Daily Archives: January 7, 2020

2020-01-07: News Headlines

RT (2020-01-07). Evidence? What evidence? Pompeo shows no proof of 'imminent' Soleimani attacks. rt.com The US says that Iranian General Qassem Soleimani was plotting "imminent and sinister" attacks against its diplomats and military personnel. But when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was pressed for evidence of this, he gave none. | Soleimani, commander of the Iranian military's Quds Force, was assassinated in a drone strike in Baghdad, Iraq, on Friday. Before the strike, President Donald Trump implicated Iran in a fatal rocket attack on an American base in Iraq in December, and in the storming of the American embassy in Baghdad by protesters last week. Afterwards, he said that Soleimani was killed to prevent "i…

Don't Extradite Assange (2020-01-07). GLOBAL PROTEST CALL MONDAY 24 FEB To Demand Freedom Of Julian Assange. indybay.org Belmarsh Prison, London and UK embassies and consulates around the world…

WSWS (2020-01-07). Sri Lanka: SEP meeting in Colombo demands release of Assange and Manning. wsws.org Afterwards, a University of Colombo student, declared: "I agree with the point made in this meeting that the fight for the freedom of Assange is so crucial for the defence of democratic rights internationally."

Philip A Farruggio (2020-01-07). "Duck Soup": Donald Trump, Dancing to the Tune of the Military Industrial Empire. globalresearch.ca The 1933 Marx brothers film Duck Soup was meant to be a satirical look at Benito Mussolini, ruler of Italy. In the film the mythical country of Freedonia , ruled by the effervescent Rufus T. Firefly ( played by Groucho), …

Staff (2020-01-07). Is This the End of U.S. Interference in West Asia? truthdig.com Major General Hossein Salami, the chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran, said on January 4 that his country would take "strategic revenge" against the United States for the assassination of Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani. The assassination of Soleimani, Salami said, will be later seen as a "turning point" in U.S. interference in West Asia. | Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif reacted strongly to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's suggestion that Iraqis were "dancing in the street" to celebrate the assassination…

Joan Walsh (2020-01-07). If Americans Die in the Escalating Iran Crisis, Remember That Mike Pompeo Called It 'a Little Noise'. thenation.com If Americans Die in the Escalating Iran Crisis, Remember That Mike Pompeo Called It 'a Little Noise'

Sunsara Taylor (2020-01-07). Here's Some Informed Consent, You Fascist Creeps. counterpunch.org In December, the Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal being brought by doctors who provide abortions at the only abortion clinic in the entire state of Kentucky. In short, the highest court in the land said that it's okay for the state to force doctors to force women to listen to a state-mandated lecture More

Staff (2020-01-07). Meet Brittany Kaiser, Cambridge Analytica Whistleblower Releasing Troves of New Files from Data Firm. democracynow.org New details are emerging about how the shadowy data firm Cambridge Analytica worked to manipulate voters across the globe, from the 2016 election in the United States to the Brexit campaign in Britain and elections in over 60 other countries, including Malaysia, Kenya and Brazil. A new trove of internal Cambridge Analytica documents and emails are being posted on Twitter detailing the company's operations, including its work with President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton. The documents come from Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Brittany Kaiser, who worked at the firm for three-and-a-half yea…

Staff (2020-01-07). Cambridge Analytica Whistleblower Reveals Extent of Global Voter Manipulation. truthout.org New details are emerging about how the shadowy data firm Cambridge Analytica worked to manipulate voters across the globe, from the 2016 election in the United States to the Brexit campaign in Britain and elections in over 60 other countries, including Malaysia, Kenya and Brazil. A new trove of internal Cambridge Analytica documents and emails are being posted on Twitter detailing the company's operations, including its work with President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton. T…

Howard Lisnoff (2020-01-06). The Government is Torturing Chelsea Manning! Does Anyone Give a Damn? counterpunch.org Chelsea Manning is being tortured for her refusal to testify before a federal grand jury. She already has told a military court as a whistleblower while in the Army about documents pertaining to alleged war crimes that were committed in Iraq and Afghanistan. She has already been tortured and imprisoned for releasing that information once ("Collateral Murder" video, More

Ramzy Baroud (2020-01-06). Israel's Fingerprint Are All Over the Assassination of Qasem Soleimani. mintpressnews.com The fingerprints of Israeli intelligence, the Mossad, are unmistakably present in the assassination. It is plausible that the attack at Soleimani's convoy was a joint CIA-Mossad operation.

