December 13th, 2017 - December 15th, 2017. 394-396 days since the Nov 8, 2016, election of some rich asshole, no.45, and 326-328 days since the Jan 20th inauguration.
The Memo: Omarosa’s exit is headache for White House
BY NIALL STANAGE - 12/15/17 05:36 AM EST
Team the rich asshole is bracing for negative revelations from Omarosa Manigault Newman after she resigned from the White House in disputed circumstances on Wednesday.
“She is a total press hog, so we will certainly see her say horrible things about the team she was a member of until yesterday,” said one former the rich asshole staffer on Thursday. The source requested anonymity to speak candidly.
The dynamics regarding Manigault Newman are complicated, however.
Soon after he took office, she was appointed as a senior adviser to the president, as well as communications director of the Office of Public Liaison.
Several sources close to the matter suggested that Manigault Newman was unlikely to attack President the rich asshole himself, and might instead focus her fire on his team.
Manigault Newman was also the most prominent African-American in the rich asshole’s inner circle.
She has criticized a lack of diversity in the White House during two major television interviews since news of her departure broke.
On Thursday, she told ABC’s “Nightline” that she was “very lonely” working as part of the rich asshole’s overwhelmingly white senior team.
They “had never worked with minorities, didn’t know how to interact with them,” Manigault Newman said.
Earlier on Thursday, she told ABC’s “Good Morning America” that, as the only black woman among the White House’s senior staff, “I have seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally, that has affected my community and my people.”
The idea of Manigault Newman as a representative of the black community writ large will be met with skepticism in some quarters.
African-American voters have disdained the rich asshole, with only 8 percent of them voting for him over Democrat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election, according to exit polls.
A strong turnout from African-American voters in the special Senate election in Alabama this week was crucial to the upset victory of Democrat Doug Jones — a result that was seen as a rebuke to the rich asshole almost as much as to the Republican candidate, former state Supreme Court chief justice Roy Moore.
Manigault Newman herself got into a heated exchange during a panel discussion at the annual convention of the National Association of Black Journalists earlier this year.
As moderator Ed Gordon asked her how she "would sit in a White House with a man who clearly is sending a signal to this country” on policing and race, Manigault Newman shot back, “Are you suggesting that I should walk away?”
Getting to her feet, she also told Gordon he was being “aggressive” and should not “lecture” her.
Still, her departure from the White House, as well as her comments on diversity, did force the administration onto the defensive on Thursday afternoon.
“We have a really diverse team across the board at the White House,” press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters at Thursday’s media briefing.
Sanders, asked how many senior staffers at the White House were black, replied, "I don't have a number directly in front of me." But, she added, “Something that we strive for every day is to add and grow to be more diverse and more representative of the country at-large, and we’re going to continue to do that.”
Both critics and defenders of Manigault Newman agree she will be able to strike deals for a book about her time in the White House or perhaps work as a TV commentator, given her celebrity and undoubted media skills.
Meanwhile, the exact circumstances of her departure have been the subject of conflicting reports. Sanders insisted that the former reality TV star “resigned from her position” but declined to go into detail.
On Wednesday evening, the Secret Service said in a tweet that it had not been involved in her termination, nor had it escorted her off the White House grounds, as some reports had suggested. It did note, however, that it had deactivated her pass to be on the grounds.
Sources confirmed to The Hill that there were especially acute tensions between Manigault Newman and White House chief of staff John Kelly.
The former the rich asshole aide said that Manigault Newman's ability to talk directly and informally with the president had been curtailed since Kelly replaced Reince Priebus in June.
Another GOP strategist with close ties to the White House insisted that a move against Manigault Newman was overdue.
“Omarosa was useless and incompetent,” this person vented. “She was not trusted internally and had no portfolio.”
But, notably, the president himself has sought to maintain a cordial attitude toward his former protege, even as she departs in tense circumstances.
“Thank you Omarosa for your service,” he tweeted on Wednesday. “I wish you continued success."
The following day he told reporters, “I like Omarosa. Omarosa’s a good person.”
Those warm words could be enough to keep Manigault Newman on the rich asshole’s side. But if she has further revelations that hurt the White House, the mutual admiration will likely come to an abrupt end.
“For any president, loyalty is a one-way street,” the former the rich asshole aide said.
The Memo is a reported column by Niall Stanage, primarily focused on some rich asshole’s presidency.
Lisa Hagen contributed.
the rich asshole’s popularity is plummeting among Fox News fans
Jessica Kwong
Posted with permission from Newsweek
President Donald Trump loves Fox News, but fans of the conservative-leaning network are starting to like him a lot less.
In June, 90 percent of respondents in a Suffolk University poll who said they trust Fox over other news networks viewed Trump favorably, but by October, approval had fallen to 74 percent and plummeted to 58 percent in December, The Washington Post reported on Thursday. That’s a 32-point drop in six months.
Accordingly, the percentage of Fox watchers who viewed Trump unfavorably grew in the December poll to more than a third, which was double the unfavorability percentage recorded among Republicans.
Also, Fox viewers who strongly approved of Trump’s job performance dropped from 55 percent in March to 32 percent in October. The Post notes that “what’s interesting” is that the president’s favorability dropped even though Fox viewers from October to November were slightly more inclined to say the U.S. was going in the right direction.
Trump loses support from Fox viewers as his approval rating continues to suffer. The president’s rating hit its lowest point since he was inaugurated in January in a Monmouth University poll published on Wednesday. More than half of respondents in the Monmouth poll, 56 percent, disapproved of Trump’s job performance, and he lost more support from women and independents.
The president often turns to Fox, where he used to appear weekly, to counter dismal approval rating reports and expresses his approval of the network on Twitter, especially the flagship morning show “Fox & Friends.”
“@FoxNews is MUCH more important in the United States than CNN,” Trump tweeted in late November.
When Trump’s campaign chairman Paul Manafort and business associate Rick Gates were indicted in late October, Fox aired 25 minutes of coverage in the first hour after the news broke out. In comparison, CNN and MSNBC aired at least an hour of almost interrupted coverage free of advertisements.
Trump has appeared on Fox more than a dozen times since becoming president while avoiding interviews on other news outlets. He repeatedly claims CNN, The New York Times, and the Post are “fake news.”
“Wow, more than 90% of Fake News Media coverage of me is negative, with numerous forced retractions of untrue stories,” Trump tweeted on Wednesday, and tagged @foxandfriends in the post.
In June, 90 percent of respondents in a Suffolk University poll who said they trust Fox over other news networks viewed Trump favorably, but by October, approval had fallen to 74 percent and plummeted to 58 percent in December, The Washington Post reported on Thursday. That’s a 32-point drop in six months.
Accordingly, the percentage of Fox watchers who viewed Trump unfavorably grew in the December poll to more than a third, which was double the unfavorability percentage recorded among Republicans.
Also, Fox viewers who strongly approved of Trump’s job performance dropped from 55 percent in March to 32 percent in October. The Post notes that “what’s interesting” is that the president’s favorability dropped even though Fox viewers from October to November were slightly more inclined to say the U.S. was going in the right direction.
Trump loses support from Fox viewers as his approval rating continues to suffer. The president’s rating hit its lowest point since he was inaugurated in January in a Monmouth University poll published on Wednesday. More than half of respondents in the Monmouth poll, 56 percent, disapproved of Trump’s job performance, and he lost more support from women and independents.
The president often turns to Fox, where he used to appear weekly, to counter dismal approval rating reports and expresses his approval of the network on Twitter, especially the flagship morning show “Fox & Friends.”
“@FoxNews is MUCH more important in the United States than CNN,” Trump tweeted in late November.
When Trump’s campaign chairman Paul Manafort and business associate Rick Gates were indicted in late October, Fox aired 25 minutes of coverage in the first hour after the news broke out. In comparison, CNN and MSNBC aired at least an hour of almost interrupted coverage free of advertisements.
Trump has appeared on Fox more than a dozen times since becoming president while avoiding interviews on other news outlets. He repeatedly claims CNN, The New York Times, and the Post are “fake news.”
“Wow, more than 90% of Fake News Media coverage of me is negative, with numerous forced retractions of untrue stories,” Trump tweeted on Wednesday, and tagged @foxandfriends in the post.
‘Fox & Friends’ scandalized that Comey made edits to a document instead of just publishing the first draft
Fox News host Steve Doocy (Photo: screen capture)
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
The crew at “Fox & Friends” on Friday tried to whip up a scandal involving former FBI Director James Comey by noting that he made edits to his report on Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server during her time at the State Department.
