Wednesday, January 9, 2019

McConnell also said his chief concern is Democrats blocking action in Senate over shutdown: "What I'm interested in is there's no rationale for shutting down the Senate. .. No matter how you feel about the border dispute there's absolutely no basis for shutting down the Senate"


Kevin McCarthy said Schumer mischaracterized Trump's behavior in the meeting. Noted that Trump brought candy, which Schumer DIDN'T EVEN MENTION.


100%


Now: National Treasury Employees Union sues over shutdown Border protection officers' union just sued


NBC reports that Rod Rosenstein plans to stay on as Deputy Attorney General until Mueller submits his report, contradicting earlier reports that he would step down after Barr's confirmation


NEW: Steyer will NOT run against Trump He chose a campaign manager, conducted polling & hired Deval’s top adviser ... before telling aides this week he wouldn’t run Instead: pumping $40 million more into impeachment crusade this year


This outrageously vindictive act looks like a grave abuse of power. In Judiciary Committee hearings, @RepJerryNadler needs to investigate whether this was indeed part of a pattern of using the presidency to pursue a personal partisan agenda at the expense of the American people.


File under "abuse of power"


NYT: Stunned Democrats emerged from the WH meeting declaring that Trump had thrown a “temper tantrum.” The president’s allies accused Democrats of refusing to negotiate. Then he tweeted that the meeting was “a total waste of time.”


Pelosi: Trump doesn't understand the financial insecurity facing federal workers during the shutdown: "The president seems to be insensitive to that. He thinks maybe they could just ask their father for more money. But they can't."


SCHUMER: The president slammed the table, asked Speaker Pelosi if she would support his wall and when she said no, he walked out and said "we have nothing to talk about"


"Employees of the U.S. Coast Guard who are facing a long U.S. government shutdown just received a suggestion: To get by without pay, consider holding a garage sale, babysitting or serving as a “mystery shopper.”"


WATCH: Trump argue that we need a border wall to stop migrants just driving right across in their "unbelievable vehicles... stronger, bigger, and faster vehicles than our police have, than ICE has"


Tim Kaine: "If this was put up for a vote on the floor today, overwhelmingly the Republicans would vote to re-open government."


Thank you Mr. Rosenstein for appointing Robert Mueller, for withstanding GOP grandstanding propaganda attacks with such class, for shepherding the investigation through some really rough waters. The nation is in your debt.


“Mueller really does know everything. The IC (intel community) gave the Special Counsel everything we had that might be of relevance to their investigation, most of it came from NSA.” ~former IC senior official


.@realDonaldTrump’s threat insults the memory of scores of Americans who perished in wildfires last year & thousands more who lost their homes. @GOPLeader must join me to condemn & call on POTUS to reassure millions in CA that our govt will be there for them in their time of need


Fox News keeps ignoring the effects of the second-longest government shutdown in history


Adderall is an amphetamine which makes your pupils dilate. This is a person sitting in front of bright TV lights whose pupils should be contracted. Side effects of Adderall addiction include aggression, memory loss, mania, impulsivity and disorientation


Trump threatens to cut off FEMA aid to California for forest fires


This. We’re far past the point of no return, patriots. The wheels of justice have been turning for awhile now. When they start turning at this level, they don’t stop for anyone.


Yet another indication that a shadow war in the Middle East has taken root in the DC swamp with little oversight.


Folks, I'm here to tell you that Dan Bongino is selling apocalypse food at PrepareWithDan dot com


Why did TV anchors attend an off the record lunch with Trump yesterday?


Let me say something now that isn’t a popular opinion, yet, but I predict will soon become received wisdom: the Senate will vote to convict Trump and it won’t even be close. The media still doesn’t grasp the enormity, and clarity, of the treason Mueller’s report will make public.


The federal government controls more of California’s forests than the state - and big recent wildfires there were not forest fires. There’s a lot of legit criticism of both fed and state under-maintenance (https://t.co/fOHK7ioOej), but experts say Trump is wildly misinformed.


