• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Fuck the extremist election deniers. What’s money for if not for keeping them out of office?

Republicans can’t even be trusted with their own money.

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

Don’t expect peaches from an apple tree.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.

I was promised a recession.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

Meanwhile over at truth Social, the former president is busy confessing to crimes.

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

Spilling the end game before they can coat it in frankl luntz-approved dogwhistles.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

Joe Lieberman disappointingly reemerged to remind us that he’s still alive.

The willow is too close to the house.

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

Mobile Menu

  • Winnable House Races
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • Balloon Juice 2023 Pet Calendar (coming soon)
  • COVID-19 Coronavirus
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • War in Ukraine
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • 2021-22 Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Past Elections / Election 2016 / Russiagate Open Thread: Once Again, Timing Is Everything

Russiagate Open Thread: Once Again, Timing Is Everything

by Anne Laurie|  August 25, 20176:06 pm| 214 Comments

This post is in: Election 2016, Foreign Affairs, I'm With Her, Open Threads, Russiagate

FacebookTweetEmail

Friday at 5. https://t.co/PmklvD4gQo

— Zed, Zedd 'n' Zeddy (@ZeddRebel) August 25, 2017

All that punditocracy tut-tutting, this week, about how Hillary should just move on and stop talking about the stolen election?…

Special counsel Robert Mueller is examining what role, if any, former national security adviser Mike Flynn may have played in a private effort to obtain Hillary Clinton’s emails from Russian hackers, according to people familiar with the matter.

The effort to seek out hackers who were believed to have stolen Mrs. Clinton’s emails, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, was led by a longtime Republican activist, Peter W. Smith. In correspondence and conversations with his colleagues, Mr. Smith portrayed Mr. Flynn as an ally in those efforts and implied that other senior Trump campaign officials were coordinating with him, which they have denied. He also named Mr. Flynn’s consulting firm and his son in the correspondence and conversations…

A lawyer for Mr. Flynn and a lawyer for his son declined to comment. Mr. Flynn’s firm has been dissolved.

The investigators’ inquiries show Mr. Mueller considers Mr. Smith’s effort to be potentially significant in the context of the wider probe into whether there was any collusion between people associated with the Trump campaign and the Russian government. Mr. Mueller’s mandate from the Justice Department allows him to investigate “any links and/or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the [Trump] campaign.” Investigators had already been focused on Mr. Flynn, using a grand jury to assist in a criminal investigation of the former White House adviser focused on his work in the private sector on behalf of foreign interests.

Mr. Mueller’s team is also inquiring about the nature of Mr. Smith’s relationship with several Trump campaign advisers and aides to the president, the people familiar with the matter said…

The investigators have also been trying to determine whether Mr. Smith or anyone working with him paid hackers for Mrs. Clinton’s emails, the people with knowledge of the investigation said. Mr. Smith set up a limited-liability company in Delaware, called KLS Research LLC, that he intended to use to pay people assisting him with his work and to collect contributions, people with direct knowledge of Mr. Smith’s efforts said.

Mr. Smith told the Journal that he never intended to pay for any of the emails found by hackers. Ultimately, he said, he couldn’t verify that all the emails the hacker groups claimed to have found were genuine, and so he didn’t acquire them. Instead, Mr. Smith said he encouraged the hackers to give the emails to WikiLeaks…

Wow… It would be something if Hillary Clinton’s emails actually brought Trump’s presidency down https://t.co/kzoT1Jdb07

— Taegan Goddard (@politicalwire) August 25, 2017

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Friday Afternoon Open Thread
Next Post: Arpaio pardoned, Gorka resigns, etc. »

Reader Interactions

214Comments

  1. 1.

    Jeffro

    August 25, 2017 at 6:10 pm

    This story is just way, way too complicated…one of the top officials in Campaign A solicited, and got, the help of a hostile foreign power to commit crimes (hacking) against Campaign B. And LOTS of top officials in Campaign A knew about it.

    It’s almost like…deja vu…? Didn’t someone from Campaign A ask the hostile foreign power, ON LIVE TV, to find and release Campaign B’s emails? That person should surely go to jail…

  2. 2.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 6:11 pm

    Wow… It would be something if Hillary Clinton’s emails actually brought Trump’s presidency down

    Just another tally mark in the Clinton body count.

  3. 3.

    Scott

    August 25, 2017 at 6:11 pm

    Just wait. We’re about two weeks away from Fox News declaring that people should stop making such a big deal about Hillary’s emails.

  4. 4.

    Jeffro

    August 25, 2017 at 6:12 pm

    Btw please note: Trump is “furious” with Gary Cohn for Cohn’s remarks that the president* needs to do more to speak out against white nationalism.

    Easy bet: Cohn is gone by next Tuesday tops.

  5. 5.

    Baud

    August 25, 2017 at 6:14 pm

    @Jeffro: Good. Cohn is Trump’s token nonfamily Dem.

  6. 6.

    Villago Delenda Est

    August 25, 2017 at 6:18 pm

    Haberman and Thrush still need to be fried alive for their roles.

  7. 7.

    trollhattan

    August 25, 2017 at 6:20 pm

    Did anybody need another reason not to live in Florida?

  8. 8.

    debbie

    August 25, 2017 at 6:21 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Wow… It would be something if Hillary Clinton’s emails actually brought Trump’s presidency down

    And then ask Trump if he had any regrets in bringing it up in the first place.

  9. 9.

    Jeffro

    August 25, 2017 at 6:22 pm

    @Scott: LOL. We need a term for when irony is beyond dead, cremated, pulverized, and scattered to the winds if that comes to pass.

  10. 10.

    geg6

    August 25, 2017 at 6:23 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    Yup. I’ll chip in for the boiling oil. They are a disgrace to their profession and a clear and present danger to the nation. I despise them even more than I do Dolt 45.

  11. 11.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 6:24 pm

    @debbie: trump will die before he cops to having regrets.

  12. 12.

    geg6

    August 25, 2017 at 6:25 pm

    If this is true, could the Mercers be far behind? All of them are Mercer minions.

    ETA: I read elsewhere (TPM?) that the other officials besides Flynn were Bannon and Kellyanne Conway.

  13. 13.

    jl

    August 25, 2017 at 6:27 pm

    Why not just arrest him for all the crimes that we are almost certain that he committed and then start bargaining?

  14. 14.

    sigaba

    August 25, 2017 at 6:29 pm

    It would be something if Hillary Clinton’s emails actually brought Trump’s presidency down

    Clinton’s emails are approximately the One Ring at this point.

    Hilarious part? They’ve never leaked. All of this is about emails that never leaked. All of this sturm and drang is about people maneuvering to be in a good position in the event they leaked.

  15. 15.

    geg6

    August 25, 2017 at 6:30 pm

    @Jeffro:

    Fuck that kapo. Just fuck him. My Jewish friends despise him.

  16. 16.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 6:31 pm

    Somebody left a silly looking book in the international terminal.

  17. 17.

    clay

    August 25, 2017 at 6:33 pm

    @geg6: I want this whole crooked gang to rot. But I will take special joy if/when Conway goes down.

  18. 18.

    WaterGirl

    August 25, 2017 at 6:34 pm

    This jumped out at me:

    Mr. Flynn’s firm has been dissolved.

    Would love to hear more about that.

  19. 19.

    p.a.

