babylonsister

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Older Archives

Barr Didn't Even Pretend He's an Honest Broker

https://politicalwire.com/2019/05/01/barr-didnt-even-pretend-hes-an-honest-broker/

Barr Didn’t Even Pretend He’s an Honest Broker
May 1, 2019 at 5:48 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard

Andrew Cohen: “There’s no great mystery about what Attorney General William Barr did Wednesday during his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. He knows that Senate Democrats don’t have the votes or the power to do anything substantial to impair his tragic choice to protect President Trump from the substantiated allegations against him. And so the nation’s chief law enforcement official and top prosecutor, at taxpayer expense, spent hours spinning like a defense attorney with his client’s liberty on the line. If every prosecutor was so keen to forgive and forget compelling evidence of criminal conduct the nation’s prisons would be empty.”

“It was as disgraceful a performance by an attorney general as I have seen in 22 years as a legal analyst and commentator. And I say that having extensively covered the hapless appearances of Alberto Gonzales. He was the attorney general at the heart of the Bush administration’s U.S. Attorney scandal a decade ago. At least he had the excuse of being as dumb as a rock. Barr is no dummy. He knows precisely what he’s doing. His audience is an audience of one. It always has been. And he made it clear Wednesday, as if it had not been before, that he is no honest broker for the Justice Department. He’s just another hack.”

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 06:21 PM (2 replies)

Lindsey Graham Lied 19 Times In 12 Minutes At Barr Hearing

https://www.politicususa.com/2019/05/01/lindsey-graham-lied-19-times-in-12-minutes-at-barr-hearing.html

Posted on Wed, May 1st, 2019 by Jason Easley
Lindsey Graham Lied 19 Times In 12 Minutes At Barr Hearing

Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, and Trump golf buddy, Sen. Lindsey Graham lied 19 times in 12 minutes to protect the president.

Some of Graham’s lies included, “What did we learn from this after all this time and all this money, Mr. Mueller and his team concluded there was no collusion. I didn’t know. Like many of you here, on the Republican side, we all agreed that Mr. Mueller should be allowed to do his job without interference. I draw with some colleagues on the other side to introduce legislation to protect the special counsel could only be removed for cause. He was never removed. He was allowed to do his job. So, no collusion. No coordination. No conspiracy between the trump campaign and the Russian government regarding the 2016 election. As to obstruction of justice, Mr. Mueller left it to Mr. Barr to decide after two years and all of this time he said, Mr. Barr, you decide. Mr. Barr did.”

Philippe Reines tweeted:
https://twitter.com/PhilippeReines/status/1123593112859893761
The hearing has been so full of lies and misinformation from the Republican majority on the committee that MSNBC has had to break into their coverage and provide fact checks. Barr showed up at the Senate hearing because he knew that the Republicans on the committee would have his back and allow him to lie. Republicans control the majority of the hearing time, and it is obvious that they would rather change the subject to Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, the old GOP standard Bleach Bit, or frankly, anything that isn’t a discussion of Barr’s handling of Mueller’s report.

Graham is lying to protect Trump, and his desperation is showing to the entire country.

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 04:51 PM (6 replies)

Comey: 'Trump Eats Your Soul in Small Bites'

https://www.thedailybeast.com/comey-trump-eats-your-soul-in-small-bites

Comey: ‘Trump Eats Your Soul in Small Bites’

Former FBI director James Comey lambasted Trump in a Wednesday op-ed for The New York Times that he billed as an attempt to explain Attorney General William Barr’s capitulation to the Oval Office. “How could Mr. Barr, a bright and accomplished lawyer, start channeling the president in using words like ‘no collusion’ and F.B.I. ‘spying’?” Comey began in the op-ed, which was published while Barr testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “And how could Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, after the release of Mr. Mueller’s report that detailed Mr. Trump’s determined efforts to obstruct justice, give a speech quoting the president on the importance of the rule of law?”

After spending four months working alongside Trump, Comey wrote, he thought he had an answer: “Proximity to an amoral leader reveals something depressing,” he wrote. “I think that’s at least part of what we’ve seen with Bill Barr and Rod Rosenstein. Accomplished people lacking inner strength can’t resist the compromises necessary to survive Mr. Trump and that adds up to something they will never recover from. It takes character like Mr. Mattis’s to avoid the damage, because Mr. Trump eats your soul in small bites.”

