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You are here: Home / Politics / An Unexamined Scandal / Putin’s Puppet and NFLG Harry Reid

Putin’s Puppet and NFLG Harry Reid

by Tom Levenson|  October 30, 20167:30 pm| 312 Comments

This post is in: An Unexamined Scandal, Election 2016, Vote Like Your Country Depends On It, All we want is life beyond the thunderdome, Both Sides Do It!, I Reject Your Reality and Substitute My Own, Sociopaths, Their Motto: Apocalypse Now

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Senator Harry Reid has just released a letter to FBI Director Comey that is utterly (and IMHO appropriately) brutal.

It contains two key elements.  The first is a direct assertion that Comey has engaged in partisan political action, and may (by implication, has) broken the law by violating the Hatch Act.

The second is this:

In my communications with you and other top officials in the national security community, it has become clear that you possess explosive information about close ties and coordination between Donald Trump, his top advisors, and the Russian government – a foreign interest openly hostile to the United States, which Trump praises at every opportunity. The public has a right to know this information. I wrote to you months ago calling for this information to be released to the public. There is no danger to American interests from releasing it. And yet, you continue to resist calls to inform the public of this critical information.

neuville_alphonse_de_-_the_spy_-_1880

Hillary Clinton’s aide’s husband sent dick picks from a computer that may or may not contain emails that may or may not add to our nation’s stock of risotto recipes.

Donald Trump, apparantly, has consequential entanglement with the former KGB thug-led Russian government and its klepto-thug circle of supporters.

We know hair-raising innuendo about the former.

About the latter, from the same institution?  Crickets.

Sauce for the goose damn well ought to be sauce for the gander.  And Comey’s a hack who needs to go at the earliest politick opportunity. (And yeah, that’s not a typo.  I like that old spelling.)

No BS here: if the FBI has pertinent information on Trump’s potential for conflict of interest due to his Russian encounters, we need to know this now.

Here is Reid’s letter in full:

Dear Director Comey:

Your actions in recent months have demonstrated a disturbing double standard for the treatment of sensitive information, with what appears to be a clear intent to aid one political party over another. I am writing to inform you that my office has determined that these actions may violate the Hatch Act, which bars FBI officials from using their official authority to influence an election. Through your partisan actions, you may have broken the law.

The double standard established by your actions is clear.

In my communications with you and other top officials in the national security community, it has become clear that you possess explosive information about close ties and coordination between Donald Trump, his top advisors, and the Russian government – a foreign interest openly hostile to the United States, which Trump praises at every opportunity. The public has a right to know this information. I wrote to you months ago calling for this information to be released to the public. There is no danger to American interests from releasing it. And yet, you continue to resist calls to inform the public of this critical information.

By contrast, as soon as you came into possession of the slightest innuendo related to Secretary Clinton, you rushed to publicize it in the most negative light possible.

Moreover, in tarring Secretary Clinton with thin innuendo, you overruled longstanding tradition and the explicit guidance of your own Department. You rushed to take this step eleven days before a presidential election, despite the fact that for all you know, the information you possess could be entirely duplicative of the information you already examined which exonerated Secretary Clinton.

As you know, a memo authored by Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates on March 10, 2016, makes clear that all Justice Department employees, including you, are subject to the Hatch Act. The memo defines the political activity prohibited under the Hatch Act as “activity directed towards the success or failure of a political party, candidate for partisan political office, or partisan political group.”

The clear double-standard established by your actions strongly suggests that your highly selective approach to publicizing information, along with your timing, was intended for the success or failure of a partisan candidate or political group.

Please keep in mind that I have been a supporter of yours in the past. When Republicans filibustered your nomination and delayed your confirmation longer than any previous nominee to your position, I led the fight to get you confirmed because I believed you to be a principled public servant.

With the deepest regret, I now see that I was wrong.

Sincerely,

Senator Harry Reid

Image: Alphonse de Neuville, The Spy, 1880.

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Previous Post: « James Comey’s (and our) Very Broken FBI – Updated at 7:30 PM
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Reader Interactions

312Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 7:32 pm

    Thanks, Harry.

  2. 2.

    redshirt

    October 30, 2016 at 7:33 pm

    Also, let’s not forget Trump is actually on trial for Trump U and for allegedly raping a 13 year old.

    But, emails.

  3. 3.

    redshirt

    October 30, 2016 at 7:38 pm

    So, real talk: Is there any amount of pushback that can negate the hit this Comey announcement did?

    I feel like our team is doing the best they can (for a change), but it won’t matter much. Damage done.

  4. 4.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 7:39 pm

    @redshirt:

    The Putin connection is huge and for some reason the media just can’t handle it. Harry knows this, and now is going to push it. It’s fucking huge.

  5. 5.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 7:39 pm

    @redshirt: Real talk. No one knows what the effect will be. So no point speculating, especially about the worst.

  6. 6.

    T S

    October 30, 2016 at 7:40 pm

    I totally agree that it is brutal and accurate. However…does it f-ing matter anymore? We talk a lot on here about how the GOP is so stupid and evil, how this time, no really, they’ve gone too far and shot themselves in the foot so bad the damage is irreparable; how they are giving us sweet schadenfreude because of their bungling stupidity; how the few brave liberals like Reid really give it to them and expose them for the fools and villains they are….but has any of that actually happened? Has any of the clutching ourselves giddily over these things ever been justified? No. Here we are, with a very good chance of a coming right wing trifecta with a bunch of potential (and existing) Supreme Court vacancies, and nothing seems likely to stop it now. No, I don’t think optimism about our own beneficial voter polarization is justified either.

    But…happy to be wrong. Delighted, in fact. I would relish all your “I told you so’s.”

  7. 7.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 7:40 pm

    @redshirt: Sam Wang says it won’t really affect the election outcome so I’m not terribly concerned, other than the irreparable damage to our democratic institutions.

  8. 8.

    Shalimar

    October 30, 2016 at 7:41 pm

    If Trump’s emails with Russian spies are somewhere in the FBI forest, will anyone ever know?

  9. 9.

    SenyorDave

    October 30, 2016 at 7:41 pm

    @redshirt: Maybe there should be an ad enumerating all the outstanding Trump lawsuits, it would be a good way to get the 13 year old’s rape allegation out there.

  10. 10.

    Jeffro

    October 30, 2016 at 7:41 pm

    @redshirt:

    Also, let’s not forget Trump is actually on trial for Trump U and for allegedly raping a 13 year old.

    I expect the news about the 13 year old will break later this week…if the Rs are going to go all in like this, then let’s get down to it. Sorry America but just remember, the GOP nominating a horrifyingly unfit-for-office scam artist, liar, and traitor to the country means it’s all gonna be on the table now.

  11. 11.

    Tilda Swinton's Bald Cap

    October 30, 2016 at 7:41 pm

    Do people really think Hillary will loose because of this? Don’t see it.

  12. 12.

    Mary G

    October 30, 2016 at 7:42 pm

    Love me some Harry. He isn’t pulling any punches on his way out. Hope his organization in Nevada can keep his seat in Democratic hands.

  13. 13.

    Cheryl Rofer

    October 30, 2016 at 7:42 pm

    The Reid letter may indicate that a dump of oppo research on Trump is coming. It’s hard to believe that the Clinton campaign doesn’t have just a little bit more squirreled away.

  14. 14.

    Tilda Swinton's Bald Cap

    October 30, 2016 at 7:44 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Rick Wilson says there’s a big one coming, we’ll see.

  15. 15.

    jenn

    October 30, 2016 at 7:44 pm

    @Tilda Swinton’s Bald Cap: It may not cause Hillary to lose, but it may kibosh our chances of taking the Senate.

  16. 16.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 7:44 pm

    @Tilda Swinton’s Bald Cap: could affect the senate balance. Probably won’t. Not going to change who’s president.

  17. 17.

    SenyorDave

    October 30, 2016 at 7:45 pm

    Sorry, Michelle, “When they aim low, we aim high” works except when you are dealing with a party of sociopaths who would gladly destroy the country if they can get power.

  18. 18.

    MazeDancer

    October 30, 2016 at 7:45 pm

    The agents have already read the emails without a warrant. Now that they have a warrant, they will release something.

    Comey would not have made a move without knowing he could release some kind of made of slimey something about Hillary. There will be something this week. A lie. But there will be something.

  19. 19.

    Cheryl Rofer

    October 30, 2016 at 7:46 pm

    @Tilda Swinton’s Bald Cap: Rick Wilson has been talking about two big stories yet to drop.

  20. 20.

    Snarki, child of Loki

    October 30, 2016 at 7:46 pm

    “Give ’em hell, Harry!”

  21. 21.

    DCrefugee

    October 30, 2016 at 7:47 pm

    @redshirt: Many observers are saying it’s too late to have any real impact: Voters’ minds are made up.

    One possible impact may be in GOTV operations. My hot take is the D side will be even more fired up to GOTV. The R side might be more energized, also, but a) doesn’t have the operation the D side has and, b) still will lose.

    The only real variable is downballot races and how motivated people will be to vote for or against whatever they’re pissed off about.

  22. 22.

    WarMunchkin

    October 30, 2016 at 7:47 pm

    @redshirt: That’s my thought as well. Reid’s letter is cathartic for me, and I wouldn’t mind a carnival fair VR app that lets me put Comey in a dunk tank. But as you said yesterday, everything is memes, and Comey made sure that the Hillary Is Guilty meme is in full force right before election day.

    We’re throwing everything we can, but to the average viewer it looks like Cathy accusing Nathan Jessup of ordering the code red without the guarantee he’ll spill it himself. Comey already has the Honorable Man meme.

  23. 23.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 7:48 pm

    @MazeDancer: why would Hillary have said Comey needs to show the public what he has if there’s anything damaging? The one group in all this that we know HAS read the emails is Hillary’s people.

  24. 24.

    SFAW

    October 30, 2016 at 7:48 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Rick Wilson has been talking about two big stories yet to drop.

    Getting kinda close to too-late-to-matter, so Monday or Tuesday would be nice.

    ETA: If the hoped-for oppo actually exists, of course.

  25. 25.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 7:48 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: drop on us? Or them?

  26. 26.

    Tilda Swinton's Bald Cap

    October 30, 2016 at 7:49 pm

    @Peale: Anit-Trump.

