Barr sucked up on Mueller Report to get his job

Nancy Pelosi

The above headline is frightening in itself with the implication that Donald Trump selects his staff and Cabinet members just to please his bidding. Naive me. To confirm this, Nancy Pelosi told Democrats in a recent private meeting...

"Attorney General William Barr's words cannot be taken at face value, according to multiple sources in the meeting, arguing Barr got the job in the first place by authoring a memo criticizing special counsel Robert Mueller's obstruction probe as 'fatally misconceived.'"

Trump is known for naming people to posts with the direct opposite views than the post represents, for example, Scott Wheeler, current EPA head, was formerly a lobbyist for the coal industry, the latter which has provided some of the dirtiest air this country has ever experienced. And Pelosi is calling for the full release of the Mueller Report like all Democrats and several Republicans. The Speaker is making her moves because...

"Democrats are facing a torrent of criticism from congressional Republicans and the White House after Barr released his summary of Mueller's report on Sunday."

It is my prediction that Progressives and Democrats will have the last laugh when the truth finally comes out, but Donald Trump will be...to be determined. 

What did Barr "forget" in release of Mueller summary?

The Atlantic says what Barr "forgot" to mention is critical, with writer Natasha Bertrand explaining as follows...

"experts tell me that Mueller’s decision not to charge Trump or his campaign team with a conspiracy is far from dispositive, and that the underlying evidence the special counsel amassed over two years could prove as useful as a conspiracy charge to understanding the full scope of Russia’s election interference in 2016."

Like I mentioned in an earlier post, the summary and complete Mueller Report is inconclusive. In other words, Robert Mueller didn't find anything he could take to court. This is far from exonerating Donald Trump, especially considering all the other federal investigations of the man in progress, plus the New York Atty.  Gen. is after him on several fronts.

David Kris, founder of Culper Partners, who served as the assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s National Security Division under former President Barack Obama said...

“there is no question that a counterintelligence investigation would have a wider aperture than a strict criminal inquiry as applied here, and would be concerned, for example, with the motivations and any sub-criminal misconduct of the principal actors.”

He adds, “The American people rightly should expect more from their public servants than merely avoiding criminal liability."

But...have the American people arrived at the point where they have come to accept what the Oval Office lunatic does? If so, this is so pathetic!

Your political bullshit of the day

TRICKLE DOWN BULLSHIT

Will the courts have to force the full release of the Mueller Report?...What has happened to So. Poverty Law Center credibility?...Russian arms maker Almaz-Antey modifies the Kalashnikov's AK-47 into a flying drone for more sophisticated mass killings...Seniors are looking more to marijuana or its hemp kin to improve their lives...Medicare for all could eliminate health care insurance as we know it, but do we care?...The 10 most unanswered questions about the Mueller report...

Is Trump really on the edge of his cliff, ready to fall/jump?

T-rump cornered

Robert Reich asks, "What does a megalomaniacal president of the United States do when he’s cornered?" That, in itself, is damning, but it speaks to the tragedy of dealing with the sitting Oval Office lunatic. Reich continues...

"Senate Republicans have begun to desert him: Twelve defected on the wall; seven refused to back Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen. Almost all have gone on record that they want Robert Mueller’s report made public."

Many are screaming, including some Republicans, Mueller "does not exonerate." Because T-rump has no capacity to contain guilt, there will be no abasement, thus, this idiot will merrily go on his way, continuing to destroy America. Here's what Trump said to Breitbart...

“I have the support of the police, the support of the military, the support of the Bikers for Trump — I have the tough people, but they don’t play it tough — until they go to a certain point, and then it would be very bad, very bad.”

A clear assertion of violence if he doesn't get his way. The Intercept asks..."Is Donald Trump inciting far-right terror in the U.S.?" Then they mention the killings by hate groups, including Charlottesville, VA. It goes on...

"contrary to Donald Trump’s warnings, terrorists weren’t coming from Mexico or Syria; they were here in America, and some of them attended his rallies."

Reich sums up "trump's mind" very concisely...

"congressional investigations that could cause him shame and humiliation, and quite possibly result in a prison sentence, will be countered by forces loyal to him: the police, the military, and vigilante groups like Bikers for Trump."

