The Guardian (U.K.): on Principles & Values


Donald Trump: OpEd: 1920s law authorizes to get presidential tax returns

"We're fighting all the subpoenas," says the person who is supposed to be chief executive of the United States government. In other words, there is to be no congressional oversight of this administration: no questioning a former White House counsel about the Mueller report. No presidential tax returns to the ways and means committee, even though a 1920s law specifically authorizes the committee to get them. Such a blanket edict fits a dictator of a banana republic, not the president of a constitutional republic founded on separation of powers.

If Congress cannot question the people who are making policy, or obtain critical documents, Congress cannot function as a coequal branch of government. If Congress cannot get information about the executive branch, there is no longer any separation of powers, as sanctified in the US constitution. There is only one power--the power of the president to rule as he wishes. Which is what Donald Trump has sought all along.

Source: Robert Reich in "The Guardian" on impeaching Trump Apr 28, 2019

Donald Trump: OpEd: Trump aides must testify despite "executive privilege"

Presidents before Trump have argued that complying with a particular subpoena for a particular person or document would infringe upon confidential deliberations within the executive branch. But no president before Trump has used "executive privilege" as a blanket refusal to cooperate.

Trump is treating Congress with contempt--just as he has treated other democratic institutions that have blocked him. Congress should invoke its inherent power under the constitution to hold any official who refuses a congressional subpoena in contempt.

When President Richard Nixon tried to stop key aides from testifying in the Senate Watergate hearings, in 1973, Senator Sam Ervin, chairman of the Watergate select committee, threatened to jail anyone who refused to appear.

When Nixon tried to block the release of incriminating recordings of his discussions with aides, the supreme court decided that a claim of executive privilege did not protect information pertinent to the investigation of potential crimes.

Source: Robert Reich in "The Guardian" on impeaching Trump Apr 28, 2019

Jo Rae Perkins: Stands with Trump and QAnon

Perkins, who defeated three other candidates in a primary to be the Republican candidate, said in a now-deleted video: "I stand with President Trump. I stand with Q and the team. Thank you Anons, and thank you patriots. And together, we can save our republic." The QAnon theory centers on an alleged government agent named "Q", whose top security clearance has provided insight into a deep-state conspiracy involving everyone from Hillary Clinton to special counsel Robert Mueller.
Source: The Guardian on 2020 Oregon Senate race May 21, 2020

Joe Biden: I believe America ready to face difficult crises

[Excerpts of DNC speech]: "History has delivered us to one of the most difficult moments America has ever faced," he said. "The worst pandemic in over 100 years. The worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The most compelling call for racial justice since the 60s. And the undeniable realities and accelerating threats of climate change. So, the question for us is simple: are we ready? I believe we are."
Source: D.Strauss/The Guardian on 2020 Dem. National Convention Aug 21, 2020

John Bolton: Trump sought help from China in upcoming re-election

Donald Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton has made a series of explosive claims about the US president in his new book "The Room Where It Happened." Most notably, Bolton claims Trump asked China to use its economic power to help him in the 2020 election.

According to the excerpt of Bolton's book published by the Wall Street Journal, Trump asked China to use its economic power to help him win a second election.

In one instance, Trump and President Xi Jinping were discussing hostility to China in the US. 'Trump then, stunningly, turned the conversation to the coming US presidential election, alluding to China's economic capability and pleading with Xi to ensure he'd win,' Bolton writes.

'He stressed the importance of farmers and increased Chinese purchases of soybeans and wheat in the electoral outcome. I would print Trump's exact words, but the government's prepublication review process has decided otherwise.'

Source: The Guardian excerpts from "The Room Where It Happened" Jun 17, 2020

Robert Reich: Refusing Congress' subpoena fits a dictator, not a president

"We're fighting all the subpoenas," says the person who is supposed to be chief executive of the United States government. In other words, there is to be no congressional oversight of this administration: no questioning a former White House counsel about the Mueller report. No presidential tax returns to the ways and means committee, even though a 1920s law specifically authorizes the committee to get them. Such a blanket edict fits a dictator of a banana republic, not the president of a constitutional republic founded on separation of powers.

If Congress cannot question the people who are making policy, or obtain critical documents, Congress cannot function as a coequal branch of government. If Congress cannot get information about the executive branch, there is no longer any separation of powers, as sanctified in the US constitution. There is only one power--the power of the president to rule as he wishes. Which is what Donald Trump has sought all along.

