thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--Why The U.S. Considered Soleimani ‘Untouchable’ For Years Before His Assassination

Using an encrypted chat platform , an operator quickly texted a simple message to the drone pilot from the U.S. Air Force ’ s 3rd Special Operations Squadron , who was almost 7,500 miles away at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas : Hold the drone above Sadr City .
The personnel of Task Force 17 , which operated under Joint Special Operations Command , watched as crowds filled the neighborhood ’ s thoroughfares .
It soon became clear that an important visitor was receiving a hero ’ s welcome .
“ It was like someone was welcoming Obama @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” said a former U.S. intelligence officer .
“ It was electric.
” As leader of the Quds Force , the covert action wing of Iran ’ s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps , Soleimani was the patron of many of the Shiite militias then waging a vicious campaign against U.S. troops in Iraq .
The Quds Force was providing its Shiite militia proxies with explosively formed penetrators ( EFPs ) , a deadly type of roadside bomb that could pierce armored vehicles and would eventually claim the lives of more than 600 U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t the only reason that Soleimani was on Task Force 17 ’ s radar .
He was also actively supporting the Shiite militias in their bloody sectarian campaign against Iraq ’ s Sunni minority , and earlier that year , his operatives had helped plan a sophisticated and brazen Shiite militia attack on a joint U.S.-Iraqi military facility in Karbala that left five U.S. soldiers dead .
Now Soleimani was in the Predator ’ s sights .
“ We said , ‘ holy s*** , it ’ s Soleimani , pressing flesh with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said the former U.S. intelligence officer .
The drone tracking Soleimani was armed with missiles , and the U.S. military could have killed the Iranian commander — and probably many others — instantly .
Within the tent , “ there was a discussion , of course , of whether we should do something , ” said the former intelligence officer .
But , even if Soleimani had been alone , the task force members present knew that the Quds Force commander was “ untouchable , ” said the former intelligence officer .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , stepped into a building and was gone .
In the first years of the occupation , Soleimani had moved back and forth between Iran and Iraq “ constantly , ” but had always taken the precautions to be expected from a seasoned intelligence officer , said John Maguire , a former senior CIA official stationed in Baghdad in the mid-2000s .
Soleimani disguised his rank and identity , used only ground transportation and avoided speaking on the phone or the radio , preferring to give orders to proxies and subordinates in Iraq @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ They knew we listened to everybody , ” he said .
However , in what became settled U.S. policy for the next dozen years , the order came down to keep American hands off the Quds Force chief .
“ We were asked for our assessment of what would be the fallout , and we said the Iranians would see this act as inflammatory , ” said the former CIA official .
“ The Bush folks decided that escalating things would not be worth it and moved on.
” In their massive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around Iraq , CIA officers quietly stewed as they watched Soleimani and his deputies gradually seize control of Iraqi institutions , taking advantage of a series of American missteps after the success of the initial U.S. invasion in March 2003 .
“ Soleimani realized quickly that we did not have an accurate understanding of how Iraq worked , ” said Maguire .
“ He realized that the insurgency would tie Americans in knots and allow him to kill Iraqis he had wanted to kill for years.
” Those Iraqis were mainly former members @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fought in the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s .
Soleimani was an Iranian veteran of the same war .
Iraqi Shiite politician Ahmed Chalabi , who was deputy prime minister from May 2005 to May 2006 , gave Soleimani or his associates all the data they needed to organize a campaign of sectarian mass murder by their Shiite proxies , according to Maguire .
“ They started systematic murder every cycle of darkness , ” he said .
“ They killed probably 30,000 Iraqis that way.
” The CIA was closely monitoring all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. military had access to “ a lot of cameras ” in Sadr City that allowed them to watch live video of trainers of the Quds Force and its Lebanese proxy , Hezbollah , instructing Shiite militiamen in urban warfare , Maguire said .
But when CIA officers asked Army Lt. Gen. Stanley McChrystal , head of Joint Special Operations Command ( JSOC ) , and other senior U.S. officials , about targeting Soleimani and other Iranian intelligence figures , their requests went nowhere , according to Maguire .
“ I was told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ’ ” he said .
“ There was no appetite for it ” in the Pentagon .
To CIA officers on the ground in Iraq , the United States was ceding the battlefield to Iran .
“ We turned the field over in the short term to the Iranians , then we were stunned how effectively the Iranians moved in our way , ” said the former senior CIA official , who compared the Quds Force ’ s efforts in Iraq to his own agency ’ s successful 1980s program to help @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Soviets .
“ They pulled on us what we pulled on the Russians in Afghanistan .
It was like a mirror program.
” It wasn ’ t just some in the CIA that felt their hands were tied .
Task Force 17 , the special operations force established to go after the Quds Force ’ s Shiite militias in Iraq , was likewise hamstrung .
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki placed tight restrictions on any targeting of the Shiite militias and particularly Quds Force operatives .
The task force frequently detained Quds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Americans to release them within hours .
The few Iranians killed in Iraq by coalition forces were “ in the wrong place at the wrong time , ” too close to their Shiite militia counterparts during firefights or in bomb-making facilities , said the former senior CIA official .
Generally , Soleimani and his lieutenants knew they were safe in Iraq .
With the United States temporarily out of the picture , “ Iran increased its penetration of the Iraqi government , ” said Daniel Hoffman , the former chief of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But the rise of the Islamic State group — which owed much to the sectarianism of the Shiite militias and the Maliki government — brought U.S. forces back to Iraq in 2014 to prevent the fall of Baghdad to the Sunni militant group .
This forced the Shiite militias and the U.S. military into an awkward partnership , with Soleimani pulling the strings of the militias .
Thomas , who commanded JSOC from 2014 to 2016 and was heavily involved in the fight against the Islamic State group , said he had twice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ during visits to Irbil , the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan .
“ We never had the guts or the interest to do anything about him ( other than ‘ sanctions ’ that we didn ’ t enforce ) , ” he wrote .
“ The reality was that he had the ability to roam and do whatever he wanted to do back then .
”

