How Europe Prepared for WW2 | Impossible Peace | Timeline

When WW2 became inevitable. While all of Czechoslovakia is annexed, the curtain goes up on what will become the world's first truly global and total war.

Schumer's Response to Woodward Tapes: 'They're Just Awful' | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-NY, joins Morning Joe to discuss revelations from Bob Woodward's interviews with President Trump for the new book 'Rage.' Aired on 09/10/2020.

Corona in den USA: Ist Trump am Ende? | Auf den Punkt (Juli 9, 2020)

Die Weltmacht USA niedergestreckt vom Coronavirus. Immer mehr Infizierte und die Wirtschaft am Boden. Kostet die Pandemie Trump das Amt? Unsere Gäste: Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson (KCRW Radio Berlin), Matthew Karnitschnig (Politico), Rachel Tausendfreund (German Marshall Fund)

'State of Shock' Inside White House, Says Reporter | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Associated Press reporter Jonathan Lemire discusses the mood inside the White House following revelations from Bob Woodward's new book 'Rage.' Aired on 09/10/2020.

The UK Is One of the Most Corrupt Nations on Earth

THE GUARDIAN: Fortunes are being made by political favourites, while Brexit could cement London’s reputation for money laundering

Fear, shame, embarrassment: these brakes no longer apply. The government has discovered that it can bluster through any scandal. No minister need resign. No one need apologise. No one need explain.

As public outrage grows over the billions of pounds of coronavirus contracts issued by the government without competition, it seems determined only to award more of them. Never mind that the consulting company Deloitte, whose personnel circulate in and out of government, has been strongly criticised for the disastrous system it devised to supply protective equipment to the NHS. It has now been granted a massive new contract to test the population for Covid-19. » | George Monbiot | Thursday, September 10, 2020

Cummings ally's PR firm given Covid-19 contracts without tenders »

This Brexit Bill Finally Buries the Conservative Party of Law and Order

THE GUARDIAN: For a Cummings-influenced government to break promises is no surprise. But breaking the law is still a jaw-dropping move

To the patron saint of modern Conservatives, the rule of law was always fundamental to economic prosperity. It was also always distinctively British. In her memoirs, Margaret Thatcher identified the rule of law as the foundational underpinning of commercial confidence in any society. And in a 1982 interview she said that Britain gave the very idea of the rule of law to Europe. As she put it: “The law came from us.”

Thatcher also shared the view of her favourite lawyer, Lord Denning, that the law should uphold the keeping of promises. She extended this to upholding the obligations of international treaties too. In 1975, she told the Tory women’s conference that: “In the same way that government and individuals should be bound by law so countries should be bound by treaties.” She added: “Britain does not renounce treaties. Indeed, to do so would damage our own integrity as well as international relations.” » | Martin Kettle | Wednesday, September 9, 2020

'A Fool': Trump Insider Backs Cohen, Putin Playing Trump Like a Sucker | MSNBC

"New allegations against Donald Trump are now being revealed by his former personal attorney and fixer Michael Cohen with the release of a new tell-all book about the president. Cohen revealing details about Trump’s relationship with Russian president Putin and Trump’s racism. Former Trump organization executive Barbara Res joins Melber to react to the book’s allegations, asking why the Russians “are so influential” to Trump.

Don Winslow Films - #TrumpIsNotLikeYou

Trump ‘Deserves to Have His Real Record’ & ‘Hypocritical Use of Military as a Prop Exposed’ | MSNBC

Rick Wilson, Republican Strategist and co-founder of The Lincoln Project, joins MSNBC’s Craig Melvin to discuss President Trump’s rhetoric and how it could have dangerous consequences for election day, why you shouldn’t be looking at national polls, and whether Trump’s alleged comments about the military will stick with voters. Aired on 09/08/2020.

Draft Dodger Don: Trump Hates Our Troops

Trump demeans, degrades and disgraces our troops.

Seth Andrews Interviews Richard Dawkins

Brexit: Johnson droht EU mit Abbruch der Verhandlungen | DW Nachrichten

Der Ton in der britischen Regierung wird rauer. Am Wochenende erklärte UK-Unterhändler David Frost, er habe keine Angst, die Handelsgespräche mit der EU zu beenden. Aber das war nur zum Aufwärmen: Jetzt will Premierminister Boris Johnson ein Ergebnis bis Mitte Oktober, sonst würde er das Land auf eine Zukunft ohne Abkommen vorbereiten. Das könnte noch als Verhandlungspoker gelten, wenn es nicht Pläne gäbe, Teile des Nordirland-Protokolls außer Kraft zu setzen, wie die Financial Times berichtet. Der Bruch des Austrittsabkommens aber ist für die EU die ultimative rote Linie.

