Pretty bad when even defense lawyers are like , "na im good repping you would look terrible!"
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Pretty bad when even defense lawyers are like , "na im good repping you would look terrible!"
Yeah, I just saw that story.
Normally you'd think law firms would jump at the chance to defend the President against possible impeachment... even if you lose, which would be extremely difficult to do, you're getting massive amounts of free advertising and prestige out of it.
Nope. Trump is so radioactive that only his own long-time lawyer (who focuses on real estate litigation) has been willing to represent him. Kinda like his inability to staff government appointments. How many people have turned down the title, 'Director of the FBI' now? Three? Four? Is anyone crazy enough to take that job while Trump is in office?
Most people with any sense are staying far far away.
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“I was just talking to some White House officials this morning and their view is that the president himself wants to be the messenger, his own warrior, his own lawyer, his own spokesman,” Costa explained.
I'd enjoy this if Trump wasn't the G D President.
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Trump plans on live tweeting responses to Comey's testimony on Thursday.
Jeez, he's afraid Comey is going to steal his (Trump's) media spotlight. Oblivious to the fact that the majority of Comey's testimony will be centered on Trump.
I just... Wow.
On the other hand, has anyone checked the betting odds on whether Trump's tweet color commentary will accidentally own goal and self-incriminate himself?
“I was just talking to some White House officials this morning and their view is that the president himself wants to be the messenger, his own warrior, his own lawyer, his own spokesman,” Costa explained.
...his own star witness for his own impeachment and/or case for criminal charges.
And he's also congratulating other countries for acting against Qatar - which is a US military ally.
I still don't know if I think he's incompetent or malicious, but... yeesh. o_O
And he's also congratulating other countries for acting against Qatar - which is a US military ally.
I still don't know if I think he's incompetent or malicious, but... yeesh. o_O
Yes? To both?
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Yes? To both?And he's also congratulating other countries for acting against Qatar - which is a US military ally.
I still don't know if I think he's incompetent or malicious, but... yeesh. o_O
Incompetently malicious and maliciously incompetent.
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So... the FBI thinks Russia planted the news story which set off the Qatar crisis... and Donald Trump is supporting it... against US national interests.
Again.
At this point the strongest evidence against Trump being a Russian quisling is the thought that they couldn't possibly be stupidly obvious about it.
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So... the FBI thinks Russia planted the news story which set off the Qatar crisis... and Donald Trump is supporting it... against US national interests.
Again.
At this point the strongest evidence against Trump being a Russian quisling is the thought that they couldn't possibly be stupidly obvious about it.
Oh it's incompetence. I seriously believe that his biggest problem with Comey of late isn't actually the whole Russia thing, but the fact that he doesn't feel HE HIMSELF is getting enough attention. The fact that he accused him of grand standing is proof in and of itself.
I don't think Trump is directly working for Russia...I think he is actually just incredibly gullible and willing to let flattery and his need for praise overwhelm any common sense.
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Trump plans on live tweeting responses to Comey's testimony on Thursday.
Jeez, he's afraid Comey is going to steal his (Trump's) media spotlight. Oblivious to the fact that the majority of Comey's testimony will be centered on Trump.
I just... Wow.
On the other hand, has anyone checked the betting odds on whether Trump's tweet color commentary will accidentally own goal and self-incriminate himself?
“I was just talking to some White House officials this morning and their view is that the president himself wants to be the messenger, his own warrior, his own lawyer, his own spokesman,” Costa explained....his own star witness for his own impeachment and/or case for criminal charges.
And for those watching the Comey testimony, here's your bingo card for following Trump's live tweeting about it.
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Let's see, tonight's madness... oh, looks like some reports show Eric Trump lied to donors about money, implying it would all be going to support kids with cancer (via St. Jude's, I think it was), when a significant amount was actually directed to their family instead. Hello, rules against self-dealing and lying to donors. Eric has also stated that Democrats do not qualify as people anymore.
*Whistles quietly*
Dehumanizing people is usually the first step towards deciding they're acceptable targets, and the whole family is sounding more and more authoritarian. I don't think Comey's testimony is going to be as explosive as some people think - he seems likely to focus on facts and avoid stating conclusions - but nevertheless, I'm not sure how much pressure can keep building with all of this.
