Friday, June 14, 2019

NEW: Trump son-in-law & White House advisor Jared Kushner's personal financial form for 2018 reveals he still had up to $50M ownership stake in company not disclosed in initial ethics disclosure which got $90M in anonymous foreign money from secret offshore investor since 2017


FEC Chair Ellen Weintraub: "It's actually a matter of black-letter law. It's pretty straightforward. Anyone in the U.S. is not allowed to accept anything of value from a foreign national, particularly a foreign government, in connection with an election."


The President has accused the former White House Counsel of perjury while in office. The Attorney General must immediately investigate the perjury the President identified ... ... unless the Attorney General believes the President is lying.


Elizabeth Warren wants details from Freddie Mac on its backing of an $800 mil loan to the real estate firm owned by Jared Kushner's family. "The fact pattern ... raise[s] significant questions about the circumstances" under which the loan was approved


Trump declines to endorse VP Pence for 2024 presidential run


"I was at that brothel to make sure there were no ladies of ill repute there!"


ABC board rules against Trump — he may lose his liquor license for Trump DC Hotel


A probe into Elaine Chao now seems inevitable. But some Dem lawmakers are scared about retaliation


Interesting exchange here. 1:35 in. STEPHANOPOULOS: If you answered these questions to me now, why not answer them to Robert Mueller under oath? TRUMP: Because— [pause] they were looking to get us for lies.


A reminder that earlier this week, POTUS said Iran no longer does terror. Literally days ago.


Happy #JohnMcCainDay


When Assange was warned that publishing the names of Afghans who had cooperated with US forces might put *THEIR* lives at risk, he replied: "Well, they're informants. So, if they get killed, they've got it coming to them. They deserve it."


JUST IN: London court says full U.S. extradition hearing for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will take place in Feb. 2020


China says nobody wants war after tanker attacks in Gulf of Oman


House Republicans reintroduced a bill to eliminate all gun-free school zones across the U.S.


President Trump is defending saying that he'd consider accepting incriminating information about an opponent from a foreign government. Meanwhile, his allies have been privately critical. "It's really bad. It's really, really bad. He shouldn't say it."


Oh, great. Would be curious to hear more about how to steal a Supreme Court seat, torpedo the Constitution, and install an autocracy.


Saudis did it.just like they did Khaggoshi. And now, they will crucify a child. How much they pay you to look the other way while he dies slowly for 3 day’s, hanging on that cross? Think of his mother!!


@SecPompeo · 16h It is the assessment of the U.S. government that Iran is responsible for today's attacks in the Gulf of Oman. These attacks are a threat to international peace and security, a blatant assault on the freedom of navigation, and an unacceptable escalation of tension by Iran.


Also, for all the Trump allies bellowing about how evil it is to use a foreign *vendor*, I have some bad news for you


Facebook admits "wildly" overstated ad metrics


This is a blatant lie. Marsha & her entire @TNGOP know that the Russian TEN_GOP Twitter account had more success in 2016 than the real account. They continue to aide & abet a hostile foreign power. We see you, Marsha. Norway my ass.


Now might be good time to point out Moscow Mitch got sanctions lifted for Putin partner @DeripaskaOleg in exchange for a new aluminum plant in Kentucky.


My new Letter from Washington is up @newyorker >>> Forget “No Collusion,” Trump Is Now Pro-Collusion


Iran slams U.S., calls claims of tanker attacks "economic terrorism"


EXCLUSIVE - Business and pleasure: Rosneft's flights to holiday destinations


Why NOT take political dirt from a foreign government? Well, first off, it's illegal. But there's a whole list of reasons in addition to that:


Want to secretly, legally send money to Jared Kushner? Here’s how!


Iran's Rouhani says U.S. actions threaten Middle East stability


If you set out to cheat and deceive others you’ll be tense and anxious in case you’re found out. But if you live your life and conduct your business on the basis of truth and honesty, it gives you a sense of satisfaction and self-confidence that is also a source of inner strength — Dalai Lama


U.S. blames Iran for attacks on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, Iran rejects assertion


Special Counsel quotes Lawrence’s report and tells the President Kellyanne Conway should be fired


FEC chair makes unprecedented rebuke of Trump's interference comments


SHEP SMITH: "So what the president said he would do, to George Stephanopolous, if he did it, would be felonious?" ANDREW NAPOLITANO: "Correct, meaning he would be committing a felony and the person giving it to him ... would be committing a felony as well."


