It’s easy for the casual observer to think otherwise, based on his CV and profile; he has, after all, hosted shows on three networks over 24 year that have attracted an enviable array of writers, thinkers, entertainers, and politicos. And yet, over the course of that lengthy run, he’s shown an unflagging dedication to not only sparking conversations from guests of all political stripes (which is good!), but using those panels to signal-boost “commentators” whose bread and butter is outright hate and ignorance, like Ann Coulter, Dinesh D’Souza, the late Andrew Breitbart, and now Yiannopoulos.
If we’ve seen any evolution over the course of Maher’s television tenure, it’s the degree to which he has himself taken on the smug intolerance of such dubious figures. (There’s not a lot of road separating Maher and Coulter on the topic of Islam, for example.) And as he’s become more of a preening know-it-all, his conversations with the worst of the fringe right have become increasingly troubling searches for common ground. For all his talk of opportunities to “expose” Yiannopoulos on Friday’s Real Time, he approached the Brietbart commentator, in their one-on-one and in the panel discussion after, less like an interviewer and more like a full-service masseuse.
Sure, Maher told Yiannopoulos, “You’re very wrong about certain things” and warned him, “You should get off the Trump Train.” But the bulk of their conversation was a mutual-admiration society, united by their shared distaste for the greatest of all villains, THE P.C. LEFT, whose limitless power these days is flexed in, um, none of the three branches of our government, hmmm. With the slightest bit of research, Maher could have challenged his guest on the performative fraudulence of his current persona (as Upworthy’s Parker Molloy reminded us [ https://twitter.com/ParkerMolloy/status/832984818593984514 ] this weekend, this was a writer who once warned readers that “vile abuse must be stamped out online,” and insisted that “existing hate speech laws are inadequate for the social media era,” before realizing there was more coin in appealing to the base instincts of the worst among us). Instead, he spent time drawing a laughably false equivalence from political commentator Yiannopoulos and professional insult comic Joan Rivers. Cool comparison, Bill! Step into my office, because you’re fucking fired.
Even worse, in the show’s Internet-only “Overtime” segment, Maher not only failed to challenge Yiannopoulos’s skin-crawling transphobia — he basically backed him up on it. When his guest claimed his habit of misgendering and doxxing trans people was borne out of a belief that “women and girls should be protected from having men who are confused about their sexual identities in their bathroom,” Maher shrugged, “That’s not unreasonable.” A+ GOOD JOB, MR. INTERVIEWER. (There is also, in that moment, a telling slip-up, as Yiannopoulos begins to say “Women and children” and corrects himself. We subsequently learned that Mr. Yiannopoulos isn’t all that worried about what young boys are exposed to.) Taking the cue from his sack of rancid dogshit guest, Maher then puts the question to his panel: “Where do you stand on weirdos peeing?” HAHAHAHA OH ALL THE LOLZ.
But being an asshole is one thing — deliberately allowing the spread of misinformation is another. When Yiannopoulos makes the assertion that trans people are “disproportionately involved in those kinds of crimes,” Maher is left sputtering and looking at his cards, unarmed with the facts of the matter: that they are disproportionately involved in sex crimes, as the victims of them [ http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/the-wrap/article/Milo-Yiannopoulos-Fact-Check-Are-Trans-People-10942369.php ]. Yiannopoulos used the phrase “involved in” twice in a row, a deliberate wording choice made to obscure victimhood behind scare language and bullshit. Did Maher call him on it? Of course he fucking didn’t, are you kidding me? Only Larry Wilmore objected to this “controversial statistic,” and proceeded, over the course of the quickly-viral segment, do to what Maher should have been doing the entire time: telling Milo Yiannopoulos to go fuck himself.
Any reasonable person watching that interaction couldn’t be blamed for wondering why Bill Maher has had a show on the air for nearly a quarter-century, while Larry Wilmore’s was cancelled after a year and a half; Maher looks ignorant, helpless, and toothless. (It’s also the second week in a row [ http://www.rollingstone.com/tv/news/bill-maher-jim-jefferies-rip-piers-morgan-over-muslim-ban-w466399 (and see/videos at the end of {linked in} http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=128634939 and preceding and following {earlier this string})] when one of Maher’s panelists has had to do the work of shutting down a schmuck guest for him.) But the entire exchange underscores why Yiannopoulos wasn’t worthy of the spotlight provided by Real Time to begin with. This wasn’t some semi-sensible conservative like Nicolle Wallace or Ana Navarro contributing an altering viewpoint to a political discussion; this was a dangerous liar, using the amplification of a national television broadcast to share a falsehood that could get vulnerable citizens hurt or killed. And Bill Maher chuckled, and called them “weirdos.”
Because he wasn’t there to hold Milo accountable; he was there to rally with him around a common cause. “STOP TAKING THE BAIT, LIBERALS,” he insisted, in their hard-hitting interview. “The fact that they all freaked out about this simple impish British fag — you fucking schoolgirls.” Fag! Schoolgirls! So boomer-straight-white-male edgy! But that’s how this simpleton sees the world, and he eagerly posted [ https://twitter.com/billmaher/status/832866515594522624 ] the “stop taking the bait” line to Twitter after the show aired. And that was all he had to say for nearly 48 hours, as his new boy toy’s world crumbled around him. At no point did Maher use his platform, and the 6.49 million followers it provides him, to comment on the new revelations about Yiannopoulos, or to clarify the falsehoods he let slide on-air. Instead, last night, he tweeted this:
Bill Maher @billmaher Just hope all my friends in Sweden are OK - just heard from the president, that's where the Bowling Green Massacre happened! 9:50 PM - 20 Feb 2017 [ https://twitter.com/billmaher/status/833886703349747712 (with comments)]
In a way, this three-day-old joke that would’ve gotten any respectable comedy writer fired from Jay Leno’s staff was the perfect response, because it exposes Maher for who he is. He’s not an intellectual, nor a provocateur, nor a participant in the issues that are so pressing in our culture at this moment. He’s a comedian – and a shitty, hack comedian at that, with nothing valuable to say. And yet, somehow, he has a weekly television podium from which to shout it.
