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dreaminginthedeepsouth · 4 years ago

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LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

January 27, 2021

Heather Cox Richardson

The contours of politics today look much like they did yesterday. President Biden is forging ahead through executive actions—today pausing oil and gas leases while switching the government to electric vehicles— while the two factions in the Republican Party claw for supremacy.

Dead center of both of these political fights is the future of this country. Will Trump and his supporters seize control of the government—by means legal or illegal—or will the country steer itself back to the norms and values of democracy?

The dangers of Trumpism are becoming clearer each day. Today, for the first time, the Department of Homeland Security issued a national terrorism bulletin that warned of violence from domestic extremists angry over “perceived grievances fueled by false narratives” and emboldened by the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The bulletin expires at the end of April.

Law enforcement has moved National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., in part to guard against violence on March 4, a day that QAnon supporters who still believe Trump is part of an elaborate trick to reclaim the nation from the Democrats think will be the day on which the former president is finally sworn in for his second term. (March 4 was the nation’s original inauguration date; it changed under Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1937.)

In testimony yesterday, the acting chief of the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington told the House Appropriations Committee that at least 65 officers filed reports of injury after the January 6 attack. The chair of the Capitol Police officers’ union, Gus Papathanasiou, put the number closer to 140. "I have officers who were not issued helmets prior to the attack who have sustained brain injuries. One officer has two cracked ribs and two smashed spinal discs. One officer is going to lose his eye, and another was stabbed with a metal fence stake," he said. One officer died of injuries sustained on January 6. Two officers have since taken their own lives.

Meanwhile, a video emerged today of the new Republican representative from Georgia, Marjorie Taylor Greene, harassing David Hogg, who survived the mass shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Valentine’s Day 2018. Greene followed Hogg down the street in Washington, D.C., in March 2019, with an accomplice filming as she badgered him, called him a crisis actor paid by George Soros, told him she was armed, demanded he talk to her, and called him a coward. He walked on, without engaging her.

The video emerged the day after reporters discovered old Facebook activity on Greene’s page in which she responded positively to a commenter talking of hanging former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama and another talking of killing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

While Representative Jimmy Gomez (D-CA) has called for Greene’s expulsion from Congress, leading Republicans in the House responded to the Facebook news simply by saying they condemned violent rhetoric on both sides. Today, Republican House leadership assigned her to the Education and Labor Committee.

Republican lawmakers seem to be siding with Trump’s supporters, turning against the ten House Republicans who voted for Trump’s impeachment. In the House, Trump supporters are trying to throw Liz Cheney (R-WY) out of her spot in the party’s leadership, and the former president’s new political action committee is ginning up anger against her as it urges primary challengers to jump into the race in 2022.

Increasingly, Republican lawmakers are pushing to let Trump off the hook on impeachment. In the Senate yesterday, Rand Paul (R-KY) insisted that a former president could not be tried on an impeachment charge, and 45 Republicans agreed with him. This is not necessarily a signal of how the eventual Senate vote will go, but Paul said it was: he insisted this was a sign that Trump would not be convicted. Republican lawmakers seem to be coming down on Trump’s side as polls show that while most Americans are horrified by the attack on the Capitol and blame Trump for it, most Republicans- 78%-- don’t blame him. Republican lawmakers are accusing Democrats of divisiveness in their move to hold the president accountable.

Some Republicans are, though, alarmed at the idea that a president might get away with inciting an insurrection that endangered our elected representatives and our government itself—remember the next three people in line for the presidency were in the Capitol when the rioters stormed it—and which came perilously close to making good on threats against individuals, including then-vice president Mike Pence.

Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) dismissed the idea that the country could have unity without addressing the causes of the current anger. “I say, first of all, have you gone out publicly and said that there was not widespread voter fraud and that Joe Biden is the legitimate president of the United States? If you said that, then I’m happy to listen to you talk about other things that might inflame anger and divisiveness,” he explained to Dennis Romboy of Deseret News. “But if you haven’t said that, that’s really what’s at the source of the anger right now.”

Also notable is the firm stance of Representative Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), who has bucked his party to speak out against the former president’s attacks on the election and incitement of the rioters. “I’ve felt very isolated in my party,” Kinzinger told Ellen McCarthy of the Washington Post.

While the Republican Party’s apparent embrace of Trump and all he now stands for is grabbing headlines, Biden and his administration officials are taking on the radicalization of his opponents in a new and promising way. They are demonstrating an approach to sidelining Trumpism by shifting the focus off the exhausting drama of the former president and his supporters and onto a functioning government that is working for ordinary Americans.

When a reporter today asked White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki if the administration had any comment on Greene, Psaki made it clear the administration was not going to give any oxygen to her or those like her. “We don’t, and I am not going to speak further about her, I think, in this briefing room,” Psaki said.

While Biden is starving the Republicans of oxygen, he is also working to address the conditions that have fed desperate conspiracy theories and divisions. In America, such societal breakdown is associated with periods in which ordinary people face economic hardship. Biden is moving quickly on a range of issues that are popular among ordinary voters of both parties, including addressing the country’s extreme inequality. After all, one of the complaints that drew voters to an outsider in 2016 was the belief that government no longer worked for the people and needed to be shaken up.

Today’s executive order on addressing climate change talks at length about creating “good-paying union jobs” and “tapping into the talent, grit, and innovation of American workers.” It calls for the government to buy zero-emission vehicles made in the U.S., and to rebuild federal infrastructure, creating construction, manufacturing, engineering, and skilled-trades jobs. Job creation and infrastructure development were both promises the previous president made in 2016 that boosted his support but which never really came to pass. If Biden can actually deliver on them, he could reclaim those Trump voters for the Democrats, as well as addressing climate change and our failing infrastructure.

Biden’s people are also making sure we see a White House that is addressing issues that created concern in the past administration. They are upholding old norms—holding daily press briefings, for example—honoring science, restoring government websites, and treating members of the media with respect.

They seem to be trying to remind us how our democracy is supposed to work.