Paul Antonopoulos (2020-01-06). Ukranian Whistleblower Reveals MH-17 Tragedy Was Orchestrated by Poroshenko and British Secret Service. globalresearch.ca Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 (MH-17), that was shot down on July 17, 2014 in the Donbass region of Eastern Ukraine, killed all passengers onboard and was immediately blamed on pro-Russia Donbass volunteer militias fighting against henchmen of the Maidan civil …

Staff (2020-01-06). US "Plans" for the Afghan War Might Prove a Crime Against Humanity. truthout.org On February 4, 2002, a Predator drone circled over Afghanistan's Paktia province, near the city of Khost. Below was al-Qaeda's founder Osama bin Laden — or at least someone in the CIA thought so — and he was marked for death. As Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld put it later, both awkwardly and passively: "A…

Staff (2020-01-06). Trump Threatens Armageddon in Afghanistan. truthdig.com On February 4, 2002, a Predator drone circled over Afghanistan's Paktia province, near the city of Khost. Below was al-Qaeda's founder Osama bin Laden — or at least someone in the CIA thought so — and he was marked for death. As Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld put it later, both awkwardly and passively: "A decision was made to fire the Hellfire missile. It was fired." That air-to-ground, laser-guided missile —…

Inder Comar (2020-01-06). The United States' Assassination of Iranian Military Leader Violates International Law. globalresearch.ca The killing of Qasem Soleimani, a top Iranian military commander, by the United States marks a terrible escalation between the United States and Iran, which U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described as a "defensive action": | . | . ….

Craig Murray (2020-01-06). Lies, the Bethlehem Doctrine, and the Illegal Murder of Soleimani. globalresearch.ca In one of the series of blatant lies the USA has told to justify the assassination of Soleimani, Mike Pompeo said that Soleimani was killed because he was planning "Imminent attacks" on US citizens. It is a careful choice of …

Mostafa Afzalzadeh (2020-01-04). Soleimani's Assassination: An Act of Psychological Warfare. dissidentvoice.org Douglas Valentine believes that assassination of Iran's General Qassem Soleimani is an act of psychological warfare which allows Trump to deflect attention from the impeachment scandal and appease his American and Israeli followers. Douglas Valentine is the author of The CIA as Organized Crime: How Illegal Operations Corrupt America and the World. His rare access …

Eds. (2020-01-04). 'World War III' trends as Hawks rejoice at Trump decision to assassinate Iranian military leader. mronline.org "Hawks are celebrating Soleimani's assassination not because they believe it weakened Iran…But because they believe we have passed an irreversible point of escalation." | Source

Whitney Webb (2020-01-04). Why a Shadowy Tech Firm With Ties to Israeli Intelligence Is Running Doomsday Election Simulations. mintpressnews.com A shadowy tech firm with deep ties to Israeli intelligence and newly inked contracts to protect Pentagon computers is partnering with Lockheed Martin to gain unprecedented access to the heart of America's democracy.

Staff (2020-01-03). "Right-Wing Populists Will Sweep the Elections": U.S. Killing of Soleimani Helps Hard-Liners in Iran. democracynow.org We host a roundtable discussion on the U.S. assassination of Iranian commander Major General Qassem Soleimani, who has long been one of the most powerful figures in Iran. He was the leader of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force — Iran's powerful foreign military force, similar to a combination of the CIA and U.S. Special Forces. Iran called Soleimani's assassination an act of "international terrorism." "It was probably the best, the fastest, the quickest way to have a unifying rallying cry for the Iranian political establishment," notes Iranian journalist Negar Mortazavi. We are also joined by…

Samuel D. Finkelstein (2019-12-30). The spooks' choice: Coup plotters and CIA agents fill Pete Buttigieg's list of national security endorsers. thegrayzone.com Why are so many intelligence veterans throwing their weight behind a young Indiana mayor with such a thin foreign policy…

Lillian House (2019-12-26). Supreme Court allows Kentucky anti-abortion law to stand. liberationnews.org The Kentucky law was among a set of anti-abortion laws that have reached the Supreme Court this term.