  27. 27.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 7:52 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Wilson is a Republican strategist. Why would you believe a thing he says?

  28. 28.

    CaseyL

    October 30, 2016 at 7:52 pm

    There are two problems with releasing information about the 13-year old girl Trump raped.

    One, first and foremost, is the victim. She hasn’t, to my knowledge, been named. If her identity were to get out, the monsters in the GOP and RWNJs will attack her without mercy, ruining anything in her life that hasn’t already been ruined.

    Two, you can’t comment on pending criminal trials without endangering the trial itself. I’d hate to see Trump get off on a technicality like “prejudicial pre-trial publicity.”

  29. 29.

    Tilda Swinton's Bald Cap

    October 30, 2016 at 7:52 pm

    @Lizzy L: Because he hates Trump and has been trolling him all election.

  30. 30.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 7:53 pm

    @CaseyL: It’s a civil trial, I thought.

  31. 31.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 30, 2016 at 7:53 pm

    I love that closing. With deepest regret.

  32. 32.

    hovercraft

    October 30, 2016 at 7:55 pm

    @redshirt:
    November 28th will be a fun day for Loser Trump, CEO of Trump TV on facebook.
    SAD!

  33. 33.

    Cheryl Rofer

    October 30, 2016 at 7:56 pm

    @SFAW: I suspect that timing is the big decision. Soon enough to make a difference, late enough not to be refuted. Or for Trump to get out of his snit, if it’s primarily baiting.

    @Peale: On them.

    @Lizzy L: He is strongly anti-Trump, so worth listening to. But you are right – he’s not pro-Clinton. OTOH, the Clinton camp would be smart not to say what they’ve got. Wilson doesn’t have that to worry about. I’m not putting any money on it, though.

  34. 34.

    SoupCatcher

    October 30, 2016 at 7:57 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Sam Wang says it won’t really affect the election outcome so I’m not terribly concerned, other than the irreparable damage to our democratic institutions.

    Won’t affect the presidential race. He does say that it could have an impact on the downticket races.

    Keey Your Eye on the Ball

    Keep your eye on the ball, which is downticket. In the Senate, key races in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Nevada, and North Carolina will determine control of that chamber. Small changes mean a lot: early voting, get-out-the-vote, bad weather…maybe even the Comey story.

  35. 35.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 7:58 pm

    @redshirt: Let’s nip this in the bud. Trump is not on trial for raping a 13-year old. He is being sued by someone who claims that he raped her when she was a 13-year old, and there is an initial hearing scheduled, but no trial. There are some real oddities about the case. Beyond that, the statute of limitations for the incident ran out more than a decade ago, and the plaintiff needs to produce some sort of rationale for why that should be waived. I’m skeptical that, “I was afraid of him,” is going to satisfy a judge, so I expect that that first hearing will also be the last.

  36. 36.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 7:58 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: “With deepest regret, I now see that I was wrong.”

    The whole letter is a thing of beauty, especially that line, but even the formatting is perfect. That got its own line, and so did this:

    “The double standard established by your actions is clear.”

  37. 37.

    Iowa Old Lady

    October 30, 2016 at 7:58 pm

    @jenn: The senate is my concern too.

    I love Harry Reid though.

  38. 38.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:00 pm

    @SoupCatcher: yeah. He also cheekily implies that the weather will have a bigger impact than Comey.

  39. 39.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 8:01 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    why would Hillary have said Comey needs to show the public what he has if there’s anything damaging?

    Because she knows that it’s difficult to impossible to do that in time for it to matter with regards to the election, and she thinks a strong reaction is the winning one. That doesn’t mean that there is anything damaging in there, but this is the sensible approach for Clinton to take whether there is or not.

  40. 40.

    BobbyK

    October 30, 2016 at 8:02 pm

    Big deal, Harry wrote a letter, what exactly will he DO? Chicken shit dems won’t do anything.

  41. 41.

    SenyorDave

    October 30, 2016 at 8:02 pm

    I think the biggest effect was to get the e-mail issue back on page one. Also, it dwarfs any of the stupid shit Trump does and says, like a few days ago kicking out a black supporter out of a rally and calling him a thug. Now for the next nine days he can focus entirely on the e-mails. I still think she’ll win, but without this I think it was pretty much over.

  42. 42.

    dmsilev

    October 30, 2016 at 8:04 pm

    To me, the more important story of the afternoon is this one:

    Early Turnout Tilts Toward Democrats in Swing States

    At least 21 million people have voted so far across the country. In the states that are most likely to decide the election — among them Florida, Colorado and Nevada — close to a quarter of the electorate has already cast ballots. While their votes will not be counted until Election Day, registered Democrats are outperforming Republicans in key demographics and urban areas there and in North Carolina, where extensive in-person voting began late last week and which has emerged as one of the most closely contested battlegrounds for the White House and control of the Senate.

  43. 43.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 8:04 pm

    @Baud:

    It’s a civil trial, I thought.

    Correct.

  44. 44.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 8:05 pm

    @efgoldman: Not Harry!

  45. 45.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:06 pm

    @Tom Levenson:

    Sauce for the goose damn well ought to be sauce for the gander.

    Nice to be able to use this adage accurately.

    @hovercraft:

    November 28th will be a fun day for Loser Trump

    Let’s not forget, a couple of weeks ago he told a rally that November 28th was Election Day. While in one sense merely a misspeak on Trump’s part (on the level of Obama’s “57 states” in 2008), here I’m inclined to go with the Freudian idea that there are no accidents — I choose to believe that November 28th is looming very large in Trump’s subconscious awareness.

  46. 46.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:07 pm

    @SenyorDave:

    I still think she’ll win, but without this I think it was pretty much over.

    It’s still over.

  47. 47.

    CaseyL

    October 30, 2016 at 8:08 pm

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym: Thanks for the clarification. My first point still holds, though.

  48. 48.

    JJ

    October 30, 2016 at 8:08 pm

    @Baud: No, not Harry. God I’m going to miss him.

  49. 49.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:09 pm

    @Tom Levenson:

    the earliest politick opportunity. (And yeah, that’s not a typo. I like that old spelling.)

    Old spelling is magick.

  50. 50.

    raven

    October 30, 2016 at 8:09 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Me too, they are opening state waters in the gulf for a special snapper fishing event!

  51. 51.

    Chris

    October 30, 2016 at 8:09 pm

    @WarMunchkin:

    Reid’s letter is cathartic for me

    That’s the word I was looking for.

    Like, damn. This is no holds barred, and not towards another elected politician but towards the FBI director. I am delighted to see Democrats punching back.

  52. 52.

    Lurking Canadian

    October 30, 2016 at 8:10 pm

    If there were any justice in the world, Reid’s letter would be stories 1, 2 and 3 on each news program for the next week. That should leave a mark.

  53. 53.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 8:11 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: What’s happening on November 28?

  54. 54.

    Chris

    October 30, 2016 at 8:11 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    I still think she’ll win, but without this I think it was pretty much over.
    …
    It’s still over.

    I don’t think this’ll affect the presidential race either, hopefully it won’t affect the Senate race, but it’s just one more piece in the drip-drip-drip of “Crooked Hillary” that all of Official Washington’s been playing at, none of which are that bad individually but which cumulatively have had a real impact in public opinion.

    Good on Harry for punching back.

  55. 55.

    raven

    October 30, 2016 at 8:11 pm

    @WaterGirl: Fishin!

  56. 56.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 8:11 pm

    @BobbyK: As Minority Leader, what, exactly, is it that you think he should do?

  57. 57.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:12 pm

    @Lurking Canadian:

    That’s what he’s trying to do.

  58. 58.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 8:13 pm

    @raven: That’s right up your alley!

  59. 59.

    ruemara

    October 30, 2016 at 8:13 pm

    How about an email break? I made a delicious pastry for tomorrow’s Halloween party. Phyllo dough stuffed with pumpkin cream cheese & red pepper jelly. Very tasty. Much easier to swallow than James Comey’s stories.

  60. 60.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 8:13 pm

    @Chris: Well, that’s what we have to fight back against.

  61. 61.

    ruemara

    October 30, 2016 at 8:14 pm

    @WaterGirl: Oooooh, I know! It’s his trial for raping a 13 year old. Allegedly.

  62. 62.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 30, 2016 at 8:15 pm

    @ruemara: Do you use pectin for your jelly? I make (hot) pepper jelly often, but it won’t jell without the pectin. I wish I had an alternative approach.

  63. 63.

    raven

    October 30, 2016 at 8:16 pm

    @ruemara: try to keep up

  64. 64.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:17 pm

    @Chris: I think they made a big strategic error in pushing the Wikileaks Podesta stuff as more “Hillary emails” instead of not talking about emails at all. They could have had a month with no background noise about “Hillary emails” at all and then come in with this bombshell at the end; instead all anybody hears is more “Hillary emails”, and since the last two months’ worth were risotto recipes then these must be more of the same.

  65. 65.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:17 pm

    @redshirt: @the Conster, la Citoyenne: @Baud: There were mentions of the investigations into Trump aides/affiliates with the Russian government on some of the MSNBC shows both yesterday and today before Reid’s letter. Joy Reid covered the letter in full with the allegations at 5 PM today. We’ll see if it grows legs.

  66. 66.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 8:18 pm

    @efgoldman: I actually think this one is different.

  67. 67.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 8:19 pm

    @Tilda Swinton’s Bald Cap: That’s one data point. I still see no reason to trust a word he says. YMMV, and I’d be happy to be proved wrong.

  68. 68.

    ruemara

    October 30, 2016 at 8:19 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: In this case, I used a commercial product, but added a teaspoon of cornstarch to thicken it to sit well inside the pastry. But it still ran all over in a delicious fashion. Why do you wish to avoid pectin? I normally just use as much fruit as possible for a quick jam and you can use fruit like apples. Here’s an article on it.

    @raven: Dude. What is your problem? Did anything I say deserve that?

  69. 69.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:19 pm

    @SenyorDave:

    Maybe there should be an ad enumerating all the outstanding Trump lawsuits

    Nice idea, but I’m not sure there’s enough money in the entire combined Clinton/DNC/Anti-Trump PACs to do an ad buy of that size.