One afternoon in Baghdad in the final months of 2007, a few members of a U.S. special operations task force were monitoring the feed from a Predator drone over the Iraqi capital, scanning for signs of trouble, when they spotted a large crowd gathering in the neighborhood of Sadr City.
From their large, air-conditioned tent near Baghdad International Airport, the operators sprang into action. They belonged to Task Force 17, which focused on combating the Iranian-supported Shiite militias that were killing thousands of Iraqis and hundreds of U.S. forces. Sadr City was the dense, teeming home to 3 million mostly poor Shiites. Whatever — or whoever — was bringing crowds into the streets there demanded Task Force 17’s attention.
Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani in 2005. (Photo: Sipa/Shutterstock)
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Using an encrypted chat platform, an operator quickly texted a simple message to the drone pilot from the U.S. Air Force’s 3rd Special Operations Squadron, who was almost 7,500 miles away at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas: Hold the drone above Sadr City. The personnel of Task Force 17, which operated under Joint Special Operations Command, watched as crowds filled the neighborhood’s thoroughfares. It soon became clear that an important visitor was receiving a hero’s welcome. “It was like someone was welcoming Obama to the streets of Sadr City,” said a former U.S. intelligence officer. “It was electric.”
But the drone’s feed was too grainy for the Americans to identify the VIP. In the tent, Navy personnel assigned to the National Security Agency went to work, intercepting real-time communications from Sadr City to find out more about the rally — and the man at its center. They quickly learned the mysterious visitor’s identity: Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
As leader of the Quds Force, the covert action wing of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Soleimani was the patron of many of the Shiite militias then waging a vicious campaign against U.S. troops in Iraq. The Quds Force was providing its Shiite militia proxies with explosively formed penetrators (EFPs), a deadly type of roadside bomb that could pierce armored vehicles and would eventually claim the lives of more than 600 U.S. troops. But the EFPs weren’t the only reason that Soleimani was on Task Force 17’s radar. He was also actively supporting the Shiite militias in their bloody sectarian campaign against Iraq’s Sunni minority, and earlier that year, his operatives had helped plan a sophisticated and brazen Shiite militia attack on a joint U.S.-Iraqi military facility in Karbala that left five U.S. soldiers dead.
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Iraqi Shiites from the Badr forces militia protest against the military intervention in Yemen, in Baghdad, Iraq in 2015. (Photo: Karim Kadim/AP) ASSOCIATED PRESS
Now Soleimani was in the Predator’s sights. “We said, ‘holy s***, it’s Soleimani, pressing flesh with a bunch of people,’” said the former U.S. intelligence officer. The drone tracking Soleimani was armed with missiles, and the U.S. military could have killed the Iranian commander — and probably many others — instantly. Within the tent, “there was a discussion, of course, of whether we should do something,” said the former intelligence officer. But, even if Soleimani had been alone, the task force members present knew that the Quds Force commander was “untouchable,” said the former intelligence officer. As they watched, Soleimani parted the crowd, stepped into a building and was gone.
More than four and a half years into the U.S. occupation of Iraq — and Iran’s parallel effort to sabotage that occupation — Soleimani had also come to realize he was untouchable. He had not always believed that to be so.
In the first years of the occupation, Soleimani had moved back and forth between Iran and Iraq “constantly,” but had always taken the precautions to be expected from a seasoned intelligence officer, said John Maguire, a former senior CIA official stationed in Baghdad in the mid-2000s. Soleimani disguised his rank and identity, used only ground transportation and avoided speaking on the phone or the radio, preferring to give orders to proxies and subordinates in Iraq in person, according to Maguire. “They knew we listened to everybody,” he said.
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Soleimani grew bolder. During the last years of the President George W. Bush administration, U.S. officials discovered that, with the help of Iraqi contacts, he had successfully snuck into the Green Zone — the highly fortified section of Baghdad that included the U.S. Embassy — several times. “This was a bit of an embarrassment to some in the Bush administration, and there were several officials who wanted to detain him next time this happened,” recalled a former CIA official.
However, in what became settled U.S. policy for the next dozen years, the order came down to keep American hands off the Quds Force chief. “We were asked for our assessment of what would be the fallout, and we said the Iranians would see this act as inflammatory,” said the former CIA official. “The Bush folks decided that escalating things would not be worth it and moved on.”
In their massive station in Baghdad and in smaller bases around Iraq, CIA officers quietly stewed as they watched Soleimani and his deputies gradually seize control of Iraqi institutions, taking advantage of a series of American missteps after the success of the initial U.S. invasion in March 2003. “Soleimani realized quickly that we did not have an accurate understanding of how Iraq worked,” said Maguire. “He realized that the insurgency would tie Americans in knots and allow him to kill Iraqis he had wanted to kill for years.”
Those Iraqis were mainly former members of the Saddam Hussein-era military who had fought in the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s. Soleimani was an Iranian veteran of the same war. Iraqi Shiite politician Ahmed Chalabi, who was deputy prime minister from May 2005 to May 2006, gave Soleimani or his associates all the data they needed to organize a campaign of sectarian mass murder by their Shiite proxies, according to Maguire. “They started systematic murder every cycle of darkness,” he said. “They killed probably 30,000 Iraqis that way.”
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Qassem Soleimani speaks during the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War. (Photo: AY-Collection/SIPA/Shutterstock)
The CIA was closely monitoring all of this. The agency and the U.S. military had access to “a lot of cameras” in Sadr City that allowed them to watch live video of trainers of the Quds Force and its Lebanese proxy, Hezbollah, instructing Shiite militiamen in urban warfare, Maguire said. But when CIA officers asked Army Lt. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, head of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), and other senior U.S. officials, about targeting Soleimani and other Iranian intelligence figures, their requests went nowhere, according to Maguire. “I was told, ‘No, these are Iranians,’” he said. “There was no appetite for it” in the Pentagon.
A Bush administration directive shortly after the invasion meant the CIA could not take matters into its own hands, according to the former senior CIA official. “We were limited to straight intel collection,” he said. “No covert action, no influence operations.”
The CIA’s Iraqi counterparts were equally frustrated at Washington’s reluctance to kill Soleimani. “The Iraqi intel service wanted to kill him and couldn’t understand why we wouldn’t target him,” Maguire said. “They thought he was the most dangerous guy in Iraq.”
To CIA officers on the ground in Iraq, the United States was ceding the battlefield to Iran. “We turned the field over in the short term to the Iranians, then we were stunned how effectively the Iranians moved in our way,” said the former senior CIA official, who compared the Quds Force’s efforts in Iraq to his own agency’s successful 1980s program to help the Afghan mujahideen in their fight against the Soviets. “They pulled on us what we pulled on the Russians in Afghanistan. It was like a mirror program.”
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It wasn’t just some in the CIA that felt their hands were tied. Task Force 17, the special operations force established to go after the Quds Force’s Shiite militias in Iraq, was likewise hamstrung. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki placed tight restrictions on any targeting of the Shiite militias and particularly Quds Force operatives. The task force frequently detained Quds Force officers, but Maliki always forced the Americans to release them within hours. The few Iranians killed in Iraq by coalition forces were “in the wrong place at the wrong time,” too close to their Shiite militia counterparts during firefights or in bomb-making facilities, said the former senior CIA official. Generally, Soleimani and his lieutenants knew they were safe in Iraq.
This state of affairs persisted throughout the U.S. occupation of Iraq. McChrystal, the former JSOC commander, wrote last year of an opportunity he had in 2007 to strike a Quds Force convoy containing Soleimani as it crossed from Iran into northern Iraq. He decided to just monitor the convoy, in order “to avoid a firefight, and the contentious politics that would follow.”
U.S. officials feared targeting Soleimani or other Quds Force officers would risk escalating with Iran. “Nobody wanted to cross an official line to kill Iranians in Iraq, because that would put us at war, and we had enough with Iraq and Afghanistan,” said the former senior CIA official.
Though violence persisted, by the end of the 2000s, the Quds Force was shifting its focus from killing U.S. military personnel to long-term political influence operations. In order to transmit backchannel messages to Soleimani and the Iranian leadership, senior CIA officials in Iraq would meet “behind the scenes with senior Shia political party members, very powerful influencers in Iraqi Shia politics and say, ‘The militias must cease attacks on U.S. forces or the consequences will be severe for you and your Iranian advisers,’” recalled Douglas Wise, a former CIA Baghdad station chief.
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“For the Iranians, it was an easy message to have delivered, and to accommodate, because they had already achieved their desired outcome from their position,” which was greater influence in Iraq, and a drawdown in U.S. troops, Wise said. In these meetings, the Shiite political leaders would “sit silently and listen, their chief of staff would take notes, but they knew the tide had turned.”
The proxy war didn’t die down entirely, however. Even as U.S. forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011, Soleimani kept up the attacks. “They were hitting us hard with rockets and EFPs,” said Douglas London, a retired CIA senior operations officer. “It was clearly just to bleed us. … They wanted to ensure we wouldn’t come back.”
With the United States temporarily out of the picture, “Iran increased its penetration of the Iraqi government,” said Daniel Hoffman, the former chief of the CIA’s Middle East division. But the rise of the Islamic State group — which owed much to the sectarianism of the Shiite militias and the Maliki government — brought U.S. forces back to Iraq in 2014 to prevent the fall of Baghdad to the Sunni militant group. This forced the Shiite militias and the U.S. military into an awkward partnership, with Soleimani pulling the strings of the militias.
A Zelzal ballistic missile is launched during the second day of military exercises by Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard at an undisclosed location in Iran in 2011. (Photo: EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)
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By now, the Iranian general was no longer operating in the shadows. He was frequently spotted on Iraqi battlefields, taking selfies with militiamen and appearing very relaxed. The Quds Force commander was “moving around with impunity” in Iraq, Hoffman said. “Though he was in Baghdad, he might have been in Tehran.”
This made it even easier for U.S. intelligence to keep tabs on him. “We had almost daily information about his whereabouts for the better part of the last decade,” retired Army Gen. Tony Thomas wrote on LinkedIn after Soleimani’s death.
Thomas, who commanded JSOC from 2014 to 2016 and was heavily involved in the fight against the Islamic State group, said he had twice parked his airplane beside Soleimani’s during visits to Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. “We never had the guts or the interest to do anything about him (other than ‘sanctions’ that we didn’t enforce),” he wrote. “The reality was that he had the ability to roam and do whatever he wanted to do back then.”
There was still no interest in Washington in a strike against Soleimani or his subordinates that might trigger a wider conflict with Iran, particularly as the Obama administration negotiated with Tehran to reach a deal that would curb the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions.
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Although he was a two-star general, Soleimani benefited from the view in some quarters of the U.S. government that the Quds Force was an intelligence organization. “From our perspective,” said a former U.S. intelligence official, the Quds Force was seen as the equivalent of the Soviet Union’s KGB during the Cold War: a rival in the spy game, but not an organization against whose members the United States could use lethal force.
Even after U.S. officials concluded around 2013 that Iran may have been targeting undercover U.S. intelligence officers working for the Defense Department in Europe for potential assassination, there was no talk of killing Quds Force members, according to the former U.S. intelligence official. “You don’t kill the other side’s intelligence operatives,” the former official said. “It’s not in our DNA.”
When Soleimani stepped out of a Cham Wings Airbus A320 at Baghdad International Airport and climbed into a waiting SUV in the early hours of Jan. 3, he clearly was under the impression that these unwritten rules were still in effect. For so long considered the ultimate intelligence operative in the Middle East, the veteran Quds Force commander had failed to detect the shift in attitude in Washington — and in particular, in the White House — that now imperiled him. Whether he realized the extent of his error in the split seconds before a Hellfire missile incinerated his SUV is unknown.
A burning vehicle at the Baghdad International Airport following an airstrike Jan. 3 that killed Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds Force, at the direction of President Trump. (Photo: Iraqi Prime Minister Press Office, via AP)


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--Trump Visits Doral Golf Resort Where RNC Is Spending Another Half-Million Dollars