If not impeachment, what??? 

NRA teaches Aussies "How to sell a massacre"

NRA head Wayne LaPierre

According to an Al Jazeera investigation, the National Rifle Assn. has specific guidelines on how to steer the blame for mass gun massacres away from the real reason: too many guns on the street. This is how they coached  Australia's One Nation party... 

"First, 'Say nothing.' If media queries persist, go on the 'offence, offence, offence'. Smear gun-control groups. 'Shame them' with statements such as - 'How dare you stand on the graves of those children to put forward your political agenda?'

Aha, a blatant admittance that, in general, gun nuts are responsible for the gun violence we experience daily. Well, not so much daily "down under" but certainly here in the U.S. If the NRA didn't feel this tremendous guilt for killing children across the country, why would they assemble this "playbook" on mass shootings that was revealed during the course of a three-year undercover sting by Al Jazeera's Investigative Unit.

Undercover reporter, Rodger Muller, infiltrated the gun lobbies in the US and Australia. With a hidden camera he recorded "a series of meetings between representatives of the NRA and One Nation in Washington, DC in September last year." Proof, he says of how the NRA "deliberates over mass shootings and seeks to manipulate media coverage to push its pro-gun agenda." And then NRA head Wayne LaPierre stands before the American public spouting his bullshit...

"In our thoughts and prayers," and "Guns don't kill, people do."

Pathetic! 

Mueller Report inconclusive-See below...

Although the smart political pundits are still saying that the Mueller Report is the least of Donald Trump's worries, an analysis of that report yields the following...

"To be clear, only a summary of Mueller's report, and none of his inquiry's underlying evidence, was released. What's more, federal and state investigations into the president's business organization, his charitable foundation, his payment of hush money during the campaign and his inaugural committee are continuing and could lead to legal troubles down the road."

Republicans, of course, will make hay with the fact that Mueller could not conclusively come to the conclusion that T-rump colluded with the Russians during the 2016 election. Despite the fact that many of Robert Mueller's post report statements have left open the fact that the fat lady hasn't sung yet. The special counsel said he couldn't reach a conclusion on the question of obstruction of justice saying...

"While this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him."

Now this isn't exactly an indictment of Trump, it is certainly a sorry state of affairs when we're talking about the President of the United States.

NRA gun violence takes its 3rd suicide victim

JeremyRichman, Sandy Hook father

First it was two Parkland survivors, taking their life after struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder from the mass killing of 19 fellow students. And then yesterday, the father of a Sandy Hook victim where 20 children died from mass gun violence, Jeremy Richman, was found dead in his Connecticut office building.

Continued "thoughts and prayers" and "guns don't kill, people do" bullshit from Wayne LaPierre's National Rifle Assn. and a cowardly U.S. Congress continue to add to the misery. To say that these suicides are by-products of the mass killing spree that has been going on for some time would be true but tragic.

What is even more tragic is the fact that nothing is being done. Yes, despite the fact that 69 percent of Americans, including 85 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of Republicans, want strong or moderate restrictions placed on firearms, there is still that fear of the NRA, thus, nothing is done about gun violence. And here's the worst...

"Among those who want tougher gun laws now, only 14 percent said they were “very confident” their representatives understood their views on firearms, and just 8 percent felt “very confident” their elected representatives would do anything about it."

As long as gun nuts control this country, there is no hope of controlling gun violence.

Trump drives U.S. to recession

Manufacturing is down to its weakest position since June 2017, most likely due to T-rump playing games with China in the trade dispute. This is the second major program he has failed on; the first was his tax reform law that bombed. Here's one outlook...

"The New York Federal Reserve’s projections for Q1 2019, growth will average about 1.29 percent, which is well short of the 2018 growth figure of 2.9 percent."

 And Bloomberg prompts, "Bond Market Flashes Recession Warning Before Round of Auctions," while "investors are about to absorb $131 billion of Treasury note auctions at the lowest yields in months." Yet, Trump has expanded the deficit by $234 billion, which is the largest deficit ever. If we did have a recession, with this deficit "the government would be unable to raise funds for economic stimulus from debt markets due to its already overextended position."

