What trump did this week when you weren't looking.

For the week of August 21 from Politico.   It's already come out that in the sanctions for Venezuela a company that donated $500,000 to his inauguration has been exempted.  

"Most of the news President Donald Trump generated this week was, as usual, about Donald Trump himself: He induced whiplash by delivering a sober address on Afghanistan Monday night and then, less than 24 hours later, pumping the crowd at a fiery, off-the-leash campaign rally in Arizona. He also continued to accelerate his war of words with leaders of his own party, attacking Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan, as well as Sens. Bob Corker, Jeff Flake and John McCain.

And as usual there wasn’t much policy behind all that noise: Even the new Afghanistan strategy only includes a modest bump in troops overseas. But in Washington, Trump’s appointees continued to push their own priorities on the government, rolling back Obama-era policies largely out of the public eye. Here’s how Trump’s White House changed policy this week:

1. The State Department turns up the heat on Egypt
When Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi visited the White House in April, Trump lavished the foreign leader in praise, saying he’s doing a “fantastic job in a very difficult situation” and that “we are very much behind President al-Sisi.” Those comments drew a sharp rebuke from human=rights groups that had been sharply critical of Sisi’s human rights record.

So, it came as some surprise this week when the State Department delayed $200 million in aid to Egypt and cut another $100 million in aid altogether. State officials said the move was a result of Egypt’s human rights record, including a new law that restricts the activities of non-governmental organizations. But experts also suggested another motive: isolating North Korea. Egypt has historically had ties to North Korea, with North Korean pilots training Egyptian pilots in the 1970s. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert did not deny that North Korea was a reason for the cuts in aid, saying, “We have a deep and multifaceted relationship with the country of Egypt. We have a lot of areas of close cooperation.”

The move also created troubles for White House Senior Advisor Jared Kushner, who was scheduled to meet top Egyptian leaders, including Sisi, this week to talk about the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. A meeting between Kushner and Egypt’s foreign minister was cancelled at the last minute, potentially a rebuke to State’s move, though it otherwise did not appear to significantly disrupt the trip.

2. Interior could shrink national monuments
In his final weeks in office, Barack Obama protected over 1.5 million acres of federal land from development by designating national monuments in the West, a final attempt to solidify his environmental legacy. Republican lawmakers, oil and gas interests and fishing and hunting groups blasted the move and appealed to Trump to review the designations. In April, they got their wish when Trump directed the Interior Department to review all monument designations larger than 100,000 acres all the way back to 1996.

On Thursday, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke delivered that review to the White House. He didn’t release it publicly, instead publishing a vague two-page fact sheet; in an interview with the Associated Press, Zinke said that he was not recommending that any monuments by rescinded but was suggesting a “handful” of changes. The New York Times later reported that Zinke recommended shrinking at least four monuments. It’s unclear whether—or when—the White House will accept the recommendations. But given Trump’s commitment to rolling back Obama’s environmental legacy, Zinke’s recommendations will likely find a favorable reception in the Oval Office. And if it does, it would be historic—no national monument has been shrunk by a president since 1963.

3. The White House changes American research priorities
Every year, the government funds billions of dollars in research, from large National Institutes of Health grants to small housing experiments. The sheer magnitude of money gives the government great influence over the direction of research across industries, a hidden lever for a sophisticated administration to guide the country well into the future.

This week, the Trump administration revealed that it intends to use that lever. The Office of Management and Budget, led by Director Mick Mulvaney, published a four-page memo—dated August 27—that lays out the administration’s research and development priorities for fiscal 2019, which includes a focus on military technologies, border security and treatments for drug addiction. In a break from the Obama administration’s efforts to combat climate change, there is almost no mention of environmental research, with the exception of one reference to renewable energy. The memo also directs agencies to focus on early-stage research and, in a bolded section, strongly recommends the use of quantitative data to evaluate any R&D investments, terminating those where “federal involvement is no longer needed or appropriate.”

The real-world effects of such a memo won’t be immediately apparent. Research projects generally operate on a multiyear timeframe, so the White House can’t just shift the direction of federal R&D overnight. But these priorities can eventually have big policy implications as researchers focus on certain issues and ignore others. That assumes, of course, that there is actual R&D funding to disburse for research—and if Trump has his way, that may not be the case. The White House has proposed huge cuts to research programs, rolling back federal nondefense R&D by almost 20 percent. Republicans and Democrats alike have rejected those cuts, so they will not become law. While that may be disappointing to a fiscal conservative like Mulvaney, it does help the administration in one sense: More R&D money gives agencies greater influence over the direction of American research.