  70. 70.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:19 pm

    @Shalimar: There is actually no evidence that Trump himself uses email. Or even a computer. Gizmodo has repeatedly reported on this. The issue at hand are financial connections between Trump and the Russian oligarchs tied to Putin, between Trump and Russian organized crime, and between current and former senior Trump aides with the Russian governments and oligarchs.

  71. 71.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:21 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    The media just has such a hard time dealing with this level of mendacity and complexity. There’s no narrative to fall back on. They can’t do their jobs, but, Harry Reid and the Dems need to push it as much as they can.

  72. 72.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 8:21 pm

    Plenty of self fulfilling defeatist prophecies around here. Despite her strength in polling. Jeez. It’s fucking politics. Deal with it head on instead of cowering.

  73. 73.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:23 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: @Tilda Swinton’s Bald Cap: Reid stated a few weeks ago that everyone should trust him – his seat would stay in Democratic hands. I think, by now, he’s earned the benefit of several doubts.

  74. 74.

    Cheryl Rofer

    October 30, 2016 at 8:23 pm

    Of course, it could just be that Reid has no information whatsoever about FBI investigations into Trump’s Russia ties, but he wants this to be in the headlines and push the emails down below the fold.

    ETA: Or it’s a teaser for more to come. I really would like to see more about Trump’s Russia connections. The media have pretty much ignored them. I collected everything I could find last July, and I haven’t seen much new since then.

  75. 75.

    raven

    October 30, 2016 at 8:23 pm

    @amk: Forget it Jake. . .

  76. 76.

    Davis X. Machina

    October 30, 2016 at 8:23 pm

    Trump voters don’t care if Putin has DJT on speed dial.

    Trump hates the same people they hate, and nothing else matters.

    Come to that, Trump and Putin both hate the same people they hate. If we had a transferable franchise Putin would get a bunch of second choices.

  77. 77.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:24 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: worked with Romney’s taxes.

  78. 78.

    Tilda Swinton's Bald Cap

    October 30, 2016 at 8:26 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: He out Comied Comey.

  79. 79.

    JPL

    October 30, 2016 at 8:27 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Well we can count on the media to ignore that, because it’s just words, and btw it would take a lot of words to explain it. With Hillary it’s all about the emails.

  80. 80.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 30, 2016 at 8:27 pm

    @ruemara: I make all my fruit jams without pectin; tomato jam as well. I just prefer it that way, but since the hot pepper jelly is mostly sugar, it needs something to jell.

  81. 81.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:27 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Old Olde spelling izs magick.

    Fixed it for you.

  82. 82.

    Brachiator

    October 30, 2016 at 8:28 pm

    Reid’s letter is fine, but I don’t see that it changes anything with respect to the FBI investigation. It does clarify issues, which may be helpful for Clinton supporters who have not yet voted.

    The claim that the agency is sitting on some Trump revelations seems to be overblown. But would be cool.

  83. 83.

    bobbo

    October 30, 2016 at 8:29 pm

    I had forgotten that Republicans stalled Comey’s nomination. And now he does their bidding. It’s like Julia Ioffe’s tweet from earlier: this is how bullying works.

  84. 84.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:30 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Have you considered using gelatin as the thickening agent as if you were making a cooked pudding?

  85. 85.

    Mike in NC

    October 30, 2016 at 8:32 pm

    Hard to believe (well, no) that the US media has had many months to look into the ties Boris and the other Russians embedded in the Trump campaign have with Putin and the Moscow Mafia, but chose not too.

  86. 86.

    Cheryl Rofer

    October 30, 2016 at 8:32 pm

    Patrick Ruffini, another anti-Trump Republican strategist, says that the best time for the oppo dump is Thursday. Sounds about right to me – a weekday full of headlines, upset over the weekend, Monday more confusion, Tuesday vote.

  87. 87.

    T S

    October 30, 2016 at 8:33 pm

    @amk: a 3 in 4 shot of winning is an advantageous position, to be sure–but it is not a sure thing. Shave more probability off, and it’s essentially a tossup, even if not exactly 50/50. There is reason to worry. This thing wasn’t in the bag before the FBI blew things up, and it sure as hell is worse now.

  88. 88.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 8:34 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Interesting.

  89. 89.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:35 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    What’s happening on November 28?

    That’s the date Messican Judge Curiel set for the Trump University fraud trial.

  90. 90.

    Helen

    October 30, 2016 at 8:36 pm

    @SFAW: Wilson has been saying this for months. I think he is just guessing/hoping and doesn’t have any real concrete information. I hope to be proven wrong.

  91. 91.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 30, 2016 at 8:37 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: I have not. Maybe next year, as pepper season has passed up here.

  92. 92.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 8:37 pm

    @T S:

    David Plouffe ‏@davidplouffe 7h7 hours ago

    Clinton path to 300+ rock solid. Structure of race not affected by Comey’s reckless irresponsibility. Vote and volunteer, don’t fret or wet

    I trust him more than the ‘experts’ around here.

  93. 93.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:38 pm

    CBS News:

    Harry Reid accuses Comey of sitting on proof of Trump-Russia ties, possible Hatch Act violation

  94. 94.

    Kathleen

    October 30, 2016 at 8:38 pm

    @SenyorDave: It’s simple. A “source” tells the media that Hillary’s emails revealed that Donald Trump is due to stand trial for raping a 13 year old. The downside is that the media would then accuse her of hacking Trump’s emails when the truth is the story is published but it may be worth a shot.

  95. 95.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:38 pm

    @T S: Sam Wang has her at 99%.

  96. 96.

    weaselone

    October 30, 2016 at 8:39 pm

    @Brachiator:
    How would we know? The FBI seems intent on only releasing details on potential things relating tangentially to the Clinton email investigation. They’re a black hole regarding all things Trump and Russia.

  97. 97.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:39 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Fixed it for you.

    Thankye.

  98. 98.

    Joel

    October 30, 2016 at 8:40 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: The Senate is still close to the tipping point, and that’s a big one. I recommend that people canvas and GOTV.

  99. 99.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:40 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne: As Tom has discussed here frequently, as well as tweeted his thumbs off about, the toolkit and professional orientation/behavior of journalism/journalists 2016 does them no credit and really provides nothing of value to the Nation. There are some bright spots. There are some folks that still insist on doing the long, hard work of actually conducting research to drive their reporting. But the damage that 24/7 cable news, how the Internet has developed and been used to both promote and deliver information, and now social media have done a lot of damage. I have no idea how you fix these things. I know that the friends I have that teach in Journalism Schools, or the combined Journalism, PR, and Marketing programs known as Mass Communication, are very, very concerned about what is going on and how it impacts what they’re actually trying to accomplish in the classroom. Especially given the seeming rewards out there – that many of the best known, most influential, and wealthiest don’t have degrees or even formal training in journalism, let alone college degrees at all. And yet they are at the top of their profession. So all the incentives are lined up to promote/produce bad journalistic outcomes.

  100. 100.

    Mary G

    October 30, 2016 at 8:40 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Yeah, they have cried wolf so many times about Hillary’s 33,000 missing emails. You know at least half of them were from friends forwarding cat gifs, anyway.

  101. 101.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 8:41 pm

    @ruemara: Ah. That would makes sense! thanks.

  102. 102.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 30, 2016 at 8:41 pm

    @ruemara: Good article, thanks.

  103. 103.

    hueyplong

    October 30, 2016 at 8:42 pm

    “… a 3 in 4 shot of winning is an advantageous position, to be sure–but it is not a sure thing. Shave more probability off, and it’s essentially a tossup, even if not exactly 50/50.”

    Sorry for being ungenerous, but this reads as stupid to me. Sort of like, shave 75 off, and she’s got no shot at all.

  104. 104.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 8:43 pm

    @efgoldman:

    It’s a civil suit. The criminal statute of limitations is passed.

    The statute of limitations for a civil suit has also long passed. As I said above, the plaintiff is counting on the judge accepting an argument that the statute of limitations should be waived because the plaintiff was scared that Trump would have her killed. I’m skeptical that he’s going to go along with that.

    @ruemara:

    It’s his trial for raping a 13 year old. Allegedly.

    No. Again, no. There is no trial scheduled. It’s a preliminary hearing, and I’m pretty sure it’s on Dec 16, not Nov 28.

  105. 105.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:43 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: The media’s inability to counter propaganda, lies and spin is the biggest threat to our democracy. We need to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine.

  106. 106.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 8:43 pm

    @hueyplong: Yep. If the numbers were different, the numbers would be different.

  107. 107.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:44 pm

    @Helen: No the GOP anti-Trumpers were all working on developing their own oppo for the primaries. He’s not the only one who keeps intimating 2 big, bad pieces that could (should?) drop against Trump. Liz Mair has tweeted that several times as well. The questions are who, other than them, actually has the oppo and will that person or those people actually put it into play.

  108. 108.

    Jeffro

    October 30, 2016 at 8:45 pm

    @amk: I’m reading his “Audacity to Win” (I needed something with a happy ending!) and Pflouffe is really on top of his game. Plus, he’s privy to all kinds of info about early voting rates and canvassing info that we don’t have. Still gonna GOTV like crazy, just to work off the stress and feel like I’m really helping put the boot in.

    Virginia staying blue in 2016? Yeah, I helped build that ;)

  109. 109.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 8:45 pm

    @efgoldman: I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m developing a bit of a man crush on you.

  110. 110.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:45 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Just a thought.

  111. 111.

    ruemara

    October 30, 2016 at 8:46 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: I’d go for the apple combo then. Heavy on the apples for natural pectin. they go very well with spice.

  112. 112.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:47 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Apart from anything else, that’s a great argument for giving Eichenwald (Newsweek) and Fahrenthold (WaPo) every award and plaudit that’s available to them. We (and the profession of journalism) need to do everything possible to do proper justice and give proper recognition to good work.

    And even though they work for different news organizations, everything they’ve done this year dovetails so nicely that I hope they might be able to collaborate on a post-election book. I’d read it in a heartbeat.

  113. 113.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:49 pm

    @amk: He’s very solid. As I (think I) wrote last night in a comment: those who weren’t going to vote for Clinton or other Democrats because of this has long since been baked into the cake. We may seem some polling movement, but I’m not sure its going to be anything more than noise. Now that’s separate from the larger issue of: everything we know about elections, how they work, polling, what it means, etc tells us it is, as Sam Wang has consistently indicated, almost impossible for Trump to win, but is this the election where something that is highly improbably actually happens? Raising that issue is not meant to be/is not a sign of being pessimistic, just recognizing that until the votes are tallied and the results certified it is still possible, no matter how improbable, for Trump to win.

