The Week MHI dailybriefing ;

1. Deadly Irma weakens after leaving millions without power Irma weakened to tropical storm and then tropical depression strength on Monday as it pushed into Georgia and Alabama after devastating northern Caribbean islands and the Florida Keys, then plowing up Florida’s west coast. The storm caused flooding emergencies in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and the Carolinas, and knocked out power to millions of Florida’s 20.6 million people. “More than half of the population of Florida is out of power would be my guess,” said Eric Silagy, president and chief executive of Florida Power and Light. More than a million people lost power in Georgia. At least 8 deaths were reported in the U.S., and the number continues to rise. At least 36 people were killed in the Caribbean, where some of the hardest hit smaller islands suffered widespread devastation. Source: The Associated Press, ABC News

2. U.N. Security Council approves new North Korea sanctions The United Nations Security Council on Monday unanimously approved the toughest sanctions yet against North Korea in response to its sixth and most powerful nuclear weapons test. The Security Council resolution limits North Korea’s oil imports, but doesn’t flatly ban them, and bars exports of its textiles to deprive the isolated communist regime of money it could spend on developing intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclear warheads. “The stronger the sanctions we impose on North Korea, the stronger our hand in promoting a political solution,” said French U.N. Ambassador François Delattre. The U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Nikki Haley, had called for the “strongest possible” sanctions, but the U.S. softened some initial demands to win support from Russia and China. Source: The Washington Post

3. Trump vows to fight ‘evil’ as ceremonies mark 9/11 anniversary President Trump led a national moment of silence on Monday to mark the 16th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, starting a day of memorial ceremonies at the spots where the four planes hijacked by terrorists hit — Ground Zero in Manhattan, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. “On that day not only did the world change, but we all changed,” Trump said at the Pentagon ceremony. “Our eyes were opened to the depths of the evil we faced, but in that hour of darkness we also came together with renewed purpose. Our differences never looked so small, our common bonds never felt so strong.” Trump added that he was committed to “destroying the enemies of all civilized people,” and keeping the country safe. Source: The New York Times

4. Supreme Court temporarily restores Trump refugee travel ban The Supreme Court on Monday temporarily restored President Trump’s ban keeping thousands of refugees from entering the country. A federal appeals court last week ruled the Trump administration to temporarily let in vetted refugees already working with a resettlement agency. The decision was to take effect on Tuesday, and would have cleared a path for as many as 24,000 more refugees to enter the U.S. Justice Anthony Kennedy put the ruling on hold to give the high court time to decide whether to grant the administration’s request for an extended hold to let Trump’s order suspending the refugee program stand while challenges are pending in the courts. Source: Bloomberg

5. Report: Trump lawyers recommended Kushner step down over Russia Some of President Trump’s White House lawyers this summer argued that Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner should step down due to worries that his meetings with Russians could create legal complications for the president, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. Some of the lawyers also expressed concern that the possibility that Kushner could get drawn into the investigation of possible collusion by Trump associates with Russia’s effort to influence last year’s election could hamper Kushner’s ability to handle his broad domestic and foreign policy responsibilities, The Washington Post reported, citing people familiar with the discussion. Trump didn’t think Kushner did anything wrong, and saw no need for Kushner to give up his White House duties. Source: The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post

6. Pope Francis urges Trump to restore ‘pro-life’ DACA Pope Francis on Monday urged President Trump to reverse his decision to phase out the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which has shielded hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought into the country illegally as minors from deportation. “If he is a good pro-life believer, he must understand that family is the cradle of life and one must defend its unity,” Francis said while flying back to the Vatican after visiting Colombia to support that country’s peace process. Trump has given Congress six months to determine whether to revive the program, known as DACA, through legislation. Source: The Washington Post

7. U.N. human rights leader calls Rohingyas’ treatment ‘ethnic cleansing’ The United Nations high commissioner for human rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, said Monday that the treatment of the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar “seems a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.” An estimated 313,000 Rohingya refugees have fled Myanmar into neighboring Bangladesh in the last two weeks, following an outburst of violence between Rohingya insurgents and government security forces in the mostly Buddhist country. There have been reports that the refugees are fleeing the western state of Rakhine to escape persecution, including murder, arson, and rape. Source: NPR

