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The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

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Trump’s cabinet: like a magic 8 ball that only gives wrong answers.

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Cancel the cowardly Times and Post and set up an equivalent monthly donation to ProPublica.

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The gop is a fucking disgrace.

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You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / Just In Time For Dinner…

Just In Time For Dinner…

by Tom Levenson|  April 13, 20176:51 pm| 165 Comments

This post is in: Foreign Affairs, Grifters Gonna Grift, Trump Crime Cartel

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A snarkalicious palate cleanser:

Just days before the state visit of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump’s Palm Beach private club, Florida restaurant inspectors found potentially dangerous raw fish and cited the club for storing food in two broken down coolers.

Inspectors found 13 violations at the fancy club’s kitchen, according to recently published reports — a record for an institution that charges $200,000 in initiation fees.

Three of the violations were deemed “high priority,” meaning that they could allow the presence of illness-causing bacteria on plates served in the dining room. [h/t TPM]

Now that’s how you consummate foreign affairs! Poison visiting leaders. Introduce projectile vomiting as an Olympic event.  Introduce our allies to the miracle of American health care!

Is there anything the shitgibbon touches that isn’t a whited sepulchre? Asking for a friend.

Consider this a break from waiting for the war(s) to start.  Open thread and all that, with a special request for receipe/dish names to be served at Mar-a-Microbe.

Image: Giovanni Bellini, The Feast of the Gods, 1514.

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Reader Interactions

165Comments

  1. 1.

    Snarki, child of Loki

    April 13, 2017 at 6:55 pm

    One can just hope that history repeats itself, with some Trumpu-suru

  2. 2.

    Politically Lost

    April 13, 2017 at 6:55 pm

    Botulism Burrito

  3. 3.

    geg6

    April 13, 2017 at 6:56 pm

    My sister once worked catering an event at Mar-a-Lago and she and the chef walked in on him screwing Marla Maples in the walk-in fridge. Ivana, his wife at the time, was in the dining room. Scarred my sister for life.

  4. 4.

    Shana

    April 13, 2017 at 6:57 pm

    Here’s a recipe:

    Take chicken breasts out of the freezer. Put them on the kitchen counter. Forget to put them in the fridge before leaving for work. Get unexpectedly called out of town overnight. Come home the next day, see the chicken and decide to cook it anyway. Dinner!

  5. 5.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 6:57 pm

    What I thought was interesting is that when Trump took a more hands-on role in the management of Mar-a-Lago, before he began running for president, there were only one or two violations. As soon as he stopped paying such detailed attention, the numbers shot way up. The message I take from that is that he should immediately resign as POTUS, which he clearly doesn’t enjoy and isn’t good at, and go into restaurant management, which seems to be his métier.

  6. 6.

    Politically Lost

    April 13, 2017 at 6:58 pm

    coli-cauliflower soup

  7. 7.

    Erin in Flagstaff

    April 13, 2017 at 6:58 pm

    You know, one of the benefits of using the White House for state dinners is that the kitchens at the White House most likely do not have food inspectors visiting on a regular basis. But, no, Trump must use a restaurant that will get visited by inspectors. His need to make money on serving meals is friggin’ amazing.

  8. 8.

    lollipopguild

    April 13, 2017 at 6:59 pm

    I am sure that if someone had gotten sick at the dinner Obama and the Dems would have been to blame.

  9. 9.

    Politically Lost

    April 13, 2017 at 6:59 pm

    machine-gun shit salad

  10. 10.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 7:00 pm

    @Shana:

    Hope your Seder was wonderful. Did you ever figure out what, if anything, it was that you had forgotten?

  11. 11.

    Politically Lost

    April 13, 2017 at 7:01 pm

    C-diff steak

  12. 12.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 7:01 pm

    @geg6: The creature is vile. Once he’s impeached and removed from office, appropriate action needs to be taken.

  13. 13.

    HeleninEire

    April 13, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    I just found a flaw in Facebook’s analytics (is that the right word?). Anyway; you know how FB tells you that they can’t/won’t tell you who is viewing your profile?

    Well. I just got one of those “people you may know, wanna make them your friend?” things. Now normally they are from friends of friends or maybe someone who went to the same college, or worked at the same company as you. I really don’t pay them any mind since I have severely limited my friends to people with whom I really want to talk to or hear from.

    BUT, I just got one from FB about a guy who I knew here in February for about 2 weeks. We have no other connections except that we went on 2 dates. We have no mutual friends, and certainly no mutual FB friends. So clearly he searched for me on FB. And that is fine. I share nothing with the public. But it was a bit freaky. BAD JOB FACEBOOK. I now know someone who searched for me.

  14. 14.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    @Erin in Flagstaff: The false billionaire needs every nickle he can get. His Russian mobster banker masters want their money.

  15. 15.

    Chet Murthy

    April 13, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    @Erin in Flagstaff: Uh … uh …. given that from what i remember, a ton of white house staff quit when El Tangerino assumed power, how would having dinners at the WH be better?