  114. 114.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:50 pm

    POLLS 10/30
    ■CNB C+10
    ■AP C+14
    ■PEW C+6
    ■ABC C+3
    ■SU C+9
    ■DC C+12
    ■FOX C+5
    ■ST-L C+11
    ■QUI C+7
    ■BLO C+9
    ■CBS C+9
    ■IBD C+4
    ■WJ C+10
    ■REU C+6

  115. 115.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:50 pm

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym:

    I’m pretty sure it’s on Dec 16, not Nov 28.

    Right. November 28th is Trump University fraud trial.

  116. 116.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 8:51 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne:

    We need to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine.

    No, we don’t. In fact, the Fairness Doctrine would be almost irrelevant in the modern era. It only applied to over the air broadcasts, because the only way the government could overcome the rather obvious First Amendment issues were to assert that the broadcast spectrum was a public good that required government regulation. There is no legal justification for trying to enforce something like the Fairness Doctrine on cable news, the internet, or newspapers. It’s a non-issue.

  117. 117.

    Death Panel Truck

    October 30, 2016 at 8:51 pm

    @ruemara: That. Looks. Yummy.

  118. 118.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    October 30, 2016 at 8:51 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: I thought Rick Wilson tweeted something, in September to the effect:

    Clinton has more oppo than I do and I could drop a story every day from now until election day

    which certainly suggests he has an idea that there’s a there there.

  119. 119.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:51 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne: ugh we’re so doomed

  120. 120.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:54 pm

    FLORIDA President, 4-way:
    Clinton (D) 45%
    Trump (R) 44%
    Johnson (L) 5%
    Stein (G) 2%
    (NBC/WSJ/Marist Poll, LV, 10/25-26)

  121. 121.

    Davis X. Machina

    October 30, 2016 at 8:55 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne:

    We need to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine.

    It wouldn’t matter much.
    Cable news in particular wouldn’t be covered, because it makes no use of the public airwaves.

  122. 122.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:55 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne: and that’s not even a must-win.

  123. 123.

    Davis X. Machina

    October 30, 2016 at 8:56 pm

    @efgoldman: It’s Glass-Steagall all over again.

  124. 124.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:56 pm

    @efgoldman:

    so what? It would force the licensed, over the air radio and TV stations only to provide more access to information the cables wouldn’t, and introduce a new dynamic. The airwaves need a ratchet back towards fulfilling their civic duty.

  125. 125.

    ruemara

    October 30, 2016 at 8:56 pm

    Now I feel like making a jam. We shouldn’t discuss making when I’m in the mood to make.

  126. 126.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 8:57 pm

    @Davis X. Machina: ah, there’s the connection my brain was trying to make.

  127. 127.

    JMG

    October 30, 2016 at 8:59 pm

    Not allowed to be rude to Republicans. Safest bet on the board is that all three network morning shows lead with how Reid has hurt Clinton.

  128. 128.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 8:59 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne: The media exists, largely, to deliver eyeballs to advertising to generating revenue. Accurate reporting to convey factual information in a non-hyperbolic and non-partisan manner is not the point. So when it happens its great, should be called out and lauded, praised, etc. But the system is trained for something opposite of that.

  129. 129.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 30, 2016 at 8:59 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    If the numbers were different, the numbers would be different.

    “Things would be so dih-hih-fer-ent,
    If they were not as they are….”

    –Anna Russell, How to Write Your Own Gilbert & Sullivan

  130. 130.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 9:01 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: I would too. Also, it seems to me I recall Josh Marshall saying that he’s working on a book about Trump, Trumpism, and this election. I’d read that.

    @Adam L Silverman: So when did TV journalism mutate into a form of entertainment? (Rhetorical, do not answer.) AFAICT, the folks actually committing journalism out there are some folks online, like Marshall, and some with the print media, including their online manifestations, i.e. Farenthold, Eichenwald, Isikoff. Probably others whose names I can’t recall at the moment. TV, with a few exceptions like Maddow, seems to be almost all punditry, interview shows like Charlie Rose, and RW rating whores like O’Reilly. (This may be harsh, or even wrong, since I don’t watch TV anymore.)

  131. 131.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 9:01 pm

    @JMG: so what? Their viewership consists entirely of masochists on balloon juice.

  132. 132.

    WarMunchkin

    October 30, 2016 at 9:01 pm

    Vox says that Reid could be flat out lying about the Trump-Russia investigation in order to get the media to chase a new soccer ball. Based on him lying in 2012 about seeing proof that Romney paid no income taxes. Man, I hate this election.

  133. 133.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:02 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Without a doubt.

  134. 134.

    SFAW

    October 30, 2016 at 9:03 pm

    @efgoldman:

    Tangerine McRapey Shitferret

    Do you have one of those generators, like the Palin children name (or whatever it was called) back in 2008? It seems that you use a different combination each time. Maybe I’ve just got CRS, and you’ve actually used the same epithet each time.

    I’m not complaining — far from it. Rather, it’s appreciation.

  135. 135.

    Chris T.

    October 30, 2016 at 9:03 pm

    I think it would be particularly amusing if one of the emails went something like this (PLEASE NOTE THIS IS ALL MADE UP):

    To: HRC
    Cc: everyone
    Subject: upcoming hearings

    Hi guys, hi boss.

    Well, it’s time for another show and tell in front of a bunch of Republican jerkoffs who never do any actual work but think they can grandstand about Benghazi and email. I remember when Chaffetz pulled all the new funding for the Benghazi embassy security. If only we’d had that money they’d probably all still be alive. Wish we could say that to their faces.

    Oh well. At least we don’t have to worry about the assholes seeing our email, so we can say what we think of them. But I should emphasize again that our job is to do the best we can to work around all their obstructionism. We can’t make things perfect, we can’t even make them good a lot of the time, but we can make them better. I know my family are proud of what we’re achieving. Batten down the hatches, put up with the stupidity, and when it’s all over let’s get back to work serving the American public.

    Yours truly,
    H.A.

  136. 136.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:04 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): He knows what he’s doing. And while he clearly is a partisan and clearly doesn’t like Clinton, he’s been up front all along about Trump and has opposed him all the way through.

  137. 137.

    Brachiator

    October 30, 2016 at 9:04 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Especially given the seeming rewards out there – that many of the best known, most influential, and wealthiest don’t have degrees or even formal training in journalism, let alone college degrees at all.

    This is mostly wrong, and largely irrelevant, except perhaps for the part about formal training in journalism.

    If a corps of reporters are overpaid hacks, you can blame the publishers and media moguls who are pursuing their own narrow interests. And on top of all that are a generation who want entertainment news for free, but who are otherwise happy to be ignorant and uninformed.

    Added to this is the accelerated demise of journalism, seen in the death of newspapers and magazines. And now you are also beginning to see a steep falling off in web based journalism, with talented people trying to survive with podcasts and blog sites.

  138. 138.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 9:04 pm

    @WarMunchkin:

    Reid plays politics really well. We need way more like him. Dems get steamrolled because they don’t play hardball.

  139. 139.

    MazeDancer

    October 30, 2016 at 9:04 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Huma said she didn’t know what was on that laptop. Media been destroying Hillary over a total of 3 mismarked emails and never, ever, ever making it clear there were two systems. And that Hillary only read classified stuff on the classified system.

    Why would Comey start this insanity without an endgame? Hoping that the answer to that is, I’m way wrong, he’s simply incompetent, this isn’t a sly trap, and he isn’t going to go along with the anti-Clinton FBI faction’s last chance to put some kind of shade and slant out there this week.

  140. 140.

    JPL

    October 30, 2016 at 9:05 pm

    @WarMunchkin: Since Romney refused to release those tax returns, do we have evidence that Reid was lying?

  141. 141.

    Another Scott

    October 30, 2016 at 9:05 pm

    @ruemara: Looks yummy. Thanks for sharing – when should we come over?

    ;-)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  142. 142.

    maryQ

    October 30, 2016 at 9:05 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne: I love you. That is all.

  143. 143.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 9:07 pm

    @MazeDancer: Comey does not strike me as the sharpest knife in the drawer.

  144. 144.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 9:07 pm

    @WarMunchkin: Did you see proof that mittbot paid the taxes due?

  145. 145.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 9:08 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne: It probably wouldn’t even do that. There’s a real possibility that a reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine would be found unconstitutional, as the proliferation of cable and the internet mean that over the air broadcasters now face potentially unlimited competition, which is the reason that the Court struck down an attempt to apply the Fairness Doctrine to newspapers.

    As Davis X. Machina pointed out above, the Fairness Doctrine is just as much of an irrelevant red herring as a focus on Glass-Steagel.

  146. 146.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:09 pm

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne: @Major Major Major Major: Florida is strange. I’ve taught State and Local Politics at UF, so I know only too well. That said one of the Hispanic American pollsters in Florida, Fernand Amandi, has made it very clear that Florida is going to go for Clinton.
    https://twitter.com/thebrandonclay/status/792735746817798144

  147. 147.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:11 pm

    @ruemara: I’m ready to order if you’ve got a pen and your order pad…//

  148. 148.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 9:11 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Well, if he’s truly got something that might make a difference, I’d love for him to drop it. How about next Thursday?

  149. 149.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 9:12 pm

    @maryQ:

    Holding steady at around +7.

  150. 150.

    WarMunchkin

    October 30, 2016 at 9:18 pm

    @JPL: @amk: Romney’s tax returns for 2010 and 2011 were released. He paid 1.9 million and 3 million, respectively. Reid’s claim was that Romney hadn’t paid it for a full decade, and I don’t think the other years were released, so maybe Reid did see something else, but the claim was viewed as a lie at the time.

  151. 151.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 9:18 pm

    FYI: The headline on the lead article at Reuter’s website is: “Dollar on the back foot as FBI’s move on Clinton causes a stir.”

  152. 152.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 9:18 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Nothing is 100% certain till it happens. But one can be smart enough to know what is more likely to happen and make it happen instead of freaking about the unknowns.

