PHOTO: Press Secretary Sean Spicer “Yemen raid was successful operation by all standards”

Developments on Day 14 of the Trump Administration:

*Press Secretary Sean Spicer insisted that a US special forces’ raid in Yemen last weekend was “a successful operation by all standards” — even though an American SEAL commando and numerous civilians were killed.

US military officials have told journalists that Donald Trump’s ineptitude led to the botched operation.

See Yemen Feature: US Military Says Trump Ineptitude Killed Commando, Many Civilians

A former Obama Administration official rejected the White House’s defense that its predecessor had approved the operation before he left office on January 20, saying Barack Obama was never briefed. However, other officials have said that Obama reviewed the plan but called for it on a moonless night, which did not occur until he had left office.

*The White House issues a cautious statement over Israel’s expansion of settlements on Palestinian territory: “While we don’t believe the existence of settlements is an impediment to peace, the construction of new settlements or the expansion of existing settlements beyond their current borders may not be helpful in achieving that goal.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to visit Washington in two weeks’ time.

While some outlets are portraying the statement as an unexpected block by Trump on the settlements, the declaration appears to accept continued building in existing blocs. That would depart from objections over the past 40 years by both Republican and Democratic administrations to the construction in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

*Trump’s advisor Kellyanne Conway defends the “Muslim Ban” with a lie that two Iraqi refugees were the “masterminds” of the “Bowling Green Massacre”.

No such event ever occurred.

See US Feature: Trump Advisor Conway Makes Up A “Bowling Green Massacre” by Iraqi Refugees

*Trump threatens to cut federal funding for the University of California in Berkeley, one of the leading academic institutions in the world, after protests over a scheduled speech by hard-right demagogue Milos Yiannopoulos.

There were clashes between protesters and security personnel on Wednesday night, forcing the cancellation of the appearance by Yiannopoulos, a former staffer at Breitbart News — under editor Steve Bannon, who is now Trump’s chief strategist — who has been banned by Twitter for racist statements.

*Trump Administration amends its “Muslim Ban” to allow Iraqis who interpreted for the American military to enter the US.

An Iraqi interpreter was one of the first people detained under Trump’s executive order to suspend visas for 90 days for citizens of seven mainly-Muslim countries, to indefinitely bar Syrian refugees, and to block refugees from the other six countries for 120 days.

The detention of the interpreter at New York’s JFK Airport and of others across the country sparked protests that brought a limited court response and a partial retreat by Trump’s advisors.

*The nomination of Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency has been sent to the Senate, after Republicans suspended committee rules to override a Democrat boycott of the hearings.

Pruitt, the Oklahoma Attorney General, has led or taken part in 14 lawsuits aimed at blocking EPA regulations, including Obama administration policies trying to tackle climate change.

The EPA is still under a White House gag order, with any of its studies subject to political review.

*At the National Prayer Breakfast, Trump pledges to overturn a 1954 law that forbids tax-exempt entities such as churches and charitable organizations from participation in any political campaign on behalf of, or in opposition to, any candidate.

Senators and Representatives have introduced legislation to repeal the ban, known as the Johnson Amendment after then-Senator Lyndon Johnson, the 35th US President.

*The Treasury Department amends sanctions on Russia to “authorize certain transactions” with Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB).

The new authorization will allow US information technology companies to pay up to $5,000 a year to the FSB — which oversees technology imports — to secure licenses from sell their products in Russia.

Critics said the amendment was a sign of the Trump Administration’s intention to remove sanctions, imposed in 2014 over Russia’s annexation of the Crimea and military support to separatists in eastern Ukraine. However, analysts said the measure remedied an “unintended consequence” of the restrictions.

A former FSB director, Nikolai Kovalyov, celebrated the news:

This shows that actual joint work on establishing an anti-terrorism coalition is about to begin,” Kovalyov said. “This is the first step on the way leading to cooperation in the war on terror.

Without easing these sanctions it would have been impossible to take the next step. These practical actions indicate that US President Donald Trump has been consistent.

*Defying expectations of a softer Trump line towards Russia, UN Ambassador Nikki Haley condemns the “aggressive actions” of Russia, particularly over its intervention in Ukraine.

*White House officials say more sanctions on Iranian individuals and companies will soon be announced.

The restrictions are likely to cite at least two dozen people and entities for connections with Iran’s ballistic missile program and alleged Iranian support of “terrorism”. They follow an increase in tension, with National Security Advisor Michael Flynn declaring that Iran is “officially on notice”, after the latest Iranian missile test.

See Iran Daily: “Trump’s Advisor is Irrational”

*The House of Representatives votes to remove the prohibition on gun ownership by disabled social security recipients judged mentally incapable of managing their own affairs.

Before leaving office, the Obama Administration mandated background checks on about 75,000 beneficiaries who are judged to have a mental disorder so severe that they cannot work and need a representative to manage their benefits.

*The CEO of Uber, Travis Kalaknick, steps down from Trump’s economic advisory council after an on-line boycott of his company, spurred by Trump’s “Muslim Ban”.

(h/t Al Jazeera Plus)