| Trump Paints Impeachment as Attack on Voters, Guns, Health Care Posted: 28 Sep 2019 04:36 PM PDT ![Trump Paints Impeachment as Attack on Voters, Guns, Health Care]( "Trump Paints Impeachment as Attack on Voters, Guns, Health Care") (Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump mounted a defense to Democrats' impeachment investigation on Saturday by saying the opposition party is trying to oust him because he's fighting for the voters who elected him, and that the future of the country is at stake.Trump's approach signals a new effort to rally his political base to counter the growing threat to his presidency.Trump argued Democrats are undertaking "the single greatest scam in the history of American politics" and portrayed the investigation as part of a campaign by the opposition party to take away everything from guns to health care."It's all very simple, they're trying to stop me because I'm fighting for you -- and I'll never let that happen," Trump said in a video he tweeted to his 65 million Twitter followers, in which he appears outside the White House.Trump is seeking to rally his most ardent supporters after a week of damaging headlines, including revelations that the president asked Ukraine's leader to investigate top Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden during a July phone call.Trump also continued to defend his conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as having been appropriate. The U.S. president said the fact the Zelenskiy -- speaking to reporters during a meeting with Trump this week at the United Nations -- said he didn't feel pressure to investigate Biden "should by and of itself bring an end to the new and most recent Witch Hunt."Trump's call was Zelenskiy was summarized in a partial transcript released on Wednesday.Democrats have said that the mere fact Trump suggested investigating a top political rival to a foreign leader raised grave concerns, as did the president's request for Zelenskiy to look into Ukraine's role in the 2016 U.S. election.Democratic 'Savages'The president has responded to those claims with scorn, calling members of the opposition party "savages" in a tweet early Saturday, and subsequently calling for the resignation of Adam Schiff, the California Democrat and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee who will be heading up the impeachment inquiry.A poll released Thursday by NPR News and Marist found that while Americans favored impeaching Trump by a narrow 49% to 46% margin, 93% of GOP voters opposed the effort.The president's campaign advisers have argued the effort will ultimately backfire on Democrats. The president's son, Eric Trump, tweeted that the campaign had raised $8.5 million in small-dollar donations following Democrats' announcement of the impeachment inquiry.Campaign manager Brad Parscale said the campaign and Republican National Committee were planning a joint ad buy of $10 million with a commercial arguing Democrats are trying to use the impeachment probe "to steal the election.""Democrats want to deny Americans the opportunity to vote to re-elect President Trump and people need to know the facts," Parscale said.The White House hasn't formalized a new operation to handle the impeachment inquiry. Jay Sekulow, the president's outside attorney, said his team will continue to respond as they had in prior cases."There is no war room being established," Sekulow said.To contact the reporter on this story: Justin Sink in Washington at jsink1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net, Justin Blum, Ros KrasnyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Iranian official denies plans to interfere with US election Posted: 28 Sep 2019 04:35 PM PDT  Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is denying his country would interfere with the upcoming U.S. presidential election and says his government doesn't have a preference in the race. The interview took place in New York, which Zarif visited this past week to attend meetings at the United Nations. "We don't interfere in the internal affairs of another country," Zarif said later.
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| At UN, a world stage for disputes often out of the spotlight Posted: 28 Sep 2019 03:51 PM PDT  Familiar flash points such as these got plenty of airtime at the U.N. General Assembly's big annual gathering this week. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan landed one of the coveted first few speaking slots, and he devoted a bit of his wide-ranging speech to a clash in the Caucasus: a standoff between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The mountainous, ethnic Armenian area of about 150,000 people is recognized as part of Azerbaijan in U.N. Security Council resolutions dating to the 1990s.
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| Syria gets its moment at UN, small island states sound alarm Posted: 28 Sep 2019 03:41 PM PDT  Overshadowed by other concerns, the war in Syria got some attention Saturday and leaders from assorted island nations pleaded for their survival as they urged the U.N. General Assembly to take action that would help stop them from sinking into the ocean. Syria's plight remains one of the world body's thorniest issues as the country has been devastated by more than eight years of war. The U.N. is hoping that the recent creation of a committee that would draft a new Syrian constitution will put the country on track for a political solution.
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| Yemen Rebels Says They've Captured Many Saudi Soldiers in Attack Posted: 28 Sep 2019 02:35 PM PDT ![Yemen Rebels Says They've Captured Many Saudi Soldiers in Attack]( "Yemen Rebels Says They've Captured Many Saudi Soldiers in Attack") (Bloomberg) -- Yemen's Houthi rebels said they captured many Saudi soldiers and officers in a large operation near the border between the two countries on Saturday, shortly after the kingdom agreed to a limited ceasefire with the Iranian-backed group.If true, the escalation will likely deal a blow to efforts to end a war that's killed thousands and triggered one of the world's worst humanitarian disasters. Saudi Arabia mobilized a military coalition in 2015 to back Yemen's internationally-recognized government against the Shiite rebels.The Houthis, in a statement carried by the Saba news agency, said they destroyed three enemy brigades after "just 72 hours of the operation."Thousands of people have been taken prisoners, including "many Saudi commanders, officers and soldiers." A spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen didn't immediately return a request for comment.The announcement comes almost two weeks after the Houthis took credit for the devastating attack on key Saudi Aramco oil facilities that briefly halved the country's output and rattled global markets this month. The U.S. and Saudi Arabia blamed Iran for the attack, which they said wasn't launched from Yemen.Yahya Saree, a spokesman for the Houthi-controlled forces, said those captured would be paraded on the group's TV network on Sunday, the BBC reported.Last week, the Houthis announced a unilateral halt to the hundreds of drone and missile attacks that have targeted OPEC's largest producer in recent years. An official with the Saudi-backed Yemeni government said Friday that the kingdom has agreed to a ceasefire in several areas of Yemen including the capital Sana'a.Saudi Arabia views the conflict with the Houthis as a proxy war with Iran. To contact the reporter on this story: Mohammed Hatem in Dubai at mhatem1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Alaa Shahine at asalha@bloomberg.net, Ros KrasnyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Head of UN nuclear test ban group: Teach your children well Posted: 28 Sep 2019 01:51 PM PDT  The head of the U.N.'s nuclear test ban treaty organization says that in his "wild dreams," very young children around the world will be taught that nuclear testing isn't good — and that the world should be free of nuclear weapons. In an interview on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly, Lassina Zerbo said he started a nine-member youth group three years ago with that aim.
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| They said it: Leaders at the UN, in their own words Posted: 28 Sep 2019 01:49 PM PDT  Here, The Associated Press takes the opposite approach and spotlights some thoughts you might not have heard — the voices of leaders speaking at the United Nations who might not have captured the headlines and the airtime on Friday, the fourth day of 2019 debate.
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| Clinton's White House Faced Impeachment With Discipline. Trump's Approach Is Different. Posted: 28 Sep 2019 01:31 PM PDT  WASHINGTON -- The last time Congress tried to impeach a president, the White House chief of staff had one rule: No one who wasn't working directly on impeachment, including the president himself, was ever allowed to talk about it.John D. Podesta, President Bill Clinton's wiry, uber-disciplined chief of staff, delivered the message during a senior staff meeting. White House staffers were supposed to stay in their lanes, doing their jobs, or risk being fired. Any water cooler discussion about the Monica Lewinsky scandal, or the impeachment proceedings, and "I will break your neck," Podesta recalled telling his staffers, using an expletive. And that especially applied to Clinton.Clinton's aides had studied Watergate, and their takeaway was that the public believed President Richard M. Nixon was being buried by the scandal, in part, because he talked about it endlessly. So their approach was that the only way to survive and to keep his job approval rating up was to demonstrate that the White House was still working, and that Clinton was still doing the job he was elected to do for the people.The strategy of controlling and disciplining Clinton worked. While a Republican-led House impeached him in December 1998, Democrats picked up five House seats the month before, his approval rating soared to 73% in the days afterward, and he was acquitted of the charges by the Republican-led Senate in February 1999.But the approach is unlikely to succeed with President Donald Trump, someone less concerned with policy than he is with how things play in distinct, daily news cycles. He heads into what appears to be a rapidly unfurling impeachment inquiry unprepared temperamentally, and with a depleted staff, many of whom are shrugging off the seriousness of what the president faces.The White House communications and press operations have seen their roles subsumed by Trump, who thinks he is his own best spokesman and sees little need to control his anger at his accusers. And the West Wing, under the leadership of an acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, has reverted to an unstructured workspace governed by Trump's moods, with aides often dismissed or marginalized if they tell the president things he doesn't want to hear.Mulvaney is often described as a figurehead, with Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, serving as the de facto chief of staff. The White House Counsel's Office is also understaffed; Emmet T. Flood, who was part of Clinton's impeachment legal team and then oversaw the Trump administration's legal response to the special counsel investigation into the Trump campaign's ties to Russia, stepped down in June, as Robert Mueller's investigation wrapped up.A White House official said there had been "no need" for a replacement, and that there were no impeachment preparations underway in the White House because so far there was no actual impeachment inquiry to prepare for.If anything, Trump and some of his advisers have grown convinced since the Mueller investigation that the tight discipline that worked 20 years ago may not be necessary.Having a formal war room, or rapid response operation, "would be overreaction on our part," said Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the president. "It would be playing on the Democrats' turf." And if impeachment succeeds, Trump officials are anticipating a Republican-held Senate that would not permit witnesses to testify at length and would not convict him.Trump, aides said, shares that view, and on Thursday he expressed no interest in building a war room to respond to what he views as an effort by congressional Democrats to harass him. In contrast to the Mueller investigation, which required the White House to turn over millions of documents, his aides feel there is little for them to do at the moment.Also complicating matters, the White House Counsel's Office and the National Security Council are implicated in the whistleblower's complaint, which details how White House lawyers "directed" people to remove an electronic transcript of Trump's phone call with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine from the computer system where such transcripts are typically stored. The White House on Friday said lawyers from the National Security Council actually decided how to store the transcript.Another complication: Rudy Giuliani, the president's personal lawyer, has served as Trump's main television surrogate in charge of rapid response, but he appears likely to be called as a witness and a key player in the proceedings.That hasn't stopped the former New York mayor from continuing to speak to the media, appearances the president has praised. "It is impossible that the whistleblower is a hero and I'm not," Giuliani said in an interview with The Atlantic on Thursday. "I will be the hero! These morons -- when this is over, I will be the hero."In theory, Trump's White House could have been more prepared than Clinton was for the formal impeachment inquiry that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi set in motion on Tuesday.In January 1998, when news of the investigation into Clinton's relationship with Lewinsky first broke, the White House was blindsided and had to build a rapid-response operation and legal team from scratch. Trump, in contrast, spent almost two years fighting the special counsel's investigation and lived with the threat of impeachment hovering over him since the early days of his administration.But so far, there is little in terms of structure, and nothing in terms of discipline, emanating from the president."It's very, very difficult, not because the White House counsel isn't capable of that, but because Trump forces people out of their lane and into defending him," Podesta said. "That's the wrong strategy. The only way to survive is to keep focused on trying to act like you're still the president of the United States."On Thursday, two days after Pelosi began a formal impeachment inquiry, Trump appeared to be letting the story overwhelm everything else. While Joseph Maguire, the acting director of National Intelligence, defended the rights of the whistleblower while testifying in front of the House Intelligence Committee, Trump was comparing him to a spy."You know what we used to do in the old days when we were smart with spies and treason, right?" Trump told a stunned group of staffers from the United States Mission to the United Nations on Thursday and their family members. "We used to handle it a little differently than we do now."For now, the White House is planning to allow Trump to run his own show. It hopes the president's ability to use the internet to amplify a message means Trump won't need the same kind of structure that helped the White House respond to a slow-moving impeachment inquiry in the 1990s. And with sympathetic Fox News hosts, as well as conservative news outlets like Breitbart amplifying attacks on Democrats and support for Trump, the White House today has what is essentially an independent rapid response team working that they don't even need to direct or bankroll.Mulvaney briefly floated the idea of bringing in Corey Lewandowski, Trump's former campaign manager who has been mulling a run for Senate in his home state of New Hampshire, to help lead some of the White House's anti-impeachment messaging from the outside, according to two people familiar with what took place. But others close to Trump said that Lewandowski's combative turn as a witness before the House Judiciary Committee recently could complicate that kind of role, and the idea was quickly sidelined.West Wing officials said they viewed the Democrats as the ones fighting from a weak position. "Nancy Pelosi in a matter of moments washed away careful, deliberative restraint," Conway said. "For months, she said it had to be bipartisan and accepted by the public. Neither is true."Inside the West Wing, aides who have been numbed since the release of the Access Hollywood tape by normally career-ending scandals that did not stop Trump's climb are shrugging off the latest scandal. That view is shared by Trump loyalists in the administration."It's silly to bring an impeachment proceeding based on an anonymous whistleblower who is not directly involved and whose complaint no one had seen," Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in an interview scheduled to air Friday on Fox Business Network, after the complaint had been made public. "What I think is really disgraceful is that anonymous whistleblowers are given total credibility."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| White House 'hid details' of Trump's calls with Putin and Saudi crown prince, as calls for impeachment intensify Posted: 28 Sep 2019 12:20 PM PDT  The Trump administration went to great lengths to restrict access to information about the president's phone calls to controversial world leaders such as Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia's Mohammed bin Salman, reports say.It was alleged this week in a whistleblower complaint being examined by Congress, that the White House sought to "lock down" details of Mr Trump's July 25 conversation with the leader of Ukraine, storing the information in a server normally used for the most classified material.
