Tag: Politics

Daily Check-In 03/16/2018

Friday, March 16th.  This has been an anxious day, waiting for something big to happen on the Mueller front, but as of 9:30PM, nothing yet.  Still, there were a lot of things that happened today on the British front, Stormy’s saga, and #NeverAgain.

UPDATE 10:00 PM:  In the last half hour, Andrew McCabe was fired, Cambridge Analytica was suspended by Facebook, and a 4 Star General called Trump a threat to National Security.  Tonight’s post is heavy on links, and light on individual breakdowns.  Instead, I’ll address the groups of stories, for the most part.

 

THE RUSSIAN INVESTIGATION

Really?  Two fucking days before he retires?

McCabe Statement

This was absolutely politically motivated, just like Jim Comey’s firing.  Saying that it was in response to how he treated Hilary Clinton is a soft, pathetic attempt at finding an excuse, which will get torn to shreds the first time Trump tweets about it.

Wait, he did that a few months ago, when he threatened him with wondering if he would last the 90 days he needed to reach retirement.

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So, the Keebler Nazi, who was recused on everything involving the campaign including Clinton, fired the former Deputy Director of the FBI late on a Friday night, 26 hours before retiring with a full pension, after the President made multiple threats against the DD because the DD was a witness to a myriad of crimes committed by the President?

This is witness tampering.  Trump is beyond desperate.  He’s vindictive and making mistakes.  Costly mistakes.  And because he surrounds himself with sycophants, no one is telling him that he’s making mistakes.

 

 

UPDATE 12:47 AM:  Jesus Fucking Christ, you’ve got to be kidding me?!

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At least with Comey’s firing, he didn’t destroy the reasoning behind the move for at least a day or two.  An hour.  A FUCKING HOUR!!!

Any and all pretense that this process, which usually takes several months to complete and was rushed through in a few days or weeks, just went through the window.  The Attorney General, Inspector General, and FBI Office of Personnel have all been implicated as accomplices to an Obstruction of Justice charge, not to mention Abuse of Power and Witness Intimidation.

Plus, Donald Trump just picked a fight he can’t win with the Intelligence Community.  If he thought he was in trouble before, everything he holds dear will come crumbling down.

UPDATE 1:17AM.  Andrew McCabe’s statement.

Statement by Andrew McCabe

I have been an FBI Special Agent for over 21 years. I spent half of that time investigating Russian Organized Crime as a street agent and Supervisor in New York City. I have spent the second half of my career focusing on national security issues and protecting this country from terrorism. I served in some of the most challenging, demanding investigative and leadership roles in the FBI. And I was privileged to serve as Deputy Director during a particularly tough time.

For the last year and a half, my family and I have been the targets of an unrelenting assault on our reputation and my service to this country. Articles too numerous to count have leveled every sort of false, defamatory and degrading allegation against us. The President’s tweets have amplified and exacerbated it all. He called for my firing. He called for me to be stripped of my pension after more than 20 years of service. And all along we have said nothing, never wanting to distract from the mission of the FBI by addressing the lies told and repeated about us.

No more.

The investigation by the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) has to be understood in the context of the attacks on my credibility. The investigation flows from my attempt to explain the FBI’s involvement and my supervision of investigations involving Hillary Clinton. I was being portrayed in the media over and over as a political partisan, accused of closing down investigations under political pressure. The FBI was portrayed as caving under that pressure, and making decisions for political rather than law enforcement purposes. Nothing was further from the truth. In fact, this entire investigation stems from my efforts, fully authorized under FBI rules, to set the record straight on behalf of the Bureau, and to make clear that we were continuing an investigation that people in DOJ opposed.

The OIG investigation has focused on information I chose to share with a reporter through my public affairs officer and a legal counselor. As Deputy Director, I was one of only a few people who had the authority to do that. It was not a secret, it took place over several days, and others, including the Director, were aware of the interaction with the reporter. It was the type of exchange with the media that the Deputy Director oversees several times per week. In fact, it was the same type of work that I continued to do under Director Wray, at his request. The investigation subsequently focused on who I talked to, when I talked to them, and so forth. During these inquiries, I answered questions truthfully and as accurately as I could amidst the chaos that surrounded me. And when I thought my answers were misunderstood, I contacted investigators to correct them.

But looking at that in isolation completely misses the big picture. The big picture is a tale of what can happen when law enforcement is politicized, public servants are attacked, and people who are supposed to cherish and protect our institutions become instruments for damaging those institutions and people.

Here is the reality: I am being singled out and treated this way because of the role I played, the actions I took, and the events I witnessed in the aftermath of the firing of James Comey. The release of this report was accelerated only after my testimony to the House Intelligence Committee revealed that I would corroborate former Director Comey’s accounts of his discussions with the President. The OIG’s focus on me and this report became a part of an unprecedented effort by the Administration, driven by the President himself, to remove me from my position, destroy my reputation, and possibly strip me of a pension that I worked 21 years to earn. The accelerated release of the report, and the punitive actions taken in response, make sense only when viewed through this lens. Thursday’s comments from the White House are just the latest example of this.

