Monday, December 16, 2019

I’m no expert, but “trials are not the place for witnesses” doesn’t seem like a winning argument to me


I don't mean to be weird, but honestly, it's like the Trump impeachment scandal was written specifically to coincide with Blowout. Or -- I guess -- to prove its point??


Hard to believe he missed a year.


BREAKING: Federal judge puts pause on Georgia voter roll purges


Asked Mitt Romney if he wants witnesses at a Senate trial, like Mulvaney or Bolton, and he told me: “It’s not that I don’t have any point of view, it’s just that I’m not willing to share that point of view till I’ve had the chance to talk to others and get their perspectives.”


"In a 92-page decision, Sullivan ruled there was no basis for Flynn’s allegations that federal law enforcement officials entrapped the retired three-star Army general into accepting a plea deal" ...and that Robert Mueller held back 50 requests for evidence from Flynn’s attorneys.


Several women claimed that Jeffrey Epstein, who qualified for the program, sexually assaulted them while he was out on work release


BREAKING IMPT NEWS: The ACA deadline is being extended thanks in large part to everyone pushing for this. “Beginning at 3:00PM EST December 16 we are extending the deadline to sign up for January 1 coverage until 3:00AM EST December 18." BUT, no one knows unless we tell them.


Dozens of members of Congress on Monday called upon US Customs and Border Protection to reverse its decision not to vaccinate migrants against the flu


Rudy Giuliani’s Ukraine ‘Investigation’ Stars Some of Kyiv’s Most Dubious Characters


This makes no sense. Sweet allowed them to seal everything — so the judge didn’t have to make any decisions.


Don’t let Mitch McConnell conduct a Potemkin impeachment trial


Millions of Americans are struggling to pay their bills. Meanwhile: "The report also found that 91 corporations in the Fortune 500, many worth billions of dollars, paid no federal taxes last year.”


Russian TV Can't Stop LOLing At Putin's Special 'Agent' Donald Trump


Giuliani Ally Says $1 Million From Russia Was Loan to Wife


NEW: Judge Preska limits public access among the #EpsteinFiles to “only motions actually decided by Judge Sweet—along with documents relevant to Judge Sweet’s decisions on those motions.” The parties will discuss next steps in the unsealing process on Jan. 16 next year.


Let’s be very clear about this. More money for election security is good, but it is *not* a substitute for passing election security reform legislation that Senate GOP leadership has been blocking all year.


And Flynn's sentencing date is back on: January 28, more than 2 years after first pleading guilty.


If Giuliani is now defending himself by placing his credibility up against the credibility of Yovanovitch, he's truly going to need a lawyer much better than himself.


Wisconsin is set to purge 234,000 voters, 7% of electorate Tonight Georgia is cancelling 300,000 registrations, 4% of electorate


REMINDER: Republicans in Washington are *still* plotting to destroy people's health care


Russian state TV and "One America News" have now merged.


Senators on both sides of the aisle want to vote on the 275 bipartisan bills sitting on Sen. McConnell's desk. He’s not interested in allowing Congress to function. He is more interested in his own power and forcing constant gridlock. Mitch needs to go.


A powerful, must read: Opinion | I Headed the F.B.I. and C.I.A. There’s a Dire Threat to the Country I Love.


The presidents free lawyer’s propaganda interview is aired on Russian state television


Lev Parnas plans on "producing the materials seized from him by the Government, to Congressional Investigators" and "assisting the Impeachment Inquiry to the fullest extent required," his counsel wrote in a footnote of a new bail memo.


Memo to the media: Stop giving equal time to congressional Republicans, who are making stuff up. Treating them as equivalent to Dems who are dealing with the facts rebounds to the advantage of Republicans, for whom nonsense being taken seriously is itself a victory.


Former FBI and CIA director William Webster takes on Trump, Barr and Giuliani: "Calling F.B.I. professionals “scum,” as the president did, is a slur against people who risk their lives to keep us safe."