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LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

#quotes #political #Letters From An American #Heather Cox Richardson #January 6 2021 #insurrection #sedition

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opedguy · 3 years ago

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Chris Christie Stabs Trump in the Back

LOS ANGELES (OnlineColumnist.com), Dec. 12, 2021.--Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, 59, had his Michael Cohen moment, Trump’s former personal attorney, stabbing 75-uyear-old President Donald Trump in the back. Christie told ABC “This Week” with George Stephanopoulos that the Jan. 6 riots were orchestrated from the top of Trump’s dead end administration, probably with “C-level” players. But leave it to Christie who left as New Governor Jan. 16, 2016 in disgrace after the notorious Bridgegate Scandal Sept. 9, 2013 in which Christie ordered the closure of the double-deck George Washington Bridge to retaliate against Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich for not backing his reelection bid for governor. So, now Christie, who’s been all sour grapes since he was not given a position in the Trump administration, lashes out with Democrat political hack George Stephanopoulos. Christie hoped to throw his hat in the ring for president in 2024.

Republicans have a long memory, especially for turncoats who, for opportunistic reasons, betray fellow Republicans. Like Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wy.), who joined forces with Democrats to vote for Trump’s Jan. 6 impeachment, Christie demonstrated his cutthroat side, telling Stephanopoulos everything he wanted to hear. While the House Democrat Select Committee continues to investigate Trump’s role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, Christie was just the man for the interview. Like other RINO [Republican In Name Only] Republicans, Christie was just the right guy to denounce Trump. Just like 74-year-old Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Ut.), he’s always welcome in the liberal press when Mitt wants to chirp about Trump. “It seems like, every single day, Chris Christie, we’re learning more about what was going on inside the White House in those days leading up to Jan. 6,” Stephanopoulos told Christie.

Christie had no problems feeding Stephaopoulos everything he wanted to hear, hoping to eventually bring criminal charges against the former president. When the Senate impeachment trial failed to convict Trump Feb. 13, 2020, it wasn’t enough for Democrats, humiliated at losing their impeachment case against Trump. So, when Democrats took over the House and Senate after President Joe Biden’s big win Nov. 3, 2020 against Trump, it was a matter of time before 80-year-old House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tried to get another shot at Trump. What better testimony than to get a disgraced Republican governor to denounce Trump. “I mean, the president made it very clear that he did not want to concede the election, that he would not concede the election . . “ Christie said. Stephanopooulos, the Democrat political-hack-turned-journalist, likes to interview Republican that attack their own Party.

Christie insisted that of the million people that attended Trump final speech as president Jan. 6 at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., only a few hundred bad apples part of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, decided to ransack the Capitol. Yes, Trump thought Democrats stole the election from him. But that a big leap suggesting that the Jan. 6 Capitol violence was orchestrated by the White House. “And you got a bunch of people around him by the time we go to the end, with very few exceptions, that were C-level players, at best, on their best day,” Christie said, showing the lingering sour grapes have aced out of any job at the Trump White House. Trump couldn’t appoint Christie to any meaningful position because he was potentially under criminal indictment for the New Jersey Bridgegate Scandal. Christie was radioactive by the time Trump’s transition teamt tried to fill White Housel positions.

Christie knows nothing other than wildly speculating with former Bill Clinton’s press secretary. “There were plenty of people on the outside who were telling him this is over, and you need to concede. He didn’t want to hear that,” Christie told George. George was barely able to contain his glee listening to Trump’s debate trainer lash out at his former boss, just like Michael Cohen. Cohen, like Christie, and other RINOS like Romney and Liz Cheney, love to lash out at Trump, but all have zero credibility. Christie’s attempt to denounce Trump put the last nail in his political career, certainly running for president in 2024. “In the end, the facts are going to come out, but let’s not kid ourselves. This was a driven-from-the-top process executed by C-team players. And that’s why it looked like the Keystone Cops operation, because it was,” Christie said to Stephanopoulos’ delight.

Christie orchestrated his own demise in politics, trying to punish Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich in the Bridgegate Scandal. Liberal broadcast and print outlets like to quote Republicans attacking Trump, getting a big fish with Christie going out on a limb. But nothing that Christie says has any facts other than more wild speculation that Trump was directly involved in ordering the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers and others to lash out Jan. 6 at the Capitol. Democrats lost their impeachment trial Feb. 13, 2020 because they accused Trump of “incitement of insurrection,” saying the Jan. 6 rioters tried to overthrow the U.S. government. Only Democrat hacks like Stephanopoulos call the Jan. 6 riot an insurrection. No one in the liberal press wants to acknowledge the Jan. 6 Capitol riot was blowback for the months of riots, looting, arson and anarchy in Summer 2020, all supported by Democrat elected officials.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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orbemnews · 4 years ago

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Asian grandma spit at, punched in nose in unprovoked attack in Westchester WHITE PLAINS, New York (WABC) — A disturbing trend of violence against Asian Americans continued after a grandmother from Westchester was attacked while walking on a sidewalk Tuesday night. You might not be able to tell from the fire in her voice, but 83-year-old Nancy Toh came face-to-face with terror this week. Inside she is shaking, and she has the battle scars to prove it. In this Eyewitness News exclusive, speaking in Korean, Toh says her assailant came up to her — nose-to-nose, then cocked his head back and spit in her face. Toh closed her eyes, and that’s when he punched her right in her nose. She fell to the ground, hit the back of her head and was knocked unconscious. Eventually a good Samaritan saw her lying there and came to her aid. When she opened her eyes, she was covered in her own blood and drenched in her pain. “Bleeding lots from the brain. Looks like pumping out,” Toh said. New York City has seen a recent spike in hate crimes against Asian Americans, but Toh’s daughter says she didn’t think it was so close to home. RELATED | Asian American mother says she was spit at while holding baby, called ‘Chinese virus’ “I didn’t think it was so close to home,” Linda Toh said. “And now I’m afraid to go out and my kid is afraid to go out.” She says her mother waited a day to tell police. Culturally, Asians are taught to not speak up, keep their heads down and plow forward. Nancy Toh also didn’t want to go to the hospital because she can’t afford the medical bills. It happened Tuesday night around 7:30 p.m. outside of Nordstrom at the Westchester Mall in White Plains. She was out collecting bottles and cans for money. Just a day after the victim reported the incident to police, detectives on Thursday took into custody 40-year-old Glenmore Nembherd. He was charged with felony assault for intending to cause injury to a person 65 or older. The suspect is homeless and has a long violent history. “An incident like this — we throw all our resources at it,” White Plains Police Department Capt. James Spencer said. “This was a very disturbing and serious incident that occurred in a safe city. And it’s one that we won’t tolerate.” While there is no evidence at this point the attack was motivated by hate, detectives are vowing to leave no stone unturned. Still, the assault was unprovoked against an elderly vulnerable Asian American, and it’s part of a larger, disturbing trend nationwide. RELATED | Former NYPD Chief of Detectives Boyce questions DA after no hate crime charge in Chinatown stabbing On Thursday night, the president called for unity. “Viscous hate crimes against Asian Americans who’ve been attacked, harassed, and scapegoated — it’s wrong. It’s un-American and it must stop,” President Joe Biden said. As for Nancy Toh, she says she has lived through three wars and just wants peace. “She’s a Christian and I’m a Christian so we want to forgive this man,” Linda Toh said. But in the meantime, no more walks alone at night. ———-* More Northern Suburbs news* Send us a news tip* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts * Follow us on YouTube Submit a News Tip Copyright © 2021 WABC-TV. All Rights Reserved. !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments); if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)(window,document,'script', 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js'); fbq('init', '338057696856639'); fbq('track', 'PageView'); Source link Orbem News #Asian #asianamericanattack #asianhatecrime #asianwomanassaulted #asianwomanattacked #asianwomanpunchedinface #asianwomanspitat #attack #Grandma #nose #possiblehatecrime #punched #Spit #unprovoked #Westchester #westchesterwomanattacked #whiteplains #womanspitat