On this Monday, Feb. 20th 2017 edition of the Alex Jones Show [with appearances by Jerome Corsi and Roger Stone], we'll discuss Trump's ongoing battle against establishment politicians and media outlets. Constitutional lawyer Bruce Fein joins the program to explain the legality of some of Trump's more controversial policies. The Motor City Madman, rock legend Ted Nugent also joins this broadcast to share his thoughts Trump administration's first month and how the left is handling it, and about the potential of Nugent running for office in 2018.
Trump’s Labor nominee oversaw ‘sweetheart plea deal’ in billionaire’s underage sex case Labor secretary nominee Alexander Acosta’s involvement in the saga could be personally or politically awkward for President Donald Trump. 02/16/17 Updated 02/16/17 http://www.politico.com/story/2017/02/alexander-acosta-trump-jeffrey-epstein-plea-235096 [with comments]
Published on Feb 21, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Today, President Trump named the National Security Advisor replacement for Gen Flynn. Meanwhile, Vice-President Pence travelled to Munich on Saturday & Brussels on Monday where he channeled Neville Chamberlain in his attempt to appease the globalists. Despite declaring his undying loyalty to the EU, Pence & Trump were immediately slapped by the EU’s Tusk as representing “brute force, egoism & arrogance”.
[from the February 20, 2017 Infowars Nightly News]
Both the Vice President and the Secretary of Defense, traveling abroad, are trying to walk back or explain some of President Trump's more inflammatory and confusing comments. Duration: 5:23
Robby Mook: Russia can do to GOP what they did to Hillary
All In with Chris Hayes 2/20/17
Amid news of a back channel between Trump associates and pro-Russian politicians in Ukraine, the former Clinton campaign manager calls for an independent commission to investigate any links between Trump world and Russia. Duration: 4:57
Pursuit of shady oligarch a test of DoJ integrity under Trump
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/20/17
Rachel Maddow reports on the murky overlap between Ukrainian oligarch Dmitry Firtash, Vladimir Putin, and the Donald Trump campaign and alerts viewers to watch for whether the Department of Justice under Trump continues to pursue a case against Firtash. Duration: 21:00
New Trump NSA pick, McMaster, known for speaking truth to power
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/20/17
Courtney Kube, NBC News national security producer, talks with Rachel Maddow about the record and reputation of Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, chosen today by Donald Trump to serve in the National Security Adviser position vacated by Mike Flynn. Duration: 5:56
Trump deportation memos show stripping of immigrant protections
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/20/17
Franco Ordoñez, White House correspondent for McClatchy Newspapers, talks with Rachel Maddow about new drafts of Trump administration memos on changes to immigration enforcement. Duration: 7:12
There's a way to remove Donald Trump from office without impeachment. It comes from another section of the Constitution – and the man who controls most of that power is Trump's Vice President: Mike Pence. Duration: 10:53
Trump attacks on the press out of an authoritarian playbook
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 2/20/17
Trump continues to denounce the media as "fake news" – which, as Republican Sen. John McCain says, is how dictatorships start. Lawrence discusses with MTV's Ana Marie Cox and Susan Glasser, who was based in Moscow 2001 to 2004 and co-wrote "Kremlin Rising." Duration: 4:48
Donald Trump calls the media "the enemy of the American people." Lawrence says that really means the media is the enemy of Trump lies – a title Lawrence says he will proudly accept. Duration: 4:15
Reporter to Pence: Should European leaders listen to you or...
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/20/17
Vice Pres. Mike Pence was part of a team the White House sent to speak with European leaders, and Pence was press on seemingly conflicting messages from Trump and others in his administration. Duration: 3:21
What we know about Trump's Natl. Security Adviser Gen. McMaster
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/20/17
MSNBC Military Analyst Gen. Barry McCaffrey has known Pres. Trump's new National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster for years. He shares what he knows about the new member of Team Trump. Duration: 5:18
One month in, the Trump presidency has been anything but usual
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/20/17
Donald Trump is now one month in to his presidency, and so far it's been a roller coaster ride. MSNBC's Brian Williams takes a look back day by day of month one. Duration: 3:29
Full Show - Google Partner Bans Conservative Advertising - 02/21/2017
Published on Feb 21, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
On the Tuesday, Feb. 21st 2017 transmission of the Alex Jones Show, we break down the controversy surrounding Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopolous, continue looking at the migrant crisis raping its way through Europe, and examine how congressional Republicans are throwing wrenches in Trump's agenda. On today's show, Alex Jones talks with former Congressman Curt Weldon and investigative journalist Jerome Corsi about the Clinton's and the former Congressman goes all out revealing just how much dirt he has on the Clinton crime family. And former CIA operative Robert David Steele reveals the inside baseball on the deep state going after Trump. Also, author and activist Mike Cernovich breaks down the globalist coup within Trump's administration. And investigative journalist Tim Pool joins the program to discuss his future trip to Sweden.
