SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
U.S. national security adviser John Bolton speaks to reporters as he visits Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's office in Tokyo on May 24, 2019. (Photo: Kyodo via AP)
North Korea Calls John Bolton a 'War Maniac' Who Is 'Wrecking Peace and Security' Across the Globe
"After all, it will be fit to call Bolton not a security adviser striving for security but a security-destroying adviser."
May 27, 2019
North Korea on Monday called U.S. national security adviser John Bolton a "war maniac" who is undermining global security and diplomacy after Bolton accused Pyongyang of violating international law with missile launches earlier this month.
"Our military drill neither targeted anyone nor endangered the surrounding countries, but Bolton makes dogged claims that it constitutes a violation... impudently poking his nose into other's internal matters," a North Korean official said in a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
"It is not a mere coincidence that criticisms are now being heard in the U.S. that Bolton is a warmonger whispering war to the president when he himself evaded military service," the statement continued. "After all, it will be fit to call Bolton not a security adviser striving for security but a security-destroying adviser who is wrecking peace and security."
Bolton's claim that North Korea's missile launches violated United Nations Security Council resolutions came Friday in Tokyo, ahead of President Donald Trump's state visit to Japan on Monday.
South Korea was quick to question Bolton's assessment, noting that it is still analyzing the North Korean missiles in partnership with U.S. officials.
"There's no way for us to know why national security adviser Bolton made such comments," an anonymous South Korean presidential official told the Associated Press on Monday. "There's no change in our official stance that the South Korean and U.S. militaries under coordination are continuing to analyze the missiles."
The exchange between Bolton and North Korea comes as Bolton continues to escalate military tensions and threaten regime change in Iran and Venezuela.
The North Korean official alluded to Bolton's belligerence toward those countries in the statement on Monday.
"Bolton stood in the forefront of leading the Iraqi War and abrogating the [Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces] Treaty that has served to ensure peace in Europe for decades," the statement read, "and he is now gaining notoriety as a warmonger for his obsession with other wars in the Middle East and South America."
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
North Korea on Monday called U.S. national security adviser John Bolton a "war maniac" who is undermining global security and diplomacy after Bolton accused Pyongyang of violating international law with missile launches earlier this month.
"Our military drill neither targeted anyone nor endangered the surrounding countries, but Bolton makes dogged claims that it constitutes a violation... impudently poking his nose into other's internal matters," a North Korean official said in a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
"It is not a mere coincidence that criticisms are now being heard in the U.S. that Bolton is a warmonger whispering war to the president when he himself evaded military service," the statement continued. "After all, it will be fit to call Bolton not a security adviser striving for security but a security-destroying adviser who is wrecking peace and security."
Bolton's claim that North Korea's missile launches violated United Nations Security Council resolutions came Friday in Tokyo, ahead of President Donald Trump's state visit to Japan on Monday.
South Korea was quick to question Bolton's assessment, noting that it is still analyzing the North Korean missiles in partnership with U.S. officials.
"There's no way for us to know why national security adviser Bolton made such comments," an anonymous South Korean presidential official told the Associated Press on Monday. "There's no change in our official stance that the South Korean and U.S. militaries under coordination are continuing to analyze the missiles."
The exchange between Bolton and North Korea comes as Bolton continues to escalate military tensions and threaten regime change in Iran and Venezuela.
The North Korean official alluded to Bolton's belligerence toward those countries in the statement on Monday.
"Bolton stood in the forefront of leading the Iraqi War and abrogating the [Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces] Treaty that has served to ensure peace in Europe for decades," the statement read, "and he is now gaining notoriety as a warmonger for his obsession with other wars in the Middle East and South America."
North Korea on Monday called U.S. national security adviser John Bolton a "war maniac" who is undermining global security and diplomacy after Bolton accused Pyongyang of violating international law with missile launches earlier this month.
"Our military drill neither targeted anyone nor endangered the surrounding countries, but Bolton makes dogged claims that it constitutes a violation... impudently poking his nose into other's internal matters," a North Korean official said in a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
"It is not a mere coincidence that criticisms are now being heard in the U.S. that Bolton is a warmonger whispering war to the president when he himself evaded military service," the statement continued. "After all, it will be fit to call Bolton not a security adviser striving for security but a security-destroying adviser who is wrecking peace and security."
Bolton's claim that North Korea's missile launches violated United Nations Security Council resolutions came Friday in Tokyo, ahead of President Donald Trump's state visit to Japan on Monday.
South Korea was quick to question Bolton's assessment, noting that it is still analyzing the North Korean missiles in partnership with U.S. officials.
