President Donald Trump on Monday signed three orders on withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, freezing the hiring of federal workers and hitting foreign NGOs that help with abortion, AFP reported.

&quot;We&#39;ve been talking about this for a long time,&quot; Trump said as he signed the executive order to withdraw from the TPP in the Oval Office. &quot;Great thing for the American worker what we just did.&quot;

The withdrawal from the trans Pacific free trade deal, which was drawn under former President Barack Obama but not ratified by the Congress, is in line with Trump&#39;s protectionist election campaign promise.&nbsp;&nbsp;TPP had yet to go into effect and US withdrawal is likely to sound its death knell, AFP reported.

Trump had earlier denounced the TPP a &quot;job killer&quot; and a &quot;rape&quot; of US interests.

The 12-nation FTA is&nbsp;aimed at containing growing Chinese economic clout. It was signed by US allies Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Brunei, which together account for 40 per cent of the world economy.

Trump has also vowed to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) -- between US, Mexico and Canada. He says the trade agreements have drained US jobs and destroyed its industrial heartlands.

The US president will also meet with union leaders and blue-collar workers several hours after signing the executive action, CNN reported.

Trump has frequently spoken out against free trade agreements and vowed to implement more protectionist trade policies and impose tariffs to revive American manufacturing.

Trump has already moved to curb Obama&#39;s health care reforms. More legal executive orders are expected on immigration and limiting environmental legislation. 
 
(WION with inputs from AFP)

Trump has also signed two more orders on freezing the hiring of federal workers and hitting foreign NGOs that help with abortion

President Donald Trump on Monday signed three orders on withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, freezing the hiring of federal workers and hitting foreign NGOs that help with abortion, AFP reported. "We've been talking about this for a long time," Trump said as he signed the executive order to withdraw from the TPP in the Oval Office. "Great thing for the American worker what we just did." The withdrawal from the trans Pacific free trade deal, which was drawn under former President Barack Obama but not ratified by the Congress, is in line with Trump's protectionist election campaign promise. TPP had yet to go into effect and US withdrawal is likely to sound its death knell, AFP reported. Trump had earlier denounced the TPP a "job killer" and a "rape" of US interests. The 12-nation FTA is aimed at containing growing Chinese economic clout. It was signed by US allies Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Brunei, which together account for 40 per cent of the world economy. Trump has also vowed to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) -- between US, Mexico and Canada. He says the trade agreements have drained US jobs and destroyed its industrial heartlands. The US president will also meet with union leaders and blue-collar workers several hours after signing the executive action, CNN reported. Trump has frequently spoken out against free trade agreements and vowed to implement more protectionist trade policies and impose tariffs to revive American manufacturing. Trump has already moved to curb Obama's health care reforms. More legal executive orders are expected on immigration and limiting environmental legislation. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Trump orders US withdrawal from trans-Pacific trade deal

A group including former White House ethics attorneys will file a lawsuit on Monday accusing President Donald Trump of allowing his businesses to accept payments from foreign governments, in violation of the US&nbsp;Constitution.

Deepak Gupta, a Supreme Court litigator working on the case, said the lawsuit would allege that the Constitution&#39;s emoluments clause forbids payments to Trump&#39;s businesses. It will seek a court order forbidding Trump from accepting such payments, he said.

The case, reported earlier by the New York Times, is part of a wave of litigation expected to be filed against Trump by liberal advocacy groups. It will be filed in a Manhattan federal court, Gupta said, and plaintiffs will include Richard Painter, a former ethics lawyer in Republican President George W&nbsp;Bush&#39;s White House.

A Trump spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.

Trump&#39;s son Eric Trump, an executive vice president of the Trump Organization, told the Times on Sunday that the company had taken more steps than required by law to avoid any possible legal exposure, such as agreeing to donate any profits collected at Trump-owned hotels that come from foreign government guests to the US&nbsp;Treasury.

(Reuters)

The lawsuit would allege that the Constitution's emoluments clause forbids payments to Trump's businesses

A group including former White House ethics attorneys will file a lawsuit on Monday accusing President Donald Trump of allowing his businesses to accept payments from foreign governments, in violation of the US Constitution. Deepak Gupta, a Supreme Court litigator working on the case, said the lawsuit would allege that the Constitution's emoluments clause forbids payments to Trump's businesses. It will seek a court order forbidding Trump from accepting such payments, he said. The case, reported earlier by the New York Times, is part of a wave of litigation expected to be filed against Trump by liberal advocacy groups. It will be filed in a Manhattan federal court, Gupta said, and plaintiffs will include Richard Painter, a former ethics lawyer in Republican President George W Bush's White House. A Trump spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment. Trump's son Eric Trump, an executive vice president of the Trump Organization, told the Times on Sunday that the company had taken more steps than required by law to avoid any possible legal exposure, such as agreeing to donate any profits collected at Trump-owned hotels that come from foreign government guests to the US Treasury. (Reuters)

Ethics lawyers to sue Trump over foreign payments

US&nbsp;stocks opened lower on Monday as investors around the world sought safe-haven assets such as gold and US&nbsp;Treasuries in response to the protectionist sentiments expressed by President Donald Trump in his inauguration speech.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 27.99 points, or 0.14 per cent, at 19,799.26, the S&amp;P 500 was down 3.94 points, or 0.173468 per cent, at 2,267.37 and the Nasdaq composite was down 7.63 points, or 0.14 per cent, at 5,547.70.

The dollar slid broadly on Monday after US&nbsp;President Donald Trump struck a protectionist tone in his inauguration speech, undermining optimism over the US&nbsp;economy spurred by his promises of tax cuts and other stimulus.

Japan&#39;s Nikkei dropped 1.1 per cent while shares in Australia dropped 0.8 per cent after the Trump administration, on its first day in office, declared its intention to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a 12-nation trade pact that Japan and Australia also have signed up for.

US&nbsp;stock futures dipped 0.3 per cent, erasing gains made on Friday.

European shares were expected to fall, too, with spread-betters looking to a drop of 0.4 per cent in Britain&#39;s FTSE and 0.3 per cent in Germany&#39;s DAX.

Other Asian shares were more resilient, however, in part due to the dollar&#39;s weakness and a relief that there was no negative surprises, with Trump refraining from labelling China as a currency manipulator, for now, an accusation he made while campaigning.

&quot;At least, there was no negative news this weekend, like a border tax or the currency manipulator, even though they could come up in the future,&quot; said Yukino Yamada, senior strategist at Daiwa Securities.

MSCI&#39;s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.3 per cent, with Taiwan shares leading the gains and coming just shy of 1-1/2-year highs.

In his inaugural address, Trump pledged to end what he called an &quot;American carnage&quot; of rusted factories and vowed to put &quot;America first&quot;, laying out two simple rules - buy American and hire American.

Trump also said on Sunday he plans talks soon with the leaders of Canada and Mexico to begin renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

&quot;The market is getting nervous about the possibility that the world&#39;s trade might shrink,&quot; said Koichi Yoshikawa, executive director of financial markets at Standard Chartered Bank in Tokyo.

&quot;Many of his policies, including tax cuts and infrastructure spending, need approval from the Senate and that (may not be) easy,&quot; he said. &quot;The markets that had been led by expectations on his policy since the election are now the dragged down by the reality.&quot;

The dollar had soared late last year on expectations that Trump&#39;s pledges to cut taxes and hike infrastructure spending would boost the US&nbsp;economy, spurring inflation and higher interest rates.

But optimism is starting to fade as details of his tax policies remained sketchy. It is not clear if the Congress will agree to any plan that could drastically increase budget deficits.

&quot;If all of Trump&#39;s tax proposals would be implemented, that alone would increase the deficit by more than two percentage points of GDP. It&#39;s questionable if the Republicans will agree to that. Any fiscal stimulus will be a mild one,&quot; said Hiroko Iwaki, senior strategist at Mizuho Securities.

The dollar fell as much as 1.2 per cent against the yen to 113.26 Yen, edging towards its seven-week low of 112.57 Yen touched on Wednesday.

The Euro gained 0.5 per cent to $1.0754, its highest level since December 8.

Emerging market currencies gained, with South African rand gaining 0.8 per cent.

The Mexican peso, which has weakened the most on Trump&#39;s protectionist and anti-immigration stance, rose 0.8 per cent to a two-week high of 21.415 per dollar.

The rise came after its 1.7 per cent gains on Friday, its biggest in two months.

Gold hit a two-month high of $1,219.3 per ounce.

The 10-year US&nbsp;Treasuries yield fell to 2.435 per cent, after having risen briefly on Friday to 2.513 per cent, its highest since January 3.

The two-year yield, which is more sensitive to the Fed&#39;s policy outlook, dropped sharply to 1.180 per cent from Thursday&#39;s three-week high of 1.250 per cent, giving back much of gains made after Wednesday&#39;s upbeat comments from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.

Oil steadied after Friday&#39;s gains, as support from statements over the weekend from OPEC and other producers that they have been successfully in implementing output cuts were offset by a surge in US&nbsp;drilling.

International benchmark Brent crude futures stood at $55.47 per barrel, little changed after Friday&#39;s 2.5 per cent gains.

(Reuters)

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 27.99 points at 19,799.26 and the S&P 500 was down 3.94 points at 2,267.37

US stocks opened lower on Monday as investors around the world sought safe-haven assets such as gold and US Treasuries in response to the protectionist sentiments expressed by President Donald Trump in his inauguration speech. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 27.99 points, or 0.14 per cent, at 19,799.26, the S&P 500 was down 3.94 points, or 0.173468 per cent, at 2,267.37 and the Nasdaq composite was down 7.63 points, or 0.14 per cent, at 5,547.70. The dollar slid broadly on Monday after US President Donald Trump struck a protectionist tone in his inauguration speech, undermining optimism over the US economy spurred by his promises of tax cuts and other stimulus. Japan's Nikkei dropped 1.1 per cent while shares in Australia dropped 0.8 per cent after the Trump administration, on its first day in office, declared its intention to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a 12-nation trade pact that Japan and Australia also have signed up for. US stock futures dipped 0.3 per cent, erasing gains made on Friday. European shares were expected to fall, too, with spread-betters looking to a drop of 0.4 per cent in Britain's FTSE and 0.3 per cent in Germany's DAX. Other Asian shares were more resilient, however, in part due to the dollar's weakness and a relief that there was no negative surprises, with Trump refraining from labelling China as a currency manipulator, for now, an accusation he made while campaigning. "At least, there was no negative news this weekend, like a border tax or the currency manipulator, even though they could come up in the future," said Yukino Yamada, senior strategist at Daiwa Securities. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.3 per cent, with Taiwan shares leading the gains and coming just shy of 1-1/2-year highs. In his inaugural address, Trump pledged to end what he called an "American carnage" of rusted factories and vowed to put "America first", laying out two simple rules - buy American and hire American. Trump also said on Sunday he plans talks soon with the leaders of Canada and Mexico to begin renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). "The market is getting nervous about the possibility that the world's trade might shrink," said Koichi Yoshikawa, executive director of financial markets at Standard Chartered Bank in Tokyo. "Many of his policies, including tax cuts and infrastructure spending, need approval from the Senate and that (may not be) easy," he said. "The markets that had been led by expectations on his policy since the election are now the dragged down by the reality." The dollar had soared late last year on expectations that Trump's pledges to cut taxes and hike infrastructure spending would boost the US economy, spurring inflation and higher interest rates. But optimism is starting to fade as details of his tax policies remained sketchy. It is not clear if the Congress will agree to any plan that could drastically increase budget deficits. "If all of Trump's tax proposals would be implemented, that alone would increase the deficit by more than two percentage points of GDP. It's questionable if the Republicans will agree to that. Any fiscal stimulus will be a mild one," said Hiroko Iwaki, senior strategist at Mizuho Securities. The dollar fell as much as 1.2 per cent against the yen to 113.26 Yen, edging towards its seven-week low of 112.57 Yen touched on Wednesday. The Euro gained 0.5 per cent to $1.0754, its highest level since December 8. Emerging market currencies gained, with South African rand gaining 0.8 per cent. The Mexican peso, which has weakened the most on Trump's protectionist and anti-immigration stance, rose 0.8 per cent to a two-week high of 21.415 per dollar. The rise came after its 1.7 per cent gains on Friday, its biggest in two months. Gold hit a two-month high of $1,219.3 per ounce. The 10-year US Treasuries yield fell to 2.435 per cent, after having risen briefly on Friday to 2.513 per cent, its highest since January 3. The two-year yield, which is more sensitive to the Fed's policy outlook, dropped sharply to 1.180 per cent from Thursday's three-week high of 1.250 per cent, giving back much of gains made after Wednesday's upbeat comments from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen. Oil steadied after Friday's gains, as support from statements over the weekend from OPEC and other producers that they have been successfully in implementing output cuts were offset by a surge in US drilling. International benchmark Brent crude futures stood at $55.47 per barrel, little changed after Friday's 2.5 per cent gains. (Reuters)

Wall Street opens lower, global shares wobbly after Trump's protectionist address

US President Donald Trump pledged Sunday to begin renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement in upcoming talks with the leaders of Mexico and Canada.

&quot;We&#39;re meeting with the prime minister of Canada and we will be meeting with the president of Mexico, who I know, and we&#39;re going to start some negotiations having to do with NAFTA,&quot; Trump said while addressing White House staff on his second full day in office.

Trump will receive his Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto on January 31. No date has been given for a meeting with Canada&#39;s Justin Trudeau, but it is expected &quot;soon,&quot; according to a readout from a call between the two leaders on Saturday.

Trump praised the Mexican leader, saying: &quot;The president has been really very amazing and I think we are going to have a very good result for Mexico, for the United States, for everybody involved. It&#39;s very important.&quot;

The White House website was updated immediately after Trump&#39;s swearing-in to reflect his campaign commitment to renegotiate the free trade agreement that has linked Canada, the United States and Mexico since 1994.

On the campaign trail, Trump called NAFTA the worst trade deal the United States has ever signed and vowed to renegotiate or rip it up.

The rules governing the free trade agreement allow any country to withdraw simply by notifying other parties. This would start a 180-day clock to allow for new negotiations.&nbsp;

If no new deal is reached by then, the accord would be dissolved.

Since Trump&#39;s November victory, both Canada and Mexico have announced that they are willing to sit down with the new US administration to reexamine the free trade agreement.

Canada has said it expects to keep its 1989 bilateral free trade agreement with the US even if Trump withdraws from NAFTA.

(AFP)

The White House website was updated immediately after Trump's swearing-in to reflect his campaign commitment to renegotiate the agreement

US President Donald Trump pledged Sunday to begin renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement in upcoming talks with the leaders of Mexico and Canada. "We're meeting with the prime minister of Canada and we will be meeting with the president of Mexico, who I know, and we're going to start some negotiations having to do with NAFTA," Trump said while addressing White House staff on his second full day in office. Trump will receive his Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto on January 31. No date has been given for a meeting with Canada's Justin Trudeau, but it is expected "soon," according to a readout from a call between the two leaders on Saturday. Trump praised the Mexican leader, saying: "The president has been really very amazing and I think we are going to have a very good result for Mexico, for the United States, for everybody involved. It's very important." The White House website was updated immediately after Trump's swearing-in to reflect his campaign commitment to renegotiate the free trade agreement that has linked Canada, the United States and Mexico since 1994. On the campaign trail, Trump called NAFTA the worst trade deal the United States has ever signed and vowed to renegotiate or rip it up. The rules governing the free trade agreement allow any country to withdraw simply by notifying other parties. This would start a 180-day clock to allow for new negotiations. If no new deal is reached by then, the accord would be dissolved. Since Trump's November victory, both Canada and Mexico have announced that they are willing to sit down with the new US administration to reexamine the free trade agreement. Canada has said it expects to keep its 1989 bilateral free trade agreement with the US even if Trump withdraws from NAFTA. (AFP)

Trump vows to 'start renegotiating' NAFTA with Mexico, Canada

With Manoj Kewalramani

In a matter of days, President-elect Donald Trump will take office as the 45th President of the United States. 
&nbsp; 
Immigration is at the top of the Trump administration&rsquo;s agenda. Post victory,<a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/policies/immigration"> Trump&rsquo;s vision</a> on immigration&nbsp;reads, &quot;Establish new immigration controls to boost wages and to ensure that open jobs are offered to American workers first&quot;. 
&nbsp; 
Reports say that there are 11 million illegal immigrants living in the United States. Trump has scaled back his promise to deport them all, but says he still plans to deport between<a href="https://theintercept.com/2016/11/18/donald-trumps-mass-deportations-would-cost-billions-and-take-years-to-process/"> two to three million</a>.

 
The Obama Era 
&nbsp; 
While many have&nbsp;seen&nbsp;this as a radical departure from the past,&nbsp;if one analyses the numbers&nbsp;it is clear that the Barack Obama administration has not really been soft when it comes to dealing with migrants. 
&nbsp; 
Data from the US Department of Homeland Security shows that a record high number of removals were carried out during the eight years of Obama&#39;s presidency. 
&nbsp;

<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="226" id="datawrapper-chart-jwBBV" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" src="//datawrapper.dwcdn.net/jwBBV/2/" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="100%"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">if("undefined"==typeof window.datawrapper)window.datawrapper={};window.datawrapper["jwBBV"]={},window.datawrapper["jwBBV"].embedDeltas={"100":304,"200":252,"300":252,"400":226,"500":226,"600":226,"700":226,"800":226,"900":226,"1000":226},window.datawrapper["jwBBV"].iframe=document.getElementById("datawrapper-chart-jwBBV"),window.datawrapper["jwBBV"].iframe.style.height=window.datawrapper["jwBBV"].embedDeltas[Math.min(1e3,Math.max(100*Math.floor(window.datawrapper["jwBBV"].iframe.offsetWidth/100),100))]+"px",window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if("undefined"!=typeof a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var b in a.data["datawrapper-height"])if("jwBBV"==b)window.datawrapper["jwBBV"].iframe.style.height=a.data["datawrapper-height"][b]+"px"});</script>

As per the numbers, more than 2.7 million immigrants were deported from the United States between 2009 and 2015. The maximum number of deportations during the Obama presidency took place in 2013. 
&nbsp;

<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="340" id="datawrapper-chart-fDUSj" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" src="//datawrapper.dwcdn.net/fDUSj/1/" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="100%"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">if("undefined"==typeof window.datawrapper)window.datawrapper={};window.datawrapper["fDUSj"]={},window.datawrapper["fDUSj"].embedDeltas={"100":418,"200":392,"300":366,"400":340,"500":340,"600":340,"700":340,"800":340,"900":340,"1000":340},window.datawrapper["fDUSj"].iframe=document.getElementById("datawrapper-chart-fDUSj"),window.datawrapper["fDUSj"].iframe.style.height=window.datawrapper["fDUSj"].embedDeltas[Math.min(1e3,Math.max(100*Math.floor(window.datawrapper["fDUSj"].iframe.offsetWidth/100),100))]+"px",window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if("undefined"!=typeof a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var b in a.data["datawrapper-height"])if("fDUSj"==b)window.datawrapper["fDUSj"].iframe.style.height=a.data["datawrapper-height"][b]+"px"});</script>

However, the data also shows that there has been a sharp decline in deportations of criminals and non-criminals during the last few years of the Obama administration. 
&nbsp; 
The number of non-criminal deportations dropped by 22 per cent&nbsp;in 2015, while deportations post criminal convictions fell by 17 per cent. Most of these deportations were to countries in North America, followed by countries in South America and Asia. 
&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

What about South Asians? 
&nbsp; 
Focussing specifically on South Asia, under Obama, criminal and non-criminal deportations to six South Asian countries, excluding the Maldives, dropped drastically when compared to the Bush administration. 
&nbsp;

<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="300" id="datawrapper-chart-9Wjcd" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" src="//datawrapper.dwcdn.net/9Wjcd/1/" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="100%"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">if("undefined"==typeof window.datawrapper)window.datawrapper={};window.datawrapper["9Wjcd"]={},window.datawrapper["9Wjcd"].embedDeltas={"100":404,"200":352,"300":326,"400":326,"500":300,"600":300,"700":300,"800":300,"900":300,"1000":300},window.datawrapper["9Wjcd"].iframe=document.getElementById("datawrapper-chart-9Wjcd"),window.datawrapper["9Wjcd"].iframe.style.height=window.datawrapper["9Wjcd"].embedDeltas[Math.min(1e3,Math.max(100*Math.floor(window.datawrapper["9Wjcd"].iframe.offsetWidth/100),100))]+"px",window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if("undefined"!=typeof a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var b in a.data["datawrapper-height"])if("9Wjcd"==b)window.datawrapper["9Wjcd"].iframe.style.height=a.data["datawrapper-height"][b]+"px"});</script>

From 2009 to 2015, the US deported 7,496 people around South Asia. In contrast, during the Bush era, a total of 11,554 South Asians were deported. 
&nbsp; 
During the Bush era, the number of deportations spiked in 2005, hitting the highest level in 2006. On the other hand, the Obama administration recorded high number of deportations at the beginning of his term. 
&nbsp; 
That number has dropped significantly towards the end of his tenure. While the number of criminal deportations remained consistent, the number of non-criminal deportation halved.

 
How Obama differs from Trump? 
&nbsp; 
A report by the Pew<a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/12/16/u-s-immigrant-deportations-fall-to-lowest-level-since-2007/"> Research Center</a>&nbsp;says that the sharp decline in numbers could have been due to a change in the deportation <a href="http://(https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/dhs-releases-end-fiscal-year-2015-statistics">enforcement priorities</a>&nbsp;by the administration. This change has led to a shift, focusing &quot;exclusively on only those who have been convicted of a crime; those deemed a threat to public safety; and those who have recently crossed the border&quot;. 
&nbsp; 
Further, a report by the <a href="http://cis.org/Immigration-Enforcement-Deportations-Decline-2016">Center of Immigration Studies</a>&nbsp;claims that the immigrations office has eased enforcement, thereby putting less people on the path to deportation. 
&nbsp; 
Those are priorities that are likely to change under a Trump presidency. Reports suggest that Trump is expected to target not just those considered a security threat or threat to public safety, but also those who have either arrived in the US illegally or have overstayed their visas. 
&nbsp; 
Trump&rsquo;s statements about deporting anyone who has entered the US illegally hint at a possible re-look at Obama&rsquo;s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which was brought into force to protect young immigrants brought illegally into the United States as children. 
&nbsp; 
There are also concerns that the new president could tinker with the rules, such as redefining what constitutes a criminal act, in order to make it easier to deport people, while arguing that the administration was focussed on deporting those with criminal records. However, with the recent protests on the streets and by legislators, pushing through these changes is not likely to be an easy process. 
 
