Jerry likely to become hurricane as it passes Puerto Rico; Humberto knocks out power in Bermuda – USA TODAY
Jerry likely to become hurricane as it passes Puerto Rico; Humberto knocks out power in Bermuda – USA TODAY
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Tracking Tropical Storm Jerry heading toward tropics
Fox – 35 Orlando

Tropical Storm Jerry was poised to strengthen into a hurricane Thursday as it trekked westward along a path already followed this year by Hurricanes Dorian and Humberto.

The National Hurricane Center said the center of the storm was expected to pass north of Puerto Rico on Saturday. 

The NHC predicted that Jerry will most likely angle toward the northwest by late in the weekend, then head north by early next week before swinging toward the northeast and farther out to sea.

But forecasters warned that its path depends on the strength of a high pressure system over the central Atlantic Ocean and the location of the jet stream. 

33 inches of rain: Hundreds rescued from ‘life threatening’ floods as Imelda drenches Texas

If the high pressure weakens and the jet stream drops to the south, Jerry could end up heading west toward the Bahamas and Florida.

“We are still concerned that Jerry will take a slightly more westerly track,” said Dan Kottlowski, Accuweather’s top hurricane expert. “If that happens, Jerry could pass very close to the Leeward Islands and dangerous and damaging conditions could unfold.”

At 8 a.m. ET, the tropical storm was about 525 miles east of the Leeward Islands, packing winds of 70 mph, only 4 mph shy of hurricane status. It was moving west-northwest at 16 mph.

Hurricane Humberto knocks out power in Bermuda

Hurricane Humberto, meanwhile, was beginning to weaken after lashing Bermuda on Wednesday. The hurricane center said the Category 3 storm was likely to become a post-tropical cyclone by Friday. 

While the storm did not hit Bermuda directly, it pounded the British Atlantic island offshore with heavy rain while powerful winds above 100 mph knocked down power lines and trees.

The storm left more than 80% of the territory without electricity on Thursday.

Read this: Are Category 5 hurricanes such as Dorian the ‘new normal’?Authorities said Humberto also blew off rooftops as it passed by the island. No deaths were reported.

“We’ve made it through and everyone is safe,” said Premier David Burt. “That’s what is most important.”

Security Minister Wayne Caines said schools and government offices were closed. He asked people to stay off roads while emergency crews cleared debris and removed power lines.

Imedla in Texas

In Texas, the remnants of Imelda triggered flash flooding, with areas east of Houston hit the hardest.

Authorities said all service roads were impassable and two hospitals were inaccessible in Beaumont, a city of just under 120,000 people about 30 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. 

The Beaumont Police Department said on Twitter it had gotten emergency calls for more than 250 high water rescues and 270 evacuations.

In the town of Winnie, about 60 miles east of Houston, a hospital was evacuated and several homes and business were flooded.

The Chambers County Sheriff’s Office said the town is “being devastated by rising water.”

Contributing: Associated Press

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Officials in Houston and surrounding communities say Houston and the surrounding communities could get more heavy rain from Tropical Depression Imelda on Thursday. The storm’s remnants spawned several weak tornadoes on Wednesday. (Sept. 19)
AP, AP

Source Article from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2019/09/19/tropical-storm-jerry-path-pass-puerto-rico-humberto-bermuda-power-outage/2372283001/

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Saudi Oil Facility Attack: What We Know – NPR
Saudi Oil Facility Attack: What We Know – NPR

A photograph taken by the commercial satellite company Planet shows the Abqaiq facility shortly after an attack on Sept. 14.

Planet Labs Inc.


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Planet Labs Inc.

A photograph taken by the commercial satellite company Planet shows the Abqaiq facility shortly after an attack on Sept. 14.

Planet Labs Inc.

On Sept. 14, a major Saudi oil processing plant was rocked by a series of explosions. The facility, and another oil field to the south, had been attacked from the air. Here’s what we know – at this time – about the attacks based on physical evidence.

The strike was large and sophisticated

Images from commercial satellites released by the U.S. government show at least 17 points of impact at the two sites. The larger facility, known as Abqaiq, is one of the world’s most important oil production facilities and has long been a potential target for attack. Within that vast plant, the perpetrators seemed to have singled out valuable equipment that would be difficult to replace, and storage tanks that might contain flammable materials.

This annotated image released Sunday by the U.S. government and DigitalGlobe shows damage to the infrastructure at Saudi Aramco’s Abqaiq oil processing facility.

U.S. Government/DigitalGlobe/AP


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U.S. Government/DigitalGlobe/AP

This annotated image released Sunday by the U.S. government and DigitalGlobe shows damage to the infrastructure at Saudi Aramco’s Abqaiq oil processing facility.

U.S. Government/DigitalGlobe/AP

The group which has claimed responsibility probably didn’t do it

Shortly after the attack, Houthi rebels in Yemen announced that they had launched drones against the Saudi facilities. The Houthis have conducted numerous drone attacks inside Saudi Arabia in the past, but there are a number of reasons to question their latest claim.

The first reason is simple math: there were 17 impact points, but Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said that only 10 drones were launched by the rebel group.

Second is the matter of distance. The facilities that were struck lie roughly 500 miles from Yemen’s border with Saudi Arabia. The Houthi weapons that have been used thus far simply don’t have the range.

Third is the attack’s level of sophistication, according to Fabian Hinz, a research associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Monterey, Calif. “Would the Houthis be capable of flying a single drone or two drones into Abqaiq? I would say yes,” Hinz says. “But would they be able to conduct such a vast coordinated mission to strike the facility with so much success? I would honestly say no.”

Saudi Arabia has shown wreckage of drones and missiles that look Iranian

Even before the Saudi announcement, unverified photos popped up on Twitter which showed the wreckage of a missile in the desert with striking similarities to Iranian technology.

The wreckage of a cruise missile which Saudi officials say failed to reach one of its targets strongly resembles an Iranian design.

Amr Nabil/AP


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The wreckage of a cruise missile which Saudi officials say failed to reach one of its targets strongly resembles an Iranian design.

Amr Nabil/AP

At a press conference Wednesday, Col. Turki al-Maliki, spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi rebels in Yemen, displayed the remains of several missiles and drones that he said were recovered from the attacked facilities and the areas surrounding them.

At least one of the delta-wing drones looks like it could be a type that previously appeared at a military exhibition in Iran, according to images displayed by al-Maliki and verified by outside experts.

The missiles al-Maliki described as being similar to Iran’s Ya-Ali cruise missile, a kind of land-attack missile, is capable of traveling hundreds of miles with a small warhead. Hinz believes the missiles more closely resemble another Iranian design, a variant of which is known as the Quds-1.

Regardless of the exact type, the missile is clearly Iranian, says Hinz. “I would say there’s little doubt that the cruise missiles we’ve seen originated in Iran.”

The impacts on the site were made by objects coming from the west or northwest

Satellite images show that storage tanks at Abqaiq were struck from a northwest direction, al-Maliki says. He also claims that debris from three cruise missiles that failed to reach Abqaiq were recovered from north of the site. The trajectories suggest the missiles were launched from Iran or Iraq.

Frank Pabian, a long-time imagery analyst, says the impacts look like they may have struck from the west.

Impact sites suggest that the attacking drones or missiles likely came from the northwest, according to Saudi officials.

U.S. Government/DigitalGlobe/AP


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U.S. Government/DigitalGlobe/AP

Impact sites suggest that the attacking drones or missiles likely came from the northwest, according to Saudi officials.

U.S. Government/DigitalGlobe/AP

Regardless, Hinz says, the direction of the impact doesn’t necessarily indicate the launch point. Both cruise missiles and drones can take circuitous routes to their targets.

Still, says Hinz, “If we talk about the general balance of probability, it’s much more likely they came from the north.”

Other sources of information may soon be available

The United States military monitors the region closely with satellites, drones, radar and other sensors. According to NPR’s Tom Bowman, Pentagon officials say they have imagery of Iranian forces inside Iran preparing for a strike before the attack. So far, the U.S. has not released any evidence it collected of those preparations or of the attack itself.

It may also be possible to glean more details from the wreckage of the drones and missiles. Al-Maliki noted in his press conference that experts continue to analyze the hardware of the GPS-guided drones. It may be possible to extract the route they flew before crashing. A similar analysis of drone boats launched by the Houthis in 2016 revealed 93 sets of coordinates that provided clues about the boats’ mission.

Source Article from https://www.npr.org/2019/09/19/762065119/what-we-know-about-the-attack-on-saudi-oil-facilities

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Canada’s Trudeau admits to racist ‘brownface’ makeup – Aljazeera.com
Canada’s Trudeau admits to racist ‘brownface’ makeup – Aljazeera.com

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has apologised following the publication of a photograph that showed him wearing brownface make-up at a party 18 years ago, as he scrambled to get on top of a fresh blow to a re-election campaign dogged by controversy.

Time magazine published the photograph on Wednesday, one week into a federal election campaign pitting Trudeau’s Liberal Party against the opposition Conservatives led by Andrew Scheer.

The election is scheduled to take place on October 21.

Trudeau, 47, whose party won a landslide victory in 2015, has already been under pressure over a corruption scandal and other controversies.

The just-published black-and-white photograph shows Trudeau, then 29, wearing a turban and robes with his face, neck and hands darkened at a party in 2001.


The picture appears in the 2000-2001 yearbook of West Point Grey Academy, a private school where Trudeau taught at the time, the US-based Time magazine said.

