(2019-05-14). Barr to Investigate Origins of Mueller Probe. truthdig.com WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr has appointed a U.S. attorney to examine the origins of the Russia investigation and determine if intelligence collection involving the Trump campaign was "lawful and appropriate," according to a person familiar with the issue. | Barr appointed John Durham, the U.S. attorney in Connecticut, to conduct the inquiry, the person said. The person could not discuss the matter publicly and spoke Monday to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. | With the appointment, Barr is addressing a rallying cry of President Donald Trump and his supporters, who have accused…
(2019-05-14). Whistleblower's Arrest Shows Even "Secure" Platforms Are Vulnerable. truthout.org The recent indictment of former intelligence analyst Daniel Hale offers a cautionary tale to future whistleblowers. In the process of leaking dozens of classified documents to the press, Hale followed the same canned advice that's been repeated by Edward Snowden and countless other privacy advocates: it's all about onion routing and strong encryption. For example, Hale used a bootable thumb drive loaded with the ostensibly secure Tails operating system. To communicate with…
(2019-05-14). Washington pushes to brink of war against Iran. wsws.org Pompeo's abrupt trip to Brussels and the deployment of more US military assets to the Persian Gulf point to a calculated US escalation of a war crisis.
(2019-05-14). Venezuelan Communes Protect the State. dissidentvoice.org Direct democracy works like a charm. Check out Venezuela's Communes…. Venezuela's ubiquitous Communes are proof that direct democracy works. And, interestingly enough, those same Communes are powerful buffers to attempted coups, protecting the sanctity of direct democracy in their country. In all likelihood, John Bolton and Trump and Pence and Pompeo and Rubio were shocked …
(2019-05-14). "The Socialist Equality Party views the defence of Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning as the spearhead of an emerging global struggle against imperialism." wsws.org We are publishing here the speech of Socialist Equality Party (UK) National Secretary Chris Marsden to the May 12 meeting in London in defence of jailed WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange and whistleblower Chelsea Manning.
(2019-05-14). Students in Berlin support this Saturday's rally to defend Julian Assange. wsws.org SEP and IYSSE campaigners have distributed thousands of leaflets and put up hundreds of posters in workplaces, universities, and shopping centres to promote the "Freedom for Julian Assange" rally in Berlin.
(2019-05-14). Australia: Rally to defend Julian Assange held in Broadmeadows, Melbourne. wsws.org The event drew a small but determined crowd of SEP members and supporters, local workers, and WikiLeaks' supporters.
(2019-05-14). Sweden reopens "preliminary investigation" and seeks extradition of Julian Assange. wsws.org No new evidence has been cited by Sweden's deputy director of public prosecutions Eva-Marie Persson.
(2019-05-14). Washington's Reliance on Redactions Threatens Our Democracy. thenation.com Washington's Reliance on Redactions Threatens Our Democracy…
(2019-05-14). The Real Mueller-Gate Scandal. consortiumnews.com Craig Murray blasts the special counsel for naming and condemning people without ever interviewing them. By Craig Murray CraigMurray.org.uk Special Counsel Robert Mueller is either a fool, or deeply corrupt. I do not think he is a fool. I… Read more →
(2019-05-14). Venezuelan Communes Protect the State. counterpunch.org 
Direct democracy works like a charm. Check out Venezuela's Communes…. Venezuela's ubiquitous Communes are proof that direct democracy works. And, interestingly enough, those same Communes are powerful buffers to attempted coups, protecting the sanctity of direct democracy in their country. In all likelihood, John Bolton and Trump and Pence and Pompeo and Rubio were shocked More
(2019-05-13). Prosecution of Assange may be severely compromised under English law, agrees barrister. thecanary.co A barrister and adviser to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange argues that any intended prosecution of him by the US or Sweden may have been severely compromised. And as such, that would invalidate any extradition request from either of those countries. | Consequences of US political interference: | Commentary on Assange and WikiLeaks by US politicians has been rife. For example, CIA chief Mike Pompeo described WikiLeaks as a…
(2019-05-13). Pompeo Takes a Page From the Bernard Lewis Playbook on Iran. mintpressnews.com 
Inspired by his intellectual hero Bernard Lewis, Pompeo, together with Richard Perle's PNAC colleague, John Bolton, seems to be itching to using the Lewis recipe of 'hitting Iran between the eyes with a big stick.
