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American troll farm: Outrage on Capitol Hill over 'completely unacceptable' US-funded scheme to shape Iran debate

Negar Mortazavi and Borzou Daragahi
Independent
Thu, 13 Jun 2019 00:01 UTC
Morgan Ortagus

'This is something that happens in authoritarian regimes, not democracies'

United States officials say they are outraged by a government-funded troll campaign that has targeted American citizens critical of the administration's hardline Iran policy and accused critics of being loyal to the Tehran regime.

State Department officials admitted to Congressional staff in a closed-door meeting on Monday that a project they had funded to counter Iranian propaganda had gone off the rails. Critics in Washington have gone further, saying that the programme resembled the type of troll farms used by autocratic regimes abroad.

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Attention

The Clash of Civilizations

James Corbett
Corbett Report
Sat, 15 Jun 2019 01:59 UTC
Clash of Civilizations
© Corbett Report
Readers will recall that last week's edition of this column ended on something of an intellectual puzzler. To wit: If the Tiananmen Square Massacre narrative that is routinely used to demonize the Chinese government on the world stage is demonstrably wrong (even by the admission of US diplomats and BBC reporters), then why doesn't the Chinese government say something?

As I concluded in "The Truth About Tiananmen":
"This type of silence in the face of attack is unfathomable to the Western mind. When someone is spreading rumors and easily debunkable lies about you, you speak up. You set the record straight. You fight back. You do something . . . don't you?"
Well, perhaps one key to unlocking this mystery is in the stipulation: The Western mind. We all understand that silence is consent and that anyone who remains silent in the face of accusations is thereby tacitly admitting to their guilt, right? But who is "we"? Does our shared understanding of the meaning of silence come from a specific cultural heritage? And if so, what is the shared understanding of the meaning of silence for the Chinese?

As it turns out, Asian cultures generally (and Chinese culture specifically) do have a very different perception of the meaning of silence. You can go all the way back to Lao Tzu and the Tao Te Ching for confirmation that, to the Chinese mind, silence is not a sign of guilt or weakness but, on the contrary, "Silence is a source of great strength."

This is not a trivial observation. In fact, it gets to the heart of one of the problems facing the would-be warriors of the new trade war between the US and China. Unlike other rivalries (economic, geopolitical or otherwise) that we can think of in the past-the rivalry between the British Empire and the Germans that formed part of the justification for The WWI Conspiracy, for instance-we are not facing a competition between two powers who share religious, ethnic, linguistic or cultural roots, but two powers who are completely separated in all those respects.
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Snakes in Suits

As east and west cooperation emerges, Martin Luther King's assassins try killing him again

Matthew Ehret
Strategic Culture
Sun, 02 Jun 2019 22:35 UTC
martin luther king
© Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS
Martin Luther King delivers his famous "I Have a Dream" speech from the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963
A new assassination is now being attempted 51 years after the life of Martin Luther King was cut short by a bullet on the balcony of the Loraine Motel on April 4, 1968. A story has gone viral across the international media in recent days which promises to shed light on the dark perversity of Martin Luther King Jr.

The scandal was featured in the June edition of Standpoint magazine by internationally renowned Martin Luther King "authority" David Garrow and aimed at destroying the myth of King as a moral leader of America by showcasing the ugliness of King's true self as a an orgy-loving abuser who had over 40 affairs and laughed as a friend raped a parishioner. Garrow states that his expose "poses so fundamental a challenge to his historical stature as to require the most complete and extensive historical review possible."

The fact that so many news outlets are jumping on the bandwagon should cause one to wonder why is this happening at this moment in history? Could this strange hysteria over a mediocre slander piece have anything to do with the fact that the polarized cages of left and right are finally breaking down? Could it have anything to do with the fact that as America comes closer to a potential alliance with Russia and China, an era of cooperation and economic justice may awaken something within the collective psyche of Americans which many had thought was long dead?
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Passport

All illegal immigrants 'should be worried, no population off the table' - Trump's new border czar

Paul Bedard
Washington Examiner
Fri, 14 Jun 2019 20:21 UTC
ICE arrests oakland CA Feb 2018

Roughly half of those arrested by deportation officers have convictions for assault and battery, crimes against children, weapons charges and DUI.
President Trump's pick to be the nation's first-ever "border czar" is a longtime former cop and immigration official who takes a hard line on illegal crossings.

