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PBC News & Comment: Media Downplays Major NSA Hack

Corporate media outlets continue to stoke Russiagate narrative, downplaying major NSA hack that occurred 2 years ago, no charges for contractor….–accused NSA leaker Reality Winner is denied bail, and her intentions don’t matter in Espionage Act prosecution

–at Buzzfeed, Jason Leopold and colleague expose illegal spying on Americans’ financial data by US intelligence unit

–Consumer Financial Protection Bureau faces legal assault regarding binding arbitration, as banks and corporations use class action suit that’s not available to their customers, David Dayen reports

–facing another assault, CFPB issues strict new rules on payday lenders

–as Trump moves to destabilize Mideast by undermining Iran deal, he makes cryptic comment about “calm before the storm”

–once again, Trump throws hot potato to do-nothing Congress, as it would have to decide how to proceed with Iran

–Bob Parry at ConsortiumNews ruminates on Trump’s “zigzag” foreign policy

CIA’s top expert on North Korea contradict’s Trump’s label of Kim Jong Un as “madman”

–in Guardian op-ed, author Michael Axworthy says Iran deal is one of few forces for stability, and endangering it is “irresponsible”

–also at The Guardian, our pal Tom Frank notes that Steve Bannon has been stealing his commentary

–Gov. Brown signs 11 bills that make California a sanctuary state for immigrants

–in new in-depth interview, Frances Moore Lappe and coauthor Adam Eichen challenge you to restore democracy

–based on Citizens United assertion of “corporate personhood”, TrumpCo rolls back Obamacare contraception policies to protect “entities with religious beliefs”

Is this “Hypocrisy Week”?

–Hollywood mogul, liberal donor Harvey Weinstein is exposed as serial predator

–Callista Gingrich , the known adulterer, gets 75 Senate votes for confirmation as Vatican ambassador

–in NY Times, Jennifer Weiner unloads on hypocritical conservative men

–as honest questions linger in Las Vegas massacre, YouTube moves to reduce access to “conspiracy theories

–58 people were killed in Las Vegas in one night, but in Chicago 58 people are killed in a month