Michael Pack Stands His Ground Amid D.C. Firestorm

Michael Pack Stands His Ground Amid D.C. Firestorm

One article asked whether Trump is putting “fascists in charge of the Voice of America,” even though Pack is Jewish, as are several of the other top officials he’s brought into front-office positions.

Critics have also assailed Pack for installing interim heads of the USAGM media outlets, including Jeffrey Shapiro, who several media reports have cast as a Bannon ally, as leading the Office of Cuba Broadcasting – at least in an interim basis. Bannon made himself an easy target with several recent comments suggesting he could be involved in USAGM decision-making. Pack dismisses the notion that Bannon is playing or angling to play an influential role in running the agency – either officially or in an informal advisory capacity.

The week that shook the Trump campaign

The week that shook the Trump campaign

When Donald Trump had dinner with Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus at the White House on Saturday, word of the get-together quickly reverberated across the president’s political sphere.

The 91-year-old billionaire is a longtime backer of former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, and Trump operatives were suspicious that a move was afoot to bring the smashmouth populist back into the fold.

Few seriously believe Bannon will return — while Trump has praised his recent TV appearances, there is still deep anger within the president’s inner circle over Bannon’s post-White House mocking of first daughter Ivanka Trump. But the post-meeting jitters illustrate how Trump’s political team is suddenly gripped by uncertainty: With the election just four months away and Trump conceding privately that he’s behind, his advisers have spent the past week racing to get on track.

I’ll never understand how he’s a populist, if he wants to overthrow the Chinese government?!

Justice Dept. considering replacing outgoing US attorney in Brooklyn with Barr deputy: report

Justice Dept. considering replacing outgoing US attorney in Brooklyn with Barr deputy: report

U.S. Attorney Richard Donoghue announced Thursday he would leave the Eastern District to serve as the Justice Department’s principal associate deputy attorney general, a spokesman told CNN. His predecessor in the Washington-based role, Seth DuCharme, is a favorite to replace him in New York, according to the network.

DuCharme, before assuming the deputy position last year, had served as a counselor to Barr on criminal and national security measures, although he also spent years as a prosecutor in the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney’s office, according to CNN.