Executive Departments Part 2

[fraurosena]

3 minutes ago, AmazonGrace said:

 

I’m disgusted by the depravity of people when put into situations of power like this. Any halfway decent human being wouldn’t dream of acting so horrifically against a fellow human, and yet, history shows us time and again that there are those who almost gleefully comply with governments and rulers who like to dehumanize and supress a group of people by branding them ‘other’ and therefore fair game to hurt and humiliate in every depraved and deplorable way they can come up with.

 

[AmazonGrace]

Did y'all see this? 

 

[Destiny]

Organised crime? Really? First the war zone, now organised crime. Citations required people, citations FUCKING required.

[AmazonGrace]

 

[fraurosena]

He may look like an affable little old grandpa or a mischievous little keebler elf, but don't be fooled by his appearance: he's an evil, hateful, racist demon-spawn, happily grabbing babies and toddlers from their mother's arms and making them mysteriously disappear, never to be seen again. 

 

[AmericanRose]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-calls-for-democrats-to-end-horrible-law-that-he-says-separates-children-from-parents-at-border/ar-AAxQn97?ocid=spartanntp&ffid=gz

Ah, but Trump is calling for Democrats to end that "horrible law"... WTF? Is he (or someone he appointed) not the one that misread the law in the first place and directed ICE to begin separating children from their parents, even when they present themselves lawfully? To act as a 'powerful deterrent'?

[fraurosena]

2 hours ago, AmericanRose said:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-calls-for-democrats-to-end-horrible-law-that-he-says-separates-children-from-parents-at-border/ar-AAxQn97?ocid=spartanntp&ffid=gz

Ah, but Trump is calling for Democrats to end that "horrible law"... WTF? Is he (or someone he appointed) not the one that misread the law in the first place and directed ICE to begin separating children from their parents, even when they present themselves lawfully? To act as a 'powerful deterrent'?

Not only that, but how are the dems supposed to end that law when they have the minority in House and Senate?

Fuck all Repugliklans and their fucking gaslighting. 

[Cartmann99]

Saw this on Joaquin Castro's (TX-20) Twitter feed:

People are beginning to organize marches. Keep an eye out for more information.

[AmazonGrace]

More fun with Scotty: 

Even more fun with Scotty 

Yay, totally owning the libs by creating more smog! 

 

[AmazonGrace]

 

[AmazonGrace]

 

[AmazonGrace]

More fun with Scotty: 

 

[GreyhoundFan]

Just one of the people Zinke has screwed over: "Facing reassignment under Trump, top Yellowstone official instead retires"

Spoiler

A highly respected National Park Service executive who engineered the reopening of the Statue of Liberty after the 2001 terrorist attacks and settled the contentious issue of snowmobile use in Yellowstone National Park announced his retirement Friday as Interior Department officials consider a proposal to reassign him to Washington.

Daniel Wenk, who as Yellowstone superintendent holds one of the agency’s most coveted jobs, submitted a request to retire March 30 — a date that would allow him far more time at his Mammoth, Wyo.-based post than the 60 days he would have to vacate his office after a reassignment. “It has been an honor and a privilege working for the National Park Service for the last almost 43 years,” Wenk wrote in a letter, an excerpt of which was provided to The Washington Post.

He asked to delay his departure for several reasons, including sealing agreements with the state of Montana and a Native American tribe to move bison from Yellowstone to Fort Peck, 400 miles away.

Wenk would not comment on why Interior identified him for a transfer. But people close to him called it a “punitive” and “political” move by an administration that demands loyalty over issues of deep concern to Wenk, such as wilderness preservation and conservation.

The department declined Thursday to comment about Wenk, instead issuing a general statement about President Trump’s executive order to reorganize the federal government. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke “has been absolutely out front on that issue,” the statement by spokeswoman Heather Swift said.

Specific rules govern senior executive service reassignments, and Interior broke several in a flurry of transfers last year. Its Office of Inspector General subsequently weighed in, saying no transfers are allowed until about four months after the Senate confirms a presidential nominee as secretary. The 35 executives involved received notice within 106 days after Zinke’s confirmation on March 1, 2017.