*Correction: Eric Trump was saying that about critics of his father, not simply Democrats.
Nice work Ambrosia, with that Comey/Trump Russia Investigation Commemorative bingo card, if I setup moonshine shots, I can be drunk and blind by 11 AM EST (that would actually be an improvement from sober and disgusted...)
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I like how the center of the bingo card, often the "free" space, is "Erodes confidence in democratic institutions". That one is indeed a given.
As someone who lives in Europe, I don't think it's overreaction at all.Seems that way to me as well. Europe seems likely to be playing catch-up. Potentially, Europe could form a military alliance in parallel to the economic union, voiding the necessity for NATO altogether. With Russia to the east, terrorists both at home and across the Mediterranean and the withering of support across the Channel and Atlantic in such a short time, this is not outside the realm of possibility.
Seems there was a white paper last year on an EU "defense union". Linked article was published today,7th June 2017.
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The Senate Intelligence Committee has just released Comey's opening statement for tomorrow. It's pretty good reading.
I expect Trump will be fighting to hang on to his phone and start tweeting.
Edit: Hmmm, Pence just cancelled a scheduled interview with PBS NewsHour.
Edit 2:
Nice work Ambrosia, with that Comey/Trump Russia Investigation Commemorative bingo card, if I setup moonshine shots, I can be drunk and blind by 11 AM EST (that would actually be an improvement from sober and disgusted...)
I didn't make the bingo card, just ran across it drinking from the news firehose and thought it was funny.
Edit 3: Apparently, today is also Veep Mike Pence's birthday.
Edit 4: And here's Josh Marshall's (of TPM) annotated notes on the Comey statement. Also very interesting reading.
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My own take... Swampey Comey's statement is as expected. Trump did nothing illegal or unethical but his actions are dressed up as much as possible to maintain suspicion that he is up to something. This is to help the Democrats save face and give a bone to those media outlets that want to keep maintaining the facade that Trump was obstructing justice.The Senate Intelligence Committee has just released Comey's opening statement for tomorrow. It's pretty good reading.
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Edit 4: And here's Josh Marshall's (of TPM) annotated notes on the Comey statement. Also very interesting reading.
If someone hadn't seen your posting history, they'd definitely assume that was a poe.
I think it would be a struggle to find something Trump has done that's ethical.
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My own take... Swampey Comey's statement is as expected. Trump did nothing illegal or unethical
<blink>
We're in the territory where 'illegal' becomes completely subjective. For example, torture was still "illegal" when it came out that soldiers had engaged in it at Abu Ghraib... but a year later when it came out that a GOP president had explicitly authorized everything they did then it was no longer illegal... or even torture. Though strangely all the soldiers remained in jail for the thing that was no longer illegal.
More in line with the current situation... When Bill Clinton met privately with Loretta Lynch, republicans insisted that was obstruction of justice... even though there was no evidence that anything more than generic pleasantries had been exchanged... because they theoretically COULD have talked about Hillary's email. Lynch then recused herself to avoid even the possibility of an appearance of a conflict of interest. Republicans said it wasn't enough. NOW we've got Jeff Sessions in the AG position and when he insisted that there was no conflict/reason for recusal in him leading an investigation into possible lawbreaking by the Trump transition team... which he was a MEMBER of... the same republicans said it was fine... and now that Trump asking multiple officials to kill an investigation is NOT obstruction of justice. Two completely different standards.
However, saying there was 'nothing unethical' here is a whole other level. Even if we accept the redefinition of reality required to find that Trump pressing Comey, Coats, Sessions and others to kill the Flynn investigation was NOT illegal... it was certainly unethical. Ethical standards require him to stay completely out of it. He did not. Ergo... unethical.
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My own take... Swampey Comey's statement is as expected. Trump did nothing illegal or unethical but his actions are dressed up as much as possible to maintain suspicion that he is up to something. This is to help the Democrats save face and give a bone to those media outlets that want to keep maintaining the facade that Trump was obstructing justice.The Senate Intelligence Committee has just released Comey's opening statement for tomorrow. It's pretty good reading.
...
Edit 4: And here's Josh Marshall's (of TPM) annotated notes on the Comey statement. Also very interesting reading.
