Focus Washington September 2019 from

LUNCHTIME POLITICS: Confidence in Institutions – South Carolina, Nevada

September 30, 2019 John Ganjei

Your Daily Polling Update for Monday, September 30, 2019 TRUMP JOB APPROVAL: AVERAGE 45%Same as Friday RON’S COMMENT: The Ukraine affair is still not having a measurable impact on President Trump’s job rating. We’ll see […]

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Elon Musk Wants to Put First SpaceX Mars Starship in Orbit in Six Months

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

Elon Musk has said that his Starship spacecraft – which is designed to carry people to the moon and Mars – will begin orbital test flights in less than two months. The SpaceX CEO made […]

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Amash Says ‘McCarthy Displays Incompetence and Dishonesty’

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

Independent Representative Justin Amash attacked Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy over an interview in which McCarthy was speaking about the impeachment inquiry against Trump. “Kevin McCarthy again displays his unique brand of incompetence and dishonesty,” Amash […]

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GOP Lawmakers Question Whistleblower’s Credibility

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

Republican senators have attacked the credibility of the whistleblower who filed a complaint as they are struggling to prevent a formal impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump, The Hill reported. Lawmakers at the GOP have claimed […]

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Farmers Oppose Trump’s Biofuel Waivers

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

American farmers, who have been particularly hurt by President Donald Trump’s ongoing trade war with China, have protested the Trump administration’s biofuel waivers. The leaders of 23 corn grower organizations on Friday sent a letter […]

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Poll Shows Majority of Americans Support Impeachment Inquiry

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

A CBS News poll released on Sunday showed that the majority of respondents believe the impeachment inquiry that Congress opened into President Donald Trump was necessary, although they cannot agree on how his actions are […]

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Beto O’Rourke Calls for Trump’s Resignation

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke said Saturday that the “single best thing” to unify the country would be for President Donald Trump to resign for his actions related to Ukraine, CNN reported. “The best possible […]

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Administration

Schiff Says Whistleblower to Testify Soon

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

The whistleblower who recently filed a complaint against President Donald Trump will soon testify before the House Intelligence Committee, the panel’s chairman Adam Schiff confirmed on Sunday. The testimony, however, will protect his identity, which […]

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Saudi Crown Prince Prefers Political Solution to Iran Conflict

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman warned in an interview broadcast on Sunday that oil prices could spike to “unimaginably high numbers” if the world doesn’t come together to deter Iran, but said he […]

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Pyongyang Urges Washington to Turn Words into Action

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

A North Korean envoy called on the United States to translate its promises into action ahead of upcoming working-level talks between the two countries to discuss the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Korea Herald reported. […]

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Diplomats Protest as Venezuela Attempts to Fill UNGA with Supporters

September 30, 2019 Focus Washington

In a week when President Donald Trump and his administration placed the spotlight on the humanitarian crisis brought on by Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, a number of diplomats led by the U.S. walked out Friday […]

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U.S. House Defeats Republican Measure Disapproving of Impeachment Inquiry

September 29, 2019 Focus Washington

The Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives killed a Republican resolution on Friday disapproving of the formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced this week, Reuters writes. The vote was […]

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Legal Setback for Trump’s Plan to Speed Some Deportations

September 29, 2019 Focus Washington

A federal judge ordered the Department of Homeland Security to set aside a plan that would make more people vulnerable to expedited deportation until a court can rule on the matter, Reuters informed. The lawsuit, […]

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Hong Kong Police Use Rubber Bullets, Tear Gas as Clashes Intensify

September 29, 2019 Focus Washington

Hong Kong police fired water cannon, rubber bullets and round after round of tear gas at petrol-bomb and brick-throwing protesters on Sunday in some of the most widespread violence in more than three months of […]

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U.S. Special Envoy to Ukraine Resigns

September 28, 2019 Focus Washington

U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Kurt Volker resigned from his position Friday after his name appeared in the whistleblower complaint that precipitated the House of Representatives’ impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, CBS News confirms, […]

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Trump Administration Considers Delisting Chinese Firms from U.S. Markets