Investigators in the inspector general’s office found little rhyme or reason to Interior’s reassignments. Meetings were held, but there were no “meeting minutes, notes, voting or decision records, or documentation for these meetings or for any activities or discussions related to reassignments, other than photographs of poster boards,” a report said.

Twenty-seven of the senior executives who got notices last year were reassigned. Three others resigned before the transfers took effect. Reassignment orders were rescinded for another three, and two stayed in their positions pending retirement, the report said.

In its statement Thursday, Interior noted that senior executives are the highest-paid employees in the federal government and signed up “knowing that they could be called upon to work in different positions at any time.” Zinke has said that shifting senior executives to different regional offices is a way to reinvigorate the department’s decision-making.

But a chorus of career staffers and conservation groups have said that such moves can be retaliation against employees who have spoken out against administration policies. The moves have drawn particular suspicion given Zinke’s claim last year that a third of his employees were not “loyal to the flag.”

“A lot of their desire is not about competence; it’s about loyalty,” former Park Service director Jonathan B. Jarvis said. “They’re looking for loyalty, whatever that means, in terms of delivering on an agenda. When you move to transfer someone like Dan, who has a lot of integrity, you send a message to the rest of the field that this is what they expect: loyalty. It’s that simple, and sad.”

Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead (R) praised Wenk on Thursday evening: “We’ve had agreements and disagreements, and I have great respect for him. He’s worked through some very difficult issues. I think he’s done a very good job.” Mead also sympathized with Wenk, adding, “If I was superintendent of Yellowstone, and my career option was to go back to Washington, D.C., it’s not much of a promotion, thank you. But I’m speaking for myself.”

National Parks Conservation Association President and chief executive Theresa Pierno called Wenk “a strong leader with decades of knowledge and passion for parks. Whether you agree with Dan or not on an issue, you know where he stands, and he stands for the parks. To lose Dan Wenk would be a great loss to the national park system.”

Wenk had made no secret of his plan to eventually retire from leading the United States’ first national park, where he oversees 3 million visitors yearly. But he acknowledged in his announcement that “while my plans to retire are not a surprise to you, the timing and announcement of this decision may be.”

He continued, “The recent national and local attention to proposed reassignment of senior executives in the National Park Service has created great uncertainty with federal and state agencies, local communities and partner organizations that Yellowstone relies on to be successful.”

Wenk, 66, wants to remain at Yellowstone for 10 more months to finish several projects. But moving bison from Yellowstone to some of their traditional range on Native American tribal lands — part of an effort to conserve and protect the animals — could be one of the reasons that put him at odds with the Trump administration.

Wenk also opposes efforts to remove grizzly bears and gray wolves from the endangered species list, as Interior wants to do. And under Zinke, the department is proposing to eliminate rules that protect adult wolves, bears and their cubs from being shot while in their dens by hunters on federal land in Alaska.

The Michigan native, who entered the Park Service as a landscape architect in 1975, is described as an executive loyal to the agency’s mission. Jarvis, whom Wenk served as a deputy, said former interior secretary Ken Salazar “coined the term that Dan was the mailman because Dan always delivered.”

When given a task, Jarvis said, Wenk “had the capacity, intelligence and drive to deliver on it.” He recalled how the crown of the Statue of Liberty was reopened by the Obama administration after being closed for years. Salazar ordered Jarvis to give him a date for that, and Jarvis turned to his deputy.

“Dan said it could be reopened by Labor Day,” Jarvis said; Salazar countered with the Fourth of July. “I turned to Dan and said, ‘Let’s deliver.’ ” And in 2011, Wenk did.

Other strengths showed six years ago, when Wenk was assigned to Yellowstone and threw himself in the conflict over snowmobile access to the park. “Dan has an engineering mind. He analyzes in detail,” Jarvis said. In the end, Wenk found a way to placate opposition to the vehicles by designating times when they were allowed and implementing a rule that gave preference to snowmobiles designed to emit less noise.

“The snowmobile issue was a big deal,” said Mead, whose state covers 90 percent of Yellowstone. “Certainly not what everybody wants, but to get that behind him was good.”

