(CNN)President Donald Trump defended himself Sunday night after several days of controversy over his remarks about African countries, telling reporters, "I am not a racist."
In remarks to reporters at a dinner photo opportunity with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump said when asked if he is a racist, "No, I'm not a racist. I am the least racist person you have ever interviewed."
The President has drawn sharp criticism since he was reported to have called African countries "shitholes" while discussing immigration with lawmakers Thursday.
Democrats have been demanding protections for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in exchange for border security funding that could include money for Trump's promised border wall, but those talks reached an impasse after the President's recent remarks. Congress is grappling with the issue as they negotiate over a spending bill they need to pass by Friday to avoid a government shutdown.
Trump and some of the lawmakers in the closed-door meeting Thursday have since pushed back on the characterization of his comments, with the President denying making the derogatory remarks and allied Republican senators taking to the Sunday morning shows to claim Trump never used the vulgar phrase.
Georgia Sen. David Perdue said Trump "did not use that word" and called the assertions that he did "a gross misrepresentation." Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton also claimed the President's remarks were mischaracterized, saying, "I didn't hear it, and I was sitting no further away from Donald Trump than Dick Durbin was."
In a statement Friday, the two said they didn't recall Trump making the derogatory comments, "but what he did call out was the imbalance in our current immigration system, which does not protect American workers and our national interest."
Durbin, a Democratic senator from Illinois, said, however, that Trump did use "hate-filled, vile and racist" language in the meeting, according to the Chicago Tribune. Additionally, Sen. Lindsey Graham told fellow South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott that the reported comments were "basically accurate," Scott told the Charleston-based Post and Courier.
On Sunday night, the President addressed the looming government shutdown when asked if it would happen.
"I don't know if there will be a shutdown, there shouldn't be," he said.
The White House and Democrats in Congress are negotiating an immigration deal as lawmakers face a Friday deadline to pass a federal spending bill and avoid a government shutdown.
DACA talks
Trump said he is "ready and willing to make a deal" on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, but he doesn't believe Democrats want to reach an agreement.
"They don't want security at the border," Trump said. "We have people pouring in. They don't want security at the border. They don't want to stop drugs, and they want to take money away from our military, which we cannot do. So those are some of the sticking points."
The President's comments come after he held on-camera bipartisan talks at the White House last week in which he appeared open to making a deal with both Republicans and Democrats. The meeting took place prior to Trump's controversial comments from the Oval Office on Thursday.
North Korea
Asked by reporters if he has spoken to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un following his refusal to answer the question during a Wall Street Journal interview last week, Trump again did not answer the question.
"We're gonna see what happens," he said. "They have a couple of meetings scheduled, a couple of additional meetings scheduled, and we'll see what happens. Hopefully, it's all going to work out. We'll see."
He added: "We're going to see what happens with North Korea. We have great talks going on. The Olympics you know about. A lot of things can happen."
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Even without delivering on his biggest campaign promises, President Donald Trump has begun to reshape American life in ways big and small.
SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 / 10:53 PM
Over his first nine months, Trump has used an aggressive series of regulatory rollbacks, executive orders and changes in enforcement guidelines to rewrite the rules for industries from energy to airlines, and on issues from campus sexual assault to anti-discrimination protections for transgender students.
While his administration has been chaotic, and his decision-making impulsive and sometimes whimsical, Trump has made changes that could have far-reaching and lingering consequences for society and the economy. Some have grabbed headlines but many, no less consequential, have gone largely unnoticed amid the daily controversies and Twitter insults that have marked Trump's early months in office.
Under Trump, oil is flowing through the Dakota Access Pipeline. Arrests of immigrants living illegally in the United States are up. More federal lands are open for coal mining.
The administration has left its mark in smaller ways, as well. Trump has rolled back or delayed Obama-era rules and regulations that protected retirement savings from unscrupulous financial advisers, made it harder for companies that violated labor laws to land federal contracts and restricted what internet service providers could do with their customers’ personal data.
Those kinds of low-profile policy shifts are far from the dramatic change promised by the headline-loving Trump, who won the White House with a vow to fundamentally reshape Washington. But the effects can be just as real.
