Source: The Hill

BY BRETT SAMUELS - 12/31/17 10:24 AM EST

Chief of Staff John Kelly on Sunday said President Trump remains “fairly unconventional” after a year in office, noting he rarely asks how other presidents have made decisions in the past.

“The norms and conventions are exactly what he ran against and, in his view, are why we’re in the fix we’re in. He doesn’t intentionally make decisions that are opposite, say, of what a previous president would make. He’s got a view of what’s better for America,” Kelly told The New York Times.

Trump has made a number of decisions to reverse regulations, legislation and deals put into place by former President Obama, which many experts see as an intentional strategy to undermine the previous administration.

Trump has frequently compared himself to past presidential administrations when touting his achievements, often saying he has done more "than any other president."

Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/366915-kelly-trump-doesnt-ask-how-other-presidents-did-this

December 31, 2017

Graham: 2018 will be year of 'extreme danger'

Source: The Hill

BY BRETT SAMUELS - 12/31/17 10:52 AM EST

Sen. Lindsey Graham on Sunday warned that 2018 could be a year of “extreme danger,” citing growing tensions with North Korea and Iran.

“We’ve got a chance here to deliver some fatal blows to some really bad actors in 2018. But if we blink, God help us all,” the South Carolina Republican added on CBS's "Face the Nation."

Graham has been outspoken about the threat of war between the U.S. and North Korea, saying he believes there’s a 30 percent chance the U.S. will use military force if North Korea conducts another long-range ballistic missile test.

He added that the odds increase to 70 percent if North Korea detonates another nuclear bomb.

Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/366918-graham-2018-will-be-year-of-extreme-danger

December 31, 2017

TRUMP'S WAY. For Trump, A Year of Reinventing the Presidency

In ways that were once unimaginable, President Trump has discarded the conventions and
norms established by his predecessors. Will that change the institution permanently?

By PETER BAKERDEC. 31, 2017

WASHINGTON — When President Trump meets with aides to discuss policy or prepare for a speech, he may ask about the pros and cons of a new proposal. He may inquire about its possible effect. He may explore the best way to frame his case.

But there is one thing he almost never does. “He very seldom asks how other presidents did this,” said John F. Kelly, the White House chief of staff.

Mr. Trump is the 45th president of the United States, but he has spent much of his first year in office defying the conventions and norms established by the previous 44, and transforming the presidency in ways that were once unimaginable.

Under Mr. Trump, it has become a blunt instrument to advance personal, policy and political goals. He has revolutionized the way presidents deal with the world beyond 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, dispensing with the carefully modulated messaging of past chief executives in favor of no-holds-barred, crystal-breaking, us-against-them, damn-the-consequences blasts borne out of gut and grievance.

He has kept a business on the side; attacked the F.B.I., C.I.A. and other institutions he oversees; threatened to use his power against rivals; and waged war against members of his own party and even his own cabinet. He fired the man investigating his campaign and has not ruled out firing the one who took over. He has appealed to base instincts on race, religion and gender as no president has in generations. And he has rattled the nuclear saber more bombastically than it has been since the days of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

more
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/31/us/politics/trump-reinventing-presidency.html?mtrref=undefined&_r=1

December 31, 2017

Media watchdog: Threats against independent journalists 'at epidemic levels'

Source: The Hill

BY JULIA MANCHESTER - 12/31/17 10:32 AM EST

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) issued a dire report on the threats faced by journalists around the world, amid violence faced by the press in 2017.

The group's finding, which was obtained by The Associated Press, found that “unprecedented numbers of journalists were jailed, forced to flee, that self-censorship was widespread and that impunity for the killings, harassment, attacks, and threats against independent journalism was running at epidemic levels.”

The report also found that a minimum of 81 journalists were killed while working, and over 250 journalists were jailed over the year. Eight women journalists lost their lives doing their jobs, including Kim Wall in Denmark and Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta.

The majority of press killings took place in Mexico, Afganistan, Iraq, and Syria, according to the report.

Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/media/366917-media-watchdog-threats-against-independent-journalists-at-epidemic-levels

December 31, 2017

Mattis: 'I'm saving money for bombs' instead of gratitude tokens

Source: The Hill

BY JULIA MANCHESTER - 12/31/17 10:05 AM EST

Defense Secretary James Mattis said he does not carry gratitude tokens to hand out to U.S. troops and has instead opted for saving money for bombs.

Mattis told Breitbart News he was saving up for bombs after the reporter relayed a message from a U.S. Marine who asked whether the secretary was carrying the coins during a trip to an international terrorism conference in Jordan earlier this year.

Defense leaders often carry challenge coins and hand them out to servicemen and women as a sign of their gratitude. The anecdote comes as the Trump administration approaches its one year mark.

Mattis, who is known for his toughness, was overwhelmingly confirmed by the Senate in a 98-1 vote earlier this year.

Read more: http://thehill.com/policy/defense/366913-mattis-im-saving-money-for-bombs-instead-of-gratitude-tokens

December 31, 2017

Trump warns Iran: US watching for human rights violations in response to protests

Source: The Hill

December 31, 2017 - 08:21 AM EST

President Trump early Sunday warned Iran that the United States is watching for human rights violations as anti-government protests flare across the country.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/947453152806297600

The warning comes after the first deaths were reported in western Iran on Saturday.

The president had issued a similar caution to Tehran on Friday.

“Many reports of peaceful protests by Iranian citizens fed up with regime’s corruption & its squandering of the nation’s wealth to fund terrorism abroad,” Trump said in a tweet.

Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/366901-trump-us-is-watching-for-human-rights-violations-in-iran-protests

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