#Russia's state TV claims that "Paul Whelan is an American spy, who attempted to recruit members of the Russian military, collected information about Russian spies abroad, attempted to obtain state secrets and stole rocks from the Red Square."


Thank you Rod Rosenstein for appointing Special Counsel Mueller, for protecting his independence, and for holding onto your job until those who are not in the President's party gained control of Congressional subpoena power. History will remember you well.


FBI agent posing as Russian mobster got the man who built El Chapo's encrypted communications to give up secrets


Fitch Ratings warned it could re-evaluate the U.S.'s triple-A credit rating if the government shutdown continues until March 1st and leads to a debt ceiling breach.


WaPo journalist Jason Rezaian files $1 billion lawsuit against Iran over detainment


All this so he can score points with his dwindling base


A group of Tarrant County Republicans will vote tomorrow on whether to remove their vice-chairman because he's Muslim.


China and the U.S. wrap up three days of trade talks and are reportedly coordinating how to characterize the results publicly


British courts may unlock secrets of how Trump campaign profiled US voters Legal mechanism may help academic expose how Big Data firms like Cambridge Analytica and Facebook get their information


Was 45 trying to divert attention from the growing case against him with his attempt to justify his shutdown with disinformation & arguments irrelevant to the issues. Veselnitskaya, Russian in Trump Tower Meeting, Is Charged in Case That Shows Kremlin Ties


Internal polling data is precious. It reveals your strengths— & your weaknesses. Why share such valuable information with a foreign adversary—unless that adversary was really a friend?


“As Cato Institute put it, ‘President Trump’s wall would be a mammoth expenditure that would have little impact on illegal immigration.’


Russia investigation news is off the charts today. Safe to say Donald Trump’s attempt to bury it with a fake national emergency wall speech is failing.


This is not the approach to take during a time of hardship. People will quit. Unemployment is super low. They can find something else. Typical ham handed behavior


“I continue to stress that there is no good reason for a shutdown,” Murkowski said Tuesday.


Rudy Giuliani thinks Mueller report will be 'horrific' -- and insiders say Trump may strike deal to resign


They had complete control of the White House, the House and the Senate for two years. A border wall *was not* a priority. Republicans instead focused on giving wealthy people and big corporations nearly $2 trillion in tax cuts.


House Democrats demand briefing on Russia sanctions decision:


Intelligence Committee Democrats appear to be circling around two well-known but still mysterious transactions: Donald Trump's sale of a Palm Beach mansion to a Russian oligarch in 2008 and loans to the Trump Organization from Deutsche Bank


When pro-Kremlin newspapers are predicting “a large-scale political crisis in Russia at the end of 2019” & warning that “private money & big finance will definitely be shaken”, you know Russia’s in for a bumpy year.


Something fitting about the Russia collusion case coalescing on the night Trump lost his fight for his wall


Lloyd Gardner, who voted for Trump and wants a wall, works for the Bureau of Prisons. He may not vote for Trump again. “He's saying the government workers are OK with this? I haven't met one who say they are OK ... and I know plenty that voted for him."


Scoop: AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint all selling customers' real-time location; ultimately ends up in the hands of bounty hunters. I know, because I paid someone $300 on the black market to track us. Located to a specific part of New York. No hacking required


Cambridge Analytica pleads guilty in U.K. data trial


We aren’t distracted Donald! This is the real News of the day! Paul Manafort getting caught directly colluding with the Russians and offering proprietary campaign data DURING THE ELECTION.