“Trump is doing an awful lot to shape policy and blow up policy,” said Norm Ornstein, a political analyst at the conservative American Enterprise Institute.
Stymied by his failure to win congressional approval for his big-ticket promises like a repeal of President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare reform, known as Obamacare, and a border wall with Mexico, Trump has turned to administrative action.
He has rolled back hundreds of rules and regulations, signed 47 executive orders and used a previously obscure legislative tool, the Congressional Review Act, 14 times to undo regulations passed in the final months of Obama’s presidency. The law had only been used once before, 16 years ago.
‘REGULATORY ROLLBACK’
The Trump administration has withdrawn or delayed more than 800 Obama-era regulatory actions in its first six months. Proposals for new rules, including those to delay or rescind existing rules, dropped 32 percent from the same period in 2016 under Obama, and are down from similar six-month periods under presidents George W. Bush, a Republican, and Bill Clinton, a Democrat, according to the libertarian Competitive Enterprise Institute.
At the same time, Trump has limited new federal regulations by requiring agencies to cut two rules for every new one they create. He has asked each agency to name a regulatory reform officer to take aim at unneeded rules.
“By far, this is the most significant regulatory rollback since Ronald Reagan,” said Wayne Crews, vice president for policy at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. “The Trump mode so far is to regulate bureaucrats rather than the public.”
Many business leaders have applauded the moves, aimed at fulfilling Trump’s campaign promise to end policies he says are strangling the economy. But critics say his reductions in environmental and worker protections put corporate profits before public health and safety - in direct contradiction to the populist campaign rhetoric that helped Trump win blue-collar votes.
FILE PHOTO: Zarfishan Zahid (L) smiles as Sana Tahir (R) holds Malaika Noman, 3, as the child arrives in the United States after a federal judge ruled Thursday that President Trump's temporary ban on travelers from six Muslim-majority countries cannot stop grandparents and other relatives of U.S. citizens from entering the country at Washington Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Virginia, U.S., July 14, 2017. REUTERS/James Lawler Duggan/File Photo
“Where Trump has had success in changing the rules of the road it has been used against the very people who helped elect him,” said Ben Olinsky, vice president for policy and strategy at the liberal Center for American Progress.
Neomi Rao, who is helping to lead Trump’s deregulatory drive as administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, said the reforms would promote economic growth and job creation.
“Regulatory reform benefits all Americans,” she said in a statement, adding that it can have “particular benefits for low- and middle-income workers.”
The “Trump effect” also goes far beyond policy. After a precedent-shattering campaign, Trump has redefined presidential behavior with his freewheeling and sometimes confrontational use of Twitter, his refusal to step away from his businesses and his reliance on family members as top advisers.
He has rattled longtime foreign allies with his sometimes bellicose statements and stoked social and political divisions at home, most recently with his attacks on mostly black professional football players who kneel in protest against racial injustice during the national anthem.
Slideshow (2 Images)
Many of Trump’s biggest policy proposals, including a ban on transgender people serving in the military, withdrawal from the Paris climate change accord and an end to the Obama-era program protecting from deportation young adults brought to the United States illegally as children, remain in limbo or under review in an administration where policymaking is often messy.
But Trump has found ways to make headway on some other stalled initiatives. While a repeal of Obamacare has faltered in Congress, his threats to cut the subsidy payments that help cover expenses for low-income consumers have created enough uncertainty that major insurers have pulled out of some state markets or asked much higher monthly premiums for 2018.
TOUGH RHETORIC HAS IMPACT
The administration has slashed advertising and cut grants to community groups that help people sign up, raising fears that many people will forgo coverage or forget to re-enroll in health plans for next year.
While plans for a border wall are stalled in Congress, Trump’s tough rhetoric had an apparent effect on illegal border crossings, with the number of apprehensions on the southwest border falling 63 percent from 42,000 in January to nearly 16,000 in April. Since then, they have begun creeping up again, but are still below levels seen last year.
A crackdown on immigrants living in the country illegally also led to a sharp increase in arrests in the interior of the country. In Trump’s first 100 days, the number of arrests by immigration agents increased by nearly 40 percent over the same period a year earlier. The number of immigrants without criminal histories arrested by immigration agents and booked into detention has jumped by more than 200 percent from January to July of this year, according to data reviewed by Reuters.
