Author: hearseeno

Twitter Sues Feds Over Attempt To Reveal Identity Behind @ALT_USCIS Account

4/6/17

Filed in federal court in California, the lawsuit seeks a court order stopping the US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) from using its summons authority to demand Twitter turn over personal identifying information relating to the account, identified on Twitter as an “immigration resistance” account and “[n]ot the views of DHS or USCIS.”

…

The ACLU has informed BuzzFeed News that it is representing the @ALT_USCIS user, and will be making a court filing on behalf of the user in the near future, raising statutory and constitutional arguments.

“The right to anonymously speak out against the government is clearly protected by the First Amendment. We are pleased to see Twitter standing up for its users’ rights, and the ACLU will soon be filing documents in court on behalf of this user,“ ACLU attorney Nathan Freed Wessler told BuzzFeed News in a statement. "To unmask an anonymous speaker online, the government must have a strong justification. But in this case the government has given no reason at all, leading to concerns that it is simply trying to stifle dissent.”

Twitter Sues Feds Over Attempt To Reveal Identity Behind @ALT_USCIS Account

Trump considering options for Syria retaliation, source says

By Dana Bash, Jeremy Herb and Barbara Starr, CNN

Updated 1629 GMT (0029 HKT) April 6, 2017

The source said the President had not firmly decided to go ahead with it but said he was discussing possible actions with Defense Secretary James Mattis.

Trump is relying on the judgment of Mattis, according to the source.

The thing is, though, US military is already in Syria.  There’s been a very quiet build up of troops there.

Here’s a NY Times article from March 9th that basically states that the US was in the process of “sending an additional [my emphasis] 400 troops to Syria.”  

“The United States military has declined to say how many troops it has deployed in Syria. The formal troop cap is 503, but commanders have the authority to temporarily exceed that limit.”

‘“We are preparing logistical and fire support to enable a successful assault on Raqqa, the self-proclaimed capital of ISIS,” said Col. John L. Dorrian, a spokesman for the American-led command that is fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.”’

So, Trump explicitly overlooked Assad’s prior assaults on his own people and Assad talked about seeing Trump as an ally in the war against ISIS.

Trump decides to blame Obama instead of his own actions empowering Assad.

We’ve sent our people to Syria to help Assad retake Raqqa.   

Russia is officially blaming the rebels for the release of chemical weapons (”Russia’s Defense Ministry says the toxic agents were released when a Syrian airstrike hit a rebel chemical weapons arsenal and munitions factory on the town’s eastern outskirts.”)

Trump’s budget and Tillerson’s soft pedaling of the impact on the State Department clearly communication that the administration’s intent is to ‘Use less “soft power,” the cajoling and persuading of allies and enemies, and replace it with the projection of “hard power” by the nation’s military.’

… and now we’re considering retaliation against Assad.  I just can’t see this ending well.

Trump considering options for Syria retaliation, source says

What Happens to Women In The Workplace When Trump Is In Charge

sadydoyle:

In the midst of the 9,000,000th reappearance of Bill O’Reilly’s sexual assault allegations, it’s fun to remember that Trump also celebrated “Sexual Assault Awareness” month by making it easier for people to sexually harass women in the workplace. So here’s me, on Trump, Gorsuch, and how “pro-business” rhetoric is used to punish women for working. 

BY SADY DOYLE APR 5, 2017

“It is, however, a symptom of a deeper problem, one which has been a recurring theme throughout Trump’s presidency and in his administration: policies that use “pro-business” logic to advance punitively anti-woman agendas.”  

“Punishing businesses for helping women is OK, but punishing businesses for harming women is not.”

in essence:

“Punishing businesses for helping women is OK”

  • withhold federal funding from Planned Parenthood

“punishing businesses for harming women is not.”

  • Hobby Lobby: the corporation is “not only a person” but is “a religious person.”  “But, with respect to Livni, the questions are inseparable—or rather, there is only one question, which is whether corporations are so important that they can, in the name of “religious freedom,” deprive women who work there of basic rights like healthcare.” 
  • Trump’s repeal of Obama’s executive order against mandatory arbitration for sexual harassment and assault:  Mandatory arbitration tilts the power toward the corporation and away from the victim. The end result is a) less cost to the corporation because settlements are lower and b) isolated victims who are bound by non-disclosure rules.  There is no public record so no one knows it’s a chronic problem, which leaves corporations free to go on harassing as usual with minimal cost.

“We are dealing with one of the most openly misogynist Presidential administrations in history; it really is no wonder that one of their first acts would be to make sexual harassment a little bit less risky.”

What Happens to Women In The Workplace When Trump Is In Charge

nbcnightlynews:

BREAKING: US Senate triggers “nuclear option” in vote to change rule and bypass filibuster of Supreme Court nominee. http://nbcnews.to/2nOV5m6

Beyond the obvious immediate consequence that Gorsuch is headed for the Supreme Court, there are other longer-reaching Implications of changing the Senate’s rule around filibusters:

From an 4/5/17 article on Buzzfeed by Geider and Loop:

With the change in place, it will mean that when presidents have the Senate majority on their side, they will no longer need bipartisan support to have their Supreme Court nominees confirmed.

In part, this means the Senate — referred to in Important Congressional Texts (and originally, it is said, by George Washington) as the “saucer” that allows for the cooling of the passions of the House — could become even less of a moderating institution.

“I regret it for the country because I think you’re going to have more ideological judicial picks,” Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham told BuzzFeed News on Monday. “And I think the Senate’s going to become more polarized.”

Trump Removes Stephen Bannon From National Security Council Post

4/5/17

WASHINGTON — President Trump reshuffled his national security organization on Wednesday, removing his chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon, from a top policy-making committee and restoring senior military and intelligence officials who had been downgraded when he first came into office.

The shift was orchestrated by Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who was tapped as Mr. Trump’s national security adviser after the resignation of Michael T. Flynn …

A new order issued by Mr. Trump, dated Tuesday and made public on Wednesday, removes Mr. Bannon from the principals committee, restores the chairman of the Joint Chiefs and intelligence director and also adds the energy secretary, C.I.A. director and United Nations ambassador.

A senior White House official presented the move as a logical evolution, not a setback for Mr. Bannon. He had originally been put on the principals committee to keep an eye on Mr. Flynn and to “de-operationalize” the National Security Council after the Obama administration, this official said on condition of anonymity to discuss internal dynamics. This official said that process had been completed.

Another official close to Mr. Bannon insisted the move was not in any way a sign that the president had lost confidence in him or wanted to reduce his portfolio. And as evidence he will still play a role in national security decisions, the aide said that Mr. Bannon still maintains the highest level of security clearance in the West Wing.

But the reorganization seemed a clear victory for General McMaster as he struggles to assert control over national security. In addition to the changing membership of the principals committee, the new order also puts the Homeland Security Council under General McMaster rather than making it a separate entity, as Mr. Trump’s original order had done.

Trump Removes Stephen Bannon From National Security Council Post

‘Extreme vetting’ would require visitors to US to share contacts and passwords

denugis:

As I understand it, US citizens have also been asked for this information at the border when returning from travel, though legally they eventually have to let you in if you’re a citizen, whereas non-citizens can be turned back.

While there is a certain amusement value in the thought of giving border guards a facefull of pretentious Sastiel porn, I’d think twice about traveling and returning at this point, and I’m a white, middle class US citizen with a very English-sounding name. 

A lot of people have pointed out the chilling effect this will have on academic and artistic exchange; I’m pretty sure that’s a huge plus for the people pushing these policies.

Scary and ugly.

‘Extreme vetting’ would require visitors to US to share contacts and passwords