!!!! The quote below from Giuliani is a stunning admission. “I believed that I needed Yovanovitch out of the way,” he said. “She was going to make the investigations difficult for everybody.”


Rudy Giuliani has admitted that he saw former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch as an obstacle in his plan to find dirt on his client’s potential rival—former Vice President Joe Biden—in advance of the 2020 election


The presidents free lawyer can’t stop confessing.....


Michael Flynn's sentencing set for Jan. 28 after judge rejects his attacks on the FBI, Justice Department


Flynn thought the IG report was going to be his get out of jail free card. Womp womp.


Memo to the media: Say "House of Representatives is...” instead of "the Democrats are..." when reporting on impeachment. By constantly reiterating "Democrats" instead of "House," you're making it harder for any Republican to join, and playing into Trump's partisan narrative.


Congress reaches deal to fund gun violence research for first time in decades


Former Cruz running mate, @CarlyFiorina says of Trump "it is vital that he be impeached." On Sunday @tedcruz said impeachment wasn't going anywhere in the Senate because "the facts aren't there."


Ex-GOP lawmaker demands Mitt Romney break his silence and stand up for a fair Senate impeachment process


Former George W. Bush’s ethics lawyer is warning that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has acted in a very “corrupt” manner & has “rigged” a potential Senate trial for Trump. He warns that the “GOP will not survive” this blatant corrupt behavior.


This is why the stakes are so high in the impeachment process - it's always been about Trump trying to cheat in an election he thinks he needs help to win. If he's not removed, Republicans have cleared the runway for him in 2020.


Rand Paul tried to claim that Trump is anti-corruption, so Jake Tapper listed all of the Trump associates convicted of federal crimes.


Russia’s State TV Calls Trump Their ‘Agent’


Imagine being so shady, so corrupt, so unlawful, that you’re willing to fight the release of your tax returns all the way to the Supreme Court…


What could be better than Ghouliani interviewing the undead?


Supreme Court justices let stand a ruling that said homeless people have a constitutional right to sleep on public property outdoors if no other shelter is available to them.


Trump is so high right here is face is about to melt off. You can see the numb upper lip, hear the sniffing, see the fear when he gets called out by HRC. He takes that sip of water cause he can’t feel his dentures-No way he debates in 2020.


As of a little after 10 a.m., Pres. Trump has thus far tweeted 54 times.


Jeffrey Epstein Used Prince Andrew as ‘Bait’ to Lure Teenage Girl: Report


Dear Congress, You swore an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies.” Not to defend your job and the president at the cost of the Republic's values. This will be the vote you own throughout history, long after 2020 has past.


The FBI is Not Broken - President Trump and William P. Barr are wrong to say that it is | Former FBI & CIA Director, Judge William H. Webster


In case you missed over weekend: me in @TheAtlantic about the predictable failure of Trump's trade war. China is just too big for the US to coerce alone- and Trump systematically alienated all the allies he would need


Again, Russian State Media and American conservative media are saying the same things and hosting the same guests.


It's remarkable how many times the Trump administration, without a shred of self-awareness, has proudly posted photos of official events revealing that policy is being made almost exclusively by white men


My God. ..that’s the president. The President of the United States. I’m ashamed. Get him out


Read my column, “Trump’s Lasting Legacy,” and let me know what you think.


The Brennan Center has joined a nonpartisan coalition to demand that Congress give states the money they need to defend themselves against foreign interference in our elections. Call 202.224.3121 by Dec. 20, ask for your Senator, & tell them to fund election security now.


Schumer asks for subpoenas for Trump’s Senate trial of 4 officials who refused to appear for House Dems: John Bolton, Mick Mulvaney, Robert Blair from chief of staff’s office, and Michael Duffey of OMB.


Brian Kilmeade is "stunned" by a Fox News poll showing that 50% of America wants Trump impeached & removed, because he "thought that things were trending away [from impeachment.]"