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| Iran releases photo of Khamenei with Hezbollah chief Posted: 28 Sep 2019 11:59 AM PDT  Iran has released a "never before seen" photo of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei alongside Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah. The three men are shown in front of what appears to be a door covered by a curtain and surrounded by shelves stacked with books -- decor associated with Khamenei's Tehran office.
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| Syria demands withdrawal of all American, Turkish forces Posted: 28 Sep 2019 11:58 AM PDT  Syria's top diplomat on Saturday demanded the immediate withdrawal of American and Turkish forces from the country and said his government reserves the right to defend its territory in any way necessary if they remain. Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem's remarks to the United Nations General Assembly were made as Turkey and the United States press ahead with a deal to create a safe zone along Syria's border with Turkey. On the political front, he reaffirmed the government's support for the recently agreed committee to draft a new constitution for the country.
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| Iran slams US for barring Zarif from New York hospital visit Posted: 28 Sep 2019 11:52 AM PDT  Iran slammed the United States on Saturday for what it called an "inhumane" decision to bar its foreign minister, who was attending the U.N. summit meetings in New York, from visiting a hospitalized Iranian diplomat in the city. U.S. authorities were not allowing Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to visit U.N. ambassador Majid Takht Ravanchi, who was undergoing cancer treatment in a New York hospital. In July, the U.S. restricted Zarif's movement to just six blocks in New York.
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| UN, coast guard say boat with 50 migrants capsizes off Libya Posted: 28 Sep 2019 11:50 AM PDT ![UN, coast guard say boat with 50 migrants capsizes off Libya]( "UN, coast guard say boat with 50 migrants capsizes off Libya") A boat carrying at least 50 Europe-bound migrants capsized Saturday in the Mediterranean Sea off Libya, the U.N. refugee agency and the country's coast guard said, while an independent support group said another 56 migrants on another boat were "at risk" in the sea. Coast guard spokesman Ayoub Gassim told The Associated Press that a shipwreck took place off the western city of Misrata, 187 kilometers (116 miles) east of the capital, Tripoli.
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| Kremlin warns US against releasing private calls between Putin and Trump amid Ukraine scandal Posted: 28 Sep 2019 11:02 AM PDT  Russia has warned the US against publishing private conversations between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump as it emerged the White House may have restricted access to the president's conversations with multiple world leaders. The comment was in response to the White House's decision to publish a transcript of Mr Trump's call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after Democrats announced the beginning of a formal impeachment investigation into whether the US president pressured his counterpart to interfere in the 2020 election. Asked if Moscow is worried about transcripts of Mr Trump's calls with the Russian President being similarly released, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "we would like to hope that it wouldn't come to that in our relations, which are already troubled by a lot of problems." "The materials related to conversations between heads of states are usually classified according to normal international practice," he added. The publication of the call, in which Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky made critical comments about German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron, has drawn acerbic comments from other Russian officials. "We are waiting for the party to continue," said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. "Let them publish transcripts of conversations between NATO allies. It would also be useful to publish minutes of closed meetings at the CIA, the FBI and the Pentagon. Put it all on air!" Ms Zakharova also scoffed at Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's decision to open an impeachment inquiry based on the call. "Is it the Democrats' job to make a laughing stock of the United States?" she said. "It's exactly what Ms Pelosi has done to Congress, the White House and other state institutions." A whistleblower complaint at the centre of the Ukrainian scandal claimed White House lawyers had ordered a verbatim transcript of the call between Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky to be stored on a separate computer system to limit the number of people who could access it. US media reports suggest similar tactics were used with Mr Trump's calls with other leaders, including Mr Putin and Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammad Bin Salman. Current and former administration officials told CNN that at least one phone call with the crown prince in the aftermath of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi was never circulated to the officials who would usually be given access to it. Access to at least one transcript of a call with Mr Putin was also tightly restricted, according to a former Trump administration official. The White House has not yet commented on the claims.
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| Cuba decries US Castro ban at United Nations Posted: 28 Sep 2019 10:49 AM PDT  Cuba slammed the United States at the United Nations Saturday for barring former president Raul Castro and his family from entering the country. Washington announced travel sanctions on Thursday that made Castro -- brother of late revolutionary leader Fidel Castro -- and his relatives ineligible for travel to America. "This is an action that is void of any practical effect, aimed at offending Cuba's dignity and the feelings of our people," Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez told the UN General Assembly.
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| Syrian FM insists 'no deadlines' on constitution committee Posted: 28 Sep 2019 10:10 AM PDT  Syria's foreign minister told the UN Saturday that "no deadlines" should be imposed on a constitution-writing committee formed to try to find a political settlement to the country's civil war. Walid Muallem's comments came after the United Nations released a document showing that the new committee is mandated to either amend Syria's current constitution or write an entirely fresh one. The document adds that once the process of drafting the constitution is completed, "free and fair elections" will be held in Syria under the supervision of the world body.
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| US rejects Iran FM hospital visit unless American freed Posted: 28 Sep 2019 10:00 AM PDT  The State Department said Saturday that it would only allow Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to visit the country's ambassador in a US hospital if Tehran releases a detained American citizen. "Foreign Minister Zarif would like to visit a colleague who is in the hospital receiving world-class care. Iran has wrongfully detained several US citizens for years, to the pain of their families and friends they cannot freely visit," a State Department spokesperson told AFP.
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| Large chunk of border wall funding diverted from tiny Guam Posted: 28 Sep 2019 09:03 AM PDT  President Donald Trump is raising a large chunk of the money for his border wall with Mexico by deferring several military construction projects slated for Guam, a strategic hub for U.S. forces in the Pacific. This may disrupt plans to move Marines to Guam from Japan and to modernize munitions storage for the Air Force. About 7% of the funds for the $3.6 billion wall are being diverted from eight projects in the U.S. territory, a key spot in the U.S. military's efforts to deter North Korea and counter China's growing military.
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| Ex-official: Trump's past phone-call memos also concealed Posted: 28 Sep 2019 08:43 AM PDT  The White House severely restricted distribution of memos detailing President Donald Trump's calls with foreign leaders, including Russia's Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia's Mohammed bin Salman, after embarrassing leaks of his conversations early in his tenure, a former White House official said. The White House's handling of Trump's calls with foreign leaders is at the heart of House Democrats' impeachment inquiry. A whistleblower alleges the White House tried to "lock down" Trump's July 25 phone call with Ukraine's new president because officials were worried about Trump's request for help investigating Trump's Democratic rival Joe Biden.
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| Activists Hurl Bricks, Police Use Water Cannon: Hong Kong Update Posted: 28 Sep 2019 08:05 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong police fired a water cannon at brick-hurling protesters after tens of thousands crammed into a park and surrounding streets to mark the fifth anniversary of 2014's pro-democracy Occupy demonstrations.The authorized rally, in the 17th week of protests, comes just days before China celebrates 70 years of Communist Party rule. Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Thursday took responsibility for the "entire unrest" that has rocked the city since June in a bid to calm tensions. Even largely peaceful gatherings have descended into chaos in recent weeks as smaller groups of hard-core protesters threw petrol bombs at police, who fired volleys of tear gas.Here's the latest (all times local):Stop and search operations (10:30 p.m.)Police conducted stop-and-search operations at various places across the city, challenging people on foot and on public transportation. Police stopped buses entering the Cross Harbour Tunnel and also carried out searches in Causeway Bay and Wan Chai, where passengers were forced off buses to be checked.Government responds (9 p.m.)The government said that universal suffrage for "selection of the chief executive and electing all members of the Legislative Council is enshrined as an ultimate aim in the Basic Law." In response to demands for political reform, the government will move forward in line with the Basic law and China's interpretation of it, it said in a statement."To achieve this aim, the community needs to engage in dialogues, premised on the legal basis and under a peaceful atmosphere with mutual trust, with a view to narrowing differences and attaining a consensus agreeable to all sides," it said.Water cannon deployed (8:45 p.m.)Police deployed a water cannon, shooting blue dye, after clashes with protesters. A group of people hurled bricks at officers and blocked off roads, police said in a statement.Protesters praised (8 p.m.)Organizers of the rally and speakers at the event praised the protest movement and the people's solidarity in opposing Lam's extradition bill.Joshua Wong, a prominent leader of the Occupy Movement, said the demonstrations had put Hong Kong in the international spotlight and was the reason the U.S. is considering passing a human rights act to monitor the level of autonomy in the city. He said there was no turning back for the movement.Civil Human Rights Front, the organizer of the rally, said in a statement that five years after the Umbrella Movement fought for universal suffrage, nothing has been achieved and protest leaders have been jailed. This year, a new generation of activists inspired almost one third of the city's population to take to the streets and force Lam into withdrawing the bill. Still, the protesters must continue to fight for their five demands, it said.Rally starts (7 p.m.)Thousands of people packed Tamar Park in Admiralty to mark the fifth year since the Occupy protests that were centered in the area. The protesters sang, waved their mobile phones and shone lasers as they waited for the guest speakers.Protesters took over roads leading to the venue and police said they used "minimum force" to disperse some who had charged at officers' cordons.Red alert at government building (6:40 p.m.)The Legislative Council Secretariat issued a red alert, requiring everybody at the lawmakers' building in Admiralty to evacuate for safety reasons.Riot police guard stations (6:30 p.m.)Some access points into train stations near the site of Saturday's rally were shut, and rail operator MTR Corp. said service could be disrupted, as riot police stood guard outside exits to the facilities.Thousands of people poured into the area for the rally to commemorate the Occupy protest and massed at Tamar Park in Admiralty.Lennon Wall link (4 p.m.)Protesters created so-called Lennon Walls in Victoria Park in attempt to link them through the district of Wan Chai to Admiralty, where the Occupy protest was staged in 2014.In Admiralty, people plastered walls with posters of Mao Zedong, saying "Revolution is no crime, to rebel is justified" -- a popular slogan used by Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. China's President Xi Jinping's image covered the floor in some areas.Wong to stand in elections (11:30 a.m.)Joshua Wong announced that he'll run in the city's district council elections in November. He told a press conference in Hong Kong on Saturday that if the government disqualifies him from taking part, it will face more protests and international pressure.Xi approved bill withdrawal: SCMP (7 a.m.)Hong Kong's Lam asked Chinese President Xi Jinping for approval before withdrawing her controversial extradition bill, the South China Morning Post reported, citing unidentified people.Lam said at the time that it was her decision to withdraw the proposed law to try to break the political deadlock and enter into some form of dialogue with the public, and that China respected her reasons for doing so, the Post reported. The plan was sent to Xi's office for approval before it was announced on Sept. 4, the newspaper cited a person close to the government as saying.Restore rule of law: lawyers (Saturday 7 a.m.)A group of 339 local lawyers called on the government and the people of Hong Kong to uphold and protect the rule of law in a full-page advertisement published in Sing Tao newspaper on Saturday.The lawyers, who didn't provide names but listing their identity numbers, condemned all violence and called for respect for people's safety, rights and freedoms, and for public property. They said Hong Kong must restore its place as a "shining beacon in the region for safety, personal freedoms and economic opportunity for persons of all backgrounds."They said the statement was issued in their personal capacities.Hundreds Gather at Edinburgh Place (8:02 p.m.)A crowd of protesters gathered calmly at Edinburgh Place in the city center in solidarity with people who were detained during previous protests and held at the city's San Uk Ling Holding Center. Police officials said at a daily press conference earlier in the day that they hadn't used the center to detain protesters since Sept. 2 -- just after one of the worst weekends of violence in the city -- because of "speculation and groundless accusations." It held 75 protesters at the peak of its use.Protesters had complained about the remote location