4. The Amazon-Whole Foods merger sails through
Trump’s disdain for Amazon and its CEO Jeff Bezos, who owns the Washington Post, is well known. "Is Fake News Washington Post being used as a lobbyist weapon against Congress to keep Politicians from looking into Amazon no-tax monopoly?" Trump tweeted in July. Last week, he wrote, "Amazon is doing great damage to tax paying retailers."

Despite those attacks, Amazon had no problem receiving approval from regulators to acquire the grocery giant Whole Foods. Although he deal has alarmed some anti-trust watchers, who worry that Amazon’s expansion is undermining competition in the long-run by driving out competitors through its low prices, it barely hit a speedbump in Washington: The Federal Trade Commission released a short statement saying it had completed its investigation into the $13.7 billion deal, which was announced in June, and isn’t going to challenge it. The quick approval also assuaged concerns that Trump would attempt to interfere in the regulatory review for political reasons. The deal is set to close on Monday.

Amazon promptly announced that it will cut prices on a wide array of Whole Foods products, from avocadoes to tilapia, on Monday and intends to introduce benefits at Whole Foods stores for its Prime members.

5. Trump ratchets up sanctions
During his first few months in office, Trump attempted to woo Chinese President Xi Jinping, even saying he would relax his trade stance if China applied more pressure to North Korea. But those efforts have fizzled in the past few months, even as North Korea’s nuclear program has continued to advance.

This week, the administration took another unilateral step to stop Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions when the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Chinese and Russian individuals and entities, an effort to reduce North Korea’s exports, which it uses to finance its nuclear program, and to choke off its access to the global financial system. The move is the second time in two months that Trump has sanctioned Chinese entities over North Korea. In addition, on Friday, the White House also announced new sanctions on Venezuela that attempt to cut financing to the country and its state-owned oil company." 

From AP.....

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump and Congress (all times local):


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12:05 p.m.

President Donald Trump is promising billions to help Texas rebuild from Hurricane Harvey, but his Republican allies in the House are looking at cutting almost $1 billion from disaster accounts to help finance the president’s border wall.

The pending reduction to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster relief account is part of a spending bill that the House is scheduled to consider next week when Congress returns from its August recess. The $876 million cut, part of the 1,305-page measure’s homeland security section, pays for roughly half the cost of Trump’s down payment on a U.S.-Mexico border wall.

It seems sure that GOP leaders will move to reverse the disaster aid cut next week. The optics are politically bad and there’s only $2.3 billion remaining in disaster coffers."

One would hope.  Between that damn wall and tax cuts the American People really are going to get screwed by trump and the Republicans.

link

From August 31 Bill Moyers & Co.

" What trump and his team have wrecked so far.."

Donald Trump and his administration are rolling back a number of regulations and initiatives — as well as cutting offices, budgets and staff — and we’re following it in our “While He Was Tweeting” series. As coverage of Trump’s Twitter feed crowds out these stories, here’s a look at some of what the Trump administration has been up to so far. Our team has not been able to cover everything, but we’re doing our best, and we appreciate your input. Be sure to let us know what you think on the BillMoyers.com Facebook page.

Dismantling Post-Great Recession Financial Crisis Protections

The Trump administration is looking to dismantle many of the protections put into place after the 2008 financial crisis, including the Dodd-Frank reforms and the Elizabeth Warren-created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.


Withdrawing from the Paris Agreement

In June, Trump pulled the US out of the Paris Agreement on climate change. In doing so, the US joined Syria and Nicaragua as the only two countries not participating in the agreement.


Slashing Jobs at the Environmental Protection Agency

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), headed by fossil fuel ally Scott Pruitt, plans to cut over 1,200 jobs by September. And in a blow to the integrity of the science used by government agencies, the EPA dismissed nearly all of the members of its Board of Scientific Counselors.

The administration also closed the Office of International Climate and Technology, which worked on clean energy projects with other countries.

Delaying Protection from Pollutants

The EPA proposed delaying for two years an Obama-era rule that would have cracked down on pollutants from drilling operations that contribute to climate change and endanger people’s health.


