| Withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement, Jared Kushner's alleged connections to Moscow, and James Comey is set to testify. U.S. President Donald Trump arrived home from his first foreign trip this week where he spoke in Saudi Arabia on terrorism, denounced the terror attack in Manchester and confronted NATO allies, including Canada, to pay more for defence. READ MORE: Jared Kushner may have proposed setting up secret back channel to Russia But his arrival to Washington was immediately met with more questions about Russia and a decision to withdraw the United States from the landmark 2015 global agreement to fight climate change. This week marked another eventful seven days in the administration of Donald J. Trump. June 1 – 'We're getting out' Speaking at a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden, Trump said the U.S. would withdraw from the Paris climate agreement joining just two countries — Nicaragua and Syria — in opting out of the accord. "I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris," Trump said, despite the fact that Allegheny County, which includes Pittsburgh, voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton in November. READ MORE: Do Trump's reasons for leaving the Paris climate accord add up? Trump, who has called climate change a hoax, continued to beat the “America First” drum as he announced the U.S. would ditch the Paris accord. Citing research conducted on behalf of a conservative public interest group, Trump said the Paris accord would undermine the U.S. economy, cost U.S. jobs and put the U.S at a disadvantage to the other countries. “We don’t want other leaders and other countries laughing at us anymore. And they won’t be,” Trump said. The announcement from the White House was immediately condemned by world leaders, environmental scientists, but was praised by Republicans and his supporters. May 31- James Comey again Former FBI director James Comey is scheduled to testify before a Senate committee where he is expected to address accusations that the president pressured him to end his investigation into Trump's campaign ties to Russia. Multiple reports said Comey, who has been working with Special Counsel Robert Mueller, is eager to speak about why he was fired by Trump on May 9. He is set to testify on June 8 before the Senate intelligence committee investigating Russian activities during last year's election. The White House announced it will no longer comment on investigations into Russia's contacts with Trump's aides and will refer all questions to the president's attorney. May 30 – Trump's rift with Europe and what is a 'covfefe'? Justin Trudeau entered the fray Tuesday following a rift between E.U. leaders and Washington following Trump's debut at the G7 and NATO summits. "We will always work together and highlight the shared values that are equally important on both sides of the Atlantic, including in the United States," Trudeau said as he wrapped up his trip to Italy. READ MORE: Justin Trudeau addresses rift between Donald Trump and Angela Merkel German Chancellor Angela Merkel had cast doubts about the reliability of Washington as an ally under Trump. Late Tuesday night, a tweet from Trump reading "Despite the constant negative press covfefe" sent social media users into a frenzy with the hashtag #covfefe. While some have suggested he meant to type "coverage" others including Hillary Clinton joined in mocking Trump's Twitter mistake. May 29 – Trump condemns Portland attack Trump on Monday condemned the stabbings of two good Samaritans who died trying to stop a man from harassing a pair of women who appeared to be Muslim on a Portland commuter train May 26. In a tweet posted days after, an advocacy group urged Trump to condemn the attacks, which the group said were encouraged by his anti-Muslim rhetoric. "The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable. The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them," Trump said in a Tweet. May 28 – The Jared Kushner channel Trump returned to Washington, D.C., after a nine-day trip to the Middle East and Europe amid more questions about alleged communications between his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and Russia's ambassador to Washington. Reports from the Washington Post and New York Times, citing anonymous sources, have said Kushner tried to set up a secret channel of communications with Moscow before Trump took office. READ MORE: Jared Kushner had 3 previously undisclosed contacts with the Russian ambassador Trump dismissed the unidentified sources as phoney and said leaks from the White House were "fake news" on Sunday. It was also reported that Trump is considering overhauling his White House staff and bringing back top campaign strategists to deal with the crisis involving alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election. | 
No comments:
Post a Comment