Source: OpEd in "The Guardian" (UK) on impeaching Trump Apr 28, 2019

Robert Reich: When Nixon blocked aides' testifying, Dems threatened jail

Presidents before Trump have argued that complying with a particular subpoena for a particular person or document would infringe upon confidential deliberations within the executive branch. But no president before Trump has used "executive privilege" as a blanket refusal to cooperate.

Trump is treating Congress with contempt--just as he has treated other democratic institutions that have blocked him. Congress should invoke its inherent power under the constitution to hold any official who refuses a congressional subpoena in contempt.

When President Richard Nixon tried to stop key aides from testifying in the Senate Watergate hearings, in 1973, Senator Sam Ervin, chairman of the Watergate select committee, threatened to jail anyone who refused to appear.

When Nixon tried to block the release of incriminating recordings of his discussions with aides, the supreme court decided that a claim of executive privilege did not protect information pertinent to the investigation of potential crimes.

Source: OpEd in "The Guardian" (UK) on impeaching Trump Apr 28, 2019

Robert Reich: Removing Trump via 25th amendment may do more damage

The 25th amendment allows the vice-president to become "acting president" when "the vice-president and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or such other body as Congress may by law provide" declare a president incapacitated. The only thing that's going to get Pence and a majority of Trump's lieutenants to pull the plug before Trump pulls it on them may be so horrific that the damage done would be way beyond anything we've experienced to date.
Source: The Guardian: Clinton Cabinet on impeaching Trump Sep 15, 2019

Scott Pruitt: Resigned from EPA in 2018 amid several ethics scandals

Pruitt stepped down as EPA administrator in 2018 amid a wave of ethics scandals, including living in a bargain-priced Capitol Hill condo tied to an energy lobbyist. He faced ethics investigations into pricey trips with first-class airline seats and unusual security spending, including a $43,000 soundproof booth for making private phone calls. He demanded 24-hour-a-day protection from armed officers, resulting in a 20-member security detail that racked up expenses of more than $3m.
Source: The Guardian on 2022 Oklahoma Senate race Apr 15, 2022

Vladimir Putin: 2016: use 'all possible force' to ensure Trump victory

A 2016 report prepared by Putin's expert department recommended Moscow use 'all possible force' to ensure a Trump presidential victory. On 14 January 2016 a three-page executive summary of conclusions and recommendations was signed by Putin two days later. What was said inside the Kremlin is unknown. But the president and his intelligence officials appear to have signed off on a multi-agency plan to interfere in US democracy, framed in terms of justified self-defence.

Putin has repeatedly denied accusations of interfering in western democracy. The documents seem to contradict this claim. They suggest one of the most important and audacious espionage operations of the 21st century: a plot to help put the "mentally unstable" Trump in the White House. The papers appear to set out a route map for what actually happened in 2016.

Moscow would gain most from a Republican victory, the paper states. This could lead to a "social explosion" that would in turn weaken the US president, it says.

Source: The Guardian on Trump Impeachment Jul 15, 2021

Donald Trump: Endorsed by Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard

Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman, has endorsed the Republican nominee, Donald Trump.

Gabbard, who served in the military in Iraq, ran for president in the Democratic primary in 2020. She quit the party two years later and has become a fixture at conservative conferences and in rightwing media.

Addressing a National Guard Association conference in Detroit, Michigan, where Trump was speaking, Gabbard said: "This administration has us facing multiple wars on multiple fronts in regions around the world and closer to the brink of nuclear war than we ever have been before. This is one of the main reasons why I’m committed to doing all that I can to send President Trump back to the White House, where he can once again serve us as our commander-in-chief. Because I am confident that his first task will be to do the work to walk us back from the brink of war."

Gabbard represented Hawaii in Congress and is a former vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee.

Source: The Guardian (UK) on 2024 Presidential endorsements Aug 26, 2024

Tulsi Gabbard: Endorses Donald Trump, after quitting Democratic Party

Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman, has endorsed the Republican nominee, Donald Trump.

Gabbard, who served in the military in Iraq, ran for president in the Democratic primary in 2020. She quit the party two years later and has become a fixture at conservative conferences and in rightwing media.

Addressing a National Guard Association conference in Detroit, Michigan, where Trump was speaking, Gabbard said: "This administration has us facing multiple wars on multiple fronts in regions around the world and closer to the brink of nuclear war than we ever have been before. This is one of the main reasons why I’m committed to doing all that I can to send President Trump back to the White House, where he can once again serve us as our commander-in-chief. Because I am confident that his first task will be to do the work to walk us back from the brink of war."

Gabbard represented Hawaii in Congress and is a former vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee.

Source: The Guardian (UK) on 2024 Presidential endorsements Aug 26, 2024

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