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 03:43 PM (11 replies)

Buttigieg meets with Hillary Clinton

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/441632-buttigieg-meets-with-hillary-clinton

Buttigieg meets with Hillary Clinton
By Amie Parnes - 05/01/19 02:13 PM EDT

Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg sat down with Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, sources tell The Hill.

Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Ind., who has been recently surging in the polls, requested the meeting, the sources say.

He's the latest 2020 contender to meet with Clinton, the 2016 Democratic nominee, as she offers advice on what she learned from her race. Others who have met with her include Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.).

“She has a lot to share and is happy to give advice to the 2020 candidates,” one Clinton ally said.

The former secretary of State met with Buttigieg at her office in New York, a source said.

Clinton has not endorsed anyone in the race and her allies don’t expect an endorsement to come until at least the end of the primary.

The development follows reports that Buttigieg has gained the support of several top fundraisers who worked for Clinton during her presidential bid. Among them was Steve Elmendorf, who bundled more than $100,000 for her in 2016.

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 02:51 PM (7 replies)

US Navy sailors instructed to 'clap like we're at a strip club' for Pence arrival

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/30/politics/us-navy-strip-club-mike-pence/index.html?utm_term=link&utm_medium=social&utm_content=2019-05-01T12%3A00%3A04&utm_source=fbCNNp&fbclid=IwAR2GJRNOqYR_W2WfsV33T57fuKfvkitB4aXHQuoUQnNo1QYB0RC93lmlf58

US Navy sailors instructed to 'clap like we're at a strip club' for Pence arrival
By Barbara Starr and Kate Sullivan, CNN
Updated 7:00 AM ET, Wed May 1, 2019

(CNN)US Navy sailors were instructed by the ship's senior enlisted sailor to "clap like we're at a strip club" for Vice President Mike Pence's arrival aboard the USS Harry S. Truman on Tuesday.

The ship's public information officer confirmed to CNN the comments were made prior to Pence's arrival aboard the Truman in Norfolk, Virginia, and called the statement "inappropriate."

"We can confirm that this statement was made by USS Harry S. Truman's Command Master Chief to Truman's Sailors, prior to the arrival of the Vice President," Lt. Cmdr. Laura Stegherr said in a statement.

"This statement was inappropriate, and this issue is being addressed by Truman's leadership," she said.

Pence toured the ship Tuesday and made remarks to ship officers and crew members.

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 08:24 AM (10 replies)

Emails Show How Taxpayers Pay at Mar-a-Lago

https://politicalwire.com/2019/05/01/emails-show-how-taxpayers-pay-the-bills-at-mar-a-lago/

Emails Show How Taxpayers Pay at Mar-a-Lago
May 1, 2019 at 7:19 am EDT By Taegan Goddard

ProPublica: “The bill was sent to the State Department, which objected to covering it. It was then forwarded to the White House, which paid the tab. The unusual cocktail hour underscores a unique push and pull in the current administration: Donald Trump’s White House pays a bill and Donald Trump’s club reaps the revenue.”

“The premium liquor costs are only the beginning of government spending at Mar-a-Lago that emerges in hundreds of pages of receipts and email correspondence between Trump Organization employees and staffers for the State Department, which oversees presidential diplomatic travel and works with the Secret Service and White House. The emails show that the president’s company refused to agree to what was essentially a bulk-purchase agreement with the federal government, and that it charged the maximum allowable federal rate for hotel rooms. The Trump Organization could be obstinate when it came to rates for, say, function rooms at Mar-a-Lago, a problem that was eased when the president signed a law lifting the maximum ‘micro-purchase’ the government can make.”

https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-inc-podcast-taxpayers-covered-liquor-bill-for-trump-staffers-and-more-mar-a-lago
How Taxpayers Covered a $1,000 Liquor Bill for Trump Staffers (and More) at Trump’s Club
A top-shelf, closed-door drinking session. $546-a-night hotel rooms. A special government credit card for Mar-a-Lago. Taxpayers foot the costs — and the president profits.

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 08:00 AM (11 replies)

House Dems eye contempt charges for Trump officials

House Dems eye contempt charges for Trump officials
By Mike Lillis and Olivia Beavers - 04/30/19 08:12 PM EDT

House Democratic committee leaders are threatening to hold top administration officials in contempt of Congress amid a series of ongoing investigations, a recourse that could lead to fines — or even prison.

