Special Interest Glance
President Donald Trump's job approval rating in Gallup Daily tracking is at 34% for the three-day period from Friday through Sunday -- by one point the lowest of his administration so far.
It is difficult to pinpoint the precise cause of the new low rating, but the changes were apparent on Friday, with his day-by-day ratings near 34% across Saturday and Sunday as well. Trump has consistently been in the news over the past week, including the continued focus on North Korea, even while taking a working vacation at one of his golf properties in New Jersey. The events in Charlottesville, Virginia, that resulted in the deaths of a 32-year-old woman and two Virginia State Police officers dominated news coverage on Saturday and Sunday. Trump's prior three-day low reading was 35%, registered March 26-28.
Trump Job Approval Rating Now at 34%, New Low
Trump White House weighs unprecedented plan to privatize much of the war in Afghanistan
The White House is actively considering a bold plan to turn over a big chunk of the U.S. war in Afghanistan to private contractors in an effort to turn the tide in a stalemated war, according to the former head of a security firm pushing the project.
Under the proposal, 5,500 private contractors, primarily former Special Operations troops, would advise Afghan combat forces. The plan also includes a 90-plane private air force that would provide air support in the nearly 16-year-old war against Taliban insurgents, Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater security firm, told USA TODAY.
Fox News Suspends Eric Bolling After Sex-Harassment Accusations Disclosed
Fox News Channel suspended Eric Bolling, a host and contributor whose on-air presence at the 21st Century Fox-owned network had been growing in recent months, after allegations surfaced that he had harassed colleagues at the cable-news network. He is the latest in a number of Fox News personnel to have become embroiled in controversy.
A Huffington Post report earlier this week disclosed allegations Bolling had sent lewd messages to colleagues via smartphone.
Eric Bolling has been suspended pending the results of an investigation, which is currently underway,” the network said in a statement.
DOJ warns the media could be targeted in crackdown on leaks
Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Friday announced a government-wide crackdown on leakers, which will include a review of the Justice Department’s policies on subpoenas for media outlets that publish sensitive information.
At a press conference with Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, Sessions announced that the Justice Department, FBI and government intelligence agencies will direct more resources into the investigations of government leaks and would prioritize prosecuting those that pass sensitive information along to the press or foreign officials.
How the CIA Came to Doubt the Official Story of JFK’s Murder
After the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in November 1963, the CIA appeared eager, even desperate, to embrace the version of events being offered by the FBI, the Secret Service and other parts of the government.
The official story: that a delusional misfit and self-proclaimed Marxist named Lee Harvey Oswald killed the president in Dallas with his $21 mail-order rifle and there was no evidence of a conspiracy, foreign or domestic. Certainly, the CIA’s leaders told the Warren Commission, the independent panel that investigated the murder, there was no evidence of a conspiracy that the spy agency could have foiled.
New Fears For Public Service Loan Forgiveness
A legal motion the Department of Education filed yesterday could have big ramifications for half a million teachers, social workers, police officers and other public servants. The motion asserts that there has been no final decision on whether these people will have their student debt forgiven, as they had believed.
The Obama Administration created Public Service Loan Forgiveness a decade ago. A 2016 blog post, which still appears on the official ed.gov website, describes it as a "broad, employment-based forgiveness program for federal student loans." Anyone who works for the government or a nonprofit can have their loans erased after 10 years of on-time monthly payments, the post explains.
Vladimir Putin expels 755 US diplomats from Russia in tit-for-tat move
Russia has retaliated against new US sanctions by ordering 755 American diplomats to leave - a move than will create a fresh crisis in the relationship between the two countries.
Days after the both houses of the US Congress voted almost anonymously to impose fresh sanctions on Moscow, Vladimir Putin said he was responding to “unlawful” behaviour by Washington.
“The American side has made a move which, it is important to note, hasn’t been provoked by anything, to worsen Russian-US relations. [It includes] unlawful restrictions, attempts to influence other states of the world, including our allies, who are interested in developing and keeping relations with Russia,” Mr Putin told the Rossiya 1 TV channel.
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