In particular, the hosts noted that, in his original draft, Comey had called Clinton’s use of the private server “grossly negligent,” while the final version of the report called her “extremely careless.” Additionally, the original Comey draft said that Clinton’s server had “reasonably likely” been comprised by foreign governments, whereas the final draft merely said the server had “possibly” been compromised.
It is very common for these reports to undergo multiple edits as more facts are learned about the case, and as investigators iron out details of what they know for certain occurred.
Despite this, “Fox & Friends” co-host Steve Doocy said that “it looks like, to an outside observer, they were editing the evidence” to exonerate Clinton. Co-host Ainsley Earhardt, meanwhile, said that the presence of the edits “just seems so shady,” while claiming that “many people have questions” about them.
Watch the video below.
Mueller asks pro-the rich asshole data firm Cambridge Analytica to turn over all campaign emails
Robert Mueller in the Oval Office on July 20, 2012. (Photo by Pete Souza.)
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
Special counsel Robert Mueller has asked data firm Cambridge Analytica to turn over documents related to campaign work for President some rich asshole.
The special counsel requested emails from any employees who worked on the rich asshole campaign as part of the ongoing investigation into election interference by Russia, reported the Wall Street Journal.
The firm voluntarily complied with Mueller’s request and turned over emails which had previously been provided to the House Intelligence Committee, the newspaper reported.
CEO Alexander Nix was interviewed Thursday via video conference by investigators on that House panel.
Mueller requested the emails before reports were published in October that Nix had contacted WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange during the 2016 campaign, the Journal reported.
WikiLeaks published thousands of emails stolen from the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton campaign officials, which U.S. intelligence agencies believe was hacked by Russian intelligence operatives.
Top the rich asshole donor Rebekah Mercer, a part owner of the firm with her father, asked Nix whether the data firm could better organize the stolen emails released by WikiLeaks.
Robert Mercer, the billionaire hedge fund manager, and the rich asshole megadonor reportedly has a $10 million stake in Cambridge Analytica and until recently funded Breitbart News, which is overseen by Steve Bannon.
Bannon introduced Nix to the campaign in May, and he took over as the rich asshole campaign’s chief executive officer in August 2016, after now-indicted Paul Manafort was forced out over his ties to Russia.
White House worried ‘total press hog’ Omarosa will expose dysfunction and chaos around president
Omarosa Manigault -- via Fox News screengrab
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
A source who used to work inside the White House claims close advisers to President some rich asshole are frantic that recently-ousted Communications Director of the Office of Public Liaison Omarosa Manigault may run to reporters with tales of dysfunction surrounding the president because she is a “press hog.”
According to The Hill, Manigault is unlikely to attack the rich asshole — to whom she has hitched her career for years — but will likely use the media to seek revenge on her White House rivals for her dismissal.
“She is a total press hog, so we will certainly see her say horrible things about the team she was a member of until yesterday,” a former the rich asshole staffer told The Hill.
Manigault left the White House under a cloud this week, after reportedly attempting to storm the presidential residence only to be removed and later dismissed by White House Chief of Staff John Kelly.
Omarosa first became associated with President some rich asshole all the way back in 2004, when she was a contestant on his reality TV series “The Apprentice.” She again appeared on the rich asshole’s show in 2013, when she was invited to appear on his “All-Star Celebrity Apprentice” series.
Speaking with ABC on Thursday, Mannigualt confessed that that she was “very lonely” working in an administration that is overwhelmingly white.
WATCH: the rich asshole rants against ‘sad’ FBI and praises Putin after reporters ambush him at White House
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
President some rich asshole delivered an angry rant on the White House lawn in front of reporters on Friday in which he ranted about both the Department of Justice and the FBI.
When reporters stopped the rich asshole on the White House lawn Friday morning to ask him questions, the president angrily ranted about the FBI in the wake of text messages that revealed an FBI agent who was part of Robert Mueller’s investigation called the rich asshole an “idiot.”
“You have a lot of angry people,” the rich asshole said of the FBI. “It’s a very sad thing to watch, I will tell you that. I am going today on behalf of the FBI, their new building, and when everybody — not me, everybody, the level of anger, and what they have been witnessing with respect to the FBI, it’s certainly very sad.”
The president then fumed about accusations that his campaign colluded with Russian intelligence officials during the 2016 presidential election.
“There’s been no collusion, that has been proven,” the president falsely asserted, as there has not been any definitive proof that the rich asshole’s campaign did not collude with Russia yet. “The Senate and the House, my worst enemies, they walk out and say, ‘There is no collusion but we will continue to look.’ They are spending millions and millions of dollars and there’s absolutely no collusion.”
While the rich asshole had angry words to say about the FBI and members of Congress, he did have warm words for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“The call with Vladimir Putin, it was great,” the rich asshole said. “He said very nice things about what I have done for the country in terms of the economy, and he said also some negative things in terms elsewhere, but the primary point was to talk about North Korea, because we would love to have his help on North Korea.”
Finally, the rich asshole said that he was still not sure about whether he would issue a pardon for disgraced former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who recently pled guilty to lying to the FBI.
“I don’t want to talk about pardons for Michael Flynn yet,” he said. “We will see what happens.”
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was unable to mention a single black staffer working for some rich asshole after the unceremonious firing of former reality TV star Omarosa.
The day after the rich asshole administration removed yet another high-profile black woman from her job in the White House, they were unable to name a single black staffer working on the rich asshole team.
Former “Apprentice” contestant and some rich asshole apologist Omarosa Manigault-Newman was removed from her White House position — and from the White house physically, according to reports — under circumstances that could be described as murky, at best.
She later told ABC News that after the rich asshole’s statements supporting rioting white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia, “There were a lot of things that I observed during the last year that made me very unhappy with — that I was very uncomfortable with. Things that I observed, that I heard, that I listened to.”
In the daily press briefing, NBC reporter Kristen Welker asked press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, “How many senior staffers here at the White House are African-American??”
The question appeared to stymie Sanders.
“We always want to continue to grow the diversity here,” she said, evading the question. Eventually she added, “I don’t have a number directly in front of me, specifically not African-American.”
WELKER: With Omarosa leaving, how many senior staffers here at the White House are African-American?SANDERS: We have a really diverse team across the board at the White House. We always want to continue to grow the diversity here. We’re going to continue to do that and continue to work hard. I don’t have a number directly in front of me specifically not African-American, but again, we have a very diverse team at the White House, certainly a very diverse team in the press office, and something that we strive for every day is to add and grow to be more diverse and more representative of the country at large, and we will continue to do that.WELKER: She was really tasked with reaching out to the African-American community. Have you identified who’s going to take that role, and how critical is it to this president and to this administration to make sure that role is in fact filled?SANDERS: Yeah, I think that there will be people that are part of that process and have been part of that process that will continue to be. This wasn’t something that was a singular effort by any one individual. A member of the Cabinet, Ben Carson, I know has been engaged in talk with the president on this issue. But it’s not just within the White House. The president met with Sen. Tim Scott. I know he wants to continue those conversations as well to look at the best ways to do that and to do outreach to that community.WELKER: I want to follow up on one of April’s questions. What Omarosa said today was, “I’ve seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally, and have affected my community and my people.” Were her concerns ever addressed or dealt with?SANDERS: The comments that she made — that was the first time I heard those. Whether she raised them with other individuals, I’m not aware. I know she regularly brought up specific issues where they were talked about in meetings. And we addressed them at the time.WELKER: Do you know what any of her concerns were?SANDERS: I don’t. That’s a question that you would have to ask her, and I’m really not going to speak on her behalf in that regard. But I do know that it’s something that we take seriously and something that we want to see improve across all fronts.
The firing of Manigault-Newman comes months after the rich asshole purged White House usher Angella Reid, who was the first black woman to serve in that position. She was replaced by Timothy Harleth, who worked in the rich asshole’s hotels.
He is a white man.
In the briefing, Sanders went on to invoke the name of Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), who has been a convenient black figure the rich asshole has used as a prop when caught being racist. It was Scott who the rich asshole met with after Charlottesville, though his administration lied to the public and said the encounter went far better than it truly did.
The White House had tasked Manigault-Newman as its emissary to speak to black Americans, who overwhelming voted for Hillary Clinton and have never supported the rich asshole’s presidency. That mission has gone badly, with leaders indicating that sending the former reality TV villain to address the concerns of millions of Americans was a sign that the rich asshole does not take the issue seriously.
