Jim Kavanagh (2019-11-12). Trump\'s Syrian See-Saw: From Pullout to Pillage. counterpunch.org To withdraw, or not to withdraw? That is the question Donald Trump, in his own inimitable way, has answered both ways. | First came the withdrawal. It was real, and had a significant effect. Trump ordered the removal of US troops from Kurdish areas, putting an end to the prospect of an independent Kurdish statelet, split off from Syria. Such a partition was always implausible, given the general balance of forces in the region and the specific refusal of NATO-member Turkey to accept any such thing. (Turkey had already invaded Syria in 2016, and the Obama-Biden administration ordered the Kurds to accept it.) It was…

Mark Gruenberg (2019-11-12). Unions fight for DACA recipients as Supreme Court tackles their fate. peoplesworld.org AUSTIN, Texas—\"P.V.,\" an assistant county attorney in Austin, Texas, knows many facets of the immigration issue, and particularly about the \"Dreamers.\" P.V., you see, is an AFSCME member, and a beneficiary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. In other words, he too is a Dreamer. Now his fate, and that of the …

Albert Bender (2019-11-12). Nashville immigrant and refugee community celebrates \"huge victory\" over ICE. peoplesworld.org NASHVILLE—On Friday, Nov. 1, the immigrant and refugee community here celebrated a decision by the Davidson County Sheriff\'s Department to terminate its contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Sheriff\'s Department will no longer house ICE detainees at its detention center in Nashville. The termination of the policy with ICE was hailed by community advocates as a \"huge …

RT (2019-11-12). Wait, what? Campus newspaper apologizes for DOING JOURNALISM, calls protest coverage \'retraumatizing and invasive\'. rt.com A US college newspaper has apologized for photographing and talking to protesters who picketed a speech by former Attorney General Jeff Sessions. The paper claims that standard journalistic practice hurt their feelings. | Sessions was invited to Northwestern University last week by the College Republicans. Northwestern being an American campus, protesters turned out to heckle Sessions, in particular for his role in implementing President Donald Trump\'s administration\'s \"zero tolerance\" immigration policies last year. | The social justice crowd booing a Republican is nothing new, but the college newspaper, the…

RT (2019-11-12). Europeans failed to fulfill their commitments to Iran nuclear deal — FM Zarif. rt.com Europeans have failed to fulfill their own commitments to Iran\'s 2015 nuclear deal, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted on Tuesday. The statement came in response to a warning by the EU that urged Tehran to stick to the pact or face consequences, Reuters said. | European states have been trying to persuade Tehran to stick to the deal, under which it agreed to curb its nuclear program in return for the lifting of sanctions, despite a decision last year by US President Donald Trump to abandon it. | Iran has long blamed the Europeans for failing to provide the economic benefits it was meant to receive u…

Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers (2019-11-12). On Armistice Day, Work For And Celebrate Peace. dissidentvoice.org Today is Armistice Day — the day that World War I, a brutal and devastating war, ended. After World War I, people hoped nothing like that would ever happen again and a large peace movement developed in the United States. Sadly, just over two decades later, World War II began. The US arose in the …

RT (2019-11-12). Leaders address global challenges at Paris Peace Forum in absence of US. rt.com French President Emmanuel Macron and other leaders have called for greater international cooperation to ease the world\'s tensions at a forum in Paris that was notable for the absence of the US, AP reports. | Some 30 heads of state or government, high-level officials from other countries and the leaders of 10 international organizations on Tuesday joined hundreds of activists, entrepreneurs and others at the Paris Peace Forum. The US did not send a government official to the event. | In his opening speech, Macron advocated for multilateralism and a \"balanced cooperation\" between the nations. In an apparent refe…

Staff (2019-11-12). Sanford Suspends GOP Presidential Primary Challenge to Trump. truthdig.com CONCORD, N.H. — Mark Sanford dropped his challenge to President Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination on Tuesday, saying the focus on impeachment has made it difficult for his campaign to gain traction. | \"You\'ve got to be a realist,\" Sanford said outside the New Hampshire statehouse. \"What I did not anticipate is an impeachment.\" | The former South Carolina governor and congressman announced his decision to suspend his campaign on the eve of televised impeachment hearings in the U.S. House. He centered his campaign on warnings about the national debt but emphasized that the impeachment ef…

