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HeadlinesSeptember 13, 2016

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Clinton to Release More Medical Records, Following Pneumonia

Sep 13, 2016

In news from the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton says she’ll release more medical records, after she fell ill with what her doctor described as pneumonia and dehydration. On Sunday, Clinton was seen abruptly leaving a ceremony in Lower Manhattan commemorating the 9/11 attacks. Video showed her stumbling as Secret Service agents helped her into a van. Clinton says she’s feeling much better. Yet, Sunday’s episode has set off some speculation about whether the Democratic Party may replace Clinton as the candidate. This is ABC commentator Cokie Roberts speaking with NPR “Morning Edition” host David Greene Monday.

Cokie Roberts: “It’s taking her off of the campaign trail, canceling her trip to California today.”

David Greene: “Yeah, it’s today. Yeah.”

Cokie Roberts: “Right. It has them very nervously beginning to whisper about having her step aside and finding another candidate.”

David Greene: “That is no small thing to say. I mean, is that—”

Cokie Roberts: “No, exactly.”

David Greene: “Is that a real thing? Or is this just some nerves after a weekend of—”

Cokie Roberts: “No, I don’t—I think it’s unlikely to be a real thing. And I’m sure it’s an overreaction of an already skittish party.”

This comes as former Democratic National Committee Chair Don Fowler says the Democratic Party should draft up a contingency plan in case it needs to identify a replacement candidate. On Monday, Fowler told Politico: “I think the plan should be developed by 6 o’clock this afternoon. … It’s something you would be a fool not to prepare for.” After the article ran, Fowler, who has backed Clinton, clarified that he was only calling for a process to be drafted up, not for a replacement candidate to be named. The DNC’s rules allow for the party to name the replacement candidate ahead of November’s election. Trump has been making accusations about Hillary Clinton’s health for months now.

Trump Names Pro-Iraq War Fmr. CIA Head James Woolsey to Be Adviser

Sep 13, 2016

In more campaign news, Donald Trump has named former CIA Director James Woolsey to be his senior adviser on national security. Woolsey is considered a far-right neoconservative. After the 9/11 attacks, he was a leading voice calling for war with Iraq. Donald Trump, in contrast, has repeatedly claimed that he has been against the war in Iraq.

New Video Shows Trump Supporter Punching Anti-Trump Activist

Sep 13, 2016

Donald Trump is continuing to attack Hillary Clinton over her comments Friday calling half of Trump supporters “a basket of deplorables.” This comes as a new video has emerged of a Trump supporter punching an anti-Trump protester as the protester was being escorted out of a rally in Asheville, North Carolina, Monday. In March, one of Trump’s supporters was caught on video sucker-punching an anti-Trump protester at a rally in North Carolina. Donald Trump said he’d pay the legal fees of this supporter, who also said that the next time he might kill the protester.

Mike Pence Refuses to Call Fmr. KKK Leader David Duke “Deplorable”

Sep 13, 2016

Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, refused to call former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke “deplorable” during an interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer Monday.

Wolf Blizer: “David Duke, for example, some other white nationalists, whoe would fit into that category of deplorables, right?”

Gov. Mike Pence: “Well, as I’ve told you the last time I was on, I’m not really sure why the media keeps dropping David Duke’s name. Donald Trump has denounced David Duke repeatedly. We don’t want his support, and we don’t want the support of people who think like him.”

Wolf Blitzer: “Well, you’d call him a deplorable? You would call him—”

Gov. Mike Pence: “No, I’m not in the name-calling business, Wolf. You know me better than that.”

California Farmworkers Win Major Labor Victory

Sep 13, 2016

In a major victory for farmworkers, California Governor Jerry Brown has signed legislation requiring paid overtime for hundreds of thousands of farmworkers across California. The new laws come after decades of organizing by the United Farm Workers of America to close gaps in national laws that exclude farmworkers from key labor protections. The UFW prevailed despite an intense lobbying campaign by big agricultural companies against the labor protections. The new laws will be phased in beginning in 2019 and will guarantee paid overtime after eight hours per day, or after 40 hours per week.

David Cameron Steps Down from British Parliament

Sep 13, 2016

In international news, former British Prime Minister David Cameron has stepped down from Parliament. This comes after Cameron resigned as prime minister in July, less than a month after Britain shocked the world by voting to leave the European Union—a move he’d strongly opposed. Cameron had initially said he wouldn’t resign as prime minister until October and that he would continue to serve as a Parliament member. But on Monday, Cameron stepped down from Parliament, saying he didn’t want to be a distraction for the new prime minister, Theresa May.

Brazil: Eduardo Cunha Faces Possible Arrest After House Expulsion

Sep 13, 2016

In Brazil, former Speaker Eduardo Cunha, who led the impeachment of former President Dilma Rousseff, is facing possible arrest on charges of perjury and corruption, after he was expelled from the lower house Monday. Cunha’s charges stem from his secret Swiss bank accounts, which he’s lied about. His expulsion strips him of his congressional immunity. Meanwhile, Brazil has ratified the Paris climate deal. Brazil is responsible for emitting about 2.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Netanyahu Sparks Outrage by Accusing Palestinians of “Ethnic Cleansing”

Sep 13, 2016

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sparked outrage by calling Palestinian opposition to Israeli-only settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories a version of “ethnic cleansing.” This is Netanyahu in a video released Friday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “The Palestinian leadership actually demands a Palestinian state with one precondition: no Jews. There’s a phrase for that. It’s called ethnic cleansing. And this demand is outrageous. It’s even more outrageous that the world doesn’t find this outrageous.”

