Transcripts For LINKTV Democracy Now 20171128 : vimarsana.co

They face up to 30 days of mandatory counseling, a coolingoff period before they decide to file a claim. Only the congressmans lawyer is paid for by taxpayers. We will speak with an attorney is represented multiple congressssional staffers pursuig harassment claims. 1075 years in prison. That is what more than 200 people face as they go on trial is protesting on j20 that january 20, trumps Inauguration Day. I was peacefully demonstrating. Although i did not engage in any ask of vandalism, the next thing i knowow, police were firing pepper spray and tear gas everywhere most of they never warned us or told us to disperse. Amy we will speak with one ofof the defendants and get an updade on the trial. Then floating guantanamos. The coast guard has been operating deepep into the pacifc andn interdicting cocaine detaining suspected drug smugglers aboard their cutters, often for weeks or months in what o one former coast guard official called floating onnamos on these this the pacific. Amy we will speak with the stor the reporter who broke the story. And john kelly, while he was the head up south comb. All of that and more, coming up. Welcome to democracy now, democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. President trump is heading to capitol hill today to promote his proposed tax plan, which would shower billions of dollars worth of tax cuts upon the wealthiest americans, including President Trumps own family. The Congressional Budget Office says the senates version n of e tax bill would hurt people making less than 30,0,000 a ye, whwhile giving m major tax cutso those making more than 100,000 a yearar. A provision of the senate bill would also eliminate a key part of the Affordable Care act the requirement that americans have Health Insurance or pay a penalty. As republicans scramble for enough votes to pass the plan, they are considering tacking on even more tax breaks for wealthy business owners. Have Health Insurance or pay a the Senate Budget committee is slated to vote on the bill today, and lawmakers are pressing for a vote in the full senate thihis week. The the showdown at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau continued monday as two dueling leaders, one named by President Trump and one named by the agencies former head both battle for control. The chaos began on friday, when former director Richard Cordray resigned and appointed his former chief of staff leandra enenglish toto be his successor. But then President Trump appointed his budget director Mick Mulvaney to head the agency. While serving as a South Carolina congressman, mulvaney voted to eliminate thehe agency entirely. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was created in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. On monday morning, trumps budget director Mick Mulvaney arrived at the cfpb with the back of donuts incident email telling the agencys staff to disregard all orders from english. He also said he was freezing all hiring and all rulemaking. Leandra english, meanwhile, also showed up to the office on monday, welcomed the staff back from vacacation, then met wiwith lawmakakers on capitol hilill. Later in the day, english and mulvaney appeared before a federal judge, arguing each was the true head of the agency. Y. The judge, a recent trump apappointee, refused to rule immediately, meaning the showdown continues into today. In the midst of the battle at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, President Trump attempted to insult massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren by calling her pocahontas. Trump did this during a white house ceremony honoring navajo code talkers, native americans who served in the marines during wwii and used the navajo language in order to transmit encoded information. Pres. Trump i just want to thank you because you are very, very special people. You were here long before any of us are here. Although, whatever representative in congress who they say was here long time ago. They call her pocahontas. But you know what . Because you are special. You are special people. Amy President Trump has frequently attacked senator warren by calling her pocahontas. Warren says her family is part cherokee. Trump held the ceremony aimed at honoring the navajo military veterans in front of a portrait of former president andrew jackson, who was called indian killer by the cherokees. Jackson signed the indian removal act, leading to the forced displacement and death of tens of thousands of native americans, a march that became known as the trailil of tears. This is senator Elizabeth Warren speaking later monday. Had to throw out a racial slur. He seems to think that if he keeps doing that, somehow he is going to shut me up. It has not worked in the past. It is not going to work in the future. And whether he likes it or not, im going to be out there and im going to keep talking about what hes tried to do to the consumer Protection Bureau. Amy yet another top official at the state department has resigned. Maliz beams was serving as a special adviser to secretary of state rex tillerson. She was overseeing tillersons reorganization of the state department, but served only three months before leaving the state department this week. More than n 100 