Auch ein No-Deal wäre für Großbritannien ein "gutes Ergebnis", behauptet Boris Johnson in seiner Erklärung. Und sein Land könne "mächtig prosperieren", wenn es sich ab 1. Januar 2021 ohne Abkommen von der EU lösen würde.

Beobachter sind unsicher, wie die letzten Schachzüge in London zu bewerten sind: Stellen sie Teil der Verhandlungsstrategie dar und sind nur Säbelrasseln? Will Boris Johnson lediglich seine Brexit-Hardliner beschwichtigen, die schon seit dem Sommer gegen das Austrittsabkommen agitieren? Oder bereitet der britische Premier tatsächlich sein Land auf einen harten Ausstieg, einen No-Deal, Ende des Jahres vor? Das Klima für die Gespräche in dieser Woche wirkt jedenfalls vergiftet und sie scheinen derzeit zum Scheitern verdammt.

Donald Trump: UnAmerican

Trump Emerges as Inspiration for Germany’s Far Right

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Among German conspiracy theorists, ultranationalists and neo-Nazis, the American president is surfacing as a rallying cry, or even as a potential “liberator.”

BERLIN — Just before hundreds of far-right activists recently tried to storm the German Parliament, one of their leaders revved up the crowd by conjuring President Trump.

“Trump is in Berlin!” the woman shouted from a small stage, as if to dedicate the imminent charge to him.

She was so convincing that several groups of far-right activists later showed up at the American Embassy and demanded an audience with Mr. Trump. “We know he’s in there!” they insisted.

Mr. Trump was neither in the embassy nor in Germany that day — and yet there he was. His face was emblazoned on banners, T-shirts and even on Germany’s pre-1918 imperial flag, popular with neo-Nazis in the crowd of 50,000 who had come to protest Germany’s pandemic restrictions. His name was invoked by many with messianic zeal.

It was only the latest evidence that Trump is emerging as a kind of cult figure in Germany’s increasingly varied far-right scene.

“Trump has become a savior figure, a sort of great redeemer for the German far right,” said Miro Dittrich, an expert on far-right extremism at the Berlin-based Amadeu-Antonio-Foundation. » | Katrin Bennhold | Monday, September 7, 2020

Aleksei Navalny Out of a Coma and Responsive, German Doctors Say

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Doctors treating the Russian opposition leader said his condition had improved, but they could not rule out lasting effects of “severe poisoning.” Germany said it was from a military-grade nerve agent.

BERLIN — The Russian opposition leader Aleksei A. Navalny is no longer in a medically induced coma and is responsive, doctors treating him at the Charité hospital in Berlin said on Monday. But they did not rule out lasting damage from what they called his “severe poisoning” with what the German government has said was a military-grade nerve agent. » | Melissa Eddy | Monday, September 7, 2020

Brexit: UK Plans to Override Parts of Withdrawal Deal | DW News

Michel Barnier 'Worried' by No 10 Plans to Renege on Brexit Deal

THE GUARDIAN: EU’s chief Brexit negotiator said full implementation of withdrawal agreement vital for avoiding a hard border

Michel Barnier said he was “worried” by the latest twists in the Brexit negotiations and would seek answers from the UK’s chief negotiator, David Frost, over claims that Downing Street is planning to negate parts of the withdrawal agreement.

The EU’s chief Brexit negotiator said full implementation of the international treaty was vital for avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland as it was reported that the government is planning legislation to override parts of the deal struck last year.

Ahead of the start on Tuesday of the latest round of trade and security negotiations with the British government, Barnier said the Northern Ireland protocol in the withdrawal deal was a “prerequisite for peace since the end of the conflict ... and it’s the prerequisite for a united and coherent economy for the entire island, and also to respect the single market”. » | Daniel Boffey and Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Monday, September 7, 2020

Ex-Trump Official Shares His Prediction If Trump Loses 2020

Former senior Trump administration official Miles Taylor says he is concerned that President Donald Trump will use litigation to make the 2020 race difficult for electors to certify.