Economists say this is all unsustainable, but if the administration did try to put the clamps on the deficit, we would most likely experience a recession now. Politically there is only one choice for the Oval Office lunatic, but the future won't look pretty. 

Welcome to rampant racism for the ages

U of GA Tau Kappa Epsilon racism

The U.S. doesn't have an exclusive on racism; it is worldwide, says the site Global Issues. It also suggests an interesting concept that racism is a "misunderstanding of Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution." It goes on...

"Some took Darwin’s theories to imply that since some races were more civilized, there must be a biological basis for the difference. At the same time they appealed to biological theories of moral and intellectual traits to justify racial oppression. There is a great deal of controversy about race and intelligence, in part because the concepts of both race and IQ are themselves controversial."

I do not believe the xenophobic red necks who hate anyone who is different than them are smart enough to figure out the above, thus, it is most likely attributed to their double-digit IQs. In other words, they can't rationalize the difference between a white and a black person so the black must be bad. And then there are those with a slightly higher IQ like the University of Georgia fraternity Tau Kappa Epsilon.

I am originally from the South and experienced the worst kind of racial hatred, including KKK lynchings. And then along came the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and many of us believed we had solved the problem. Not so, and my gut tells me that today it is worse than those earlier times and for much of this we can thank Donald Trump.

Bernie's weekend in California a YUGE success

Just received an email from the Bern with the interesting news that "in 2020 California voters will receive their ballots in the mail right around the time people in Iowa head out to caucus." It is important that Sanders' supporters continue to stand behind their man. He took his campaign to California this past weekend with a gungho crowds in San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Bernie has already accumulated 245,000 supporters in the state.

In San Diego, where President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave a speech to the people of that city 82 years ago., The Bern attracted 6,000 people; in Los Angeles, 15,000; and San Francisco brought out 16,000, with a total of 37,000. He also stopped by the Islamic Center of Southern California to talk about the recent New Zealand mosque shooting, more encouragement that Sanders is firmly behind gun control for 2020.

Mueller Report release ends further indictments, but...

New York Attorney General

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee has said after the release of the Mueller report, "There is still ‘significant evidence of  collusion.’" House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) ays he "doesn’t need the Mueller report to know whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia." The Hill says if Democrats feel "emboldened" to take it further, it could "look like overreach to many Americans." My gut tells me that only the radical conservatives will take the latter position, with Mueller's remarks leaving open the extent to which Donald Trump should be held accountable. 

But the Mueller Report is, perhaps, the least of Donald Trump's worries. The New York Attorney General is investigating T-rump on several fronts. His business deals, various projects, his finances, and in the latest has issued subpoenas to Deutsche Bank and Investors Bank for records relating to the financing of four major Trump Organization projects. The state of New York will not be impeded by a Republican Congress that has protected Trump during all of his administration, so far. There has to be an end to this, and it isn't likely to be favorable to Donald Trump.

Your political bullshit of the day

TRICKLE DOWN BULLSHIT

 
Facebook still getting away with murder re.its handling of privacy...Trump's own economists now agree that his tax cuts were a failure...Anti-vaxxers have caused so much of a health problem multiple states are considering restricting vaccine exemptions...Poor babies Olivia Jade and Isabella Giannulli could be banned from USC for life...And, GoFundMe has banned all anti-vaxxers who raise money to spread misinformation...

I'm in for Bernie's 2020 run

Bernie Sanders in 2020

Bernie Sanders has officially declared for the 2020 presidential campaign and both my wife and I are now satisfied that he does genuinely support gun control. This is his most recent position:

"Sanders supports a ban on assault weapons, a ban on high-capacity magazines, and expanding background checks. However, his record on gun control has been mixed, and he has admitted that he comes from a state with little gun control legislation, though many of the guns used there are for hunting."

OK...this is at least a start.

The above is from Elle magazine where you can also find out where he stands on Taxes, Income and wealth distribution, plus other issues. I was particularly encouraged by the recent Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez comments on confronting the NRA and banning assault weapons. If you really look into what Bernie Sanders stands for, his slate is the most diverse of policies that appeal to Progressives, and they are the issues that are most important today to get this country back where it belongs...a humanitarian nation.

