Tommy Christopher

Three Republican-appointed Supreme Court justices just openly sided with racism

Ever since Republicans stole a Supreme Court seat from President Obama, the court has remained at an unproductive equilibrium of 4-4 decisions, occasionally broken up by frequent swing Justice Anthony Kennedy. If Donald Trump remains in office, however, the United States faces the prospect of a conservative majority on the Supreme Court, and a Supreme […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 08, 2017

Six agencies have been investigating Russia hacking and possible collusion for over a year

President-elect Donald Trump continues to face serious questions surrounding the legitimacy of his electoral victory, including the dual intrusions by Russian cyberattacks and the FBI. A new report by McClatchy pulls together several threads related to that interference. The first is the revelation that six agencies, including the FBI, have been jointly investigating Russia’s intrusions […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 18, 2017

CIA chief gives eyebrow-raising response to question about Trump/Russia collusion

Anyone who has reported on national security issues knows better than to read too much into a non-denial, but what CIA chief John Brennan did Sunday morning goes beyond the typical non-denial. When Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace asked Brennan if the intel community had any information about contacts between President-elect Donald Trump or his associates […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 15, 2017

Franken calls BS on Jeff Sessions at Deputy AG hearing, now says Sessions “perjured himself”

Senator Al Franken (D-MN) got rather heated at the Senate confirmation hearing for Deputy AG-designate Rod Rosenstein while reading a portion of Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ amended testimony into the record. Franken called Sessions’ written testimony “insulting,” and demanded he return to answer questions before the committee: FRANKEN: He says ‘Having…’ Let’s see, ‘I did not mention […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 07, 2017

Listen: Trump terrorism adviser refuses to say that Trump views Islam as a religion

Once again, it has been made clear that there is no “pivot” coming from this White House. Donald Trump’s new National Security Advisor, H.R. McMaster, has advised against demonizing Muslims with the term “Radical Islamic Terrorism,” and noted that the term is not helpful in the fight against terrorism. But the phrase still made a […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 01, 2017

CNN anchor thinks John Lewis’ remarks are worse than Trump’s birtherism

On CNN’s Inside Politics Sunday morning, anchor John King delivered the corporate media narrative that President-elect Donald Trump needs in order to control the damage from his slanderous and racially-coded attacks on civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-GA). King took pains to point out that “Lewis went first” when Lewis said during an interview […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 15, 2017

Family values: White House says protecting trans kids is “states’ rights issue”

Donald Trump finally got around to denouncing the latest wave of anti-Semitism which has swept the country, but even as the White House attempted to bolster that meager lip service, it managed to demonstrate another form of bigotry. Responding to questions about Trump’s delayed reaction (following multiple opportunities at national press conferences), White House Press Secretary […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 21, 2017

Trump’s business interests taint NATO diplomacy

As Secretary of Defense James Mattis tries to reassure allies of the administration’s commitment to NATO at talks in Brussels this week, Reuters reports that Donald Trump’s prior criticisms of the NATO alliance have some members on edge. One of the more shocking things that Trump has said about NATO is that the United States might […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 15, 2017

Watch Trump’s Health Secretary dodge millions who will lose insurance under Trumpcare

Republicans love props. At Sean Spicer’s first televised White House briefing since the Republicans rolled out their disastrous “replacement” for Obamacare, at which he was accompanied by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, the dais featured this simplistic visual aid: Prediction: the pile on the left is GOP #MakeAmericaSickAgain bill, the right is Obamacare […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 07, 2017

White House Press Secretary reveals apparent plan to legalize torture

In a chaotic first week that has seen several starts and stops on a variety of issues, Donald Trump has been making headlines with his whiplash-inducing statements on torture. The White House has made efforts to distance itself from a draft executive order that would rescind President Obama’s executive order banning torture, while Trump has […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 27, 2017

Pence gives suspicious response to question on collusion between Trump team and Russia

Vice President-elect Mike Pence managed to talk without saying a whole lot during his interview with Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace this week, but there was one response that stood out. Wallace asked Pence the question that CNN’s Jim Acosta never got the chance to ask when Trump froze him out at his press conference, […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 15, 2017

Paul Ryan laughs out loud about people losing health care

According to the Congressional Budget Office, repealing the Affordable Care Act will result in 32 million people losing their health insurance in the first ten years, and to varying degrees, Republicans freely acknowledge that their plan will leave people out. As angry and fearful constituents flood Republican town halls across the country to oppose the repeal of Obamacare, […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 28, 2017

If Morning Joe won’t book Kellyanne Conway over credibility, which Trump figures can they book?