"There's no way for us to know why national security adviser Bolton made such comments," an anonymous South Korean presidential official told the Associated Press on Monday. "There's no change in our official stance that the South Korean and U.S. militaries under coordination are continuing to analyze the missiles."
The exchange between Bolton and North Korea comes as Bolton continues to escalate military tensions and threaten regime change in Iran and Venezuela.
The North Korean official alluded to Bolton's belligerence toward those countries in the statement on Monday.
"Bolton stood in the forefront of leading the Iraqi War and abrogating the [Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces] Treaty that has served to ensure peace in Europe for decades," the statement read, "and he is now gaining notoriety as a warmonger for his obsession with other wars in the Middle East and South America."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
LATEST NEWS
House Dems: Musk Should Go Immediately But Must Exit Trump Post by May 30
"In his short time in government, Elon Musk has done enormous harm to working Americans."
Apr 10, 2025
Dozens of House Democrats wrote to U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday "to make clear that you must remove Elon Musk from his government position by May 30th and to demand that you stop ignoring federal law and ethics rules to empower an unelected billionaire."
Musk, the richest person on Earth, is leading Trump's effort to gut the federal bureaucracy as the de facto chief of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency—but the billionaire is not the formal head of DOGE. Instead, Musk is a "special government employee," which lets him keep his financial disclosure form confidential.
The new letter to Trump, signed by 77 House Democrats, highlights that special government employees can only serve in their positions for 130 days in a year and demands "an immediate public statement from your administration making clear that Musk will resign and surrender all decision-making authority, as required by law."
"In his short time in government, Elon Musk has done enormous harm to working Americans," noted the coalition, led by Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas). "Musk's reckless destruction of government agencies has led to everything from seniors having challenges accessing Social Security to veterans losing access to care."
The billionaire's business ties include SpaceX and its subsidiary Starlink, the electric vehicle maker Tesla, and the social media site X, which is aiming to add a digital wallet feature. His companies have received tens of billions of dollars in government funding, including through contracts.
"While millions of Americans are suffering, Musk is continuing to enrich himself and break ethics laws," the lawmakers wrote. "Musk continues to cut funds from programs that support working people, while his own companies continue to rake in more than $8 million per day in contracts and subsidies from the federal government. Recently, your administration changed the rules of a broadband program to give even more money to one of Musk's companies. Musk held a car show on the lawn of the White House, where he illegally promoted his company's vehicles."
The letter continues: "Musk paid Wisconsin voters to support his preferred candidate in the state supreme court race. Any typical government employee would be held accountable for these actions, but Musk, who donated $277 million to your presidential campaign, has been allowed to keep his position of power in your White House."
"Once Elon Musk is removed from his post, he may not legally return to the federal government this year without divesting from his companies, including Tesla and SpaceX," the letter concludes. "For the good of the country, Elon Musk should be removed from his position immediately. Under the law, Mr. Musk cannot remain in his position beyond May 30th."
Politico reported last week that "Trump has told his inner circle, including members of his Cabinet, that Elon Musk will be stepping back in the coming weeks from his current role as governing partner."
The Hill pointed out Thursday that "the Tesla CEO has signaled he plans to wrap up his work in the allotted 130-day period. He told Fox News' Bret Baier last month that he expects to have accomplished most of his DOGE work in that time frame."
Still, the letter's signatories want to ensure that Musk actually leaves the government. Casar told Axios—which scooped the letter—that "we're making it very clear that the public pressure is only going to ramp up on Republicans between here and May 30."
Democrats "have legal tools at our disposal, political tools at our disposal," he said, as well as the "full force of public pressure."
DOGE Is Reportedly Spying on Federal Workers With AI Technology
"We have been told they are looking for anti-Trump or anti-Musk language," an anonymous source said of potential surveillance at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Apr 10, 2025
Staff with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fear that billionaire and presidential adviser Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency is spying on them using artificial intelligence, according to reporting from Reuters, The Guardian, and Crooked Media's newsletter What a Day.
According to Reuters reporting published Tuesday, Trump administration officials told some managers at the EPA that DOGE is rolling out AI to monitor for communications that may be perceived as hostile to U.S. President Donald Trump or Musk, citing two unnamed sources with knowledge of the situation.
According to those two sources, who relayed comments made by Trump-appointed officials in posts at the EPA, DOGE was using AI to monitor communication apps such as Microsoft Teams. "Be careful what you say, what you type, and what you do," an EPA manager said, according to one of the sources.
"We have been told they are looking for anti-Trump or anti-Musk language," a third source told Reuters.
The outlet, however, could not independently confirm whether AI was being implemented.
