Trump 12: Nevertheless, She Persisted (Let's do the same!)

[47of74]

1 minute ago, JMarie said:

I'm betting Megyn Kelly, Greta Van Susteren, and Elisabeth Hasselbeck are glad they got out when they did.

Didn't they want to get away from the rather handy and rather horrible and disgusting Roger Ailes?  I thought that's why at least one of them quit.  My head hurts just thinking of that idiot Ailes.

[RoseWilder]

I just read an interesting opinion piece on Palmer Report: 

http://www.palmerreport.com/opinion/want-to-take-down-donald-trump-take-down-his-human-shield-mitch-mcconnell-first/1439/

Quote

Three weeks into the Donald Trump administration, and it’s become clear who Donald Trump’s primary bodyguard truly is. It’s not Steve Bannon, who is merely using Trump and who has his own agenda. And it’s not Speaker Paul Ryan, who is moving forward with the Republican legislative agenda with seeming indifference to the White House. Instead, Trump’s primary human shield has turned out to be Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

On some level this shouldn’t come as a wholesale surprise. McConnell was the one who was hellbent on getting Donald Trump elected, to the point that he helped quash the U.S. intelligence reports during the election which concluded that Russia was trying to rig the election for Trump.

The article goes on to say: 

Quote

Because he’s from a conservative state and he’s never had a particularly difficult time getting reelected, he’s faced relatively little scrutiny for someone in his high position of power. That means his skeletons probably aren’t buried all that deep under the surface; they’ve just never been properly dug up. Start digging. Figure out what McConnell has been arrogantly and poorly hiding all these years. Does he have personal demons? Is there a financial scandal? These are the questions all journalists and activists must now research. Taking down Mitch McConnell is the first major step to taking down Donald Trump.

It seems that someone is already working on investigating McConnell: 

ETA: I think we should all start calling our senators/reps and ask them to investigate McConnell and the Trump-Russia connection.  There's something really fishy going on with the senators/reps who are trying to block investigations into Trump. 

[onekidanddone]

4 hours ago, sawasdee said:

So the party of Christian family values has invited an advocate of paedophilia, Milo Yiannopoulos, to speak at the Conservative Christian Action Conference? Well, as far as I know, Paedophilia ain't Christian, ain't Conservative - and they need some action AGAINST this!

For God's sake, those eejits who read Breitbart should at least look at the published views of the man who is now running it - he is contrary to everything they say they espouse - a gay who advocates paedophilia  - hey, but he's probably anti abortion and pro gun.....so that's all right then!

ETA In ancient Greece, relationships between adolescent and adult males were considered normal - it was called ephebophilia - but the usual age of the younger partner was 15-18.

Sounds like a blaming the victim Gothard type sick fuck. 

[RoseWilder]

The ACLU is planning on expanding to better fight against Trump: 

https://www.aclu.org/blog/speak-freely/aclu-announces-expansion-plan-fight-trump-policies

Quote

The day Trump took the oath of office we filed a Freedom of Information Act request demanding any and all government documents that addressed conflicts of interest and violations of the Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution. We did so because President Trump has refused to sell or place his businesses in a blind trust. We are now searching for a business competitor to Trump who would have standing to challenge the violation of the Emoluments Clause. 

Such great new: 

Quote

All in, we have received over $79 million in new contributions online since the election, with the average donation being $79, which for many is a significant chunk of money. This surge of contributions towards our annual $220 million budget will allow us to scale up in significant ways to build a war chest for future battles.

I'm going to start making monthly donations!

[fraurosena]

So, who is this H.R. McMaster that has been appointed to replace Flynn?

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/20/white-house-says-h-r-mcmaster-will-become-new-national-security-adviser.html

-----

Oh, and I just found this, and it's just too good not to share 

Today, the Tangerine Toddler Tantrum Tweeted this:

To which Carl Bildt, Sweden's former prime minister had this to say:

 

[47of74]

12 minutes ago, fraurosena said:

So, who is this H.R. McMaster that has been appointed to replace Flynn?

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/20/white-house-says-h-r-mcmaster-will-become-new-national-security-adviser.html

-----

Oh, and I just found this, and it's just too good not to share 

Today, the Tangerine Toddler Tantrum Tweeted this:

To which Carl Bildt, Sweden's former prime minister had this to say:

 

I'd tell Mr. Bildt the indirect approach rarely works with Agent Orange, and instead to use the direct approach and to tell that orange ferret face to shut the fuck up.

[GreyhoundFan]

2 hours ago, sawasdee said:

I think Tangerine Toddler is my favourite name for the present eejit in the WH!