When is Trump going after your enemies instead of filling his cabinet with them?
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My own take... Swampey Comey's statement is as expected. Trump did nothing illegal or unethical but his actions are dressed up as much as possible to maintain suspicion that he is up to something.
I do think that Trump was trying to simply conduct "business as usual" as Trump understands it, and that Trump likely believes he did nothing illegal or even unethical. That has little to no impact on what is objectively unethical and illegal though.
But this isn't a trial in a court of law, and Trump and his associates don't have to be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, or even with a preponderance of evidence. If Trump and his associates sufficiently jeopardize the Republicans losing significant seats in Congress and/or state races in 2018, then he very likely risks being impeached, which is entirely a political process. And I'm pretty sure Congressional Repubs aren't going to go down with Trump if they can help it.
This is to help the Democrats save face and give a bone to those media outlets that want to keep maintaining the facade that Trump was obstructing justice.
I'm not sure how a Trump PAC running ads attacking Comey during Comey's testimony tomorrow shoehorns into this anti-Dems and anti-media narrative... but it certainly isn't a good look for Trump.
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@Dave: ...I'm not sure I understand your position here. You said that "If there is a real crime then it should be investigated and prosecuted", but in many cases, the only way to actually know if a crime occurred or not is to perform an investigation. There were reasonably credible allegations about Flynn that suggested a robust examination was necessary... and it's generally the Federal government that does that for allegations like the ones made about Flynn, and for people in Flynn's position.
There's a reason some parts of the government are considered to be more independent than others - a fair and impartial investigative team is critical for ensuring justice is done. Sometimes that means investigating the rest of the Executive branch. If the Executive or Legislative branches want to be sure government resources are used properly, they can nominate/confirm an Attorney General (etc.) who they trust to do that - but they should not be allowed to dismiss investigations into their own alleged wrongdoing. That's not the appropriate check on the agency's power, since it would be all too easy to hide corruption if they could simply tell the FBI to stop investigating things that would be... inconvenient... for them.
No part of the Government should have the authority to shut down investigations into their own wrongdoing, or that of their close supporters. It's not about political party, it's about having real limits in place so those who might be tempted to abuse their power are far less able to do so.
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Now here I disagree that ethical standards require Trump to stay out of executive branch business. The FBI is under the authority of the executive branch and derives its power from that executive branch. The President is in charge of that executive branch and is morally and legally obligated to oversee and review his employees and agencies.
The President has the power to decide what the FBI should and should not be doing.
I see.
So... Richard Nixon, as head of the executive branch, had "the power to decide" that the FBI should not be investigating the crimes he committed and thus it was perfectly ok for him to start firing people in an effort to end the investigation.
Welcome to fascist dictatorship America. Fortunately, not found here on the actual Earth planet.
Yet.
When Obama did the same thing publicly last year in April that Trump did according to Swampey Comey's diary, it wasn't illegal or unethical.
Absolutely.
It wasn't illegal or unethical... because it was fictional.
Never happened. Obama never even suggested that the investigation in to Clinton should be ended... let alone directly asking officials to do so. Just another lie that conservatives accept automatically.
Well...clearly I don't agree with most anything NPC Dave says, but he does have a point that things have on many, many an occasion looked bad for Trump with him skating through unharmed.
As horrible as the last few weeks have been for him, so far poll numbers don't really show much of any consistent shift. People who approved of the Trump Admin back in January largely still approve of him. Granted, 538 analysis does show the number of STRONGLY approving folks is on the decline, but those folks still overall approve. I don't think we are going to see congress turn on him until post 2018 at the earliest...maybe not even then.
We've well and truly entered the era of the imperial presidency. Unfortunately, the emperor in question isn't Augustus, he's Nero.
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When is Trump going after your enemies instead of filling his cabinet with them?My own take... Swampey Comey's statement is as expected. Trump did nothing illegal or unethical but his actions are dressed up as much as possible to maintain suspicion that he is up to something. This is to help the Democrats save face and give a bone to those media outlets that want to keep maintaining the facade that Trump was obstructing justice.The Senate Intelligence Committee has just released Comey's opening statement for tomorrow. It's pretty good reading.
