2017 - Page 87 of 105

Majority Thinks Trump Is Keeping His Promises

February 28, 2017 Buck Banks

58%

A new Morning Consult/Politico poll finds that 56% of Americans think President Trump is keeping the promises he made on the campaign trail. About a quarter — 27 % — of Americans said he is not.

Bombast and Bluster

February 28, 2017February 28, 2017 Buck Banks

Republicans are pinning their hopes on Trump’s speech,
That he won’t berate or conflate, but preach.
They’re hoping for direction.
Not chaos and confusion,
But we bet a sane, presidential address is simply out of reach.

Cruz Is Unpopular — Even in Texas

February 28, 2017 Buck Banks

38%v to 39%

A new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll finds Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) with a dismal 38% to 39% approval rating. Among independents, Cruz holds a 20% to 53% approval rating.

It’s Soooo Complicated!

February 28, 2017 Buck Banks

Donald Trump says Obamacare is overrated,
Whereas the Republican approach is understated.
In a month he’s learned one lesson,
And about this he ain’t jestin’:
It’s that healthcare reform is really “complicated.”

Bush Says Media Is ‘Indispensable’ to Democracy

February 27, 2017 Buck Banks

I consider the media to be indispensable to democracy. We needed the media to hold people like me to account. Power can be very addictive and it can be corrosive, and it’s important for the media to call to account people who abuse their power.

— Former President George W. Bush, in an interview on the Today Show.

Trump Has Lied Every Day of His Presidency

February 27, 2017 Buck Banks

134

At least the number of lies Donald has told since Jan. 20. “Donald Trump has been president for all or part of 33 days. He has averaged four falsehoods or misleading statements a day(!) in that time. There hasn’t been a single day of Trump’s presidency in which he has said nothing false or misleading,” the Washington Post reports. “That data, which comes from a terrific new project from The Post‘s Fact Checker that seeks to document Trump’s statements in the first 100 days of his presidency, is stunning.”

Wee Senator Rubio

February 26, 2017 Buck Banks

Marco Rubio’s presidential chances were infinitesimal,
And he needed high-heel boots to make him look tall.
Now that his constituents
Are getting loud and conspicuous,
Little Senator Marco is too tiny to hold town halls.

ICE Detains Muhammad Ali Jr.

February 26, 2017 Buck Banks

The son of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali was detained for hours by immigration officials at a Florida airport. … Officials held and questioned Ali Jr. for nearly two hours, repeatedly asking him, ‘Where did you get your name from?’ and ‘Are you Muslim?’ When Ali Jr. responded that yes, he is a Muslim, the officers kept questioning him about his religion and where he was born. Ali Jr. was born in Philadelphia in 1972 and holds a U.S. passport.

— Louisville Courier-Journal

Spicer Said Media Shouldn’t Be Banned — In December

February 26, 2017 Buck Banks

I think we have a respect for the press when it comes to the government. That is something you can’t ban an entity from. Conservative, liberal or otherwise, that’s what makes a democracy a democracy versus a dictatorship.

— White House press secretary Sean Spicer, quoted by the Washington Post, on Dec. 16, 2016. On Friday, Feb. 24, 2017, Spicer blocked several media outlets from a White House briefing.

Woman Awaiting Brain Surgery Forcibly Detained

February 26, 2017 Buck Banks

A critically ill woman from El Salvador who was awaiting emergency surgery for a brain tumor was forcibly moved from a Texas hospital to a detention center by federal agents, raising concerns about President Trump’s directive to more aggressively pursue people living in the country illegally. … Sara Beltran-Hernandez, 26, a mother of two young children, was bound by her hands and feet and removed by wheelchair from Huguley Hospital in Fort Worth by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who brought her to a detention facility in Alvarado, Texas.

Year: 2017

Majority Thinks Trump Is Keeping His Promises

58%

A new Morning Consult/Politico poll finds that 56% of Americans think President Trump is keeping the promises he made on the campaign trail. About a quarter — 27 % — of Americans said he is not.

Bombast and Bluster

Cruz Is Unpopular — Even in Texas

38%v to 39%

A new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll finds Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) with a dismal 38% to 39% approval rating. Among independents, Cruz holds a 20% to 53% approval rating.

It’s Soooo Complicated!

Bush Says Media Is ‘Indispensable’ to Democracy

I consider the media to be indispensable to democracy. We needed the media to hold people like me to account. Power can be very addictive and it can be corrosive, and it’s important for the media to call to account people who abuse their power.

— Former President George W. Bush, in an interview on the Today Show.

Trump Has Lied Every Day of His Presidency

134

Wee Senator Rubio

ICE Detains Muhammad Ali Jr.

— Louisville Courier-Journal

Spicer Said Media Shouldn’t Be Banned — In December

I think we have a respect for the press when it comes to the government. That is something you can’t ban an entity from. Conservative, liberal or otherwise, that’s what makes a democracy a democracy versus a dictatorship.

— White House press secretary Sean Spicer, quoted by the Washington Post, on Dec. 16, 2016. On Friday, Feb. 24, 2017, Spicer blocked several media outlets from a White House briefing.

Woman Awaiting Brain Surgery Forcibly Detained

— The Los Angeles Times

Poetic Justice

Verbatim

“The man is afraid of the voice of the people and that the people understand and know what he’s doing. He’s trying to stifle the ability of journalists to let the people of America know what’s really going on with their government.”

— “Kamala Harris called President Donald Trump’s ban of CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House ‘absolutely abhorrent,’” The Wrap reports.

“Not one of them is trained in technical skills. Not one research PhD, as opposed to China, where half the cabinet is science and technology PhDs. We’re led by grifters and fools.”

— Columbia professor Jeffrey Sachs, on X, on President Trump’s 35-person cabinet.

“Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far… The same Hispanics who helped you get to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today.”

— Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), breaking with President Trump in a direct-to-camera video.

Numerati

1,000

10%

“The unprecedented spate of mid-decade redistricting for the U.S. House has changed the congressional districts for one-tenth of Americans and significantly altered the makeup of at least one-fifth of districts, according to a new study,” the Associated Press reports.

71%

A new Fox News Poll finds 71% of voters think the Trump administration lacks a clear strategy for ending the Iran War, including 95% of Democrats, 83% of independents, and 43% of Republicans. Sixty percent say U.S. military action against Iran was the wrong decision, while just 37% say it was right.

$9.5 billion

“The Trump administration last year spent $9.5 billion on paid administrative leave for federal workers as part of its plan to shrink the government and save taxpayers money, according to a new estimate by a congressional watchdog,” CNN reports.

470

Reuters has documented at least 470 targets of retribution under Trump’s leadership – from federal employees and prosecutors to universities and media outlets. The list illuminates the sweeping effort by the president and his administration to punish dissent and reshape the government.