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bllsbailey · 6 months ago

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Former Biden Top Advisor Blames Campaign Demise on 'Unremitting Negative, Horrible Attacks'—by Democrats

Anita Dunn Pictured Below

was until very recently a top Biden advisor (and before that, acting White House Communications Director for Obama), but she has since moved on to working for a PAC that is supporting the Kamala Harris campaign now that the president has cried uncle on his foundering reelection bid.

However, she’s not real happy with how top Democrats treated the declining commander-in-chief following his ruinous debate performance in late June.

It wasn’t Trump who forced Biden to the sidelines, and it wasn‘t Dem voters—14 million of whom voted for Ole Joe in the primary only to see their ballots ignored—it was the Democrat hierarchy itself that tossed him into the ash heap. We already knew that, but Dunn confirms Pelosi, Schumer, Barack, Jeffries et al. were the leaders behind the coup, vicious sharks in the water.

While she’s right about that assessment, where she’s wrong is in her take about the debate; she contends Biden didn’t do all that badly despite the fact that he was almost comatose:

"What did change [after the debate], it was 24 days of unremitting negative, horrible attacks on Joe Biden," she said. When asked to clarify who those attacks came from, Dunn pulled no punches: "From his own party and from the press." She also said that after that debate there was a press atmosphere that was "just unremittingly negative" and was made worse by leaders of the party speaking out.

Who was one of the chief architects in stabbing Joe in the back? You guessed it, Marvel comic villain Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who for some reason seems to hold more power in this corrupt Democrat party than the actual POTUS himself:

"Clearly there were leaders of the party who decided to go ahead and go very public. And that gave permission to other people to go public," she said. Dunn was asked if an example of that was when former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., went on TV twice in the days after the debate. "Absolutely," she said.

The Wicked Witch From the West: Saturday Night COVID Fever: Inside Biden's Decision to Abandon His Reelection Effort

WATCH: Pelosi's Creepy, Slimy Response When Asked About Leading Plot to Shove Out Biden

Dunn wasn’t done (sorry, I had to do that), slamming the Democrat powers-that-be, specifically calling out others in the top leadership for their past failures (bolding mine):

Dunn later side-stepped a question about whether Biden is still angry at Pelosi, as well as former President Obama and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. — while also taking another swipe at some in leadership. "The task in front of us is to win this election and to not let Donald Trump become president again and to win the House of Representatives, which had certain leaders in 2022 done a slightly better job, maybe we would control today, but we don’t," she said. Tensions have been simmering internally within the Biden camp. NBC News reported that those tensions boiled over in light of the debate, with Biden family members discussing whether Dunn should be fired — reportedly angered by her suggestion first son Hunter Biden keep a low profile.

Here’s my question—how can Dunn now be an effective surrogate for the Harris/Walz campaign after she just blasted these apparently all-powerful Dem leaders? Kamala’s going to need their support, just as Biden did, and if one of her strategists is deeply at odds with the Pelosi/Schumer/Jeffries/Obama cabal, that seems highly problematic. Then again, everything about this nascent campaign seems problematic. I’d feel sorry for them if… if… No, I can’t think of a reason.

They all deserve each other.

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nancypelosi34 · 5 years ago

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Nancy Pelosi Stabs Joe Biden In Back, Says ‘He Has To Deal’ With Sex Assault Allegations

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paulbenedictblog · 5 years ago

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New Post has been published on %http://paulbenedictsgeneralstore.com%

Cnn news 'Start Here': Hanukkah stabbing latest in string of New York anti-Semitic attacks

Cnn news

Cnn news Right here's what you might per chance well maybe also need to know to start the day.

December 30, 2019, 10: 02 AM

5 min read

It be Monday, Dec. 30, 2019. Let's start right here.

1.Hanukkah stabbing

Five folks dangle been stabbed at a Hanukkah social gathering at a rabbi’s home out of doors of New York Metropolis on Saturday night.

Police converse a suspect barged into the house and historical a machete to assault victims at random.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo described the incident as "an act of domestic terrorism."

ABC Recordsdata chief investigative reporter Josh Margolin says that is the most recent in a string of anti-Semitic assaults in the New York Metropolis home in recent weeks.

2. Texas church taking pictures

Two folks dangle been killed after a gunman opened fireplace throughout the West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, Texas, on Sunday.

The gunman used to be shot and killed by armed congregation participants rapidly after the assault started. A person attending the carrier used to be moreover killed.

ABC Recordsdata' Jim Ryan explains to “Starting up Right here” that a these days passed sigh guidelines impressed parishioners to arm themselves interior homes of cherish.

