AP FACT CHECK: Trump distorts Biden's position on fracking

BIDEN IS A PENNSYLVANIA OIL STATE BOY;

PRO FRACKING
ELLEN KNICKMEYER and CALVIN WOODWARD,
Associated Press•July 31, 2020

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — President Donald Trump is routinely distorting Democratic rival Joe Biden's policy on fracking as he tries to transform it into a full-scale “disaster” for election battlegrounds.

Trump's latest iteration of his falsehood:

TRUMP: “Biden came out against fracking. Well, that means Texas is going to be one of the most unemployed states in our country. That means Oklahoma, North Dakota, New Mexico are going to be a disaster. Ohio, Pennsylvania — disaster. No fracking.” — news conference Thursday.

THE FACTS: No, that’s not Biden’s position at all.

In a March 15 primary debate, Biden misstated his fracking policy and his campaign quickly corrected the record. Biden has been consistent on his middle-of-the-road position since then, going so far as to tell an anti-fracking activist at a December campaign event that he “ought to vote for somebody else” if he wanted an immediate fracking ban.

Trump continually ignores the correction.

Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, opened up a yearslong oil and gas boom in parts of the Southwest, Northeast and High Plains when the technique went into widespread use under the Obama administration, although the coronavirus pandemic and a global petroleum glut have now driven down prices and demand.

Biden floundered in the March primary debate when Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke of his own proposal, saying he was intending to wind down fracking entirely. “So am I,” Biden replied. “No more — no new — fracking.”

Biden’s campaign contacted reporters to say he misspoke, and the candidate and his campaign have been consistent in public statements of Biden’s position since.

Biden supports banning only new oil and gas permits, fracking included, on federal land. But most U.S. production is on private land — the U.S. Bureau of Land Management says production on federal land accounted for less than 10% of oil and gas in 2018. So Biden's limited restriction does not spell “disaster” for entire states.

The Democratic candidate does call for closer oversight of oil and gas production to minimize dangerous pollutants from it, including climate-damaging methane. And his plan to slow climate change calls for big-spending proposals to encourage cleaner forms of energy, so that U.S. power plants by 2035 are emitting no carbon pollution from fossil fuels.

But banning fracking on state-regulated private lands could take action by Congress, and Biden has expressed doubts whether lawmakers would vote for that. “Because you can’t ban fracking right now; you’ve got to transition away from it,” he told the anti-fracking activist at the December event.

Some of the states with the most fracking — such as Texas, Pennsylvania and Ohio — are battleground states in the presidential election. Trump has seized on fracking as a position to hit Biden on. But Trump is not doing it honestly.

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Woodward reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Matthew Brown contributed from Billings, Montana.

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EDITOR'S NOTE — A look at the veracity of claims by political figures.

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Find AP Fact Checks at http://apnews.com/APFactCheck

Trump did not attend John Lewis' funeral. 

INSTEAD HE TWEETED AN ELECTORAL TROPE TO DISTRACT EVERYONE 
https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/07/trump-cant-delay-elections.html

Here are 4 other major funerals he missed while president.Oma Seddiq,Business Insider•July 30, 2020

Former President Barack Obama addresses the service during the funeral for the late Rep. John Lewis.

Alyssa Pointer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, Pool


President Donald Trump did not attend the late Rep. John Lewis' funeral in Atlanta on Thursday.


Trump also did not attend memorial services held for the civil rights icon earlier this week in Washington, DC.


Former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton each delivered eulogies for Lewis at his funeral.


Other prominent funerals Trump has not attended include the late Rep. Elijah Cummings, Rep. John Dingell, Sen. John McCain and former First Lady Barbara Bush.

Former President Barack Obama appeared to take a jab at President Donald Trump at the funeral service of the late Rep. John Lewis in Atlanta on Thursday.

"Even as we sit here, there are those in power who are doing their darndest to discourage people from voting," Obama said during his eulogy, seemingly alluding to Trump's recent unsubstantiated claims that vote-by-mail leads to widespread fraud. "Even undermining the postal service in the run-up to an election, that's going to be dependent on mail-in ballots, so people don't get sick."

Though he did not mention Trump by name, Obama emphasized that his pointed remarks were not off-script: "I know this is a celebration of John's life. There are some who might say, 'We shouldn't dwell on such things.' But that's why I'm talking about it. John Lewis devoted his time on this earth fighting the very attacks on democracy."

He received a standing ovation from the crowd, which was filled with several notable officials including former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton — who also delivered eulogies — but not Trump.

The president earlier this week also skipped Lewis' memorial service in Washington, DC.

It's not the first time Trump has missed a funeral, though he has attended a couple as president, including services for the late Rev. Billy Graham and former President George H.W. Bush.

Here are four prominent funerals Trump did not attend:

Rep. Elijah Cummings
A military honor guard lays the U.S. flag on the casket of Rep. Elijah Cummings during his funeral service on October 25, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings' funeral service took place last October in his hometown of Baltimore, Maryland, part of the district he represented since 1996. The former chairman of the powerful House Oversight and Reform Committee, who helped lead the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump that was taking place at the time, died at age 68.

In the months leading up to his death, Trump engaged in an escalating public feud with the congressman, calling him a "racist," launching attacks at Baltimore, and appearing to mock a reported burglary at his home.

Trump skipped the funeral. A copy of the president's schedule that day showed he had nothing on his agenda at the time.

Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton and former First Ladies Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton were all in attendance, among many other key lawmakers and high-ranked officials, including now Trump's chief of staff Mark Meadows, who delivered a tearful speech in honor of his "dear friend."

Rep. John Dingell

Rep. Debbie Dingell bows her head with former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during funeral services for her husband, former Rep. John Dingell.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Getty Images

Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member in Congress ever at more than 59 years, died at age 92 last February. A funeral service in Washington, DC, was attended by former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as well as former Republican House Speaker John Boehner, among others. Former Vice President Joe Biden attended another funeral held in Michigan, Dingell's home state.