DORAL , Fla. — President Donald Trump flew to his for-profit golf resort Thursday beside the Miami airport , where the Republican National Committee is putting another half-million dollars into his cash registers by holding its second meeting there in two years .
Saul Anuzis , a former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party , shrugged off the occasional whiffs of mildew and the resort ’ s location beneath constant jet traffic .
“ I don ’ t think anybody thinks about putting money in Trump ’ s pocket , ” he said in the chandeliered lobby .
“ It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ persona of who Donald Trump is.
” RNC officials did not respond to HuffPost ’ s queries about how much they are spending to host this three-day meeting .
However , a similar meeting in May 2018 ended up costing the party $ 602,765 .
The RNC already paid the resort $ 169,763 on Nov. 6 , 2019 , in advance of the current meeting .
It also paid Doral $ 84,822 to hold a lunch fundraiser there in June 2019 .
“ It doesn ’ t bother me , ” said Dean @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Michigan RNC member Kathy Berden .
“ I ’ d rather it go to him than some other wealthy person .
...
He ’ s done more for this country than the last five presidents combined .
And that includes Ronald Reagan.
” The resort more than doubled its room rates , from $ 254 to $ 539 , when Trump decided to visit , potentially increasing costs to taxpayers for rooms for Secret Service and other members of the “ advance ” team that had to arrive a few days ago @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Trump ’ s family business that owns and operates his hotels and resorts , would disclose how much they charged government employees for rooms .
The White House also would not disclose this information .
Trump is speaking to the 168-member group , their guests and Republican Party staff , and is scheduled to remain for about 90 minutes before taking Air Force One back to Washington , D.C. , where House members are on their second day of presenting their impeachment case against Trump in the Senate chambers .
Trump ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and public , with attendees having to give up their cellphones and any other recording devices before entering the room set up for the speech .
In previous appearances at fundraisers and political events , some attendees have recorded all or portions of the remarks and given them to reporters — generating stories that Trump and his supporters did not like .
Trump tried to steer a multimillion-dollar government contract to himself to host the Group of Seven economic conference at Doral but backed down after a flood of criticism accusing him of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ RNC settled on holding its winter meeting there .
While Trump likes to boast that his resort is first-rate , it has suffered financially since he became president while also suffering in comparison to other hotels in the area .
Although the city of Doral is in Miami-Dade County , it is removed from the attractions most people imagine when they think of Miami .
The golf resort boasts plenty of ornate chandeliers and baroque fountains — but lies directly beneath the flight path of Miami International Airport ’ s takeoffs and landings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beach .
During the RNC ’ s meeting there in 2018 , the troubled property appeared to be skimping on maintenance costs .
At least one of the guest buildings smelled of mildew , as did its guest rooms , while the restaurant on the lower floor in the main lodge had a mustiness tinged with the fraternity house odor of spilled alcohol .
Nearly two years later , at this current RNC meeting , the mustiness appears to remain , at least in some areas .
The downstairs restaurant , however , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ odor .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
DORAL, Fla. — President Donald Trump flew to his for-profit golf resort Thursday beside the Miami airport, where the Republican National Committee is putting another half-million dollars into his cash registers by holding its second meeting there in two years.
Saul Anuzis, a former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party, shrugged off the occasional whiffs of mildew and the resort’s location beneath constant jet traffic. “I don’t think anybody thinks about putting money in Trump’s pocket,” he said in the chandeliered lobby. “It’s just part of the overall persona of who Donald Trump is.”
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RNC officials did not respond to HuffPost’s queries about how much they are spending to host this three-day meeting. However, a similar meeting in May 2018 ended up costing the party $602,765. The RNC already paid the resort $169,763 on Nov. 6, 2019, in advance of the current meeting. It also paid Doral $84,822 to hold a lunch fundraiser there in June 2019.
RNC members and guests also pay Doral about $1,000 each out of pocket for rooms and food at the higher-than-average-priced restaurants on site.
“It doesn’t bother me,” said Dean Berden, a Trump supporter and husband of Michigan RNC member Kathy Berden. “I’d rather it go to him than some other wealthy person. ... He’s done more for this country than the last five presidents combined. And that includes Ronald Reagan.”
Then-presidential candidate Donald Trump drives himself around the golf course to watch the final round of the Cadillac Championship golf tournament on March 6, 2016, in Doral, Florida. AP Photo/Luis Alvarez
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The resort more than doubled its room rates, from $254 to $539, when Trump decided to visit, potentially increasing costs to taxpayers for rooms for Secret Service and other members of the “advance” team that had to arrive a few days ago.
Neither Doral nor the Trump Organization, Trump’s family business that owns and operates his hotels and resorts, would disclose how much they charged government employees for rooms. The White House also would not disclose this information.
Trump spoke to the 168-member group, their guests and Republican Party staff for about 90 minutes before taking Air Force One back to Washington, D.C., where House members were on their second day of presenting their impeachment case against Trump in the Senate chambers.
Trump’s speech was closed to the press and public, with attendees having to give up their cellphones and any other recording devices before entering the room set up for the speech. In previous appearances at fundraisers and political events, some attendees have recorded all or portions of the remarks and given them to reporters — generating stories that Trump and his supporters did not like.
Trump tried to steer a multimillion-dollar government contract to himself to host the Group of Seven economic conference at Doral but backed down after a flood of criticism accusing him of open corruption. Within weeks, the RNC settled on holding its winter meeting there.
Advertisement
While Trump likes to boast that his resort is first-rate, it has suffered financially since he became president while also suffering in comparison to other hotels in the area.
Although the city of Doral is in Miami-Dade County, it is removed from the attractions most people imagine when they think of Miami. The golf resort boasts plenty of ornate chandeliers and baroque fountains — but lies directly beneath the flight path of Miami International Airport’s takeoffs and landings, and is miles from the closest beach.
During the RNC’s meeting there in 2018, the troubled property appeared to be skimping on maintenance costs. At least one of the guest buildings smelled of mildew, as did its guest rooms, while the restaurant on the lower floor in the main lodge had a mustiness tinged with the fraternity house odor of spilled alcohol.
Nearly two years later, at this current RNC meeting, the mustiness appears to remain, at least in some areas. The downstairs restaurant, however, seems to have eliminated the stale beer odor.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--Barack And Michelle Obama's Portraits Are Going On Tour

The National Portrait Gallery ’ s popular and distinctive portraits of former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama will go on a five-city tour starting in 2021 , the museum announced Thursday .
The portraits will leave Washington in June of 2021 to be featured in temporary exhibitions at five museums around the country : the Art Institute of Chicago ( June 18-Aug. 15 ) , the Brooklyn Museum ( Aug. 27-Oct. 24 ) , the Los Angeles County Museum of Art ( Nov. 5-Jan. 2 , 2022 ) , the High Museum of Art in Atlanta ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Museum of Fine Arts , Houston ( March 25-May 30 , 2022 ) .
Unveiled in 2018 , the iconic and revolutionary portraits have drawn record crowds to the museum and spawned viral moments .
They ’ re also significant for being the first official presidential and first lady portraits at the museum that were created by Black artists , hand-picked by the Obamas .
The former president ’ s portrait is by Kehinde Wiley , and the former first lady ’ s is by Amy Sherald .
Former U.S. President Barack @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stand next to their newly unveiled portraits during a ceremony at the Smithsonian 's National Portrait Gallery in February 2018 in Washington , D.C. Kehinde Wiley created the former president 's portrait and Amy Sherald did that of Michelle Obama .
Some of the cities on the tour were selected because of their significance to the Obamas or to the artists .
Sherald is a Georgia native , and Wiley was born in Los Angeles and has a studio and several works in Brooklyn , according to The Washington Post , which first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The tour is among multiple initiatives the museum has planned to bring its work to people around the country who may not have the resources to visit the nation ’ s capital .
On Feb. 11 , it will release a book called “ The Obama Portraits , ” which is tied to the national tour .
“ We view the country as our community , ” the museum ’ s director , Kim Sajet , said in a statement Thursday announcing the tour .
“ Since the unveiling of these two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Gallery has experienced a record number of visitors , not only to view these works in person , but to be part of the communal experience of a particular moment in time .
This tour is an opportunity for audiences in different parts of the country to witness how portraiture can engage people in the beauty of dialogue and shared experience.
” Crowds are often huddled around the portrait of Michelle Obama at the National Portrait Gallery .
In 2018 , the first year the Obamas ’ portraits were on view , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , compared with 1.3 million the year before .
Visitors to Washington will have until mid-May of 2021 to view the portraits , before the museum ’ s staff prepares them for the national tour , the Portrait Gallery said .

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The National Portrait Gallery’s popular and distinctive portraits of former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama will go on a five-city tour starting in 2021, the museum announced Thursday.
The portraits will leave Washington in June of 2021 to be featured in temporary exhibitions at five museums around the country: the Art Institute of Chicago (June 18-Aug. 15), the Brooklyn Museum (Aug. 27-Oct. 24), the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Nov. 5-Jan. 2, 2022), the High Museum of Art in Atlanta (Jan. 14-March 13, 2022) and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (March 25-May 30, 2022).
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Unveiled in 2018, the iconic and revolutionary portraits have drawn record crowds to the museum and spawned viral moments. They’re also significant for being the first official presidential and first lady portraits at the museum that were created by Black artists, hand-picked by the Obamas. The former president’s portrait is by Kehinde Wiley, and the former first lady’s is by Amy Sherald.
Former U.S. President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama stand next to their newly unveiled portraits during a ceremony at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in February 2018 in Washington, D.C. Kehinde Wiley created the former president's portrait and Amy Sherald did that of Michelle Obama. Mark Wilson via Getty Images
Some of the cities on the tour were selected because of their significance to the Obamas or to the artists. Sherald is a Georgia native, and Wiley was born in Los Angeles and has a studio and several works in Brooklyn, according to The Washington Post, which first reported the news of the tour Thursday.
The tour is among multiple initiatives the museum has planned to bring its work to people around the country who may not have the resources to visit the nation’s capital. On Feb. 11, it will release a book called “The Obama Portraits,” which is tied to the national tour.
Advertisement
“We view the country as our community,” the museum’s director, Kim Sajet, said in a statement Thursday announcing the tour. “Since the unveiling of these two portraits of the Obamas, the Portrait Gallery has experienced a record number of visitors, not only to view these works in person, but to be part of the communal experience of a particular moment in time. This tour is an opportunity for audiences in different parts of the country to witness how portraiture can engage people in the beauty of dialogue and shared experience.”
Crowds are often huddled around the portrait of Michelle Obama at the National Portrait Gallery. The Washington Post via Getty Images
In 2018, the first year the Obamas’ portraits were on view, the museum welcomed a record 2.3 million visitors, compared with 1.3 million the year before.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--Bernie Sanders Has Been Planning A Social Security Fight With Donald Trump For Years