    August 25, 2017 at 6:34 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: ftw

  20. 20.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 6:36 pm

    CNN tells me that Trump just signed the transgender ban.

    Fucker.

  21. 21.

    trollhattan

    August 25, 2017 at 6:36 pm

    @Jeffro: @geg6:
    Oh, this Gary Cohn.

    Gary Cohn’s jump from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to Donald Trump’s administration is helping him unlock more than $284 million in pent up bonuses, stock holdings and other investments through the Wall Street bank.

    To help Cohn avoid conflicts of interest as Trump’s top economic adviser, the bank is letting its former president immediately collect about $65 million in cash and stock tied to its future performance. That’s on top of roughly $220 million of Goldman equity he already held or was awaiting, as well as stakes in company-run investment funds, according to regulatory filings Tuesday. He must liquidate the holdings to take his new post.

    I will never understand how one person can harvest one-quarter billion dollars departing from his job. Little wonder our economy doesn’t work for 75% of the population. Good thing Trump’s fixing that.

  22. 22.

    Frankensteinbeck

    August 25, 2017 at 6:36 pm

    @Jeffro:
    Trump lies with the causal ease of a narcissist, telling any crowd whatever he thinks they want to hear. And yet, denying that he supports white supremacists is not only difficult for him, he is seethingly angry about having to do it. Consider just how short the list of things Trump cares about is. Then consider just how racist that suggests he personally is.

  23. 23.

    Redshift

    August 25, 2017 at 6:36 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Somebody left a silly looking book in the international terminal

    Don’t judge a book by its cover. Especially late 70s artwork.

  24. 24.

    Chitown Kev

    August 25, 2017 at 6:37 pm

    @geg6: Shane Harris did a day after report followed by Lawfare’s article on one of the cyber guys that Smith approached.

    https://lawfareblog.com/time-i-got-recruited-collude-russians

    Bannon, Kellyanne, and Sam Clovis were named in that report.

  25. 25.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 6:39 pm

    @Jeffro: It really is complicated. I have given up, for the moment, trying to find the story line.

    What is happening now, it seems to me, is that some details are being filled in. That makes it feel more complicated and hard to follow.

    We don’t yet have a story line. Some fairly big things – several of Trump’s campaign people were urging meetings with Russians; Jared and others met with Russians to get the dirt on Hillary; Trump’s financial dealings are interwoven with Russian money – are evident, but it’s not clear how they are related and what role Trump played in all of it. Today’s revelations are part of building up a continuity among those big things, but there’s still not a single story line.

    I think that when enough material comes out, we will be able to cover it in a few sentences. But we’re not there yet.

  26. 26.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 6:40 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    @JaxAlemany
    NEWS: Per WH official, Trump signed exec memo giving DOD/ DHS formal authority to expel transgender people from the military earlier today
    5:01 PM – Aug 25, 2017

  27. 27.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    August 25, 2017 at 6:40 pm

    Jonathan Karl‏Verified account @ jonkarl 40m40 minutes ago
    ABC News has learned 6 PR firms tied to Paul Manafort and/or Michael Flynn have received subpoenas from Robert Mueller

    PR firms? as in lobbyists? lobbyists lobbying (unregistered?) for foreign firms?

    @trollhattan: and that’s just his bonuses. And he’s sticking with trump because he thinks he and his fellow buccaneers are crippled by oppressive taxation

  28. 28.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 6:41 pm

    @BNONews
    BREAKING: South Korea’s military confirms that North Korea has fired a missile – Kyodo
    5:21 PM – Aug 25, 2017

  29. 29.

    Mnemosyne

    August 25, 2017 at 6:43 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Having been forced into dealings with a narcissist IRL, I guarantee you that the only “regrets” Trump will ever express will be about how everyone else let him down and thwarted him from doing what he wanted. Any mistakes made were only by other people, never by him.

  30. 30.

    clay

    August 25, 2017 at 6:45 pm

    Huh. Ari Melber is doing a self-reflexive story on the press coverage of the 2016 election. He actually used “But Her Emails…” correctly.

  31. 31.

    Baud

    August 25, 2017 at 6:48 pm

    @trollhattan: Sounds like he just needed to divest his holdings. You know, what the Trumps didn’t do.

  32. 32.

    Baud

    August 25, 2017 at 6:49 pm

    @lamh36: Authority means almost nothing. It would be good to get details.

  33. 33.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 6:50 pm

    BTW – North Korea has fired a missile – or several missiles – into the Sea of Japan. It will be a few hours before the Twitter missile crew figure out what it was, so I’m going to take a nap.

    ETA: Tillerson and Trump claimed that North Korea was showing the proper “respect” by not firing missiles and not doing nuclear tests. So much for that.

  34. 34.

    Mnemosyne

    August 25, 2017 at 6:51 pm

    @trollhattan:

    Remember, kids, the only way to keep Goldman Sachs executives from running the country was to elect Trump, because Hillary was too entwined with them.

    St. Edward Snowden said so though, mysteriously, he’s deleted that tweet from his Twitter account. ?

  35. 35.

    clay

    August 25, 2017 at 6:51 pm

    @lamh36: I honestly can’t figure this out. This wasn’t a campaign issue; as far as I can tell, no one is clambering for it; the military itself doesn’t seem to want it; I have no idea why Trump decided to do this.

    But he’s a real piece of shit.

  36. 36.

    aliasofwestgate

    August 25, 2017 at 6:53 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Right now it feels like a set of building plots and subplots from some of my favorite anime, or in particular the Dune saga books. Nothing’s coming together yet, but the pieces are slowly starting to make a little sense.

  37. 37.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 6:53 pm

    @lamh36:

    Happy Friday.

  38. 38.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 6:54 pm

    @JaxAlemany
    Full text of Trump’s exec. memo directing DOD/ DHS implementation of transgender ban:
    https://twitter.com/JaxAlemany/status/901210494874333188

  39. 39.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 6:55 pm

    @JaxAlemany
    WH says that Pentagon will decide best “implementation plan” to address current transgenders serving in the military by March 23rd, 2018.

    @JaxAlemany
    Jackie Alemany Retweeted Jackie Alemany
    WH official says Trump “spoke passionately abt freedoms of LGBT community” but policy based on “series of national security considerations”

  40. 40.

    Brachiator

    August 25, 2017 at 6:56 pm

    @clay:

    But he’s a real piece of shit.

    And a orange glowing piece of shit.

  41. 41.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 6:57 pm

    @clay:

    I honestly can’t figure this out. This wasn’t a campaign issue; as far as I can tell, no one is clambering for it; the military itself doesn’t seem to want it; I have no idea why Trump decided to do this.

    But he’s a real piece of shit.

    Yeah, it makes no sense to me either. The only thing I can figure is that a Mercer or other influential donor lobbied Trump hard behind the scenes and urged him to get transgender folk out of the military. And because it’s clearly a stupid and repressive proposal, whoever it was that wanted it was smart enough to keep it under wraps until Trump made the announcement.

  42. 42.

    Eljai

    August 25, 2017 at 6:58 pm

    The right-wing white nationalists canceled their “patriot prayer” rally in San Francisco that was planned for tomorrow. They claim their scheduled speakers had been harassed. Yeah, well, maybe they wouldn’t get harassed if they stopped acting like the hate-filled assholes they are.