This attack on my credibility is one part of a larger effort not just to slander me personally, but to tain the FBI, law enforcement, and intelligence professionals more generally. It is part of this Administration’s ongoing war on the FBI and the efforts of the Special Counsel investigation, which continue to this day. Their persistence in this campaign only highlights the importance of the Special Counsel’s work.

I have always prided myself on serving my country with distinction and integrity, and I always encouraged those around me to do the same. Just ask them. To have my career end in this way, and to be accused of lacking candor when at worst I was distracted in the midst of chaotic events, is incredibly disappointing and unfair. But it will not erase the important work I was privileged to be a part of, the results of which will in the end be revealed for the country to see.

I have unfailing faith in the men and women of the FBI and I am confident that their efforts to seek justice will not be deterred.

 

STORMYWATCH, FROM THE STORM CENTER 6000 METEOROPORNOLOGICAL CENTER

Speaking of mistakes, Trump done fucked up big time by joining the lawsuit against Stormy Daniels.

How can President Donald Trump seek $20 million in damages against my client based on an agreement that he and Mr. Cohen claim Mr. Trump never was a party to and knew nothing about? #notwellthoughtout #sloppy #checkmate

By joining Cohen in coming after her for violating the NDA, he’s implicitly confirming the events and items covered in the NDA occurred.

But don’t worry, it gets much worse.

There are now claims of threats of physical violence against Stormy Daniels, which is not only illegal in itself, but entering into an agreement under duress would nullify that agreement.  So would entering into an agreement to cover up a crime.  Today I learned that adultery is still a crime in New York.  So is election fraud, wiring money across state lines to conceal a crime, and money laundering.

 

THE BRITISH FRONT

Another Russian critic of Putin’s was murdered in Britain.  Russia is threatening everyone and everything, and the West is lining up against a glorified mafia front with an Intel service.

We are in Cold War 2.0, and I’m afraid it’s going to get hot pretty quick.

 

#NEVERAGAIN

I’m hoping that at the upcoming marches, they have people there to help register to vote.

 

DIAPER DONNIE’S DIVORCE

Something else I learned today is the limits of compelling testimony from a spouse in New York.  Short version is that it depends on how the question is asked.  Asking her “Did your husband ever talk to you about working with the Russians?” is a No Go, but “Were you aware of him talking about working with the Russians?” is Okay.  There’s a specific difference, but I’m not looking that up now.

 

TROLLS AND TECH

According to Facebook, Cambridge Analytica did not completely delete user data after they were done with it, per Facebook rules.  The app “ThisIsYourDigitalLife” passed user data to CA, and both entities claimed they deleted the data, but didn’t.

CA then used this data for nefarious purposes.

As far as Adrian Lamo, he was involved with the Chelsea Manning/Wikileaks job.  Manning approached him online about getting classified documents to Wikileaks.  He contacted a couple USIC friends of his, and that’s how we know what happened.

 

TRUMP ORG

Lawyers threatening judges and witnesses seems to be a standard practice for Trump.

As far as Jimmy Kimmel goes, I’m glad he did this, because that means no one else has to buy that merchandise.

 

WHITE HOUSE CHAOS

From the Mattis Story:

Mattis not only served on Theranos’s board during some of the years it was perpetrating the fraud, after he retired from US military service, he earlier served as a key advocate of putting the company’s technology (technology that was, to be clear, fake) to use inside the military while he was still serving as a general.

Funny how it is that this story comes out the same week that we’re having serious discussions about Article 5.  A while back, I heard some rumors that when Russia goes after Mattis, they’re scared shitless because all hell was about to break loose.

 

THE GRAND OBSTRUCTION PARTY

Jeff Flake is making a case for a Presidential run in 2020.  I’d say against Trump, but he’s not going to make it that long.  Jeff Flake has been the voice of the old Republican Party, not the Party of Trump.

 

4 STAR GENERAL BARRY MCCAFFREY CALLS DONALD TRUMP A THREAT TO NATIONAL SECURITY

 

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RUMOR MILL: ERIC GARLAND ON HOW RUSSIA IS NOT A COUNTRY

Futurist Eric Garland has a great right up about what makes a country, and why Russia doesn’t meet that definition.  Russia has gone too far this time, and will lose their spot in the world community.

The New Spicy Mic Files. This one is about Manafort’s latest attempt to get the charges against him thrown out, using the same tactics that have already failed.

 

That’s it for today.  My next article is about the Minority Status Report from the Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee.  Unless, of course, something bigger happens between now and then.  Which is almost a guarantee that something will happen.

 

 

Thank you, and have a good one.

