcare Fight, It's the Beginning of the End
Corey Robin, Guardian UK
Robin writes: "For my part, I'll be happy if the Republicans simply lose the vote. Not only will that loss protect healthcare for millions of people; it'll also be a major demoralizing blow to the conservative movement."
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Republicans Are Using Fake Voter Fraud to Crush Voting Rights
Carter Sherman, Vice News
Sherman writes: "President Donald Trump may have claimed that he 'won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally,' but there's no evidence of illegal voting last November - in fact, multiple investigations have found that kind of election fraud in the U.S. to be virtually nonexistent. Nevertheless, state lawmakers across the country are proposing legislation they say is meant to combat it."
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Can Democratic Pediatrician Mai-Khanh Tran Unseat One of the Most Powerful House Republicans in 2018?
Andrew Romano, Yahoo News
Romano writes: "While defeating Royce may seem like a tall order for a political novice, Tran, 51, has already spent her entire life overcoming impossible odds."
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Venezuela: Police Helicopter Attacks Top Court With Grenades
Lucas Koerner, Venezuela Analysis
Koerner writes: "The assailants reportedly circled the Supreme Court, opening fire and dropping at least four hand grenades, one of which did not explode. The president indicated that the attack coincided with a 'social function' in the Supreme Court, which he said could have resulted in 'dozens of dead or injured.'"
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EPA Chief Met With Dow Chemical CEO Before Deciding Not to Ban Toxic Pesticide
Lorraine Chow, EcoWatch
Chow writes: "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Scott Pruitt met with Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris before deciding to reverse an earlier EPA decision to ban the company's toxic and widely used pesticide, chlorpyrifos."
READ MORE

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****A Nation Led by Corrupt Idiots!

Devin Nunes Is Back to Roiling the House Russia Investigation 
Adam Entous and Ellen Nakashima, The Washington Post 
Excerpt: "The Republican-controlled House Intelligence Committee asked U.S. spy agencies late last year to reveal the names of U.S. individuals or organizations contained in classified intelligence on Russia's meddling in the 2016 election, engaging in the same practice that President Trump has accused the Obama administration of abusing, current and former officials said." 
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Tom Price Bought Drug Stocks. Then He Pushed Pharma's Agenda in Australia. 
Robert Faturechi, ProPublica 
Faturechi writes: "Before he was named Trump's health secretary, Price took a congressional trip to Australia and pressed officials to extend protections for drug companies in an international trade agreement." 
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Trump vs. Planet Earth 
Jeff Goodell, Rolling Stone 
Goodell writes: "The outrage over Trump's move runs deep because the Paris climate deal was never about just the climate. It was also about unity, equality, trust, sympathy - in short, all the qualities that make it possible for seven billion human beings to live together peacefully on the planet." 
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Nearly two decades ago the EPA banned this toxic pesticide from residential use, so why are we allowing it to be sprayed on our food?

Despite its own scientific findings, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, led by Scott Pruitt, is bowing to industry pressure and threatening the health and safety of children and farmworkers. Make an emergency gift to help us fight back! Your gift today will be matched $1-to-$1. In one of his first acts as the head of the EPA, Scott Pruitt defied the law and the science and refused to ban a toxic pesticide, chlorpyrifos, which is known to cause permanent damage to children’s brains from low-level exposures. We are fighting this reckless decision on all fronts but we need your help! Please make a gift today, and your tax-deductible gift will be matched $1-to-$1. This means that every $1 you give today will go twice as far to help us take on critical battles like this, and win! In 2015, EPA proposed to ban chlorpyrifos because it contaminates drinking water. Last fall, the EPA found there are no safe uses for chlorpyrifos because of the damage it causes to the developing brains of children, causing reduced IQ, loss of memory and attention deficit disorder. When forced to take action to meet a court-ordered deadline, the new administration is dragging its feet and refusing to ban this harmful pesticide. Nearly two decades ago, the EPA banned this same pesticide from residential use. So why are we allowing it to be sprayed on our food? The science is clear, and we can’t sit back as the EPA continues to bow to industry pressure. Help us fight back! Today, your tax-deductible gift will go twice as far to help us take on critical battles like this, and win. From the residues it leaves on our food, to contaminating our drinking water to toxic spray drift, chlorpyrifos is leaching into our communities putting almost anyone who comes into contact with many common foods at risk. We are fighting back in court, and we will continue to fight to protect the health of our children.And to do so, we need you by our side. Sincerely,