  43. 43.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 7:00 pm

    @clay: I suspect it’s coming from the Vice President’s office and Mother, of course.

  44. 44.

    lollipopguild

    August 25, 2017 at 7:00 pm

    Russia House? All Fall Down? Dumb and Dumber and Dumberer? The Great Trumpensteen? Gotta start casting the miniseries.

  45. 45.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 7:01 pm

    @clay: analysis on CNN…after the healthcare mess…Trump lost some of the white voters that he had…so notice afterward, that he has doubled up on the racial and culture issues that amp up and satisfy his base…each “policy” declaration since including embracing “history and culture” of Neo Nazi is a calculated effor to shore up those voters

  46. 46.

    lollipopguild

    August 25, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Somebody with trumps ear thinks that this will be a great Wedge issue in the 2018 elections.

  47. 47.

    clay

    August 25, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Actually, it became clear to me when I remembered that allowing trans-folk to openly serve was an Obama initiative. Obama did it; Trump must undo it. I think it’s as simple as that.

  48. 48.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 7:03 pm

    @Eljai:

    They claim their scheduled speakers had been harassed.

    It’s called “Freedom of Speech” assholes, it’s a two way street.

  49. 49.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 7:05 pm

    Trump’s response last weekend to news that 10 sailors aboard the John S. McCain had gone missing:

    “Too bad.”

    Trump’s message today to those in harm’s way of Hurricane Harvey:

    Donald Trump was walking to Marine One when a reporter shouted “Do you have a message for the people of Texas?” Trump responded by giving a thumbs up, then saying “Good luck everybody” followed by what may have been “They’re going to be safe” followed by yet another “Good luck everybody, good luck.” He then pumped his fist.

    I hate him so hard.

  50. 50.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 7:07 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Wonder which of his golf courses he’s headed to. I’m sure it’s not one in southern Texas.

  51. 51.

    Laura

    August 25, 2017 at 7:07 pm

    @clay: He’s doing it for the God-botherers, and likely at Pence’s urging.
    What a gross stain.
    I cannot even fathom the impact, the lives destroyed, the law suits. The Equal Protection Clause better start eating it’s Wheaties, because it’s about to get a working out.

    First they came for the Muslims.
    Then they came for the refugees.
    They came for the undocumented.
    They came for the transgendered.
    They are coming for . . . .
    And after that . . . . .

  52. 52.

    WaterGirl

    August 25, 2017 at 7:08 pm

    @lamh36: This is not the Friday night news I was hoping for.

  53. 53.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 7:09 pm

    As a Katrina survivor…my first thought was SHHHHIIIIDDDD!! Peep in and around Houston area…please be safe!

    @LesterHoltNBC 4m4 minutes ago
    More
    BREAKING: Hurricane #Harvey has just been upgraded to Category 4.

  54. 54.

    jl

    August 25, 2017 at 7:10 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Followed the thread of comments to the top. Maybe that explained Mattis’ not very veiled criticisms of the Trumpster influence on diversity in his comments to the troops Adam posted earlier today.

    Someone who knows more can correct me, but seems to me that the Pentagon was trying to very slow walk the transgender issue in order to delay having to do something as objectionable as expelling currently serving troops for a totally BS reason. I read that Pence was heading a team of thugs who wanted a total ban, including expelling currently serving troops, as part of the transgender policy. Pence briefed Trump on the efforts, and Trump just got tired of hearing about the issue and put out his infamous ban tweets in some kind of tantrum.

    Seems to me that the Pentagon has tried to slow walk it since. They have put out several statements to the effect of ‘Transgender ban, what’s that? We got no stinking official orders on that.”

    My guess is that this is Pence’s first big contribution to substantive Trump admin policy. Congrats, Pence, you vicious intolerant ass.

  55. 55.

    Laura

    August 25, 2017 at 7:12 pm

    @Eljai:
    They must have heard about this and reconsidered:
    https://youtu.be/3zZ5uDSBATo

  56. 56.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 7:12 pm

    @JamilSmith 31m31 minutes ago
    More
    Trump signed the transgender military ban. But when anyone is actually kicked out, blame Jim Mattis, too.
    https://twitter.com/JamilSmith/status/901212929109794817

  57. 57.

    WaterGirl

    August 25, 2017 at 7:13 pm

    @lamh36: Yeah, my fear of national security threats from transgender people is what keeps me up at night. Nice to see that Trump has resolved the biggest national security threat we are facing.

    I can’t believe Adam didn’t do a thread on the transgender national security threats. Damn you, Adam, we were counting on you. You really let us down.

  58. 58.

    jl

    August 25, 2017 at 7:16 pm

    @lamh36: Good to know. Events will tell whether the delegation of wide discretion is good or bad news.

  59. 59.

    Mnemosyne

    August 25, 2017 at 7:16 pm

    @jl:

    I think you’re probably right: Pence and the godbotherers want this and Trump doesn’t really give a shit, so it’s going to happen willy-nilly.

  60. 60.

    trollhattan

    August 25, 2017 at 7:21 pm

    @Mnemosyne:
    Pence would hate this video.

  61. 61.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 7:23 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    Water hazard!

  62. 62.

    MomSense

    August 25, 2017 at 7:23 pm

    But her emails?

  63. 63.

    jl

    August 25, 2017 at 7:24 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: You mean the hurricane or Trump’s brain?

  64. 64.

    Yutsano

    August 25, 2017 at 7:25 pm

    @Mnemosyne: Nah. It’s even more basic than that. Obama allowed transgender servicemembers. Anything Obama does must be destroyed. The fact that it pleases the Mercers and the Pence God-Botherers is just incidental. It’s yet another Obummer legacy Dolt45 has to destroy.

    (Edited because d’oh!)

  65. 65.

    Villago Delenda Est

    August 25, 2017 at 7:26 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: Yup, the Dominionist twit wants his tribute.

  66. 66.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    @jl:

    Either. Both.

  67. 67.

    Tazj

    August 25, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    There was a retired high ranking military official on CNN a few days ago with Wolf Blitzer, who described the proposed ban as “unconscionable.” The Trump administration is just creating more problems.

  68. 68.

    Eljai

    August 25, 2017 at 7:29 pm

    @Laura: Ha! I will have to get a “NaziTrumpsFuckOff” t-shirt for the next counter-protest!

  69. 69.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 7:30 pm

    @jl: What difference does it really make?

  70. 70.

    Miss Bianca

    August 25, 2017 at 7:31 pm

    @lamh36: I know a transgender kid in MI, who lectured me about how evil HRC was and she was voting for Jill Stein. I’m tempted to ask her how much she thinks Jill Stein is going to help people like her right now, but I think she unfriended me on FB after I blasted her for that stance the first time and told her to think about how many *other* people she was prepared to throw under the bus for the sake of feeling pure. With any hope, she’s not going to need my help to realize that in retrospect, maybe HRC wasn’t so bad after all.

  71. 71.

    Origuy

    August 25, 2017 at 7:35 pm

    @Redshift: Lord Valentine’s Castle is really a good book. SF book covers, especially in translation, often have nothing to do with the story. John Scalzi often posts pictures of the translations of his books; some times they hit the mark, other times not so much.

  72. 72.

    jl

    August 25, 2017 at 7:38 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: Hurricane water hazards don’t last four years?

  73. 73.