The timing of Trump ’ s comments to CNBC could not have come at a more opportune moment for Sanders , who is litigating a pitched battle with former Vice President Joe Biden , with whom he is neck-and-neck in the presidential primary , over their respective records on Social Security .
The Biden campaign affirmed to HuffPost on Saturday that in addition to proposing a plan to increase Social Security benefits for the most vulnerable retirees , Biden has ruled out cuts of any kind to the benefits received by the larger beneficiary population .
But Sanders is correct @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the 1980s and ’ 90s , Biden endorsed and even cast votes for legislation that cut or would have cut Social Security benefits .
He also served alongside former President Barack Obama , who sought a budget compromise deal ― or “ grand bargain ” ― with congressional Republicans that would have reduced Social Security ’ s cost-of-living adjustment .
The following month , as it became clear that repealing the Affordable Care Act would be a Republican priority in Trump ’ s first months in office , Sanders printed out one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Social Security , Medicare and Medicaid , and used it as a prop on the Senate floor .
“ If he was sincere , then I would hope that tomorrow or maybe today he could send out a tweet and tell his Republican colleagues to stop wasting their time and all of our time , ” Sanders said , standing alongside a poster of the tweet .
“ Donald Trump promised the American people that he would be a different type of Republican , that he would be a champion of the working @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Social Security , Medicare and Medicaid , ” Sanders said in a statement about Trump ’ s fiscal 2020 budget in March .
“ But his budget does the exact opposite of what he promised the American people.
” “ On every issue , Trump has betrayed the working class of this country .
His only signature legislative accomplishment is a massive tax bill for wealthy people and large corporations , ” said Jeff Weaver , a senior adviser to the Sanders campaign .
“ That is why Bernie Sanders is so well @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him in 2020 ― because Bernie Sanders can speak to the reality that working-class people of all races in this country feel that Trump tried to appeal to in 2016 but in fact has failed to deliver on.
” “ The only way that we ’ re going to be able to do that is by increasing the voter turnout , energizing young people ― particularly young people of color , and bringing working-class people back into the Democratic Party , ” Weaver said .
“ That ’ s the agenda that Bernie @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back to that paradigm of Trump versus Joe Biden , who is in many ways more conservative in terms of working-class issues than Hillary Clinton was by far , how can you expect to have a different result ?
” Weaver asked .

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President Donald Trump walked into a carefully laid trap on Wednesday, when, in an interview on CNBC, he suggested he was open to cutting Social Security and Medicare.
Asked by “Squawk Box” host Joe Kernen whether “entitlements” ― a Washington term for universal social insurance programs ― would ever be “on his plate,” Trump responded that they would.
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“At some point they will be,” Trump said in the interview from Davos, Switzerland. “At the right time, we will take a look at that.”
It’s unclear if Trump even knew of exactly what he was speaking.
And the White House denied that was his intention. “With no benefit cuts, President Trump is keeping his commitment to the most vulnerable Americans, especially those who depend on Medicare and Social Security,” White House spokesman Judd Deere said.
But Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is vying for the chance to take on Trump as the Democratic presidential nominee, didn’t waste time using it against him.
“Over and over, Donald Trump promised Americans that he would not cut Social Security and Medicare. He lied,” Sanders tweeted. “When we win, we’re not going to just protect Social Security and Medicare, we’re going to expand them.”
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After HuffPost’s story went live Thursday afternoon, Trump defended his record further on Twitter. “Democrats are going to destroy your Social Security,” he wrote. “I have totally left it alone, as promised, and will save it!”
Sanders shot back in a quote-tweeted message with a screenshot of an article documenting how Trump’s budget resolutions have sought to cut the program. “More lies,” Sanders wrote.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduces a bill to expand Social Security on Capitol Hill in February. Mark Wilson/Getty Images
The timing of Trump’s comments to CNBC could not have come at a more opportune moment for Sanders, who is litigating a pitched battle with former Vice President Joe Biden, with whom he is neck-and-neck in the presidential primary, over their respective records on Social Security.
The Biden campaign affirmed to HuffPost on Saturday that in addition to proposing a plan to increase Social Security benefits for the most vulnerable retirees, Biden has ruled out cuts of any kind to the benefits received by the larger beneficiary population.
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But Sanders is correct to note that as a senator in the 1980s and ’90s, Biden endorsed and even cast votes for legislation that cut or would have cut Social Security benefits. He also served alongside former President Barack Obama, who sought a budget compromise deal ― or “grand bargain” ― with congressional Republicans that would have reduced Social Security’s cost-of-living adjustment.
Sanders, by contrast, was an early opponent of those would-be deals and a proponent of expanding Social Security.
The Trump remarks provide Sanders the chance to further distinguish himself from Biden. Perhaps more importantly, they also give him the opportunity to execute on a carefully crafted plan to hold Trump accountable for his populist rhetoric.
Virtually since the moment Trump was elected, Sanders had been reminding Trump of his campaign trail promises not to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
Sanders’ Senate office captured video of Trump mocking his fellow Republicans at an event in New Hampshire in May 2015 for embracing Social Security and Medicare cuts, and promising that he would be different.
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He headlined a rally with Democratic leaders in Congress in December 2016 calling on Trump not to cut Medicare.
“Bernie Sanders can speak to the reality that working-class people of all races in this country feel that Trump tried to appeal to in 2016 but in fact has failed to deliver on.” - Jeff Weaver, Sanders campaign
The following month, as it became clear that repealing the Affordable Care Act would be a Republican priority in Trump’s first months in office, Sanders printed out one of Trump’s tweets promising to protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and used it as a prop on the Senate floor.
“If he was sincere, then I would hope that tomorrow or maybe today he could send out a tweet and tell his Republican colleagues to stop wasting their time and all of our time,” Sanders said, standing alongside a poster of the tweet.
Sanders subsequently condemned every one of Trump’s annual budget proposals for trying to restrict eligibility for Social Security’s Disability Insurance program. He consistently framed those budgets as betrayals of Trump’s campaign promises.
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“Donald Trump promised the American people that he would be a different type of Republican, that he would be a champion of the working American and that he would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid,” Sanders said in a statement about Trump’s fiscal 2020 budget in March. “But his budget does the exact opposite of what he promised the American people.”
It’s all part of Sanders’ argument ― however oversimplistic ― that Trump won by appealing to the struggles of millions of working-class people, who either abandoned the Democratic Party in favor of him or stayed home.
As a candidate, Trump indeed combined racist rhetoric and hard-line immigration policies with promises to bring back manufacturing jobs through more equitable trade agreements, protect social insurance programs, ensure universal health care, and “drain” Washington of its swamp-like corruption.
Sanders’ conceit is that as a left-wing populist, he is the perfect foil for Trump’s empty working-class pitch.
“On every issue, Trump has betrayed the working class of this country. His only signature legislative accomplishment is a massive tax bill for wealthy people and large corporations,” said Jeff Weaver, a senior adviser to the Sanders campaign. “That is why Bernie Sanders is so well positioned to take him on and defeat him in 2020 ― because Bernie Sanders can speak to the reality that working-class people of all races in this country feel, that Trump tried to appeal to in 2016, but in fact has failed to deliver on.”
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Weaver argued that, less than two weeks before the Iowa caucuses, it makes Sanders the most electable candidate in the Democratic primary field.
“The only way that we’re going to be able to do that is by increasing the voter turnout, energizing young people ― particularly young people of color, and bringing working-class people back into the Democratic Party,” Weaver said. “That’s the agenda that Bernie Sanders has.”
He contrasted it with Biden’s pitch to roll back the clock on the Trump era and return to normalcy, which he predicted would have even less success than Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign.
“If we go back to that paradigm of Trump versus Joe Biden, who is in many ways more conservative in terms of working-class issues than Hillary Clinton was by far, how can you expect to have a different result?” Weaver asked.
By some measures, though, Biden is running on a more progressive platform than Clinton. For example, he is proposing a public health insurance option for the entire population, whereas Clinton just proposed a public option for Americans who purchase coverage on the Affordable Care Act’s exchanges.
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Biden also is not a stranger to running against Republicans by warning that they’ll cut Social Security and Medicare.
“Mark my words, if we don’t win back the House and Senate, they’re going to drastically cut Social Security,” Biden said while campaigning for Democratic congressional candidates in October 2018.
Andrew Bates, a spokesman for Biden’s campaign, said that the former vice president has “an unparalleled record of delivering progressive change,” including the 2009 economic stimulus package, the ACA and the passage of two major gun safety regulations.
Bates also noted that Sanders praised Biden in 2015 as “a man who has devoted his entire life to public service and to the well-being of working families and the middle class.”
“Donald Trump just got himself impeached because he’s so terrified of running against Joe Biden that he became the only president in American history to attempt to force a foreign country to lie about a political rival,” Bates concluded.
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Arthur Delaney contributed reporting.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--World Leaders Gather in Jerusalem To Mark 75th Anniversary Of Auschwitz Liberation