8. Equifax shares plunge as class-action suits filed over massive breach Equifax shares plummeted by 8 percent on Monday, adding to a 13 percent plunge on Friday after the credit reporting company disclosed a data breach affecting 143 million people. Capital One CEO Richard Fairbank said the breach probably affects many of the bank’s customers, “and it’s going to be costly to them and to us.” Equifax already faces at least 23 proposed class-action lawsuits over the compromised personal data. The lawsuits were filed through the weekend after Equifax announced that criminal hackers had accessed personal information, including Social Security numbers, on nearly 44 percent of the U.S. population, potentially exposing millions to the threat of identity theft. Source: CNBC, USA Today

9. VW to make electric versions of all models by 2030 Volkswagen announced Monday that all of its 300 models will be available in electric versions by 2030. The company, the world’s largest automaker, is investing nearly $23 billion in the effort. The German carmaker will also roll out 80 new electronic cars across its brands, which include Audi, Bentley, and Bugatti, by 2025. Earlier Monday, Mercedes-Benz announced it would make its entire line of cars electric by 2022, joining BMW and Jaguar Land Rover in similar efforts. Volkswagen’s announcement comes two years after its diesel-emissions crisis surfaced, and just after China’s weekend announcement that it will eventually ban gasoline engines as it continues to battle pollution. Source: TechCrunch, Bloomberg

10. Brexit bill passes first test A major Brexit bill cleared its first hurdle in British Parliament early Tuesday, with the House of Commons backing the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill in a 326 to 290 vote. The bill is necessary to convert European Union laws and regulations into British ones in time for the U.K.’s planned exit from the European trading bloc in March 2019. Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative government says the bill is necessary to keep Brexit from spinning into chaos, but opposition Labour Party politicians have called the bill a power grab that gives the government unprecedented authority to change laws as it sees fit. Opponents, including some Conservatives, say they will try to amend the bill in its next stage, when lawmakers go over it line by line before a final vote. Source: The Associated Press The Week MHI

NK REPORT

Only at MHI-NK News: U.S. will pay “due price” if new UNSC sanctions approved: DPRK foreign ministry, By Dagyum Ji N. Korea promises U.S. “greatest pain and suffering… in its entire history” if new measures pass. The U.S. will “pay due price” if a fresh United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions resolution is passed, the North Korean foreign ministry warned on Monday. The statement, carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), comes ahead of a meeting by the UNSC in New York on Monday to vote on a new U.S.-led. Why the ROK-U.S. alliance must have an open debate on deploying nuclear weapons, By In-Bum Chun Retired South Korean LTG In-Bum Chun weighs in on the growing debate in the South. It is no surprise that North Korea tested its sixth nuclear device, and in response, calls are growing in South Korea for consideration, or the actual development, of nuclear weapons. Considering the growing threat presented by Pyongyang’s development of weapons of mass destruction, this should also come as no surprise. Ahead of possible oil embargo, fuel prices spike further in Pyongyang, By Chad O’Carroll  Price hike accompanied by restrictions on amounts drivers can purchase. Gas prices are set to further increase in North Korea as the United Nations prepares to vote Monday on a new sanctions package that may include a full oil product embargo to North Korea. Gas stations in Pyongyang told foreign residents that a new price hike is anticipated on gas supplies, informed sources told NK. YouTube continues to terminate North Korea-related channels, By Hamish Macdonald Major channels used by researchers removed for violating “community guidelines”. Update: The Youtube channels Stimmekoreas and Uriminzokkiri have since been reinstated by Google since this article was published. YouTube removed several major North Korea-related channels on Friday “for violating YouTube’s Community Guidelines”, notices on the former channels reveal, amid a broader U.S. crackdown on the country following its sixth nuclear test. The channels all regularly published content. The Phillippines bans all trade with North Korea, By Leo Byrne The country’s Foreign Secretary says the move is in line with UN resolutions. The Philippines said it suspended all trade relations with North Korea over concerns about its nuclear and weapons programs, local media reported on Friday. The country’s Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano announced the move following a meeting with U.S. Ambassador to the country. “We can say we have suspended trade relations with North Korea … Why Russia may use its veto power on new North Korea sanctions By Andrei Lankov It may be in the Kremlin’s interest to block – or slow – strong new sanctions at the UNSC . On Monday, the UN Security Council (USNC) is expected to vote on a draft resolution introducing additional sanctions on North Korea. Likely policies to be included in the draft include an oil embargo, bans on North Korean textile exports, and prohibitions on hiring North Korean laborers abroad. The meaning of North Korea’s “Foundation Day” By Fyodor Tertitskiy There is no evidence of any great event taking place on September 9. “North Korea was founded on September 9, 1948.” We hear this phrase again and again, and often say it ourselves. But rarely do we ask the question – what happened on that day? If a country has a holiday commemorating its foundation day.

