cnbc--2020-06-18--Supreme Court rules against Trump's bid to end program shielding 'Dreamer' immigrants

The Supreme Court ruled against President Donald Trump on Thursday in a set of cases over his effort to end the Obama-era immigration program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals , or DACA .
The ruling will protect hundreds of thousands of young immigrants who have been shielded from deportation and allowed to receive work permits under the program .
There were about 700,000 DACA recipients at the time Trump ordered the program to wind down in September 2017 .
The 5-4 opinion was authored by Chief Justice John Roberts , a conservative , and joined by the court @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Stephen Breyer , Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan .
Roberts reasoned that the Trump administration 's termination of the program was `` arbitrary and capricious , '' in violation of federal law that governs administrative procedure .
`` We do not decide whether DACA or its rescission are sound policies .
'The wisdom ' of those decisions 'is none of our concern , ' '' Roberts wrote .
`` We address only whether the agency complied with the procedural requirement that it provide a reasoned explanation for its action .
Here the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of whether to retain forbearance and what if anything to do about the hardship to DACA recipients , '' Roberts added .
`` That dual failure raises doubts about whether the agency appreciated the scope of its discretion or exercised that discretion in a reasonable manner . ''
It is possible that the Trump administration could make another effort to terminate DACA in a way that complies with the ruling , though Trump faces re-election against presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden in November .
As a candidate , Trump pledged to terminate DACA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the United States , I am asking for a legal solution on DACA , not a political one , consistent with the rule of law , '' Trump wrote in a post on Twitter Thursday afternoon .
`` The Supreme Court is not willing to give us one , so now we have to start this process all over again . ''
In a dissent joined by fellow conservatives Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch , Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the majority decision `` must be recognized for what it is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ controversial but legally correct decision . ''
Read more : How Obama 's border enforcer Janet Napolitano is fighting Trump on immigration at the Supreme Court `` Today the majority makes the mystifying determination that this rescission of DACA was unlawful .
In reaching that conclusion , the majority acts as though it is engaging in the routine application of standard principles of administrative law .
On the contrary , this is anything but a standard administrative law case , '' Thomas wrote .
The ruling comes just days after the court ruled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blockbuster gay rights case that held that employees may not be fired on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity .
Gorsuch authored the opinion for the court in that case .
He was joined by Roberts and the court 's liberals .
The back-to-back wins for liberals are a surprising development from the court , which has 5-4 conservative majority .
The setback for the Trump administration comes less than five months before the 2020 election , where the president appears poised to pivot back to immigration as a central @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interview Wednesday night , Trump said he will `` soon '' be traveling to the U.S.-Mexico border to tout the construction of a border wall .
`` I 'm going to be at the wall very soon .
We 're going to celebrate over 200 [ miles built ] , '' Trump said .
The losses for conservatives at the high court threaten to minimize the political salience of one of the president 's most frequent boasts — his appointment of conservative federal judges and Supreme Court justices .
But in a post @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was handed down , Trump spun that calculus around , arguing that the decisions show `` We need more Justices or we will lose our 2nd .
Amendment & everything else . ''
Trump wrote that the `` horrible & politically charged decisions coming out of the Supreme Court are shotgun blasts into the face of people that are proud to call themselves Republicans or Conservatives . ''
In a subsequent tweet , Trump wrote : `` Do you get the impression that the Supreme Court does n't like me ? ''
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ list of Conservative Supreme Court Justice nominees '' by September , which he said he will pick from if a vacancy on the court opens up .
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling .
Former President Barack Obama , in his own tweet , wrote that eight years ago `` we protected young people who were raised as part of our American family from deportation .
`` Today , I 'm happy for them , their families , and all of us .
We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but what makes us American are our shared ideals , '' Obama wrote .
Obama established the DACA program in 2012 .
He added that , `` now to stand up for those ideals , we have to move forward and elect @ JoeBiden and a Democratic Congress that does its job , protects DREAMers , and finally creates a system that 's truly worthy of this nation of immigrants once and for all . ''
Biden cheered the decision later Thursday .
He said in a statement that if Trump attempts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be responsible for upending the lives of hundreds of thousands of young people and bringing harm to families and communities all across the country . ''
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra , who led a coalition of 20 states and D.C. defending DACA before the top court , said in a statement that `` we prevailed on behalf of every Dreamer who has worked hard to help build our country — our neighbors , teachers , doctors , and first responders . ''
`` The highest court in our land saw through the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The court agreed : If you work hard and play by the rules , you deserve a chance to get ahead , '' Becerra said .
Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer , D-N.Y. , said after the decision was handed down that he `` cried tears of joy . ''
`` These wonderful DACA kids and their families have a huge burden lifted off their shoulders .
They do n't have to worry about being deported , they can do their jobs , and , I believe , I do believe this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be American citizens , '' Schumer said .
DACA , and the young immigrants it shields known as `` Dreamers , '' are broadly popular among the public , and Trump had shied away from arguing against the program as a matter of policy .
A Politico/Morning Consult survey conducted earlier this month showed that a majority of those who voted for Trump in 2016 supported protecting Dreamers from deportation .
Among registered voters overall , more than 75 % said DACA recipients should be allowed to remain in the United States @ @ @ @ @ @ @ policy grounds , Trump and attorneys for his administration have argued that former President Barack Obama lacked the legal authority to implement the program in the first place .
The administration 's position that DACA was unlawful was laid out by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions in September of 2017 in a letter to then Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Elaine Duke .
The following day , Duke issued a memorandum relying on Sessions 's legal finding noting that `` DACA program should be terminated . ''
Two months later , after multiple groups @ @ @ @ @ @ @ successor Kirstjen Nielsen elaborated on the administration 's reasons for ending the program .
Roberts wrote that `` despite purporting to explain the Duke Memorandum , Secretary Nielsen 's reasoning bears little relationship to that of her predecessor . ''
`` Acting Secretary Duke rested the rescission on the conclusion that DACA is unlawful , '' Roberts wrote .
`` By contrast , Secretary Nielsen 's new memorandum offered three 'separate and independently sufficient reasons ' for the rescission , only the first of which is the conclusion that DACA is illegal .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ obligated to consider Duke 's explanations , not Nielsen 's , given the `` basic rule '' that an agency `` must defend its actions based on the reasons it gave when it acted . ''
Given that , Roberts wrote that Duke failed to take into consideration the full effects of doing away with the program .
Among those consequences , he cited estimates that eliminating DACA would lead to the loss of $ 215 billion in economic activity and $ 60 billion in federal tax revenue over the next ten years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , respondents emphasize , would 'radiate outward ' to DACA recipients ' families , including their 200,000 U.S.-citizen children , to the schools where DACA recipients study and teach , and to the employers who have invested time and money in training them , '' Roberts wrote .
Roberts wrote that those interests were not necessarily enough to ensure a loss for the administration .
But , he said , the government was obligated to at least consider those factors , and it did not .
`` Making that difficult decision was the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ failed to do it , '' Roberts wrote .
In a statement , Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf said that `` DACA recipients deserve closure and finality surrounding their status here in the U.S .
Unfortunately , today 's Supreme Court decision fails to provide that certainty . ''
`` The DACA program was created out of thin air and implemented illegally .
The American people deserve to have the Nation 's laws faithfully executed as written by their representatives in Congress—not based on the arbitrary decisions of a past Administration , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the clear authority of the Executive Branch to end unlawful programs . ''
It was not immediately clear what impact the court 's decision will have on Trump 's suggestion that he would seek a deal with Democrats on the immigration program if the Supreme Court allowed him to terminate it , though it 's unlikely that meaningful action will be made on a new deal before November 's election .
`` Rest assured that if the SC does what all say it must , based on the law , a bipartisan deal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all , '' Trump wrote in a post on Twitter last year , referring to the Supreme Court .
The ruling gives Democrats , who have long seen DACA as a stopgap measure , more leverage in any future discussions .
The administration 's efforts to terminate DACA were previously halted by courts in New York , Washington , D.C. , and California .
The cases are Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California , No .
18-587 , Donald Trump v. National Association for the Advancement of Colored @ @ @ @ @ @ @ McAleenan v. Martin Jonathan Batalla Vidal , No .
18-589 .
-- CNBC 's Dan Mangan and Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report .

