Trump gives rambling defense of withdrawal from Syria
8.10.19 David Knowles EditorYahoo Newsâ˘Trump says U.S. troops are ânot fighting, just thereâ in Syria Facing almost unprecedented criticism from members of his own party, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, over pulling U.S. troops from Syria, President Trump offered a rambling defense of his stunning reversal of long-standing American policy. âWe interject ourselves into wars and we interject ourselves in to tribal wars and revolutions and all these things that are very â theyâre not the kind of things that you settle the way that weâd like to see it settled. It just doesnât work that way. Hopefully, it will all be very strong and strongly done. Weâre spending tremendous amounts of money,â Trump told reporters gathered at the White House who attended the signing of a new trade agreement with Japan.Since the reconquest of the ISIS âcaliphateâ in Syria and Iraq, America has kept a small force in northern Syria, protecting its Kurdish allies, who did much of the fighting against ISIS. The Kurdish presence is an irritant to neighboring Turkey, which regards them as potential insurgents. The Kurds have long sought an independent state that would span parts of Iraq and Turkey.Trump reportedly settled on the move in a late-Sunday phone call with Turkish President Recep Erdogan, and by Monday morning there were reports that American soldiers were leaving their positions in Syria, while Turkey was launching a long-planned incursion into Syria to clear out Kurdish fighters, which analysts said could further destabilize the region.Trump told reporters there were only â50 soldiers in the area youâre talking about.â There are reportedly about 1,000 U.S. troops in various parts of Syria altogether.Trump campaigned in part on a pledge to reduce American military commitments abroad, but his critics questioned why the effort had to begin with a token contingent that, by Trumpâs own description, wasnât actually engaged in combat.âI can tell you that the two countries that are the most disappointed that weâre leaving are China and Russia, because they love that weâre bogged down and just watching and spending tremendous amounts of money, instead of continuing to build our forces. We have tremendous amounts of weapons under development now. We have weapons that no one can even believe, weâre going to be making some stops over the next four or five weeks, some we show, some we donât show. But weâve rebuilt our nuclear, weâve renovated and rebuilt nuclear. Weâre building submarines the likes of which theyâve never been even thought of before, the genius of them. Hopefully and hope to God we never have to use them, but we are doing what we have to do, but weâve been there for many years, long, many, many, many years beyond what we were supposed to be. Not fighting, just there.â
White House ‘surprised that anyone would be blindsided’ by U.S. withdrawal from northern Syria Hunter Walker White House CorrespondentYahoo Newsâ˘Trump says U.S. troops are ânot fighting, just thereâ in SyriaScroll back up to restore default view.Trump says U.S. troops are ânot fighting, just thereâ in SyriaPresident Trump responds to criticism of withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria by saying they are ânot fighting, just thereâ in the country.WASHINGTON â President Trumpâs decision to pull U.S. troops out of northern Syria has led to criticism from Republicans and U.S. allies who say it could endanger the local Kurdish population and boost the Islamic State group. A senior administration official held a call with reporters on Monday evening to explain Trumpâs rationale. The official, who the White House asked to have remain anonymous, dismissed a Fox News report that the Pentagon was âblindsidedâ by the pullout.âThat surprises me that anyone would say that, because this is something that was discussed among senior leadership here at the White House, the State Department and the Pentagon,â the official said when asked about it on the call. âI donât know how anyone could have been blindsided.âAsked who in government Trump consulted about the withdrawal and which officials agreed with the decision, the official declined to provide any specific names.âIâm not going to get into each and every one of the people that the president discussed these issues with, but he discussed them with his senior advisers in … defense, diplomatic and … his staff here at the White House,â the official said.Following the Fox News report, NBC News also reported top officials were âblindsidedâ by the decision.
Trump threatens Turkey after giving green light to Syria invasion
President Donald Trump on Monday launched a harsh attack on NATO ally Turkey, threatening to destroy its economy if Ankara takes a planned military strike in Syria too far.
Trump’s warning came, however, after the U.S. leader himself opened the door for a Turkish incursion.
Trump said he would „totally destroy and obliterateâ Turkey‘s economy if it took action in Syria that he considered „off limits” following his decision on Sunday to pull 50 American special forces troops from northeastern Syria.
The U.S. withdrawal will leave Kurdish-led forces in Syria that have long allied with Washington vulnerable to a planned incursion by the Turkish military, which brands them terrorists.
