DN Speak: 2/21/16

Saturday, February 27, 2016

Week In The News: Trump Keeps Winning, Apple Fights F.B.I., Emotions On Facebook (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

A GOP debate like no other last night in Houston, topping a week of hot politics on the road to Super Tuesday. Trump, Cruz and Rubio battling. Sanders and Clinton, digging in on the road to South Carolina and more. Primaries in full throttle. We’ve got Apple battling the FBI over iPhone privacy. A hard standoff on Supreme Court nomination. Mass shootings in Kalamazoo and Kansas. And wild weather across the South. This hour On Point, our weekly news roundtable goes behind the headlines. — Tom Ashbrook
Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2016/02/26/apple-fbi-donald-trump-election-2016-primaries

Friday News Roundup – Domestic (Diane Rehm Show, 2016-02-26)

Establishment Republicans grapple with how to stop Donald Trump. A political battle over the Supreme Court vacancy escalates. And the Senate reaches a bipartisan funding deal on the Flint water crisis. A panel of journalists joins guest host Susan Page for analysis of the week’s top national news stories.
Interview:
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2016-02-26/friday-news-roundup-domestic

Friday News Roundup – International (Diane Rehm Show, 2016-02-26)

World leaders work to negotiate a temporary ceasefire in Syria. Iranian authorities arrest a U.S. citizen whose son is imprisoned in Tehran. And EU ministers meet again on the migrant crisis. A panel of journalists joins guest host Susan Page for analysis of the week’s top international news stories.
Interview:
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2016-02-26/friday-news-roundup-international

RWW News: Trump Vows To Make Christianity Great Again

https://youtu.be/YqTJrljnBG4

Real Time with Bill Maher: General Michael Hayden on National Security and the Election (HBO)

Former NSA and CIA Director Michael Hayden joins Bill Maher to discuss a hypothetical Trump presidency in this clip from February 26, 2016.
Interview:
https://youtu.be/pC7-RMhfSos

Real Time with Bill Maher: Mark Ruffalo - The Whole Nation is Flint (HBO)

Waterdefense.org founder and "Spotlight" actor Mark Ruffalo calls California's reputation as an environmentally progressive state into question on the February 26, 2016 episode of Real Time...
Interview:
https://youtu.be/gWcuYn4gQZ4

Real Time with Bill Maher: Interview with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) - October 16, 2015 (HBO)

Interview:
https://youtu.be/hDRxbQlpqmo

Real Time with Bill Maher: Overtime - Episode #277

Interview:
https://youtu.be/ScAynzKaUZ4

Real Time with Bill Maher: Hillary vs. #BlackLivesMatter (HBO)

https://youtu.be/rd1gpjkjcfc

Issa Compares Obama's 'Unlawful' Gitmo Closure Plan To Trail Of Tears (VIDEO)

Issa said it was up to U.S. military leaders to decide whether to follow Obama's plan, which he said was unlawful...
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/issa-guantanamo-bay-trail-of-tears

Privacy advocates plan nationwide rallies to back Apple in iPhone case

Digital rights group Fight for the Future is organizing at least 30 rallies Tuesday at Apple Stores and the FBI headquarters to support Apple's refusal to aid the FBI in accessing an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino shooters...
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Passcode/2016/0223/Privacy-advocates-plan-nationwide-rallies-to-back-Apple-in-iPhone-case

Trump Is Bragging About His Latino Support In Nevada. Here’s Why Numbers Aren't What They Seem. | ThinkProgress

In a press release distributed by Latino Decisions, David Damore, associate professor of Political Science at UNLV, argues too much is being made of Trump’s popularity among Nevada Latinos...
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/02/24/3753285/trump-is-bragging-about-his-latino-support-in-nevada-heres-why-numbers-arent-what-they-seem/

The Latest Food Stamp Fraudsters Don't Look Like Welfare Queens | ThinkProgress

The alleged fake purchases and sham donations allowed the Jeffs to draw down actual money from SNAP, which prosecutors say they laundered through other companies owned by their church...
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2016/02/24/3753325/polygamist-food-stamp-fraud/

Apple Moves To Vacate FBI’s Court Order, Says It’s Unconstitutional

"The government demands that Apple create a back door to defeat the encryption on the iPhone, making its users’ most confidential and personal information vulnerable to hackers, identity thieves, hostile foreign agents, and unwarranted government surveillance. The All Writs Act, first enacted in 1789 and on which the government bases its entire case, “does not give the district court a roving commission” to conscript and commandeer Apple in this manner."