Top MHI-NK Stories from around the web: Moon’s approval rating slides below 80 pct amid N. Korea dilemma(Yonhap News) President Moon Jae-in’s approval rating saw a substantial dip from last month as the government faces an increasing security dilemma over North Korea’s nuclear brinkmanship, according to a poll released Sunday…According to the poll conducted by the Korea Society Opinion Institute (KSOI), 78.2 percent of those surveyed said the new president was doing a good job in managing state affairs. The reading marked a 7.1 percentage-point drop from KSOI’s presidential poll announced on Aug. 20. Kono applauds Kuwait for halting visas to North Koreans (Asahi Shimbun) Foreign Minister Taro Kono praised Kuwait’s move to suspend issuing new visas for North Korean workers and other measures to strengthen pressure on Pyongyang to end its provocations…In a two-hour meeting with Kono on Sept. 10, Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah said his country is confounded by North Korea’s recent actions, according to Japanese officials. Merkel backs Iran-style diplomatic solution for North Korea (The Guardian) Angela Merkel has offered German participation in any future nuclear talks with North Korea and suggested that the 2015 agreement with Iran could serve as a model for negotiations… The chancellor’s intervention reflects growing alarm in Europe that Donald Trump is worsening one nuclear crisis by repeated threats to use military force against North Korea, and seeking to trigger a second one by torpedoing the Iran deal to which Germany, France and the UK are among the signatories. “If our participation in talks is desired, I will immediately say yes,” Merkel told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung in an interview published on Sunday. Everyday Life In North Korea (NPR) NPR’s Scott Simon talks with Sokeel Park of the refugee assistance group Liberty in North Korea about everyday life for North Koreans. The few pictures we see of North Korea are meant to impress and possibly frighten the outside world – thousands of soldiers marching in lockstep, looming portraits of a venerated leader, the leader himself applauding from a reviewing stand, as crowds shed tears of worship… In recent weeks, there’s been shots of people said to be scientists in their lab and a bulbous bomb. But what’s everyday life like away from official cameras, for most North Koreans who struggle just to get by? Sokeel Park is director of research and strategy for Liberty in North Korea, a group that works with refugees from the North. He joins us now on the line from Seoul, South Korea. September 9 Risk. Or Not. Tristan Webb on North Korean Holidays and Nuclear and Missile Tests (PIIE) Haggard reviews Tristan Webb’s analysis on the relationship between North Korean holidays and test dates. This blog loves to see new data on North Korea, and particularly data which punctures myths…Here is one that I have blithely repeated on a number of occasions without doing the homework: “watch out for the upcoming holiday (September 9), when the North Koreans are likely to celebrate with a test.” At NKPro, Tristan Webb(link is external) actually tested the proposition against a pretty lengthy list of holidays, reproduced below. The finding is simple: even if you go out to one day on either side of the test, the incidence of testing shows no statistically significant relationship with holidays. Webb does note that the North Koreans sometimes pluck a holiday out of the air (“the 107th anniversary of the Korea-Japan Annexation Treaty of 1910”!). But the fact of the matter is that there does not seem to be a holiday testing cycle; rather, factors such as the technology cycle, weather, whim and perhaps political conflicts are likely to matter.