Watch: 
 
&nbsp;

<center><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="430" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kfnhyNc7aq8" width="770"></iframe></center>

(WION) 
&nbsp;

While many worry about Donald Trump, Obama removed more immigrants than any American president in US history

With Manoj Kewalramani In a matter of days, President-elect Donald Trump will take office as the 45th President of the United States. Immigration is at the top of the Trump administration’s agenda. Post victory, Trump’s vision on immigration reads, "Establish new immigration controls to boost wages and to ensure that open jobs are offered to American workers first". Reports say that there are 11 million illegal immigrants living in the United States. Trump has scaled back his promise to deport them all, but says he still plans to deport between two to three million. The Obama Era While many have seen this as a radical departure from the past, if one analyses the numbers it is clear that the Barack Obama administration has not really been soft when it comes to dealing with migrants. Data from the US Department of Homeland Security shows that a record high number of removals were carried out during the eight years of Obama's presidency. As per the numbers, more than 2.7 million immigrants were deported from the United States between 2009 and 2015. The maximum number of deportations during the Obama presidency took place in 2013. However, the data also shows that there has been a sharp decline in deportations of criminals and non-criminals during the last few years of the Obama administration. The number of non-criminal deportations dropped by 22 per cent in 2015, while deportations post criminal convictions fell by 17 per cent. Most of these deportations were to countries in North America, followed by countries in South America and Asia. What about South Asians? Focussing specifically on South Asia, under Obama, criminal and non-criminal deportations to six South Asian countries, excluding the Maldives, dropped drastically when compared to the Bush administration. From 2009 to 2015, the US deported 7,496 people around South Asia. In contrast, during the Bush era, a total of 11,554 South Asians were deported. During the Bush era, the number of deportations spiked in 2005, hitting the highest level in 2006. On the other hand, the Obama administration recorded high number of deportations at the beginning of his term. That number has dropped significantly towards the end of his tenure. While the number of criminal deportations remained consistent, the number of non-criminal deportation halved. How Obama differs from Trump? A report by the Pew Research Center says that the sharp decline in numbers could have been due to a change in the deportation enforcement priorities by the administration. This change has led to a shift, focusing "exclusively on only those who have been convicted of a crime; those deemed a threat to public safety; and those who have recently crossed the border". Further, a report by the Center of Immigration Studies claims that the immigrations office has eased enforcement, thereby putting less people on the path to deportation. Those are priorities that are likely to change under a Trump presidency. Reports suggest that Trump is expected to target not just those considered a security threat or threat to public safety, but also those who have either arrived in the US illegally or have overstayed their visas. Trump’s statements about deporting anyone who has entered the US illegally hint at a possible re-look at Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which was brought into force to protect young immigrants brought illegally into the United States as children. There are also concerns that the new president could tinker with the rules, such as redefining what constitutes a criminal act, in order to make it easier to deport people, while arguing that the administration was focussed on deporting those with criminal records. However, with the recent protests on the streets and by legislators, pushing through these changes is not likely to be an easy process. Watch: (WION)

Trump and Obama: Surprisingly similar on deportation

President Enrique Pena Nieto on Friday congratulated Donald Trump on his inauguration as U.S. president saying he would like to strengthen ties, but that sovereignty, national interest and protection of Mexicans would be paramount.

Pena Nieto, criticized for meeting Trump last year even after the New York businessman had insulted Mexicans in the election campaign, said on Twitter he would seek &quot;respectful&quot; dialogue with the new US&nbsp;government.

Trump is expected to take executive action on renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that underpins Mexico&#39;s economy &quot;very shortly,&quot; his spokesman said on Thursday.

&quot;Sovereignty, national interest and protection of Mexicans, will guide relations with the new government of the United States,&quot; Pena Nieto said.

In his campaign, Trump derided Mexicans as rapists and murderers and vowed to build a wall along the US&nbsp;southern border to keep them out.

There were subdued protests across Mexico on Friday as Republican Trump was inaugurated and Democrat Barack Obama left office after eight years in the White House.

One political activist held up a banner on Mexico City&#39;s main thoroughfare that read &quot;Racist, gringo Trump...son of Satan, you are a danger to the world.&quot;

More than three quarters of Mexicans have a bad or very bad opinion of the US&nbsp;President, according to a poll of 600 people conducted earlier this month by Gabinete de Comunicacion Estrategica.

&quot;Trump if you are Christian, don&#39;t crucify Mexicans,&quot; Sergio Tamay wrote on a fuschia-colored sign at a migrant protest in the northern city of Mexicali on the border with the US&nbsp;state of California.

Mexico&#39;s peso was the strongest performing among the top 10 most-traded currencies after Trump&#39;s speech in Washington made no mention of the country. It was up more than 1.6 per cent at 21.582 per dollar in the early afternoon.

(Reuters)

He congratulated Trump, but cautioned that the sovereignty, national interest and protection of Mexicans would be paramount

President Enrique Pena Nieto on Friday congratulated Donald Trump on his inauguration as U.S. president saying he would like to strengthen ties, but that sovereignty, national interest and protection of Mexicans would be paramount. Pena Nieto, criticized for meeting Trump last year even after the New York businessman had insulted Mexicans in the election campaign, said on Twitter he would seek "respectful" dialogue with the new US government. Trump is expected to take executive action on renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that underpins Mexico's economy "very shortly," his spokesman said on Thursday. "Sovereignty, national interest and protection of Mexicans, will guide relations with the new government of the United States," Pena Nieto said. In his campaign, Trump derided Mexicans as rapists and murderers and vowed to build a wall along the US southern border to keep them out. There were subdued protests across Mexico on Friday as Republican Trump was inaugurated and Democrat Barack Obama left office after eight years in the White House. One political activist held up a banner on Mexico City's main thoroughfare that read "Racist, gringo Trump...son of Satan, you are a danger to the world." More than three quarters of Mexicans have a bad or very bad opinion of the US President, according to a poll of 600 people conducted earlier this month by Gabinete de Comunicacion Estrategica. "Trump if you are Christian, don't crucify Mexicans," Sergio Tamay wrote on a fuschia-colored sign at a migrant protest in the northern city of Mexicali on the border with the US state of California. Mexico's peso was the strongest performing among the top 10 most-traded currencies after Trump's speech in Washington made no mention of the country. It was up more than 1.6 per cent at 21.582 per dollar in the early afternoon. (Reuters)

Mexico: President Enrique Pena Nieto vows to protect Mexicans as he seeks close ties with Trump

He has promised to &quot;Make America Great Again&quot;, but rain threatened to turn Donald Trump&#39;s big moment into a washout.

An estimated 800,000 people crushed into the centre of Washington, DC for the 58th US Presidential inauguration, sheltering from the drizzle under raincoats and ponchos.

A steel ring of security encircled the centre of the city, with roads blocked off and police on every corner.

But tight security and grey skies over the famous white dome of the Capitol building failed to dampen the enthusiasm of Trump&#39;s supporters.

&quot;Trump is going to &#39;Make America Great Again&#39; and undo the wreckage of Obama,&quot; said Joe Smith, 69, from Tampa, Florida.

&quot;I believe that the enemies of this country have been allowed to fester for too long, and Donald Trump is going to change that,&quot; said Nick Graham, 20, from Pasadena, Maryland.

Crammed in next to Trump&#39;s supporters, Clinton voters looked on solemnly while protestors chanted.

&quot;We came today to show that we are not giving our consent for this presidency,&quot; said Erica West, 21, from Arlington, Virginia.

&quot;Donald Trump stands for hatred, racism and misogyny. That&#39;s against everything that I stand for as a citizen of this country,&quot; said Kevin Cannell, 31, from New Orleans.

At a Black Lives Matter demonstration in a small park just off the National Mall, impromptu arguments broke out between protesters and passing Trump supporters in &quot;Make America Great Again&quot; hats.

As the hour of the inauguration ceremony approached, demonstrators linked arms to block the route to the viewing area.

They chanted &quot;this checkpoint is closed, go home&quot; as police tried to break up the line to allow spectators through.

&quot;Criminal-in-Chief,&quot; read one protestor&#39;s placard.

&quot;The power of the people is stronger than the people in power,&quot; proclaimed another.

Eight years after Barack Obama swept into power riding a message of hope, Donald Trump is taking charge of a divided America.

The wounds from a bitter election were still fresh for many on his inauguration day.&nbsp;

But the Trump administration say they can bring the country together again.

&quot;We&#39;re going to unify our country, and our phrase &nbsp;- you all know it &nbsp;- &#39;Make America Great Again!&#39;. But we&#39;re going to make America great for all of our people,&quot; said Trump at a welcome celebration at the Lincoln Memorial on the eve of his inauguration.

But just hours before the handover of power, a Fox News survey put Trump&#39;s approval ratings at 37 per cent.

Fifty-four per cent say they do not approve of the country&#39;s new president.

With historically low ratings for a first-time president, Trump&#39;s first 100 days could define his time in office.

The fractious atmosphere at his inauguration shows that the fervour of his supporters is matched by the anger of his opponents.

(WION)

With historically low ratings for a first-time president, Trump's first 100 days could define his time in office

He has promised to "Make America Great Again", but rain threatened to turn Donald Trump's big moment into a washout. An estimated 800,000 people crushed into the centre of Washington, DC for the 58th US Presidential inauguration, sheltering from the drizzle under raincoats and ponchos. A steel ring of security encircled the centre of the city, with roads blocked off and police on every corner. But tight security and grey skies over the famous white dome of the Capitol building failed to dampen the enthusiasm of Trump's supporters. "Trump is going to 'Make America Great Again' and undo the wreckage of Obama," said Joe Smith, 69, from Tampa, Florida. "I believe that the enemies of this country have been allowed to fester for too long, and Donald Trump is going to change that," said Nick Graham, 20, from Pasadena, Maryland. Crammed in next to Trump's supporters, Clinton voters looked on solemnly while protestors chanted. "We came today to show that we are not giving our consent for this presidency," said Erica West, 21, from Arlington, Virginia. "Donald Trump stands for hatred, racism and misogyny. That's against everything that I stand for as a citizen of this country," said Kevin Cannell, 31, from New Orleans. At a Black Lives Matter demonstration in a small park just off the National Mall, impromptu arguments broke out between protesters and passing Trump supporters in "Make America Great Again" hats. As the hour of the inauguration ceremony approached, demonstrators linked arms to block the route to the viewing area. They chanted "this checkpoint is closed, go home" as police tried to break up the line to allow spectators through. "Criminal-in-Chief," read one protestor's placard. "The power of the people is stronger than the people in power," proclaimed another. Eight years after Barack Obama swept into power riding a message of hope, Donald Trump is taking charge of a divided America. The wounds from a bitter election were still fresh for many on his inauguration day. But the Trump administration say they can bring the country together again. "We're going to unify our country, and our phrase - you all know it - 'Make America Great Again!'. But we're going to make America great for all of our people," said Trump at a welcome celebration at the Lincoln Memorial on the eve of his inauguration. But just hours before the handover of power, a Fox News survey put Trump's approval ratings at 37 per cent. Fifty-four per cent say they do not approve of the country's new president. With historically low ratings for a first-time president, Trump's first 100 days could define his time in office. The fractious atmosphere at his inauguration shows that the fervour of his supporters is matched by the anger of his opponents. (WION)

Damp start to Trump era

Trump&#39;s swearing-in ceremony may have been shadowed by several protests in certain pockets of America, but things are different in Russia.

The Russian media is giving Trump blanket air time on their news channels, the nationalists are holding all-night parties and retailers have wrapped Trump dolls with&nbsp;traditional matryoshka.

And as&nbsp;Gennady Gudkov, a Putin critic and former lawmaker, puts it -- Russia is in the grip of &quot;Trumpomania&quot; as they believe that Trump&#39;s taking over of the White House will benefit them.

Supporters of Trump in Russia feel that the dog days of Obama&#39;s administration are over and the new president will work closely with Russia in their fight against the Islamic State in the Middle East, work together to lift sanctions imposed over the annexation of Crimea and reduce NATO&#39;s presence near its border.

Trump has faced several questions about his proximity to the Kremlin and many believe that the Russian President Vladimir himself helped wage a cyberattack campaign against the Democrats to rake up controversial bits about Hillary Clinton.

The Kremlin has denied the insinuations but people in Russia are vocal about their happiness of Trump and not Clinton being elected. They saw Clinton as someone who would&nbsp;continue with the policies persisted by Barack Obama, and it is no secret that US-Russia relations had soured during the predecessor&#39;s tenure.

Konstantin Rykov, a former pro-Putin lawmaker and one of the event&#39;s promoters, said on social media it was right to celebrate the first phase of the &quot;New World Order.&quot;

&quot;Washington will be ours,&quot; he quipped.

Sellers of traditional matryoshka nesting dolls have added&nbsp;Trump&nbsp;dolls to their popular line-up of items carved in the likeness of President Vladimir Putin, Bolshevik revolutionary Vladimir Lenin, ex-President Mikhail Gorbachev and Josef Stalin.

And a shop selling&nbsp;Russian military kit located opposite the US&nbsp;embassy in Moscow has unveiled a cheeky promotional campaign offering embassy employees and U.S. citizens a 10 percent discount on its wares to celebrate&nbsp;Trump&#39;s inauguration.

The Russians have been eagerly waiting for Trump to be sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. People in Moscow have marvelled at the unpredictability of the US election and some have even anointed him as a &quot;superman&quot;.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

In an unprecedented event, Russians have pulled out all stops to celebrate Donald Trump's inauguration even as pockets in US go on protest

Trump's swearing-in ceremony may have been shadowed by several protests in certain pockets of America, but things are different in Russia. The Russian media is giving Trump blanket air time on their news channels, the nationalists are holding all-night parties and retailers have wrapped Trump dolls with traditional matryoshka. And as Gennady Gudkov, a Putin critic and former lawmaker, puts it -- Russia is in the grip of "Trumpomania" as they believe that Trump's taking over of the White House will benefit them. Supporters of Trump in Russia feel that the dog days of Obama's administration are over and the new president will work closely with Russia in their fight against the Islamic State in the Middle East, work together to lift sanctions imposed over the annexation of Crimea and reduce NATO's presence near its border. Trump has faced several questions about his proximity to the Kremlin and many believe that the Russian President Vladimir himself helped wage a cyberattack campaign against the Democrats to rake up controversial bits about Hillary Clinton. The Kremlin has denied the insinuations but people in Russia are vocal about their happiness of Trump and not Clinton being elected. They saw Clinton as someone who would continue with the policies persisted by Barack Obama, and it is no secret that US-Russia relations had soured during the predecessor's tenure. Konstantin Rykov, a former pro-Putin lawmaker and one of the event's promoters, said on social media it was right to celebrate the first phase of the "New World Order." "Washington will be ours," he quipped. Sellers of traditional matryoshka nesting dolls have added Trump dolls to their popular line-up of items carved in the likeness of President Vladimir Putin, Bolshevik revolutionary Vladimir Lenin, ex-President Mikhail Gorbachev and Josef Stalin. And a shop selling Russian military kit located opposite the US embassy in Moscow has unveiled a cheeky promotional campaign offering embassy employees and U.S. citizens a 10 percent discount on its wares to celebrate Trump's inauguration. The Russians have been eagerly waiting for Trump to be sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. People in Moscow have marvelled at the unpredictability of the US election and some have even anointed him as a "superman". (WION with inputs from Reuters)

Donald Trump's inauguration: From Russia with love

Washington has turned into a virtual fortress ahead of Donald Trump&#39;s presidential inauguration, with&nbsp;thousands of people set to take&nbsp;to the streets of New York to express their displeasure with his coming administration.

Some 900,000 people, both Trump backers and opponents, are expected to flood Washington for Friday&#39;s inauguration ceremony, according to organizers&#39; estimates. Events include the swearing-in ceremony on the steps of the US Capitol and a parade to the White House along streets thronged with spectators.

The number of planned protests and rallies this year is far above what has been typical at recent presidential inaugurations, with some 30 permits granted in Washington for anti-Trump rallies and sympathy protests planned in cities from Boston to Los Angeles, and abroad in cities including London and Sydney. The night before the inauguration, thousands of people turned out in New York for a rally at the Trump International Hotel and Tower, and then marched a few blocks from the Trump Tower where the businessman lives.

About 28,000 security personnel, miles of fencing, roadblocks, street barricades and dump trucks laden with sand are part of the security cordon around 8 square km of central Washington. A protest group known as Disrupt J20 has vowed to stage demonstrations at each of 12 security checkpoints and block access to the festivities on the grassy National Mall. Police and security officials have pledged repeatedly to guarantee protesters&#39; constitutional rights to free speech and peaceful assembly.

The rally featured a lineup of politicians, activists and celebrities including Mayor Bill de Blasio and actor Alec Baldwin, who trotted out the Trump parody he performs on &quot;Saturday Night Live.&quot; &quot;Donald Trump may control Washington, but we control our destiny as Americans,&quot; de Blasio said. &quot;We don&#39;t fear the future. We think the future is bright, if the people&#39;s voices are heard.&quot;

In Washington, police cars lined much of Pennsylvania Avenue, the parade route, as workers unloaded crowd control fences from flatbed trucks, erected barricades and marked off pavement with tape. US Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said police aimed to keep groups separate, using tactics similar to those employed during last year&#39;s political conventions.

&quot;The concern is some of these groups are pro-Trump, some of them are con-Trump, and they may not play well together in the same space,&quot; Johnson said on MSNBC. Trump opponents have been angered by his comments during the campaign about women, illegal immigrants and Muslims and his pledges to scrap the Obamacare health reform and build a wall on the Mexican border.

The Republican&#39;s supporters admire his experience in business, including as a real estate developer and reality television star, and view him as an outsider who will take a fresh approach to politics. Bikers for Trump, a group that designated itself as security backup during last summer&#39;s Republican National Convention in Cleveland, is ready to step in if protesters block access to the inauguration, said Dennis Egbert, one of the group&#39;s organizers.

&quot;We&#39;re going to be backing up law enforcement. We&#39;re on the same page,&quot; Egbert, 63, a retired electrician from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Aaron Hyman, fellow at the National Gallery of Art, said he could feel tension in the streets ahead of Trump&#39;s swearing-in and the heightened security was part of it. &quot;People are watching each other like, &#39;You must be a Trump supporter,&#39; and &#39;You must be one of those liberals&#39;,&quot; said Hyman, 32, who supported Democrat Hillary Clinton in the November election.

Friday&#39;s crowds are expected to fall well short of the 2 million people who attended Obama&#39;s first inauguration in 2009, and be in line with the 1 million who were at his second in 2013. Forecast rain may also dampen the turnout, though security officials lifted an earlier ban on umbrellas, saying small umbrellas would be permitted.

(Reuters)

About 28,000 security personnel and miles of roadblocks are part of the measures to be taken during Trump's presidential inauguration

Washington has turned into a virtual fortress ahead of Donald Trump's presidential inauguration, with thousands of people set to take to the streets of New York to express their displeasure with his coming administration. Some 900,000 people, both Trump backers and opponents, are expected to flood Washington for Friday's inauguration ceremony, according to organizers' estimates. Events include the swearing-in ceremony on the steps of the US Capitol and a parade to the White House along streets thronged with spectators. The number of planned protests and rallies this year is far above what has been typical at recent presidential inaugurations, with some 30 permits granted in Washington for anti-Trump rallies and sympathy protests planned in cities from Boston to Los Angeles, and abroad in cities including London and Sydney. The night before the inauguration, thousands of people turned out in New York for a rally at the Trump International Hotel and Tower, and then marched a few blocks from the Trump Tower where the businessman lives. About 28,000 security personnel, miles of fencing, roadblocks, street barricades and dump trucks laden with sand are part of the security cordon around 8 square km of central Washington. A protest group known as Disrupt J20 has vowed to stage demonstrations at each of 12 security checkpoints and block access to the festivities on the grassy National Mall. Police and security officials have pledged repeatedly to guarantee protesters' constitutional rights to free speech and peaceful assembly. The rally featured a lineup of politicians, activists and celebrities including Mayor Bill de Blasio and actor Alec Baldwin, who trotted out the Trump parody he performs on "Saturday Night Live." "Donald Trump may control Washington, but we control our destiny as Americans," de Blasio said. "We don't fear the future. We think the future is bright, if the people's voices are heard." In Washington, police cars lined much of Pennsylvania Avenue, the parade route, as workers unloaded crowd control fences from flatbed trucks, erected barricades and marked off pavement with tape. US Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said police aimed to keep groups separate, using tactics similar to those employed during last year's political conventions. "The concern is some of these groups are pro-Trump, some of them are con-Trump, and they may not play well together in the same space," Johnson said on MSNBC. Trump opponents have been angered by his comments during the campaign about women, illegal immigrants and Muslims and his pledges to scrap the Obamacare health reform and build a wall on the Mexican border. The Republican's supporters admire his experience in business, including as a real estate developer and reality television star, and view him as an outsider who will take a fresh approach to politics. Bikers for Trump, a group that designated itself as security backup during last summer's Republican National Convention in Cleveland, is ready to step in if protesters block access to the inauguration, said Dennis Egbert, one of the group's organizers. "We're going to be backing up law enforcement. We're on the same page," Egbert, 63, a retired electrician from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Aaron Hyman, fellow at the National Gallery of Art, said he could feel tension in the streets ahead of Trump's swearing-in and the heightened security was part of it. "People are watching each other like, 'You must be a Trump supporter,' and 'You must be one of those liberals'," said Hyman, 32, who supported Democrat Hillary Clinton in the November election. Friday's crowds are expected to fall well short of the 2 million people who attended Obama's first inauguration in 2009, and be in line with the 1 million who were at his second in 2013. Forecast rain may also dampen the turnout, though security officials lifted an earlier ban on umbrellas, saying small umbrellas would be permitted. (Reuters)

Ahead of Trump's inauguration, US braces for anti-Trump protests

Donald Trump will be sworn in on Friday as the 45th president of the United States, taking power over a divided country after a savage campaign and setting the country on a new, uncertain path at home and abroad.

In a ceremony likely to draw 900,000 people, including protesters, Trump and his vice president, Mike Pence, will take the oath of office at midday (1700 GMT) outside the domed US Capitol, with US Chief Justice John Roberts presiding.

Security was tight around the White House and Capitol Streets near the president`s home were blocked to traffic by empty buses and dump trucks or temporary pedestrian security checkpoints where law enforcement officers and National Guard troops checked people`s bags.

Some 28,000 officers were in place to secure the roughly 3-square-mile (8-square-kilometer) area of downtown Washington. The National Mall in front of the Capitol opened early to begin admitting guests, who were barred from bringing selfie sticks, coolers for beverages, and long umbrellas despite the rainy weather.

