News from the note…
A round up of the day’s news that might be of interest to you.
Consider this an OPEN THREAD, folks. Chat about any of the stories listed, share links to stories that caught your eye today, and generally have a good time discussing whatever you want.
Trump: I guarantee everyone who has bought a Harley-Davidson voted for me
From The Hill
President Trump claimed on Sunday that everyone who has ever bought a Harley-Davidson motorcycle voted for him in the 2016 presidential election.
“I guarantee you everybody that ever bought a Harley-Davidson voted for Trump,” Trump said on Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” “I don’t know if you know that. I would have to — they call them bikers for Trump. There’s hundreds.”
Trump’s comments come amid an escalating feud between the Milwaukee-based motorcycle company and the president.
Trump falsely claims he never told House Republicans to vote for immigration bill
From Politico
President Donald Trump falsely claimed on Saturday that he never encouraged House Republicans to vote for an immigration bill, despite tweeting such an encouragement three days earlier.
“I never pushed the Republicans in the House to vote for the Immigration Bill, either GOODLATTE 1 or 2, because it could never have gotten enough Democrats as long as there is the 60 vote threshold,” the president wrote on Twitter. “I released many prior to the vote knowing we need more Republicans to win in Nov.”
Trump explicitly called for Republicans to support Virginia Rep. Bob Goodlatte‘s bill on Wednesday with an all-caps Twitter endorsement.
Man arrested after brandishing gun during ‘Families Belong Together’ demonstration
From The Hill
A former high school teacher is in custody after reportedly brandishing a gun at a “Families Belong Together” immigration rally on Saturday.
Al.com reports that Shane Ryan Sealy, 34, is being charged with menacing and reckless endangerment after brandishing a firearm at protestors in Huntsville, Ala.
The news outlet reports that Sealy came to the demonstration, which protested against President Trump‘s immigration policies, as a counter-protestor.
Huntsville police told Al.com that Sealy got into a fight with a person at the rally, and eventually pulled a weapon out.
He was arrested for possessing a firearm within 1,000 feet of the protest.
Trump: Opponents ‘better just take it easy’
From The Hill
President Trump on Sunday blamed his opponents for the division in the country, warning that those who have spoken out against him should “take it easy.”
Trump appeared on Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” where he was asked about recent incidents in which celebrities cursed him out and protesters demonstrated against members of his administration in restaurants and public spaces.
“I hope the other side realizes that they better just take it easy,” Trump said.
“Because some of the language used, some of the words used, even some of the radical ideas, I really think they’re very bad for the country. I think they’re actually dangerous for the country,” he added.
Bolton says there’s a one-year plan for North Korea to denuclearize, stays mum on WaPo report
From CNN
On CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Bolton said North Korea’s nuclear arsenal could be dismantled in a year if Pyongyang cooperates, adding that the program would require “full disclosure of all [of North Korea’s] chemical and biological, nuclear programs, ballistic missile sites.”
“We have developed a program. I am sure that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will be discussing this with the North Koreans in the near future about really how to dismantle all of their [weapons of mass destruction] and ballistic missile programs in a year,” Bolton said. “If they have the strategic decision already made to do that and they are cooperative, we can move very quickly. And it is to North Korea’s advantage to dismantle very quickly. Then the elimination of sanctions, aid by South Korea and Japan and others can all begin to flower.”
Bolton disclosed that the plan has not been put into action yet.
“It has not. Physically, we would be able to dismantle the overwhelming bulk of their programs within a year,” Bolton said.
A Sunday Bonus Note From The “Must Read” File
Trump treats ‘national security’ like a political slogan. That won’t keep us safe.
From USA Today
By Tom Nichols
I am a “national security conservative.” I grew up with the Cold War, when the United States faced an existential threat both to its way of life and its physical safety. I live, as we all do, in a world where terrorists seek those same ends, even if by less apocalyptic means. The words “national security” still command my attention and they focus my concern. Like many who share my views, I tend to place national security as a priority over many other important American values — sometimes more than I should.
But “national security” is also one of the most abused phrases in our political history. The same dire language has been weaponized to excuse the persecution of American dissidents and minorities; the pillaging of enormous amounts of our national wealth; and the sacrifice of the lives of our young people on the battlefield.
A Sunday Bonus Bonus Note From The “This Will Come In Handy” File
Here’s a Handy Guide for Republicans to Tell Whether a Story is Really ‘Fake News’
From Mediaite
This week, a startling new poll was released in which 92% of Republicans said that they agree that the news media sometimes knowingly reports false or misleading—otherwise known as “fake”–news. Since, in the modern era, it is nearly impossible to get 92% of Republicans, or any large group really, to agree on anything remotely controversial, this statistic understandably created quite a stir.
As an anti-news media conservative who has spent most of their career trying to educate people about how biased and flawed much of the mainstream news media coverage has become, I felt a strange sense of culpability for having played a tiny role in these disturbing results. This is not because 92% of Republicans (as well as 72% of Independents and 53% of Democrats) are incorrect about the news media occasionally reporting things which could be described as “fake news,” for, sadly, this does indeed happen all too often.
The real problem here (other than, of course, the fact that the news media now has dangerously little credibility remaining with most of the public) is that most people, especially Trump-supporting Republicans are really awful at determining when the news media may be reporting things that are not true. Consequently, the term ‘fake news” has become little more than a weapon for President Trump to fool his “Cult 45” following into thinking that negative stories about him can’t be trusted, and the legitimate cause of media accountability has now been hopelessly bastardized for the sole benefit of a man who deserves such a benefit less than anyone.
A Canada Day Bonus Note From The “How Come Canada Gets All The Good Stuff?” File
Come celebrate #CanadaDay with our tour guides and our mascot Amicus! Free tours on July 1 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. #MyOttawa pic.twitter.com/eScoLFw7Qw
— Supreme Court Canada (@SCC_eng) June 29, 2018