  153. 153.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 9:19 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    I’m a huge fan of Propane Jane on twitter, and she convinced me long ago that the polls are lagging indicators of the changing voting electorate – the Obama coalition – which the media refuses to acknowledge in favor of focusing on the WWC and the disaffected “economically anxious” white males. Polling underrepresents PoC, LGBT, disabled, millennials, etc. The 2012 election is Exhibit A.

  154. 154.

    Nom de Plume

    October 30, 2016 at 9:20 pm

    @Lizzy L:

    “Dollar on the back foot as FBI’s move on Clinton causes a stir.”

    Wording is important. That sounds like at least some of the media is beginning to view Comey’s move as purely partisan.

  155. 155.

    Another Scott

    October 30, 2016 at 9:20 pm

    @Davis X. Machina:

    Cable news in particular wouldn’t be covered, because it makes no use of the public airwaves.

    “No use” is too strong.

    All the cable TV outfits use satellites which use FCC-licensed spectrum, etc., for nationwide and international distribution and are subject to FCC regulations.

    There are lots of rules for cable and internet broadcast including CVAA

    Yeah, putting the Fairness Doctrine back in place would be very difficult. But not because cable is different in the details of how the information gets from A-to-B.

    My $0.02.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  156. 156.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 9:22 pm

    @WarMunchkin:

    claim was viewed as a lie at the time

    viewed by whom? the msm? the purity ponies on the left? who gives a shite about either of them? mittbot’s run for presidency was full of lies, just like donnie dick’s. I don’t give a hoot if Reid stretched the truth a little bit in 2012.

  157. 157.

    Barbara

    October 30, 2016 at 9:23 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Reid’s letter will be big news in Nevada where there is a Senate seat on the line. That will be its most direct impact but it should also reignite those who were fretting so they realize what is at stake. Comey has really shot himself in the dick and my guess is that what this shows is how little control he is now exerting on the organization. He most likely gave some anti-Clinton people too much leeway and cannot rein them in. All guesses on my part.

  158. 158.

    Barbara

    October 30, 2016 at 9:24 pm

    @MazeDancer: That would be outrageous.

  159. 159.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 9:25 pm

    Also, I just don’t see how Comey can ignore the letter, especially the third paragraph. It’s been published. He has to either confirm that the information Reid alludes to exists but something something something, or he has to call Reid a liar.

    I believe this might be an example of the famous pig-fucking tactic. (See: LBJ.)

  160. 160.

    LAC

    October 30, 2016 at 9:25 pm

    @redshirt: are you going to do the wailing and knashing of teeth all week? Because the eeyore “blah blah damage done blah blah” can be spread out a bit. Not every day. ?

  161. 161.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 9:28 pm

    @Lizzy L: Yup. I see Reid’s letter as a trap to shitcan comey at the earliest opportunity.

  162. 162.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:29 pm

    @Brachiator: I’ll be sure to tell my friends that are professors of journalism that you think they don’t have any idea what is going on within their own profession.

  163. 163.

    Taylor

    October 30, 2016 at 9:29 pm

    @Lizzy L:

    I believe this might be an example of the famous pig-fucking tactic. (See: LBJ.)

    Can someone please elaborate?

    I don’t want to click on the links I get when I google “pig-fucking”.

  164. 164.

    raven

    October 30, 2016 at 9:30 pm

    @Taylor:

    Legend has it that LBJ, in one of his early congressional campaigns, told one of his aides to spread the story that Johnson’s opponent fucked pigs. The aide responded “Christ, Lyndon, we can’t call the guy a pigfucker. It isn’t true.” To which LBJ supposedly replied “Of course it ain’t true, but I want to make the son-of-a-bitch deny it.”

    Today’s Democrats could learn a lesson from this. The Repukes did.

  165. 165.

    hueyplong

    October 30, 2016 at 9:30 pm

    @Taylor: Short version: LBJ’s punchline about porcine relations was to make them deny it.

  166. 166.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 9:30 pm

    @Lizzy L: I was thinking it reminded me of Rules for Radicals, where you are supposed to leave your enemy with two options, both of which suck.

    But maybe that was the art of war? Too lazy to look it up. I did look up Rules for Radicals, and a quick skim makes me think #12 isn’t a totally bad fit:

    RULE 12: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.” Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions. (This is cruel, but very effective. Direct, personalized criticism and ridicule works.)

  167. 167.

    Taylor

    October 30, 2016 at 9:31 pm

    @raven: Thanks :-)

  168. 168.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:31 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Comey strikes me as someone who decided to believe the press about him being a public servant of great integrity and professionalism and let it go to his head. This made him easy to manipulate by impugning his integrity and professionalism.

  169. 169.

    SFAW

    October 30, 2016 at 9:32 pm

    @Taylor:

    Something along the lines of: LBJ accused an opponent of being a pig-fucker. When someone pointed out it wasn’t true, LBJ said something like “I know, I just want to make him deny it.”

    The above is within a tolerance band of something, vis-a-vis accuracy.

    ETA: Or, what everybody else beat me to the punch with.

  170. 170.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:33 pm

    @amk: Yet we always give creative names to the unseen things in the dark that most likely do not exist. We seem to be wired for it. Most likely kept us alive when we lived in caves.

  171. 171.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 9:34 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: From Comey’s lame explanation in his memo of explanation to the FBI, I think his biggest problem is that his most important thing was how it would make HIM look. It wasn’t about what was legal or moral and had nothing to do with personal integrity or the integrity of the FBI or the rule of law.

    His reason was “But mommy, the kids were going to say bad things about me if I didn’t do this”.

  172. 172.

    Betty Cracker

    October 30, 2016 at 9:34 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: I think Clinton will win FL.

  173. 173.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:36 pm

    @WaterGirl: The Art of War teaches that one should always leave the enemy a way out (encircle them on only three sides) so they will not fight as if there is no chance for survival. If they fail to take advantage of that generosity, that is their failure not yours.

  174. 174.

    WarMunchkin

    October 30, 2016 at 9:37 pm

    @amk: Harry Reid himself acknowledges it as such. There’s a bit of ends-justify-the-means thing here (Romney lost, didn’t he?), but the relevancy of this story to the letter is that Reid could be doing the same thing again, and the journalists who remember the 2012 claim won’t chase the ball until they confirm. Since we’re also talking about journalistic malpractice here, they’d be fools to take Reid’s claim without skepticism. Though they’ve been doing that with Trump all year /shrug.

  175. 175.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 9:38 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Hogwash. It’s moving out of the caves that kept us alive and be creative.

  176. 176.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:38 pm

    @Betty Cracker: I do to. I also think that there is a real chance that Murphy will unseat Rubio and that it will be a close thing for several Republican incumbents in heavily Hispanic/Latino districts throughout the state.

  177. 177.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 9:38 pm

    Mark Elliott ‏@markmobility 7h7 hours ago

    Texans flocking to the polls; voting thru day 6 up 40% in 5 largest counties–4 of which went for Obama. #VoteTexas

  178. 178.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 9:39 pm

    @amk: I’m not disagreeing with you about probable versus possible and not panicking, was just being my usual smartass self while doing so.

  179. 179.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 9:40 pm

    @Another Scott: The CVAA isn’t relevant to the question of whether the Fairness Doctrine could be applied to cable networks. It’s justification doesn’t come from the same place as the Fairness Doctrine; it’s based in anti-discrimination law rather than treating the broadcasting as a public good. More critically, the CVAA does not regulate the content of anything, and so it doesn’t have the First Amendment problems that the Fairness Doctrine does, so no one needs to argue that there is a monopoly on cable or internet broadcasting.

    It’s that monopoly issue that provided cover for the Court ruling that the Fairness Doctrine was constitutional. It made plausible a claim that the number of viewpoints was inherently limited by medium, and thus the Doctrine was necessary for free speech. That claim is not plausible in the world of cable and internet communications. (The number of viewpoints may be limited on cable, but that is not an inherent consequence of how it is broadcast.) In this case, the fact that they broadcast to and from satellites isn’t relevant, because it doesn’t limit the number of broadcasters to a number so small that viewpoints are necessarily limited.

    There are monopoly issues with regards to cable broadcasting, but the Court would tell a plaintiff that they are not inherent, and so they should be dealt with under antitrust rules, and not by breaching the First Amendment.

  180. 180.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 9:44 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Intersting. I guess it wasn’t the art of war, then. Maybe it was something Al Giordano wrote in the run-up to the election in 2008, then.

  181. 181.

    JMG

    October 30, 2016 at 9:47 pm

    When Democrats fight back,they’re rude shrill and disturbing the natural order of Washington. Harry Reid has never cared about that, one reason he’s done so well for so long. But for sure he’ll be denounced or greeted with head shakes tomorrow on network shows that won’t have him on.

  182. 182.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 9:50 pm

    @WarMunchkin: Meh. He just said he doesn’t regret it. Since most of his ‘lie’ was true anyway. mittbot didn’t have the guts to be fully transparent about his tax returns and Reid used that fact to nail him. That’s politics well played.

  183. 183.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    October 30, 2016 at 9:51 pm

    Scott Lemeiux hopes that Democratic Presidents stop hiring Republicans in the name of faux-bipartisanship: one wonders if Obama was motivated to hire Comey by the same thinking exhibited in his flawed, though historic, speech to the 2004 Democratic National Convention–
    i.e., the idea that most Republicans don’t really put party before country, that only some members of the GOP are bad, that we’re all just alike whether we have a (D) or an (R) next to their names.

    Saying almost verbatim something I was saying in the previous thread here. This demonstrates that even the ones who don’t seem corrupt are susceptible to bullying from the others.

    Also, this is important:

    Some journalists are trying to claim Comey had no good choice here – that Democrats are mad he told Republicans about emails he hasn’t read yet, but that Republicans would’ve been mad if he’d stayed quiet. This is totally false. Comey had policy to guide him: Don’t discuss cases in public. Comey chose to break that policy 11 days before an election with information he knew his fellow Republicans would use for partisan political purposes against the Democratic presidential candidate. “Republicans would’ve been mad [if] Comey didn’t break policy to fuel partisan attacks” is not a reason to break policy.

  184. 184.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 9:51 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: From your lips to God’s ear.