 

“Without Journalists, it’s just propaganda.”

– Katy Tur

Daily Check-In 03/15/2018

Thursday, March 15th.  Beware the Ides of March.

 

MUELLER SUBPOENAS TRUMP ORGANIZATION, DEMANDING DOCUMENTS ABOUT RUSSIA

Yesterday, there was talk about Trump trying to pull an end-around to fire Special Counselor Robert Mueller.  Today, this was leaked to the press.

WASHINGTON — The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, has subpoenaed the Trump Organization to turn over documents, including some related to Russia, according to two people briefed on the matter. The order is the first known time that the special counsel demanded documents directly related to President Trump’s businesses, bringing the investigation closer to the president.

The breadth of the subpoena was not clear, nor was it clear why Mr. Mueller issued it instead of simply asking for the documents from the company, an umbrella organization that oversees Mr. Trump’s business ventures. In the subpoena, delivered in recent weeks, Mr. Mueller ordered the Trump Organization to hand over all documents related to Russia and other topics he is investigating, the people said.

The subpoena is the latest indication that the investigation, which Mr. Trump’s lawyers once regularly assured him would be completed by now, will drag on for at least several more months. Word of the subpoena comes as Mr. Mueller appears to be broadening his investigation to examine the role foreign money may have played in funding Mr. Trump’s political activities. In recent weeks, Mr. Mueller’s investigators have questioned witnesses, including an adviser to the United Arab Emirates, about the flow of Emirati money into the United States.

Here’s a few reasons why Mueller decided go ahead with a subpoena against Trump Organization.

  • Trump has a history of destroying documents and evidence.  Just look at Daily Check-In 02/27/2018 with their behavior in Panama for recent evidence.
  • Mueller already has this information from Duetsche Bank, like from Daily Check-In 01/19/2018.
  • Mueller’s looking for what they don’t hand over, or what they change.
  • Mueller’s telling the country, “We coming.”
  • Mueller is telling Trump “You want to fire me?  I fucking dare you.”

The New York Times reports that this was served within the past few weeks.  If that’s the case, looking back at a tweet from February 27th, Trump’s “WITCH HUNT!” seemed a little weird, but there was chatter about something happening that day. Daily Check-In 02/27/2018 has a screenshot of the tweet in question.  Look for the Chessmaster Gary Kasparov.

At the time, I wasn’t sure what caused it, but chatter was that something had spooked Trump.  Claude’s tweet about Rick Gates delivering Trump seemed to just hang out there, but that with this story makes perfect sense.

Let me paint the picture…

Rick Gates has his Queen for a Day interview, and tells Mueller’s team everything he knows.  And I mean EVERYTHING.  Rick Gates knows how Trump Org works, how they work, who they work with, what they did, and when things happened.  Rick was the go-between for Paul Manafort and Donald Trump after Manafort left.  Rick Gates also worked with the Paul’s ties in Russia, Roger Stone’s connections, and Trump’s family.  Rick Gates gives Robert Mueller Trump on a silver platter.

Rick’s information corroborates information that Mueller already has on hand, but provides enough probable cause to go after Trump Org for specific documents.  Mueller’s team takes this and they serve Trump’s business with a subpoena.

Likely not the first one, either.  A few months back, Daily Check-In 8/16/2017 and Daily Check-In 8/15/2017, I reported about a rumor from Pesach Pace about Mueller serving Trump with two subpoenas.  This was before I tracked every story with a source or a screenshot, and Pace was new to me as a source.

This time it’s different.  Rick Gates delivered Donald Trump’s head on a silver platter.  Any attempts now made by Trump to get out of this just make it more painful for him.

 

U.S., FRANCE AND GERMANY JOIN BRITAIN, SAY RUSSIA LIKELY RESPONSIBLE FOR EX-SPY’S POISONING , TREASURY DEPARTMENT LEVIES SANCTIONS AGAINST INDICTED RUSSIANS , RUSSIAN HACKERS ATTACKING U.S. POWER GRID AND AVIATION, FBI WARNS

I’m lumping all three of these big stories together as one, because they are one.

They tell the story about how the NATO-RUSSO war starts.  Years from now, we’ll ask “How did the war between the West and Russia start?” and we’ll point to this week as a possible starting point.  I would say it started with the rise of Putin in 1999, or Putin’s seizure of Hermitage Capital’s assets which led to Bill Browder’s tax lawyer Sergei Magnitsky’s ultimate demise, or the 2014 invasion of Crimea, or the 2016 Presidential Election.  But those will be the precursor events, like the Treaty of Versailles, the Beer Hall Rebellion, or Neville Chamberlain’s appeasement of Hitler were precursors of World War 2.

Russia’s attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter on British soil with a chemical weapon of mass destruction feels like the straw that broke the camel’s back.  Great Britain, France, and even the feckless United States with Trump as President are repudiating the Russians.  France is joining the sanctions against Russia.  Australia will announce something soon.