    Frankensteinbeck

    August 25, 2017 at 7:39 pm

    @Yutsano:
    It’s also always worth remembering that Trump is a spiteful bigot. He likes hurting people. He is mean. He has plenty of reasons to put out this ban. The surprise is that it took this long. I’m guessing his generals lobbied hard against it, but he wasn’t quite scared of their frowns enough, and being a mean shit won out.

  74. 74.

    debbie

    August 25, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    Is it wrong of me to picture Anthony Perkins instead of Mrs. Pence whenever I see a reference to Mother?

  75. 75.

    Frankensteinbeck

    August 25, 2017 at 7:41 pm

    @Origuy:
    As an author, I will tell you that the artist never reads the book. It’s a one in a million miracle if that happens. So you get someone who doesn’t know the source material following crude descriptions to make what he thinks will be a cover that sells. Throw on top of that he/she/it may have been hired for cheapness, not give a damn, or not be any good. I’ve learned to swallow that the covers of my books kinda resemble the content, and that’s the best I can get.

  76. 76.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 7:42 pm

    @debbie: No, I was thinking that as well.

  77. 77.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 7:43 pm

    @Yutsano:

    I am far from the first person to notice or comment on this, but Jeebus Fucking Keerist on a Cracker*, Barack Obama sure takes up a shitload of real estate in Trump’s brain**, doesn’t he?

    *Talking about a different branch of the Cracker family, not Betty’s.
    **I use the term “brain” both lightly and ironically.

  78. 78.

    dexwood

    August 25, 2017 at 7:44 pm

    @debbie:
    No. I’ve had that mental image, too. And, I saw a similar statement by someone somewhere recently. I see him in the rocking chair.

  79. 79.

    Betty Cracker

    August 25, 2017 at 7:45 pm

    @trollhattan: Oh, pshaw! Water spouts are mostly harmless. There are plenty of reasons to flee the state; water spouts don’t even make the top 20! ?

  80. 80.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 7:46 pm

    @clay:

    I think it’s as simple as that.

    If it’s drumpf, it’s always as simple as, the black man did it a billion times better, waaaaaaah. Or at least it’s always simple because drumpf doesn’t do complicated, not capable.

  81. 81.

    EBT

    August 25, 2017 at 7:46 pm

    So now my apartment complex is charging for parking. Love how they find ways to extort money from their 20%+ disabled tenant population.

  82. 82.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 7:47 pm

    JUST IN: @LambdaLegal & @OutServeSLDN will sue Trump administration as soon as Monday over trans military memo, Lambda tells me.

    — Dominic Holden (@dominicholden) August 25, 2017

  83. 83.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 7:48 pm

    @Betty Cracker:
    ROFLMAO
    Never lived there for more than a week at a time, spent a lot of weeks working there. Some of it seems nice.

  84. 84.

    pluky

    August 25, 2017 at 7:48 pm

    @clay: pandering to his other base — the talibangelicals.

  85. 85.

    zhena gogolia

    August 25, 2017 at 7:49 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Good for them.

  86. 86.

    Frankensteinbeck

    August 25, 2017 at 7:50 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:
    A black man made fun of Trump in front of the only people Trump thinks really matters (the press) and on national television. Utterly defeated Trump, pantsing him in front of the world. Trump is racist as SHIT. I keep having to revise upwards how hardcore racist he is. It galled him enough that a black president happened. Since then, his whole life has centered around getting revenge, and now he thought he got it, and it’s not working. Obama still defeats him, over and over again, without doing anything.

  87. 87.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 7:50 pm

    @trollhattan:

    I will never understand how one person can harvest one-quarter billion dollars departing from his job. Little wonder our economy doesn’t work for 75% of the population. Good thing Trump’s fixing that.

    When did you start writing comedy?

  88. 88.

    bupalos

    August 25, 2017 at 7:53 pm

    @clay: Really? No idea? How about because around >50% of people think trans folks are icky, so it’s viable, and something north of 95% of trump voters are a lot more than fine with anything done to hurt minorities. Add in that it’s one of the few things Trump can do by just by opening his disgusting pie-hole and we have a winner!

  89. 89.

    efgoldman

    August 25, 2017 at 7:53 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    will sue Trump administration as soon as Monday over trans military memo, Lambda tells me.

    Not surprised. The question was never if or when but who.
    Don’t they have to sue on behalf of a named trans service member who can claim harm, to get standing?

  90. 90.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 7:53 pm

    @CNN 11m11 minutes ago
    More
    Rockport, TX, officials advising hunkering residents to write name, Social Sec. # on forearm, mayor says http://cnn.it/2ww6zmf #Harvey2017

    My question: Is the city providing aid/help to folks who don’t have the means/money to evacuate? I mean buses? Shelters?

    Not everyone has means/money to just evacuate at the drop of a dime…and the hell with cities that don’t provide means for folks to do so

  91. 91.

    RandomMonster

    August 25, 2017 at 7:54 pm

    So glad the douchenazis organizing the “patriots” rally in SF called off their event at Chrissy Field on Saturday.

  92. 92.

    Another Scott

    August 25, 2017 at 7:55 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Nobody could have predicted…

    (groucho-roll-eyes.gif)

    It doesn’t look like it’s going to be a quiet weekend. :-(

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  93. 93.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 7:55 pm

    @Tazj:

    The Trump administration is just creating more problems.

    No one, not on either side expected anything other than massive problems. Only who the bad guys would be.

  94. 94.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 7:57 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    Obama still defeats him, over and over again, without doing anything.

    This is the only thing that gives me hope.

  95. 95.

    ruemara

    August 25, 2017 at 7:57 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Lord Valentine’s Castle! I loved that series.

  96. 96.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 7:59 pm

    @efgoldman: There are a number of trans servicepeople who are commenting, as far as I’ve seen so far, anonymously to reporters and others on Twitter. I have no doubt they will find someone to represent. The hesitation about timing may be a matter of deciding which case(s) is/are the best to bring.

  97. 97.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:01 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:
    Well drumpf’s brain is such a small and hazardous place that any thing inside of it is going to take up a lot of space and be twisted around to be something it never was. His fame. His money. His glory. His bullshit. President Obama.
    BTW that list is the entire contents of said “brain.”

  98. 98.

    debbie

    August 25, 2017 at 8:04 pm

    @dexwood:

    I see that scene outside the hotel, where you hear him scream, “Oh God, Mother, no!”

  99. 99.

    Mnemosyne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:04 pm

    @EBT:

    I would check that with your friendly neighborhood legal aid center. It may not be legal in California (but IANAL, so I don’t know for sure).

  100. 100.

    Frankensteinbeck

    August 25, 2017 at 8:04 pm

    @Ruckus:
    From what I can tell, ‘his hatred of everyone who isn’t a white male’ is on that very short list. He isn’t just racist, racism seems to actually matter to him.

  101. 101.

    Another Scott

    August 25, 2017 at 8:04 pm

    @clay: It’s the “who talked to him last” thing. RNS:

    […]

    But evangelical Christian leaders who informally advise the president discussed reversing the year-old policy two weeks ago at a meeting arranged by White House staff in Washington, D.C.

    The discussion came during a previously reported daylong meeting of evangelical leaders — including a number who had been on Trump’s evangelical advisory board during the campaign — on July 10 at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

    The building is next door to the White House and houses the offices of most of the White House staff. Various staff members were present throughout the meeting, listening and taking notes, said one of those who attended the meeting, evangelical author and public relations consultant Johnnie Moore.