Trump was not at either funeral, but he ordered American flags to be flown at half-mast after Dingell's death to honor him. Months later, Trump suggested the Democratic congressman might be in hell aftter his wife, Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), voted to support impeachment.

"Maybe he's looking up, I don't know," Trump said during a campaign rally in Michigan. "But let's assume he's looking down."

Rep. Debbie Dingell called his comment a gut punch.

Sen. John McCain

Cindy McCain arrives at a memorial service for her husband, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in Washington, Sept. 1, 2018.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP Photo

In perhaps the most controversial of Trump's missed funerals, the president did not attend the late Arizona Sen. John McCain's ceremony in September 2018 because he was not invited.

Cindy McCain, the senator's wife, explained that she wanted the service to remain "with dignity."

"Even though it was a very public funeral, we are still family. For all of us and for the sake of my own children, I didn't want any disruption. This was about John, not about anything else at all," she said at the time.

Trump's daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner, and other members of his administration attended the funeral.

The president had been in a longtime dispute with the late senator, hurling insults at the revered naval officer who died aged 81 after a battle with cancer. McCain, who was much admired by politicians from both sides of the aisle, had not shied away from speaking out against Trump, unlike many from within his party.

Trump continued to spew repeated attacks against McCain even after his death.

Former First Lady Barbara Bush

Former Presidents George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush arrive for the funeral for former first lady Barbara Bush on April 21, 2018.

David J. Phillip/AP Photo

Former First Lady Barbara Bush's funeral held in Houston, Texas, was attended by more than 1,000 people. Trump was not one of them.

She died in April 2018 at the age of 92 and was remembered as a beloved public figure of the World War II generation. Her husband, the late former President George H.W. Bush was at the service with his sons, former President George W. Bush and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

Among the people gathered also included the Obamas and Clintons, as well as First Lady Melania Trump.

White House officials noted in advance that President Donald Trump would not attend "to avoid disruptions due to added security, and out of respect for the Bush family and friends attending the service."


Trump’s Sudden Photo-Op Just Happened To Be During Obama's John Lewis Eulogy
S.V. Date HuffPost July 30, 2020


WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump had his public schedule clear through mid-afternoon Thursday — right up until his predecessor Barack Obama was about to take the dais at civil rights leader John Lewis’ funeral 600 miles to the southwest — when suddenly, reporters and cameras were called into the Oval Office.

As Obama remembered the Georgia congressman who died last week, Trump spoke to the family of murder victim Vanessa Guillen, promising he would take action.

The White House denied there was any attempt to “counter-program” Obama’s widely anticipated remarks by creating a competing news event. “This meeting has been scheduled for weeks,” spokesman Judd Deere said. “That’s a disgusting question, by the way.”

One White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Guillen’s family asked for the press to be invited in. It’s believed that a colleague killed Guillen, a Fort Hood, Texas, soldier, and later committed suicide.

Trump’s move, in any event, adds to a long pattern for a man who rose to prominence in the Republican Party based on his willingness to push a racist conspiracy theory that the first Black president was not born in the United States and was therefore elected illegitimately.

From the day he took office, Trump has also shown irritation at comparisons to his predecessor. In a speech in front of a wall memorializing CIA officers killed in the line of duty, Trump lied that his inaugural crowd had been larger than Obama’s. He has repeatedly, and falsely, claimed that the economy under his watch had been stronger than Obama’s. He has accused Obama of “spying” on his campaign — without explaining why he willingly used documents stolen by Russian intelligence in the final month of his 2016 campaign, even though he had been told they were stolen by Russian intelligence.

Obama was among a long list of dignitaries at Lewis’ funeral, including former presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton. The hero of the 1960s civil rights protests died July 17 of pancreatic cancer.

Trump not only skipped the funeral in Atlanta but chose not to travel the 2 miles to the Capitol to pay his respects during the two days that Lewis’ body was lying in state.

A bridge over an Arizona lake was engulfed in flames and partially collapsed after a train derailment

The Salt River Union Pacific Bridge was constructed in 1912 and is used by cargo trains

HOW'S THAT TRUMP INFRASTRUCTURE PLAN COMING 

Rhea Mahbubani INSIDER•July 29, 2020

A bridge collapsed and a derailed train caught fire over Tempe Town Lake in Arizona on Wednesday.

Daniel Coronado

The Salt River Union Pacific Bridge in Tempe, Arizona, caught fire early Wednesday and partially collapsed amid a train derailment, according to multiple reports.

A train car carrying lumber across the bridge was engulfed in flames and a tanker car that had a hazardous materials warning sign fell off the bridge and landed on the street below, per KTVK.

Information about the cause of the incident or any injuries wasn't immediately available.

Fire crews in Tempe, Arizona, battled a massive blaze on Wednesday morning after a train derailed and a bridge collapsed at Tempe Town Lake.

Local station KTVK reported that a train car transporting lumber across the Salt River Union Pacific Bridge caught fire around 6 a.m. while a tanker car with a hazardous materials warning sign had fallen off the bridge.

Footage from the scene showed mangled train cars, some of which were engulfed in flames while others had plummeted onto the street below. A towering plume of black smoke was also visible.

A Tempe Fire Department spokesperson told ABC-affiliate KNXV-TV that a Union Pacific train was involved. Around 90 firefighters and multiple agencies responded to the two-alarm fire, the news outlet reported.

Tempe police said on Twitter that streets in the area were closed and the lake was shut down. Local reports said that no one was injured, but one person was treated for smoke inhalation.

Information about the cause of the collapse wasn't immediately available.
—Daniel Coronado (@dnado) July 29, 2020

Camille Kimball was riding her bike beneath the bridge moments before it collapsed, she told KTVK. A loud noise alerted her that something had happened as did the fact that bystanders pulled out their phones and began taking pictures and videos.

"I turned around to look and got the fright of my life," she told the outlet. "Now there's fire pouring into the lake from the middle of the bridge ... It looks like a scene from hell, truly. A scene from hell ... The flames are intense and the sky is filled with black smoke."