Letting Women and Girls Down

President Trump reportedly plans to let the White House Council on Women and Girls go dark citing budget cuts and redundancies. The office, established to monitor policy changes and collaborate with women’s groups, is untenanted while the administration considers its future status, according to Politico.

The administration also announced this week that they will scrap a rule aimed at preventing pay discrimination.


Gutting Teen Pregnancy Prevention Programs

The Trump administration is completely defunding the nationwide Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, cutting $213 million in assistance that supports roughly 1.2 million teenagers across the country.

Also, the administration recently removed a 2014 report on sexual violence from the White House website entitled “Rape And Sexual Assault: Renewed Call To Action.”


Relaxing Media Ownership Rules

President Trump’s Federal Communications Commission is clearing the way for a merger between Sinclair Broadcasting and Tribune Media, two television companies that together own hundreds of local news stations. Just months ago the move would have been illegal.


Cutting Infrastructure Jobs

The Obama-era Local Labor Hiring Preference Pilot Program aimed to help urban and rural workers find good-paying industrial and infrastructure jobs in their home areas. The program had already led to the creation of “thousands of new, high-wage transportation and construction jobs in some of the nation’s most depressed local labor markets.” It’s been disbanded.


Killing Initiative on Infrastructure Designed for Climate Change

Trump and his team overturned an Obama-era rule requiring that infrastructure projects be designed to withstand the consequences of climate change. He has also proposed cuts to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as a number of programs at agencies involved in disaster relief. Though Harvey appears to have initiated a walk-back on some of those particular changes.


Halting Rules on Predatory Lenders and For-Profit Colleges  

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos halted two rules developed under Obama designed to protect college students from predatory lending and dubious for-profit colleges.


Quashing Regulations for Dangerous Jobs

The Trump administration rolled back sleep and safety regulations for truck drivers, who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the country.

The administration is also pushing to abandon new federal health monitoring for the use of the toxic metal beryllium in the maritime and construction industry.


Bringing Back Civil Forfeiture (AKA We Can Take Your Money)

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has brought back civil asset forfeiture, which allows police to take away your assets even if you haven’t been convicted of a crime. Former Attorney General Eric Holder had shut down the program in 2015.


Ending Funds to Fight White Supremacy and Hate - (This was one of the first on his chopping block.  Still think he "really" condemns these guys?" 

The Department of Homeland Security revoked a $400,000 grant made in the waning days of the Obama administration to Life After Hate, which was founded by ex-supremacists to convert those currently embroiled in hate.


Closing Global War Crimes Office — and Cybersecurity Office Too

The Trump administration has plans to close the Office of Global Criminal Justice, which is tasked with supporting international prosecutions for perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

Also, the Office of the Coordinator for Cyber Issues is shutting down and will be incorporated into the State Department’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs. The State Department cites redundancies and budget cuts as the reason for the reported change (That is a common refrain in the wrecking ball series).


Cutting Funds for AIDS/HIV Prevention

Trump hopes to cut $186 million in the CDC’s funding for HIV/AIDS prevention, testing and support services. Six HIV experts on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, quit via a Newsweek op-ed, stating that Trump “simply does not care” and has “no strategy” for addressing the epidemic.


Slashing Refugee Admissions

In the face of the growing refugee crisis President Trump drastically lowered the number of refugees accepted into America to 50,000 this year, a milestone that was reached in July.


Reducing Funds for Health Programs Abroad

Trump signed an executive order to block financial aid for health programs abroad, including those related to AIDS, malaria and child health, that counsel about abortion. The move will restrict nearly $9 billion in foreign health assistance.


Limiting Protection of Beautiful Public Spaces

Before he left office President Obama designated a number of new National Monuments under the authority of the 1906 Antiquities Act. A number of those monuments are facing rollback under the Trump administration. Thus far, none have been eliminated but several are already facing size reductions and usage changes.
 

If You Still Want More

You can peruse our full “While He Was Tweeting” series but we also recommend some additional places that are keeping a close eye on all the changes afoot. The Washington Post maintains a great graphic explainer of Obama-era rollbacks. For a catalog from abroad try The BBC’s “Trump Tracker” and The Guardian’s excellent compilation of Trump’s effect on the environment. And, The Sunlight Foundation is keeping track of suspected conflicts of interest within the administration.