Trump, 70, enters the White House with work to do to bolster his image. During a testy transition period since his stunning November election win, the wealthy New York businessman and former reality TV star has repeatedly engaged in Twitter attacks against his critics, so much so that one fellow Republican, Senator John McCain, told CNN that Trump seemed to want to &quot;engage with every windmill that he can find.&quot;

An ABC News/Washington Post poll this week found only 40 percent of Americans viewed Trump favourably, the lowest rating for an incoming president since Democrat Jimmy Carter in 1977, and the same percentage approved of how he has handled the transition.&nbsp;

His ascension to the White House, while welcomed by Republicans tired of Democrat Barack Obama`s eight years, raises a host of questions for the United States.

Trump campaigned on a pledge to take the country on a more isolationist, protectionist path and has vowed to impose a 35 percent tariff on goods on imports from U.S. companies that went abroad.

Trump`s desire for warmer ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin and threats to cut funding for North Atlantic Treaty Organization nations has allies from Britain to the Baltics worried that the traditional U.S. security umbrella will be diminished.

In the Middle East, Trump has said he wants to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, at the risk of angering Arabs. He has yet to sketch out how he plans to carry out a campaign pledge to &quot;knock the hell out of&quot; Islamic State militants.

Democrats&#39; boycott

The inaugural festivities may have a more partisan edge than usual, given Trump`s scorching campaign and continuing confrontations between him and Democrats over his take-no-prisoners Twitter attacks and pledge to roll back many of Obama`s policies.

More than 50 Democratic lawmakers plan to stay away from the proceedings to protest Trump, spurred on after he derided U.S. Representative John Lewis of Georgia, a hero of the civil rights movement, for calling him an illegitimate president.

Thousands of anti-Trump protesters were expected among an inauguration crowd that organisers estimated will be upwards of 900,000. Many demonstrators will participate in the &quot;Women`s March on Washington&quot; on Saturday. protests are also planned in other cities in the United States and abroad.

Trump, whose November 8 victory stunned the world, will start his presidency with a 20-minute inaugural address that he has been writing himself with the help of top aides. It will be &quot;a very personal and sincere statement about his vision for the country,&quot; said his spokesman, Sean Spicer.

&quot;He`ll talk about infrastructure and education, our manufacturing base,&quot; Spicer told reporters. &quot;I think it`s going to be less of an agenda and more of a philosophical document, a vision of where he sees the country, the proper role of government, the role of citizens.&quot;

Quick action

Trump`s to-do list has given Republicans hope that, since they also control the U.S. Congress, they can quickly repeal and replace Obama`s signature health care law, approve sweeping tax reform and roll back many federal regulations they say are stifling the U.S. economy.

Democrats, in search of firm political footing after the unexpected defeat of their presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, are planning to fight him at every turn. They deeply oppose Trump`s anti-immigrant rhetoric from the campaign trail and plans to build a wall along the southern U.S. border with Mexico.&nbsp;

Trump`s critics have been emboldened to attack his legitimacy because his win came in the Electoral College, which gives smaller states more clout in the outcome. He lost the popular vote to Clinton by about 2.9 million.

&quot;Any time you don&rsquo;t win the popular vote but you win by the Electoral College it makes people come unglued,&quot; said presidential historian Douglas Brinkley. &quot;It angers people that somebody can win the popular vote but you`re not president.&quot;

Trump`s critics also point to the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia used hacking and other methods during the campaign to try to tilt the election in the Republican`s favour. The president-elect has acknowledged the finding - denied by Moscow - that Russia was behind the hacking but said it did not affect the outcome of the election.

To his supporters, many of them working-class whites, Trump is a refreshingly anti-establishment figure who eschews political correctness. To critics - including Obama who during the campaign called Trump temperamentally unfit for the White House - his talk can be jarring, especially when expressed in tweets.

But while a Wall Street Journal opinion poll showed a majority of Americans would like Trump to give up on Twitter, the new president said he would continue because the US news media does not treat him fairly. 
 
(Reuters)

In a ceremony likely to draw 900,000 people, including protesters, Trump will take the oath of office outside the domed US Capitol

Donald Trump will be sworn in on Friday as the 45th president of the United States, taking power over a divided country after a savage campaign and setting the country on a new, uncertain path at home and abroad. In a ceremony likely to draw 900,000 people, including protesters, Trump and his vice president, Mike Pence, will take the oath of office at midday (1700 GMT) outside the domed US Capitol, with US Chief Justice John Roberts presiding. Security was tight around the White House and Capitol Streets near the president`s home were blocked to traffic by empty buses and dump trucks or temporary pedestrian security checkpoints where law enforcement officers and National Guard troops checked people`s bags. Some 28,000 officers were in place to secure the roughly 3-square-mile (8-square-kilometer) area of downtown Washington. The National Mall in front of the Capitol opened early to begin admitting guests, who were barred from bringing selfie sticks, coolers for beverages, and long umbrellas despite the rainy weather. Trump, 70, enters the White House with work to do to bolster his image. During a testy transition period since his stunning November election win, the wealthy New York businessman and former reality TV star has repeatedly engaged in Twitter attacks against his critics, so much so that one fellow Republican, Senator John McCain, told CNN that Trump seemed to want to "engage with every windmill that he can find." An ABC News/Washington Post poll this week found only 40 percent of Americans viewed Trump favourably, the lowest rating for an incoming president since Democrat Jimmy Carter in 1977, and the same percentage approved of how he has handled the transition. His ascension to the White House, while welcomed by Republicans tired of Democrat Barack Obama`s eight years, raises a host of questions for the United States. Trump campaigned on a pledge to take the country on a more isolationist, protectionist path and has vowed to impose a 35 percent tariff on goods on imports from U.S. companies that went abroad. Trump`s desire for warmer ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin and threats to cut funding for North Atlantic Treaty Organization nations has allies from Britain to the Baltics worried that the traditional U.S. security umbrella will be diminished. In the Middle East, Trump has said he wants to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, at the risk of angering Arabs. He has yet to sketch out how he plans to carry out a campaign pledge to "knock the hell out of" Islamic State militants. Democrats' boycott The inaugural festivities may have a more partisan edge than usual, given Trump`s scorching campaign and continuing confrontations between him and Democrats over his take-no-prisoners Twitter attacks and pledge to roll back many of Obama`s policies. More than 50 Democratic lawmakers plan to stay away from the proceedings to protest Trump, spurred on after he derided U.S. Representative John Lewis of Georgia, a hero of the civil rights movement, for calling him an illegitimate president. Thousands of anti-Trump protesters were expected among an inauguration crowd that organisers estimated will be upwards of 900,000. Many demonstrators will participate in the "Women`s March on Washington" on Saturday. protests are also planned in other cities in the United States and abroad. Trump, whose November 8 victory stunned the world, will start his presidency with a 20-minute inaugural address that he has been writing himself with the help of top aides. It will be "a very personal and sincere statement about his vision for the country," said his spokesman, Sean Spicer. "He`ll talk about infrastructure and education, our manufacturing base," Spicer told reporters. "I think it`s going to be less of an agenda and more of a philosophical document, a vision of where he sees the country, the proper role of government, the role of citizens." Quick action Trump`s to-do list has given Republicans hope that, since they also control the U.S. Congress, they can quickly repeal and replace Obama`s signature health care law, approve sweeping tax reform and roll back many federal regulations they say are stifling the U.S. economy. Democrats, in search of firm political footing after the unexpected defeat of their presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, are planning to fight him at every turn. They deeply oppose Trump`s anti-immigrant rhetoric from the campaign trail and plans to build a wall along the southern U.S. border with Mexico. Trump`s critics have been emboldened to attack his legitimacy because his win came in the Electoral College, which gives smaller states more clout in the outcome. He lost the popular vote to Clinton by about 2.9 million. "Any time you don’t win the popular vote but you win by the Electoral College it makes people come unglued," said presidential historian Douglas Brinkley. "It angers people that somebody can win the popular vote but you`re not president." Trump`s critics also point to the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia used hacking and other methods during the campaign to try to tilt the election in the Republican`s favour. The president-elect has acknowledged the finding - denied by Moscow - that Russia was behind the hacking but said it did not affect the outcome of the election. To his supporters, many of them working-class whites, Trump is a refreshingly anti-establishment figure who eschews political correctness. To critics - including Obama who during the campaign called Trump temperamentally unfit for the White House - his talk can be jarring, especially when expressed in tweets. But while a Wall Street Journal opinion poll showed a majority of Americans would like Trump to give up on Twitter, the new president said he would continue because the US news media does not treat him fairly. (Reuters)

Pageantry, protests to mark the start of Trump's US presidency

The US&nbsp;Senate is due to vote on Friday on the two retired Marine generals who are President-elect Donald Trump&#39;s nominees to be secretary of defense and secretary of homeland security, Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer said on Thursday.

Both retired General James Mattis, Trump&#39;s pick to lead the Pentagon, and retired General John Kelly, his choice for Homeland Security, are expected to be confirmed easily.

The Senate will begin debate on a third prospective member of Trump&#39;s national security team, US&nbsp;Representative Mike Pompeo, the Republican&#39;s selection to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Schumer said.

But he did not guarantee that there would be a vote on Pompeo on Friday.

Senate Republicans had hoped to confirm as many as seven of Trump&#39;s cabinet nominees in the hours after he is inaugurated as president on Friday.

However, Democrats balked at what they described as a push by Republicans, who hold a 52-seat majority in the 100-seat Senate, to jam through nominations before Trump&#39;s selections had filed all of their financial and ethics paperwork or answered every question submitted during the confirmation process.

Republicans accuse Democrats of playing politics.

Schumer said the Senate might also confirm a few of Trump&#39;s other &quot;noncontroversial&quot; nominees on Friday.

&quot;Over the last few weeks, Republicans have made a mockery of the confirmation process,&quot; Schumer said.

(Reuters)

Both retired General James Mattis and retired General John Kelly are expected to be confirmed easily

The US Senate is due to vote on Friday on the two retired Marine generals who are President-elect Donald Trump's nominees to be secretary of defense and secretary of homeland security, Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer said on Thursday. Both retired General James Mattis, Trump's pick to lead the Pentagon, and retired General John Kelly, his choice for Homeland Security, are expected to be confirmed easily. The Senate will begin debate on a third prospective member of Trump's national security team, US Representative Mike Pompeo, the Republican's selection to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Schumer said. But he did not guarantee that there would be a vote on Pompeo on Friday. Senate Republicans had hoped to confirm as many as seven of Trump's cabinet nominees in the hours after he is inaugurated as president on Friday. However, Democrats balked at what they described as a push by Republicans, who hold a 52-seat majority in the 100-seat Senate, to jam through nominations before Trump's selections had filed all of their financial and ethics paperwork or answered every question submitted during the confirmation process. Republicans accuse Democrats of playing politics. Schumer said the Senate might also confirm a few of Trump's other "noncontroversial" nominees on Friday. "Over the last few weeks, Republicans have made a mockery of the confirmation process," Schumer said. (Reuters)

US Senate to vote on Trump national security cabinet picks on Friday

General Motors Co has confirmed it will invest an additional $1 billion in its US factories in 2017 and will move some parts production from Mexico to the United States that was previously handled by a supplier. 
The investments are in addition to the $2.9 billion the automaker announced last year, GM said.&nbsp;

GM and other automakers have been sharply criticized by Republican US President-elect Donald Trump for building vehicles in Mexico that are imported into the United States. Trump will be sworn in on Friday. 
GM said the $1 billion investment will create or retain 1,500 jobs. The Detroit automaker said details of individual projects will be announced throughout the year.

&quot;Thank you to General Motors and Walmart for starting the big jobs push back into the U.S.,&quot; Trump tweeted, referring as well to WalMart Stores Inc&#39;s announcement that it will hire 10,000 US workers in 2017 as part of a plan previously announced by the discount retailer.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Thank you to General Motors and Walmart for starting the big jobs push back into the U.S.!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/821415698278875137">January 17, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

GM also said it will begin work on bringing axle production for its next generation of full-size pickup trucks, including work previously done in Mexico, to operations in Michigan, creating 450 US jobs.&nbsp;

The part was previously built by American Axle &amp; Manufacturing Holdings Inc. American Axle did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

GM spokeswoman Joanne Krell said the automaker planned to add 7,000 new US jobs over the next two to three years. Krell said the decisions being announced &quot;had been in the works for some time&quot; but she added &quot;the timing was good for us to share what we are doing.&quot;

The 7,000 figure includes the 450 jobs on axle production, 1,500 jobs tied to the $1 billion announcement and more than 5,000 new jobs tied to engineering, GM Financial and advanced technology.

GM in 2014 announced it was investing $5 billion in Mexico and doubling production capacity by 2018. GM said last week it had no plans to cancel Mexican investments despite Trump pressure. GM said it had added about 6,000 US jobs, consisting of 4,000 hourly and 2,000 salaried positions, since the end of 2015 for a total American workforce of 103,000.

Since GM&#39;s bankruptcy restructuring in 2009, when it had 77,000 US employees, it has added more than 25,000 jobs as it boosted production, acquired an auto finance company and brought information technology work in house.

The United Auto Workers union said GM&#39;s new investments &quot;have emerged as a result of the 2015&quot; contract with the union. GM shares slightly rose in midday trading, up 0.6 per cent, or $0.23 per share, to $37.57.

Trump, who made bringing back manufacturing to the United States a large part of his successful election campaign, has been touting recent automaker investments in the United States.

&quot;With all of the jobs I am bringing back into the US (even before taking office), with all of the new auto plants coming back into our country and with the massive cost reductions I have negotiated on military purchases and more, I believe the people are seeing &quot;big stuff,&quot; Trump said in a pair of tweets.

Trump has been inaccurate in describing some US auto investments, wrongly saying last week that Fiat Chrysler was planning to build a new factory in the United States. The company announced it is investing $1 billion in two existing plants, adding 2,000 jobs.

On January 3, Trump threatened to impose a &quot;big border tax&quot; on GM for making some of its Chevrolet Cruze compacts in Mexico - and he has extended that threat to German automakers like BMW AG and Toyota Motor Corp over building vehicles abroad. Separately, Hyundai Motor Group said on Tuesday in South Korea that it plans to boost US investment by 50 per cent to $3.1 billion over five years and may build a new plant in the United States.

Hyundai Motor Co and Kia Motors Corp, which make up the Hyundai Motor Group, have not been directly criticized by Trump but they may have felt vulnerable because among major brands, they have one of the lowest ratios of cars built in the United States to cars sold. GM also said an unnamed supplier has committed to make components for GM&#39;s next-generation full-size pickup trucks in Michigan, moving 100 supplier jobs from Mexico to the United States.

(Reuters)

GM said the investment will create or retain 1,500 jobs and also promised to announce more individual projects during the year

General Motors Co has confirmed it will invest an additional $1 billion in its US factories in 2017 and will move some parts production from Mexico to the United States that was previously handled by a supplier. The investments are in addition to the $2.9 billion the automaker announced last year, GM said. GM and other automakers have been sharply criticized by Republican US President-elect Donald Trump for building vehicles in Mexico that are imported into the United States. Trump will be sworn in on Friday. GM said the $1 billion investment will create or retain 1,500 jobs. The Detroit automaker said details of individual projects will be announced throughout the year. "Thank you to General Motors and Walmart for starting the big jobs push back into the U.S.," Trump tweeted, referring as well to WalMart Stores Inc's announcement that it will hire 10,000 US workers in 2017 as part of a plan previously announced by the discount retailer. Thank you to General Motors and Walmart for starting the big jobs push back into the U.S.! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 17, 2017 × GM also said it will begin work on bringing axle production for its next generation of full-size pickup trucks, including work previously done in Mexico, to operations in Michigan, creating 450 US jobs. The part was previously built by American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. American Axle did not immediately respond to a request for comment. GM spokeswoman Joanne Krell said the automaker planned to add 7,000 new US jobs over the next two to three years. Krell said the decisions being announced "had been in the works for some time" but she added "the timing was good for us to share what we are doing." The 7,000 figure includes the 450 jobs on axle production, 1,500 jobs tied to the $1 billion announcement and more than 5,000 new jobs tied to engineering, GM Financial and advanced technology. GM in 2014 announced it was investing $5 billion in Mexico and doubling production capacity by 2018. GM said last week it had no plans to cancel Mexican investments despite Trump pressure. GM said it had added about 6,000 US jobs, consisting of 4,000 hourly and 2,000 salaried positions, since the end of 2015 for a total American workforce of 103,000. Since GM's bankruptcy restructuring in 2009, when it had 77,000 US employees, it has added more than 25,000 jobs as it boosted production, acquired an auto finance company and brought information technology work in house. The United Auto Workers union said GM's new investments "have emerged as a result of the 2015" contract with the union. GM shares slightly rose in midday trading, up 0.6 per cent, or $0.23 per share, to $37.57. Trump, who made bringing back manufacturing to the United States a large part of his successful election campaign, has been touting recent automaker investments in the United States. "With all of the jobs I am bringing back into the US (even before taking office), with all of the new auto plants coming back into our country and with the massive cost reductions I have negotiated on military purchases and more, I believe the people are seeing "big stuff," Trump said in a pair of tweets. Trump has been inaccurate in describing some US auto investments, wrongly saying last week that Fiat Chrysler was planning to build a new factory in the United States. The company announced it is investing $1 billion in two existing plants, adding 2,000 jobs. On January 3, Trump threatened to impose a "big border tax" on GM for making some of its Chevrolet Cruze compacts in Mexico - and he has extended that threat to German automakers like BMW AG and Toyota Motor Corp over building vehicles abroad. Separately, Hyundai Motor Group said on Tuesday in South Korea that it plans to boost US investment by 50 per cent to $3.1 billion over five years and may build a new plant in the United States. Hyundai Motor Co and Kia Motors Corp, which make up the Hyundai Motor Group, have not been directly criticized by Trump but they may have felt vulnerable because among major brands, they have one of the lowest ratios of cars built in the United States to cars sold. GM also said an unnamed supplier has committed to make components for GM's next-generation full-size pickup trucks in Michigan, moving 100 supplier jobs from Mexico to the United States. (Reuters)

General Motors to invest $1 billion in US, Trump tweets 'thank you'

The accusation that Donald Trump will not be&nbsp;a legitimate president, and that&nbsp;he must be impeached the instant he takes office, is obviously a major charge that&nbsp;must not be made lightly. Democracy is messy and accepting a politician you may find horrible is a sad but vital and&nbsp;inevitable part of it.&nbsp;But&nbsp;Donald Trump presents a&nbsp;different case.

Many now&nbsp;question&nbsp;Trump&#39;s legitimacy, including the venerated civil rights hero&nbsp;John Lewis, who Trump lambasted on Twitter after he, Lewis, called&nbsp;the President-elect &quot;illegitimate&quot;. Again, the accusation of illegitimacy is&nbsp;serious.&nbsp;It&nbsp;must not be used frivolously and must&nbsp;be understood:&nbsp;This is not a&nbsp;mere&nbsp;disagreement&nbsp;about policy.&nbsp;So, why are people saying Trump&nbsp;is illegitimate?&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Rigged election

<ul>
	<li>American intelligence, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/11/us-intelligence-trump-dossier-leak">no less than 17 different agencies</a>, all agree that Vladimir Putin himself interfered in the US election to benefit Trump. This is <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-greene/the-argument-for-donald-t_b_14220416.html">illegal</a>. No foreign government is allowed to contribute even $1 to a US presidential candidate. Whether Putin&#39;s interference was the difference between a Trump or a Clinton victory--and Trump won three key swing states by less than 80,000 votes, so it very well&nbsp;could have been--is also irrelevant. The Huffington Post reported that Trump keeping rather than rejecting foreign &quot;influence&quot;&nbsp;could make him and the influencer subject to<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-greene/the-argument-for-donald-t_b_14220416.html"> jail time</a>.</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>America&#39;s director of national intelligence James Clapper characterised Russia&#39;s pro-Trump cyberattacks as a &quot;multifaceted campaign&quot;, and that &quot;Hacking was only a part of it...it also entailed classical propoganda, disinformation and fake news&quot;. It&#39;s not that Russia hacked the election tallying machines themselves and directly altered the results, it&#39;s that their efforts were essentially complex and sophisticated psy-ops meant to shred Clinton&#39;s campaign and manipulate American voters&nbsp;into voting for the Kremlin&#39;s&nbsp;candidate.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>What transpired is illegal. There is an ongoing investigation to determine what exactly did happen and what effect it had, but even Trump himself reversed his initial denials and admitted that it was probably Russia who hacked the Democrats. Trump railed for weeks that the election was rigged against him, but as soon as it became apparent that it was rigged to favour him, he said that, basically, America should just get over it.</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>The 2016 US election was the first in decades to be without safeguards protecting the rights of those from minority communities&nbsp;to vote, as&nbsp;the &quot;Voting Rights Act&quot; was gutted in 2013. The&nbsp;<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-greene/the-argument-for-donald-t_b_14220416.html">Huffington Post</a>&nbsp;reported that&nbsp;this made it impossible for&nbsp;1.1 million citizens, mostly&nbsp;non-white&nbsp;and&nbsp;poor, to&nbsp;vote.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>Trump won the electoral college votes of three key swing states by very narrow margins. The Huffington Post made it easy to compare the numbers Trump&nbsp;won by in these states to the number of citizens for whom&nbsp;gutting the Voting Rights Act deprived of their fundamental right to vote--known as a &quot;purge list&quot;.&nbsp;Trump won Michigan by 13,107 votes, it&#39;s purge list was 449,922. Trump won Arizona by 85,257, and its purge list was 270,824. Trump won North Carolina by 177,008, and its purge list was 589,393. &nbsp;</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>Despite Russian interference, Fake News, the FBI director inexplicably&nbsp;announcing a probe (that led nowhere) into Clinton&#39;s emails mere days&nbsp;days before the election,&nbsp;Trump asking followers to watch the polls for voter fraud (interpreted as a call to intimidate voters) &nbsp;and the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, still almost 3 million more people voted for Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

Decades of Russian connections, financing

<ul>
	<li>Trump&#39;s stunning and stubborn refusal to publicly disclose his tax returns (he is the first presidential candidate in 40 years to fail this basic test of transparency)&nbsp;is even more suspect when seen beside&nbsp;his pro-Russia policies and never-ending praise for Putin, even siding with him over American intelligence and the White House, and all his financial connections to Russian gangsters and the Kremlin (a distinction without a difference). Is Russian money behind<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-arms-deal-idUSKBN14Z0YE">&nbsp;Trump</a>&#39;s pledge to&nbsp;end&nbsp;sanctions against Russia, imposed on them for invading Crimea?&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>The full history of Russia and Trump is beyond the scope of this article. (Read about some of it <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2017/1/9/1618540/-Was-Donald-Trump-bailed-out-of-bankruptcy-by-Russia-crime-bosses">here</a>, <a href="http://www.the-american-interest.com/2016/12/19/the-curious-world-of-donald-trumps-private-russian-connections/">here </a>and&nbsp;<a href="http://&lt;blockquote class=&quot;twitter-tweet&quot; data-lang=&quot;en&quot;&gt;&lt;p lang=&quot;en&quot; dir=&quot;ltr&quot;&gt;Turns out, wasn&amp;#39;t Trump&amp;#39;s investments *in Russia* that shaped his pro-Putin views but rather Russia&amp;#39;s investments *in him* &lt;a href=&quot;https://twitter.com/sarahkendzior&quot;&gt;@sarahkendzior&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;https://t.co/wDO8r4nOXB&quot;&gt;pic.twitter.com/wDO8r4nOXB&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&amp;mdash; Adam Khan (@Khanoisseur) &lt;a href=&quot;https://twitter.com/Khanoisseur/status/819651528583614465&quot;&gt;January 12, 2017&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt; &lt;script async src=&quot;//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js&quot; charset=&quot;utf-8&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;">here</a>.) There isn&#39;t merely one story&nbsp;that alone does him in; Trump was rescued from bankruptcy by&nbsp;Russian oligarchs in the early 1990s, who seised on the opportunity that the collapse of the Soviet Union presented by personally taking for themselves&nbsp;what had been state-owned companies. What happened next is a long story shrouded, but not entirely, in secrecy.&nbsp;It&#39;s said that they bought Trump properties en masse in order to launder money, which enabled Trump to be, and&nbsp;appear like, a success, so long as he looked the other way. No Russian mover and shaker is allowed to operate in these high places without Vladimir Putin&#39;s approval, who some experts say is worth an obscene $200 billion. As Eric Trump said in 2008, &quot;We see a lot of money pouring in from Russia&quot;.</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

So Trump&nbsp;likes Russia, so what?