The lake was also the scene of a Black Lives Matter protest on July 27, according to Reuters.

Read the original article on Insider

Lawsuit: Trump still blocks Twitter critics after court loss
LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press•July 31, 2020

NEW YORK (AP) — An organization that successfully proved President Donald Trump violated the law when he blocked Twitter critics sued him anew on Friday, saying he continues to reject some accounts two years after losing in court.

The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University sued Trump a second time in Manhattan federal court over use of his @realDonaldTrump Twitter account, saying the president and his staff continue to block some accounts.

Some individuals identified in a lawsuit filed in 2017, along with dozens of others who were blocked on the basis of viewpoint, have been unblocked, the lawsuit said.

But lawyers say the White House has refused to unblock those who can't identify which tweet led them to be blocked and others who were blocked before Trump was sworn in more than three years ago.


“It shouldn’t take another lawsuit to get the president to respect the rule of law and to stop blocking people simply because he doesn’t like what they’re posting,” said Katie Fallow, senior staff attorney at the Knight Institute, in a release.

The lawsuit identified as plaintiffs five individuals who remain blocked, including a digital specialist with the American Federation of Teachers, a freelance writer and researcher, a former teacher, an actor and Donald Moynihan, a professor of public policy at Georgetown University.

Moynihan could not point to a specific tweet that caused him to be blocked because he periodically deletes tweets, the lawsuit said. It added that when the institute pressed the White House to unblock Moynihan, the request was rejected.

The lawsuit said the Knight Institute was told: “Donald Trump does not intend to unblock persons who were blocked prior to his inauguration or who cannot identify a tweet that preceded and allegedly precipitated the blocking.”

It said at least 27 other Twitter accounts remain blocked.

A federal appeals panel last July concluded Trump violated the First Amendment whenever he blocked a critic to silence a viewpoint. The three-judge panel had concluded that the president’s daily pronouncements and observations were overwhelmingly official in nature.

A message seeking comment was sent to the Justice Department.

The Nazi Hunter Taking On Mark Zuckerberg

Marlow Stern,The Daily Beast•July 30, 2020

Jeff Pachoud/Getty

For the past six decades, Serge Klarsfeld has dedicated his life to hunting down Nazis and bringing them to justice. There was Klaus Barbie, the infamous “Butcher of Lyon,” whom Klarsfeld and his wife, Beate, tracked down in Peru; René Bousquet, who ordered thousands of Jews to their deaths in the Vel’ d’Hiv’ Roundup; and Paul Touvier, who was apprehended at a priory in Nice and became the first Vichy official to be convicted of crimes against humanity for Holocaust collaboration.

Now, he’s setting his sights on Mark Zuckerberg.

Klarsfeld, 84, is one of a number of Holocaust activists and survivors who are speaking out as part of #NoDenyingIt, a campaign against Facebook and its founder for allowing Holocaust denialism on the platform. In addition to Klarsfeld, who lost his father at Auschwitz, the participants include Auschwitz survivor Roman Kent, Anne Frank’s stepsister Eva Schloss, and many more.

“The internet causes a lot of people who are gullible or anti-Semitic to want to believe that the Holocaust didn’t happen,” says Klarsfeld. “It’s wrong, it’s against history, and it brings people to be anti-Semitic, because if the Holocaust didn’t happen, that means the Jews lied about their parents and grandparents being killed.”

#NoDenyingIt was launched by the Claims Conference, or the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, an organization seeking reparations for Jewish victims of Nazi oppression, recovering stolen Jewish property, and preserving the memory of the Holocaust.

Inside Trump and Farrakhan’s Strange Ties to Scientology

The Disturbing Rise of Anti-Semitism Among Black Celebs

This controversy began in 2018, when, during an interview with Recode’s Kara Swisher, Zuckerberg brought up Holocaust denialism on his own during a discussion of Facebook’s censorship policies.

“Let’s take this whole [issue] closer to home. I’m Jewish, and there’s a set of people who deny that the Holocaust happened,” said Zuckerberg. “I find that deeply offensive. But at the end of the day, I don’t believe that our platform should take that down because I think there are things that different people get wrong. I don’t think that they’re intentionally getting it wrong.” (He later issued a half-hearted apology, while remaining steadfast on in his position: “I personally find Holocaust denial deeply offensive, and I absolutely didn’t intend to defend the intent of people who deny that.”)

Later in the chat, Zuckerberg expanded on his company’s rather nebulous policy. “The principles that we have on what we remove from the service are: If it’s going to result in real harm, real physical harm, or if you’re attacking individuals, then that content shouldn’t be on the platform,” he said.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg testifies via video conference before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on July 29, 2020.
Graeme Jennings/AFP/GettyMore

But Klarsfeld and the #NoDenyingIt campaign argue that Holocaust denialism does result in “real physical harm,” and is therefore in violation of Facebook policy.

“He is Jewish,” Klarsfeld says of Zuckerberg. “And it’s important that Facebook, which is a big vehicle of ideas, thoughts, and images, does something about hateful speech—and not only hateful speech but an incitement to violence. Because if people start to believe that the Jews didn’t die in the Holocaust and this was a big hoax, then they’ll become angry with the Jews and commit violence. In the United States, there have been shootings of synagogues. In a time of crisis, people are looking for scapegoats, and throughout history, Jews have been scapegoats. Throughout history, if you give people an alibi to commit violence against Jews, they will use it.”

He adds, “If he bans pedophiles from Facebook, people who deny the Holocaust should also be banned. He bans people who bare their breasts on Facebook and won’t ban people who say that Jews didn’t die during the war.”

In addition to Facebook, Klarsfeld is deeply troubled by the rise of the far right—many of whose leaders and followers are anti-Semitic—not only in America but around the globe. One of the leaders who he says is too tolerant of the far right is U.S. President Donald Trump.