But the unresolved remnants of World War II ’ s politics have permeated the solemn assembly over the differing historical narratives of various players .
Poland ’ s president , who ’ s been criticized for his own wartime revisionism , has boycotted the gathering since he wasn ’ t invited to speak .
Putin was granted a central role even as he leads a campaign to play down the Soviet Union ’ s pre-war pact with the Nazis and shift responsibility for the war ’ s outbreak on Poland , which was invaded in 1939 to start the fighting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tragedy of the Holocaust , 40 % of tortured and killed Jews were Soviet Union Jews .
So this is our common tragedy in the fullest sense of the word , ” he said during a meeting with Rivlin .
Arkadi Zeltser , a Yad Vashem historian , said the accuracy of the statement depended on rival “ definitions ” of when the war began .
Yad Vashem , along with all other reputable institutions , considers the war to have been sparked on Sept. 1 , 1939 with the invasion of Poland @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Great Patriotic War ” to have started two years later , when Germany invaded the Soviet Union .
It was the latest chapter in a bitter dispute over Soviet actions in World War II .
Putin has been leading a campaign to downplay the Soviet Union ’ s pre-war pact with the Nazis and focus instead on its role in defeating them .
The forum at Yad Vashem marks one of the largest political gatherings in Israeli history , as a cascade of delegations including European presidents , prime ministers and royals , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Australian representatives , arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport .
More than 10,000 police officers were deployed in Jerusalem and major highways leading to it .
Large parts of the city were shut down ahead of the event .
For Netanyahu it offered another opportunity to solidify Israel ’ s diplomatic standing and boost his profile as he seeks re-election on March 2 .
He was hoping to use his meetings with world leaders to bolster his tough line toward Iran and rally opposition to a looming war crimes case against Israel in the International @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that we have yet to see a unified and resolute stance against the most anti-Semitic regime on the planet , a regime that openly seeks to develop nuclear weapons and annihilate the one and only Jewish state , ” he said of Iran .
“ For the Jewish people , Auschwitz is more than the ultimate symbol of evil .
It is also the ultimate symbol of Jewish powerlessness .
... Today we have a voice , we have a land , and we have a shield.
” For historians , though , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ amid growing signs of ignorance and indifference to the Holocaust .
A comprehensive survey released this week by the Claims Conference , a Jewish organization responsible for negotiating compensation for victims of Nazi persecution , found that most people in France did not know that 6 million Jews were killed during World War II .
Among millennials , 45 % said they were unaware of French collaboration with the Nazi regime and 25 % said they weren ’ t even sure they had heard of the Holocaust .
Kantor established the World Holocaust @ @ @ @ @ @ @ held forums before in Auschwitz , the killing fields of Babi Yar in Ukraine and at the former concentration camp Terezin .
Thursday ’ s event is the first time it is convening in Israel .
The official commemoration marking the 75th anniversary of Auschwitz ’ s liberation will be held next week at the site itself in southern Poland .
Organizers of the Jerusalem event have come under criticism for not including enough Holocaust survivors and instead focusing on the panoply of visiting dignitaries and the festival-like atmosphere surrounding it .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Thursday that his delegation was giving up its seats to allow more survivors to attend .
The gathering comes amid an uptick in anti-Semitic violence .
Tel Aviv University researchers reported last year that violent attacks against Jews grew significantly in 2018 , with the largest reported number of Jews killed in anti-Semitic acts in decades .
They recorded 400 cases , with the spike most dramatic in western Europe .
In Germany , for instance , there was a 70 % increase in anti-Semitic violence .
In addition to the shooting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ research also noted increased anti-Semitic vitriol online and in newspapers , as extremist political parties grew in power in several countries , raising shock and concern among aging survivors .

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JERUSALEM (AP) — Dozens of world leaders gathered Thursday in Jerusalem for the largest-ever gathering focused on commemorating the Holocaust and combating rising modern-day anti-Semitism — a politically charged event that has been clouded by rival national interpretations of the genocide.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron, Britain’s Prince Charles, Vice President Mike Pence and the presidents of Germany, Italy and Austria were among the more than 40 dignitaries attending the World Holocaust Forum, which coincides with the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp.
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The three-hour-long ceremony at Jerusalem’s Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial — called “Remembering the Holocaust: Fighting Antisemitism” — looks to project a united front in commemorating the genocide of European Jewry amid a global spike in anti-Jewish violence.
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin speaks at the World Holocaust Forum marking 75 years since the liberation of the Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz, at Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial centre in Jerusalem January 23, 2020. Abir Sultan/Pool via REUTERS
But the unresolved remnants of World War II’s politics have permeated the solemn assembly over the differing historical narratives of various players. Poland’s president, who’s been criticized for his own wartime revisionism, has boycotted the gathering since he wasn’t invited to speak. Putin was granted a central role even as he leads a campaign to play down the Soviet Union’s pre-war pact with the Nazis and shift responsibility for the war’s outbreak on Poland, which was invaded in 1939 to start the fighting.
On the eve of the gathering, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin implored visiting dignitaries to “leave history for the historians.”
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“The role of political leaders, of all of us, is to shape the future,” he said.
But Putin quickly ventured into the sensitive terrain shortly after his arrival Thursday, claiming that 40% of Jewish Holocaust victims were Soviet.
Of the 6 million Jews killed by the Nazis, historians say about 1 million were Soviet. Putin’s controversial figure appears to include an additional 1.5 million Jewish victims from eastern European areas occupied by the Soviets under their pact with the Nazis.
“When it comes to the tragedy of the Holocaust, 40% of tortured and killed Jews were Soviet Union Jews. So this is our common tragedy in the fullest sense of the word,” he said during a meeting with Rivlin.
Russian President Vladimir Putin greets fellow world leaders attending the fifth World Holocaust Forum at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial museum in Jerusalem on January 23, 2020. ABIR SULTAN via Getty Images
Arkadi Zeltser, a Yad Vashem historian, said the accuracy of the statement depended on rival “definitions” of when the war began. Yad Vashem, along with all other reputable institutions, considers the war to have been sparked on Sept. 1, 1939 with the invasion of Poland. The Soviets generally consider their “Great Patriotic War” to have started two years later, when Germany invaded the Soviet Union.
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It was the latest chapter in a bitter dispute over Soviet actions in World War II. Putin has been leading a campaign to downplay the Soviet Union’s pre-war pact with the Nazis and focus instead on its role in defeating them.
Israel has appeared eager to oblige, giving Putin a fawning welcome and hosting him for the dedication of an imposing monument honoring the nearly 900-day Nazi siege of Leningrad. The city, now known as St. Petersburg, is Putin’s hometown.
“We mustn’t for even one second blur the sacrifice and the contribution of the former Soviet Union” in defeating “the Nazi monster,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the ceremony.
The forum at Yad Vashem marks one of the largest political gatherings in Israeli history, as a cascade of delegations including European presidents, prime ministers and royals, as well as American, Canadian and Australian representatives, arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport. More than 10,000 police officers were deployed in Jerusalem and major highways leading to it. Large parts of the city were shut down ahead of the event.
For Netanyahu it offered another opportunity to solidify Israel’s diplomatic standing and boost his profile as he seeks re-election on March 2. He was hoping to use his meetings with world leaders to bolster his tough line toward Iran and rally opposition to a looming war crimes case against Israel in the International Criminal Court.
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“I am concerned that we have yet to see a unified and resolute stance against the most anti-Semitic regime on the planet, a regime that openly seeks to develop nuclear weapons and annihilate the one and only Jewish state,” he said of Iran. “For the Jewish people, Auschwitz is more than the ultimate symbol of evil. It is also the ultimate symbol of Jewish powerlessness. ... Today we have a voice, we have a land, and we have a shield.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu inaugurate a monument dedicated to the victims of Leningrad Siege during the Second World War, in Jerusalem, January 23, 2020. Amit Shabi/Pool via REUTERS
For historians, though, the main message is one of education amid growing signs of ignorance and indifference to the Holocaust. A comprehensive survey released this week by the Claims Conference, a Jewish organization responsible for negotiating compensation for victims of Nazi persecution, found that most people in France did not know that 6 million Jews were killed during World War II. Among millennials, 45% said they were unaware of French collaboration with the Nazi regime and 25% said they weren’t even sure they had heard of the Holocaust.
The World Holocaust Forum is the brainchild of Moshe Kantor, the president of the European Jewish Congress, an umbrella group representing Jewish communities across Europe. The group recently reported that 80% of European Jews feel unsafe in the continent.
Kantor established the World Holocaust Forum Foundation in 2005 and it has held forums before in Auschwitz, the killing fields of Babi Yar in Ukraine and at the former concentration camp Terezin. Thursday’s event is the first time it is convening in Israel. The official commemoration marking the 75th anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation will be held next week at the site itself in southern Poland.
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Organizers of the Jerusalem event have come under criticism for not including enough Holocaust survivors and instead focusing on the panoply of visiting dignitaries and the festival-like atmosphere surrounding it. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy tweeted on Thursday that his delegation was giving up its seats to allow more survivors to attend.
Yad Vashem called the decision “odd” since about 100 survivors were expected to be among the 780 attendees and it was too late to make any adjustments in any case.
“It’s a shame he took such a step,” the memorial said in a statement.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and French President Emmanuel Macron hug at the World Holocaust Forum in Jerusalem, January 23, 2020. Ronen Zvulun / Reuters
The gathering comes amid an uptick in anti-Semitic violence. Tel Aviv University researchers reported last year that violent attacks against Jews grew significantly in 2018, with the largest reported number of Jews killed in anti-Semitic acts in decades. They recorded 400 cases, with the spike most dramatic in western Europe. In Germany, for instance, there was a 70% increase in anti-Semitic violence. In addition to the shooting attacks, assaults and vandalism, the research also noted increased anti-Semitic vitriol online and in newspapers, as extremist political parties grew in power in several countries, raising shock and concern among aging survivors.
“Anti-Semitism does not stop with the Jews,” Rivlin said in the opening speech. “Anti-Semitism and racism are a malignant disease that destroyed and takes apart societies from within and no democracy is immune.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--Over 140 Prominent Asian Americans And Pacific Islanders Endorse Elizabeth Warren

