October 18th, 2017 - October 21st, 2017. 338-341 days since the Nov 8, 2016, election of some rich asshole, no.45, and 270-273 days since the Jan 20th inauguration.
the rich asshole Takes Credit For Releasing JFK Files, But The Bill Requiring It Was Passed 25 Years Ago
Saturday morning, the rich asshole was going through his usual routine of drinking six quarts of Red Bull while wistfully flipping through his Ivanka photo albums when a novel idea suddenly occurred to him. He raced to Twitter to let his eager followers know exactly what his plans were as the most powerful man in the world:
That’s right! some rich asshole will finally be opening that presidential book hidden in the Library of Congress (and found by Nicolas Cage) that contains all of the secrets passed down from president to president across the ages to reveal what really happened to JFK.
Just kidding! Despite the fact that he tried to make it sound like it was his idea, and happening only under his authority, it turns out that the “JFK FILES,” as he so loudly put it, were scheduled to be released no later than next Thursday, October 26, 2017. Coincidentally, that date is exactly 25 years to the day after the “President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992” was passed by the 102nd Congress.
Okay, I’m kidding again. Democratic Senator and American hero John Glenn introduced the bill in July of that year — likely while production was wrapping up on some rich asshole’s star cameo in the Hollywood blockbuster “Home Alone 2: Lost In New York.”
Especially relevant in the text of the bill is Section 2, which discusses the reasoning behind Senator Glenn’s proposal of it.
Isn’t it weird, how the rich asshole really emphasized the fact that the “JFK FILES” were “long blocked and classified” and that he was gonna do something about it? I mean, besides the fact that all he’s actually doing is allowing an existing law to, uh, continue to exist and carry out as planned. No, what’s weird is WHO “long blocked and classified” those files. John Glenn (who may or may not know the truth about the moon landing) was kind enough not to name the sitting president he was indicting in this bill for obstructing the files’ release, but the math is pretty simple: From July to October of 1992, the entire time this bill was debated until its passage, the person referred to as “the executive branch” was former president (and even former-er CIA Chief) George H.W. Bush.
A Republican. As usual.
Anyway, thanks, Trumpykins! We really appreciate you, uh, not stopping this thing that was totally going to happen even if you’d been hit by a meteor the day you admitted you were a sexual predator. I wonder how long the presidential records on all the crimes you’ve committed since your inauguration will remain sealed.
Bill Maher Takes Down the rich asshole’s Lying Chief Of Staff In BLISTERING Rebuke (VIDEO)
White House Chief of Staff John Kelly is a Four Star Marine General who gave his son to this nation. That is why it was such a relief when he joined the rich asshole White House. Everyone thought he’d bring order to a dangerously chaotic situation. However, as some rich asshole’s attacks on Rep. Fredrica Wilson (D-FL) in the midst of a Gold Star family’s grief, General Kelly revealed his true colors. Instead of smoothing things over, he escalated the attacks, and actually lied about Rep. Wilson from the White House press podium. Well, one person isn’t having any of this crap: Comedian and host of HBO’s Real Time Bill Maher.
During a blistering statement on his Friday night panel, Maher said of Kelly:
“He smeared and lied. He smeared that congresslady and he lied about it. He was supposed to be the the rich asshole-minder, but now he acts like the rich asshole.”“You can be this guy that everybody says ‘you are the man of unimpeachable integrity,’ or you can take political hit shots and be the hatchet man. You can’t do both.”
Maher is correct. Kelly’s integrity is no longer unimpeachable, because he chose to utter provable lies from the White House press podium and has also chosen not to apologize for it. He defended the indefensible with regards to the rich asshole’s appalling statements to the Myeshia Johnson, the grieving widow of Army Seargent La David Johnson. With that, Kelly smeared something that is supposed to be sacred, and he cannot take that back.
I never thought I’d say this about a man who has given so much to this country – including his own son – but here it is: Shame on you, John Kelly. You’ve disgraced your position with what you have done. You should apologize to Sgt. Johnson’s widow, and to the nation – and then you should resign.
Watch Maher’s remarks below:
the rich asshole continues Twitter attacks on black congresswoman after White House busted for lying about her
President some rich asshole (image via Nicholas Kamm:AFP)
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President some rich asshole continued his attacks on a black congresswoman who called him out for botching a phone call to a grieving widow of a fallen soldier early Saturday morning.
A day after White House reporters challenged the administration over attacks on Rep. Frederika Wilson (D-FL) – which proved to be false — the rich asshole claimed that the black lawmaker was ‘killing the Democrat Party.”
Writing on Twitter, the president tweeted: “I hope the Fake News Media keeps talking about Wacky Congresswoman Wilson in that she, as a representative, is killing the Democrat Party!”
the rich asshole’s attack on the “Fake News Media” is in line with many the rich asshole weekend tweets attacking the media for reporting his misdeeds during the week.
You can see the rich asshole’s Tweet below:
Will Democrats turn the Niger debacle into the rich asshole’s Benghazi?
Will Democrats use Niger as the rich asshole’s Benghazi?
October 20, 2017
Lesley Clark and David Goldstein
McClatchy Washington Bureau
Posted with permission from Tribune Content Agency
WASHINGTON — When four Americans were killed in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012, Republicans moved quickly to pin blame on then-President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Now that four American service members have died in Niger and the Trump administration's slow response has irked even leading Republicans, Democrats are pressing for answers — and could use the incident as Trump's Benghazi.
"We had about 4,000 Benghazi hearings," tweeted Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress, a Democratic think tank. "Why isn't there a single one on the deaths of soldiers in Niger?"
An aggressive strategy to keep a red-hot spotlight on Niger "seems appropriate from a policy point of view, wise from a political point of view, and quite defensible, given the multiple Republican investigations of Benghazi," said Marc Farinella, a Democratic strategist.
"Politically it's important because being the strong man and being the great military leader is one of the few cards, to some degree, that works for Trump — or at least he thinks it works for him — and he'll keep going back to it," Farinella said.
Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Fla., was more explicit. She said flatly the ambush deaths of the four could be Trump's Benghazi. The White House has accused Wilson of politicizing the issue and declined to address her charge
Democratic calls for hearings and probes are mounting. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., a member of the Armed Services Committee, called for "a full and prompt investigation," as well as hearings.
"The administration needs to be much more forthcoming and candid about what American troops are doing there," he said. "Whatever the reason for this tragedy, there are likely larger lessons here that will enable us to avoid tragedies in the future, and that should be our overwhelming objective, not to castigate politically anyone."
Asked if there was reluctance in his party to use Niger for political gain, Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who has called for an investigation, said, "Not this Democrat. I want to know what happened."
In the House, Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., has asked House Foreign Affairs committee chairman Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., for a hearing on the incident.
In a letter, Lieu stopped short of blaming the Trump administration, but said it has failed to put forth a clear-cut strategy for counterterrorism efforts across Africa, "nor has it devoted the necessary resources to empower democratic governments to make progress sustainable, combat radicalization and protect human rights."
What may hold back Democrats most from making Niger into a political flashpoint, though, are some Democrats.
Democrats have been no match for Republicans when it comes to weaponizing issues to reap political benefits. They are not in a good spot now, with Republicans in charge of both chambers.
In 2012, then-Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney accused the Obama administration hours after the incident in Benghazi of sympathizing with the attackers.
Congressional Republicans subsequently conducted multiple investigations into the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi. The final probe lasted more than two years and cost more than $7 million, as GOP lawmakers hoped to find misconduct by Obama, or more significantly Clinton. The inquiries came up empty, but took a toll on Clinton's image.
Democrats were also slow to grasp how damaging the effort to tarnish John Kerry's military record was to the decorated Vietnam veteran's 2004 presidential campaign. And during the recount of the 2000 presidential election, Republican operatives and campaign aides descended on a meeting of Miami-Dade County election canvassers to protest and a riot broke out.
"The reality is Republicans do tend to be better at exploiting issues like this than Democrats," said Farinella, the Democratic strategist. "It's not that Democrats are any less desirous of exploiting issues. But Republicans have been more crafty and effective at it."
Many key Democrats have urged resisting the temptation to use Niger for political gain.
"Benghazi for the Republicans was all about politics," said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., the 2016 Democratic vice presidential nominee. "I've got a kid in the military, I don't care about the politics of stuff like this, but you've got to get to the bottom of it and answer questions."
Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., who chaired the last congressional Benghazi inquiry and now leads the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, cautioned Democrats against political overreach.