Trump’s stern words seemed to be aimed at placating critics who accused him of abandoning the Syrian Kurds by pulling out U.S. forces. The decision drew criticism from Democrats and a rare rebuke from some of Trump’s fellow Republicans in Congress, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
„As I have stated strongly before, and just to reiterate, if Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I’ve done before!)” Trump tweeted.
Turkey does not appear „as of now” to have begun its expected incursion into northern Syria, a senior Trump administration official said on Monday.
The Turkish Defence Ministry said on Twitter late on Monday that preparations for a possible military operation into northeastern Syria had been completed.
The Trump administration official, briefing reporters on a conference call, said 50 U.S. troops in the region that Turkey has targeted would be redeployed elsewhere in Syria „where they aren’t in the crossfire.” The United States has about 1,000 troops in Syria.
Speaking later at the White House, Trump said he had told President Tayyip Erdogan in a phone call that Turkey could suffer the „wrath of an extremely decimated economy” if it acted in Syria in a way that was not humane.
Offering his rationale for the troop redeployment, Trump said his ultimate goal was to fulfill a campaign promise to bring troops home. „We’re like a police force over there. Weâre not fighting. We’re policing,” he said.
âEndless warsâ
In Ankara, Erdogan told reporters he planned to visit Washington to meet with Trump in the first half of November. He said the two leaders would discuss plans for a „safe zone” in Syria, and added that he hoped to resolve a dispute over F-35 fighter jets during his visit.
Turkey’s lira slid more than 2% to its lowest level in more than a month against the dollar on Monday over concerns about the planned incursion into northern Syria and Trump’s warning.
Investors have been closely watching tense ties between Ankara and Washington in recent months, with the countries at odds over a range of issues, including Syria and Turkeyâs purchase of a Russian missile defence system.
Turkey has repeatedly threatened to attack U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters in northeastern Syria who have links to Kurdish guerrillas operating in Turkey.
The United States began pulling troops back from the northeast Syrian border on Monday, effectively giving Turkey a green light to move into the area.
Earlier on Monday, Trump said the United States should leave others from European allies to Iranian foes, „to figure the situation out” in the region.
He wrote on Twitter that „it is time for us to get out of these ridiculous Endless Wars, many of them tribal, and bring our soldiers home. WE WILL FIGHT WHERE IT IS TO OUR BENEFIT, AND ONLY FIGHT TO WIN. Turkey, Europe, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Russia and the Kurds will now have to figure the situation out.”
âStab in the back’
It is a major policy shift that was denounced as a „stab in the back” by Kurdish-led forces who have been Washington’s most capable partners in fighting Islamic State in Syria, also known by its acronym ISIS.
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, called on Trump to „reverse this dangerous decision,â saying it betrayed Kurdish allies, threatened regional security and sent a message to Iran and Russia, as well as U.S. allies, that the United States is no longer a trusted partner.
Judge says New York prosecutors can see Trump’s tax returnSAssociated Pressâ˘Scroll back up to restore default view.NEW YORK (AP) â With President Donald Trump under siege on Capitol Hill, a federal judge dealt him a setback on another front Monday and ruled that New York City prosecutors can see his tax returns for an investigation into matters including the payment of hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels and a Playboy centerfold.U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero emphatically rejected Trump’s attempt to keep his financial records under wraps, calling the president’s broad claim of immunity from all criminal proceedings „extraordinary” and „an overreach of executive power” at odds with the Constitution.For now, at least, the tax returns remain beyond the reach of prosecutors. The president’s lawyers appealed the judge’s ruling to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which put the matter on hold while it considers the case on an expedited basis.At issue is a request from Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. that Trump’s accounting firm turn over eight years’ worth of his business and personal tax returns dating back to 2011.Vance, a Democrat, is investigating payments made to buy the silence of Daniels and model Karen McDougal, both of whom claimed to have had affairs with the president.”The Radical Left Democrats have failed on all fronts,” Trump fumed on Twitter after the judge’s ruling, „so now they are pushing local New York City and State Democrat prosecutors to go get President Trump. A thing like this has never happened to any President before. Not even close!”The district attorney’s office declined to comment.The investigation is unfolding with Trump already facing a fast-moving impeachment drive by House Democrats that was set off by his attempts to get Ukraine’s leader to investigate his political rival Joe Biden.Trump’s lawyers have said that Vance’s investigation is politically motivated and that the request for tax records