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The Supreme Court ruled against President Donald Trump on Thursday in a set of cases over his effort to end the Obama-era immigration program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. The ruling will protect hundreds of thousands of young immigrants who have been shielded from deportation and allowed to receive work permits under the program. There were about 700,000 DACA recipients at the time Trump ordered the program to wind down in September 2017. The 5-4 opinion was authored by Chief Justice John Roberts, a conservative, and joined by the court's liberals, Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. Roberts reasoned that the Trump administration's termination of the program was "arbitrary and capricious," in violation of federal law that governs administrative procedure. "We do not decide whether DACA or its rescission are sound policies. 'The wisdom' of those decisions 'is none of our concern,'" Roberts wrote. "We address only whether the agency complied with the procedural requirement that it provide a reasoned explanation for its action. Here the agency failed to consider the conspicuous issues of whether to retain forbearance and what if anything to do about the hardship to DACA recipients," Roberts added. "That dual failure raises doubts about whether the agency appreciated the scope of its discretion or exercised that discretion in a reasonable manner."
Demonstrators rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court as justices were scheduled to hear oral arguments in the consolidation of three cases before the court regarding the Trump administration’s bid to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in Washington, U.S., November 12, 2019. Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
It is possible that the Trump administration could make another effort to terminate DACA in a way that complies with the ruling, though Trump faces re-election against presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden in November. As a candidate, Trump pledged to terminate DACA "immediately." "As President of the United States, I am asking for a legal solution on DACA, not a political one, consistent with the rule of law," Trump wrote in a post on Twitter Thursday afternoon. "The Supreme Court is not willing to give us one, so now we have to start this process all over again." In a dissent joined by fellow conservatives Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the majority decision "must be recognized for what it is: an effort to avoid a politically controversial but legally correct decision." Read more: How Obama's border enforcer Janet Napolitano is fighting Trump on immigration at the Supreme Court "Today the majority makes the mystifying determination that this rescission of DACA was unlawful. In reaching that conclusion, the majority acts as though it is engaging in the routine application of standard principles of administrative law. On the contrary, this is anything but a standard administrative law case," Thomas wrote. The ruling comes just days after the court ruled in favor of LGBT workers in a blockbuster gay rights case that held that employees may not be fired on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Gorsuch authored the opinion for the court in that case. He was joined by Roberts and the court's liberals. The back-to-back wins for liberals are a surprising development from the court, which has 5-4 conservative majority. The setback for the Trump administration comes less than five months before the 2020 election, where the president appears poised to pivot back to immigration as a central campaign issue. In a Fox News interview Wednesday night, Trump said he will "soon" be traveling to the U.S.-Mexico border to tout the construction of a border wall. "I'm going to be at the wall very soon. We're going to celebrate over 200 [miles built]," Trump said.
Activists hold a banner in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on June 18, 2020. Nicholas Kamm | AFP | Getty Images
The losses for conservatives at the high court threaten to minimize the political salience of one of the president's most frequent boasts — his appointment of conservative federal judges and Supreme Court justices. But in a post on Twitter shortly after the DACA opinion was handed down, Trump spun that calculus around, arguing that the decisions show "We need more Justices or we will lose our 2nd. Amendment & everything else." Trump wrote that the "horrible & politically charged decisions coming out of the Supreme Court are shotgun blasts into the face of people that are proud to call themselves Republicans or Conservatives." In a subsequent tweet, Trump wrote: "Do you get the impression that the Supreme Court doesn't like me?" He later pledged to produce "a new list of Conservative Supreme Court Justice nominees" by September, which he said he will pick from if a vacancy on the court opens up. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling. Former President Barack Obama, in his own tweet, wrote that eight years ago "we protected young people who were raised as part of our American family from deportation. "Today, I'm happy for them, their families, and all of us. We may look different and come from everywhere, but what makes us American are our shared ideals," Obama wrote. Obama established the DACA program in 2012. He added that, "now to stand up for those ideals, we have to move forward and elect @JoeBiden and a Democratic Congress that does its job, protects DREAMers, and finally creates a system that's truly worthy of this nation of immigrants once and for all." Biden cheered the decision later Thursday. He said in a statement that if Trump attempts again to repeal DACA "he will be responsible for upending the lives of hundreds of thousands of young people and bringing harm to families and communities all across the country." California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who led a coalition of 20 states and D.C. defending DACA before the top court, said in a statement that "we prevailed on behalf of every Dreamer who has worked hard to help build our country — our neighbors, teachers, doctors, and first responders." "The highest court in our land saw through the Trump Administration's illegal, baseless excuses. The court agreed: If you work hard and play by the rules, you deserve a chance to get ahead," Becerra said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., visits DACA protesters outside of the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday, June 18, 2020, after the court rejected the Trump administrations push to end an Obama-era program that gives nearly 700,000 so-called Dreamers the ability to work in the United States and avoid deportation. Bill Clark | CQ-Roll Call | Getty Images
Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said after the decision was handed down that he "cried tears of joy." "These wonderful DACA kids and their families have a huge burden lifted off their shoulders. They don't have to worry about being deported, they can do their jobs, and, I believe, I do believe this, someday, someday soon, they will be American citizens," Schumer said. DACA, and the young immigrants it shields known as "Dreamers," are broadly popular among the public, and Trump had shied away from arguing against the program as a matter of policy. A Politico/Morning Consult survey conducted earlier this month showed that a majority of those who voted for Trump in 2016 supported protecting Dreamers from deportation. Among registered voters overall, more than 75% said DACA recipients should be allowed to remain in the United States. Rather than challenge the program on policy grounds, Trump and attorneys for his administration have argued that former President Barack Obama lacked the legal authority to implement the program in the first place. The administration's position that DACA was unlawful was laid out by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions in September of 2017 in a letter to then Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Elaine Duke. The following day, Duke issued a memorandum relying on Sessions's legal finding noting that "DACA program should be terminated." Two months later, after multiple groups challenged Duke's move, Duke's successor Kirstjen Nielsen elaborated on the administration's reasons for ending the program. Roberts wrote that "despite purporting to explain the Duke Memorandum, Secretary Nielsen's reasoning bears little relationship to that of her predecessor." "Acting Secretary Duke rested the rescission on the conclusion that DACA is unlawful," Roberts wrote. "By contrast, Secretary Nielsen's new memorandum offered three 'separate and independently sufficient reasons' for the rescission, only the first of which is the conclusion that DACA is illegal."
United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts poses for the court's official portrait in the East Conference Room at the Supreme Court building November 30, 2018 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla


cnbc--2020-06-18--GOP senator: Lawmakers better get 'creative' before $600-per-week federal jobless benefit expires

Sen .
Rob Portman told CNBC on Thursday that Washington lawmakers need a constructive solution to the federal unemployment supplement that is set to expire next month .
The extra $ 600 per week on top of state-level benefits was created as part of the $ 2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package that was passed in March .
As of now , it will go away at the end of July .
`` I think we need to come up with something creative , '' the Ohio Republican said on `` Squawk Box , '' calling the looming expiration date `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from $ 600 to nothing , '' he said .
Portman has proposed a `` return-to-work '' bonus of $ 450 per week while also extending the federal unemployment supplement at a lower amount until the end of the year .
`` That will help people get back to work , which everybody should be for , '' he said .
Portman and others contend that the current $ 600-per-week federal supplement creates a disincentive for people to return to work because they can earn more money on unemployment .
That could inhibit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic-induced devastation , they say .
House Democrats have already passed legislation that includes a provision to extend the $ 600-per-week federal benefit into early next year .
However , the bill is a nonstarter in the Republican-controlled Senate .
The U.S. economy has showed some signs of a stronger-than-expected recovery as states move to ease coronavirus-related restrictions on business .
Some 2.5 million jobs were added in May , when economists expected millions of job losses .
Retail sales also rose 17.7 % last month , more than double expectations .
Former @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this week that extending the enhanced federal unemployment benefit is critical in keep the economic recovery alive .
`` The recovery we 've seen so far has been assisted by extraordinary fiscal and monetary support , and if we pull that away too soon , we 'll pull the rug out of the prospects for the U.S. economy , '' said Furman , former chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers .
But instead of $ 600 per week , Furman and a bipartisan group of economists and former policy makers have suggested @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the overall unemployment rate .
`` We 'd start with replacing about 90 % of what you 'd get on the job and then with lower unemployment rates , that would go lower , '' Furman said .
Larry Kudlow , the White House 's top economic advisor , has said the Trump administration is considering some sort of back-to-work `` bonus . ''
Portman said he has had conversations with a few Democrats about his proposal , suggesting that there was some openness to the idea .
`` But I think @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their leadership , 'Our plan is $ 600 .
That 's our negotiating position going into this , ' '' Portman said .
A spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer , D-N.Y. , did not respond to CNBC 's request for comment .
CNBC reported last week that White House and GOP negotiators plan to wait until late July to begin formal negotiations on a fourth coronavirus stimulus package .
But the White House 's current stance on an additional stimulus measure is varied across different administration officials , The Washington Post @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anonymous sources , reported that some Republicans in Congress are unhappy with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin , whom they view as too sympathetic to Democratic proposals .
The lawmakers want Vice President Mike Pence or Mark Meadows , a former House member who is now White House chief of staff , to take on a bigger role in the negotiations , according to the Post .
`` Any phase four economic package must prioritize pro-growth economic measures that incentivize employers and our great American workforce to return to the labor market , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a statement Thursday .
`` Under the President 's leadership , the greatest comeback in American history has already begun as evidenced by the May jobs numbers and the recent surge in retail confidence .
President 's Trump 's policies of lower taxes , deregulation , reciprocal trade , and energy independence built a booming economy once and they will do so again , '' he added .

