Monday, February 25, 2019
THE RUSSIAN INVESTIGATION
Manafort
- On August 2, 2016, Paul Manafort Gave Konstantin Kilimnik 75 Pages of Recent, Detailed Polling Data | emptywheel
- Paul Manafort Gave Konstantin Kilimnik 75 Pages of Polling Data, Docs Suggest
Emptywheel dives pretty deep into the weeds on this, but she pulls on something significant. According to the footnotes from the Mueller filings on Manafort, and from Manafort’s own legal team, he handed over 75 pages of polling data to Konstantin Kilimnik. 75 pages. That’s quite a bit of polling data making its way from the Trump Campaign chairman to a man with ties to Russian Intelligence.
Donnie Jr.
- Donald Trump Jr.’s Fox News Performance Was a Laughably Weak Response to Mueller
- Trump Jr. insists that crimes committed before the election shouldn’t count
- Joe Walsh: Don Jr said today Mueller isn’t after “actual crimes.” Lying to the FBI. Lying to Congress. Witness tampering. Obstruction of justice. Bank fraud. Tax fraud. Campaign finance violations. Conspiracy against US. Information warfare against US. Somebody tell Jr these are crimes.
- Ahmed Baba: I find it interesting @DonaldJTrumpJr said 2006 specifically given that was the year Trump SoHo was announced – the project that would years later almost get him and @IvankaTrump indicted for fraud.
Crimes before the election don’t count? This might be the dumbest thing he’s said this week. Let’s think about the stupidity of Donnie Jr.
First, he’s trying to minimize the amount of trouble he’s in by saying that Mueller isn’t investigating “real crimes.” He’s trying to say that no one did any “real crimes” like murder, only “fake crimes” like witness tampering, obstruction of justice, lying to investigators, lying to Congress, aiding and abetting treason, aiding and abetting espionage, money laundering, and fraud.
Second, his argument then implies that crimes from before the election should be off limits.
Using a very simple form of logic, this dumb mother fucker just admitted to “real crimes” before the election.
That, or he’s too stupid to realize he just implicated himself in a few dozen crimes.
The Mole
- John Schindler: My latest BOOM ====> The FBI admitted it had a “very sensitive source” back in 2016 feeding them intelligence about candidate Trump’s secret Kremlin connections. Who was the Bureau’s mole? Or was it a person at all? A major counterspy mystery here…
- Who—or What—Was the FBI’s Mole at the Heart of the Trump Campaign?
John’s hypothesis is that the mole isn’t a person but a compromised source of data, like a WhatsApp chat or a hacked phone.
While Team Trump is tearing itself apart looking for a person, they could still be compromised to this day.
- House Democrats target Trump’s personal finances
- Trump falsely denies 2016 phone calls between his team and Russia
COHEN, NEW YORK, AND THE OTHER LAWSUITS
- Michael Cohen prepared to address credibility issues before Congress: “He’s coming with documents”
- New Report: Trump Appears To Have Committed Multiple Crimes
- Where the investigations related to President Trump stand
- Trump Organization asks House committee to cease investigations, citing an alleged conflict of interest
Obstruction
Sexual Assault
- Former campaign staffer alleges in lawsuit that Trump kissed her without her consent. The White House denies the charge
- Trump kissed campaign worker without her consent, lawsuit claims
- Former Campaign Staffer Claims in Lawsuit That Trump Kissed Her Without Consent
- Former Trump campaign staffer alleges Trump kissed her without consent: report
- Aaron Blake: “In interviews with The Washington Post, and in the lawsuit, Alva Johnson said Trump grabbed her hand and leaned in to kiss her on the lips as he exited an RV outside the rally in Tampa on Aug. 24, 2016.” THREAD
- Reddit: Trump’s 8 criminal offenses related to campaign finance, 7 of which are felonies | + Timeline of the evolving lies and a Trump supporter’s possible deflections
TRUMP THE RUSSIAN ASSET A.K.A. INDIVIDUAL-1
Spike Lee
- Scarborough hits Trump over Spike Lee criticism: ‘The most racist president in modern American history’
- Trump accuses Spike Lee of being ‘racist to your President’ in early morning Twitter tirade
- Trump Slams Spike Lee: Calls His Oscar Speech ‘Racist,’ Implies He Is Illiterate
- Trump warns fellow Republicans as Congress prepares to vote on rejecting his national emergency
North Korea Summit
- ‘We fell in love’: Trump and Kim shower praise, stroke egos on path to nuclear negotiations
- As Donald Trump Heads to Vietnam, Here’s How He Used Bone Spurs to Avoid War, Military Service
- President Trump’s imaginary numbers on military aid to South Korea
- U.S. asked Russia for advice before Trump-Kim summit
- Claude Taylor: I’m sure it’s just coincidental that Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov’s plane was spotted flying into Vietnam…in time for the Trump North Korea summit.
