Trump declares national emergency 'over Huawei' amid accusations he is risking 'devastating' conflict with Iran
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has been accused of “playing a very dangerous game” with Iran and risking dragging the US into a new war in the Middle East that could have “devastating” consequences.
The warning came from Hamid Baeidinejad, Iran’s ambassador to the UK, with the acting US defence secretary Patrick Shanahan tabling plans to send 120,000 troops to the region if needed as tensions soar between the two nations over economic sanctions and an increased American military presence in the Persian Gulf.
A commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Maj Gen Hossein Salami, later warned the nation is “on the cusp of a full-scale confrontation with the enemy”.
Meanwhile, President Trump has signed an executive order declaring a national emergency that will ban American companies from using telecommunications equipment made by foreign firms posing a national security risk to the US.
The move – thought to be aimed at China’s Huawei – comes as tensions flare between the two countries, with Beijing and Washington failing to find consensus on trade and tariffs after months of negotiations.
In a statement, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that the emergency declaration by the president is”part of his commitment to protecting the information and communications technology and services of our Nation.”
In the latest US immigration news, the Trump administration is planning to redirect Transportation Security Administration staff to the Mexico border, the TSA said Wednesday.
“TSA, like all DHS components, is supporting the DHS effort to address the humanitarian and security crisis at the southwest border.
TSA is in the process of soliciting volunteers to support this effort while minimising operational impact,” TSA spokesman James Gregory said in a statement.
The announcement came as Donald Trump spoke at the annual Peace Officers’ Memorial Service in Washington DC, where he denounced illegal immigration across the US-Mexico border.
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Carli Pierson meanwhile argues the possibility of a Joe Biden-Kamala Harris ticket for the Democrats in 2020 is not the progressive answer some have suggested it might be.
Hamish McRae here makes the bold claim Trump has "reached a new level of incoherence" in his trade war with China. I think he can go much further.
Last night, the Trump administration proposed using money from the US Pell Grant system to help fund Nasa's mission to get to the moon.
The administration proposed using a $1.6 billion surplus in the Pell Grant programme to help boost the space agency's budget, but even supporters of Nasa aren't excited.
"I'm all for space travel and returning to the moon but not at the expense of education," Jose Hernandez, a retired Nasa astronaut, wrote on Twitter. "If the Pell Grant money is a surplus, how about increasing the size of grants so college grads don't graduate with so much debt?"
The passage of extreme abortion bans in states across the country this year, leading up to last night's passage of a law essentially criminalizing abortion in Alabama, has been met with calls to action from Democrats.
That includes calls from leading women in the 2020 Democratic field like Elizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand, and even House speaker Nancy Pelosi — the highest office holding woman in American history.
Here's what Bernie Sanders has to say about any potential war with Iran:
“Let me be as clear as I can be: a war with Iran would be an absolute disaster,” said Sanders. “Sixteen years ago, the United States committed one of the worst foreign policy blunders in the history of our country by attacking Iraq. That war was sold to the American people based on a series of lies about weapons of mass destruction. We should remember that one of the leading advocates for that war was John Bolton.
“And now, based on the disaster that he helped bring about in Iraq, it appears that John Bolton wants a war in Iran. Let’s be clear: a war with Iran would be many times worse than the Iraq war. U.S. military leaders have repeatedly told us that.
“The United States Congress must do everything it can to prevent a war with Iran. The Constitution of the United States is very clear. I am committed to ensuring that majorities of the House of Representatives and the Senate make clear that before the president takes any military action, in Iran or anywhere else, he must seek authorization from Congress. Taking us into a war without Congressional authorization would be unconstitutional and illegal.”
This is the 38th Annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service.
Peace Officers Memorial Day is observed on 15 May to pay tribute to local, state, and federal peace officers who have died, or who have been disabled, in the line of duty.
Pointing up to the sky Donald Trump says "they're watching right now down on us", before asking relatives to stand up to a short round of applause.
In other Trump news, Trump Tower has become one of New York City’s least desirable luxury buildings, a new report suggests.
Apartment prices at the 58-storey skyscraper have fallen and huge tracts of office space have been left vacant since Donald Trump was elected US president in 2016.
"Saudi Arabia’s claim that two of its oil tankers have been sabotaged off the coast of the UAE is vague in detail – but could create a crisis that spins out of control and into military action.
"Any attack on shipping in or close to the Strait of Hormuz, the 30-mile wide channel at the entrance to the Gulf, is always serious because it is the most important choke point for the international oil trade..."
Read more from Patrick Cockburn here:
Donald Trump's Doral resort is facing a steep decline in profitability, documents obtained by The Washington Post reveal. Revenue for the luxury Miami resort has dropped since he became president in 2016, with business consultants reportedly saying it is due to negative associations with the Trump brand.
The documents show that the property missed revenue targets by $10 million in 2017, despite being one of the highest profit-earners for the Trump Organization.
Donald Trump is currently speaking at the annual Peace Officers' Memorial Service in Washington DC.
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