    “It’s not the administration propagandizing,” he said. “It’s religious leaders, it’s the administration sitting at the table, taking notes, listening to them, asking questions and vice versa, and attempting to understand the needs of the community.”

    Moore said the policy on transgender people serving in the military had not been on the agenda for the meeting. It was one of many topics that came up throughout the day, including health care, taxes, religious liberty and judicial appointments.

    “We briefly discussed this issue,” Moore said.

    But earlier this week, the evangelicals followed up with a signed letter asking the president to reverse the Obama era policy allowing transgender people to serve in the military, Moore added.

    Moore said the evangelicals were more concerned about the nomination of an ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom.

    The White House on Wednesday announced President Trump plans to nominate Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback to fill that position.

    Photos shared widely on Twitter showed evangelical leaders laying hands on the president in prayer afterward in the Oval Office.

    “When we went to the Oval Office, we didn’t discuss a single issue. We just prayed with the president,” Moore said.

    […]

    That’s probably the first human contact he’d had in months. :-/

    I’m bummed out that they have, in addition to everything else, blown up a pleasant musical memory.

    (sigh)

    We have to fight them every single day…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  102. 102.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:05 pm

    #BREAKING Trump pardons controversial Arizona ex-sheriff Joe Arpaio: White House

    — AFP news agency (@AFP) August 26, 2017

  103. 103.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:06 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Not the least bit surprising, but OH FUCK anyway.

  104. 104.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:07 pm

    Cleek’s law, y’all.

    Trump's Arpaio pardon comes in the middle of a Cat-4 hurricane making landfall on a Friday night: pic.twitter.com/rYNjRQ5iu1

    — Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) August 26, 2017

  105. 105.

    Mnemosyne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:08 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    He isn’t just racist, racism seems to actually matter to him.

    Yup. I’ve run into plenty like him IRL. They are VERY INSISTENT that white people are superior and get very, very upset at any evidence otherwise.

  106. 106.

    tobie

    August 25, 2017 at 8:08 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: We need to create an uproar about this. Trump grants amnesty to a criminal and criminalizes and deports the innocent. I’m shocked and speechless but committed to fighting this kind of evil.

  107. 107.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 8:08 pm

    son of a bitch in the middle of a hurricane watch

    Trump pardons Arapaio!!!

  108. 108.

    JPL

    August 25, 2017 at 8:08 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Why not.

  109. 109.

    Steve in the ATL

    August 25, 2017 at 8:08 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: annoying, but probably not that big a deal. Everyone already knows what a POS arpaio is, he wasn’t going do any hard time, and now he’s admitted guilt.

  110. 110.

    Mnemosyne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Of course he did. He’s just that kind of racist asshole.

  111. 111.

    The Thin Black Duke

    August 25, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    Fuck all the assholes who put this monster in the White House.

  112. 112.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:10 pm

    Not sure I believe “The Federalist,” but they’re the kind of people Gorka would talk to.

    BREAKING: Sebastian Gorka resigns from White House. https://t.co/BVEB2qOCc6

    — Ben Domenech (@bdomenech) August 26, 2017

  113. 113.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 8:10 pm

    @ruemara: that cover tho

  114. 114.

    Jeffro

    August 25, 2017 at 8:10 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Jesus what a fucking coward

    But good – let’s draw some lines, let’s sharpen the distinctions here, GOP

  115. 115.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:10 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Jesus Fucking Christ.

  116. 116.

    Bobby Thomson

    August 25, 2017 at 8:13 pm

    DonJon himself could have emails with Putin asking if they can hack her emails and it wouldn’t make a difference. And not just to rabidly partisan Republicans.

    If they interfered with cast votes, you can’t spin it. If Trump was bribed, you can’t spin it. If Trump was blackmailed, you can’t spin it.

    But then, I thought him ripping off a charity would be enough.

  117. 117.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 8:14 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Trump all but said that he’d do it at his klan rally in Phoenix.

  118. 118.

    Sloane Ranger

    August 25, 2017 at 8:15 pm

    CNN just announced Arpaio pardon.

    Presenter calls it Friday night news dump in middle of hurricane.

  119. 119.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:15 pm

    Pardoning Arpaio sends message that impunity by law enforcement for profiling has no consequence & a tacit reward. Command climate matters.

    — Spencer Ackerman (@attackerman) August 26, 2017

  120. 120.

    Steeplejack

    August 25, 2017 at 8:16 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Just saw this confirmed on Chris Hayes’s show. WTF.

  121. 121.

    germy

    August 25, 2017 at 8:16 pm

    Richard Spencer reportedly stayed at Trump's D.C. hotel while he planned the Charlottesville rally. https://t.co/56WhT3ETQu— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) August 25, 2017

  122. 122.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:16 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:
    Yeah I left that one out. Don’t know how, it’s the id of the place. It’s almost like it doesn’t take him any actual thought, it’s more like instinct. I’m actually amazed that more people didn’t know that about the family, long before he decided to get even with all of us for not thinking that he’s the shit. See, it’s us that got it wrong. He’s the shit and this whole time we all thought he wasn’t the shit but was full of shit. Damn this stuff is hard.

  123. 123.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:16 pm

    @Sloane Ranger: Yeah, people I follow on Twitter are noting that releasing it now probably means they hope the hurricane news will cover it. Not happening on my Twitter feed, but the hurricane is young yet.

  124. 124.

    mouse tolliver

    August 25, 2017 at 8:16 pm

    So are we officially a banana republic now?

  125. 125.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:17 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: I know, but it is still shocking. He is saying it is okay to disobey valid court orders.

  126. 126.

    PsiFighter37

    August 25, 2017 at 8:17 pm

    Fuck Arpaio. Wonder if the media will bleat about this bullshit as much as they crowed on and on about Marc Rich.

  127. 127.

    JPL

    August 25, 2017 at 8:17 pm

    @Jeffro: Yup.. Trump is a coward, but I think teleprompter Trump is even worse. That’s when the media thinks he has become presidential. Arpaio ignored rape calls to round up brown people.

  128. 128.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    Friday.

    Hurricane Harvey grows to Cat 4 ✔️
    North Korea does something provocative ✔️
    Trump signs EO on military transgender ban ✔️
    Trump pardons Joe Arpaio ✔️

  129. 129.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    "Madison noted at the Virginia ratifying convention that abuse of the pardon power could be grounds for impeachment" https://t.co/vBH1LVAhzb

    — Jack Shafer (@jackshafer) August 26, 2017

  130. 130.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    @MaxKennerly
    Follow
    More
    Replying to @PreetBharara @heldincontempt
    Hey Preet, you ever seen a pre-sentencing pardon before?

  131. 131.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    @germy:
    Let’s see if sheriff fucking joe accepts the pardon, which confirms his guilt. Or is he as fucking dumb as his good buddy? He is as fucking evil.

  132. 132.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    I guess it’s as good a time as any to go to Canada.

  133. 133.

    debbie

    August 25, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Stop already!

  134. 134.

    Jim Parish

    August 25, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: It does seem to be drawn from the book; early on, the hero joins a troupe of jugglers (and is pretty good at it). I think the figure in the foreground is a Ghayrog.

  135. 135.

    Wapiti

    August 25, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    @Steve in the ATL: Yup. Once Arpario accepts the pardon, anyone with standing to sue him for damages needs to go after him.