A new low.@MarkWarner tried to pass the FIRE Act to require presidential campaigns to report interference to the FBI. But Senator @MarshaBlackburn (R-TN) objected. It is truly outrageous that this bill, which should bring all of us together, is being blocked by Republicans


.@LindseyGrahamSC How about instead of finger wagging you do something about it?! Or are you that badly compromised by Trump that you lack the balls to act against him?! Talk is cheap. Act or get the hell out of the way and let history remember you as a coward who wagged fingers!


Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, chair of the House Marine Transportation Subcommittee, says he has been given the green light to investigate corruption allegations against Transportation Sec'y Chao for using her position to benefit her family's biz and husband.


Trump confessed the thing Mueller could not prove. (END)


Trump Is a Walking, Talking National Security Danger


Sen. Bennet: Trump has 'no respect for the rule of law'


Pelosi ties Mitch McConnell to Trump and Russia/Saudi Arabia, "? That they think they’re honoring their oath of office. I believe these are all connected. I think it’s all about money. Connect the dots in all of this. It’s all about money."


Foreign agents offering dirt on opponents in elections are not going to introduce themselves as intelligence officers !


"I like the truth. You know, I’m actually a very honest guy." Donald J. Trump actually said this.


Iran is a malignant state actor. If Iran is responsible for the attacks on oil tankers, it needs to be held accountable. At the same time, there's no Congressional authorization for war with Iran. If @POTUS wants to use military force against Iran, Congress must first approve.


Emails show Trump admin sought strategy advice from the Heartland Institute, a top climate-change denial outfit


Trump shows why presidents shouldn't be part of real estate deals


Chao sells off stock as attention on corruption allegations grows


If the U.S. intelligence community finds that a foreign country is working with a candidate to interfere in the election, and that candidate is a sitting president, who do they report that to? Susan Rice offers her best answer:


"I hope very much that the American people do not forget the difference between right and wrong, normal and absolutely abnormal, which is what we're experiencing in these times." Susan Rice, former US ambassador the UN


Fox's Judge Napolitano says it seems like Trump is "prepared to commit a felony to get re-elected"


"Federal watchdog agency recommends removal of Kellyanne Conway from federal office for violating the Hatch Act"


To rephrase, the U.S. president's business sold a house—for almost double what it paid 12 years earlier—to a firm owned by a foreign billionaire politician


Walmart, Target, Costco and more than 500 companies wrote to Trump Thursday warning that tariffs will have a "significant, negative, and long-term impact" on the US economy and harm consumers


#BREAKING All criminal cases connected to the #FlintWaterCrisis have been DROPPED. ⁦@dananessel⁩ office says media not allowed to ask any questions until after June 28th


Flynn's new attorney is part of the Snowden fan club. ... Get it yet?


Kevin McCarthy bought a supply of Starbursts and had a staffer sort through the pile, placing only reds and pinks (Trump’s favorites) in a jar. McCarthy made sure his name was on the side of the gift, which was delivered to a grinning Trump, WaPo reports.


If what Donald Trump said about still being open to foreign election help had been an actual problem to Republicans in the Senate, you would have been able to tell, not from their words but from their actions.


Elijah Cummings: "Trump should terminate Ms. Conway's employment immediately in light of these dozens of violations of federal law. Allowing Ms. Conway to continue her position of trust at the W.H. would demonstrate that the President is not interested in following the law."


NEW: Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn has blocked an effort by Sen. Mark Warner to pass a bill via unanimous consent requiring campaigns to report any offers of foreign assistance to the FBI


This is how democracies die and dictatorships arise: yesterday Trump says he’s free to violate the campaign finance laws, today free to violate the Hatch Act, all as his DOJ is filing a brief saying Congress has no power to investigate his lawbreaking.


Can’t stop watching these world leaders sit there while Trump spews his nonsense


Nearly 2 years ago, FBI chief Chris Wray set up an office tasked solely with stopping the type of Russian inference efforts that infected the '16 campaign. Last night, POTUS undercut the whole operation in a matter of seconds.


If you're stupid enough to believe the Iranians would attack a Japanese oil tanker while the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is visiting, you're dumb enough to be a Republican on the House/Senate Intelligence Committee


You were a terrible person and a liar. That is your legacy and it’s one you deserve.


