Section: AlterNet (USA)
Trump’s Organized Crime Ties Bring Blackmail to the White House
Says one former business partner, “The headline will be ‘The Kazakh Gangster and President Trump.'” The words were positively polite, at least for a man convicted of assault and racketeering. It was the implied target of his blackmail threat that was unusual: the president of the United States.The threat came from Felix Sater, a...
Is the Deep State Our Only Control Over Trump?
When you actually try to govern, reality has a way of pushing back. Who knew? This article originally appeared at The Huffington Post.A funny thing happened to Donald Trump in recent weeks. He had an encounter with reality—and reality won. It is one thing to dwell in your own reality during the campaign and to persuade your true believers that...
Trump Has Deep Links to Organized Crime—Federal Investigators Know It, and the Public Is Catching Up
As Trump built his empire, he attracted a criminal element whose ties still bind. As President Trump discovers the prerogative of unilaterally making war, the media gaze has turned away from the ongoing FBI, House and Senate investigation of his Russia ties to the simpler dramas of cruise missiles, big bombs, and tough but loose talk on North...
Trump Has a Thing for Despots: The President Can’t Hide His Admiration for the Likes of Putin and el-Sisi
Angela Merkel isn’t worth his time, but the leader of a murderous coup gets a warm White House reception. Whenever I hear someone on the cable gabfests say that President Trump is an isolationist I have to wonder if they’ve ever actually listened to anything the man says. It’s true he claimed to have been against military action...
Trump Has a Thing for Despots: The President Can’t Hide His Admiration for Authoritarians
Angela Merkel isn’t worth his time, but the leader of a murderous coup gets a warm White House reception. Whenever I hear someone on the cable gabfests say that President Trump is an isolationist I have to wonder if they’ve ever actually listened to anything the man says. It’s true he claimed to have been against military action...
Chomsky: Why Trump Is Pushing the Doomsday Clock to the Brink of Midnight
Click here for reuse options! Noam Chomsky discussed Trump, Russia, history and the future at the University of Arizona. The following is an transcript of a recent public interview at the University of Arizona with linguist and political commentator Noam Chomsky by Dr. David N. Gibbs. David Gibbs: The main issue on everyone’s minds is the...
It’s Not Just Trump: A Toxic Right-Wing Nationalism Is Rising Across the Planet
Around the world, a new generation of nationalist leaders have suddenly emerged from the margins to win power. In 2016, something extraordinary happened in the politics of diverse countries around the world. With surprising speed and simultaneity, a new generation of populist leaders emerged from the margins of nominally democratic nations to win...
The Global Right Wing Grows: Marine Le Pen Meets and Expresses Admiration for Putin
The international far right celebrates a milestone meeting. The international web of far right politicians includes the likes of President Donald Trump in the United States, MEP Nigel Farage in the United Kingdom, President Vladimir Putin in Russia and an aspiring president — Marine Le Pen in France.As if to solidify her status as part of a...
Trump’s Russia Ties a Full-Blown Crisis for U.S. Democracy
If there has ever been a need for a select committee and an independent prosecutor, that time is now. If the United States Congress were doing its job, right now nearly all business before the House and Senate would grind to a halt as leaders addressed a rapidly-unfolding crisis: whether the current administration is acting in the interests of...
Fox News Sheriff’s NRA Trip to Moscow Is Raising Eyebrows on the House Intel Committee
Click here for reuse options! A new report finds David Clarke met with a Putin deputy in late 2015. The National Rifle Association — one of Donald Trump’s strongest campaign backers — sent a delegation to Moscow in late 2015 to meet with a Vladimir Putin deputy who believes Alaska rightfully belongs to Russia.Meeting with Dmitry Rogozin —...