Now it's time to start making our donations to the Bern.

Your political bullshit of the day

TRICKLE DOWN BULLSHIT

San Antonio airport refuses to let Chick-fil-A restaurant in due to their opposition to the LGBTQ community...Iowa's white supremacist Steve King "Belittles Hurricane Katrina Victims" for Needing Help...Boeing advised airlines their pilots needed minimum training for 737 Max, two of which have crashed killing all aboard...Lori Loughlin has been cited for agreeing to "deceive" the IRS over college bribes...Newsweek: "MORE CHILDREN WERE SHOT DEAD IN 2017 THAN ON-DUTY POLICE OFFICERS AND ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY, STUDY SAYS"...USC may revoke degrees gotten through bribery...

Republicans still afraid of Mueller Report

The culprit-AG Wm. Barr

Attorney General William Barr is sending the Mueller Report to Congress...just minus the conclusions. That's like sending an army into war without its guns. And this Congress needs all the help it can get based on its low mentality. Besides, we need to hear Mueller's conclusions in relation to his day-to-day connection to the investigation. Barr may yet release this material to the Hill, but the big question is when the American public will get their chance???

Phantom of John McCain haunts Donald Trump

This baboon sits in the White House

What is wrong with the Oval Office lunatic? John McCain's apparition seems to have Donald Trump mesmerized to the point that he can't put the late Senator out of his head. T-rump has quarreled with McCain's daughter, Meghan, and his wife, Cindy, of course, via Twitter, with comments that only lowlife Trump would make. Like making statements denouncing McCain's naval service in Vietnam. I was not a McCain fan but do respect his efforts in the military and the U.S. Senate. Fox News White House correspondent John Roberts apparently received a disturbing glare from Trump recently over questions on the criticism of McCain. The glare was captured by an ABC News correspondent. A man this troubled should not be in the White House.

Arizona breeds a lower mentality of conservatives

I live in Arizona and most of the time it is a pleasure to be here. But then there are those instances that you wonder how this state survives. Arizona is ultra conservative, the state legislature and Governor being heavily Republican. Progressives like myself are speaking out more these days and the future could be promising. But today was one of those days my wife and were wishing that we were back in California. Friday had been perfect in all respects until, while parked in a shopping center, a gnarly old codger walked up to my wife's side of the car and just stared in at us.

She rolled down the window and asked if he wanted something. His reply was, "Just wanted to see what Socialists look like." Figuring he had seen the Bernie sticker on our bumper, she replied, "That's Democratic Socialists," and what are you? "A patriot," he said, and I immediately pegged him as a Tea Party lowlife. Responding further to my wife, he said, "Oh, a communist." She countered, not even bothering to address his stupid communist comment, "Well, I respect your viewpoint." To which this double-digit bonehead replied, "I don't respect yours."

You know when you're talking to an imbecile so my wife rolled up the window and we drove away leaving a remnant of the disgraced Tea Party behind. 

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for gun control

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

I was a Bernie Sanders supporter in 2016, despite the fact he never did come out strong for gun control. He recently asked supporters to tell him what we were concerned about and I did...gun control. Now I do not expect to hear from Bernie personally, just want a firm indication that he will support the issue in the White House. This is what he said recently on Twitter...

"This is what real action to stop gun violence looks like. We must follow New Zealand's lead, take on the NRA and ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons in the United States."

This is a great start but there is much more to be done than banning assault weapons; like the gun show loophole and universal background checks to name a couple. The Bern feels that this issue should be settled in the states. I don't. My thought is that hundreds, maybe thousands would die before all states got around to passing gun control legislation, although some states have made this move.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is solidly behind federal gun control legislation and it would be nice if she was age 35 and able to run for president. It seems that most of the enthusiasm and good ideas are coming from the young ones.  Ocasio-Cortez is 29; maybe we should change the law for electing presidents.