The things that astound me at the moment -

1. How much is being spent on Presidential security. What with Mar-a Lago, Melania in NY, and the Trump brats jetsetting, he has almost 30% of Obama's 8 year spending in one month. This is the man who said he would be in the WH working, and not taking vacations or playing golf.... where are you, Faux News, when we need you to call this out as you did with Obama?

2. The commercialisation of the Presidency. I want some transparency here - is tRump charging the Secret Service for their rooms at Mar-a Lago? And what about doubling membership rates - is this pay for play? Not to mention the rally at Melbourne - who paid the Secret Service and AF1 bills for a campaign rally? I seem to remember that Obama paid for his campaigning, both for himself and Hillary.

3. The tRump hotel in Washington - as President he is landlord, as Donald he is tenant. Who does not believe that lobbyists who patronize his establishment will have a leg up? For F***s sake, he MUST divorce himself from his business endeavours - yet he has made no attempt to do so.

The corruption is out there and in your face - but his base would rather talk about 40 year old allegations re Bill Clinton. Reality has gone, and we are living behind the Wizard's curtain.

Please any deity you care to name that the reputable press keep trying to keep track of this train wreck - hopefully then Reps and Senators will realise that 60% of voters are appalled, and start pushing back.

Yes, we, the U.S. taxpayers, pay Agent Orange for the USSS staying on his properties, just as we pay him for their office space in Drumpf tower in NYC.

 

1 hour ago, RoseWilder said:

I just read an interesting opinion piece on Palmer Report: 

http://www.palmerreport.com/opinion/want-to-take-down-donald-trump-take-down-his-human-shield-mitch-mcconnell-first/1439/

The article goes on to say: 

It seems that someone is already working on investigating McConnell: 

ETA: I think we should all start calling our senators/reps and ask them to investigate McConnell and the Trump-Russia connection.  There's something really fishy going on with the senators/reps who are trying to block investigations into Trump. 

McConnell and Ryan are both playing human shield. I'm surprised (just a little surprised) that he has a Russian connection, but I guess I shouldn't be. It's not like he has any actual scruples. He'd probably take money from David Duke if he thought it wouldn't become public. I'll be calling my senators' offices tomorrow to express my concerns about this. Thank you for posting it.

Tom Toles had a good cartoon...

 

[AlwaysExcited]

20 minutes ago, 47of74 said:

I'd tell Mr. Bildt the indirect approach rarely works with Agent Orange, and instead to use the direct approach and to tell that orange ferret face to shut the fuck up.

Unfortunately, that doesn't work either. 

I feel dirty saying this, but Pence would make better president. 

[fraurosena]

4 minutes ago, AlwaysExcited said:

Unfortunately, that doesn't work either. 

I feel dirty saying this, but Pence would make better president. 

I'm pretty sure that's what they're working up to. The Tangerine Toddler is their shield, you see.

[RoseWilder]

More information has come out about Trump's Russia ties: 

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/trumps-russia-scandal-takes-unexpected-turn?cid=sm_fb_maddow

Quote

And then yesterday, the New York Times moved the ball forward, though in an unexpected way.

A week before Michael T. Flynn resigned as national security adviser, a sealed proposal was hand-delivered to his office, outlining a way for President Trump to lift sanctions against Russia.

Mr. Flynn is gone, having been caught lying about his own discussion of sanctions with the Russian ambassador. But the proposal, a peace plan for Ukraine and Russia, remains, along with those pushing it: Michael D. Cohen, the president’s personal lawyer, who delivered the document; Felix H. Sater, a business associate who helped Mr. Trump scout deals in Russia; and a Ukrainian lawmaker trying to rise in a political opposition movement shaped in part by Mr. Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort.

The “Ukrainian lawmaker,” in this case, is Andrii Artemenko, who’s allied with Putin’s government.

According to the Times’ reporting, Cohen, Trump’s personal lawyer, claims he received a sealed envelope from Felix Sater, a controversial figure in Trump’s orbit, and Cohen delivered the envelope to Michael Flynn before his resignation.

 

[47of74]

Some Brits aren't too thrilled with the idea of the Frank Burns of the Presidency coming over to see them.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-39021333

Quote

MPs have clashed over whether Donald Trump should be given a state visit to the UK in a packed Westminster debate.

The debate was triggered by two petitions - one against a state visit, which got 1.85 million signatures, and one in favour which got 311,000.

Opening proceedings in Westminster Hall, Mr Flynn, a member of the petitions committee, said it was "extraordinary" an invitation had been issued so soon into the US president's term.