"I hope very much that the American people do not forget the difference between right and wrong, normal and absolutely abnormal, which is what we're experiencing in these times." Susan Rice, former US ambassador the UN


Ten city governments from Arizona to Pennsylvania say Trump's political committee has yet to pay hundreds of thousands in security bills. In all, city gov'ts say Trump's campaign owes at least $841,219. But in many cases, there are no signed contracts.


Trump's 2020 reelection campaign will handle damaging information on political opponents provided by foreign governments and entities on a "case by case basis," according to the campaign's top spokesperson.


I think @GOPLeader can be charged with conspiracy if, when he appointed Devin Nunes to the intelligence committee, he had reason to know Nunes was compromised. When @TheDemocrats have @TheJusticeDept if McCarthy knew Nunes is compromised, he must be charged as a conspirator.


That Trump didn’t know or understand this after being under investigation for 2+ years is not believable. That he doesn’t care is believable. The man is way beyond Nixon in his criminal mentality. This nation is in deep trouble if he is re-elected — a horrifying thought!


Louise Linton resurfaces in new interview: "It sucks to be hated"


The comments, according to interviews with nearly a dozen law enforcement veterans, have undone months of work, essentially inviting foreign spies to interfere in 2020 presidential campaigns and demoralizing the agents trying to stop them.


Mueller’s statement made clear what those of us who have read his report already knew: He’s referring Trump for impeachment. Yesterday, Trump said—once again—that he’d take information from a foreign government. It’s up to Congress to act.


Patriotism is withering before our eyes. The whole Republican Party has become Trump First, America Second.


.@DavidJollyFL says Trump's comments that he'd accept political dirt from a foreign power in the next election are an "impeachable moment."


Opinion: How Kellyanne Conway exemplifies the administration’s moral rot


G. Kline Preston, IV, who introduced Russian operative Alexander Torshin, to the NRA's David Keene, has ties to Republican Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn and her son-in-law, Paul Ketchel, a Nashville healthcare entrepreneur.


Trump sees no national interest beyond his own. In Trump’s view, a person who sits behind the Resolute desk in the Oval Office is not obliged to operate by a different set of standards from those of a businessman who regularly deals with underworld goons.


Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao has sold her shares in a paving-materials supplier after a Wall Street Journal report found that she hadn't fulfilled a pledge to relinquish the shares, agency documents show


The FEC Chair responds to Trump’s ABC interview


What better way to cultivate the interest, influence, and favor of the leader of the free world than just by stuffing several million dollars into his pocket?


I’m sure it’s alllllll just a big coincidence that @KellyannePolls & @gtconway3d’s DC residence is right next door to Oleg Deripaska’s


I watched @SecPompeo essentially deliver the Kirkuk oil and gas to Russia along with lots of KRG territory. Anyone who believes Trump and Pompeo's Iran machinations is a sap. When Pompeo talks he's just moving his lips. It's Putin's voice. And Putin needs high oil prices.


.@SenateMajLdr is so obsessed with blocking votes on commonsense solutions passed by the House, he’s taken to calling himself “the Grim Reaper.” But Americans are tired of waiting – they want action on their priorities now.


Let me be perfectly clear: the Administration does not have the authorization to go to war without Congressional approval. Trump and Pompeo must come before Congress and make their case before any action is taken.


Clarence Thomas says a Smithsonian exhibit he hasn’t seen is incorrect. (It’s not.)


Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted that "suspicious doesn't begin to describe what likely transpired this morning," while his U.S. counterpart Mike Pompeo officially laid the blame on Iran.


Today's news about the Gulf of Oman sounds like it came right from @ColinKahl's fictional account of how the U.S. and Iran went to war in August 2019:


ATTENTION ALL NATIONS: Submit your bids now and avoid the rush.


The idea that a 2001 congressional authorization to go after Al Qaeda for the 9/11 attacks justifies a war against Iran in 2019 is bogus and chilling. Congress should make clear that it does not.


George Will: Young people now consider GOP "the dumb party"


Pompeo constructs Iran narrative moving US toward war footing


Bill against foreign campaign help exposes GOP's empty words


Commissioner on the FEC: "It is illegal for any person to solicit, accept, or receive anything of value from a foreign national in connection with a U.S. election ... Anyone who solicits or accepts foreign assistance risks being on the wrong end of a federal investigation."