After Emanuel shooting, Dylann Roof stopped at another AME church in Jedburg A list of churches was found in Dylann Roof's car after he was arrested in North Carolina following the shooting at Emanuel AME Church. New documents show he stopped at a second AME church shortly after killing nine people at Emanuel on June 17, 2015. February 21st 2017 [...] The pastor at Branch AME told the Associated Press on Wednesday that he was shocked to hear his church may have also been targeted by Roof. But, he said no one was at the church that night, fortunately. The Rev. Rufus Berry said he canceled a Bible study scheduled for the Branch AME Church in Jedburg on the evening of June 17, 2015 because he was late getting off from his regular job. [...] http://abcnews4.com/news/emanuel-ame-shooting/after-emanuel-shooting-dylann-roof-stopped-at-another-ame-church-in-jedburg
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Why Google Wants To Censor The Internet - Revealed
Published on Feb 21, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Published on Feb 22, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
90 Independent cinemas in the US to show 1984 as a Trump protest.
Leading US locations Alamo Drafthouse, IFC Center, and Film Society of Lincoln Center - will screen the film on 4 April.
The move is surely going to wake up the next generation to the reality that Trump is the enemy of Ingsoc, which is why they've gone into overdrive trying to destroy him and the movement that elected him.
[from the February 21, 2017 Infowars Nightly News]
Rep. Maxine Waters: Trump advisors with Russia ties are ‘scumbags’
All In with Chris Hayes 2/21/17
The Democratic congresswoman from California calls the president’s friends and advisors with ties to Russia and oil and gas interests ‘a bunch of scumbags.’ Duration: 2:57
Democratic recruiters see new zeal for public service in office
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/21/17
Rachel Maddow reports on the surge in enthusiasm that Democratic Party officials are seeing while recruiting new candidates for local legislative office, and the energized crowds that members of Congress are encountering in their home districts. Duration: 23:33
CIA analyst quits over Trump disregard for intelligence
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/21/17
Edward Price, former CIA analyst and NSC spokesman, talks with Rachel Maddow about how his dismay and alarm at the conduct of the Trump administration led him to quit a job he thought he'd never leave. Duration: 7:31
FEC commissioner resigns citing 'dysfunction and deadlock'
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/21/17
Ann Ravel, former FEC commissioner, talks with Rachel Maddow about why her frustration with the lack of action by the Federal Election Commission led her resign to find a better way to serve the public. Duration: 7:46
The same day red-state GOP lawmakers were screamed at about Trump's agenda, Trump denounced anti-Semitism at DC's African American History Museum. Steven Goldstein, Exec. Dir. of the Anne Frank Center, says words don't make up for actions. David Corn also ... more Duration: 10:55
Conservative commentator George F. Will left Fox News and the Republican Party over his views of Trump – who he has called a "political sociopath" (and much more). Will joins Lawrence O'Donnell to discuss why intellectual conservatism and Trumpism are incompatible. Duration: 10:54
Some psychologists and psychiatrists are speaking out about Trump because of a duty to warn. Lawrence talks to two experts with this view: Dr. Lance Dodes and Dr. John Gartner, whose online petition of mental health professionals has more than 26,000 signatures. Duration: 6:26
The SCOTUS case testing Trump's national security powers
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 2/21/17
The Trump Administration will be closely watching a Supreme Court case that may be a test U.S.-Mexico relations, as well as Trump's national security power. MSNBC's Ari Melber discusses with immigration lawyer David Leopold and political commentator Ana Marie Cox. Duration: 6:14
After days of questions, Trump denounces anti-Semitism
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/21/17
For some critics of the Trump White House, the President's comments denouncing anti-Semitism were too little too late. MSNBC's Brian Williams speaks to his panel of political experts. Duration: 9:45
'Panic, fear, & terror' over Trump changes to immigration policy
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/21/17
The Dept. of Homeland Security has outlined changes to immigration policy. MSNBC's Brian Williams talks to immigration reporter Alan Gomez of USA Today to get the sober facts. Duration: 2:25
Voters shout down Republican lawmakers at town hall
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/21/17
Don't call it a vacation! On a break and back in their districts, GOP lawmakers are facing down furious voters. MSNBC's Brian Williams talks to Charlie Sykes. Duration: 4:58
Trump's disapproval rating keeps creeping up Despite President Donald Trump’s critical review of the press, which he repeatedly assails as “dishonest” and calls “fake news,” voters trust the media more than Trump. 02/22/17 A majority of voters disapprove of Donald Trump’s handling of the presidency, according to a Quinnipiac University poll [ https://poll.qu.edu/images/polling/us/us02222017_Urj52hkb.pdf/ ] released Wednesday. Less than five weeks into his presidency, Trump has an approval rating of 38 percent and a disapproval rating of 55 percent. [...] http://www.politico.com/story/2017/02/trump-disapproval-rating-235270 [with comments]
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Full Show - Infowars Under Attack: Defense Of Liberty 13 Hour Broadcast - 02/22/2017
Published on Feb 22, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
On this unprecedented Wednesday, Feb. 22 edition of the Alex Jones Show [with appearances by Roger Stone and Steve Pieczenik], we are broadcasting for 13 hours straight to underscore the war against free speech in America as the establishment attempts to curtail independent thought. Scott Greer of the Daily Caller explains how college campuses are turning Orwellian. Jordan Maxwell explains the false reality that we're living in, and at 8pm we present the Alex Jones AMA on Reddit. We also look into the destruction of the mainstream media as a series of upcoming sting videos reveal how CNN intentionally lies to its audience to control public opinion. MSNBC's Brzezinski even had the audacity to claim the media's job is to control "exactly what people think."
Avoiding questions about Trump’s mental health is a betrayal of public trust
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump walks off stage after speaking at a campaign event at St. Norbert College in Wisconsin, Wednesday, March 30, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
By Lee Siegel February 22, 2017
Just about every week, the media invites a psychiatrist or psychologist to admonish other psychiatrists or psychologists for calling Donald Trump mentally ill. This has become the default recourse when it comes to the question of Trump’s mental health for a media relentlessly accused of being partisan, “fake,” and deliberately dishonest.