Trudeau confirmed it was him in the photo “at the school’s annual dinner which had a costume theme of ‘Arabian Nights.'”

“I have worked all my life to try to create opportunities for people, fight against racism and intolerance,” he told a televised news conference on his campaign aircraft.

“I can say I made a mistake when I was younger and I wish I hadn’t. I wish I had known better then, but I didn’t and I’m deeply sorry for it.”

“Now I recognise it was something racist to do,” he said.

“(For) communities and people who live with intersectionalities and face discrimination, it is a significant thing that is very hurtful.”

Trudeau, once the youthful golden boy of Canadian politics, also admitted to wearing dark makeup singing Harry Belafonte’s 1959 hit Day O (Banana Boat Song) at a separate high school talent contest.

‘Racism is real’

In response to the controversy, Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer said his Liberal rival is unfit to govern the country.

“I was extremely shocked and disappointed when I learned of Justin Trudeau’s actions this evening.”

“Wearing brown face is an act of open mockery and racism. What Canadians saw this evening is someone with a complete lack of judgment and integrity and someone who’s not fit to govern this country.”

Jagmeet Singh, leader of the third-placed New Democratic Party, reacted by calling the behaviour “troubling” and “insulting.”

“Any time we hear examples of brown face or blackface, it’s making a mockery of someone for what they live and what their lived experiences are,” he said.

“What does that say about what he thinks about people who, because of who they are, because of the colour of their skin, face challenges and barriers and obstacles in their life. Racism is real.”

Steven Chase, national correspondent for The Globe and Mail newspaper, said the incident has created a moment of political crisis for the leader.

“It has basically thrown his campaign plans off track for the moment,” Chase told Al Jazeera from Ottawa.

“This is a country of immigrants … We bring in 300,000 immigrants every year,” he said.

“What he [Trudeau] faces here suggests he is not who he says he is. He has been a very politically correct leader … Also suggesting his opponents are racists.

“It’s a bit of a challenge for his brand, and voters who are undecided … He’s going to have to convince them this is just a blip.”


Politicians in Canada’s southern neighbour the United States, with its history of slavery and segregation, have been embroiled in scandal this year over their alleged wearing of “blackface.”

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam refused to resign after first admitting he appeared in a yearbook photograph showing a person in blackface and another wearing Ku Klux Klan robes, only to deny a day later that either individual was him.

Trudeau is a fervent advocate of the multiculturalism integral to Canadian identity, and at least six members of his cabinet have Asian or African heritage.

Accusations of political meddling in a bribery case against engineering giant SNC-Lavalin saw Trudeau’s support plunge at the beginning of the year.

The scandal broke when two members of Trudeau’s own cabinet accused him and his aides of meddling in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin to save jobs.

Both the ministers were women and one was Canada’s first indigenous lawyer general. They were expelled from the party.

That episode could cost Trudeau support among women, indigenous communities and young people — constituents who helped propel him to victory in 2015.

Trudeau is the son of former prime minister Pierre Trudeau, who is considered the father of modern Canada.

The younger Trudeau’s stint as a teacher belonged to a colourful past that also included working as a snowboard instructor, a bartender and a bouncer.

Source Article from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/09/canada-trudeau-admits-racist-brownface-makeup-190919020824711.html

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Trump threatens San Francisco with EPA violation because of city’s homeless – NBCNews.com
Trump threatens San Francisco with EPA violation because of city’s homeless – NBCNews.com

President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to have the Environmental Protection Agency issue a “notice” to San Francisco over the city’s homeless issue, comments that were criticized by local officials.

From Air Force One, Trump, who had been in California for a two-day fundraising trip, blamed the homeless population for environmental issues. “There’s tremendous pollution being put into the ocean,” he said, noting “there are needles, there are other things.”

“We’re going to be giving San Francisco — they’re in total violation — we’re going to be giving them the notice very soon,” Trump said.

“The EPA is going to be putting out a notice and you know they’re in serious violation and this is environmental, very environmental,” Trump said. “And they have to clean it up. We can’t have our cities going to hell.”

In January, San Francisco found that under the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development definition, around 8,000 people were experiencing homelessness. That was a 17 percent increase over the 2017 “point-in-time” count, according to a 2019 homeless count and survey report. But the city and county of San Francisco uses an expanded definition, under which the homeless population is around 9,700, the report said.

The city has long struggled with problems of human waste and needles on the streets in the Tenderloin district, where many addicts and homeless people are found. The city set up public toilets and last year announced formation of a special six-person “poop patrol” team to clean up the human waste.

The city also announced funding to hire people to pick up used needles, the Associated Press reported. The city’s health department hands out an estimated 400,000 clean syringes a month under programs designed to reduce the risk of infections like HIV that can be transmitted to people who share needles, the news service reported.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed seemed to bristle at the president’s comments Wednesday evening. She tweeted: “If the President wants to talk about homelessness, we are committed to working on actual solutions.” She cited plans to add 1,000 shelter beds and said the city is working to pass a $600 million affordable housing bond to create badly needed housing.

“In San Francisco, we are focused on advancing solutions to meet the challenges on our streets, not throwing off ridiculous assertions as we board an airplane to leave the state,” the mayor said, according to NBC Bay Area.

Trump’s comments on homelessness in San Francisco and Los Angeles — there are almost 59,000 sheltered and unsheltered homeless people in Los Angeles County, according to a 2019 count — come as he has escalated feuds with the Golden State.

On Wednesday, the president announced that he would revoke the state’s waiver that allows it to set its own vehicle emissions standards, which the state’s attorney general and governor have vowed to fight in court.

Earlier this week Gov. Gavin Newsom in a letter signed by state and city officials called on the Trump administration to provide 50,000 more vouchers for rental subsidies and to increase the value of those vouchers to account for higher rent.

Newsom said in the letter dated Monday that state and local governments have increased their support for homeless programs, but “in contrast, your Administration proposed significant cuts to public housing and programs like the Community Development Block Grant.”

But Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson rejected the housing aid request in a letter Wednesday, saying that California’s policies on law enforcement, an overregulated housing market and sanctuary policies regarding people living in the country illegally have driven up housing costs while increasing demand.

“Your letter seeks more federal dollars for California from hardworking American taxpayers but fails to admit that your state and local policies have played a major role in creating the current crisis,” Carson wrote.

Carson said that nearly 500,000 California households already receive some kind of federal housing assistance and that “federal taxpayers are clearly doing their part to help solve the crisis.”

Courts have limited what cities can do to clean up homeless encampments, the AP reported.

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to join an effort to get the U.S. Supreme Court to review a decision that restricts efforts to bar homeless people from sleeping on sidewalks in Western states.

The board voted 3-2 to file a motion supporting Boise, Idaho, in its efforts to overturn a ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that said it was unconstitutional to arrest or otherwise sanction homeless people who sleep on sidewalks when there aren’t enough shelter beds.

Source Article from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-threatens-san-francisco-epa-violation-because-city-s-homeless-n1056206

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‘No evidence it was fiction’: Ex-New York Times editor defends botched Kavanaugh story – Washington Examiner
‘No evidence it was fiction’: Ex-New York Times editor defends botched Kavanaugh story – Washington Examiner

Former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson defended the newspaper’s story on a sexual misconduct allegation against Justice Brett Kavanaugh, even after an editor’s note acknowledged it left out key details.

“I think my move would have been the moves that the Times has made. I mean, no one has challenged the basic accuracy of the story that they published, or of what is in the book,” Abramson said when Fox News host Harris Faulkner asked her how she would have handled the situation. “It’s true that a material fact was left out, and the Times ran the editor’s note explaining that, which is what you do when you leave something out. But it was no conspiracy to leave out that fact. It was unfortunately cut from the piece, as I understand it.”

Faulkner then pressed Abramson for what she meant by “no one has challenged” the story, saying, “How can you challenge if the alleged victim and the one witness they talk about, who actually didn’t witness anything, he did talk to senators and the FBI about what he thinks he saw, but people may have been too drunk to remember? The alleged victim didn’t remember any assault. It’s hard to take on something that even the victim doesn’t say happened.”

“Well, it’s friends of the victim who say she doesn’t remember it. She has chosen not to talk to the press, one assumes,” Abramson said, adding, “There is no evidence it was fiction.”

In the editor’s note added almost a day later, the Times said they “did not include one element of the book’s account regarding an assertion by a Yale classmate that friends of Brett Kavanaugh pushed his penis into the hand of a female student at a drunken dorm party. The book reports that the female student declined to be interviewed and friends say that she does not recall the incident.”

Abramson was accused earlier this year of committing plagiarism, or not properly attributing the original source material, in her book, Merchants of Truth. Abramson said she had stayed up “all night going through my book” because she took the accusations seriously. In some instances, parts of the book had been copied word-for-word from articles without attribution.

Source Article from https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/no-evidence-it-was-fiction-ex-new-york-times-editor-defends-botched-kavanaugh-story

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Christian Whiton: Trump’s new national security adviser will help build on foreign policy successes – Fox News
Christian Whiton: Trump’s new national security adviser will help build on foreign policy successes – Fox News
Video

President Trump discusses threat from Iran with new national security adviser Robert O’Brien

Trump answers reporters’ questions following his decision to tap State Department’s hostage envoy Robert C. O’Brien as his fourth national security adviser.