should be stopped because Trump is immune from any criminal probe as long as he is president.The judge swept that claim aside as overly broad.”As the court reads it, presidential immunity would stretch to cover every phase of criminal proceedings, including investigations, grand jury proceedings and subpoenas, indictment, prosecution, arrest, trial, conviction, and incarceration,” Marrero wrote. „That constitutional protection presumably would encompass any conduct, at any time, in any forum, whether federal or state, and whether the President acted alone or in concert with other individuals.”The judge said he couldn’t accept that legal view, „especially in the light of the fundamental concerns over excessive arrogation of power” that led the founding fathers to create a balance of power among the three branches of government.Trump has steadfastly refused to make his tax returns public, breaking a tradition set by presidents and White House candidates decades ago. He has also gone to court to fight congressional subpoenas issued to his bank for various personal financial records, including his tax returns. That dispute is also before the federal appeals court.In yet another effort to pry loose Trump’s tax records, California recently passed a law requiring candidates for president or governor to turn over five years’ worth of returns, or else they cannot appear on the state’s primary ballot. A federal judge blocked the law this month, saying it is probably unconstitutional.Vance began his probe after federal prosecutors in New York completed their investigation into payments that Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, arranged to be made to the two women to keep them silent during the presidential race.Cohen is serving a three-year prison sentence for crimes that included campaign finance violations in connection with the hush money.Trump was never charged, though prosecutors said publicly that he was aware of and directed the illegal payments. Justice Department policy has long been that sitting presidents cannot be charged criminally.Grand jury proceedings and records in New York are secret. If Vance gains access to Trump’s returns through a grand jury investigation, that doesn’t necessarily mean their contents will be disclosed publicly.It is unclear what Trump’s returns might have to do with the criminal investigation or why prosecutors are reaching back as far as 2011.But the long reach of the subpoena might stem in part from testimony Cohen gave to Congress early this year when he asserted that Trump overstated his wealth to financial institutions before he became president.Cohen turned over copies of financial statements he said the president provided to Deutsche Bank during a 2014 effort to buy the Buffalo Bills. The statements showed Trump’s net worth soaring from $4.55 billion in 2012 to $8.66 billion in 2013._Associated Press writer Eric Tucker in Washington contributed to this story.
‘We Absolutely Could Not Do That’: When Seeking Foreign Help Was Out of the Question
President Barack Obama and William Daley, his chief of staff, in Washington, Feb. 7, 2011. (Drew Angerer/The New York Times)WASHINGTON â One day in October 1992, four Republican congressmen showed up in the Oval Office with an audacious recommendation. President George Bush was losing his reelection race, and they told him the only way to win was to hammer his challenger Bill Clintonâs patriotism for protesting the Vietnam War while in London and visiting Moscow as a young man.Bush was largely on board with that approach. But what came next crossed the line, as far as he and his team were concerned. âThey wanted us to contact the Russians or the British to seek information on Bill Clintonâs trip to Moscow,â James A. Baker III, Bushâs White House chief of staff, wrote in a memo later that day. âI said we absolutely could not do that.âPresident Donald Trump insists he and his attorney general did nothing wrong by seeking damaging information about his domestic opponents from Ukraine, Australia, Italy and Britain or by publicly calling on China to investigate his most prominent Democratic challenger. But for every other White House in the modern era, Republican and Democratic, the idea of enlisting help from foreign powers for political advantage was seen as unwise and politically dangerous, if not unprincipled.A survey of 10 former White House chiefs of staff under Presidents Ronald Reagan, Bush, Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama found that none recalled any circumstance under which the White House had solicited or accepted political help from other countries, and all said they would have considered the very idea out of bounds.âI served three presidents in the White House and donât remember even hearing any speculation to consider asking for such action,â said Andrew H. Card Jr., who ran the younger Bushâs White House and was the longest-serving chief of staff in the past six decades.William M. Daley, who served as commerce secretary under Clinton and chief of staff under Obama, said if someone had even proposed such an action, he probably would ârecommend the person be escorted out ofâ the White House, then fired and reported to ethics officials.Other chiefs were just as definitive. âDid not happen on Reaganâs watch. Would not have happened on Reaganâs watch,â said Kenneth M. Duberstein, his last chief of staff. âI would have shut him down,â said Leon E. Panetta, who served as Clintonâs chief of staff and Obamaâs defense secretary.
