• 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.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

Come on, man.

Just because you believe it, that doesn’t make it true.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

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

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

Incompetence, fear, or corruption? why not all three?

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

If you’re pissed about Biden’s speech, he was talking about you.

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

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

I really should read my own blog.

Peak wingnut was a lie.

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

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

White supremacy is terrorism.

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 / Politics / Trumpery / Hail to the Hairpiece / Friday Morning Open Thread: Repubs Just Want the Dirty Details

Friday Morning Open Thread: Repubs Just Want the Dirty Details

by Anne Laurie|  April 6, 20184:59 am| 167 Comments

This post is in: Hail to the Hairpiece, Open Threads, All we want is life beyond the thunderdome, Clown Shoes, Riveted By The Sociological Significance Of It All

FacebookTweetEmail

people ask what i like to do in my free time as if keeping up with the day's news cycle and meme cycle leaves any wiggle room

— Astead (@AsteadWesley) April 5, 2018


.

Okay, fair warning…

I am only milliseconds away from living up to my nickname. pic.twitter.com/sboQ1aoUnU

— Shenanigans The Cat (@ShenanigansCat) March 30, 2018

Apparently Ed Meese’s ridiculously comprehensive Pornography Report back during the Reagan years gave some professional Republicans a taste for voyeurism that hasn’t been adequately slacked since Ken Starr spent all those millions of taxpayer dollars in pursuit of The Clenis. Cuz they seem to be desperate for a fresh fix…

Reporter: "Mr. President, did you know about the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels?"

President Trump: "No." pic.twitter.com/wHTR7o5lqB

— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 5, 2018

Gentle reminder that the @GOP impeached Bill Clinton for telling a lie about the circumstances surrounding his infidelity. https://t.co/GtbcbWGNSU

— Propane Jane™ (@docrocktex26) April 5, 2018

[Warning: NSFW. Seriously. You have been warned.]

Donald Trump just fucked Michael Cohen so badly that Michael Cohen gave Michael Cohen $130,000 to be quiet about it.

— YS (@NYinLA2121) April 5, 2018

"Tell me about the president's hard cock, you coward" is a take I was honestly unprepared for pic.twitter.com/nhPZAgOrIl

— Chase Mitchell (@ChaseMit) April 5, 2018

Mueller sighs and pulls both hands over his face for what seems like eternity. Finally, with a perceptible sag, he rasps, “I guess we’re talking to Stormy Daniels.”

— Schooley (@Rschooley) April 5, 2018

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Late Night Crankypants Grifters Open Thread: STFU, Sen. Sanders
Next Post: On the Road and In Your Backyard »

Reader Interactions

167Comments

  1. 1.

    NotMax

    April 6, 2018 at 5:13 am

    Wherein we learn why Justice really wears that blindfold.

  2. 2.

    gene108

    April 6, 2018 at 5:14 am

    The Republicans got Clinton under oath, in the Lewinsky affair. Whether he actually perjured himself or not is debatable.

    Republicans will do everything in their power to keep Trump from saying anything under oath, so Trump is free to lie to the media at will.

    And Republicans will harp on the distinction of under oath and not under oath, because it is all they have.

  3. 3.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 5:14 am

    Blech.

  4. 4.

    WereBear

    April 6, 2018 at 5:43 am

    Stupidity got them into this, why can’t it get them out?

  5. 5.

    MattF

    April 6, 2018 at 5:48 am

    @gene108: ‘Oath’? What’s an ‘oath’? Some sort of pagan ritual? The only things that matter to Trump are the three ‘B’s– Bluster, Bullshit, and Bullying.

  6. 6.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 5:53 am

    Jeebus… A 13 on a par 5, and from the guy who won the Masters last year.

  7. 7.

    raven

    April 6, 2018 at 6:00 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: You need to see how the ball rolls into the water.

  8. 8.

    Cermet

    April 6, 2018 at 6:01 am

    Well, again, the tariff stuff is just empty bullshit; these are bluff’s that the orange floating fart cloud will never imperilment but rather, will continue to “authorize” the negotiator’s to use (which they won’t, of course because their not stupid) and after we create a “new” trade pact (read same old one with new wiggle words) the orange pile of shit will declare victory and never raise any tariff’s. His base, being morons, will believe again they were saved by the fart cloud and we continue on the the stock market will return to its over-priced normal. No need to sell one’s 401K’s etc. because in two months, this will all be a forgotten (the facts, that is) memory (still the economic basics are terrible but those chickens haven’t come home to roast, yet.)

  9. 9.

    kd bart

    April 6, 2018 at 6:02 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: He Tin Cupped it.

  10. 10.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    April 6, 2018 at 6:02 am

    Mueller seized Manafort’s bank accounts and issued new taps on 5 phones

    Special Counsel Robert Mueller moved to seized bank accounts one day prior to the indictment of Paul Manafort and sought phone taps on five new phones, Politico reported late Thursday.

    raises the question, who’s paying for his defense and what is the dollar to rubles conversion rate..

  11. 11.

    Jeffro

    April 6, 2018 at 6:04 am

    Schooley, as usual, SO on point…

    Bobby Three Sticks, speaking for the sane half of the country, Balloon Juice feels your pain and appreciates your sacrifice. Just know that History Has Its Eyes On You, so don’t throw away Your Shot! (Let’s have some more indictments later today please – progressives deserve a little pick-me-up after a long week! Also, justice.)

    Btw there seem to be multiple news articles out about how Marsha Blackburn is down 10 points in the polls (Tennessee Gov, I believe) due to her special brand of crazy. What “special brand?” – it’s called the modern GOP, reporters. She ain’t but 1 degree different from every other Republican out there, she just happens to like bringing pictures of fetuses around with her. The rest of the GOP believes the exact same nutty, false things (like how PP runs a mail-order baby parts business), they just forgot to bring pics.

  12. 12.

    satby

    April 6, 2018 at 6:08 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: this morning, on this topic, right there with ya. BLECH!

  13. 13.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 6:08 am

    God dammit, we’re all going to end up seeing it either because of l’affaire stormy or the pee pee tape.

    I hate reality tv shows.

  14. 14.

    Alain the site fixer

    April 6, 2018 at 6:09 am

    @gene108: he didn’t. DC law is that sexual relations involves vaginal or anal penile penetration, and they didn’t do that. He was a sneaky lawyer type, but he didn’t perjure himself.

  15. 15.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    April 6, 2018 at 6:09 am

    Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman bragged of receiving classified US intelligence from Jared Kushner

    I’m old enough to remember when the media obsessed about the potential mishandling of classified material.

  16. 16.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    April 6, 2018 at 6:11 am

    @MomSense:

    we’re all going to end up seeing it

    But I don’t own a microscope.

  17. 17.