Asked who would now serve in that row, Sanders cited Ben Carson, the rich asshole’s secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
The entire exchange encapsulated the rich asshole approach to race. Instead of addressing the racial issue with the purge of black staffers, his press secretary fumbled and failed to name any black staffers.
She then threw out the names of some unrelated black Republicans, trying to move past an issue that has been impossible for the rich asshole and his racist leanings to reconcile.
It's never the right time to talk about guns at the rich asshole White House.
On the fifth anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting that claimed 26 lives — including 20 young children — some rich asshole didn’t bother tweeting any message of condolence or remembrance.
His silence reflects the administration’s do-nothing approach to gun violence, which White House press secretary Sarah Sanders made clear on Thursday.
Asked by a reporter at the daily briefing to detail “what President the rich asshole has done to try to protect the American people against a similar type of massacre,” Sanders actually responded by touting tighter border security measures.
Pressed again — and reminded that the Sandy Hook shooter didn’t enter the U.S. from another country, nor did the shooters who killed nearly 100 people during the massacres in Las Vegas and Sutherland Springs, Texas, this year — Sanders awkwardly conceded that the White House hasn’t done a thing to try to stop the bloodshed:
SANDERS: You have to take these matters, obviously, very seriously. But if you could name a single thing that would have prevented both of these, I would like to hear it because I don’t know what that would look like. But we’re looking every single day at how you can protect American lives, and how we can best protect American citizens.
Essentially, Sanders professed to be completely baffled as to why the U.S. has more mass shootings than any other country in the world, and then used her assertion of ignorance to justify the administration’s failure to do anything to prevent the problem.
“Five years later, Congress has done nothing — nothing — to protect our communities,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein lamented on Thursday. She’s been trying to get a bill passed that would outlaw bump stocks, a device that allows gun owners to turn semi-automatic rifles into functioning machine guns, like the ones used to kill so many Americans in Las Vegas this year.
But, as Feinstein noted, Republicans won’t even support a common sense measure like that.
The ugly truth is that over the last five years, and particularly during the rich asshole’s first year in office, instead of trying to make Americans safer and address the raging epidemic of gun violence, Republicans have embraced the NRA’s radical agenda and are actively trying to make sure that more people have more guns in more places.
Just weeks after two horrific gun massacres, Republicans in the House pushed through a bill that would allow gun owners with concealed carry permits to carry concealed weapons outside of their home state — even in states that explicitly ban concealed weapons in public places.
“The ‘Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act,’ a top priority for the National Rifle Association and other gun-rights groups, passed 231-198,” Politico reported this month.
And earlier this year Republicans specifically repealed a regulation, adopted in response to the Sandy Hook massacre, that blocked people with certain mental disorders from purchasing firearms.
Meanwhile, an NBC News analysis published on Thursday lays bare just how severe America’s gun violence epidemic has become — and how many children suffer as a result.
Since the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in December 2012, nearly 1,000 children under the age of 12 have been shot and killed in the U.S. Of those, 317 were shot accidentally, 287 were shot by another child, and 289 were killed in murder-suicides.
By ignoring America’s raging gun violence problem, the rich asshole is walking away from his duty to help protect the citizenry. If he wants to be “tough on crime” and put “America first,” he could start by prioritizing the safety of American children — or at least stop putting them in danger by neglecting our nation’s gun violence epidemic.
Kremlin releases information on yet another the rich asshole meeting before the White House discloses it
12-14-17
Posted with permission from AFP
Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the crisis over North Korea's nuclear programme with US counterpart Donald Trump in a phone call Thursday, the Kremlin said.
The two heads of state discussed "the situation in several crisis zones, with a focus on solving the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula", it said in a statement, without elaborating.
Washington this week said it was ready to talk to North Korea -- which has launched several intercontinental ballistic missiles in recent months -- "without preconditions".
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that while the Trump administration was still determined to force Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear arsenal, it was willing to "have the first meeting without preconditions".
Putin, in his annual press conference with hundreds of journalists in Moscow Thursday, welcomed the United States' "awareness of reality" in the crisis.
However, he called on all sides to "stop aggravating the situation" and said Moscow did not recognise North Korea's status as a nuclear power.
The two heads of state discussed "the situation in several crisis zones, with a focus on solving the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula", it said in a statement, without elaborating.
Washington this week said it was ready to talk to North Korea -- which has launched several intercontinental ballistic missiles in recent months -- "without preconditions".
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that while the Trump administration was still determined to force Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear arsenal, it was willing to "have the first meeting without preconditions".
Putin, in his annual press conference with hundreds of journalists in Moscow Thursday, welcomed the United States' "awareness of reality" in the crisis.
However, he called on all sides to "stop aggravating the situation" and said Moscow did not recognise North Korea's status as a nuclear power.
the rich asshole lashes out at the FBI every chance he gets — but now he's leaning on them to boost his image.
some rich asshole loves to hold events surrounding himself with law enforcement and military figures to bolster his superficial patriot credentials.
This week, he has set up another such an event for himself. Per ABC News, the rich asshole is going to the FBI National Academy On Friday:
According to the White House, the rich asshole will deliver remarks to graduates of the 10-week national academy program. The academy, according to the FBI’s website, is a “professional course of study” open to U.S. and international law enforcement managers of all stripes.
It is not known what he will discuss there, but historically he has used events like this to stoke his own ego, like when he whined about how unfairly the public was treating him to a crowd of graduating Coast Guard cadets.
That treatment, however, is nothing compared to how the rich asshole has treated the FBI.
As the Russia investigation has heated up, the rich asshole has harshly attacked the organization. The key reason special counsel Robert Mueller was appointed in the first place is because the rich asshole fired FBI Director James Comey under suspicious circumstances. He has since declared the FBI “in tatters” and said its standing is the “worst in history,” even though the current director is a Republican and the rich asshole appointee.
the rich asshole’s lawyer has now demanded the FBI be investigated for pro-Hillary Clinton bias, despite the fact that the bureau arguably cost her the entire election, and the fact that anti-Hillary Clinton bias was the pretext he had his own deputy attorney general use to support Comey’s termination.
It is incredibly damaging for a president to talk about, let alone make politically motivated criticisms of, an ongoing FBI investigation. And it is in this context that the rich asshole now plans to attend the FBI National Academy and preen onstage.
the rich asshole has no respect for anyone but himself, and no regard for appearances as long as his ego is massaged. This is wholly inappropriate behavior from a man tasked to lead the American people.
Fox News and congressional Republicans have been trying to smear Robert Mueller's investigation of some rich asshole. But a new Wall Street Journal report destroys their entire case.
Fox News’ smear campaign against special counsel Robert Mueller just hit a major stumbling block thanks to information unearthed by the Wall Street Journal. Ironically, the conservative Journal is owned by Rupert Murdoch, who also owns Fox.
The Journal reports that FBI agent Peter Strzok, who was removed from the investigation for texts that were critical of the rich asshole, also privately insulted Chelsea Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and former Attorney General Eric Holder.
Strzok called Sanders, who campaigned for the Democratic presidential nomination, an “idiot,” and used the same name for Sanders’ supporters. In another text, he referred to Chelsea Clinton as “self-entitled.”
When Eric Holder spoke at the Democratic Convention, Strzok texted, “Oh God, Holder! Turn it off turn if off!!!”
The new revelations crush the narrative that has been spun by Fox News and their Republican allies in the House and Senate, who have tried to distract from the probe into the rich asshole and Russia with allegations of bias.
What the new information shows is that the FBI agent in question — who was removed by Mueller as soon as his texts were discovered — aimed his rhetoric at both sides of the aisle. That is a far cry from the outlandish claims of the rich asshole’s media allies, who have alleged that the FBI is a hotbed of Democratic Party sympathy.
Frequent Fox News guest and head of the conservative pressure group Judicial Watch, Tom Fitton, made the absurd claim on Wednesday night that “the FBI’s been compromised” and was turned into “a KGB-type operation by the Obama administration.”
It was clear that this hyperbolic and dangerous argument was wrong before, but the new revelations lay bare just how ridiculous it is.
Mueller has put fear into the the rich asshole team and Republicans with his pursuit of justice. There are already two guilty pleas from the rich asshole campaign officials on the record, while indictments have been handed down against others in his inner circle.
