Statement by Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, in Response to President Trump's Executive Orders on Immigration

Rev. Samuel Rodriguez

Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC), the world's largest Hispanic Christian organization, which serves as a representative voice for the more than 100 million Hispanic Evangelicals assembled in over 40,000 U.S. churches, made the following statement regarding President Donald J. Trump's executive orders pertaining to immigration and the building of a wall:

"While I have had differences of opinion with the Trump Administration on how exactly to achieve our shared goal of securing our national borders, we at the NHCLC have made ourselves available to the Trump Administration throughout this process and have made our position clear.

First, when President Trump builds his wall, he must also - and as passionately - build bridges with the Latino community. Secondly, we have made it clear that we will vigorously oppose any action that would forcibly remove the 11 million undocumented people living, working and raising their families in the United States with the exception of criminals, drug dealers and others who bring shame and pain on our community.

I am grateful that our concerns have been met with both an open mind and a willingness to work together. In fact, after a call with the Trump transition team in December—a call organized by the NHCLC and which included other Hispanic heads of major denominations and networks—then President-elect Trump made it clear that he would not oppose DACA but would find a way to assist our young people.

I agree with President Trump that securing our borders is critically important to ensuring the safety of all Americans. I also agree with the administration that the American people have a right to determine who comes into our country, and to demand that our laws are respected in the process. However, our goal and our continued focus at the NHCLC will be to ensure these policies are always balanced by a respect for the sanctity of all life and the well-being of the immigrant."

NHCLC/CONEL is the world's largest Hispanic Christian organization, which serves as a representative voice for the more than 100 million Hispanic Evangelicals assembled in over 40,000 U.S. churches and hundreds of thousands of additional congregations spread worldwide throughout the Spanish-speaking diaspora. 

SOURCE: National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference

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#SpicerFacts: How The White House's Relationship With The press Will Play Out

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By Jon Herbert, Keele University

Journalists would have anticipated the first press conference of the Trump presidency with some trepidation. Not only had his briefing at Trump Tower as president-elect been something of a shambles as Trump excoriated some journalists and ignored others, but the whole election campaign had been traumatic for many. Reporters had been submitted to ritual humiliation at Trump rallies, ushered through baying crowds to be labelled “liars” and “disgusting” by a candidate who did not seem overly burdened by the concept of truth himself.

But campaigning is different from governing. Journalists, who had endured a storm of criticism from Trump’s transition team, were hoping for a transformation of campaign Trump into a more presidential Trump – or perhaps a press liaison operation sympathetic to the press’ needs.

The first press “briefing” from White House press secretary Sean Spicer, delivered the day after Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States made it clear that this transformation has not happened. In a six-minute tirade, Spicer told journalists why their coverage of the inauguration had been wrong, told them what they should be reporting and left the stage with no opportunities for questions and answers.

Any impression that a mutual trust might be nurtured between presidency and media – or even that a deal for mutual benefit might be negotiated – was shattered. Journalists’ worst fears, articulated widely and openly during the transition, are now realised and both sides are now digging in for an extended battle.

Written out
From Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency at the turn of the 20th century onward, presidents have traditionally nurtured a relationship with journalists. Franklin Roosevelt held briefings in the Oval Office and Jack Kennedy traded on his own journalistic experiences in talking to the press. The relationship was symbiotic and mutually beneficial; presidencies broadcast their messages to the public and the media had stories and pictures to run.

But the relationship has soured since the 1970s – and the Trump presidency may come to represent the logical conclusion of a half-century’s development in presidential relations with the media.

The disillusionment of the media with the presidency is well-documented. The Watergate scandal and misinformation over the Vietnam War caused journalists to examine their assumptions about the trustworthiness of the country’s commander-in-chief.

But the media still needs the presidency. The presidency, on the other hand has long struggled to wriggle free of the media’s grasp. Frustrated by increasingly negative coverage from mainstream outlets, presidents pull away from the media over their term, offering fewer press conferences as their term develops. Obama’s administration built a reputation for unusual levels of secrecy due to its refusal to release information in response to press requests. Worse, administration threats to prosecute journalists for not revealing their sources permanently tarnished Obama’s standing with the media and generated many hostile stories.