"I get that my Democrat friends are obsessed with Benghazi," Gowdy told Fox News. "It's a little early to start drawing the analogy."
Will Fischer, a Marine Corps veteran and director of government relations for the liberal leaning VoteVets, said the group applauds the calls for investigations. He said he's not worried that Democrats will cross a line.
"I don't think anyone can hold a candle to Donald Trump when it comes to exploiting tragedy," he said.
Sarah Sanders just made an absolutely outrageous argument about the media
(CNN)White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said something during her daily press briefing Friday that actually took my breath away.
CBS News' Chip Reid asked Sanders about a factual inaccuracy in White House chief of staff and retired Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly's attack on Florida Democratic Rep. Frederica Wilsonon Thursday. Here's how Sanders responded:
"If you want to go after General Kelly, that is up to you. If you want to get into a debate with a four-star Marine general, I think that is something highly inappropriate.
Just in case you don't get what Sanders is suggesting, it's something like this: General Kelly is a highly decorated soldier. As such, questioning things that he says is "highly inappropriate."
That's not how democracy works. Not at all. In fact, it's the opposite of how democracy works.
Start here: General Kelly's military service and the sacrifices he and his family have made for our country are beyond question. It is impossible to suggest otherwise.
But that military service does not mean that questioning Kelly's statements is wrong or inappropriate. Quite the opposite! Kelly is the chief of staff to the President of the United States. He is, in that role, arguably the second or third most powerful person in the country. A person with that sort of power must be held to account for what he says and how he acts.
That's where the press comes in. We ask questions -- regardless of someone's title or rank. And we expect those questions to be answered because, ultimately, Kelly is a steward of the public trust and the media is the liaison between top-ranking government officials and the populace.
A free and independent media is just what those words, "free" and "independent," mean. A media free and independent enough to question the White House chief of staff -- and, yes, even the President -- when they say something that is not backed up by the facts.
That is what a democracy is. That is what members of the US military and public servants, including Kelly himself, have fought for throughout the decades -- the right of the media to ask questions of even the most powerful person in the country and expect some attempt at an answer. That ability is the linchpin of our democracy and what separates us from authoritarian governments all over the world.
Another remark Sanders made later in the briefing would suggest that her comments about questioning Kelly weren't simply a slip of the tongue.
Asked about the ongoing back-and-forth between the rich asshole/Kelly and Wilson regarding comments the President made to Myeshia Johnson, a woman whose husband, Sgt. La David Johnson, was killed serving in Niger, Sanders said of the story: "It should have ended yesterday after General Kelly's comments. But it didn't. It continued."
First of all, one of the big reasons it continued is because the rich asshole himself tweeted this just before 11 p.m. on Thursday night: "The Fake News is going crazy with wacky Congresswoman Wilson(D), who was SECRETLY on a very personal call, and gave a total lie on content!"
Second of all, this White House -- and no White House ever -- gets to decide when a story is over or when enough questions have been asked.
Yes, Kelly delivered a stirring and moving testimonial to the sacrifices of military families. But he also made a false claim about Wilson hogging credit for the dedication of an FBI building. And as Kelly himself acknowledged, we still don't have all the answers -- or even most of the answers -- about what happened in that ambush in Niger that left four men dead.
I've said it before, but in the wake of Sanders' fundamental misunderstanding of the role the media plays in a democracy, I will say it again: You can not like the media. Hell, you can hate us.
But don't ever make the mistake of believing you or our society would be better off if the government got to dictate to the press what questions are asked of people in power. It wouldn't be.
After Video Refutes Kelly’s Charges, Congresswoman Raises Issue of Race
WASHINGTON — Video of a 2015 speech delivered by Representative Frederica S. Wilson revealed Friday that John F. Kelly, the White House chief of staff, misrepresented her remarks when he accused her of bragging about securing $20 million for a South Florida F.B.I. building and twisting President Barack Obama’s arm.
Ms. Wilson, in an interview on Friday, called Mr. Kelly a liar and hinted strongly that the altercation, prompted by a call from President the rich asshole to the widow of a fallen black soldier, was racially charged.
“The White House itself is full of white supremacists,” she said.
Mr. Kelly, escalating a feud between some rich asshole and Ms. Wilson, had cast the congresswoman on Thursday as a publicity-seeking opportunist. However, the video, released by The Sun Sentinel, a newspaper in South Florida, showed that during her nine-minute speech, Ms. Wilson never took credit for getting the money for the building, only for helping pass legislation naming the building after two fallen federal agents.
She never mentioned pleading with Mr. Obama, and she acknowledged the help of several Republicans, including John A. Boehner, then the House speaker; Representatives Mario Diaz-Balart and Carlos Curbelo; and Senator Marco Rubio.
“I feel very sorry for him because he feels such a need to lie on me and I’m not even his enemy,” Ms. Wilson said of Mr. Kelly. “I just can’t even imagine why he would fabricate something like that. That is absolutely insane. I’m just flabbergasted because it’s very easy to trace.”
While she stopped short of accusing Mr. Kelly, a retired Marine general, of racial animus, she did say that others in the White House are racially biased.
“They are making themselves look like fools. They have no credibility,” she said. “They are trying to assassinate my character, and they are assassinating their own because everything they say is coming out and shown to be a lie.”
some rich asshole and his top aides remained defiant Friday in the face of the escalating criticism about the way he and Mr. Kelly have handled the sensitive subject.
After a late-night tweet on Thursday from some rich asshole in which he called Ms. Wilson “wacky,” aides continued to insist that Mr. Kelly had told the truth when he attacked the congresswoman.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, said on Friday that Mr. Kelly “absolutely” stands by his Thursday remarks.
“General Kelly said he was ‘stunned’ that Representative Wilson made comments at a building dedication honoring slain F.B.I. agents about her own actions in Congress, including lobbying former President Obama on legislation,” Ms. Sanders said in a statement. “As General Kelly pointed out, if you’re able to make a sacred act like honoring American heroes about yourself, you’re an empty barrel.”
Ms. Sanders escalated the messaging a few hours later, when she accused reporters of inappropriately criticizing Mr. Kelly and insisted that Ms. Wilson had been grandstanding during her speech in front of the F.B.I. building in 2015.
“As we say in the South: All hat, no cattle,” Ms. Sanders said. Ms. Wilson is known in the Capitol and in South Florida for her colorful hats.
Ms. Sanders also said, “If you want to get into a debate with a four-star Marine general, I think that’s highly inappropriate.”
The charges and countercharges on Friday veered into the incendiary issue of race. Ms. Wilson is African-American, as is Myeshia Johnson, the widow of Sgt. La David T. Johnson, one of four American soldiers killed in an Oct. 4 ambush in Niger.
Some members of the Congressional Black Caucus echoed Ms. Wilson’s accusations, though other black lawmakers noted that some rich asshole attacks people of all races.
Stacey Plaskett, a Democrat and the Virgin Islands’ delegate to Congress, said she was especially offended that some rich asshole did not seem to know Sergeant Johnson’s name.
“He continually called that fallen soldier ‘your guy’ to his wife. That was his wife,” she said. “It was almost as if he doesn’t believe that we have husbands and wives as black people. And that I find very disturbing, that he would not give her the respect of calling that soldier her husband.”
“I think he challenges anybody who goes after him and corrects him, whether they are black or white or male or female,” she continued. “I think the attack is more stark when it is a woman of color.”
The issue exploded this week when Ms. Wilson went public to say that in a condolence call to Ms. Johnson, some rich asshole had said that Sergeant Johnson “knew what he signed up for.” some rich asshole flatly declared that Ms. Wilson’s account was fabricated, but on Thursday, when Mr. Kelly defended the president, he did not refute Ms. Wilson’s account.
Instead, he accused her of turning Sergeant Johnson’s death into a political stunt.
Mr. Kelly said he and the congresswoman were both at the 2015 ceremony for a new F.B.I. building in Miami that was named after Benjamin P. Grogan and Jerry L. Dove, agents who were killed in a 1986 shootout. Mr. Kelly said Ms. Wilson had taken credit for getting the funding for the building. Ms. Wilson’s congressional district includes parts of Miami.
“And we were stunned — stunned that she’d done it,” Mr. Kelly said. “Even for someone that is that empty a barrel, we were stunned.”
During the April 2015 dedication ceremony for the building that houses the F.B.I.’s South Florida operations, Ms. Wilson spoke about how quickly she was able to get a bill through the typically slow and bureaucratic Congress.