President Trump’s appointment of Robert O’Brien as national security adviser Wednesday is good news for Americans who believe in peace through strength. It’s bad news for America’s foes — and for those who hope the Trump presidency will fail.

At first glance, O’Brien’s appointment looks unusual. He is not an admiral or general, nor has he climbed the typical civilian rungs of the national security ladder. He doesn’t have a foreign policy degree from the Harvard Kennedy School or the Georgetown School of Foreign Service. While he has a distinct approach to our national interests, he is not instantly recognized as a member of any particular policy faction.

But such an assessment would miss O’Brien’s acumen for grasping what matters about foreign developments, and what Trump likely wants and needs for the role of national security adviser.

TRUMP NAMES HOSTAGE ENVOY ROBERT O’BRIEN AS NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER, REPLACING BOLTON

Unlike many of the legions of Washingtonians who hold office for the sake of holding office, O’Brien has a record of accomplishment, including serving with distinction as the U.S. special presidential envoy for hostage affairs. He helped bring home more than a dozen hostages and detainees since he was appointed earlier in the Trump administration, fulfilling a key facet of Trump’s “America First” foreign policy.

The job involved not only diplomacy, but close coordination of activity between the State Department and our intelligence bureaucracies as well as the military — skills that will come in handy for O’Brien’s new job.

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O’Brien was most recently in the news for helping bring home the American celebrity rapper A$AP Rocky from Sweden, where the rapper was held on trumped-up charges after being targeted and harassed by Afghan asylum seekers.

O’Brien’s involvement led to snickers among the foreign policy elite, but O’Brien, like Trump, understood that Washington could not look the other way while a supposedly friendly European government blamed a prominent American victim of a crime rather than the perpetrators of the crime.

O’Brien also was a major in the Army’s Judge Advocate General Corps, and was one of the most successful litigators in California. He attended UCLA and obtained a law degree from the University of California at Berkeley. The fact that he did so and remained a conservative who believes that a strong America is good for the world is a testament to his character.

It’s better to have someone who has been through the left-wing crucible and stayed true to course than someone who is untested and looking to become popular among the Washington elite.

O’Brien also backed Trump for president when other denizens of the Republican foreign policy elite opportunistically vowed to support Hillary Clinton, despite her disastrous track record on foreign affairs.

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O’Brien also advocated “peace through strength” and getting tough with China before those positions were popular. O’Brien’s book, “While America Slept,” is a compilation of his criticisms of the Obama-era hollowing out of the U.S. military and weakness in dealing with Iran and China. The book foreshadowed some of the arguments Trump used during his campaign and while in office.

Perhaps more important than his positions is the way O’Brien is likely to run the National Security Council. The job is often done best not by creatures of the military establishment — like now-retired Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who held the job earlier in the Trump administration — or by gunslingers like John Bolton.

The job is done best by those who offer private counsel to the president, arbitrate fairly in the unruly national security bureaucracy, and privately press that bureaucracy to execute the president’s vision.

In that sense, O’Brien’s role as an affable but determined litigator and negotiator should serve Trump well. Trump has reversed disastrous Bush-Obama policies on trade, appeasing China and Iran, ignoring Islamists, underfunding the military, sideshow wars, and pretending natural climate change is a national security issue.

The job now is managing the implementation of Trump’s tougher alternatives to those policies during the time it will take a new, safer world to emerge.

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We are in the equivalent of the mid-1980s gap between when President Reagan began that era’s version of peace through strength and the later, resulting collapse of the Soviet empire. Our turbulent transition may resemble that one at times, especially as a new world emerges with alliances and power dynamics that will be very different than the status quo so far in this century.

By appointing O’Brien, Trump has demonstrated confidence in his own vision, and his grasp of how he wants to run the White House and the larger national security apparatus. Trump is doubling down on his own winning strategy.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM CHRISTIAN WHITON

Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/christian-whiton-trumps-new-national-security-adviser

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Jeffrey Epstein estate sued in new lawsuit over sexual abuse; case also names alleged co-conspirators Sarah Kellen and Lesley Groff – CBS News
Jeffrey Epstein estate sued in new lawsuit over sexual abuse; case also names alleged co-conspirators Sarah Kellen and Lesley Groff – CBS News

A new lawsuit targeting the estate of Jeffrey Epstein names two women as co-conspirators in the sexual abuse allegedly experienced by the plaintiff when she was 14 years old. 

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday by “Jane Doe,” seeks to hold the estate liable for Epstein’s actions, including sexual battery and sexual assault. Attorneys Darren K. Indyke and Richard D. Kahn are identified in the lawsuit as executors of Epstein’s estate. The lawsuit also names Sarah Kellen and Lesley Groff as two Epstein employees who allegedly facilitated Epstein’s sexual abuse of Jane Doe in a three-year period from 2002 to 2005.

The lawsuit describes Epstein’s sexual assaults as following “the course of a methodical plan of recruitment, enticement, and attack” that “inflicted severe pain and anguish upon Plaintiff.” The lawsuit gives explicit details of how Epstein allegedly engaged in sex acts with Jane Doe when she was underaged and manipulated her in a “scheme of exploitation and abuse.” 

“All told, Doe was sexually assaulted by Epstein countless times over the course of three years,” the lawsuit states. 

Epstein accusers give emotional testimony in court

The lawsuit claims that Epstein’s actions were “directly and indirectly facilitated by his co-conspirators,” and it names two Epstein employees who scheduled Jane Doe’s appointments to see Epstein and kept contact with her throughout the alleged abuse: “Upon information and belief, the assistants were Sarah Kellen and Lesley Groff,” the lawsuit states.  

Groff and Kellen were both named as potential co-conspirators in the secret 2008 non-prosecution-agreement Epstein made with U.S. Attorneys for the Southern District of Florida, then led by former Secretary of Labor Alex Acosta. 

According to a February 2019 opinion by Judge Kenneth Marra, who has presided over legal challenges to the 2008 agreement, the deal included language saying: “The United States also agrees that it will not institute any criminal charges against any potential co-conspirators of Epstein, including but not limited to Sarah Kellen, Adriana Ross, Lesley Groff, or Nadia Marcinkova.”

In the new lawsuit, Jane Doe details the roles played by the two alleged co-conspirators. “Kellen and Groff often asked Doe to bring other girls with her to Epstein’s home. At times, Kellen and Groff directed Doe to bring with her specific girls who Epstein assaulted before, requesting them by name,” the lawsuit states. “Doe was often paid by Kellen or Groff. Doe was also paid by Kellen or Groff whenever she brought other girls to see Epstein.” 

Kellen and Groff were also named in a 2017 civil complaint filed by a different Jane Doe, which accused them and other defendants of having “profited from the sex trafficking” of an alleged victim.

Groff’s attorney, Michael Bachner, denied the allegations. In a statement provided to CBS News, Bachner said: “As an executive assistant to Epstein, Lesley worked as part of a professional staff that included in-house attorneys, accountants, an office manager and other office staff. Lesley’s job included making appointments for Mr. Epstein as directed by him, taking his messages, and setting up high-level meetings with CEOs, business executives, scientists, politicians and celebrities. At no time during Lesley’s employment with Epstein did she ever engage in any misconduct.”

There has been no statement by Sarah Kellen’s attorney on the allegations. Kellen could not be reached for comment.  

File photo of Jeffrey Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse.

Bebeto Matthews / AP


A 2005 article in The New York Times described Groff as a valued assistant to Epstein. It said Epstein bought Groff a Mercedes-Benz car and paid for a full-time nanny so she could continue working for him, for a reported $200,000 annual salary. 

“There is no way that I could lose Lesley to motherhood,” Epstein is quoted as saying in the article. 

“It comes down to the bond,” Groff said in The Times article. “I know what he is thinking and I know when I need to be fast. It’s a nice roll we are on.”

Two days before he died in a suicide in a Manhattan jail cell, Epstein signed a will that put all of his holdings into a trust. Epstein’s will claimed assets of more than $577 million. 

In August, a different woman, Jennifer Araoz, 32, filed a lawsuit against Epstein’s estate in which she accused Epstein of sexual abuse and rape when she was 14. Araoz’s lawsuits targets Epstein’s longtime friend and associate Ghislaine Maxwell and three unnamed women who worked for Epstein in the early 2000s, claiming they “provided organization support for Epstein’s sex trafficking ring” and “conspired with Epstein in the implementation and maintenance of his criminal enterprise.” 

Maxwell has denied wrongdoing and has not faced any criminal charges.

Source Article from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jeffrey-epstein-estate-sued-in-new-lawsuit-against-executors-by-victim-who-names-co-conspirators/

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US and Chinese trade deputies face off in Washington amid deep differences – CNBC
US and Chinese trade deputies face off in Washington amid deep differences – CNBC

If a US recession comes, it will be ‘shallow,’ says Barings chief

U.S. consumers and growth in sectors such as technology have offset declines in other American industries, says Tom Finke, chairman and CEO of investment management firm…

US Economyread more

Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/19/trade-talks-us-chinese-officials-face-off-in-washington.html

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Justin Trudeau: Canada PM in 2001 ‘brownface’ yearbook photo – BBC News
Justin Trudeau: Canada PM in 2001 ‘brownface’ yearbook photo – BBC News

Image copyright
Time Magazine

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wore “brownface” at a private school gala nearly two decades ago, a photo obtained by Time Magazine shows.

Addressing the image, Mr Trudeau said he “deeply regretted” his actions and “should have known better”.

