With the stock market more volatile than ever and the biggest overall drop in 2018 in a decade, concerns in the U.S. are growing over contracting economic growth and the economy slowing down. Across the Atlantic, Europeans are facing similar realities: Breitbart reports that German factory orders dropped, a good indicator of the overall economic conditions in the eurozone. The Brexit situation is far from resolved with it looking more and more likely the United Kingdom will...
David Frum had harsh words about the president’s prime-time Oval Office address on the border crisis. “Trump has defeated himself,” Frum writes. He continues: But Trump has never wanted a solution. He has wanted a divisive issue and a personal monument. Futile though that monument may be, he could have gotten it, too, had he been willing to trade something attractive to Democrats. But Trump was never willing to bargain. Senate Republicans would not let him: They...
Speaking to reporters shortly before boarding a flight to review conditions at the border, President Trump backtracked on previous claims that Mexico would pay for the border wall: “I know the fake news likes to say it. When during the campaign I would say Mexico is going to pay for it, obviously I never said this and I never meant they’re going to write out a check. I said they are going to pay for it. They...
Friday, January 11 marks the first day that federal workers should have received a paycheck but will not because of the government shutdown, now the longest shutdown ever. A new report from Zillow finds that unpaid federal workers, including roughly 380,000 furloughed employees and 420,000 people working without pay, owe around $438 million in mortgage and rent payments in January. That breaks down into $189 million in monthly rent payments and $249 million in mortgage payments. All...
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is one of many agencies affected by the government shutdown, now the longest in history. FBI agents say the shutdown could be jeopardizing public safety and national security. Nearly 5,000 FBI employees, including special agents, intelligence analysts, and attorneys, have been furloughed. Trump has threatened that the shutdown could continue for months or even years, which could radically alter our economy and security. The FBI Agents Association is calling for...
As the government shutdown reached the longest in history, President Trump hinted that he might declare a national emergency to get funding for the border wall. Sen. Mitt Romney weighed in: “I don’t want to see a declaration of national emergency. I think that’s an action that would be taken in the most extreme circumstances, and, hopefully, we don’t reach that.” Speaking to reporters at MSNBC, the junior senator of Utah and former Republican presidential...
Wasting no time, Democrats in the House re-introduced articles of impeachment against President Trump on the first day of their new majority. Rep. Brad Sherman of California and Al Green of Texas co-sponsored articles of impeachment against the president for high crimes and misdemeanors. Sherman previously introduced articles of impeachment in the summer of 2017, with no support from his fellow representatives. “I understand that a majority of our Democratic Caucus will want to wait...
The use of an Oval Office primetime address to get a message to the American people only works if people actually tune in. In the case of President Trump’s January 8 border security speech, more viewers tuned into the Democrats’ rebuttal than watched the president’s speech itself. According to the Hollywood Reporter, In preliminary numbers, the quarter hour (9-9:15 p.m. ET) containing the president’s speech drew a combined 28.1 household rating in metered markets on ABC,...
The ramifications from the government shutdown continues to multiply, as hundreds of thousands go without a paycheck. TSA agents are calling in sick in droves in order to work other jobs to support their families which is causing major air travel disruptions. Major companies planning IPOs have been stymied by the SEC being shuttered. Fishing boats are sitting in harbors, unable to head out to sea without requisite government inspections. Priceless trees in Joshua Tree...
Right before the government shutdown and the Christmas holiday, the U.S. Treasury Department lifted its sanctions against companies linked to Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska, who is close to Russian President Vladimir Putin. That decision triggered a 30 day review period, and right before it expired, 11 Republican Senator joined Democrats to vote against lifting the sanctions. Even with the significant GOP defection, the effort fell short of the 60 vote threshold it needed to pass,...