“It is a miracle to say the least,” Ms. Wilson said of the swift legislative action. But, she said, the quick passage shows how much respect Congress has for the F.B.I.
“Most men and women in law enforcement leave their homes for work knowing that there is a possibility they may not return,” Ms. Wilson said.
A White House spokesman on Friday said it stood by Mr. Kelly’s account of her remarks.
In a Twitter post late on Thursday, some rich asshole said that Ms. Wilson was “SECRETLY on a very personal call,” and “gave a total lie” about what he had said.
Ms. Wilson, a friend of the Johnson family, was in a limousine with the family waiting at Miami International Airport to meet Sergeant Johnson’s coffin when some rich asshole called. Ms. Wilson heard the call because it was on a speakerphone.
BY JOSH DELK - 10/20/17 04:57 PM EDT
"I have tremendous respect for the military but the notion that no one can even question the statements of generals is un-American," said Tapper in reference to comments Sanders made at a press briefing earlier Friday, where she defended the since-debunked claims of White House chief of staff Gen. John Kelly.
.@PressSec: "If you want to get into a debate with a 4-star Marine general, I think that's something highly inappropriate"
In what country?
Sanders told reporters at the briefing that "if you want to get into a debate with a 4-star Marine general, I think that's something highly inappropriate."
"In what country?" Tapper asked in another tweet.
.@PressSec: "If you want to get into a debate with a 4-star Marine general, I think that's something highly inappropriate"
In what country?
In what country?
The press secretary's comments came in defense of Kelly's false statement that a Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) had taken credit for the funding that led to the construction of a Miami FBI field office, calling her an "empty barrel."
Kelly was defending President the rich asshole's handling of a phone callwith the mother of a fallen U.S. soldier who was killed in Niger, after both the mother and Wilson, who claimed to have overheard the phone call, said that the rich asshole had been disrespectful to the grieving family.
Tapper is CNN's chief Washington correspondent and author of "The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor," which details a deadly encounter between U.S. soldiers and Taliban forces in Afghanistan and the later questioning of the Pentagon over the purpose of the soldiers' operations there.
the rich asshole Gets His Ass Handed To Him By British Lawmakers For Lying About Rising Crime Rate In UK
some rich asshole stuck his foot in his mouth again and pissed off our closest ally.
A recent report indicates that the crime rate is rising in the United Kingdom due to gang-related activities and hate crimes against Muslims.
Of course, rather than read the report to understand it, the rich asshole took to Twitter to bellow about how “radical Islamic terror” is the cause and seemed to promote his Muslim ban as the way to “keep America safe!”
the rich asshole’s ridiculously uninformed commentary on the crime rate in the United Kingdom did not go over very well with British lawmakers, who promptly humiliated the rich asshole with facts.
Labour Party MP Chris Bryant told the rich asshole to back off and reminded him that America has a massive gun violence problem.
“Butt out of it mister president,” Bryant said. “You have more murders in New York or Chicago every year than we do in the whole country so we’re not going to take any lessons from you.”
Labour Party MP Stephen Doughty chimed in by telling the Daily Mail that the rich asshole is “talking nonsense” and also took aim at the rich asshole for not doing anything to stop mass shootings in America.
“some rich asshole would be better placed looking at issues in his own country such as the huge number of deaths from gun violence which despite repeated atrocities from Sandy Hook to Las Vegas, the US government have failed to take action on,” Doughty said.
Liberal Democrat MP Jo Swinson slammed the rich asshole as well, and went so far as to blame the rich asshole’s xenophobia for the rise in hate crimes.
“Hate crime is up and it is fueled by the kind of populist xenophobia you peddle,” she said.
Needless to say, the British people were not happy about the rich asshole’s comments either.
Once again, the rich asshole made a fool of himself and demonstrated why America is a joke on the international stage.
Political analyst: John Kelly was ‘grasping at straws’ with FBI building attack on Rep. Wilson
Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-FL (Screen capture)
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New York Times writer and MSNBC political analyst Nick Confessore took exception to White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders’ contention at Friday’s press briefing that reporters shouldn’t question White House Chief of Staff John Kelly’s word because he is a “former four-star general.”
On Thursday, after giving a moving account of losing his son, Kelly launched a vicious personal attack against Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL). The retired general called Wilson an “empty barrel” that “makes the most noise” even as he seemed to corroborate her version of events with regard to the rich asshole’s call to the widow of fallen U.S. Army Green Beret La David Johnson.
Confessore pointed out that the video from the 2015 event described by Kelly does not remotely resemble Kelly’s account. Kelly accused Wilson of grandstanding and interrupting the solemn occasion of an FBI building’s dedication to two fallen agents to boast about her fundraising prowess.
“He is a former four-star general but he’s a current chief of staff at the White House,” said Confessore. “He led a press briefing yesterday” — meaning Kelly set aside the mantle of nonpartisan general when he became a political operative and did the president’s bidding by carrying out a political hit on Wilson.
“His account is in dispute,” Confessore said. “You know, I watched that video and I saw a pretty routine dedication ceremony where the local politicians from the district hand out some love to their colleagues and talk about how it got done. It did not seem particularly self-aggrandizing to me, certainly not by the standards of Washington.”
He concluded, “It seemed like a pretty typical ceremony and it seems like Kelly is grasping at straws to try to get some way to discredit this congresswoman.”
Watch the video, embedded below:
‘Military Dictatorships for Dummies’: Internet appalled after Huckabee Sanders says generals can’t be questioned
Sarah Sanders appears on Fox News (screen grab)
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Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Friday made a stunning remark about the appropriateness of questioning a four star Marine general, lambasting members of the press for pointing out Gen. John Kelly mischaracterized a 2015 speech by Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL).
“If you want to go after General Kelly, that’s up to you,” Sanders said during Friday’s press briefing. “If you want to get into a debate with the four-star Marine general, I think that’s something highly inappropriate. Go ahead.”
That comment shocked the Internet on Friday, with users pointing out her remarks were more indicative of a dictatorship than America’s constitutional democracy.
Someone’s been thumbing through “Military Dictatorships for Dummies” twitter.com/abcpolitics/st…
"...debate with a 4 Star Marine General. I think that's highly inappropriate," said stooge working for man infamous for vilifying military. twitter.com/NBCNightlyNews…
That 5 star general can go fuck himself.
Military achievement doesn't negate using power to shit on Black women. twitter.com/RegulatoryHell…
when the former general is lying and shilling for a lying president, we will question, poke, probe and expose. We will do what it takes. twitter.com/matthewjdowd/s…
I went in scared. I thought "Ok I know this guy is pure evil but he's probably an evil genius" Within 5 seconds I realized he's a mediocrity
Perhaps not coincidentally, the inability of our elected officials and their staff to disagree with generals is a big reason our defense budget is more than the next eight countries combined. twitter.com/joshtpm/status…
Does Kelly's identity as a retired general prevent him from having to answer questions about why he misrepresented a Congresswoman's words? twitter.com/JohnJHarwood/s…
wow so shocking Kelly's a lying sack of shit
I mean sure he serves a lying sack of shit every day
but he's a general
so confusing! twitter.com/ddale8/status/…
⁽ˢᵏᵉᶫᵉᵗᵒᶰ⁾I don't know how it works in America but in my country I can also question a general. Not just some guy in a bad suit. twitter.com/CarlPrinetweet…
@SarahHuckabee is so fucking trash. To use Kelly's military status to make him above reproach for his deceitful mysogynoir is pathetic. twitter.com/NBCNightlyNews…
A 4-star general is not above criticism. John Kelly lied and he deserves to be called out. twitter.com/elistokols/sta…
KELLY IS ALSO IN A CIVILIAN POSITION NOW. THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT. THAT'S WHY YOU DON'T APPOINT GENERALS TO THESE POSITIONS. twitter.com/jaketapper/sta…
White House claims reporters shouldn’t criticize four-star generals — but the rich asshole’s old tweets disagree
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As many have noted, there’s a the rich asshole tweet for everything.
After the White House claimed it is “highly inappropriate” to criticize four-star generals when a reporter asked questions critical of Chief of Staff John Kelly, old tweets sent by some rich asshole criticizing generals he disagreed with have resurfaced.
“General John Allen, who I never met but spoke against me last night, failed badly in his fight against ISIS. His record = BAD#NeverHillary,” the rich asshole tweeted on July 29, 2016, The Hill noted.
He also took aim at another retired four-star general — former Secretary of State Colin Powell — in September of last year.
