The Vince Coglianese Show

8am – A         Baltimore anticipates 90 percent recovery from ransomware by week's end. (StateScoop) -- Baltimore officials said Tuesday that the city’s 10,000 municipal employees are gradually regaining access to their government email accounts in the wake of a ransomware attack, with as many as 90 percent getting back online by the end of the week. Sheryl Goldstein, a deputy chief of staff to Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young, said during a city hall press conference that the Baltimore City Office of Information and Technology has made a “big push” in the past week to rebuild servers and issue new credentials to the city’s workforce as it continues to repair the damage caused by the RobbinHood virus, which infected city systems May 7, encrypting computers and servers unless officials paid a 13 bitcoin bounty. Goldstein also said BCIT’s workforce is split into two functions in addressing the ransomware attack. One team is focused on the forensic investigation of how the malware entered the city’s networks and how widely it spread. She said the city is working with outside cybersecurity experts and the federal government, though on Monday U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said Baltimore should “more fully” engage the Department of Homeland Security as it investigates the cyberattack. The rest of BCIT is working on the recovery, Goldstein said, including the re-authentication of city employees to access their email accounts and other restored applications. When asked by a reporter why Baltimore Chief Information Officer Frank Johnson was not at the press conference, Goldstein said “he’s working.” But despite the progress, many of Baltimore’s digital services remain offline, including the processing of real-estate transactions and billing for city-owned utilities. The city has resorted to issuing paper liens to get home sales moving again, and the city’s public works director said Wednesday that while his department cannot issue or receive water bills online, residential water meters are continuing to take readings. Baltimore officials are also sticking to an estimate that the total cost of the RobbinHood attack could top $18 million, the city’s finance director, Henry J. Raymond, said Tuesday. About $10 million of that sum will cover replacement hardware and software and additional personnel, with the remainder coming from lost or delayed revenue. But Raymond said the cash-strapped city will be able to weather the costs.

8am – B/C     Some smartphone-carrying millennials and Gen Zers are so used to texting upon arrival that the sound of a ringing doorbell freaks them out; ‘it’s terrifying’ (WSJ) --  Chanan Walia, a sophomore at University of California, Berkeley, can’t remember the last time he used a doorbell or even knocked on a door. At home, his father installed a fancy, Wi-Fi-connected doorbell. Mr. Walia, 19 years old and a computer science major, says he just isn’t comfortable ringing them.  He and his friends have become so accustomed to texting one another upon arrival, he says, that the sound of a doorbell feels like an unexpected jolt. “Doorbells are just so sudden. It’s terrifying,” says Tiffany Zhong, 20, the founder of Zebra Intelligence, which helps companies conduct custom research and gather insights on people born in the past two decades. There’s no published research about doorbell phobia, but it’s a real thing.  In a poll by a Twitter user earlier this month that got more than 11,000 votes, 54% of respondents said “doorbells are scary weird.” Some millennials and Gen Zers say they won’t even consider answering a ring at the door until they’ve checked the security camera. The doorbell freak-out reflects the ascendance of mediated communication, which means people interacting through technological devices rather than directly. It’s not so much about screen time versus face time as it is a merger of the two. Smartphones provide extra information thought by users to be vital to day-to-day interactions. Without smartphones to help, encounters can feel fraught. “Typically, doorbells are for outsiders,” says Ms. Zhong, whose LinkedIn profile describes her as a “teen whisperer.” “A text signifies it’s a friend.”

8am – D         INTERVIEW - DAVE RAY - Communications Director, Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR)

House Passes Mass Amnesty Bill Which Would Give Millions Of Illegal Immigrants A Path To Citizenship. (Daily Caller) - The House passed a vote Tuesday that would grant protection from deportation to illegal immigrants and give millions a path to permanent citizenship status. The American Dream and Promise Act passed the House with a vote of 236-187. The legislation was brought forward by California Democratic Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard and will provide permanent status to illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally as minors, as well as to those living in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status, Newsweek reported.