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/02/25/3753916/apple-moves-to-vacate/

Ted Cruz Is Holding Up The Senate’s Bipartisan Bill To Address Flint’s Water Crisis

According to a report in Politico, Cruz is halting movement of the bill “to give him more time to study the details of the proposal.” The Republican presidential candidate placed a so-called “soft hold” on the aid package on Thursday, Politico reported, effectively preventing it from moving to the floor for a vote...
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/02/25/3753881/cruz-blocking-flint-aid/

Even Without EPA’s Clean Power Plan, ‘The Future Is Bright For Wind And Solar’

The future for U.S. renewables is very bright with or without the EPA’s carbon pollution standards for existing power plants, a new analysis finds...
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2016/02/25/3753539/clean-power-plan-wind-solar/

Mark Zuckerberg Calls Out Employees For ‘Silencing’ The Black Lives Matter Movement

“‘Black lives matter’ doesn’t mean other lives don’t — it’s simply asking that the black community also achieves the justice they deserve,” Zuckerberg wrote. “Regardless of the content or location, crossing out something means silencing speech, or that one person’s speech is more important than another’s. Facebook should be a service and a community where everyone is treated with respect.”
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/02/26/3754376/mark-zuckerberg-calls-out-employees-for-silencing-the-black-lives-matter-movement/

ICE Ignores Immigrants’ Medical Needs In Detention Centers Until They Die

The report, entitled Fatal Neglect: How ICE Ignores Deaths in Detention, examined how ICE failed to comply with the agency’s own medical standards even after routine reviews identified violations of medical standards “as contributing factors in these deaths.” Inspections conducted before and after detainee deaths failed to acknowledge serious flaws. In all but one of the eight cases, facilities received passing ratings even when Office of Detention Oversight (ODO) inspections found they failed to meet proper medical care standards...
http://thinkprogress.org/immigration/2016/02/26/3753580/immigrant-deaths-ice-detention/

Many Of The World’s Pollinators Are Facing Extinction, Report Warns

The report, released Friday by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), is a two-year assessment of the threats facing pollinators — both vertebrates, such as birds and bats, and invertebrates, such as bees, butterflies, and other insects. It noted that, in some regions, 40 percent of invertebrate pollinator species are so threatened by myriad environmental impacts that they’re facing extinction, with butterflies and bees seeing the highest risk. Among vertebrates, 16.5 percent of species are threatened by extinction worldwide. Pollinators are a major group: there are 20,000 species of wild bees across the globe, the report notes, and many of them haven’t been identified yet...
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2016/02/26/3754235/pollinators-ipbes-report/

The Republican Party's Double Secret Probation Plan For Transgender Students | ThinkProgress

The Republican National Committee (RNC) recently took a brash position opposing transgender equality — and didn’t tell anyone about it. Weeks after its passage at the RNC’s winter meeting last month, Time Magazine’s Zeke Miller found the resolution urging lawmakers to discriminate against transgender people...
http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2016/02/26/3754170/republicans-transgender-students/

Rhode Island Proves We Can Save On Health Costs Without Harming Low-Income People

Rhode Island is proving that it’s possible to save money on health costs without harming the impoverished people who rely on the social safety net. On Friday, state officials announced they have saved millions of dollars by reducing Medicaid spending growth — all without cutting health care benefits or eligibility for the state’s low-income population...
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2016/02/26/3754132/rhode-island-medicaid-reform/

Rubio's New 'Con Artist' Attack On Trump Could Put Him In A Very Awkward Position | ThinkProgress

But with this new line of attack, Rubio could potentially be putting himself in an awkward spot, because at the first GOP presidential debate in August, he, along with all the other candidates not named Donald, pledged to “support” whoever ends up being the nominee...
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/02/26/3754234/rubio-trump-con-artist/

