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You are here: Home / Economics / C.R.E.A.M. / Excellent Read: “Trump Tourism: How Charlottesville enabled Cindy Yang to market Mar-a-Lago in China “

Excellent Read: “Trump Tourism: How Charlottesville enabled Cindy Yang to market Mar-a-Lago in China “

by Anne Laurie|  April 2, 201911:24 am| 159 Comments

This post is in: C.R.E.A.M., Dolt 45, Excellent Links, Foreign Affairs, Republican Venality, Trump Crime Cartel

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NEW: After President Trump said there were "very fine people on both sides" of the white nationalist march in Charlottesville, charities pulled out of Mar-a-Lago.

This opened the doors for Cindy Yang and others to market events for their access to Trump: https://t.co/rGbcKAAYXR

— Miami Herald (@MiamiHerald) March 29, 2019

Remember Warren G. Harding? He was a self-professed “man of limited talents” boosted into the Presidency by the Republican Party as the polar opposite to replace the Democrat’s distant, cerebral, League-of-Nations proponent Woodrow Wilson. Until recently, Harding’s Teapot Dome Scandal was considered the ultimate conflation of political and business corruption. But just in time for its centennial:

… Yang’s invitations to Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s private club and resort, started coming after high society’s post-Charlottesville exodus. She helped promote the cobbled-together replacement galas, selling them online as opportunities for Chinese businessmen to gain face time with the Trump family.

On Chinese social media, Safari Night became a “midnight carnival” of the American social and political elite and an important networking opportunity for businessmen from overseas. Seats were marked up from the original $600 to $1,000. The ads also offered VIP packages for overnight stays at Mar-a-Lago — $10,000 for two nights, with spa and golf course access, according to one post from a member of a local Asian-American political group.

Dozens of people associated with her Asian-American political group turned out. Yang also recruited guests through her nonprofit group, Women’s Charity Foundation Inc. One of the group’s guests impressed the crowd by plunking down $40,000 for a pair of paintings, with the proceeds going to charity, according to a post on the foundation’s WeChat page that was later removed…

In both years prior to Charlottesville, Mar-a-Lago hosted 33 events, according to the Herald’s analysis of the Palm Beach Daily News’ social events calendar. It dropped to 10 events in the season after Charlottesville…

Selling access to private events is not new, and foreign nationals are not barred from giving contributions to private foundations or nonprofits as they are from giving to U.S. political campaigns.

But experts say Trump’s presidency is unique, and Mar-a-Lago in particular provides unprecedented levels of access…

A cottage industry of influence peddling

… Yang and Lee are not alone in their efforts to capitalize on their access to the Trump family. According to a Herald analysis of Chinese social media and classified advertisements, at least five other groups are marketing Trump-related tours to Chinese elites.

“This may be the highest-level invitation you’ll receive at this stage in your life,” one Chinese-language ad declared. Though most ads promoted events at Mar-a-Lago, a few marketed access through political fundraisers with Trump across the country…

On the highest end, an online investment bank advertised $220,000 trips that included a stop to meet Trump. It promised travelers a refund if they did not get a photo with the president. The Trump events advertised by this group were political fundraisers for Trump’s reelection campaign, which would prohibit foreign nationals from paying for the photos.

The motivation for Chinese business people to seek photographs with American leaders comes down to self-promotion, said Teufel Dreyer. The photos are currency in future business transactions.

“They can take it back to China and use it to tell potential investors: ‘Look how well-connected I am. Don’t you want to put your money with me? I have friends in such high places.’ ”

Officials with the Chinese Communist Party also use photos with prominent people as a means of deterring threats to the party and reinforcing its strength, said Peter Mattis, a visiting fellow at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. The photos can be used to imply an allegiance between the Chinese Communist Party and other world powers.

Congressional Democrats have called for an investigation into Yang’s activities, including the possibility that she was acting as a conduit for foreign money into Trump’s reelection campaign…

How did it work? Here's a breakdown of how Yang helped a Chinese actress who wanted to bolster her image in China get a photo op with Donald Trump Jr. https://t.co/rGbcKAAYXR pic.twitter.com/9fHojCkYLM

— Miami Herald (@MiamiHerald) March 29, 2019

Yang also used her burgeoning political access to bring Xianqin Qu, a leader from the foreign arm of the Communist Party of China, to an event where she met top Republicans and members of the Trump administration. https://t.co/1NmjmKVgI3

— Miami Herald (@MiamiHerald) March 29, 2019

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Reader Interactions

159Comments

  1. 1.

    frosty

    April 2, 2019 at 11:43 am

    Oh, FFS, make it stop! I can’t deal with any more corruption today. I guess I can call Toomey and try to shame him for whatever good that might do.

  2. 2.

    Alien Radio

    April 2, 2019 at 11:54 am

    This links to the people trafficking operation In Florida doesn’t it?

  3. 3.

    sdhays

    April 2, 2019 at 11:58 am

    @Alien Radio: Yang is the person who opened the “spa” that was recently taken down for sex slavery and trafficking, but she is no longer the owner, so the connection isn’t direct. Yet.

  4. 4.

    NotMax

    April 2, 2019 at 12:03 pm

    The lesson to follow the money apparently must be learned anew with each generation.

  5. 5.

    Mike in NC

    April 2, 2019 at 12:04 pm

    Next to the Mango Mussolini, Harding really was a stable genius.

  6. 6.

    The Dangerman

    April 2, 2019 at 12:12 pm

    Bob Kraft: “Hey, Don, you happen to know of a place in Florida where I can get my pole polished?”

    Individual One: “Sure, Bob…”

  7. 7.

    Plato

    April 2, 2019 at 12:21 pm

    Hey, can we get bob fucking mueller to ‘investigate’ this too?

  8. 8.

    Mike in NC

    April 2, 2019 at 12:26 pm

    Some Chinese actress wanted to “bolster” her image by getting a photo-op with Shithead Junior? Poor girl probably doesn’t get much work to begin with.

    How is his ugly divorce going these days?

  9. 9.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    April 2, 2019 at 12:26 pm

    as the polar opposite to replace the Democrat’s distant, cerebral, League-of-Nations proponent Woodrow Wilson

    That’s a curious way of saying autocratic, racists, interventionist, Catholic bashing, Klan loving demagogue Anne Laurie. I would say if there is a template for Donald Trump, it’s Wilson.

  10. 10.

    NotMax

    April 2, 2019 at 12:28 pm

    @The Dangerman

    Kraft macaroni and sleaze.

    ;)

  11. 11.

    Gravenstone

    April 2, 2019 at 12:45 pm

    @Mike in NC: No, she wanted her pic with Shithead the Elder. She had to settle for Jr. because of the government shutdown underway at that time.

  12. 12.

    Matt McIrvin

    April 2, 2019 at 12:46 pm

    Harding was *popular*, far more popular than Trump can dream of being, and I think a lot of it was that he looked like a President from Central Casting. The full extent of corruption in his administration only really came out after he was dead and his charismatic aura was gone. I wonder what we’re going to learn someday.

  13. 13.

    plato

    April 2, 2019 at 12:55 pm

    The top to bottom rethug corruption is wide and deep.

    RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina GOP chairman and a big-money donor indicted on federal bribery and wire fraud charges.— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) April 2, 2019

  14. 14.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 12:56 pm

    But experts say Trump’s presidency is unique, and Mar-a-Lago in particular provides unprecedented levels of access…

    A cottage industry of influence peddling

    About the only thing that Trump does well is grift. And he does it bigly. Hopefully, we will survive this and dump this SOB and his crew.

  15. 15.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 2, 2019 at 12:59 pm

    I have asked this question before, but can anyone suggest a book about American history that goes from colonial times to the present and is not a polemic.

    ETA: I want an overview then I can figure out which other books to read to fill the gaps in my knowledge.

  16. 16.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 1:04 pm

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    as the polar opposite to replace the Democrat’s distant, cerebral, League-of-Nations proponent Woodrow Wilson

    That’s a curious way of saying autocratic, racists, interventionist, Catholic bashing, Klan loving demagogue Anne Laurie. I would say if there is a template for Donald Trump, it’s Wilson.

    Yep. Wilson should burn in hell, and save a spot for Trump.

    The 1920 election was interesting in a lot of ways, some similar to 2016 and maybe 2020 upcoming.

    Harding promised a return to normalcy and kicked Cox’s butt. Cox then retired from politics and focused on building up his newspaper empire. This little piece from the Wiki is fun.

    Cox’s running mate was future president, then-Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt.

    One of the better known analyses of the 1920 election is in Irving Stone’s book about defeated presidential candidates, They Also Ran. Stone rated Cox as superior in every way over Warren Harding, claiming the former would have made a much better president; the author argued that there was never a stronger case in the history of American presidential elections for the proposition that the better man lost.

    Of the four men on both tickets, all but Cox would ultimately become president: Harding won, and was succeeded by his running mate Calvin Coolidge after dying in office, while Roosevelt would be elected president in 1932.

  17. 17.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 2, 2019 at 1:09 pm

    @Brachiator: And he wasn’t functionally illiterate like Orange but a College President, of Princeton, no less. Not some shady Christian college.

  18. 18.

    SenyorDave

    April 2, 2019 at 1:10 pm

    FFS, I hope the Democrats have a meeting and decide which scandals to focus on. For my money, the security clearance issue would be a good place to start. Yes, I want them to politicize the issue. It can be a talking point, accompanied by hearings. Start subpoenaing people and hauling their asses up to Capitol Hill and questioning them under oath. Why TF is Jared Kushner allowed anywhere near sensitive information?

  19. 19.

    tbdbitl

    April 2, 2019 at 1:11 pm

    Who names their kid Teufel?
    “The motivation for Chinese business people to seek photographs with American leaders comes down to self-promotion, said Teufel Dreyer. The photos are currency in future business transactions.”

  20. 20.

    Peale

    April 2, 2019 at 1:14 pm

    @tbdbitl: Full name, Wazoom Teufel Dreyer, but you can call him Herr Dreyer when you meet him for the first time. He likes that.

  21. 21.

    Chyron HR

    April 2, 2019 at 1:15 pm

    Here’s a breakdown of how Yang helped a Chinese actress who wanted to bolster her image in China get a photo op with Donald Trump Jr.

    Well, she sure got her money’s worth.

  22. 22.

    Ohio Mom

    April 2, 2019 at 1:17 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: I’ll be interested in seeing if there are any answers to your question.

    I’m not sure if such a history book exists. My kid’s high school history textbook covered everything — it was the proverbial mile wide and an inch deep — and even in its extremely brief treatment of each phase of this country’s history, it managed a very conservative bent.

    At least Howard Zinn doesn’t pretend to be neutral.

  23. 23.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 1:19 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    I have asked this question before, but can anyone suggest a book about American history that goes from colonial times to the present and is not a polemic.

    It doesn’t quite cover the present day, but I recommend The Cartoon History of the United States, by Larry Gonick.

    Even though Gonick’s cartoon series are sometimes pitched to teens, or dismissed, they are actually good overviews, accurate, and witty. The bibliography is pretty solid, too, and offers a good range of books for follow-up.

  24. 24.

    lollipopguild

    April 2, 2019 at 1:25 pm

    For the right price trump would sell our entire country to the Chinese as long as he got to be our “president for life”.

  25. 25.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 2, 2019 at 1:27 pm

    @Ohio Mom: Something like the Halliday and Resnick* but for history, would work,
    * Intro physics text for college freshman
    @Brachiator: Thanks

  26. 26.

    mad citizen

    April 2, 2019 at 1:27 pm

    @Matt McIrvin: I recently listened to an audiobook on Teapot Dome. I think the scandal would have fully come to light even if Harding was living, but of course we’re not in that alternate universe. In that one they’re on their Baloon Juice talking about President Warren Buffet.

  27. 27.

    Mandalay

    April 2, 2019 at 1:30 pm

    Since this is a Republican Venality thread:

    Yesterday:

    North Carolina Republican Party chairman Robin Hayes is stepping down. Hayes said in a news release Monday he’ll leave the post in June, in part due to complications from recent hip surgery.

    Today:

    North Carolina GOP Chairman Robin Hayes was one of four people indicted today in connection with an investigation involving donations made to the state Republican Party.

    Hayes, a former five-term North Carolina congressman, surrendered himself to authorities and appeared in Charlotte’s federal court Monday. A grand jury indicted Hayes and three others on charges related to fraud and attempting to bribe a North Carolina Insurance Commissioner, Mike Causey.

    How many hours of community service will this shit slime get?

  28. 28.

    banditqueen

    April 2, 2019 at 1:42 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: This link for US history courses on the web offers syllabi from US history survey courses–may help direct you to texts that will be useful to you.

  29. 29.

    Ohio Mom

    April 2, 2019 at 1:43 pm

    @Brachiator: We have the complete set of Gonick’s History of the World, which starts with the creation of the universe. It’s impressive how much he packs in.

  30. 30.

    Spanky

    April 2, 2019 at 1:43 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Jeebus! I had Holiday for Rednecks in 1973!

    A timeless classic, I guess.

  31. 31.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 1:47 pm

    @Ohio Mom:

    We have the complete set of Gonick’s History of the World, which starts with the creation of the universe. It’s impressive how much he packs in.

    Yep. Good stuff. I think the section on Ancient Greece is particularly well done and still holds up well.

    As I recall, the sections on Asia also were very illuminating for a general work.

  32. 32.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 1:53 pm

    @Matt McIrvin:

    Harding was *popular*, far more popular than Trump can dream of being, and I think a lot of it was that he looked like a President from Central Casting. The full extent of corruption in his administration only really came out after he was dead and his charismatic aura was gone.

    Oddly enough, he was a man who knew his limitations and tried to make a few smart choices.

    Harding was totally overwhelmed by his office, and would tell friends that he wasn’t up to the job. To help ease the burden, he appointed his supporters and delegated power. Sometimes this worked out: Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon, Department of Commerce head Herbert Hoover, and Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes put in some good work, and were effective statesmen.