#BREAKING: Iran's Khamenei: some US officials are 'first-class idiots'


Rick Wilson: Trump ‘reeked of defeat’ during his ‘death twitch’ of an Oval Office speech


Much of Trump's address echoed his usual rhetoric. But in a notable way, he blinked. Hours before the speech, he'd been contemplating declaring a national emergency. Come showtime, that declaration was nowhere to be found


Five GOP Senators have now come out for reopening government. Per NYT: "If combined with a unanimous Dem caucus," this "would make a majority to reopen the government if McConnell were to allow a vote. That should encourage Ds to stick w/this strategy:


.@LindseyGrahamSC just now on @seanhannity: “If we’ll stand firm...we will win this on behalf of the American people but if we undercut the president that’s the end of his presidency and the end of our party and we deserve to be punished.” So weird.


Why Larry Summers thinks a recession could be coming


The networks let Trump propagandize the United States.


It’s hard to make the argument that something is hitting a “crisis” point when it’s been hovering around its *lowest level in 45 years*


U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo meets Iraqi Speaker in Baghdad


Trump tried to play a normal president on television. The result was very strange. - The Washington Post


"Are the skies still safe? Yes, for now, only because the people protecting your safety are professionals. But they are human, so let's not push our luck with a protracted government shutdown," writes Les Abend, a former Boeing 777 captain


Kim’s visit to China came after he expressed frustration over the lack of progress in negotiations with Washington since his summit in Singapore with President Donald Trump six months ago.


President Trump forced this unnecessary, painful shutdown. He won’t listen to reason. He won’t listen to common sense. Maybe, just maybe, he will listen to @realDonaldTrump?


Putin and Turkey's Erdogan to hold talks in Russia soon: Kremlin


The Supreme Court rejected the mystery company’s bid to avoid paying a daily fine of $50,000 for refusing to comply with a subpoena that’s reportedly part of special counsel's probe.


In Commentary: As Trump and his national security team hammer out the details of U.S. military withdrawal from Syria, Washington should review its attitude toward Syrian President Bashar al-Assad,


I was born and raised in in El Paso, TX, lived there 24 years. Home of Beto and one of the busiest port of entries ok US/Mexico border. El Paso has been in top 5 safest cities in the US every year for last decade. The border isn’t some lawless place. Visit before you believe lies


Treasury Department Chaos Leads to Exodus of Key Staffers


“The president put himself in a box” as Trump tries to fight his way out, his new chief of staff already eyes the exits, and Giuliani worries about Mueller’s possibly “horrific” report.


We are in an ongoing information war, and there are enemy alliances arrayed against the Western Democracies. We are all in danger. Trump's ongoing efforts to weaken the Alliance in Europe, SE Asia & the South Pacific, is clear treason


President Sniffles


We have entered what did the president know and when did he know it territory


Trump has defeated himself


Manafort shared polling data with Russian operatives while Russia was interfering in our election. Now he's not willing to share information because he's scared. We need the whole truth from everyone who was involved.


You can copy the black highlighted “redactions” in the Manafort team’s filing, paste it somewhere else, and see what it says. Here’s the first one.


BREAKING NEWS: This is the previously missing link in the Trump/Putin conspiracy. The secret polling data enabled Kremlin to help Trump win in exchange for Trump help to Putin vs Ukraine. All that’s missing is a ribbon to tie it together. THIS IS HUGE!


“The completely inconceivable idea that … the president of the United States is an active agent of Russian intelligence, no longer seems completely unthinkable.”


The emergency on the border is so bad that 8 members of Trump's Cabinet, including Trump himself and DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, are currently scheduled to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos later this month


NEW VIDEO! So many Russians in the room where it happened... — Randy Rainbow


“Russia denied on Wednesday that it is meddling in Israel's upcoming election after Israel's Shin Bet security chief warned that a "foreign country" intends to intervene in the campaign.”


Want to fight back against Trump's ridiculous address tonight? Send some support to organizations that help kids at the border. The only border crisis we're facing is the inhumane detention of kids that has already led to the deaths of two children.


NEW: Both PAUL MANAFORT & RICK GATES provided data (including private TRUMP polling) to KONSTANTIN KILIMNIK. He was asked to pass it along to OLEG DERIPASKA, who had close ties to the Kremlin & a prior business relationship with Manafort


“Rosenstein has communicated to Trump and WH officials his plan to depart the admin around the time William Barr, Trump's nominee for attorney general, would take office following a Senate confirmation.”