More than 140 leaders from the Asian American and Pacific Islander community have endorsed Sen. Elizabeth Warren ( D-Mass . )
for president , the group announced Thursday in a blog post on Medium .
In their endorsement , first reported by NBC News ’ Kimmy Yam , AAPIs With Warren ― which includes actor Constance Wu , author Celeste Ng and former Reddit CEO Ellen Pao ― praised Warren as a strong leader on issues of immigration , education and health care .
“ Openness , connection , a sense of purpose combined with humility — these are what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ group wrote .
“ This is what we , as Asian American and Pacific Islander leaders in our own communities , aspire to bring into being .
And we believe that Elizabeth Warren is the leader who can help make it a reality at the grassroots and at the highest level.
” The professionals , creators , activists and others said they were inspired to come together to support Warren after she received an endorsement in November from 100 Black Womxn For Elizabeth Warren , a collective of Black artists , activists and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the new group applauded Warren ’ s commitment to diversity , noting that her campaign has over 100 AAPI staff in key positions and that about 40 % of its full-time staff are people of color .
“ It ’ s impossible for any candidate to individually encompass all the facets of our diverse and vibrant society , ” they wrote .
“ Every person ’ s experience is different , and we shouldn ’ t assume that our leaders will instantly understand or connect with our own lives just because they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we do know that personnel is policy.
” “ I promise to fight shoulder-to-shoulder with you all for the big , structural change we need so everyone has the opportunity to succeed , ” the Democratic candidate tweeted .
I 'm grateful down to my toes for each of these endorsements .
I promise to fight shoulder-to-shoulder with you all for the big , structural change we need so everyone has the opportunity to succeed .
https : //t.co/as6JRjCSPw — Elizabeth Warren ( @ ewarren ) January 23 , 2020 The AAPI community @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. electorate and is one of the fastest growing racial groups in the country .
Nearly 2 in 5 Asian American registered voters have not identified as either Democratic or Republican .
The AAPI Victory Fund , a super PAC focused on mobilizing Asian American and Pacific Islander voters , endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden , Warren ’ s fellow Democratic presidential hopeful , earlier this month .
Meanwhile , businessman Andrew Yang , the only Asian American in the 2020 presidential race , has raked in the most cash from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The AAPI collective ’ s endorsement of Warren comes less than two weeks before the Iowa caucuses , which have historically proven to be a strong predictor of who will receive a party ’ s presidential nomination .
A Focus on Rural America poll released Monday showed Biden leading the Democratic field in Iowa with 24 % of likely Democratic voters supporting him .
Warren trails behind him at 18 % , followed by former South Bend , Indiana , Mayor Pete Buttigieg at 16 % and Sen. Bernie Sanders ( I-Vt. @ @ @ @ @

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More than 140 leaders from the Asian American and Pacific Islander community have endorsed Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) for president, the group announced Thursday in a blog post on Medium.
In their endorsement, first reported by NBC News’ Kimmy Yam, AAPIs With Warren ― which includes actor Constance Wu, author Celeste Ng and former Reddit CEO Ellen Pao ― praised Warren as a strong leader on issues of immigration, education and health care.
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“Openness, connection, a sense of purpose combined with humility — these are what America desperately needs today,” the group wrote. “This is what we, as Asian American and Pacific Islander leaders in our own communities, aspire to bring into being. And we believe that Elizabeth Warren is the leader who can help make it a reality at the grassroots and at the highest level.”
I'm proud to endorse Senator Warren for President along with over 140 AAPI leaders. I believe she is the only remaining candidate who understands and cares about intersectionality and won't leave anyone behind. #AAPIsWithWarren #WithWarren https://t.co/t34rWfDH2w — Ellen K. Pao (@ekp) January 23, 2020
The professionals, creators, activists and others said they were inspired to come together to support Warren after she received an endorsement in November from 100 Black Womxn For Elizabeth Warren, a collective of Black artists, activists and political strategists.
In their blog post, the new group applauded Warren’s commitment to diversity, noting that her campaign has over 100 AAPI staff in key positions and that about 40% of its full-time staff are people of color.
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“It’s impossible for any candidate to individually encompass all the facets of our diverse and vibrant society,” they wrote. “Every person’s experience is different, and we shouldn’t assume that our leaders will instantly understand or connect with our own lives just because they’ve had similar stories. But we do know that personnel is policy.”
Warren said on Thursday that she’s “grateful down to my toes” for the endorsements.
“I promise to fight shoulder-to-shoulder with you all for the big, structural change we need so everyone has the opportunity to succeed,” the Democratic candidate tweeted.
I'm grateful down to my toes for each of these endorsements. I promise to fight shoulder-to-shoulder with you all for the big, structural change we need so everyone has the opportunity to succeed. https://t.co/as6JRjCSPw — Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 23, 2020
The AAPI community makes up roughly 4% of the U.S. electorate and is one of the fastest growing racial groups in the country. Nearly 2 in 5 Asian American registered voters have not identified as either Democratic or Republican.
The AAPI Victory Fund, a super PAC focused on mobilizing Asian American and Pacific Islander voters, endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden, Warren’s fellow Democratic presidential hopeful, earlier this month. Meanwhile, businessman Andrew Yang, the only Asian American in the 2020 presidential race, has raked in the most cash from the AAPI community, according to AAPI Data.
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The AAPI collective’s endorsement of Warren comes less than two weeks before the Iowa caucuses, which have historically proven to be a strong predictor of who will receive a party’s presidential nomination.
A Focus on Rural America poll released Monday showed Biden leading the Democratic field in Iowa with 24% of likely Democratic voters supporting him. Warren trails behind him at 18%, followed by former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg at 16% and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at 14%.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-22--Senate Republicans Dismiss Senate Trial As Nothing ‘New’ After Rejecting New Evidence

WASHINGTON ― Senate Republicans panned the case for President Donald Trump ’ s impeachment as nothing new on Wednesday ― even though they ’ d voted a day earlier to reject any new witnesses or material from inclusion .
“ So far we haven ’ t heard anything new from what he heard yesterday , ” Sen. John Cornyn ( R-Texas ) said .
“ I hope this isn ’ t just going to be a series of repetitious arguments just to try to fill the time allotted.
” The House managers began to press their case against Trump a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to “ cheat ” the 2020 election by pressuring Ukraine ’ s government to announce investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden , his possible Democratic opponent .
They asked the Senate to subpoena additional documents and witnesses that were blocked from the House impeachment investigation , but Republicans refused to do so ― at least for now .
Asked about including additional witnesses in the Senate trial , Cornyn said that the House should have gone to court to press the Trump administration to turn over evidence before bringing a “ half-baked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ countered by arguing that pursuing witnesses who either refused or were blocked from testifying by the White House would have required months or potentially even years of legal action , with a resolution not likely until after the 2020 election .
Senate Democrats gave the House managers high marks and said that their arguments on Trump ’ s pressure campaign against Ukraine ― a case that involved extensive use of video ― would be helpful to the broader public who may not be watching every hour of the proceedings .
“ They are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ again , which I think is actually very helpful , ” Sen. Debbie Stabenow ( D-Mich. ) said .
“ I think it ’ s important to lay it all out in front of everyone.
” Indeed , much of the proceedings are aimed at influencing voters as much as they are meant to sway senators , who sit as jurors in the trial .
But Republicans said they were skeptical that voters would remember the trial by the time November ’ s presidential election is near .
“ This won ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ judge the president about what he ’ s done and what he can do , ” Sen. Lindsey Graham ( R-S.C. ) said .
Under rules authored by Republicans , senators will get a chance to vote on whether to consider additional evidence , including witnesses , after opening arguments from the House managers and Trump ’ s defense team , and then a period of questions .
Sen. Chris Coons ( D-Del . )
said he was “ not optimistic ” about getting even the four Republicans that Democrats would need in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of how Republicans unanimously opposed Democratic motions to subpoena testimony during a marathon session Tuesday .
Only two GOP senators have said they are likely to support calling witnesses after opening arguments : Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah .
“ It is hard to believe anyone who has any kind of impartiality could hear everything… and not say we need witnesses and documents , ” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer ( D-N.Y ) said .
“ The wisdom of the Founding Fathers and the structure of impeachment forces them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case is amazingly compelling .
”