He said there was "no question of any disrespect" towards the United States in opposing Mr Trump's visit, but said the president had caused problems in "every political area in which he has become involved in" and had been " behaving like a petulant child".

 

[Cartmann99]

2 hours ago, CTRLZero said:

More on Milo - WaPo

Warning - Milo's reasoning on pedophilia icks me out, and may do the same to you.

******

It appears Milo Y. is trying to reframe his comments to be more socially acceptable (NOT!).  Now he says that he considers the definition of pedophiles to be those interested in pre-pubescent kids, not those interested in kids who have developed, but still under the age of consent.

Yes, it appears he is reasoning along the same lines of our old favorite pedophilic pimp, Vaughn Ohlman. 

I realize that the CPAC folks are opposed to same-sex marriage, but since a big part of their dog and pony show is "family values", it would have made a hell of a lot more sense to invite a married gay Republican speaking about the joys of monogamous family life, rather than inviting a promiscuous gay man who would chew off his own arm for five minutes of attention from the world.

I'm horrified at the abuse Milo suffered as a minor at the hands of a priest, but he's a grown man now, and it's time for him to find a place away from the limelight to work on his issues. My stomach lurches at the thought that his provocative statements are confessions of actions he's already taken toward minors, and not just a way of continually drawing attention to himself.

This entire episode was a giant flaming trainwreck, and I don't want to hear another word from CPAC about the sexual immorality of those outside their pious little clubhouse ever again.

I'm off to make soup. At least food still makes sense to me. SMDH

[GreyhoundFan]

Isn't this a frightening idea? "Fox News is now forging U.S. foreign policy". It starts off with a mention of the reference to Sweden by the tangerine toddler, then continues with this:

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What had happened was that “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” on Fox News, had aired on Friday night a pre-taped segment with filmmaker Ami Horowitz on the impact of Sweden’s lenient approach to immigration. “Perhaps no nation on Earth is more committed to accepting foreign migrants and refugees than Sweden,” said Fox News’s Ed Henry in introducing the Carlson-Horowitz interview. Henry was careful to pre-scare the network’s viewers: “If these arrivals aren’t able to work, they are at least able to commit crimes. Quite a few of them, in fact,” he said.

That intro teed up an interview between host Tucker Carlson and Horowitz. “The crime statistics are the crime statistics,” said Horowitz. “They are not close, they are open to the public and they do show this incredible surge of violence. What may actually be the problem, they often … try to cover up some of these crimes that, for example, there has been a rash of these rapes in the music festivals, and they would cover up as far as they could who the perpetrators were or if actually rapes had actually reoccurred.”

As this Daily Beast article makes clear, the question of Swedish music-festival criminality and a “coverup” relating to the perpetrators is a complicated affair. After one set of incidents, for example, the police implicated “foreign youths” in the sexual assaults, only to later walk back that assessment. “The wording was unfortunate and we will take that to heart,” said a law-enforcement official. For a look at Swedish crime statistics, try Kevin Drum over at Mother Jones.

Not far behind the question of criminality was the welfare state. Asked by Carlson about the sort of life that asylum-seekers could find in Sweden, Horowitz responded: “They live great, Tucker. One of the most generous financial programs that they have in terms of the amount of money they are giving to them, the housing benefits, the cash benefits, so you have these — but they have … these zones, areas the cops won’t even enter because it is too dangerous for them.”

...

However — and this is critical — the debate in Sweden doesn’t obsess over terrorism, according to Traub. “I arrived in the country days after the Paris attacks,” writes Traub, “and I expected to hear a pitched battle over the dangers to national security posed by the newcomers. Scarcely anyone raised the issue. Sweden has not suffered a serious attack on its soil; the national mood could change very quickly if it did. But the issue that is raised — in Sweden as in Germany, Hungary, and all over Europe — is national integration. How will adding 150,000 refugees from very different cultures change Sweden?”

A different spin prevailed on Carlson’s show. Asked to assess the longer-term outlook for Sweden, Horowitz said, in part, “Sweden had its first terrorist Islamic attack not that long ago. So they are now getting a taste of what we have been seeing across Europe already.” Actually, that’s a stretch. In 2010, an Islamist suicide bomber killed himself and wounded two other people in Stockholm — nothing remotely like events in terror-plagued European cities. A police officer interviewed for the Horowitz film, to boot, is claiming that his input was mischaracterized: ”It was supposed to be about crime in high-risk areas. Areas with high crime rates. There wasn’t any focus on migration or immigration.”

As this blog argued last week, Trump would have been far better off reading something about terrorism and refugee policy in Europe — instead of allowing Fox News to decide the content of his nightly briefing.

Whatever impressions Trump may have collected from the report, he clearly appears to regard it as an educational moment.

