Friday, September 11, 2020
Trump Admits to Watching 9 Hours of Fox News a Day
Donald Trump: This Pennsylvanian Tells It Like It Is
How Hitler's Third Reich Terrified Europe | Impossible Peace | Timeline
Belgian King's Daughter Fights for Right to Call Herself a Princess
THE GUARDIAN: Delphine Boël, whose mother had affair with ex-king Albert II, also wants to take her father’s surname
A woman who successfully fought a seven-year legal battle to prove she was the daughter of the former king of Belgium, Albert II, will learn next month whether, against the wishes of her father, she will be able to use the titles Her Royal Highness and the Princess of Belgium.
Delphine Boël, 52, an artist and sculptor, whose mother had an extra-marital affair with Albert in the 1960s and 70s, argued in the Brussels court of appeal that she should also be able to use her biological father’s surname of Saxe-Coburg. The court will give its judgment on 29 October.
King Albert, 86, who abdicated from the Belgian throne in 2013, was forced to acknowledge he was Boël’s biological father after a court-ordered DNA test last January. » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels | Friday, September 11, 2020
A woman who successfully fought a seven-year legal battle to prove she was the daughter of the former king of Belgium, Albert II, will learn next month whether, against the wishes of her father, she will be able to use the titles Her Royal Highness and the Princess of Belgium.
Delphine Boël, 52, an artist and sculptor, whose mother had an extra-marital affair with Albert in the 1960s and 70s, argued in the Brussels court of appeal that she should also be able to use her biological father’s surname of Saxe-Coburg. The court will give its judgment on 29 October.
King Albert, 86, who abdicated from the Belgian throne in 2013, was forced to acknowledge he was Boël’s biological father after a court-ordered DNA test last January. » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels | Friday, September 11, 2020
Trump Tries to Contain Fallout; Editorial Board Plays Down Woodward Book | Morning Joe | MSNBC
Ireland Accuses Boris Johnson of Trying to Sabotage Peace Process
THE GUARDIAN: Dublin minister says UK plan to undo Brexit deal would have ‘unthinkable’ consequences
The Irish government has accused Boris Johnson of trying to sabotage the Northern Ireland peace process with a “unilateral provocative act” based on spurious claims about the Good Friday agreement.
As Brexit talks hang by a thread following the UK’s threat to renege on parts of the withdrawal agreement, Thomas Byrne, Ireland’s European affairs minister, branded the UK government’s claims that its move was to protect the peace process as “completely false”.
He said what would happen as a result of this bill becoming law was “completely unthinkable”.
Relations with the EU have plunged to a new low in the last 24 hours after the UK rejected Brussels demands to withdraw the parts of the internal markets bill that would give the government power to override the Northern Ireland protocol.
The move has also soured Anglo-Irish relations, with no warning of the plan to undo the Brexit arrangements on Northern Ireland by one of the co-guarantors of the Good Friday agreement. » | Lisa O’Carroll and Daniel Boffey | Friday, September 11, 2020
The Irish government has accused Boris Johnson of trying to sabotage the Northern Ireland peace process with a “unilateral provocative act” based on spurious claims about the Good Friday agreement.
As Brexit talks hang by a thread following the UK’s threat to renege on parts of the withdrawal agreement, Thomas Byrne, Ireland’s European affairs minister, branded the UK government’s claims that its move was to protect the peace process as “completely false”.
He said what would happen as a result of this bill becoming law was “completely unthinkable”.
Relations with the EU have plunged to a new low in the last 24 hours after the UK rejected Brussels demands to withdraw the parts of the internal markets bill that would give the government power to override the Northern Ireland protocol.
The move has also soured Anglo-Irish relations, with no warning of the plan to undo the Brexit arrangements on Northern Ireland by one of the co-guarantors of the Good Friday agreement. » | Lisa O’Carroll and Daniel Boffey | Friday, September 11, 2020
Thursday, September 10, 2020
Strzok: Trump's Financial Involvement with Russia Is Very Broad | Morning Joe | MSNBC
113 Reasons Republicans Aren't Voting for Trump in 2020
How Europe Prepared for WW2 | Impossible Peace | Timeline
Schumer's Response to Woodward Tapes: 'They're Just Awful' | Morning Joe | MSNBC
Corona in den USA: Ist Trump am Ende? | Auf den Punkt (Juli 9, 2020)
'State of Shock' Inside White House, Says Reporter | Morning Joe | MSNBC
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 »
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 »
Wednesday, September 09, 2020
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
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
Tuesday, September 08, 2020
Trump ‘Deserves to Have His Real Record’ & ‘Hypocritical Use of Military as a Prop Exposed’ | MSNBC
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.
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.
Monday, September 07, 2020
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
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
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
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
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
Multiple News Outlets Mirror Report of Trump Denigrating Veterans, Military Service | MSNBC
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
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
Sunday, September 06, 2020
Is Trump a Fascist? Philosopher Jason Stanley Considers the Evidence after "Four Years of Chaos"
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
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
CNN Exclusive Interview with Sen. Kamala Harris (Parts 1 & 2)
Biden Fires Back at Trump: My Son Wasn't a Sucker
CNN's Keilar Rolls the Tape on Trump's Attacks on Military Members and Their Families
Tricks of Treats? Ft. Tim Noakes, Prominent South African Athlete & Scientist
Saturday, September 05, 2020
Outrage, But Not Surprise, at Reports That Trump Called Fallen Veterans ‘Suckers’, ‘Losers’ | MSNBC
The Nazi Romance With Islam Has Some Lessons for the United States
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
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 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
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
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
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
Friday, September 04, 2020
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
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
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