Bloomberg |
Trump Attacks FBI for Leaks as Aides Defend Talks With Agency
Bloomberg Meeting with reporters shortly after Trump tweeted criticisms of the FBI at about 7:30 a.m. in Washington, senior administration officials provided a detailed timeline of discussions Chief of Staff Reince Priebus had with the agency over news reports ... and more » |
Washington Post |
On Twitter, Trump urges that the FBI 'find the leakers' in its ranks
Washington Post President Trump took to Twitter on Friday morning to castigate the FBI for leaking damaging information about his administration, the latest in public complaints about the nation's intelligence agencies. “The FBI is totally unable to stop the national ... and more » |
New York Times |
Trump Denounces FBI Over Leaks, Demanding Investigation
New York Times WASHINGTON — President Trump on Friday assailed the F.B.I. as a dangerously porous agency, charging that leaks of classified information from within its ranks were putting the country at risk — and calling for an immediate hunt for the leakers. Mr ... and more » |
CNN |
Democrats: WH contact with FBI an 'outrageous breach of the FBI's independence'
CNN (CNN) Congressional Democrats sharply criticized President Donald Trump Friday over a CNN report that the FBI rejected a recent White House request to publicly knock down media reports about communications between Trump's associates and Russians ... and more » |
New York Times |
Trump vs. Press: Crazy, Stupid Love
New York Times WASHINGTON — Much has been made of Melania Trump's absence from the capital. But our new president's most intense, primal, torrid relationship is in full “The War of the Roses” bloom here. And it is not with his beautiful, reserved wife. It's with the ... Why punishing the media will backfire on TrumpCNN Trump White House Bars News Organizations From Press BriefingHuffington Post Donald Trump's latest step toward tyrannyDetroit Free Press all 1,592 news articles » |
CBS News |
Trump says he won't attend White House Correspondents Dinner
ABC News The WHCA responded that the group "takes note" that Trump won't attend the dinner, scheduled for April 29, and said the dinner "has been and will continue to be a celebration of the First Amendment and the important role played by an independent news ... President Trump to skip White House correspondents' dinnerBBC News Trump announces he won't attend annual White House correspondents' dinnerCBS News Trump will not attend the White House correspondents' dinnerWashington Post Fox News -Huffington Post -CNBC all 207 news articles » |
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New York Times |
Trump Plans to Skip White House Correspondents' Association Dinner
New York Times Capping a week of extraordinary hostility toward the news media, President Trump tweeted on Saturday that he would not attend this year's charity dinner of the White House Correspondents' Association, scheduled for April 29, a Washington tradition ... Trump says he won't attend White House Correspondents DinnerABC News Trump's first dinner out in DC: His own hotelThe Hill Trump declines to attend White House correspondents' dinnerCNN Politico -BBC News -CNBC -Axios all 275 news articles » |
Washington Post |
President Trump to skip White House correspondents' dinner
BBC News US President Donald Trump has announced he will not attend the White House Correspondents' Association dinner on 29 April. The glitzy event draws celebrities, journalists and politicians, normally including the US president. Mr Trump said he would not ... Trump will not attend the White House correspondents' dinnerWashington Post Trump says he won't attend White House Correspondents DinnerABC News Trump says not going to White House Correspondents dinnerFox News USA TODAY -The Hill -Los Angeles Times all 175 news articles » |
Washington Post |
Trump's Cabinet has to work as a cleanup crew
Washington Post After President Trump said that deporting undocumented immigrants was “a military operation,” Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly, speaking in Mexico, clarified that there would be “no use of military force in immigration operations.” After Trump ... and more » |
The Hill |
Trump: I won't attend White House correspondents' dinner
The Hill President Trump announced Saturday he will not be attending this year's White House Correspondents' Association dinner, a break with past presidents. "I will not be attending the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner this year. Please wish ... Trump Will Be First POTUS Not to Attend White House Correspondents' Dinner in 30 YearsNBCNews.com President Trump Is Skipping The White House Correspondents' Association DinnerBuzzFeed News Trump says he will not attend White House Correspondents' Association dinnerPolitico New York Daily News -CBS News -ABC News -Washington Examiner all 110 news articles » |
Washington Post |
Top Republican says special prosecutor should investigate Russian meddling in Trump's election
Washington Post A senior Republican lawmaker on Friday agreed that a special prosecutor should investigate Russia's alleged interference with the 2016 presidential election. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) became one of the few Republican representatives to state ... and more » |
UPROXX |
Does GOP House Leader's Call For A Special Prosecutor On Trump's Russia Ties Signal A Tide Is Turning?
