Cartoons: Gag orders from the president

This caught my attention:

The Trump administration is clamping down on public communications by agencies as it seeks to assert control over the federal bureaucracy. (The Hill)

The Huffington post says it this way: Federal Workers Told To Halt External Communication In First Week Under Trump.

The USDA says the order rescinded, according to Reuters in the article titled USDA disavows gag-order emailed to scientific research unit. Here's a quote from the article:

[The memo] centralizes the agency’s media inquiries and social media presence through the Office of the Secretary. As part of that, the memo asks USDA agencies to “review their websites, blog posts and other social media and, consistent with direction you will receive from the Office of Communication, remove references to policy priorities and initiatives of the previous Administration.”

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Bill Day, The Week

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Cartoonist John Darkow draws a parallel between Trump's media practices and Orwell's novel 1984. If you'll recall it featured doublespeak and Newspeak. Note that the entry "is part of a series on misinformation and disinformation."

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John Darkow, The Week

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--Marge

Cartoons: next, the impeachment

No doubt some (the protesters) are saying Trump's Inauguration was a success and some (his supporters) are saying it was spoiled by the protesters. At any rate he's been sworn in and the CREW (Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington) says he's now eligible for impeachment.

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Gary Varvel, The Week

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Setting up the Inaugural ball appears to have been difficult, with a number of performers declining to appear. Here's what NPR has to say about it: For The Inauguration, Trump's Music Picks Look A Lot Like Richard Nixon's.

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David Horsey, The Week

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Those of us on the sidelines may be feeling like a great shadow has fallen across America.

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John Cole, The Week

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And the threat of Russian interference still hangs in the air.

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RJ Matson, The Week

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-- Marge

Cartoons: Trump's first war is with the press

Trump, the guy who appointed the former head of Breibart, known propagator of conspiracy theories, as chief strategist and senior counselor, loves to accuse any reporter who challenges him of reporting "fake news."

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Gary Varvel, The Week

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Meanwhile, Trump is winning GOP converts with Cabinet picks.

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Tom Toles, The Week

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Jack Ohman, The Week

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-- Marge

Cartoons: Americans ARE watching

Something very interesting happened this week--Americans altered the course of GOP congressmen. On January 3rd there was this headline: With No Warning, House Republicans Vote to Gut Independent Ethics Office. Then American voters reacted: Amid Ethics Office Debacle, Googling Congress Members Spiked. Sort Of. Then, Under fire, Republicans back off vote on House ethics changes. Here's a small collection of some cartoonists' takes on the ethics situation.

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Mike Luckovich, The Week

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Jack Ohman, The Week

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John Darkow, The Week

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Meanwhile, North Korea's "supreme leader Kim Jong Un warned that the nation was in the "final stage" of preparations to test an intercontinental ballistic missile." The Atlantic has this article, How to Stop a Nuclear Missile, in the technology section.

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Chris Britt, The Week

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As a reminder (as if one is needed), here's David Horsey's summary of American politics.

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David Horsey, The Week

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-- Marge