TRAITOR TOTS
- Alan Dershowitz makes unhinged claim that Trump has right to counter Mueller with simultaneous ‘rebuttal report’
- Donald Trump claims Ivanka has “created millions of jobs,” but doesn’t explain how
- Pence announces new sanctions in effort to unseat Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro
- Scott Stedman: A lingering question I have: Why did Jill Stein stop all Facebook ads for months and then start spending like crazy on Facebook ads just as the Russian campaign to boost her was beginning? Jill Stein had 633(!) disbursements to Facebook ads. Pretty remarkable numbers.
FIGHTING BACK
- Janet Yellen: Trump Is an Even Bigger Idiot Than He Looks
- Countercheckist: Pro Tip: Truly strong, stable, and powerful countries don’t need to remind everyone about it on a near daily basis with bellicose and silly threats, @RusEmbUSA. You’re welcome.
- Rick Wilson: Damn, calling Trump a bad negotiator (a fact abundantly proved over decades) really has triggered his cult. #TeamPossum
- John Brennan: You shame yourself & the Office of the Presidency every time you try to smear those who dedicate their lives to public service. These elected officials, like so many others, have worked selflessly on behalf of their fellow citizens, something unfamiliar to one as selfish as you.
- Kamala Harris hits Trump on Fourth of July tweet: ‘It’s America’s birthday, not his birthday’
- Garry Kasparov: This isn’t merely another example of Trump’s narcissism. He requires polarization & division to survive, so whatever unites Americans must be turned into a controversy about him. It’s a tried-and-true method of conflating the nation with the Leader, of turning patriotism—love of country—into a loyalty test.
CONGRESS
- ‘You Have Taken an Oath’: Fmr GOP Members of Congress Push Party to ‘Resist’ Trump Declaration
- Democrats block Senate GOP anti-abortion effort
- Ocasio-Cortez: Living Wage for Staff Is ‘Common-Sense’ Policy Not ‘Communism’
EMERGENCIES, SHUTDOWN & IMMIGRATION
- “Could You Please Check His Status?” Records Show How A US-Born Marine Ended Up In ICE Custody
- Group Of Former Republican Lawmakers Urge GOP To Terminate Emergency Declaration
- Trump on Brink of Defeat on Border Emergency: Just one more Senate Republican is needed to block Trump’s emergency declaration, though even critics are reluctant to buck the president.
- Wisconsin governor issues order pulling National Guard troops from border, citing no ‘crisis’
RIGHT WING TERRORISM & WHITE NATIONALISM
#METOO & WOMEN’S RIGHTS
- Former campaign staffer alleges in lawsuit that Trump kissed her without her consent. The White House denies the charge
- Former Campaign Staffer Claims in Lawsuit That Trump Kissed Her Without Consent
- Former Trump campaign staffer alleges Trump kissed her without consent: report
- R. Kelly pleads not guilty to sexual abuse charges
- Michael Avenatti: I can confirm that we will be providing a second video showing R. Kelly engaged in sexual assault of a minor to prosecutors this morning. This tape was recently uncovered in connection with our ongoing nationwide investigation on behalf of victims. Justice must be done.
- Justin Fairfax likens himself to victims of ‘terror lynchings’ as he battles assault allegations
- [Update] According to prosecutors, #Patriots owner Robert Kraft was seen at Orchids of Asia on January 19th and a second time on the morning of the AFC Championship game (Jan 20). He’s been charged with first degree solicitation. Arraignment has been set for April 24th at 8:30 am.
