Category: Policies

Trump Questions Need For NATO

Donald Trump said the U.S. should rethink its involvement in NATO because the defense alliance costs too much money.

In remarks to CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Trump said the U.S. pays a disproportionate amount to NATO to ensure the security of allies.

“Frankly, they have to put up more money,” he said. “We are paying disproportionately. It’s too much, and frankly it’s a different world than it was when we originally conceived of the idea.”

In a CNN Town Hall Trump said about NATO:

“[NATO is] costing us too much money, and frankly, have to put up more money… We’re taking care of, as an example, the Ukraine. I mean, the countries over there don’t seem to be so interested. We’re the ones taking the brunt of it. So I think we have to reconsider — keep NATO, but maybe we have to pay a lot less toward the NATO itself. “

Reality

Ukraine is not a member of NATO, and Washington is not providing arms to the government as it is fighting pro-Moscow rebels, though has provided nonlethal aid and has helped support international bailouts of the Ukrainian economy. Once the third-largest nuclear power in the world, Ukraine agreed to give up its nuclear weapons in return for an assurance that the U.S. would help protect its sovereignty. Critics point out that Trump’s remarks were “really quite astonishing,” speculating that Trump is ignorant of the United States’ diplomatic relations with Ukraine.

It’s unfortunate that a day after making these remarks a terrorist attack occurred in Brussels, highlighting the importance of NATO.

It is important to point out that the United States “taking the brunt” as Mr. Trump has suggested, is a bit of loaded statement. All member countries have pledged at lest 2% of their GDP to fund NATO, and the United States has by far and away the highest GDP of all member nations, in-fact 6 times more than Germany who has the next highest GDP of the NATO members. The whole theory of NATO is to keep the United States involved in Europe long-term, to promote our goals, and to deter another world war, so of course we would be spending more. However it is fair to point out that President Obama has been critical of some of the European partners for not spending enough to fund NATO.

Links

http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/21/politics/elections-2016-final-five-highlights/index.html

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/donald-trump-hopelessly-naive-dead-wrong-on-nato-gop-candidates-say/

Trump’s Campaign Manager Involved in Altercation at Rally

Donald Trump’s campaign manager appeared to grab a protester by his collar during a rally Saturday in an incident captured on video.

Multiple videos, including CNN’s footage, show campaign manager Corey Lewandowski reaching for the man’s collar as a member of Trump’s security detail also grabs him from behind.

“Corey Lewandowski was speaking with a protester at today’s rally in Tucson, Arizona when the individual he was speaking with was pulled from behind by the man to Lewandowski’s left,” Trump campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks said in response to a CNN inquiry, referring to a member of Trump’s private security detail.

“The video clearly shows the protester reacting to the man who pulled him, not to Mr. Lewandowski,” Hicks said, adding that Trump “does not condone violence at his rallies, which are private events paid for by the campaign.”

Lewandowski and the young man appear to exchange words in the moments before the altercation. Hicks said Lewandowski “simply asked the protester to leave.”

“Instead of exiting, the protester grabbed the woman in front of him (in the green shirt), which is when the man to Corey’s left and many others in the scene react to her wincing,” Hicks said.

The protester had been asked to leave once prior to the altercation, according to two sources familiar with the incident. He was able to gain entry back inside before Lewandowski and security removed him for a second time, the sources said.

Trump on Sunday called Lewandowski’s involvement in ejecting protesters “spirited.”

“Security at the arena, the police were a little bit lax. And he had signs — they had signs up in that area that were horrendous, that I cannot say what they said on the sign,” Trump said on ABC’s “This Week.” “I give (Lewandowski) credit for having spirit. He wanted them to take down those horrible profanity-laced signs.”

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said Sunday campaign officials should avoid “getting involved in confrontations.”

“Getting involved is not the answer. I think you leave these things up to the professionals. You’ve got professional police; you’ve got Secret Service,” Priebus told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”

Reality

This is not the first time Lewandowski used physical violence on the campaign trail. He is turning out to be Trump’s #1 thug.

