Latest news with #TheBriefing
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Jen Psaki: Escalating tensions fuel questions about Trump's endgame in the Middle East
This is an adapted excerpt from the June 17 episode of 'The Briefing with Jen Psaki.' Since Israel launched attacks against Iran, and Iran responded in kind with its own attacks against Israel, there has been a growing list of questions and concerns about what is actually going on and what might happen over the next few months, days or even hours. Last week, at the onset of the strikes, the Israeli military said that Israel's objective was to take out Iran's nuclear capabilities. However, since then, the Israeli military seems to have widened its targets, striking Iran's oil and gas refineries and killing many of the leadership and intelligence officers inside Iran's Revolutionary Guard. Netanyahu has notably not ruled out any actions that would bring about regime change in Iran, and that has set off alarm bells and raised the specter of the United States officially joining Israel in this war. Fears about that prospect are not unfounded. Reuters has reported that the U.S. military has begun bolstering its forces in the Middle East, including sending more fighter jets to the region. So now the bigger question is this: What is Donald Trump's endgame? Because, remember, for years Trump has branded himself as an anti-war peacemaker. He has repeatedly claimed that, right from the start, he was against the war in Iraq (which is a total lie), but in 2016, Trump stood out in part because he admitted the war in Iraq was a mistake that cost a lot of money and a lot of lives. Trump continued to label himself a 'peacemaker' in his first term and ran on that message in the 2024 election. During the campaign, he reiterated — time and again — that he was not only against the wars taking place around the globe, but that he would also use the power of the presidency to stop them. Well, fast-forward to last week, and within an hour of Israel attacking Iran, Secretary of State Marco Rubio released this statement: 'We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region … Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel.' The Trump administration was declaring, loud and clear, that the U.S. had zero involvement in this dramatic escalation. But that arm's-length distance only lasted a few hours. The following morning, Trump the 'peacemaker' started to send a different message, saying Israel's attacks against Iran were 'excellent' and that there was 'more to come!' Fast forward again to Monday, following a bloody weekend of crossfire between Israel and Iran, Trump abruptly left the G7 summit in Canada a day early after posting an ominous message online that appeared to suggest more carnage was to come in Iran. 'Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON,' Trump wrote on Truth Social. 'I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!' Trump continued to post his escalations online Tuesday — using the pronoun 'we' to describe Israel's apparent success in targeting Iran. He also appeared to threaten to kill Iran's supreme leader. Now, there's a very real issue at hand here that goes beyond just rhetoric. NBC News reports that Israel is eager for the U.S. to join this war because it wants to attack what's considered the heart of Iran's nuclear program, the Fordo fuel enrichment plant. The plant is heavily fortified and built deep inside a mountain, which means only a 30,000-pound, American-made bomb carried by an American B-2 stealth bomber can even attempt to reach Fordo. So, once again, I have to ask: What is Trump's endgame here? Will the president deliver those bombs and thrust the United States into war? And is the goal just to destroy Fordo — or is it something larger than that? This article was originally published on
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Senate Democrat: Trump travel ban a distraction from GOP policy package
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said late Wednesday that President Trump's revived travel ban is meant to 'distract' the nation from what he described as 'super unpopular' aspects of the massive GOP policy package working its way through Congress. During an interview on MSNBC's 'The Briefing with Jen Psaki,' the Senate Democrat said that the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' will 'steal from regular Americans in order to pad the rich.' 'Nobody wants that. That's super unpopular. So how do you get that done?' he continued. 'You distract people by making them think that they're at war with other Americans — making them think that they have something to fear from people who look different from them or speak a different language.' Murphy described the strategy as something 'demagogues have done all throughout time… while, on the side, they're stealing from us.' Trump earlier Wednesday signed a proclamation banning travel to the United States for individuals from 12 countries, citing national security concerns. He also announced new restrictions for entry into the U.S. for travelers from an additional seven countries. The proclamation, which echoes a travel ban Trump instituted in his first term, takes effect Monday. Trump, in another move on Wednesday, ordered a probe of former President Biden's mental state and executive actions his predecessor took while in office. The actions come as Trump's agenda faces new roadblocks in the Senate, with tech billionaire Elon Musk vocalizing criticism of the massive bill and calling on lawmakers to block it from passing. Murphy said Trump's moves are 'chiefly in service' of changing the focus of the national conversation. 'This is important, you know, anytime you ban people coming to the United States from other countries, it has a real impact,' Murphy told Psaki. 'But it is chiefly in service of trying to get us all talking about that — or talking about the Biden investigation they launched today — instead of talking about the centerpiece of this story, which is this bill to make the rich even richer at the expense of everybody else.' The Hill has reached out to the White House for a response to Murphy's remarks. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats claim Trump's travel ban is just a distraction so his spending bill can get through Congress
