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babylonsister
babylonsister's Journal
babylonsister's Journal
January 30, 2020
The GOP's Attempts to Spin and Deny on Impeachment Have Hit Pathetic New Lows
January 29, 2020 12:39PM ET
The GOP’s Attempts to Spin and Deny on Impeachment Have Hit Pathetic New Lows
You can smell the desperation
By Andy Kroll
snip//
Alan Dershowitz, the legal scholar and cable-news talking head who once defended Jeffrey Epstein, pushed perhaps the most expansive view imaginable of executive power during an appearance at the impeachment trial on Wednesday.
According to Dershowitz, President Trump did nothing wrong by freezing military aid for Ukraine until it announced investigations into the Bidens because a president can do basically whatever he wants to get reelected if he deems those actions in the “public interest.” As Dershowitz put it, “If the president does something that he thinks will help him get elected, in the public interest, that cannot be the kind of quid pro quo that results in impeachment.”
So even if Trump did withhold Ukraine’s money specifically until he got the Biden announcement, that’s his right and not an abuse of power, Dershowitz said. Under this logic, Richard Nixon could have argued that the Watergate break-in and ensuing cover-up were in the “public interest” because they would help him get reelected. A president could in theory arrest his opponents if he insisted that doing so was in the “public interest” because it would help his reelection. Taken to its extreme, Dershowitz’s argument would permit any number of corrupt, immoral, or abusive acts to help a sitting president win another four years simply because the president deems those acts in the “public interest.”
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the lead House member arguing in favor of convicting and removing Trump, summed up the insanity of Dershowitz’s argument. “If you say you can’t hold a president accountable in an election year where they’re trying to cheat in that election, then you are giving them carte blanche,” Schiff said.
more...
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-impeachment-trial-senate-republican-bolton-ukraine-hannity-fox-944868/
January 30, 2020
Senate GOP Sees Witnesses Tying Up Senate
Tough shit. gop, do your jobs. 
https://politicalwire.com/2020/01/30/senate-gop-sees-witnesses-tying-up-senate/
Senate GOP Sees Witnesses Tying Up Senate
January 30, 2020 at 7:14 am EST By Taegan Goddard
“In the end, the impeachment calculation nearly all Senate Republicans are making is fairly simple: They would rather look as if they ignored relevant evidence than plunge the Senate into an unpredictable, open-ended inquiry that would anger President Trump and court political peril,” the New York Times reports.
“As Republicans lined up on Wednesday behind blocking witnesses in the trial, their reasoning reflected the worry that allowing testimony by John R. Bolton, the former national security adviser whose unpublished manuscript contradicts a central part of Mr. Trump’s impeachment defense, would undoubtedly lead to a cascade of other witnesses. They in turn could provide more damaging disclosures and tie up the Senate indefinitely, when the ultimate verdict — an acquittal of the president — is not in doubt.”
“As Republicans lined up on Wednesday behind blocking witnesses in the trial, their reasoning reflected the worry that allowing testimony by John R. Bolton, the former national security adviser whose unpublished manuscript contradicts a central part of Mr. Trump’s impeachment defense, would undoubtedly lead to a cascade of other witnesses. They in turn could provide more damaging disclosures and tie up the Senate indefinitely, when the ultimate verdict — an acquittal of the president — is not in doubt.”
January 30, 2020
TheHill.com
Dem senator to force vote requiring Roberts to weigh in on witnesses
By Jordain Carney - 01/29/20 08:31 PM EST
Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) is planning to force a vote on Friday to require Chief Justice John Roberts to subpoena impeachment witnesses who he believes are relevant and also rule on any claims of executive privilege.
The move comes as GOP senators are increasingly confident they will have the votes to block witnesses from being called.
If Democrats are able to muster four GOP votes to allow witnesses, both sides could then make motions for specific individuals and documents. Under the rules resolution, the Senate would vote on the motions.
But Van Hollen's effort would let Roberts issue subpoenas if he thinks a motion is relevant. The Senate, if it disagreed with his decision, could still overrule him with a simple majority.
The motion, according to text from Van Hollen's office, would require Roberts to issue subpoenas for witnesses or documents requested by either side if he "deems them likely to have probative evidence relevant to either article of impeachment."
Van Hollen would also require Roberts to referee any claims of executive privilege.
more...
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/480614-dem-senator-to-force-vote-requiring-roberts-to-weigh-in-on-witnesses?fbclid=IwAR1JnDfi1JEY3fjjxunyqRnnPQ04PgJ1HTn3Ao0yQIcg5EWDLZomjNfYCVs
Dem senator to force vote requiring Roberts to weigh in on witnesses
TheHill.com
Dem senator to force vote requiring Roberts to weigh in on witnesses
By Jordain Carney - 01/29/20 08:31 PM EST
Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) is planning to force a vote on Friday to require Chief Justice John Roberts to subpoena impeachment witnesses who he believes are relevant and also rule on any claims of executive privilege.
The move comes as GOP senators are increasingly confident they will have the votes to block witnesses from being called.
If Democrats are able to muster four GOP votes to allow witnesses, both sides could then make motions for specific individuals and documents. Under the rules resolution, the Senate would vote on the motions.
