Category Archives: Democrats

Trump impeachment: Senator Collins working to allow witnesses at trial – as it happened

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Susan Collins and other Republicans open to allowing witnesses in impeachment trial, a key sticking point in impasse between House and Senate

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Kari Paul here, logging off for the weekend! Here is a summary of the key events of the last few hours:

Two parents whose children were separated from them as a result of the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” border policies are suing the federal government for $12m, claiming the children were subject to abuse and neglect while in federal custody.

“The United States government tore these families apart pursuant to a cruel and unconstitutional policy: The government intended to inflict terror and harm on these small children and their fathers, as a means of deterring others from seeking to enter the United States”, said the lawsuit, which was filed Friday in U.S. District Court of Arizona.

According to the lawsuit, the fathers were separated from their children for more than two months, and the federal government gave little, if any, information regarding the location and safety of the children.

The families “suffered, and continue to suffer, physical, mental, and emotional harm,” the lawsuit states. More than a year after they were reunited, the lawsuit says the children exhibit symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

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Trump says ‘Iran appears to be standing down’ following missile strikes – live

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US president declares additional economic sanctions on Iran but attempts to de-escalate crisis

The quartet of US secretary of state Mike Pompeo, the still relatively new defense secretary Mark Esper, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff Mark Milley and the historically-controversial CIA director Gina Haspel strode across Capitol Hill today to brief members of Congress on the Iran issues.

There is some difference of perspective on how effective the briefing was.

Rep Mark Meadows says the briefing for lawmakers was “compelling and decisive” and left “little doubt” that the president made the right call in killing Qasem Soleimani and there was “clear and present danger.”

Meadows says Director Haspel was very “clear and articulate” that there was an “imminent threat” from Qasem Soleimani. “This general’s absence will not be easily replaced,” he adds and says it will take months if not years to fill the gap Qasem Soleimani leaves.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel said the theme of the Iran briefing "was the administration saying trust us."

"I’m not sure who I trust or what I trust. We’ve been told so many different things that really just bother me."

GOP KY Sen Paul: I think sanctions have actually pushed Iran away from the negotiating table and made it less likely to have a diplomatic solution..I did just speak to the President moments ago, I do believe that the President honestly does not want another war in the Middle East

British prime minister Boris Johnson and his Canadian counterpart, Justin Trudeau, had a telephone call with each other earlier in which they discussed the need for urgent de-escalation on all sides in the US-Iran crisis following Iranian missile attacks on military bases housing US troops in Iraq overnight, a spokesperson for Johnson said.

The leaders also discussed working together, and with international partners, to ensure Iran is prevented from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

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Pelosi delays sending articles of impeachment against Trump – live

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House to convene for the first time of the new year and a first true signal of when speaker might advance impeachment issue

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Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell reportedly plans to advance a set of rules for the looming impeachment trial without Democratic support.

Politico reports:

McConnell is on the verge of having sufficient backing in his 53-member caucus to pass a blueprint for the trial that leaves the question of seeking witnesses and documents until after opening arguments are made, according to multiple senators. That framework would mirror the contours of President Bill Clinton’s trial and ignore Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s demands for witnesses and new evidence.

No final decision has been made, but in a brief interview, McConnell said he would address the possibility of spurning Democrats on Tuesday afternoon.

Appearing at the US Capitol for the first time in 2020, House speaker Nancy Pelosi deflected reporters’ repeated questions about when she might transmit the articles of impeachment to the Senate.

Entering the Capitol for the first time in 2020, ⁦@SpeakerPelosi⁩ is still mum on when she’ll send articles of impeachment to the Senate —> pic.twitter.com/8WlaSiCwvg

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Confusion over letter from US military signaling withdrawal of troops from Iraq – as it happened

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Mark Esper says memo on US troops’ ‘onward movement’ from Iraq is not accurate and ‘there’s been no decision’

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Kari Paul here, logging off for the night. Here are today’s top events to make note of:

Pete Buttigieg is heading back to Iowa on Jan. 12 to do more campaigning ahead of the upcoming caucus there, his team announced on Monday.

According to the announcement, Buttigieg has now visited Iowa 21 times, with visits to 49 counties to hold 100 events across the state.

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Impeachment: Warren accuses Trump of ‘wag the dog’ strike on Suleimani

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Elizabeth Warren has suggested Donald Trump ordered the drone assassination of Iranian general Qassem Suleimani to distract the American public from his own impeachment, taking the country “to the edge of war” for his own political purposes.