    OK, OK. I get you, that maybe the staff up there are a little more-skilled. Heck, maybe the Secret Service would regard unsanitary conditions as a threat to the safety of the people they’re sworn to protect.

  16. 16.

    MomSense

    April 13, 2017 at 7:03 pm

    @geg6:

    I heard some stories from the manager at the Russian Tea Room back in the day.

  17. 17.

    Politically Lost

    April 13, 2017 at 7:03 pm

    diverticulettuce and wilted greens

  18. 18.

    laura

    April 13, 2017 at 7:04 pm

    a special request for receipe/dish names to be served at Mar-a-Microbe.
    Shit on a gold-plated shingle a la carte.

  19. 19.

    Politically Lost

    April 13, 2017 at 7:05 pm

    salmonella salmon

  20. 20.

    danielx

    April 13, 2017 at 7:06 pm

    Meningitis a la Donald

  21. 21.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 7:06 pm

    (Up)-Chuck Roast

  22. 22.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 7:06 pm

    Donald Trump’s business (now run by his two adult sons) has 157 trademark applications pending in 36 countries, according to The New York Times.
    …
    When the Chinese granted Trump preliminary approval of 38 trademarks of his name soon after he was sworn into office—and right after Trump backed off of his brief flirtation with a “two China” policy—China gave Trump the equivalent of a huge amount of money.

    Meanwhile, Ivanka Trump has 37 trademark applications pending in 10 countries, covering the sale of leather goods in China, jewelry in the Philippines and beauty products in Indonesia.
    …
    A lawsuit filed in January in the Southern District of New York, by a group called Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, joined by several prominent law professors, seeks a judgment that Trump has violated the emoluments clause.

    Who’s representing Trump in that lawsuit? The United States, in the form of senior attorneys in the Department of Justice.

    In a legal brief expected to be filed this month, department lawyers will argue that the framers of the Constitution meant only to rule out gifts and compensation for services rather than for any favorable policies; that, in any event, the court has no authority to intervene because the power to waive the clause lies with Congress; and plaintiffs have no standing to sue, anyway.

    Why is the U.S. Justice Department representing Trump’s personal financial interests, and not the broader interests of the citizens of the United States? Don’t the rest of us have a right to be represented?

    Interpretations of the U.S. Constitution by the Department of Justice aren’t like the musings of any random defense attorney. They carry special weight. They’re supposed to represent the views of the United States.

    But there’s no justification for the United States getting behind an interpretation of Article I, Section 9 that favors Trump’s personal financial interests.

    Having the U.S. Department of Justice represent Trump’s financial interests around the world is just another way Trump is fleecing America and making money off of his presidency.

    We the people need to be represented against Donald Trump’s far-flung businesses. Trump can afford his own lawyer.

    Robert Reich, Newsweek

  23. 23.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 7:07 pm

    Beef Wellington with ricin-risotto.

  24. 24.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:08 pm

    Trumpezuma’s revenge

  25. 25.

    Politically Lost

    April 13, 2017 at 7:09 pm

    Hep-A buffet.

  26. 26.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 7:09 pm

    Toxic Trump-truffles in chokealet sauce.

  27. 27.

    MomSense

    April 13, 2017 at 7:11 pm

    Eggs Benedict Arnold.

  28. 28.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 7:12 pm

    Oh for fuq’s sake…

    U.S. May Launch Strike If North Korea Reaches For Nuclear Trigger

  29. 29.

    Fester Addams

    April 13, 2017 at 7:13 pm

    Again, everything he touches turns to shit. Raging diarrhea in this case.

  30. 30.

    RobertDSC-iPhone 6

    April 13, 2017 at 7:14 pm

    Orange Fart Cloud Sherbert.

  31. 31.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:14 pm

    @MomSense: Like.

  32. 32.

    kindness

    April 13, 2017 at 7:14 pm

    Trump just wanted to up G H Bush for puking in the Japanese PM’s lap.

  33. 33.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:15 pm

    Maggots-a-Lago

  34. 34.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 7:15 pm

    Phuck-You Duck in Sauce Bernie.

  35. 35.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 7:17 pm

    @lamh36: well shit…I’m sorry for being Debbie Downer…but ugh…smh

  36. 36.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:17 pm

    Taco bowel.

  37. 37.

    Shana

    April 13, 2017 at 7:18 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Not really. I did make green beans which some people, but thankfully none of the ones coming for the seder, think aren’t kosher for passover. So there was that. Thanks for asking.

  38. 38.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    Salmonella White House.

  39. 39.

    danielx

    April 13, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    @geg6:

    Hell, just that image is working on me, and not in a good way.

  40. 40.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    Bullshit Gogi served with Kellyanne Kimchi.

  41. 41.

    efgoldman

    April 13, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    @Shana:

    I did make green beans which some people, but thankfully none of the ones coming for the seder, think aren’t kosher for passover.

    What? I never heard that even from my more kosher than thou uncles.

  42. 42.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 7:22 pm

    Egg phooey young

  43. 43.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:22 pm

    Shit sandwich!