Democrats just called McConnell’s bluff on a key reform — and he has no idea how to respond: report


The Alaska Forest Association, an industry group that supports logging, received more than $200,000 from a USDA grant that was supposed to help states fight fires. The money was used to support undoing prohibitions against building roads.


Trump supporters believe these 10 utterly fake ‘facts’ about impeachment


Yes, Adolf Hitler Really Said He Would 'Make Germany Great Again'


On Fox & Friends, State Department anti-Semitism envoy Elan Carr hails Trump's executive order since it "includes anti-Zionism and anti-Israel activity as defined anti-Semitism."


OK, sports fans. The fact that the Court took all 3 Trump subpoena cases on the merits changes the dynamic and the Vegas odds.


I wonder what traitors like Nunes and Scalise tell their kids right now.


Freshman House Democrat Elissa Slotkin, a former CIA analyst, on why she'll vote to impeach Trump: "We are trained to make hard calls on things, even if they are unpopular, if we believe the security of the country is at stake."


A new ad from Republicans for the Rule of Law. Rep. Larry Hogan (R.-MD): "There is no valid claim on the part of the president to ignore our subpoenas....If we do not pass this article today, the whole impeachment power becomes meaningless."


Rand Paul: useful tool of Vladimir Putin


Turkey has been warned by the international watchdog @FATFNews that it must improve “serious shortcomings” in its approach to combating money laundering + terror financing, or risk being added to a “grey list” along with the likes of Pakistan and Yemen


Dmitry Rybolovlev - the #Russian oligarch who bought #Trump's Palm Beach mansion for $$$$$ - has lost the latest round of his legal battle against his former Swiss art dealer


North Korean state TV would think twice before running this clip


Mitch McConnell’s multitude of political sins revealed in distressing profile


PSA - guys shit is going to get even weirder on most social media platforms. Understand how “sowing seeds of discord” works. 1) disinformation saturation 2) despair desa such as “all hope it lost” 3) wash, rinse & repeat Understand disinformation and “seed-sowing” = mental game


Hillary Clinton on Trump's impeachment


“Data-mining giant Palantir has quietly moved the HQ of its biz software arm to Britain. The company has raised the headcount at its London base — dubbed Grey Havens, after a strategic port in The Lord of the Rings — by more than 100 since last year.”


North Carolina elections board chastises voting equipment vendor


Erdogan threatens to shut down U.S. military base in Turkey believed to hold 50 nuclear bombs


Democracy Grief Is Real Seeing what Trump is doing to America, many find it hard to fight off despair.


US says it won’t accept North Korea-proposed nuclear deadline


Electrolux says closing U.S. factories will cost more than anticipated


Distrust of ‘unpredictable’ Trump is causing chaos in ‘exceptionally frustrated’ intel community


Fox News Poll 2020 matchups: Trump vs. Dems

Fox News Poll

Trump committed ‘multiple federal crimes’ and tried to ‘muzzle witnesses’: House report details president’s wrongdoing


This "illustrated guide of this year's good news" is wonderful -- and also, if you removed the captions, would be a hilarious "guess the headline" drinking game over Christmas! The illustrations are fabulous


Fox News Poll: "50 percent want Trump impeached and removed from office, 4 percent say impeached but not removed, and 41 percent oppose impeaching him altogether."


Complete 169-page report (w/GOP dissenting view) that accompanies articles of impeachment-it describes the process, Constitutional standard for impeachment and the underyling facts that support the charges for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.


Guess you didn’t like my thread did you Well here’s the tea: if John Roberts rules for a secret ballot because you’re colluding with a jury, we have the votes to make sure his ruling stands Maybe you should start packing, fatso. But keep it light. ADX Florence rooms are small


Could you charge the president with a crime after he left office?” Buck asked. “Yes,” Mueller said. “You believe that he committed—you could charge the president of the United States with obstruction of justice after he left office?” “Yes,” Mueller said.


The President has said that under Article 2, he can do whatever he wants. That’s what happens in a monarchy, not a republic. And as Ben Franklin said, America is “a republic, if you can keep it.” That is the question right now: can we keep this republic?


