Here’s your dose of ‘What the Fuck is Going On’ News (1/27/2017 edition)
Trump has officially signed an executive order that is hating the U.S. refugee program. The order blocks all refugees from entering the U.S. for the next 120 days and is suspending the acceptance of refugees from Syria indefinitely. Visa applications are also being blocked from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen until the new “extreme vetting” procedure is launched. No word on when that will happen. The order also bars all persons from certain “terror-prone countries” from entering the United States for the next 90 days. The list of “terror prone countries” has not been released or clarified. (source) (source)
Republicans in Congress are pushing a series of bills that would attack federal regulations protecting the environment, guaranteeing internet freedom, and ensuring consumer safety and labor rights. These bills would give Congress effective veto power over future regulations advanced by the Federal Communications Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, and a host of other federal government agencies. These bills have been approved by the GOP-controlled House but have yet to be passed by the Senate. (source) (source)
The Trump administration gave its full support to the March for Life protest in D.C. today, featuring Mike Pence and Kellyanne Conway. Pence told the crowd that Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, to be announced next week, will please the anti-choice crowd immensely. This comes after some concerns that the Supreme Court shortlist featured some people that might not uphold “full pro-life values.” Anti-choicers and conservatives expressed their concerns to Trump earlier this week about some of the picks. (source)
Republican lawmaker in several state are currently pushing bills that will crack down on demonstrations and protesters. These bills push for stricter laws, higher fines, and jail sentences (or longer jail sentences in some cases). (source)
Iowa experience the largest diesel fuel spill in the U.S since 2010. 140,000 gallons of diesel fuel spilled from a broken pipeline and onto an Iowa farm. Cleanup efforts are complicating due to high winds and snow, and the cause of the leak is currently under investigation. (source)
As of right now there are still only 48 votes against nominating Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, the number needed is 51. Reminder that DeVos has zero experience in education policy and outright admitted she was likely chosen for the position due to her and her family’s donations to the Republican party. She also refuses to commit to protecting the rights of vulnerable students and I’m sure everyone has now heard her comments on guns in schools to protect from bears. If you would like to see what republican senators can be called in an attempt to change their votes click here. (source)
Leaked audio has been released containing Republicans in a closed-door session discussing Obamacare and how they’re going to repeal and replace it. The spoke about the possibility of sticking Planned Parenthood related defunding into the future bill, they spoke about the people who will likely be left without coverage during and after the repeal, and their main concern seemed to be about the fallout they might face during election seasons. “We’re telling those people that we’re not going to pull the rug out from under them, and if we do this too fast, we are in fact going to pull the rug out from under them,” said Rep. Tom MacArthur in the audio. (source)
Despite repeatedly lying to the public, the chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, Rep. Lamar Smith, told the public that we should only trust Trump when dealing with the information we get. “Better to get your news directly from the President. In fact, it might be the only way to get the unvarnished truth.” Lamar Smith is a climate change denier and has used his position to attack climate scientists for years, he’s also supported Breitbart’s anti-climate change articles and was a big Trump supporter during the elections (source)
Anyways I keep seeing sites post only sections of today’s executive order which is called "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States.“ AKA the executive order that will be blocking refugees and suspending visa applications from Muslim majority countries.
“Nobody ever used their tax dollars to help me!” says local man who drives on roads, gets his trash collected, has clean water, sends his kids to school, utilizes the police and fire departments, walks his dog in the park, receives mail, and also possess no sense of self reflection.