The 2001 yearbook picture shows Mr Trudeau with skin-darkening make-up on his face and hands at the West Point Grey Academy in Vancouver.

The prime minister is battling for re-election on 21 October.

Mr Trudeau, son of the late former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, used to teach at the elite academy.

The image is politically embarrassing for the prime minister because he has made progressive policies a signature issue.

How did Trudeau respond?

Speaking to journalists after the Time article was published, Mr Trudeau said he had dressed up in the photo in an Aladdin costume at an Arabian Nights-themed gala.

“I take responsibility for my decision to do that. I shouldn’t have done it.

“I should have known better. It was something that I didn’t think was racist at the time, but now I recognise it was something racist to do and I am deeply sorry.”

Media captionJustin Trudeau told reporters: “I should have known better, but I didn’t”

When asked had there been other occasions, Mr Trudeau told reporters he had also worn make-up while performing at a talent show in high school.

An image from that incident has since been posted to Twitter.

A source has confirmed for the BBC it is from the incident to which Mr Trudeau referred at the news conference.

What is ‘brownface’?

Like “blackface”, “Brownface” typically refers to when someone paints their face darker to appear like someone with a different skin colour.

The practice is associated with minstrel performances – in past centuries, white actors could be seen with their faces painted black, caricaturing African-Americans, and perpetuating offensive and racist stereotypes.

In recent years, there have been several controversies involving politicians, celebrities and brands accused of “blackface”, “brownface” or “yellowface”.

On Wednesday, Mr Trudeau said “brownface” was “a significant thing that is very hurtful” to “communities and people who live with intersectionalities and face discrimination”.

Mustafa Farooq, executive director of the National Council of Canadian Muslims, said: “Seeing the prime minister in brownface/blackface is deeply saddening. The wearing of blackface/brownface is reprehensible, and hearkens back to a history of racism and an Orientalist mythology which is unacceptable.

The council added that it recognised “people can change and evolve over two decades”. Later, the council issued a tweet thanking Mr Trudeau for apologising promptly.

What’s the political reaction been?

The picture was racist in 2001 and racist now, said Andrew Scheer, leader of the opposition Conservatives.

“What Canadians saw this evening is someone with a total lack of judgement and integrity and someone who is not fit to govern this country,” he said.

New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh, a Sikh, said the image was “troubling” and “insulting”.

“Any time we hear examples of brownface or blackface, it’s making a mockery of someone for what they live and what their lived experiences are,” Mr Singh told journalists on the campaign trail in Toronto.

The image was also criticised in a tweet by Green Party leader Elizabeth May.

Opinion polls indicate October’s election will be a tough race for Mr Trudeau who is seeking a second term in office.

Media captionFour years of Justin Trudeau in two minutes

His campaign got off to a bad start after his plane was grounded by a scraped wing on the first day. A bus ferrying journalists collided with the wing of the Liberal party’s chartered Boeing last week.

Earlier this year, in the US, Virginia governor Ralph Northam admitted he had worn blackface while dressing up as Michael Jackson.

However he denied being in a racist photograph in his 1984 medical school yearbook.

Source Article from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-49749851

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Trump’s communications with foreign leader are part of whistleblower complaint that spurred standoff between spy chief and Congress, former officials say – The Washington Post
Trump’s communications with foreign leader are part of whistleblower complaint that spurred standoff between spy chief and Congress, former officials say – The Washington Post

Greg Miller

Ellen Nakashima

Shane Harris

September 18 at 8:56 PM

The whistleblower complaint that has triggered a tense showdown between the U.S. intelligence community and Congress involves President Trump’s communications with a foreign leader, according to two former U.S. officials familiar with the matter.

Trump’s interaction with the foreign leader included a “promise” that was regarded as so troubling that it prompted an official in the U.S. intelligence community to file a formal whistleblower complaint with the inspector general for the intelligence community, said the former officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

It was not immediately clear which foreign leader Trump was speaking with or what he pledged to deliver, but his direct involvement in the matter has not been previously disclosed. It raises new questions about the president’s handling of sensitive information and may further strain his relationship with U.S. spy agencies. One former official said the communication was a phone call.

[Gap continues to widen between Trump and intelligence community on key issues]

The White House declined to comment. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence and a lawyer representing the whistleblower declined to comment.

Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson determined that the complaint was credible and troubling enough to be considered a matter of “urgent concern,” a legal threshold that ordinarily requires notification of congressional oversight committees.

But acting director of national intelligence Joseph Maguire has refused to share details about Trump’s alleged transgression with lawmakers, touching off a legal and political dispute that has spilled into public and prompted speculation that the spy chief is improperly protecting the president.

The dispute is expected to escalate Thursday when Atkinson is scheduled to appear before the House Intelligence Committee in a classified session closed to the public. The hearing is the latest move by committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) to compel U.S. intelligence officials to disclose the full details of the whistleblower complaint to Congress.

Maguire has agreed to testify before the committee next week, according to a statement by Schiff. He declined to comment for this story.

The inspector general “determined that this complaint is both credible and urgent,” Schiff said in the statement released Wednesday evening. “The committee places the highest importance on the protection of whistleblowers and their complaints to Congress.”

The complaint was filed with Atkinson’s office on Aug. 12, a date on which Trump was at his golf resort in New Jersey. White House records indicate that Trump had had conversations or interactions with at least five foreign leaders in the preceding five weeks.

Among them was a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin that the White House initiated on July 31. Trump also received at least two letters from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during the summer, describing them as “beautiful” messages. In June, Trump said publicly that he was opposed to certain CIA spying operations against North Korea. Referring to a Wall Street Journal report that the agency had recruited Kim’s half-brother, Trump said, “I would tell him that would not happen under my auspices.”

Trump met with other foreign leaders at the White House in July, including the prime minister of Pakistan, the prime minister of the Netherlands, and the emir of Qatar.

Trump’s handling of classified information has been a source of concern to U.S. intelligence officials since the outset of his presidency. In May 2017, Trump revealed classified information about espionage operations in Syria to senior Russian officials in the Oval Office, disclosures that prompted a scramble among White House officials to contain the potential damage.

Statements and letters exchanged between the offices of the DNI and the House Intelligence Committee in recent days have pointed at the White House without directly implicating the president.

Schiff has said he was told that the complaint concerned “conduct by someone outside of the Intelligence Community.” Jason Klitenic, the DNI general counsel, noted in a letter sent to congressional leaders on Tuesday that the activity at the root of the complaint “involves confidential and potentially privileged communications.”

The dispute has put Maguire, thrust into the DNI job in an acting capacity with the resignation of Daniel Coats last month, at the center of a politically perilous conflict with constitutional implications.

Schiff has demanded full disclosure of the whistleblower complaint. Maguire has defended his refusal by asserting that the subject of the complaint is beyond his jurisdiction.

Defenders of Maguire disputed that he is subverting legal requirements to protect Trump, saying that he is trapped in a legitimate legal predicament and that he has made his displeasure clear to officials at the Justice Department and White House.

After fielding the complaint on Aug. 12, Atkinson submitted it to Maguire two weeks later. By law, Maguire is required to transmit such complaints to Congress within seven days. But in this case, he refrained from doing so after turning for legal guidance to officials at the Justice Department.

In a sign of Atkinson’s discomfort with this situation, the inspector general informed the House and Senate intelligence committees of the existence of the whistleblower complaint — without revealing its substance — in early September.

Schiff responded with almost immediate indignation, firing off a letter demanding a copy of the complaint and warning that he was prepared to subpoena senior U.S. intelligence officials. The DNI has asserted that lawyers determined there was no notification requirement because the whistleblower complaint did not constitute an urgent concern that was “within the responsibility and authority” of Maguire’s office.

Legal experts said there are scenarios in which a president’s communications with a foreign leader could rise to the level of an “urgent concern” for the intelligence community, but they also noted that the president has broad authority to decide unilaterally when to classify or declassify information.

Revealing how the United States obtained sensitive information could “compromise intelligence means and methods and potentially the lives of sources,” said Joel Brenner, former inspector general for the National Security Agency.

It was unclear whether the whistleblower witnessed Trump’s communication with the foreign leader or learned of it through other means. Summaries of such conversations are often distributed among White House staff, although the administration imposed new limits on this practice after Trump’s disclosures to Russian officials were revealed.

Carol D. Leonnig and Julie Tate contributed to this report.

Source Article from https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/trumps-communications-with-foreign-leader-are-part-of-whistleblower-complaint-that-spurred-standoff-between-spy-chief-and-congress-former-officials-say/2019/09/18/df651aa2-da60-11e9-bfb1-849887369476_story.html

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US Quandary On Response To Airstrikes Against Saudi Oil Facilities – NPR
US Quandary On Response To Airstrikes Against Saudi Oil Facilities – NPR

Wreckage described by Saudi defense officials as coming from the airstrikes on the Abqaiq oil refinery.

Bloomberg via Getty Images


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Bloomberg via Getty Images

Wreckage described by Saudi defense officials as coming from the airstrikes on the Abqaiq oil refinery.

Bloomberg via Getty Images

American military and intelligence officials say they are accumulating a growing mound of evidence that Iran launched the airstrikes that idled about half of Saudi Arabia’s oil production capacity over the weekend. But the Trump administration has been slow to respond to those attacks.