Photo illustration: Yahoo News; photos: J. Scott Applewhite/AP, Getty ImagesLawyers for the whistleblower whose complaint against President Trump triggered an impeachment inquiry said on Sunday they are now representing a second whistleblower who has firsthand knowledge of some of the allegations, outlined in the original complaint, about Trumpâs requests for Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son.And they implied there may be others, referring to âmultiple whistleblowersâ among their clients.The existence of the second whistleblower came to light amid attacks by Trump against the still-unidentified person behind the original complaint, who the president and his allies say should be named in public.âIf the whistleblowerâs allegations are turned into an impeachment article, itâs imperative that the whistleblower be interviewed in public, under oath, and cross-examined,â Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said on Fox News. âNobody in America goes to jail or has anything done to them without confronting their accuser.âBut Grahamâs demand is at odds with laws protecting whistleblowers from retaliation. Over the weekend, more than 90 former national security officials, veterans of both Democratic and Republican administrations, including Trumpâs, released an open letter calling on the government and media to preserve the first whistleblowerâs anonymity.âA responsible whistleblower makes all Americans safer by ensuring that serious wrongdoing can be investigated and addressed, thus advancing the cause of national security to which we have devoted our careers,â their letter reads. âWhatever oneâs view of the matters discussed in the whistleblowerâs complaint, all Americans should be united in demanding that all branches of our government and all outlets of our media protect this whistleblower and his or her identity. Simply put, he or she has done what our law demands; now he or she deserves our protection.âWhat does the law say?
The Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 protects federal employees who report a possible violation of law, fraud, waste, abuse or unnecessary government expenditures against retaliation from superiors, including demotion or termination. The protections initially did not include the intelligence community, because of concerns over classified information. In 1998, Congress extended those protections to intelligence workers through the Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act. That gave officers the option of passing items of âurgent concernâ to the office of the intelligence communityâs inspector general (ICIG), who after a review has the option of asking the director of national intelligence to pass them to Congress.
âNo action constituting a reprisal, or threat of reprisal, for making such complaint or disclosing such information to the Inspector General may be taken by any employee in a position to take such actions, unless the complaint was made or the information was disclosed with the knowledge that it was false or with willful disregard for its truth or falsity,â according to the 2010 Intelligence Authorization Act.
The Latest: Justices weigh case over unanimous verdicts
Supreme Court New Term
WASHINGTON (AP) â The Latest on the start of the Supreme Court term (all times local):
2:30 p.m.
The Supreme Court appears ready to require that juries in state criminal trials be unanimous.
The justices heard arguments on the first day of the term Monday in an appeal by a Louisiana man who is serving a life term for killing a woman after a jury voted 10-2 to convict him. Oregon is the only other state that allows for non-unanimous convictions for some crimes.
Louisiana voters have changed the law for crimes committed beginning this year.
There appeared to be wide agreement on the court to jettison a 1972 ruling that required unanimous verdicts in federal, but not state trials.
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11:20 a.m.
The Supreme Court has begun its election-year term by wrestling over whether states must allow criminal defendants to mount an insanity defense.
There was one minor surprise when the justices took the bench Monday. Only eight justices were present. The court says 71-year-old Justice Clarence Thomas is at home, likely with the flu.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was in her customary seat to the left of Chief Justice John Roberts. The 86-year-old Ginsburg asked the first question in the insanity arguments. Ginsburg was treated this summer for a tumor on her pancreas.
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12:30 a.m.
The justices are returning to the Supreme Court bench for the start of an election-year term that includes high-profile cases on about abortions, protections for young immigrants and LGBT rights.
The court meets Monday morning for its first public session since late June. First up is a death-penalty case from Kansas about whether states can abolish an insanity defense for criminal defendants.
The justices also will hear arguments Monday in a challenge to a murder conviction by a non-unanimous jury in Louisiana.
The term could reveal how far to the right and how fast the court’s conservative majority will move, even as Chief Justice John Roberts has made clear he wants to keep the court clear of Washington partisan politics.
World Johnson urges US to give up diplomat’s wife over fatal crash AFPâ˘London (AFP) – Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged the United States on Monday to reconsider granting immunity to a diplomat’s wife suspected of killing a teenager in a British road crash.Johnson said he was prepared to intervene with President Donald Trump to secure the woman’s return to Britain to face investigation over the death of 19-year-old Harry Dunn.”I do not think that it can be right to use the process of diplomatic immunity for this type of purpose,” the prime minister told reporters on a visit to a hospital.”I hope that Anne Sacoolas will come back and will engage properly with the processes of law as they are carried out in this country.”Dunn was killed on August 27 when his motorbike collided with a car near a Royal Air Force base in Northamptonshire in central England, which is used by the US military as a communications hub.He was hit by a Volvo SUV travelling in the opposite direction, police said, adding only that they were treating an unnamed 42-year-old US woman as a suspect.The US Embassy in London last weekend confirmed the vehicle had been driven by the wife of one of its diplomats, who had now left the country.On the question of lifting diplomatic immunity, the mission said it was „rarely waived”.The embassy was in „close contact” with UK officials. But it said it „will not comment on the identity of the driver”.Media identified her husband as Jonathan Sacoolas, who worked at RAF Croughton, near the town of Brackley, which is home to the 422nd Air Base Group.- ‘Immunity is rarely waived’ -In a statement, Northamptonshire Police said the driver had initially „engaged fully” with their investigation and said she had no plans to leave Britain, but had now left.”If we can’t resolve it then of course I will be raising it myself personally with the White House,” Johnson said.Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has raised the case with US ambassador Woody Johnson and also brought it up in a call Monday with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.Raab „reiterated his disappointment with the US decision and urged them to reconsider,” a Foreign Office spokesman said.
