What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[DGuller]

Police can only use deadly force to stop threats, they don't get a blank check to take you out just because you tried to take them out.

What does it matter? I guess you can waste 2 years in trials and procedures, but we all know trump is going to pardon the guy in any case.

Trump can only pardon federal convictions.  Is it possible to charge the ICE agent under state law?  Surely the mere fact of being a federal agent does not make you immune from any state laws applying to you.

[Razgovory]

No federal prosecutor will try to get an indictment.

[Syt]

https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-trump-international-organizations-withdrawal-d704fb9b444dc9cf569865d391b544a6

US will exit 66 international organizations as it further retreats from global cooperation

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration will withdraw from dozens of international organizations, including the U.N.'s population agency and the U.N. treaty that establishes international climate negotiations, as the U.S. further retreats from global cooperation.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order suspending U.S. support for 66 organizations, agencies, and commissions, following his administration's review of participation in and funding for all international organizations, including those affiliated with the United Nations, according to a White House release.

Many of the targets are U.N.-related agencies, commissions and advisory panels that focus on climate, labor, migration and other issues the Trump administration has categorized as catering to diversity and "woke" initiatives. Other non-U.N. organizations on the list include the Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, and the Global Counterterrorism Forum.

"The Trump Administration has found these institutions to be redundant in their scope, mismanaged, unnecessary, wasteful, poorly run, captured by the interests of actors advancing their own agendas contrary to our own, or a threat to our nation's sovereignty, freedoms, and general prosperity," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.

Trump's decision to withdraw from organizations that foster cooperation among nations to address global challenges comes as his administration has launched military efforts or issued threats that have rattled allies and adversaries alike, including capturing autocratic Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and indicating an intention to take over Greenland.

US builds on pattern of exiting global agencies

The administration previously suspended support for agencies like the World Health Organization, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees known as UNRWA, the U.N. Human Rights Council and the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO. It has taken a larger, à la carte approach to paying dues to the world body, picking which operations and agencies it believes align with Trump's agenda and those that no longer serve U.S. interests.

"I think what we're seeing is the crystallization of the U.S. approach to multilateralism, which is 'my way or the highway,'" said Daniel Forti, head of U.N. affairs at the International Crisis Group. "It's a very clear vision of wanting international cooperation on Washington's own terms."

It has marked a major shift from how previous administrations — both Republican and Democratic — have dealt with the U.N., and it has forced the world body, already undergoing its own internal reckoning, to respond with a series of staffing and program cuts.

Many independent nongovernmental agencies — some that work with the United Nations — have cited many project closures because of the U.S. administration's decision last year to slash foreign assistance through the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID.

Despite the massive shift, Trump administration officials say they see the potential of the U.N. and want to instead focus taxpayer money on expanding American influence in many of the standard-setting U.N. initiatives where there is competition with China, like the International Telecommunications Union, the International Maritime Organization and the International Labor Organization.

The latest global organizations the US is departing

The withdrawal from the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or UNFCCC, is the latest effort by Trump and his allies to distance the U.S. from international organizations focused on climate and addressing climate change.

UNFCCC, the 1992 agreement between 198 countries to financially support climate change activities in developing countries, is the underlying treaty for the landmark Paris climate agreement. Trump — who calls climate change a hoax — withdrew from that agreement soon after reclaiming the White House.

Gina McCarthy, former White House National Climate Adviser, said being the only country in the world not part of the treaty is "shortsighted, embarrassing, and a foolish decision."

"This Administration is forfeiting our country's ability to influence trillions of dollars in investments, policies, and decisions that would have advanced our economy and protected us from costly disasters wreaking havoc on our country," McCarthy, who co-chairs America Is All In, a coalition of climate-concerned U.S. states and cities, said in a statement.

Mainstream scientists say climate change is behind increasing instances of deadly and costly extreme weather, including flooding, droughts, wildfires, intense rainfall events and dangerous heat.

The U.S. withdrawal could hinder global efforts to curb greenhouse gases because it "gives other nations the excuse to delay their own actions and commitments," said Stanford University climate scientist Rob Jackson, who chairs the Global Carbon Project, a group of scientists that tracks countries' carbon dioxide emissions.

It will also be difficult to achieve meaningful progress on climate change without cooperation from the U.S., one of the world's largest emitters and economies, experts said.

The U.N. Population Fund, the agency providing sexual and reproductive health worldwide, has long been a lightning rod for Republican opposition, and Trump cut funding for it during his first term. He and other GOP officials have accused the agency of participating in "coercive abortion practices" in countries like China.

When President Joe Biden took office in January 2021, he restored funding for the agency. A State Department review conducted the following year found no evidence to support GOP claims.

Other organizations and agencies that the U.S. will quit include the Carbon Free Energy Compact, the United Nations University, the International Cotton Advisory Committee, the International Tropical Timber Organization, the Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation, the Pan-American Institute for Geography and History, the International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies, and the International Lead and Zinc Study Group.

[Syt]

https://apnews.com/article/trump-defense-spending-3bbea1ccc679ee8a388386d60e651fd7

Trump proposes massive increase in 2027 defense spending to $1.5T, citing 'dangerous times'

[Oexmelin]

Who knew that pivoting to a war economy was a tool in a dictator to be's toolbox?

[Oexmelin]

The country where you can't teach Plato.

At least 200 courses in the Texas A&M University College of Arts and Sciences have been flagged or canceled by university leaders for gender- or race-related content as the university undertakes its review of all course syllabi, faculty members told Inside Higher Ed.