For those that don’t follow football, from top to bottom the people on the left are the Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick who was caught illegally filming the signals of opposing coaches; Quarterback Tom Brady who was suspended for four games for playing with underinflated balls; Tight End Aaron Hernandez who killed a man, convicted of murder, then hung himself in prison while his case was on appeal; Wide Reciever Julian Edelman who was suspended for using performance enhancing drugs; Owner Bob Kraft who got a handjob on one visit to the spa and a blowjob the next day. He was arrested on Daily Check-In 02/22/2019.
COLD WAR 2.0
- Exclusive: Daughter Of Putin’s Spokesman Working In European Parliament
- Julia Davis: The daughter of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Yelizaveta Peskova, works as an intern in the European Parliament in Brussels, and has unhindered access to various EU documents #Russia
- Bill Browder: Yesterday we learned the Russians were secretly funding the Italian far right MP Salvini. Today we learn the daughter of Putin’s spokesman is working in the European Parliament for a far right MEP in the Le Pen party. Europe is a mess and getting messier
- As Trump debates his own team, China laughs at White House confusion
- Labour announces backing for a second Brexit referendum
- After Putin’s warning, Russian TV lists nuclear targets in U.S.
- Pence announces new sanctions in effort to unseat Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro
#NEVERAGAIN
FIXING THE INTERNET
- Report: Facebook Moderators Are Routinely High and Joke About Suicide to Cope With Job [Updated]
- Sara Danner Dukic: Good God. This type of behavior is apparently commonplace at Cognizant, the contractor FB uses as a violent/disturbing content moderator. My question is: what’s happening when people are purposely targeted with this type of content day and night? THREAD
THE PROPAGANDA MACHINE
- Igor Malashenko, Co-Founder of Russia’s NTV, Reported Dead in Spain
- Julia Davis: Igor Malashenko, co-founder of #Russia’s NTV, reported dead in Spain. NTV’s popular “Kukly” puppet show depicted Putin as an evil gnome. The show was shut down when NTV was taken over by the Kremlin in 2001.
- After Putin’s warning, Russian TV lists nuclear targets in U.S.
- Donald Trump claims Ivanka has “created millions of jobs,” but doesn’t explain how
- Donald Trump Jr.’s Fox News Performance Was a Laughably Weak Response to Mueller
- Five myths about journalism
TRADE WAR, HEALTH CARE, AND ECONOMY
- Health Care and Insurance Industries Mobilize to Kill ‘Medicare for All’
- Kamala Harris: Big insurance companies and Big Pharma are already hiring lobbyists to try to stop us from passing Medicare for All. But I’ve got news for them: we won’t back down. Health care is a right, not a privilege, and we need a system that puts patients ahead of profits.
- A pediatrician exposes suicide tips for children hidden in videos on YouTube and YouTube Kids
- Why crying over a terminal patient made me a better doctor
- Amazon will pay $0 in taxes on $11,200,000,000 in profit for 2018
- America Is an Oligarchy. It Doesn’t Have to Be – Just three men have more wealth than 160 million Americans. We’re ruled by a rigged system designed to exploit the many for the benefit of the few
- As ‘Medicare For All’ Gains Popularity, Health Industry Quietly Assembles Small Army Of Lobbyists To Try To Kill It
- Buffett says wealthy Americans are ‘definitely undertaxed’
- China’s Chief Negotiator Literally Laughs In Donald Trump’s Face During Trade Talk
- Oklahoma could provide first test of who will pay for the opioid crisis — and how much
- Revolt against the Rich
- Walmart Is Eliminating Greeters. Workers With Disabilities Feel Targeted
- Warren Buffett says the wealthy are ‘undertaxed’ compared to the rest of the US population
STUDENT ISSUES
- ‘From students in high school all the way to the president’s desk.’ How a government class fought for the release of unsolved FBI civil rights case files.
- Millennials Are Facing $1 Trillion in Debt
GOP: THE PARTY OF LINCOLN IS DEAD
CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
- He just got $21 million after 39 years wrongly locked up. He has one cop to thank for freeing him.
- North Miami cop who shot the unarmed caretaker of a man with autism goes to trial
- Student band yells obscenities, throws pig’s blood on a woman during concert in a Berklee College of Music cafeteria
PRIESTS & RELIGION
- LDS bishop removed from his position after arrest in human trafficking sting in Lehi
- Kaz Weida: Another day, another human trafficking bust, another man in a position of power treating women as commodities.