Sen. Rob Portman told CNBC on Thursday that Washington lawmakers need a constructive solution to the federal unemployment supplement that is set to expire next month.
The extra $600 per week on top of state-level benefits was created as part of the $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package that was passed in March. As of now, it will go away at the end of July.
"I think we need to come up with something creative," the Ohio Republican said on "Squawk Box," calling the looming expiration date "a cliff."
"We go from $600 to nothing," he said.
Portman has proposed a "return-to-work" bonus of $450 per week while also extending the federal unemployment supplement at a lower amount until the end of the year. "That will help people get back to work, which everybody should be for," he said.
Portman and others contend that the current $600-per-week federal supplement creates a disincentive for people to return to work because they can earn more money on unemployment. That could inhibit the U.S. economy's recovery from the pandemic-induced devastation, they say.
House Democrats have already passed legislation that includes a provision to extend the $600-per-week federal benefit into early next year. However, the bill is a nonstarter in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The U.S. economy has showed some signs of a stronger-than-expected recovery as states move to ease coronavirus-related restrictions on business. Some 2.5 million jobs were added in May, when economists expected millions of job losses. Retail sales also rose 17.7% last month, more than double expectations.
Former Obama advisor Jason Furman told CNBC earlier this week that extending the enhanced federal unemployment benefit is critical in keep the economic recovery alive.
"The recovery we've seen so far has been assisted by extraordinary fiscal and monetary support, and if we pull that away too soon, we'll pull the rug out of the prospects for the U.S. economy," said Furman, former chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers.
But instead of $600 per week, Furman and a bipartisan group of economists and former policy makers have suggested tying the amount of the weekly benefit to the overall unemployment rate. "We'd start with replacing about 90% of what you'd get on the job and then with lower unemployment rates, that would go lower," Furman said.
Larry Kudlow, the White House's top economic advisor, has said the Trump administration is considering some sort of back-to-work "bonus." Portman said he has had conversations with a few Democrats about his proposal, suggesting that there was some openness to the idea.
"But I think they [Democrats] were told by their leadership, 'Our plan is $600. That's our negotiating position going into this,'" Portman said.
A spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., did not respond to CNBC's request for comment.
CNBC reported last week that White House and GOP negotiators plan to wait until late July to begin formal negotiations on a fourth coronavirus stimulus package. But the White House's current stance on an additional stimulus measure is varied across different administration officials, The Washington Post reported Thursday.
The Post, citing anonymous sources, reported that some Republicans in Congress are unhappy with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, whom they view as too sympathetic to Democratic proposals.
The lawmakers want Vice President Mike Pence or Mark Meadows, a former House member who is now White House chief of staff, to take on a bigger role in the negotiations, according to the Post.
"Any phase four economic package must prioritize pro-growth economic measures that incentivize employers and our great American workforce to return to the labor market," White House spokesman Judd Deere said in a statement Thursday.
"Under the President's leadership, the greatest comeback in American history has already begun as evidenced by the May jobs numbers and the recent surge in retail confidence. President's Trump's policies of lower taxes, deregulation, reciprocal trade, and energy independence built a booming economy once and they will do so again," he added.


cnbc--2020-06-18--Top Pentagon official Wheelbarger resigns, urges colleagues to be guided by U.S. Constitution

Kathryn Wheelbarger , one of the Pentagon 's most prominent and respected policy officials , is resigning after three years in the job after President Donald Trump dropped plans to nominate her for an intelligence post , sources tell Reuters .
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment .
Wheelbarger , who is highly regarded by national security experts in Trump 's Republican Party and among Democrats , had been named by the White House on Feb. 13 to a senior intelligence position at the Department of Defense .
But in a surprise move last week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to nominate Bradley Hansell , a former special assistant to Trump , to the position of deputy under secretary of defense for intelligence .
In her resignation letter , which was seen by Reuters , Wheelbarger said she trusted her colleagues would `` continue to be guided by the U.S. Constitution and the principles of our founding , which ensure both our security and our freedom . ''
Both current and former U.S. officials accused the White House of passing over Wheelbarger because of her past work with the late Republican Senator John @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee .
Wheelbarger handled the committee 's intelligence portfolio and was well regarded by Congress , among both Republicans and Democrats .
`` It looks like she failed the loyalty test somehow , '' said one former U.S. official , speaking on condition of anonymity .
A congressional source said it was disappointing that the Trump administration did n't recognize `` one of its greatest assets . ''
`` She was one of the few really thoughtful , compelling voices that people really seemed to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said , speaking on condition of anonymity .
Her departure will come as Trump attempts to overcome stiff Senate opposition among Democrats to his nomination of retired Army General Anthony Tata , a strong defender of Trump on Fox News , to the Pentagon 's most senior policy position .
Tata has misportrayed former President Barack Obama as a Muslim and accused him of being a `` terrorist leader '' working to benefit Iran , according to now-deleted Tweets seen by Reuters .
Democrats , including Senator Jack Reed , the top Democrat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , have signaled they would oppose Tata 's nomination .
Senator Elizabeth Warren , who is also on the committee , called Tata `` by far Trump 's most unqualified & ill-suited senior defense nominee -- a high bar . ''
`` An Islamophobic conspiracy theorist who called President Obama a 'terrorist leader ' should not be # 3 at the Pentagon , '' Warren said in a statement .

Kathryn Wheelbarger, one of the Pentagon's most prominent and respected policy officials, is resigning after three years in the job after President Donald Trump dropped plans to nominate her for an intelligence post, sources tell Reuters.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Wheelbarger, who is highly regarded by national security experts in Trump's Republican Party and among Democrats, had been named by the White House on Feb. 13 to a senior intelligence position at the Department of Defense.
But in a surprise move last week, the White House instead announced plans to nominate Bradley Hansell, a former special assistant to Trump, to the position of deputy under secretary of defense for intelligence.
In her resignation letter, which was seen by Reuters, Wheelbarger said she trusted her colleagues would "continue to be guided by the U.S. Constitution and the principles of our founding, which ensure both our security and our freedom."
Both current and former U.S. officials accused the White House of passing over Wheelbarger because of her past work with the late Republican Senator John McCain, a fierce Trump critic and the former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Wheelbarger handled the committee's intelligence portfolio and was well regarded by Congress, among both Republicans and Democrats.
"It looks like she failed the loyalty test somehow," said one former U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity.


cnbc--2020-06-18--Cuomo to propose making Juneteenth a New York state holiday

New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday said he will sign an executive order that would make Juneteenth a holiday for state employees , also saying that he will `` propose legislation '' to make it a state holiday for next year .
`` Friday is Juneteenth .
It commemorates the emancipation of slavery in the United States .
It is a day that we should all reflect upon .
It 's a day that 's especially relevant in this moment and history , '' Cuomo said during a press briefing with reporters .
`` I 'm going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he added , `` recognizing Juneteenth as a holiday for state employees and I 'm going to propose legislation for next year making it an official state holiday . ''
Juneteenth , a combination of the words June and nineteenth , celebrates the end of slavery in the United States , which occurred on June 19 , 1865 when slaves learned of their emancipation .
New York is just the latest state to move to make the day a formal holiday .
Virginia Gov .
Ralph Northam announced Tuesday that he 's proposing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state .
`` It 's time we elevate this , '' Northam said on Tuesday .
`` Not just a celebration by and for some Virginians but one acknowledged and celebrated by all of us . ''
Several companies like the NFL and Nike have also indicated they would make Juneteenth this year a paid holiday for employees .
Cuomo 's announcement comes after weeks of widespread protests over the death of George Floyd , a Black man who was killed by Minneapolis police on Memorial Day .
Floyd , 46 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being subdued during an investigation into whether he had used a counterfeit $ 20 bill .
Now-fired officer Derek Chauvin , 44 , has been charged with second-degree murder among other charges , while three other officers involved have been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder .

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday said he will sign an executive order that would make Juneteenth a holiday for state employees, also saying that he will "propose legislation" to make it a state holiday for next year.
"Friday is Juneteenth. It commemorates the emancipation of slavery in the United States. It is a day that we should all reflect upon. It's a day that's especially relevant in this moment and history," Cuomo said during a press briefing with reporters.
"I'm going to sign an executive order today," he added, "recognizing Juneteenth as a holiday for state employees and I'm going to propose legislation for next year making it an official state holiday."
Tweet
Juneteenth, a combination of the words June and nineteenth, celebrates the end of slavery in the United States, which occurred on June 19, 1865 when slaves learned of their emancipation.
New York is just the latest state to move to make the day a formal holiday. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday that he's proposing to make Juneteenth an official holiday in the state.
"It's time we elevate this," Northam said on Tuesday. "Not just a celebration by and for some Virginians but one acknowledged and celebrated by all of us."
Several companies like the NFL and Nike have also indicated they would make Juneteenth this year a paid holiday for employees.
Cuomo's announcement comes after weeks of widespread protests over the death of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed by Minneapolis police on Memorial Day.
Floyd, 46, who was unarmed, was asphyxiated after being subdued during an investigation into whether he had used a counterfeit $20 bill.
Now-fired officer Derek Chauvin, 44, has been charged with second-degree murder among other charges, while three other officers involved have been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder.


cnbc--2020-06-19--Kamala Harris would bring anti-Trump energy to a Joe Biden ticket, but her law enforcement record po

Kamala Harris would bring anti-Trump energy to a Joe Biden ticket, but her law enforcement record poses risks

By all accounts , Sen. Kamala Harris stands near the top of Joe Biden 's list of potential 2020 running mates .
Harris would bring a lot to the presumptive Democratic nominee 's ticket as he tries to beat President Donald Trump in November .
Even so , the California Democrat and former prosecutor could exacerbate one of Biden 's key liabilities as a candidate : criticism that he reinforced racist failings in the criminal justice system .
At 55 years old with several statewide election wins to her name in California , Harris has a combination of vigor and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's short list .
Key allies have urged the former vice president , a 77-year-old white man , to choose a woman of color as his running mate .
Harris , a daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants and one of three Black U.S. senators , would bring a vital perspective to the ticket during a national reckoning over systemic racism .
But critics have contended the senator took some regressive stances during her time as attorney general of San Francisco and California — charges sharpened during her bid for the Democratic nomination @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her record and been a champion for anti-lynching and police reform legislation in recent weeks , some observers of her career say she could alienate parts of the Democratic Party , particularly younger Black voters .
`` Kamala Harris I think would undermine the hostility that Black Americans have toward Donald Trump , '' said James Lance Taylor , a professor of politics at the University of San Francisco .
Even so , it is unclear how much of an effect Harris — or any other Biden running mate — will have on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Trump 's first term in office .
Harris enjoyed a steady rise through the legal ranks in California .
After she graduated from historically Black Howard University and the University of California , Hastings College of Law , she became the deputy district attorney for northern California 's Alameda County .
Harris held the job from 1990 to 1998 .
She then joined the San Francisco attorney general 's office .
In 2003 , Harris defeated incumbent Terence Hallinan to become the city 's top legal official .
She served as San @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Harris was elected California attorney general in 2010 , narrowly defeating Republican Steve Cooley .
After her 2014 reelection , she ran for Senate in 2016 .
She easily defeated former Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer , garnering more than 60 % of the vote .
Harris ran in the 2020 Democratic primary , but failed to make it as far as the Iowa caucuses .
She briefly vaulted higher in polls in July after she targeted Biden for opposing busing policy during the integration of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with segregationists in the Senate .
But Harris failed to gain much more traction and dropped out of the race in December .
Even at the heights of her campaign , Black poll respondents overwhelmingly preferred Biden over other Democrats , partly driven by a feeling that he had the best shot to deny Trump a second term .
The public disagreements during the primary have not appeared to hurt Biden and Harris ' relationship .
At a fundraiser earlier this month where she helped Biden 's campaign raise $ 3.5 million , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ someone who `` always has a sense of how people are experiencing this world , '' highlighting the `` many contrasts '' between him and the president .
Biden called Harris a `` fighter and a principled leader . ''
He also said he `` wo n't forget '' when he saw the senator after the death of his son Beau .
Biden said Harris told him , `` I love you , and I loved Beau . ''
During her time in the Senate , Harris ' prosecutorial grilling of Trump administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ William Barr to Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh , has earned her plaudits from Democrats .
She has aimed to take a leading role in holding the Trump White House accountable for abuses of power — a helpful practice if she eventually has to debate Vice President Mike Pence or target the president on the campaign trail .
After a May 2019 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in which Barr declined to answer Harris ' questions about whether the White House asked him to open investigations into anyone , the senator called on him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attorney general lacks all credibility and has , I think , compromised the American public 's ability to believe he is a purveyor of justice . ''
Harris has since brought her oversight push to the federal coronavirus response .
She has sought better disclosure of how the Trump administration has used money meant to go to struggling small businesses and health-care providers .
The senator has supported a range of benefits for essential employees during the pandemic , from raises to paid leave and better protections in the workplace .
Harris also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to sustain Americans ' income during the coronavirus shutdowns .
The bill introduced in May would give individuals $ 2,000 a month during the crisis .
The plan marked at least the second time she joined Sen. Bernie Sanders , I-Vt. , in backing a sweeping social safety net proposal .
In April 2019 , Harris signed on to `` Medicare for All '' legislation .
The senator later muddied her health-care position during the presidential primary as she faced questions about whether her plan would abolish private insurance .
A running mate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that important `` because the presidential candidate is going to set the agenda , '' said Robert Shrum , a veteran political consultant and professor of the practice of political science at the University of Southern California .
He noted one possible exception in Sen. Elizabeth Warren , D-Mass.
, a vice presidential contender whose bankruptcy plan Biden adopted after she dropped out of the primary earlier this year .
As the only Black woman in the Senate , Harris has been a leading congressional voice in the policy discussions around systemic racism @ @ @ @ @ @ @ men and women .
She has helped to lead the charge for an anti-lynching bill that Sen. Rand Paul , R-Ky. , blocked from passing the Senate earlier this month .
When she joined House leaders in introducing a sweeping police reform bill a few days later , she tied the inability to pass the anti-lynching legislation to the broader challenges in securing justice for Black Americans .
`` We 're here because Black Americans want to stop being killed .
...
Yes , as a country , we 've seen great progress @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year of our Lord 2020 , we could not get an anti-lynching bill passed in the United States Senate , '' she said .
The bill Harris co-sponsored did not embrace activists ' calls to either slash police budgets or defund departments entirely .
But she has said she supports Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti 's proposal to cut up to $ 150 million from the city 's police budget and put it toward a $ 250 million investment in health care and jobs programs .
`` We 've got to re-examine what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and ask the question : Are we getting the right return on our investment ?
Are we actually creating healthy and safe communities ? ''
she asked earlier this month .
Of course , pushes for reform bring questions about Harris ' own role in the criminal justice system .
Taylor at the University of San Francisco said the senator may not do much to solidify support for Biden — whom Black voters already overwhelmingly supported during the primary — while risking dampening the zeal of the activists pushing for an overhaul of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coming for Trump , '' he said of people protesting racial injustice .
`` If Biden were to select Kamala Harris , it would have a wet blanket effect on that enthusiasm . ''
Harris has faced criticism on issues including an anti-truancy program and instances where she did not dismiss cases against convicted defendants after new evidence emerged .
She also saw backlash in California for what critics saw as her being slow to embrace liberal positions on the death penalty , marijuana legalization and police and criminal justice reform .
During @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a `` progressive prosecutor . ''
She has previously defended her ambitions as a legal officer by saying she wanted to `` reform systems '' from `` the inside . ''
Supporters have pointed to programs Harris previously backed such as one that aided people in looking for work rather than putting them in jail .
As a presidential candidate , Harris pushed to legalize marijuana , ban private prisons and issue a moratorium on the death penalty at the federal level .
She also called for sentencing reform and more emphasis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spokeswoman for Harris did not immediately respond to a request to comment on this story .
Shrum said many voters may judge Harris by where she stands on criminal justice issues now rather than her record as a prosecutor .
He noted that Black voters pushed Biden through the Democratic primary despite his role in the 1994 crime bill that critics say helped to fuel mass incarceration of people of color .
Biden appeared to address concerns about the legislation earlier this year when he said , `` I have n't always been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tried . ''
Shrum noted that Harris would not help Biden on one specific front : giving a boost in a swing state .
Other potential choices such as Michigan Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer and Rep. Val Demings of Florida could potentially aid Biden in critical Electoral College states .
However , Shrum , who served as an advisor to the Kerry-Edwards and Gore-Lieberman campaigns , said a vice president has not appeared to give a significant geographic boost since Lyndon B. Johnson helped John F. Kennedy win Johnson 's home state of @ @ @ @