But Van Hollen's effort would let Roberts issue subpoenas if he thinks a motion is relevant. The Senate, if it disagreed with his decision, could still overrule him with a simple majority.
"A fair trial includes relevant documents and witnesses. And in a fair trial the judge determines what evidence is admitted," Van Hollen said in a statement. "My motion ensures the Chief Justice will serve the same role as a judge in any trial across our country – to allow the Senate access to the facts they need to get to the truth."
The motion, according to text from Van Hollen's office, would require Roberts to issue subpoenas for witnesses or documents requested by either side if he "deems them likely to have probative evidence relevant to either article of impeachment."
Van Hollen would also require Roberts to referee any claims of executive privilege.
more...
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/480614-dem-senator-to-force-vote-requiring-roberts-to-weigh-in-on-witnesses?fbclid=IwAR1JnDfi1JEY3fjjxunyqRnnPQ04PgJ1HTn3Ao0yQIcg5EWDLZomjNfYCVs
January 30, 2020
Senate Republicans are in trouble no matter what they do
Written by Laura Clawson / Daily Kos January 29, 2020
snip//
Now for a couple of side notes: Don’t fall for any of this ridiculous “witness trade” talk. Not only would it be stupid for Democrats to welcome a materially irrelevant witness like Hunter Biden in order to hear from Bolton, but the whole concept of a trade is a red herring. If Republicans have the votes to call Hunter Biden or Adam Schiff, they could and can do it. They have enough people in their caucus to authorize those witnesses without getting Democrats to sign off on it. So just let them stew in their juices over that. Democrats should remain focused on Bolton. And, as Schiff pointed out Tuesday, if they want a 1-for-1 trade, let them call someone relevant, such as acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, who has contradicted Bolton’s account.
Finally, let’s remember where this entire inquiry started—it was deemed a plank walk for Democrats at the outset when Pelosi first announced it last fall. But she has played it masterfully, threading the needles of duty, oath of office, and public opinion all the way through. House Democrats managed to execute an inquiry that was deemed fair and has convinced a majority of the public that Trump should be removed from office according to a preponderance of polling over the last month. Senate Republicans, at the moment, are now on the wrong side of the polling no matter what they do—whether they vote for witnesses and then acquit or forgo witnesses altogether and then acquit. Frankly, forgoing witnesses is their worst option as a national consensus has emerged that witness testimony must be heard. If Senate Republicans choose to ignore some 70% of the population, they will pay the price at the ballot box in November. However, if they vote for witnesses, it opens a Pandora’s box in which McConnell loses control of the process. Win-win for Democrats.
Ultimately, regardless of what Senate Republicans do, House Democrats still have the final play. If they aren’t satisfied with the process the GOP-led Senate has undertaken, Pelosi and Chairman Schiff now have more reason than ever to subpoena Bolton’s testimony. No one can be 100% sure all of what Bolton would say under oath, but House Democrats still have the opportunity to have the final say on what the public hears when Senate Republicans conclude their sham trial. That’s pretty damn close to a checkmate in terms of congressional chess playing.
Senate Republicans are in trouble no matter what they do
https://www.alternet.org/2020/01/senate-republicans-are-in-trouble-no-matter-what-they-do/Senate Republicans are in trouble no matter what they do
Written by Laura Clawson / Daily Kos January 29, 2020
snip//
Now for a couple of side notes: Don’t fall for any of this ridiculous “witness trade” talk. Not only would it be stupid for Democrats to welcome a materially irrelevant witness like Hunter Biden in order to hear from Bolton, but the whole concept of a trade is a red herring. If Republicans have the votes to call Hunter Biden or Adam Schiff, they could and can do it. They have enough people in their caucus to authorize those witnesses without getting Democrats to sign off on it. So just let them stew in their juices over that. Democrats should remain focused on Bolton. And, as Schiff pointed out Tuesday, if they want a 1-for-1 trade, let them call someone relevant, such as acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, who has contradicted Bolton’s account.
Finally, let’s remember where this entire inquiry started—it was deemed a plank walk for Democrats at the outset when Pelosi first announced it last fall. But she has played it masterfully, threading the needles of duty, oath of office, and public opinion all the way through. House Democrats managed to execute an inquiry that was deemed fair and has convinced a majority of the public that Trump should be removed from office according to a preponderance of polling over the last month. Senate Republicans, at the moment, are now on the wrong side of the polling no matter what they do—whether they vote for witnesses and then acquit or forgo witnesses altogether and then acquit. Frankly, forgoing witnesses is their worst option as a national consensus has emerged that witness testimony must be heard. If Senate Republicans choose to ignore some 70% of the population, they will pay the price at the ballot box in November. However, if they vote for witnesses, it opens a Pandora’s box in which McConnell loses control of the process. Win-win for Democrats.
Ultimately, regardless of what Senate Republicans do, House Democrats still have the final play. If they aren’t satisfied with the process the GOP-led Senate has undertaken, Pelosi and Chairman Schiff now have more reason than ever to subpoena Bolton’s testimony. No one can be 100% sure all of what Bolton would say under oath, but House Democrats still have the opportunity to have the final say on what the public hears when Senate Republicans conclude their sham trial. That’s pretty damn close to a checkmate in terms of congressional chess playing.