MSNBC’s Morning Joe is normally a more-than-friendly ally to Donald Trump, a fact which the network has not been shy about advertising. But as the Trump administration continues to descend into chaos and corruption, that relationship is showing signs of strain. Host Joe Scarborough recently ripped Trump senior policy adviser Stephen Miller’s despotic understanding of […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 15, 2017

Trump viciously fired Sally Yates — for doing what Jeff Sessions told her to do

Acting Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates, a career prosecutor who was elevated to deputy AG by President Obama, ordered Justice Department lawyers not to defend Donald Trump’s unconstitutional Muslim ban in court. In response, Trump announced her firing Monday night in a vicious and partisan statement (via email from The White House): The acting Attorney […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 31, 2017

Evidence suggests Trump is not receiving Presidential intelligence briefings

During his transition, then-President-elect Donald Trump waged an escalating campaign to discredit the intelligence community that is currently investigating allegations of collusion between his associates and the Russian government that helped get him elected. And he had also skipped or turned down several intelligence briefings during that time. Now that he has taken office, it appears […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 26, 2017

Flood of Democrats denounce Donald Trump’s slanderous attack on John Lewis

President-elect Donald Trump kicked a hornet’s nest when he tweeted this attack on civil rights icon John Lewis over Lewis’ assertion that Trump’s presidency is not legitimate: Congressman John Lewis should spend more time on fixing and helping his district, which is in horrible shape and falling apart (not to…… — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 14, 2017

Tim Kaine patiently schools Nikki Haley on Iran nuclear deal during confirmation hearing

During her confirmation hearing to become the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, South Carolina Republican Governor Nikki Haley tried her best to skate past Senator Tim Kaine’s (D-VA) question about the Iran nuclear deal. But in just a few seconds, she managed to display such rank ignorance of the pact that Kaine had to respectfully […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 18, 2017

A quarter million people are demanding reporters stand up to Trump

When President-elect Donald Trump shouted down CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s question at a press conference this week, calling him and his organization “fake news,” it was an outrageous continuation of Trump’s campaign of intimidation and marginalization of a free press. Almost as equally outrageous, though, was the reaction of Acosta’s colleagues, who eagerly allowed him […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 14, 2017

Dems on Trump admin plan to rip mothers from children: “Inhumane and unacceptable”

As Reuters recently reported, a policy shift in Donald Trump’s Department of Homeland Security would mean separating children from their parents at the border as a means of deterring unauthorized border crossings. This is an idea which seemed too cruel to be believable, even for this administration. But Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly confirmed that […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 07, 2017

Spicer’s dismissal of calls for special prosecutor on Trump-Russia ties shows precisely why we need one

The Trump administration’s attempts to avoid an independent investigation of contacts between Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia has managed to hit a new low. When ABC News’ Jonathan Karl asked White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer if a special prosecutor should be appointed, Spicer responded by citing the consistent drumbeat of deeply-reported stories on those contacts, and the fact that […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 28, 2017

Ice-cold Paul Ryan tells woman that she won’t be deported “this year”

At CNN’s town hall with Speaker Paul Ryan Thursday night, moderator Jake Tapper introduced Angelica Villalobos, who stood with her young daughter at her side. Villalobos, who was brought to America when she was 11 years old and is currently protected from deportation by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, asked Ryan if he thought […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 13, 2017

BREAKING: Mexico’s President smacks down Trump, cancels meeting via Twitter

Donald Trump’s executive order and accompanying speech calling for the construction of a border wall was conspicuously missing any reference to his promise to make Mexico pay for that wall. And in an early morning tweet the next day, Trump tried to apply a heavy hand, suggesting that Mexico pay up, or have their scheduled […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 26, 2017

Trump deserves to be impeached, but this is what must happen first

Donald Trump’s violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Emoluments Clause made him impeachable on day one of his ill-gotten presidency, and every day since has brought him closer to removal from office over his ties to Russia, including a six-agency task force that is investigating possible collusion between Trump associates and the Russians; the use of […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 06, 2017

Trump White House cannot keep its story straight on Flynn resignation

The Trump administration has had a rough time executing its communications strategy on the resignation of disgraced National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. In announcing the resignation, Donald Trump did not address the circumstances of Flynn’s resignation at all. And in multiple interviews, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway repeatedly stated that the decision to resign was Flynn’s, […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 14, 2017