Multiple News Outlets Mirror Report of Trump Denigrating Veterans, Military Service | MSNBC

Rachel Maddow reports on several news outlets that followed a report in the Atlantic of Donald Trump disparaging veterans and military service with matching reporting of their own, including Fox News, rendering denials from the Trump camp hollow. Aired on 09/04/2020.

Reneging on Brexit Deal Would Strengthen Case for Breaking Up UK, Government Told

THE GUARDIAN: Johnson to deliver ultimatum to EU as minister defends plan as addressing ‘a few loose ends’

Reneging on any obligations under the Brexit withdrawal agreement would make the case for breaking up the UK stronger, the government has been warned, as a minister defended the plan as simply addressing “a few minor loose ends”.

After it emerged Boris Johnson is drawing up legislation that will override the Brexit withdrawal agreement on Northern Ireland, threatening the collapse of talks with the EU, the SNP said leaving without a deal would cause “lasting damage to Scottish jobs and the economy in the middle of a pandemic”.

Ian Blackford, the SNP’s leader, said “By threatening to undermine the UK’s international treaty obligations and impose a catastrophic no-deal Brexit on Scotland against our will, the prime minister is proving he cannot be trusted and is underlining the need for Scotland to become an independent country.” » | Peter Walker, Political correspondent | Monday, September 7, 2020

Is Trump a Fascist? Philosopher Jason Stanley Considers the Evidence after "Four Years of Chaos"

Yale philosopher and scholar of propaganda Jason Stanley, author of "How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them," says President Trump built a cult of personality within the Republican Party and has moved the United States steadily into authoritarianism during his term. "Fascism is a cult of the leader who promises national restoration in the face of supposed threats by leftist radicals, minorities and immigrants," Stanley says. "He promises only he can save us."

A ‘Tyrant-Clown’ Has Destroyed My Love Affair with America

THE OBSERVER: With its cynical disabling of the body politic, the Trump administration has contaminated the well of US independence

Once upon a time, at the start of the last century, PG Wodehouse declared, with the fervour of the convert, that to live in America was “like being in heaven … without the bother and expense of dying”.

America used to do that to a certain kind of Brit, and to those who saw themselves as Greeks to the Americans’ Romans: we’d fall hopelessly in love, however much they abused the relationship.

My own long affair with America, as an idea as much as a reality, began in the bicentennial year, 1976, with a graduate scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania. Among the lovely red brick of old Philadelphia, I maxed out on the promise and possibilities of the American revolution, its majesty, optimism and rhetoric. Those pioneers of radical political self-expression, Jefferson, Franklin, et al, became idols of deep faith. For instance, years later, on a return visit to the Constitution Center, I was brought to tears by a video devoted to that love letter to democratic principles, the US constitution, and the eternal magic of “We, the people”. » | Robert McCrum | Sunday, September 6, 2020

Buttigieg: Trump ‘Shouldn’t Be Allowed within a One Mile Radius of a POW Flag’ | Deadline | MSNBC

Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana Pete Buttigieg who served in Afghanistan expresses grave concern over President Trump being in charge of decisions regarding prisoners of war and the rest of the military. Aired on 09/04/2020.

CNN Exclusive Interview with Sen. Kamala Harris (Parts 1 & 2)

Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris talks about President Trump's response to the coronavirus pandemic and the protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, with CNN's Dana Bash.

Biden Fires Back at Trump: My Son Wasn't a Sucker

Democratic nominee Joe Biden issued an emotional response after the Atlantic reported that President Trump denigrated US service members. President Trump has denied the allegations in the report.

CNN's Keilar Rolls the Tape on Trump's Attacks on Military Members and Their Families

CNN anchor and military spouse Brianna Keilar reacts to The Atlantic's report claiming President Trump called soldiers "losers" and "suckers." President Trump has denied the allegations and CNN has not independently verified the report.

Tricks of Treats? Ft. Tim Noakes, Prominent South African Athlete & Scientist

There are times in life when much of what you hold as truth is debunked, when the sweetest of treats turn out to be the worst of poisons and when you realize that the people who took the oath of doing no harm, in fact, made you or your loved ones sicker. Such a realization has already arrived or is in store for millions of people around the world suffering from insulin resistance, a condition that wrecks the body’s metabolic and immune systems and often condemns people to a poor life and an awful death. How to see through these sweet lies before it’s too late? To discuss this Oksana is joined by Tim Noakes, founder of The Noakes Foundation.