3. Impeachment intention

Speaker of the Residence Nancy Pelosi has composed now not transmitted the articles of impeachment to the Senate, leaving the timing for a that you just might per chance per chance focus on of Senate trial up in the air.

In the meantime, ABC Recordsdata’ Rachel Scott tells "Starting up Right here" that Vice President Joe Biden has flipped his stance in recent days on testifying would possibly per chance composed he be subpoenaed.

4. Inserting motivate

The U.S. has applied strikes against an Iran-backed militia in Iraq and Syria, the Division of Protection said Sunday.

The strikes focused 5 sites of Kataeb Hezbollah, which the U.S. blames for a rocket assault that killed an American contractor on Friday.

ABC Recordsdata' Elizabeth McLaughlin tells "Starting up Right here" that this explicit community has precipitated problems in Iraq for years.

"Starting up Right here," ABC Recordsdata' flagship podcast, offers a straightforward intention at the day's top tales in 20 minutes. Listen with out cost each weekday on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn or the ABC Recordsdata app. Be aware @StartHereABC on Twitter, Fb and Instagram for outlandish affirm and gift updates.

In assorted locations:

'Wait on me': Workers at a McDonald's got right here to the rescue of a domestic abuse sufferer after she mouthed 'Wait on me' at the drive-via window.

Net vaccinated or don't come motivate: Seattle public colleges are requiring all of their students to procure measles, mumps and rubella vaccines sooner than they return from iciness ruin, or they would possibly per chance now not be allowed to return.

'By no approach prayed esteem that sooner than!': The Kansas males's basketball crew had no problems on the court Sunday, but getting home on their flight used to be a assorted memoir.

From our online page online visitors at FiveThirtyEight:

What Moments From The Trump Presidency Will Trot Down In Ancient past?: Obvious, comparatively about a stuff appears to dangle came about in Donald Trump's presidency -- but what is going to we consider most in about a a few years?

Doff your cap:

A bus driver in Milwaukee is historical to bringing in pedestrians from the chilly streets of the metropolis, but she obtained two furry passengers on a recent route.

Jamie Grabowski noticed the two canine on my own on the boulevard round hour of darkness as she used to be wrapping up her day and brought them onto her bus.

She later helped reunite them with their disquieted owner.

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actutrends · 5 years ago

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POLITICO Playbook: Washington returns to a world in crisis

AFTER A SOMNAMBULANT FEW WEEKS, WASHINGTON is snapping back into action, kicking off what could be the most volatile slice of time in the most volatile period in memory.

THE UNITED STATES faces international and domestic turmoil. Thousands of soldiers are beginning 2020 by boarding planes to take them to the battlefields of the early 2000s. And the political climate is as charged as at any point in our lifetimes, with the Senate set to decide on the impeachment of a president for the second time in roughly two decades.

CONGRESS WILL BEGIN THIS DECADE attempting to reassert itself as a player in American foreign policy. President DONALD TRUMP’S Defense secretary, MARK ESPER, is expected on Capitol Hill to brief a legislature split on the wisdom of killing Qassem Soleimani on Iraqi soil. The TRUMP TEAM will be under intense questioning about whether it is prepared for a conflict with Iran, what its strategy is and, predictably, why it left Congress in the lurch. This will come days after Secretary of State MIKE POMPEO said there might be some “noise” from Iran, when asked if Tehran would attack U.S. assets.

DESPITE TRUMP’S SUPPOSED DISDAIN for GEORGE W. BUSH’S foreign policy, he’ll face many of the same questions his predecessor did about the wisdom of engagement in the Middle East.

THE PRESSURE ON TRUMP FROM THE HILL is undeniable. Senate Minority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER and Sen. BOB MENENDEZ (D-N.J.) have sent a letter to TRUMP asking him to declassify the War Powers notification he sent to Congress. The letter … And in the House, Speaker NANCY PELOSI released a “Dear Colleague” letter Sunday night announcing that the House will introduce a War Powers Resolution to limit the president’s ability to take military action in Iran. The letter

DOMESTICALLY, Washington will be consumed with impeachment, which appears to be heading toward completion in the Senate. At the moment, all available evidence indicates that the president will be acquitted, and the process will be over sometime in the next month.

BUT EACH OF THE CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS has their own matrix of considerations as the year kicks off:

— For the immediate future, PELOSI will be the most closely watched of the four. Even though she’s widely expected to send the impeachment articles to the Senate this week — thereby starting the trial — no one has any idea what she’s going to do because she has not made her intentions clear. The speaker’s office said no decision has been made on when she will send the articles. One thing that is clear is that she doesn’t have a ton of leverage, because Senate Majority Leader MITCH MCCONNELL doesn’t tend to give into pressure almost ever. So, how she gets out of this situation will be interesting to see.

STILL, DEMOCRATS close to Pelosi believe the “delay” has been successful. They point to TRUMP’S erratic behavior on Twitter and the daylight between some of the president’s allies and MCCONNELL over the push to change Senate rules to begin the trial without the House’s articles. These Democrats also say they believe they’ve gotten traction spotlighting the issue of fairness in the trial, something Rep. ADAM SCHIFF (D-Calif.) pushed over the weekend and that Democrats will continue talking about this week.

— MCCONNELL has said it’s time the Senate begins its impeachment role, and has pointed out, again and again, that it is a political process, not a legal one — thereby setting the stage for a set of decisions the chamber is about to make. His next task is to try to strike a deal on the rules with SCHUMER — which seems somewhat unlikely, in our view — but if he doesn’t, he’ll push through, acquit TRUMP and move onto USMCA and confirming more judges.

— SCHUMER has spent much of the last few days decrying the coming impeachment process, and has perhaps the easiest decision matrix in front of him. Democrats are out of power, so he’ll have to oppose anything that doesn’t allow witnesses, and he can’t be seen as putting his imprimatur on a MCCONNELL-run process. Look for Senate Democrats to pressure MCCONNELL by trying to pick up four other Republicans who could help their cause.

BUT THINK ABOUT IT: When have four Republicans successfully bucked McConnell on something so high-profile?

— HOUSE MINORITY LEADER KEVIN MCCARTHY has truly nothing to do at the moment. The impeachment process is out of his hands. He has political issues to worry about, as more than two dozen House Republicans have decided to retire.

