**BREAKING** Kushner turns over documents to Mueller-MSNBC

*Lamar Smith quitting Congress; second Texas GOP chairman in two days *

WASHINGTON -- San Antonio Rep. Lamar Smith announced Thursday that he will leave Congress at the end of his current term.

He chairs the House science committee, and under GOP rules would hit a six-year term limit at the end of 2018.

“I love my job. There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing, but with chairmanship ending, second grandchild arriving...” he said in a brief conversation at the House.

Dallas Rep. Jeb Hensarling announced Wednesday that he will retire from Congress. Like Smith, he's a powerful chairman -- he leads the Financial Services Committee, which oversees the banking industry -- and would have to give up that post at the end of his current term.
Smith has long been a leading voice among immigration and border security hard liners. He has chaired the ethics and judiciary committees.

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2017/11/02/lamar-smith-quitting-congress-second-texas-gop-chairman-two-days

* I smell fear of Bannon

*** THIS IS A MUST READ!!!!*** Get ready to laugh out loud!

by Caitlin Yilek | Nov 1, 2017, 2:11 PM

President Trump thinks White House adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner is giving him bad political advice as special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election heats up.

Trump told former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon that he blames Kushner for the firings of former national security adviser Mike Flynn and former FBI Director James Comey, Vanity Fair reported Wednesday.

Comey’s firing led to the appointment of Mueller as special counsel. Kushner reportedly pushed for Comey’s dismissal as he investigated possible collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia.

“Jared is the worst political adviser in the White House in modern history,” former Trump campaign aide Sam Nunberg told the publication.

“I’m only saying publicly what everyone says behind the scenes at Fox News, in conservative media, and the Senate and Congress,” he added.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/trump-thinks-son-in-law-jared-kushner-is-giving-him-bad-political-advice-report/article/2639277

* You can't get enough popcorn for this hot mess*

6 Women Accuse Hollywood Producer Brett Ratner Of Sexual Harassment Or Misconduct

11/01/2017 08:53 am ET/By Hayley Miller

The accusers include the actors Natasha Henstridge and Olivia Munn.

Six women have accused Hollywood producer and director Brett Ratner of sexual harassment or misconduct, according to a Los Angeles Times report published Wednesday.

Natasha Henstridge alleged that Ratner, executive producer of the TV series “Prison Break,” forced her to perform oral sex on him when she was 19.

“He strong-armed me in a real way. He physically forced himself on me,” she told the Times. “At some point, I gave in and he did his thing.”

Ratner’s attorney, Martin Singer, “categorically” denied the accusations.

“I have represented Mr. Ratner for two decades, and no woman has ever made a claim against him for sexual misconduct or sexual harassment,” Singer told the Times. “Furthermore, no woman has ever requested or received any financial settlement from my client.”

This is a developing story.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/brett-ratner-accused-sexual-harassment_us_59f9be37e4b0d1cf6e91b8af?ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009

The Blamer-In-Chief blames Schumer for the NYC terrorist attack? *Read this*

NYPD says Trump’s budget would gut New York’s counterterrorism efforts, make the city less safe

The New York City Police Department says that President Trump’s proposed budget, which includes sweeping cuts across the government, would gut “critical” efforts to fight terrorism in the nation’s largest city.

Police say the funding cuts would hit everything from intelligence analysis to active-shooter training. The blunt assessment was delivered by the top law enforcement officer in Trump’s hometown, who leads an agency tasked with defending the city against terrorism — and, more recently, protecting Trump Tower since it became a de facto “White House north” while first lady Melania Trump and her son, Barron, are living there.

“Under the president’s proposal, nearly all federal funding to the NYPD would be eradicated,” James P. O’Neill, the New York City police commissioner, said at a briefing Thursday afternoon. “This funding is absolutely critical. It is the backbone of our entire counter-terrorism apparatus.”

[What Trump cut in his budget]

The Trump administration has defended its budget cuts as necessary and say they follow through on the president’s messaging throughout the campaign. But O’Neill’s criticism appears to undercut two pillars of Trump’s candidacy and the early days of his presidency, as Trump has portrayed himself as a defender of law and order and a strong protector of national security.

In O’Neill’s telling, the president’s new budget strips out pivotal money needed to keep New York safe.

“It is the cornerstone of effective preparedness and prevention against terrorist threats, and enables us to do what we can do to keep this city secure,” O’Neill said. “Everyone who lives in, works in, and visits New York City, this money’s critical to keeping everybody safe.”

He added: “Simply put, we cannot afford to cut corners in fighting terrorism.”

O’Neill described the federal funding that would be lost as “essential” to numerous aspects of the NYPD’s counter-terrorism activities, including the city’s intelligence analyst program, active-shooter training provided to tens of thousands of officers and the department’s bomb squad.

That last group was directly involved in responding to a recent terrorism threat, O’Neill noted, pointing out that after a pressure-cooker explosive detonated in Manhattan last year, the bomb squad safely removed a second device that did not explode. Authorities later said that the man accused of that bombing hoped to stage a suicide attack in the city.

“New York City remains one of the top terror targets in the world, and certainly the top target in the United States,” he said. “The federal government has long acknowledged that fact, and to cut that funding would make us increasingly less safe.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/03/16/nypd-says-trumps-budget-would-gut-new-yorks-counterterrorism-efforts-make-the-city-less-safe/?utm_term=.3ffad81afd75

By Mark Berman March 16

* So do me a favor, STFU. It's your fault!!*