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Trump's Syria strike, while widely praised in the mainstream media, drewsignificant backlash from the president's populist base. Now, five weeks later, Trump's first foreign trip has ushered in a new wave of criticism from his core group of supporters.

One week after the military action, British Infowars vlogger Paul Joseph Watson was joined on his Infowars show by Jack Posobiec, director at Citizens for Trump, where he explained why he'd jumped "Off the Trump train" the week prior.

"400,000 Syrians had died in this civil war over the past six years before the chemical weapons attack," he told Posobiec."Assad had been killing his own people for six years... it's a civil war; that's what happens."

Watson also noted that at a news conference in the Turkish capital, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson asserted on March 30 that the Syrian people would determineAssad's fate.

"What changed one week later?" Watson asked. "The only thing I can see is Bannon beingdemoted."

Posobiec's answer: "A fundamental shift within the administration."

"It's a fundamental shift basically with him out of the picture, and with [National Security Adviser] H.R. McMaster now there,"he explained. "H.R. McMaster is tied to [former director of the Central Intelligence Agency] David Petraeus... [and] a lot of people that were involved with the Obama administration and the Bush administration, so having these people in there allows for them to create a way where they can feed Trump any assessments, any intel they want without any conflicting views."

According to Mike Cernovich, Trump isn't draining the swamp, he's drowning in it. And the Pizzagate-pushing conspiracy theorist also attributes Trump's shift to McMaster.

"More war is coming, and I don't know how to tell you the swamp is drowning Trump," he lamented.

On the other hand, there's been no shortage of ominous moments from Trump's first foreign trip, which kicked off with a record arms dealwith Saudi Arabia ($110 billion) on Saturday.

"I think it was a bad idea to go to Saudi Arabia," Infowars commentator David Knight announced Monday. He then drew on some of the eerie symbolism viewers may have missed.

President Trump, Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi were "all standing there holding this orb with our hands on it," Knight explained. "Everybody's having a lot of fun with that picture, because they look pretty bad when they're lit from the bottom... but what nobody is paying attention to is that that was all part of a ceremony about setting up a global organization."

Of course, the symbolism was not lost on everyone. As Vox summed up:

Think about it for a second: This is Donald Trump the guy who campaigned on banning Muslim immigration to the United States and replacing globalism in foreign policy with America First literally holding a globe surrounded by Muslims. Thats absurd!

"I think he's not being very well served by the people who planned this trip,"Knight added, turning to what he believed was the worst photo-op; a sword dance with the Saudis and administration officials.

"I hope that... when they take these swords for the photo opportunities, that they've wiped the blood off of them," Knight said, referencing beheadings. "When you shake hands with people like that, sometimes you get blood on your hands, and we may wind up with blood on our hands in terms of this big arm deal, but of course [Trump's son-in-law] Jared Kushner was at the center of that."

Alexandra Rosenmann is an AlterNet associate editor. Follow her@alexpreditor.

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The Alt-Right Is Furious at Trump for His Foreign Trip - AlterNet

InfoWars, the alt-right site thats been widely blasted for spreading fake news, has acquired credentials to attend White House press briefings.

There have been previous attempts from the organization to win press access to the White House, with InfoWars getting a weekly pass to briefings earlier in the month.

InfoWars is led by fabulist Alex Jones, who has claimed that the Sandy Hook school massacre was a hoax and that Michelle Obama is secretly a man who murdered comedian Joan Rivers.

Jerome Corsi, its Washington, D.C. corrspondent, was one of the popularizers of birtherism, the racist lie that former President Obama was born in Kenya, rather than the United States.

Trump and his associates have granted interviews and other forms of media access to InfoWars, which has been linked to the white supremacist alt-right movement.

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at solomon@forward.com or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

See more here:
InfoWars, 'Alt-Right' Fake News Site, Gets White House Press Credentials - Forward

Mashable

Woman confronts alt-right founder Richard Spencer in the gym, gets Twitter abuse Mashable Christine Fair, an associate professor at Georgetown University, is facing abuse on Twitter from alt-right people after tweeting that Spencer had been "ousted" from the gym in Alexandria, Virginia. Nazi Update: @sportandhealth ousted uber-coward Nazi ... Richard Spencer, Confronted Over Alt-Right Views, is Expelled From GymNewsweek Georgetown prof who harassed pro-Trump colleague brags about harassing alt-right leader at the gymThe College Fix Richard Spencer got His Gym Membership Revoked - The Daily DotThe Daily Dot BuzzFeed News -New York Magazine -Chicago Tribune -Twitter all 24 news articles »

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Woman confronts alt-right founder Richard Spencer in the gym, gets Twitter abuse - Mashable

The election of Donald Trump has been a catalyst for releasing the pent-up tensions in the American society. The country is not only divided but the opposing sides are not finding much in common to talk about. While the violence has not been widespread and can be written off at this point as clashes between fringe groups, there is potential for things to boil over.

Groups united under the alt-right banner have made their presence felt at protests targeting pro-Trump speakers. But they have been increasingly confronted at these rallies by violence-minded protestors known as the antifa or anti-fascists.