officials and career diplomats have left since President Trump took office. Congressman Luis Gutierrez is slated to announce today he is retiring from congress. He is a member of the Judiciary Committee and the cochair of the Immigration Task force of the congressional hispanic caucus. Hes been a longtime proimmigration advocate, arrested multiple times at protests against deportations. He has also been a fierce critic of President Trump. The Washington Post reports it appears to have been targeted for an undercover sting operation by a rightwing organization seekingng to discredit the Washington Post reporting on multiple allegations of Sexual Assault and harassment by Alabama Senate candidate roy moore. Moore has been accused of sexually harassing or assaulting at least nine women when they were children or young adults. The post reports that a separate woman approached the Washington Post with a dramatic but invented story about roy moore impregnating her as a teenager. The post says it conducted a series of interviews with the woman, in which the reporters found inconsistencies in her story. Then on monday, the reporters saw her walk into the new york headquarters of project veritas, a rightwing group that often sets up sting operations targeting the media and journalists by recording covert videos. Project veritas founder, james okeefe, refused to answer questions about whether he was working with roy Moores Campaign or other republican strategists in orderer to discredit media reporting on roy moore. On monday, roy moore spoke publicly for the first time in two weeks, once again claiming he did not know any of the women who have accused him. Meanwhile, one of his Campaign Coordinators physically attacked a cameraman outside a Campaign Rally in alabama on monday night before moore arrived. This all comes as President Trump is now attempting to claim that the infamous 2005 access Hollywood Tape in which he brags about sexually assaulting women is fake. This is a clip of the tape. Amy after the tape first resurfaced during the 2016 president ial election, President Trump did not dispute the tapes authenticity but instead said his words were locker room talk. His words were locker room talk. But now he is claiming the tape is fake. This is access hollywood host Natalie Morales responding to the news reports about trumps claims on monday. We wanted to clear something up that has been reported across the media landscape. According to the New York Times President Trump told two people the tape is fake. Let us make this clear. The tape is very real. Amy well have more on Sexual Harassment, the media, and congress after headlines. In more news from washington, d. C. , former National Security adviser Michael Flynn met with special counsel Robert Muellers team on monday. Mueller is investigating possible collusion between Trump Campaign and russia during the 2016 election. Flynns meeting monday is the latest indication that flynn may be close to accepting a plea deal, which would see him likely testify against President Trump or members of trumps inner circle. The u. S. Navy has identified three sailors who went missing after their plane crashed in the Philippine Sea southeast of okinawa in japan, on the navy wednesday. Called off its search and rescue mission on thursday. Weretate the sailors steven combs, matthew chialastri, and bryan grosso. In honduras, progressive president ial candidate Salvador Nasralla has declared victory as he continues to hold an unexpected lead in sundays election results. His challenger, president Juan Orlando Hernandez had been widely expected to win, despite increasing concerns about the conservative president s authoritarianism and consolidation of power. But by monday evening, nasralla was leading hernandez by 5 of the vote, with nearly 60 counted. This is nasralla. As you all know, this has already been won. Dont be swayed by what the media as saying. Were broken a regular plan by which for the first time it was the people who voted for their president. This was the peoples choice. Amy 60 of the vote has been counted in honduras. In indonesia, 150,000 people are under evacuation orders on the island of bali, as the mount agung volcano has begun erupting. The islands main airport has been shut down because of ash fall. The last time mount t agung erupted, in 1963, more than 1000 people died and several villages were destroyed. In vietnam, a 22yearold blogger has been sentenced to seven years in prison for reporting on a Chemical Spill that contaminated a 120mile stretch of central vietnams coastline last year. Nguyen van hoa was convicted of spreading antistate propaganda by reporting on the protests after the spill, which was one of the worst environmental disasters in vietnams recent history. In australia, six pepeace activists have been arrested after protesting. To peace activists face up seven years in prison. The trials have put a spotlight on the secretive military base known as the joint defense plan cap for which the u. U. S. Got a satellite information used to launch u. S. Airstrikes around the world. And in an update to a democracy now story last week, california congressman ted lieu has sent a letter to secretary of Defense James Mattis demanding the pentagon respond to a New York Times expose that revealed the u. S. Military has