The scariest part of all of this was an announcement from the Department of Homeland Security with proof that the Russians have penetrated critical infrastructure systems like the water system, power grid, and nuclear power plants, in the United States and Europe.

These actions are an Act of War.

The United States will be slow to react, as we’re dealing with removing the Russian Agents from our government.  We’ll be late to the party, but we’ll be there.

 

McMASTER TO BE REMOVED AS NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER

This story is hitting the rounds.  Trump’s having another one of his tantrums and wants to do what he wants, but the adults in the room are stopping him for now.

If McMaster does leave, it will be through a promotion appointment to General.  That’s 4-star General, or O-10, per The Federal Pay website.  It’s the highest rank available in peacetime.  The salary is $15,583/month, or $186,996/year.

The reason for this is that they want to prove that not everyone’s reputation is destroyed for having worked in the White House.

This move might get delayed due to it leaking out, but it’s likely to happen before too long.

 

TRUMP CABINET MEMBERS ACCUSED OF LIVING LARGE AT TAXPAYER EXPENSE

Out of the Cabinet Members, it’s easier to say who isn’t under investigation for or accused of abusing their position.  Here’s all of the Cabinet-Level people from the original list that aren’t either thieves, crooks, liars, bigots, or morally corrupted, that I know of.

  • Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis
  • Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Purdue

That’s it.  Maybe we could include Alex Azar from HHS, but he’s not an original choice.

Everyone else is Dirty AF.  Even when including Cabinet-Level positions, I can only add a handful of names, and even those are more “haven’t heard anything YET” than they’re clean as a whistle.

 

KIDS WHO WALKED OUT SEE THEIR GENERATION AS THE ONE ‘GETTING THINGS DONE’ ON THE GUN DEBATE

I grew up in the Pre-Columbine world.  School shootings happened, but they were few and far between, and either occurred because some crazy kid got his hands on daddy’s hunting rifle, or some little gang-banger brought a handgun to school to settle a score.  I didn’t have to deal with lockdown drills, or metal detectors in school, or armed guards patrolling the hallways looking for some menial violation to report to justify their existence.

So, when I saw the #walkupnotout hashtag and meme, I damn near lost my shit.

This meme is an attempt to blame students for being shot at, by saying that the shooters are doing this because they were bullied so bad, they had no other choice but to murder their classmates, and if only those kids had listened to them, they’d be alive today.

Not only does this mentality completely ignore that Parkland, Sandy Hook, and many other schools were shot up by non-students, but the logic they use is nothing more than victim blaming.

You know, like blaming a rape victim for dressing too provocatively or nor accepting the advances of the creepy guy at the bar who wouldn’t leave them alone.  Oh, if only she went on a date with the creepy guy, he wouldn’t have raped her.

This meme is like blaming the shopkeeper for getting shot by thug who din’t get hired to be the cashier because they can’t count.

Besides, this meme completely avoids talking about guns, because admitting that guns are the problem scares them.

The children are taking the lead because their parents, their politicians, failed them.  We failed to protect them.  Now, we’re trying to blame them for our failures.

We’re telling our children that not only are we not going to do anything to protect them, but that it’s their fault that they’re being killed because they weren’t nice enough to their fellow students, as though walking up to and hugging someone with an AR-15 in the middle of a shooting is the smart thing to do.

The children are taking the lead because we failed them.  There’s still time to make it right.

 

STORMY WATCH, FROM THE STORMCENTER 6000 METEOROPORNOLOGICAL CENTER

 

PA-18: LAMB, SACCONE TO RUN IN DIFFERENT DISTRICTS THIS FALL

It’s all over but the crying.  Conor Lamb has basically won, but it sounds like the NRCC is trying for a recount.

Recount Request

PA law doesn’t have automatic recounts for congressional districts, and a request for a recount requires at least three voters who experienced some difficulties from voting to file a lawsuit.  The NRCC is going on a fishing expedition.

As far as this fall for the midterms, with the redistricting, both Lamb and Saccone will be in different districts.  PA-18 will be Pittsburgh and Southern Allegheny County, which will likely be left to Mike Doyle.  Lamb will run in PA-17, which is Beaver County and the rest of Allegheny County.  Rick Saccone will run for the new PA-14, which is Greene, Fayette, Washington, and most of Westmoreland counties.

 

FORMER NRA LAWYER EXPOSED CONCERNS OF RUSSIAN CONNECTIONS

Cleta Mitchell is listed in the Minority Status Report that I’ll talk about over the weekend.

Cleta Mitchell: Ms. Mitchell, a partner at the law firm Foley & Lardner LLP, conducted work for the National Rifle Association (NRA) and may be able to clarify for the Committee any Russian-related approaches to and interaction with the organization and persons of interest to the Committee during the 2016 election.

