Quantcast
Channel: Newt Gingrich | The Guardian
Viewing all 111 articles
Browse latest View live

Newt Gingrich: Muslims who believe in sharia law should be expelled from US

0
0

Former House speaker and one-time contender for Donald Trump’s running mate makes comments in response to terrorist attack in Nice, France

Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker and close ally of Donald Trump, has caused outrage by demanding that all Muslims who believe in sharia law should be expelled from the US.

Responding to the terrorist attack in Nice, France, that left at least 84 people dead, Gingrich said: “Western civilisation is in a war. We should frankly test every person here who is of a Muslim background and if they believe in sharia they should be deported.”

Continue reading...

What we learned from day three of the Republican convention

0
0

Ted Cruz did not endorse Trump in his speech, earning boos from the crowd, while vice-presidential nominee Mike Pence’s address drew enthusiasm

The third day of the Republican national convention is over and done. Here’s a summary of what happened:

Continue reading...

Newt Gingrich has turned Islamophobia into an art | Arwa Mahdawi

0
0

His Republican National Convention speech started with a roll call of all the recent disasters that he believes Muslims were responsible for. There were many

Related: What we learned from day three of the Republican convention

If you missed Newt Gingrich’s speech at the Republican National Convention then this was the gist of it: ‘Be afraid of the Islamists. Be very, very, very afraid. Thought September 11 was bad? Hah! You ain’t seen nothing yet.’

Related: Ted Cruz's non-endorsement of Trump sets fire to Republican 'unity' | Richard Wolffe

Continue reading...

Donald Trump accepts nomination: 'Safety will be restored' – as it happened

0
0

The Republican national convention has concluded. Here’s what happened on the fourth and final day:

Great Trump Speech, America First! Stop Wars! Defeat the Corrupt elites! Protect our Borders!, Fair Trade! Couldn't have said it better!

FORMAL ACCEPTANCE OF THE NOMINATION! #TrumpPence16pic.twitter.com/E6ZtVjSQZa

Do the crime statistics cited by Trump to make the case that the country needs a law-and-order candidate hold water?

The 17% homicide spike that Trump referenced is statistically significant, “real and nearly unprecedented,” according to a Justice Department funded study.

Related: Is the 'Ferguson effect' real? Researcher has second thoughts

Ed Cox, the chair of the New York State Republican Party and president Richard Nixon’s son-in-law, noted some similarities to the Guardian.

“Certainly Donald Trump calls his supporters the silent majority unapologetically,” said Cox. “Now that was not a part of his acceptance speech in 68, that was November [19]69, the Vietnam speech. But Donald Trump has captured that silent majority completely for the first time since Reagan, and maybe even better than Reagan. But certainly like my father-in-law.”

Here’s some more interesting end-of-night data from the folks at Google. The biggest spike in search traffic, in terms of percentage, it appears to us, was a 4,900% spike in searches for“How old is Ivanka Trump?”

We’re back! Seems that a thousand journalists simultaneously trying to upload videos of balloons falling on Republican delegates was more than the WiFi could handle.

The delegates are now taking group pictures with the signs from their states and taking group pictures onstage. Lots of balloons popping everywhere. Stands clearing out.

The end of Trump’s speech and the huge balloon drop seemed to knock out wifi in the arena. Normal service will be resumed on the blog very soon...

The speech is over. The crowd goes, as they say, quite wild. Melania Trump takes the stage and is verily applauded. Barron Trump is next, dressed like a Blues Brother. Here come more Trumps. The band’s not playing, that’s the studio recording of All Right Now. Now there are Pences on stage too. There is handshaking and now... now... there is glitter-- the video screen shows fireworks..

Here’s the end:

To all Americans tonight, in all our cities and towns, I make this promise: We Will Make America Strong Again.

We Will Make America Proud Again.

Trump is close to the finish. CAPS below in original script:

I’m asking for your support tonight so that I can be your champion in the White House. My opponent asks her supporters to recite a three-word loyalty pledge. It reads: “I’m With Her”. 282 I choose to recite a different pledge. My pledge reads: “I’M WITH YOU – THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.” I am your voice. So to every parent who dreams for their child, and every child who dreams for their future, I say these words to you tonight: I’m with you, I will fight for you, and I will win for you.

Trump speaks on personal terms about his family, notably his father, which we haven’t heard him do much of. Ad-libs CAPS:

In this journey, I’m so lucky to have at my side my wife Melania and my wonderful children, Don, Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany, and Barron: you will always be my greatest source of pride and joy. AND BY THE WAY, MELANIA, AND IVANKA, DID THEY DO A JOB.

My Dad, Fred Trump, was the smartest and hardest working man I ever knew. I wonder sometimes what he’d say if he were here to see this tonight.

It’s because of him that I learned, from my youngest age, to respect the dignity of work and the dignity of working people. He was a guy most comfortable in the company of bricklayers, carpenters, and electricians and I have a lot of that in me also. I LOVE THOSE PEOPLE.

Then there’s my mother, Mary. She was strong, but also warm and fair-minded. She was a truly great mother. She was also one of the most honest and charitable people I have ever known, and a great judge of character. SHE COULD PICK ‘EM OUT FROM ANYWHERE.

Trump, ad-libs CAPS:

An amendment, pushed by Lyndon Johnson, many years ago, threatens religious institutions with a loss of their tax-exempt status if they openly advocate their political views.

I am going to work very hard to repeal that language and protect free speech for all Americans.

Trump now thanks evangelical Christians for supporting him but admits, in an improvised aside, that he may not deserve it:

At this moment, I would like to thank the evangelical community BECAUSE I WILL TELL YOU WHAT, THE SUPPORT THAT THEY’VE GIVEN ME, AND I’M NOT SURE I DESERVE IT, HAS BEEN SO AMAZING, AND IS SUCH A BIG REASON FOR ME BEING HERE TONIGHT. You have so much to contribute to our politics, yet our laws prevent you from speaking your minds from your own pulpits.

More Trump, ad-libs CAPS:

The replacement for Justice Scalia will be a person of similar views and principles. VERY IMPORTANT. This will be one of the most important issues decided by this election. My opponent wants to essentially abolish the 2nd amendment. [LOUD BOOS] I, on the other hand, received the early and strong endorsement of the National Rifle Association and will protect the right of all Americans to keep their families safe.

One of the biggest applause lines of the night:

We are also going to appoint justices to the United States Supreme Court who will uphold our laws and our Constitution.

This new wealth will improve the quality of life for all Americans – We will build the roads, highways, bridges, tunnels, airports, and the railways of tomorrow. This, in turn, will create millions more jobs. We will rescue kids from failing schools by helping their parents send them to a safe school of their choice.

My opponent would rather protect education bureaucrats than serve American children. AND THAT’S WHAT SHE’S DOING. AND THAT’S WHAT SHE’S DONE. We will repeal and replace disastrous Obamacare. [CHEERS.] You will be able to choose your own doctor again. [CHEERS] And we will fix TSA at the airports WHICH IS A TOTAL DISASTER!

