It took him dozens of tries to get his security form information correct, he was red-flagged by intelligence agencies, but he finally got his security clearances. How did that happen? President Trump ordered his chief of staff to grant his son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, a top-secret security clearance last year, overruling concerns flagged by intelligence officials and the … Read More
Investigations, Investigations, Investigations!
I can kind of see why Republicans want Mueller shut down. His outreach, like that of an octopus, is pretty far. As I wrote back in February, there are some lingering question about where the money went for Trump’s very expensive but poorly attended inauguration. Now The Hill is breaking a story that Mueller is looking into donations to that event: … Read More
Trump Summit Fail
The Hanoi summit is over early and President Trump says no agreement was reached. “There is a gap,” he said, and the gap is that Kim wanted all sanctions lifted but was not willing to eliminate his nuclear arsenal in return. Trump was very vague about this, saying that Kim was willing to “denuclearize large portions of the areas we … Read More
NC-09 Scandal Leads To Indictments
From the New York Times: The North Carolina political operative who oversaw a fraud-ridden voter-turnout effort on behalf of a Republican congressional candidate was arrested on Wednesday, a prosecutor said, after a grand jury accused him of a series of felonies. The campaign contractor, L. McCrae Dowless Jr., was among five people charged in Wake County, N.C., in connection with … Read More
Cohen Hearing Summed Up
Cohen’s testimony includes accusations — relating to Trump’s racism, his lack of concern for the public weal and his attempts to conceal his academic record — that, if true, are simply embarrassing. But, as noted by Max Bergmann of the Moscow Project at the Center for American Progress, the president’s former lawyer also implicated him in at least four felonies: 1. Conspiracy to defraud … Read More
Cohen Open Testimony: Live Updates
As Brian Williams said last night, and I am paraphrasing: “It is very possible that fifty year from now, we will still be looking at video clips from Cohen’s testimony.” Meaning, today is an historical day. Maybe. Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and “fixer”, who was disbarred yesterday, and is scheduled to be imprisoned for lying to investigators, is testifying … Read More
Cohen Testimony Week: Day One
Michael Cohen is testifying today to Congress, but behind closed doors. He will give pubic testimony tomorrow. The White House is playing like they are not scared. In a statement on this morning, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, denounced Mr. Cohen. “Disgraced felon Michael Cohen is going to prison for lying to Congress and making other false … Read More
The North Korea Summit Talks: Part Two – Electric Boogaloo
Welp, Trump is off again to meet with Kim Jong-un for the second time. You would think it is unnecessary, because the last time they met, Trump returned home and tweeted how North Korea had been denuclearized. It hadn’t, of course. So Trump is returning to meet with Kim Jong-un, and is he bringing a paddle? Nope. He’s bringing more … Read More
Document Dump: There Is No Wall Emergency
Former national security appointees agree:
Document Dump: Complaint Against Trump
Another sex scandal embroils Trump. I doubt this goes anywhere:
Document Dump: CREW Report on Trump Crimes
The Stormy Daniels controversy isn’t about sex. It’s about the cover-up, and the illegal misuse of campaign funds. This could be a more existential threat to Trump than the Mueller investigation.
The Mueller Report Will Be Big Even If It Finds No Collusion By Trump
This graph, from Phillip Bump, shows what WE KNOW will be in the Mueller report. This is no witch hunt. That’s about 290 pages of documents detailing alleged and admitted illegal behavior, including, in most cases, broad context for the actions. (Many of those pages, particularly as they relate to Manafort, are carried over between documents.) It’s dozens of criminal … Read More
Breaking: New Elections
BREAKING: All 5 members of @NCSBE unanimously vote for a new election in #NC09 This will be the first redo congressional election in over 40 years. — Ally Mutnick (@allymutnick) February 21, 2019
Breaking: Stone Gagged
If Stone violates this gag order, the judge says she will revoke his bond and detain him pending trial. Stone is getting a second chance, Jackson says, but this is not baseball — there will be no third chance — Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) February 21, 2019
How It Might All End
I’m on the record as not believing the Mueller investigation is coming to an end next week or soon thereafter, but all the media is telling me I am wrong. So assuming I am wrong, let’s look at what happens next, if anything. Wired laid out seven scenarios: 1. Mueller sends the attorney general a simple “declination letter,” telling Bill Barr … Read More