Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Let’s finish the job.

How can republicans represent us when they don’t trust women?

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Whatever happens next week, the fight doesn’t end.

“I never thought they’d lock HIM up,” sobbed a distraught member of the Lock Her Up Party.

Putin dreamed of ending NATO, and now it’s Finnish-ed.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

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

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

But frankly mr. cole, I’ll be happier when you get back to telling us to go fuck ourselves.

This really is a full service blog.

I really should read my own blog.

The GOP is a fucking disgrace.

Ah, the different things are different argument.

Republicans do not pay their debts.

I didn’t have alien invasion on my 2023 BINGO card.

American History and Black History Cannot Be Separated

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

No Justins, No Peace

You are here: Home / Politics / Trumpery / Dolt 45 / Thursday Morning Open Thread: Shocker – Trump Thinks He Can Talk Himself Out of Mueller’s Inquiry

Thursday Morning Open Thread: Shocker – Trump Thinks He Can Talk Himself Out of Mueller’s Inquiry

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(John Deering via GoComics.com)
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Surprise! — his lawyers / enablers are less confident…


Kicker — count on the NYTimes Trump-fluffers to find the bright side:

Reader Interactions

147Comments

  9. 9.

    Chyron HR

    He’ll use the same excuse he used to not release his tax returns

    What, “I can’t testify while I’m under investigation”?

  10. 10.

    Baud

    Off topic, I’m impressed with the unity and message discipline that corporations have shown in selling the tax cut they received.

  13. 13.

    Quinerly

    @Baud: Would be an insane decision. In related news, Poco is awake….and basking in the glow of his BJ “photo spread.” He’s pretty full of himself this AM and it might take more than that cheese bribe to his PACK to keep him from running for the top of the ticket.

  15. 15.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    Drumpf said he said he was only “fighting back” against the charges of collusion when he fired Comey.

    I’m sure Mueller will appreciate that.

  18. 18.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    Kicker — count on the NYTimes Trump-fluffers to find the bright side to focus on Hillary

    /fixed

  20. 20.

    danielx

    More to come from Trump impromptu presser w reporters, where he complained at end that we only say Clinton was a “bad candidate. You never say I was a good candidate.”

    — Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) January 24, 2018

    A bottomless pit of need.

  21. 21.

    Baud

    Kay, for you.

    Historically, public-sector unions have focused their attention almost entirely on negotiating for higher wages and better benefits. These days, though, many are showing up at the bargaining table to fight not just for themselves but also for the people they serve — like students, foster children and taxpayers.

    “Unions in past decades were largely in the habit of servicing their members,” says Dan McGrath, executive director of TakeAction Minnesota, a progressive advocacy group. “Now they’re asking themselves to be at the edge of social change.”

    Many cite the 2012 strike by the Chicago Teachers Union as a seminal moment in what’s called bargaining for the common good. That’s when the union began to use its power to push progress beyond pay and benefits. By 2015, the union’s new contract included several requirements to help students, such as access to medical or mental health services and the expansion of after-school programs.

    http://www.governing.com/columns/smart-mgmt/gov-unions-bargaining-common-good.html?AMP

  22. 22.

    Cermet

    Morning everyone but really surprised that no BJ posters bothered to note, using a thread, that Ursula K. Le Guin passed, yesterday. I guess musicians are special people (also, apparently male) but someone who really addressed issues that woman faced in our society and was also a brilliant and successful writer isn’t important enough to get their interest here. She always noted how writers of SF or fantasy are always ignored for so-called ‘more serious’ writers. Guess it holds true here, as well.

  23. 23.

    Feebog

    Being on the left coast I am never awake to comment on the early morning thread. But the knee is killing me tonight so I’m watching a little Morning Joe, hoping it will put me to sleep. So good morning everyone, and hopefully goodnight.

  25. 25.

    Chet

    To say you welcome an investigation and will “of course” testify under oath if necessary is standard politician stuff.

    But we know Trump’s next move. He will pivot from this to the same statement with the qualifier “…as long as I’m sure that I’ll be treated fairly.” Then it will be back to calling it a witch hunt. When he’s eventually subpoenaed, he’ll complain about how mean it was since he was willing to testify all along.

  26. 26.

    TS

    Morning Ho still trying to equate President Obama to trump – he just HAS to attack Obama and Clinton – will still be doing this long after trump is gone from the planet

  29. 29.

    danielx

    Maybe I’ve missed it, but has Trump discussed the Stormy Daniels…thing publicly in any way?