Former acting ICE Director Thomas Homan told Secrets early in the Trump administration, for example, that he views every unauthorized border crossing as a crime that can and should be punished.

"If you are in this country illegally, and you committed a crime by entering this country, you should be uncomfortable, you should look over your shoulder, and you need to be worried," Homan told Secrets.

Comment: Fox News reports on another angle on tackling the border crisis:
Sponsors of legal immigrants to the United States received word Friday that they'll be on the hook "for every dollar" if those immigrants end up receiving welfare funds or other public support instead of earning a living and paying taxes.
Ken Cuccinelli Immigration services
© Associated Press
Ken Cuccinelli, a former Virginia state attorney general, is now acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
The message came Ken Cuccinelli, a former Virginia state attorney general who last week became acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) following his appointment by President Trump.

"If the sponsored immigrant receives any federal means-tested public benefits, the sponsor will be expected to reimburse the benefits-granting agency for every dollar of benefits received by the immigrant," Cuccinelli wrote in a USCIS memo.

In addition, the same message instructed agents who work for USCIS to remind applicants and sponsors that "the Affidavit of Support is a legal and enforceable contract between the sponsor and the federal government."

According to Cuccinelli, all federal agencies dealing with immigration issues will be working to update or initiate procedures and regulations to make sure that immigrants who are ineligible for public benefits do not receive them, in accordance with a May 23 directive from the president.

"The President has made it a priority to ensure that every individual who seeks to come to the United States is self-sufficient, temporarily or permanently," Cuccinelli wrote. "The principle of self-sufficiency has been enshrined in our immigration laws since the 1800s, and we as an agency must ensure that immigrants who become part of this great country abide by this principle."

Cuccinelli took over at USCIS last Monday, coming to the job with a reputation as a hardliner on immigration issues. For example, he has been an advocate for denying citizenship to American-born children of parents living in the U.S. illegally and for limiting in-state tuition at public universities to citizens or legal residents.

He replaced Lee Francis Cissna, who reportedly had lost President Trump's confidence.


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Brain

How the deep state controls deep thinking and Russiaphobia

Phil Butler
New Eastern Outlook
Sun, 16 Jun 2019 00:00 UTC
Putin composite
© Business Insider
Attitude defines perception for the clueless
As citizens interested in policy, we can learn a great deal from the quasi-academic studies on Russian foreign relations strategies. A cursory review of any English language archive of academic papers on Putin, Russia, or even the word "oligarch" will produce a score of experts with doctorates who "know" exactly what Russia and her president are "up to." My latest excursion into the knowledge vault at Academia.edu may be the benchmark for all future Russophobic genius.

In a white paper entitled "Putin's Grand Strategy and US National Interests", Dr. Christopher Marsh just comes right out and calls Russia a bunch of criminals led by an archvillain. From my perspective as an American citizen who actually studied Russia-US policy and detente objectively, it's discomforting to know the military and our military industrial complex hold this dangerous attitude. I'll explain why.
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Arrow Down

Trump: 'London needs new mayor...Khan is a disaster'


AFP
Sun, 16 Jun 2019 00:00 UTC
Trump/Khan
© Galadari Printing & Publishing LLC
US President Donald Trump • London Mayor Sadiq Khan
US President Donald Trump launched a fresh attack Saturday on London Mayor Sadiq Khan, backing a right-wing British columnist who has been widely accused of Islamophobia and once called migrants "cockroaches."

Trump attached his latest denunciation of the mayor to a retweet by Katie Hopkins about crime in "Khan's Londonistan" - using a term widely perceived as a pejorative reference to the British capital's Muslim population and Khan's Pakistan ancestry.

"LONDON needs a new mayor ASAP. Khan is a disaster - will only get worse!" Trump wrote in response to Hopkins' tweet, later adding the mayor was "a national disgrace who is destroying" the city.

Earlier this month the president's plane had not even touched down in London for the start of a state visit when he tweeted that Khan was a "stone cold loser."

Khan had criticized the red carpet treatment being given Trump for the visit.


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Target

Kremlin: US attacks on Iran compare to 'white powder evidence' against Iraq in 2003


RT
Sun, 16 Jun 2019 14:19 UTC
Foot on face
© Unknown
The next step: Iran
The US campaign for a war against Iraq in 2003 serves as a cautionary tale against saber-rattling and finger-pointing amid current tensions in the Persian Gulf, the Kremlin's spokesperson has said.