Rubio Attacked Trump For Running a 'Fake School.' But There's Just One Problem. | ThinkProgress

Instead of encouraging the government to investigate the for-profit college chain, Rubio asked for leniency in a letter to the U.S. Department of Education in the summer of 2014. The letter, which was obtained by Bloomberg Politics, read, in part, “While I commend the Department’s desire to protect our nation’s students from fraudulent and malicious activity by any institution of higher education, regardless of tax status, I believe the Department can and should demonstrate leniency as long as Corinthian Colleges, Inc. continues to expeditiously and earnestly cooperate by providing the documents requested.”...
http://thinkprogress.org/education/2016/02/26/3754140/rubio-trump-for-profit-college/

Snyder Aide Says Governor Knew About Flint Water Issues A Year Before Action Was Taken | ThinkProgress

Snyder Aide Says Governor Knew About Flint Water Issues A Year Before Action Was Taken...
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2016/02/26/3754137/flint-snyder-aides-emails/

Republican Debate Ends With No Mention Of Hesston, Kansas Mass Shooting

CNN’s debate moderators did not ask candidates about the shooting in Hesston, Kansas, which left at least three people dead and up to 20 wounded. The incident was a workplace shooting, and the shooter — who was reported to be carrying an AK-47 — reportedly opened fire as he was driving his car...
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/02/25/3754076/debate-ignores-kansas-mass-shooting/

‘Fruit salad’ and five more memorable GOP debate moments

The big headline of the night may have been Sen. Marco Rubio’s decision to finally take the fight to the front-runner Donald Trump, but the most memorable lines and exchanges often belonged to others – paging Dr. Ben Carson...
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/fruit-salad-gop-debate-moments

Friday, February 26, 2016

Top Snyder aides urged going back to Detroit water

The city of Flint, Snyder's top legal aide wrote in October 2014, “should try to get back on the Detroit system as a stopgap ASAP before this thing gets too far out of control.”
http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/flint-water-crisis/2016/02/26/flint-water-crisis-snyder-detroit/80926138/

The Secular Coalition for America released the following statement after last night’s Republican debate.

“Last night in Texas, we saw why 51% of Americans say religious conservatives have too much control over the GOP. Every candidate used the debate stage as an opportunity to showcase their commitment to unconstitutional religious privileging, with Senator Ted Cruz going so far as to say it would be his litmus test for any Supreme Court nominee. Only Governor John Kasich distinguished himself in the slightest by rejecting religiously-based discrimination for businesses.”
http://www.secularvaluesvoter.org/2016/02/26/secular-coalition-statement-on-texas-republican-debate/

Canada's Prime Minister Was Asked About Donald Trump and Gave an Excellent Answer

"I don't think it comes as a surprise to anyone that I stand firmly against the politics of division, the politics of fear, the politics of intolerance or hateful rhetoric," Trudeau said. "If we allow politicians to succeed by scaring people, we don’t actually end up any safer. Fear doesn’t make us safer. It makes us weaker."
http://www.attn.com/stories/4793/justin-trudeau-responds-to-donald-trump

The Bible in the Fire

On February 22, 2016, reports came in about a miracle that happened in a highway near Memphis, TN. Many say, the Word of God was preserved by the very Hand of God. But was it?
https://youtu.be/DlsUM_2-nv0

Stephen Fry: The Importance of Unbelief

https://youtu.be/CqibqD4fJZs

Top U.S. & World Headlines — February 26, 2016

https://youtu.be/fJRvJDd43wY

Trump Demands Apology After Former Mexican President Says We’re ‘Not Paying For That Fucking Wall’

Fox doesn’t think Trump will become president, but he does acknowledge that Trump’s strong showing with Latino voters in Nevada concerns him.
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/02/25/3753826/vicente-fox-donald-trump-border-wall/

The E.U. To Cut Off Arms Supply To Saudi Arabia After Reports Of Humanitarian Rights Abuses

Citing the “disastrous humanitarian situation” caused by Saudi Arabian military action in Yemen, the European Parliament approved a measure to block E.U. member states from selling arms to Gulf state.
http://thinkprogress.org/world/2016/02/25/3753721/eu-saudi-arms/