  44. 44.

    hellslittlestangel

    April 13, 2017 at 7:23 pm

    What Trump heard: A record!

  45. 45.

    Shana

    April 13, 2017 at 7:26 pm

    Yeah, seems counterintuitive to me too. Evidently ashkenazi jews don’t eat them because they’re beans, but sephardic jews do eat them.

  46. 46.

    GregB

    April 13, 2017 at 7:26 pm

    I am growing more convinced that Trump will be responsible for millions of deaths.

    He’s in a few months and the US is running around like fucking Godzilla. He wants to launch wars and use every fucking weapon in the arsenal.

  47. 47.

    GregB

    April 13, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    Lobster Marburg.

  48. 48.

    JPL

    April 13, 2017 at 7:29 pm

    Well my son had this last night..
    mobile.twitter.com/The_Jenius/status/852385783973543936
    Some find it appealing and he said it was the best ever, but some find it yuck. On the plus side, his pup is staying at my house, and Finch is loving it.

  49. 49.

    Roger Moore

    April 13, 2017 at 7:29 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    His Russian mobster banker masters want their money.

    I’m sure that nice man Vladimir Vladimirovich will helpfully let him pay his debts back some other way.

  50. 50.

    geg6

    April 13, 2017 at 7:29 pm

    @danielx:

    Imagine how my sister feels.

  51. 51.

    Gravenstone

    April 13, 2017 at 7:30 pm

    @Aleta: Just saw a headline that the Trump sprogs want Bannon fired … to protect the fucking value of the Trump hotel brand! Screw the country, they’re worried about the bottom line. The rotten apples truly did not fall far from the tree.

  52. 52.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 7:31 pm

    @efgoldman:
    @Shana:

    I did make green beans which some people, but thankfully none of the ones coming for the seder, think aren’t kosher for passover.

    What? I never heard that even from my more kosher than thou uncles.

    Well, my ex’s Southern mama and grandma always tossed a big ole hambone in the pot to boil up with the beans and greens, but I assume that’s not part of either of your family’s recipes :-)

    Actually never heard of any kind of vegetable being treif.

  53. 53.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:31 pm

    @geg6: Ugh.

  54. 54.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:31 pm

    @GregB: Remember, Hillary would have been worse.

  55. 55.

    Gravenstone

    April 13, 2017 at 7:31 pm

    @Baud: I. don’t like. you.

  56. 56.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 7:33 pm

    Dirty Fork
    youtube.com/watch?v=EdzqTGmEcZE
    (Monty Python)

  57. 57.

    rikyrah

    April 13, 2017 at 7:34 pm

    where’s IVANKA?

    CNN Breaking News‏Verified account @cnnbrk

    Trump privately signs bill that allows states to withhold federal money from Planned Parenthood cnn.it/2p12wLe

  58. 58.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 7:37 pm

    @rikyrah:

    Just fuck him in the Mar-a-Lago kitchen. With the usual complement of rusty farm implements.

  59. 59.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 7:37 pm

    @rikyrah: She’s beautiful…she’s powerful…she’s…Complicit.
    A fragrance for Ivanka.

  60. 60.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:38 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: I thought you were talking about Ivanka at first.

  61. 61.

    rikyrah

    April 13, 2017 at 7:38 pm

    Jonathan Swan‏Verified account @jonathanvswan

    Crazy amounts of paranoia in the West Wing at the moment. Staff calling me asking who is leaking. (And expecting me to tell them?!?)

  62. 62.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 7:38 pm

    @rikyrah: Another word for “privately” would be “secretly”.

  63. 63.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:38 pm

    @rikyrah: All of them, Katie.

  64. 64.

    debbie

    April 13, 2017 at 7:39 pm

    @MomSense:

    Also, the Plaza and Pierre had issues with inspections.

  65. 65.

    Brachiator

    April 13, 2017 at 7:39 pm

    Puke à l’orange

    Steak Malheur, very well done, with shitty tacky spoiled mushrooms

  66. 66.

    rikyrah

    April 13, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    Keith Olbermann‏Verified account @KeithOlbermann

    The MOAB in Afghanistan is a STUNT. Syria was a STUNT. From Monday: Trump has now learned Bombs=Media Applause

  67. 67.

    Baud

    April 13, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    @rikyrah: Yeah, that’s obvious.

  68. 68.

    debbie

    April 13, 2017 at 7:42 pm

    @Shana:

    I’m from the Ashkenazi branch and never heard of that. I think people are just making up their own rules.

  69. 69.

    JPL

    April 13, 2017 at 7:42 pm

    @Corner Stone: lol She would be crass enough to name her perfume Complicit after her daddy is impeached. Who among us wouldn’t think about buying it. sneeze sneeze

  70. 70.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 7:42 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: Castration costs extra.

  71. 71.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    April 13, 2017 at 7:43 pm

    @rikyrah: Trump privately signs bill that allows states to withhold federal money from Planned Parenthood

    You mean he isn’t doing that thing where he mugs for the camera and shows off his signature?