<ul>
	<li>American intelligence presented to Obama, and also Trump, a report claiming that Russia has &quot;<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/10/politics/donald-trump-intelligence-report-russia/">compromised</a>&quot; Donald Trump. In other words, the claim is Russia&nbsp;has&nbsp;sufficient information over Trump&nbsp;for&nbsp;blackmail<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/four-sources-to-possible-claims-of-trump-russia-blackmail-bbcs-paul-wood-11219">.&nbsp;There is&nbsp;apparently</a>&nbsp;&quot;audio and video&quot; on &quot;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/four-sources-to-possible-claims-of-trump-russia-blackmail-bbcs-paul-wood-11219">more than one&nbsp;tape</a>&quot;.&nbsp;While the allegations in the intelligence report have not been verified, it is a&nbsp;fact that the report was brought through official intelligence channels to the&nbsp;White House. If they are true, the problem isn&#39;t that Donald Trump as president wants to side with Putin, it&#39;s that&nbsp;Putin would&nbsp;be the one in charge.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>Trump has&nbsp;stocked&nbsp;his cabinet with people who have very deep and concrete&nbsp;links to Vladimir&nbsp;Putin. Rex Tillerson and Paul Manafort are the high profile ones. Tillerson, as CEO of the oil giant ExxonMobil, was personally awarded the &quot;Order of Friendship&quot; from Vladimir Putin, and Manafort secretly received millions&nbsp;in cash to lobby for the&nbsp;pro-Putin leader of Ukraine, <a href="http://www.salon.com/2016/10/24/donald-trumps-former-campaign-chairman-paul-manafort-was-lobbying-vladimir-putin-through-a-company-he-owned/">Viktor Yanukovich.</a>&nbsp;Manafort and another Putin-linked Trump aide named Rick Gate resigned in the summer when this came to light, but Manafort quietly came&nbsp;back to&nbsp;advise&nbsp;Trump on cabinet picks. While working for Exxon, Tillerson opposed sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine at a time when the sanctions prevented his company from making billions of dollars on an oil discovery in Russia&#39;s north. Trump&#39;s pro-Kremlin stance&nbsp;is&nbsp;filtering down in major ways.</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

General conflicts of interest

<ul>
	<li>Trump has a sprawling business empire that spans the globe, and the character of his business is&nbsp;uniquely susceptible to conflicts of interests. There was talk of using a &quot;blind trust&quot; to manage his business&nbsp;while he&#39;s president, but &quot;blindness&quot; is impossible, considering a major part of his&nbsp;business is&nbsp;a slew of skyscrapers in marquee destinations around the world with &quot;Trump&quot;&nbsp;written on them in giant golden letters. Foreign dignitaries are already careful to stay in his hotels and use his products, hoping to curry favour. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/15/fashion/ivanka-trump-bracelet-60-minutes-conflict-of-interest.html">Ivanka Trump</a> is very dubiously straddling the line between managing the private business and serving in&nbsp;public office.&nbsp; 
	&nbsp;</li>
	<li>The &quot;Emoluments clause&quot; in the American constitution may be the biggest threat Trump faces. <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/01/trumps-ethics-train-wreck/513446/">The&nbsp;clause forbids</a> &quot;Any person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under [the United States]&quot; from accepting &quot;any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State&quot; (unless Congress explicitly consents). Some experts in US law believe that&nbsp;there are definitely&nbsp;grounds to impeach Trump on his first day&nbsp;in office. 
	&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
	<li>But this isn&#39;t the end of the story. If a Trump appointee decides not to prosecute <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-12-22/deutsche-bank-s-reworking-a-big-trump-loan-as-inauguration-nears">Deutsche Bank</a>, will it be because they think it represents&nbsp;the best course&nbsp;for America, or because Deutsche Bank decides in the future to forgive the $300 million Donald Trump owes it? This dynamic can play out countless times more, considering the vastness of Trump&#39;s business interests. While many&nbsp;ethics experts call on Trump to completely divest, saying basically the only way for his business to not interfere with his role as president is to&nbsp;not have&nbsp;a business, Trump steadfastly refuses. &nbsp; 
	&nbsp;</li>
	<li>When considering whether&nbsp;Trump can be counted on to separate his children running his business&nbsp;from&nbsp;the world leaders he is bound to meet as president, remember that before even assuming office&nbsp;they have already sat in on a meeting&nbsp;with US tech industry leaders and the Prime Minister of Japan. Also, the Trump transition team <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/14/politics/donald-trump-children-security-clearance/">reportedly sought</a> White House security clearance for Trump&#39;s children and nephew, Jared Kushner. 
	&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Trump said that he will solve the conflict of interest problem not by selling his business, as he will keep a stake in it but will turn the management over to his&nbsp;two sons, joined by an executive. Trump&nbsp;claimed that he will not speak to these two sons&nbsp;about the business. He then joked that if profits are low&nbsp;he will&nbsp;tell them, &quot;You&#39;re fired!&quot;. This does not meet any serious definition of absolving himself&nbsp;of conflict of interest, especially when the stakes are this high.</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

Is there enough evidence?

It&#39;s hard to get a smoking gun because Trump breaks normal transparency standards by failing to disclose key information, then celebrates himself for disclosing what he hasn&#39;t disclosed,&nbsp;then&nbsp;attacks and intimidates anybody who tries to bring this pattern&nbsp;to light.

Trump falsely said he cannot publicly&nbsp;release his tax return (he said he is under audit, the IRS said he is free to release it, then Eric Trump&nbsp;said that releasing it would subject his business interests to public scrutiny). He threatened to sue the New York Times for releasing a page that showed that despite professing to be a billionaire he likely <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/02/us/politics/donald-trump-taxes.html?_r=0">paid no income tax for 18&nbsp;years</a>.

Trump falsely stated that&nbsp;he does not know<a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2016/08/donald-trump-russia-felix-sater-227434"> Felix Sater,</a> a Russian-born man with proven links to Trump (<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/former-mafia-linked-figure-describes-association-with-trump/2016/05/17/cec6c2c6-16d3-11e6-aa55-670cabef46e0_story.html?utm_term=.694d939ddd4e">here they are pictured together</a>) via Bayrock (a real estate firm with offices in Trump Tower)&nbsp;and Putin (Bayrock has seen a cash infusion from Putin-friendly&nbsp;Khazakstani and Russian businesses). Sater has&nbsp;pled guilty to stabbing a man in the neck with a broken margarita glass in a bar fight and to a&nbsp;racketeering scam worth $40 million, connected to four mob families.

Trump denied knowing Putin personally, yet <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/watch-video-shows-trump-lying-admits-he-has-a-relationship-with-vladimir-putin-10313">has said on video </a>that he personally knows Putin. In short, Trump and his team&nbsp;do everything to obfuscate what is happening and&nbsp;attack those who threaten his&nbsp;so-called legitimacy.&nbsp;

There are still many unanswered questions, and it&#39;s an understatement to say Trump&nbsp;appears to be in no&nbsp;mood to answer them. Until both Democrat&nbsp;and&nbsp;Trump&nbsp;supporters&nbsp;get real and&nbsp;satisfying answers to everything that&nbsp;got Trump elected and&nbsp;to the nature of what is driving his decisions in office, Trump&#39;s legitimacy as presidency will always be hopelessly in doubt.&nbsp;

And if the real answers to these questions ever come&nbsp;to light, it seems they are unlikely to strengthen&nbsp;Trump&#39;s legitimacy.&nbsp;

(WION)

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

An American politician labelled Trump 'illegitimate' and calls for impeachment have begun before he takes office. This is very, very serious

The accusation that Donald Trump will not be a legitimate president, and that he must be impeached the instant he takes office, is obviously a major charge that must not be made lightly. Democracy is messy and accepting a politician you may find horrible is a sad but vital and inevitable part of it. But Donald Trump presents a different case. Many now question Trump's legitimacy, including the venerated civil rights hero John Lewis, who Trump lambasted on Twitter after he, Lewis, called the President-elect "illegitimate". Again, the accusation of illegitimacy is serious. It must not be used frivolously and must be understood: This is not a mere disagreement about policy. So, why are people saying Trump is illegitimate? Rigged election American intelligence, no less than 17 different agencies, all agree that Vladimir Putin himself interfered in the US election to benefit Trump. This is illegal. No foreign government is allowed to contribute even $1 to a US presidential candidate. Whether Putin's interference was the difference between a Trump or a Clinton victory--and Trump won three key swing states by less than 80,000 votes, so it very well could have been--is also irrelevant. The Huffington Post reported that Trump keeping rather than rejecting foreign "influence" could make him and the influencer subject to jail time. America's director of national intelligence James Clapper characterised Russia's pro-Trump cyberattacks as a "multifaceted campaign", and that "Hacking was only a part of it...it also entailed classical propoganda, disinformation and fake news". It's not that Russia hacked the election tallying machines themselves and directly altered the results, it's that their efforts were essentially complex and sophisticated psy-ops meant to shred Clinton's campaign and manipulate American voters into voting for the Kremlin's candidate. What transpired is illegal. There is an ongoing investigation to determine what exactly did happen and what effect it had, but even Trump himself reversed his initial denials and admitted that it was probably Russia who hacked the Democrats. Trump railed for weeks that the election was rigged against him, but as soon as it became apparent that it was rigged to favour him, he said that, basically, America should just get over it. The 2016 US election was the first in decades to be without safeguards protecting the rights of those from minority communities to vote, as the "Voting Rights Act" was gutted in 2013. The Huffington Post reported that this made it impossible for 1.1 million citizens, mostly non-white and poor, to vote. Trump won the electoral college votes of three key swing states by very narrow margins. The Huffington Post made it easy to compare the numbers Trump won by in these states to the number of citizens for whom gutting the Voting Rights Act deprived of their fundamental right to vote--known as a "purge list". Trump won Michigan by 13,107 votes, it's purge list was 449,922. Trump won Arizona by 85,257, and its purge list was 270,824. Trump won North Carolina by 177,008, and its purge list was 589,393. Despite Russian interference, Fake News, the FBI director inexplicably announcing a probe (that led nowhere) into Clinton's emails mere days days before the election, Trump asking followers to watch the polls for voter fraud (interpreted as a call to intimidate voters) and the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, still almost 3 million more people voted for Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump. Decades of Russian connections, financing Trump's stunning and stubborn refusal to publicly disclose his tax returns (he is the first presidential candidate in 40 years to fail this basic test of transparency) is even more suspect when seen beside his pro-Russia policies and never-ending praise for Putin, even siding with him over American intelligence and the White House, and all his financial connections to Russian gangsters and the Kremlin (a distinction without a difference). Is Russian money behind Trump's pledge to end sanctions against Russia, imposed on them for invading Crimea? The full history of Russia and Trump is beyond the scope of this article. (Read about some of it here, here and here.) There isn't merely one story that alone does him in; Trump was rescued from bankruptcy by Russian oligarchs in the early 1990s, who seised on the opportunity that the collapse of the Soviet Union presented by personally taking for themselves what had been state-owned companies. What happened next is a long story shrouded, but not entirely, in secrecy. It's said that they bought Trump properties en masse in order to launder money, which enabled Trump to be, and appear like, a success, so long as he looked the other way. No Russian mover and shaker is allowed to operate in these high places without Vladimir Putin's approval, who some experts say is worth an obscene $200 billion. As Eric Trump said in 2008, "We see a lot of money pouring in from Russia". So Trump likes Russia, so what? American intelligence presented to Obama, and also Trump, a report claiming that Russia has "compromised" Donald Trump. In other words, the claim is Russia has sufficient information over Trump for blackmail. There is apparently "audio and video" on "more than one tape". While the allegations in the intelligence report have not been verified, it is a fact that the report was brought through official intelligence channels to the White House. If they are true, the problem isn't that Donald Trump as president wants to side with Putin, it's that Putin would be the one in charge. Trump has stocked his cabinet with people who have very deep and concrete links to Vladimir Putin. Rex Tillerson and Paul Manafort are the high profile ones. Tillerson, as CEO of the oil giant ExxonMobil, was personally awarded the "Order of Friendship" from Vladimir Putin, and Manafort secretly received millions in cash to lobby for the pro-Putin leader of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovich. Manafort and another Putin-linked Trump aide named Rick Gate resigned in the summer when this came to light, but Manafort quietly came back to advise Trump on cabinet picks. While working for Exxon, Tillerson opposed sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine at a time when the sanctions prevented his company from making billions of dollars on an oil discovery in Russia's north. Trump's pro-Kremlin stance is filtering down in major ways. General conflicts of interest Trump has a sprawling business empire that spans the globe, and the character of his business is uniquely susceptible to conflicts of interests. There was talk of using a "blind trust" to manage his business while he's president, but "blindness" is impossible, considering a major part of his business is a slew of skyscrapers in marquee destinations around the world with "Trump" written on them in giant golden letters. Foreign dignitaries are already careful to stay in his hotels and use his products, hoping to curry favour. Ivanka Trump is very dubiously straddling the line between managing the private business and serving in public office. The "Emoluments clause" in the American constitution may be the biggest threat Trump faces. The clause forbids "Any person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under [the United States]" from accepting "any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State" (unless Congress explicitly consents). Some experts in US law believe that there are definitely grounds to impeach Trump on his first day in office. But this isn't the end of the story. If a Trump appointee decides not to prosecute Deutsche Bank, will it be because they think it represents the best course for America, or because Deutsche Bank decides in the future to forgive the $300 million Donald Trump owes it? This dynamic can play out countless times more, considering the vastness of Trump's business interests. While many ethics experts call on Trump to completely divest, saying basically the only way for his business to not interfere with his role as president is to not have a business, Trump steadfastly refuses. When considering whether Trump can be counted on to separate his children running his business from the world leaders he is bound to meet as president, remember that before even assuming office they have already sat in on a meeting with US tech industry leaders and the Prime Minister of Japan. Also, the Trump transition team reportedly sought White House security clearance for Trump's children and nephew, Jared Kushner. Trump said that he will solve the conflict of interest problem not by selling his business, as he will keep a stake in it but will turn the management over to his two sons, joined by an executive. Trump claimed that he will not speak to these two sons about the business. He then joked that if profits are low he will tell them, "You're fired!". This does not meet any serious definition of absolving himself of conflict of interest, especially when the stakes are this high. Is there enough evidence? It's hard to get a smoking gun because Trump breaks normal transparency standards by failing to disclose key information, then celebrates himself for disclosing what he hasn't disclosed, then attacks and intimidates anybody who tries to bring this pattern to light. Trump falsely said he cannot publicly release his tax return (he said he is under audit, the IRS said he is free to release it, then Eric Trump said that releasing it would subject his business interests to public scrutiny). He threatened to sue the New York Times for releasing a page that showed that despite professing to be a billionaire he likely paid no income tax for 18 years. Trump falsely stated that he does not know Felix Sater, a Russian-born man with proven links to Trump (here they are pictured together) via Bayrock (a real estate firm with offices in Trump Tower) and Putin (Bayrock has seen a cash infusion from Putin-friendly Khazakstani and Russian businesses). Sater has pled guilty to stabbing a man in the neck with a broken margarita glass in a bar fight and to a racketeering scam worth $40 million, connected to four mob families. Trump denied knowing Putin personally, yet has said on video that he personally knows Putin. In short, Trump and his team do everything to obfuscate what is happening and attack those who threaten his so-called legitimacy. There are still many unanswered questions, and it's an understatement to say Trump appears to be in no mood to answer them. Until both Democrat and Trump supporters get real and satisfying answers to everything that got Trump elected and to the nature of what is driving his decisions in office, Trump's legitimacy as presidency will always be hopelessly in doubt. And if the real answers to these questions ever come to light, it seems they are unlikely to strengthen Trump's legitimacy. (WION)

Will Trump's presidency be legitimate? Probably not: Opinion

Millennials, some so young they need their parents&#39; permission and others with babies in tow, will join women&#39;s protests this weekend as their generation for the first time faces challenges to rights they have known most of their lives.

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend the Women&#39;s March on Washington and sister marches in other cities around the world on Saturday, the day after Donald Trump is sworn into office as US&nbsp;president.

The display of unity is a show of opposition to Trump&#39;s potential impact on women&#39;s rights, particularly abortion access, health insurance, child care and workplace policies that could take a heavy toll on young women, activists say.

&quot;Everything that can affect the population in general is going to affect millennial women,&quot; said Jamie Kenney, 34, a New Jersey writer and mother of two young children.

&quot;Because we are young and because our careers aren&#39;t established and because most of us have uteruses, it&#39;s going to hit us in ways that it hits everybody and in ways that are going to be unique and harder to overcome,&quot; said Kenney, who planned to attend a women&#39;s march in New York City.

Along with the main march in Washington, more than 270 others are planned in the United States and in 33 other nations, with more than 500,000 people expected to join, organizers say.

The marches call for reproductive rights such as access to abortion and contraception, equal pay, affordable childcare, an end to violence against women and rights for gay, lesbian, bisexuals and transgender (LGBT) people.

&nbsp;

&#39;TURNING POINT&#39;

Trump has come under fire for his attitudes toward women that emerged as he campaigned for the presidency. In a 2005 tape that came to light during the campaign he brags about groping women and making unwanted sexual advances. He says he opposes abortion and has vowed to pull government funding from Planned Parenthood, a major provider of women&#39;s health care.

He wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act, a national insurance program that pays for most birth control methods for women.

&quot;Millennial women have taken all of those things for granted,&quot; said Elisabeth Kelan, a professor at Britain&#39;s Cranfield School of Management and author of a book on millennials entitled &quot;Rising Stars&quot;. &quot;It&#39;s a real turning point for this generation,&quot; she said.

Most millennials, 73 per cent, have an unfavourable view of Trump, according to the Pew Research Center.

Typically defined as those born between the early 1980s and early 2000s, they number around 74.5 million in the United States, according to Pew.

The Trump presidency will have a lasting effect because people form political identities in early adulthood, said Benjamin Knoll, an associate professor of politics at Centre College in Kentucky who specialises in public opinion and voting patterns.

&quot;For the younger ones now in college and their mid-20s, they&#39;re going to come of age at a time when we have Donald Trump as president,&quot; he said.

A millennial himself at 34, Knoll said he would attend a local women&#39;s march with his 8-year-old daughter.

Alessandra Rizzo, 16, plans to ride the bus to the Washington march after her father agreed she could go with a friend, accompanied by her friend&#39;s mother.

&quot;I can&#39;t vote,&quot; Rizzo said. &quot;So the march is just a way for me to express my dislike of what&#39;s going on.&quot; Trump&#39;s scepticism about climate change and his intention to make abortion illegal are most troubling, she said. &quot;I&#39;ll be at the age of having to worry about this when he&#39;s the president, and that&#39;s just very scary to me,&quot; she said.

(Reuters)

Along with the main march in Washington, more than 270 others are planned in the United States and in 33 other nations

Millennials, some so young they need their parents' permission and others with babies in tow, will join women's protests this weekend as their generation for the first time faces challenges to rights they have known most of their lives. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend the Women's March on Washington and sister marches in other cities around the world on Saturday, the day after Donald Trump is sworn into office as US president. The display of unity is a show of opposition to Trump's potential impact on women's rights, particularly abortion access, health insurance, child care and workplace policies that could take a heavy toll on young women, activists say. "Everything that can affect the population in general is going to affect millennial women," said Jamie Kenney, 34, a New Jersey writer and mother of two young children. "Because we are young and because our careers aren't established and because most of us have uteruses, it's going to hit us in ways that it hits everybody and in ways that are going to be unique and harder to overcome," said Kenney, who planned to attend a women's march in New York City. Along with the main march in Washington, more than 270 others are planned in the United States and in 33 other nations, with more than 500,000 people expected to join, organizers say. The marches call for reproductive rights such as access to abortion and contraception, equal pay, affordable childcare, an end to violence against women and rights for gay, lesbian, bisexuals and transgender (LGBT) people. 'TURNING POINT' Trump has come under fire for his attitudes toward women that emerged as he campaigned for the presidency. In a 2005 tape that came to light during the campaign he brags about groping women and making unwanted sexual advances. He says he opposes abortion and has vowed to pull government funding from Planned Parenthood, a major provider of women's health care. He wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act, a national insurance program that pays for most birth control methods for women. "Millennial women have taken all of those things for granted," said Elisabeth Kelan, a professor at Britain's Cranfield School of Management and author of a book on millennials entitled "Rising Stars". "It's a real turning point for this generation," she said. Most millennials, 73 per cent, have an unfavourable view of Trump, according to the Pew Research Center. Typically defined as those born between the early 1980s and early 2000s, they number around 74.5 million in the United States, according to Pew. The Trump presidency will have a lasting effect because people form political identities in early adulthood, said Benjamin Knoll, an associate professor of politics at Centre College in Kentucky who specialises in public opinion and voting patterns. "For the younger ones now in college and their mid-20s, they're going to come of age at a time when we have Donald Trump as president," he said. A millennial himself at 34, Knoll said he would attend a local women's march with his 8-year-old daughter. Alessandra Rizzo, 16, plans to ride the bus to the Washington march after her father agreed she could go with a friend, accompanied by her friend's mother. "I can't vote," Rizzo said. "So the march is just a way for me to express my dislike of what's going on." Trump's scepticism about climate change and his intention to make abortion illegal are most troubling, she said. "I'll be at the age of having to worry about this when he's the president, and that's just very scary to me," she said. (Reuters)

Millennial women protest Trump in the streets, many for first time

The National Mall in Washington could become a sea of bright pink the day after Donald Trump is inaugurated as US&nbsp;president if the vision of a pair of Los Angeles women is realised.