“I was never a fan of Colin Powell after his weak understanding of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq = disaster,” the rich asshole tweeted on September 4, 2016. “We can do much better!”
‘He was wrong’: Reporters corner Huckabee Sanders as she claims it’s ‘highly inappropriate’ to question Kelly
Journalists corner Sarah Huckabee Sanders (Screengrab)
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Journalists at the press briefing on Friday gilled White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders over Gen. John Kelly’s assertion that Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL) boasted about raising money during an FBI dedication ceremony in 2015, noting the president’s chief of staff “was wrong” when he made that claim.”
Referencing a video that proves Kelly’s characterization of Wilson’s remarks were incorrect, a reporter asked if “General Kelly still [stands] by the statement he made yesterday that he felt she was grand standing.”
“Absolutely,” Sanders remarked, iterating comments Kelly made Thursday during his surprise press briefing.
“Have you seen the speech?” the reporter pressed.
“I have,” she replied.
“Then you know most of it it was for her effusively praising these FBI agents,” he said, noting Wilson “was talking about naming the building after these FBI agents who she then went on to effusively praise.”
The reporter later asked if Kelly “will he come out and talk to us about this.”
Sanders shot back that the chief of staff addressed it enough during his press conference Thursday.
“He was wrong yesterday,” the reporter explained, prompting Sanders to assert it’s “highly inappropriate” for reporters to question the truthfulness of Kelly’s comments.
“If you want to go after General Kelly, that’s up to you,” Sanders said. “If you want to get into a debate with the four-star Marine general, I think that’s something highly inappropriate. Go ahead.”
Fellow reporters later followed up, confronting Sanders over Kelly’s comments.
Watch below:
BUSTED: Newly surfaced video from 2015 proves Kelly’s smear of Rep. Wilson was wrong on the facts
Rep. Frederica Wilson (MSNBC)
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A newly surfaced video of Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL) talking at the dedication ceremony of a new FBI building shows that White House Chief of Staff John Kelly was wrong when he accused her of not paying proper respects to two fallen FBI agents.
During a White House press briefing on Thursday, Kelly described how Wilson boasted about her work securing the money for the Miramar FBI building, which was dedicated to two slain agents who died during a 1986 shootout. After boasting about getting the money for the building, Kelly said, Wilson simply sat down, leaving many people in the room “stunned.”
However, a new video posted by the Sun-Sentinel shows that Kelly did not tell the entire story about Wilson’s speech.
Although Wilson did tell the audience the story of how she and other colleagues in Congress — including then-House Speaker John Boehner and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) — worked to get an expedited funding bill passed for the building, she did not simply sit down afterward.
Rather, she paid tribute to the two FBI agents who were killed, while describing them as brave individuals who “died valiantly.” She then encouraged all men and women in the room who worked in law enforcement to stand up so that they could be recognized and applauded by the crowd.
“Stand up!” she said. “We are proud of you!”
Winston Chruchill’s grandson thinks some rich asshole is a ‘daft twerp’
Composite image of President some rich asshole and former U.K. Prime Minister Winston Churchill
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Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s grandson slammed U.S. President some rich asshole on Twitter Friday, calling the rich asshole a “daft twerp” for his comments blaming Islamic immigrants for crime in Britain.
According to The Hill, Nicholas Soames — grandson of the World War II-era prime minister and current conservative member of Parliament — was responding to an early morning tweet from the rich asshole that said, “Just out report: “United Kingdom crime rises 13% annually amid spread of Radical Islamic terror.” Not good, we must keep America safe!”
Soames’ reply was curt and to the point, “#Thenfixguncontrolyoudafttwerp.”
The prime minister’s grandson is not the only Briton to lash out of the rich asshole after his anti-Islamic tweet. Many U.K. social media users lambasted the rich asshole, urging him to “butt out” of things he doesn’t understand.
Joy Reid warns the rich asshole and Kelly: Rep. Wilson is the wrong woman of color to make your new scapegoat
Composite image of President some rich asshole and Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-FL
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MSNBC’s Joy Reid spoke out to defend Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL) from the political attacks launched against her by President some rich asshole and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, saying, “Frederica Wilson is no liar” in an op-ed column for The Daily Beast.
‘This is the rich asshole era’: the rich asshole fan tells lesbians that the 2016 election means they should stop being gay
A the rich asshole supporter accosts two young women for being gay (Screen cap).
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A rich asshole supporter was caught on camera harassing two young gay women — and he used President some rich asshole’s election last year to justify his insistence that they should stop being gay.
Via Pink News, couple Jessica Lundquist and Tiffany Steinberg were minding their own business and holding hands when a man approached them and informed them that they were going to hell.
In addition to damning them to an eternity of torment, the man also informed them that their relationship was “abnormal,” while also claiming that the couple had obvious “issues with men.”
When Steinberg objected and said that most people didn’t share his homophobic views anymore, the man pointed to the rich asshole’s election to prove that she was wrong.
“This is the rich asshole era and you’re going to see a whole lot of things changing,” he insisted.
Steinberg then turned to the camera and directly addressed her viewers.
“Oh my God you guys, this guy needs serious help,” she said.
“You didn’t think [the rich asshole] was going to win!” the man yelled at them as they tried to walk away.
‘Butt out’: British hammer the rich asshole for falsely claiming UK crime rise caused by ‘radical Islamic terror’
some rich asshole speaks to CBS News (screen grab)
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President some rich asshole on Friday falsely claimed that a recent rise in crime in the United Kingdom was because of the country’s refusal to fight “radical Islamic terror.”
“Just out report: ‘United Kingdom crime rises 13% annually amid spread of Radical Islamic terror,'” the rich asshole wrote on Twitter Friday. “Not good, we must keep America safe!”
However, as the Telegraph notes, much of the violent crime spike is due to increased gang-related activities, and not because of Islamist terrorism.
Given the rich asshole’s botched interpretation of the data, many U.K. politicians were quick to slam the president for making faulty assumptions that further revealed his own ignorance.
“Butt out of it mister president,” Labour Party MP Chris Bryant said, per the Daily Mail. “You have more murders in New York or Chicago every year than we do in the whole country so we’re not going to take any lessons from you.”
Labour MP Stephen Doughty, meanwhile, told the Daily Mail that the rich asshole is “talking nonsense about issues he doesn’t understand.”
“some rich asshole would be better paced looking at issues in his own country such as the huge number of deaths from gun violence which despite repeated atrocities from Sandy Hook to Las Vegas, the US government have failed to take action on,” Doughty added.
And Liberal Democrat MP Jo Swinson told the Mail that the rich asshole was once again using bad information to stoke hatred of Muslims.
“Hate crime is up and it is fueled by the kind of populist xenophobia you peddle,” she said.
the rich asshole doubles down on attacks against Rep. Wilson for ‘secretly’ listening to his call with fallen soldier family
(Photo: Michael Vadon/Wikipedia)
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President some rich asshole doubled down in his attacks on Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL) for somehow nefariously listening into the call between him and the family of Sgt. La David Johnson.
Both the family and Wilson released statements that refute the rich asshole’s take on the call. Wilson is a close friend of the Johnson family and had the late Sgt. La David Johnson in a leadership class as a child. She’s known him for more than 15 years. The Master Sergeant with the family riding to the airport to retrieve the body was the one who received the call. He put it on speakerphone so that the all in the car could hear the call.
The soldier’s mother confirmed the Congresswoman’s account of the situation. Rather than attack the family of a fallen soldier, however, the rich asshole has chosen to attack a Democratic Congresswoman, calling her “wacky” in his Thursday tweet.
Gen. John Kelly, who addressed the issue to the press Thursday, did not contest the account by the Congresswoman or the family, and also attacked her for being on the call.
the rich asshole’s problem with the NFL comes down to ‘jealousy,’ says Jaguars owner
Tom Roddy
Posted with permission from Newsweek
President Donald Trump’s attack on the NFL is down to a long held jealousy he has for the league after failing to buy the Buffalo Bills in 2014, the Jacksonville Jaguars owner says.
Shahid Khan, a self-made billionaire who immigrated to the United States from Pakistan, bought the Jaguars in 2011 for $760 million. He believes that Trump’s criticism of the NFL over the past month—for players protesting during the national anthem—is down to bitterness.
“This is a very personal issue with him,” Khan told USA Today. “He’s been elected president, where maybe a great goal he had in life to own an NFL team is not very likely. So to make it tougher, or to hurt the league, it’s very calculated.”