During George W. Bush’s administration, journalist Ryan Lizza offered the term “pressless presidency” to capture the Bush team’s assessment of the press, not as a Fourth Estate with a legitimate role to check governmental and presidential power, but as just another interest group to be serviced.

The holy grail now for an administration is to bypass the hard questions and unforgiving judgements of the Washington media to reach the people directly. Each new technology seems to offer this potential. Obama attempted to bypass the Washington press corps through use of Reddit and YouTube, while Trump has done more than most to cut loose while calculating that he can use other means to communicate – Twitter being his favourite medium.

US vs them
Instead of working with the media, Trump has made it integral to his core message: his anti-establishment status. Trump’s rhetoric relies upon simple oppositions – and the media has been particularly important in this. In Trump’s populist rhetoric the media have become part of giant conspiracy of politicians, business and media working against the interests of the American people. And the press makes an excellent target – public trust in the media has dropped precipitously.

Declining trust in the news media. Gallup, CC BY

Usually there is something of a “honeymoon period” as the two sides develop their relationships and work out a basis of cooperation. Both the incoming administration and the media usually focus on appointments and leading policy proposals. But instead of trying to build that relationship for mutual advantage early on, Trump’s team is launching a full frontal assault on the media’s credibility. The Trump team is “pressless” from the start.

Not only is Trump to be pressless, then, but the logic of this position extends to discrediting the media as a competitor in setting the agenda or even describing reality. When Spicer highlights the delayed nomination of Mike Pompeo as CIA director and tells the press: “That’s what you guys should be writing and covering,” the attempt to control what is considered news is obvious. But this position extends to portraying the media as a malevolent force. Accusing the media of “dishonesty” allows the administration to claim a new role.

To quote Spicer: “We’re going to hold the press accountable as well.” The administration has appointed itself the guardian of truth against the evildoers of the press. Theatrical denials of the media’s legitimacy suit the administration very well: much as Trump’s tweets have done before, Spicer’s press briefing made the tension between the media and the new administration the main news story. The administration portrays itself as the insurgency against the establishment. As long as the media continue to run the conflict stories, Trump will remain happy to trigger them.

High-risk strategy
But this approach carries substantial risks. As a rocky transition focused on Putin’s influence over the election and Trump’s conflicts of interest proved, the new administration has not found a way to control the media agenda. Trump’s familiar campaign technique of picking fights over Twitter has served to distract from the worst stories but has not refocused attention on the presidency’s priorities.

The stories in each policy area are of uncertainty and confusion around the administration’s direction and the overall image of Trump’s presidency has been damaged from the start.

So far, the media has expressed substantial doubt that the Trump administration has a clear direction or clarity over priorities, a claim reinforced by Trump’s own tendency to make bold, incredible and contradictory statements. Attacking the press is a serious – and unforced – error that will generate negative coverage. Trump and Spicer’s calculation, that the new president’s support can endure a relentless stream of negative stories, is an extraordinary gamble. It relies on Trump’s supporters resisting the influence of negative media coverage, while the administration communicates with them directly.

Without doubt, there is much to suggest that some partisans will remain loyal to their president amid media criticism. News accessed only through selective social media “bubbles” is likely to reinforce this effect. However, experience suggests that Republicans will not be blindly loyal. As Nixon and George W. Bush discovered, Republicans can turn on their own.

As the administration’s credibility falls, the same rhetoric from Trump blaming media demons for Americans’ perceived plight will sound less like a promise of conflict, victory and transformation and more like excuse-making in the face of under-achievement. Trump attacks on those merely trying to report on his presidency will come to look like the product of a paranoid mindset.


About Today's Contributor:
Jon Herbert, Senior Lecturer in Politics, Director of Learning and Teaching, Keele University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. 

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Upcoming New Superhero Movies

With their collection of super powers, superior fighting skills, great looks and victorious nature, superheroes are attractive to kids and the young at heart. Their colorful costumes and often unique residences keep us entertained and inspired at the same time.

Examples of superheroes include:
• Superman
• Spiderman
• Batman
• The flash
• Aquaman
• Wonder Woman

Every superhero has a nemesis. In most cases, the nemesis is just as impressive as the superhero and whenever they fight, it is a sight to behold. Originally presented in comic books, superheroes now grace the big screen thanks to Hollywood.