BUT MCCARTHY — and House Republicans broadly speaking — see some political upside right now. The GOP’s AMERICAN ACTION NETWORK polled Dec. 18 and 19 in New York Rep. Anthony Brindisi’s, South Carolina Rep. Joe Cunningham’s and New Mexico Rep. Xochitl Torres Small’s districts. Nearly 100% of those polled in these three TRUMP districts have heard about impeachment, and more than 56% in each district oppose it. In these three districts, the “yes” votes for impeachment have made Cunningham, Torres Small and Brindisi less popular. The poll memo

LAST NIGHT … TRUMP on striking Iranian cultural sites: “They’re allowed to kill our people. They’re allowed to torture and maim our people. They’re allowed to use roadside bombs and blow up our people. And we’re not allowed to touch their cultural site? It doesn’t work that way.”

… TRUMP also said this on Iraq asking the U.S. to leave the country: “If they do ask us to leave, if we don’t do it in a very friendly basis, we will charge them sanctions like they’ve never seen before ever. It’ll make Iranian sanctions look somewhat tame.” (via pooler, NYT’s Maggie Haberman, from the cabin of AF1)

MEANWHILE, IN TEHRAN … “Weeping, Iran supreme leader prays over general slain by U.S.,” by AP’s Nasser Karimi and Jon Gambrell: “Weeping amid wails from a crowd of hundreds of thousands of mourners, Iran’s supreme leader on Monday prayed over the remains of a top Iranian general killed in a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad, an attack that’s drastically raised tensions between Tehran and Washington.

“The targeted killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani already has seen his replacement vow to take revenge. Additionally, Tehran has abandoned the remaining limits of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers in response to the slaying while in Iraq, the parliament has called for the expulsion of all American troops from Iraqi soil.

“The developments could bring Iran closer to building an atomic bomb, set off a proxy or military attack launched by Tehran against America and enable the Islamic State group to stage a comeback in Iraq, making the Middle East a far more dangerous and unstable place.” AP

— ON THE HOMEFRONT: “Border stops for people of Iranian descent spark outrage,” by Lauren Gardner, Daniel Lippman and Andy Blatchford

JOE BIDEN in Iowa, via the Des Moines Register’s Tyler Jett in Grinnell: “Former Vice President Joe Biden said Iran is now ‘in the driver’s seat’ in the Middle East, pointing to an Iraqi Parliament vote to remove U.S. forces from the country.

“In his sharpest rebuke yet of Thursday’s killing of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, Biden said Sunday during a campaign stop in Grinnell that U.S. military leaders will lose sway in the region and Iran will speed up its efforts to build a nuclear weapon. He added that Iranian leaders will become more popular in their own country as its citizens rally behind them following the attack. ‘This is a crisis totally of Donald Trump’s making,’ Biden said.

“‘Iran now is going to be the person occupying and influencing Iraq, which is clearly not very much in our interest,’ Biden said Sunday. He added: ‘We have to face this alone, without our allies. The (Trump) administration didn’t consult or warn them, even though their interests are at stake, too — even though NATO countries have forces in the region as well. NATO countries now are telling both — our allies, NATO — are telling both the United States and Iran, treating us both as part of the problem. Not Iran. Not us. Both of us.’” DMR

FROM 30,000 FEET — NYT’S PETER BAKER: “For Trump, the Burden May Be Proving This Is Not the Moment His Critics Predicted”

JUICY … MAGGIE in Palm Beach with a MAR-A-LAGO MEMO on A13: “A Typical Trump Vacation, With a Momentous Result”: “The days were generally marked by casual-wear trips to his nearby golf club, where he would talk with members and meet with White House advisers. The evenings were marked by elaborate dinners at Mar-a-Lago that included his family members, his campaign advisers and his national security aides.

“But Mr. Trump’s vacation was more than the usual refuge from negative news coverage and official Washington. He was agitated by uncertainty about what comes next in the impeachment process, and expressed gnawing concerns about how much the billionaire Michael R. Bloomberg is spending on his campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in the election that Mr. Trump hopes to win.

“Throughout Christmas week, the president watched the news coverage on impeachment and tweeted his frustrations with Speaker Nancy Pelosi for slowing down the process by refusing to send to the Senate the articles charging him with high crimes and misdemeanors. He spoke with advisers about what the Senate trial might look like.

“And there were other grievances, as well. On Sunday, Dec. 29, hours after a stabbing at the home of a rabbi in Monsey, N.Y., Mr. Trump, from his golf club in West Palm Beach, called one of his oldest acquaintances and major Jewish supporters, the cosmetics billionaire Ronald S. Lauder, to yell that Mr. Lauder should be doing more to ‘support’ him, according to three people briefed on the call.” NYT

Good Monday morning. WE’RE BACK! The Audio Briefing and Playbook PM are returning this week after a bit of a holiday break.

POMPEO, BEHIND THE SCENES … WAPO: “Killing of Soleimani follows long push from Pompeo for aggressive action against Iran, but airstrike brings serious risks,” by John Hudson, Josh Dawsey, Shane Harris and Dan Lamothe: “Secretary of State Mike Pompeo woke on Tuesday to a 4 a.m. call alerting him to a large protest outside the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

“As demonstrators began hurling molotov cocktails at the heavily fortified compound, Pompeo grappled with the new security threat to his diplomats in phone calls starting at 4: 30 a.m. with Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper, Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Matthew Tueller, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, according to U.S. officials.

“The secretary also spoke to President Trump multiple times every day last week, culminating in Trump’s decision to approve the killing of Iran’s top military commander, Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, at the urging of Pompeo and Vice President Pence, the officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

“Pompeo had lost a similar high-stakes deliberation last summer when Trump declined to retaliate militarily against Iran after it downed a U.S. surveillance drone, an outcome that left Pompeo ‘morose,’ according to one U.S. official. But recent changes to Trump’s national security team and the whims of a president anxious about being viewed as hesitant in the face of Iranian aggression created an opening for Pompeo to press for the kind of action he had been advocating. …

“Pompeo first spoke with Trump about killing Soleimani months ago, said a senior U.S. official, but neither the president nor Pentagon officials were willing to countenance such an operation.”

