Ignoring protests by environmentalists and Native American activists, Trump signed executive orders approving two controversial pipelines. The Keystone pipeline was opposed by environmental activists and rejected by the Obama administration in 2015. The Dakota Access pipeline was fought by the Standing Rock Sioux tribe because it cuts through their ancestral lands and endangers their water supply. The Obama administration halted work on the Dakota pipeline only recently. Trump approved both pipelines to create jobs and please the fossil fuel industry.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Thank you…all of you voters who thought Hillary Clinton would hurt our nation…What the Trump trample everything we hold dear, and end everything we already accomplished.
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You are being too kind to those voters who did not support HC, Susan. I know you don’t really mean “Thank You” tha6t this is contradictory sarcasm.
I can’t stop thinking that because HC used her own server that the evidence says the Russians failed to hack, and then the Russians still got her e-mails once the FBI had them in their very hack-able computers versus the long list of deplorable things for the Liar-Groper in Chief that are unspeakable.
HC used her own server with better protection than the governemnt and Democratic Party has for their servers, and for this people didn’t vote for her.
Shame! Shame! Shame! Endless Shame!
HC has a history of supporting and protecting women and children’s rights, and Littlefingers Donald Trump only has a history of lying, abusing women, cheating people and the tax collector, and too many court cases to mention. I wonder if those voters know that the federal government has filed at least 166 court cases against Littlefingers, who often defied the orders of judges to hand over evidence including e-mails, starting as far back as the 1980s, and that doesn’t include the states going after him in court or other private sector people sewing him for not paying them what he owed them.
And then there are his documents links to the New York crime families all the way back to when he was in his 20s.
But HC sinned by having her own server.
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Thank you Lloyd and Susan, my sentiments also.
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Goes without saying the the USA would be far better off with HC.
But let’s never pretend that she was not in the pockets of Wall Street. The difference, in my limited perspective, is that politicians in the past have been in the pockets of Wall Street fat cats. Now the Wall Street fat cats have filled the government positions that were once held by politicians . . . this being the case far more than in the past.
It is a horrible mess. Will Americans get their SS and Medicare as it is now and will it be expanded? Will America still have free public schools? Or will it polarize back into Edwardian England, as it once was in the 1800s and early 1900s?
But the women’s marches have proven that while DC is changing radically under the Trump cabinet – and American society stands well to change readily for the worse – there are finally many political movements and organizations arising to push back the pendulum big time.
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We will have to wait and see. In 2018, we have midterm elections. From what I’ve read, it is highly unlikely that the Democrats will win back a majority in the House or Representative due to extreme GOP gerrymandering in the states they control, but the Democrats stand a good chance of taking back the Senate, but it won’t be easy and the odds seem to be stacked against them even in the Senate specially now that federal laws that protected against voter suppression are gone.
http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/306210-10-senate-seats-that-could-flip-in-2018
The 2016 election is the perfect example of what happens when there are no laws stopping voter suppression.
The GOP has spend decades stacking the deck in their favor and now that they have succeeded, it isn’t going to be easy to take back the Congress.
In addition. all the GOP needs is one more state they control and then they can hold a Constructional convention and amend the Constitution anyway they want.
The only election the Democratic have an easier chance of winning will be the presidency in 2020, and no telling what the GOP majorette will do in the next four years to insure they keep the White House.
Will there be more voter suppression and even more extreme gerrymandering since the GOP is in a great position to change the laws through legislation that the Democrats can’t block?
https://thinkprogress.org/2016-a-case-study-in-voter-suppression-258b5f90ddcd#.fogjul4vu
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Hillary was in favor of both the Keystone and Dakota Access pipelines until the political winds blew the wrong way for her, so she at least had to say she was opposed to them, if tepidly. But she knew where her bread was buttered and I’m sure both would have passed under her too. Let’s not pretend that Hillary wasn’t corporate owned.
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Dienne,
Please don’t claim that Trump and Hillary are the same. That’s an “alternate fact” that Kellyone would admire.
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Amen, some honesty there!