Stop calling it a “travel ban” — it is still a Muslim ban

Donald Trump’s Muslim ban has already proven itself a massive failure and a colossal lie that has nothing to do with national security. Yet the corporate media insist on abetting Trump’s effort to re-launch a cosmetically different version of the same discriminatory policy. A review of TV Eyes’ closed-caption transcripts revealed a disturbing trend in […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 06, 2017

Following Trump’s direct assault on free press, White House Correspondents’ Association rolls over

Donald Trump’s assault on the free press came to a head last week when Press Secretary Sean Spicer canceled a televised briefing, and excluded major media outlets from the off-camera briefing that took its place. Notably, all of the banned reporters were with outlets which had done heavy reporting on the Trump/Russia connections that prompted this […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 27, 2017

Kellyanne Conway makes devastating case against Trump in Flynn cover-up

National Security Advisor Michael Flynn resigned in disgrace amid revelations that the White House has known, for several weeks, that Flynn lied about his contact with the Russian government. In interviews following the resignation, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway rolled out a baffling communications strategy that included repeatedly stressing the important role Flynn continued to play after […]

By Tommy Christopher - February 14, 2017

Sen. Whitehouse demands HHS nominee explain how we can trust him with health policy if he denies settled science

Secretary of Health and Human Services-designate Tom Price faced stiff questioning at his confirmation hearing, including from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who wisely questioned Price’s ability to run a science-based department while ignoring the basic facts of climate science: WHITEHOUSE: These groups, and many others, have gone very clearly on record that climate change presents […]

By Tommy Christopher - January 18, 2017

This astonishingly racist moment from Trump’s speech must not be ignored

Democrats approached Donald Trump’s first address to Congreess with dignified resistance, inviting guests who highlight the integral nature of immigrants and refugees to the fabric of American life, and largely expressing resistance through silence and symbolism. But there was one moment during the speech that was so shocking that it drew audible gasps and murmurs from […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 01, 2017

Trump gets no approval bump from first joint address; Obama gained 8 points from his

Donald Trump delivered a lie-riddled and bigoted address before a joint session of Congress last week, but still managed to impress the corporate media by exceeding basement-low expectations. Trump could not fool the American people, though, at least not for long: On the day of the speech, Trump’s approval rating sat at 43 percent in […]

By Tommy Christopher - March 06, 2017

Tommy Christopher

Freelance Political Writer

Three Republican-appointed Supreme Court justices just openly sided with racism

Six agencies have been investigating Russia hacking and possible collusion for over a year

CIA chief gives eyebrow-raising response to question about Trump/Russia collusion

Franken calls BS on Jeff Sessions at Deputy AG hearing, now says Sessions “perjured himself”

Listen: Trump terrorism adviser refuses to say that Trump views Islam as a religion

CNN anchor thinks John Lewis’ remarks are worse than Trump’s birtherism

Family values: White House says protecting trans kids is “states’ rights issue”

Trump’s business interests taint NATO diplomacy

Watch Trump’s Health Secretary dodge millions who will lose insurance under Trumpcare

White House Press Secretary reveals apparent plan to legalize torture

Pence gives suspicious response to question on collusion between Trump team and Russia

Paul Ryan laughs out loud about people losing health care

If Morning Joe won’t book Kellyanne Conway over credibility, which Trump figures can they book?

Trump viciously fired Sally Yates — for doing what Jeff Sessions told her to do

Evidence suggests Trump is not receiving Presidential intelligence briefings

Flood of Democrats denounce Donald Trump’s slanderous attack on John Lewis

Tim Kaine patiently schools Nikki Haley on Iran nuclear deal during confirmation hearing

A quarter million people are demanding reporters stand up to Trump

Dems on Trump admin plan to rip mothers from children: “Inhumane and unacceptable”

Spicer’s dismissal of calls for special prosecutor on Trump-Russia ties shows precisely why we need one

Ice-cold Paul Ryan tells woman that she won’t be deported “this year”

BREAKING: Mexico’s President smacks down Trump, cancels meeting via Twitter

Trump deserves to be impeached, but this is what must happen first

Trump White House cannot keep its story straight on Flynn resignation

Stop calling it a “travel ban” — it is still a Muslim ban

Following Trump’s direct assault on free press, White House Correspondents’ Association rolls over

Kellyanne Conway makes devastating case against Trump in Flynn cover-up

Sen. Whitehouse demands HHS nominee explain how we can trust him with health policy if he denies settled science

This astonishingly racist moment from Trump’s speech must not be ignored

Trump gets no approval bump from first joint address; Obama gained 8 points from his