  136. 136.

    chris

    August 25, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    This will all be swept away by the hurricane. Almost like they planned it…

  137. 137.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:22 pm

    My God.

    — Richard M. Nixon (@dick_nixon) August 26, 2017

  138. 138.

    MomSense

    August 25, 2017 at 8:22 pm

    @The Thin Black Duke:

    Come sit by me. I’m so mad I could spit and I hate spitting.

  139. 139.

    Mike in NC

    August 25, 2017 at 8:22 pm

    Alrighty then: Cat 4 hurricane about to smash Houston, dirtbag Sheriff Joe walks, North Korea shooting crazy missiles. Will any of us be alive come Sunday morning?

  140. 140.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:24 pm

    If you're Manafort or Flynn, seeing Trump pardon Arpaio is a very strong signal that you'll be taken care of too.

    — scary lawyerguy (@scarylawyerguy) August 26, 2017

  141. 141.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:24 pm

    Also
    What would anyone expect different from as big a fucking racist asshole like drumpf? Does anyone here think he will ever do anything normal or right? And if he did will it be any thing other than an oversight or senile moment?

  142. 142.

    Gelfling 545

    August 25, 2017 at 8:25 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: I could live with that result.

  143. 143.

    JGabriel

    August 25, 2017 at 8:25 pm

    AFP via Cheryl Rofer:

    #BREAKING Trump pardons controversial Arizona ex-sheriff Joe Arpaio: White House

    From the White House statement:

    Throughout his time as Sheriff, Arpaio continued his life’s work of protecting the public from the scourges of crime and illegal immigration

    .

    Undocumented immigration is the federal government’s bailiwick, not some jackass county sheriff’s. Arpaio ignored investigating hundreds of sexual abuse, rape, and child molestation cases just so he could devote his resources to hunting for brown people without papers.

    And now we have a government that will pardon people for breaking the law, ignoring a judge’s order, and abrogating people’s civil rights – as long as you’re a Republican.

    Fuck Arpaio, and fuck Trump for pardoning him.

  144. 144.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 8:25 pm

    The Nazis didn’t cancel their San Francisco protest, they’ve illegally moved it from the permitted national park to Alamo Square, which is just in a nice residential neighborhood and away from all the crowd control and planned security presence by the authorities.

    @Jim Parish: it looks like he’s juggling its eyes!

  145. 145.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 8:26 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    @abbydphillip
    Follow
    More
    Gorka was apparently mad Trump didn’t say “radical Islamic terrorism” in his Afghanistan speech:

  146. 146.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:26 pm

    #Harvey is beginning to slow down as the inner eyewall approaches Port Aransas. Very dangerous situation the next several hours #txwx pic.twitter.com/mLhjUeTF7N

    — NWS Brownsville (@NWSBrownsville) August 25, 2017

  147. 147.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 8:26 pm

    @mitchellreports 9m9 minutes ago
    More
    Wow @realDonaldTrump pardons Sheriff Arpaio who was convicted of criminal contempt for violating civil rights. Without DOJ recommendation

  148. 148.

    chris

    August 25, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    He's going to hurt as many people as he can during the time he has left. As for those hurt by disasters or war, he'll enjoy it, exploit it.— Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) 26 August 2017

    Nailed it IMO.

  149. 149.

    frosty fred

    August 25, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    @Mike in NC: My son-in-law is on Guam right now. I had been relieved to see the NK tension ratcheting down.

  150. 150.

    germy

    August 25, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    We'll see you in court, @realDonaldTrump. https://t.co/LjGWu7gU5J— ACLU National (@ACLU) August 25, 2017

  151. 151.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    We'll see you in court, @realDonaldTrump. https://t.co/LjGWu7gU5J

    — ACLU National (@ACLU) August 25, 2017

  152. 152.

    efgoldman

    August 25, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    @lamh36:

    Is the city providing aid/help to folks who don’t have the means/money to evacuate? I mean buses?

    There were buses, per CBS news, but they stopped for safety reasons.

  153. 153.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:29 pm

    Read all you want and need to https://t.co/8qUzKjZIgm pic.twitter.com/ZziAG01fmo

    — Ron Charles (@RonCharles) August 26, 2017

  154. 154.

    germy

    August 25, 2017 at 8:30 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    If you’re Manafort or Flynn, seeing Trump pardon Arpaio is a very strong signal that you’ll be taken care of too.

    But wouldn’t they be kidding themselves?

  155. 155.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 8:31 pm

    If they thought this Hurricane Watch news dump would work in their favor…think again.

    Arapaio lawyer already on CNN

    @frankthorp 3m3 minutes ago
    More
    Frank Thorp V Retweeted Vaughn Hillyard
    Arpaio holding presser Monday, per @VaughnHillyard. This story won’t be going away anytime soon.

  156. 156.

    Jim Parish

    August 25, 2017 at 8:33 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Yeah, it does, doesn’t it? Defense retracted.

  157. 157.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:34 pm

    @lamh36: Holy shit.

  158. 158.

    Gelfling 545

    August 25, 2017 at 8:34 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: They’re going to need luck because they can’t expect much help from the Trump regime.

  159. 159.

    Roger Moore

    August 25, 2017 at 8:34 pm

    @lamh36:

    Hey Preet, you ever seen a pre-sentencing pardon before?

    Nixon is the obvious example. Also, too, Carter pardoned the draft dodgers before most of them had even been charged.

  160. 160.

    Tuna

    August 25, 2017 at 8:34 pm

    @Jeffro: Have you not noted this Friday dump keeps the GOP off the Sunday talk shows.

  161. 161.

    Steve in the ATL

    August 25, 2017 at 8:34 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: if I were manafort or Flynn I would be much more afraid of Vlad’s wetworks team than Bob Mueller

  162. 162.

    lamh36

    August 25, 2017 at 8:35 pm

    @DavidNir 29m29 minutes ago
    More
    David Nir Retweeted Kaili Joy Gray
    It is now up to state prosecutors in Arizona to bring Arpaio to justice—Trump can’t pardon state crimes

  163. 163.

    mai naem mobile

    August 25, 2017 at 8:36 pm

    Pigfucker Dolt45 pardoned.Douchebag Joe Arpaio because he’s having a meltdown be a use of Russiagatw. I am sure congress is going to be up on arms about Arpaio like they were with Marc Rich right? right?

  164. 164.

    Ruckus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:36 pm

    @lamh36:
    Could be wrong but I believe he’s free to pardon anyone for any federal crime, before during or after. The DOJ recommendation is helpful so that pardons don’t turn into a political thing. And drumpf doesn’t do politics, only mistakes.

  165. 165.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:37 pm

    Sebastian Gorka just quit.

    ETA: He’s out. Don’t honestly know if he quit or was fired.

  166. 166.

    Roger Moore

    August 25, 2017 at 8:37 pm

    @germy:

    But wouldn’t they be kidding themselves?

    I’m sure Putin’s people would be happy to take care of them… the same way they took care of Alexander Litvinenko.

  167. 167.

    Trentrunner

    August 25, 2017 at 8:37 pm

    We need about 10 goddamn new threads…

    Chris Hayes is literally/seriously spinning plates right now on MSNBC

  168. 168.

    schrodingers_cat

    August 25, 2017 at 8:38 pm

    Just back from the neighborhood potluck. Yesterday we had our friends stop by for dinner. That’s enough socializing for the week, I think.