8am – E         STEELE / SUBPOENAS:

Dossier author Christopher Steele willing to meet with DOJ inspector general team. (Washington Examiner) -- Christopher Steele is reportedly willing to be interviewed by the Justice Department inspector general's team that is conducting an investigation into alleged Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act abuses. The British ex-spy, whose unverified dossier was used to obtain surveillance against former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, has agreed to meet with U.S. officials if they come to London where he lives and runs an investigative firm called Orbis Business Intelligence, a source told the Sunday Times in the United Kingdom. Steele is only willing to talk about his relationship with the FBI, for whom he was a confidential source, and wants the U.S. to get permission from the U.K. government first. The report came out as President Trump is in the country for a state visit.  As recently as April it was reported that Steele declined to meet with Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz’s team due to concerns about being undermined. Although he is coming around, Steele still appears dead set against meeting with officials connected to Attorney General William Barr’s investigation into the origins of the Russia investigation, led by U.S. Attorney John Durham.

The White House Isn't Cooperating With Subpoenas From House Democrats. (Daily Caller) -- The White House has directed former administration aides Hope Hicks and Annie Donaldson not to cooperate with subpoenas from the House Judiciary Committee as part of its far-reaching probe of President Donald Trump. The panel issued subpoenas to Hicks and Donaldson on May 21 for documents and testimony. Those orders asked Hicks to appear for testimony on June 19, while Donaldson is to appear on June 24. Both women were directed to submit records to the committee by Tuesday. “As part of President Trump’s continued obstruction of Congress, the White House has instructed both Hope Hicks and Annie Donaldson not to turn over records in response to subpoenas issued by our committee last month,” Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler said in a Tuesday statement. “I note that Ms. Hicks has agreed to turn over some documents to the Committee relating to her time working for the Trump campaign, and I thank her for that show of good faith.” “The president has no lawful basis for preventing these witnesses from complying with our request. We will continue to seek reasonable accommodation on these and all our discovery requests and intend to press these issues when we obtain the testimony of both Ms. Hicks and Ms. Donaldson.” The news was relayed to the committee in a letter from White House counsel Pat Cipollone. He invited Democrats to negotiate directly with the administration over the scope of their subpoenas, according to The Washington Post.  The Hicks subpoena sought documents relating to her service in the White House as a top communications aide, as well as records from the Trump campaign. Though the administration can block release of White House documents, it cannot shield campaign records using executive privilege.

INTERVIEW - Fenit Nirappil - reporter covering D.C. government and politics for The Washington Post

Felons from D.C. could be able to vote from prison under proposed bill. (Washington Post/By Fenit Nirappil) -- A group of D.C. lawmakers wants to make the nation’s capital the first jurisdiction to restore voting rights to felons while they’re still incarcerated. Council member Robert C. White Jr. (D-At Large), with a majority of the 13-member body, plans to introduce legislation Tuesday to repeal language in a 1955 law that disenfranchises D.C. residents upon felony convictions. Every state except Maine and Vermont has stripped voting rights from prisoners. “Unfortunately in the District and across the country, incarcerated people make up a sizable population of residents,” White said. “They don’t lose their citizenship when they are incarcerated, so they shouldn’t lose their right to vote.” The District is among jurisdictions with the fewest restrictions regarding felons and voting. Felons in the District and 14 states automatically regain their voting rights when they are released from prison, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Elections officials visit the D.C. jail to help residents who are awaiting trial cast absentee ballots.

INTERVIEW - Marion Smith - Executive Director of Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation on Tiananmen 30th Anniversary on Tuesday and their big rally tomorrow on Capitol Hill to commemorate the anniversary

The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation (VOC), a DC-based international human rights organization, will hold a rally at the U.S. Capitol to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre and the ongoing human rights violations in China. It's expected to be big. Speakers will include witnesses of the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989, activists, and policymakers, including VOC Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA). The rally will also feature the premiere exhibit of the Tiananmen Mothers Portraits.  VOC's work has focused on calling out China's human rights violations. In June 2016, computer hackers supporting China's Communist government shut down VOC's website during an international online meeting highlighting the 1989 Tiananmen massacre in Beijing. In December 2016, when the Miss World pageant - largely sponsored by Chinese companies, silenced Chinese beauty Queen Anastasia Lin, a critic of China, at a U.S. competition, VOC sponsored the premiere of her film and stood by her side. In July 2016, VOC released its annual Captive Nations Report on North Korea in which they rebuked China for failing to curb North Korean aggression. Just last month, Marion authored this oped in the Washington Post: Buying stock in these Chinese companies makes you complicit in terror on Uighurs.