"We didn't forget the vials with white powder. We remember and, therefore, have learnt to show restraint in our assessments," Dmitry Peskov said on a TV show aired on 'Rossiya 1' channel on Sunday.

He was referring to a famous scene at the UN Security Council in the months leading up to the Iraq War. Attempting to justify the upcoming US invasion of the Middle Eastern country, then-secretary of state, Colin Powell, brandished a vial with white powder meant to illustrate the dangers of anthrax, which the US were accusing Saddam Hussein of stockpiling.

The allegations of Iraq possessing anthrax and other weapons of mass destruction were proven to be untrue, but only after Washington launched an invasion, toppling the government in Baghdad.
Colin Powell
© Reuters
Colin Powell, February 5, 2003.

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UFO

The truth's not out there? Trump was briefed on UFOs he doesn't believe exist


RT
Sun, 16 Jun 2019 18:43 UTC
Trump and spaceguy
© Carlos Barria/Reuters
In a new twist that will either douse a million conspiracy theories or ignite twice as many new ones, President Donald Trump has said he's met with officials about UFOs, but also that he doesn't "particularly" believe in them.

Speaking to ABC's George Stephanopoulos, Trump revealed that he has been briefed by the military on UFO sightings. "I've seen, and I've read, and I've heard. And I did have one very brief meeting on it. But people are saying they're seeing UFOs. Do I believe it? Not particularly."

Stephanopoulos pressed on, asking Trump if he thought he'd be informed if there was indeed extraterrestrial life out there. "Well, I think my great pilots would know. Our great pilots would know," Trump responded. "They see things a little bit different from the past. So we're going to see. We're watching and you'll be the first to know."

Have the Men in Black gotten to Trump? Does the swamp have him? Who knows. Despite the president's disinterest, the US military has been keeping tabs on the skies of late. After a rise in reports, the Navy recently set new guidelines for reporting "unidentified aircraft" entering US aerospace, ensuring all sightings get the proper scrutiny.


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Arrow Down

Despite commitments, Iran to roll back its JCPOA obligations unless situation changes


Sputnik
Sat, 15 Jun 2019 20:00 UTC
Rouhani and Nuke Tech
© AFP/HO/Iranian Presidency
Iranian President Rouhani and Iranian nuclear technology experts led by Ali Akbar Salehi
Following the US unilateral withdrawal from the deal, other signatories to it have vowed to continue adhering to the agreement. However, Tehran has voiced displeasure at how these countries are living up to their promises and has therefore reportedly suspended some of its commitments under the nuclear deal.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has warned that Tehran will continue backtracking on its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran nuclear deal, if other signatories do not send some "positive signals" in terms of protecting the Iranian economy from the unilateral American sanctions.

"Obviously, Iran cannot stick to this agreement unilaterally. It is necessary that all the sides of this agreement contribute to restoring it", Rouhani said.

The Iranian president didn't specify what Tehran's next steps would be if the remaining signatories do not take action.

Comment: See also:
Iran can't be the only one to implement nuclear deal while others sit idle - Rouhani

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Star of David

Sara Netanyahu, convicted of misusing state funds, claims she's 'suffered enough'


Times of Israel
Sun, 16 Jun 2019 12:15 UTC
Sara Netanyahu/Yossi Cohen
© Debbie Hill/AFP
Sara Netanyahu, wife of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and her lawyer Yossi Cohen wait for the judge to arrive at the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court on June 16, 2019.
PM's wife admits to lesser offense in plea deal that dropped original fraud charge over her illegal ordering of catered meals to the PM's Residence; will pay $15,000 to state.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's wife, Sara, was convicted Sunday of taking unfair advantage of a mistake, after earlier confessing to the offense as part of a plea deal signed last week in a case involving allegations of illegally procured catering services at the Prime Minister's Residence.

"Indeed, the defendant misused public funds," judge Avital Chen said in announcing the verdict, while admitting the case for the prosecution had not been smooth. He noted Netanyahu's lack of previous convictions and the fact that she had "taken responsibility and saved a lot of precious judicial time."

After the verdict was announced, Netanyahu told the judge: "I have suffered enough."

The agreement saw Netanyahu escape a conviction of aggravated fraud, but confess to the lesser charge. She will pay NIS 55,000 ($15,210) - NIS 10,000 as a fine, and the rest as restitution.

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