January 29, 2020
January 29, 2020 1:14PM ET
QAnon YouTubers Are Telling People to Drink Bleach to Ward Off Coronavirus
Dangerous advice is spreading on YouTube and Twitter, despite efforts to stop it
By EJ Dickson
As coronavirus spreads across the globe — with Chinese authorities confirming nearly 6,000 cases and 132 people dead as of Wednesday — the reaction on social media in particular has largely been marked by fear and panic. For some conspiracy theorists, however, it has also served as a prime opportunity to spread misinformation and baseless rumors about the disease — some of which are potentially extremely dangerous.
One terrifying example? QAnon supporters are encouraging people to drink MMS — or Miracle Mineral Solution, a bleaching agent that has been touted as a “miracle cure” by anti-vaxxers and other fringe groups — to ward off coronavirus. And despite restrictions on such content on platforms like YouTube, it is nonetheless fairly easy to find.
According to the Daily Beast, proponents of QAnon — the elaborate conspiracy theory purporting that President Donald Trump is waging a secret war against a ring of Democratic child sexual abusers — have been promoting MMS as a “cure” for coronavirus on Twitter, particularly the MMS-branded “20-20-20 spray,” with one account alleging it “kills viruses instantly.” Another prominent conspiracy theorist tweeted, “#coronavirus is a depopulation program,” recommending colloidal silver (a supplement that, if taken in large amounts, can result in discoloration of the skin and nails, or kidney damage) and MMS to ward off the disease.
These plugs for MMS usually go hand-in-hand with general theories alleging that coronavirus was manufactured in a lab, usually by conspiracy-theorist favorite Bill Gates, for the benefit of the pharmaceutical industry. As Rolling Stone reported last week, prominent QAnon supporter and YouTuber Jordan Sather bears much responsibility for perpetuating such claims.
Since the spread of the disease was initially reported, he has devoted his Twitter account to fomenting misinformation about the disease, (inaccurately) claiming that the virus was the product of a 2015 patent for avian coronavirus and implying that it was created in a Chinese lab.
more...
https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/qanon-conspiracy-theorists-coronavirus-mms-bleach-youtube-twitter-944878/?fbclid=IwAR3UbkzIYzmzgmQbmLJbwf6wOvQui_xARDtR9IuIBvspTutlbYINI0xwc5I
QAnon YouTubers Are Telling People to Drink Bleach to Ward Off Coronavirus
January 29, 2020 1:14PM ET
QAnon YouTubers Are Telling People to Drink Bleach to Ward Off Coronavirus
Dangerous advice is spreading on YouTube and Twitter, despite efforts to stop it
By EJ Dickson
As coronavirus spreads across the globe — with Chinese authorities confirming nearly 6,000 cases and 132 people dead as of Wednesday — the reaction on social media in particular has largely been marked by fear and panic. For some conspiracy theorists, however, it has also served as a prime opportunity to spread misinformation and baseless rumors about the disease — some of which are potentially extremely dangerous.
One terrifying example? QAnon supporters are encouraging people to drink MMS — or Miracle Mineral Solution, a bleaching agent that has been touted as a “miracle cure” by anti-vaxxers and other fringe groups — to ward off coronavirus. And despite restrictions on such content on platforms like YouTube, it is nonetheless fairly easy to find.
According to the Daily Beast, proponents of QAnon — the elaborate conspiracy theory purporting that President Donald Trump is waging a secret war against a ring of Democratic child sexual abusers — have been promoting MMS as a “cure” for coronavirus on Twitter, particularly the MMS-branded “20-20-20 spray,” with one account alleging it “kills viruses instantly.” Another prominent conspiracy theorist tweeted, “#coronavirus is a depopulation program,” recommending colloidal silver (a supplement that, if taken in large amounts, can result in discoloration of the skin and nails, or kidney damage) and MMS to ward off the disease.
These plugs for MMS usually go hand-in-hand with general theories alleging that coronavirus was manufactured in a lab, usually by conspiracy-theorist favorite Bill Gates, for the benefit of the pharmaceutical industry. As Rolling Stone reported last week, prominent QAnon supporter and YouTuber Jordan Sather bears much responsibility for perpetuating such claims.
Since the spread of the disease was initially reported, he has devoted his Twitter account to fomenting misinformation about the disease, (inaccurately) claiming that the virus was the product of a 2015 patent for avian coronavirus and implying that it was created in a Chinese lab.
more...
https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/qanon-conspiracy-theorists-coronavirus-mms-bleach-youtube-twitter-944878/?fbclid=IwAR3UbkzIYzmzgmQbmLJbwf6wOvQui_xARDtR9IuIBvspTutlbYINI0xwc5I
January 29, 2020
John Bolton’s Book Is Making Fools of Trump’s Republican Enablers
By John Cassidy
January 29, 2020
Speaking to reporters after Donald Trump’s lawyers completed their opening arguments in his impeachment trial on Tuesday, Chuck Schumer, the Senate Minority Leader, could barely conceal a smile. “I hope we have just four Republicans. All we need is four,” he said. At another press conference, Adam Schiff, the leader of the House managers, said it was clear that the President’s lawyers were “still reeling from the revelations of John Bolton’s book.” John Kelly, Trump’s former chief of staff, said on Monday that he believed Bolton’s claim, first reported in the Times, that Trump told his former national-security adviser that he wouldn’t release military aid to Ukraine unless the Ukrainian government pursued an investigation of the Bidens. Schiff called this “extraordinary.”
