Wednesday, May 20, 2020

RSN: Charles Pierce | This Is About a Whole Lot More Than Who's Walking Mike Pompeo's Dog







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20 May 20



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20 May 20

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Charles Pierce | This Is About a Whole Lot More Than Who's Walking Mike Pompeo's Dog
Mike Pompeo. (photo: OZY)
Charles Pierce, Esquire
Pierce writes: "Trump's firing of the State Department inspector general may be tied to an arms sale to Saudi Arabia."

ast Friday, in what has become the customary weekly defenestration, the administration* dismissed Steve Linick, the State Department’s inspector general. Linick was widely—and correctly—seen as another casualty in Camp Runamuck’s war on oversight. As the weekend ground on, it was reported that the IG had been looking into how Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife had used State Department personnel to perform personal errands, including walking their dog. However, on Monday, the story put on a great deal of weight. From CNN:
The allegation Pompeo declined to cooperate with the investigation came after House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman, Eliot Engel, claimed the State Department inspector general fired by President Donald Trump on Friday, Steve Linick, had nearly completed an investigation into Pompeo's controversial decision to fast-track the same arms sale.

"I have learned that there may be another reason for Mr. Linick's firing. His office was investigating — at my request — Trump's phony declaration of an emergency so he could send weapons to Saudi Arabia. We don't have the full picture yet, but it's troubling that Secretary Pompeo wanted Mr. Linick pushed out before this work could be completed," Engel, a Democrat from New York, said in a statement to CNN Monday.
The story thus morphed from a question about Pompeo’s dog to a question of whether Pompeo was operating as lapdog for the House of Saud. And, in an interview, Pompeo sent the kitty screeching from the burlap. From the Washington Post:
“I went to the president and made clear to him that Inspector General Linick wasn’t performing a function in a way that we had tried to get him to, that was additive for the State Department, very consistent with what the statute says he’s supposed to be doing,” he said. “The kinds of activities he’s supposed to undertake to make us better, to improve us.”
I don’t know Linick, but the only thing anyone can “undertake” to improve these people is to vote against them in November.




Food delivery workers have become essential in New York after the city closed restaurants and bars to the public on 16 March. (photo: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images)
Food delivery workers have become essential in New York after the city closed restaurants and bars to the public on 16 March. (photo: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images)


Strikes Erupt as US Essential Workers Demand Protection Amid Pandemic
Michael Sainato, Guardian UK
Sainato writes: "Wildcat strikes, walkouts and protests over working conditions have erupted across the US throughout the coronavirus pandemic as 'essential' workers have demanded better pay and safer working conditions. Labor leaders are hoping the protests can lead to permanent change."
READ MORE


Coronavirus border restrictions. (photo: Getty Images)
Coronavirus border restrictions. (photo: Getty Images)


Trump Administration Finalizes Indefinite Extension of Coronavirus Border Restrictions
J. Edward Moreno, The Hill
Moreno writes: "The Trump administration finalized a rule that would allow it to extend the coronavirus border restrictions indefinitely."
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Voters masked against coronavirus line up at Riverside High School for Wisconsin's primary election, April 7, 2020, in Milwaukee. (photo: AP)
Voters masked against coronavirus line up at Riverside High School for Wisconsin's primary election, April 7, 2020, in Milwaukee. (photo: AP)


Trump Recruiting 50,000 Polling Site Monitors in Thinly Veiled Attempt to Harass and Intimidate Voters, Activists Warn
Griffin Connolly, The Independent
Connolly writes: "Republicans want to recruit 50,000 volunteers in 15 crucial states to observe polling places on election day this November to ensure there is no suspicious behavior as Americans cast their ballots."
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The Covid-19 crisis shows why we need democratic control over our digital infrastructure. (photo: Getty Images/Andrew Brookes)
The Covid-19 crisis shows why we need democratic control over our digital infrastructure. (photo: Getty Images/Andrew Brookes)


We Should Own the Internet - Not Silicon Valley Oligarchs
Thomas M. Hanna and Isaiah J. Poole, In These Times
Excerpt: "It's time to stop treating high-speed internet as a luxury commodity and instead place it under democratic and public control."
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A protest in Colombia against the killing of social leaders. (photo: InSight Crime)
A protest in Colombia against the killing of social leaders. (photo: InSight Crime)


Colombia: Social Activist Attacks Continue Amid Pandemic
teleSUR
Excerpt: "Colombia's Institute for Development and Peace Studies has announced the murder of three more social leaders inside the country."
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A pedestrian carries plastic shopping bags in New York on March 31, 2019. (photo: Natan Dvir/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
A pedestrian carries plastic shopping bags in New York on March 31, 2019. (photo: Natan Dvir/Bloomberg/Getty Images)


Coronavirus Pandemic Threatens to Undo Progress on Plastic Pollution
Luke Denne, NBC News
Denne writes: "Before the coronavirus pandemic, the plastic bag was in retreat."
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