Protests at Trump rallies do not occur in a vacuum. Since he first announced his candidacy, Trump continues to make racist, sexist, and authoritarian remarks that marginalizes anyone who do not meet his view of white and conservative enough. A full list of protests can be found here.

Media

Links

http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/19/politics/trump-campaign-manager-protester/index.html

Trump Calls Rallies ‘Loud, Noisy Majority’ in Fountain Hills

Republican front-runner Donald Trump swaggered into Arizona again Saturday, repeating his promises to build a border wall, renegotiate U.S. trade deals and generally “make America great again.”

Wearing a blue jacket and red golf hat as he addressed the thousands gathered in Fountain Hills Park, Trump made a final pitch ahead of Arizona’s presidential primary on Tuesday.

“Go out on Tuesday and vote. I will never let you down,” he told the crowd, which had waited for hours in warm sunshine. He referred to them as a “loud, noisy majority.”

Trump was joined on stage by Sheriff Joe Arpaio, former Gov. Jan Brewer and Treasurer Jeff DeWit. Former Arizona lawmaker and 9/11 “truther” Karen Johnson prayed to open the event.

Trump’s arrival was delayed by protesters who blockaded one of the main traffic arteries into Fountain Hills. And he was in a fighting mood as he deployed his signature name-calling.

Trump’s angry tone endured throughout his shorter-than-usual 30-minute speech, which also focused on immigration-related themes.

“I want to tell you so much about illegal immigration, and so much has been mentioned about it and talked about it,” Trump said. “And these politicians are all talk, no action, they’re never going to do anything. They only picked it up because when I went and when I announced I’m running for president, I said, ‘you know, this country has a big, big problem with illegal immigration.’ And all of a sudden, we started talking about it and then had lots of bad things happening. Crime all over the place and for the first time people saw what was going on.”

Trump’s rallies have consistently been targets of protesters who oppose his call for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States and his hard-line positions on immigration and rhetoric, such as when he called Mexican immigrants drug runners and rapists.

At times during Trump’s speech, protesters, who stood in a fenced area of the park, chanted in competition with supporters.

Early in Trump’s speech, a protester scuffled with supporters after he unfurled a banner reading, “Vets to Trump: End hate speech against Muslims.” Two Trump supporters slapped down the banner and the man was quickly escorted from the rally.

Media

Links

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/03/19/donald-trump-fountain-hills-tucson-arizona-rally/82007552/

Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Hires Hundreds of Foreign Workers

Trump Mar a Lago resort

Here’s Donald Trump’s dilemma: He is running for president on a platform of bringing jobs back to the U.S. and making America Great again.

But at his private club in south Florida, he has filled his staff almost exclusively with imported foreign workers. And he has been doing it for years.

 The U.S. Department of Labor has confirmed to CNN that between 2013 and fall 2015, Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club posted 250 seasonal job openings and filled just 4 of those jobs with American workers. The club requested the rest of the staff be temporarily imported through the Federal government’s H-2B visa process. Basically, Mar-a-Lago brings in its seasonal staff from overseas

From 2013 to 2015, Mar-a-Lago was approved to hire 246 foreign workers by the U.S. Department of Labor with H-2B visas, which allow U.S. employers to temporarily import foreign workers to fill non-agricultural jobs that can’t be filled with Americans.

To get approval for H-2B visas, employers must prove they need extra workers and that they made an effort to recruit domestic workers, contacted everyone who responded to ads and hired all qualified applicants. After receiving approval, employers must petition U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to bring foreign, temporary workers into the country.

Trump has made the case that he couldn’t find American workers. “It’s almost impossible to get help,” the Republican presidential candidate told CNN last month. “And part of the reason you can’t get American people is they want full time jobs.”