Democratic U.S. presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden is greeted by U.S. Senator Kamala Harris during a campaign stop in Detroit, Michigan, March 9, 2020. Brendan McDermid | Reuters
UPDATE: Since this story was first published, Joe Biden selected Kamala Harris to be his running mate. By all accounts, Sen. Kamala Harris stands near the top of Joe Biden's list of potential 2020 running mates. Harris would bring a lot to the presumptive Democratic nominee's ticket as he tries to beat President Donald Trump in November. Even so, the California Democrat and former prosecutor could exacerbate one of Biden's key liabilities as a candidate: criticism that he reinforced racist failings in the criminal justice system. At 55 years old with several statewide election wins to her name in California, Harris has a combination of vigor and experience matched by few others on Biden's short list. Key allies have urged the former vice president, a 77-year-old white man, to choose a woman of color as his running mate. Harris, a daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants and one of three Black U.S. senators, would bring a vital perspective to the ticket during a national reckoning over systemic racism. But critics have contended the senator took some regressive stances during her time as district attorney of San Francisco and attorney general of California — charges sharpened during her bid for the Democratic nomination last year. While Harris has defended her record and been a champion for anti-lynching and police reform legislation in recent weeks, some observers of her career say she could alienate parts of the Democratic Party, particularly younger Black voters. "Kamala Harris I think would undermine the hostility that Black Americans have toward Donald Trump," said James Lance Taylor, a professor of politics at the University of San Francisco. Even so, it is unclear how much of an effect Harris — or any other Biden running mate — will have on an election increasingly looking like a referendum on Trump's first term in office. The list of potential choices got shorter Thursday, when Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said she would take herself out of the running and urged Biden to pick a woman of color.
Kamala Harris' resume
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) joins fellow Democrats from the House and Senate to introduce new legislation to end excessive use of force by police and make it easier to identify, track, and prosecute police misconduct at the U.S. Capitol June 08, 2020 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images
Harris enjoyed a steady rise through the legal ranks in California. After she graduated from historically Black Howard University and the University of California, Hastings College of Law, she became the deputy district attorney for northern California's Alameda County. Harris held the job from 1990 to 1998. She then joined the San Francisco District Attorney's Office. In 2003, Harris defeated incumbent Terence Hallinan to become the city's top legal official. She served as San Francisco's district attorney from 2004 to 2010. Harris was elected California attorney general in 2010, narrowly defeating Republican Steve Cooley. After her 2014 reelection, she ran for Senate in 2016. She easily defeated former Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, garnering more than 60% of the vote.
watch now
Harris ran in the 2020 Democratic primary, but failed to make it as far as the Iowa caucuses. She briefly vaulted higher in polls in July after she targeted Biden for opposing busing policy during the integration of public schools and for comments about working with segregationists in the Senate. But Harris failed to gain much more traction and dropped out of the race in December. Even at the heights of her campaign, Black poll respondents overwhelmingly preferred Biden over other Democrats, partly driven by a feeling that he had the best shot to deny Trump a second term. The public disagreements during the primary have not appeared to hurt Biden and Harris' relationship. At a fundraiser earlier this month where she helped Biden's campaign raise $3.5 million, she praised the former vice president as someone who "always has a sense of how people are experiencing this world," highlighting the "many contrasts" between him and the president. Biden called Harris a "fighter and a principled leader." He also said he "won't forget" when he saw the senator after the death of his son Beau. Biden said Harris told him, "I love you, and I loved Beau."
Work in the Senate
During her time in the Senate, Harris' prosecutorial grilling of Trump administration officials and nominees, from Attorney General William Barr to Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, has earned her plaudits from Democrats. She has aimed to take a leading role in holding the Trump White House accountable for abuses of power — a helpful practice if she eventually has to debate Vice President Mike Pence or target the president on the campaign trail. After a May 2019 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in which Barr declined to answer Harris' questions about whether the White House asked him to open investigations into anyone, the senator called on him to resign. She said "this attorney general lacks all credibility and has, I think, compromised the American public's ability to believe he is a purveyor of justice."
watch now
Harris has since brought her oversight push to the federal coronavirus response. She has sought better disclosure of how the Trump administration has used money meant to go to struggling small businesses and health-care providers. The senator has supported a range of benefits for essential employees during the pandemic, from raises to paid leave and better protections in the workplace. Harris also co-sponsored one of the most ambitious proposals to sustain Americans' income during the coronavirus shutdowns. The bill introduced in May would give individuals $2,000 a month during the crisis. The plan marked at least the second time she joined Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., in backing a sweeping social safety net proposal. In April 2019, Harris signed on to "Medicare for All" legislation. The senator later muddied her health-care position during the presidential primary as she faced questions about whether her plan would abolish private insurance. A running mate's policy preferences may not prove all that important "because the presidential candidate is going to set the agenda," said Robert Shrum, a veteran political consultant and professor of the practice of political science at the University of Southern California. He noted one possible exception in Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a vice presidential contender whose bankruptcy plan Biden adopted after she dropped out of the primary earlier this year.
The push for reform
watch now
As the only Black woman in the Senate, Harris has been a leading congressional voice in the policy discussions around systemic racism sparked by repeated police killings of Black men and women. She has helped to lead the charge for an anti-lynching bill that Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., blocked from passing the Senate earlier this month. When she joined House leaders in introducing a sweeping police reform bill a few days later, she tied the inability to pass the anti-lynching legislation to the broader challenges in securing justice for Black Americans. "We're here because Black Americans want to stop being killed. ... Yes, as a country, we've seen great progress. But just last week in the year of our Lord 2020, we could not get an anti-lynching bill passed in the United States Senate," she said. The bill Harris co-sponsored did not embrace activists' calls to either slash police budgets or defund departments entirely. But she has said she supports Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti's proposal to cut up to $150 million from the city's police budget and put it toward a $250 million investment in health care and jobs programs. "We've got to re-examine what we're doing with American taxpayer dollars and ask the question: Are we getting the right return on our investment? Are we actually creating healthy and safe communities?" she asked earlier this month. Of course, pushes for reform bring questions about Harris' own role in the criminal justice system. Taylor at the University of San Francisco said the senator may not do much to solidify support for Biden — whom Black voters already overwhelmingly supported during the primary — while risking dampening the zeal of the activists pushing for an overhaul of the justice system. "They are coming for Trump," he said of people protesting racial injustice. "If Biden were to select Kamala Harris, it would have a wet blanket effect on that enthusiasm." Harris has faced criticism on issues including an anti-truancy program and instances where she did not dismiss cases against convicted defendants after new evidence emerged. She also saw backlash in California for what critics saw as her being slow to embrace liberal positions on the death penalty, marijuana legalization and police and criminal justice reform. During her presidential campaign, Harris described herself as a "progressive prosecutor." She has previously defended her ambitions as a legal officer by saying she wanted to "reform systems" from "the inside." Supporters have pointed to programs Harris previously backed such as one that aided people in looking for work rather than putting them in jail. As a presidential candidate, Harris pushed to legalize marijuana, ban private prisons and issue a moratorium on the death penalty at the federal level. She also called for sentencing reform and more emphasis on rehabilitation rather than incarceration. A spokeswoman for Harris did not immediately respond to a request to comment on this story. Shrum said many voters may judge Harris by where she stands on criminal justice issues now rather than her record as a prosecutor. He noted that Black voters pushed Biden through the Democratic primary despite his role in the 1994 crime bill that critics say helped to fuel mass incarceration of people of color. Biden appeared to address concerns about the legislation earlier this year when he said, "I haven't always been right" but "I've always tried." Shrum noted that Harris would not help Biden on one specific front: giving a boost in a swing state. Other potential choices such as Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Rep. Val Demings of Florida could potentially aid Biden in critical Electoral College states. However, Shrum, who served as an advisor to the Kerry-Edwards and Gore-Lieberman campaigns, said a vice president has not appeared to give a significant geographic boost since Lyndon B. Johnson helped John F. Kennedy win Johnson's home state of Texas in 1960. Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Kamala Harris worked for the San Francisco District Attorney's Office and was elected in 2003 to serve as San Francisco's district attorney. Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube.


cnbc--2020-06-19--Trump's 'racist baby' tweet gets slapped with 'manipulated media' label from Twitter