  72. 72.

    trollhattan

    April 13, 2017 at 7:45 pm

    O/T In corporate America, always keep your eye on jerb#1: Profit uber alles

    Two days after Fox News primetime star Bill O’Reilly announced on air that he’s going on vacation, as he said he did same time last year, and announced a “Guess Where Bill Is Going” online contest, parent-company chief Rupert Murdoch sent a pep-talk memo to staff.

    Colleagues,
    As we enter this new spring season, I’d like to take the opportunity to wish those celebrating, a wonderful Passover and Easter holiday. The first few months of this year have already given us much to be thankful for. FOX News just delivered its highest-rated quarter ever and remains number one in cable in both prime time and total day, while FOX Business has surpassed CNBC as the number one business channel on television. I am tremendously proud of our entire team and truly grateful for the hard work everyone has contributed to ensure our continued future success.
    Regards,

    Crikey, we’re making money and Trump’s president. I’m as happy as a koala on a gum tree bender! Don’t you mind the Sheilas.

  73. 73.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    April 13, 2017 at 7:47 pm

    @rikyrah: KO now calls him President Jackass.

  74. 74.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 7:47 pm

    This Jeff Mason at Reuters is a real sycophantic asshole. Answer the god damned question you simp.

  75. 75.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 7:48 pm

    @rikyrah:

    Staff calling me asking who is leaking. (And expecting me to tell them?!?)

    We are being governed by the Saturday morning cartoon villain organization.

  76. 76.

    Brachiator

    April 13, 2017 at 7:49 pm

    @Baud:

    Remember, Hillary would have been worse.

    As would her cookies.

  77. 77.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 7:51 pm

    @Brachiator: Which is why they were tossed in favor of an omelet spiked with food coloring and rat-lung worms.

  78. 78.

    Roger Moore

    April 13, 2017 at 7:52 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Actually never heard of any kind of vegetable being treif.

    I think there are some strict interpretations that require vegetables be washed thoroughly to make sure there are no insects hiding in them. Some kinds of vegetables, like broccoli, can’t effectively be cleaned that way and thus are forbidden. More importantly, the rules for Passover are much stricter than the rest of the year. Ashkenazi tend to be stricter than Sephardi and forbid beans (and rice and corn) during Passover.

  79. 79.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 7:55 pm

    @Shana:

    ashkenazi jews don’t eat them because they’re beans

    Far be it from me to question someone else’s religious or dietary practices, but that seems odd to me.

    ETA: Decided to Google “are beans kosher” and found this:

    Kitniyot (Hebrew: קִטְנִיּוֹת‎‎, qitniyyot) is a Hebrew word meaning legumes.[1] During the Passover holiday, the word kitniyot takes on a broader meaning to also include, in addition to legumes, grains and seeds such as rice, corn, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, soybeans, peas, and lentils.[2]

    According to Orthodox Ashkenazi laws, Kitniyot may not be eaten during Passover by Jews.[3] Although Reform and Conservative Ashkenazi Judaism currently allow for the consumption of Kitniyot during Passover, long-standing tradition in these and other communities is to abstain from their consumption.[4]

    Huh. Who knew? Live and learn.

  80. 80.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 7:56 pm

    @airwars
    More bombs dropped by Coalition in March than at any time in war against ISIL: and a record number of civilians died

    Interesting TL thread…

    twitter.com/airwars/status/852565471899648000

  81. 81.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 7:57 pm

    @Roger Moore:

    Fascinating. I had no idea.

  82. 82.

    Frankensteinbeck

    April 13, 2017 at 7:57 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:
    One of the interpretations among more Orthodox Jews is that beans swell when you get them wet, so they count as ‘leavened’ food and cannot be eaten on Pasaach. My mother follows that tradition. For those who never heard of it, “Two Jews, three opinions.”

  83. 83.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 7:57 pm

    @AdamSerwer
    do y’all remember in-depth stories checking in with black voters every week while obama was in office?

  84. 84.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 8:00 pm

    Oh, an early dose of Joy Reid. Yes!

  85. 85.

    WaterGirl

    April 13, 2017 at 8:01 pm

    @lamh36: Well, I do recall so-called journalists checking in with Barack Obama every time a black person did something, does that count?

  86. 86.

    Steeplejack (phone)

    April 13, 2017 at 8:02 pm

    Pundit upgrade alert! Joy Reid substituting for Chris Hayes on All In.

  87. 87.

    mai naem mobile

    April 13, 2017 at 8:04 pm

    This is a disgusting thread to read. They have those ‘Dirty Dining’ features on the local channels here and usually it’s 5 or 6 total violations. They have a priority system too. I am assuming the inspections here are similar to Palm Beach. 13 violations seema huge. I have to wonder when the Trumpkins will figure out who the inspector was and make their lIves a licing hell.

  88. 88.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:04 pm

    I can’t decide what’s worse, the optics or that we’re all going to be poisoned from dirty air and water.

