Section: POLITICO – U.S. Edition (USA)
Russia to close American school, warns of further actions, in wake of U.S. sanctions
Russian authorities on Thursday announced the closure of the Anglo-American School of Moscow, hours after the Kremlin vowed to retaliate against recent U.S. sanctions. The non-profit day school, which enrolls international students from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, will be closed along with the U.S. embassy vacation dacha in Serebryany...
U.S. sidelined as Putin calls the shots on Syria cease-fire
President Barack Obama’s administration tried for months to broker a durable cease-fire in blood-soaked Syria, practically begging Russia to come to terms but ruling out the possibility of using U.S. military force against the Syrian regime to back up its diplomatic pressure.Early Friday, a truce was set to take hold in Syria, but the...
Trump says he’ll meet with intel community on Russian cyberattacks
President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday he will meet next week with leaders of the intelligence community “to be updated on the facts” of alleged Russian cyberattacks against the U.S. during its presidential election.“It’s time for our country to move on to bigger and better things,” he said in a statement. “Nevertheless, in...
Obama’s Russia sanctions put Hill Republicans in a box
President Barack Obama’s 11th-hour Russia sanctions present a big test for congressional Republicans, who are torn between decades-old GOP principles and their new standard bearer’s unorthodox embrace of Russian President Vladimir Putin.Democrats are already seeking to exploit this rift, drafting legislation designed to make it harder...
White House sanctions Russia over election hacks
In one of its final moves to keep Russia at bay and secure America from digital intruders, the Obama administration on Thursday slapped Moscow with a round of sanctions over its alleged election-season hacks.The punishments hits several Russian individuals and entities, including the country’s primary security services, known as the FSB,...
McCain and Graham: U.S. needs to hit Russia hard for election hacking
Republican Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham called Wednesday for Congress to take a tougher stance against Russia for meddling in the U.S. presidential election. In an interview on Fox News from Latvia, where he and Graham were touring the Baltic states, McCain said legislators should “increase the sanctions on Russia for this misbehavior”...
How Rex Tillerson got his lesson on Iraq
In 2013, Rex Tillerson flew to Baghdad for a rescue mission: to save Exxon Mobil’s access to some of the world’s largest deposits of oil.That trip to meet then-Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki came more than a year after the Exxon CEO had enraged Baghdad by signing a deal with the Kurdish regional government to drill in the...
NEW BUZZ about the 6 p.m. MSNBC slot — 14-0 vote against Israel; Trump vows CHANGE — ASSANGE on Trump — WEEKEND READS — ROB SALITERMAN engaged — B’DAY: Dan Pfeiffer
Good Saturday morning, Merry Christmas Eve and Happy Hannukah!ONE BUZZY IDEA bouncing around Washington and New York journalism circles is for MSNBC to hire Greta Van Susteren for its 6 p.m. hour. Van Susteren, who left Fox earlier this year, would bring gravitas to the anchor desk and a massive online following. Van Susteren told us in September...
Gingrich mocks Russia over Israel vote
In a jab at Russia that could also be taken as one against President-elect Donald Trump, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich mocked Russia for its vote Friday in the U.N. Security Council.”So Russia having illegally occupied Crimea and eastern Ukraine votes to condemn Israel for “occupied lands.” We are supposed to be...
Kissinger, a longtime Putin confidant, sidles up to Trump
Back in the 1990s, Henry Kissinger, the legendary former U.S. secretary of state-turned-global consultant, encountered an intriguing young Russian and proceeded to ask him a litany of questions about his background.“I worked in intelligence,” Vladimir Putin finally told him, according to “First Person,” a 2000 autobiography cobbled together from...