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WASHINGTON ― Senate Republicans panned the case for President Donald Trump’s impeachment as nothing new on Wednesday ― even though they’d voted a day earlier to reject any new witnesses or material from inclusion.
“So far we haven’t heard anything new from what he heard yesterday,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said. “I hope this isn’t just going to be a series of repetitious arguments just to try to fill the time allotted.”
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Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) echoed the complaint, adding, “It’s not a very deep case, I don’t think.”
The House managers began to press their case against Trump a day prior, saying he was trying to “cheat” the 2020 election by pressuring Ukraine’s government to announce investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden, his possible Democratic opponent. They asked the Senate to subpoena additional documents and witnesses that were blocked from the House impeachment investigation, but Republicans refused to do so ― at least for now.
Asked about including additional witnesses in the Senate trial, Cornyn said that the House should have gone to court to press the Trump administration to turn over evidence before bringing a “half-baked case” to the Senate.
“There was such a rush to get it done,” Cornyn said. “They came here with an incomplete record.”
Democrats countered by arguing that pursuing witnesses who either refused or were blocked from testifying by the White House would have required months or potentially even years of legal action, with a resolution not likely until after the 2020 election.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other Republican senators before the procedural start of the impeachment trial of U.S. President Donald Trump. Jonathan Ernst / Reuters
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Senate Democrats gave the House managers high marks and said that their arguments on Trump’s pressure campaign against Ukraine ― a case that involved extensive use of video ― would be helpful to the broader public who may not be watching every hour of the proceedings.
“They are repeating the main points over and over again, which I think is actually very helpful,” Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) said. “I think it’s important to lay it all out in front of everyone.”
“I hope the whole country is listening, whether they’re Republicans or Democrats,” added Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.).
Indeed, much of the proceedings are aimed at influencing voters as much as they are meant to sway senators, who sit as jurors in the trial.
But Republicans said they were skeptical that voters would remember the trial by the time November’s presidential election is near.
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“This won’t matter much. People are going to judge the president about what he’s done and what he can do,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said.
Under rules authored by Republicans, senators will get a chance to vote on whether to consider additional evidence, including witnesses, after opening arguments from the House managers and Trump’s defense team, and then a period of questions.
Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) said he was “not optimistic” about getting even the four Republicans that Democrats would need in order to win a witness vote because of how Republicans unanimously opposed Democratic motions to subpoena testimony during a marathon session Tuesday. Only two GOP senators have said they are likely to support calling witnesses after opening arguments: Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--New York City To Require Businesses To Accept Cash Payments

New York City stores and restaurants will soon be legally required to accept cash or face a stiff fine .
The city council is expected to pass a bill on Thursday that would prohibit brick-and-mortar food and retail establishments from refusing payments of $ 20 or less in cash or imposing a fine or tax on cash payments .
Councilman Ritchie Torres , who sponsored the bill , said the motive is to protect New Yorkers from discrimination .
“ We in the city council have real concerns that an increasingly cashless marketplace could have a real-world discriminatory effect on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that lack access to credit or debit , ” Torres said Thursday .
New York City businesses will be prohibited from refusing to accept cash payments of $ 20 or less under a bill that 's expected to be passed on Thursday .
According to a report by the Urban Institute , members of 360,000 households in New York City do not have a bank account , equaling roughly 11.7 % of the city ’ s population .
That figure is higher than the national average of 7.7 % and higher than the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Individuals who use cash , as opposed to debit or credit , may do so because they lack documentation , a permanent address , are living in poverty or don ’ t have brick-and-mortar banking services in their neighborhood , Torres said .
Of the city ’ s five boroughs , the Bronx , which Torres represents , has the highest percentage of unbanked and underbanked households .
The Bronx and Brooklyn have rates of unbanked and underbanked households well above the national , state and city averages , according to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rule will be if the business provides a machine that converts cash into a prepaid card that can be used to make purchases without any additional cost to the customer .
Business transactions that take place entirely online , by phone or by mail are also excluded from the new rule .
The bill is expected to go into effect later this year .
Once imposed , businesses that refuse to accept cash would face a fine of up to $ 1,000 for the first offense and up to $ 1,500 for any @ @ @

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New York City stores and restaurants will soon be legally required to accept cash or face a stiff fine.
The city council is expected to pass a bill on Thursday that would prohibit brick-and-mortar food and retail establishments from refusing payments of $20 or less in cash or imposing a fine or tax on cash payments.
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Councilman Ritchie Torres, who sponsored the bill, said the motive is to protect New Yorkers from discrimination.
“We in the city council have real concerns that an increasingly cashless marketplace could have a real-world discriminatory effect on low-income communities, especially communities of color that lack access to credit or debit,” Torres said Thursday.
New York City businesses will be prohibited from refusing to accept cash payments of $20 or less under a bill that's expected to be passed on Thursday. Astrakan Images via Getty Images
According to a report by the Urban Institute, members of 360,000 households in New York City do not have a bank account, equaling roughly 11.7% of the city’s population. That figure is higher than the national average of 7.7% and higher than the state’s average of 8.5%.
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Individuals who use cash, as opposed to debit or credit, may do so because they lack documentation, a permanent address, are living in poverty or don’t have brick-and-mortar banking services in their neighborhood, Torres said.
Of the city’s five boroughs, the Bronx, which Torres represents, has the highest percentage of unbanked and underbanked households. The Bronx and Brooklyn have rates of unbanked and underbanked households well above the national, state and city averages, according to the bill.
An exception to the cash rule will be if the business provides a machine that converts cash into a prepaid card that can be used to make purchases without any additional cost to the customer. Business transactions that take place entirely online, by phone or by mail are also excluded from the new rule.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--Trump Impeachment Trial Features Bipartisan Laughs At Rudy Giuliani's Expense

WASHINGTON ― Republican and Democratic senators sitting for the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump might not agree on much these days .
But they can all have a laugh at the expense of politician-turned-Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani .
On Thursday , as House Democrats laid out their case for removing Trump from office , impeachment manager Rep. Sylvia Garcia ( D-Texas ) played a clip of a former Trump homeland security adviser Tom Bossert in which he quipped that hiring Giuliani was a way to “ impeach oneself.
” “ Last year , retired former Sen. Judd Gregg wrote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the three ways or the five ways to impeach oneself .
And the third way was to hire Rudy Giuliani , ” Bossert said on ABC News ’ “ This Week ” in September .
The Senate has banned independent audio or video of the floor of the Senate , only offering a video feed that gives a narrow perspective on the impeachment trial proceedings .
But a HuffPost reporter in the chamber at the time spotted a number of Republicans and Democrats laughing and smiling after hearing Bossert ’ s line about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Tom Cotton ( R-Ark . )
and Joni Ernst ( R-Iowa ) smiled at each other after the clip , as did Sens .
Mike Crapo ( R-Idaho ) and James Risch ( R-Idaho ) .
Sen. Lindsey Graham ( R-S.C. ) , who had previously said he ’ s not sure Giuliani was helping the president , chuckled to himself .
Serving as Trump ’ s personal attorney , Giuliani is at the center of the events that led to Trump ’ s impeachment .
He ’ s made sweeping corruption @ @ @ @ @ @ @ political opponent Joe Biden , and he lobbied Trump to remove U.S .
Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch because of the perception she got in the way of a campaign to have Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announce an investigation into Biden ’ s son Hunter that would benefit Trump politically .
Giuliani kept up the campaign against Biden on Thursday , tweeting that he ’ d release evidence that the “ Biden Family Enterprise made millions by selling public office.
” Giuliani was a major focus of the House impeachment managers ’ presentation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ D-Calif. ) laid out a narrative of Giuliani ’ s efforts beginning around the time that Biden announced his presidential campaign in the spring of 2019 .
Lofgren said government officials came to learn that Giuliani was the “ key to Ukraine , ” as Trump directed government employees to work with his personal agent on matters of foreign policy .
They realized there was “ no getting around Rudy Giuliani when it came to Ukraine ” and that they “ had no choice ” but to deal with him , Lofgren said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said during a break in the trial that there ’ s recognition on both sides of the aisle that Giuliani has brought about a number of new problems for Trump .
Hirono pointed to remarks by former Trump national security adviser John Bolton that referred to Giuliani as a “ hand grenade ” who would “ blow everybody up.
” While Bolton has expressed a willingness to testify before the Senate during the impeachment trial , Republican senators voted Tuesday again subpoenaing Bolton ’ s testimony .
“ I think we all know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his credibility is entirely shot , ” Hirono said .