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PS – my “amen” was for the honesty of both parties being pro-hydrocarbon, and for the fact that both parties are in the back pockets of their lobbyist whores. Neither, is a party “for the people”, as long as people means “not an entity that increases corporate profits”.
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Is Hillary in favor of far right wing nuts on the SCOTUS?
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Dienne, I believe you fail to understand a fundamental trait which has sustained our system of politics and governing; pragmatism has generally won out over ideology. Before you go ballistic on me, note that I wrote “generally.” Trumpism is a raw, simplistic ideology built on prejudices and falsehoods. Hillary Clinton, whatever you may have thought of her, is solidly within the American pragmatic tradition. She, like most Americans, was capable of changing her mind when presented with arguments. Donald is not.
And what is this pathological obsession with framing every issue and discussion with, “But, Hillary…”? We know what you are against and on whom you blame all the evils under the sun, so I’ll ask again, as I have a few times earlier: What are you for?
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Dienne,
Please as as i said to a long time Union activist today what do we do now.
Those native Americans had better show up with automatic riles that wont work . You think Aleppo looks bad just wait till you see Standing Rock .
You keep talking about Hillary and Barrack . You are as bad as NYCPSP on the other end..
Am I being paranoid . When the president of the US puts a gag order
on EPA and FDA . Next probably BLS and NASA . You are watching Democracy slip away.
You keep talking about Hillary .
Like NYCPSP if you are not part of the solution you are the problem .
There is no comparison. No equivalence .
This man must be Impeached now and the White House Turned over to Ryan as much as I despise him, I put up with Nixon ,Reagan, Bush 2 , I’ll deal with Ryan. Pence is out for partaking in the coup.
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Really, here we go with blaming Hillary Clinton again. What is your favorite alternative facts media source – the kind of alternative facts that claim Trump had the largest presidential inauguration crows in history and that the only reason HC won the popular vote was become of illegals voting? And how does Littlefingers know this? From his favorite alternative Alt-Right news source, obviously.
‘On September 22, 2015, Hillary Clinton announced her opposition to the Keystone XL Pipeline. Clinton said, “I think it is imperative that we look at the Keystone pipeline as what I believe it is — a distraction from important work we have to do on climate change. And unfortunately from my perspective, one that interferes with our ability to move forward with all the other issues. Therefore I oppose it.”[36][37]
“Clinton declined to take a position on the Keystone XL Pipeline on July 27, 2015, citing her involvement in evaluating the project as the reason for her silence. ‘No other presidential candidate was secretary of state when this process started, and I put together a very thorough deliberative evidence-based process to evaluate the environmental impact and other considerations of Keystone. As such, I know there is a very careful evaluation continuing and that the final decision is pending to be made by Secretary Kerry and President Obama. Very simply, the evaluation determines whether this pipeline is in our nation’s interest and I’m confident that the pipeline impacts on global greenhouse gas emissions will be a major factor in that decisions, as the president has said. So I will refrain from commenting because I had a leading role in getting that process started and I think we have to let it run its course,’ Clinton said.[38] ”
https://ballotpedia.org/Keystone_XL_Pipeline_political_timeline
Her silence, as she explained above, was not approval.
And what did Politifact.com say after they fact checked these allegations about HC and the pipeline?
“Clinton says her Keystone XL position isn’t a flip-flop” …
Conclusion
Clinton said, “I never took a position on Keystone until I took a position on Keystone.”
In 2010, she said the administration was “inclined” to back it, but she qualified that statement by noting that the analysis was not complete, and the administration had not taken a final position. While this shows a more positive attitude toward Keystone XL than Clinton’s position today, it was not a firm stance.
Other than that one comment, Clinton did not indicate her position on Keystone until she announced that she opposed it in September 2015.
We rate Clinton’s position a No Flip.
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/oct/14/hillary-clinton/clinton-says-her-keystone-xl-position-isnt-flip-fl/
You do know what NO means, don’t you?
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And this is only day four….of his “presidency”.