    But then there was the “Ohio Gang”—a group of high-level appointees who were just there to pilfer the federal coffers. One famous example was the Teapot Dome Scandal, which you’ll kind of remember from grade school for having a silly name, and that’s it.

    The Teapot Dome Scandal boiled down to this: Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall was leasing oil fields in Wyoming to companies, in exchange for personal loans. [Interior Secretary Fall] later earned the distinguished honor of being the first member of a presidential cabinet to do prison time.

  33. 33.

    Mike in NC

    April 2, 2019 at 1:55 pm

    I can still remember how awful the history textbooks we had in junior high school and high school were. Virtually everything was “Americanized”, e.g. Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany became “King William”.

  34. 34.

    Uncle Cosmo

    April 2, 2019 at 2:04 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: 8^O I still have the 1-volume edition of H&R that I used in Intro Physics 50 years ago.

    I’d like to see a Net-based mile-wide inch-deep American History text where every topic is hyperlinked out the wazoo to more detailed sources clearly identified for their (& their authors’) ideological biases (in any direction).

    Once I have that I’d also like a unicorn that craps brilliant-cut diamonds & a small island on the Dalmatian coast with an abundant water supply. Oh, and world peace. And a Trumpless timeline. And…

  35. 35.

    dnfree

    April 2, 2019 at 2:07 pm

    @Peale: Just kidding….real first name is June. Maybe Teufel Dreyer is two last names, or a family middle name and a last name?

  36. 36.

    Amir Khalid

    April 2, 2019 at 2:08 pm

    @tbdbitl:
    People who don’t speak German, I guess. Unless Teufel was the name of a revered ancestor, which seems unlikely.

  37. 37.

    Sure Lurkalot

    April 2, 2019 at 2:09 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Perhaps too aged, but I liked the Oxford History of the American People, 3 volumes, by Samuel Eliot Morison. Only goes through Kennedy,

  38. 38.

    raven

    April 2, 2019 at 2:10 pm

    @schrodingers_cat “These Truths, Jill Lepore”

    It takes an ambitious historian to write a single volume history of the United States: Enter Jill Lepore, Harvard historian and New Yorker staff writer. These Truths sets out first to remind people how the United States got its start. The “truths,” as Thomas Jefferson called them, were political equality, natural rights, and the sovereignty of the people. But Lepore also notes that history is a form of inquiry, something to be questioned, discussed, disputed. Has this country lived up to These Truths? she asks. The answer, as you might expect, is yes and no (though more yes than no). And the book itself is engrossing and even-handed, examining our contradictions—like a land of liberty supporting slavery—and singling out important historical figures, some well-known—like Benjamin Franklin—as well as others who were key voices in their time, but have since been left on history’s curb—like Mary Lease, leading voice of the People’s Party. As the book traces wars, policy decisions, and national debates, one can’t help but feel that the arguments we are seeing today have been carried out all throughout our history. When the final chapter (America, Disrupted) brings us to Obama, and then Trump, the narrative has lost no steam—rather, it has coalesced into a national story approaching coherence, something resembling the Founding Fathers’ more perfect union, though never actually perfect. –Chris Schluep, Amazon Book Review

    Review
    “[B]rilliant…insightful…It isn’t until you start reading it that you realize how much we need a book like this one at this particular moment.”
    – Andrew Sullivan, New York Times Book Review

    “This sweeping, sobering account of the American past is a story not of relentless progress but of conflict and contradiction, with crosscurrents of reason and faith, black and white, immigrant and native, industry and agriculture rippling through a narrative that is far from completion.”
    – New York Times Book Review, Editors’ Choice

    “[Lepore’s] one-volume history is elegant, readable, sobering; it extends a steadying hand when a breakneck news cycle lurches from one event to another, confounding minds and churning stomachs.”
    – Jennifer Szalai, New York Times

  39. 39.

    Amir Khalid

    April 2, 2019 at 2:11 pm

    @dnfree:
    Teufel is the devil’s German name.

  40. 40.

    scav

    April 2, 2019 at 2:12 pm

    @Amir Khalid: Or someone whose ancestor was the wild Johannes of the village as opposed to the angelic one.

    One of his descendents seemed to have designed galf-course landscaping in Seattle.

  41. 41.

    dnfree

    April 2, 2019 at 2:16 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: This book “only” covers from around 1830 to 1900, but it does a good job of explaining the run-up to the Civil War, the war itself, Reconstruction, and dropping the ball on reconstruction. It includes factors I wasn’t aware of (like evangelical religion on both sides of the divide, and anti-Catholicism, and government corruption in the north, like Tammany Hall). I was looking for something that covered that time frame and wasn’t just a sequence of battles. (I bought it used from abebooks.)

    https://www.amazon.com/America-Aflame-Civil-Created-Nation/dp/160819390X

  42. 42.

    Gin & Tonic

    April 2, 2019 at 2:16 pm

    @raven: Uh oh. You quoted Andrew Sullivan.

  43. 43.

    raven

    April 2, 2019 at 2:18 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: I may have cut and pasted him.

  44. 44.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 2, 2019 at 2:18 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: And Vichy Times!

  45. 45.

    Scamp Dog

    April 2, 2019 at 2:19 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: I still have my Halliday & Resnick from 1978!

  46. 46.

    Tokyokie

    April 2, 2019 at 2:25 pm

    @Amir Khalid: I’ve seen Teufel used as a surname. Although the only instance I can recall is that of Tim Teufel, a utility infielder who played mostly in the 1980s. Things would get interesting when Teufel would bat against pitcher Jim Gott.

  47. 47.

    raven

    April 2, 2019 at 2:27 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Well goddamn that’s the last time I’ll try to help. Any fucking book worth it’s salt is going to be reviewed by the time. Fuck all ya’ll.

  48. 48.

    Wapiti

    April 2, 2019 at 2:28 pm

    @Mandalay: The Republicans are adamant that we cannot have Sharia Law in this country. I think they mostly fear losing their hands for being thieves.

  49. 49.

    Fleeting Expletive

    April 2, 2019 at 2:31 pm

    I’m so glad to see this Wendy story frontpaged here. I just about gagged when Lawrence O’ talked about it last night. This shit has got to stop.

    ETA:
    Not an open thread but I’ve been thinking about requesting an ActBlue contest here to motivate me to get with it. When are the Democratic debates to be finalized, with the requisite # of donors and $? I’ve been meaning to set up a monthly little bit to each of my top candidates but haven’t done so yet. I’m thinking a monthly straw poll amongst BJ folk? What do you think?

  50. 50.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 2, 2019 at 2:33 pm

    @raven: I was teasing! I have already placed a hold for a copy at my library. Thanks much for your suggestion.

  51. 51.

    raven

    April 2, 2019 at 2:34 pm

    @raven: times

  52. 52.

    raven

    April 2, 2019 at 2:35 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Guess I’m a little on edge batching it!

  53. 53.

    gene108

    April 2, 2019 at 2:41 pm

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    That’s a curious way of saying autocratic, racists, interventionist, Catholic bashing, Klan loving demagogue Anne Laurie. I would say if there is a template for Donald Trump, it’s Wilson.