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WASHINGTON ― Republican and Democratic senators sitting for the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump might not agree on much these days. But they can all have a laugh at the expense of politician-turned-Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani.
On Thursday, as House Democrats laid out their case for removing Trump from office, impeachment manager Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-Texas) played a clip of a former Trump homeland security adviser Tom Bossert in which he quipped that hiring Giuliani was a way to “impeach oneself.”
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“Last year, retired former Sen. Judd Gregg wrote a piece in The Hill magazine saying the three ways or the five ways to impeach oneself. And the third way was to hire Rudy Giuliani,” Bossert said on ABC News’ “This Week” in September.
The Senate has banned independent audio or video of the floor of the Senate, only offering a video feed that gives a narrow perspective on the impeachment trial proceedings. But a HuffPost reporter in the chamber at the time spotted a number of Republicans and Democrats laughing and smiling after hearing Bossert’s line about the former New York mayor. Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) smiled at each other after the clip, as did Sens. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and James Risch (R-Idaho). Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who had previously said he’s not sure Giuliani was helping the president, chuckled to himself.
Giuliani did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment, though HuffPost’s texts were marked as read.
Serving as Trump’s personal attorney, Giuliani is at the center of the events that led to Trump’s impeachment. He’s made sweeping corruption allegations against former vice president and Trump political opponent Joe Biden, and he lobbied Trump to remove U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch because of the perception she got in the way of a campaign to have Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announce an investigation into Biden’s son Hunter that would benefit Trump politically.
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Giuliani kept up the campaign against Biden on Thursday, tweeting that he’d release evidence that the “Biden Family Enterprise made millions by selling public office.”
Giuliani was a major focus of the House impeachment managers’ presentation on Thursday. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) laid out a narrative of Giuliani’s efforts beginning around the time that Biden announced his presidential campaign in the spring of 2019. Lofgren said government officials came to learn that Giuliani was the “key to Ukraine,” as Trump directed government employees to work with his personal agent on matters of foreign policy. They realized there was “no getting around Rudy Giuliani when it came to Ukraine” and that they “had no choice” but to deal with him, Lofgren said.
Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) said during a break in the trial that there’s recognition on both sides of the aisle that Giuliani has brought about a number of new problems for Trump. Hirono pointed to remarks by former Trump national security adviser John Bolton that referred to Giuliani as a “hand grenade” who would “blow everybody up.” While Bolton has expressed a willingness to testify before the Senate during the impeachment trial, Republican senators voted Tuesday against subpoenaing Bolton’s testimony.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-23--Adam Schiff: 'Dangerous' Trump Must Be Removed Because He Won't Put America First

Schiff said that no one was arguing in good faith that Trump wasn ’ t guilty of putting his personal political interests ahead of the interests of the United States when he withheld aid to Ukraine to pressure its government to smear a political rival .
Schiff ’ s speech capped off the second full day in which the House impeachment managers made their case for forcing Trump out of the White House .
“ He ’ s done what he ’ s charged with .
He withheld the money , he withheld the meeting , he used it to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He covered it up , he obstructed us , he ’ s trying to obstruct you , and he ’ s violated the Constitution , ” Schiff said .
“ Do we really have any doubt about the facts here ?
Does anyone really question if the president is capable of what he ’ s charged with ?
No one is really making the argument ‘ Donald Trump would never do such a thing ’ because , of course , we know that he would and , of course , we know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff ( D-Calif. ) , one of the House managers at the Senate trial on impeachment articles against President Donald Trump , speaks Thursday during the third day of the trial at the U.S. Capitol .
And even though Trump ’ s national security advisers told him that the idea that Ukraine interfered in the 2016 election was Russian propaganda , Schiff said he chose to believe personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and helped spread the falsehood .
“ That makes him dangerous to us , to our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Why would Donald Trump believe a man like Rudy Giuliani over a man like [ FBI Director ] Christopher Wray ?
Why would anyone in their right mind believe Rudy Giuliani over Christopher Wray ?
Because he wanted to , and because what Rudy was offering him was something that would help him personally , and what Christopher Wray was offering him was merely the truth.
” “ Let ’ s say they start blatantly interfering in our election again to help Donald Trump .
Can you have the least bit of confidence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them and protect our national interest over his own personal interest ?
You know you can ’ t , which makes him dangerous to this country .
You know you can ’ t .
You know you can ’ t count on him , ” Schiff said .
“ The American people deserve a president they can count on to put their interests first , ” Schiff said .
“ The framers [ of the U.S. Constitution ] couldn ’ t protect us from ourselves if right and truth don ’ t matter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did was not right.
” “ No Constitution can protect us if right doesn ’ t matter anymore .
And you know you can ’ t trust this president to do what ’ s right for this country .
You can trust he will do what ’ s right for Donald Trump .
He ’ ll do it now .
He ’ s done it before .
He ’ ll do it for the next several months .
He ’ ll do it in the election if he ’ s allowed to.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provided lethal aid to Ukraine .
When I begged President Obama to do it , he wouldn ’ t do it , ” Sen .
Rob Portman ( R-Ohio ) said after Thursday ’ s Senate session , referring to the Obama administration ’ s refusal to send congressionally approved military aid to Ukraine in 2015 .
“ Some of the things that were done were not appropriate ... but that ’ s a very different question than removing someone from office who was duly elected in the middle of a presidential election @ @ @ @ @

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WASHINGTON ― House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) delivered an impassioned appeal on the floor of the Senate on Thursday evening imploring Republicans to vote to remove President Donald Trump from office because he’ll put himself ahead of the nation’s interests.
Schiff said that no one was arguing in good faith that Trump wasn’t guilty of putting his personal political interests ahead of the interests of the United States when he withheld aid to Ukraine to pressure its government to smear a political rival. Schiff’s speech capped off the second full day in which the House impeachment managers made their case for forcing Trump out of the White House.
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“He’s done what he’s charged with. He withheld the money, he withheld the meeting, he used it to coerce Ukraine to do these political investigations. He covered it up, he obstructed us, he’s trying to obstruct you, and he’s violated the Constitution,” Schiff said.
“Do we really have any doubt about the facts here? Does anyone really question if the president is capable of what he’s charged with? No one is really making the argument ‘Donald Trump would never do such a thing’ because, of course, we know that he would and, of course, we know that he did,” Schiff said.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), one of the House managers at the Senate trial on impeachment articles against President Donald Trump, speaks Thursday during the third day of the trial at the U.S. Capitol. Senate TV via Reuters
And even though Trump’s national security advisers told him that the idea that Ukraine interfered in the 2016 election was Russian propaganda, Schiff said he chose to believe personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and helped spread the falsehood.
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“That makes him dangerous to us, to our country,” Schiff said. “Why would Donald Trump believe a man like Rudy Giuliani over a man like [FBI Director] Christopher Wray? Why would anyone in their right mind believe Rudy Giuliani over Christopher Wray? Because he wanted to, and because what Rudy was offering him was something that would help him personally, and what Christopher Wray was offering him was merely the truth.”
“Why would Donald Trump believe a man like Rudy Giuliani over a man like Christopher Wray? Why would anyone in their right mind believe Rudy Giuliani over Christopher Wray?” - Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.)
If Russia tries to interfere in the 2020 election, Schiff said, Trump will choose his own personal interests over the interests of the country yet again.
“Let’s say they start blatantly interfering in our election again to help Donald Trump. Can you have the least bit of confidence that Donald Trump will stand up to them and protect our national interest over his own personal interest? You know you can’t, which makes him dangerous to this country. You know you can’t. You know you can’t count on him,” Schiff said.
“The American people deserve a president they can count on to put their interests first,” Schiff said. “The framers [of the U.S. Constitution] couldn’t protect us from ourselves if right and truth don’t matter. And you know that what he did was not right.”
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“No Constitution can protect us if right doesn’t matter anymore. And you know you can’t trust this president to do what’s right for this country. You can trust he will do what’s right for Donald Trump. He’ll do it now. He’s done it before. He’ll do it for the next several months. He’ll do it in the election if he’s allowed to.”
“Right matters. And the truth matters,” Schiff said. “Otherwise we are lost.”
Democrats on the House impeachment team will resume their case Friday afternoon, and Trump’s team will launch its defense on Saturday.
But Republicans didn’t appear convinced by the idea that they couldn’t trust Trump to choose the national interest over his personal interests, such as his reelection.
“This president is the one that provided lethal aid to Ukraine. When I begged President Obama to do it, he wouldn’t do it,” Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) said after Thursday’s Senate session, referring to the Obama administration’s refusal to send congressionally approved military aid to Ukraine in 2015.
Portman said that, although he did not believe Trump’s actions were appropriate, that was different from voting to remove him from office.
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“Some of the things that were done were not appropriate... but that’s a very different question than removing someone from office who was duly elected in the middle of a presidential election,” he added.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-01-24--Ex-Bush Speechwriter Makes Chilling Prediction About How Trump Will React To Acquittal

Michael Gerson , a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush , on Thursday warned of the “ further danger ” to come if the GOP-controlled Senate votes to acquit President Donald Trump over his Ukraine misconduct .
“ The president never views a near-miss as an opportunity for reflection and reformation .
He sees it as permission to indulge his every urge , ” Gerson wrote in a new column for The Washington Post .
“ And his most consistent urge has been to seek unfair advantage in the upcoming presidential election , ” he continued .
“ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vote will be fertile ground for further cheating.
” Gerson also called out the “ barefaced bad faith ” of Republican senators in the impeachment trial who have complained there ’ s “ nothing new ” in the case Democrats are making against Trump , while simultaneously “ actively opposing the introduction of new evidence and new testimony.
” “ In this matter , elected Republicans are mainly serving , not the president , and certainly not the republic , but themselves , ” Gerson wrote .
“ Having decided that no amount @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they realize that the presentation of a full and compelling case would convict them of servility and institutional surrender .
So a quick and dirty Senate trial is the best way to limit the exposure of their malpractice .
”

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Michael Gerson, a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, on Thursday warned of the “further danger” to come if the GOP-controlled Senate votes to acquit President Donald Trump over his Ukraine misconduct.
“The president never views a near-miss as an opportunity for reflection and reformation. He sees it as permission to indulge his every urge,” Gerson wrote in a new column for The Washington Post.
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“And his most consistent urge has been to seek unfair advantage in the upcoming presidential election,” he continued. “The months between Senate acquittal and the November vote will be fertile ground for further cheating.”
Gerson also called out the “barefaced bad faith” of Republican senators in the impeachment trial who have complained there’s “nothing new” in the case Democrats are making against Trump, while simultaneously “actively opposing the introduction of new evidence and new testimony.”