After the story was published, the EPA told Reuters in a statement that it was "looking at AI to better optimize agency functions and administrative efficiencies." However, the agency said it was not using AI "as it makes personnel decisions in concert with DOGE." The EPA also did not directly address whether it was using AI to snoop on employees.
In response to Reuters' reporting, the government accountability group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington wrote on X, "Let's be clear: the career civil servants who work in the government serve the American people, not Donald Trump."
According to Thursday reporting from The Guardian and Reuters, EPA managers told employees during a Wednesday morning meeting that DOGE is "using AI to scan through agency communications to find any anti-Musk, anti-Doge, or anti-Trump statements," according to an employee who was quoted anonymously.
Since returning to power, Trump has launched an all-out assault on environmental protection, including through cuts to programs and personnel at the EPA. According to The New York Times, the EPA has already undergone a 3% staff reduction so far, but the agency also plans to eliminate its scientific research arm, which would mean dismissing as many as 1,155 scientists, according to reporting from last month. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has also said he would like to cut 65% of the agency's budget.
The Guardian and What a Day also reviewed an email from a manager at the Association of Clean Water Administrators, a group of state and interstate bodies that works with the EPA on water quality and management, which warned workers that meetings with EPA employees might be monitored by AI.
"We recently learned that all EPA phones (landline/mobile), all Teams/Zoom virtual meetings, and calendar entries are being transcribed/monitored," the email states. The recorded information is then fed into an "AI tool" which analyzes and scrutinizes what has been recorded. "I do not know if DOGE is doing the analysis or … the agency itself," according to the author of the email, per The Guardian and What a Day.
The EPA denied that it's recording meetings, but it did not address the question of an AI tool, according to the outlets.
According to The Guardian and What a Day, employees at other agencies also fear they are being surveilled. For example, a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs official warned employees that virtual meetings are being recorded in secret, according to an email reviewed by the two outlets. In February, managers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warned some workers to be careful about what they say on calls, per an employee there.
"It's like being in a horror film where you know something out there [wants] to kill you but you never know when or how or who it is," one anonymously quoted employee from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development told The Guardian and What a Day, evoking the climate of fear that is rife among government workers.
'They Are Laughing at Us All': Trump Tariff Whiplash Boosts Wealth of Mega-Rich by $304 Billion
"Is there any doubt in anyone's mind they were tipped off?" asked one progressive news outlet.
Apr 10, 2025
As retirees, small business owners, and consumers reeled from the chaos sparked by U.S. President Donald Trump's erratic tariff policies, the richest people on the planet saw their wealth surge Wednesday as the White House partially froze the duties it imposed on most countries.
Trump's announcement of the 90-day pause sparked a historic market rally that added $304 billion to the collective wealth of the world's top billionaires, according to a Bloomberg estimate. The outlet called the jump "the largest one-day gain in the history of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index," which was launched in 2012.
"The largest individual gainer Wednesday was Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk, who added $36 billion to his fortune as the EV manufacturer's stock jumped 23%, followed by Meta Platforms Inc.'s Mark Zuckerberg, who gained almost $26 billion," Bloomberg reported. "Nvidia Corp.'s Jensen Huang saw his wealth rise $15.5 billion as the chipmaker's shares rebounded 19%, nearly offsetting its 13% decline in the week to Tuesday's close."
Though the stock market gave up some of the massive gains on Thursday amid continued uncertainty about Trump's tariffs, the rapid billionaire wealth surge amplified concerns about possible market manipulation and insider trading ahead of the president's announcement of a 90-day pause. Trump publicly encouraged people to buy stock just hours before announcing the pause.
"Is there any doubt in anyone's mind they were tipped off?" The Tennessee Holler, a progressive news outlet, wrote on social media. "They are laughing at us all."
In the days leading up to the president's partial tariff pause, some of his billionaire supporters publicly criticized his approach as their wealth took a hit amid the trade war-induced market sell-off.
According to Bloomberg, the 500 richest people in the world saw their collective wealth fall by $208 billion the day after Trump announced the sweeping tariffs last week. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was "flooded with worried calls from Wall Street over the weekend and felt strongly he had to persuade Trump that a pause was needed."
The partial tariff pause came a day before the Republican-controlled House passed a budget blueprint that paves the way for another round of tax cuts that would primarily benefit the wealthiest Americans.
"These tariffs are not designed to solve an actual trade or economic challenge," Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said Thursday. "They're designed to soak typical workers with higher taxes in order to help pay for handouts to the top."
"They're focused on yet more handouts to billionaires and corporations," Wyden added, "and everybody else is going to be on the hook to pay for them."
Most Popular
We cover the issues the corporate media never will.
Please support our journalism.