Links

http://money.cnn.com/2016/03/18/news/economy/trump-maralago/index.html

Trump Consults Himself On Foreign Policy, ‘Because I Have a Very Good Brain’

Donald Trump finally shared the name of someone he consults on foreign policy: himself. Asked on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” who he talks with consistently about foreign policy, Trump responded:

“I’m speaking with myself, number one, because I have a very good brain and I’ve said a lot of things.”

“I know what I’m doing and I listen to a lot of people, I talk to a lot of people and at the appropriate time I’ll tell you who the people are,” Trump said. “But my primary consultant is myself and I have a good instinct for this stuff.”

The New York real estate mogul has kept mum on his foreign policy team, despite promising in early February to release a list of his advisers in “about two weeks.”

Trump was also asked on Wednesday morning if his foreign policy was “neoisolationist,” to which he responded “I wouldn’t say that at all.”

Reality

As evidence, Trump claimed he had predicted the rise of Osama bin Laden, a statement which was a total absolute lie.

Media

Links

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/mar/17/donald-trump-i-consult-myself-on-foreign-policy-be/

http://www.politico.com/blogs/2016-gop-primary-live-updates-and-results/2016/03/trump-foreign-policy-adviser-220853

This Is What Happens When a Black Man Goes To a Trump Rally Alone

James Troupe attends a Trump rally

When James Troup decided to attend a Donald Trump rally in Dayton, Ohio, he knew that there was bound to be more than a bit of factually inaccurate fear mongering, but he never expected to see a crowd literally calling for the murder of protestors.

George leading protestor out… KILL HIM!!!!!#TrumpRally

A video posted by J.Troup (ASCAP) (@jtrouptv) on

While Troup himself went to the rally merely to watch the spectacle of it all, he described a number of protestors being dragged out of the venue much to the delight of Trump’s supporters. According to Troup, a black man, his race compelled Trump’s staffers to assign him a security buffer of sorts in the event that the crowd decided to turn on him during the event.

“The scariest part was the crowd,” Troup described in a series of posts to Facebook. “They loved everything that was being said. The calls for the wall. The calls to blow up oil fields. The calls to torture and kill people.”

Throughout the event, Trump fired the crowd up describing the necessity of erecting a wall between the U.S. and Mexico in addition to taking a firm stance in support of torturing enemies of the state.

"FUCK THAT NI&&ER!!" Our President… #TrumpRally

A video posted by J.Troup (ASCAP) (@jtrouptv) on

Trump’s rambling speech was repeatedly drowned out by the crowd’s roaring cheers that were noticeably peppered with a number of racial slurs directed at Latino people and President Barack Obama.

Crowd goes nuts over the wall. "FUCK THOSE DIRTY BEANERS!!" Proud Dad smiles with approval. #TrumpRally

A video posted by J.Troup (ASCAP) (@jtrouptv) on

Troup managed to peacefully stand his ground during the bulk of the event until, once more black protestors had been kicked out, Trump supporters focused on him.

“The worst part was when their venom turned toward me,” Troup wrote. “There were protestors around me who got ushered out, and then people started pointing at me, motioning for the Secret Service to ‘get him out of there.’ Now mind you, I hadn’t uttered a single word the entire rally, but people still said things like ‘Well what about this one? He needs to go too!’”

Ultimately, Troup left the event feeling as if he’d witnessed something darker and more insidious than a simple political rally.

“At that rally, I saw the scary underbelly of America I saw unadulterated hate, fueled by intentional misinformation,” Troup said. “These people who, just 2 hours ago, seemed like good and kind people, were now cheering for blood.”

Hands up, swearing to vote for Donald Trump… #TrumpRally

A video posted by J.Troup (ASCAP) (@jtrouptv) on

Links

http://fusion.net/story/280795/donald-trump-dayton-rally/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=boost

Attorney General’s Conflict of Interest

Florida AG Pam Bondi and Trump

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi endorsed Donald Trump. This isn’t news because Bondi became the first big-name Republican official in the state to endorse Donald Trump for president, but instead of reported bribes from 3 years ago.