More Trump, ad-libs CAPS:

America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world. Reducing taxes will cause new companies and new jobs to come roaring back into our country. BELIEVE ME, IT’LL HAPPEN, AND IT’LL HAPPEN FAST.

Then we are going to deal with the issue of regulation, one of the greatest job-killers of them all. Excessive regulation is costing our country as much as $2 trillion a year, and we will end it VERY VERY QUICKLY. We are going to lift the restrictions on the production of American energy. This will produce more than $20 trillion in job creating economic activity over the next four decades.

Trump keeps going on the topic of trade. Ad-libs caps:

My opponent, on the other hand, has supported virtually every trade agreement that has been destroying our middle class. She supported NAFTA, and she supported China’s entrance into the World Trade Organization – another one of her husband’s colossal mistakes.

She supported the job killing trade deal with South Korea. She has supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership WHICH will not only destroy our manufacturing, but it will make America subject to the rulings of foreign governments AND IT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. I pledge to never sign any trade agreement that hurts our workers, or that diminishes our freedom and independence. WE WILL NEVER SIGN BAD TRADE DEALS AGAIN. AMERICA FIRST AGAIN. AMERICA FIRST.

Is the crowd growing fatigued? Few delegates left standing, most comfortably seated, many filming on their phones. The waves of applause are a bit less powerful. He just trashed NAFTA and the applause was nearly perfunctory.

Trump, ad-libs CAPS:

I have been honored to receive the endorsement of America’s Border Patrol Agents, and will work directly with them to protect the integrity of our lawful LAWFUL LAWFUL immigration system. LAWFUL.

By ending catch-and-release on the border, we will stop the cycle of human smuggling and violence. Illegal border crossings will go down. Peace will be restored. By enforcing the rules for the millions who overstay their visas, our laws will finally receive the respect they deserve.

My plan is the exact opposite of the radical and dangerous immigration policy of Hillary Clinton. Americans want relief from uncontrolled immigration WHICH IS WHAT WE HAVE NOW. Communities want relief.

Yet Hillary Clinton is proposing mass amnesty, mass immigration, and mass lawlessness. [BOOS.] Her plan will overwhelm your schools and hospitals, further reduce your jobs and wages, and make it harder for recent immigrants to escape THE TREMENDOUS CYCLE OF poverty that they’re going through right now and make it almost impossible for them to join the middle class.

Here it is, the wall:

We are going to build a great border wall to stop illegal immigration, to stop the gangs and the violence, and to stop the drugs from pouring into our communities.

Trump shifts seamlessly from the threat supposedly posed by Syrian refugees to the threat supposedly posed by immigrants from the south. Ad-libs CAPS:

Anyone who endorses violence, hatred or oppression is not welcome in our country and never will be.

Decades of record immigration have produced lower wages and higher unemployment for our citizens, especially for African-American and Latino workers. We are going to have an immigration system that works, but one that works for the American people.

Trump continues. Paragraph in bold was a late-stage add not in the Politico version. In it Trump tries to clean up his recent comments dismissing Nato.

This includes working with our greatest ally in the region, the State of Israel.

Recently I have said that NATO was obsolete, because it did not properly cover terror, and also, that many of the member countries were not paying their fair share. As usual, the United States has been picking up the cost. Shortly thereafter, it was announced that NATO will be setting up a new program in order to combat terrorism -- a true step in the right direction.

My opponent has called for a radical 550% increase in Syrian – THINK OF THIS. THINK OF THIS. THIS IS NOT BELIEVABLE BUT THIS IS WHAT’S HAPPENING- refugees on top of existing massive refugee flows coming into our country under President Obama. She proposes this despite the fact that there’s no way to screen these refugees in order to find out who they are or where they come from. I only want to admit individuals into our country who will support our values and love our people.

Trump continues, ad-libs CAPS:

Once again, France is the victim of brutal Islamic terrorism.

Men, women and children viciously mowed down. Lives ruined. Families ripped apart. A nation in mourning.

As your President, I will do everything in my power to protect our LGBTQ citizens from the violence and oppression of a hateful foreign ideology.

AND I HAVE TO SAY, AS A REPUBLICAN, IT IS SO NICE TO HEAR YOU CHEERING FOR WHAT I JUST SAID.

To protect us from terrorism, we need to focus on three things.

We must have the best intelligence gathering operation in the world. We must abandon the failed policy of nation building and regime change that Hillary Clinton pushed in Iraq, Libya, Egypt and Syria. Instead, we must work with all of our allies who share our goal of destroying ISIS and stamping out Islamic terrorISM AND DOING IT NOW, DOING IT QUICKLY, WE’RE GOING TO WIN, WE’RE GOING TO WIN FAST.

Trump continues, ad-libs CAPS:

I will work with, and appoint, the best prosecutors and law enforcement officials in the country to get the job done. In this race for the White House, I am the Law And Order candidate. The irresponsible rhetoric of our President, who has used the pulpit of the presidency to divide us by race and color, has made America a more dangerous environment THAN FRANLY I HAVE EVER SEEN OR ANYBODY IN THIS ROOM HAS EVER WATCHED OR SEEN.

This Administration has failed America’s inner cities. REMEMBER, FAILED ITS INNER CITIES. It’s failed them on education. It’s failed them on jobs. It’s failed them on crime. It’s failed them IN EVERY WAY AND at every level.

More Trump, ad-libs in CAPS:

We will bring the same economic success to America that Mike brought to Indiana. He is a man of character and accomplishment. He is the right man for the job. The first task for our new Administration will be to liberate our citizens from the crime and terrorism and lawlessness that threatens their communities.

America was shocked to its core when our police officers in Dallas were brutally executed. IMMEDIATELY after Dallas, we have seen continued threats and violence against our law enforcement officials. Law officers have been shot or killed in recent days in Georgia, Missouri, Wisconsin, Kansas, Michigan and Tennessee.

Trump says he’ll get Bernie Sanders voters numbering millions of Democrats:

Nobody knows the system better than me, which is why I alone can fix it. I have seen firsthand how the system is rigged against our citizens, just like it was rigged against Bernie Sanders – he never had a chance.

But his supporters will join our movement, because we will fix his biggest issue: trade. Millions of Democrats will join our movement because we are going to fix the system so it works for all Americans. In this cause, I am proud to have at my side the next Vice President of the United States: Governor Mike Pence of Indiana.

And a great guy.

And the consummation of Trump as populist is complete:

I have joined the political arena so that the powerful can no longer beat up on people that cannot defend themselves.

More Trump, ad-libs in CAPS:

I have embraced crying mothers who have lost their children because our politicians put their personal agendas before the national good. I have no patience for injustice, no tolerance for government incompetence, no sympathy for leaders who fail their citizens.

When innocent people suffer, because our political system lacks the will, or the courage, or the basic decency to enforce our laws – or worse still, has sold out to some corporate lobbyist for cash – I am not able to look the other way.

And when a Secretary of State illegally stores her emails on a private server, deletes 33,000 of them so the authorities can’t see her crime, puts our country at risk, lies about it in every different form and faces no consequence – I know that corruption has reached a level like never before.