    Wilson’s more of a mixed bag, than Trump

    Wilson was a leading force in the Progressive Movement, and during his first term, he oversaw the passage of progressive legislative policies unparalleled until the New Deal in the 1930s. Taking office one month after the ratification of the 16th Amendment of the Constitution permitted a federal income tax, he helped pass the Revenue Act of 1913, which reintroduced a federal income tax to lower tariff rates. Other major progressive legislations passed during Wilson’s first term include the Federal Reserve Act, the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914, the Clayton Antitrust Act, and the Federal Farm Loan Act. While passing of the Adamson Act — which imposed an 8-hour workday for railroads, he averted a railroad strike and an ensuing economic crisis. Wilson’s administration also allowed segregationist policies in government agencies. Upon the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Wilson maintained a policy of neutrality, while pursuing a moralistic policy in dealing with Mexico’s civil war.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidency_of_Woodrow_Wilson

    He did some good things, but he was also a stone cold racist. Trump has done nothing to better the lot of common people, plus he’s a stone cold racist.

  54. 54.

    Amir Khalid

    April 2, 2019 at 2:48 pm

    @Tokyokie:

    Things would get interesting when Teufel would bat against pitcher Jim Gott.

    I’m sure. :)

  55. 55.

    gene108

    April 2, 2019 at 2:50 pm

    @tbdbitl:

    Who names their kid Teufel?
    “The motivation for Chinese business people to seek photographs with American leaders comes down to self-promotion, said Teufel Dreyer. The photos are currency in future business transactions.”

    Non-German speaker obviously.

  56. 56.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 2:54 pm

    @raven: Lepore’s book is a very good book. I’ve recommended it to others and I was never sorry I did and nor were they. Thanks for telling folks about it.

  57. 57.

    Gin & Tonic

    April 2, 2019 at 3:03 pm

    @raven: I’d think you’d be living the high life this week.

  58. 58.

    jl

    April 2, 2019 at 3:04 pm

    I just give up on figuring some stuff out these days. If Gaetz ever described what the ‘loophole’ is, the TPM post didn’t mention it.
    Anyway, there is some unspecified loophole that will let ‘bad actors’ take advantage. And I guess first bad actor Gaetz could think of was Trump? As first female president? I give up.

    Gaetz: Protected Gender Identity Could Let Trump Call Himself ‘First Female President’

    Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) explained his impending no vote on the “Equality Act” by saying that “bad actors” would exploit the “loophole” of protected gender identity written into the legislation.

    https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/gaetz-protected-gender-identity-let-trump-call-himself-first-female-president

  59. 59.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    April 2, 2019 at 3:07 pm

    @jl: Gaetz is competing with Louis Gohmert for stupidest member of congress. Listening to either one probably kills brain cells.

  60. 60.

    raven

    April 2, 2019 at 3:12 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Well I’m eating put with the dogs every night! I went to a couple of bars to watch some hoop Saturday and knew not a soul. I guess being a 70 something tee-totaler doesn’t make one popular!

  61. 61.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 3:13 pm

    ???

    Ari Berman (@AriBerman) Tweeted:
    Breaking: House Oversight Committee votes to subpoena AG Barr & Wilbur Ross for documents on origins of citizenship question on 2020 census. Ross falsely claimed DOJ requested question, when in fact he did, and lied that it was needed to enforce Voting Rights Act @OversightDems https://twitter.com/AriBerman/status/1113149546438254592?s=17

  62. 62.

    jl

    April 2, 2019 at 3:14 pm

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: I just experience it all now. But I use my best judgment on how much is enough. Looks like someone broke the news to Trump what is in the Mueller report, and Trump thinks, besides it would be great to release the Mueller report to end the ridiculous hoax, it’s also a bad idea, and also a waste of time, and it’s a disgrace that people are calling for a public release.

    Heard this from a live feed of Trump babbling, so hard to tell what it is.

    I heard enough and turned off the news.

  63. 63.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 3:17 pm

    @rikyrah:
    This is one of the simple questions I want someone to ask Trump:
    “What does the constitution say about the census?”

    He has no clue. None. After his crazy talk that the census would be “worthless” without a citizenship question…. Please, crack millionaire jurnos — ask him a simple, straight, question.

  64. 64.

    Gin & Tonic

    April 2, 2019 at 3:19 pm

    @raven: Not in bars, no. You have to spend money to be popular there.

  65. 65.

    A Ghost To Most

    April 2, 2019 at 3:20 pm

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: in his former life, Gaetz was a bar bouncer. He was described as not smart enough for an inside job. At a bar.

  66. 66.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    April 2, 2019 at 3:21 pm

    @jl:

    I just experience it all now. But I use my best judgment on how much is enough.

    I tried that with booze, did work so well.

  67. 67.

    Gin & Tonic

    April 2, 2019 at 3:24 pm

    I can’t help wondering what an educated, rational person like Jens Stoltenberg thinks when he’s in the WH meeting with the moron-in-chief? How does somebody like that sit there without blurting out something like “No, you fucking idiot, that’s not how anything works.”

  68. 68.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 3:27 pm

    Uh huh????

    https://twitter.com/Ange_Amene/status/1113158645091491840

  69. 69.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 3:27 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: I assume he is thinking what all leaders think — “If I just flatter this creep, he’ll do what I want.” But then maybe thinks, “Nope, I just can’t do it.”

  70. 70.

    Lapassionara

    April 2, 2019 at 3:28 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Check out a history of the US by William Manchester. His prose style is very readable, and iirc, the book is generally comprehensive.

  71. 71.

    gene108

    April 2, 2019 at 3:29 pm

    @Immanentize:

    You think the big-buck journalists know what the Constitution says about the census?

    They stick to horse race political reporting, because it covers up for their utter and total ignorance, as well as total laziness, in doing their jobs.

    One concrete thing from the Barr memo, Russia interfered in 2016. No one has asked Trump how plans to prevent this in 2020. Should be a bigger issue. Probably involves understanding how Facebook, Twitter, etc. algorithms work in pushing notifications to people, as well as issues involving IT security. EDIT: So they ignore for the parts that are speculative.

  72. 72.

    Steve in the ATL

    April 2, 2019 at 3:32 pm

    @Brachiator: and to this day the Cox newspapers skew liberal!

  73. 73.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 3:32 pm

    Jon Cooper (@joncoopertweets) Tweeted:
    BOOM! Federal prosecutors have unsealed an indictment charging North Carolina State Republican Party Chairman Robin Hayes and three associates in an alleged bribery scheme involving campaign contributions to the state insurance commissioner.
    #CorruptGOP https://t.co/Upda9SMMH6 https://twitter.com/joncoopertweets/status/1113158949921001473?s=17

  74. 74.

    jl

    April 2, 2019 at 3:33 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: He’s constantly reminding himself that he has to keep up his diplomatic face on straight.
    Is Trump press availability with Stoltenberg today? I tuned into internet radio, heard Trump babbling about Mueller report, and turned it off, pretty quickly. Because it made not a lick of sense.