 

[AmazonGrace]

More fun with Scotty: 

but, but, but, whyyyyy?

[47of74]

2 hours ago, AmazonGrace said:

More fun with Scotty: 

but, but, but, whyyyyy?

Maybe he wanted one that Fuck Face had golden showers on so he can bask in the Trumpiness of the mattress at night.

[formergothardite]

I really, really hate Scott Pruitt. 

[AmazonGrace]

 

Donald Trump: The world respects America again

[AmazonGrace]

More fun with Scotty:

 

[AmazonGrace]

I think we should ban the White House until we figure out what the hell is going on 

 

[AmazonGrace]

Laws are just not his thing:

 

[AmazonGrace]

More fun with Scotty:

 

[GreyhoundFan]

A good one from Dana Milbank: "Maybe Scott Pruitt isn’t corrupt enough"

Spoiler

Scott Pruitt: You can do better than this.

On Monday , The Post broke the news that a government aide to Pruitt, President Trump’s EPA administrator, contacted the Trump International Hotel in Washington in hopes of snagging a used Trump Home Luxury Plush Euro Pillow Top mattress , on which Pruitt could rest his weary body after long days ignoring environmental protections.

On Tuesday, the same Post trio — Juliet Eilperin, Brady Dennis and Josh Dawsey — reported that Pruitt also had a government staffer arrange a phone call with Chick-fil-A executives to discuss “a potential business opportunity” — having Pruitt’s wife run a franchise of the fast-food joint.

This is a tragic case of low self-esteem.

Pruitt could be shaking down corporate polluters for tens of millions of dollars — and he’s trying to use his influence to get a deal on a used Trump mattress that costs $1,750 new? He could get so many sweetheart deals from those he regulates that his wife would never have to work again — and he’s using pull so she can sell $3.99 chicken sandwiches?

Pruitt’s problem isn’t that he’s corrupt; it’s that he isn’t corrupt enough. He could be thrashing with the big gators in the swamp, but he’s lounging with larvae in a mud puddle. Pruitt should abandon his penny-ante corruption and get rich the way others do in Trump’s Washington.

Why get in trouble for renting a condo for a below-market $50 per night when, like Jared Kushner, you could have a $120 million investment that helps your family business from a group with ties to Qatar’s government while you oversee Middle East policy?

Pruitt is being raked over the coals for wasting more than $60,000 on military and charter flights and for flying first-class (coach is too dangerous!). Meanwhile, Ivanka Trump stands to gain tens of millions from the trademarks issued to her businesses by China while her father negotiates with that country.

Poor Pruitt gets heat for a $43,000 soundproof phone booth in his office (although, I admit, that one was quite creative). But Kushner, the president’s son-in-law , invites financial executives to the White House, reportedly dangles a job in front of one of them, and his family business gets $500 million in loans.

Pruitt is being investigated for giving raises of $66,000 and $48,000 to aides who are pals of his, one of which resigned on Wednesday. The president, by contrast, is making untold millions for the Trump Organization from interest groups and foreign governments that are either funneling business to or otherwise boosting Trump properties in hopes of winning favor with the president.

Pruitt may be afraid that, if he were to do what Trump and his kin do, it might be “illegal,” to use the archaic term. This may also be why Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson ($31,000 dining set), Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke ($139,000 office doors) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (asked for a military charter for his European honeymoon) have not exploited the full moneymaking potential of their jobs.

But they should take heart from the example of Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, who took in $2.35 million from AT&T, Novartis, a company tied to a Russian oligarch and others — and gave them almost nothing of value in return.

Even North Korea knows how to play the game. A CIA analysis, reported last week by NBC News, found that North Korea has no intention of giving up its nuclear weapons — but “Kim Jong Un may consider offering to open a Western hamburger franchise in Pyongyang as a show of goodwill.”

That Kim is willing to put patties on the table shows he understands Trump. Certainly, Trump won’t accept one burger joint in lieu of denuclearization. But what if Kim would, say, agree to open a Trump International Hotel in Pyongyang? In exchange, Trump would probably allow North Korea to keep its nuclear weapons as long as it promises to use them only between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. — except in emergencies. If Kim were to order the entire North Korean labor force to manufacture Ivanka Trump’s fashion line, her father might well cede North Korea control of California.