RALLY AT U.S. CAPITOL TO COMMEMORATE TIANANMEN SQUARE AND CONDEMN ONGOING HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN CHINA: More than twenty human-rights organizations will gather to highlight the past and present suppression of the Chinese people by Beijing’s authoritarian regime. WASHINGTON, D.C. – June 4 will mark the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, during which the Chinese Communist Party massacred thousands of innocent student protestors. The People's Republic of China to this day, censors any mention of the Massacre and refuses to acknowledge it even happened. The regime that ordered those murders is still the same one currently reigning in Beijing, and its human rights abuses continue to this day. On June 4 at the U.S. Capitol, The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation (VOC) along with more than 20 other human rights organizations will hold a rally to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre and to highlight the continued oppression of the Chinese people by the Chinese Communist Party. Speakers will include witnesses of the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989, activists, and policymakers, including VOC Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA). To register, please visit the rally’s Eventbrite website. The rally will also feature the premiere exhibit of the Tiananmen Mothers Portraits.

WHO: Amnesty International USA, Bitter Winter, Campaign for Uyghurs, ChinaAid, Citizen Power Initiatives for China, Dialogue China, East Turkistan National Awakening Movement, Formosan Association for Public Affairs, Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, Humanitarian China, International Campaign for Tibet, International Uyghur Human Rights and Democracy Foundation, Keep Taiwan Free, Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, Students for a Free Tibet, The Chen Guangcheng Foundation, The Church of Almighty God, Tibet Action Institute, Uyghur Human Rights Project, Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, Women’s Rights Without Frontiers, World Uyghur Congress

WHAT: Rally to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre and to highlight the continued suppression of the Chinese people by the Chinese government

WHERE: U.S. Capitol West Lawn, 1st Street SW & 1st Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20004

WHEN: Tuesday, June 4, 2019, 1:30–3:00pm EDT

INTERVIEW - Charlie Spiering - White House correspondent for Breitbart - report on Trump's UK trip day 1 and preview day 2

DAY 1: Trump begins UK visit meeting Queen, sparring with London mayor. President Trump mixed high-level diplomacy with schoolyard taunts as he kicked off his overseas visit meeting with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace and later touring Westminster Abbey -- while sparring on the side with one of his biggest British critics, London Mayor Sadiq Khan. The London itinerary is part of a packed overseas agenda that includes a state dinner at the palace and D-Day commemoration ceremonies.

DAY 2: Protests expected as Trump meets with May during second day in Britain. President Trump meets with outgoing British Prime Minister Theresa May Tuesday as the two talk with corporate executives from the United States and United Kingdom, before an afternoon news conference on the second day of Trump's state visit. The leaders' top priority is a possible bilateral trade deal to take effect once the U.K. leaves the European Union. "Big Trade Deal is possible once U.K. gets rid of the shackles. Already starting to talk," Trump tweeted Monday. Still, after Monday's day of pageantry and a war of words with London’s mayor, Trump could be greeted by tens of thousands of protesters as part of a "Carnival of Resistance."

INTERVIEW - WAYNE CREWS - Competitive Enterprise Institute Vice President, also directs our Center for Technology and Innovation Policy.

Facebook, Google and other tech giants to face antitrust investigation by House lawmakers. House lawmakers plan a sweeping review of Facebook, Google and other technology giants to determine if they’ve become so large and powerful that they stifle competition and harm consumers, marking a new, unprecedented antitrust threat for an industry that’s increasingly under siege by Congress, the White House and 2020 presidential candidates. The probe, announced Monday by Rep. David Cicilline (R.I.), the leader of the House’s top anti-trust subcommittee, is expected to be far reaching and comes at a moment when Democrats and Republicans find themselves in rare alignment on the idea that the tech industry has been too unregulated for too long. The sentiment spurred a sharp sell-off in tech stocks to start the week.