 

SPEED ROUND!

2 “Good Guys” with Guns Accidentally Fired them in Schools on Tuesday

Trump’s lawyer in Mueller probe, John Dowd, cited for Trump campaign contribution above the legal max

Could California Effectively Restore Net Neutrality for the Entire Country?

Trump boasted to donors about making up facts during talks with Trudeau: report

Ex-GOP lawmaker: It ‘sucks’ Trump doesn’t care that Russia attacked us

Senate passes rollback of Dodd-Frank banking rules put in place after 2008 financial crisis

Barron Trump’s school signs open letter asking his dad to act on gun violence, oppose arming teachers

US diplomats confused, told not to tweet or post on Tillerson’s firing

Trump, Who Talks About Executing Drug Dealers, Vouched For Two of Them He asked a judge to show mercy to the boss of a group smuggling cocaine into middle America who Trump deemed ‘a credit to the community.’

Possible Russian trolls try to register for Texas Democratic convention

Eryn Gilchrist Is Challenging The Maine Republican Who Insulted Emma González

George Nader convicted of pedophilia in Prague

HOUSE DEMOCRATS SAY A WHISTLEBLOWER HAS PROOF STATE DEPT. IS TARGETING CAREER EMPLOYEES WHO DON’T SUPPORT PRESIDENT TRUMP

Ukrainian activists being censored by Facebook through Russian Trolls

 

RUMOR MILL:  DONNIE JR. GETTING DIVORCED AND THE THREE GENERALS

Vanessa Trump is divorcing Donald Trump, Jr.  Rumor has it that she found out he was fucking a bunch of Russian hookers.  Another rumor says that they’re trying to use this as a method of moving assets to avoid having them seized.  Last one is that she’s getting out while the getting’s good.

One last thing about McMaster.  He’s one of the Three Generals that Trump surrounded himself with due to his fetish with power.  The Three Generals, meanwhile, are loyal to the Republic, not Trump.

McMaster, Kelly, and Mattis.  They’ve put up with the unbearable to protect this country and to keep Trump at bay.  When they leave, it’s end game.  I don’t know what that entails exactly, but the three of them don’t leave their positions until Trump is out.  Hell, I’ve made the case a few times before about how Mattis could even become President.  I am not a fan of a General becoming President, especially without an election.  But, if it’s a stewardship role, where he serves for the remainder of the term while we as a country unfuck ourselves from the Russian mess, I’d be open to see how he does.

 

That’s it for today.  I’ve got a feeling that Friday is going to be nuts.  I wouldn’t be surprised if some indictments are unsealed tomorrow.  If that happens, I’d expect that to happen by 11AM EST.  Which means, of course, 5:59 PM EST will see a fuckton of activity.

Such is life.

Thank you, and a have a good one.

 

“Without Journalists, it’s just propaganda.”

– Katy Tur

Daily Check-In 03/14/2018

Wednesday, March 14th.  3.14.  Pi Day.

 

GREAT BRITAIN EXPELS 23 RUSSIAN DIPLOMATS IDENTIFIED AS UNREGISTERED SPIES

Things are escalating across the pond.  Prime Minister Teresa May officially called the attempted assassination of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia as an unlawful use of force.  Her first move was to expel 23 Russian ‘diplomats’.  The word diplomat is in quotes since they’re actually spies.

Countries are allowed a certain number of known spies in each country that work in the embassies.  The countries agree on that number between them, and they’re allowed to do all of the above-the-board espionage in their host country, and even some dirty tricks from time to time.  These spies have to be registered with both countries, and usually carry titles like Diplomatic Attaché.  They carry state secrets from and to their home government.

Britain kicked 23 unregistered Russian spies out their country.

Later in the day, Britain called a meeting of the United Nations Security Council, where U.S. Ambassador Nicky Haley called Russia out for use of chemical weapons.

One thing with the security council is that every country has to agree with any punishments and any of the charter nations can veto anything they don’t like.  Russia is one of the charter nations.

What Russia can’t do is stop the meeting with NATO that Great Britain is calling together this week.

We are in Article 5 territory.  Russia used a weapon of mass destruction on British soil to assassinate a British resident and his daughter, and in doing so, exposed hundreds of people to ill effects for decades to come.

Something else about this story.  This was a fuck you by Putin.  He’s up for ‘election’ this weekend, and decided to pull a big fuck you to Europe.  If he wanted Skripal dead, he could have had someone shoot or stab him walking down the street and make it look like a mugging.  Even if he wanted him poisoned, he could have used something that wasn’t directly traceable to Russia.  The fucker left a calling card, and is playing around now.

Expelling the spies is a proportional response, and Putin can handle it.  It’s time for Great Britain to go disproportional.  Seize assets of Russians, take their passports, expel them, and go after their money laundering methods.  Go full Magnitsky Act on their asses, bankrupt Putin and anyone that’s ever talked to him.