    Guess who just held a big EPA announcement of a “new era of deregulation” in a coal mine.

    No, I’m not making this up.

  89. 89.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:05 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    “Two Jews, three opinions.”

    I thought it was Two Jews, five options and all of them disagree with each other?

  90. 90.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 8:07 pm

    @mai naem mobile:

    a licing hell.

    I think it already is. That’s one of the violations.

  91. 91.

    SFAW

    April 13, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    @TenguPhule:

    Castration costs extra.

    The junior Senator from I-o-way might be able to help. He sure don’t need to be fattened up none.

  92. 92.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    @Steeplejack (phone): I wonder if there is an uptick in shows where Joy Ann subs in for Hayes or Hardball? And if there was, would MSNBC even realize or care that the uptick is cause of Joy?

  93. 93.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 8:10 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    One of the interpretations among more Orthodox Jews is that beans swell when you get them wet, so they count as ‘leavened’ food and cannot be eaten on Pasaach.

    With absolutely no offense, and the proviso that I quite likely have no idea what I’m talking about, may I just say that I think the word “pilpul” was invented for discussions like this.

  94. 94.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 8:10 pm

    @rikyrah: Donald. In the Lincoln bedroom. With Vlad’s best pee hookers.

  95. 95.

    hovercraft

    April 13, 2017 at 8:11 pm

    Shitffle a la orange

  96. 96.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 8:11 pm

    @lamh36: Tweety’s tumbrel ride is way overdue.

  97. 97.

    Tilda Swintons Bald Cap

    April 13, 2017 at 8:12 pm

    @lamh36:

    @JenGriffinFNC
    Multiple sr defense officials say this report is “wildly wrong” “crazy.” Pentagon pushing back on NBC report, call it “extremely dangerous.”

  98. 98.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 8:15 pm

    @TenguPhule: If you don’t use any anesthetic, does that bring the cost down?

  99. 99.

    scav

    April 13, 2017 at 8:15 pm

    @Gravenstone:

    Just saw a headline that the Trump sprogs want Bannon fired … to protect the fucking value of the Trump hotel brand! Screw the country, they’re worried about the bottom line. The rotten apples truly did not fall far from the tree.

    Brainiacs haven’t quite figured out that their own personalities, statements and personalities going high visibility isn’t doing their cherished brand (corporate or personal) any favors. Nah, it’s all just the fault of that staff over there being mean to and unsupportive of daddy.

  100. 100.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:19 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: No, that’s already part of the service.

  101. 101.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 8:19 pm

    @hovercraft:

    IBS flambé

  102. 102.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: Gonna need a bigger tumbrel.

  103. 103.

    Yarrow

    April 13, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    Noro veal.

  104. 104.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 8:22 pm

    @Tilda Swintons Bald Cap: Saw that…I bet they are…Oh and look, it’s a Fox News person…so of course the Faux news watcher in responses can call NBC fake news…you can excuse me if I don’t buy anything anyone at Fox News is selling…as usual, it’s a wait and see

  105. 105.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 8:23 pm

    @Tilda Swintons Bald Cap: Not a praying man but God please let it be inaccurate in the extreme and we can shut garbage like this the hell up. If there is anything guaranteed to make the NoKo small man act out it’s BS reports like this.

  106. 106.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:24 pm

    @Tilda Swintons Bald Cap:

    Pentagon pushing back on NBC report, call it “extremely dangerous.

    Which means Trump went ahead and did it anyway.

    If there is a worst option available, Trump will find it.

  107. 107.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 8:24 pm

    This has been reported in pieces by several papers before now, but here’s The Guardian today (sorry if I’m repeating)

    Britain’s spy agencies played a crucial role in alerting their counterparts in Washington to contacts between members of Donald Trump’s campaign team and Russian intelligence operatives, the Guardian has been told.

    GCHQ first became aware in late 2015 of suspicious “interactions” between figures connected to Trump and known or suspected Russian agents, a source close to UK intelligence said. This intelligence was passed to the US as part of a routine exchange of information, they added.

    Over the next six months, until summer 2016, a number of western agencies shared further information on contacts between Trump’s inner circle and Russians, sources said.

    The European countries that passed on electronic intelligence – known as sigint – included Germany, Estonia and Poland. Australia, a member of the “Five Eyes” spying alliance that also includes the US, UK, Canada and New Zealand, also relayed material, one source said.

    Another source suggested the Dutch and the French spy agency, the General Directorate for External Security or DGSE, were contributors.

    It is understood that GCHQ was at no point carrying out a targeted operation against Trump or his team or proactively seeking information. The alleged conversations were picked up by chance as part of routine surveillance of Russian intelligence assets. Over several months, different agencies targeting the same people began to see a pattern of connections that were flagged to intelligence officials in the US.

    Instead both US and UK intelligence sources acknowledge that GCHQ played an early, prominent role in kickstarting the FBI’s Trump-Russia investigation, which began in late July 2016.

    One source called the British eavesdropping agency the “principal whistleblower”.