In September 2015, Trump was among a cast of suitors to buy the franchise, which eventually went to Terry Pegula. “I bid a billion dollars, all cash on the table,” Trump told Sports Illustrated in September 2015. “He [Pegula] bought it for a billion-two, I believe, although they say it was a billion-four. I think he got it for a billion‑two.”
Related: Trump’s not giving up on his fight with the NFL just yet
Trump’s favorite form of communication, his Twitter account, showed how the snub had hurt him. “Even though I refused to pay a ridiculous price for the Buffalo Bills, I would have produced a winner,” Trump wrote. “Now that won’t happen.”
Trump's assault on the league began last month at a rally in Alabama. It came after players started kneeling during the national anthem as a protest against the social inequality and treatment of black people across the country—begun by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick during the 2016 preseason.
“Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that son of a bitch off the field right now! Out! He's fired'?” Trump said. The words backfired, though, as an increasing number of players, owners and coaching staff supported the protest—Khan linked arms with his players during the national anthem at Wembley Stadium in London the following day.
The only franchise owner to acquiesce Trump was Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who said: “If there’s anything that is disrespectful to the flag, then we will not play.”
But Khan believes there is a deeper reason for the president’s criticism. “Let’s get real," he said. “The attacks on Muslims, the attacks on minorities, the attacks on Jews. I think the NFL doesn’t even come close to that on the level of being offensive. Here, it’s about money, or messing with—trying to soil a league or a brand that he’s jealous of.”
But Trump, evidently, won’t give up. On Wednesday, he responded to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s words that the NFL would not force players to stand via social media. “The NFL has decided that it will not force players to stand for the playing of our National Anthem,” he wrote on Twitter. “Total disrespect for our great country!”
Shahid Khan, a self-made billionaire who immigrated to the United States from Pakistan, bought the Jaguars in 2011 for $760 million. He believes that Trump’s criticism of the NFL over the past month—for players protesting during the national anthem—is down to bitterness.
“This is a very personal issue with him,” Khan told USA Today. “He’s been elected president, where maybe a great goal he had in life to own an NFL team is not very likely. So to make it tougher, or to hurt the league, it’s very calculated.”
In September 2015, Trump was among a cast of suitors to buy the franchise, which eventually went to Terry Pegula. “I bid a billion dollars, all cash on the table,” Trump told Sports Illustrated in September 2015. “He [Pegula] bought it for a billion-two, I believe, although they say it was a billion-four. I think he got it for a billion‑two.”
Related: Trump’s not giving up on his fight with the NFL just yet
Trump’s favorite form of communication, his Twitter account, showed how the snub had hurt him. “Even though I refused to pay a ridiculous price for the Buffalo Bills, I would have produced a winner,” Trump wrote. “Now that won’t happen.”
Trump's assault on the league began last month at a rally in Alabama. It came after players started kneeling during the national anthem as a protest against the social inequality and treatment of black people across the country—begun by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick during the 2016 preseason.
“Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that son of a bitch off the field right now! Out! He's fired'?” Trump said. The words backfired, though, as an increasing number of players, owners and coaching staff supported the protest—Khan linked arms with his players during the national anthem at Wembley Stadium in London the following day.
The only franchise owner to acquiesce Trump was Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who said: “If there’s anything that is disrespectful to the flag, then we will not play.”
But Khan believes there is a deeper reason for the president’s criticism. “Let’s get real," he said. “The attacks on Muslims, the attacks on minorities, the attacks on Jews. I think the NFL doesn’t even come close to that on the level of being offensive. Here, it’s about money, or messing with—trying to soil a league or a brand that he’s jealous of.”
But Trump, evidently, won’t give up. On Wednesday, he responded to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s words that the NFL would not force players to stand via social media. “The NFL has decided that it will not force players to stand for the playing of our National Anthem,” he wrote on Twitter. “Total disrespect for our great country!”
Kelly caught off guard when the rich asshole mentioned Obama didn’t call after his son died: report
BY REBECCA SAVRANSKY - 10/19/17 10:11 AM EDT
White House chief of staff John Kelly reportedly didn't know President the rich asshole would publicize the fact that Kelly didn't receive a call from former President Obama after his son died in Afghanistan.
Kelly told the rich asshole ahead of an interview Tuesday that Obama didn't call him after his son died, multiple White House officials told CNN.
the rich asshole then used that information during the interview, when he was asked about his claim a day earlier that past presidents, including Obama, didn't call the families of fallen soldiers.
"As far as other representatives, I don't know, I mean you could ask Gen. Kelly, did he get a call from Obama?"
Kelly, a retired Marine general, was not expecting the rich asshole to bring that up publicly, according to CNN.
When asked about the comments Wednesday during the White House press briefing, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said she didn't know if the rich asshole warned Kelly before bringing up his son in the interview.
"I think that Gen. Kelly is disgusted by the way that this has been politicized and that the focus has become on the process and not the fact that American lives were lost," Sanders said.
"I think he's disgusted and frustrated by that," she said. "If he has any anger, it's towards that."
Kelly's son, Marine 2nd Lt. Robert Kelly, was killed in Afghanistan in 2010. A White House official confirmed to The Hill that John Kelly did not receive a call from Obama at the time.
Obama hosted Kelly at a breakfast for Gold Star families about six months after his son died, according to The Associated Press.
the rich asshole on budget: ‘I think we have the votes, but who knows?’
BY OLIVIA BEAVERS - 10/19/17 07:27 AM EDT
President the rich asshole on Thursday said he thinks there is enough to support in the Senate to pass its 2018 budget resolution, a key step toward tax reform, but added, "who knows?"
"Republicans are going for the big Budget approval today, first step toward massive tax cuts. I think we have the votes, but who knows?" he tweeted.
Republicans are going for the big Budget approval today, first step toward massive tax cuts. I think we have the votes, but who knows?
The Senate takes up the budget on Thursday with a free-wheeling “vote-a-rama” marathon in which there are less restrictions on amendments.
Otherwise, tax reform would need 60 votes, which would make the GOP proposal's passage much less likely as it would need to pull support from all Republican lawmakers as well as some Democrats.
the rich asshole’s Council of Economic Advisers released a paper on Monday arguing that the GOP proposal to cut the corporate tax rate would help working families by increasing average household incomes by $4,000 to $9,000 annually
“We want to make sure that the middle class is the biggest beneficiary of the tax cuts and tax reform,” the rich asshole told reporters on Monday.
“It's a middle-class bill. That's what we're thinking of. That's what I want,” the president continued.
After a Florida congresswoman exposed the rich asshole’s disgusting treatment of a bereaved military wife, Fox News tried to smear her record on supporting veterans. It failed.
Rep. Frederica Wilson
MSNBC
Ever since Florida Rep. Frederica Wilson released the details of some rich asshole’s callous, insulting phone call in which he told bereaved, pregnant Army wife Myeshia Johnson that her husband “signed up” to die, she has become a target for the rich asshole and his right-wing allies, even receiving death threats.
Fox News in particular has savaged Wilson. Tomi Lahren dismissed her as “crazy,” despite the fact that Johnson’s mother backed up Wilson’s account of the rich asshole’s call. Sean Hannity, meanwhile, called Wilson “vicious” and “sick.”
Fox’s most absurd attack, however, came from a written article on their website by reporter Lukas Mikelionis, claiming Wilson is “no friend of veterans.”
“Wilson’s voting record on veterans issues may call into question the sincerity of her recent defense of U.S. service members and their families,” Mikelionis writes.
However, if you actually follow his link, you find a laughably cherry-picked list of bills.
For one, Mikelionis is counting several bills that would have exempted funding for veterans’ benefits from government shutdowns or threatened shutdowns — which were all perpetrated by Republicans. Those bills would not have been necessary if Republican lawmakers had not refused to fund the government on schedule.
Also on the list are several iterations of Republican “VA whistleblower” bills that would have completely eliminated civil service protections, and a bill that would have allowed veterans deemed mentally incompetent to buy firearms.
By contrast, Mikelionis overlooks all the bills to actually help veterans that Wilson supported. She voted for the bill to reform the VA at the height of the waiting list scandal. She also cosponsored dozens of bills from both parties to improve veterans’ health care, pensions, housing, employment, and education.
Among the bills she cosponsored were the Voices for Veterans Act, the Reducing Barriers for Veterans Education Act, the Disabled Veterans Tax Termination Act, the Help Hire our Heroes Act, the GI Education Benefit Fairness Act, the Veterans Mental Health Accessibility Act, the Shelter Our Servicemembers Act, the Veterans Pension Protections Act, and the Military Family Leave Act.