That term also describes the pickle in which Mitch McConnell, John Cornyn, Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, and the rest of Trump’s Republican enablers now find themselves. “Mortifying” is another word that could be used. Rarely, if ever, has a political blood oath—in this case, a pledge to acquit a crooked President regardless of the evidence against him, and without even bothering to call any witnesses—rebounded so horribly, publicly, and spectacularly. Like Trump, when the whistle-blower’s complaint originally emerged, McConnell and his colleagues have been caught in the act. And it couldn’t have happened to a more deserving bunch.
Schiff’s description was off in one respect. Trump’s lawyers aren’t the only ones who are reeling from the news about Bolton’s book; the entire G.O.P. ecosystem is frazzled. On his show on Monday night, the Fox Business channel’s Lou Dobbs, whose on-air encomiums to Trump have earned him special treatment from the White House, was reduced to putting up a picture of Bolton, a veteran Republican hawk who has served in the Administrations of four G.O.P. Presidents, with the label “A TOOL FOR THE LEFT.” Next, Dobbs will be telling us that John Kelly is a member of the Fourth International and Mitt Romney, who has called on Bolton to testify, is a closet Bernie Sanders supporter.
snip//
To be sure, there isn’t much more to be said about Trump’s perfidy, and, in the grand scheme of things, even the spectacle of Bolton providing a firsthand account of the President’s lying and venality may not do him much further damage. We all recall his quote about shooting someone on Fifth Avenue. Many of his supporters revel in his status as a Washington pariah. But the former national-security adviser showing up on Capitol Hill and telling his damaging tale (evidently, the Ukraine material isn’t the only revelation in Bolton’s book) would certainly reflect badly on the Republicans who tried to prevent him from appearing. These senators already look like patsies and enablers. If Bolton repeated what is reportedly in the book for all the world to see and hear, it would make them look like blithering idiots as well. Who else would have agreed to countenance Trump’s preposterous defense—that his real concern was corruption inside Ukraine?
Regardless of what happens next, the Republicans are still likely to acquit the President—there has never been much doubt about that. But if McConnell somehow succeeds in preventing Bolton from testifying after all this, there can no longer be even any pretense that the trial is on the level, or that an acquittal along party lines is anything other than an abject display of political cowardice and self-abasement by the current generation of Republican senators. For the timely clarification, we are in debt to whoever told the Times about what’s in Bolton’s book.
John Bolton's Book Is Making Fools of Trump's Republican Enablers
https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/john-boltons-book-is-making-fools-of-trumps-republican-enablersJohn Bolton’s Book Is Making Fools of Trump’s Republican Enablers
By John Cassidy
January 29, 2020
Speaking to reporters after Donald Trump’s lawyers completed their opening arguments in his impeachment trial on Tuesday, Chuck Schumer, the Senate Minority Leader, could barely conceal a smile. “I hope we have just four Republicans. All we need is four,” he said. At another press conference, Adam Schiff, the leader of the House managers, said it was clear that the President’s lawyers were “still reeling from the revelations of John Bolton’s book.” John Kelly, Trump’s former chief of staff, said on Monday that he believed Bolton’s claim, first reported in the Times, that Trump told his former national-security adviser that he wouldn’t release military aid to Ukraine unless the Ukrainian government pursued an investigation of the Bidens. Schiff called this “extraordinary.”
That term also describes the pickle in which Mitch McConnell, John Cornyn, Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, and the rest of Trump’s Republican enablers now find themselves. “Mortifying” is another word that could be used. Rarely, if ever, has a political blood oath—in this case, a pledge to acquit a crooked President regardless of the evidence against him, and without even bothering to call any witnesses—rebounded so horribly, publicly, and spectacularly. Like Trump, when the whistle-blower’s complaint originally emerged, McConnell and his colleagues have been caught in the act. And it couldn’t have happened to a more deserving bunch.
Schiff’s description was off in one respect. Trump’s lawyers aren’t the only ones who are reeling from the news about Bolton’s book; the entire G.O.P. ecosystem is frazzled. On his show on Monday night, the Fox Business channel’s Lou Dobbs, whose on-air encomiums to Trump have earned him special treatment from the White House, was reduced to putting up a picture of Bolton, a veteran Republican hawk who has served in the Administrations of four G.O.P. Presidents, with the label “A TOOL FOR THE LEFT.” Next, Dobbs will be telling us that John Kelly is a member of the Fourth International and Mitt Romney, who has called on Bolton to testify, is a closet Bernie Sanders supporter.
snip//
To be sure, there isn’t much more to be said about Trump’s perfidy, and, in the grand scheme of things, even the spectacle of Bolton providing a firsthand account of the President’s lying and venality may not do him much further damage. We all recall his quote about shooting someone on Fifth Avenue. Many of his supporters revel in his status as a Washington pariah. But the former national-security adviser showing up on Capitol Hill and telling his damaging tale (evidently, the Ukraine material isn’t the only revelation in Bolton’s book) would certainly reflect badly on the Republicans who tried to prevent him from appearing. These senators already look like patsies and enablers. If Bolton repeated what is reportedly in the book for all the world to see and hear, it would make them look like blithering idiots as well. Who else would have agreed to countenance Trump’s preposterous defense—that his real concern was corruption inside Ukraine?