A flood of lawsuits has been filed against the new Republican administration, with Democratic state officials often leading the charge. The lower federal courts, stocked with judges appointed by Obama, have at least temporarily blocked several Trump initiatives.
Trump has been forced to rewrite a travel ban the administration says is aimed at protecting federal borders after the first two versions faced legal challenges from critics who said it discriminated against Muslims. The latest version imposes travel restrictions on eight countries.
One of Trump’s most lasting accomplishments is likely to be the confirmation of Justice Neil Gorsuch, who restored the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority and at age 50 is likely to serve for decades.
“I think Trump actually has accomplished a lot. There are a lot of things for conservatives to be happy about,” said Tommy Binion, director of congressional and executive relations at the conservative Heritage Foundation. “And I‘m optimistic there will be more.”
Follow Trump’s impact on energy, environment, healthcare, immigration and the economy at The Trump Effect [www.reuters.com/trump-effect]
(Aug 10): Donald Trump’s warning of ‘fire and fury’ to deal with North Korea, has rattled global markets.
August 10, 2017 11:16 am
MYTBloomberg
If war were to break out, the biggest toll would be the humanitarian one. But it would shake the global economy too.
An analysis by Capital Economics Ltd found that the supply and production of everything from smartphones and cars to flat screen televisions would take a significant hit, hurting growth around the world and pushing up prices. That’s because South Korea is embedded in a supply chain that feeds production of electronic appliances.
Here are some of the channels:
South Korea is the biggest producer of liquid crystal displays—used in televisions and other electronic devices—and accounts for 40% of their global production.
It’s the second biggest maker of semi-conductors—used in smartphones—with 17% of market share.
The Asian nation is also one of the world’s biggest car makers and is home to the globe’s three biggest ship builders.
“If South Korean production was badly damaged by a war there would be shortages across the world,” economists Gareth Leather and Krystal Tan wrote in a note. “The disruption would last for some time — it takes around two years to build a semi-conductor factory from scratch.”
Then there’s the risk to shipping lines. Any conflict would likely gum up major routes along the eastern seaboard of China, the world’s biggest trading nation.
“If it became too risky for container ships to enter and exit Chinese ports, it would cause even further disruption to the global economy,” according to Capital Economics.
For the U.S. alone, the costs could be profound. Federal debt would likely be pushed higher to fund the cost of fighting the war and to pay towards reconstruction costs. If the U.S. were to spend proportionally the same amount on any reconstruction on the Korean peninsula, as it did in Iraq and Afghanistan, national debt would soar by another 30%, according to the Capital Economics analysis.
Of course, we’re not at the point of conflict and some analysts say the scare is overdone. They point to previous periods of tension that eventually eased. It’s not even clear how any military conflict would play out, given the diversity of potential actors involved.
Still, even in the absence of military action, heightened tensions are already bad news for North Asian growth, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. “For South Korea, the overhang of uncertainty dents confidence — threatening a blow to investment and hiring. For Japan, a stronger yen hits corporate earnings and the Bank of Japan’s reflation plans.
A published report by the New Yorker on Thursday quotes new White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci on his ostensible colleagues in a shocking way. Published: July 28, 2017 1:25 a.m. ET
“Reince Priebus — if you want to leak something — he’ll be asked to resign very shortly,” he said of the chief of staff. “Reince is a fucking paranoid schizophrenic, a paranoiac.”
That wasn’t even the most incendiary comment Scaramucci made to Lizza, whom he reportedly pressed to reveal a confidential source’s name. In contrasting himself with the White House’s chief strategist, he had this to say:
‘I’m not Steve Bannon, I’m not trying to suck my own cock.’
Scaramucci tried to downplay the remarks in a comment on Twitter.
At a press conference earlier Thursday — before the publication of the article — press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was cagey on the issue of Scaramucci’s employment.
“He is working at the White House,” she said in response to a flurry of questions about Scaramucci’s status. The former fund-of-hedge-funds operator had previously said he could not take up the position until the sale of his firm was complete and did not present a potential conflict of interest.