(2019-05-13). Headlines for May 13, 2019. democracynow.org Sweden Reopens Julian Assange Sexual Assault Case, Seeks His Extradition, Pompeo to Discuss Iranian "Threats" in Europe as U.S. Ramps Up Military Presence, Saudi Oil Tankers Damaged in "Sabotage Attack" off UAE Coast, 187 Countries, Not Including the U.S., Agree to Landmark Deal Curbing Plastic Waste, U.S.-China Trade Talks End Without Deal, Increased Sanctions, Pentagon Redirects $1.5 Billion To Fund Border Wall, Afghanistan: Gunmen Kill Ex-Broadcast Journalist and Gov't Adviser Mina Mangal, Pakistan: Attack on Hotel Kills at Least 5, Burkina Faso: Gunmen Kill 6 People, Incl. Priest and Burn Down Church, At Leas…
(2019-05-13). Arundhati Roy on Why She Admires WikiLeaks & Opposes Assange's Extradition to the U.S. democracynow.org 
In Sweden, prosecutors are reopening an investigation into sexual assault allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, and are seeking his extradition to face charges in Sweden. Prosecutors had dropped the investigation in 2017 because they said the case could not proceed while Assange was holed up at the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he lived for seven years before being forcibly removed by British police last month. Assange has since been sentenced to 50 weeks in jail in Britain for skipping bail in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. Assange has denied the sexual assault accusations. Assange pr…
(2019-05-13). Sweden Reopens Investigation of Julian Assange for Rape, Complicating U.S. Extradition. theintercept.com If Julian Assange is extradited from Britain to Sweden to face a rape allegation, his extradition to the U.S. could be delayed or even blocked.
(2019-05-13). Sweden Reopens 9-Year Old Rape Investigation Against Julian Assange; Seeks His Arrest and Extradition. consortiumnews.com The Swedish prosecuting authority announced at a Stockholm press conference Monday that Sweden would seek Assange's extradition from Britain to face investigation on a nearly decade-old allegation of sexual assault. By Joe Lauria Special to Consortium News Sweden's deputy director… Read more →
(2019-05-13). After Assange, Ecuador's Lenin Moreno escalates persecution of critics and perceived foes. thegrayzone.com The US-backed, neoliberal Ecuadorian leader is persecuting Swedish software developer Ola Bini for his political sympathies, censoring critical media, and…
(2019-05-13). Anti-monopoly App Store lawsuit against Apple gets go-ahead from US Supreme Court. rt.com 
The US Supreme Court is letting a group of consumers proceed with their antitrust lawsuit against Apple after rejecting the tech behemoth's argument that iOS App Store users aren't really its customers.
(2019-05-13). Trump continues Obama's war on whistleblowers, arrests another alleged Intercept source. mronline.org This outrageous explosion of watchlisting — of monitoring people and racking and stacking them on lists, assigning them numbers, assigning them 'baseball cards,' assigning them death sentences without notice, on a worldwide battlefield — it was, from the very first instance, wrong. | Source
(2019-05-11). Swarms of Drones, Piloted by Artificial Intelligence, May Soon Patrol Europe's Borders. theintercept.com The EU is funding the development of AI-powered drones that would autonomously patrol Europe's borders. The project's potential for military use can't be ignored.
(2019-05-11). US govt overclassifies docs to prevent public learning about crimes — whistleblower. rt.com 
The government is trying to prevent whistleblowing and investigative journalism, a former FBI agent told RT speaking on the case of an ex-intelligence analyst facing 50 years in prison for leaking files about the US drone program.