UPROXX Republican Representative Darrell Issa said he would be in favor of appointing a specialprosecutor to investigate the possible connection Donald Trump's associates may have with Russia, as reported by Politico. Trump's reported ties to Russia have ... and more » |
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Vox |
A House Republican now wants a special prosecutor on the Trump-Russia scandals
Vox Darrell Issa, the California Republican who bedeviled the Obama administration with inquiries into Benghazi and the IRS, thinks the alleged ties between President Trump's campaign and Russia are worth investigating — and wants a special prosecutor to ... and more » |
DNC: Time for a special prosecutor or 9/11-style commission to investigate Trump and Russia
Washington Examiner As one of her final acts as interim chair of the Democratic National Committee, Donna Brazile called for an independent investigation into Russia's influence campaign on the 2016 presidential election. In a statement issued as the voting to name her ... and more » |
USA TODAY |
John McCain: Russia dissidents are our moral equals - USA Today
USA TODAY The courageous Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza would like to see the governments of Russia and the United States become moral equals — to know ... and more » |
Roll Call |
New National Security Adviser: No Friend to Russia?
Roll Call McMaster replaces Michael Flynn, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general who resigned amidst questions about his contacts with Russia and how forthright he'd been about those contacts with Vice President Mike Pence and others in the administration ... With McMaster as NSA, India Gets a Strong Proponent For US's Continued Engagement in AfghanistanThe Wire all 1,508 news articles » |
EurActiv |
Ukraine oligarch Dmytro Firtash faces extradition to US
BBC News ... would be made by Justice Minister Wolfgang Brandstetter. Mr Firtash was arrested after the latest ruling, although prosecutors said it was on a European warrant relating to allegations of links to organised crime and illegal money laundering in ... Austrian extradition could spell trouble for TrumpEurActiv Ukraine Oligarch Loses US Extradition Fight, Is ArrestedBloomberg Austrian court approves extradition of Ukrainian oligarch tied to Trump campaign adviserWashington Post Gulf Times all 89 news articles » |
Irish Examiner |
Why is Felix Sater at the centre of US power?
Irish Examiner “Have you previously associated with people you knew were members of organised crime?” one of my lawyers asked. “No, I haven't,” Trump responded. “And it's hard to overly blame Bayrock. Things like that can happen. But I want to see what action Bayrock ... Taras Kuzio: Conflict in eastern Ukraine is war of national liberationKyiv Post all 168 news articles » |
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The Islamic Monthly |
Trump Watch III: Your Alternative Facts Digest — Russian Edition!
The Islamic Monthly Even if you put aside the many positive things Trump has said about Putin and Russia over the past year, and the U.S. intelligence community's certainty that the Russian government directed an email hacking campaign targeting Trump's Democratic party ... Trump, Putin, and the New Cold WarThe New Yorker Community Roundtable: What about Trump and Russia?Galesburg Register-Mail Kremlin Watch Monitor. February 23, 2017StopFake.org The Guardian -AlterNet -Gallup all 208 news articles » |
www.worldbulletin.net |
Austria court orders release of Ukraine oligarch | Europe ...