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK … AMY KENNEDY is running for the Democratic nomination in Rep. JEFF VAN DREW’S southern New Jersey seat. Kennedy is the wife of Patrick Kennedy, who represented Rhode Island in the House for 16 years and retired in 2011. In her announcement video, she says “too many of our leaders have lost their moral compass. Trump and Van Drew are symptoms of a bigger sickness infecting our country and our politics.” Her logo has a compass between Amy and Kennedy. The minute-long video

— SLOTKIN POSTS BIG 4Q $$ … Michigan Democratic Rep. ELISSA SLOTKIN’S campaign is expected to announce it raised more than $1.27 million in the fourth quarter. She has raised more than $3.3 million and has more than $2.8 million on hand. (h/t Zach Montellaro)

2020 WATCH …

— GABBY ORR in Frankenmuth, Mich.: “Pence hits the campaign trail for Trump — and himself”

— “‘We’re in bizarro world’: Dems confront a primary with no end in sight,” by David Siders: “Democrats are now beginning to confront a very real scenario where the nomination — and the winnowing — will not be decided in states where campaigns have been plowing ground for more than a year, but in places and calendar dates so deep into primary season that until recently they’ve received almost no attention at all.

“The Iowa field is bunched together with little daylight between a handful of well-funded candidates. Each of the four early voting states continues to present the prospect of a different winner. And, at the end of that gauntlet on Super Tuesday, a free-spending billionaire — Michael Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor — is waiting to challenge whichever candidate or candidates emerge.

“It’s a unique set of circumstances that has the campaigns — and party officials — scrambling to make sense of the reconfigured landscape. Looking at the possibility of a still-contested nomination even after Super Tuesday’s massive delegate allocation on March 3, Washington state Democratic Party chair Tina Podlodowski said mid-March will ‘probably matter more than ever before.’” POLITICO

— CASE IN POINT: “Crowded Democratic presidential field sprints toward ‘jump ball’ in crucial Iowa caucuses,” by WaPo’s Michael Scherer: “After a year of campaigning, and with less than a month to go before the first and therefore most important single contest in the Democratic nomination fight, few if any are confident of the outcome. At least four candidates are seen as having a shot to win Iowa, or, alternatively, to suffer a crippling result that could hobble their campaigns going forward, especially if there is a late surge by a lower-tier contender.

“The result, according to interviews with top campaign strategists and local Democratic officials, is a hotly contested sprint to the Feb. 3 caucuses — a struggle that could either propel a clear winner into the next-voting states with momentum or open a months-long fight for the delegates needed to secure the party’s presidential nomination. Unlike past primaries, several of the top candidates are expected to have the financial resources and dedicated fan base to wage long campaigns even if they finish in the middle of the pack in Iowa.” WaPo

— “Biden secures backing from several swing-state Democrats,” by Sarah Ferris: “Joe Biden has landed endorsements from several House Democrats representing some of the toughest battleground districts in the country as he works to prove his electability in swing states.

“Biden’s presidential campaign announced on Sunday that it had won the backing from Reps. Conor Lamb and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania and Elaine Luria of Virginia — three battleground centrists with military backgrounds — as he seeks a breakout moment in the purple state of Iowa next month.” POLITICO

TRUMP’S MONDAY — The president will participate in a closed-press credentialing ceremony for newly appointed ambassadors to Washington in the Oval Office at 11: 45 a.m. He will have lunch with VP Mike Pence at 1 p.m. in the private dining room.

HEADS UP … ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION: “Vice President Pence will swear Kelly Loeffler into the Senate on Monday,” by Tia Mitchell: “Loeffler is replacing U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, whose last day was Dec. 31. Loeffler will serve in the Senate through the end of the year, at least. She is expected to run in a November special election to fulfill the remainder of Isakson’s term, which expires in 2022.”

HAPPENING TODAY … “Weinstein Heads to Trial 2 Years After Claims Against Him Fueled #MeToo,” by NYT’s Megan Twohey, Jodi Kantor and Jan Ransom: “While prosecutors intend to call several female witnesses to show a pattern of misconduct, the charges rest largely on two women. Mr. Weinstein is accused of forcing oral sex on a film production assistant and raping another woman, who is still anonymous, her story not publicly known. Most of the other allegations against Mr. Weinstein dated too far back to be prosecuted, fell outside New York’s jurisdiction or involved abusive behavior that was not criminal. Other accusers were unwilling to participate, convinced the personal toll would be too great.

“The prosecutors’ path to the courthouse has been difficult. They were forced to drop one accuser who had been central to the case. The lead detective was ousted over allegations of police misconduct. And Mr. Weinstein, who claims his sexual encounters were consensual, produced emails that he says show a long, intimate relationship that continued after the alleged rape.

“The defense team has its own tale of troubles. Mr. Weinstein, who could face life in prison if convicted on the most serious charge, has hired, alienated and discarded a series of high-powered lawyers. He has been accused of tampering with his electronic ankle bracelet, and tested the patience of the clearly annoyed judge who will preside over the proceedings. Just weeks ago, Mr. Weinstein deviated from his lawyers’ script with a tabloid interview in which he boasted of being a pioneering advocate for women in film and complained that his work had been forgotten.”

OIL WATCH … FT: “Oil tops $70 a barrel as Middle East tensions rattle markets,” by David Sheppard and Myles McCormick in London and Daniel Shane in Hong Kong: “Oil prices surpassed $70 a barrel on Monday for the first time in more than three months as the US warned of increased threats to energy facilities in the Middle East, after the assassination of an Iranian general last week.

“Brent crude, the international benchmark, was up 2.1 per cent at $70.07 in early European trading, having risen as high as $70.74 in Asian trade. Brent has climbed more than 5 percent since US air strikes killed Qassem Soleimani in Iraq on Friday.” FT

WSJ: “U.S. Regulators Mull Ordering Extra Simulator Training for Boeing 737 MAX Pilots,” by Andy Pasztor and Andrew Tangel

FUN READ — “The Iowa Town Where Marianne Williamson Is Already President,” by Adam Wren in Fairfield: “Inside the Raj, an idyllic French country-style spa and resort nestled among cornfields in southeastern Iowa, I asked for the gemstone light therapy, which promised to deluge me with inner peace, expand my consciousness and increase my energy.