Regardless of what happens next, the Republicans are still likely to acquit the President—there has never been much doubt about that. But if McConnell somehow succeeds in preventing Bolton from testifying after all this, there can no longer be even any pretense that the trial is on the level, or that an acquittal along party lines is anything other than an abject display of political cowardice and self-abasement by the current generation of Republican senators. For the timely clarification, we are in debt to whoever told the Times about what’s in Bolton’s book.
January 29, 2020
Trumpworld Is Trying to Make Don Lemon Its 2020 “Basket of Deplorables”
A clip of the CNN host and guests riffing on Trump’s “rube” supporters is already being featured in fundraising emails and a Republican National Committee ad.
By Caleb Ecarma
January 29, 2020
The Democratic primaries don’t kick off until next week, but Trumpworld has already zeroed in on its primary 2020 opponent: the media. A new Guardian study on Donald Trump’s advertising tactics found that attacks on the media and “fake news” featured in 18.25% of the campaign’s Facebook ads last year—more than any other issue. On Saturday night Trumpworld got some fresh material for its media-bashing adverts. A segment from CNN host Don Lemon, in which his guest, GOP strategist Rick Wilson, riffed about Trump’s “rube” supporters, has inspired widespread hysterics on the right, and is already being featured in a Republican National Committee ad that likens the comment to Hillary Clinton’s infamous 2016 “basket of deplorables” line.
snip//
As for the RNC’s strategy, its ad interweaves Wilson’s comments and Lemon’s laughter with several similarly themed clips, including MSNBC host Chris Matthews saying that “Trump always loves the low-information guy”; Pete Buttigieg saying that Trump’s base looks “the other way on racism, at best”; Joe Biden saying Trump harps on the “issue of racism across the country because that’s his base”; and Clinton’s “deplorables” comment. The ad ends with a call to action: “They think you’re a joke. Prove them wrong in November.”
The Trump campaign is likewise attempting to fundraise off the segment; it fired off an email blast on Tuesday, telling supporters that this is what “ELITES think of everyday Americans who support President Trump. These radical hacks painted conservative voters as illiterate hillbillies on national television because they DESPISE President Trump and they DESPISE you, Friend.” While no Democratic presidential candidates appeared in the clip or endorsed it, the Trump campaign lumped them in anyway: “This is what D.C. Democrats like Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Michael Bloomberg, and Elizabeth Warren truly think of you.”
To say that this type of outrage is a little disingenuous coming from a guy who has called Baltimore “a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess,” mocked a disabled reporter, and regularly suggested his dead enemies are rotting in hell is something of an understatement. But as with most blowups of this sort, Trumpworld seems to have had its sense of irony surgically removed. Just because the media-bashing is in bad faith, however, doesn’t mean it’s not effective. It’s a convenient tool for a president whose supporters are trapped in a feedback loop of distrust, and who can therefore position himself as the only source of truth, and their only ally in a world that disdains them. If a few throwaway lines from Don Lemon confirm it, all the better.
Trumpworld Is Trying to Make Don Lemon Its 2020 "Basket of Deplorables"
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/01/trumpworld-trying-to-make-don-lemon-2020-basket-of-deplorablesTrumpworld Is Trying to Make Don Lemon Its 2020 “Basket of Deplorables”
A clip of the CNN host and guests riffing on Trump’s “rube” supporters is already being featured in fundraising emails and a Republican National Committee ad.
By Caleb Ecarma
January 29, 2020
The Democratic primaries don’t kick off until next week, but Trumpworld has already zeroed in on its primary 2020 opponent: the media. A new Guardian study on Donald Trump’s advertising tactics found that attacks on the media and “fake news” featured in 18.25% of the campaign’s Facebook ads last year—more than any other issue. On Saturday night Trumpworld got some fresh material for its media-bashing adverts. A segment from CNN host Don Lemon, in which his guest, GOP strategist Rick Wilson, riffed about Trump’s “rube” supporters, has inspired widespread hysterics on the right, and is already being featured in a Republican National Committee ad that likens the comment to Hillary Clinton’s infamous 2016 “basket of deplorables” line.
snip//
As for the RNC’s strategy, its ad interweaves Wilson’s comments and Lemon’s laughter with several similarly themed clips, including MSNBC host Chris Matthews saying that “Trump always loves the low-information guy”; Pete Buttigieg saying that Trump’s base looks “the other way on racism, at best”; Joe Biden saying Trump harps on the “issue of racism across the country because that’s his base”; and Clinton’s “deplorables” comment. The ad ends with a call to action: “They think you’re a joke. Prove them wrong in November.”
The Trump campaign is likewise attempting to fundraise off the segment; it fired off an email blast on Tuesday, telling supporters that this is what “ELITES think of everyday Americans who support President Trump. These radical hacks painted conservative voters as illiterate hillbillies on national television because they DESPISE President Trump and they DESPISE you, Friend.” While no Democratic presidential candidates appeared in the clip or endorsed it, the Trump campaign lumped them in anyway: “This is what D.C. Democrats like Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Michael Bloomberg, and Elizabeth Warren truly think of you.”