Leila Rafei (2019-12-20). Four Lawyers. Four Projects. One Non-Stop Year. aclu.org It isn't news that the Trump administration has kept ACLU attorneys working at breakneck speed for the past three years. In 2019 alone, we saw historic moments and victories—from defeating the citizenship question on the 2020 census and bringing the first trans civil rights case to the Supreme Court, to blocking a wave of abortion bans and many of the administration's attempts to dismantle the asylum system. To name a few. | Here are some of our attorneys' takes on 2019 and the year ahead—what's changed for the better and for the worse, and how the outcome of the 2020 presidential election will a…

The Canary (2019-12-19). Julian Assange lawyers will challenge the 'political' framing of charges against him. thecanary.co WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's legal team will argue he should not be extradited to the US because his alleged offences are being framed as "political" in nature, a court heard. | His lawyers believe that a 2007 extradition treaty agreed between the UK and US offers the 48-year-old protection. | Assange appeared via video-link at Westminster Magistrates' Court on 19 November for a case management hearing to set the timetable leading up to a full extradition hearing in February. | He's being…

The Canary (2019-12-19). Queen's Speech unveils Boris Johnson's hardline plans to curtail Britain's democracy. thecanary.co Boris Johnson has unveiled a Queen's Speech with measures to toughen up criminal justice, limit parliamentary democracy and potentially weaken the scrutiny of government. | The government will look at whether the Official Secrets Act needs overhauling, which determines what protections and punishments whistleblowers are given. Whistleblowers are a critical check on power. It will also consider whether there is a case for updating the treason laws. | Work will be taken forward to repeal the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act — a move which would enable the prime minister to call an election without the consent of pa…

Ryan Cristián (2019-12-15). US Threatens To Attack Iran Over Rockets Fired In Iraq & Assange Blocked From Seeing Key Evidence. thelastamericanvagabond.com Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (12/14/19). As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth …

Lucas Koerner (2019-12-04). TIAR Countries Blacklist Top Venezuelan Officials as US Slaps New Sanctions. venezuelanalysis.com US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Venezuela of "hijacking" mass anti-neoliberal protests in "our own backyard."

Marjorie Cohn (2019-12-02). Civil Rights Are on the Chopping Block in New Supreme Court Term. zcomm.org Hello, A very small proportion of ZNet content is available only to Sustainers. You can become a sustainer for a small repeating donation – monthly or yearly via the links for Sustaining, or Donating, available on the top page of ZNet.

Christine Harrison (2019-11-16). Weekend Read: The importance of documenting racism in the White House. splcenter.org Earlier this week, the SPLC's Intelligence Project released the first two installments of an explosive four-part series examining more than 900 leaked emails between White House senior adviser Stephen Miller and an editor at the Breitbart News Network, a far-right website that its co-founder once dubbed the "platform for the alt-right."

2020-01-07: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these 'POSTEES' on social media!

Sri Lanka: SEP meeting in Colombo demands release of Assange and Manning
wsws.org | 2020-01-07
Afterwards, a University of Colombo student, declared: "I agree with the point made in this meeting that the fight for the freedom of Assange is so crucial for the defence of democratic rights internationally."
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/07/meet-j07.html

GLOBAL PROTEST CALL MONDAY 24 FEB To Demand Freedom Of Julian Assange
Don't Extradite Assange | indybay.org | 2020-01-07
Belmarsh Prison, London and UK embassies and consulates around the world…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/06/18829479.php

Sri Lanka: SEP meeting in Colombo demands release of Assange and Manning
wsws.org | 2020-01-07
Afterwards, a University of Colombo student, declared: "I agree with the point made in this meeting that the fight for the freedom of Assange is so crucial for the defence of democratic rights internationally."
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/07/meet-j07.html

Is this the end of U.S. interference in West Asia?
Vijay Prashad | mronline.org | 2020-01-07
Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif reacted strongly to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's suggestion that Iraqis were "dancing in the street" to celebrate the assassination. On Twitter, Zarif posted pictures of the funeral procession for Soleimani and wrote, "End of U.S. malign presence in West Asia has begun." | Source…
mronline.org/2020/01/07/is-this-the-end-of-u-s-interference-in-west-asia/

"Duck Soup": Donald Trump, Dancing to the Tune of the Military Industrial Empire
Philip A Farruggio | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-07
The 1933 Marx brothers film Duck Soup was meant to be a satirical look at Benito Mussolini, ruler of Italy. In the film the mythical country of Freedonia , ruled by the effervescent Rufus T. Firefly ( played by Groucho), …
globalresearch.ca/duck-soup-donald-trump-dancing-to-the-tune-of-the-military-industrial-empire/5699928

Evidence? What evidence? Pompeo shows no proof of 'imminent' Soleimani attacks
rt.com | 2020-01-07
The US says that Iranian General Qassem Soleimani was plotting "imminent and sinister" attacks against its diplomats and military personnel. But when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was pressed for evidence of this, he gave none. | Soleimani, commander of the Iranian military's Quds Force, was assassinated in a drone strike in Baghdad, Iraq, on Friday. Before the strike, President Donald Trump implicated Iran in a fatal rocket attack on an American base in Iraq in December, and in the storming of the American embassy in Baghdad by protesters last week. Afterwards, he said that Soleimani was killed to prevent "i…
rt.com/usa/477663-pomepo-no-evidence-soleimani/

Is This the End of U.S. Interference in West Asia?
Staff | truthdig.com | 2020-01-07
Major General Hossein Salami, the chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran, said on January 4 that his country would take "strategic revenge" against the United States for the assassination of Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani. The assassination of Soleimani, Salami said, will be later seen as a "turning point" in U.S. interference in West Asia. | Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif reacted strongly to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's suggestion that Iraqis were "dancing in the street" to celebrate the assassination…
truthdig.com/articles/is-this-the-end-of-u-s-interference-in-west-asia/

Evidence? What evidence? Pompeo shows no proof of 'imminent' Soleimani attacks
rt.com | 2020-01-07
The US says that Iranian General Qassem Soleimani was plotting "imminent and sinister" attacks against its diplomats and military personnel. But when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was pressed for evidence of this, he gave none. | Soleimani, commander of the Iranian military's Quds Force, was assassinated in a drone strike in Baghdad, Iraq, on Friday. Before the strike, President Donald Trump implicated Iran in a fatal rocket attack on an American base in Iraq in December, and in the storming of the American embassy in Baghdad by protesters last week. Afterwards, he said that Soleimani was killed to prevent "i…
rt.com/usa/477663-pomepo-no-evidence-soleimani/

If Americans Die in the Escalating Iran Crisis, Remember That Mike Pompeo Called It 'a Little Noise'
Joan Walsh | thenation.com | 2020-01-07
If Americans Die in the Escalating Iran Crisis, Remember That Mike Pompeo Called It 'a Little Noise'…
thenation.com/article/mike-pompeo-iran-assassination/

Here's Some Informed Consent, You Fascist Creeps
Sunsara Taylor | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-07
In December, the Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal being brought by doctors who provide abortions at the only abortion clinic in the entire state of Kentucky. In short, the highest court in the land said that it's okay for the state to force doctors to force women to listen to a state-mandated lecture…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/07/heres-some-informed-consent-you-fascist-creeps/

Cambridge Analytica Whistleblower Reveals Extent of Global Voter Manipulation
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-01-07
New details are emerging about how the shadowy data firm Cambridge Analytica worked to manipulate voters across the globe, from the 2016 election in the United States to the Brexit campaign in Britain and elections in over 60 other countries, including Malaysia, Kenya and Brazil. A new trove of internal Cambridge Analytica documents and emails are being posted on Twitter detailing the company's operations, including its work with President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton. T…
truthout.org/video/cambridge-analytica-whistleblower-reveals-extent-of-global-voter-manipulation/

Meet Brittany Kaiser, Cambridge Analytica Whistleblower Releasing Troves of New Files from Data Firm
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-01-07
New details are emerging about how the shadowy data firm Cambridge Analytica worked to manipulate voters across the globe, from the 2016 election in the United States to the Brexit campaign in Britain and elections in over 60 other countries, including Malaysia, Kenya and Brazil. A new trove of internal Cambridge Analytica documents and emails are being posted on Twitter detailing the company's operations, including its work with President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton. The documents come from Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Brittany Kaiser, who worked at the firm for three-and-a-half yea…
www.democracynow.org/2020/1/7/the_great_hack_cambridge_analytica

Meet Brittany Kaiser, Cambridge Analytica Whistleblower Releasing Troves of New Files From Data Firm
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-01-07
New details are emerging about how the shadowy data firm Cambridge Analytica worked to manipulate voters across the globe, from the 2016 election in the United States to the Brexit campaign in Britain and elections in over 60 other countries, including Malaysia, Kenya and Brazil. A new trove of internal Cambridge Analytica documents and emails are being posted on Twitter detailing the company's operations, including its work with President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton. The documents come from Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Brittany Kaiser, who worked at the firm for three-and-a-half yea…
www.democracynow.org/2020/1/7/the_great_hack_cambridge_analytica