The idea that attacking Wilson on her legislative support for veterans would in any way exuse the rich asshole’s behavior to military families is ridiculous. But Fox News could not even do its homework on Wilson’s record while attempting to make that case.
some rich asshole releases ‘Stand for the National Anthem Petition’ in response to NFL protests
some rich asshole is continuing his attack on players who protest during the national anthem.
(POOL/GETTY IMAGES)
President the rich asshole and Vice President Mike Pence released a petition demanding all players and fans stand for the national anthem and emailed supporters asking for signatures Thursday, according to the GOP's website.
"The President has asked for a list of supporters who stand for the National Anthem. Add your name below to show your patriotism and support," the petition reads before asking for your name, email and zip code.
The petition comes just one day after the rich asshole criticized the NFL for not passing a rule that would penalize players who don't stand for the anthem.)
"The NFL has decided that it will not force players to stand for the playing of our National Anthem. Total disrespect for our great country!" the rich asshole tweeted early Wednesday morning.
While Roger Goodell said he believes everyone "should" stand for the anthem, the league will not mandate players to do so after meeting with owners, players and union representatives Tuesday.
In a later tweet, the rich asshole suggested action needed to be taken in response to the large number of players who continue to protest during the national anthem.
The NFL and NFLPA released a statement Tuesday describing the meeting as “productive” and a step in the right direction to "promote positive social change and address inequality."
the rich asshole has harshly criticized players who refuse to stand for the anthem, previously stating at a rally in late September owners need to "get that son of a bitch off the field."
As of Wednesday evening, neither the NFL nor the NFLPA has released a statement addressing the rich asshole’s petition.
Gold Star mom who was consoled by Obama: I “would’ve hung up on” the rich asshole
OCTOBER 19, 2017
the rich asshole's insulting phone call to a grieving Army widow has other Gold Star families outraged.
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
When Christina Ayube’s son, Sgt. James Ayube, was killed by an insurgent using an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan in December 2010, she was consoled by her president.
“President Obama was there when the remains returned to Dover and he saluted his casket,” she told the Sentinel. “I got a letter and a personal note from him later.”
Ayube is appalled at the way some rich asshole has treated other grieving military families, particularly the insulting phone call he made to Myeshia Johnson, the young widow of Sgt. La David T. Johnson.
“I probably would have hung up on him,” Ayube said.
the rich asshole told the Johnson family that the young man knew what he was getting into when he “signed up” with the service. Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL), who was with the family at the time, criticized the rich asshole for his callousness and was attacked by the rich asshole, who accused her of fabricating the details of the conversation. A day later, his chief of staff, John Kelly, confirmed Wilson’s account, even while attacking her.
“I somewhat hoped when this president took office he would realize the gravity of his job and wouldn’t act so juvenile,” Ayube said. “It’s either he has no empathy or he just thinks he’s above us all and we’re here for his pleasure.”
Four Americans died while serving in Niger in a surprise attack from what is believed to be ISIS elements. For nearly two weeks, the rich asshole ignored their deaths. Since being forced by the media to address the deadly attack, he has lashed out, lied, deflected, and turned this tragedy into a disgraceful spectacle.
As Karen Meredith, another Gold Star mother, said this week, the rich asshole has once again managed to make the story all about him.
“some rich asshole, stop. Please, just stop,” she said. “For once in your life, please stop making everything about you. For once in your life, at least pretend to know what empathy is. For once in your life, at least try to care about other people and their feelings.”
As the rich asshole and his White House engage in a full-blown assault on the Florida congresswoman, in an attempt to deflect from his own mishandling of the last two weeks, it is clear that the rich asshole will not heed any such advice.
Meanwhile, serious questions are being raised about the process the rich asshole used to authorize and execute the Niger mission. Members of Congress believe they are being stonewalled and are demanding to know details, while Americans are disgusted by the rich asshole’s callous attitude toward deceased soldiers.
· Cork Gaines 10-19-17
President some rich asshole at an NFL game in 2010. Jim Rogash/Getty Images
· President some rich asshole is still going after the NFL over anthem protests.
· Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan said the rich asshole is "jealous" of NFL and his attacks are "personal."
· Adam Shefter said other NFL owners feel the rich asshole's attacks are a personal vendetta.
President some rich asshole went after the NFL again on Wednesday tweeting, "The NFL has decided that it will not force players to stand for the playing of our National Anthem. Total disrespect for our great country!"
This was after a recent meeting between the NFL and its players in which the anthem protests were discussed, but no change was made to force the players to stand.
Now comes multiple reports that NFL owners believe the rich asshole is just waging a personal vendetta over not being allowed into the NFL fraternity.
In an interview with Jarrett Bell of USA Today, Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan, described the rich asshole's attacks on the NFL as a "personal issue."
"This is a very personal issue with him," Khan told USA Today. "He’s been elected President, where maybe a great goal he had in life to own an NFL team is not very likely... So to make it tougher, or to hurt the league, it’s very calculated."
the rich asshole famously went to war with the NFL in the 1980s as an owner in the now-defunct USFL. More recently however, the rich asshole was one of three bidders for the Buffalo Bills when they were for sale in 2014. He was always considered a longshot and eventually lost out to Terry Pegula, who also owns the NHL's Buffalo Sabres.
According to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter, Khan is not the only owner who feels that way about the rich asshole.
"Shad Khan is not the only owner who feels that way," Shefter said on ESPN Radio. "I have had other owners say the exact same thing to me."
Schefter said he made calls to "people in Washington" who said they did not believe it to be true. However, the owners do believe that the rich asshole is angry at the NFL, in general, and Commissioner Roger Goodell, specifically.
"I can tell you that there are other owners who believe that part of the reason that the rich asshole is gone after the NFL as aggressively as he has is because he believes Roger Goodell had a hand in preventing him from buying the Buffalo Bills back when they were for sale," Schefter said. "And because he has not been included in that ownership fraternity, he is now waging his own little vendetta against the NFL."
Khan went even further, telling USA Today that the rich asshole is "jealous" of the NFL.
"Let’s get real. The attacks on Muslims, the attacks on minorities, the attacks on Jews. I think the NFL doesn’t even come close to that on the level of being offensive. Here, it’s about money, or messing with — trying to soil a league or a brand that he’s jealous of."
The island doesn't need new loans. It needs competent hurricane relief.
Armando Valdés Prieto is a lawyer and political consultant and a former director of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico's Office of Management and Budget. In that capacity, he was also the governor's authorized representative to the Federal Emergency Management Authority.
Only one notable deviation from this narrative stands out. While on his official trip to the island, Some rich asshole told Fox News correspondent Geraldo Rivera that Puerto Rican governments “owe a lot of money to your friends on Wall Street, and we’re going to have to wipe that out. You can say goodbye to that.” Hours later, the White House was back on track: “I wouldn’t take it word for word,” said Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget.
A week later, congressional Republicans unveiled a relief plan that would only add to the island’s debt load.
The disjointed thread of off-the-cuff commentary Some rich asshole has issued in real time and on social media since the storm reveals either the president’s profound ignorance or his deep-seated prejudices. He seems fully unaware of the United States’ history of involvement in Puerto Rico; the nation took the island as booty after the Spanish-American War in 1898 and made us citizens without consulting our forebears in 1917, just one month before the country’s entry into World War I. For decades, the U.S. military was here — seemingly forever — using two small but inhabited islands as live ordnance ranges for the Navy. Some rich asshole, however, seems to believe that Puerto Rico is a foreign jurisdiction and hence, in his mind, U.S. tax dollars should not be spent to prop up the island’s fragile health-care system nor to save lives and rebuild in the aftermath of a major hurricane.
But if he is in fact aware of our standing as citizens — which he certainly should be — then perhaps he is simply treating Puerto Ricans as he has women, other Latinos, African Americans, Muslims, people with disabilities and any number of other groups.
Unfortunately, the administration’s actions have been entirely consistent with the president’s disdainful remarks. The federal government’s response has been lethargic. Last week, I interviewed the Aqueduct and Sewer Authority president on San Juan radio station NotiUno. He informed me that of 150 backup generators he had requested from the Federal Emergency Management Agency on the day of the storm to keep potable water flowing into homes, only 17 had been installed in the 20 days that followed. So never mind Some rich asshole’s statement on Monday that “Puerto Rico now has more generators, I believe, than any place in the world. There are generators all over the place.”
