Leid Stories – No Defense Is An Offense: The People Are Left to Fend for Themselves Against Corruption, Imminent Fascism—11.21.16

Trump World is here, and it’s not pretty. The president-elect is shaping up his Cabinet, selecting as nominees careerists mostly of a military/national security/law-enforcement/ultraconservative/super Christian/racist bent, most of them stodgy white men who, like their patron, yearn to implement policies that will “make America great again.” That was/is dog-whistle talk from Donald Trump signaling his base of support that their objects of rage and derision would also be his; his will be a term of settling scores.

Deirdre Fulton – There’s No Normalizing President-Elect Trump (Or at Least, There Shouldn’t Be)

From penning puff pieces to “pivoting to ‘Trump as our kooky uncle’” to glossing over his promotion of white nationalist Steve Bannon, the media is helping to normalize President-elect Donald Trump, critics charged this week. It was a trend that began during the campaign, FAIR’s Adam Johnson wrote on Sunday, and it has only accelerated since the election. “Oprah Winfrey, …

JAMES KITFIELD – The Knowns and Unknowns of Donald Trump’s Foreign Policy

By the time modern American presidents receive the keys to the White House, learn the identities of intelligence assets around the world, and obtain the nuclear-weapons codes, they have traditionally been well-defined, both by their long careers in public service and by an arduous election campaign. Their positions have been anchored to a coherent worldview and governing philosophy. Their character …

BEN WHITE – Bankers celebrate dawn of Trump era

NEW YORK — Christmas has arrived early for Wall Street in the early days of the Donald Trump era. A populist candidate who railed against shady financial interests on the campaign trail is now putting together an administration that looks like an investment banker’s dream. Former Goldman Sachs banker Steven Mnuchin has been seen at Trump Tower amid rumors that …

Hamish McRae – What would the US economy really look like under President Donald Trump?

Could President Donald Trump deliver on his promises? The problem – and this applies to all presidential candidates – is that the economic levers that a president can pull are much weaker than in other western democracies. There are two reasons for this. First, the system is designed that way, with its checks and balances. As far as the budget …

Prof. John McMurtry – Joining the Dots: Why the Establishment Hates Donald Trump

On the face of it, Trump is Reagan on steroids. His towering size, his nativist US supremacism, his down-home talk, and  his reality-show confidence make him ideal for the role of bullying and big lies from the oval office.  He is America come to meet itself in larger-than-life image to rejuvenate it as its pride slips away in third-world conditions …

Greg Maybury – Hillary Clinton’s ‘House of Cards’

For “House of Cards” fans who can’t get enough of fictional President Frank Underwood and his First Lady Claire, it must be tempting to view Bill and Hillary Clinton as their real-life political doppelgangers. Certainly there’s fertile ground for those seeking parallels between the main protagonists of this quintessential political soap opera, and our more flesh and blood “heroes.” Like …

Michael Sainato – The Troubling Friendship of Hillary Clinton and George W. Bush

A photo of Hillary Clinton and George W. Bush smiling in embrace recently surfaced at former first lady Nancy Reagan’s funeral. The image gives light to the intimate relationship between the Bush and Clinton families—particularly that of Hillary and George W. In the most recent Democratic town hall on MSNBC, Ms. Clinton told Chris Matthews her vote for the Iraq War—a manifestation of the Bush administration—was born from her agreement with George …

John Feffer – Obama: The Fairy-Tale President?

In fairy tales, the hero makes a wish. After a few trials the wish comes true, and everyone lives happily ever after. But only in this Disney version of fairy tales is wish fulfillment so straightforward. In Goethe’s modern fairy tale, a scholar dreams of knowledge and power. A stranger grants his wish, but the ambitious Faust must pledge his …

Clinton Challenged to Break Up—and Break Up With—Wall Street Banks – Lauren McCauley

Faced with the possibility of yet another Wall Street crony taking over the Oval Office next year, progressive lawmakers are directly challenging Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton to break up—and break up with—the big banks. Speaking at an annual meeting for progressive organizers and advocacy groups on Friday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called on presidential hopefuls to support recently introduced legislation that would stem …