IMAGE: Pedestrians cross the street behind a billboard showing a pictures of US president-elect Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Danilovgrad, Montenegro, November 16. 2016. REUTERS/Stevo Vasiljevic
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says that while Donald Trump should “stick to the script,” he remains comfortable backing the presumptive Republican nominee.
In an atypically candid interview with Bloomberg’s “Masters in Politics” podcast, McConnell expressed caution over Trump’s racist comments towards Judge Gonzalo Curiel but maintained that a President Trump would need to answer to the center-right voters necessary to win the presidency.
“It’s pretty obvious he doesn’t know a lot about the issues,” McConnell said. “You see that in the debates in which he’s participated. It’s why I have argued to him publicly and privately that he ought to use a script more often—there is nothing wrong with having prepared texts.”
Both literally and metaphorically, he said that Trump — a vocal critic of teleprompters — should begin using pre-written speeches as a way to avoid blunders like his comments on Curiel, which will alienate the minority voters that the GOP must focus on.
“I think he’d have a much better chance of winning if he would quit making so many unfortunate public utterances and stick to the script,” McConnell said.
He later added that during a meeting at the National Rifle Association convention, McConnell told Trump that this more reserved tactic “indicates a level of seriousness that I think is important to convey to American people about the job you are seeking.”
McConnell, who is known for being tight-lipped on candidates and controversy alike, said that Trump needs to change his approach to the campaign and pick a running-mate who is well-versed in policy.
“Now you need to demonstrate you have the seriousness of purpose that is required to be president of the United States, and most candidates on frequent occasions use a script,” McConnell said he told Trump.
At a time when many conservatives have questioned the legitimacy of Trump’s candidacy, McConnell, the top Republican in the Senate, seems like he might be a worthy judge for right-wingers unsure of how to feel on Trump.
“I’m not going to speculate about what he might say, or what I might do. But I think it’s pretty clear and I’ve been pretty clear publicly about how I think he ought to change direction and I hope that’s what we are going to see.”
Listen to the full podcast here.
Photo: U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) arrives to talks to the media after a weekly Senate Republican luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., April 19, 2016. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas
Washington (AFP) — A U.S. actress who tried to blame her husband for sending ricin-laced letters to President Barack Obama, then-New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, and a gun control activist got 18 years in prison.
U.S. District Judge Michael Schneider sentenced Shannon Guess Richardson to 216 months in federal prison on a biological weapons charge and ordered her to pay $367,222.29 in restitution.
In December, Richardson pleaded guilty to possession of a toxin for use as a weapon, after being named in an indictment that charged her with threatening Obama, and mailing a threatening letter to Bloomberg and Mark Glaze.
Glaze had worked closely with Bloomberg in the then-New York chief’s drive to increase gun control.
“Today’s sentencing brings an appropriate and just end to what is surely one of our most unusual, even bizarre cases,” U.S. Attorney John Bales said in a statement.
He noted the investigation had been “very challenging.”
Prosecutors told the court Richardson, 35, had bought between April and May 2013 castor bean seeds, sodium hydroxide (lye), and other ingredients online to manufacture ricin, a deadly biological poison for which there is no known antidote.
She subsequently placed ricin onto three threatening letters addressed to Obama, Bloomberg, and Glaze that were posted on May 20.
Ten days later, Richardson traveled to Shreveport, Louisiana and told police her husband was responsible for sending the letters.
She was arrested in June 2013 in Mt Pleasant, Texas.
A copy of the letter sent to Bloomberg posted online showed a stained, type-written document that contained numerous spelling errors.
“You will have to kill me and my family before you get my guns. Anyone wants to come to my house will get shot in the face,” it read.
“The right to bear arms is my constitutional God given right and I will excersice that right til the day I die. whats in this letter is nothing compared to what ive got planned for you.”
Richardson has had a piecemeal acting career, including a minor role in the hit zombie television show “The Walking Dead.”
AFP Photo/ Brendan Smialowski
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New York (AFP) — An attempt by the city of New York to ban giant fizzy drinks and other sweet sodas — blamed by some for fueling obesity — was rejected Thursday by the highest court in the state.
The decision upheld a ruling from a local appeals court in July 2013 after a judge blocked the ban hours before it was to take effect in March 2013, calling it “capricious and arbitrary.”
Former mayor Michael Bloomberg spearheaded the move in May 2012 in a drive to fight obesity and other health problems, but it was staunchly opposed by restaurants, movie theaters and soda makers.
Opponents argued that the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene had overstepped its authority on the measure — a position that the New York state appeals court upheld on Thursday.
The ban sought to limit personal sweet drink sizes to 16 ounces (nearly half a liter) in stadiums, stores, and fast food restaurants.
But many drinks that were high in calories were not included, and the ban did not cover supermarkets or other food stores.
In New York City, 58 percent of the population is either obese or overweight.
A spokesman for the New York state appeals court said four judges voted to uphold the ruling that the ban was excessive and two judges believed the board acted within its authority.
Bloomberg, who stepped down in January after 12 years on the job, made health issues a key plank of his administration, also banning smoking in restaurants, bars and other public places.
AFP Photo / Mario Tama
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