Hats off to the Atlantic and Washington Post for saving Stars & Stripes.
— Zeddy (@Zeddary) September 4, 2020
Top ‘Trending – Political’ story on the Twitter sidebar:
Trump says Stars and Stripes, the military’s independent newspaper, will not be shuttered
On Friday morning, news broke that the Pentagon had ordered the closure of the 160-year-old Stars and Stripes newspaper at the end of September. President Trump Tweeted that his administration “will NOT be cutting funding” for the publication.
‘Course, now we have to hold the bastid to it…
Note: The slashing of Stars and Stripes funding was proposed earlier this year in *Trump's own budget request to Congress* https://t.co/UDT50dcJ11
— Paul Sonne (@PaulSonne) September 4, 2020
I suspect the release of those articles in the Atlantic and the Washington Post just *might* not be serendipity…
Story indicates this can’t happen without Congress agreeing, and lawmakers are lining up against it. But still, what a message for the Trump administration to send to the troops. https://t.co/hqfU1p1R74
— Nahal Toosi (@nahaltoosi) September 4, 2020
Backstory:
JUST IN: In a heretofore unpublicized recent memo, Pentagon delivers order to shutter @starsandstripes, a newspaper that has been a lifeline and a voice for American troops since the Civil War. Last publication (in all forms) will be Sept. 30. https://t.co/5DLHalA3Ew @kathykiely
— Evan Rosenfeld (@Evan_Rosenfeld) September 4, 2020
The Pentagon is shutting down the revered 160-year-old newspaper, Stars and Stripes, in order to save $15.5 million
Reminder: just four Trump trips to Mar-a-Lago in 2017 cost taxpayers $13.6 million (per @USGAO)
Important piece from @kathykiely https://t.co/pmd50vOluo
— Chris Lu (@ChrisLu44) September 4, 2020
I read Stars and Stripes extensively when I served on active duty in Guam, as did many military members and their families. Why are @EsperDoD and @realDonaldTrump hurting our military again?
Also, when is @POTUS going to condemn Putin for paying the Taliban to kill US troops? https://t.co/2NnfDA1vqy
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) September 4, 2020
I read Stars and Stripes on a mountain in Afghanistan when I was a 19 year old aspiring journalist. Now I work there. This doesn’t stop the journalism. I’m juggling 3 future news stories today. https://t.co/z9ZEHWa7mW
— Steve Beynon (@StevenBeynon) September 4, 2020
…there's never been a better way. At least, there wasn't in the big war years. The Baghdad embassy, there's wifi, sometimes, for those lucky enough to have something to access it with. At FOB whatever, maybe. At COP so-an-so, good luck.
— Kevin Baron (@DefenseBaron) September 4, 2020
Trump has taken over VOA, Radio Free Europe, etc… planting loyalists, firing critical journalists. He can't do that with Stripes so he's just… zeroing out the budget. Congress didn't act, didn't take Trump/Esper's attacks on Stripes seriously, just shook their fists.
— Kevin Baron (@DefenseBaron) September 4, 2020
A bipartisan group of 15 senators urged Defense Secretary Mark Esper in a letter Wednesday to maintain support for Stars and Stripes, which could be forced to stop publishing by the end of the month without Defense Department funding. https://t.co/RssPEzqgag
— Stars and Stripes (@starsandstripes) September 3, 2020
lamh36
Soooo…AP (2x), WashPo, and now Fox News all confirming the “losers” and “suckers” quotes from Chump
And of course Chump’s strategy is to step on his own defense?
Or trying to insult Kelly to…uh…shutting up..or something?
And uh…doesn’t this just confirm the Chump said it and Kelly is the likely source?
trollhattan
Seems like Donny got his box of Diamond brand kitchen matches for Christmas, like he asked from Santa. Get here quick November, you’re our only hope.
trollhattan
@lamh36:
For every administration member, a bus. Except Miller, he’s golden.
Baud
So…Stars and Stripes forever?
planetjanet
@lamh36:Head ** smacks ** desk
kindness
It just shows Putin is a lousy tutor to Trump’s authoritarianism.
Leto
@Baud: Wasn’t that the alternate B-side to Strawberry Fields?
@lamh36: I’m surprised he’s able to step on something so small, but eternally glad he’ll keep doing it.
lamh36
Saw clips of Biden’s news conference today, Biden was on FIYAH!