Ukranian Whistleblower Reveals MH-17 Tragedy Was Orchestrated by Poroshenko and British Secret Service
Paul Antonopoulos | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-06
Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 (MH-17), that was shot down on July 17, 2014 in the Donbass region of Eastern Ukraine, killed all passengers onboard and was immediately blamed on pro-Russia Donbass volunteer militias fighting against henchmen of the Maidan civil …
globalresearch.ca/ukranian-whistleblower-reveals-mh-17-tragedy-orchestrated-poroshenko-british-secret-service/5699826

Israel's Fingerprint Are All Over the Assassination of Qasem Soleimani
Ramzy Baroud | mintpressnews.com | 2020-01-06
The fingerprints of Israeli intelligence, the Mossad, are unmistakably present in the assassination. It is plausible that the attack at Soleimani's convoy was a joint CIA-Mossad operation.
mintpressnews.com/israel-mossad-fingerprints-assassination-qasem-soleimani/263923/

Israel's Fingerprint Are All Over the Assassination of Qasem Soleimani
Ramzy Baroud | mintpressnews.com | 2020-01-06
The fingerprints of Israeli intelligence, the Mossad, are unmistakably present in the assassination. It is plausible that the attack at Soleimani's convoy was a joint CIA-Mossad operation.
mintpressnews.com/israel-mossad-fingerprints-assassination-qasem-soleimani/263923/

Trump Threatens Armageddon in Afghanistan
Staff | truthdig.com | 2020-01-06
On February 4, 2002, a Predator drone circled over Afghanistan's Paktia province, near the city of Khost. Below was al-Qaeda's founder Osama bin Laden — or at least someone in the CIA thought so — and he was marked for death. As Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld put it later, both awkwardly and passively: "A decision was made to fire the Hellfire missile. It was fired." That air-to-ground, laser-guided missile –…
truthdig.com/articles/trump-threatens-armageddon-in-afghanistan/

US "Plans" for the Afghan War Might Prove a Crime Against Humanity
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-01-06
On February 4, 2002, a Predator drone circled over Afghanistan's Paktia province, near the city of Khost. Below was al-Qaeda's founder Osama bin Laden — or at least someone in the CIA thought so — and he was marked for death. As Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld put it later, both awkwardly and passively: "A…
truthout.org/articles/us-plans-for-the-afghan-war-might-prove-a-crime-against-humanity/

The Government is Torturing Chelsea Manning! Does Anyone Give a Damn?
Howard Lisnoff | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-06
Chelsea Manning is being tortured for her refusal to testify before a federal grand jury. She already has told a military court as a whistleblower while in the Army about documents pertaining to alleged war crimes that were committed in Iraq and Afghanistan. She has already been tortured and imprisoned for releasing that information once ("Collateral Murder" video,…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/06/the-government-is-torturing-chelsea-manning-does-anyone-give-a-damn/

Lies, the Bethlehem Doctrine, and the Illegal Murder of Soleimani
Craig Murray | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-06
In one of the series of blatant lies the USA has told to justify the assassination of Soleimani, Mike Pompeo said that Soleimani was killed because he was planning "Imminent attacks" on US citizens. It is a careful choice of …
globalresearch.ca/lies-bethlehem-doctrine-illegal-murder-soleimani/5699820

The United States' Assassination of Iranian Military Leader Violates International Law
Inder Comar | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-06
The killing of Qasem Soleimani, a top Iranian military commander, by the United States marks a terrible escalation between the United States and Iran, which U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described as a "defensive action": | . | . | ….
globalresearch.ca/united-states-assassination-iranian-military-leader-violates-international-law/5699791

Progressive Challenger Jessica Cisneros Denounces Democratic Incumbent Henry Cuellar for Backing Trump's Assassination of Iran General
Eoin Higgins, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2020-01-06
"It's not that surprising if you look closely: Rep. Cuellar is bought and paid for by the military industrial complex." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/cisneros_0_0.jpeg
commondreams.org/news/2020/01/06/progressive-challenger-jessica-cisneros-denounces-democratic-incumbent-henry-cuellar?cd-origin=rss

Why a Shadowy Tech Firm With Ties to Israeli Intelligence Is Running Doomsday Election Simulations
Whitney Webb | mintpressnews.com | 2020-01-04
A shadowy tech firm with deep ties to Israeli intelligence and newly inked contracts to protect Pentagon computers is partnering with Lockheed Martin to gain unprecedented access to the heart of America's democracy.
mintpressnews.com/cybereason-israel-tech-firm-doomsday-election-simulations/263886/