The 2017 skirmishes between the alt-right and antifa included the infamousNazi-punchwhen the white supremacist Richard Spencer was punched in the face by a masked passerby. Further confrontations happened during the protests against uber-troll MiloYiannopouloss speeches in Seattles University of Washington, where an antifascist protestergot shot, and at Berkeley University in California. The April 15th fightdubbedThe Battle of Berkeley devolved into smashed windows and set fires, with 20 arrested and 11 injured.

Thereve been other clashes in April inVancouverand in Portland, Oregon and a confrontation in Boston on May 13th.

So who is behind antifa?

According to The Nation, the movement has its roots in anti-fascist fighting predating World War 2. Anti-fascists organized in military brigades fought Franco in Spain in the 30s. An infamous Battle of Cable Street saw thousands of fascists fighting an even larger crowd of anti-fascists on the streets of London in October 1936. The antifa movement via groups like Anti-Racist Action (ARA) has been clashing with neo-Nazis in America since the 80s.

Protesters push a burning recycling bin at Trump supporters during a 'Patriots Day' free speech rally on April 15, 2017 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)

Trump supporters face off with protesters at a 'Patriots Day' free speech rally on April 15, 2017 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)

The modern antifa sees neo-fascists as actively trying to change the world and peoples minds with their ideas and do not want to wait in the wings until things get worse. And they believe that the Trump movement has incorporated into itself radical far-right voices that now feel empowered to make themselves heard.

For too long have our elected officials and our media placated these violent, toxic people. For too long have the enemies of democracy and rational, informed discourse been granted platforms to spew their rhetoric and earn notoriety for their movement. A warning to those who wish to destroy what we hold dear; We will resist you in the streets, in the poll booths and in the townhouses... We will not allow history to repeat itself. We will shut you down everywhere you go. We will block your marches. We will interrupt your speeches. We will protest your legislation. We will be the thorn in your side. The glass in your bread. The pain in your ass. We are ARA. We are watching. - wrote a Louisville, Kentucky ARA branch on its site.

This kind of tough talk has translated into genuine mini-riots when the opposing sides get together.

Heres how the April 15th melee at Berkeley looked [WARNING: STRONG LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE]:

Heres how it looked in Portland [WARNING: STRONG LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE]:

Another confrontation in May in Portland also got out of hand [WARNING: STRONG LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE]:

As far as the violence, it is not the only way in which antifa groups counteract their opponents, engaging in tactics like exposing the true identities of fascists and internet trolls, helping people join unions, advocating for issues like the environment. But some do see violence as intrinsic to fascism and as such regard resorting to violence as a necessary counterforce measure.

A representative for the Antifa NYC news site explained their mission more broadly to The Nation: Antifa combines radical left-wing and anarchist politics, revulsion at racists, sexists, homophobes, anti-Semites, and Islamophobes, with the international anti-fascist culture of taking the streets and physically confronting the brownshirts of white supremacy, whoever they may be.

Antifa protesters often wear black masks and black clothing - a black bloc force. Newsweek describes this as a tactic for anarchist protest which doesnt necessarily represent one group. It should be noted that antifa is far from just one organization and is a rather decentralized force (much like its alt-right counterpart). Antifa also includes militant groups outside of ARA. Theres the Hoosier Anti-Racist Movement (HARM) in Indiana and Redneck Revolt and others.

Conservative commentators see antifa as agitators and anarchists. Kevin D. Williamson at National Review has dismissed antifa as an invented gang and children while at the same time painting the white nationalists and antifa as two sides of the same very sad little coin. Williamson also doesnt see America as having a budding fascist movement, which would of course make the existence of antifa unnecessary and nonsensical if you believe that.

From President Trumps standpoint antifa are troublemakers, with some of them being paid (probably by George Soros, the right-wing's favorite boogeyman). He tweeted a threat that federal funding could be pulled from Berkeley over the violence and suppression of free speech. There are petitions out from the right to designate antifa as a domestic terrorist organization.Liberal detractors, in their turn, are also paranoid that a small group of antifa agitators could start a chain of events whereby some sort of martial law would be instituted by the incensed Trump.

Could the fighting between the fringe groups get worse and go beyond the radical elements on both sides?If the rhetoric in the country doesnt improve and a wedge will continue to be driven between the two sides, who both listen exclusively to their own media outlets, nothing rosy is to be expected. Add to this the possibility that as the various investigations around Trump close in, knowing his penchant for doubling down on his positions and riling up his base, its not inconceivable to imagine an America exploding in much stronger violence down the line.

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American Far Left Is Fighting the Far Right in the Streets. Could the Violence Spread? - Big Think

Media Matters for America (blog)

Did "alt-right" hoaxster and troll Jack Posobiec plant fake protest signs at a net neutrality protest? Media Matters for America (blog) Noted "alt-right" troll and hoaxster Jack Posobiec took to Periscope on May 18 to highlight a group of supposed protesters at a net neutrality event in Washington, D.C. who were holding signs calling for bans on Breitbart, Drudge, and Infowars ...

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Did "alt-right" hoaxster and troll Jack Posobiec plant fake protest signs at a net neutrality protest? - Media Matters for America (blog)