For two months, Krista Suh and Jayna Zweiman have called on people around the world to make 1.17 million pink &quot;pussyhats&quot; for those attending the Women&#39;s March, a rally on January 21 organised with hopes of bringing attention to civil and human rights issues.

The name of the hats comes partly from President-elect Trump&#39;s comments in an infamous 2005 tape that came to light during his campaign in which, discussing women, he said: &quot;Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything.&quot;

&nbsp;

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Marchers can get a hat by contacting a maker through an online distribution system, through social media or at sites in Washington. (Reuters)
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&nbsp;

The project is meant to &quot;create a sea of pink hats which is going to be a strong collective visual statement,&quot; Zweiman said.

It is also meant to involve &quot;people across the country and the world who want to be a part of the march but can&#39;t physically be there and want to support the marchers,&quot; she said.

&nbsp;

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The women have asked volunteers around the world to help sew, crochet or knit pink hats with ears by using simple patterns available on the project&#39;s website. (Reuters)
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&nbsp;

The women have asked volunteers around the world to help sew, crochet or knit pink hats with ears by using simple patterns available on the project&#39;s website. They say it is easier than knitting a scarf, the typical starter project for novices.

&quot;It&#39;s a rectangle folded in half, stitched up the sides and when you put it on your round head, these ears come out,&quot; said Zweiman, surrounded by women stitching away at a knitting store on Friday night.

&nbsp;

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For some knitters at Friday&#39;s &quot;pussyhat party,&quot; it was hard to put the needles down as the deadline nears. (Reuters)
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&nbsp;

Marchers can get a hat by contacting a maker through an online distribution system, through social media or at sites in Washington.

&quot;So it&#39;s a distribution system that&#39;s very grassroots and our aim is to get a hat on every marcher&#39;s head who wants one,&quot; Zweiman said.

Organisers have said the protest could draw around 200,000 people, but Suh and Zweiman decided to aim for the 1.17 million people that could feasibly fit in the Mall.

&nbsp;

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Knitters take part in the Pussyhat social media campaign to provide pink hats for protesters in the women&#39;s march in Washington. (Reuters)
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&nbsp;

For some knitters at Friday&#39;s &quot;pussyhat party,&quot; it was hard to put the needles down as the deadline nears.

&quot;Doing this is taking my mind off things,&quot; said Marina Mont&#39;Ros.

&quot;This will be my 35th hat. Every time I think &#39;OK, that&#39;s enough. I&#39;ve made enough, I&#39;m going to stop,&#39; I read something in the news and, give me that yarn! I&#39;m making more.&quot;

(Reuters)

2 women have called on people around the world to make 1.17 million pink 'pussyhats' for those attending the Women's March on Jan 21

The National Mall in Washington could become a sea of bright pink the day after Donald Trump is inaugurated as US president if the vision of a pair of Los Angeles women is realised. For two months, Krista Suh and Jayna Zweiman have called on people around the world to make 1.17 million pink "pussyhats" for those attending the Women's March, a rally on January 21 organised with hopes of bringing attention to civil and human rights issues. The name of the hats comes partly from President-elect Trump's comments in an infamous 2005 tape that came to light during his campaign in which, discussing women, he said: "Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything." Marchers can get a hat by contacting a maker through an online distribution system, through social media or at sites in Washington. (Reuters) × The project is meant to "create a sea of pink hats which is going to be a strong collective visual statement," Zweiman said. It is also meant to involve "people across the country and the world who want to be a part of the march but can't physically be there and want to support the marchers," she said. The women have asked volunteers around the world to help sew, crochet or knit pink hats with ears by using simple patterns available on the project's website. (Reuters) × The women have asked volunteers around the world to help sew, crochet or knit pink hats with ears by using simple patterns available on the project's website. They say it is easier than knitting a scarf, the typical starter project for novices. "It's a rectangle folded in half, stitched up the sides and when you put it on your round head, these ears come out," said Zweiman, surrounded by women stitching away at a knitting store on Friday night. For some knitters at Friday's "pussyhat party," it was hard to put the needles down as the deadline nears. (Reuters) × Marchers can get a hat by contacting a maker through an online distribution system, through social media or at sites in Washington. "So it's a distribution system that's very grassroots and our aim is to get a hat on every marcher's head who wants one," Zweiman said. Organisers have said the protest could draw around 200,000 people, but Suh and Zweiman decided to aim for the 1.17 million people that could feasibly fit in the Mall. Knitters take part in the Pussyhat social media campaign to provide pink hats for protesters in the women's march in Washington. (Reuters) × For some knitters at Friday's "pussyhat party," it was hard to put the needles down as the deadline nears. "Doing this is taking my mind off things," said Marina Mont'Ros. "This will be my 35th hat. Every time I think 'OK, that's enough. I've made enough, I'm going to stop,' I read something in the news and, give me that yarn! I'm making more." (Reuters)

Women knit pink 'pussyhats' for rally after Trump inauguration

China&#39;s foreign ministry said on Saturday that its &quot;One China&quot; principle was the non-negotiable political basis for China-US&nbsp;relations, and urged &quot;relevant parties&quot; in the United States to recognise the sensitivity of the Taiwan issue.

The comments, posted on the foreign ministry&#39;s website, were a direct response to remarks by US&nbsp;President-elect Donald Trump in an interview with the Wall Street Journal in which he said the &quot;One China&quot; policy was negotiable.

Since 1979, the United States has acknowledged Taiwan as part of &quot;one China&quot;, but Trump prompted a diplomatic protest from Beijing by accepting a congratulatory phone call on his election win from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan on December 2.

(Reuters)

The comments were a direct response to remarks by Trump in an interview with the WSJ in which he said the 'One China' policy was negotiable

China's foreign ministry said on Saturday that its "One China" principle was the non-negotiable political basis for China-US relations, and urged "relevant parties" in the United States to recognise the sensitivity of the Taiwan issue. The comments, posted on the foreign ministry's website, were a direct response to remarks by US President-elect Donald Trump in an interview with the Wall Street Journal in which he said the "One China" policy was negotiable. Since 1979, the United States has acknowledged Taiwan as part of "one China", but Trump prompted a diplomatic protest from Beijing by accepting a congratulatory phone call on his election win from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan on December 2. (Reuters)

Beijing to Trump: 'One China' policy non-negotiable

The Republican-led U.S. Congress, under pressure from President-elect Donald Trump to move quickly, took its first concrete step towards dismantling Obamacare on Thursday as the Senate voted to instruct key committees to draft legislation to repeal it.

Trump on Twitter congratulated the Senate for its 51-48 vote in the early hours of Thursday, adding &quot;now it&#39;s onto the House!&quot; Only one Republican, Kentucky&#39;s Rand Paul, joined Senate Democrats in opposing the resolution.

The House of Representatives plans to vote on the measure on Friday, Speaker Paul Ryan said, pushing ahead despite concerns among some Republicans about launching a repeal before building a consensus about how to replace the complicated and far-reaching Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare.

Democrats accused Republicans of rushing forward to scrap outgoing President Barack Obama&#39;s signature legislative accomplishment, a law that has enabled upwards of 20 million previously uninsured Americans to obtain health coverage, without yet having a firm replacement plan.

The resolution passed on Thursday instructs committees of the House and Senate to draft repeal legislation by January&nbsp;27. Both chambers will then need to approve the resulting legislation before any repeal goes into effect.

Obamacare&#39;s fate is a high-stakes political showdown between Republicans and Democrats that potentially jeopardizes medical coverage for millions of Americans and risks causing chaos in the health insurance marketplace.

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi vowed to fight. &quot;I think it&#39;s easier to win a fight when something is going to be taken away from you,&quot; Pelosi said in an appearance with elderly Americans who talked about how they had been helped by the law&#39;s provisions, including lower prescription drug costs.

Republicans have called Obamacare a federal government overreach and have sought to undermine it in Congress and the courts since it was passed by Democratic majorities in the House and Senate in 2010.

They are aggressively pushing towards their goal of killing Obamacare now that they will control Congress and the White House once Trump takes office on January&nbsp;20.

Ryan, speaking to reporters just hours after the Senate vote, said House Republicans would discuss options for replacing Obamacare during an annual retreat at the end of this month in Philadelphia.

Ryan said while Congress will take some replacement steps, the incoming Trump administration will be able to act on its own on some aspects, which he did not detail. Ryan said lawmakers were working on dismantling Obamacare &quot;in sync&quot; with Trump.

&quot;We&#39;re not holding hard deadlines, only because we want to get it right,&quot; Ryan said, indicating it will take some time for several House committees to work on replacement legislation.

&nbsp;

&#39;NO IDEA&#39;

Democrats mocked the Republican effort.

&quot;They want to kill ACA but they have no idea how they are going to bring forth a substitute proposal,&quot; said Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats.

Indeed, some Republicans have expressed concern about the party&#39;s current strategy of pushing repeal without having a consensus replacement plan ready.

Representative Charlie Dent, a moderate Republican from Pennsylvania, has &quot;major concerns&quot; about the process, according to a spokesman, fearing a repeal vote at the start diminishes the leverage that may be needed to get some lawmakers to back a replacement later.

Trump put new pressure on congressional Republicans on Wednesday when he said Obamacare repeal and replacement should happen &quot;essentially simultaneously&quot;. And an influential conservative group, Heritage Action, late on Wednesday pressed lawmakers to back the resolution.

Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway said the replacement effort will likely tackle drug pricing.&nbsp;

Some Americans&nbsp;are worried about what this change will mean to their&nbsp;immediate future.

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May each one of these men experience the anxiety that I as a cancer patient feel right now, knowing I&#39;ll die if care becomes unavailable <a href="https://t.co/ZaOpZI6VKA">https://t.co/ZaOpZI6VKA</a>
&mdash; Xeni Jardin (@xeni) <a href="https://twitter.com/xeni/status/819469147281059840">January 12, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Democrats say Obamacare is working, enabling growing numbers of Americans to get medical insurance and helping slow the rise in healthcare spending. Republicans say the program is collapsing and support giving states more control. The average premium for a private insurance policy obtained through Obamacare is set to rise 25 per cent in 2017.

(Reuters)

Under pressure from Trump, Republicans are rushing to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, which is more commonly known as 'Obamacare'

The Republican-led U.S. Congress, under pressure from President-elect Donald Trump to move quickly, took its first concrete step towards dismantling Obamacare on Thursday as the Senate voted to instruct key committees to draft legislation to repeal it. Trump on Twitter congratulated the Senate for its 51-48 vote in the early hours of Thursday, adding "now it's onto the House!" Only one Republican, Kentucky's Rand Paul, joined Senate Democrats in opposing the resolution. The House of Representatives plans to vote on the measure on Friday, Speaker Paul Ryan said, pushing ahead despite concerns among some Republicans about launching a repeal before building a consensus about how to replace the complicated and far-reaching Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare. Democrats accused Republicans of rushing forward to scrap outgoing President Barack Obama's signature legislative accomplishment, a law that has enabled upwards of 20 million previously uninsured Americans to obtain health coverage, without yet having a firm replacement plan. The resolution passed on Thursday instructs committees of the House and Senate to draft repeal legislation by January 27. Both chambers will then need to approve the resulting legislation before any repeal goes into effect. Obamacare's fate is a high-stakes political showdown between Republicans and Democrats that potentially jeopardizes medical coverage for millions of Americans and risks causing chaos in the health insurance marketplace. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi vowed to fight. "I think it's easier to win a fight when something is going to be taken away from you," Pelosi said in an appearance with elderly Americans who talked about how they had been helped by the law's provisions, including lower prescription drug costs. Republicans have called Obamacare a federal government overreach and have sought to undermine it in Congress and the courts since it was passed by Democratic majorities in the House and Senate in 2010. They are aggressively pushing towards their goal of killing Obamacare now that they will control Congress and the White House once Trump takes office on January 20. Ryan, speaking to reporters just hours after the Senate vote, said House Republicans would discuss options for replacing Obamacare during an annual retreat at the end of this month in Philadelphia. Ryan said while Congress will take some replacement steps, the incoming Trump administration will be able to act on its own on some aspects, which he did not detail. Ryan said lawmakers were working on dismantling Obamacare "in sync" with Trump. "We're not holding hard deadlines, only because we want to get it right," Ryan said, indicating it will take some time for several House committees to work on replacement legislation. 'NO IDEA' Democrats mocked the Republican effort. "They want to kill ACA but they have no idea how they are going to bring forth a substitute proposal," said Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats. Indeed, some Republicans have expressed concern about the party's current strategy of pushing repeal without having a consensus replacement plan ready. Representative Charlie Dent, a moderate Republican from Pennsylvania, has "major concerns" about the process, according to a spokesman, fearing a repeal vote at the start diminishes the leverage that may be needed to get some lawmakers to back a replacement later. Trump put new pressure on congressional Republicans on Wednesday when he said Obamacare repeal and replacement should happen "essentially simultaneously". And an influential conservative group, Heritage Action, late on Wednesday pressed lawmakers to back the resolution. Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway said the replacement effort will likely tackle drug pricing. Some Americans are worried about what this change will mean to their immediate future. May each one of these men experience the anxiety that I as a cancer patient feel right now, knowing I'll die if care becomes unavailable https://t.co/ZaOpZI6VKA — Xeni Jardin (@xeni) January 12, 2017 × Democrats say Obamacare is working, enabling growing numbers of Americans to get medical insurance and helping slow the rise in healthcare spending. Republicans say the program is collapsing and support giving states more control. The average premium for a private insurance policy obtained through Obamacare is set to rise 25 per cent in 2017. (Reuters)

US Senate launches Obamacare repeal process, House to vote

Mexico will name a new ambassador to the US, The Hill reports, citing&nbsp;Mexican Foreign Relations Secretariat sources.&nbsp;

The current ambassador Carlos Sada Solana will be replaced by Geronimo Gutierrez, who is currently the managing director of the North American Development Bank.&nbsp;Previously, Gutierrez was the undersecretary for North American affairs at the Foreign Relations Secretariat, The Hill reports.

The announcement is expected to come on Friday, The Hill reports. 
&nbsp; 
The change in appointment comes as relations between the country are strained, as Trump has promised to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), build a wall along the border that the President-elect says Mexico will fund, deport millions of mexicans and place tariffs on goods manufactured in Mexico.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
This post is considered to be Mexico&#39;s highest appointment because of the historical closeness between the two countries and because millions of Mexicans currently live in America.

&nbsp;(WION)

The change comes at a crucial juncture, with Donald Trump about to become US president

Mexico will name a new ambassador to the US, The Hill reports, citing Mexican Foreign Relations Secretariat sources. The current ambassador Carlos Sada Solana will be replaced by Geronimo Gutierrez, who is currently the managing director of the North American Development Bank. Previously, Gutierrez was the undersecretary for North American affairs at the Foreign Relations Secretariat, The Hill reports. The announcement is expected to come on Friday, The Hill reports. The change in appointment comes as relations between the country are strained, as Trump has promised to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), build a wall along the border that the President-elect says Mexico will fund, deport millions of mexicans and place tariffs on goods manufactured in Mexico. This post is considered to be Mexico's highest appointment because of the historical closeness between the two countries and because millions of Mexicans currently live in America. (WION)

Mexico to name new US ambassador: Reports

US President-elect Donald Trump&#39;s nominee for the post of attorney general has assured lawmakers of taking steps towards pushing legislative measures to curb misuse of H-1B and L1 work visas significantly used by Indian IT professionals and allegedly replace American workers.

&quot;It&#39;s simply wrong to think that we&#39;re in a totally open world and that any American with a job can be replaced if somebody in the world is willing to take a job for less pay,&quot; Senator Jeff Sessions told members of Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearing for the position of US attorney general.

&quot;We have borders. We have a commitment to our citizens and you have been a champion of that. I&#39;ve been honoured to work with you on it,&quot; Sessions said in response to a question from Senator Charles Grassley, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. 
In the past both Sessions and Grassley have worked together to bring legislations on H-1B visas that badly hit Indian IT companies.

Sessions is a staunch conservative&nbsp;with a controversial history.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/trumps-ag-nominee-sessions-questioned-by-senate-committee-as-protesters-shout-wear-kkk-hoods-11125">Yesterday, Sessions</a> said in a senate hear that allegations that he harboured sympathies toward the Ku Klux Klan, a violent white supremacist organisation, were false. &quot;I abhor the Klan and what it represents and its hateful ideology,&quot; Sessions said in his opening remarks. Protesters, some wearing Ku Klux Klan hoods, disrupted the hearing, shouting that Sessions was a racist and a bigot.

Former KKK leader David Duke has openly praised the appointment of Jeff Sessions as attorney general.

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Bannon, Flynn, Sessions -- Great! Senate must demand that Sessions as AG stop the massive institutional race discrimination against whites!
&mdash; David Duke (@DrDavidDuke) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrDavidDuke/status/799624219831058432">November 18, 2016</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

Border attitudes

The Office of Special Counsel for immigration related unfair employment practices is an office within the Justice Department which would be headed by Sessions if he is confirmed by the US Senate. The Office enforces the anti-discrimination provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

&quot;While the office is designed to protect foreign nationals with employment visas from discrimination, it is also charged with ensuring that American workers are not discriminated against in the workplace. Many US workers advocate that the layoff of American workers and the replacement by cheaper, foreign, H-1B workers constitutes de facto nationality based discrimination against American workers,&quot; Grassley said.

&quot;The Obama administration has failed to protect American workers here. Will you, this is my question, will you be more aggressive in investigating the abuses of these visa programmes?&quot; he asked. &quot;I believe this has been an abuse. And I have been pleased to support your legislation and some others too, that others have produced that I believe could be helpful. It needs to be addressed,&quot; Sessions said.

Describing Sessions as a vocal champion for American workers, Grassley said many American workers are being laid off and replaced by cheaper foreign labour imported through some of the US visa programmes.

Sessions, Grassley and Senator Dick Durbin in the past had co-sponsored a bill that would reform H-1B visa programmes by ensuring that qualified American workers are considered for high skilled job opportunities before those jobs can be offered to foreign nationals.

&quot;It also prohibit a company from hiring H-1B employees if they employ more than 50 people and more than 50 per cent of their employees are H-1B or L-1 visa holders,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

(PTI)

Jeff Sessions characterised the Visa program that many Indians use to work in the US as an 'abuse', and pledged to aggressively investigate

US President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for the post of attorney general has assured lawmakers of taking steps towards pushing legislative measures to curb misuse of H-1B and L1 work visas significantly used by Indian IT professionals and allegedly replace American workers. "It's simply wrong to think that we're in a totally open world and that any American with a job can be replaced if somebody in the world is willing to take a job for less pay," Senator Jeff Sessions told members of Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearing for the position of US attorney general. "We have borders. We have a commitment to our citizens and you have been a champion of that. I've been honoured to work with you on it," Sessions said in response to a question from Senator Charles Grassley, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In the past both Sessions and Grassley have worked together to bring legislations on H-1B visas that badly hit Indian IT companies. Sessions is a staunch conservative with a controversial history. Yesterday, Sessions said in a senate hear that allegations that he harboured sympathies toward the Ku Klux Klan, a violent white supremacist organisation, were false. "I abhor the Klan and what it represents and its hateful ideology," Sessions said in his opening remarks. Protesters, some wearing Ku Klux Klan hoods, disrupted the hearing, shouting that Sessions was a racist and a bigot. Former KKK leader David Duke has openly praised the appointment of Jeff Sessions as attorney general. Bannon, Flynn, Sessions -- Great! Senate must demand that Sessions as AG stop the massive institutional race discrimination against whites! — David Duke (@DrDavidDuke) November 18, 2016 × Border attitudes The Office of Special Counsel for immigration related unfair employment practices is an office within the Justice Department which would be headed by Sessions if he is confirmed by the US Senate. The Office enforces the anti-discrimination provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act. "While the office is designed to protect foreign nationals with employment visas from discrimination, it is also charged with ensuring that American workers are not discriminated against in the workplace. Many US workers advocate that the layoff of American workers and the replacement by cheaper, foreign, H-1B workers constitutes de facto nationality based discrimination against American workers," Grassley said. "The Obama administration has failed to protect American workers here. Will you, this is my question, will you be more aggressive in investigating the abuses of these visa programmes?" he asked. "I believe this has been an abuse. And I have been pleased to support your legislation and some others too, that others have produced that I believe could be helpful. It needs to be addressed," Sessions said. Describing Sessions as a vocal champion for American workers, Grassley said many American workers are being laid off and replaced by cheaper foreign labour imported through some of the US visa programmes. Sessions, Grassley and Senator Dick Durbin in the past had co-sponsored a bill that would reform H-1B visa programmes by ensuring that qualified American workers are considered for high skilled job opportunities before those jobs can be offered to foreign nationals. "It also prohibit a company from hiring H-1B employees if they employ more than 50 people and more than 50 per cent of their employees are H-1B or L-1 visa holders," he said. (PTI)

Trump's controversial attorney general nominee promises curbs on H-1B visas

The US has no plans to alter its One-China policy, but has made important commitments to Taiwan and needs to reaffirm them, Secretary of State nominee for the incoming Trump Administration has said.

&quot;I don&#39;t know of any plans to alter the one-China position,&quot; Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson told members of Senate Foreign Relations during his confirmation hearing for the position of Secretary of State yesterday. If confirmed, he would replace John Kerry as the Secretary of State.

However, Tillerson said the US had made important commitments to Taiwan through the Taiwan Relations Act, through the Six Issues Accord, and the country should express a reaffirmation of those.

&quot;Again, this is part of this approach that I&#39;m trying to lay out over and over, that we&#39;ve made commitments to people. We need to reaffirm those commitments and live up to those commitments, and I think it&#39;s important that Taiwan knows that we are going to live up to the commitments under the Relations Act and the Six Issues Accord,&quot; he said.

&quot;That in and of itself is a message, so I think the importance of that action to, again, this whole of China approach that I&#39;m speaking about, is we&#39;ve got to deal with the whole of China&#39;s actions and recognise that we have these balancing forces in our relationship that need to be dealt with,&quot; Tillerson said in response to a question.