When the FBI Director says that the Secretary of State was “extremely careless” and “negligent,” in handling our classified secrets, I also know that these terms are minor compared to what she actually did. They were just used to save her from facing justice for her terrible TERRIBLE crimes.

Trump addresses the #RNCinCLEpic.twitter.com/hkDkbJ9LdO

More Trump, ad-libs CAPS:

Every day I wake up determined to deliver for the people I have met all across this nation that have been neglected, ignored, and abandoned.

I have visited the laid-off factory workers, and the communities crushed by our horrible and unfair trade deals. These are the forgotten men and women of our country. AND THEY ARE FORGOTTEN. BUT THEY”RE NOT GONNA BE FORGOTTEN LONG. THESE ARE People who work hard but no longer have a voice.

How great are our police and how great is Cleveland?!?

Trump, with ad-libs CAPS:

A number of these reforms that I will outline tonight will be opposed by some of our nation’s most powerful special interests. That is because these interests have rigged our political and economic system for their exclusive benefit, BELIEVE ME, IT”S FOR THEIR BENEFIT.

Big business, elite media and major donors are lining up behind the campaign of my opponent because they know she will keep our rigged system in place. They are throwing money at her because they have total control over every SINGLE THING she does. She is their puppet, and they pull the strings.

More Trump, ad-libs in CAPS:

But Hillary Clinton’s legacy does not have to be America’s legacy. The problems we face now – poverty and violence at home, war and destruction abroad – will last only as long as we continue relying on the same politicians who created them. A change in leadership is required to change these outcomes. Tonight, I will share with you my plan of action for America.

The most important difference between our plan and that of our OPPONENT, is that our plan will put America First.

Americanism, not globalism, will be our credo. As long as we are led by politicians who will not put America First, then we can be assured that other nations will not treat America with respect THE RESPECT THAT WE DESERVE.

The American People will come first once again. My plan will begin with safety at home – which means safe neighborhoods, secure borders, and protection from terrorism. There can be no prosperity without law and order.

On the economy, I will outline reforms to add millions of new jobs and trillions in new wealth that can be used to rebuild America.

Trump continues, with his ad-libs in CAPS:

I am certain it is a decision THAT PRESIDENT OBAMA truly regrets. Her bad instincts and her bad judgment – something pointed out by Bernie Sanders – are what caused the disasters unfolding today. Let’s review the record. In 2009, pre-Hillary, ISIS was not even on the map.

Libya was cooperating. Egypt was peaceful. Iraq was seeing a reduction in violence. Iran was being choked by sanctions. Syria was under control. After four years of Hillary Clinton, what do we have? ISIS has spread across the region, and the world. Libya is in ruins, and our Ambassador and his staff were left helpless to die at the hands of savage killers. Egypt was turned over to the radical Muslim brotherhood, forcing the military to retake control. Iraq is in chaos.

They did their homework and have showed their work. If you doubt the factual fidelity of any line of this speech, check out the annotated transcript here.

Check it out, a 360-degree view:

You can watch 360 video live from the podium! https://t.co/yqcIsBUdAi#RNCinCLE#TrumpIsWithYou#MakeAmericaGreatAgain

Trump proceeds. His ad-libs in CAPS:

Not only have our citizens endured domestic disaster, but they have lived through one international humiliation after another. ONE AFTER ANOTHER. We all remember the images of our sailors being forced to their knees by their Iranian captors at gunpoint.

This was just prior to the signing of the Iran deal, which gave back to Iran $150 billion and gave us ABSOLUTELY nothing – it will go down in history as one of the worst deals ever NEGOTIATED. Another humiliation came when president Obama drew a red line in Syria – and the whole world knew it meant ABSOLUTELY nothing.

Trump tells the story of a young woman killed by a drunken driver, an undocumented immigrant. His ad-libs in caps:

One such border-crosser was released and made his way to Nebraska. There, he ended the life of an innocent young girl named Sarah Root. She was 21 years-old, and was killed the day after graduating from college with a 4.0 Grade Point Average. FIRST IN HER CLASS Her killer was then released a second time, and he is now a fugitive from the law.

I’ve met Sarah’s beautiful family. But to this Administration, their amazing daughter was just one more American life that wasn’t worth protecting. One more child to sacrifice on the ORDER AND ON THE altar of open borders. What about our economy?

Trump continues through a section that culminates with a chant: Build the wall! Build the wall!:

Decades of progress made in bringing down crime are now being reversed by this Administration’s rollback of criminal enforcement.

Homicides last year increased by 17% in America’s fifty largest cities. That’s the largest increase in 25 years. In our nation’s capital, killings have risen by 50 percent. They are up nearly 60% in nearby Baltimore.

OK he’s back on script. His ad-libs in caps but he’s following it quite closely.

Our Convention occurs at a moment of crisis for our nation. The attacks on our police, and the terrorism in our cities, threaten our very way of life. Any politician who does not grasp this danger is not fit to lead our country.

Americans watching this address tonight have seen the recent images of violence in our streets and the chaos in our communities. Many have witnessed this violence personally, some have even been its victims.

I have a message for all of you: the crime and violence that today afflicts our nation will soon AND I MEAN VERY SOON come to an end. Beginning on January 20th 2017, safety will be restored.

The most basic duty of government is to defend the lives of its own citizens. Any government that fails to do so is a government unworthy to lead.It is finally time for a straightforward assessment of the state of our nation.

I will present the facts plainly and honestly. We cannot afford to be so politically correct anymore. [HUGE CHEERING]

Trump. Here he goes. Let’s see how close that Politico transcript is:

Friends, delegates and fellow Americans: I humbly and gratefully accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States.

But we will also be a country of law and order.

Ivanka Trump is winding up to the end. This is going well.

I have loved and respected him my entire life, and I could not be more proud tonight to present to you and to all of America my father and our next president, Donald J Trump.

Ivanka Trump:

“He’s the single most qualified person to serve as chief executive of an $18tn economy,” she says. He’ll recruit “the best and brightest,” she says. “Come January 17, all things will become possible again. We can hope, dream and think big again... he will be your greatest, your truest and your most loyal champion.”

Ivanka Trump promises that “when my father says that he will MAGA, he will deliver.” She does not use the acronym but it’s faster to type.

She gets a genuine laugh:

Ivanka Trump has positioned herself as a millennial with a focus on issues that consistently register as top concerns for women voters.

Ivanka Trump says that Trump micro-manages his job sites, talking to everyone from the painter to the super.

“When Donald Trump is in charge, all that counts is ability, effort and excellence,” she says. Kind of generic-y.

“My father not only has the strengh and ability to be the next president, but also the kindness and compassion that will enable him to be the leader that this country needs,” she asserts.

“I’ve learned a lot about the world from walking construction sites by his side... competence in the building trade is easy to spot, and incompetence is impossible to hide.. there have always been men of all backgrounds and ethnicities on my father’s job sites, and women long before it was common.

Trump says that the goal that unites us all is “when this party and better still this country knows what winning feels like again.”

“If it’s possible to be famous and yet not really well known, that describes the father who raised me,” she says. Interesting. She reminisces about playing on the floor of his office, making buildings with legos, and Erector sets.

