MORNING MESSAGE
[Trump]
is trying to have it both ways: Reassure his anti-immigrant, nationalist base
that he is the same candidate who promised a “deportation force” ... while
covering his xenophobia and racism in what sounds like more rational, realistic
policy ... At a news conference in Arizona ... Alejandra Gomez, executive
director of Living United Change in Arizona (LUCHA), said, “We will not be
fooled by Trump’s rhetoric.” ... LUCHA, an affiliate of People’s Action, plans
to stage a “cultural block party” outside Trump’s immigration
speech...
TRUMP TO MEXICO
Trump
to visit Mexico before AZ immigration speech today. NYT: “Donald J. Trump
will visit Mexico on Wednesday for a private meeting with President Enrique Peña
Nieto … ‘They are not our friend, believe me,’ Mr. Trump said in a speech last
year in which he accused Mexico of treating the United States unfairly … In
March, [Peña Nieto] compared Mr. Trump to Hitler and Mussolini … But for all the
risk it poses, [the visit] offers an image Mr. Trump relishes: of a wily
negotiator willing to do the unexpected…”
“Stop
getting played by Trump’s scam job on immigration” writes W. Post’s Greg
Sargent: “Trump is now edging away from proactive, souped-up mass
deportations. But he has not backed away from his core position in the
fundamental underlying dispute, which is that all the 11 million will still be
targeted for removal, and cannot be legalized or assimilated.”
Deportations
drop to 10-year low. The Hill: “Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
figures from June suggest 230,000 people could be removed or returned from the
country by the end of the fiscal year next month, slightly fewer than the
235,413 deported in 2015. That was the lowest number since 2006 … After [reform]
legislation failed, Obama shifted his strategy, pursuing executive actions that
allowed some groups of undocumented immigrants to remain in the country.”
OBAMA TO ASIA
Obama
heads to Asia for G20 summit. NYT: “President Obama leaves [for] China and
Laos after a brief stop on a spit of land in the middle of the Pacific Ocean …
the president will spend two days highlighting his commitment to combating
climate change …”
TPP
top of Obama agenda. VOA: “White House officials said that while in Asia he
will repeatedly make ‘a forceful case’ for ratification of the Trans-Pacific
Partnership … Obama is expected to make a final push for ratification after
presidential elections in November.”
Former
WH economist Jared Bernstein unimpressed with TPP pitch, in W. Post oped:
“…they’ve largely punted on the economic case for the deal. I and many others
have written that such a case was always shaky … Instead, the administration has
shifted its emphasis to the geopolitical advantages … Yes, it is in America’s
interests to try to reduce China’s global influence. But passing the TPP will be
ineffectual in that regard…”
ISDS
system buoys bankers, according to Buzzfeed investigation: “…financiers and
ISDS lawyers have created a whole new business: prowling for ways to sue nations
in ISDS and make their taxpayers fork over huge sums, sometimes in retribution
for enforcing basic laws or regulations.”
Pro-TPP
Dems escape primaries unscathed. Politico: “…of the 28 House Democrats who
were targeted by organized labor and the progressive base for supporting
fast-track, [Rep. Debbie] Wasserman Schultz is now the 28th who either skated
through a primary challenge or didn’t get one at all.”
AZ, FL RACES SET
Sen.
Marco Rubio to face Patrick Murphy. Orlando Sentinel: “Murphy immediately
took on Rubio in his victory speech … ‘Just yesterday, he said no one can make a
commitment to a six-year term. Well, guess what, senator, I’ve got two words for
you: I can.’ … ‘I’m not going to be endorsing Patrick Murphy for sure,’ [Rep.
Alan] Grayson said. ‘He’s a Republican.’ … [Rubio] told his supporters that …
‘Patrick Murphy is nothing more than an old-fashioned liberal, and the ideas he
stands for are wrong for Florida.'”
Sen.
John McCain dispatches conservative challenger. AZ Republic: ” … McCain will
face U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, D-Ariz., who was unopposed … [Kelli] Ward
remained defiant, chastising McCain for running a negative campaign against her
… Asked if she would vote for McCain in the general election, Ward told The
Arizona Republic, ‘we’ll see.'”
McCain
faces a tricky general election. The Atlantic: “…McCain has to keep Trump at
arms length to appeal to anti-Trump Republicans, but not do so in a way that
alienates those supporting the nominee …”
APPLE DEFIANT
Apple
fights EU tax ruling. NYT: “By turns outraged and scolding, [CEO Timothy]
Cook pushed back on the findings by Europe’s competition commission … While Mr.
Cook was technically truthful, he omitted some context and shifted the spotlight
from the thrust of the European Commission’s case: whether Apple took advantage
of loopholes in Irish tax laws.”
“Apple
Ruling Puts Emphasis on Need to End ‘Deferral’” writes FACT Coalition’s Clark
Gascoigne: “… the European Union signaled that it is engaged in a serious
conversation and is willing to take steps to address aggressive tax avoidance …
current proposals from both the Administration and Congress to address the
problem are more a giveaway to companies than a serious attempt to collect what
companies owe … They should eliminate the practice of ‘deferral.’ Tax deferral
allows multinational companies to book their profits offshore and avoid paying
tax on those profits indefinitely…”
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