“But they told me I wasn’t ready. So I had to settle for the tongue reading and pulse assessment. Several minutes into having a bald and shoeless Australian stranger peering at my papillae, I wondered what I had gotten myself into.” POLITICO Magazine

HOT ON THE RIGHT — “Golden Globe Awards host Ricky Gervais tears into Hollywood elite, Disney, Amazon, Apple,” by Fox News’ Tyler McCarthy

MEDIAWATCH — U.S. news organizations are scrambling to send correspondents to Tehran, per CNN’s Brian Stelter, who notes that so far CNN has Frederik Pleitgen, NBC sent Ali Arouzi, and ABC dispatched Martha Raddatz. That’s awfully quick visa approval for Iran.

— “Right-Wing Views for Generation Z, Five Minutes at a Time,” by NYT’s Nellie Bowles: “Last year PragerU videos racked up more than one billion views, the company said. The Prager empire now has a fleet of 6,500 high school and college student promoters, known as the PragerForce, who host on-campus meetings and gather at least once a year for conventions. And this year, the company is expanding its scope. PragerU executives are signing stars of the young new right to host made-for-the-internet shows to fuel 2020 content, including a book club and a show geared to Hispanics called Americanos.

“The goal of the people behind all of this — Dennis Prager, the conservative talk show host and impresario of this digital empire, and the venture’s billionaire funders — seems simple … More pride in American history (and less panic over racism), more religion (specifically in the ‘Judeo-Christian’ tradition), less illegal immigration, more young people laughing at people on the left rather than joining them.” NYT

Send tips to Eli Okun and Garrett Ross at [email protected].

SPOTTED: Bret Baier in first class on the American Airlines shuttle from DCA to LaGuardia on Sunday night.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — FOGGY BOTTOM ARRIVAL LOUNGE — Robert Zarate is now a member of the office of policy planning at the State Department. He most recently was senior foreign policy adviser for Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).

TRANSITIONS — Kate Glantz is now senior director of economic opportunity and empowerment at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Corporate Citizenship Center. She previously headed regional social impact efforts at Lyft. … Jenn Fogel-Bublick will be deputy executive director at the Democratic Attorneys General Association. She previously was a partner at Capitol Counsel.

… Kaylin Minton is now director of government and media affairs for A Starting Point, a new civic engagement platform that actor Chris Evans is launching. She previously was comms director for the House Foreign Affairs GOP. … Courtney Temple is now a public policy manager at Facebook. She previously was legislative director for Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.). …

… The Democratic National Convention has hired Ofirah Yheskel as director of media relations, Kelli Farr as director of communications and surrogate operations and Cate Hurley as communications assistant. Yheskel previously was deputy communications director for Beto O’Rourke’s campaign, Farr previously produced the Women Deliver 2019 Conference, and Hurley previously worked in Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s office.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD — John Santucci, a senior editorial producer at ABC, and Maria Santucci, director of strategic communications at U.S. News & World Report, welcomed Thomas Dean Santucci on Saturday.

— Paul Pimentel, director of corporate initiatives at Fannie Mae, and Emily Crane Pimentel, head of strategic communications at KPMG, recently welcomed Margaret Angela Pimentel. Pic … Another pic

BIRTHWEEK (was Sunday): Caroline Anderegg, comms director for the Hudson Institute (h/t Ninio Fetalvo)

BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Shaquille Brewster, NBC News political reporter. A trend he thinks deserves more attention: “The spread of misinformation, and the acceptance of it. We know there are malicious actors that use social media to quickly and widely spread verifiably incorrect information, but part of their success is based on an unwillingness by too many of us to take the step of even doing a quick search before resharing.” Playbook Q&A

BIRTHDAYS: Eric Trump is 36 … Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) is 6-0 … Olivia Nuzzi, Washington correspondent at New York magazine, is 27 … Joe Hagin (h/t Tom Hoare) … Kimball Stroud … Kate McKinnon is 36 … Tricia Russell … former FBI Director Louis Freeh is 7-0 … Hamilton Place Strategies partner Stuart Siciliano is 35 … Michael Corn, senior E.P. of “Good Morning America” … David Polyansky, president of Clout Public Affairs of Axiom Strategies (h/t Samantha Dravis) … Natalie Boyse, advance officer in the immediate office of the Defense secretary … WSJ’s Kate O’Keeffe and James Taranto … Âri de Fauconberg … Spencer Price … Oregon A.G. Ellen Rosenblum … George H. Ross …

… Julie Chen is 5-0 … Nancy Baker … Terri Fariello, SVP of government affairs and public policy for United Airlines (h/t Walt Cronkite) … Olivia Martinez, communications manager at the National Network of Abortion Funds … Kelsey Hayes … Chris Gordon is 25 … Michael O’Neil … Ashley Bittner … Tom Lloyd … Henry R. Kravis is 76 … Laura Belleville (h/t Jon Haber) … Alexandra Dakich … Jennifer Donelan … Kiel Brunner … Julia Blakeley … Jodi Jacobson … Mark Hyman is 62 … Scott Neumyer is 4-0 … Daniel Francis … Lola Elfman … Matt Ford … Dalit Toledano … Norman Prusslin … Ashley Baker Hayes … Kathleen Gayle … Abby Gunderson-Schwarz … Kate Randle … Mandy Bowers … Alex Berenson

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ramrodd · 5 years ago

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What it the triangulation of the Russian interference in the 2016 election, the "perfect phone call" and the chaos in Iowa?

Why do people condemn the Iraqi-American war?

COMMENTARY:

It was a stupid idea, before the fact.

It was justified by a blatant lie, WMD, that, even it if was true, was not a serious threat to anyone but the people actually handling the weapons, that is, the Iraqis.

The invasion was motivated by Richard “Dick” Cheney’s desire to deliver the oil patch to his Houston big oil patrons and to open the public treasury to the Military Industrial Complex for the profits.

The actual invasion by the military will be a classic example of brilliant performance and strategy.