www.worldbulletin.net His arrest on Tuesday came just moments after a Vienna appeals court ruled he could be extradited to the United States on bribery charges following a... bne IntelliNews - Extradition net tightens around Ukrainian gas ...bne IntelliNews all 17 news articles » |
New York Times |
Trump Relinquishes Control of Foreign Policy
The Market Oracle As a result, Trump has relinquished control of foreign policy and handed the whole mess over to gladiator McMaster who will coordinate with Sec-Def General James Mattis on a new strategy to deploy US troops to East Syria and West Iraq to establish a ... HR McMaster Breaks With Administration on Views of IslamNew York Times all 118 news articles » |
AOL Real Estate |
Report: Trump's lawyer hand-delivered Michael Flynn a plan to lift sanctions on Russia
AOL Real Estate Sater, a businessman formerly linked with the Mafia who has boasted of his "relationship with Trump," told the Washington Post last May that he "handled all of the negotiations" for the Trump Organization's dealings in Russia in the mid-2000's ... and more » |
Trump Associates Push Murky 'Peace Plan' With Russia To Lift Sanctions
Daily Caller Sater is also a convicted stock manipulator with tenuous ties to the Russian mafia. Sater told The New York Times he brokered the meeting with Cohen because “I want to stop a war, number one.” He continued, “Number two, I absolutely believe that the U ... and more » |
Mediaite |
Trump Lawyer Gives Two Contradicting Stories When Asked If He Delivered Secret Russia Doc
Mediaite President Donald Trump's personal lawyer and confidante Michael Cohen gave two contradictory answers to two different outlets when asked whether he delivered a back-channel document fromRussian mob-connected businessman to then-Trump advisor ... and more » |
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U.S. News & World Report |
Expect More Fake News From Russia, Top NATO General Says
U.S. News & World Report MUNICH (Reuters) - Russia was behind a false report of a rape by German soldiers in Lithuania that was intended to undermine support for NATO's new eastern force, a senior NATO general said on Saturday, warning Europe to expect more such "fake news" ... NATO Officials Say Russian 'Fake News' Seeks to Undermine AllianceVoice of America US defence secretary calms European nerves over NatoThe Guardian Lithuanian authorities launch investigation into fake German rape storyDeutsche Welle KFGO all 312 news articles » |
Newsweek |
Pence Says US Will Hold Russia Accountable; Moscow Calls for 'Post-West' Order
Voice of America In his first major foreign policy speech, U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence has said that America will be 'unwavering' in its support for the NATO alliance, but warned European allies that they must step up defense spending. “I bring you this assurance ... Top Nato General: Expect More Fake News From RussiaNewsweek Pence Tells Europe US Remains Its 'Greatest Ally,' Urges More Defense SpendingRadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty Lithuanian authorities launch investigation into fake German rape storyDeutsche Welle The Guardian all 353 news articles » |
FRANCE 24 |
Russia's call for a “post-fake era” sounds like fake news, as other countries warn of a propaganda blitz
Quartz “Fake news” was top of the agenda at a security summit in Munich today, as officials from Russiaand NATO countries traded accusations of spreading disinformation. Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov told the assembled leaders that Russia sought a ... Russia's Lavrov announces new Ukraine ceasefireFRANCE 24 Powers push for ceasefire, weapons withdrawal in eastern UkraineReuters Lavrov Says Russia Wants Military Cooperation With NATO, 'Pragmatic' US TiesRadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty all 94 news articles » |
Russia 'planned to ASSASSINATE European leader and overthrow government' - shock claims
Express.co.uk Intelligence officers, supported by the Kremlin, plotted the attack on the day of the eastern European nation's elections in a bid to destroy the pro-Western leader's plans for Montenegro to join Nato, senior Whitehall sources told the Telegraph. The ... and more » |
Huffington Post |
To Counter Russian Influence, NATO Must Revitalize The Mediterranean Dialogue
Huffington Post Despite the growing Mediterranean challenge Russia presents, NATO is capable of forming an effective response. But if NATO is to address this challenge adequately, it must focus on better defining its mission beyond Eastern Europe and revitalizing the ... |