  75. 75.

    jl

    April 2, 2019 at 3:36 pm

    @gene108: It certainly involves getting into state voter registration file integrity, and general issue of honest elections. I think top priority of Russian (an other foreign) influence on elections involves hacking voter rolls and election results, but it’s the least talked about. Not sure if standard issue big shot WH reporter prepared to go there. Someone let me know if one does.

  76. 76.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 3:37 pm

    ???

    White Privilege is REAL ?

    Olivia Messer ? (@OliviaMesser) Tweeted:
    BREAKING: 4 years after nine bikers were killed during a shootout in Waco, te DA has announced he will dismiss all criminal cases against the remaining 24 defendants charged in the melee. Nobody has been convicted in any of the related cases.

    https://t.co/kFIkVf0195 https://twitter.com/OliviaMesser/status/1113144294523777024?s=17

  77. 77.

    Mandalay

    April 2, 2019 at 3:39 pm

    I’m surprised it took this long, but Republican sympathizers have set up a web site (stopjoebiden), and released a Creepy Joe video.

    Seeing girls pull away from Biden as he slobbers over them is nauseating, and that behavior has never been acceptable regardless of when it happened.

    Biden is DOA, but until he officially announces that he’s decided to spend more time with his family all the Pollyannas here who insist we only say nice things about the candidates can go jump in the lake. Biden is completely unacceptable as a Democratic candidate, never mind as the nominee.

  78. 78.

    FlipYrWhig

    April 2, 2019 at 3:41 pm

    @jl: Gaetz is a fratboy clown.

    His “point,” such as it is, is that if you allow people to declare their gender identity, they’ll whimsically declare anything, and probably something something bathrooms something something children something something chaos. It’s pretty much the same argument as “if you let a man marry a man, eventually there will be nothing stopping a man from marrying a turtle.”

  79. 79.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 3:42 pm

    @rikyrah: It’s funny that the Bernie people really don’t see that Biden is not Bernie’s real competition — they just see base line name recognition numbers and react. They have no campaign strategy that is positive. As I have mentioned before, Bernie does not run on a platform of why he is the best choice to run the country, he runs primarily on a message telling people why others are bad choices. And his followers act that out every day.

  80. 80.

    mrmoshpotato

    April 2, 2019 at 3:47 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Hint: Remember Japanese PM Abe’s eyeroll?

    Please leave us in blissful ignorance of that meeting.

  81. 81.

    mrmoshpotato

    April 2, 2019 at 3:53 pm

    @FlipYrWhig:

    . It’s pretty much the same argument as “if you let a man marry a man, eventually there will be nothing stopping a man from marrying a turtle.”

    What about a woman marrying a turtle? Elaine Chao is married after all.

  82. 82.

    Kay

    April 2, 2019 at 3:55 pm

    Olivia Nuzzi
    @Olivianuzzi
    · 3h
    Senior White House official to @NYMag: “There will be plenty of unfavorable things about the president in the full report, which we think will eventually come out, so let’s not go overboard saying there’s no wrongdoing. Let’s move on.”

    Guffaw. “Let’s move on”. Fat chance.

  83. 83.

    Patricia Kayden

    April 2, 2019 at 3:55 pm

    @Plato: Why are you mocking Mueller’s investigation. It has yet to be released.

  84. 84.

    Kay

    April 2, 2019 at 3:57 pm

    Raise your hand if you suspected they WILDLY exaggerated how “exonerating” that report was for the President.

    Giant fucking liars. Always, and on everything. They lie even when it would benefit them to tell the truth.

  85. 85.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 2, 2019 at 3:59 pm

    @Kay: How do we deal with the media which was keen on exonerating T as Barr was. And not just Fox, but Snooze Hour and Vichy Times.

  86. 86.

    Kay

    April 2, 2019 at 4:00 pm

    Which top secret document will we get first? The Mueller Report or Bernie Sanders tax returns?

  87. 87.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    April 2, 2019 at 4:03 pm

    @Kay: LOL. That is the spinniest spin I’ve ever seen. Looks like someone may have been more fully briefed.

  88. 88.

    Kay

    April 2, 2019 at 4:07 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Well, because they were relying on a legal definition. Trump was not, in fact, indicted for coordination and conspiracy. “Collusion”, which they made up, but whatever. They took refuge in that. Like criminal defense lawyers.

    But that doesn’t speak to “wrongdoing” at all, and never has. They gave him an incredibly low bar. The public probably has a higher one for the president and they haven’t seen the report. The whole legal frame they used was sloppy bullshit anyway. They invented a charge, for one thing, “collusion”, and we don’t prove people “innocent”. That’s not how it works.

    The public will be more sensible. They’ll see wrongdoing and judge Trump and the low quality hires accordingly.

  89. 89.

    A Ghost To Most

    April 2, 2019 at 4:14 pm

    @Kay:
    Just keep walking.
    – Nooners

  90. 90.

    Barbara

    April 2, 2019 at 4:16 pm

    @Kay: Stacy Abrams made this point when Meghan McCain tried to box her into admitting that Trump had been cleared of collusion. As she said, “collusion” is how the press chose to collapse multiple allegations related to assistance from Russia and Russian associates during the campaign. We don’t even know what AG Barr means when he says that. All we know is that Mueller provided a report without asking for additional indictments.

  91. 91.

    A Ghost To Most

    April 2, 2019 at 4:17 pm

    @Kay: Perhaps it was coercion, not collusion.

  92. 92.

    geg6

    April 2, 2019 at 4:25 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Although written by an outsider, I would recommend as a good overview Paul Johnson’s A History of the American People.

    https://www.amazon.com/History-American-People-Paul-Johnson/dp/0060930349/ref=sr_1_20?hvadid=77996658959720&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&keywords=the+history+of+united+states&qid=1554236531&s=gateway&sr=8-20

    Very readable and covers all the most important stuff, excluding our most recent history. Though he has a new forward for it, so it may cover some of the newest stuff.

  93. 93.

    Kay

    April 2, 2019 at 4:25 pm

    McConnell: Closing down border would have ‘catastrophic’ impact

    Aaaaand, they reverse course, again. I think Jared is running things now. The last 3 stupid ideas were his, I bet.

  94. 94.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:27 pm

    @Kay: Kay, I saw your comment about Kagan and Sotomayor this morning. They are both not only clear thinking and no bullshit, they also prepare far better than some of the other Justices — Soromayor is always impressive in oral argument. She cuts right through and usually knows the record as well as the attorneys do, it seems. Ginsburg is great too. I would say Alito is the least prepared in any case, except for Thomas and who knows with him?

  95. 95.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 4:28 pm

    Britain’s long national nightmare continues….

    Brexit: Theresa May to ask EU for further extension

    Theresa May will ask the EU for an extension to the Brexit deadline to “break the logjam” in Parliament.

    The PM says she wants to meet Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to agree a plan on the future relationship with the EU.

    But she insisted her withdrawal agreement – which was voted down last week – would remain part of the deal….

    The cross-party talks offer has angered Tory Brexiteers, with Boris Johnson accusing ministers of “entrusting the final handling of Brexit to Labour”.

    The former foreign secretary said Brexit was “becoming soft to the point of disintegration” and he could never agree with staying in a customs union.