- Part I — A Vision, a Church and the Laundry – @SaysDana – Medium
- Cardinal Pell guilty of sexual offences
ENVIRONMENT & SCIENCE
- A Green New Deal is fiscally responsible. Climate inaction is not
- Dozens of climate protesters storm McConnell’s office over Green New Deal
- Evidence for man-made global warming hits ‘gold standard’: scientists
- Let’s keep the Green New Deal grounded in science
- Jay Inslee hopes a singular focus on climate will get him to the White House
- PostimusMaximus: If NASA came out tomorrow and said we had 12 years to be ready to deal with a meteor strike that threatened the world as we know it, we’d be doing everything in our power to act. So why aren’t we acting the same with Climate Change? We don’t have the time left to slow roll this. We have the technology today to not have to worry about energy needs anymore, and to also completely fix what we are doing to the environment, and we just aren’t doing it. Its madness.
- Countercheckist: The only practical solution now is atmospheric carbon scrubbers. The tech exists already, it’s just getting it to scale and an operational cost that’s affordable. One company can make gasoline/jet fuel from the carbon they pull out of the air via chemical reactions.
- EPA regulator skirts the line between former clients and current job
- Trump administration to create panel to deny climate change facts almost all scientists agree on
ELECTIONS
THINKING AHEAD
- Sanders pledges to release 10 years of tax returns
- Bernie Sanders pledges to support whoever the Democratic nominee is in 2020 to defeat Trump, but hopes it’ll be him
- Bernie Sanders Raises $10 Million in Less Than a Week
- Bernie Sanders Says 1,000,000 People Have Signed Up as Campaign Volunteers
- Bernie Sanders: ‘Damn right I will’ raise taxes on the rich
- Sanders: ‘Damn right’ I’ll make the large corporations pay ‘fair share of taxes’
- Sanders: We’ll bring a lie detector to Trump debate
- No Bernie didn’t toss eggs at civil rights protesters, he was a protestor.
- Lincoln’s Bible: Has anyone asked Bernie who his campaign manager is? Oh, and why did he hire Manafort’s man, Tad Devine, for his last campaign?
- Molly McKew: I had my hands in a broken sink and couldn’t change the channel, so happened to hear Bernie townhallsplain how Russia is going to be onboard with dumping a petroleum economy and transforming to green energy. Ooooooook. 50%+ of Russia’s federal budget is from petroleum.
- Jay Inslee hopes a singular focus on climate will get him to the White House
- Elizabeth Warren’s new promise: No fundraisers, phone calls with wealthy donors
IN OTHER NEWS…
- Roman Reigns Announces Return To Wrestling With Cancer Back In Remission
- Oscars 2019: 15 things to know, from the divisive ‘Green Book’ win to that truly terrible acceptance speech
- He calls it his ‘freedom song.’ A retired professor wants it to inspire others.
RUMOR MILL
- Tea Pain: Trump was relieved to hear that Robert Kraft was only involved in prostitution and child traffickin’ and nothin’ serious like kneelin’ for the National Anthem.
- PostiumsMaximus: Manafort is dying in Jail because of his choices in 2016-2018 much less than what he did before that. Flynn was told he sold out his country for what he did in 2016-2017 Cohen is going to jail for what he did in 2016-2018 Stone is going to jail for what he did in 2016-2018
- Ming: Wat were Darrell Issa and Pam Bond rewarded for?
- Rogue Senior White House Advisor: Trump is “not happy” Green Book won Best Picture at #Oscars. Staff clearing Monday schedule, Arby’s en-route.
- Countercheckist: Kook-left & kook-right both hate: – Civility – Political norms – Free market economics – Free press – America’s essential international roles – The Russia investigation – Sanctions to protect democracy – Their party’s establishment wings – Realities of representative democracy
- Tea Pain: BREAKIN’: Journalist Jorge Ramos is bein’ detained at the Presidential Palace in Venezuela for askin’ questions the President didn’t like. Trump: “Wait! You can do that?”
That’s it for Monday. Another day of craziness. Tuesday brings the first day of Cohen’s three day testimony blitz.
I’ll have an update over the next few days on a few things I’m working on. I think I solved a problem, but I don’t want to celebrate until I’m sure it worked.
Thank you, and have a good one.
“Without Journalists, it’s just propaganda.”
– Katy Tur
None of this is Normal 