To say that this type of outrage is a little disingenuous coming from a guy who has called Baltimore “a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess,” mocked a disabled reporter, and regularly suggested his dead enemies are rotting in hell is something of an understatement. But as with most blowups of this sort, Trumpworld seems to have had its sense of irony surgically removed. Just because the media-bashing is in bad faith, however, doesn’t mean it’s not effective. It’s a convenient tool for a president whose supporters are trapped in a feedback loop of distrust, and who can therefore position himself as the only source of truth, and their only ally in a world that disdains them. If a few throwaway lines from Don Lemon confirm it, all the better.
January 29, 2020
1/29/20 9:31am
Sen. Whitehouse Stuns Bill Hemmer With Assessment Of Dershowitz's Arguments
On Fox News, the senator from Rhode Island held no punches in telling the Fox News host what he thought of Alan Dershowitz's legal theories.
By Aliza Worthington
10 min ago by Karoli Kuns
VIDEO @ LINK~
Fox News anchor Bill Hemmer did not order what Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse served up in their discussion about Trump's defense team on impeachment. Specifically, Hemmer asked Sen. Whitehouse about Alan Dershowitz — once a revered constitutional scholar and legal mind — and the arguments Dershowitz laid out in defense of Trump's behavior regarding extortion of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Not quite sure what Hemmer expected out of Sen. Whitehouse, since the Dersh is just one of many hypocrites who have completely reversed themselves on matters of impeachment and Russia, but it clearly wasn't the answer he got.
Hemmer sat for a moment, stunned, before he took a breath and changed the subject. Unfortunately, that's what happens too often on Earth 2. When presented with hard truths in unvarnished, clear language, the only allowable option is to change direction.
Sen. Whitehouse Stuns Bill Hemmer With Assessment Of Dershowitz's Arguments
https://crooksandliars.com/2020/01/sen-whitehouse-stuns-bill-hemmer1/29/20 9:31am
Sen. Whitehouse Stuns Bill Hemmer With Assessment Of Dershowitz's Arguments
On Fox News, the senator from Rhode Island held no punches in telling the Fox News host what he thought of Alan Dershowitz's legal theories.
By Aliza Worthington
10 min ago by Karoli Kuns
VIDEO @ LINK~
Fox News anchor Bill Hemmer did not order what Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse served up in their discussion about Trump's defense team on impeachment. Specifically, Hemmer asked Sen. Whitehouse about Alan Dershowitz — once a revered constitutional scholar and legal mind — and the arguments Dershowitz laid out in defense of Trump's behavior regarding extortion of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Not quite sure what Hemmer expected out of Sen. Whitehouse, since the Dersh is just one of many hypocrites who have completely reversed themselves on matters of impeachment and Russia, but it clearly wasn't the answer he got.
HEMMER: What did you think of Alan Dershowitz's argument last night about the abuse of power? He said abuse of power throughout American political history is an accusation.
SEN. WHITEHOUSE: He started off on a bad note, because he told us that the standard we had to meet as senators was proof beyond a reasonable doubt which every senator knows is wrong. So that didn't get him off to a very good start. Then when he started talking about how this had to be criminal law, he had to reflect that, yes, he'd said the opposite before, and that yes, the weight of current authority is completely against him, and then he turned on himself and said we shouldn't be looking at the president's intent, when in any criminal case, intent is at the heart of the proceedings. So, that you get the heads of all the prosecutors in the room, they snapped up as he said that, because it made no sense.
HEMMER: So, I take it you weren't convinced by his arguments. A few other things.
SEN. WHITEHOUSE: No, actually I thought It was embarrassing.
HEMMER: Wow. Alan Dershowitz's presentation was embarrassing?
SEN. WHITEHOUSE: I thought so, it was really unfortunate.
SEN. WHITEHOUSE: He started off on a bad note, because he told us that the standard we had to meet as senators was proof beyond a reasonable doubt which every senator knows is wrong. So that didn't get him off to a very good start. Then when he started talking about how this had to be criminal law, he had to reflect that, yes, he'd said the opposite before, and that yes, the weight of current authority is completely against him, and then he turned on himself and said we shouldn't be looking at the president's intent, when in any criminal case, intent is at the heart of the proceedings. So, that you get the heads of all the prosecutors in the room, they snapped up as he said that, because it made no sense.
HEMMER: So, I take it you weren't convinced by his arguments. A few other things.
SEN. WHITEHOUSE: No, actually I thought It was embarrassing.
HEMMER: Wow. Alan Dershowitz's presentation was embarrassing?
SEN. WHITEHOUSE: I thought so, it was really unfortunate.
Hemmer sat for a moment, stunned, before he took a breath and changed the subject. Unfortunately, that's what happens too often on Earth 2. When presented with hard truths in unvarnished, clear language, the only allowable option is to change direction.
January 29, 2020
The First Son-In-Law
Jared Kushner: Palestinians Have Never Done Anything Right in Their Sad, Pathetic Lives
The first son-in-law has warned Palestinians not to “screw up this opportunity” at peace that he’s so graciously given to them.