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That is what scares me. Only president that I feel like my skin crawls when he talks. His moto should be for the bottom dollar doesn’t matter if it ruins the land, destroys the people, We will see if he lasts the 4 years.
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Barbara, he makes my skin crawl too.
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One will see if the American people can last 4 years . . .
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Can we keep our dialogues, discussions and intents to pedagogy? I’m no Trump fan, but let’s not forget that these pipelines and other questionable environmental or energy activities were begun to be built in the Obama era. Let us not be so biased that we “strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel”; that we focus on the sins and problems of some and out of bitterness or lack of charity ignore the sins or problems of others. As if the prior administration was perfect and without blame in any issue?
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Rick,
I criticized the Obama administration daily for its awful education policies.
I will criticize Trump when he lies, appoints people like DeVos to destroy public education, acts in the interest of Russia not the US, harms the environment, and appoints bigots to carry out bigoted policies.
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Pumping hydrocarbons from point A to B has been going on for decades and does have its problems, but we all drive cars so its kind of hypocritical to be too scrutinizing about one pipeline. To claim this pipeline will harm their water source goes beyond the facts, because it may not, and the company is willing to reroute it if needed (I believe). I’m not pro-Dakota pipeline, just anti-bias in narratives that forget some facts and make inferences that go beyond the facts (of which we are all prone too, based on our core axioms).
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Stick to the educational policies, or rename the blog “all thing I dislike about administrations”?
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Thank you, Diane! And I will continue reading and passing on your posts!
It’s time to IMPEACH Humpty Dumpty.
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Rick Lapworth
Explain why the Dakota Pipeline was moved from its original route. The Sioux, and other water protectors deserve the full support of all Americans.
It’s not hypocritical to defend the property of people, who don’t have the money to get government agencies to change plans.
Your comments are egregious. And, it is audacious for you to attempt to control what the readers in Diane’s living room blog, discuss, because you want your visits to reflect your narrowness.
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Good points and well received. I’m not pro-Dakota pipeline, just pointing out our “need” for oil, that pipelines already exist and if our well built and maintained (a big “if”) then they shouldn’t be too problematic.
Yes, Indians and others have their rights and I respect that. Though, if an argument can be made in any situation that some people’s rights might need to be denied for the greater good of the country (ex. eminent domain) then those decisions need prayerful wisdom.
I joined this blog to discuss pedagogy and schools, not environmental problems, I thought that what it was about. Yes, Diane has her rights and no I’m not “forcing my narrow views” on anyone (so, that was egregious of you to accuse me of such).
I’ve already spent too much time on non-teaching dialogues…..peace!
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If Rick is relying on the water safety pronouncements of the Army Corps of Engineers, he should read the court documents in the recent case involving the EPA, polluted sediment and Lake Erie. If e-mails, from ACE managers. provided in court documents, are confirmed, the lengths to which ACE management went to coerce community acceptance, of a potentially dangerous water situation, are, according to veteran experts, shocking and unprecedented.
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I’m not denying pipelines have their risks and failures, nor that we should be moving toward alternative energy (if it is economically feasible and does not destroy the economy for the sake of being green). Yes, pipelines break and clean ups happen and the environment suffers, but as long as any of us still burn gas/diesel/propane etc. we are in a Catch-22 in our criticisms.
The real culprit is our materialism and hedonism that makes us believe and act as if consuming more and having more brings happiness. Until Americans can quit lusting for more stuff (which uses energy to make) we will have our environmental problems and dilemmas. The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want (aka: I don’t need things to make me content, as long as my needs are full, my wants, lusts and desires can take the lowest priority)
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You will have a lot to talk about. I agree with everything you mentioned about the man. I have big reactions to him over any other republican candidate. Even Tricky Dicky whom I really don’t remember, too young. But this man make my skin crawl he speaks and the way he speaks. I have asked some of my republican friends who feel the say way.
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Someday Obama will be known as The Great Pipelinator because of all the pipeline that was laid on his watch – about which he was very proud.