“He didn’t condemn the violence that occurred against the Jews by the extreme right, and he should have done that. He’s not responsible and he didn’t do what he had to do, which is condemn the extreme right—and the neo-Nazi extreme right,” says Klarsfeld, adding, “He called some of the [Charlottesville far right] ‘very fine people,’ which he shouldn’t have said and which was a big mistake. Some of his voters are from the extreme right. So he has a tendency to be lenient to some of the extreme-right movement.”

We’ve also seen a disturbing rise of anti-Semitism among prominent Black celebrities in America, from the rappers and actors Ice Cube and Nick Cannon, to pro athletes DeSean Jackson and Stephen Jackson, to Diddy, who took it upon himself to broadcast a speech by one of the nation’s leading anti-Semites, Louis Farrakhan, to an audience of millions this July 4.

Jewish deportees in the Buchenwald concentration camp pose for a Soviet photographer in January 1945. Middle bunk bed, the 6th from left, lies Elie Wiesel, one of the rare camp survivors and 1986 Nobel Peace Prize winner. AFP via GettyMore

“If Puff Daddy put a speech of Farrakhan, who is a known anti-Semite, on the internet, it means he shares his ideas, and it’s something that is very easy,” explains Klarsfeld. “It’s easy to explain all the worries of the world and put them on the backs of the Jews—it’s been happening for many centuries. It means you’re not responsible for your worries, or the government is not responsible for your worries, it’s the Jews who are responsible. We have to remind people that there are 12 million Jews, 2.5 billion Christians, and 2 billion Muslims. So I don’t see how the Jews could be running the world based on those numbers.”

These days, Klarsfeld—along with wife Beate and son Arno—are doing their damnedest to educate generations young and old about anti-Semitism, and the horrors of the Holocaust.

“We buy pages in newspapers, give lectures, and we try to be active against the extreme right, which until now, we still haven’t made the moves necessary to condemn these anti-Semitic parties,” he says. “It has to be done through education, and teaching compassion and tolerance.”

Nearly 12,000 US Troops Will Pull Out of Germany at Cost of Billions, SecDef Says

Richard Sisk,Military.com•July 29, 2020


Nearly 12,000 U.S. troops will be withdrawn or repositioned from Germany, with more than half of them returning to the U.S., under a long-term plan aimed at strengthening NATO's eastern flanks against Russia, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Wednesday.

He gave no overall timetable for when the pullout would begin or be completed, but said some units could start moving "within weeks" while the withdrawal of others will depend on working out agreements with allies.

Read Next: Lawmakers Grill Guard Officer on Claims Police Used Excessive Force on DC Protesters

However, "no moves will take place without thorough communication with our people" affected by the withdrawals and with Congress, Esper said.

Last month, President Donald Trump directed that 9,500 troops be withdrawn from Germany, but Esper said the overall strategy requires the pullout and repositioning of 11,900, reducing the number of U.S. service members in Germany to about 24,000.

Of the 11,900 troops, about 6,400 will eventually return to the U.S. and the rest will be repositioned in other NATO countries, with an emphasis on Poland, the Baltic states and the Black Sea region to shift NATO's force posture more to the east, Esper said.

The bulk of the troops returning to the U.S. will consist of the 4,500 members of the Army's 2nd Cavalry Regiment, a Stryker unit now garrisoned in Vilseck, Germany, he added.

Esper said an unspecified fighter squadron and elements of a fighter wing now stationed in Germany will be moved to Italy.

In addition, the Army's newly established 5th Corps headquarters is slated to move into Poland, and other units are being considered for stationing in Poland and the Baltic states, he continued.

The 2,500 airmen now stationed at the U.K.'s RAF Mildenhall, who had been scheduled to reposition to Germany, will now stay put, Esper said.

He had no immediate figures for the costs of the withdrawal, but said it could be in the "single digit" billions.

Esper said the Defense Department will rely on the service branches to "assure the stability" of military families who will be making permanent change-of-station moves under the sweeping reorganization, adding that the families will be "informed well in advance" of any moves.

The SecDef outlined the plan at a Pentagon briefing with Air Force Gen. John Hyten, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Air Force Gen. Tod Wolters, who doubles as NATO supreme commander and head of U.S. European Command.

Under the plan, Wolters said his own EUCOM headquarters will move from Stuttgart, Germany, to Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium. He added that EUCOM's Special Operations Command headquarters in Stuttgart will also move to Mons.

Esper said the headquarters of U.S. Africa Command, which currently has about 2,000 personnel in Stuttgart, Germany, will also likely be moved to Belgium, although a final location has yet to be determined.

Wolters said the plan calls for at least two Army battalions now stationed in Germany to move to Italy. He did not give a date but said the first to move will be the 52nd Civil Engineering Battalion.

The demands for deterrence in Europe require speed of movement, which could better be handled by rotational forces coming from the U.S., Wolters said, adding, "This realignment allows us to favorably deter against Russia."

The Germany pullout has triggered bipartisan criticism from Congress, with Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, calling it a "gift" to Russian President Vladimir Putin. But Hyten said the plan to rely more on rotational forces going to Europe from the U.S. will boost the unpredictability of the overall deterrent.

The plan will result in a better alignment of NATO and EUCOM forces and "provide Gen. Wolters increased ability to dynamically deploy his force," Hyten said.

Hyten and Esper sought to portray the pullout plan as part of a long-term review of the posture of all the combatant commands, although Trump in announcing the withdrawal directive last month said it was aimed at Germany's refusal to spend more on national defense.

Esper said that Trump's announcement had "accelerated" Pentagon planning "to reduce our footprint in Germany. We are still retaining a little more than 24,000 troops in Germany, which is still a lot, and more than any other country in Europe."

The number of U.S. troops in Europe has "changed many times" over years, Esper said, and "we're now at another one of those inflection points in NATO's history."

He added that Germany is one of the wealthiest countries in Europe "and should pay more for its defense."

Planning for withdrawals from Germany began well before Trump gave the order in June, Esper said.

"We began this process actually several months ago when I gave EUCOM direction to begin looking at ways to improve our force disposition in NATO," he said. "I'm telling you that this is going to accomplish what the president [ordered] with regard to getting us down to a lower number in Europe, and it meets those other objectives I laid out with regard to the strategic piece."

