The new McCain: Romney carves out role as GOP thorn in Trump's side

Mitt Romney, the 2012 GOP nominee, is setting himself up as the Republican in the Senate who is most willing to criticize President Trump and block his agenda. With the death of Sen. John McCain, the 2008 GOP nominee, last year, Romney has assumed the Arizonan's mantle in the Senate as the self-styled "conscience" of the Republican Party, with Romney buoying Democrats on occasion and building an alternative power center in the party — and perhaps even positioning himself for a 2024 presidential bid, though by then he would be 77.

Last Tuesday, Romney was the only Senate Republican to vote against Trump judicial nominee Michael Truncale, citing Truncale’s disparaging comments about former President Barack Obama. Romney was one of four GOP senators in April poised to block the appointment of Trump pick Herman Cain to the Federal Reserve Board, until Cain dropped out.

Since arriving in the Senate in January - after a campaign in which he had been supportive of the president - Romney has turned himself into one of Trump’s most outspoken Republican critics, penning a New Year’s Day op-ed attacking Trump’s character and arguing that the president had “not risen to the mantle of the office.” Following the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report in April, Romney said he was “sickened” by Trump’s actions. On Sunday, Romney was back at it, attacking the president's character."I think he could substantially improve his game when it comes to helping shape the character of the country," Romney said on CNN. "I think young people, as well as people around the world, look at the president of the United States and say, 'Does he exhibit the kind of qualities that we would want to emulate?' And those are qualities of humility, of honesty, integrity, and those are things where I think there’s been some call, where the president has distanced himself from some of the best qualities of the human character.”

While Romney has not called for Trump's impeachment, as Michigan Republican Rep. Justin Amash did on Saturday, the senator labeled Trump activities, as described in Mueller's report, as "troubling," "unfortunate," and "distressing," and added that "those were things that, really, you would not want to see from the highest office in the land." Amash, he said, was "courageous." Critics of Romney - whose reputation as a "flip flopper" and opportunist helped cost him the 2012 general election - accuse him of shifting with the political winds on Trump. In 2012, he sought Trump's endorsement, though he looked visibly uncomfortable doing so. During the 2016 campaign, he denounced Trump as "lacking the temperament to be president," stating: "Dishonesty is Donald Trump’s hallmark."

Once Trump was elected, however, Romney tried to become his Secretary of State, before turning into a Trump critic once again in advance of becoming largely pro-Trump when he needed to win election to the Senate in 2018. Romney’s inclination to go on the offensive against Trump has inspired comparisons to McCain, who exulted in his media label of "maverick." McCain withdrew his support for Trump in 2016 on moral grounds after a tape revealed Trump boasted about sexual assault. McCain also killed Republicans’ 2017 attempt to repeal Obamacare. "I don't think he sees himself as the opposition to Donald Trump," said Jason Perry, director of the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics. "I think he sees himself as his own brand, so he’s shown a clear tendency to go after President Trump when he disagrees with him. I think Mitt Romney is trying to carve a path where he is not in a position where he has to explain or defend what happens in the White House."

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/the-new-mccain-romney-carves-out-role-as-gop-thorn-in-trumps-side

After impeachment remarks, Justin Amash has a primary challenger

After becoming the first Republican congressman to call for President Trump’s impeachment, Michigan Rep. Justin Amash now has a pro-Trump primary challenger. “I am a Pro-Trump, Pro-Life, Pro-Jobs, Pro-2nd Amendment, Pro-Family Values Republican,” Lower said. “Justin Amash’s tweets yesterday calling for President Trump’s impeachment show how out of touch he is with the truth and how out of touch he is with people he represents.” On Saturday Amash penned a long series of tweets arguing that Trump committed impeachable offenses during special counsel Robert Mueller’s 22-month investigation. He also knocked Attorney General William Barr’s interpretation of Mueller’s findings, which concluded that the president did not obstruct justice.

“Contrary to Barr’s portrayal, Mueller’s report reveals that President Trump engaged in specific actions and a pattern of behavior that meet the threshold for impeachment,” wrote Amash, who said he believes that Trump obstructed justice during the course of the investigation.

Trump responded to remarks by calling Amash a “loser” who plays into the hands of Democrats in Congress. “If he actually read the biased Mueller Report, ‘composed’ by 18 Angry Dems who hated Trump, he would see that it was nevertheless strong on NO COLLUSION and, ultimately, NO OBSTRUCTION,” Trump tweeted. “Anyway, how do you Obstruct when there is no crime and, in fact, the crimes were committed by the other side? Justin is a loser who sadly plays right into our opponents hands!” The same day Lower made the announcement, he changed his Twitter and Facebook profile pictures to a photo of him holding a microphone with a Trump 2020 banner hanging behind him.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/after-impeachment-remarks-justin-amash-has-a-primary-challenger

Rocket fired at US embassy in Iraq the same model used by Iran

The rocket that exploded Sunday outside the U.S. embassy in Baghdad is of a design trafficked by Iran and used by Middle Eastern terrorist groups. While it is unclear who was responsible for firing or supplying the Katyusha rocket, weapons of the same type were seized by Yemeni authorities on an Iranian ship in 2013. Iran is known to support terrorist groups in the region both financially and with arms, and Iranian forces are known to field Katyusha rockets. Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasoul said that the Iraqi military believed the rocket was fired from east Baghdad, where many Iran-backed Shiite militias are based.