    NYT put up a story recently about Trump in Colorado, telling his supporters that the vote-by-mail system is not safe, that their ballots might be discarded, and that they should not mail their ballots, but rather, they should request a new ballot at the local polling location and either vote at the polling place or fill out the new ballot and mail that one. “It was unclear whether Trump was encouraging his supporters to get a new ballot even if they had already voted, which would constitute voter fraud. Trump campaign officials in Colorado did not immediately respond to a request for comment.”

    I don’t see how this helps him. It confuses his voters and makes them less likely to vote. The only thing I can come up with is, when he loses in Colorado — and it appears he is going to lose — it allows him to claim that the election was rigged and that he warned his people about it beforehand.

  185. 185.

    SFAW

    October 30, 2016 at 9:52 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    The Art of War teaches

    Oh, come on. It’s not as if Musashi Gambolputty Clausewitz knew what he was talking about.

  186. 186.

    raven

    October 30, 2016 at 9:54 pm

    @JMG: He’s a boxer, most of these dopes are lawyers.

  187. 187.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 9:57 pm

    @JMG: Now the emmessem is talking about if comey, the coward, broke the law. Mission accomplished.

  188. 188.

    Trentrunner

    October 30, 2016 at 9:57 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: This. “Republicans will throw a fit” is NEVER a reason to do anything anymore.

    These assholes think Obama is not American and Hillary has killed people with her bare hands. THROWING FITS IS WHAT THEY DO.

  189. 189.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    October 30, 2016 at 9:57 pm

    ABC News Verified account
    ‏@ABC

    In letter to James Comey, Harry Reid accuses FBI director of breaking federal law. http://abcn.ws/2furyxT

  190. 190.

    patroclus

    October 30, 2016 at 9:57 pm

    The point, of course, would not be to re-instate the Fairness Doctrine as it existed three decades ago, but to devise new methods that would better apply in the 21st century. Mandated party broadcasts – like in the U.K. A dedicated fact-checking unit, peopled by staff that do not appear in pundit or other roles. Public financing of candidates. And it could be enacted by statute – thus avoiding the FCC regulatory route. Certainly, someone can come up with something that is 21st century oriented that could improve modern journalism.

    On the election, while I still think Clinton is likely to win, I am no longer as confident about the House, the Senate or Texas. It’s too bad – we had a decent shot at a landslide.

  191. 191.

    Iowa Old Lady

    October 30, 2016 at 9:58 pm

    @Lizzy L: It was be amusing in a sick way if he said the FBI doesn’t comment on ongoing investigations.

  192. 192.

    Another Scott

    October 30, 2016 at 9:59 pm

    @Lizzy L: Donnie doesn’t believe in elections. “We should just cancel the election and give it to Trump” – he said.

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (“But e-mails!!1”)

  193. 193.

    WarMunchkin

    October 30, 2016 at 9:59 pm

    @amk: No, there was no part of what he said that was true – there was no evidence, and there was no mystery caller from Bain Capital. He did lie about it. You’re right, however, that it was politically great for us and helped us nail Romney on taxes. At any rate, the point was the relevancy to the letter and news impact.

  194. 194.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:03 pm

    @WaterGirl: Nor was it part of the larger Chinese Bin Fa (art of war) literature. Nor was it part of the Japanese Art of War literature either.

  195. 195.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 10:03 pm

    @WaterGirl: It is perhaps a variation on a Hobson’s Choice?

  196. 196.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    October 30, 2016 at 10:03 pm

    @patroclus: Dedicated fact checking unit run by who? The govenrment? How is that going to help?

    Mandated party broadcasts run into the same First Amendment issues that the Fairness Doctrine does.

  197. 197.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 10:03 pm

    @WarMunchkin: mittbot ‘disproved’ him only in two of Reid’s ten years claim. case closed.

  198. 198.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:04 pm

    @JMG: It is also hard to be accused of being shrill when whisper is your default volume setting.

  199. 199.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 10:08 pm

    I am giving the she-devil FL, CO and NV. Game ovah. Ohio can go fuck itself.

  200. 200.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:09 pm

    @SFAW: That would be Sun Tzu. Musashi is Go Rin No Sho/A Book of Five Rings. Personally I prefer his contemporary, Yagyu’s, strategy manual. As for Clausewitz – Long Dead Carl theoretical section is great. The rest is dated. For historical information its interesting, but I don’t think anyone is going to use 200 year old concepts on artillery emplacement today.

  201. 201.

    Eric U.

    October 30, 2016 at 10:10 pm

    @amk: too bad Reid didn’t say rMoney didn’t pay taxes for most of the ten year period, then he would have had to release more years. My guess is that those were the only 2 years he paid taxes

  202. 202.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:10 pm

    @Trentrunner: What gets me is that they 1) believe Hillary has had significant numbers of people killed to settle scores and 2) are still willing to irritate her. If the former is true, the latter should be avoided.

  203. 203.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 10:11 pm

    @raven: He is also a lawyer.

  204. 204.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 10:12 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: I was specifically told that Plato would not be on the test.

  205. 205.

    divF

    October 30, 2016 at 10:14 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Another relevant part of his history is a stint as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission.

  206. 206.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:15 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I was thinking more along the lines of things like Yetis, Susquach, Harpies, Kobolds, Goblins, Werewolves and other were beasts, Leviathan, (release) the Kraken, etc. But Plato works too.

  207. 207.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 10:16 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Plato is always on the test.

  208. 208.

    Pest Bog Mummy, Frakensteinbeck

    October 30, 2016 at 10:17 pm

    @Trentrunner:
    And this is why I dismiss most ‘Clinton should have known better than to give her opponents ammunition’ arguments. They don’t need ammunition. The media does not need facts. The shit-fits will continue until everyone involved is dead, hopefully peacefully of old age in a country prosperous under competent Democratic administration.

  209. 209.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 10:18 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: You’re all a bunch of bastards.

  210. 210.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 10:19 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: By any chance, are you acquainted (for some values of the word) with a certain Miles Vorkosigan?

  211. 211.

    Major Major Major Major

    October 30, 2016 at 10:20 pm

    @efgoldman: Oh, did you notice he does that?

  212. 212.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    October 30, 2016 at 10:20 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    @raven:

    He’s a boxer, most of these dopes are lawyers

    He is also a lawyer.

    An imposing combination, and one likely to outmaneuver most dopes who are only lawyers.

  213. 213.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:23 pm

    @Lizzy L: No I am not.

  214. 214.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:24 pm

    @efgoldman: @Major Major Major Major: I take my Bin Fa literature very seriously. Thank you very much! ?

  215. 215.

    SFAW

    October 30, 2016 at 10:25 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Adam –
    I would have thought the “Gambolputty” reference would have given things away.

    Yes, I know it’s Sun Tzu. Read it a long time ago, although not in the original. Read Musashi almost as long ago. Haven’t read Clausewitz, although I should have by now, he’s sort of a Landsmann of one side of the family.

    Simple minds, simple … something or other

  216. 216.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 10:27 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Ah. Thanks. Never mind, then.

  217. 217.

    SFAW

    October 30, 2016 at 10:28 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Plato is always on the test.

    What??!? They told me “Play-Doh”!

    Or maybe my hearing aid was on the fritz.

  218. 218.

    Kay

    October 30, 2016 at 10:29 pm

    Wouldn’t it be great if the FBI decided to just do their jobs instead of refusing to serve and protect people who belong to political parties they don’t like?

    Especially disturbing is that some of those critics are inside the FBI. As The Post’s Sari Horwitz reported on Saturday, “a largely conservative investigative corps” in the bureau was “complaining privately that Comey should have tried harder to make a case” against Clinton.
    For a major law-enforcement institution to be so politicized and biased against one party would be a genuine scandal. If Comey acted in part out of fear that his agents would leak against him, it would reflect profound dysfunction within the FBI.

    So can we all just assume now that the FBI goes after Democrats but not Republicans?

  219. 219.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 10:29 pm

    @SFAW: Clausewitz is good. As Adam said, good on theory. The practical advice is 200 years old, but I found it interesting as history.

  220. 220.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:30 pm

    @SFAW: I sort of got it – I was an intermittent Python watcher. Long Dead Carl is important, specifically for his concept of the strategic trinity.

  221. 221.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:30 pm

    @Lizzy L: Hit me up with it offline if you like because now I’m curious.

  222. 222.

    Emerald

    October 30, 2016 at 10:30 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Spoke to my Cuban friend in Florida today. He says the Cubans in Miami are voting massively for Clinton.

  223. 223.

    Kay

    October 30, 2016 at 10:34 pm

    I’m trying to get my head around the fact that the mighty FBI are terrified of a single member of the House.

    Jason Chaffetz has them running around in circles – oh the humanity- he may threaten to cut their funding!

  224. 224.

    Texasboyshaun

    October 30, 2016 at 10:35 pm

    I’ve been reading BJ since around 2006, but this is my first time being brave enough to comment. Thank you to the moderators and commenters who keep it humming. I’ve always loved Harry Reid and I’ll miss him in January. Thank you, Senator, for pointing out the Orange Jell-O elephant in the room with regards to DJT’s Putin ties.

  225. 225.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    October 30, 2016 at 10:40 pm

    @Kay: Jason Chaffetz is a putz; why are they all askeered of him?

    OT: At voter protection training, the SW Regional Director said they are not expecting much, if any trouble Nov 8 from Trump idiots. I think they’re in denial, and your reports suggest I might not be overreacting. It was down here the guy said he would trail around polls checking people who “don’t speak American” after all. And it sounds like there could be real trouble up your way.

  226. 226.

    hovercraft

    October 30, 2016 at 10:41 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:
    Since when is cognitive dissonance a problem with these morons? Weak and a tyrant, incompetent and Machiavelli?

  227. 227.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:43 pm

    @Kay: @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): As I indicated in several comments last night: he and his fellow committee chairs control the purse strings. He also controls oversight. He can destroy Comey if he so chooses. The committee structure and purpose, under the current majorities in both chambers, has been weaponized.

  228. 228.

    Gwangung

    October 30, 2016 at 10:43 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Bujold is in good repute in these parts.

  229. 229.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:46 pm

    @hovercraft: Small minds, hobgoblins, consistency…

  230. 230.

    Gwangung

    October 30, 2016 at 10:47 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): Unsupported tweet but….

  231. 231.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 10:48 pm

    @Kay: maybe they work for the Russians, too. At this point, I wouldn’t count on any law and order type not to be enamoured with how smart Putin is.