This year, there are some upcoming new superhero movies to look forward to. Read on to learn more.

The Lego Batman Movie
Many kids have played with Legos and loved the experience. Now, Batman is about to be expressed in Lego format for you.

The Lego Batman Movie is slated for release on February 20, 2017. It will be directed by Chris McKay and features Mariah Carey, Zach Galifianakis and Ralph Fiennes as part of the cast. The director plans to show the dark, crime-fighting, caped crusader in Lego form against his arch-nemesis, the Joker.

This movie is bound to attract audiences worldwide.

Logan
The X-Men are famous superheroes who save the world with their mutant powers. Wolverine is one among them who has received his own movie spin-off story and it has caught on like wildfire.

On March 3, 2017, Logan will be released. It is the last of a series of movies featuring the clawed mutant. Hugh Jackman again takes the lead as Wolverine for the last time. He is supported by Patrick Stewart, Boyd Holbrook, Richard E. Grant among others.

Directed by James Mangold, Logan will explore the later years of the Wolverine and maybe even introduce a new mutant to the world, X-23. It is definitely worth the watch!

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
The first movie about the Guardians of the Galaxy was received with wide international acclaim. In this one, director James Gunn hopes to make a splash again with a deeper story and some surprise appearances too. The cast for this movie includes Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel and others.

The movie explores the parents of the Star Lord and introduces a new, adorable character, Baby Groot.

Wonder Woman
This is the first superhero movie ever to have a woman as the lead character and a female director too. Gal Gadot makes history playing the role of the iconic Wonder Woman while Patty Jenkins will sit in the director's chair.

Wonder Woman first showed up in Superman: Dawn of Justice and is slated to appear in the Justice League movie too. However, she appears in her own movie first. It tells the story of a World War 1 soldier who washes on the paradise island of Diana Prince. He tells her of the war going on in the outside world and Wonder Woman swoops in to save the day.

The movie is slated for released on June 2, 2017 and will feature Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Elena Ayana and Danny Huston among others.

Justice League
This is one of the most anticipated superhero movies of the year, find more information about it on our blog. Its release is planned to be on November 17, 2017.

The movie wil be directed by the legendary Zack Snyder. It will have a star studded cast of Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, Jeremy Irons, Ezra Miller and others. Produced by Warner Bros., the movie will depict this group of superheroes fighting against an evil brought forward by Steppenwolf who was summoned by Lex Luthor to earth.

It is bound to be a big screen blockbuster and fans are at the edge of their seats in anticipation.

Conclusion
Superhero movies bring a fantastic world of wonder into cinemas and living rooms. These characters inspire and empower. We look up to them and believe in them too. This year, there is a slew of new movies from this genre that is bound to satisfy even the most ardent fans.

These are just a taste of the expected releases for 2017.

About Today's Contributor:
This article was prepared by Gaetano Esposito, he is a famous avid traveler and wild life lover.

You Participated In The Women's March...Now what?

This past weekend, scores of Americans took to the streets to voice their concerns about a new political paradigm under President Trump. Over 1.2 million women marched in Washington D.C. alone, while over a million participated in cities across the country. In total, there were 673 "sister marches" taking place around the world at the same time.

Which leads to the question: What is this surge of activists going to do next?

Enter RISE Movement, the newest wave in politics. (www.risemvmt.org). A group aimed at rebuilding the broken political system in America, RISE is strategically coordinating the ground efforts of the left side to win again. 

"At RISE, we've created a series of quarterly reports to explain how we lost, and what we can do to win again," states RISE co-founder Genevieve Thiers.  The first RISE report launches today at www.riseparty.org/quarterly_report.  The report is paired to a high-level dashboard to coordinate all the armies and individuals on the ground.  "There's no reason that this information should be in some DNC corner office somewhere," states Thiers.  "Everyone's a general."  The report is 32 pages, and explains how the left side lost, and an approach that can help it win again in 2020.

The RISE dashboard, referenced in the report, is in beta, but a template can be seen at www.riseparty.org/dashboard.  The interactive version is in progress.  The dashboard is powered by RISE and a number of other tech-savvy entities including flippable, ballot-ready, popvox and re:act. It coordinates over six critical pieces of how to win back the White House in 2020—everything from winning open seats to fighting bills to protesting executive actions and appointments to flipping Republican-held states to getting non-voters back to the polls and non-registered voters registered. It also contains a countdown to the 2020 elections, daily action items, a 30-day forecast, and a 4-year elections calendar.  