    Schlemazel

    April 6, 2018 at 6:12 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    wasn’t the hole from Tin Cup was it?

    EDT: annnnd, immediately see everyone else got there before me.

  18. 18.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    April 6, 2018 at 6:12 am

    @Jeffro:

    Btw there seem to be multiple news articles out about how Marsha Blackburn is down 10 points in the polls (Tennessee GovSen, I believe)

    She’s running for Bob Corker’s seat.

  19. 19.

    Mustang Bobby

    April 6, 2018 at 6:13 am

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: To quote a line from Paddy Chayevsky’s film “The Hospital” — “Looks like a pen1s, only smaller.”

  20. 20.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 6:16 am

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch:
    @Mustang Bobby:
    ????

  21. 21.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 6:19 am

    @Jeffro:

    Oh and there is a new story out that a Saudi Prince is saying Jared brought him US intelligence.

  22. 22.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 6:20 am

    Good Morning Everyone ???

  23. 23.

    Central Planning

    April 6, 2018 at 6:20 am

    @Alain the site fixer: putting something in your pen1s counts as sexual relations? Ewww. And ouch!

  24. 24.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    April 6, 2018 at 6:23 am

    @rikyrah: Good morning ?

  25. 25.

    Central Planning

    April 6, 2018 at 6:23 am

    Stupid attempt at a joke stuck in moderation. Help, please!

  26. 26.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    April 6, 2018 at 6:25 am

    @Central Planning:

    Stupid attempt at a joke stuck in moderation

    That’ll learn ya.

  27. 27.

    NotMax

    April 6, 2018 at 6:28 am

    A smidgen of feel good news.

    After Forgetting Her Passport, This Woman Turned to the Internet for Help — and It Delivered

  28. 28.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 6:28 am

    @MomSense:
    Voting for the pee pee tape

  29. 29.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 6:29 am

    @raven: Unfortunately not working for me. Tiger had a bit of a rough day too.

  30. 30.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 6:32 am

    @NotMax:
    That was a cool story ?

  31. 31.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 6:32 am

    @MomSense:
    Link?

  32. 32.

    Waldo

    April 6, 2018 at 6:37 am

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: Jared must have heard good things about Dad’s time at federal sleep-away camp — cause he’s just begging to be sent there.

  33. 33.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 6:37 am

    @rikyrah:

    My linking ability is slow right now. Malcolm
    Nance tweeted the daily mail story.

  34. 34.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 6:39 am

    @rikyrah:

    Jared gave Intelligence to Saudi Prince

  35. 35.

    raven

    April 6, 2018 at 6:43 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: One over is ok, I just hope he makes the cut. It’s supposed to rain all day tomorrow so that will make it interesting.

  36. 36.

    Central Planning

    April 6, 2018 at 6:46 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA: probably not :D

  37. 37.

    Immanentize

    April 6, 2018 at 6:49 am

    @MomSense:
    I hope Adam is not too busy today to give us his hot take on this later.
    AND the weekend cannot get here fast enough for me.

  38. 38.

    Feathers

    April 6, 2018 at 6:52 am

    @Alain the site fixer: And, IIRC, the Paula Jones team had defined sexual relations as something a man does to a woman (revealing, no?), so his answer in the deposition was overlawyerly, but not perjury. Which at the time, so many people claiming to be Clinton fans just flat out said they didn’t care about, because being morally superior is such a high. These folks also claimed that they didn’t care about the affair, just the lying. People, it’s the lying that makes it an affair!

    Also, a reminder that the Jones lawsuit was a novel, never used before claim. The statute of limitations had run out on his being liable under the applicable laws. I don’t have a problem with the President being called to testify, the case law involved should be reasonably settled, otherwise you are just inviting mischief. IANAL, if I’m wrong on this, let me know.

    @raven: Man, that is what fairy did you not invite to you christening level of shit.

  39. 39.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 6:54 am

    @raven: Something about those par 5s gave him fits.

    After 20 years of playing here, Woods knows the course as well as anyone. You would not have guessed it watching him on the 15th, where he sliced his first shot so far right that he ended up playing off the 17th, and pulled his second so far left that he was almost back on the 13th again. Call it the scenic route. He got down in five, which meant he played all four of the par‑fives in level par. He said himself that they were the difference to his round. “If I’d just played the par‑fives better, I’d be right up there.”

    Made me laugh. Needed more than a little luck to pull par on that one. He’s a pro tho, he’ll be OK.

  40. 40.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 6:58 am

    @MomSense:
    ???

  41. 41.

    Baud

    April 6, 2018 at 6:59 am

    @rikyrah: Good morning.

  42. 42.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 7:05 am

    @Immanentize:

    I’m hoping I can get through today. I woke up to go to the gym but I think the cold I’ve been evading finally caught me. It’s also wicked cold in that particular pre-snow way that you feel in your bones.

    What bothers me about the blatant corruption and traitorous behavior of the trump administration is that they are not behaving as though they expect to be held accountable. Do they have private jets fueled and ready to take them to non extradition locales? Are they very confident that the Russian hacking will prevent us from using our vote to get rid of them?

  43. 43.

    debbie

    April 6, 2018 at 7:12 am

    @WereBear:

    Because they think even more stupidity will save them and return them to their always-deserved position of preeminence.

  44. 44.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 7:13 am

    @MomSense:

    behavior of the trump administration is that they are not behaving as though they expect to be held accountable.

    SSDD. They’ve never been held to account before so they believe that whatever they do it’s OK.

  45. 45.

    debbie

    April 6, 2018 at 7:14 am

    @raven:

    I missed the sports reports — are the azaleas still in bloom there?

  46. 46.

    Geeno

    April 6, 2018 at 7:16 am

    @raven: That was brutal

  47. 47.

    Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady)

    April 6, 2018 at 7:22 am

    @Alain the site fixer: So in DC, lesbians are perpetual virgins?

  48. 48.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 7:23 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Yeah but Jared had to visit his dad in federal prison. Something is afoot. As the old abolitionists in Boston used to say, “keep top eye”. I really think we have to prepare ourselves for 2016 election meddling on steroids and it is going to hit in a month or six weeks.

  49. 49.

    WereBear

    April 6, 2018 at 7:23 am

    @MomSense: What bothers me about the blatant corruption and traitorous behavior of the trump administration is that they are not behaving as though they expect to be held accountable. Do they have private jets fueled and ready to take them to non extradition locales? Are they very confident that the Russian hacking will prevent us from using our vote to get rid of them?

    I read a lot of true crime, forensic psychology, and the like. And it’s not at all like the movies, where there’s this super-genius heading a band of specialists, or someone so tricky they evade the police with all their tactics. There’s a few bank robber teams, and determined psychopaths, who manage something kind of like that, but 90% of all crime is stick-stone-quantum stupid.