Eurasia Review |
European Union As NATO's Auxiliary Economic Alliance – OpEd
Eurasia Review The biggest incentive for the British working class to vote for Brexit is that the East Europeanworkers will have to leave Britain after its exit from the EU, and the jobs will once again become available with better wages to the indigenous workforce ... and more » |
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Cleveland Daily Banner |
Uneasy Russia, US relations have a long history: Lanzillotti
Cleveland Daily Banner After World War II, Russia continued trying to expand its influence in its surrounding region. Lanzillotti said Russia wanted to ... a swath of countries which included Russia. “The Soviet Union interpreted NATO as aggression in Eastern Europe ... and more » |
thenews.pl |
Russia wearing down resistance to hybrid attacks: Polish MEP
thenews.pl Russian information warfare is wearing down resistance to hybrid attacks, Polish Member of European Parliament Anna Fotyga has said during a conference in Lithuania. MEPs Anna Fotyga of Poland ... “Russia is using sophisticated methods of information ... and more » |
Bloomberg |
Trump Can't Seem to Shake Those Russia Problems
Bloomberg ... plans to respond to other ambitions Putin might have in Eastern Europe. And, of course, there are ongoing federal investigations of Russia's role in trying to influence the 2016 election and the nature of any contacts between Russia and the Trump ... and more » |
Express.co.uk |
National Security: Russia, Crimea and NATO
Glasgow Courier Furthermore, if we ignore Russia as a threat to Eastern European Allies we will undoubtedly see a continued expansion of Russian influence in Europe as well. The reason the ascent of the Kremlin is threat number one to the United States is that since ... Ukraine lawmaker who met Trump associates faces treason probeCBS News Nolan Peterson: Putin Provokes Military BuildupNewsweek Delhi throws Raees punch at RussiaCalcutta Telegraph London Review of Books (subscription) -Express.co.uk -Chatham House all 159 news articles » |
Newsmax |
Russia's Europe Hacking Challenges Trans-Atlantic Alliance
Newsmax One of the most startling allegations in a January report by U.S. intelligence agencies aboutRussian hacking was this sentence: "Russia has sought to influence elections across Europe." This warning of a campaign far broader than the U.S. got little ... and more » |
New York Times |
Trump Chooses HR McMaster as National Security Adviser
New York Times H. R. McMaster as his new national security adviser on Monday, picking a widely respected military strategist known for challenging conventional thinking and helping to turn around the Iraq war in its darkest days. Mr. Trump made the announcement at ... and more » |
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CNN |
Trump picks Lt. Gen. HR McMaster as new national security adviser
CNN McMaster, the head of the Army Capabilities Integration Center, will become one of Trump's topnational security and foreign policy advisers, taking the helm of the White House's National Security Council, which was left rudderless after Flynn was ... and more » |
Reuters |
Outspoken lieutenant general named Trump's top security adviser
Reuters Trump in the past has expressed a willingness to engage with Russia more than his predecessor, Barack Obama. Flynn was fired as national security adviser on Feb. 13 after reports emerged that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about speaking to ... and more » |
Newsday |
Mike Pence, Steve Bannon and Kellyanne Conway speak at CPAC today
Newsday Vice President Mike Pence is also scheduled to speak Thursday. White House chief of staff Reince Priebus and top strategist Stephen Bannon say they have a great partnership and that it's helping President Donald Trump fulfill his campaign promises. and more » |
UPI.com |
Watch live: Pence, Bannon, DeVos speak at CPAC
UPI.com Feb. 23 (UPI) -- Vice President Mike Pence, President Donald Trump's chief strategist SteveBannon and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos are scheduled to speak Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland. Bannon is scheduled ... and more » |
Bloomberg |
Bannon Rallies Conservatives for 'Economic Nationalist Agenda'
Bloomberg Bannon, Priebus and Pence assured the thousands of activists that Trump wouldn't back down from his campaign promises. Pence said, "We're in the promise-keeping business these days."Bannon said he's proud that Trump has refused to moderate his ... and more » |