Bernie Sanders' Democratic Socialism: A Closer Look

https://youtu.be/_KdVDblnquc

Congresswoman Asks Why Drug Tests Are Only Being Considered For Food Stamp Recipients, Not Farmers | ThinkProgress

“If we’re going to look at drug testing for SNAP, we should take the entire Department of Agriculture and all those programs that provide federal subsidy to folks, and they ought to be drug tested as well,” she said.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2016/02/25/3753599/delauro-drug-test-snap/

British Parliament Tells NFL: Change Washington’s Mascot Or ‘Send A Different Team To Our Country’

British Parliament Tells NFL It Is ‘Unacceptable’ To Bring ‘New Racial Slurs’ To Britain.
http://thinkprogress.org/sports/2016/02/25/3753424/british-parliament-redskins/

Former Attorney General Eric Holder Comes Out In Favor Of Marijuana Rescheduling

“I certainly think it ought to be rescheduled,” Holder says. “You know, we treat marijuana in the same way that we treat heroin now, and that clearly is not appropriate.”
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/02/25/3753451/holder-marijuana-reschedule/

The Undocumented Immigrants Who GOP Candidates Want To Deport Pay Billions In Taxes

GOP Candidates Likely Don’t Want You To Know This Fact About Undocumented Immigrants...
But there is one area where they are clearly contributing. Undocumented immigrants living in the United States pay $11.6 billion in state and local taxes annually, according to an updated Institute of Taxation and Economic Policy report.
http://thinkprogress.org/immigration/2016/02/25/3753432/undocumented-immigrants-pay-taxes/

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Ben Carson Acknowledges His Presidential Campaign Might Be A Big Scam | ThinkProgress

As Ben Carson slid down the polls after cresting around Halloween, firms closely connected with his campaign advisors and consultants hauled in millions of dollars in Carson’s campaign funds.
That state of affairs raised eyebrows and may have contributed to a major top-level staff shakeup at the end of last year. Now even Carson himself admits his moribund campaign has had the appearance of a big scam.
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/02/24/3753142/ben-carson-acknowledges-his-presidential-campaign-might-be-a-big-scam/

Document Distributed By U.S. Military Claims That Wearing Hijab Is ‘Passive Terrorism’

A policy paper distributed by the U.S. military is under fire for perpetuating a number of bizarre theories about extremism, such as claiming that wearing an Islamic hijab amounts to “passive terrorism.”...
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/02/24/3753167/wearing-hijab-equals-passive-terrorism-whatever-that-means/

Trump May Have To Take A Break From Campaigning To Handle Fraud Case Against Trump University | ThinkProgress

GOP frontrunner Donald Trump might have to take a break from the campaign trail to deal with a civil case alleging that Trump University committed fraud against its students. The case may require Donald Trump’s presence as a witness this spring, though a trial date has not yet been scheduled, Yahoo Politics first reported...
http://thinkprogress.org/education/2016/02/24/3753052/trump-university-civil-suit/

Top U.S. & World Headlines — February 25, 2016

Interview:
https://youtu.be/pi2HnxA5U6U

After His Former Coach Is Suspended For Sexual Assault, Baseball Player Speaks Up About Abuse | ThinkProgress

Smith wasn’t sexually abused by Bleiwas, but certainly recalls an environment filled with mistreatment that was actively encouraged by the coach.
http://thinkprogress.org/sports/2016/02/24/3752243/viral-video-baseball-abuse/

Winning His Race: Is Trump the Poster Child for the Rise of U.S. Hate Groups?