    These asses developed their “game” in an atmosphere of Republican dominance, where opposition was bribed or undercut or simply swayed by the oceans of cash the billionaire fanatics at the root of this criminal enterprise could throw around. Never called on the carpet by their followers, and easily silencing their critics, most of whom were not allowed at the table, anyway. With enough entrenched power that only the stupidest fall-guys went down, and everyone else agreed they would never be that stupid.

    It’s exactly like the Mafia at its zenith, where they murdered and stole and intimidated with impunity, because J. Edgar Hoover was in denial about their existence for decades, and he had the blackmail files to make everyone else go along with him.

    I understand Mueller has considerable RICO experience, and I couldn’t be happier about it. That is what this is, and who they are, and it only worked for so long because they had rigged the system.

    Not because they are so smart. They aren’t. They think this time will be like all the other times.

  50. 50.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 7:31 am

    @WereBear:

    I hope you’re right but I don’t think we can count on just stupidity. They’ve got some powerful and capable international actors on their side. I just think it’s better to be prepared because recognizing actions as they happen is far preferable.

  51. 51.

    WereBear

    April 6, 2018 at 7:36 am

    @MomSense: I don’t count on just stupidity. But it is a help in our cause… we never have that cushion. We try to weed out our stupid, not embrace it as our peak :)

    But…

    This carelessness has bred such a crime empire it became visible. From space. And made them vulnerable.

    We all have to do our part in its downfall.

  52. 52.

    Schlemazel

    April 6, 2018 at 7:36 am

    @Central Planning:
    There is a percentage of men who get off on prostate stimulation via the urethra. So there is another piece of useless trivia you could have happily gone your whole life without knowing

    I know this because of a cathing blog I used to follow & they were thrilled (unlike everyone else) at the thought of self cathing and bragged about it.

  53. 53.

    Schlemazel

    April 6, 2018 at 7:37 am

    @Central Planning:
    If FYWP becomes good at moderating bad jokes this blog will get a lot shorter!

  54. 54.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 7:37 am

    @MomSense:

    Yeah but Jared had to visit his dad in federal prison.

    Jared has never shown the capability of learning from his own mistakes much less the mistakes of others. Election meddling may or may not play as prominent a role in the future as it did in 2016 (it will happen) but I have a hard time seeing Jared as playing any roll in some great plot to overthrow American democracy other than “useful idiot”.

  55. 55.

    satby

    April 6, 2018 at 7:39 am

    @Schlemazel: sigh. BLECH x2.

  56. 56.

    Princess

    April 6, 2018 at 7:39 am

    @Cermet: In the meantime, someone is making bank on these huge swings in the market.

  57. 57.

    WereBear

    April 6, 2018 at 7:47 am

    @Schlemazel: Apparently Kinsey himself was one of them.

  58. 58.

    Schlemazel

    April 6, 2018 at 7:48 am

    Did I miss it or has Cole never told us of the resolution to the great sofa.raised bed debacle?

  59. 59.

    randy khan

    April 6, 2018 at 7:48 am

    @raven:

    One of his 5 shots on that hole that went into the water. That’s Tin Cup territory.

  60. 60.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    April 6, 2018 at 7:48 am

    Special Counsel Robert Mueller has obtained evidence that calls into question Congressional testimony given by Trump supporter and Blackwater founder Erik Prince last year, when he described a meeting in Seychelles with a Russian financier close to Vladimir Putin as a casual chance encounter “over a beer,” sources tell ABC News. (link)

    If they did nothing wrong, why do they keep covering-up

  61. 61.

    Schlemazel

    April 6, 2018 at 7:50 am

    @WereBear:
    I did not know that. I learned a couple of other things from that place I didn’t need to know but not that tidbit.

  62. 62.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 7:53 am

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch:
    Nader

  63. 63.

    Kay

    April 6, 2018 at 7:57 am

    @WereBear:

    It’s exactly like the Mafia at its zenith

    I prefer blue collar criminals. At least they don’t pretend to just “intuitively” know everything about everything.

    Imagine the arrogance of Kushner- he wanted to reinvent government and he has never worked in government.

    They’re too special to start at the bottom, either. They get promoted right to the top jobs.

  64. 64.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 8:02 am

    @MomSense:
    I understand your concern. I don’t underestimate it at all. But, we know what to look for now. And, I believe that we know that we have to vote.

  65. 65.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 8:03 am

    @Kay:
    I hear you, Kay.

  66. 66.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 8:10 am

    @rikyrah:

    Let’s just hope the vote is fair. As it stands now we have been warned by all of our intelligence officials that Russia is engaged in ongoing and increased active measures and that we are doing almost nothing to stop it. And if Russia can hack all of our vulnerable systems, you know China can.
    I am not saying this because I think all is lost- not at all. I’m saying this because we have to act now. We need to ask our state officials what they are doing to protect our vote. We need to make sure we have paper ballots. If the vote is fair we will win big. We have to make sure now that our vote will be fair.

  67. 67.

    Amir Khalid

    April 6, 2018 at 8:13 am

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch:
    They always cover up what they are doing, as a matter of reflex, just in case it’s connected to something hinky. And it usually is.

  68. 68.

    Kay

    April 6, 2018 at 8:13 am

    @rikyrah:

    They want everything. They want to run this criminal cartel and ALSO be running everything else. It’s greed and arrogance. Manafort could have kept his sleazy scam going forever, but it wasn’t enough. He needed more.

    It’s not enough for Ivanka Trump that she inherited a business. She also has to weigh in on STEM education for 50 million children and represent the US overseas. I can’t imagine the sense of entitlement these people operate in. It’s instilled at birth, by their equally sleazy and awful parents.

  69. 69.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 8:16 am

    Thread about Bobby Three Sticks latest actions against Manafort

    https://twitter.com/renato_mariotti/status/982070843214884864?s=19

  70. 70.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 8:33 am

    @Feathers:

    so his answer in the deposition was overlawyerly, but not perjury. Which at the time, so many people claiming to be Clinton fans just flat out said they didn’t care about, because being morally superior is such a high. These folks also claimed that they didn’t care about the affair, just the lying. People, it’s the lying that makes it an affair!

    Wow! This rationalization is Onion level satire. Then again, maybe DC law defines sexual relations so narrowly so that politicians can suck lobbyists’ dicks and claim that they did nothing wrong.

    Clinton lied. The impeachment was total, absolute bullshit. And all this shit is in the past. Trump is the clear and present danger.

  71. 71.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 8:36 am

    @Kay:
    Yep. They could have stayed in their lane, but, no, they had to believe that they were entitled to everything ?

  72. 72.