The probe clearly reaches the White House and goes straight into the Oval Office in a manner that worries the rich asshole, his fellow Republicans, and their allies at outlets like Fox. Their reaction, per usual, is to deny reality and cherry pick information in the hopes of confusing the public.
But even those on the same ideological path as Fox and the Republican Party are reporting on real information — not selectively edited propaganda — that shows that their latest “bombshell” is nothing but a smokescreen.
the rich asshole has ‘reshaped the courts’ by confirming more judges than any president before him — and it’s terrifying
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch's planned speech at a hotel owned by some rich asshole, has been criticized as a conflict of interest (AFP Photo/SAUL LOEB)
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
Amid news that two of President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees had been summarily rejected by congressional Republicans lies a darker truth — that there are still more than a dozen others who have been confirmed that will likely be on the bench to do the president’s bidding long after he leaves the White House.
As The Huffington Post’s Jennifer Bendery wrote Thursday, the rich asshole has already “reshaped the courts” by successfully confirming 12 circuit court nominees — the most any president has confirmed since circuit courts were created in 1891.
Along with those 12 judges, the rich asshole’s successful confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch and six district court judges could spell major trouble for abortion and LGBTQ rights.
Confirmed on Halloween, anti-choice judge Amy Coney Barrett considers the Affordable Care Act’s birth control mandate “a grave infringement on religious liberty”and has publicly attacked the precedent set by Roe v. Wade. Barrett’s aren’t even the most controversial views of the rich asshole’s district court nominees — another John Bush, was confirmed despite having compared abortion to slavery.
Even one of the four nominees determined “unqualified” by the American Bar Association, Leonard Steven Grasz, was confirmed this week by the Senate. Grasz infamously sat on the board of a nonprofit that promoted “gay conversion therapy.” Despite being quite openly opposed to abortion rights, Bendery noted that Grasz was confirmed by pro-choice GOP Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AL) and Susan Collins (R-ME).
District judges, the writer continued, are appointed for life — meaning that these controversial and high-powered federal judges will be swaying case law for years to come.
the rich asshole-supporting news network promoted conspiracy theory that Mississippians tried to vote illegally in Alabama
Alabama Senate candidates Roy Moore (left) and Doug Jones (right). Images via screenshots and Wikimedia Commons.
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
The pro-the rich asshole One America News Network not only prematurely called the Alabama Senate election for Roy Moore on Tuesday — it also was caught promoting a conspiracy theory about Mississippians trying to cast illegal votes in the election.
As Dave Weigel at the Washington Post reported Thursday, OANN appears to have pre-empted the conspiracy theory cited by conservative radio host Bill Mitchell. In an election night report captured on video, a reporter for the alternative cable network claimed that they’d heard of 50 instances of attempted voter fraud, mostly with people from Mississippi.
“We have reports that a number of people have been caught trying to sneak into voting booths and vote illegally,” OANN correspondent Pearson Sharp said in the video. “[Moore’s] campaign told me that most of the people who have been turned away so far have been across the state line in Mississippi. But they say that voting fraud hasn’t been too much of a problem yet, and that only 50 people had been caught.”
By Wednesday, that theory made its way to Mitchell, who was summarily dismissed by tens of thousands of Twitter users.
Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill’s office, who “sided with Moore’s campaign during several election controversies,” confirmed to the Post that they had not received credible complaints of voter fraud surrounding Tuesday’s election.
“There’s a lot of misdirection that comes in around Election Day,” Merrill’s spokesperson John Bennett. “We got no reports that caused us enough concern to act against them.”
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
The Moyers team has been in the fight for net neutrality from the very beginning. Our documentary Net at Risk was perhaps the first on television to alert the nation to the danger of a corporate takeover of the internet. When the mainstream media largely ignored the story, we gave advocates for net neutrality a national hearing. We followed former FCC commissioner Michael Copps and others to unofficial town meetings when the George W. Bush FCC refused to sanction such events. And we celebrated in the public interest when the Obama FCC voted in 2015 to protect and enforce net neutrality.
ADVERTISING
But every time we think the battle to protect the internet is won, the forces of greed, power and control come right back at us. After he and the Republicans won the 2016 election, some rich asshole appointed Ajit Pai, a former executive from Verizon, to head the FCC. Pai is leading the corporate crusade to overturn net neutrality, doing his best to give Verizon and the other telecommunications giants exactly what they want. It’s classic regulatory capture, a government agency capitulating to the very industry it’s supposed to oversee, the old fox in the henhouse switch that means death to the chickens.
The crucial FCC vote to reverse the net neutrality rules is Thursday, Dec. 14. There remains time to make your voice heard. Follow the instructions in this link to file comments. Or you can call 1-888-225-5322 or email Chairman Pai at Ajit.Pai@fcc.gov. Twitter: @FCC or @AjitPaiFCC. Facebook: Federal Communications Commission.
You can contact your congressional representatives — right now, there’s little chance that the current House and Senate would pass network neutrality legislation, but they do control the FCC’s purse strings. Call your representatives at (202) 224-3121, or email them — go to www.house.gov or www.senate.gov to track them down.
And you can call the White House: (202) 456-1111. Or write a comment.
For more information on the current state of play, read the piece below by our senior writer, Michael Winship.
— Bill Moyers
To understand why the internet’s in big trouble again, first know this about how Washington works these days:
some rich asshole seems to irradiate and poison everyone who is sucked into his gravitational pull. There’s a black hole in residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Attorneys engaged in his defense twist themselves into questionable statements and behaviors as special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe draws nearer. Members of Congress surrender their self-esteem and whatever shred of decency they may have left to put forward the plutocrats’ agenda, while pandering to the rich asshole’s hardcore followers for fear of losing campaign donations or being primaried. Administration officials who are established enough to know better bow in obeisance or vigorously nod their heads in agreement with any dingbat thing the president says.
Mysteriously, some actually appear to enjoy the Kool-Aid; for all the buffoonery, the rich asshole’s cave-bear philosophy, such as it is, tends to favor the ideological and theocratic inclinations of people like Vice President Pence and EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. Others are more manipulative and cynical, using this special moment in American history to hold their noses, take advantage and use the clown show as cover to advance the wish list that corporate America has been mailing to Santa for decades.
In that latter category, place the ambitious current chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Ajit Pai. He was appointed a member of the FCC in 2011, and then named by the rich asshole to take the chair earlier this year. Ever since, Pai has reshaped the commission as a pass-through for the telecommunications giants, giving them virtually everything they want. Acting more like the associate general counsel of Verizon that he once was and less like the government regulator he’s supposed to be, Pai quickly began doing his utmost to wipe out whatever rules remain that keep open to citizens the lines of communication essential to a democracy.
Right now, his sights are aimed at net neutrality, the set of protections approved by the FCC in 2015 that keep the big internet service providers (ISPs) like Verizon, Comcast, AT&T and Charter from completely taking over and deciding who can see what on the web, how fast and for how much.
Why is this important? In a recent interview, Annenberg School Professor Victor Pickard says that net neutrality “speaks to a core social contract between government, corporations and the public… how can members of the public obtain information and services, and express ourselves creatively and politically, without interference from massive corporations?”
That’s the nub of it. Ending net neutrality will squelch competition, innovation and small internet startups, and limit freedom of expression, independent voices and diverse viewpoints. More than ever, Big Business, like Big Brother, will control what you read, see and hear and limit your own ability to speak up and share your opinions, your creativity, your life.
A commission vote has been set for Thursday, Dec. 14, and despite vast and continuing public opposition, the three Republican commissioners, including Pai, seem determined to overrule the two Democrats and once again give the big guys what they want.
In his obdurate denial of the desires of the public (both on the right and left, by the way) Pai embraces certain of the more delightful aspects of Trumpism: doublespeak, belittling the other side, blaming everyone else for problems and claiming fake news when presented with the facts. In a recent speech defending his position, sponsored by the conservative, free-market think tank R Street Institute and the Lincoln Network, Pai described what he called “wild accusations, fear-mongering and hysteria” and made fun of such celebrities as Cher, Mark Ruffalo and George Takei who have spoken out in support of net neutrality.
What’s more, he claimed it wasn’t the ISPs that were trying to take over the web, but that content providers Google, Facebook and Twitter were the real culprits: “They might cloak their advocacy in the public interest, but the real interest of these internet giants is in using the regulatory process to cement their dominance in the internet economy.”