Top Democratic donors skeptical of Joe Biden

Biden-Sanders-O'Rourke

Bernie Sanders raised $10 million in the first week of his campaign. Beto O'Rourke raised $6.1 million on his first day. Joe Biden hasn't released any figures yet. That fact may be moot since skeptical Democratic donors have told him they won't raise any funds for him at the start of the 2020 campaign. Considering how many Democratic candidates have already declared, I'd say that is very bad news. I would be all out for the Bern by now but at this point, he hasn't shown enough support for gun control for me. It appears all the candidates are afraid to forcefully get behind this issue. Until then, there is a huge void for the Dems in 2020.

KY Gov-Stupidist of the stupid

KY Gov Matt Bevin

Just when you thought you'd heard the worst, in comes KY Gov. Matt Bevin with a new approach for the anti-vaxxers. Don't wait, call your neighbor next door who has the chickenpox and set up an appointment to bring your nine kids over and expose them. Bevin did and, of course, they caught the chickenpox. Bevin is considered something of a wacko, but he has good company in Kentucky with U.S. Senators Mitch McConnell and Rank Paul, the latter who apparently agrees with Bevin. I have sympathy for Kentuckians but, after all, they elected these three nitwits. Unfortunately, this kind of thinking returns the health care system to the dark ages.

Anti-vaxxers are just...stupid!

This Newsweek article lists 4 reasons why anti-vaxxers are anti-vaxxers. They forgot number 5: They are idiots. That may be a harsh description of this new crazy cult, but accurate in the fact that they choose to put their children in harm's way when solid science tells them it could kill them and their children. Proof of this, some have already died because they were not vaccinated. They believe the lunatics on social media, even after many of these sites have taken down this garbage. All of this compounded by the collusion between this clan of do-badders that has caused outbreaks of measles, mumps and chickenpox around the U.S. and around the world. That, when we had brought all three of these diseases completely under control. Pathetic! 

Airlines can't afford Boeing 737 Max safety features?

737 Max cockpit-where it happened

The two crashes of the Boeing 737 Max planes are being blamed on two safety features that weren't installed on these planes because they cost extra but could have saved the lives of all those passengers that were killed. And neither was mandated by the FAA. Is this like when you buy a new car and the sales person asks, 'Would you like a moon roof, great, but it costs extra.' And you reply, 'Nah, don't need it.' This fully qualifies for the 'I don't believe it' category. I seriously cannot believe an airline would say no to something that would protect the lives of its passengers just because of costs. But, then, I have been known to be naive at times. Boeing says it is working to make the 737 Max safer. Nice, but no consolation for the families of those who died on Ethiopian and Lion Air flights.  

World wants Joe Biden-Does USA?

Joe Biden 2020

Here's the Politico headline: "World leaders tell Biden: We need you." Although they probably favor him from the Obama administration, I read into their enthusiasm that they are also fed up with Donald Trump and want a change. Apparently Biden’s 2020 intentions were the talk of the recent Munich Security Conference; world leaders were asking him, “Are you going to run?” Many of the conference conversations included the phrase "The world needs you." Wow! Does that mean their insight is, "perhaps," more objective than the U.S. GOP Congress in the assessment of T-rump's total incompetence. We'll see what it does for Joe Biden's polls. 

Radical but needed say Democrats

Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump in the 2016 election by almost 3-million votes. Now to me that signifies there were about 3-million more people who wanted Clinton for president than T-rump. But the Electoral College gave the Oval Office to the idiot. Majority didn't rule and the Trump forces
found a way to manipulate the College. 3-million is no paltry figure and the whole thing should resonate with the voting public. Elizabeth Warren and Beto O'Rourke are in favor of abolishing the Electoral College, other presidential candidates aren't so clear. The EC was dreamed up to give small states equal representation in elections. This concept is, perhaps, outdated today and there is certainly enough evidence to prove the Electoral College is not equitable.

Biggest anti-vaxxer idiot

KY Gov.Matt Bevin

Just when you think you've heard the worst, along comes Kentucky's Governor with a move that could put this country's healthcare system back to the dark ages. Matt Bevin, who is apparently another Republican wacko anyway, intentionally exposed his 9 children to chickenpox. He enlisted the neighbor next door who had it. The Louisville Courier-Journal called him insane. Well, after all, he does govern the same state another wacko hails from, U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell. And, apparently, Sen. Rand Paul, also of Kentucky, agrees. Can hardly wait for the next move by this gang of idiots.