IN the early thirties, Germany was in severe economic recession and in decline. In 1933, Adolph Hitler brainwashed and won over the disillusioned German working class to be elected as the chancellor. Posted on 1 February 2017 - 06:59pm Last updated on 1 February 2017 - 07:16pm
IN the early thirties, Germany was in severe economic recession and in decline. In 1933, Adolph Hitler brainwashed and won over the disillusioned German working class to be elected as the chancellor.
Hitler adopted a pro-fascist and right-wing nationalist ideology. He singled out the Jews as the "problem" and a root cause of the unemployment and other social ills. He rallied the people to make Germany great again. He wanted Germany to be the emerging European superpower, with its allies, Japan and Italy, to conquer the rest of the world, to be their colonies of the new world order.
Today, the United States is losing its global influence and is facing a stagnant economy with many working class people feeling neglected and disillusioned by the establishment in Washington.
In 2016, a "hero" emerged in the United States to fight for its working class and speak out against unemployment, poverty and the economic decline. He wanted to make America great again.
He has implied that ordinary peace-loving Muslims are the culprits and cause of terrorism. He saw Muslims as the "problem", like how Hitler saw the Jews.
Like Hitler, Donald Trump was democratically elected to be the president and commander-in-chief of the most powerful nation on earth.
He has been promoting Islamophobia by perpetuating stereotype myths about Muslims based on the same right-wing ideology that Hitler used.
There are two kinds of nationalism.
The first is Progressive (or Defensive) Nationalism, which is about fighting for freedom, self-determination and independence against foreign domination and control. It can be violent when the colonial or foreign power uses terror and repression to silence the population. For countries such as India and Malaysia, it was generally peaceful.
The other type – Right-Wing Nationalism – is negative, oppressive and often pro-fascist and is sweeping parts of the Western world. It is based on arrogance, ignorance, bigotry and racism, especially Islamophobia. These nationalist extremists profess the right to oppress minorities and blame them for causing social problems.
Within days of taking over as president on Jan 20, Trump signed an executive order to ban all ordinary people from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Somalia and Sudan from entering the US. He suspended the Syrian refugee programme. The civilised world is outraged.
Many Muslims were traumatised by this ban. Trump's excuse was to prevent Muslim terrorists from entering the US but he did not show any facts to support the case. Neither did he explain why the ban was selective and did not include Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
Palestinians are still fighting for their homeland and are even prepared to compromise on a UN-sponsored two-state solution (accepting the existence of Israel) for the sake of peace. However, Trump seems to oppose the two-state solution without offering any constructive proposal. Furthermore, his support of illegal Israeli settlements on occupied West Bank and his idea on moving the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem are causing international outrage and undermining the peace process.
His "America First" policy seems to be pitting America against the world, including the United Nations.
The US is withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal in favour of bilateral and regional trade pacts, which Trump feels that the US would have stronger bargaining power.
The US has been benefiting immensely from globalisation including the influx of talented and skilled people from other countries to make America prosper. For the world's largest economy to adopt such an inward-looking policy is stupid, arrogant, selfish and irresponsible. It will come back to haunt America.
The huge turnouts in the marches in support of women in Washington and all over the world during Trump's inauguration showed the strong sentiments against Trump's remarks and acts.
Pushing for building his border wall with Mexico is aimed at playing to the gallery on xenophobia in a country based historically on migration of people from Europe and elsewhere.
Trump seems to be pushing the world closer to a nuclear holocaust with his hawkish foreign policy and to "greatly expand nuclear capabilities".
Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has issued a warning that the world is getting closer to a nuclear war than before. Gorbachev was responsible for bringing an end to the Cold War era.
The "Doomsday Clock" maintained by the influential Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists' Science and Security Board has just been moved to two-and-a-half minutes to midnight (Doomsday). It was an important symbolic gesture that the world is now closer to a nuclear catastrophe than ever before.
Trump may also be playing a dangerous game of brinkmanship by trying to cosy up to Russia, perhaps with the aim of trying to "contain" China. Trump may be trying to treat Russia in the same way that Hitler forged an alliance with Japan before World War II. Trump may also perceive China as the main threat to America now like how Hitler viewed Britain then as the biggest stumbling block to his grand expansionist plan. Trump seems intent to provoke and infuriate China.