WAYNE CREWS:  Will Antitrust End Trump's Deregulatory Push? Revelations that antitrust enforcers have conspired to divide jurisdiction and initiate antitrust investigations into Google and Apple (the U.S. Department of Justice) and Amazon and Facebook (the Federal Trade Commission) could well cement the end of Donald Trump claiming the mantle of a deregulatory president. Today’s technology companies are not anticompetitive, as antitrust boosters claim. They are the end result of intense competitive processes.

INTERVIEW - James Carafano - vice president of foreign and defense policy studies, The Heritage Foundation

Protests expected as Trump meets with May during second day in Britain. President Trump meets with outgoing British Prime Minister Theresa May Tuesday as the two talk with corporate executives from the United States and United Kingdom, before an afternoon news conference on the second day of Trump's state visit. The leaders' top priority is a possible bilateral trade deal to take effect once the U.K. leaves the European Union. "Big Trade Deal is possible once U.K. gets rid of the shackles. Already starting to talk," Trump tweeted Monday. Still, after Monday's day of pageantry and a war of words with London’s mayor, Trump could be greeted by tens of thousands of protesters as part of a "Carnival of Resistance."

James Carafano: Believe it or not, THIS will be Trump's number one job when he goes to London. (Fox News) --  This trip is not for the pomp and circumstance. There are substantive items on the president’s agenda -- items that could significantly affect the future of the transatlantic community. Topping the list is, of course, is Brexit. Trump is famously pro-Brexit, and by the time Trump lands in London, the Conservative party will be well on its way to picking a new leader -- one who will be committed to leading the U.K. out of the European Union. Right now, the deadline for Brexit is October. Expect the new leader to commit to that. Don’t be surprised if, in the end, the government rejects the EU’s last-offered conditions for leaving and opts for the so-called “hard Brexit” -- i.e., just up and leaves. Trump’s No. 1 job is to deliver the message, “Don’t worry. Be happy.” Britain will thrive after Brexit, and post-Brexit Britain’s “special relationship” with the U.S. will be as special as ever. To assure the Brits that this will be the case, Trump should reaffirm his unshakable commitment to speedily conclude a U.S.-U.K. free trade agreement as soon as Britain is free of the EU while signaling to Congress his desire to pass enabling legislation as quickly as possible. Job No. 2 should be to start revitalizing what has made the U.S.-U.K. relationship so special: our joint commitment to transatlantic security that spanned two world wars, a Cold War, and lots of messy stuff in between and after. Trump and the new conservative leadership in London will need to work as a team. The NATO summit coming up in London at the end of the year will mark the alliance’s 70th anniversary. The U.S. and Britain must work in tandem, pressing others in the alliance to better prepare for future challenges and sustain the momentum for NATO enlargement.

Tuesday 6/4/19: Heritage's James Carafano, CEI's Wayne Crews, Breitbart's Charlie Spiering, Communism Memorial Foundation's Marion Smith and Washington Post's Fenit Nirappil

8am – A/B/C Dodgeball Is A Tool Of Oppression, Researchers Say. (Daily Caller) -- A team of Canadian researchers are set to lecture teachers about the moral dangers of dodgeball, a sport they say teaches kids to single out and violently dominate weaker students. Dodgeball is a tool of “oppression” and “miseducative,” the researchers say in the abstract of a paper cited by the National Post, which they will present in Vancouver at the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, a summit for thousands of academics happening in early June. The “hidden curriculum” it teaches students is out of step with the larger curriculum, they argue. “As we consider the potential of physical education to empower students by engaging them in critical and democratic practices, we conclude that the hidden curriculum is antithetical to this project, even when it reflects the choices of the strongest and most agile students,” the abstract reads. The researchers add that dodgeball “reinforces the five faces of oppression” as defined by the late University of Chicago theorist Iris Marion Young. Those are marginalization, powerlessness, helplessness of those perceived as weaker, exploitation and cultural domination, according to the abstract. The story in the National Post is part of a larger series on the most interesting research to be presented at the conference. “Despite the fact that many physical educators understand their vital role in helping students develop robust, equal, productive relationships and critical awareness, their practices on the ground do not always reflect this agenda,” they write. “We suggest that this tension becomes sharply visible in the common practice of allowing students to play dodgeball. An informal reader poll by the Vancouver Sun suggests Canadians might not be receptive to the idea of ridding schools of the sport. More than 86 percent of respondents to the online poll at the bottom of a report on the paper said schools should not outlaw dodgeball.