Here’s your dose of ‘What the Fuck is Going On’ News (1/26/2017 edition)
During Trump’s first White House interview on Wednesday night he talked about his 3-5 million illegal votes claim. Where he continued to state that this claim that he made up will now be investigated. When questioned about evidence for these claims he said “lots of people are saying they saw things happen. I heard stories also.” And then despite having no evidence he about illegal voting, he said that literally not even one of these 3-5 million illegal votes went towards him. (source)
While talking about the border wall in the same interview, Trump admitted that the American taxpayers will pay for the wall. He says that Mexico will pay us back 100% and we’ll be reimbursed. His comments to those who thought Mexico would pay for the border wall outright? “I never said they’re gonna pay from the start.” Today, Press Secretary Sean Spicer said that Trump is considering a 20% border tax to help pay for the wall. (source) (source)
In the same interview, Trump expressed his surprise that his defense secretary does not believe in torture. He then went on to gloat about the effectiveness of torture (a myth) and when asked if he would keep his promise of bringing “back waterboarding or a hell of a lot worse,” he replied “I would do… I would do.” (source)
In this interview, Trump also commented on those who criticized his comments about taking Iraqi oil. Critics stated that taking Iraqi oil was stealing from civilians, a war crime, and violated international law. Trump called these people “fools,” and still kept his opinion that the U.S should have stolen the oil. (source)
Donald Trump’s senior adviser Steve Bannon told the New York Times that the media should “keep its mouth shut and just listen for awhile.” He then said “The media here is the opposition party.” When asked about the press reacting to Press Secretary Sean Spicer’s blatant lies to the public Bannon responded: “We think that’s a badge of honor. ‘Questioning his integrity’—are you kidding me? The media has zero integrity, zero intelligence, and no hard work.” (source)
The group of scientists who orchestrate the Doomsday Clock have moved the minute hand to 2 ½ minutes until midnight. The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic clock that represents a countdown to possible global catastrophe. This is the closest the clock had been to midnight since 1953, the year after the United States and the Soviet Union conducted competing tests of the hydrogen bomb. This change was made due to “The rise of ‘strident nationalism’ worldwide, Donald Trump’s comments over nuclear weapons, and the disbelief in the scientific consensus over Climate Change by the Trump Administration. (source)
Rep. Liz Cheney (daughter of Dick Cheney) came out in support of Trump’s desire to reinstate torture programs. She claims that the “enhanced interrogation program,” works and helps save lives (a debunked theory) and that when the U.S. used it it was very limited (the CIA torture report says otherwise). And somehow in the same interview she also said “It’s the responsibility of any chief executive, any commander in chief to make sure we use every tool at our disposal…” “We don’t torture, we haven’t tortured.” (Seriously read this whole story.) (source)
Trump’s anti-abortion global gag order is threatening other health services to people around the world. The rule reads: “The United States will no longer contribute to separate non governmental organizations which perform or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations.” The revival of this goes even further under Trump – It requires not only hospitals or clinics to refrain from providing advice or information on the benefits and availability of abortion. It also requires any international organizations supporting those clinics to stop promoting abortion or advocating abortion rights anywhere in the world – even if they use non-American money to do so. Half of this global health aid that is at risk goes towards programs regarding HIV/AIDS and some clinics receive funding from the Planned Parenthood Association, which will now receive massive cuts. And FYI under Reagan and Bush this gag order caused an INCREASE in abortions. (source)
Law professor Roger Fisher suggested that nuclear launch codes be implanted in a volunteer’s heart. The president would be required to personally take the life of an innocent person before taking the lives of hundreds of millions. (Source)
The best part is, these days you can probably take out “Humanities” and just insert whatever your field of study is, particularly if it’s anything to do with earth sciences.
A finance secretary that “forgot” to disclose $100 million. An education secretary that doesn’t understand the basic debates over how to teach our children, thinks the IDEA needs to be looked at and is a matter better left to the states, won’t agree to uphold the 2011 guidance on campus sexual assault, and has zero experience with public education (unless you count trying to take money away from public schools). An energy secretary that thought his job was to represent oil interests. A state secretary who was picked to actually represent American oil interests. An EPA admin who wrote a letter under his AG nameplate that was composed by an energy corp. An HHS secretary that invested in health stocks and then introduced bills that benefited those companies. A senior advisor who is a clear white supremacist. An attorney general who was denied as a federal judge because a republican senate deemed him too racist. A HUD secretary who is Ben Carson. A president who nominated these clowns. And a republican senate that is so wicked, corrupt, and cowardly that every single one of these nominees will be confirmed. An OMB director who “forgot” to pay $15,000 in taxes on his household employees. An agriculture secretary who prayed for rain to end a drought.
A Secretary of Energy who wanted to eliminate the Department of Energy.
A Secretary of State who is so supportive of Russia and Vladimir Putin that he won’t condemn murdering journalists and bombing civilians.
An Environmental Protection Agency Administrator who opposes environmental protection and is a climate-change skeptic.
A Secretary of Health and Human Services who wants to dismantle Medicare.
An Attorney General who
opposes the Voting Rights Act; who will not pursue alleged civil rights violations by police and police departments; who called civil rights groups like the NAACP and ACLU “un-American” and “Communist-inspired”;
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