On the other hand, the neo-cons who ran the occupation will be a study in incompetence and a lack of planning. Among other things, the civlian leadership actually believed their own blue-sky assessment of the invasion, that it would be seen by the Iraqi population as a WWII type liberation and would meet the tanks and guns with chocolate and roses. This led to both the military and civilian leadership to mistake the insurgency, which began immediately as an element of the Soviet doctrine it reflected, for “dead enders” instead of Iraqi devotion to duty.

Finally, disbanding the Iraq military, another stupid idea, led directly to ISIS.

All in all, we reduced a very cosmopolitan nation in the very cradle of mankind back to the stone age and have yet to fully restore its economy to anywhere close to its potential even while under the thumb of an oriental potentate, Saddam Hussein.

It was a diplomatic blunder of a cosmic nature and it was apparent before Bush-Cheney set it in motion that it would establish America as an outlaw nation who only played lip service to the global rule of law that we had established before that moment.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTARY

This is a response to Jason Szumski’s reply to the above (given the chao in Iowa, it is particularly pertinent):

How much motivation though?

Is there actually a thought process behind this question?

Bush ran for governor and president by sustaining his body count by execution to prove to the world that he wasn’t a chickenshit Vietnam era National Guard puke like John Bolton and Dan Quayle, but a rootin’, tootin’, straight-shooting bad ass dude from the Lone Star State! Don’t Mess With Texas, biggest swinging dick in the room.

Nothing makes you tougher than starting a fight you can’t finish and didn’t need to be fought against people who were more on our side before the fact than they ever will be again. I don’t care how nasty Hussein was, we stabbed Iraq in the back when they were fighting the fight we were trying to avoid.

That was Bushie’s motivation.

Bush didn’t become President until he fired Rumsfeld and refused to pardon Scooter LIbby. After that, he and Obama did a spectacular job of avoiding utter financial collapse and economic chaos. If Hillary had been elected, chances are SpaceX would have already established a permanent space port on the moon and the S&P would have 4000 in its rear-view mirror.

That’s the cost of keeping Donald John Trump in office. He’s the capstone to 39 years of an experiment in Austrian economics and the fact that we didn’t get a permanent NASA-Soyuz lab on the moon by 2001, just like the movie, is another cost of Reaganomics since 1981, including all administrations. Democrats and Republicans have been joined at the hip since the DLC was formed and the fact that Hillary was so in favor of changing the bankruptcy laws is just one symptom.

The Bush/Obama economic collaboration almost re-lanuched the Green New Deal/Affirmative Action that Reagan had inherited. The thing is, AOC and have intuited the potential benefits from what Bush-Obama got up and running in spite of Moscow Mitch and the Joe McCarthy Conservatives that took back over the levers of legislative design because Democrats vote affectionably and not strategically and they didn’t show up for Obama’s midterms, when he could have really put the pedal to the medal on what AOC calls the Green New Deal.

Just for the record, Bernie Sanders represents a socialist model that was in vogue during the Army McCarthy Hearings and even the Soviets threw in the towell on the axis of advance and became a Free Market economy, which is what Steve Bannon et al propose as the dominant economic paradign, globally. The difference between what Bernie Sanders believes in with his whole heart and career is to the Green New Deal that AOL and Biden can deliver as the Green New Deal as a progressive arc for the next 100 years based on colonizing Mars.

And Donald John Trump is in the middle of really fucking that up.

Which brings us to Richard “Dick” Cheney, America’s favorite war criminal. His motivations were exactly the same as Donald John Trump are, currently, the issue around which Nasty Nancy has laid a trap for Moscow Mitch and Mark Meadows and the House Freedom Caucus who voted to endorse the treason of Donald John Trump is currently committing in Iowa and the Republican Senators up for re-election in November who have decided that treason is a legitimate element of the lie, cheat, and steal “Art of the Deal” crime family business model.

Treason is not a crime. It is an act of war. Everybody agrees that some foreign entity fucked with the 2016 election. The Hillary Clinton Russian narrative blames Putin, but Putin had nothing to do with it, It was the Moscow businessmen who backed Donald John Trump with the Miss Universe Pagaent. They are the same businessmen who are an existential threat to both Putin and Zelensky, at this moment.

These Moscow businessmen coordinated the cyber-attack on American Democracy and the 2016 election with the intent of sabotaging American democracy and perverting the election in favor of Donald John Trump. In many ways, it was just a sporting bet between two interested parties on Trump winning. If he didn’t, he could continue to fuck up the body politic by litigation that he had been robbed. That’s why Comey announced Hillary’s email and not the Russian criminal element engaged in Trump’s campaign via proxies like Steve Bannon and Paul Manafort: Michael Cohen is the only one of this mob who didn’t commit treason. He was trying to engage in a legitimate commerical-diplomatic relationship with the Kremlin that could have gotten somewhere.

All these Joe McCarthy Conservatives whining about Donald John Trump as something brand new in their lives is a measure of the absurdity of their entire moral pretensions. George Conway III and the Lincoln Project. The only difference between the Reagan cult of personality and the Trump cult of personality is that, suddenly, the faithful of the Joe McCarthy Conservatives weren’t in control of their political destiny anymore: Kellyanne Conway was. And her motivations are pretty much the same as the motivations of Richard “Dick” Cheny, America’s favorite war criminal, for going into Iraq.

It’s one thing that Oliver Stone gets exactly right: “Follow the money”.

Until he fired Rumsfeld, Bush was Special Presidential Assistant to the President of the Senate, Richard “Dick” Cheney, America’s favorite war criminal. For Bushie, being POTUS was a Skull-and-Bones circle jerk of the Harvard Business School business model until he realized what a complete fool he had been by listening to anything Bill Kristol had to say about American foreign policy and the Project for the New American Century. He let Fascist Sophistry and the Joe McCarthy Conservatives betray his father’s generation’s sacrifice by becoming an outlaw nation by going into Iraq. He began to fix things when he brought Bob Gates into the loop and let Scooter Libby hang in place of Cheney.

Donald John Trump’s agenda with the “perfect phone call” is connected with the chaos in Iowa: they are of a piece. “Sabotage the electoral process” and “pervert and election” in a coordinated act of war with foreign agencies providing weapons grade intelligence services to the Trump campaign. The Republicans in the Senate are getting ready to vote that Donald John Trump was doing it for the national good, bless his heart.

So, that’s how much motivation. How do you see it?

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