  31. 31.

    Immanentize

    @Cermet: many many people here wrote amazing paeans to that great novelist. Long heartfelt, well thought through comments. Some were moving and described how Ms. La Guin impacted their lives. Others got nerdy and discussed great themes that resonate today. I am sorry you missed all that.

    And to add, my absolute least favorite genre of comment are scolding, “front page what I want!” Start your own blog for such purposes — it’s easy to do! And you can follow your personal interests without having to be all offended.

  36. 36.

    danielx

    Rob Major‏ @RobMajor4
    Replying to @HoarseWisperer

    Best idea I’ve seen: make Mueller’s deposition of Trump a Pay-Per-View event. With the money that pours in, they could pay for the Wall, Universal Health Care For All, plus pay the whole damn National Debt Off all in one go.

    The idea has merit….

  39. 39.

    debbie

    JFC, I just heard an NPR interview with Senator Ron Johnson. What a loon, but his refusal to answer questions and instead babble on without end was ridiculous. NPR needs to make their interviewees sign a non-interruption agreement. Nothing was gained in that conversation.

  46. 46.

    MomSense

    It certainly is interesting to see how twitchy these Republicans are about the Russia investigation. From the extent of their feeakout, I’m thinking the Mueller reveal is going to be yuuge..

  50. 50.

    Lapassionara

    @debbie: My impression is that they have passed benefits onto employees by laying them off. More free time for former employees, less expense for company. Win win.

    Now where is that sarcasm font?

    Good morning, all

  51. 51.

    mai naem mobile

    @debbie: I’ve seen Ron Johnson in a few hearings and he truly does not come across as the sharpest knife in the drawer. How WisConsin picked this moron over Feingold is a nmystery. One of the hearings was questioning HRC.

  52. 52.

    rikyrah

    One of the panelist on MSNBC last night made the observation that yesterday was the first time that Dolt45 said ‘ No obstruction’. He’s been lying about ‘No collusion’ for awhile. Good catch by her.

  54. 54.

    Matt McIrvin

    Can the President really be compelled to testify? Suppose he just keeps saying no, is somebody going to arrest him?

  56. 56.

    mai naem mobile

    @MomSense: whatever our fantasies are about the Russia stuff, I think it’s in total going to be ten times bigger. Nobody works this hard to hide stuff if it isn’t really really awful.

  59. 59.

    Matt McIrvin

    @debbie: They give out bonuses or little pay hikes, or hire a few employees, and tout to the heavens that this was because of Trump’s wonderful tax reform. Pay no attention to the mass layoffs behind the curtain.

  60. 60.

    mai naem mobile

    @Peale: do we even have am ambassador to Afghanistan yet? We don’t have one to Saudi Arabia. I don’t even think we have one for all the big European countries.

  65. 65.

    bystander

    I was just watching Mitch Landrieu on Moanin’ Joe, and the thought struck me, could he be a good candidate for POTUS? Then, Joe starts talking about what an “attractive” candidate Landrieu is. Which really made me worry since I generally want to be more than arm’s length from any Scarborough Rule.

    But is Landrieu possible? Some secret New Orleans pervasive corruption that taints everyone?

  70. 70.

    Matt McIrvin

    @mai naem mobile: Sure, they can compel him legally, but I’m wondering about this in the “power comes from the barrel of a gun” sense. Nobody actually had to arrest Bill Clinton. Is a US Marshal, say, going to be physically able to walk past the Secret Service and Trump Org bodyguards or whatever and put the President in handcuffs?

  71. 71.

    Nelle

    @Peale: On the other hand, we in Kansas will be rid of him though really, for the last few months, he’s just been going through the motions. Now Kobach is itching to take his place and an independent, with the possibility of splitting the Democratic vote, just entered the race, giving Kobach a better chance.

  73. 73.

    tobie

    @Quinerly: @Baud: I know I’m in the minority here but I’d be very excited if Kerry would run. He’s brilliant, articulate, a solid liberal, and he’s the only politician I can think of who could repair our reputation abroad.

  75. 75.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    @Matt McIrvin: he can be forced to appear in front of a grand jury via a subpoena. But once there, he does have the right to refuse to answer questions on the grounds that they may incriminate him (5th Amendment).