Ivanka Trump says that her father prevailed against 16 competitors. “For more than a year Donald Trump has been the people’s champion, and tonight he is the people’s nominee,” she says.

“Like many of my fellow millennials I do not consider myself categorically Republican or Democrat,” she says. That factchecks true.

Well that’s a loud cheer now. The band plays Here Comes the Sun as she comes out. Somebody yells: “We love you Ivanka!!!!”

Look who’s watching at home:

Trump's most challenging construction project is that hair.

The prompter reads: “Ladies and gentlemen, please give a very warm welcome to Ivanka Trump.”

As soon as the video’s done playing. “Donald Trump has set his sights on a new rebuilding project” the video says.

Now a video testimony to Trump from actor Jon Voight that begins, “as you know he is running for president.”

And it’s another biography of Trump and story of his career. “He became captain of the baseball team... after college, Donald faced a decision... Donald’s first project was less about building a project than reclaiming its soul.”

It looks like they brought out a special black-and-gold lectern for the Trumps to speak at. We can’t quite see the front of it. Tell us there’s a gold T on there.

This song has the refrain Make America Great Again, and there’s a screaming sax solo in it.

Barrack tells the crowd to make “once upon a time” “once upon this time.”

The band’s back.

While Barrack speaks – he’s telling very nice personal stories about Trump – here’s the latest report from the city of Cleveland about the security situation:

Two officers, one a Georgia State Trooper and one with the Cleveland Division of Police, were treated for minor skin irritation. They are doing well. The incident is still being investigated, but it is confirmed that no needles or syringes were used. It is possible that it was coming from irritant on a sticker.

As a precaution, police are advising that if you received a sticker from a person that you don’t know, wash the area with soap and water. Do not take any items from anyone you don’t know.

Talk about a campaign about the future. The Trump camp has just sent, prematurely, an email in which Trump tells people that he just spoke at the RNC conventions.

We are here, and if we missed that speech, it was really nice working here.

Tonight was amazing.

I just delivered my speech at the Republican National Convention, where I officially accepted our Party’s nomination for President of the United States.

Barrack says nice words about Melania Trump:

Melania I want to tell you, on behalf of 10,000 people in this arena and 50 million people watching, you are a timeless tribute to beauty, grace and elegance under pressure, you’re amazing. You’re awesome.”

Here’s Tom Barrack, CEO of Colony Capital, real estate investor and former deputy undersecretary of the Department of the Interior in the Reagan administration.

“Wow this is a wow,” he says. “I have to tell you I feel like the anchovy on Ivanka’s Caesar Salad. I know you’re salivating for that and you’re going to get it.”

More useful information about Donald Trump’s career, narrated by Donald Jr.

It would be awesome to enjoy another tribute to Donald Trump's real estate career, narrated perhaps by one of his childr-- oh good.

When Thiel says “who cares?” about bathrooms, there is clapping and cheers.

Then he gets something of a standing ovation, from maybe a third of the crowd, when he says, “I am proud to be gay. But most of all I am proud to be an American.”

Next up is Peter Thiel, the PayPal founder and Facebook investor, the billionaire who financed multiple lawsuits against Gawker including one attached to Hulk Hogan’s sex tape, reportedly because he was mad at Gawker because a sister site published that he was gay.

Thiel plans to tell the crowd “I am proud to be gay,” according to his prepared remarks. How will the crowd respond?

When I was a kid, the great debate was about how to defeat the Soviet Union. And we won. Now we are told that the great debate is about who gets to use which bathroom.

This is a distraction from our real problems. Who cares?

Donald Trump is scheduled to make a speech accepting the Republican nomination for president in about one hour, around 10.15 pm. No going back now.

Priebus is done. The band is covering Can’t Get Enough (of your love). We made up those parentheses. While we wait for the next speaker, here’s some more three-dimensional chess from Ben Carson, who has said that the Trump children grew up at a disadvantage because they had money, which turns most kids into spoiled failures but look how good the Trumps turned out:

Priebus says that Trump is the man the country needs:

This election is our chance to stop it and Donald Trump is the right man to lead that charge. He’s brought millions of new voters into our party because he’s listening to Americans who are anxious about a country which has lost its way.

Priebus switches to criticizing Clinton.

“You can kiss your gun rights goodbye if she ever finds her way into the White House. ...

It was on her watch ISIS began to spread its wings of evil over the Middle East. And she has spent the last 16 months looking into the eyes of the American people and lying about how she recklessly jeopardized national security with her secret email server.

She lied. And she lied over and over and over. She lied. She lied.

Perhaps worst of all, Hillary Clinton has perfected the art of politics for personal gain. She reads ethics rules as carefully as Americans read their junk mail. Just look at her track record.

She used her post as Secretary of State to grease the wheels for Democrat lobbyists, special interests, and political insiders connected to the corrupt Clinton Machine.

Priebus is drawing distinctions between Democrats and Republicans. Here are some good things he says about the Republican party:

We are the party of new ideas in a world changing faster than ever.

Back onstage, chairman Priebus. He begins:

To the people of Cleveland, we say thank you for your hospitality. I stand before this convention tonight as the Chairman of a party that is carrying the torch of liberty.

We are the party of the open door.

Here’s another video. They’re trying to get to 9pm it feels like. The video is about the Republican wave of 2014. Senators are talking to the camera about the glory days of two years ago.

Pursuant to Paul Manafort’s comments earlier that women will support Trump because their husbands aren’t making enough money to support family needs. It looks like a powerful argument – maybe 40 years ago:

Re: Manafort/"husbands" comment (Data from Pew) pic.twitter.com/mXvXUau5b2

Here’s another video. What’s it about? 9/11? Criminal justice? Education? Autism? Immigration? All those things so far.

It turns out the video follows story lines of five or six members of the Republican Leadership Initiative. It’s party propaganda as opposed to Trump propaganda. Now it’s doe and it sounds like time for more band.

Here now is Dr Lisa Shin head of Koreans for Trump (the announcer said; not Korean-Americans, which is how Shin then describes herself).

She’s from New Mexico. Forty-some years ago her parents left South Korea to become Americans, she says. “They knew that America was the land of opportunity and freedom, whre immigrants could succeed and prosper...my parents never imagined that one day their daughter would be speaking to you today. This is the beauty of the American dream. To do the unimaginable.”

“Safety will be restored,” Donald Trump will promise Americans on Thursday in an acceptance speech as a Republican presidential nominee that strikes a sharp new authoritarian tone, write Dan Roberts and Ben Jacobs:

Related: Donald Trump seizes on 'law and order' theme in convention acceptance speech

Next up: Oklahoma governor Mary Fallin, the state’s first woman governor, once mentioned as a potential running mate for Trump. She is describing growing up in Tecumseh, Oklahoma. She has yet to mention the American dream.

When I look back on my childhood, my America, I don’t see a perfect place. But we were united by a simple belief: that no matter who you were or where you came from, better days were just ahead for America.

Blackburn quotes Larry the Cable Guy. “Let’s Get ‘er Done.” That part didn’t make the excerpts.

The band played. Now here’s Representative Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee. She gives a special shout out to people watching the convention on Twitter.