So Chump war room put out the spin that Biden is an expert debater and Chump will try to stump him…but wait…weren’t they saying Biden has dementia?
The dementia angle was never a good one anyway.
As for the debates, when Biden debates one on one, his is dynamite.
A debate stage full of people is one thing, but just Biden and one other person, no audience, no boos, applause, heckling…
Trump is the one who needs the crowd not Biden
It’s like folks forget Biden coined the phrase in reference to Guiliiani “a noun, a verb, & 9/11”. neutralized Guilliani on 9/11 in just one short debate clip…LOL
https://youtu.be/mPOAKXBi9Pw
It’s one of the reasons Guilliani focuses on the Bidens so much.
Aleta
NY Daily News
Calouste
@lamh36: Uh, does he realize that the helicopter he gets on regularly on called Marine 1? Not of course that I expect the Marines serving at the White House to behave anything less than with the utmost professionalism. I even expect them to go above that and do things beyond the call of duty, like spend some extra time polishing the steps of the stairs going into Marine 1.
White & Gold Purgatorian
I saw part of Trump’s presser. He looked and sounded awful, but then I haven’t seen him in at least 6 months. Does anyone know what this big pot of money (did he say $300 million?) is that he wants to distribute to the American people as soon as Congress gives a simple “one sentence “ okay? And he could probably send the checks out without Congressional approval but he doesn’t want to do it that way.
germy
Has fox news flipped?
germy
No questions.
Leto
@lamh36: That was an extremely good presser. I especially liked where he acknowledged he was getting worked up and had to stand down from it, a reporter later asked him about it, and responded: a president should set the standard. This rang out like a clarion call for me because it’s the same thing I tried to practice as an NCO. You have to model the behavior you expect from your followers. A fucking plus, Joe!
Leto
Apparently during Trumpov’s presser he gave about an hour ago, he said Lou Holtz is going to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Best response:
David Leavitt@David_Leavitt
·
19m
Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from @realDonaldTrump is almost as worthless as receiving a degree from Trump University
trollhattan
@germy:
So much as “I will never lie to you.”
prostratedragon
@Calouste: Changing the corps motto from “Semper Fidelis” to “Shiny Ramps,” perhaps?
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Leto:
Yeah, that crappy Penny Lane won out.
Alison Rose
@kindness: Putin’s probably a great teacher, so long as the student has two brain cells to rub together. Trump sadly comes up short there.
Alison Rose
@lamh36: That really was a classic line, on the “You’re no Jack Kennedy” level.
lumpkin
This just doesn’t seem like something Obama would have done. I’m not a fanboi but I’m going to choose not to believe this until there’s something to back it up.
Ken
Yeah, but it’s not a good helicopter. It can’t fly in the rain, remember?
John Revolta
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Well actually, Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields were BOTH the A side!
John Revolta
@germy: No questions and how. She was off stage before she was finished talking!
Amir Khalid
–Dr Fauci’s voice sounds better, so much less hoarse, since his vocal chord surgery, doesn’t it?
Uncle Cosmo
@Baud: Come next January, for recently-unemployed members of the current Misadministration, it’ll be The Bars And Stripes Forever. (Lifted from a Rocky & Bullwinkle episode from the era before orange jumpsuits.)
Bill Arnold
@Calouste:
Laughed out loud. :-)
catclub
John O. Brennan
But still nobody with a name and rank on the record.
Another Scott
In other news, https://thehill.com/policy/defense/515206-pentagon-reaffirms-decision-to-award-multi-billion-jedi-contract-to-microsoft
“This is fine.”
Grr…
Cheers,
Scott.
...now I try to be amused
@catclub:
Two words: Alexander Vindman.
Another Scott
@…now I try to be amused: Yes, but retired 4-stars don’t need to worry about retribution.
Goldberg said on NPR this evening that he expects more people to be willing to speak on the record in the near future.
And that makes sense – this story will do the most damage to Donnie by staying in people’s minds, and that means that “new” elements have to keep appearing to force coverage and to force Donnie and his minions to respond.
Cheers,
Scott.
Mike G
Classic Trump. Cause a problem, then grandly announce he’s going to save us from it.
Kayla Rudbek
@Leto: if anyone had told me in the 1990s that in 2020 I would find Pete Carroll more admirable than Lou Holtz, I would have asked them what kind of crack they were smoking…