But leaving the question of Trump’s mental condition to a group of professionals is an avoidance strategy that is becoming more transparently irresponsible by the day.
Since Trump declared his intention to run for president, there has been speculation on his mental state. Terms like “narcissistic personality disorder” and “borderline personality” began to appear more and more frequently in references to him, both in the press, and in the words of his opponents and their proxies.
For journalists, the conflict over how and whether to address the issue is growing with every one of Trump’s outbursts. At what point do the news pages (in addition to the opinion pages) weigh in? Is there a danger of trivializing mental-health issues through armchair commentary? Is this even a useful storyline, given that the president’s true mental state is essentially unknowable to any outsider, not least reporters?
The journalistic conflict came to a head about a week ago with the publication, on two consecutive days, of two letters in The New York Times. The first [ https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/13/opinion/mental-health-professionals-warn-about-trump.html ], written by two psychiatrists and signed by, as the Times stated, “33 other psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers,” began by attributing the “silence from the country’s mental health organizations”—and by implication, the media where these organizations could make themselves heard—to the “American Psychiatric Association’s 1973 Goldwater rule,” an edict that must have been as obscure to other readers as it was to me. This rule, the letter explained, prohibited the psychological evaluation of public figures.
The decree came in response to a survey published during the presidential election in 1964 by Fact, a muckraking magazine published by Ralph Ginzburg, known for his legendary run-ins with the Supreme Court over the issue of obscenity. Fact asked 12,356 psychiatrists if they believed Senator Goldwater was “psychologically fit” to be president. Of the 2,417 people who responded, 1,189 said that they believed Goldwater was not. Goldwater successfully sued Ginzburg on defamation charges, the suit eventually reaching the Supreme Court, which refused to overturn the lower court’s decision.
Alarmed by the incident, the APA concluded that such speculation about a politician’s mental health by mental health professionals who had not examined him or her was “irresponsible, potentially stigmatizing, and definitely unethical.” The APA then published the Goldwater Rule as an annotation in a book called the “Principles of Medical Ethics with Annotations Especially Applicable to Psychiatry.” The organization feared that such speculation would make the public lose faith in the profession. The authors and signatories of the letter that appeared in the Times disagreed. They argued that “too much is at stake to be silent any longer.”
Frances explained that he “wrote the criteria that define narcissistic personality disorder,” the condition some mental health professionals, and journalists, have said they believe Trump suffers from. But, Frances asserts, Trump does not meet those criteria “because he does not suffer from the distress and impairment required to diagnose mental disorder.” He goes on to argue that:
Mr. Trump causes severe distress rather than experiencing it and has been richly rewarded, rather than punished, for his grandiosity, self-absorption and lack of empathy. It is a stigmatizing insult to the mentally ill (who are mostly well behaved and well meaning) to be lumped with Mr. Trump (who is neither).
Frances concludes his argument that no mental health professional who has not examined Trump should be allowed to publicly say what he thinks Trump’s psychological motivations might be by declaring that Trump’s “psychological motivations are too obvious to be interesting.” A few days later, a Times writer on mental health issues, Richard Friedman, concurred, also citing the Goldwater rule and adding his own new wrinkle: judging Trump mentally ill would let him “off the moral hook.”
***
Six and a half years ago, the Times entered this morass, in a Sunday Review piece [ http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/07/opinion/sunday/what-happened-to-obamas-passion.html ] speculating about the mental state of former president Obama. Drew Westen, a professor of psychology at Emory University, wrote about what he saw as Obama’s passivity, a trait that progressives and some liberals had loudly complained about. Calling it a “character defect,” Westen speculated that Obama suffered from a “deep-seated aversion to conflict,” was caught in a “pattern of presenting inconsistent positions with no apparent recognition of their incoherence,” and displayed “tic-like gestures of compromise.” He finished his essay by stating that Obama did not “know who he is and what he believes in.”
There was indeed an outcry against Westen for presuming to speculate about Obama’s state of mind—though Westen hid the term “psychology” in the folds of the word “character.” It is quaint now, almost surreal, to think of Obama as mentally unfit to be president. But at the time, Westen’s essay, for all the anger and indignation it provoked in some quarters, was accepted as part of the legitimate democratic discourse about a president’s state of mind and motives.
***
It was the sociologist Christopher Lasch who made the term and the clinical condition “narcissism” famous when he published his bestselling 1979 book, The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations. Lasch argued that a host of economic factors, especially rampant consumerism, had converged to make people self-obsessed and self-loathing, hyper-competitive and afraid of competition, cut off from reality, erratic, unempathetic, angry, vindictive. Recent arguments that the stock market’s unprecedented gains are proof of the business community’s faith in Trump, and therefore evidence of his mental fitness, would have made Lasch smile.
There are plenty of flaws in Lasch’s jeremiad, as there are in any set of sweeping generalizations about a society. But many of Lasch’s perceptions could just as well have been written yesterday. As a result of people disappearing into their own psyches, radically estranged from other people and from social norms, “truth has given way to credibility, facts to statements that sound authoritative without conveying any authoritative information.” Rival commercial claims for a product have the general effect of “[blurring] the distinction between truth and falsehood in a fog of plausibility.” (To drive home his point, Lasch cites the example of Nixon’s press secretary, Ron Ziegler, who at one point “admitted that his previous statements on Watergate had become ‘inoperative.'”)