Trump does not seem to care for the environment. He poured scorn over the science of global warming and is trying to get the US out of the latest UN treaty on climate change. He has just signed an executive order to revive two large oil pipeline projects in the US which critics argue are bad for the environment.
His arrogance, self-denial and carelessness may cause his own downfall. He may be impeached by Congress, probably over a "conflict of interest" matter which his vast business empire may have with his executive position or if there is a case of "betrayal" or "treason" over some future event involving a foreign leader.
He has made enemies of his own powerful intelligence community and the big US news media, both of which he vehemently attacked and disparaged earlier.
Americans are not opposed to their president making lasting peace with Russia or collaborating with Russia to fight terrorism but they would be against any secret deals which may compromise the long-term interests of the US and its allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
While Trump may have boasted about going for a second term, he may not even survive a full first term in office until 2021.
Let's pray that while serving as the commander-in-chief of America, Trump will not do anything which would lead to the destruction of humanity and if it were to happen, (he must know) it will certainly include himself, his family, relatives, friends and his business empire.
But why should we all die for Donald Trump?
The writer is an independent political analyst and strategist who believes that justice will eventually prevail. Comments: kktan@the sundaily.com
Photos of US President-elect Donald Trump’s landmark first talks with a foreign leader show his daughter Ivanka was present, underscoring the family’s influence as he readies to take power. Friday November 18, 2016 03:05 PM GMT+8
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meets with US President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, November 17, 2016. — Reuters picWASHINGTON, Nov 18 — Photos of US President-elect Donald Trump’s landmark first talks with a foreign leader show his daughter Ivanka was present, underscoring the family’s influence as he readies to take power.
In the meeting with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the mogul’s Trump Plaza residence, Ivanka — a model-turned-business executive — was seen seated as the group conversed in the opulent reception room.
Media were shut out of the gathering in Manhattan, but images released by the Japanese government also showed Ivanka and her husband, real estate developer and publisher Jared Kushner, standing and chatting with Abe.
Ivanka and Kushner, both 35, have emerged as key advisers to Trump, who shocked the world by beating Democrat Hillary Clinton in the November 8 election.
World leaders have scrambled to establish ties with Trump but Abe was the first to see him in person since the vote which has provoked anxiety over US foreign policy and its commitment to security in Asia.
Abe told reporters afterwards that the encounter convinced him the US president-elect was someone “in whom I can have great confidence”.
“We were able to have a very candid talk over a substantial amount of time. We held it in a very warm atmosphere,” he said.
“Without confidence between the two nations, our alliance would never function in the future.”
Also seen standing in one of the photos, amidst the gilt and chandeliers of Trump’s skyscraper, was former general Michael Flynn, who has reportedly been offered the post of national security adviser.
But the presence of Ivanka, in a black-and-white dress and high heels, drew attention in protocol-conscious Japan, particularly after the tabloid press reported Trump planned to appoint her as US ambassador to Tokyo.
“It’s quite unusual to see a family member attending the first encounter between two leaders even if it’s informal,” said Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a professor at the University of Niigata Prefecture,
“It indicates that she would be playing some important role in the Trump administration,” he added.
“But it’s no surprise to see her there as she has already been involved in politics. Anyway, that’s the Trump way.”
Ivanka Trump is a key player in her father’s business empire and has her own fashion label and jewellery line, and active Twitter and Instagram accounts that nourish her brand.
The Tokyo Sports newspaper carried an article headlined “Trump daughter-blonde beauty Ms Ivanka the next ambassador to Japan!?” on its website last Saturday.
It cited unidentified overseas media as having reported before the vote that Trump had secret plans to appoint her ambassador, replacing current envoy Caroline Kennedy who is the daughter of assassinated US president John F. Kennedy.
“I don’t think the possibility that Ivanka would be an ambassador to Japan is zero, but it’s too early to say,” said Yamamoto. — AFP
- See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/world/article/trumps-daughter-ivanka-sits-in-on-landmark-japan-pm-talks#sthash.oW8kZaUp.dpuf
