Trump Watch: Day 199 Wrap-Up

Trump Watch
Aug 8, 2017 · 4 min read

Good Monday evening, Trump watchers! Before I delve into today’s Trump-related news, a quick announcement: I will once again be traveling for a week, so this will be my last full post until next Monday, August 14. As I did the last time I traveled, I will post links to important news stories on the Trump Watch Facebook page while I’m away. Now…on with the news of the day!

— The Trump administration is encouraging more coal mining on federal lands, a move that the New York Times says is “an aggressive push to both invigorate the struggling American coal industry and more broadly exploit commercial opportunities on public lands.” The Obama administration previously banned new coal leases on public land while examining the environmental consequences of mining on public land. Additionally, Trump’s Interior Department is reviewing national monuments with the intentions of reducing the currently protected wilderness and historic areas. What’s the motive? Pure profit. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/06/us/politics/under-trump-coal-mining-gets-new-life-on-us-lands.html?emc=edit_ta_20170806&nl=top-stories&nlid=65880331&ref=headline&_r=0

— Trump wants to overturn an Obama-era rule that allows nursing home patients and their families to sue nursing homes that abuse, neglect, or sexually assault patients. Over 75 different consumer groups have banded together in an effort to stop the administration from reversing this critical protection for our nation’s elderly, but it is not yet known if they’ll be successful in their fight. The Trump administration, meanwhile, wants to change the rule so that the only recourse for nursing home patients who have been abused, neglected, or sexually assaulted, is to go through a third party settlement rather than through court. Remington Gregg, counsel for civil justice and consumer rights at Public Citizen, said the Trump team’s provisions “create an unequal balance of power between the nursing home and its elderly patients or the family members caring for them” according to The Hill. Stay tuned. https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2017/08/07/you-may-lose-rights-to-sue-nursing-homes-if-obamas-rule-overturned/#6307bb5593c4 and http://thehill.com/regulation/healthcare/345411-fight-over-right-to-sue-nursing-homes-heats-up

— The city of Chicago filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration today, citing the administration’s threats to withhold public safety grant money for sanctuary cities. Less than two weeks ago Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the Justice Department would withhold grant funding from cities unless they provided immigration authorities with unlimited access to local jails. Sessions also said that before releasing any person wanted for immigration violations, cities must give 48 hours’ notice. At a news conference, Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel said, “Chicago will not let our police officers become political pawns in a debate. Chicago will not let our residents have their fundamental rights isolated and violated. And Chicago will never relinquish our status as a welcoming city.” http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-immigration-sanctuary-idUSKBN1AM0Q5

— Trump’s withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership in January has left many industries waiting with no solutions in sight. According to the New York Times, “America’s steelworkers are on edge as they wait for Mr. Trump to fulfill his promise to place tariffs on steel imports. Home builders are desperate for the president to cut a deal with Canada to end a dispute over its softwood lumber exports. And cattle ranchers are longing for a bilateral pact with Japan to ease the flow of beef exports.” The Times also reported that Trump recently said steel is no longer a priority for his administration; meanwhile, foreign steel manufacturers have flooded the country with steel products. Apparently many of the citizens being hit hardest by waiting for Trump are those in areas that strongly favored him in the election. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/07/us/politics/trumps-stalled-trade-agenda-leaves-industries-in-a-lurch.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news

— In the midst of his 17-day “working vacation”, Trump took to Twitter to boast about his supporter base being “bigger & stronger than ever before”, yet polls shows otherwise. Last week’s Quinnipiac University poll showed only 33% of American voters approve of Trump’s job performance, a new low. White voters without a college degree were one of Trump’s biggest support groups, and even his support with that demographic has dropped significantly. Only 43% of that group approve of his job performance, and in June that number was 53%. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2017/08/07/trump-says-his-political-base-is-stronger-than-ever-despite-polling-to-the-contrary/?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_trumptweets-810a%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.2b6b9d79d3af

— Finally, as I was writing this I received a New York Times breaking news alert. The Times obtained a government report on climate change that it fears the Trump administration will try to suppress from public consumption, so they ran a huge story on it. The government report was written by scientists at 13 government agencies, and says that we are experiencing the effects of climate change right now. According to the Times, it “directly contradicts claims by President Trump and members of his cabinet who say that the human contribution to climate change is uncertain, and the ability to predict the effects are limited.” Additionally, “the report concludes that if the current trajectory of emitting fossil fuels holds steady, the world will have to accept an additional 0.50 degrees Fahrenheit (0.30 degrees Celsius) of warming over this century. A small difference in global temperatures can make a big difference in the climate: The difference between a 1.5 degree Celsius and a 2 degree Celsius rise in global average temperatures, for example, could mean longer-lasting heat waves, more intense rainstorms and the faster disintegration of coral reefs.” The article does not contain a link to the full report, but I have a feeling we will see it in the coming days. For now, you can read more about the study here: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/07/climate/climate-change-drastic-warming-trump.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news

That’s all for tonight! I hope everyone’s week is off to a great start and I’ll be sure to post any important story links on the Facebook page between now and next Monday!

Trump Watch

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M-W-F wrap-ups about Trump’s actions and their implications. Trump Watch also has a Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/trumpwatch45