There is a new ménage-à-quatre in the region, bringing Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the United States ever closer. And...an unexpected fifth player lurking in the shadows: Russia.
Maybe Trump really thinks sanctions will produce a "better" Iran deal. More likely, they're designed to justify conflict - an unwinnable conflict that will destabilize the Middle East and the world’s economy, and pour more of this country’s resources into yet another quagmire.
Everything else that Trump has or hasn’t done about Russia, any sanctions, any tariffs, any expelled diplomats, absolutely pales in comparison to the huge boost in oil revenues he provided to the Russian economy by backing away from the Iran nuclear deal.
This is not “democracy promotion," it is regime change, by any means necessary.
On Friday, a group of members of Congress published a letter opposing the threatened sanctions. It began, “We write to express our deep alarm regarding the escalating political, economic and social crisis in Venezuela and urge you to work with our regional partners to help prevent a civil war. We strongly recommend that you support negotiations mediated by respected external actors such as Pope Francis, who enjoys credibility with broad segments of Venezuela’s people.
A federal judge rules that the Dakota Access pipeline did not receive an adequate environmental vetting. The rulling in favor of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe on Wednesday, handing the tribe its first legal victory in its year-long battle against the Dakota Access pipeline.
In response to President Donald Trump's executive order to advance construction of the stalled Dakota Access Pipeline, tribal opponents say they will fight a restart of the project in court. While President Trump issued an executive order Tuesday intended to advance construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, restarting the stalled project may not be simple.
Donald Trump, at war with the American safety net, and the environment, not to mention the planet -- and that's before we even get to actual war, which will be overseen by a crew of Islamo- and Irano-phobes. If, as Klare points out today, Trump himself has a serious case of nostalgia for the America of his youth, with its untrammeled growth and its fossil-fueled wonders, don't think that nostalgia doesn't include military affairs, and future military adventures and wars.
An issue of this magnitude clearly isn’t down to a few shady companies.
This decision is everything we had asked for: a non-granting of the easement, initiating an Environmental Impact Study, and suggestive of a reroute, Standing Rock Sioux Chairman David Archambault II said. 'We got it! Energy Transfer Partners will face an uphill battle in trying to dismantle the process initiated by this decision.' And, if the camp stays where it is currently located, people are risking their lives. The current weather is severe, making travel impossible.
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