The idea has been floated in recent weeks by a small handful of rank-and-file members who’ve accused the administration of stonewalling, but it gained steam on Tuesday as the chairmen of several powerful panels said they’re also considering contempt in an effort to compel the cooperation of recalcitrant administration witnesses.

“I promise we will do everything in our power to enforce our subpoena. I refuse to be in a situation where we’re unable to use every tool that we have in our toolbox to do that,” Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, told reporters in the Capitol. Invoking a little-used process known as inherent contempt, Cummings said, is one of those options.

”We will look at all those tools from a very practical standpoint,” he said. “It may be that we want to just deal with fines, I don’t know. But it’s either fines and/or prison.”

Separately, Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), head of the Judiciary Committee, and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), head of the Intelligence Committee, met with members of the New Democrat Coalition Tuesday morning, where they also endorsed the possibility of tapping contempt as a strategy for compelling testimony from uncooperative administration officials.

more...

https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/441490-house-dems-eye-contempt-charges-for-trump-officials

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 06:52 AM (4 replies)

LGBT lawmakers say nation is ready for gay president

LGBT lawmakers say nation is ready for gay president
By Jonathan Easley and Cristina Marcos - 05/01/19 06:00 AM EDT

LGBT members of Congress say the U.S. is ready to elect its first gay president.

Democratic lawmakers who identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual told The Hill that American voters have come a long way on LGBT rights, predicting that South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) wouldn’t have to deal with the levels of homophobia that might have derailed his insurgent campaign in a past election cycle.

Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) said a lot has changed since he ran for local office in the 1990s, even as he hailed from a community with multiple openly gay elected officials.

“People would send an article back with my face crossed out putting ‘dead faggot’ underneath it. And it was a very tough time 25 years ago,” Pocan told The Hill.

“But I think where most of America’s at is a very different place and I don’t think it should be any barrier for anyone, whether it be Mayor Pete, [Wisconsin Democratic Sen.] Tammy Baldwin or anyone else. I think that people are ready for it.”

Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said that being gay actually helps Buttigieg stand out in the crowded Democratic presidential field.

“I’m admiring of the way he speaks the language of spirituality and religion in a way that I think communicates a set of values. And I admire the way that he has appropriated a space,” Takano said.

more...

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/441499-lgbt-lawmakers-say-nation-is-ready-for-gay-president

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 06:44 AM (2 replies)

I love it. Mika and Joe are refusing to read dt's twits.

Apparently he's tweeting like mad this a.m., and they're shining him on. Perfect! That should piss him off even more.

Posted by babylonsister | Wed May 1, 2019, 06:38 AM (16 replies)

Ranty grandpa calls in to Fox News, and it's so bad the host repeatedly tries to end the interview

Ranty grandpa calls in to Fox News, and it's so bad the host repeatedly tries to end the interview
Jen Hayden
Daily Kos Staff
Monday April 29, 2019 · 11:39 AM EDT

Grandpa Rantypants called in to talk with Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo this morning, and the “interview” was such a nonsensical rant that it was the verbal equivalent of the FW: FW: FW: FW: FW: FW: FW emails of yesteryear that you once got from your angry Tea Party uncle. In fact, it was so bad that Bartiromo repeatedly tried to put the audience out of its misery by ending the interview. But Grandpa Rantypants just kept going.

This is painful, but take a listen and then jump below for a bit more discussion.
https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1122876480919359494
Now that you’ve heard the insaneness of that interview, let’s take a brief look at the transcript, because it isn’t just Trump who is problematic here. Trump began shouting that people have been asking him to find out, “Where did all this corruption start?” He’s trying to flip the script. He’s the head of the most glaringly corrupt administration in U.S. history and he’s trying to paint the investigators, most of whom are lifelong Republicans, as corrupt. This is gaslighting.

But that isn’t the only troubling part. Read below and ask yourself: Why is Bartiromo going along with all of this? She’s nodding in agreement, verbally signaling agreement, while Trump is flat-out lying to the audience. This is not acceptable!
https://twitter.com/brianstelter/status/1122876587748274182

more...

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/4/29/1854025/-Ranty-grandpa-called-into-Fox-News-and-it-was-so-bad-the-host-repeatedly-tried-to-end-the-interview?fbclid=IwAR0y7gJRsyoo2TXT5qAKAxLn_Yqn23FQcnGOsmdxgZthc1ay797lFbRPhP8

Posted by babylonsister | Tue Apr 30, 2019, 09:52 PM (0 replies)

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