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Sam Berger @SamBerger_DC
, 3 tweets, 1 min read Read on Twitter
We need to do everything we can to stop awful Trump policies in the here and now. But we also need to plan post-Trump reforms to address systemic problems he's revealed and exacerbated - looking at lessons from the post-Watergate reforms is a good start.
americanprogress.org/issues/democra…
@atausanovitch and I see two big takeaways from that transformative era: (1) extensive Trump scandals present an opportunity for reforms in a broad range of areas; and (2) we need to think now about how to connect systemic reforms to the specific scandals of the Trump era.
Trump's blatant abuses of power shines a light on deep problems in our political system, many of which are long-standing. We need to make sure people understand why and how our policy solutions will address those problems, not just return us to the pre-Trump status quo.
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I think this aspect of Trump's proposal to order DoD to illegally build a wall has not gotten enough attention: it would require the military to *seize a massive amount of property* from states, tribes, and private citizens.
Trump is proposing to use emergency authority to make DoD build a wall. This raises a whole host of legal issues b/c it's not, in fact, legal. One of them is that the military can only build things on property "under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of a military department."
So if the military is going to build over 1,000 miles of border wall, then it needs to have "jurisdiction" over that land. And that's where Trump's "military version of eminent domain" comes in. It's the sort of thing you expect to hear in a dictatorship, not America.
Read 3 tweets
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Great scoop from @KFaulders, @Santucci, and @Elizabeth_McLau. As a lawyer at OMB, I worked on appropriations issues all the time. What the Trump administration is discussing here is illegal, plain and simple.
Thread 👇
Under the Anti-Deficiency Act, it's a crime for federal agencies to spend $ on something Congress hasn't authorized - it's the statutory means for enforcing Congress' constitutional power of the purse. The Trump team is trying to sidestep the law by using emergency powers. /2
How? 10 USC 2808 says that w/ "a declaration of war or...a natl emergency...that requires use of the armed forces, SecDef...may undertake military construction projects...not otherwise authorized by law that are necessary to support such use of the armed forces." /3
Read 10 tweets
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I helped manage the 2013 shutdown at OMB, so believe me when I say that they get exponentially harder to manage as time goes on. Agencies run out of carryover $, grant recipients able to cover a short time w/o federal funds can't any more, and unexpected issues crop up.
This type of management challenge is hard enough when you have a competent, committed group of people doing their best. But when you're relying on the most incompetent administration in modern American history...that's a recipe for disaster.
Great ex. from @meghanncuniff, John Waters, and @JoelAchenbach: to limit political blowback, Trump is keeping parks open w/o enough personnel. It exposes parks to damage and visitors to danger. But WH put politics over safety and our national treasures.
washingtonpost.com/national/in-sh…
Read 4 tweets

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Who funds the IEA, the TPA, the ASI &co?
You know, the RW 'free trade' thick tanks advocating tax havens, "freedom" (no regulations like workers' rights or environmental protection), no welfare (no tax & no free healthcare).
Basically, "Only the wealthier survive" philosophy?
1/n
*Could it be* that it has something to do with defending their funders' interests?
Today, I'm going to tell you the Thick Tanks' Hydra tale.
Featuring Atlas, huge piles of money, tradition, "free speech", useful idiots and a very clear agenda that Brexit/Trump are a part of.
2/n
Take a seat: It's a long story, with a lot of players, including politicians, pretty ladies squatting your TV, the climate change denial's network, the global fascist movement, Silicon Valley/multiname data-stealing/misusing company & private companies' involved in elections.
3/n
Read 249 tweets
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THREAD

#Trump #Russia #HumanTrafficking #Prostitution #Conspiracy
1.A not revealed story pertaining to the @Comey letter is that public evidence prove that #Prince #Giuliani and #Trump conspired to "Lean" on #Comey to reopen the investigation into Hillary

#Trump #Russia #HumanTrafficking #Prostitution #Conspiracy

huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-dome… …
2.#Prince, #Giuliani, and #Trump conspired to lean and intimidate @Comey

#Trump #Russia #HumanTrafficking #Prostitution #Conspiracy

Read 72 tweets
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@Morning_Joe @morningmika @SteveSchmidtSES @MSNBC We need to stop fucking around with the whining & moaning about how bad #Trump is. And let’s not forget-Joe & Mika went out of their way to accommodate Trump before the election INSTEAD OF EXPOSING HIM. Trump isn’t doing.../1
@Morning_Joe @morningmika @SteveSchmidtSES @MSNBC ...ANYTHING that we couldn’t predict 18 months ago. But here were are. Let’s stop pretending: TRUMP IS A TRAITOR. It’s clear he only has #Putin’s interests in mind. They want to destroy our democracy. The number of people ok w/ Trump is a fraction of those who aren’t. So it’s../2
...REALLY SIMPLE:

*If you’re not registered to vote, get off your ass, go to your city offices & REGISTER. *Most states have early voting. Ask when you can get a ballot. Early voting means no standing in line.
*If you’re voting in November, find out where/when./3

#VoteBlue2018
Read 3 tweets
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People believe a schedule means imprisonment.

A good schedule does not mean you're a tyrant to yourself.
A good schedule is a question that asks,"How would you like to spend your time?"

You sit down, and clarify what's most meaningful to you.

And if that changes, then you change the schedule.
A schedule is not an expectation of the future.

It's an exploration of the values you find important. What's meaningful to you?

The schedule is a reminder that time is precious and you shouldn't waste it on things that don't matter to you.
Read 19 tweets
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En cette fin de semaine, petit point de situation sur les enquêtes #Trump/#Russie dont les développements importants ET visibles- l'investigation #Mueller est vraiment cadenassée- sont passés inaperçus pour cause de scandales sexuels...#thread
2) La grosse info de la semaine sur #Trump/#Russie est tombée à mon sens hier soir. Le procureur #Mueller a assigné mi-octobre la campagne #Trump pour qu'elle fournisse les documents sur la #Russie d'1 douzaine de ses responsables. wsj.com/articles/speci…
3) Cette assignation de l'enquête #Mueller est certes la 1ère injonction adressée à la campagne #Trump mais elle est surtout capitale par sa signification. #Trump et ses équipes ont toujours dit collaborer pleinement avec #Mueller: pourquoi assigne-t-il alors?
Read 30 tweets
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Symbolique du mépris:#Trump contraint à l'unité et au rassemblement par #LasVegas sur le"continent"US se"lâche"à #PuertoRico...RT+
2)#Trump à #PuertoRico peut continuer de cibler et jeter en pâture la maire de San Juan, 1 femme hispanique...thehill.com/homenews/admin…
3)#Breaking L'image du"secours"/don à la #Trump à #PuertoRico restera dans les annales déjà riches de sa présidence..
Read 20 tweets

Trending hashtags

#Pompeo #Trump #AlloHouston #Gawker #IlikeMike #Corker #FBIAA #Americafirst #BLEXIT #Congrès #LasVegas #mustread #Rus #MAGA #Iran #migrants #MrMagoo #FBI #EndTheFed #Bush #Putin #VotingRights #Alabama #Lemon #Benghazi

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