    JR

    April 6, 2018 at 8:38 am

    @MomSense: Charles X was a restored “absolute” monarch in France. There was some semblance of representative government there but only like 0.1% of the population was eligible to vote and even fewer eligible for office. Old opponents had been purged and the press was largely controlled by the government. In spite of this overwhelming power, he ruled ignorantly and was a shitty representative of even the wealthiest people. When opposition arose in earnest he dissolved parliaments, cancelled elections, suppressed speech, etc. It still wasn’t enough. Popular will is hard to oppose. It took a while. In the historical context the opposition to Trump came up pretty quickly and has been fairly robust, if not unanimous.

  73. 73.

    Schlemazel

    April 6, 2018 at 8:45 am

    @Brachiator:
    Yes, he lied but he did not perjure himself. He was asked a question regarding sex & asked for a definition of ‘sex’ because the question was oddly worded. The lawyer defined it as vaginal penetration using your penis. Clinton honestly answered no. Worse was that the lawyer knew what had happened & knew there had been no copulation so he was attempting to suborn perjury.

    If lying to the electorate is an impeachable offense we will never have another POTUS. Clinton was has a poor personal moral compass but that (like the stormy thing) is really none of my business. It might have affected my support for him in the primaries but he did not do anything that was criminal

  74. 74.

    Patricia Kayden

    April 6, 2018 at 8:49 am

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: How isn’t this front page news and a scandal of such epic proportions that it deserves at least 10 Benghazi-style investigations? What can’t these idiots get away with?

  75. 75.

    Barbara

    April 6, 2018 at 8:56 am

    @MomSense: Now you know the real reason Kelly took the opportunity to downgrade Kushner’s clearance and with stories like this, he isn’t getting it back.

  76. 76.

    Central Planning

    April 6, 2018 at 9:05 am

    @Schlemazel: Is it really useless to fill your brain with trivia? If I use that factoid once in my life, it will no longer be useless information.

    I am almost curious enough to look that up, but I’m afraid that would squick me out like the time someone told me to check out the popping subreddit (WARNING: DON’T!)

  77. 77.

    Betty Cracker

    April 6, 2018 at 9:12 am

    @Kay: Several months back, I read a story about Kushner’s purchase of the NY Observer. This one woman — I think she ran the paper’s digital ops — got along well with Kushner, but she said he was utterly clueless about how distribution and advertising worked, not interested in learning anything about it and determined to change it anyway. The woman quit soon after.

    I don’t know where Kushner and Ivanka get their ideas about business, but they sound like PowerPoint is their native tongue, and they barf up shallow generalities like they’re running some low-rent business seminar at a Holiday Inn with stale doughnuts and weak coffee. No wonder their toddlers are learning Mandarin — it’s an escape! ;-)

  78. 78.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    April 6, 2018 at 9:15 am

    So in 15 yrs (assuming we survive), who gets cast as what in the docudrama?

    Aside from Clooney as Mueller and the Jabba the Hutt CGI as Trump, I’m drawing blanks.

  79. 79.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 9:18 am

    @Betty Cracker:

    This one woman — I think she ran the paper’s digital ops — got along well with Kushner, but she said he was utterly clueless about how distribution and advertising worked, not interested in learning anything about it and determined to change it anyway.

    Damn. Sounds just like Trump.

    Did you see the politico piece about Trump’s management style? All these grifters think alike.

    https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/04/05/trump-tower-white-house-217778

  80. 80.

    manyakitty

    April 6, 2018 at 9:22 am

    @Immanentize: As much as this is almost certainly true, it’s only been published by the Intercept and the Daily Mail. I can’t view either as a valid source.

    ETA: And OMG, YES, bring on the weekend already! This week lasted at least a year.

  81. 81.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 9:24 am

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: Gwyneth Paltrow as Ivanka?

  82. 82.

    Frankensteinbeck

    April 6, 2018 at 9:25 am

    @Cermet:
    I think you are basically correct, but it is the going back to normal no one will notice. The only ongoing effect will be another ‘Trump is a shitty president’ meme lurking in people’s heads. This one will be mostly in farmers’ heads. I doubt it will change much, but hey, another straw on the camel’s back.

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady):
    In Ancient Greece, that was their attitude. Artemis and Athena were that kind of ‘virgin.’

  83. 83.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 9:26 am

    @Schlemazel: From an old WaPo story.

    President Bill Clinton stood at a White House podium and told the world, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky …

    This was a lie. Period.

    And how many times do I have to say here that the impeachment was total, absolute bullshit? I have been consistent about this from the very beginning. This is a non-issue, apart from Clinton’s orgasms.

    Also, impeachment is ultimately a political act, so Congress has a lot of room to move. Trump supporters should take this to heart.

  84. 84.

    manyakitty

    April 6, 2018 at 9:27 am

    @Schlemazel: ew.

  85. 85.

    Procopius

    April 6, 2018 at 9:34 am

    Gentle reminder that the @GOP impeached Bill Clinton for telling a lie about the circumstances surrounding his infidelity.

    There is not a chance that the GOP will impeach Donald Trump. If he shot a guy in the middle of Fifth Avenue they wouldn’t even investigate it. It doesn’t matter if the Democrats take the House in November or not (they might if we could cut off funding to the DCCC).

  86. 86.

    Raven Onthill

    April 6, 2018 at 9:40 am

    @MomSense: “What bothers me about the blatant corruption and traitorous behavior of the trump administration is that they are not behaving as though they expect to be held accountable.”

    Because some of them have already gotten away with it.

    Nixon’s staff did (and Nixon himself got off easy.) Reagan and his staff did. W. Bush did. Some of them are back in this administration.

    This mercy shown to such people has got to stop.

  87. 87.

    Raven Onthill

    April 6, 2018 at 9:41 am

    On a sillier note, here’s The Internet of Shit Song.

  88. 88.

    Betty Cracker

    April 6, 2018 at 9:46 am

    @Procopius: If the Democrats take the House and Mueller finds sufficient evidence of corruption and collusion, I think there’s a decent chance Trump could be impeached — it just takes a majority, IIRC. A conviction in the US Senate, which takes a 23rds majority, would be a near-impossibility, IMO. The only way that happens is if the Republicans are absolutely certain that Trump’s remaining in office hurts them more than throwing him out would.

  89. 89.

    Duane

    April 6, 2018 at 9:51 am

    @raven: Why the love for Tiger? He’s a Trump humpin, tax cut lovin ass. Like most of his PGA cohorts. I hope he never makes a cut again.

  90. 90.

    JPL

    April 6, 2018 at 9:51 am

    @Betty Cracker: It would help if his trade antics tanked the market. The republicans would then take notice. At this point, I think traders assume he is bluffing.

  91. 91.

    danielx

    April 6, 2018 at 9:56 am

    Oh, I SO did not need this particular line of thought during first cup of coffee. Things getting dark, vision blurring at the edges….