Outrage, But Not Surprise, at Reports That Trump Called Fallen Veterans ‘Suckers’, ‘Losers’ | MSNBC

Lawmakers and veterans react to a story in The Atlantic and confirmed by The Associated Press reporter about President Donald Trump’s apparent disdain for those who sacrificed lives and limbs fighting for their country. Trump was reported to have rejected a visit to an American military cemetery in France because he feared his hair would fare badly in the blustery weather, and said, “Why would I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers.” Aired on 9/3/2020.

The Nazi Romance With Islam Has Some Lessons for the United States

TABLET: Two new important histories look at Hitler’s fascination with Islam and Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey

Both Hitler and Himmler had a soft spot for Islam. Hitler several times fantasized that, if the Saracens had not been stopped at the Battle of Tours, Islam would have spread through the European continent—and that would have been a good thing, since “Jewish Christianity” wouldn’t have gone on to poison Europe. Christianity doted on weakness and suffering, while Islam extolled strength, Hitler believed. Himmler in a January 1944 speech called Islam “a practical and attractive religion for soldiers,” with its promise of paradise and beautiful women for brave martyrs after their death. “This is the kind of language a soldier understands,” Himmler gushed.

Surely, the Nazi leaders thought, Muslims would see that the Germans were their blood brothers: loyal, iron-willed, and most important, convinced that Jews were the evil that most plagued the world. “Do you recognize him, the fat, curly-haired Jew who deceives and rules the whole world and who steals the land of the Arabs?” demanded one of the Nazi pamphlets dropped over North Africa (a million copies of it were printed). “The Jew,” the pamphlet explained, was the evil King Dajjal from Islamic tradition, who in the world’s final days was supposed to lead 70,000 Jews from Isfahan in apocalyptic battle against Isa—often identified with Jesus, but according to the Reich Propaganda Ministry none other than Hitler himself. Germany produced reams of leaflets like this one, often quoting the Quran on the subject of Jewish treachery. » | David Mikics | Monday, November 24, 2014

Seth Andrews: From Religion to Reason

Seth Andrews chronicles his personal story for a live Minneapolis audience, the event sponsored by Minnesota Atheists.

The Mennonites – A Trip Back in Time | DW Documentary

Like the Amish in the US, the Mennonite Christian community shuns the modern world. Most Mennonites live in secluded, self-sufficient colonies. We get a rare glimpse into the life of a devout and isolated community.

The Mennonites embrace isolation, which in their eyes helps protect them from the temptations of the modern world. At first glance, time seems to have stood still in the Mennonite colony in Belize, where people still travel by horse-drawn carriage and do without conveniences such as televisions and electricity. They still speak an old form of the German dialect Plattdeutsch. But modern life is slowly making inroads in Little Belize. Wilhelm, the community’s former doctor, was expelled for owning a mobile phone. Fearing that their community was being tainted, some more traditional members decided to found a new colony in a remote jungle in Peru, where they hope to live according to old customs and religious beliefs. For the first time ever, a camera team was granted access to one of Central and South America’s traditional Mennonite colonies.

The Danger Is Now Clear: Trump Is Destroying Democracy in broad daylight

THE GUARDIAN: More and more, the president voices contempt for the voting process. Imagine what he’d do if re-elected

This is not a normal election. I don’t say that because it is now clear that, against some stiff competition, Donald Trump is the most repellent individual ever to have sought, let alone won, the presidency of the United States. The latest proof comes in a quadruple-sourced account of Trump describing US troops who died for their country as “losers” and “suckers”, and demanding that a military parade exclude wounded veterans, lest spectators glimpse an amputee. “Nobody wants to see that,” he said.

There was a time when the Atlantic’s jaw-dropping report, later corroborated “in its entirety” by the Associated Press, would have proved terminal for a politician in a country where respect for the military supposedly has the status of a religious obligation. But that time is long past. It ended in 2015 when Trump branded John McCain – who had spent more than five years in a Hanoi cell as a prisoner of war – a “loser”, though of course now Trump swears blind that he never said any such thing, despite the existence of videoshowing him saying exactly that. » | Jonathan Freedland | Friday, September 4, 2020

Brits, Take It from an Aussie: If Tony Abbott Is Your Solution, You've Got Big Problems

THE GUARDIAN: Our former PM has not only made deeply sexist remarks, he’s also inept – and unsuited to be anyone’s trade envoy

It’s true that Tony Abbott was a highly effective opposition leader.