  169. 169.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:38 pm

    Tonight’s news dump is coming from the White House. Most other Friday night news dumps have been from news organizations investigating Trump. The Arpaio pardon and transgender ban are two things Trump has promised. There has been a lot of laughing at him this week for thinking that magic words from his mouth make things happen. He’s been pretty mad at lots of things this week, and that is probably one of them. So he did the paperwork and made these things happen.

    He is getting more desperate, and his aides are learning how the system works. Not a good combination.

  170. 170.

    Davebo

    August 25, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    Good on the Post but not sure why I’d go WAPO for Texas Hurricane info.

  171. 171.

    rikyrah

    August 25, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    @JamilSmith 5s6 seconds ago
    More
    He pardoned this generation’s Bull Connor, a man convicted of federal crimes. Bigots look out for their own, folks.

  172. 172.

    Cheryl Rofer

    August 25, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    @germy: That’s a good point. Trump can also abandon people if they do not serve his needs.

  173. 173.

    RandomMonster

    August 25, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: I hadn’t heard that. I thought part of their strategy was to concentrate on Berkeley.

    I used to live not so far from Alamo Square.

  174. 174.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 25, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Did you bring the potato salad?

  175. 175.

    germy

    August 25, 2017 at 8:41 pm

    He will absolutely pardon everyone up to and including himself unless some other branch of govt suddenly find the guts or smarts to stop him https://t.co/Cfk8GyNyAH— ??Bill Oakley?? (@thatbilloakley) August 26, 2017

  176. 176.

    Gelfling 545

    August 25, 2017 at 8:42 pm

    @Betty Cracker: We even get them here in Buffalo. A long time ago when I worked on the 35th floor of the then Marine Midland Center -I don’t know what they’re calling it now – we used to see them coming over the lake. I will admit that the first one I saw did give me pause., though.

  177. 177.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 8:43 pm

    @RandomMonster: my state senator is talking about it, I guess it’s developing.

  178. 178.

    TriassicSands

    August 25, 2017 at 8:43 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Yours is the last comment in the previous thread. I was away from the computer for awhile, but I wanted to respond, so I’ll stick my response here.

    You wrote:

    Bill Reid designed the beautiful sculpture that adorns the exterior atrium of the Canadian Embassy in DC. I think it’s called “Spirit of Haida Gwaii.”

    You’re correct and it is another truly beautiful work of art. Anyone who visits DC, should visit the Canadian Embassy to see it.

    In the late 90s, I took my sea kayak north to Haida Gwaii (formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands) and paddled to Skung Gwaii, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the location of a number of original totem poles. On the way, I stopped at Tanu to visit the site of Reid’s burial, which had taken place the previous month. Canadian logging practices can be horrifying and evidence is clearly visible on the islands of Haida Gwaii. Reid spent much time in his later life fighting the logging in Haida Gwaii.

    Reid died of Parkinson’s disease — an especially cruel fate for a man who had created such beauty with his hands. He’s given credit for reviving Northwest Coast native art, which is big business now. Years ago, I met and visited with an American man — of Finnish ancestry — who had taken up Northwest Coast native art. He was highly skilled — while I was visiting, he was working on a bentwood box that was already sold for $10,000.00 and that was over 30 years ago. I was and am ambivalent about whites adopting a native art for which they have no cultural experience or background. Some would say, art is art. But when Reid was studying to become an artist, he investigated the native traditions that were associated with the art and being lost. Very few Americans have ever heard of Reid or are familiar with his work. Additionally, I feel like we, whites, took so much from North America’s native people, why appropriate their art as well?

    You may already know all this, but I posted it to alert others to the existence of Reid’s art. Did you see the Spirit of Haida Gwaii in person?

  179. 179.

    efgoldman

    August 25, 2017 at 8:43 pm

    @Ruckus:

    he’s free to pardon anyone for any federal crime, before during or after.

    Yup. He can constitutionally pardon everybody under federal indictment, convicted of federal crimes, and in federal prison.
    If he keeps this shit up, however, the political fallout will be overwhelming.
    Also, ‘fie wuz Manafort, Flynn or Stone I wouldn’t expect any kid of loyalty. I’d expect they are already singing in Mueller’s choir.

  180. 180.

    schrodingers_cat

    August 25, 2017 at 8:44 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Pasta salad, I ran out of potatoes after yesterday’s dinner. I was totally unmotivated to go to the grocery store. Neighbors next door seem to be nice. Good to know people living down the street. I see many of them when I am walking or running.

  181. 181.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 8:44 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: This is Trump we’re talking about, it’s not shocking at all.

  182. 182.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 25, 2017 at 8:44 pm

    @Trentrunner: it really does feel like things just completely erupted everywhere right now, between the hurricane and the Bay Area Nazi rallies tomorrow and the pardon and the trans ban and…

    Well, I’m off to Vancouver now!

  183. 183.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 8:47 pm

    @Mike in NC:

    Will any of us be alive come Sunday morning?

    Yes.

  184. 184.

    Gelfling 545

    August 25, 2017 at 8:47 pm

    @Mnemosyne: I always wonder on what evidence they feel they can claim superiority over anyone as they are never exactly the brightest and the best.

  185. 185.

    MomSense

    August 25, 2017 at 8:47 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Have fun.

  186. 186.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:48 pm

    @TriassicSands:

    You may already know all this, but I posted it to alert others to the existence of Reid’s art. Did you see the Spirit of Haida Gwaii in person?

    Yes, indeed. During the 25 years I worked for the Canadian Consulate General in Atlanta, I was sent off to meetings and trainings and other gatherings at the Embassy at least a dozen times. It is a beautiful building, in a primo location. The Bill Reid sculpture is kind of off to the side but very hard to miss. Such a great visual and symbolic message for Canada to convey to the rest of the world.

  187. 187.

    Steeplejack

    August 25, 2017 at 8:48 pm

    Holy shnikeys! Naveed Jamali, “former FBI double agent,” just said on Chris Hayes’s show that Sebastian Gorka’s wife is also employed in the administration—and still is after his resignation. How was this not reported before? Or how did I miss it? I consider myself a fairly close reader of the news. I know it’s nepotism all the way down, but c’mon! The depths are stunning.

    Wikipedia:

    Katharine [Cornell] Gorka has also been involved with the administration of President Donald Trump, first serving on his transition team for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). She then became a policy advisor at DHS on April 7, 2017. In the wake of the deadly white-supremacist rally and counterprotest in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017, Katherine Gorka’s part at DHS in defunding Life After Hate, a group which reaches out to white supremacists, received attention.

  188. 188.

    rikyrah

    August 25, 2017 at 8:49 pm

    Keegan Stephan‏Verified account @KeeganNYC

    Trump may deputize school safety officers as immigration agents to detain children at school https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/aug/22/trump-immigration-us-schools-education-undocumented-migrants …

  189. 189.

    Citizen_X

    August 25, 2017 at 8:49 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: NOTHING HAPPENS IN AUGUST, right?

  190. 190.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:50 pm

    @TriassicSands:

    That is a beautiful memory, by the way.

  191. 191.

    MomSense

    August 25, 2017 at 8:51 pm

    @Steeplejack:

    The trump administration is a fire hose of bullshit. It’s impossible to keep up with all of it.