and poor phone signal that made it hard for them to contact lawyers. Police said Friday that they understood this.Police Ban Oct. 1 Protest (6:38 p.m.)Hong Kong police issued a ban on an Oct. 1 gathering and march organized by the Civil Human Rights Front, the group's co-vice convener Bonnie Leung said. The decision was based on events during earlier protests involving serious injuries to protesters, police officers and journalists caused by vandalism, arson, road blockages and Molotov cocktails thrown by some demonstrators, according to the letter of objection issued to CHRF. Police also said the protest locations were close to "high-risk buildings," including subway stations and government offices, that could be subject to violence.Arrest tally (4:15 p.m.)Almost 1,600 people had been arrested since the movement kicked off on June 9, police said at a daily briefing on Friday.Hundreds of demonstrators have found themselves ensnared by Hong Kong's legal system during a summer of unrest, and securing amnesty for them has become one of the movement's major demands. But so far, the mass detentions have done little to keep protesters off the streets.Weekend EventsA global anti-totalitarianism march to the central government headquarters has been organized for Sunday, along with a rally by secondary school student\--With assistance from Melissa Cheok and Shawna Kwan.To contact the reporters on this story: Natalie Lung in Hong Kong at flung6@bloomberg.net;Aaron Mc Nicholas in Hong Kong at amcnicholas2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Stanley JamesFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| White House reportedly concealed transcripts of Trump phone calls with MBS, Putin Posted: 28 Sep 2019 07:35 AM PDT ![White House reportedly concealed transcripts of Trump phone calls with MBS, Putin]( "White House reportedly concealed transcripts of Trump phone calls with MBS, Putin") The Ukraine call might not have been a singular occurrence.White House officials reportedly similarly restricted access to President Trump's phone calls with the Saudi royal family and Russian President Vladimir Putin. In the case of Trump's call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the wake of journalist Jamal Khashoggi's murder, some officials who normally would have been granted access to a rough transcript never saw one. A source told CNN that a transcript was never circulated at all, and The New York Times reports that restrictions were set before the call even took place. Access to at least one of Trump's conversations with Putin was also reportedly tightly restricted.Per CNN, it is unclear if aides took the step of placing the calls in a highly secured electronic system, but the Times reports that was indeed the case, prompted by earlier leaks of Trump's calls with the leaders of Mexico and Australia that were widely considered cause for embarrassment. Trump's phone call in July with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which was a catalyst for the opening of an impeachment inquiry, was also placed in the system.White House officials also reportedly limited access to remarks Trump made during a 2017 meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyyak, The Washington Post reports. The president reportedly said he was unconcerned about Moscow's interference in the 2016 election.
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| Some Call Records Were Kept on Secret Server Over Concern for Leaks, Officials Say Posted: 28 Sep 2019 07:03 AM PDT  WASHINGTON -- The White House concealed some reconstructed transcripts of delicate calls between President Donald Trump and foreign officials, including President Vladimir Putin and the Saudi royal family, in a highly classified computer system after embarrassing leaks of his conversations, according to current and former officials.The handling of Trump's calls with world leaders has come under scrutiny after questions over whether a transcript of a July 25 call with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine was improperly placed into this computer system.The latest revelations show the focus that White House officials put on safeguarding not only classified information but also delicate calls with Trump, the details of which the administration did not want leaked.A whistleblower complaint accuses officials of trying to "lock down" access to information about the conversation with Zelenskiy by improperly storing the reconstructed transcript of the July 25 call in the highly classified system after the call took place.In the case of the calls with the Saudi royal family, the restrictions were set beforehand, and the number of people allowed to listen was sharply restricted. The Saudi calls placed in the restricted system were with King Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Prince Khalid bin Salman, who at the time was the Saudi ambassador to the United States.While the calls included delicate information about Trump's discussions about the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, there was no apparent evidence of impropriety by Trump, said a person familiar with the matter.The access restrictions placed on the calls with Putin of Russia and the Saudi royal family were first reported Friday night by CNN.The practice began after details of Trump's Oval Office discussion with the Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, leaked to the news media, leading to questions of whether the president had released classified information, according to multiple current and former officials. The White House was particularly upset when the news media reported that Trump had called James Comey, the former FBI director, a "nut job" during that same meeting, according to current and former officials.The White House had begun restricting access to information after initial leaks of Trump's calls with the leaders of Mexico and Australia. But the conversation with Lavrov and Sergey Kislyak, then the Russian ambassador to the United States, prompted tighter restrictions.Several current and former officials played down the significance of placing the classified calls into the secure system, saying it made sense to restrict the calls given the number of leaks from the Trump White House.Nevertheless, the use of the system has come under scrutiny after the unclassified version of the whistleblower complaint was made public. The complaint raised questions that the July 25 call with the Ukrainian president had been improperly placed in the classified system, suggesting that officials put the reconstructed transcript into a system meant to protect the nation's most sensitive secrets.The Trump administration said Friday that National Security Council lawyers had made the decision to place the reconstructed transcript of that phone call into a highly classified computer system accessible to only a small number of officials."NSC lawyers directed that the classified document be handled appropriately," said a senior administration official. The statement was also first reported by CNN.But the official did not actually say how the document was handled, nor address the whistleblower's specific charge that the reconstructed transcript, in what would be a highly unusual action, was moved from a computer system widely accessible to National Security Council officials to one reserved for those with code-word clearance to handle the country's most closely guarded secrets like covert operations and foreign surveillance.A White House spokesman did not respond when asked about that specific claim. Democrats in Congress and former NSC officials and lawyers in both parties have said such an action, if motivated by a desire to conceal Trump's efforts to put political pressure on the Ukrainian leader, would be far from appropriate, and at a minimum, unethical. But in a combative exchange with reporters later in the day, Kellyanne Conway, a White House counselor, repeated the spokesman's language, saying that "as I understand, the document was handled appropriately at all times.""I think the most important thing about said document is that the whole world has access to it now," Conway said, citing its release by the White House this week.Democrats say the president abused his power by conditioning aid for Ukraine on whether its government investigated one of his 2020 campaign rivals, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his son Hunter Biden, and will examine whether that constitutes a high crime and misdemeanor. The treatment of the document will form part of that inquiry.In his complaint, the whistleblower said that unnamed White House officials told him that they had been "'directed' by White House lawyers" to remove the record of the call from the National Security Council's main computer system and load it into one managed by the agency's intelligence directorate that is not connected to the main system and that requires special permissions and enhanced security clearances to access.That would have the effect of vastly reducing the number of people who can read -- and therefore leak -- the document, in what the whistleblower described in his complaint as an acknowledgment that the president's comments to Zelenskiy had been highly improper."One White House official described this act as an abuse of this electronic system because the call did not contain anything remotely sensitive from a national security perspective," the whistleblower wrote. His complaint also alleged that other, unspecified presidential transcripts had received similar treatment.The administration official did not name any of the lawyers involved. The National Security Council is part of the White House and advised by lawyers who report to the White House counsel, Pat Cipollone. The National Security Council's chief legal adviser is John Eisenberg, a Cipollone deputy.Eisenberg also had a role in conducting a preliminary inquiry into the allegations, well before the whistleblower complaint was filed. The CIA officer who would become the future whistleblower first contacted, anonymously, the CIA's general counsel, Courtney Simmons Elwood, days after the July 25 call.Elwood then contacted Eisenberg to begin his inquiry. Eisenberg and his team began calling people in the NSC about their concerns about the call, according to people familiar with the matter. It is not clear if that inquiry included questions of how the records were handled.Conway pleaded ignorance of the details of how the NSC handles records of foreign-leader calls, saying that "the people who handle such things said it was handled appropriately."After transcripts of conversations Trump had with the leaders of Australia and Mexico leaked into the media early in his presidency, she said, "my understanding is that we changed some of the protocols" regarding how records of such calls are managed. Those changes have included limiting the distribution of the call transcripts, something that had been known for some time.Conway dodged specific questions about whether it would have been improper for the White House to place the NSC's reconstructed transcript of the Ukraine call into the more secure computer system.Trump continued to rage on Twitter on Friday over criticism of his phone call with Zelensky while he and his allies maintained their effort to deflect attention from the president's actions and onto the former vice president and Hunter Biden."If that perfect phone call with the President of Ukraine isn't considered appropriate, then no future President can EVER again speak to another foreign leader!" Trump tweeted.This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| 10 things you need to know today: September 28, 2019 Posted: 28 Sep 2019 06:39 AM PDT ![10 things you need to know today: September 28, 2019]( "10 things you need to know today: September 28, 2019") 1.The House Committee on Foreign Affairs subpoenaed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday, demanding documents related to President Trump's interactions with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. The subpoena, a part of the House's impeachment inquiry, also calls for depositions from other State Department officials, including former special envoy for Ukraine Kurt Volker, who reportedly coordinated with lawyer Rudy Giuliani to meet with Ukrainian officials. The House committee requested documents from Pompeo in early September, warning if he did not comply, a subpoena would come next. A newly-publicized whistleblower complaint alleges wrongdoing stemming from Trump's phone calls with Zelensky; the House is now escalating oversight efforts as it pursues an impeachment inquiry related to the allegations. [Politico, CNN] 2.Kurt Volker, the State Department's special envoy for Ukraine, resigned Friday amid a formal impeachment inquiry of President Trump and his communications with the Ukrainian government. Volker did not provide a public explanation for leaving his post, but a source familiar with his decision said Volker concluded he could not perform the job effectively as a result of the recent developments. The whistleblower complaint that sparked the impeachment inquiry alleges that Volker went to Kyiv to help guide Ukrainian officials on how to handle Trump's alleged demands that the government investigate former Vice President Joe Biden's son, Hunter. He also reportedly spoke with Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani in an attempt to "contain the damage" to U.S. national security. Giuliani has said Volker encouraged him to meet with Ukrainian officials regarding the Biden family. [NBC News, The New York Times] 3.U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee on Friday blocked the Trump administration's proposal to alter rules for the detention of immigrant children, ruling that detaining undocumented families together indefinitely is inconsistent with longstanding precedent on the conditions of migrant custody. The Trump administration sought to override the Flores settlement, a ruling that requires the government to release immigrant minors in 20 days or less. While the Department of Homeland Security argued the settlement made immigration enforcement more difficult, Gee said officials "cannot simply ignore the dictates of the consent decree merely because they no longer agree with its approach as a matter of policy." [The Associated Press, CNN] 4.White House officials reportedly restricted access to President Trump's phone calls with the Saudi royal family and Russian President Vladimir Putin. In the case of Trump's call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the wake of journalist Jamal Khashoggi's murder, some officials who normally would have been granted access to a rough transcript never saw one. A source told CNN that a transcript was never circulated at all. Access to at least one of Trump's conversations with Putin was also reportedly tightly restricted. Additionally, White House officials reportedly limited access to remarks Trump made during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in 2017. The president reportedly said he was unconcerned about Moscow's interference in the 2016 election. The revelations come as House Democrats are preparing an impeachment inquiry. [CNN, The Washington Post] 5.Polls closed Saturday in Afghanistan's fourth presidential election since the fall of the Taliban in 2001. Security was tight throughout the day with 70,000 forces deployed across the country. The process was difficult and even deadly — at least one person was killed and 27 wounded in bomb attacks at voting centers, and the security threats led to low turnout in some provinces. Meanwhile, there were delays and technical difficulties, as well. But many voters continued to cast their ballots. Incumbent President Ashraf Ghani, who is expected to win the 14-candidate race, called the election a "moment of pride," arguing that it is a sign of strengthening democracy in the country. Results are expected to be announced within three weeks. [BBC, Al Jazeera] 6.The 17th weekend of anti-government, pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong turned violent Saturday after demonstrators reportedly threw rocks, broke windows, and blocked roads during a rally near the local headquarters of China's People's Liberation Army. Police reportedly retaliated with tear gas and water cannons. Earlier in the day, protesters spent their time rebuilding "Lennon Walls" a week after pro-Beijing activists tore down the structures and their anti-government graffiti. Tens of thousands people gathered Saturday evening for the fifth anniversary of the Occupy Movement, or Umbrella Revolution, which consisted of 79 days of pro-democracy sit-ins in 2014. A massive yellow banner with the words "We are back" was reportedly unfurled. [Reuters, The South China Morning Post] 7.Former ambassador Joseph Wilson died Friday, his ex-wife Valerie Plame confirmed. He was 69. Wilson died at his home in New Mexico after a long diplomatic career throughout Africa. "He had the heart of a lion and the courage to match," Plame said of her ex-husband in a statement, adding that he died of organ failure. Wilson, who spent more than 20 years as a diplomat, went to Niger on White House orders in 2002 to investigate whether Saddam Hussein had purchased uranium to build a nuclear weapon. He later disputed former President George W. Bush's rationale for invading Iraq on that premise, writing that the decision-making was unfounded. Wilson's accusations eventually resulted in charges against then-Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff Scooter Libby. [The Associated Press] 8.Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.) became the first House Republican to support an impeachment inquiry of President Trump. Amodei reportedly said he would not vote to impeach Trump at this juncture, but he is "a big fan of oversight, so let's let the committees get to work and see where it goes." He added that he was concerned by Trump's phone call in July with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in which Trump asked his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden's son, Hunter. "Using government agencies to, if it's proven, to put your finger on the scale of an election, I don't think that's right," Amodei said. "If it turns out it's something along those lines, then there's a problem." [Fox News, The Nevada Independent] 9.Disney and Sony have reached a deal that will allow Spider-Man to remain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. After negotiations between the two studios broke down in August, future Sony Spider-Man films were set to no longer be co-produced by Disney's Marvel Studios. They would, therefore, not take place in the same series as Marvel's other blockbusters like Avengers: Endgame, and Spider-Man could not return in future Avengers films. But under the new deal, Marvel Studios will co-produce a third MCU-set Spider-Man installment set for a July 2021 release, and Spider-Man will also appear in an additional Marvel Cinematic Universe film. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige celebrated the news, saying, "I am thrilled that Spidey's journey in the MCU will continue." [Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter] 10.The seeding for the MLB playoffs is still to be determined, but the 10-team field is set. The Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, St. Louis Cardinals, Washington Nationals, and Milwaukee Brewers have all secured spots in the National League. Los Angeles has homefield advantage, and Atlanta will host a division series, but the Cardinals and Brewers continue to fight for the division crown in the Central. Meanwhile, the Houston Astros, New York Yankees, and Minnesota Twins have all locked up their divisions in the American League, and the Oakland Athletics and Tampa Bay Rays secured spots in the Wild Card game after the Cleveland Indians were eliminated from playoff contention Friday night despite winning 93 games so far this season. Only two regular season games remain barring any tiebreakers. [MLB.com, ESPN]
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| Analysis: To combat Islamophobia, Khan bridges East and West Posted: 28 Sep 2019 06:07 AM PDT  He spoke of Islam — his religion — but he used references like Charles Bronson's "Death Wish" movie, Monty Python and Japanese kamikaze pilots during World War II. He built linguistic and pop-culture bridges as he carefully made his points. Pakistan's enigmatic prime minister, Imran Khan, effortlessly projected his East-meets-West brand from the podium of the U.N. General Assembly on Friday, wearing a navy blazer over a traditional shalwar kameez as he attempted to explain the dangers of Islamophobia and why Muslims are sensitive to attacks on the Prophet Muhammad. In the end, Khan's speech reached its destination — a political attack by a politician on India's crackdown in Muslim-majority Kashmir.
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| U.K.’s Conservatives to Relax Homebuilding Rules, Sun Reports Posted: 28 Sep 2019 05:36 AM PDT ![U.K.'s Conservatives to Relax Homebuilding Rules, Sun Reports]( "U.K.'s Conservatives to Relax Homebuilding Rules, Sun Reports") (Bloomberg) -- The Conservative Party plans to loosen rules on homebuilding as part of a drive to ease shortages in Britain's residential property market, according to The Sun.The package of measures, which will be unveiled at the ruling party's annual conference next week, will allow most homeowners to add up to two additional floors to their properties without needing to obtain planning permission, the newspaper said, citing a senior government source.Ministers also plan to make it easier for developers to build on some rural areas of so-called greenbelt land surrounding towns and cities, while firms will no longer need government approval to knock down commercial property and replace it with new homes, according to the report.The additional support comes as the U.K. housing market continues to be buffeted by the turmoil surrounding Brexit, with the sector's usual autumn bounce so far failing to materialize. Asking prices were down for the first time in nine years in September, according property search firm Rightmove.To contact the reporter on this story: Mark Burton in London at mburton51@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Thomasson at lthomasson@bloomberg.net, James AmottFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| From Washington to Hong Kong, Defiance Abounds: Weekend Reads Posted: 28 Sep 2019 05:00 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Want to receive this post in your inbox every day? Sign up for the Balance of Power newsletter, and follow Bloomberg Politics on Twitter and Facebook for more.President Donald Trump is signaling he'll fight tooth and nail against Democrats' impeachment efforts, by disparaging a whistle-blower complaint stemming from his controversial phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and telling donors behind closed doors, "We're at war."Defiance was the watchword of the week in the U.K. and Hong Kong as well. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson responded to a Supreme Court rebuke by doubling down on his plans for a no-deal Brexit, while protesters in the Asian financial hub adopted ever-more militaristic tactics. Dig deeper into these and other topics you might have overlooked this week and click here for Bloomberg's most compelling political photos from the past seven days. Change in the Saudi Birthplace of Islam Is Eyed Warily WorldwideAs the birthplace of Islam, Saudi Arabia is the country that the world's 1.8 million Muslims look to above all others. But, as Anisah Shukry, Arys Aditya and Archana Chaudhary write, the latest in a series of liberalizing reforms attributed to the modernizing influence of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman runs counter to its reputation for religious conservatism.Sanders, Warren Compete for Who Can Tax Billionaires the MostSenator Elizabeth Warren's wealth tax proposal is big. Senator Bernie Sanders' is about 60% bigger. Laura Davison and Emma Kinery take a closer look at the jockeying between the two top progressive 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. Nigeria Runs on Generators and Nine Hours of Power a DayIn Africa's most populous country, almost everyone depends on generators, including President Muhammadu Buhari. Anthony Osae-Brown and Ruth Olurounbi explore one of the biggest issues Buhari faces as he tries to reform a $400 billion economy that is too dependent on oil exports, has too many inefficient state-owned enterprises and is still struggling to recover from a slump in 2016.Hong Kong's 'Frontliners' Say They're Ready to Die for Movement Weeks of clashes have created determined teams of protesters whose tactics are shifting as clashes become militarized. Aaron Mc Nicholas spoke to some of them, including Fung, a 24-year-old doctor who seems an unlikely candidate to stand on the front line of Hong Kong's most violent civil unrest in half a century. Mongolia's Populist President Is the Trump of the SteppeBattulga Khaltmaa is a wealthy businessman riding a wave of discontent to the land's highest office and cozying up to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Sound familiar? Matthew Campbell and Terrence Edwards profile Mongolia's president. Orban and Europe's Other Anti-Immigrant Leaders Have a SecretWhile Prime Minister Viktor Orban is leading an anti-immigrant vanguard in the European Union to protect it from people he calls "invaders," Hungary and other nearby countries are quietly opening a door to foreigners, Zoltan Simon, Jasmina Kuzmanovic and Marek Strzelecki report. The Cold Calculus Behind Putin's Lukewarm Embrace of Paris PactAfter nearly four years of foot-dragging, Russia President Vladimir Putin has finally decided to ratify the 2015 Paris Agreement – and the reasons have less to do with the fate of the planet than with geopolitics and gross domestic product, Natasha Doff, Ilya Arkhipov and Yuliya Fedorinova report. Dodging Death, Candidates Vie to Lead a Broken Afghan NationWith Afghanistan set to elect a new president in defiance of threats from a resurgent Taliban, candidate Sayed Noorullah Jalili speaks to Eltaf Najafizada about how high the stakes are for the war-torn nation. Italy's Oil Giant Can No Longer Ignore the Civil War Next DoorItalian giant Eni has dominated Libya's energy industry for six decades. But as Chiara Albanese and Caroline Alexander explain, the company's future there hangs in the balance of a brewing civil war.And finally…Wondering what life will be like in the U.K. should Britain crash out of Europe a month from now without a divorce agreement? Read Joe Mayes and Alex Morales's detailed account of what the first 24 hours after a no-deal Brexit might look like based on interviews, government documents, and academic research. To contact the author of this story: Kathleen Hunter in London at khunter9@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Karl Maier at kmaier2@bloomberg.netFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Riot Police Stand By as Demonstrators Gather: Hong Kong Update Posted: 28 Sep 2019 03:54 AM PDT (Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong riot police stood guard at rail stations as protesters gathered to mark the fifth anniversary of 2014's Occupy demonstrations with a mass rally, just days before China celebrates 70 years of Communist Party rule.Beijing's critics are entering their 17th week of protests, and Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Thursday took blame for the "entire unrest" that has rocked the city since June in a bid to calm tensions. Even largely peaceful gatherings have descended into chaos in recent weeks as smaller groups of hard-core protesters threw petrol bombs at police, who fired volleys of tear gas.Here's the latest (all times local):Red alert at government building (6:40 p.m.)The Legislative Council Secretariat issued a red alert, requiring everybody at the lawmakers' building in Admiralty to evacuate for safety reasons.Riot police guard stations (6:30 p.m.)Some access points into train stations near the site of Saturday's rally were shut, and rail operator MTR Corp. said service could be disrupted, as riot police stood guard outside exits to the facilities.Thousands of people poured into the area for the rally to commemorate the Occupy protest and massed at Tamar Park in Admiralty.Lennon Wall link (4 p.m.)Protesters created so-called Lennon Walls in Victoria Park in attempt to link them through the district of Wan Chai to Admiralty, where the Occupy protest was staged in 2014.In Admiralty, people plastered walls with posters of Mao Zedong, saying "Revolution is no crime, to rebel is justified" -- a popular slogan used by Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. China's President Xi Jinping's image covered the floor in some areas.Wong to stand in elections (11:30 a.m.)Joshua Wong, a prominent leader of the pro-democracy Occupy Movement, announced that he'll run in the city's district council elections in November. He told a press conference in Hong Kong on Saturday that if the government disqualifies him from taking part, it will face more protests and international pressure.Xi approved bill withdrawal: SCMP (7 a.m.)Hong Kong's Lam asked Chinese President Xi Jinping for approval before withdrawing her controversial extradition bill, the South China Morning Post reported, citing unidentified people.Lam said at the time that it was her decision to withdraw the proposed law to try to break the political deadlock and enter into some form of dialogue with the public, and that China respected her reasons for doing so, the Post reported. The plan was sent to Xi's office for approval before it was announced on Sept. 4, the newspaper cited a person close to the government as saying.Restore rule of law: lawyers (Saturday 7 a.m.)A group of 339 local lawyers called on the government and the people of Hong Kong to uphold and protect the rule of law in a full-page advertisement published in Sing Tao newspaper on Saturday.The lawyers, who didn't provide names but listing their identity numbers, condemned all violence and called for respect for people's safety, rights and freedoms, and for public property. They said Hong Kong must restore its place as a "shining beacon in the region for safety, personal freedoms and economic opportunity for persons of all backgrounds."They said the statement was issued in their personal capacities.Hundreds Gather at Edinburgh Place (8:02 p.m.)A crowd of protesters gathered calmly at Edinburgh Place in the city center in solidarity with people who were detained during previous protests and held at the city's San Uk Ling Holding Center. Police officials said at a daily press conference earlier in the day that they hadn't used the center to detain protesters since Sept. 2 -- just after one of the worst weekends of violence in the city -- because of "speculation and groundless