Staff (2019-11-12). The Perfectly Legal Ways Foreign Powers Subvert American Democracy. truthdig.com Foreign influence in America is the topic du jour. From the impeachment inquiry into President Trump\'s request that a foreign power investigate a political opponent to the indictment of associates of his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, for illegally funneling foreign money into U.S. elections, the nation has been transfixed by news of illegal foreign influence in the political process. While such efforts to subvert American elections garner…

Staff (2019-11-12). Mulvaney Won\'t Sue Over Impeachment, Declines to Cooperate. truthdig.com WASHINGTON — White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Tuesday that he no longer plans to sue over the House impeachment proceedings and will instead follow President Donald Trump\'s directions and decline to cooperate. | It\'s the latest reversal in position by Mulvaney, who last week asked to join the lawsuit of another Trump adviser before changing his mind Monday and saying that he intended to bring his own case. It appears to resolve once and for all a four-day legal dispute that exposed divisions among current and former Trump administr…

Staff (2019-11-12). Israel Targets Islamic Jihad Leader, Sending Message to Iran. truthdig.com A senior commander from the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad is killed in the Gaza Strip; Israel is hit with retaliatory rocket fire.

Patrick Cockburn (2019-11-12). How Iran-Backed Forces Are Taking Over Iraq. counterpunch.org The protests — and the merciless government attempt to stamp them out — are the biggest threat to the power of the Iraqi political establishment since Isis was advancing on Baghdad in 2014. In many respects, the danger to the status quo is greater now because Isis was an existential threat to the Shia majority who had no choice but to support their ruling elite, however predatory and incompetent they had proved in office. More

RT (2019-11-12). South Carolina nuclear power plant operator insists \'no danger to public\' after \'small leak\' forces reactor SHUTDOWN. rt.com A nuclear power plant in South Carolina was forced to halt operations indefinitely to repair a \"small\" coolant leak in its reactor. The plant operator insists the incident is so minor there was no need to inform the public. | The coolant leak at the VC Summer nuclear plant in Jenkinsville, South Carolina had been discovered several weeks ago and last week engineers were forced to shut its sole reactor down. The company in charge of the plant, Dominion Energy, says no nuclear material has escaped the facility | Plant operators \"have been monitoring a very small leak in the reactor coolant system,\" Dominion Ener…

RT (2019-11-12). China & Russia\'s \'worst nightmare\'? National Interest piece fantasizing sale of US nuke subs to allies is an \'exaggeration\'. rt.com The National Interest magazine claimed that a potential sale of US nuclear subs to allies may become a \"nightmare\" for Russia and China. Military analysts told RT there could be a fallout but a grim prospect is an exaggeration. | The executive editor of the Washington-based outlet, Harry J. Kazianis, recently published an article revealing what would become \"China and Russia\'s worst nightmare.\" In the piece, he floated the idea of selling or leasing 10 or 12 Virginia-Class attack subs to Australia and other allies into the minds of the decision makers in the Pentagon. | Kazianis wrote that such a move will all…

RT (2019-11-12). Mystery as \'thousands\' of birds found DEAD on shores of Indian lake. rt.com The shocking discovery of more than 1,000 dead birds of various species along the shores of India\'s biggest inland salt lake has left authorities scratching their heads. | The corpses of more than a dozen species of migratory birds were found littered around Sambhar Lake, in the northern state of Rajasthan, in recent days. | The lake is a favored winter spot of migratory birds from Europe and China and is a recognized wetland of international importance, so the unexplained mass death has sparked serious concern among officials. | \"We have never seen anything like this,\" Abhinav Vaishnav, a local bird-watche…

RT (2019-11-12). Battleground Hong Kong: Rioters armed with catapults & javelins destroy university campuses & metro stations, clashing with police. rt.com Protests in Hong Kong have reached new heights of violence, with bomb-throwing rioters seizing control of university campuses and pushing out police while authorities admit that the riot-ravaged city hangs by a thread. | Demonstrators armed to the teeth with molotov cocktails, javelins, and (in one case, at least) a chainsaw have seized control of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), pushing riot police off the campus on Tuesday night and leaving a shocking amount of destruction in their wake. | Rioters armed with catapults & javelins destroy university campuses & metro stations, clashing with police in…

W. T. Whitney Jr. (2019-11-12). Once more, UN General Assembly rejects U.S. blockade of Cuba. peoplesworld.org It happened again. For the 28th consecutive year, a Cuban resolution calling for an end to the U.S. economic blockade of that island was approved overwhelmingly in the United Nations General Assembly. The vote on Nov. 7 was 187 votes in favor, three votes against—the United States, Israel, and Brazil—and two nations abstaining, Colombia and …