(PTI)

Trump's incoming state secretary and former ExxonMobil CEO said the US has no plans to alter China relations, but made overtures to Taiwan

The US has no plans to alter its One-China policy, but has made important commitments to Taiwan and needs to reaffirm them, Secretary of State nominee for the incoming Trump Administration has said. "I don't know of any plans to alter the one-China position," Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson told members of Senate Foreign Relations during his confirmation hearing for the position of Secretary of State yesterday. If confirmed, he would replace John Kerry as the Secretary of State. However, Tillerson said the US had made important commitments to Taiwan through the Taiwan Relations Act, through the Six Issues Accord, and the country should express a reaffirmation of those. "Again, this is part of this approach that I'm trying to lay out over and over, that we've made commitments to people. We need to reaffirm those commitments and live up to those commitments, and I think it's important that Taiwan knows that we are going to live up to the commitments under the Relations Act and the Six Issues Accord," he said. "That in and of itself is a message, so I think the importance of that action to, again, this whole of China approach that I'm speaking about, is we've got to deal with the whole of China's actions and recognise that we have these balancing forces in our relationship that need to be dealt with," Tillerson said in response to a question. (PTI)

I don't know of any plans to alter the one-China position: Rex Tillerson

Trump called CNN 'fake news' and Buzzfeed a 'pile of garbage' for publishing a report about Russia having 'compromising' information on him

(Click to watch the media briefing live) United States President-elect Donald Trump will hold his first press conference since winning the election on November 8. In fact, this will be his first media conference since July 2016. Trump will be addressing the media at the lobby of Trump Tower in midtown Manhattan at 2130 Indian Standard Time (1400 hours GMT). In the last 24 hours, Trump has faced a growing avalanche of questions about his alleged ties with the Kremlin -- allegations that have been vociferously denied by the president-elect. On December 10, CNN reported that classified documents presented last week to president-elect Donald Trump included allegations that Russian operatives claim to have compromising information about him. The allegations were in a two-page synopsis appended to a report presented by US intelligence officials to Trump and President Barack Obama on Russian interference in the 2016 election, citing multiple US officials with direct knowledge of the briefings. Hours later, BuzzFeed published unverified document, saying that the Kremlin had "cultivated" Trump for the last five years. To this, Trump tweeted: 'BuzzFeed Runs Unverifiable Trump-Russia Claims' #FakeNews https://t.co/d6daCFZHNh — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2017 × Some of the tough questions he will have to face include Russia's role in Ukraine and Crimea, his ties with Moscow and the issue of barring Muslims from entering the country. 2241 IST: Now on to the intel agencies. "Intelligence agencies are vital. We are going to be putting in some outstanding people and they will come up with a major report on hacking. The United States is hacked by everybody. The Republicans didn't get hacked because we had a strong hacking defence. The Democrats failed and that's why they failed with the country," Trump said, adding that a hacking report will be submitted in the next 90 days. He again condemns the intelligence units for outing classified reports. "That report should have never been written," Trump said, alluding to the BuzzFeed report. 2238 IST: Trump now moves to his pet peeve -- the media. He calls Buzzfeed a "failing pile of garbage" and also made a blistering attack on CNN. Things are getting quite tetchy now, with Trump now asking a reporter to quieten down and when the latter doesn't, he refuses to answer his question. He also sardonically calls the BBC a "thing of beauty". 2236 IST: On the Supreme Court, Trump said he had a list of 20 candidates. He will a decision in another two weeks. 2231 IST: He moves on to his next favourite project -- the Mexican border wall. There will be a major border tax on companies who are leaving and getting away with murder, the 70-year-old said. "If they hadn't, millions of people would have jobs in the country," Trump said, reiterating that "they are going to build a wall". He says they won't wait for a year to start building the wall and that the Mexicans will have to pay for the wall -- a theme that he has droned on about since his campaign trail. He adds that he "respects" Mexico and the phenomenal "Mexican government". He doesn't blame the Mexican government but chastises the foolhardiness of the past US governments. "They (Mexico) just took advantage of the situation." 2227 IST: Finally on to ObamaCare, a topic that Trump wishes to talk about. He starts off by calling it a "total disaster" and that it was "imploding" in several states. "We don't want to own it, politically. We are going to be submitting a plan -- a plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare, almost simultaneously. We are going to get a health care in place, maybe within minutes after the ObamaCare is repealed. We are doing them (the Democrats) a great service by repealing the plan," Trump says, adding that they would put in place a cheaper health care plan. 2225 IST: Trump trains his guns on China again and the need to reverse the trade imbalance the US currently has with Beijing and Japan. 2223 IST: Dillon says Trump will donate all gifts received from leaders of other groups to the American treasury. She stresses that her client wants to make the country great again and bring success to all Americans. 2213 IST: "Trump has relinquished leadership of his company. His sons -- Don Junior and Eric -- will take over the company. The company will abide by the highest ethics standards. President Trump will resign from all positions he holds in the Trump entity. So will Ivanka relinquish all her roles in the company," says Dillon, the president-elect's lawyer. 2210 IST: When asked about his tax returns, Trump seems to parry the question, saying he wasn't releasing the figures as they were currently under audit. "The only people that care about my tax returns is the reporters,"Trump said as a handful of reporters whooped to back the president-elect. "I became president. I think you care. First of all you learn very little from tax returns.” 2207 IST: Trump says he could run the Trump organisation and the country at the same time but doesn't want to. 2206 IST: Trump reveals he is a germaphobe. 2205 IST: On his relationship with Vladimir Putin and him trying to help him win the election, Trump said: "If Putin likes Trump, I consider that as an asset, not a liability." He goes on to say "he has no deals with Russia, will not have deals with Russia and have no loans with Russia at all". He asserts he could make new deals in Russia but doesn't want to as it would be a conflict of interest. 2201 IST: "Putin said the fake news was indeed fake news. If something did happen, they (the Russians) would have released (information)," Trump said. Trump looks at the upside of the hack, saying it revealed important facts about Hillary Clinton. "It would have been big news if I had done that," says Trump 2200 IST: Responding to the hacking controversy that has dogged Trump ever since he won the election, he said he would build a more stringent anti-hacking devices. 2155 IST: He also talks about the F-35s and lamented about the much-delayed fighter jet project. 2153 IST: Trump hopes that the drug industry is revived in the country. Promises to streamline the bidding procedure of pharma companies. He also says that Chinese billionaire Jack Ma has promised to do "tremendous things" for the country. 2151 IST: Unexpectedly, Donald Trump starts off by chastising the intelligence agencies for leaking unverified news about his links to the Kremlin. However, he does say he has "great respect" for some of the media outlets and lauds their "professionalism" 2150 IST: Vice president-elect Mike Pence was similarly scathing of the report published by BuzzFeed. 2148 IST (Indian Standard Time): Donald Trump spokesperson Sean Spicer starts the media briefing by ripping into BuzzFeed and CNN's "outrageous" report in blistering fashing. Calling it a "highly irresponsible" report, Spicer said the media was trying to scythe the legitimacy of the new government. (WION)

Donald Trump lashes out at Buzzfeed, CNN amid Russia allegations

US&nbsp;President-elect Donald Trump will make Jared Kushner his senior adviser, US media reported.&nbsp;The position, unlike Cabinet posts, does not require US&nbsp;Senate confirmation.

Kushner, 35, is married to Donald Trump&#39;s&nbsp;eldest daughter Ivanka, and like Trump&nbsp;is a New York-based real estate developer with business dealings that could lead to conflict of&nbsp;interest.&nbsp;

Kushner, who like Donald&nbsp;has no previous experience working in politics, has been instrumental in Trump&#39;s campaign during the presidential elections, playing a key role in advising him in matters of appointment and strategy. He was&nbsp;involved in almost every aspect of it, from personnel decisions to strategy and fundraising.

It remains to be ascertained how Kushner&#39;s appointment could affect the&nbsp;federal anti-nepotism law that prohibits a president from hiring relatives.&nbsp;Kushner will need to argue that the federal anti-nepotism laws, which prohibit&nbsp;any federal official from hiring family members to an agency or office which he or she leads,&nbsp;do not apply to him, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/09/jared-kushner-senior-adviser-donald-trump">The Guardian</a> reports.

The law has loopholes: Ethics experts say that Kushner could retain a technically unofficial rule, such as serving as&nbsp;&quot;consultant&quot;, and bypass the law, The Guardian reports.&nbsp;Trump&#39;s transition team has said that Kushner &quot;has chosen to forego his salary while serving in the administration&quot;. Forbes estimates that Kushner, along with his parents and adult brother, is worth an estimated $1.8 billion, PTI reports.

&nbsp;

Divesting?

Kushner&nbsp;and his wife will reportedly undertake significant divestments of their wide-ranging financial portfolios as they prepare for their move to Washington from New York and face inevitable questions about&nbsp;potential conflicts of interest. Kushner will resign from his positions as chief executive of the Kushner Companies and as publisher of the New York Observer newspaper and divest from any interests in the New York Observer, Thrive Capital, the 666 Fifth Avenue office building in midtown Manhattan and any foreign investments.

In addition, Kushner will recuse himself from participating in matters that could have a direct effect on his remaining financial interests. Those interests include real estate in the New York area, Ivanka Trump&#39;s interest in the new Trump hotel in Washington and the Ivanka Trump Brand fashion business, the officials said. Kushner will file a public financial disclosure form.

While those in his cabinet appear to be divesting themselves, Donald Trump, who owns at least&nbsp;<a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/28/politics/trump-foreign-businesses/">144&nbsp;foreign companies in 25 different countries</a>, has never indicated that he will sell off his&nbsp;business interests before serving as president.&nbsp;Foreign diplomats&nbsp;are reportedly going out of their way to stay in <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/2016/11/18/9da9c572-ad18-11e6-977a-1030f822fc35_story.html?utm_term=.2f13ec6258a0">Trump&#39;s hotel and buy his products</a>&nbsp;when they visit Washington, the Washington Post reports.&nbsp;

Trump&nbsp;has repeatedly failed to&nbsp;release his tax returns, a document that&nbsp;could potentially shed light on potential conflicts of interest, after promising to do so. Originally Trump said he would release them publicly except he was not allowed to because he was under audit.&nbsp;American tax collectors said he was under audit, but that he was free to release them. Trump&#39;s&nbsp;son said that his father would release his tax return, except&nbsp;doing so would subject them to public scrutiny.

Ivanka Trump, who like her husband has been a close adviser to the president-elect, will not take on an official role in her father&#39;s White House, but will reportedly focus on settling her family in Washington. While Donald Trump has claimed she will run his businesses and have no political role, Ivanka was pictured attending&nbsp;a meeting in Trump Towers with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and was also pictured at a meeting with American tech industry leaders, leading to doubts that there will be a meaningful separation between Trump&#39;s business interests and his role&nbsp;as public servant.

Trump has said he would transfer control of his business to his children, but he has given no details. Trump claimed in November via Twitter there would be a&nbsp;news conference in December on the topic, but&nbsp;it&nbsp;was cancelled. Trump is expected to take questions from reporters this week.

&nbsp;

&#39;We have the better argument&#39;

Jamie Gorelick, a New York lawyer who served as deputy attorney general for Democratic President Bill Clinton and helped advise Kushner, said his new post would not violate a 1967 anti-nepotism statute.

She said Congress in 1978 authorised the president to hire personnel for the White House office &quot;without regard&quot; to federal personnel laws like the anti-nepotism statute and that court rulings had determined the White House was not an &quot;agency&quot; under the anti-nepotism law.

&quot;I&#39;m not saying that there isn&#39;t an argument on the other side, and I respect the people who have made the argument on the other side. I just think we have the better argument,&quot; Gorelick said.

Richard Briffault, a government ethics expert at Columbia Law School, disagreed, saying: &quot;Given the fact that the president is specifically mentioned, you would think that someone that is working for the president would be covered&quot; by the anti-nepotism law.

Bill Clinton aroused controversy in 1993 when he named his wife, Hillary Clinton, to lead his healthcare reform drive. She lost the November&nbsp;8 election to Trump. After John F&nbsp;Kennedy was elected president in 1960, he chose his brother Robert as attorney general.

Late on Monday, a group of six Democrats on the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee said they had written to the Justice Department and US&nbsp;Office of Government Ethics asking them to review concerns about nepotism and conflicts of interest arising from Kushner&#39;s appointment.

(With inputs from agencies)

Jared Kushner has no political experience whatsoever, and his family is worth $1.8 billion. Anti-nepotism lawyers are already at work

US President-elect Donald Trump will make Jared Kushner his senior adviser, US media reported. The position, unlike Cabinet posts, does not require US Senate confirmation. Kushner, 35, is married to Donald Trump's eldest daughter Ivanka, and like Trump is a New York-based real estate developer with business dealings that could lead to conflict of interest. Kushner, who like Donald has no previous experience working in politics, has been instrumental in Trump's campaign during the presidential elections, playing a key role in advising him in matters of appointment and strategy. He was involved in almost every aspect of it, from personnel decisions to strategy and fundraising. It remains to be ascertained how Kushner's appointment could affect the federal anti-nepotism law that prohibits a president from hiring relatives. Kushner will need to argue that the federal anti-nepotism laws, which prohibit any federal official from hiring family members to an agency or office which he or she leads, do not apply to him, The Guardian reports. The law has loopholes: Ethics experts say that Kushner could retain a technically unofficial rule, such as serving as "consultant", and bypass the law, The Guardian reports. Trump's transition team has said that Kushner "has chosen to forego his salary while serving in the administration". Forbes estimates that Kushner, along with his parents and adult brother, is worth an estimated $1.8 billion, PTI reports. Divesting? Kushner and his wife will reportedly undertake significant divestments of their wide-ranging financial portfolios as they prepare for their move to Washington from New York and face inevitable questions about potential conflicts of interest. Kushner will resign from his positions as chief executive of the Kushner Companies and as publisher of the New York Observer newspaper and divest from any interests in the New York Observer, Thrive Capital, the 666 Fifth Avenue office building in midtown Manhattan and any foreign investments. In addition, Kushner will recuse himself from participating in matters that could have a direct effect on his remaining financial interests. Those interests include real estate in the New York area, Ivanka Trump's interest in the new Trump hotel in Washington and the Ivanka Trump Brand fashion business, the officials said. Kushner will file a public financial disclosure form. While those in his cabinet appear to be divesting themselves, Donald Trump, who owns at least 144 foreign companies in 25 different countries, has never indicated that he will sell off his business interests before serving as president. Foreign diplomats are reportedly going out of their way to stay in Trump's hotel and buy his products when they visit Washington, the Washington Post reports. Trump has repeatedly failed to release his tax returns, a document that could potentially shed light on potential conflicts of interest, after promising to do so. Originally Trump said he would release them publicly except he was not allowed to because he was under audit. American tax collectors said he was under audit, but that he was free to release them. Trump's son said that his father would release his tax return, except doing so would subject them to public scrutiny. Ivanka Trump, who like her husband has been a close adviser to the president-elect, will not take on an official role in her father's White House, but will reportedly focus on settling her family in Washington. While Donald Trump has claimed she will run his businesses and have no political role, Ivanka was pictured attending a meeting in Trump Towers with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and was also pictured at a meeting with American tech industry leaders, leading to doubts that there will be a meaningful separation between Trump's business interests and his role as public servant. Trump has said he would transfer control of his business to his children, but he has given no details. Trump claimed in November via Twitter there would be a news conference in December on the topic, but it was cancelled. Trump is expected to take questions from reporters this week. 'We have the better argument' Jamie Gorelick, a New York lawyer who served as deputy attorney general for Democratic President Bill Clinton and helped advise Kushner, said his new post would not violate a 1967 anti-nepotism statute. She said Congress in 1978 authorised the president to hire personnel for the White House office "without regard" to federal personnel laws like the anti-nepotism statute and that court rulings had determined the White House was not an "agency" under the anti-nepotism law. "I'm not saying that there isn't an argument on the other side, and I respect the people who have made the argument on the other side. I just think we have the better argument," Gorelick said. Richard Briffault, a government ethics expert at Columbia Law School, disagreed, saying: "Given the fact that the president is specifically mentioned, you would think that someone that is working for the president would be covered" by the anti-nepotism law. Bill Clinton aroused controversy in 1993 when he named his wife, Hillary Clinton, to lead his healthcare reform drive. She lost the November 8 election to Trump. After John F Kennedy was elected president in 1960, he chose his brother Robert as attorney general. Late on Monday, a group of six Democrats on the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee said they had written to the Justice Department and US Office of Government Ethics asking them to review concerns about nepotism and conflicts of interest arising from Kushner's appointment. (With inputs from agencies)

Trump to make son-in-law senior adviser

In rare praise for Donald Trump, US President Barack Obama has said the President-elect is &quot;very engaging and gregarious&quot; and not lacking in confidence, but acknowledged that they were &quot;opposites in some ways&quot;.

&quot;He is somebody who I think is very engaging and gregarious. I have enjoyed the conversations that we have had. He is somebody who I think is not lacking in confidence,&quot; Obama said.

&quot;You have to have enough craziness to think that you can do the job. I think that he has not spent a lot of time sweating the details of, all the policies that I think that can be both a strength and a weakness. I think it depends on how he approaches it. If it gives him fresh eyes, then that can be valuable. But it also requires you knowing what you do not know and putting in place people who do have the kinds of experience and background and knowledge that can inform good decision&nbsp;making. I think it is fair to say that he and I are sort of opposites in some ways,&quot; Obama said.

After the November 8 general elections, Obama and Trump have had several talks over the phone after their first meeting at the Oval Office, days after the elections.

&quot;The conversations have been cordial. He has been open to suggestions. The main thing that I have tried to transmit is that there is a difference between governing and campaigning, so that what he has to appreciate is, as soon as you walk into this office after you have been sworn in, you are now in charge of the largest organisation on Earth,&quot; Obama told ABC News.

&quot;You cannot manage it the way you would manage a family business. You cannot manage it the way you would manage a Senate office as I was a senator before I became president and so you have to have a strong team around you. You have to have respect for institutions and the process to make good decisions because you are inherently reliant on other folks.

&quot;So when I talked to him about our intelligence agencies, what I have said to him is that there are going to be times where you have got raw intelligence that comes in and, in my experience, over eight years the intelligence community is pretty good about saying,&nbsp;&#39;Look, we cannot say for certain what this means,&#39;&quot; the US President said.

He said that &quot;there are going to be times where the only way you can make a good decision is if you have confidence that the process is working and the people that you put in charge are giving you their very best assessments&quot;.

Not lacking in confidence, Obama said, is probably a prerequisite for the job.

(PTI)&nbsp;

Obama's rare and faint praise also came with the warning, 'You have to have respect for institutions'

In rare praise for Donald Trump, US President Barack Obama has said the President-elect is "very engaging and gregarious" and not lacking in confidence, but acknowledged that they were "opposites in some ways". "He is somebody who I think is very engaging and gregarious. I have enjoyed the conversations that we have had. He is somebody who I think is not lacking in confidence," Obama said. "You have to have enough craziness to think that you can do the job. I think that he has not spent a lot of time sweating the details of, all the policies that I think that can be both a strength and a weakness. I think it depends on how he approaches it. If it gives him fresh eyes, then that can be valuable. But it also requires you knowing what you do not know and putting in place people who do have the kinds of experience and background and knowledge that can inform good decision making. I think it is fair to say that he and I are sort of opposites in some ways," Obama said. After the November 8 general elections, Obama and Trump have had several talks over the phone after their first meeting at the Oval Office, days after the elections. "The conversations have been cordial. He has been open to suggestions. The main thing that I have tried to transmit is that there is a difference between governing and campaigning, so that what he has to appreciate is, as soon as you walk into this office after you have been sworn in, you are now in charge of the largest organisation on Earth," Obama told ABC News. "You cannot manage it the way you would manage a family business. You cannot manage it the way you would manage a Senate office as I was a senator before I became president and so you have to have a strong team around you. You have to have respect for institutions and the process to make good decisions because you are inherently reliant on other folks. "So when I talked to him about our intelligence agencies, what I have said to him is that there are going to be times where you have got raw intelligence that comes in and, in my experience, over eight years the intelligence community is pretty good about saying, 'Look, we cannot say for certain what this means,'" the US President said. He said that "there are going to be times where the only way you can make a good decision is if you have confidence that the process is working and the people that you put in charge are giving you their very best assessments". Not lacking in confidence, Obama said, is probably a prerequisite for the job. (PTI)

Obama calls Trump 'engaging and gregarious'

House Republicans have revived a law from 1876 that allows members of Congress to target individual federal employees and reduce their pay to $1, the Washington Post reports.

The Holman Rule, as it&#39;s known, permits Congress members to single out any of the 2.1 million civil servants the US employs for a career-ending reduction in pay, as well as to cut specific programs to $0, the Washington Post reports.

Majorities in the House and Senate still&nbsp;need to approve the amendment before the Holman Rule can be enacted, but the mere possibility has critics fearing&nbsp;Republicans can use this to target&nbsp;opponents.

There are reasons to be suspicious.

Two&nbsp;weeks ago the Trump transition team sent a questionnaire to&nbsp;the <a href="http://www.salon.com/2017/01/06/house-republicans-support-rule-that-could-allow-them-to-pay-individual-federal-workers-1/">Department of Energy</a>&nbsp;to identify&nbsp;specific employees working on&nbsp;climate change, <a href="http://www.salon.com/2017/01/06/house-republicans-support-rule-that-could-allow-them-to-pay-individual-federal-workers-1/">Salon reports</a>. <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/josh-rogin/wp/2016/12/22/trump-team-asked-state-department-for-info-on-womens-issues-programs-stoking-fears-of-another-witch-hunt/?utm_term=.f3fbe99d7958">The Washington Post</a> reports that Trump&#39;s team also sought the names from the State Department&nbsp;of individuals working on women&#39;s health issues.

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Oh, hey, remember when the transition team asked for names of climate change staff at DOE and women&#39;s program staff at State? This is why. <a href="https://t.co/fAxAOliFwG">https://t.co/fAxAOliFwG</a>
&mdash; Megan Carpentier (@megancarpentier) <a href="https://twitter.com/megancarpentier/status/817147618363117569">January 5, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Also in the crosshairs is&nbsp;intelligence.&nbsp;On Thursday,&nbsp;Trump said that plans to overhaul the Office of the Director National Intelligence, Salon reports.&nbsp;

Trump has clashed for weeks&nbsp;with US intelligence agencies, who now state&nbsp;unequivocally that&nbsp;Vladimir Putin interefered in the US election to benefit Trump. Trump, who in the presidential debates openly called on Russia&nbsp;to hack Clinton&#39;s emails, denied that Russia had any role in interfering&nbsp;with the US election. Last night he issued a <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/trump-admits-russia-interfered-with-us-election-after-meeting-intelligence-heads-10988">statement</a>&nbsp;admitting&nbsp;that Russia, among others, did interefere&nbsp;in the US election, but denied&nbsp;that it&nbsp;affected its&nbsp;outcome.