 

STUDENTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY WALK OUT OF CLASS

At 10:00 AM EST, students across the country stood up, left their desks, and walked out of class for 17 minutes.  Every hour, on the hour, for each time zone.

Today is the one month anniversary of the Parkland shooting, where 17 people, 14 teenagers and 3 faculty members, were murdered by a white supremacist and MAGA Redcap terrorist, using an AR-15 assault rifle.

Enough is enough.  No more.  Not again.

These words aren’t just catch phrases or hashtags, but the beginning of a movement.

These students…these kids, are taking the lead on gun reform because the adults have failed them.  The politicians, the parents, the police that were supposed to protect them have failed them.  Instead of making it harder to get their hands on weapons of murder, these politicians went out of their way to cater to special interest groups like the National Rifle Association, even though 90% of Americans support some kind of common sense gun control.

We have failed these children.  We have failed to protect them.  Our job is to protect our children, and we’ve failed.  More than 7,000 of our children have been murdered in the last decade by guns.

But we can fix this.  And the children are showing the way.

17 minutes for 17 lives lost.  Viacom channels like MTV and Nickelodeon suspended programming for this time.

 

PA-18: CONOR LAMB HOLDS TIGHT LEAD, RECOUNT POSSIBLE

The results are in, sort of.  All of the Election Day votes and Absentee votes have been counted.  Conor Lamb has a 647 vote lead, with some provisional and military ballots left to count, but not nearly enough to make up the difference.

Rick Saccone has still not conceded, but I’m not surprised.  The margin is so small that it would be reasonable to push for a recount, if just to verify the count.

Assuming that Lamb wins, Saccone is planing to run in PA-14.  Below is a map of the new districts, and the old one is below that.  The midterms will be interesting, but all of Southwest PA could go for the Democrats.

PA Map 2018 Redistricting

PA Old Map 2018

 

STORMY WATCH, FROM THE STORMCENTER 6000 METEOROPORNOLOGICAL CENTER

Not only is the cover-up getting crazy, but that second point is just pure, unadulterated, karma.

Cohen sued BuzzFeed for libel because they published the Steele Dossier, and he’s an idiot.  The threshold for libel against a public official is very high.  Not only does Cohen have to prove that BuzzFeed lied about Michael Cohen being a liar, but that they did so maliciously.  All BuzzFeed has to do is prove that Michael Cohen is a liar.

That’s where Stormy Daniels comes in.  While she’s fighting against the NDA between her and Cohen, BuzzFeed asked her to preserve documents, which is a step lawyers use right before issuing a subpoena.

It sounds like they’re going to subpoena Stormy Daniels either as a witness against Michael Cohen, or use her evidence to prove that Michael Cohen is dirty liar.

 

SPEED ROUND!

UCLA releases video of students heckling SecTreasury Steve Mnuchin

VA Secretary Shulkin and even more corruption

Gazprom cuts international traders due to sanctions

BitCoin value drops after Google bans paying for ads with the money laundering device cryptocurrency

Department of Defense paid $140k for use of Trump properties

Senate passes partial rollback of Dodd-Frank banking protections

Japan and Jared Kushner

Rachel Maddow is tearing this one wide open on her show.  This couldn’t be more blatant of a quid pro quo setup than if Trump and Kushner brought out a wine list giving the prices for political favors.

Seth Rich’s family files lawsuit against Fox News

McCabe might be fired before he retires on Sunday.

 

RUMOR MILL:  SHULKIN, SESSIONS, McMASTER, AND KELLY

It seems like this rumor floats around every couple weeks, but once again Trump is thinking about firing people and moving things around.  The current one is that he wants to fire everyone who has disappointed him or is preventing him from being him (read: all of the adults keeping the toddler from killing himself by accident).  This includes firing Jeff Sessions for Russia, McMaster for not letting him start wars when he wants, Kelly for being mean, and Shulkin for being an idiot.  Jared and Ivanka are on the shitcan list as well, but like everyone else not able to get a clearance, they’ll move to the campaign.

Once again, the rumor of Scott Pruitt becoming Attorney General and firing Mueller is floating around again.  As I’ve described before in Lateral Movement, he can’t just move him without Senate approval, and Scott Pruitt would be an accomplice to Obstruction of Justice in about 15 seconds.  Not only that, but Scott Pruitt was announced as the the head of the EPA on December 7, 2016, making him a part of the Trump Transition Team, which is under investigation for their ties to Russia.

But, let’s assume for a moment that Sessions does get fired and replaced by Mr. Privacy Booth and Afraid to Fly Coach, and he makes a move to fire Mueller, what then?

Well, Operation Shitstorm takes effect.  Indictments get unsealed, people get arrested, and New York and Virginia unleash their cases against Team Trump with state charges.  You know, charges that can’t get pardoned by a pardon.  See GTKYG-Pardon Limitations for that process.

