Obama Signs-Off on Official Birth of Fascism in the USA

[Houyhnhnm]

Chris Hedges, a sort of American version of Fintan O'Toole, has filed a constitutional challenge against the act. Since it is contrary to basic principles of a free society and the rule of law the American Supreme Court will have to strike it down.

[greenwithirony]

owedtojoy, thought you might be interested in this:

Is this, finally, the moment Obama gets tough with Wall Street? | Amy Goodman | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk

President Obama also made a striking announcement, one that could have been written by the Occupy Wall Street general assembly:

"I'm asking my attorney general to create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorneys general to expand our investigations into the abusive lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis. This new unit will hold accountable those who broke the law, speed assistance to homeowners and help turn the page on an era of recklessness that hurt so many Americans."

Remarkably, President Obama named New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman as co-chairperson of the Unit on Mortgage Origination and Securitization Abuses. Schneiderman was on a team of state attorneys general negotiating a settlement with the nation's five largest banks. He opposed the settlement as being too limited and offering overly generous immunity from future prosecution for financial fraud.

On the face of it, very good news, & I applaud Obama for this. Time will tell...

[greenwithirony]

Is there no end to the Obama Administration's cynicism, hypocrisy & treachery???

US pushes Bahrain arms deal despite abuses - Features - Al Jazeera English

The Obama administration is pushing to close an arms deal with Bahrain, despite the government's nearly year-long crackdown against protesters and recent steps to block American NGOs from operating in the island kingdom.

A previous arms sale was suspended late last year after fierce opposition from human rights groups and members of Congress. But the White House is now taking advantage of a legal loophole to push forward a separate deal without congressional approval.

The deal is also advancing despite the Bahraini government’s recent crackdown on several US-based NGOs, including the National Democratic Institute and Physicians for Human Rights. Staffers with valid Bahraini visas have been barred from entering the country.

But some of the items in the proposed sale have indeed been used against protesters. Bahraini security forces routinely use helicopters to monitor demonstrations, for example, and activists say footage from those helicopters is sometimes used to identify and arrest participants.

The official report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) mentions at least three occasions on which military helicopters were deployed to monitor protests.

This latest deal is separate from an earlier proposal to sell Bahrain more than $50mn worth of weapons, including 44 Humvees. Those armoured vehicles have also been used against protesters on numerous occasions.

The administration has temporarily suspended that deal, though it can finish the sale at any time, because members of Congress did not file formal objections during the 90-day "notification period." Congress could have blocked the deal during that period by passing a resolution of disapproval.

[blokesbloke]

The audacity of hope indeed.

YES WE CAN!

Mind you, at least he closed down Guantánamo Bay like he said he would.

[greenwithirony]

Ha! It's all some kind of devilishly fiendish realpoliticke magicke tricke apparently...