Here’s an excerpt of Blackburn’s speech released by the Trump campaign:

We are in desperate need of true leadership and unity. The last eight years have been a challenge, to our national and household budgets, our Constitution, to the men and women who give their lives and sacred honor to protect both. Donald Trump is a leader who has seen challenges, learned lessons, solved problems, delivered results. Some of our greatest leaders have been people who worked in the real world, know firsthand how cumbersome rules and unnecessary regulations get in the way of greatness. I want a president who knows leadership is not as it appears, but as it performs.

Here now is a video presentation by Bobby Knight, the former Indiana basketball coach.

“As a coach my primary objective is to win and I know Donald Trump will always have winning on his mind,” Knight says. It’s a really short video and a pretty... lame? endorsement, for one of Trump’s favorite surrogates.

Next up is Brock Mealer, a motivational speaker who suffered a spinal injury in a car wreck in 2007 and was told he could not walk again.

“A leader gets stuff done,” Tarkenton says. I’ve known Donald Trump for 48 years, and like those other leaders, I know for sure he gets stuff done... Donald Trump is a proven leader, a teambuilder... I’ve watched him.. succeed wildly. I’ve watched him fail because all of us fail. I’ve watched him get back up because he never quits.”

This is a positive talk from Tarkenton. He asks the crowd to “go and win this game together.” Nary a discouraging word.

Here’s a Fran Tarkenton highlight reel:

Next up is Fran Tarkenton, the former Minnesota Vikings quarterback. “Right now I look at America, and I need to ask, what the hell’s goin on here?”

He says Washington is “broken for everybody who doesn’t make their living inside the Beltway.”

“Here in America the only colors that matter are red white and blue,” Burns says. Related:

Related: Florida police shoot black man lying down with arms in air

Here’s a charge of energy, suddenly: Pastor Mark Burns, the adamantly outspoken Trump-supporting South Carolinian. At the bottom of this post you can read the controversial invocation Burns delivered on Monday night.

1/ I've heard a lot of prayers by religious leaders of different faiths at RNCs & DNCs. But nothing like this. pic.twitter.com/RYfpn58TNi

Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County in Arizona is at the lectern. Arpaio was subject for a time to an independent monitor after a judge found that his department engaged in racial profiling.

“My most important mission has just begun,” he says. “To help elect Donald Trump president of the United States.”

Falwell:

“If you are a conservative, a decision not to vote, or to vote for a third-party candidate, is a de facto vote for Hillary Clinton...

Jerry Falwell Jr, the Liberty University president, is speaking now. “Most of our nation’s leaders have a strong faith as I do in our lord and savior, Jesus Christ,” Falwell says.

Speaking to his students last year about the San Bernardino, California, terror attack, Falwell called for more guns: “I’ve always thought if more good people had concealed carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in,” Falwell said.

In most polls Trump trails Clinton among women voters by 20-30 points. Campaign chairman Paul Manafort has just laid out how that could all change:

On MSNBC Manafort says Trump can appeal to women bc: "They can't afford their lives. Their husbands can't afford paying the family bills."

That'll get 'em! https://t.co/Xj7da0f4Ij

Turned on MSNBC right as Manafort said women will vote Trump bc they're worried about their husbands/"can't afford their lives anymore"

There’s the band. First AC/DC cover of the convention. You Shook Me. The Florida delegation is up to its usual (drunken?) hijinks. Nebraska looks bored in their matching red shirts, with one delegate definitely sleeping (and it’s loud). Who else do we see. Texas is doing the swaying cowboy hats thing. GE Smith also looks bored playing the repetitive, simple yet impossibly catchy You Shook Me riff. Here’s the solo though. Take that thing for a walk GE.

Dancing and singing at a convention does not guarantee victory in November.

Perkins is done. Now there’s a video of Trump employees talking about how great he is to work for. The video features women executives. They say that the Trump organization is a great place for “women and minorities.”

Last night we watched one video of a Trump organization executive paying tribute to the Trump family and one video of the Trump children paying tribute to their father. Tonight’s video is another edition in the series.

Tony Perkins, the family research council president, returns to the stage to speak. He’s not on the scheduled speakers list.

He says he’ll be voting for Donald Trump and wants to explain why. Great for Trump’s campaign for evangelical voters to have him here.

We’ve heard the national anthem and a prayer delivered in front of a projected purple sunset. (Just the prayer had the sunset.)

Family Research Council president and evangelical Christian leader Tony Perkins leads the pledge of allegiance.

Here’s what Perkins thought of Trump in March, according to a Washington Examiner report:

Heavenly Joy, her name is. Five years old, Priebus returns to the lectern to announce.

RNC chairman has gaveled the final night to a start. A super cute little girl with two gigantic white bows in her hair is singing Let There Be Peace on Earth.

Strike up the band. Night four is on. They’ve done Rock the Casbah and now it’s Sweet Caroline again. Boy Sweet Caroline goes over with this crowd. Is Neil Diamond even a Republican?

Whoops:

Working the phones for Obama... If I call you, don't hang up. It's really me and I need you. #OFACulverpic.twitter.com/e7oquoid

A bit of Nixon voiceover to whet your palate for tonight’s big speech:

The first civil right of every American to be free from domestic violence. So I pledge to you, we shall have order in the United States.

Opening of Trump's speech tonight is very reminiscent of Nixon's rhetoric in 1968 https://t.co/VyETymcxjZ

Missing from the Trump speech excerpts, and from the entire speech draft as published by various outlets, is any reference to a marquee policy proposal that defined Trump’s run in the Republican primaries: a ban on Muslim immigrants.

The Trump campaign has now released official excerpt of the big speech. Here are the excerpts in full as released:

Friends, delegates and fellow Americans: I humbly and gratefully accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States. …

Americans watching this address tonight have seen the recent images of violence in our streets and the chaos in our communities.

Multiple media outlets – including Politico and the New York Times– and the Hillary Clinton rapid response outfit Correct the Record - have obtained a draft version of Donald Trump’s nomination acceptance speech.

The Trump camp confirmed to the Times that the speech was a draft version of what Trump plans to say - but the Trump campaign would not comment on how close the draft might be to a final version.

Trump Speech Leaked (<--joke):

Whoa! Autocue inadvertently reveals 1st lines of Trump's big speech - and it's a whole new Trump! #RNCinCLE#RNC2016pic.twitter.com/yvrYdn8nCf

Yeehaw.

Cowboys for Trump pic.twitter.com/SdnWrl35LV

During his mic check today, Trump admitted that he loves the media, in the latest flip-flop for the presidential nominee, who has also changed his positions on abortion, Hillary Clinton, trade, immigration, taxation, health care, the Iraq war, a Muslim ban, a border wall, Ted Cruz, Roger Ailes, Mitt Romney, super Pacs, charitable donations, accounts payable and the Republican party.

No telling whether Trump can really make America great again, but 50,000 balloons raining on 2,472 delegates seems as good an opening move as any:

Ha.