  96. 96.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:29 pm

    @Kay: As for lying liars who lie — I like Ozark’s identification of the problem:

    “They only tell the truth is service to a lie.”

  97. 97.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:31 pm

    @Brachiator: At least May is realizing a unity government is the only way to pull this off. Labour’s price for this will be steep.

  98. 98.

    Kay

    April 2, 2019 at 4:32 pm

    @Barbara:

    They have to decide. If they’re going to use a legal analysis, then use a legal analysis. Don’t invent a sort of vaguely legal analysis that is sloppy and wrong. What are they asking? Does Abram think Trump “colluded”? That’s not a legal question- it’s an opinion. They made a big, dumb muddle of it. Prosecutors don’t “exonerate” people. They either indict or they don’t indict.

    I think the report will clear it up. Which is why they don’t want to release it.

  99. 99.

    PAM Dirac

    April 2, 2019 at 4:32 pm

    @Uncle Cosmo:

    I still have the 1-volume edition of H&R that I used in Intro Physics 50 years ago.

    I still have my copy as well from freshman physics taught by Resnick. He told us that Halliday was a fictitious person he invented for tax purposes.

  100. 100.

    sdhays

    April 2, 2019 at 4:32 pm

    @jl: i assume the “loophole” is some language about not hating on trans-people. After all, think of the toilets!

  101. 101.

    Mary G

    April 2, 2019 at 4:35 pm

    Per @tom_winter: The US Secret Service has charged a Chinese national with making false statements to law enforcement and entering Mar-A-Lago with a thumb drive containing malicious software, according to court documents.— Ken Dilanian (@KenDilanianNBC) April 2, 2019

  102. 102.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:35 pm

    @Kay: That is why I have said, the Mueller report will be a legal document. The Barr letter was a political document. It was the least legal thing I have seen since, well, Comey’s statements about Clinton.

  103. 103.

    Kay

    April 2, 2019 at 4:36 pm

    @Immanentize:

    Kagan is slashing in a way I didn’t credit her with. It’s like a cross examination. Really strong. I was impressed. I thought of her as more scholarly than that. Duller, really. I don’t know where I got that impression but I was wrong.

  104. 104.

    Aleta

    April 2, 2019 at 4:37 pm

    “Let’s move on” … seems to be some strategists’ takeaway lesson from the scandals in VA.

    “It just went poof,” said Natalie Draper, a librarian sitting in the back of a coffeehouse last week in Richmond. “It’s like it never happened.”

    Virginians have various theories as to how this surreal normalcy set in ….

    Some political observers mused about more fundamental changes to the life span of scandal, describing President Trump’s approach to bad press as if it were a revolutionary medical breakthrough.

    “Don’t apologize, move on, and everybody will talk about something else next week,” is how Ben Tribbett, a Democratic strategist, described it. “Maybe we’ve been doing it wrong over the last 100 years.”

    May be this is the strategy they are going with for Biden too.

    I can imagine political strategists thinking: Constant chaos of bad news beating people about the head? There’s always a silver lining that a political strategist can use to advantage!!! “Just move on, baby.”

    link to followw

  105. 105.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 4:38 pm

    @Kay:

    Which top secret document will we get first? The Mueller Report or Bernie Sanders tax returns?

    From The Treasure of the Sierra Sanders

    Berndito: “Taxes? We ain’t got no taxes. We don’t need no taxes. I don’t have to show you any stinkin’ taxes!

  106. 106.

    Aleta

    April 2, 2019 at 4:40 pm

    @Immanentize: Obama did good.

  107. 107.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:40 pm

    @Kay: Kagan is a bit of a killer — always was, even as Dean at Harvard. Someone said that the S.Ct. women all seem like nice people. Ginsburg is, Sotomayor is. But Kagan well, “nice” is not a word I ever thought to say about her…. She is not sarcastic or self-centered like Scalia, but slashing is a good description — she is just not a fan of bullshit.

  108. 108.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    April 2, 2019 at 4:40 pm

    So just today Twitler kept saying “Oranges” when he was trying to say “Origins” (3 times) and claimed his Dad was German, born in Germany, a wonderful place in Germany (his Dad was born in New York). And we thought Regan was demented.

  109. 109.

    germy

    April 2, 2019 at 4:41 pm

    Russian Troll Farm:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaR5SUq_8K4

    animated short

  110. 110.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:42 pm

    @Aleta: Very good. Garland would have been fine — a very good Judge, but he was a compromise choice and he would never have been as good as Kagan or Sotomayor. I’m wondering if they are marking territory a bit this term. They seem more — active.

  111. 111.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:43 pm

    @Litlebritdifrnt: Reagan was demented.

  112. 112.

    sdhays

    April 2, 2019 at 4:43 pm

    @Brachiator: What a shit show.

  113. 113.

    Mary G

    April 2, 2019 at 4:44 pm

    @Mary G: Link to Secret Service affadavit.

    She told the first checkpoint she was going to the pool, passed any number of agents, then lied to a receptionist that she was there for a UN event. No swimming apparel was found on her person.

  114. 114.

    Aleta

    April 2, 2019 at 4:45 pm

    @Aleta: link to above:
    https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/02/us/virginia-scandal-northam-fairfax.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=US

    (This story appeared around the same time as the story
    Va. Speaker says legislature will not hold hearing into sexual assault claims against Lt. Gov. Fairfax (WaPo)

  115. 115.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 4:45 pm

    @Immanentize:

    At least May is realizing a unity government is the only way to pull this off.

    It’s a little late in the day for anything approaching common sense to finally occur to her. She’s still insisting that her plan must be the foundation of any agreement. Which is nuts.

    Labour’s price for this will be steep.

    The sad thing is that Labour, Conservatives, and other political factions have all behaved miserably. And it’s unclear the degree to which the EU is going to let this crap continue to play out.

  116. 116.

    Immanentize

    April 2, 2019 at 4:47 pm

    @Brachiator: I think they have said any further delay will be a long one and that now Britain must participate in upcoming EU elections (including costs).

  117. 117.

    sdhays

    April 2, 2019 at 4:48 pm

    @Immanentize: She’ll probably figure out that she wants to pay their price about 3 months after No Deal Brexit leaves Britain a burning hellscape…

  118. 118.

    Mary G

    April 2, 2019 at 4:50 pm

    @Brachiator:

    A number of ministers have told me that @theresa_may has definitively decided that no-deal Brexit on 12 April must be avoided at all costs. So if she cannot reach Brexit compromise with @jeremycorbyn “we will have to reach out around him”, says one. Which will reinforce fears…— Robert Peston (@Peston) April 2, 2019

    I now have "Theresa May", "Jeremy Corbyn" and "Reach around" in the same headspace, and to be honest this is the worst consequence of Brexit thus far. https://t.co/2lwWqwlep5— Dean Burnett (@garwboy) April 2, 2019

  119. 119.

    ruemara

    April 2, 2019 at 4:55 pm

    @Mary G: They’re both idiots. Just give up on Brexit because it’s going to fuck the country. And I cannot fathom why DSA types just drool over Corbyn. What is the fetish for pretend socialist loud grandpas?

