Donald Trump’s iron grip on the GOP: Why Republicans stick with him

https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-06-12/republican-officials-fear-trump

“Members of Congress are not afraid of Trump; they are afraid of their voters and constituents,” said Buck. “As long as he has a stranglehold on them and is able to communicate directly with them, this is not going to change.”

 

Report: Trump peace plan could leave Jewish heritage sites under Palestinian control

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/281933

Currently, the overwhelming majority of antiquities sites in Judea and Samaria suffer from constant vandalism and looting, with a sorely understaffed and underfunded department of the Civilian Administration responsible for law enforcement and prevention measures. To make matters worse, the Palestinian Authority has recently stepped up its activities in this area, dedicating tremendous effort and resources to re-writing and re-defining the history of these sites, turning them into "Palestinian heritage sites" and erasing or obscuring Jewish history, while curtailing access to the sites for Israeli tourists, archaeologists and other visitors.

 

DeSantis defies critics as coronavirus spreads in Florida

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/16/trump-florida-coronavirus-321600

DeSantis’ moves to return his state to normal have been as aggressive as any governor, but there’s one inconvenient fact: Florida’s coronavirus cases are rising to record levels and the percentage of positive tests has been steadily climbing ever since the state fully implemented the first phase of its reopening May 18.

On Friday, when DeSantis first spoke to reporters about the GOP convention moving to Florida in August, the state was setting new records for the number of coronavirus cases reported each day. But he downplayed the severity of coronavirus’s spread, partly because hospitalization and death rates remained relatively low and stable. And he framed the convention as an economic shot in the arm, rather than a petri dish of infection as some detractors contended.

Members of Congress took small-business loans — and the full extent is unknown

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/16/congress-small-business-loan-320625

And there are almost certainly more, according to aides and lawmakers. But only the Small Business Administration and Treasury Department have that information, and the Trump administration is refusing to provide any details. That leaves it entirely up to business owners — including elected officials — to decide whether to come forward about a loan, which can be as large as $10 million.

 

Why Trump appointee Neil Gorsuch protected LGBTQ rights

Americans Learn First-Hand The Burdens Of Post-Policy Politics | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC

Fox News runs digitally altered images in coverage of Seattle’s protests, Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/fox-news-runs-digitally-altered-images-in-coverage-of-seattles-protests-capitol-hill-autonomous-zone/

The image was actually a mashup of photos from different days, taken by different photographers — it was done by splicing a Getty Images photo of an armed man, who had been at the protest zone June 10, with other images from May 30 of smashed windows in downtown Seattle. Another altered image combined the gunman photo with yet another image, making it appear as though he was standing in front of a sign declaring “You are now entering Free Cap Hill.”

 

Fox News Removes Digitally Altered, Misleading Photos of Seattle 'Autonomous Zone' From Website

https://time.com/5853408/fox-news-altered-photo-seattle/

As of Saturday, Fox News included an editors note posted at the top of at least three stories on its website covering the protest zone, saying it replaced a “home page photo collage” because it “did not clearly delineate between these images” and that it mistakenly included a St. Paul, Minnesota, photo in a slideshow about Seattle.

The Seattle Times reports Fox News’ website featured at least two photos on Friday that inserted an image of a man standing with a military-style rifle, and that there were no disclaimers on how they were manipulated when featured on the network’s website for most of the day Friday.

The image of the gunman is from a Getty Images photo that was taken on June 10 at what is known as the “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone” protest area. The original photo showed an unidentified man wearing a green mask who was carrying a weapon while standing in front of a car.

 

Treasury Sec. Mnuchin plays Hide and Seek with taxpayer dollars

Trump's wish for an end to the pandemic contradicts reality

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/16/politics/donald-trump-coronavirus-politics-oklahoma-election-2020/index.html

Despite pleas from health authorities in Oklahoma to postpone his upcoming rally to avoid spreading the novel coronavirus, the President is doing the opposite -- talking about organizing a second mass rally indoors to showcase what his campaign says is an overwhelming response to the event. Trump's campaign said it will test temperatures of rallygoers and offer masks and hand sanitizer. But thousands of people are set to be crammed together in a hot arena for hours in conditions that are ideal for the spread of the virus.

FDA revokes authorization of drug Trump touted

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/15/politics/fda-hydroxychloroquine-coronavirus/index.html

The Food and Drug Administration has revoked its emergency use authorization for the drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine for the treatment of Covid-19.

Hydroxychloroquine was frequently touted by President Donald Trump, and he has claimed to have used it himself.

After reviewing the current research available on the drugs, the FDA determined that the drugs do not meet "the statutory criteria" for emergency use authorization as they are unlikely to be effective in treating Covid-19 based on the latest scientific evidence, the agency noted on its website on Monday.

 

President Trump's West Point walk sparks questions about his health

Trumps boosts candidate who posed with neo-Nazi, peddles anti-Semitic conspiracy

https://www.timesofisrael.com/trumps-boosts-candidate-who-posed-with-neo-nazi-peddles-anti-semitic-conspiracy/

  US President Donald Trump boosted a Georgia Republican candidate who refuses to disavow a white supremacist she posed with in a photograph and has seemingly promoted anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. “A big winner,” Trump wrote in a tweet Friday attached to a story on a pro-Trump website noting Marjorie Taylor Greene performed well in the primary for the heavily Republican 14th District, despite having an ad banned by Facebook. “Congratulations!”

Comparing how Germany and US confront evil racial past, author finds US wanting

https://www.timesofisrael.com/comparing-how-germany-and-us-confront-evil-racial-past-author-finds-us-wanting/

“We would be outraged in the US if, within Germany, you would see statues of Nazi soldiers, with people claiming, ‘They were just my ancestors fighting for my homeland,’” Neiman said. “It’s actually what both descendants of Nazis and of Confederates believed, but it’s highly problematic to fight for your homeland and forget the ideology that started the war.”