Driving down Historic Route 66 - an iconic symbol of the American West! #Arizonahttps://t.co/JWe7n4N7xhpic.twitter.com/NxISYawbza

It's also really far from Cleveland https://t.co/MvMM6mnqDr

Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords called on Donald Trump to disavow aide Al Baldasaro, who said on Tuesday that Hillary Clinton should be “put in the firing line and shot for treason.”

Giffords, a Democrat, released a joint statement with her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly.

Texas senator Ted Cruz’s incendiary rebuke of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on the stage in Quicken Loans Arena on Wednesday evening seemingly transformed the home of the Cleveland Cavaliers basketball team into a gladiatorial colosseum, complete with screaming fans and enraged detractors, writes Scott Bixby:

But the greatest battle on the stage at Quicken Loans Arena during the week of the Republican national convention may be for control of a different kind of stadium entirely – its Pokémon Go gym.

Related: Pokémon Go transforms Republican convention into gym full of rare catches

What do Queen, Adele, the Rolling Stones, R.E.M., Neil Young, Steven Tyler and Twisted Sister have in common?

The artists have all asked Donald Trump to stop using their music at rallies, according to a list compiled by Alternet.

How does this news compare, on the scale of significant developments in Republican political life, with the nomination of Donald Trump as president? It’s been quite a week for the Republicans, and the country:

Roger Ailes, the longtime Fox News chairman who helped found the network and build it into a cable ratings behemoth, has been forced out of the company following allegations that he sexually harassed numerous subordinates, including former host Gretchen Carlson and star anchor Megyn Kelly, writes the Guardian’s Molly Redden:

Related: How Roger Ailes disgraced Fox News and tarnished a unique legacy

Roger Stone, the former Nixon operative and Trump adviser, and Alex Jones, the conspiracy theorist and Infowars operator, launched the latest in their line controversial T-shirts this afternoon.

The design features a photograph of Bill Clinton above the word “rape”. The image mimics the colour wash of Shepherd Fairey’s famous 2008 Obama campaign “Hope” image.

LIVE on #Periscope: Roger stone and Alex Joned launch Bill Clinton "rape" t-shirt https://t.co/H9mEUkzANn

Some of the nastiest, and let's be honest, sexist, Hillary badges on sale today. #RNCinCLEpic.twitter.com/xta6BelZiV

Though Donald Trump will be giving a far lengthier speech on the final night of the convention, he had a few words to say on the podium while doing a sound check this afternoon.

Jeff Roe, former campaign manager for Ted Cruz, has said there was never a chance that the Texas senator would endorse Donald Trump in his convention speech on Wednesday night.

In an interview with CNN’s Erin Burnett, Eric Trump Jr. said the campaign does not need Ted Cruz’s endorsement to make its case to the American people, and accused the Texas senator of being so “anti-establishment” that he has “literally no fans, no friends.”

“He is a true politician,” Trump said of Cruz. “He tries to play the anti-establishment guy. Guess what: during his initial stage, he wanted to work for the Bush campaign. The problem is, he’s so unlikable. Literally, no fans, no friends. And he only became anti-establishment when he couldn’t be a part of the establishment because no one wanted to be with him.”

Following Donald Trump’s statements on Nato, the White House made an emphatic statement this afternoon reiterating the United States’ commitment to the alliance.

Law enforcement in Cleveland during the Republican National Convention has resembled a mini-convention of its own:

Political convention or police convention? What a ten minute stroll through a park in Cleveland looks like right now pic.twitter.com/inEg6ogibD

An elected delegate from Illinois was stripped of her Republican National Convention delegate credentials yesterday for using the handle “whitepride” on social media and posting racial slurs online.

Lori Gayne, of Chicago, was stripped of her RNC credentials once posts about “white pride” being comparable to black pride became known, state GOP Chairman Tim Schneider told the Chicago Tribune.

Not entirely sure what this sign in the front row of the New York delegation means pic.twitter.com/ic4naa7SRj

By some counts, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has been involved in roughly 3,500 lawsuits over the past three decades. As of this morning, however, that number may need to be updated.

Delegates from the oft-neglected District of Columbia have filed an official objection with the decision by the secretary of the Republican National Convention to register all 19 of its delegates in support of Donald Trump, despite Trump not earning any delegates during the district’s March 12 primary.

“We strongly object to the Convention Secretary’s decision Tuesday evening to transfer all 19 of DC’s delegate votes to Presidential nominee Donald Trump,” the statement, signed by 11 of those delegates, declared.

Less than 24 hours before the Republican national convention comes to a close on Thursday evening, all seems quiet before Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump takes the stage - but there’s still time to take a look at where the magic happens: the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland. The Guardian’s Sabrina Siddiqui gives a tour.

How will Trump enter the convention tonight?

Tom Cotton, senator for Arkansas, was FaceTiming his wife during Ted Cruz’s convention speech. “We both had it on the background but I didn’t appreciate how exciting it was at the time,” he said at an event organised by the Politico website in Cleveland.

Asked if Cruz was right to take the podium at Trump’s convention, Cotton replied: “That was a decision that Donald and Ted made. Ted has said that Donald is ‘terrific’ and he speaks the truth so hopefully they can get over their differences soon.”

The scene on the floor...

Donald Trump is perusing the stage at the #RNCinCLE, nine hours before his acceptance speech. pic.twitter.com/DPDnmHQ7KT

On Monday, The Atlantic’s David Graham ran into North Carolina delegate Robert Orr on the floor of Quicken Loans Arena, and was told by the former state supreme court justice that he planned to break his family’s century-long tradition of voting for a Republican presidential candidate.

“I think Trump is dangerous for the country. He’s singularly unqualified to be commander-in-chief,” Orr said. “I don’t think Donald Trump cares about the Republican Party.”

Republican National Committee chief strategist Sean Spicer implied that he thinks Ted Cruz is an “asshole,” echoing statements made by Representative Peter King:

.@RepPeteKing called Ted Cruz an "a--hole" -- "I'd probably use the same verbiage" says RNC's @seanspicerhttps://t.co/X6YfIktVyN

At a breakfast for the Texas delegation, tempers flared hot between supporters of Texas senator Ted Cruz’s refusal to endorse Donald Trump and those who think the senator took his pride too far:

The first part of that argument between Texas delegates pic.twitter.com/Wgbf4zUEKV

Texas delegates argue pic.twitter.com/DqbTZeWy1h

Hillary Clinton’s digital team has come up with a new tool to use during the campaign: #TrumpYourself.

By logging in through your Facebook account, the tool superimposes images and text of offensive statements Donald Trump has said in the past about certain groups, ranging from women and Muslims to “people who drink Diet Coke.”

Ted Cruz pointedly and repeatedly refused to endorse Donald Trump this morning, saying that he was not “a servile puppy dog”.

Just hours after the Texas senator was loudly booed from the floor of the Republican convention when he did not embrace his party’s nominee, Cruz faced an impassioned audience as he took questions from his state’s delegation during a breakfast.

Ted Cruz’s campaign manager dismissed criticism from New Jersey govenor Chris Christie over Cruz’s repudiation of Donald Trump on the main stage of the Republican National Convention, telling a Philadelphia radio station that the governor had “turned over his political testicles long ago.”