  92. 92.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 6, 2018 at 9:56 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Gwyneth Paltrow as Ivanka?

    That casting is beyond perfect in every way!

    Pee-Wee Herman as Jared.

  93. 93.

    Omnes Omnibus

    April 6, 2018 at 9:57 am

    @Brachiator: Lie=/=perjury.

  94. 94.

    Amir Khalid

    April 6, 2018 at 9:59 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    Although Gwyneth doesn’t even have to act to do Ivanka’s entiled-princess thing, I think she’s slightly too old for the part.

  95. 95.

    JPL

    April 6, 2018 at 10:04 am

    I find it interesting that Ivanka, not Melania is traveling with Trump next week to the Summit.

  96. 96.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 10:05 am

    @Betty Cracker:

    A conviction in the US Senate, which takes a 23rds majority, would be a near-impossibility,

    Which is why I doubt the DEMs will do it. They will just investigate every malfeasance and corruption the trump admin has done. Well, not every one of them, they’ll have to shower breaks from time to time.

  97. 97.

    satby

    April 6, 2018 at 10:07 am

    Ok, so I liked this essay making the rounds on the book of face today. (Link goes to original site, not FB).

  98. 98.

    satby

    April 6, 2018 at 10:11 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: I think they will. An impeachment trial and the blatantly obvious Republican CYA will damage the Republicans even without a conviction. Plus it adds another bit of taint to an already hopelessly tainted *president*. And, if it pisses him off enough, he might decide to resign.
    All worth the risk.

  99. 99.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 10:13 am

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Pee-Wee Herman as Jared.

    Yes!

    @Amir Khalid: The fact that she’d be a natural fit was why I suggested her, and makeup can do wonders to make the years melt away, just look at Ivanka.

  100. 100.

    J R in WV

    April 6, 2018 at 10:15 am

    @raven:

    @OzarkHillbilly: You need to see how the ball rolls into the water.

    Over and over again… it got to be pretty funny to me, I’m sure it wasn’t a bit funny to the guy golfing at that point of the game. Maybe there’s something wrong with the slope of the green right there? Or maybe he should have hit the ball anywhere else on that green? HAHAHAH…

    That’s why I don’t play golf seriously. Last round I shot was on a par 3 nine hole mountain top course, in the cloud tops. You could tell when you shot went off the hilltop by hitting a stone outcrop, just from the sound off in the fog: Bink -> rustle in the leaves below the rock outcrop.

    WE used the map they gave us to know what direction to hit from the tee, since the pin was lost in the mists of the mountaintop in the clouds.

  101. 101.

    Kay

    April 6, 2018 at 10:19 am

    @Betty Cracker:

    Ivanka and Jared met with Cecile Richards and told her Planned Parenthood was “too political” and she just needed to drop abortion and then Ivanka and Jared could get a win as dealmakers! Win/win!

    They tell her how to do her life’s work without a second thought. Absolutely insufferably arrogant people.

  102. 102.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 10:20 am

    @satby: I think they can get the same mileage out of the 2, no 3, no 4 dozen investigations into separate blatant criminal acts. Hell, they will probably have to form new committees just to investigate everything. Whatever they do, they will face charges of politicizing the process from GOPers to which they should reply, “So?”

  103. 103.

    Washburn

    April 6, 2018 at 10:21 am

    @Alain the site fixer:
    Bullshit

    Here is Wikipedia:

    Clinton gave a sworn deposition on January 17, 1998 where he denied having a “sexual relationship”, “sexual affair” or “sexual relations” with Lewinsky. He also denied that he was ever alone with her. His lawyer, Robert Bennet, stated with Clinton present that Lewinsky’s affidavit showed that there was no sex in any manner, shape or form between Clinton and Lewinsky. The Starr Report states that the following day, Clinton “coached” his secretary Betty Curie into repeating his denials should she be called to testify

    ———————-

    If you will read the transcript, it’s clear there was perjury. No question

    Also clear that he obstructed justice.

    Democrats don’t need to stoop to lies and alternative facts to win so please just stop.

  104. 104.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:23 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Phuck that. I don’t give two shyts about the Senate. But, this muthaphucka needs to be impeached. And force EVERY GOPer to have a vote on their record.

  105. 105.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:24 am

    @Kay:

    Ivanka and Jared met with Cecile Richards and told her Planned Parenthood was “too political” and she just needed to drop abortion and then Ivanka and Jared could get a win as dealmakers! Win/win!

    They tell her how to do her life’s work without a second thought. Absolutely insufferably arrogant people.

    I’m not surprised, Kay..
    But, that doesn’t ease the disgust.

  106. 106.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:25 am

    Icahn role shows common thread in Pruitt ethics, policy scandals

    Rachel Maddow looks at the relationship between Donald Trump adviser Carl Icahn and EPA chief Scott Pruitt and how Icahn’s business interests intertwine with Pruitt’s ethics scandals and peculiar EPA policies.

  107. 107.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:27 am

    “Impose” is different than “enforce”. The sanctions that have been imposed have not been truly enforced.

    For example, Pompeo hosted Russian spies who are banned from US soil under sanctions, and now is going to be Secretary of State. https://t.co/4JW6MB4kLd

    — Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) April 6, 2018

  108. 108.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:27 am

    “That’s the President of the United States of America … he sounds like a drunk guy in Queens at the end of the bar” – @SteveSchmidtSES on Trump’s off-script remarks at tax roundtable in West Virginia
    w/ @NicolleDWallace
    Full segment here: https://t.co/seKFqdnkQ3 pic.twitter.com/1i1quYEHEG

    — Deadline White House (@DeadlineWH) April 5, 2018

  109. 109.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:28 am

    Know any veteran who is homeless or even a military family being threatened with homelessness ? @BarackObama worked tirelessly with @JoeBiden on this issue and there is help . Call 877-424-3838. You are not alone . No vet is alone . There IS help. pic.twitter.com/IeJeTa7t7D

    — HOMEFRONT HUGS FOUNDATION (@HomefrontHugs) April 6, 2018

  110. 110.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 10:29 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Lie=/=perjury.

    Yep. So what?

    Had Clinton committed perjury, his impeachment would still have been absolute, total bullshit.

    And citizens could justifiably consider the political implications of his lie. And they did. From the Guardian.

    In the wake of his impeachment, President Clinton’s approval level with the voters leaps 10 points to a personal all-time high of 73 per cent in a Gallup poll. Sixty-eight per cent believe the Senate should not convict Mr Clinton in the pending impeachment trial, while support for resignation falls to 30 per cent. Other polls confirm the trend.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/1998/nov/18/clinton.usa

  111. 111.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:29 am

    Why I want @staceyabrams to be Georgia’s next governor: “… I hope what people see when they meet me is that I like this work… I don’t come at this job driven by grievance or anger. I am driven by hope and joy and an expectation that we can do more.” https://t.co/ICPcpphy5w

    — Dudette (@Dudette9t9) April 6, 2018

  112. 112.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:29 am

    Amen, but I never even started.