Related: Making of a martyr: how Qassem Suleimani was hunted down

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Klobuchar gains momentum in Iowa – but will her gruelling tour be enough?

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The Minnesota senator is reaching out to Iowa’s smallest towns and rural settlements ahead of the vital February caucus and seeing increasing numbers

Craig Hiller, an Iowa farmer, had just enjoyed a hot chocolate on Amy Klobuchar’s campaign bus as it made a stop in the small town of Rockwell City, population just 2,100.

Hiller, whose state is the vital first one to cast ballots in the party’s nomination race to pick an opponent to Donald Trump, was impressed by the Minnesota senator, a fellow midwesterner who desperately needs a strong showing in Iowa to boost her 2020 presidential campaign.

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Cyber attacks and electronic voting errors threaten 2020 outcome, experts warn

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Key Democrats and election analysts say more needs to be done to ensure safe elections free from ‘foreign malicious actors’

Potential electronic voting equipment failures and cyber attacks from Russia and other countries pose persistent threats to the 2020 elections, election security analysts and key Democrats warn.

Related: Embassy protesters in Iraq deal symbolic blow to US prestige

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The final sprint: will any of the Democratic candidates excite voters?

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Biden is too gaffe-prone; Sanders and Warren are too far left; Buttigieg, too young. But which one is capable of beating Trump?

Democrats overwhelmingly agree that their top priority in 2020 is to remove Donald Trump from office. But which of the many Democrats running for president is best suited to the task remains a source of deep anxiety and division less than five weeks before the Iowa caucuses.

After more than a year of campaigning, the Democratic presidential primary enters the final sprint before voting begins on 3 February in Iowa in a familiar but fluid state: Joe Biden in the lead, trailed by Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren with Pete Buttigieg also showing signs of strength in the early states.

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Nancy Pelosi on Trump and the power of the gavel: ‘He’ll be impeached for ever’

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Trump heads to Florida for the holidays as Senate adjourned until January without agreeing to impeachment trial procedures

Nancy Pelosi promised as speaker she would “show the power of the gavel”. This year, she laid it out for all to see.

The past week alone, the Democratic leader delivered a $1.4tn government funding package to stop a shutdown, pushed through the bipartisan US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, and passed her party’s plan to lower prescription drug costs. In between, she led a congressional delegation to Europe for the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge.

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Bernie Sanders calls out Buttigieg’s billionaire fundraising: ‘exactly the problem with politics’

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Exclusive: the Vermont senator speaks to the Guardian about his rivals’ support from billionaires, and his plan to beat Trump

Bernie Sanders on Friday doubled down on criticism of fellow Democratic presidential candidates Pete Buttigieg and Joe Biden over the support they’ve received from billionaire donors, arguing his 2020 rivals’ fundraising was “exactly the problem with American politics”.

Related: Billionaire candidates spent $15m on TV ads in California. What if they'd spent it on housing?

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Nancy Pelosi on Trump: ‘He’ll be impeached for ever’ – live

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  • ‘No matter what the Senate does – he’s impeached for ever’
  • Trump to sign spending deal today including $738bn defense bill
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That’s all from me. Thanks for sticking around for the tail end of this momentous week.

Here’s a summary of the day’s major stories:

Bernie Sanders spoke with my colleague Sam Levin this morning, and reiterated his critique of Pete Buttigieg, Joe Biden and billionaires:

They will tell you, ‘It doesn’t impact me. It really doesn’t mean anything to me.’ That is clearly nonsensical. Why would billionaires and wealthy people be making large contributions if it didn’t mean something to them?

The United Kingdom, last I heard, is not the United States. Brexit is not a major part of what this campaign is about. The issues that I am campaigning on, in fact, are precisely the issues the American people support. Talk about raising the minimum wage to 15 bucks an hour. Four years ago when I introduced that concept, it was a radical idea. Not radical anymore.

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Who won the last Democratic debate? | Nathan Robinson

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Buttigieg was targeted by opponents and Elizabeth Warren had the best line of the night. But there were no clear winners

This was a lively one. The latest Democratic debate won’t change the course of the presidential primary – debates generally don’t. But there were a few spirited clashes between candidates that served to highlight crucial differences.

Amy Klobuchar and Pete Buttigieg repeatedly locked horns, even though the differences between them politically are not substantial. It is clear that Klobuchar has an intense dislike for Buttigieg: she professed herself insulted by his previous comments about the limited value of “Washington experience”, pointing out that Buttigieg had never managed to win a statewide election. Buttigieg, for his part, gave a righteously indignant defense of the significance of small-town America that could have been scripted by Aaron Sorkin. (You might not think we matter out in South Bend, Senator, but the firefighters and teachers I proudly serve – this is not an exact quote, but you get the picture.)