  232. 232.

    Kay

    October 30, 2016 at 10:48 pm

    This is the lunatic these “conservatives in the investigatory section” of the FBI want to run the United States:

    Christina Wilkie ‏@christinawilkie 49m49 minutes ago
    Trump: Hillary will “triple the size of our country in one week” with “650 million” new immigrants.

    This isn’t even the dumbest thing he said today– and you know what? They deserve him. The only bad part is the rest of us, the innocent parties, would be stuck with their pick too.

  233. 233.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:48 pm

    @Gwangung: Okay, who’s Bujold?

  234. 234.

    Gwangung

    October 30, 2016 at 10:51 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Lois McMasters Bujold, author of multiple Hugo and Nebula award winning novels, and creator of said Miles Naismith Vorkosigan….she folds a lot of military strategy into her early stories about them…and they somehow have leaked into the more political, later stories.

  235. 235.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 10:53 pm

    @Gwangung: Okay, I now know who you’re talking about, though I’ve never read any of her novels.

  236. 236.

    Aleta

    October 30, 2016 at 10:55 pm

    I would never approve of skullduggery, obviously. My heart is just too pure. But how hard can it be to concoct a link between Weiner’s time on the NY City Council and Trump’s copious campaign contributions to local NYC politicians ? To dig up an old photo of the two smiling? To imply Weiner is beholden to Council President and Trump’s friend and crook Andrew Stein?

    And come on, there’s got to be someone on HRC’s side who knows why the Secret Service (and maybe the FBI) rejected Chaffetz’s application.

  237. 237.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 10:55 pm

    @Kay: I know they like to think everyone on the planet is jealous of our success and would move here in a heart beat, but it’s possible that there aren’t that many people who actually want to come.

  238. 238.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 10:57 pm

    @Aleta:

    But how hard can it be to concoct a link between Weiner’s time on the NY City Council and Trump’s copious campaign contributions to local NYC politicians ?

    This helps who how?

  239. 239.

    hovercraft

    October 30, 2016 at 10:57 pm

    @Kay:

    Hillary will “triple the size of our country in one week” with “650 million” new immigrants.

    How does this work logistically? Even of he misspoke and meant 650 million in four years, how would that work, where would we house them, where would the money for resettling them come from. I know these people are morons, but this doesn’t even make sense.

  240. 240.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 11:00 pm

    @hovercraft: Misspoke? Who says one week when they mean four years?

  241. 241.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 11:00 pm

    @hovercraft: I imagine I’d be able to sell my condo at a favorable price.

  242. 242.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 11:01 pm

    @hovercraft:

    She. Doesn’t. Even. Have. A. Plan.

  243. 243.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 11:07 pm

    @Baud: I do now. I’m quitting my job and opening a shop on Main Street that sells nothing but rice cookers and milo and ovaltine. I’ll be rich.

  244. 244.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 11:08 pm

    @Peale: Brandy, warm milk, Ovaltine?

  245. 245.

    FlipYrWhig

    October 30, 2016 at 11:09 pm

    @Kay: This sounds like he misunderstood some remark about how “at this rate” something something immigration. Because he is incredibly stupid.

    ETA: Current total population of South America: 422 million.

  246. 246.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 11:09 pm

    @Peale: You are living the American Dream.

  247. 247.

    NoraLenderbee

    October 30, 2016 at 11:10 pm

    Hurry up with that oppo dump, for God’s sake. I can’t stand it much longer.

  248. 248.

    Baud

    October 30, 2016 at 11:11 pm

    @NoraLenderbee: The waiting is frustrating.

  249. 249.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 11:12 pm

    @NoraLenderbee: @Baud: Tom Petty got it right. The waiting is the hardest part.

  250. 250.

    hovercraft

    October 30, 2016 at 11:14 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    Stop nitpicking! Shit I misspoke, I meant nutpicking.
    @Peale:
    So long as it’s not on Trump Place you will get a great price.
    @Baud:
    She does too have a plan, it’s a secret one!

  251. 251.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 11:15 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: @Adam L Silverman: Check your e-mail.

  252. 252.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 11:16 pm

    Sadly, when I type milo into my browser, the first thing that pops up is living embarrassment to my people, milo Yiannopoulos. I might have to drop one of my core products.

  253. 253.

    GrandJury

    October 30, 2016 at 11:16 pm

    @Emerald: Well that settles it then.

    Where are all the “omgzzz, there are more trump signs than clinton signs on my block. We are doomed” wet blankets?

    Have people here actually got a clue now. Have you all finally figured out that this thing was in the bag since July?

    I sort of hope not. It’s a hoot making fun of the prophets of doom around here. My guess is that poeple are just taking a breather. I’m sure the (normal correction that was already happening before ComeyGate) in the polls recently back to the average will bring out the defeatists yet again. They are a reliably consistent bunch.

  254. 254.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 11:18 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5IWHt4OoNk

  255. 255.

    El Caganer

    October 30, 2016 at 11:19 pm

    @Aleta: Follow the Weiner!

  256. 256.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 11:19 pm

    @Lizzy L: Will do!

  257. 257.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 11:20 pm

    @FlipYrWhig: population of the Mideast: 220 million. So I guess we have our quotas then

  258. 258.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 11:21 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: Yep.

  259. 259.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 11:22 pm

    @Peale: Actually he’s half yours and half a shonda for the goyim. So I feel 1/2 your pain!

  260. 260.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    October 30, 2016 at 11:23 pm

    @Gwangung: Confirmed by an email I just received from the Regional Voter Protection Director: “an incident of bad behavior on the part of Trump supporters” was how he understated it. I got the email because I have an observing shift next Saturday and he’s reminding us to look outside periodically for both line lengths and potential people problems.

  261. 261.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 11:25 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Nope, that’s not quite it, either. Maybe it will come to me.

  262. 262.

    WarMunchkin

    October 30, 2016 at 11:27 pm

    @hovercraft: Anyone remember when they freaked out over a false report saying that the Navy was moving 34 ships and an aircraft carrier to India because Obama was visiting there? The Defense Department had to issue a response calling it “comical”. I dunno where Trump got that 650 million figure from, but it’s no different from what they’ve done before.

  263. 263.

    Peale

    October 30, 2016 at 11:31 pm

    @WarMunchkin: or that Michelle spent $100 Million on travel in three months

  264. 264.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 11:36 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): I was told to look for the same thing on election day. I wanted to be on the crack “run to court” squad, but I got tapped for a shift as a poll place observer. My past at the WI election agency caught up with me. I know how polling places should be run, so I get to go make sure one is done right.

  265. 265.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 11:36 pm

    @WarMunchkin: He conflated the supposed 650,000 Huma Abedin emails on Weiner’s laptop with the immigrants. He’d been ranting about the emails, kept hammering the number, that it was the motherload, etc. Then went on to immigrants/refugees and my guess is the 650 stuff stuck and he couldn’t get past it.

  266. 266.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 11:36 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): Fuck. That is disgusting and infuriating. Who is the Regional Voter Protection Director, and how many battalions does he have?

  267. 267.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 11:38 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: That is a frightening but believable thought.

  268. 268.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    October 30, 2016 at 11:41 pm

    @Lizzy L: He’s a lawyer from Alexandria VA, and there were about 150 people – mostly lawyers – at credentialling training Saturday. There was a session Thursday night also. In addition to the local folks who’ll observe, there are dozens of folks from out of town who can only work outside – you have to be registered in the county of the polling place to be credentialed to observe.
    @Omnes Omnibus: I’m sure the boiler room/run to court squad would be swell, but of course they’ll put you in a poll. I’m looking at the short shift Saturday as good practice for the 14+ hour marathon Election Day.

  269. 269.

    Aleta

    October 30, 2016 at 11:43 pm

    I read some quotes from Trump supporters today. (Quoted in a book that is sympathetic to the rough lives they are leading in communities that are rigged against them, for ex by the petrochemical industry.) One was (paraphrased, a rough recollection) Why don’t the Syrians stand and fight instead of running away like traitors. Another was something like : If only everyone in the Middle East had a gun … (implication: problem solved by themselves).

    Been thinking lately about how, in my area at least, it’s the ideas and slogans spread by well=off conservative business people that are controlling votes, more than the character of many of the voters. The things that are said about those voters (by people from a different background) don’t describe the ones I know that well. Or even describe how all of them will vote in this election.

  270. 270.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 11:44 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I’m still having trouble with 650,000 emails. That’s a lot of emails. And I realize that, for instance, when you forward an email or get a reply to one, you get a copy of the original back with some email clients, so you can get a lot of dupes, but that just seems like a ridiculously high number. Or, as when I upgraded my Macbook Pro the last time, the email client just kept reloading and reloading and reloading every email I’d ever received because of a synch glitch between the mac mail client and gmail. Took me a ton of time to fix that.

    What I’m really wondering is whether what they’ve really discovered here is that Weiner installed one of Huma’s email addresses on a client on his laptop so he could see what she was doing/spy on her. It would explain a lot, including why this laptop was not identified for examination back last Spring when the FBI investigators interviewed her and examined her other devices.

  271. 271.

    dmsilev

    October 30, 2016 at 11:44 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: I’m reminded of the scene in The Manchurian Candidate where the demagogue McCarthy analogue settles on a number of ‘communist infilitrators’ by looking at a bottle of Heinz ’57 flavors’ ketchup. Perhaps that would work for Trump as well?

  272. 272.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 11:47 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): What kind of protection is available against men with dogs intending to intimidate? Local cops?

  273. 273.

    JR in WV

    October 30, 2016 at 11:47 pm

    @efgoldman:

    When the Fairness Doctrine was in force, the 3 broadcast networks and magazines and newspapers were the only media that existed. Wire services (The AP, UPI, NYTimes-wire WSJ wire, Stock wires, Racing wires) existed, but were not available to the general public, only to paying members/clients of the wires. Like smoky bars with gambling had the Racing Wires.

    Anyway, now that many new media exist, they all use public utilities and easements designed for public utilities to transmit data; even sat-based systems use the public air space to transmit signals up and down. Of course a conservative Supreme Court might throw out a modernized Fairness Doctrine.

    But maybe a real Supreme Court would leash Faux News, and all the others.