President Trump encapsulated that ambivalence in a tweet Monday. “There is reason to believe that we know the culprit, are locked and loaded depending on verification,” Trump threatened, only to immediately raise doubts about his intentions by continuing, “but are waiting to hear from the Kingdom as to who they believe was the cause of this attack, and under what terms we would proceed!”

Possible courses of action range from retaliatory military strikes to further economic sanctions to sitting down for diplomatic talks with Iran.

Five days after the attack, which crippled the world’s largest crude oil processing facility as well as a Saudi oil field, Trump settled on broadened economic sanctions on Iran for an initial response. He did so two hours before Saudi officials publicly displayed debris from drones and missiles which they asserted was “undeniable” evidence the attack was sponsored by Iran.

“I have just instructed the Secretary of the Treasury,” Trump declared, “to substantially increase Sanctions on the country of Iran!”

Trump provided no details about what those additional sanctions might entail. His administration reimposed sanctions on Iran in April 2018 upon withdrawing from the 2015 multinational accord aimed at curbing that nation’s nuclear weapons program.

Those U.S. sanctions, which also threaten reprisals against firms doing business with Iran, have shriveled that nation’s oil exports from 2.5 million to 500,000 barrels of oil a day. China buys most of that smuggled oil.

One expert with considerable experience in sanction regimes on Iran says there’s little chance most U.S. allies would endorse additional sanctions. “It would be a lot easier to rally the world together if the U.S. hadn’t taken the first step by reimposing sanctions that nobody agreed to, with the exception of the Israelis, the Saudis and the Emiratis,” says Richard Nephew, who was the lead sanctions expert on the U.S. team that negotiated the Iran nuclear deal. “I really do fear that U.S. words are falling on deaf ears, that people are going to hear about disruptions to international oil supplies and say, ‘Yeah, but who started this?’ And that’s the kind of argumentation that’s deeply unhelpful if you’re trying to rally the international community together.”

Iran denies carrying out the attack on the Saudi oil facilities, for which Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen are claiming credit.

As part of a “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran, the U.S. terminated waivers in May that allowed some nations, including China, to import Iranian oil. Since then, Iran has been blamed for a series of attacks on oil tankers and American drones in the Persian Gulf.

The military response to tightened sanctions comes as no surprise to those sympathetic to Iran’s plight.

“Basically Iran’s back is against the wall with the economic warfare waged by the U.S. and its regional allies wreaking havoc on the Iranian economy,” says Kaveh Afrasiabi, an Iranian-American political scientist who has taught at the University of Tehran and advised Iran’s nuclear negotiators. “The whole U.S. strategy has been based on a fallacious assumption that Iran will cave in to the pressures and heed the exaggerated, unreasonable demands set forth by (U.S. Secretary of State Mike) Pompeo.”

Iran’s leaders may feel more emboldened by how Washington has responded to earlier provocations. Iran watchers point to a U.S. airstrike in reprisal for Iran shooting down a U.S. drone being called off at the last minute in June by Trump. “When the U.S. did not do that, then I think the Iranians understood that Trump would not do something that would risk his re-election,” says Barbara Slavin, director of the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council.

“The question of whether or not Iran is deterred from taking action I think is very much open,” adds Nephew. “I think it would not be unreasonable for the Iranians to think that Trump is unwilling to act, no matter what he says.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., usually a staunch Trump supporter, also pointed to the president’s cancellation of the June airstrike as pivotal. “The measured response by President @realDonaldTrump regarding the shooting down of an American drone,” Graham tweeted on Tuesday, “was clearly seen by the Iranian regime as a sign of weakness.”

“No, Lindsey,” Trump tweeted in response, “it was a sign of strength that some people just don’t understand.”

Speaking to reporters in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Trump suggested they query Graham on how previous U.S. military interventions in the region had gone. “Ask him how did going into the Middle East, how did that work out, and how did going into Iraq work out,” said Trump, who promised to end U.S. involvement in such conflicts while campaigning on an “America First” platform.

Still, Trump continues brandishing the use of military force against Iran. “If we have to do something,” he said in that same exchange with reporters, “we’ll do it without hesitation.”

U.S. military leaders have laid out options for reprisals against Iran, ranging from airstrikes against its oil facilities to cyber sabotage.

But there appears to be scant enthusiasm at the Pentagon for an armed response.

Military officials say an attack on Iran could come at a high price for the 5,000 U.S. forces stationed in Iran’s ally, neighboring Iraq. Popular Mobilization Forces, as pro-Iran armed militias are known in Iraq, could take a heavy toll retaliating against those American troops. U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf — many of them docked in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet — would be vulnerable to reprisals from Iranian naval vessels as well as missiles and drones.

The U.S. has no defense treaty with Saudi Arabia, and it’s not clear any of its major allies would be willing to join an international coalition for collective military action against Iran.

It’s also not clear Saudi Arabia would welcome a potential war with Iran, its longtime rival for regional dominance. “I think the Saudis and the Emiratis understand that escalation in the Persian Gulf is going to come at their expense,” says the Atlantic Council’s Slavin. “They have no confidence that the Trump administration knows what it’s doing in pursuing this ‘maximum pressure’ campaign against Iran — so why should they give the green light for further escalation?”

Sanctions expert Nephew says Iran is counterpunching U.S. economic pressure by attacking American allies in the region. “They (the Iranians) want our partners to be damaged,” he says, “so that we will stop damaging them.”

Some are hoping for a diplomatic resolution. Both Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani are due to attend next week’s annual United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York City, a potential opening for an unprecedented summit there between the two leaders. “I would not, at this point, completely rule out that possibility,” says Afrasiabi, “although the chances of it have been highly diminished.”

Others are more pessimistic. “Rouhani’s dance card will be very full,” says Slavin, “but you will not see Donald Trump’s name on it.” Were the Iranian president to meet with Trump while the “maximum pressure” sanctions continue to crush Iran, she adds, “he would be pilloried. He would be impeached.”

With the bad blood worsening between these two nations that have been foes for nearly four decades, Nephew — who was Director for Iran on the National Security Council during the Obama administration — sees a growing danger of war as Iran restarts its nuclear program and the U.S. further tightens sanctions. “I think that does create a very real risk of an escalation to a military conflict that could happen literally anytime now,” he says. “I think there’s a number of different scenarios here that go from bad to worse, once you start having bullets actually flying.”

Source Article from https://www.npr.org/2019/09/18/762076119/attacks-on-saudi-oil-facilities-pose-quandary-for-trump-administration

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California governor signs Uber, Lyft bill | TheHill – The Hill
California governor signs Uber, Lyft bill | TheHill – The Hill

California Gov. Gavin NewsomGavin Christopher NewsomOvernight Health Care — Presented by Partnership for America’s Health Care Future — Tennessee aims to become first state to turn Medicaid into block grant | Swing-state voters oppose ‘surprise’ medical bill legislation, Trump pollster warns California legislature votes to limit payday loans Trump heads to heart of resistance in California MORE (D) on Wednesday signed legislation that will force gig economy companies like Uber and Lyft to treat their workers as employees, setting off what is likely to be a nine-figure political fight next year even as Newsom seeks future changes. 

The measure, Assembly Bill 5, will codify a 2018 state Supreme Court decision into law. Justices in that decision said a worker qualifies as an independent contractor only if they meet three criteria, known as the ABC test. 

That suit, backers of the bill say, means gig workers should already be classified as employees. But those workers could face years of lawsuits to force companies such as Uber and Lyft to treat them as such. Passing a new law would eliminate those costly suits.

“Workers would have to sue for enforcement, and that’s not a very practical way to enforce rights. We thought it would be practical to take the Dynamex decision, to codify it into law rather than have five or 10 years of lawsuits,” Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D), the prime sponsor of the legislation, told The Hill last month. “We’re in this new economy, this tech economy, but in reality it’s work.” 

A Newsom spokesman said the governor would continue to negotiate a middle ground between the legislators who support Assembly Bill 5 and the technology companies that so vehemently opposed it.

“Assembly Bill 5 is landmark legislation for workers and our economy,” Newsom wrote in a signing statement. “The hollowing out of our middle class has been 40 years in the making, and the need to create lasting economic security for our workforce demands action. Assembly Bill 5 is an important step.”

Those companies are gearing up for war. Uber, Lyft and DoorDash, all based in California, said they would put up $30 million each toward a ballot measure meant to overturn the bill.  

“If we aren’t able to reach a deal, then we will take this issue to the voters,” Adrian Durbin, a Lyft spokesman, said last month before the bill passed. “While it’s not our preference, we will go to the ballot if we need to.”

Opponents of the bill also objected to several industries that were carved out of the ABC test so that professionals in the beauty and salon industries and the real estate business could continue to be classified as independent contractors.

Updated at 3:20 p.m.

Source Article from https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/462015-california-governor-signs-uber-lyft-bill

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Trump Defends Plan to Kill California’s Auto-Emissions Authority – The New York Times
Trump Defends Plan to Kill California’s Auto-Emissions Authority – The New York Times

“Our message to those who claim to support states’ rights is, ‘Don’t trample on ours,’” said Xavier Becerra, the attorney general of California, at a Sacramento news conference about an hour after Mr. Trump’s tweets. “We cannot afford to backslide in our battle against climate change.”

Mr. Trump’s supporters welcomed the move.

“The California emissions regulations would impact Americans in other states who have no ability to vote those state legislators out of office,” said Adam Brandon, the president of FreedomWorks, a libertarian offshoot of a group co-founded by the late David H. Koch and his brother Charles Koch, who made their fortune in fossil fuels. “It is regulation without representation at its worst.”