8am – D         INTERVIEW - Fenit Nirappil - reporter covering D.C. government and politics for The Washington Post

Felons from D.C. could be able to vote from prison under proposed bill. (Washington Post/By Fenit Nirappil) -- A group of D.C. lawmakers wants to make the nation’s capital the first jurisdiction to restore voting rights to felons while they’re still incarcerated. Council member Robert C. White Jr. (D-At Large), with a majority of the 13-member body, plans to introduce legislation Tuesday to repeal language in a 1955 law that disenfranchises D.C. residents upon felony convictions. Every state except Maine and Vermont has stripped voting rights from prisoners. “Unfortunately in the District and across the country, incarcerated people make up a sizable population of residents,” White said. “They don’t lose their citizenship when they are incarcerated, so they shouldn’t lose their right to vote.” The District is among jurisdictions with the fewest restrictions regarding felons and voting. Felons in the District and 14 states automatically regain their voting rights when they are released from prison, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Elections officials visit the D.C. jail to help residents who are awaiting trial cast absentee ballots.

8am – E         PRESIDENT TRUMP’S UK TRIP:

DAY 2: TUESDAY, JUNE 4: Protests expected as Trump meets with May during second day in Britain. President Trump meets with outgoing British Prime Minister Theresa May Tuesday as the two talk with corporate executives from the United States and United Kingdom, before an afternoon news conference on the second day of Trump's state visit. The leaders' top priority is a possible bilateral trade deal to take effect once the U.K. leaves the European Union. "Big Trade Deal is possible once U.K. gets rid of the shackles. Already starting to talk," Trump tweeted Monday. Still, after Monday's day of pageantry and a war of words with London’s mayor, Trump could be greeted by tens of thousands of protesters as part of a "Carnival of Resistance."

On Tuesday, Mr Trump and Prime Minister Theresa May will host a business breakfast attended by the Duke of York at St James's Palace.

Business leaders understood to be attending include Barclays CEO Jes Staley, GlaxoSmithKline chief executive Emma Walmsley, BAE Systems chairman Sir Roger Carr and the National Grid's John Pettigrew.

Mr Trump will then visit Downing Street for talks with Theresa May, followed by a joint press conference.

In the evening, the Trumps will host a dinner at the residence of the US ambassador in Regent’s Park attended by Charles and Camilla on behalf of the Queen.

DAY 3: WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5: The trip will culminate on the third day, with Mr Trump, the Queen and Prince Charles attending the national commemorative event in Portsmouth for the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. Following the D-Day event, Mr Trump will travel to his hotel and golf resort in Doonbeg, in the Republic of Ireland. He will hold a meeting with Irish premier Leo Varadkar at Shannon Airport. A visiting leader will sometimes speak at the Houses of Parliament during a state visit, but Commons Speaker John Bercow said on Tuesday he had not received a  request for Mr Trump to do so. The president has suggested he “may” meet Conservative MP Boris Johnson and Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage during his visit - both of whom he described as "friends" and “good guys”, but nothing has been officially confirmed.

Tuesday 6/4/19: Heritage's James Carafano, CEI's Wayne Crews, Breitbart's Charlie Spiering, Communism Memorial Foundation's Marion Smith and Washington Post's Fenit Nirappil

 

7am – A         INTERVIEW - Charlie Spiering - White House correspondent for Breitbart - report on Trump's UK trip day 1 and preview day 2

DAY 1: Trump begins UK visit meeting Queen, sparring with London mayor. President Trump mixed high-level diplomacy with schoolyard taunts as he kicked off his overseas visit meeting with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace and later touring Westminster Abbey -- while sparring on the side with one of his biggest British critics, London Mayor Sadiq Khan. The London itinerary is part of a packed overseas agenda that includes a state dinner at the palace and D-Day commemoration ceremonies.