In fact, Palestinian leaders have said that Jews—as well as members of any other religion—could be citizens in a future Palestinian state. Palestinian leaders have long opposed, however, the Israeli-only enclaves that currently dot the Israeli-occupied West Bank. State Department spokesperson Elizabeth Trudeau called Netanyahu’s comments “inappropriate.”

Elizabeth Trudeau: “We obviously strongly disagree with the characterization that those who oppose settlement activity or view it as an obstacle to peace are somehow calling for ethnic cleansing of Jews from the West Bank. We believe that using that type of terminology is inappropriate and unhelpful.”

Dozens of Protests Planned Today Against Dakota Access Pipeline

Sep 13, 2016

Today is a global day of action against the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline, which has faced months of opposition from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, as well as members of hundreds of other tribes across the U.S. and Canada. As many as 80 protests are expected to take place today in major U.S. cities, including New Orleans, Denver, Anchorage and Honolulu, as well as in Britain, Portugal, Japan and other countries.

North Dakota: #NoDAPL Organizer Cody Hall Released from Jail

Sep 13, 2016

Meanwhile, in North Dakota, Cody Hall of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe has been released from jail after being held for three days without bail or bond. Hall says he was chased down by four squad cars and arrested only minutes after going through a checkpoint on Friday afternoon. An arrest warrant had been issued for him over his alleged presence at the September 3 land defense action and for a subsequent protest on September 6. Hall is considered a lead organizer in the movement against the Dakota Access pipeline. Speaking to Democracy Now!, Hall said FBI agents visited him while he was in custody, but that he refused to speak to them. This is Hall speaking in a video after he was released Monday.

Cody Hall: “I was met with intimidating forces by law enforcement that tried to tried to show their flex and tried break me down mentally and just do those psychological things which I would give myself up to know that I won’t be broken down.”

NCAA Moving Championships Out of NC over Anti-LGBT Law

Sep 13, 2016

In sports news, the NCAA has announced it’s moving its seven championship events out of North Carolina for this coming academic year, following North Carolina’s decision to pass the anti-LGBT law known as HB 2, or the “bathroom bill.” The law nullifies ordinances protecting LGBT people from discrimination and prohibits transgender people from using the bathroom that matches their gender identity. The ACLU is suing to overturn the law.

Colin Kaepernick’s Protest Against Police Brutality Spreads

Sep 13, 2016

In more sports news, NFL 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and his teammate Eric Reid knelt during the national anthem during the first game of the season against the Los Angeles Rams Monday night. Kaepernick has been refusing to stand for the anthem during preseason games, saying: “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” More pro football players have joined the growing protest—as many as 18 players, according to New York Daily News journalist Shaun King. On Sunday, four members of the Miami Dolphins took a knee during the anthem. That same day, players with the New England Patriots, the Tennessee Titans and the Kansas City Chiefs raised their fists in the air as the anthem played, in a protest that recalled the Black Power salutes made by John Carlos and Tommie Smith at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. This is Olympian John Carlos, speaking Monday about Colin Kaepernick.

John Carlos: “His initial cause is to bring about attention that these atrocities are still taking place, they’ve been taking place for some time now, and time is running out. We need to come together and start to try and resolve these issues. He’s bringing attention to them. And how did he bring attention to them? The same way we did 48 years ago in terms of giving America shock treatment. That’s the only way they move, man, is when you shock them.”

Ryan Lochte Faces Protest on “Dancing with the Stars”

Sep 13, 2016

U.S. Olympic gold medalist swimmer Ryan Lochte faced protest during his appearance on the television show “Dancing with the Stars.” Lochte has been charged by Brazilian police for falsely reporting a crime, after he and his teammates claimed they were robbed at gunpoint during the Olympic Games in Rio. Brazilian authorities say the Olympic swimmers actually vandalized a gas station and then invented a story about having been the victims of a robbery. On Monday night, two protesters attempted to rush the stage right after Lochte’s performance of the foxtrot. This is judge Carrie Ann Inaba’s reaction.

Carrie Ann Inaba: “You have a long way to go. Swimming is a—excuse me. Hey, back off! Excuse me. Excuse me. Excuse me. Off! Off! Excuse me.”

Tom Bergeron: “Wow, OK. I’ll tell you what. All right, we’re going to—we’ll take a break.”

Peace Activist Stanley Sheinbaum Dies at 96

Sep 13, 2016

And peace activist Stanley Sheinbaum has died at the age of 96. Sheinbaum grew up in New York City. In the late 1950s, he went to South Vietnam with a Michigan State University group, which he quit once he realized it was in fact a CIA front group. The experience radicalized him and fueled his antiwar activism, and he went on to help Ramparts magazine expose the university group as a CIA front in 1966. He also helped raise funds to defend Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and helped organize to oust Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates after the brutal police beating of Rodney King in 1991. As an American Jew, Sheinbaum also participated in a delegation in the 1980s that met with PLO Chair Yasser Arafat and helped pave the way for the 1993 White House meeting between Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Sheinbaum died Monday at his home in Los Angeles.

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