monitoring Trump and relevant contemporary events

Yes Walter, stick with G-bag. She is America personified.

Donald Trump may be preparing to weaponise the pardon - a silver-tipped arrow in the presidential quiver that could protect Mr Trump and his inner circle from Robert Mueller's team of investigators.

The groundwork is being laid for total war against the special counsel.

For months the president and his defenders have been chipping away at the foundations of the investigation, questioning whether it was improvidently established, accusing it of conflict of interest and outright partisan bias, and decrying its duration and cost.

If they can establish, at least in the minds of Republican politicians and party faithful, that the investigation is illegitimate, then the pardon becomes a noble tool for protecting the innocent and the unfairly prosecuted.

The weapon has already been test fired - in granting reprieves to conservative commentator Dinesh D'Souza, former Bush White House aide Scooter Libby and Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, all the victims in the president's view of unfair, politically motivated federal investigations.

The stage is set, if Mr Mueller's team makes a move against those closest to the president or even Mr Trump himself, for the pardon power to be unleashed.

Then a theoretical legal debate becomes a very real one, with very real consequences.

Also on Monday morning, White House adviser Kellyanne Conway was asked by a reporter why the president talked about pardoning himself.

She replied: "Why would he need to pardon himself if he's done nothing wrong? You just like to engage in these hypothetical exercises constantly.

"I presume it's easier than understanding the ins and outs of North Korea and trade policy."

Mr Trump's tweet comes a day after one of his lawyers addressed the self-pardon issue on the Sunday talk shows.

Rudy Giuliani told ABC's This Week programme that Mr Trump "has no intention of pardoning himself", while adding that he "probably does" have that power.

Mr Giuliani told NBC's Meet the Press: "Pardoning himself would be unthinkable and probably lead to immediate impeachment.

"And he has no need to do it, he's done nothing wrong."

But speaking on CNN on Sunday, House Republican Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said no president should pardon himself.

US First Lady Melania Trump, not seen in public since a hospital operation three weeks ago, has quashed rumours about her health by tweeting an image of herself at a White House event.

In the photo she is seen at the event, held for military veterans on Monday, sat with President Donald Trump.

"Honoured to pay tribute to our fallen heroes," read a tweet posted on her official Twitter account.

She had not been seen in public since undergoing kidney surgery on 10 May.

The operation, for an "embolisation procedure" to treat a benign kidney condition, was described as relatively minor surgery and was said to be "successful" with "no complications".

Mrs Trump, 48, was hospitalised for five days, but her disappearance from the public eye following her surgery led to rumours about her health and marriage.

I've tried to find out, when and where an ambassador to the USA explicitly interfered with the internal affairs of her/his host country.

Iran is to inform the United Nations' nuclear agency that it is beginning the process of increasing its capacity to enrich uranium on Tuesday.

It said it would increase its capacity to produce uranium hexafluoride, a key ingredient for enrichment.

Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, said he had ordered preparations for enrichment, should the 2015 nuclear deal fail completely.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad plans to make a state visit to North Korea, the North's state news agency says.

It would be the first time North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has hosted a head of state since assuming power in 2011.

He has undertaken a flurry of diplomatic activity recently, meeting China's president in May, and is expected to attend a summit with Donald Trump this month.

Syria, an ally of the North, has made no comment on the reported plan.

Somebody is going to bomb them. I’m thinking Israel. 

Israel has bombed strategic sites in Iran a few times

I think the US ploy (brilliant or crazy, you decide) behind throwing a wrench in the Iran framework is to infuriate the people against their leadership, spark either a revolution or electoral rebuke of Iranian leadership, and support the more peace-loving anti-war younger generation as they build a thriving economy/ democracy.

engineer wrote:

Quote:

Donald Trump issues a statement saying neither the #Eagles, nor team representatives, are welcome at the White House tomorrow for their Super Bowl visit. Unreal.

I have a question for the lawyers out there. The first amendment bars the government from restricting free speech and Trump is government, so does him taking "punitive" action against the Eagles because of their speech violate the first amendment rights?

I'm not a lawyer so I'm not sure he is obliged to invite anyone to the peoples house, but it does seem to punish the collective for the actions of a few. (even though none of the actions were criminal)

Yes, it seems silly and an invite to the White House is really a non-event and has dubious monetary value, but as a principle - government suppression of free speech - it seems like him rescinding his invitation is actually unconstitutional.