    Robert De Niro: I am done trying to see things from the point of view of Trump supporters https://t.co/JA0juyjGbm pic.twitter.com/T1Px8inCY7

    — The Hill (@thehill) April 6, 2018

  113. 113.

    Cermet

    April 6, 2018 at 10:30 am

    @MomSense: If you think China is a threat, you are mistaken. China has no issue with our internal politics nor does it have the social tradition to want to interfere. Russia under putin is our most fierce enemy bar none. While China will steal our military and industrial secrets, they have no military hatred of this country; just the opposite, if you look at both what they say and do.

  114. 114.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:31 am

    Wallace: Pruitt scandal is a White House dysfunction story

    Nicolle Wallace talks with Rachel Maddow about why the scandals surrounding EPA chief Scott Pruitt have outgrown the bounds of his agency and are now part of the story of the dysfunctional Donald Trump White House.

  115. 115.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:32 am

    Mueller not done with Manafort, also scrutinizing Michael Cohen

    Rachel Maddow reports on new court filings that show that Robert Mueller’s prosecutors have executed another search warrant on Paul Manafort as recently as a month ago, and a new report that Trump lawyer Michael Cohen has come into the investigative spotlight.

  116. 116.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:35 am

    With two indictments already, Mueller still digging into Manafort

    Joyce Vance, former U.S. attorney, talks with Rachel Maddow about understanding special counsel Robert Mueller’s strategy as he continues to execute search warrants on Paul Manafort and interviews Donald Trump’s lawyer and business associates.

  117. 117.

    Procopius

    April 6, 2018 at 10:38 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Election meddling may or may not play as prominent a role in the future as it did in 2016 (it will happen)

    I agree absolutely, and I believe still that Russia, if they played any role at all, were a minuscule part of it. Actors like Robert and Rebekah Mercer and Roger Stone are behind the vast majority of it. Who paid for Cambridge Analytica, after all? And, for that matter, why do we think they were not the ones paying for the Macedonian/Bulgarian troll farms?

  118. 118.

    Cermet

    April 6, 2018 at 10:45 am

    @Procopius: Don’t underestimate that ass-wipe, cold stone killer putin. Besides being a dead eye snake, he hates this country with all his being. His GRU activity interfered with our election through social media and other means. They tested state systems for what reason do you think? Don’t bother: to see that they could, if it could go undetected , and to use that ability where needed There is no doubt what-so-ever, they will do their utmost to swing the election the orange fart cloud’s way. Saying otherwise is stupidity since it was shown their fake news had a huge effect via endless amplification by all social platforms. Yes, other money backed groups will do major work but that is both normal and legal but none of those groups, to my knowledge, hacked our systems like the GRU has, does, and will continue until stopped.

  119. 119.

    OzarkHillbilly

    April 6, 2018 at 10:45 am

    @rikyrah:

    force EVERY GOPer to have a vote on their record

    Their votes already are on record. We know who they are, every voting American knows and they are either outraged, don’t care, or think it’s great. That isn’t going to change with an impeachment trial that ends in the very predictable political exoneration.

  120. 120.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 6, 2018 at 10:47 am

    @rikyrah:Same here. BTW, did you support W in his ill fated Mesopotamian adventure?

  121. 121.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 10:47 am

    @satby:

    Ok, so I liked this essay making the rounds on the book of face today.

    Cool essay. Too kind to Trump supporters. Thanks for the link.

  122. 122.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 6, 2018 at 10:49 am

    @Brachiator: Agreed. One doesn’t write hypothetical letters to bigots, one just cuts them out of one’s life. And if they are close family, tell them to their face what you think of their bigotry.
    I am also tired of our media, they don’t call a spade a spade and there is too much coddling of the R viewpoints no matter how without intellectual or any kind of merit they are.

  123. 123.

    No Drought No More

    April 6, 2018 at 10:49 am

    Trent Gowdy is wrong. He showed plenty during his time in congress. Indeed, he showed all of America precisely who he is, and what he values (“adios, pissant”).

  124. 124.

    Jeff

    April 6, 2018 at 10:49 am

    @gene108: It depends upon what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.

  125. 125.

    bemused

    April 6, 2018 at 10:50 am

    @rikyrah:

    Authentic frontier gibberish.

  126. 126.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 10:53 am

    Trump says ‘pain’ from China tariffs will make US ‘much stronger’

    Source: The Hill

    BY JOHN BOWDEN – 04/06/18 08:40 AM EDT

    President Trump says in a new interview that tariffs targeting China over intellectual property theft could cause some “pain” in the U.S. economy, but promised that America would emerge stronger as a result.

    “I’m not saying there’s not gonna be any pain,” Trump said Friday in an interview with “Bernie & Sid in the Morning” on 77 WABC. He also acknowledged the initial reaction from markets is likely to be negative. They “could lose a little bit,” he said.

    -snip-

    A relatively poor jobs report released Friday that found the nation added 103,000 jobs in March is also likely to push markets lower, but Trump said he was not worried about a negative reaction from his move on trade.

    “We’re gonna be much stronger for it,” he added later in the interview.

  127. 127.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 6, 2018 at 10:53 am

    @Cermet: China or India for that matter will be fiercely protective of their own interests but I don’t think there is any desire at this point to meddle in the internal affairs of the United States.

  128. 128.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 10:53 am

    @rikyrah:

    “That’s the President of the United States of America … he sounds like a drunk guy in Queens at the end of the bar”

    Yep. And that’s exactly why his supporters love him. He is exactly as dumb as they are.

  129. 129.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 6, 2018 at 10:56 am

    @Cermet: The person behind this handle always shows up to minimize Russian interference. That seems to be his job.

  130. 130.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 10:58 am

    @rikyrah:

    “I’m not saying there’s not gonna be any pain,” Trump said Friday in an interview with “Bernie & Sid in the Morning”

    What the fuck is a “Bernie & Sid,” and why is a US president talking to it?

  131. 131.

    danielx

    April 6, 2018 at 10:59 am

    My man Boris decided I need some attitudinal adjustment this morning, and I have to admit it’s hard to maintain any level of indignation with a purring cat pressed against your chest.

    However….be it noted there is a certain amount of irony involved in our indignation about Russian interference in our electoral processes. I mean, given the number of times our intelligence organs have interfered with other countries’ elections, one way or another. Doesn’t make said interference with the 2016 election right in any way, but….

  132. 132.

    Amir Khalid

    April 6, 2018 at 11:14 am

    @rikyrah:
    “Pain is good for you, America, but not for me.”

  133. 133.