Worst of all is how Washington is adding to Puerto Rico’s debt burden, even after Some rich asshole’s confounding remarks about it. Congress is moving to approve legislation that, although it does provide some money for recovery, includes a $4.9 billion loan to shore up the island’s liquidity. Otherwise, due to long-standing fiscal problems and the near-total collapse of the economy since the hurricane, the commonwealth and some local governments are expected to run out of money in the next few weeks.
Nonetheless, even with the loan, Puerto Rico’s nonvoting representative in Congress, Jenniffer González-Colón (R), stated that the government would only be able to sustain its operations through the end of this year. So while the money is needed, the fact that it must eventually be paid back and that it is only a very short-term fix complicates future prospects and ignores deep-seated problems that need careful attention now. With over $70 billion in debt, no reasonable means to pay it down, a dwindling population, a devastated economy and a shrinking tax base, sending this loan our way is like throwing a drowning man a gallon of water and expecting him to use it as a flotation device.
Sadly, that is what Puerto Rico has become: an island drowning in an ocean — “a very big ocean,” to quote the president — of debt, incompetence and indifference.
Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló used his meeting at the White House to tell some rich asshole to his face exactly what the residents of his island really need.
CNN
The governor of Puerto Rico told some rich asshole to his face that residents of the island must be treated “the same as citizens” of hurricane ravaged states, while the rich asshole continues to fail with recovery efforts.
Gov. Ricardo Rosselló traveled to the White House as Puerto Rico is still in the midst of a major humanitarian crisis. Over 80 percent of the electrical grid is still not functioning, 28 percent of the people lack running water, nearly half of sewage-treatment plants are not working, and cell phone signals are unavailable to 40 percent of the population.
After Rosselló spoke, and despite the ample evidence to the contrary, the rich asshole said his administration should be given “a 10” and an “A+” for its response to the hurricane there. Americans disagree, and have rated the rich asshole’s response lower than George W. Bush after Katrina.
ROSELLÓ: I’m confident that with your commitments, and with your support, Mr. President — with your team’s support — we will be able to come out of this in the long haul, together with Puerto Rico. Give the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico the adequate resources, treat us the same as citizens in Texas and Florida and elsewhere, and we will come out of this stronger.
the rich asshole completely mishandled the response to the hurricane in Puerto Rico, and insulted and derided the American island the entire time. Instead of focusing on the response, as usual, he golfed.
Even when he paid attention to the dire situation, he was rude and dismissive, focusing on photo ops instead of substance as people suffered. Now, he wants praise and support — but Puerto Rico needs action and leadership.
the rich asshole cannot rise to the challenge, unfortunately.
Dem rep on call to soldier's widow: ‘Everybody knows' the rich asshole's a liar
BY REBECCA SAVRANSKY - 10/19/17 08:11 AM EDT
Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) on Wednesday blasted President the rich asshole, saying everyone knows the president is a "liar."
"It’s becoming exhausting," she told Politico.
"I mean, what the hell? Everybody knows that some rich asshole is a liar. That is it. Boom. Bam. There is no question about it," she said.
The only person the rich asshole cares about is himself, Wilson added.
"What can I say? I can waste time talking about this man all day long," she said. "And it’s not going to change him. He doesn’t know how to be president.”
The Florida Democrat said Tuesday that the rich asshole told the widow of a fallen solider that the soldier "knew what he signed up for."
Wilson's account of the call between the rich asshole and the widow of Army Sgt. La David Johnson was disputed by the rich asshole, who said the Florida Democrat had "totally fabricated" the story.
“I didn’t say what that congresswoman said — didn’t say it at all — she knows it,” the rich asshole said on Wednesday. “I would like her to make the statement again because I did not say what she said."
But Johnson's mother told The Washington Post that the rich asshole did disrespect her family and that Wilson's description of the conversation was accurate.
And Wilson told Politico she stands by her words.
Wilson's staff told CBS4 on Wednesday that her office was receiving threatening phone calls directed at the lawmaker after her comments on the rich asshole's call.
the rich asshole ignited controversy Monday when he said, incorrectly, that President Obama had not made calls to Gold Star families. He followed that up by saying Tuesday that he thought he had "called every family of someone who's died."
Since those comments, families of fallen soldiers have come out and said they have not heard from the president.
“I didn’t say what that congresswoman said — didn’t say it at all — she knows it,” the rich asshole said on Wednesday. “I would like her to make the statement again because I did not say what she said."
the rich asshole on Puerto Rico: I'd give myself a 10
BY JORDAN FABIAN - 10/19/17 12:31 PM EDT
President the rich asshole on Thursday gave himself a perfect rating for his response to the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico.
“I would give myself a 10,” the rich asshole said when asked by reporters how he would score his efforts, on a one to 10 scale.
the rich asshole spoke during a meeting with Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló, who is in Washington to push the federal government to provide disaster relief for the island.
“We have provided so much, so fast,” the rich asshole said, adding the disaster in Puerto Rico was "worse than Katrina."
The president’s self-assessment is at odds with the opinions of many in the U.S. territory, who have criticized the administration's response.
Rosselló declined to rate the federal relief efforts, even after the rich asshole turned to him, touched his arm and asked "did we do a great job?" He repeatedly said that the White House has answered “all of our petitions.”
Roughly 80 percent of the island remains without electricity and almost 30 of the island still does not have access to clean water, according to Puerto Rican government figures.
The House last week passed a $36.5 billion aid package for Puerto Rico and other areas hit by natural disasters. The Senate is soon expected to consider the measure.
The governor met with GOP Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.), whose state has a large population of Puerto Ricans, before heading to the White House.
Vice President Pence, Homeland Security adviser Tom Bossert, Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Brock Long and White House budget director Mick Mulvaney also participated in the meeting.
- Updated at 1:05 p.m.
Judges blocking the rich asshole's travel ban again is just like a bad movie sequel
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY CONTRIBUTORS ARE THEIR OWN AND NOT THE VIEW OF THE HILL
The new round of court opinions this week blocked parts of President the rich asshole’s latest immigration executive order, known as travel ban 3.0. This litigation confirms everything that most of us hate about sequels that replay earlier plots and repeat material. Each new sequel tends to get more implausible with time with the appearance of previously killed villains (think “Terminator”), new “celestial” fathers (think “Guardians”), or previously destroyed evil organizations (think “Avengers”).
The travel ban 3.0 litigation is, to quote the much sequeled Dr. Evil, “all of that and a bag of chips.” Judges in Maryland and Hawaii have enjoined a the rich asshole travel order for the third time, replaying the same arguments as the earlier opinions, despite a new set of facts and language. Worst yet, we never actually got to a final battle royale in these cases in travel ban 1.0 and travel ban 2.0. Like the “Avenger” movies, we got to the long-awaited climax before the Supreme Court, only to have the court dismiss the case as moot. We were left with one of those teasers after the credits of a new threat looming in the future.
Welcome to travel ban 3.0, much like T3 but without the aging cyborg. Both injunctions will trigger another nail biting, cliff hanging series of appellate decisions. However, in reading these opinions, you will likely feel like you have seen this one before. This series began on Jan. 27 with the first executive order. The poor drafting of that order was only matched by the even worse execution and defense of the order. Various judges found the order as motivated by an anti-Muslim “animus” and replayed the rich asshole’s most incendiary comments from the campaign about a “Muslim ban.” Travel ban 1.0 was soon replaced by travel ban 2.0 on March 6, which was itself enjoined pending a final decision before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court then reversed the lower courts on their injunctions except for protections for immigrants with “bona fide relationships” in the United States. However, shortly before oral argument, the court mooted one of the two cases after travel ban 2.0 died of natural causes with the expiration of its prescribed 90-day period. (The remaining case is likely to be dismissed when the rest of the second order expires.)
The new order issued Sept. 24 contains a new list of countries that dropped some of the original countries while adding new non-Muslim countries. For the record, I have long criticized the earlier orders against the travel orders as relying too heavily on campaign statements and too little on existence case law. I believe that the administration would have largely prevailed on the second order if the litigation were not mooted.
The new opinions in Hawaii and Maryland offer basically the same narrative while ignoring the new factual foundation. While both judges are respected jurists and reached good-faith conclusions, the opinions work too hard to ignore material changes that undermine the earlier holdings on religious and nationality discrimination.