(2019-05-10). Trump Steps up War on Whistleblowers: Air Force Vet Daniel Hale Arrested For Leaking Drone War Info. democracynow.org 
A former U.S. intelligence analyst was arrested Thursday and charged with violating the Espionage Act for allegedly leaking documents about the secretive U.S. drone program. | Daniel Hale, 31, was arrested in Nashville. He faces up to 50 years in prison. Hale is accused of disclosing 11 top secret or secret documents to a reporter. The indictment does not name the reporter but unnamed government sources have told media outlets that the reporter is investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill of The Intercept. In 2015, The Intercept published a special report called the Drone Papers exposing the inner workings of the U…
(2019-05-10). Pompeo's Arctic Shipping Lanes. dissidentvoice.org America's Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, speaking at the prestigious Arctic Council biannual meeting in Finland, christened the Arctic meltdown: "A wonderful economic opportunity for international trade." In a nutshell, here's a critique of the Secretary's advice: An ice-free Arctic reduces travel time for shipping lanes between Asia and the West by three weeks, which …
(2019-05-10). One Month in Belmarsh: 29th Vigil for Julian Assange. consortiumnews.com Join us for a discussion online on the latest news about Julian Assange, who has now spent one month behind bars in London. Read more →
(2019-05-10). Weekend Read: Brown v. Board of Education and modern-day segregation. splcenter.org Friday marks the 65th anniversary of the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, the unanimous ruling that outlawed racial segregation in public schools as a violation of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.
(2019-05-10). Another Whistleblower Bites the Dust as The Intercept Adds a Third Notch to Its Burn Belt. mintpressnews.com 
The Intercept, which has long been associated with the documents shared by whistleblower Edward Snowden, has yet to fire any of the reporters responsible for these breaches that have seen two whistleblowers already imprisoned and third, Daniel Hale, likely to be imprisoned.
(2019-05-10). The Mueller Report Isn't The Only Thing That William Barr Is Hiding. aclu.org Barr's attempt to block a report detailing how often the government seeks to spy on Twitter's users is inappropriate and dangerous. | Attorney General William Barr recently invoked a powerful, rarely used privilege to withhold information from the public, marking a dramatic turn of events in a battle over the release of a highly contested report. | Only this time, we're talking about a report that would provide much-needed information on the government's spying activities. | For the past five years, Twitter has been trying to make public a transparency report with detailed statistics about how often the U.S. gove…
(2019-05-09). A Constitutional Crisis? House Panel Holds AG Barr in Contempt as Trump Claims Executive Privilege. democracynow.org 
The House Judiciary Committee has voted to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress over his refusal to turn over the unredacted Mueller report and the underlying evidence to lawmakers. Meanwhile, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff has issued a subpoena to the Justice Department for the unredacted report. This all came after the White House invoked executive privilege to prevent the full report's release to Congress and to bar former White House counsel Don McGahn from providing documents to Congress related to the Mueller probe. We speak with Ian Millhiser, a columnist for ThinkP…
(2019-05-09). Statement on the Indictment of Alleged Drone Strike Whistleblower. theintercept.com The Intercept does not comment on matters relating to the identity of anonymous sources. | In an indictment unsealed on May 9, the government alleges that documents on the U.S. drone program were leaked to a news organization. These documents detailed a secret, unaccountable process for targeting and killing people around the world, including U.S. citizens, through drone strikes. They are of vital public importance, and activity related to their disclosure is protected by the First Amendment. The alleged whistleblower faces up to 50 years in prison. No one has ever been held accountable for killing civilians in d…