Pruitt, to get the riches he deserves, needs to be upfront about his price and hang out the proverbial shingle. That’s essentially what Cohen did:

Accounting Advice: $150,000

Telecom insights: $200,000

Negotiating with Playboy model you got pregnant: $387,500

Help with real estate investments: $500,000

Advice on health-care policy: $1.2 million

When you consider Pruitt’s agency fined polluters some $5 billion last year, and that environmental compliance costs are in the hundreds of billions, Pruitt could get a lot more from them than a Chick-fil-A franchise.

Of course, such behavior could land him in prison — but Trump’s pardon will come through even before the Trump Home Luxury Plush Euro Pillow Top mattress arrives in Pruitt’s cell.

 

[GreyhoundFan]

"EPA spokesman to reporter: ‘You’re a piece of trash’"

Spoiler

It’s just another day at the Environmental Protection Agency, meaning that spokesman Jahan Wilcox told Elaina Plott of the Atlantic, “You have a great day, you’re a piece of trash.”

From all appearances, Plott drew that insult by doing one of the most dastardly things that can be done under President Trump: report unwelcome news. “A top aide to Scott Pruitt, Millan Hupp, resigned from the Environmental Protection Agency, according to a source briefed on the matter and documents reviewed by The Atlantic. Her last day will be Friday,” wrote Plott. The tidbit is significant because the 26-year-old Hupp, director of scheduling and advance for EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, was hovering in her boss’s ethical blind spots — for instance, she was assigned to assist with personal tasks such as searching for housing and finding a used mattress.

Hupp has testified before the House Oversight Committee about her evolving job description. That committee and others might consider turning their focus on Wilcox, who personifies Pruitt’s anti-media attitude. Calling Plott a “piece of trash,” after all, represents only a natural extension of his office’s previous interactions with reporters seeking information from the EPA’s press office. As detailed in a previous post, the history consists, in part, of the following:

• The EPA barred certain outlets from a summit at the EPA building, including an AP reporter: “When the reporter asked to speak to an EPA public-affairs person, the security guards grabbed the reporter by the shoulders and shoved her forcibly out of the EPA building,” reported the AP.
• The EPA used a press release to unleash a personal attack on the AP’s Michael Biesecker for . . . reporting the news.
• The EPA banished Biesecker from its master email list: “He’s more than welcome to visit our website,” said an EPA official.
• The EPA gave this comment to the New York Times for an investigative story: “No matter how much information we give you, you would never write a fair piece. The only thing inappropriate and biased is your continued fixation on writing elitist clickbait trying to attack qualified professionals committed to serving their country.”
• The EPA press office scolded New York Times reporter Eric Lipton as he sought confirmation on personnel news. “If you want to steal work from other outlets and pretend like it’s your own reporting that is your decision,” noted Wilcox.
• The EPA wouldn’t confirm to a Times reporter that Pruitt would be appearing in Hazard, Ky., to announce a major policy initiative.
• The EPA gave this comment to E&E News:

Expect more such examples to pile up. Decades of experience analyzing bureaucracies and the ways of Washington aren’t required to conclude that Wilcox is involved in an enormous cue-taking exercise here. He sees President Trump bashing the media, calling it “fake news”; he sees White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders scolding the media for alleged bogus reporting; he sees the crowds at rallies roaring for media slams; and he sees little incentive to moderate his vile treatment of reporters. Who’s going to brush him back?

After the EPA barred those outlets from the recent summit, Sanders was asked about the agency’s actions. “Certainly we’ll look into the matter. I’ve seen the reports. I know EPA has put out a statement. At this point I’d refer you to them,” she responded.

Thanks, Ms. Sanders, for referring us to people who view us as “trash.”

 

[AmazonGrace]

 

[PraiseDog]

5 hours ago, AmazonGrace said:

 

Poor Scotty, no private dining room at the EPA.  Why not just get his wife to bring Chic-Fil-A to his soundproof booth?