America Against the World

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” – Abraham Lincoln

“If I were a girl, I’d despair. The supply of good women far exceeds that of the men who deserve them.” – Robert Graves

America Creates a New World Order by Leaving It: President Trump announced Tuesday afternoon that he was pulling the US out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA). He spoke for 11 minutes from the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, justifying withdrawal from the hard-fought multi-nation agreement that had taken two years to hammer out. Trump rejected the suggestion that his decision would be interpreted as the US could not be trusted to keep its agreements when political winds change; instead he predicted his tough line with Iran would strengthen his bargaining position as he prepares to meet North Korea’s leader and begins negotiating the surrender of Kim Jong-un’s nuclear arsenal.

The president’s announcement was a grimly anticipated move, one that estranged America from her European allies, NATO and much of the rest of the world, with the exception of Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Trump said he was fulfilling his campaign promise to rid America of possibly the worst agreement ever negotiated. He will now reimpose the stringent sanctions levied by the US against Iran before the pact was signed, and is mulling new penalties, including financial sanctions against the Central Bank of Iran and entities that continue to do business with Iran. European companies will have between 90 days and 180 days to wind down their operations in Iran, or run afoul of the American banking system. The oil sanctions will require European and Asian countries to reduce their imports from Iran.

Iran had previously said it will remain in the deal, as did France, Germany, and Britain. China and Russia, also signatories to the pact, are likely to join Iran in accusing the US of violating the accord. America’s withdrawal raises the prospect of a trans-Atlantic clash, as European companies face potential American sanctions for their involvement with Iran.

– Where’s North Korea’s leader? Out in the yard, playing “Red Rover! Red Rover! Let China Come Over.” Kim Jong-un met with China’s President Xi Jinping Tuesdayfor the second time in two months so they can team up before the US gets to the playing field. After the team meeting the Chinese released a joint statement that set out the differences between the Trump administration on one side, and China and North Korea on the other, over the question of how to dismantle the North’s nuclear arsenal. (NYT)

– The Democratic Republic of the Congo has declared an outbreak of Ebola hemorrhagic fever for the ninth time since 1976, when the rare and deadly virus was discovered in that country and named after its eastern Ebola River. 17 people have died in the central African nation so far. The last outbreak in 2017 killed eight people. The World Health Organization is rapidly scaling up its operations and mobilizing partner organizations like Doctors Without Borders. Health experts credit the population’s awareness and local medical staff’s experience in treating the disease as important to containing its spread. (CNN and Reuters)

– Three weeks ago Nikol Pashinyan, a mild-mannered former newspaper editor and political prisoner, began his “velvet revolution” (nonviolent civil disobedience movement) in which he vowed to remake Armenia’s political and economic systems if the Parliament, dominated by his political foes, elected him interim Prime Minister. That’s exactly what they did Tuesday, sidelining the long-ruling Republican Party and forcing the retirement of President Serzh Sargsyan. Pashinyan strategically avoided a military intervention from neighboring Russia by focusing on strictly domestic problems, and pledging eternal brotherhood with Moscow. (NYT)

– Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has vowed to step down if his people decide they have had “enough” and vote him out on June 24th. While his ruling party is confident of victory at the polls, the Turkish word for “enough” – tamam – shot to the top of worldwide Twitter trends by Tuesday afternoon. With more than 450,000 tweets, the country appears to remain polarized. (The Guardian)

More News Reads:

• Transgender rights: Ontario issues first non-binary birth certificate (The Guardian)
• Iran nuclear deal: Powers seek to save agreement after US exit (BBC)
• Iraq’s Sunnis voting without hope in first election since Islamic State (Reuters)
• China suspects others lobbied to block it from Chilean lithium: official (Reuters)