In the fall of 2013, Bondi was preparing for a re-election bid and a for-profit college called Trump University had just been sued by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. The lawsuit alleged that Trump University had “scammed” more than 5,000 people out of more than $40 million by falsely promising to teach them the tools to Trump’s real estate success.

With media scrutiny mounting, the Donald J. Trump Foundation that September contributed $25,000 to Bondi’s campaign.

Bondi never followed New York’s lead in taking action against Trump and Trump University. Although there were complaints in Florida, the state never opened an investigation.

Reality

On Sept. 14, 2013, the Sentinel quoted a spokeswoman for Bondi who said that Florida’s attorney general was studying the New York lawsuit to see whether she wanted to take action in Florida as well.

Three days later, on Sept. 17, 2013, Trump’s foundation cut a $25,000 check to a committee associated with Bondi’s campaign. It was one of the largest checks that her “And Justice for All” PAC had received.

Bondi soon dropped her investigation, citing insufficient grounds to proceed.

This was clearly a bribe.

Media

Links

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/election/article65995972.html

http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/03/14/3760061/pam-bondi-donald-trump-trump-university/

Trump Campaign Bars Black Attendees in Boca Raton

In a video released this week, a police officer is seen telling a group of black people that Donald Trump’s campaign has banned them from a rally in Boca Raton — while a white man, who admits he is a protester, is allowed to enter.

In the video, an officer Sgt. John Sluth explains to a group of black attendees — including a woman wearing a head covering — that they are not welcome to enter the event, but he says they can voice their opinions in “an area on the other side of the street.”

“We have tickets to the event,” the woman explains.

“That does not matter,” the Sgt. Sluth replies.

“But you don’t even know that we’re here to protest,” the woman notes.

“Does not matter,” the officer insists.

“So, she’s black and she’s wearing something on her head and she has tickets and you’re not letting her in?” Smith interrupts.

“Where did you hear me say that?” the officer asks. “The campaign has told us they don’t want them on the property.”

“What if I have tickets?” Smith presses. “I’m here to protest. And I have tickets.”

“Okay,” the officer shrugs.

“So he gets to go in?” the woman says as Smith walks past the officer into the Trump event.

Reality

The Trump campaign singled out a group of black people from entry into their event, while allowing a white man who identified himself as a protester to walk right by.

When questioned by reporters, law enforcement said it was on request of the Trump staff, and the Trump staff claimed the removal was initiated by law enforcement. The officer in the video makes it clear the Trump campaign singled out the group. If they were really the ones who tried to prevent protesters from entering the event they would have stopped the white guy as well. Logical dictates that the request came from the Trump campaign to refuse entry to the African-Americans.

It is important to note that, since Donald Trump is not the United States government, the First Amendment does not apply. Even though it was on public property, when the government leases public property for an event space, the private lessee may legally exclude individuals. Individuals can be ordered off the property and be arrested for trespassing if they do not comply. The Trump campaign was well within their legal rights to exclude whoever they wish. What is concerning however, is the Trump campaign requesting public law enforcement to remove peaceful citizens based off of the color of their skin.

This was not the only recorded event of non-white attendees being removed for no reason other than not being white. Sun Sentinel columnist Michael Mayo also recorded his removal.

Media

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBY7R054P_k&feature=youtu.be

Links

https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/what-do-if-your-rights-are-violated-demonstration-or-protest

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/assembly-on-private-property

 

Trump Staff Eject Reporter for Trespassing

Sun-Sentinel columnist Michael Mayo was ejected from a rally and threatened with incarceration for Donald Trump after he filmed attendees leaving the event early.

A Trump campaign official named Justin said something about needing to go to the media pen and Mayo declined. Justin, the campaign official said Mayo couldn’t film, who then chuckled, saying of course I could, seeing as how hundreds if not thousands of other attendees were doing the same thing. The Trump campaign official said Mayo would have to leave, and that they’d need to see law enforcement.