Trump&nbsp;has&nbsp;claimed&nbsp;he does not receive daily intelligence briefings, and has cast doubt on his country&#39;s own intellgence agencies. Last week he publicly sided with&nbsp;Julian Assange over&nbsp;the FBI, CIA and the White House.

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Julian Assange said &quot;a 14 year old could have hacked Podesta&quot; - why was DNC so careless? Also said Russians did not give him the info!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/816620855958601730">January 4, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Republican Represenative from Virginia H Morgan Griffith suggested the Holman Rule may really&nbsp;come about&nbsp;and&nbsp;appeared to justify it,&nbsp;telling&nbsp;the Washington Post:&nbsp;&quot;I can&#39;t tell you it won&#39;t happen...The Power is there. But isn&#39;t that appropriate? Who runs the country, the people of the United State or the people on the people&#39;s payroll?&quot;

House Majority leader told reporters earlier in the week appeared to justify the Holman Rule, saying, &quot;All agencies should be held accountable and tested in a manner, and this is an avenue to allow them to do it&quot;, Salon reports.

The Holman Rule could be used in still more places&nbsp;too, critics fear.&nbsp;

As <a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/01/congress-can-now-cut-the-pay-of-individual-civil-servants.html">NYMag</a> neatly points&nbsp;out, Trump is picking candidates with decades of experience&nbsp;that run contrary to&nbsp;the stated objectives of the departments they will lead: &quot;The president-elect&rsquo;s Labor Secretary&ndash;designate is&nbsp;<a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/trump-gives-middle-finger-to-wage-earners-with-labor-pick.html" target="_blank">a fast-food executive</a>&nbsp;whose restaurants are serial violators of labor law; his EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) head is an&nbsp;<a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/report-donald-trump-names-scott-pruitt-as-head-of-the-epa.html" target="_blank">ally of the oil industry</a>&nbsp;who loves to sue the EPA; his&nbsp;<a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/11/carson-is-trumps-pick-for-hud-for-some-awful-reason.html" target="_blank">head of Housing and Urban Development</a>&nbsp;has called the Fair Housing Act &#39;communist&#39;.&quot;

On Tuesday Republicans voted to <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/us-republicans-scrap-move-to-gut-non-partisan-ethics-watchdog-10872">gut the only non-partisan ethics </a>watchdog committed to overseeing&nbsp;Congress.&nbsp;

This week, in an unprecedented step,&nbsp;Trump demanded&nbsp;that&nbsp;all US envoys around the world posted by <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/trump-asks-us-envoys-appointed-by-obama-to-quit-by-inauguration-day-10984">Obama must quit their post</a> before his January 20 inauguration. This threatens to leave the US without envoys in several important countries, including Canada, Germany, and Britain.

How&nbsp;the Republicans use this 140-year-old law has yet to be seen, but&nbsp;their hostility to the previous administration&nbsp;is&nbsp;beyond a doubt.&nbsp;

(WION)&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Critics fear Republicans will use the obscure Holman Rule to attack a broad spectrum of opponents. There are many good reasons to worry

House Republicans have revived a law from 1876 that allows members of Congress to target individual federal employees and reduce their pay to $1, the Washington Post reports. The Holman Rule, as it's known, permits Congress members to single out any of the 2.1 million civil servants the US employs for a career-ending reduction in pay, as well as to cut specific programs to $0, the Washington Post reports. Majorities in the House and Senate still need to approve the amendment before the Holman Rule can be enacted, but the mere possibility has critics fearing Republicans can use this to target opponents. There are reasons to be suspicious. Two weeks ago the Trump transition team sent a questionnaire to the Department of Energy to identify specific employees working on climate change, Salon reports. The Washington Post reports that Trump's team also sought the names from the State Department of individuals working on women's health issues. Oh, hey, remember when the transition team asked for names of climate change staff at DOE and women's program staff at State? This is why. https://t.co/fAxAOliFwG — Megan Carpentier (@megancarpentier) January 5, 2017 × Also in the crosshairs is intelligence. On Thursday, Trump said that plans to overhaul the Office of the Director National Intelligence, Salon reports. Trump has clashed for weeks with US intelligence agencies, who now state unequivocally that Vladimir Putin interefered in the US election to benefit Trump. Trump, who in the presidential debates openly called on Russia to hack Clinton's emails, denied that Russia had any role in interfering with the US election. Last night he issued a statement admitting that Russia, among others, did interefere in the US election, but denied that it affected its outcome. Trump has claimed he does not receive daily intelligence briefings, and has cast doubt on his country's own intellgence agencies. Last week he publicly sided with Julian Assange over the FBI, CIA and the White House. Julian Assange said "a 14 year old could have hacked Podesta" - why was DNC so careless? Also said Russians did not give him the info! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2017 × Republican Represenative from Virginia H Morgan Griffith suggested the Holman Rule may really come about and appeared to justify it, telling the Washington Post: "I can't tell you it won't happen...The Power is there. But isn't that appropriate? Who runs the country, the people of the United State or the people on the people's payroll?" House Majority leader told reporters earlier in the week appeared to justify the Holman Rule, saying, "All agencies should be held accountable and tested in a manner, and this is an avenue to allow them to do it", Salon reports. The Holman Rule could be used in still more places too, critics fear. As NYMag neatly points out, Trump is picking candidates with decades of experience that run contrary to the stated objectives of the departments they will lead: "The president-elect’s Labor Secretary–designate is a fast-food executive whose restaurants are serial violators of labor law; his EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) head is an ally of the oil industry who loves to sue the EPA; his head of Housing and Urban Development has called the Fair Housing Act 'communist'." On Tuesday Republicans voted to gut the only non-partisan ethics watchdog committed to overseeing Congress. This week, in an unprecedented step, Trump demanded that all US envoys around the world posted by Obama must quit their post before his January 20 inauguration. This threatens to leave the US without envoys in several important countries, including Canada, Germany, and Britain. How the Republicans use this 140-year-old law has yet to be seen, but their hostility to the previous administration is beyond a doubt. (WION)

Republicans invoke 140-year-old law that could reduce federal employees' wage to $1

While US President-elect Donald Trump wants to put the brakes on projects by Toyota and American automakers in Mexico, the country has become a global powerhouse when it comes to making cars.

Mexico is the world&#39;s fourth-largest exporter and seventh-largest producer of vehicles, which are made in 14 of the country&#39;s 32 states, according to industry figures.

The $52 billion-per-year industry represents some 875,000 jobs in Mexico, according to the economy ministry.&nbsp;

But the US president-elect wants to bring those jobs back to the United States.

Trump threatened on Thursday to impose a stiff tariff on Toyota if it goes through with plans to build a new factory in Mexico instead of making it in the United States.

On Tuesday, he made a similar threat against General Motors, while Ford announced the cancellation of a new $1.6 billion Mexican factory that Trump had criticized during the presidential campaign.

Free trade deals

The main reasons why Mexico is so attractive to foreign investors is its relatively low wages, its proximity to the US market and the free trade deals the country has with 46 countries.

The main pact is the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that Mexico enacted with the United States and Canada in 1994.

But Trump wants to renegotiate NAFTA, threatening to withdraw if he can&#39;t get a better deal for the United States.

&nbsp;Export machine

Some 80 per cent of vehicles made in Mexico are exported. All are foreign companies as Mexico does not have its own brand.

While cars are shipped to 100 countries, three-quarters of the vehicles produced in Mexico are sent to the United States and more than 10 per cent go to Canada.

In the first 11 months of 2016, GM led vehicle exports from Mexico with 495,790, followed by Nissan (464,877), Fiat Chrysler America (404,160) and Ford (351,691), according to the Mexican Automobile Industry Association.

Toyota was ninth out of 10 car makers with 124,439 vehicle exports.

&nbsp;

(AFP)

&nbsp;

The $52 billion-a-year industry has created some 875,000 jobs in Mexico, which the US president-elect wants to bring back to the States

While US President-elect Donald Trump wants to put the brakes on projects by Toyota and American automakers in Mexico, the country has become a global powerhouse when it comes to making cars. Mexico is the world's fourth-largest exporter and seventh-largest producer of vehicles, which are made in 14 of the country's 32 states, according to industry figures. The $52 billion-per-year industry represents some 875,000 jobs in Mexico, according to the economy ministry. But the US president-elect wants to bring those jobs back to the United States. Trump threatened on Thursday to impose a stiff tariff on Toyota if it goes through with plans to build a new factory in Mexico instead of making it in the United States. On Tuesday, he made a similar threat against General Motors, while Ford announced the cancellation of a new $1.6 billion Mexican factory that Trump had criticized during the presidential campaign. Free trade deals The main reasons why Mexico is so attractive to foreign investors is its relatively low wages, its proximity to the US market and the free trade deals the country has with 46 countries. The main pact is the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that Mexico enacted with the United States and Canada in 1994. But Trump wants to renegotiate NAFTA, threatening to withdraw if he can't get a better deal for the United States. Export machine Some 80 per cent of vehicles made in Mexico are exported. All are foreign companies as Mexico does not have its own brand. While cars are shipped to 100 countries, three-quarters of the vehicles produced in Mexico are sent to the United States and more than 10 per cent go to Canada. In the first 11 months of 2016, GM led vehicle exports from Mexico with 495,790, followed by Nissan (464,877), Fiat Chrysler America (404,160) and Ford (351,691), according to the Mexican Automobile Industry Association. Toyota was ninth out of 10 car makers with 124,439 vehicle exports. (AFP)

Auto industry targeted by Trump is vital to Mexico

US President Barack Obama headed on Wednesday to Capitol Hill where he urged fellow Democrats to &quot;fight&quot; to preserve his signature health care reform that Donald Trump vows to start repealing on day one of his administration.

Obamacare, the fruit of an eight-year drive to extend medical coverage to tens of millions of Americans, will come under sustained assault when Trump takes office January 20 with Republican majorities in both chambers of Congress.

But the debate over US health care began in earnest Wednesday with Obama and Vice President-elect Mike Pence making duelling visits to Congress where they urged their footsoldiers to gird for battle.

&quot;I envy you for the opportunity you are going to have to engage in this fight to protect health care for the American people,&quot; the outgoing president told Senate and House Democrats, according to Senator Ed Markey who attended the 100-minute meeting.

After a crushing election loss, Democrats may have limited options for stalling a repeal of Obamacare without significant Republican defections.

They also face criticism that Obama&#39;s reforms have led to rising insurance premiums and a string of technical problems.

But certain elements of Obamacare remain popular, notably the provisions barring companies from refusing coverage due to pre-existing conditions and allowing children to retain coverage on family plans through age 26.

Republican opposition in general to Obamacare is clear, but their prescription to fix it is not, however.

House Speaker Paul Ryan has proposed a tax credit system as a possible replacement, but the costs to government and individuals remains vague.

The White House is betting that American voters will react with fury if Trump moves to strip millions of coverage with no viable alternative -- forcing the incoming president to confront the most radical reformers within his own party.

While Pence addressed the issue gingerly in Congress Wednesday, he stressed that Trump will begin the process of repealing the Affordable Care Act as the first step of the new administration.

&quot;The first order of business is to repeal and replace Obamacare,&quot; Pence told reporters in the US Capitol shortly after meeting with House Republicans.

But earlier in the day Trump himself warned against over-hasty action.

&quot;Republicans must be careful in that the Dems own the failed ObamaCare disaster, with its poor coverage and massive premium increases,&quot; the president-elect said on Twitter.

&quot;Massive increases of ObamaCare will take place this year and Dems are to blame for the mess. It will fall of its own weight - be careful!&quot;

While urging a full repeal of the law, House Speaker Paul Ryan also said Republicans should avoid putting millions of families in further financial jeopardy by gutting Obamacare without a viable alternative in place.

&quot;We&#39;ve got to fix this by replacing it with something better. In that transition we want to make sure we don&#39;t pull the rug out from anybody,&quot; the speaker said.

One Republican, congressman Chris Collins, said the party was looking at a six-month timeline for crafting an Obamacare alternative.

Other Republicans said that was far too ambitious.Republican legislators are eager to take charge after eight years spent fighting against Obama&#39;s policies.

But some are wary that white working class Americans, who delivered them to office, may bear the brunt of any reforms. 
Dismantling Obamacare could also have knock-on effects for funding health care for retirees, a group essential to the Republican Party&#39;s survival.

In these two issues, Democrats see pressure points they hope to exploit in defence of Obama&#39;s plan.

&quot;It&#39;s not surprising to me that there are some Republicans who are now a little queasy about the prospect of the impact that repealing Obamacare would have on their own supporters,&quot; said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.

&quot;We know there are people all across the country who benefit from this law, who are protected by this law, whose lives have been saved by this law.&quot;&nbsp;

Obama is believed to have put this point directly to Trump when they talked soon after the election.

Democratic leaders voiced support for a stiff defence of the Affordable Care Act in the face of Republican attacks.

&quot;Instead of working to further ensure affordable care for all Americans, they seek to rip health care away from millions of Americans, creating chaos in our entire economy,&quot; charged Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer.

But privately many Democrats admit their best hope now could be offering Trump some form of political victory, so long as the plan survives more or less intact.

(AFP)

&nbsp;

Obamacare, the result of an eight-year drive,?will come under sustained assault when Trump takes office January 20

US President Barack Obama headed on Wednesday to Capitol Hill where he urged fellow Democrats to "fight" to preserve his signature health care reform that Donald Trump vows to start repealing on day one of his administration. Obamacare, the fruit of an eight-year drive to extend medical coverage to tens of millions of Americans, will come under sustained assault when Trump takes office January 20 with Republican majorities in both chambers of Congress. But the debate over US health care began in earnest Wednesday with Obama and Vice President-elect Mike Pence making duelling visits to Congress where they urged their footsoldiers to gird for battle. "I envy you for the opportunity you are going to have to engage in this fight to protect health care for the American people," the outgoing president told Senate and House Democrats, according to Senator Ed Markey who attended the 100-minute meeting. After a crushing election loss, Democrats may have limited options for stalling a repeal of Obamacare without significant Republican defections. They also face criticism that Obama's reforms have led to rising insurance premiums and a string of technical problems. But certain elements of Obamacare remain popular, notably the provisions barring companies from refusing coverage due to pre-existing conditions and allowing children to retain coverage on family plans through age 26. Republican opposition in general to Obamacare is clear, but their prescription to fix it is not, however. House Speaker Paul Ryan has proposed a tax credit system as a possible replacement, but the costs to government and individuals remains vague. The White House is betting that American voters will react with fury if Trump moves to strip millions of coverage with no viable alternative -- forcing the incoming president to confront the most radical reformers within his own party. While Pence addressed the issue gingerly in Congress Wednesday, he stressed that Trump will begin the process of repealing the Affordable Care Act as the first step of the new administration. "The first order of business is to repeal and replace Obamacare," Pence told reporters in the US Capitol shortly after meeting with House Republicans. But earlier in the day Trump himself warned against over-hasty action. "Republicans must be careful in that the Dems own the failed ObamaCare disaster, with its poor coverage and massive premium increases," the president-elect said on Twitter. "Massive increases of ObamaCare will take place this year and Dems are to blame for the mess. It will fall of its own weight - be careful!" While urging a full repeal of the law, House Speaker Paul Ryan also said Republicans should avoid putting millions of families in further financial jeopardy by gutting Obamacare without a viable alternative in place. "We've got to fix this by replacing it with something better. In that transition we want to make sure we don't pull the rug out from anybody," the speaker said. One Republican, congressman Chris Collins, said the party was looking at a six-month timeline for crafting an Obamacare alternative. Other Republicans said that was far too ambitious.Republican legislators are eager to take charge after eight years spent fighting against Obama's policies. But some are wary that white working class Americans, who delivered them to office, may bear the brunt of any reforms. Dismantling Obamacare could also have knock-on effects for funding health care for retirees, a group essential to the Republican Party's survival. In these two issues, Democrats see pressure points they hope to exploit in defence of Obama's plan. "It's not surprising to me that there are some Republicans who are now a little queasy about the prospect of the impact that repealing Obamacare would have on their own supporters," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest. "We know there are people all across the country who benefit from this law, who are protected by this law, whose lives have been saved by this law." Obama is believed to have put this point directly to Trump when they talked soon after the election. Democratic leaders voiced support for a stiff defence of the Affordable Care Act in the face of Republican attacks. "Instead of working to further ensure affordable care for all Americans, they seek to rip health care away from millions of Americans, creating chaos in our entire economy," charged Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. But privately many Democrats admit their best hope now could be offering Trump some form of political victory, so long as the plan survives more or less intact. (AFP)

Obama asks democrats to 'fight' to preserve Obamacare

The Republican-led US Congress begins a new session on Tuesday&nbsp;where it will start laying plans for enacting President-elect Donald Trump&#39;s agenda of tax cuts, repeal of Obamacare and the rollback of financial and environmental regulations.

With Trump set to be sworn in as president on January 20, Republican lawmakers hope to get a quick start on priorities that were blocked during Democratic President Barack Obama&#39;s eight years in the White House.

Since his election on November 8, the Republican president-elect has made clear he wants to move swiftly to enact proposals he outlined during the campaign such as simplifying the tax code, slashing corporate tax rates and repealing and replacing Obama&rsquo;s signature health insurance program known as Obamacare.

Republicans have long sought to dismantle Obamacare, insisting it was unworkable and hampered job growth. But they face a dilemma over how to provide health insurance for the 13.8 million people enrolled in Obamacare who could lose their coverage. The law aims to provide health insurance to economically disadvantaged people and expand coverage for others.

Last month Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, said that before the election, he assumed Democrats would take back control of the Senate and hold on to the White House, ending any talk of repealing Obamacare.

&quot;I didn&#39;t think...Trump had a chance of winning,&quot; McConnell said in a December 19 interview with Kentucky Educational Television.

The opposite occurred and now Republicans find they have to deliver on their campaign promise, even though they have not agreed on a replacement healthcare program.

Trump kept up his attack on the law on Tuesday, tweeting: &quot;People must remember that ObamaCare just doesn&#39;t work, and it is not affordable,&quot; and adding, &quot;It is lousy healthcare.&quot;

The first meeting of the 115th Congress will be full of ceremony, as the 435 members of the House of Representatives and a third of the 100-member Senate are sworn in.

Amid the celebration will be a move by House Republicans to clear the decks for Obamacare repeal.

That will come in the form of a vote on rules governing House procedures in the two-year term of the chamber. Tucked into the rules package is a move to prevent Democrats from slowing or stopping Obamacare repeal legislation because of the potential cost to the US Treasury of doing so.

Leading Democrats warned on Monday of a fierce battle over Obamacare.

&quot;We&#39;re going to fight as hard as ever to protect the ACA (Affordable Care Act),&quot; said Representative Steny Hoyer, the House&#39;s second-ranking Democrat.

Speaking to reporters, Hoyer and House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said they would launch an effort to mobilise grassroots support for Obamacare by explaining how repeal would create a ripple effect hurting a majority of Americans.

Obama is scheduled to meet on Wednesday with congressional Democrats to discuss strategies for fending off the Republican attacks on Obamacare.

&nbsp;

Cabinet, Supreme Court nominations

The Senate will kick off hearings on Trump&#39;s choices to head his Cabinet departments and other top jobs in the new administration.

It is also expected to receive a Supreme Court nomination from Trump early in his term to replace conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, who died last February. Republicans refused to consider Obama&#39;s nomination of Merrick Garland last year.

Prominent Republican Senator John McCain has warned that Rex Tillerson, Trump&#39;s choice for secretary of state, will have to explain his relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom McCain has called a &quot;thug and a murderer&quot;.

Tillerson, who spent much of his career at Exxon Mobil Corp, has been involved in business dealings in Russia and opposed US sanctions against Moscow for its incursion into Crimea.

While McConnell repeatedly called for removing Obamacare &quot;root and branch,&quot; he said in the Kentucky television interview that his top priorities for the new Congress were dealing with the &quot;massive overregulation&quot; he said had been a brake on the US economy and accomplishing tax code changes to stop companies from moving jobs offshore.

Republican lawmakers also want to curtail or block regulations aimed at controlling industrial emissions that contribute to climate change, and roll back banking industry reforms enacted after the near-collapse of Wall Street in 2008.

Republicans might use upcoming spending bills funding government agencies to try to kill some of those regulations. Trump is also expected to try to use his executive powers toward that end.

Republicans will hold a slightly smaller majority in both the Senate and House than they enjoyed the past two years. That means Democrats will still have bargaining power, especially on issues that divide Republicans, such as spending priorities.

(Reuters)

Republican's are eager for Trump's agenda of tax cuts, repeal of Obamacare and the rollback of financial and environmental regulations

The Republican-led US Congress begins a new session on Tuesday where it will start laying plans for enacting President-elect Donald Trump's agenda of tax cuts, repeal of Obamacare and the rollback of financial and environmental regulations. With Trump set to be sworn in as president on January 20, Republican lawmakers hope to get a quick start on priorities that were blocked during Democratic President Barack Obama's eight years in the White House. Since his election on November 8, the Republican president-elect has made clear he wants to move swiftly to enact proposals he outlined during the campaign such as simplifying the tax code, slashing corporate tax rates and repealing and replacing Obama’s signature health insurance program known as Obamacare. Republicans have long sought to dismantle Obamacare, insisting it was unworkable and hampered job growth. But they face a dilemma over how to provide health insurance for the 13.8 million people enrolled in Obamacare who could lose their coverage. The law aims to provide health insurance to economically disadvantaged people and expand coverage for others. Last month Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, said that before the election, he assumed Democrats would take back control of the Senate and hold on to the White House, ending any talk of repealing Obamacare. "I didn't think...Trump had a chance of winning," McConnell said in a December 19 interview with Kentucky Educational Television. The opposite occurred and now Republicans find they have to deliver on their campaign promise, even though they have not agreed on a replacement healthcare program. Trump kept up his attack on the law on Tuesday, tweeting: "People must remember that ObamaCare just doesn't work, and it is not affordable," and adding, "It is lousy healthcare." The first meeting of the 115th Congress will be full of ceremony, as the 435 members of the House of Representatives and a third of the 100-member Senate are sworn in. Amid the celebration will be a move by House Republicans to clear the decks for Obamacare repeal. That will come in the form of a vote on rules governing House procedures in the two-year term of the chamber. Tucked into the rules package is a move to prevent Democrats from slowing or stopping Obamacare repeal legislation because of the potential cost to the US Treasury of doing so. Leading Democrats warned on Monday of a fierce battle over Obamacare. "We're going to fight as hard as ever to protect the ACA (Affordable Care Act)," said Representative Steny Hoyer, the House's second-ranking Democrat. Speaking to reporters, Hoyer and House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said they would launch an effort to mobilise grassroots support for Obamacare by explaining how repeal would create a ripple effect hurting a majority of Americans. Obama is scheduled to meet on Wednesday with congressional Democrats to discuss strategies for fending off the Republican attacks on Obamacare. Cabinet, Supreme Court nominations The Senate will kick off hearings on Trump's choices to head his Cabinet departments and other top jobs in the new administration. It is also expected to receive a Supreme Court nomination from Trump early in his term to replace conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, who died last February. Republicans refused to consider Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland last year. Prominent Republican Senator John McCain has warned that Rex Tillerson, Trump's choice for secretary of state, will have to explain his relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom McCain has called a "thug and a murderer". Tillerson, who spent much of his career at Exxon Mobil Corp, has been involved in business dealings in Russia and opposed US sanctions against Moscow for its incursion into Crimea. While McConnell repeatedly called for removing Obamacare "root and branch," he said in the Kentucky television interview that his top priorities for the new Congress were dealing with the "massive overregulation" he said had been a brake on the US economy and accomplishing tax code changes to stop companies from moving jobs offshore. Republican lawmakers also want to curtail or block regulations aimed at controlling industrial emissions that contribute to climate change, and roll back banking industry reforms enacted after the near-collapse of Wall Street in 2008. Republicans might use upcoming spending bills funding government agencies to try to kill some of those regulations. Trump is also expected to try to use his executive powers toward that end. Republicans will hold a slightly smaller majority in both the Senate and House than they enjoyed the past two years. That means Democrats will still have bargaining power, especially on issues that divide Republicans, such as spending priorities. (Reuters)

New Republican-led US Congress lays groundwork for reversing Obama agenda

A top aide to President-elect Donald Trump said in an interview aired on Sunday that the White House may have disproportionately punished Russia by ordering the expulsion of 35 suspected Russian spies.

