The Donald is Indicted!
Also, is it time to end live press briefings? Will we ever do something to stop mass shootings? And, what is Havana Syndrome?
Welcome back to the Just Ask the Question newsletter where we share insights on the White House and politics in general through podcast interviews, original articles and commentary.
And because everyone deserves a break now and then from all that is D.C., we will also share the lighter side of the news with exclusive interviews from leading pop culture figures. sign up here
Ep: 171 - Former White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry - is it time to end live press briefings?
Former White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry says it is time to end the live press briefing. McCurry was the one who BEGAN the live briefing - and says today they should be recorded, but the "reality show" aspect of it HAS to end.
Can Biden move the GOP on guns? It's the ultimate test of his deal-making powers
As the violence continues, simply pointing fingers at Congress isn't enough. This should be Biden's big moment
On Monday I saw something in the White House briefing room I'd never seen before.
As some 50 reporters sat quietly, musing on when the scheduled briefing would actually begin, one of the reporters burst into tears and left the room.
Turns out, she had just been informed that a friend of hers had a child attending the Covenant Elementary School in Nashville. Five minutes before she burst into tears we all found out that three adults and three nine-year-old children died there in the country's latest mass shooting. With 131 mass shootings since the beginning of the year, we are averaging more than 1.5 every day.
President Biden said Monday he has done "everything he can" to stop the mass shootings. But has he? He has issued executive orders and while press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told us Wednesday those were the most extensive any president has issued — well, they haven't done much.
On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week, either Biden or someone in his administration urged Congress again to vote for an assault weapons ban. Tuesday morning, as he left the White House, he stopped and talked to reporters. We asked him what he could do. "It's in Congress' hands. They must do something," he told us. And the earth is round.
An hour later I was nearly brought to tears when Rep. Tim Burchett, the Republican who represents Knoxville, Tennessee, in the House of Representatives, told a reporter, "We're not going to fix it." Well, at least he was honest. Spineless, but honest.
Exclusive: Declassified report suggests "Havana syndrome" could result from energy weapon
Full intelligence report contradicts official claims that strange cluster of ailments wasn't caused by attack
A newly obtained declassified report prepared for the director of national intelligence by a panel of experts appears to show conclusively that "Havana syndrome" — a cluster of unexplained symptoms experienced by diplomats and government personnel abroad — is not a naturally occurring health problem. It does not reach any conclusions about who or what may be responsible, but suggests that an unknown device or weapon using "pulsed electromagnetic energy" remains a plausible explanation.
The document was declassified after the James Madison Project, a nonprofit dedicated to reducing government secrecy, sued to obtain further information on "Anomalous Health Incidents" or AHIs, the official term used to designate the syndrome.
"The U.S. government is covering up evidence as to what AHIs are," said James Madison Project attorney Mark Zaid, who also represents a number of Havana syndrome patients. "This report differs from the summary released earlier this monthand previous statements from the intelligence community. It is becoming apparent that these events were perpetrated either by foreign actors, or it is an experiment gone horribly wrong."
Although heavily redacted, the 153-page report clearly outlines that the "signs and symptoms" of Havana syndrome are "genuine and compelling," and finds that some of the cases "cannot be easily explained by known environmental or medical conditions and could be due to external stimuli." Four core characteristics of the AHIs are "distinctly unusual and unreported elsewhere in the medical literature," the report goes on to say.
The declassified report, officially titled "Anomalous Health Incidents: Analysis of Potential Causal Mechanisms," also says that "pulsed electromagnetic energy, particularly in the radio frequency range, plausibly explains the core characteristics" of at least some reported medical conditions, and finds that "sources exist that could generate the required stimulus, are concealable, and have moderate power requirements."
EP: 170 - Has Donald Trump stolen all of the attention again?
This week on Just Ask the Question: Donald Trump steals the airwaves and we fell for it - again.
Meanwhile tensions rise across the globe - not just in Ukraine. And who is going to win the NCAA?
Masters of disinformation: How Republicans and Putin warp our perception of reality
Americans no longer share a common reality — but can we all agree that Donald Trump's just in it for the grift?
This country has a problem and it can be summed up in one word: perception.
Rep. Jim Jordan perceives that it's OK to try to intimidate the district attorney in Manhattan, who is investigating Donald Trump. According to a Tuesday tweet from Jordan, "Americans want affordable groceries. Not a Donald Trump prosecution."
Manhattan D.A. Alvin Bragg says Jordan won't intimidate him. Meanwhile, many legal observers perceive that Jordan may have unlawfully interfered in the proceedings of a grand jury. Me? I just want to know why Jordan has the perceptionthat Bragg has anything to do with the price of groceries?
Rep. Ted Lieu's perception is that Jordan has lost his marbles. Here's what he said:
We need your help! Just Ask The Question is looking to expand in the new year and we need the support of our listeners to continue bringing you the guests and analysis necessary to make sense of the world today. If you can, join us on Patreon where you’ll get exclusive access to content before anyone else.
For more video content and tips from Brian follow our Youtube channel.
You are the best !
I love you