“Tell him we’re trespassing him,” the Trump campaign official told a deputy. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”

The campaign official told Mayo to walk with him to talk to a law enforcement officer. Sgt. John Sluth for an explanation on why he had to leave.

“This is not a public park,” Sgt. Sluth said. “Tonight [this amphitheater] is rented by the Donald Trump campaign and they are the ones who say who can come or go … It’s just like if you go to the BB&T Center and a representative from the Florida Panthers comes up and tells you that you have to leave, you have to leave.”

According to Mayo when he appeared on All In With Chris Hayes:

There was no rules or attachment, any guidelines attached to that ticket saying you can’t do this, or they didn’t ask me about if I was a newspaper person. I just showed up, went through the metal detectors like everybody else and was roaming around the crowd. And actually, the crowd everybody in the general admission crowd was using their phones to take photos and videos and was actually encouraged to post to social media by the campaign people and the warm up rallies, they even gave a special hashtag for the event. So they’re encouraging everybody to use their phones, to use social media tweet, Facebook and I did the same.

(h/t Sun Sentinel)

Reality

Mayo was able to get inside but was treated differently, singled out and targeted for ejection. It could have been because, as a reporter at a Trump event, he was not standing in a specially-barricaded “media pen” that credentialed media for the event were restricted to. As with the case with other attendees at the Boca Raton event, it could very well have been the color of his skin.

I did not try to get a media credential for the event. In my mind, there was no need to. I wasn’t writing on deadline, I didn’t have my computer, and I didn’t require any special access. I hadn’t agreed to any special ground rules or conditions, and I was simply doing the same thing that hundreds, if not thousands, of other attendees were doing.

 

I just wanted to be an Average Joe, free to mingle with my fellow South Floridians and experience this event like 6,000 others. As a columnist I often do things that way. It’s the exact same way I covered a Marco Rubio campaign rally on Super Tuesday (March 1) at Tropical Park in Miami.

 

I had no hassles or issues there.

 

But with Trump, as many people are finding out, things are different

It is important to note that, since Donald Trump is not the United States government, the First Amendment protection for peaceful assembly does not apply. Even though it was on public property, when the government leases public property for an event space, the private lessee may legally exclude individuals. Individuals can be ordered off the property and be arrested for trespassing if they do not comply. The Trump campaign was well within their legal rights to exclude whoever they wish.

Media

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/sfl-columnist-kicked-out-trump-rally-boca-video-20160314-premiumvideo.html

Links

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-michael-mayo-reporter-kicked-out-trump-rally-20160314-story.html

Protester Bloodied as Tensions Flare at Trump Rally

Man with bloody face at St. Louis rally

At a Trump campaign rally in St. Louis, MO., Mr. Trump was interrupted several times by multiple protesters. Lamenting that it was taking so long, he said:

Part of the reason it takes so long is nobody wants to hurt each other anymore!

Later Trump complained:

See, nowadays we have to say that, right? We have to be politically correct: “Oh, please don’t hurt them.” They’re allowed to get up and interrupt us horribly, and we have to be very, very gentle, and very gentle. They can swing, they can hit people, but if we hit them back, it’s a terrible, terrible thing, right?

They can get up and when they’re being whisked out, they can raise their bad finger up in the air … and some people get very angry at that. Because you know what that represents. And then when they get a little bit overly angry, they’re in trouble. The guy that raised his finger, that’s no problem. No, that’s no problem.

That’s when men starting walking of the rally with bloody faces.

Anthony Cage, 50, said he was demonstrating peacefully outside St. Louis’ Peabody Opera House March 11 when he was attacked by a Trump supporter.

“I was just standing still,” Cage said. “Somebody tapped me on the shoulder, and when I turned he sucker punched me. Of course, I tried to defend myself. We were on the ground when I was tackled by law enforcement.”

Media

Links

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3488383/Bloodied-protester-escorted-Trump-rally-activists-shut-event-ten-minutes-Donald-tells-supporters-problem-wants-hurt-anymore.html

http://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-rally-protests-missouri-2016-3

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