White House in crisis

[Rewind]

Apprehensions of people attempting to cross illegally from Mexico into the United States are at a 46-year low. There is no "national emergency." Most of the drugs smuggled into the US from Mexico arrive via legal ports of entry, not via illegal border crossings. There is no "national emergency." But the President has declared, "Damn the facts! Full speed ahead!" -- because, gosh darnit, he just has to build the unnecessary, expensive, ineffective Trump Wall that he promised to his immigrant-hating followers. This is the same wall he told us Mexico would pay for. Instead, he plans to take money away from disaster relief and the Department of Defense. Trump's "Make America Hate Again" campaign continues.

White House defends Trump's emergency declaration as lawsuits and political battles mount

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...unt/ar-BBTI1gN

[Rewind]

Texans who own land near the border with Mexico have no objections to cameras and sensors being installed -- but the United States government seizing huge portions of their land so the President can build the unnecessary, expensive, ineffective Trump Wall monument to himself? That is a prospect they are rightfully fearing and dreading.

Trump's border wall faces Texas-size backlash from landowners

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/mark...ers/ar-BBTK5uc

[Rewind]

His golf courses have 18 holes -- but his arguments for why we need to build The Trump Wall have hundreds of holes. You're about 180 yards from the green, Donald. I suggest you use your 3-iron for this shot -- and it's nice seeing you're no longer worried about the border.

Trump golfs third day in a row after declaring national emergency on border

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...der/ar-BBTLisi

[Rewind]

The Constitution of the United States mandates that Congress, not the President, decides how federal funds will be spent -- unless the President is Donald Trump, who usurped Congressional authority by declaring a "national emergency" so he can take money from disaster relief and the Department of Defense and start building The Trump Wall monument to himself. The ACLU and at least 13 states including California, Colorado, Connecticut and New Jersey are suing Trump for violating the Constitution and violating the separation of powers. In an essay for NBC news, former House Judiciary Committee counsel Michael Conway declares there is "no greater abuse of a public trust than a President usurping the powers of Congress."

Trump's emergency declaration may have laid the groundwork for his impeachment
Abuse of Presidential authority was one of the Articles of Impeachment against Nixon. This President could be next.

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinio...ent-ncna972801

[Rewind]

The Threat: How The FBI Protects America In The Age of Terror & Trump by Andrew McCabe, former acting director of the FBI, will be released February 19. Frank Figliuzzi, an NBC/MSNBC analyst and former FBI assistant director for counterintelligence, worked alongside McCabe for a short time and says McCabe's new book is "sounding an alarm and we need to listen." McCabe, of course, was fired from the FBI only 26 hours before he could have retired with a pension. And what did Trump tweet about McCabe on February 14? "McCabe is a disgrace to the FBI and a disgrace to our Country." Typical Trump, attacking his critics.

Andrew McCabe worried Trump was a potential national security threat. America should listen to his warning.
FBI agents are trained to identify and mitigate threats. McCabe's new book suggests he had identified just such a potential threat — in the Oval Office.

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinio...ica-ncna972826

[Rewind]

Fifteen of these 16 states have a Democratic Governor. Only one, Maryland, has a Republican Governor. This is just what I predicted: Many Republicans say they're opposed to Trump's declaration of a "national emergency" but when it comes to taking action against him, the majority have no spine and no courage. They cave. They put their party above the Constitution and above our nation's best interests.

Coalition of 16 states sues Trump over declaring national emergency to build wall

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/co...all/ar-BBTMp3S

[Rewind]

Throughout his life, Donald Trump has told lies -- many thousands of lies. When he's caught lying, he never admits he lied. Rather, he resorts to his usual strategy of "deflect, divert and distract." He attacks his critics, often viciously. An essay in today's New York Times reveals that Trump's efforts to discredit the Mueller investigation (and others) are far more sustained and far more secretive than we imagined. Trump has "attacked the law enforcement apparatus of his own government like no other President in history and has turned the effort into an obsession."

Intimidation, pressure and humiliation: Inside Trump's two-year war on the investigations encircling him

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...him/ar-BBTOY1R

[Rewind]

The President, who sees himself as the Emperor of the United States, does not care about the Constitution, the Bill of Rights or the law -- so it is not surprising that he also doesn't care about lawsuits.

White House moves forward with wall funding despite lawsuits

https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/19/polit...its/index.html

[Rewind]

One person who will always have objections to investigations of Donald Trump is Donald Trump. How dare anyone try to uncover all the lies and threats and scandals and lawsuits and shady deals and assault charges and other crimes that he's tried so hard to keep hidden.

McCabe told Congress 'Gang of 8' leaders about FBI probe into Trump. They had no objection.
CNN, Feb 19 2019 8:07 AM

Former acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe told NBC's Today show this morning that he briefed Congressional leaders about the counterintelligence investigation he had opened into President Donald Trump and that "no one objected."

"That's the important part here," McCabe told Savannah Guthrie, who had asked if he had informed the "Gang of Eight" bipartisan group of leaders on the Hill. "No one objected. Not on legal grounds, not on Constitutional grounds and not based on the facts." The purpose of the briefing in 2017 was to let the Congressional leadership, including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, then-House Speaker Paul Ryan and their Democratic counterparts, know what the FBI was doing in the probe into Russian election interference and possible collusion by the Trump campaign, McCabe said.

McCabe also said Trump's repeated public blasting of him has been "horrific" for him and his family. "I can't tell you how horrific it's been to have to endure the threats, the taunts, the bullying of the president of the United States in such a public way," McCabe said. "I try not to take it personally but it's very hard. It's been incredibly tough on my family."

The President has repeatedly attacked McCabe on Twitter after he interviewed with CBS's 60 Minutes. Trump called McCabe "a big part of the Crooked Hillary Scandal & the Russia Hoax — a puppet for Leakin' James Comey." Trump continued to tweet about McCabe all throughout the holiday weekend. "Remember this, Andrew McCabe didn’t go to the bathroom without the approval of Leakin' James Comey!" he posted Monday night.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/don...s-them-n972981

[Rewind]

Donald Trump is doing his best to enable Saudi Arabia to develop nuclear weapons. Does he think having nuclear weapons will "Make Saudi Arabia Great Again"? And, as he has done in many hundreds of other situations, he tried to keep his plans secret from the American people. He tried -- and he failed. Again.

Trump administration reportedly looked for ways to help Saudi Arabia build a nuclear weapon
Business Insider, Feb 19 2019

President Donald Trump's administration has participated in several secretive and highly suspicious activities that suggest the US is now clearing a path for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to build a nuclear bomb. The House Committee on Oversight and Reform released a report on today based on information from whistleblowers who said his administration has planned to build nuclear power plants in Saudi Arabia since day one.

These whistleblowers said Trump's officials also wanted to brush aside laws that would ban Saudi Arabia from using the nuclear technology transfer to build bombs. New evidence suggests Saudi Arabia is building ballistic missiles, which it would also need for nuclear weapons.

"The Trump Administration's interactions with Saudi Arabia have been shrouded in secrecy, raising significant questions about the nature of the relationship," the report said, citing Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner's close relationship with the Saudi royal family and Trump's response to the killing of Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi.

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and became the first of many Trump officials indicted and sentenced over undisclosed ties to foreign powers. Flynn reportedly failed to disclose a 2015 trip to Saudi Arabia to explore building nuclear power plants jointly with Russia.

As the whistleblowers described it, Trump's officials tried to provide the Saudis with a clear path to a nuclear warhead by transferring nuclear technology to them with no strings attached on how they could use it.

https://www.businessinsider.com/trum...weapons-2019-2