At a June 24 White House meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda, Trump said that some of the U.S. troops withdrawn from Germany would return to the U.S. and some would go to Poland.

There was also speculation at the time that some of the withdrawn troops would go to the Indo-Pacific region as a counter to China. Esper said there is still a possibility that some of the withdrawn troops will end up there.

"They could be, but right now there are no plans to do so," he said.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.

Related: Army Secretary Skirts Questions on US Troop Pullout from Germany

Detained Portland protesters have to promise to stop going to rallies if they want to get out of jail, reports say

Bill Bostock, INSIDER•July 30, 2020

A line of veterans oppose the use of federal agents at the Mark O. Hatfield federal courthouse in Portland on July 24, 2020.
John Rudoff/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

CNN and ProPublica reviewed conditions-of-release documents of multiple people recently arrested in Portland on protest-related charges.

The outlets found that many had to promise not to attend future demonstrations to get out of jail.

CNN identified nine cases, and ProPublica 12, where they were made to agree to those terms in order to be released. It's not clear whether some of those cases overlap.

One condition of release document, cited by ProPublica, says: "Defendant may not attend any other protests, rallies, assemblies or public gathering in the state of Oregon."

Legal experts told the outlets the conditions violate the first amendment right to free assembly of those detained.

Protesters detained by the police in Portland are being told they can only get out of jail if they promise to stop going to rallies, according to two reports on Wednesday and Thursday.

Anti-racism and police-brutality protests that had rumbled on in the city since the killing of George Floyd in late May reached a fever pitched two weeks ago, with security forces sent by the federal government descending on the city and clashing with demonstrators.

Close to 100 protesters have been arrested on various charges since July 4, acting Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary Chad Wolf told CNN on Wednesday.


Many of those detained were only allowed to leave if they agreed not to attend any future protests in either Portland and/or Oregon state as a whole, according to release documents seen by CNN and ProPublica.

If they break the condition they be sent back to jail.

People gather in protest in front of the federal courthouse in Portland on July 25, 2020.
Spencer Platt/Getty Image

At least 12 protesters arrested in July were spared further jail time on the condition that they would not attend future protests, ProPublica reported.

One condition of release document for a detained protester, published by ProPublica, stipulated : "Defendant may not attend any other protests, rallies, assemblies or public gathering in the state of Oregon."

CNN also found at least nine people who were arrested between July 23 and July 27, for either failing to obey a lawful order or assaulting a federal officer, were released if they promised not to rally again.

It is not clear whether ProPublica's 12 sources and CNN's nine overlap.

The conditions of release are usually decided by the federal magistrate in Portland, the US Pretrial Services, and the US Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon.

The Attorney's Office told CNN it intended to prevent those arrested from entering a five-block section around the Hatfield Courthouse in the future.

"The additional restrictions were added by the court," the office said.

Federal agents disperse protesters near the federal courthouse in Portland on July 20, 2020. AP Photo/Noah Berger

Legal experts say the conditions of release violate the constitutional rights and the right to free assembly of those arrested.

Geoffrey Stone, a professor at the University of Chicago Law School, told ProPublica: "Even if they're right that these people did, in fact, step beyond the bounds of the First Amendment and do something illegal, that doesn't mean you can then restrict their First Amendment right."

Somil Trivedi, an attorney with the Criminal Law Reform Project, told CNN: "This release condition is blatantly unconstitutional."

"The government cannot force you to relinquish your First Amendment rights as a condition for your freedom. Release conditions must be related to public safety or flight. This is neither."

Business Insider contacted the US Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon for comment but is yet to receive a response.

On July 23, the Department of Justice opened an investigation into the "use of force" by around 110 unmarked federal agents patrolling the streets of Portland, who were sent there at the behest of Donald Trump.

Local and state officials, as well as some DHS employees, have called their actions "unconstitutional," Business Insider's Oma Seddiq previously reported.

Videos posted to social media purport to show agents snatching people off the street. The governor of Oregon, Kate Brown, said Wednesday that the federal agents would begin to leave from Thursday.

Doctors  QUACKS behind viral COVID-19 misinformation video met with Vice President Pence

Suzanne Smalley Reporter, Yahoo News•July 29, 2020

A group of doctors who participated in an event on the steps of the Supreme Court — a viral video of which was taken down the next day by social media companies for spreading disinformation about the coronavirus — met with Vice President Mike Pence, according to Jenny Beth Martin, co-founder of the Tea Party Patriots, an influential far-right group that organized the event.

A video of Monday’s event went viral after Breitbart posted it, ultimately garnering tens of millions of views before being removed the next day by Facebook, Twitter and YouTube due to its many misleading claims about the coronavirus.

Some of the speakers, who were part of a group calling itself America’s Frontline Doctors, talked about the merits of hydroxychloroquine, which has not been proven effective at treating those infected with the coronavirus, and described masks, which studies have shown are effective at slowing transmission, as unnecessary.

Tea Party Patriots co-founder Jenny Beth Martin at a July 7 meeting with President Trump, students, teachers and administrators about how to reopen schools during the pandemic. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Martin, who also attended the event, said the meeting with the vice president on Tuesday had been in the works for weeks and was focused on hydroxychloroquine. The doctors arrived with a “very specific ask” for Food and Drug Administration emergency-use authorization for hydroxychloroquine, Martin told Yahoo News.

The FDA in mid-June withdrew its emergency-use authorization, citing safety concerns and the drug’s lack of proven effectiveness. President Trump and some of his allies, however, have continued to speak positively about it.

Pence, said Martin, promised he is “looking into it.” She said she has spoken twice with White House coronavirus task force leader Dr. Deborah Birx about hydroxychloroquine. “We just want a clarification that it is a safe medication,” Martin said.

Martin said she is reassessing what’s next for America’s Frontline Doctors. She organized the group after she started brainstorming with Dr. Simone Gold, a Beverly Hills, Calif.-based emergency room doctor and concierge physician, earlier this month. Martin said both women were eager to dispel the fear so many Americans are feeling during the pandemic.