  192. 192.

    Shana

    August 25, 2017 at 8:51 pm

    OK, just skipping to the end without reading all the comments, but:

    Arpiao pardoned, Gorka out, transgender ban authorized/implemented: 1. for his racist base. 2. to try to mollify folks mad about his C’ville response. 3. to mollify his religious base (how is there such a thing). All of it to try to deflect from Flynn news and while we’re all paying attention to the hurricane.

    There is no cohearant strategy here. It’s just firing things off. He’s desperate and flailing.

    I’m both appalled and encouraged.

  193. 193.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    August 25, 2017 at 8:52 pm

    @mai naem mobile: The Marc Rich pardon went though DOJ, it was handled by Deputy AG Holder..

  194. 194.

    germy

    August 25, 2017 at 8:52 pm

    No coincidence Gorka resigns and Arpaio gets pardoned same night. The base was not going to like the 1st. So he threw them a bone on 2nd.— Ana Navarro (@ananavarro) August 26, 2017

  195. 195.

    rikyrah

    August 25, 2017 at 8:53 pm

    Ken Dilanian‏Verified account @KenDilanianNBC

    Ken Dilanian Retweeted Julia E. Ainsley

    Breaking: NBC News confirms Trump poised to end favorable treatment for Dream Act kids.

    Joy Reid‏Verified account @JoyAnnReid

    Joy Reid Retweeted Ken Dilanian

    Dear Hispanic non-voters: this is about xenophobic hatred of primarily *your* families. You have the numbers to stop this. Use them. Vote.

  196. 196.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 25, 2017 at 8:53 pm

    @Citizen_X:

    Can you guess who shared this pearl of marketing wisdom? “From a marketing point of view, you don’t introduce new products in August.”

    Was it Apple founder Steve Jobs? Advertising legend David Ogilvy? Good guesses, but no. It was White House chief of staff Andrew Card in September of 2002, explaining why the Bush administration didn’t make the case for the second Gulf War during the summer.

  197. 197.

    schrodingers_cat

    August 25, 2017 at 8:54 pm

    @rikyrah: Of course, he preys on the weak, and those who cannot retaliate.

  198. 198.

    rikyrah

    August 25, 2017 at 8:55 pm

    Preet Bharara
    ✔
    @PreetBharara

    This pardon is contrary to DOJ guidelines, unsurprisingly. Pure politics. Wonder what the pardon attorney’s official recommendation was. https://twitter.com/nbcnews/status/901233854668836864 …
    7:14 PM – Aug 25, 2017

  199. 199.

    efgoldman

    August 25, 2017 at 8:56 pm

    @Steeplejack:

    Sebastian Gorka’s wife is also employed in the administration—and still is after his resignation.

    Did she falsify her credentials with a phony advanced degree and a thesis cribbed in crayon from a random fourth grader, like Sebastian did?

  200. 200.

    gbbalto

    August 25, 2017 at 8:57 pm

    @Davebo: Excellent reporting from their Weather Gang. Take a look.

  201. 201.

    Iowa Old Lady

    August 25, 2017 at 8:58 pm

    @Shana: The Arpiao pardon and the transgender ban depress the hell out of me. It’s like people have no firm rights, just what this administration chooses to grant. They can give and they can take away based on politics or a whim.

  202. 202.

    The Moar You Know

    August 25, 2017 at 8:59 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: they want escape routes. Chrissy field is pretty much one way in and two ways out: the road or the bay. Guess they didn’t want to be beaten into the ocean. I’ll say this; if they think they’re goIng to have a no permit demonstration in a neighborhood like that, they’re going to find out the very hard way that SF cops are mean, don’t give a shit about the rights of protesters assholes like cops everywhere else.

  203. 203.

    Citizen_X

    August 25, 2017 at 9:01 pm

    @MomSense: So much “winning” I’m sick of it.

  204. 204.

    rikyrah

    August 25, 2017 at 9:02 pm

    Ari in for Maddow..booo….

  205. 205.

    debbie

    August 25, 2017 at 9:04 pm

    @The Moar You Know:

    They’ll prove themselves to be bigger babies than Baked Alaska.

  206. 206.

    Gvg

    August 25, 2017 at 9:04 pm

    @trollhattan: what is so scary about waterspouts? They do happen all the time. I have never heard of it causing any harm and they just make great photo’s.

  207. 207.

    NoraLenderbee

    August 25, 2017 at 9:05 pm

    @Eljai: “Harassment” in SF means drag queens came up and made goo-goo eyes at them. Eek, scary!

  208. 208.

    Shana

    August 25, 2017 at 9:08 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: I know what you mean. I can be very social, but only when I’m up for it. Lately I find I can’t communicate with anyone outside of email or commenting here.

    ETA: do you have a good potato salad recipe? Please share.

  209. 209.

    chris

    August 25, 2017 at 9:10 pm

    @The Moar You Know:There’s also this. Shoulda kept the dog poop a secret.

  210. 210.

    MomSense

    August 25, 2017 at 9:11 pm

    @Citizen_X:

    Seriously. This much winning is exhausting.

  211. 211.

    NoraLenderbee

    August 25, 2017 at 9:11 pm

    @Cheryl Rofer: Not sure he knows what “impunity” means.

  212. 212.

    J R in WV

    August 25, 2017 at 9:15 pm

    @trollhattan:

    When I was in the Navy homeport in Key West, we could see 3 or 4 west towards the Marquessas in the summer time. One came up onto the pier, dropped tons of water, filled with fish, onto the concrete. Never worried anyone that I know of.

  213. 213.

    Jeffro

    August 25, 2017 at 11:04 pm

    @Citizen_X: indictments in mid September

  214. 214.

    Laura

    August 25, 2017 at 11:29 pm

    @Eljai: you will look So Awesome in that shirt, so pull your shoulders back and stand tall!
    Also, there’s a much better version/view of this song on the youtubes.

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

Recent Comments

  • Manyakitty on Late Night Open Thread: That Feeling You’ve Been Cheated (Jun 7, 2023 @ 8:06am)
  • apocalipstick on Late Night Open Thread: That Feeling You’ve Been Cheated (Jun 7, 2023 @ 8:06am)
  • The Thin Black Duke on Late Night Open Thread: That Feeling You’ve Been Cheated (Jun 7, 2023 @ 8:06am)
  • Geminid on Late Night Open Thread: That Feeling You’ve Been Cheated (Jun 7, 2023 @ 8:03am)
  • evodevo on Late Night Open Thread: That Feeling You’ve Been Cheated (Jun 7, 2023 @ 8:01am)

Balloon Juice Meetups!

All Meetups
Seattle Meetup on Sat 5/13 at 5pm!

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Fundraising 2023-24

Wis*Dems Supreme Court + SD-8

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
We All Need A Little Kindness
Classified Documents: A Primer
State & Local Elections Discussion

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Mailing List Signup
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)

Twitter / Spoutible

Balloon Juice (Spoutible)
WaterGirl (Spoutible)
TaMara (Spoutible)
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
TaMara
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
ActualCitizensUnited

Join the Fight!

Join the Fight Signup Form
All Join the Fight Posts

Balloon Juice Events

5/14  The Apocalypse
5/20  Home Away from Home
5/29  We’re Back, Baby
7/21  Merging!

Balloon Juice for Ukraine

Donate

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!