Once again, those in the Rumor Mill are the voices of calmness.  We’ve seen this party before.

 

That’s it for today.  My next non-daily article will be covering the Minority Report from the House Intelligence Committee.  It’s a 21 page memo showing all of the things the Republicans wouldn’t let them follow up on, or refused to even investigate.  It’s pretty damning.  How in the fuck can they say the “fully investigated” the Trump Campaign when they didn’t even call the people that are cooperating witnesses for Special Counselor Robert Mueller?  Or say that the Russians didn’t work to get Trump elected without talking to any of the Russians at the June 9 meeting?  Or talk to anyone about the Mayflower meeting?  It’s absolutely ridiculous.

I’ll keep this memo in mind for if the Democrats regain control of the House.  Day 1 will see Adam Schiff as the new head of the House Intelligence Committee starting up the Russian Investigation, and picking up where this left off.

 

Thank you, and have a good one.

 

“Without Journalists, it’s just propaganda.”

– Katy Tur

Daily Check-In 03/13/2018

Tuesday March 13th.  Today has been a crazy day.  I’m going to have to go short on some of these stories, since I’ve been watching the PA-18 race a little too closely.

 

REX TILLERSON FIRED AS SECRETARY OF STATE DAY AFTER SPEAKING OUT AGAINST RUSSIAN USE OF POISON IN GREAT BRITAIN

So, here’s what we know…

  • Rex Tillerson spoke out against Russia and Putin yesterday, flat out saying that the Skripal poisoning was performed by Russia.
  • About twelve hours later, Trump tweeted out that he was firing Rex Tillerson.
  • Trump will nominate CIA Director and sycophant Mike Pompeo as his new Secretary of State.
  • Deputy CIA Director Gina Haspel will be the first woman to run the CIA.  She’s a life-long spook who ran one of CIA’s black sites where she oversaw torture, then destroyed the evidence of it afterward.
  • Trump’s team tried saying that Rex was asked to leave on Friday, but refused.
  • Rex’s spokesman said no.
  • Rex’s spokesman was fired for not towing the party line.
  • Rex leaves by saying “Russia did it.”

I’ve never liked Rex Tillerson.  He was too chummy with Russia, and a complete left-field choice that was out of his element, when Mitt Romney was probably the best, only choice to be America’s chief diplomat.

Pompeo is a Trump sycophant.  Trump likes him because he’s a yes man, one of his “loyal” men.  I’m worried about him, but this assumes that he even gets to a Senate hearing.

The greatest thing that Rex Tillerson did as Secretary of State was calling Trump a “fucking moron.”

 

ROGER STONE HAD CONTACT WITH WIKILEAKS BEFORE KNOWLEDGE OF HACKING BECAME KNOWN

Two people testified before Mueller’s Grand Jury that Roger Stone told them that he had contact with Wikileaks and Julian Assange before the hacked mails became common knowledge.  One of these men was Sam Nunberg.  The other was the source for this story.

 

PA-18 SPECIAL ELECTION

10:53 PM:  Fuck, I need a drink.  Lamb’s up by 755 votes, but it’s WAAAYYYY too close to call.  The absentee ballots will need to be counted.  Washington and Greene Counties won’t get theirs done tonight, but Allegheny and Westmoreland should have their absentees counted by Midnight.

This could actually fucking happen.

10:56 PM:  95 fucking votes?  Are you fucking shitting me?!  95!  100% of precincts in Greene, Allegheny, and Washington are in.  99% of Westmoreland is in.  The absentees are still outstanding.

Allegheny:  3500 absentee ballots requested

Washington: 1140

Westmoreland:  1800

Greene:  203

11:06 PM:  847 votes.  Pennsylvania does not have automatic recounts for Congressional Districts, only for statewide races.  Allegheny’s absentee votes were counted.  About 90% of the requested absentees were returned.  3143 absentee ballots, plus two precincts fro Westmoreland are left.  They’re likely being driven to Greensburg, and the roads and weather were a little lousy today.

11:22 PM:  Looks like Westmoreland and Washington are counting their absentee ballots tonight.  Saccone would need to pull a 2:1 margin from the absentees to have a shot.

11:39 PM:  Washington county is counting the absentees right now.  This could take a few hours.  I am NOT staying up for that, no matter how much stress I go through.

11:59 PM:  All precincts are in, and the absentee ballots are counted for Westmoreland.  Conor Lamb is up by 579.  Washington County and Green have (1195+203) 1398 ballots left.  Greene probably won’t count until tomorrow/today, but it might be a moot point.  Doing the math, Saccone would need to win more than 75% of the remaining ballots there.  Including Greene, Saccone would need…more than 70% of the vote from Washington County.  Saccone is quickly entering mathematically eliminated territory.