RT (2019-11-12). Marco Rubio blames \'Putin\'s disinformation\' for coverage of Bolivia coup that he doesn\'t like. rt.com Eager to find some way to implicate Russia in Bolivia\'s political crisis and control of the US narrative, Republican senator Marco Rubio branded any skeptical coverage of events as an example of how \"Putin uses disinformation.\" | Rubio, an early and avid supporter of protests that ousted former Bolivian President Evo Morales this week, tweeted that those wishing to understand Russian disinformation should \"study current coverage\" of Bolivia. | In Rubio\'s world, Russia has created \"fake news\" on Bolivia and is spreading it via a \"vast network of outlets\" and \"social media actors\" before it is \"echoed in mainstr…

RT (2019-11-12). \'Never forget what your enemy looks like\': MPs allow use of swastika to condemn Nazi ideology. rt.com The swastika and other symbols of the Third Reich can be used, but only if it\'s done to condemn Nazism, the State Duma ruled. The previous legislation was too harsh, even making addressing classic WWII movies a problem. | There was an outright ban on Nazi symbols in Russia due to them offending the memory of the grave losses suffered by the country during the Great Patriotic War against the German invaders in 1941-45. | But the amendments to the relevant law, which MPs passed in the second reading on Tuesday, allow for the restrictions to be lifted in cases when those symbols are used \"to form a negative attit…

RT (2019-11-12). Competition for Moscow? UK election meddling accusations spread from Russia, to India…to Hillary. rt.com If you believe the daily reports, Britain\'s ongoing election campaign is facing more interference than an old analogue television during a rainstorm, and amazingly, it\'s not just Russians being accused of being behind it. | A sense of old world grandeur is easily inflated by convincing yourself that you\'re so important that the whole world wants to swing your election. | Of course, it is still mainly Russia which stands accused in Britain, because that is just the easiest option available, but now there are also indications of supposed Indian meddling going on, and an election wouldn\'t be an election if the US…

RT (2019-11-12). Back on track: Federer rescues ATP Finals hopes with win over Berrettini. rt.com Swiss tennis icon Roger Federer picked up his first win at the Nitto ATP Finals, beating debutant Matteo Berrettini of Italy in two straight sets to keep his tournament hopes alive. | Berrettini ,the first Italian to qualify for the season-ending event since 1978, showed tough resistance in the opening set, stretching it to a tie-break where the more experienced Swiss got the upper hand 7-2. | READ MORE: False start: Stefanos Tsitsipas downs Russia\'s Daniil Medvedev in ATP Finals opener | How…

RT (2019-11-12). \'Bird of the Year\' flap: More Russian meddling in wildlife contest? rt.com New Zealand is home to over 200 bird species and most of them are unique to the north and south islands where they have lived for millions of years. But while the Dodo might be dead, modern day drama and meddling certainly isn\'t.

RT (2019-11-12). Evo\'s odyssey: Morales endures banned airspace, unplanned pit stop during flight to political asylum in Mexico. rt.com Former Bolivian President Evo Morales has landed safely in Mexico, but his journey to political asylum had twists and turns as neighboring states reacted to the ongoing turmoil back home. | After landing in the North American country Morales said that Mexico saved his life and vowed to continue in politics as long as he is alive. He also told reporters that his home in Bolivia has been ransacked along with his sister\'s house. | The Mexican Air Force aircraft ferrying Morales to safety made a stop in Paraguay to refuel on Tuesday, after reportedly being denied permission to land in Peru. The plane had been allo…

Dean Baker (2019-11-12). A Bold Plan to Strengthen and Improve Social Security is What America Needs. counterpunch.org The Social Security 2100 Act proposed by Connecticut Representative John Larson is getting closer to being passed by the House of Representatives. It now has more than 200 co-sponsors. If it were to be approved and become law, it would both improve the program\'s benefit structure and its financial picture. The biggest item on the More

Staff (2019-11-12). Supreme Court Lets Sandy Hook Shooting Lawsuit Go Forward. truthdig.com WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court said Tuesday that a survivor and relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting can pursue their lawsuit against the maker of the rifle used to kill 26 people. | The justices rejected an appeal from Remington Arms, which argued it should be shielded by a 2005 federal law preventing most lawsuits against firearms manufacturers when their products are used in crimes. | The case is being watched by gun control advocates, gun rights supporters and gun manufacturers across the country because it has the potential to provide a road map for victims of other mass sh…