This is just the beginning of the system board–mandated course-review process. Faculty were required to submit core-curriculum syllabi for review in December, and some faculty members have yet to receive feedback on their spring courses, scheduled to begin Monday.

So far, queer filmmakers, feminist writers and even ancient Western philosophers are on the chopping block. One faculty member—philosophy professor Martin Peterson, who is supposed to teach Contemporary Moral Problems this spring—was asked by university leadership to remove several passages by Plato from his syllabus.

Another censored class is Introduction to Race and Ethnicity. Students enrolled in the sociology course this spring were told via email Tuesday that the class was canceled because there was no way to bring it into compliance with the system policy. One professor, who wished to remain anonymous, was asked in the fall to remove content related to feminism and queer cinema from their History of Film class. The professor refused, and the dean resubmitted the syllabus as a noncore "special topics" class, which enrolled students were notified of Wednesday.

"I'm seeing the enrollment drops as we speak," the professor said.

The enrollment declines could have the same result as the course review.

The expectation is that a lot of those classes will ultimately be canceled, not because of content but because of underenrollment," said another professor in the College of Arts and Sciences who wished to remain anonymous.

English faculty members received an email Tuesday from senior executive associate dean of the college Cynthia Werner telling them that literature with major plot lines that concern gay, lesbian or transgender identities should not be taught in core-curriculum classes.

In a follow-up email Wednesday, Werner said, "If a course includes eight books and only one has a main character who has an LGBTQ identity and the plot lines are not overly focused on sexual orientation (i.e. that is THE main plot line), I personally think it would be OK to keep the book in the course." She also clarified that faculty may assign textbooks with chapters that cover transgender identity, so long as they do not talk about the material or include it on assignments or exam questions.

In November, the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents decided that courses that "advocate race or gender ideology, sexual orientation, or gender identity" would be subject to presidential approval and launched a systemwide, artificial intelligence–driven course-review process across all five campuses. Faculty members are still confused about who exactly is reviewing their syllabi.

"The university is doing different things in different departments and colleges. They're interpreting these policies differently," said Leonard Bright, a professor of government and public service at Texas A&M and president of the university's American Association of University Professors chapter. "I've heard some say they were told that there are some committees [carrying out the review]. I've heard some say that it's just the provost and his close affiliates. We really don't have a real clear answer as to how these decisions are being made."

It's also unclear whether Texas A&M is violating a rule from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board that requires institutions to seek its approval before revising its core curriculum and "deleting courses." A spokesperson for the university did not respond to Inside Higher Ed's questions about the review Wednesday, including a question about how many total courses have been canceled so far.

The Texas A&M AAUP condemned the university's decision to censor Plato in a statement Wednesday.

"At a public university, this action raises serious legal concerns, including viewpoint discrimination and violations of constitutionally protected academic freedom," the AAUP chapter wrote. "Beyond the legal implications, the moral stakes are profound. Silencing 2,500-year-old ideas from one of the world's most influential thinkers betrays the mission of higher education and denies students the opportunity to engage critically with the foundations of Western thought. A research university that censors Plato abandons its obligation to truth, inquiry, and the public trust—and should not be regarded as a serious institution of higher learning. We are deeply saddened to witness the decline of one of Texas's great universities."

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression also slammed the move.

"Texas A&M now believes Plato doesn't belong in an introductory philosophy course," Lindsie Rank, director of campus rights advocacy at FIRE, said in a statement. "This is what happens when the board of regents gives university bureaucrats veto power over academic content. The board didn't just invite censorship, they unleashed it with immediate and predictable consequences. You don't protect students by banning 2,400-year-old philosophy."

[The Minsky Moment]

No federal prosecutor will try to get an indictment.

True. But the state is investigating.
The state can bring charges; the obstacle will be the officer's broad immunity for actions taken performing official duties under federal law.

[The Minsky Moment]

In a follow-up email Wednesday, Werner said, "If a course includes eight books and only one has a main character who has an LGBTQ identity and the plot lines are not overly focused on sexual orientation (i.e. that is THE main plot line), I personally think it would be OK to keep the book in the course." She also clarified that faculty may assign textbooks with chapters that cover transgender identity, so long as they do not talk about the material or include it on assignments or exam questions.

MAGA Stalinism.

[HisMajestyBOB]

College isn't for learning. It's for sports.

[Crazy_Ivan80]

The magadrassas, soon to be even more stringent than Kabul Uni.

[Baron von Schtinkenbutt]

College isn't for learning. It's for sports.

In A&M's case, it's also for weird, creepy paramilitary shit.

[crazy canuck]

Universities in Canada, outside of Alberta, are autonomous from government. A university senate, not the board, has sole authority to determine academic matters.

I have spent most of my career arguing this distinction is important.  And now when I say it I get a lot of headnods. In the before times some wondered why I was picking this obscure hill to fight on.

[Oexmelin]

Yes. However, we are not immune from government interference, as the government provides a good chunk, if not the majority, of the funding.

I think the current situation in the US should convince us that no institutional setup is foolproof, or safe. It's about providing friction, capacity to mobilize its constituents, and contributing to the potential politicization of principles that should remain in our minds.

[crazy canuck]

Yes. However, we are not immune from government interference, as the government provides a good chunk, if not the majority, of the funding.

I think the current situation in the US should convince us that no institutional setup is foolproof, or safe. It's about providing friction, capacity to mobilize its constituents, and contributing to the potential politicization of principles that should remain in our minds.

Agreed!

Which is why I am always having the drum on this issue 

[The Minsky Moment]

The other lesson is the need to organize collective action across universities. A key component of Trump's assault had been to divide and conquer, pick off one-by-one.