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Democratic debate: Warren, Sanders, Biden and Yang face off in LA – live updates

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Candidates take the stage at Loyola Marymount University as impeachment dominates the headlines

The Guardian’s Lois Beckett is in Los Angeles and has been speaking with voters ahead of tonight’s debate. Here’s what they had to say about the respective candidates ….

.@stephenroelewis, 50, and his son Daniel Roe Lewis, 20, are here from the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona. Daniel supports Sanders, for his strong environmental platform; and Yang, for his universal basic income plan. pic.twitter.com/ZH0kJileif

Two LA friends outside the debate, talking about Warren’s electability.

Warren is from the Midwest, Beatina says. “She has that Midwest nice thing.”

“Does she?” Christine asks, very skeptical. To her, Warren reads as very Northeast. pic.twitter.com/Tojd6w8Tci

Alayshia Barker-Vaughn, 18, is leaning towards Elizabeth Warren. She likes her outreach to voters of color, her focus on healthcare, the fact she’s a woman, and her “charisma.”

“Her charisma & how she engages with an audience is very unique.” pic.twitter.com/J6UlMDGc2w

The sixth Democratic debate is officially underway, and seven candidates will now face off the day after the impeachment of Donald Trump.

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Nancy Pelosi silences applause after impeachment vote – video

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The House speaker sternly shut down House Democrats who began to clap as she announced the results of a vote on the first of two articles of impeachment against Donald Trump.

Pelosi said the vote, on Wednesday, was a 'sad' occasion and that it was 'tragic' the president’s reckless actions had made it necessary.

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Trump’s impeachment may be just another battle in the US’s civil war

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Trump will be wounded, seething, hellbent on revenge – and turn the weight of impeachment against his foes in 2020

After Donald Trump’s inaugural address, George W Bush turned to Hillary Clinton and said: “Well, that was some weird shit,” the former secretary of state confirmed earlier this month.

For nearly three years since that chilly day here at the US Capitol in Washington, Democrats (and many others) have accused of Trump using and abusing the United States like his personal punchbag. On Wednesday, that slice of America finally punched back via impeachment.

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Trump accuses Democrats of ‘open war on American democracy’ in stinging impeachment letter – live

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President sends six-page letter to House speaker Nancy Pelosi condemning inquiry as ‘unprecedented and unconstitutional abuse of power’

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A message from the Guardian US editor-in-chief:

This year, readers across all 50 states supported our journalism, allowing us to thrive in a challenging climate for publishers. Thank you.

Here’s a recap of today:

Related: Trump impeachment inquiry: a timeline of key events so far

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Trump writes blistering letter to House accusing leaders of ‘war on democracy’

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Letter is a thinly veiled attempt to redirect back impeachment inquiry’s findings he abused power and obstructed Congress

Donald Trump has accused Democratic leaders in the House of declaring “open war on American democracy”, on the eve of a historic vote that is likely to make him only the third president in US history to be impeached.

Trump issued the incendiary accusation in an intemperately-worded letter sent to the speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, on Tuesday.

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Man with the money: Democrats cry foul as Bloomberg splashes the cash

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The billionaire is controversially dodging the early voting states amid a $100m ad blitz but some see a wider boost for the party

House Democrats received some welcome news on Wednesday: Michael Bloomberg was coming to their rescue once again.

Related: Amy Klobuchar: 'I will reverse Trump abortion policies in the first 100 days'

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‘Let’s do this!’: Megan Rapinoe endorses Elizabeth Warren for president

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  • Soccer star praises Warren for being ‘bold and real’
  • SI Sportsperson of the Year posts video of call with candidate

Two-time World Cup champion Megan Rapinoe has announced her support for the Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren.

“I truly believe the best things in life are a result of being bold and being real,” wrote the soccer star, whom Sports Illustrated this week named Sportsperson of the Year.

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Warren, Biden and other Democrats threaten to boycott debate amid labor feud

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  • Union plans to picket Loyola Marymount University venue
  • Warren calls for DNC to find solution in line with principles

All the Democratic presidential candidates slated to participate in next week’s debate have threatened to skip the event if an ongoing labor dispute forces them to cross picket lines on the university campus where the debate will be hosted.

A labor union says it will picket as Loyola Marymount University hosts Thursday’s sixth Democratic debate, and Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders responded by tweeting they would not participate if that meant crossing it. Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Tom Steyer and Andrew Yang followed suit.

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