Dr. Simone Gold speaking in front of the Supreme Court. (Twitter)

Gold and Martin have worked together since April, when they met after a conservative radio host read on air a letter Gold had written. Martin said Gold asked her to deliver to the White House a letter that Gold and several of the Frontline Doctors signed back in May, which Martin did. The letter, dated May 19, implores Trump to end the shutdown, which it calls a “mass casualty incident.”

After that letter, Martin said she and Gold conceived the idea for a summit. “I reached out to her and said, ‘Hey, I’m working on this effort and I’d like to talk to doctors,’ and we started emailing and talking, and as things have developed and she watched the virus, things have evolved,” Martin said. “It’s not like we set out and said, ‘Hey, we’re gonna create a group called America’s Frontline Doctors and we’re gonna have a summit in D.C.’ We planned the summit in about a week.”

Martin said the Tea Party Patriots Foundation is supporting America’s Frontline Doctors as part of its educational mission.

Monday’s video got a boost when the president retweeted it.

In an interview Tuesday with Yahoo News, Bob Hamilton, a Santa Monica, Calif., pediatrician who also appeared in the video, said he is almost solely focused on the issue of schools reopening and went out of his way to distance himself from the larger group, particularly Stella Immanuel, a Houston-based pediatrician. Immanuel is known for her unorthodox views on the merits of masks and hydroxychloroquine, and became something of an internet sensation, particularly after her unusual ideas about alien DNA became public.

Dr. Stella Immanuela, a pediatrician in Houston, Texas — claimed that she has cured and prevented COVID-19 with hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria medication that was promoted by President Donald Trump for the coronavirus in May. The FDA pulled hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 in June.More

Referring to Immanuel as the “the gal from Cameroon,” Hamilton said he disagreed with her criticism of Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert. “I don’t really have those kinds of strong feelings, to be honest with you,” Hamilton told Yahoo News in an interview.

Hamilton said he had been unaware of the organization’s affiliation with the Tea Party Patriots until he arrived at the event.

Cover thumbnail photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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Rudy Giuliani interviewed Dr. Stella Immanuel — doctor who previously preached about alien DNA — on his radio show calling her his 'hero'

Sarah Al-Arshani Business Insider•July 30, 2020

GIULIANI SHOW'S HE CAN COUNT'......TO THREE

Rudy Giuliani, former New York City mayor and current lawyer for U.S. President Donald Trump, speaks to members of the media during a White House Sports and Fitness Day at the South Lawn of the White House May 30, 2018 in Washington, DC.
Alex Wong/Getty Images

Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump's personal attorney, called Dr. Stella Immanuel, the doctor seen in a viral video espousing misinformation about the coronavirus, his "hero" on his radio show on Wednesday.

Giuliani and Immanuel discussed the doctor's claim that hydroxychloroquine is a cure for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

There is no known cure for COVID-19. A growing body of evidence has shown that hydroxychloroquine is not an effective coronavirus treatment.

Immanuel, who is also a minister, has made some unsubstantiated medical claims in the past, such as saying cysts are caused by having sex dreams about demons.

Giuliani also said he's personally helped get the medication for four of his friends because "it's hard to get hydroxychloroquine."


President Donald Trump's attorney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani called Dr. Stella Immanuel — a doctor seen in a viral video spreading coronavirus misinformation — his "hero" on his radio show on Wednesday.

"Well, you're my hero," Giuliani said after Immanuel paid him the same compliment. Giuliani went on to say that he'd been following the use of hydroxychloroquine and that he also believes that the medication is effective at treating COVID-19 in the "early stages" of the disease.

There is a mounting body of evidence showing that there is no benefit to hydroxychloroquine COVID-19, including a limited study conducted on its use before hospitalization.

The Food and Drug Administration revoked emergency authorization for its use in emergency settings last month.

Immanuel, a licensed pediatrician, and a minister in Texas, went viral for a speech she gave during a press conference that was broadcasted initially by the right-wing outlet Breitbart.

In the viral video, Immanuel can be seen on the steps of the Supreme Court at the "White Coat Summit," which was organized by the Tea Party Patriots — a right-wing group that backed the anti-lockdown protests earlier this year. It featured doctors part of a newly formed organization called America's Frontline Doctors.

During the press conference, Immanuel falsely claimed that hydroxychloroquine is a cure for coronavirus.

There is currently no known cure for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

The video was taken down by platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, but it had already been viewed by millions — and shared by President Donald Trump, his son, Donald Trump Jr., and Madonna.

After the video went viral, The Daily Beast found that Immanuel has a history of making outlandish and unsubstantiated medical claims, including preaching that cysts and endometriosis are a result of people having dreams that they're having sex with demons and witches, and that alien DNA is used in our medicine.

"They are responsible for serious gynecological problems. We call them all kinds of names — endometriosis, we call them molar pregnancies, we call them fibroids, we call them cysts, but most of them are evil deposits from the spirit husband," Immanuel said of the medical issues in a 2013 sermon. "They are responsible for miscarriages, impotence — men that can't get it up."

On Giuliani's show, Immanuel doubled down on her views of hydroxychloroquine with support from Giuliani.

"So you're a real a doctor, you're not a laboratory creature?" Giuliani asked. 

Immanuel, who got her medical degree in Nigeria, told Giuliani she began using hydroxychloroquine as a treatment in West Africa where malaria was prevalent. The drug has been used to effectively treat malaria and lupus, but it has not proven effective against COVID-19.

Giuliani also said he's gotten the medication for four of his friends because "it's hard to get hydroxychloroquine."

Giuliani could not be reached for comment at the time of publication.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Trump can’t delay elections. So why is he suggesting it?
TO DISTRACT FROM THE NEWS OF THE DAY, THE FUNERAL OF JOHN LEWIS, WHICH HE DID NOT ATTEND
https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/07/trump-did-not-attend-john-lewis-funeral.html

Mike Bebernes Editor, Yahoo News 360•July 31, 2020
“The 360” shows you diverse perspectives on the day’s top stories and debates.