– It seemed like a “thumbs up” move on President Trump’s part to add former NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani to his legal team almost three weeks ago. Rudy was always intended to be the president’s television spokesperson, Trump’s attack dog, who would growl out an impenetrable line of defense rhetoric at the drop of a hat. That’s not what’s been happening. In the last week, Rudy has managed to fire up a lot more legal heat for the president than he’s been able to extinguish. (CNN)

– Despite widespread tampering with US voting systems in the 2016 elections, America’s election infrastructure is still vulnerable, just months away from the 2018 midterms this November. Most states have moved away from voting equipment that does not produce a paper trail, although Louisiana, Georgia, South Carolina, New Jersey, and Delaware still run their elections using direct recording electronic machines (DREs), which provide no paper trail of votes. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), in warning elections officials in his state not to be complacent, said: “I don’t think [election officials] fully understand the nature of the threat.” (NPR and Axios)

• Russia Tried to Undermine Confidence in Voting Systems, Senators Say (NYT)
• Mueller’s team questions Russian oligarch about payments to Cohen (CNN)
• Trump CIA Nominee To Testify That She Wouldn’t Bring Back Waterboarding(NPR)
• Needle by Needle, a Heroin Crisis Grips California’s Rural North (NYT)
• Oliver North to be NRA’s new president (CNN)
• 5 More Nike Executives Are Out Amid Inquiry Into Harassment Allegations(NYT)

Malaysia’s Difficult Choice Between a Rock and a Racketeer: Tomorrow Malaysian voters must decide whether to resurrect the country’s 92-year-old former authoritarian leader, Mahathir Mohamad, or give a third term to his protege, Prime Minister Najib Razak, whose alleged role in the multibillion-dollar ransacking of a state investment fund (1MDB) that he set up and oversaw, has plummeted Malaysia’s standing abroad. US investigators say between 2009 and 2014, associates of Najib stole $4.5 billion from 1MDB, including $700 million that landed in Najib’s bank account. He denies any wrongdoing.

Prior to 2003, Mahathir was prime minister for 22 years. He’s considered the architect of the economic “miracle” of the 1990s, and of the policy favoring Malays in government jobs and education. He defected from the ruling coalition’s dominant United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party and joined forces with opposition parties after the 1MDB corruption scandal. Remarkably robust at 92 years old, Mahathir is welcomed uproariously at opposition rallies and provokes gales of laughter by mocking Najib as a greedy kleptocrat who couldn’t buy his way into heaven.

Najib criticizes Mahathir as a self-confessed “dictator,” and a hopeless throwback to the past. He said a vote for the opposition jeopardizes Malaysia’s strong economic growth and that the leaders of the opposition’s dominant Chinese-based party were deceiving voters by hiding behind Malays. Analysts say Najib’s ruling party, in power for 61 years, is likely to hold on to power due to an electoral system that gives more weight to rural voters.  

– A California judge served up his ruling Monday in a case that had been brewing for eight years. Now all coffee sold in the Golden State must carry a cancer warning label, which gave java drinkers a bit of a jolt. (The Guardian)

– Cases of financial elder abuse are on the rise as telephone pitchers, online scammers, and even family members are conning billions of dollars out of vulnerable seniors. (Bloomberg)

More Fascinating News:

• How the chicken nugget became the true symbol of our era. This is what happens when you turn the natural world into a profit-making machine (The Guardian)
• What is the true cost of eating meat? As concerns over the huge impact on the environment, human health and animal welfare grow, what future is there for the meat industry? (The Guardian)
• From planking to pizzas: the new rules for a successful meeting. Amazon employees sit in silence – while Tesla boss Elon Musk advocates walking out if you aren’t adding value. But how can you stop wasting your life in pointless meetings? Here’s an expert guide (The Guardian)
• Reaching Peak Meeting Efficiency. Meetings are a critical tool for building a diverse, high-performance team with shared values (Medium)
• Disney rides Black Panther to profit (BBC)
• After Years Of Runny Nose, Woman Finds It’s Not Allergies — It’s Brain Fluid(NPR)

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