The Trump administration is expected Thursday morning to formally revoke California’s authority to set auto emissions rules that are stricter than federal standards, taking a major step forward in the administration’s wide-ranging attack on efforts to fight climate change. Andrew Wheeler, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, and Elaine Chao, the transportation secretary, are scheduled to announce the formal abolition of the waiver, a keystone of California environmental policy, at the Washington headquarters of the E.P.A.

[Want climate news in your inbox? Sign up here for Climate Fwd:, our email newsletter.]

A revocation of the waiver would have national significance. Tailpipe pollution is the United States’ largest source of planet-warming greenhouse gas pollution, and California, with roughly 35 million vehicles, is the nation’s largest auto market. California has historically set stronger pollution standards than the federal government, and many of those standards have ultimately influenced national and even international policy.

Thirteen other states follow California’s tighter tailpipe greenhouse gas standards, together representing roughly a third of the national auto market.

Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/18/us/trump-california-emissions.html

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The Selfie Line Life – Slate
The Selfie Line Life – Slate

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Source Article from https://slate.com/human-interest/2019/09/elizabeth-warren-selfie-line-experience.html

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New National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien Will Inherit An NSC In Turmoil – NPR
New National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien Will Inherit An NSC In Turmoil – NPR

President Trump with his new national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, on Wednesday in Los Angeles.

Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images


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President Trump with his new national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, on Wednesday in Los Angeles.

Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images

Updated at 6:16 p.m. ET

President Trump’s brand-new national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, will inherit a National Security Council struggling to attract talent, current and former U.S. officials tell NPR.

The National Security Council is traditionally one of the most desirable places for ambitious and talented people to work in the U.S. government, because it affords such close proximity to power. But in the Trump administration, some of the government’s brightest minds are turning down high-powered NSC assignments, and others are avoiding the place altogether.

Career foreign policy professionals increasingly fear that joining the NSC, which is part of the White House, will taint them as political operatives.

“There is a school of thought that it can be risky for your career — sometimes being there puts you in a position where you have to say no to ambassadors and other senior officials, and they may remember that when you return,” said one senior foreign policy official who turned down an offer to serve at the NSC.

It’s a stunning reversal for jobs that once offered unparalleled credentials.

Openings for temporary assignments that in previous administrations would have drawn two dozen applications and inquiries are now getting minimal interest, the officials said.

NPR interviewed 12 current and former U.S. officials with knowledge of the NSC’s challenges. Most have served both in the Trump administration and past administrations. Many declined to be publicly identified for fear it would endanger their careers and professional relationships.

“The National Security Council staff is comprised of exceptional public servants from across the U.S. Government who are working diligently to support President Trump’s highly-effective national security agenda. There is no shortage of patriotic individuals willing to work on these critical issues,” said White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham in a statement to NPR.

A senior NSC official dismissed concerns that people don’t hold the NSC in the same regard as before. He said Trump has sought to slim down the NSC, so there may not be as many opportunities. The people he knew, though, were proud of their work and extended their assignments.

While an NSC job has historically been known as a launchpad for high-flying careers, these officials tell NPR that under Trump, U.S. foreign policy has become so erratic, confrontational and politicized that many feel out of place — or worse.

Chuck Park, a career Foreign Service officer who served in the Trump administration until July, said getting an NSC job is like a “rocket ship” for your career.

An economic affairs specialist, Park, 34, had pursued an NSC position in 2015 after his third tour of duty but didn’t get it. He expected to try again after his fourth, but by then, in 2018, Park said he was too “pissed off and upset” about Trump administration policies such as family separation and the president’s rhetoric on immigration. He didn’t like what he interpreted as Trump’s defense of white nationalism and explained his resignation in an essay published by the Washington Post last month.

“I would have absolutely, wholeheartedly thrown my hat in the ring under a different president and different national security adviser,” said Park, referring to Trump’s previous national security adviser, John Bolton, whom Trump ousted on Sept. 10.

A “24/7” job

The National Security Council is the president’s main advisory body for considering national security and foreign policy matters. It also coordinates national security priorities with different U.S. government agencies.

The NSC takes top staff members from agencies across the administration, including the State Department, Defense Department, U.S. Agency for International Development and CIA, on temporary assignments.

Those one-year temporary assignments, which are often renewable, are highly coveted, and some of the officials interviewed for this story said they were surprised to learn the lengths the NSC is going to attract staff. Others told NPR that their senior managers discouraged them from accepting NSC positions.

“Going into the NSC is not an easy thing by any means,” said Fernando Cutz, who served as a senior director at the NSC in the Trump administration until last year. “You’re working all sorts of hours, essentially 24/7. You’re either on call or in the office and at times both. And you’re not getting paid any more money.”

Cutz said working at the NSC was particularly difficult under the brief tenure of Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, who was under investigation for his ties to Russia. It improved under Flynn’s successor, H.R. McMaster, who ran the NSC more along the lines of past administrations by seeking input from around the federal government.

Former national security adviser H.R. McMaster and President Trump in February 2017.

Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images


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Former national security adviser H.R. McMaster and President Trump in February 2017.

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John Gans, author of White House Warriors, a book about the National Security Council, said a hamstrung NSC carries risks to foreign policy.

“The staff itself is a really critical piece of this,” said Gans. “Because the staff is a big part of the national security adviser’s strength. If he doesn’t have that sort of public reputation, deep relationships with his Cabinet colleagues or a deep relationship with the president, the staff can give the national security adviser a shot. He can get ideas. He can get intelligence. He can get muscle from them to try and drive his ideas through, outflank Cabinet secretaries, do all those kinds of things.”

Congress created the NSC through the National Security Act of 1947. The idea was to create a body within the White House to gather and study various viewpoints from the president’s cabinet and advisers, to be shared with the president. But critics charged that Bolton failed to live up to his “honest broker” role by limiting debate inside the government.

“You’re really doing it out of a love of your country, out of a sense of patriotism and out of a belief in the system. When that system isn’t necessarily working the way that it’s designed to work, that has to give you extra pause,” Cutz said. “Are you prepared to dedicate essentially your entire life to a system that isn’t going to actually respect you?”

Finding policy to fit Trump’s rhetoric

Several current and former officials described the challenge of coming up with policies that could match the president’s words.

They pointed to being pressed to find military options in Venezuela despite a near consensus among senior leaders of opposition to military action. They cited Trump’s lack of interest in intelligence information, particularly on Russia. And they also talked about Trump’s willingness to ignore advice from foreign policy professionals.

Others cited the president’s braggadocio and said his language and style haven’t helped secure foreign policy wins on trade or headed off Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

Many senior-level NSC staffers are trying “either to go overseas and to ride out the administration or to find jobs in the department that are detailed to other places,” said Brett Bruen, who served as the White House director of global engagement in the Obama administration and remains in contact with NSC and State Department officials. “Basically, anything that you can get to avoid having to be in a serious policy job, which is almost a 180 from the way those jobs were looked at beforehand.”

Some of the current and former officials interviewed for this story blame Bolton for installing too many political appointees and eliminating much of the coordination with other parts of the government. A request for a comment from Bolton was declined.

But others say even before Bolton became national security adviser, Trump had already undercut the NSC’s relevance in shaping policy positions, eschewing the advice of top officials in favor of his own gut instincts.

Last week, Trump said being national security adviser is an “easy job.”

“It’s a great job. It’s great because it’s a lot of fun to work with Donald Trump,” Trump said. “And it’s very easy, actually, to work with me. You know why it’s easy? Because I make all the decisions. They don’t have to work.”

After announcing on Wednesday that O’Brien would be his new national security adviser, Trump downplayed his previous comments, saying the position is “a very important role. It’s really a role that if the president respects the person that’s the adviser, I think it really plays an important role.”

The senior NSC official said the NSC continues to attract some of the most talented people in the federal government. Staffers seek to stay away from politics. He said they are proud of the work done in the Middle East, reducing tensions with North Korea and bringing home U.S. hostages from abroad.

“People come here because they believe in the policies they work on,” the official said. “It’s not a highly political place.”

Another senior administration official who wasn’t authorized to speak publicly dismissed the concerns and said the NSC sometimes asks for volunteers and sometimes it hand-picks candidates.

Other officials who worked with Bolton said that he’s wrongly being blamed as the main problem at the NSC — and that while Bolton curtailed coordination with other parts of the government, it eased the workload and he wasn’t personally difficult.

“He wasn’t some jerk or anything like that,” said one former NSC official. “He wasn’t tough on the staff. He was very nice to all of us. He was approachable.”

Tradition of service

Like in many parts of the federal government, there’s a long tradition at the NSC of top civil servants and Foreign Service officers being dedicated to carrying out the current administration’s priorities, regardless of which party is in power.

Former deputy national security adviser K.T. McFarland and former national security adviser Michael Flynn at Trump Tower in December 2016.

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Former deputy national security adviser K.T. McFarland and former national security adviser Michael Flynn at Trump Tower in December 2016.

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Several officials told NPR they joined the administration because they were asked to protect U.S. national interests. Some were worried about controversial figures like former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, his deputy, K.T. McFarland, and former NSC spokesman Michael Anton, who were part of the NSC in the first months of the Trump administration.

Flynn pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI. Before joining the Trump administration, McFarland’s most recent national security experience had been as a Fox News analyst. Anton was best known as a conservative polemicist with limited past foreign policy experience.