...

Mind the sequence: First, Trump watches a Fox News segment; then he repeats the conclusions of that segment at an anticipated rally; then he discloses where he sourced the material; then he scoffs at the backlash, insulting an ally in the process. Ergo, Fox News is making U.S. foreign policy.

I love the line about how person on Faux tried to "pre-scare" the audience. The article is long, so I've cut many sections, but it's worth a read.

[Howl]

3 hours ago, fraurosena said:

So, who is this H.R. McMaster that has been appointed to replace Flynn?

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/20/white-house-says-h-r-mcmaster-will-become-new-national-security-adviser.html

Just had a nice chat with a relative who is retired military, but still tracks what's what in the military closely.  He has high regard for Gen. Mattis, who was recently appointed Secretary of Defense, and called him a powerful intellectual, also known as the warrior monk. 

He also spoke highly of McMaster.  In the article linked by @fraurosena above, 

Quote

 The Times described McMaster as "a highly decorated Army officer," and "one of the military's leading intellectuals."

He thought both of these guys (Mattis and McMaster) were stand up men who wouldn't put up with mindless bullshit from Lord Dampnut. 

[RoseWilder]

Milo just lost his book deal:

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/02/simon-schuster-cancels-publication-of-milo-yiannopoulos-book-amid-outrage-over-video-comments/

 

Quote

Publisher Simon & Schuster on Monday announced it is canceling the publication of far-right “provocateur” Milo Yiannopoulos’ upcoming book, Dangerous, after a video surfaced of the Breitbart senior editor advocating for 13-year-old boys to have sex with adult men.

Senior Vice President of corporate communications Adam Rothberg tweeted the decision amid growing controversy surrounding Yiannopoulos’ unearthed comments. The video already prompted the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) to rescind Yiannopoulos’ invitation to give the keynote speech at this year’s assembly. Separate reports indicate the far-right mouthpiece is “facing possible dismissal” at Breitbart—the publication formerly chaired by chief White House strategist Steve Bannon—as staffers threaten to leave the company if Yiannopoulos remains on the masthead.

And the Trump supporters, who have probably never read a book in their lives, should be threatening to boycott Simon & Schuster in 5 . . . 4 . . . 3 . . . 

[CTRLZero]

I didn't realize there were rallies going on to mark the US [Not My] President Day Holiday.  I saw this quote on CNN regarding the rallies and liked it.  I bring up this same fact on occasion, because people (and the President, himself) tend to forget that Trump is supposed to be working for all of us, not just those who bask in his orange reflection.

"A lot of people are angry because he lost the popular vote and is ruling like somebody who won by a landslide," Lexell said.

[Howl]

TalkingPointsMemo reports: 

Quote

The American Conservative Union disinvited Breitbart editor and lifetime Twitter exile Milo Yiannopoulos on Monday from speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference over past comments he made "condoning pedophilia."

 

[candygirl200413]

Remember guys! Bigotry, Racism, Sexism, and transphobia are fair game, but once you say something about pedophila you need to be banned from everything!

So so ridiculous. Especially because he's been saying so much disgusting hateful things and now people I guess are finally deciding they want to hear the words coming out of his mouth instead of calling everyone else little snowflakes who just want this asshole gone.

[SassyPants]

3 hours ago, AlwaysExcited said:

Unfortunately, that doesn't work either. 

I feel dirty saying this, but Pence would make better president. 

I disagree with everything that Pence stands for and believes, but he is articulate and not overtly inflammatory or insane.

[GreyhoundFan]

"With Priebus overwhelmed, chaos ensues". Some excerpts:

Quote

President Trump’s most colorful foreign policy critic, Eliot Cohen, reacting to appearances by chief of staff Reince Priebus on the Sunday shows, tweeted that Priebus reminds him “of the colorless, beliefless, spineless functionaries of 20th century totalitarians.” Well, Priebus, who happily turned over the GOP to Trump, has as much experience as anyone from his job as the Republican National Committee chairman in the “colorless, beliefless, spineless” functionary department.

At the RNC, Priebus was in charge of getting rich people to cough up money and running a political shop that over the years has been overshadowed by the Republican Governors Association, the House and Senate election committees, the Koch brothers, American Crossroads and other entities. To the extent he believes in anything — reaching out to minorities and pursuing comprehensive immigration reform, for example, were his aims from the 2013 GOP autopsy report — it is only for the moment.

What is obvious both from his appearances and from recent events is how small and unimpressive Priebus is. He willingly parrots any Trump line no matter how loathsome, as he did in facing Chris Wallace on “Fox News Sunday“

...