 

STORMY WATCH, FROM THE STORM CENTER 6000 METEOROPORNOLOGICAL CENTER

 

NEW CIA DIRECTOR RAN A BLACK SITE

This was during the Bush 43 days, during the “Torture is good” days.

 

GOP REP TOM ROONEY: “WE LOST ALL CREDIBILITY”, TREY GOWDY DISAGREES WITH GOP HOUSE INTEL COMMITTEE

Funny how they’ll come out of the woodwork to criticize it after Nunes makes an ass of the House of Representatives.

 

JOHN McENTEE, TRUMP’S PERSONAL ASSISTANT, FIRED FROM WHITE HOUSE

McEntee was Trump’s body man, his PA.  He was forcibly removed from the White House yesterday.  He was grabbed and shown the door.  They wouldn’t let him gather his personal belongings.  Fuck, they wouldn’t let him get his coat.

He is under investigation by the Department of Homeland Security for some serious financial crimes that are unrelated to Trump.  Looks like he has a fuckton of gambling debts from online poker, and a few other financial problems.

In classic Trumpian fashion, he has been hired for the Trump Re-election Campaign, and is being paid with a salary coming from the Republican National Committee.

 

SPEED ROUND!

ICE SPOKESMAN RESIGNS, CAN’T ABIDE THE LYING ANYMORE

EXXON MOBIL WITHDRAWS FROM ROSNEFT DEAL DUE TO SANCTIONS

Exxon stands to lose $200 million from cancelling this deal.  They can pull it from their spare change jar.

SECOND PUTIN ENEMY FOUND DEAD IN LONDON, AS COUNTER-TERROR POLICE LAUNCH INVESTIGATION

MANAFORT COULD FACE ‘REST OF LIFE IN PRISON,’ JUDGE SAYS,CURRENTLY FACES A MAXIMUM OF 305 YEARS

That’s just the known indictments.  This doesn’t include the sealed indictments that are still out there.

PDF: STATUS OF RUSSIAN INVESTIGATION FROM HOUSE INTEL DEMOCRATS

Eric Garland has a quick breakdown here from his Twitter.  I need to go through this with a fine toothed comb.

FBI REPORTEDLY WANTS TO TALK TO A JAILED ‘SEX COACH’ WHO CLAIMS SHE HAS AUDIO RECORDINGS THAT PROVE RUSSIAN ELECTION MEDDLING

This is the woman from Oleg’s boat, who’s stuck in a Thai prison.

ALEX JONES IS FINALLY GETTING THE DEFAMATION LAWSUIT HE DESERVES

Fuck Alex Jones.

KELLYANNE CONWAY SPENT ‘TENS OF THOUSANDS’ OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS ON PRIVATE FLIGHTS THAT LED TO TOM PRICE’S FIRING

FROM RUSSIAN ROULETTE: PAPADOPOULOS CLAIMS TRUMP PERSONALLY ENCOURAGED HIM TO MEET WITH PUTIN

Looks like I’ve got a new book for my listening list.

THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT WILL REVIEW ALLEGATIONS OF RUSSIAN INVOLVEMENT IN 14 SUSPICIOUS DEATHS EXPOSED BY BUZZFEED NEWS

 

RUMOR MILL:  TILLERSON, POMPEO, AND HASPEL

Yes, I rock the Oxford comma.

The firing of Tillerson was a shock, and several of the Alt accounts said that Rex was the nicest of the Cabinet members, and the most patriotic, which was a bit of a shock.

Pompeo is a shit, and no one likes him.  He’s an asshat who has taken more money from the Koch’s than anyone else.

Gina Haspel is a weird one.  Her involvement with the torture and black sites paint a dirty picture, but several people, including those near the NatSec community, say that she’s a good choice for the job, and will put the country first.

 

That’s it for today.

A link to a tweet for the 7000 shoes memorial on the Capitol lawn.  Each pair of shoes represents a child who was killed by gunfire since Sandy Hook.  Each pair is a little boy or girl who will never grow up.  A teenager who will never fall in love.  A kid who loved to play with toys, but never got a chance to outgrow them.  Each pair of shoes is a parent who had to say goodbye to their baby.

According to the BBC, Professor Stephen Hawking has just passed away.  He was 76 years old, and quite likely the most brilliant man of the 20th century.  Because of him, we have a better idea of how the universe and multiverse work.  He has long suffered from ALS.  He held the same chair at Cambridge that Sir Isaac Newton held.  Stephen did not want to receive a knighthood, even though the Queen offered it to him about a dozen times.  He was also the first person to play himself in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

He was one of my childhood heroes.  A Brief History of Time still sits on my bookshelf, and every so often, I’ll flip through it again.

From the stars we came, to the stars we return.  We are all made of stardust.

Thank you, and have a good one.

 

“Without Journalists, it’s just propaganda.”

– Katy Tur