Climate-denying nominee for top USDA science post gets caught in Russia controversy

[demmiblue]

Source: Think Progress

Sam Clovis, one of the Trump administration’s more controversial nominees for a political appointment, was already raising eyebrows ahead of his November 9 confirmation hearing before the Senate Agriculture Committee. To start, Clovis — who has been nominated to the position of undersecretary of research, education, and economics at the United States Department of Agriculture, the agency’s top science position — has no background in the the hard sciences, nor any experience with agricultural or nutritional science. Clovis is also a staunch climate science denier who accused President Barack Obama of “race baiting” and has called progressives “the real racists.”

But on Monday, Clovis’ nomination took on new meaning when it was revealed that, while working as national co-chairman of the Trump campaign, he had encouraged George Papadopoulos, a campaign foreign policy adviser, to meet with Russian nationals in a potential effort to bolster the campaign. On Monday, unsealed court documents revealed that Papadopoulos had plead guilty to lying to federal agents about his communication with Russia.

“I would encourage you” to “make the trip, if it is feasible,” Clovis wrote in an August email to Papadopoulos, in response to plans suggested by Papadopoulos to go to Russia and meet with Russian officials off the record. Clovis also praised Papadopoulos’ outreach efforts, telling him “great work” in regards to a March 2016 meeting during which Papadopoulos and a London professor, as well as a Russian woman incorrectly described as “Putin’s niece,” discussed plans for a potential meeting between the campaign and “Russian leadership.”

Read more: https://thinkprogress.org/clovis-usda-russia-connection-3e9bd33bacfd/

[Zoonart]

1. Bob meet wringer...

I mean justice.

[Botany]

2. But I thought Papadopoulos was just a coffee boy

But on Monday, Clovis’ nomination took on new meaning when it was revealed that, while working as national co-chairman of the Trump campaign, he had encouraged George Papadopoulos, a campaign foreign policy adviser, to meet with Russian nationals in a potential effort to bolster the campaign.

[lagomorph777]

3. Oops. Papadouchebag's first victim.

First of many, many to come. Come to Papa.

[ck4829]

4. Putin has a vested interest in getting people to not care about climate change

Lots of 'arable land' will be available in Russia... even if it destroys the ecosystem and the lives of the people already up there.

[Hornedfrog1985]

14. Yup.

Land to be mined, and lord knows russia could be warmer. He could get oil, gold, who knows what else.

[ffr]

5. Whaaaaa-aaaaat! Papadopoulos has to be the most influential covfefe boy EVER!

LOCK THEM UP!

[exboyfil]

6. So Clovis is going to go under

oath for the confirmation hearings?

That is going to be interesting. I got to think his nomination is going to be pulled.

[not fooled]

11. From your lips

to dog's ears. Yes, sammie, withdraw your nomination before you further embarrass yourself, if that's possible.

Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease have this joke asswipe slink back to his RWNJ hideyhole and get him far, far away from USDA.

Get USDA employees off suicide watch.

[Pacifist Patriot]

7. "one of the Trump administrations more controversial nominees"

How do you go over that bar considering all the other nominees? Blimey, what we have come to!

[meow2u3]

8. Practically EVERY Trump nominee is controversial

That's by design. They're out to undermine and overthrow Constitutional democracy by undercutting our institutions. Keep that in mind.

[lark]

9. Repugs just don't care, it's all about their personal profit and fuck the country.

Fuck the workers, fuck the poor, control and deligitimatize women, promote rapists (Drumpf) and promote Russia in exchange for winning elections. They gave up any pretense of having a soul or of caring a fig about anyone other than themselves when they stood by Hair Furor.

[Honeycombe8]

10. I've never seen an administration THIS corrupt. It's like they're the mob.

They put their hit men in the key jobs, to report back to the Don, do his bidding, and above all else, be LOYAL to the Don. If they aren't, he'll happily kill their careers. He enjoys that.

And the ones who should be protecting the country against this - Congress - is doing very little to stop it.

I can't figure it out. Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys? Is Flake good if he shines a light on the corruption and behavior, but votes to push the agenda of a Don? Is McCain?

The Dems aren't involved in keeping the Don in power, but they have no power to speak of....at this time.

[Sunlei]

12. suck-up to papa-mafia for position & money- you'll be the first one thrown to the dogs.

Notice how few Republicans "in the loop" placed their friends & 'close' family near or in the trump Admin.

[sofa king]

13. "It is hard for an empty sack to stand upright." -- Ben Franklin

It seems as if everyone who ever thought about that Franklin quote has a different interpretation of it. Some say it relates to hunger.

I think Franklin was speaking specifically about ethics and just plain smarts. Ethics is the application of morals. It requires mental competence.

If you're too stupid to understand climate change, then you're too stupid to be a decent person, unless you were lucky enough to have that drilled into you by some other force. You can go to church every damned day and still be irredeemably corrupt if you cannot remember, define, or apply the moral principles needed to make an ethical decision.

So yeah, I think you absolutely can make guesses about how ethical and legal a person is going to behave, based primarily upon the stupid bullshit that person believes.

[SHRED]

15. But don't kneel for the National Anthem

That's unpatriotic!

[displacedtexan]

16. Have you seen this guy? He'll stroke out any minute now.

He looks like Violet Beauregard, about to explode. He should see a doctor 'cause damn!

[SergeStorms]

17. Clovis detested Trump....

before he became the front-runner in the Republican primaries.

When Clovis was working for Rick Perry he stated that Trump was of low moral character, and that his "conversion" to christianity wasn't sincere. But, being a man of impeccable character, Clovis turned into a huge Trump cheerleader after Trump put him on the payroll. Whoever said Republicans can be bought! Hah!

[Achilleaze]

18. He is right about the "low moral character" of the "republican family-values" role model*

republican children and grandchildren will grow up following his low moral example.


* Comrade Casino, republican Draft-Dodger-in-Chief