Lasch’s most prescient insights are about individual character. The narcissistic personality, Lasch wrote, will “display… the prevailing obsession with celebrity and a determination to achieve it even at the cost of rational self-interest and personal safety. The narcissist divides society into two groups: the rich, great, and famous on the one hand, and the common herd on the other. … [Narcissists] worship heroes only to turn against them when their heroes disappoint them. … The narcissist admires and identifies himself with ‘winners’ out of his fear of being labeled a loser. … his admiration often turns to hatred if the object of his attachment does something to remind him of his own insignificance.” Lasch did not allow himself to get lost in pondering the question of whether narcissistic personality disorder should be considered mental illness. For Lasch, a person possessing such traits was able to function on various levels of practical endeavor, but unable to function as a rational or trustworthy member of society; that is to say, as a human being capable of kindness, empathy and attentiveness to others people’s reality. And Lasch was not even talking about presidents.
***
Up to now, Trump’s behavior has been analyzed as political inexperience, everyday insecurity, lack of attention span, calculated disruption, autocratic eruptions—even relished as a type of diversion that can be satirized by comedians. Whenever the question of his mental fitness is explicitly raised, the professionals are brought in to declare the issue unethical.
The most frequent argument is that calling Trump mentally ill, and deriving from that judgment the conclusion that he is therefore unfit to serve in the White House, will stigmatize mentally ill people. Yet every sane person knows that there are as many varieties of mental illness as there are varieties of what passes for mental health—and that sometimes the line between the two is blurry, arbitrary, or downright illusory. And who among us is so certain of his or her own sanity not to doubt it from time to time?
As cavalier as this may sound, mental illness does not need to be professionally diagnosed. We don’t need to be told by a doctor that the guy who is coughing and sneezing at the other end of the train car is probably sick, though we don’t know if it is a cold, the flu, bronchitis, pneumonia, or an allergy. All we know is that the safe thing to do is to stay away from him. When someone is compulsively lying, continuously contradicting himself, imploring the approval of people even as he is attacking them, exalting people one day and abusing and vilifying them the next, then the question of his mental state is moot. The safe thing to do is not just to stay away from him, but to keep him away from situations where he can do harm.
In a different set of circumstances, it would be better for the press to ignore the question of a president’s mental fitness altogether. But this is not a normal set of circumstances. There is not necessarily, to use what has become an obnoxious buzz phrase, a “new normal.” There is either a shift from what we are used to that occurs within the boundaries of what is rationally and morally acceptable, or there is a shift from what we are used to that occurs outside those boundaries. We are now in the latter situation. It is new, but it is anything but normal.
If you watched Trump’s news conference last Thursday and thought, “This is Trump talking” then you would not have been sensitive to the profound transformation in the country that has occurred beneath all the distracting upheavals. But if you watched from a distance, as it were, thinking, “This is the American president talking,” then you would have been alarmed in a new kind of way.
Psychiatrists can and should argue about whether they should speculate publicly about Trump’s mental state. But it would be a mistake to marginalize that issue by specializing it and leaving it to the psychiatrists. The mental condition of the president of the United States is as legitimate a subject of journalistic concern as it is of everyday conversation.
No journalist or editor needs to be told that there is both cause and justification for addressing the question of Trump’s mental condition. Everyone knows that, if the question were addressed in a systematic way, it would have to be done in the kind of detached, objective, rational manner that would give it credibility. Especially in the current moment, when Trump has turned the press into an automatic scapegoat for his own missteps, the media would have to be very careful how it raised the subject.
Op-eds questioning Trump’s sanity would have to be counterbalanced by op-eds asserting his sanity; reporters recording doubts about Trump’s sanity among ordinary people as well as politicians and former statesmen would have to present opposing opinions; editorials concluding that he is mentally unfit to be president would have to acknowledge the arguments against and the perils of saying so, and the possible ensuing consequences.
The manner in which the question of Trump’s mental health has to be handled once it is raised is obvious, of course. The more contentious question has been whether to raise it, and to keep raising it. At this point, not to do so, especially for journalists, is a betrayal of the public trust, a denial of human nature, and an insult to posterity.
Lee Siegel is the author of five books and the recipient of a National Magazine Award for Reviews and Criticism. His forthcoming book, The Draw: A Memoir, will be published in April.
As SEALs Fought For Their Lives, Trump’s Account Sent And Deleted A TV Tweet The president[, who was at the White House,] was not in the Situation Room that evening. But his Twitter account, at least, was active. President Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka board Marine One at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 1, 2017. 02/22/2017 Updated February 23, 2017 WASHINGTON - As a team of elite U.S. commandos found themselves under unexpectedly heavy fire in a remote Yemeni village last month, eight time zones away, their commander in chief was not in the Situation Room. It’s unclear what he, personally, was doing. But his Twitter account was busy promoting an upcoming appearance on the Christian Broadcasting Network. “I will be interviewed by @TheBrodyFile on @CBNNews tonight at 11pm. Enjoy!” read a tweet from President Donald Trump [ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/topic/donald-trump ]’s personal account [ https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump ] on Saturday, Jan. 28. Whether it was Trump himself or an aide who sent out that tweet at 5:50 p.m. [ http://www.trumptwitterarchive.com/#/archive ] - about half an hour into a firefight that cost a Navy SEAL his life - cannot be determined from the actual tweets, and the White House isn’t saying. Likewise, it’s not clear who deleted the tweet some 20 minutes later, or why the new president, just a week on the job, chose not to directly monitor the first high-risk military operation on his watch. [...] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-yemen-raid-twitter_us_58ae0acbe4b057efdce8c07c [with embedded video]
Chief digital officer steps down from White House job over background check
Getty
By Tara Palmeri and Daniel Lippman 02/22/17 02:16 PM EST
White House Chief Digital Officer Gerrit Lansing was among the six staffers who were dismissed from the White House last week after being unable to pass an FBI background check, according to sources.
A source close to Lansing said the issue with the background check was over investments.
Lansing previously led the digital department for the Republican National Committee.