Between 2013 and 2015, he was involved in enough domestic scandals, international embarrassments and local protests to damage the reputation of a sitting Australian prime minister.

Alas for Abbott, he was prime minister himself at the time.

We Australians have been obliged to reflect on the qualities of our former conservative “Liberal” leader at the prompting of the British. For reasons that are inexplicable to us, Abbott has been given the role of trade adviser by Boris Johnson’s government.

The task ahead is to skilfully create for Britain a post-Brexit trade environment. The nation must replace a forsaken European common market membership with international exchanges that are profitable, advantageous and – fingers crossed! – don’t result in too much visible pus in the food.

I can only imagine someone in the appointment process believed the whole endeavour is destined to fail and only a fool would take the job. In that case, Britain, fair enough: Abbott romps it home on both fronts. » | Van Badham | Friday, September 4, 2020

Boris Johnson Fascinated by Donald Trump, Says Ex-Ambassador

THE GUARDIAN: PM is intrigued by Trump’s ‘relationship with the truth’, Kim Darroch writes in new book

Kim Darroch, a former British ambassador to the US, has said Boris Johnson is fascinated and inspired by Donald Trump, and is intrigued by the US president’s patchy relationship “with the facts and the truth”.

In a new book serialised in the Times, Lord Darroch said Johnson must share the blame for his resignation as ambassador to Washington, which followed the leaking of diplomatic cables disparaging Trump.

Darroch wrote that Johnson had been “fascinated” by Trump on his visits to Washington as foreign secretary before he became prime minister, with particular focus on the president’s use of language.

This includes “the limited vocabulary, the simplicity of the messaging, the disdain for political correctness, the sometimes incendiary imagery, and the at best intermittent relationship with facts and the truth”, the former diplomat wrote. » | PA media | Saturday, September 5, 2020

Don Winslow Films - #MeetMotherPence

Trump: Americans Who Died in War Are ‘Losers’ and ‘Suckers’

THE ATLANTIC: The president has repeatedly disparaged the intelligence of service members, and asked that wounded veterans be kept out of military parades, multiple sources tell The Atlantic.

When President Donald Trump canceled a visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery near Paris in 2018, he blamed rain for the last-minute decision, saying that “the helicopter couldn’t fly” and that the Secret Service wouldn’t drive him there. Neither claim was true.

Trump rejected the idea of the visit because he feared his hair would become disheveled in the rain, and because he did not believe it important to honor American war dead, according to four people with firsthand knowledge of the discussion that day. In a conversation with senior staff members on the morning of the scheduled visit, Trump said, “Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers.” In a separate conversation on the same trip, Trump referred to the more than 1,800 marines who lost their lives at Belleau Wood as “suckers” for getting killed. » | Jeffrey Goldberg | Thursday, September 3, 2020

Trump 'Is a Man of Many Fears': Former Military Leaders React to the Atlantic's Reporting | MSNBC

Retired four star general Barry McCaffrey and former Defense Secretary William Cohen join Andrea Mitchell to react to reporting from the Atlantic that President Trump called Americans who died in war "losers" and "suckers." General McCaffrey says that Trump "is a man of many fears" who "can't understand the millions of veterans who have stepped forward to fight and defend this country." Secretary Cohen adds that "almost everything he has done has proven that he is unfit to serve." Aired on 09/04/2020.

Former Australian PM Tony Abbott Confirmed as UK Trade Adviser

THE GUARDIAN: Critics say Abbott’s views on women and homosexuality and the climate crisis make him unfit for role

Boris Johnson has appointed Tony Abbott as an official UK trade adviser, defying widespread condemnation of the former Australian prime minister’s record of misogyny and homophobia and his views on the climate emergency.

Abbott, whose consideration for the role prompted criticism from opposition parties, charities and LGBT and environmental activists, is among nine external advisers appointed to the Board of Trade. The board, revived by Theresa May, is intended to help shape post-Brexit trade policy.

Liz Truss, the international trade secretary, who declined to defend Abbott’s views when asked about them in a TV interview last week, said the advisers were “a diverse group of people who share Britain’s belief in free enterprise, democracy and high standards and rules-based trade”. » | Peter Walker and Kevin Rawlinson | Friday, September 4, 2020

'We're At the Point Where We Should Sanction Putin', Tory MP Says | LBC

Tom Tugendhat told LBC sanctions should be used "more actively" to help target individuals who have been "part of Putin's mafia regime".

