The People’s President
From yesterday’s protest at LAX.
We’re paying attention
I’m going to buy a few of these.
Starbucks Chairman & CEO, Howard Schultz, says Starbucks will hire 10,000 refugees over 5 years in 75 countries, starting in the US. (here's a few snippets of his letter to Partners. Worth the read)
I write to you today with deep concern, a heavy heart and a resolute promise. Let me begin with the news that is immediately in front of us: we have all been witness to the confusion, surprise and opposition to the Executive Order that President Trump issued on Friday, effectively banning people from several predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States, including refugees fleeing wars. I can assure you that our Partner Resources team has been in direct contact with the partners who are impacted by this immigration ban, and we are doing everything possible to support and help them to navigate through this confusing period.
In the face of recent events around the world, let me assure you that we will stay true to our values and do everything we can possibly do to support and invest in every partner’s well-being while taking the actions that are squarely within our ability to control. This is our focus: providing a Third Place of respite for those around the world who seek it, daily.
If there is any lesson to be learned over the last year, it’s that your voice and your vote matter more than ever. We are all obligated to ensure our elected officials hear from us individually and collectively. Starbucks is doing its part; we need you to use the collective power of your voices to do the same while respecting the diverse viewpoints of the 90 million customers who visit our stores in more than 25,000 locations around the world.
So, while we seek to understand what the new Administration’s policies mean for us and our business both domestically and around the world, I can assure you that we will do whatever it takes to support you, our partners, to realize your own dreams and achieve your own opportunities. We are in business to inspire and nurture the human spirit, one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time – whether that neighborhood is in a Red State or a Blue State; a Christian country or a Muslim country; a divided nation or a united nation. That will not change. You have my word on that.
Trump & his team didn't consult Sec of Defense and Homeland Security in preparing this "terrorism" order.
Gen. John F. Kelly, the secretary of homeland security, had dialed in from a Coast Guard plane as he headed back to Washington from Miami. Along with other top officials, he needed guidance from the White House, which had not asked his department for a legal review of the order.
Halfway into the briefing, someone on the call looked up at a television in his office. “The president is signing the executive order that we’re discussing,” the official said, stunned.
White House officials in the meantime insisted to reporters at a briefing that Mr. Trump’s advisers had been in contact with officials at the State and Homeland Security Departments for “many weeks.”
One official added, “Everyone who needed to know was informed.”
But that apparently did not include members of the president’s own cabinet.
Jim Mattis, the new secretary of defense, did not see a final version of the order until Friday morning, only hours before Mr. Trump arrived to sign it at the Pentagon.
Mr. Mattis, according to administration officials familiar with the deliberations, was not consulted by the White House during the preparation of the order and was not given an opportunity to provide input while the order was being drafted.
Lawyer for Trump supporter charged with voter fraud says she shouldn't stand trial
A Des Moines woman facing a felony charge for allegedly voting twice in the 2016 general election has "significant mental deficits" and might not be competent to stand trial, her defense attorney wrote in a new filing.
Her court-appointed attorney, Jane White, filed a motion last week saying Rote has “cognitive limitations” and can’t stay focused for long periods — things that mean she wouldn’t be able to help prepare her defense
“It is unlikely that Defendant can assist in her defense or participate in the trial process,” White wrote. “It is unknown if the Defendant has been diagnosed previously with a mental health disorder, but her interactions with counsel indicate to counsel that this may be the case.”
Rote told The Washington Post last year that she hadn’t planned on voting twice in Polk County but said her second ballot was “a spur-of-the-moment thing” when she walked by a satellite voting location.
“I don’t know what came over me,” she said.
Damn coastal elites. ;)
Good morning folks! Grab some extra strong coffee (or espresso), and get ready. It’s Monday, and I have a feeling it’s going to be a loooooonnnnnnnng day. This is your morning open thread. Happy chatting.