  76. 76.

    Chyron HR

    @Baud:

    Yes, but all but one of the prospective candidates will be denounced as the “Clinton wing of the party.”

    One thing I wonder/fear: What happens if the junior senator from Vermont doesn’t run, and two Our Revolutionaries step up, both claiming to have inherited his divine will? Will the alleged left refuse to vote if EITHER of them doesn’t win the primary?

  77. 77.

    Baud

    @tobie: He’s a solid guy, but I don’t see him as a compelling campaigner, especially now at his age and with his history.

  79. 79.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    approved Sam Brownback’s bid to be U.S. ambassador for international religious freedom

    As many of you know, I’m currently in line to be Ambassador to Merry Christmas.

  80. 80.

    Baud

    @Chyron HR: My nightmare scenario is that there are so many candidates that no one comes close to a majority and You Know Who is the top delegate winner with about 25%.

    But very unlikely.

  82. 82.

    Lurking Canadian

    What is a “perjury trap”? Is that when the prosecutor asks a question he already knows the answer to, expecting the witness to lie?

    Seems like an easy trap to avoid by the simple expedient of not lying after you’ve made a solemn vow to NOT LIE.

    Of course, it’s Trump. The man has never kept a promise in his life; probably no reason to expect him to start now

  86. 86.

    tobie

    @Baud: Well, you and he would definitely be competing for the same constituency! I don’t know if you’ve seen him in the past few years–I had the good fortune to see him a few years ago at the Paris climate summit and was struck at how energetic he was. I expected him to be statesmanlike and he didn’t disappoint.

  100. 100.

    Eric S.

    @debbie: My company, owners of several midwest utility companies are in the process of changing our rates so the money stays with our customers. I have no delusion this is being done for altruistic reasons. We are regulated monopolies with a guaranteed but called ROI.

  101. 101.

    bystander

    @Lurking Canadian: It’s only a perjury trap when twitler provides the answers. When it’s posed to a profligate about his private affair with a consenting adult after the investigation into financial impropriety proved fruitless, it’s truthseeking.

  102. 102.

    tobie

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: @Immanentize: I hadn’t looked up his actual age. In person he seems at least ten years younger than Biden and Sanders so I assumed he was junior to them.
    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady): This is harsh. I’d love to have a dynamic, smart and experienced person of color and/or woman run for office but I don’t see anyone who fits that bill. Gillibrand strikes me as milquetoast and is a weathervane when it comes to her positions; Kamala Harris has potential but she’s not ready yet; she freezes during TV interviews and at the rallies I’ve heard her, she’s an uninspiring speaker; Booker feels a bit like someone trying to be Obama’s second coming. Can you think of someone? Honest question, I’m not trolling.

  103. 103.

    satby

    You know, it’s so nice to be somewhere where Drumpf doesn’t dominate the news, and even if he did I wouldn’t understand it. Right now waiting another 90+ minutes before my plane to Bangkok takes off. Been a long 24 hours so far.

  104. 104.

    Chris

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    Wait, I thought the Republicans said “collusion” was A-OK? Now, I’m confused.

    As with climate change, it’s multilayered:

    1) Trump did not collude.
    2) Trump may have colluded, but that’s not actually illegal, at least not the way he did it.
    3) Trump may have colluded in ways that were actually illegal, but it’s okay because it was doing it to save the republic from Hillary Clinton.
    4) Trump colluding illegally may not have been okay even if he was doing it to save the republic from Hillary Clinton, but HILLARY’S EMAILZ!!! so both sides do it and shut up that’s why.

  105. 105.

    Matt McIrvin

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: That’s a good point–taking the Fifth is probably what would keep this from turning into an armed standoff, if Trump thinks testimony would incriminate him.

    More likely he’ll just blab everything because he has no self-control.

  109. 109.

    Another Scott

    @Chris: Even easier.

    “I said dozens of times that there **is** no collusion! That’s true. Collusion has no legal sanction. There **was** and **is** a **conspiracy** with Putin, **money laundering**, **admitted on national television (Lester Holt) obstruction of justice**, **violation of the Emoluments Clause**, and a host of other things that I’ve done that are illegal and impeachment-worthy. But, right now, there **is no collusion**. Suck it libtards.” – Donnie.