Chance to see Michelangelo masterpieces in Hull
The public are being given the chance to see Michelangeloâs masterpieces from the Sistine Chapel in a church in Hull.
Thousands of people have already booked to attend âMichelangelo â A Different Viewâ, which opens to the public in Hull Minster on Tuesday.
The exhibition features more than 50 detailed reproductions of Michelangeloâs Sistine Chapel frescoes, including the famous âCreation of Adamâ, a depiction of God giving life to the first man, and a six metre square reproduction of âThe Last Judgmentâ.
The touring exhibition gives the public the opportunity to admire the works, famously created by Michelangelo over four years in the 1500s, in a religious setting other than the Vatican for the first time.
Visitors will be able to get close to the images and have the chance to learn how the Italian master created the work and the meaning behind them, organisers said.
The 700-year-old minster is no stranger to hosting high profile art events.
The Turner Prize was awarded there in 2017 â at the end of Hullâs tenure as UK City of Culture.
The exhibition is free to enter but there is a ticketing system for specified time slots.
It runs until November 18.
PHOTOS: Activists arrested in global warming protests in Europe Yahoo News Photo Staff
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This Sunken Russian Submarine Has Buried ‘Nuclear Treasure’ (Think Nuclear Weapons) Robert FarleyThe National Interestâ˘
The Novembers (627):
The November (Type 627) class was the Soviet Unionâs first effort at developing nuclear attack submarines. The 627s were rough contemporaries of the Skate and Skipjack class attack boats of the U.S. Navy (USN), although they were somewhat larger and generally less well-arranged. Displacing 4750 tons submerged, the thirteen 627s could make thirty knots and carry twenty torpedoes (launched from eight forward tubes). Visually, the 627s resembled a larger version of the Foxtrot class diesel-electric subs; the Soviets would not adopt a teardrop hull until the later Victor class. The Novembers were renowned in the submarine community for their noise; louder than any contemporary nuclear sub, and even preceding diesel-electric designs.The Novembers were initially designed with a strategic purpose in mind. The Soviets worked on a long-range nuclear armed torpedo (dubbed T-15), which could strike NATO naval bases from ranges of up to 40km. The torpedo was so large that each submarine could only carry a single weapon. However, increasingly effective Western anti-submarine technology quickly scotched the first mission. The Novembers were too loud to plausibly find their way into close enough proximity to a NATO port to ever actually fire a nuclear torpedo in wartime conditions.
Elton John stopped speaking to his mother for seven years after David Furnish remark
Elton John, 72, has divulged why he stopped speaking to his mother Sheila Farebrother for seven years following on from a comment she made about his husband David Furnish.
The icon married Furnish, 56, in 2014 and they have two sons, Zachary, eight and six-year-old Elijah.
Now, John has written about his difficult relationship with his mother in his upcoming first official autobiography, Me.
John has claimed the conflict that led to years of silence between them was sparked after his former PA Bob Halley had decided to quit.
Read more:Â Elton John reveals cancer battle that left him 24 hours from death
„Mum was absolutely livid when she heard Bob had left â theyâd always got on well,” John writes, according to The Mirror.
„She didnât want to hear my version of events, and told me that Bob had been more of a son to her than Iâd ever been.â
John then says she hit out at Furnish, declaring: âYou care more about that f***ing thing you married than your own mother.”
Farebrother died in 2017 aged 92, although she and John had rekindled their relationship before her passing.
The fractious relationship between John and his mother was depicted in the Rocketman biopic which hit screens earlier in the year.
Bryce Dallas Howard played the part of Farebrother in the film which charted John’s life from childhood to his musical breakthrough and subsequent battles with addiction as well as his troubled family life.
Although Dallas Howard won the role, Amanda Holden revealed earlier this year that she had been asked to send a last-minute audition tape to director Dexter Fletcher for the part.