Reuters |
Pence, Bannon appeal for conservatives to unite behind Trump
Reuters This is the time to prove again that our answers are the right answers for America," Pence said. Trump was due to address CPAC on Friday. Earlier on Thursday, Trump's chief strategist, SteveBannon, known as a forceful influence in the White House ... and more » |
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Fortune |
Mike Pence and Steve Bannon Urge Conservatives to Unite Behind Trump
Fortune U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and other top White House officials urged conservative activists on Thursday to set aside differences and unite behind President Donald Trump's agenda stressing tough trade and immigration policies. Addressing the annual ... and more » |
CBS Local |
Chief Strategist Steve Bannon Speaks At Noted Conservative Conference
CBS Local “If you look at these cabinet appointees, they were selected for a reason,” Bannon said. “And that is the deconstruction of the way the progressive left runs is if they can't get it passed they're going to put in some sort of regulation in an agency ... and more » |
New York Times |
Stephen Bannon Reassures Conservatives Uneasy About Trump
New York Times When Mr. Bannon, President Trump's chief strategist, appeared in public on Thursday for the first time since the president was sworn in, it was to deliver, in his own combative way, a message of soothing reassurance to the conservative activists ... and more » |
Huffington Post |
George Clooney Subtly Compares Donald Trump Era To McCarthyism
Huffington Post George Clooney Subtly Compares Donald Trump Era To McCarthyism. The actor referenced Edward R. Murrow's famous words during a speech on Friday night. By Maxwell Strachan. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images. George Clooney took on President ... George Clooney Just Compared Donald Trump To The Most Infamous Communist Witch HunterBuzzFeed News all 192 news articles » |
PolitiFact |
CPAC Straw Poll: 86 Percent Approve of Job Trump Is Doing So Far as President
Fox News Insider The poll also revealed that 44 percent believe America is heading in the right direction, while 47 percent believe the country is on the wrong track. In response to the statement, "President Trumpis realigning the Conservative Movement," 80 percent ... Fact-checking Donald Trump at CPACPolitiFact Read a Transcript of President Trump's CPAC SpeechTIME Donald Trump is remodelling the rightThe Economist (blog) The Boston Globe -BBC News -Breitbart News all 1,242 news articles » |
Huffington Post |
Donald Trump Says He Will Not Attend Annual White House Correspondents Dinner
Huffington Post Trump's announcement, which gave no reason, came after a sustained attack on the media. He recently called news organizations “the enemy,” and the White House on Friday excluded several major outlets, The Huffington Post among them, from a press ... President Donald Trump will not attend White House correspondents' dinnerMassLive.com President Donald Trump Will Not Attend White House Correspondents' Dinner; Event Will Go On As Scheduled (Update)Deadline Donald Trump breaks up with the White House Correspondents DinnerMashable Hollywood Reporter -TMZ.com -Washington Times all 218 news articles » |
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New York Times |
The Immigration Facts Donald Trump Doesn't Like
New York Times Let's be clear: The moral case against President Trump's plan to uproot and expel millions of unauthorized immigrants is open-and-shut. But what about the economic cost? This is where deeply shameful collides with truly stupid. The Migration Policy ... Donald Trump Plans to Bypass the Courts to Deport as Many People as PossibleThe Intercept Making America Meh AgainSlate Magazine Implementing the President's Border Security and Immigration Enforcement ... - Department of Homeland SecurityDepartment of Homeland Security Department of Homeland Security all 2,101 news articles » |
As Donald Trump and his subordinates lash out wildly to suppress discussion of his presidential campaign’s alleged collusion with the Kremlin, they only fan intuitions of a truly monumental scandal. With their latest attempts to manipulate the Federal Bureau of Investigation and intimidate the Washington press corps, they are clumsily encouraging comparisons with Watergate — although as usual with this crew, it isn’t so simple to distinguish malevolence from incompetence.