Lacking Trump’s confidence and bravado, Priebus comes across as bitter and whiny.

Meanwhile, Priebus isn’t doing his actual job very well, which is to make the White House run smoothly and to establish a clear chain of command. Instead, Stephen K. Bannon pulls a fast one on the president, getting himself put on the principals committee of the National Security Council. Apparently, Trump allies entirely outside the government are ready to negotiate with Russia over Ukraine (!).

White House aide Stephen Miller reportedly contacted a U.S. attorney directly to instruct him on the arguments (losing ones, it turned out) to defend the travel ban, running way outside his “lane,” as they say. Perhaps next time Miller should let lawyers advise other lawyers. (“The Eastern District declined to comment on any contact between [U.S. attorney Robert] Capers and Miller, the 31-year-old former Jeff Sessions aide and America First true believer with no legal background of his own, who a few months ago was warming up Trump’s campaign crowds and is now writing executive orders for the President to sign.”). Multiple former White House veterans weighed in on Twitter to remark that an aide bypassing the White House counsel and entire Justice Department leadership would have been a fireable offense under the presidents whom they served.

Whether it is the travel ban rollout, Bannon’s repeated vetoes of Cabinet secretaries’ deputy picks (so that major departments still do not have a No. 2, let alone lower-level political appointees), the botched phone calls with foreign leaders or the Michael T. Flynn fiasco, Priebus is not performing the key, critical functions of a chief of staff — providing the president with all the information he needs, setting a clear process for decision-making and actually executing the president’s directives in a clear and timely fashion. Priebus is outmaneuvered and outmuscled by Bannon, leaving him to clean up messes rather than set up a structure to avoid blunders.

...

Priebus is the chief of staff Trump wants, for now. Priebus’s weakness promotes chaos and impulsiveness, which Trump enjoys. Since discipline, order and chain of command are designed to minimize chaos and conflict, a less assertive and respected gatekeeper is essential for Trump. At some point — and we hope it’s not by virtue of a national security crisis induced by White House dysfunction — the president may see that government chaos breeds gridlock, legislative stalemate and policy blunders. When he does, Priebus will be a useful sacrificial lamb.

I thought about putting this in the "who will get voted off the island first" thread, but figured it spoke to an overall Agent Orange issue.

[RoseWilder]

Carter Page (he's part of the Trump-Russia scandal) wrote a letter to the DOJ trying to shift the focus off himself and Trump and onto Hillary Clinton. Of course, I knew that was coming. A Republican never gets caught without invoking the political version of "I know you are, but what am I." 

http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/2/15/1634289/-Carter-Page-at-Center-of-Trump-Russian-Investigation-Writes-Bizarre-Letter-to-DOJ-Blaming-Hillary

Quote

CARTER PAGE, briefly a foreign policy adviser to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, sent a peculiar, rambling letter this week to the Department of Justice, asking it to review “the severe election fraud in the form of disinformation, suppression of dissent, hate crimes and other extensive abuses led by members of Mrs. Hillary Clinton’s campaign and their political allies last year.”

Page is reportedly one of several targets of a counterintelligence investigation by the FBI into possible links between Trump associates and Russian officials.

There is apparently no level the Republicans aren't willing to sink to. 

[47of74]

54 minutes ago, RoseWilder said:

Carter Page (he's part of the Trump-Russia scandal) wrote a letter to the DOJ trying to shift the focus off himself and Trump and onto Hillary Clinton. Of course, I knew that was coming. A Republican never gets caught without invoking the political version of "I know you are, but what am I." 

http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/2/15/1634289/-Carter-Page-at-Center-of-Trump-Russian-Investigation-Writes-Bizarre-Letter-to-DOJ-Blaming-Hillary

There is apparently no level the Republicans aren't willing to sink to. 

I wish to the sweet Lord Jesus Christ that Democrats would get that through their thick skulls.  And that the Republicans crawled out of the sewers so it's goddamn past time to head for the gutters and play some goddamn hardball.  A medieval (in the Pulp Fiction sense of the word), pipe hitting pliers and blowtorches kind of hardball.

[47of74]

Looks like the orange putz is trying again...

https://action.donaldjtrump.com/mainstream-media-accountability-survey/

Same survey as before, begging to be sabotaged by us ebil leftists...

[JMarie]

I saw a shortened version of this at 2:30 this morning.  I hope it airs again when more people can see it.  It's even better than the Hefty commercial where he flexes his pecs.

 

[ShepherdontheRock]

Some lighter reading:

http://www.theroot.com/y-all-s-president-is-a-lazy-thot-1792441576?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=theroot