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Edit 4: And here's Josh Marshall's (of TPM) annotated notes on the Comey statement. Also very interesting reading.
He already started, even before he took office.
Carlos Slim loses $5.8 billion thanks to Trump.
Say it with me. $5.8 BILLLLLLLLLLLIONNNNNNNN dollars. Eat that loss Carlos Slim. I love it!!!
I am a Trump supporter and I am not tired of winning yet.
Two points.
One, that story is eight or nine months old and the info has gone bad. I'm sure that the value of that guy's pesos went down significantly after the election, when the peso fell from 18.5 to the dollar to 22 to the dollar - down almost 4 - but as of this writing the peso is back up to 18.21 to the dollar - up 0.29 compared to pre-election. The article you linked suggests that the peso fall was a major contributor to the fallen balance sheet, and that has reversed itself.
The other cited factor was a drop in international stocks. I can't say what stocks this guy might own, but so far the Mexican stock market has made up all its post-election losses and more.
Two, so one billionaire loses money to other billionaires. At some point during a pre-election discussion I remarked to you that I thought you were mistaking a factional struggle within the elite for a struggle against the elite. This doesn't convince me otherwise.
The billionaires I really care about right now are the ones Trump has stuffed the cabinet with.
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When is Trump going after your enemies instead of filling his cabinet with them?My own take... Swampey Comey's statement is as expected. Trump did nothing illegal or unethical but his actions are dressed up as much as possible to maintain suspicion that he is up to something. This is to help the Democrats save face and give a bone to those media outlets that want to keep maintaining the facade that Trump was obstructing justice.The Senate Intelligence Committee has just released Comey's opening statement for tomorrow. It's pretty good reading.
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Edit 4: And here's Josh Marshall's (of TPM) annotated notes on the Comey statement. Also very interesting reading.
He already started, even before he took office.
Carlos Slim loses $5.8 billion thanks to Trump.
Say it with me. $5.8 BILLLLLLLLLLLIONNNNNNNN dollars. Eat that loss Carlos Slim. I love it!!!
I am a Trump supporter and I am not tired of winning yet.
Addendum to the first point - after the post above I realized that there was a simpler way to go about it than looking at raw economic data. The Forbes article you linked cites a bloomberg billionaires list as its source.
I went and looked at that list, which as of this writing shows this guy at +$11.6 billion (+23%) year-to-date, suggesting that whatever tide receded for your $5.8 billion loss has rolled back in and more.
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WaPo live coverage of Comey's testimony, 10 a.m. EST 8th June 2017.
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I went and looked at that list, which as of this writing shows this guy at +$11.6 billion (+23%) year-to-date, suggesting that whatever tide receded for your $5.8 billion loss has rolled back in and more.
Yeah, concerns about Trump's ability to do... pretty much anything... have receded as his incompetence has become more and more obvious. Nobody is really worried about him tanking any national economy except our own any more. Even that wouldn't be a concern if Republicans didn't currently control congress.
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We've well and truly entered the era of the imperial presidency. Unfortunately, the emperor in question isn't Augustus, he's Nero.
Well, that phrase has been bandied about for decades and was even the title of a Schlesinger, Jr. book in the seventies, so...
[Does math]
Yeah, that's about right.
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Watching the Comey testimony... I feel like Senator McCain has failed to connect some details. He seems bothered that Comey announced there would be no charges for Clinton (about the email thing), and confused about the relationship between that investigation and the investigation into Russian interference.
Senator Warner will hopefully fill Senator McCain in.
'twould seem that the 1:00 p.m. classified/closed session beginning in the next few minutes is going to be where the meat and potatoes are to be served, whatever such may be.
Watching the Comey testimony... I feel like Senator McCain has failed to connect some details. He seems bothered that Comey announced there would be no charges for Clinton (about the email thing), and confused about the relationship between that investigation and the investigation into Russian interference.
I couldn't decide if McCain was attempting, quite poorly, to put party over country... or if McCain was demonstrating clear signs of cognitive decline. I'm used to McCain (and Lindsey Graham) trying to talk tough/mavericky and then toeing the party/Rep PotUS line in lockstep with the other Repubs, but his display today... this was something further.