The background check, security questionnaire SF86, must be completed by White House staffers for positions that cover national security.
President Donald Trump's director of scheduling, Caroline Wiles, was also among the six staffers who did not pass the intensive FBI screening. She is the daughter of Susan Wiles, Trump’s Florida campaign director. Caroline Wiles resigned Friday before the background check was completed.
She was appointed deputy assistant secretary before the inauguration in January. Two sources close to Wiles said she will get another job in the Treasury Department.
Lansing left Feb. 9; his official file says he left on his accord.
The intensive background check includes questions on the applicant's credit score, substance use and other personal subjects.
Trump: Budget proposal will focus on spending cuts It's one of three major upcoming legislative proposals Trump is aiming to release his budget blueprint by mid-March February 22, 2017 Updated February 22, 2017 http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/22/politics/white-house-budget-donald-trump/ [with embedded videos]
Mexico slams US immigration plan as Tillerson arrives Tensions in US-Mexico relations are at a high not seen in decades Trump has railed against Mexico and NAFTA February 22, 2017 Updated February 22, 2017 http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/22/politics/tillerson-kelly-trip-to-mexico/ [with embedded video]
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Mexico will not accept Trump's immigration plans, says foreign minister As US envoys visit Mexico City for talks, Luis Videgaray says his government will use the UN to defend migrants from deportation Mexico’s foreign minister, Luis Videgaray, leaves the US Department of State after a meeting on 8 February in Washington. 22 February 2017 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/feb/22/mexico-trump-immigration-foreign-minister-luis-videgaray [with embedded video]
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Mexicans weigh the daunting prospect of deportee camps Wilfredo Mendoza, of Boston, left, and Christina Villafranca, of Malden, Mass., right, displays a placards during a rally called "We Will Persist," Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017, in Boston. According to organizers the rally was held to send a message to Republicans in Congress and the administration of President Donald Trump that they will continue to press for immigration rights and continued affordable healthcare coverage. Feb. 22, 2017 http://bigstory.ap.org/article/e5b367d3be2d404d9d22316047a6d735/mexicans-weigh-daunting-prospect-deportee-camps
Activist and Academy Award winning filmmaker Michael Moore joins Chris Hayes to talk about his ten point plan on how to stop Donald Trump. Duration: 11:18
Montana GOP chair warns too much voter turnout favors Democrats
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/22/17
Rachel Maddow reports on a special election in Montana to happen in the likely event that Rep. Ryan Zinke becomes Donald Trump's Interior Secretary, and the expressed concerns by the state Republican Party chairman that easier voting favors Democratic candidates. Duration: 19:03
GOP balks at cheaper way to reach more voters in Montana
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/22/17
Montana Governor Steve Bullock talks with Rachel Maddow about how a common sense solution to conducting a less-expensive statewide election turned into a partisan issue when the state Republican Party decided more voting is bad for them. Duration: 5:32
Texas sheriff rejects immigration enforcement role
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/22/17
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez of Harris County, Texas, talks with Rachel Maddow about how asking his police officers to be immigration enforcers strains both department resources and the trust of the community. Duration: 8:57
The Rachel Maddow Show [from the "Trump: The First Month" special which followed Rachel's show] 2/22/17
Rachel Maddow, Chris Matthews and Brian Williams discuss the newly energized town hall meetings across the United States and what they mean in the broader context of U.S. politics. Duration: 7:14
One month in, Russia factor looms over Trump White House
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams [from the "Trump: The First Month" special] 2/22/17
MSNBC's Rachel Maddow speaks to a team of national security experts [including Malcolm Nance] about the allegations of ties to Russia that still loom large for Pres. Donald Trump. Duration: 10:05
Thomas Friedman: Trump comments have been 'very worrisome'
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams [from the "Trump: The First Month" special] 2/22/17
After a month of the Trump presidency, New York Times columnist Thomas Friend joins MSNBC's Brian Williams and Chris Matthews to talk about the mixed messages coming from the White House. Duration: 7:43
Fmr. CIA boss Panetta: I worry about 'chaotic' Trump presidency
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams [from the "Trump: The First Month" special] 2/22/17
In our special coverage, Trump: The First Month, MSNBC's Brian Williams speaks with former CIA Director and fmr. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta about the Trump presidency. Duration: 6:20
What do town hall protests mean for Trump presidency?
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams [from the "Trump: The First Month" special] 2/22/17
MSNBC's Rachel Maddow, Brian Williams, and Chris Matthews speak to Ezra Levin, co-author of 'Indivisible Guide' about how opponents of Trump may look to obstruction as a tactic. Duration: 9:10
Poll: More Americans Trust The Media Than Donald Trump President Donald Trump takes questions from reporters during a news conference on February 16, 2017. Feb 23, 2017 Despite President Donald Trump’s relentless attacks on the “fake news” media, a new poll [ http://money.cnn.com/2017/02/22/media/trump-media-trust-quinnipiac/ ] from Quinnipiac University finds that more Americans trust the media than Donald Trump. A majority of Americans, 52%, said they trust the news media over Donald Trump to tell the truth about important issues. Only 37% said they trusted Trump more. "The media, so demonized by the Trump Administration, is actually a good deal more popular than President Trump," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll. [...] https://www.forbes.com/sites/brettedkins/2017/02/23/poll-finds-that-more-americans-trust-the-media-than-donald-trump/
Federal agents in Texas move hospitalized Salvadoran woman awaiting emergency surgery to a detention facility The Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, is seen in this Sept. 15, 2016, photo. February 23, 2017 A critically ill woman from El Salvador who was awaiting emergency surgery for a brain tumor was forcibly moved from a Texas hospital to a detention center by federal agents, raising concerns about President Trump [ http://www.latimes.com/projects/la-na-all-things-trump ]’s directive to more aggressively pursue people living in the country illegally. Sara Beltran-Hernandez, 26, a mother of two young children, was bound by her hands and feet and removed by wheelchair from Huguley Hospital in Fort Worth late Wednesday by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who brought her to a detention facility in Alvarado, Texas. [...] http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-hospital-seizure-20170223-story.html [with comments]
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Alt-right leader expelled from CPAC after organizer denounces ‘left-wing fascist group’
By David Weigel and John Wagner February 23, 2017
Richard Spencer, a founder of the alt-right movement that seeks a whites-only state and that strongly backed Donald Trump for president, was expelled from the Conservative Political Action Conference after being criticized from its main stage, then giving interviews to a growing crowd of reporters.