Speaking to LBC's Iain Dale Tom Tugendhat, the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee and Conservative MP for Tonbridge and Malling, said it was time to start sanctioning President Putin.

Earlier President Vladimir Putin's spokesman has brushed off allegations that the Kremlin was involved in poisoning the Russian leader's most determined critic, Alexei Navalny. But Mr Tugendhat told LBC that he thinks the UK should be "stiffer with the sanctions" that are in place.

Referencing the Magnitsky Act the Tory MP said sanctions should be used "more actively" to help target individuals who have been "part of Putin's mafia regime".

Türkei vs. Griechenland: Riskiert Erdogan einen Krieg? | Auf den Punkt

Die türkische Außenpolitik unter Präsident Erdogan wird immer aggressiver. Jüngstes Beispiel der Gasstreit im östlichen Mittelmeer. Droht jetzt ein Krieg unter Natopartnern? Unsere Gäste: Maximilian Popp (Spiegel), Michael Thumann (Die Zeit), Yasemin Ergin (freie Journalistin).

Prof. Richard D Wolff on the Four Reasons Capitalism Is Imploding

Professor Richard D. Wolff discusses the "four basic problems that the United States and its Capitalist system have had for a very long time" and how "none of them have been solved", and how "none of them have even been approached for the serious fundamental problems that they are". Watch to hear Professor Wolff break down these four all-encompassing issues we face in America today and have faced in our history.

Angela Merkel: 'Unequivocal Proof' Alexei Navalny Was Poisoned with Novichok

The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, said in a personal statement that testing by a special military laboratory had shown proof that the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a novichok nerve agent. 'It is now clear: Alexei Navalny is the victim of a crime,' Merkel said. 'He was meant to be silenced. This raises very difficult questions that only the Russian government can answer, and has to answer.' Alexei Navalny poisoned with novichok, says German government

Donald Trump’s Failed Leadership Threatens Everything Mark Cares about. For that reason, he's for Joe

"It's unbelievable what he's doing to save himself and to get re-elected. It's just all about him, not about country."

Donald Trump Denies Suffering 'Mini Strokes'

THE TELEGRAPH: VP Mike Pence was reportedly put on 'standby' over president's hospital visit in November

Donald Trump has denied having a series of “mini strokes” amid reports Mike Pence, vice president, was put on standby after he sought hospital treatment in November.

Mr Trump's denial comes amid new scrutiny of his unannounced weekend trip to Walter Reed last November, during which the White House said the president began “portions of his routine annual physical exam".

However, according to a forthcoming book by New York Times reporter Michael Schmidt, West Wing staffers were told to put Mr Pence on standby “to take over the powers of the presidency temporarily if Mr Trump had to undergo a procedure that would have required him to be anesthetized". » | Josie Ensor, US correspondent | Tuesday, September 1, 2020

Donald Trump: Ratings

Biden beats Trump in polls and ratings. Ouch.

Meet the New Yes Man on Trump's COVID Task Force: Dr Scott Atlas Wants US to Adopt Herd Immunity

As the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States passes 6 million, with a death toll of over 183,000, the Trump administration is loosening coronavirus restrictions, fast-tracking vaccine approval and disregarding safety tests, and now one of Trump's top medical advisers is pushing for the country to adopt a controversial "herd immunity" strategy, raising alarm among public health officials. Washington Post health reporter Yasmeen Abutaleb says Dr. Scott Atlas is not an epidemiologist and was brought on specifically because he would back President Trump's position "about how the pandemic was going, that the threat was receding, that the country should reopen." We also speak with Yale epidemiologist Gregg Gonsalves, who argues the U.S. is already following an "implicit" herd immunity policy. "They realize it's politically toxic, so they don't want to use the phrase, but if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it is a duck," he says.

Germany Shocked by Far-right Protesters Trying to Enter Parliament | DW News

German politicians from across the political spectrum have condemned a far-right attempt to storm the parliament building in Berlin. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called it "an intolerable attack on the heart of our democracy". Demonstrators against the government's pandemic policies, along with far-right groups and science deniers overwhelmed police to rush the entrance to the German parliament. The sight of black, white and red imperial German flags in front of the Reichstag was so shocking that science denial and conspiracy theories were forgotten.