Chairman Pai, this is called projection. You claim to be preserving internet freedom but in truth your attempt to destroy net neutrality does just the opposite. In pushing your case you’re ignoring the people, the facts and the law.
A poll taken in July by Freedman Consulting reported: “Americans of all political parties overwhelmingly support the values of net neutrality and want to preserve existing net neutrality protections. A strong majority (77 percent) of Americans support keeping the existing net neutrality rules in place. This view crosses party lines, as 73 percent of Republicans, 80 percent of Democrats and 76 percent of Independents want to keep the FCC’s Open Internet rules.”
Millions of comments in support of net neutrality have been left on the FCC website, and in the first 24 hours after Pai released his draft of the net neutrality proposal (just before Thanksgiving), more than 200,000 phone calls were made to Congress. As of a week ago Sunday that number had reached 750,000. On Thursday, Dec. 7, 700 protests across all 50 stateswere held outside Verizon stores and other locations.
What’s more, Chairman Pai, contrary to your claims that net neutrality has squelched the growth of investment in the internet, there has been a 5-percent increase since the rules were put into effect.
In fact, Tom Rutledge, CEO of Charter Communications, the second-largest cable company in the United States, told investors in 2016 that net neutrality “didn’t really hurt us; it hasn’t hurt us.”
Finally, Chairman Pai, you and the telecommunications monoliths claim that Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, the law cited to classify ISPs as utilities (like telephones and electricity) and allow net neutrality rules, is out-of-date and irrelevant.
On the contrary, says Danny Kimball, who teaches communications and media studies at Goucher College. In The Washington Post, he wrote that Title II makes it possible “for the public to access information and communication on an equal basis… it’s about basic principles of openness and nondiscrimination, no matter the technology used to communicate.”
Title II is precisely the law under which the courts have ruled that the net neutrality rules are valid. And as Tim Wu, originator of the phrase “net neutrality” says, “A mere change in FCC ideology isn’t enough” to change that.
So on Thursday the FCC may vote to overturn net neutrality, but that decision will go straight to the courts. Boing Boing’s Cory Doctorow points out that “it stands a good chance of being struck down — and in any event, the court battle may last until 2020 and serve as a good argument to spur voters to vote against the rich asshole and thus change the FCC leadership, mooting the whole point.”
Meanwhile, Chairman Pai makes jokes at a Washington dinner about Verizon having groomed him as a Manchurian Candidate to take over the FCC. He keeps promising a “light-touch regulatory framework,” and the ISPs pinky swear that if net neutrality is revoked they won’t ever, ever do anything bad: no blocking, no throttling, no fast and slow lanes, no preferential treatment, no overcharging. Any potential danger, they claim is merely theoretical, not real.
Trust us, they say.
No.
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
The infamous dossier that alleges collusion between some rich asshole’s presidential campaign and the Russian government is “probably” credible, the former head of the British Secret Intelligence Service (M16) said Tuesday.
Speaking with BBC’s Newsnight, Sir Richard Dearlove said of the dossier, which was compiled by former M16 officer Christopher Steele, “I think that there is probably some credibility to the content.”
“I wouldn’t put it any more forcefully than that,” Dearlove added.
The dossier, dismissed by the rich asshole as “fake news,” contains allegations the Kremlin has “been cultivating, supporting and assisting the rich asshole for at least 5 years,” and has sufficient blackmail against the president—including evidence of salacious sexual acts with “a number of prostitutes” in Russia. It also claims members of the rich asshole campaign had multiple contacts with Russian operatives during the election.
During the presidential transition, former FBI Director James Comey briefed then-president-elect the rich asshole on a two-page synopsis of the dossier. In June, Comey declined to answer questions about the dossier during testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, telling members he couldn’t discuss the allegations in an “open setting.” Steele, the author of the memo has said he believes the dossier is 70 to 90 percent accurate.
While U.S. intelligence services work to verify or disprove elements of the rich asshole dossier, the veracity of its claims are playing a pivotal role in Washington D.C. federal court case. BuzzFeed, which published the dossier in January, is suit from a Russian internet entrepreneur named by Steele as one of the people involved in hacking the DNC. As part of its defense, BuzzFeed last month filed a motion to compel the FBI and two other federal agencies to comply with subpoenas regarding the agencies’ verification of the dossier.
Several other new organizations have filed Freedom of Informational Act requests about the dossier.
WATCH: Simple question about diversity trips up Sarah Sanders after Omarosa’s departure
Sarah Sanders (Screenshot)
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was unable to answer a question related to former the rich asshole administration aide Omarosa Manigault Newman.
Reporter Kristen Welker asked during a press briefing on Thursday how many senior staffers at the White House were African American following the departure of Manigault.
Sanders insisted the the rich asshole administration was a “diverse team” of individuals and was intent on remaining that way.
But when asked for a specific number, Sanders was unable to answer.
According to The Washington Post, Manigualt’s exit highlighted the “stark lack of diversity in the rich asshole’s administration.” Among the rich asshole’s Cabinet members and top staff, Ben Carson is the only remaining African American, the paper added.
Watch video below:
President the rich asshole released a statement on government redundancy and it appears to be redundant
President some rich asshole stands next to a pile of 'regulations' (Twitter.com)
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
On Thursday, the White House issued a press statement for the history books.
The D.C. Examiner’s David Freddoso pointed out on Twitter that the quote from President some rich asshole that heads the White House’s statement on government deregulation says, “We will get rid of the redundancy and duplication that wastes your time and money.”
We at Raw Story’s Department of Redundancy Department would like to respectfully point out that redundancy and duplication mean the same thing so using both words is redundant.
During Thursday’s photo-op, the rich asshole was reportedly making use of one of his favorite things, props. Standing next to piles and piles of — possibly blank — paper brought in to represent the regulations that the rich asshole would be dispensing with.
.@realDonaldTrump stands next to a stack of papers after announcing “We will get rid of the redundancy and duplication that wastes your time and your money.” #regulations
the rich asshole touts deregulation by his administration
BY LYDIA WHEELER - 12/14/17 03:25 PM EST
President the rich asshole announced plans for more deregulation in the coming year with the release Thursday of the administration’s second regulatory agenda.
Putin is praising his bitch, no45, on what a great year he had. LMAO.
Putin is praising his bitch, no45, on what a great year he had. LMAO.
the rich asshole can claim 'fairly serious achievements' in first year, Putin says
Moscow (CNN)Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that his US counterpart some rich asshole had made some "fairly serious achievements" since he took office and derided what he called the "espionage mania" surrounding meetings held by the rich asshole associates with Russian officials.
The rich asshole administration has been embroiled for months in investigations into potential collusion between Russian operatives and the rich asshole associates during the 2016 US presidential campaign and transition -- a claim the rich asshole fiercely denies.
Asked for his assessment of the rich asshole's first year in office during his annual end-of-year press conference in Moscow, Putin said that "objectively we can see a number of fairly serious achievements over the short period he's been working."
He cited the strength of the markets as an example, saying this indicated "investor confidence in the American economy, which means that they trust what President the rich asshole is doing in this area."
Putin also dismissed the US investigations into potential collusion, saying it was normal practice for governments to meet with officials from other election campaigns as well as governments. He said the issue had been "dreamed up" by the rich asshole's opponents in an effort to discredit him.
"It's delirium, it's madness," he said. "This is all dreamed up by people who are in the opposition to the rich asshole so as to make sure that everyone thinks that what he's doing and working at is illegitimate."
Putin suggested that those supporting the inquiries were "working against the interests of their own country and against the duly elected President of the country."
Moscow (CNN)Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that his US counterpart some rich asshole had made some "fairly serious achievements" since he took office and derided what he called the "espionage mania" surrounding meetings held by the rich asshole associates with Russian officials.
"It's delirium, it's madness," he said. "This is all dreamed up by people who are in the opposition to the rich asshole so as to make sure that everyone thinks that what he's doing and working at is illegitimate."
Putin suggested that those supporting the inquiries were "working against the interests of their own country and against the duly elected President of the country."
Putin: US provoking North Korea
In terms of the rich asshole's foreign policy, Putin said there had been improvements in relations with Russia, but that it was obvious he was working under some constraints and limitations.
US and Russian citizens face common challenges, including terrorism, environmental issues, battling the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the Middle East and tensions on the Korean Peninsula, he said.
Putin accused the United States of provoking North Korea and called on both sides to deescalate the situation.
"I don't want to offend anybody but far as North Korea is concerned, we believe that what is happening now is counterproductive," Putin said.