accusations." It held 75 protesters at the peak of its use.Protesters had complained about the remote location and poor phone signal that made it hard for them to contact lawyers. Police said Friday that they understood this.Police Ban Oct. 1 Protest (6:38 p.m.)Hong Kong police issued a ban on an Oct. 1 gathering and march organized by the Civil Human Rights Front, the group's co-vice convener Bonnie Leung said. The decision was based on events during earlier protests involving serious injuries to protesters, police officers and journalists caused by vandalism, arson, road blockages and Molotov cocktails thrown by some demonstrators, according to the letter of objection issued to CHRF. Police also said the protest locations were close to "high-risk buildings," including subway stations and government offices, that could be subject to violence.Arrest tally (4:15 p.m.)Almost 1,600 people had been arrested since the movement kicked off on June 9, police said at a daily briefing on Friday.Hundreds of demonstrators have found themselves ensnared by Hong Kong's legal system during a summer of unrest, and securing amnesty for them has become one of the movement's major demands. But so far, the mass detentions have done little to keep protesters off the streets.Singapore travel advisory (4 p.m.)Singaporean citizens are advised to defer all non-essential travel to Hong Kong, its foreign affairs ministry said, citing reports of planned protests from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1 as the reason for the advisory. Its statement says demonstrations in its fellow Asian financial hub have become "increasingly unpredictable" and "take place with little or no notice and could turn violent."Independent inquiry possibility (Friday, 1:27 p.m.)An adviser to Lam said he doesn't believe she's ruled out the possibility of an independent inquiry into police conduct, the South China Morning Post reported, referring to a major demand of protesters. Protesters see their tactics, including the frequent use of tear gas and rubber bullets, as too aggressive, and Lam on Thursday night rejected multiple demands at her forum for an investigation into police behavior."I can feel she is not closing the door," Executive Council member Ronny Tong told a radio program.Lam shoulders blame (Thursday)Lam held her first public dialogue event on Thursday night before a skeptical crowd, fielding questions from some 130 citizens for more than two hours as protesters gathered outside. It was her first such forum since protests erupted over legislation that would allow extraditions to China."Everyone is very heartbroken, upset or even angry, the entire unrest is caused by the government's work in amending the extradition law," she said. "The government is shouldering the biggest responsibility for finding a way out." Twenty-six of the 30 people who asked questions urged her to meet protesters' demands.Weekend EventsThe Civil Human Rights Front plans a rally for Saturday to mark the fifth anniversary of Occupy, after organizing some of the biggest mass protests in the city since its return to Chinese rule in 1997. People will gather at 7 p.m. in centrally located Tamar Park and parts of the promenade in Hong Kong Island's central and western districts. Police approved their application for a gathering.A global anti-totalitarianism march to the central government headquarters has been organized for Sunday, along with a rally by secondary school students.\--With assistance from Melissa Cheok and Shawna Kwan.To contact the reporters on this story: Natalie Lung in Hong Kong at flung6@bloomberg.net;Aaron Mc Nicholas in Hong Kong at amcnicholas2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Stanley JamesFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Riot Police Stand By as Demonstrators Gather: Hong Kong Update Posted: 28 Sep 2019 03:54 AM PDT (Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong riot police stood guard at rail stations as protesters gathered to mark the fifth anniversary of 2014's Occupy demonstrations with a mass rally, just days before China celebrates 70 years of Communist Party rule.Beijing's critics are entering their 17th week of protests, and Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Thursday took blame for the "entire unrest" that has rocked the city since June in a bid to calm tensions. Even largely peaceful gatherings have descended into chaos in recent weeks as smaller groups of hard-core protesters threw petrol bombs at police, who fired volleys of tear gas.Here's the latest (all times local):Red alert at government building (6:40 p.m.)The Legislative Council Secretariat issued a red alert, requiring everybody at the lawmakers' building in Admiralty to evacuate for safety reasons.Riot police guard stations (6:30 p.m.)Some access points into train stations near the site of Saturday's rally were shut, and rail operator MTR Corp. said service could be disrupted, as riot police stood guard outside exits to the facilities.Thousands of people poured into the area for the rally to commemorate the Occupy protest and massed at Tamar Park in Admiralty.Lennon Wall link (4 p.m.)Protesters created so-called Lennon Walls in Victoria Park in attempt to link them through the district of Wan Chai to Admiralty, where the Occupy protest was staged in 2014.In Admiralty, people plastered walls with posters of Mao Zedong, saying "Revolution is no crime, to rebel is justified" -- a popular slogan used by Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. China's President Xi Jinping's image covered the floor in some areas.Wong to stand in elections (11:30 a.m.)Joshua Wong, a prominent leader of the pro-democracy Occupy Movement, announced that he'll run in the city's district council elections in November. He told a press conference in Hong Kong on Saturday that if the government disqualifies him from taking part, it will face more protests and international pressure.Xi approved bill withdrawal: SCMP (7 a.m.)Hong Kong's Lam asked Chinese President Xi Jinping for approval before withdrawing her controversial extradition bill, the South China Morning Post reported, citing unidentified people.Lam said at the time that it was her decision to withdraw the proposed law to try to break the political deadlock and enter into some form of dialogue with the public, and that China respected her reasons for doing so, the Post reported. The plan was sent to Xi's office for approval before it was announced on Sept. 4, the newspaper cited a person close to the government as saying.Restore rule of law: lawyers (Saturday 7 a.m.)A group of 339 local lawyers called on the government and the people of Hong Kong to uphold and protect the rule of law in a full-page advertisement published in Sing Tao newspaper on Saturday.The lawyers, who didn't provide names but listing their identity numbers, condemned all violence and called for respect for people's safety, rights and freedoms, and for public property. They said Hong Kong must restore its place as a "shining beacon in the region for safety, personal freedoms and economic opportunity for persons of all backgrounds."They said the statement was issued in their personal capacities.Hundreds Gather at Edinburgh Place (8:02 p.m.)A crowd of protesters gathered calmly at Edinburgh Place in the city center in solidarity with people who were detained during previous protests and held at the city's San Uk Ling Holding Center. Police officials said at a daily press conference earlier in the day that they hadn't used the center to detain protesters since Sept. 2 -- just after one of the worst weekends of violence in the city -- because of "speculation and groundless accusations." It held 75 protesters at the peak of its use.Protesters had complained about the remote location and poor phone signal that made it hard for them to contact lawyers. Police said Friday that they understood this.Police Ban Oct. 1 Protest (6:38 p.m.)Hong Kong police issued a ban on an Oct. 1 gathering and march organized by the Civil Human Rights Front, the group's co-vice convener Bonnie Leung said. The decision was based on events during earlier protests involving serious injuries to protesters, police officers and journalists caused by vandalism, arson, road blockages and Molotov cocktails thrown by some demonstrators, according to the letter of objection issued to CHRF. Police also said the protest locations were close to "high-risk buildings," including subway stations and government offices, that could be subject to violence.Arrest tally (4:15 p.m.)Almost 1,600 people had been arrested since the movement kicked off on June 9, police said at a daily briefing on Friday.Hundreds of demonstrators have found themselves ensnared by Hong Kong's legal system during a summer of unrest, and securing amnesty for them has become one of the movement's major demands. But so far, the mass detentions have done little to keep protesters off the streets.Singapore travel advisory (4 p.m.)Singaporean citizens are advised to defer all non-essential travel to Hong Kong, its foreign affairs ministry said, citing reports of planned protests from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1 as the reason for the advisory. Its statement says demonstrations in its fellow Asian financial hub have become "increasingly unpredictable" and "take place with little or no notice and could turn violent."Independent inquiry possibility (Friday, 1:27 p.m.)An adviser to Lam said he doesn't believe she's ruled out the possibility of an independent inquiry into police conduct, the South China Morning Post reported, referring to a major demand of protesters. Protesters see their tactics, including the frequent use of tear gas and rubber bullets, as too aggressive, and Lam on Thursday night rejected multiple demands at her forum for an investigation into police behavior."I can feel she is not closing the door," Executive Council member Ronny Tong told a radio program.Lam shoulders blame (Thursday)Lam held her first public dialogue event on Thursday night before a skeptical crowd, fielding questions from some 130 citizens for more than two hours as protesters gathered outside. It was her first such forum since protests erupted over legislation that would allow extraditions to China."Everyone is very heartbroken, upset or even angry, the entire unrest is caused by the government's work in amending the extradition law," she said. "The government is shouldering the biggest responsibility for finding a way out." Twenty-six of the 30 people who asked questions urged her to meet protesters' demands.Weekend EventsThe Civil Human Rights Front plans a rally for Saturday to mark the fifth anniversary of Occupy, after organizing some of the biggest mass protests in the city since its return to Chinese rule in 1997. People will gather at 7 p.m. in centrally located Tamar Park and parts of the promenade in Hong Kong Island's central and western districts. Police approved their application for a gathering.A global anti-totalitarianism march to the central government headquarters has been organized for Sunday, along with a rally by secondary school students.\--With assistance from Melissa Cheok and Shawna Kwan.To contact the reporters on this story: Natalie Lung in Hong Kong at flung6@bloomberg.net;Aaron Mc Nicholas in Hong Kong at amcnicholas2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Stanley JamesFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| U.K.’s New Brexit Deal Gambit May Emerge as Early as Next Week Posted: 28 Sep 2019 03:36 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- The U.K. government plans to present detailed proposals to break the Brexit deadlock with the European Union after a Conservative Party conference next week, people familiar with the matter said.The plan would set out solutions for the post-Brexit border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, a dispute that has dogged divorce talks for almost two years and delayed the U.K.'s departure from the EU.It's a sign that while the two sides remain far apart, the looming Oct. 31 deadline for Britain to leave the bloc and EU reluctance to see Brexit drag on may be focusing negotiators' minds.EU officials have acknowledged in private that movement in the talks is unlikely before the meeting of Conservative grass-roots members in Manchester, which ends Oct. 2. Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government is preparing to send the proposal in time for other EU governments to scrutinize it before leaders meet for a summit in Brussels on Oct. 17-18, the people said.In an interview with The Times on Saturday, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay said the U.K. would share a legal text of its proposals "in coming days" after the conference.The prime minister is vowing to take the U.K. out of the EU on Oct. 31 whether he gets an amended divorce deal or not, even though Parliament passed a law forcing him to request a Brexit delay if there's no deal.A delay can be granted only if the U.K. seeks one and if all the 27 remaining EU leaders approve it. German Chancellor Angela Merkel would give the green light for a postponement beyond Oct. 31 only if it was explicitly for a U.K. general election, according to BuzzFeed News on Saturday, citing unnamed diplomats.EU leaders believe it would be disastrous if the U.K.'s proposals for the Irish border came so late they would have to do more than tie up loose ends at the summit, so they want to see the U.K.'s plan in a matter of days.EU's PatienceMore than three years after Britons voted to leave, Johnson also faces a serious risk that the EU's patience has run out.Any U.K. request for another exit delay would be likely to require strong justification, such as an early election to resolve the political impasse over Brexit, and a sense from the U.K. government that it could use the extra time to craft a majority in Parliament for a divorce deal.Chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said there's no need for further EU efforts to prepare for a no-deal Brexit because "the EU has already finalized its work." In a letter this week to his U.K. counterpart Barclay, Barnier reiterated that the deal that's on the table "is the best way to protect citizens and businesses."Boris Johnson's Voters Give Their Verdict on Torrid Brexit WeekJohnson has said he wants to replace the proposed Irish "backstop," which aims to avoid a hard border, with an alternative set of arrangements. EU and U.K. negotiators agreed on the plan almost a year ago, only to see Parliament in London reject it.As drafted, the backstop would keep the entire U.K. tied into the EU's customs union and some single-market rules until the two sides come up with a better way of keeping the Irish border free of infrastructure and checks. Johnson says that's unacceptable and has put forward ideas for carrying out checks and making customs declarations away from the border, and for using so-called trusted-trader systems and technology.(Updates with Barclay comment in fifth paragraph, Germany in seventh.)\--With assistance from Sarah Jacob.To contact the reporters on this story: Ian Wishart in Brussels at iwishart@bloomberg.net;Patrick Donahue in Berlin at pdonahue1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Marion Dakers, Jacqueline MackenzieFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| The U.S. Army Plans to Deploy Super-Charged Lasers to Shootdown Cruise Missiles Posted: 27 Sep 2019 10:30 PM PDT  Can China, Iran or Russia overcome this strategy?