    :-/

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  112. 112.

    rikyrah

    1) QUICK THREAD on Mueller Probe

    The news that Rick Gates is cuttin’ a deal with Mueller is sendin’ shock-waves through the Trump admin today. Gates should have valuable evidence against Trump directly and will possibly flip Manafort in the bargain.https://t.co/7WI8ba5GTB

    — Tea Pain (@TeaPainUSA) January 24, 2018

    4) The reason is simple. Mueller is movin’ on Obstruction first because it is the quick kill-shot that knocks Trump off his throne and gets him out of office. Once Trump is a regular citizen, he’s more vulnerable to prosecution in other venues such as NY for his other crimes.

    — Tea Pain (@TeaPainUSA) January 24, 2018

  113. 113.

    Immanentize

    @Another Scott: in class Tuesday, we were discussing conspiracy charges and I told them that no one is allowed to ever use the word “collusion” in the class because it has no normative meaning. “Criminal conspiracy” has really well defined meaning(s).

  120. 120.

    Another Scott

    @tobie: It’s still very early.

    Obama could write great speaches, but his delivery wasn’t perfect by any means and he got better over time. Kamala and the rest can as well.

    I think we have time to let the process play out. We’ll have plenty of candidates to choose from and I don’t think we need to short-circuit it. Who knows, maybe MO’M and Terry Mac will run, also too.

    All politicians that have held office for a significant period of time have baggage. What matters is how they overcome it.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  121. 121.

    coin operated

    There’s a part of me that soooo wants to see the Trump interview conducted by a POC and a woman tag team and taped for the record. You can already see the right wing going full racist when they find out who did the questioning…

  126. 126.

    tobie

    @Another Scott: I agree there’s time, and right now there are so many more important issues to focus on like trying to preserve what remains of the social safety net than thinking about 2020. I’m just struck at how at odds I am with the current mood. I dislike populism, don’t believe in common sense or the wisdom of the common man, and really wished I lived in an age and a country where expertise was valued.

  129. 129.

    Jeffro

    On another, more on-topic note (for once!) the prospect of Trumpov agreeing to, then ducking, then trying to set conditions, then trying to add “BUT HILAAAARY!” bullshit*, then being subpoenaed, and so on…every single time, it’s going to raise yet more questions and look less & less like the actions of an innocent man and look more & more like EVEN MORE OBSTRUCTION.

    Please proceed, Republicans.

    *We’ve already seen a bit of this from Trumpov’s impromptu comments: “Did Hillary testify under oath? Did she? Didshedidshedidshedidshe???” Never mind that…yes, asshole, she did. It’s going to be almost funny the eleventy gazillion ways the RWNJs try to argue “well, that didn’t count…” Almost.

  130. 130.

    Kay

    Earlier this week, after her appearance at the pro-Trump gala on Saturday stirred plenty of controversy, a photo emerged of Chelsea Manning participating in an “Escape the Room” in Washington with far-right conspiracy theorists Cassandra Fairbanks and Jack Posobiec. Originally unearthed by reporter Yashar Ali, the photo helped cast doubt on Manning’s claims that she had simply “crashed” the party in order to “gather intel.”
    But the fallout from the photo doesn’t appear limited to Manning.
    While many of the figures are easily identifiable — in addition to Fairbanks and Posobiec, Lucian Wintrich of the far-right conspiracy site Gateway Pundit is also present — one man, with a salt-pepper beard and receding hairline, remained unknown. According to the photo, he’s tagged as “Jack Murphy aka John Goldman.”
    “Murphy,” as it is, maintains a relatively prominent Twitter presence within the so-called “New Right.” He also maintains a website where, in a post earlier this week, he admits being in the photo alongside Manning.
    However, “Murphy” doesn’t appear to be his real name. In an interview with WAMU, “Murphy” admitted that he is, indeed, Goldman, adding that he “love[s] everyone.”
    As Goldman wrote on his “Jack Murphy” site, “Because various political advocates were upset that Chelsea Manning appeared with Trump supporters, they investigated and discovered my identity for the express purpose of a public shaming.” Goldman, who didn’t respond to ThinkProgress’s questions, also admitted that he worked for the District of Columbia Public Charter School Board (DCPCSB), which had placed him on “administrative leave pending an investigation.”

    It’s tough for the snowflakes when their free speech leads to other people exercising free speech and objecting to the fact that a far Right misogynist is running their publicly-funded schools, and chose to conceal his views from the public, who pay him. Oh, the “public shaming”! It’s tough when the public find out what you think. That should be concealed from them, so they can continue to pay him.