The explosion came as tensions between the United States and Iran continue to rise. President Trump tweeted a warning to Iran shortly after the explosion occurred. "If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran. Never threaten the United States again!" he said. No casualties have been reported from the attack, the first in Baghdad's highly-secured Green Zone since September. Many foreign and Iraqi diplomats and officials are based in the Green Zone, though nonessential U.S. embassy staff were ordered out of Iraq last week.

With a range of up to 25 miles, the Katyusha is a cheap and rudimentary weapon. Originally of Russian design, the Katyusha was first deployed by the Soviet Red Army in World War II. Its use has continued after the collapse of the Soviet Union, with multiple countries fielding it in their national armies. It is also a weapon of choice for Iranian-sponsored terrorist organizations, including Hamas and Hezbollah.

U.S. and British forces in Iraq and Syria were put on high alert last week after intelligence reports warned of a potential Iranian threat. The United States has deployed the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group, an amphibious warfare ship, a contingent of B-52 bombers, and a Patriot missile defense battery to the region.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/rocket-fired-at-us-embassy-in-iraq-the-same-model-trafficked-by-iran

Iran is under embargo..so any sales would not be legal

https://www.rpi.edu/counsel/U.S.-Embargoed-Countries.pdf

>>6542992

@

>>6543054

Oil giants BP and Shell pledge $1M each to Republican-backed carbon tax

Oil and gas giants BP and Shell are donating $1 million each over two years to a Republican-backed group urging Congress to pass a federal carbon tax to fight climate change. The two companies are providing money to Americans for Carbon Dividends, the advocacy arm of the Climate Leadership Council, a group led by former Republican Secretaries of State James Baker III and George Shultz that is promoting a carbon tax plan that would return all of the revenue to taxpayers.

BP and Shell’s action reflect oil and gas companies' intentions to move beyond just rhetorical support for carbon pricing proposals, but a willingness to also dedicate money to lobby for them. “The additional members who contributed show we are continuing to increase our momentum in support of the plan,” former Rep. Ryan Costello, R-Pa., the executive director of Americans for Carbon Dividends, told the Washington Examiner. “The polling clearly reflects Republican voters want the Republican Party to lean in with a proactive bipartisan solution to reduce carbon emissions.”

BP and Shell join industry competitors ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil, which previously donated to Americans for Carbon Dividends. Exxon pledged $1 million over two years, while ConocoPhillips committed $2 million over two years. Shell and BP are joining a coalition of nearly 100 companies for two days of lobbying on Capitol Hill this week geared toward generating support for a carbon tax. “It’s our hope Shell’s support of AFCD and like-minded coalitions ultimately leads to legislation that establishes a national price on carbon,”Shell U.S. president Gretchen Watkins told the Washington Examiner.

Businesses and economists contend a carbon tax is the simplest and most efficient way to address greenhouse gas emissions by applying a per-ton fee for large emitters like power plants and refineries. Supporters view the approach as a market-based solution, one that would encourage energy producers to switch to cleaner non-fossil fuel alternatives if doing so costs less than paying the tax.

The Climate Leadership Council proposal backed by oil and gas companies would impose a gradually rising carbon tax beginning at $40 per ton, and return all the money to American people through equal quarterly payments to offset higher energy prices. A family of four would receive roughly $2,000 per year in dividends, the group said. Economic studies show the majority of households would receive more in rebates than they pay in additional taxes, including low-income households. As part of a “grand bargain” to win over industry, the plan would also scrap carbon regulations of power plants imposed by the Environmental Protection Agency, which would be duplicative with a tax. It also creates a border carbon adjustment, forcing exporting countries to pay a fee on carbon-emitting products coming into the U.S., to avoid harming the competitiveness of American industries. And importantly for industry, the proposal would protect oil and gas companies from lawsuits by states and cities blaming them for climate change.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/energy/oil-giants-bp-and-shell-pledge-1-million-each-to-republican-backed-carbon-tax

>>6543169

I wasn't asserting that, simply providing information on what laws exist in the U.S. and that if Clowns were selling to Iran it would not be legal. You are correct it is muddy. If you want to consider who might be selling these arms to them, it could be a very interesting dig if you are inclined to do so.

>>6543180

I think it all ready started, kek

>>6543275

Agreed…clowns at work.