On to the senate. This isn’t about political party. It’s about the Constitution and the rule of law. Chuck Schumer requests four witnesses in impeachment Senate trial


“we weren’t given a fair trial in the House” there wasn’t a trial in the House a trial is what the Senate does


Someone on here said Trump "stands like a centaur without its hind legs", and I'll be damned if it ain't true.


BREAKING NEWS: Schumer’s proposal to McConnell. If he rejects these reasonable ground rules & insists on a non-trial, the House should consider treating that as a breach of the Senate’s oath & withholding the Articles until the Senate reconsiders


Why is this guy not in jail?


Did you really need to ask him?


Tom Ridge says Trump’s Ukraine call left him ‘disappointed and troubled,’ says he won’t back president in 2020


House Speaker Nancy Pelosi led a bipartisan congressional delegation to the Belgian town of Bastogne to join weekend-long commemorations marking the 75th anniversary of the World War II Battle of the Bulge


Opinion: Don’t worry, Sen. Graham. No one thought you’d be fair.


Watch Lindsey Graham die on the “Foreign election interference is no big deal”


If Republicans aren’t “even trying to pretend” to be fair jurors on impeachment, does that mean they won’t take the oath?


None of you will be missed


It is not normal for the president to call for the former FBI director to be imprisoned for years simply because he investigated his campaign


Insulin costs continue to rise, so much so that almost half of people with diabetes have temporarily skipped taking their insulin, according to a 2018 survey.


#Russia wants to end the ban on 'blood diamonds' from the Central African Republic. "Putin's Chef" Yevgeny Prigozhin (indicted by Mueller for U.S. election interference) runs one of his mercenary ventures in about a dozen countries, including the CAR.


Please, for the love of God, get Giuliani to testify in Trump's impeachment trial about how Shokin was assassinated twice and died twice but then came back from the dead, please, I need this more than anything.


Erdogan warned that Turkey could shut down two critical NATO installations if the U.S. imposes sanctions over its purchase of a Russian missile-defense system


CBS News Poll: Americans remain divided on impeachment. Public hearings have done little to sway public opinion, but more say the President deserves to be impeached than say he doesn't


My baby girl. She definitely was the "Life Of The Party."


It's right before the holidays and these staffers just quit their jobs to stand up for their Democratic values. We'll bring them and others who leave on with the @dccc until they land new jobs that align with their values.


Five aides resign from office of Democratic congressman expected to switch parties - I see


Trump is closer to losing Georgia than he is to flipping Pennsylvania or Michigan.


It was only a matter of time before this threat would come. No doubt someone is irked by the bipartisan Armenian genocide resolution


Besides clicks and ad revenue, is there any reason George Stephanopoulos would give Ted Cruz uninterrupted minutes to vomit out untruths and Trump talking points? Fairness? C’mon. Would love to see deposits into George’s and ABC’s coffers immediately before/after such segments.


REMINDER.... Democrats, listen to me. Who cares if the eventual nominee only meets 80 percent — heck, 50.1 percent — of your checklist? Evicting Trump should be the most important item on that checklist.


This seems eminently reasonable. McConnell & Graham have said publicly that they intend to hold a sham trial with a pre-determined result that gives Trump what he wants. The American people deserve better than that. They deserve a fair, honest process & the truth.


BREAKING: Senate Democrats are proposing a weekslong Senate impeachment trial seeking testimony from four new witnesses including John Bolton and Mick Mulvaney over President Trump's actions toward Ukraine, according to a newly released document.


Donald Trump is pulling food support from over five million homes. This is just cruel


The Putinization of Russian foreign policy


“It's not about my singular story. It's about giving women, your daughters, their voices back,” says former Fox News anchor @GretchenCarlson , who is calling for Fox to release her and others from non-disclosure agreements.