  274. 274.

    dww44

    October 30, 2016 at 11:48 pm

    @patroclus: I love the ideas in your first paragraph and hope you are wrong in the second one. Realistic perhaps, but maybe our much hoped for
    “running the electoral tables” could still be in the cards. Another day, another Trump story, perhaps?

  275. 275.

    burnspbesq

    October 30, 2016 at 11:48 pm

    Since I happen to believe that Mary Jo White will be Clinton’s choice for AG (Warren’s ongoing hissy-fit notwithstanding), I am enjoying the mental image of that tiny, grandmotherly looking woman putting her foot waay up Comey’s ass after firing him for cause.

  276. 276.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 30, 2016 at 11:50 pm

    @Lizzy L: Yes, local cops.

    ETA: Especially if kicked into gear by a Federal court order.

  277. 277.

    amk

    October 30, 2016 at 11:54 pm

    @burnspbesq: Why would she shift her from SEC? More importantly, why would she kick out recently appointed current AG?

  278. 278.

    burnspbesq

    October 30, 2016 at 11:54 pm

    Comey’s impending demise make the transition game of musical chairs orders of magnitude more interesting, because no one was planning for that chair to be empty.

  279. 279.

    FlipYrWhig

    October 30, 2016 at 11:55 pm

    @Adam L Silverman:

    What I’m really wondering is whether what they’ve really discovered here is that Weiner installed one of Huma’s email addresses on a client on his laptop so he could see what she was doing/spy on her

    Ooooooh intriguing possibility…

  280. 280.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    October 30, 2016 at 11:56 pm

    @Lizzy L: I should note that all I can confirm is “an incident of bad behavior” and no details were shared with us. Nor is there any local reporting about the event that I can find.

    Whether the party – or the voting location manager – got law enforcement involved today I don’t know. I have some concerns that things could get more unpleasant.

    There’s a concurrent trial of a former police officer fatal shooting a motorist 2 blocks from the Board of Elections, so I’m just as happy to have a Saturday shift there instead of a weekday. Even though i expect it will be very busy.

    I also misspoke w/r/t to eligibility. Observers must be registered OH voters, but an inaccurate address listed with the protection list is grounds for a challenge.

  281. 281.

    Lizzy L

    October 30, 2016 at 11:57 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: It’s been reported that the DNC has already filed suit, asking a federal judge to “block the RNC from supporting efforts to discourage minorities from voting.” It’ll be fun to hear the RNC attorneys try to claim that it’s not the RNC who’s doing all that stuff, it’s Trump’s supporters. Nothing to do with the Republican Party.

  282. 282.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 11:57 pm

    @Aleta: Whats so funny is that Syria and Iraq are awash in guns. In Iraq, as part of Iraqi law, that we reaffirmed under the Coalition Provisional Authority, every Iraqi male is permitted to have (at least) one firearm and a set amount of ammo per month.

  283. 283.

    WaterGirl

    October 30, 2016 at 11:58 pm

    @Adam L Silverman: May I just say one more time that the man is a total fucking idiot? I really try not to call people names, but I have kind of made an exception for Trump.

  284. 284.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 30, 2016 at 11:59 pm

    @Lizzy L: @Omnes Omnibus: Milk bones?

  285. 285.

    burnspbesq

    October 31, 2016 at 12:01 am

    @amk:

    Every President wants their own AG.

    The payoff to Warren for biting her tongue is that Rich Cordray gets SEC chair, and he gets to hire his own enforcement division director, because when Preet Bharara moves to the FBI, Andrew Ceresney becomes the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan. That leaves CFPB open, and that job could be filled from outside the government

    Lynch gets a seat on the D.C. Circuit after Srinivasan gets confirmed to the Supreme Court.

  286. 286.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 31, 2016 at 12:01 am

    @FlipYrWhig: The dude has already presented verifiable evidence of a high score on the creep scale. I have found that creepy people do not always confine their creepy behavior to specific, narrowly defined parameters.

  287. 287.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    October 31, 2016 at 12:02 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: And an existing consent decree could certainly motivate a court to issue such an order. I could have an interesting Saturday.

  288. 288.

    WaterGirl

    October 31, 2016 at 12:02 am

    @Adam L Silverman:

    What I’m really wondering is whether what they’ve really discovered here is that Weiner installed one of Huma’s email addresses on a client on his laptop so he could see what she was doing/spy on her.

    That makes sense AND it would explain why/how Huma is surprised that those email messages would be on that laptop.

  289. 289.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 31, 2016 at 12:03 am

    @Lizzy L: Also, anecdotal experience from when I worked for WI’s election agency: if a complaint came in, we contacted the county officials and they responded. They responded quickly. And some of the little old ladies running polling places were vicious. You mess with their place; they get mean.

  290. 290.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 31, 2016 at 12:03 am

    @burnspbesq: Other than White as AG, that would be an excellent enforcement line up. I’m curious as to why you think White has the inside track for AG?

  291. 291.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 31, 2016 at 12:06 am

    @burnspbesq: You know that Obama won’t pull Garland’s nom., right?

  292. 292.

    amk

    October 31, 2016 at 12:08 am

    @burnspbesq: wow, you got all this planned out, dontcha?

  293. 293.

    SFAW

    October 31, 2016 at 12:10 am

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Whats so funny is that Syria and Iraq are awash in guns. In Iraq, as part of Iraqi law, that we reaffirmed under the Coalition Provisional Authority, every Iraqi male is permitted to have (at least) one firearm and a set amount of ammo per month.

    I think it’s well past time for Wayne LaPierre to make a field trip to Mosul. He needs to remind them of their Second Amendment rights, etc.

  294. 294.

    WaterGirl

    October 31, 2016 at 12:14 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: I completely agree with you that Obama will not pull Garland’s nomination.

    edit: And I share your question about mary jo white, I was just too lazy to reply and ask.

  295. 295.

    SFAW

    October 31, 2016 at 12:16 am

    @Adam L Silverman:

    I’m still having trouble with 650,000 emails.

    Well, it’s either that, or the 650,000,000 refugees/terrists that Demon Hitlary will let in the country in her first week alone.

    That is, according to the Corrupt Pedophile, Deadbeat Donnie (a/k/a th Ferret-headed Shitgibbon, or, as some might call it: Tangerine McRapey Shitgobbon).

  296. 296.

    burnspbesq

    October 31, 2016 at 12:17 am

    @Adam L Silverman:

    White is ridiculously qualified. She’s a longtime Clinton supporter.

    What’s your beef with her? Know in advance that I think Warren’s critique of White’s performance as SEC chair is about 97 percent unfounded.

  297. 297.

    burnspbesq

    October 31, 2016 at 12:18 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    If Clinton asks him to?

  298. 298.

    Lizzy L

    October 31, 2016 at 12:22 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    You mess with their place; they get mean.

    Should be like that.

    When I start to think about the damage Trump (and the last 30 years of Republican idiocy, even more) has done to us all, I get blazingly angry. We survived the Civil War, FFS, we’ll come through this, but I get so damn tired of it. Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty — Jefferson didn’t say it, but it’s worth pretending he did, because it’s true.

  299. 299.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 31, 2016 at 12:22 am

    @burnspbesq:

    What’s your beef with her?

    He asked a question. Are your statements unquestionable? Even if you are the Pope, Protestants, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, etc., exist.

  300. 300.

    WaterGirl

    October 31, 2016 at 12:23 am

    @burnspbesq: I’d like to see the reply from Omnes, but I’m headed to bed, so I’ll have to check back in the morning. But I still don’t see it. President Obama is a man of honor, so unless it was part of the original agreement with Garland, I don’t see Obama pulling the nomination even if Hillary asked him to. Hillary is a big girl and if she doesn’t want Garland, then she may have to do that herself. Though I’m guessing that once we have a new president, Garland’s nomination just goes away automatically, right? With the new president free to nominate the same person again, or not?

    ‘Night all.

  301. 301.

    burnspbesq

    October 31, 2016 at 12:26 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I answered his question.

  302. 302.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 31, 2016 at 12:26 am

    @burnspbesq: @WaterGirl: Why would she?

  303. 303.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 31, 2016 at 12:29 am

    @burnspbesq: His? And where?

  304. 304.

    burnspbesq

    October 31, 2016 at 12:30 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    305.

    Are you channeling goldman tonight?

  305. 305.

    Adam L Silverman

    October 31, 2016 at 12:32 am

    @burnspbesq: I cannot quibble with her qualifications. I find Warren’s and other’s critiques a little more founded than you do. I think the SEC needs a serious top to bottom overhaul as it is appears to be captured by those it is supposed to be regulating. That predates White, but I’m not convinced she’s doing much to resolve the issue. Also not sure she’s been asked to either.

  306. 306.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 31, 2016 at 12:36 am

    @burnspbesq: So? If you have something to say, then say it.

  307. 307.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 31, 2016 at 12:45 am

    @burnspbesq: Come on, deal with this: Even if you are the Pope, Protestants, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, etc., exist.

    You hand waved it away before.

  308. 308.

    Aleta

    October 31, 2016 at 12:55 am

    @Adam L Silverman: It is funny.

    every Iraqi male is permitted to have (at least) one firearm and a set amount of ammo per month.

    Well then, problem solved! (Brings to mind a patrinut’s proposal out West last year that everyone should be required by law to own a gun, to ensure the safety of all.

  309. 309.

    T S

    October 31, 2016 at 1:47 am

    @efgoldman: You sound desperate to convince yourself everything’s fine.

  310. 310.

    T S

    October 31, 2016 at 1:50 am

    @Major Major Major Major: That 99% number is garbage.

  311. 311.

    T S

    October 31, 2016 at 1:55 am

    @efgoldman: You aren’t just a cynical old white guy, as you stated–you are just a cranky jerk. Maybe because you are white you don’t have a personal stake in the outcome, so it’s just an ideological game to you. Maybe you don’t consciously think of it as a game, you probably even think it’s all very important–but you are removed enough from any actual consequences that you spend as much time s****ing on people who have real, justifiable fears for their country and their families. So why don’t you just go…just use your imagination.

  312. 312.

    Brachiator

    October 31, 2016 at 3:34 am

    @Adam L Silverman:

    I’ll be sure to tell my friends that are professors of journalism that you think they don’t have any idea what is going on within their own profession.

    Please do. I’ve worked for newspapers and watched executives and editors stumble cluelessly.

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