Battleground '16: 'Extreme, Extreme Vetting' – For Clinton and Trump

A tale of two campaigns: Republican nominee Donald Trump's camp announced early Wednesday morning its second shakeup in as many months, bringing on Breitbart News Executive Chairman Stephen K. Bannon as its CEO and proudly touting his moniker as the “most dangerous political operative in America." The move was widely viewed as a [demotion] for campaign chairman Paul Manafort (though he retains his title) — and a response to a bombshell New York Times report on a [secret ledger] obtained by Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities linking Manafort to a potential $12.7 million payment from pro-Russian politicos there. Meanwhile, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton announced the leaders of her transition team (including [Ken Salazar], a former U.S. senator and secretary of the interior, who somewhat inconveniently is also an outspoken proponent of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact she has come out against.) Former Republican officials and national security experts continue to defect across the aisle in droves, and the punches keep coming from Democratic heavy-hitters such as Vice President Joe Biden, who [said] Monday of Trump's controversial national security statements, "This guy's shame has no limits." Biden, Obama's pointman on many of his administration's most challenging foreign policy foibles, was pre-butting what the Trump campaign billed as a "major" national security speech later on Monday. For Trump, who has dubbed himself the "law and order" candidate, the Teleprompter-ed outline of his [plan] to defeat terrorism was instead a little bit Obama, and a lot that was inaccurate or likely illegal. On Wednesday, Trump receives his first intelligence briefing. If you have problems viewing this email, [view it in a browser.] Please feel free to [forward it to a friend]. [FP logo] [Top Image] WEDNESDAY 08.17 FOREIGN POLICY'S TAKE ON THE PRESIDENTIAL RACE ‘Extreme, Extreme Vetting’ — For Trump and Clinton A tale of two campaigns: Republican nominee Donald Trump's camp announced early Wednesday morning its second shakeup in as many months, bringing on Breitbart News Executive Chairman Stephen K. Bannon as its CEO and proudly touting his moniker as the “most dangerous political operative in America." The move was widely viewed as a [demotion] for campaign chairman Paul Manafort (though he retains his title) — and a response to a bombshell New York Times report on a [secret ledger] obtained by Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities linking Manafort to a potential $12.7 million payment from pro-Russian politicos there. Meanwhile, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton announced the leaders of her transition team (including [Ken Salazar], a former U.S. senator and secretary of the interior, who somewhat inconveniently is also an outspoken proponent of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact she has come out against.) Former Republican officials and national security experts continue to defect across the aisle in droves, and the punches keep coming from Democratic heavy-hitters such as Vice President Joe Biden, who [said] Monday of Trump's controversial national security statements, "This guy's shame has no limits." Biden, Obama's pointman on many of his administration's most challenging foreign policy foibles, was pre-butting what the Trump campaign billed as a "major" national security speech later on Monday. For Trump, who has dubbed himself the "law and order" candidate, the Teleprompter-ed outline of his [plan] to defeat terrorism was instead a little bit Obama, and a lot that was inaccurate or likely illegal. On Wednesday, Trump receives his first intelligence briefing. [Feature Image] [Donald Trump’s ‘Plan’ to Defeat Terrorism: A Little Obama, a Lot Illegal, and Inaccurate] Parts of what the GOP nominee did recommend the president is already doing, and much of the rest would run up against reality or the U.S. Constitution. MOLLY O’TOOLE Instead of taking the opportunity of a "major" national security speech to show that continued controversial statements on foreign-policy issues are a distraction from a serious campaign rather than its substance, the New York businessman either seemed to borrow heavily from the president he just said “[founded]” the Islamic State or described actions that were divorced from reality. [READ MORE] [Jensen shorts] [Feature Image] [Present at the Creation] The never-told-before story of the meeting that led to the creation of ISIS, as explained by an Islamic State insider. HARALD DOORNBOS JENAN MOUSSA Donald Trump claimed recently that it was President Obama and his first Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who founded ISIS. This is the real story, from Abu Ahmad, a Syrian operative for the Islamic State who witnessed the group’s lightning expansion firsthand and spent months among its most notorious foreign fighters. [READ MORE] [Jensen shorts] [Jensen shorts] [Obama Makes Biggest Move Yet to Empty Guantanamo] The Pentagon transferred 15 detainees to the UAE in the single-largest move under the Obama administration. Little noticed: Six were cleared just this year. [READ MORE] MOLLY O’TOOLE [Jensen shorts] [New Chief of Clinton’s Transition Team Is a Strong Backer of TPP and Free Trade] Ken Salazar is a long-time free trade supporter, including the Asia trade deal Clinton now opposes. [READ MORE] DAVID FRANCIS “It is imperative we continue to expand our team with top-tier talent.” — Paul Manafort in Trump campaign statement announcing its second shakeup in as many months and his apparent demotion, following a bombshell [NYT report] showing Manafort's ties to pro-Russian politicos in Ukraine + 6.2 Hillary Clinton leads the 2016 presidential race by 6.2 points in a four-way matchup with GOP nominee Donald Trump, Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson and Green Party nominee Jill Stein, [according] to the Real Clear Politics polling average as of Wednesday. In a head-to-head with Trump, her lead is roughly [the same]. PHOTOS FROM TOP: BLOOMBERG/CONTRIBUTOR, THOMAS WATKINS / STAFF, CHRIS KLEPONIS/GETTY IMAGES This email was sent to [{EMAIL}] by fp@foreignpolicy.com. [UPDATE PROFILE] [UNSUBSCRIBE] [PRIVACY POLICY] [ADVERTISE] [GROUP SALES AND LICENSING] Foreign Policy Magazine is published by the FP Group, a division of Graham Holdings Company. 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