Russia regularly warns the US against provoking North Korea with its joint military exercises with South Korea, Putin said, adding that it only takes one launch to create "catastrophic consequences."
He also said Russia does not accept North Korea as a nuclear state.
A waiter stands by a screen broadcasting Putin's marathon annual press conference in Moscow on Thursday.
In terms of the rich asshole's foreign policy, Putin said there had been improvements in relations with Russia, but that it was obvious he was working under some constraints and limitations.
US and Russian citizens face common challenges, including terrorism, environmental issues, battling the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the Middle East and tensions on the Korean Peninsula, he said.
Putin accused the United States of provoking North Korea and called on both sides to deescalate the situation.
"I don't want to offend anybody but far as North Korea is concerned, we believe that what is happening now is counterproductive," Putin said.
Russia regularly warns the US against provoking North Korea with its joint military exercises with South Korea, Putin said, adding that it only takes one launch to create "catastrophic consequences."
He also said Russia does not accept North Korea as a nuclear state.
A waiter stands by a screen broadcasting Putin's marathon annual press conference in Moscow on Thursday.
Nuclear arms treaty
Asked whether the New Start nuclear arms treaty with the United States would survive, Putin laid responsibility for its future on Washington.
"We did not get out of the basic treaties that were the cornerstone of international security. We did not withdraw from the ABM Treaty, the United States withdrew unilaterally," he said, referring to the now defunct Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, from which the US withdrew in 2002.
Putin argued that while the United States was trying to accuse Russia of undermining the New Start treaty, it was itself doing just that with its deployment of anti-missile systems in Europe.
The New Start agreement, which went into effect in 2011, aims to cut the number of nuclear weapons that the US and Russia can deploy by about a third. The current version of the treaty is set to expire in 2021 and gives both countries until February 2018 to aim for a maximum of 700 deployed ICBMs, submarines and bombers, and a total of 1,500 warheads.
According to a report by Reuters, the rich asshole criticized the New Start treaty in his first phone call with Putin after taking office, saying it favored Moscow.
Putin also said he expects military spending next year to reach 2.8 trillion roubles (about $47.7 billion) and added that the United States spends much more on its military than Russia does.
Asked whether the New Start nuclear arms treaty with the United States would survive, Putin laid responsibility for its future on Washington.
"We did not get out of the basic treaties that were the cornerstone of international security. We did not withdraw from the ABM Treaty, the United States withdrew unilaterally," he said, referring to the now defunct Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, from which the US withdrew in 2002.
Putin argued that while the United States was trying to accuse Russia of undermining the New Start treaty, it was itself doing just that with its deployment of anti-missile systems in Europe.
The New Start agreement, which went into effect in 2011, aims to cut the number of nuclear weapons that the US and Russia can deploy by about a third. The current version of the treaty is set to expire in 2021 and gives both countries until February 2018 to aim for a maximum of 700 deployed ICBMs, submarines and bombers, and a total of 1,500 warheads.
According to a report by Reuters, the rich asshole criticized the New Start treaty in his first phone call with Putin after taking office, saying it favored Moscow.
Putin also said he expects military spending next year to reach 2.8 trillion roubles (about $47.7 billion) and added that the United States spends much more on its military than Russia does.
Putin to run as independent candidate
On the subject of domestic politics, Putin said he was planning to run as an independent in the 2018 presidential election -- his fourth presidential bid -- so that he can gain the support of multiple political parties who "support" his views.
On the subject of domestic politics, Putin said he was planning to run as an independent in the 2018 presidential election -- his fourth presidential bid -- so that he can gain the support of multiple political parties who "support" his views.
He said his aim was for Russia to have a "competitive" and "balanced" political system but that it was not his responsibility to create his own opponents.
He said Russia should be as competitive politically as it is economically. "I want this and I will strive for a balanced political system and that is impossible without competition in the political field," he said.
Asked why Russia had no effective opposition figures, Putin said that most of current opposition figures were focusing on "making noise" rather than a genuine agenda that can benefit the nation and compete with those in power.
Many young Russians don't remember the problems the nation faced in the 1990s and early 2000s, he added.
He said his aim was for Russia to have a "competitive" and "balanced" political system but that it was not his responsibility to create his own opponents.
He said Russia should be as competitive politically as it is economically. "I want this and I will strive for a balanced political system and that is impossible without competition in the political field," he said.
Asked why Russia had no effective opposition figures, Putin said that most of current opposition figures were focusing on "making noise" rather than a genuine agenda that can benefit the nation and compete with those in power.
Many young Russians don't remember the problems the nation faced in the 1990s and early 2000s, he added.
Doping scandal
Asked about the doping scandal that has engulfed areas of Russian sport, Putin said it was being exaggerated in the run-up to Russia's 2018 presidential election but acknowledged that "we have been responsible for it to some extent."
"We have used doping but other countries have also done it," he said.
Despite the "media storm" around Russian doping, there are other "systemic" issues in the sports world that must be looked at, Putin said. He added that Russia had to "help our sportsmen to help themselves."
Asked a follow-up question about state-sponsored doping and evidence provided by whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov, Putin cast doubt on his credibility and even implied that the FBI, the United States' domestic intelligence and law enforcement agency, was drugging him.
"The fact that [Rodchenkov] is under control and protection of the FBI, that is not a plus to us, this is a minus. It means that he works under the control of American intelligence, what are they doing to him there? What substances is he given to say what has to be said? This is just funny."
Putin added that he had "great respect" for international sporting organizations and anti-doping bodies and that Russia understood it was "not easy for them" to work under pressure. But, he said, they must base their conclusions "on something objective."
Asked about the doping scandal that has engulfed areas of Russian sport, Putin said it was being exaggerated in the run-up to Russia's 2018 presidential election but acknowledged that "we have been responsible for it to some extent."
"We have used doping but other countries have also done it," he said.
Despite the "media storm" around Russian doping, there are other "systemic" issues in the sports world that must be looked at, Putin said. He added that Russia had to "help our sportsmen to help themselves."
Asked a follow-up question about state-sponsored doping and evidence provided by whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov, Putin cast doubt on his credibility and even implied that the FBI, the United States' domestic intelligence and law enforcement agency, was drugging him.
"The fact that [Rodchenkov] is under control and protection of the FBI, that is not a plus to us, this is a minus. It means that he works under the control of American intelligence, what are they doing to him there? What substances is he given to say what has to be said? This is just funny."
Putin added that he had "great respect" for international sporting organizations and anti-doping bodies and that Russia understood it was "not easy for them" to work under pressure. But, he said, they must base their conclusions "on something objective."
Nearing the end game: The 6 phases of the rich asshole’s plan to fire Robert Mueller
Robert Mueller (Jonathan Ernst:Reuters)
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
President the rich asshole is now ready, willing and able to fire special prosecutor Robert Muller. It’s a matter of when, not if. The warning signs have been accumulating since the rich asshole decided not to fire Mueller last summer, and now alarm bells are ringing.
New York Magazine’s Jonathan Chait says Mueller’s investigation is in “mortal danger.” E.J. Dionne Jr. of the Washington Post says the campaign to fire Mueller is pushing us “closer to the precipice” of lawlessness.
And the Republicans who once said firing Mueller was unthinkable or sure to lead to impeachment have fallen silent. Indeed, the rich asshole critics on the right who might have spoken in Mueller’s defense have signaled their allegiance to the president, not the law. Last week, the editors of the Wall Street Journal said Mueller has a “credibility problem” and should resign.
the rich asshole talked about firing Mueller as early as last June, according to Newsmax publisher Christopher Ruddy, but he didn’t have any idea how to do it. the rich asshole was blocked, not by considerations of morality or politics, but by a parliamentary maneuver quietly approved by Mitch McConnell.
McConnell’s move was not an expression of support for Mueller personally, or for an independent Russia investigation generally. It was merely a tactical maneuver designed to protect McConnell’s legislative agenda (repealing Obamacare and cutting taxes for the rich) from getting swamped by Trumpian chaos.
At that time, the rich asshole and adviser Steve Bannon recognized the president did not have political muscle among Republicans to kill off the Russia investigation. Since then, they have devised a comprehensive plan to overwhelm the objections of establishment Republicans like McConnell and conservative allies like Ruddy.
That campaign has six phases, four of which have been implemented.
Phase 1: Trash Mueller’s reputation among Republicans.