September 28, 2019 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump’s administration is considering delisting Chinese companies from U.S. stock exchanges, three sources briefed on the matter said on Friday, in what would be a radical escalation of U.S.-China trade tensions, Reuters informed. […]

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House Democrats Subpoena Pompeo for Ukraine Documents

September 28, 2019 Focus Washington

Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives who are pursuing an impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump forged ahead with their probe on Friday, issuing a subpoena to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for documents […]

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LUNCHTIME POLITICS: Impeachment Support Rising – Deep State – Foreign Policy – Trump vs. Generic Democrat

September 27, 2019 John Ganjei

Your Daily Polling Update for Friday, September 27, 2019 TRUMP JOB APPROVAL: AVERAGE 45%Up 1 from yesterday RON’S COMMENT: So far, the Ukraine affair does not appear to have had much or any impact on President Trump’s […]

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Rouhani Says U.S. Offered to Remove All Sanctions in Exchange for Negotiations

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

Washington offered to remove all sanctions on Iran in exchange for talks but Tehran has not yet accepted the offer due to the current “toxic atmosphere”, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Friday, Reuters reported. […]

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Zelensky Claims Trump Pledged to Return Crimea to Ukraine

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that President Donald Trump has made him a promise to help him retreieve the Crimea peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014 in the wake of the Ukrainian revolution. […]

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North Korea Urges Trump to Produce a Breakthrough in Nuclear Diplomacy

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

North Korea said Friday it wants President Donald Trump to make a “wise option and bold decision” to produce a breakthrough in stalled nuclear diplomacy, in an escalation of pressure on the U.S. ahead of […]

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Pelosi Meets Queer Eye Star to Talk Equality Act

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi met reality show star Jonathan Van Ness to talk about the Equality Act, which is set to codify civil rights protection for the LGBTQ+ community, The Hill reported. The Equality Act […]

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Voting Machines in U.S. Vulnerable to Hacker Attacks

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

Elite hackers from all around the globe testing the U.S. voting machines over a long weekend at the Defcon Voting Village have discovered that some of the voting equipment is vulnerable to various kinds of […]

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GOP, Trump Campaign Raise $13mn In Wake of Impeachment Inquiry Announcement

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

The GOP and the re-election campaign of President Donald Trump have allegedly raised around $13 million following Nancy Pelosi’s announcement of the formal impeachment inquiry into the President amid scrutiny over his interactions with Ukraine, […]

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Senate Passes Stopgap Bill to Avert Government Shutdown

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

The Senate passed a short-term spending bill approved by the House last week aimed at keeping the government open after the September 30 deadline when federal funding expires. The stopgap bill will now be sent […]

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Lung Diseases Tied to Vaping on the Rise, Says CDC

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

The number of vaping-related lung disease cases has increased again, reaching 805 across 46 U.S. states and one territory, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned on Thursday. The report comes amid efforts by […]

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Trump Administration Limits Refugee Admissions to Lowest Levels Ever

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

The Trump administration proposed Thursday that the U.S. refugee program be slashed by almost half to 18,000 admissions a year, the lowest level since the program began over three decades ago. The refugee cap was […]

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U.S. Finds Syrian Government Used Chlorine in May Attack

September 27, 2019 Focus Washington

U.S. intelligence has concluded that the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad carried out a chlorine attack in May, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Thursday. “This attack was part of the Assad regime’s […]

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LUNCHTIME POLITICS: Trump and Ukraine – Warren Edges Ahead – Presidential Age Cap

September 26, 2019 John Ganjei

Your Daily Polling Update for Thursday, September 26, 2019 TRUMP JOB APPROVAL: AVERAGE 44%Down 1 from yesterday RON’S COMMENT: Today’s average is based on six polls, ranging from 40% (Quinnipiac) to 49% (Rasmussen). Without these […]

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House Dems Threaten Subpoena If Trump Blocks Whistleblower Report on Ukraine

September 26, 2019 Focus Washington

Top House Democrats requested that the administration must turn over a whistleblower’s report on President Trump’s dealings with Ukraine, indicating that a recently released transcript was “damning” for the President but not enough for proceeding […]

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