DAY 2: Protests expected as Trump meets with May during second day in Britain. President Trump meets with outgoing British Prime Minister Theresa May Tuesday as the two talk with corporate executives from the United States and United Kingdom, before an afternoon news conference on the second day of Trump's state visit. The leaders' top priority is a possible bilateral trade deal to take effect once the U.K. leaves the European Union. "Big Trade Deal is possible once U.K. gets rid of the shackles. Already starting to talk," Trump tweeted Monday. Still, after Monday's day of pageantry and a war of words with London’s mayor, Trump could be greeted by tens of thousands of protesters as part of a "Carnival of Resistance."

7am – B         CLARENCE THOMAS RETIREMENT RUMORS

Justice Clarence Thomas on Monday brushed off rumors he would retire from the Supreme Court this summer, saying he has “no idea” where such talk originated.

NY TIMES: At the Supreme Court, Justice Thomas Scoffs at Retirement Rumors. WASHINGTON — In rare public remarks, Justice Clarence Thomas on Monday dismissed what he called “this rumor that I was retiring.” “I have no idea where this stuff comes from,” he said. Justice Thomas, in a relaxed and reflective mood, was interviewed by David Rubenstein, a financier and philanthropist, in the Supreme Court’s courtroom as part of a series of lectures sponsored by the Supreme Court Historical Society. “I really don’t have a lot of stress,” Justice Thomas said cheerfully. “I cause stress.”     He also expressed frustration with what he said was intellectual stereotyping.     “People who will get very upset if someone said all blacks look alike are really comfortable saying all blacks ought to think alike,” Justice Thomas said.     “If you said that blacks should not be allowed to go a library, you’d be against that,” he said. “If you said that blacks couldn’t read certain books in the library, you would say that’s wrong.”  “But now we are so comfortable saying that blacks can’t hold some of the ideas in some of the books in the library,” Justice Thomas said. “That’s absurd.”

7am – C         Top North Korean official reappears days after purge report. (ABC News) -- A senior North Korean official who had been reported to be sentenced to hard labor over the failed nuclear summit with Washington was shown in state media on Monday enjoying a concert near leader Kim Jong Un. North Korean publications on Monday showed Kim Yong Chol sitting five seats away from a clapping Kim Jong Un in the same row along with other top officials during a musical performance by the wives of Korean People's Army officers. A report by Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency named Kim Yong Chol among the attendees of the event, which it said "impressively represented the ideological and mental features of KPA officers' wives, who make every moment of their life honorable with ardent yearning for the leader."  Kim Yong Chol has been North Korea's top nuclear negotiator and the counterpart of U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo since Kim Jong Un entered nuclear talks with the U.S. early last year. He traveled to Washington and met President Donald Trump twice before Kim's two summits with Trump.

7am – D         INTERVIEW - Marion Smith - Executive Director of Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation on Tiananmen 30th Anniversary on Tuesday and their big rally tomorrow on Capitol Hill to commemorate the anniversary

The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation (VOC), a DC-based international human rights organization, will hold a rally at the U.S. Capitol to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre and the ongoing human rights violations in China. It's expected to be big. Speakers will include witnesses of the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989, activists, and policymakers, including VOC Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA). The rally will also feature the premiere exhibit of the Tiananmen Mothers Portraits.  VOC's work has focused on calling out China's human rights violations. In June 2016, computer hackers supporting China's Communist government shut down VOC's website during an international online meeting highlighting the 1989 Tiananmen massacre in Beijing. In December 2016, when the Miss World pageant - largely sponsored by Chinese companies, silenced Chinese beauty Queen Anastasia Lin, a critic of China, at a U.S. competition, VOC sponsored the premiere of her film and stood by her side. In July 2016, VOC released its annual Captive Nations Report on North Korea in which they rebuked China for failing to curb North Korean aggression. Just last month, Marion authored this oped in the Washington Post: Buying stock in these Chinese companies makes you complicit in terror on Uighurs.