Soleimani's Assassination: An Act of Psychological Warfare
Mostafa Afzalzadeh | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-01-04
Douglas Valentine believes that assassination of Iran's General Qassem Soleimani is an act of psychological warfare which allows Trump to deflect attention from the impeachment scandal and appease his American and Israeli followers. Douglas Valentine is the author of The CIA as Organized Crime: How Illegal Operations Corrupt America and the World. His rare access …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/01/soleimanis-assassination-an-act-of-psychological-warfare/

The spooks' choice: Coup plotters and CIA agents fill Pete Buttigieg's list of national security endorsers
Eds. | mronline.org | 2020-01-04
Why are so many intelligence veterans throwing their weight behind a young Indiana mayor with such a thin foreign policy resume? | Source…
mronline.org/2020/01/04/the-spooks-choice-coup-plotters-and-cia-agents-fill-pete-buttigiegs-list-of-national-security-endorsers/

"Right-Wing Populists Will Sweep the Elections": U.S. Killing of Soleimani Helps Hard-Liners in Iran
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-01-03
We host a roundtable discussion on the U.S. assassination of Iranian commander Major General Qassem Soleimani, who has long been one of the most powerful figures in Iran. He was the leader of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force — Iran's powerful foreign military force, similar to a combination of the CIA and U.S. Special Forces. Iran called Soleimani's assassination an act of "international terrorism." "It was probably the best, the fastest, the quickest way to have a unifying rallying cry for the Iranian political establishment," notes Iranian journalist Negar Mortazavi. We are also joined by…
www.democracynow.org/2020/1/3/right_wing_populists_will_sweep_the

The spooks' choice: Coup plotters and CIA agents fill Pete Buttigieg's list of national security endorsers
Samuel D. Finkelstein | thegrayzone.com | 2019-12-30
Why are so many intelligence veterans throwing their weight behind a young Indiana mayor with such a thin foreign policy…
thegrayzone.com/2019/12/30/coup-plotters-cia-agents-mayor-pete-endorsers/

Supreme Court allows Kentucky anti-abortion law to stand
Lillian House | liberationnews.org | 2019-12-26
The Kentucky law was among a set of anti-abortion laws that have reached the Supreme Court this term.
liberationnews.org/supreme-court-allows-kentucky-anti-abortion-law-to-stand/

Four Lawyers. Four Projects. One Non-Stop Year
Leila Rafei | aclu.org | 2019-12-20
It isn't news that the Trump administration has kept ACLU attorneys working at breakneck speed for the past three years. In 2019 alone, we saw historic moments and victories–from defeating the citizenship question on the 2020 census and bringing the first trans civil rights case to the Supreme Court, to blocking a wave of abortion bans and many of the administration's attempts to dismantle the asylum system. To name a few. | Here are some of our attorneys' takes on 2019 and the year ahead–what's changed for the better and for the worse, and how the outcome of the 2020 presidential election will a…
aclu.org/news/civil-liberties/four-lawyers-four-projects-one-non-stop-year

Julian Assange lawyers will challenge the 'political' framing of charges against him
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-12-19
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's legal team will argue he should not be extradited to the US because his alleged offences are being framed as "political" in nature, a court heard. | His lawyers believe that a 2007 extradition treaty agreed between the UK and US offers the 48-year-old protection. | Assange appeared via video-link at Westminster Magistrates' Court on 19 November for a case management hearing to set the timetable leading up to a full extradition hearing in February. | He's being…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2019/12/19/julian-assange-lawyers-will-challenge-the-political-framing-of-charges-against-him/

Queen's Speech unveils Boris Johnson's hardline plans to curtail Britain's democracy
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-12-19
Boris Johnson has unveiled a Queen's Speech with measures to toughen up criminal justice, limit parliamentary democracy and potentially weaken the scrutiny of government. | The government will look at whether the Official Secrets Act needs overhauling, which determines what protections and punishments whistleblowers are given. Whistleblowers are a critical check on power. It will also consider whether there is a case for updating the treason laws. | Work will be taken forward to repeal the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act — a move which would enable the prime minister to call an election without the consent of pa…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2019/12/19/queens-speech-unveils-boris-johnsons-hardline-plans-to-curtail-britains-democracy/

US Threatens To Attack Iran Over Rockets Fired In Iraq & Assange Blocked From Seeing Key Evidence
Ryan Cristián | thelastamericanvagabond.com | 2019-12-15
Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (12/14/19). As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth …
thelastamericanvagabond.com/daily-wrap-up/us-threatens-to-attack-iran-over-rockets-fired-in-iraq-assange-blocked-from-seeing-key-evidence/