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| Trump and Democrats dig in as historic political battle begins Posted: 27 Sep 2019 10:01 PM PDT  The effort to impeach Trump is poised to move quickly, with a conviction not out of the question: 'No one likes him'Pelosi is seen on a briefing room monitor at the White House, reading a statement announcing a formal impeachment inquiry. Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/APIt will be the political fight of the century. Donald Trump is the first president since the 1990s to face impeachment by Congress. At best for him, it will be the dirtiest, most humiliating battle yet of a tumultuous political career. At worst, it will be the death blow to his presidency.In a week for the history books, Trump was revealed to have used the powers of the Oval Office to solicit foreign interference in the 2020 election for his personal political interests – an abuse that the White House then tried to cover up.Democrats moved swiftly to launch an impeachment inquiry following a whistleblower's complaint that detailed how Trump pressed the leader of Ukraine to help smear a political rival, the former vice-president Joe Biden. It set the stage for weeks of partisan trench warfare likely to deepen national divisions. But it also offered a sliver of hope to Trump's critics: that he could be drummed out of office by Christmas.Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, reportedly instructed congressional committees to keep a narrow focus on the Ukraine scandal rather than Trump's myriad other alleged misdemeanours and to file the results of their investigations within weeks. With aides describing a "need for speed", a vote to impeach could take place by mid-November."I think it's going to happen fast," said Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow in the governance studies programme at the Brookings Institution in Washington. "The House is going to have to decide which articles of impeachment to draft and send forward. My guess is obstruction of justice and abuse of power."If the Democratic-led House votes to approve articles of impeachment, the Republican-controlled Senate will then decide whether to find Trump guilty and remove him from office. This seems far-fetched, but Kamarck said: "I'd give it a 30% to 40% chance. Remember how things shift and how public opinion shifts when you get these high-velocity events. There are people who've stood up to Trump in the Senate; they're not totally terrified of him."We forget the human part: Trump has no friends. No one likes him. When push comes to shove, he doesn't have depth and loyalty. If things get really bad and they can see a political future without him, they'll abandon him."> If there were a blind vote in the Senate, at least 30, possibly more of the Republican senators would vote to convict> > Michael SteeleTo date, Republican senators have been cowed by Trump's fervent support base and approval rating of around 90% within the party. But the relationship could prove fragile. A former Democrat, Trump was an outsider when he in effect staged a hostile takeover in the 2016 primary and many of his views are at odds with party orthodoxy.Conviction requires a two-thirds vote of the 100-member Senate: 67 votes. That means 20 Republicans would be required to rebel. Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, said the challenge for Democrats was to win over public opinion."You know you've got the votes to impeach. The goal here is to create a narrative in which the American people wind up convincing the Senate they must convict."I know it's true that if there were a blind vote in the Senate, at least 30, possibly more of the Republican senators would vote to convict the president. But they won't do it absent a very public movement in that direction. In other words, the public itself, their base." Timeline of a scandalSuch comments are a measure of the gravity of Trump's offence, different in kind from all those that went before. Unlike the special counsel Robert Mueller's 448-page report on the Trump campaign's contacts with Russia in the 2016 election and the president's apparent attempts to obstruct justice, the attempt to extort Ukraine involved Trump personally, while in office, and can be summarised in no more words than a single tweet.There was an early hint of trouble in May when the New York Times reported that Rudy Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer, planned to travel to Ukraine to press the government to investigate not only 2016 election interference but also claims Biden had pressured Ukraine to fire a prosecutor looking into a gas company where his son, Hunter Biden, was a board member.Giuliani cancelled the trip, claiming the newly elected Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy was "surrounded by enemies" of Trump. In June, Giuliani wrote on Twitter that Zelenskiy was "still silent on investigation of Ukrainian interference in 2016 and alleged Biden bribery".Trump, meanwhile, told ABC's George Stephanopoulos he would consider receiving information on an election rival from a foreign source."I think you might want to listen, there isn't anything wrong with listening," he said. "If somebody called from a country, Norway, [and said] 'We have information on your opponent' – oh, I think I'd want to hear it."The following month, the president issued instructions to freeze nearly $400m approved by Congress to help Ukraine deal with an insurgency by Russian-backed separatists in the east of the country. On 24 July, Mueller testified to Congress but was widely seen as rambling and vague, failing to provide a smoking gun for impeachment.A day later came Trump's fateful phone call with Zelenskiy. After discussing military aid, he asked for a "favour" then later pressed the Ukrainian president to speak to Giuliani and the attorney general, William Barr, about reopening a Ukrainian investigation into Hunter Biden.Trump said: "There's a lot of talk about Biden's son, that Biden stopped the prosecution and a lot of people want to find out about that so whatever you can do with the attorney general would be great. Biden went around bragging that he stopped the prosecution so if you can look into it … It sounds horrible to me."On 12 August, an intelligence community whistleblower filed a complaint. Another month passed. On 18 September, the Washington Post published the first details of the whistleblower complaint. It was very soon and very clearly a game changer.This week, as political pressure built, the White House a released a rough transcript of Trump-Zelenskiy call. It showed the US president did indeed push his counterpart to dig up dirt on Biden. Critics called it extortion and "a classic mafia-like shakedown". Pelosi announced an impeachment inquiry, citing the president's "betrayal of his oath of office, betrayal of our national security and betrayal of the integrity of our elections".Volodymyr Zelenskiy listens during a bilateral meeting with Donald Trump in New York. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/ReutersOn Wednesday, Trump and Zelenskiy met in person for the first time on the sidelines of the United Nations general assembly in New York. The Ukrainian leader, a political novice and former comedian, told reporters it was a "normal" call, insisting: "Nobody pushed me."But on Thursday the House intelligence committee released an unclassified version of the whistleblower complaint. The nine-page document said: "In the course of my official duties, I have received information from multiple US Government officials that the President of the United States is using the power of his office to solicit interference from a foreign country in the 2020 US election."This interference includes, among other things, pressuring a foreign country to investigate one of the President's main domestic political rivals. The President's personal lawyer, Mr Rudolph Giuliani, is a central figure in this effort. Attorney General Barr appears to be involved as well."It also alleged an attempt to conceal the offence, stating that White House officials took extraordinary steps to "lock down" information about the call, even moving the transcript to a secret computer system. 'He loves fights'The Zelinskiy phone call, and Trump's willingness to make it public, renewed questions over his ability to distinguish right from wrong or understand the rule of law. Reaching for his familiar playbook, he made no apology and showed no contrition, but rather fired off a fusillade of tweets and retweets accusing Democrats of another witch-hunt.And he jettisoned all norms in expressing special rage towards the whistleblower."I want to know who's the person, who's the person who gave the whistleblower the information, because that's close to a spy," Trump said to staff from the US mission to the UN. "You know what we used to do in the old days when we were smart? Right? The spies and treason, we used to handle it a little differently than we do now."> He loves fights. That's his comfort zone. He likes people being angry and yelling at each other> > Gwenda BlairGwenda Blair, a Trump biographer, said: "I don't think right or wrong are categories he thinks in. The only category is, can he get away with it?"Trump will be ready for the impeachment battle to come, Blair said. "He loves fights. That's his comfort zone. He likes people being angry and yelling at each other. He gins that up any chance he gets. He did it at Trump Tower when he was running a real estate business."That combative atmosphere is what he thrives on. He's comfortable when everyone else is uncomfortable, running and ducking for cover. That's how he got elected, pitting people against each other. He's into 'bring it on' because he's in his element."The Republican and conservative media machines have cranked into gear. Giuliani has given a series of weird and wild interviews, insisting that he, not the whistleblower, was the true "hero" of the hour. Fox News hosts such as Sean Hannity expressed outrage at "psychotic anti-Trump hysteria" and demanded that Biden be investigated. There is no evidence of wrongdoing by Joe or Hunter Biden.But Democrats who had long agonised over whether to exercise the ultimate sanction against a wayward president suddenly found bracing, galvanising clarity. Opinion polls show growing support for impeachment and Pelosi's move has come as a relief to activists who felt that, having survived the Mueller report and countless other incidents unscathed, Trump felt unleashed and able to act with ever greater impunity.Tom Steyer, founder of the Need to Impeach campaign and a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president, said: "I don't think there's any doubt that every time that Mr Trump got away with something it emboldened him to go further. I said from the beginning: it's only gonna get worse if we don't hold him to account.""Before this ever came to light about this specific incident, over half of the Democrats in Congress had already come out publicly for impeachment. The percentage of Democratic voters who are for impeachment has always been high. So this is really the triumph of the grassroots and the will of the American people building over years and demanding hold the president to account and do what's right."Trump is set to join a select group in the presidential hall of shame. Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton are the only two presidents to have been impeached, although both were acquitted by the Senate. Richard Nixon resigned under the threat of impeachment.Steyer, an entrepreneur, shares the view that Trump may be vulnerable."If the American people hear the evidence and decide, 'He's a liar and a cheat, if I did this I'd be in jail,' then I think all of the senators, including the Republican senators, are going to have to look in the mirror and decide: can they really go against what's right, go against the constitution and go against the American people?"