By Bess Levin
January 29, 2020
Last June, more than two years after his father-in-law assigned him the task of bringing peace to the Middle East, Jared Kushner held a big kickoff conference in Bahrain to unveil the economic portion of his plan—and it did not go well. For starters, Palestinian leadership boycotted the entire event, which they felt was missing a few key details, such as, just as an example, a plan for control of the West Bank and Palestinian statehood. Kushner, ever the real estate agent, gave a speech in which he spoke of transforming the Gaza Strip into a tourist destination, failing to mention Israel and Egypt’s 12-year blockade of the Hamas-controlled territory, in addition to Israel’s 52-year-long occupation of the West Bank, which restricts trade and labor movements. When the Boy Prince of New Jersey touched on politics, it was to offer the savvy take that if everyone just stopped “doing terrorism,” it would “allow for much faster flow of goods and people.” Not surprisingly, the whole thing was panned by experts, one of whom described Kushner’s plan as “the Monty Python sketch of Israeli-Palestinian peace initiatives.” Undeterred, Kushner got on a call with Arab and Israeli reporters and, putting on his salesman cap, explained that his vision was 100% workable, if Palestinian leadership would stop being so “hysterical and stupid.”
Was this the greatest way to convince people to get on board? Probably not! Yet, incredibly, Kushner apparently thought it was exactly the right approach, and we know this because on Tuesday, after the White House unveiled its full vision for peace in the Middle East—which calls for no evacuation of settlements, limits Palestinian presence in Jerusalem, and includes no path to statehood beyond the vague mention of a “future State of Palestine”—he repeated it again, except this time he cranked the a-hole from a 12 to a 45.
Appearing on CNN, Kushner told Christiane Amanpour that critics of his plan—of which there are a comically huge number—must “divorce [themselves] from all of the history” and focus on the deal he has outlined for them. And speaking of history, Kushner posited that if this whole thing fails, it’s not going to be because a glorified slumlord somehow didn’t get it right, but because Palestinians are morons who don’t know what’s good for them. Sayeth Kushner:
Don’t worry, there’s footage of Kushner making this statement so it can be played back for all eternity:
https://twitter.com/i/status/1222267596210343940
more...
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/01/jared-kushner-peace-plan-palestinians
Jared Kushner: Palestinians Have Never Done Anything Right in Their Sad, Pathetic Lives
The First Son-In-Law
Jared Kushner: Palestinians Have Never Done Anything Right in Their Sad, Pathetic Lives
The first son-in-law has warned Palestinians not to “screw up this opportunity” at peace that he’s so graciously given to them.
By Bess Levin
January 29, 2020
Last June, more than two years after his father-in-law assigned him the task of bringing peace to the Middle East, Jared Kushner held a big kickoff conference in Bahrain to unveil the economic portion of his plan—and it did not go well. For starters, Palestinian leadership boycotted the entire event, which they felt was missing a few key details, such as, just as an example, a plan for control of the West Bank and Palestinian statehood. Kushner, ever the real estate agent, gave a speech in which he spoke of transforming the Gaza Strip into a tourist destination, failing to mention Israel and Egypt’s 12-year blockade of the Hamas-controlled territory, in addition to Israel’s 52-year-long occupation of the West Bank, which restricts trade and labor movements. When the Boy Prince of New Jersey touched on politics, it was to offer the savvy take that if everyone just stopped “doing terrorism,” it would “allow for much faster flow of goods and people.” Not surprisingly, the whole thing was panned by experts, one of whom described Kushner’s plan as “the Monty Python sketch of Israeli-Palestinian peace initiatives.” Undeterred, Kushner got on a call with Arab and Israeli reporters and, putting on his salesman cap, explained that his vision was 100% workable, if Palestinian leadership would stop being so “hysterical and stupid.”
Was this the greatest way to convince people to get on board? Probably not! Yet, incredibly, Kushner apparently thought it was exactly the right approach, and we know this because on Tuesday, after the White House unveiled its full vision for peace in the Middle East—which calls for no evacuation of settlements, limits Palestinian presence in Jerusalem, and includes no path to statehood beyond the vague mention of a “future State of Palestine”—he repeated it again, except this time he cranked the a-hole from a 12 to a 45.
Appearing on CNN, Kushner told Christiane Amanpour that critics of his plan—of which there are a comically huge number—must “divorce [themselves] from all of the history” and focus on the deal he has outlined for them. And speaking of history, Kushner posited that if this whole thing fails, it’s not going to be because a glorified slumlord somehow didn’t get it right, but because Palestinians are morons who don’t know what’s good for them. Sayeth Kushner:
You have 5 million Palestinians who are really trapped because of bad leadership. So what we’ve done is we’ve created an opportunity for their leadership to either seize or not. If they screw up this opportunity—which again, they have a perfect track record of missing opportunities—if they screw this up, I think they will have a very hard time looking the international community in the face, saying they are victims, saying they have rights. This is a great deal for them if they come to the table and negotiate I think they can get something excellent...
The Palestinian leadership have to ask themselves a question: Do they want to have a state? Do they want to have a better life? If they do, we have created a framework for them to have it and we’re going to treat them in a very respectful manner. If they don’t, then they’re going to screw up another opportunity like they’ve screwed up every other opportunity that they’ve ever had in their existence.
