Msnbc

Obama, Trump, And A Tale Of Two Appearances

... investing the bulk of his time on issuing a warning of his own about the health and vibrancy of American democracy. About 12 hours later, his successor appeared behind a podium – and proceeded to prove that Obama’s fears are well grounded. Obama’s farewell address included a variety of messages and themes, but what Americans saw was a leader who seemed eager to credit his fellow citizens and encourage them to keep moving the country forward. “You were the change. You answered people’s hopes, and because of you, by almost every measure, America is a better, stronger place than it was when we started. […]. “I do have one final ask of you as your president – the same thing I asked when you took a chance on me eight years ago. I’m asking you to believe – not in my ability to bring about change, ...

Trump Denounces 'witch Hunt,' Shortly Before Calling For One

... to 17 U. S. intelligence agencies and a bipartisan consensus on Capitol Hill, those responsible for the crime have been identified. Coming to terms with the facts is not a “witch hunt.”. There is some irony to Trump’s whining, however, because the president-elect appears surprisingly eager to launch a witch hunt of his own. On Thursday night, NBC News reported  that a senior U. S. intelligence official confirmed an important detail about the Russia scandal: intelligence professionals “picked up senior Russian officials celebrating Donald Trump’s win.” The official added, “Highly classified intercepts illustrate Russian government planning and direction of a multifaceted campaign by Moscow to undermine the integrity of the American political system.”. Trump quickly complained about the report on Twitter. On Friday, he kept going , tweeting, “I am asking the chairs of the House and Senate committees to investigate top secret intelligence shared with NBC prior to me seeing it.” Over the weekend, he kept at it, complaining once more, “Before I, or ...

Trump Falsely Takes Credit For New Jobs, Part Vii

... demand, rather than the policies of President-elect Donald Trump. If it seems as if this is becoming a daily occurrence, with Trump celebrating new jobs as if he had something to do with them, you’re not far off. As we discussed last week, the pattern started shortly after Election Day, when Trump proudly announced that Ford, as a result of the president-elect’s awesomeness, had agreed to keep a Lincoln SUV plant in Kentucky. What he neglected to mention was that Ford hadn’t intended to close the Kentucky plant , and it wasn’t long before Trump’s boasts were discredited. Soon after, Trump’s claims about the jobs he saved at Carrier turned out to be untrue. His claims about jobs at Softbank were equally wrong. Trump supporters eagerly credited the president-elect for IBM’s plan to expand its workforce, despite the fact that the company’s hiring announcement was initially made in May. Two weeks ago, Trump made bold claims about new jobs from Sprint – the president-elect credited “what is happening and the spirit and the hope” surrounding his upcoming ...

Trump Gives Key White House Post To Son-in-law

... who’ve taken on a controversial role in their father’s transition team, making the president-elect’s conflict-of-interest problems considerably worse. But when it comes to post-inaugural influence, it’s not just Trump’s adult kids who’ll need scrutiny; it’s also his son-in-law. President-elect Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who emerged as a key figure in the Republican’s successful 2016 campaign, will be named senior adviser to the president, the campaign announced Monday. […]. Kushner was an influential behind the scenes confidant to his father-in-law during last year’s election and has continued to be a leading voice in Trump’s transition to the White House. But a number of legal questions potentially complicate the billionaire real estate developer’s role in the incoming administration. Transition officials insist there’s no controversy here, but there are three main angles to keep an eye on. First, appointing Kushner to this post may not be entirely legal. Anti-nepotism laws have been on the books for decades, limiting a president’s power to appoint his relatives to powerful governmental posts. As a Washington Post report noted, it’s “not completely ...

In Historic Move, Sen. Cory Booker To Testify Against Jeff Sessions

... determined Sessions to be a "consistently fair person" who is committed to upholding the Constitution. Sessions, a former U. S. attorney and attorney general in Alabama, was Trump's earliest supporter in the Senate. Sessions' fierce opposition to illegal immigration and skepticism toward legal immigration aligned with Trump's campaign message. He has been criticized by numerous liberal and civil rights organizations, which cite his strong opposition to expansion of rights for gay and lesbian Americans, legalization of marijuana even for medical use, legal abortion, embryonic stem cell research and President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act. His prepared remarks show he will also acknowledge that he recognizes "the demands for justice and fairness made by the LGBT community" as well as "the lifelong scars born by women who are victims of assault and abuse.". In his statement, Booker singled ...

Fair To Say Hollywood Is Out Of Touch With America

... them as, 'well, you're just Hollywood.' No, they are real Americans as well!". Fallon said people who are anti-Hollywood need "a new script" and that the purpose of award shows is for actors to express their opinions. Fallon added this is the reason why people tune into award shows. "Who is convinced by any of this? That's what I'm wondering" Kornacki said. "I've seen this so many times before. To watch that scene in Hollywood, that room I'm guessing was 99.9% anti-Trump in the election, that might be understating it, that wreaks of self-satisfaction, what's going on in there, political self-satisfaction. Who is convinced, who is persuaded by that message that wasn't already persuaded or already didn't already agree?". "By the same token, Donald Trump's response. Who is going to be swayed, who is going to be ...

A Jobs Record Obama Can And Should Brag About

... The blue columns point to the two Democratic administrations (darker blue for overall job growth, lighter blue for private-sector-only growth), and the red columns point to the two Republican administrations (darker red for overall job growth, lighter red for private-sector-only growth). It’s always tempting at the end of a presidency to compare various administrations’ records, but there’s some important context with Obama’s record: he inherited a global economic crisis unlike anything we’ve seen in the modern era. And yet, the president’s record on job creation – over 15 million jobs created during the last seven years – stacks up quite well, and easily surpasses the totals from recent GOP administrations. The same is true of the unemployment rate. The Washington Post noted the other day that going back to Eisenhower, there have been five Democratic administrations, and the unemployment rate went down during each of their tenures. There have been six Republican administrations over the same period, and the rate went up in five of ...

Feuding With Meryl Streep, Trump Can't Avoid Obvious Falsehoods

... reporter’s disability, as if Meryl Streep and others could read my mind, and I did no such thing.”. Trump made the same points via Twitter this morning, dismissing Streep as “ overrated ,” and again saying he would “ never ” mock someone with disabilities. The president-elect added he simply called out Serge Kovaleski for having “totally changed” a story he wrote. The back and forth has sparked quite a bit of chatter this morning, much of it focused on progressive attitudes among wealthy celebrities in the entertainment industry. (It’s an odd thing for Republicans to complain about: they just elected a billionaire game-show host.). And while the larger societal conversation is interesting, the root problem remains the same: Trump’s lying. As we discussed a few months ago, the factual details are pretty straightforward. During the Republican presidential primaries, Trump campaigned in South Carolina and tried to defend himself after getting caught in a transparent lie: Trump falsely claimed to have seen “thousands” of American Muslims celebrating the night of the 9/11 attacks. As ...