  120. 120.

    Mary G

    April 2, 2019 at 4:59 pm

    President McCrazy Pants is decompressing:

    Wow — Trump repeatedly mangles the word "origins," on three separate occasions saying "oranges" instead. ? pic.twitter.com/EZggYhIAO7— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 2, 2019

    Trump just said "my father is German, was German. Born in a very wonderful place in Germany." Fred Trump was born in New York. pic.twitter.com/U6eWYPzjrJ— Tommy MMXIXtopher (@tommyxtopher) April 2, 2019

  121. 121.

    FlipYrWhig

    April 2, 2019 at 5:02 pm

    @ruemara: AFAICT it’s basically wishing for a cool stepdad rather than your regular boring parents.

  122. 122.

    sdhays

    April 2, 2019 at 5:03 pm

    @ruemara: I don’t follow the hatred or fan-boyism of Corbyn too closely, but the one thing I keep coming back to is that he’s Labour leader because the people who think they should lead Labour let David Cameron get away with a double-dip recession. That was political malpractice and a betrayal of Labour’s constituency, so it’s no wonder that the rank and file aren’t too eager to dump him for more of the same. That said, he definitely doesn’t seem to be the leader Britain needs.

  123. 123.

    clay

    April 2, 2019 at 5:04 pm

    @Mary G:

    A number of ministers have told me that @theresa_may has definitively decided that no-deal Brexit on 12 April must be avoided at all costs. So if she cannot reach Brexit compromise with @jeremycorbyn “we will have to reach out around him”, says one.

    ‘Reach around’ jokes aside, what does this mean? If they could passed something without Corbyn they would’ve done so already. Is this just bluster, or am I missing something?

  124. 124.

    Mary G

    April 2, 2019 at 5:09 pm

    @clay: Unicorns, ponies, “great healthcare plan” etc.

  125. 125.

    JPL

    April 2, 2019 at 5:15 pm

    @Immanentize: Who’s on first.. Who thought those would be the good days.

  126. 126.

    karen marie

    April 2, 2019 at 5:19 pm

    @raven: You lost me at “Andrew Sullivan.” I have a hard time believing any book endorsed by him is worth reading.

  127. 127.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 5:23 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    @Kay: How do we deal with the media which was keen on exonerating T as Barr was. And not just Fox, but Snooze Hour and Vichy Times.

    I’m glad that they look like clowns.

  128. 128.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 5:23 pm

    @ruemara:

    They’re both idiots. Just give up on Brexit because it’s going to fuck the country. And I cannot fathom why DSA types just drool over Corbyn. What is the fetish for pretend socialist loud grandpas?

    As a total outsider, Corbyn reminds me of Bernie Sanders, a useless dope whose head is buried in the past. Until very late in an already late process, he refused to fully reveal Labour’s position on BREXIT. I can understand that he wants to be prime minister, but he has just been part of the entire problem with this nonsense.

    @clay:

    A number of ministers have told me that @theresa_may has definitively decided that no-deal Brexit on 12 April must be avoided at all costs. So if she cannot reach Brexit compromise with @jeremycorbyn “we will have to reach out around him”, says one.

    ‘Reach around’ jokes aside, what does this mean? If they could passed something without Corbyn they would’ve done so already. Is this just bluster, or am I missing something?

    Theresa May is an idiot surrounded by morons. When she offered to step down if her deal passed, she did not count the votes first. And so, she lost again. A hard core of her own party are desperately holding out for a “no deal” BREXIT, so she is finally reaching out to Corbyn. But there is still no guarantee that this will work out.

    Had she been a better negotiator, she might have been able to pull together and hold a majority composed of any number of factions. But she didn’t have the skill. And to be totally fair, the various factions might still have betrayed her.

    Supposedly, the EU has hinted that they may be open to an extension. All the factions holding this thing up may have been right about one thing. The EU does not want a “no deal” BREXIT. They see the harm it would cause, including harm to the UK. The crazy thing is, hard core BREXIT supporters in May’s party could not leverage their position, and just kept drawing this thing out.

    And now there are EU members who are so pissed at Britain that they might push for a “no deal” BREXIT just to be rid of this nonsense. And the Tory hard liners may still try to pull the rug out from under May.

    Labour might want a general election, one that might see Corbyn become prime minister. The Tory hard liners want to keep the present government in place, and just dump May in favor of someone like Boris Johnson or some other British Deplorable.

  129. 129.

    Raven

    April 2, 2019 at 5:24 pm

    @karen marie: so don’t read it, I sure don’t give a shit. With all the gender conversations I thought people here would be interested in a book written by a woman.

  130. 130.

    FlipYrWhig

    April 2, 2019 at 5:29 pm

    @karen marie: Please don’t hold Jill Lepore responsible for the many sins of Andrew Sullivan!

  131. 131.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 5:29 pm

    @Immanentize:

    I think they have said any further delay will be a long one and that now Britain must participate in upcoming EU elections (including costs).

    Yeah. But some EU members don’t trust Britain and don’t want them to have any members in the EU parliament. They don’t trust that these representatives would fairly represent larger EU interests and might try to solely push British interests.

    This would be like a spouse saying. “I hate you. I want a divorce and I’m sleeping with your best friend. But until I decide when I’m, going to finally leave you I will still live in our home and just ordered some new furniture.”

  132. 132.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 5:32 pm

    @Kay:

    Guffaw. “Let’s move on”. Fat chance.

    Naw, muthaphucka…Naw…

  133. 133.

    Roger Moore

    April 2, 2019 at 5:33 pm

    @FlipYrWhig:

    “if you let a man marry a man, eventually there will be nothing stopping a man from marrying a turtle.”

    The Secretary of Commerce already married a turtle, so it’s too late.

  134. 134.

    karen marie

    April 2, 2019 at 5:36 pm

    @Raven: You seem to be mighty bothered about people who think Andrew Sullivan’s thumbs-up is a negative endorsement. I didn’t look to see the gender of the author, or even think to wonder whether the author was a man or a woman. If you are highlighting that book for that reason, you might want to say so, instead of including reviews by fucking Andrew Sullivan.

    ADD: Yeah, yeah – “Jill Lepore” – I still don’t understand what her gender has to do with the history she wrote.

  135. 135.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 5:36 pm

    @Kay:

    Well, because they were relying on a legal definition. Trump was not, in fact, indicted for coordination and conspiracy. “Collusion”, which they made up, but whatever. They took refuge in that. Like criminal defense lawyers.

    But that doesn’t speak to “wrongdoing” at all, and never has.

    All you need to do is play Adam Schiff’s speech from last week. It still packs a punch and I’ve watched it at least a half dozen times.

  136. 136.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 5:37 pm

    @Brachiator:

    Brexit: Theresa May to ask EU for further extension

    Theresa May will ask the EU for an extension to the Brexit deadline to “break the logjam” in Parliament.

    Her stupidity is tiresome from THIS side of the pond. She’s as deceitful as her Tory counterparts that sold the Brexit shyt sandwich and then split right after.

  137. 137.

