(2018-12-31). US intelligence think tank conducted "false flag" operation impersonating Russian election interference. wsws.org New Knowledge sought to influence the 2017 Alabama election and make it appear that Russia was intervening to back the Republican candidate.
(2018-12-29). Trump Administration to Veto Cuba Baseball Deal. telesurenglish.net Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio is attempting to veto an Obama-era ruling allowing Cuban athletes to join Major League Baseball without first having to defect to the United States. | RELATED: | Cuban, US Leagues Ink Deal to Protect Cuban Baseball Players | Rubio has asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to rule that the Cuban government controls the island baseball league, therefore nullifying the deal. | "The deal between MLB and the Cuban Baseball Federation is both illegal…
(2018-12-28). Watch Replay of 10th Online Vigil for Julian Assange. consortiumnews.com Consortium News on Friday night broadcast live the 10th online vigil for WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange. Among the guests was Francis Boyle, a University of Illinois international law professor, who spoke about his experiences with the U.S.-British extradition treaty. Other guests… Read more →
(2018-12-28). A Path to Freedom? Journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal Wins Chance to Reargue Appeal in 1981 Police Killing. democracynow.org 
Former Black Panther and award-winning journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal was convicted of the 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner but has always maintained his innocence. On Thursday, a Philadelphia judge ruled Abu-Jamal can reargue his appeal in the case before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The judge cited then-Chief Justice Ronald Castille's failure to recuse himself from the case due to his prior role as Philadelphia district attorney when Abu-Jamal was appealing. We get an update from Johanna Fernández, professor of history at Baruch College-CUNY and one of the coordinators of the Campaign t…
(2018-12-28). Trump's 3 Generals May Be Out, But The Forever War Lobby Still Rules. iranian.com Leave it to liberals to pin their hopes on the oddest things. In particular, they seemed to find post-Trump solace in the strange combination of the two-year-old Mueller investigation and the good judgment of certain Trump appointees, the proverbial "adults in the room." Remember that crew? It once included Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the […]
(2018-12-27). A Skewed 5-year-old Reuters Report on Iran Fueled Mike Pompeo's Latest Diatribe. mintpressnews.com 
This year, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made speeches about corruption and property confiscation in Iran that borrowed animating details from a skewed, 5-year-old story that is gaining influence, writes Ivan Kesic.
(2018-12-27). A Reuters Report on Iran That Spurred US Diatribes. consortiumnews.com This year, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made speeches about corruption and property confiscation in Iran that borrowed animating details from a skewed, 5-year-old story that is gaining influence, writes Ivan Kesic. By Ivan Kesic in Zagreb, Croatia Special to… Read more →
(2018-12-27). "RBG": As Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Recovers from Surgery, a Remarkable Film Charts Her Trajectory. democracynow.org 
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been discharged from the hospital following surgery that removed two malignant growths in her left lung. Doctors called the surgery a success and said there's no sign that Ginsburg's cancer has spread. The health of the liberal 85-year-old justice—the oldest sitting justice on the Supreme Court bench—has come under increased scrutiny in recent years. In November, she was hospitalized after a fall that resulted in three fractured ribs. She previously fractured two ribs in 2012 and has twice survived cancer—pancreatic cancer in 2009 and colon cancer in…
(2018-12-26). Headlines for December 26, 2018. democracynow.org 8-Year-Old Guatemalan Migrant Dies in U.S. Custody, Trump Warns of "Very Long" Government Shutdown over Border Wall, 800,000 Federal Employees Furloughed or Working Without Pay, Supreme Court Blocks Trump's Asylum Ban, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Has Lung Cancer Surgery, ICE Strands Hundreds of Migrants in Winter Cold for Christmas, Stocks Plunge as Trump Assails Federal Reserve, Syria: Israeli Warplanes Bomb Sites Near Damascus, U.S. Ends Support to Kurdish Militias as Turkish Troops Mass for Invasion, Trump to Replace James Mattis with Patrick Shanahan on January 1, U.S. Anti-ISIS Envoy Quits over…
(2018-12-26). 8-Year-Old Guatemalan Boy Dies in Border Patrol Custody Days After High Court Rejects Asylum Ban. democracynow.org 
For the second time this month, a Guatemalan child has died in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Eight-year-old Felipe Gómez Alonzo died in New Mexico on Christmas Eve, after being detained since December 18. This follows the death of a 7-year-old indigenous Guatemalan girl, Jakelin Caal Maquín, who died on December 8, two days after she and her father presented themselves at the border in a bid for asylum. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has rejected President Trump's asylum ban, which attempted to deny asylum to anyone entering the country from outside of a legal port of entry. Supreme Court Chief…
(2018-12-25). The Double Games of Foes and Friends: The Intercept's 2018 National Security Coverage. theintercept.com 
From government eavesdropping on private citizens to revelatory details about Russian interference in the 2016 election to Washington's draconian efforts to track and punish whistleblowers and journalists, surveillance and spying have been recurring themes this year. Influence-peddling has been rampant, with Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies cozying up to the Trump administration in exchange for insider information, freedom to silence dissidents, and crucial assistance for their brutal war in Yemen. The U.S. government, meanwhile, has been up to its old tricks, honoring war criminals and promoting a notorious over…
(2018-12-24). VIDEO: Pilger Says Assange Denies Meeting Manafort. consortiumnews.com The Guardian has claimed Paul Manafort visited Julian Assange at the Ecuador embassy. John Pilger visited Assange and tells CN's Joe Lauria Assange strongly denied any such meeting. Pilger: 'Julian is a touchstone for opposition' By Joe Lauria Special to… Read more →
(2018-12-24). Cold War Radar System a Trillion Dollar Fraud — Lester Earnest on RAI (1/4). therealnews.com 
Profit and deception drove cold-war militarization, says Lester Earnest, founder of the Artificial Intelligence Lab at Stanford; Earnest says the anti-nuclear bomber SAGE radar system never worked and carried on for 25 years — Lester Earnest on Reality Asserts Itself with Paul Jay
(2018-12-23). Indigenous Nation Blocks TransCanada Pipeline with New Checkpoint. therealnews.com 
When TransCanada attempts to deliver a Canadian court injunction against a decade-old Wet'suwet'en checkpoint, they run into a second checkpoint instead. The Wet'suwet'en people have never signed treaties with Canada or sold their lands, a fact confirmed by Canada's Supreme Court in 1997 in a landmark case known as Delgamuukw.