The Palestinian leadership have to ask themselves a question: Do they want to have a state? Do they want to have a better life? If they do, we have created a framework for them to have it and we’re going to treat them in a very respectful manner. If they don’t, then they’re going to screw up another opportunity like they’ve screwed up every other opportunity that they’ve ever had in their existence.
Don’t worry, there’s footage of Kushner making this statement so it can be played back for all eternity:
https://twitter.com/i/status/1222267596210343940
more...
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/01/jared-kushner-peace-plan-palestinians
January 29, 2020
John Bolton Is a Shark, and There’s Blood in the Water
Senate Republicans now face a brutal Hobson’s Choice: Allow Bolton’s testimony or ignore him at their own peril.
By William Rivers Pitt, Truthout
Published January 29, 2020
snip//
The damage will be extreme no matter what transpires. So what, exactly, is Bolton’s game here? I can hazard a few guesses, beginning with one vital caveat: John Bolton is not your friend. He is not in this to help Democrats, or because he has suddenly seen the light.
Bolton isn’t doing this to see Trump convicted. Only a miracle can make that happen, and miracles are in short supply nowadays. Instead, Bolton wants Trump and all his people weakened, so that foreign policy can be put back in the hands of Bolton’s neoconservative pals. Trump has proven to be an impediment to that, but Trump bared his throat to Bolton when he messed with foreign policy for political gain while Bolton was in the room. This takeover would be a terrible outcome, but Bolton stands many long miles away from seeing that dream realized.
In the meantime, Bolton surely also wants revenge for the way Trump treated him last September, and like Yeats’s rough beast slouching toward Bethlehem, his hour has come round at last.
The Bolton Shark is patrolling these waters. Senate Republicans bared their throats, too, by embracing Trump’s absurd reality-bending defense: Everything Bolton bore witness to never happened, and if it did, there was nothing wrong with it. If these senators have any remaining wits about them, they will swim for the shore just as fast as they’re able by cutting their losses and voting to allow the testimony. Trump can’t save them anymore, not after this. According to reports, even he expects witnesses, including Bolton, will be called.
Bolton’s testimony will in all likelihood be deeply damaging, but senators who approve the testimony will at least be able to say they voted for a “proper proceeding,” and didn’t participate in the all-out bag job this impeachment trial was shaping up to be before Bolton’s fin broke the surface. It will hurt, but not as much as if Bolton is allowed to drag his revelations out for the next eight months, which he almost certainly will if he is denied a hearing. It’s the classic Band-Aid dilemma writ large: A quick rip or a slow peel?
Bad choices all around. Maybe Senate Republicans should make better friends next time.
John Bolton Is a Shark, and There's Blood in the Water
https://truthout.org/articles/john-bolton-is-a-shark-and-theres-blood-in-the-water/John Bolton Is a Shark, and There’s Blood in the Water
Senate Republicans now face a brutal Hobson’s Choice: Allow Bolton’s testimony or ignore him at their own peril.
By William Rivers Pitt, Truthout
Published January 29, 2020
Sharks patrol these waters
Sharks patrol these waters
Don’t let your fingers dangle in the water
And don’t you worry about the Day-Glo orange life preserver
It won’t save you
It won’t save you
Swim for the shore just as fast as you’re able…
Swim!
—Morphine
Sharks patrol these waters
Don’t let your fingers dangle in the water
And don’t you worry about the Day-Glo orange life preserver
It won’t save you
It won’t save you
Swim for the shore just as fast as you’re able…
Swim!
—Morphine
snip//
The damage will be extreme no matter what transpires. So what, exactly, is Bolton’s game here? I can hazard a few guesses, beginning with one vital caveat: John Bolton is not your friend. He is not in this to help Democrats, or because he has suddenly seen the light.
Bolton isn’t doing this to see Trump convicted. Only a miracle can make that happen, and miracles are in short supply nowadays. Instead, Bolton wants Trump and all his people weakened, so that foreign policy can be put back in the hands of Bolton’s neoconservative pals. Trump has proven to be an impediment to that, but Trump bared his throat to Bolton when he messed with foreign policy for political gain while Bolton was in the room. This takeover would be a terrible outcome, but Bolton stands many long miles away from seeing that dream realized.
In the meantime, Bolton surely also wants revenge for the way Trump treated him last September, and like Yeats’s rough beast slouching toward Bethlehem, his hour has come round at last.
The Bolton Shark is patrolling these waters. Senate Republicans bared their throats, too, by embracing Trump’s absurd reality-bending defense: Everything Bolton bore witness to never happened, and if it did, there was nothing wrong with it. If these senators have any remaining wits about them, they will swim for the shore just as fast as they’re able by cutting their losses and voting to allow the testimony. Trump can’t save them anymore, not after this. According to reports, even he expects witnesses, including Bolton, will be called.
Bolton’s testimony will in all likelihood be deeply damaging, but senators who approve the testimony will at least be able to say they voted for a “proper proceeding,” and didn’t participate in the all-out bag job this impeachment trial was shaping up to be before Bolton’s fin broke the surface. It will hurt, but not as much as if Bolton is allowed to drag his revelations out for the next eight months, which he almost certainly will if he is denied a hearing. It’s the classic Band-Aid dilemma writ large: A quick rip or a slow peel?
Bad choices all around. Maybe Senate Republicans should make better friends next time.
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