    Formerly disgruntled in Oregon

    April 6, 2018 at 11:18 am

    @danielx: Isn’t the indignation more with Russia’s US collaborators? i.e. Trump, the NRA, and now Republicans in general… and ratfuckers on the left.

    We expect Putin to engage in hostile action against the US. We don’t expect US leaders and citizens to cheer him on or cover up for him!

  134. 134.

    Omnes Omnibus

    April 6, 2018 at 11:23 am

    @Washburn: Define perjury.

    ETA: I’ll help you out. It is lying under oath about a fact that is material to the case.

  135. 135.

    Jeffro

    April 6, 2018 at 11:24 am

    @rikyrah: are we sure Trumpov isn’t just going to wreck the US economy and then head off to a nice retirement in a dacha by the Black Sea? Because at this point it’s sure what it looks like

  136. 136.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 6, 2018 at 11:26 am

    @Jeffro: He is indeed, if you judge him by his actions, you know his karma.

  137. 137.

    Chyron HR

    April 6, 2018 at 11:26 am

    I mean, given the number of times our intelligence organs have interfered with other countries’ elections

    So because a criminal Republican administration backed the Contras, it’s America’s just deserts to have another criminal Republican administration installed here by Russia? How does that work?

  138. 138.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 11:27 am

    @schrodingers_cat:

    BTW, did you support W in his ill fated Mesopotamian adventure?

    NOPE.

    I was among those being called ‘Anti-American’, before it became fashionable.

  139. 139.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 11:28 am

    @Formerly disgruntled in Oregon:

    @danielx: Isn’t the indignation more with Russia’s US collaborators? i.e. Trump, the NRA, and now Republicans in general… and ratfuckers on the left.

    It is the TREASON against this country that should never be forgiven.

  140. 140.

    The Moar You Know

    April 6, 2018 at 11:31 am

    So because a criminal Republican administration backed the Contras, it’s America’s just deserts to have another criminal Republican administration installed here by Russia? How does that work?

    It’s the same argument I used for punching my brother when I was six: “he hit me first”.

    My parents dealt with it the same way the nation needs to deal with this now: an acknowledgement that my argument had no value or credibility whatsoever, followed by a spanking.

  141. 141.

    Washburn

    April 6, 2018 at 11:31 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Go on …

  142. 142.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 11:40 am

    National Security
    For Trump and his generals, ‘victory’ has different meanings

    Trump urged the CIA to start arming its drones in Syria. “If you can do it in 10 days, get it done,” he said, according to two former officials familiar with the meeting.

    Later, when the agency’s head of drone operations explained that the CIA had developed special munitions to limit civilian casualties, the president seemed unimpressed. Watching a previously recorded strike in which the agency held off on firing until the target had wandered away from a house with his family inside, Trump asked, “Why did you wait?” one participant in the meeting recalled.

    On the campaign trail, Trump often said he would “take out” the families of terrorists.

  143. 143.

    rikyrah

    April 6, 2018 at 11:41 am

    Dow down 326

  144. 144.

    The Moar You Know

    April 6, 2018 at 11:42 am

    Go on …

    @Washburn: Mind if I step in with the clue by four?

    Highlighted part is important:

    It is lying under oath about a fact that is material to the case.

    Whitewater was, you may recall about allegations of real estate fraud. Had the investigation been carried out under the auspices of a judge, Starr would have been sanctioned for asking about Clinton’s sex life. NOT RELEVANT.

  145. 145.

    philbert

    April 6, 2018 at 12:07 pm

    @Chyron HR: So Iraq can bomb us back. Lovely.

  146. 146.

    Mnemosyne

    April 6, 2018 at 12:18 pm

    @rikyrah:

    President Trump says in a new interview that tariffs targeting China over intellectual property theft could cause some “pain” in the U.S. economy, but promised that America would emerge stronger as a result.

    Isn’t this what every abusive parent says? I’m beating you for your own good! Why don’t you appreciate it?

  147. 147.

    a thousand flouncing lurkers (was fidelio)

    April 6, 2018 at 12:27 pm

    @Jeffro: BillinGlendaleCA is correct; the unlovely Representative Mashburn is running for Corker’s seat; Corker might win against Bredesen, who is a well-thought-of former governor and mayor of Nashville, noted for his work cleaning out corrupt departments of government, both as mayor and as governor. Marsha is as vain as a dozen cats, dumber than a field full of stumps, and robotically reliable as a party-line vote for the GOP. Her district includes Williamson County (well-to-do white suburban county with GOP leanings, Montgomery County (part of the area covered by Ft, Campbell, a large US Army base, and the counties west and south, down to the Alabama and Mississippi borders. While these people are not the common clay of the New West (Tennessee is, after all, east of the Mississippi River), they share many qualities with that group. Most are Fundygelicals, the whites are tired of “people playing the race card”, and they live in fear their children might leave home and come on contact with new ideas. If one of their contacts on Facebook told them the world was flat, many would believe it, because they wouldn’t follow anyone on Facebook who wasn’t nice, and nice people wouldn’t lie to them. She’s their girl, a cornbread version of Michele Bachman. Early in her first or second term, she was unwise enough to tell a reporter she was too busy to attend a funeral for an Iraq War casualty who was from her district. They have managed her slightly better since. Her family’s business dealings would probably bear inspection no better than most upper-level members of the GOP. Did I mention she was stupid? Let me mention it again.
    This is what Wikipedia has on Bredesen. Note that he was re-elected with 68% of the vote after winning the first with a little over 50%, and that he does not tend to say stupid things or imagine that everyone sees things his way.

  148. 148.

    SFAW

    April 6, 2018 at 12:29 pm

    gave some professional Republicans a taste for voyeurism that hasn’t been adequately slacked

    “Slaked”

    Pedantry’R’Us

  149. 149.

    Washburn

    April 6, 2018 at 12:34 pm

    @The Moar You Know:

    I don’t know if you were alive and reading newspapers when this all happened, but following his appointment to investigate Whitewater, Ken Star was granted authority to investigate a variety of other matters such as the travel office firings as well as the sexual harassment allegations against the President by Paula Jones and others.

    So, before you offer up a clue by four, you might want to learn the basic facts. That will help you avoid looking like an idiot. Which you do.

  150. 150.

    Mnemosyne

    April 6, 2018 at 12:42 pm

    @Washburn:

    Hey, everyone, ARGB is going to lecture us all on how not to look stupid!

    This should be good. ???

  151. 151.

    JEC

    April 6, 2018 at 12:43 pm

    Just to straighten out some confusion: A conviction for the crime of perjury requires showing more than just “lying under oath.” In particular, materiality is an element of perjury. Jones v. Clinton was dismissed on summary judgement, meaning that no contested fact was, or could be, material to the outcome of the case. On the other hand, Clinton was found in contempt of court and sanctioned by both the Arkansas Supreme Court and the US Supreme Court for his conduct.