killed many more civilians during its war on isis than the pentagon has admitted. In an expose entitled the uncounted, journalists azmat khan and anand gopal revealed the u. S. Is killing civilians in up to one in every five airstrikes a figure 31 times higher than the pentagon admits. In his letter, congressman lieu demanded the pentagon investigate the times reports of civilian casualties, writing if the findings are accurate, the coalitions conduct not only may violate the law of armed conflict, it may also help isis in recruiting efforts. And those are some of the headlines. This is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Juan and im juan gonzalez. Welcome to all of our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. We begin todays show looking at Sexual Harassment in washington and what happens to a member of congress when someone dares to come forward to report wrongdoing. On monday, senator al franken returned to congress in the face of allegations from four women now that he had groped or inappropriately touched women. And contrite franken vowed this will not happen again. I just want to say a few words before i get back to work. I know that i have let a lot of people down. People of minnesota, my colleagues, my staff, my hasorters, and everyone who counted on me to be a champion for women. I just wantf you, to, say i am sorry. I know there are no magic words that i can say to regain your trusust, and i know it is goingo take time. Juan the law on House Minority monday, leader nancy pelosi said she spoke to and believed one of the women who has accused accused michigan congressman john conyers of Sexual Harassment. Conyers reportedly settled the complaint in 2014, paying out 27,000 to a woman who alleged she was fired from his washington staff because she rejected his sexual advances. Conynyers hasas since s steppedn as the top democrat on the house Judiciary Committee. For lizzie issued a statement saying this afternoooon, i spoke with Melanie Sloan who worked for congressman conyers on the Judiciary Committee in the mid1990s. Ms. Sloan told me that she had publicly discussed distressing experiences while on his staff. I find the behavior ms. Sloan described unacceptable and disappointing. I believe what ms. Sloan has told me. Amy pelosi went on to criticize the process for reporting Sexual Harassment in congress, saying i have not had the opportunity to speak with the other women, one of whom cannot speak publicly because of the secretive settlement process in place. That ridiculous system must be ended and victims who want to come forward to the Ethics Committee must be able to do so. This came one day after pelosi called congressman conyers as an icon who deserves due process during an interview on nbcs meet the press. We are strengthened by due process. Just because someone is accused, is it one accusation or two . John conyers is an icon and our country. He is done a great guilt to protect women, violence against women act that the right wing is now quoting him and praising him for his work on that and he did great work on that. Amy so congresswoman pelosi has called for due process for her cocolleague congressman conyers and also called the process that a ridiculous system that must be ended. That system gives Sexual Harassment victims in congress have 180 days to bring a claim to the Congressional Office of compliance, which handles workplace complaints. Victims are then subject to up to 30 days of mandatory counseling. They then have a cooling off period to decide whether to bring claims to mediation. If they dont want mediation, they are out of options. For more, we go to washington, d. C. Where were joined by alexis ronickher, an attorney with the firm katz, Marshall Banks, who has represented multiple congressional staffers pursuing harassment claims through congresss office of compliance. Welcome to democracy now lets start by you laying out, alexis, the process, which is being disputed now, legislation is being written to change it, the process a person has to go through who works on the hill to bring a charge of Sexual Harassment or Sexual Assault against a congressmember. Absolutely. A staff member who finds themselves in a situation where theyre facing sexual harassed went, even Sexual Assault, the process for pursuing a claim would be within 180 days. They would need to go to the office of compliance, which is a small agency that is part of the legislative branch, and file what is called for request for counseling. Counseling is somewhat of a misnomer. It is more of an intake process. That counseling period is 30 days and by statute it is strictly confidential. Then the staff member, should they choose to proceed and want to continue with their claim, they follow request for mediation. The mediation period is 30 days and it is mandatory. That means a staff member, even if they know they want to go to dissipate in this mandatory mediation in which they have to in good faith they have to sign an agreement saying in good faith theyre going to attempt to resolve this dispute with the employing office. If that mediation amy are they mediating with the congressmember at that point . The civil action is not against the congress person, it is against the office. Theres no way to bring a claim directly against the congressmember w