Activists can zoom into details or stay high-level and just stick to daily activities...it's their choice. 

"On the left side, we tend to be super intelligent, but uncoordinated," states Thiers.  "We can be a bit like ping-pong balls flying around in an empty room.  We need to work as a coordinated unit, and the RISE dashboard lets us do that."  

RISE is approaching left-leaning groups now about how to best use the dashboard to coordinate their armies, and the RISE report also includes a breakout of progressive groups for readers by function, so activists can easily figure out how to manage their time.  As events unfold in politics, the report will "react" in real time, designing new plans to win based on how current factors are playing out.

RISE members include former OFA-ers, Hillary team members, workers from Google, Microsoft, Apple, entrepreneurs, activists, artists, designers, developers, writers, immigrants, economists and more. "We're sort of like a tech startup jammed into a political action group," states co-founder Ellie Bahrmasel.  

The group is determined not only to resist the Trump agenda, but to change politics as well.  They are targeting four critical races in 2017—NC, NJ, VA and LA municipals—and building on-the-ground armies to head door to door and ask people who they want to see running, and what they want solved. 

"We're going back to basics," states Bahrmasel.  "People need to be a part of the process again." 

The goal of the RISE field organization is to crowdsource the right candidate and solution set for an area, then galvanize local efforts around both in combination.  They theorize that if people are part of making something, they will care about promoting it. 

So...if you have some free time post the march, consider letting your voice RISE.

The Video:

About RISE:

RISE movement is the next wave in political disruption offering a new narrative. By showing how we are more united than divided, we will make America stronger and future focused. With a focus on interpartisan communication, voter outreach and education, real actionable economic policy and an irrefutable-fact-based narrative RISE will get all Americans back to voting for their own best interests and the best interests of this great nation as a whole.  The group has 5-full-time hires, over 10,000 volunteers in 34 states, and is a 527 PAC format. Welcome to the Re-United States of America.  Welcome to RISE.  www.riseparty.org 

SOURCE: RISE Movement

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The Women's March Fotition Campaign - Connecting and Archiving ALL of The Women's Marches

The Women's March Bay Area and Fotition have created a campaign to help connect and archive the nearly 400 marches taking place in the US and abroad.

Fotition recently launched a social change platform that lets people post and share photos to raise awareness and support for the causes they care about.

The Women's March Fotition campaign is free to use and makes it easy (and fun) for people to create March-inspired images by taking or uploading photos and choosing from 25 different campaign-themed overlays. People can then use their images to change their social profile pics and share them directly to their social media pages, with a simple click. Also, every image posted to the campaign will be displayed in a campaign gallery (no need for #hashtags), where people can go to view (and share) photos posted by campaign supporters.

"We are excited to support the Women's March and help connect and archive all of the marches around the world," says Christian Johnson, co-founder and CEO of Fotition. "January 21st will be remembered as a day when the world stood together in solidarity to defend human rights and celebrate our diversity. We think this campaign will be a great way to help commemorate the Women's March and everything that it stands for."

The campaign was launched just a few days before the March and Fotition plans to keep the campaign running through February. That way people can post and share their March photos even after the March has ended.  Fotition hopes the Women's March campaign will become the largest user-generated event photo archive in history. Even people who weren't able to participate in the March can post photos to show their support and help amplify the mission and the message of the March.

• To see the Women's March Fotition campaign visit: fotition.com/womensmarch
• To learn more about the Women's March visit: womensmarch.com

(PRNewsFoto/Fotition)

About Fotition:

Fotition is a revolutionary new platform that offers users a social experience that doesn't exist with any other social sharing network or fundraising platform. Fotition lets people use their photos to raise awareness and support for the causes they care about. It also gives brands a way to convert their charitable giving into advertising, without taking any money away from the charities or causes they support. Fotition recently came out of beta and has already partnered with brands like Starbucks and Disney to launch campaigns to support good causes. They have also attracted early investment from several prominent Silicon Valley tech icons, including Scott Cook (founder of Intuit).  

SOURCE: Fotition

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