“That guy turned over his political testicles long ago,” Jeff Roe told the Chris Stigall Show. “So I don’t take what he has to say with any meaning. You know, he embarrassed himself pretty quickly in this.”

Donald Trump, for one, is celebrating the party unity fomented at the Republican National Convention this week.

Other than a small group of people who have suffered massive and embarrassing losses, the party is VERY united. Great love in the arena!

If you missed Laura Ingraham’s speech at the Republican National Convention last night:

#RNCinCLE in one GIF: pic.twitter.com/OlrqbnKUVd

A doleful Paul Manafort told reporters this morning that last night’s speeches at the Republican National Convention were a success, despite a blistering rebuke from Texas senator Ted Cruz, who refused to endorse Donald Trump as the party’s presidential nominee and instead urged conservatives to “vote your conscience.”

“The party is definitely more unified - there are a number of Cruz delegates who were on the floor today... who disagree with what Mr. Cruz said,” Manafort said. “We think it became very clear to everybody that Donald Trump has been a very magnanimous in his outreach program - he invited all the presidential candidates who ran” to speak, and “everyone did attend and, in his own way, endorse the ticket.”

More on tonight’s theme...

Tonight’s theme acknowledges America’s serious challenges at home and the threats we face abroad. In order to turn our challenges into opportunities and keep America secure, we need leadership that will focus on what unites us, not what divides us. Donald Trump and Mike Pence will move our country beyond the divisive identity politics that have been holding us back by restoring leadership, building trust, and focusing on our shared love of country and our common goal of making America great again.

Thursday’s program will highlight the Republican Party’s vision for bringing Americans together and creating the conditions that will allow everyone – young people, working families, and entrepreneurs from all walks of life – to pursue their aspirations. Featured speakers include Reince Priebus, Peter Thiel, Tom Barrack, Ivanka Trump, and Donald Trump.

At least one Republican is delighted with Ted Cruz’s remarks at the Republican National Convention last night: Former Cruz campaign operative Chris Wilson.

I have never been more proud to work for Ted Cruz that I was tonight. This speech will survive the test of time-historically courageous.

Good morning, and welcome to the Guardian’s campaign live blog, coming at you live from Cleveland, Ohio, the site of the long-anticipated Republican National Convention, now in its fourth and final day.

Wow, Ted Cruz got booed off the stage, didn't honor the pledge! I saw his speech two hours early but let him speak anyway. No big deal!

Continue reading...

Trump camp shows signs of fracture over sexual misconduct allegations

0
0

Signs of a split in the Trump campaign over allegations of sexual misconduct emerged on Sunday, as key surrogates diverged in their support for the candidate and the way he has responded.

Related: Donald Trump 'grabbed me and went for the lips', says new accuser

The Little Trump frankly gets out … is stupid … and I don’t defend him when he wanders off. I’ve told him over and over

Related: Trump warns of 'rigged' election as Giuliani makes racially charged claims

Continue reading...

Donald Trump as president 'would be a threat to press freedom'

0
0

US group that campaigns to protect journalists takes ‘unprecedented step’ of accusing Republican candidate of ‘betraying first amendment values’

If Donald Trump should win the presidency it would represent a threat to press freedom, says the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

The US-based press freedom watchdog has taken what it calls “an unprecedented step” by issuing a statement by the chair of its board, Sandra Mims Rowe, in which she accuses Trump of consistently betraying first amendment values.

Since the beginning of his candidacy, Trump has insulted and vilified the press and has made his opposition to the media a centrepiece of his campaign. Trump has routinely labelled the press as ‘dishonest’ and ‘scum’ and singled out individual news organisations and journalists.

Through his words and actions, Trump has consistently demonstrated a contempt for the role of the press beyond offering publicity to him and advancing his interests...

This is not about picking sides in an election. This is recognising that a Trump presidency represents a threat to press freedom unknown in modern history.

Continue reading...

'Fascination with sex': Megyn Kelly and Newt Gingrich clash on Trump coverage

0
0

Fox News presenter tells Trump campaigner he needs to deal with his ‘anger issues’ after heated exchange over media bias in covering groping boasts

In an aggressive exchange on Fox News, the former House speaker Newt Gingrich accused conservative TV host Megyn Kelly of bias against Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump as well as a “fascination with sex”.

The row on Tuesday night between Kelly and one of Trump’s most stalwart supporters began when the host brought up the multiple sexual assault and misconduct allegations against the candidate.

.@MegynKelly made a total fool out of herself tonight- attacking @realDonaldTrump. Watch what happens to her after this election is over.

Continue reading...

Loyalists and rivals tipped for powerful roles in Trump's cabinet

0
0

With the president-elect apparently an ideological blank slate, personnel could effectively become policy

Donald Trump put little emphasis on a transition effort during his idiosyncratic campaign for the White House, as even campaign insiders expected him to lose. Nonetheless, his win now presents an opportunity for a cadre of loyalists, many of whom backed him when few others would, to become some of the highest-ranking officials in the US government.

Trump is still an ideological blank slate in many ways, having shifted positions on virtually every issue. Personnel could effectively become policy. Cabinet secretaries and executive officials are likely to have a surprising amount of latitude in an administration led by a president who has shown very little interest in policy nuances.

Related: Photographers on their best Trump shot: 'I think he's a damaged person'

Related: Meet the Trumps: a look at America's new first family

Continue reading...

One-party control of Washington hands Trump enviable power

0
0

With House and Senate in GOP hands the Republican president-elect could be poised to break through some of the capital’s gridlock as he weighs cabinet picks

Donald Trump will begin his presidency in January with the rare luxury of control by his party of both chambers of Congress, raising the prospect that he might be able to dislodge some of the gridlock that has paralyzed Capitol Hill.

Related: Hillary Clinton concedes presidential election to Donald Trump: 'We must accept this result'

Democrats will fight to the last ditch on Obamacare

Related: A rightwing supreme court could be Donald Trump's most insidious legacy | Scott Lemieux

Continue reading...

Trump's cabinet: likely shortlist is a roundup of his campaign loyalists

0
0

Divisive campaign figures including Rudy Giuliani and Newt Gingrich headline the candidates, while RNC chair Reince Priebus looks likely to be chief of staff

Some of the most divisive figures from a historically ugly US election campaign are now in contention for senior positions in a Donald Trump administration that looks set to be dominated by white men.

“This is all being literally discussed at this time,” said one Trump adviser who did not wish to be named. “There are people flying in and out of town and meetings taking place. There is a very long list of gifted, talented individuals who have come forward and said they’re happy to enter the arena. We are putting a structure in place. It’s moving very quickly; it has to move quickly.” Some 3,000-4,000 new senior presidential appointees are due to take office in early 2017.

Related: Rudy Giuliani out-Trumps Trump, but is it an aberration or just his real character?

Related: One-party control of Washington hands Trump enviable power

Continue reading...

As a Muslim, how do I tell my child the new president doesn’t like us? | Mehdi Hasan

0
0
Donald Trump’s victory has led to a surge in anti-Muslim feeling in the US. Explain that to a nine-year-old

‘Did she win?” My bleary-eyed nine-year-old had fallen asleep on our couch the previous night, as the polls closed in Florida. When she sat across the breakfast table from me, I had to break the news that, while her own state of Virginia might have (narrowly) opted for Hillary Clinton, most of the other swing states – Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan – went with Donald Trump. “So we won’t have a female president?” she asked, looking disconsolate.