“People want to talk to me,” Spencer told NBC News from outside the Gaylord National Harbor complex. “They don’t want to talk to these boring conservatives. They want to learn about ideas whose time has come, not whose time has passed.”
Spencer, who has frequently attended CPAC without incident, became a minor media sensation during and after the 2016 election. One of the first speeches at this year’s conference challenged the media to stop referring to the alt-right as conservative.
“There is a sinister organization that is trying to worm its way into our ranks,” said Dan Schneider, the executive director of the American Conservative Union, which runs CPAC. “We must not be deceived by [a] hateful, left-wing fascist group.”
Over a few confusing minutes, Schneider argued that the alt-right was philosophically left-wing because it departed from his definition of conservatism, in which “the individual” is sovereign.
“They hate the Constitution. They hate free markets. They hate pluralism,” Schneider said. “Fascists tend to want big government control.”
The argument wasn’t unique — in “Liberal Fascism [ https://www.amazon.com/Liberal-Fascism-American-Mussolini-Politics/dp/0767917189 ],” the National Review columnist Jonah Goldberg drew a zigging line from the fascism of the 1930s to the welfare state liberalism of the Clinton/Obama era. But it made little impact in the conference’s main ballroom, and a few listeners walked out.
One of the walkouts came from Spencer himself, who attracted such a large crowd of reporters that security staff asked him to move away from the entrance, which was rapidly being blocked. More and more cameras and recorders were shoved toward Spencer as he reminded reporters that the self-appointed guardians of conservatism had trusted Trump long after the alt-right had.
“’Donald Trump isn’t a conservative’ — that’s what they were saying a year ago,” said Spencer.
As the throng of reporters moved, Spencer was stopped by JP Sheehan, a CPAC attendee wearing a black-and-gold Make America Great Again baseball cap.
“Praise kek!” said Sheehan, posing for a selfie with Spencer and repeating a meme that had been adopted by the alt-right. “He’s the coolest guy.”
The growing crowd attracted more nervous attention from security, and after a few more minutes, they arrived to expel Spencer.
“I’m not welcome on the property?” Spencer asked.
“I’m not going to debate this,” said the guard. “This is private property. They want you off the property.”
After Spencer asked if he could stay if he would simply “stay out of trouble,” he said a hashtag — “Free Spencer” — into the cameras, and posed for another photo as he was taken outside.
Spencer, who became somewhat infamous after leading a cry of “hail Trump, hail victory, hail our people” at an NPI conference, was gone. But nationalist themes remained in the mix all day. When White House strategist Stephen K. Bannon took the stage, he joked that Breitbart News, where he had been CEO, used to hold forums with controversial speakers, under the title “The Uninvited.”
“Everybody’s a part of our conservative family,” said the ACU’s president, Matt Schlapp.
It's no secret that Stephen K. Bannon, the past chairman of Breitbart News and now a senior strategist to the president, is behind much of Trump's anti-media rhetoric. The idea of the media as the “opposition party” or the “enemy" — two phrases Trump has used of late to describe those who cover him — is pure Bannon.
So, there was no reason to think that Bannon was going to be anything but confrontational with the media during a joint appearance with Trump White House chief of staff Reince Priebus at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference on Thursday afternoon.
But, even by Bannon's standards, he seemed to ramp up his attacks on the media and offer a very clear message to political journalists: You think this is bad? Just wait.
“It's going to get worse every day for the media,” Bannon said, insisting that the “corporatist” media would continue to see Trump pursue exactly the sort of economic nationalism that journalism allegedly despises. Then he added this call to arms: “If you think they are giving you your country back without a fight, you are sadly mistaken.”
The message from Bannon was unmistakable: The enemy of Donald Trump and those who think like him is not, really, Democrats but, in actuality, the media. And the only way to combat the media is to fight like hell against them on everything and anything.
As I've noted before, presidents (and their staffs) always have an adversarial relationship with the press. The administration insists the press isn't telling the story of the White House right. The press complains about a lack of access to the key players in the White House. It's been that way for as long as I can remember.
But what Bannon and, by extension, Trump are up to is something very different than simply an adversarial working relationship with the media. Bannon doesn't want to change the media. He wants to totally dismantle the media. He wants to break its back and leave it for dead by the side of the road. And he's not afraid of telling the media to their faces about that plan.
That was the message Bannon wanted to get across at CPAC. That Trump — and he — would never back down. That the perceived scorn of the so-called “mainstream media” only made him more convinced that the course Trump is taking is right. And that things are going to get plenty worse for the media over the next four years.
It's a remarkable declaration of all-out war on the media from one of the most powerful people in the Trump White House.
Full Show - The War Against The Fake-Stream Media Begins - 02/23/2017
Published on Feb 23, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
On this Thursday, Feb. 23 edition of the Alex Jones Show [with Jon Rappoport guest-hosting the fourth hour], we will begin with a rebroadcast of last night's Reddit AMA with Alex. On today's broadcast constitutional lawyer Bruce Fein will be discussing how Trump should deal with the military-industrial-complex. Also, former U.S. Army intelligence officer and survivalist author James Wesley Rawles will explain how Micro SD cards can be used to clandestinely transmit messages and photos. We'll cover the Veritas Project's CNN leaks, the ongoing fight against illegal immigration and much more.