Several Foreign Service officers told NPR they struggled with other Trump administration policies that they had no role in shaping.

“You may not be working on putting kids in cages, but you can’t get away from it,” said a former White House official who served in the Trump administration until last year. “You are literally part of the administration responsible. And if you can’t compartmentalize, it’s a very difficult emotional cross to bear.”

Some turned to professional counseling for help as they wrestled over emotions of whether they were protecting U.S. interests or enabling bad behavior.

One veteran Foreign Service officer who served under multiple administrations, including the Trump administration, said there is now an unspoken belief among some top career officials that it’s important to preserve talent for future administrations by keeping them away from assignments too closely tied to the White House.

“You’ve got a really bright-eyed, bushy-tailed person, like somebody who you know can go far in this business — you’re not going to want them to get mowed down,” the Foreign Service officer said. “And you’re going to say, ‘They know we all live to serve. But it’s really important to be around to fight another day. And you are going to carry the institution going forward. So let’s go hide you.’ “

In the past, Park, the Foreign Service officer who resigned, said NSC jobs were so prestigious that many ambitious Foreign Service officers would make a bid for an opening even if they knew that they weren’t going to get it.

“This is the kind of position where people take selfies in the Oval Office or they hang pictures of themselves in the Situation Room and display it proudly behind their desk,” he said.

But that’s not the case anymore, he said.

Source Article from https://www.npr.org/2019/09/18/761200819/once-a-rocket-ship-national-security-council-now-avoided-by-government-pros

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Benny Gantz, both politically and personally, is the anti-Netanyahu – Los Angeles Times
Benny Gantz, both politically and personally, is the anti-Netanyahu – Los Angeles Times

For most Israelis, Benny Gantz remains a mystery.

The taciturn former army chief of staff and leader of the Blue and White party emerged onto the political scene six months ago and has done the seemingly impossible: bested Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the race to be assigned the difficult task of cobbling together a new Israeli government after inconclusive elections.

His top campaign promise was simple: At every rally and in every interview, Gantz, 60, promised he would not join a government that included Netanyahu, 69, who, after 10 years on the job, faces imminent indictments on a raft of corruption charges and who has used his position to attempt to pass laws that could grant him legal immunity.

Yet Gantz, 6 feet 2 with the deeply lined, craggy face of a man who is used to being outdoors and strikingly emerald blue eyes, has successfully presented himself to Israelis as something of an everyman, and thus a known quantity.

Born in southern Israel to Holocaust survivors, Gantz, an introvert who initially stumbled on the campaign trail, found his footing as the anti-Netanyahu candidate.


Whereas Netanyahu led a campaign of incitement, Gantz openly courted Arab and other minority votes. While Netanyahu sought his fifth term in office, Gantz’s platform includes the promise of term limits.

Though Israeli law does not prohibit a prime minister from serving while under indictment, it has never before happened.

In a radio interview on election day, Avi Nissenkorn, a former labor leader who holds the fifth spot on Gantz’s party list, said, “Netanyahu is not fit to serve under these conditions.”

Gantz has called for pursuing peace with the Palestinians while maintaining Israel’s security interests and has signaled his openness to future territorial concessions as part of a signed agreement.

Buoyed by Trump administration support, Netanyahu has vowed not to permit any Palestinian state to come into existence. Gantz, while campaigning, sidestepped the question of Palestinian statehood but did not rule it out.

But the two men may differ most in their ethos, in the public face they reveal.

For close to three decades, Israelis have been exposed, some say overexposed, to Netanyahu, his three marriages, his son and his wife, Sara, who was recently convicted of misuse of public funds.

In contrast, Gantz offers the humdrum. He has been married once, to Revital, a physiotherapist he met while serving in the paratroops, and they have four children who have not been part of their father’s race.

“His low-key style and relative ineloquence are for many a modest man’s refreshing antithesis to Netanyahu’s perceived bluster and soloism,” Amotz Asa-El, a research fellow at Jerusalem’s Shalom Hartman Institute, told the daily Haaretz in April, during the previous round of elections. “Gantz is seen as balanced, cautious and pragmatic.”

Tarnopolsky is a special correspondent.

Source Article from https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2019-09-18/benny-gantz-both-politically-and-personally-is-the-anti-netanyahu

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Additional Heavy Rainfall Forecast for Wednesday Night – Houston Press
Additional Heavy Rainfall Forecast for Wednesday Night – Houston Press

Heavy bands of rain continued to pound areas south of Houston Wednesday morning, some with rates of 4 and 5 inches per hour. Overnight, spots mainly south and east of Harris County got the worst of it, but as that lifts north throughout Wednesday, central Houston’s date with Imelda may be still to come.

Harris County’s rainfall totals over the last 24 hours have been wildly divergent with extreme southern parts of the county picking up 7 to 8 inches in places while northern and western parts saw only about a quarter inch. Inside the Loop saw totals of typically 2 to 3 inches, mostly during the overnight hours.

Tropical systems tend to do their greatest damage — in terms of rainfall — in the overnight and early morning hours. After landfall on Tuesday, rain bands slowly spread out across eastern and southern parts of southeast Texas throughout the afternoon and evening. Central Houston sat in the center of the doughnut.

But, the storm’s center of circulations (what’s left of it) is forecast to continue moving due north at around 7 mph for at least another 48 hours and, as it does, those bands that were closer to the coast will move farther inland.

The question is going to be where they ultimately set up and we just don’t know at this point, but it’s a safe bet much of the area including Harris County has one more round of heavy rain coming its way tonight.

Much like Tuesday night, areas east of Interstate 45 should continue to be the most vulnerable, but central Houston could see higher rainfall rates tonight than we saw overnight Tuesday. With the ground saturated, bayous will begin to rise quickly and certainly plenty of flash flooding will occur on area streets.

The worst of it will likely start late in the afternoon and continue through Wednesday night. By late in the morning Thursday, the storm should have lifted to our north and we can begin to dry out.

As has been pointed out by local officials, this isn’t Hurricane Harvey or even Tropical Storm Allison. We aren’t expecting widespread areas of 20-plus inches of rain. But, that doesn’t mean it won’t cause fairly significant street flooding or that certain bayous, already close to full (Armand Bayou, Turkey Creek, for example) might not come out of their banks with additional rainfall.

For Wednesday night anyway, if you can stay off the roads, do so. By Thursday morning, we should be in much better shape and the weekend appears to be sunny and dry.

Source Article from https://www.houstonpress.com/news/additional-heavy-rainfall-forecast-for-wednesday-night-11355365

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Police examining videos in search for 5-year-old Dulce Alavez after N.J. Amber alert – NJ.com
Police examining videos in search for 5-year-old Dulce Alavez after N.J. Amber alert – NJ.com

Police are reviewing surveillance camera footage showing vehicles that may be connected to the disappearance of a 5-year-old child from a South Jersey park.

It’s been 48 hours since Dulce Maria Alavez went missing from Bridgeton City Park on Monday evening.

Her mother, Noema Alavez, said the child disappeared while she was playing with her 3-year-old brother at a playground. The mother had remained in her car.

Investigators scoured the 1,000-acre park Monday night and all day Tuesday, including searches by air and in area waterways.

A statewide Amber Alert was then issued Tuesday night after a witness reported seeing a man leading the child to a van.

The suspect is described as a light-skinned, possibly Hispanic, male, roughly 5-foot-6-inches tall. He has a thin build, no facial hair and facial acne. He was wearing orange sneakers, red pants and a black shirt.

He led Dulce from the playground to a red van with a sliding side door and tinted windows and then drove away, according to the alert.

Bridgeton Police Chief Michael Gaimari said police are looking at everything.

Gallery: Authorities search Bridgeton City Park for missing 5-year-old girl, Sept. 17, 2019

“We don’t have any solid suspects,” he said during an impromptu Wednesday afternoon press conference at the park. “We’re investigating all of the possibilities.”

They are reviewing video surveillance from area schools, businesses and private homes. When asked if any video shows the van described in the alert, Gaimari didn’t answer directly.

“It shows vehicles that we are exploring,” he said. “It does give us some leads that we are exploring right now.”

Police are still looking for additional witnesses who may have information, and Gaimari expressed concern that the heavy media presence might scare off potential witnesses who visit the park.

The chlld’s mother said Wednesday morning that police believe her family was involved in the disappearance, which she denied.

“The police think our family did this,” she told NJ Advance Media. “They think I did something to her. I didn’t. I love my daughter. I would never do nothing bad to her.”

Gaimari acknowledged that difficult questions must be asked if they are going to find the missing child.

“Anytime that we have something like this … there’s a lot of reported child abductions that turn out to be family members or children that were involved in some type of custody dispute,” he said. “I’m not saying that’s the case here at all. However, it’s something that the police have to investigate.

“Sometimes tough questions have to be asked during an interview. People take offense to that because they feel you are implicating a family member or a significant other, but they’re just questions we have to clear up.”

The mother’s car was towed from the park Tuesday night for processing by investigators, Gaimari confirmed. “We wanted to make sure the car was free of any evidence or if there’s anything in there that we could use towards determining how this happened.”

Alavez told police she drove to the park Monday afternoon and let her daughter and her 3-year-old brother head off to a nearby playground while she remained in the car with an 8-year-old relative. The playground is about 30 yards from the parking area, police estimated.

Ten minutes later, the 3-year-old ran back to the car crying and pointing to the area where he said he last saw his sister, which included some storage buildings near the playground.