Senators McConnell and Graham recently announced that (basically) they have no intention of conducting a fair trial. Schumer responded by writing McConnell a letter. It's here: Among other things, Schumer suggests Bolton and Mulvaney testify.


Now THAT is a War on Christmas!


(Video) In CNN Interview, Trump Voters Express No Sympathy For Migrant Children 1. “I have no feelings for them at all.” - Carl B., Trump voter. 2. “Quit trying to make us feel teary eyed for the children.” - Madeline C., Trump voter.


Trump THE LIAR - Says He Turned Down Time’s Person of the Year Honor - TIME MAGAZINE CALLS BULLSHIT ON THIS ABOMINATION -


The #COP25 talks in Madrid failed to agree on steps to cut emissions after resistance from major greenhouse gas emitters such as Brazil, China, Australia, Saudi Arabia and the United States


This is the problem. Rich & powerful guy thinks it’s ok that he sexually assaulted & harassed women as long as he also helped them with their careers. Uh, NO.


Graham: "I think what’s best for the country is to get this thing over with. I [have] clearly made up my mind, I’m not trying to hide the fact that I have disdain for the accusations in the process, so I don’t need any witnesses.” So much for his oat


I know DOJ culture is to not respond, but IG Horowitz should respond to this. And ⁦@RodRosenstein⁩ & all the “institutionalists” who know better need to start speaking up or these institutions you claim to love will cease having any meaning.


There is plenty of bribery in the abuse of power impeachment charge. And your bribing the senator jurors with campaign cash before the trial is grounds for yet another charge.


Folks in SC not impressed with Lindsey Graham saying he is not interested in a fair impeachment trial. It could cost him his seat. Another reason not to send Articles until he is gone. Poll shows he is extremely vulnerable against Democrat Jaime Harrison.


It is impossible to separate Confederate & Nazi symbols from their racist, bloody, hateful histories. Why can’t news outlets say that? It’s a matter of history, not opinion.


“McConnell’s abandonment of the foundational notion of the Senate as a check on monarchical power has put a hard stamp on [law’s] betrayal, as we watch 243 years of democratic tradition plunge over the guardrails.”


Fox News Poll: 54 Percent of Americans Say Trump Should Be Impeached


Trump tariffs are causing U.S. airlines to seek Airbus jets made in America


“Does AG Barr have a point?” “No, he does not have a factual basis as the Attorney General of the United States to be speculating that agents acted in bad faith.”


By “withholding” the Articles I don’t mean not voting for them — I mean voting for them but holding off on transmitting them to the Senate.


Told @AlexWitt today on @msnbc that if Republicans were being truly honest, @realDonaldTrump would be impeached. The fact that they are so scared of their own base illustrates how systemically broken the GOP is...it started with the #TeaParty, now it's too late


I have to admit that I'm completely confused as to what Lindsey's stance/agenda is. Does HE even know??


Viktor Shokin is widely regarded by the international community as one of the most corrupt Ukrainians on Earth. He is working with Firtash.


Extreme weather patterns are raising the risk of a global food crisis, and climate change will make this worse


Martha McSally broke her promise to recover $30 million in funding she helped Trump take from an Army base


‘Always inaccurate’: Trump melts down on #FoxNews after their new poll shows impeachment support rising


Israel’s relations in the region are now the opposite of what they were in the 1950s. It has some Arab friends, but the most powerful emerging countries are hostile.


Deportation of armenian people during the genocide, 1915.


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They serrenade the Trumps every evening. Help if you can.

This is anything but light reading. It is written both to inform the nation in this winter of discontent and to establish history for all time


I guess, after three years of this shitshow, a sitting president identifying his favorite network and using the power of his position to tell people to watch its programming is one of the smaller things we no longer even bother to find appalling.


"The search for a single Republican who hasn’t sold himself to the devil has yielded no one but found one willing to add perjury to his list of sins."


Trump launches furious attack on Obama, Comey and IG Horowitz — then demands an apology


After her defense of Trump mocking an autistic child, Melania earns her title as Ugliest First Lady