RALLY AT U.S. CAPITOL TO COMMEMORATE TIANANMEN SQUARE AND CONDEMN ONGOING HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN CHINA: More than twenty human-rights organizations will gather to highlight the past and present suppression of the Chinese people by Beijing’s authoritarian regime. WASHINGTON, D.C. – June 4 will mark the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, during which the Chinese Communist Party massacred thousands of innocent student protestors. The People's Republic of China to this day, censors any mention of the Massacre and refuses to acknowledge it even happened. The regime that ordered those murders is still the same one currently reigning in Beijing, and its human rights abuses continue to this day. On June 4 at the U.S. Capitol, The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation (VOC) along with more than 20 other human rights organizations will hold a rally to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre and to highlight the continued oppression of the Chinese people by the Chinese Communist Party. Speakers will include witnesses of the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989, activists, and policymakers, including VOC Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA). To register, please visit the rally’s Eventbrite website. The rally will also feature the premiere exhibit of the Tiananmen Mothers Portraits.

WHO: Amnesty International USA, Bitter Winter, Campaign for Uyghurs, ChinaAid, Citizen Power Initiatives for China, Dialogue China, East Turkistan National Awakening Movement, Formosan Association for Public Affairs, Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, Humanitarian China, International Campaign for Tibet, International Uyghur Human Rights and Democracy Foundation, Keep Taiwan Free, Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, Students for a Free Tibet, The Chen Guangcheng Foundation, The Church of Almighty God, Tibet Action Institute, Uyghur Human Rights Project, Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, Women’s Rights Without Frontiers, World Uyghur Congress

WHAT: Rally to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre and to highlight the continued suppression of the Chinese people by the Chinese government

WHERE: U.S. Capitol West Lawn, 1st Street SW & 1st Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20004

WHEN: Tuesday, June 4, 2019, 1:30–3:00pm EDT

7am – E         WOKE BUSINESSES:

Sephora Is Making Its Employees Attend A Diversity Workshop After SZA Said She Was Racially Profiled. (Buzzfeed) -- The workshops are part of the beauty company’s new ‘We Belong to Something Beautiful’ campaign. On June 5, Sephora will close more than 400 of its US stores to host a series of inclusion workshops for its employees after SZA said she was racially profiled in a store. Back in April, the Grammy-nominated singer said an employee in a Calabasas, California, Sephora store “called security to make sure [she] wasn’t stealing.”: They additionally added, "Hi, SZA. We’re sorry to hear about your experience at our Calabasas store and appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We want to let you know we take complaints like this very seriously and are actively working with our teams to address the situation immediately." Rihanna, founder of Fenty Beauty, also sent SZA a Fenty Beauty gift card so she could "buy [her] Fenty Beauty in peace," which Sza posted on her IG story.  Sephora then announced on May 23 that it would provide inclusivity workshops for its stores, distribution centers, and corporate offices. The initiative is part of the brand's new tagline, "We Belong to Something Beautiful." "This store closure is part of a long journey in our aspiration to create a more inclusive beauty community and workplace," Sephora told BuzzFeed. "This has included forming employee resource groups, building Social Impact and philanthropic programs, and hosting inclusive mindset training for all supervisors."

Target goes full speed LGBTQ with 'Love my dads' shirts for kiddies. (Washington Times) -- Target, the object of long-running Christian group boycott — because of its opening of bathrooms and dressing rooms to those of both sexes — has now found a new way to bolster its prestige with the LGBTQ movement: The retailer is selling “Love my dads” and “Love my moms” shirts. And donating $100,000 to the Gay, Lesbian Straight Education Network. Gotta get those LGBTQ dollars, right? Let the boycotts begin anew, say members of the American Family Association. “Target’s website has several pages dedicated to products that promote the LGBT lifestyle, many of which are specifically designed for children,” said AFA’s president, Tim Wildmon, in a written statement. T-shirts like ones with the rainbow flag, alongside the word “pride,” he said. And for the adults, the retailer has hats and bandanas, a jumpsuit and more, AFA reported. For instance? For instance: A “Pride Adult Gender Inclusive Iridescent Five Panel Hat.” Or a “Pride Striped Bisexual Flag Bandana.” “Or a “Pride Striped Gender Inclusive Jumpsuit.” Whatever that is. Wildmon also said the $100,000 that Target’s giving to GLSEN will bolster that group’s efforts to create “gay” clubs in public schools around the country. As such, AFA is calling on the traditional family-minded to call corporate, to sign the #BoycottTarget pledge or to flood the retailer’s Facebook page with criticisms and concerns. On the one hand, Target is a private enterprise and America is a capitalistic country. The retail giant can sell as it pleases.