(2019-05-09). Trump Administration Charges Drone Whistleblower With Allegedly Violating Espionage Act. shadowproof.com Trump DOJ Charges Drone Whistleblower | *Listen to this story by clicking the above player. | A former language analyst for the United States Air Force, who worked for the National Security Agency, was arrested and charged with violating the Espionage Act and other offenses. | According to the indictment filed in the Eastern District of Virginia, Daniel Hale allegedly disclosed eleven classified documents to a reporter…
(2019-05-09). Trump ratchets up anti-immigrant campaign. greenleft.org.au 
While much of the media continues to focus on the Mueller report and the squabbles between the White House and the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, US President Donald Trump's real crimes are scarcely addressed or are ignored altogether. | This column will take up one of these crimes, Trump's intensification of his racist war on immigrants. He is not alone on this — the ultra-right throughout Europe and elsewhere have similar anti-immigrant policies. | In recent weeks Trump has appointed new officials at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
(2019-05-08). Headlines for May 8, 2019. democracynow.org Iran to Suspend Part of Nuclear Deal Citing U.S. Sanctions, Pompeo Makes Surprise Visit to Iraq As U.S.-Iran Tensions Mount, UN Rapporteur Slams U.S. For Using Sanctions to Precipitate Humanitarian Disasters, 1 Dead, 8 Injured in Colorado School Shooting Near Columbine, NYT: Trump's Tax Records Show He Lost Over $1 Billion Between 1985 and 1994, House Prepares to Hold Barr in Contempt as Justice Dept. Advises Trump to Invoke Executive Privilege, Georgia Enacts One of Nation's Most Restrictive Abortion Bans, Uber & Lyft Drivers Strike Ahead of Uber's Wall Street Debut, Tens of Thousands of Teachers in Oregon to Wa…
(2019-05-08). Transgender People's Rights Are in Peril. progressive.org The majority-conservative Supreme Court is poised to review the rules on discriminating against trans people in the workplace.
(2019-05-06). Rachel Maddow endorses regime change in Venezuela to "push Russia back," sympathizes with Bolton and Pompeo. thegrayzone.com The top rated MSNBC host took her trademark brand of liberal militarism to new levels by branding efforts to avert…
(2019-05-06). Israeli offensive, North Korean missiles, Venezuela, Assange. uwidata.com Israel offensive On May 4, the Israel Defense Forces announced an air strike on dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip. The office of the Turkish news agency Anadolu in the Gaza Strip was hit in the course of the offensive. Mevlàºt àáavu≈üoƒülu called the incident an example of aggression on the Israeli side, and …
(2019-05-06). NAACP Opposes Michael Park's Nomination to Second Circuit, Says Failure to Support Brown V. Board is Disqualifying. naacp.org Today, the NAACP announced its opposition to the nomination of Michael Park to the U.S Circuit Court for the Second Circuit. The Senate will vote on Mr. Park's nomination later this week. Derrick Johnson, president and CEO, made the following statement: "Next week, we celebrate the 65th anniversary of the Supreme Court's seminal decision in …
(2019-05-05). April 2019 — geopolitical events. uwidata.com Europe Assange arrested On April 11, Julian Assange, founder of Wikileaks, was arrested in London after Ecuador revoked political asylum earlier granted to the journalist. Since 2012, Assange has been held in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. Britain is likely to extradite Assange to the US against Assange's wishes. Assange is accused in …
(2019-05-03). Venezuela: Another coup fails. greenleft.org.au 
"Interim President" Juan Guaido and right-wing opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez spearheaded an unsuccessful coup attempt in Caracas on April 30. | The thwarted uprising started in the early morning hours when renegade military and intelligence officers reportedly released Lopez from house arrest. Lopez then joined Guaido and a handful of soldiers on the Altamira overpass in east Caracas, outside the Francisco de Miranda airbase, known as La Carlota. | Lopez and Guaido released videos on social media, call…
(2019-05-01). Venezuelans Hold Rival Marches for Workers' Day as Pompeo Threatens 'Military Action'. venezuelanalysis.com Opposition leader Juan Guaido called for "escalating strikes" following Tuesday's failed military putsch.
(2019-04-15). Venezuela: Canada Imposes Fresh Sanctions as Pompeo Vows to 'Tighten Noose'. venezuelanalysis.com US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the Lima Group have pledged more sanctions against Venezuela.