As a registered Republican appointed to head the FBI by a Republican president, Mueller once enjoyed a reservoir of respect among Republicans. When Mueller was appointed special prosecutor in May, Newt Gingrich called him a “superb choice.”
So smearing Mueller’s good name became the first goal. By early August, Gingrich dutifully said Muller embodied the “deep state at its worst.”
Phase 2: Unify Republican media around scandals about Hillary Clinton.
After his return to Breitbart News, Bannon revived the Uranium One story first floated by Peter Schweizer in his 2015 book, Clinton Cash. Schweizer alleged that Clinton played a “central role” in approving the sale of Uranium One, a Canadian company with mining rights in the United States, to Russian’s nuclear energy agency.
Fox News joined the effort. From mid-October to early November, Fox News devoted an extraordinary 12 hours of news coverage to this recycled story in just three weeks. Tucker Carlson said it was “insane” that Clinton had “given away” 20 percent of America’s uranium supplies. He suggested Clinton did so because Russians and people linked to the deal had given money to the Clinton Foundation.
The only problem, as Fox News’ Shepard Smith pointed out, is there was no evidence that Hillary Clinton had actually intervened, to facilitate the tale. And the Russian atomic energy agency did not obtain any uranium from the deal because it does not have the license necessary to import American uranium.
The conservative media also played up the Clinton campaign’s role in funding the production of a salacious dossier about the rich asshole, which was prepared by a former British spy who got information from Russian sources.
With these stories in wide circulation, the rich asshole had a Russia defense that didn’t involve any facts about his Russian dealings, only the story of a unified party under siege from partisan liberals.
Never seen such Republican ANGER & UNITY as I have concerning the lack of investigation on Clinton made Fake Dossier (now $12,000,000?),….
— some rich asshole (@realDonaldTrump) October 29, 2017 [16]
By the end of October, only 38 percent [17] of Republicans approved of Mueller’s investigation.
By the end of October, only 38 percent [17] of Republicans approved of Mueller’s investigation.
Phase 3: Link the Clinton scandals to Mueller and export the story to more mainstream news outlets.
Once the talking points about Muller’s reputation and Clinton’s scandals were engrained in the conservative news cycle, they were then linked in the new narrative that Mueller is a Clinton partisan.
This strategy of mass distraction relieved Republicans of the difficult job of explaining away the accumulating evidence of undisclosed contacts between the rich asshole entourage and Russian agents during the election campaign. It gave them something else to talk about.
the rich asshole’s defenders on the congressional intelligence committees called on Mueller to investigate Uranium One. If he didn’t, he must be protecting Clinton.
If Mueller investigated the allegations in the Steele dossier, then he was doing Clinton’s work.
If Mueller’s team included a lawyer who gave money to Obama in 2008, then his whole team was motivated by partisanship.
And if Mueller took steps to protect his investigation, his integrity could be used to undermine him. When it was revealed that Mueller had removed an FBI agent, Peter Strzok, from his investigation, after finding out that Strzok and a colleague had exchanged messages that could be interpreted as pro-Hillary Clinton, it wasn’t a good-faith effort to eliminate the appearance of bias; it was proof, as Sean Hannity put it, that Mueller and company are a “partisan, extremely biased, hyperpartisan attack team.”
Now the rich asshole’s partisans can criticize Mueller for being unfair and they don’t even have to talk about firing him.
In USA Today, James Robbins says Mueller should suspend his investigation. In The Hill, former Bush speechwriter Ned Ryun calls for “complete transparency” about the Clinton scandals as a way of achieving truth, without the need for a special prosecutor. “the rich asshole can let Americans make up their own minds, know the truth, and move on to better things to do with their lives,” he writes.
That’s the script for firing Mueller.
Phase 4: Establish the expectation that the Russian investigation will be wrapped up soon.
“It is my hope and expectation that shortly after Thanksgiving, all the White House interviews will be concluded,” White House counsel Ty Cobb told CNN. The Washington Post reports [23] he’s telling West Wing staffers that the investigation overall will soon conclude, exonerating President the rich asshole.
Since no one familiar with Mueller or the complexity of the Russia investigation shares this fantasy, the Atlantic’s David Graham was puzzled. “Where does he get his optimistic take, and could he be right?” he asked.
As liberals ponder the rich asshole’s veracity—and miss the point—the president continues to repeat this deliberately false talking point to establish the perception that the Mueller investigation is coming to an end. The president thinks his involvement in the investigation “will be wrapped up pretty soon,” reliable mouthpiece Chris Ruddy said last week.
So when the Russian investigation doesn’t end by the New Year—and it won’t—the rich asshole can argue the special investigator is on a fishing expedition that has gone on too long.
Phase 5: Wait for a moment of strength.
the rich asshole can’t risk a political firestorm right now. He’s the least popular American president in a century. Four of his aides have been indicted, and he has no legislative accomplishments to speak of. His best hope is the Republicans’ regressive tax plan, which has to be rewritten by a conference committee. With major differences [27] between House and Senate versions still outstanding, any controversy over Mueller could prevent the rich asshole from gaining his first major legislative victory.
But if the tax cut is signed this month, as Republicans hope, the rich asshole can claim a victory and he’ll have the muscle to move on Mueller.
Phase 6: Find a Justice Department official willing to fire Mueller.
By law, a president can’t fire a special prosecutor. Only the Attorney General can do that. Jeff Sessions recused himself from the Russia investigation so the job would fall to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. In his confirmation hearings, Rosenstein made clear he would not obey an order to fire Mueller without “good cause.” Nothing Mueller has done so far comes close to meeting that standard.
So the rich asshole will have to fire Rosenstein. The department’s third-ranking official, Assistant Attorney General Rachel Brand, whom the rich asshole appointed last May, would face the decision whether to obey the rich asshole’s order. As I pointed out last June, Brand is a foot soldier in the conservative counterrevolution.
Given a choice between protecting Mueller, a nonpartisan career civil servant, and protecting the rich asshole, a conservative president in danger of impeachment, I don’t think Brand will hesitate. She’s been training her whole professional life to do the ideologically correct thing. She (or another the rich asshole appointee) will fire Mueller. Congressional Republicans will not defend him. And the president will rule beyond the rule of the law.
the rich asshole goes ‘off the rails’ if aides even mention Russian interference at intel briefings: report
some rich asshole (Joseph Sohm / Shutterstock.com)
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
Bringing up Russian interference to President some rich asshole is apparently a very touchy subject — so touchy, in fact, that the rich asshole’s own White House officials fear even broaching the topic during intelligence briefings.
The Washington Post reports that members of the rich asshole’s National Security Council go out of their way to avoid mentioning Russia during meetings, as doing so will often set the rich asshole off in a rage.
“If you talk about Russia, meddling, interference — that takes the [president’s daily briefing] off the rails,” one former intelligence official tells the Post.
The Post’s sources say that Russia-related intelligence is sometimes slipped into the briefings, but only as written bullet points that aren’t part of any oral presentation. In rare cases where such intelligence is raised orally, the Post reports that “the rich asshole’s main briefer — a veteran CIA analyst — adjusts the order of his presentation and text, aiming to soften the impact.”
the rich asshole’s anger at mentions of Russia during briefings is part of a larger pattern of the president denying that Russia did anything to influence his electoral victory in 2016. During a recent overseas trip, the rich asshole seemed to signal that he believed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claims that his country was not involved in any form.
“Every time he sees me, he says, ‘I didn’t do that,'” the rich asshole said of Putin. “And I believe, I really believe, that when he tells me that, he means it.”
‘Will send the rich asshole Steaks!’: Internet erupts in laughter after president thanks Omarosa for her service
some rich asshole and Omarosa Manigault-Newman
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
In a stunning conclusion to this week’s dramatic White House subplot, some rich asshole tweeted “thank you” to Omarosa Manigault-Newman, the former director of communications for the Office of Public Liaison who was abruptly fired Wednesday.
The president’s remarks came less than an hour after the Secret Service took the unorthodox step of correcting reporting that alleged they had to drag the former “Apprentice” star out of the White House.
Reporting regarding Secret Service personnel physically removing Omarosa Manigault Newman from the @WhiteHousecomplex is incorrect.
Reporting regarding Secret Service personnel physically removing Omarosa Manigault Newman from the @WhiteHouse complex is incorrect.
Subsequent reports indeed indicate Manigault-Newman was removed from the White House residence after she was informed of chief of staff John Kelly’s decision—though not, necessarily, that the Secret Service was involved in her removal.