I couldn’t bring myself to tell her that she, we, minority communities across the board, had bigger problems to worry about. The normalisation of racism, of antisemitism, of misogyny, but, above all else – in terms of the impact on her own life and future – Islamophobia.

How do I tell her about the Ku Klux Klan, now recruiting new members “to fight the spread of Islam”?

Continue reading...

Getting to grips with post-truth politics | Letters

0
0

While the internet and social media can lead to the rapid spread of falsehoods and dubious claims, they can also be used to check quickly such claims and expose lies (Trump and Brexit herald a brave new word: post-truth, 16 November). Would it not be possible to extend the powers of the Electoral Commission so that it can disqualify a candidate who persistently tells untruths and makes questionable claims that cannot be verified? This would not be a challenge to free speech as it would not stop people expressing opinions. But if they followed up these opinions with alleged facts that they could not verify, then they would be required to issue a withdrawal of the claims, with equal prominence to the way they were first stated. For example, if they were made in an election leaflet, then the candidate would be obliged to issue a new leaflet to deliver to the same households that received the originals, stating which facts were untrue or unverifiable. Candidates would then need to be more guarded in what they say.
Chris Jager
Malmesbury, Wiltshire

• One of the most damaging outcomes of the so-called educational reforms of the past 30 years has been the reduction in the curriculum of state schools of learning and experiences that help pupils to differentiate between fact and opinions, and to know how to recognise, challenge and check out biased views. This aspect is more important than ever since young people are now bombarded by messages from social media as well as from television, newspapers and radio. In order to protect our democracy, schools must be encouraged to help their students to understand, for example, the vested interests of the owners and users of all types of media; and to investigate the claims and promises made by politicians.
John Gaskin
Driffield, East Yorkshire

Continue reading...

Arrest Madonna for 'blow up the White House' remark, says Newt Gingrich

0
0

Republican says pop star is part of ‘an emerging leftwing fascism’ after her comments at Women’s March

The former Republican House speaker Newt Gingrich has said Madonna “ought to be arrested” for telling the crowd at the Women’s March on Washington that she had “thought an awful lot about blowing up the White House”.

The singer said on Sunday that she had been speaking metaphorically. “I am not a violent person,” she wrote on Instagram. “I spoke in metaphor and I shared two ways of looking at things - one was to be hopeful, and one was to feel anger and outrage, which I have personally felt.”

Continue reading...

Some of Trump’s advisers want a new civil war – we must not let them have it | Paul Mason

0
0

Both Steve Bannon and Newt Gingrich engage in dangerous fantasies about US history – and come to chilling conclusions about the future

A controversial and divisive US president is elected. State governments defy his will. Popular discontent erupts into low-level violence in several states. And then what?

We’ve been here before. In 1861, the newly elected president, Abraham Lincoln, had to be spirited through Baltimore on a secret train to Washington DC, to thwart a suspected assassination plot. Not long after he took power, a five-year civil war began.

Continue reading...

‘Jury still out’ on Callista Gingrich pick as US ambassador to the Holy See

0
0

Nomination, announced days before Trump meets Pope Francis in Rome, marks the promotion of the wife of one of the president’s most vociferous defenders

Donald Trump announced on Friday his intent to nominate Callista Gingrich, a choir singer and film producer married to former Republican House speaker Newt Gingrich, to serve as ambassador to the Holy See.

Related: Reluctant traveler Trump takes off on trip fraught with diplomatic dangers

Related: Melania and Ivanka Trump go without headscarves in Saudi Arabia visit

Continue reading...

Newt Gingrich repeats Seth Rich conspiracy theory in Fox appearance

0
0

Trump confidante and husband of ambassadorial nominee repeats WikiLeaks theory denounced as ‘fake news’ by family of murdered DNC staffer

A prominent ally of Donald Trump suggested on Sunday that the special counsel appointed to investigate alleged links between the president’s aides and Russia should instead focus on the murder last year of a young Democratic staffer, Seth Rich, which has become the focus of conspiracy theorists.

Related: HR McMaster refuses to say if Trump pressed Russia on election interference

Related: Students walk out of Mike Pence's commencement speech at Notre Dame

Continue reading...

Understanding Trump: what can we learn from Newt Gingrich's new book?

0
0

The latest offering from the former House speaker parses the rise of the president, but ultimately says more about author than subject

When Kellyanne Conway used the term “alternative facts” in an interview with NBC, the statement went viral not just because of its brazen insincerity, but because there was a measure of transparency to it: in our current political climate, there seems to be, as Newton’s third law would dictate, an equal and opposite alternative for every fact, each weaponized by talking heads to bolster their a priori convictions.

Related: From 'covfefe' to 'the Bushkrieg': Daily Show displays Trump's best tweets

Related: The Making of Donald Trump by David Cay Johnston – who controls Trump’s feelings?

Related: A shocking state of affairs – how crises are exploited by politicians and corporations

Continue reading...

The Red and the Blue review: Clinton, Gingrich and America's deep divide

What Democrats can learn from Newt Gingrich, the man who broke politics

0
0

Gingrich’s performance before and the year after his ascent to speaker of the House offers two vital lessons – one salutary, and the other cautionary

Nearly a month after 2018’s nominal election day, the last votes have been tallied in the last swing district in the United States. A Democratic defeat of a Republican incumbent in California’s Central Valley has given the blue party wave a cumulative gain of 40 seats in the House of Representatives, adding to the majority it had seized back on 6 November.

In addition, the American public’s rebuke of an unpopular president two years into his first term has supplied a piquant historical analogy, one that the Democratic party ought to be studying and heeding. In November 1994, it was Republican insurgents led by Representative Newt Gingrich who delivered the stunning upset, capturing control of both the House and Senate from President Bill Clinton’s party.

The Gingrich who masterminded the Republicans’ 1994 triumph came equipped with ideas and a program

Democrats must keep reminding themselves of how quickly Newt Gingrich undermined his own program and his own power

Samuel G Freedman, an occasional contributor to the Guardian, is a journalism professor at Columbia University and the author of eight books.

Continue reading...

Newt Gingrich resists irrelevance with new novel ripped from headlines

0
0

The politician (and ex-professor, podcaster and Trump interpreter), says the release of Collusion, featuring a resurgent Russian menace, is ‘totally coincidental’

Newt Gingrich really wanted to talk about feathered dinosaurs.

“Thirty years ago, nobody believed dinosaurs and birds were the same,” he told an unwitting audience. “Today, virtually every paleontologist believes that birds came from dinosaurs and that the dinosaurs were feathered. But the American Museum [of Natural History] now has them so you can actually walk in and you see it, and it really is different than describing it.”

Related: What Democrats can learn from Newt Gingrich, the man who broke politics

I don’t think there is a public political figure in America that could do what he’s done

Continue reading...
Viewing all 111 articles
Browse latest View live




Latest Images