    People in DC shouldn’t be allowed to know that a school board member thinks feminists should be raped. That’s important because if they knew that they would FIRE him, which is why he concealed it. But you should feel bad for him.

  131. 131.

    Kay

    Just to give you an idea how far Right Manning’s buddies are, this county went 70% for Trump.

    If we had a person on the school board who said feminists should be raped that person would have to resign or they would be removed. It’s generally unacceptable for school board members to advocate for violent crimes against women, because schools are 50% GIRLS. That he’s on a DC school board is so far from “representative” of the people who use those schools it’s ludicrous. He knew that. That’s why he hid it from them.

    The Wikileaks crowd should be cheering. All their bullshit about “transparency”? It applies to them too.

  133. 133.

    Bruce K

    Often enough an attorney’s worst enemy is not the judge, or the opposing attorney, but his/her own client. I’ve seen it in my own workplace, and I would not be surprised at all if attorneys who have represented the cheeto have that opinion about their client.

  134. 134.

    Librarian

    I believe that the lesson to be drawn from yesterday is that when Trump bullshits with reporters in an impromptu presser, nothing he says should be taken seriously.

  135. 135.

    Kay

    @tobie:

    I love that it’s in DC, too. Blue, blue, blue and also something like 80% AA in the public schools.

    I guess this is what Manning meant by “infiltrating”. Misrepresent or actively hide your views in order to trick the public into hiring you, then whine when you’re caught. So unfair! Why can’t a secret rape supporter serve on a school board? What happened to his rights, huh? It’s like this is Soviet Russia or something.

  136. 136.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @coin operated:
    It’s quite possible Mueller will have Trump interviewed by a woman. Beyond random chance, Mueller is supposed to be canny and experienced. He surely knows that a hardcore Misogynist like Trump will automatically talk over any woman questioning him, wildly increasing the chance of self-incrimination.

  137. 137.

    Amaranthine RBG

    Haberman was doing accurate reporting. It’s what journalism is

    There are supposed to be words in newspapers that are not breathless editorials condemning Trump

    Grow up people

  139. 139.

    MattF

    @Frankensteinbeck: Yes– but… walking through the door of an interview room will wildly increase the likelihood of self-incrimination. And I’m fairly sure he knows it. He may do it anyhow. We shall see.

  140. 140.

    Feebog

    @tobie:

    Regarding #102, there are plenty of potential candidates out there. Jay Inslee, Gov. of Washington, Chris Murphy, CN, Bill DiBlaiso, NY, Eric Garcetti, CA, Tammy Duckworth, IL. I personally want to see a younger person get the nomination. Time for a new generation of leadership.

  141. 141.

    Stan

    @Matt McIrvin:

    Can the President really be compelled to testify? Suppose he just keeps saying no, is somebody going to arrest him?

    Oh please, New York city police department, don’t let us down again……..

  142. 142.

    J R in WV

    @Cermet:

    There was a pretty through discussion in threads. Sorry you didn’t bother to read them. How do you feel about pie?

  145. 145.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Feebog: There are some good choices out there. I think Kamala Harris has the potential to make it work and overcome her deficiencies in the next couple years, and Gillibrand strikes me as the right sort of balance between principled and calculating – and she has good stage presence.

    There are a lot of other good candidates too. Jay Inslee might be a good candidate, as might Chris Murphy. Booker will do well if he can stay away from the Financial sector.

  146. 146.

    No One You Know

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady): I disagree. Experience is a dear teacher…in the old sense of “dear.”

    I maintain that a risk to democracy itself and possible Constitutional crisis thanks to decades of Republican ratfucking isn’t a time for loudly inexperienced hopefuls to burnish their resumes.

    Elizabeth of England, when asked how she felt in 1602, muttered something my rusty Latin recalls as “Mortua, et non sepultura.”

    If you want to be dead and not yet buried, well, you be you. I’ll be damned if I pass on a qualified candidate grooming a younger second just because “younger is better.” Wasn’t there a law against that, once?

  147. 147.

    No One You Know

    @No One You Know: ETA: I’m still pissed over the anti-Pelosi and anti-Hillary lists from The Hill last year. I don’t agree that old women should shut up just because younger women…to say nothing of young men…find them “inconvenient.”

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