WHITE HOUSE REPORT

To : <redaksi@mediahukumindonesia.com>Date : Wed, 06 Sep 2017 01:33:32 +0700 Subject : Determined to Rebuild Texas and Louisiana

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The President and First Lady in Texas 
On Saturday, the President and the First Lady returned to Texas to visit with people effected by the damage resulting from Hurricane Harvey. The President and First Lady traveled to the NRG Center in Houston to meet and speak with displaced families staying in the shelter due to the flooding and assisted the Red Cross in serving lunch to the people living inside the shelter. The President and First Lady then traveled to a distribution center to thank volunteers and pass out supplies to local families who are in the beginning stages of what will be a long road to rebuilding or recovering their homes.
Watch the video

The President and First Lady in Louisiana 
On Saturday, the President and the First Lady traveled to Louisiana to meet with local officials, the National Guard, and the Cajun Navy to receive a briefing on the neighboring state’s relief efforts.
Watch the video

Statement from the Office of the First Lady 
“Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with the people and families so deeply effected by Harvey. After spending the day with children, women and men who have been impacted by the storm, it has only furthered our determination to provide all of the support we can as we pledge to continue our efforts in the long road ahead in the months to come.” – First Lady Melania Trump
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9/5/17: White House Press Briefing

President Trump Restores Responsibility and the Rule of Law to Immigration 
Today, the Trump Administration rescinded the previous Administration’s memorandum that created the unlawful Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and has taken steps to end the program responsibly.
Read President Trump’s statement

Photo of the Day

President Donald J. Trump at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas| September 2, 2017 (Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks)

POTUS and VP Today

Today, the President will meet with the National Economic Council, followed by a meeting with key members of Congress and his Administration regarding tax reform. In the evening, the President will speak to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull of Australia by telephone.

This afternoon, Vice President Pence will participate in a swearing-in ceremony for U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams.

Coming Up This Week

Tomorrow, President Trump will travel to North Dakota for a Tax Reform event. On Thursday, the Amir of Kuwait will visit the White House and meet with the President.

White House Spring Internship

The application for the Spring 2018 White House Internship Program is open! Apply here

THE WHITE HOUSE  MHI 

WEST WING MHI Daily

“The American Spirit is Alive in Texas”

– Peggy Noonan in The Wall Street Journal

Peggy Noonan in The Wall Street Journal, writes in the face of disaster, the citizens of Texas are selflessly holding the line. She pleads for politicians to “give Texas everything it needs,” adding they should not “use this disaster to score points.” Ms. Noonan describes some of the courageous and generous acts of Texans during the storm, like a woman going into labor as the floodwaters rose, with her neighbors forming a human chain to help her out of her apartment complex. She concludes: “We are a great nation. We forget. But what happened in Texas reminded us. It said: My beloved America you’re not a mirage, you’re still here.”

CNBC reports on Thursday’s announcement that the President will donate $1 million to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.

CNN writes of the Harvey aftermath, Houston’s mayor “struck an optimistic tone” declaring the city is “open for business,” pointing to “small signs of recovery, such as fewer people in shelters, more bus lines resuming and the city’s shipping channel reopening on a limited basis.”

In tax reform news, the New York Post editorial board writes that the need for tax reform can be seen in “stunning” new Bureau of Labor Statistics data, which shows that the average American household paid $10,489 in taxes in 2016, “a whopping 41 percent more than just three years earlier.”

The New Hampshire Union Leader editorial board calls the President’s tax roll out “a very good start,” saying “Trump’s plan simplifies America’s broken tax code” and that the repatriation of money that U.S. companies are holding overseas, which the President’s plan encourages, “would give the U.S. economy a shot of Adrenalin.”

WEST WING MHI