New fallout after Trump floats delaying election

What’s happening

President Trump suggested Thursday that the upcoming presidential election may need to be delayed, citing unfounded claims that mail-in voting would lead to widespread voter fraud.

Simply put, the president has no power to change the date of the election. The Constitution gives Congress the right to “determine the time of choosing the electors, and the day on which they shall give their votes.” A federal law passed in 1845 established Election Day as the first Tuesday in November, unless the first Tuesday falls on Nov. 1. Under those rules, this year’s presidential election is scheduled for Nov. 3.

A sympathetic Congress could move the election to a different date. But any change would have to be approved by the Democrat-led House of Representatives, who have widely denounced the idea. Many prominent Republicans in the Senate — including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell — have reportedly said the election date is set in stone. Even in the highly unlikely scenario that Congress approves moving the election, Trump’s first presidential term would end on January 20 as ordered by the 20th Amendment.

Trump’s tweet came amid ongoing concerns from both sides of the aisle over how the coronavirus pandemic might derail the election. These fears have led to a push to increase the availability of mail-in voting. Although there are valid logistical concerns about instituting widespread vote-by-mail, there is no evidence it would make the election any less secure.

Why there’s debate

If there’s close to zero chance that the election actually gets moved, why would Trump pose the idea? The president’s campaign said his statement was “just raising a question” about the legitimate issues that mail-in voting raises.

Trump’s tweet was posted just minutes after the release of data showing that the U.S. economy had suffered its worst contraction in history during the second quarter of this year. Suggesting the election be delayed may have been a means of pushing that bad news off the front page, some argue.

Others say talk of postponing the election is part of a larger and more harmful campaign to lower the public’s confidence in the results if Trump loses to Joe Biden in November, as polls currently suggest is likely. The president’s critics say he has repeatedly sought to undermine the integrity of U.S. elections in hopes of tipping the scales in his favor. Repeatedly injecting skepticism into the voting process by attacking vote-by-mail may be an attempt to create space for him to reject a Biden victory and insist he be able to stay in office, some argue. There have also been accusations that the new head of the U.S. Postal Service, a Trump ally, is deliberately impeding mail service to create chaos on election day.

What’s next

While the debate over delaying the election appears dead on arrival, the issue of vote-by-mail is likely to be key all the way to November. Some Republicans have echoed Trump’s statements about voter fraud, despite ample evidence to refute those claims. The increased use of mail-in ballots is expected to lead to delays in tallying results, to the point where the final result may not be known until several days after Election Day.
Perspectives

Trump is setting the stage for an attempt to stay in office if he loses

“The suggestion was an alarming indication that Trump is considering ways to prolong his stay in office as the country reels from a deadly pandemic and the resulting economic crisis.” — Chris Megerian, Los Angeles Times

He wants his base to believe he was cheated if Biden wins

“If Trump loses the election in November and wants to argue that he was cheated and the voting was not legitimate, he can’t start on November 4. He needs to lay the groundwork ahead of time — for example, by repeatedly warning that the vote will be fraudulent and rigged, and by telling his supporters that he tried to postpone it but was denied by ‘Them.’” — David A. Graham, The Atlantic

There are legitimate reasons to question the security of mail-in ballots

“If we have mail-in balloting the way it's scheduled now, there is absolutely no way you will get an election result on election night, or even in the first few days. That means confusion and endless challenges. That is a mess.” — Stuart Varney, Fox News

Trump was trying to distract from dire economic news

“Trump, in all likelihood, knows that he lacks the legal authority to postpone the election. But in finally saying the quiet part out loud this morning, he could be hoping to distract from the grim news that the U.S. just suffered its biggest drop in GDP on record. Might as well throw some casual voter fraud lies into the mix.” — Inae Oh, Mother Jones

Trump knows he’s losing and is desperate for any way to tip the scales

“This isn’t about mail-in voting at all. This is about Trump’s struggling campaign and the poll numbers that show him losing to Biden. Truly, this is a sign of weakness. And Democrats will not hesitate to take advantage of it. Trump is playing directly into their hands.” — Kaylee McGhee, Washington Examiner

Trump is willing to undermine our democracy if it helps him win

“The threat posed by Trump’s musing about illegally delaying the election must be seen not in terms of the letter of the law but of Trump’s intent, of his situation and of his history. He is contemptuous of our democracy and cares only about himself. He is aided by others with similarly very narrow self-interest as their guiding imperative.” — David Rothkopf, USA Today

New Yahoo News/YouGov poll: Most Trump voters say they will not accept the 2020 results if Biden wins because of mail-in ballots

Andrew Romano West Coast Correspondent,Yahoo News•July 31, 2020
Trump denounces mail-in balloting for November election

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Most Americans now believe that President Trump will not accept the results of November’s election if he loses to Joe Biden, according to a new Yahoo News/YouGov poll — and an even larger majority of Trump voters say they too will refuse to accept a narrow loss if mail-in ballots contribute to Biden’s victory.

In the midst of a pandemic that has seen many states expand their mail-in balloting systems to limit dangerous crowding on Election Day, the issue of postal voting took center stage Thursday when Trump escalated his months-long campaign to delegitimize the practice and possibly the election itself.

“2020 will be the most INACCURATE & FRAUDULENT Election in history,” the president tweeted, even though there is no evidence that mail-in voting would lead to widespread voter fraud and several states already conduct elections entirely by mail. “Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote???”


The results of the latest Yahoo News/YouGov survey suggest that Trump’s efforts to sow doubt about the validity of mail-in voting may be starting to have their desired effect. Asked whether Trump would “accept the result” if he “loses in a close election” this November, 52 percent of Americans say no. Only 25 percent say yes.

Voters who support Trump, meanwhile, share their candidate’s unfounded suspicions about postal balloting, with a full 55 percent saying they would not “accept the result” if Biden wins “because of an advantage in mail-in votes.” Only 21 percent say they would accept a Biden victory under those circumstances.

