It's Friday, so that means it's panel time.
Special counsel Robert Mueller finally spoke publicly Wednesday, and his carefully chosen comments highlight the ways in which he disagrees with his boss, Attorney General William Barr, about the facts and the law surrounding the investigation into US President Donald Trump. One of the lines from his nine-minute presentation is: "If we had had confidence that the president clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said so." Mueller's remarks also made clear how heavily his office relied on a long-standing legal opinion from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel that a sitting president cannot be indicted. That opinion, Mueller said, "says that the Constitution requires a process other than the criminal justice system to formally accuse a sitting president of wrongdoing." I don't agree with that. So, where was all of this weeks ago when Barr first came out with his spin machine, and what are we to make of Mueller, who infamously told us that Saddam Hussein had WMD's?
The license for Missouri's last abortion provider will not expire, according to court documents. Judge Michael Stelzer has ruled that the "temporary restraining order is granted" and "petitioner's license shall not expire and shall remain in effect." The matter will be heard in court again on June 4. The clinic's license to perform abortions was scheduled to expire at the end of Friday.
Federal judge Carlton Reeves blocked a Mississippi law last week that forbids abortion after the detection of a fetal heartbeat, as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. In issuing a preliminary injunction, Judge Reeves said the law "threatens immediate harm to women's rights, especially considering most women do not seek abortions services until after six weeks." He further wrote, "Allowing the law to take effect would force the clinic to stop providing most abortion care," adding that "by banning abortions after the detection of a fetal heartbeat, the law prevents a woman's free choice, which is central to personal dignity and autonomy."
According to Bloomberg, China, the world's largest soybean buyer, has put purchases of American supplies on hold as the trade war between Washington and Beijing escalates. "State-grain buyers haven't received any further orders to continue with the so-called goodwill buying and don't expect that to happen given the lack of agreement in trade negotiations. Still, China currently has no plans to cancel previous purchases of American soybeans," the outlet reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.
We'll cover these topics and so many more!
GUESTS:
Dr. Jack Rasmus — Professor of economics at Saint Mary's College of California and author of "Central Bankers at the End of Their Ropes: Monetary Policy and the Coming Depression."
Jim Kavanagh — Political analyst and commentator and editor of The Polemicist.
Caleb Maupin — Journalist and political analyst who focuses his coverage on US foreign policy and the global system of monopoly capitalism and imperialism.
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