Victor Grossman (2019-11-12). Germany\'s pyrrhic victory over the Berlin Wall. peoplesworld.org Victor Grossman is the author of A Socialist Defector: From Harvard to Karl-Marx-Allee. He defected from the U.S. Army in 1952 to escape the Cold War repression of the Red Scare. He lived in the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from then until the country went out of existence in 1990. He continues to live in …

Mark Gruenberg (2019-11-12). Communications Workers demand release of Philippine activists, end to U.S. military aid. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—The Communications Workers are demanding release of pro-democracy Philippine activists, including at least one U.S. citizen, and an end to the $193 million in U.S. military aid which the nation\'s authoritarian president, Rodrigo Duterte, uses to oppress opposition. And to make their point, the union joined a phalanx of Filipino-American groups in a 2-hour-long demonstration …

RT (2019-11-12). Canada\'s identity crisis: Wokeness clashes with WWI remembrance in Don Cherry scandal. rt.com Calling out immigrants who do not wear a poppy in memory of WWI veterans got legendary Canadian sportscaster Don Cherry fired and further polarized the nation struggling to reconcile \"woke\" values with its history and tradition. | Red poppy badges are a must-have accessory around Remembrance Day — November 11 — across the British Commonwealth, symbolizing the armistice that ended the First World War. When Cherry — the octogenarian sports commentator and former hockey coach — called out immigrants who refused to wear the badge, however, he was fired from Sportsnet and accused of being xenoph…

Max Blumenthal (2019-11-12). Bolivia coup led by Christian fascist paramilitary leader and millionaire — with foreign support. thegrayzone.com Bolivian coup leader Luis Fernando Camacho is a far-right multi-millionaire who arose from fascist movements in the Santa Cruz region,…

Norman Solomon (2019-11-12). Biden and Bloomberg Want Uncle Sam to Defer to Uncle Scrooge. indybay.org For billionaires, sometimes good flunky candidates are hard to find…

the gray zone (2019-11-12). Overthrown Honduran President Zelaya interviewed. indybay.org He discusses the extreme violence, drug trafficking, economic depression, migration crisis, Juan Orlando Hernández (JOH), WikiLeaks, Venezuela, and more. | Video by Ben Norton…

Ilana Novick (2019-11-12). Horrifying Emails Reveal Stephen Miller\'s White Nationalism. truthdig.com Trump White House senior adviser Stephen Miller, as The Washington Post reported in August, \" rarely puts anything in writing, eschewing email in favor of phone calls.\" Despite making extensive anti-immigration comments in high school, and being, as the Guardian pointed out in 2017, \" the architect of the first travel ban,\" there ha…

Ana Paula Vargas — Vijay Prashad (2019-11-12). Lula is Free: Can Socialism Be Restored? counterpunch.org Just before 5 p.m. on Friday the 8th of November, Brazil\'s former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva walked out of his prison in Curitiba, Brazil. Lula went to prison in April last year on a 12-year sentence. Five-hundred and eighty days of prison are now over, as the Federal Supreme Court ruled that inmates who have not yet exhausted their appeals More

Vijay Prashad (2019-11-12). After Morales Ousted in Coup, the Lithium Question Looms Large in Bolivia. commondreams.org Supporters of Bolivian ex-President Evo Morales, take part in a march in downtown La Paz on November 12, 2019, after he left in exile to Mexico. – Bolivia's Evo Morales was en route to exile in Mexico on Tuesday, leaving behind a country in turmoil after his abrupt resignation as president. The senator set to succeed Morales as interim president, Jeanine Anez, pledged to call fresh elections to end the political crisis. (Photo: Aizar Raldes/AFP via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/bolivia_lithium_coup.jpg …

Activist Post (2019-11-12). Pompeo\'s Iran Nuclear Lies Exposed Using Clear Evidence & The JCPOA Document Itself. thelastamericanvagabond.com Mike Pompeo continues to lead the propaganda push to get the public panicking about an Iran \"nuclear breakout\" even when all evidence shows that Iran is nowhere near capable of being a nuclear threat. Of course many other countries have far more robust nuclear programs, but because it\'s Iran we have to come together as …

Peace Action of San Mateo County (2019-11-12). Questioning war within the military; resistance from Vietnam to Iraq. indybay.org Unitarian Universalists of San Mateo | 300 E. Santa Inez Avenue | San Mateo, CA 94401…