President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable discussion with African American supporters in the Cabinet Room of the White House on June 10 , 2020 .
A doctored viral video shared by President Donald Trump on Twitter has been labeled as `` manipulated media '' by the microblogging site as it looks to clean up disinformation .
The video shows a White toddler chasing a Black child down the street , and the banner says , `` Terrified todler runs from racist baby . ''
It is made to look like it was produced by CNN and the word `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ changes to read : `` Racist baby probably a Trump voter . ''
The mood and music changes subsequently to show what actually happened .
It displays the scene before the chase , and shows that the two children were actually friends who were running to meet and hug each other .
The video concludes with text that says , `` America is not the problem , '' and a separate caption says , `` fake news is . ''
The irony is that this particular video was doctored .
Twitter has slapped @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' label .
The company explains that it `` may label Tweets that include media ( videos , audio , and images ) that have been deceptively altered or fabricated . ''
It says that users are not allowed to `` share deceptively altered media on Twitter in ways that mislead or deceive people about the media 's authenticity where threats to physical safety or other serious harm may result . ''
CNN actually reported on these two toddlers — Maxwell and Finnegan — in September 2019 .
Here is a tweet that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The video went viral last year and has resurfaced due to the killing of George Floyd , a Black man who died in police custody .
Floyd 's death has ignited discussions over racial inequality and the Black Lives Matter movement .
The parents of the two children responded to Trump 's tweet .
`` He will not turn this loving , beautiful video to further his hate agenda , '' Maxwell 's dad , Michael Cisneros , wrote on Facebook .
`` Utterly shocked .
Trump posted this on his Twitter .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ hope that his use of their beautiful video in this way disgusts you .
It should , '' Finnegan 's mom , Erica Russo McKenna said on Facebook .
In another tweet , CNN responded saying that it covered the story `` as it happened . ''
The news network took a swipe at Trump saying it will `` continue working with facts rather than tweeting fake videos that exploit innocent children . ''
Twitter has been on a push to clean up disinformation on its site and has started labeling content it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fallen foul of Twitter 's guidelines a number of times since the policy came into effect last month .
Two of his tweets about mail-in voting got slapped with a fact-checking tag .

President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable discussion with African American supporters in the Cabinet Room of the White House on June 10, 2020.
A doctored viral video shared by President Donald Trump on Twitter has been labeled as "manipulated media" by the microblogging site as it looks to clean up disinformation.
The video shows a White toddler chasing a Black child down the street, and the banner says, "Terrified todler runs from racist baby." It is made to look like it was produced by CNN and the word "toddler" is misspelled.
The text changes to read: "Racist baby probably a Trump voter."
The mood and music changes subsequently to show what actually happened. It displays the scene before the chase, and shows that the two children were actually friends who were running to meet and hug each other.
The video concludes with text that says, "America is not the problem," and a separate caption says, "fake news is." The irony is that this particular video was doctored.
Twitter has slapped the tweet with a "manipulated media" label. The company explains that it "may label Tweets that include media (videos, audio, and images) that have been deceptively altered or fabricated."
It says that users are not allowed to "share deceptively altered media on Twitter in ways that mislead or deceive people about the media's authenticity where threats to physical safety or other serious harm may result."
CNN actually reported on these two toddlers — Maxwell and Finnegan — in September 2019. Here is a tweet that shows part of the real video.
The video went viral last year and has resurfaced due to the killing of George Floyd, a Black man who died in police custody. Floyd's death has ignited discussions over racial inequality and the Black Lives Matter movement.
The parents of the two children responded to Trump's tweet.
"He will not turn this loving, beautiful video to further his hate agenda," Maxwell's dad, Michael Cisneros, wrote on Facebook.


cnbc--2020-06-19--Coronavirus mortgage bailout shrinks further, but bank-held loans are faring worse

The number of borrowers seeking relief on their mortgage payments has fallen for the third straight week , as more Americans go back to work and cities reopen .
As of June 16 , 4.6 million homeowners were in forbearance plans , allowing them to delay their monthly payments for at least three months .
This represents 8.7 % of all active mortgages , down from 8.8 % last week , according to a weekly survey by Black Knight , a mortgage data and technology firm .
Together , those loans represent just more than $ 1 trillion in unpaid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 57,000 from last week and by 158,000 from the peak week , May 22 .
Broken down by loan type , about 6.8 % of all mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and 12.1 % of all FHA/VA loans are currently in forbearance plans .
Loans not backed by government agencies , either held by banks or in private-label securities , seem to be more troubled .
Those total forbearances rose by 6,000 .
Nonagency loans are often held by borrowers who are self-employed .
They may be struggling more financially @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in forbearance can delay their monthly payments , mortgage servicers are still required to advance those payments to bondholders .
At today 's level , they need to pay a collective $ 3.4 billion per month to holders of government-backed mortgage securities on Covid-19-related forbearances .
That is in addition to $ 1.4 billion in taxes and insurance payments they also make on behalf of borrowers .
Federal regulators capped the amount of time servicers have to make those payments on government-backed loans at four months .

The number of borrowers seeking relief on their mortgage payments has fallen for the third straight week, as more Americans go back to work and cities reopen.
As of June 16, 4.6 million homeowners were in forbearance plans, allowing them to delay their monthly payments for at least three months. This represents 8.7% of all active mortgages, down from 8.8% last week, according to a weekly survey by Black Knight, a mortgage data and technology firm. Together, those loans represent just more than $1 trillion in unpaid principal.
The numbers are down by 57,000 from last week and by 158,000 from the peak week, May 22.
Broken down by loan type, about 6.8% of all mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and 12.1% of all FHA/VA loans are currently in forbearance plans.
Loans not backed by government agencies, either held by banks or in private-label securities, seem to be more troubled. Those total forbearances rose by 6,000.
Nonagency loans are often held by borrowers who are self-employed. They may be struggling more financially from the economic shutdown.
While borrowers in forbearance can delay their monthly payments, mortgage servicers are still required to advance those payments to bondholders. At today's level, they need to pay a collective $3.4 billion per month to holders of government-backed mortgage securities on Covid-19-related forbearances. That is in addition to $1.4 billion in taxes and insurance payments they also make on behalf of borrowers.
Federal regulators capped the amount of time servicers have to make those payments on government-backed loans at four months.


cnbc--2020-06-19--Juneteenth gives corporate America a chance to act on pledges to fight racism following George Floyd

Juneteenth gives corporate America a chance to act on pledges to fight racism following George Floyd's killing