Democrats claim the travel ban announced by President Donald Trump is a way to distract people from his spending bill that will 'steal from regular Americans.' Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut said it was 'not a coincidence' that Trump announced the travel ban Thursday as his spending bill is currently being debated in the Senate and accused him of 'trying to distract us from the core story.' The president also announced an investigation into former President Joe Biden's actions while in office. The Congressional Budget Office, the nonpartisan body in Congress that scores how much legislation costs, estimated that extending the tax cuts in the bill would raise the national debt by $3.8 trillion. Murphy said the president's massive domestic legislation bill, which includes extending Trump's 2017 tax cuts, beefed up spending at the U.S.–Mexico border and major changes to the social safety net, would be the toughest on the poorest Americans. 'The actual agenda here is to steal from regular Americans in order to pad the pockets of the rich,' Murphy said Thursday on MSNBC's The Briefing with Jen Psaki. 'Nobody wants that. It's super unpopular. So how do you get that done? You distract people by making them think that they're at war with other Americans,' Murphy explained. 'It is chiefly in service of trying to get us all talking about that or talking about the Biden investigation they launched today instead of talking about the centerpiece of the story, which is this bill to make the rich even richer at the expense of everybody else.' The sentiment was backed by Congressman Jesus 'Chuy' Garcia of Illinois. 'This travel ban won't make America safer or greater— instead it will isolate us and make people believe they have something to fear,' Garcia reacted in a post on X. 'It's a distraction from the corruption of the Trump Administration.' Actor Wendell Pierce, who spoke at last year's Democratic National Convention, agreed. 'Trump's travel ban is a distraction from the $2.4 trillion deficit his tax bill adds to the budget,' he wrote in a post on X. 'The 93% benefits to the 1% comes at a cost. Cutting Medicare, SNAP, and other benefits to the poor. The billionaire class are reaping the benefits of Trump's criminal enterprise.' Dem strategist Sawyer Hackett, who worked for Obama, added: 'A travel ban and investigation of Trump's predecessor in one night? Someone's clearly trying to distract from his signature legislation tanking.' Trump unveiled the new policy Thursday night. Travel will be fully restricted from 12 nations from 9 June: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Partial restrictions will apply to seven others: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Other Democrats said Trump's travel ban was reminiscent of the deeply controversial 'Muslim travel ban' he introduced during his first term. Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar slammed the 'discriminatory policy' as 'beyond shameful' on social media, while Senator Adam Schiff said: 'Bigotry is not a national security strategy'.
The Hill
05-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Senate Democrat: Trump travel ban a distraction from GOP policy package
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said late Wednesday that President Trump's revived travel ban is meant to 'distract' the nation from what he described as 'super unpopular' aspects of the massive GOP policy package working its way through Congress. During an interview on MSNBC's 'The Briefing with Jen Psaki,' the Senate Democrat said that the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' will 'steal from regular Americans in order to pad the rich.' 'Nobody wants that. That's super unpopular. So how do you get that done?' he continued. 'You distract people by making them think that they're at war with other Americans — making them think that they have something to fear from people who look different from them or speak a different language.' Murphy described the strategy as something 'demagogues have done all throughout time… while, on the side, they're stealing from us.' Trump earlier Wednesday signed a proclamation banning travel to the United States for individuals from 12 countries, citing national security concerns. He also announced new restrictions for entry into the U.S. for travelers from an additional seven countries. The proclamation, which echoes a travel ban Trump instituted in his first term, takes effect Monday. Trump, in another move on Wednesday, ordered a probe of former President Biden's mental state and executive actions his predecessor took while in office. The actions come as Trump's agenda faces new roadblocks in the Senate, with tech billionaire Elon Musk vocalizing criticism of the massive bill and calling on lawmakers to block it from passing. Murphy said Trump's moves are 'chiefly in service' of changing the focus of the national conversation. 'This is important, you know, anytime you ban people coming to the United States from other countries, it has a real impact,' Murphy told Psaki. 'But it is chiefly in service of trying to get us all talking about that — or talking about the Biden investigation they launched today — instead of talking about the centerpiece of this story, which is this bill to make the rich even richer at the expense of everybody else.' The Hill has reached out to the White House for a response to Murphy's remarks.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Jen Psaki: Trump's 'best people' keep proving they're just not up for the job
This is an adapted excerpt from the May 29 episode of 'The Briefing with Jen Psaki.' For years, Donald Trump has bragged that he only hires the 'best people.' But almost six months into his second term, many members of his administration are proving they just aren't up for the job. Take former WWE executive Linda McMahon, whom Trump inexplicably put in charge of the Department of Education. On Tuesday, during a Senate hearing, Republican senators did their level best to lob McMahon softball questions to make it look like she knows what she's doing. Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma tried to tee up an easy one, asking the secretary, 'What was we ranked nationally in math and reading in 1979?' McMahon responded that the U.S. was 'very, very low on the totem pole.' Mullin then had to inform her that we were actually ranked No. 1 in 1979. In McMahon's (limited) defense, Mullin's question was garbled nonsense. I mean, setting aside the strange verb conjugation of 'what was we ranked,' he asked how the U.S. ranked 'nationally' when he apparently meant 'globally.' So clearly neither of these people is getting an A in reading comprehension or grammar. But what about math? After Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said the U.S. spends $1.5 billion a year on federal grants for disadvantaged students, the senator claimed that the numbers added up to be 'over a trillion dollars' over 10 years. After McMahon failed to correct the senator's estimation, Democratic Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island had to jump in to educate the pair, pointing out that $1.5 billion multiplied by 10 is not 'over a trillion dollars' but actually $15 billion. Republican senators and Trump's education secretary failed spectacularly at a math and reading quiz of their own making, while they complained about America falling behind in math and reading. Unfortunately, McMahon is not the only one of Trump's 'best people' making embarrassing mistakes. This week, David Richardson, the acting chief of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, told staff he had not been aware the country has a hurricane season, four sources familiar with the situation told Reuters. The Trump administration has said those comments were meant as a joke, but that was definitely not clear to the people in the room. FEMA is now heading into a new hurricane season with a staff that's been gutted by Trump's cuts, and the agency's staff is reportedly worried about Richardson's lack of experience. Maybe Richardson should have Googled his job first to see what it entails. After all, that's what Trump's equally unqualified Social Security commissioner reportedly did. Honestly, a little Googling might serve some of them well. Take Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who, last month, released his much-anticipated 'The MAHA Report: Make Our Children Healthy Again.' We soon learned that the report was riddled with errors and cited at least seven studies that do not exist. Kennedy then updated his report in an effort to fix those mistakes, but, as it turns out, they actually added more errors to that revised version. The secretary has now somehow managed to screw up the same report twice. So things aren't going great at FEMA, or Social Security, or HHS. But surely the Department of Homeland Security is running like a Swiss watch. Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem sent out a press release that claimed Immigration and Customs Enforcement had arrested an 'Illegal Alien who Threatened to Assassinate President Donald J. Trump.' It included an image of a threatening handwritten letter that Noem claimed had been sent by an undocumented immigrant in Milwaukee named Ramon Morales Reyes. But it turns out local law enforcement officials do not think Morales Reyes sent that letter. In fact, they think that he was being set up. As The New York Times reports, 'Not long after the announcement, the government's story began to look shaky. … And as detectives in Wisconsin began looking deeper, they came to believe Reyes had been framed.' Milwaukee County prosecutors have now filed identity theft and witness intimidation charges against another man, a lifelong Wisconsin resident. They said the man had written several threatening letters that included Reyes' name in the return address. 'Prosecutors said it was an attempt to catch the attention of the Trump administration and weaponize the threat of deportation against Mr. Reyes, who was scheduled to testify against the man at a robbery trial next month,' the Times reports. So this guy, who is set to go on trial next month, allegedly tried to trick the Trump administration into going after the witness who would testify against him, and the Department of Homeland Security appears to have fallen for it. Meanwhile, Trump's intelligence chief appears to be struggling with her job as well. As director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard is responsible for making sure that Trump is up to date on the latest intelligence, which includes his presidential daily brief. But apparently that is proving difficult. Since taking office, Trump has taken his daily intelligence briefing, on average, less than once a week, according to his public schedule, which is far less than previous presidents (including his own first term). So Gabbard is now reportedly resorting to what I would call creative methods. According to NBC News, one idea that's been discussed is possibly creating a video version of the PDB that looks and feels like a Fox News broadcast. NBC News reports, 'A new PDB could include not only graphics and pictures but also maps with animated representations of exploding bombs, similar to a video game.' In other words, because Gabbard is bad at her job and the president of the United States doesn't like to read, career intelligence staffers may be forced to put on some kind of Fox News puppet show to get the president to pay attention. That's the real problem with all of this: We all know that when it comes to people, Trump is not sending his best. There is a whole system of dedicated federal workers who actually make the government function, and who in turn can make even the most incompetent bureaucrat look vaguely competent. But Trump is making it impossible for them to do their jobs. The Washington Post recently dug into all the ways Trump's efforts to increase government 'efficiency' have, ironically, buried federal workers under red tape. The report cites interviews with more than three dozen federal workers across 19 agencies, as well as records obtained by the outlet. Among the findings were: At NASA, employees had to write several detailed paragraphs, across multiple rounds of emails, to win approval to buy fastening bolts. At the Food and Drug Administration, once-routine tests on food, including monitoring for accuracy in labeling, coloring and exposure to heavy metals, have been significantly delayed because the agency began requiring department-level approval for expenses at every step. At the Federal Aviation Administration, officials at air traffic control towers across two dozen West Coast airports are unable to easily pay to have the windows washed or shades cleaned. At the Social Security Administration, Trump officials and DOGE have pushed thousands of central office workers to take lower-level positions answering phones in field offices. They also threatened to fire whoever didn't make the jump. Government officials cannot purchase bolts for rockets, do food-safety testing or wash the windows at air traffic control towers without wading through layers and layers of new Trump-approved red tape. All of the real people who make our government run are being squeezed, and all we're left with is the bizarre and clueless leadership of Trump's so-called very best people. This article was originally published on