Patti Goldman Managing Attorney

P.S. This battle is far from over. Help us fight back and your gift to Earthjustice will be doubled, thanks to a generous donor.

Are You Proud to Be an American Today?

The Rose Garden's dumbest moment on record.

BY CHARLES P. PIERCE

JUN 1, 2017

http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a55426/trump-pull-out-paris-climate-accords/Fri Jun 2, 2017 | 9:12 AM EDT

Trump misunderstood MIT climate research, university officials say

Jun 1, 2017 | 02:18

Trump pits U.S. vs. world in climate pact pullout

X

By Emily Flitter | NEW YORK

Massachusetts Institute of Technology officials said U.S. President Donald Trump badly misunderstood their research when he cited it on Thursday to justify withdrawing the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement.

Trump announced during a speech at the White House Rose Garden that he had decided to pull out of the landmark climate deal, in part because it would not reduce global temperatures fast enough to have a significant impact.

"Even if the Paris Agreement were implemented in full, with total compliance from all nations, it is estimated it would only produce a two-tenths of one degree Celsius reduction in global temperature by the year 2100," Trump said. 

"Tiny, tiny amount."

That claim was attributed to research conducted by MIT, according to White House documents seen by Reuters. The Cambridge, Massaschusetts-based research university published a study in April 2016 titled "How much of a difference will the Paris Agreement make?" showing that if countries abided by their pledges in the deal, global warming would slow by between 0.6 degree and 1.1 degrees Celsius by 2100.

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"We certainly do not support the withdrawal of the U.S. from the Paris agreement," said Erwan Monier, a lead researcher at the MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change, and one of the study's authors.

"If we don't do anything, we might shoot over 5 degrees or more and that would be catastrophic," said John Reilly, the co-director of the program, adding that MIT's scientists had had no contact with the White House and were not offered a chance to explain their work.

The Paris accord, reached by nearly 200 countries in 2015, was meant to limit global warming to 2 degrees or less by 2100, mainly through country pledges to cut carbon dioxide and other emissions from the burning of fossil fuels.

Under the pact, the United States - the world's second biggest carbon emitter behind China - had committed to reduce its emissions by 26 percent to 28 percent from 2005 levels by 2025.

A senior administration official defended Trump's use of the findings. "It's not just MIT. I think there is a consensus, not only in the environmental community, but elsewhere that the Paris agreement in and of itself will have a negligible impact on climate," the official told reporters at a briefing.

The dispute is the latest round of a years-long battle between scientists and politicians over how to interpret facts about the effects of burning fossil fuels on the global climate, and translate them into policy.

Trump has repeatedly cast doubt on the science of climate change and once called it a hoax perpetrated by China to weaken U.S. business.

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN18S6L0?utm_campaign=trueAnthem%253A+Trending+Content&utm_content=5930abb104d30123a0683425&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook

Bill McKibben | Trump's Stupid and Reckless Climate Decision 
 
Bill McKibben, The New York Times 
McKibben writes: "People say, if all you have is a hammer, then every problem looks like a nail. We should be so lucky. President Trump has a hammer, but all he'll use it for is to smash things that others have built, as the world looks on in wonder and in fear." 
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Enough! Trump Has Abdicated on Climate - Now It's Up to Us 
Mark Trahant, YES! Magazine 
Trahant writes: "It's official. The United States is on the wrong side of history. With the Paris agreement, nearly every country in the world joined together and pledged voluntary action on climate change. Everyone involved knew that this accord could have been - should have been - much tougher." 
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