For 25 days , Americans have been demanding from the country 's civic and corporate leaders their plans to tackle police brutality and systemic racism during protests that have gripped the nation following the killing of George Floyd .
On Friday , Juneteenth , many of those leaders have a big first opportunity to put into action the rhetoric that has flowed since Memorial Day , when Floyd died in the custody of Minneapolis police officers .
J.P Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon has said the bank is `` committed to fighting against racism and discrimination . ''
BlackRock 's Larry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not tolerate '' shortcomings in racial equality within its walls .
Activists hope that that opportunity , albeit symbolic , will be part of the path to change .
`` Symbols are cultural artifacts that move forward and advance things .
You need those symbols as things because that 's how movements become institutionalized , '' said Dr. Lynn Perry Wooten , dean of the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University .
June 19 is celebrated as Juneteenth , the anniversary of the day in 1865 that Union forces @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation .
That delay is a `` symbol of freedom not yet fully realized '' for Blacks in America , notes Creative Collective of NYC , a creative agency that works with the Black Lives Matter movement .
For the country 's leaders , it is an encapsulation of a problem Americans are increasingly asking them to help solve : the barriers that have continued to hold Blacks back in the century-and-a-half since .
The median Black family owns a little @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the median White family , according to the Institute for Policy Studies .
The coronavirus pandemic seems to have further exacerbated that divide .
From February through April , 41 % of small businesses owned by Black people closed , but only 17 % of those owned by White people closed , according to the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research .
Black people constitute nearly 13 % of the U.S. population , but made up 23 % of all Covid-19 deaths as of June 3 , according to the Centers for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the White unemployment rate went down from the month before , while Black unemployment actually ticked up .
`` In this moment , when many of these same companies have said they stand with their Black employees and they are horrified by the murder of George Floyd and so many other Black people , then it 's also a moment to acknowledge the racism baked into the economy of this nation , and the conditions under which Blacks have had to live in order to build the country , '' said Laura @ @ @ @ @ @ @ University of Virginia Darden School of Business and author of `` Race , Work and Leadership : Positive Organizing in a Global Society . ''
Altria , Nike and J.C. Penney are among those offering employees Juneteenth as a paid , companywide holiday .
Google urged its employees to cancel all unnecessary meetings scheduled for the day .
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said the House will remove the portraits of the four of her predecessors who were Confederates .
Some states have deemed a state holiday , while others , such as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it .
`` I never would have thought I 'd see this , '' said Wooten .
She thought the establishment of Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a holiday in 1983 was the only such commemoration she would experience in her lifetime , she said .
As a symbol , though , Juneteenth is not yet being universally celebrated as a paid day off .
Comcast and Walmart are among those that have not given their employees off for the holiday , though both have pledged resources towards tackling racial inequity .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to easily grant a holiday .
Smaller organizations or those that are struggling may not have the ability to pause from work .
For those in industries like grocery or manufacturing , a day off has bigger consequences , not all of them positive , for society .
And without care , symbols can be quickly lost .
Memorial Day is as often seen as a day for cookouts and beach visits as it is for taking a moment to commemorate those who died in active duty .
Oreo owner Mondelez is calling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ employees a `` day of reflection , '' to address concerns it could otherwise be viewed as a three-day weekend , said Laurie Guzzinati , head of corporate and government affairs at the company .
Mondelez is offering internal and external resources to help employees make the best use of this time .
`` What we heard from our colleagues is that they wanted to keep that day to give the space for reflection and learning , '' she said .
Facebook is commemorating the holiday with a mandatory day of learning and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ though not giving employees the day off .
But the social media giant is also dealing with the reality that six years into diversity efforts , its workforce has gone from 3 % Black to 3.8 % .
The company on Thursday announced it is committing $ 200 million to Black-owned businesses and organizations .
It also committed to increasing the representation of people of color in the company 's leadership positions by 30 % over the next five years .
`` Juneteenth is the first marker post-national outrage — we definitely would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ otherwise ] , '' said Karen Boykin-Towns , senior counselor at communications firm Sard Verbinnen and vice chairman of the NAACP National Board of Directors .
`` If this is a marker , six months from now , we should expect to hear of tangible actions from companies and governments that really look to address the systemic racism that plagues us . ''
In six months , there will be a litany of questions investors , customers and employees can ask , including these , Boykin-Towns said : • Has a company completed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
• Is it holding its managers accountable for improving those metrics ?
• Does it have a chief diversity officer ?
If so , what kind of resources is the company providing them ?
Do they report to the board ?
• Is a company reconsidering referral programs that can encourage `` like hiring like '' ?
• Is it diversifying its suppliers ?
• Has it addressed the wages and living conditions of those at the bottom of the economic ladder , knowing that raising the minimum wage would benefit Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the many donations companies have given following Floyd 's killing at the hands of police ?
If the answers are unsatisfactory , customers have power , Roberts said .
She noted that the 1955-56 Montgomery bus boycott , which was triggered by Rosa Parks and helped Martin Luther King Jr. emerge as a national leader , was a consumer-driven event .
`` If that had n't cost the bus company money , they would n't have thought about integrating the buses , '' she said .
CNBC 's Melissa Repko and Salvador @ @ @ @ @

For 25 days, Americans have been demanding from the country's civic and corporate leaders their plans to tackle police brutality and systemic racism during protests that have gripped the nation following the killing of George Floyd.
On Friday, Juneteenth, many of those leaders have a big first opportunity to put into action the rhetoric that has flowed since Memorial Day, when Floyd died in the custody of Minneapolis police officers. J.P Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon has said the bank is "committed to fighting against racism and discrimination." BlackRock's Larry Fink has said the firm will "not tolerate" shortcomings in racial equality within its walls.
Activists hope that that opportunity, albeit symbolic, will be part of the path to change.
"Symbols are cultural artifacts that move forward and advance things. You need those symbols as things because that's how movements become institutionalized," said Dr. Lynn Perry Wooten, dean of the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University.
June 19 is celebrated as Juneteenth, the anniversary of the day in 1865 that Union forces announced in Texas that slaves were free — more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. That delay is a "symbol of freedom not yet fully realized" for Blacks in America, notes Creative Collective of NYC, a creative agency that works with the Black Lives Matter movement.
For the country's leaders, it is an encapsulation of a problem Americans are increasingly asking them to help solve: the barriers that have continued to hold Blacks back in the century-and-a-half since.
The median Black family owns a little over 2% of the wealth owned by the median White family, according to the Institute for Policy Studies.
The coronavirus pandemic seems to have further exacerbated that divide. From February through April, 41% of small businesses owned by Black people closed, but only 17% of those owned by White people closed, according to the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research. Black people constitute nearly 13% of the U.S. population, but made up 23% of all Covid-19 deaths as of June 3, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In May, the White unemployment rate went down from the month before, while Black unemployment actually ticked up.
"In this moment, when many of these same companies have said they stand with their Black employees and they are horrified by the murder of George Floyd and so many other Black people, then it's also a moment to acknowledge the racism baked into the economy of this nation, and the conditions under which Blacks have had to live in order to build the country," said Laura Morgan Roberts, a professor at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business and author of "Race, Work and Leadership: Positive Organizing in a Global Society."
Altria , Nike and J.C. Penney are among those offering employees Juneteenth as a paid, companywide holiday. Google urged its employees to cancel all unnecessary meetings scheduled for the day. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said the House will remove the portraits of the four of her predecessors who were Confederates. Some states have deemed a state holiday, while others, such as New York, are pushing to add it.
"I never would have thought I'd see this," said Wooten. She thought the establishment of Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a holiday in 1983 was the only such commemoration she would experience in her lifetime, she said.
As a symbol, though, Juneteenth is not yet being universally celebrated as a paid day off.
Comcast and Walmart are among those that have not given their employees off for the holiday, though both have pledged resources towards tackling racial inequity.
Not all companies are in a position to easily grant a holiday. Smaller organizations or those that are struggling may not have the ability to pause from work. For those in industries like grocery or manufacturing, a day off has bigger consequences, not all of them positive, for society.
And without care, symbols can be quickly lost. Memorial Day is as often seen as a day for cookouts and beach visits as it is for taking a moment to commemorate those who died in active duty.
Oreo owner Mondelez is calling the paid day off it's offering employees a "day of reflection," to address concerns it could otherwise be viewed as a three-day weekend, said Laurie Guzzinati, head of corporate and government affairs at the company. Mondelez is offering internal and external resources to help employees make the best use of this time.
"What we heard from our colleagues is that they wanted to keep that day to give the space for reflection and learning," she said.
Facebook is commemorating the holiday with a mandatory day of learning and is canceling all other corporate meetings, though not giving employees the day off. But the social media giant is also dealing with the reality that six years into diversity efforts, its workforce has gone from 3% Black to 3.8%.
The company on Thursday announced it is committing $200 million to Black-owned businesses and organizations. It also committed to increasing the representation of people of color in the company's leadership positions by 30% over the next five years.
"Juneteenth is the first marker post-national outrage — we definitely would not see all of this attention [otherwise]," said Karen Boykin-Towns, senior counselor at communications firm Sard Verbinnen and vice chairman of the NAACP National Board of Directors.
"If this is a marker, six months from now, we should expect to hear of tangible actions from companies and governments that really look to address the systemic racism that plagues us."
In six months, there will be a litany of questions investors, customers and employees can ask, including these, Boykin-Towns said:
Has a company completed benchmarking of where it sits on diversity?
Is it holding its managers accountable for improving those metrics?
Does it have a chief diversity officer? If so, what kind of resources is the company providing them? Do they report to the board?
Is a company reconsidering referral programs that can encourage "like hiring like"?
Is it diversifying its suppliers?
Darden's Roberts offered further questions:
Has it addressed the wages and living conditions of those at the bottom of the economic ladder, knowing that raising the minimum wage would benefit Black Americans?
Has it established oversight of the many donations companies have given following Floyd's killing at the hands of police?
If the answers are unsatisfactory, customers have power, Roberts said. She noted that the 1955-56 Montgomery bus boycott, which was triggered by Rosa Parks and helped Martin Luther King Jr. emerge as a national leader, was a consumer-driven event.
"If that hadn't cost the bus company money, they wouldn't have thought about integrating the buses," she said.
Disclosure: Comcast is a parent company of CNBC.
CNBC's Melissa Repko and Salvador Rodriguez contributed to this story


cnbc--2020-06-19--John Bolton should 'claw back' tell-all book on Trump, government lawyer argues to judge