In Hawaii, District Court Judge Derrick Watson begins with a curious sports analogy that “professional athletes mirror the federal government in this respect: They operate within a set of rules, and when one among them forsakes those rules in favor of his own, problems ensue. And so it goes with [the third executive order].” From the perspective of the White House, of course, Watson himself could be viewed as violating those rules in acting like an active player rather than a referee in the game.
Watson sees the executive order as still discriminating on the basis of nationality. Yet, it is impossible to specify inadequate entry procedures without designating the responsible and high-risk countries. If that is discrimination based on nationality, most procedural rules addressing the failures of individual countries would seem to fail under the test, including orders from past presidents.
In Maryland, District Court Judge Theodore Chuang notably only enjoined the order as to the Muslim countries and only as to individuals without “a bona fide relationship with an individual or entity in the United States.” As such, the court actually allowed much of the order to be executed. Yet, Chuang held that travel ban 3.0 failed to “cure” the “religious animus” behind the earlier travel ban.
Chuang seems to place a heavy burden on the administration to “prove the negative,” or, in this case “prove you are not anti-Muslim.” Chuang admits that the rich asshole has made “positive” statements about Muslims, but he simply rejects those statements in favor of the rich asshole’s more inflammatory statements. He noted, for example, the rich asshole’s tweet where he praised a discredited story about shooting Muslims with bullets dipped in pig's blood as a deterrent to Islamic extremism.
There is no question that President the rich asshole continues to make the defense of these orders more difficult with his controversial tweets. However, the materiality of these statements has become more and more forced with each new generation of agency findings. Agencies studied the vetting procedures for months and reached a consensus on the changes that they deemed necessary for border protection. Such factual findings are normally accorded deference by courts, which are bound not to substitute their judgment for policy or political choices.
Chuang notably found that the administration may have met the “low bar” of establishing that entry from these countries would be “detrimental to the interests of the United States.” However, he insisted that the administration did not “explain why the broad travel ban is necessary in a way…unrelated to religious animus.” It is not clear how the administration is supposed to prove that, particularly after shouldering the burden on the detrimental impact to the nation’s security. The administration cited “inadequate identity management protocols, information sharing practices, and risk factors,” including need technological improvements.
While the plot and development may seem painfully familiar, viewers can only hope that cases will actually reach a final culmination. It is a moment reminiscent of John Connor’s frustration in T3 when he told the terminator, “No, you shouldn't exist…We stopped judgment day.” The response of T3 could easily have come from travel ban 3.0: “You only postponed it. Judgment day is inevitable.” So stay tuned.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University. You can follow him on Twitter @JonathanTurley.
Huckabee Sanders Faces Disaster After Being Outed as Source of Despicable Obama Smear
10-19-17
After conspicuously ignoring the killings for 12 days, the rich asshole was finally confronted about his silence and lashed out by lying about President Barack Obama. He told reporters that Obama and other presidents “didn't make calls” to the families of slain servicemen.
When confronted about his lie, the rich asshole barely walked it back by acknowledging that he was only “told” that information and didn't know for sure. But then, the following day, he resurrected the smear by telling Fox radio host Brian Kilmeade that he should ask Chief of Staff Gen. John Kelly (Ret.) if Obama had called him when Kelly's son was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2010.
None of which is the point. the rich asshole had said that Obama and other presidents didn't call anyone, not that he didn't call everyone. Obama's engagement with the families of the fallen is beyond question and ought to be beyond politics.
Alas, the rich asshole's gaffe with Kilmeade was just the beginning. Shortly thereafter, a White House official told reporters “on background” that Obama had not called Kelly:
JUST IN: President Obama did not call Gen. John Kelly when his son was killed in Afghanistan in 2010, White House official tells NBC News
This move, aside from being gross on its face, forced reporters to report the smear without having the opportunity to ask Kelly, or anyone else, whether President Obama had written a letter or engaged in some other way.
It also likely extends the parties injured by this smear to include General Kelly, who has long resisted any public exploitation of his son's death. It is very unlikely that Kelly would participate and even more unlikely that he would do so in such a cowardly fashion.
Soon after that, it was revealed that Sarah Huckabee Sanders was the source of that statement. This presents a unique problem for the rich asshole's White House. You see, a background statement isn't the same as a “leak,” it carries the same weight as a statement from the podium but without a name attached to it. This statement was authorized by someone, and the list of possibilities is small.
Based on my years covering the White House, and the fairly ironclad assumption that General Kelly had nothing to do with this, I would guess that the rich asshole ordered the statement. It's also unlikely that he told Sanders to issue the statement directly. Sanders reports to White House Communications Director Hope Hicks, whose prior experience was as a longtime flack for the rich asshole Organization, not as a political pro.
The question then becomes whether Sanders was lied to and was told that General Kelly authorized the statement. That's a question Sanders can't very well answer in either direction, and that dilemma will dog her when she faces reporters at Wednesday's press briefing.
Even if Sanders wanted to convince reporters that she had gone rogue, which nobody would believe, she would also have to come up with a satisfactory explanation as to how she learned the information in the first place and rely on Kelly to go along with it.
As WaPo's Ashley Parker notes, General Kelly has also been conspicuously under wraps since this flap began. But unless reporters decide to ignore this monumentally inhuman screw-up, the rich asshole administration will have to come up with a defense for the indefensible.
At least it's had practice.
the rich asshole dares Army widow to call him a liar after disrespecting her husband
OCTOBER 18, 2017
the rich asshole is proving once again that, no matter how disgusting his behavior, he will never hesitate to push the blame onto someone else.
(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
After spending the last two days trying to deflect and lie his way out of ignoring the deaths of four U.S. soldiers in Niger, some rich asshole fanned the flames by calling up Sgt. La David Johnson’s pregnant widow, Myeshia Johnson, to say her husband “knew what he signed up for.”
the rich asshole’s complete lack of empathy, and ignorance of both how the military works and his own responsibilities to our servicemen as commander in chief, caused howls of outrage.
Making matters worse, as Myeshia told her congresswoman, Rep. Fredericka Wilson, the rich asshole did not even know her husband’s name when he called her.
But on Wednesday morning, instead of mustering the tiniest scrap of human decency that would be necessary to own up to his bad judgment and apologize, the rich asshole doubled down and attacked Wilson for bring these facts to light, calling her a liar:
This is essentially the worst possible thing the rich asshole could be doing right now. He is besmirching not only Wilson’s integrity, but Myeshia’s — effectively daring an Army widow to publicly come out and make it her word against his:
Now he's stupidly goading Sgt Johnson's widow to speak publicly & call him a liar. twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
the rich asshole has had every opportunity over the past few days to take some personal responsibility and show some compassion. At every single turn he has simply tried to pass off his own failings onto others — including a pregnant mother of two who just lost her husband.
There is simply no redeeming this man, or this presidency. the rich asshole is bereft of even a pretense of moral credibility and can no longer hope to unify the nation in any capacity. And any Republican who rushes to his defense no longer has any acceptable excuse.
OCTOBER 18, 2017
the rich asshole is proving once again that, no matter how disgusting his behavior, he will never hesitate to push the blame onto someone else.
(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
After spending the last two days trying to deflect and lie his way out of ignoring the deaths of four U.S. soldiers in Niger, some rich asshole fanned the flames by calling up Sgt. La David Johnson’s pregnant widow, Myeshia Johnson, to say her husband “knew what he signed up for.”
the rich asshole’s complete lack of empathy, and ignorance of both how the military works and his own responsibilities to our servicemen as commander in chief, caused howls of outrage.
Making matters worse, as Myeshia told her congresswoman, Rep. Fredericka Wilson, the rich asshole did not even know her husband’s name when he called her.
But on Wednesday morning, instead of mustering the tiniest scrap of human decency that would be necessary to own up to his bad judgment and apologize, the rich asshole doubled down and attacked Wilson for bring these facts to light, calling her a liar:
This is essentially the worst possible thing the rich asshole could be doing right now. He is besmirching not only Wilson’s integrity, but Myeshia’s — effectively daring an Army widow to publicly come out and make it her word against his:
Now he's stupidly goading Sgt Johnson's widow to speak publicly & call him a liar. twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
the rich asshole has had every opportunity over the past few days to take some personal responsibility and show some compassion. At every single turn he has simply tried to pass off his own failings onto others — including a pregnant mother of two who just lost her husband.
There is simply no redeeming this man, or this presidency. the rich asshole is bereft of even a pretense of moral credibility and can no longer hope to unify the nation in any capacity. And any Republican who rushes to his defense no longer has any acceptable excuse.
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