Wim Laven (2019-11-12). Serve With Honor, Honor Those Who Serve; or Support Trump? counterpunch.org Starting as Armistice Day, celebrated for the first time November 11, 1919—the first anniversary of the end of World War I in 1918—what we now call Veterans Day is the observance of thanks to those who have served military duty. It acknowledges the living and the dead for honorably representing the country during peacetime and More

teleSUR (2019-11-12). Bolivia\'s Evo Morales Lands In Mexico As A Political Refugee. telesurenglish.net A Mexican Air Force G550 aircraft landed on Tuesday in Mexico City with Bolivia\'s Evo Morales, who was granted political asylum by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) on Monday. | RELATED: | Bolivia: Police Shoot Anti-Coup Protesters in El Alto | During his morning press conference, the Mexican president revealed that the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) leader\'s air travel was a real odyssey. | \"A journey through different spaces and political decisions\", AMLO commented while…

WSWS (2019-11-12). Bolivia\'s Evo Morales forced out by coup. wsws.org After three weeks of protests following the October 20 presidential elections, the imperialist powers and their Bolivian client elite have overthrown the three-time elected government of Morales.

Marie O\'Reilly (2019-11-12). Sanctions Against North Korea Hurt Women. progressive.org \"Maximum pressure\" sanctions have failed to change policies in Pyongyang, and have had grave human costs.

WSWS (2019-11-12). Tens of thousands in Russia face medicine shortages as a result of Western sanctions. wsws.org Between April and August 2019, two women from Moscow and one from Yekaterinburg were temporarily arrested and charged for illegally obtaining unregistered medicine.

Matthias Rossbach and Mark Tushnet (2019-11-12). Impeaching a President and Impeachment and Corruption. indybay.org Resisting \"corruption\" has occupied the American republic since its origin – along with the search for \"virtuous leaders.\" The impeachment process was understood as a remedy for corruption. The violation of the people\'s trust through abuse of office – the misuse of power for one\'s enrichment, the missing orientation in the common good – is the reason for removal.

ADRIAN KUZMINSKI (2019-11-12). Trump\'s Crime Against Humanity. counterpunch.org There is a different and better case to be made for the impeachment of President Trump than what we have seen so far. The current charges against Trump raised by the Democrats—collusion with foreign governments to subvert American elections, obstruction of justice, emoluments, tax evasion, etc.—are serious enough, if proven. But there\'s a far worse More

teleSUR (2019-11-12). Spain\'s Socialists, Podemos Reach Deal to Form Coalition Gov\'t. telesurenglish.net Spain\'s Socialist Worker\'s Party (PSOE) and the left-wing Unidas Podemos party agreed on the basis of a coalition government Tuesday, just two days after a parliamentary election delivered a highly fragmented parliament and a surge in right-wing MPs. | RELATED: | Spain: Socialists Win But Miss Majority, Far-Right Becomes 3rd Political Force | \"It\'s a deal…

WSWS (2019-11-12). Far-right Vox declares itself main opposition party as Spanish government talks begin. wsws.org Sunday\'s elections resulted once again in a hung parliament, the fourth in as many elections in Spain since 2015.

John McEvoy (2019-11-12). Fear, confusion, and resistance after far-right coup in Bolivia. thecanary.co On the evening of 10 November, sections of the Bolivian military and police launched a successful coup against left-wing president Evo Morales. Though Morales had agreed to hold new elections, the military demanded he step aside. Sources close to Morales claim that he did so in an attempt to prevent more violence, and opposition lawmaker Jeanine An…

Alan Macleod (2019-11-12). Bolivia Is the Latest Successful US-Backed Coup in Latin America. mintpressnews.com There is a perfect word in the English language for when army generals appear on television demanding the resignation of an elected head of state while their allies detain and torture government officials.

Common Dreams (2019-11-12). Lithium Question Looms Large in Bolivia After Morales Ousted in Coup. theantimedia.com The coup against Morales in Bolivia cannot be understood without a glance at the new Cold War between the West and China.

Terranium 117 (2019-11-12). From Where Rock Oil on Brazilian Beaches (Also Far to the USA?). indybay.org Places of beach oil pollutions in Brazil suggest that oil have come with the South-Equatorial Ocean Stream, even from region of the African Oil Shore. And it come from the lithospherical expansional rock cracks or widened mining drill slots. Big quantity of this sea oil may be here later the critical evidence of new phenomenon.

Danica Jorden (2019-11-12). Lula Free, Bolsonaro in Rage. commondreams.org Former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva passing through the crowd of his supporters after his speech in front of ABC Metallurgists Unionin San Bernardo do Campo, Brazil November 9, 2019. (Photo: Felipe Beltrame/NurPhoto/PA Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/lula_0.jpeg …