Incoming White House press secretary Sean Spicer said on ABC&#39;s &quot;This Week&quot; that Trump will be asking questions of US&nbsp;intelligence agencies after President Barack Obama imposed sanctions last week on two Russian intelligence agencies over what he said was their involvement in hacking political groups in the 2016 US&nbsp;presidential election. Obama also ordered Russia to vacate two U.S. facilities as part of the tough sanctions on Russia.

&quot;One of the questions that we have is why the magnitude of this? I mean you look at 35 people being expelled, two sites being closed down, the question is, is that response in proportion to the actions taken? Maybe it was; maybe it wasn&#39;t but you have to think about that,&quot; Spicer said.

Trump is to have briefings with intelligence agencies this week after he returns to New York on Sunday.

On Saturday, Trump expressed continued skepticism over whether Russia was responsible for computer hacks of Democratic Party officials.

&quot;I think it&#39;s unfair if we don&#39;t know. It could be somebody else. I also know things that other people don&#39;t know so we cannot be sure,&quot; Trump said.

He said he would disclose some information on the issue on Tuesday or Wednesday, without elaborating. It is unclear if, upon taking office on Jan. 20, he would seek to roll back Obama&#39;s actions, which mark a post-Cold War low in US-Russian ties.

Spicer said that after China in 2015 seized records of US&nbsp;government employees &quot;no action publicly was taken. Nothing, nothing was taken when millions of people had their private information, including information on security clearances that was shared. Not one thing happened.&quot;

&quot;So there is a question about whether there&#39;s a political retribution here versus a diplomatic response,&quot; he added.

Pressure in congress

US&nbsp;intelligence agencies say Russia was behind hacks into Democratic Party organizations and operatives before the presidential election. Moscow denies this. US&nbsp;intelligence officials say the Russian cyber attacks aimed to help Trump defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Republican John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has scheduled a hearing for Thursday on foreign cyber threats and has said that Russia must be made to pay the price for attacks &quot;on our very fundamentals of democracy.

The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee said on the same ABC program that Congress would push for an even harsher reprisal against Russia and warned Trump against undoing Obama&rsquo;s sanctions.

&quot;We think that more has to be done. We don&#39;t think that frankly the steps that have been taken are enough of a deterrent,&quot; said Representative Adam Schiff, a California Democrat. &ldquo;And you&#39;re going to see bipartisan support in Congress for stronger sanctions against Russia.&quot;

Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas, said on &quot;Fox News Sunday&quot; that Obama&#39;s sanctions were not enough.

Russian President Vladimir Putin decided not to expel anyone in retaliation, saying he would consider the actions of Trump when deciding on further steps. Trump, who has repeatedly praised Putin, said the Russian leader was &quot;very smart&quot; for holding back.

Russian diplomats who were expelled by Obama left Washington on Sunday, Russian news agencies reported, citing Russia&#39;s embassy.

(Reuters)

Incoming White House press secretary Sean Spicer said on ABC's 'This Week' that Trump will be asking questions of US?intelligence agencies

A top aide to President-elect Donald Trump said in an interview aired on Sunday that the White House may have disproportionately punished Russia by ordering the expulsion of 35 suspected Russian spies. Incoming White House press secretary Sean Spicer said on ABC's "This Week" that Trump will be asking questions of US intelligence agencies after President Barack Obama imposed sanctions last week on two Russian intelligence agencies over what he said was their involvement in hacking political groups in the 2016 US presidential election. Obama also ordered Russia to vacate two U.S. facilities as part of the tough sanctions on Russia. "One of the questions that we have is why the magnitude of this? I mean you look at 35 people being expelled, two sites being closed down, the question is, is that response in proportion to the actions taken? Maybe it was; maybe it wasn't but you have to think about that," Spicer said. Trump is to have briefings with intelligence agencies this week after he returns to New York on Sunday. On Saturday, Trump expressed continued skepticism over whether Russia was responsible for computer hacks of Democratic Party officials. "I think it's unfair if we don't know. It could be somebody else. I also know things that other people don't know so we cannot be sure," Trump said. He said he would disclose some information on the issue on Tuesday or Wednesday, without elaborating. It is unclear if, upon taking office on Jan. 20, he would seek to roll back Obama's actions, which mark a post-Cold War low in US-Russian ties. Spicer said that after China in 2015 seized records of US government employees "no action publicly was taken. Nothing, nothing was taken when millions of people had their private information, including information on security clearances that was shared. Not one thing happened." "So there is a question about whether there's a political retribution here versus a diplomatic response," he added. Pressure in congress US intelligence agencies say Russia was behind hacks into Democratic Party organizations and operatives before the presidential election. Moscow denies this. US intelligence officials say the Russian cyber attacks aimed to help Trump defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton. Republican John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has scheduled a hearing for Thursday on foreign cyber threats and has said that Russia must be made to pay the price for attacks "on our very fundamentals of democracy. The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee said on the same ABC program that Congress would push for an even harsher reprisal against Russia and warned Trump against undoing Obama’s sanctions. "We think that more has to be done. We don't think that frankly the steps that have been taken are enough of a deterrent," said Representative Adam Schiff, a California Democrat. “And you're going to see bipartisan support in Congress for stronger sanctions against Russia." Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas, said on "Fox News Sunday" that Obama's sanctions were not enough. Russian President Vladimir Putin decided not to expel anyone in retaliation, saying he would consider the actions of Trump when deciding on further steps. Trump, who has repeatedly praised Putin, said the Russian leader was "very smart" for holding back. Russian diplomats who were expelled by Obama left Washington on Sunday, Russian news agencies reported, citing Russia's embassy. (Reuters)

Trump aide says US sanctions on Russia may be disproportionate

Pakistan has sought support of the US on the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) with India, as Secretary of State John Kerry called for an amicable settlement of the issue by New Delhi and Islamabad, media reported today.

The development came after Pakistan was irked by the World Bank pause in mediation to resolve differences over construction of two water projects by India.

The Express Tribune reported that Kerry made a phone call to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Thursday night and discussed the row over the IWT implementation and the role of the World Bank (WB), which had brokered the treaty in 1960.

After Kerry&#39;s call, US Ambassador to Pakistan David Hale also met Dar in Islamabad at the Finance Ministry. 
The back-to-back contacts highlight the importance of the water issue, which can potentially endanger regional stability if the situation slips out of control, according to sources at Finance Ministry.

&quot;The US would like to see an amicable solution to this (water) issue,&quot; a Finance Ministry statement quoted Kerry as saying.

Kerry told Dar that the WB president had informed him about Pakistan&#39;s complaint against India on the IWT. 
The water dispute has catapulted the US back into Pakistan&#39;s economic picture.

The American civilian and military assistance to Pakistan has drastically come down in recent months and its implications on Pakistan&#39;s fiscal situation have started emerging in the shape of a larger-than-anticipated budget deficit.

Independent analysts argue that Washington may not play an effective role in resolving the water dispute, as the Obama administration is preparing to hand over the White House to Donald Trump next month.

&quot;Senator Dar indicated that the US support on the principles and legal position of Pakistan will be greatly appreciated,&quot; stated the Finance Ministry.

Early this month, the WB had announced a pause in playing its legally binding role of mediator in the IWT implementation.

In October, Pakistan had approached the WB seeking appointment of the Chairman of Court of Arbitration to resolve a dispute over construction of two mega hydropower projects by India in violation of the IWT.

The Finance Minister told Kerry that the IWT was an international commitment and it was the WB&#39;s responsibility to make sure India honoured the treaty and the water rights of hundreds of millions of Pakistani people were protected, said the finance ministry.

(PTI)

The US would like an amicable resolution, but this administration may not have a chance to be effective before Trump takes office

Pakistan has sought support of the US on the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) with India, as Secretary of State John Kerry called for an amicable settlement of the issue by New Delhi and Islamabad, media reported today. The development came after Pakistan was irked by the World Bank pause in mediation to resolve differences over construction of two water projects by India. The Express Tribune reported that Kerry made a phone call to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Thursday night and discussed the row over the IWT implementation and the role of the World Bank (WB), which had brokered the treaty in 1960. After Kerry's call, US Ambassador to Pakistan David Hale also met Dar in Islamabad at the Finance Ministry. The back-to-back contacts highlight the importance of the water issue, which can potentially endanger regional stability if the situation slips out of control, according to sources at Finance Ministry. "The US would like to see an amicable solution to this (water) issue," a Finance Ministry statement quoted Kerry as saying. Kerry told Dar that the WB president had informed him about Pakistan's complaint against India on the IWT. The water dispute has catapulted the US back into Pakistan's economic picture. The American civilian and military assistance to Pakistan has drastically come down in recent months and its implications on Pakistan's fiscal situation have started emerging in the shape of a larger-than-anticipated budget deficit. Independent analysts argue that Washington may not play an effective role in resolving the water dispute, as the Obama administration is preparing to hand over the White House to Donald Trump next month. "Senator Dar indicated that the US support on the principles and legal position of Pakistan will be greatly appreciated," stated the Finance Ministry. Early this month, the WB had announced a pause in playing its legally binding role of mediator in the IWT implementation. In October, Pakistan had approached the WB seeking appointment of the Chairman of Court of Arbitration to resolve a dispute over construction of two mega hydropower projects by India in violation of the IWT. The Finance Minister told Kerry that the IWT was an international commitment and it was the WB's responsibility to make sure India honoured the treaty and the water rights of hundreds of millions of Pakistani people were protected, said the finance ministry. (PTI)

Pakistan seeks US support in water dispute with India

A code associated with the Russian hacking operation dubbed Grizzly Steppe by the Obama administration has been detected within the system of a Vermont electric utility, The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing unnamed U.S. officials.

The Russians did not actively use the code to disrupt operations of the utility, the officials told the Post, but penetration of the nation&#39;s electrical grid is significant because it represents a potentially serious vulnerability.

Reuters could not independently confirm the story.

On Thursday, President Barack Obama ordered the expulsion of 35 Russian suspected spies and imposed sanctions on two Russian intelligence agencies over their involvement in hacking US&nbsp;political groups in the 2016 presidential election.

Government and utility industry officials regularly monitor the nation&#39;s electrical grid because it is highly computerised and any disruptions can have disastrous implications for the functioning of medical and emergency services, the Post said.

US&nbsp;officials, including one senior administration official, said they are not yet sure what the intentions of the Russians might have been, the Post reported.

Federal officials have shared the malware code used in Grizzly Steppe with utility executives nationwide, a senior administration official said, and Vermont utility officials identified it within their operations, the Post reported.

While it is unclear which utility reported the incident, there are just two major utilities in Vermont, Green Mountain Power and Burlington Electric, the Post said.

The White House and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Green Mountain Power and Burlington Electric did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The penetration may have been designed to disrupt the utility&#39;s operations or as a test by the Russians to see whether they could penetrate a portion of the grid, the newspaper said.

(Reuters)

While the intentions were unclear, disruptions can have disastrous implications for the functioning of medical and emergency servicen

A code associated with the Russian hacking operation dubbed Grizzly Steppe by the Obama administration has been detected within the system of a Vermont electric utility, The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing unnamed U.S. officials. The Russians did not actively use the code to disrupt operations of the utility, the officials told the Post, but penetration of the nation's electrical grid is significant because it represents a potentially serious vulnerability. Reuters could not independently confirm the story. On Thursday, President Barack Obama ordered the expulsion of 35 Russian suspected spies and imposed sanctions on two Russian intelligence agencies over their involvement in hacking US political groups in the 2016 presidential election. Government and utility industry officials regularly monitor the nation's electrical grid because it is highly computerised and any disruptions can have disastrous implications for the functioning of medical and emergency services, the Post said. US officials, including one senior administration official, said they are not yet sure what the intentions of the Russians might have been, the Post reported. Federal officials have shared the malware code used in Grizzly Steppe with utility executives nationwide, a senior administration official said, and Vermont utility officials identified it within their operations, the Post reported. While it is unclear which utility reported the incident, there are just two major utilities in Vermont, Green Mountain Power and Burlington Electric, the Post said. The White House and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Green Mountain Power and Burlington Electric did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The penetration may have been designed to disrupt the utility's operations or as a test by the Russians to see whether they could penetrate a portion of the grid, the newspaper said. (Reuters)

Russian hackers penetrated Vermont electric utility: Washington Post

US&nbsp;President-elect Donald Trump on Friday praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for refraining from retaliation in a dispute over spying and cyber attacks, in another sign that the Republican plans to patch up badly frayed relations with Moscow.

Putin on Friday ruled out tit-for-tat expulsions of Americans in response to US sanctions over alleged cyberattacks, a move that won plaudits from President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump&#39;s intervention -- in a tweet -- however illustrated the shifting political tide in Washington barely three weeks before the Republican is due to succeed Obama at the White House.

&quot;Great move on delay (by V. Putin) - I always knew he was very smart!&quot; the incoming US president wrote.

Putin&#39;s decision came despite the foreign ministry asking him to send home 35 US diplomats after President Barack Obama had turfed out the same number of Russian staff.

The alleged hacking of the US presidential election in November outraged Obama, culminating in the expulsions and other sanctions.

But outlining why he would not retaliate Putin cited Trump&#39;s imminent accession.

&quot;We will not expel anyone,&quot; Putin said in a statement, also inviting children of US diplomats to a holiday party at the Kremlin.

Instead, Moscow would plan its next steps &quot;based on the policies pursued by the administration of president Donald Trump&quot;, while warning that the Kremlin reserves the right to respond.

The Russian leader chided the outgoing Obama for &quot;unfriendly steps&quot; amounting to &quot;a provocation aimed at further undermining Russian-American relations&quot;.

Putin&#39;s remarks confirmed that Moscow is pinning its hopes on Trump to help rebuild ties -- which have plunged to their lowest point since the Cold War -- when he takes office next month.

Trump has repeatedly praised Putin and nominated people seen as friendly toward Moscow to senior administration posts, but it is unclear whether he would seek to roll back Obama&#39;s actions.

&nbsp;

State Deptartment silent

Putin had ended his statement on the sanctions by wishing Obama and Trump a Happy New Year, separately congratulating the US president-elect in a New Year message.

Prior to Trump&#39;s remarks, a State Department official&#39;s limited response had symbolised the gulf between the Obama adminstration and the soon to be inaugurated new US president.

&quot;We have seen President Putin&#39;s remarks. We have nothing further to add,&quot; the official said.

Obama on Thursday unleashed a barrage of sanctions against Russia over alleged cyberattacks aimed at tilting the November election in Trump&#39;s favour.

The move came after years of bad blood with Putin that had seen Washington slap sanctions on Moscow over its interference in Ukraine and Syria.

In response to the purported hacks, dubbed &quot;Grizzly Steppe&quot; by US officials, Obama announced penalties against Russia&#39;s military and domestic intelligence agencies, and gave the 35 suspected &quot;intelligence operatives&quot; 72 hours to leave.

The Kremlin said it was sending a special plane to fly diplomats and their families from the United States, following reports they are not able to purchase plane tickets at such short notice.&nbsp;

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Russian news agencies that 96 people would be leaving the US.

US intelligence has concluded that the Kremlin ordered a hack-and-release of Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton campaign staff emails in a bid to put Trump in the Oval Office.

Moscow has repeatedly denied the hacking allegations.

&nbsp;

&#39;Americans should be alarmed&#39;

Trump too has questioned whether Russia tipped the electoral scale, painting Obama&#39;s accusations as a thinly veiled effort by a Democratic president to cover up for his party&#39;s loss.&nbsp;

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency have both stated that Russia interfered with the US election.&nbsp;

For weeks while he was campaigning, Donald Trump said the 2016 US election was &quot;rigged&quot;, and when pressed on the issue he refused to say that he would accept its results if&nbsp;he lost. Now that he has won, he accepts the results.

Trump, however, has said he will meet intelligence leaders next week for a briefing on the situation.

Obama -- who has also clashed with Trump over his Israel policy in recent days -- pointedly stated that &quot;all Americans should be alarmed by Russia&#39;s actions&quot;.

It remains unclear whether Trump will move to roll back the sanctions. Leading Republican lawmakers have publicly warned him to stay tough on Putin.

Beyond the election row, Obama also linked the fresh sanctions to harassment of US diplomats in Moscow, which Washington described as &quot;unprecedented&quot; in the post-Cold War era.

US officials, meanwhile, played down the impact sanctions against the GRU and the FSB could have on intelligence-sharing on issues like counterterrorism, saying cooperation was already limited.

Both agencies will face penalties, along with GRU agency chief Igor Korobov and three of his deputies.

In addition, the US Treasury hit two individuals, Evgeniy Bogachev and Aleksey Belan, with sanctions for &quot;involvement in malicious cyber-enabled activities&quot;.

The sanctions freeze any assets they may have in the United States and block US companies from doing business with them.

The US government is also declassifying technical information on Russian cyber activity to help companies defend against future attacks.

(With inputs from agencies)

Putin did not expel US diplomats after Obama, reacting to Russian interference with the US election, sent 35 Russian intel ops home

US President-elect Donald Trump on Friday praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for refraining from retaliation in a dispute over spying and cyber attacks, in another sign that the Republican plans to patch up badly frayed relations with Moscow. Putin on Friday ruled out tit-for-tat expulsions of Americans in response to US sanctions over alleged cyberattacks, a move that won plaudits from President-elect Donald Trump. Trump's intervention -- in a tweet -- however illustrated the shifting political tide in Washington barely three weeks before the Republican is due to succeed Obama at the White House. "Great move on delay (by V. Putin) - I always knew he was very smart!" the incoming US president wrote. Putin's decision came despite the foreign ministry asking him to send home 35 US diplomats after President Barack Obama had turfed out the same number of Russian staff. The alleged hacking of the US presidential election in November outraged Obama, culminating in the expulsions and other sanctions. But outlining why he would not retaliate Putin cited Trump's imminent accession. "We will not expel anyone," Putin said in a statement, also inviting children of US diplomats to a holiday party at the Kremlin. Instead, Moscow would plan its next steps "based on the policies pursued by the administration of president Donald Trump", while warning that the Kremlin reserves the right to respond. The Russian leader chided the outgoing Obama for "unfriendly steps" amounting to "a provocation aimed at further undermining Russian-American relations". Putin's remarks confirmed that Moscow is pinning its hopes on Trump to help rebuild ties -- which have plunged to their lowest point since the Cold War -- when he takes office next month. Trump has repeatedly praised Putin and nominated people seen as friendly toward Moscow to senior administration posts, but it is unclear whether he would seek to roll back Obama's actions. State Deptartment silent Putin had ended his statement on the sanctions by wishing Obama and Trump a Happy New Year, separately congratulating the US president-elect in a New Year message. Prior to Trump's remarks, a State Department official's limited response had symbolised the gulf between the Obama adminstration and the soon to be inaugurated new US president. "We have seen President Putin's remarks. We have nothing further to add," the official said. Obama on Thursday unleashed a barrage of sanctions against Russia over alleged cyberattacks aimed at tilting the November election in Trump's favour. The move came after years of bad blood with Putin that had seen Washington slap sanctions on Moscow over its interference in Ukraine and Syria. In response to the purported hacks, dubbed "Grizzly Steppe" by US officials, Obama announced penalties against Russia's military and domestic intelligence agencies, and gave the 35 suspected "intelligence operatives" 72 hours to leave. The Kremlin said it was sending a special plane to fly diplomats and their families from the United States, following reports they are not able to purchase plane tickets at such short notice. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Russian news agencies that 96 people would be leaving the US. US intelligence has concluded that the Kremlin ordered a hack-and-release of Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton campaign staff emails in a bid to put Trump in the Oval Office. Moscow has repeatedly denied the hacking allegations. 'Americans should be alarmed' Trump too has questioned whether Russia tipped the electoral scale, painting Obama's accusations as a thinly veiled effort by a Democratic president to cover up for his party's loss. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency have both stated that Russia interfered with the US election. For weeks while he was campaigning, Donald Trump said the 2016 US election was "rigged", and when pressed on the issue he refused to say that he would accept its results if he lost. Now that he has won, he accepts the results. Trump, however, has said he will meet intelligence leaders next week for a briefing on the situation. Obama -- who has also clashed with Trump over his Israel policy in recent days -- pointedly stated that "all Americans should be alarmed by Russia's actions". It remains unclear whether Trump will move to roll back the sanctions. Leading Republican lawmakers have publicly warned him to stay tough on Putin. Beyond the election row, Obama also linked the fresh sanctions to harassment of US diplomats in Moscow, which Washington described as "unprecedented" in the post-Cold War era. US officials, meanwhile, played down the impact sanctions against the GRU and the FSB could have on intelligence-sharing on issues like counterterrorism, saying cooperation was already limited. Both agencies will face penalties, along with GRU agency chief Igor Korobov and three of his deputies. In addition, the US Treasury hit two individuals, Evgeniy Bogachev and Aleksey Belan, with sanctions for "involvement in malicious cyber-enabled activities". The sanctions freeze any assets they may have in the United States and block US companies from doing business with them. The US government is also declassifying technical information on Russian cyber activity to help companies defend against future attacks. (With inputs from agencies)

Trump praises 'very smart' Putin for holding back amid hacking row

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