    The Guardian has been told the FBI and the CIA were slow to appreciate the extensive nature of contacts between Trump’s team and Moscow ahead of the US election. This was in part due to US law that prohibits US agencies from examining the private communications of American citizens without warrants. “They are trained not to do this,” the source stressed.

    “It looks like the [US] agencies were asleep,” the source added. “They [the European agencies] were saying: ‘There are contacts going on between people close to Mr Trump and people we believe are Russian intelligence agents. You should be wary of this.’

    “The message was: ‘Watch out. There’s something not right here.’”

    According to one account, GCHQ’s then head, Robert Hannigan, passed material in summer 2016 to the CIA chief, John Brennan. The matter was deemed so sensitive it was handled at “director level”. After an initially slow start, Brennan used GCHQ information and intelligence from other partners to launch a major inter-agency investigation.

    In late August and September Brennan gave a series of classified briefings to the Gang of Eight, the top-ranking Democratic and Republican leaders in the House and Senate. He told them the agency had evidence the Kremlin might be trying to help Trump to win the presidency, the New York Times reported.

    One person familiar with the matter said Brennan did not reveal sources but made reference to the fact that America’s intelligence allies had provided information. Trump subsequently learned of GCHQ’s role, the person said.

  108. 108.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    April 13, 2017 at 8:24 pm

    @Tilda Swintons Bald Cap: Mattis coming to increasingly horrified grips with the fact that the trouble with trump being so malleable is that he’ll never be the last person he talks to

  109. 109.

    debbie

    April 13, 2017 at 8:25 pm

    @mai naem mobile:

    In New York, they used to publish the violations in the newspapers (ie, NYT), and it was an effective deterrent. I’m not sure why that practice ended.

  110. 110.

    Yarrow

    April 13, 2017 at 8:25 pm

    @TenguPhule: Time to invest in tumbrel futures?

    @Corner Stone: Yes. This. Please let this be untrue.

  111. 111.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 8:26 pm

    @Aleta: This is going to have to be acknowledged at some point. Every one of our Western allies knew this was happening. We didn’t do a god damned thing about it.

  112. 112.

    hovercraft

    April 13, 2017 at 8:27 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:
    flaming stools a la mar-a-lago.

  113. 113.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    It’s all in the wording…NBC says pre-emptive…but not disputing possible retaliation…which could still be bad…

    @W7VOA
    Multiple intel sources quoted by @NBCNews say 2 @USNavy destroyers capable of shooting Tomahawk cruise missiles now near #Korea peninsula.

    @W7VOA
    Steve Herman Retweeted Steve Herman
    My sources say a pre-emptive strike is NOT planned, contrary to what @NBCNews reporting, but retaliation likely if missile/nuke device test.

    twitter.com/W7VOA/status/852653697968615424

  114. 114.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:29 pm

    @Yarrow: I’ve got bad news for both you and Corner Stone.

    And to add another nightmare to the mix, Japan’s Abe is warning about Sarin warheads. That would be the stuff that NK just assassinated Kim’s half-brother with a few months ago.

  115. 115.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    April 13, 2017 at 8:29 pm

    @Chet Murthy:

    OK, OK. I get you, that maybe the staff up there are a little more-skilled. Heck, maybe the Secret Service would regard unsanitary conditions as a threat to the safety of the people they’re sworn to protect.

    I can not imagine the Secreat Service not looking at the food the president and visiting heads of state eat. Makes one wonder how much of the dinner got rejected.

  116. 116.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    April 13, 2017 at 8:29 pm

    @debbie:

    they used to publish the violations in the newspapers (ie, NYT)

    Fitting, since the New York Times is garbage.

  117. 117.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 8:30 pm

    Eggs Over Queasy

  118. 118.

    Yarrow

    April 13, 2017 at 8:30 pm

    @Aleta: McConnell is not going to come out of this looking good.

  119. 119.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:32 pm

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    I can not imagine the Secreat Service not looking at the food the president and visiting heads of state eat

    Fortunately they’re only checking for poisons and glass, not improper food storage and handling.

    So it is still possible to get Trump through Food Poisoning, provided the doctors can be persuaded not to try and save him.

  120. 120.

    Roger Moore

    April 13, 2017 at 8:33 pm

    @debbie:

    I’m not sure why that practice ended.

    Because the restaurants have a more effective lobby than their customers.

  121. 121.

    Shana

    April 13, 2017 at 8:33 pm

    @debbie: I’m with you. The only thing I can figure out is that they’re “beans” and are lumped in with the other kinds of beans like navy etc. that are not allowed on Passover.

  122. 122.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 8:34 pm

    @Corner Stone: Besides the D and R leaders in Congress, Pence also seems to have known.

  123. 123.

    zhena gogolia

    April 13, 2017 at 8:34 pm

    @lamh36:

    NO. No, I don’t.

  124. 124.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    April 13, 2017 at 8:35 pm

    Orange Julius Typhoid Caesar

  125. 125.

    Roger Moore

    April 13, 2017 at 8:36 pm

    @Yarrow:

    Time to invest in tumbrel futures?