WASHINGTON – A lawyer for the U.S. government said Friday that former national security advisor John Bolton 's decision to publish a damning book about his time serving President Donald Trump is `` a flagrant breach of '' Bolton 's agreement to not write about classified matters .
Deputy Assistant Attorney General David Morrell also argued , during a court hearing before a federal judge , that it is Bolton 's responsibility to now `` claw back '' all copies of his book , `` The Room Where it Happened , '' which is due to be released next Tuesday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he 's created this problem , '' Morrell contended in support of his request that Senior Judge Royce Lamberth issue an injunction in U.S. District Court in Washington barring the book from being published , for now .
The Justice Department alleges in a lawsuit that the memoir contains classified information , and on Thursday , asked Lamberth to halt distribution and sale of the book , details of which already have been widely reported .
Morrell said that Bolton had agreed as part of his job in the federal government that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ classified information .
`` In exchange for money , he has broken that promise , '' Morrell said during the hearing , which was conducted via telephone due to the coronavirus pandemic .
`` This is a problem of his own making , the onus on him to solve it . ''
Morrell called Bolton 's move to publish the book before receiving approval from the government as part of a review process for classified material `` a flagrant breach of the defendant 's commitment . ''
`` It is not his role @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is done , '' the lawyer said .
But before Morrell argued his case , the judge raised the question of whether it was too late now to stop the book from being sold , given the fact that copies of it have already been shipped nationwide .
`` The horse , as we used to say in Texas , seems to be out of the barn , '' Lamberth said .
`` It certainly looks difficult to me what I can do about those books all over the country . ''
Morrell @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and that there 's a massive government interest '' in making sure agreements to not disclose classified information `` are not breached willy-nilly . ''
He said that Bolton could direct the book 's publisher , Simon & Schuster , to contact distributors and ask for copies of the book to be shipped back .
Bolton 's lawyer , Charles Cooper , told the judge , `` Ambassador Bolton fulfilled his contractual obligation not just in spirit , but to the letter . ''
But Lamberth shot back , `` That 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ written authorization . ''
The judge added , `` I do n't understand why he did n't '' file suit against the government if he thought the review process was taking too long , or was making incorrect determinations about what material in a draft of the book was classified .
Cooper later said that `` until these motion papers were presented by the government , there was never even a hint — a hint !
— that there might be sensitive compartmentalized information in the manuscript . ''
After two hours of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ order to review the government 's classified material designations behind closed doors .

WASHINGTON – A lawyer for the U.S. government said Friday that former national security advisor John Bolton's decision to publish a damning book about his time serving President Donald Trump is "a flagrant breach of" Bolton's agreement to not write about classified matters.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General David Morrell also argued, during a court hearing before a federal judge, that it is Bolton's responsibility to now "claw back" all copies of his book, "The Room Where it Happened," which is due to be released next Tuesday.
"He's created this mess, he's created this problem," Morrell contended in support of his request that Senior Judge Royce Lamberth issue an injunction in U.S. District Court in Washington barring the book from being published, for now.
The Justice Department alleges in a lawsuit that the memoir contains classified information, and on Thursday, asked Lamberth to halt distribution and sale of the book, details of which already have been widely reported.
Morrell said that Bolton had agreed as part of his job in the federal government that he would not publish a book containing classified information.
"In exchange for money, he has broken that promise," Morrell said during the hearing, which was conducted via telephone due to the coronavirus pandemic.
"This is a problem of his own making, the onus on him to solve it."
Morrell called Bolton's move to publish the book before receiving approval from the government as part of a review process for classified material "a flagrant breach of the defendant's commitment."
"It is not his role or entitlement to decide when the process is done," the lawyer said.
But before Morrell argued his case, the judge raised the question of whether it was too late now to stop the book from being sold, given the fact that copies of it have already been shipped nationwide.
"The horse, as we used to say in Texas, seems to be out of the barn," Lamberth said. "It certainly looks difficult to me what I can do about those books all over the country."
Morrell told the judge that "deterrence matters, and that there's a massive government interest" in making sure agreements to not disclose classified information "are not breached willy-nilly." He said that Bolton could direct the book's publisher, Simon & Schuster, to contact distributors and ask for copies of the book to be shipped back.
Bolton's lawyer, Charles Cooper, told the judge, "Ambassador Bolton fulfilled his contractual obligation not just in spirit, but to the letter."
But Lamberth shot back, "That's not true. He didn't get written authorization."
The judge added, "I don't understand why he didn't" file suit against the government if he thought the review process was taking too long, or was making incorrect determinations about what material in a draft of the book was classified.
Cooper later said that "until these motion papers were presented by the government, there was never even a hint — a hint! — that there might be sensitive compartmentalized information in the manuscript."
After two hours of arguments, Lamberth declared a recess in order to review the government's classified material designations behind closed doors.


cnbc--2020-06-19--New directors at federal media agency have ties to anti-LGBT groups, fought pro-transgender policies

Michael Pack , President Donald Trump 's pick to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media , has appointed to the organization 's board a person with ties to an anti-LGBT group and another who publicly bashed President Barack Obama 's transgender policy .
The board of directors for these media organizations that are overseen by the USAGM have a say on who is selected to become leaders of the companies they represent .
Their ties and previous remarks could give a preview into the way Michael Pack , the CEO of the agency , is remaking the federally funded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tone .
Democrats , including Sen. Robert Menendez , the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations committee , have voiced concern that these moves represent an attempt by Pack to destroy the USAGM .
These new board members were brought up in a letter from Reps. Eliot Engel and Nita Lowey , chairs of the House Appropriations Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee , sent to to Pack on Friday .
The two lawmakers called on him to provide documents for why he chose to terminate and then replace various career officials at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after Pack purged longtime board members and executives just weeks after officially becoming USAGM 's new CEO .
Trump himself has publicly taken aim at Voice of America , one of the news organizations overseen by the agency .
In statement released on Thursday , Pack appeared to defend his decision to remove longtime agency officials .
The USAGM did not return a request for comment for this story .
Bethany Kozma , who is set to join the board of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty , the people added , is currently working @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Development .
She formerly worked in President George W. Bush 's administration and has been an activist against pro-transgender policies .
Kozma once wrote an op-ed blasting Obama 's policy that allowed transgender students to use restrooms that matched their gender identities .
The Trump administration rescinded the proposal in 2017 .
Jonathan Alexandre , according to people familiar with the matter who declined to be named as these decisions have yet to be made public , is expected to be a corporate board member for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and reportedly is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He is the senior counsel for government affairs at Liberty Counsel , a 501 ( c ) ( 3 ) nonprofit advocacy group that fights for pro-Christian legal rights , Alexandre 's LinkedIn profile says .
Both Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia are entities of USAGM and they did not return requests for comment .
Liberty Counsel has often publicly taken a stance against pro-gay or transgender policies .
There is no public record of Alexandre himself making similar comments .
Alexandre is also senior counsel for government affairs at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( c ) ( 4 ) , that , according to their website , `` advances religious freedom , the sanctity of human life , the family , responsible government , national security , and support for Israel at the federal , state , and local levels . ''

Michael Pack, President Donald Trump's pick to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media, has appointed to the organization's board a person with ties to an anti-LGBT group and another who publicly bashed President Barack Obama's transgender policy.
The board of directors for these media organizations that are overseen by the USAGM have a say on who is selected to become leaders of the companies they represent. Their ties and previous remarks could give a preview into the way Michael Pack, the CEO of the agency, is remaking the federally funded news organization to fit a more conservative tone.
Democrats, including Sen. Robert Menendez, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations committee, have voiced concern that these moves represent an attempt by Pack to destroy the USAGM. These new board members were brought up in a letter from Reps. Eliot Engel and Nita Lowey, chairs of the House Appropriations Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee, sent to Pack on Friday. The two lawmakers called on him to provide documents for why he chose to terminate and then replace various career officials at the agency.
The board moves come after Pack purged longtime board members and executives just weeks after officially becoming USAGM's new CEO. Trump himself has publicly taken aim at Voice of America, one of the news organizations overseen by the agency.
In statement released on Thursday, Pack appeared to defend his decision to remove longtime agency officials. The USAGM did not return a request for comment for this story.
Bethany Kozma, according to people familiar with the matter who declined to be named as these decisions have yet to be made public, is set to join the board of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and is currently working with the United States Agency for International Development. She formerly worked in President George W. Bush's administration and has been an activist against pro-transgender policies.
Kozma once wrote an op-ed blasting Obama's policy that allowed transgender students to use restrooms that matched their gender identities. The Trump administration rescinded the proposal in 2017.
Jonathan Alexandre, these people added, is expected to be a corporate board member for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and reportedly is on the board of Radio Free Asia. He is the senior counsel for government affairs at Liberty Counsel, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocacy group that fights for pro-Christian legal rights, Alexandre's LinkedIn profile says. Both Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia are entities of USAGM and they did not return requests for comment.
Liberty Counsel has often publicly taken a stance against pro-gay or transgender policies. There is no public record of Alexandre himself making similar comments.
Alexandre is also senior counsel for government affairs at Liberty Counsel Action, an associated 501(c)(4), that, according to their website, "advances religious freedom, the sanctity of human life, the family, responsible government, national security, and support for Israel at the federal, state, and local levels."