The New York Times and CNN clearly struck a sensitive nerve with reports that the FBI is investigating multiple contacts last year between Russian officials and the Trump campaign. Whatever the nature of those contacts and officials, such stories fit neatly into the long-developing narrative of an illicit effort by Kremlin operatives to sway our presidential election on Trump’s behalf, through email hacking, fake news reports, hired internet trolls, and other means.
If the Russian hacking story was troubling for Trump, it was not nearly as dangerous as the possible collusion of Trump aides and advisers in that conspiracy. While no direct evidence of collusion has emerged, the implication was inescapable.
The reactions of Reince Priebus, the White House chief of staff, press secretary Sean Spicer, chief strategist Steve Bannon, and Trump himself were all telling. After denying the Times story on Meet the Press, Priebus asked a top FBI official to support that denial — a request that the bureau properly rejected because its probe is still continuing. Spicer attacked the stories from the press podium and then, in an extraordinary measure, excluded the Times, CNN, and several other news organizations from a briefing in his office. Bannon, in a rare public appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference, proclaimed a permanent war against the independent press, warning “it’s going to get worse every day for the media.”
As for Trump, he responded with incoherent and contradictory complaints — raking the “enemy” media in a speech for inventing the Russia stories, and blasting his own FBI in a Twitter tantrum for failing to apprehend the “leakers” within the bureau, who presumably had leaked those stories. Of course, a leaked story and a fabricated story are very different: a leak is based on facts, while a fabrication is based on…”alternative” facts.
None of what we have seen so far is Watergate, but the echoes are getting louder and weirder. The embattled President Nixon oversaw an elaborate campaign of pressure and interference with the FBI Watergate investigation, which ultimately became a major element in the impeachment brief against him. Nixon and his team pushed back hard against the press, including a public crusade by Vice President Spiro Agnew — and an infamous episode when the Washington Post’s Carl Bernstein called Attorney General John Mitchell to ask about a slush fund used by the Committee to Reelect The President for intelligence operations against the Democrats.
Threatening Post publisher Katharine Graham, Mitchell screamed, “Jeeesus! Are you gonna publish that crap in the paper? It’s all been denied. Katie Graham’s gonna get her tit caught in a big fat wringer if that’s published.” (It was published, it was true, and “Mr. Law and Order” Mitchell eventually went to prison.)
Do Trump and his associates have something to hide — something even bigger and uglier than Watergate? The ferocity of their reactions certainly arouses suspicion, and so did their peculiar effort to conceal the misconduct of fired national security adviser Michael Flynn, which they attempted to hide even from the hapless vice president. Had the damning facts about Flynn not leaked, the compromised adviser would still be running the National Security Council, according to Trump.
We may never know the full truth, unless and until the Senate appoints a special investigative committee, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions recuses his conflicted self to appoint a special counsel. For now, unfortunately, Trump can rely on the protection of most Republicans on Capitol Hill, whose interpretation of their duty is so craven and self-serving, unlike the Republican leaders who rose to the challenge of Watergate.
Indeed, all too many Republicans seem ready to celebrate the Kremlin’s violation of our democracy. At CPAC, dozens of fervent “conservatives” waved little Russian Federation flags sporting a TRUMP logo, until conference officials confiscated them.
But that bizarre display didn’t reflect the attitude of most Americans. And we can hope that this administration’s attempts to bully the press corps will not only fail, but backfire — just as in Nixon’s time. Trump and his associates have something to hide — something even bigger and uglier than Watergate? The ferocity of their reactions certainly arouses suspicion, and so did their peculiar effort to conceal the misconduct of fired national security adviser Michael Flynn, which they attempted to hide even from the hapless vice president. Had the damning facts about Flynn not leaked, the compromised adviser would still be running the National Security Council, according to Trump.