    That’s the kind of thinking that gets you a tumbrel ride.

  126. 126.

    lamh36

    April 13, 2017 at 8:37 pm

    @lamh36: So the US will retaliation for daring to test out nukes?

    But I’m confused, how is any “retaliation” without provocation not essentially declaring war?

  127. 127.

    marcopolo

    April 13, 2017 at 8:38 pm

    @Aleta: I’ll take your dirty fork and raise you a Mr. Creosote

  128. 128.

    MomSense

    April 13, 2017 at 8:38 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Hahaha!

  129. 129.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    @lamh36:

    But I’m confused, how is any “retaliation” without provocation not essentially declaring war?
    Reply

    Technically only Congress gets to declare war.

    Mind you, this doesn’t stop Trump from actually starting (or in this case reigniting) one.

    On the bright side, impeachable offense and potentially death penalty level war crime.

  130. 130.

    Yarrow

    April 13, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    @Aleta: Pence knew. He got all the Presidential Daily Briefings during the transition. The Republicans want to paint him as outside of all this. He’s not.

    @TenguPhule: If our enemies don’t have their spies working as cooks, servers, bus boys, cleaning staff, and golf caddies at Mar-a-Lago then they’re really falling down on the job. I’m sure if they wanted to poison someone there they could.

  131. 131.

    Shana

    April 13, 2017 at 8:39 pm

    @TenguPhule: That’s like the old joke about the jew marooned on an
    island by himself. A year later he gets rescued and shows off what he’s done in the year he’s been there. He’s built all these buildings with a synagogue at one end of a road. Takes they rescuer down the street, here’s the store, here’s the house, here’s the other synagogue. Rescuer asks, “You’re the only one here, whay are there 2 synagogues?” “Oh, that’s the one I’d never go to.”

    I’ll show myself out.

  132. 132.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 8:40 pm

    @Yarrow:

    McConnell is not going to come out of this looking good.

    Trying to envision a scenario under which McConnell would come out looking good.
    Failing miserably.

  133. 133.

    hovercraft

    April 13, 2017 at 8:40 pm

    @Yarrow:
    Turtle never comes out looking good, he doesn’t give a shit, his voters love the pork he brings home, and the media both sides away all his most egregious behavior. Oh and like Twitler, if his lips are moving he’s lying.

  134. 134.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 13, 2017 at 8:40 pm

    @Shana:

    ROFL!

  135. 135.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:43 pm

    @hovercraft:

    he doesn’t give a shit, his voters love the pork he brings home, and the media both sides away all his most egregious behavior.

    Which is why Kentucky really is only going to get it once action is taken to start starving it of Federal Dollars.

  136. 136.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 13, 2017 at 8:44 pm

    @debbie: Restaurants advertising in the Times threatening to end their advertisements. This sort of shit goes on in small towns all the time, and with the rise of the ‘Tubes, the big boys are feeling the heat.

  137. 137.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    April 13, 2017 at 8:45 pm

    So the food in his restaurant’s fridge is pretty much the same as him as president: spoiled, badly prepared, and likely to get you killed.

  138. 138.

    ThresherK

    April 13, 2017 at 8:45 pm

    Time to rewatch the Fawlty Towers with the health inspectors.

    “Lack of proper cleaning routines. Dirty and greasy filters. Greasy and encrusted deep fat fryer. Dirty, cracked, and stained food preparation surfaces. Dirty, cracked, and missing wall and floor tiles. Dirty, marked, and stained utensils. Dirty and greasy interior surfaces of the ventilator hood. Inadequate temperature control and storage of dangerous foodstuffs. Storage of cooked and raw meat in same trays. Storage of raw meat above confectionery, with consequent dripping of meat juices onto creme products. Refrigerator seals loose and cracked, icebox undefrosted, and refrigerator overstuffed. Food handling routines suspect. Evidence of smoking in food preparation area. Dirty and grubby food handling overalls. Lack of wash hand basin — which you gave us a verbal assurance you’d have installed at our last visit, six months ago — and two dead pigeons in the water tank.”

    “Otherwise okay?”

  139. 139.

    TenguPhule

    April 13, 2017 at 8:47 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: On the bright side, all of the people at risk brought it on themselves and richly deserve it. Unlike the rest of us.

  140. 140.

    Shana

    April 13, 2017 at 8:51 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Why do you think so many jews are lawyers? It’s stuff like this.

  141. 141.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 8:54 pm

    Weevil meal Southern fish fry

  142. 142.

    efgoldman

    April 13, 2017 at 8:55 pm

    @Shana:

    Why do you think so many jews are lawyers?

    I always heard: Because they couldn’t get into med school.

  143. 143.

    efgoldman

    April 13, 2017 at 8:57 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim:

    So the food in his restaurant’s fridge is pretty much the same as him as president

    I wonder if the county has the cojones to order the club shut down.
    Cantaloupe Caligula would try to bomb the county offices.

  144. 144.