    Miss Bianca

    April 2, 2019 at 5:39 pm

    @karen marie: You know, if Andrew Sulluvan suddenly outed himself as a Jane Austen fan, I wouldn’t suddenly decide to throw all my Jane Austens into the trash. YMMV.

  138. 138.

    rikyrah

    April 2, 2019 at 5:40 pm

    @Brachiator:

    As a total outsider, Corbyn reminds me of Bernie Sanders, a useless dope whose head is buried in the past. Until very late in an already late process, he refused to fully reveal Labour’s position on BREXIT. I can understand that he wants to be prime minister, but he has just been part of the entire problem with this nonsense.

    CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP

  139. 139.

    Brachiator

    April 2, 2019 at 5:50 pm

    @raven:

    “These Truths, Jill Lepore”

    Looks very interesting. It’s on my list now. Thanks very much.

  140. 140.

    Raven

    April 2, 2019 at 5:56 pm

    @karen marie: cat asked for history books. I knew about this from seeing her onTV and thought she was really interesting. I just hit the amazon page and copied it, I didn’t even read it. This is as much of an explanation as I’m giving.

  141. 141.

    schrodingers_cat

    April 2, 2019 at 6:01 pm

    NBC’s Kasie Hunt has already anointed BS as the D nominee.

    Anyone who doesn’t treat @BernieSanders becoming the Democratic nominee as a realistic and even likely possibility is making a big mistake (and failed to learn from mistakes made in 2016)

  142. 142.

    zhena gogolia

    April 2, 2019 at 6:03 pm

    @Raven:

    She’s a highly respected historian and I think a Harvard professor (oops, I forgot that that’s a bad thing now).

  143. 143.

    zhena gogolia

    April 2, 2019 at 6:03 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Wait, was he the nominee in 2016? I forgot that. //

  144. 144.

    Jay

    April 2, 2019 at 6:04 pm

    @clay:

    There is a convoluted and complex voting process in the Parliament.

    There are “whipped votes” where MP’s vote the Party line or face consequences, and “free votes” which are free of consequence.

    The “reach around” referrs to bypassing Corbyn and the Party Leadership, and go directly to the MP’s to try to get their votes, or get them to cross the floor.

    May’s goal has always been to run out the clock in the hopes that her NotReallyBrexit Brexit will be preferred to a Hard Brexit.

    The funniest thing is, almost everybody writing about Brexit pretends that the EU has no agency, almost like they don’t exist.

  145. 145.

    Jay

    April 2, 2019 at 6:06 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    “NBC’s Kasie Hunt has already anointed BS as the D nominee.”

    No she didn’t say that at all.

  146. 146.

    J R in WV

    April 2, 2019 at 6:11 pm

    @Immanentize:

    I would say Alito is the least prepared in any case, except for Thomas and who knows with him?

    Silent Cal, who knows what evil lurks in his heart?

  147. 147.

    Keith P.

    April 2, 2019 at 6:16 pm

    @Mary G: As if on queue.

  148. 148.

    J R in WV

    April 2, 2019 at 6:22 pm

    @Roger Moore:

    The Secretary of Commerce already married a turtle, so it’s too late

    No, no, Wilbur Ross is Commerce, Elaine Chow is Transportation, because her family operates one of the largest oceanic transportation shipping companies in the world. Also married to Turtle McConnell. Not Wilbur… unless, do you think…?

    Dunno if Wilbur loves him some turtle or not…?

    eta fix things!

  149. 149.

    sdhays

    April 2, 2019 at 6:25 pm

    @Jay: That always seems to be the view in the UK. They always assume that the EU will just do whatever shit sandwich the UK Tories can cobble together. And they have an outsized view of how bad Hard Brexit would be for the EU, leading them to believe that the EU should be just as desperate to avoid a Hard Brexit as the UK should be. But Hard Brexit is a serious inconvenience for the EU and a disaster for the UK. It’s like no one has told them that the Empire is dead and they’re just an island in the North Atlantic with a bunch of illegal money jacking up housing prices in the capital.

    As difficult as it is for many in Britain to comprehend this, the Italians will survive without British sausages (or whatever).

  150. 150.

    Keith P.

    April 2, 2019 at 6:33 pm

    @Keith P.: Or “cue”….I’ve been coding all day, so the other one is stuck in my head.

  151. 151.

    Jay

    April 2, 2019 at 6:39 pm

    @sdhays:

    Even media outside the UK spends more time and reporting on the Great British Brexit Off, as if there arn’t any Europeans on the show at all.

    Drama, drama, drama vs. policy and procedure.

  152. 152.

    J R in WV

    April 2, 2019 at 6:48 pm

    @sdhays:

    As difficult as it is for many in Britain to comprehend this, the Italians will survive without British sausages (or whatever).

    Yes. What does “Great” Britan export to the EU that can’t be provided by factories moved from the English Isles to, where anywhere in Europe… cheddar, perhaps? Kippers — no, I see those from other places, like Norway and Ireland. Bangers? Nope!

    So why would the EU need “Great” Britian, compared to Britian needing , say France for Champaign…….

  153. 153.

    Jay

    April 2, 2019 at 6:55 pm

    @J R in WV:

    Toxic UKIP Brexiteers in the EU Parliament lowering the IQ?

  154. 154.

    Fair Economist

    April 2, 2019 at 7:28 pm

    @clay: In this context “reach around” means deal with other opposition figures other than Corbyn. Most likely it would be an agreement for a referendum, with the negotiations with SNP and LibDem, and them bringing likeminded Labour along against Corbyn’s wishes.

    My bet, though, is for the Brexit with CU deal since both Corbyn and May want Brexit without a referendum.

  155. 155.

    karen marie

    April 2, 2019 at 7:43 pm

    @Miss Bianca: No, I wouldn’t either, but then Jane Austen is a known entity – an author I read long before Andrew Sullivan was out of diapers, so, yeah, I’m not going to dump her either. But that’s not what we’re talking about here, is it?

    I have a tall pile of books to be read. I’m not going to put one on the top of the pile that was provided specifically with an endorsement from Andrew Sullivan.

  156. 156.

    Amir Khalid

    April 2, 2019 at 8:46 pm

    @Jay:
    You need to bear in mind that in this situation, Britain is the mentally disturbed person threatening to harm themselves, and the EU is the family member trapped in the house with them.

  157. 157.

    Anne Laurie

    April 2, 2019 at 10:05 pm

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    That’s a curious way of saying autocratic, racists, interventionist, Catholic bashing, Klan loving demagogue Anne Laurie. I would say if there is a template for Donald Trump, it’s Wilson.

    I have no love for ol’ Woodrow, but the caricature of him is how the Repubs sold their boy Warren to the proverbial ‘low-info voters’ (fellow bigots).

  158. 158.

    columbusqueen

    April 3, 2019 at 3:47 am

    @raven: I actually have Lepore’s These Truths, have read about a third, & would highly recommend it.

  159. 159.

    Miss Bianca

    April 3, 2019 at 10:00 am

    @karen marie: Well, I have read the book and it’s good, so maybe you’re just the kind of idiot who makes a virtue of knee-jerk reactions.

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