We may never know the full truth, unless and until the Senate appoints a special investigative committee, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions recuses his conflicted self to appoint a special counsel. For now, unfortunately, Trump can rely on the protection of most Republicans on Capitol Hill, whose interpretation of their duty is so craven and self-serving, and so unlike the Republican leaders who rose to the challenge of Watergate.
Indeed, all too many Republicans seem ready to celebrate the Kremlin’s violation of our democracy. At CPAC, dozens of fervent “conservatives” waved little Russian Federation flags sporting a TRUMP logo, until conference officials confiscated them. But that bizarre display didn’t reflect the attitude of most Americans. And we can hope that this administration’s attempts to bully the press corps will not only fail, but backfire — just as in Nixon’s time.
Read the whole story
· · · ·
Top Democrat has 'grave concerns' about Trump-Russia investigation
Politico-19 hours ago
The top Democrat on the Senate committee investigating President Donald Trump's ties to Russia says he has “grave concerns” about the ...
Trump administration asked intelligence officials, key lawmakers to ...
In-Depth-Chicago Tribune-Feb 24, 2017
In-Depth-Chicago Tribune-Feb 24, 2017
The story of the week is Trump, Russia and the FBI. The rest is a ...
Opinion-The Guardian-17 hours ago
Opinion-The Guardian-17 hours ago
On Friday, the White House excluded several news outlets from an off-camera press ‘gaggle’ that took the place of the day’s open press briefing. The barred outlets have uniformly been key players in investigating ties between the Trump administration and Russian leadership, or in framing the issue as dire for the administration’s legitimacy.
The excluded outlets were CNN, Buzzfeed, The Guardian, The LA Times, Politico, The Hill, The Daily Mail, BBC, and The New York Times. While it’s not uncommon for small groups of reporters to be given of-camera White House briefings, veteran reporters have described the explicit exclusion of particular media organizations as unprecedented.
CNN was the first outlet to report publicly on a long-rumored document from a former British intelligence agent, alleging Trump’s vulnerability to compromise by Russian intelligence. Shortly thereafter, Buzzfeed published the document in full. CNN later reported that some portions of the document had been corroborated by U.S. intelligence investigators.
The Guardian has described the Russia issue as a “crisis of legitimacy” for Trump. Yesterday, it characterized the press embargo itself as a distraction from new reports that the White House had asked the FBI to rebut press stories about Russia ties.
The BBC has described Russia links as the “one controversy [that] has clung to the Trump train like glue.” Politico recently reported on apparent blackmail attempts against former Trump political advisor Paul Manafort, due to his ties to the former pro-Russian president of Ukraine, Victor Yanukovich.
Similar examples could be cited from all of the excluded outlets. The Washington Post did not have a reporter present on Friday, but they might not have been welcome anyway. The Post was first to report on conversations between Russian ambassador Sergey Kilyak and Michael Flynn, ultimately leading to Flynn’s departure.
Some outlets that were invited to the briefing, including Breitbart News, the Washington Times, and One America News Network, have been much more skeptical of the significance of the Russia issue. The One America News Network recently published claims that Crimea “has always been part of Russia” and that “there is no reason for there to be a bad relationship between the United States and Russia”.
Other media organizations invited into the briefing included ABC, CBS, and Bloomberg. The Associated Press and Time were permitted to attend, but declined because other outlets had been blocked.
Read the whole story
· ·
BERLIN (Reuters) - A man drove into a group of people standing by a bakery in the southern German town of Heidelberg on Saturday, injuring three people, one of them seriously, police said in a statement.
Attacks on 2 Syrian Security Offices Kill Dozensby THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Also in Syria on Saturday, men evacuated children from the rubble of destroyed buildings after a reported government airstrike on Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus.