    Mnemosyne

    April 13, 2017 at 8:58 pm

    I just realized that I forgot to tell you guys: I GOT MY “HAMILTON” TICKETS!

    Only 4-1/2 months to go until showtime …

  145. 145.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 9:00 pm

    @Yarrow:

    Yashar‏Verified account
    @yashar
    WATCH: Pence reading an email hacked/stolen by the Russians and given to Wikileaks. CIA Director said they’re a hostile intel service today.

    twitter.com/yashar/status/852650417481797632

  146. 146.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 9:04 pm

    @marcopolo: Wasn’t there a crusty frogs? Crunchy frogs?

  147. 147.

    Aleta

    April 13, 2017 at 9:11 pm

    @ThresherK: What kind of country is this where the guy who stole the presidency has not only committed (everything in the book) but also runs two ridiculously bad expensive restaurants.

  148. 148.

    Yarrow

    April 13, 2017 at 9:12 pm

    @Aleta: Yep. And that’s just the beginning.

  149. 149.

    Shana

    April 13, 2017 at 9:13 pm

    @Mnemosyne: You’re going to LOVE it. Even knowing the soundtrack really well doesn’t give you the full experience.

  150. 150.

    Steve in the ATL

    April 13, 2017 at 9:15 pm

    @Shana: Jesus Christ. We’re back to this?

  151. 151.

    Steeplejack (phone)

    April 13, 2017 at 9:20 pm

    @lamh36:

    I haven’t seen her sub for Chris Matthews, only Hayes and O’Donnell. I assume the network has some way to track how well she does, but I haven’t seen any numbers.

    Personally, I have nothing against Hayes, but Reid is a better interviewer and doesn’t let the right-wing commenters roll over her like he does.

  152. 152.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 9:31 pm

    @Steeplejack (phone): Joy Reid is the best interviewer/host MSNBC has on their roster. Period.

  153. 153.

    Corner Stone

    April 13, 2017 at 9:38 pm

    I will also say that I am a big fan of Ali Velshi during the daytime lineup of MSNBC. Knows his shit, pushes back and keeps it moving forward. He may be a little more pro-business oriented than I like but he does actually tell people they are bullshitting when they try it on.

  154. 154.

    hovercraft

    April 13, 2017 at 9:40 pm

    @Steeplejack (phone): @Corner Stone:

    Yes she is.
    Tweety is over payed and I don’t think he and his producers would want Joy to sub for him, she actually is a liberal and she challenges villager think, which is not his show. I know he can occasionally ask tough questions, but that’s only when it’s about something he cares about or if the lying is too blatant. The prime time shows are a much better fit, both with the audiences and the host/producers.

  155. 155.

    Mnemosyne

    April 13, 2017 at 9:40 pm

    @Steve in the ATL:

    It never ended. You just didn’t get the inside jokes.

  156. 156.

    Steeplejack (phone)

    April 13, 2017 at 9:49 pm

    @Corner Stone:

    Haven’t seen him. Another host I’ve seen a few times who seems good is Ari Melber.

  157. 157.

    efgoldman

    April 13, 2017 at 9:49 pm

    @hovercraft:

    Tweety is over payed

    If they’re paying him more than minimum wage (which of course they are) he’s one of the most overpaid assholes on the planet.
    And there are an awful lot of them.

  158. 158.

    Mnemosyne

    April 13, 2017 at 9:50 pm

    @Shana:

    I’m very jealous of my brother in law who lives in Chicago — they have an open-ended run there, so he’s gotten to see it twice. We only get it for a couple of months here. ?

  159. 159.

    J R in WV

    April 13, 2017 at 10:22 pm

    @lamh36:

    I know Steve Herman, he’s a great reporter, careful and accurate. But of course, the best reporters can be misled (lied to) by sources, and situations can change rapidly. Like Trump’s “mind”.

    Hope he’s in a safe place if the worst happens.

  160. 160.

    hovercraft

    April 13, 2017 at 11:06 pm

    @efgoldman:
    When he was contemplating running for the senate a few years ago, it was reported that he was making $5 million a year.
    I don’ think he’s worth more than 50 K

  161. 161.

    NotMax

    April 13, 2017 at 11:50 pm

    Highlighted this report a full day previous.

  162. 162.

    Jacel

    April 14, 2017 at 1:23 am

    @Steeplejack (phone): I’ve also been impressed by Ari Melber. Glad to see a deep bench developing at MSNBC.

  163. 163.

    Tehanu

    April 14, 2017 at 2:27 am

    @scav:

    Brainiacs haven’t quite figured out that their own personalities, statements and personalities going high visibility isn’t doing their cherished brand (corporate or personal) any favors.

    You called it, and thank goodness; it’d be much worse if they were competent.

  164. 164.

    Paul

    April 14, 2017 at 4:57 am

    “found potentially dangerous raw fish”
    Thank goodness the Japanese don’t eat anything uncooked!

  165. 165.

    Ryan

    April 14, 2017 at 8:10 am

    Japan could have had payback for George HW Bush, we do forget the upside here.

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