(2018-12-21). Watch the 9th Vigil for Julian Assange with John Pilger, John Kiriakou and Ray McGovern. consortiumnews.com Consortium News broadcast the 9th Online Vigil for Julian Assange Friday night. Among the special guests were journalist and filmmaker John Pilger, who visited Assange at the Ecuador embassy in London. Watch the replay here. The Unity4J vigil in support… Read more →
(2018-12-21). Headlines for December 21, 2018. democracynow.org Secretary of Defense Mattis Resigns in Rebuke of Trump Foreign Policy, Trump & Senate at Impasse over Border Wall Funding as Shutdown Looms, Acting AG Whitaker Rejected Advice of DOJ to Recuse Himself from Mueller Probe, U.S. Plans to Send Asylum Seekers Back to Mexico While Awaiting Claims Processing, Treasury Dept. Lifts Sanctions on Russian Oligarch's Business Empire, DOJ Charges 2 Chinese Nationals over Massive Hacking Campaign, Yemeni Mother Reunites with Dying Son After Travel Ban Waiver, Egypt: Court Acquits 40 NGO Workers over 2013 Illegal Funding Charges, Pope Francis: Catholic Church Will "Never Again"
(2018-12-21). United Arab Emirates: Further Information: Possible Verdict For Human Rights Defender: Ahmed Mansoor. amnesty.org On 24 December 2018 the Federal Supreme Court in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to hear the appeal of prominent human rights defender and prisoner of conscience, Ahmed Mansoor. The court may issue a final verdict. On 29 May 2018, Ahmed Mansoor was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges including "insulting the UAE and its symbols".
(2018-12-21). SPLC statement on Supreme Court's denial of Trump administration's request to immediately enforce asylum ban. splcenter.org …
(2018-12-20). Headlines for December 20, 2018. democracynow.org Trump Announces Withdrawal of U.S. Troops from Syria, Senates Passes Stopgap Spending Measure in Hopes of Averting Shutdown, WSJ: AG Nominee Barr Sent Memo to Justice Dept. Critical of Mueller Probe, Trump Signed "Trump Tower Moscow" Letter of Intent, Contradicting Giuliani Claim, Blackwater Guard Found Guilty of Murder in 2007 Nisoor Sq. Massacre, D.C. Attorney General Sues Facebook over User Privacy Violations, U.K. and EU Leaders Prepare for Possible "No-Deal Brexit", Mexico: 2 Honduran Teenagers Who Traveled with Migrant Caravan Killed, Five-Month-Old Girl Who Traveled with Migrant Caravan Hospitalized in Cal…
(2018-12-08). How George HW Bush's 1989 invasion of Panama set the stage for US wars to come. greenleft.org.au 
The death of George H.W. Bush has dominated the U.S. news for days, but little attention has been paid to the defining event of Bush's first year in office: the invasion of Panama. On December 19, 1989, Bush Sr. sent tens of thousands of troops into Panama, ostensibly to execute an arrest warrant against its leader, Manuel Noriega, on charges of drug trafficking. General Noriega was once a close ally to Washington and on the CIA payroll. | In a nationally televised address, Bush claimed the invasion was needed to defend democracy in Panama. During the attack, the U.S. unleashed a force of 24,000 troops equipped w…
(2018-12-07). Jury fails to agree on verdict in trial of Kurdish journalist. greenleft.org.au 
NSW Supreme Court judge Lucy McCallum discharged the jury on December 6 after it failed to agree on a verdict in the trial of Kurdish journalist Renas Lelikan on "foreign fighter" charges under Australia's draconian "anti-terrorism" laws. | Lelikan denied this charge, insisting he was not a combatant but a journalist reporting on the Kurdish liberation struggle. | A February 15 hearing will be told if the prosecution intends to ask for a re-trial. Lelikan remains free on bail, with relaxed conditions. | The case had been going on for nine weeks, four of which have been taken up with the jury's deliberation. | Phi…
(2018-12-04). With INF Ultimatum, Trump's Maximalist Approach Strikes Again. peaceaction.org Washington, D.C. — December 4, 2018 — In response to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's announcement that the U.S. will formally announce its intention to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 60 days if Russia does not come into compliance with the treaty by then, Paul Kawika Martin, Senior Director for Policy […]
(2018-11-29). On Julian Assange and the Political Economy & future of Europe. zcomm.org Interview on the socio-economic transformations taking place within the core of the European Union and how much time is left until it disintegrates…
(2018-11-26). Crucifying Julian Assange. zcomm.org Chris Hedges and Joe Lauria, journalist and editor-in-chief, Consortium, discuss efforts to force #WikiLeaks publisher, #JulianAssange, out of the Ecuador Embassy in London and extradite him to the USA to stand trial.