Monday, April 30, 2018

I also understand there may be gambling in this establishment

Andrea Mitchell's other bete noir this week (aside from reality)
After Israeli Priminister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a presentation Monday revealing documents suggesting that Iran has concealed an archive of its research into developing nuclear weapons, the White House released the following statement:

The United States is aware of the information just released by Israel and continues to examine it carefully. This information provides new and compelling details about Iran’s efforts to develop missile-deliverable nuclear weapons. These facts are consistent with what the United States has long known: Iran has a robust, clandestine nuclear weapons program that it has tried and failed to hide from the world and from its own people. The Iranian regime has shown it will use destructive weapons against its neighbors and others. Iran must never have nuclear weapons. 
Mitchell read the statement on air and noted that it contradicts what former CIA Director Mike Pompeo testified to before Congress earlier this month. On April 12, Pompeo said of Iran’s commitment to the deal, “I have seen no evidence they are not in compliance today.”

Though Netanyahu’s presentation suggests the Iranians have been less than candid, it did not include any evidence that the country has violated the deal, and it does not suggest that the country has a “robust, clandestine nuclear weapons program.”

“This is basically a lie about US intelligence,” Mitchell said of the White House statement. “It’s stunning.”

Pearls were made to be clutched.  And no, this is stunning (Politifact as 9 pages of Trump's "False Statements.")  WaPo reported Trump had 2000 lies, in office alone, as of January 10, 2018.

The gob, she is so smacked she is numb.

And to keep from posting too many tiny posts on tiny subjects, we return to the topic of Donald Trump's avoidance of responsibility at all costs, or:

Consequences, consequences, we can't suffer any consequences.

Remember when Trump was talking loudly about the world taking advantage of us on trade?  NPR ran a sound bite this afternoon for a story they'll do in the morning, where Trump claimed the country had lost $500 billion (?  I think.  Some ridiculous number he plucked out of the air, like his own statements of his net worth) under prior Presidents due to international trade.  Yes, chest-thumping he can do, but when it comes time to fish or cut bait, he postpones the fishing trip:

President Donald Trump will take another 30 days to decide whether to impose steel and aluminum tariffs on US allies. The president pushed back the deadline to June 1 to allow more time for negotiations with the European Union, Mexico, and Canada, reports the Wall Street Journal.

A 10 percent tariff on aluminum and 25 percent steel tariff had been set to go into effect May 1, at midnight.

The announcement offers some relief from a looming trade war with America’s closest allies. Trump had already suggested that Mexico and Canada would be temporarily exempt from tariffs set to go into effect on March 23, as the three countries work through NAFTA renegotiations. Then, as that tariff deadline loomed in March, the Trump administration extended the implementation deadline to May 1 not just for Canada and Mexico, but for all the European Union countries, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, and South Korea to facilitate possible negotiations.

Now the Trump administration has pushed back that deadline once again, to June 1 for Canada, Mexico, and the European Union. The New York Times reports that Australia, Argentina, and Brazil have reached “initial agreements” with the administration that will let them at least temporarily avoid tariffs. As for South Korea, the Wall Street Journal reports that the administration has finalized a deal that will allow it to avoid tariffs altogether.
Pushed off not once but twice.  And expect it to move again near the end of May; that, or an announcement that the problem has been solved and the world made safe for trade again (nobody really listens to steel makers complain, do they?).  After all, had Trump imposed those tariffs, there would have been consequences.....

No comments:

Post a Comment