“We’ve added enough new oil and gas pipeline to circle the earth and then some” Obama bragged in 2012 after just 3 years in office.
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Really, the Keystone pipeline started during the Obama era? Are you inferring that Obama approved it and his administration is responsible, because if you are, you are WRONG?
“After a seven-year battle between Democrats, who sided with environmental activists, and Republicans, who sided with the oil industry, President Barack Obama rejected TransCanada’s application to build the Keystone XL Pipeline on November 6, 2015”
https://ballotpedia.org/Keystone_XL_Pipeline_political_timeline
The U.S. government is a lot more than the president, even though it is obvious that Littlefingers Donald Trump doesn’t know that. He thinks he is Putin Jr.
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Executive orders are a very poor way of addressing climate change precisely because it is very long-term problem and most executive orders can be easily reversed by a new President.
Obama certainly knew this.
But by all means, let’s put the blame where it truly lies on Jill Stein and the people like me who voted for her — a bunch of Putin-loving, Clinton-spoiling sTrumpets.
Lock her (and us) up!
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Obama used an executive order because the Republican Congress is pro-pipeline
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That may be true, but so was what I said.
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You are saying that Trump and Obama are equivalent? Good grief.
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With regard to education, what really is the difference?
One is sneaky and polished and refined about damaging public education and the other is gross, crude, loud, and vulgar about damaging public education. In the end, the guy in the Armani suit who detonated political bombs in public education and the guy who wear storn blue jeans and is sweaty while operating the wrecking ball show no differences between each other because in the end, public education ends up obliterated.
No, there is NO substantial difference between Trump and Obama when it comes to education. Obama would never refer to public schools as “govenmenrt schools” or as being a “monopoly”, but he sure meant what he never said through his actions.
PLEASE!
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Joe
You are saying that you don’t know how to read?
Good grief
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I see. Then you really do think Trump and Obama are equivalent. Thank you for clearing that up.
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I am not familiar with the logic you are using
Can you perhaps give a link where I can learn how it works?
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Let’s do the time warp again.
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Here’s what Trump said to the CIA: THE OLD EXPRESSION TO THE VICTOR BELONG THE SPOILS. YOU REMEMBER, YOU ALWAYS SAY KEEP THE OIL. I WASN’T A FAN OF IRAQ, I DIDN’T WANT TO GO INTO IRAQ. BUT I WILL TELL YOU, WHEN WE WERE IN, WE GOT OUT WRONG. I ALWAYS SAID, IN ADDITION TO THAT, I SAID IT FOR ECONOMIC REASONS, BUT IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, MIKE, IF WE KEPT THE OIL YOU PROBABLY WOULDN’T HAVE ISIS BECAUSE THAT’S WHERE THEY MADE THEIR MONEY IN THE FIRST PLACE SO WE HAVE KEPT THE OIL. BUT, OKAY. MAYBE WE’LL HAVE ANOTHER CHANCE. End quote.
MAYBE WE’LL HAVE ANOTHER CHANCE ——— What??!!!!!!
HRC would have never ever said anything so outrageous and stupid. Isn’t Iraq supposed to be an ally? Don’t we still have some troops in Iraq assisting the Iraqi army? Trump, in essence, declared war on Iraq so we can grab their oil. How the hell do the Iraqis feel about this idiot’s comments. There is no equivalency between HRC and DT, not even close.
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“in so far as Mr. Trump’s proposals are coherent enough to be subject to analysis and judgment, they appear to be practically impossible, legally prohibited and politically imbecilic.” (Barnett Rubin of NYU’s Center on International Cooperation, discussing the subject of “to the victor….”)
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Joe,
Taking Iraq’s oil would have been a war crime.
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Probably a given once he was elected. I’m more confused by why democratic senators voted against allowing lower price Canadian prescription drugs into the U.S.
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Cory Booker among them.
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New Jersey is home to large pharmaceutical companies as I commented on another post. I also shared other reservations on Booker earlier today. I have been employed by the Newark Public Schools for the last seventeen years. Booker is a tool of Wall Street.
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