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| Trump can do more damage than Nixon. His impeachment is imperative Posted: 27 Sep 2019 10:00 PM PDT  Watergate brought down a second-term president. If Trump survives and wins the White House again, all bets are offComposite of Richard Nixon and Donald Trump Composite: GettyAmid the impeachment furor, don't lose sight of the renewed importance of protecting the integrity of the 2020 election.The difference between Richard Nixon's abuse of power (trying to get dirt on political opponents to help with his 1972 re-election, and then covering it up) and Donald Trump's abuse (trying to get Ukraine's president to get dirt on a political opponent to help with his 2020 reelection, and then covering it up) isn't just that Nixon's involved a botched robbery at the Watergate while Trump's involves a foreign nation.It's that Nixon's abuse of power was discovered during his second term, after he was re-elected. He was still a dangerous crook, but by that time he had no reason to inflict still more damage on American democracy.Trump's abuse has been uncovered 14 months before the 2020 election, at a time when he still has every incentive to do whatever he can to win.If special counsel Robert Mueller had found concrete evidence that Trump asked Vladimir Putin for help in digging up dirt on Hillary Clinton in 2016, that would have been the "smoking gun" that could have ended the Trump presidency.> William Barr is working for Trump, just like Rudy Giuliani and all the other lapdogs, toadies and sycophantsNow Trump is revealed to have asked Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the president of Ukraine, for dirt on Joe Biden in the 2020 election, who's to say he isn't also soliciting Vladimir Putin's help this time around?The Washington Post reports that Trump told two Russian officials in a 2017 meeting in the Oval Office he was unconcerned about Moscow's interference in the US election because the US did the same in other countries. This prompted White House officials to limit access to Trump's remarks.Trump is in a better position to make such deals than he was in 2016 because as president he's got a pile of US military aid and international loans and grants that could make a foreign rulers' life very comfortable, or, if withheld, exceedingly difficult.As we've learned, Trump uses whatever leverage he can get, for personal gain. That's the art of the deal.Who can we count on to protect our election process in 2020?Certainly not William Barr. We've seen the transcript of Trump's phone call where he urges Zelenskiy to work with the attorney general to investigate Biden – even telling Zelenskiy Barr will follow up with his own call.We also know Barr's justice department decided Trump had not acted illegally, and told the acting director of national intelligence to keep the whistleblower complaint from Congress.This is the same attorney general, not incidentally, who said Mueller's report had cleared the Trump campaign of conspiring with Russia when in fact Mueller had found that the campaign welcomed Russia's help, and who said Mueller had absolved Trump of obstructing justice when Mueller specifically declined to decide the matter.Barr is not working for the United States. He's working for Trump, just like Rudy Giuliani and all the other lapdogs, toadies and sycophants.Fortunately, some government appointees still understand their responsibilities. We're indebted to the anonymous intelligence officer who complained about Trump's calls to the president of Ukraine, and to Michael Atkinson, inspector general of the intelligence community, who deemed the complaint of "urgent concern".But if the 2020 election is going to be – and to be seen as – legitimate, the nation will need many more whistleblowers and officials with integrity.All of us will need to be vigilant.Over the last two and a half years, Trump has shown himself willing to trample any aspect of our democracy that gets in his way – attacking the media, using the presidency for personal profit, packing the federal courts, verbally attacking judges, blasting the head of the Federal Reserve, spending money in ways Congress did not authorize, and subverting the separation of powers.He believes he's invincible. He's now daring our entire constitutional and political system to stop him.The real value of the formal impeachment now under way is to put Trump on notice that he can't necessarily get away with abusing his presidential power to win re-election. He will still try, of course. But at least a line has been drawn. And now everyone is watching.Regardless of how the impeachment turns out, Trump's predation can be constrained as long as his presidency can be ended with the 2020 election. If that election is distorted, and if this man is re-elected, all bets are off. * Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley and the author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few and The Common Good. He is also a columnist for Guardian US
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| How Thomas Cook’s ‘Excursions’ Lost Their Way Posted: 27 Sep 2019 10:00 PM PDT ![How Thomas Cook's 'Excursions' Lost Their Way]( "How Thomas Cook's 'Excursions' Lost Their Way") (Bloomberg Opinion) -- The bankruptcy of Thomas Cook Group Plc, the company whose founder is credited with inventing the modern tourist industry, is being blamed on Brexit, a series of bad management decisions and an unsustainable debt level. Perhaps, however, it's worth looking at Thomas Cook's failure as the beginning of the end of the tourism model the company helped create.Thomas Cook's rise from organizing train "excursions" for the masses in Britain to "Cook Pasha," as he was known in the British-dominated Middle East and North Africa, is well-documented. Driven by the idea of distracting ordinary Brits from drink, the lay Baptist preacher lured them with the idea of going places and seeing things while never leaving their comfort zone. Eventually, Cook arrived at a concept that is still central to the tourist industry. As F. Robert Hunter wrote in a 2004 paper about Thomas Cook & Son, the modern company's predecessor: The centerpiece of this new structure was the 'Resort'. Resorts were places dedicated to tourists. They could be sites of great scenic beauty, located in the mountains, or along coastlines. Mineral water locales, once reserved only for the sick, were becoming attractive to tourists. The resort contained a variety of accommodations, geared to different income levels. These ranged from the pension, to the hotel, to the grand hotel (containing hundreds of rooms). The most developed popular resorts had all three types of accommodation, with meals and other services. The resort also included a promenade, or strolling area, whose form (for example, the jetty at Brighton) varied. And it contained small armies of people hired to provide services to travellers – pageboys, waiters, chefs, nurses, physicians, tour guides, etc. To convey passengers quickly from their homes to the resorts and back again, tourist networks appeared. These comprised steamships, railways, and other means of conveyance, and a host of agencies, offices, and sub-offices. Tour agencies were established with their own staff and schedules. Promoters like Cook & Son created tourist 'seasons' – fixed periods that corresponded to the most advantageous times for travel.This was the invention of what researchers call "enclave tourism": Whatever experiences – such as trips to various "exotic" locations or tourist adventures – can be organized out of the resort, the enclave holiday has the characteristics of an exhibition where visitors file past objects without interacting with them. (The alternative is "integrated" tourism, in which travelers get to interact with the communities they visit.) As Waleed Hazbun from the University of Alabama wrote in 2007:The enclave model thus facilitates expanding tourism volume and extending travel to new, unfamiliar territories despite little prior development of tourism facilities. Enclave tourism relies on a dedicated tourist infrastructure, which is easier to build than a public one but is generally used only for tourism purposes.Thomas Cook settled on the enclave model because he expanded his business to territories invaded and controlled by the British Empire, such as Egypt and the Sudan. The locals were often hostile to Europeans, especially the English, and neither the empire nor the local kings and sheikhs had any interest in building European-quality infrastructure for everyone to use. So the tour organizer built its own – and bribed the locals to tolerate it. "Those donkeys are subsidized by Cook; that little plot of lettuce is being grown for Cook, and so are the fowls; those boats tied up on the bank were built by the sheikh of the Cataracts for the tourist service with money advanced by Cook," British journalist George Warrington Steevens wrote of the Cook operation in British-occupied Egypt.In that way, Cook created whole worlds superimposed on the actual places and cultures that supported his business. We often still travel in these worlds. According to the U.K. tourism industry association, ABTA, in 2018, 49% of Britons traveling abroad bought a package tour, most of them because it meant "everything was taken care of" and many others because it was relatively cheap.But even without a package, many travelers end up in resorts as Cook envisioned them, because the whole infrastructure of travel – airports, accommodation, opportunities for cultural exploration and fun with the kids – is geared to the model. Let's not kid ourselves: By booking flights and accommodation separately, and even by going with a service like Airbnb, we're not really avoiding enclave tourism, just approaching it from a different angle.At Thomas Cook itself, the management appeared to believe the enclave-tourism model was immortal, and it was simply a matter of serving to each generation the package that it prefers. In its 2019 Holiday Report, the company wrote of a shift in demand from the alcohol-soaked, nightlife-oriented vacations the under-35 clientele used to like, to "poolside yoga, nutritious dishes and contemporary cocktails designed by in-house mixologists." "Today's 'Millennials' and 'Gen Z' (those aged between 18 and 35) want to look after their bodies, shy away from one-night stands and hangover fry-ups, and favour wheatgrass smoothies (which make for better Instagram fodder)," the company wrote.Thomas Cook chose to treat the most recent generational trends as fads. There's increased demand for more sustainable travel? Sure, we'll stop laundering towels as often as we used to, and advertise the same old resorts as eco-friendly. Tourists want "instagrammable" experiences? Sure, we'll design them with a square picture frame in mind. Tourists want a "genuine local experience"? Difficult, but then, "genuine" is only an advertising label.So far, there's no statistical evidence that this approach is failing. Hotel occupancy rates are going up in most regions of the world. Overtourism is a problem, undertourism isn't. But imagine for a moment that sustainability, simplicity, sincerity and the rejection of a colonialist mentality aren't just fads – that society is actually changing. Then the failure of Thomas Cook will start to look like a symbolic event, a sign that an era is ending, not just the consequence of poor management and being headquartered in the wrong country.Flight shame, the uncomfortable feeling that one leaves too big a carbon footprint by flying, is already undermining cheap air travel. Young people are increasingly uncomfortable treating locals at tourist destinations as their social inferiors, and their quest for experiences is impossible to satisfy with cookie-cutter tourist products. The locals still take the tourists' money, but whenever I travel to popular tourist destinations, I sense an undercurrent of the same irritation that once informed the British poet William Wordsworth's protest against mass train "excursions" to England's Lake District: "As for holiday pastimes, if a scene is to be chosen suitable to them for persons thronging from a distance, it may be found elsewhere at less cost of every kind."At the same time, even in poor countries, the infrastructure is becoming navigable even for someone who has grown up in the West. Unpackaged travel, which allows more contact with one's surroundings, is more accessible than ever, especially since it's become easier to find accommodation online. It's a world increasingly out of sync with the tourism industry as invented by Thomas Cook in the 19th century (plus a few bells and whistles).I'm not predicting the end of seaside resorts, big hotels or packaged tours. There is a niche for them, just as there is one for vinyl records. It'll probably remain a relatively big niche, too. But it won't likely remain the dominant model for long, for all its legacy power.To contact the author of this story: Leonid Bershidsky at lbershidsky@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Tobin Harshaw at tharshaw@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Leonid Bershidsky is Bloomberg Opinion's Europe columnist. He was the founding editor of the Russian business daily Vedomosti and founded the opinion website Slon.ru.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Pound Traders Brace for Further Drama From Annual Tory Meeting Posted: 27 Sep 2019 10:00 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Manchester takes over from London as the focus for pound traders this weekend, as the Conservative Party's annual conference there may bring more drama around the U.K.'s fraught Brexit debate.The event has previously rattled investors -- an unexpected 2016 policy shift from then Prime Minister Theresa May saw sterling's worst weekly run since the Brexit vote. A year later, the meeting showcased May's waning popularity and stirred speculation about a leadership challenge, driving the pound down. This time, investors will be watching for any hardening of stance by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has vowed to exit the European Union next month with or without a deal.The industrial city in north west England -- home to two of the country's biggest Premier League soccer clubs -- is accustomed to being at the center of sports betting markets. It crosses the currency-market radar less often, but as the Oct. 31 Brexit deadline draws nearer, strategists are on alert for any political insight from the Sept. 29-Oct. 2 gathering."The Tory party conference is probably the single most important event for sterling next week," said Ned Rumpeltin, European head of currency strategy at Toronto-Dominion Bank. "The prime minister will need to rally his troops and energize his Brexit base. That means the tone is likely to harden significantly toward the EU."Brexit, BOESterling plunged in recent days, hitting the lowest level in almost three weeks as bad news abounded on the political and economic fronts. The EU was said to be losing faith in Johnson's ability to strike a Brexit deal by the Oct. 31 deadline, while Bank of England policy maker Michael Saunders warned the central bank may need to cut interest rates to support the economy even if a Brexit deal or delay is secured.Possibilities tied to Brexit still remain wide open -- from a delay or a no-deal Brexit to an early election. Johnson challenged his opponents earlier this week to call a national ballot, asking Parliament to "face a day of reckoning with the voters." The theme could develop this weekend, according to Koon Chow, a strategist at Union Bancaire Privee, although he sees an election to be sterling-positive in the longer term."It might not prove to be that bad for the pound because if we have a Parliament that is less divided, the chances of a government producing any kind of deal improve, removing uncertainty which is probably the main thing weighing on the sterling," he said.Traders will also be watching U.K. data next week -- Thursday's services-sector data more than the rest. Reports on gross domestic product and manufacturing are also due earlier in the week, with recent prints disappointing the market.All things considered, it's best to stay short the pound for now, according to Societe Generale SA strategist Kenneth Broux. He recommends selling the U.K. currency into the October EU summit, until progress is made on the contentious Irish border plans that have so far blocked the two sides from reaching a Brexit deal.To contact the reporters on this story: Charlotte Ryan in London at cryan147@bloomberg.net;Michael Hunter in London at mhunter72@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Dobson at pdobson2@bloomberg.net, Anil Varma, William ShawFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Russian minister: West out of step, can't accept its decline Posted: 27 Sep 2019 09:41 PM PDT  Russia's foreign minister took aim at the West on Friday, saying its philosophies are out of step with the times and that it is struggling to accept what he called its diminishing dominance in world affairs. In his speech before the U.N. General Assembly, Sergei Lavrov blamed the countries that declared themselves winners of the Cold War between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union for the current challenges facing the world, and for the increasing fragmentation of the international community. "It is hard for the West to accept seeing its centuries-long dominance in world affairs diminishing," Lavrov said.