According to CBS News, Manigault-Newman was escorted from the White House after she tried to gain access to the White House residence to protest Kelly’s terms, “and tripped alarms,” triggering her removal.
The Internet on Wednesday was amused by the rich asshole’s curt message to his former reality TV co-star. Read below:
Trump has tweeted about Omarosa 66 times since joining Twitter and 64 of those tweets had to do with Celebrity Apprentice. twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
Sorry that my VERY MEAN and VERY NOT FUN chief of staff had you physically dragged off the property of the very precious White House that I won with the largest Electoral College victory in history. Will send you some Trump Steaks. THE BEST! twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
By my count this is the third time Donald Trump has fired Omarosa Manigault Newman. twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
CORRECTION: Omarosa Manigault has been fired from four jobs by Trump (can't forget season 11). Trump's had three wives. Mea culpa. twitter.com/juddzeez/statu…
How did he resist a "You're Fired!" twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
"wait come back, we need a shot of you rolling your suitcase out of the board room and getting into the cab" twitter.com/ajdukakis/stat…
Thank you Omarosa for your service! I wish you continued success.
What were #Omarosa's @WhiteHouse successes, Mr. President?
Looks like this wraps up the day's Omarosa news twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
As a child my family gathered around the TV to watch Trump fire Omarosa (and a bunch of other people) from a reality tv show. Same thing is happening now, but in the white house. Bizarro world. twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
I know it’s a tired trope by now but imagine waking up from a five-year coma and reading a tweet by the Secret Service denying they had to physically remove Omarosa from the White House. twitter.com/secretservice/…
Imagine - for a moment - where @realDonaldTrump would be without @Omarosa twitter.com/realdonaldtrum…
Omarosa is my favorite veteran twitter.com/realdonaldtrum…
No mention of the circumstances of her departure or decision not to intervene on her behalf. twitter.com/realDonaldTrum…
GOP strategist: ‘Creepy’ Roy Moore and Steve Bannon were basically ‘driving around in a panel van with free candy’
Unsuccessful Senate candidate Roy Moore and fired White House chief strategist Steve Bannon
DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY!
Following Republican Roy Moore’s dramatic electoral loss to Democrat Doug Jones in Alabama, CNN’s Anderson Cooper hosted a panel of conservative voices to dissect the outcome.
“The loss certainly isn’t just for Moore, you could say it’s also for the president, former chief strategist Steve Bannon, who campaigned for Moore,” Cooper noted.
Stuart Stevens, a former top advisor to Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign, said it was “particularly toxic” to have Bannon take the stage for Moore.
“Roy Moore, who came across as kind of a creepy guy and you combine him with Bannon, who comes across as a creepy guy with a drinking problem, and they might as well have ended up driving around in a panel van with free candy on the side,” Stevens suggested as Cooper laughed heartily.
“It was daring for people in Alabama not to vote for him and enough took them up on their dare,” Stevens concluded.
Conservative pundit Mary Katherine Ham agreed that Bannon’s image took a shot after the Alabama special election.
“I think it will take a hit but many political consultants lose many times and are still not out of the game,” Ham explained. “I think there will be an audience for Bannonism.”
“You may end up with Bannon-type wins in primaries that do end up torpedoing other Senate races,” Ham explained. “It’s a real risk.”
Watch:
'She Walked Over to the Residence and Tried to Get In'
The Wall Street Journal is reporting a very similar story as April Ryan of American Urban Radio Networks about the firing of Omarosa Manigault, the (soon-to-be) former director of communications for the White House Office of Public Liaison. Her departure date has been announced as January 20, but it is unknown if she will be allowed to return to the White House.
"Ms. Manigault Newman’s departure was abrupt, according to a White House official, who said that Ms. Manigault Newman was 'physically dragged and escorted off the campus' Tuesday evening," The Wall Street Journal's Eli Stokols reports.
April Ryan at AURN reports Manigault "signed a negotiated resignation letter" after White House Chief of Staff John Kelly told her it was time to go. "She was very upset" and wanted to talk with President the rich asshole, which Kelly apparently refused to allow, saying the president had signed off on her notice.
Manigault, Ryan adds, "did not take the firing or resignation very well," "was very vulgar" and used "curse words" during her firing. Afterwards, "she walked over to the residence and tried to get in" to see the rich asshole. At that point Gen. Kelly was called back to the White House.
"The Secret Service was called and she was escorted off campus," Ryan concludes.
the rich asshole attacks Clinton during teleprompter tax speech, gets Twitter reality check
some rich asshole made a push to pass his tax bill during a speech at the White House, but couldn't help taking a shot at Hillary Clinton.
With #Tax Reform close to becoming a reality, some rich asshole took time to address the situation at the White House. on Wednesday morning. After giving his speech about the potential passing of his #Tax Bill, while calling out #Hillary Clinton in the process, the president was hit with heavy backlash [VIDEO]on social media.
the rich asshole on taxes
Throughout the entire 2016 presidential election, some rich assholevowed to change the current tax code and bring back the biggest tax reform since the days of Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. After his election win last November, the former host of "The Apprentice" felt optimistic about his plans due to the fact that Republicans hold a majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
After an initial conflict with members of his own party, the rich asshole and congressional Republicans were able to get on the same page and are now steps away from passing the bill in question. Despite this, opposition to the bill has grown, which non-partisan studies having shown that the bill will add as much as $1.7 trillion to the national debt, and raise taxes on middle income earners over the next decade. The hashtag "TaxScamBill" started trending on social media, leading to the president trying to control the narrative [VIDEO] during a speech at the White House, as reported by ABC News on December 13.
.@POTUS: "Somebody else called me and everybody else 'the Deplorables'... We're proud to be The Deplorables."
At the White House on Wednesday afternoon, some rich asshole spoke about the tax plan and brought several families with him who he says will benefit from the bill.
"As a candidate, I promised we would pass a massive tax cut for the everyday working American family...now, we are just days away," the rich asshole said as his eyes were glued to the teleprompter.
Pres. Trump: "I'm here today to tell you that we will never let bad things happen with respect to the economy of our country." abcn.ws/2CdthPV
"I'm here today to tell you that we will never let bad things happen with respect to the economy of our country," some rich asshole went on to say. The president also noted that the "typical family of 4 earning $75,000 will see an income tax cut of more than $2,000, slashing their tax bill in half." Later on in his speech, the rich asshole took a shot at Hillary Clinton by saying "someone once called us 'the deplorables,' but we're proud to be the deplorables.'"
Twitter reaction
After some rich asshole gave his speech on tax reform, critics wasted no time firing back. "Hmmm but let bad things happen to millions of kids that depend on #CHIP like Diabetic kids," one tweet read.
Pres. Trump: "I'm here today to tell you that we will never let bad things happen with respect to the economy of our country." abcn.ws/2CdthPV pic.twitter.com/XfSr0gYrXi
The factory jobs are not coming back. “They're closing down the textile mill across the railroad tracks. Foreman says these jobs are going boys and they ain't coming back. To your hometown”! #TaxScam #TrumpTaxScam
Pres. Trump: "I'm here today to tell you that we will never let bad things happen with respect to the economy of our country." abcn.ws/2CdthPV pic.twitter.com/XfSr0gYrXi
Hmmm but let bad things happen to millions of kids that depend on #CHIP like Diabetic kids#Trumpfail
Pres. Trump: "I'm here today to tell you that we will never let bad things happen with respect to the economy of our country." abcn.ws/2CdthPV pic.twitter.com/XfSr0gYrXi
"With respect to the economy! Well he is the worst thing that has ever happened to our country. Every day it gets worse," another tweet added. "Dude literally tanked @Boeing stock for half a day with his Twitter account just to show that he could," a Twitter user noted.
.@POTUS: "It makes America competitive again." pic.twitter.com/2yLonOBbGZ
Pres. Trump: "I'm here today to tell you that we will never let bad things happen with respect to the economy of our country." abcn.ws/2CdthPV pic.twitter.com/XfSr0gYrXi
Pres. Trump: "I'm here today to tell you that we will never let bad things happen with respect to the economy of our country." abcn.ws/2CdthPV pic.twitter.com/XfSr0gYrXi
"This the same guy that's lied over 1600 times since January?" an additional tweet wondered. "How many bankruptcies has he gone through?," another social media user asked. The negative reactions continued to pour in as the opposition to the tax bill shows no signs of slowing down.
No comments:
Post a Comment