Bannon: Trump’s war with press ‘going to get worse’
Hardball with Chris Matthews 2/23/17
Kasie Hunt joins Chris to discuss Reince Priebus and Steve Bannon’s joint appearance at CPAC and their controversial remarks about Trump’s relationship with the press. Duration: 7:53
Report: Priebus asked FBI to refute Russia stories
All In with Chris Hayes 2/23/17
Former Justice Department Spokesperson Matt Miller says White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus “has to go” if the report is true that he asked the FBI to knock down stories about communications between Trump and Russia. Duration: 7:11
Rumana Ahmed quit her job as a senior adviser at the National Security Council just eight days after Donald Trump took the oath of office. Duration: 6:13
As constituents around the country continue to confront lawmakers, the effort to repeal Obamacare is going in the wrong direction for the GOP. Duration: 4:41
Maddow: Is the Trump administration stupid or nefarious?
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/23/17
Rachel Maddow reviews a litany of mistakes and infractions committed in the opening month of the Trump administration and wonders if they're a sign of malice or just incompetence. Duration: 21:01
Trump indifference to responsibility reckless, dangerous
The Rachel Maddow Show 2/23/17
Colin Kahl, former national security adviser to Vice President Biden, talks with Rachel Maddow about the uncomfortable mix of incompetence and malice at play within the Donald Trump administration. Duration: 9:03
Rachel Maddow looks at new reporting into newly confirmed EPA chief Scott Pruitt's e-mails as Oklahoma AG that includes not only a close look at his ties to the oil and gas industry but also his role in a horrifically botched execution. Duration: 7:39
Lawrence explains why Donald Trump's Chief Strategist, Steve Bannon, proved he's the real power center of the Trump White House with his appearance at CPAC. Lawrence discusses the Bannon vision with David Corn and Christopher Dickey. Duration: 16:22
As psychologists and psychiatrists continue to warn about President Trump's mental health, the Columbia Journalism Review called Trump's mental health "the elephant in the room. Lee Siegel, who wrote the CJR column, and Dr. Lance Dodes join Lawrence. Duration: 7:04
Bannon & Priebus take Trump's 'new political order' to CPAC
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/23/17
MSNBC's Brian Williams and his panel of experts discuss the day's biggest headlines including the vision of America laid out by Steve Bannon and Reince Priebus during their CPAC appearance. Duration: 9:36
VP Pence: Activists at town halls won't stop Obamacare repeal
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/23/17
Reacting to the scenes of anger from constituents at town halls across the country, Vice Pres. Mike Pence says they won't stop the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Duration: 4:42
What will Trump say at CPAC? Let's look at his past appearances
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 2/23/17
Not since Reagan has a first term Republican president been to CPAC. On Friday, Donald Trump will change that. We preview his speech with a look back at his past CPAC appearances. Duration: 1:54
'Real News Tonight': A Reliable Source For News Trump Will Like
Published on Feb 24, 2017 by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
After learning that staffers allegedly planted flattering news stories to stave off Trump Twitter tirades, Stephen offers to help out. (Thursday monologue pt. 2)
Advice For Avoiding Campaign Scandals: Get It Out There
Published on Feb 24, 2017 by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
In his effort to get out ahead of any embarrassing campaign revelations, Arizona senatorial candidate Noah Dyer opted for an epic overshare. (Thursday monologue pt. 3)
Republicans Face Town Hall Protests, Trump Golfs: A Closer Look
Published on Feb 23, 2017 by Late Night with Seth Meyers
Seth takes a closer look at Republican members of Congress facing constituents in their home districts that are angry about Trump and the GOP's agenda.
Trump ordered the report after the ban was blocked by the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals.
The findings of his own internal report refute the hollow national security excuses he’s tried to pass off as justifications for discriminating against Muslims:
The three-page report challenges Trump’s core claims. It said that of 82 people the government determined were inspired by a foreign terrorist group to carry out or try to carry out an attack in the United States, just over half were U.S. citizens born in the United States. The others were from 26 countries, led by Pakistan, Somalia, Bangladesh, Cuba, Ethiopia, Iraq and Uzbekistan. Of these, only Somalia and Iraq were among the seven nations included in the ban.
The report also found that terrorist organizations in Iran, Libya, Somalia and Sudan are regionally focused, while groups in Iraq, Syria and Yemen do pose a threat to the U.S.
Critics argued from day one that no terrorist attack carried out on US soil has ever originated from one of the seven countries Trump included in his travel ban order, yet countries such as Saudi Arabia, which was home to 15 of the 19 hijackers of the September 11 attacks on the US, were not listed.
Not surprisingly, Trump has a handful of business dealings in Saudi Arabia that would keep them off the list for his own personal gain, proving that the ban is not about keeping America safe and is only being used to discriminate against Muslims.
Even with this evidence, President Trump has vowed to issue a revised executive order that will focus on the same seven counties listed in the DHS report.
“We are going to keep radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country,” Trump said during his speech at the Conservative Political Action Committee on Friday.
What Trump didn’t mention was by allowing Muslims to enter from those countries, he would accomplish the same thing. What the president meant to say was that he would keep Muslims out of the country.
So the the quality of thought and planning which went into the Muslim ban which - was it the one? - that Trump got so angry about, because it hadn't been explained to him .. hey, f*that .. just give to to me and get the camera so i can do my cranky Ernest Borgnine look even though Borgnine on the island was mostly smiling.