Donald Trump is the front-runner as he enters the final Republican presidential debate ahead of next week’s Super Tuesday primary. He is also featured on the cover of a new report by the Southern Poverty Law Center, "The Year in Hate and Extremism." We speak with SPLC President Richard Cohen, who notes that "[o]ver 60 percent of the people who support Trump believe that President Obama is a secret Muslim and wasn’t born in this country." The report points to the presidential election cycle as one of the primary reasons for the rising number of hate groups across the U.S., saying last year was marked by a level of hate speech in mainstream politics not seen in decades. The Investigation Discovery network will premiere a series titled "Hate in America," based on the work of the Southern Poverty Law Center, this Monday, February 29, at 8 p.m. Eastern.
Interview:
https://youtu.be/UzDeg9EdyX8

Former CIA Agent Says Edward Snowden Revelations Emboldened Apple to Push Back Against FBI

We speak with former CIA agent Barry Eisler about the role of Edward Snowden in raising public awareness about encryption and privacy ahead of the FBI’s push for Apple to break the encryption of the iPhone of one of the San Bernardino shooters. "So much of Snowden’s revelations were about this very thing. And the fact that the public knows about corporate cooperation with the government now is in part, I think, what has emboldened Apple to push back," Eisler says. "If we didn’t know about these things, I would expect that Apple would be quietly cooperating. There would be no cost to their doing so." Eisner also discusses his new novel, "The God’s Eye View," which he says is "grounded in things that are actually happening in the world. … I realized I was not going nearly far enough in what I had imagined."
Interview:
https://youtu.be/hNI0n-s_nkA

Can a Christian Party Survive?

Growth in the religiously unaffiliated is a demographic catastrophe for a GOP that only speaks to the faithful.
http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/the-republican-god-gap/

Randi's Challenge to Homeopathy Manufacturers and Retail Pharmacies

Skeptic James Randi challenges sellers of scam medications as hundreds stage worldwide "overdose" on homeopathic pills

Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.—To expose a scam industry that endangers and rips off millions of consumers a year, world-renowned conjuror, escape artist, and skeptic James Randi has put one million dollars on the line.

In a video statement released at 10:23 a.m. (ET) today, Randi joined hundreds of consumer advocates in more than 25 countries in exposing so-called homeopathic remedies—scam medications with no active ingredients that are sold by major retailers with no warning to customers. Demonstrators around the world swallowed homeopathic products by the handful, in a worldwide day of action inspired by a lecture by James Randi in which he downed an entire bottle of homeopathic sleeping pills to show they had no effect.

In his message, Randi issued a one-million-dollar challenge to the manufacturers of homeopathic products to prove their claims, and challenged major drug retailers like CVS, Rite-Aid, and Walgreens to stop tricking consumers into paying real money for fake medicine.

"Consumers have the right to know what they're buying," Randi said. "No one should walk out of a drugstore with a homeopathic product without knowing these basic facts: there is no credible evidence that the product does what it says; there is not one bit—not a single atom—of the claimed "active ingredient" in the package; and no U.S. health agency has tested or approved the product. It should be a crime for retail corporations to profit by denying the public this critical information about the products on their shelves."
Interview:
https://youtu.be/izxPEn3lvBY

Wisconsin GOP Invites Debt Collectors To File More Lawsuits Against Consumers

People who make money collecting debts in Wisconsin are about to get a big favor from their government. A law sitting on Gov. Scott Walker’s (R) desk this week would make it much easier and much less risky for debt collectors to go after consumers in court, and much harder to prove that any given collection effort is bogus...
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2016/02/24/3753102/wisconsin-debt-collector-lawsuits/

Clinton And Sanders Clash Over Path To Universal Health Care | ThinkProgress

As the leading Republican presidential candidates are busy offering incoherent plans that would repeal Obamacare and make the insurance landscape more confusing — Donald Trump, for instance, put out a 40-word health care platform that makes very little sense — the Democratic candidates are having a substantive debate about how to make universal health care a reality...
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2016/02/24/3752417/universal-health-care-campaign/

Oregon Could Soon Pass The Most Important Energy Bill Since The Paris Climate Talks

A bill that would require Oregon’s two largest utilities to phase out coal completely by 2030, coupled with a requirement to double the state’s renewable energy mandate, is working its way through the state Senate after being passed by the House earlier this year. If successful, environmentalists argue that it could represent some of the strongest environmental legislation in the state — and across the country — in decades...
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2016/02/24/3752405/oregon-renewable-energy-bill/

In a recording of the robocall sent to TPM, American National Super PAC founder William Daniel Johnson calls on white Americans to brush aside their fears of being branded as racist and stop the “gradual genocide against the white race” by electing Trump...
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/trump-robocall-super-tuesday-william-daniel-johnson