JUST IN: Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is expected to depart his role in the coming weeks, multiple sources familiar with his plans told @ABC News.


“There is no wave of terrorist operatives waiting to cross overland into the United States,” Nicholas Rasmussen, the former director of the National Counterterrorism Center, said. “It simply isn’t true.”


.@RepPressley "I rise today in opposition to the occupant of the White House…I see right through you and so do the American people."


Corri Moore, 42, was one of the first people downtown to register to vote today. He said he lost his right to vote about 14 years ago for a felony charge of driving with a suspended license. He most regrets not getting to be a part of the historic 2008 election of Barack Obama.


According to @TeaPainUSA, the pattern of connections between the servers of Trump Tower, Alfa🇷🇺Bank, and Devos’ Spectrum Health is consistent with “database replication.” Meaning: the SAME, large database was being shared between multiple sites


The President does not want border security. He wants border theater. Period. And Mexico isn’t paying for it. We all are. With this costly #TrumpShutdown.


Mr. President, this shutdown has gone on for far too long. The American people deserve to have their government back at work for them, and federal employees deserve their pay. Our government must be better than this!


After the #TrumpAddress, @SenSchumer & I turned our focus to the facts & how we can end the #TrumpShutdown.


President @realDonaldTrump wants you to forget he shut down the U.S. government until American taxpayers fund a wall he insisted Mexico would pay for. Here are a few dozen examples.


Reminder: Trump said he would be 'proud' of shutting down the government and inflicting harm on people's lives. #TrumpShutdown It must end now.


Mitch McConnell is refusing to allow Senators to vote to end this stupid shutdown. People are sick of these political games. Congress should stop covering for the president. Our Senate effort tonight to push to reopen government says enough is enough. Will Sen. McConnell listen?


Useful checklist of lies and exagerrations in last night's Trump speech


Trump notes the many heroin deaths; doesn't mention that most comes through ports of entry, which a wall doesn't solve


I have some thoughts about Trump's horrible, terrible, really bad not good speech.


Trump just made his first nationally televised reelection speech. The entertainment networks who provided time made a huge mistake. Not one word of news in Trump speech.


Schumer: "We address you tonight for one reason only: the President of the United States – having failed to get Mexico to pay for his ineffective, unnecessary border wall, and unable to convince the Congress or the American people to foot the bill – has shut down the government."


Political shift puts Trump in weak position in speech exchange


Wallace: Trump shouldn't lie about where crime comes from


Cracks emerging among Senate Republicans as Sen. Lisa Murkowski calls for an end to the shutdown


At one point, I thought this guy was a little naive or playing dumb or being left out of the loop. But, nah. He’s knowingly and shamefully complicit.


Democrats have won the special election for Virginia's #SD33, vacated by Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Va)


Rick Scott, who pledged as a Senate candidate to “make Washington work,” hosts lavish D.C. fund-raiser on his very first day as a U.S. senator — in the midst of a government shutdown when his constituents aren’t being paid


The Fox News instant reax to Trump's speech? Shep Smith with an aggressive fact-check, and Chris Wallace saying that catering to the base just isn't enough. Ouch.


NEW: TSA workers are now quitting over the shutdown, union says.


Thanks @NYDailyNews

House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler says acting AG Matt Whitaker will testify before his committee in January -- one way or the other. "If we don’t reach a date in the next day or two, we will subpoena him,” Nadler said Tuesday


A shot of the U.S.-Mexico border


Both Paul Manafort & Rick Gates gave data to Konstantin Kilimnik in the spring 2016 - some data was developed by a private polling firm working for the campaign - Manafort asked Gates to tell Kilimnik to pass the data to Oleg Deripaska


Softer voice tonight, same old demagoguery. Story on a president who has backed himself into a corner and doesn't seem to know a good way out: