We’re Good, Samantha Bee

Before we go any further, for the record, I find Samantha Bee’s epithet towards Ivanka Trump coarse and vulgar; it’s not a term I have ever condoned let alone used, plus Ms. Bee is smarter and wittier than that.

I hear Bee has apologized for the insult. I respect that it’s her call and she chose to apologize.

However, I don’t wanna hear any pearl-clutching bullshit from ANYONE about this, ESPECIALLY and PARTICULARLY from supporters of a walking vulgarity of a man who openly brags about sexually assaulting women, mocks POWs and Gold Star families, ridicules the disabled and defends Nazis and other assorted white supremacists, but has YET to pay a price for his rank bigotry. When his supporters start demanding that Trump apologize for the myriad of blatant, disgusting pronouncements he gleefully spews on a regular basis then, maybe, we can talk about reciprocating. Maybe. Fuck that 'we go high' nonsense—these people don’t understand civility. We need more Alan Graysons and less Michelle Obamas right now.

So, until these people acknowledge the vulgarity of their Cheeto Messiah, if in your heart you feel you want to denounce this family of disgusting grifters and those who enable them with sewer grade language, go right ahead. They’re not much better than that anyway. Fuck ‘em.

As for the Chumpbots, go poke a fork in a wall socket. Every last one of you.

About That NY Post Front Page...

As anyone even slightly familiar with The New York Post knows, "subtle" and "tactful" are not adjectives associated in any way with the Gotham tabloid; "crass" and "vulgar" are more like it. So, it should surprise no one how they treated über celebrity Kim Kardashian's recent visit to the White House, who was there in an effort to get the president on board with prison reform. That's a nice thing and kudos to her if she makes any inroads, but it's doubtful she will seeing as the pro-prison privatization folks are big time Republican donors and incarcerating people is big business. Just ask Jeff "Good People Don't Smoke Marihuana" Sessions.

But my apologies to those who might be offended that I was more upset about the current state of our country: one in which two unqualified reality show stars can possibly make and decide prison policy, than by the misogyny of the front page.
 

The Village Voice on The L Train Shutdown

It’s no secret NYC's Village Voice is far from the powerful, in-your-face- alternative weekly paper of its glory days. (It literally isn’t: digital became its sole platform when publication of the print version was ceased about 6 months ago.) Hell, even its actual name is a misnomer, since it’s no longer located in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village, its offices a stone’s throw from the Freedom Tower in the Financial District.

Regardless, the Voice’s reporting on certain local issues and matters remains solid despite the various internal and administrative upheavals it has endured over the last decade plus. Case in point: Aaron Gordon’s detailed and informative pieces on the looming L train shutdown—and its attendant fallout for all riders—along with reports on the hurdles faced by both MTA and its ridership, as plans to fix and upgrade the subway system infrastructure are put in place, are reminders that the old rabble rouser, who started out in a two-bedroom apartment in its namesake hood in 1955, still has some bite even if it's no longer the badass it once was.

Flight of the Chumpbots

HuffPo: 

A California flight instructor and his assistant were arrested last week for allegedly kidnapping one of their students with the intention of surreptitiously deporting him back to his native China. According to an audio recording of the alleged abduction, the 21-year-old student was told that if he “cannot speak English, you are not going to be able to stay here.” 

Gotta love that #MAGA!

For the record, the student is here on a valid visa and speaks enough English to communicate with air traffic control...

Thankfully, this plot was thwarted and since kidnapping is a federal crime these assholes should easily get 10 years in jail for their racism and stupidity. Awesome.

Sen. Duckworth on Veterans and NFL Protests

Inside The Vipers’ Nest: WH Staffers Turn On Each Other Before Trump

Axios:

Shortly after word leaked that Kelly Sadler had taken a nasty shot at John McCain, President Trump convened a meeting in the Oval Office for a tiny group of communications staffers, according to sources familiar with the gathering. Sadler, Mercedes Schlapp, Raj Shah, and John Kelly all gathered in front of the Resolute Desk for a conversation with Trump about the leaking problem. They were the only people in the room, though the door to the outer Oval was open. The president told Sadler she wouldn’t be fired for her remark. He added, separately in the conversation, that he’s no fan of McCain. Then Trump, who had grown obsessed with the leaking problem, told Sadler he wanted to know who the leakers were. Sadler then stunned the room: To be completely honest, she said, she thought one of the worst leakers was Schlapp, her boss. 

A meeting about leaks is leaked and the defender of an insensitive rat is ratted out. Classic Trump.

 

[Axios: Stunning Oval Office leak: Aides fight in front of Trump — About Leaks]

The Grifters

While Ivanka Trump caught much flak for recently posting a tone deaf photo of herself with her son on Instagram, in the midst of reports on the separation of families on the Mexico-US border, The New York Times reported on how she was awarded seven new business trademarks by China six days before her father declared he’d help Chinese telecommunications company ZTE out of bankruptcy.

So as this poor excuse for a president talks out of one side of his mouth about confronting and opposing China’s unfair trade relationship with the US and being supposedly concerned about security, as he vows to help a company that has violated US trade sanctions with Iran and North Korea and has been said to pose a threat to security by US intelligence agencies, his daughter is awarded millions of dollars in business patents by China. And conservative analysts, media and politicians say…[tumbleweeds].

No pay for play, huh?

Where Are We Headed?

Whenever the subject of gun control comes up, invariably a comparison will be made regarding our partaking of violent entertainment and that of the rest of the industrialized world where they have as much exposure to it as we do, but have nowhere near the level of gun deaths we have here in the US. And more often than not, someone on the gun control side of the argument will ask rhetorically if we are more violent than our counterparts elsewhere in the world. Perhaps. But I do believe that we do have a nasty, seedy underbelly that goes hand in hand with the violence. Let’s face it, we’re not the only ones who have violent video games or a significant portion of our population suffering from mental health issues. And while the easy access to guns is absolutely a determining factor, the quality of our people, as human beings capable of compassion and empathy, should not only be considered but taken very seriously when trying to arrive at answers in various scenarios.

The argument that many were fooled into voting for Trump is not something I give much weight. Yes, they’re out there but I personally believe—in other words, this is my anecdotal perception—that the folks who feel they were hoodwinked by the man’s promises and rhetoric are only a small fraction of his overall followers. I am convinced that the approximately one-third of Americans who steadfastly remain supportive of this poor excuse for a human being got exactly what they bargained for. Folks like the lady in Kentucky who admits Obamacare saved her from a breast cancer diagnosis but despises Obama himself. Or those in Pennsylvania who when interviewed recently said they didn’t expect Trump to do much for them but support the president because they feel he hates the same people they do (BLM, immigrants, liberals, protesting NFL players, etc.). And, of course, there’s the chest-thumping, so-called people of faith who have decided to unequivocally throw in their lot with a man of amply documented, highly questionable morals and integrity, while putting their own into question in the process. I truly believe they all represent the overwhelming majority of Trump supporters.

Now, because some of these individuals may be family and/or loved ones who you otherwise cherish, you will likely and vehemently disagree with me and refuse to believe this of them. But the truth is, deep down, they are not the ‘good but flawed’ people you want them to be. They simply aren’t. None of this is news, of course, and has been mentioned elsewhere repeatedly. But while surveying our current national landscape, I’m thinking about where we go from here.

For starters, even if Trump were to be curbed in his march to turn the country into one of his properties, where HE is the rule of law and loyalty to the dear leader is the only valuable currency, the damage has been done. A mass of citizens readily defiant against anything different to their race, sexual preference, religion and culture, have been inspired to rise up and distrust the powers that be, not in a healthy way, mind you, but in a manner that conforms to a bubble of conspiracy theory claptrap that reassures their biases both socially developed and acquired.

Whether Trump is impeached or not—it would take a frankly, very unlikely trifecta: a blue tsunami in the polls in November and the Democrats growing a spine while congressional Republicans, part of this cartel or not, to develop a conscience and actual love of country—he will dedicate the rest of his life to sow divisions and pit his followers against the rest of the country. A pit of resentment and hatred fueled by a despicable human being who cares not a whit about anyone except the gruesome reflection of a man in his gold plated mirror, is what we can look forward to for years to come.

However, as much as I patently despise the current occupant of the White House, my disdain is much greater for the plurality of our fellow citizens who look at this vulgar, bigot, con man, and narcissistic failure of a human being and see a good man. Or tellingly, as someone to emulate or even a reflection of themselves. They have happily and proudly foisted upon us a scourge that will take a generation to overcome, if at all. And for that I will never forgive them. Ever.

Thanks to Congressional GOP, Trump Officially Above the Law

Forget all the deluded, pearl-clutching editorials about the resilience of our Constitution and institutions and/or how Trump is not above the law. Whatever. The fact that Trump has been aided and abetted by Congressional Republicans by either actively undermining the DoJ and FBI in their investigations into the Russia and obstruction of justice probes, or simply by looking the other way as Orange Escobar tramples over the rule of law, is for any reasonable person to no longer view the GOP as a political party but a cartel of grifters and scumbags, with Trump as their dear leader.

Democrats are you fucking asleep, cowering in a corner or both??!!!

There Goes that Nobel Peace Prize

"President Donald Trump will not meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un next month, he announced in a letter to Kim released by the White House Thursday morning, scrapping plans for what would have been a historic diplomatic summit." 

[CNN: Trump Cancels Singapore Summit in Letter to Kim Jong Un]

Giuliani: 'And If There Was Collusion, So What?'

Good grief!

[HuffPo: Giuliani’s New Stance On Russian Collusion: So What? It’s Not Illegal]

Players, Coaches, Owners Comment on NFL Kneeling Ban During Anthem

Fuck the NFL and the team owners who voted unanimously to ban any form of protest by the players. I was a remotely casual fan but no more. Again, fuck 'em.

"NFL owners have approved a national anthem policy that requires players to stand if they are on the field during the performance but gives them the option to remain in the locker room if they prefer, it was announced Wednesday." 

[ESPN: NFL Players, Coaches and Owners React to National Anthem Policy]

Matthew Yglesias Chastises Press for Not Conveying Mueller's Results

WTF?!

"A majority of Americans — 59 percent — say in a new survey that Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia and the 2016 campaign has not yet uncovered evidence of any crimes, even though in reality, Mueller has already obtained five guilty pleas and 17 criminal indictments. 
...  

That suggests that the press as a whole has not done a good job of actually conveying factual information to our audience, that Democrats’ messaging on the investigation has not been clear enough on the most damning point (Trump, even if otherwise innocent, is guilty of hiring crooks and trying to prevent an investigation into their activity), and that Trump’s counterstrategy of muddying the waters around the investigation has been fairly successful."

[Vox: Most Americans Don’t Realize Robert Mueller’s Investigation Has Uncovered Crimes]

Trump More Popular in Israel that in US

According to a recent phone poll conducted by Statnet, 59% of Israeli Jews approve of Donald Trump, a number that increases into the 70s when focusing on non-secular Israeli Jews.

Could someone please ask former KKK bigwig David Duke what he thinks of this? Please?

Why Trump Should Fear Michael Avenatti More Than Bob Mueller

Law professor John Culhane explains how a defamation/NDA lawsuit could spell bigger trouble for Trump than even the special counsel's investigation of his "alleged" obstruction of justice.

[Politico]

Here Come The Women

The big news from Democratic primaries this past Tuesday:

- After winning the Democratic nomination for governor of Georgia on Tuesday, Stacy Abrams could become Georgia's first woman to become governor and the first black woman in the nation to do so. 

- Lupe Valdez, a former Dallas County sheriff, made history in Texas by being the first Hispanic woman to be nominated for governor by a major party.

- Gina Ortiz Jones, a former Air Force intelligence officer, will be the first lesbian, first Iraq War veteran and first Filipina-American to represent Texas in Congress if she wins in November.

- Attorney Lizzie Fletcher will be running for Texas’ 7th Congressional District, a seat the Democrats are quite eager to flip.

- In Kentucky, retired Marine fighter pilot, Lt. Col. Amy McGrath, won the Democratic primary in the state's 6th Congressional District, her bid initially considered a long shot.

On Incels

Gonna make it short and sweet: if you are an 'incel' (involuntarily celibate men who blame their lack of romantic prospects on women) or an apologist for these women-hating, sexually frustrated whiners (like the Toronto terrorist who ran over and killed 10 people last month, 'cause he wasn't getting laid), I don't care about your credentials, pedigree or if you love your mom. Game over.

White Supremacist Gang Leader Executed Outside Chinese Buffet in New Hampshire

AlterNet:

"Jesse Jarvis, who co-founded the Brotherhood of White Warriors around 2010 at the Northern New Hampshire Corrections Facility, was shot multiple times shortly after midnight Sunday in the parking lot of Imperial Buffet in Claremont...The 36-year-old Jarvis, who was pronounced dead at the scene, and his family were regular customers at the restaurant and bar, but police have not identified any suspects in the fatal shooting."

Am I the only one who finds it weird that a white supremacist would eat Chinese food? Maybe that's why he got killed, for being a traitor to his race. Anyway...

Trump Is The Embodiment of White Privilege

Plenty of Caucasian folks take issue with the term “white privilege”, feeling they have worked hard for everything they’ve achieved and not gotten to wherever they are in life because of their skin color. I understand their quite valid frustrations in that regard. I really do. But the privileges of being Caucasian in the US can be enjoyed without seeking them out or even knowing they were a factor in one’s life: from benefiting from the hiring practices of racist bosses to not fearing a routine police stop can end in your death, and all kinds of situations in between, being white is rarely if ever detrimental to one's prospects in the grand scheme of American life.

Meanwhile, every single day we witness the single most blatant example of the extent of white privilege in the US, in the form of the latitude and leeway given to a bigoted, corrupt, incompetent, ignorant misogynist and con man, defended and even bestowed a pedestal by so-called men of the cloth and everyday, self-defined good people. (Nazis love him, too.) Let’s cut to the chase: if Trump had been black (or brown), with even a quarter of the shady dealings of this presidential impostor, he’d be wearing an orange jumpsuit at Guantanamo, with more shackles than limbs.

That, is white privilege.

Maduro "Wins" Re-Election; Venezuela Braces for More Hell

An Hugo Chavez turd come to life, Nicolas Maduro "won" a new six year term as Venezuela's "president", despite further running into the ground the once proud and prosperous South American nation. International sanctions are expected but this will do little to relieve the monumental burden levied upon the Venezuelan people, over a million of which have already fled the country, exasperated with state-sanctioned murder, corruption and crippling food shortages, despite Venezuela's status as a top oil producer.

Chump Asks ‘Real Americans’ to Protest Mueller; 64% of US Say ‘No Dice’

Fearing that the Mueller probe will not only expose the Chump cartel’s collusion but widespread corruption as well, the Pussy Grabber-In Chief has been tweeting up a storm and asking that “real Americans”, ie Chumpbots, “get tough” on the investigation. Unfortunately for him, almost two-thirds of the country support the Mueller probe. But Chump’s irresponsible exhortations will surely bring about attacks on the FBI from different camps. Personally, I hope the Chumpbots take Chump’s call to protest literally and get their asses arrested in the process.

Guns, Guns, Guns

As another community deals with the most recent deadly school shooting and the responses from the gun lobby bootlickers have gone from the inane (the hollow yet ubiquitous "thoughts and prayers") to the insane (Texas' Lt. Gov. blamed it on the school having "too many doors"), we have to acknowledge a sad, grim truth: Gun control will only come to pass when the children of those who vote for the aforementioned bootlicking politicians are slaughtered in school shootings. Then and only them will they vote out the NRA servants that perpetuate the status quo leading to these tragedies. Fuck.

Witch Hunt? Looks Like Mueller Found Witches, Chump

Trump Spin Machine Getting Into High Gear

With the first anniversary of the Mueller investigation looming and the Trump cartel channeling Nixon's 'one year of Watergate is enough' strategy, Axios is reporting on how "pro-Trump media is spreading across the U.S., disseminating Trumpian rhetoric about fake news and mainstream media bias through every medium" and have compiled a list of media outlets and figures ready to take their water-carrying for the Chump-in-Chief into overdrive.

[Axios: The Rise of the Pro-Trump Media Machine]

Mid Week Recap

- North Korea threatens to bail from summit with US. (Looks like violating the Iran deal did not inspire much trust in the Trump administration, huh?)

- Trump appeases China (and, indirectly, his pockets) with ZTE deal after $1b in Chinese loans are approved for an Indonesian resort he has a stake in.

- Longtime Trump attorney Jay Goldberg slams Giuliani's performance as Trump's lead counsel.

- The White House eliminated the Cyber Czar position after the initial appointee left to return to the NSA.

- California’s right-to-die law, which allows terminally ill people to take their own lives with the aid of a physician, has been overturned by a state judge.

- A former CIA employee suspected by the federal government of giving a massive amount of documents to WikiLeaks is also facing charges of sexual assault.

- "Democratic" senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Heidi Heitkamp (ND), Bill Nelson (FL), Joe Donnelly (IN) and Joe Manchin (WV) will vote to confirm Gina Haspel as CIA director, despite her problematic past relationship with "enhanced interrogation techniques" aka torture.

Make China Great Again (part 2): The Indonesian Connection

HuffPo:

A mere 72 hours after the Chinese government agreed to put a half-billion dollars into an Indonesian project that will personally enrich Donald Trump, the president ordered a bailout for a Chinese-government-owned cellphone maker.

“President Xi of China, and I, are working together to give massive Chinese phone company, ZTE, a way to get back into business, fast,” Trump announced on Twitter Sunday morning. “Too many jobs in China lost. Commerce Department has been instructed to get it done!”

Trump did not mention in that tweet or its follow-ups that on Thursday, the developer of a theme park resort outside of Jakarta had signed a deal to receive as much as $500 million in Chinese government loans, as well as another $500 million from Chinese banks, according to Agence France-Presse. Trump’s family business, the Trump Organization, has a deal to license the Trump name to the resort, which includes a golf course and hotels.

Trump, despite his campaign promises to turn over his businesses and have no involvement with them, has still not fully divested himself of his businesses, and continues to profit from them.

The Trump cartel continues its parade of corruption and no one does a damn thing about it.

Michael Avenatti: Badass

As CNN's Don Lemon grilled him with tough questions we got another example of why the attorney for Stephanie Clifford (aka Stormy Daniels) is not to be messed with.

We live in a time in which 6 has truly become 9, a moment in history in which the attorney for a porn star who was paid by the POTUS to not disclose their affair, is doing more to combat a corrupt president and his cartel than the opposing political party.

You're pathetic, Democrats.

 

NY Daily News Slams Trumps re Embassy Protests

The NYC tabloid, to put it mildly, is no fan of the Trump family and their latest front page makes no exception, as it depicts a smiling Ivanka Trump juxtaposed with a photo of injured Palestinians, shot by Israeli forces while protesting the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem.

John Oliver Checks In On Venezuela

The once proud and prosperous South American nation—and home to the world's largest oil reserves—has been going thru some incredibly rough times of late, particularly under the blatant incompetence and defiant corruption of president Nicolas Maduro's failed administration. This Week Tonight takes a look.

 

We Need To Talk About White People Calling The Cops On People Of Color

The past few weeks have seen a spate of news stories about white Americans calling the police on people of color who appear to be simply going about their lives ― whether waiting at a Starbucks, golfing, attending a university tour, leaving an Airbnb, napping or barbecuing.  

These incidents have sparked fierce debate about racism in the U.S. In most of these cases there was no apparent threat of harm, making it hard to avoid the conclusion that the people who called the police did so because of a conscious or unconscious belief that people of color simply don’t belong, or that they inherently pose a danger or threat.  

Ironically, the real danger in such encounters often comes from white Americans calling 911 on their neighbors of color ― effectively deploying the threat of violence, as police interactions with black people in particular are disproportionately likely to end in excessive force or death.  

“When you engage law enforcement in these kinds of things you are opening the door for things to go very wrong,” Oakland, California, mayoral candidate Cat Brooks told KRON News this week, after a white woman called the police on black residents barbecuing in a local park in an area designated only for non-charcoal grilling. Brooks cited “the potential for arrests like in Philadelphia with those two black men or worse physical assault or death.” “I don’t believe in this day and age that white folks don’t know that,” she added.

[HuffPo]

Make China Great Again

All his brief political life, Trump has been complaining of unfair trade with China. But in a move experts have labeled unprecedented, Mr. MAGA has decided to reverse his stance, as Chinese company ZTE, which was found to have broken US sanctions against Iran by shipping US-made hardware and software to the Middle Eastern company, will have the US Dept. of Commerce’s ban from American companies supplying ZTE lifted, thanks to direct intervention from Trump.

Reuters has more.

Jerusalem: Trump's Middle Eastern Waterloo?

The opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem was met with Israeli forces killing of dozens of Palestinians protesting it, as Jerusalem represents the capital of a future Palestinian homeland, as well as rebukes by the vast majority of those invited to attend, and the calling out of pastor Robert Jeffress, a spiritual advisor to Donald Trump who gave the event's opening prayer, as a “religious bigot” by Mitt Romney, who denounced Jeffress’ previous attacks on Jews, Mormons and Muslims.

This is just primo foreign policy from a man who, as a candidate, criticized the work of the previous US administrations, which he claimed had led to further destabilizing the Middle East. And this move is what, exactly? Oh, that’s right: pandering to the white Evangelicals who blindly support him. Of course. Never mind that a vast number of these folks could not care any less about Israel except as it pertains to biblical prophecy, so…

"Deplorables" Is Too Kind A Word (part 2)

We all know White House aide Kelly Sadler “joked” at a closed door meeting this past Thursday that Sen. John McCain’s opposition to senate confirmation of Gina Haspel as CIA director didn’t matter because “he’s dying anyway.” And that much to the dismay of decent people everywhere, Sadler did not lose her job. Plus, to the surprise of no one, this White House did not apologize for her remarks.

So, it’s pretty much par for the course to learn that the next day Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders addressed the issue not by chastising Sadler but by privately berating the White House communications team for leaking Sadler’s remark to the press. They, in turn, leaked this dressing down, in which Huckabee Sanders called the original leak "disgusting" to the press.

You see, Huckabee Sanders’ problem was not that someone in the service of a draft-dodging piece of shit mocked the cancer battle of an American war hero, but that it was leaked.

"Deplorables" Is Too Kind A Word

There was all this hubub over comedian Michelle Wolf tearing into Sara Huckabee Sanders at the recent White House Correspondents Dinner and yet only one GOP senator—Jeff Flake, the junior senator from Arizona—has condemned White House aide Kelly Sadler's joke that Sen. John McCain's opinion on whether the current nominee for CIA director, Gina Haspel, should be confirmed is irrelevant since "he's dying anyway".

Obviously those cowards are pretty sure they'd lose votes coming to McCain's defense. But the more important question here is, what kind of people do they represent that defending a colleague, a war hero dying of cancer, is a bad move?

Pro or Con: What Was Michael Cohen Selling?

The president who promised to “drain the swamp” aka rid Washington of influence peddling, is nothing less than a gleeful participant in the town’s culture of corruption; the examples are numerous and readily available.

So while many of us are inclined to think the $4.4m that flowed through Michael Cohen’s coffers was the asking price for positive influence, it’s perfectly within reason to believe that Cohen, in furtherance of his bullshit, tough guy “fixer” persona, may have been pushing a shakedown scheme of the crude kind: pay me or I just might whisper in Trump’s ear to favor your competition. Or in the case of AT&T, reinforce Trump’s resistance to their merger with Time Warner.

And, of course, there’s the very real possibility that the Grifter-in-Chief made off with some of that $4.4m loot.

Let’s hope we find out how it all went down.

Collusion and the Porn Star

For a while now, many have looked at the Stormy Daniels scandal as either a distraction from the Russian collusion case or just a blatant cash grab on the part of the porn star and her combative and effective lawyer Michael Avenatti.

Well, regardless, they've just dovetailed. And Avenatti called it.

Turns out he made public last night, via a dossier he compiled, that Trump's attorney, Michael Cohen, had received substantial amounts of money from a company closely linked to a certain Russian oligarch, which were deposited into the accounts of the same shell company from which Cohen made the $130K payment to Daniels.

The plot thickens, boys and girls.


[The Daily Beast: Michael Cohen Took Cash From Oligarch-Connected Firm After Election]

Foreign Policy for Idiots

So, despite our international allies advising him not to, Trump is bailing from the Iran nuclear deal—more like violating the agreement—because it allegedly doesn’t go far enough in pressuring Iran to refrain from developing nuclear weapons. Actually, it’s because it was an international achievement by the Obama administration and we all know Trump would try to dismantle the cure for cancer if the Marxist Muslim from Kenya was behind it.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in North Korea setting up Trump’s summit with Kim Jong Un, a meeting whose purpose is to convince North Korea to restrain from advancing their nuclear program under threat of sanctions. Hmm. That sounds familiar. Anyone think North Korea will trust the US after seeing Trump renege on the Iran deal?

Stay tuned.

Trump's White House is 'House of Cards'...with Idiots

I am not objective about Rudy Giuliani; I greatly despise the man. As a native New Yorker who lived through the despicable-turned-mythological reign of "America's Mayor" (his sycophants should listen to the families of fallen NYFD and their surviving comrades speak on how he sold them out on September 11th, 2001 and thus has blood on his hands) I loathe him profoundly. To see him betray the law enforcement colleagues he served with and embarrass himself on TV in service to the PoS that is Donald Trump is not just classic schadenfreude but, more importantly, shows the true measure of this man. He is vile and worthless. Ridicule and disdain is too good for him.

I must admit, recent developments worry me: for if despite the corruption and ineptitude on which this idiotic cartel thrives, nothing ends up happening to them, we are doomed.