Alavez said she searched for Dulce for 10 to 15 minutes, before calling her brother for help and ultimately notifying police shortly before 5 p.m.

One of the images police have shared of the child is security camera footage from a convenience store where the family stopped to get ice cream before heading to the park.

Alavez said she just wants the kidnapper “to return her back and stop making her family suffer so much,” she said.

Dulce is approximately 3 feet tall with brown eyes and brown hair. She was last seen wearing a yellow shirt with a picture of an elephant, black and white pants and white shoes.

Dulce’s father is in Mexico, Alavez said, and she hasn’t been in touch with him. He still has family in the Bridgeton area, though, and they notified him of the child’s disappearance, she said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the State Police Missing Persons Unit at 609-882-2000, ext. 2857 or the Bridgeton police 856-451-0033.

Asked if parents should be fearful of taking their kids to the park, Gaimari said the park is a safe place.

“We’ve never had any incident like that up here,” he said. “To be honest with you, I think parents should be cognizant of taking their children that age anywhere if they are going to leave them unattended. I wouldn’t be fearful at all of taking children up here as long as you supervise them.”

Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattGraySJT. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Source Article from https://www.nj.com/cumberland/2019/09/police-examining-videos-in-search-for-van-tied-to-5-year-old-dulce-alavez-disappearance.html

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Trump axes California’s right to set own auto emissions standards – NBC News
Trump axes California’s right to set own auto emissions standards – NBC News

President Donald Trump on Wednesday barred California from setting its own vehicle emissions standards, kicking off a battle that is likely to last well beyond the 2020 presidential election.

“The Trump Administration is revoking California’s Federal Waiver on emissions in order to produce far less expensive cars for the consumer, while at the same time making the cars substantially SAFER,” Trump tweeted Wednesday morning, noting that the move will lead to “older, highly polluting cars” being replaced by “new, extremely environmentally friendly cars.”

The widely anticipated move comes as the White House also prepares to roll back the strict Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards set under President Barack Obama. Using its authority to set emissions targets, California had set even tougher standards that effectively required the auto industry to begin rolling out fleets of zero-emissions vehicles, including plug-in hybrids, pure battery-electric vehicles and hydrogen-powered cars.

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California has already filed legal efforts to forestall such a move and has been joined by other states that have adopted the stricter California mandates.

“There will be very little difference in emissions between the California Standard and the new U.S. Standard, but the cars will be far safer and much less expensive.” Trump wrote. “Many more cars will be produced under the new and uniform standard, meaning significantly more JOBS, JOBS, JOBS! Automakers should seize this opportunity because without this alternative to California, you will be out of business.”

California originally was granted authority to set tougher standards as an acknowledgment of the poor air quality in cities such as Los Angeles. Responding to reports that the White House was preparing to follow through on plans to eliminate that waiver, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a statement warning the move “could have devastating consequences for our kids’ health and the air we breathe, if California were to roll over.”

The administration is engaged in a “witch hunt against California and carmakers,” said the Union of Concerned Scientists, a nonprofit advocacy group, picking up a phrase that Trump often applied to the Mueller investigation into possible collusion with the Russians.

Earlier this month, the Justice Department announced an antitrust investigation into the deal reached with California regulators by four automakers — Ford, VW, Honda and BMW — that would have them hold to stricter emissions and mileage standards than the Trump administration is expected to set under the revised CAFE mandate.

The president directly attacked the July deal with California, issuing a tweet that said, “Henry Ford would be very disappointed if he saw his modern-day descendants wanting to build a much more expensive car, that is far less safe and doesn’t work as well, because execs don’t want to fight California regulators.”

The Environmental Protection Agency, one of the two agencies charged with regulating federal mileage standards, initially derided the agreement between the automakers and the California Air Resources Board as a “PR stunt.”

On Tuesday, EPA spokesman Michael Abboud criticized it again, insisting it “does nothing to further the one national standard that will provide certainty and relief for American consumers.” Abboud also claimed that California regulators “continually refused” to work with the White House to reach a “common sense solution.”

The debate over the current federal fuel economy standards dates back to well before the 2016 elections. While the auto industry reached a compromise early on with the Obama administration setting a target of 54.5 miles per gallon for 2025, the deal called for a “mid-term review” that would explore whether the target remained feasible. With the rapid shift from passenger cars to less fuel-efficient pickups and utility vehicles, a number of automakers began pressing for a rollback, a request the outgoing administration rejected.

Initially, some of those manufacturers supported the Trump administration’s plan to stage its own analysis. But the preliminary revision jointly revealed by the EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration last year went well beyond what was expected, and received little industry support.

In June, 17 automakers sent a letter to the White House urging the White House not to pull back as far as had been proposed on CAFE.

A number of surveys, including one by the non-profit Consumers Union, have found strong public support for increased fuel economy goals. In recent days, administration sources have indicated that the final CAFE revisions will see less of a rollback than as outlined in 2018.

“While the White House clings to the past, automakers and American families embrace cleaner cars. The evidence is irrefutable: today’s clean car standards are achievable, science-based, and a boon for hardworking American families and public health,” California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement Tuesday.

While the industry has shown support for mileage increases, a number of carmakers are more supportive of eliminating the California waiver, arguing that there should just be one fuel economy and auto emissions target nationwide. The agreement the four automakers struck with California in July saw the state compromise, but only slightly. The deal would essentially see the Obama-era emissions and mileage rules pushed back by just one year.

Source Article from https://www.nbcnews.com/business/autos/trump-about-strip-california-its-right-overrule-emissions-regulations-n1055811

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Trump and California See Same Homeless Problem, but Not the Same Solutions – The New York Times
Trump and California See Same Homeless Problem, but Not the Same Solutions – The New York Times

Mr. Carson noted to reporters that the run-down public housing towers of old had given government housing a bad reputation, that people should not stigmatize public housing, that landlords should not discriminate against Section 8 voucher holders and that rampant not-in-my-backyard — or NIMBY — sentiment has impeded affordable housing and higher-density apartment construction near transit.

“We do want to create societies where policemen and firemen and nurses can work and then live in the same community,” he said. “But one of the big problems, and nobody wants to talk about it, is NIMBYism. Not in my backyard. O.K. to do it over here, but don’t come anywhere near me.”

Those are roughly the same talking points that California Democrats have been using for years. Last year, Mr. Wiener introduced a bill that would essentially seize zoning control from localities and make it harder to stop higher-density projects near rail stations. California cities and the State Legislature have passed laws banning Section 8 discrimination. Mr. Newsom campaigned on a plan to build 3.5 million homes by 2025, but has acknowledged this is a far-off goal that has zero chance of happening without major regulatory reforms.

Yet as Mr. Carson spoke, protesters chanted, “Trump and Carson, it’s no lie, you’re the reason we sleep outside,” while a woman dressed as Super Girl lamented the presence of a Trump administration official in her city.

Some of this is pure partisanship. California has become a useful foil to Mr. Trump, and any sign of agreement with him could be seen as a political liability. The state’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra, has filed 59 lawsuits against the Trump administration, on issues like immigration, health care and environment policy. Its Legislature has tried to counter the president on environmental regulations, climate change and labor policy, and its governor is a determined member of the “resistance.”

Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/17/us/politics/trump-california-homeless.html

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What to make of Trump’s new national security adviser – Washington Examiner
What to make of Trump’s new national security adviser – Washington Examiner

Three factors suggest President Trump has chosen well in selecting Robert O’Brien to replace John Bolton as national security adviser — with one caveat.

On the positive side, as shown by Trump’s warm announcement of his selection on Twitter, O’Brien retains Trump’s trust. This is the most crucial ingredient to working effectively with Trump. Ivanka Trump, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and CIA Director Gina Haspel have mastered this trust-effect calculation. They are able to give Trump honest assessments, even when those assessments conflict with Trump’s impulses. But they are able to do so because they don’t undercut the president in public or private and because they know when to shut up.

Second, O’Brien is a civilian with a strong background in foreign policy. As the president’s special envoy for hostage affairs, O’Brien has 16 months’ experience managing high-level and shadowy negotiations. While the media is obsessing over O’Brien’s role in securing rapper A$AP Rocky’s release from a Swedish prison earlier this year, it is likely O’Brien’s close engagement with North Korea and Iran that attracted Trump most to him. There’s a stark contrast here between O’Brien’s deal-with-difficult-nations mentality and John Bolton’s deep skepticism at Trump’s outside-the-box negotiating style.

O’Brien also recognizes the importance of American leadership matched to effective alliances. His 2016 book, While America Slept, speaks to these themes. That’s a good thing. While Trump is absolutely right to push NATO allies hard on their failure to even approach defense expenditures close to U.S. spending as a percentage of GDP, we need allies to deal with major international challenges, especially China.

Yet O’Brien does have one scratch against his name: his increasing enjoyment of the limelight. I’m reliably informed that O’Brien sometimes strayed out of the hostage negotiating area and made ill-advised remarks on some sensitive issues. While O’Brien’s focus is now necessarily much broader, he’ll quickly find himself out of favor if he says things that undercut Trump’s stated position or policy priorities. This, admittedly, is a difficult balancing act with a president as prone to opinion changes as Trump, but it is a necessity.

All in all, however, O’Brien is a good choice for national security adviser.

Source Article from https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/robert-obrien-what-to-make-of-trumps-new-national-security-adviser

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