The survey, it’s worth noting, was conducted July 28 to 30, just before Trump’s tweet about delaying the election. If anything, these gaps will likely widen in the wake of his incendiary suggestion.

Among Biden voters, a mere 26 percent say they would not accept the results if the tables were turned and Trump won because of mail-in votes. Forty-seven percent say they would accept the results.

It’s unclear what “not accepting” the result of a U.S. presidential election would look like in practice. But at a minimum it could involve large numbers of Americans viewing Biden as an illegitimate president — with Trump’s encouragement. The previous Yahoo News/YouGov poll found that 54 percent of Trump voters say they are “very worried” about “fraudulent postal voting,” while 57 percent of Biden voters say they are “not worried” at all.

Trump’s preemptive push to invalidate a Biden win reflects a sobering reality for the president: If the election were held today, he would almost certainly lose. Biden leads Trump by 9 percentage points among registered voters, 49 percent to 40 percent; 94 percent of these voters say there is no chance they will change their mind. In the race for Congress, Democrats lead Republicans by 10 percentage points, 49 percent to 39 percent.

With coronavirus menacing nearly every corner of the country and protests raging in Portland, Ore., and elsewhere, more than three-quarters of Americans (77 percent) say things currently are out of control. This does not redound to Trump’s benefit: The number of Americans who say the incumbent president “is the source of the chaos” (46 percent) is 20 points higher than the number who say he “will protect us from the chaos” (26 percent).

A protester screams at federal officers after they used tear gas and less-lethal weapons to disperse a protest against racial injustice and police brutality in front of the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse on Thursday in Portland, Ore. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)More

The perception of Trump of a national leader who makes matters worse rather than better is pervasive — and no issue illustrates this more clearly than Portland.

The Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows signs of eroding support for the protests that have roiled the country since the May 25 killing of George Floyd. In early June, Americans were divided over whether the protesters should “stop protesting” (44 percent) or “keep protesting” (42 percent); today, 47 percent of Americans want them to stop, while only 36 percent want them to continue.

Black Lives Matter still receives a net favorable rating — 47 percent favorable versus 43 percent unfavorable — but it has contracted by 20 points since early June, when the split was 57 percent favorable to 33 percent unfavorable. Thirty-three percent of Americans now view the protests as “mostly violent acts,” up from 21 percent in early June. Fifty-seven percent say the protests “have gone too far.” And 59 percent say they are “very” or “somewhat” worried about “a breakdown of law and order in American cities.”

In recent weeks, Trump has repeatedly attempted to capitalize on these worries; more registered voters now believe, for instance, that the president sent federal agents to Portland “to bolster his ‘law and order’ reelection campaign” (49 percent) than believe he sent them to “keep anarchists from destroying federal buildings” (45 percent), his stated rationale.

The problem for Trump is that his show of force is not working, either practically or politically. Forty-five percent of Americans say it was not necessary for the administration to send federal agents to Portland; just 38 percent say it was necessary. Forty-eight percent say federal agents have increased tensions in Portland; just 14 percent say they have lessened tensions. Forty-two percent say local police are best suited to handle situations like Portland; just 33 percent would prefer federal agents. Forty-five percent say the administration should not send federal agents to deal with protests in other cities; just 36 percent would support sending federal agents elsewhere.

As a result, 44 percent say the country would become less safe if Trump wins reelection. Only 31 percent say the country would become safer. And more American people believe “bringing people together” will help get things under control (56 percent) than believe the same about “law and order” (44 percent).

Trump supporters wait for Lara Trump in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, on July 22 during a stop on the Women for Trump bus tour. (Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)

Coronavirus is a similar story. Trump’s approval rating for handling the pandemic now stands at its lowest level yet: 37 percent. Disapproval (57 percent) is at a high point. Despite the president’s recent return to the podium for regular COVID-19 briefings, the public has largely concluded that his disengaged, denialist approach to the virus is insufficient: 51 percent of Americans say Trump is not doing enough about the pandemic, compared with only 31 percent who say he is doing the right amount. (Six percent say the president is doing too much.) Just a quarter of the country (26 percent) approves of Trump promoting the use of hydroxychloroquine on Twitter; a majority (54 percent) disapproves.

Asked who deserves more blame for the continuing spread of coronavirus in the U.S. — Trump or governors — a plurality (42 percent to 31 percent) blames Trump more. A majority blames Trump (51 percent) more than China (31 percent). Forty-nine percent of registered voters say the coronavirus situation would have been better if Biden were president; only 30 percent say it would have been worse. Going forward, a majority of voters (51 percent) say Biden would do a better job handling the pandemic than Trump (30 percent).

Polarization remains the defining force in U.S. politics, and Biden isn’t held in particularly high esteem. More Americans think the former vice president says what he wants people to hear (47 percent) than what he believes (34 percent), and fewer see him as honest and trustworthy (36 percent) than not (42 percent). Only 19 percent say Biden “cares a lot” about people like them.

Yet at the same time, 55 percent of Americans — a number that rises to 58 percent among registered voters — say “the only thing” Trump “cares about is himself.” Just 36 percent say the same about Biden. A wide majority of registered voters (56 percent) dislike Trump “somewhat” or “a lot.”

In easier times, voters may have put more stock in the one leadership quality a majority of them say Trump possesses: audacity (57 percent). But today, amid multiple crises, that turns out to be the leadership quality they value the least, with just 31 percent describing it as “very important” right now.

Instead, far more voters say taking responsibility (86 percent), competence (85 percent), honesty (84 percent) and empathy (64 percent) are very important. Trump trails Biden among registered voters in every category: by 12 points, 5 points, 11 points and 22 points, respectively.

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The Yahoo News survey was conducted by YouGov using a nationally representative sample of 1,506 U.S. adult residents interviewed online between July 28-30, 2020. This sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, and education, as well as 2016 presidential vote, registration status, geographic region and news interest. Respondents were selected from YouGov’s opt-in panel to be representative of all U.S residents. The margin of error is approximately 3.3 percent.

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