U.S. and world news for August 25

At least five journalists among those killed in Israeli attack on Gaza

Journalists working for the Associated Press, Reuters and Al Jazeera were among the five journalists killed when Israel attacked a hospital in Gaza. The overall death toll was estimated as at least 20. An explosive drone was used and after first responders and journalists rushed to the scene a second drone exploded. Four health workers were among the dead according to the head of nursing at Nasser Hospital in Gaza. The Israeli attacks hit a balcony on the hospital used by reporters because the location allowed them to have better cell phone connections than they could get inside of the hospital. “This has gone on far too long,” said Israel’s Foreign Press Association. “Too many journalists in Gaza have been killed by Israel without justification. Israel continues to block international journalists from independent access to Gaza.”

Wall St. Journal blasts what it calls Trump’s vendetta against John Bolton

The editorial board of The Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch’s conservative newspaper, has blasted Donald Trump for the FBI raid last week on John Bolton’s home and office. Bolton, who served in the first Trump Administration as national security advisor, was highly critical of Trump in a book. Trump tried to block publication of the book. “It’s hard to see the raid as anything other than vindictive, ” the editorial board said. The Wall St Journal editorial points out that Trump has made other moves against Bolton, including revoking his security clearance and removing security personnel assigned to Bolton even though an Iranian agent was arrested for planning to assassinate Bolton.

Maher says Trump is staging a coup

TV personality Bill Maher, who in the past has been highly critical of Democrats, warns that President Trump is staging what Maher terms a “slow-moving coup”. Maher said that Trump’s deployment of the National Guard and regular military in U.S. cities is part of the takeover. Maher says what Trump is doing is to, “First, create a masked police force. Get people used to looking at that. Normalize snatching people off the street. Get them used to looking at that. Normalize seeing the National Guard and the military on the street.”

More military deployments planned

President Donald Trump is vowing to send federally-controlled National Guard units to more U.S. cities following the deployment in Washington, D.C. The troops in Washington are now armed, carrying pistols and rifles. Trump is targeting Democratic-controlled cities including Chicago and New York. Republican governors from six Republican states have agreed to send their National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., to assist in what Trump calls a crackdown on crime, although 10 other cities in those states had higher rates of violent crime or homicide than did Washington, D.C. last year. In a statement, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said the president “is attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he is causing working families.”

Judge rules against Trump Administration in funding dispute

The Trump Administration has lost a case in its programs to arrest and deport immigrants through a ruling by a federal judge that the federal government could not deny funding to Boston, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, and 30 other cities and counties. The Trump Administration claimed it could cut the funding if a local government has policies that limit cooperation with the federal government on its immigration policies. U.S. District Judge William Orrick extended a preliminary injunction blocking the administration from cutting off or conditioning the use of federal funds for so-called “sanctuary” jurisdictions. Orrick also blocked the federal government from imposing immigration-related conditions on two grant programs. The cities and counties that sued said billions of dollars were at risk.

Wildfires again rage in the west

As residents in the western U.S. deal with a dangerous heat wave, parts of California and Oregon are once again on fire. Thousands of residents were ordered to evacuate on Sunday in Northern California’s wine country and in central Oregon as crews battled the flames. According to Cal Fire, the Pickett Fire has charred about 10 square miles of Napa County. Despite the efforts of more than 1,230 firefighters and 10 helicopters, the blaze is just 11% contained. In Oregon, the Flat Fire — which is burning in Deschutes and Jefferson counties — has grown to 29 square miles. Although firefighters were able to cut containment lines and managed to suppress some of the flames, their efforts were challenged by difficult terrain, low humidity and triple-digit temperatures, officials said.