[CNN: 21 Head-Scratching Lines from A(nother) Disastrous Rudy Giuliani Interview]

Huckabee the Hypocrite

For a professional liar to call someone a hypocrite is just...

Stormy Daniels Does Not Give a Fuck What You Think (and will let you know, too)

As I've mentioned elsewhere, it’s not a stretch to assume that a woman who makes a living having sex on screen is a tough broad with thick skin. Well, it seems that description fits Stormy Daniels perfectly.

Because of a particularly stupid tweet, in which a detractor and obvious Chumpbot berates Stormy for not being as desirable to Trump as his daughter Ivanka (!!!), I made the trek over to her Twitter account where the Chumpbots, as expected, have been out in full force insulting her in a myriad of ways. But Stormy is no joke: she swats these fools like so many errant flies; she’s a master of troll knocking. And enjoys it, too. It's like the Chumpbots who engage her are divers into a pool of shit thinking it was chocolate syrup.

[Fast Company: What We Can Learn From Stormy Daniels’s Annihilation Of Twitter Trolls ]

Paul Ryan Warns If Republicans Lose House, Cover-ups Will End

"Ryan has played an invaluable role covering up and enabling Trump administration scandals. When he says his party needs to keep control of the House to prevent subpoenas, he is both promising the cover-ups will continue if his party keeps its control of government, and expressing his clear belief that he opposes any level of independent oversight of the Executive branch."

[New York magazine]

Grow A Pair, Mainstream Media

Trump LIED about not knowing Cohen had drafted an NDA and paid Stormy Daniels $130,000 for her silence. He lied.

Again, he lied.

But the fucking cowards in the mainstream press, afraid of the Chumpbots and other conservatives calling them biased don't have the nerve to call this what it is: A LIE.

Instead, we have the NY Times calling it a "contradiction"; WaPo says it's a statement made "despite Trump’s assertion last month that he was unaware of the payment"; the LA Times believes it was something "the president had previously denied"; while CNN stated Giuliani's assertions on the matter "contradicted Trump."

Oh, for fuck's sake, HE LIED, damn it. What are you doing? You'll never convince Chumpbots and most conservatives that you guys are fair and you irritate the shit out of those of us who can't stand your spinelessness.

Ugh.

Giuliani Sets Trump's Hair On Fire

The alliance of Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani is New York City's worst political dumpster fire of the last 30 years. And now they have taken the disgrace to a new low as the latter, legally representing the former, further incriminated the Orange Nightmare on both the Russian collusion front AND the Stormy Daniels scandal. And in their Fox News safe space, no less: on Sean Hannity's propaganda segment.

"[Trump] fired [FBI director James] Comey because Comey would not, among other things, say that he wasn’t a target of the investigation."

Hmm. That's funny, since Trump has repeatedly and vehemently denied the Russian collusion investigation was the reason for firing Comey.

As far as the Stormy Daniels scandal goes, Giuliani also told Sean Calamity, on the air, that Trump “didn’t know about the specifics" of the agreement and/or the $130,000 payment maid by his attorney/"fixer" Michael Cohen to Daniels but was aware of "the general arrangements” and that Trump repaid the $130K via multiple $35,000 installments.

But wait...didn't Trump vociferously deny having any advance knowledge whatsoever of the NDA or the payment, and claimed that his Cohen had acted alone?

Smells like two week old fish left out on the windowsill.

Sprint, T-Mobile Merger A Potential Bust for Customers

“This merger raises several red flags for consumers,” Jonathan Schwantes, senior policy counsel for Consumers Union, the advocacy division of Consumer Reports, said in an interview with the magazine. “Right now, Sprint and T-Mobile provide much-needed alternatives to Verizon and AT&T, with some innovative plans and pricing options that keep some semblance of competition alive. If you combine these two companies, those incentives and options could dry up.”  

MarketWatch adds that if the companies combine, there could be two other downsides for customers. One is that Sprint’s lower-cost plans could be eliminated after joining with T-Mobile. Another is that unlimited data plans at all four major carriers could disappear. If one carrier chooses to end its unlimited data offering, the two other companies could follow suit — with less competition, all three networks would need to worry less about customer acquisition and retention, and therefore have less incentive to provide better deals for their customers. 

[Money: The T-Mobile and Sprint Merger Could Raise Your Cell Phone Bill, Consumer Experts Warn]