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| Trump Can’t Get Away With It Anymore Posted: 27 Sep 2019 07:42 PM PDT  Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/GettyWhen Donald Trump was caught on a hot mic talking with Billy Bush, much of the world looked on in horror at the graphic way in which he bragged about committing acts of sexual assault. But it was another part of the audio—the part where he shared his secret for evading culpability—that truly revealed the underpinnings of his worldview. "When you're a star," Trump said, "they let you do it."As the inheritor of a major real estate enterprise, Trump has been a star—more or less—since the day he was born. And he has expanded on that stardom throughout his career, even managing to be a headline-grabber when his fortune vanished and his marriages crumbled. Through it all, they let him do it. The banks with which he did business bailed him out; the newspapers that recognized the hollowness of his self-constructed image ran his tips; the network that had incriminating recordings of him off-camera on his top-rated show kept them secret.One of the great gambles Trump made was that this particular brand of stardom could be translated into politics. And, largely, he was right. No one in the Republican Party stood up to him as he championed the birther movement. No one in the party took him on directly as he launched his campaign railing about Mexicans being rapists. And though Republicans reacted in horror to his mocking of John McCain, Megyn Kelly, a gold star mother, and the Billy Bush tape, they eventually got over it—as Trump knew they would. He was, after all, their star. They'd let him do it. But being president has proven fundamentally challenging to that basic life ethos. And if Trump needed proof of that, it has come this week in what can only be described as the most harrowing and dangerous moment of his presidency. Trump is on track to be impeached. In doing so, he will become just the fourth person to occupy his office who has ever faced that fate. That, of course, would be alarming in and of itself. But it is the manner in which it is all transpiring that must be proving so unnerving and unfamiliar to him. A whistleblower from within his administration has decided to speak out about—what appear at first blush to be—illegal and unscrupulous acts involving the president calling a foreign leader, encouraging him to dig up dirt on Joe Biden, and then having the record of that conversation hid away. The contents of the complaint were not just produced by one alarmed person choosing to speak out, however. Instead, they were described and detailed to the whistleblower by several White House aides who, it is presumed, shared similar fears.On Thursday, Trump's own director of national intelligence affirmed that the complaint was credible. He also called the crisis presented before the country unprecedented, leaving the impression that he too was a bit shaken by the totality of it all. That same morning, videos of Trump's speech to the U.S. mission at the United Nations and his address to a private fundraiser at a swank Manhattan restaurant were both quickly leaked to the press. And not because they showed the president in a fine light. Instead, he was caught ruminating about his desire to see the whistleblower executed like treasonous spies in days of old. That night, Trump's private attorney, Rudy Giuliani, ran one of the more harebrained CYA moves in recent memory by sharing text messages implicating the State Department in the president's scheme to pressure the Ukrainians. And by the next day, the official whom he was texting—Trump's envoy to Ukraine—quit. Before then, came other revelations: that Trump had records of his call with Vladimir Putin and Mohammed Bin Salman hidden and that he'd casually mentioned to his "China whisperer" that he'd like to see if he too could get Biden dirt. And later that evening came, perhaps, the most alarming news break of all. The Washington Post published another story on another private meeting with another set of world leaders—this time involving Trump telling senior Russian officials that he was unconcerned about Moscow's meddling in 2016 elections. I Was There for Clinton's Impeachment. Here's the Hell Trumpworld Faces.There have been famous leaks before, including many of far more significance and historical weight than these. But rarely has a president been so under siege from within. For Trump—who is used to living in an insular world created by his media ingenuity and relentless efforts at self-promotion—the lack of control must feel petrifying. And yet, the threats from within are the ones that are easier to handle right now. It's those coming from outside the White House that are existential. Though some Trumpworld figures may believe otherwise, House Democrats are not bluffing in their impeachment push. They are firm in their desire to see it done and to see it done with as much pain applied to the president as they can muster. Just on Friday, they demanded records from Trump's budget office as to why it delayed congressionally authorized military aid payments to Ukraine and subpoenaed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for answers about what Foggy Bottom knew about Rudy's travails. There are plans to talk in closed session to the inspector general of the Intelligence Community and to bring Kurt Volker, the recently resigned U.S. special representative for Ukraine, in as well. Eventually, they will come asking for the documents we now know Trump tried to hide. And if he doesn't disclose them, it will be portrayed—perhaps accurately—as a cover-up. Faced with this mortal threat, Trump's plan seems to be to simply tweet through it. A senior White House official told The Daily Beast that he explicitly said he doesn't want a war room created to handle impeachment. And even if he did, who would staff it? Many of the people initially brought into the White House have left on poor terms. And those who would be comfortable being brought back are not trusted. It's not surprising that the source for Friday night's story in The Post was "three former officials."Certainly, Trump may find his way through this. He remains a star, after all, among his base of supporters. And in a Senate run by Republicans worried about being primaried this cycle, that seems like enough to see him through a trial that would follow the House's impeachment. But even then, this week has provided a jarring and potentially crippling lesson for a president who isn't particularly keen on making personal adjustment. There are, Trump's discovering, limits to what your stardom will allow you to do. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Trump told Russian officials he was unconcerned about election interference – report Posted: 27 Sep 2019 07:21 PM PDT  White House reportedly restricted access to comments in 2017 meeting, allowing only a few officials to see transcriptDonald Trump speaks with the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, left, and the then Russian ambassador to the US, Sergei Kislyak, at the White House in May 2017. Photograph: HO/AFP/Getty ImagesThe White House reportedly restricted access to comments that Donald Trump made in a 2017 Oval Office meeting with two senior Russian officials, concealing that he told them he was unconcerned about Moscow's interference in the 2016 US election, according to the Washington Post.The new claims concerning the details of the 10 May 2017 meeting emerged on Friday as the White House continues to reel from the fallout from a whistleblower complaint, which accused Trump of pressuring the Ukrainian president to investigate the son of Trump's potential 2020 rival Joe Biden. That complaint has cast intense scrutiny on the White House's classification of records of Trump's communications with foreign officials. The whistleblower claimed that the official transcript of Trump's 25 July call with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky was placed into a highly secured system reserved for the most sensitive intelligence information.It is unclear if records of the May 2017 meeting were filed in the same system. But only a few officials with the highest security clearances had access to a memorandum summarizing the meeting, in an attempt to keep the comments from going public, sources told the Post.The 2017 White House meeting between Donald Trump and the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and the Russian ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak, has long been controversial. It took place shortly after Trump fired James Comey, and Trump reportedly used the meeting to disparage the FBI director as a "nut job", saying his dismissal relieved "great pressure" on him. Trump was also reported to have shared Israeli intelligence related to Isis with the Russian officials.But Trump's remarks about being unconcerned about Moscow's interference in the 2016 election especially troubled White House officials because they made it seem like the president forgave Russia for an attack intended to help elect him, according to the Post.With an impeachment inquiry now under way, other reports have emerged of the White House's apparent efforts to limit access to transcripts of conversations with foreign leaders. The White House made an effort to restrict access to transcripts for phone calls with the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, as well, CNN reported Friday.
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| The Latest: Posted: 27 Sep 2019 06:35 PM PDT  Russia's foreign minister is calling the dispute over the phone call between President Donald Trump and Ukraine's president "overblown," and is strongly denying House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's claim that Russia is involved. Trump's phone call with Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in which the American president is alleged to have sought help from Ukraine for next year's election, is at the center of a House impeachment probe. "It was contorted by them," Lavrov told a news conference Friday after addressing the U.N. General Assembly.
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| Bangladeshi leader at UN: Rohingya refugee crisis worsening Posted: 27 Sep 2019 05:49 PM PDT  Warning that a wider regional problem is at hand, Bangladesh's leader said Friday that the crisis involving Muslim Rohingya refugees from neighboring Myanmar is "going beyond the camps" where they are staying. In Bangladesh's annual address to the U.N. General Assembly, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina appealed to the international community to "understand the untenability of the situation" surrounding the refugees from Myanmar, who are fleeing persecution by the military there. "I would request the international community to understand the untenability of the situation," Hasina said.
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| Venezuela VP condemns countries that shunned Maduro Posted: 27 Sep 2019 05:47 PM PDT  Delcy Rodríguez told the U.N. General Assembly on Friday that she came on "behalf of the only Venezuela," a reference to a rival delegation of diplomats that opposition leader Juan Guaidó sent to the annual gathering of world leaders. Venezuela's turn at the General Assembly podium came at the end of a week when the U.S. and other countries tried to ramp up efforts to pressure President Nicolás Maduro to step aside and allow for new presidential elections.
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| China's government, turning 70, tells its story at the UN Posted: 27 Sep 2019 04:39 PM PDT  With Chinese President Xi Jinping not attending this year's U.N. General Assembly, it fell to Foreign Minister Wang Yi to tell the story of the People's Republic of China at the seven-decade mark. "Seventy years ago, China put an end to a period in modem history in which the country was torn apart and trampled upon. The current chapter for China, a culture thousands of years old, began on Oct. 1, 1949 when Mao Zedong stood at a microphone atop Tiananmen Square in Beijing and declared a new government in the nation his communist guerrillas took from Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists after a civil war.
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| US: Zarif can visit sick colleague after Iran frees American Posted: 27 Sep 2019 04:39 PM PDT  The United States said Friday that Iran's foreign minister can visit the country's ailing U.N. ambassador at a New York hospital only if Tehran releases an American citizen, diplomats and the U.S. State Department said. Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is in New York for the annual U.N. gathering of world leaders, had hoped to visit Iran's U.N. Ambassador Majid Takht Ravanchi as he is being treated for cancer and requested permission from the State Department, diplomats at the United Nations said.
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| Decorum prevails as nations at odds take each other on Posted: 27 Sep 2019 03:32 PM PDT  Pakistan and India sparred over Kashmir, Russia chided the West and said its influence in world affairs was diminishing and China's top diplomat warned that unilateralism and protectionism "are posing major threats to the international order" — a veiled reference to its ongoing tariff war with the United States. Nations at odds with each other didn't shy away from taking gibes Friday as their leaders took to the podium on the fourth day of the annual U.N. General Assembly.
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