  152. 152.

    karen marie

    April 6, 2018 at 1:00 pm

    @OzarkHillbilly: My favorite Tiger Woods moment was a bunch of years ago when he bounced a shot off the top of a tent/small building and off the course. He quit that tournament after that shot. My admiration for him dissolved at that moment. I am not at all surprised he’s still blowing shots in dramatic fashion.

  153. 153.

    Brachiator

    April 6, 2018 at 1:11 pm

    @JEC:

    Jones v. Clinton was dismissed on summary judgement

    According to the Wiki,

    Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681 (1997), was a landmark United States Supreme Court case establishing that a sitting President of the United States has no immunity from civil law litigation, in federal court, against him or her, for acts done before taking office and unrelated to the office. In particular, there is no temporary immunity, so it is not required to delay all federal cases until the President leaves office.

    Hmmm. Should any of this be of concern to Trump? He seems to think that being president means that he is above the law?

  154. 154.

    Ghost of Joe Lieblings Dog

    April 6, 2018 at 1:16 pm

    @MomSense:

    Thank you for the new-to-me expression “keep top eye”!

    Made for a very pleasant Google excursion. TIL!

  155. 155.

    Washburn

    April 6, 2018 at 1:36 pm

    @Mnemosyne:

    I notice that you don’t have have anything to say about the facts I present in my post.

    Instead, you just launch some petty insults in hopes that I will pay attention to you and argue with you about … something … anything.

    You must lead a very sad and empty life.

  156. 156.

    Washburn

    April 6, 2018 at 1:39 pm

    @JEC:
    That’s not how these things work.

    That is like saying that unless Trump is convicted or successfully impeached on grounds of collusion/conspiracy against the US, then he cannot be convicted/impeached for perjury or obstruction of justice during the Mueller investigation. I don’t think you want to be pushing that line of argument.

  157. 157.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    April 6, 2018 at 2:36 pm

    @Washburn: You know impeachment is a political, not a legal proceeding?

  158. 158.

    jl

    April 6, 2018 at 3:27 pm

    I didn’t know that Ed Meese wrote a ridiculously comprehensive Pornography Report back during the Reagan years. Due to my intense interest in US history, I will check out this ridiculously comprehensive Pornography Report as soon as I can. There better be a load of pix, if it is really a ridiculously comprehensive Pornography Report.

  159. 159.

    Jack the Second

    April 6, 2018 at 3:31 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: You know, I do like the idea of office-holders taking a second oath with the oath of office to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, for the duration of their term.

  160. 160.

    TenguPhule

    April 6, 2018 at 3:35 pm

    @Cermet: China isn’t bluffing.

  161. 161.

    Ruckus

    April 6, 2018 at 4:04 pm

    @Kay:

    They’re too special to start at the bottom, either. They get promoted right to the top jobs.

    The analogy may not be exact because the mob did make people earn their positions and you are correct that this mob does not. Worse they think that they know everything, when they really know so little. But if they put out a mission statement, it would be, it could be word for word what the mob would have written. Of course the mob was generally more specific about territory, but that was in the operations, not in the mission statement. Of course I’m giving these asswipes too much credit in giving them the ability to actually write a mission statement longer than steal everything.

  162. 162.

    Ruckus

    April 6, 2018 at 4:09 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    like they’re running some low-rent business seminar at a Holiday Inn with stale doughnuts and weak coffee.

    You are partially right but there are no doughnuts, stale or otherwise, and the coffee is totally undrinkable.

  163. 163.

    cwmoss

    April 6, 2018 at 4:41 pm

    @rikyrah: Wait a sec — the arch-villain serial killer Nicole Wallace from L&O Criminal Intent is a real person???

  164. 164.

    moops

    April 6, 2018 at 5:27 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Harry Lloyd (Peter Quayle from Counterpart) fits my impression of Jared.

  165. 165.

    MomSense

    April 6, 2018 at 5:55 pm

    @Ghost of Joe Lieblings Dog:

    I spent my childhood coloring while my dad researched church archives – mostly in dank basements full of spiderwebs. Parker’s flyers were interesting even to little kid me. I highly recommend reading about his life. He was a guiding light for MLK jr. and the source of the arc of justice quote.

  166. 166.

    JEC

    April 6, 2018 at 6:22 pm

    @Brachiator: More clarifiction: Jones v. Clinton is not Clinton v. Jones. Clinton v. Jones was litigation to determine whether Jones v. Clinton (the suit brought against Bill Clinton by Paula Jones) could proceed during Clinton’s term of office. Jones v. Clinton was dismissed on summary judgment by the federal district court in April, 1998.

  167. 167.

    JEC

    April 6, 2018 at 6:55 pm

    @Washburn: No, it’s nothing like that. Dismissal on summary judgment is a finding by the court that even if all of the facts alleged by the plaintiff were assumed to be true, the plaintiff would not be entitled to relief from the court. There is no need for a trial because no finding of fact could affect the outcome of the case. A “material fact” is one which affects the outcome of the case. You see the problem?

    You allude to the question of whether Donald Trump could be “convicted/impeached for perjury or obstruction of justice.” That’s not a thing. It’s four things. (Conviction for perjury; conviction for obstruction; impeachment for perjury; impeachment for obstruction.) If you’re genuinely interested in understanding a legal issue, it’s important to break the habit of treating separate questions as one ball of wax. It’s also a good idea not to let the outcome you desire in a particular case influence your understanding of what the law is. (Until you get appointed to the federal bench, that is.)

    In general, it’s a good thing that, if a prosecutor wants to lock you up for perjury, they need to show that you lied about something actually important to an actual case. On the other hand, it’s also a good thing that criminal perjury charges aren’t the only sanctions available to enforce the norm of honesty before the court. (As I pointed out above, Clinton was found in contempt of (federal) court, and sanctioned by both the Arkansas and the US Supreme Courts.)

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

Fundraising 2023-24

Wis*Dems Supreme Court + SD-8

Recent Comments

  • Ruckus on Proud to Be A Democrat: Alvin Bragg Is Not Here for the GOP’s Performative Outrage (Mar 27, 2023 @ 7:28pm)
  • Bonnie on Self-Care Sickness Open Thread (Mar 27, 2023 @ 7:26pm)
  • A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan) on Cake Watch: Day 1 (Mar 27, 2023 @ 7:25pm)
  • Ceci n est pas mon nym on Proud to Be A Democrat: Alvin Bragg Is Not Here for the GOP’s Performative Outrage (Mar 27, 2023 @ 7:23pm)
  • PST on Proud to Be A Democrat: Alvin Bragg Is Not Here for the GOP’s Performative Outrage (Mar 27, 2023 @ 7:17pm)

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

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

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!